Chapter Summaries

Ao Lie fought the Eighteen Arhats, using the Five Elements Divine Thunder and Flower Blooms in an Instant to weaken their formation. The Arhats then unleashed a greater attack, leaving the battle unresolved as a colossal golden phantom descended on Ao Lie.

• Dragon Subduing Arhat ordered the Eighteen Arhats to form their formation and attacked Ao Lie with a golden palmprint.
• Ao Lie countered with Mastery of the Five Thunders, while Kong Xuan and Golden Peng secretly strengthened his lightning.
• The Eighteen Arhats formed a golden Buddha whose Brahma sound Ao Lie blocked with Flower Blooms in an Instant, sending silver lotuses against the formation.
• Golden Peng and Jiu Feng discussed Ao Lie's mastery, while Yun Ting and Jingwei watched from the Guardian God Hall on Yingzhou Island.
• Ao Lie drove lightning and lotuses toward the formation's core, but Dragon Subduing Arhat commanded the Arhats to unleash boundless dharma power, creating a colossal golden phantom that struck at Ao Lie.

Ao Lie shattered the Eighteen Arhats Formation on the North Sea battlefield, and Maitreya fought Golden Peng while the Western Teachings leaders planned their next moves. The battle continued as Golden Peng held his own, waiting for Kong Xuan to arrive.

• Ao Lie combined the Five Thunders with Flower Blooms in an Instant and destroyed the Eighteen Arhats Formation.
• Yun Ting praised Ao Lie’s attack, while Jingwei questioned whether he had enough mana left to keep fighting.
• Maitreya, Medicine Master, Kinnara, and Subhuti discussed intervening, and Subhuti sent Maitreya to fight Golden Peng in close combat.
• Maitreya and Golden Peng clashed with their weapons and fought to a standstill.
• Yun Ting said Golden Peng was growing stronger in close combat and was waiting for Kong Xuan because he and Jiu Feng could not defeat Subhuti.

Golden Peng and Jiu Feng fought Maitreya, Medicine Master, and Kinnara until Subhuti joined the battle. Kong Xuan arrived and suppressed Maitreya and Subhuti, while Yun Ting watched from Yingzhou Island and waited to see whether the Western Teachings had more reinforcements.

• Golden Peng gained the upper hand against Maitreya, prompting Medicine Master and Kinnara to attack him together.
• Golden Peng used the Lesser Dutian Divine Fiends Formation to strengthen himself, while Jiu Feng engaged Kinnara.
• Subhuti struck Golden Peng with the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree, but Kong Xuan arrived and suppressed Maitreya with Five-Colored Divine Light.
• Kong Xuan clashed with Subhuti and overpowered him, declaring that Subhuti's three-corpse body could not match him.
• Yun Ting and Jingwei watched from the Guardian God Hall, and Yun Ting decided to wait and see what other cards the Western Teachings had.

The Interception Sect’s forces overwhelmed the Western Teachings on the battlefield, and Lu Jun’s ambush wounded Immeasurable Light Buddha and hastened their retreat. With Ao Lie and the others leading the way, Wenzhong defeated Yuan Futong and returned to court in triumph.

• Medicine Master and Maitreya joined forces against Golden Peng, but his Yin Yang energy dispersed their attack as Jiu Feng continued fighting Kinnara.
• Zhunti and Jieyin decided to withdraw their outmatched disciples and sent Immeasurable Light Buddha to support the battle while preserving appearances.
• Immeasurable Light Buddha joined Subhuti against Kong Xuan, and the fighters’ renewed clashes brought the battlefield to a stalemate.
• Lu Jun slipped in from below and struck Immeasurable Light Buddha with the Yangtian Blood Scattering Saber, leaving him seriously wounded.
• Immeasurable Light Buddha retreated with the Western Teachings forces, and Wenzhong defeated Yuan Futong and returned to court with Ao Lie and the others as vanguard.

Bo Yikao left Xiqi for Chaoge to try to redeem his father, Ji Chang, after seven years in Youli. Yun Ting arranged for Daji to have Bo Yikao cut into pieces but kept alive, leaving his fate in Chaoge’s hands.

• Bo Yikao rejected San Yisheng’s advice and decided to take tribute to Chaoge to seek Ji Chang’s release.
• Bo Yikao entrusted Xiqi’s affairs to Ji Fa, San Yisheng, and Nangong Shi, then departed with his brothers and officials seeing him off.
• Jingwei detected a trace of imperial qi around Bo Yikao, and Yun Ting decided to spare his life for his own plans concerning Ziwei the Great.
• Yun Ting sent Bo Huang a message instructing him to tell Daji that Bo Yikao could be chopped into pieces but must survive.
• Bo Huang agreed to deliver Yun Ting’s message to Daji, while You Wen and Ya Qiong reacted to the plan.

Bo Yikao brought treasures to Chaoge to atone for Ji Chang’s crimes, unaware that Bo Huang and Yun Ting had arranged a trap involving the white ape. The ape attacked Daji, but Dixin knocked it back and asked whether she had been frightened.

• Bo Huang instructed Daji to have Bo Yikao minced into meat while keeping him alive, following Yun Ting’s orders.
• Bo Yikao waited at the Meridian Gate, then told Bi Gan he had brought the Seven Fragrance Chariot, the Sobering Mat, the White-faced Ape, and ten beautiful women to redeem Ji Chang’s crimes.
• Yun Ting told Jingwei that he wanted Ziwei the Great’s position and explained that the white ape would detect Daji’s demonic aura and attack her.
• Bi Gan presented Bo Yikao’s tribute list to Dixin, who summoned Bo Yikao to the Star Picking Tower.
• Bo Yikao presented the three treasures, and the white ape attacked Daji; Dixin knocked it back and asked Daji if she was frightened.

Daji accused Bo Yikao of plotting to assassinate her, and Dixin tortured him before forcing Ji Chang to eat pies made from his flesh. Yun Ting secretly kept Bo Yikao alive and manipulated Ji Chang’s divination; after Ji Chang was released, Wenzhong returned to court and confronted Bi Gan about Dixin’s cruelty.

• Daji accused Bo Yikao of using the white ape to assassinate her, but Dixin pardoned him after Bo Yikao explained the ape’s actions.
• Daji exposed Bo Yikao’s musical mockery, and Dixin ordered his flesh made into pies while keeping him alive at Daji’s suggestion.
• Yun Ting watched from Yingzhou Island, ensured Bo Yikao remained alive, and altered Ji Chang’s divination so he believed his son was dead.
• Ji Chang ate the meat pies made from Bo Yikao’s flesh and was released from prison.
• Wenzhong returned to court, learned of Dixin’s recent abuses, and angrily rebuked Bi Gan for allowing them.

Wenzhong pursued Ji Chang after he escaped, while Yun Ting arranged for Nezha, Ao Lie, and Yuan Hong to support him. Lei Zhenzi blocked their path to protect Ji Chang, and Nezha fought him to a standstill.

• Wenzhong rebuked Bi Gan, then mounted the Ink Qilin and led troops after Ji Chang.
• Yun Ting sent Yuan Hong to support Wenzhong and asked Bo Huang to send Nezha and Ao Lie after Ji Chang.
• Wenzhong, Nezha, Ao Lie, and Yuan Hong caught up with Ji Chang, but Lei Zhenzi appeared to defend his father.
• Nezha mocked Lei Zhenzi's wings, and the two fought with their weapons and powers until neither gained the advantage.

Nezha defeated Lei Zhenzi with the Universe Ring, but Yang Jian stopped him from killing Lei Zhenzi and challenged him. Ao Lie took Yang Jian’s place in the fight, and their evenly matched battle ended with both of them repelled by a clash of powers.

• After Nezha and Yuan Hong delayed choosing who would fight, Wenzhong scolded them for letting Ji Chang escape.
• Nezha struck Lei Zhenzi down with the Universe Ring, but Yang Jian intervened to stop him from delivering a killing blow.
• Yang Jian introduced himself to Nezha, and Ao Lie stepped in to fight him instead.
• Yang Jian and Ao Lie agreed that the Howling Celestial Dog would not join the fight, then traded spear and halberd strikes as Nezha and Yuan Hong watched.
• Yang Jian opened his Celestial Eye and fired a beam at Ao Lie, who countered with dragon-shaped energy; the clash sent both fighters several steps back.

Ao Lie and Yang Jian fought, and Yang Jian accused Ao Lie of stealing Chan Sect techniques after Ao Lie used the Yuqing Divine Thunder. Yun Ting arrived and challenged Yang Jian’s master, True Lord Yu Ding, who reluctantly came to the battlefield and agreed to spar.

• Ao Lie and Yang Jian traded attacks, but neither gained the advantage.
• Yang Jian used Heavenly Manifestation, and Ao Lie struck him with five bolts of Yuqing Divine Thunder.
• Yang Jian accused Ao Lie of stealing Chan Sect arts, and Ao Lie said his master had taught him techniques from all Three Sects.
• Yun Ting arrived and challenged Yang Jian for disrespecting an elder, prompting Yang Jian to summon True Lord Yu Ding.
• Yu Ding arrived and proposed a spar to settle the dispute, but Yang Jian urged him to fight Yun Ting, enraging his master.

Yun Ting challenged Yu Ding to a sword duel, quickly drawing blood after suppressing his cultivation to the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm. He then rebuked Yang Jian and Wenzhong, leaving Yang Jian loyal to Yu Ding and Wenzhong ordered to deal with Dixin’s troubles.

• Yun Ting offered Yu Ding a choice of contest, then chose sword Dao and wagered that Yang Jian would call him Martial Uncle if Yu Ding coughed up blood within three strikes.
• Yu Ding tried to avoid the duel, but Yun Ting attacked him with the Hun Yuan Sword, and Yu Ding barely withstood the first strike.
• Yun Ting’s second strike shattered Yu Ding’s sword-light barrier and made him spit blood.
• Yun Ting invited Yang Jian to fight him and suggested Yang Jian become his disciple, but Yang Jian refused to leave Yu Ding.
• Yun Ting told Wenzhong to return and settle Dixin’s troubles instead of focusing on capturing Ji Chang, and Wenzhong agreed.

Yun Ting reassured Wenzhong that he would not die in the Investiture of the Gods and assigned Ao Lie, Yuan Hong, and Nezha to serve under him. After Yang Jian brought the defeated Yu Ding to Jade Void Palace, Yuanshi healed him and ordered him to train Yang Jian as the Chan Sect’s Guardian Deity.

• Yun Ting told Wenzhong he had no fear of being placed on the Investiture of the Gods and sent Ao Lie and Yuan Hong back with him as deputy generals, along with Nezha.
• Yang Jian carried the badly injured Yu Ding to Jade Void Palace, where White Crane said Yun Ting had defeated him and remarked that few could fight Yun Ting.
• Yang Jian wondered whether the Investiture of the Gods battle had any point if so few people could match Yun Ting.
• Yuanshi scolded Yu Ding for losing to Yun Ting in two moves, explaining that the defeat had cost him a bet with Tong Tian.
• Yuanshi healed Yu Ding and told him to return and train Yang Jian to become the Chan Sect’s Guardian Deity; Yu Ding agreed and praised Yang Jian’s progress in the Eight-Nine Arcane Arts.

Yuanshi worried that the Chan Sect’s disciples could not match the Interception Sect’s powerful fighters and secretly arranged with Yun Ting to spare Yang Jian while allowing some of the Twelve Golden Immortals to be injured. White Crane overheard their exchange, so Yuanshi warned him to keep it secret.

• Yuanshi scolded Yu Ding over the Chan Sect’s weak disciples and told him to train Yang Jian properly.
• White Crane pointed out that many of the Interception Sect’s strongest disciples were Divine Beasts, prompting Yuanshi to question his choices and plan ahead.
• Yuanshi asked Yun Ting to leave Yang Jian among the third-generation disciples and avoid inflicting serious losses on the Twelve Golden Immortals.
• Yun Ting agreed to spare Yang Jian but said some of the Twelve Golden Immortals might need injuries to make the confrontation convincing.
• Yuanshi realized White Crane had heard the secret transmission and warned him to stay silent about the plan.

Yuanshi sent Immortal Nanjixian to give Shen Gongbao instructions to assist Jiang Ziya and Western Zhou in the Investiture of the Gods. After struggling to communicate with Shen Gongbao, Nanjixian gave him a Jade Slip, and Shen Gongbao descended the mountain.

• Yuanshi asked Immortal Nanjixian to assign Shen Gongbao a task, noting that he and Jiang Ziya shared the Flying Bear aspect and were destined for the Investiture of the Gods.
• Immortal Nanjixian summoned Shen Gongbao and struggled to understand his stuttering speech, eventually muting him and teaching him primordial spirit transmission.
• Shen Gongbao asked why he and Jiang Ziya were needed when they could seek reinforcements, frustrating Immortal Nanjixian.
• Immortal Nanjixian wrote Yuanshi's instructions on a Jade Slip and told Shen Gongbao to follow them and descend the mountain.
• Shen Gongbao nodded and left, while Immortal Nanjixian complained about the two Flying Bear figures.

Yuanshi sent Shen Gongbao down the mountain and warned Yun Ting that Shen’s unlucky phrase could bring disaster to anyone who heard it. Yun Ting explained the three misfortune-bringing phrases of the Investiture of the Gods Kala, leaving Yuan Hong shocked by Saint Zhunti’s alleged habit of plucking monkeys’ fur.

• Yuanshi watched Shen Gongbao descend from Mount Kunlun and told White Crane that Shen’s stutter, rather than his beastly origins, annoyed him.
• Yuanshi recalled that Duo Bao had once been a beast and decided to warn Yun Ting about Shen Gongbao.
• Yuanshi used White Crane’s Sound Transmission Talisman to tell Yun Ting to keep Interception Sect disciples away from Shen Gongbao and his phrase, “Fellow Daoist, please stay.”
• Yun Ting described the three phrases that brought misfortune: Shen Gongbao’s “Fellow Daoist, please stay,” You Wen’s “Please, treasure, turn around,” and Saint Zhunti’s “You have affinity with my Western Teachings.”
• Yuan Hong reacted with dismay to Yun Ting’s claim that Saint Zhunti plucked monkeys’ fur.

Jiang Shang met Wu Ji by the Wei River and recognized him as his fated disciple, despite Wu Ji mocking his fishing and his Daoist title. Meanwhile, Yun Ting received a mission to prank Jiang Shang and changed two of his tags, leaving Jiang Shang with a corrupted cultivation method and unreliable calculations of heavenly secrets.

• Jiang Shang introduced himself to Wu Ji, who ridiculed his title and his straight-hook fishing.
• Wu Ji criticized Jiang Shang's fishing technique and explained how to catch fish with bait and a curved hook.
• Jiang Shang told Wu Ji that he was fishing for kings and lords rather than ordinary fish.
• A Certain Lady gave Yun Ting a mission to prank Jiang Shang and allowed him to modify two of Jiang Shang's tags.
• Yun Ting changed Jiang Shang's Kunlun Immortal Method to Kunlun Evil Method and Calculate All Heavenly Secrets to Calculate Heavenly Secrets Awry.

A Certain Lady and Yun Ting altered Jiang Ziya’s divination method and plotted to make him suffer misfortune, while Laozi sought a way to punish him for comparing himself to Laozi. The chapter ended with Xuandu preparing to visit the Great Desolation Exchange and asking Laozi for the Taiji Diagram in case Yun Ting beat him up.

• A Certain Lady changed Jiang Ziya’s Calculate All Heavenly Secrets into Calculate Heavenly Secrets Awry while he argued with Wu Ji about his divination.
• Yun Ting explained to Yuan Hong that Laozi disliked being called old and that Jiang Ziya was protected from being killed by his destiny and the Karma it would bring.
• Laozi complained that Jiang Ziya had compared himself to him, and Xuandu suggested having Yun Ting teach Jiang Ziya a lesson.
• Laozi sent Xuandu to the Great Desolation Exchange with a bottle of Nine-Revolutions Golden Elixir to arrange ten misfortunes for Jiang Ziya.
• Laozi reminded Xuandu that being beaten by Yun Ting could earn Merit, and Xuandu asked for the Taiji Diagram for protection.

Xuandu went to the Great Desolation Exchange to hire Di Jun to deal with Jiang Ziya, the mortal cultivator chosen for the Investiture of the Gods. Di Jun and Xuandu sparred in the Void of Chaos, where Xuandu’s Taiji Diagram struggled against Di Jun’s True Sun Fire.

• Laozi gave Xuandu the Taiji Diagram and sent him to the Great Desolation Exchange to hire Di Jun.
• Di Jun agreed to deal with Jiang Ziya in exchange for a bottle of Nine-Revolutions Golden Elixir, then challenged Xuandu to spar.
• Xuandu accepted the challenge and brought the Taiji Diagram and Eight Scenery Palace Lantern into the Void of Chaos.
• Xuandu attacked Di Jun with Sky Burning Purple Fire, but the flames did not harm him.
• Di Jun launched a Golden Crow made of True Sun Fire, which scattered the Taiji Diagram’s vortex as Xuandu tried to swallow it.
• Laozi watched from Mount Shouyang and wondered why Xuandu had challenged Di Jun.

Di Jun defeated Xuandu in their spar after breaking through Xuandu’s Eight Trigrams formation and Taiji Diagram defenses. Dunyi then ordered the Heavenly Dao Wheel to send Di Jun Merit, while the wheel complained about Dunyi’s long-running grudge against Xuandu.

• Laozi told Golden Boy and Silver Boy that Xuandu would not last thirty exchanges against Di Jun, and declined their proposed wager.
• Xuandu used the Taiji Diagram and Eight Scenery Palace Lantern to form an Eight Trigrams formation around Di Jun.
• Di Jun countered the formation with True Sun Fire, then drew the Star River Heavenly Dao Sword and summoned the River Diagram and Luo Book.
• Di Jun combined the Power of Stars with True Sun Fire in a sword strike that broke Xuandu’s defenses and sent him flying as he coughed up blood.
• Dunyi ordered the Heavenly Dao Wheel to grant Di Jun Merit, and the wheel grumbled about Dunyi’s grudge against Xuandu.

After Di Jun earned Merit by beating Xuandu, mighty figures across the realms considered doing the same, while Xuandu returned to Mount Shouyang and Laozi warned him to stay inside. The chapter ended with Jieyin agreeing that even Xuandu’s status as Taiqing’s disciple might not deter others seeking Merit.

• The Heavenly Dao Wheel rewarded Di Jun with Merit, and Xuandu nearly got struck by Purple Firmament Divine Thunder after cursing it.
• Zhen Yuan considered beating Xuandu to gain enough Merit to become a saint, while Minghe also prepared to seek him out.
• Xuandu vanished from the Void of Chaos and returned to Mount Shouyang, where Laozi told him to avoid going outside.
• Zhunti and Jieyin discussed whether the Human Sect could still be an ally when Xuandu had become a tempting target for Merit.
• Jieyin told Maitreya that powerful figures might dare beat Xuandu despite his backing, and said Taiyi might do so as well.