Chapter Summaries

After three months of letting the Dao Mark fuse with his body, Chen Fan departed with Star River Martial Academy’s delegation for the Four Academies Competition at Nine Provinces Martial Academy. The starship left the Tianshu Star System as Chen Fan looked forward to seeing Shen Xuan, Su Qingyue, and Tuo Bashan again.

• Chen Fan spent three months walking, sitting, breathing, and tending a weed as the Dao Mark’s pulses synchronized with his body.
• Lin Xuanqing sent Chen Fan to lead the freshmen to the competition and warned him not to cripple anyone.
• Chen Fan met the twenty-three freshmen and noted a taciturn boy and a tall girl whose aura carried the Life School’s Dao Rhythm.
• Old Freak Wang gathered the delegation and ordered them aboard the starship, which carried Chen Fan and the others toward Nine Provinces Martial Academy.
• Old Freak Wang explained that the Freshmen Competition would come before the Academy Grand Competition and told Chen Fan to compete in both without going all out immediately.
• Chen Fan watched the Tianshu Star System recede and remembered his parting with Shen Xuan, Su Qingyue, and Tuo Bashan.

At Nine Provinces Martial Academy, Tuo Bashan reunited with Shen Xuan and greeted Su Qingyue before Star River Martial Academy arrived. When Chen Fan stepped off its starship, Tuo Bashan charged him with a devastating punch, and Chen Fan calmly reached out to catch it.

• Tuo Bashan promised a fellow apprentice he would not start a fight when the visiting academies arrived.
• Tuo Bashan charged Shen Xuan, then recognized him and greeted him warmly instead of continuing the fight.
• Su Qingyue arrived and greeted Shen Xuan and Tuo Bashan with a nod.
• Chen Fan arrived with Star River Martial Academy, and Tuo Bashan rushed at him with a powerful punch.
• Chen Fan calmly raised his hand and closed his fingers around Tuo Bashan's incoming fist.

Chen Fan effortlessly defeated Tuo Bashan during the academies’ reunion, then joined Shen Xuan, Su Qingyue, and Tuo Bashan for tea at the Nine Provinces Martial Academy. His three friends challenged him to compete the next day, and Chen Fan agreed.

• Chen Fan caught Tuo Bashan’s punch and slammed him into the White Jade Plaza, stunning the watching academies.
• Tuo Bashan leaped from the crater unharmed and praised Chen Fan for becoming much stronger.
• The Nine Provinces Martial Academy’s leading instructor welcomed the visitors and led them to their accommodations.
• That evening, Shen Xuan, Su Qingyue, and Tuo Bashan met Chen Fan and declared they would challenge him in the next day’s competition.
• Chen Fan welcomed his friends’ chosen paths in Martial Dao, and their competitive tension eased into the warmth of their reunion.

The Four Academies Competition began, and the freshmen were sent into the Shattered Ancient Battlefield for a three-day team-points contest where eliminating captains could steal half their teams’ points. After the academies entered the battlefield in separate regions, Shen Xuan, Su Qingyue, and Tuo Bashan each moved to target Chen Fan and the Star River Martial Academy.

• Shen Xuan, Tuo Bashan, and Su Qingyue said farewell to Chen Fan before the competition, and Shen Xuan warned him that the Heavenly Sword Martial Academy aimed to win the freshmen title.
• The Vice Dean announced the competition’s rules: teams earned points by hunting Baleful Spirits, collecting Dao Mark Fragments, and eliminating rival students, with captains worth half their team’s points.
• The four academy teams entered the Shattered Ancient Battlefield through a Spatial Rift, and Chen Fan led the Star River Martial Academy into the unknown.
• In the Eastern Domain, Shen Xuan sensed the battlefield and ordered his team to advance toward the southeast to hunt Chen Fan and the Star River Martial Academy.
• In the Northern Domain, Su Qingyue used her Mental Power to locate the southeastern direction and pointed it out to her team.
• In the Western Domain, Tuo Bashan sensed Chen Fan’s location and charged with his teammates to take him down.

Chen Fan and the Star River Martial Academy were surrounded in the Shattered Ancient Battlefield by the Heavenly Sword, Canghai, and Nine Provinces academies, who joined forces to target him. As Tuo Bashan, Shen Xuan, and Su Qingyue launched their strongest attacks, Chen Fan welcomed the chance to test how much his old friends had improved.

• More than twenty Star River Martial Academy Prodigies arrived in the Southeastern Dead Zone, where they formed a defensive circle around Chen Fan.
• The spectators watched the Heavenly Sword, Canghai, and Nine Provinces academies converge on the Star River group, while their mentors openly tried to recruit Chen Fan.
• Tuo Bashan, Shen Xuan, and Su Qingyue surrounded the Star River disciples and explained that they had joined forces to eliminate Chen Fan first.
• Chen Fan stepped out to meet his three friends and said he was ready to see how much they had improved in the past year.
• Tuo Bashan charged, Shen Xuan attacked with his sword, and Su Qingyue unleashed a Mental Power spear as Chen Fan raised his right hand.

Chen Fan effortlessly absorbed Tuo Bashan, Shen Xuan, and Su Qingyue’s strongest attacks with a World Prototype, then helped them recognize the lack of harmony in their Daos. After the three accepted their defeat and gained new insight, Chen Fan turned his attention to the remaining fights and prepared to win honor for Star River Martial Academy.

• Chen Fan summoned a miniature World Prototype in his palm and absorbed Tuo Bashan’s fist force, Shen Xuan’s sword light, and Su Qingyue’s Spear of Judgment.
• The three attacks vanished without a clash, leaving the battlefield and the spectators stunned by Chen Fan’s control over their different Daos.
• Chen Fan praised his friends’ progress and pointed out that their Daos lacked harmony, prompting Tuo Bashan, Shen Xuan, and Su Qingyue to understand their shortcomings.
• Tuo Bashan admitted defeat, while Shen Xuan and Su Qingyue accepted the outcome and gained new insight into their Daos.
• Chen Fan looked toward the remaining fights and declared it was time to win back honor for Star River Martial Academy.

Chen Fan gently used his Dao Rhythm to eliminate nearly a thousand prodigies from the other three academies, leaving the Star River Martial Academy’s team alone in the shattered Ancient Battlefield. The rival instructors recognized his overwhelming power, while Old Freak Wang celebrated the academy’s good fortune.

• Tuo Bashan, Shen Xuan, and Su Qingyue accepted the outcome of their earlier contest and returned to their teams, readying themselves for Chen Fan’s final assault.
• Chen Fan reassured the Star River Martial Academy disciples, then used a gentle Dao Rhythm to seal the Nine Provinces Martial Academy disciples’ strength and shatter their tokens.
• Chen Fan’s Dao Rhythm dulled the Heavenly Sword Martial Academy disciples’ Sword Intent, and Shen Xuan saluted him before being teleported out.
• Chen Fan calmed the Canghai Martial Academy disciples’ mental power, and Su Qingyue watched him before she and her teammates disappeared.
• Chen Fan asked his fellow disciples to sweep the battlefield and maximize their points, inspiring their awed admiration.
• The other academies’ instructors acknowledged Chen Fan’s Dao lesson, while Old Freak Wang privately wondered whether any amount of hard work could reach Chen Fan’s level.

Chen Fan guided Star River Martial Academy to a perfect score in the freshman competition, and the other academies recognized his extraordinary strength and restraint. As the main event began, the strongest fighters from all four academies assembled to compete for the overall rankings.

• Chen Fan used his Divine Sense to direct Star River Martial Academy's team toward points and away from wasted fights, leading them to a perfect score.
• The team returned to the arena and formed a circle around Chen Fan as the crowd watched in stunned silence.
• The Nine Provinces instructor declared Star River Martial Academy the winner and praised Chen Fan for defeating opponents without humiliating them.
• The Nine Provinces instructor announced the main event of the Academy Grand Competition, which would decide the four academies' rankings.
• The strongest fighters from the four academies emerged, including a towering Nine Provinces warrior, a sword-wielding Heavenly Sword disciple, and a Canghai woman with powerful Mental Power.

Chen Fan joined the Star River Martial Academy's main competition team, shocking the other academies, and accepted a challenge from Zhao Xiaotian of the Nine Provinces Martial Academy. Their fists collided, reducing the White Jade Plaza to dust.

• Chen Fan took the empty place on the Star River Martial Academy's main competition team, and Old Freak Wang announced that he was a team member.
• The other academies' instructors and students were stunned that a freshman had been judged strong enough to compete with their top fighters.
• Zhao Xiaotian challenged Chen Fan to fight him first, and Chen Fan answered respectfully before accepting.
• Zhao Xiaotian struck with his Overlord Body World-Subduing Fist, and Chen Fan met the punch with his own fist.
• Chen Fan and Zhao Xiaotian's fists collided, sending visible ripples through the White Jade Plaza until it crumbled into dust.

Chen Fan fought Zhao Xiaotian to a standstill using physical strength, then defeated him by dissolving his final strike with the Life-and-Death Wheel Disc. Zhao Xiaotian accepted the loss with gratitude, and the crowd’s view of Chen Fan changed completely.

• Chen Fan and Zhao Xiaotian fought more than a hundred rounds of close combat, matching each other’s physical strength.
• Zhao Xiaotian summoned his war god phantom and unleashed his final attack, World-Subduing.
• Chen Fan used the Life-and-Death Wheel Disc to dissolve Zhao Xiaotian’s strike and fighting intent.
• Zhao Xiaotian admitted defeat and thanked Chen Fan for giving him new insight into his Dao.
• The Nine Provinces Martial Academy disciples revered Chen Fan, while Old Freak Wang and the other academy chiefs recognized his extraordinary strength.

The Four Academies Competition began as Chen Fan entered the arena and defeated Lin Jingyu and Feng Qi with his death Domain. After his effortless victories left the other contestants hesitant to challenge him, the factions’ leaders praised his Dao and accepted their disciples’ defeats.

• The Nine Provinces elder announced that the main competition would be an individual elimination contest, and Li Qingyun and Zhou Tao began the battles.
• Chen Fan challenged Lin Jingyu and caused her Boundless Canghai Domain to collapse, leading her to admit defeat.
• Feng Qi attacked Chen Fan with rapid afterimages, but Chen Fan’s death Domain withered the attack and forced Feng Qi to concede.
• The other contestants hesitated to challenge Chen Fan, while the faction leaders praised his Dao and sought to console themselves over their disciples’ losses.

After the other contestants withdrew, Chen Fan defeated Wei Yan by using the Law of Life to break through his Immovable Mountain. The Ancient Martial Arts School’s chief disciple remained, challenging Chen Fan to a contest of martial skill alone.

• Several contestants withdrew, leaving Chen Fan, Wei Yan, and the Ancient Martial Arts School’s chief disciple on the White Jade Plaza.
• Chen Fan challenged Wei Yan, who summoned his Immovable Mountain with the Law of Earth.
• Chen Fan infused the mountain with the Law of Life, causing plants to grow through it and dismantle its structure.
• Wei Yan acknowledged Chen Fan’s counter and conceded defeat.
• The Ancient Martial Arts School’s chief disciple opened his eyes and challenged Chen Fan to judge their martial skill without relying on the Dao.

Chen Fan accepted Zhan Kuang’s challenge to fight using martial arts alone and matched the Ancient Martial Arts School’s chief disciple in close combat. Under Zhan Kuang’s strongest attack, Chen Fan broke through to the middle stage of the Seventh Grade Immortal Realm and stopped his punch inches from Zhan Kuang’s brow, leaving the arena stunned.

• Chen Fan withdrew his Life-and-Death Dao Resonance and agreed with Zhan Kuang to fight using martial arts alone.
• Chen Fan and Zhan Kuang traded punches and kicks across the plaza, proving evenly matched through more than a hundred exchanges.
• Zhan Kuang activated a bronze sheen that enhanced his strength and speed, then drove Chen Fan back and cut his cheek.
• Zhan Kuang burned his life and qi and blood to unleash his Pojun Fist as Chen Fan’s Life-and-Death Dao Blood resonated with his World Dao Mark.
• Chen Fan broke through to the middle stage of the Seventh Grade Immortal Realm and shattered the force of Zhan Kuang’s punch, stopping his fist inches from Zhan Kuang’s brow.

After Chen Fan defeated Zhan Kuang and the Four Academies Competition ended, a Red Blood Battle Order announced that the Void Insect Race had attacked all nine defense lines and the Third Defense Line was near collapse. Chen Fan and the Star River Martial Academy prepared to deploy there, but an encrypted communication from Huo Yan stopped him at the starship hatch.

• Zhan Kuang conceded defeat to Chen Fan, ending the Four Academies Competition.
• A Red Blood Battle Order arrived, and a Nine Provinces instructor announced that the Void Insect Race had launched an unprecedented offensive against all nine defense lines, with the Third Defense Line near collapse.
• The chief Prodigies, including Zhan Kuang and Zhao Xiaotian, set aside their rivalries and prepared to answer the conscription order.
• Chen Fan gave Zhan Kuang an emerald-green pill and warned him to be careful on the battlefield.
• Old Freak Wang assigned the Star River Martial Academy to support the Third Defense Line, and Chen Fan led its disciples toward their starship.
• At the starship hatch, Chen Fan received a highest-level encrypted communication request from Huo Yan and stopped to look at it.

Chen Fan received Huo Yan’s desperate call for help from War Zone 450 and chose to divert there with Wen Yuan after Old Freak Wang gave him permission. They arrived as the defenders faced imminent defeat, with Lei Kun, Leng Yan, and Monkey still holding out near the C-4 Gate.

• Huo Yan called Star River Martial Academy from the besieged War Zone 450 and requested a Seventh Grade Immortal Realm expert.
• Chen Fan revealed himself to Huo Yan as Chen Feng, prompting Huo Yan to plead for his help.
• Chen Fan asked Old Freak Wang for permission to go to War Zone 450, and Old Freak Wang told him to choose his own battlefield.
• Wen Yuan joined Chen Fan, declaring that the Life School would advance and retreat together, and they teleported away.
• At the ruined C-4 Gate, wounded Lei Kun fought the insect swarm while Leng Yan fired her overheated Sniper Rifle and Monkey guarded the damaged Communication Amplifier.

Chen Fan and a youth arrived just as the Seventh Grade Insect King was about to kill the remaining warriors, and they swiftly destroyed it and turned the insect tide to flight. Lei Kun, Leng Yan, and Monkey recognized Chen Fan as the former recruit Chen Feng after he revealed that name had been an alias, and Chen Fan caught the wounded Lei Kun and began healing him.

• The Void Predator descended over the battlefield, extinguishing Lei Kun's hope and prompting him to prepare a final charge.
• Chen Fan and a youth appeared beneath the Insect King's raised bone scythe, and Chen Fan bound it with emerald vines.
• The youth touched the Insect King with a Scarlet-Gold Spark, disintegrating it and claiming its Life Core as the insect tide fled.
• The youth offered Lei Kun a life-rich pill and addressed him as Captain Lei, while Lei Kun and the others struggled to recognize him.
• Monkey tentatively called the youth Chen Feng, and Chen Fan confirmed that Chen Feng had been his alias.
• Lei Kun broke into relieved laughter, then began coughing blood, and Chen Fan caught him and sent healing life energy into him.

Chen Fan and Wen Yuan saved Lei Kun, Leng Yan, Monkey, and the surviving warriors from the insect tide. After Chen Fan annihilated the remaining insects, Lei Kun celebrated their victory and demanded that Chen Fan tell him what had happened over the years.

• Chen Fan healed Lei Kun, Leng Yan, and Monkey, then introduced his Senior Fellow Apprentice, Wen Yuan.
• Lei Kun recovered enough to take command and ordered the surviving warriors to clean up the battlefield while Wen Yuan protected them.
• Chen Fan ended the battle by sending billions of golden streaks through the insect tide, killing every remaining insect.
• The surviving warriors celebrated their victory, and Lei Kun grabbed Chen Fan and insisted that they drink together while Chen told him his stories.

Chen Fan and Wen Yuan left Lei Kun to answer urgent calls for aid, rescuing Human Race soldiers at collapsing battle lines. After saving the 398th Battle Line, they continued toward the next crisis as their relentless rescue circuit began to wear them down.

• Wen Yuan received distress calls from the 398th and 412th High-Risk Battle Lines, and Chen Fan left Lei Kun to respond.
• A Human Race Martial God and the Void Insect Race Emperor began battling over a newborn world.
• At the 398th Battle Line, Wen Yuan healed the surviving soldiers while Chen Fan instantly killed a Seventh Grade insect general.
• Chen Fan and Wen Yuan moved on to the next battle line and continued rescuing soldiers for hours without rest.

After Chen Fan and Wen Yuan defeated the Twin Corrosion Kings, the Human Race's Martial God and the Insect Emperor agreed to settle their war through a trial in a newborn world. The decree summoned all fighters below the eighth tier to the Azure Dragon Star Gate, where Chen Fan and Wen Yuan joined the gathering of elite Human Race powerhouses.

• Chen Fan and Wen Yuan fought the Twin Corrosion Kings at a damaged interstellar fortress and destroyed them after a grueling battle.
• Exhausted by the ongoing war, Chen Fan resolved to gain the strength to turn its course around.
• The Insect Emperor proposed that descendants below the eighth tier compete for a newborn world, and the Human Race's Martial God agreed.
• A divine decree summoned all Martial Artists below the eighth tier to assemble at the Azure Dragon Star Gate for the final trial.
• Chen Fan and Wen Yuan raced to the Star Gate and took their places among the assembled peak Seventh Grade powerhouses.

The Martial God opened the Azure Dragon Star Gate and sent Chen Fan, Wen Yuan, and other powerful Martial Artists into the Nascent World for the Final Trial. Chen Fan arrived above a vast primeval continent, where a curious mountain-sized beast gently tested him with a claw, and he prepared to fight.

• The Martial God inspected the army, briefly acknowledged Chen Fan, and declared that the Nascent World would be the Final Trial and the Path to Godhood.
• The Martial God opened the Azure Dragon Star Gate, and Chen Fan, Wen Yuan, and dozens of other powerful figures entered the vortex for the Human Race.
• Chen Fan endured the laws that broke down and reconstructed his body and Divine Soul, then found himself falling over a vast primeval continent.
• A mountain-sized beast awoke beneath Chen Fan and curiously swiped at him, stirring the Nascent World's Spatial Law.
• Chen Fan evaded the claw, apologized to the beast, and silently prepared to fight.