Chapter Summaries

Luo Lin arranged housing and supplies for Silver City and Moon City, and discussed a biological laboratory on the islands he had secured from the Loen royal family. Azzik asked to begin the second stage of his memory recovery, which Luo Lin scheduled for the next day.

• Colin Iliad told Luo Lin that he had secured food and supplies for Silver City and Moon City, and Luo Lin offered help with any serious difficulties.
• Luo Lin assigned the two groups islands to settle on and asked them to provide biological samples for a laboratory; Colin Iliad and Moon City's representative agreed.
• Luo Lin returned to the villa and told Medici to hurry the Loen royal family's handover of the colonial islands, which Medici said would be finished within three days.
• Luo Lin explained that the islands would house the laboratory and Silver City and Moon City, and reassured Klein that the selected islands had few natives.
• Azzik told Luo Lin that his memories, humanity, and anchors were stable enough for further recovery, and Luo Lin agreed to begin the second treatment the next day.

Klein spent a sunny morning at home playing Five-in-a-Row with Little Amon while Luo Lin, disguised as Jack, and Medici watched and traded barbs. Will joined them, and the playful gathering ended with Luo Lin feeding Klein a sour orange segment.

• Klein played Five-in-a-Row with Little Amon, who initially outplayed him, until Medici’s mockery prompted Klein to turn the game around.
• Luo Lin revealed that he had replaced Medici’s cigarettes with mint ones, and Medici put one out after Luo Lin pointed out that children were in the house.
• Medici asked Luo Lin about his missing teacup, and Luo Lin admitted he had broken it during a midnight snack and thrown it away.
• Will joined the group, tasted a sour orange, and fed a piece to Luo Lin to prove how sour it was.
• After Medici laughed at Luo Lin’s reaction, Luo Lin fed a sour orange segment to Klein, who complained in surprise.

Luo Lin summoned the Death Consul so Azzik could continue resisting divinity and merge with his past. The Death Consul revealed that the God of Death had partnered with the Original Witch to plan something important, and the group realized the Pale Disaster was approaching.

• Luo Lin and the others tricked Little Amon and Azzik into eating Will’s sour oranges.
• Luo Lin summoned the Death Consul while Azzik prepared to face his past.
• The Death Consul met Little Amon, explained that he was Azzik’s past, and told Luo Lin that he had begun experiencing emotions.
• The Death Consul said the God of Death had partnered with the Original Witch and was planning something important.
• The group recognized that the God of Death and the Original Witch were preparing the Pale Disaster, and Medici objected to the consequences for the Red Priest Uniqueness.

Luo Lin told the Death Consul about the Pale Disaster and explained that it had ended with the Death God's fall and her division into two souls. When the Death Consul offered to help prevent the disaster, Luo Lin asked whether she could locate her other half in the present era.

• Luo Lin and Will discussed the Death God's past plans and the risk of forming the Fourth Pillar, while Luo Lin teased Medici about being unusually normal.
• Luo Lin explained the Pale Disaster to the Death Consul and told her that her father had split her into two souls after the Death God's fall.
• The Death Consul admitted she could not feel compassion for the victims but asked how she could help Luo Lin and his friends.
• Luo Lin warned that the Death Consul could not safely interfere with the historical disaster, then asked her to sense where her other half was in the present era.

Luo Lin enlisted the Death Consul to use the Death Uniqueness to punish incorrigible members of the Numinous Episcopate and deepen its factional divisions. After divine punishments struck some of those members, Hytel wondered whether Hilla would keep denying Azzik’s existence.

• The Death Consul told Luo Lin he could draw on the Death Uniqueness, though using too much might revive Death.
• Luo Lin explained the Numinous Episcopate’s split and asked the Death Consul to punish members who had committed grave wrongs and refused to repent.
• Luo Lin gave the Death Consul a list and specified that those marked in red should die, while the others would receive different punishments.
• Hytel prayed in his mausoleum and wondered whether Azzik was half-mad or the Nether Monarch was awakening within him.
• A messenger told Hytel that their Lord had delivered divine punishment, and Hytel said the punished members had brought it on themselves by denying God’s existence.

Hilla tried to preserve her control of the Numinous Episcopate after a supposed God of Death issued a divine oracle, but divine punishments weakened her faction and challenged her assumptions. She concluded that the newcomer cared deeply about the new rules, yet she could not explain why Hytel supported them.

• Hilla denounced the divine oracle as a conspiracy by the Artificial God of Death Faction and secretly investigated the supposed God of Death.
• After learning that many people had suffered divine punishment, Hilla ordered her subordinate to compile a list of the victims.
• Hilla reviewed the list and found that everyone punished had violated the new rules, including a member of the Artificial God of Death Faction.
• Hilla concluded that the God of Death valued the new rules and ruled out the possibility of a sentient Uniqueness.
• Hilla considered whether the Evernight Goddess or the God of War had taken the Death Uniqueness, but wondered why Hytel was helping the new God of Death control the Numinous Episcopate.

Hilla feared the Nether Monarch had returned and ordered a renewed investigation into everyone who had received an oracle. Meanwhile, Death Consul and Klein played Five-in-a-Row and spoke about their bond, until Azzik awoke from his struggle with his memories.

• Hilla suspected Hytel had recognized the God of Death and ordered her subordinates to investigate everyone who had received an oracle.
• Death Consul lost his sixth game of Five-in-a-Row to Klein while Medici and Jack Jones handled the Numinous Episcopate’s turmoil, and Little Amon attended lessons with Will.
• Death Consul told Klein to call him Mr. Azik and encouraged Klein to get to know him, explaining that he would eventually merge into Azzik.
• Klein admitted he had feared Death Consul would consume Azzik’s identity, but said meeting him had eased that worry.
• Death Consul told Klein he was glad to have met him and regarded him like a child, while Luo Lin joked that the two seemed like a cat type and a dog type.
• Klein noticed Azzik tremble and open his eyes, then asked whether he was all right.

Azik successfully fused with most of his past memories, with Luo Lin’s mask helping him resist the God of Death’s influence. The Death Consul’s newly awakened sense of self gave Luo Lin reason to wonder whether small changes in the past could help Azik overcome his divinity in the future.

• Azik told Klein that his memory fusion had gone well and that another attempt might restore all his memories.
• Azik thanked Luo Lin for the mask that had anchored him when he nearly lost himself to the Death Consul’s past.
• Luo Lin warned Azik that the greater challenge was defeating the divine half of his soul, and Azik vowed to survive.
• Azik and the Death Consul spoke about resisting the God of Death, and Azik said the former puppet had grown a heart.
• Luo Lin considered whether the Death Consul’s new self could help Azik resist his divinity, even though history itself remained largely unchanged.

Luo Lin discussed Azzik’s return to power and planned to help him reclaim the Numinous Episcopate after its recent upheaval. He left the timing undecided for two days while arranging preparations and considering future cooperation with the Goddess of the Night.

• Luo Lin compared the Death Consul’s lack of self with Adam’s and wondered whether Adam had developed a true identity.
• Luo Lin told Azzik that the Death Consul had delivered divine punishment against unrecyclable members of the Numinous Episcopate and urged him to reclaim the organization.
• Azzik agreed to act, explaining that Pale Empress Siya would resist even if he fused with the God of Death’s Uniqueness.
• Luo Lin promised to handle Hilla and told Azzik to use his identity as Death Consul to bring the rest of the Numinous Episcopate under control.
• Luo Lin decided to wait two days before acting, prepare for the takeover, and ask the Death Consul to monitor members who might cause trouble.
• Luo Lin considered meeting the Goddess of the Night to discuss cooperation.

Luo Lin explained why he did not fear conflict with Goddess of the Night over Mr. Azik and the Numinous Episcopate, then advised Klein on acting as a Faceless. He proposed that Klein impersonate Medici and take a new identity in the Revolutionary Army, leaving Klein with a demanding plan for advancing his potion digestion and preparing for his Miracle Invoker ritual.

• Luo Lin reasoned that Goddess of the Night would not oppose him over Mr. Azik or the Numinous Episcopate, though he would require a trade for the Death's Uniqueness.
• Luo Lin dismissed the Death Consul's summon, told Mr. Azik to prepare for a parent-child reunion outing, and then asked Klein why he had stayed.
• Klein told Luo Lin that he expected to advance to Sequence 6 within half a month and described his ideas for acting as a Faceless.
• Luo Lin suggested that Klein act as Medici while Medici dealt with the Numinous Episcopate.
• Luo Lin proposed that Klein create another identity and take a position in the Revolutionary Army, explaining that the arrangement would also support Klein's Miracle Invoker ritual.

Luo Lin told Klein to prepare for his Miracle Invoker ritual by helping recreate a communist country, then brought him to meet Adam. Adam revealed he had decided to advance Luo Lin’s revolution, and Luo Lin questioned whether the decision came from pragmatism or from Adam’s heart.

• Luo Lin told Klein he would send him to help recreate a communist country when he advanced to Faceless, with the revolution set to begin at New Year.
• Luo Lin took Klein to a chapel bearing the symbol of the Ancient Sun God, where they met Adam.
• Adam admitted that he had been observing Luo Lin and his group for half his time.
• Adam said he had prepared for his godhood ritual, spoken with the True Creator, and decided to advance Luo Lin’s revolution.
• Luo Lin asked whether Adam’s decision came from pragmatism or from his heart, then began asking another question.

Luo Lin questioned Adam about how much of the original Adam remained in him, then summoned the true Visionary Angel from history to compare them. The Visionary Angel accepted that he was suited to bear divinity but lamented the suffering and sacrifices that salvation would require.

• Luo Lin asked Adam whether the original Adam had existed and how much of him remained, and Adam admitted he did not know.
• Luo Lin proposed separating Adam from the Sun God after Adam advanced to Sequence 0, and Adam shared his experience of separating himself.
• Luo Lin summoned the true Visionary Angel from history using Adam as a medium, bringing a younger Adam into the chapel.
• The Visionary Angel recognized Lucifer and learned that he was in the Fifth Epoch, then spoke about his stubborn nature and his role as a salvation machine.
• The Visionary Angel said that divinity was not the best way to save the world and regretted the suffering and sacrifices it would cause.

Luo Lin proposed awakening the humanity suppressed within the Visionary Angel to help Adam, and used a Personality Mask to anchor the Visionary Angel’s emotions. Adam and the Visionary Angel agreed to try to preserve that humanity in the future, leaving Adam laughing at their shared willingness to act without certainty.

• Luo Lin asked how much of Adam remained within the Visionary Angel and suggested that awakening the Angel’s humanity might help Adam regain humanity.
• The Visionary Angel said the idea might work, and Adam agreed that gaining humanity could benefit him.
• Luo Lin gave the Visionary Angel a Personality Mask that amplified his emotions and could anchor his sense of self during a future fusion.
• The Visionary Angel resolved to try despite uncertainty, and Adam laughed as he agreed they had never waited for guaranteed success.

The Visionary Angel returned from meeting Luo Lin with a mask from the future and sought out Sasrir, while Amon noticed that his family was hiding a secret from him. The Visionary Angel left Amon behind, and Amon planned to take revenge by giving away Adam’s favorite wine.

• Luo Lin said goodbye to the Visionary Angel and asked him to pass along greetings to the Sun God and ask Sasrir about changing jobs.
• The Visionary Angel returned to the garden, where he had been accompanying Amon while Amon waited for the Ancient Sun God.
• When the Visionary Angel said he needed to see Sasrir, Amon tried to go with him and demanded to know what the family was hiding.
• The Visionary Angel reassured Amon that he was part of the family but too young to know everything, then hurried away.
• Amon decided to give Adam’s favorite wine to Medici as revenge, while the Visionary Angel reached Sasrir’s study and found it filled with piled-up parchment.

Visionary Angel told Sasrir about Lucifer’s mask and planned to use Audience abilities to preserve his humanity during fusion, while Sasrir warned him that the mask could turn its wearer into Lucifer’s puppet. After the past Visionary Angel disappeared, Adam struggled as his humanity awakened, then recovered and apologized to Luo Lin and Klein.

• Visionary Angel told Sasrir about the mask and said he planned to use deep psychological suggestions to improve his chances of retaining himself during fusion.
• Sasrir approved the plan, promised to notify the Lord, and warned that the mask could make its wearer Lucifer’s puppet, though force of will could break free.
• Visionary Angel thanked Sasrir and said he had confidence in his will, while Sasrir agreed that future versions of them were little more than puppets of divinity.
• Adam reacted with pain and confusion after Visionary Angel disappeared, and Luo Lin observed that Visionary Angel’s humanity had awakened within him.
• Klein asked if Adam was all right, and Luo Lin reassured him that Adam’s turmoil was part of his recovery.
• A few minutes later, Adam straightened his clothes and apologized to Luo Lin and Klein for keeping them waiting.

Luo Lin’s experiment awakened the Visionary Angel’s humanity within Adam, leaving him as a more self-aware composite who resolved to find Medici. Luo Lin later told Medici about the change, which could grow as Adam gained anchors.

• Luo Lin asked Adam whether he was Adam or the Visionary Angel, and Adam said he was still Adam but had awakened the Visionary Angel’s humanity.
• Adam admitted that he questioned his past actions and said he would choose a gentler approach if he could do them again.
• When Luo Lin asked whether he would apologize to Medici, Adam said he would go find him.
• Adam said he still wanted to save the world but now believed every individual should be saved, and Luo Lin photographed him.
• At an Aurora Order stronghold in Backlund, Luo Lin told Medici that he had given Adam a mask that awakened the Visionary Angel’s humanity.
• Luo Lin explained that Adam’s humanity could strengthen as his anchors increased, and Medici was astonished by the result.

Luo Lin told Medici that Adam would apologize for betraying him, but Medici refused to forgive Him even though he no longer wanted to kill Him. The two joked about their complicated feelings and possible revenge, leaving Medici considering how to treat Adam now that He had humanity.

• Medici thanked Luo Lin for rescuing him but complained that Luo Lin had made him work overtime for 240 consecutive hours.
• Luo Lin said Adam had agreed to apologize to Medici, then warned Medici that he could not switch jobs and return to Adam.
• Medici rejected Luo Lin's suggestion that he would forgive Adam, saying that an apology could not erase the betrayal.
• Luo Lin suggested Medici no longer wanted to kill Adam, and compared their feelings to the complicated relationships in Batman's family.
• Medici questioned Batman's treatment of his young crime-fighting partners, and Luo Lin compared him to the Ancient Sun God and Medici.
• Medici said he would beat Adam and hang Him from a streetlamp, and Luo Lin offered to bring Amon to play music beside Him.

Luo Lin went to sleep after joking with Medici about humiliating Adam, leaving Medici alone in the study. Adam appeared and apologized for betraying and hurting Medici in the Fourth Epoch, and Medici responded by proposing a humiliating punishment that revealed Adam's sense of shame.

• Luo Lin told Medici not to fight Adam, then left to catch up on sleep.
• Medici smoked mint cigarettes alone until Adam appeared in the study.
• Adam apologized to Medici for betraying him and letting down his trust and loyalty during the Fourth Epoch.
• Medici laughed, then asked whether Adam expected him to forgive him; Adam said he only hoped the apology would make him feel better.
• Medici proposed stabbing Adam and hanging him from a streetlamp with a sign and Amon providing a funeral march.
• Adam accepted being stabbed but rejected the public humiliation, prompting Medici to remark that Adam had a sense of shame.

Adam and Medici settled their past with a real stab, while Azzik found renewed purpose and joined the Aurora Order. Luo Lin then organized the group’s plan to strike the Numinous Episcopate, leaving the allies preparing to move against its gathered factions.

• Adam allowed Medici to stab him, and Medici declared they were even and let go of his hatred.
• Luo Lin watched the exchange from the next room, while Azzik spent a joyful day with his child and then volunteered to help Medici.
• Azzik joined the Aurora Order as the group prepared to attack the Numinous Episcopate.
• Luo Lin explained that Pale Empress Siya and Hitel had recalled many Episcopate members, then assigned Azzik to handle the members in one area.
• Medici agreed to fight the Royalist Faction members while Luo Lin dealt with Hilla, and Will agreed to act as insurance in exchange for ice cream.

Luo Lin arranged for the family to join the coming operation, including sending Klein and Little Amon to a place connected to the revolution, while urging Little Amon to develop empathy. The story then shifted to Hilla, who struggled to keep the Numinous Episcopate’s Royalist Faction from fracturing after the returned God of Death’s divine punishment.

• Luo Lin bargained with Will over how long Little Amon would wait for ice cream and assigned “Jack Jones” to make it.
• Luo Lin told Klein he could advance to Faceless after the Numinous Episcopate operation, and Klein said he was ready to advance and go to that place.
• Little Amon asked to go with Klein, and Luo Lin agreed to arrange an identity for him while urging him to gain true humanity.
• Luo Lin checked his pocket watch, announced it was time, and led the group out.
• Hilla struggled to stabilize the Royalist Faction as members defected to the Artificial God of Death Faction after the divine punishment incident.