Chapter Summaries

Qin Xuan exposed Hongjun’s manipulation of the path to sainthood, leaving cultivators shaken and Hongjun scrambling to defend himself. Hongjun and Heavenly Dao resolved to push the next calamity forward and bring humanity under Heavenly Dao’s control.

• Tongtian recalled how Hongjun had sent four Saints to threaten him when he attained sainthood, and thanked Qin Xuan for protecting him.
• Nüwa described how Hongjun had tried to drive her from the Primordial World after she created humanity, while cultivators on Buzhou Mountain feared their path to sainthood had a fixed endpoint.
• Qin Xuan’s words reached Hongjun in Zixiao Palace, where Hongjun angrily called them slander and defended the Three Corpses Technique and his control over the number of Saints.
• Hongjun told Heavenly Dao that the next calamity must quickly bring humanity under its jurisdiction and that Dijun and Taiyi’s deaths could provide Primordial Violet Qi for two new Heavenly Dao Sages.
• Hongjun proposed Nether River as a candidate for sainthood and said Qin Xuan’s revelations might drive Dijun and Taiyi back toward the Demon Court’s path of contention.
• When Heavenly Dao asked whether to stop Grand Supreme Laozi, Jieyin, and Zhunti from going to Buzhou Mountain, Hongjun refused, confident that their Primal Spirits remained under his control.

Qin Xuan gathered the Sages at Buzhou Mountain and revealed how Hongjun controlled them through the Heavenly Dao. He left them facing the possibility of freedom by declaring that he would slay Hongjun and replace the conscious Heavenly Dao.

• Grand Supreme Laozi, Jieyin, and Zhunti arrived at Buzhou Mountain and greeted Qin Xuan, Nüwa, and Tongtian.
• Qin Xuan sent the other gathered powers outside the mountain, where they left furious at Hongjun, while Queen Mother of the West stayed behind.
• Qin Xuan told the three Sages that Hongjun could control their entrusted Primordial Spirits and siphon their fortune through the Three Corpses Technique.
• Qin Xuan revealed that Hongjun's true form was an earthworm, and Nüwa confirmed it to Jieyin and Zhunti.
• Qin Xuan declared that he would slay whoever merged with the Dao if they acted selfishly and replace the Heavenly Dao if it remained conscious.

Qin Xuan pressed the Saints on Buzhou Mountain to join him in opposing Hongjun, and Tongtian and Grand Supreme Laozi agreed for different reasons. The chapter left Jieyin and Zhunti still undecided as Qin Xuan turned his attention toward persuading them.

• Tongtian swore to help Qin Xuan slay Hongjun, and Pangu's approval restored the fortune of Pangu's Orthodoxy to him.
• Nüwa offered to support Qin Xuan, but he said they were one and she did not need to swear an oath.
• Qin Xuan challenged Grand Supreme Laozi to oppose Hongjun, while Nüwa scolded him for remaining silent.
• Grand Supreme Laozi said he would not aid Hongjun, but Qin Xuan warned that neutrality would leave him at risk whichever side won.
• Qin Xuan tempted Grand Supreme Laozi with the chance to become the sole Dao Ancestor, and Grand Supreme Laozi agreed to risk everything.

Jieyin and Zhunti tried to swear an oath and leave, but Qin Xuan warned them that Hongjun could use their Primordial Spirits to force them to repay the merit from the Sixty Grand Vows. They realized Qin Xuan could free them from that debt and eagerly agreed to stand with him.

• Jieyin offered to swear an oath with Zhunti and asked Qin Xuan to let them leave.
• Qin Xuan reminded them that they owed merit from the Sixty Grand Vows and that Hongjun still controlled their Primordial Spirits.
• Grand Supreme Laozi threatened to visit Mount Sumeru if Jieyin and Zhunti left, and Zhunti challenged him in return.
• Qin Xuan explained that Hongjun could force Jieyin and Zhunti to work endlessly to repay their debt, reducing them to beasts of burden.
• Jieyin and Zhunti realized Qin Xuan could help them escape the debt and agreed to stand with him.

Jieyin, Zhunti, Nüwa, Grand Supreme Laozi, and Tongtian Sect Master pledged to follow Qin Xuan and work toward killing Hongjun, while Qin Xuan urged them to wait for a safe opportunity. After Grand Supreme Laozi left for Zixiao Palace in response to Hongjun’s summons, Tongtian Sect Master asked Qin Xuan how to reconcile his teachings with refusing disciples burdened by Karma.

• Jieyin and Zhunti swore to obey Qin Xuan and help kill Hongjun, and Nüwa, Grand Supreme Laozi, and Tongtian Sect Master also pledged their support.
• Qin Xuan told the group not to attack Hongjun prematurely and gave four of them spiritual treasure fragments that could secretly alert him to Hongjun’s orders.
• Grand Supreme Laozi left Buzhou Mountain, received Hongjun’s summons to Zixiao Palace, and decided to investigate Hongjun’s intentions before contacting Qin Xuan.
• Jieyin and Zhunti departed, leaving Qin Xuan, Nüwa, and Tongtian Sect Master at Buzhou Mountain.
• Tongtian Sect Master asked Qin Xuan how to uphold his teaching of accepting all while refusing cultivators burdened by Karma.

Qin Xuan advised Tongtian to use a Karma Fire Array to screen Jie Sect disciples and punish those with grave sins. At Zixiao Palace, Hongjun questioned Grand Supreme Laozi about Buzhou Mountain, then offered him a pill to increase his cultivation.

• Qin Xuan warned Tongtian that sheltering evildoers would lead them to harm more innocents and burden Jie Sect with Karma.
• Qin Xuan proposed a Karma Fire Array at the sect gate and inside Jie Sect, and Tongtian eagerly accepted the plan.
• Qin Xuan began searching for Nether River after Tongtian said he would return to Golden Turtle Island to study the array.
• Hongjun asked Grand Supreme Laozi what he had done at Buzhou Mountain, and Laozi claimed Qin Xuan had imprisoned and beaten him.
• Grand Supreme Laozi denied that Hongjun controlled his Primal Spirit, and Hongjun gave him a pill to increase his cultivation.

Hongjun pressured Grand Supreme Laozi into swallowing a pill that boosted his cultivation while concealing a black light in his sea of consciousness. At Buzhou Mountain, Qin Xuan summoned Nether River and offered him a chance to become a Saint in exchange for the Twelfth-Grade Karma Fire Red Lotus.

• Hongjun offered Grand Supreme Laozi a pill, and Laozi tried to pass it to Yuanshi Tianzun because he suspected Hongjun had tampered with it.
• Hongjun sealed Zixiao Palace with his pressure and forced Grand Supreme Laozi to swallow the pill, which began raising his cultivation as a hidden wisp of black light slipped into his sea of consciousness.
• Qin Xuan brought Nether River to Buzhou Mountain, where Nether River recognized Qin Xuan, Saint Nüwa, and Tongtian and immediately prostrated himself.
• Qin Xuan offered Nether River an opportunity to become a Saint in exchange for the Twelfth-Grade Karma Fire Red Lotus.
• Nether River severed his Good Corpse with the Abi Sword, revealing the red lotus, and presented it to Qin Xuan as his Evil Corpse appeared beside him.

Qin Xuan helped Nether River abandon the Three Corpses Technique and gave him the Humanity Origin Scripture, while lending Tongtian the Karma Fire Red Lotus. After Tongtian left, Qin Xuan sent the waiting Queen Mother of the West to the Immortal Court and reassured Nüwa about his other admirers, leaving them alone together.

• Nether River shattered his Evil Corpse, fell to the peak of the Great Golden Immortal realm, and accepted Qin Xuan's Humanity Origin Scripture and promise of future help.
• Qin Xuan gave Tongtian the Twelfth-Grade Karma Fire Red Lotus to help him comprehend the Karma Fire Array, and Tongtian left with Duobao for Golden Ao Island.
• Nüwa questioned Qin Xuan about Queen Mother of the West, and Qin Xuan insisted that he had never spoken to her.
• Qin Xuan sent Queen Mother of the West away to the Immortal Court and reassured Nüwa when she asked about Xihe and Changxi.
• Qin Xuan kissed Nüwa, and she went soft in his arms.

Qin Xuan and Nüwa retreated to the rear hall, while Hou Tu taught Xihe and Changxi her twisted interpretations of classical sayings. Impressed by Changxi’s quick grasp of her “Dao of the Brick,” Hou Tu decided to teach her everything she knew.

• Qin Xuan carried Nüwa into the rear hall, where she briefly took the lead before he pinned her beneath him and sealed the room with a force of harmony.
• In Hou Tu Shrine, Hou Tu quizzed Xihe and Changxi and reinterpreted sayings about authority and learning as lessons about hitting and burying people.
• Changxi interpreted “Without learning propriety, one cannot stand” as a threat to hit someone until they could not stand, astonishing Xihe and Hou Tu.
• After Changxi said she had worked out the meaning herself, Hou Tu decided to teach her the full “Dao of the Brick.”
• Over the following days, Hou Tu taught Changxi her violent readings of more sayings, and Changxi later completed her interpretation of “There is no distinction in education.”

After Xihe and Changxi left Buzhou Mountain for the Taiyin Star, Tongtian opened the Jie Sect’s mountain gate and used a Karma Fire Array to test prospective disciples. Hongjun and the Heavenly Dao realized the array could disrupt the Ten Thousand Immortals Pilgrimage, so Hongjun proposed shifting that burden to the Chan Sect instead.

• Xihe and Changxi said farewell to Hou Tu and left for the Taiyin Star, while Changxi evaded Xihe’s questions about their private conversation.
• Tongtian emerged from seclusion after perfecting the Karma Fire Array and pulled Duobao from his cave to address the cultivators gathered outside Golden Ao Island.
• Tongtian announced that only cultivators who passed the Karma Fire Array could enter the Jie Sect.
• The Heavenly Dao warned Hongjun that most of the gathered cultivators would fail the array, threatening the planned Ten Thousand Immortals Pilgrimage and Investiture of the Gods.
• Hongjun suggested that the Chan Sect could bear the fortune of the Ten Thousand Immortals Pilgrimage instead, preserving the larger struggle between the Chan and Jie Sects.

Hongjun and the Heavenly Dao plotted to use Yuanshi against Qin Xuan, while Jieyin and Zhunti prepared to claim cultivators rejected by Tongtian. Tongtian selected only a few disciples, including Zhao Gongming, and Jieyin and Zhunti invited the rejected crowd to join the Western Sect.

• Hongjun persuaded the Heavenly Dao to lure Yuanshi with merit and kept the Saint Slaying Pill hidden in Grand Supreme Laozi's Sea of Consciousness as a weapon against Qin Xuan.
• Zhunti plundered treasures and guards from the Three Immortal Islands while Jieyin proposed using a Karma Fire Array to cleanse prospective Western Sect disciples.
• Tongtian's Karma Fire Array killed or injured most applicants, and only a few dozen cultivators passed.
• Tongtian named Golden Spirit, Wudang, Gui Ling, Wuyun Xian, and the Three Xiao Sisters as his personal disciples, then appointed Zhao Gongming Outer Sect Senior Disciple after Bixiao pleaded for him.
• Tongtian dismissed the rejected cultivators and left Golden Ao Island with his disciples as its protective array closed.
• Jieyin and Zhunti announced that the Western Sect would cleanse the karmic burdens of those seeking the Dao.

Hongjun warned Yuanshi Tianzun that his merit debt would compound if he failed to repay it, so Yuanshi agreed to recruit the sinful cultivators gathered outside Golden Ao Island. Nearby, Hou Tu proposed burying them all, leaving Qin Xuan stunned.

• Hongjun told Yuanshi Tianzun that his vows required repayment within thirteen tribulations and that failing to pay enough merit would add compounding interest.
• Hongjun warned that the Heavenly Dao could strip Yuanshi Tianzun of his Saint position if he refused to repay the debt.
• Yuanshi Tianzun agreed to take in the cultivators outside Golden Ao Island and hurried to stop Jieyin and Zhunti from recruiting them.
• Qin Xuan and Hou Tu watched Jieyin and Zhunti gather hundreds of thousands of cultivators outside Golden Ao Island.
• Hou Tu asked Qin Xuan what he thought of burying all the cultivators to prevent them from harming more living beings.

Qin Xuan and Hou Tu waited for Hongjun’s response as Yuanshi Tianzun arrived at Golden Turtle Island and offered the cultivators a place in the Chan Sect. Just as Yuanshi prepared to take them to Kunlun Mountain, an unknown figure severed his Sage Power and summoned an axe.

• Qin Xuan guessed that Yuanshi Tianzun would come and joked with Hou Tu about chopping off his head, while Hou Tu urged him to protect Changxi and Xihe from Dijun.
• Yuanshi Tianzun attacked Jieyin, then offered the cultivators a place in the Chan Sect, prompting the crowd to turn away from the west.
• Zhunti froze the cultivators, but Yuanshi invoked Hongjun’s decree, and Hongjun confirmed that the move followed Heaven’s ordained trend.
• Yuanshi prepared to take the cultivators to Kunlun Mountain, but a calm figure severed his Sage Power and called, “Axe, come!”

Qin Xuan arrived at Golden Ao Island and stopped Yuanshi Tianzun from leaving with the rejected disciples, though he let Yuanshi take them in exchange for the Eight Treasure Glazed Vase. Yuanshi, convinced Qin Xuan wanted his treasures, was left bracing himself for further demands while Qin Xuan allowed the recruitment to proceed.

• Qin Xuan and Hou Tu appeared on Golden Ao Island, where Tongtian welcomed them and Yuanshi Tianzun recoiled at the sight of Qin Xuan’s Heaven-Opening Divine Axe.
• Qin Xuan stopped Yuanshi from leaving and, after Yuanshi invoked Hongjun’s decree, said he would not obstruct the disciples’ return to the Chan Sect.
• Qin Xuan claimed he wanted to borrow something, and Yuanshi, fearing for his remaining treasures, offered him the Eight Treasure Glazed Vase.
• Qin Xuan scolded Yuanshi for offering the vase but secretly took it, leaving Yuanshi to suspect that Qin Xuan next wanted the Twelfth Grade Golden Lotus of Merit.
• Hongjun’s avatar advised Yuanshi to surrender the Golden Lotus if necessary, while Qin Xuan and Hou Tu privately agreed to let Yuanshi keep offering treasures.
• Qin Xuan reassured Jieyin and Zhunti that Yuanshi taking the disciples was the Heavenly Dao’s general trend, and considered how the Chan Sect’s growing strength might lead to conflict among the Saints.

Qin Xuan forced Yuanshi Tianzun to surrender the Twelfth Grade Golden Lotus of Merit, then used a shameless trick with Hou Tu to keep Yuanshi from demanding back the treasures or leaving. The chapter ended with Qin Xuan asking the humiliated Sage whether he had said thank you.

• Jieyin and Zhunti gave up trying to recruit Qin Xuan, then planned to repay their debt to the Demon Court for Kunpeng joining the Western Sect.
• Yuanshi Tianzun replaced the Twelfth Grade Golden Lotus of Merit with another treasure to suppress the Chan Sect's fortune, then handed the lotus to Qin Xuan.
• When Yuanshi tried to leave, Qin Xuan kept everyone imprisoned and claimed Yuanshi had willingly given him the treasures.
• Tongtian, Jieyin, and Zhunti backed Qin Xuan's account, while Hou Tu warned that Yuanshi would damage his dignity if he asked for the treasures back.
• Yuanshi Tianzun spat blood as the crowd praised Hou Tu, and Qin Xuan demanded to know whether he had said thank you.

Qin Xuan forced Yuanshi Tianzun to thank Hou Tu for the treasures he had surrendered, then stopped him from leaving and severed his head. The chapter ended with Qin Xuan placing Yuanshi Tianzun’s trapped head at Hou Tu’s feet and inviting her to kick it toward Kunlun Mountain.

• Yuanshi Tianzun resented Pangu for favoring Qin Xuan and the Ancestral Witches, and briefly considered making Buzhou Mountain collapse before suppressing the thought.
• Qin Xuan threatened to kill Yuanshi Tianzun repeatedly, and Hongjun warned him that he could not return to the Primordial World if Qin Xuan pursued him.
• Yuanshi Tianzun finally thanked Hou Tu, then tried to leave while nursing his hatred of Pangu.
• Qin Xuan reminded Yuanshi Tianzun that he still owed him his head and struck with the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe, separating it from his body.
• Qin Xuan carried Yuanshi Tianzun’s immobilized head to Hou Tu and asked her to kick it toward Kunlun Mountain.

Hou Tu punished Yuanshi Tianzun after Qin Xuan revealed that he resented Pangu, repeatedly smashing his head with the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe while Qin Xuan returned it for each blow. As Yuanshi called to Hongjun for help, Hongjun assured him that he would survive the beating.

• Jieyin and Zhunti delighted in seeing Hou Tu prepare to kick Yuanshi Tianzun's head, while Tongtian felt a trace of pity.
• Qin Xuan said Yuanshi Tianzun resented Pangu, prompting Tongtian and Hou Tu to turn against him.
• Hou Tu struck Yuanshi Tianzun's head with her fist, but his Sage Power left it unharmed.
• Hou Tu took the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe and repeatedly smashed Yuanshi Tianzun's head against the ground as Qin Xuan returned it for each blow.
• Yuanshi Tianzun called for Hongjun, whose battered incarnation told him that he would not die from a few blows.

Qin Xuan and Hou Tu visited Tongtian on Golden Ao Island, where Tongtian returned the Twelfth Grade Karmic Fire Red Lotus and introduced his disciples to Qin Xuan. After praising the Jie Sect disciples, Qin Xuan revealed that one of them was a traitor.

• Hou Tu kicked the spherical Yuan Ball toward Jade Void Palace, causing a tremendous blast near Kunlun Mountain.
• Qin Xuan sent the aspiring disciples to Kunlun Mountain, while Jieyin and Zhunti departed to take Kunpeng to the Demon Court.
• Tongtian welcomed Qin Xuan and Hou Tu to Golden Ao Island and returned the Twelfth Grade Karmic Fire Red Lotus to Qin Xuan.
• Tongtian summoned his disciples to Biyou Palace and introduced Duobao, Jinling, Wudang, Guiling, Zhao Gongming, the Three Xiaos, Immortal Wuyun, and Immortal Chang'er Dingguang.
• Qin Xuan praised Tongtian's disciples, then announced that there was a traitor among them.

Qin Xuan exposed Immortal Chang'er Dingguang as a traitor to the Jie Sect and tested his loyalty with a mountain of blades and a cauldron of boiling oil. As Chang'er plunged into the cauldron, he revealed his true form as a rabbit.

• Tongtian demanded that the traitor identify himself, but none of the disciples stepped forward.
• Qin Xuan called out Immortal Chang'er Dingguang and asked why he had betrayed the sect.
• Chang'er insisted he was innocent and vowed to climb a mountain of blades and dive into boiling oil to prove his loyalty.
• Qin Xuan created a mountain of Innate Spiritual Treasure blades and a cauldron of boiling liquid for Chang'er to face.
• Chang'er climbed the blades and plunged into the cauldron while Qin Xuan secretly healed his wounds.
• Chang'er transformed into a fat, long-haired rabbit as he struggled and screamed in the boiling oil.

Qin Xuan exposed and killed Immortal Chang'er Dingguang, who had betrayed the Jie Sect under the influence of Jieyin and Zhunti. After Qin Xuan set off for the Taiyin Star, Jieyin and Zhunti brought Kunpeng to the Demon Court and began discussing the mysterious barrier in the North Sea.

• Qin Xuan fried Immortal Chang'er Dingguang, shattered the golden protection around his primordial spirit, and let Tongtian decide his fate.
• Tongtian rejected Immortal Chang'er Dingguang's plea, killed him with the Qingping Sword, and thanked Qin Xuan for exposing the traitor.
• Hou Tu urged Qin Xuan to visit Xihe and Changxi on the Taiyin Star, then returned to Buzhou Mountain to dig out her brothers while Qin Xuan flew toward the Taiyin Star.
• Jieyin and Zhunti arrived at the Demon Court with Kunpeng, whose appearance Jieyin had restored, and told Dijun they had come to settle a karmic debt.
• Jieyin asked Dijun and Taiyi about the barrier in the North Sea, and Dijun wondered whether it had been connected to the two Western Saints.