Chapter Summaries

With their dorm rooms no longer safe, Li Xian arranged for a classmate whose face he had smeared with blood to help them get a key. He then led the others to the library to look for Deng Hanyu, after learning Deng might have Teacher Shang’s new phone number.

• Li Xian told Zhai Shu to act enthusiastic and offer to lead the Class 32 students to his group’s accommodation, while secretly helping them.
• Zhai Shu reported that the students had smashed the locks and put the keys under someone’s care, then offered the group the two spare beds in her room.
• Li Xian asked Zhai Shu to contact the classmate whose face he had smeared with blood and promised he could keep him from dying.
• The classmate contacted Li Xian and agreed to help him get a key, leaving Jiang Qiuyue, Qian Chen, and Xu Loubai astonished when Li Xian said the problem was handled.
• Li Xian asked Xu Loubai where Deng Hanyu might be, then learned the classmate had overheard Deng speaking by phone with someone who sounded like Teacher Shang.

Li Xian stole Deng Hanyu’s phone to find Teacher Shang’s number and discovered Shang was listed as Deng’s older cousin. After reaching Shang by phone, Li Xian learned that Shang believed Xie Zhi had returned to school and was doing well, leaving Li Xian wondering whether Shang knew she was dead.

• Li Xian distracted Deng Hanyu in the library, took his unlocked phone, and searched the contacts for Teacher Shang without success.
• Li Xian checked Deng Hanyu’s call history and memorized the number he had frequently called during the period before Teacher Shang resigned, saved as “Older cousin.”
• Li Xian returned the phone to the floor beside Deng Hanyu, and he found it and left the library without noticing it had been taken.
• Li Xian called the memorized number, confirmed he was speaking to Teacher Shang, and asked whether he remembered Xie Zhi.
• Teacher Shang apologized for his silence and asked whether Xie Zhi had returned to school and was doing well, prompting Li Xian to wonder if he knew she had died.

Li Xian persuaded Teacher Shang to come to the school and meet Xie Zhi, while keeping the plan secret from Deng Hanyu. At the south gate, Jiang Qiuyue's attempt to distract the guard failed, leaving Teacher Shang crouched outside and the group unsure how to get him in.

• Li Xian told Teacher Shang that Xie Zhi was doing very badly and convinced him to come to the school that day.
• Li Xian asked Teacher Shang not to tell anyone, especially Deng Hanyu, about the visit.
• Jiang Qiuyue questioned whether Teacher Shang could meet Xie Zhi that day, and Li Xian said he would keep him at the school once he arrived.
• Li Xian and Jiang Qiuyue waited near the south gate for Teacher Shang, who arrived by car.
• Jiang Qiuyue entered the guard booth to distract the guard, but he challenged her and refused to let her leave the school.

Li Xian and the others smuggled Teacher Shang into the school, then brought him to an almost-empty dorm room while hiding Xie Zhi’s death from him. Teacher Shang noticed that something was wrong and asked what had happened after he resigned.

• Jiang Qiuyue distracted the guard with a story while Li Xian helped Teacher Shang climb over the retractable gate.
• Teacher Shang fell face-first, drawing the guard’s attention, and Li Xian made it look as though he was trying to escape the school.
• The guard mistook Teacher Shang for a student, lectured the group for twenty minutes, and let them go without reporting them.
• Li Xian took Teacher Shang and Xu Loubai to an empty dorm room and told Teacher Shang they would look for Xie Zhi the next day.
• Teacher Shang noticed the empty building and unfamiliar belongings, then asked what had happened after he resigned.

Li Xian and Xu Loubai told Teacher Shang that Deng Hanyu had helped spread rumors about Xie Zhi, but a sudden power outage interrupted the conversation. Li Xian suspected the outage might be deliberate when he received a panicked message from the student who had gotten blood on himself.

• Teacher Shang took a call from Deng Hanyu, and Li Xian told him not to reveal that he was at the school.
• Li Xian learned that Deng Hanyu was Teacher Shang’s younger cousin, and Teacher Shang said Deng Hanyu was under heavy pressure from his parents.
• Xu Loubai accused Deng Hanyu of helping spread rumors and slander about Xie Zhi.
• The lights went out, and Li Xian determined that the dorm had lost power before considering whether the outage was deliberate.
• Li Xian received a message from the student who had gotten blood on himself, saying he could hear those things and asking what to do.

Li Xian prepared to use a recording to keep the Fly People away from the dorm, but after the neighboring room fell silent, someone picked his lock and stole his phone. He was left without the recording as the Fly People approached.

• Li Xian told Teacher Shang to hide in bed and sent the neighboring student instructions to play the recording at his door.
• A Fly Person struck the neighboring room’s door, then retreated after hearing the recording.
• Two screams came from next door, and Li Xian received a message saying, “I'm coming to find you now.”
• Li Xian heard buzzing outside his door, but someone picked the lock and seized his phone before he could play the recording.

Li Xian and the others faced a breach by the Fly People after his phone was stolen, while Xu Loubai tried to obtain Jiang Qiuyue’s recording. Li Xian ended up trapped on bed four with Xie Zhi, but stopped her from pushing him off by asking whether she wanted to see Teacher Shang.

• Li Xian braced the dormitory door against the Fly People and told Xu Loubai to get Jiang Qiuyue’s recording and play it.
• As the Fly People battered the door and Li Xian’s mental value fell, Teacher Shang helped him hold it shut while Xu Loubai waited for a reply.
• The Fly People broke in, and Li Xian climbed onto bed four and lay still as they swarmed beneath him.
• Xie Zhi appeared weeping at the foot of bed four, causing the Fly People to scatter and leaving Li Xian unable to move.
• Li Xian asked Xie Zhi whether she wanted to see Teacher Shang, then pointed out that he was below the bed.

Li Xian and Xu Loubai learned that Teacher Shang had helped Xie Zhi find tutoring work, while Xu Loubai told him how Xie Zhi had died. Li Xian revealed that Deng Hanyu might have engineered the rumors that drove her to suicide, but a scream from outside interrupted them.

• Xie Zhi fled the room, and Xu Loubai confirmed to Teacher Shang that Xie Zhi and the other students were dead.
• Xu Loubai told Teacher Shang that Xie Zhi had suffered worsening harassment after returning to school and had died by suicide.
• Teacher Shang denied the rumors and explained that he had arranged tutoring work for Xie Zhi and given her one ride because Deng Hanyu had told him about her financial struggles.
• Li Xian realized Deng Hanyu had set up Teacher Shang's contact with Xie Zhi and had likely orchestrated the rumors that led to her death.
• Li Xian asked Teacher Shang whether the events were connected to Deng Hanyu, and a scream from beyond the half-open door interrupted their conversation.

Li Xian discovered Deng Hanyu had been killing students to cover up the truth and pursued him through the school. Deng Hanyu was knocked unconscious on the stairs by an unseen person, leaving Li Xian to investigate who had intervened.

• Li Xian, Teacher Shang, and Xu Loubai found three dead students in the corridor and identified Deng Hanyu as the likely killer.
• Li Xian recovered his phone and saw Jiang Qiuyue's warning that the Fly People were searching the floor and had killed someone nearby.
• Li Xian photographed Deng Hanyu among the Fly People, then followed him as he tried to break into Jiang Qiuyue's dorm room.
• Li Xian kicked Deng Hanyu's knife away when Deng Hanyu spotted him, but Deng Hanyu escaped and ran downstairs.
• Deng Hanyu suddenly fell unconscious on the stair landing, and Li Xian heard a phone ringing downstairs after calling a number.

Li Xian and the others restrained Deng Hanyu and forced him to confess to framing Xie Zhi and manipulating Teacher Shang. After hearing the confession, Li Xian opened the door to reveal Xie Zhi and Teacher Shang listening outside.

• The others found Deng Hanyu unconscious, tied him to a chair, and questioned him after he woke.
• Deng Hanyu offered to help them get rid of Xie Zhi, but Li Xian and Qian Chen carried him to bed number four and demanded the truth.
• Deng Hanyu cursed at the group when they refused to cooperate with him, then confessed after Li Xian warned that time was running out.
• Deng Hanyu admitted he had arranged for Teacher Shang to tutor Xie Zhi, engineered rumors about them, planted a test paper in her bag, and lied to both of them.
• Li Xian opened the door and revealed Xie Zhi and Teacher Shang standing outside.

Xie Zhi and Teacher Shang apologized to each other, and Xie Zhi’s guilt finally eased. Li Xian realized Deng Hanyu had used Xie Zhi to target Teacher Shang, but when lights-out came, Fly People swarmed Deng Hanyu before he could explain why.

• Xie Zhi and Teacher Shang apologized, and Xie Zhi broke down in relieved tears.
• Teacher Shang asked Deng Hanyu why he had harmed Xie Zhi, and Deng Hanyu admitted he had been jealous of her.
• Li Xian noticed blood-red handprints covering Deng Hanyu’s skin and realized the marks did not rub off.
• Li Xian deduced that Deng Hanyu had targeted Teacher Shang and used Xie Zhi as a means to do so.
• Xie Zhi asked Teacher Shang to speak with her privately, and he left the room with her.
• At lights-out, Fly People swarmed Deng Hanyu, who screamed and fell from his chair.

Li Xian and the others fled the Fly People's deafening attack on Deng Hanyu, while Ji Xie secretly protected Li Xian and silenced the creatures. After Deng Hanyu recovered, he mistook Li Xian for Lin Yaoyao and threatened to ruin their reputations.

• The Fly People overwhelmed Deng Hanyu with buzzing, so Jiang Qiuyue and the others hurried out while Li Xian stayed behind.
• Ji Xie emerged from Li Xian's pocket, covered Li Xian's ears, and made the Fly People fall silent and retreat to the wall.
• Deng Hanyu freed himself from his loosened restraints and accused Li Xian of being Lin Yaoyao.
• Deng Hanyu threatened to ruin Li Xian and Ji Xie's reputations, and Ji Xie echoed Li Xian's unspoken thought that the beating might have made Deng Hanyu stupid.

Ji Xie forced Deng Hanyu to confess that he had targeted Teacher Shang out of resentment over years of comparisons and had chosen Xie Zhi as an easy scapegoat. Li Xian left before Deng Hanyu could reveal another reason, and after discovering a forum post with an audio recording, Deng Hanyu was left alone as Li Xian completed the clearance objective and encountered Xie Zhi.

• Ji Xie used his terrifying gaze to make Deng Hanyu confess that his parents' constant comparisons with Teacher Shang had driven him to ruin his cousin.
• Deng Hanyu admitted he had chosen Xie Zhi because her poverty and isolation made him think no one would defend her.
• When Deng Hanyu began to reveal another reason for choosing Xie Zhi, Li Xian stopped him and left the Dormitory with Ji Xie.
• Deng Hanyu found a trending school forum post with an audio recording on his phone, then stared at the hemp ropes on the floor.
• Li Xian crossed the dormitory building's threshold and received confirmation that the clearance objective, “Atonement,” was complete.
• Li Xian saw Xie Zhi under the moonlight and met her gaze while the other players backed away.

Li Xian let Xie Zhi decide whether to reveal Deng Hanyu’s motive, and she chose to spare Teacher Shang from feeling guilty. As Xie Zhi disappeared, Ji Xie’s question about liking someone received her answer, and the players cleared Mingyan University with its true ending and earned a fivefold reward multiplier for Li Xian’s streak.

• Li Xian showed Xie Zhi the unreleased recording about Deng Hanyu’s motive, and she deleted it rather than publish it.
• Xie Zhi told Li Xian she had thanked Teacher Shang for looking after her and had not confessed because she did not want to burden him.
• As Xie Zhi faded away, Ji Xie asked what it meant to like someone, and Xie Zhi answered that it meant not wanting him to get hurt.
• The Instance announced that Li Xian, Jiang Qiuyue, Qian Chen, and Zhai Shu had cleared Mingyan University with the true ending, Malice.
• The Instance awarded Li Xian a fivefold points multiplier for clearing five consecutive Instances with their true endings, and warned that the bonus would end if he failed to keep the streak.

Li Xian discovered that the Veil of Eternal Night showed him a memory of his parents discussing a dangerous project and what they should leave behind for him. The vision ended before he learned what the project was or what they planned to leave, and Ji Xie noticed his distress.

• After the Mingyan University instance closed, Jiang Qiuyue and the other players logged out, leaving Li Xian alone.
• Ji Xie sensed a fluctuation in one of Li Xian's inventory items and identified the Veil of Eternal Night as its source.
• The Veil of Eternal Night plunged Li Xian into a vision where he saw his parents, Li Yuanqing and Song Zhi, in an unfamiliar control room.
• Li Yuanqing argued that they should leave something for Li Xian because the project participants would likely die, while Song Zhi objected to burdening their son.
• Song Zhi agreed that Li Xian would seek answers on his own, but insisted he must be allowed to choose whether to take on the responsibility.
• The vision vanished, and Ji Xie asked Li Xian what was wrong.

After returning from an instance, Li Xian rescued Song Qingzhang from a group of scammers in the Player Center and brought him to the White Night Guild. Song Qingzhang joined the guild after reading Lin Shiming’s information sheets, though he remained as trusting as ever.

• Li Xian returned to the Player Center after his instance closed and recognized Song Qingzhang being surrounded by players.
• Li Xian stopped Song Qingzhang from handing an item to a scammer, and the group backed off after learning Li Xian belonged to the White Night Guild.
• Song Qingzhang followed Li Xian to the White Night Guild while enthusiastically recounting his Novice Zone experiences.
• Lin Shiming gave Song Qingzhang information about the Advanced Zone, including a page that invited him to join the guild.
• Li Xian encouraged Song Qingzhang to join, and Song Qingzhang signed the guild agreement.

While Song Qingzhang signed the agreement, Li Xian examined his new items and tried to understand the Veil of Eternal Night. Ji Xie explained that the Veil could reveal real memories only while an Instance was closing, leaving Li Xian to accept that the scene of his parents had truly happened.

• Li Xian inspected the Bow Hairpin left by Xie Zhi and the single-use item Fan the Flames, then returned to his room while Song Qingzhang continued signing the agreement.
• Li Xian studied the Veil of Eternal Night, but Ji Xie found no special effect and urged him to rest.
• Li Xian wondered whether the Veil had shown him the past or a scene fabricated by the system, then noticed its usage instructions had changed.
• Ji Xie explained that the Veil worked only while an Instance was closing, when the system's control weakened and stopped blocking its function.
• Li Xian realized the scene of his parents was real, and Ji Xie tousled his hair before turning off the light and joining him in bed.

Li Xian teamed up with Song Qingzhang and Jiang Qiuyue before entering an S-Rank Instance called Toy Factory. Inside, he found himself in his childhood home, shrunk to a young child, and saw his father Li Yuanqing leave for work.

• Song Qingzhang insisted on joining Li Xian despite the increased difficulty, and Li Xian agreed to join Song Qingzhang and Jiang Qiuyue's team.
• Song Qingzhang showed them his Skill: a coin that answered one question per Instance at the cost of half his current Mental Value.
• Li Xian, Song Qingzhang, and Jiang Qiuyue entered the S-Rank Toy Factory Instance, whose objective was to leave the town.
• Li Xian discovered that the Instance had placed him in his childhood home and made him look six or seven years old.
• Li Yuanqing came home briefly to retrieve his briefcase, kissed Li Xian, and left for work.
• After Li Yuanqing left, Li Xian collapsed onto the sofa and felt a fierce surge of anger.

Li Xian explored the house where the system had placed him in a child’s body and discovered that he was trapped inside. After a strange rag doll opened the bedroom door and vanished, Jadeite grew cold, leaving Li Xian wary as he continued toward a way out.

• Li Xian found that the front door and window were locked, then noticed the unfamiliar town outside.
• Li Xian picked up a flyer advertising work at Whimsy Toy Factory, which required a parent to bring a child aged six to ten.
• A patchwork cat doll appeared and moved closer whenever Li Xian looked away.
• The doll hung from the bedroom door handle, opening it before falling to the floor.
• Li Xian entered the bedroom, and Jadeite grew cold as the doll vanished.
• Li Xian put Jadeite in his pocket and decided to put it away once he got outside.

Li Xian discovered that the rag doll had opened the front door and led him outside, where he joined the other players, all transformed into children. The players compared their encounters with nervous parents, while Li Xian noticed that his father had seemed unusually calm.

• Li Xian searched his parents' bedroom and the rest of the house but found no clues or sign of the rag doll.
• Li Xian found the rag doll sitting beside the open front door with a pair of child-sized shoes, then put them on and went outside.
• Li Xian met the other nine players, recognized Song Qingzhang and Jiang Qiuyue, and realized he was the shortest among them.
• A buzz-cut boy mocked Li Xian for arriving late, but Li Xian's stern response left the boy flustered.
• Jiang Qiuyue asked about the players' homes, and they shared that their parents had seemed nervous and warned them not to leave.
• Li Xian listened and noted that his own father had been calm rather than frightened.