Chapter Summaries

Zhou Leng rescued the people trapped in Yueda Mall by killing the Sirens, including their royal clan leader, and found Xu Qingjin safe in the underground shelter. He left her and Big Yellow there while he took five people to help clear Fish Demons nearby.

• Zhou Leng charged through the Sirens in the corridor, broke the royal Siren’s water trident, and used a hidden internal attack to cripple it.
• Zhou Leng tore the royal Siren’s pearl necklace apart, then killed the remaining Sirens after it tried to summon royal reinforcements.
• Zhou Leng entered the underground shelter and reunited with Xu Qingjin, who was relieved to find him alive.
• Zhou Leng advised the shelter’s occupants to set up watches and a warning network, then told Xu Qingjin to stay behind with Big Yellow.
• Zhou Leng left Yueda Mall with five people to join the fighting and clear nearby Fish Demons.

Zhou Leng rescued a besieged martial guard squad and fought a blue-skinned siren in single combat while the defenders held off the siren forces. After honing his Cloud-Flying Leg against the opponent, he shattered its arms, broke its back, and crushed its head.

• Zhou Leng rallied scattered fighters, led them against the sirens, and helped the group break the siege around Zeng Lanli and the martial guards.
• Zhou Leng and the chubby middle-aged man killed a Body-Refining Late Stage siren, then the group withdrew to a corner when another siren force arrived.
• Zhou Leng challenged a blue-skinned siren to single combat and traded blows with it, refining his Cloud-Flying Leg as the fight wore on.
• Zhou Leng broke the blue-skinned siren’s arms, slammed it into the ground, and crushed its body before stamping its head apart.

Zhou Leng escorted the rescued civilians to safety, then continued hunting Demonic Beasts on his way toward Dragon Roam River and broke through to the Body-Refining Middle Stage while rescuing Ru University seniors. As he charged into the remaining horde, Azure Scales pursued the humans who had killed his younger brother and slaughtered six Demon-Worshiping Cultists.

• Zhou Leng and the Martial Guards killed the fleeing Sirens, then escorted Shelter No. 4's civilians to the large guarded shelter, where Zhou Leng left Xu Qingjin and Big Yellow before heading toward Dragon Roam River.
• Azure Scales tracked the killers of his younger brother, killed four fleeing Fishfolk, and slaughtered six Demon-Worshiping Cultists who refused to join his pursuit.
• Zhou Leng hunted Demonic Beasts alone as he traveled, feeling his Martial Dao change and nearing the Body-Refining Middle Stage.
• Zhou Leng found Ru University's fourth-year seniors surrounded by more than fifty Demonic Beasts and rushed in to help them.
• Zhou Leng killed twenty-three Demonic Beasts in a corner and broke through to the Body-Refining Middle Stage before charging into the horde.

Zhou Leng consolidated his newly reached Body-Refining Middle Stage by fighting Demonic Beasts across Ru City, then drew the attention of a royal Siren seeking revenge for his brother. As the Sirens and Devils gathered around them, Zhou Leng faced Azure Scales alone and shattered his trident with a single palm.

• Zhou Leng led Ru University's students in driving back Demonic Beasts, advanced to the Body-Refining Middle Stage, and accepted Siren pearls from the upperclassmen.
• Zhou Leng left the group to train alone, killed hundreds or thousands of Demonic Beasts, consolidated his new realm, and completed Thousand Tides Pour into the Sea.
• Zhou Leng encountered Shanhe Yuan atop a mountain of Demonic Beast corpses, then fled a gathering force of Sirens by crossing rooftops toward the Martial Guard Bureau.
• Azure Scales, a royal Body-Refining Late Stage Siren, confronted Zhou Leng and ordered the surrounding Sirens and Devils to let them fight alone.
• Azure Scales attacked Zhou Leng with a Water-Congealed Trident, but Zhou Leng sidestepped and shattered it with Sea-Calming True Qi.

Zhou Leng fought Azure Scales through a brutal rooftop and apartment battle that ended with both of them crashing from the seventh floor and suffering serious injuries. Azure Scales withdrew when a horn sounded, and Zhou Leng recovered enough to return to Ru University, where his classmates crowded around him.

• Zhou Leng changed tactics against Azure Scales and fought him for more than a hundred exchanges as frost gradually slowed the Siren.
• Azure Scales tried to drag Zhou Leng out of a seventh-floor window, but Zhou Leng struck his chest with River Tide Suppresses the Sea before they fell together.
• Zhou Leng and Azure Scales crashed onto cars below, each injured, and Azure Scales left after hearing a horn and crushing a conch.
• Zhou Leng treated his two broken ribs, checked messages, and learned from Deng Zhijue that the Sea-Calming Army had pushed back the Demonic Beasts.
• Zhou Leng and Xu Qingjin waited out the alarm, escorted Xu Qingjin's mother home, and returned to Ru University.
• Zhou Leng returned to class, where his classmates questioned him about fighting Sirens and his place on the university and city freshman rankings.

Zhou Leng learned that he had been selected to apply for the New Youth Grand Fund and was invited to join an escort mission carrying a Martial Imprint from the Ancient River Ruins. He agreed to the director’s arrangements, asked whether his neighbor could join the mission, and discovered that researchers had unearthed a new Ancient River Jade Stele.

• Zhou Leng reviewed the rankings with his classmates, who saw that he ranked seventy-sixth nationally and 195th on the World Freshman Ranking.
• Deng Zhijue summoned Zhou Leng to the director’s office to discuss revised Young Eagle rewards and the New Youth program.
• Wang Boxiong gave Zhou Leng upgraded pills and bath powder, then had him submit a New Youth Grand Fund application.
• Zhou Leng said he planned to train at West Sea Demon City and take part in the Giant Trial, and Wang Boxiong offered him a place on the team escorting an Ancient River Ruins Martial Imprint.
• Zhou Leng asked whether his Force-Generating neighbor could join the escort mission, then searched the Divine Script Ruins Section and found information about the newly excavated Ancient River Jade Stele.

Zhou Leng gained access to the Ancient River Jade Stele and considered entering the Ancient River Trial, while threats and political maneuvering continued around him. After recovering at Mammoth Lake, he invited Li Yuanhe to join his upcoming training and escort mission.

• Zhou Leng received honorary chief researcher status, learned that the Ancient River Ruins were a sect's trial ground, and gained the option to distribute five trial qualification vouchers.
• Zhou Leng examined the ancient jade stele, downloaded its image, and considered trying the dangerous trial to strengthen himself.
• Wang Boxiong reviewed evidence about the attack on Ru City and called the Deputy Minister of the Martial Guard Department as he prepared for someone to be held accountable.
• Shen Jun canceled Zhou Leng's assassination after learning Azure Scales was involved, then ordered his subordinates to investigate Glimmering Star's death and secretly planned to kill a subordinate.
• Zhou Leng rested in Mammoth Lake with Big Yellow and Little Eight, then asked Li Yuanhe to join him for West Sea Demon City training and the return escort mission.

Zhou Leng intensified his cultivation with medicinal baths and the Standing Elephant Chapter, while Little Eight discovered it could cultivate alongside him and mistook him for an envoy of the Mammoth God. After Zhou Leng asked Big Yellow and Little Eight to find Innate beast bones for future baths, he finished installing new cultivation equipment and saw them return with suspiciously cheerful swagger.

• Xue Chengsong and Xue Tongming agreed to wait a few months before asking Zhou Leng again to become their independent martial arts director, and they considered offering him High-Energy Spiral Shells.
• Zhou Leng continued studying a Martial Imprint, learned leg techniques and joint locks from Elder Song Juesi, and heard that Li Yuanhe would join the escort mission.
• Zhou Leng used a medicinal bath and practiced the Standing Elephant Chapter, which Little Eight imitated and recognized as a lost mammoth cultivation method.
• Little Eight decided Zhou Leng was the Mammoth God's envoy, kowtowed to him, and continued practicing the Standing Elephant Chapter beside him.
• Zhou Leng asked Big Yellow to help find top-tier Innate beast bones for medicinal baths, then bought and assembled solar power and bone-processing equipment.
• Big Yellow and Little Eight arrived at Zhou Leng's lakeside setup with swaggering steps, while Little Eight looked around like a thief.

Zhou Leng spent New Year’s Eve fighting on the West Sea Demon City front, where his strength helped Third Company hold its defensive line against repeated Siren assaults. After recovering and reflecting on his progress, he charged back into battle on New Year’s morning as the Sirens launched another attack.

• Little Eight brought Zhou Leng a mountain of Eight-Tusked Mammoth bones, which Zhou Leng ground into powder and stored for later use.
• Zhou Leng fought at the front line through New Year’s Eve, killing Sirens and helping Third Company withstand repeated assaults.
• Zhou Leng exchanged Battle Record Points for a Body-Strengthening Pill, reviewed his growing merits, and decided to prioritize core pills over Gravity Training Armor.
• Zhou Leng ate his allotted medicinal meals, reflected on his fighting techniques, and studied Divine Script and the Ancient River Jade Stele before sleeping.
• When the Sirens attacked again, Zhou Leng returned to the line on New Year’s morning and charged into the battle as human weapons struck the advancing horde.

Zhou Leng fought at West Sea Demon City for fifteen days, improving his martial arts before joining an escort mission carrying the Ancient River Jade Stele from the ruins to Ru City. The convoy stopped for the night, where Zhou Leng and Li Yuanhe were assigned to sleep beside the cart carrying the stele and guard it.

• Zhou Leng repeatedly reviewed his fights using Elder Song Juesi’s combat method while battling Sirens on the front line.
• The Sirens retreated on the fifteenth day of the New Year, and Zhou Leng assessed his progress, including reaching the peak of the Body-Refining Middle Stage and attaining Perfection in several martial arts.
• Wang Boxiong told Zhou Leng to escort the Martial Imprint from the Ancient River Ruins to Ru City, and Zhou Leng arranged to meet Li Yuanhe at Sea-Calming Army headquarters.
• Zhou Leng and Li Yuanhe joined a convoy carrying the Ancient River Jade Stele, and Zhou Leng sensed its power as he recalled the Finger-Mark Water Patterns.
• At the convoy’s nighttime stop, Captain Shi Maohai assigned Zhou Leng and Li Yuanhe to sleep beside the ox cart and guard its cargo.

Zhou Leng traveled with the convoy guarding the Ancient River Jade Stele, and a recurring dream helped him understand its first Finger-Mark Water Pattern. When Blood of Tyranny attacked to seize the stele, its blue light transported Zhou Leng and the nearby fighters to an unknown world where he recognized the Ancient River Stele he had deciphered before.

• Zhou Leng dreamed of a figure carving the Finger-Mark Water Patterns and began comprehending the first one, while glimpsing a mysterious silver-gray doorframe afterward.
• Shi Maohai led the convoy across the Yangtze River Bridge under heavy Sea-Calming Army protection, and the convoy continued its journey without a Siren ambush.
• Zhou Leng dreamed of the jade stele again that night, then awoke to an alarm as Sirens surrounded the camp and Blood of Tyranny demanded the Martial Imprint.
• Blood of Tyranny fought Human grandmasters, then broke away and uncovered the Ancient River Jade Stele as more Sirens and army forces converged.
• The jade stele released blue light that immobilized those nearby and transported Zhou Leng to an unknown world, where he saw the Ancient River Stele he had previously deciphered.

Zhou Leng entered the Ancient River Trial Grounds and meditated on a Divine Script character, gaining insight into his martial techniques. After Blood of Tyranny expounded on the Dao, Zhou Leng began explaining the character’s meanings to the gathered cultivators.

• Zhou Leng passed through the light barrier at the Ancient River Trial Grounds and entered a meditation room containing a scroll marked with the Divine Script character “two.”
• Blood of Tyranny joined Zhou Leng in the room, and ten more cultivators, including Li Yuanhe, arrived before all twelve seats were filled.
• While contemplating the character, Zhou Leng repeatedly practiced Thousand Tides Pour into the Sea and Hundred Rivers Return to the Sea in his mind, deepening his understanding of the Wave-Stacking Palm, true qi, and the Sea-Calming Formula.
• Blood of Tyranny finished his meditation, expounded his insights to the group, and asked each cultivator to share what they had learned.
• At Blood of Tyranny’s request, Zhou Leng restated four of his points and began explaining how the character “one” could mean origin, the Dao, or supreme.

Zhou Leng and Blood of Tyranny gained Ancient River Sect registering-disciple status after discussing their insights in the Observing the Heart Dao Field, while the other participants received lesser rewards. Back in the present, Zhou Leng led the newly connected group as they reported the encounter to the military and planned to pursue qualifications for the Ancient River Trial Grounds.

• Blood of Tyranny praised Zhou Leng's understanding of divine scripts and the One-Character Painting Scroll, then guided the others by correcting their insights.
• Zhou Leng and Blood of Tyranny received Ancient River Compasses and registering-disciple status, while several others received only river lanterns.
• The group returned to the ox-drawn cart, where Blood of Tyranny and two demonic beast grandmasters fled as the Sea-Calming Army annihilated the siren forces.
• Zhou Leng told the other ten participants to keep the sect's secrets and urged them to compete for entry qualifications to the Ancient River Trial Grounds.
• Zhou Leng and the others briefed Wu Xiaochan, who promised the Sea-Calming Army would seek trial-entry qualifications and respect their gains.
• After the escort mission ended in Ru City, Zhang Feng and the others agreed to stay in contact and discuss their ancient heritage.

Zhou Leng and the Ancient River Sect disciples discussed the approaching Ancient River Trial and whether it was worth prioritizing over the Ten Realms Youth War. After the reunion, Zhou Leng’s group encountered Yan Fenggang and left him wary, then Zhou Leng and Li Yuanhe continued discussing their cultivation.

• Zhou Leng told the disciples that the Ancient River Ruins were likely to open within two or three months, and the group discussed the Trial’s uncertain rewards and its possible conflict with the Ten Realms Youth War.
• Zhang Feng weighed giving up his tentative Youth War qualification for the Ancient River Trial, while the others encouraged him to try for both if their timing allowed.
• Outside the hotel, Boss Mo recognized Zhang Feng as Zhang Nanchao’s son and stepped aside for Zhou Leng’s group; after learning Zhou Leng’s name, Boss Mo abruptly left rather than discuss a contract with Yan Fenggang.
• Yan Fenggang recalled his earlier wagered fight with Zhou Leng and became uneasy at the strength of Zhou Leng’s companions; Zhang Feng and the others said they would stand together if the Shuizhou Five Tigers caused trouble.
• Zhou Leng and Li Yuanhe walked toward the residential complex discussing Martial Dao, and Zhou Leng warned Li Yuanhe not to advance to Innate too soon and risk missing the Ancient River Trial.

Zhou Leng reunited with familiar children and spent time with Xu Qingjin before returning to Beast World to heal and train. After discovering Big Yellow’s special medicinal fruit, he learned that Little Eight could gather more from a neighboring beast territory.

• Zhou Leng and Li Yuanhe greeted the children training in Yulong Bay, and Zhou Leng gave Zhang Xiaoxiao and the others stamina-restoring snacks.
• Zhou Leng caught up on his friends’ Moments, noticed clues that Zhang Xinglie had been spending time with someone, and visited Xu Qingjin before taking her on a date.
• Zhou Leng returned to Beast World, soaked in Mammoth Lake to clear his hidden injuries, then used mammoth bone powder in a medicinal bath and reached the third cycle of the ninth move of the Standing Elephant Chapter.
• Little Eight gave Zhou Leng medicinal fruits and herbs, which he and Big Yellow sorted and recorded; Big Yellow singled out an orange fruit as especially important for Zhou Leng.
• Big Yellow asked Little Eight to gather more of the special fruit from the border with another beast’s territory, and Little Eight agreed, trusting that it could flee or call for help if needed.

Zhou Leng and Little Eight negotiated for Orange Blossom Fruit with the Black Bone Tigers, then Zhou Leng tested himself against one and brought the fruit back to cultivate. After surviving 8,026 blades in the Purgatory Gate and catching up with Xu Qingjin, he learned that the Rao family had taken back workers’ wages to fund a gift for Third Young Master Zhao, whose reason for staying in Ru City remained uncertain.

• Little Eight led Zhou Leng and Big Yellow to an orange grove, where five Black Bone Tigers agreed to settle access to the fruit through sparring.
• Little Eight defeated three Black Bone Tigers, while Zhou Leng sparred with a Body-Refining Tiger, dodging its attacks but failing to break its defenses; the Innate Tiger awarded them twelve Orange Blossom Fruits.
• Zhou Leng ate an Orange Blossom Fruit and discovered that its gentle power absorbed without meditation, then endured 8,026 blades in the Purgatory Gate.
• Zhou Leng spent two days at an amusement park with Xu Qingjin and later ate with Hu Yi and Feng Wenhao, hearing about their recent lives.
• Hu Yi told Zhou Leng and Feng Wenhao that the Rao family had reclaimed his mother's wages to raise money for a gift to Third Young Master Zhao.
• Hu Yi shared a rumor that Third Young Master Zhao was staying in Ru City because political reforms had made Xiong City chaotic, though Feng Wenhao doubted the story.

Zhou Leng reconnected with Zhao Nandi, learned about plans for a Divine Script Academy in Ru City, and heard why Rao Mingxian had attacked former classmates. He returned to Ru University, where Molten Hammer prepared him for the dangerous Giant Trial, and the group made plans to travel to the Giant World.

• Zhou Leng spoke with Zhao Nandi, who planned to visit Ru City, study the Ancient River Ruins, and teach a Divine Script class at Ru University.
• Hu Yi and Feng Wenhao told Zhou Leng that Rao Mingxian had injured several former classmates during a drinking-fueled spree to avenge old resentments.
• Zhou Leng resumed cultivation beneath the Frost Giant Tree, studied Giant Language, and later learned that Molten Hammer and the Steel Dwarves were waiting for him at Ru University.
• Molten Hammer gave Zhou Leng his stipend and explained the dangers and customs of the Stone-Bearing Festival Trial, including the possibility of growing much taller after receiving Ancestor's Protection.
• Zhou Leng told Zhang Xinglie to return to Ru City, and the group prepared to travel to the Giant World the day after tomorrow.

Zhou Leng and the Dwarves traveled to Giant World to take part in the Giant Trial, where Jax warned him that Tian Wenhu had arranged an assassination attempt. At the trial gathering, Zhou Leng reunited with Shanhe Xiangmu and agreed to cooperate with him and Shanhe Yuan.

• Zhou Leng and the Dwarves reached Ancestor's Skull and witnessed the Giants' chaotic Stone-Back Festival from the embassy.
• The Dwarves joined thousands of beings from many worlds at the plaza to register for the Giant Trial.
• Jax told Zhou Leng that Tian Wenhu had hired assassins to kill him, but Azure Scales had intercepted them, and asked to avoid conflict during the trial.
• Zhou Leng reunited with Shanhe Xiangmu and met his older brother, Shanhe Yuan, whose standing among Giants had drawn mockery.
• Shanhe Xiangmu asked to cooperate with Zhou Leng during the road trial, and Zhou Leng welcomed both brothers into the group.

Zhou Leng and the others began the Giants’ Stone-Carrying Trial, hauling five-ton stones more than three hundred kilometers to the Ancestral Mausoleum. They reached the finish exhausted, where a Giant Examiner punished a participant for using a forbidden pill and Shanhe Yuan faced a taunt about taking medicine.

• Zhang Xinglie and Shanhe Xiangmu tested their strength, and Zhang Xinglie matched the Giant without using true qi.
• Zhou Leng suspected Zhang Xinglie had an Innate Martial Body and advised him to seek special hard-body techniques.
• The Giants ordered the trial-takers to carry stones to the Ancestral Mausoleum and threatened to break the legs of anyone who failed or cheated.
• Zhou Leng, Zhang Xinglie, the Shanhe brothers, and the others set out; Half-Hammer could not lift his stone, while many participants were crushed or fell behind.
• After more than three hundred kilometers, Zhou Leng and the survivors reached the tombs, where a Giant Examiner struck down an Eagle Alliance member for taking a forbidden Qi-Nourishing Pill.
• A young Giant asked Shanhe Yuan whether he wanted to take medicine.

Zhou Leng and the others learned about the Dream Throne trial and the dangers posed by the Painful Sleeping Lotus before being led to the lakeshore where it would take place. As the trial began, Molten Hammer challenged Zhou Leng to reveal how long he had endured the Lava Hall.

• Zhou Leng ate with the others in the Giant cafeteria, where he spotted warriors wearing the robes of the Ice Snow Divine Cult.
• Shanhe Xiangmu explained that the Dream Throne's hallucinations and amplified pain could cause examinees to faint, lose their minds, or die, and warned them to admit defeat before falling asleep.
• Black Barrel described the Ice Snow Divine Cult's influence across several worlds and its goal of reviving the Ice God.
• The examiner led the examinees to a lake covered in thorny Painful Sleeping Lotus leaves and stated that they had to stay awake until time was up.
• Molten Hammer said he had lasted thirty-six minutes in the Lava Hall, and then asked Zhou Leng how long he had endured it.