Chapter Summaries

[Howling Pothos] scouted beneath the frozen river while [Epic-Level Giant] waited at the ice hole. After finding a grate at the city wall and nearly freezing on the return, he was pulled to safety, and the two discussed how resilient their game bodies were.

• [Howling Pothos] tied bee silk around his waist and jumped into the river while [Epic-Level Giant] held the other end.
• [Howling Pothos] swam toward Fir City, spotted a metal grate beneath the river, and turned back without investigating further.
• [Howling Pothos] struggled against the current as the cold stiffened his body, but [Epic-Level Giant] grabbed his arm and hauled him through the ice hole.
• [Epic-Level Giant] roasted fish over a campfire and urged [Howling Pothos] to warm up before they put the fire out.
• [Howling Pothos] and [Epic-Level Giant] reflected on their characters’ unusual durability and the chance to get a new body after dying.

[Howling Pothos] cut through an underwater metal grate and surfaced in an unfamiliar part of Fir City, where a living tree trapped him and offered him fruit. He accepted a bite, leaving his encounter with the strange tree unresolved.

• [Howling Pothos] followed the current to the metal grate and drilled a breathing hole through the ice.
• He used a breathing tube and hacksaw blades to cut an opening in the grate large enough for one person to pass through.
• [Epic-Level Giant] photographed his fresh catches and posted them on the World of Disorder forum with the caption “Secret farming spot.”
• [Howling Pothos] cut through the ice, climbed ashore in Fir City, and rested against a roadside tree.
• The tree immobilized [Howling Pothos] with a sticky substance, then offered him a green fruit, which he tasted.

[Howling Pothos] learned from Living Wood that it had once been a person and now guarded its family from other monsters. After catching up on the forums, he recognized the connection between Living Wood and Fir City's prison experiments, then told it the rebels would save the city.

• [Howling Pothos] asked Living Wood whether it wanted him alive or dead, and Living Wood told him to leave because its kind would kill him.
• Living Wood explained that it had once been a person, guarded its family, and had seen other beings like [Howling Pothos] killed by its kind.
• [Howling Pothos] asked Living Wood to protect his body while he logged out, and Living Wood agreed on the condition that he return before dawn.
• [Howling Pothos] searched the official forums and read accounts describing the nightly monsters in Fir City, their connection to the prison, and their attacks on people outside secure homes.
• After logging back in, [Howling Pothos] learned that Living Wood had been a prisoner subjected to experiments and asked whether it knew [Clear Soup Master].
• [Howling Pothos] told Living Wood that the rebels were resisting the Tree Worship Church and would soon save Fir City.

[Howling Pothos] persuaded Enzo the treant to help save Fir City by promising to protect his family and reunite him with them. He went to Enzo’s home to earn his family’s trust and told them they would move to a new northern city called Valhalla.

• Enzo refused to help [Howling Pothos] until his family was safe, but agreed to trust him after hearing his offer and seeing his abilities.
• Enzo told [Howling Pothos] that his family could be convinced by learning that his saved seeds were hidden inside his hollow bed frame.
• [Howling Pothos] went to Enzo’s home before dawn and spoke with his wary family through the closed door during curfew.
• Enzo’s family asked where they would be moving, and [Howling Pothos] told them the new city was called Valhalla.

[Howling Pothos] fought a crazed living tree alongside Enzo and used an incendiary bomb to turn the battle in their favor. Enzo saved the burning creature by dragging it into the river, then asked whether Gungnir could save experimental subjects like them.

• [Howling Pothos] stopped Enzo’s family from opening the door during curfew after spotting a crazed living tree nearby.
• The crazed living tree attacked, and [Howling Pothos] and Enzo fought it but remained evenly matched.
• [Howling Pothos] set the ground ablaze with an incendiary bomb and warned Enzo to get into the river.
• Enzo put out the flames on himself in the icy water while the crazed tree burned.
• Enzo asked whether Gungnir could save them, then dragged the burning tree into the river through a hole in the ice.

Enzo explained the rules binding the Tree Worship Church’s Living Woods and asked [Howling Pothos] to help his family leave Fir City. [Howling Pothos] visited Enzo’s home to assist with their preparations, where he learned more about Enzo’s family.

• Enzo explained that the Living Woods could not leave Fir City, enter enclosed buildings, or meet their families, and said anyone who disobeyed the orders would die instantly.
• Enzo warned that he could not watch his family leave without triggering instant death, so [Howling Pothos] agreed to send them off that day and meet him again at night.
• As the Living Woods returned to the cathedral, [Howling Pothos] went to Enzo’s home and found his father, younger sister, and another family member packing.
• [Howling Pothos] advised Enzo’s family to leave their bulky furniture and told them where Enzo had hidden saved tree seeds.
• Enzo’s younger sister lent [Howling Pothos] a wooden carving her brother had made of her, and he praised Enzo’s artistic potential.

[Howling Pothos] arranged for Enzo’s family to escape Fir City by Soldier Bee, then abandoned his body to respawn elsewhere and move faster than they could. He successfully reconstructed a new body after seeing the province map and choosing a respawn location.

• [Howling Pothos] reassured Enzo’s family that Blood Corpses could not fly and summoned Soldier Bees to evacuate them.
• [Howling Pothos] sent Enzo’s parents and younger sister into the air, warning the adults to stay quiet and trust Enzo’s choice.
• [Howling Pothos] returned to Enzo’s home and decided to abandon his current body so he could handle the remaining arrangements ahead of the family.
• [Howling Pothos] used the player panel’s body-abandonment option, leaving his belongings behind as he viewed a map of Aduolin Province.
• [Howling Pothos] selected a respawn location and reconstructed his body.

After dying in Fir City, [Howling Pothos] respawned in Valhalla and reported his discoveries about Enzo's family to Ed. Ed offered land and help to relocate them, and [Howling Pothos] set off to bring them to Valhalla.

• [Howling Pothos] respawned at Valhalla's central teleportation tree and declined a player's attempt to interview him about his death.
• [Howling Pothos] booked a meeting with Ed and recounted what he had learned in Fir City, including the living wood and Enzo's parents.
• Ed praised [Howling Pothos] and offered a plot of land and assistance with building a home and concealing Enzo's family's identities.
• [Howling Pothos] thanked Ed and left to bring Enzo's family to Valhalla.

Ed rewarded [Howling Pothos] with a rare Ability Blessing Card, and [Howling Pothos] helped ensure Enzo's family was safely cared for in Black Locust Town. While hurrying back toward Fir City to tell Enzo the good news, he encountered [Evergreen Tree] and obtained an experimental stamina drug.

• Ed gave [Howling Pothos] an Ability Blessing Card that temporarily raised one or two attributes to Ed Adrian's level.
• [Howling Pothos] went to Black Locust Town, where Nuolun arranged for Enzo's exhausted family to rest before continuing toward the castle the next day.
• After confirming Enzo's family was safe, [Howling Pothos] set off toward Fir City to find Enzo and tell him the news.
• [Howling Pothos] encountered [Evergreen Tree], who was collecting Soldier Bee samples, and asked whether he had any experimental potions.
• [Evergreen Tree] offered [Howling Pothos] an experimental drug called Hisron to reduce fatigue, and [Howling Pothos] reached for the vial.

[Howling Pothos] tested [Evergreen Tree]'s experimental drug and sprinted back to his supply station, where he discovered the fishing spot had become a paid service. He then dove through an ice hole to return to the city despite muscle spasms from the cold.

• [Evergreen Tree] offered [Howling Pothos] the experimental drug for ten silver coins or free in exchange for an 800-word report, and [Howling Pothos] chose the report and injected it.
• [Howling Pothos] noticed the drug made his heart pump more forcefully, then realized [Evergreen Tree] was recruiting players to test experimental drugs and record their effects.
• [Howling Pothos] sprinted through the snowy wilderness toward his supply station and found fresh tracks along the way.
• [Howling Pothos] found [Epic-Level Giant], [Gu Gugu], and [Twelve Jin and Six Liang] fishing at the station, where [Epic-Level Giant] explained they had paid for monthly passes and split the gold.
• [Howling Pothos] headed back into the city through an ice hole, suffering muscle spasms after his long run in the cold.

[Howling Pothos] moved his supplies into a new body and brought his old corpse to Enzo, who agreed to work with him. They arranged to meet at Enzo's home while Enzo gathered information from the prison and discreetly helped [Howling Pothos]'s companions.

• [Howling Pothos] returned to Enzo's home, transferred his equipment to his new body, and decided to give his old corpse to Enzo.
• Enzo met [Howling Pothos], accepted his sister's wooden carving, and heard that she was traveling under the escort of Holy Crusaders.
• [Howling Pothos] offered Enzo his corpse, and Enzo explained that most treant test subjects struggled to bring back prey from Fir City.
• Enzo accepted the corpse and agreed to cooperate with [Howling Pothos].
• [Howling Pothos] asked Enzo to discreetly help his companions and report new prison developments, and they chose Enzo's home as their meeting place.

Enzo told Howling Pothos about changes in the prison, while players on the World of Disorder forums debated Clear Soup Master’s Tree Transformation and whether to combine it with Blood Corpse Transformation. The discussion ended with plans for smuggling into Fir City and a recruitment post for players willing to stay there.

• Enzo agreed to let Howling Pothos use his old home and told him about a recent change in the prison.
• Clear Soup Master asked the forums about his Tree Transformation buff, and players compared it with Blood Corpse Transformation.
• Chosen of the Four Gods explained the effects of a completed Blood Corpse Transformation, while players discussed whether Clear Soup Master might become a treant.
• Do Some Farm Work proposed combining the two transformation buffs, and Clear Soup Master agreed to try it if he could find a Blood Corpse.
• Do Some Farm Work offered Clear Soup Master a negotiable private smuggling route into Fir City, and Zhong Lele recruited players to stay there long-term.

After realizing he could earn money without sacrificing his progress, [Howling Pothos] proposed a business partnership built around a hidden waterway into Fir City, fishing, and a roadside shop. The group agreed to develop the plan but decided to keep [Shit Appraisal Master] out of it because he and [Good Times Don't Last] seemed to bring bad luck when they worked together.

• [Howling Pothos] read a forum post and realized he could make money by organizing services instead of doing everything himself.
• [Howling Pothos] invited [Epic-Level Giant], [Good Times Don't Last], and [Do Some Farm Work] to discuss using a hidden waterway for paid entry, exit, and smuggling into Fir City.
• [Howling Pothos] proposed that [Good Times Don't Last] buy the group’s excess fish and sell it in other towns.
• [Good Times Don't Last] suggested expanding the supply station with a supermarket and rest area, and the others praised the idea.
• [Howling Pothos], [Epic-Level Giant], and [Do Some Farm Work] warned [Good Times Don't Last] not to involve [Shit Appraisal Master] because their past partnerships had gone badly.
• In Great Labyrinth City, [Shit Appraisal Master] said he planned to tell his friend about setting up trade routes, and [Traditional Eccentric Wheel] and [Lion Hidden in the Eyes] tried to stop him.

[Good Times Don't Last] sent Dragonborn workers to Black Locust Town while Valhalla became the official name for the player settlement. In Fir City, Antiya Lisi identified Duolin as the rebel leader and awaited three Stained Ones Knight Orders to crush the rebellion.

• [Good Times Don't Last] arranged the Dragonborn workers’ travel applications and sent them toward Black Locust Town to gather timber.
• The players’ vote named the settlement around the castle Valhalla, and the developers added the name to the map.
• [Do Some Farm Work] closed his courtyard and went to the supply station carrying a small bag of mysterious items.
• Antiya Lisi learned that searches had failed to find the tunnel and concluded that Duolin had built the rebel force during the Blood Corpse crisis.
• Antiya Lisi learned that three Stained Ones Knight Orders were on their way and expected Aduolin Province to be reunified before spring.

Antiya Lisi explained why Fir City’s northern position made him confident that reinforcements would defeat the rebels, then checked on a captive undergoing Tree Transformation. The transformation finished while [Clear Soup Master] was logged out, and he returned to find that he had become a Treant.

• Antiya Lisi assessed the Tree Worship Church’s borders and military strength, concluding that Fir City was safe until reinforcements arrived.
• Antiya Lisi entered the dungeon and found a captive Soul Returner suspended with tree roots embedded in his body.
• Antiya Lisi believed the captive’s transformation had reached its final stage and that he would soon become a Treant Hunter.
• [Clear Soup Master] logged into the World of Disorder and saw that his Tree Transformation had ended.
• [Clear Soup Master] read his new Treant status, which increased his constitution and strength but sharply reduced his willpower.

[Clear Soup Master] completed Tree Transformation and became an iron-birch treant under Antiya Lisi’s watch, then wandered Fir City to map its streets while bound by the archbishop’s rules. When he heard a fight nearby, he rushed toward it, hoping the combatants would keep fighting.

• [Clear Soup Master] discovered that Tree Transformation had been suppressed and waited for Antiya Lisi to resume the treants’ nightly hunt.
• Antiya Lisi released [Clear Soup Master]’s restraints, and he transformed into a treant while the archbishop watched.
• [Clear Soup Master] struggled to control his transformed body and decided to map Fir City rather than attack clergy or players.
• [Clear Soup Master] wandered the streets twisting his neck to record areas and signal other players from afar.
• [Clear Soup Master] heard a fight and hurried toward it, inwardly hoping the combatants would not stop.

[That's Good Then] and [That's Really Bad] were cornered by treants on a street in Fir City until [Clear Soup Master], transformed into an iron birch treant, rescued them. After driving off their attackers, [Clear Soup Master] warned the two players to hide because the treants were dangerous and difficult to reason with.

• [That's Good Then] and [That's Really Bad] fought two treants but were caught in a tightening cage and pierced by barbed branches.
• [Clear Soup Master] arrived, exchanged the secret cuckoo signal with [That's Good Then], and challenged the treants while pretending they had stolen from him.
• [Clear Soup Master] knocked down the treant that had pierced the players and tore off its branches, then did the same to the other treant.
• The two treants fled, leaving [Clear Soup Master] with [That's Good Then] and [That's Really Bad].
• [That's Good Then] recognized [Clear Soup Master] as an organizer of the Blood Corpse assembly-line event, and [Clear Soup Master] urged the players to hide from the dangerous treants.

[Clear Soup Master] recruited [That's Good Then] to join the treants and headed toward Fir City's central cathedral with him and [That's Really Bad]'s corpse. Meanwhile, [Do Some Farm Work] began his first smuggling run into Fir City through an icy river and spotted a hand reaching out of the water.

• [That's Good Then] agreed to undergo the treant transformation after [Clear Soup Master] explained the process.
• [That's Really Bad] died after asking for compensation, and [Clear Soup Master] took his corpse along with [That's Good Then].
• [Aluode], [Western Sharpshooter], and [Gill's Cuisine] collected discarded Living Wood branches and discussed leaving Fir City before dawn.
• [Epic-Level Giant] urged [Do Some Farm Work] to risk the freezing river for his smuggling run into Fir City.
• [Do Some Farm Work] followed the current through a cut metal grate and saw a hand reaching into the river.

[Howling Pothos] received a dangerous delivery from [Do Some Farm Work] and passed it to Enzo for [Clear Soup Master]. He also arranged to send Enzo’s earnings and furniture-sale money to Enzo’s family as they traveled toward Valhalla, while Fir City remained to be taken.

• [Do Some Farm Work] grabbed [Howling Pothos]'s severed forearm from the icy water, and [Howling Pothos] hauled him onto the riverbank.
• [Howling Pothos] explained that he had given his corpse to a friend, then collected a tightly wrapped bundle of contaminated material from [Do Some Farm Work].
• [Do Some Farm Work] warned [Howling Pothos] to use the biological weapon only against the Stained Ones, and [Howling Pothos] threw him back into the water to swim home.
• [Howling Pothos] handed the bundle to Enzo and promised to pay him for the delivery, directing the money to Enzo's family in Valhalla.
• Enzo agreed to sell the remaining furniture in his home, with the proceeds also going to his family, then resumed wandering through Fir City.

[Howling Pothos] arranged for [Mules and Horses Drive the Sun] to collect a wardrobe, while [Clear Soup Master] received a secret bundle from a treant messenger. At the small church, [Zhong Lele] helped [Pond Fish and Old Abyss] and [Dark Archmage] take over the identities of two nuns.

• [Howling Pothos] led [Mules and Horses Drive the Sun] to Enzo's home, where he collected a wardrobe on credit.
• A treant delivered [Howling Pothos]'s regards and a cloth bundle to [Clear Soup Master], who planned to use it against Antiya Lisi during Ed's assault.
• [Zhong Lele] reassured an orphan that the strange noises outside came from a rat extermination team.
• [Pond Fish and Old Abyss] and [Dark Archmage] joined [Zhong Lele]'s plan to replace two nuns who had no family in Fir City.
• [Zhong Lele] instructed them to subdue the original nuns with as little force as possible.