Chapter Summaries

Chen An and Gu Yue Na arrived late with Xu Lang and the others at an emergency Federation Council meeting in Mingdu. They took seats with the Sun Moon Royal Academy delegation as the Federation’s highest officials gathered to begin the meeting.

• Chen An followed Xu Lang, Yu Guanzhi, and the others into the Federation Government building and up to the council chamber.
• Gu Yue Na greeted Leng Yaozhu, who was relieved to see her unharmed.
• Xu Lang apologized for their late arrival, and Xu Lin directed Chen An and Gu Yue Na to the Sun Moon Royal Academy seats.
• Chen An and Gu Yue Na sat in places left vacant by four academy directors who had died protecting Chen An.
• Chen An looked toward the six seats reserved for the Federation’s highest government and military officials.

Chen An and Gu Yue Na attended an emergency Federation Council meeting with Xu Lang, prompting questions about whether they were allowed inside. Xu Lang defended their presence and began explaining that Gu Yue Na was a victim of the Abyss Incident before turning to documents concerning Chen An.

• Chen An noted that Chief of the General Staff Shen's family supported Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect, while sharing control of the Federation's police forces with the Xu Family.
• The chapter explained that the Shen and Xu families had reached a delicate balance over police bureaus, and that their contest for the Chief of the General Staff position could resume in the election twenty years later.
• The Federation Council Speaker questioned Xu Lang about bringing Chen An and Gu Yue Na into the council chamber without prior approval.
• Xu Lang admitted that he had not applied beforehand, promised to take responsibility for their conduct, and said Gu Yue Na deserved to attend as a victim of the Abyss Incident.
• Xu Lang brought out documents about Chen An and signaled the secretary-general to display them.

The Federation officials learned that Chen An had been appointed a senior colonel and commander of the Sixteenth Division of the Central Legion, prompting doubts about his qualifications and Xu Lang’s influence. Xu Lang defended Chen An by citing his strength and Zhang Huanyun’s willingness to make him Legion Commander of the Blood God Legion, leaving the officials newly impressed by Chen An.

• The Federation Secretary-General displayed Chen An’s documents, revealing that he was a senior colonel and commander of the Sixteenth Division despite being under fifteen.
• Chief of General Staff Shen questioned why he had not been informed, and Xu Lang said the appointment was legal and that Chen An was his grandnephew.
• Shen sarcastically suggested Chen An had risen through connections, while Xu Lang argued that Chen An’s strength and status as the First War God justified the appointment.
• Xu Lang revealed that Zhang Huanyun had wanted Chen An to succeed him as Legion Commander of the Blood God Legion, shocking the officials.
• The officials reconsidered Chen An after learning of Zhang Huanyun’s confidence in him, while most remained unaware that Chen An could summon three Limit puppets.

The Council reviewed footage of the devastating Abyss assault and Cao Dezhi’s admission that the Tang Sect had caused it. Xu Lang called for the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy to be branded terrorist organizations, banned, and arrested, leaving the Council to confront the proposed punishment.

• The Secretary-General showed the Council footage of the Abyss assault and images of the ruined defense line and Blood God Legion camp.
• Cao Dezhi appeared in a recording and admitted that he had caused the Abyss assault.
• Chief of General Staff Shen and other Tang Sect and Shrek Academy supporters recognized the gravity of the disaster and its threat to their organizations.
• Xu Lang argued that the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy had endangered the Blood God Legion and humanity over a personal grudge against Chen An.
• Xu Lang proposed designating the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy terrorist organizations and banning and arresting them.

At a Federation meeting, Xu Lang labeled Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect terrorist organizations and accused them of colluding with the Abyss Plane, despite the risks of provoking a war. Guan Yue furiously defended both forces and the fallen Cang Xin and Cao Dezhi, leaving the dispute over their reputations unresolved.

• The chapter described how Federation factions disagreed over military action and how resource shortages and the Abyss threat strengthened the hawks’ position.
• The Federation considered Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect too powerful and respected to attack directly without risking heavy military losses and public backlash.
• Xu Lang accused Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect of terrorism and collusion with the Abyss Plane.
• Guan Yue rose from his seat and rebuked Xu Lang, citing the forces’ sacrifices in defending the Blood God Legion and condemning his slander of fallen soldiers.
• Guan Yue feared that the accusations would leave Cang Xin and Cao Dezhi remembered as traitors rather than heroes.

Xu Lang accused the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy of colluding with the Abyss Creatures, while Guan Yue insisted that bringing them in was not the same as betraying the Federation. Tang Sect and Shrek Academy members attended the assembly remotely as accusations mounted against them.

• Xu Lang argued that the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy had brought in Abyss Creatures and questioned whether their leaders had colluded with them.
• Guan Yue acknowledged that the Tang Sect had brought in Abyss Creatures but warned Xu Lang not to confuse that with collusion.
• Xu Lang cited Cang Xin and Cao Dezhi's restrained fighting as grounds for suspicion and threatened to have Commander Zhang verify his claims.
• A Tang Sect representative joined remotely and said Cang Xin and Cao Dezhi had held back to preserve their strength for dealing with Chen An.
• The chapter revealed that neither the Tang Sect nor Shrek Academy had sent anyone to attend the assembly in person.

At a meeting about the Tang Sect’s role in the Abyss Creatures’ attack, Ya Li vouched for the Tang Sect and denied it had colluded with the Abyss Plane. Shen accepted her assurance, leaving the Tang Sect accused of a grave mistake rather than treason.

• A Tang Sect elder and other members angrily denied colluding with the Abyss Plane while admitting they had used an Abyss divine artifact to lure out the creatures.
• Shrek Academy’s representatives declared that the academy had joined the attempt to kill Chen An but had not helped lure out the Abyss Creatures.
• Ya Li spoke up and vouched for the Tang Sect, bringing the arguing members and meeting attendees to silence.
• Chief of General Staff Shen said he trusted Ya Li and believed the Tang Sect had made a grave mistake rather than colluding with the Abyss Plane.

Federation Council members argued over whether Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect had colluded with the Abyss, while the chairman proposed an investigation without clearing or condemning them. Xu Lang and Qiangu Dongfeng pushed for severe penalties, leaving the council divided over the schools’ fate.

• Council members and officials split between supporting Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect and echoing Qiangu Dongfeng’s suspicions about them.
• Ya Li grew angry at the deliberate accusations, while Yu Guanzhi and the Legion Commanders remained silent.
• The council chairman said he doubted the schools had betrayed humanity but proposed a thorough investigation and cautioned against reaching a verdict beforehand.
• Xu Lang backed public reporting on the investigation and called for Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect to be temporarily banned, with senior figures arrested.
• Xu Lang proposed nationalizing or disbanding the schools and sealing the Tang Sect’s branches if collusion was proven, and Qiangu Dongfeng argued their actions had gravely weakened the Blood God Legion.

The Tang Sect proposed extensive compensation for the Abyss Creature crisis, and Guan Yue argued that its past contributions warranted leniency. Xu Lang challenged the value of those contributions while privately planning to exploit the crisis to bring down the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy.

• The Tang Sect representative offered compensation for fallen soldiers' families, injured soldiers, and seventy percent of the Blood God Legion's weapons and ammunition costs.
• Guan Yue supported accepting the offer and treating the Tang Sect leniently, citing its service to the Federation and its role in guarding the Abyss Channel.
• Xu Lang demanded that Guan Yue list the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy's contributions, then argued that other organizations also guarded the Abyss Channel.
• Xu Lang recalled the Xu Family's long history of conflict with the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy and resolved to support a covert plan to eliminate them.

Guan Yue and a Tang Sect elder argued that the Tang Sect had contributed to the Federation, while Xu Lang dismissed its weapons sales and trade with the other two empires as ordinary business and treasonous conduct. The elder could not answer Xu Lang’s accusations and left the Tang Sect’s reasons for its actions unexplained.

• Guan Yue challenged Xu Lang for minimizing the Tang Sect’s contributions and argued that its weapons supplies to the Federation counted as one.
• Xu Lang replied that the Federation had paid full price for every weapon and argued that commercial sales were not selfless contributions.
• Xu Lang recounted that the Federation’s reliance on Tang Sect weapons had declined and was expected to end within ten years.
• A Tang Sect elder argued that the Tang Sect had helped trade between the Federation and the other two great empires.
• Xu Lang accused the Tang Sect of defying Federation warnings by selling weapons and Soul Tool technology to the other empires, calling its actions treasonous.
• The Tang Sect elder was angered but could not refute Xu Lang from the Federation’s perspective, and he did not explain why the Tang Sect had sold the weapons.

Xu Lang challenged Tang Sect’s claims that it had served the Federation, arguing that its past misconduct outweighed its contributions. He used a deadly Red-level Challenge at the Central Legion to show how Tang Sect had disregarded military rules, leaving its elders under pressure to defend the sect’s record.

• A Tang Sect elder listed its campaigns against Evil Soul Masters and criminals as contributions, and Xu Lang conceded that they were among the sect’s few contributions.
• Tang Sect elders cited its jobs, public welfare projects, and technical assistance, while Xu Lang and Qiangu Dongfeng dismissed those claims as self-serving or minor.
• Xu Lang recalled how Tang Sect powerhouses had stormed the Central Legion more than forty years earlier, killing an officer and crippling other officials after a Tang Sect intruder was killed.
• Xu Lang explained that the intruder had been attempting Tang Sect’s Red-level Challenge, which required breaking into and escaping a legion, and accused Tang Sect of treating the Federation military as its private domain.

Yu Guanzhi and the Tang Sect Grand Elder argued over past clashes between the Tang Sect, Shrek Academy, and the Federation military. Chen An connected Yu Guanzhi’s resentment to the God-Slaying Weapon theft and considered using the Soul-Seizing Bell to learn where the weapon was stored.

• The Tang Sect Grand Elder defended the Tang Sect’s revenge for a member killed after trespassing into the Central Legion, and Yu Guanzhi angrily blamed the Tang Sect for its past actions.
• Guan Yue stopped Yu Guanzhi from continuing the argument, though Yu Guanzhi remained determined to make the Tang Sect pay.
• Chen An suspected Yu Guanzhi had helped Qiangu Dongfeng steal the God-Slaying Weapon because of his resentment toward the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy.
• Chen An considered using the Soul-Seizing Bell to steal information about the weapon’s location from the Federation Speaker, whom he suspected knew where it was stored.

Chen An weighed how to secretly obtain the God-Slaying Weapon from the Federation Speaker while a debate over the Tang Sect’s treatment turned to the Sea God’s legacy. He rejected Ya Li’s appeal to Tang San’s ancient achievements and openly refused to show him reverence, escalating the confrontation with the Tang Sect.

• Chen An considered targeting the Federation Speaker to steal his memories and learn about the God-Slaying Weapon, but worried about the Speaker’s security and the risk of exposure.
• Ya Li argued that the Tang Sect deserved leniency because Tang San had helped destroy the evil Spirit Hall twenty thousand years earlier and saved the continent.
• Chen An countered that the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy had squandered their ancestors’ merits, and that Tang San had not benefited the former Sun Moon Empire.
• The Tang Sect Grand Elder angrily condemned Chen An for calling the Sea God Tang San by name.
• Chen An said Tang San was not his Sea God and that Federation law did not require him to use an honorific.

Chen An confronted the Tang Sect Grand Elder over the Tang Sect’s crimes and argued that the Federation should use the current opportunity to curb the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy. The chapter left the Federation with a chance to act while Chen An and his allies could support it with their strength.

• Chen An threatened to insult Tang San as an “old dog” if the Grand Elder kept calling him a little bastard.
• Chen An rejected the Grand Elder’s claim that the Tang Sect’s ancestors’ contributions excused its present crimes and questioned whether the Tang Sect might summon the Abyssal Sage King next.
• The Grand Elder admitted the Tang Sect had acted rashly and promised it would not repeat the mistake, hoping to receive a lighter punishment.
• Chen An argued that the Tang Sect would not change without a harsh lesson and pointed out that Xu Lang supported him in the council chamber.
• Chen An urged the Federation to seize its legal and military advantage against the Tang Sect and Shrek Academy, with powerful allies ready to help fight their top experts.

At a legislative meeting, Chen An pushed the Federation to act against Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect, and growing support prompted Xu Lin and Qiangu Dongfeng to endorse punishing them. The Spirit Pagoda’s history and growing estrangement from the two old powers explained why it backed the Federation’s move.

• Chen An’s arguments persuaded many legislators that the Federation should seize the chance to deal with Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect.
• Guan Yue objected as Xu Lin argued that the old powers had squandered their ancestors’ contributions and committed harmful illegal acts.
• Qiangu Dongfeng declared that the Spirit Pagoda supported holding Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect to Federation law.
• The account explained that the Spirit Pagoda had grown powerful by aligning with the Federation and accepting Federation involvement in its management.
• The Spirit Pagoda’s leaders moved its headquarters out of Shrek City as its relationship with Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect deteriorated.

Chen Xinjie opposed the Federation’s plan to punish Tang Sect and Shrek Academy, warning that internal conflict would weaken the Federation against external threats. Chen An continued arguing for an attack, while Tang Sect and Shrek Academy threatened to resist.

• Yu Guanzhi, Xu Lang, and other officials supported making Tang Sect and Shrek Academy pay for their actions, while Guan Yue and Chief of General Staff Shen argued against attacking them.
• Chen Xinjie spoke against the proposal, warning that conflict would weaken the Federation’s defenses against the Abyss Plane and other nations.
• Chen Xinjie’s opposition quieted many supporters of the attack and made the proposal more difficult to advance.
• The Tang Sect Grand Elder warned that Tang Sect would resist any attack and make the Federation pay a heavy price.
• Ya Li pledged Shrek Academy’s full support for Tang Sect and warned that Skyreach Douluo could become a threat if provoked.
• Chen An dismissed the warnings, claimed Yun Ming could be restrained, and argued that the Federation should eliminate Tang Sect and Shrek Academy despite temporary losses.

Chen An argued that destroying Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect would let the Federation absorb their geniuses, institutions, and resources, while Chen Xinjie warned that losing them would weaken humanity against the Abyss. Federation officials increasingly favored Chen An’s vision as the debate ended with the Tang Sect Grand Elder unable to answer his challenge.

• Chen An argued that the Federation could use an invasion by the other two empires as a pretext to conquer them and seize their resources.
• Chen Xinjie warned that a costly war or an unexpected Abyss invasion could leave the Federation vulnerable, and said Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect should be given a chance to change.
• Chen An claimed Sun Moon Royal Academy, the War God Hall, and the Federation’s legions could take in the geniuses from Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect, potentially strengthening Federation-controlled forces.
• The Tang Sect Grand Elder argued that the two organizations’ twenty-thousand-year foundation could not be replaced, but Chen An replied that the Federation should seize it as spoils of war.
• Federation officials and Qiangu Dongfeng were tempted by the prospect of dividing Shrek Academy’s and the Tang Sect’s wealth and resources.

The Federation voted on whether to suppress and arrest Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect, putting both ancient powers’ survival at stake. The core legislators favored the measure, but the overall vote count had not yet been announced.

• The Council Chairman proposed a vote after debate over punishing Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect stalled, and the council approved the proposal.
• Xu Lang, the Minister of Equipment, and Chen An voted in favor, while Gu Yue Na did not vote because she lacked voting rights.
• The voting period ended, and the secretary-general reported 409 participants out of 426 expected, including three valid substitute votes counted as one each.
• The secretary-general announced that core legislators cast 14 votes in favor, 10 against, and one abstention, giving the measure a 70-to-50 weighted advantage among them.
• The Tang Sect and Shrek Academy representatives grew tense as they tried to identify the voters, while the overall result remained undisclosed.

The Federation Council passed a proposal to ban and apprehend Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect, pushing them toward open conflict with the Federation. Xu Lang laid out terms that would dissolve both organizations and place their assets under Federation control, which they could not accept.

• Chen An and Gu Yue Na waited anxiously as the ordinary councilors’ votes were counted.
• The votes in favor exceeded sixty percent, and the Council President announced that the proposal had passed.
• Ya Li, Guan Yue, and other supporters of Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect reacted with disbelief and protested the decision.
• Chen Xinjie sighed and ended his video connection after failing to change the outcome.
• Xu Lang proposed that Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect dissolve, surrender their assets, and submit their leaders to Federation investigations.

The Federation demanded that the Tang Sect dissolve, but the Tang Sect Grand Elder refused and threatened retaliation if the Federation used force. As Ya Li prepared to respond for Shrek Academy, Yun Ming connected to the meeting, and his furious presence left the assembly uneasy.

• Xu Lang warned that the Federation would use force if the Tang Sect refused to cooperate, and the Tang Sect Grand Elder rejected the demand and threatened retaliation against anyone who attacked.
• The Tang Sect Grand Elder urged other factions to stay out of the dispute with Chen An's group, then ended the video connection as Tang Sect members vowed to resist.
• Federation representatives recognized that force against the Tang Sect would likely bring widespread conflict and bloodshed.
• Ya Li began to prepare her response for Shrek Academy but paused when Yun Ming's video connection appeared.
• Ya Li told Yun Ming what had happened at the meeting, and Yun Ming's dark expression made the attendees uneasy.