Chapter Summaries

The group boarded the Near-Death Roller Coaster after learning that a nonhuman passenger could make their odd number even, but the ride waited for one last guest. As the temperature rose from around zero to seventeen degrees, Ge Yue warned that it might keep climbing.

• Qu Yan explained that each person could ride only once, and Che Quan suggested that a nonhuman could fill the extra seat.
• The group took their seats, with Cheng Yangze volunteering to sit alone and Che Quan choosing the first row.
• Jiang Cong gave Cheng Yangze a rare DSLR redemption voucher, inspiring him to vow that he would survive.
• Qu Yan checked the thermometer and reported that the temperature had reached seventeen degrees.
• Ge Yue warned that the temperature might continue rising as time passed.
• The roller coaster remained still while the group waited for another guest, and Che Quan began to speak.

Che Quan, Jiang Cong, and the others survived the Near-Death Roller Coaster, where a spider Wraith attacked the riders and Jiang Cong kissed Che Quan in the darkness. With the temperature rising and four attractions left, they headed for the underwater tunnel, which revealed a terrifying deep-sea scene.

• Che Quan warned that the temperature was rising quickly and that the Instance was likely connected to a fire.
• The roller coaster departed without seat belts, and a spider Wraith attacked the riders, wrapping Cheng Yangze in silk.
• In the dark tunnel, Jiang Cong kissed Che Quan, who confronted him with a cold stare after the ride emerged.
• The group got off the roller coaster, and Cheng Yangze celebrated keeping the exchange voucher while the others recovered.
• The group headed to the underwater tunnel and found a dark, oppressive panorama of deep-sea horrors.

The group cautiously crossed a terrifying underwater tunnel as a giant octopus and swarms of toothy fish threatened to break through its walls. They spotted an exit, but the floor shattered beneath Ke Yue and black seawater engulfed her.

• Ge Yue discovered that the entrance had closed, and Qu Yan warned the group not to run because their footsteps had cracked the path.
• Ke Yue noticed the black floor turning transparent, revealing the deep sea beneath them, while Che Quan calmly studied the depths.
• Swarms of eyeless, sharp-toothed fish crowded against the tunnel wall, which began to crack, and the giant octopus struck from the other side.
• Qu Yan urged everyone onward as Ke Yue grew exhausted, and Cheng Yangze called out that he could see the exit.
• Ke Yue's eyes briefly turned black, then the floor shattered beneath her and the surging water swallowed her.

Ge Yue and the others rescued Ke Yue from the water, but a giant monster attacked them before Che Quan killed it with his bare hands. Afterward, Jiang Cong cleaned Che Quan’s bloodstained hand with a special handkerchief, leaving Che Quan distracted by their touch.

• Zhou Zi, Qu Yan, Cheng Yangze, and Ge Yue pulled Ke Yue out of the water just before strange fish and an unknown monster could reach her.
• The unknown monster lunged at the exhausted group, and Ge Yue shielded everyone while declaring his love for Ke Yue and urging the others to run.
• Che Quan appeared to cleave the monster in half with his bare hands, stunning Ge Yue, the others, and the livestream viewers.
• Jiang Cong wrapped Che Quan’s bloodstained hand in a cleaning handkerchief and gently held it as Che Quan noticed the unfamiliar tingling of their touch.

After escaping the collapsing underwater tunnel, the group discovered that Ke Yue had been possessed by a Wraith, but Ge Yue refused to leave her behind. They reached a swing over a bottomless abyss, where Qu Yan read the rules and helped Ge Yue prepare to cross with Ke Yue.

• Cheng Yangze warned the group that the tunnel floor was breaking apart, and everyone hurried to safety.
• Jiang Cong revealed that Ke Yue was possessed, and Ge Yue desperately tried to drive the Wraith out of her.
• Ge Yue insisted on taking Ke Yue to the next attraction, while the others followed to protect him.
• Qu Yan checked the thermometer and found that the temperature had risen to 28 degrees.
• The group reached swings suspended over an abyss, and Qu Yan lent Ge Yue a climbing rope before reading the attraction’s rules aloud.

Qu Yan and the others crossed the deadly swing, but Zhou Zi disappeared before Ge Yue and Ke Yue arrived at the far side. The group reunited with Zhou Zi at the drop tower, where she hinted to Cheng Yangze that she had lied about her past and asked if he wanted to know how she died.

• Qu Yan, Che Quan, Jiang Cong, Cheng Yangze, and Ge Yue crossed the swing, with Ge Yue binding himself to Ke Yue before riding.
• Ge Yue arrived with Ke Yue and reported that Zhou Zi had disappeared, so the group continued toward the last attractions without her.
• At 35 degrees, the group found the drop tower and unexpectedly reunited with Zhou Zi, who claimed she had avoided the swing and found the ride on her own.
• Zhou Zi took the last seat beside Cheng Yangze and admitted she had been lying, asking whether he wanted to know how she died.

Cheng Yangze discovered that Zhou Zi was a ghost who had been trapped in the amusement park, and she vanished after the Drop Tower ride. The group reached the dangerously hot Wax Museum, where Cheng Yangze spotted a wax figure that startled him.

• At the top of the Drop Tower, Cheng Yangze found Zhou Zi's hair caught in the machinery and tried to free it.
• The ride plunged, Zhou Zi disappeared, and she thanked Cheng Yangze before vanishing for good.
• Che Quan explained that Zhou Zi had never been an Instance City player, leaving Cheng Yangze and the live chat stunned.
• The group headed to the Wax Museum, where rising heat and darkness made the enclosed attraction feel like a furnace.
• Cheng Yangze saw a wax figure's face and cried out in alarm.

As the wax figures melted and attacked, Che Quan led the group to suspect that the wax museum concealed a passage and they found a hidden records room with an exit. The group reached the opening, but Che Quan stayed behind to read documents as the advancing wax threatened to catch up.

• Cheng Yangze recognized a wax figure as his childhood friend, but the figures melted and attacked him until Qu Yan knocked one aside with her backpack.
• Che Quan reasoned that the panicked voices outside might be trying to reach something inside the wax museum, and Qu Yan suggested they knew of a passage there.
• Qu Yan and Cheng Yangze searched the corridor while Ge Yue and Ke Yue cooled them, and Qu Yan found a hidden door.
• Cheng Yangze followed a breeze to a hidden opening behind a filing cabinet in a records room.
• Che Quan stayed to rapidly read documents as the wax approached, while Jiang Cong kept watch and Qu Yan and Cheng Yangze came over to see what he had found.

Cheng Yangze and the others uncovered records showing that the Amusement Park ignored safety warnings before opening and learned how the fire trapped Ge Yue and Ke Yue as ghosts. As Wax Monsters broke into the archive room, Che Quan prepared a Digital Clock with batteries taken from Qu Yan’s flashlight.

• Cheng Yangze and the others found safety reports dated April 19 and April 23, 1963, warning of hazards at the Drop Tower and across the Amusement Park.
• Qu Yan found a newspaper reporting the park opened on May 20, 1963, and another describing Zhou Zi’s death on the Drop Tower less than three days later.
• The group read accounts of a young couple separated by the fire: the girl was trapped atop the Ferris Wheel, while the boy was stranded on the High-Altitude Swing.
• Cheng Yangze realized Ge Yue and Ke Yue were original ghosts who had become Wax Monsters, and he condemned the instance for its cruelty.
• As Wax Monsters seeped into the archive room, Che Quan dismissed the dark opening as a dead end and retrieved a dusty Digital Clock.
• Che Quan asked Qu Yan for batteries, then used the batteries from her flashlight to power the Digital Clock in the dark archive room.

Che Quan used the digital clock to return the group to the eve of the Amusement Park’s opening, then tried to stop it by tipping off a newspaper. After changing how they handled the evidence, they advanced to June 18, 1963, where the park was operating despite rumors of fire hazards.

• Che Quan set the digital clock to May 19, 1963, and the Wax Monsters and their screams vanished as the group returned to the eve of the park’s opening.
• Che Quan had Cheng Yangze carry documents from the archive, and Qu Yan called a newspaper to report the park’s problems.
• The group was pulled back into the archive room amid the Wax Monsters, and Jiang Cong suggested they had made a wrong move.
• Che Quan sent Qu Yan to call the newspaper again and told her not to let them take the documents; after the call, the group remained out of the archive room.
• The group appeared outside the park on June 18, 1963, and learned that visitors had dismissed its reported fire hazards as a competitor’s rumor.

Cheng Yangze and his companions tried to save Zhou Zi and expose the Drop Tower’s defect. Cheng Yangze cut Zhou Zi’s trapped hair during the ride, leaving her alive but terrified, while the group still needed to learn whether the park had truly fixed the hazard.

• Che Quan said they would know whether the Amusement Park had fixed the fire hazard after they saved Zhou Zi and cleared the instance.
• Cheng Yangze joined the line behind Zhou Zi and learned she was an intern at a newspaper known for exposing wrongdoing.
• Cheng Yangze boarded the Drop Tower beside Zhou Zi with scissors and a miniature camera ready to capture evidence.
• At the top of the ride, Zhou Zi’s hair became tangled in the machinery, and Cheng Yangze cut it free just before the Drop Tower plunged.
• Zhou Zi got off safely, thanked Cheng Yangze, and realized she had narrowly escaped death.

Zhou Zi and Cheng Yangze stopped the Drop Tower after showing staff photos of Zhou Zi’s hair trapped in its machinery. The manager arrived and accused them of spreading false rumors, leaving Cheng Yangze to confront him.

• After escaping the Drop Tower’s machinery, Zhou Zi spotted another girl taking her place and rushed to stop the ride.
• Cheng Yangze showed the control-room staff photos of Zhou Zi’s hair caught in the machinery, and they agreed to shut down the Drop Tower.
• The manager arrived and accused Zhou Zi and Cheng Yangze of being sent by a competitor to damage the Amusement Park’s reputation.
• The manager silenced the female staff member when she tried to defend Zhou Zi and Cheng Yangze.
• Cheng Yangze held back his anger and faced the manager, preparing to respond to his accusations.

Zhou Zi joined Cheng Yangze and the others in exposing Endless Joy Amusement Park’s safety violations, and newspapers published a wave of condemnatory reports. Just as Cheng Yangze hoped the publicity would bring an investigation and clear the instance, he returned with the others to the archive room, where an electronic clock awaited them.

• Zhou Zi warned visitors about the Drop Tower, then agreed to help Cheng Yangze, Qu Yan, Che Quan, and Jiang Cong expose the amusement park.
• After hearing about the archive-room documents, Zhou Zi and her newspaper colleagues published articles condemning the park’s dangerous practices.
• Cheng Yangze and the others met Zhou Zi at a café and learned that her newspaper had run the reports.
• Cheng Yangze blinked and found himself back in the dark archive room with the others, facing an electronic clock they had to adjust.

Che Quan and the others uncovered the amusement park owner’s deliberate murder of Zhou Zi and his role in causing mass deaths during the future fire. After finding the true fire report, Che Quan devised a plan to clear the Instance by making the owner suffer his own tactics, and the group returned to the eve of the park’s opening to carry it out.

• Cheng Yangze read a business notebook revealing that the amusement park owner had arranged Zhou Zi’s death and planned to punish whoever leaked the documents.
• Che Quan discovered the concealed Fire Cause Report, which described how the owner diverted visitors toward the Wax Museum during the fire so he could escape.
• Che Quan said they could clear the Instance by fighting evil with evil and reset the time to midnight on May 19, 1963.
• The group returned to the eve of the park’s opening, skipped the documents and phone booth, and went to the main gate.
• Cheng Yangze and Qu Yan pooled their funds for a powerful fire-starting tool, while Jiang Cong gave Che Quan an Invisibility Cloak.

Che Quan burned down the Eerie Shadow Amusement Park and retrieved documents exposing its safety violations. After Cheng Yangze reported the evidence to Zhou Zi's newspaper, the next day's headlines revealed the park's dangerous flaws, turning public sympathy into anger.

• Che Quan used the Invisibility Cloak to set the amusement park ablaze, then returned the cloak to Jiang Cong.
• Che Quan led Cheng Yangze and Qu Yan away from the fire and revealed that he had taken documents from the Wax Museum.
• Che Quan told the group to report the documents to Zhou Zi's newspaper, and Cheng Yangze called the Bright Light Newspaper.
• The next day's headlines reported the amusement park's serious fire-safety failures, shifting public sympathy to anger.

Endless Joy Amusement Park closed permanently after investigators found no arsonist, and its site was cleared for a public ecological park. Cheng Yangze, Qu Yan, Zhou Zi, and Che Quan celebrated their survival and helped Ge Yue and Ke Yue avoid the deaths they had faced in the fire, before the Instance System announced their successful clear and a reward.

• The director and investors faced public condemnation, fines, and losses, and Endless Joy Amusement Park closed before opening.
• Zhou Zi treated Cheng Yangze, Qu Yan, and Che Quan to a lavish meal, where Che Quan struggled with his craving for Jiang Cong's blood.
• The group visited the former amusement park site and learned from Zhou Zi that an ecological park would replace it.
• Cheng Yangze recognized Ge Yue and Ke Yue arguing nearby and offered to take their photograph, giving them a chance to enjoy the day together instead of dying in the fire.
• The Instance System announced that the players had cleared the Instance and would begin their next three Instances with ten favorability points from ghost NPCs.
• Cheng Yangze and Qu Yan felt renewed grief over the loved ones they had lost, just as they heard an unexpected sound.

After the players achieved the best ending in the Eerie Shadow Amusement Park instance, the Instance System announced the park’s closure and a new Points Shop item that could restore loved ones. Che Quan gave Qu Yan and Cheng Yangze Soul Crystals, then returned home, where Jiang Cong joined him and revealed that he was hungry too.

• The Instance System permanently closed the Eerie Shadow Amusement Park instance and announced that players could use the Treasure Wheel to earn a Soul Crystal.
• Che Quan received a perfect score and 50,000 points, while Qu Yan and Cheng Yangze also earned high scores and thousands of points.
• Che Quan tossed Qu Yan and Cheng Yangze a Soul Crystal each, telling them to keep the gifts.
• After returning to his courtyard, Che Quan summoned Jiang Cong because he was hungry.
• Che Quan invited Jiang Cong into his bedroom and prepared to bite his neck, but Jiang Cong said he was hungry too and answered through his actions.

Che Quan and Jiang Cong fed on each other, while Che Quan dreamed of a silver-haired masked boy who seemed familiar. After waking, Che Quan learned that players were discussing his recent instance, then received notice that he had ten minutes to choose his next instance or pay one hundred million points to skip it.

• Jiang Cong bit Che Quan, and Che Quan bit Jiang Cong in turn, leaving Che Quan satisfied while Jiang Cong's desire for him deepened.
• Che Quan dreamed that he had been banished to a castle and met a masked, silver-haired attendant whose pale eyes reminded him of Jiang Cong.
• Che Quan woke with a headache, cleared messages from strangers, and changed his communicator settings to block incoming messages.
• Players on Instance City forums praised Che Quan and debated why the Eerie Shadow Amusement Park instance had not announced its difficulty or survival rate.
• Che Quan went outside and noticed that he seemed to remember something after each instance.
• The Instance System told Che Quan to choose one of three instances within ten minutes or pay one hundred million points to skip.

Che Quan entered the new Death Hospital instance and ignored its warning against leaving his room at night. After following a foul blood scent toward a disturbing humming sound, he turned back, but an unseen figure rushed at him and someone pulled him into an office.

• Che Quan chose the Death Hospital instance and arrived alone in a dark hospital room.
• The system revealed that Che Quan was a patient at Shanbei Private Psychiatric Hospital and described a blood-loving doctor who collected brain specimens.
• Che Quan ignored the rule warning that leaving his room at night raised his death risk to 99% and went into the corridor.
• Che Quan followed the smell of blood and a strange humming voice upstairs, then decided to return because he found both unpleasant.
• The humming figure charged at Che Quan, but someone in a nearby office pulled him inside.

Che Quan met Jiang Cong in the dark doctor's office, where Jiang Cong said he was a player assigned to treat him and hinted that they had met before. After sleeping in the office and disguising himself as a doctor, Che Quan was identified by Yue Li and ordered to undergo compulsory treatment.

• Jiang Cong pulled Che Quan into a soundproof office, confirmed he was a player, and said his task was to treat Che Quan for an hour each day.
• Che Quan asked Jiang Cong whether they had met before, and Jiang Cong admitted it but deferred explaining until Che Quan remembered.
• Jiang Cong left Che Quan to sleep in the office, and Che Quan woke at dawn and changed into a doctor's clothes and glasses.
• Yue Li recognized Che Quan as the patient from Room 002 and ordered compulsory treatment for leaving his ward, entering the office, and changing clothes.
• A group of patients overheard Yue Li's order and stared at Che Quan in shock.