Recaps

Star Palace and the Book Pavilion gathered students at Red Leaf Ridge to learn warship operations, while Wuchen discovered their cooperation and threatened to inform Bitter Sea. In Dongsheng, Hua Xiezhi trained more than two thousand cultivators and selected a group of promising students known as the “Red Leaf Ridge Select.”

• Qu Jianlei secured Jiang Hui and Jade Forest Matron’s agreement not to covet Red Leaf Ridge’s teleportation technology before they traveled to Great Leaf City to gather students.
• Star Palace and the Book Pavilion assembled one thousand cultivators in Great Leaf City, while Huo Jiujian quietly prepared another two hundred to study warships.
• Wuchen confronted the arriving group at the City Lord’s Mansion, questioned Jiang Hui about the factions’ cooperation, and said he would inform his Martial Uncle in Bitter Sea.
• The students traveled to Dongsheng, where more than a thousand local cultivators joined them to learn warship operations beside Yin Ridge.
• Hua Xiezhi taught the basics to more than two thousand cultivators, then chose forty or fifty capable students to help monitor practice and earned them the name “Red Leaf Ridge Select.”

Hua Xiezhi and Qu Jianlei discussed how Star Palace could transport its newly acquired warships back to Central Province without alerting the Heavenly Demons. Qu Jianlei agreed to deliver them for free, and Jiang Hui offered him the rare chance to pay respects to Star Palace’s Great Venerable Immortal Molt.

• Hua Xiezhi told the selected disciples they would fly the warships back to Central Province themselves, despite the risks of the ocean crossing.
• Jiang Hui explained that Star Palace’s Abode was bound to an earth vein and could not be used to transport the warships.
• Qu Jianlei guessed that the earth vein contained the Immortal Molt of a Great Venerable, and Jiang Hui confirmed it.
• Qu Jianlei asked to pay respects to the Immortal Molt, but dropped the request when Jiang Hui explained it was an ancestor of Star Palace.
• Qu Jianlei agreed to deliver the warships free of charge, and Jiang Hui offered him the opportunity to pay respects to the Immortal Molt.

Jiang Hui explained how cultivators could seek admission to the upper realm, and Qu Jianlei later agreed to sell Team Talismans to Dongsheng factions by lottery. The Art Academy and Bitter Sea sent a delegation to Red Leaf Ridge to buy Team Talismans and Mortal Warships, but negotiations stalled over the required Rule Item; Jade Forest Matron then arrived.

• Jiang Hui explained that the upper realm received information through channels maintained by One Palace Four Sages Mountain and generally opened the Ascension Platform once every hundred years, while Qu Jianlei asked whether he could observe it from afar.
• Jing Yuexin said she trusted Jiang Hui because Jiang Hui had spent over a month improving the Soul Suppressing Bell, and Qu Jianlei went to Yellow Earth Ridge to return trained Central Province cultivators and their Mortal Warships.
• After returning to Red Leaf Ridge, Qu Jianlei agreed to sell Team Talismans to Dongsheng factions by lottery, since he alone could make the Identification Talismans.
• More than ten days later, six Nascent Soul Realm cultivators from the Art Academy and Bitter Sea arrived to purchase Team Talismans and Mortal Warships while Qu Jianlei was in seclusion.
• Jing Yuexin demanded a Rule Item as the entry fee for bulk purchases, prompting objections from the visitors; she said Star Palace and Book Pavilion had already paid, and Elder Beihai stopped arguing when Jade Forest Matron arrived.

Jing Yuexin negotiated with the Art Academy and Bitter Sea over buying Red Leaf Ridge’s mundane goods, requiring Rule Items as the full-access threshold. The two factions left with only half their quotas and later hesitated to honor their promises, while the Dao Palace learned of Red Leaf Ridge and focused on investigating the Heavenly Demons.

• Jade Forest Matron revealed that the Book Pavilion and Star Palace had each offered a Rule Item, and clarified that the Book Pavilion had also added an Earth Origin Embryo.
• Jing Yuexin asked the Art Academy and Bitter Sea to provide Rule Items, and Elder Beihai and the Bitter Sea representatives agreed to press their factions without guaranteeing success.
• Jing Yuexin let the two factions buy half their supplies without paying Rule Items, but denied their requests to use Red Leaf Ridge’s Teleportation Array or receive training there.
• The six visitors hired guides in Dongsheng and crossed the sea aboard a Mortal Warship, while their factions’ higher-ups later balked at spending Rule Items.
• The Dao Palace learned about Red Leaf Ridge and prioritized investigating the cause and workings of the Heavenly Demons.

The Dao Palace offered Red Leaf Ridge a dangerous lead in the Forgotten Peninsula in exchange for help investigating it and a Rule Item if the expedition found nothing. Red Leaf Ridge’s members disagreed over whether to cooperate, and Qu Jianlei and Jing Yuexin proposed seeking outside advice before deciding.

• Jing Yuexin agreed that Red Leaf Ridge would pursue the Dao Palace’s lead, with the terms that the Dao Palace would provide a Rule Item if the expedition found nothing and Red Leaf Ridge would receive first choice of any discoveries.
• Transformation Master Wen Yu revealed that the lead concerned a perilous site in the Forgotten Peninsula, where a previous Dao Palace team had suffered severe injuries but recovered valuable treasures.
• Duo Gan argued against cooperating because the Dao Palace planned to send its own Nascent Soul Realm cultivators, while Paranoid urged the team to act quickly and Mu Yu True Immortal supported Duo Gan.
• Qu Jianlei suggested consulting Jade Forest Matron, and Jing Yuexin proposed asking Jiang Hui about the Forgotten Peninsula.

Jing Yuexin consulted Jiang Hui about the Dao Palace’s proposed expedition to the Forgotten Peninsula, but news of a vast Heavenly Devil Domain in West Ox Embrace Province abruptly took priority. Jiang Hui called on the Star Palace to honor its promise to help, as the crisis threatened all of Cangwu.

• Jiang Hui advised Jing Yuexin that Sanjiang Commander was trustworthy but Wen Yu was unreliable, and warned that an expedition could draw away Red Leaf Ridge’s strongest cultivators before the Heavenly Demon invasion.
• Jing Yuexin questioned Wen Yu about the expedition’s schedule and asked to speak with the commander, but Wen Yu refused and said only Ridge Lord Qu could meet him.
• Qi Ya told Jing Yuexin that a large Heavenly Devil Domain had formed, and Jing Yuexin and Wen Yu rushed to Jiang Hui’s Mobile Palace.
• Jiang Hui told them that part of West Ox Embrace Province had fallen into a Heavenly Devil Domain, prompting Jing Yuexin to demand answers about the deaths and delayed warning.
• Jiang Hui asked Jing Yuexin to fulfill the Star Palace’s promise of Three Shots, and warned that the crisis had to be resolved before it endangered all of Cangwu.

Jing Yuexin and Red Leaf Ridge’s forces mobilized to rescue Survivors trapped in the Heavenly Devil Domain in West Ox Embrace Province. At Seaside Port, Qu Jianlei examined the contaminated Nascent Soul Realm cultivator who had escaped and found no immediate danger, though Star Palace remained cautious.

• Jing Yuexin and Qi Ya returned to Red Leaf Ridge, whose mountain gate was closed as its forces prepared to leave for the rescue.
• Hua Xiezhi told Transformation Master Wen Yu that the team’s promised trades would continue, but Red Leaf Ridge’s Teleportation Array was unavailable, leaving Star Palace unsure how to return.
• Red Leaf Ridge gathered its forces and teleported Jiang Hui and the others to Central Province, where Jiang Hui organized the response to the crisis.
• Star Palace explained that West Ox Embrace Province had concealed its worsening Heavenly Demon invasion until one Nascent Soul Realm cultivator escaped five days earlier.
• West Ge Province brought the escaped cultivator to Seaside Port under restrictions, and Qu Jianlei divined that he posed no immediate danger.

Jiang Hui gathered the factions to prepare an assault on the Heavenly Devil Domain in West Ox Embrace Province, with Red Leaf Ridge assigned as the main force. After the fleet found no weakness in the domain, Qu Jianlei ordered a concentrated bombardment while warning the others to keep their distance.

• Qu Jianlei reassured Jiang Hui that his divinations showed no sign of an Out-of-Body Heavenly Demon, while declining to treat an injured Nascent Soul cultivator because Star Palace could handle it.
• The Book Pavilion, Bitter Sea, Art Academy, and Dao Palace teams arrived, and Jiang Hui said Red Leaf Ridge would lead the mission while the other factions supported it and gained experience.
• Dao Palace objected to its secondary role and resented the interruption of negotiations, but Jiang Hui explained the situation and the group eventually set aside its complaints.
• The assembled fleet reached West Ox Embrace Province and confirmed that a transparent barrier protected the vast Heavenly Devil Domain.
• After three days of probing revealed no weak points or attacks from within, Qu Jianlei ordered the Demon Subduing Formation set up and three Battalion-Class Ships to bombard one point, while the other forces withdrew to safety.
• The bombardment continued for five days without changing the barrier, and Qu Jianlei told his teammates to focus on guarding against Heavenly Demons breaking out to attack the fleet.

Red Leaf Ridge continued its measured assault on the Heavenly Devil Domain while Qu Jianlei explained that the battle was meant to test the enemy and exhaust its Demonic Qi. Jade Forest Matron arrived aboard a warship through Red Leaf Ridge’s unusual moving teleportation, and she asked to see Broken Blade as the team prepared for a long campaign.

• Scattered Heavenly Demons attacked the three Battalion-Class Ships, but Red Leaf Ridge intercepted them and added two more ships to the assault.
• Jiang Hui and Elder Beihai discussed whether to provide support and why Red Leaf Ridge had not used Broken Blade, before Jade Forest Matron interrupted their argument.
• Qu Jianlei brought Jade Forest Matron and Jing Yuexin to Red Leaf Ridge, where Jade Forest Matron's arrival revealed that the team could teleport aboard a moving warship.
• Jing Yuexin told the Dao Palace that negotiations were suspended and that its commander and transformation master could return by Flying Shuttle.
• Jing Yuexin said the drawn-out battle would test the Heavenly Demons and deplete their Demonic Qi, while Qu Jianlei set an initial three-month campaign.
• Paranoid suggested resting in the Gathering Spirit Array, and Jade Forest Matron asked Qu Jianlei to let her see Broken Blade.

Qu Jianlei and Jing Yuexin invited Red Leaf Ridge’s partners to observe Broken Blade, while excluding the Dao Palace amid unresolved negotiations. As the visitors studied the blade, Jiang Hui and the Art Academy discussed honoring their promises and supporting Qu Jianlei’s application to enter the upper realm.

• Qu Jianlei asked Jing Yuexin about letting their partners observe Broken Blade, and she agreed while limiting attendance to Soldier Cultivators and excluding the Dao Palace.
• Qu Jianlei obtained Broken Blade’s permission, and Jade Forest Matron invited eligible cultivators from the four major factions to observe it aboard a Battalion-Class Ship.
• Jade Forest Matron and Elder Beihai warned the observers not to contemplate Broken Blade’s Blade Intent beyond their ability, as it could damage their Dao Hearts.
• Jiang Hui asked Jing Yuexin whether she should remind the Art Academy and Bitter Sea to fulfill their promises, and Qu Jianlei cautioned her not to push their luck.
• After observing for five days, Elder Beihai told Jiang Hui that the Art Academy would provide clues about related treasures and support Qu Jianlei’s application to go to the upper realm.

Qu Jianlei’s divinations showed that the Heavenly Devil Domain was weakening but that a dangerous variable and incoming reinforcements threatened the assault. As the General Offensive began, Wind Forgotten and the last surviving Tree Race member appeared and attacked the domain with Space Cutting.

• Jiang Hui asked Qu Jianlei to open a second battlefield or contact the Survivors, but he refused and performed divinations instead.
• Qu Jianlei learned that the Heavenly Devil Domain was weakening, and Jiang Hui arranged for experts from the other factions to help with divinations.
• After a new divination revealed a variable, Qu Jianlei prepared for the General Offensive and warned his team that Heavenly Demons were likely approaching through the void.
• Jing Yuexin announced the General Offensive, and the observing cultivators dispersed to prepare.
• Wind Forgotten and the last surviving Tree Race member appeared at West Ox Embrace Province and unleashed Space Cutting attacks on the Heavenly Devil Domain.

Wind Forgotten and the other Tree Race member joined Red Leaf Ridge’s surprise general offensive, and Qu Jianlei’s Broken Blade shattered the Heavenly Devil Domain. The breach revealed an unusually solid domain and a subdued flow of Demonic Qi, prompting the Dao Palace’s scripture master to wonder whether the passage had already been completed.

• Jing Yuexin explained that the Tree Race members’ space-cutting attacks consumed tremendous energy as they repeatedly struck the Heavenly Devil Domain.
• Qu Jianlei confirmed the Heavenly Demons’ hostility toward the two trees and ordered Red Leaf Ridge to follow the original plan.
• Wind Forgotten and the other tree launched a fierce attack while Red Leaf Ridge and allied warships opened fire ahead of schedule, forcing cracks in the domain’s defenses.
• Qu Jianlei sent the Broken Blade into battle, and its enormous slash split the Heavenly Devil Domain apart.
• The allied warships encircled West Ox Embrace Province as little Demonic Qi and few Heavenly Demons escaped the shattered domain.
• The Dao Palace’s scripture master questioned whether the passage had already been completed after seeing the domain’s solid appearance.

Qu Jianlei and the assembled cultivators began clearing the Heavenly Devil Domain in West Ox Embrace Province, but solidified Demonic Qi Clusters concealed both Heavenly Demons and surviving cultivators. Qu Jianlei revealed the Small Tripod to speed the cleanup, and the chapter ended with it pulling in the Tree Race member as it begged to be saved.

• Qu Jianlei advised Jiang Hui to clear the devil domain from the perimeter while Broken Blade devoured its Demonic Qi.
• When Qu Jianlei prepared to use the Small Tripod, Broken Blade accelerated its devouring, and the surrounding Demonic Qi began to recede.
• The cultivators discovered stubborn, solidified Demonic Qi Clusters that hid Heavenly Demons and Defense Arrays containing living cultivators.
• Qu Jianlei summoned the Small Tripod, which absorbed Demonic Qi and dispersed the clusters quickly without harming the Defense Arrays.
• The Small Tripod began drawing in Wind Forgotten's smaller Tree Race companion, which cried out, “Save me, save me... I'll never dare again, never again.”

Qu Jianlei used the Small Tripod to rapidly absorb Heavenly Demon Qi across West Ox Embrace Province, revealing its powerful spatial abilities and leaving the Tree Race fleeing. As One Palace Four Sages Mountain rescued survivors and continued clearing the province, a Dao Palace shuttle arrived from Central Province and found the Heavenly Devil Domain gone.

• The Small Tripod stopped Tree Traitor's little brother from being pulled in, and Wind Forgotten fled as the Tree Race realized the treasure was dangerous.
• Jiang Hui learned that the Small Tripod had been strengthened by the Stone Jar and asked Jing Yuexin about its repair fluid.
• Cultivators trapped in a Defense Array emerged after their Devil Qi Cluster was destroyed, and One Palace Four Sages Mountain ordered rescued factions to inspect themselves for demonic corruption.
• The Small Tripod absorbed most of the province's Demonic Qi while warships and cultivators dealt with escaped Heavenly Demons.
• Qu Jianlei directed the Small Tripod to clear scattered Devil Qi Clusters before tackling the dense southwestern area, and a Dao Palace shuttle arrived to find the Heavenly Devil Domain missing.

Dao Palace arrived at West Ox Embrace Province and saw Red Leaf Ridge’s treasures at work against the Heavenly Devil Domain. After Broken Blade split the final Demonic Qi Cluster, Small Tripod unleashed a far stronger wave of power than expected, and the chapter left the cultivators facing a storm of Heavenly Demon wails.

• Dao Palace’s visitors arrived and learned that Red Leaf Ridge had already cleared most of the Demonic Qi, while Wen Yu tried to secure cooperation through Jing Yuexin.
• Qu Jianlei had Broken Blade slash the last Demonic Qi Cluster in two, and Small Tripod showed no sign of hostility toward it.
• Qu Jianlei recognized that Broken Blade and Small Tripod had different needs and could work together without competing over the Heavenly Devil Qi.
• Small Tripod sharply increased its suction, unleashing a world-shaking surge that threw the warships into chaos and darkened the sky.
• Countless Heavenly Demon wails battered the cultivators’ minds, and Jiang Hui asked Qu Jianlei whether Star Palace should counter with Sound Attacks.

Qu Jianlei and the other cultivators watched Small Tripod and Broken Blade hold back the Heavenly Demons until an Out-of-Body Heavenly Demon’s aura swept over the fleet. The aura vanished without an attack, leaving Jiang Hui and the others to conclude that the lesser Heavenly Demons had fallen silent out of fear.

• Qu Jianlei refused to send cultivators into the battle and told the others to keep watching as Small Tripod endured two days of divine-soul wails.
• The wails abruptly subsided, and Qu Jianlei, the Dao Palace steward, and Elder Beihai sensed an Out-of-Body Heavenly Demon approaching.
• The factions brought out powerful treasures, while Qu Jianlei tossed a piece of Out-of-Body flesh onto the deck as a possible deterrent.
• Jing Yuexin told Jiang Hui that worrying was useless, and Jade Forest Matron inferred that Red Leaf Ridge had killed an Out-of-Body expert before.
• The icy aura disappeared without an attack, and Jiang Hui and Jade Forest Matron reasoned that the weaker Heavenly Demons had been intimidated by their superior.

After the Heavenly Devil Qi was absorbed, the cultivators discovered a reinforced spatial weak point beneath West Ox Embrace Province and began clearing the island of Demon-Corrupted Humans. As stubborn Demonic Qi resurfaced in some survivors, Jiang Hui visited Red Leaf Ridge with an offer of a Rule Item in exchange for treatment.

• The Small Tripod absorbed all the Demonic Qi, revealing a reinforced spatial weak point about two kilometers beneath West Ox Embrace Province.
• Qu Jianlei said the passage should be observed before anyone sealed it, and warned Jiang Hui that the suspected Out-of-Body Heavenly Demon might be trying to demonize more cultivators.
• Jiang Hui recruited cultivators to clear Demon-Corrupted Humans by offering discounted land and priority purchase rights in West Ox Embrace Province.
• The cleanup lasted nearly a month, while the Five Great Factions also removed residual Demonic Qi and treated demonized cultivators.
• The Five Great Factions found that Demonic Qi returned in some treated survivors and planned to kill them after repeated cleansing failed.
• Jiang Hui told Red Leaf Ridge that someone offered a Rule Item in exchange for treatment.

Hall Master Jiang brought Gao Qingyang and his family's sealed Rule Item to Red Leaf Ridge, hoping Qu Jianlei could cure Gao Qingyang's Stubborn Devil Qi. After three days of divination, Qu Jianlei confirmed the treatment was possible but could only be performed once.

• Jiang Hui told Jing Yuexin that Gao Qingyang's family would trade a Rule Item, possibly involving time or space, for Red Leaf Ridge's help.
• Jing Yuexin fetched Qu Jianlei, who agreed to examine Gao Qingyang and the treasure before deciding whether treatment was possible.
• Gao Qingyang brought the sealed Stone Egg aboard the battleship, and Qu Jianlei inspected it, restored its Seal, and divined its nature.
• Qu Jianlei suffered backlash from his divination, so Jiang Hui agreed to wait aboard the battleship for three days.
• Qu Jianlei told Jiang Hui that Gao Qingyang could be treated, but only once; he said another Rule Item would make further treatment possible.

Qu Jianlei agreed to use a Rule Item to treat seventeen cultivators afflicted by Stubborn Devil Qi, explaining that the Cangwu Boundary Realm’s hostility toward Heavenly Demons had limited his divination backlash. Red Leaf Ridge began the treatment in a remote desert while outside observers watched from a distance, and the Broken Blade and Small Tripod rose as protection.

• Jiang Hui asked Qu Jianlei to treat the seventeen afflicted cultivators together, and he agreed to do so in an open area.
• Qu Jianlei explained that he believed an Out-of-Body Heavenly Demon was involved and that the Cangwu Boundary Realm’s favor had helped him withstand the backlash.
• Jade Forest Matron returned and asked about Four Sages Mountain, but Jing Yuexin and the others withheld further details about their Rule Item.
• News spread that Red Leaf Ridge would purge the Stubborn Devil Qi, and the team chose a remote desert where spectators had to remain beyond the surrounding mountains.
• Qu Jianlei, Jing Yuexin, and Duo Gan assembled with the seventeen cultivators as Nascent Soul observers watched from afar.
• The Broken Blade and Small Tripod rose into the air as protection, leading the Dao Palace Scripture Master to suspect that the threat really was Out-of-Body level.

Jing Yuexin and Red Leaf Ridge began using the Soul Calming Chapter and a concealed Seven Stars Battle Formation to counter the contingency of an Out-of-Body Heavenly Demon. The observers identified the formation as seven Golden Core Realm cultivators, while Qu Jianlei prepared a layered defense and relied on Tian Yin’s Light Attribute.

• Jing Yuexin summoned the Soul Suppressing Bell, whose chimes prompted Jiang Hui to recognize the Soul Calming Chapter as a defensive method for clearing and optimizing the environment.
• A white Light Art beam descended on the seventeen seated cultivators, and Sanjiang Commander and other observers noted its unusual purity despite its Nascent Soul Realm-level power.
• Bitter Sea’s leader identified the attack as coming from a Seven Stars Battle Formation formed by Golden Core Realm cultivators hidden inside the Battalion-Class Ship.
• Elder Beihai sensed that the formation used Alkaid, while his disciple warned him not to take risks against Red Leaf Ridge.
• Qu Jianlei used the Broken Blade and the Small Tripod to guard against an Out-of-Body Realm Split Soul, while Jing Yuexin’s bell protected the team’s divine souls.
• Qu Jianlei’s team planned to have the Soul Calming Chapter lead the attack before Tian Yin’s Light Therapy, though her cultivation limited the formation to Golden Core Realm strength.

Qu Jianlei and Red Leaf Ridge used the Seven Stars Battle Formation and the Cloud Crown to draw out and capture the Heavenly Demon imprints afflicting seventeen cultivators. After twelve imprints were collected, a Golden Core patient withdrew from treatment, apparently because he could no longer afford the cost.

• Tian Yin controlled the Po Jun position while Red Leaf Ridge treated the afflicted cultivators with repeated beams of Light Art.
• On the fifth day, a Golden Core patient suffered intense pain as his Demonic Qi began to emerge, and Elder Beihai recognized the imprint's attack on Tian Yin's Yao Guang position.
• Qu Jianlei's Cloud Crown, guided by the Little Snake, captured the imprint after a bolt of lightning stopped it, and Jiao Daoren said the treasure could handle more.
• The first patient left on the tenth day after recovering, and later imprints repeatedly rushed toward Tian Yin and were captured by the Cloud Crown.
• After twelve imprints had been collected over a month, the remaining Golden Core patient accepted Duo Gan's offer to withdraw from treatment, apparently because he could not afford more spirit stones.

The Red Leaf Ridge Team completed the treatment of the Stubborn Devil Qi patients, while Gao Qingyang worked to build goodwill with them after his recovery. Duo Gan then revealed that Red Leaf Ridge was preparing to cross the spatial passageway and investigate the Out-of-Body Heavenly Demon, though the passage might lead to the Heavenly Devil Realm.

• Gao Qingyang recovered from his Out of Body Imprint, confirmed that the earlier patients had been cured, and stayed nearby to help Red Leaf Ridge.
• The remaining Nascent Soul Realm cultivators received treatment, and Gao Qingyang offered to lend money to an independent cultivator who could not afford the fees.
• The last Nascent Soul Realm patient suffered a severe decline in cultivation, and Qu Jianlei identified it as an old injury before Red Leaf Ridge departed.
• Jiang Hui and Jade Forest Matron found Red Leaf Ridge's warship near the Channel Entrance and asked Duo Gan about the team's plans.
• Duo Gan told the two women that Red Leaf Ridge was considering entering the passageway to investigate the Out-of-Body Heavenly Demon, despite the risk that it led to the Heavenly Devil Realm.

Duo Gan told Jade Forest Matron and Jiang Hui that Red Leaf Ridge planned to enter a dangerous passage and hunt an Out-of-Body Heavenly Demon, prompting the Book Pavilion to offer an expedition force and Star Palace to consider support. As Red Leaf Ridge prepared to leave within months, the other factions worried about losing its protection and resources, and Sanjiang Commander went to visit Ridge Lord Qu.

• Duo Gan explained that Red Leaf Ridge would assess the risks of the enemy passage and hoped to depart in about three months, while declining new cooperation with the Dao Palace.
• Jade Forest Matron agreed to send Book Pavilion disciples on the expedition, while keeping the Book Pavilion's main force in Cangwu to resist the Heavenly Demons.
• Jiang Hui and Jade Forest Matron agreed that the Book Pavilion and Star Palace would protect those who remained after Red Leaf Ridge departed.
• Jiang Hui and Jade Forest Matron spread news of the planned expedition, worrying the other sacred mountains, especially the Dao Palace, which lacked Mortal Warships.
• Sanjiang Commander arrived beside Red Leaf Ridge's Battalion-Class Ship and requested a meeting with Ridge Lord Qu.

Qu Jianlei confronted Sanjiang Commander and Transformation Master Wen Yu as the Dao Palace sought to resume negotiations and offered him a rare Turtle Shell. The talks shifted to the Dao Palace guarding the Channel Entrance while Qu Jianlei traveled to the Forgotten Peninsula, but he questioned whether Sanjiang Commander could provide the treasure he wanted.

• Duo Gan refused to summon Ridge Lord Qu or Fairy Jing, but listened as Sanjiang Commander raised the unfinished negotiations and presented a ten-thousand-year Spiral Tortoise shell.
• Jiao Daoren criticized the shell as a poor divination tool, and Qu Jianlei appeared and demanded to know where it came from.
• Sanjiang Commander said the shell came from an upper-realm Small Grotto-heaven, and Qu Jianlei mocked his explanation and rejected Wen Yu's attempt to speak for the Dao Palace.
• Sanjiang Commander offered to guard Red Leaf Ridge's Channel Entrance while Qu Jianlei traveled to the Forgotten Peninsula for three to six months.
• Qu Jianlei agreed that he wanted to enhance his magic treasures but asked why Sanjiang Commander could not decide the matter of a single treasure.

Qu Jianlei’s group entered the Forgotten Peninsula and traveled to a mist-covered valley where spatial rules prevented Jiao Daoren from joining them. After the five entered the valley, they reached a dangerous forest of enormous trees, and Jing Yuexin wondered whether they could take some trees with them.

• Qu Jianlei agreed that the Dao Palace would transfer half the warships before the expedition, and the factions arranged to buy additional ships.
• The Dao Palace’s forces arrived, sealed the Channel Entrance temporarily, and took delivery of half the warships.
• Qu Jianlei, Jing Yuexin, Duo Gan, Wen Yu, and Guan Fei entered the Forgotten Peninsula and encountered increasingly powerful spirit beasts; Guan Fei trapped a large hive of venomous bees.
• After twelve days, the group reached a valley where spatial rules barred Jiao Daoren from entering, so Paranoid and Mu Yu stayed outside while the five proceeded inside.
• The five crossed the thick mist and reached a forest of towering trees, where Wen Yu warned that some trees ate people and Jing Yuexin asked if they could take some away.