Chapter Summaries

Ed and the players defeated Yiden after he fled into the church bell buried beneath the sanctuary, completing the reclamation of White Wax Town. As the quest epilogue began, Ed interrogated the captured priest, who warned that his death would bring investigators from the Holy City.

• Yiden tried to escape through caves beneath the church, but crashed into the buried brass bell and was defeated.
• The players celebrated as Yiden’s health bar reached zero, and Ed announced that White Wax Town had been reclaimed for the Tree God.
• The quest panel announced an S+ rating and the start of the epilogue, while players gathered to watch and record Ed.
• Ed pulled the bound Yiden from the bell and demanded to know what he wanted.
• Yiden warned Ed that killing an ordained priest would trigger an investigation from the Holy City within ten days.

Ed defeated Yiden and took the White Wax Town Territory Secret Pact and a sample of his symbiotic plant, allowing Little Green to begin absorbing the pact and Ed to detect surviving ivy in the Gloomy Sanctuary. Though Yiden offered to serve him, Ed sentenced him and his priests to imprisonment in a dungeon, where they would be tortured and killed repeatedly.

• Yiden surrendered and offered to become Ed’s subordinate, even proposing to use cosmetic surgery to fake his death.
• Ed ordered Yiden to hand over White Wax Town’s Territory Secret Pact, which Little Green stored and began digesting.
• Ed collected a sample of Yiden’s Parasitic Boston Ivy, enabling him to identify surviving ivy throughout the Gloomy Sanctuary.
• Yiden asked what Ed wanted him to do, expecting to be freed and assigned to train Ed’s warriors.
• Ed declared that Yiden and his priests would be imprisoned, tortured, and repeatedly killed in a place he named the Dungeon.

Ed defeated Yiden, restored the Gloomy Sanctuary with the surviving ivy, and rang its bell to summon White Wax Town’s residents. Duolin watched the church’s perfect restoration in awe but wondered why the bell kept ringing.

• Ed silenced and dismembered Yiden, then had [Zhong Lele] carry him to the corner.
• Ed summoned the surviving ivy, which rallied to him and spread through the sanctuary.
• Ed used the ivy to rebuild the church and restore its furnishings, stained glass, statue, and bell.
• The restored church’s bell rang, prompting the townspeople to head toward it.
• Duolin admired Ed’s restoration as a sign of the Tree God’s favor but questioned why the bell continued ringing.

Ed restored the innkeeper’s face and sight, then gathered the freed test subjects in the church and explained that they could return to their families or stay with him. As townspeople assembled outside, Ed prepared to address them and reveal what had happened.

• Duolin brought the prisoners and children into the church, where Ed explained that the nonstop bronze bell was meant to gather the townspeople.
• Ed asked Tiya to identify the cleric wearing her father’s face, then cut away the stolen facial skin and restored the innkeeper’s face and sight.
• Ed ordered the Soul Returners to take every captured cleric to the rooftop and sent Duolin to organize the townspeople outside the church.
• Ed divided the freed test subjects into those from White Wax Town and those known only by numbers, then offered them the choice to leave or stay with him.
• Duolin reported that most of the townspeople had gathered, and Ed asked the test subjects to wait while he prepared to address the crowd.

Ed revealed that the Tree Worship Church’s clergy had tortured and killed children in White Wax Town, then declared that his group was the Second Holy See. He left the townspeople grieving and furious while calling for them to reclaim the Church from the Fallen Ones.

• Ed introduced himself to White Wax Town and displayed the captured clergymen hanging above the church.
• Ed accused the Church of corruption and questioned the townspeople about children sent away for clerical instruction.
• The surviving experimental subjects reunited with their families and recounted the clergymen’s crimes, while other children searched in vain for their loved ones.
• The townspeople hurled curses and objects at the captured clergymen, and Ed let them grieve and vent their anger.
• Ed declared the provincial capital and Holy See enemies, named his group the Second Holy See, and called White Wax Town its first reclaimed parish.

Ed urged White Wax Town's residents to work and help the Second Holy See, promising protection, support, and freedom from forced conscription. The townspeople began choosing new trades, and Ed left Duolin and his squad in town to maintain order as they prepared for new lives.

• Ed told the townspeople that their labor and production could help the Second Holy See save children and stand against the Tree Worship Church.
• Ed promised not to force the residents into dangerous missions or take their property, and offered practical support and protection for their work.
• A townsman asked to learn farming, and [Do Some Farm Work] volunteered to teach him despite not knowing what he had planted.
• Another townsman asked to learn construction, and [Zhongde] offered to teach him plans and concrete work.
• A townsman asked to learn trade, and Ed promised to introduce him to traveling merchants while [Shit Appraisal Master] also offered to teach him.
• Ed told the residents to start preparing for their chosen work and assigned Duolin and his squad to stay in White Wax Town and maintain order.

After the quest to reclaim White Wax Town concluded, players received rewards, achievements, and titles, while many leveled up from the experience. [Dark Archmage] asked [Howling Pothos] about his achievements and titles.

• Ed dismissed the players, and they saw a notice announcing an upcoming update with achievements, titles, and dungeons.
• The quest [Reclaim White Wax Town] settled, and [Howling Pothos] received an S+ rating, currency, equipment, items, achievements, and titles.
• Players compared their quest rewards and ratings, then several began leveling up from the experience reward.
• [Evergreen Tree] prepared for his level-up and closed his eyes, while [Backstabbing Expert] joked about laying down a bouquet.
• [Dark Archmage] asked [Howling Pothos] to tell him his achievements and titles.

Howling Pothos and Dark Archmage inspected their rewards and discovered that the Seed of Rest could grow into a safe place to recover and resurrect. After the players left to explore White Wax Town, Ed explained his transformation to the remaining survivors and asked his former fellow experimental subjects whether they had made their decision.

• Howling Pothos and Dark Archmage compared their achievements, titles, and quest rewards, then discussed what they planned to do next.
• Howling Pothos inspected the Seed of Rest and learned it could grow into a protected resting place that healed minor injuries and enabled up to three resurrections.
• The players left the church to explore White Wax Town, and Ed used the ivy throughout the building to inspect its hidden spaces.
• Ed told Number Four and the others that the Tree God had revived him and granted him wisdom and strength after he died fighting two clerics.
• Ed saw the survivors’ awe and concern, changed the subject, and asked the four surviving experimental subjects from his group whether they had made their decision.

Ed offered the rescued test subjects a choice between settling into civilian life and joining his warriors, and four chose to fight alongside him. After Tiya and three orphaned youngsters also joined, Number Four asked Ed to name their team.

• Ed explained that the rescued test subjects could live as townspeople or train as warriors, and Numbers Four, Seven, Nine, and Ten chose to follow him.
• Tiya volunteered to join Ed, and her father reluctantly agreed after weighing the dangers of battle against life without protection.
• Ed let Darnell's parents take their son home when they chose not to let him become a warrior.
• Duolin brought three youngsters whose parents had died, and all three chose the combat path after Ed explained their options.
• Ed welcomed the eight recruits, and they decided to keep their existing names after Number Four said they would remind her of her torture.
• Number Four asked Ed to come up with a name for their team.

Ed named the eight young recruits Gungnir and sent them to begin military training, then explored the church with his vines. In a hidden cavern beneath the church, he found a mass of discarded flesh containing parts of his own body and those of the others.

• Number Four asked Ed to give the recruits an impressive unit name, and he named them Gungnir.
• Ed assigned Duolin and Xilǐ'er to train the recruits, then sent the eight on a twenty-kilometer march.
• The innkeeper asked to move his business near the old castle so he could stay close to his daughter, and Ed agreed to give him land for a new inn.
• Alone in the church, Ed questioned the World Tree and sent vines through the building to inspect its rooms and records.
• Ed found a concealed trapdoor leading to a cavern filled with discarded flesh and plants, including body parts once belonging to him and the others.

Ed absorbed the mass of flesh and the lingering pain and souls within it, then examined his abilities as his level rose. Meanwhile, [Litang's Supremely Fierce Tiger] considered how the game protected players from fear before their bodies finished upgrading.

• Ed wrapped the enormous mass of flesh in vines and absorbed it, enduring its pain and the lingering emotions of its former owners.
• Ed examined his updated status panel, which detailed his three derived abilities, as his body gradually recovered.
• Ed resumed controlling his vines and began upgrading the unconscious players' bodies.
• [Litang's Supremely Fierce Tiger] woke in the real world for the fifth time and saw that his body upgrade was in progress.
• [Litang's Supremely Fierce Tiger] reflected that the game seemed to shield players from fear and concluded that its unseen operator was currently friendly toward them.

After the players completed their upgrades, Ed sealed the church for renovations and discovered that several imprisoned clerics could play music. He decided to make them provide background music for his dungeon, leaving the clerics unaware of the danger ahead.

• Li Yinhua considered the battle’s effects on perception and prepared to write another paper report after the game.
• Evergreen Tree allocated his attribute points to constitution, agility, and psionic energy compatibility, then sought Lion Hidden in the Eyes to discuss the Dragon Series drugs.
• Ed sent the players outside the church, where many were eager to try their new Dungeon Challenge Tickets.
• After the church was empty, Ed sealed its entrances with mutated ivy and brought the twenty-one bound clerics back inside.
• Ed learned that some clerics had studied sacred music and ordered them to play background music for his dungeon.

Ed turned White Wax Town Church into the dungeon Gloomy Sanctuary, arranging clerics, traps, and rewards for the players. The players eagerly prepared to enter, and Ed hoped the dungeon would help revive White Wax Town.

• Ed recruited the clerics to serve as dungeon enemies, and Yiden threatened to kill the players, delighting Ed.
• Ed redesigned the church with traps, ambushes, and a boss room staffed by Yiden and the strongest clerics.
• Ed planned dungeon rewards, including the Seed of Rest and Vine Bandage Pack, and prepared special plants near the entrance.
• Ed used the Territory Secret Pact to change the church into Dungeon Gloomy Sanctuary, which allowed up to twenty people inside.
• The players collected their gear and tickets, formed a group to challenge the dungeon, and one planted a Seed of Rest outside the church.

Ed decided to turn Tiya's family inn into the White Wax Town Adventurers' Guild, while [Xiexie Huigu]'s party entered the Gloomy Sanctuary on Hard difficulty. Inside, the players discovered that four puppet-like clerics had appeared to provide live background music, and they left them alone for the moment.

• Ed chose Tiya's family's inn as the castle's White Wax Town office and named it the White Wax Town Adventurers' Guild.
• [Xiexie Huigu] inspected the plants outside the church and found a shop, a shared respawn machine, and the dungeon entrance.
• [Xiexie Huigu]'s 15-player team opened the Gloomy Sanctuary using a Dungeon Challenge Ticket and selected Hard difficulty.
• The players entered the church and noticed that its layout seemed changed and unusually quiet.
• Four clerics suspended by vines appeared with instruments and began playing music, which [Concrete Mixed with Spaghetti] identified as background music.
• The players decided to leave the clerics alone unless they got in the way, since the game marked them as enemies.

The players attempted the church Dungeon on hard mode but were overwhelmed by hidden clerics and archers, then revived outside. As the embarrassed group argued over their defeat, [Do Some Farm Work] calmly defended the Dungeon’s difficulty.

• [Second-Class Biscuit] rolled behind an obstacle and was ambushed by a Tree Worship Church cleric, prompting the players to attack.
• Three Tree Worship Church archers sprang from concealed positions and shot the advancing players as more clerics joined the fight.
• The cleric and archers defeated all fifteen players, after which Ed’s protective vines returned the enemies to standby and buried the players’ bodies.
• A resurrection plant spat out [Xiexie Huigu] and the other players, who admitted they had chosen hard mode and been caught by surprise.
• The spectators mocked the wiped party, while [Do Some Farm Work] said the Dungeon’s difficulty seemed reasonable and explained that he was studying the plants and had recruited natives to tend plots.

After the players blamed their dungeon struggles on the hard mode and missing fire enchantment, [Second-Class Biscuit] sought advice from the experts. [Howling Pothos] promised to prepare supplies, publish enemy information, and run the dungeon the next morning, offering to take the others along for free.

• [Do Some Farm Work] suggested the earlier priests and bishops had been nerfed for the story, and the players agreed the dungeon’s stronger enemies were expected on hard mode.
• [Xiexie Huigu] proposed another run on easy mode, but another player claimed the next turn, so [Xiexie Huigu] stayed outside to plan.
• [Second-Class Biscuit] recalled that [Good Times Don't Last] and [Shit Appraisal Master] had contracted him and another newbie to work as clerks, while promising [Howling Pothos] half their quest rewards for carrying them.
• After the quest earned an S+ rating and doubled the reward pool, [Good Times Don't Last] and [Shit Appraisal Master] discovered their payment to [Howling Pothos] had also increased, and pleaded with him to reduce it.
• [Second-Class Biscuit] described the dungeon’s difficulty to the three experts, and [Howling Pothos] offered to prepare supplies, post enemy information, and run the dungeon with them the next morning at no charge.

Ed returned to the castle and found Seraphina presenting a cart she had invented for the Dragonborn to use in transporting goods. When he learned she intended to own the carts and their earnings, he warned that her plan could leave Dragonborn Village without descendants within a hundred years.

• Players returning from White Wax Town hitched a ride on an alchemical golem, and Ed considered whether golems could serve as public transportation.
• Ed found Seraphina in the castle hall and asked what she needed.
• Seraphina unveiled a metal cart called a “dragonshaw” and said she wanted the Dragonborn to make more for deliveries and passenger transport.
• Seraphina said the dragonshaws would belong to her, prompting Ed to imagine the Dragonborn becoming trapped in exploitative work.
• Ed praised Seraphina before warning that Dragonborn Village might have no descendants left within a hundred years.

Ed persuaded Seraphina to reconsider the fate of Dragonborn Village and proposed turning it into a paid enterprise that would make her more prosperous. Seraphina accepted his advice on improving her heavy rickshaw and asked him to explain what a company was.

• Seraphina reconsidered her belief that the dragonborn’s deaths did not matter after recognizing that her new ideas about long-term operations depended on keeping her subordinates alive.
• Ed inspected Seraphina’s solid-cast-iron rickshaw and warned that its weight could exhaust the dragonborn, then suggested hollow parts, spokes, thinner panels, animal-hide lining, and a folding canopy.
• Ed proposed reorganizing Dragonborn Village into the Dragonborn Company and paying its workers to motivate them.
• Ed explained that wages would circulate through the local economy and become goods, grain, and other products that Seraphina could later trade for precious metals and mithril ore.
• Seraphina found Ed’s explanation reasonable and asked what a company was.

Ed taught Seraphina about companies, then investigated the records and letters from White Wax Town’s church. Yiden’s diary revealed that he had become one of the Stained Ones decades earlier and described the church’s experiments with repeated injury and mutation.

• Ed explained the concept of a company to Seraphina, who left to consider it.
• Ed took the alchemical golem and White Wax Town church documents into the restricted zone to study them.
• Ed found a secret letter from the provincial archbishop and inferred that the Tree Worship Church was divided between Fallen Ones and naive innocents.
• Ed discovered that Yiden’s recent experimental records were careless, while his older notes were more detailed.
• Ed found Yiden’s diary and read that Yiden had become one of the Stained Ones in Royal Calendar Year 850.
• Ed read that the Stained Ones repeatedly injured living subjects to induce mutations, but he still wondered how the experiments related to the Tree God.

Ed learned from Yiden’s diary that the Church’s escalating seed taxes had caused the worsening physical condition and mutations of the people, and he planned to seek ways to help the villagers recover. In the real world, Professor Li Yinhua documented new findings about the game and sent his report away in a protected briefcase as Volume One ended.

• Ed finished reading Yiden’s diary and reflected that the man’s records did not excuse his cruelty.
• Ed connected the Church’s single, double, and triple taxes to the clergy’s healthy physiques, the townspeople’s malnourishment, and the villagers’ mutations.
• Ed noted that suspending taxes might help the two villages recover and added researching ways to aid them to his plans.
• Professor Li Yinhua recorded his experiments with dragon-scale injections and his observations about the game’s new dungeon system and music.
• Professor Li Yinhua gave his report to a young man, who placed it in a secure briefcase and carried it to a black van.