Chapter Summaries

Qu Jianlei and the others prepared to replace the World Piercing Shuttle as the grand array’s Suppressant Artifact, choosing the Broken Blade despite its resistance and the danger of backlash. The Broken Blade pierced the array and redirected a surge of energy toward the already strained shuttle, which Qu Jianlei urged to endure a little longer.

• Jiao Daoren and Yi He determined that the World Piercing Shuttle had absorbed most of the grand array’s counterattack, though breaking the array would still be difficult.
• Qu Jianlei sensed that the World Piercing Shuttle could absorb no more energy and considered using the Broken Blade as a replacement.
• Jing Yuexin and Qinghu opposed having Qu Jianlei perform another divination and supported risking external possessions to protect him.
• Qu Jianlei released the Broken Blade and discovered that its baleful aura resisted the turbulent flow, but the blade resisted his attempts to control it.
• Qu Jianlei gripped the Broken Blade, fed it half his spiritual energy, and threw it toward the grand array.
• The Broken Blade plunged into the Light Orb, redirecting a surge of energy toward the World Piercing Shuttle, which began trembling as it neared its limit.

Qu Jianlei’s blackened World Piercing Shuttle returned after being tempered, while the Broken Blade absorbed the grand formation’s energy and eventually destroyed the Light Orb with one strike. The Broken Blade then reappeared beside Qu Jianlei and rejected his attempt to seal it.

• Qu Jianlei recalled the World Piercing Shuttle after it absorbed the Light Orb’s energy, revealing the Broken Blade in its place as the formation’s barrage weakened.
• The team advanced and waited as Jiao Daoren judged the formation close to breaking, while the Broken Blade’s baleful aura continued to grow.
• Qu Jianlei commanded the Broken Blade to break the array, and it cleaved the Light Orb apart before falling still.
• Qu Jianlei refused to call the Broken Blade again or pursue it, but it later appeared beside him as he passed.
• Qu Jianlei tried to seal the Broken Blade, and it clearly rejected the Seal talisman.

Qu Jianlei and his team searched a fog-shrouded formation for weeks before the Artifact Spirit detected an unusual area. Qinghu, Jing Yuexin, and the Paranoid charged inside, while Qu Jianlei ordered the rest of the team to hold back.

• Qu Jianlei sealed the Broken Blade again despite suspecting it had a blade spirit, then the team entered a fog-filled formation that crippled their visibility and sensing.
• Jiao Daoren advised the team to put away the Sub-Nest, and Qu Jianlei led them deeper into the fog in search of whoever was behind the formation.
• After wandering for over a month, Qu Jianlei assured Bai Jinhan that he could take the team out whenever they wanted, but they continued exploring.
• The Artifact Spirit sensed unusual fluctuations, and Qu Jianlei led the team to investigate the strange area.
• Qinghu charged into the area in a Battalion-Class Ship, followed by Jing Yuexin and the Paranoid, while Qu Jianlei forbade everyone else from following.

Qu Jianlei and his companions entered a hidden Small World, cautiously explored its human settlements, and discovered a society of cultivators preparing for war. The chapter left them wondering how brutal the conflict between the towns would become.

• Qu Jianlei led his companions through the Boundary Membrane into the Small World and landed near farmland after detecting people and spiritual energy.
• Qu Jianlei released several companions from the Abode, and the group agreed to investigate cautiously without contacting the natives at first.
• The group found seven towns, nearby villages, about one hundred thousand residents, and cultivators whose strongest practitioners were at Foundation Establishment Realm.
• Qu Jianlei proposed learning more before making contact, while Paranoid asked him to teach the group Divine Script and Qu Jianlei refused for now.
• After three days, Qu Jianlei and the others discovered that four towns were preparing for war, with two alliances forming and the remaining towns being courted.
• Jiao Daoren and Jing Yuexin discussed the causes of human conflict as the group wondered how brutal the fighting would be.

Qu Jianlei and his companions watched a brutal war engulf the Small World, then secretly abducted and soul-searched four wounded Qi Refining Realm fighters to learn why its people were fighting. They discovered that the natives were descendants of Cultivators trapped in a world whose spiritual energy was fading, while Jiao Daoren argued that a Great Expert’s formation there must have served a purpose beyond protecting them.

• Qu Jianlei and his companions watched village skirmishes escalate into a war involving tens of thousands, with more than ten thousand dead by the eleventh day.
• Paranoid suggested searching wounded people’s souls, and Qu Jianlei eventually agreed after seeing fighters return to battle with only basic treatment.
• Qu Jianlei and the others abducted four severely wounded Qi Refining Realm cultivators, but the captives attacked them and demanded that they help win the war.
• Qu Jianlei and his companions soul-searched all four captives and learned that their ancestors had been abandoned in the Small World, where spiritual energy was declining and rival families fought over resources.
• Jiao Daoren argued that an Out-of-Body Realm Great Expert would not have built a grand formation merely to shelter the Small World’s people.

The group chose to investigate the Xiong Family’s origins by capturing its Old Ancestor, Xiong Shimao, but Qu Jianlei’s divination warned that searching his soul would bring Mid-level Danger. As Paranoid and Yi He argued over who should do it, the group had yet to uncover the Small World’s secrets.

• Jiao Daoren proposed targeting the Xiong Family because its long history and Foundation Establishment cultivators suggested it held valuable inheritances.
• That night, Paranoid infiltrated Xiong Family Village, abducted Xiong Shimao, and brought him to a sealed stone cavern for questioning.
• Jiao Daoren told Xiong Shimao about the Cultivation World and asked who had created the Small World, but Xiong Shimao demanded to know who had abandoned them there.
• Qu Jianlei sensed serious karma around Xiong Shimao and divined that searching his soul would lead to Mid-level Danger.
• Paranoid volunteered to search Xiong Shimao’s soul, but Yi He insisted he would do it instead, questioning Paranoid’s skill.

Yi He’s soul search revealed the Xiong Clan’s exile, its hidden ancestral shrine, and the mystery behind its generations of Foundation Establishment cultivators. Convinced the shrine held the Small World’s greatest secret and the source of the divination’s danger, Qu Jianlei’s group chose to investigate it together.

• Yi He soul-searched the Xiong Clan’s descendant and learned the clan had been exiled to guard the Small World as atonement for its past.
• Qu Jianlei learned that the Xiong Clan’s ancestral shrine concealed a secret tied to Xiong Chumo and the clan’s recurring Foundation Establishment cultivators.
• The group realized Xiong Chumo’s legacy might involve power beyond the Small World’s limits and could carry grave karmic risks.
• Qu Jianlei offered to investigate the shrine alone, but Jiao Daoren, Yi He, and Jing Yuexin insisted on joining him.
• Qu Jianlei took Jing Yuexin’s hand, and Paranoid urged the group to go together and face the Great Expert behind the mystery.

Qu Jianlei and his team investigated Xiong Family Village’s ancestral hall and discovered a strange force inside Xiong Chumo’s memorial room. When Paranoid’s offering triggered a deadly chill and coercive pressure, Qu Jianlei released the Dao Stele, forcing the others into his Abode as the Stele’s aura clashed with the spreading Yin Cold Qi.

• Qu Jianlei’s team chose to investigate the Xiong family’s ancestral hall after Xiong Shimao disappeared without drawing a response from the village.
• The team entered Xiong Chumo’s private memorial room and sensed an isolation array and an unseen presence targeting them.
• Paranoid offered incense and Xiong Shimao’s blood, triggering supernatural cold and coercive pressure from the statue.
• Paranoid protected his soul with a talisman, which made the pressure stronger, so Qu Jianlei released the Dao Stele and its aura spread through the village.
• Qu Jianlei sent the others into his Abode while he and Sunset Glow stayed outside as the Dao Stele’s aura fought the spreading Yin Cold Qi.
• The clash alarmed Xiong Family Village, where villagers could not approach the ancestral hall and a child was reported unconscious.

Qu Jianlei uncovered evidence that Xiong Chumo and the Xiong family had ties to a Heavenly Demon, but the source of the Heavenly Devil Qi remained unknown. After killing a contaminated Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator, the group realized the corruption extended beyond the family and prepared to form an exorcising formation.

• Qu Jianlei demolished the Xiong ancestral shrine and excavated Xiong Chumo's grave, finding Heavenly Devil Qi on the coffin and corpse.
• Qu Jianlei, Ruler, Sunset Glow, and Jiao Daoren discussed the spreading aura and prepared to use the Three Powers Exorcising Formation.
• Qu Jianlei sealed away the Dao Stele, and the group found that the surrounding cold aura had weakened.
• A Foundation Establishment Realm Xiong family cultivator attacked the group, and Qu Jianlei killed him after Yi He revealed he was contaminated by Heavenly Devil Qi.
• Paranoid sensed that everyone in the area carried Heavenly Devil Qi, and Little Snake warned that the contamination affected more than the Xiong family.

Qu Jianlei and his team discovered that Heavenly Devil Qi had contaminated the entire Small World and watched its inhabitants descend into madness. They used Cloud Crown to collect nearly everyone, leaving one Qi Refining cultivator before Qu Jianlei appeared before him.

• Paranoid and Qu Jianlei sensed Heavenly Devil Qi throughout the Small World, and the team decided to stay together and observe its effects.
• After two days, the world's people had descended into chaos, and a cultivator reached the Golden Core Realm by devouring others; later, a spirit beast also advanced.
• Qu Jianlei ordered Jing Yuexin to use Cloud Crown, which covered the Small World and began taking in humans and spirit beasts to filter away the contamination.
• After a day and a night, only one Qi Refining cultivator and several thousand small wild beasts remained outside Cloud Crown.
• Qu Jianlei appeared before the lone cultivator, who said, "Xiong Family, Qu Family..."

Qu Jianlei questioned Qu Shitong, the sole survivor of a Small World devastated by Heavenly Devil Qi, and learned that an ancestral Jade Pendant had protected him. Qu Shitong discovered that Xiong Chumo had caused the disaster, while Qu Jianlei prepared to trace the source of Xiong Chumo’s inheritance through the Qu Family’s ancestral shrine.

• Qu Jianlei found Qu Shitong, the only remaining Qi Refining cultivator, and questioned him about the six days of mutations and slaughter.
• Qu Jianlei explained that Heavenly Devil Qi had invaded the Small World, and Qu Shitong revealed that his ancestral Jade Pendant had repeatedly restored his clarity.
• Qu Jianlei told Qu Shitong that someone from the Xiong Clan had colluded with Heavenly Demons and pressed him for information about the family’s history.
• Qu Jianlei’s questions led Qu Shitong to learn that Xiong Chumo had caused the disaster, leaving him furious at the main branch of the Xiong Clan.
• Qu Jianlei said Xiong Chumo’s corpse bore traces of Heavenly Devil Qi and announced that he would investigate the source of Xiong Chumo’s inheritance, alarming Qu Shitong because the trail could lead to the Qu Family’s ancestral shrine.

Qu Jianlei and the others uncovered records in the Xiong Clan Progenitor's Grave revealing that the Small World sealed a weak point to the Heavenly Demon World. Worried the seal might have been compromised, they decided to investigate further by digging up graves belonging to the Qu Family branch.

• Qu Jianlei shattered the Defense Array around the Xiong Clan Progenitor's Grave, and the group discovered and disabled a Self-Destruct Device in its Underground Cave.
• Qu Jianlei and the others read records explaining how Cultivators had sealed a weak point to the Heavenly Demon World with the Small World and assigned the Xiong Clan to guard it.
• Qu Shitong praised his progenitor's diligence, while Qu Jianlei and the others worried that the Heavenly Demon World had infiltrated the area and discussed why the World Piercing Shuttle and Broken Blade had reacted.
• Qu Jianlei decided that the group should keep digging up graves, and they turned from the Xiong Clan burial grounds to those of the Qu Family branch.
• Paranoid dug up forty or fifty Qu Family graves without finding anything, and Jing Yuexin suggested collecting cultivation techniques instead.

Qu Jianlei and his companions searched the Small World for Heavenly Demons, discovered that contaminated spirit liquid had spread Heavenly Devil Qi, and began collecting it from a hidden underground Qi Eye. The Qi Eye continued releasing it without end, and Qu Jianlei's divination left him pale and coughing blood.

• Qu Jianlei sent his companions to search the local families, and they found a spirit-liquid production method that could improve their own refining techniques.
• The Cloud Crown refined contaminated spirit beasts and cultivators, while the team searched the Small World for the source of the Heavenly Devil Qi.
• Qu Jianlei divined that a hidden Heavenly Devil Qi Eye lay deep underground near the Tang Family's Spirit Liquid Pool, and he excavated to reach it.
• Jing Yuexin collected and refined the Qi Eye's endless output, but the surge worsened the suffering of contaminated cultivators inside the Cloud Crown.
• After ten days of relentless collection, Qu Jianlei used the seashell and Turtle Shell for a divination, then spat out blood.

Qu Jianlei and his companions used the Broken Blade to destroy the Small World’s Qi Eye and stop the Heavenly Devil Qi from gathering. With more hidden corruption potentially remaining, they debated whether to leave the Small World untouched and cut off their connection to its karma.

• Jiao Daoren killed Qu Shitong after the cultivator overheard the group speaking in the Empire’s language, and the companions agreed that his ties and potential luck made him a threat.
• Qu Jianlei revealed that his divination showed the Broken Blade was needed to sever the Heavenly Devil Qi, while the Artifact Spirit offered to lend him power in exchange for spirit stones.
• After Qu Jianlei recovered, he used the Broken Blade against the underground Qi Eye, and it vanished as the blade’s strike disturbed space.
• Qinghu resumed gathering the Heavenly Devil Qi and cleared the area, but Qu Jianlei warned that corruption could still be hidden throughout the Small World.
• The group discussed whether to claim the Small World, but Qu Jianlei refused to bear the karma attached to it, and the Artifact Spirit urged him to divine a way to sever their connection.

Qu Jianlei and his companions used the Black Small Cauldron to purge Heavenly Devil Qi from the Small World and outer space, taking turns for more than two months. Exhausted but concerned that more contamination remained, Qu Jianlei asked the others whether they were sure they had cleared it all.

• Jing Yuexin urged Qu Jianlei to divine again, and he used the seashell before bringing out the Black Small Cauldron.
• Qu Jianlei explained that the Small Cauldron could refine Heavenly Devil Qi but required everyone to contribute spiritual energy; after he spoke carelessly about it, he spat out blood.
• Paranoid began controlling the Small Cauldron, and the team sensed faint Yin Cold Qi gathering toward it as he struggled to refine the contamination.
• Paranoid, Qinghu, Jing Yuexin, Jiao Daoren, Qu Jianlei, and Sunset Glow took turns for fifteen days and cleared the Heavenly Devil Qi from the Small World.
• Qu Jianlei warned that Heavenly Devil Qi might remain outside the Small World, so the team continued refining it in outer space for another two months.
• After the six cultivators were drained by the effort, Qu Jianlei asked Jiao Daoren, Yi He, Sunset Glow, and the others whether any Heavenly Devil Qi remained.

After recovering from their expedition, Qu Jianlei's group left the Small World and returned to Dawn Base, where they learned that You You had survived her tribulation and advanced to Supreme. Qu Jianlei later returned to the Federation to recuperate, while Giant Axe Carving Flowers questioned the other Supremes about their expedition and Qu Jianlei prepared to use the World Piercing Shuttle.

• The Artifact Spirit inspected Qu Jianlei's group for Demonic Qi, and Qu Jianlei's divination confirmed there were no remaining Heavenly Devil Qi eyes.
• Jing Yuexin compensated Bai Jinhan and the other two Supremes with spirit stones and warned them about the spiritual-body Alien Race and the weak point in the Space Barrier.
• Qu Jianlei's group returned to Dawn Base after nearly a year away and learned that You You had advanced to Supreme but was still recovering from her tribulation.
• Qu Jianlei teleported to the Federation to recuperate, while Giant Axe Carving Flowers visited Bai Jinhan, Ironhide Snake, and Nelson to ask about their expedition.
• After recovering at Black Colt Tower, Qu Jianlei emerged alone and took out the World Piercing Shuttle, the Seashell, and the Turtle Shell.

Qu Jianlei discovered that the World Piercing Shuttle had gained durability but carried Heavenly Devil aura that could reveal its location, so he and Jing Yuexin planned to lead any danger into another world. After two months of preparation, the team arrived in Apollo and found signs that the Federation’s advance against the Asura might be suspicious; they teleported into the Link Nebula and spotted what appeared to be a Federation stealth vessel.

• Qu Jianlei divined that the World Piercing Shuttle’s durability had increased, but it had been tainted by Heavenly Devil aura that could let powerful Heavenly Devils track it.
• Jing Yuexin and Qu Jianlei agreed to take the shuttle to another world to divert any threat, and Jing Yuexin urged him to recuperate rather than perform more divinations.
• Half a month later, Jing Yuexin brought the requested materials and reported that the team supported the plan; after two months, the members gathered and chose Apollo as their destination.
• Hua Xiezhi and Yuanyuan learned that the Federation had recovered territory from the Asura, but Old Lady Jia suspected the reported advance might be a trap.
• Qu Jianlei led the team to teleport into the depths of the Link Nebula, where Jia Shuiqing asked whether a nearby vessel was a Federation stealth vessel.

Qu Jianlei and his companions watched a hidden Federation operation near the Asura Channel Entrance, deciding to wait no longer than a month before leaving. On the final day, three concealed starships launched and one self-destructed, revealing a Mobile Palace built with stacked Warp Jammers and prompting Qu Jianlei to wonder whether the Federation had borrowed their ideas again.

• Qu Jianlei and his companions discovered five tiny, concealed starships hidden in a meteor near the Asura Channel Entrance and debated what the Federation was planning.
• The group agreed to destroy their Teleportation Array and leave within a month, but stayed to observe the unusual operation.
• Three Mother Nests appeared over the following days, and Qu Jianlei ordered everyone into the Abode when three hidden starships suddenly accelerated away.
• Qu Jianlei and Sunset Glow escaped the meteor, but one starship self-destructed nearby, sending violent Space Ripples through the area.
• Sunset Glow identified the vessel as a Mobile Palace, and Qu Jianlei recognized its stacked Warp Jammers as a failed cost-cutting experiment of his own before wondering if the Federation had borrowed the design.

Qu Jianlei and his team watched the Federation imitate the Flawed Portable Abode’s spatial attacks, then saw the Federation’s larger ambush unfold against the Asura. After the Federation committed Supremes to close combat, Qu Jianlei chose to leave, while Jia Shuiqing noted that the battle could make another infiltration easier.

• The Federation used three starships to trigger weak spatial explosions and sent Division Level Ships to attack the Asura Nests while Qu Jianlei and his team watched from the Abode.
• Qu Jianlei and Sunset Glow discovered that the Meteor they had left had exploded with a much stronger spatial burst, likely disrupting Asura teleportation for several days.
• After three Mother Nests reached the battlefield, the Federation deployed five Division Level Ships and used numerous lightly crewed or unmanned Small Ships in the fighting.
• Federation warriors, including dozens of Supremes, emerged from their ships to fight the Asura in close combat.
• Qu Jianlei declined to join the battle or investigate the Federation’s spatial artifacts, and he told the Artifact Spirit to notify the team that they were leaving.
• Jia Shuiqing observed that the battle would draw the Asura’s attention and make it easier for the team to infiltrate again.

Qu Jianlei’s group traveled through the Asura Frontline and encountered a civil war involving Great Strength Tribe nests. Great Hammer sent Seven Hands to investigate, while Qu Jianlei stayed out of the fighting and continued on after a Royal Clan-style Secondary Nest ended it.

• Qu Jianlei’s group avoided the battlefield after spatial-energy waves erupted, then evaded questions from Qing Chuan Tribe nests by revealing Great Hammer.
• Great Hammer recognized a Great Strength Sub-Nest, but stayed silent when Qinghu asked whether it could persuade the tribe to help them enter the Asura World.
• Qu Jianlei tried to change course after spotting several Grandchild Nests fighting, but sent Seven Hands to investigate when Great Hammer pointed out that two Great Strength nests were involved.
• Seven Hands entered the battle in an Outpost Nest, fought off attackers, and observed the Great Strength nests while Qu Jianlei’s group remained uninvolved.
• A Royal Clan-style Secondary Nest ordered the fighting to stop, and many Outpost Nests fled before Qu Jianlei’s group departed.