Chapter Summaries

Zhao Lu reunited with Li Xuanxiao and warned him that rumors blamed Shushan Disciples for destroying Xiangshan Academy, while he denied involvement and focused on finding the Myriad Souls Banner. After continuing his recovery in the palace, Li Xuanxiao used his Gold Token and a secret sigil to enter the Heavenly Fiend Hall’s network, where another suspicious lord joined him on the way to the main hall.

• The National Teacher warned Zhao Lu that Shushan Remnants had destroyed Xiangshan Academy and reminded her that she had killed five Shushan Disciples in the past.
• Zhao Lu asked Li Xuanxiao about Xiangshan Academy, and he denied attacking it while Zhao Lu speculated that someone else might be using the Shushan Disciples’ name.
• Li Xuanxiao continued recovering from his injuries and used the dormant Sword Qi of his life-bound flying sword to circulate through his meridians.
• Two days later, Li Xuanxiao took Zhao Lu’s Gold Token and went to the palace study to investigate the Old Emperor’s belongings.
• Li Xuanxiao presented a secret sigil at a pawnshop, identified himself as a Secret Envoy of the Heavenly Fiend Hall, and prepared to travel to its main hall.
• Qin Li eyed Li Xuanxiao warily as they waited outside the city for the Guide Envoy.

Ling Xuanxiao sought Di Nüfeng’s help after destroying Xiangshan Academy, using a treasure to kill Qin Li before meeting her at the Heavenly Fiend Hall. Di Nüfeng appointed him Left Protector and asked him to accompany her somewhere, while Ling Xuanxiao began to explain that he needed her help.

• Ling Xuanxiao lured Qin Li toward a hidden lotus, which exploded and killed Qin Li, though the blast also injured Ling Xuanxiao.
• Di Nüfeng heard rumors that the Shushan remnants had returned and Xiangshan Academy had been destroyed, then tried to sense Li Xuanxiao’s whereabouts.
• A subordinate announced that Li Xuanxiao’s secret envoy had arrived, and Di Nüfeng eagerly summoned him.
• Di Nüfeng appointed Li Xuanxiao Left Protector and told him to accompany her somewhere.
• Di Nüfeng said they would share blessings and hardships, and Li Xuanxiao told her he needed her help.

Di Nüfeng trusted Li Xuanxiao and followed him to Qingcheng Temple, where he launched a bloody attack. After killing the temple disciples guarding the gates and forming a sword formation, Li Xuanxiao was knocked back by a powerful attacker who demanded to know who had killed the disciples.

• Di Nüfeng left the Hall of Baleful Intent with Li Xuanxiao, insisting to Yin Lingzi that Li Xuanxiao would not lie to her.
• As they traveled through Yellow Sand Valley, Li Xuanxiao asked Di Nüfeng about Yin Lingzi, and she explained that she had recruited him after he was imprisoned in Shu Mountain's Demon Suppressing Pagoda.
• Two days later, Li Xuanxiao killed the gatekeeper at Qingcheng Temple and kicked open its gates while Di Nüfeng watched in surprise.
• Li Xuanxiao broke the sword formation of eighteen temple disciples and killed them as he tested his newly raised cultivation.
• A powerful sword light struck Li Xuanxiao, sent him skidding backward, and knocked his sword from his hand as an attacker demanded to know who had killed the temple disciples.

Li Xuanxiao used the Myriad Souls Banner to slaughter Qingcheng Temple’s disciples and kill the Qingcheng Temple Master, while Di Nüfeng watched him with growing suspicion. Afterward, Di Nüfeng asked Li Xuanxiao why she felt something was off about him.

• The Qingcheng Temple Master attacked Li Xuanxiao, but Di Nüfeng destroyed his Natal Sword and beat him into submission.
• Di Nüfeng returned to Qingcheng Temple and found Li Xuanxiao using the Myriad Souls Banner to absorb disciples’ bodies and souls amid the burning temple.
• Li Xuanxiao asked Di Nüfeng where the Qingcheng Temple Master was, and she said she had beaten him into submission.
• The Qingcheng Temple Master returned and attacked Li Xuanxiao, but the Myriad Souls Banner drained his spiritual power before Li Xuanxiao killed him.
• At an inn, Di Nüfeng sat apart from Li Xuanxiao over their noodles and said she felt something was off about him.

Ling Xuanxiao told Di Nüfeng that his revenge against Shu Mountain would continue and that he expected her help against minor sects. He then confronted Zhu Rong, one of the cultivators who had destroyed Shu Mountain, and defeated him, leaving Zhu Rong to plead for his disciples.

• Di Nüfeng questioned Ling Xuanxiao about his strange behavior and learned that he planned to keep seeking revenge against Shu Mountain.
• Zhu Rong recalled severing a Shushan Disciple’s leg during the sect’s destruction before she detonated her Golden Core and killed the surrounding cultivators.
• Ling Xuanxiao burned Zhu Rong’s mountain gate and confronted him, revealing that Zhu Rong’s father was already dead.
• Ling Xuanxiao defeated Zhu Rong, who begged him to spare his disciples, but Ling Xuanxiao declared he would repay Shu Mountain’s destruction in kind.

Li Xuanxiao and Di Nüfeng left the ruined sect gate and traveled to Jiangnan, where Li Xuanxiao tried to merge the Myriad Souls Banner’s power into himself. After killing an innocent disciple and failing to complete his golden core, Li Xuanxiao recognized that he had become attached again, while the Extreme Demon Bureau began hunting the Shushan Disciple believed to be in Jiangnan.

• Li Xuanxiao spared a young disciple at Zhu Rong’s ruined sect gate and told him to remember that he was a Shushan Disciple; Di Nüfeng then agreed to travel with him to Jiangnan.
• Several days later, Di Nüfeng realized she had lost her ankle pendant and returned to Zhu Rong’s ruins, where she found the young disciple’s corpse.
• Li Xuanxiao used the Myriad Souls Banner to merge its power with his own, forming a cracked dark-red golden core that was not yet complete.
• Li Xuanxiao blamed Di Nüfeng for his lack of progress, then recalled killing the innocent disciple and calmed himself by recognizing that he had become attached again.
• The Extreme Demon Bureau learned that six sect gates connected to Shu Mountain’s destruction had been wiped out and ordered its agents to capture the suspected Shushan Disciple in Jiangnan.

Ling Xuanxiao openly challenged the Extreme Demon Guard by killing two guards at Shu Mountain’s abandoned Jiangnan branch and replacing the hanging Shushan Disciples with their bodies. He sent Di Nüfeng away and planned to remain in Jiangnan, where the Guard launched a search for him.

• The Jiangnan forces gathered to discuss the returning Shushan Disciples and the missing Shu Mountain treasure, while the Old Guard Captain felt uneasy about the rumors.
• Ling Xuanxiao visited Shu Mountain’s abandoned Jiangnan branch and killed the two Extreme Demon Guard disciples watching it.
• The Extreme Demon Guard found its two disciples hanging where the four Shushan Disciples’ corpses had been, and the Old Guard Captain ordered a sweeping search for Ling Xuanxiao.
• Ling Xuanxiao returned to the inn, told Di Nüfeng to leave Jiangnan, and warned her to beware of Yin Lingzi.
• Di Nüfeng asked Ling Xuanxiao about the necklace he had given her, then left with the stuffed flatbread he handed her.
• Ling Xuanxiao left the inn for a rented courtyard, intending to stay in Jiangnan and achieve the Golden Core.

Li Xuanxiao killed the Catfish Demon and sent the Old Flood Dragon a fake map that led to a real Shu Mountain treasure vault. The Old Flood Dragon's forces and other Jiangnan factions reached the vault together, where the Carp Demon General turned against the others as the treasure was revealed.

• Li Xuanxiao ambushed and killed the Catfish Demon, absorbed his divine soul into the Myriad Souls Banner, and used the surviving Shrimp Soldiers to deliver a treasure map to the Old Flood Dragon.
• The Old Flood Dragon examined Li Xuanxiao's obviously recent map but sent his demon generals to investigate it.
• The Old Flood Dragon learned that Shu Mountain treasure really existed, but other factions had discovered the location as well.
• Scouts from the Six Sects of Jiangnan, the Twenty-Eight Gates, and the Thirty-Two Demons gathered at the buried Shu Mountain branch vault as its bronze gate opened.
• The Carp Demon General attacked his companions to seize the revealed treasure for himself.

Li Xuanxiao used the hunt for Shu Mountain’s treasure to plunge Jiangnan into chaos, then killed a Spirit Sword Temple Daoist in a sedan chair. The Carp Demon General remained trapped in the city with the treasure, and his cousin secretly sent out a letter.

• The Carp Demon General defeated rival scouts at Shu Mountain’s treasure site, but vanished with the treasure as rumors drew suspicion toward Pure Water Palace.
• The Old Flood Dragon ordered his forces to find the missing Carp Demon General while Jiangnan’s factions clashed over the treasure.
• Li Xuanxiao watched the unrest from a noodle shop, then struck down a Spirit Sword Temple Daoist traveling in a sedan chair.
• The Carp Demon General hid at his cousin’s home and explained that he could not escape Jiangnan or transport the treasure easily.
• The Carp Demon General’s cousin secretly sent out a letter.

Li Xuanxiao prepared a trap by hiding Netherworld energy inside the Shu Mountain treasure materials, while major forces rushed to claim them. As Li Xuanxiao arrived in Jiangnan, he found wanted posters bearing his face and wondered why they showed him.

• The Old Flood Dragon and several major powers learned that the Carp Demon General's hidden treasure had been found and moved to a new location.
• Li Xuanxiao embedded Netherworld energy in the treasure materials and concealed it with a formation, intending to detonate them when the pursuing forces gathered.
• The Old Flood Dragon led his demon army toward the treasure, while Spirit Sword Temple, Hui Chun Men, and other factions also set out.
• The Old Guard Captain suspected the treasure's sudden discovery was a trap but decided his group still had to investigate.
• Li Xuanxiao arrived in Jiangnan, saw wanted posters with his face, and asked, "Huh? Me?"

The Jiangnan factions entered the Carp Demon General’s mausoleum and began dividing Shu Mountain’s treasure, while the Old Guard Captain hesitated to let the Extreme Demon Guard join them. The treasures suddenly transformed into energy and exploded, unleashing a column of Netherworld Qi that engulfed the mausoleum and struck cultivators beyond it.

• The Old Flood Dragon, Hui Chun Men’s woman, and the old Daoist agreed to divide the mausoleum’s treasure rather than fight, and the Old Flood Dragon killed a Tiger Demon who challenged the arrangement.
• The Old Guard Captain held the Extreme Demon Guard outside despite a scout’s report, but finally let them enter after his successor objected.
• The Old Flood Dragon chose a treasured sword as the Extreme Demon Guard arrived at the mausoleum.
• The treasures lost their forms and erupted in a massive explosion that spread black ripples and sent a three-hundred-zhang column of Netherworld Qi into the sky.
• The blast tore through space, drew in spiritual energy from across the region, and hurled the Old Guard Captain away.

Li Xuanxiao condensed a golden core using the Myriad Souls Banner, then encountered and fought the wounded Old Guard Captain. A hidden Li Xuanxiao watched another version of himself wield the banner and decided to reclaim it.

• Li Xuanxiao absorbed soul essences into the Myriad Souls Banner and condensed a golden core.
• The Old Guard Captain survived the explosion but was gravely injured and feared the Shu Mountain Remnants.
• Li Xuanxiao, disguised as a silver-haired old man, confronted the Old Guard Captain and attacked him.
• The hidden Li Xuanxiao saw his double wield the Myriad Souls Banner and watched in confusion.
• Li Xuanxiao defeated the Old Guard Captain and absorbed his divine soul into the banner.
• The hidden Li Xuanxiao formed a hand seal and sent his clone to reclaim the Myriad Souls Banner.

Ling Xuanxiao fought another version of himself, who wielded the Myriad Souls Banner and used a formation he had once improved. After the other Ling Xuanxiao escaped, Ling Xuanxiao concluded that he was the Corpse.

• A clone poisoned Ling Xuanxiao's ankle while another attacked with a lotus-shaped hidden weapon, which he blocked using a summoned soul.
• The other Ling Xuanxiao trapped him in the Big Dipper Subduing Demons Array, but Ling Xuanxiao used the Reverse Big Dipper Maze Steps to disrupt and collapse it.
• A sword-wielding Ling Xuanxiao emerged from the ground, and the two fought as Ling Xuanxiao's Nascent Soul joined the battle.
• Both Ling Xuanxiaos suspected the other was an Inner Demon, and the one holding the Myriad Souls Banner escaped into black mist.
• Ling Xuanxiao recalled his missing memories, his survival after Shu Mountain's destruction, and Di Nüfeng's strange behavior, then concluded that he was the Corpse.

After learning he was one of the Three Corpses, Ling Xuanxiao embraced his identity and slaughtered the Jiangnan Region’s major forces, while the main body recognized him as a growing threat and sought help to sever him. Traveling in disguise toward the Heavenly Fiend Hall, Ling Xuanxiao noticed a young boy practicing swordsmanship outside his window.

• Ling Xuanxiao recovered from the shock of learning he was a Three Corpse and resolved to pursue power in his own way.
• Ling Xuanxiao attacked the Pure Water Palace and massacred the Jiangnan Region’s major forces, raising his cultivation to the peak of the Golden Core Realm.
• The main body realized Ling Xuanxiao was likely the Self Corpse and decided to find someone powerful to help sever the Three Corpses.
• Disguised as a silver-haired old man, Ling Xuanxiao traveled with a merchant caravan toward the Heavenly Fiend Hall as wanted posters spread across the Cultivation World.
• At a town controlled by a Nascent Soul Realm demon, Ling Xuanxiao saw the family’s young son practicing sword moves outside his window and looked back at the boy.

Li Xuanxiao passed a Nameless Sword Manual to a youth, then returned to Heavenly Fiend Hall and told Di Nüfeng that his escaped Self Corpse had to be captured. He asked her to keep his presence secret, unaware that Yin Lingzi had already ordered someone to spread the news.

• Li Xuanxiao taught a sword-wielding youth and gave him a Nameless Sword Manual, remembering his master's words about changing the future.
• Li Xuanxiao arrived at Heavenly Fiend Hall, showed the guards the sect master's token, and entered after Yin Lingzi claimed he was an assassin.
• Yin Lingzi ordered a subordinate to spread the news that Shushan Disciples were being hidden in Heavenly Fiend Hall.
• Li Xuanxiao privately told Di Nüfeng that the person she had met before was his escaped Self Corpse and asked her to help capture him.
• Li Xuanxiao warned Di Nüfeng that Yin Lingzi might reveal his presence, but Di Nüfeng insisted that Yin Lingzi would obey her.

Li Xuanxiao persuaded Di Nüfeng that Yin Lingzi was plotting to expose the Shushan Disciples, and she killed him. The next day, Li Xuanxiao and Di Nüfeng traveled to Yellow Sand City to search for his Self Corpse, where Li Xuanxiao bought an inn as a way to hide and wait.

• Li Xuanxiao convinced Di Nüfeng that Yin Lingzi's attempt to send word about the Shushan Disciples was a scheme to bring down Heavenly Fiend Hall.
• Di Nüfeng seized Yin Lingzi and shattered him despite his pleas and attempts to escape.
• Li Xuanxiao told Di Nüfeng he would have to search for his Self Corpse himself, since the Myriad Souls Banner could reveal its location only once.
• Li Xuanxiao and Di Nüfeng arrived in Yellow Sand City and decided to conceal themselves while waiting for a chance to find the Self Corpse.
• Li Xuanxiao told the inn's waiter to summon the proprietor because he intended to buy the inn.

Li Xuanxiao bought an inn in Yellow Sand City to wait for his Self Corpse, while keeping his identity and power concealed. After a Yellow Sand Sect master sensed something near the sect’s ancestral shrine, Li Xuanxiao hid inside a puppet.

• Li Xuanxiao bought an inn, learned about Yellow Sand City and its rulers, and stabilized his cultivation without advancing toward Spirit Transformation.
• Li Xuanxiao opened the inn with his clones, and Di Nüfeng reluctantly joined him as an innkeeper after amusing herself with customers for two days.
• Three Yellow Sand Sect disciples arrived and expected to eat and drink without paying, prompting Di Nüfeng to glare at them.
• Li Xuanxiao sneaked into the Yellow Sand Sect at night and saw three Shushan Disciples’ corpses displayed above its ancestral shrine.
• After sensing a sweep of Spiritual Sense, Li Xuanxiao hid underground inside a puppet as the Yellow Sand Sect master wondered whether he had sensed something.

Huang Chengan met with Gou Shengzi, who warned him to look for the Myriad Souls Banner and capture any Shu Mountain remnant alive. Meanwhile, Li Xuanxiao investigated the Snake People Tribe and discovered figures capturing Snake People to refine Demon Cores.

• Ling Xuanxiao sensed something wrong near the Yellow Sand Sect and turned back before Huang Chengan detected him.
• Gou Shengzi told Huang Chengan that Shu Mountain remnants had appeared in Jiangnan and ordered him to question any captured remnant about the Myriad Souls Banner.
• Li Xuanxiao watched Di Nüfeng enjoy running the inn, then planned to investigate the Snake People Tribe and search for his Self Corpse.
• Li Xuanxiao left the city alone at dusk and followed a group of black-robed figures capturing Snake People.
• Li Xuanxiao realized the black-robed figures intended to refine Demon Cores from the Snake People.

Li Xuanxiao followed black-robed men who were abducting Snake People and discovered their mysterious master had set up a formation around a cave. While testing his natal flying sword in the desert, he accidentally saved the pursued snake woman Xiao Qing, who woke to find the mirror fragment she had carried was missing.

• Li Xuanxiao watched black-robed men capture Snake People, then followed them to a cave where their master revealed he knew someone was trailing them.
• Li Xuanxiao bypassed the cave's formations with his Spiritual Sense but found it empty, then continued through the desert and prepared to summon his natal flying sword.
• Xiao Qing fled from pursuers, and Li Xuanxiao's uncontrolled golden flying sword veered away from her but struck the leading pursuer and drove the others off.
• Li Xuanxiao tended to the unconscious Xiao Qing and found a mysterious mirror fragment at her waist that he suspected had made her a target.
• Xiao Qing woke, realized the mirror fragment was gone, and angrily rose to confront the person who had saved her.

Li Xuanxiao captured Xiao Qing after identifying her as a Golden Family guard who had stolen a fragment of the Burial Dust Samsara Mirror. The Snake God punished Xiao Qing’s family in a misunderstanding and demanded the fragment’s return, while Li Xuanxiao learned that Nangong Wan was still bound to him by a Gu Worm.

• Li Xuanxiao recognized the mirror fragment and questioned Xiao Qing about stealing it from the Snake People Tribe.
• Li Xuanxiao dragged Xiao Qing underground and took her toward Yellow Sand City.
• The Snake God ordered the tribe to find Xiao Qing and threatened her family until a leader explained that she had stolen the fragment to avenge her parents.
• The Snake God devoured Xiao Qing’s family, then ordered the leaders to tell her that her enemies were dead and demand the fragment back.
• Li Xuanxiao questioned Nangong Wan, who revealed that he had forced her into serving him by planting a Gu Worm.