Chapter Summaries

Su Bai suspected Bai Qi was hiding her true identity after seeing her spend points on a weapon, while the Players prepared to deliver coffee to the building’s dangerous upper floors. Su Bai and Wen Ya reached the 46th Floor, where they encountered a sunflower-like Front Desk Attendant.

• Su Bai reasoned that Bai Qi had spent at least 500 points on a weapon and wondered why she was pretending to be a Newbie while ingratiating herself with Pei Zhan.
• Bai Qi gave Pei Zhan Compressed Biscuits and an Energy Drink, and the Players set out to deliver coffee to their assigned floors.
• Su Bai and Wen Ya took the elevator to the 46th Floor, while Wu Heng told Pei Zhan that he took S-Rank Jobs to find clues that might help Su Bai escape the building.
• Wen Ya offered to push the Coffee Cart for Su Bai, but he declined and said practice might help him recover.
• Su Bai and Wen Ya arrived at the 46th Floor reception desk and saw that its attendant was an enormous sunflower with a mouth on its flower head.

Su Bai and Wen Ya delivered coffee to the Mutant Plant employees on the 46th Floor, where they encountered a Vines Skeleton that had lost control. The skeleton rejected their coffee as poison and attacked, leaving the pair facing a hostile Strange Creature.

• Su Bai warned Wen Ya that Mutant Plants could be more dangerous than humanoid Strange Creatures despite seeming less aggressive.
• Su Bai and Wen Ya delivered coffee to the Mutant Plants, which drank it and began typing frantically.
• Wen Ya noticed one cup remained, and Su Bai spotted a manager's office where a computer had been smashed.
• A Vines Skeleton emerged and demanded that Su Bai and Wen Ya tell it how to leave, threatening to eat them.
• Su Bai offered the skeleton the last cup of coffee, but it became enraged and accused them of trying to poison it.

Su Bai and Wen Ya discovered that coffee stabilized the mutated plants on the forty-sixth floor, but a vine skeleton’s attack nearly stirred them into a dangerous frenzy. Wen Ya used her water powers to mix coffee with the vine skeleton’s moisture and make it drink, while Su Bai’s power remained suppressed and caused him to cough up blood.

• Su Bai realized the vine skeleton’s outburst had drawn the attention of the other mutated plants, whose agitation was abruptly suppressed by an unseen force.
• Su Bai suspected the coffee was stabilizing the plants, and he and Wen Ya decided to make the vine skeleton drink it quietly.
• Su Bai tried to restrain the vine skeleton with Blood Epiphyllum’s power, but the suppressed power inside him stirred and made him cough up blood.
• Wen Ya used her water powers to draw moisture from the vine skeleton and combine it with the remaining coffee.
• Wen Ya turned the mixture into mist, and the vine skeleton absorbed it into its vines without disturbing the other plants.

Wen Ya subdued the mutated plant on the 46th Floor, then asked Su Bai about his relationship with Wu Heng. Su Bai described how they had grown accustomed to each other, while Wen Ya mistakenly believed he was gravely ill and promised his story would last a long time.

• Wen Ya used coffee-mixed water to calm the mutated plant, and Su Bai sensed that the danger on the 46th Floor had passed for now.
• Wen Ya rested with Su Bai and asked how he and Wu Heng had gotten together.
• Su Bai told Wen Ya that he and Wu Heng had gradually grown used to each other's presence and habits.
• Wen Ya said Su Bai and Wu Heng's relationship was special and predicted their story would be long.
• Wen Ya offered to find Su Bai the best doctors, but Su Bai said his health was good; she did not believe him and headed for the elevator with him.

Su Bai and the other players realized that delivering coffee helped suppress unstable Strange Creatures and maintain the building’s program. After discussing their work, they resolved to keep the building running and use the opportunity to earn points and grow stronger.

• Su Bai and Wen Ya returned to the 44th Floor, collected 200 points each from the Headless Receptionist, and entered the General Affairs Department.
• Su Bai checked on Wu Heng and found him unharmed, while Wu Heng reassured him that he had not chosen an S-Rank task to get hurt.
• Pei Zhan reported that forcing coffee on an eerie creature had made it stop attacking and return to typing like the other employees.
• Wen Ya and Su Bai explained that the coffee suppressed abnormal behavior and seemed to place Strange Creatures into fixed program templates.
• Shen Guanlan concluded that the players were maintaining the building’s program while earning points and strengthening themselves, and the group agreed.
• Su Bai briefly imagined adding a cheap, high-risk blind-box vending machine before rejecting the idea as too dangerous.

After half a month, the players had begun to understand the Nightmare Spiral Building’s routines, but the building’s conditions worsened as lower floors vanished and the dangers persisted. The Headless Receptionist announced that Manager Jiao was taking leave and that it would assign the players’ work, leaving the newcomers terrified of being sent to the upper floors.

• The players noticed that Manager Jiao’s assignments followed a pattern, with Bai Qi and Chu Qianren increasingly sent to floors above the twentieth while Zhou Shirong and Lu Jinyan stayed on lower floors.
• Su Bai suspected that Bai Qi’s ability required prolonged contact with someone and worried that she might be turning her attention toward Wu Heng.
• The players discovered that floors 1 through 20 had disappeared from B-Rank assignments and could no longer be reached by elevator.
• Wu Heng, Pei Zhan, and Wen Ya began attempting S-Rank jobs, though no one had yet visited the sixty-sixth floor.
• The Headless Receptionist entered the General Affairs Department’s Office Area and announced that Manager Jiao was taking temporary leave and that it would assign the daily work.
• The newcomers stiffened in fear because they knew the dangers awaiting anyone without an ability on floors above the forty-fifth.

With B-Rank work canceled, the players prepared for more dangerous A-Rank jobs, while Lu Jinyan and Zhou Shirong decided to keep saving points. Pei Zhan confronted Bai Qi and offered her 2,000 points if she behaved until they cleared the world, leaving the others confused.

• Shen Guanlan reassured the players that more frequent coffee deliveries might keep the Strange Creatures from losing control despite the shift to A-Rank work.
• Lu Jinyan told Zhou Shirong that a blind box seemed to have accelerated the emergence of his ability, so Zhou Shirong chose to save his points too.
• Xiong Yi remarked on Bai Qi giving Pei Zhan snacks, and Bai Qi said she did not like eating them.
• Pei Zhan told Bai Qi to stop her plans, warned her not to approach, and offered her 2,000 points if she completed her work without provoking anyone.
• Shen Guanlan looked startled by Pei Zhan's offer.

Pei Zhan revealed that meditation let him sense Bai Qi’s power and confront her about concealing her identity. After the Headless Receptionist summoned Su Bai, she asked whether he knew the Dream Weaver’s location, saying they needed the lord’s help.

• Pei Zhan explained that the Candlelight Society had obtained a report on players’ powers and meditation from the Special Action Groups.
• Pei Zhan accused Bai Qi of repeatedly wrapping him in her power and warned her to stop, while the other players backed away from her.
• Su Bai reflected that players had learned about power and meditation far earlier than in his previous life, leaving him uncertain but hopeful about the changes.
• The Headless Receptionist invited Su Bai into Manager Jiao’s office, and Wu Heng briefly tried to keep him from going.
• The Headless Receptionist asked Su Bai whether he had merely found the key connected to the Dream Weaver or knew where the lord was, explaining that they needed the Dream Weaver’s help.

Su Bai and Shen Guanlan began their job on the 54th floor, but the floor transformed into a dim, abandoned space as soon as they left the elevator. Wu Heng secretly accompanied Su Bai through his Yao identity inside the Vengeful Ghost Puzzle, and Su Bai spotted a passage ahead.

• The Headless Receptionist refused to explain what had happened to the building and said it would get answers through other methods.
• Su Bai and Shen Guanlan were assigned to work together, and Wu Heng decided to follow Su Bai without being discovered.
• Su Bai and Shen Guanlan arrived at the 54th floor, where the office area changed into a vast, dim space resembling an abandoned underground garage.
• Yao spoke from inside the Vengeful Ghost Puzzle, revealing that Wu Heng had secretly joined Su Bai in that identity.
• Su Bai noticed a passage in the distance while Shen Guanlan wondered how they could complete the task without any eerie entities nearby.

Su Bai and Shen Guanlan searched the gray space while Shen Guanlan questioned him about his family, studies, and connections in the Real World. Su Bai grew suspicious of her unusual interest, but the reason for it remained unclear.

• Su Bai spotted a small white door hidden beneath a bulb and set off with Shen Guanlan.
• Shen Guanlan asked Su Bai about his relationship with Wu Heng and his family in Honghuai City.
• Shen Guanlan questioned Su Bai about his university and how many friends he had in the Real World.
• Su Bai lied that he had many close friends, then changed his answer after Shen Guanlan sounded disappointed.
• Su Bai told Shen Guanlan that his parents rarely contacted him, and she blurted out that this was wonderful before trying to explain her reaction.

Shen Guanlan revealed that she planned to kill Su Bai and impersonate him, believing she could inherit his relationships and escape her aging body. Su Bai concealed his strength as her threat became clear, leaving their confrontation on the verge of violence.

• Su Bai sensed Shen Guanlan using her ability and let her force enter his body while he questioned her interest in his family and friends.
• Shen Guanlan revealed her plan to take Su Bai's identity and use his appearance to replace him.
• Wu Heng urged Su Bai to act against Shen Guanlan, but Su Bai held him back and continued questioning her.
• Shen Guanlan threatened Su Bai with a concealed ring spike and said he could not leave if she was to take over his identity.
• Shen Guanlan explained that she wanted Su Bai's youth, health, relationships, and partner, and told him to endure the process.

Shen Guanlan tried to seize Su Bai’s body while explaining that her ability let her take others’ abilities, but the transformation went horribly wrong. She collapsed in agony and realized something was wrong with Su Bai’s body.

• Su Bai deduced that Bai Qi and Shen Guanlan both had abilities that let them seize other people’s abilities.
• Shen Guanlan claimed that Su Bai’s lover would still love her after she became Su Bai, and Wu Heng asked to act from the Puzzle Piece.
• Shen Guanlan began transforming her body while keeping the barb of her ring against Su Bai’s neck.
• Shen Guanlan’s legs cracked and deformed, and she collapsed, coughing blood as the seizing process spiraled out of control.
• Shen Guanlan stared at Su Bai in terror and demanded to know what was wrong with his body.

Su Bai discovered that Shen Guanlan’s attempt to seize his appearance had failed and left her gravely injured, while the 66th Floor’s imprisoned beings began to stir. Wu Heng identified the creatures as Blood Clan remnants, and one attacked Shen Guanlan before turning its attention to Su Bai.

• Shen Guanlan’s failed use of Seizing left her body mutating and her legs badly injured, and she begged Su Bai to take her back to the 44th Floor.
• Su Bai heard beastlike howls, chains, and blows against iron bars as Wu Heng concluded that the 66th Floor had been built to imprison special beings.
• A lock opened, and a bloodied, feral humanoid escaped its restraints and attacked Shen Guanlan.
• Wu Heng identified the imprisoned beings as Blood Clan remnants, reminding Su Bai of Chiliu and the maddened Blood Clan members he had mentioned.
• The Blood Clan remnant released Shen Guanlan and turned its savage attention toward Su Bai.

Su Bai tested his abilities against a Blood Clan remnant and pulled a weapon from the mysterious door in his mind. He wounded the creature with a Blood-Red Blade and began to understand that the Vengeful Ghost Puzzle was part of his own power.

• Su Bai told Wu Heng and the other Strange Creatures not to interfere as the Blood Clan remnant attacked him.
• Su Bai drew on the red moon power to dodge the remnant’s precise, lethal strikes and realized he needed a weapon.
• Su Bai entered a meditative state, saw a translucent door, and pulled its handle free.
• Su Bai extended the black-and-red rod into a staff and formed a Blood-Red Blade that severed the remnant’s arm.
• Wu Heng told Su Bai that the Vengeful Ghost Puzzle was part of his power and urged him to keep exploring it.

Su Bai recognized the Vengeful Ghost Puzzle as part of himself and used its power, together with Little Fire’s flames, to kill the Blood Clan Remnant. The Headless Receptionist then asked him to save This Building.

• Su Bai realized that he and the Vengeful Ghost Puzzle were one, then infused his scythe with Little Fire’s blue flames.
• Su Bai severed the Blood Clan Remnant’s arm and then cut off its head as Shen Guanlan watched.
• Shen Guanlan lost consciousness after Su Bai told her he was human and named himself the Lord of the Vengeful Ghost Puzzle, the owner of the Mist Shop, and the Ghost Shaman’s partner.
• The Headless Receptionist admitted they had misjudged Su Bai and pleaded with him to save This Building.

Su Bai learned that the Dream Weaver was likely his older brother, Su Xuan, who had built the tower and imprisoned the Blood Clan Remnants. The Headless Receptionist explained that the Red Moon’s growing instability was driving the Remnants out of control, then revealed that a second possibility had emerged.

• Su Bai questioned the Headless Receptionist and confirmed that the Dream Weaver was likely Su Xuan, who had built the tower and locked up the Blood Clan Remnants.
• Su Bai reasoned that Su Xuan might have left the tower behind and forgotten about it after retreating to Honghuai City.
• Su Bai asked why the Blood Clan Remnants had suddenly lost control.
• The Headless Receptionist said the Red Moon’s power had grown restless and that the Remnants, with their close connection to it, were the first to be affected.
• The Headless Receptionist said stronger coffee could only temporarily suppress the Remnants’ loss of control, then pointed out that a second possibility had appeared.

Su Bai arranged for Chiliu to be contacted to deal with the Blood Clan remnants, while A Xiang explained why the building’s lower-floor creatures were used to make coffee. He kept the mortally wounded Shen Guanlan alive and brought her back to the 44th Floor, where the players saw A Xi’s terrifying arrival.

• Su Bai asked A Xiang how long she could contain the Blood Clan remnants, then asked Wu Heng to find Chiliu and decided to intervene himself if Chiliu could not arrive in time.
• A Xiang apologized for releasing a remnant and explained that creatures on the lower floors were used as coffee ingredients to stabilize the remnants on the 66th Floor.
• Su Bai found Shen Guanlan still alive and used A Xi’s blood to keep her alive and carry her toward the elevator.
• The players gathered outside the elevator on the 44th Floor, waiting for Su Bai and Shen Guanlan to return.
• The elevator opened, blood spilled into the lobby, and the players recoiled at the sight of the Ghost Bride standing inside.

Su Bai returned with A Xi and revealed that Shen Guanlan had tried to seize his body, while Shen Guanlan confessed she had stolen the real Shen Guanlan’s appearance. Before dying, Shen Guanlan accused Bai Qi of having an ability related to seizing, leaving the other players suspicious of her.

• The players panicked when A Xi emerged from the elevator with the dying Shen Guanlan, then watched as Su Bai followed unharmed.
• Su Bai told the players that A Xi was his family and his ability, then asked Shen Guanlan to explain herself.
• Shen Guanlan confessed that she had seized the real Shen Guanlan’s appearance and suffered backlash when she tried to seize Su Bai’s body.
• Shen Guanlan warned the players that Bai Qi’s ability might let her seize other people’s abilities, then died.
• Su Bai said he would have A Xi take care of Shen Guanlan’s body, and the players turned their attention to Bai Qi.

Su Bai exposed Bai Qi’s likely Seizing ability, which she denied as Pei Zhan confronted her over trying to steal his Sword ability. After leaving the game with A Xi, Su Bai decided to travel to Honghuai City.

• Shen Guanlan’s warning led the Players to realize Bai Qi had likely been using Seizing on Pei Zhan.
• Bai Qi denied having Seizing and promised to keep her distance, while Pei Zhan remained furious and guarded.
• Su Bai sent A Xi back to the Puzzle Piece and left Shen Guanlan’s lifeless body by the elevator.
• The Players recognized that the Ghost Bride obeyed Su Bai and that they had underestimated him.
• Su Bai told Wu Heng he planned to take a trip to Honghuai City.

Su Bai entered Su Xuan’s Honghuai City with Wu Heng and found it dark and frozen until dawn brought it to life. Su Xuan hurried to meet him, and Su Bai asked him about the Administrator and the person who could contact Chiliu.

• Su Bai invited Wu Heng to accompany him to Honghuai City, but Wu Heng declined to wear his shell.
• Su Bai used a key to open a door into Honghuai City and found its streets dark, lifeless, and filled with motionless people.
• Dawn spread across the sky, and the city and its frozen inhabitants began moving again.
• Su Xuan hurried through the crowd to check whether Su Bai was hurt.
• Su Bai told Su Xuan he had come to ask about two matters and asked who the Administrator was; he also asked Wu Heng whether the Administrator was the person who could contact Chiliu.