Chapter Summaries

After Tang Sanzang cleared the simulated Chaos, the Three Pure Ones summoned Zhou Qingqing to the Three Pure Ones Hall and explained that the Gold and Silver Youths had reproduced only Primordial Chaos’s outward form. The Four Pure Ones joined forces to reveal true Primordial Chaos to Zhou Qingqing, who perceived it as the convergence of all possibilities.

• Tang Sanzang dissipated the Chaos landscape, leaving a state of unprecedented clarity.
• Supreme Pure Laozi summoned Zhou Qingqing back to the Three Pure Ones Hall, where she found all three Heavenly Venerates waiting.
• Jade Pure Primordial Heavenly Venerate, Upper Pure Master Tongtian, and Supreme Pure Laozi explained that the simulated Chaos Primordial lacked the essence of true Primordial Chaos.
• The Four Pure Ones joined their powers to unfold true Primordial Chaos while Zhou Qingqing opened her mind to it.
• Zhou Qingqing lost her senses in absolute stillness and perceived Primordial Chaos as the source of all possibilities.

The Preaching Squad survived the ninth view, Chaos Primordial, and the Gold Horn King and Silver Horn King gave them time to recover before the tenth view. As Amitabha Buddha watched and Tang Sanzang awaited his mission reward, Zhou Qingqing’s thoughts reached the Three Pure Ones.

• Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, Sha Wujin, and Tang Sanzang recovered from the ninth view as a gentle presence restored some of their strength.
• The Gold Horn King and Silver Horn King praised the squad for passing the nine great views and warned that the tenth tested their state of mind, so they would need to rest first.
• Amitabha Buddha sensed that the Preaching Squad had survived Chaos Primordial and used the reversed Swastika Symbol to watch the tenth view closely.
• Tang Sanzang remembered that he had not claimed the reward for completing the ninth-view mission, while Zhou Qingqing thought the Three Pure Ones should give the squad nothing good.

Tang Sanzang and his companions used Primordial Chaos Creation Pills from the Burial System to recover and break through their limits. Meanwhile, Little White Dragon Ao Lie gained new powers through his own system, and Daji realized that he and Tang Sanzang were using similar methods.

• The Burial System rewarded Tang Sanzang with five Primordial Chaos Creation Pills, and he gave pills to Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujin.
• The pills restored the four companions and helped them break through their bottlenecks, astonishing Gold Horn, Silver Horn, and Amitabha Buddha.
• Daji observed that Ao Lie had developed a seductive aura and seemed to be changing during his ordeal in Dragon-Pressing Cave.
• Ao Lie drew the Seven-Star Dragon Pearl Ghostshadow Dream Charm Dragon, the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor Flame, and the Illusory Pendant from his system.
• Daji recognized that Ao Lie had taken out his treasure just as Tang Sanzang had produced his pills, and she began considering whether her Love-Fate System offered other advantages.

Little White Dragon Ao Lie used the Phantom Dream-Charming Dragon, the Illusory Pendant, and the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor Flame to break Daji’s illusion in Dragon-Pressing Cave, but Daji unleashed the Red Embroidered Ball’s power over the Heaven, Earth, and Human Three Daos. Ao Lie summoned Yinglong, who ignored him and went to speak with Daji, leaving Amitabha Buddha stunned.

• Little White Dragon Ao Lie transformed into a Phantom Dream-Charming Dragon and combined the Illusory Pendant’s power with the Nine Nether Demon Ancestor Flame to shatter Daji’s illusion in Dragon-Pressing Cave.
• Daji activated the Red Embroidered Ball, unleashing a barrier of rules formed from the Heaven, Earth, and Human Three Daos that immobilized Ao Lie and assaulted his body, soul, and mind.
• Ao Lie fused the seven Dragon Pearls to summon Yinglong while Zhou Qingqing and the Heavenly Venerates watched.
• Yinglong saw Daji atop Dragon-Pressing Mountain and flew to her instead of rescuing Ao Lie.
• Amitabha Buddha watched Yinglong and Daji chat like old acquaintances and was left dumbfounded.

Daji persuaded Yellow Dragon True Person to use his wish-granting power on Little White Dragon Ao Lie, who was enduring her training in Dragon-Pressing Cave. Yellow Dragon made Ao Lie fall into a deep sleep, leaving him to realize that his ancestor had come to put him to sleep rather than rescue him.

• Little White Dragon Ao Lie summoned the Divine Dragon Ancestor again, but no one appeared in response.
• Yellow Dragon True Person explained to Daji that he had not known she was training Ao Lie and tried to leave.
• Daji challenged Yellow Dragon to help Ao Lie, and he offered to fulfill one reasonable wish before returning to rest.
• Daji wished for Ao Lie to have a comfortable sleep, and Yellow Dragon agreed to grant it.
• Yellow Dragon cast a sleep spell into Dragon-Pressing Cave, and Ao Lie promptly collapsed into a deep sleep.

The Preaching Squad recovered with the Hongmeng Creation Pill and set out with Gold Horn and Silver Horn to see Lotus Cave’s tenth great wonder. Daji and Amitabha Buddha watched with mounting anticipation as the group approached the mysterious destination.

• The Three Pure Ones heard Qingqing’s thoughts about wishes and Little White Dragon Ao Lie falling asleep.
• Daji watched the Divine Dragon disappear and saw Ao Lie sleeping, then looked forward to seeing how the Preaching Squad would handle Lotus Cave.
• Tang Sanzang confirmed that the Preaching Squad had recovered with the Hongmeng Creation Pill.
• Gold Horn and Silver Horn led Tang Sanzang, Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujin toward Lotus Cave’s tenth great wonder.
• Daji and Amitabha Buddha sensed the growing grandeur ahead and focused on watching the group approach.

The Preaching Squad entered the Tenth Great Wonder and found a barren wasteland containing phantoms of Gold Horn and Silver Horn, then watched as Green Ox’s horn joined theirs. Amitabha Buddha dismissed the spectacle as a mere fusion of Dao laws, while Supreme Pure Laozi revealed that he had named it the Tenth Great Wonder and urged Gold Horn and Silver Horn to explain who created it.

• The Preaching Squad opened the stone door and found a lifeless landscape with two colossal phantoms resembling Gold Horn and Silver Horn.
• Gold Horn said the wonder’s mystery was that when the twin horns set forth, not a blade of grass remained.
• Sun Wukong asked whether that was all, and Silver Horn revealed Green Ox’s horn joining the other two in the image.
• Amitabha Buddha recognized the horns and angrily concluded that the spectacle was only three Dao laws fusing together.
• Jade Pure Primordial Heavenly Venerate and Upper Pure Master Tongtian blamed Supreme Pure Laozi, who said he had designated the wonder to warn his disciples and told Gold Horn and Silver Horn to reveal its true creator.
• Chovy thought that Supreme Pure Laozi had failed to tell her about his plan and feared that naming her would ruin the Dao Venerable’s reputation.

Gold Horn and Silver Horn revealed that the tenth great wonder had been created by a great Daoist cultivator, leading everyone to recognize Zhou Qingqing’s hand in it. Amitabha Buddha realized the spectacle was a decoy that had distracted him while the Preaching Squad claimed the true opportunity in the ninth wonder, and the pilgrims began seeking deeper meaning in the ox horns.

• The Preaching Squad struggled to understand the three colliding ox horns, while Gold Horn and Silver Horn insisted the tenth great wonder had a deeper origin.
• Gold Horn stopped Silver Horn from naming their Eldest Senior Sister, but the word “eldest” led everyone to identify Zhou Qingqing.
• Amitabha Buddha realized the tenth wonder was a smokescreen and that the Preaching Squad had already claimed the true opportunity in the ninth wonder.
• Tang Sanzang and Sun Wukong reconsidered the ox horns as a profound teaching arranged by Zhou Qingqing, and Sun Wukong began sensing them with his eyes closed.

In Lotus Cave, the Preaching Squad interpreted Zhou Qingqing’s ox-horn spectacle in different ways and each gained a new Great Dao or manifestation. Qingqing and the Heavenly Venerates remained baffled by their unexpected enlightenment.

• Tang Sanzang interpreted the three colliding horns as the burial of heaven, earth, and all beings, and evolved his Funeral Great Dao.
• Sun Wukong understood the horns as a judgment of wrongdoing and formed an Executioner manifestation.
• Sha Wujin saw the lifeless land as extermination taken to its utmost extreme and deepened his Way of Extermination.
• Zhu Bajie interpreted the barren land as leaving enemies with no vitality and their Dao extinguished.
• The Heavenly Venerates heard Zhou Qingqing wonder how the squad had comprehended such unrelated Great Daos.

Daji gained insight from the Tenth Spectacle and broke the fox clan’s ancient limit by transforming her nine tails into a lotus and growing a tenth. Her breakthrough stunned the observers, while Amitabha Buddha failed to understand it and reacted with fury.

• Daji sensed the Tenth Spectacle from Dragon-Pressing Mountain and realized her nine tails could become the petals of a lotus with the spectacle at its center.
• Daji used heaven and earth as a furnace and her bonds of love as a catalyst to remake herself.
• Daji’s nine tails formed a lotus, and a new tail grew from its center, making her a Ten-Tailed Fox.
• Gold Horn King and Silver Horn King were stunned by Daji’s breakthrough, and the Heavenly Venerates in Three Pure Ones Hall wondered how it had worked.
• Amitabha Buddha tried to interpret Daji’s breakthrough through Buddhist principles, then reacted with disbelief and fury.

Ao Lie broke free of Myriad Saints Princess’s illusion by embracing his bonds with his companions and transforming his Phantom Dream-Charming Dragon with his true heart. Myriad Saints Princess accepted his choice and vanished as the illusion collapsed, leaving Ao Lie free atop Dragon-Pressing Mountain.

• As Daji reached the peak of her breakthrough, Ao Lie seized her momentary distraction to shake off the illusion in Dragon-Pressing Cave.
• Ao Lie resisted the vision of Myriad Saints Princess, reasoning that even if her feelings were real, surrendering to the illusion would betray his Dao and his companions.
• Ao Lie recalled Tang Sanzang, Sun Xingzhe, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujin, then poured his memories and feelings into the Phantom Dream-Charming Dragon.
• The transformed Phantom Dream-Charming Dragon shared Ao Lie’s memories with Myriad Saints Princess, who realized that he now belonged to a greater world and agreed to fulfill his wish.
• Myriad Saints Princess dissolved into pink petals, the illusion collapsed, and Ao Lie reappeared atop the mountain.

Gold Horn King and Silver Horn King gained enlightenment from Ao Lie’s breakthrough and fused into a single wonder, revealing the Eight Trigrams Furnace. Ao Lie thanked Daji for her guidance, while the others recognized her identity, and Supreme Pure Laozi’s Golden Bridge ended the trial.

• Gold Horn King realized that Ao Lie had fused his memories and bonds into his divine ability, and he concluded that he and Silver Horn King should do the same.
• Silver Horn King proposed abandoning their fleshly bodies, and the two youths fused into one being with gold and silver eyes.
• The fused Gold and Silver Youths joined the other wonders as they transformed into an enormous Eight Trigrams Furnace, which Tang Sanzang recognized as tied to Eight Views Palace.
• Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujin realized that Gold Horn and Silver Horn were the youths from Eight Views Palace and that the ten-tailed fox was Daji.
• Ao Lie thanked Daji for guiding him through the trial, and she smiled at the Red Embroidered Ball as she felt calm and at peace.
• Supreme Pure Laozi summoned his Golden Bridge beneath Daji and the Gold and Silver Youths to bring the trial to an end.

Sun Wukong’s attempt to rank the Preaching Squad members all as Idiots failed, and the system punished them before they entered Crow-Cock Kingdom. There, they found a deserted city and heard the ghost of its rightful king plead for help against a demon Daoist who had stolen his kingdom.

• Sun Wukong gave every member of the Preaching Squad an Idiot ranking, but the system rejected it and punished them all.
• Qingqing thanked the Three Pure Ones for their insight into Primordial Chaos and left to return to the ongoing Journey to the West Calamity.
• Amitabha Buddha decided to alter the next ordeal, and the Preaching Squad entered Crow-Cock Kingdom in their dragon carriage.
• The Preaching Squad found Crow-Cock Kingdom’s capital deserted and settled in an abandoned inn for the night.
• The ghost of Crow-Cock Kingdom’s rightful king told the Preaching Squad that a Quanzhen Daoist had pushed him into the Octagonal Glazed Well and taken his throne, wife, and children, then begged them to avenge him.

The Crow-Cock Kingdom’s king appeared before the Preaching Squad and claimed a Daoist had stolen his identity, while the travelers weighed his story and entered the palace to investigate. There, the seated ruler described his kingdom’s quiet streets as a sign of eternal tranquility, deepening their suspicions.

• The Crow-Cock Kingdom’s king pleaded with the Preaching Squad, claiming a demon Daoist had taken his appearance and ruled the palace.
• Tang Sanzang questioned the phantom, then asked Sun Wukong, Zhu-Sha Duo, and Ao Lie to assess his account; Sun Wukong said the real king was dead, and Ao Lie sensed dragon aura.
• The next morning, Tang Sanzang and the others entered the palace disguised as wandering Daoists and requested travel documents from the ruler.
• Tang Sanzang challenged the ruler’s claim that the people lived peacefully, pointing out the city’s deathly silence.
• The fake king said the people no longer needed to toil and called their lack of bustle, strife, and suffering eternal tranquility, alarming the Preaching Squad.

Tang Sanzang’s party accepted a Quanzhen Taoist’s invitation to preach in the Crow-Cock Kingdom and suspected that the king and Taoist were impostors. They went to the Imperial Garden to investigate the real king’s fate and summoned the Well Dragon King from the sealed well.

• Tang Sanzang agreed to stay and support the Taoist’s lectures after the false king granted the party a travel permit.
• Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujin suspected the king was fake, while Sun Wukong revealed that both the king and Taoist were impostors and that Buddhist light surrounded the Taoist.
• Sun Wukong warned that his Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils might not reveal the whole truth, so Tang Sanzang decided to investigate the Octagonal Glazed Well and meet the Well Dragon King.
• Ao Lie examined the well’s seal, called to the Well Dragon King, and summoned a green-robed figure from the water.

Ao Lie learned from the Well Dragon King that the Azure Lion Spirit had usurped Crow-Cock Kingdom after killing its true king. Ao Lie empowered the Well Dragon King with a Dragon Clan cultivation technique, and the Dragon King brought the true king’s preserved body up from the well.

• The Well Dragon King told Ao Lie that the Azure Lion Spirit had killed Crow-Cock Kingdom’s true king and taken his place three years earlier.
• The Well Dragon King explained that he had preserved the true king’s corpse with a Beauty-Preserving Pearl and begged the immortals to save the kingdom.
• Ao Lie taught the Well Dragon King the Kan Yin Lock Yuan Technique, awakening his suppressed Dragon Clan power.
• The Well Dragon King thanked Ao Lie and descended into the well to retrieve the true king’s body.
• The Well Dragon King raised the true king’s corpse, clad in a bright yellow dragon robe, out of the well.

Tang Sanzang determined that the Crow-Cock Kingdom's king could only be revived with a Nine-Turn Resurrection Pill, so Zhu Bajie, Sha Wujin, and Ao Lie joined forces to make one. After repeatedly extracting pure medicinal energy from failed batches, Zhu Bajie completed the pill.

• Tang Sanzang examined the king's corpse and explained that the Beauty-Preserving Pearl had only prevented decay, while the Nine-Turn Resurrection Pill could save him.
• Sun Wukong told Zhu Bajie to refine the pill and have Sha Wujin extract medicinal energy from failed batches.
• Ao Lie summoned a Nine-Dragon Furnace from the Dragon Clan's treasury and helped heat it with his true fire.
• Zhu Bajie repeatedly failed to complete the pill's turns, and Sha Wujin used Endless Extraction to recover pure medicinal energy from the ruined batches.
• Zhu Bajie completed the Nine-Turn Resurrection Pill, which emerged from the furnace amid a golden pillar of light.

Sha Wujin, Zhu Bajie, and Little White Dragon refined a Nine-Turn Resurrection Pill, which Tang Sanzang used to revive the true king of the Crow-Cock Kingdom. The Preaching Squad brought the king to the Golden Throne Hall, where Tang Sanzang began exposing the false king before presenting the two rulers face-to-face.

• Sha Wujin, Zhu Bajie, and Little White Dragon completed the Nine-Turn Resurrection Pill with Sun Wukong’s help.
• Tang Sanzang gave the pill to the true king, whose heart began beating again after three years of death.
• The true king asked Tang Sanzang to reclaim his kingdom, and Tang Sanzang planned to confront the false king through a public sermon.
• Tang Sanzang preached in the Golden Throne Hall, and the false king challenged his account of good rule.
• Tang Sanzang summoned the true king, who appeared before the false king wearing an identical face.

The real king exposed the fake king before the court, but the impostor repeatedly turned suspicion against him. The crown prince confirmed the real king’s secret, prompting the Ranking System’s mission progress to surge as the Zhu-Sha Duo and Little White Dragon moved to act.

• The real king accused the fake king of replacing him and cited his refusal to share a bed with the imperial consorts or drink hot tea, but the fake king drank scalding tea to sway the officials.
• The real king sent the crown prince to verify the White Jade Gui tablet hidden beneath the queen’s dressing table and challenged the fake king to fight; the fake king defeated him in three exchanges.
• The crown prince returned with the White Jade Gui tablet and reported that the queen had confirmed the real king’s secret and had long suspected the throne’s occupant was an impostor.
• The officials accepted that the real king was genuine, and the Preaching Squads’ Ranking System mission progress surged; the Zhu-Sha Duo and Little White Dragon stepped forward to confront the fake king.
• The Heavenly Venerates in Three Pure Ones Hall used their divine power to view a worldline where Tang Sanzang was a beauty, Wukong a demon immortal, Zhu Bajie a celebrity idol, and Sand Monk a financial chairman.

Tang Sanzang and Sun Wukong refused to accept the court’s verdict on the two kings, bringing the people of the Crow-Cock Kingdom together to decide who was their true sovereign. Tang Sanzang openly named the resurrected king as real and the other as fake, then left the crowd to choose between them.

• Tang Sanzang stopped Zhu Bajie, Sha Wujin, and Little White Dragon from attacking, saying they had not yet established which king was real.
• Sun Wukong struck the hall floor with his Golden-Hooped Staff and explained that the Nine-Turn Resurrection Pill had not proved the resurrected king was genuine.
• Tang Sanzang said the people of the Crow-Cock Kingdom should decide their ruler, and Sun Wukong ordered them to gather outside the Golden Throne Hall.
• Tang Sanzang opened the hall to the crowd and declared that the king who claimed the throne was fake and the king pulled from the Octagonal Glazed Well was real.
• Tang Sanzang told those who believed the resurrected king to remain standing and those who supported the fake king to squat down.