Chapter Summaries

The Heavenly Court’s provocations pushed the Human Race toward war, while Di Xin’s court divided over whether to fight or seek counsel from the ancestral elders. Di Xin went to Fuxi for guidance, leaving the decision about war unresolved.

• Cangjie released the unconscious Mermen Clan Taiyi and activated Nanping Province’s formations for war readiness.
• Di Xin asked his ministers whether the Human Race should go to war with the Heavenly Court, and Huang Feihu and Su Lie supported fighting while Shang Rong and Bi Gan urged caution.
• Wen Zhong said the Interception Sect did not stand with the Heavenly Court and advised Di Xin to consult the Human Race’s forebears, especially Fuxi.
• Di Xin dismissed court and traveled to the Fuxi Temple, hoping Fuxi would approve a war that could establish his legacy.
• Fuxi received Di Xin, who explained the Heavenly Court’s provocations and waited for his instructions.

Fuxi persuaded Di Xin to prioritize the Human Race’s growth over rushing into war with the Heavenly Court, and Di Xin’s policies sparked a flourishing era of cultivation, invention, and learning. By the end, Di Xin’s Golden Age had made him one of the Human Race’s most revered rulers.

• Fuxi explained that the Human Race needed to build its own strength and advised Di Xin to prepare the borders while releasing resources for development.
• Di Xin relayed Fuxi’s counsel to his ministers, sending Huang Feihu and the venerable sages to the border while Bi Gan and Wen Zhong distributed the dynasty’s resources.
• The Mohist School introduced inventions such as the Yan Mechanisms, and Di Xin rewarded the inventors as new technologies improved people’s lives.
• As cultivation spread and social unrest increased, the Confucian School established academies teaching cultivation, propriety, and self-defense, and Di Xin brought them under imperial support.
• Many schools of thought emerged and won Di Xin’s rewards, while Human Dao Fortune helped their cultivators advance; more than 4,324 Taiyi cultivators arose in just over a decade.
• The era became known as Di Xin’s Golden Age, and the people’s growing reverence for Di Xin brought his reputation close to that of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors.

After years of delay, Hongjun ordered Haotian to take control of the Investiture of the Gods and launch the Heavenly Court’s campaign against the Human Race. The armies reached the four borders, where Guangchengzi and Cangjie fought to a standstill while Huang Feihu defeated Chijingzi with a single punch.

• Hongjun summoned the Four Saints and Haotian to Zixiao Palace, rebuked Primordial Heavenly Venerable, and gave Haotian full control of the Investiture of the Gods.
• Haotian placed Chan Sect Disciples and their associates on the deployment lists, then sent four armies toward the Human Race’s eastern, southern, western, and northern borders.
• The Heavenly Court’s forces met the Huaxia Imperial Dynasty’s defenders: Guangchengzi faced Cangjie, Chijingzi faced Huang Feihu, the Four Mo brothers’ force faced Zhang Kui, and the Four Seas Dragon Clan faced Grand Tutor Wen.
• Guangchengzi and Cangjie fought evenly, with their respective spiritual treasures protecting them from each other’s attacks.
• Chijingzi mocked Huang Feihu, but Huang Feihu used his marshal’s great seal and tiger tally to break through the Yin-Yang Mirror’s light and knock Chijingzi into the ground with one punch.

Huang Feihu routed the Heavenly Court's southern army, while Wen Zhong forced Ao Guang to withdraw from the eastern border without a fight. On the western front, both sides feigned combat to limit casualties, leaving Guangchengzi and Cangjie's northern duel as the battle's fiercest genuine fighting.

• Huang Feihu defeated Chijingzi and struck the Barefoot Immortal underground, causing the Heavenly Court's southern forces to break and flee.
• Wen Zhong confronted Ao Guang at the Huaxia Imperial Dynasty's eastern border and warned him off by invoking the support of Jie Sect Disciples.
• Ao Guang withdrew his troops to the Dragon Palace, and Wen Zhong left his deputy general to guard the border while he hosted the Jie Sect Disciples.
• On the western front, Jie Sect Disciples used their required attacks to make the battle look fierce while giving Human Race soldiers room to dodge.
• Guangchengzi and Cangjie fought in earnest on the northern front, where their lethal battle tore open spatial rifts and annihilated nearby soldiers.

The Human Race won a complete victory against the Heavenly Court, while the defeated commanders were scolded by the Four Saints and Haotian. As the leaders discussed how to curb the Human Race’s growth, Laozi proposed a plan involving the prophesied war god Yang Jian.

• The Heavenly Court withdrew from the battle, and Cangjie recalled the Human Race’s forces after they had demonstrated their strength on all four fronts.
• In the Lingxiao Treasure Hall, the Primordial Heavenly Venerable punished Chijingzi with ten thousand years of seclusion and berated Guangchengzi for mastering only two divine powers.
• Haotian questioned the East Sea Dragon King and the Four Mo Li Brothers, while Zhunti and Jieyin joined in scolding the defeated commanders.
• Jieyin and Zhunti warned that the Human Race’s growing strength made another war an unreliable way to weaken it, but Haotian feared its continued development.
• Zhunti argued that Cangjie and Huang Feihu were rare talents rather than representative examples of the Human Race.
• Laozi recalled the prophecy of Yang Jian, the future war god of the Human Race, and said he had thought of a plan.

Laozi and the Four Saints arranged for Fairy Yunhua to become Yang Jian’s mother and Yu Ding Zhenren to become his master, hoping to draw him into the Heavenly Court. Meanwhile, Lingzhuzi reincarnated as Nezha, but Fuxi thwarted Primordial Heavenly Venerable’s attempt to erase his memories, leaving Nezha wary of Taiyi Zhenren’s schemes.

• Laozi proposed that Fairy Yunhua replace Yang Jian’s intended mother and that Yu Ding Zhenren become Yang Jian’s master, and the Four Saints approved the plan.
• Haotian sent Fairy Yunhua to find Yang Tianyou, while Nuwa noticed her arrival and asked Fuxi about the Heavenly Court’s intentions.
• Fuxi revealed that he had concealed information about future Human Race heroes and told Nuwa to send Lingzhuzi into reincarnation.
• Primordial Heavenly Venerable sent Taiyi Zhenren to give Li Jing’s unborn child a talisman meant to seal Lingzhuzi’s memories, but Fuxi’s Eight Trigrams nullified it.
• After Nezha was born, Taiyi Zhenren became his master, gave him treasures, and encouraged him to cause trouble, while Nezha secretly remembered his previous life.
• Taiyi Zhenren urged Nezha to use the Heaven-Shaking Bow against Shi Ji Niangniang, but Nezha refused, citing the rules.

Taiyi Zhenren tried to provoke the Dragon Clan and Jie Sect by killing their members while disguised as Nezha, but his transformations were exposed. After he killed Shi Ji Niangniang, Tongtian learned the truth and set out for the Lingxiao Treasure Hall in a rage.

• Taiyi Zhenren failed to lure Nezha to the sea, so he disguised himself as Nezha and killed Ao Bing, the Third Prince of the East Sea Dragon Palace.
• Fuxi broke Taiyi Zhenren's transformation, revealing his identity to Ao Guang, who took his grievance to Azure Dragon and Ying Long.
• Azure Dragon and Ying Long considered abandoning the Heavenly Court after learning the Dragon Clan was being used in its conflict with the Human Race.
• Taiyi Zhenren took Nezha to Skull Mountain, confined him in a separate space, and disguised himself as him to attack Shi Ji Niangniang.
• Taiyi Zhenren killed Shi Ji Niangniang, but she saw his true appearance before dying.
• Tongtian discovered Taiyi Zhenren had killed Shi Ji Niangniang in her cave abode and charged toward the Lingxiao Treasure Hall with the Four Immortal-Slaying Swords.

Tongtian stormed the Heavenly Court to punish Taiyi Zhenren for scheming against the Interception Sect, then fought Primordial Heavenly Venerable when he intervened. After learning Shi Ji had become a divine official and forcing Taiyi to suffer punishment, Tongtian left, resolved to sever his ties with the Heavenly Court and Mystic Sect.

• Tongtian arrived at the Heavenly Court, found Taiyi Zhenren, and crushed him into the floor for plotting against the Interception Sect.
• Tongtian ordered Haotian to gather the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals for Taiyi's public execution, but Primordial Heavenly Venerable arrived and stopped him.
• Tongtian and Primordial fought, damaging half of the Heavenly Court, until Haotian revealed that Taiyi's actions had followed the Four Saints' plan and Hongjun's instructions.
• Primordial told Tongtian that Shi Ji's true spirit had entered the Investiture of the Gods and become a Heavenly Court divine official.
• Tongtian demanded that Taiyi be tortured and imprisoned, and Primordial carried out the punishment before Tongtian left the Heavenly Court.

After Tongtian's attack left the Heavenly Court in ruins, Primordial Heavenly Venerable sent Taiyi Zhenren to guide Yang Jian into rebelling against the Human Race. Taiyi brought Nezha to Huashan, but Nezha and Yang Jian became friends, so Taiyi and Yu Ding Zhenren prepared to approach Yang Jian themselves.

• Tongtian departed after wrecking the Heavenly Court, and Haotian confronted Taiyi Zhenren over his repeated failures.
• Primordial Heavenly Venerable gave Taiyi Zhenren one last chance: go to the mortal world and make Yang Jian rebel against the Human Race.
• Taiyi returned to Chentang Pass, revealed his identity to Nezha, and told him that persuading Yang Jian to rebel was his final test.
• At Huashan, Nezha and Yang Jian fought over Yang Jian's sword practice at a spiritual vein node, but Yang Jian defeated Nezha and withdrew.
• After several clashes, Nezha and Yang Jian became friends, and Nezha refused Taiyi's repeated requests to turn Yang Jian against the Human Race.
• Taiyi Zhenren and Yu Ding Zhenren decided to approach Yang Jian together and persuade him to rebel.

Yu Ding Zhenren revealed that Yang Jian’s mother was Fairy Yunhua and tried to force him to rebel against the Human Race, threatening to expose her to the Jade Emperor. Yang Jian severed ties with his master and attacked him, while Nezha watched beside Taiyi Zhenren.

• Yu Ding Zhenren and Taiyi Zhenren asked Yang Jian and Nezha to stir up a rebellion within the Human Race as their initiation trial.
• Yang Jian hesitated because he valued the Human Race’s prosperity and did not want to destroy its civilization.
• Yu Ding Zhenren revealed that Yang Jian’s mother was Fairy Yunhua, the Jade Emperor’s younger sister, and threatened to report her unless Yang Jian completed the trial.
• Yang Jian cut off his hair, severed his bonds with Yu Ding Zhenren, and charged at him.
• Nezha went to Taiyi Zhenren’s side, and Taiyi Zhenren asked whether Yang Jian would prove useful.

Nezha revealed that he had never lost his memory and killed Taiyi Zhenren while helping Yang Jian defeat Yu Ding Zhenren. After Nezha took Yang Jian to seek Fuxi's help, Yu Ding returned to the Lingxiao Treasure Hall, where Primordial Heavenly Venerable began to suspect Taiyi had mishandled the memory-loss talisman.

• Nezha stabbed Taiyi Zhenren through the chest with the Fire-Tipped Spear while Yu Ding Zhenren struggled against Yang Jian.
• Nezha revealed that he was Lingzhuzi and had only pretended to lose his memory, then joined Yang Jian in attacking Yu Ding Zhenren.
• Yu Ding Zhenren fled with the dying Taiyi Zhenren, and Nezha stopped Yang Jian from pursuing them, saying Fuxi could resolve the matter concerning Yang Jian's mother.
• Yu Ding Zhenren returned to the Lingxiao Treasure Hall and told the Four Saints that Nezha had deceived them and attacked Taiyi.
• Zhunti suggested Fuxi had outmaneuvered Primordial Heavenly Venerable, while Laozi asked whether the talisman had been delivered as intended.
• Primordial Heavenly Venerable recalled that he had told Taiyi to affix the talisman to Lady Li Jing and began to suspect Taiyi had mishandled it.

After learning that Fuxi had manipulated their plans, the Four Saints went to Zixiao Palace to seek Hongjun’s guidance. Hongjun declared that the Investiture of the Gods was ready to emerge, ordered Primordial Heavenly Venerable to find its rightful bearer, and suggested targeting the Huaxia Imperial Dynasty’s vassal lords instead of unborn children of Fortune.

• Taiyi Zhenren collapsed after hearing that Nezha had foiled their mission, and Primordial Heavenly Venerable healed him before ordering Yu Ding Zhenren to take him away.
• Yu Ding Zhenren learned that Haotian had spread news of their failure, then fled the Heavenly Court and left Taiyi Zhenren behind; Jie Sect Disciples celebrated the news.
• The Four Saints divined that Fuxi had manipulated their schemes, and Laozi urged the Heavenly Court to wage direct war against the Human Race.
• Jieyin and Zhunti opposed an immediate war, so the Four Saints and Haotian went to Zixiao Palace to consult Hongjun.
• Hongjun announced that the time had come for the Investiture of the Gods to emerge and tasked Primordial Heavenly Venerable with finding the bearer of the Fate of the Flying Bear.
• Hongjun advised the Four Saints to turn their attention to the Huaxia Imperial Dynasty’s vassal lords, who held fiefs but little real power.

Fuxi arranged for a black panther to be reincarnated as Jiang Ziya’s brother, while secretly taking the newborn Jiang Ziya away. He let the Primordial Heavenly Venerable believe the brother was the destined master of the Investiture of the Gods, then explained to Nuwa why he had allowed him to leave.

• The Primordial Heavenly Venerable took the Investiture of the Gods from Haotian, and Fuxi realized the calamity was approaching despite Di Xin’s Golden Age.
• Fuxi found a black panther in the Ten Thousand Great Mountains and offered him a chance at Great Luo in exchange for reincarnating into the Human Race.
• Fuxi asked Houtu to arrange the panther’s birth as Jiang Ziya’s brother and conceal the plan from Hongjun.
• Fuxi took newborn Jiang Ziya to Fuxi Temple, then returned to the birth home and encountered the Primordial Heavenly Venerable holding the reincarnated panther.
• Fuxi pretended to try to seize the panther child, convincing the Primordial Heavenly Venerable that the child was the destined master of the Investiture of the Gods.
• Nuwa arrived after the Primordial Heavenly Venerable left, and Fuxi told her there had been no need to hold him back.

Fuxi revealed that he had placed Jiang Ziya at Fuxi Temple while allowing the Primordial Heavenly Venerable to train Shen Gongbao. After the Investiture of the Gods began, Shen Gongbao approached Marquis Ji Chang of the West and offered the Heavenly Court's support for his bid to become Human Emperor.

• Fuxi told Nuwa that Jiang Ziya, not Shen Gongbao, was truly destined for the Investiture of the Gods.
• The Primordial Heavenly Venerable completed Shen Gongbao's training and sent him down the mountain as the Four Saints announced the Investiture of the Gods.
• Di Xin remained Human Emperor after three abdication elections failed, leaving ambitious feudal lords dissatisfied.
• Shen Gongbao manipulated Marquis Ji Chang of the West into seeking him out and returned with him to Xiqi.
• Shen Gongbao used celestial signs to suggest Ji Chang had the bearing of an emperor and revealed that he came from the Heavenly Court.
• Shen Gongbao offered Ji Chang the Heavenly Court's support for becoming Human Emperor and claimed it would reconcile with the Human Race if Di Xin abdicated.

Shen Gongbao persuaded the Marquis of the West to join a plot against Di Xin, but the proclamation exposing their plans turned the marquis into a public disgrace. After the Marquis of the West pledged allegiance to the Heavenly Court, Haotian and the Four Saints decided to wage war on the Human Race and demand the Demon Race’s support.

• Shen Gongbao gave the Marquis of the West a proclamation listing charges against Di Xin, and the marquis agreed to cooperate and secretly raise troops.
• The proclamation spread through the Huaxia Imperial Dynasty, and literati and cultivators condemned the Marquis of the West until his followers abandoned him.
• Marquis Ji Chang of the West gave up his rebellion plans and openly pledged allegiance to the Heavenly Court.
• Primordial Heavenly Venerable, Laozi, Jieyin, Zhunti, and Haotian agreed to go to war against the Human Race.
• Laozi ordered Haotian to tell Bai Ze that the Demon Race must join the war or face consequences.

Laozi ordered the Western Teachings to send most of their disciples to the war, and the Heavenly Court gathered its forces to invade the Human Race at Chentang Pass. The Human Race evacuated the city and met the Heavenly Court’s army with Great Luo experts as Cangjie began summoning their soldiers.

• Laozi told Jieyin and Zhunti to leave their disciples below the Golden Immortal realm in the West and bring everyone else, and Jieyin accepted despite Zhunti’s protest.
• Laozi announced that the Heavenly Court would march directly into Human Race territory from the East Sea, while Haotian worried about the Interception Sect and Dragon Clan.
• Mohist School and Gongshu Family cultivators evacuated Chentang Pass’s inhabitants after learning the Heavenly Court planned to attack.
• Primordial Heavenly Venerable and Shen Gongbao led the Heavenly Court’s immense army to Chentang Pass, only to find the city empty.
• Cangjie arrived with several hundred Great Luo experts, and the Heavenly Court’s 365 Demon Race Star Officials descended to face them.
• Cangjie denied that the Human Race was breaking battlefield rules and used his Character-Creating Brush to summon a great gate as the Human Race’s soldiers began to arrive.

The Heavenly Court and Human Race assembled their forces at Chentang Pass, where the Human Race’s carefully arranged armies began to challenge the Heavenly Court’s morale. After the Three Ancestors of the Human Race revealed their Quasi-Sage cultivation, Shen Gongbao proposed a champions’ duel before the battle, and Suiren Shi agreed.

• Cangjie and the Human Race Great Luo brought more than a million soldiers to Chentang Pass and formed a vast military formation.
• Laozi ordered Archmage Xuandu and other Heavenly Court experts to display their strength, and Xuandu descended with the Taiji Diagram as Xuanyuan and Shennong countered its pressure.
• Guangchengzi brought the Pangu Banner, but its killing intent vanished when Suiren Shi, Youchao Shi, and Ziyi Shi appeared as Quasi-Sages.
• Shen Gongbao urged the Four Saints to arrange duels between champions before the armies fought, and Laozi approved his proposal.
• Shen Gongbao challenged the Human Race to a champions’ duel, Suiren Shi accepted, and he turned toward Huang Feihu.

Huang Feihu faced Archmage Xuandu in the first generals’ duel at Chentang Pass and used treasures bestowed by Fuxi to counter Xuandu’s divine abilities. The fight continued as Xuandu charged at Huang Feihu, who prepared to strike him with the Five Mountains Seal.

• Shen Gongbao sent Huang Feihu to fight first, but then asked Archmage Xuandu to take the field instead.
• Laozi ordered Xuandu to win decisively, and Xuandu entered the small-world battlefield without bringing the Taiji Diagram.
• Xuandu unleashed Burn Mountains and Boil Seas, but Huang Feihu’s Chaos True Fire lantern drew in the flames and protected him.
• Xuandu used Summon Wind and Rain, but Huang Feihu revealed a Wind and Rain Diagram containing Chaos Divine Wind and Chaos True Water.
• Xuandu stopped using divine abilities and charged at Huang Feihu with his Innate Spiritual Treasure, so Huang Feihu threw the Five Mountains Seal at him.

Huang Feihu defeated Grand Mage Xuandu with the Five Mountains Seal, and Ling Lun defeated Guangchengzi using the Landscape of Mountains and Rivers, and the State and the Fuxi Qin. After the Heavenly Court lost two rounds because of borrowed treasures, Primordial Heavenly Venerable demanded that fighters use only their own treasures, and a new challenger stepped forward.

• Grand Mage Xuandu conceded to Huang Feihu when the Five Mountains Seal overwhelmed him, prompting complaints from Guangchengzi and Shen Gongbao.
• Primordial Heavenly Venerable sent Guangchengzi to fight next with the Pangu Banner, and Suiren Shi chose Ling Lun as the Human Race's opponent.
• Guangchengzi's Chaos Sword Qi failed to penetrate the Landscape of Mountains and Rivers, and the State, while Ling Lun summoned the Fuxi Qin borrowed from Fuxi Temple.
• Ling Lun's qin music turned the Dao Rhyme of heaven and earth against Guangchengzi, who conceded.
• Primordial Heavenly Venerable ordered Shen Gongbao to forbid the use of borrowed treasures, Suiren Shi agreed, and a Heavenly Court combatant requested the next fight.

The Human Race defeated the Heavenly Court’s fighters in a string of duels, using Merit treasures and a star-countering divine ability to crush the Demon Race’s forces. As the Heavenly Court’s morale collapsed, the Four Saints began to suspect that the Human Race always had a counter prepared.

• Shen Gongbao chose Jiu Feng to fight, but Xuanyuan defeated her with the Xuanyuan Sword and sent her fleeing back to the Heavenly Court.
• Bai Ze sent Fei and other Demon Gods to fight, but the Human Race’s postnatal Merit treasures helped them win seven matches in a row.
• After Fuxi instructed Suiren Shi to delay for two hours, Suiren Shi sent Nezha, Yang Jian, and Lei Zhenzi to fight the Twenty-Eight Star Lodges.
• The seven Azure Dragon Star Lodges entered the battlefield, but Nezha, Yang Jian, and Lei Zhenzi used the Star-Shifting great divine ability to counter their formation and secure another victory.
• The Heavenly Court suffered nearly ten consecutive defeats, and Zhunti wondered aloud how the Human Race always had a way to counter its fighters.