Chapter Summaries

Emperor Xin backed Fox Fairy’s scheme against the regional marquises, which led to Empress Jiang’s death and the arrest of Yin Jiao and Yin Hong. As the princes faced execution, Shang Rong led the ministers to the Longevity Palace to remonstrate with Emperor Xin.

• Emperor Xin ordered Shen Gongbao and Fox Fairy to purge disloyal officials and weaken the feudal lords, while Dingguang Immortal and Wuyun Xian proposed targeting the eastern and southern marquises.
• Fox Fairy framed Empress Jiang for attempting to assassinate Emperor Xin, and Empress Jiang was blinded and tortured to death.
• Yin Jiao and Yin Hong confronted Fox Fairy, but Emperor Xin knocked Yin Jiao down and ordered both princes executed in three days.
• Shang Rong accepted the ministers’ call to remonstrate unto death and led them toward the Longevity Palace with the late emperor’s death-immunity token.

Shang Rong and other ministers remonstrated with Emperor Xin over his plan to execute Yin Jiao and Yin Hong, and several died after he refused to relent. At Jade Void Palace, Yuanshi Tianzun sent Guangchengzi and Manjusri to rescue the princes, while Lu Ya, Nezha, and Jiang Ziya joined their journey to Zhaoge.

• Shang Rong and the ministers entered Longevity Palace and begged Emperor Xin to spare Yin Jiao and Yin Hong, but he insisted they would be executed.
• Shang Rong and Zhao Qi killed themselves by crashing into pillars, and other elder ministers also died; Emperor Xin appointed Bi Gan Chancellor, Fei Zhong Vice Chancellor, and announced the princes would be executed in three days.
• Yuanshi Tianzun ordered Guangchengzi and Manjusri to go to Zhaoge and rescue Yin Jiao and Yin Hong.
• Zhunti sent Lu Ya and Nezha along, and Yuanshi Tianzun recognized that Lu Ya had been transformed into a Western Sect disciple who had severed his ties to his past.
• Jiang Ziya asked to accompany them, Yun Zhongzi gave him a sword meant to harm the Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit, and Yuanshi Tianzun sent the group on their way.

Jiang Ziya entered Zhaoge to investigate the Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit and challenge Emperor Xin’s court, while Guangchengzi’s group planned to stir up trouble with the eastern feudal lord. After Jiang Ziya’s Pine Wood Sword failed to harm Fox Fairy, he mocked Emperor Xin for favoring a low-bloodline Qing Qiu fox and suggested he seek a beauty from the Tushan Fox Clan.

• Guangchengzi agreed that Jiang Ziya should investigate Zhaoge while the others concealed themselves, and Manjusri set out to persuade Jiang Huanchu to march against the city.
• Jiang Ziya arrived at Zhaoge and declared that he had come to eliminate demons, but Shen Gongbao and his allies tried to keep him from entering the imperial city.
• Dingguang Immortal blasted Jiang Ziya away, and Jiang Ziya brandished the God-Slaying Whip until Bi Gan intervened and secured his entry to the palace.
• Jiang Ziya presented Emperor Xin with a Pine Wood Sword that struck Fox Fairy but was stopped by Emperor Xin’s Purple Star Emperor Qi.
• Emperor Xin demanded to know why Jiang Ziya had looked at him with pity, and Jiang Ziya mocked his choice of Fox Fairy and praised the Tushan Fox Clan instead.

Jiang Ziya provoked Emperor Xin into targeting Hu Ximei and Yuqing and proposing a marriage alliance with the Tushan Fox Clan, while secretly advancing Ying Zheng’s interests. Emperor Xin ordered the two consorts seized and a realm-wide search for a Tushan bride, and Ling Xiao learned of the events from Penglai Immortal Island.

• Jiang Ziya insulted Fox Fairy and suggested Emperor Xin seek a marriage alliance with the Tushan Fox Clan, criticizing Hu Ximei and Yuqing as unsuitable consorts.
• Bi Gan supported sending Hu Ximei and Yuqing to the Cold Palace, and Jiang Ziya proposed ordering the feudal lords to seek a Tushan bride in exchange for noble titles.
• Emperor Xin accepted Jiang Ziya’s proposal, ordered Feilian and Elai to seize Hu Ximei and Yuqing, and commanded Fei Zhong and You Hun to draft a decree.
• Jiang Ziya admitted he wanted to repay Ling Xiao and help Ying Zheng rise in rank, while Emperor Xin pardoned him and dismissed Wuyun Xian’s warning.
• Wuyun Xian left after Emperor Xin rebuked him, and Ling Xiao learned what had happened from Penglai Immortal Island.

Jiang Ziya killed the Nine-Headed Pheasant Spirit and Jade Pipa Spirit after exposing Lu Ya’s plot to ruin the Great Shang Dynasty. Emperor Xin forced Shen Gongbao to surrender his command token, leaving Shen Gongbao and the Sect of Interception weakened.

• Ling Xiao praised Jiang Ziya’s scheme to expose the demons and discussed its potential benefits with Wangshu.
• Jiang Ziya killed Hu Ximei with the Pine Wood Sword and Samadhi True Fire, sending the Nine-Headed Pheasant Spirit to the Investiture of the Gods List.
• Jiang Ziya and Emperor Xin pressured Yuqing to reveal what she knew, and Yuqing exposed Lu Ya and Shen Gongbao’s involvement in the plot against Great Shang.
• Yuqing drove the Pine Wood Sword into herself, and Jiang Ziya used Samadhi True Fire to send the Jade Pipa Spirit to the Investiture of the Gods List.
• Shen Gongbao blamed Lu Ya and the two demons, then surrendered the token that commanded the Sect of Interception’s outer disciples and powerful Demon Clan experts.

As the Sect of Enlightenment arrived to rescue Yin Jiao and Yin Hong from execution, Lu Ya tried to convert Wuyun Xian, but Kong Xuan intervened. The two sides faced off outside Zhaoge, with battle looming.

• Jiang Ziya explained how his schemes had disrupted Zhaoge, while Chijingzi reported that Jiang Huanchu had agreed to rebel with Sect of Enlightenment support.
• Bi Gan delayed Yin Jiao and Yin Hong's execution as the third quarter of noon arrived, but Shen Gongbao moved to issue the order.
• Guangchengzi and the Sect of Enlightenment appeared at the execution grounds and protected Yin Jiao and Yin Hong with the Heavenly Turning Stamp.
• Lu Ya urged Wuyun Xian to join the Western Sect and trapped him in Buddha's Palm Kingdom, nearly converting him.
• Kong Xuan freed Wuyun Xian and confronted Lu Ya and the Sect of Enlightenment as the two sides prepared for a possible battle.

Jiang Ziya and Guangchengzi persuaded Emperor Xin to spare Yin Jiao and Yin Hong and allow them to join the Sect of Enlightenment. Jiang Huanchu then arrived outside Zhaoge with an army, demanding the demon responsible for his daughter's death and threatening war.

• Jiang Ziya defended the Sect of Enlightenment’s actions and offered Fei Zhong a pill to secure a meeting with Emperor Xin.
• Emperor Xin arrived before the gathered officials and agreed to entrust Yin Jiao and Yin Hong to Guangchengzi and Chijingzi.
• Huang Feihu reported that Jiang Huanchu had brought his army to within a thousand li of Zhaoge and ordered troops to form a defensive line.
• Emperor Xin led the officials and immortal masters outside Zhaoge to confront Jiang Huanchu.
• Jiang Huanchu demanded that Emperor Xin surrender the demon who killed his daughter and threatened to begin a bloody war.

Jiang Huanchu led a million soldiers to Zhaoge and fought Emperor Xin’s forces after refusing to surrender Lady Fox Fairy. Shen Gongbao was wounded, and the battle left Jiang Huanchu’s army devastated as the Great Shang Dynasty’s foundations and fortune came under threat.

• Jiang Huanchu’s military formation let him wound Shen Gongbao, while Chijingzi and Jiang Ziya recognized that his death was fated.
• Emperor Xin refused to hand over Lady Fox Fairy and summoned the Sect of Interception’s outer disciples and Demon Clan experts to crush Jiang Huanchu’s rebellion.
• Wuyun Xian hesitated to fight, but Emperor Xin’s command and Jiang Ziya’s rebuke pushed the gathered forces into battle.
• The Sect of Interception’s disciples and Demon Clan experts slaughtered Jiang Huanchu’s soldiers and devoured their blood and Divine Soul essences.
• Jiang Huanchu rallied his men to fight for the Human Clan, while more than half his army fell and enemy disciples closed in on him.

Ling Xiao arrived at Zhaoge to collect cultivators eligible for the Investiture of the Gods List and refused Wuyun Xian’s request to stop the fighting. After warning that excessive Karmic Slaughter would bar cultivators from the list, he watched the conflict escalate as Nezha enforced Emperor Xin’s orders and confronted Dingguang Immortal.

• Ling Xiao gathered the Nine-Headed Pheasant Spirit, the Jade Pipa Spirit, and other figures into the Investiture of the Gods List, then went to Zhaoge.
• Ling Xiao told Wuyun Xian that outsiders should not interfere with the Human Sovereign and warned that cultivators with excessive Karmic Slaughter could only go to the Netherworld and reincarnate.
• Several outer disciples of the Sect of Interception fled, so Jiang Ziya ordered Nezha to execute deserters, and Emperor Xin accepted Jiang Ziya’s explanation for acting without permission.
• Nezha threw the corpses of the fleeing disciples before Shen Gongbao, Wuyun Xian, and Dingguang Immortal, who accused Jiang Ziya and Nezha of killing fellow disciples.
• Nezha threatened to smash Dingguang Immortal’s body and braise his head in spicy sauce, while Ling Xiao approved of Nezha’s defiance.

Jiang Huanchu died fighting Emperor Xin’s forces, and Ling Xiao gathered the fallen spirits for the Investiture of the Gods List. After the battle in Zhaoge settled, Ling Xiao and Nezha headed to Chen Tang Pass, while news of Ling Xiao’s warning about karmic sins spread across the Primordial World.

• Jiang Huanchu denounced Emperor Xin, charged the enemy forces, and was killed; Ling Xiao collected the fallen spirits with the Investiture of the Gods List.
• Fei Zhong warned Emperor Xin that Jiang Wenhuan might rebel, while Bi Gan secured permission to return Jiang Huanchu’s remains to his home.
• Nezha returned injured from his fight with Dingguang Immortal, and the assembled sides ended their standoff.
• Ling Xiao declined Guangchengzi’s invitation to Kunlun Mountain and chose to travel to Chen Tang Pass with Nezha.
• Word spread that those burdened by deep karmic sins could not enter the Investiture of the Gods List, prompting Sect of Interception disciples to complain to Tongtian.

Tongtian and the Sect of Interception’s disciples worried over Ling Xiao’s threats and the growing karmic burden on their followers. Bai Ze, Yun Xiao, and Zhao Gongming went to Chen Tang Pass to confront Ling Xiao, who noticed Zhao Gongming’s heavy karmic burden and contemplated hastening his destined death.

• Zhao Gongming reported that Ling Xiao’s warning about the Netherworld and the Investiture of the Gods List had unsettled the Sect of Interception’s outer disciples.
• Bai Ze argued that Emperor Xin’s orders had caused the bloodshed and urged the sect to focus on the Investiture of the Gods Tribulation, while Tongtian and Nuwa lamented their predicament.
• Shi Ji reported that Ling Xiao and Nezha had returned to Chen Tang Pass with Ao Guang, prompting Bai Ze, Yun Xiao, and Zhao Gongming to go investigate.
• At Chen Tang Pass, Ling Xiao and Ao Guang played chess as Li Jing, his wife, Nezha, Ao Bing, and Taixi studied their Dao Resonance.
• Zhao Gongming demanded an explanation from Ling Xiao, who insulted him and saw that he carried heavy karmic burden and ominous tribulation aura.
• Ling Xiao considered Zhao Gongming’s death part of the major trend and wondered whether he should arrange to send him to the Yellow Springs.

Ling Xiao ignored Yun Xiao’s plea to reconcile and chose the system reward for rejecting her. As Zhao Gongming and others argued over the Sect of Interception’s past treatment of Ling Xiao, Yun Xiao was left in tears, with no answer from him.

• Zhao Gongming challenged Ling Xiao, who trapped him in a separate space before releasing him at Bai Ze’s request.
• Yun Xiao apologized for failing Ling Xiao in the past and begged him for a chance to make amends, while Ling Xiao continued drinking in silence.
• Ling Xiao chose to reject Yun Xiao and received the Green Willow Primordial Spiritual Root from the system.
• Zhao Gongming rebuked Yun Xiao, but Ling Jing and Nezha revealed that Zhao Gongming had once urged the Yun sisters to bind Ling Xiao through Dao companion ties.
• Madam Yin joined the mockery of Zhao Gongming, and Yun Xiao finally broke down in tears and asked whether Ling Xiao was unwilling to reconcile.

Ling Xiao rejected Yun Xiao and declared that the Sect of Interception deserved no mercy, while Wangshu confronted Yun Xiao and told her to let go of him. At Chen Tang Pass, Ling Xiao hinted to Bai Ze and Zhao Gongming that someone would soon die as two groups approached.

• Ling Xiao told Yun Xiao that he would not forgive her and that the Sect of Interception should be killed without mercy, leaving her heartbroken.
• Ling Xiao warned Zhao Gongming and Bai Ze not to lecture him and reminded them that he had never feared the Sages.
• Wangshu confronted Yun Xiao near Golden Turtle Island and told her that her regret would not undo the wounds she had inflicted on Ling Xiao.
• Yun Xiao refused to give up on repaying Ling Xiao, and Wangshu dismissed her before returning to Penglai Immortal Island.
• At Chen Tang Pass, Ling Xiao reflected warmly on Wangshu's protectiveness and told Bai Ze that someone would soon die as two groups headed toward the pass.

Ling Xiao offered Bai Ze a place among the Heavenly Court’s Six Emperors, but Bai Ze refused, while Lu Ya sought guidance and arrived at Chen Tang Pass. When Sect of Interception disciples came to seize the Heaven-Shaking Bow and Cosmos Arrow, Nezha went to confront them, and Zhao Gongming was prevented from intervening.

• Ling Xiao invited Bai Ze to join the Heavenly Court as one of the Six Emperors, but Bai Ze declined because of his commitments to Nuwa and Tongtian.
• Perfected Lord Jade Tripod joked about joining the Heavenly Court, and Ling Xiao teased him that he was cursed by the Heavenly Court before Lu Ya asked Ling Xiao to resolve his confusion.
• A soldier reported that Sect of Interception disciples and the Human Sovereign’s Guards had come from Zhaoge to seize the Heaven-Shaking Bow and Cosmos Arrow.
• Nezha left for the city walls to confront the arrivals, while Perfected Lord Jade Tripod stopped Li Jing from following him.
• Zhao Gongming tried to leave the courtyard to intervene, but Perfected Lord Jade Tripod and Lu Ya restrained him until Bai Ze forced them all back into their seats.
• Nezha reached the walls and found the two sides facing off with swords drawn.

Nezha destroyed the supposed Human Sovereign’s decree and killed Blood Serpent Immortal, Locust Immortal, and the other Sect of Interception disciples with the Heaven-Shaking Bow and Cosmos Arrows. Zhao Gongming confronted Nezha’s allies over the deaths, and the chapter ended with him challenging Lu Ya to fight.

• Nezha burned the jade slip presented as the Human Sovereign’s decree after Blood Serpent Immortal ordered him to kneel and surrender the Heaven-Shaking Bow and Cosmos Arrows.
• Blood Serpent Immortal and the other Sect of Interception disciples threatened Chen Tang Pass and tried to leave, so Nezha blocked their path and drew the bow.
• Nezha fired three Cosmos Arrows, killing Blood Serpent Immortal, Locust Immortal, and the other outer disciples, but one arrow disappeared.
• Nezha took the Heaven-Shaking Bow and the two recovered Cosmos Arrows to the commandant’s manor, while Zhao Gongming confronted Perfected Lord Jade Tripod and Lu Ya over the killings.
• Nezha defended his actions, Zhao Gongming attacked him, and Lu Ya intervened before Zhao Gongming flew into the Nine Heavens Clouds and challenged Lu Ya to fight.

Shi Ji learned that Nezha had killed Biyun Child with the Cosmos Arrow and went to Chen Tang Pass to demand justice from Li Jing. She threatened to destroy the city unless Li Jing handed over his son.

• Lu Ya and Zhao Gongming fought to a standstill above Chen Tang Pass while Ling Xiao warned Bai Ze that some disciples of the Sect of Interception might join the Western Sect.
• Caiyun Child told Shi Ji that a Cosmos Arrow had killed Biyun Child, and Ling Xiao drew Biyun Child's spirit into the Investiture of the Gods List.
• Shi Ji buried Biyun Child, took the Cosmos Arrow, and set out for Chen Tang Pass with Caiyun Child.
• Shi Ji arrived at Chen Tang Pass and demanded that Li Jing come out, where she saw Zhao Gongming and Lu Ya battling overhead.
• Li Jing found the Heaven Shaking Arrow and a Cosmos Arrow on Nezha, while Shi Ji held the arrow that had killed Biyun Child.
• Nezha admitted that he had shot and killed disciples of the Sect of Interception, and Shi Ji demanded his life and threatened to reduce Chen Tang Pass to ruins.

Nezha escalated his feud with Shi Ji by killing Caiyun Child and then defeating and killing Shi Ji, whose spirit was captured by Ling Xiao's Investiture of the Gods List. Zhao Gongming and Bai Ze failed to save her, and Zhao Gongming attacked Nezha as the chapter ended.

• Nezha refused Shi Ji's demand for justice and killed Caiyun Child with the Cosmos Arrows as Shi Ji's skulls and meteors threatened Chen Tang Pass.
• Shi Ji attacked Nezha with the Tai'a Sword, but his Heavenly Burning Demon Fire destroyed her attack and his Armillary Sash shielded the city.
• Shi Ji tried to escape with her spiritual treasures, but Nezha trapped her in the Nine Dragon Divine Fire Cover and refined her.
• Ling Xiao used the Investiture of the Gods List to collect Shi Ji and Caiyun Child's spirits before Zhao Gongming and Bai Ze could intervene.
• Nezha hid behind Lu Ya, and Zhao Gongming, enraged by Shi Ji's death, sent the Rivers and Mountains State Diagram and Twenty-Four Sea Pacifying Pearls toward him.

Zhao Gongming fought Lu Ya over Nezha while Shen Gongbao, Wuyun Xian, Dingguang Immortal, Perfected Lord Jade Tripod, Ling Xiao, and Bai Ze watched and argued. Ling Xiao predicted Lu Ya would kill Zhao Gongming, and Dingguang Immortal revealed that the battle was being transmitted live to the Palace of Green Essence.

• Lu Ya protected Nezha from Zhao Gongming and sent him into his Buddha's Palm Kingdom for safety.
• Zhao Gongming burned his essence blood and struck Lu Ya's Sun Essence Wheel hard enough to crack it, while Shen Gongbao and his companions arrived to watch.
• Shen Gongbao vowed to kill Nezha if Lu Ya fell, but Perfected Lord Jade Tripod argued that Lu Ya would ultimately defeat Zhao Gongming.
• Ling Xiao asked Bai Ze to judge the fighters, then provoked him by suggesting Zhao Gongming would die and take a Heavenly Court position.
• Wuyun Xian and Dingguang Immortal challenged Ling Xiao, and Dingguang Immortal revealed that the battle was being broadcast to the Palace of Green Essence.

Tongtian and Nuwa watched Zhao Gongming battle Lu Ya at Chen Tang Pass, while Bi Xiao mocked Wudang for threatening Ling Xiao. As Lu Ya secretly used the Seven Arrows Book to curse Zhao Gongming, Ling Xiao detected the hidden attack, leaving the duel poised to turn.

• Tongtian and Nuwa blamed Ling Xiao for Lu Ya's fall and the Demon Clan's decline, while Tongtian assured Nuwa that Zhao Gongming would defeat Lu Ya.
• Yun Xiao watched the battle in distress, and Wudang condemned Ling Xiao and vowed to attack Penglai Immortal Island if she found evidence against him.
• Bi Xiao mocked Wudang's threat, and Golden Spirit reproached Bi Xiao for defending Ling Xiao.
• Duobao offered to go to Chen Tang Pass to help Zhao Gongming, but Tongtian refused, confident in Zhao Gongming's treasures.
• Ling Xiao detected that Lu Ya was using the Seven Arrows Book to curse Zhao Gongming, while Lu Ya prepared to kill him once the curse weakened him.

Lu Ya used a hidden curse to kill Zhao Gongming after Ling Xiao trapped Bai Ze with the Time Law. Zhao Gongming’s Primordial Spirit and True Spirit entered the Investiture of the Gods List, while Tongtian arrived at Chen Tang Pass and confronted the aftermath.

• Lu Ya and Zhao Gongming clashed with their treasures, and Zhao Gongming believed he had the advantage as Lu Ya showed signs of backlash.
• Ling Xiao reminded Bai Ze of his warning that someone from the Sect of Interception was nearing death, then used the Time Law to stop Bai Ze from intervening.
• Lu Ya bowed to Zhao Gongming and unleashed a curse that killed him and dissipated his Dao.
• Lu Ya demanded Black Tiger Mowei submit, and Mowei converted to the Western Sect and entered Lu Ya’s Buddha’s Palm Kingdom.
• Ling Xiao sent Zhao Gongming’s Primordial Spirit and True Spirit into the Investiture of the Gods List, while Bai Ze swallowed his grievance and Shen Gongbao and Wuyun Xian discovered signs of a curse.
• Tongtian arrived at Chen Tang Pass, suppressed Lu Ya, and looked at Zhao Gongming’s corpse with confusion and pain.