Chapter Summaries

Qu Jianlei negotiated a trade with Qingning, offering guidance on his self-deduced Out-of-Body cultivation method in exchange for the Creation Rule, Fate, and a Tianqiong Crystal. The group then began arranging a further exchange of Yuan, leaving Qingning astonished at Qu Jianlei’s trove of treasures.

• Bai Qiao said he would need his sect’s approval before completing the trade, while Qingning had not brought his Dao Companion’s dragon remains.
• Qu Jianlei revealed that he had deduced his own Out-of-Body cultivation method, shocking Qingning, Bai Qiao, and the Ascetic.
• Qingning added a Tianqiong Crystal from Qing’er’s world to the trade, and Qu Jianlei accepted the deal.
• Qingning asked about trading Yuan, and Qu Jianlei initially declined until Han Li suggested Origin Qi that could help control Nirvana.
• Qu Jianlei agreed to trade for a clump of Yuan without Hidden Patterns, then said his Yuan had come from destroying a planet.

Qu Jianlei returned to Cangwu as a True Venerable, and Qingning apologized to the realm while Red Leaf Ridge arranged for its allies to join an expedition to another world. Qingning completed his transaction for Qu Jianlei’s Out-of-Body cultivation method, but Han Li refused Lingyun Sect’s request to buy either World Core, reserving both for testing the new cultivation path.

• Qingning agreed to apologize to Cangwu, while Qingkong revealed that he had watched over Red Leaf Ridge during the battle.
• After returning to Red Leaf Ridge, Qingning announced compensation for Cangwu’s losses and apologized for the trouble he had caused.
• Qi Ya announced that those who helped Red Leaf Ridge could visit the upper realm and that Qu Jianlei could bring willing companions on an expedition to another world.
• Qingning swore not to reveal the Out-of-Body cultivation method, received it from Qu Jianlei, and spent nearly two days studying it before asking detailed questions.
• Qingning and Bai Qiao were astonished to learn that Qu Jianlei had used a World Core as a reserve resource for his breakthrough.
• Han Li rejected Lingyun Sect’s offer to buy a World Core, saying both were reserved for attempts to establish the new cultivation path.

Han Li arranged for Qu Jianlei to advise Qingning’s Dao Companion before her Out-of-Body attempt, while Bai Qiao negotiated Lingyun’s role in observing and protecting the process. After the group discussed Qingning’s plans to gather resources from another world, Youjian contacted Qu Jianlei, leaving Qingning in hiding as the elder appeared.

• Bai Qiao asked Han Li to auction the next piece, and Qingning admitted he could not afford the core.
• Qingning asked Qu Jianlei to divine for his Dao Companion before she entered seclusion, and Han Li agreed that Qu Jianlei could help gather examples.
• Bai Qiao and Qingkong pressed Qingning to accept protection from Lingyun, and Qingning agreed as long as the protectors genuinely guarded her.
• The group met in space near Yanfeng Three, where Qingning described his chosen world and asked about using Qu Jianlei’s breakthrough world for resources.
• Qingkong withdrew after reporting that Youjian was looking for Qu Jianlei, and Qingning hid before Youjian’s phantom appeared and asked where Qingkong was.

Elder Youjian confronted Qu Jianlei over his refusal to forgive the Longbow Fang Family, but Qu rejected his appeal and defended his right to seek justice. After Youjian warned him about his cooperation with Lingyun and departed, Qu wondered whether the elder himself had become muddled with age.

• Elder Youjian approached Qu Jianlei, noted his extraordinary age for an Out-of-Body Realm cultivator, and asked him to let the Longbow Fang Family's conflict end with Fang Qingyang's death.
• Qu Jianlei refused, arguing that Fang Qingyang had nearly obstructed his Dao Path and brought a calamity-bearer against him, so the Fang Family's karma with him remained unsettled.
• Elder Youjian criticized Qu's temper and raised Lingyun's gains from their cooperation, prompting Great Venerable Han Li to defend his own share in the other world's quota.
• Elder Youjian warned Qu to think twice before acting and dispersed, leaving Han Li, Qingning, and Jin Ge to discuss the trouble old ancestors could cause within great sects and families.
• Qu Jianlei asked what Houde Cultivators would do if Elder Youjian had also become muddled with age.

Qu Jianlei, Han Li, Qingkong, Qingning, and Jin Ge decided to evade Youjian by exploring another otherworld, and Min Ning agreed to keep their plans secret and guard Red Leaf Ridge. As the group fled the Lingyun Sect’s Heaven-Monitoring Mirror, they learned it could track even powerful cultivators and wondered why Youjian had drawn its attention.

• Qu Jianlei proposed exploiting Youjian’s enemies within the Lingyun Sect, but the group worried that their scheme might attract a Great Monarch.
• Qingkong proposed leaving for another otherworld, and Qu Jianlei and Han Li agreed rather than submit to Youjian’s coercion.
• The group met Min Ning, who refused to reveal their destination and agreed to guard Red Leaf Ridge for a reward.
• As the five True Venerables departed, the Heaven-Monitoring Mirror caught Min Ning’s phantom and demanded to know where they had gone.
• Han Li opened a path through space, and the five fled while Qingkong and Jin Ge explained that the Heaven-Monitoring Mirror could track even Spirit Severing Grand Lords.

Qu Jianlei and the other True Venerables tried to leave Lingyun, but the Heaven-Monitoring Mirror restrained them under orders and praised Qu Jianlei’s potential. Baiqiao appeared to confront them, and Qingkong accused him of sending Youjian to scheme against them.

• Qingkong explained that Youjian could not have driven the Heaven-Monitoring Mirror, leaving the group to wonder who had targeted them and why.
• The five True Venerables traveled to a remote void entrance and entered the void openly.
• The Heaven-Monitoring Mirror stopped the group, said it was acting under orders, and remarked on Qu Jianlei’s potential and strong protection.
• Baiqiao appeared, and Han Li challenged him while Qingkong accused him of having Youjian scheme against them.

Bai Qiao tried to keep Qu Jianlei, Han Li, and Qingning involved in Lingyun Sect’s internal conflict by offering major concessions on the terms for exploring another world. The negotiations ended with Bai Qiao asking Qu Jianlei to discuss his demands concerning the Fang Family.

• Bai Qiao explained that he wanted to restore order in Lingyun Sect and warned that leaving would help Youjian.
• Bai Qiao persuaded Qingning that searching for another world could take decades and pointed out that Qu Jianlei’s group had already found a promising one for Qingning’s Dao Companion.
• Qingkong apologized for staying with Lingyun Sect, leaving Qu Jianlei and Han Li as the two outsiders who could depart.
• Bai Qiao offered Lingyun Sect’s greatest concession on shares, and Han Li again demanded information about the gains of True Venerables; Bai Qiao said the sect was not opposed in principle.
• Qu Jianlei asked whether the concessions were meant only to stop them from leaving, and Bai Qiao raised Qu Jianlei’s demands concerning the Fang Family.

Qu Jianlei and his allies agreed with Baiqiao’s terms for pursuing the Fang Family, and Lingyun expelled the family from its sect grounds. Elder Youjian took the Fang Family to Zhanmeng No. 1 and publicly challenged Qu Jianlei to a True Venerate duel, which Qu Jianlei accepted as a chance to establish his authority.

• Baiqiao agreed to let Qu Jianlei pursue the Fang Family as a personal matter, and Han Li demanded that the Fang Family be expelled from Lingyun.
• Baiqiao arranged for the Fang Family to be driven out, while Qingning pledged to protect Qu Jianlei and Qingkong refused to get involved.
• A month later, Lingyun announced that it had expelled outsiders to prepare for war, and the Fang Family went to Zhanmeng No. 1 with Elder Youjian.
• Youjian brought the Fang Family to his old friend Xuan Yi and publicized that he would protect them, framing the dispute as a contained duel against Qu Jianlei.
• After hearing about the proposed public battle, Qu Jianlei accepted it as a chance to establish his authority as a newly advanced True Venerate.

Qu Jianlei confronted Elder Youjian over the Fang Family, while True Venerable Xuan Yi offered to take three attacks in the family’s defense. The two sides moved far from Zhanmeng, and Qu Jianlei prepared to test Xuan Yi’s formidable defenses.

• Jin Ge volunteered to deliver Qu Jianlei’s challenge so Qingning’s origins would not become an issue.
• News spread that Qu Jianlei would meet Elder Youjian over the Longbow Fang Family, drawing support teams and True Venerable observers.
• Han Li revealed that the Fang Family had nearly caused Qu Jianlei to fail during his breakthrough, while Qingning declared that he had karma with the matter.
• Qu Jianlei asked Elder Youjian to settle the matter one-on-one, but Xuan Yi offered to endure three attacks before stepping aside.
• Qu Jianlei moved the confrontation ten million kilometers from Zhanmeng and accepted Xuan Yi’s offer.
• Qu Jianlei and Xuan Yi took their positions as the other True Venerables raised defenses, and yellow light spread around Xuan Yi.

Qu Jianlei challenged True Venerable Xuan Yi to withstand three attacks, and Xuan Yi formed a powerful defensive field from the Primordial Load-Bearing Divine Ability. Qu Jianlei’s repaired Broken Blade struck once without breaking through, and Xuan Yi’s taunt provoked the saber as Qu Jianlei tried to recall it.

• True Venerable Xuan Yi expanded his Primordial Load-Bearing Divine Ability into a compact defensive field, astonishing the watching True Venerables.
• Qu Jianlei brought out Broken Blade, and the observers noted that the recently repaired Divine Weapon had not yet been fully Warm Nurtured.
• Broken Blade grew to more than fifteen hundred kilometers long and slashed at Xuan Yi’s yellow field, which shook but soon stabilized.
• Xuan Yi praised the saber, then suggested its wounds made it too weak to threaten him, prompting Han Li and the hidden observers to suspect he wanted to provoke another strike.
• Broken Blade bristled at Xuan Yi’s contempt and refused Qu Jianlei’s attempt to recall it, despite Qu Jianlei’s repeated warnings.

Qu Jianlei faced True Venerable Xuan Yi in a three-strike duel to settle their karma, while both used verbal tactics and Xuan Yi prepared a defensive treasure. Qu Jianlei opened his left eye and unleashed a strange power that Elder Youjian identified as a time divine ability, sending the True Venerables fleeing.

• Qu Jianlei recalled Broken Blade after it resisted his summons, then challenged True Venerable Xuan Yi over his tactics and asked whether he had a defensive Spirit Treasure.
• True Venerable Xuan Yi concealed a protective object and declared that two strikes remained as Qu Jianlei prepared another attack.
• Qu Jianlei enlarged his Dharma Body, and he and Xuan Yi traded taunts about their abilities and control.
• Qu Jianlei opened his left eye, prompting Han Li to retreat with True Venerable Qingning and Xuan Yi to activate a jeweled canopy.
• The True Venerables fled from the eye's strange power, and Elder Youjian warned Xuan Yi that it was a time divine ability.

Elder Youjian recognized Qu Jianlei’s glance as the Years Time Divine Ability and urgently warned Xuan Yi to flee. Xuan Yi, however, remained trapped by his incomplete Load-Bearing Field and decided he had to face the attack.

• Elder Youjian realized Qu Jianlei had unleashed the Years Divine Ability and regretted getting involved in the fight.
• Elder Youjian retreated and tried to warn Xuan Yi that the attack could consume his remaining lifespan.
• Xuan Yi doubted that Qu Jianlei could wield a true Time Divine Ability and prepared to test his defenses with the Five-Direction Cloud Brocade Canopy.
• Xuan Yi realized his Load-Bearing Field’s broad coverage made escape difficult and that withdrawing it could leave him open to another strike.
• Xuan Yi decided he had to withstand Qu Jianlei’s glance rather than retreat and risk appearing to concede defeat.

Qu Jianlei’s unstable Years Divine Ability overwhelmed True Venerable Xuan Yi, who escaped through a spatial rift, and frightened the watching True Venerables. Qu Jianlei then challenged Elder Youjian, who hesitated as Qu explained that his gaze could manipulate years but was still immature.

• Qu Jianlei’s gaze pierced True Venerable Xuan Yi’s defenses and rapidly drained his vitality, energy, and thoughts, forcing him to surrender and flee through a spatial rift.
• True Venerable Qingning and the others recognized Qu Jianlei’s gaze as a Time Divine Ability, while Baiqiao observed that Xuan Yi had tried to beg for mercy.
• True Venerable Song fled from Qu Jianlei’s gaze, then returned after he said the divine ability had stopped.
• Qu Jianlei called Elder Youjian to face him, but Youjian looked to True Venerable Song for help and she refused to intervene.
• Qu Jianlei shrank to around fifty kilometers tall, assured Youjian he would respect his seniors, and described his gaze as a Years Divine Ability that he had not yet mastered.

Qu Jianlei demonstrated that his Years Divine Ability could affect anyone in his line of sight, frightening Elder Youjian into withdrawing from the conflict. Youjian offered a Guardian Rule to settle the dispute, while True Venerable Song agreed to deal with the Fang Family remnants.

• Qu Jianlei explained that wherever his gaze reached, all became years, and the other True Venerables recognized the danger of his ability.
• Elder Youjian withdrew from the fight, but Qu Jianlei warned him that using the divine ability carried a price, prompting concern and speculation among the observers.
• Youjian offered Qu Jianlei one Guardian Rule as an apology, and Qu Jianlei accepted it while warning him against probing Red Leaf Ridge again.
• Qu Jianlei asked Youjian to handle the Fang Family remnants, and Youjian passed the task to True Venerable Song.
• True Venerable Song agreed to take responsibility for the Fang Family matter, while the others joked about her friendship with Han Li.

Qu Jianlei ended the battle by settling matters with Xuan Yi and Elder Youjian, then discussed the aftermath with the other True Venerables. As the group prepared to travel to another world, Tianli revealed that he wanted help dealing with the long-lived True Venerable nicknamed Pixiu.

• Xuan Yi returned to the battlefield, withdrew the Warship, and argued with Qu Jianlei over how much lifespan Qu Jianlei’s Years Divine Ability had cost him.
• Xuan Yi accepted that the battle’s karma was settled, while Qu Jianlei decided to watch for any lingering malice from him.
• True Venerable Song asked Han Li how to deal with the Fang Family, and Song agreed to spare one or two collateral branches while punishing those deeply involved.
• Qu Jianlei told Elder Youjian and Xuan Yi to deliver a Guardian Rule to Yanfeng Three within a month, and the two True Venerables departed.
• Tianli asked when the group would travel to the other world, then complained that Pixiu kept exploiting his approaching death to grab benefits.

After Qu Jianlei defeated the aging True Venerable Pixiu, Baiqiao said the battle had settled Lingyun Sect’s internal struggle and privately negotiated with Qu Jianlei about using his Years Divine Ability. The shield came down with Qu Jianlei sighing that Bai Qiao was bullying him because he was poor.

• Qu Jianlei condemned Pixiu’s ruthless conduct, and True Venerable Tianli asked him what it would cost to deal with the old man.
• Baiqiao appeared and told Qu Jianlei that his victory and early display of the Years Divine Ability had strengthened Lingyun Sect’s position.
• Baiqiao said the overall situation within Lingyun Sect had been decided and noted that many True Venerables were aligned with the sect.
• Baiqiao asked Qu Jianlei to discuss the severe side effects of Years privately, while Qu Jianlei warned that his help would not come cheap.
• The True Venerables outside the shield speculated about the negotiation, and it ended with Qu Jianlei lamenting that Bai Qiao was bullying him for being poor.

Qu Jianlei agreed to help Tianli confront Pixiu over a spirit plant plain, accepting a strand of Sword Intent and another favor as payment. Tianli explained that Qu Jianlei’s reputation might be enough to frighten Pixiu, but Qu Jianlei warned that using Years could make the battle difficult to control.

• Baiqiao gave Qu Jianlei three months before he would return, and Qu Jianlei agreed to accept Tianli’s Sword Intent and another favor in exchange for using Years.
• After a month, Tianli brought Qu Jianlei an old, nearly exhausted strand of Sword Intent and a reason to act against Pixiu, who was trying to seize a spirit plant plain.
• Tianli’s subordinates arranged to buy half of the spirit plant clan’s shares in the plain, preserving the clan’s stake while preparing to challenge Pixiu.
• Qu Jianlei said that Pixiu’s previous forced acquisitions should be returned after the battle, and Tianli offered him any additional compensation.
• Qu Jianlei asked whether they needed to hold back, warning that he could not easily control the scale of Years; Tianli replied that his reputation might scare Pixiu into retreating.

True Venerable Tianli used a staged confrontation to capture more than a hundred of Tengxi's subordinates and warn Tengxi away from Rouzhao No. 5. Qu Jianlei and Han Li concealed their divination as Tengxi sensed a possible trap, then cautiously approached the sector to locate Tianli.

• Qu Jianlei summoned Han Li, and the three went to Rouzhao No. 5 so Tianli could stop Tengxi's people from forcing the purchase of the Spirit Plant Plain.
• Tianli's subordinates baited Tengxi's subordinates into questioning whether Tianli had authorized their actions, and Tianli seized more than a hundred of them, releasing only one Nascent Soul Realm cultivator to deliver his warning to Tengxi.
• Qu Jianlei and Han Li divined Tengxi's karma in the Sub-layer Space, taking turns concealing their activity, while Han Li filled the space with Divination Fog.
• Tengxi sensed the disturbance and divined the tangled causality surrounding Tianli, but decided to continue toward Rouzhao No. 5 with added caution.
• Tengxi secretly reached the sector, confirmed that Tianli had not publicly humiliated his captured subordinates, and began divining Tianli's location while preparing to retreat if necessary.

Tianli, Han Li, and Qu Jianlei cornered Tengxi after his divination made him hesitate to approach, then trapped his clone and attacked despite Tengxi agreeing to compensate them. The attack revealed Qu Jianlei’s Years Divine Ability could kill a True Venerable only after roughly one to three hundred years, leaving Tianli alarmed by their plan to study it further.

• Tengxi divined that Tianli was on the Rouzhao No. 5 sector, weighed the risk of an ambush, and decided to withdraw.
• Tianli appeared before Tengxi and revealed that Han Li and Qu Jianlei had blocked his escape.
• Tengxi recognized Qu Jianlei, agreed to name compensation, and offered to end his feud with Tianli.
• Qu Jianlei opened his left eye while Han Li intensified his Cold Qi Domain, trapping Tengxi’s clone in a formation and attacking him.
• Han Li asked Qu Jianlei how long his Years Divine Ability would take to kill Tengxi, and Qu Jianlei estimated one hundred to three hundred years.

Han Li, Qingkong, and Qu Jianlei dealt with the mysterious being that had appeared as Tengxi, while Tianli tried to understand what had happened. The three True Venerables then went to Yanfeng Three, where Qu Jianlei explained that he had acted to support Baiqiao’s plans to reorganize Lingyun Sect.

• The dark-blue figure threatened Han Li and Qu Jianlei before it burst apart, and Butterfly absorbed some of its traits while Han Li slowed its fragments.
• Qingkong said the figure’s true self could not hide, and Han Li took the exhausted Qu Jianlei away with him and Qingkong.
• Tianli told the sector’s guardian that he had driven off Tengxi, but the guardian doubted his account and warned him not to fight in Rouzhao No. 5.
• Han Li, Qingkong, and Qu Jianlei went to Min Ning’s spiritual land on Yanfeng Three instead of returning to Jiuyou Island.
• Qu Jianlei admitted he had decided to kill the impostor for his own reasons, while Han Li explained that Baiqiao wanted the Years Divine Ability as a deterrent against Lingyun Sect’s entrenched factions.
• Qu Jianlei recalled that Baiqiao had offered him unconditional material support in exchange for helping establish authority within Lingyun.