Recaps

The Nine Underworlds Demon Palace accepted the Pure Yang Sect's surrender after defeating its army, and Lin Bai and Li Guxian entered the sect's mountain gate. Li Guxian imposed severe terms on the defeated sect, then offered its master a choice between surrendering precious cultivation resources or sending its surviving army to fight the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect.

• Li Guxian accepted the Pure Yang Sect's surrender and ordered its surviving warriors to lay down their weapons and gather in the nearby mountains.
• Li Guxian led Lin Bai and the other experts to the Pure Yang Sect's mountain gate, where Great Mystic Art Users fought and Saint Elder Duanmu Peng departed with Lei Qin.
• Li Guxian told the Pure Yang Sect Master that the sect would lose most of its territories, face limits on its disciples, and pay tribute to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace every hundred years.
• The Pure Yang Sect Master accepted the terms but refused to hand over the treasures on Li Guxian's extensive list, saying they were essential to the sect's survival.
• Li Guxian offered the Pure Yang Sect a choice: surrender the treasures or send its remaining army to fight the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect.

Goddess Li Guxian forced the Pure Yang Sect to choose between surrendering its resources or committing troops against the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect. The sect chose to preserve its resources, and Li Guxian ordered it to station three million elite disciples on the Yun Hai Thousand Provinces frontier and await her orders.

• Goddess Li Guxian gave the Pure Yang Sect Master three hours to decide whether to hand over the sect’s resources or send troops against the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect.
• Lin Bai predicted that the Pure Yang Sect’s elders would push the sect master to protect their own prospects by choosing war over surrendering the resources.
• Li Guxian warned Lin Bai that neither of them could escape being manipulated on the martial world’s chessboard, and apologized for bringing him into the Demon Palace as its Emperor Child.
• The Pure Yang Sect’s elders united against handing over the sect’s resources, and the Pure Yang Sect Master accepted their position and went to deliver the sect’s answer.
• The Pure Yang Sect Master refused to let his disciples serve as cannon fodder, and Li Guxian instructed the sect to station three million elite disciples on the Yun Hai Thousand Provinces frontier and await her orders.

Li Guxian arranged for Pure Yang Sect and Phoenix Valley to station their armies near the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect, using them to contain both rivals while the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace stabilized its territory. After the army withdrew, the Pure Yang Sect and Phoenix Valley masters recognized that Li Guxian had made them rivals, and she reported the victory to the Palace Master and Saint Elders.

• Li Guxian ordered Pure Yang Sect to send three million elite disciples to Yun Hai Thousand Provinces and Phoenix Valley to station five million martial artists in Ten Thousand Mountains Province.
• Lin Bai questioned whether the sects might betray the Demon Palace after he and Li Guxian departed, and Li Guxian explained that Pure Yang Sect was weakened and Phoenix Valley now bore its blood feud.
• The Nine Underworlds Demon Palace army withdrew from Pure Yang Sect's capital territory, while the Phoenix Valley Sect Master and Pure Yang Sect Master discussed how Li Guxian had turned them into enemies.
• Li Guxian and Lin Bai joined the Palace Master and three Saint Elders by sound transmission, where Li Guxian reported that the Demon Palace had taken down Pure Yang Sect and Lin Bai and the elders exchanged credit.

The Demon Palace leaders agreed to rename the Seven Nights Divine Sect's territory as the Devil Palace's territory and prepare a ceremony to establish the change's legitimacy. The decision would also let the Demon Palace address the growing influx of refugees from the Qi Tian Sect's territory, while Li Guxian received assurances that the Demon Palace would honor its promise to advance her cultivation.

• The Palace Lord of the Demon Palace praised Lin Bai, Li Guxian, Duanmu Peng, Lei Qin, and the expedition forces for their victories at Phoenix Valley and Pure Yang Sect.
• Luo Yuanjing proposed renaming the Seven Nights Divine Sect's territory as the Devil Palace's territory, and Li Guxian and Lin Bai supported the plan as a way to stabilize the region and expose opponents.
• Li Guxian warned that refugees from the Qi Tian Sect's territory were gathering in the Seven Nights Divine Sect's territory and could become a powerful force, so the Demon Palace needed authority to manage them.
• The Palace Lord approved the renaming and assigned Luo Yuanjing to prepare regulations and notify Chu, Ten Thousand Saints Mountain, and the region's top sects.
• Luo Yuanjing explained that a ceremony with Yi Gu and other major powers was necessary to legitimize the transfer, and the Palace Lord agreed to hold one.
• The Palace Lord promised that the Demon Palace would honor its pledge to advance Li Guxian's cultivation, while Li Guxian said many allied forces would push Lin Bai to become the next Palace Lord.

Lin Bai and Li Guxian returned toward Huang Long Thousand Provinces after the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace arranged its forces and prepared to rename the Seven Nights Divine Sect Territory. As Lin Bai planned to resume cultivation, he encountered Demon Palace martial artists pursuing one of their own, who feared that the First God Child had sent them to kill him.

• Lin Bai recognized that allies across the Devil Realm depended on him becoming the Demon Palace's future ruler, while the Palace Lord assured him he could leave the realm for centuries if he wished.
• The Palace Lord ordered the renaming ceremony organized within half a year and told Li Guxian to prepare against attacks by Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect and their possible alliance with the Demon Subjugation Alliance.
• Li Guxian explained that the Demon Palace army would be divided among territories, described the guards at Eternal Night Pass and Lin Bai's Dragon Protector Guard, and outlined the Demon Palace's inherited systems for governing and promoting martial artists.
• After leaving Pure Yang Sect territory, Li Guxian divided more than five million troops among five armies and returned with Lin Bai and senior martial artists to Huang Long Thousand Provinces.
• Lin Bai said he would cultivate toward the mid-stage of the Grand Luo Dao Fruit Realm, but their journey was interrupted when Demon Palace martial artists pursued a frightened young man.
• Dao Child Yu You stopped the fugitive, who asked whether she had also been sent by the First God Child to kill him.

Lin Bai and Li Guxian learned that the First God Child might have ordered the Zhang Family’s destruction after it supported Lin Bai, while Forbidden Guards accused the family of treason. They took Zhang Sheng and the guards aboard their cloudship, and Li Guxian planned to use the dispute to challenge the First God Child.

• Dao Child Yu You stopped the wounded Zhang Sheng and questioned the Forbidden Guards pursuing him; they said his family had colluded with the Demon Subjugation Alliance, while Zhang Sheng blamed the First God Child for retaliating against his family’s support of Lin Bai.
• Yu You returned to Lin Bai’s cloudship to report the conflicting claims, and Li Guxian explained that the Zhang Family was a minor Demon Palace family.
• The Forbidden Guards attacked Zhang Sheng as he flew toward the cloudship, so Yu You injured them and Lin Bai ordered that Zhang Sheng and the guards be brought back to the Demon Palace.
• Li Guxian told Lin Bai that the First God Child was purging opponents within the Demon Palace and proposed using the Zhang Family dispute as a pretext to cause him trouble.

Lin Bai returned to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace with Li Guxian after defeating the Forbidden Guards, and learned how the palace used disciple placements to keep smaller Lineages under its control. He returned to the Imperial Palace and began seclusion, leaving Li Guxian to handle Zhang Sheng and his Lineage.

• Lin Bai and Li Guxian thanked the martial artists who had protected them and returned to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace headquarters.
• Li Guxian offered to settle Zhang Sheng's situation and report back to Lin Bai, then left for the Ninth Divine Hall.
• Old Wen told Lin Bai that the Devil Palace's growing disciple placements also served as hostages to keep smaller Lineages and sects in check.
• Lin Bai arrived at the Imperial Palace, where martial artists recognized his return and the palace formations welcomed him.
• Lin Bai told Old Wen and Dao Child Yu You not to disturb him unless something important happened, then entered seclusion.

Lin Bai returned to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace and entered seclusion while Li Guxian fought the First God Child’s growing control of the Council of Elders. Li Guxian told Yao Qian that Lin Bai’s decision to stay out of the confrontation had prevented an immediate split and civil war within the Devil Palace.

• Lin Bai settled into the Emperor Child’s secret chamber, swallowed the Grand Luo Golden Pill, and focused on cultivating toward the mid-stage Grand Luo Dao Fruit realm.
• The First God Child used the Forbidden Guards and Elder Shi Renshan’s support to pressure lineages loyal to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace and build influence in the Council of Elders.
• Li Guxian convened the Council of Elders and challenged the First God Child, but her efforts to revoke his Forbidden Guards authority stalled as his supporters blocked her proposals.
• Yao Qian warned Li Guxian that the First God Child’s growing authority threatened Lin Bai and the Yao Family, which had backed Lin Bai’s rise as Emperor Child.
• Li Guxian explained that Lin Bai’s immediate confrontation with the First God Child could have split the Devil Palace and triggered a wider war, so his seclusion had prevented that outcome.

Dao Child Yao Qian learned that Lin Bai had left Li Guxian to manage the Devil Palace’s political struggle while he stayed in seclusion. Li Guxian gathered support from wavering lineages and prepared to purge the First God Child’s ranks, though key Divine Hall-backed families had yet to appear.

• Dao Child Yao Qian assessed the First God Child’s strong support among the Devil Palace’s prodigies and middle-ranking forces, contrasted with Lin Bai’s backing from senior leaders and outside allies.
• Li Guxian told Dao Child Yao Qian that Lin Bai had left her to handle political work he could not do without provoking bloodshed, and Yao Qian offered the Yao Family’s help against the First God Child’s allies.
• Li Guxian explained that her repeated proposals in the Council of Elders had been meant to reveal who supported the First God Child, Lin Bai, or neither.
• Hua Qianshu arrived seeking news of Lin Bai’s seclusion, and Dao Child Yao Qian recognized that he had come for the same reason as the Yao Family.
• Young masters, Spirit Children, Saint Children, and other martial artists gathered outside Li Guxian’s palace to represent their lineages, but the Lu and Li Families backed by the Divine Halls did not appear.
• Li Guxian judged the gathered support sufficient to begin purging the First God Child’s ranks.

After half a year in seclusion, Lin Bai barely broke through to the mid-stage of the Grand Luo Dao Fruit Realm and learned that Li Guxian had weakened the First God Child’s standing through three political moves. With the Demon Palace Renaming Ceremony approaching, Lin Bai prepared to travel to the Seven Nights Divine Sect to invite its Sect Master, Yi Gu.

• Lin Bai emerged from seclusion after using more than half his Grand Luo Golden Pills to reach the mid-stage of the Grand Luo Dao Fruit Realm.
• Old Wen told Lin Bai that Li Guxian had gained ground against the First God Child over the past six months.
• Old Wen described how Zhang Yi was exposed for embezzling pills and was sentenced to execution, damaging the First God Child’s reputation.
• Old Wen recounted how the First God Child was reprimanded after rumors spread that he had forced himself on female cultivators, while Li Guxian stayed silent and let the scandal undermine him.
• Li Guxian challenged the First God Child’s plan to lead an army against the Demon Subjugation Alliance, and the Council of Elders kept the army under her command.
• Lin Bai learned that the Renaming Ceremony was about three months away and agreed to personally invite Yi Gu to attend.

Lin Bai learned that the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace had spent millennia infiltrating rival sects and undermining Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect ahead of its Renaming Ceremony. With the ceremony approaching and the two sects still a threat, Lin Bai prepared to travel to the Seven Nights Divine Sect.

• The Nine Underworlds Demon Palace sent Lin Bai to invite the Seven Nights Divine Sect to attend the Renaming Ceremony and formally cede its territory.
• Old Wen explained that the Demon Palace’s Infiltration Plan had planted agents throughout the Devil Realm Eastern Region, using their relatives in Nine Underworlds City as leverage.
• Old Wen revealed that the Demon Palace had targeted the Seven Nights Divine Sect Territory and Chu, but its plans to exploit a civil war in Chu had failed.
• Old Wen said hidden agents within Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect were sowing discord and stalling the two sects’ alliance.
• Old Wen reported that Li Siyuan and Lu Yunzhe had gone to the front lines to deter the two sects before the Renaming Ceremony.
• Lin Bai told Old Wen to prepare a flying ship so they could go to the Seven Nights Divine Sect.

Lin Bai traveled to the Seven Nights Divine Sect to secure its submission to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace and learned that rumors of his possible removal as Imperial Son had shaken the sect. The chapter ended with Yi Gu urging Lin Bai to quell the rumors and reassure the Seven Nights Divine Sect that he could fulfill his promises.

• Lin Bai left the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace with Dao Child Yu You and Old Wen, while envoys speculated about the conflict between Lin Bai and the First God Child.
• After traveling for seven or eight days, Lin Bai arrived at the Seven Nights Divine Sect, where Yi Gu and the sect elders welcomed him and agreed to hand over their territory if the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace honored its promises.
• Yi Jinyun told Lin Bai that the First God Child was trying to have him removed and that rumors of his impending removal had made the Seven Nights Divine Sect fear its promised benefits would vanish.
• At the Guest Hall, Yi Jinyi and the elders questioned Lin Bai about his weak support in the Council of Elders and who would uphold his promises if he lost his position.
• Yi Gu asked Lin Bai to quell the rumors, warning that the Seven Nights Divine Sect could not withstand another failure and that people's words could be terrifying.

Lin Bai reassured the Seven Nights Divine Sect by promising to eliminate the First God Child and his supporters if necessary, then set out for the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace. On the way, he reflected on the dangers of his hidden identity and encountered Phoenix Valley’s leaders, who had stopped to discuss their uncertain future with him.

• Lin Bai promised the Seven Nights Divine Sect that he would dispel the rumors after the Renaming Ceremony and remove the First God Child within five years if he refused to back down.
• Lin Bai told Yi Jinyun that he had no way out of the Demon Realm’s struggles, while privately worrying that fighting openly might expose his Heaven Swallowing Race identity to the Giant God Race.
• Lin Bai and Yi Gu departed with the Seven Nights Divine Sect’s procession for the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace.
• The Phoenix Valley Sect Master and his elders waited along the route, fearing the Demon Palace might abandon its promises to them if Lin Bai lost his position.
• Lin Bai recognized that Phoenix Valley had come to raise its concerns and ordered his cloud boat to approach them.

The Sect Master of Phoenix Valley secretly advised Lin Bai to target Shi Renshan and the Shi Family instead of confronting the First God Child directly. Lin Bai agreed that the strategy made sense and asked where to begin.

• The Sect Master of Phoenix Valley joined Lin Bai’s cloud boat so they could travel together to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace.
• After the others left them alone, the Sect Master of Phoenix Valley warned Lin Bai that Phoenix Valley feared his removal as God Child would undo his promises to their allies.
• The Sect Master of Phoenix Valley argued that Shi Renshan and the Shi Family, which controlled the Demon Palace’s finances, were the real power behind the First God Child.
• The Sect Master of Phoenix Valley proposed exposing the Shi Family’s theft from the treasure vaults to enlist the Palace Lord, Saint Elders, and rival families against them.
• Lin Bai acknowledged that the Shi Family would be difficult to uproot but asked the Sect Master of Phoenix Valley where they should begin.

The Sect Master of Phoenix Valley proposed weakening the Shi Family by first removing Shi Tiande and then exposing Shi Yuqing’s thefts from the Treasure Collection Pavilion. Lin Bai saw the plan’s potential but withheld his agreement, intending to discuss it with Goddess Li Guxian.

• The Sect Master of Phoenix Valley identified Shi Renshan, Shi Tiande, and Shi Yuqing as the Shi Family’s three power holders and named Shi Yuqing as the easiest target.
• The Sect Master of Phoenix Valley explained that Shi Yuqing had been stealing treasures from the Treasure Collection Pavilion to fund a final attempt to advance his cultivation.
• Lin Bai questioned how the Sect Master of Phoenix Valley had obtained her information, and she explained Phoenix Valley had monitored the Shi Family while preparing for conflict with the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace.
• The Sect Master of Phoenix Valley revealed that Phoenix Valley had evidence of Shi Yuqing’s thefts and proposed trapping him while he sought a rare material.
• The Sect Master of Phoenix Valley argued that Shi Tiande must be dealt with first so the Shi Family could not replace Shi Yuqing as master of the Treasure Collection Pavilion.
• Lin Bai withheld his decision, planning to consult Goddess Li Guxian, while privately wishing he could simply kill his opponents.

Lin Bai met Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang while traveling with the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace and discussed the political deadlock facing their sects. Over wine, he revealed that the First God Child and Shi Renshan had seized control of the Demon Palace’s Council of Elders and sidelined him.

• The cloud boats carrying Lin Bai’s group were blocked by the Overturning Heavens Sect and the Worship Heaven Sect, whose forces were caught between attacking the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace and defending against Phoenix Valley and the Pure Yang Sect.
• The Sect Master of Phoenix Valley told Lin Bai that the Overturning Heavens Sect and the Worship Heaven Sect had secretly tried to persuade Phoenix Valley and the Pure Yang Sect not to aid the Demon Palace.
• Lin Bai agreed to meet Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang at a nearby village tavern, leaving Dao Child Yu You and Old Wen behind.
• Lin Bai guessed that the Overturning Heavens Sect and the Worship Heaven Sect were divided over whether to fight or seek peace, and Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang admitted that he understood their predicament.
• Nie Shang asked Lin Bai about rumors that he would lose his position as Imperial Son, prompting Lin Bai to explain how the First God Child and Shi Renshan had taken control of the Council of Elders and removed opponents from power.

Lin Bai discussed the looming conflict between the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace and the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect with Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang. He explained that the Demon Palace would fight if they chose war, but any peace might be temporary, and he would require them to weaken their forces if he later ruled the Palace.

• Lin Bai outlined how the Renaming Ceremony would make the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect’s resistance an open rebellion against the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace.
• Meng Qinxian favored fighting for the Overturning Heavens Sect’s chance to rise, while Nie Shang warned that war could leave the major powers vulnerable to the Azure Lotus Sect, the Demon Subjugation Alliance, and refugees from the Qi Tian Sect Territory.
• Lin Bai said the Demon Palace was willing either to fight or cease hostilities, but he could not promise it would leave the two sects alone once the region stabilized.
• Lin Bai said that if he ruled the Demon Palace, he would avoid destroying the two sects only if they dismissed at least half their disciples or stopped recruiting for three thousand years.
• Nie Shang and Meng Qinxian lamented the burdens of being Holy Sons, and Meng Qinxian recalled how fiercely he had fought for the position.

Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang proposed a Prodigy Martial Contest to avert war between their sects and Nine Underworlds Demon Palace, and Lin Bai negotiated stricter terms before agreeing to consult the Palace Lord. The Sect Master of Phoenix Valley judged that the proposal came from the two Holy Sons personally and said the contest could be accepted if they agreed to Lin Bai’s demands.

• Nie Shang proposed a best-of-five Prodigy Martial Contest, with the two hundred Thousand Prefectures from Seven Nights Divine Sect’s former territory at stake and Lin Bai barred from competing.
• Lin Bai said he would consult the Demon Palace, then countered that the prize should be limited to one hundred Thousand Prefectures and that Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect must surrender one-third of their foundations if they lost.
• Meng Qinxian rejected the one-third condition, while Nie Shang said he needed to discuss it with his sect; the three agreed to seek a decision before the Renaming Ceremony.
• Lin Bai, Meng Qinxian, and Nie Shang returned to their respective cloud boats, and Nie Shang made Meng Qinxian pay the wine bill.
• Lin Bai told the Sect Master of Phoenix Valley about the proposal, and the Sect Master concluded that it was the two Holy Sons’ personal plan and could be accepted if they agreed to Lin Bai’s conditions.

Lin Bai confronted Nine Underworlds Demon Palace officials who tried to force the Seven Nights Divine Sect to enter the mountain gate on foot, then killed several Forbidden Guards and a Dao Child in public. He returned to the Imperial Palace after testing the Palace Master and the three Saint Elders’ tolerance, and ordered Old Wen to summon Li Guxian.

• Lin Bai learned that Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang wanted the Eastern and Northern Regions’ prodigies to compete, barring him from the contest against Nine Underworlds Demon Palace’s nine God Children.
• At the Devil Palace’s mountain gate, Lin Bai insisted that the Seven Nights Divine Sect be allowed to enter on its cloud boats, but the Forbidden Guards refused on the grounds of the rules.
• Lin Bai killed five Forbidden Guards who blocked the way, then killed a First Divine Hall Dao Child who challenged him over the deaths.
• Lin Bai told Sect Master of Phoenix Valley that he had killed the men to gauge the Palace Master and three Saint Elders’ attitudes before moving against the First God Child.
• Elder Zhao Fengxia arrived, and Lin Bai asked him to arrange lodging for the Seven Nights Divine Sect and Phoenix Valley before returning to the Imperial Palace.
• Lin Bai instructed Old Wen to have Li Guxian come see him.

Lin Bai questioned Li Guxian about the Demon Palace’s forces and learned how its Eighteen Guards, armies, and powerful families were organized. He ordered Li Guxian to seek reinforcements and rewards for the two armies and secretly expand them, while revealing that he planned to deal with the Shi Family.

• Lin Bai met Li Guxian and asked whether she controlled the armies he wanted to expand.
• Li Guxian explained the duties of the Demon Palace’s Upper, Middle, and Lower Six Guards, including the commanders and strength of the armies under her command.
• Li Guxian described how the Thirty-Six Great Families and the Nine Great Families shaped the Demon Palace’s power structure.
• Lin Bai ordered Li Guxian to secretly tell Palace Master that the Nine Underworlds Army and Skyguard Legion needed reinforcements and rewards.
• Lin Bai instructed Li Guxian to secretly expand the Nine Underworlds Army and Skyguard Legion beyond six million soldiers, recruit more commanders from small and medium-sized families, and promised to take responsibility.
• Lin Bai told Li Guxian that he had decided to deal with the Shi Family and would discuss the army expansion with Palace Master.

Lin Bai prepared to challenge the First God Child by expanding his military support and working with Li Guxian and the Sect Master of Phoenix Valley to target the Shi Family. Their plan focused on discrediting Shi Tiande and exposing Shi Yuqing, with Li Guxian identifying Shi Wei as a Shi Family insider who could bring the accusations before the Council of Elders.

• Lin Bai ordered Li Guxian to send one million elite soldiers from the Nine Underworlds Army and the Skyguard Legion to the Huang Long Thousand Provinces for rewards, while keeping the movement discreet and securing trusted commanders.
• Lin Bai told Li Guxian to record the elders and lineages supporting the First God Child and Shi Renshan at the Council of Elders, and declared he would no longer yield to the First God Child.
• Li Guxian agreed to support Lin Bai and endorsed the Phoenix Valley Sect Master’s plan to weaken the Shi Family by targeting its control of the Treasure Pavilion.
• The Phoenix Valley Sect Master presented evidence to stain Shi Tiande’s reputation and expose Shi Yuqing’s embezzlement, while Li Guxian said they would need Eternal Elders’ support and a Shi Family descendant to make the accusations.
• Li Guxian revealed that Shi Wei, a Shi Family Saint Child whom she had rescued and secretly aided, could report Shi Yuqing and Shi Renshan to the Council of Elders.

Lin Bai, Li Guxian, and the Phoenix Valley Sect Master discussed how to deal with the Shi Family and the proposed martial contest between the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace and the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect. The Phoenix Valley Sect Master suggested that Lin Bai’s absence could let the First God Child’s defeat ruin his chances of becoming Emperor Child, even if the Demon Palace lost territory.

• Li Guxian and the Phoenix Valley Sect Master planned to have a Shi Family direct-line martial warrior report the Shi Family, while Lin Bai agreed to seek support from Zhao Fengxia, Yao Daogu, and other Eternal Elders.
• Lin Bai told Li Guxian and the Phoenix Valley Sect Master about Meng Qinxian and Nie Shang’s proposal to decide the conflict through martial combat, with Lin Bai barred from participating.
• Li Guxian listed which of the Nine Divine Halls’ God Children and Goddesses had returned or were returning to the Demon Palace, and the Phoenix Valley Sect Master identified likely Demon Palace contestants.
• The Phoenix Valley Sect Master assessed the opposing contestants and said the contest would be evenly matched without Lin Bai, while the Demon Palace would likely win if Lin Bai took part.
• The Phoenix Valley Sect Master proposed that Lin Bai sit out so the First God Child could lose again and be discredited as a candidate for Emperor Child, accepting the risk of losing a hundred Qianzhou.

Lin Bai rejected a plan to sacrifice Devil Palace interests to bring down the First God Child and summoned eight Eternal Elders to discuss their support. Elder He Gongji revealed that the Council of Elders had recalled him from Eternal Night Pass and ordered Shi Tianlan to take command of its defenders.

• Lin Bai refused the Sect Master of Phoenix Valley’s proposal to risk the Devil Palace’s interests, and asked Phoenix Valley to prepare against the Shi Family instead.
• Lin Bai and Li Guxian invited eight Eternal Elders, including allies and elders hostile to the Shi Family, to meet at the Imperial Palace.
• The invited elders discussed whether Lin Bai would defeat the First God Child and what support or concessions they might seek from him.
• He Gongji arrived and told the elders that the Council of Elders had ordered him back from Eternal Night Pass and transferred command of the Demon Subduing Guard to Shi Tianlan.
• Lin Bai asked who was guarding Eternal Night Pass, and He Gongji began explaining the Council’s orders.

Li Guxian and Lin Bai negotiated with the Eternal Elders, offering their families territories from the Devil Palace’s newly acquired lands in return for their support. The meeting ended with Wang Shuyang revealing that the First God Child had already promised those same territories to families loyal to him, some of which had begun taking possession.

• Li Guxian explained that the Shi Family had taken control of the Demon Subduing Guard to curb Lin Bai’s influence, while the First God Child targeted He Gongji’s family in retaliation.
• He Gongji said he would not rush his promised chance to break through, but warned that the First God Child had publicly executed several of his family’s young warriors.
• Li Guxian argued that Lin Bai’s supporters should avoid civil war and instead discuss the benefits their families could receive.
• Li Guxian promised Yunhe Thousand Provinces to the He Family, Seven Mountains Thousand Provinces to the Yao Family, and Ten Thousand Aspects Thousand Provinces to the Zhao Family.
• Wang Shuyang revealed that the First God Child had already promised those territories to the Xun, Situ, and Shangguan Families, whose members had begun taking them over.

Li Guxian and Lin Bai negotiated with the Eternal Elders over territory and support in Lin Bai’s struggle against the First God Child. Several elders pledged to help Lin Bai deal with the Shi Family, while Wang Shuyang was left weighing his position.

• Li Guxian argued that territories allocated without documents from the Palace Lord were only verbal promises, and Wang Shuyang agreed that Council of Elders resolutions alone were insufficient.
• Li Guxian told the elders that they would have to risk supporting Lin Bai to gain territory and influence after the Devil Palace’s power structure was reshuffled.
• Lin Bai promised Yao Daogu, Zhao Fengxia, and He Gongji that he would obtain Palace Lord documents granting their lineages control of three thousand prefectures before the Renaming Ceremony.
• Lin Bai raised the elders’ past grievances with the Shi Family, and Zhou Yurong, Hao Yu, and Yuan Chenhuan openly pledged support if he dealt with the Shi Family.
• Lin Bai told the three elders to support Li Guxian at the Council of Elders meeting but kept his plan against the Shi Family secret, leaving Wang Shuyang scrambling to match their show of loyalty.