Recaps

Li Si struggled to manage the masochistic fans who flocked to his escape rooms after Varric’s livestreamed escape, while the Gotham police rescued Arthur Jackman. Arthur left the room after reflecting on the fulfillment he had found there, choosing to return to the people waiting for him.

• Varric escaped Li Si’s room and urged viewers to seek meaning in Jigsaw’s escape rooms, prompting hundreds of people to sign up.
• Li Si became overwhelmed by the flood of eager applicants, tried to redirect them to Joker, and was forced to keep hiding as fans searched for his escape rooms.
• Skynet told Li Si that Commissioner Gordon had located Arthur Jackman’s room and was leading officers to breach it.
• Gordon’s team found Arthur alive and absorbed in writing on his tablet, with snacks and an inflatable doll beside him.
• Arthur told Gordon that he was unharmed and warned him that Jigsaw had put a bomb inside the mannequin.
• Arthur paused at the exit, then chose to leave the room and return to the people waiting for him.

Arthur Jackman reunited with Mina after escaping Jigsaw’s simulation, then received Jigsaw’s critique of his failures and a proposal to write books from supplied outlines. Li Si planned to use Arthur’s work to introduce Chinese transmigration web-novel ideas to the world.

• Arthur Jackman returned home with Mina and shared a meal with her.
• Jigsaw called Arthur and explained that his complacency, lack of initiative, and limited knowledge had caused him to barely pass the simulation.
• Arthur recognized how Jigsaw had repeatedly pushed him to change and realized his survival had depended on Jigsaw going easy on him.
• Li Si offered Arthur a book-writing job, providing outlines in exchange for an equal share of the profits.
• Li Si sent Arthur the outlines and resolved to promote Chinese transmigration web novels as part of his plan to enlighten people.

Arthur Jackman read Jigsaw’s detailed story outlines and realized their mass appeal could make him wealthy and famous. He suspected Jigsaw had a hidden purpose and concluded the stories were meant to guide readers’ emotions and reduce real-world crime, leaving him alarmed about joining a plan to influence the world.

• Arthur Jackman reassured Mina that he would stay home while she slept, then returned to the living room to inspect Jigsaw’s documents.
• Arthur Jackman read Jigsaw’s glossary of web-novel concepts and found the ideas inspiringly unfamiliar.
• Arthur Jackman read the detailed outlines and recognized their potential to attract a broad audience and generate immense profits.
• Arthur Jackman wondered why Jigsaw had offered him half the profits and the chance to take the credit despite the outlines’ value.
• Arthur Jackman reasoned that Jigsaw intended the stories to release readers’ negative emotions and guide them away from crime, then feared he had become part of a scheme to influence the world.

Lee reflected on how his Jigsaw businesses had turned the instance into a booming management venture, then went out with Maberen to test whether Batman had gathered enough hatred to send him to Arkham. Their walk led them to a peaceful Gotham park, where the chapter ended with two children pretending to shoot them with toy guns.

• Arthur Jackman recruited Jigsaw Forum writers, and their webnovels made the forum and Lee’s Jigsaw Live Network wildly popular.
• Lee checked the scoreboard and saw that the growing platforms had earned him more than thirty thousand points, while Maberen had gained over eight thousand.
• Worried that his illegal businesses might attract the Internal Revenue Service, Lee called Maberen and left the hotel to stir up Batman’s attention.
• Lee and Maberen walked through Gotham in disguise, and Maberen reflected on the oppressive pace of life in the game worlds.
• Lee and Maberen reached a tranquil park, where two children pointed toy guns at them and pretended to shoot.

Li Si thwarted an apparent assassination attempt on Maberen by two children and suspected the Joker was behind it. He took the injured children to a hospital, leaving the attackers’ larger plan unresolved.

• Li Si spotted a toy gun aimed at Maberen and kicked the first child aside before knocking the second child’s gun away.
• Li Si sent Maberen away and carried both children out of the park, suspecting the Joker had arranged the attack.
• A taxi driver tried to flee, so Li Si exposed a bomb beneath the seat and forced him to drive to the nearest hospital.
• Li Si treated the unconscious child’s injuries as best he could and asked Skynet to remind him to carry medical supplies for treating others.

Lee Stein took two injured children to Wayne Hospital, where a masked gunman attacked him in the lobby. The attacker revealed himself as Jason, who injected himself with drugs and demanded that Lee Stein let out the Hulk.

• Lee Stein brought the two injured children to Wayne Hospital and waited while they received treatment.
• The hospital crowd recognized Lee Stein's Jigsaw-like outfit, and he claimed he was only cosplaying.
• A silenced bullet curved away from Lee Stein after his electromagnetic deflection field activated, and further shots sent the lobby into chaos.
• Lu Yao, now calling himself Jason, approached Lee Stein and fired at him with a pistol fitted with a loudspeaker.
• Jason discarded the gun, injected himself with a collection of drugs, and demanded that Lee Stein release the Hulk.

Lee Stein confronted Jason, who mistook him for a man with alternate personalities and tried to provoke his transformation. A different Lizard-man appeared and fought Jason, but Lee turned on Jason too, ending the chapter by striking him with a laser cutter.

• Jason attacked Lee Stein with a baseball bat, believing the threat would bring out Lee’s alternate personality.
• A giant Lizard-man burst through the hospital wall and sent Jason flying while Lee watched in confusion.
• The Lizard-man tried to grab Jason, but Jason stunned it with a high-voltage device and rolled away as a grenade fell between it and Lee.
• Lee kicked the grenade toward Jason and swung his giant holographic cleaver across Jason’s escape route, but Jason charged through the harmless projection.
• Jason equipped an exoskeleton gauntlet, but Lee revealed the cleaver’s handle concealed a laser cutter and burned Jason in the kidney.

Li Si captured Jason after the fight and learned that the Lizard-man was Waylon Jones, who had teamed up with Maberen. Waiting in the hospital for the mastermind behind the attack, Li Si confronted Joker, who revealed the children’s cruelty and claimed he had prepared them as guests for Jigsaw’s show.

• Maberen returned with the unconscious Jason, while Waylon Jones followed and bickered with him about whether they were both lizard-men.
• Li Si sent Maberen and Waylon to Base Twelve with Lu Yao, then asked Skynet to find the children’s parents and went to the hospital ward.
• Li Si waited beside the injured child, reasoning that Joker had orchestrated Jason’s attack and would soon reveal his purpose.
• Joker entered the ward disguised as a male nurse, and Li Si punched him and lifted him by the collar.
• Joker called himself Li Si’s biggest fan and described the children’s cruel pranks, saying he had prepared them for Jigsaw’s show.

Li Si accepted Joker as an assistant and woke Lu Yao to learn about his discovery that Players could influence blueprint skills with real-world knowledge. Lu Yao feared Li Si might kill him to remove a rival, but Li Si showed little interest in the technique’s supposed value.

• Li Si accepted Joker’s offer to assist with his judgments after learning Skynet had found a connection between the bratty kids and Lucius Fox.
• At Secret Room No. 12, Li Si splashed water on Lu Yao and questioned him about his separate personality, Jason.
• Lu Yao offered to share a special technique in exchange for being spared, and Li Si let him explain.
• Lu Yao revealed that focused knowledge and intent could influence blueprint skills, potentially allowing Players to research technology with real-world applications.
• Lu Yao asked to leave after finishing his explanation, and Li Si calmly praised the discovery before asking whether Lu Yao feared being killed as a competitor.

Lee Stein offered Lu Yao a holographic chip that could trap Jason in a virtual world, but the treatment would initially block both personalities from controlling the body. Lu Yao questioned Lee Stein’s motives and risks, and Lee Stein left the choice to him.

• Lee Stein offered to use a modified holographic virtual chip to keep Jason from controlling Lu Yao’s body.
• Lee Stein explained that Lu Yao would need to provide neural-signal passwords and accurate game information to test the chip.
• Lu Yao realized the chip would initially intercept signals from both personalities, leaving the body effectively paralyzed whenever it activated.
• Lee Stein said the chip might eventually distinguish their neural signatures, but warned that Jason’s mental patient template could still force a switch.
• Lu Yao suspected Lee Stein might use the chip and their game data to control his body, but Lee Stein denied that the device could control muscles and called the experiment a Turing test.
• Lee Stein told Lu Yao he could accept the treatment or leave, and offered to use an NPC instead.

Lu Yao agreed to let Lee Stein implant a chip that could help him deceive Jason, then activated it while pretending to be Jason in a virtual factory. He kept his guard up and planned to verify the illusion through communication with Jason if Lee Stein tried to trick him.

• Lu Yao agreed to the procedure, and Lee Stein implanted a chip near the base of his neck.
• Lu Yao configured the chip with an attribute panel and backup information about what Jason might care about.
• Lee Stein told Lu Yao to activate the chip and switch personalities, while Joker watched and questioned whether the show was over.
• Lu Yao woke in a realistic virtual factory and acted like Jason without actually switching personalities.
• Lu Yao planned to use his ability to communicate with Jason to check whether Lee Stein had trapped them in an illusion.

Lu Yao woke after nineteen hours and tested whether he was still in Lee Stein’s virtual space, finding evidence that the world was real. He agreed to work with Li Si, unaware that Li Si had a hidden plan for him.

• Lu Yao spent hours acting as Jason in the virtual space, but Lee Stein did not appear before Jason took over.
• Maberen returned from his mission, and Li Si implanted holographic virtual chips in Lu Yao’s parents.
• Lu Yao woke on the operating table and checked the game forum and his Lucky Synthesis skill to test whether he was in a simulation.
• After finding no signs of interference, Lu Yao thanked Li Si and agreed to work with him to find a special template that could alter his mental patient template.
• Li Si smiled as Lu Yao watched the sunset, privately revealing that he had a plan to deceive him.

After waking, Lu Yao entered Jigsaw’s latest trial while Li Si continued testing neural-signal technology. The Joker saw through Li Si’s plan to use the chip to guide Lu Yao’s actions, and Li Si returned to refining the chip’s guidance program.

• Jigsaw’s latest trial began, while the Joker studied Lu Yao and Li Si in Sealed Room No. 12.
• The Joker laughed at a silent film, woke Waylon Jones, and asked Li Si to celebrate his discovery with champagne.
• The Joker revealed that he had seen through Li Si’s mental misdirection and understood his plan for the neural-signal chip.
• Li Si explained that the chip would alter Lu Yao’s sensory information so he would act according to the apparent circumstances, rather than trap him in a fabricated virtual world.
• Li Si said Lu Yao’s second personality, Jason, had been dealt with because Lu Yao would help the chip deceive him.
• Li Si resumed communicating with Skynet and continued adjusting the chip’s guidance program for the upcoming Azeroth-Marvel Continent.

Jigsaw trapped Beryl McGee and Charles Fox in a game called American Parents, showing them how their inattentive and permissive parenting shaped Bill Fox and Khaki Fox. The game ended without a visible punishment, leaving the couple relieved but shaken by what they had watched.

• Beryl McGee and Charles Fox woke bound to metal chairs and learned that Jigsaw had brought them to his theater for a game.
• A screen showed their sons burning ants, and Charles failed to select an option before the game automatically chose praise and pocket money.
• The footage showed Beryl angrily defending Bill and Khaki after they damaged a neighbor's car, teaching them that shouting could shield them from consequences.
• Scenes of the boys growing up culminated in them eating Granny Jenny's cat and setting off a deadly prank with a toy gun.
• Beryl and Charles waited for Jigsaw's punishment, but none came, and they dismissed the game as they began to calm down.

Charles and Beryl endured repeated cycles of Li Si’s punishing parenting game, which offered no good outcomes and left them broken. Li Si judged the final performance flawed and stopped Joker’s rambling as they anticipated Bruce Wayne’s intervention.

• A new cycle showed Bill reaching for soap, then made Charles and Beryl suffer overwhelming hunger and pain until they passed out.
• Charles and Beryl woke to another round of the game and, after several cycles, demanded that Jigsaw kill them.
• Charles’s choices produced grim endings for Bill Fox and Khaki Fox, including Bill’s death and Khaki’s descent into poverty and violence.
• Joker discussed the game’s endless cycles of inherited flaws, while Li Si criticized the rushed judgment and expected Lucius Fox to seek Bruce Wayne’s help.
• Li Si told Joker to rest and warned that he might put him on the stage, but Joker welcomed the idea if Li Si had a good script.

Lee pursued Batman through Gotham in the Bumblebee after Batman rescued the Fox family from the secret chamber. Batman used the Batmobile’s maneuverability and the city streets to evade him, but Lee’s missiles flipped the Batmobile before Bruce escaped toward the factory district of Audisburg.

• Batman burst into the secret chamber in the Batmobile and took Mr. and Mrs. Fox and the children.
• The Joker pranked Lee, and Lee kneed him before climbing into the Bumblebee and chasing Batman.
• Lee manually drove the Bumblebee through Gotham and activated its Ion Thruster as onlookers watched the pursuit.
• Bruce Wayne drove the Batmobile sideways through a narrow alley, and Lee cleared a path with missiles that flipped the vehicle.
• Skynet warned Lee that Batman was heading toward Audisburg’s factory district, and Lee continued the chase, ready for a more challenging fight.

Li Si pursued Bruce Wayne to a prepared battlefield in Odessburg District, where he fought off Batman’s traps and defenses in the Project Armor. After destroying the turrets, Li Si challenged Bruce to fight him hand-to-hand.

• Bumblebee caught up to the Batmobile and rammed it, then Li Si’s missiles flipped it onto its roof.
• Li Si approached Bruce as the Project Armor assembled around him, impressing Bruce with its technology.
• Bruce’s electrical trap and grenade failed to stop Li Si, who resisted the electricity and dodged the grenade.
• Bruce activated hidden turrets that fired bullets and sonic waves at Li Si.
• Li Si destroyed the sonic turrets and gun emplacements, then challenged Bruce to a close-quarters fight.

Li Si fought Bruce Wayne in their armored suits while Joker proposed livestreaming Batman’s judgment as Jigsaw’s closing performance. Li Si agreed to the plan and prepared to have Bumblebee record their fight for the Jigsaw Live Streaming Platform.

• Li Si and Bruce Wayne exchanged powerful blows, with neither gaining a clear advantage in their armor.
• Skynet interrupted the fight with Joker’s communication request, allowing Bruce to recover some ground.
• Joker suggested making Batman the guest of Jigsaw’s performance and livestreaming his judgment to Gotham.
• Li Si agreed to use Batman’s judgment as his closing performance and planned to have Bumblebee record the fight.

A new stream showed Jigsaw fighting Batman in high-tech armor, astonishing Gotham viewers who had imagined Jigsaw as an elderly man. After Batman’s armor broke, Jigsaw removed his helmet and revealed his identity, and the fight continued as the viewers rallied behind him.

• A new stream went live and showed Batman fighting a mysterious armored opponent, drawing stunned reactions from viewers.
• The two fighters traded heavy blows for more than ten minutes, damaging walls and displaying striking armor and gadgets.
• The mysterious man broke Batman’s armor and tore it apart while repeatedly saying, “Made in China!”
• The fighters’ armor dispersed, and the viewers recognized the young Asian man in a tuxedo as Jigsaw.
• Jigsaw and Batman resumed fighting hand to hand with their gadgets, while the stream chat cheered for Jigsaw.

Li Si defeated Bruce Wayne and brought him back to Base No. 12, where Joker arranged a move to Secret Room No. 16. There, Joker's gas trap incapacitated Li Si, Bruce woke and broke his spine, but Li Si hinted that Joker's apparent betrayal was part of his plan.

• Li Si knocked Bruce Wayne unconscious, earned three hidden achievements, and brought Bruce and the rescued family back to Base No. 12 in Bumblebee.
• Joker congratulated Li Si and asked to judge Batman, while Li Si proposed moving everyone to Secret Room No. 16.
• Joker stayed behind with Waylon Jones as Li Si drove ahead with Bruce, and Waylon questioned Joker's intentions.
• At Secret Room No. 16, Joker sealed Li Si inside with Bruce and released gas that numbed Li Si and cut off his connection to Skynet.
• Bruce Wayne woke, overpowered Li Si with Bane's Backbreaker, and claimed his training had prepared him for the gas.
• Li Si told Bruce there had been no betrayal and pointed toward a hidden camera while smiling through his injury.

Joker realized that Li Si had manipulated him into helping achieve his goal of being sent to Arkham, and he resolved to stop Batman from taking him there. Li Si told Bruce Wayne that Joker had kidnapped Rachel Dawes and Harvey Dent, and Bruce agreed to help him break Joker’s spine while beginning a rescue operation.

• Joker saw Li Si mock him on the surveillance footage and realized that Li Si had wanted Batman to send him to Arkham all along.
• Joker vowed not to let Li Si and the others go to Arkham.
• Bruce Wayne carried the captured Li Si out of Secret Room No. 16 after missiles breached its wall.
• Li Si asked Bruce for his judgment of him, then revealed that Joker had kidnapped Rachel Dawes and Harvey Dent.
• Li Si asked Bruce to break Joker’s spine, and Bruce agreed before contacting Gordon to begin rescuing Rachel and Harvey.

Bruce Wayne brought Li Si and the unconscious Joker to Arkham Asylum after knocking Joker out for kidnapping Rachel Dawes and Harvey Dent. Arkham staff separated Li Si from Joker and placed Li Si in a cell, where the other inmates welcomed the newcomer.

• Bruce Wayne attacked Joker on the rooftop, breaking his back and knocking him unconscious before Li Si could speak with him.
• Bruce Wayne flew Li Si and Joker to Arkham Asylum, where Director Sharp and two SWAT officers took custody of them.
• Li Si complained about Arkham’s treatment and surroundings as the staff searched and examined him before sending him underground.
• Arkham staff stopped Batman and separated Li Si from Joker, then locked Li Si in a steel-bar cage.
• The inmates in nearby cells shouted at Li Si and welcomed him to Arkham.

Li Si obtained the Arkham Patient template and merged it with his Genius Scientist template, then revealed to Joker that his paralysis was temporary and announced his plan to put Batman and Joker on trial. Joker eagerly agreed to play a role in Li Si’s prepared script, leaving the two inmates discussing their torment with unsettling enthusiasm.

• Li Si used Arkham’s Glory to merge the Arkham Patient template with his Genius Scientist template.
• Li Si prayed for luck, then rested while the unconscious Joker recovered in the opposite cell.
• Joker woke and mocked Li Si for getting himself trapped in Arkham, while Li Si declared that he had won the round.
• Li Si stood up after healing his fractured vertebra with Lizard Healing Serum, surprising Joker.
• Li Si told Joker that he planned to put Batman and Joker on trial and had prepared a script of torment for them.
• Joker eagerly offered to perform alongside Batman, while the other inmates watched the pair in disbelief.

After Jigsaw’s arrest sparked mass protests and unrest across Gotham, Bruce Wayne and James Gordon struggled to contain the growing chaos. As Bruce considered asking Jigsaw for help, a new livestream announcement suggested Jigsaw was not in police custody after all.

• Gotham Police Department announced that Jigsaw had been captured, prompting celebrations, protests, and nationwide attention.
• Jigsaw’s supporters, including people he had judged and rescued, gathered outside the police department and demanded his release.
• The demonstrations spread across Gotham, drawing in criminals and dissatisfied residents as looting and disorder escalated.
• Bruce Wayne appeared in the Batsuit at the police department and proposed speaking with Jigsaw to calm his supporters.
• Cheering crowds announced that Jigsaw had started another livestream, casting doubt on whether the police had captured him.

Jigsaw used a livestream from Arkham to calm his supporters and end their march, then announced a vote to decide whether he or Batman would remain Gotham’s last superhero. Bruce Wayne watched the announcement and recognized Jigsaw’s challenge as both a provocation and an invitation.

• Jigsaw livestreamed from his Arkham cell, reassured viewers that he had entered willingly, and urged them not to protest on his behalf.
• Jigsaw’s supporters dispersed, while Gordon organized officers to arrest the troublemakers still causing unrest.
• Bruce Wayne watched Jigsaw’s livestream and reflected on his technological gifts and the good he could do without committing crimes.
• Jigsaw announced a final show, “The Trial of Batman,” and said viewers would vote on whether he would stay or leave Gotham to a redeemed Batman.
• Bruce Wayne realized that Jigsaw’s vote was a direct challenge and invitation.