The need for Advance Online has ended and Grant returns to Continue Online’s fantasy world. Once there, he realizes that events echoed strangely across the two virtual reality games, resulting in the resurrection of King Nero and Grant’s wife, albeit with consequences.
King Nero resumes the throne and seeks to punish Grant for killing his sister-in-law. Grant is sentenced to join a prison chain gang assigned to work in the worst dungeons around, and to fight against other inmates to ensure his character’s survival.
While in reality, Miz Riley worries about the recreation of deceased human personalities and clear meddling of the AI Voices. She too moves toward a decision, one that will put everyone Grant loves and cares about in danger.
Grant’s brief reunion with Xin is quickly jeopardized; he desperately tries to stay alive in the virtual world to try to gain enough strength to help those dear to him withstand the upcoming trials as the entire system gradually crashes.