Chapter Summaries

Lin Bai reached the eighth step of the Nine-Step Heavenly Ladder, but Elder Li stopped him under threat of exposing his secrets, and he withdrew before entering the Heavenly Palace. The examination ended with eleven martial artists passing, and Lin Bai was accepted as an inner disciple of the Eternal Devil Sect.

• Qingqiu Yun, Yang Chang, and Wu Yuanlin stopped at the third step while Lin Bai climbed to the seventh and then the eighth step.
• Elder Li received the Sect Master's order to accept Lin Bai as an inner disciple but prevent him from entering the Heavenly Palace.
• Elder Li and the other elders struck at Lin Bai to stop him, and Elder Li warned that Lin Bai's secrets could be exposed if he continued.
• Lin Bai returned to the third step and told Elder Li he could go no farther, then waited with Qingqiu Yun, Yang Chang, and Wu Yuanlin.
• The examination ended a day later with eleven martial artists passing, after Martial Uncle Yan's mistake had caused most examinees to fail the first trial.

Lin Bai entered the Eternal Devil Sect as an Inner Sect Disciple, but Elder Li kept his assessment under investigation while privately assuring him the sect would protect his secret. Elder Li brought Lin Bai, Zhou Xi, and Sun Yao to Lin Bai’s assigned residence, the Sword Hiding Hermitage.

• Elder Li led the eleven successful candidates to the Inner Sect Affairs Hall, where he sent everyone except Lin Bai to choose a residence.
• Elder Li claimed Lin Bai might have cheated on the assessment, prompting Wu Yuanlin to mock him, then said Lin Bai’s residence and supplies had already been arranged.
• Lin Bai questioned Elder Li about the investigation, and Elder Li explained that his actions followed orders from above and that the sect would keep his secret from outsiders.
• Elder Li told Lin Bai that the Thirteen Provinces Alliance dominated the Eternal Devil Sect and that disciples’ status now depended on their strength.
• Elder Li brought Lin Bai, Zhou Xi, and Sun Yao to Lin Bai’s new mountain residence and named it the Sword Hiding Hermitage.

Elder Li brought Lin Bai, Sun Yao, and Zhou Xi to Sword Hiding Hermitage and explained that the Eternal Devil Sect would let Lin Bai reside there as an inner disciple. After Elder Li left without explaining why the sect was watching Lin Bai, Lin Bai decided to cultivate while preparing to flee if the sect turned against him.

• Elder Li showed Lin Bai, Sun Yao, and Zhou Xi Sword Hiding Hermitage, Five Elements Mountain, and Moon Gazing Pond, which would belong to Qing Luo as his residence and dao arena.
• Elder Li explained that Lin Bai could attend lectures on the dao at Immortality Seeking Peak, and that Sun Yao and Zhou Xi could cultivate and attend lectures as his servants.
• An Affairs Hall disciple delivered robes, scriptures, and necessities for Lin Bai, and Elder Li departed after assuring him the sect would not kill him as long as he remained loyal.
• When Lin Bai asked when someone would explain the situation, Elder Li said it depended on Lin Bai's ability and left on a cloud.
• Lin Bai suspected the Eternal Devil Sect knew about his Devouring Spirit and decided to cultivate at Sword Hiding Hermitage, reach the Dao realm quickly, and escape if the sect showed sinister intentions.

Lin Bai settled into Sword Hiding Hermitage and studied the Devil Realm while considering how to find treasures for his Dao Realm tribulation. After sensing five inner sect disciples entering his cultivation ground, he followed them to a hidden cavern at Exquisite Ice Cliff and discovered they were collecting Exquisite Ice Crystals.

• Lin Bai told Zhou Xi and Sun Yao to explore the Eternal Devil Sect and improve their cultivation while he focused on his own affairs.
• Lin Bai examined the books and disciple robes in the Storage Bag, learning that he was in the Evil Moon Thousand Provinces of the Nine Cauldrons Realm.
• Lin Bai sensed five Quasi-Dao Realm inner sect disciples entering Five Elements Mountain and followed them to a hidden cavern at Exquisite Ice Cliff.
• The five disciples collected an Exquisite Ice Crystal, and Senior Brother Xue said he would keep it to forge a Dao-grade divine weapon before offering the others Devil Orbs for their help.

Lin Bai discovered that Sword Hiding Hermitage held valuable treasures and caught five Bear Province Alliance disciples taking an Exquisite Ice Crystal. After proving he was the hermitage’s new master, he established that the crystal belonged to him and the five had been stealing from his territory.

• Lin Bai entered the Exquisite Ice Cliff and learned that an Exquisite Ice Crystal formed there each month and was highly valuable.
• The five Bear Province Alliance disciples watched a crystal fall while discussing the many treasures across Sword Hiding Hermitage and its grounds.
• Lin Bai used spiritual power to seize the crystal before the five could take it, then told them it belonged to Sword Hiding Hermitage’s master.
• Senior Brother Xue claimed the alliance had won rights to the Exquisite Ice Cliff, but Lin Bai revealed that he was the hermitage’s new master.
• Lin Bai showed his Identity Token, and the five confirmed its inscription was genuine, realizing that taking the crystals now meant stealing from him.

Lin Bai defended the Sword Hiding Hermitage by defeating five members of the Bear Province Alliance who tried to take the Exquisite Ice Crystals. The Sect Master revealed that the sect had given Lin Bai the hermitage as a test, and expected other provincial alliances to challenge him soon.

• Senior Brother Xue and four Bear Province Alliance disciples demanded that Lin Bai hand over the Exquisite Ice Crystals, then attacked when he refused.
• Lin Bai defeated all five with a single strike, warned them not to trespass again, and let them return to the Bear Province Alliance with his message.
• Lin Bai returned to the Sword Hiding Hermitage and meditated beside Moon Gazing Pond while considering how to defend it.
• Elder Li reported the confrontation to the Sect Master, who said Lin Bai had to survive the challenge if he was to face the Giant God Race.
• The Sect Master told Elder Li to watch the hermitage and predicted that the other provincial alliances would soon come looking for Lin Bai.

Lin Bai showed Zhou Xi and Sun Yao Five Elements Mountain’s treasures and landmarks, including Exquisite Ice Cliff, a valuable Spirit Herb Garden, the Eighteenth Level of the Fire Domain, and the Divine Wind Corridor. He planned to search the mountain for the Sun Moon Divine Flower and Ten-Thousand Year Spirit Milk while expecting the province alliance that owned the garden to come claim it.

• Lin Bai took Zhou Xi and Sun Yao to Exquisite Ice Cliff, where Zhou Xi recognized the Exquisite Ice Crystal as a superb weapon-refining treasure.
• Lin Bai revealed that warriors from Bear Province Alliance had come to take the crystal and that he had fought them.
• Lin Bai led Zhou Xi and Sun Yao to the eastern Spirit Herb Garden, where Zhou Xi identified valuable herbs worth tens of thousands of Devil Orbs.
• Lin Bai showed them the southern Fire Domain but kept them out of its dangerous depths.
• Lin Bai guided them through the western Divine Wind Corridor, whose hidden mystery remained undiscovered.
• Lin Bai told Zhou Xi and Sun Yao to search Five Elements Mountain for the Sun Moon Divine Flower and Ten-Thousand Year Spirit Milk.

Lin Bai met a Tiger Demon that had secretly followed him and allowed it to remain in Five Elements Mountain, naming it Gu Yuanshan and tasking it with managing the mountain’s spirits. He sent Gu Yuanshan, Zhou Xi, and Sun Yao to search for the Sun Moon Divine Flower and Ten-Thousand Year Spirit Milk while preparing for the provincial alliances to approach the Sword Hiding Hermitage.

• Lin Bai confronted the Tiger Demon, which revealed it had overheard his conversation at the Sword Hiding Hermitage and came to ask permission to stay in Five Elements Mountain.
• Lin Bai allowed the Tiger Demon to remain if it cultivated peacefully and kept the other spirits and monsters in line.
• The Tiger Demon eagerly called Lin Bai its master, and Lin Bai named it Gu Yuanshan.
• Gu Yuanshan told Lin Bai that the Heng Province Alliance controlled the eastern Spirit Herb Garden, the Sun Moon Divine Flower, and the Ten-Thousand Year Spirit Milk, though it concealed the latter two locations.
• Lin Bai ordered Gu Yuanshan to search for the two treasures with Zhou Xi and Sun Yao, and anticipated that the provincial alliances would soon visit the Sword Hiding Hermitage.
• Lin Bai took out the Myriad Formation Banner as he considered how to handle the coming visitors.

Lin Bai refined the Myriad Formation Banner and used it to protect Five Elements Mountain, then waited for the province alliances to respond to his control of Sword Hiding Hermitage. The Bear Province Alliance decided to let the Heng Province Alliance test Lin Bai before choosing whether to challenge him or yield the Exquisite Ice Cliff.

• Lin Bai broke the divine sense imprint on the Myriad Formation Banner and deployed its formations to conceal and protect Five Elements Mountain and Sword Hiding Hermitage.
• Lin Bai studied the banner, arranged its formations across the mountain, and taught Zhou Xi, Sun Yao, and Tiger Demon Gu Yuanshan how to pass through them safely.
• Senior Brother Xue and his companions returned to the Bear Province Alliance severely wounded and reported that Sword Hiding Hermitage had an owner named Qing Luo.
• Dragon Protector consulted the Bear Province Alliance's master, who advised the alliance not to act rashly and to watch the Heng Province Alliance first.
• The Bear Province Alliance's master said they would return the Exquisite Ice Cliff and seek a favorable connection if the Heng Province Alliance failed to overcome Lin Bai.

The province alliances learned that the Sword Hiding Hermitage had gained an owner and weighed the risk of losing the resources they controlled there. While the other alliances waited for the Heng Province Alliance to act first, Vice-Alliance Leader Wu faced pressure to decide how to protect Heng’s valuable holdings.

• The Bear Province Alliance announced that the Sword Hiding Hermitage had an owner and held its forces in place until the Heng Province Alliance made a move.
• The Quan Province Alliance Leader discussed the threat to the Eighteenth Level of the Fire Domain and decided to wait for the Heng Province Alliance to test the new owner.
• The Quan, Bear, Kong, and Yuan Province Alliances stayed inactive for several days, leaving the Heng Province Alliance to make the first move.
• Heng Province Alliance guardians urged Vice-Alliance Leader Wu to act, citing their spirit herbs, Sun Moon Divine Flower, and Ten-Thousand Year Spirit Milk.
• Vice-Alliance Leader Wu acknowledged the value of Heng’s holdings and its future reservations, then asked the guardians for ideas.

The Heng Province Alliance planned to negotiate with Lin Bai over the Sword Hiding Hermitage’s rare resources, while secretly considering killing him outside the sect if he refused. Old Mei went to meet Lin Bai, who welcomed the envoy into the hermitage.

• Vice-Alliance Leader Wu and the Heng Province Alliance discussed the value of the Sun Moon Divine Flower, Ten-Thousand Year Spirit Milk, and eastern Spirit Herb Garden.
• An elder proposed that the alliance offer Lin Bai support in exchange for managing the hermitage’s resources, then arrange his death outside the sect if he refused.
• Old Mei volunteered to approach Lin Bai, and Vice-Alliance Leader Wu sent him to sound out Lin Bai’s strength.
• Lin Bai told Zhou Xi and Sun Yao that people were flying over the hermitage to see its new master, then joked about his unsuccessful fishing.
• Old Mei arrived, recognized the Myriad Formation Banner, and asked to meet Lin Bai; Zhou Xi welcomed him and led him inside.

Lin Bai met with Old Mei of the Heng Province Alliance and challenged the alliance’s claims over resources in the Sword Hiding Hermitage. The meeting ended with Lin Bai demanding the locations of the Sun Moon Divine Flower and Ten-Thousand Year Spirit Milk, making his position clear.

• Zhou Xi brought Old Mei to Moon Gazing Pond, where Lin Bai greeted him and hosted him for tea.
• Old Mei questioned Lin Bai about his origins and the Sword Hiding Hermitage, while Lin Bai tried to learn about the sect and the alliance.
• Zhou Xi and Sun Yao suspected Lin Bai was deliberately appearing to lose ground to draw out information from Old Mei.
• Old Mei explained the Thirteen Provinces Alliance’s annual martial competition and claimed the Heng Province Alliance had won cultivation resources on Five Elements Mountain.
• Lin Bai revealed that he knew the Heng Province Alliance controlled the Sun Moon Divine Flower and Ten-Thousand Year Spirit Milk, then demanded Old Mei tell him where they were.

Lin Bai rejected Old Mei’s offer to give the Heng Province Alliance the cultivation resources at Sword Hiding Hermitage in exchange for protection, proposing instead to share the proceeds from selling them. Old Mei left warning that the alliance would test whether Lin Bai could defend the estate.

• Old Mei explained that the Heng Province Alliance was controlled by the Eight Great Noble Families of Heng Province and offered Lin Bai protection if he surrendered the Spirit Herb Garden, Sun Moon Divine Flower, and Ten-Thousand Year Spirit Milk.
• Lin Bai asked how many magic pearls he would receive, but Old Mei said the alliance’s sales of the resources were an internal matter.
• Lin Bai refused to surrender the resources and proposed a seventy-thirty split of sales, with seventy percent going to him.
• Old Mei rejected the proposal and warned that the Heng Province Alliance would test whether Lin Bai could hold Sword Hiding Hermitage.
• After Old Mei left, Lin Bai told Sun Yao that he could not yield to the alliance or risk losing control of the estate’s resources.

Lin Bai learned why the provincial alliances had stayed quiet after he refused the Heng Province Alliance’s demands: they were waiting to see whether he would yield. Li Yumen and other Lian Province cultivators then explained the status of the Seven Great Daoist Grounds and revealed that the Heng Province Alliance leader, Murong Chuan, had once been granted the Golden Leaf Manor for his talent.

• Lin Bai concluded that retreating before the Heng Province Alliance would invite the other provincial alliances to challenge his authority over the Sword Hiding Hermitage.
• After two peaceful days, Zhou Xi brought Li Yumen, Duan Kun, Ji Taining, and Yi Mei to meet Lin Bai.
• Li Yumen and the others questioned whether Lin Bai had powerful connections, but Lin Bai denied the rumors that he was the Sect Master's illegitimate son.
• Li Yumen explained that the Sword Hiding Hermitage, Peaceful Retreat, Golden Leaf Manor, Eternal Palace, Immortal Buddha Grotto, Myriad Ages Mountain, and Thousand Autumns Lake were the Eternal Devil Sect's seven treasured daoist grounds.
• Yi Mei described the prominent masters of the Eternal Palace, Peaceful Retreat, and Immortal Buddha Grotto, while Li Yumen said Murong Chuan had received the Golden Leaf Manor after entering the Dao realm in eighty-nine years.
• Lin Bai compared Murong Chuan's achievement with his own progress and judged that his talent was greater.

Lin Bai learned about the Sword Hiding Hermitage’s hidden treasures and joined the Lian Province Alliance. After the others left, Li Yumen admitted that he, too, resented Lin Bai’s appointment as its owner, leaving Lin Bai to face the question of whether he deserved it.

• Senior Sister Yi Mei explained that the Sword Hiding Hermitage held renowned treasures and might conceal even greater riches, making Lin Bai eager to explore it.
• Li Yumen invited Lin Bai to join the Lian Province Alliance, and Lin Bai agreed partly because Xiao Ji had helped him enter the sect under the identity of Qing Luo.
• Senior Sister Yi Mei, Duan Kun, and Ji Taining left, while Li Yumen stayed to admire the Sword Hiding Hermitage.
• Lin Bai asked Li Yumen why Duan Kun and Ji Taining seemed hostile, and Li Yumen said they were jealous of Lin Bai’s cultivation ground.
• Li Yumen confessed that he also resented Lin Bai’s appointment and questioned what made the newly arrived disciple worthy of the Sword Hiding Hermitage.

Lin Bai and Li Yumen discussed the Lian Province Alliance’s weakness and the threat posed by the Heng Province Alliance after talks over the Sword Hiding Hermitage failed. The Heng Province Alliance sent hundreds of martial artists to pressure Qing Luo, while the Eternal Devil Sect’s Sect Master chose not to intervene and waited to see whether Qing Luo could withstand the attack.

• Li Yumen urged Lin Bai to accept the Sword Hiding Hermitage and explained that the Lian Province Alliance was bullied because it was the weakest of the thirteen provincial alliances.
• Elder Li reported that Qing Luo had driven off the Heng Province Alliance’s envoy with the Myriad Formation Banner and that the alliance was preparing to attack him.
• The Sect Master ordered Elder Li not to interfere, saying Qing Luo had to withstand the Heng Province Alliance’s assault to prove useful to him.
• Several hundred Heng Province Alliance martial artists gathered outside the Sword Hiding Hermitage and were told to punish Qing Luo without killing him.
• A senior brother explained that the alliance wanted to make Qing Luo submit, seize the Hermitage’s resources, and investigate rumors that he was the Sect Master’s illegitimate son.

Lin Bai confronted hundreds of Heng Province Alliance martial artists who infiltrated the Sword Hiding Hermitage to cripple him. He defeated them without killing anyone, then told the hidden observers in the sky that the show was over and they could leave.

• Hundreds of Heng Province Alliance martial artists broke through the Myriad Formation Banner’s defenses and entered the Sword Hiding Hermitage while Elder Li, other Thirteen Provinces Alliance experts, and the concealed headmaster of the Eternal Devil Sect watched from the sky.
• Lin Bai sensed the intruders while drinking with Li Yumen, sent Li Yumen back to his seat, and went to meet the attackers alone.
• The Heng Province Alliance martial artists revealed they intended to teach Lin Bai a lesson and cripple him, then attacked him in the forest.
• Lin Bai activated the power of his nine God Seals and used the Demon Sword to defeat the attackers, leaving them wounded but alive.
• Lin Bai let the Heng Province Alliance martial artists withdraw and called out to the hidden observers, saying the show was over and they could leave.

Lin Bai defeated Heng Province Alliance’s attackers at Five Elements Mountain, then learned that the mysterious guest who came to drink with him was Li Mojun, the Eternal Devil Sect’s sect master. Li Mojun asked whether Lin Bai had recognized him, and Lin Bai explained how he had guessed.

• Experts from the Thirteen Provinces Alliance watched Heng Province Alliance retreat from Five Elements Mountain and left after Lin Bai told them to go.
• Li Yumen, Zhou Xi, and Sun Yao anxiously welcomed Lin Bai back, and Lin Bai concealed the fight by claiming that lost disciples had wandered into the mountain.
• Lin Bai drank with Li Yumen until after midnight, then helped the drunken Li Yumen back to rest and praised his loyalty.
• A white-robed man appeared undetected in the pavilion, introduced himself as Li Mojun, and shared wine with Lin Bai.
• Lin Bai suspected Li Mojun was the sect master of the Eternal Devil Sect, and Li Mojun confirmed it.
• Li Mojun asked whether Lin Bai had known his identity, and Lin Bai explained that Li Yumen’s description of the sect master had made him recognize the man’s bearing and aura.

Li Mojun explained why he had tested Lin Bai and revealed that the Eternal Devil Sect accepted him despite knowing he belonged to the Heaven Swallowing Race. He warned Lin Bai that the sect faced serious internal and external troubles and said it needed someone with the potential to overturn the situation.

• Li Mojun admitted he had arranged tests for Lin Bai, including the Heavenly Ladder trial and the Sword Hiding Hermitage, to judge his loyalty and strength.
• Li Mojun explained that the Heng Province Alliance had sent only Dao Realm fighters because he had influenced a guardian within the alliance.
• Li Mojun revealed that the sect knew Lin Bai possessed the Devouring Spirit and had accepted him despite the risks associated with the Heaven Swallowing Race.
• Li Mojun warned that Lin Bai's approaching Dao Realm breakthrough would bring a Heaven's Wrath Tribulation, but promised the sect would protect him while Li Mojun and the current leadership remained in power.
• Li Mojun said the Eternal Devil Sect needed Lin Bai's potential to overcome its crises and described how the Eight Great Noble Families of Heng Province had become a growing internal threat.
• Li Mojun began explaining the sect's external threats by asking Lin Bai what he knew about the situation in Lian Province.

Li Mojun explained how the Crimson Moon Divine Sect had weakened Lian Province over centuries and how the Evil Moon Sect’s favor kept the Eternal Devil Sect from intervening. He told Lin Bai that the sect needed him to help confront its many enemies, while their mutual leverage ensured neither side would turn against the other for now.

• Li Mojun told Lin Bai that Xuan Province had repeatedly invaded Lian Province, leaving it and its alliance within the Eternal Devil Sect depleted.
• Li Mojun explained that the Evil Moon Sect had suppressed the Eternal Devil Sect’s past attempt to defend Lian Province, partly because the Crimson Moon Divine Sect offered it Crimson Moon Spirit Liquid.
• Li Mojun described the Eternal Devil Sect’s threats from the Crimson Moon Divine Sect, Heng Province’s Eight Great Noble Families, the Evil Moon Sect, and the Thirteen Provinces Alliance.
• Li Mojun said he believed Lin Bai could help the Eternal Devil Sect overcome its predicament and assured him that the sect would not act against him.
• Li Mojun warned that the sect could expose Lin Bai as a member of the Heaven Swallowing Race if he betrayed it, and Lin Bai understood that they held each other in check.