Chapter Summaries

Zhou Leng returned to the Xue Family mine after killing Tian Wenhu and interrupting his demonic ascension, but kept his role secret as others investigated the attack. Xue Tongming later confirmed that an Innate had hinted at Zhou Leng’s involvement and revealed that Brigade Commander Chen Shouhu had sent people to find him.

• Zhou Leng escaped the valley after killing Tian Wenhu, while a Crowfolk Envoy sensed Madam Xi Yan’s aura and two Innate martial artists arrived searching for Zhou Leng.
• At the mine, Rao Mingxian and Xue Chengsong discussed Zhou Leng’s strength and worried that he was too soft-hearted; Zhou Leng arrived injured and said he had fought several Force-Generating Stage demons.
• A returning intelligence team reported that an unknown expert had killed Tian Wenhu and disrupted his ritual, and Zhou Leng denied being involved despite his injuries and the report that military Innates had been looking for him.
• Xue Tongming sent a force to Tian Wenhu’s mine and advised Zhou Leng to stay behind to recover, while Zhou Leng, Xue Chengsong, and Rao Mingxian waited and played cards.
• Xue Tongming told Xue Chengsong that an Innate had hinted at Zhou Leng’s involvement and that Brigade Commander Chen Shouhu had sent the Innates to find him.

Xue Tongming offered Zhou Leng compensation for helping secure the mine, and they agreed to a business partnership instead of shares or a Martial Dao director position. As Zhou Leng prepared to leave, a pursuit reached the mine, and the fleeing man revealed that he carried the Headless God's left hand, prompting Zhou Leng and two Force-Generating Stage fighters to prepare to intervene.

• Xue Tongming offered Zhou Leng twenty percent of Xue Enterprise, but Zhou Leng declined equity and a Martial Dao director position.
• Xue Tongming proposed that a company in Xue Chengsong's name acquire a mine and that Zhou Leng's company take a stake in it, and Zhou Leng agreed.
• Zhou Leng told Xue Tongming to take over the Chang family's resource sites as well, citing Chang Luan and Chang Yuanzhong's conflict with the Xue family.
• Explosive footsteps announced a chase near the mine, and Xue Chengsong ordered the fighters to raise the alarm but avoid getting involved.
• The fleeing man claimed his pursuers wanted the Headless God's left hand, and Zhou Leng asked two Force-Generating Stage fighters to join him in pursuing it.

Zhou Leng pursued a man carrying a supposed piece of the Headless God, only to discover the treasure was a fake pine log. After returning to Shuizhou Base, he sold some of his spoils and went back to Beast World, where he woke underwater in Mammoth Lake without difficulty breathing.

• Zhou Leng chased the fleeing man and seized his bundle after breaking the man's arm, then found a locked box containing a piece of pine wood instead of the Headless God's left hand.
• Gu Hongyun and the Wanli Development Corporation fighters abandoned their claim after seeing Zhou Leng's strength, and Zhou Leng learned that the Headless God was a powerful martial treasure that only Innate Realm martial artists could refine.
• Zhou Leng returned to the mine, reported the fake treasure to Xue Chengsong, then went to Shuizhou Base and counted the pills, Demon Spirit Bag, and other spoils he had acquired.
• Zhou Leng sold his unwanted items to the Martial Arts Brigade, returned to Ru City, and entered Beast World after reporting that he was safe.
• After taking pills and drinking boiled Tiger-Pattern Bamboo, Zhou Leng fell asleep in Mammoth Lake and woke underwater, able to breathe freely.

Zhou Leng shared surplus medicines with Xu Qingjin, Li Linhan, and Zhang Xiaoxiao as fears of Demon Prison’s World-Destroying Plan grew. After arranging breakfast with Hu Yi, Zhou Leng secretly left Origin-Replenishing Pills in his taxi, and Hu Yi realized his friend had given them to him.

• Zhou Leng gave Xu Qingjin three Origin-Replenishing Pills and two hundred Meat Medicinal Diet portions, urging her to build strength amid the growing threat from the Demon-Worshiping Cult.
• Zhou Leng gave Li Linhan medicine and a medicinal fruit from Giant World, which helped repair his hidden ailments; Li Linhan warned him that Demon Prison and the Sirens might attempt their World-Destroying Plan against Blue Star.
• Zhou Leng visited Grandma Zhang and offered pills to Zhang Xiaoxiao, persuading her to accept them by explaining that he wanted to share resources with people who needed them.
• Zhou Leng invited Hu Yi to breakfast at the Integrity Bun Shop, and the two joked and argued as they traveled to Ru City Martial Academy.
• After Zhou Leng left Hu Yi's taxi, Hu Yi found three boxes of Origin-Replenishing Pills and realized Zhou Leng had left them for him.

Zhou Leng rushed into the demon attack at Ru City Airport to find and rescue Zhao Nandi, then faced three innate demons as they threatened the wounded experts. After the Rust-Iron General overwhelmed the human fighters, Zhou Leng struck it hard enough to force it back, and met its answering punch head-on.

• Zhou Leng reached Ru City Airport to meet Zhao Nandi, but an explosion cut off their call and triggered chaos across the terminal.
• Zhou Leng fought through the airport, found the Divine Script General Administration experts, and learned Zhao Nandi had been injured while saving them.
• Zhou Leng treated Zhao Nandi, but she refused to abandon her colleagues as the Crowfolk Envoy, Rust-Iron General, and Skinless Warlock approached.
• The Rust-Iron General crushed a Force-Generating Stage martial artist, and Zhou Leng’s initial charge was brushed aside as the other humans attacked in desperation.
• Zhou Leng struck the Rust-Iron General with a full-power Thousand Tides Pour into the Sea palm, forcing it back three steps, then advanced as it swung a punch at him.

Zhou Leng rescued Zhao Nandi from the demon attack and helped her recover in a shelter, where she shared classified research about the Ancient River Sect. The chapter left them discussing the ruins’ connection to a powerful sect and the Void God Realm.

• The Rust-Iron General stopped pursuing Zhou Leng after Madam Xi Yan declared that Zhou Leng was her child.
• Zhou Leng carried the injured Zhao Nandi to an open shelter while she fed him pills, and he refined them as she stood guard.
• Zhou Leng treated Zhao Nandi’s shoulder wound and comforted her as she grieved for their dead colleagues.
• Zhao Nandi invited Zhou Leng to study in Xiong City, but he said he wanted to stay in Ru City.
• Zhao Nandi explained that the Ancient River Sect had gathered outstanding disciples from multiple planets and that the ruins’ strongest known power was the Void God Realm.

Zhou Leng learned that the Ancient River Ruins might allow humanity to reopen the Ancient River Sect, and he agreed to enter them while Zhao Nandi prepared to study their first trial. After the alert ended, they traveled through the devastated Ru City, where Zhou Leng saw the scale of the Demon-Worshiping Cult’s assault and began checking the city’s intelligence himself.

• Zhao Nandi explained that Blood of Tyranny had gained an incomplete Ancient River Sect inheritance from ruins in the Siren World, and that the Ancient River Ruins might hold a foundational inheritance capable of supporting a new sect on Earth.
• Zhao Nandi told Zhou Leng the Ancient River Ruins would test entrants in cultivation and combat, and said she would enter only the first stage to conduct research; Zhou Leng agreed to seize the opportunity.
• After the alert was lifted, Zhao Nandi and Zhou Leng left the airport and learned that the Demon-Worshiping Cult had damaged transport routes and critical infrastructure across the region.
• Zhou Leng and Zhao Nandi crossed the destroyed roads to Ru City, where Zhou Leng saw that landmarks including the television tower and Tianmao Tower had been ruined.
• At Ru University, Zhou Leng confirmed Xu Qingjin was safe, learned Deng Zhijue was away on a mission, and checked intelligence reporting that demons and the Demon-Worshiping Cult had launched a coordinated surprise attack on Ru City.

After recovering from his injuries, Zhou Leng learned that the Huangmeng Sect suspected him of killing Tian Wenhu, then went to the Captain Combat Camp on Wang Boxiong’s orders. He passed its tests and left before sunset, completing the camp in one day.

• Zhou Leng reviewed evidence linking the Huangmeng Sect to the city attack and learned that Tian Wenhu had obtained an Innate Demon Heart before Zhou Leng fought him.
• Wang Boxiong ordered Zhou Leng to break through the Captain Combat Camp in one day, and Zhou Leng treated his injuries in the Ferocious Beast Realm.
• Shen Jun identified Zhou Leng as the man who had killed Fan Yongrui and discussed investigating him cautiously because of his possible backers.
• Zhou Leng recovered, received Xue Chengsong’s warning that Twin-Horn suspected him of killing Tian Wenhu, and arranged for Xu Qingjin to coordinate Zhao Nandi’s Divine Script class at Ru University.
• Zhou Leng went to the Captain Combat Camp, passed the basic test, killed the Force-Generating Late Stage Sirens, and defeated three Force-Generating Stage peak fighters before leaving before sunset.

Chen Shouhu reviewed Zhou Leng’s combat footage and discovered that Tong Tianxia had murdered people in Jinling City, including someone from the Lou Clan. At Ru University, Zhao Nandi gave a well-received Divine Script lecture, but Zhou Leng’s visit ended when Patrol Bureau officers tried to take him in over Tian Wenhu’s death, prompting Zhao Nandi to intervene.

• Chen Shouhu spoke with Wang Boxiong about Zhou Leng’s breakthrough and recalled Ma Xingkong’s commitment to doing what was right.
• Chen Shouhu watched footage of Tong Tianxia killing people in Jinling City and found that one victim had the surname Lou.
• Zhao Nandi arrived at Ru University, reunited with Xu Qingjin, and delivered a Divine Script lecture before meeting Zhou Leng.
• Patrol Bureau officers asked Zhou Leng to accompany them over allegations that he had killed Tian Wenhu and others.
• Zhou Leng revealed his honorary captain status, and Zhao Nandi called Uncle Sun to challenge the investigation.

Zhao Nandi helped Zhou Leng resolve the Patrol Bureau’s investigation, then gave Xu Qingjin a Youth-Restoring Pill and Zhou Leng three Innate Realm Guarding Pills. After the patrol officers left, Wang Boxiong launched a secret Martial Guard Bureau raid on Twin Horns, leaving Ru City’s businesses—including the anxious Xue Enterprise—waiting to learn whether they would be affected.

• Zhao Nandi recited the lead patrol officer’s ID numbers and helped Zhou Leng settle the investigation, after which the patrol officers received a call and left.
• Zhao Nandi gave Xu Qingjin and Zhou Leng gift bags before departing for the Ancient River Ruins, and she told Zhou Leng to contact her if anyone pursued the matter.
• Xu Qingjin showed the Divine Script Association her Youth-Restoring Pill, while Zhou Leng discovered that Zhao Nandi had given him three costly Innate Realm Guarding Pills.
• After learning that Twin Horns Pioneer Corporation had intervened, Wang Boxiong gathered more than two thousand Martial Guards and led a secret raid on Twin Horns’ facilities and Ru City headquarters.
• The Martial Guard Bureau uncovered criminal evidence and captured or killed demonized martial artists, while Xue Tongming and Xue Chengsong stayed awake worrying that the operation might affect Xue Enterprise.
• Xue Tongming received a call on his Demonic Wristwatch and walked to the window to answer it.

Xue Tongming and Xue Chengsong connected the Martial Guard Department’s investigation of Twin-Horn Corporation to Zhou Leng’s importance and prepared to provide him with High-Energy Spiral Shells. Zhou Leng continued cultivating, then learned his Martial Index ranked him second in Ru City and 19th nationally, leaving his classmates stunned.

• Xue Tongming told Xue Chengsong that the Martial Guard Department would arrest some Twin-Horn executives and impose a heavy fine, then linked the investigation to Zhou Leng and arranged to gather High-Energy Spiral Shells for him.
• Zhou Leng cultivated the Indestructible Star Body beneath the Frost Giant Tree, gaining only one percent more coverage of Ceres’s phantom, and researched where High-Energy Spiral Shells could be found.
• Zhou Leng took the April monthly examination, and Wei Hong agreed with the class that the testing standards did not suit his extraordinary strength.
• Zhou Leng checked the Ru City rankings and found Shanhe Yuan first and himself second, with a Martial Index of 10.99; he also saw Zhang Feng and Li Yuanhe on the Blood Qi Ranking.
• Zhou Leng checked the national freshman rankings and found himself 19th, prompting Wei Hong and the class to marvel at his standing.

After rising in the rankings, Zhou Leng received substantial rewards and resources to support his cultivation and preparation for the Ancient River Ruins. He began training in five-ton Gravity Training Armor at one ton, despite Deng Zhijue’s warning to increase the weight gradually.

• Zhou Leng reviewed his National Ranking rewards, including cash, pill vouchers, and a qualification to seek enlightenment at the Ruins Museum.
• Deng Zhijue and Wang Boxiong gave Zhou Leng the expedited Flying Eagle Program and New Youth Fund rewards, and explained how he could apply for martial resources.
• Zhou Leng learned that the Ancient River Ruins would soon open and that Blood of Tyranny would also enter, while Deng Zhijue declined Zhou Leng’s spare ticket because he had not condensed a phantom of Martial Will.
• Wang Boxiong promised to apply for a Realm-Guarding Pill once Zhou Leng reached the late Force-Generating Stage, and Zhou Leng began training in his new Gravity Training Armor at one ton.
• Deng Zhijue warned Zhou Leng to start at one hundred kilograms and increase the load by ten kilograms per day, but Zhou Leng checked his body and continued training at one ton.

After joining a covert Martial Guard raid, Zhou Leng struggled to accept the slaughter until Deng Zhijue explained the necessity of their methods. Zhou Leng then earned a perfect score on his advanced Divine Script exam and shared his knowledge of the Ancient River Stele with Zhao Nandi, leaving her able to cite his forthcoming anonymous decipherment.

• Zhou Leng trained with a one-ton Gravity Training Armor, while Madam Xi Yan ordered Shen Jun to observe him and forbid high-level assassinations against him.
• Deng Zhijue took Zhou Leng on a surprise raid against a Demon-Worshiping Cult force, and Zhou Leng wrestled with the indiscriminate killing afterward until Deng explained the Martial Guards' procedures and history.
• Zhou Leng took the advanced Divine Script examination and later learned from Zhao Nandi that he had earned a perfect 150, the only full score in the exam's history.
• Zhao Nandi discussed a special joint evaluation that could qualify Zhou Leng as a senior researcher, and offered to list him as second author on her Ancient River Ruins paper.
• Zhou Leng answered Zhao Nandi's questions about the Ancient River Stele, supplied missing inscriptions he had memorized, and told her she could cite his upcoming anonymous text.

Zhou Leng passed the Purgatory Gate’s first level but was overwhelmed by the second level’s insects and the third level’s trials, then sought relief by fighting a Black Bone Tiger in Beast World.

• Zhou Leng watched videos about the Ten Realms Youth War, deleted his distracting apps, and entered Beast World to make up for lost training time.
• Zhou Leng endured ten thousand attacks in the Land of Blades, passed the first level, and found that his Will Mountain had been tempered by the Thunderfire Divine Hammer.
• Zhou Leng entered Beast-Insect Valley, endured repeated feasts by beasts, then quit when swarms of insects overwhelmed him with revulsion and fear.
• Zhou Leng realized the valley tested resistance to instinct and reflected on the ideals that had strengthened the heroes of the old era.
• Zhou Leng tried the next Purgatory Gate level but was immediately expelled, then challenged a Black Bone Tiger to drive away the lingering trauma.

After recovering from his trials, Zhou Leng passed the Bronze Man Formation’s seventh through eleventh levels, proving his strength against increasingly powerful puppets. He was badly injured by the Innate Puppet, but his body began healing rapidly as he circulated his qi.

• Zhou Leng accepted the Black Bone Tigers’ fruit and Orange Blossom Fruits, then exhausted himself running to Mammoth Lake and fell asleep.
• After waking, Zhou Leng decided to leave the second and third trials for later and continued his cultivation.
• Zhou Leng checked Shanhe Yuan’s Martial City records, then entered the Bronze Man Formation and destroyed the seventh-level puppets with ease.
• Zhou Leng passed the eighth and ninth levels, then held back against the tenth-level puppets until they defeated him.
• Zhou Leng used the Eight Trigrams Step to strike the Innate Puppet’s target points and passed the eleventh level, suffering severe injuries.
• Zhou Leng circulated his qi, and his muscles, blood vessels, and skin began healing rapidly.

After reaching a Martial Index of 11, Zhou Leng drew attention across Ru City and beyond. When Zhao Nandi warned that the Ancient River Ruins were about to open, Zhou Leng prepared to leave the next day and went shopping with Xu Qingjin.

• Zhou Leng tested himself against the Innate Puppet on the twelfth floor, conceded after his attack failed, and applied for Realm-Guarding Pills through the Advanced Talent Development Program.
• A new ranking placed Zhou Leng fourth in Ru City with a Martial Index of 11, prompting reactions from Xu Qingjin, Ji Changnian, Zhang Xinglie, Lou Feiqiong, and others.
• Wang Boxiong refused Ru University's requests to publicize Zhou Leng, while Shen Jun and Madam Xi Yan discussed the danger of trying to kill him.
• West Sea Martial University's leaders connected Zhou Leng to an old No. 8 High School Progress Award and reconsidered their earlier dismissive view of him.
• Zhao Nandi told Zhou Leng that the Ancient River Ruins were about to open, so Zhou Leng agreed to prepare and leave the next day.
• Zhou Leng and Xu Qingjin made a shopping list and bought supplies, food, and sportswear, then exchanged gifts at the mall.

Zhou Leng recruited Song Juesi to use an extra ticket for the Ancient River Trial, then traveled with Rao Mingxian to the Ancient River Ruins. There, he reunited with Zhao Nandi and began examining the excavation with her, while Zhang Feng and Rao Mingxing arrived and Rao Mingxian’s place among the gathered company became clear.

• Zhou Leng invited Song Juesi to the Ancient River Trial, and Song Juesi agreed to join him.
• Zhou Leng left food for Big Yellow and Little Eight, then ran south with Rao Mingxian to the Ancient River Ruins.
• Zhou Leng and Rao Mingxian entered the research institute, where Zhao Nandi showed Zhou Leng newly unearthed artifacts and discussed their Divine Script findings with him.
• Zhang Feng greeted Zhou Leng as his senior brother, surprising Rao Mingxian’s acquaintances, who heard how Zhou Leng had helped escort the Ancient River Jade Stele.
• Zhou Leng returned to excavating and researching with Zhao Nandi, while Rao Mingxing met Rao Mingxian and asked about his recent advance to the Force-Generating Early Stage.

Rao Mingxing pressured Rao Mingxian to gather information on Zhou Leng, while Zhou Leng researched the Ancient River Ruins and cultivated before joining the other trial participants to plan their cooperation. The group began choosing a leader, but Song Juesi declined because his physical condition would make him a liability.

• Rao Mingxing told Rao Mingxian that the Rao family's reputation was at stake and asked him to send Zhou Leng's information, but Rao Mingxian hesitated because Zhou Leng had helped him.
• Zhao Nandi gave Zhou Leng an Ancient River Token, and the two researched the ruins while Zhou Leng noticed that the active spiritual energy improved his cultivation.
• Zhou Leng trained the next morning, and Zhao Nandi explained that the Ancient River Sect's water-element methods could give him an advantage in the ruins.
• The trial participants gathered with Zhou Leng and Zhao Nandi, shared information, and discussed working together after entering the Ancient River Trial.
• Zhang Feng proposed choosing a leader, and Rao Mingxian nominated Song Juesi, who declined because his body could not keep up in a crisis.

Zhou Leng became captain of the Ancient River Trial team and led its members in gathering information and planning their preparations. As the trial drew nearer, Zhao Nandi took Zhou Leng into the restricted Pit No. 9, where ancient buildings and a mysterious Martial Dao aura awaited them.

• Zhou Leng accepted the team captaincy and organized a shared document and open discussion to plan for the Ancient River Trial.
• Zhao Nandi guessed that Song Juesi was the Mysterious Master who deciphered the Ancient River Stele, and Zhou Leng played along with her theory.
• The team spent several days preparing while Zhao Nandi shared restricted research information, and Zhou Leng improved his Divine Script knowledge and cultivated at the ruins.
• After a week without a change in the Ancient River Stele, more than three hundred trial participants gathered at the institute, where Song Juesi instructed them.
• Zhao Nandi secured approval to take Zhou Leng into Pit No. 9, and guards verified his credentials before letting them enter.

Zhou Leng studied the Ancient River Jade Stele at the ruins, where Blood of Tyranny revealed a mysterious connection to the site. During a nighttime cultivation session, the stele reacted to Zhou Leng, and Zhao Nandi secretly pocketed an ancient jade tiger that rose from the ground.

• Zhou Leng passed the ruins’ identity checks and impressed the Divine Script experts with his answers.
• Zhou Leng touched the Ancient River Jade Stele and recalled more complete Martial Imprints than the stele displayed.
• Blood of Tyranny visited the ruins, contemplated the jade stele, and wore a damaged bracelet of red beads; Zhou Leng sensed an unusual spiritual-energy fluctuation near him.
• Zhou Leng and Zhao Nandi stayed overnight by the jade stele, and Zhou Leng’s cultivation made its carvings glow and disrupted the site’s lights and equipment.
• As Zhou Leng continued cultivating, an ancient jade tiger rose from the ground, and Zhao Nandi pocketed it while the others were away.