Chapter Summaries

Chen Ning sent himself and Li Changsheng five hundred years into the past, where Li Changsheng fought Song Huai while the Myriad Spirits Imperial Dynasty faced a succession crisis. The chapter ended with Zhao Jin being stabbed by a trusted subordinate as Zhao Shen prepared to seize the throne.

• Chen Ning reversed time and brought Li Changsheng to the imperial palace five hundred years earlier, before Li Changsheng had gained the Spirit Martial God's protection.
• Song Huai confronted Chen Ning and Li Changsheng, but Li Changsheng quickly defeated him.
• After the old emperor died, Zhao Shen prepared to kill Zhao Jin and Zhao Yang and take the throne.
• Zhao Jin hurried through the palace to secure control, but a trusted subordinate stabbed him through the chest.

Chen Ning and Li Changsheng arrived as Zhao Jin was being attacked by a black-robed Grandmaster working for the second prince, and Chen Ning killed the assassin and saved Zhao Jin. Zhao Yang learned the truth about the attack, leaving Li Changsheng to wonder whether Chen Ning had changed history by bringing the brothers together.

• The black-robed man poisoned Zhao Jin and revealed he had pledged himself to the second prince, then attacked Zhao Jin’s followers.
• Zhao Jin held the black-robed man back so a surviving follower could escape and warn Zhao Yang to flee the imperial city.
• Chen Ning and Li Changsheng appeared overhead as Zhao Yang arrived, and Zhao Yang charged the black-robed man but was knocked into a palace wall.
• Chen Ning killed the black-robed man with a Sword-Ray and healed Zhao Jin with a verdant light.
• Zhao Jin and Zhao Yang agreed to focus on stopping the second prince before discussing the throne, while Li Changsheng questioned whether Chen Ning had rewritten history.

Chen Ning used a crafted vision of changed history to unsettle Li Changsheng, who eventually saw through the deception and explained how history corrected itself. Chen Ning said the Carefree King and Zhao Jin would still fall out, but the brothers shared a genuine bond for the moment as Li Changsheng declared that Chen Ning had lost his last chance to win.

• Li Changsheng realized that Chen Ning's apparent alteration of the Carefree King and Zhao Jin's past made him fear the Great Dao of Time could change history.
• Chen Ning attacked Li Changsheng, who hesitated and was struck before recovering and catching Chen Ning's next blow.
• Li Changsheng deduced that Chen Ning could not truly alter past events and that history would repair inconsistencies.
• Chen Ning explained that he had created new memories for the brothers, but future misunderstandings would still drive the Carefree King toward resentment and rebellion.
• Li Changsheng said Chen Ning's Great Dao of Time had lost its final advantage now that he understood its limits.

Chen Ning defeated Li Changsheng with the founding master's unnamed move after using the Great Dao of Time to seal the will bestowed on Li Changsheng by Spirit Martial God. The Vast Land chose Chen Ning to take on the coming calamity, and Li Changsheng revealed that they would face it together.

• Chen Ning unleashed the founding master's unnamed move, while Li Changsheng gathered many Great Daos into a chaotic attack and met it head-on.
• Chen Ning's move overwhelmed Li Changsheng, who crashed into a mountainside and admitted defeat.
• Li Changsheng told Chen Ning that the Vast Land had chosen him to fight the coming calamity, and natural power flowed into Chen Ning to restore his strength.
• Chen Ning questioned why the Vast Land had chosen him instead of a god, and Li Changsheng asked whether Chen Ning believed any gods remained in the Vast Land.
• Li Changsheng told Chen Ning that they would stand together against the Vast Land's calamity.

Li Changsheng told Chen Ning that the gods had abandoned the Vast Land and explained how they had hunted Chen Ning’s founding ancestor to prevent his ascension. After Zhao Jin’s forces defeated Zhao Shen’s rebellion, Chen Ning gave Zhao Jin a cryptic warning before he and Li Changsheng vanished.

• Li Changsheng revealed that the gods used the God Clans to harvest the Power of the World Origin and would abandon the Vast Land when it faced calamity.
• Li Changsheng said Chen Ning’s founding ancestor had been hunted by four gods’ consciousnesses on his way to the God Realm, after which all news of him ceased.
• Chen Ning resolved to prepare for the coming calamity while continuing his plans to rescue the old sect master, free the Nine Provinces Realm, and find the first sect master.
• Zhao Yang killed Zhao Shen, ending the second prince’s rebellion and allowing Zhao Jin to take the throne.
• Chen Ning told Zhao Jin to believe a future person who would challenge everything he knew, then Chen Ning and Li Changsheng disappeared through the power of the Great Dao of Time.

Chen Ning and Li Changsheng returned after Chen Ning defeated Li Changsheng, and the Carefree King chose to die by Zhao Jin’s hand. Chen Ning entrusted Zhao Jin with the plants protecting the Azure Heaven Realm before departing, while Zhao Yinyin waited for his promised return.

• Zhao Jin realized Chen Ning had been the benefactor whose words had guided him to become a Celestial Person.
• The Carefree King withdrew his attack and let Zhao Jin’s punch kill him, saying his death was the best way to end his crimes.
• Zhao Jin mourned his brother, then ordered the city’s remaining zombies cleared and announced rewards for those who resisted the horde and punishment for those who fled or rebelled.
• Chen Ning told Zhao Jin he would leave the plants protecting the realm under his control and asked him to guard the Azure Heaven Realm.
• Zhao Yinyin asked Chen Ning who he was, and he promised to take her to the Vast Land once he had finished his task.
• Chen Ning and Li Changsheng vanished, leaving Zhao Yinyin to wait for his return.

After Chen Ning defeated Li Changsheng, the Vast Land recognized him as the younger generation’s undisputed strongest, and the Darkness God Clan decided to secretly arrange his death. The chapter ends with the clan’s elders preparing to carry out the order without leaving evidence that implicates them.

• News of Chen Ning’s victory over Li Changsheng spread across the Vast Land, astonishing the God Clans and younger cultivators.
• Former opponents of Chen Ning feared his revenge and resolved not to provoke him again.
• The Darkness God Clan’s leader summoned the nine great elders to discuss Chen Ning’s growing threat to their clan.
• The leader ordered the elders to find a way to kill Chen Ning without allowing anyone to trace the act back to the clan.
• The nine great elders approved the secret command and planned to leave no evidence or survivors.

After defeating Li Changsheng, Chen Ning received the Vast Land’s blessing and broke through to the Early-Stage Saint King Realm. Back in the City of Light, Sui Qingshan told him he had found a lead on one of So Close Yet Worlds Apart’s missing members, who had received a brocade pouch from the first-generation sect leader.

• Chen Ning cultivated atop Heaven-Reaching Peak and transformed through the Vast Land’s blessing, reaching the Early-Stage Saint King Realm.
• The Light Clan Leader celebrated Chen Ning’s breakthrough and said the other God Clans were seeking closer ties with the Light God Clan.
• The Light Clan Leader told Chen Ning that Ji Hongyi had entered seclusion to pursue the Saint King Realm.
• The Light Clan Leader said one of Chen Ning’s subordinates had come looking for him, and Chen Ning returned to the City of Light.
• Sui Qingshan reported that he had learned the whereabouts of one of the two absent members of So Close Yet Worlds Apart, who had received a brocade pouch from the first-generation sect leader.

Chen Ning learned that Lü Xiaochuan was in the Sin Domain, a realm beyond the God Clan’s control, and decided to go there to recruit him and learn more about the first sect master. He and his companions agreed to travel together, while Sui Qingshan received a bamboo slip from Chen Ning.

• Sui Qingshan told Chen Ning that Lü Xiaochuan had been close to the first sect master and was now in the Sin Domain.
• Chen Ning triggered the third stage of the Dragon-Seeking Sect 2.0 quest, which required him to recruit Lü Xiaochuan in the Sin Domain.
• Nalan Yao and Ding Erliang explained that the Sin Domain was ruled by the God of Bandits and filled with vicious people.
• Chen Ning rewarded Sui Qingshan with a bamboo slip after recognizing that he had once been used as a vessel for a god’s power.
• Chen Ning asked his companions to accompany him to the Sin Domain, and they all agreed; Sui Qingshan said he longed to return there.

Chen Ning brought his companions to the Sin Domain, hoping to find information about the founding sect leader and strengthen himself for the coming calamity. After Ding Erliang’s past there came to light, Chen Ning promised to stand up for him, stirring an unfamiliar feeling of gratitude in Ding Erliang.

• Chen Ning set off for the Sin Domain with So Close Yet Worlds Apart, bringing Hua Luo and the little monk along as well.
• The group arrived in the Sin Domain, where most of them felt oppressed by the continent’s atmosphere, while Sui Qingshan seemed pleased by it.
• Shui Ziliu introduced himself as a guide and warned Chen Ning that Ding Erliang had nearly died in the Sin Domain before fleeing after offending the Living King of Hell.
• Ding Erliang tried to explain that his departure had been a tactical retreat, but Chen Ning said he would meet the people Ding Erliang had offended and make them pay.
• Ding Erliang felt gratitude toward Chen Ning and silently vowed to die before allowing a deadly crisis to claim him.

Chen Ning paid Shui Ziliu for information about Lü Xiaochuan, learning that Lü had stolen a treasure from the Living King of Hell and was recently seen in Desire Sin Valley. As the group traveled there, repeated ambushes dwindled after Sui Qingshan methodically cleared the battlefields.

• Chen Ning asked Shui Ziliu about Lü Xiaochuan, and Nalan Yao paid him for what he knew.
• Shui Ziliu explained that Lü had stolen the Living King of Hell's prized treasure and had been entered in the Book of Life and Death.
• Nalan Yao paid Shui Ziliu again, and he revealed that Lü had appeared in Desire Sin Valley half a month earlier.
• Chen Ning set out for Desire Sin Valley with Shui Ziliu and his companions, who fought off people trying to rob them.
• Sui Qingshan lingered to clear the corpses after battles, and Ding Erliang pointed out that fewer people attacked as onlookers judged the group’s strength.

Chen Ning and his companions reached Desire Sin Valley, the Sin Domain’s protected black market, and learned how its powerful master kept the trading ground safe. Shui Ziliu suggested that finding Lü Xiaochuan depended on Ding Erliang, whose uncomfortable silence hinted at a troubling history with the valley.

• Chen Ning explained that Sui Qingshan’s cheerful corpse-clearing had unnerved the hidden watchers, and the group continued toward Desire Sin Valley.
• Chen Ning’s companions arrived at the valley and saw its strange and disturbing trade in goods used for evil cultivation.
• Shui Ziliu explained that the four bandit emperors protected the market, while the valley master offered paid escorts to help traders evade robbers outside.
• Chen Ning asked where to find Lü Xiaochuan, and Shui Ziliu pointed to Ding Erliang, teasing him about having once offended the Living King of Hell over a beauty.

Chen Ning and his companions visited Desire Sin Valley to buy information about Lü Xiaochuan. Hua Sanniang accepted a Three-Vein Divine Pill and revealed that Lü Xiaochuan had come to her seeking an introduction to one of the other Thief Emperors.

• Shui Ziliu told Chen Ning that his spy had seen Lü Xiaochuan in Desire Sin Valley and suggested asking Hua Sanniang for information.
• Chen Ning said he would seek an audience with Hua Sanniang, while Ding Erliang stayed behind if he wished.
• Nalan Yao led Chen Ning and the others to Hua Sanniang and offered spatial bags in exchange for information about Lü Xiaochuan.
• Hua Sanniang warned that helping them could draw the Heaven Thief Emperor's attention, so Chen Ning gave her a Three-Vein Divine Pill.
• Hua Sanniang explained that Lü Xiaochuan had stolen the Heaven Thief Emperor's treasure to gain renown and had asked her to introduce him to another Thief Emperor.

Chen Ning and his companions followed Hua Sanniang’s subordinate into the underground palace, where they discovered a trap and faced Hua Sanniang’s forces. Nalan Yao, Old Man Yang, and Bai Ziyu fought the attackers while Chen Ning watched from the rear.

• Chen Ning questioned Hua Sanniang about Lü Xiaochuan, and she sent the group toward a chamber in the underground palace.
• At the chamber, Chen Ning had Xue Rang throw Hua Sanniang’s subordinate inside, triggering a formation and revealing that the room was empty.
• Hua Sanniang’s subordinates emerged from the secret passages, and Hua Sanniang declared that the group would not leave alive.
• Nalan Yao, Old Man Yang, and Bai Ziyu charged the attackers while Xue Rang stayed with the little monk and Chen Ning remained beside Hua Luo.
• The attackers proved unable to match Nalan Yao and the others.

Hua Sanniang’s forces clashed with Chen Ning’s group, whose fighters quickly overwhelmed her elite subordinates. Hua Sanniang attacked Chen Ning, but Sui Qingshan intercepted her, and their battle turned fierce as she fought recklessly to secure her foothold in the Sin Domain.

• Bai Ziyu blasted aside Hua Sanniang’s deceptive attackers with his righteous Qi, while Old Man Yang and Nalan Yao routed their opponents.
• A subordinate tried to ambush Chen Ning, but Xue Rang crushed the attacker with his bare hands while carrying the little monk.
• Hua Sanniang charged at Chen Ning, but Sui Qingshan struck first and knocked her back, revealing that he had reached the Saint Emperor realm.
• Hua Sanniang formed a green snake phantom and attacked Sui Qingshan, who shattered it with a palm.
• Hua Sanniang launched a desperate assault, drawing Sui Qingshan into a bitter battle, and he questioned why she was risking her life.

Sui Qingshan nearly killed Hua Sanniang and Ding Erliang before Chen Ning stopped him and the group discovered the fight had begun over a misunderstanding. Hua Sanniang explained that she was protecting Lü Xiaochuan because he had come to her injured with a token from Ding Erliang.

• Sui Qingshan unleashed a lightning attack that injured Hua Sanniang, and he struck Ding Erliang when he intervened to protect her.
• Chen Ning stopped Sui Qingshan before he could attack Ding Erliang again, and Ding Erliang thanked him for saving his life.
• Ding Erliang asked Chen Ning for a healing pill for Hua Sanniang, but she rejected Ding Erliang and said the person he had once wanted to save was dead.
• Hua Sanniang explained that she had attacked Chen Ning's group because she mistook them for allies of the Living King of Hell, and that Lü Xiaochuan had sought refuge with her while gravely injured.
• Hua Sanniang showed the dart Lü Xiaochuan had brought, and Ding Erliang explained that he had given it to Lü Xiaochuan as a token of a life debt.
• Ding Erliang and Bai Ziyu began arguing until Chen Ning threatened to have them fight Sui Qingshan, making them fall silent.

Hua Luo rescued a scarred slave girl named A Li, who shared her lonely fate, and Chen Ning accepted her as Hua Luo’s companion. Hua Sanniang led Chen Ning and the others to a hidden chamber to find Lü Xiaochuan, but they found it empty despite signs someone had been there.

• Hua Luo sensed someone in a prison cell and forced open its bars to reach a young slave girl.
• Hua Sanniang warned Chen Ning that the girl had a Misfortune Physique, but let him take her without payment.
• Hua Luo brought the girl to Chen Ning, who learned her name was A Li and told her to stay by Hua Luo’s side.
• Hua Sanniang led Chen Ning and his companions to a hidden chamber, where they found no one despite signs of recent occupancy.

Chen Ning learned that Lü Xiaochuan had escaped the secret chamber, likely through his extraordinary talent, and reflected on the chance to meet him later. That night, Ding Erliang told Chen Ning how he had met and fallen in love with a dancer who was secretly an assassin, ending with his regret that he had not asked her to stay.

• Chen Ning deduced that Lü Xiaochuan had escaped the secret chamber, and Ding Erliang and Sui Qingshan praised Lü Xiaochuan's exceptional talent.
• Hua Sanniang admitted she did not know Lü Xiaochuan's true purpose in the Sin Domain.
• Chen Ning joined Ding Erliang on a roof at night and offered him a jar of strong liquor, which stirred memories of the Nine Provinces Realm.
• Ding Erliang asked Chen Ning whether he deserved to die and began recounting his past with a woman he had loved.
• Ding Erliang explained that he had met the woman when she was a dancer in Desire Sin Valley, unknowingly disrupting her planned assassination.
• Ding Erliang said he had saved the injured woman and grown close to her, but lacked the courage or right to ask her to stay when she recovered.

Ding Erliang told Chen Ning how he had abandoned Hua Sanniang after she sacrificed herself to save him, and Chen Ning urged him to apologize without expecting forgiveness. Ding Erliang set off for Hua Sanniang’s residence, while Chen Ning realized his feelings toward his subordinates were changing.

• Ding Erliang recounted how he had found Hua Sanniang imprisoned in Desire Sin Valley and been captured alongside her.
• Ding Erliang explained that Hua Sanniang gave herself to the Living King of Hell to save him, but he fled the Sin Domain rather than return for her.
• Chen Ning told Ding Erliang that Hua Sanniang owed him nothing and described how she had destroyed the faction that had used her as a sacrifice and taken control of Desire Sin Valley.
• Chen Ning urged Ding Erliang to apologize to Hua Sanniang because she had risked herself to save Lü Xiaochuan over an object connected to him.
• Ding Erliang thanked Chen Ning, kowtowed, and stumbled toward Hua Sanniang’s residence to apologize.
• Chen Ning watched Ding Erliang leave and realized he was beginning to regard his subordinates as his own people.

Ding Erliang apologized to Hua Sanniang and chose to remain in Desire Sin Valley, while Chen Ning and his companions set out for the Sea of Death to see Lü Xiaochuan’s attempt to steal the Pirate Emperor’s Boundless Divine Bottle. After defeating the hunters waiting outside the valley, they continued toward the Pirate Emperor’s territory as crowds gathered there.

• Ding Erliang apologized to Hua Sanniang for abandoning her and left, while she wept behind her closed door.
• News spread that Lü Xiaochuan planned to steal the Pirate Emperor’s Boundless Divine Bottle, and the Pirate Emperor publicly welcomed him and other would-be thieves to the Death Archipelago.
• Ding Erliang told Chen Ning he would stay in Desire Sin Valley to watch over Hua Sanniang, and Chen Ning respected his decision.
• Chen Ning led Nalan Yao and the others out of Desire Sin Valley, where they killed the hunters waiting to attack them.
• Chen Ning and his companions continued toward the Sea of Death with Shui Ziliu as their guide, while more people traveled there to witness Lü Xiaochuan’s challenge.