Chapter Summaries

Qu Jianlei obtained Out-of-Body Realm guidance on the Swordplay Manual and let Broken Blade absorb the Slaughter Rule, but its slow progress was interrupted by news of a newly discovered Heavenly Devil Domain near Ji Family territory. He and Jing Yuexin joined Ji Xiaohua to investigate the wetlands where it had appeared.

• Fragile Obsession annotated the Swordplay Manual, and Hypocrite and Soldier Cultivator agreed to complete an Out of Body Cultivation Method within ten days if they received more Tiger-Man flesh and blood.
• Qu Jianlei studied the annotations, then gave copies to Qi Ya and Fourth Boss; Qi Ya recognized that the guidance came from a Great Expert.
• Qu Jianlei let Broken Blade absorb the Slaughter Rule outside the Abode, and its slow progress continued for five days before divination showed it needed at least another half month.
• Xiang Xue brought word that the Ji Family had discovered a Heavenly Devil Domain near Seven Colors Marsh, where multiple Nascent Soul Realm Heavenly Demons were stationed.
• Qu Jianlei and Jing Yuexin returned to Red Leaf Ridge, agreed to accompany Ji Xiaohua, and reached the wetlands the next day to inspect the newly formed domain.

Qu Jianlei investigated the expanding Heavenly Devil Domain and prepared Red Leaf Ridge’s warships to destroy it. As the nearby cultivators retreated, the warships charged their cannons for the coming attack.

• Qu Jianlei and Ji Xiaohua reached the Ji Family’s encampment, where He Jiuling and cultivators from other factions greeted Qu Jianlei.
• Ji Xiaohua explained that the Heavenly Devil Domain covered more than three hundred square kilometers, resisted their attacks, and had revealed a Nascent Soul Realm Heavenly Demon.
• Qu Jianlei sensed the domain, divined its condition, and agreed to act without holding back.
• Qu Jianlei released four Company-level Warships and Ji Xiaohua warned everyone to retreat.
• The nearby cultivators withdrew as the warships’ oversized Laser Cannons began charging.

Qu Jianlei used four company-level warships to bombard the Heavenly Devil Domain until Xiao Hu identified its breaking point, then joined the cultivators in fighting the demons released when it collapsed. The battle continued for a day and night, while Ji Xiaohua used the opportunity to train his clan's disciples.

• Qu Jianlei positioned four company-level warships and ordered them to fire on the Heavenly Devil Domain, drawing amazed reactions from the observing cultivators.
• Qu Jianlei set down the Broken Axe as an Ancestor's Item and told Ji Xiaohua that he had not brought the Broken Blade.
• After Xiao Hu warned that the domain's force field was near its critical point, Qu Jianlei told everyone to retreat, and two more salvos shattered the Heavenly Devil Domain.
• Ji Xiaohua, He Jiuling, Qu Jianlei's warships, and other cultivators attacked the unleashed demons and stubborn Demonic Qi, while Qu Jianlei waited for a Nascent Soul Realm Heavenly Demon to appear.
• After a day and night of fighting, Ji Xiaohua stopped attacking and guarded more than five thousand Ji Family disciples as they gained combat experience.

Qu Jianlei learned that the Heavenly Devil Domain concealed a spatial weak point and agreed to repair it after sealing it. The Ji Family and He Family searched the domain, while Qu Jianlei's seniors claimed rare demonic treasures and taught him an array; the chapter ended with Ji Xiaohua offering the Ji Family's help.

• Hypocrite told Qu Jianlei that the Nascent Soul Realm Heavenly Demons had fled and that the Heavenly Devil Domain concealed a spatial passage.
• After four days of clearing Heavenly Devil Qi, the Ji Family restricted access to the domain while other forces waited to investigate.
• Hypocrite asked to take the Nightmare Transformation Demon Liquid, then urged Qu Jianlei to reserve similar treasures for Yi He's Remnant Soul and taught him an array to seal the weak point.
• Qu Jianlei stayed outside while the Ji Family and He Family searched the domain, and their disciples told others he was divining its karma.
• Qu Jianlei told Ji Xiaohua and He Jiuling that the spatial weak point could be repaired in about a year, and Ji Xiaohua offered the Ji Family's assistance.

Qu Jianlei sealed and repaired the spatial weak point while Dongsheng cultivators watched, then left after accepting only part of Ji Xiaohua’s compensation. Back at Red Leaf Ridge, he prepared to communicate with Central Province, and Zhu Jiayi arrived hoping to learn more.

• Ji Xiaohua and He Jiuling gathered the materials Qu Jianlei needed, and word spread that he would seal the spatial weak point.
• Qu Jianlei set up the array and repaired the weak point as True Immortals and representatives of the Cultivator Alliance watched.
• Qu Jianlei indirectly acknowledged his connection to Central Province, unsettling some Dongsheng cultivators, then accepted half of Ji Xiaohua’s offered materials.
• True Immortal Yuan Yi announced that the Alliance would station people at the site, and Ji Xiaohua asked that details be kept quiet.
• After Qu Jianlei returned to Red Leaf Ridge, Zhu Jiayi came to learn about the materials list and speak with him before his planned communication with Central Province.

Qu Jianlei learned that Red Leaf Ridge was likely behind the Heavenly Devil Domain’s scarcity in Dongsheng and the Tiger-Human Clan’s inability to invade, then received an eight-path Out of Body cultivation system from the Heroic Spirits. After studying it in seclusion, he was interrupted by a Liuguang City inspection led by a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator, which Qinghu challenged at the estate gate.

• Qu Jianlei hinted to Zhu Jiayi that Red Leaf Ridge had affected the Heavenly Devil Domain and the Tiger-Human Clan, and asked him to keep the matter quiet.
• Hua Zhenren turned away visitors who came to Red Leaf Ridge seeking information, saying the First One had entered seclusion.
• After five days of talking with the Heroic Spirits, Qu Jianlei received their Out of Body cultivation system, which contained eight paths and was designed for him to complete through deduction.
• Qu Jianlei studied the cultivation method alone for two days, finding it increasingly profound.
• Qinghu went to the estate entrance to handle a Liuguang City inspection, where she challenged a Nascent Soul Realm official’s authority to question her.

Qu Jianlei showed Great Leaf City Lord Huo Jiujian the Divine Weapon Broken Blade, which had slain over a hundred Nascent Soul Realm Heavenly Demons, and negotiated for a Star Palace treasure catalog in exchange for revealing it. Huo left awed by the weapon and curious about Red Leaf Ridge’s secrets, including its rapid travel between provinces.

• When Liuguang City officials conducted a routine inspection, Qinghu presented a residence token from Huo Jiujian, and the officials withdrew.
• Two days later, Huo Jiujian visited Qu Jianlei, who asked him to obtain a Star Palace treasure catalog in exchange for revealing a secret.
• Qu Jianlei led Huo Jiujian through a grand formation, where Huo saw Broken Blade and two people meditating nearby.
• Huo Jiujian recognized Broken Blade as the Divine Weapon that had defeated over a hundred Nascent Soul Realm Heavenly Demons and asked whether outsiders could share the chance to comprehend it.
• Huo Jiujian learned that Red Leaf Ridge had visited Seven Colors Marsh and asked whether Qu Jianlei had used ultra-long-distance teleportation to travel between provinces.

Qu Jianlei refused Huo Jiujian’s request to move Red Leaf Ridge to Central Province or accept its refugees while the Isolation Grand Array remained in place. After learning the Art Academy was pursuing him over a stone from the exchange gathering, he decided to confront them, and True Immortal San Shi arrived to meet him.

• Huo Jiujian asked whether Red Leaf Ridge would move to Central Province, but Qu Jianlei refused, citing the Heavenly Demons and the Isolation Grand Array.
• Huo Jiujian revealed that Star Palace had concealed multiple Heavenly Demon Domains in Central Province and asked Qu Jianlei to accept refugees from the province; Qu Jianlei refused unless the array was removed.
• Huo Jiujian warned Qu Jianlei that the Art Academy was interested in him because of the stone he bought at the exchange gathering.
• Qu Jianlei asked Claire to contact Duan Bowen and the Five Friends Alliance, deciding to seek out the Art Academy rather than tolerate its pursuit.
• True Immortal San Shi arrived the next day and asked Qu Jianlei if he had just destroyed a Heavenly Demon Domain.

Qu Jianlei learned why Tianyu True Immortal had placed a bounty on Red Leaf Ridge and asked True Immortal Yongheng to arrange a meeting. As they weighed the risks of dealing with Tianyu, the Broken Blade finished merging with the Slaughter Rule, and Qi Ya said its Blade Intent would help him understand the Forget Sorrow Sword.

• Qu Jianlei asked True Immortal San Shi to find out why the Art Academy had put a bounty on Red Leaf Ridge, and San Shi warned him that the bounty might signal a wish to talk rather than hostility.
• True Immortal Yongheng traced the bounty to Tianyu True Immortal, who had spread word about the stone and sought information about treasures stolen alongside it.
• Qu Jianlei asked whether Tianyu had been to Mangdang Mountain, and Yongheng divined that the matter involved Jun Wuji but stopped before pressing further.
• Qu Jianlei asked Yongheng to arrange a meeting with Tianyu somewhere Red Leaf Ridge could act freely, leaving Yongheng concerned about guaranteeing a meeting between two powerful sides.
• The Broken Blade finished fusing with the Slaughter Rule, and Qi Ya told Qu Jianlei that its Blade Intent aided his comprehension of the Forget Sorrow Sword.

Qu Jianlei gathered allies from Dongsheng and brought them through Red Leaf Ridge’s Teleportation Array to Central Province for a meeting that could lead to a confrontation with Four Sages Mountain. The group reached Yellow Earth Ridge near noon, where they were set to meet True Immortal Yongheng’s people.

• True Immortal Qi Ya said studying the Broken Blade had deepened her understanding of the Forget Sorrow Swordplay Manual, and Qu Jianlei told her there would be more opportunities.
• Claire reported that Duan Bowen was delayed while investigating a mysterious force’s connection to Jun Wuji’s disappearance and the theft of Wu Yao’s Stone Jar.
• After True Immortal Yongheng arranged a meeting at Yellow Earth Ridge, Qu Jianlei brought Jing Yuexin, Paranoid, and Duo Gan to Central Province and invited True Immortal Ke Liang to join them.
• Ke Liang arrived with Thousand Hands, Li Yuren, and He Jiuling, who agreed to accompany Red Leaf Ridge and keep its Teleportation Array confidential.
• Qu Jianlei teleported the group to Central Province, and they traveled by Flying Shuttle to Yellow Earth Ridge near noon.

Qu Jianlei arrived at Yellow Earth Ridge and discovered that the supposed negotiation was an ambush arranged by the auction True Immortal, while True Immortal Yongheng had been detained elsewhere. Qu Jianlei’s eleven Nascent Souls faced the enemy’s six, and both sides prepared for a fight.

• He Jiuling sensed danger as the Flying Shuttle approached Yellow Earth Ridge, and Qu Jianlei ordered it to land.
• The auction True Immortal revealed that Yongheng had sold Qu Jianlei’s information, but Qu Jianlei realized Yongheng had been tricked too.
• The auction True Immortal’s array concealed five Nascent Souls, while Qu Jianlei brought out eleven allies from the Flying Shuttle.
• True Immortal Yongheng sat distracted in a Mobile Palace two thousand kilometers away, where two middle-aged brothers kept him occupied with a chess game.
• Qu Jianlei challenged the enemy to fight, and the auction True Immortal tried to negotiate after seeing the numbers against him.
• Jing Yuexin and Paranoid questioned the enemy’s motives, while Qi Ya, True Immortal Ke Liang, and the others urged First One to gang up on them.

Qu Jianlei faced a tense standoff with Tianyu True Immortal’s group and learned that the eleven unfamiliar Nascent Soul cultivators might belong to a powerful hidden faction. He sought compensation and the Poison Art, but the opposing cultivators formed an array, leaving negotiations unresolved.

• The tall, thin Nascent Soul cultivator threatened Qu Jianlei’s group with his Poison Art, but Tianyu warned him that all eleven opponents were unknown cultivators who might share a hidden origin.
• Tianyu apologized and urged Qu Jianlei to avoid a battle that would attract Star Palace, but Qu Jianlei accused him of impersonating Tianyu and plotted to kill the group as revenge.
• Tianyu offered ransom according to the local price for Nascent Soul cultivators, but Qu Jianlei rejected the offer as too low.
• Qu Jianlei asked the tall, thin cultivator to hand over his inherited Poison Art, while Tianyu protested that the group had already accepted punishment.
• Tianyu’s three allies formed the Three Powers Array when Qu Jianlei proposed keeping everyone inside the array until Yongheng collected compensation from their families.
• Qu Jianlei agreed that Yongheng could not collect the Poison Art without its owner and told the tall, thin cultivator he could leave.

Qu Jianlei demanded Stones and Poison-type Cultivation Methods from Tianyu True Immortal’s group in exchange for releasing their restrained companions, and the parties reached a tense settlement. Tianyu and Tall and Thin Nascent Soul left to seek help and discuss the group’s identity, while Qu Jianlei’s companions relaxed with their captives.

• Qu Jianlei demanded twenty-five Stones to release the remaining four Nascent Soul cultivators, and Tianyu True Immortal agreed to leave and gather them.
• The four captives accepted restrictions placed by Tianyu and Tall and Thin Nascent Soul, who then shut down the Dragon Trapping Array and departed.
• Jia Shuiqing summoned a Mobile Palace, where Qu Jianlei cooked while Li Yuren struck up a conversation with Flying Peng of Xiangyuan City.
• Tianyu and Tall and Thin Nascent Soul discussed the incident and suspected their opponents might come from Four Sages Mountain.
• Tianyu and Tall and Thin Nascent Soul visited True Immortal Yongheng, who recognized that Xinhua City Lord had been involved and admitted he did not know the group’s background.

Tianyu True Immortal tried to secure support in Great Leaf City after clashing with Yongheng, but the City Lord's Mansion turned him away. Meanwhile, Jing Yuexin learned why Yongheng had been targeted and prepared for the threat as Yongheng and True Immortal San Shi approached Red Leaf Ridge.

• Tianyu True Immortal told Yongheng to return home, then failed to gain an audience with City Lord Huo Jiujian or the other Nascent Soul Realm cultivators in the City Lord's Mansion.
• Flying Peng True Immortal spoke with the detained True Immortals, and Li Yuren noticed his hesitation when asking how Tianyu had contacted the Art Academy.
• Qu Jianlei decided Red Leaf Ridge would not fight the detained cultivators to the death, while Jing Yuexin agreed to prepare for trouble if it came.
• Sunset Glow spotted Yongheng and True Immortal San Shi hiding more than three hundred kilometers away, and Jing Yuexin went to meet them.
• Yongheng told Jing Yuexin that divination revealed a more skilled Great Expert had calculated his whereabouts, rather than a traitor leaking his information.

True Immortal Yongheng warned Red Leaf Ridge about a threat tied to the Art Academy and offered his personal support, but Jing Yuexin insisted they could handle Four Sages Mountain. After receiving a damaged Jade Pendant, Qu Jianlei left the Mobile Palace and partially unsealed the Dao Stele in a remote desert to investigate the distant clash, drawing alarm from cultivators across the region.

• True Immortal Yongheng told Jing Yuexin that the Five Friends Alliance could offer limited help, then offered to withdraw from it and support Red Leaf Ridge personally.
• Jing Yuexin refused Yongheng's offer, and he gave her a cracked Jade Pendant whose protective spell had been broken and whose main target was Red Leaf Ridge.
• Jing Yuexin returned to the Mobile Palace and handed the Jade Pendant to Qu Jianlei, who decided to investigate the divination backlash himself.
• Qu Jianlei told the others to stay alert, then used Instant Flash to reach a sparsely inhabited desert and partially unsealed the damaged Dao Stele.
• The Dao Stele's aura frightened nearby villagers and cultivators, while two distant Golden Core Realm cultivators sensed the danger and chose to report it rather than approach.

Qu Jianlei used the Dao Stele to counter a distant cultivator’s divination, destroying the man’s inherited Spring Examination Brush before returning to Yellow Earth Ridge. As the group waited for news and discussed reinforcements, True Immortal Yongheng arrived and reported a terrifying aura near the border between Great Leaf City and Xiangyuan City.

• Qu Jianlei divined with the damaged Jade Pendant near the Dao Stele, whose sudden surge erased a distant aura and destroyed the long-bearded scholar’s Spring Examination Brush.
• Qu Jianlei erased his traces and returned to the Mobile Palace, telling the others that their target could block divination and that his findings were limited.
• He Jiuling offered to call more people, alarming the four detained True Immortals, while Thousand Hands True Immortal and Li Yuren pressed them for information and discussed their ransom.
• After two days of rain passed without visitors, True Immortal Yongheng arrived openly and told Qu Jianlei’s group that a terrifying aura had appeared near the border of Great Leaf City and Xiangyuan City.

Qu Jianlei learned that Star Palace had ordered an investigation into a powerful aura near Great Leaf City and Xiangyuan City, prompting both cities to send inspection teams and shift blame onto each other. As searches threatened to reach Yellow Earth Ridge, he told the four detained Nascent Soul True Immortals they would wait until noon the next day for Heavenly Expanse before leaving.

• True Immortal Yongheng explained Star Palace’s authority and said its observers had reported the aura, which many believed exceeded the Nascent Soul Realm.
• Qu Jianlei realized the Dao Stele had caused the disturbance, while Great Leaf City and Xiangyuan City disputed whose territory it had appeared in.
• City Lord Huo and Xiangyuan City sent inspection teams to investigate and monitor one another, with searches likely to spread toward Yellow Earth Ridge.
• True Immortal Yongheng predicted investigators would reach the area in about two days, and Qu Jianlei asked the four detained True Immortals whether they wanted to be discovered in their current state.
• Flying Peng True Immortal guessed that Qu Jianlei’s group had concealed its tracks and asked to leave with more dignity, but Li Yuren told him to wait for Heavenly Expanse until noon tomorrow.

Tianyu True Immortal arrived with Book Pavilion mediators, but Qu Jianlei and Jing Yuexin rejected their mediation and confronted them about the Book Pavilion's internal dispute. The visitors recognized Qu Jianlei's group from Red Wu Mountain and questioned them about the Slaughter Rule, leaving Jade Forest True Immortal surprised by how many female cultivators were in their team.

• Tianyu True Immortal arrived at the Mobile Palace with three Nascent Soul cultivators and said he had brought people to mediate instead of the ransom.
• Qu Jianlei recognized Zhang Lidong and refused mediation after learning Tianyu True Immortal was handling matters for the Book Pavilion.
• Zhang Lidong recognized Qu Jianlei's group from Red Wu Mountain, and the visitors realized they were not local forces.
• Jade Forest True Immortal questioned Qu Jianlei about the Light Art and learned that Zhang Lidong had clashed with his junior brother over her.
• Jade Forest True Immortal guessed that the Stone contained the Slaughter Rule, and Jing Yuexin confirmed it without revealing how her group knew.
• Jade Forest True Immortal noticed how many female cultivators were on Qu Jianlei's side.

Qu Jianlei spoke with Jade Forest True Immortal of the Book Pavilion about their interest in the Slaughter Rule, his group’s magic artifact, and their Light-based techniques. The discussion ended with the Book Pavilion admitting it knew little about the Stone’s origin, while Qu Jianlei withheld further details and said his group might sell its methods when the Heavenly Demons launched a full-scale invasion.

• Duo Gan rebuked Zhang Lidong’s remarks about female cultivators, and Qu Jianlei denied that his group came from Bitter Sea.
• Qu Jianlei agreed to talk with Jade Forest True Immortal and hosted her and the two Book Pavilion cultivators in the Mobile Palace.
• Jade Forest True Immortal explained why the Book Pavilion wanted the Source of Slaughter or the Slaughter Rule, and Qu Jianlei said his group had used Rule Qi to repair a magic artifact.
• Qu Jianlei refused to specify the artifact or how much Slaughter Rule it needed, then said his group’s talismans and techniques might be for sale when the Heavenly Demons began a full-scale invasion.
• Jade Forest True Immortal said the Book Pavilion did not know the Stone’s origin and explained that Tianyu True Immortal had wanted to investigate the rare treasure.

Qu Jianlei confronted Tianyu True Immortal over the stolen Rule Item, while Jade Forest True Immortal weighed whether the Book Pavilion should protect him. Huo Jiujian intervened and persuaded the Book Pavilion to withdraw, leaving Tianyu to accept responsibility as Qu Jianlei went to investigate a divine-sense signal.

• Qu Jianlei pressed Jade Forest True Immortal about trading for a Rule Item and demanded that the Book Pavilion stop intervening in Tianyu True Immortal's affairs.
• Zhang Lidong challenged Qu Jianlei, but Jade Forest True Immortal silenced him and said the Book Pavilion could withdraw if Qu Jianlei revealed his background.
• Huo Jiujian arrived in a mask and warned that Great Leaf City's forces would not necessarily support the Book Pavilion in a confrontation.
• Huo Jiujian urged everyone to disperse, warned Hu Shukuai against involving his sworn elder brother, and told Jade Forest True Immortal that the Book Pavilion could leave.
• Jade Forest True Immortal agreed to withdraw, and Tianyu True Immortal accepted blame to protect his friends.
• Qu Jianlei sensed a divine-sense message from the departing Book Pavilion and went to investigate.