Chapter Summaries

Chen Yan used Heavenly Official's Blessing to reach Innate Perfection and perfect the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Skill, gaining the Dragon Elephant Golden Body. With his martial path apparently at its limit, he decided to seek Bodhidharma's inheritance at White Horse Temple someday, then used his remaining Enlightenment to advance his Daoist cultivation by studying the Thunder Jade Scripture.

• Chen Yan reached Innate Perfection and transformed his True Qi into True Gang, attaining strength comparable to Wei Shanhe and Wu An.
• Chen Yan perfected the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Skill to its thirteenth level and gained the Dragon Elephant Golden Body, making his true body more physically durable than his Wood Spirit Physique incarnation.
• Chen Yan recalled the aged Bodhidharma in the Enlightenment Stone's vision and suspected that a realm beyond Innate existed, so he resolved to visit White Horse Temple in Xizhou.
• Chen Yan weighed using his remaining Enlightenment on his divine arts and techniques, but chose his fundamental cultivation method, the Thunder Jade Scripture.
• Chen Yan planned to use the final day of Enlightenment to advance his Daoist cultivation toward Dao Foundation perfection before retaliation from Mount Lao Daoist Sect and Qianzhong Commandery could arrive.

With the Great Dao’s guidance, Chen Yan advanced his Daoist cultivation from Dao Foundation Perfection to Refining Essence into Qi. The chapter left him at Innate Perfection and Refining Essence into Qi’s Early Stage after his three days of enlightenment ended.

• Chen Yan listened to the Great Dao’s teachings and broke through from Late Dao Foundation to Dao Foundation Perfection.
• Chen Yan entered his sea of divine consciousness, defeated the essence White Tiger with a single punch, and sealed the crack at his Baihui acupoint.
• Chen Yan refined his essence into the five elements’ qi and stored it in his five viscera, completing a cycle that produced Magic Power.
• Chen Yan checked his Heavenly Book of Merit panel and saw that he had reached Innate Perfection and Refining Essence into Qi’s Early Stage.
• Chen Yan’s three-day enlightenment from Heavenly Official’s Blessing ended, and the voice of the Great Dao vanished.

Chen Yan learned to unleash the full power of his Wood Spirit Physique incarnation just as the Mount Lao Daoist Sect sent ten thousand troops to retake Changze Commandery City. He ordered Black Mountain’s forces reinforced and prepared the city for battle, while Qianzhong Commandery remained poised to exploit the conflict.

• Chen Yan used his strengthened divine soul to control the Wood Spirit Physique’s demon core and command wood-element power with ease.
• Xu Ji reported that ten thousand Mount Lao Daoist Sect troops, led by the Corpse Dao and Ghost Dao and including Bronze Armored Corpses, were advancing on Changze Commandery City.
• Chen Yan learned that Qianzhong Commandery had not intervened and that a Mount Lao Gu Sect force had confronted it at the border.
• Chen Yan ordered Enbatu’s Vanguard Camp back to defend Black Mountain and directed Qin Chong and Lu Da to equip its troops and the Dragon Sparrow Army with Blood Thunder Curse Arquebuses.
• Chen Yan ordered the route fortified, disaster victims moved inside Changze Commandery City, and troublemakers killed, then entrusted its defense to Xu Ji and the commandery soldiers.

The Mount Lao army prepared to march on Changze Commandery City, while its leaders argued over their strategy and distrusted the orthodox Plum Mountain Dao and Lüshan Dao. After Yan Ji assigned Hong Gu and Zhang Yan to logistics, Hong Gu pressed Zhang Yan about his ties to the Heavenly Supervision Department, and he admitted he had privately contacted Commander Chen.

• Yan Ji gathered the Mount Lao faction leaders and insisted they prioritize retaking Changze Commandery City rather than attacking Black Mountain.
• Yan Ji promised the unorthodox cultivators the city’s wealth, soldiers, and people as spoils, prompting Zhang Yan and Hong Gu to react with unease.
• Situ Yin accused Plum Mountain Dao and Lüshan Dao of secretly defecting to the Heavenly Supervision Department, and Hong Gu rebuked him.
• Yan Ji assigned Hong Gu and Zhang Yan to oversee supplies, keeping them away from the front lines, then ordered the army to seize the city and promised a three-day massacre.
• After leaving the tent, Hong Gu asked Zhang Yan whether Plum Mountain had defected, and Zhang Yan denied it before admitting he had privately contacted Commander Chen.

Hong Gu doubted Chen Yan could defeat Mount Lao Daoist Sect, while Zhang Yan trusted him based on his letters with Zhang Tianzheng. As the armies gathered outside Changze Commandery City, Chen Yan ordered his forces to leave the city and fight Mount Lao in the open field.

• Hong Gu questioned Zhang Yan about his private correspondence with Commander Chen, and Zhang Yan said Chen had discussed the Thunderfire Spell but had not asked the two sects to defect.
• Hong Gu warned Zhang Yan that Lüshan Dao and Plum Mountain Dao should not submit while their disciples remained at Mount Lao, but Zhang Yan believed she had underestimated Chen Yan.
• Ten thousand Mount Lao troops led by Yan Ji and Situ Yin arrived outside Changze Commandery City, where they and Zhang Yan and Hong Gu observed the defenders.
• Xu Ji, Zhang Tianzheng, Yuantong, and Lang Xing reported that Chen Yan's commandery soldiers, Flying Fish Guard, and Black Mountain demon soldiers were ready to fight.
• Chen Yan ordered his forces to leave Changze Commandery City and engage Mount Lao in an open-field battle, intending to defeat and annihilate its army.

Chen Yan led Changze’s forces out of the city to fight the Mount Lao Daoist Sect, and their disciplined formations drove the enemy troops back. As the battle shifted to the leaders, the Wood Spirit Physique clashed with Yan Ji and the Bronze Armored Corpse while Chen Yan attacked Situ Yin, leaving their duel unresolved.

• Chen Yan led the Dragon Sparrow Army, Changze Commandery Soldiers, and Black Mountain Demon Soldiers out of Changze Commandery City to face the Mount Lao army in the open.
• Zhang Yan recognized Zhang Tianzheng among Changze’s forces, while Hong Gu advised him to wait before intervening.
• Yan Ji and Situ Yin agreed to target the Wood Spirit Physique and Chen Yan, then both armies charged at their opponent.
• Changze’s battle-hardened formations pushed the Mount Lao cultivators into retreat, and Yan Ji flew forward with the Bronze Armored Corpse to challenge the Wood Spirit Physique.
• The Wood Spirit Physique unleashed Wood Prison Arm against the Bronze Armored Corpse, while Situ Yin attacked Chen Yan.
• Chen Yan leaped into the air and struck down at Situ Yin and the surrounding Mount Lao fighters.

Chen Yan revealed Innate Perfection when he shattered Situ Yin’s ghostly attacks and gravely wounded him, shocking both armies and the onlooking Zhang Yan and Hong Gu. Situ Yin refused to concede and brought out the Spiritual Treasure-grade Netherworld Hundred Ghosts Scroll, setting up the next clash.

• Chen Yan charged Situ Yin, while Zhang Yan and Hong Gu doubted whether the reckless Pacification Commissioner was worth following.
• Chen Yan shattered Situ Yin’s enormous ghostly hand with one punch and struck him with a second, breaking through his defenses and crushing his chest.
• Situ Yin recognized Chen Yan as an Innate Perfection expert, and the battlefield fell silent as Zhang Yan and Hong Gu realized his strength could match a Refining Qi into Spirit Transformation powerhouse.
• Situ Yin recovered enough to summon the Netherworld Hundred Ghosts Scroll, a Spiritual Treasure-grade demonic artifact that could let a peak Refining Essence into Qi Ghost Cultivator wield Refining Qi into Spirit Transformation-level strength.

Chen Yan countered Situ Yin’s Netherworld Hundred Ghosts Scroll with the Thunder Department Seal and Divine Firmament Demon Lightning, then revealed that his martial strength was his true weapon. The chapter ended as Chen Yan activated the Dragon Elephant Golden Body and launched his strongest punch at Situ Yin.

• Situ Yin unleashed the Netherworld Hundred Ghosts Scroll, forcing Zhang Yan and Hong Gu to fear that Changze Commandery City would fall.
• Chen Yan summoned the Thunder Department Seal, revealing another Spiritual Treasure and calling down a vast storm of heavenly lightning.
• Chen Yan’s Demon Lightning struck the Netherworld Hundred Ghosts Scroll, wounded Situ Yin, and caused him to recognize the Divine Firmament Sect’s inheritance.
• Situ Yin drove the battered scroll to resist as Chen Yan explained that his true strength lay in his martial path and formidable body.
• Chen Yan activated the Dragon Elephant Golden Body, gathered the strength of thirteen dragons and elephants, and unleashed his strongest punch at Situ Yin.

Chen Yan killed Situ Yin with a devastating punch, breaking the Mount Lao army’s morale, while the Wood Spirit Physique unleashed his World Tree Descent divine ability against the fleeing forces. Chen Yan then charged Yan Ji, whose Bronze Armored Corpse intercepted his saber strike as their clash began.

• Chen Yan destroyed Situ Yin’s Netherworld Hundred Ghosts Scroll and killed Situ Yin with two punches.
• The Mount Lao army panicked and fled, while Yan Ji also turned to escape after realizing Chen Yan was a second Spirit Transformation-level combatant.
• The Wood Spirit Physique unleashed World Tree Descent, growing a vast forest whose vines attacked the Mount Lao forces and trapped Yan Ji.
• Chen Yan charged Yan Ji with his saber, and Yan Ji ordered the Bronze Armored Corpse to block the strike.
• The Bronze Armored Corpse collided with Chen Yan’s saber light, unleashing a shockwave that shattered the ground around them.

Chen Yan used Second-Rank Divine Striking with his Dragon Elephant Golden Body to fight the Bronze Armored Corpse, while the Wood Spirit Physique killed Yan Ji and devastated Mount Lao Dao’s forces. The chapter ended with Chen Yan’s Demon Slaying strike severing the Bronze Armored Corpse’s head.

• Chen Yan activated Second-Rank Divine Striking, combining its power with his Dragon Elephant Golden Body to strengthen his body and attack the Bronze Armored Corpse.
• Chen Yan and the Bronze Armored Corpse clashed in a fierce battle as Zhang Yan and Hong Gu watched from a nearby hill.
• Yan Ji fled while the Wood Spirit Physique formed the Thousand-Hand Buddha Palm from the forest and crushed him, killing many Mount Lao Dao Evil Cultivators.
• Chen Yan unleashed Demon Slaying with the Dragon Sparrow Saber and severed the Bronze Armored Corpse’s head.

General Kui led three thousand yin soldiers from Qianzhong Commandery toward Black Mountain, hoping to seize it while the Mount Lao Daoist Sect and Chen Yan were occupied elsewhere. After a Flower Spirit warned Black Mountain’s defenders, Lu Da proposed a secret plan to deal with the approaching peak ghost general.

• General Kui marched toward Black Mountain with the Jade-Faced Scholar and three thousand yin soldiers, intending to claim territory while the Mount Lao Daoist Sect fought at Changze Commandery City.
• A Flower Spirit secretly observed the force and hurried to warn Qing Wen that many ghosts and a huge, armored ghost were approaching.
• Qing Wen relayed the warning to Lu Da, Qin Chong, Enbatu, Black Tiger, Zhao Laoda, and the other defenders, who identified the attackers as a force from Qianzhong Commandery.
• The defenders concluded that the enemy included a peak ghost general, and Black Tiger admitted he had no chance of defeating one in a direct fight.
• Lu Da rejected retreating to await help and urged the group to defend Black Mountain themselves, then claimed he had a way to deal with the peak ghost general.
• Lu Da whispered his plan to the others, and Enbatu questioned whether it would work before Lu Da confidently assured him it would.

Qin Chong led Black Mountain’s defenders in an ambush against General Kui’s Yin Soldiers, using Blood Thunder Curse Arquebuses to inflict heavy losses before retreating toward a hidden force. As General Kui pursued, a formation of more than a hundred giants revealed a massive weapon firing crimson lightning that he feared could kill him.

• General Kui brought three thousand Yin Soldiers to Black Mountain and ordered them to kill its defenders.
• Qin Chong’s concealed Dragon Sparrow Army and demon soldiers fired two volleys of Blood Thunder Curse Arquebuses, killing more than two hundred Yin Soldiers.
• General Kui transformed into a giant yaksha, tore through the lightning volley, and charged Qin Chong’s formation.
• Qin Chong ordered his troops to retreat up the mountain while Black Mountain demons slowed General Kui’s pursuit.
• General Kui caught sight of more than a hundred giant figures and a massive iron-tube weapon that unleashed crimson lightning.

Enbatu fired Lu Da’s Bing Fire Thunder God Cannon, annihilating General Kui and the three thousand ghost soldiers, but the blast nearly killed Enbatu and destroyed the cannon. As Lu Da discussed building an improved version, Chen Yan arrived at Black Mountain and saw the devastation.

• General Kui sensed the cannon’s danger, but Enbatu activated it by channeling the Forest Giants’ blood and vitality into its formation.
• The Bing Fire Thunder God Cannon unleashed crimson lightning that killed General Kui and annihilated the ghost soldiers in a devastating blast.
• Qin Chong and the others survived the shockwave, then rushed to find Enbatu and the Forest Giants alive but unconscious; Enbatu had been badly burned, and the cannon had melted.
• Qin Chong fed Enbatu healing pills, and Enbatu woke and begged Lu Da not to make him fire the cannon again.
• Lu Da said he would build a sturdier cannon and reduce its blood-and-vitality requirements, then Chen Yan arrived and asked what had happened.

Chen Yan learned that Lu Da’s Bing Fire Thunder God Cannon had destroyed General Kui and three thousand yin soldiers, and he ordered three cannons built to strengthen his forces against Spirit Transformation enemies. After Lu Da promised to finish them within a year, Qin Chong began reporting something concerning Lord Facai.

• Chen Yan healed Enbatu with a Life Creation Pill and gave Qin Chong, Enbatu, Lu Da, Black Tiger, and the others two pills each.
• Qin Chong recounted how the little Flower Spirit discovered the yin soldiers and how Enbatu used Lu Da’s Bing Fire Thunder God Cannon to destroy General Kui and three thousand yin soldiers.
• Lu Da explained the cannon’s weight, power, and enormous blood qi requirements, and Chen Yan rejected weakening it.
• Chen Yan realized he might be able to carry the cannon himself and fire it at point-blank range, then ordered Lu Da to make three cannons.
• Chen Yan ordered the Black Mountain Workshop expanded and all available craftsmen and furnaces devoted to the cannons, and Lu Da promised to complete them within a year.
• Qin Chong stepped forward to report something concerning Lord Facai.

Chen Yan discovered that Facai had begun an unusually powerful demon transformation and ordered Qin Chong to keep others away. Meanwhile, Mount Lao’s leaders debated whether to wage war on Changze Commandery, but hesitated after learning that Chen Yan and Huai Qing appeared to be Spirit Transformation-level threats.

• Qin Chong led Chen Yan to Huai Qing’s temporary cave, where Chen Yan found Facai surrounded by a vast mass of surging Demonic Power.
• Chen Yan recognized that Facai was undergoing demon transformation and ordered Qin Chong to seal off the cave.
• Chu Yuan urged Mount Lao’s Seven Paths to launch an all-out attack on Changze Commandery to recover the Netherworld Hundred Ghosts Scroll.
• Wu Changsong accused Chu Yuan of disguising the Ghost Dao’s desire to recover its lost treasure as a call for revenge.
• Granny Ming warned that attacking Changze Commandery could leave Mount Lao vulnerable to White Horse Temple, and Chu Yuan backed down.
• Granny Ming revealed reports that Changze Commandery had two Spirit Transformation-level combatants, including Chen Yan at Martial Innate Perfection, shocking the Seven Paths’ leaders.

The Seven Paths of Mount Lao made killing Chen Yan the test for choosing their Lord, while Ghost Prefect Pang Tong learned of Changze Commandery’s strength and received a proposal to join forces. The former enemies began considering an alliance against Chen Yan as news of his breakthrough spread across the Nine Provinces.

• Wu Changsong rejected the idea of attacking Changze Commandery, and Chu Yuan proposed electing a Lord of Mount Lao Daoist Sect to unite the branches.
• Chu Yuan nominated Granny Ming, Qing Lang Jun backed Hu Meiniang, and Old Man Crow’s insult sparked a quarrel between Hu Meiniang and Old Man Crow.
• Yan Xi proposed that whichever branch killed Chen Yan would become Lord of Mount Lao Daoist Sect, and all seven decision-makers accepted the condition.
• Ghost Prefect Pang Tong learned that Chen Yan had reached Martial Innate Perfection and that General Kui had been out of contact for three days.
• Pang Tong received a letter from the Mount Lao Daoist Sect and murmured about joining forces, while news of Chen Yan’s breakthrough spread across the Nine Provinces.

After Chen Yan seized Changze Commandery, defeated the Mount Lao Daoist Sect, and reached Martial Innate Perfection, news of his achievements shook the Martial Dynasty. Yu Huatian decided to visit Changze Commandery, while the Rebirth Cult prepared to pursue its ambitions and involved Liu Xian'er in its plans.

• Yu Huatian learned that Chen Yan had defeated Situ Yin, Yan Ji, and a Bronze Armored Corpse, then ordered Wu An to retrieve Damo's Manual and prepared to travel to Changze Commandery.
• The Rebirth Cult received news of Chen Yan's victories and breakthrough, causing Liu Xian'er to relive her fear of him.
• The Rebirth Cult Master rejected the Mount Lao Daoist Sect's offer of Changze Commandery and declared that the cult would seize the Four Central Plains Provinces, assigning Liu Xian'er an important task.
• News of Chen Yan's rise spread across the Martial Dynasty, stirring Wei Shanhe, Deng Hong, Lin Wan, and the Feng Chan sisters.
• True Master Zhengxiao relinquished his position at the Spiritual Mountain Dao Sect, Jade Profound Son was sentenced to sixty years of reflection, and the White Horse Buddhist Sect fell silent about challenging Chen Yan.

Chen Yan reviewed the merit and cultivation gains from the battle at Changze, then planned to strengthen his Daoist cultivation before Mount Lao Daoist Sect launched another counteroffensive. He examined the Netherworld Hundred Ghosts Scroll and the soulless Bronze Armored Corpse, considering how to put the corpse to use as a Daoist Guardian Divine General.

• Chen Yan checked the Heavenly Book of Merit and found that the battle had brought his total to seventy-four thousand merit.
• Chen Yan assessed his abilities and decided to focus on Nine Breaths Qi Nourishment, aiming to reach one hundred thousand merit and earn Three Days of Enlightenment before Mount Lao Daoist Sect attacked again.
• Chen Yan planned to clear Changze Commandery of Demonic Creatures, Ghosts, bandits, and thieves to gain more merit, and considered raiding nearby commanderies if necessary.
• Chen Yan examined the restored Netherworld Hundred Ghosts Scroll, which he had taken after Situ Yin's death.
• Chen Yan summoned the soulless Bronze Armored Corpse and considered refining it into a Daoist Guardian Divine General.

Chen Yan refined the Bronze Armored Corpse into a guardian divine general by cleansing it of corpse qi and imbuing it with the strengthened spirit of the Wang Lingguan Portrait. The newly formed Huo-luo Fire-Chariot Wang Lingguan appeared before Chen Yan and pledged loyalty to him.

• Chen Yan used Three Yang True Fire to burn the corpse qi and poison from the Bronze Armored Corpse, compressing them into a deadly Corpse Poison Pill.
• Chen Yan summoned the spirit from Old Daoist Liu’s Wang Lingguan Portrait and fed it the hundred ghost generals from the Netherworld Hundred Ghosts Scroll.
• The Wang Lingguan Portrait Spirit grew powerful by defeating and devouring the ghosts one by one.
• Chen Yan summoned the Wang Lingguan Portrait Spirit into the Bronze Armored Corpse, completing the guardian divine general.
• The newly formed Huo-luo Fire-Chariot Wang Lingguan knelt before Chen Yan and paid his respects.

Chen Yan completed the fusion of the Wang Lingguan Portrait Spirit and the Bronze Armored Corpse, creating a powerful Guardian Divine General. After testing their strength in an aerial spar, Chen Yan saw how Wang Lingguan could aid the coming battle against the Mount Lao Daoist Sect.

• Wang Lingguan emerged from the fusion and pledged his loyalty to Chen Yan.
• Chen Yan and Wang Lingguan flew above Black Mountain to test their strength while Qin Chong, Zhao Laoda, and the others watched below.
• Wang Lingguan attacked with his Golden Whip, and Chen Yan countered with the Dragon Sparrow Saber as their clashes shook the mountain.
• Wang Lingguan unleashed his full physical power, and Chen Yan answered with a devastating fist that shattered the Golden Whip.
• Wang Lingguan conceded defeat, but Chen Yan called the spar a draw and judged that Wang Lingguan could approach mid-stage Spirit Transformation strength with his thunder and fire arts.