Chapter Summaries

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.

Li Si confronted Bruce Wayne over Batman’s refusal to kill and the cycle of crime sustaining Gotham, then revealed a poll in which Batman had won more than twice as many votes as Jigsaw. Bruce took comfort in the public’s support, but Li Si’s pointed reaction suggested the result carried a deeper meaning.

• Bruce Wayne accused Li Si of being a brutal thug, and Li Si challenged him over his refusal to kill criminals.
• Li Si argued that Batman’s methods had weakened Gotham’s government and let criminals believe they could escape punishment without fear.
• Li Si showed Bruce the poll results, which recorded 14,680 votes for Batman and 5,876 for Jigsaw.
• Bruce felt reassured that people recognized his efforts, but Li Si mocked his happiness and left him wondering what the vote meant.

Li Si challenged Bruce Wayne’s belief that Batman’s rescues helped people, arguing that they had made his supporters dependent and fearful. He then revealed that many criminals Batman had arrested had voted for him because they feared Jigsaw’s torture and killings.

• Li Si argued that Batman’s repeated rescues had weakened his supporters and made them wait for him to save them.
• Bruce Wayne acknowledged Li Si’s point but said he could not approve of his torture and abuse.
• Li Si revealed that he had tracked some voters’ identities and began reading names to Bruce Wayne.
• The prisoners laughed as Li Si named criminals Bruce Wayne had personally sent to prison.
• Bruce Wayne stopped Li Si from reading the list, and Li Si explained that the criminals had voted for Batman because Batman did not kill them while Jigsaw did.

Bruce Wayne refused to become a Batman who killed and stepped down, leaving Gotham to Jigsaw while warning that he would kill him if he crossed the line. Li Si revealed that Jigsaw would retire and urged Bruce to take over a plan to guide crime, then showed him the livestream comments praising Jigsaw’s writing and its effects on Gotham.

• Bruce Wayne said he could not kill and withdrew, warning Li Si that he would kill him if he crossed the line.
• Li Si said Jigsaw would cease to exist after losing the vote, and Bruce accepted his retirement.
• Bruce asked Li Si for a complete solution, and Li Si argued that Bruce should guide crime rather than enter politics or try to eliminate it.
• Li Si handed Bruce the livestream tablet, where viewers angrily blamed Batman for Jigsaw’s departure.
• Li Si paused the comments and scrolled to messages crediting Jigsaw’s stories with helping viewers overcome addiction, lose weight, and find purpose.

Li Si introduced Bruce Wayne to the Jigsaw novel Reborn Batman, and Bruce became engrossed in its satisfying power-fantasy plot. Bruce recognized that such stories could provide psychological relief and prevent crime, but Li Si left him waiting to understand how Jigsaw’s methods could guide, control, and release people.

• Li Si used Arthur Jackman’s comments and handed Bruce Wayne a tablet with Reborn Batman to read.
• Bruce Wayne became absorbed in the story, despite criticizing its implausible plot and fights, and demanded to know when the rest would be available.
• Li Si explained that the novel used buildup, suppression, and release to create satisfaction and ease negative emotions.
• Bruce Wayne said such stories could serve as large-scale psychological counseling and help prevent crime.
• Bruce Wayne asked how Jigsaw’s methods could guide, control, and release people, and Li Si told him to wait and see.

Li Si persuaded Bruce Wayne to abandon Batman and pursue an online venture, leaving the Joker distraught and unable to draw him back into their rivalry. As Li Si escaped Arkham with Bumblebee, he earned two Soul Mentor achievements and beat up a doctor he mistook for a future enemy.

• The Joker realized Bruce Wayne planned to leave Batman behind and panicked as Li Si led Bumblebee out of the cage with Bruce and the tablet.
• Bruce ignored the Joker's pleas and left the cell, following the tablet's advice to disregard him.
• Li Si received the Soul Mentor 2 and Soul Mentor 3 achievement notices, bringing his Achievement Points to 31.
• Li Si entered the construction elevator with Bumblebee and asked the white-coated doctor for his surname.
• After learning the doctor's surname was Yang and that he handled electrotherapy, Li Si accused him of planning to shock him, beat him unconscious, and tossed him from the elevator.