Chapter Summaries

Wang Wu joined Big Monkey, Jia Ding Monkey, and Old Zhou Tou in a secret plan to return to their old trade, agreeing to leave that night and making Shield Strike Talismans for the operation. As he prepared, he learned his talents now required extraordinary costs to advance and considered several possible paths to strengthen them.

• Big Monkey, Jia Ding Monkey, and Old Zhou Tou revealed their plan to resume their old trade now that Mount Master Muyang and the West River Great King had reconciled, and Wang Wu agreed to join them.
• Big Monkey said Big-eyed Fish had arranged an extra slot and told Wang Wu they would leave that night, while the three men gave him sixty blank talismans to fill with Shield Strike Talismans.
• Wang Wu used his Azure Wood Spirit Pill and other abilities to create level 7 Green Wood Shields, then completed all sixty talismans.
• Wang Wu checked his attribute panel and learned that advancing any of his six main talents now required 20 million points of spiritual energy, vitality, or blood energy.
• Grandpa Tree listed five alternative ways for Wang Wu to advance his talents, including finding Ancient Giant Bear descendants, seeking the Snake Emperor’s daughter, obtaining True Dragon Ancient Blood, resisting the Three Calamities, or acquiring a loyal Ancient Blood Demon Race member’s talent.

Wang Wu joined Big Monkey and the others on a random teleportation expedition into territory controlled by the Vermilion Bird Immortal Alliance, hoping to observe the region. After arriving alone in a forest, he sensed a Bloodline Inducement from the Great Desolation Sin Prison but continued toward General Zhang.

• Wang Wu created a secondary incarnation to cultivate as Yu Ergou, then gathered with Big Monkey, Old Zhou Tou, and Jia Ding Monkey to sell Shield Strike Talismans.
• General Zhang and Big-eyed Fish recruited the Bear Ridge group for an expedition and distributed random teleportation talismans, with instructions to picture General Zhang while activating them.
• Wang Wu teleported into a forest in the Vermilion Bird Immortal Alliance, where he found no Spirit Network and sensed his allies scattered within a hundred li.
• Wang Wu sensed a Bloodline Inducement and briefly saw an icefield with enormous fortress-cities, realizing he might be able to contact the prison escapees.
• Wang Wu ignored the summons for the moment and continued toward General Zhang while tracking the other allies.

Wang Wu concluded that he needed to rob someone to gather the resources required to seize the True Dragon Ancient Blood before West River Great King’s wedding. He infiltrated a heavily fortified Human stronghold and discovered Lu Wuchen fighting another First-grade cultivator in an arena.

• Wang Wu sent a copy of himself to gather resources with Big Monkey, Big-eyed Fish, and the others while he surveyed the surrounding wilderness.
• The information databases and Attribute Panel prompted Wang Wu to focus on building power and warned that West River Great King might claim the Dragon Gate opportunity in twenty-nine days.
• Wang Wu searched farther afield and spotted sword qi erupting from an apparently ordinary mountain range, revealing a vast, concealed formation.
• Wang Wu slipped through a gap in the formation as its defenses strained under the impact of an enormous spiritual-energy surge.
• Wang Wu realized the stronghold was an arena where two First-grade cultivators were dueling, and recognized Lu Wuchen being driven back.

Wang Wu secretly gathered the surplus energy from Lu Wuchen’s Life and Death Duel, then confronted Lu Wuchen after the match. Lu Wuchen explained the duels’ role in securing military funds and offered his sword and a chance to end their feud, but Wang Wu asked where the next duel would take place.

• Wang Wu appeared inside the arena during Lu Wuchen’s battle and used his Companion Iron Essence to absorb the fighters’ surplus spiritual energy and sword momentum.
• The duel ended in a draw when time ran out, and Wang Wu discovered that the Snake Emperor and other powerful figures had been overseeing it through projections.
• After the arena was dismantled, Wang Wu tried to kill Lu Wuchen, who revealed that he had noticed Wang Wu’s killing intent and invited him to finish the job.
• Lu Wuchen offered Wang Wu his Destined Flying Sword and asked him to spare Five Poisons and Yue Shan, then explained that prison escapees fought these duels to obtain military funds.
• Lu Wuchen said the next duel would involve Shen Wu or Snake Nineteen against the Jade Cauldron Immortal Alliance, and Wang Wu asked where it would be held.

Wang Wu agreed to fight the third round of the Life and Death Duel to secure military funding for the Sin Prison Legion. After Snake Nineteen sent him the Snake Emperor bloodline inheritance, he left to prepare, while Lu Wuchen warned him that Snake Nineteen had sacrificed its chance to advance for his sake.

• Lu Wuchen explained that the Sin Prison Legion would lose unless its third-round fighter could defeat the opponent quickly, and revealed that Snake Nineteen was their strongest available First-Rank.
• The Snake Emperor promised independent armies to Ape Bupuo, Bear Sixteen, and Teng Zhongwu if Wang Wu fought and won, and Wang Wu agreed to enter the duel.
• Snake Nineteen urged Wang Wu not to risk his life, but Wang Wu took the Jade Pendant and insisted that escaping the Great Desolation Sin Prison Tower had been necessary.
• The Snake Emperor confirmed the duel would begin in three days and sent Wang Wu a teleportation talisman; Snake Nineteen also gave him frozen essence blood containing its true bloodline inheritance.
• Wang Wu spared Lu Wuchen, gave him Stealth Divine Talismans, and left without taking the Fourth-Rank Destined Flying Sword.
• Lu Wuchen warned Wang Wu that Snake Nineteen had given up its chance to advance by giving him the True Dragon Ancient Blood and might not have enough lifespan for another opportunity.

Wang Wu fused True Dragon Ancient Blood into his Heart of the Earth, then spent its three tailored attribute points to raise Spiritual Resonance to level 18 and discovered he could perceive and absorb spirit energy on a vast scale. After gathering thirty million spirit energy ahead of a battle in two days, he received an appraisal provisionally classifying his Spiritual Essence as Super First-Rank.

• Wang Wu absorbed a drop of True Dragon Ancient Blood, filled a deficiency in his innate bloodline core, and raised Bloodline Evolution to 65.5%.
• Wang Wu used all three Free Attribute Points on Spiritual Resonance Talent, raising it to level 18 and gaining the ability to perceive living things as structures of spirit energy.
• Wang Wu discovered that a single breath of level 18 Spiritual Essence absorbed a hundred thousand spirit energy and risked killing nearby life, so he carefully limited his extraction.
• Wang Wu accumulated spirit energy across the wilderness, reaching fifteen million points after a day and thirty million after two days while considering how best to convert it.
• The Four Clowns appraised Wang Wu's level 18 Spiritual Essence as provisionally Super First-Rank and stated that he had met three of the ten conditions needed for Super First-Rank strength.

Wang Wu entered the Life and Death Arena as Lying Flat Lord and discovered his opponent, Mud Lord, was a powerful demon planning to advance to Super First-Rank during the duel. As Mud Lord began his breakthrough, the countdown continued and Wang Wu watched without revealing how he would respond.

• Wang Wu used his Level 18 Spiritual Resonance Talent to uncover Mud Lord’s formidable abilities, defensive treasures, and hidden strength.
• Wang Wu and Mud Lord registered under their aliases and agreed to the arena’s rules, including a time limit that would make the match a draw if neither died.
• Mud Lord wagered on his own victory, then swallowed a fifth-grade Five Aggregates Spirit Pill to advance during the duel.
• Snake Emperor objected to Mud Lord’s mid-battle advancement, but the arena rejected the objection and silenced the spectators’ complaints.
• The Nine-Tailed Emperor asked Lu Wuchen about Xiong Wu, and Lu Wuchen admitted he could not see through him; Grandpa Tree watched Snake Emperor without explaining what he knew.

Wang Wu faced Mud Lord’s overwhelming Five Aggregates Heaven Mending and used his abilities to discover and exploit a flaw in it. The blood qi curtain collapsed after Wang Wu interrupted the technique, leaving the battle unresolved.

• Mud Lord advanced to Super First-Rank and attacked Wang Wu with Five Aggregates Heaven Mending, but Wang Wu escaped its initial lock with Substitute Cicada and Passive Concealment.
• Mud Lord used Joyful Union Puppets to boost its blood qi circulation and continued pressing Wang Wu with its enhanced blood curtain.
• Wang Wu’s level 18 Spiritual Essence identified a flaw in Mud Lord’s Five Aggregates Heaven Mending as he prepared to counter.
• Wang Wu activated level 13 Hegemon Body to neutralize Mud Lord’s restraints, then used Piercing Insight to interrupt the technique.
• Mud Lord’s blood qi curtain lost control and collapsed, becoming ownerless.

Wang Wu interrupted Mud Lord’s vitality attack, absorbed much of the released energy, and forced Mud Lord to retreat into its iron-turtle defense. While the spectators doubted Wang Wu could break through, he used his copies and a hidden Seventh Rank Companion Iron Essence to pierce the turtle’s mystic iron shields.

• Wang Wu used his copies and small cauldron to absorb nearly two million points of ownerless vitality as Mud Lord reclaimed some energy and transformed into an iron turtle to defend.
• Commentator Lord explained Wang Wu’s feat as identifying and interrupting Mud Lord’s attack, while the Snake Emperor, Grandpa Tree, and the Stone Demon discussed how difficult the turtle would be to defeat.
• Wang Wu spotted the mystic iron shields layered over Mud Lord’s shell and set up a Rapid Reaction Sword Formation, but its attacks failed to damage the turtle.
• Wang Wu used several copies and repeated Five Immortals Return to the Cave, confusing spectators and Mud Lord about which figure was real.
• Mud Lord discovered a fist-sized hole in its mystic iron shields, and spectators realized Wang Wu had used a Seventh Rank Companion Iron Essence.

Wang Wu evaded the Mud Turtle’s forbidden Yin Fire trap while concealing the limits of his ability to see through its moves. He faked his death with a burned hair, then ambushed the injured Mud Turtle and destroyed it before the countdown ended.

• The Mud Turtle sealed Wang Wu inside Heaven and Earth in a Jar and unleashed Yin Fire, using Yang Thunder and its own limbs to intensify the attack.
• Wang Wu dodged the Pale Fire while pretending to panic, and the Mud Turtle refused his offers to stop and fight fairly.
• Wang Wu calculated that using Level 18 Spiritual Essence again would consume his last available strand of Divine Sense, so he stalled while the Mud Turtle’s trap shrank.
• The Mud Turtle sacrificed more limbs to multiply the Pale Fire, and Wang Wu let the flames burn away his finest hair to make the Mud Turtle believe he was dead.
• As the Mud Turtle tried to withdraw its forbidden weapons, Wang Wu transformed into Bear Form and struck from behind, tearing apart the Mud Turtle and smashing its demon core.

After killing Mud Turtle, Wang Wu escaped the Divine Turtle Clan’s pursuit and devoured Mud Turtle’s remains to rapidly advance his cultivation. He reached peak first-rank strength, then faced a tracking turtle that escaped while the Four Clowns urged him to capture it.

• Wang Wu collected Mud Turtle’s remains, confirmed the Snake Emperor had paid the five billion Spirit Energy Dou, then destroyed their communication pendant and hid underground.
• Wang Wu fed Mud Turtle’s Dragon Bone to the Companion Iron Essence and ate Mud Turtle’s flesh to convert its remaining medicinal energy into cultivation.
• Wang Wu advanced all five Ruyi Demon Cores to third-rank, gained 2,500 years of lifespan, and reached peak first-rank great demon strength.
• Wang Wu tossed a tracking turtle out of its jar, drawing its Pale Fire onto himself, but the turtle escaped the Darksteel Hut.
• The Four Clowns begged Wang Wu to catch the turtle for its Primordial Spirit, so Wang Wu released them.

Wang Wu subdued a massive amount of Pale Fire, raised his Yin Fire Resistance to 9,900, and survived a battle with a turtle Primordial Spirit with help from the Companion Iron Essence and three databases. The attribute panel revealed that the Divine Turtle Clan might be searching for him and that he had 8,977 years before forced ascension.

• Wang Wu absorbed the Pale Fire, raised his Yin Fire Resistance from 4,000 to 8,500, and swallowed a turtle Primordial Spirit to continue improving it.
• The turtle Primordial Spirit tried to possess Wang Wu, but the Companion Iron Essence used Yang Thunder to drive it off and damage three golden databases that had returned to help.
• Wang Wu fled five thousand li, then continued tempering himself with Pale Fire until his resistance reached 9,900 at the cost of one hundred years of lifespan.
• Wang Wu inspected the Storage Pouches for tracking objects and learned that the turtle Primordial Spirit had seized important information, potentially exposing him to a Divine Turtle Clan search.
• The attribute panel revealed that Wang Wu would be forced to undergo tribulation and ascend after 9,000 years in the Cultivation World, leaving him 8,977 years.

Wang Wu secretly transferred the Soul Jade and its attribute panel to a powerful hair incarnation, hiding his plans from the Four Clowns before setting out as a wandering assassin. A white-haired old man then used the Myriad Mountains and Rivers Map to reconstruct Wang Wu’s arrival and battle, beginning an investigation into his origins and companions.

• Wang Wu silenced the Four Clowns while concealing that he had moved the Soul Jade and attribute panel onto his Supreme Hair.
• Wang Wu stored the Supreme Hair, prepared five Second-Rank Hairs, destroyed his distant True Man Mu identity, and headed off to resume wandering as an assassin.
• A white-haired old man used the Myriad Mountains and Rivers Map to rewind events across ten thousand li and reveal Wang Wu’s teleportation.
• The old man sent jade bees to investigate Wang Wu’s route, origin, and possible companions.
• The old man replayed Wang Wu’s battle with Mud Turtle but learned only that Xiong Wu had three formidable False Nascent Souls.

A mysterious Grand Unity True Immortal tracked Xiong Wu, learned of his bloodline and abilities, and tried to arrange a duel disguised as a marriage proposal. As multiple forces searched for him, Wang Wu traveled through a desolate region and sensed that something was wrong with the Supreme Hair and the Four Clowns.

• The mysterious old man used the Myriad Mountains and Rivers Map and an ancient azure tree phantom to identify Xiong Wu's bloodline, concealment, and cultivation of the Three Calamities.
• The old man confronted Snake Emperor and the other Sin Prison Legion leaders, extracted memories of Xiong Wu, offered five billion units of Spirit Energy Dou as a supposed dowry, and killed Lu Wuchen after learning Xiong Wu's birth details.
• The old man's agents discovered that True Man Mu had vanished, and he ordered Jade Bee to investigate the Jade Cauldron Immortal Alliance and kill anyone connected to Xiong Wu.
• Wang Wu traveled a hundred thousand miles through a sparsely inhabited wilderness and regretted losing contact with Snake Emperor and Grandpa Tree.
• After Wang Wu used the Supreme Hair as a substitute body, his sense of endless desolation disappeared, so he withdrew his Divine Sense and let the Four Clowns take over while suspecting a hidden scheme.

Wang Wu cautiously severed his connection to the Four Clowns and left the strange area, where he reunited with Five Poisons and learned that Lu Wuchen had died and been erased from the Sin Prison Legion’s memory. Five Poisons asked Wang Wu to lead his group of more than a thousand refugees, but Wang Wu tried to leave until Five Poisons foresaw that he would die without a burial ground.

• Wang Wu sealed the Supreme Hair inside Mud Turtle’s shell, abandoned the Companion Iron Essence, and traveled away from the area where reality had seemed wrong.
• Wang Wu followed strange impulses to divine talismans bearing questions from Five Poisons, then found Five Poisons and Yue Shan near Dragon Head City.
• Five Poisons explained that his foresight had led him to leave the Sin Prison Legion camp with Yue Shan and others after foreseeing Wang Wu’s arrival and Lu Wuchen’s death.
• Wang Wu told Five Poisons that he had sensed an indescribable danger and said he felt relieved, while Five Poisons described his powerful foresight and Dragon Head City.
• Five Poisons asked Wang Wu to lead his group of more than a thousand people, but Wang Wu refused and started to leave.
• Five Poisons warned Wang Wu that he foresaw him dying without a burial ground if he went on alone.

Wang Wu joined the Hidden Origin Society by accepting copper coins from mortals and began learning how its Fortune Protection Contract concealed cultivators while protecting ordinary people. Just as he left Dragon Head City after a fruitless night, a hostile force arrived demanding the Hidden Origin Society hand over Lying Flat Lord, and the city raised a protective barrier.

• Yue Shan told Wang Wu about the Hidden Origin Society and reassured him that their familiar companions were doing well, so Wang Wu decided to try joining.
• Wang Wu entered Dragon Head City, sold firewood to mortals, and realized their copper coins established a Fortune Protection Contract that made him a member of the Hidden Origin Society.
• Wang Wu explored the city’s system of Mortal Qi and tried to earn mortal copper coins by begging, but another beggar had already claimed his spot.
• Wang Wu’s coins trembled with warning as Five-Colored Rosy Clouds spread over Dragon Head City and a voice demanded that the Hidden Origin Society hand over Lying Flat Lord.
• A brilliant rosy barrier shielded the city and its surroundings while lightning, dark clouds, and fierce winds drove mortals indoors.

Wang Wu survived Gui Tai Zhen’s attack under the Hidden Origin Society’s Mortal Qi protection, then struggled to earn mortal coins until a man found him work as a night watchman. Safe for the moment, Wang Wu hid to cultivate and used Mud Turtle’s stored treasures to upgrade his abilities, hoping to gain the strength to face Gui Tai Zhen.

• Gui Tai Zhen threatened Dragon Head City over his granddaughter, but a black-robed elder invoked the Hidden Origin Society’s rules and forced him to withdraw.
• Wang Wu’s Copper Coins crumbled after the danger passed, leaving him unable to earn money as passersby avoided him and the city announced a three-hundred-day curfew.
• A gloomy middle-aged man fed Wang Wu and offered him the vacant night-watchman job, giving him Mortal Qi’s protection and a chance to recover.
• Wang Wu realized that the man’s help could expose him to future danger and that he would have to repay the resulting karmic debt.
• Wang Wu used a hair clone to take the night-watch shift, concealed himself, and opened Mud Turtle’s Storage Pouches to prepare for cultivation.
• Wang Wu spent 140 million points of spiritual energy upgrading seven abilities so he could grow strong enough to resist Gui Tai Zhen.

Wang Wu improved his talents and hid in Dragon Head City while Gui Tai Zhen and other forces watched for Lying Flat Lord. The Hidden Origin Society prepared to maintain its neutrality, while Five Poisons revealed that trapping Wang Zhige was part of a plan to help his younger aunt advance.

• Wang Wu raised Passive Concealment to Level 24 and Danger Sense to Level 22, then stopped when the upgrades strained his body.
• Wang Wu hid in a night watchman's hut and transferred his fate protection to Hao Mao Jun, vowing to repay Dragon Head City's mortals.
• The Hidden Origin Society's elder ordered preparations for Gui Tai Zhen's continued siege and rejected proposals to recruit the Great Desolation Sin Prison Legion.
• Five Poisons and Yue Shan confirmed that Wang Zhige was trapped in Dragon Head City, keeping Gui Tai Zhen occupied for about a year.
• Five Poisons continued using Precognition despite its toll, saying the plan would let his younger aunt advance and naming the others who had sacrificed for it.

Wang Wu joined the Hidden Origin Society as a ninth-rank steward and accepted a mission with an experienced night watchman to investigate a flooded Mysterious Iron Mine. They reached the storm-struck Iron Mountain Town, where a new mission called for them to protect the town, and the watchman urged Wang Wu to focus on the mine first.

• A night watchman who served as a sixth-rank steward explained how Wang Wu could join the Hidden Origin Society and recommended him for membership.
• Wang Wu sensed the Hidden Origin Bell's hidden Spirit Network and received a ninth-rank steward jade token.
• The watchman invited Wang Wu to help eliminate a suspected water demon at the Mysterious Iron Mine, and Wang Wu agreed despite suspecting Gui Tai Zhen was behind the trouble.
• Wang Wu and the watchman used duplicates and spirit talismans to leave Dragon Head City and travel west without drawing attention.
• They reached Iron Mountain Town amid a violent storm and extensive flooding, and Wang Wu's jade token issued a mission to protect the town.
• The watchman advised Wang Wu not to accept the town-protection mission yet and urged him to find the Mysterious Iron Mine first.

Wang Wu helped Night Watchman Brother defeat a Divine Turtle and protect Iron Mountain Town, secretly boosting his swordsmanship while keeping the Hidden Origin Society mission within its limits. He returned to Dragon Head City with eight hundred strands of Mortal Qi, while Night Watchman Brother stayed behind to cultivate.

• Wang Wu used a spirit talisman to disperse the storm over the flooded Mysterious Iron Mine and revealed a patch of blue sky.
• A gigantic turtle appeared and trapped Wang Wu and Night Watchman Brother in a vortex, prompting Night Watchman Brother to unleash the Nine Sword-Controlling Formulae.
• Night Watchman Brother’s sword qi killed the turtle and many water demons, cleared the storm, and elevated his Natal Sword Artifact to a Heavenly Ninth-grade Destined Flying Sword.
• Cultivators from Iron Mountain Town praised Night Watchman Brother, and he accepted a permanent posting there before entering seclusion.
• Wang Wu returned to Dragon Head City and received eight hundred strands of Mortal Qi.