Chapter Summaries

A sudden display of twenty-four Earthly Dao Saints alarmed the Primordial Universe’s powerful factions, and Grand Supreme Elder Lord concluded that Sect Master Tongtian had helped the Netherworld’s core figures attain sainthood. At Spirit Mountain, the Twenty Heavens grew disillusioned with the Two Western Saints and gathered secretly at Great Brahma’s cave abode to discuss their treatment.

• Lord of the Beginning and the cultivators at Yuxu Palace failed to deduce who had attained sainthood and worried that Sect Master Tongtian’s forces were growing stronger.
• Grand Supreme Elder Lord deduced that twenty-four core figures of the Netherworld had become Earthly Dao Saints through Sect Master Tongtian’s efforts.
• At Spirit Mountain, Daoist Jieyin dismissed Great Brahma’s question, angering the Twenty Heavens and sharpening their dissatisfaction with the Two Western Saints.
• The Twenty Heavens left Eight Views Palace and gathered at Great Brahma’s cave abode under the pretense of celebrating his birthday.
• King of Many Hearers said the Two Western Saints treated them like livestock, while he listened for anyone spying on their meeting.

Di Shitian persuaded the lords of the Twenty Heavens to join the Interception Sect, and White-Clad True Man welcomed them into the sect on Tongtian’s behalf. After the lords received gifts and began cultivating in seclusion, Ancestor Hongjun sensed a change in the Western Teachings’ fortune but failed to discover its cause.

• Di Shitian proposed that the lords of the Twenty Heavens join the Interception Sect, and they swore oaths before he summoned White-Clad True Man.
• White-Clad True Man told the lords that Tongtian accepted them as disciples, presented them with gifts, and advised Di Shitian to wait for a better opportunity to become a Saint.
• White-Clad True Man transformed into Sect Master Tongtian, and the lords of the Nineteen Heavens completed their initiation ceremony.
• White-Clad Daoist stayed in Great Brahma's cave abode for forty-nine days, during which the lords of the Nineteen Heavens entered the Quasi-Saint realm.
• The lords of the Twenty Heavens sealed Great Brahma's cave abode and announced they were cultivating in seclusion, while the Two Western Saints continued stripping away their authority.
• Ancestor Hongjun sensed something amiss with the Western Teachings' fortune, then ordered preparations for the Primordial Wilderness's dwindling spiritual energy.

The Earthly Dao took shape, empowering Houtu and the Underworld, while Di Xin relinquished the throne and the Human Dao and Three Paths of Congruence produced more Saints. Tongtian arrived at Huoyun Cave to restore the Three Sovereigns’ Saint Bodies and help them attain perfected Dao Fruits, beginning a seven-year formation.

• Twenty-four Earthly Dao Saints and many Quasi-Saints emerged in the Underworld, prompting the other factions to strengthen themselves.
• Di Xin handed the throne to Crown Prince Wu Geng, retired to Mount Tai, and established a Human Dao Office to police the Human Realm.
• Huang Feihu and Wen Zhong became Saints, followed three months later by nine Quasi-Saints of the Three Paths of Congruence.
• Tongtian’s birthday celebrations with Nuwa fueled commerce and prosperity across the Primordial World, as he privately sought a way to avert its coming decline.
• Tongtian visited Huoyun Cave and promised to restore the Three Sovereigns’ Saint Bodies and help them attain perfected Dao Fruits.
• Tongtian began setting up a complex formation and said he would remain in Huoyun Cave for seven years.

Tongtian finished arranging Formation 6943 and moved Huoyun Cave, carrying the Three Sovereigns, into Guixu so they could cultivate amid richer spiritual energy. Ancestor Hongjun appeared outside the cave and challenged Tongtian, who called the journey a family affair.

• Fuxi, Shennong, and Xuanyuan admired Tongtian’s Formation 6943 and learned formation techniques from him over the year he spent completing it.
• Tongtian helped the Three Sovereigns condense new Saintly Bodies, leaving them poised to seek the Saintly Dao.
• Tongtian used Formation 6943 to lift Huoyun Cave into the sky and explain that it held the Three Sovereigns’ accumulated destiny.
• Tongtian brought Huoyun Cave through the Eastern Sea and into Guixu, astonishing the Three Sovereigns.
• Ancestor Hongjun appeared outside Huoyun Cave and questioned Tongtian, who replied that he was taking his elder brother Fuxi on a family tour.

Sect Master Tongtian settled Huoyun Cave in a marsh he created in Guixu and prepared Fuxi, Shennong, and Xuanyuan to undergo their Saint tribulations. The Three Emperors endured the lightning and appeared to attain Sainthood as the Heavenly Dao’s flowers fell, while Tongtian returned from confronting a white-robed boy with a new sword for Infinite.

• Sect Master Tongtian placed Huoyun Cave beneath a newly created marsh in Guixu, where he guided the Three Emperors through eighty-one days of cultivation.
• Sect Master Tongtian announced that Fuxi, Shennong, and Xuanyuan were ready to attempt their Saint tribulations, and they stepped outside Huoyun Cave.
• Three colored Eyes of the Heavenly Dao sent down waves of tribulation lightning, and the Three Emperors endured the bolts with Sect Master Tongtian’s help.
• Sect Master Tongtian found a white-robed boy secretly sending blue light into Guixu, killed him, and gave the boy’s outer-domain sword to Infinite as a vessel.
• The tribulation ended, and bells, chimes, and flowers descended from the three Eyes of the Heavenly Dao as three beams of light shot toward them.

Sect Master Tongtian sent the White-Clad True Man through the Pool of Reincarnation and awoke as Ji Man, the young son of King Zhou Zhao. After learning he would become King Zhou Mu in a later era, Tongtian found that the Western Teachings had begun to spread and received a choice about attending the White Horse Temple grand assembly.

• Sect Master Tongtian chose to travel through the Human Realm, gaining the Wordless Dao Canon and Chaos Spirit Root Yin-Yang Fruit.
• The White-Clad True Man visited Meng Po, then entered the Pool of Reincarnation while keeping his spiritual clarity and Origin Power intact.
• The White-Clad True Man awoke as a young child in a palace, where the Empress recognized him as her son, Man'er.
• Tongtian learned that he was Ji Man, destined to become King Zhou Mu, and realized centuries had passed since the fall of the Great Shang Dynasty.
• Tongtian observed that the Western Teachings had gained influence in Western Zhou and received a choice about attending the White Horse Temple grand assembly.

Tongtian received the Chaos Spirit Root and Nine Dragon Cauldron from the system, then advanced to the Nascent Soul Realm before leaving for the White Horse Temple Fair. He left after confining his elder brothers Ji Zong and Ji Heng for disrespecting and attacking him.

• Sheng Ji invited Tongtian to go with her to the White Horse Temple Fair, and he accepted.
• Tongtian swallowed Rootless Grass and broke through to the Golden Core Realm, then Foundation Establishment and the Nascent Soul Realm.
• Ji Zong and Ji Heng mocked Tongtian and reached to grab him after he asked why they had not addressed him as His Highness the Crown Prince.
• Tongtian caught and injured his brothers, ordered the guards to confine them in Tong Palace, and set out for the White Horse Temple.

Tongtian visited White Horse Temple with Queen Mother Fang, impressing her with his knowledge and persuading her to find him study companions for military training. He recognized Master Cibei’s greedy gaze and prompted Queen Mother Fang to investigate him; at the temple, Cibei appeared composed and asked about the Crown Prince’s True Soul.

• Tongtian recited his books from memory for Queen Mother Fang and asked to study military formations and troop deployments with companions from her orphanage.
• Queen Mother Fang agreed to his request and ordered a secret investigation after Tongtian pointed out Master Cibei’s covetous gaze.
• Tongtian and Queen Mother Fang arrived at White Horse Temple, where Abbot Baima and the monks welcomed them.
• Master Cibei showed no sign of greed at the temple and asked whether the Crown Prince’s True Soul had only recently entered his body.

Tongtian exposed Master Cibei’s suspicious accusations at White Horse Temple, where Cibei attacked him and was killed by Xiao Zan. After meeting the Buddha enshrined in the temple, Tongtian encountered a black-clad monk whom the others called the Buddha Son.

• Tongtian challenged Master Cibei for implying that the Crown Prince was possessed and questioned the monk’s credentials and intentions.
• Queen Mother Fang ordered Master Cibei seized, but Cibei broke free and lunged at Tongtian before Xiao Zan beheaded him.
• Tongtian praised Xiao Zan and appointed him as his chief guard.
• Master Baima led Tongtian and Queen Mother Fang to the Mahavira Hall, where Tongtian recognized the Sakyamuni Buddha statue as his disciple Di Shitian.
• A black-clad monk appeared and was greeted by Master Baima and the monks as the Buddha Son, leaving Tongtian wondering who he was.

Sect Master Tongtian wagered with Buddha Son Maha that Sakyamuni Buddha’s golden body would shatter when Tongtian paid his respects. Before Tongtian began, the statue cracked on its own, leaving Maha and Master Baima stunned and questioning the Crown Prince’s cultivation.

• Buddha Son Maha told Sect Master Tongtian that he was Sakyamuni Buddha’s disciple and that Sakyamuni had become the Western Teachings’ first Buddha.
• Tongtian wagered that Sakyamuni Buddha’s golden body would shatter when he paid his respects, and Maha accepted after Queen Mother Fang approved.
• Maha offered Tongtian a Buddhist Treasure if Tongtian lost, while Tongtian warned Maha and Master Baima not to be startled.
• Before Tongtian began worshiping, a huge crack appeared over the heart of Sakyamuni Buddha’s golden body.
• Maha and Master Baima were shocked, and Maha asked Tongtian what cultivation technique had broken the golden body.

After winning a wager against Maha Buddha Son, Sect Master Tongtian took his Bodhi Prayer Beads and attended White Horse Temple’s sermon. When Maha Buddha Son asked how he viewed life and death, Tongtian offered an answer that left the preaching plaza silent.

• Maha Buddha Son conceded the wager and gave Sect Master Tongtian his Bodhi Prayer Beads, while keeping the Wooden Fish after Tongtian refused it.
• Sect Master Tongtian joined Empress and the others to listen to the Buddhist teachings at White Horse Temple.
• After twelve hours of sermons, Maha Buddha Son took the preaching altar and asked Sect Master Tongtian how he viewed life and death.
• Sect Master Tongtian described life and death as thoughts, called life the distance between birth and death, and said people should deepen life when they cannot lengthen it.

After Tongtian’s sermon impressed the Western Teachings, he visited Queen Mother Fang’s Orphanage and uncovered widespread abuse and embezzlement. His investigation linked the corruption to a female official and revealed that she belonged to a foreign intelligence network called the Heavenly Machine Pavilion.

• Tongtian preached that life and death were experiences and that good deeds cultivated the next life, earning the crowd’s reverence as Sakyamuni Buddha’s golden body repaired itself.
• Tongtian left the preaching assembly with Queen Mother Fang’s permission and went with Xiao Zan to inspect the Orphanage.
• Tongtian discovered that the Orphanage’s workers were mistreated, forced to work, and deprived of their earnings while officials staged better conditions for inspectors.
• Tongtian ordered Xiao Zan to arrest the administrators and their families, then had him extract information from Fang Chuan and Queen Mother Fang’s trusted female official.
• Tongtian learned that the female official had siphoned off Orphanage funds as part of the Heavenly Machine Pavilion, an intelligence network originating in another domain.

Sect Master Tongtian released the controlled Heavenly Machine Pavilion members, while Queen Mother Fang ordered her corrupt relative executed by slow slicing. After observing the people’s reaction, Tongtian selected more than three thousand people from the Orphanage to form the Eastern Palace Guard and appointed Xiao Zan as its commander, then asked him about training troops.

• Sect Master Tongtian used Soul-Seizing and Spirit-Controlling on the Heavenly Machine Pavilion members, then ordered Xiao Zan to release them while the Queen Mother Fang’s relative was sent to the imperial prison.
• Queen Mother Fang learned of her relative’s crimes and ordered him executed by slow slicing in public for seven days and seven nights.
• At the South Market Execution Ground, Sect Master Tongtian read out the prisoner’s crimes and served as chief execution officer while the crowd supported the punishment and defended the Crown Prince’s reputation.
• Sect Master Tongtian returned to the Orphanage and spent seven days selecting more than three thousand people to form the Eastern Palace Guard.
• Sect Master Tongtian appointed Xiao Zan commander of the Eastern Palace Guard and asked him for his thoughts on training troops.

Xiao Zan and Sect Master Tongtian began a month-long military training wager, with a fief as the prize and Xiao Zan’s lifelong service at stake if he lost. After King Zhou Zhao returned to the capital, Sect Master Tongtian gave him a Meteorite Heavy Sword he had polished himself, and King Zhou Zhao praised his son’s skill and filial care.

• Xiao Zan proposed training troops in valor and cooperation, and Sect Master Tongtian wagered a fief against Xiao Zan’s lifelong service.
• Sect Master Tongtian expanded his force to five thousand men, while Xiao Zan struggled to train the foreign captives assigned to him.
• King Zhou Zhao returned to the capital and showed confidence that Sect Master Tongtian would win the wager.
• Sect Master Tongtian presented King Zhou Zhao with the Meteorite Heavy Sword as an early birthday gift.
• King Zhou Zhao tested the sword by splitting an iron anvil, and the Minister of Works revealed that Sect Master Tongtian had polished it himself and designed a weapon-making machine.
• King Zhou Zhao praised Sect Master Tongtian and rejoiced that his son had recovered and become wise and capable.

Sect Master Tongtian led the Eastern Palace Guards to victory in a military drill and battle, earning the Crown Prince the title of Prince Mu and command of Haojing’s forces. He declined to assist with state affairs for ten years, while Xiao Zan pledged lifelong service to him.

• King Zhou Zhao named the Meteorite Heavy Sword Shocking Heaven after Sect Master Tongtian suggested he choose a name.
• Sect Master Tongtian’s two-thousand-man formation outperformed Xiao Zan’s troops in drills and routed them in a single charge.
• The Crown Prince’s guards defeated the Great General’s veteran elite troops in less than fifteen minutes.
• King Zhou Zhao ennobled the Crown Prince as Prince Mu, granted him a three-thousand-li fief, and placed Haojing’s military forces under his command.
• The Crown Prince declined to assist with state affairs for ten years and asked for more freedom to serve himself and the Great Zhou Dynasty.
• Xiao Zan pledged to serve the Crown Prince for life, and the Crown Prince granted him a three-hundred-li fief.

Sect Master Tongtian rewarded Xiao Zan despite his defeat and chose to escort him to his Northern Wilderness fief. As their expedition entered a dangerous valley, an ambush opened fire on the Eastern Palace Guards, leaving Xiao Zan facing a choice about whether to reveal his strength.

• Sect Master Tongtian reassured Xiao Zan that he would reward him with a fief, then chose the quest option that granted a Five Spirit Wood Chaos Spirit Root and a Wordless Dao Canon.
• Sect Master Tongtian announced that the party would travel to Xiao Zan’s Northern Wilderness fief for a live combat exercise, and King Zhou Zhao stopped Queen Mother Fang from interfering.
• Sect Master Tongtian refined the Five Spirit Wood, spent time with his parents, and departed Haojing seven days later with Xiao Zan and more than seven thousand people.
• Sect Master Tongtian sensed danger near a valley and ordered the troops to halt while Xiao Zan sent scouts to inspect the cliffs.
• Attackers launched a sudden storm of crossbow bolts from the cliffs, and Xiao Zan hesitated over whether to reveal his true strength.

Xiao Zan revealed his golden bird transformation, saved the group from an ambush, and received the Eastern Palace Sword from Sect Master Tongtian. After interrogating two captured attackers and crossing a canyon, the party camped on a grassland, where a thousand foreign horsemen suddenly appeared.

• Xiao Zan transformed into a giant golden bird, blocked the crossbow bolts, and swept the hidden attackers off the cliff.
• Sect Master Tongtian forgave Xiao Zan for hiding his abilities and rewarded him with the Eastern Palace Sword.
• Xiao Zan interrogated two captured foreign men, and the group learned information from them before safely leaving the canyon.
• Sect Master Tongtian let the soldiers rest for a day on the grassland, where Xiao Zan arranged camp and a meal.
• A force of about a thousand armed foreign horsemen approached, and Sect Master Tongtian considered it a chance to train the troops while warning that the cavalry might be formidable.

Sect Master Tongtian negotiated a warhorse tribute from northern grassland foreigners after his Eastern Palace Guard defeated their champions. He then found his daughter Tianqiong gravely wounded at the bottom of a lake and faced Juliusun, who had become a powerful Buddha.

• Sect Master Tongtian spoke with the foreign leader, arranged a hundred-on-a-hundred contest, and secured an annual warhorse tribute for Great Zhou Dynasty after the Eastern Palace Guard won.
• The foreigners and Great Zhou's soldiers celebrated together, while Sect Master Tongtian worried about returning to Niangniang Nuwa and their children.
• A beam of light crashed into the lake, where Sect Master Tongtian found the unconscious Tianqiong and hid her in his system space, leaving a counterfeit behind.
• Juliusun appeared with a group of Daoists, revealed himself as a Buddha near the peak of the ninth heaven of the Primordial Grand Unity Golden Immortal Realm, and confronted Sect Master Tongtian.

Sect Master Tongtian used the Nine Dragon Cauldron to hold off Juliusun and his five Arhats while escaping with Tianqiong’s incarnation. Hidden in a mountain crevice, he watched her awaken and introduced himself as Ji Man, the Crown Prince of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

• An Arhat attacked Sect Master Tongtian, who released nine dragons from the Nine Dragon Cauldron and fled with Tianqiong’s incarnation.
• Juliusun trapped them in a golden barrier, so Sect Master Tongtian ordered the dragons to detonate themselves and blast a path clear.
• The explosion hurled Sect Master Tongtian far away, and he escaped to the Great Snow Mountain and concealed himself in a crevice with a formation.
• Tianqiong’s incarnation awakened and asked Sect Master Tongtian who he was and where they were.
• Sect Master Tongtian claimed he was Ji Man, the Crown Prince of the Great Zhou Dynasty, and Tianqiong recognized him as the child she had once seen as a walking corpse.

Sect Master Tongtian saved the wounded Tianqiong Incarnation from Juliusun and drew the pursuer’s attention away from her. Tongtian faced Juliusun behind a barrier formed by the Wordless Dao Canons, while Tianqiong remained hidden and watched the canons withstand his attack.

• The Tianqiong Incarnation told Sect Master Tongtian that Juliusun had wounded her while she protected Jade Faced Rakshasa from him and his five Arhats.
• Juliusun appeared nearby and threatened the person who had ambushed him, but Tongtian told Tianqiong that Juliusun was only testing them.
• Tongtian sprayed blood onto the two Wordless Dao Canons, causing blood-colored words and symbols to form a barrier around him.
• Tongtian told Tianqiong to stay hidden so he could escape more easily, then sprang out from between the rocks to face Juliusun.
• Juliusun struck the barrier with a streak of golden light, but the Wordless Dao Canons absorbed the attack and left Tianqiong astonished.