Chapter Summaries

At a banquet, Cloud Vortex True Monarch told Xiao Chen and the others that Zhang Shouquan had reached Nascent Soul and killed the Three-Winged Thirstblood Mosquito, and Xiao Chen vouched for his character. After the celebration, Xiao Chen went to Azure Treasure Pavilion to follow up on an old arrangement, where the shop assistant recognized him and went to summon the master.

• Cloud Vortex True Monarch recounted how the sects’ attempts to reach Nascent Soul had gone, including many deaths and failures alongside a few successful breakthroughs.
• Cloud Vortex True Monarch reported that Zhang Shouquan had emerged from the Thirstblood Secret Realm with the corpse of the Three-Winged Thirstblood Mosquito after breaking through to Nascent Soul.
• Xiao Chen told Cloud Vortex True Monarch and Gang Yuan True Monarch that Zhang Shouquan was upright, based on their past dealings.
• After the banquet, Xiao Chen reviewed the battle and walked through Listening Wave Market to visit Azure Treasure Pavilion about their overdue meeting.
• The robed shop assistant recognized Xiao Chen from his previous visit and hurried to notify the pavilion’s master.

Xiao Chen settled his Spirit Tool account with Azure Treasure Pavilion, learned that the Jade Leaf Commerce Association had fled to Storm Sea, and received a custom token granting him access to Cloud Wave Sword Abode’s Scripture Pavilion. While reading the collection, he found an ancient record describing Heaven Star Sect’s lavish invitation to witness a Divine Beast hunt.

• Xiao Chen took the unsold Spirit Tools from Azure Treasure Pavilion at market rates and collected the remaining 1.6 million Spirit Stones in profits.
• Xiao Chen learned from Cloud Vortex True Monarch that the Jade Leaf Commerce Association had fled to Storm Sea two years earlier, likely taking Old Master Kuang with them.
• Cloud Vortex True Monarch gave Xiao Chen a custom restriction token and permission to read freely in the Scripture Pavilion.
• Xiao Chen spent several days reading through Cloud Wave Sword Abode’s books and discovered an ancient record written partly in Ancient Spirit Script.
• Xiao Chen read that Heaven Star Sect had invited sects to witness its Divine Beast hunt and promised generous Fourth-Order gifts to those who attended.

After Xiao Chen’s victory on the South Front, sects across Compassion Sea read the battle report and reacted with astonishment, relief, and renewed hope. As the Buddhist forces anticipated reinforcements, the chapter ended with Purified Nature Zen Master wishing Xiao Chen might one day join the Buddhist Sect.

• Crane Cry True Monarch and Purple Sun True Monarch learned that Xiao Chen had killed four Great Demons, celebrated the victory, and discussed taking him a valuable gift.
• Iron Fan True Monarch and Silver Hair True Monarch read the report, praised Iron Fan’s decision to reconcile with Xiao Chen, and announced the victory with rewards for their disciples.
• Qian Shu True Monarch directed Hundred Apertures True Monarch to spread stories of Xiao Chen’s diligent cultivation, and rumors about him spread through Shallow Sky Sea.
• Yunfeng True Monarch dismissed Thunderbolt True Monarch’s suspicion that Xiao Chen cultivated Demonic Arts and explained that his strength could not be judged by ordinary standards.
• Hui Ming Temple and the Buddhist temples received the report, and the leaders celebrated the prospect that the Sea Race would have to divide its forces.
• Purified Nature Zen Master praised Xiao Chen’s achievements and said the Buddhist Sect should guide him into its ranks if the opportunity arose.

The Venerable One reinforced Shallow Sky Sea and ordered Hai Hong to hold off the Human Race while he prepared to destroy Universal Salvation Temple. Xiao Chen completed the Four Symbols Suppressing Mountain Shield and set out with allied forces, where he revealed that he had turned thirty and reached Nascent Soul at twenty-nine.

• The Venerable One sent Hai Hong to Shallow Sky Sea with a Positioning Compass and ordered it to gather the Sea Race forces and hold the Human Race back for half a year.
• The Venerable One later gave the Six-fin Barracuda the Thirty-Six Revolving Cold Smoke Golden Talisman and instructed it to prioritize defending the array and delaying the enemy.
• Xiao Chen studied the Immortal Invocation Method account, then spent nearly a month completing the Spiritual Patterns of the Four Symbols Suppressing Mountain Shield.
• Cloud Vortex True Monarch told Xiao Chen that seven spiritual ships were ready, and Xiao Chen ordered the allied forces to depart for Shallow Sky Sea.
• During the voyage, Cloud Vortex True Monarch and Crane Cry True Monarch discussed the young Nascent Soul cultivators, and Xiao Chen revealed he had turned thirty that day.
• Cloud Vortex True Monarch, Crane Cry True Monarch, and Purple Sun True Monarch were stunned to learn Xiao Chen had broken through to Nascent Soul at twenty-nine.

Xiao Chen accepted two treasured gifts from Crane Cry True Monarch and traveled with the reinforcements to Shallow Sky Sea, where the Azure Sea Immortal Sect welcomed them. At the front, Iron Fan True Monarch described the four Sea Race Great Demons, including the dangerous Seven-Star Flowing Light Sea Bream.

• Crane Cry True Monarch gave Xiao Chen the Floating Cloud Treasure Jade and Water Suppressing Spirit Pearl, then joined the reinforcements with Purple Sun True Monarch.
• Xiao Chen and the others admired Shallow Sky Sea as they sailed north, while Wave Stacking True Monarch resolved to treat Xiao Chen as his ultimate challenge.
• The fleet encountered increasingly frequent Sea Race surveillance before reaching the Azure Sea Immortal Sect's formation, where Iron Fan True Monarch and Silver Hair True Monarch welcomed them.
• Iron Fan True Monarch hosted the newcomers at a feast, and Xiao Chen asked him to explain the Sea Race Great Demons in Shallow Sky Sea.
• Iron Fan True Monarch described the Silver Thread Shuttle Fish, Thousand-Eye Ray, Gilded Overlord Crab, and Seven-Star Flowing Light Sea Bream, whose black light could break protective astral qi.

Xiao Chen and the Human Race cultivators cautiously advanced into the Shallow Sky Sea, dismantling newly built Sea Race defensive formations and studying their Array Foundations. After encountering several strangely placed formations with no Great Demons guarding them, Gang Yuan True Monarch suspected a hidden scheme, but the chapter left the group without an answer as Xiao Chen calmly served freshly prepared fish.

• Gang Yuan True Monarch proposed surveying the Sea Race’s defenses and clearing weaker formations before confronting the Seven-Star Flowing Light Sea Bream, while the newly promoted True Monarchs remained behind to guard and support the operation.
• Xiao Chen entered the unexpected formation at Moon Spring Island and fought two Sea Frog phantoms summoned by three Golden Core Sea Frogs, holding back while the others studied the array.
• Gang Yuan True Monarch broke the formation by removing its Core Array Foundation, and Xiao Chen cooked the Sea Frogs as the group continued onward.
• The group found another recently built defensive formation a day and a half later, dismantled it, and collected another batch of Sea Race Array Foundations.
• On the fifth day, the group encountered a third similar formation, prompting Gang Yuan True Monarch to suspect a scheme and contact Han Chuan True Monarch, while Xiao Chen calmly prepared Thunderclap Golden Tuna for everyone to eat.

Xiao Chen and the Human Race forces concluded that the Sea Race had used defensive formations to delay their advance, then reached the enemy’s final defensive line in Shallow Sky Sea. After Qian Shu True Monarch’s puppet was overwhelmed by an illusion-wielding Great Demon, Xiao Chen entered the illusion array and saw through its deceptions as he attacked it.

• Gang Yuan True Monarch deduced that the Sea Race had urgently built defensive formations to delay the Human Race, and the others accepted his explanation.
• The Human Race force cleared ten more defensive formations, joined Han Chuan True Monarch’s group, and advanced to within five thousand li of the Sea Race’s linked grand array.
• Iron Fan True Monarch explained that the enemy’s linked grand array drew on Earth Vein Qi, while Gang Yuan True Monarch proposed probing the illusion array that concealed it.
• Qian Shu True Monarch sent in a White Jade puppet, but an illusion technique from a Mutated Ice Crystal Jellyfish forced him to destroy it and suffer an injury.
• Crane Cry True Monarch identified the jellyfish as a powerful illusion-using Great Demon, and Gang Yuan True Monarch proposed preparing countermeasures before returning.
• Xiao Chen entered the illusion array, saw the Ice Crystal Jellyfish’s true body, and pierced its hastily raised barrier with his Azure Wave Piercing Bone Needles.

Xiao Chen killed the Ice Crystal Jellyfish and led the Human True Lords to the Sea Race’s Linked Grand Array, where Hai Hong tried and failed to divide the Human forces with a peace proposal. The chapter ended with the humans assessing the enormous, layered array and learning that even extensive damage would leave most of its power intact.

• Xiao Chen killed the Ice Crystal Jellyfish, causing its Illusory Formation to collapse and leaving behind a gray-black gemstone made from the mist.
• Hai Hong watched the humans approach and ordered the Sea Race to conceal itself while sending out a Water Person to speak with them.
• Hai Hong urged the Daoist cultivators to abandon the fight against the Sea Race and suggested they let Universal Salvation Temple bear the brunt of the conflict.
• Xiao Chen rejected Hai Hong’s offer, and Gang Yuan True Monarch and the other Human True Lords declared they would continue fighting.
• The humans examined the Linked Grand Array and discovered that its eleven main arrays formed a nested, five-elements-and-two-forms structure that could retain over seventy percent of its power even after losing more than half its arrays.

The Human Race struggled to find a quick way to counter the Sea Race’s powerful Fourth-Order Grand Array, while Xiao Chen’s captured Ice Crystal Jellyfish caused an illusion mishap that nearly made two True Monarchs attack each other. After Xiao Chen rescued them, the group praised his Four Symbols Suppressing Mountain Shield, unaware of how it had become so powerful.

• Han Chuan True Monarch judged that the Sea Race’s formation used Fourth-Order materials at most, while Gang Yuan True Monarch warned that reverse-engineering it could take years.
• Xiao Chen and the other True Monarchs agreed to harass the Grand Array and search for weaknesses using ordinary formation-breaking tools.
• Hundred Apertures True Monarch processed Xiao Chen’s Ice Crystal Jellyfish, accidentally activating its Ice Crystal Illusion Pearl and trapping himself and Rift Void True Monarch in an illusion.
• Xiao Chen sealed both True Monarchs inside his Four Symbols Suppressing Mountain Shield until Qian Shu True Monarch and Gang Yuan True Monarch helped wake them.
• Hundred Apertures True Monarch and Rift Void True Monarch thanked Xiao Chen and admitted their carelessness, while the others praised his shield as an ancient defensive method.

Xiao Chen and seven Human Race True Monarchs forced their way into the Linked Grand Array to dismantle an Array Foundation, enduring escalating fire attacks while Hai Hong concealed its forces and waited to ambush them. When eleven Fourth-Order Great Demons finally surrounded the group, Xiao Chen offered to help them break out, and the True Monarchs chose to fight rather than abandon Gang Yuan True Monarch’s nearly dismantled Array Foundation.

• Xiao Chen and the other True Monarchs entered the array’s Fire Array, where successive waves of firewalls trapped and battered them as Gang Yuan True Monarch and Han Chuan True Monarch dismantled an Array Foundation.
• Hai Hong watched the Human Race’s defenses and methods, then waited until Gang Yuan True Monarch was close to removing the Array Foundation before leading ten other Fourth-Order Great Demons into an ambush.
• Gang Yuan True Monarch asked Xiao Chen whether they should flee or stay to finish taking the Array Foundation, and Xiao Chen said he could help them break out but could not promise everyone would survive.
• Cloud Vortex True Monarch, Crane Cry True Monarch, Iron Fan True Monarch, Silver Hair True Monarch, and Qian Shu True Monarch agreed to fight, with Qian Shu True Monarch bringing out all six of his Fourth-Order Puppets.

The Human True Lords battled the Sea Race Great Demons inside the Linked Grand Array, with Xiao Chen’s spells and Qian Shu True Monarch’s puppets keeping the demons at bay. After Gang Yuan True Monarch removed the Array Foundation and the humans began breaking out, the Seven-Star Flowing Light Sea Bream trapped Xiao Chen, but he snapped the steel pillars apart with his bare hands.

• Hai Hong ordered the Sea Race Demons to harass the humans from a distance and prevent their escape, but Xiao Chen’s Fire Avoiding Spiritual Light and Sea Calming Incantation weakened their attacks.
• The Sea Race Great Demons charged into close combat, and Qian Shu True Monarch’s six Fourth-Order Puppets blocked their attacks while the Human True Lords held their formation.
• Hai Hong ordered the Seven-Star Flowing Light Sea Bream to target Xiao Chen, and the Sea Bream’s crimson strike failed to break the Four Symbols Suppressing Mountain Shield before its purple light imprisoned him.
• Gang Yuan True Monarch removed the Array Foundation, and Xiao Chen expanded his spells as the Human True Lords began their breakout with Cloud Vortex True Monarch leading and Xiao Chen guarding the rear.
• Hai Hong struck Han Chuan True Monarch when he moved to help Xiao Chen, but Xiao Chen broke the Sea Bream’s steel pillars apart with his bare hands.

Xiao Chen and the Human True Lords escaped the Sea Race’s Linked Grand Array after he resisted its attacks and killed the Seven-Star Flowing Light Sea Bream with his Mechanical Grappling Claw. Hai Hong deployed a vast Spiritual Sense-disrupting talisman, forcing the humans to retreat, while Xiao Chen argued that the Sea Race’s remaining supposed treasure might be a bluff.

• Hai Hong mistook Xiao Chen’s immense strength for proof that he was a half-human, half-demon hybrid, but Xiao Chen rejected the accusation and returned to the Human Race formation.
• Crane Cry True Monarch blocked Hai Hong’s charge with a spirit shield, while the Seven-Star Flowing Light Sea Bream’s soul-capturing light failed to affect Xiao Chen.
• Cloud Vortex True Monarch and the other Human True Lords escaped the Linked Grand Array, weakening its restrictions enough for Xiao Chen to get out as well.
• Xiao Chen used his Mechanical Grappling Claw to drag the Seven-Star Flowing Light Sea Bream out of the array, and the Human True Lords killed it and its Demon Infant.
• Hai Hong activated the Thirty-Six Revolving Cold Smoke Golden Talisman, spreading Spiritual Sense-disrupting smoke across ten thousand li and making the Human Race retreat.
• Xiao Chen told the Human True Lords that Hai Hong might have lied about possessing another treasure and said he was ready to face whatever method it used against him.

Xiao Chen and the Human Race True Monarchs struggled to overcome the Thirty-Six Revolving Cold Smoke Golden Talisman, whose vast icy mist resisted their wind and fire attacks. After his plan to control Killing Intent proved beyond Gang Yuan True Monarch’s knowledge, Xiao Chen proposed creating a Demonic Calamity to strike both the Human Race and Sea Race.

• Crane Cry True Monarch used his palm-leaf fan to blow at the cold smoke, but the mist quickly filled every gap he made.
• Xiao Chen’s Sky-rushing Palm burned away small patches of mist, while Crane Cry True Monarch’s Dawn Light Blazing Sun Talisman barely pushed it back.
• The True Monarchs returned to the grand formation, where Silver Hair True Monarch recovered and Gang Yuan True Monarch and Han Chuan True Monarch studied the captured Array Foundation.
• Xiao Chen proposed using Yang Fire Evil and a formation to channel Killing Intent against the mist, but Gang Yuan True Monarch said he had no knowledge of controlling Killing Intent.
• After several fire talismans also proved ineffective, Iron Fan True Monarch warned that the Sea Race’s delay might conceal a major scheme.
• Xiao Chen proposed using his seized Killing Intent to create a Demonic Calamity that would attack both races.

Xiao Chen presented a secret formation that used Yang Fire Evil to counter the cold mist, and the Human Race tested it successfully and cleared a path through the fog. As the Sea Race Grand Array came into view, Hai Hong ordered the demons to retreat and prepare to defend it.

• Gang Yuan True Monarch raised the problems with triggering a Demonic Calamity, and the leaders failed to agree on a workable plan for several days.
• Gang Yuan True Monarch completed the Array Foundations, and Xiao Chen claimed to have found an ancient demonic secret technique that could restrain Killing Intent.
• Gang Yuan True Monarch tested the formation with Xiao Chen's Killing Intent and confirmed that it worked, so the leaders began preparing materials and assembling formations.
• Xiao Chen released Yang Fire Evil into the cold mist, and Gang Yuan True Monarch guided it with the formations as it cleared thousands of li of fog.
• Hai Hong ordered the demons to attack the spreading Killing Intent, but their spells failed to stop it from clearing the fog near the Sea Race Linked Grand Array.
• Hai Hong withdrew the demons from the array's edge and ordered them to watch the earth veins and prepare to strengthen the defenses.

Xiao Chen used the Reinforced Formation Breaking Cone to destroy the Sea Race’s Linked Grand Array, triggering its collapse and forcing the Great Demons to flee. As Hai Hong stayed behind, the fleeing demons began attacking one another, and the Silver Thread Shuttle Fish unleashed its Ice Arrows at those ahead.

• Gang Yuan True Monarch and Han Chuan True Monarch prepared new Formation Flags, and the Human Race cultivators slowly dismantled the outer Fire Array despite Hai Hong’s defensive changes.
• Xiao Chen asked Gang Yuan True Monarch to mark the enemy’s core array foundations and then fired the Reinforced Formation Breaking Cone through ten targets, devastating the Fire, Wood, and Water Arrays.
• The Linked Grand Array’s Spiritual Power Cycle collapsed, and Hai Hong’s formation was destroyed.
• The Thousand-Year Sea Turtles fled, followed by the other Great Demons, while Hai Hong and the Six-fin Barracuda remained behind.
• The Thousand-Year Sea Turtles shoved the Silver Thread Shuttle Fish to the rear, so it retaliated by firing its Ice Arrows at the demons ahead.

Xiao Chen pursued and killed the fleeing Silver Thread Shuttle Fish, Sea Anemone Shrimp, and Lionfish, then returned to find the main battle stalled by Hai Hong’s ability to split into two identical forms. The Human Race had destroyed one Hai Hong, but Xiao Chen realized it was probably only a clone.

• The Silver Thread Shuttle Fish used a concealed Ice Spell to slow the Sea Race Great Demons, but a vortex shredded its body and ruined its dorsal fin.
• Hai Hong rallied the remaining demons to fight the Human Race, while Xiao Chen bypassed the main battle to pursue deserters and the other True Monarchs engaged the Sea Race.
• Xiao Chen killed the wounded Silver Thread Shuttle Fish, captured the Sea Anemone Shrimp intact, and tracked down and killed the Lionfish with the Star Radiance Tracking Art.
• Xiao Chen returned to find the Human Race and seven Sea Race Great Demons locked in an even battle despite the humans’ numerical advantage.
• Crane Cry True Monarch explained that Hai Hong had split into two equally powerful forms, and that the Human Race had destroyed one at the cost of two Fourth-Order Puppets; Xiao Chen suspected the fallen Hai Hong was a clone.

Xiao Chen led the Human True Lords in their battle against Hai Hong and the Sea Race demons, defeating two enemies and pursuing the Six-fin Barracuda. When the Sea Race unleashed two Sea God Talismans in a desperate gambit, Xiao Chen intercepted them, but his talisman had no effect on him, leaving Hai Hong bewildered and a Thousand-Year Sea Turtle trying to surrender again.

• Xiao Chen helped the Human True Lords use spirit ships and targeted attacks to kill the Thousand-Eye Ray and Gilded Overlord Crab, while the other Sea Race demons continued fighting.
• As the Human True Lords considered withdrawing, Xiao Chen persuaded them to fight for another half hour and took on the Six-fin Barracuda while the others restrained the remaining demons.
• A Thousand-Year Sea Turtle suddenly offered to surrender, but Hai Hong ordered the Six-fin Barracuda to use the two remaining Sea God Talismans on the turtle and itself.
• Xiao Chen used his Family Heirloom Talisman Treasure to pull Hai Hong away from one Sea God Talisman and deliberately took the other himself.
• The Sea God Talisman failed to affect Xiao Chen and crumbled to ash, and the Thousand-Year Sea Turtle tried to claim that its surrender had been genuine after all.

After the Humans won the battle at Shallow Sky Sea, Xiao Chen searched for the Sea Race’s hidden supplies and helped clear out fleeing demons. Opening Hai Hong’s Storage Bag revealed a severed tentacle carrying Fifth-Tier Demonic Essence, which trapped Xiao Chen’s fingers, though he believed the small amount posed little danger.

• The Human True Lords defeated the remaining Sea Race demons and celebrated their sweeping victory with plans for a crab feast.
• Xiao Chen searched for the Sea Race’s missing supplies while helping Cloud Vortex True Monarch eliminate fleeing Golden Core Sea Fish.
• Gang Yuan True Monarch found a Storage Bag hidden beneath Hai Hong’s navel flap, and the True Lords waited for Xiao Chen to open it.
• Xiao Chen broke the Storage Bag’s restrictions and pulled out a purple tentacle whose Fifth-Tier Demonic Essence seized his fingers.
• The True Lords worried that Xiao Chen needed a Fifth-Tier Spirit Item, but he reassured them that the small amount of Demonic Essence would not harm him.

Xiao Chen and the other True Lords inspected Hai Hong’s Storage Bag, divided the spoils, and then joined Iron Fan True Monarch for a lavish crab feast. Xiao Chen left with most of the spirit materials he needed for a defensive Spirit Tool, while the gathering ended with everyone tasting the steamed crab.

• Xiao Chen examined the severed tentacle from Hai Hong’s Storage Bag and suspected it came from a powerful Fifth-Tier Great Demon wounded in a battle near Compassion Sea.
• Gang Yuan True Monarch identified a complete Fourth-tier Defensive Formation among the loot, and the group counted hundreds of thousands of Mid-Grade Spirit Stones and many valuable spirit materials.
• Xiao Chen proposed valuing the spoils and battle losses in Spirit Stones, allowing the True Lords to distribute the items fairly and compensate their contributions.
• Iron Fan True Monarch asked whether Xiao Chen’s Family Heirloom Talisman Treasure should be included in his losses, but Xiao Chen declined to reveal its value, prompting the others to speculate about its power.
• Xiao Chen selected seventy-three pieces of fourth-order spiritual material and six thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, bringing him more than halfway toward gathering the materials for a defensive Spirit Tool.
• Iron Fan True Monarch served an elaborate crab feast, and Xiao Chen sampled the perilla-steamed crab and its rich, delicate flavors.

The True Monarchs debated when and how many reinforcements to send to Universal Salvation Temple, but a report about a vanished western snowfield shifted the discussion toward investigating strange phenomena after the war. Zhang Shouquan secretly entered their pavilion, revealed his new Nascent Soul cultivation, and joined the group as Xiao Chen welcomed him and proposed using his formation skills against the Sea Race.

• The sects offered disciples fourth-tier sea-fish materials in exchange for Points, and five days later the True Monarchs gathered to plan their next move toward Universal Salvation Temple.
• Gang Yuan True Monarch, Cloud Vortex True Monarch, and Iron Fan True Monarch argued for an immediate departure, a short delay, or a cautious approach, respectively.
• A Heavenly Dipper Sect report said the western snowfield had vanished in sixteen hours, and Xiao Chen proposed investigating it and the ongoing southeastern rain after the Sea Race war.
• Rift Void True Monarch, Hundred Apertures True Monarch, and Purple Sun True Monarch agreed to join the investigation, with the group choosing Esteem Truth Temple as their gathering place.
• An unseen visitor spoke from inside the guarded pavilion, and Xiao Chen identified him as Zhang Shouquan, who emerged and introduced himself as a newly advanced Nascent Soul cultivator.
• Xiao Chen welcomed Zhang Shouquan, offered him a seat and sunflower seeds, and asked him to use his formation expertise in the coming battle against the Sea Race.