Chapter Summaries

Xia Xiu used a meme-virus trap and the opera at Albert Music Hall to kill Adistate, [Anger]'s player, and unlock new abilities. After [Anger] was eliminated, [Hope] appeared and then began evolving as Xia Xiu prepared to move on.

• Alex and Adistate attended an opera at Albert Music Hall, where Xia Xiu's devices spread [Absurdity Contamination: Thought Seclusion] through the audience.
• Xia Xiu appeared and decapitated Alex while the audience remained absorbed in the performance.
• Xia Xiu stabbed Adistate with the [Blade of Gluttony] and used [Gluttony's Commandment: Delicacies; Punishment: Hunger] to weaken her.
• Adistate died after recognizing [Hope], and the game announced that [Anger] had exited the round and unlocked Xia Xiu's [Word Spirit] restriction and peripheral equipment.
• [Hope] mourned Adistate and commented that Anut had suffered worse, so Xia Xiu flicked her forehead and urged her to evolve.
• A yellow card enveloped [Hope], and Xia Xiu said goodbye as she vanished in the light.

After [Hope] gained the ability to change her dress color, Xia Xiu left the concert hall and traveled to Milan to enter Mareta Psychiatric Hospital. There, he met patient Hayden Kent, whose reaction to Xia Xiu’s words about dreams ended with him being sedated, while Xia Xiu decided to approach the patients more carefully.

• [Hope] emerged from her evolution with [Anger]'s Yellow Card and showed Xia Xiu that she could change the color of her dress.
• Xia Xiu told [Hope] they were going to Mareta Psychiatric Hospital in Milan, then left the concert hall with her.
• On his third day at Mareta, Xia Xiu offered Hayden Kent a piece of candy and explained that he could see [Hope], whom Hayden could not see.
• Xia Xiu told Hayden he was at the hospital to find someone hiding in everyone's dreams, prompting Hayden to kneel and chant before the orderlies sedated him.
• After the head nurse warned Xia Xiu about patients suddenly going mad around him, he resolved to take more time gaining their trust.

Xia Xiu entered a branch of [Kreid Forest] to reach Mareta Psychiatric Hospital’s collective dream and find Atlif, but after forcing his way through, he awoke shackled in an unfamiliar interrogation room. The chapter left him facing an unknown interrogator who called him BK-201.

• Xia Xiu explained to [Hope] that Atlif hid in a fragment of [Kreid Forest] and used Mareta Psychiatric Hospital’s patients as anchors for a collective dream.
• Xia Xiu used [Dragon Sleep] to enter the dream, crushed a monstrous safeguard, and emerged into an ocean of bubbles.
• Xia Xiu summoned a Light Body Giant and shattered the bubbles until they opened a passage to an ornate doorway.
• Xia Xiu passed through the doorway, lost consciousness, and woke in an interrogation chair with his hands shackled.
• An unseen interrogator addressed Xia Xiu as BK-201 in an unfamiliar language he could understand.

Xia Xiu woke in the Truth Institute, where Hilde brutalized him and burned his copy of The Waste Land. Xia Xiu used dream prohibitions to expose Hilde’s identity and force him to unlock his restraints, then left Hilde beaten beneath his boot.

• Hilde struck Xia Xiu with The Waste Land and threatened him with a baton while explaining that obedience was the Truth Institute’s only rule.
• Hilde burned The Waste Land and sentenced Xia Xiu to three days in solitary confinement.
• Xia Xiu identified Hilde as a Diva Empire firefighter and explained how revealing details about the waking world breached a dream prohibition, causing Hilde agony.
• Xia Xiu forced Hilde to crawl over and unlock his restraints by invoking the Diva Empire’s customs and the Fahrenheit 451 slogan.
• Xia Xiu kicked Hilde into a corner, then pinned his forehead beneath his boot.

A Blond Young Man finished reciting a prayer beneath an inverted High Tower filled with shrieking Ether Spirits. The chapter ended with the Tower looming over Greenwich and reaching toward the Present World.

• An inverted High Tower extended downward from above Greenwich beneath a full moon.
• Ether Spirits crushed one another throughout the Tower and cried toward the Present World.
• The Blond Young Man finished reciting the final prayer beneath the Tower.

After their passion cooled, Xia Xiu drew away from the purple-haired girl, who asked where they were.

• Xia Xiu drew away from the purple-haired girl after their passion cooled.
• The purple-haired girl looked at Xia Xiu with hazy, watery eyes.
• The purple-haired girl asked where they were.

Yizhou emerged from the shadows inside the cell, and Xia Xiu turned to look at him. The chapter ended before the older man's description was complete.

• Yizhou slowly emerged from the shadows inside the cell.
• Xia Xiu turned his gaze toward the middle-aged man.
• The chapter described the man's appearance before cutting off.

Yizhou faced the Blond Young Man, who greeted him with a radiant smile while [Zorro] prepared to attack and [Devouring Clouds] consumed EVE Particles and flesh.

• The Blond Young Man asked why Yizhou looked bedraggled.
• [Zorro] held a rapier before his face and prepared to attack.
• The five-second [Devouring Clouds] formed by the [Devouring Arrows] ate away at EVE Particles and flesh.

Tours Colbert took Clayton to the Reserve's medical facility and left him medicine to suppress Oripathy. After ensuring Clayton was settled, Tours returned home, still worried about his own body.

• Tours Colbert brought Clayton to the Reserve's medical facility despite Clayton insisting nothing was seriously wrong.
• Tours made Clayton stay and left him specialized medicine to suppress Oripathy.
• Tours checked that Clayton was settled, then returned home weighed down by worries about his body.

Xia Xiu approached Tours as he knelt on the ground, struggling to breathe and clutching his chest in pain. The chapter ended with Tours still in distress.

• Xia Xiu ignored Yizhou's silent grumbling and walked toward Tours.
• Tours knelt on the cold stone slabs, sweating, trembling, and gasping for breath.
• Tours clutched the clothing over his heart as he suffered agonizing pain.

Three days later, a new batch of outsiders arrived at Reykjavík’s Old Harbor. The chapter ends as they came from the ships.

• Three days passed.
• A new batch of outsiders arrived at Reykjavík’s Old Harbor.
• The outsiders came in groups of three or five from the ships.

Xia arrived at the Portal in Smokeless City and received a welcome message requiring visitors to follow the Regional Hub Plan. The visitor agreement warned that it contained Forced Reading Mimesis and had to be read before agreeing.

• Xia appeared in front of the Portal in Smokeless City.
• The system completed basic verification.
• The system welcomed Xia and told all visitors to comply with the Regional Hub Plan.
• The system presented a visitor agreement and warned Xia to read it carefully before checking the box to agree.

Xia Xiu persuaded Henry Ironbeard to sponsor him with a generous payment, and Henry received a check for thirty thousand. The chapter ended as Henry complained about the currency exchange rate.

• Xia Xiu persuaded Henry Ironbeard to serve as his sponsor.
• Henry Ironbeard flicked through a check for thirty thousand in Youyang Banknotes.
• Henry Ironbeard complained that Financial Street's currency resource exchange was disgusting.

Blood Spear was teleported out of the arena after the audience cheered. A virtual panel announced the next match as a beast battle between Van Helsing and Gladiator Killer.

• The audience cheered as Blood Spear was teleported out of the arena.
• A huge virtual panel appeared in the arena and announced the upcoming beast battle.
• The panel listed Van Helsing and Gladiator Killer as the contestants.

Francis held [Eternity Night] and attacked Urks, enduring his lethal assaults while [Erika] struck back with a silver sword.

• Francis attacked Urks without fear of death.
• Urks tore at Francis with flames, claw strikes, and offensive Thaumaturgy.
• [Erika] raised his ornate silver sword behind Francis and swiftly cut into Urks.

Xia Xiu arrived outside [Dacia Prison] and saw replicas of the [Torslunda Plates]. The chapter described the Berserker tradition’s believed origins and its ancient followers.

• Xia Xiu arrived outside [Dacia Prison].
• Xia Xiu saw replicas of the four [Torslunda Plates], which depicted the [Boar Warriors].
• Terra’s supernatural academic community generally believed that Berserker tradition originated in hunting magic and animal worship.
• The chapter stated that most ancient Berserkers were Viking pirates concentrated around Reykjavík.

Old Valdasson explained why he could not intervene in the New Era's tide and why Broly had survived. The chapter ended mid-sentence as he began explaining where the Berserkers' curse would go if Broly died.

• Old Valdasson sighed and told Xia Xiu that he was too old to act, despite knowing many things.
• Old Valdasson said they feared the tide of the New Era.
• Old Valdasson explained that Broly bore the evil karma of all Berserkers and had not died because the curse would attach itself to something else if he did.

Broly considered the white card held by his [Dominion Avatar] after Xia Xiu explained the choice. The chapter left Broly silent, with his decision unknown.

• [Beowulf] hovered beside Broly while holding the white card.
• Xia Xiu finished speaking and waited for Broly to choose.
• Broly sensed a vast, pitch-black intent within the card.

Van Helsing won a barehanded blood match at the Blood Sacrifice Colosseum. The excerpt ended as he held the limp orc’s head beneath his hand.

• The colosseum announced that the 1v1 barehanded blood match had concluded.
• The announcer declared Van Helsing the victor.
• Van Helsing pressed his right hand against the head of a limp male orc.

The speaker told someone to wait for a signal before moving against old Ventrue. The story left the move planned for the following day, when old Ventrue’s location might cause trouble.

• The speaker told the listener to wait for a signal the next day before acting.
• The speaker warned that events would get louder and urged the listener to move quickly.
• The speaker identified old Ventrue’s [Lord of the Tomb] as a potential problem because he was in a replica of Bram Castle near Bucharest.