Chapter Summaries

Si Ming and his companions infiltrated Tea-Tasting Manor to assassinate the Lu Lineage's young patriarch, while Qingyan prepared to exploit a series of explosions to create chaos. The group was nearly discovered by a patrol, and Hongdou summoned a black cat and green snake from her painting to distract the guards.

• Qingyan spotted explosions near the back mountain and decided to ignite fires around the estate to create greater confusion.
• Si Ming and his companions entered Tea-Tasting Manor while avoiding its sentries and patrols.
• Si Ming and Si Shuiyun argued over the Profound Armor he had brought and the noise it had made.
• A patrol approached the group's hiding place after one guard heard a faint sound.
• Si Ming imitated a cat, but the patrol captain remained suspicious, so Hongdou sent a black cat and green snake out of her painting.

Si Ming and his companions confirmed that Anomalies had replaced the Lu Lineage’s leadership, then Si Ming used the Vermilion Bird Profound Armor to attack the strongest Anomaly’s domain. His bombardment devastated half of Tea-Tasting Manor’s back mountain, leaving the enemies’ condition unknown.

• Si Ming detected several Anomalies around the Lu Lineage’s rear residence and identified the strongest one as the source of a domain-like presence.
• Si Jingyu explained the two kinds of Anomalies and how True Qi or divine arts could destroy them.
• Si Ming assigned the others to deal with the remaining Anomalies and told Hongdou to search for her parents.
• Si Ming donned the Vermilion Bird Profound Armor and flew above the manor while its True Qi Beam Cannons charged.
• Si Ming fired two blasts into the Anomaly’s domain, collapsing half the back mountain and leaving the land riddled with craters and cracks.

Si Ming destroyed the domain’s supporting structure with the True Qi Beam Cannon and fought the Crimson Shadow King, but the Anomaly headed for Si Jingyu and the others, forcing Si Ming to pursue him. Meanwhile, White Face kept Lu Ling imprisoned as a potential host body until a sudden explosion shook the secret room.

• Si Ming fired the True Qi Beam Cannon, disrupting the domain, then set the Lu Lineage’s residence on fire to draw its members’ attention.
• The Crimson Shadow King attacked Si Ming, who used flight and sniper rounds to wound him from above.
• The Crimson Shadow King realized Si Ming had companions and raced toward Si Jingyu and the others, so Si Ming put away his guns and charged after him with the Vermilion Flame Sword.
• White Face told the imprisoned Lu Ling that he would be released in two days, while secretly keeping him alive as a possible host body for the Monster Race army.
• A powerful explosion shook Lu Ling’s secret room, surprising both him and White Face.

Si Huaruo fought the Netherworld Blood Slave, whose body had been taken over by an Anomaly, but her divine arts and weapon choice left her at a disadvantage. She expected to win by wearing him down, since Si Ming had already gravely wounded him.

• Si Huaruo summoned the Tiger God, but the Netherworld Blood Slave blocked the attack with thorny vines and counterattacked.
• Si Huaruo used her staff to defend herself, regretting that she had not brought a sword against the vines.
• Si Huaruo summoned the insect god Hundred Species, whose swarm devoured the thorny vines.
• Si Huaruo recognized that the opponent’s wood-aspected ability countered her water-aspected divine arts, but believed Si Ming’s earlier wound would eventually give her the advantage.

Si Jingyu held off the Blood-Handed Butcher and the Yama Blood Child while Si Shuiyun went to help Si Huaruo, and the Lu Lineage arrived to fight the Crimson Eye Society. Meanwhile, Hongdou found Illusion Ji in a secret chamber and learned that her father was already gone.

• Si Jingyu sent Si Shuiyun to help Si Huaruo while she held the Blood-Handed Butcher and the Yama Blood Child at bay.
• Si Jingyu wounded the Blood-Handed Butcher with the Meridian-Shattering Goosefoot Heart Palm and reflected the Yama Blood Child's black flames back at him, injuring his ally.
• The Yama Blood Child offered the Crimson Eye Society a reward to help defeat Si Jingyu, but the Lu Lineage arrived and attacked the Society.
• Hongdou followed a secret passage and found Illusion Ji, who said Hongdou's father had gone ahead and that she would soon follow him.
• Hongdou told Illusion Ji that she had good friends now and no longer felt lonely.

Hongdou received the Scroll of Space from her dying mother, Illusion Ji, who realized a change in fate meant Hongdou would not need to sacrifice herself to stop the Crimson Shadow King's plan. As Illusion Ji died peacefully, Si Ming continued fighting the Crimson Shadow King at the collapsed back mountain.

• Illusion Ji passed the Scroll of Space's power to Hongdou and told her she would need it to close the Flesh and Blood Wormhole.
• Illusion Ji divined that fate had changed: the Crimson Shadow King could not open the wormhole because his preparations were incomplete, so Hongdou would not have to sacrifice herself.
• Illusion Ji refused Hongdou's offer to seek help and reminisced with her about meeting Hongdou's father before dying in her arms.
• Si Ming used flight, the Vermilion Bird Profound Armor, and the Vermilion Flame Sword to keep pace with the Crimson Shadow King and avoid his attacks.
• Si Ming agreed to stop relying on evasion and attacked, interrupting the Crimson Shadow King's saber force before the king launched a concealed strike toward Si Ming's abdomen.

Si Ming wounded the Crimson Shadow King after reading his techniques, but the assassin fled toward Hongdou and tried to take her hostage. Hongdou unexpectedly unleashed overwhelming power and shattered half his body, leaving the Crimson Shadow King facing defeat as he revealed his mission for the Purple-Pupiled Spirit King.

• Si Ming countered the Crimson Shadow King's techniques, broke through his original finishing move, and wounded him with a supreme sword strike.
• The Crimson Shadow King realized Si Ming had analyzed his fighting style and feared he would lose, while Si Ming prepared to finish the fight.
• The Crimson Shadow King fled toward Hongdou, intending to capture her as a hostage, and Si Ming pursued him.
• The Crimson Shadow King's claw missed Hongdou, and her palm strike blasted apart half his body; she said it was for her mother.
• Si Ming arrived, surprised by Hongdou's strength, and regretted that she had taken his first Spirit Transformation expert kill.
• The wounded Crimson Shadow King lamented his nearly completed plan and revealed he was the Purple-Pupiled Spirit King's battle general, tasked with opening a passage between the two worlds.

Si Huaruo and Si Shuiyun defeated the Netherworld Blood Slave, then joined Si Jingyu’s battle against the Yama Blood Child and Blood-Handed Butcher. Si Jingyu trapped both enemies in ice and launched a giant meteorite at them while Si Ming’s fight continued elsewhere.

• Si Huaruo and Si Shuiyun coordinated their attacks to freeze the Netherworld Blood Slave and destroy her body and the Anomaly within her.
• Si Huaruo checked Si Jingyu’s fight and saw her holding off the Yama Blood Child and Blood-Handed Butcher with her paired swords and defensive techniques.
• Si Huaruo sent Si Shuiyun to help Si Ming and attacked Si Jingyu’s opponents with Dusk Snow, Sinking Shadows, Seal the Heavenly Pass.
• Si Jingyu froze the Yama Blood Child and Blood-Handed Butcher inside a pillar of ice, then formed a giant meteorite with Sin Star Descends in a Calamitous Year.

Si Ming and the others stopped Crimson Shadow King's ritual, but a wormhole opened and a giant ghostly hand dragged Si Ming, Hongdou, and Si Shuiyun through it. Si Jingyu followed them before it closed, leaving Si Huaruo stranded at Tea-Tasting Manor as the group disappeared into the unknown.

• Si Jingyu killed Yama Blood Child and Blood-Handed Butcher with her ultimate move, while Hongdou and Si Ming defeated Crimson Shadow King.
• Si Shuiyun warned Si Ming that Crimson Shadow King could only be truly killed by destroying his origin core, but the core escaped into the formation and completed it.
• The formation drew vital essence from Crimson Shadow King's corpse and the Lu Lineage senior's corpse, forming a heart that Si Ming destroyed with Divine King's Wrath.
• A wormhole opened, and a giant ghostly hand seized Hongdou; Si Ming, Si Shuiyun, and Si Jingyu tried to stop it, but a purple evil eye immobilized Si Ming, Hongdou, and Si Shuiyun and pulled them through.
• Si Jingyu followed through the shrinking wormhole, but Si Huaruo arrived too late and was left behind when it vanished.

A blood ritual at Tea-Tasting Manor opened a space-time tunnel, letting Anomalies invade the Nation of Beauty’s capital and spread chaos. At Water Mirror Manor, Si Huamu and Si Jingyue captured their possessed mother, Si Jingzhi, but a huge fish-carcass monster emerged from the lake.

• The Crimson Shadow King and his followers activated an array at Tea-Tasting Manor, draining the crowd’s flesh and blood to form an evil heart.
• Si Ming pierced the heart with the Vermilion Flame Sword, but its destruction opened a space-time tunnel that released the Purple-Pupiled Spirit King and numerous monsters into the capital.
• Anomalies seized people across the city, triggering widespread slaughter and destruction, while Water Mirror Manor faced attacks from possessed lineage members.
• Si Jingzhi broke free of her seal and slaughtered the retirement pavilion’s guards and residents before Si Huamu and Si Jingyue confronted her.
• Si Huamu and Si Jingyue defeated and captured Si Jingzhi, and Si Jingyue began driving out the Anomaly possessing her.
• A huge monster assembled from fish carcasses rose from a nearby lake.

Si Jingxi revealed that she had faked her death, reunited with her old rival Shi Muyan, and urged the Si Clan to flee as the Nation of Beauty faced disaster. As Anomalies overwhelmed the city, Hongdou prepared to close the Flesh and Blood Wormhole at the cost of her life, but Si Ming tried to stop her and his strike missed.

• Si Jingxi destroyed the Anomaly possessing Si Jingzhi, then ordered the Si Clan to abandon the manor and flee the country after a giant evil eye appeared in the sky.
• Si Jingxi killed a giant fish monster, then joined Shi Muyan in defeating an octopus monster and reconciled with her former adversary.
• Hongdou said goodbye to Si Ming and explained that she planned to close the Flesh and Blood Wormhole because the method came from her mother’s Scroll of Space.
• Hongdou admitted she expected to sacrifice herself and said she had wanted to change and cook for Si Ming; Si Ming lunged to knock her unconscious, but his strike inexplicably missed.

After Hongdou sacrificed herself to close the Flesh and Blood Wormhole, Si Ming awakened a powerful, emotionless form and killed the Crimson Shadow King before disappearing toward the evil eye. The story then shifted to a jianghu caravan escorting a mysterious injured woman, leaving Zhao Yili distracted by her as the group stopped for tea.

• Hongdou turned into a formation and collapsed the Flesh and Blood Wormhole, destroying the Anomalies trapped inside.
• Grief-stricken, Si Ming yearned for greater power and transformed as mutated Metal Cells covered his body.
• Si Ming swiftly tore the Crimson Shadow King's core from its body and crushed it, then vanished toward the evil eye.
• The story shifted to the Origin Return Sect escorting a merchant caravan along an official road in Pingyuan Commandery.
• A tall woman brought medicinal brew to a carriage, and Zhao Zhixin teased his elder brother Zhao Yili for staring at her.

Zhao Yili, Zhao Zhixin, and the other disciples gossiped about Si Jingyu, Si Shuiyun, and the concubine, while Zhao Xiaohui defended Si Ming and his inner cultivation. In the carriage, Si Ming and his companions dismissed the sect members as weak and discussed his lingering injuries from their escape.

• Zhao Yili and the disciples praised the lady of the house and speculated about Si Shuiyun, while Zhao Xiaohui warned that Si Shuiyun was far stronger than them.
• Zhao Xiaohui said Si Ming was an inner cultivation expert who had taught her a formula, but the others mocked her and teased her about becoming his concubine.
• Zhao Zhixin drew attention to Liang Zhenhuan, who said marrying the concubine would make a man the envy of everyone.
• Si Ming heard the disciples' crude gossip from inside the carriage, and Si Jingyu told Si Shuiyun not to bother with them.
• Si Ming explained that he had been badly injured while protecting Si Shuiyun during their escape from the Monster Race army, and said his recovery could take three to five years.

As the Origin Return Sect fought the Heavenly King Stronghold to protect the caravan, Du Longyin gained the upper hand against Zhao Donglai. Si Shuiyun intervened with a sudden attack, and the chapter left Zhao Yili watching her evade the bandits and strike back.

• Du Longyin challenged Zhao Donglai to a duel so the newly formed Heavenly King Stronghold could build its reputation.
• Du Longyin used concealed leg techniques to suppress Zhao Donglai and gain the advantage.
• Si Shuiyun asked Zhao Yili whether Zhao Donglai had a way to turn the fight around, then charged into the Heavenly King Stronghold's underlings.
• Si Shuiyun killed one underling with a palm strike and twisted aside from the bandits' weapons before counterattacking.

Si Shuiyun killed the Heavenly King Stronghold bandits and their leader, Du Longyin, while protecting the caravan. After the group resumed its journey, Zhao Donglai realized the sickly young master could teach cultivation methods tailored to people’s talents, and Zhao Xiaohui said she was already making progress with the Wind Spirit Art.

• Si Shuiyun killed the bandits attacking the caravan and defeated Du Longyin with a single palm technique.
• Zhao Donglai praised Si Shuiyun for eliminating a scourge, and she returned to the carriage after reporting to Si Ming.
• The onlookers speculated about the abilities and identity of the young master and his companions.
• Zhao Donglai learned that Zhao Xiaohui had received the Wind Spirit Art from the young master and warned her to keep its formula secret.
• Zhao Xiaohui told Zhao Donglai that Si Shuiyun had given her a picture to study while cultivating and that she could already feel its effects.

Si Ming struggled to recover his Cultivation Body while trying to learn whether Anomalies existed in the world where he and his companions had arrived. When Liang Zhenhuan came seeking help, Si Ming asked him about the local jianghu and learned how its martial artists were regarded.

• Si Ming said the medicine was becoming less effective and that his Cultivation Body had fallen to barely a tenth of its former strength.
• Hongdou suggested basking in the sun, but Si Ming said eliminating Anomalies would restore him faster; Si Jingyu outlined three possible explanations for their lack of sightings.
• Si Jingyu predicted that someone would visit Si Ming, and Liang Zhenhuan arrived that evening to offer help with his troubles.
• Si Ming asked Liang Zhenhuan about the region and learned that they were in the Western Martial World on the Barbarian Continent, where the Glazed Temple was a martial arts holy land.
• Liang Zhenhuan described five loosely defined levels of martial reputation, from obscure experts to Grandmasters, and Si Ming concluded that the distinctions depended largely on renown.

Si Ming learned how the Barbarian Continent distinguished Anomalies from the more powerful Monster Race, then agreed to give Liang Zhenhuan martial arts pointers. After correcting Liang's Five Elements Lost Track Fist, Si Ming began demonstrating a move for him to study.

• Si Ming asked Liang Zhenhuan about Anomalies and learned that ordinary sects dealt with them, while only the Three Great Holy Lands could reliably eliminate the Monster Race.
• Liang Zhenhuan requested martial arts pointers instead of an Internal Cultivation method, and Si Ming agreed to watch his best technique.
• Liang performed the Five Elements Lost Track Fist, and Si Ming corrected his hand position and other movements with pebble strikes and instructions.
• Liang followed Si Ming's adjustments and felt exhausted but understood that his body moved more freely and efficiently.
• Si Ming explained that martial techniques should be adapted to each person's body, then demonstrated a powerful move for Liang to observe.

Si Ming and Si Jingyu decided to lie low, heal their injuries, and gather information by building a loose faction, beginning with the Origin Return Sect. Meanwhile, Zhao Donglai learned that Si Ming’s move belonged to a lost Origin Return Sect technique, but doubted Si Ming had the sect’s missing manual.

• Si Ming demonstrated a five-style move to Liang Zhenhuan, then discussed the Monster Race and their plans with Si Jingyu.
• Si Jingyu advised delaying contact with the Three Great Holy Lands, focusing on recovery, returning to the Sea Continent, gathering intelligence, and strengthening their allies.
• Si Ming and Si Jingyu agreed to form a loose faction and make the Origin Return Sect their first target.
• Zhao Donglai told Zhao Xiaohui to conceal her newly sensed True Qi and wait before revealing her progress.
• Liang Zhenhuan showed Zhao Donglai the move Si Ming had performed, and Zhao Donglai identified it as a lost killing move from the Five Elements Lost Track Fist.

After the Origin Return Sect escorted the caravan to the county seat, Zhao Donglai chose not to risk helping Si Ming, leaving Liang Zhenhuan disappointed. When Zhao Donglai returned home, he discovered that his son Zhao Jiaren had been afflicted by an Anomaly that was draining his life, and Zhao Jiaren urged his father to follow the usual rules and stop it from harming anyone else.

• The caravan reached the county seat, and Zhao Donglai gave up on the chance to befriend Si Ming, while Liang Zhenhuan remained bound to the Origin Return Sect.
• Zhao Donglai paid the escorting disciples, and most departed before he and a handful of sworn disciples returned to the sect.
• The steward told Zhao Donglai that something had happened to Zhao Jiaren, and Zhao Donglai hurried to his son's room with Zhao Yili, Zhao Zhixin, and Liang Zhenhuan.
• Zhao Donglai found black, laughing human faces writhing across Zhao Jiaren's back and recognized them as an Anomaly.
• Zhao Jiaren said the Anomaly was draining his life and asked Zhao Donglai to follow the usual rules to prevent it from harming someone else, but Zhao Donglai refused to accept that there was no other way.

Zhao Donglai sought Si Ming’s help after an Anomaly possessed Zhao Jiaren, and Si Ming cured him with Blazing Sun True Qi. Si Ming’s internal cultivation advanced to level eight, and Zhao Donglai promised to honor the price Si Ming had demanded.

• Zhao Donglai learned that Si Ming might be able to save Zhao Jiaren and sent the Origin Return Sect to find him.
• Zhao Donglai pleaded with Si Ming to save his son and agreed to pay whatever price Si Ming asked, though Si Ming said he wanted something connected to the Origin Return Sect.
• Si Ming explained that Anomalies could be destroyed with sufficiently deep internal cultivation and that ordinary martial artists often lacked the strength to do so.
• Si Ming touched Zhao Jiaren’s back and used Blazing Sun True Qi to destroy the Anomaly’s source, curing him.
• The Anomaly’s power raised Si Ming’s internal cultivation to level eight and restored his Cultivation Body to twenty percent.
• Zhao Donglai thanked Si Ming and promised not to go back on his word.