Chapter Summaries

In Northern Europe, Driver and He Shang learned that roughly seventy million elderly, infirm, sick, and disabled people remained as the region was abandoned. He Shang planned to recruit them for the Great Brahma, while Driver prepared to use the Transforming Vehicle to ferry people and show off to the world.

• Driver asked He Shang to read a sealed document from a believer recruited within the Northern Europe Government.
• He Shang learned that the evacuation was nearly finished and that ordinary people, Prison Wardens, and everyone in the Great Brahma would soon be left behind.
• He Shang decided to expand the Great Brahma by recruiting the remaining people and Prison Wardens.
• He Shang explained that the remaining population’s stronger faith could sustain three bodhisattvas in about a month.
• Driver said he still could not fully control the Director’s creation but agreed to help ferry people using its teleportation trait.
• Driver wanted to demonstrate the Transforming Vehicle’s power to the world, and He Shang reminded him that its latest form would draw attention on its own.

He Shang assured Driver that the seventy million people left behind could sustain three bodhisattvas, while Past warned that the choice could cost He Shang his merit and sanity. Driver then prepared for a globally livestreamed arrival in Australia, where the enormous Mobius Strip appeared above the airport.

• Driver accepted He Shang's explanation and left to prepare for the trip, asking the Director to arrange a global livestream and a separate camera shot.
• Past questioned He Shang about the seventy million people, and He Shang said they could sustain three bodhisattvas with the power of deities.
• Past warned that dealing with the people would dissipate He Shang's merit, but He Shang questioned why he should cling to it.
• Past told He Shang that their fates were tied together and that his choices would shape both their futures.
• Australia's president and officials waited at the airport as a global livestream began, then an enormous mechanical star ring appeared overhead.
• The Director watched from the C04 Public Containment Facility and identified the arrival as Mobius Strip.

Driver revealed the Mobius Strip in a dramatic livestream display that boosted humanity’s morale. At camp, Lu Xiao met the returning Sacrificial One Yao Ling and found his modified sea turtle asleep, leaving him unable to see the results of its upgrades yet.

• Driver held out his arms as the Mobius Strip’s gravity and centrifugal forces subsided, and his radiant appearance was broadcast live.
• Lu Xiao complained about Driver’s showmanship, while Warden and Shadow said the spectacle could boost humanity’s morale.
• Four helicopters brought Lu Xiao’s modified sea turtle to camp, and Lu Xiao and Shadow climbed out through a window to meet it.
• Yao Ling arrived from the sea turtle’s back, and Warden welcomed her after she asked to rejoin the ranks.
• Lu Xiao inspected the sea turtle’s armored shell and learned from Yao Ling that it was asleep and could only wake on its own.
• After Warden warned that the sea turtle might sleep for three to five days, Lu Xiao ran toward its head with an engraved revolver in his hand.

Yao Ling explained that Doctor’s attempt to reconstruct people with a Spherical Device had repeatedly failed. Doctor then revealed his Biochip technology to Shuns and considered using mechanical modifications to restore disabled Prison Wardens, while Shuns proposed pairing them with Serial Number 306-Cage to defend against mental contamination.

• Lu Xiao stopped climbing after Shadow warned that his shot could cause serious trouble, then decided to let his target go.
• Yao Ling told Lu Xiao, Shadow, and Warden that Doctor’s Spherical Device reconstruction experiments had failed before reaching the reconstruction stage.
• Doctor and Shuns reviewed the failed experiments, and Doctor decided to leave the device in place for possible future attempts.
• Doctor showed Shuns the defective Biochip, explaining that it could issue body instructions and control implanted mechanical limbs and organs.
• Doctor said Yao Ling was eighty percent mechanized and had physical performance over twenty times the ordinary human reference data.
• Shuns suggested combining mechanically modified Wardens with Serial Number 306-Cage to resist mental contamination, and Doctor agreed the idea was promising.

The Doctor and Shuns sought a way to resist mental contamination, but the Prison Doctor’s obsession with treating Nini led him to realize she possessed a trait related to life. Shuns recognized that Nini’s power had saved Ding Dan, suggesting her ability could reveal the life trait’s nature.

• The Doctor proposed creating a diluted version of the Prison Doctor’s sedative to resist mental contamination.
• The Doctor and Shuns visited the Prison Doctor, who was working over Nini and claimed he was close to becoming a god.
• The Doctor suspected the Prison Doctor intended to destroy humanity, but the Prison Doctor said his breakthrough depended on treating Nini.
• Shuns suggested copying Nini’s personality into a Biochip, but the Doctor said that would not preserve her ability.
• The Prison Doctor realized that Nini’s life-related trait, rather than curing her, was the key to his godhood.
• Shuns recalled that Nini had saved the dying Ding Dan, recognizing that the act may have revealed her life trait.

The Doctor and Shuns struggled to find test subjects and decided to recall retired Prison Wardens while investigating the sedative in the Dreamscape World. A wheelchair-bound veteran faced the heartbreaking prospect of leaving his severely disabled brother, but Prison Warden Special Operations Soldiers arrived to bring them both home.

• The Prison Doctor gave the Doctor a sedative and warned that it could cause addiction, while the Doctor refused Shuns's suggestion to modify the patient without Shadow's approval.
• The Doctor and Shuns discussed their shortage of consumables and agreed to recall retired Prison Wardens, replicate the sedative, and test it in the Dreamscape World.
• A wheelchair-bound former Prison Warden received the recall message and told his four-limb amputee brother that he had answered it and might not be able to care for him anymore.
• The wheelchair-bound man explained that he had sent his brother's discharge compensation to his wife and concealed his condition, then took a kitchen knife as his brother silently accepted his fate.
• Prison Warden Special Operations Soldiers broke into the apartment, took the knife, and announced, "I've come to bring our heroes home."

The Director recalled retired Prison Wardens to C04 Containment Facility and asked them to become clinical test subjects for a breakthrough in prosthetic combat technology. He showed them a modified Sacrificial One fighting mutated marine creatures, but warned that results would vary and depend especially on the brain.

• The Director thanked the recalled Prison Wardens and Researchers, revealing that more than four thousand of the 4,367 people summoned had returned.
• The Director revealed his metal prosthetic hand and explained that Researchers had advanced the technology enough to begin broader clinical trials.
• A retired Prison Warden asked whether the veterans had been recalled to serve as test subjects, and the Director confirmed they would be the second batch after one Sacrificial One.
• The Director showed a Light Curtain recording of the Sacrificial One using her metal body, missiles, and firearms to destroy mutated marine creatures.
• The Director told the veterans that their modifications could make them similarly powerful in theory, but outcomes would vary according to individual data, especially the brain.

The Director explained that biomechanical modifications required enduring extreme pain, then announced that he would join the second batch of clinical trial participants. Every retired Prison Warden present signed up, and an active-duty soldier tried to volunteer by offering to remove his own leg.

• The Director told the crowd that modifications would be painful, and the attendees joked about the procedure and the Sacrificial One's combat abilities.
• The Director said he would join the second batch of clinical trial participants and detached his outdated right arm.
• The researchers praised the technology and learned that the Director had led the team that designed the ring-shaped aircraft.
• The Director invited volunteers to sign consent documents, then signed one himself without reading it.
• Every retired Prison Warden present signed or left a fingerprint on the documents, while some active-duty soldiers tried to join them.
• The Director kicked away a Special Operations Soldier and told him to return when he was missing a limb, and the soldier replied that he would take his leg off immediately.

The Warden grew weary of Lu Xiao pestering him to modify his body like Yao Ling, so he arranged for the sleeping Sea Turtle to be awakened. After seeing its extensive weapons and mechanical upgrades, Lu Xiao named it Little Goodie.

• Lu Xiao begged the Warden to modify him like Yao Ling, but the Warden refused and worried that Lu Xiao might take her apart to use her parts.
• The Warden contacted the Doctor and prepared a missile bombardment to wake the Sea Turtle, but it woke before the missiles launched.
• Lu Xiao hurried to see the Sea Turtle, and the Warden followed him to the clearing.
• The Sea Turtle sped toward them on its retractable tracks, revealing its weapons and upgrades that had turned it into a mobile fortress.
• The Warden suggested giving the Sea Turtle a proper name, and Lu Xiao named it Little Goodie.

Lu Xiao named the giant sea turtle Little Well-Behaved, then returned with him and the Warden to camp, where the soldiers gathered to see him. Far from Magic City, Ding Dan oversaw construction in Paradise Lost and considered how to keep the Hell Creatures obedient, remembering Feis.

• Lu Xiao proposed several names for the sea turtle, and the turtle accepted Little Well-Behaved to stop him from thinking of more.
• Lu Xiao, the Warden, and Little Well-Behaved returned to camp, where soldiers gathered around the turtle and felt the ground shake whenever he trembled.
• Ding Dan fed a Hell Worm as the Assistant reported that construction in Paradise Lost was progressing quickly.
• Ding Dan ordered the Hell Creatures to line up for their water ration after one of them approached him with a ritual of devotion.
• Ding Dan told the Assistant that correcting the Hell Creatures’ codes of conduct was troublesome and remembered his lackey Feis.

Feis returned to Ding Dan with Yi Hao, and Ding Dan assigned Feis to oversee Hell’s water supply while Yi Hao chose to live in a kennel. In Northern Europe, Shadow confronted Gambler about siding with Lust, and Gambler admitted he had been tricked by the dealer.

• Feis returned with Yi Hao in tow, and explained that Yi Hao had wanted to find Ding Dan.
• Ding Dan put Feis in charge of watching the faucets and rationing water to Hell Creatures.
• Yi Hao agreed to live in a kennel near Ding Dan and asked him to arrange two Succubi for him to study.
• In Northern Europe, Shadow asked Gambler why he had changed his mind and intervened on Lust’s side.
• Gambler blamed the sexy dealer for tricking him, while Shadow recalled Bai Suoyi’s report that Gambler had helped Lust defeat them.

Shadow questioned why Gambler had sided with Lust, while Gambler claimed love was the reason and offered Shadow his Greed Trait. Shadow suspected Gambler was stalling the fusion of the Sin Traits, which would advance Shadow's plan to provoke a war among the major factions.

• Shadow confronted Gambler about protecting Lust, and Gambler claimed he was pursuing love.
• Gambler tore out and gave Shadow his gray, motionless heart, identifying it as the Greed Trait.
• Gambler praised Bai Suoyi and Lucilla as a good match, frustrating Shadow further.
• Shadow questioned whether Gambler worshipped Cthulhu, recalling that Gambler had accepted a gift from him and claimed to receive Fate and Greed Traits.
• Gambler privately asked Shadow for time to study Lust's Trait and promised to give it to him afterward.
• Shadow recognized Gambler was delaying the Sin Traits' fusion and considered how he would use the completed Trait to provoke conflict among Paradise Lost, Great Brahma, Eden, the Saints, and a faction in the Dark Prison.

Shadow concluded that Gambler wanted control over the Saints until he attained Godhood, then brought Bai Suoyi and Lucilla to the Dark Prison. He planned to move the C03 Containment Facility there, leaving Bai Suoyi wondering whether Shadow expected him to guard it.

• Shadow sent Lucilla to fuse with Greed, and her body returned to a more normal shape as she vomited.
• Shadow told Bai Suoyi that Gambler might want control over the Saints, then invited him to join them, and Bai Suoyi agreed.
• Shadow opened a passage to the Dark Prison, and Bai Suoyi threw Lucilla through it before following Shadow inside.
• Shadow flew with Bai Suoyi and Lucilla through a wormhole, explaining that the Dark Prison had changed and they would stay there.
• Shadow said he planned to move the C03 Containment Facility into the Dark Prison, then asked Bai Suoyi whether he wanted to return to his original appearance.

Bai Suoyi admitted that his conscience troubled him after seeing too much, then accidentally injured Zhang Chu and watched Shadow revive him with a clockwork key. Shadow’s plan sent C03’s staff dancing into the Dark Prison while C04’s Director rushed to build prosthetics for the Prison Wardens.

• Bai Suoyi told Shadow he could not get past his conscience and said he had seen too much.
• After Shadow, Bai Suoyi, and Lucilla arrived at the gate, Bai Suoyi struck Zhang Chu and cracked his body; Shadow used the clockwork key to heal him.
• Shadow and the others returned to C03, where Doctor agreed to Shadow’s plan and staff began dancing as they moved into the Dark Prison.
• Lu Qian asked where her daddy was, and Shadow told her he would return in a few days and asked her to protect everyone.
• At C04, the Director and the Researchers worked under pressure to modify prosthetics for thousands of Prison Wardens.

The Director and Researchers worked to assemble prosthetics while construction at Paradise Lost consumed enormous amounts of water, drawing scrutiny from the waterworks. Ding Dan found Yi Hao enjoying himself in Succubus Village and learned that Morati had instructed a Succubus to care for him, leaving Ding Dan to reconsider his plans for them.

• The Director assembled a prosthetic and immediately began another after a Special Operations Soldier brought him more components, while retired Prison Wardens supervised the Researchers.
• Feis counted the Hell Creatures collecting water and realized Paradise Lost needed over nine thousand liters each day, then continued trying to cut costs.
• The Assistant drove off a waterworks administrator who demanded to inspect the confidential construction project, and Ding Dan told him to hurry the work before the manager came in person.
• Ding Dan visited Yi Hao in Succubus Village and found him being served water by a Succubus while he lounged on a waterbed.
• The Succubus told Ding Dan that Morati had instructed her to take good care of Yi Hao, and Ding Dan left after hearing her explanation.

As war engulfed the world, troops held their coastlines while the South Asian Collective and Northern Europe Collective became the last remaining centers of civilization. Shadow told the Director to lead the Spark Plan, leaving him with the warning that civilization without humans would be meaningless.

• Hairy Bear rallied his troops on Russia's northern coastline after learning the rear evacuation was nearly complete.
• A Southeast Asian Commander ordered a final meal for his troops and prepared to lead them into battle.
• Refugees enlisted in growing numbers as the authorities revealed the devastating casualty rates from the front lines.
• As communications failed, the South Asian Collective and Northern Europe Collective became the world's last two islands of civilization.
• Shadow told the Director he should lead the Spark Plan and explain that his ability to imitate people could make him humanity's spiritual pillar.
• Shadow warned the Director that a civilization without humans would become meaningless.

Shadow prepared to launch the Spark Plan using the modified Prison Wardens, then entered the containment room to confront 009-Polluted Creator. He offered the Creator a choice between freedom and continued suffering as the Evil Gods’ arrival drew near.

• Shadow moved the system's main body into the C04 Public Containment Facility and brought an important Contained Anomaly from C03.
• Shadow and the Warden discussed Chief Bai Xuedong's faith in Shadow while Lu Xiao eagerly rushed off to join the battle with Little Well-Behaved.
• Shadow and the Warden went to the guarded basement room holding 009-Polluted Creator, and the Warden warned Shadow that someone else could lead the Spark Plan.
• Shadow entered alone and met the Creator's gaze, enduring its maddening whispers and bodily corruption.
• Shadow warned the Creator that the Evil Gods were about to descend and demanded that it choose between freedom and continued suffering.

Shadow confronted the Creator about humanity’s betrayal and the Creator’s resentment, then explained why Doctor Li had created Angel to restrain him. After hearing Doctor Li had called the Creator and his companions innocent children and hoped they would have a good ending, the Creator became confused and murmured, “Father...”

• The Creator accused humanity of treating his companions as food and driving them mad, while Shadow acknowledged his grievances and argued that their sacrifices had helped civilization.
• The Creator transformed into a compassionate old man, then into a chained figure burning on an inverted cross, and asked Shadow whether he liked the appearances.
• Shadow questioned why Doctor Li had created Angel to keep the Creator in check, and said the Creator lacked humanity and could not sacrifice himself for his kind.
• Shadow told the Creator that Doctor Li had hoped his creations would have a good ending, and suggested their choices would determine which future Doctor Li had planned for them.
• The Creator transformed into a child seated on a Divine Throne, asked whether Doctor Li had truly said those words, then murmured, “Father...”

The Creator explained to Shadow that their world was a confined circle nested inside a larger one, and that escaping it required surrendering his Authority. He then revealed that the strange boy was their true father.

• The Creator told Shadow that Doctor Li had divided their Authority, leaving the Creator unable to become invincible in his own world.
• The Creator explained that he needed a Pioneer to consume him whole and take his Authority so he could escape, though doing so would kill him.
• The Creator revealed that the Present World and the New World were circles contained within a larger world, and that Shadow's takeover would create yet another circle.
• The Creator conjured a sun, moon, stars, and a nebula inside the warehouse to show Shadow that the world’s apparent universe was not real.
• The Creator told Shadow that the strange boy was their true father and that Doctor Li’s ability to create them had itself been a miracle.

The Creator told Shadow that a being close to him was the miracle itself, then revealed that Gambler's true name was Nick Lade and that the person Shadow had killed was only a Cthulhu-corrupted victim. Shadow realized Gambler had manipulated him, collapsed into despair, and was reminded by the Creator that humanity had survived through many miracles.

• The Creator told Shadow that a miracle was beside him and explained that he had failed to steal one from that being.
• Shadow asked how the Creator knew so much, and the Creator said he knew every identity that appeared in his territory but could not see the future.
• Shadow begged the Creator to reveal Gambler's true identity, and the Creator said Shadow was about to descend into madness and could not change Gambler's plans.
• The Creator revealed that Gambler's true name was Nick Lade and that the person Shadow had killed was merely a Cthulhu-corrupted victim who had not originally owned that name.
• Shadow connected the clues, realized Gambler had manipulated his heart, and broke down in remorse as his madness returned.
• The Creator comforted Shadow by recalling past miracles and declaring that the being beside him was the greatest miracle of all.