Chapter Summaries

Song Ci woke in the hospital after using the token and learned how badly its Divine Power had injured him. Gu Nanfeng revealed that the token came from the City of Light, making Song Ci an Apostle of the God of Light’s Throne rather than one chosen by Gu Changzhi.

• Song Ci woke with severe burns, blurred vision, and a body struggling to recover from the token’s power.
• Gu Nanfeng reassured Song Ci that he would survive and warned him to use the token’s Divine Power more carefully.
• Gu Nanfeng told Song Ci that Tie Wu had died during God's Descent and Qin Ye had committed suicide after being detained.
• Gu Nanfeng explained that the God of Wine’s Throne had descended through an Apostle and been defeated by Gu Changzhi, who also underwent God's Descent.
• Gu Nanfeng confessed that he had obtained the token from the City of Light and that Song Ci was an Apostle of the God of Light’s Throne.

Song Ci agreed to keep Gu Changzhi’s condition secret as Gu Nanfeng prepared to change Changye City. Gu Shen brought Lu Nanzhi crucial concert footage that could undermine Hua Banner, and Cui Zhongcheng told her that the councilman’s last wish was to speak with her.

• Gu Nanfeng asked Song Ci to conceal that Gu Changzhi could not awaken and explained that he opposed the Awakening Act and wanted to change Changye City.
• Song Ci nodded, agreeing to keep Gu Nanfeng’s secret.
• Gu Shen showed Lu Nanzhi footage Jiang Wan had recorded at the concert hall during the Freedom Dance, and Lu Nanzhi recognized its importance against Hua Banner.
• Cui Zhongcheng called Lu Nanzhi and told her that the councilman’s last wish was to speak with her.

Lu Nanzhi met Zhao Xilai at her father’s grave on Small Barren Mountain, where Gu Shen and Gu Nanfeng watched the aging leader make his final journey. Gu Nanfeng invited Gu Shen to return with him to Nagano, while privately sensing a connection between Gu Shen and Mr. Gu Changzhi and questioning how the recent God War had unfolded.

• Lu Nanzhi arrived at Small Barren Mountain with Gu Shen and Gu Nanfeng to meet Zhao Xilai, who had come with Cui Zhongcheng.
• Gu Shen observed that Zhao Xilai was declining, while Gu Nanfeng hoped the old leader would live longer because Dadu’s strength challenged Nagano and drove the Eastern Continent forward.
• Gu Nanfeng invited Gu Shen to accompany him to Nagano, explaining that the city’s situation was complicated and that he felt uneasy about returning alone.
• Gu Nanfeng sensed that Gu Shen’s spiritual rhythm resembled Mr. Gu Changzhi’s and recalled the unexplained God’s Descent that had saved the Eastern Continent.

Cui Zhongcheng warned Zhao Qi that he could not escape the consequences of his actions and that his future in Dadu depended on Lu Nanzhi’s forgiveness. Gu Shen confronted Zhao Qi and revealed that they had met before, leaving Zhao Qi stunned as Gu Shen demanded a private conversation.

• Cui Zhongcheng told Zhao Qi that Song Ci was recovering from his injuries but would be able to find him in Dadu once he returned.
• Zhao Qi considered whether he had to go to North Continent as his father’s meeting with Lu Nanzhi suggested a compromise over Dadu’s legislation.
• Gu Shen approached Zhao Qi’s car and asked Cui Zhongcheng to leave them alone, then prevented Zhao Qi from raising the window by disrupting the car’s connection to the Deep Sea.
• Gu Shen restored Zhao Qi’s memory of their encounter in the Old City District and revealed that he had been the one who punched Zhao Qi.
• Gu Shen asked Zhao Qi whether he would come out of the car or make Gu Shen come in.

Gu Shen confronted Zhao Qi over the Freedom Auditorium incident and warned him that Dadu would not let him escape accountability. He left Zhao Qi beaten and pinned down, promising to strike him again whenever he continued his old ways.

• Gu Shen dismissed Zhao Qi’s appeal to his father’s influence and said Deep Sea’s surveillance would not protect him without evidence.
• Gu Shen confronted Zhao Qi about Freedom Auditorium and guessed that Old Master Zhao planned to send him to the Northern Continent.
• Gu Shen read Zhao Qi’s desire to stay in Dadu and frightened him with a near-miss punch.
• When Zhao Qi tried to flee, Gu Shen used the car’s hood as Iron Armor to pin him down.
• Gu Shen told Zhao Qi that the people of Dadu would keep standing against him, then struck him and vowed to beat him whenever he saw him acting the same way.

Zhao Xilai explained to Lu Nanzhi that the Awakening Act could let humanity absorb Transcendent Source Matter and survive Order Collapse, but would require controlled sacrifices. Lu Nanzhi still opposed the Act, believing Deep Sea had lied about the catastrophe threatening humanity.

• Lu Nanzhi pushed Zhao Xilai up Small Barren Mountain, where he reflected on his guilt over Lu Cheng's death and the Lion Lane Massacre.
• Lu Nanzhi asked whether the Federal Government's Awakening Act came from Lu Cheng's Lion's Awakening Technology, and Zhao Xilai said Huazhi Ninth Floor had conducted related experiments and granted her clearance to investigate.
• Zhao Xilai explained that the Act was a gamble based on Deep Sea's warning that Order Collapse threatened the Five Continents, and that trials would control awakening by sacrificing some people to protect humanity.
• Zhao Xilai argued that humanity could choose how and when to face the coming catastrophe, then asked whether Lu Nanzhi still opposed the Act.
• Lu Nanzhi said she opposed the Awakening Act because she believed Deep Sea's warning was a lie.

Lu Nanzhi revealed to Zhao Xilai that she belonged to the Ancient Text Society and carried the Encrypted Gate, explaining the truth behind the investigation of Lu Cheng and the Lion Lane Massacre. At Lu Cheng’s grave, Zhao Xilai found relief in learning that his past actions had helped protect Lu Nanzhi, and he came to visit his old friend as an unknown man himself.

• Zhao Xilai recalled that Old Lu had once spoken of the possibility that the runaway train was a lie as he and Lu Nanzhi reached Lu Cheng’s grave.
• Lu Nanzhi told Zhao Xilai that the Ancient Text Society had used encrypted meetings in the Deep Sea Network and that the Investigation Team had suspected Lu Cheng of carrying the Encrypted Gate.
• Lu Nanzhi revealed that she was an Ancient Text Society member, carried the Encrypted Gate, and opposed the bill because she trusted neither the Federal Government nor Deep Sea.
• Zhao Xilai remembered how he had stopped the Investigation Team from targeting Lu Cheng’s daughters and suppressed the investigation after Lu Cheng’s death.
• Zhao Xilai felt fortunate that his actions had protected Lu Nanzhi, then turned his attention to visiting Lu Cheng’s grave.

Zhao Xilai surrendered Hua Banner to Lu Nanzhi and asked her to spare his son, confessing his regrets as a father. Lu Nanzhi agreed, and Zhao Xilai asked to be buried beside Lu Cheng, leaving the mountain wrapped in a quiet farewell.

• Zhao Xilai told Lu Nanzhi that he was giving her Hua Banner and all of Lu Cheng’s remaining shares, withdrawing the Zhao Family from the fight over the Awakening Act.
• Zhao Xilai explained that his time was running out and warned Lu Nanzhi that Hua Banner would lose support from the City of Light and the Lin Family.
• Zhao Xilai admitted that his son had planned the Mental Exile at Freedom Auditorium and asked Lu Nanzhi to spare him and let him leave Dadu for the North Continent.
• Lu Nanzhi agreed not to kill Zhao Xilai’s son and gave Zhao Xilai permission to be buried beside Lu Cheng.
• Lu Nanzhi placed her lantern beside Zhao Xilai, covered him with her coat, and turned away as he thanked her.

Lu Nanzhi and Lu Nan Jin left Small Barren Mountain together after the meeting, reflecting on their family and the truth behind the Lion Lane tragedy. Lu Nanzhi planned to take up Hua Banner’s flag, while Lu Nan Jin chose to leave Dadu and pursue greater strength.

• Lu Nanzhi met Lu Nan Jin at the foot of Small Barren Mountain, where Lu Nan Jin said she had seen the meeting before the lantern was lit and had chosen not to confront Zhao Xilai.
• Lu Nan Jin told Lu Nanzhi that Yingji was badly injured but recovering mentally in the hospital.
• As the sisters walked together, Lu Nanzhi shared that she had reclaimed what belonged to Old Lu, and Lu Nan Jin congratulated her on taking up Hua Banner’s flag.
• Lu Nan Jin reflected that the Lion Lane tragedy involved forces far beyond what one blade could redress, including Source Tower’s Apostles and the Sky God’s Throne.
• After recalling Gu Nanfeng’s strike in the Old City District, Lu Nan Jin said she had seen a direction for her future and declared that she was leaving Dadu.

At Zhao Xilai’s funeral on Small Barren Mountain, Gu Shen watched the mourners and reflected with Chu Ling on death and the afterlife. Chu Ling wondered where her own soul would go if she died, and hoped to reach a pure land like the place where she was born.

• Hundreds gathered in the rain on Small Barren Mountain to mourn Zhao Xilai and Lu Cheng, while Zhao Qi knelt before Zhao Xilai’s marker and Lu Nanzhi stood with Chen San.
• Gu Shen and Chu Ling observed the funeral through their Mental Link as Chu Ling asked where souls went after death.
• Gu Shen told Chu Ling that people said good souls went to heaven and bad ones to hell, and he compared Four Seasons Wilderness to a pure land.
• Chu Ling wondered whether she was alive and what death would feel like, then said she hoped to go somewhere clean and quiet when she died.

After Zhao Xilai’s funeral, Gu Shen learned that Zhao Qi would be taken to Luo Yin City Fortress in the North Continent. Mad Dog Duan Feng then delivered Zhou Jiren a strand of hair from Senior Apprentice Sister Luo, leaving Gu Shen to wonder what had happened to her and Senior Brother Zhong.

• Zhou Jiren joined Gu Shen after the funeral and pointed out the scarred man watching Zhao Qi, identifying him as Mad Dog Duan Feng, one of the Cast Snow Grand Duke’s Three Dogs.
• Zhou Jiren explained that Zhao Qi was being sent to Luo Yin City Fortress, an important and harsh posting in the North Continent.
• Duan Feng took Zhao Qi away after Zhao Qi said goodbye to his father’s memorial tablet.
• Duan Feng approached Zhou Jiren and delivered a strand of hair containing mental power, sent by Lord Sky Eye at the Cast Snow Grand Duke’s order.
• Gu Shen recognized the strand as Senior Apprentice Sister Luo’s life-bound Sealed Item and wondered whether she and Senior Brother Zhong had gone to the North Continent.

Zhou Jiren learned that Luo Er and Zhong Wei were trapped beyond the Northern Continent and prepared to leave to help them. Gu Shen planned to travel to Changye, where he would pursue the Ancient Text Society’s secrets and face scrutiny while keeping Blazing Fire’s power hidden.

• Wild Dog delivered a strand of Luo Er’s hair to Mr. Shu, who read its message and learned that Luo Er and Zhong Wei were trapped beyond the Northern Continent.
• Zhou Jiren decided he had to leave, worried that Gu Shen would face danger when he went to Changye with Lu Nan Jin and Gu Nanfeng.
• Gu Shen concealed his wider plans and told Zhou Jiren he was going to Changye to study Gu Changzhi’s Grain Rain Scroll and other Breathing Methods.
• Zhou Jiren warned Gu Shen that many people in Changye would challenge him and urged him to keep his secrets hidden.
• Zhou Jiren told Gu Shen that Zhao Xilai had gone west and warned him to protect the secret that Blazing Fire could gather Free Source Matter.

After the Memorial Ceremony, Lu Nanzhi left Small Barren Mountain with Gu Shen, Lu Nan Jin, and Gu Nanfeng. Gu Nanfeng planned to return to Nagano with Lu Nan Jin and asked Lu Nanzhi to lend him Grave Fiend, Xing Yun, for the factional struggle ahead.

• Lu Nanzhi asked Gu Shen to escort her away from the crowded Memorial Ceremony and left the summit with him.
• In the car, Lu Nanzhi reflected on how the change of ownership at Hua Banner had turned Zhao Xilai’s quiet memorial into a public affair.
• Gu Nanfeng said he planned to leave for Nagano the next day, and Lu Nan Jin announced she would accompany him.
• Gu Nanfeng told Lu Nanzhi that returning to Nagano would disrupt the balance between factions and that he needed help.
• Gu Nanfeng asked Lu Nanzhi to lend him Grave Fiend, Xing Yun, while noting that the Tomb Keeper had specifically asked to see Gu Shen.

Gu Shen and Gu Nanfeng sought Lu Nanzhi’s approval to take Xing Yun, also known as Grave Fiend, back to Changye to address the unresolved Clear Tomb and Awakening Acts. Xing Yun agreed to go, but turned pale when he learned Gu Nanfeng was from Changye.

• Gu Nanfeng explained that the New and Old Factions both blamed Xing Yun for the turmoil surrounding Qingzhong and said bringing him back to Changye could answer their demands.
• Gu Shen warned Gu Nanfeng that people who met Xing Yun seemed to suffer bad luck, but Gu Nanfeng dismissed the concern.
• Gu Shen’s group entered the abandoned New World Project facility beneath Hua Banner and found Xing Yun alone in the deserted office.
• Xing Yun ingratiated himself with Lu Nanzhi and offered to help, then learned she wanted him to travel with Gu Nanfeng.
• Gu Nanfeng introduced himself as being from Changye, and Xing Yun’s face turned deathly pale.

After learning that Song Ci had become an Apostle, Grave Fiend abandoned his fear of being sent to Nagano and pledged himself to Gu Nanfeng. Gu Shen prepared to leave Dadu for Nagano, while Teacher went to North Continent Fortress to rescue Sky Eye.

• Gu Shen told Grave Fiend that Gu Changzhi's Apostle had appeared and that the Clear Tomb Act had succeeded.
• Grave Fiend learned that Gu Nanfeng was the Tomb Keeper's chosen future head of the Gu family, then knelt and pledged to serve him and return to Nagano.
• Teacher left for North Continent Fortress to rescue Senior Apprentice Sister Luo, Sky Eye, while Gu Shen and the others stayed in Dadu for one final night.
• Gu Shen visited the bandaged Song Ci in the hospital and told him he would look after Senior Sister Xiao Lu in Nagano.
• Gu Shen called Song Ci the Eastern Continent's only Apostle, nicknamed White Parrot, and promised to become stronger before they met again.

Gu Nanfeng explained the Penetration Cultivation Method and the limits of relying on the Deep Sea while the group drove from Dadu toward Nagano. Their journey was interrupted when the off-road vehicle struck something and lost control, though Gu Nanfeng used Gale Cutter to stop it safely.

• Gu Nanfeng drove through a barren region while he and Lu Nan Jin practiced controlling sand with Gale Cutter.
• Gu Nanfeng explained how the Penetration Cultivation Method imprinted a Transcendent's spirit and insights into the body, and compared Northern, Central, and Eastern Continent training.
• Gu Nanfeng told the others that the Deep Sea's Deep Water Zone could only guide cultivation through the Twelfth Layer and could not lead Transcendents to the Throne of God.
• The off-road vehicle struck something, lost control, and nearly crashed before Gu Nanfeng used Gale Cutter to steady it and bring it to a stop.

Gu Shen and Gu Nanfeng investigated a suspicious flat tire on their journey through No Man’s Land and spotted Changye’s Wind Eye tracking them. After Gu Nanfeng wrapped the car in Gale Cutter, another sudden impact struck, but this time his wind met the sharp object before the tire did.

• Gu Shen and Gu Nanfeng found a punctured tire, and Gu Shen saw no danger nearby with Blazing Fire.
• Chu Ling identified a concealed object overhead as a likely low-threat Sealed Item, which Gu Nanfeng recognized as Changye’s Wind Eye monitoring them.
• Gu Nanfeng changed the tire and surrounded the car with Gale Cutter to detect and prevent further accidents.
• Grave Fiend admitted that his plane had crashed twice before he traveled to Dadu by car, and Gu Shen joked that the car carried something unclean: Grave Fiend.
• The tire was struck again, but Gale Cutter intercepted the sharp object before it could touch the tire.

Gu Nanfeng and his companions crossed northward after he discovered Changye City's New Faction was monitoring their journey. They reached Qinghe and continued into the colder northern districts, where Grave Fiend’s unlucky nature remained a concern.

• Gu Nanfeng identified the device beneath the SUV as a Groundworm surveillance device and revealed that Changye City's New Faction had been watching them since they left Dadu.
• Gu Nanfeng explained that he had spent eight years mastering his blade techniques before returning, and said he knew the New Faction knew he was coming.
• After two days and a night of travel, Gu Shen saw Qinghe and recognized Five Old Mountains across the river.
• The group crossed into the northern districts as Gu Shen practiced his breathing method and Lu Nan Jin trained by manipulating airflow through the car window.
• Gu Shen refused Xing Yun’s request to turn on the heater because he suspected that keeping Grave Fiend under misfortune would prevent bad luck from falling on someone else.

Gu Nanfeng brought Gu Shen, Lu Nan Jin, and Grave Fiend back to Nagano, where Luo Yu welcomed them and revealed his mechanical hand. The group headed to a welcome dinner, while Grave Fiend was left to travel separately under restraint.

• Gu Shen and his companions arrived in Nagano after a peaceful journey, though Grave Fiend was exhausted.
• Luo Yu met the group with a convoy and welcomed Gu Nanfeng, Gu Shen, and Lu Nan Jin.
• Gu Shen’s contact caused a spark that made Luo Yu’s mechanical hand malfunction, and Luo Yu agreed to explain its condition later.
• Luo Yu recognized Grave Fiend and reacted with hostility, but Gu Nanfeng said Grave Fiend had helped with the Apostle case.
• Luo Yu invited the group to dinner and ordered guards to take Grave Fiend there separately in Strong Logic Material restraints.

Gu Nanfeng and his companions discussed a newly discovered Mystic Realm near North Continent Fortress, where Senior Apprentice Sister Luo was likely trapped, and speculated about Gu Changzhi’s connection to a dead Throne of God. After arriving in Nagano, Gu Nanfeng settled at Hidden Dragon Pavilion, while Lu Nan Jin and Gu Shen chose neighboring villas for their stay.

• Gu Nanfeng asked Luo Pangzi to call him as he had before, and Luo Pangzi explained that eight years of serving the Great Commander had made him accustomed to calling him Young Master.
• Luo Pangzi told Gu Nanfeng that a newly discovered Mystic Realm near North Continent Fortress had trapped extraordinary beings, and Gu Shen and Chu Ling concluded that Senior Apprentice Sister Luo was likely inside it.
• Gu Nanfeng warned that ancient Mystic Realms could be disasters even for titled extraordinary beings, and Luo Pangzi said rumors claimed Gu Changzhi had killed a Throne of God.
• The group traveled to Hidden Dragon Pavilion, where Luo Pangzi welcomed Gu Nanfeng and offered villas to Lu Nan Jin and Gu Shen.
• Lu Nan Jin chose Wind Comes, and Gu Shen chose Spring Rain so he could cultivate near the Grain Rain Scroll.