Chapter Summaries

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.

Lin Bai and Li Guxian weighed how to manage the Eternal Elders who had pledged support, then Lin Bai waited for the Palace Master to summon him. Two days later, Qian Wu summoned Lin Bai, and Old Wen revealed that the Palace Master had secretly returned to the Devil Palace and was waiting nearby.

• After Wang Shuyang questioned whether Zhou Yurong, Hao Yu, and Yuan Chenhuan had manipulated him, he left, while He Gongji urged the elders to support Lin Bai and take risks for future rewards.
• Yuan Chenhuan, Hao Yu, and Zhou Yurong agreed to cooperate with Yao Daogu, Zhao Fengxia, and He Gongji at the Council of Elders.
• Li Guxian warned Lin Bai not to fulfill the elders' promises too quickly, and Lin Bai agreed to wait for the Palace Master's response about the promised territorial documents.
• Lin Bai sent Li Guxian to discuss the operation against the Shi Family with the Sect Master of Phoenix Valley and waited in the Imperial Palace for a summons.
• Two days later, Qian Wu summoned Lin Bai to the Sacred Sanctuary, and Old Wen led him along a small path after revealing that the Palace Master was waiting at a nearby cliff.

Lin Bai met the Palace Lord of the Demon Palace in person and learned more about the Heaven Swallowing Race, the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace, and the Royal Clan’s dangerous memory-devouring abilities. The Palace Lord told Lin Bai to remain in the Devil Realm and cultivate, while Leng Xingguang would be sent to the clan’s ancestral land.

• The Palace Lord revealed his true, middle-aged appearance to Lin Bai and explained that he had hidden his presence in the Devil Realm to protect the Heaven Swallowing Race’s identities.
• The Palace Lord refused to reveal the clan’s ancestral land or its plans until Lin Bai surpassed the Chaos Dao Fruit Realm, and said Leng Xingguang would go there while Lin Bai stayed in the Devil Realm.
• The Palace Lord explained that the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace had been founded to nurture Heaven Swallowing Race members, and that Holy Lord had risen to power before going mad and falling.
• The Palace Lord told Lin Bai that Holy Lord and Lin Bai belonged to the Royal Clan, whose members had special abilities, and warned that devouring too many memories could confuse and damage the mind.
• The Palace Lord declined to destroy the Shi Family because doing so could draw the Giant God Race’s attention, and urged Lin Bai to focus on cultivating the Nine Yuan Devil God Art.

Lin Bai met with the Palace Lord of the Demon Palace, who secretly gave him documents granting fiefs to three families and revealed the Shi Family’s hidden history and powerful allies. Lin Bai left knowing which Devil Palace elders he could trust as he prepared to deal with the Shi Family and the First God Child.

• The Palace Lord of the Demon Palace gave Lin Bai valid territorial documents granting lands to the He, Zhao, and Yao Families, while warning that he would not openly help Lin Bai attack the Shi Family.
• The Palace Lord of the Demon Palace revealed that the Shi Family had two dormant Great Mystic Art User ancestors and that its Sacred Stone Scripture came from its ancestors’ role guarding the Burial Earth.
• The Palace Lord of the Demon Palace explained that the Shi Family had owned Nine Underworlds City before the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace moved there and that the Shi Family’s past had been obscured in historical records.
• The Palace Lord of the Demon Palace told Lin Bai to trust Luo Yuanjing, Duanmu Peng, and Elder Lei, but warned him about Yue Chuanming and another Great Mystic Art User who sided with the Shi Family.
• The Palace Lord of the Demon Palace said at least a dozen former Devil Palace Great Mystic Art Users remained dormant in the Burial Earth, while only six could freely move through the Myriad Realms.
• The Palace Lord of the Demon Palace admitted he had summoned Lin Bai to stage a response to complaints from Shi Renshan and the First God Child, then told Lin Bai to heed Li Guxian’s schemes.

Lin Bai learned that the Demon Palace had agreed to a martial contest against the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect, and that the Azure Lotus Sect secretly backed the Demon Subjugation Alliance. After arranging for Li Guxian to receive the three documents and promising to cooperate against the Shi Family and First God Child, Lin Bai met with Wang Zhengyang and Chu Junyou, who had come to the Demon Palace.

• Lin Bai told the Palace Lord of the Demon Palace about the proposed martial contest, and the Palace Lord confirmed it would take place during the Demon Palace's Renaming Ceremony with five God Children representing the Demon Palace.
• Lin Bai guessed that the Azure Lotus Sect was secretly supporting the Demon Subjugation Alliance, and the Palace Lord confirmed that the Alliance Master was the Azure Lotus Sect's current Sect Master.
• Lin Bai returned to the Imperial Palace with Old Wen and ordered him to deliver three documents to Li Guxian, who would pass them to He Gongji, Yao Daogu, and Zhao Fengxia.
• Lin Bai told Old Wen to have Li Guxian and the master of Phoenix Valley notify him when they were ready to act against the Shi Family and the First God Child.
• Dao Child Yu You told Lin Bai that Chu Junyou and Wang Zhengyang were waiting at the Star Gazing Pavilion, and Lin Bai went to meet them.

Lin Bai met Crown Prince Chu and Wang Zhengyang in the Star Gazing Pavilion, where they discussed the Qi Tian Sect refugees and growing threats to the Devil Realm Eastern Region. After learning the Western Region's kingdoms might be acting under outside influence, Lin Bai revealed evidence that Hailong Kingdom's Shangguan Xiu had tried to open a passage to the Netherworld.

• Lin Bai shared Dragon Blood Wine with Crown Prince Chu and Wang Zhengyang as they discussed the refugees from Qi Tian Sect and the challenges Nine Underworlds Demon Palace would face after its Renaming Ceremony.
• Wang Zhengyang explained that Ten Thousand Saints Mountain could not aid Qi Tian Sect because the Western Region's kingdoms had unexpectedly ceased fighting and were pressuring its borders.
• Crown Prince Chu suggested that powerful outsiders might have united the Western Region's kingdoms, and he agreed to have the Zhao Xing Office investigate.
• Lin Bai recalled that Shangguan Xiu had used a Death Altar in Chu Kingdom Hunting Realm to try to contact the Netherworld, and he showed Wang Zhengyang and Crown Prince Chu the bone tablet he had taken.
• Wang Zhengyang and Crown Prince Chu were shocked by Lin Bai's evidence that the Netherworld's involvement could not be ruled out.

Lin Bai, Chu Junyou, and Wang Zhengyang discussed signs of Netherworld involvement in the Western Region and the Northern Region’s suspicious military movements along the Eastern Region’s frontier. Wang Zhengyang suggested the Northern Region had deliberately accepted defeat in the tournament and might be waiting for chaos in the Devil Realm, leaving them to question why it had withdrawn when Chu and the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace would never have let it enter even after losing.

• Wang Zhengyang asked Chu Junyou to investigate the suspected Netherworld presence in the Western Region after the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace matter was settled, and Chu Junyou agreed to cooperate.
• Chu Junyou told Lin Bai that Northern Region warriors were still probing Eternal Night Pass and Horizon Pass, while other forces had withdrawn only far enough to return to the frontier within about ten days.
• Lin Bai and Chu Junyou discussed how the Northern Region might exploit the Divine Medicine War and use local clans to attack while avoiding blame from the three ancient powers.
• Wang Zhengyang proposed that the Northern Region was waiting for chaos in the Devil Realm and observed that its forces had seemed unusually unconcerned about losing the tournament.
• Lin Bai recalled that Bu Junfeng had appeared capable of continuing their fight but had chosen to admit defeat, while Chu Junyou and Lin Bai confirmed their sides would not have allowed the Northern Region to enter even if they had lost.

Wang Zhengyang argued that the Northern Region might accept losing the martial competition so it could wait for the Eastern Region to be weakened by attacks on Ten Thousand Saints Mountain and Qi Tian Sect. His suspicions extended to possible secret coordination among the regions and the Chu Kingdom, while Lin Bai said the Devil Palace would strengthen its defenses and prepare to deal with the First God Child and the Shi Family.

• Lin Bai and Chu Junyou questioned why the Northern Region would treat victory in the competition as unimportant, and Wang Zhengyang explained that losing could help it avoid a costly head-on war while it waited for the Eastern Region to be divided.
• Wang Zhengyang suggested that the Southern Region might attack Qi Tian Sect and the Western Region might pressure Ten Thousand Saints Mountain, leaving the Chu Kingdom and Nine Underworlds Demon Palace more exposed to the Northern Region.
• Chu Junyou and Wang Zhengyang agreed that their forces should expand, with Wang Zhengyang announcing that Ten Thousand Saints Mountain planned to organize loyal lineages into an army of roughly ten million troops.
• Wang Zhengyang questioned whether the Chu Kingdom's rapid military expansion and past knowledge of the Netherworld plot indicated secret connections to the other regions; Chu Junyou denied knowing anything but promised to investigate and defend the Eastern Region.
• Lin Bai said he would urge the Devil Palace to reinforce its borders and expand its army, and he told Wang Zhengyang that plans to deal with the First God Child and the Shi Family were already underway.

As the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace prepared to hold its Renaming Ceremony, Lin Bai met old friends from Ten Thousand Saints Mountain, who warned him that their sects’ support depended on him remaining Imperial Son and stopping the First God Child from threatening them. Their meeting was interrupted by the arrival of more visitors from Chu and other sects.

• After two-thirds of the Devil Realm Eastern Region’s top and flourishing sects arrived, Lin Bai learned that the Renaming Ceremony would take place on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, while Qi Lingyu was still on his way.
• Lin Bai met Mo Nan, Li Xuanqiu, and Yi Heze at the Star Gazing Pavilion, where they explained that the First God Child had demanded the return of treasures their sects supposedly took from the Demon Palace a hundred thousand years earlier.
• Lin Bai assured them that he still intended to honor the promise to forgive past grievances, but admitted that the First God Child held great authority in the Demon Palace.
• Mo Nan and Yi Heze said their sects would support the Demon Palace’s rule only if Lin Bai remained Imperial Son, and urged him to deal with the First God Child.
• Dao Child Yu You arrived and announced that Shui Mo Dan, Chen Yule, Huang Qingyun, Yi Song, and Bai Yifei had come to request an audience.

Lin Bai welcomed Holy Sons and Holy Daughters from Chu, who complained that First God Child Yan Congjiao was demanding the return of treasures their sects had taken from the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace ten thousand years earlier. To address the dispute, Lin Bai invoked his authority to convene the Council of Elders and summon Yan Congjiao and the Demon Palace’s senior leaders.

• Lin Bai welcomed Shui Mo Dan, Chen Yule, Yi Song, Huang Qingyun, and Bai Yifei to the Star Gazing Pavilion, and learned Huang Qingyun and her other self were coexisting.
• Chen Yule and Yi Song told Lin Bai that First God Child Yan Congjiao had antagonized their sects, while Bai Yifei said Yan had demanded the Tianshui Sect return treasures taken ten thousand years ago.
• Huang Qingyun said the Sacred Lotus Palace had faced similar demands, and her other self revealed she had severely injured a Demon Palace Dao Child.
• Shui Mo Dan told Lin Bai that the Demon Palace wanted her Spirit Refining Furnace, which Lin Bai recognized as the Holy Lord’s Alchemy Furnace.
• Lin Bai summoned Old Wen and ordered him to convene the Council of Elders, requiring the elders, Yan Congjiao, and the returned God Children and Goddesses to attend.

Lin Bai summoned an extraordinary Council of Elders at Ascension Peak, leaving the gathered elders and God Children unsure of his purpose. The chapter ended with Shi Renshan and Yan Congjiao claiming the front seats, angering He Gongji and the other elders.

• Lin Bai reassured the visiting Holy Daughters and Holy Sons, then headed to Ascension Peak with Dao Child Yu You to convene the Council of Elders.
• Eternal Elders and several God Children arrived, but none knew why Lin Bai had summoned them.
• Li Guxian arrived and confirmed that she had not advised Lin Bai or known about the meeting beforehand.
• Shi Renshan and First God Child Yan Congjiao arrived, and the gathered elders noticed that no supporters of the Shi Family were present.
• Yan Congjiao reluctantly saluted the elders after Shi Renshan prompted him, then sat beside Shi Renshan in the front row, provoking He Gongji and the others.

Lin Bai convened an emergency Council of Elders, where Saint Elder Duanmu Peng rebuked the First God Child and Shi Renshan for the First God Child’s arrogance and conduct. Lin Bai arrived and took the Emperor Child’s seat as the council prepared to proceed.

• Shi Renshan suspected Lin Bai had called the council to target him and the First God Child, but neither could identify anything they had done recently to invite blame.
• Luo Yuanjing, Duanmu Peng, and Lei Qin arrived and confirmed that Lin Bai had summoned them under his authority as Emperor Child.
• Duanmu Peng reprimanded the First God Child for disrespecting Lin Bai and condemned his recklessness, including his defeat at the eastern region’s border; he warned Shi Renshan that he was responsible for his disciple’s behavior.
• Shi Renshan defended the First God Child, but Duanmu Peng warned that the First God Child could bring disaster upon himself and the Demon Palace.
• Lin Bai entered with Old Wen and Dao Child Yu You, was greeted by the elders and Saint Elders, and took the fourth chair beside them.

Lin Bai convened the Council of Elders to confront Yan Congjiao and Shi Renshan over their treatment of visiting envoys during the Demon Palace Renaming Ceremony. After exposing Yan Congjiao’s demands for the return of treasures lost ten thousand years earlier, Lin Bai turned Shi Renshan’s defense toward Saint Elder Luo Yuanjing.

• Lin Bai opened the Council of Elders and established that Shi Renshan had been assigned to receive the visiting envoys, with Luo Yuanjing confirming the council’s decision.
• Lin Bai questioned Yan Congjiao about receiving the envoys, while Shi Renshan tried to dismiss the accusations as slander from hostile outsiders.
• Lin Bai accused Yan Congjiao of demanding that visiting sects return treasures seized ten thousand years earlier, despite the Demon Palace’s decision not to pursue those losses.
• Shi Renshan argued that the Demon Palace had never issued an official document announcing that decision, and Luo Yuanjing confirmed that none had been issued.
• Lin Bai challenged Shi Renshan over whether he was blaming Luo Yuanjing for the missing document or accusing the Saint Elder of favoritism.

Lin Bai used the First God Child Yan Congjiao’s demands for the Devil Palace’s lost treasures to argue that he had endangered the Palace’s delicate alliances and rebuilding efforts. As Shi Renshan challenged Lin Bai’s accusations, the three Saint Elders pressed Yan Congjiao to explain himself, and Lin Bai framed his actions as a threat to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace’s survival.

• Lin Bai shifted the dispute over the missing written order toward Saint Elder Luo Yuanjing, who acknowledged that the Palace Master had approved the Council of Elders’ decision and then questioned Yan Congjiao.
• Saint Elder Duanmu Peng and Saint Elder Lei Qin stopped Shi Renshan from answering for his disciple, and Yan Congjiao admitted asking visiting envoy groups to return treasures taken from the Devil Palace a hundred thousand years earlier.
• Yan Congjiao defended his demand as an attempt to reclaim the Palace’s property, while Lin Bai agreed that recovering the treasures was reasonable but condemned the timing and its threat to the Palace’s strategic policy.
• Lin Bai listed the Devil Palace’s external threats and internal unrest, then explained that many visiting sects supported the Renaming Ceremony because of his personal connections.
• Lin Bai argued that Yan Congjiao’s treatment of the envoys could drive away the Palace’s allies and jeopardize its rebuilding, prompting Shi Renshan to accuse Lin Bai of exaggerating the danger to eliminate a rival.

Lin Bai persuaded the three Saint Elders and the Eternal Elders that Yan Congjiao’s misconduct risked turning the Devil Palace’s allies against it, forcing Yan to admit his mistake. After Lin Bai left the punishment to the Saint Elders, Li Guxian offered Yan a choice between apologizing to the visiting emissaries and a hundred-year imprisonment at Contemplation Cliff.

• Lin Bai argued that Yan Congjiao’s offenses threatened the Devil Palace’s efforts to rebuild and risked uniting the Eastern Region against it.
• Luo Yuanjing, Duanmu Peng, and Lei Qin agreed that Yan should be punished, and several Eternal Elders backed them while Shi Renshan stayed silent.
• Under pressure from Luo Yuanjing, Yan admitted his mistake, and Lin Bai proposed removing Yan and Shi Renshan from responsibility for receiving emissaries before leaving the punishment to the Saint Elders.
• The Saint Elders asked Li Guxian how Yan should be punished, and she offered him the choice of apologizing to the emissaries or enduring a hundred years of imprisonment at Contemplation Cliff.