Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary

• Hui Chang prepares to leave: On Ascension Mountain, Hui Chang tells Qin Ming she is setting out on a distant, dangerous route to revive fully, confront her death calamity, and reclaim her place among the Supreme Experts. She warns that ancient beings face an exceptionally hostile era, marked by unpredictable upheavals—“winter” and “Thunderfire”—that threaten all life.
• A farewell and exchange of teachings: Though saddened, Qin Ming respects her decision. Hui Chang imparts the complete Myriad Aperture Illumination Art to him. In return, he offers her his refined Silk Scripture teachings, which may help bridge life and death if she falls dormant again. Their parting underscores how much they value and trust each other.
• The other ancient beings awaken: Qin Ming discovers that the Two Figurines and the Insect Emperor have also revived and are preparing to leave. Each gives him a token—the Two Figurines a piece of jade armor, the Insect Emperor a scale—and offers a brief farewell. They explain that revival is a process of recovering themselves, and that much of their past may remain inaccessible. Qin Ming realizes that, despite his earlier irreverence toward them, they bear him no ill will.
• Questions about Night Mist World: Qin Ming asks about the mysterious regions beyond the known world, the Night Ruins, and the Fire Springs. The ancient beings reveal that Night Ruins entrances exist throughout Night Mist World, and Hui Chang identifies a deeper problem: grave mysteries lie beneath the ground everywhere, seemingly connected to the Fire Springs. Qin Ming suspects this may be the world’s greatest problem.
• Their departure: Hui Chang tells Qin Ming that a Divine Magnetic Storm is forming and that he should leave as well. The three ancient beings enter the Cave of Life and Death through a secret route opened by entwined energies of life and death, accompanied by Immortal-Flying Light Rain and blood rain. A gigantic Azure Ox appears, and observers across Ascension Mountain are astonished that anyone would enter the cave.
• Qin Ming sets out: After one final look, Qin Ming plunges into the Divine Magnetic Storm, beginning his own journey at the same time as the ancient beings.

Character Developments and Themes

Qin Ming moves from reluctant sadness to accepting that he must follow his own path. He reflects on his past treatment of the ancient beings and shows growing respect for them. Hui Chang’s departure highlights her resolve to face danger rather than hide from it, while the Two Figurines and Insect Emperor reveal signs of renewed life and a measure of affection toward Qin Ming.
The chapter centers on life, death, and renewal, the peril of surviving ancient calamities, and the difficulty of forging a path beyond mortality. It also presents the world itself as profoundly mysterious and unstable, suggesting that Night Mist World’s hidden dangers may extend far beyond its most remote regions.

Key plot points and events

• Qin Ming secretly crosses Ascension Mountain’s Divine Magnetic Storm with three other fugitives: a cloaked woman, a frail old man, and Qi Wang, a Supreme Ancestor fleeing the Kirin Cult after a massacre. Outside pursuers try to seize or stop them, but the old man repels a powerful incarnation. All four emerge in unfamiliar territory and immediately go their separate ways.
• Qin Ming reaches the Great Qin Immortal Dynasty, travels downriver, and explores its prosperous capital, Jade City. In a restaurant, he hears news about the Six Great Sages—including the young “Zheng Guang,” an identity associated with him—and other rising figures such as Si Yeli.
• A statue in Jade City wearing jade armor stitched with golden threads suggests a connection to a mysterious lineage. Uneasy about the possibility of being near its true center, Qin Ming leaves.
• He begins living out his childhood dream of roaming as a sword-wielding hero. He defeats bandits and demon strongholds, then traces their support to a respected sect. After killing its Grandmaster and discovering evidence of deeper corruption, he attacks the organization and escapes through a Mist Gate.
• While traveling and fighting, Qin Ming advances his cultivation: he integrates a movement technique into his Primal Chaos Golden Bridge and gains new insight into the chairman’s Myriad Aperture Illumination Art.
• He heads toward Mysterious Maiden Palace to visit Jiang Ran. En route, he encounters a Joyous Union Sect outpost; after a Master-level woman approaches him, a clash forces him to leave during the night. He eventually enters Mysterious Maiden Palace territory.

Character development

• Qin Ming grows from a cautious traveler into a purposeful wandering swordsman, balancing cultivation and exploration with a personal commitment to oppose injustice.
• Discovering that respectable institutions may shelter exploitation complicates his youthful idealism. Though disillusioned, he reaffirms that he will act according to his own convictions.
• He becomes more capable and perceptive, strengthening his movement art and cultivation while learning to navigate unfamiliar lands carefully.
• Qi Wang appears bitter and powerless as he flees, while the old man reveals formidable strength despite being wounded. The cloaked woman remains guarded and mysterious.

Significant themes

• Childhood ideals and reality: Qin Ming fulfills his dream of heroic wandering, but learns that evil can hide behind respectable reputations.
• Personal conviction: Disillusionment does not make him abandon his moral code; he chooses to fight injustice as far as his strength permits.
• Travel as growth: Encountering new civilizations, hearing news, and passing through unfamiliar regions broaden both his understanding and his abilities.
• Danger and uncertainty: The storm crossing, political pursuit, and hidden networks of corruption show how perilous and interconnected the world is.

Character interactions

• Qin Ming observes the other storm travelers and their pursuers but avoids contact, judging them too dangerous to approach.
• In Jade City, he listens to patrons discuss the Six Great Sages and his own supposed identity, gaining a view of how his reputation has spread.
• His confrontations with bandits, demons, and the corrupt sect are direct expressions of his justice-driven outlook.
• At the Joyous Union Sect outpost, he asks only to hear music and keeps his distance; when a woman approaches, he strikes her away and leaves.
• His journey toward Mysterious Maiden Palace is motivated by his wish to reconnect with Jiang Ran.

Key plot points and events

• Qin Ming travels through the vast Night Mist World toward the Mysterious Maiden Palace, cultivating the Primordial Myriad Thunder Seal along the way. He effortlessly kills a powerful Thunderfire Rhinoceros and eats it.
• At the Palace’s former heartland, he finds a vast Abyss where a Nine-Colored Fire Spring vanished eight hundred years earlier. The disaster coincided with the disappearance of the Palace’s upside-down giant city and direct line, beginning the Supreme Dao Field’s decline.
• The remaining branches now occupy Mysterious City, divided and under pressure from the Bone Mausoleum Sect and Blood Dragon Tribe, with the Supreme Dao Field of the God-Controlling Sect behind them. Qin Ming learns that Jiang Zai was once in the city but later disappeared; evidence suggests she went to the Primordial Yellow Dao Field.
• Qin Ming stays to witness a challenge against the Palace. Its fighters lose badly, and the God-Controlling Sect demands to know where the direct line is.
• Concealing his identity, Qin Ming intervenes as the Palace’s champion. He defeats a Saint Disciple, a Grandmaster from the Blood Dragon Tribe, and finally the God-Controlling Sect’s Grandmaster, forcing them to honor a hundred-year reprieve.
• After leaving, Qin Ming travels to the flourishing Primordial Yellow Dao Field and learns Jiang Zai is there as a rising prodigy. He also suspects the Dao Field is a stronghold of demonic cultivators.

Character developments

• Qin Ming’s mastery of the Primordial Myriad Thunder Seal has advanced markedly. His confidence and combat strength are evident, and he experiments with a body formed from Primal Chaos Heavenly Light rather than risking his true body.
• He shows compassion toward the fallen Mysterious Maiden Palace, choosing to help even though he has no certainty Jiang Zai remains there.
• Jiang Zai’s path is clarified: she appears to have left Mysterious City and reached the Primordial Yellow Dao Field, where she is gaining prominence.
• Xu Nuo reveals her connection to a branch of the Mysterious Maiden Palace, whose yin-yang lineage has lost its fundamental scripture. Her expectations for the branches’ survival are bleak.

Significant themes

• Decline and lost inheritance: The Mysterious Maiden Palace’s former glory has dwindled to feuding, vulnerable branches.
• Mystery and catastrophe: The vanished Fire Spring, Abyss, black hurricane, and missing city hint at a larger, unresolved crisis involving underground Fire Springs.
• Power and responsibility: Qin Ming uses his strength to protect a weaker group, while avoiding unnecessary risk to his true body.
• Travel and discovery: Qin Ming’s journey reveals both the scale of the world and the hidden connections between its powers.

Character interactions

• Qin Ming questions Xu Nuo about Jiang Zai and the Palace’s downfall, using secret mental arts to uncover what she knows.
• The hostile factions taunt and threaten the Palace, while the God-Controlling Sect insists its direct line may still be hiding.
• Qin Ming’s anonymous intervention turns the confrontation decisively: after he defeats their representatives, the rival powers must concede and withdraw from challenging the Palace for a century.

Plot and key events

• Qin Ming enters the Primordial Yellow Dao Field expecting a ruthless demonic stronghold, but finds prosperous, orderly cities and powerful sects. He visits Yingxu Sect and Tribulation Crossing Sect, marveling at their immense territory, rare Fire Springs, and flourishing outer cities.
• In a restaurant, he learns that the Twelve Primordial Yellow Sects are formidable powers. Their gentle-sounding names conceal fierce traditions: Peaceful Prosperity Sect, for example, pursues peace by eliminating its enemies.
• Qin Ming travels to Myriad Laws Sect, where he hears that Jiang Zai—privately known as “Witch Jiang”—has become a celebrated prodigy. She mastered the founder’s art, underwent Great Nirvana, and produced a striking nine-colored divine-light phenomenon.
• Jiang Zai has also accumulated enormous debts, borrowing rare resources from multiple sects and lineages to accelerate her rise. The ancient artifact spirit Six Desires guaranteed her loans. Her creditors’ interest in her future both fuels her ambition and offers her some protection.
• Qin Ming learns that Jiang Zai is only twenty-four and may already be a Master, preparing resources for the Great Sage Path. As a Saint Disciple, she has protection from being killed by rivals, but competition remains ruthless.
• Qin Ming goes to meet her at her outer-city residence, but she is away attempting to subdue a young Pureblood Phoenix Bird. He joins her retainers on an expedition to Blood Phoenix Ridge.
• The group discovers that the region’s beasts are gathering and their blood is feeding a hidden formation. Two guards have accepted payment from Tribulation Crossing Sect to provoke an Old Blood Phoenix’s premature awakening, hoping to disrupt Jiang Zai’s trial.
• The Old Blood Phoenix awakens and traps Jiang Zai’s followers inside the ridge. While the others panic, Qin Ming advances toward it, declaring he will force it back into an egg or make it submit. The chapter ends with him punching the enormous phoenix backward and scattering its feathers.

Character developments

• Qin Ming shifts from cautious observer to bold protector, recognizing the danger Jiang Zai faces and confronting the awakened phoenix without hesitation. His confidence and formidable strength are revealed.
• Jiang Zai / Witch Jiang is shown as ambitious, resourceful, and under immense pressure. Lacking powerful family backing, she has leveraged her exceptional talent and borrowed against her future to secure the means to rise.
• Six Desires is established as a key ally and guarantor whose support helped Jiang Zai obtain resources and protection.
• Jiang Zai’s retainers move from eager followers to frightened captives when the trap is sprung, highlighting their vulnerability beside their mistress’s high-stakes ambitions.
• The two guards are revealed as conspirators willing to endanger Jiang Zai’s followers for a rival sect’s benefit.

Themes and character interactions

• Ambition and its cost: Jiang Zai’s rapid ascent depends on extraordinary talent, relentless effort, and debts that could become ruinous if she fails.
• Ruthless competition beneath respectability: The Dao Field’s prosperous appearance masks political maneuvering, sabotage, and lethal rivalry.
• Power and protection: Saint-Disciple status and creditors provide Jiang Zai some security, but do not shield her followers from danger.
• Courage against overwhelming odds: Qin Ming’s calm defiance contrasts with the retainers’ terror, setting up his direct confrontation with the phoenix.
• Interactions: Qin Ming gathers information from city residents, seeks out Jiang Zai, and then joins her followers. The conspiratorial guards discuss their scheme, while Qin Ming’s challenge to the phoenix turns the group’s despair into stunned anticipation.

Key plot points and events

• Qin Ming confronts the newly reborn Blood Phoenix and demands that it lay him an egg. When it protests that phoenixes rarely reproduce, he insults it by comparing it to a hen, then restrains it with Heavenly Light. Humiliated, the bird faints and begins forming a Nirvana cocoon; Qin Ming threatens to shake its “yolk” apart, then tells it to recover and check on its kinswoman.
• The Blood Phoenix reports that the young Crimson Phoenix has submitted to Jiang Ran. Jiang secured her obedience by threatening to boil her in a pot with sacred fire after the phoenix refused to become her familiar.
• Jiang Ran leaves the trial grounds with the Crimson Phoenix perched on her shoulder. On learning that Qin Ming is waiting, she hurries out, delighted to find her old acquaintance so far from Night Prefecture.
• Qin Ming and Jiang Ran exchange playful, familiar greetings—calling each other “Jade Consort” and “Little Ran”—then spar. Jiang Ran, now in the Pure Yang realm, attacks with star-lit Dao techniques, lightning, and heavenly fire. Qin Ming easily counters her and even steals her hairpin.
• Jiang Ran brings the Crimson Phoenix into the fight to test Qin Ming’s strength. The Blood Phoenix is summoned as well, but it reveals that Qin Ming has already beaten it. Jiang Ran, the Crimson Phoenix, and the weapon spirits are astonished.
• The Heavenly Dagger-Axe arrives, and Spirit Six Desires eagerly asks Qin Ming about his cultivation and whether he has come to fulfill an old promise concerning Jiang Ran.

Character developments

• Qin Ming is shown to be overwhelmingly powerful, able to defeat a divine bird and effortlessly turn aside Jiang Ran’s attacks. His teasing, audacious manner contrasts with his otherwise composed appearance.
• Jiang Ran has grown into a formidable cultivator, reaching Pure Yang at a young age. She is playful and confident, but recognizes that Qin Ming’s strength is beyond what she can gauge.
• The Blood Phoenix is reduced from a fearsome divine bird to a battered, resentful victim of Qin Ming’s bullying. It avoids its kinswoman out of embarrassment.
• The Crimson Phoenix reluctantly accepts Jiang Ran as master after being coerced, but remains naïve, cheerful, and eager to complain to her elder.
• Spirit Six Desires is delighted by the reunion and still hopes Qin Ming will pursue the old “Jade Consort” promise.

Significant themes

• Power and humiliation: Qin Ming’s strength gives him control over even legendary creatures, while his irreverent treatment of the Blood Phoenix turns its grandeur into comedy.
• Coercion and loyalty: Both phoenixes are forced into submission—one by Jiang Ran’s threats, the other by Qin Ming’s intimidation—raising a humorous contrast between their pride and their vulnerability.
• Old friendships and ambition: Qin Ming and Jiang Ran’s reunion revives their shared history, teasing rapport, and the ambition that once motivated Qin Ming to catch up with her.
• Unexpected advancement: Qin Ming’s rapid progress surprises those who assumed his time away from the Dao Field would leave him behind.

Character interactions

• Qin Ming and the Blood Phoenix trade insults and threats, with the phoenix’s anger repeatedly overwhelmed by Qin Ming’s force.
• Jiang Ran treats the Crimson Phoenix with affectionate authority, while the phoenix privately resents her but obeys to avoid another beating.
• Qin Ming and Jiang Ran reunite with flirtatious teasing before testing each other in combat; their sparring is as much a measure of growth as a playful exchange.
• The Crimson Phoenix and Blood Phoenix have an awkward family reunion, and the younger bird’s innocent questions expose the elder’s defeat.
• Spirit Six Desires watches the reunion with matchmaking enthusiasm, then rushes to Qin Ming, convinced he may finally honor his promise to Jiang Ran.

Key plot points and events

• Qin Ming reunites with Jiang Ran and the artifact spirits Xuantiān and Six Desires. At only twenty-three, he reveals he has reached the Mid-Stage Grandmaster Realm and has already stepped onto the Great Sage Path.
• Jiang Ran challenges Qin Ming to fight at equal cultivation. She displays formidable arts, especially her Spirit Domain and the power One Royal All Things, which can control people. Qin Ming withstands her strongest technique, and they end their spar without a decisive victory.
• The group discovers that two mountain guardians were paid to awaken the Blood Phoenix early and obstruct Jiang Ran’s trial. The scheme is traced to the rivalry between Jiang Ran and Bai Yuan of the Yingxu Sect. The guardians apologize, while Six Desires and Xuantiān threaten them.
• The Blood Phoenix publicly complains that Qin Ming stripped it of its Nirvana Flame, feathers, flesh, and blood—and even tried to make it lay an egg. The bizarre accusation leaves the assembled company stunned.
• After Jiang Ran returns to the Myriad Laws Sect, the Yingxu Sect seeks reconciliation. Six Desires turns the apology into an opportunity for Jiang Ran to obtain a loan of rare medicines and treasures.
• A powerful future Great Sage from the Innate Divine Sacred Sect invites Jiang Ran and Bai Yuan to a gathering, ostensibly to settle their dispute. Jiang Ran recognizes that the invitation is also an attempt to assert authority and unsettle her. She refuses to be intimidated and replies that Bai Yuan should come apologize—and bring the promised medicines.
• When Jiang Ran worries about the gathering’s political importance, Qin Ming casually claims he can invite several Great Sages to support her, offering to summon three or four—and perhaps more.

Character developments

• Qin Ming is revealed as extraordinarily powerful, confident, and seemingly capable of defeating even Great Sages. He remains playful and irreverent, but he also supports Jiang Ran and reacts fiercely when others threaten her.
• Jiang Ran demonstrates that she is a gifted and dangerous contender for the Great Sage Path, with exceptional mastery of the Spirit Domain and a rare power to control others. Though she loses their equal-level spar, she is not discouraged; she remains ambitious and politically astute.
• Six Desires warmly welcomes Qin Ming and urges him to stay close to Jiang Ran, while using intimidation and clever bargaining to protect her interests. Its old-devil reputation contrasts with its insistence that its Dao Field is orthodox.
• Xuantiān approves of Qin Ming and supports Jiang Ran, though it spars verbally with Six Desires. Both spirits acknowledge Qin Ming’s remarkable advancement.
• Bai Yuan is established as Jiang Ran’s chief rival for the Great Sage Path. He regrets losing the chance to secure the Crimson Phoenix first.
• The Blood Phoenix is humbled by Qin Ming and becomes a comic, aggrieved witness to his excessive treatment.

Significant themes

• Ambition and the Great Sage Path: Talent alone is not enough; mastery of a domain and the Spirit Domain marks a true contender.
• Power and reputation: Qin Ming’s strength inspires awe, but others’ claims that he is a Demon Cult Great Sage show how quickly reputation can outgrow the truth.
• Rivalry and political maneuvering: Jiang Ran’s advancement is challenged through covert interference, apologies, invitations, and displays of authority.
• Debt, favors, and influence: Six Desires treats loans and obligations as tools for building alliances and extracting resources, while Qin Ming finds the practice absurd.
• Comedy amid high stakes: The artifact spirits’ bickering, Jiang Ran’s playful challenge, and the Blood Phoenix’s complaints punctuate the serious conflicts.

Character interactions

• Qin Ming and Jiang Ran combine old familiarity with mutual admiration: they spar intensely, discuss each other’s potential, and later cooperate against political pressure.
• Six Desires and Xuantiān alternately praise Qin Ming, debate Jiang Ran’s future, and argue over whether Qin Ming is suited to their respective lineages.
• Six Desires confronts the guardians over their plot, then negotiates compensation from the Yingxu Sect.
• Jiang Ran identifies Bai Yuan as the likely instigator and refuses to let the Innate Sect’s invitation dictate her response.
• Qin Ming’s claim that he can bring in multiple Great Sages shifts the mood from concern to excitement, especially for Jiang Ran, who immediately sees the potential resources and alliances.

Chapter Summary: “Planning a Future Together”

Key plot points and events

• Qin Ming astonishes Jiang Zai, the Crimson Phoenix, and the Primordial Yellow Dao Field’s elders by revealing that he can summon several Great Sages through personal connections. He sends invitations to his sworn brothers—Zhou Tian, Niu Wuwei, Mu Shinian, and others—under the pretext of sharing a meal and discussing their future.
• The real purpose of the gathering is to confront a Decayed Heavenly Immortal who emerged from the other side after Qin Ming left the Land of Fate Exchange. Qin Ming fears the being will continue to threaten him and hopes the Great Sages and their powerful factions will help capture it and uncover its secrets. The Primordial Yellow Dao Field assures him that its strength can protect him.
• Qin Ming worries about Jiang Zai’s debts, but she explains that borrowing is part of her strategy to pressure herself forward; her main obstacles now are cultivation, will, and comprehension, not a lack of medicines. She is the Myriad Laws Sect’s young sect master, nicknamed the “Loan Sect.”
• Qin Ming guides Jiang Zai through harsh combat training to help her approach the Great Sage Path. Their sparring is intense, but she recovers quickly and asks to continue.
• A haughty Saint Disciple from the Innate Divine Sacred Sect arrives with followers who challenge Jiang Zai. Qin Ming rebukes them for using subordinates to provoke the sect, then subdues them with a curtain of tea. When their leader attacks, he traps her too and uses his zither to force her to dance for half an hour. The chapter ends with her Great Sage senior seeking revenge, while Jiang Zai regrets teasing Qin Ming because his zither later made her dance during training as well.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Ming is revealed as far more powerful, influential, and self-assured than the cultivator his old acquaintances remember. He is strategic rather than reckless: he seeks allies to handle a threat beyond his means, and he remains protective of Jiang Zai while also fearlessly humiliating anyone who disrespects her or her sect.
• Jiang Zai is confident in her position as the leading talent of her generation and accepts hardship as a means of advancement. Her affectionate teasing and familiarity with Qin Ming coexist with her pride and refusal to indulge hostile visitors.
• Six Desires and Xuantiān are impressed by Qin Ming’s rise, though they react with skepticism and banter. Six Desires jokes about his demonic associations and tries to recruit him; Xuantiān more readily defends him and proposes a gift to win his trust.
• The Crimson Phoenix is awed by Qin Ming and eagerly offers to spar with him, prompting Jiang Zai to scold it for acting as though it might choose a new master.
• The visiting Saint Disciple and her followers underestimate Jiang Zai and the Myriad Laws Sect. Qin Ming turns their attempted provocation into a humiliating defeat.

Significant themes

• Alliances and shared responsibility: Qin Ming’s invitation is a practical effort to unite powerful figures against a danger no one person can defeat.
• The approach of a new age: The elders sense a coming upheaval in which young cultivators may reshape the world.
• Ambition and self-discipline: Jiang Zai’s debts and punishing training reflect her determination to advance by creating pressure and overcoming limits.
• Power, pride, and respect: The chapter contrasts Qin Ming’s measured loyalty to allies with his ruthless response to arrogance and disrespect.

Plot and events

• After Qin Ming forces Ning Zhenxue to undergo an exhausting, experimental training dance, she returns to the Innate Sect humiliated and asks her senior, Great Sage Kong Yuanxing, for help.
• Kong and Great Sage Xuantu visit the Myriad Laws Sect to confront the unknown Qin Supreme Sovereign. Jiang Zai refuses to receive them while in seclusion, and Green Phoenix politely turns them away. The rebuff further raises Jiang Zai’s standing among the sect’s disciples.
• Kong and Xuantu discuss Qin Ming’s uncertain origins and make plans to investigate or test him. They also arrange support for Bai Yuan of the Yingxu Sect, who is preparing to compete along the Great Sage Path.
• Meanwhile, Qin Ming continues training Jiang Zai by forcing her to dance under spiritual pressure and Thunderfire, arguing that the ordeal will steady her mind. She rejects his offer of medicine to skip ahead and chooses to deepen her Spirit Domain cultivation.
• Six Desires appoints Qin Ming an external guardian and gives him a scripture for cultivating a Secret Art Tree. Qin Ming begins adapting the technique, using the Turbid World Azure Lotus as a possible foundation.
• When Bai Yuan emerges to compete, Jiang Zai decides to confront him. Qin Ming gives her a nine-colored Immortal Lotus and tells her she can face even a Great Sage. The parties gather at a plateau: Jiang Zai’s side includes Qin Ming, while Bai Yuan’s side includes Ning Zhenxue and the two Great Sages. Their standoff ends with Ning Zhenxue boasting that four Great Sages will force Qin Ming to submit.

Character developments and interactions

• Jiang Zai grows more confident and resolute. She refuses a shortcut to advancement, trusts Qin Ming’s backing, and prepares to crush Bai Yuan’s confidence despite Xuantu’s support.
• Qin Ming remains calm and unconventional: he treats both Ning and Jiang as subjects for his demanding training method, mentors Jiang, and gives her a powerful weapon. He also begins developing his own Secret Art Tree.
• Ning Zhenxue moves from wounded humiliation to anger and renewed confidence, aligning with Bai Yuan and anticipating a larger show of force against Qin Ming.
• Kong Yuanxing protects Ning and seeks to discover Qin Ming’s identity, but recognizes Qin’s composure and treats him cautiously. Xuantu supports his friend and helps advance Bai Yuan’s challenge, while remaining unsure of Qin’s origins.
• Green Phoenix mirrors Qin Ming’s confidence, calmly dismissing the Great Sages’ pressure and reinforcing the Myriad Laws Sect’s loyalty to Jiang.

Themes

• Power and patronage: The chapter’s title reflects how each faction claims Great Sage backing; influence is as much about alliances as individual strength.
• Confidence and political pressure: Jiang’s refusal to yield, and her sect’s calm reception of the visitors, turn a personal dispute into a contest over status and authority.
• Endurance and self-cultivation: Qin Ming’s harsh training presents mental composure under pressure as essential to Jiang’s chosen path.
• Rivalry and escalation: A humiliating training encounter grows into a wider confrontation involving sects, Great Sages, and competing claims to the Great Sage Path.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• A major contest begins between Jiang Ran of the Myriad Laws Sect and Bai Yuan of the Yingxu Sect, with a Great Sage-level path—and the prestigious Thunderfire Divine Lotus—as the ultimate prize. Cultivators from across the Primordial Yellow Dao Field gather to watch.
• Qin Ming, known as Qin Supreme Sovereign, attends as an unfamiliar Great Sage. His presence makes both sects wary that the conflict could widen.
• Kong Yuanxing, the Primordial Yellow Dao Field’s senior disciple, secretly prepares support for Ning Zhenxue, his junior sister. He gives her Great Sage source essence, with additional power concealed by Xuantu, another Great Sage.
• Jiang Ran and Bai Yuan enter the dangerous plateau separately. Ning Zhenxue follows with a group of retainers, despite Bai Yuan having gone in alone, drawing criticism for giving his side an unfair advantage.
• The plateau’s dangers test all three challengers. Jiang Ran kills a powerful Bifang, the Divine Wolf, and a Golden Giant; Bai Yuan defeats a formidable Flying Snake. Their battles are bloody, and Jiang Ran’s strength and fighting spirit appear to grow with every fight.
• After four days, the challengers reach the central courtyard, where the ripe Thunderfire Divine Lotus is guarded by nine powerful creatures. Bai Yuan and Ning Zhenxue join forces against Jiang Ran, while the guardians also enter the melee.
• Ning Zhenxue uses a Great Sage-powered Measuring Heaven Ruler. Jiang Ran counters with a Green Lotus bearing comparable power and breaks the ruler. When Kong Yuanxing’s incarnation appears, Jiang Ran’s Green Lotus techniques—especially a lightning spear and the Subduing Heart Bell—drive him back.
• Kong Yuanxing tries to intervene from outside and reclaim his incarnation. Qin Ming blocks the connection and warns the Great Sages not to interfere in the trial. When Kong Yuanxing and Xuantu confront him, Qin Ming advances against both, leaving the chapter on the brink of a Great Sage clash.

Character developments

• Jiang Ran proves that her confidence is backed by extraordinary ability. She fights alone, endures escalating challenges, and appears to use battle to prepare herself for the Great Sage Path. She also shows no hesitation when facing a Great Sage incarnation.
• Bai Yuan remains composed even when spectators criticize his side’s advantage. He demonstrates considerable skill, but the chapter leaves his role in the final confrontation unresolved.
• Ning Zhenxue is proud, eager to defeat Jiang Ran, and convinced her Senior Brother’s power will guarantee victory. Her confidence falters when Jiang Ran overwhelms Kong Yuanxing’s incarnation.
• Kong Yuanxing is cautious and protective of Ning Zhenxue, arranging hidden support for her. His caution contrasts with her impatience and certainty.
• Qin Ming moves from detached observer to active protector of the contest’s boundaries. He is approachable toward ordinary disciples but unyielding when the Great Sages threaten to interfere.

Significant themes

• Conviction tested through hardship: The dangerous trial pushes challengers to prove their strength and resolve, especially Jiang Ran.
• Power and fairness: Secret Great Sage support gives Ning Zhenxue an advantage, raising questions about whether the contest remains balanced.
• Perspective and allegiance: The Divine Wolf points out that the same beings can be seen as demons or saviors depending on which side one belongs to.
• Reputation versus ability: Jiang Ran’s and Qin Ming’s unexpected power challenges assumptions about who deserves to be feared or respected.
• Courage and caution: Ning Zhenxue favors bold confidence, while Kong Yuanxing’s experience makes him wary of acting recklessly outside his own world.

Character interactions

• Kong Yuanxing and Xuantu coordinate behind the scenes to protect Ning Zhenxue, while Kong Yuanxing repeatedly cautions her against overconfidence.
• Ning Zhenxue offers Bai Yuan a public show of support, but her decision to follow him into the trial prompts accusations that she is exploiting the arrangement to target Jiang Ran.
• Jiang Ran’s solitary approach contrasts with the support surrounding her rivals; she ultimately fights both challengers and the plateau’s guardians.
• Qin Ming encourages the Myriad Laws disciples and later prevents Kong Yuanxing from interfering, setting himself directly against Kong Yuanxing and Xuantu as the chapter ends.

Chapter Summary: “Great Sage’s Secret Battle”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Qin Ming, angered by the loss of the Five Elements Ring and the humiliation suffered by his allies, storms Ascension Mountain at night and kills the “Black Boar.” His reckless actions alarm the Supreme Dao Fields because a Great Sage battle could potentially trigger a larger conflict between major lineages.
• Qin Ming then blocks the Five-Colored Treasure Ship, confronting Great Sage Kong Yuanxing and Great Sage Xuantu alone. The gathered cultivators are stunned and excited, believing a major Great Sage battle is about to begin.
• Two powerful figures—the Yingxu Sect’s former Saint Disciple and an elder of the Myriad Laws Sect—arrive to prevent the confrontation from escalating into a deadly fight.
• Xuantu attempts to preserve peace while secretly helping Kong Yuanxing recover the Five Elements Ring and protect two clusters of origin essence qi. Qin Ming, however, uses his Mental Field to repeatedly block Kong Yuanxing’s attempts to interfere with the battle occurring on the plateau below.
• The conflict shifts into a formalized but highly dangerous “tea” exchange, with each side disguising attacks and mental contests as polite hospitality.
• Xuantu creates an elegant aerial garden that is actually a mental prison. Qin Ming sees through it, destroys the illusion, and replaces it with his own South Sea Purple Bamboo Forest Dao Field.
• Kong Yuanxing offers Qin Ming a cup containing condensed Nine Yin Fiendish Aura, intending it to harm or test his spirit. Qin Ming instead drinks it effortlessly and uses it as nourishment for his Mental Field.
• Qin Ming retaliates by producing cups filled with Heavenly Thunder. He drinks his own cup casually, criticizing its lack of true heavenly artistic conception. Xuantu and Kong Yuanxing are forced to drink as well, but both struggle under the destructive power of the lightning.
• At the same time, Jiang Zai defeats Kong Yuanxing’s incarnation on the plateau and seizes the Five Elements Ring. Enraged, Kong Yuanxing nearly abandons the tea contest to intervene.
• Qin Ming immediately suppresses him with overwhelming sword intent, warning him: “Either sit down, or be cut down.”

Character Developments

• Qin Ming is established as exceptionally bold, domineering, and unconcerned with the social restraints normally governing Great Sages. Although he claims to be merely a Rogue Cultivator, his strength and mastery of Mental Fields suggest a background and cultivation far beyond expectations. He treats dangerous substances such as Nine Yin Fiendish Aura and Heavenly Thunder as cultivation resources, demonstrating extraordinary physical and spiritual endurance.
• Kong Yuanxing becomes increasingly frustrated and alarmed by Qin Ming. He initially tries to maintain composure and secretly influence the plateau battle, but Qin Ming repeatedly stops him. His loss of the Five Elements Ring finally breaks his restraint, revealing his anger and anxiety.
• Great Sage Xuantu acts as host and mediator. He wants to prevent bloodshed while also protecting Kong Yuanxing’s reputation and interests. His secret assistance shows his loyalty, but his respect for Qin Ming grows as he realizes how difficult and dangerous Qin Ming is to oppose.
• Jiang Zai proves her strength by defeating Kong Yuanxing’s incarnation and taking control of the Five Elements Ring, significantly shifting the balance of the conflict.
• The Yingxu Sect and Myriad Laws Sect elders emphasize the political importance of the confrontation and attempt to keep it from becoming an uncontrollable Great Sage battle.

Significant Themes

• Power versus convention: Great Sages are expected to avoid direct conflict because their battles could destabilize entire Dao Fields, but Qin Ming disregards these traditions.
• Hidden battles beneath formal courtesy: The tea ceremony represents a struggle of Mental Fields, Dao arts, and willpower. Polite words conceal continuous attacks and counterattacks.
• Rogue cultivator independence: Qin Ming’s lack of affiliation allows him to act more freely than Great Sages tied to powerful institutions, though it also makes his strength difficult for others to assess.
• Strength and composure: Qin Ming’s calm handling of terrifying spiritual and heavenly forces contrasts with Kong Yuanxing and Xuantu’s visible strain, establishing his overwhelming superiority.
• Face and responsibility: Xuantu must balance personal loyalty, sect reputation, and the need to prevent bloodshed, showing the political burdens carried by Great Sages.
• Mental Fields as battlefields: Illusions, spiritual domains, tea, and scenery all become weapons. The conflict is fought through perception, will, and Dao concepts as much as through physical force.

Important Character Interactions

• Qin Ming and Kong Yuanxing: Their exchange is openly antagonistic but formally restrained. Qin Ming’s earlier humiliation of Kong Yuanxing’s junior sister is repaid through Kong Yuanxing’s fiendish “tea,” while Qin Ming responds with Heavenly Thunder. Their conversation is filled with veiled threats.
• Qin Ming and Xuantu: Xuantu attempts to host and mediate, but Qin Ming recognizes both his courtesy and his hidden assistance to Kong Yuanxing. Their interaction becomes a quiet contest over control of the Mental Field.
• Qin Ming and the assembled spectators: Qin Ming’s actions shock the watching cultivators, who gradually realize that this supposed Rogue Cultivator may be powerful enough to confront two Great Sages simultaneously.
• Kong Yuanxing and Jiang Zai: While Kong Yuanxing tries to influence the plateau battle through an incarnation, Jiang Zai defeats it and captures the Five Elements Ring, forcing him into a crisis.
• Qin Ming and the mediators: The visiting elders try to preserve harmony, but Qin Ming’s final warning demonstrates that he will tolerate formal restraint only as long as it does not interfere with his victory.

Key plot points and events

• Great Sage Kong Yuanxing confronts Qin Ming over the Five Elements Ring. Qin refuses to yield, and their disagreement escalates into a battle.
• Kong uses Traveler Civilization techniques involving temporal power, but Qin counters with his Nine-Colored Sword Aura and the combined power of his five realms. Qin overwhelms Kong, destroys his defenses, and severs his right arm.
• Xuantu steps in to stop the fight. Privately, he urges Kong to wait for two more Great Sages to arrive, believing their combined pressure will force Qin to return the ring. Kong reluctantly withdraws.
• On the plateau, Jiang Zai’s Mystic Blue Lotus defeats Kong’s avatar, and she takes possession of the Five Elements Ring.
• Jiang Ying then challenges Ning Zhenxue without relying on the Green Lotus. She defeats her decisively, punching a hole through her chest.
• Jiang Zai turns to Bai Yuan and plays her flute. Her Spirit Domain overwhelms him, leaving him unable to reach her.

Character developments

• Qin Ming proves himself a formidable Great Sage, willing to meet Kong’s aggression directly and capable of defeating him despite Kong’s rare temporal arts.
• Kong Yuanxing is forced to recognize Qin’s strength. Though humiliated and injured, he chooses to retreat and plots to return with reinforcements.
• Xuantu acts as mediator, but his restraint reflects the political constraints of the Primordial Yellow Dao Field rather than a lack of concern for Kong.
• Jiang Zai/Jiang Ying demonstrates both strategic strength and confidence: she secures the ring, defeats Ning in fair combat, and then confronts Bai Yuan.
• Ning Zhenxue suffers a public defeat that damages her pride and standing. Bai Yuan is shown vulnerable to Jiang’s Spirit Domain.

Significant themes

• Strength and hierarchy: Reputation and rank mean little when tested against superior power.
• Restraint and strategy: Xuantu and Kong end the battle not from reconciliation, but because continuing would be risky and reinforcements may change the balance.
• Public honor and humiliation: Jiang’s victories bring her sect acclaim, while Ning’s defeat exposes her to ridicule.
• The rise of demonic power: The chapter’s title is echoed by Kong’s bitter thought that the Dao is waning as demons rise, reflecting his fear and resentment toward Qin’s growing influence.

Character interactions

• Qin and Kong clash over the ring, with Qin’s refusal and combat victory forcing Kong to back down.
• Xuantu mediates between them and secretly advises Kong to wait for additional Great Sages.
• Jiang defeats Ning after Ning challenges her, while onlookers celebrate Jiang and mock Ning.
• Jiang then challenges Bai Yuan, using her flute and Spirit Domain to block his approach.

Key plot points and events

• Qin Ming publicly claims Kong Yuanxing’s Five Elements Ring, then uses heavenly lightning to erase Kong’s imprint and make the treasure his own. Kong is furious, but the Great Sage Xuantu restrains him and advises him to wait.
• Back on the Myriad Laws Sect’s treasure ship, Qin studies cultivation techniques from memory crystals. Green Phoenix discovers that the recordings include Jiang Zai and the newly advanced Great Sage Si Yeli dancing for Qin and seeking his guidance, leaving her astonished.
• Jiang Zai completes the plateau trial. She defeats the remaining challenges, including its powerful guardians, and obtains thirty-six lotus seeds, a rare medicine that can improve innate talent. She shares some with Li Qing Yue and other saint disciples, earning goodwill and helping ease her debts.
• Qin gives Jiang Ying some aptitude-enhancing medicine; she accepts it as an advance loan, joking that she will account for it later.
• Qin sends Zhou Tian a cryptic warning about dangers ahead and asks him to gather powerful allies. Zhou takes the message seriously, recruits support, and travels toward the Primordial Yellow Dao Field. Mu Shinian and Si Yeli receive separate invitations and also set out.
• Zhou Tian arrives at the Myriad Laws Sect seeking Qin. Meanwhile, Mu Shinian and Si Yeli visit the Innate Sect, where Kong Yuanxing and Xuantu welcome them. Kong hopes their arrival will let him confront Qin again, and Xuantu arranges a banquet and invites Qin.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Ming remains confident and provocative, asserting control over the Five Elements Ring and treating Kong’s anger as no threat. He also uses his knowledge to help others advance, while maintaining his independence from the Loan Sect’s debts.
• Kong Yuanxing restrains his rage for now, but remains resentful and expects the visiting great sages to change the balance against Qin.
• Jiang Zai proves herself the leading saint disciple by overcoming the plateau trial and securing her Great Sage Path. Her generosity with the lotus seeds strengthens her relationships and the Loan Sect’s standing.
• Green Phoenix shifts from serving Qin to being increasingly awed—and bewildered—by his influence over powerful women. She eventually breaks his seclusion to announce Zhou Tian’s visit.
• Zhou Tian moves from suspicion of Qin’s cryptic message to urgent preparations, involving allies and hidden powers. Mu Shinian and Si Yeli arrive separately but travel together and head for the Innate Sect.
• The visits set up a reunion among Qin and the great sages, while bringing Kong’s simmering grievance back into play.

Significant themes

• Power and restraint: Qin’s dominance provokes Kong, but strategic patience prevents an immediate clash.
• Cultivation and mentorship: Qin studies and shares techniques, while Jiang Zai’s trial and the lotus medicine emphasize growth through struggle and support.
• Reciprocity and obligation: Jiang Zai’s gifts build trust, while Qin rejects taking responsibility for others’ debts.
• Foreshadowing and hidden danger: Qin’s warning hints at a threat to the great sages, even as several powerful figures converge at the Primordial Yellow Dao Field.

Key plot points and events

• Qin Ming trains Jiang Ran in the difficult Life Altering Scripture, guiding its circulation through her meridians so it can suit her constitution.
• He cultivates the Six Desires Sacred Fire, which nourishes his consciousness and strengthens his Turbid World Azure Lotus. The lotus begins to bud, bringing him close to forming a Dao Fruit; he concludes the danger that befell Hong Dao will not apply to him because his technique carries no inherited karmic cause.
• Qin Ming’s sworn brothers Zhou Tian and Niu Wuwei arrive. He introduces them to Jiang Ran, shares rare medicines, and gives Niu Wuwei a bracelet of treasures and a personalized cultivation method for Li Qingyue.
• Qin Ming reveals that a Decayed Heavenly Immortal may target anyone with a gate inside their body. He gathers his brothers and other powerful allies to discuss the threat and prepare to act together.
• The group attends a banquet at the Innate Sect. Xuantu and Kong Yuanxing have invited prominent figures, expecting to host a gathering of Great Sages—but they do not realize how many of Qin Ming’s allies will attend.
• At the banquet, Si Yeli visits Qin Ming privately to thank him and treats him with conspicuous warmth. Ning Zhenxue, Kong Yuanxing, and Xuantu witness the encounter and are stunned.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Ming advances his cultivation, shows generosity toward his sworn brothers and Jiang Ran, and increasingly uses his influence to organize a response to the looming danger.
• Jiang Ran continues developing her cultivation and is treated by the Myriad Laws Sect’s elders as a Great Sage in the making. She meets Qin Ming’s brothers, who accept her warmly.
• Zhou Tian and Niu Wuwei tease Qin Ming about Jiang Ran, then become impressed by his treasures and renewed breakthrough. They agree to help confront the threat.
• Niu Wuwei also serves as a messenger for Qin Ming’s gift to Li Qingyue, while Zhou Tian and Niu Wuwei each give Jiang Ran a valuable gift.
• Si Yeli’s friendly, deferential behavior toward Qin Ming surprises the onlookers. Ning Zhenxue is shaken by what she sees, while Kong Yuanxing and Xuantu realize their plan to wait out Qin Ming has badly misjudged his standing.

Significant themes

• Cultivation through discipline and guidance: Qin Ming’s instruction helps Jiang Ran pursue a demanding art tailored to her body.
• Power, alliance, and mutual obligation: Qin Ming shares resources and gathers powerful allies, framing the coming danger as a collective responsibility.
• Fortune and karma: The lotus’s growth raises questions about the origins of one’s Dao Fruit and the consequences of inherited causes.
• Status and miscalculation: The banquet exposes the gap between Xuantu and Kong Yuanxing’s assumptions about Qin Ming and the actual strength of his network.
• Humor amid high stakes: Banter about Qin Ming’s youth, relationships, and generosity lightens the serious discussion of the Decayed Heavenly Immortal.

Key plot points and events

• Xuantu, Kong Yuanxing, and Ning Zhenxue see Si Yeli enter a private lounge with Qin Ming. They assume he has coerced her, and Xuantu—after previously urging Kong to tolerate Qin—decides to recruit Great Sage Mu Shinian and confront him.
• Inside, Si Yeli explains that she has several Sacred Spirit forms. Her Vermilion Bird form appeared in Jade Radiance City, while her White Tiger form had entered the Great Sage Path years earlier; the forms’ combined experience helped her progress. She treats Qin with evident respect and dances for him, recalling the Heavenly Demon Dance that Qin had taught her.
• The would-be rescuers arrive just as Si Yeli finishes dancing. Their suspicions deepen, but the confrontation changes when Mu Shinian attacks Kong’s scheming elder, stripping a century from his lifespan.
• Qin addresses Mu as “Third Brother,” revealing that he is Zheng Guang, the legendary Sixth Great Sage, only twenty-three and now in the Fifth Heaven of the Grandmaster Realm. Zhou Tian and Niu Wuwei also reveal themselves as Great Sages. The supposed three-on-one advantage becomes five Great Sages against Xuantu and Kong Yuanxing.
• Xuantu and Kong apologize and offer Qin a toast; the gathering’s hostility turns into celebration. Qin then hints at a major opportunity beyond Heaven and invites Xuantu and Kong to join the Six Great Sages—if they first swear an oath of secrecy.

Character developments and interactions

• Xuantu abandons his advice to endure and avoid Qin once he feels publicly insulted. His confidence collapses when Qin’s identity and allies are revealed.
• Kong Yuanxing resents having followed Xuantu’s cautious counsel, but joins the confrontation. He quickly shifts from anger to apology and brotherly friendliness once the balance of power changes.
• Ning Zhenxue begins as Si Yeli’s admirer and believes Qin is exploiting her. Seeing Si Yeli’s willing respect and dance forces her to reconsider both Qin’s power and her own assumptions; she ultimately joins the apologetic toast.
• Si Yeli is revealed as a formidable Great Sage with multiple distinct Sacred Spirit forms. Her familiarity, service, and dancing for Qin arise from respect and an old teacher-student bond, not the coercion the others imagine.
• Qin Ming remains composed throughout, allowing the others’ mistaken assumptions to unravel on their own. His identity as Zheng Guang and his ties to the other Great Sages transform a threatened confrontation into an alliance.
• Mu Shinian, Zhou Tian, and Niu Wuwei help expose the imbalance of power: Mu backs Qin while Zhou and Niu secretly encourage the confrontation, partly for mischief and partly because they want to spar with him.

Significant themes

• Appearances versus reality: Si Yeli’s apparent subservience is voluntary respect, while the observers’ assumptions fuel the conflict.
• Pride and misjudgment: Xuantu and Kong mistake restraint for weakness and Qin’s calm for arrogance; their certainty vanishes when they learn who he is.
• Reputation and hidden strength: Qin’s identity and the allies present turn an apparent contest into a five-against-two mismatch.
• Brotherhood and shifting loyalties: The confrontation quickly gives way to apologies, toasts, and an invitation to share a dangerous opportunity.

Key plot points

• Qin Ming proposes recruiting Xuantu and Kong Yuanxing to help “fish for” a creature from Beyond Heaven. Before explaining, he requires Dao oaths from them and Si Yeli.
• He reveals that the target is a Decayed Heavenly Immortal, not treasure or divine medicine. He argues that the recent chaos in the Night Mist World showed that powerful factions can profit from such opportunities—and that a broad coalition could overwhelm the threat.
• Qin Ming explains his motive: he feels unsafe and wants to bring in allies from multiple civilizations and Dao fields, rather than expose his sworn brothers and their supporters to unnecessary danger.
• At the banquet, old rivalries are concealed beneath polite conversation. Kong Yuanxing even gives Qin Ming a Five Elements Ring, while both sides privately retain their pride and resentment.
• Qin Ming reunites with Zhou Tian, Mu Shinian, and Niu Wuwei, then tells them the danger may reach anyone with a “door” within them. They learn that the mysterious old monster may have watched them before, including in the Land of Longevity.
• The group decides to summon reinforcements from the Cultivation Civilization, Strange Insect Alliance, Demon Court, Traveler Civilization, Myriad Spirits Sect, and Primordial Yellow Dao Field. The fight, if necessary, will be moved to the uninhabited region.
• Qin Ming publicly presents Jiang Ran as a possible seventh Great Sage, signaling to her creditors that she now has powerful backing.
• Within ten days, Old Dream Insect and other forces arrive. Primordial Yellow Dao Field elders begin studying a massive formation designed to hunt the Decayed Heavenly Immortal.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Ming shows himself to be strategic and confident, using diplomacy and carefully chosen truths to build a coalition. He frames recruitment as kindness—more allies mean fewer deaths—though he also believes strength will eventually make former rivals treat him as an equal.
• Xuantu and Kong Yuanxing agree to the secrecy oaths and cooperate despite lingering grievances. Their outward friendliness is a pragmatic concession, not genuine reconciliation.
• Si Yeli takes the threat seriously and swears secrecy alongside the others.
• Zhou Tian, Mu Shinian, and Niu Wuwei react with alarm but commit to summoning help. Their teasing banter with Qin Ming reflects the trust and informality of their growing brotherhood.
• Jiang Ran is given public protection through Qin Ming’s announcement, while Si Yeli seeks her out to talk.
• The wider factions begin shifting from wary observers to participants in a coordinated hunt.

Significant themes

• Cooperation amid rivalry: Former opponents can work together when a greater danger demands it, even if old resentments remain.
• The cost of survival: Powerful elders risk themselves to prolong their lives, while Qin Ming tries to reduce losses by spreading the danger across a larger coalition.
• Power and changing status: Qin Ming expects rapid advancement to reshape relationships and erase old hierarchies.
• Secrecy, uncertainty, and hidden threats: Dao oaths, incomplete information, and the monster’s pursuit underscore how little the characters know about the danger.
• Appearance versus reality: The banquet looks peaceful, but smiles and gifts mask pride, frustration, and calculated compromise.

Key plot points and events

• The Primordial Yellow Dao Field’s elders and allies prepare a secret, layered killing formation to hunt the Decayed Heavenly Immortal, whose trail suggests it came from Beyond Heaven. They confirm it is the same monster that appeared at the Land of Longevity and may be linked to Qin Ming through karma.
• Qin Ming spends days creating a lifelike alternate body from Divine Lotus Root, refining it with special flames, divine materials, and his blood and will. With the artifact spirits’ approval, it becomes nearly indistinguishable from his true body, which he can control remotely.
• The elders eventually ask Qin Ming to show himself as bait. He eagerly agrees, framing the risk as a duty to protect his sworn siblings and the wider world. Privately, he is preparing to use the alternate body.
• Qin Ming turns his apparent bravery to practical advantage, requesting defensive talismans and powerful offensive abilities from the assembled experts. Concerned about the danger, they promise protection and arrange a formation that can transport an attacker to a prepared battlefield.
• Qin Ming’s friends and Jiang Ran are distressed by his supposed willingness to die. He secretly reassures Jiang Ran that the body he plans to expose is the Divine Lotus Root one.
• After several fruitless days of baiting, Qin Ming returns to his residence. When a visitor’s journey may have alerted the monster, he asks for additional safeguards. The chapter ends as he senses a threat, opens his Eye of New Life, and braces for what may be the creature’s arrival.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Ming shows both strategic caution and theatrical audacity. He presents himself as a selfless hero to win the elders’ trust and resources, while privately relying on his substitute body to reduce the danger.
• The elders and allied experts are impressed by Qin Ming’s apparent courage but also fear the consequences of his death, partly because they suspect he may belong to a powerful hidden Lineage. They provide him with protective and offensive tools.
• Jiang Ran and Qin Ming’s sworn brothers react with alarm and affection, trying to dissuade him. His reassurance to Jiang Ran reveals the secret behind his plan, while his brothers’ admiration grows because they believe his sacrifice is genuine.
• Six Desires and Xuantiān assess the completed body and tease one another about Qin Ming’s supposedly sincere heroism, highlighting how convincing his performance has become.

Significant themes

• Courage versus self-preservation: Qin Ming’s public self-sacrifice masks a carefully planned survival strategy.
• Deception and identity: The lifelike double blurs the distinction between the real Qin Ming and his constructed “new self,” while others’ assumptions about his lineage add further uncertainty.
• Loyalty and responsibility: Qin Ming invokes his sworn siblings and the safety of the wider world to justify taking the bait role.
• Preparation amid uncertainty: The hunters’ careful investigations, formations, and talismans reflect the danger of facing an elusive foe whose true power remains unknown.

Key plot points and events

• Qin Ming waits at his residence while a host of old monsters prepare an ambush for the Decayed Heavenly Immortal, who has been stalking him.
• A mysterious golden figure appears in the night and warns that the enemy is near. The elders identify him as the famed expert who once fought beings from Beyond Heaven.
• Qin Ming stays calm and keeps his true body hidden in the Torn Cloth, controlling his Divine Lotus Root Body remotely. The Decayed Heavenly Immortal tests its influence over that body, then later uses a mysterious Fate Line to draw it out.
• The elders spring their trap. After repeated attempts, they sever the Fate Line with the Time Beast’s Wheel of Time and the Myriad Laws Sect master’s Primordial Yellow Bell talisman, freeing Qin Ming.
• The Decayed Heavenly Immortal’s apparent body is defeated, but the elders discover it was only an avatar. Using its source energy, they trace its true body—a badly wounded, colossal scaled beast—and pursue it.
• Back at the Dao Field, Qin Ming believes the danger is nearly over. But the Decayed Heavenly Immortal suddenly appears in his chamber, claiming it never left.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Ming remains composed and deliberately serves as bait, trusting his precautions and the elders’ plan. He is tempted by invitations from friends and Si Yeli but turns them down to avoid putting others at risk.
• The old monsters show both formidable coordination and greed: they eagerly anticipate hunting the Immortal, partly because its blood might prolong their lives. Their first victory proves incomplete.
• Qin Ming’s friends and allies avoid meeting him while he is being targeted, though his sworn brothers feel guilty that he must face the danger alone.
• Green Phoenix mistakes Qin Ming’s viewing of dance recordings for frivolous entertainment; he insists he is using them to cultivate his mind.
• The Decayed Heavenly Immortal is revealed as cunning and powerful: it can manipulate Qin Ming’s body from afar, evade the initial trap with an avatar, and apparently remain close despite the elders’ pursuit.

Significant themes

• Deception and misdirection: Qin Ming hides his true body, while the enemy uses an avatar and a Fate Line; appearances repeatedly conceal the real danger.
• Caution versus confidence: Qin Ming and the elders prepare extensively, yet their elaborate plan nearly fails—and the threat remains.
• Risk, sacrifice, and loyalty: Qin Ming accepts being bait to protect others, while his friends’ avoidance reflects fear mixed with concern and guilt.
• The pursuit of survival: The elders’ excitement at the prospect of the Immortal’s blood exposes how desperation for longevity can blur the line between defense and predation.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Qin Ming’s Divine Lotus Root Body is confronted in its Secret Chamber by the Decayed Heavenly Immortal, who claims he has never left. Qin Ming realizes the being has likely been hiding until the other experts believe the hunt is over, intending to kill him and replace him so he can live openly as Qin Ming.
• The Decayed Heavenly Immortal attacks, but Qin Ming survives by activating the protective Divine Talismans supplied by the old experts. When Qin Ming threatens to open the mysterious “door” within himself, the attacker abruptly withdraws into the mist.
• An Old Woman from the Traveler Civilization arrives, ostensibly to check on Qin Ming but actually hoping to seize the “door” and extend her life. The Decayed Heavenly Immortal traps and kills her avatar after she attempts to escape.
• Qin Ming’s true consciousness, which had departed the Lotus Root Body earlier and remained with Jiang Ran, asks Six Desires for help. Another old man also tries to approach Qin Ming’s residence, but a streak of Golden Haze kills him.
• Experts return and surround the Decayed Heavenly Immortal. He reveals that he is the Inner Sage, once rooted in the flesh of the Outer Demon—two aspects of an extraordinary art called Inner Sage, Outer Demon. The assembled experts use the Primordial Yellow Dao Field’s formation and sect treasures to kill him, though they fail to capture his true spirit.
• After a three-day sweep confirms the grounds are clear, Qin Ming tries to resume normal life. However, the chapter ends with a twist: the supposedly dead enemy’s remaining essence enters and takes control of Qin Ming’s Lotus Root Body, still searching for the “door.” As it searches, Qin Ming begins to resonate with the body, and Old Cloth opens a hidden cage near the door.

Character developments

• Qin Ming remains sharp and resourceful under pressure. He infers the enemy’s replacement scheme, uses his talismans strategically, and keeps his true consciousness safe by having left the Lotus Root Body earlier. His relief after the apparent victory proves premature.
• The Decayed Heavenly Immortal is revealed as a patient, meticulous schemer. His apparent exposure and death were staged to convince the experts that both the Outer Demon and Inner Sage had been eliminated, clearing the way for a quieter takeover.
• The Old Woman is driven by fear of death and the desire to obtain the “door.” Her supposed concern for Qin Ming is a deception, and her attempt to escape ends in her destruction.
• Six Desires and the other senior experts act to protect Qin Ming and contain the threat, but their victory is incomplete: they mistake the staged deaths for the end of the danger.
• Jiang Ran remains close to Qin Ming and is where his true consciousness stays during the crisis.

Significant themes

• Survival and the fear of death: The old immortals’ pursuit of longevity drives them to betray others and risk everything.
• Appearance versus reality: The hunt’s apparent conclusion conceals a carefully staged deception; even a “victory” can be part of the enemy’s plan.
• Trust and betrayal: Several characters disguise hostile intentions as concern or cooperation, while Qin Ming responds with suspicion and caution.
• Preparation and hidden safeguards: Qin Ming’s talismans, body-switching, and concealed consciousness help him survive, though the final reveal shows that no safeguard guarantees safety.

Character interactions

• Qin Ming verbally spars with the Decayed Heavenly Immortal while trying to delay his attack and protect the “door.”
• The Old Woman pretends to care for Qin Ming; he recognizes her motives and uses her arrival to expose the hidden attacker. Their exchange turns openly hostile once she realizes she is trapped.
• The senior experts question the Decayed Heavenly Immortal about his identity and origins, then battle him using the Dao Field’s defenses.
• Qin Ming reconnects with friends after the apparent victory, but the mood of relief and celebration is undercut by the final discovery that the enemy may still control his Lotus Root Body.

Plot points and events

• Qin Ming lures the Decayed Heavenly Immortal into Torn Cloth’s prison space, disguised as the mysterious “gate” the ghost expects to find inside Qin Ming.
• The ghost realizes the trap too late. He abandons his Blood Essence and tries to escape as Torn Cloth closes, but the closure tears apart his Inner Sage, Outer Demon imprint. A weak fragment of Immortal Light gets out and is captured in a second prison space.
• Qin Ming stays motionless through the night, pretending he is still sealed while checking for hidden remnants. By morning, he confirms the ghost has been uprooted completely.
• A soul search reveals the ghost’s Extraordinary Art, Inner Sage, Outer Demon, and fragments of its cultivation methods. Qin Ming sees potential in the scripture, especially its self-cultivation path, and decides to study its insights. He also keeps the ghost’s Blood Medicine sealed in Torn Cloth until it is safe to claim.
• With the Heavenly Immortal Calamity over, Qin Ming announces he will leave the residence where the trap took place. His friends gather to help.
• Qin Ming grows uneasy about whether other powerful figures might have been secretly replaced or targeted. He also considers returning to Night Prefecture, where an ancient “Black Hand” remains a threat.
• The group learns that two old guardians died during the recent operation, while the senior figures acquired Auspicious Beast Blood Essence. The younger generation is promised a new opportunity at the Primordial Yellow Dao Field, possibly involving the legendary Primordial Yellow Tree.
• News that Qin Ming is now the youngest living Great Sage reaches the group. Meanwhile, a radiant Golden Figure crosses the Night Mist Sea toward the Primordial Yellow Dao Field.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Ming succeeds through patience, deception, and careful planning, but the ordeal leaves him shaken and suspicious. He shifts from relief at defeating the ghost to studying the enemy’s powerful art and questioning how much danger remains.
• The Decayed Heavenly Immortal is finally defeated. Even as his escape fails, he remains composed; his last survival imprint is reduced to a powerless fragment.
• Jiang Ran, the Six Desires Old Devil, Xuantiān, and others remain on guard through the night, unaware that Qin Ming has already captured the ghost. Afterward, Jiang Ran discusses the dangers of Night Prefecture and shares news of the younger generation’s opportunity.
• Qin Ming’s friends, including Zhou Tian, Niu Wuwei, Mu Shinian, and Si Yeli, respond to his plan to move with concern and teasing. Their closeness contrasts with Qin Ming’s lingering fear.
• Qin Ming jokingly probes his companions to make sure they have not been replaced. Zhou Tian explains that they were all protected, though one guardian died beside Kong Yuanxing.

Significant themes

• Deception and vigilance: Qin Ming defeats a cunning enemy by exploiting the ghost’s assumptions, then remains watchful in case the apparent victory hides another trick.
• The cost of survival: The ghost’s attempt to start over fails, while Qin Ming’s escape from danger comes at the price of lasting anxiety.
• Identity and trust: The possibility that ancient beings could occupy younger bodies makes Qin Ming question whether familiar people are truly themselves.
• Power and opportunity: Qin Ming’s capture of an Eighth Realm art and the coming Primordial Yellow Tree opportunity promise advancement, but also attract envy and danger.
• Lingering threats: The ghost is gone, yet the Black Hand in Night Prefecture and the unexplained deaths show that the wider world remains perilous.

Concise Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Far away, a golden, powerful figure—revealed as the youngest living Great Sage—recovers from a serious wound inflicted by an Eighth Realm being from Beyond Heaven. He believes that threat has been eliminated, mourns the end of the Inner Sage, Outer Demon legacy, and warns others not to reach for a mysterious door.
• Qin Ming learns that the Primordial Yellow Tree can purify body and spirit and help overcome cultivation obstacles. Its benefit is limited to two uses, more than a century apart, but he sees it as a way to recover from his unusually rapid breakthroughs and eventually become the youngest Grandmaster—or even Ancestor.
• At his new residence, Qin Ming hosts a feast. His guests initially mock his supposed Black Boar meat, but it proves to be exceptionally nourishing Kirin flesh. The Great Sages eagerly compete for it, while recognizing that Qin Ming has shared a precious secret out of friendship.
• Qin Ming privately asks the Six Desires Old Devil and Xuantiān about “Door Calamities.” They explain that doors are rare and dangerous: intruders may draw out their substances, but taking up residence inside another person can lead to assimilation, confused memories, or a merging of identities. Strict oaths and severe consequences deter powerful factions from preying on gifted people.
• The Myriad Laws Sect’s old sect master joins the gathering and probes Qin Ming about his origins. Qin Ming, loosened by medicinal wine, evades direct answers with outrageous “truths” about an ancient figure. The Six Desires Old Devil confirms his story, leaving the sect master astonished.
• Two days later, the Primordial Yellow Tree is about to appear. Qin Ming and the others head toward the opportunity, meeting delegations from neighboring Dao Fields. When Duan Yin calls Qin Ming “Little Six,” Qin Ming takes it as disrespect and responds sharply.

Character developments

• Qin Ming is ambitious about using the Primordial Yellow Tree to advance, but remains cautious about doors and the possibility that someone close to him could be targeted. He shows generosity by sharing the Kirin meat, while also making clear that he will not tolerate a perceived insult.
• The Great Sages grow more appreciative of Qin Ming after discovering the feast’s true value; their joking skepticism turns into gratitude and camaraderie.
• Jiang Ran and Si Yeli display a subtle rivalry over Qin Ming’s attention. Si Yeli refuses to dance for the group, saying she dances for only one person.
• The Myriad Laws Sect’s old sect master is impressed by Qin Ming and favors him, but his curiosity about Qin Ming’s background yields a bewildering encounter rather than a straightforward answer.
• Duan Yin becomes Qin Ming’s immediate foil: his casual nickname is taken as a slight, setting up a tense exchange.

Significant themes

• Ambition and restraint: Qin Ming seeks rapid advancement, yet must account for the limits of cultivation and the risks attached to power.
• Identity and the self: The door lore raises questions about whether an intruder can truly replace another person—or whether the two lives eventually blend.
• Trust and brotherhood: Sharing rare Kirin flesh demonstrates Qin Ming’s trust in his companions, who choose not to press him for its origin.
• Hierarchy and respect: Qin Ming’s reaction to “Little Six” shows how status and forms of address can carry sharp social meaning.
• Humor amid danger: The boisterous feast and Qin Ming’s drunken banter contrast with the chapter’s darker concerns about powerful beings, doors, and possible calamities.

Character interactions

• Qin Ming’s companions tease him about the Black Boar meat, then enthusiastically scramble for the Kirin flesh once they taste it.
• Jiang Ran challenges Si Yeli to dance; Si Yeli’s pointed refusal makes the group suspect a rivalry over Qin Ming.
• Qin Ming seeks a serious explanation of door dangers from Xuantiān and the Six Desires Old Devil, then returns to the feast.
• The old sect master questions Qin Ming about his lineage; Qin Ming dodges him with comic stories, and the Six Desires Old Devil’s confirmation deepens the mystery.
• At the gathering before the Primordial Yellow Tree’s emergence, Duan Yin introduces himself using a name Qin Ming considers insulting. Qin Ming answers with an equally cutting retort.