Chapter Summaries

Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan faced the tenth layer’s heart-questioning trials, admitting their fears and accepting that they were each other’s weakness. After shattering Shen Yu’s mirror, they entered a hospital room where the third question awaited them.

• Xu Zhihan confronted a false vision of Lin Wan and admitted he feared getting Lu Wenchuan killed, but said he would keep going.
• Lu Wenchuan faced a vision of Ji Heng’s death, admitted he feared dragging Xu Zhihan to his death, and severed the black line binding Ji Heng.
• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan rejected Shen Yu’s vision of their separation and admitted they were each other’s weakness.
• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan struck the mirror together, opening a rift to a white hospital room.
• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan found two Heart-Questioning Scrolls bearing the question, “What would you give up, and for what?”

Lu Wenchuan and Xu Zhihan refused to sacrifice their bond in the Heart-Questioning trial and defeated Shen Yu’s test by striking the divinity fragment’s projection. They stood together before the eleventh floor, where Shen Yu promised they would discover the Oracle Tower’s true heart and Xu Zhihan’s divine spark’s true name.

• Lu Wenchuan and Xu Zhihan rejected the scrolls’ proposed sacrifices and agreed to bear the consequences together.
• Shen Yu revealed that the Tower Master was the Oracle Tower’s ears and that he was on the eleventh floor.
• Shen Yu tested their resolve with scales weighing Xu Zhihan’s Silver Nameplate against Lu Wenchuan’s Student ID, but neither let go.
• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan destroyed the divinity fragment’s projection, shattering the scales and the hospital room.
• Shen Yu opened the way to the eleventh floor and told Xu Zhihan he would hear his divine spark’s true name; Lu Wenchuan promised to remind him not to bear everything alone.

Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan confronted Shen Yu in the Oracle Tower’s Empty Hall, where they learned the Tower Master was formed from the voices of generations of Divine Oracle hearers. After Xu Zhihan heard the name Xuanheng, Lu Wenchuan helped him hold on to himself, and they severed the thread leading from the Clock Core before the passage to the twelfth floor opened.

• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan entered the Empty Hall and learned from Shen Yu that the Tower Master had no single body, but was the heart formed from many voices.
• Shen Yu warned that Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan’s deepened connection made them easier for the Oracle Tower to locate.
• Shen Yu rang the bronze bell, and a voice called Xu Zhihan by the name Xuanheng, urging him to return to his place.
• Lu Wenchuan tried to strike the bell and called Xu Zhihan back, while Xu Zhihan resisted the call and promised not to shoulder everything alone.
• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan severed the white thread leading from the Clock Core, provoking the old clocks and scorching Shen Yu.
• The Clock Core opened a passage to the twelfth floor, Heavenly Judgment, and Shen Yu challenged them to face its questioning.

Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan resisted Shen Yu’s attempt to overwhelm Xu Zhihan with the divine spark’s true name and opened the way to the twelfth floor. They entered the Judgment Ground together, where heavenly judgment awaited them, while Shen Yu carried the black Clock Core behind them.

• Shen Yu used the clocks to repeat “Xuanheng,” drawing Xu Zhihan toward the Divine Throne until Lu Wenchuan brought him back to himself.
• Xu Zhihan directed Lu Wenchuan to smash the clocks transmitting the name, weakening their calls and stopping the Silver Nameplate from cracking further.
• Lu Wenchuan pulled the Silver Nameplate away from the flying shards and told Xu Zhihan they had to share the burden instead of protecting each other alone.
• Xu Zhihan used Lu Wenchuan’s Student ID to reveal Ji Heng’s message, then declared they would tear their way forward.
• Shen Yu opened the twelfth-floor door, and Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan entered the Judgment Ground holding hands as Shen Yu carried the black Clock Core after them.

Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan entered the Twelfth Layer and cracked the Clock Core with the Silver Nameplate, Student ID, and Work Badge, at the cost of True Shen Cheng’s last soul light. The Heavenly Judgment began, leaving them together in the Judgment Ground as the Divine Throne prepared to question them.

• True Shen Cheng warned Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan that connecting the Clock Core to the Twelfth Layer would link the Oracle Tower to the Divine Throne, and told them to suppress it with three objects from the human world.
• Lu Wenchuan and Xu Zhihan crossed into the Twelfth Layer and pressed the Student ID, Silver Nameplate, and Work Badge against the Clock Core, briefly stopping it.
• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan attacked the Clock Core, opening cracks in it as True Shen Cheng’s remaining soul light dispersed; Xu Zhihan resisted the divine voice calling him Xuanheng.
• Xu Zhihan faced the Divine Throne and invited it to ask, while Shen Yu warned that he would have to answer.
• The Divine Throne declared that the Sinful World would be judged, and Sin Lines surged across the Judgment Ground toward Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan.

Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan confronted Shen Yu and the Divine Throne over who should bear the Old Gods Society’s sins. After rejecting the Throne’s call to return to his divine place and refusing to let Lu Wenchuan be used as an anchor, Xu Zhihan attacked the bell core with Lu Wenchuan, cracking it again as the judgment ground began to collapse.

• Xu Zhihan assigned the known sins to their perpetrators and traced the nameless old sins to the Oracle Tower, while Lu Wenchuan challenged Shen Yu’s claim that the Tower was merely an instrument.
• Shen Yu used the bell core to direct the Sin Lines toward Xu Zhihan and called him by his Divine Spark’s True Name, but Lu Wenchuan brought him back by reminding him not to carry everything alone.
• Shen Yu sent a Black Line toward Lu Wenchuan’s wound, but Lu Wenchuan cut through it and Xu Zhihan drove it back, refusing to let Lu Wenchuan be connected to judgment or sacrificed.
• Xu Zhihan used the Silver Nameplate to reject the Divine Throne’s call, then he and Lu Wenchuan attacked Shen Yu and cracked the bell core for the third time.
• The bell sounds went off beat, and the Divine Throne’s white light swallowed the judgment ground as the stairways collapsed and its shadow descended.

As the Divine Throne demanded that Xu Zhihan judge humanity, he refused to erase people and declared his partiality toward giving the living another chance and keeping Lu Wenchuan alive. Shen Yu tried to use Lu Wenchuan as an anchor, but the two fought the black lines together; the Divine Throne then charged Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan with sin.

• Shen Yu revealed that Xu Zhihan's past investigations had led him to the Divine Throne and urged him to take control of judgment.
• Xu Zhihan rejected the Divine Throne's call to purge humanity and declared that he favored giving people another chance and keeping Lu Wenchuan alive.
• Shen Yu sent black lines from the Clock Core into Lu Wenchuan's wound to provoke Xu Zhihan into connecting his divine spark to the Core.
• Xu Zhihan restrained the black lines while Lu Wenchuan cut them from his wound, and they declared that they would bear the burden together.
• The Divine Throne formed a Judgment Seal bearing Xuanheng and Lu Wenchuan's names and began to pronounce them guilty.

Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan resisted the judgment seal by claiming responsibility for protecting each other, then exposed Shen Yu as Shen Huaizhong and shattered the seal. As the twelfth floor collapsed, a door to the thirteenth floor and the Divine Throne opened, and they prepared to enter together.

• The judgment seal condemned Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan, binding their names while Shen Yu called their mutual protection a sin.
• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan used the Silver Nameplate and Student ID to halt the seal and declare that protecting each other was their choice.
• The Divine Throne Shadow attacked their names, but the two human-world objects helped Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan resist the pressure.
• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan questioned Shen Yu, uncovered his true name, Shen Huaizhong, and used it to break the judgment seal.
• The Clock Core fell, revealing a white bell heart that opened the way to the thirteenth floor and the Divine Throne as the twelfth floor collapsed.
• Xu Zhihan caught the exhausted Lu Wenchuan, and they agreed to enter the final floor together.

Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan climbed the staircase to the Divine Throne while resisting the divine spark’s call and the White Bell Core’s approach. They reached the end of the staircase as the faceless shadow rose to meet them.

• The White Bell Core flew toward the Divine Throne, and the shadow called Xu Zhihan by his divine name, Xuanheng, but Lu Wenchuan called him back to himself.
• Xu Zhihan refused to return to his place and helped the injured Lu Wenchuan climb the staircase as the floors of their journey appeared beneath their feet.
• Voices from the White Bell Core recited Xuanheng’s name, and Lu Wenchuan shielded his ear to comfort Xu Zhihan.
• The faceless shadow sent white light at Lu Wenchuan, and Xu Zhihan deflected it, cracking his Silver Nameplate.
• Xu Zhihan threw the Silver Nameplate at the White Bell Core, pinning it briefly, then continued up the staircase with Lu Wenchuan.
• The faceless shadow rose as Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan reached the end of the staircase.

Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan climbed the final steps together and shattered the White Bell Core, forcing the Divine Throne Shadow back. Cracks behind the throne revealed the darkness containing the Heavenly Judgment Source.

• The Divine Throne Shadow sent threads to sever Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan’s bond, but they destroyed the threads together.
• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan answered the Divine Throne’s questions and refused to kneel despite their fears.
• Lu Wenchuan rushed ahead to strike the White Bell Core, and Xu Zhihan joined him with the Silver Nameplate and Student ID.
• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan shattered the Bell Core with golden light and Thunderfire, while Shen Huaizhong’s remaining bell teeth broke.
• The Divine Throne Shadow staggered back, revealing cracks filled with darkness that Xu Zhihan identified as the Heavenly Judgment Source.

Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan faced the Heavenly Judgment Source behind the Divine Throne and discovered they needed to sever its connection to the human world. They escaped the thirteenth floor injured, knowing the Divine Throne still had to be severed, while Lu Wenchuan confessed that he liked Xu Zhihan before passing out.

• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan learned that the Divine Throne was a door to the many rules of Heavenly Judgment, and Shen Huaizhong's lingering voice warned that Heavenly Judgment had heard Xu Zhihan.
• A Faceless Judgment Shadow emerged and called Xu Zhihan back for judgment, drawing together the cases and sins they had already resolved.
• Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan fought the Shadow together, and Xu Zhihan realized they had to sever the connection between Heavenly Judgment and the human world by destroying the Divine Throne's role as a door.
• Xu Zhihan used the fragments of the Silver Nameplate and Lu Wenchuan's Student ID to seal the darkness temporarily, then helped Lu Wenchuan retreat from the thirteenth floor.
• After communications returned, Song Zhixia called for the Medical Team, and Lu Wenchuan confessed that he liked Xu Zhihan before passing out in his arms.

Lu Wenchuan woke in Headquarters' Medical Room as the Divine Throne's connection to the human world threatened to spread beyond the Oracle Tower. Xu Zhihan agreed to enter the newly appeared Final Layer while Lu Wenchuan stayed at the gate to guide him back, and they prepared to end the threat together.

• Lu Wenchuan woke beside Xu Zhihan, and Song Zhixia warned that the Bellheart Fragment had suppressed the fate line for only twelve hours.
• Song Zhixia reported that Heavenly Judgment would soon force open the gate again and could drag locations in the human world connected to the Oracle Tower into danger.
• Xu Zhihan proposed severing the connection between the Divine Throne and the human world, but Lu Wenchuan insisted on helping rather than waiting alone.
• Song Zhixia said Lu Wenchuan could serve as an anchor at the entrance while Xu Zhihan entered, and Xu Zhihan agreed to the plan.
• The gate to the Thirteenth Layer appeared with the words "Final Layer, Broken Gate," and Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan resolved to end the threat.

Xu Zhihan entered the Broken Gate and began severing the chains linking the source of Heavenly Judgment to old cases in the human world, while Lu Wenchuan anchored him from outside. With two minutes left, Xu Zhihan reached the last and largest chain and prepared to cut it.

• Xu Zhihan entered the Broken Gate with Lu Wenchuan anchoring him and the others lending their names, memories, and Soul Flames to the mission.
• Xu Zhihan found the source of Heavenly Judgment connected to doors into the human world by chains and severed the chains to the Xu Family Old Residence and Green Gate's Level B4.
• Xu Zhihan cut the chain tied to a Judgment Shadow, then severed the chains to the Old TV Tower, Old Clock Tower, Air-Raid Shelter, and Returning Guilt Judgment Hall.
• Each severed chain strained Lu Wenchuan's Anchor Line, and Song Zhixia warned Xu Zhihan that only two minutes remained.
• Xu Zhihan approached the thickest chain, which linked the Divine Throne to every door in the human world, and prepared to cut it.

Xu Zhihan severed the Heavenly Judgment Source’s chain to the human world with the help of Lu Wenchuan and the names of their allies. The Oracle Tower was cut off and the source forced back, but Lu Wenchuan collapsed and did not wake.

• Xu Zhihan rejected the Divine Throne’s promise of a sinless world and pressed the names of the human world against the last chain.
• Lu Wenchuan held the anchor line and urged Xu Zhihan onward as Xu Zhihan struck the chain three times, closing the Oracle Tower’s entrances.
• Xu Zhihan broke the chain with his fourth strike, severing the connection between the Divine Throne and the human world.
• The Final Layer collapsed, and Lu Wenchuan pulled Xu Zhihan out of the darkness through the anchor line.
• Xu Zhihan found Lu Wenchuan unconscious on the hospital bed as Song Zhixia and the Medical Team tried to revive him.

Xu Zhihan entered the ruins of the Final Layer to retrieve Lu Wenchuan, whose fate line was trapped there. He helped Lu Wenchuan sever the heavenly judgment source’s hold and brought him back to consciousness, while True Shen Cheng’s last remnant was laid to rest.

• Song Zhixia treated Lu Wenchuan as Xu Zhihan prepared to enter the collapsing remains of the Final Layer and find him.
• Xu Zhihan found Lu Wenchuan in the black water and discovered a white thread from the heavenly judgment source caught in the cavity in his chest.
• Xu Zhihan restored Lu Wenchuan’s anchor while Lu Wenchuan declared that he liked Xu Zhihan, severing the white thread.
• Xu Zhihan lifted True Shen Cheng’s remaining Fragment, which dissolved into the distant door as testimony was archived and the soul flame returned to rest.
• Lu Wenchuan’s heart rate rose, and he woke in the Medical Vehicle with the crumpled candy still in his hand.

Xu Zhihan went to the Evidence Room to destroy the Residual Bell, the last surviving link to the Divine Oracle, while Lu Wenchuan recovered at Headquarters. After the bell was silenced and its signal dropped to zero, Xu Zhihan returned to Lu Wenchuan as dawn broke.

• The Oracle Tower's remaining signals vanished, but the Residual Bell continued ringing in the Evidence Room, and Xu Zhihan warned that it could become the next Tower.
• Xu Zhihan went to the Evidence Room while Lu Wenchuan stayed behind, and Xie Wu and Shen Huaizhong's voices used the bell to call for divine judgment.
• Xu Zhihan placed remnants tied to Ji Heng, Lin Wan, True Shen Cheng, Xu An, Zhou Yu, and Liang Qiu around the bell as people across the communications line declared they would not listen.
• The Deputy Captain activated the Line-Sealing Device, Song Zhixia triggered the suppression control, and Xu Zhihan broke the bell with golden light, reducing its signal to zero.
• At dawn, Xu Zhihan returned to Lu Wenchuan, who had kept a Mint Candy by his bedside while waiting for him; Xu Zhihan unwrapped it and ate it.

After the Oracle Tower case was sealed, Xu Zhihan and Lu Wenchuan watched the remaining investigations conclude and the rescued souls find peace. Lu Wenchuan continued recovering in the Medical Room as the two looked toward an uncertain future together.

• The Headquarters sealed the Oracle Tower evidence, and Song Zhixia confirmed Lu Wenchuan's Fate Line had been saved while ordering him to remain in bed.
• Xu Chengyuan and Zhou Man were taken away, Xu Mingji supplied a statement, and Madam Gu gave Xu Zhihan Lin Wan's letter asking that he be given back his name.
• Zhao Huaide identified the remaining people tied to Green Egret Culture, completing the evidence chain in the seven children's case.
• Xu An and Zhou Yu prepared to go home, while the Soul Flames of Liang Qiu and the real Shen Cheng reached their final resting places.
• Lu Wenchuan received Ji Heng's Student ID, and he and Xu Zhihan discussed repairing old keepsakes and making something new later.
• The final report confirmed that the Heavenly Judgment connection had been severed and the Oracle Tower system rendered inoperative; Xu Zhihan kept Lu Wenchuan's candy wrapper as a memento and told him he could not go downstairs yet.

After the Oracle Tower case, Xu Zhihan accepted a Special Investigation Bureau consultant appointment while Lu Wenchuan recovered in the Medical Room. Xu Zhihan chose to remain in the mortal world, and the chapter ended with him and Lu Wenchuan together.

• Song Zhixia ordered Lu Wenchuan to stay in bed, and Xu Zhihan backed her up as Lu Wenchuan reluctantly obeyed.
• Headquarters continued investigating the Old Gods Society and related cases, while Xu Mingji left North City to make amends.
• Xu Zhihan received confirmation that Xu An's, Zhou Yu's, and Liang Qiu's soul flames had gone out.
• The Director offered Xu Zhihan a consultant appointment, and Xu Zhihan signed his name as himself rather than as Xuanheng or Cold Judgment.
• Xu Zhihan told Lu Wenchuan he would curse back if he heard the name Xuanheng, then held his hand and kissed him as a reward.