Chapter Summaries

An Ying set fire to the Civil Engineering Department’s water aquamarine treasury to get himself expelled, but the flames transformed the entire stock into far more valuable fire aquamarine. The elders mistook his sabotage for a success, while An Ying was left aghast that his plan had helped the sect instead.

• Zhao Zhihui warned An Ying that the water aquamarine had to be kept away from fire, and An Ying assured him he would handle it.
• After Zhao Zhihui left, An Ying deliberately set the aquamarine treasury ablaze and shouted that he had succeeded as the elders and Azure Dragon Sacred Venerable arrived.
• Chu Xinghe told Ma Liang to check whether the aquamarine had mutated, despite Elder He’s doubts that such a transformation could happen on a large scale.
• Holy Lord Gu Mingchao extinguished the flames, and Ma Liang found that the water aquamarine had become fire aquamarine.
• The elders realized An Ying’s actions had increased the aquamarine’s value, while An Ying wondered why his attempt to get expelled had once again backfired.

After the fire sapphires were discovered, An Ying repeatedly credited Chu Xinghe with guiding his work, while Chu Xinghe tried to insist the achievement belonged to An Ying. The Grand Elder accepted An Ying’s performance as sincere and ordered rewards for both of them.

• The Grand Elder praised Chu Xinghe after the fire sapphires were found, and An Ying immediately credited Chu Xinghe with guiding him.
• An Ying and Ma Liang claimed that Chu Xinghe had orchestrated the success, leaving Chu Xinghe furious at being given credit he had not earned.
• Chu Xinghe tried to explain that he had stayed at the Spirit Crane Palace and had not guided An Ying, but An Ying said Chu Xinghe had advised him privately after the Sword Tomb incident.
• An Ying tearfully refused to take the credit, and Elder He confirmed that An Ying was telling the truth with the help of the Fate Divinity.
• The Grand Elder ordered fifty thousand spirit stones for Chu Xinghe and another fifty thousand for An Ying.

Chu Xinghe and An Ying received unwanted rewards, while Ma Liang interpreted Chu Xinghe's dismissal as guidance about the Star Sea Abyss. An Ying gained a brief escape from the Civil Engineering Department and decided to damage spirit treasures so he could remain at the Artifact Refining Palace.

• The Grand Elder rewarded Chu Xinghe and An Ying equally and praised An Ying's suitability for the Civil Engineering Department.
• Chu Xinghe refused Ma Liang's question about the Star Sea Abyss and kicked him out, but Ma Liang interpreted the dismissal as encouragement to act independently.
• The Azure Dragon Sacred Venerable doubled An Ying's workload after the Fire Blue Gem incident.
• Ouyang Ming secured two days with An Ying at the Artifact Refining Palace to study the Calamity Divinity before An Ying had to resume his assigned work.
• Ouyang Ming warned An Ying that damaging unfinished spirit treasures could force him to stay at the Artifact Refining Palace until he replaced them.
• An Ying decided to damage the spirit treasures to avoid returning to the Civil Engineering Department.

An Ying tried to damage spirit treasures so he would be detained in the Artifact Refining Palace instead of returning to the Civil Engineering Department, but his Calamity Divinity upgraded them instead. His efforts earned widespread admiration and alarmed Chu Xinghe, who recognized that An Ying's stubborn attempts at sabotage would keep strengthening the Vast Heaven Holy Land.

• Ouyang Ming brought An Ying to the refining area to test the Power of Calamity on spirit treasures.
• An Ying deliberately overloaded the Dragon-Subduing Pendant in hopes of ruining it and being detained, but the pendant upgraded instead.
• An Ying repeatedly tried to destroy other spirit treasures, but his increasingly forceful attempts produced greater upgrades.
• An Ying upgraded more than sixteen thousand spirit treasures in two days, and disciples across the Vast Heaven Holy Land apologized for doubting his intentions.
• Chu Xinghe recognized that the Power of Calamity was reversing An Ying's intentions and feared that his refusal to give up would keep benefiting the sect.

An Ying shorted seven chambers of commerce by a third when settling their accounts with the Vast Heaven Holy Land, prompting the merchants to ask Wei Deqian what it meant. Wei Deqian explained why he had banished his eldest son for adulterating goods, leaving the merchants to realize that cheating the Vast Heaven Holy Land could ruin them.

• An Ying paid seven chambers of commerce a third less than they were owed, making each shopkeeper suspect the shortfall was deliberate.
• The seven shopkeepers compared their accounts, confirmed they had all been shorted by the same amount, and went together to see Wei Deqian.
• Wei Deqian asked the merchants whether they thought the Vast Heaven Holy Land were fools and warned them that he would never risk the Daxing Chamber of Commerce's standing with them.
• Wei Deqian recounted how he had discovered defective goods in a shipment and traced the misconduct to his eldest son, whom he banished to a distant branch.
• Wei Deqian explained that his eldest son had gambled with the chamber's future by cheating its backer, and the merchants paled as they understood the lesson behind the short payments.

Wei Deqian urged seven chambers of commerce to admit their fraud and return their profits, and their confessions unexpectedly made An Ying look like a brilliant auditor. The Vast Heaven Holy Land praised and promoted An Ying, while more suppliers rushed to confess, leaving Chu Xinghe worried that An Ying’s schemes would keep earning the sect too much.

• Wei Deqian confronted the chamber presidents with their past fraud and advised them to return their year's profits and confess to the Vast Heaven Holy Land.
• The seven chambers delivered resources and written confessions, leaving An Ying and the Civil Engineering Department baffled.
• Feng Fei, Ma Liang, and the others discovered that An Ying had reduced the seven chambers’ payments by a third, and the Azure Dragon Sacred Venerable praised his accounting skills.
• The Grand Elder commended An Ying and promoted him to core disciple of the Civil Engineering Department before he could explain himself.
• More chambers brought profits and confessions after hearing that An Ying had uncovered the seven suppliers’ misconduct, and Chu Xinghe worried that An Ying was making too many successful moves.

An Ying’s attempts to make the Vast Heaven Holy Land lose money instead drove chambers of commerce to confess and deliver resources, earning him widespread respect while making the Civil Engineering Department resent him. Ma Liang felt threatened by An Ying’s growing reputation and prepared to make a major contribution of his own, while Chu Xinghe watched An Ying’s success in disbelief.

• An Ying reassured the chamber presidents that he had not targeted them, but his mention of absent chambers frightened their leaders into bringing profits to the Vast Heaven Holy Land.
• Chamber presidents who feared hidden wrongdoing among their subordinates voluntarily delivered resources, and some uncovered actual goods-swapping schemes and received An Ying’s forgiveness.
• An Ying’s unexpected successes improved his standing across the Vast Heaven Holy Land, though the Civil Engineering Department’s disciples began wanting to knife him over his disruptive work.
• Ma Liang grew concerned that An Ying might replace him as Chu Xinghe’s top confidant and resolved to make a sensational contribution related to the Star Sea Abyss.
• Chu Xinghe wondered whether An Ying was a living Misfortune Compass and begged him to stop making moves.

As the Buddha Domain’s war against the Star Sea Abyss intensified, Chu Xinghe refused Luojia’s peace overtures after the Origin Ancestor warned that the Star Ghosts could never be trusted. Chu Xinghe then discovered that the other powers’ contributions had exceeded the Buddha Domain’s supply needs, leaving the Vast Heaven Holy Land with a surplus—and no way to earn a profit under its treaty with the Buddha Domain.

• The Great Buddha Lord repeatedly attacked Luojia, driving him to retreat as the Four Continents supplied the Buddha Domain and the Star Sea Abyss’s morale weakened.
• Luojia tried to contact Ma Liang about peace talks, but Ma Liang rejected him; Chu Xinghe also refused negotiations after the Origin Ancestor urged him to exterminate the Star Ghost Clan.
• Chu Xinghe noticed that his Misfortune Compass had stopped responding despite the war’s growing resource demands and went to question Ma Liang.
• Ma Liang explained that the other powers’ contributions now exceeded the supplies sent to the Buddha Domain, leaving the Vast Heaven Holy Land with a surplus after everyone claimed a share.
• Chu Xinghe called the arrangement fraud, but Ma Liang said the powers insisted on contributing and threatened to harm themselves if he tried to return their resources.
• Chu Xinghe asked whether the Buddha Domain offered anything profitable, but Ma Liang reminded him that their treaty barred them from taking anything from it.

Chu Xinghe refused to advise Ma Liang about the Star Sea Abyss, hoping to avoid further unintended gains for the sect. The Origin Ancestor and Ma Liang mistook his refusal for instructions to work together on the Buddha Domain's cursed corpse problem.

• Chu Xinghe withdrew from further decisions after learning that his arrangement with the Buddha Domain had generated more unintended profits.
• Little Buddha asked Ma Liang to transport cursed Star Ghost corpses to the Four Continents for purification so the Buddha Domain could concentrate on its war.
• Ma Liang sought Chu Xinghe's guidance after the elders disagreed over the danger of bringing the corpses into the Four Continents, but Chu Xinghe told him to ask someone knowledgeable.
• The Origin Ancestor appeared before Ma Liang, urged him to agree to the request, and proved that he had become the World Seal's seal spirit.
• The Origin Ancestor interpreted Chu Xinghe's refusal as a hint to consult him, and Ma Liang accepted him as Chu Xinghe's backup plan.
• The Origin Ancestor recalled mistaking Chu Xinghe's irritated rebuke for confirmation that he was supposed to intervene.

The Origin Ancestor misread Chu Xinghe’s cryptic remarks as a test of loyalty and joined forces with Ma Liang to handle the Star Ghost corpses without telling him. They agreed to surprise Chu Xinghe with the profits, and Ma Liang offered to take every corpse from the Buddha Domain.

• After Chu Xinghe scolded him, the Origin Ancestor decided Chu Xinghe’s repeated comments about the Star Sea Abyss were indirect instructions meant for him.
• The Origin Ancestor found Ma Liang and explained that Chu Xinghe wanted them to handle the Star Ghost corpses.
• Ma Liang agreed that the Origin Ancestor was the right specialist for the task and promised they would not disappoint Senior Brother Xinghe.
• The Origin Ancestor urged Ma Liang to accept every Star Ghost corpse and keep their plan from Xinghe so they could surprise him with the gains.
• Ma Liang contacted Little Buddha and offered to take all the Buddha Domain’s Star Ghost corpses, moving Little Buddha to tears.

Little Buddha sent the cursed Star Ghost corpses to the Vast Heaven Holy Land, where Origin Ancestor purified them through the World Seal and made it stronger. The spectacle drew the Holy Land’s leaders and disciples, including An Ying, whose past possession horrified both him and Origin Ancestor.

• Little Buddha asked Ma Liang to take the Star Ghost corpses, and Ma Liang confirmed with Origin Ancestor that the Vast Heaven Holy Land could handle them.
• Ma Liang opened a Star Gate, and Origin Ancestor used the World Seal to absorb the corpses and turn their curses into Power of Purity.
• The World Seal grew stronger and shone brightly, drawing the Grand Elder, Elder He, and other figures from the Vast Heaven Holy Land.
• An Ying arrived and recoiled at the sight of Origin Ancestor, who also flinched because possessing An Ying had forced him to experience An Ying’s memories.
• Chu Xinghe arrived, saw Origin Ancestor with Ma Liang, and wondered how Ma Liang managed to join forces with anyone and cause a commotion.

Chu Xinghe explained that the Origin Ancestor had become the World Seal’s seal spirit, easing the Vast Heaven Holy Land’s alarm at his arrival. When Ma Liang and the Origin Ancestor credited Chu Xinghe with arranging the disposal of Star Ghost corpses, Chu Xinghe insisted he knew nothing about it.

• The Beast God prepared to fight the Origin Ancestor while Gu Mingchao searched for his missing Flame Divinity.
• The Origin Ancestor announced that he had joined the Vast Heaven Holy Land, and Chu Xinghe explained how he became the World Seal’s seal spirit.
• The Beast God praised the Origin Ancestor’s choice as a path with the potential to transcend the world’s limits.
• Ma Liang told the Great Elder that Chu Xinghe had arranged for him and the Origin Ancestor to deal with Star Ghost corpses.
• Chu Xinghe denied knowing about the corpses, but Ma Liang and the Origin Ancestor insisted he had arranged the work without knowing it.

Chu Xinghe learned that Ma Liang and the Origin Ancestor had interpreted his frustrated words as instructions, but he thought their help for the Buddha Domain had brought little benefit. The Origin Ancestor then revealed that Star Ghost horns were rare Innate Spirit Treasures and declared he would make a greater contribution to Chu Xinghe.

• Ma Liang explained how Chu Xinghe’s remark about finding someone who knew about the Star Sea Abyss had led him and the Origin Ancestor to act.
• The elders agreed that the World Seal’s growth from devouring Star Ghost corpses was a worthwhile gain, while Chu Xinghe believed the Origin Ancestor’s attempt to help had barely affected him.
• The Origin Ancestor burned a Star Ghost corpse with soul flame that destroyed its curse without letting it escape.
• The Origin Ancestor retrieved the corpse’s horn and showed it to the elders, and Elder He identified it as an Innate Spirit Treasure.
• The Origin Ancestor revealed that Star Ghost horns held this secret and vowed to bring out his strongest contribution for Chu Xinghe.

Ouyang Ming discovered that the Star Ghost's horn could instantly restore all the Spirit Power it contained without harming its user, making it a powerful Innate Spirit Treasure. Origin Ancestor revealed that he alone knew how to refine the horn into a reusable Star Horn, while Chu Xinghe silently absorbed the scale of the discovery.

• Ouyang Ming snatched the horn from Elder He and found that it slowly absorbed Spirit Power, which initially disappointed the elders and Chu Xinghe.
• Origin Ancestor drew Spirit Power from Ouyang Ming with a soul chain, then used the horn to replenish it instantly.
• Elder He realized the horn could release all its stored Spirit Power at once, restoring a cultivator without the damage caused by recovery pills.
• Origin Ancestor explained that a Star Ghost's horn could provide an instant recovery, and that refining it into a Star Horn made the effect reusable without damaging it.
• Origin Ancestor said he alone knew the secret and could refine Star Horns, then looked to Chu Xinghe as Chu Xinghe stood stunned.

Elder He confirmed that Star Horns could instantly replenish Spirit Power, and Origin Ancestor explained how their restorative limits depended on the Star Ghosts' cultivation before death. Chu Xinghe watched in dismay as the discovery benefited Vast Heaven Holy Land and Origin Ancestor won greater acceptance among its leaders.

• Ouyang Ming failed to confirm the Star Horn's instant restoration because he had not noticed Origin Ancestor draining his Spirit Power.
• Origin Ancestor refined another Star Ghost corpse into a Star Horn, and Elder He depleted his own Spirit Power before confirming that it restored him instantly.
• Origin Ancestor led the crowd in cheering for Vast Heaven, startling Chu Xinghe with his enthusiasm over using his own kind's corpses.
• Origin Ancestor explained that a Star Horn made from a Ninth Rank Star Ghost could restore power up to roughly the level of a Half-Step Martial God.
• Origin Ancestor lamented that his shattered body prevented him from producing a horn capable of restoring the Holy Lord, earning reassurance from the elders and Holy Lord Gu Mingchao.
• Chu Xinghe recognized that Star Horns could absorb ambient Spirit Power and store it for instant restoration without loss.

After the Origin Ancestor refined Star Horns from Star Ghost corpses, Chu Xinghe insisted that the Vast Heaven Holy Land publicly announce them, despite knowing the contributing powers would demand their shares. The announcement brought those powers rushing to the Holy Land, leaving the distribution dispute to come.

• The Origin Ancestor refined Star Horns, and Vast Heaven Holy Land disciples celebrated their potential protection and usefulness.
• Elder He urged everyone to conceal the Star Horns because the Holy Land had agreed to divide the gains among the powers that supplied resources to the Buddha Domain.
• Chu Xinghe argued that secrecy would damage the Holy Land’s reputation and told Senior Brother Shen Chun to publicize the Star Horns.
• Holy Lord Gu Mingchao backed Chu Xinghe’s order, and Shen Chun released the news.
• The Four Continents split between praising the Holy Land’s integrity and criticizing its decision, while the powers that had supplied the Buddha Domain rushed to claim Star Horns.

After the Vast Heaven Holy Land announced its Star Horn discovery, powers from across the Four Continents gathered to claim their share. Ma Liang convinced the Origin Ancestor that he understood Chu Xinghe’s hidden plan, but the distribution meeting was interrupted when the Origin Ancestor appeared and challenged the guests.

• The Vast Heaven Holy Land revealed the Star Horns’ restorative power, and Cheng Xiaotian and other representatives rushed to see them and discuss their shares.
• The Origin Ancestor asked Chu Xinghe why he seemed to be turning a profitable discovery into a loss, but Chu Xinghe insisted he planned to make a huge profit and left the Origin Ancestor confused.
• The Origin Ancestor sought Ma Liang’s advice, and Ma Liang claimed to understand Chu Xinghe’s plan, then explained his theory until the Origin Ancestor accepted it.
• Gu Mingchao opened a meeting in the Haotian Grand Hall, where representatives argued over who should receive the limited Star Horns first.
• The Origin Ancestor emerged from the World Seal and asked the assembled guests whether they had sought his opinion before dividing up his Star Horns.

The factions gathered at the Vast Heaven Holy Land to divide the Star Horns, which could instantly restore people, but the Origin Ancestor revealed that they were made from Star Ghost corpses. He framed the dispute as a fight over his dead children’s remains, leaving the gathered leaders speechless and the division unresolved.

• Cheng Xiaotian demanded that Martial Emperor City receive its share first, while Tantai Jing and Wu Xingyun argued that the Demonic Sect deserved priority for its support of Chu Xinghe.
• Wu Xingyun traded insults with Cheng Xiaotian as the gathered factions fought over who would receive Star Horns first.
• The Origin Ancestor emerged from the World Seal and told the hall that he had become its seal spirit.
• The Origin Ancestor explained that each Star Horn came from the single horn left after a Star Ghost’s corpse was refined.
• The Origin Ancestor called the Star Horns his children’s corpses and asked whether it was polite for everyone to divide them up.
• The gathered leaders, including Wu Xingyun, fell silent, leaving the Star Horn dispute unresolved.

The Origin Ancestor used the Star Ghosts’ status as his descendants to stop the Four Continents from claiming their corpses and Star Horns. Tantai Jing found a way for the Demonic Sect to obtain some by offering to pay for their burial.

• The Origin Ancestor said the Star Ghost corpses belonged to his descendants, leaving the gathered leaders unable to demand a share without appearing dishonorable.
• The Origin Ancestor asked whether the Four Continents would accept their own dead disciples’ corpses being claimed by whoever killed them.
• Elder He and An Ying realized Chu Xinghe’s public announcement had made it difficult for anyone to claim the Star Horns openly.
• Tantai Jing agreed that the corpses belonged to the Star Sea Abyss and offered to pay the Origin Ancestor to bury some of them.
• The Origin Ancestor accepted Tantai Jing’s offer, while Chu Xinghe realized the Demonic Sect had found a respectable way to buy Star Horns.

Tantai Jing turned the dispute over Star Horns into a paid effort to bury the Star Ghosts, allowing the Origin Ancestor to control their refinement and profit while every faction received horns. Chu Xinghe could do nothing to stop the deal, but he was delighted when Little Buddha arrived, expecting him to make the Vast Heaven Holy Land pay.

• Tantai Jing and the other factions offered to help bury the Star Ghosts, reframing their pursuit of Star Horns as a righteous act.
• The Origin Ancestor used his exclusive ability to refine Star Ghosts into Star Horns to ensure the factions paid the Vast Heaven Holy Land for the treasures.
• Ma Liang negotiated burial fees with the factions, and the Origin Ancestor agreed to arrange more Star Ghost deaths in exchange for higher payments.
• The Star Ghost corpses sent from the Buddha Domain received proper burials, and the factions obtained Star Horns.
• Little Buddha arrived from the Buddha Domain, and Chu Xinghe expected him to demand an accounting from the Vast Heaven Holy Land.