Chapter Summaries

Stelle and Jiang Yu explored the Seclusion Zone, rescued Ashy Bean Paste from its fears, and uncovered Ruan Mei's recordings about her search for the essence of life. After fighting through swarms of True Stings and reaching a room of cultivation machines, they heard a hatch open and went to investigate the arrival of other visitors.

• Stelle and Jiang Yu found Ashy Bean Paste, a timid Cat Cake, and brought it with them as they followed a noise through a dark passage.
• Stelle and Jiang Yu killed two True Stings that ambushed them, then fought their way through the passage and found a room full of Cat Cakes and Shumai Dogs.
• Stelle and Jiang Yu listened to Ruan Mei's recordings about her failed experiments and her search for life's essence, and Jiang Yu suggested that consciousness, cognition, and information were fundamental to life.
• Stelle and Jiang Yu reached a cultivation room and placed Ashy Bean Paste in a chamber marked as helpful for easing negative emotions.
• Stelle and Jiang Yu heard a hatch open above them, suspected other visitors had entered the Seclusion Zone, and went to investigate.

Stelle and Jiang Yu uncovered Ruan Mei’s plans to cultivate an Emanator and opened the entrance to the cultivation chamber. There they encountered a mysterious man wearing a plaster head, who noticed their hesitation and asked if they had run into a problem.

• Stelle used Ruan Mei’s pass to access a recording in which Ruan Mei discussed cultivating an Emanator using data from Tayzzyronth and the Swarm Emperor.
• Stelle learned from the robot that a plaster-headed man had visited and chose to open the cultivation chamber.
• Stelle and Jiang Yu returned to the central platform, where they found a plaster-headed man playing chess alone.
• The man put away his chessboard, approached Stelle and Jiang Yu, and asked whether they had run into a problem.

Stelle and Jiang Yu confronted Dr. Ratio, who revealed that he knew about their mission for Ruan Mei and directed them toward the elevator. Below, they found Ruan Mei’s imitation Swarm King Skaracabaz, and Jiang Yu charged it as it unleashed a deadly beam.

• Stelle repeatedly demanded an explanation from the plaster-headed man, who eventually identified himself as Dr. Ratio and explained that he knew of their mission for Ruan Mei.
• Dr. Ratio said he would let Stelle and Jiang Yu proceed but would intervene if they failed, then told them Ruan Mei’s creation was below.
• Jiang Yu ended the conversation and led Stelle to the elevator, while Dr. Ratio followed them into the darkness.
• Stelle and Jiang Yu found the egg-like structure shattered and were attacked by the imitation Swarm King Skaracabaz.
• Jiang Yu broke off one of the creature’s antennae, charged it, and dispersed its energy projectiles with a sweep of Black Cleave.
• The Swarm King fired a Pyrolysis Death Ray, and Jiang Yu stood his ground and pointed his sword toward the attack.

Jiang Yu defeated Ruan Mei’s replicated Swarm King in 36 seconds, surviving its devastating final attack and cutting it in two. He and Stelle later confronted Ruan Mei, who calmly apologized and showed unexpected excitement at the result.

• Jiang Yu destroyed the Swarm King’s attacks and struck it with a Jumping Slash, breaking its shield and leaving it badly wounded.
• The Swarm King unleashed Ovum of Collapsed Star, but Jiang Yu batted it back and absorbed its fragments into his sword before cutting the creature in two.
• Professor Dr. Ratio observed the battle’s 36-second outcome and left after deciding the threat was eliminated.
• Jiang Yu returned to Stelle and criticized Ruan Mei for conducting a dangerous experiment on the Space Station.
• Jiang Yu and Stelle met Ruan Mei, who apologized for the experiment and became excited when she learned the replica had lasted 36 seconds.

Ruan Mei left the Space Station after agreeing that Jiang Yu and the others could decide what to do with her creations, while Jiang Yu and Stelle raised a growing collection of Cat Cakes. Meanwhile, Herta’s Puppets disappeared, and Stelle collapsed after entering Herta’s office.

• Ruan Mei said she did not understand how to respond to her creations’ love and decided that leaving them at the Space Station was best, then departed soon afterward.
• Jiang Yu and Stelle made many new Cat Cakes, and Asta let Jiang Yu take them aboard the Astral Express.
• Cirrus realized Jiang Yu seemed to collect creatures and felt uneasy that she might be one of his collectibles.
• Herta’s Puppets disappeared from the Space Station, prompting rumors that Herta had been attacked and speculation that Little Fish’s fans planned to rename the station.
• Stelle entered Herta’s office, felt her head grow heavy, and passed out.

Stelle woke aboard the Space Station after Herta’s puppet was attacked, and Dr. Ratio questioned her because she had last seen it. Asta and Screwllum explained that the puppet was missing and that Herta had left on an inspection tour; the chapter ended with players debating Ratio and Little Fish’s roasting styles in the comments.

• Stelle woke to find Asta and Screwllum discussing the attack on Herta’s puppet.
• Dr. Ratio arrived and said Stelle was needed because she had been the last person to see the puppet before the attack.
• Stelle recognized Ratio from their earlier meeting and called him a poor guy with no friends.
• Asta told Stelle that Herta’s puppet had been attacked outside the station’s surveillance coverage and could not be located.
• Screwllum said Herta had received an invitation from the Corporation before the incident, and Ratio criticized the Technology Department’s staff.
• Players in the comments compared Ratio’s insults with Little Fish’s and joked about Brother Yellow Pee’s daily check-ins.

Stelle tried to recover her memories of Herta’s missing Curio and how she had sought help around the Space Station. Her recollection reached the moment she encountered Jiang Yu, who arrived looking for Peppy with one of his Cat Cake creations.

• Dr. Ratio asked Stelle what she had done the last time she saw the missing puppet, and she struggled to remember.
• Stelle recalled that Herta had asked her to search for a living Curio with no physical form, but she could not remember its full description.
• Stelle remembered hearing staff discuss someone vanishing without a trace and that Hinkel had identified the Curio as a Wubbaboo and recommended Little Adler.
• Stelle found Arlan talking with a Security Department staff member, and Jiang Yu teased the staff member into barking after he claimed to be the dog.
• Jiang Yu said he was looking for Peppy for its walk with Little Aha, and the red Cat Cake appeared behind him.
• Jiang Yu explained that he had named his other Cat Cake creations Little Nanook, Little Yaoshi, and Little Lan.

Stelle recovered the memories that pointed to a missing Curio connected to Heliobi, then explained her deductions to Dr. Ratio and Screwllum. Dr. Ratio challenged her account as a suspect, and Stelle began their debate with an unexpectedly sincere admission that nobody had taught her manners.

• Arlan led Stelle and Jiang Yu to find Adler, whom they rescued from a Stormbringer that Jiang Yu subdued with ease.
• Adler's conversation helped Stelle remember that Emily had spoken with Esther about a bodiless species, leading her to connect the missing Curio to energy-based life-forms such as Heliobi and Wubbaboos.
• Stelle recalled that staff disappearances were accompanied by unexplained fires and that Herta had said the Curio was connected to the Genius Society.
• Stelle told Dr. Ratio and Screwllum everything she remembered, but Dr. Ratio questioned whether anyone could verify her account.
• When Dr. Ratio rebuked Stelle for interrupting and asked whether anyone had taught her manners, Stelle earnestly replied that nobody had.

Stelle explained why Herta cared about the missing Curio and suggested checking the Space Station’s fire-suppression records to link its disappearance to the missing Staff. A video then claimed the Annihilation Gang had taken the Herta Puppet and threatened the station, leaving Stelle to dismiss its fiery speaker as an edgelord.

• Dr. Ratio questioned Stelle about Herta’s commission, and she explained that the Curio mattered because it was connected to the Genius Society.
• Dr. Ratio challenged Stelle over Asta’s involvement, and Stelle explained why Asta had kept the investigation discreet.
• Stelle proposed checking the automatic fire-suppression records for evidence linking the puppet’s disappearance to the Staff vanishings.
• A video appeared in the Space Station group chat, claiming the Annihilation Gang had taken the Herta Puppet and would target the station again.
• Asta and Stelle watched the video, and Stelle asked where the edgelord in flames had come from.

Stelle, Asta, Screwllum, and Dr. Ratio assessed Duke Inferno and the Annihilation Gang’s threat to the Space Station. Stelle proposed turning the Flame Demons into energy-producing laborers and offering them a chance to meet an Emanator of Destruction, leaving Dr. Ratio alarmed by her plan.

• Dr. Ratio warned Asta that Duke Inferno’s video was a declaration of war, while Screwllum explained Afrit’s origins and the Flame Demons’ devotion to Nanook.
• Stelle privately compared Afrit’s unrecognized devotion to Argenti’s search for Idrila and restrained herself from laughing at the duke’s dramatic speech.
• Dr. Ratio described the Annihilation Gang’s factions and suggested Afrit had engineered the Jepella Brotherhood’s downfall before planning a similar attack on the Space Station.
• Stelle reasoned that Flame Demons could provide continuous high-purity energy and proposed putting them to work for the Factory.
• Stelle offered to help the Annihilation Gang meet an Emanator of Destruction, and Dr. Ratio grew worried that he might become entangled in her scheme.

Stelle organized the Little Fish fans to investigate the Space Station’s missing staff while she and Dr. Ratio pursued clues about little Adler. Jiang Yu arrived with a crowd of fans and asked Stelle to explain what was happening before he could help with the Duke Inferno investigation.

• Dr. Ratio warned that a video could cause panic on the Space Station, and Stelle messaged Jiang Yu to recruit the Little Fish fans to investigate.
• Stelle obtained a list of missing staff from Arlan and sent it to the fan chat, where members eagerly agreed to help.
• Dr. Ratio learned that little Adler had disappeared, but Arlan revealed Adler’s last contact was Wen Shiling.
• Wen Shiling told Stelle and Dr. Ratio about Adler’s research into spontaneous human combustion, mentioned a fragrance, and gave them his booklet.
• Jiang Yu arrived in the Master Control Zone with a crowd of fans and asked Stelle to handle them before he investigated Duke Inferno.

Stelle and Dr. Ratio learned from Little Fish’s Knight Group that the missing victims had spread anti-management statements online and that Duke Inferno, Afrit, was a likely culprit behind the phase-traveling flames. Dr. Ratio prepared to return with the findings and discuss the case with Asta and Screwllum.

• Stelle explained that she had asked Little Fish’s fans to help find clues, and Jiang Yu asked the assembled group what they had learned.
• Pamela and the other fans reported that the missing victims had posted extreme anti-management statements on the dark web, while the Knight Group vowed to keep the Space Station from turning against itself.
• Dr. Ratio told Stelle that he had found useful stories in the booklet and wanted to speak with Asta and Screwllum.
• Little Fish’s Knight Group shared its investigation into the spontaneous combustions and narrowed the suspects to the Phase Flame and Duke Inferno, Afrit.
• Stelle was astonished that the fans had uncovered the key information so quickly, and Dr. Ratio left impressed by their work.

Stelle, Dr. Ratio, Screwllum, and Asta pieced together Duke Inferno’s connection to the Phase Flame and Adler’s disappearance. Dr. Ratio was impressed by Jiang Yu’s rational fans, while the group prepared to pursue their leads.

• Asta said the darknet video’s spread had been limited, then asked the others to share their findings.
• Dr. Ratio identified shared traits among the victims, Adler’s disappearance, and Duke Inferno’s flames as their three leads.
• Screwllum explained that Duke Inferno might be descended from the Phase Flame, a lost Curio created by Sserkal.
• Stelle suspected Dr. Ratio might have the Core Flame, but decided that recovering the flame mattered more than who possessed it.
• Dr. Ratio connected Adler’s muttered “fragrance” to “phase” and suggested Duke Inferno could perform a limited form of spatial transfer.
• Dr. Ratio judged the outcome acceptable and became interested in how Jiang Yu’s passionate yet rational fans maintained their restraint.

Dr. Ratio, Screwllum, and Jiang Yu recognized that the disappearances were part of a plan to sow unrest on the Space Station, but the attackers’ attempt to teleport Asta failed. Duke Inferno revealed himself through a taunting voice, and Jiang Yu decided to seek help to catch him.

• Dr. Ratio explained how the disappearances and a shared connection among the missing staff could stir chaos, while Asta saw that the scheme aimed to provoke internal strife.
• Jiang Yu dismissed the staff’s early complaints as too feeble, and Asta was suddenly engulfed in blue flames and teleported away.
• Screwllum determined that Afrit’s flame could not shift phases, while Dr. Ratio concluded that Asta remained somewhere inside the Space Station.
• Duke Inferno appeared by voice and taunted Dr. Ratio and Screwllum, who identified his infernal fire as the source of the attacks on staff.
• Jiang Yu lamented that Duke Inferno was not there in person, then resolved to find help to catch him.

Argenti gathered the Knights of Beauty and warned them to watch for Duke Inferno, Afrit, and the Flame Demon clan while they traveled to Penacony for the Charmony Festival. After the knights departed, Jiang Yu prepared to find Asta and the others, determined to capture the Flame Demon clan for labor.

• Argenti gathered the Knights of Beauty around Little Dragon and explained that the giant beast had drawn attackers who were defeated before word spread that the spectacle was a trap.
• Argenti told the knights that Little Fish had asked them to watch for Duke Inferno, Afrit, and his Flame Demon clan.
• Knights from Edo Star, the Xianzhou, and among the Intellitrons condemned the Flame Demon clan and the Annihilation Gang.
• The Knights of Beauty set out for Penacony and Little Dragon vanished into space.
• Jiang Yu finished speaking with Argenti, put away his phone, and told the others to find Asta and the others.

Jiang Yu, Stelle, and Dr. Ratio pursued the weakening spirit flame through the Space Station’s folded space. Jiang Yu summoned the Horrific Maze to trap it, and the Curio agreed to help despite being terrified of him.

• Screwllum sealed the spirit flame inside the Space Station, and Jiang Yu, Stelle, and Dr. Ratio entered the folded space to capture it.
• Dr. Ratio tracked the flame through the changing space as it fled and weakened.
• Jiang Yu said he had arranged for an expert to help, and Little Lan arrived with the Horrific Maze.
• The Horrific Maze panicked at seeing Jiang Yu and Stelle, remembering how they had subdued it before.
• Jiang Yu asked the Horrific Maze to help capture the spirit flame, and it resolutely agreed.

Jiang Yu gathered allies and used the Horrific Maze to help capture the Phase Flame's Core Flame. The Core Flame repeatedly tried to escape, only to find the same three pursuers waiting wherever it went.

• Jiang Yu told the Horrific Maze to wait for the arriving helpers before using its spatial abilities to catch the Core Flame.
• Dr. Ratio realized Little Lan could bypass part of the Seclusion Zone's spatial lockdown, and Mediterranean Commander Midreiz Parsons arrived with his fans to assist Jiang Yu.
• Jiang Yu explained the situation, and the group set to work trapping the Core Flame.
• The Core Flame described its pursuers, including a genius, a muscular scholar, a gray-haired girl, and a white-haired child, then opened a flaming doorway to escape.
• The Core Flame emerged to find the muscular scholar and two others waiting, and every attempt to flee through space brought it back to them.

Jiang Yu and his allies used the Horrific Maze to trap Duke Inferno’s Core Flame in a loop, then mocked the Duke when he spoke through it. The Duke threatened to come in person, but Jiang Yu’s insults left him sputtering while the Horrific Maze trembled at the familiar treatment.

• The Horrific Maze repeatedly sent Duke Inferno’s Core Flame back to the group until it gave up trying to escape.
• Stelle praised the Horrific Maze for scaring the flame, crediting Jiang Yu’s advice.
• Duke Inferno’s voice claimed that Nanook’s blessing had fallen upon them, and Jiang Yu and Stelle joked that they had been blessed by Destruction.
• Jiang Yu reminded the Duke that the Antimatter Legion had been defeated at Herta Space Station and that he had captured Phantylia on the Xianzhou.
• Duke Inferno threatened to visit in person, but Jiang Yu mocked his cowardice and continued insulting him until he could only cry out angrily.
• The Horrific Maze trembled as Jiang Yu’s insults reminded it of its own past.

Stelle and her companions contained the Core Flame and rescued everyone before preparing to leave for Penacony. Days later, Acheron defeated Duke Inferno Afrit at the Ever-Flame Mansion and took his music box, but a radiant spectacle and a group of knights arrived, leaving her facing a new encounter.

• Dr. Ratio said Duke Inferno's consciousness had abandoned the Core Flame, which then went out of control before the Horrific Maze trapped it and Dr. Ratio contained it.
• Stelle and her companions rescued everyone, and the conflict over the disappearances subsided.
• Stelle spoke with Screwllum, then joined Jiang Yu to walk the Cat Cakes before their departure for Penacony.
• Acheron defeated Duke Inferno Afrit after he refused to abandon his plan to bring purgatory to Penacony, and she took his music box.
• Radiant colors filled the starry sky, and a group of knights entered the Ever-Flame Mansion and asked Acheron whether Duke Inferno Afrit was there.

The reunited Knights of Beauty found the Ever-Flame Mansion and learned from Acheron that Duke Inferno was dead. After searching the fortress, they discovered corrosive energy residue and considered using it to locate Afrit.

• An Intellitron Knight spotted the Ever-Flame Mansion, and the Knights of Beauty boarded it.
• Argenti introduced himself to Acheron and asked for Duke Inferno, learning that he had just died.
• Argenti and the Knights entered the mansion while Acheron left, and Little Dragon watched her depart without eating her.
• The Knights searched the mansion, found no corpse, and gathered beside the throne.
• Argenti examined Afrit's fallen flaming crown, and an Intellitron Knight proposed analyzing the corrosive residue to locate him.