Chapter Summaries

Chen Luo accepted the Tiger Race’s Barbarian Materials and shared them with the visiting demon delegations, then exposed the danger of the Wisdom Flower seeds when Mount Fangcun’s Laughing Willow destroyed them. He offered the Laughing Willow to the demons and thanked them, while Shi Man’er asked whether the Tiger Demon had a third gift.

• The Tiger Demon delivered Barbarian Materials, and Chen Luo removed the counterfeits before distributing the rest among the demon delegations.
• The Tiger Demon presented Wisdom Flower seeds on Feng Liancheng’s behalf, and the seeds stirred greed among the demons.
• Chen Luo refused the seeds, but the Tiger Demon planted them on Mount Fangcun, where Laughing Willow made the Wisdom Flowers wither.
• The demons realized the Wisdom Flowers had bewitched them and asked Chen Luo for Laughing Willow, which he offered under the condition that they leave some for Mount Fangcun’s future demons.
• Chen Luo thanked the visiting demons, and Shi Man’er called out to ask the Tiger Demon whether he had a third gift.

Chen Luo returned the Tiger Demon’s gifts with a poem that unknowingly mocked Feng Liancheng, while a Bodhisattva discovered that a Wisdom Flower on Mount Fangcun had been erased. As the Fangcun Grand Meeting approached, She Xiangxiang returned with Yu Yuan Kingdom’s support and asked Chen Luo to write stories about the Snake Python Clan, leaving with the promise of his planned Legend of the White Snake.

• Chen Luo wrote a poem for Feng Liancheng and sent the Tiger Demon away, while Bai Qingqing and Shi Man'er recognized its cutting irony.
• A white-robed Bodhisattva sensed that one of his Wisdom Flowers in the Southern Wasteland had withered because the Buddhist principles within it were erased, but chose not to investigate directly.
• Ao Lingling reported that twenty-four minor clan envoy groups had entered Mount Fangcun, and Shi Man'er asked Chen Luo to write a Wondrous Text for Junji.
• She Xiangxiang returned from Yu Yuan Kingdom and told Chen Luo that her kingdom would appoint him state preceptor, while resistance among the Snake Python Clan made stories about them necessary.
• Chen Luo gave She Xiangxiang the title Legend of the White Snake, and she excitedly left after kissing his cheek.
• Shi Man'er asked Chen Luo whether he would mind if the fur were a little longer.

Chen Luo welcomed the Koma Clan, Wolf Clan, Qingqiu Kingdom, and Yu Yuan Kingdom delegations to Mount Fangcun’s alliance gathering, while asserting the mountain’s authority over its guests. In Great Xuan, Prince Jing’s Manor debated the implications of Bai Mo’s writings and decided to send Prince Jing’s son Dafu to approach him.

• Chen Luo stopped an attack on the Koma Clan delegation and welcomed its members to Mount Fangcun as guests.
• The Wolf Clan delegation arrived, and Chen Luo rebuked its threatening envoy before Ling Qianren and Ling Qi intervened and escorted the wolves inside.
• She Xiangxiang protected Chen Luo from the flirtatious Yu Yuan Kingdom delegation, which she then led away to rest.
• At Prince Jing’s Manor, Great Scholars debated whether Bai Mo’s writings would benefit humanity or strengthen a potential enemy, and proposed winning him over.
• Prince Jing agreed to summon his son Dafu as an envoy to approach Bai Mo.

Chen Luo addressed the Demon Race alliance on Mount Fangcun, defending the use of Heavenly Dao power while the kingdoms offered to honor him as their national teacher. As Chen Luo began stating the alliance’s conditions, Feng Liancheng arrived with the Winged Tigers.

• Chen Luo thanked the assembled demons and explained that Mount Fangcun’s articles could help them draw on the Heavenly Dao for cultivation.
• A Fox Woman questioned whether using the articles would bind the Demon Race to the human race, and Chen Luo argued that demons could choose how much power to use.
• Shi Man'er offered to make Chen Luo Jun Ji Kingdom’s national teacher, and representatives of Yu Yuan Kingdom and Qingqiu Kingdom made the same offer.
• Chen Luo began to state Mount Fangcun’s alliance conditions, but the Winged Tigers arrived at Mount Fangcun with Feng Liancheng among them.

Feng Liancheng accused White Ink of being the human Chen Luo and tried to force him to prove his loyalty by killing a human spy or the Fang brothers. When Chen Luo challenged him to produce evidence, he revealed that an ancestor in a long dream had taught him the knowledge behind his writings.

• Feng Liancheng arrived at Mount Fangcun with four Great Sages, apologized for his earlier gifts, and displayed the head of the servant who had delivered them.
• Chen Luo mocked Feng Liancheng’s treatment of his servant, and Feng threatened to kill him before Bai Qingqing, She Xiangxiang, Shi Man'er, and Xiong Mang intervened.
• Feng Liancheng presented an injured human Great Scholar spy and demanded that Chen Luo kill him to prove his innocence, then offered Fang One and Fang Two as alternatives.
• Chen Luo refused Feng Liancheng’s demands, and Feng accused him of being human based on his writings, knowledge of human customs, and connection to Chen Luo.
• As the Tiger, Wolf, and Peng Clans questioned their support for White Ink, Chen Luo said a benevolent elder he met in a long dream had taught him and that he called the elder Ancestor.

Chen Luo told the demons that the Demon Ancestor had taught him and chosen him to guide their race, then challenged Feng Liancheng to a wager over whether he could write a Great Saint-level Wondrous Texts. Feng Liancheng accepted a binding bloodline oath, and Chen Luo smiled as he prepared to write.

• Chen Luo recounted how the Demon Ancestor taught him Elegant Script, showed him the stars and the Heavenly Dao, and urged him to guide the Demon Race.
• Feng Liancheng accused Chen Luo of fabricating the Demon Ancestor's blessing, while the wolf and peng representatives demanded proof.
• Chen Luo mocked Feng Liancheng and his allies as Double-Standard Dogs, then Feng Liancheng demanded a Wondrous Texts powerful enough to exceed the Spiritual Realm.
• Bai Qingqing, Shi Man'er, Xiong Mang, and Ling Qianren took sides as the confrontation threatened to turn into a fight.
• Chen Luo wagered that if he wrote a Great Saint-level Wondrous Texts, Feng Liancheng would surrender his wings and saber teeth; if he failed, Mount Fangcun would sink and Chen Luo would submit to the Tiger clan.
• Feng Liancheng accepted and sealed the wager with a bloodline oath, and Chen Luo took out paper and brush with a faint smile.

Chen Luo’s attempt to write a Great Sage–level Wondrous Text summoned Primordial Ancestor Demon blood shadows, then revealed the Koma Clan’s Yingzhao ancestor and won his wager with Feng Liancheng. When Feng Liancheng’s grandfather attacked Mount Fangcun, Chen Luo prepared to use his teacher’s Half-Saint Strike, but a fox-tailed woman intervened and protected him.

• Chen Luo released a vast Primordial aura, and demons recognized the Ancestor Demon blood shadows appearing above him as true-body blood shadows that could aid their bloodline tracing.
• Chen Luo wrote about Yingzhao, causing its blood shadow to appear and moving the Koma Clan to recognize their ancestor; he told Feng Liancheng that he had lost.
• Feng Liancheng’s grandfather, the Winged Tiger Clan’s Great Elder, arrived, broke Feng Liancheng’s oath, and attacked Chen Luo after rejecting Ling Qianren’s request to leave.
• Chen Luo rushed toward the Great Elder, intending to release his teacher’s Half-Saint Strike when the old man restrained him.
• A woman pulled Chen Luo back, shielded him with her scarlet tails, and told him not to be afraid because his sister-in-law was there.

Chen Luo faced a threat from three Peak Great Sages until the Azure Dragon Wutong Emperor’s envoy arrived with a Wutong Branch and protection for Mount Fangcun. After the enemies retreated and Feng Liancheng paid for losing his wager, Bai Yan Yan and Jianjia both claimed Chen Luo was family, leaving him trapped in an awkward Asura Field.

• Bai Yan Yan arrived at Mount Fangcun, wounded Feng Luo, and warned the gathered Great Sages to leave Chen Luo alone.
• Feng Luo summoned Remnant Moon Great Sage and a Peng Great Sage, who demanded Chen Luo and threatened war if Bai Yan Yan’s allies protected him.
• Chen Luo released a trace of the Bamboo Sage Strike, making the three Peak Great Sages hesitate to attack.
• He Shi Jianjia arrived with nine Bi Fang Great Sages and presented Chen Luo with a Wutong Branch gifted by the Azure Dragon Wutong Emperor.
• The Peng and wolf Great Sages withdrew, while Feng Luo took Feng Liancheng away after Chen Luo demanded the payment for their lost wager; Bai Yan Yan and Jianjia returned Feng Liancheng’s fangs and wings.
• Bai Yan Yan and Jianjia both told Chen Luo that they were family, leaving him unsure how to respond.

Jianjia revealed that Chen Luo had ties to Wutong Forest through his Teacher’s family, then departed with Bai Yan Yan. Chen Luo established Fangcun’s plans for an interracial academy and two tiers of allies, leaving the Koma Clan envoys pondering how to obtain an Ying Zhao Marvelous Text.

• Bai Yan Yan and Jianjia accidentally worsened Chen Luo’s injuries while competing to heal him, then carefully withdrew their Demonic Energy.
• Jianjia told Chen Luo that he could seek help from Wutong Forest and explained that the Azure Dragon Emperor’s adopted daughter, the Nine Thunder Jade Immortal Bamboo, was his Teacher’s wife; she warned him to keep the connection discreet and act with restraint.
• Jianjia and Bai Yan Yan left Mount Fangcun, and Chen Luo resumed the gathering by announcing Fangcun Academy, where humans and demons could study together and later return to their clans.
• Chen Luo introduced the Bright Moon Ally ranks and their points-based benefits, then invited Qingqiu, Yuyuan, Jundi, Sizhu, and Davali to become Mountain Sea Allies with greater privileges.
• The Koma Clan envoys wondered how they could obtain an Ying Zhao Marvelous Text after seeing its power firsthand.

Chen Luo laid out Mount Fangcun’s alliance obligations, including teaching Elegant Script, recruiting students for Fangcun Academy, protecting Human Race scholars, and joining a literary transmission network. He ended the assembly by releasing the third Liaozhai Wondrous Text, titled “Nie, Xiao, Qian.”

• Chen Luo required allied clans to teach Elegant Script and human customs, and announced that Fangcun Academy would hold entrance examinations every three years, with the five best-performing clans earning access to the Wonderful Writings from the Classics.
• The demons resolved to educate their descendants and competed over recruiting teachers, while Chen Luo promised to find scholars and required the clans to protect them.
• Chen Luo announced a literary document transmission network for Fangcun Academy materials, and Bai Qingqing suggested inviting storytellers and opera troupes to the Southern Wilderness.
• Ling Qi revealed that a rescued Human Race storyteller named Sang Luo was recovering at her home, alarming Chen Luo.
• Chen Luo asked each delegation to leave a representative behind to discuss the alliance and build the Fangcun Network, then distributed the third Liaozhai Wondrous Text, “Nie, Xiao, Qian.”

After the Fangcun Grand Meeting, Ma Zouri offered to make the Koma Clan a vassal of Mount Fangcun in exchange for the Yingzhao chapter, and Chen Luo agreed to establish Three Stars Cave. Rumors about the meeting spread across Southern Wasteland, until the Ancestor Demons issued an edict declaring Mount Fangcun a sacred land they were forbidden to enter.

• Chen Luo learned that Ma Zouri wanted the Yingzhao chapter and heard why the Koma Clan was willing to become Mount Fangcun’s vassal.
• Chen Luo agreed to place the Yingzhao chapter in Three Stars Cave and told Ma Zouri to discuss the vassal arrangement with Old Ao.
• Rumors about the Fangcun Grand Meeting spread through Southern Wasteland, drawing clan delegations toward Mount Fangcun.
• A phantom Wutong Tree appeared in the Ancestor Demons’ Divine Sense seas, absorbed about six months of their lifespans, and vanished.
• The Ancestor Demons issued an imperial decree declaring Mount Fangcun a sacred land and forbidding themselves from entering, prompting clans to suspend secret operations and seek out its scholars.

Emperor Ye Heng’s court debated a sweeping military reform that would dismiss over a million soldiers in its first stage, then Yan Baichuan revealed a plan to send Confucian scholars to the Southern Wastelands. The Fang Family embraced the Mount Fangcun Alliance plan and organized a mission to support Bai Mo, ending with plans for a new newspaper to compete with Chen Luo’s Civil Gazette.

• Ye Heng approved reducing the number of low-ranked Confucian scholars joining the northern army, then heard the Minister of War’s proposal for three stages of military cuts totaling 1.2 million troops in the first stage.
• A Ministry of Revenue official objected that the dismissed scholars would have no future, while a military official argued that reform would save soldiers’ lives and strengthen the northern front.
• Yan Baichuan proposed sending surplus Confucian scholars to the Southern Wastelands and began explaining that the plan stemmed from a Bai Ze of the Demon Race.
• Fang Huaji told the Fang Family elders that Bai Mo was the Demon Ancestor’s dream disciple and that the court had approved the Mount Fangcun Alliance plan for spreading Confucian teachings in the Southern Wastelands.
• The Fang Family assigned branches to organize a mission, support traveling Confucian scholars, and publish a newspaper, while Fang Huaping was sent to Mount Fangcun to strengthen ties with Bai Mo.
• Fang Huaji named the new paper the Fang Bai United Gazette.

Bai Mo’s new story, Nie Xiaoqian, captivated Central Capital and drew young scholars toward the Southern Wastes. As the Fang family’s newspaper and Bai Mo’s literary reputation challenged Chen Luo’s, Kong Tianfang declared Bai Mo Chen Luo’s lifelong enemy.

• Bamboo Forest Old Seven planned to publish Chen Luo’s latest article under Younger Junior Brother’s identity, while Lang Feixian learned that the Fang family had made a move.
• Xu Laoqi bought the Fang Bai United Gazette, which promoted Bai Mo and his new story, Nie Xiaoqian.
• Central Capital’s teahouses performed Nie Xiaoqian, and listeners became fascinated by the romance between Nie Xiaoqian and Ning Caichen.
• More than a hundred scholars gathered at an abandoned temple, then swore to travel to the Southern Wastes to teach the demons.
• Tian Haiyi warned Kong Tianfang that Bai Mo’s story had hurt sales of the Great Xuan Civil Gazette, but Kong insisted Bai Mo could not surpass Chen Luo and called him Chen Luo’s lifelong enemy.

Chen Luo discovered that the Willow Leaf Mark and Book of Life and Death could connect him to the Nether Land, and he resolved to test whether Netherworld Death Qi could reshape the Heavenly Dao's rules. Meanwhile, Luo Hongnu urged Qin Dangguo to ban Bai Mo's writings, but Chen Luo's latest story arrived before the dispute was settled.

• The Wutong Wood Branch grew into a forest that accelerated cultivation, and Chen Luo found that touching one tree with the Willow Leaf Mark drained its vitality and invigorated him.
• Chen Luo recognized Netherworld Death Qi in the mark's aura and discovered that it stirred his Book of Life and Death, revealing a vision of the Nether Land.
• Chen Luo conjectured that combining Netherworld Death Qi with Primordial Chaos Qi could teach the Heavenly Dao new rules, then opened a passage with Yin Yang Boundary and stepped through.
• Luo Hongnu blocked Qin Dangguo from leaving and demanded that Bai Mo's writings be banned, but Qin Dangguo insisted that banning them would damage the Marquis's reputation.
• Qin Dangguo received a message that the Marquis had sent a new story for publication in the Great Xuan Civil Gazette, and Luo Hongnu read its title: The Pillow, the Midst, the Record?

Chen Luo’s Record in the Pillow captivated Great Xuan and helped a Daoist disciple advance to the True Person Realm, while its spread also prompted the court to consider a Demon Race Envoy to Xuan. The chapter ended with Chen Luo emerging from the Yin Yang Boundary at Mount Fangcun, weakened by Netherworld Death Qi.

• A storyteller recounted Chen Luo’s Record in the Pillow, in which Lu Sheng dreamed of a life of glory and riches before waking at the inn.
• A young Daoist said the story had broken his spiritual-soul shackles and advanced him from Daoist disciple to True Person, then took the storyteller to the Daoist Academy.
• Yan Baichuan reviewed the story and received a memorial from Demon Race clans seeking to send an Envoy to Xuan to study in Great Xuan.
• Yan Baichuan approved the proposal and ordered officials to charge the clans three times the tuition rate from Emperor Lin’s dynasty.
• Chen Luo emerged from the Yin Yang Boundary at Mount Fangcun, retched, and complained that Netherworld Death Qi was powerful.

Chen Luo entered the Yin Yang Boundary to investigate the Nether Land and absorb its Death Qi, then tested whether it could help him write the Book of Ghosts. He successfully began writing the story of Judge Lu and hurried to see whether it would summon the underworld official.

• Chen Luo met Zhong Kui and Zhan Yuan in the Yin Yang Boundary, where Zhong Kui explained that the Nether Land had no Power of Rules because it lacked a mandate of Heaven to anchor them.
• Chen Luo decided to absorb a small amount of Netherworld Death Qi, and Zhong Kui used an iron chain to guide it to him while warning that it would consume his vitality.
• Chen Luo absorbed the Death Qi for about an hour, containing it with Red Dust Qi, but staggered and retched after returning to the outside world.
• Chen Luo combined Netherworld Death Qi with Primordial Chaos Qi on a blank page of Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, and white Elegant Script appeared on a black page.
• Chen Luo recognized the story as Judge Lu and began writing it on paper to test whether its Book Spirit would truly be Judge Lu.

Chen Luo finished writing Judge Lu and unexpectedly received an edict appointing him a First Rank Judge, though its powers could only benefit beings from the Nether Land. The Light of Great Evolution stirred the Great Daos and drew the attention of powerful figures, while the Azure Dragon Emperor also sensed the disturbance.

• Chen Luo wrote Judge Lu and discovered that he could describe the underworld and Netherworld without changing the text.
• The Light of Great Evolution passed over the Great Daos, causing the cyan, purple, and golden Great Daos to grow slightly and prompting a clash between the Taiji Diagram and the Golden Lotus.
• The completed story produced a Judge's uniform and an edict appointing Chen Luo a First Rank Judge of the underworld, presiding over the Investigation Division.
• Chen Luo summoned Zhong Kui, who explained that he could not use the edict because he was not born of the Nether Land and that accepting an appointment would keep him there.
• The Azure Dragon Emperor sensed the unexpected disturbance in the Wutong Forest, while the vitality around the giant tree erased the Netherworld Death Qi that had risen there.

Ye Dafu arrived at Mount Fangcun to build ties between Prince Jing's Manor and Bai Mo, but discovered that Bai Mo was actually his elder brother, Chen Luo. As Mount Fangcun's Seventh Elder arrived, the brothers silently prepared to turn the meeting into a profitable deal.

• Ye Dafu researched Southern Wasteland goods and planned to reorganize Prince Jing's caravans with his share of their profits.
• Fang Huaping divided the cargo from his diplomatic mission among Bai Mo, officials, and himself.
• Ye Dafu met Chen Luo at Mount Fangcun and secretly revealed that Prince Jing wanted to befriend him.
• Chen Luo tested Ye Dafu's claim of admiration for his writings, then recognized him through their secret passwords.
• Fang Da announced that Mount Fangcun's Seventh Elder had arrived, and Chen Luo and Ye Dafu anticipated a major business opportunity.

Fang Huaping offered gifts and proposed a marriage alliance and trade route between the Fang Family and Fangcun Mountain, but Ye Dafu negotiated the caravan deal and revealed its greater potential. Chen Luo asked Ye Dafu to recruit demon spies into Fangcun Academy, carry a message to Chen Xuan, and find gifts for his sixth senior sister before sending him off.

• Fang Huaping gave Chen Luo several gift lists, offered a Fang Family daughter in marriage, and proposed a trade route through the Southern Wastes.
• Chen Luo introduced Ye Dafu, heir of Prince Jing, to Fang Huaping to negotiate the caravan business.
• Ye Dafu told Chen Luo that the Fang Family would receive twenty percent of the profits while the wider trade network could earn much more.
• Chen Luo asked Ye Dafu to select demon-race spies for Fangcun Academy and tell Chen Xuan that he was safe without revealing his identity as Bai Ze.
• Chen Luo asked Ye Dafu to find gifts for his sixth senior sister and sent him off that night.

Bao Chengzhu entered the Kirin Domain and learned that Mount Fangcun’s master had written a Saint-Passing Marvelous Text, leading him to conclude that Bai Mo had secretly helped him. He vowed to strengthen the Leopard Race’s ties with Mount Fangcun, while Chen Luo sensed martial feedback and prepared to advance.

• Bao Chengzhu defeated three demons who ambushed him after he gained citizenship in the Kirin Domain, then refused an officer’s offer to join the Kirin Guard.
• Bao Chengzhu paid a goat demon for news and learned that the Tiger Clan was pursuing him and that Feng Liancheng had failed to disrupt Mount Fangcun’s mountain-opening ceremony.
• After hearing about Mount Fangcun’s master and the Saint-Passing Marvelous Text, Bao Chengzhu concluded that Bai Mo had given him the Shan Hai Zhen Beast Chapter to help him and test his resolve.
• Bao Chengzhu asked the goat demon to send a letter to his father in Wakanda, promising that the Leopard Race would honor Mount Fangcun if he could lift its bloodline seal.
• At Mount Fangcun, Chen Luo sensed someone thinking about him, then felt martial feedback surge as he appeared ready to advance again.