Chapter Summaries

Liang Qu discussed human nature and society with the Sacred Emperor and an immortal, earning a rewritten cultivation technique before returning to the capital. After months of celebrations and testing the technique, he prepared to tour his fief and accepted Liu Tianyi’s treasured bow as he departed.

• Liang Qu argued that human nature was shaped by social relations and historical progress, and the immortal rewrote his cultivation technique in response.
• The Sacred Emperor praised Liang Qu’s conversation with the immortal, and Liang Qu returned to Moon Gazing Tower with a revised spirit seed technique and a Rank Fruit method.
• Liang Qu exchanged his Great Merit and Peerless Merit for treasure medicine, then shared the revised technique with Tan Yifeng and Liao Lanqing.
• Liang Qu celebrated his kingship throughout the Imperial Capital, tested the new technique, and confirmed that Tan Yifeng successfully cultivated a spirit seed.
• Liang Qu prepared to tour his fief, and Liu Tianyi gave him the Abysswood bow, which Liang Qu marked with Liu Tianyi’s name before accepting it.

Liang Qu traveled the Huai River with his companions after receiving his fief, discussing plans to rebuild trade routes and marry Long E Ying. Long E Ying successfully cultivated a mulberry Spirit Seed, and Liang Qu’s Marsh Spirit fusion rate reached 99%, leaving him close to completing his refinement.

• Fat Catfish delivered the Jiang Huai Ape King's congratulatory gift to the White Dragon King, while Old Toad claimed the treasure ships and scolded Da Pang and Er Pang for wanting a feast.
• Liang Qu sailed beneath the Huai banner with his family and companions, and Su Guishan discussed reforms to the river offices and plans for ports across Liang Qu’s fief.
• Liang Qu told Su Guishan he would build a royal residence, hold a grand wedding with Long E Ying, and seek the Beaver Clan’s return to help rebuild the Jiang Huai islands.
• Long E Ying cultivated the Heaven and Earth Spirit Seed Technique and grew a mulberry sapling from her Awakening Seed.
• Liang Qu collected the ripe Dragonfolk Lotus Seeds, raising his Marsh Essence to 200121 and his Water Monkey Great Sage fusion rate to 99%.

Liang Qu completed the fusion of the Water Monkey Great Sage and gained the King's Prosperity and Spiritual Descent innate skills while his cultivation created a phantom that benefited those aboard the Treasure Ship and travelers along the river. After reaching Jianghuai, he learned Sea Market Master and the Golden-haired Monkey King had nowhere left to go.

• Cang Prefecture's clans prepared their juniors to impress Liang Qu, but his Treasure Ship passed the harbor without stopping, and Prefect Deng Yingshen told them they could seek opportunities in Jianghuai themselves.
• Long E Ying found Liang Qu cultivating in the ship's cultivation room, where his fusion rate continued to rise.
• Liang Qu's Root Sea surged, projecting a phantom of his Heavenly Palace that drew spiritual opportunity and helped the ship's cultivators temper their True Gang.
• The Water Monkey Great Sage reached full fusion, turning deep orange and granting Liang Qu the innate skills King's Prosperity and Spiritual Descent, while his River's Favor increased.
• Liang Qu sensed Sea Market Master near Jianghuai, then met him and saw the Golden-haired Monkey King among the gathered Water Beasts.
• Sea Market Master told Liang Qu that he and the Golden-haired Monkey King had nowhere left to go.

Liang Qu welcomed the displaced Sea Market Master and the Golden-haired Monkey King into his territory, planning to build trade and expand his control over the Jiang Huai Great Marsh. After Xu Shi advised him on recruiting for his new ports, he learned the completed Water Lord skills [Spiritual Descent] and [King's Prosperity].

• Hai Yun told Liang Qu that the Mermaid King had expelled the Sea Merchants and the Ray King had seized their routes, so Liang Qu appointed the Sea Market Master King of North Water and promised support.
• The Golden-haired Monkey King arrived with several hundred monkeys after Old Yuan drove them from Shou Mountain, and Liang Qu welcomed them as workers for his royal residence.
• The Monkey King fought Ta Ta Kai aboard the Treasure Ship, but Ta Ta Kai defeated it and scattered the attacking monkey troop.
• Xu Shi explained that Liang Qu needed to recruit local talent for his thirteen ports, then revealed that she had arranged for Huaiyin Martial Hall to screen candidates and recommend them.
• Liang Qu inspected the completed Ze Cauldron fusion and gained the Innate Skills [Spiritual Descent] and [King's Prosperity].

After returning to Pingyang, Liang Qu used Spiritual Descent to inspect the Dragon Palace throne, gathered the Great Marsh’s treasures, and planned rewards for those who had served him. He learned that townspeople, including his cousin Liang Liu, had resisted grain collection while he was away, and prepared to call a meeting at the wharf.

• Old Toad caught Da Pang and Er Pang sneaking into his cave and punished them with laps around the Great Marsh.
• Liang Qu descended into Fat Catfish through Spiritual Descent, discovered he could see and act through his subordinates, and tested the Water Dragon Spear’s expanded range.
• Liang Qu returned to Pingyang, where Long Zongyin delivered the Dragon Palace’s collected treasures and Liang Qu condensed a second Dew Seed.
• Old Giant Clam reminisced about the years spent with Liang Qu, and Liang Qu offered to build him a waterway to the Dragon Palace.
• Long E Ying reported congratulatory letters, gifts, and investiture decrees, while Liang Qu assigned gifts and postponed answering the Five Great Dao lineages’ invitations.
• Chen Qingjiang told Liang Qu that townspeople had refused grain collection and injured officials, and Liang Qu ordered Fan Xinglai to summon a meeting at the wharf.

Wen Shiyun brought He Hanyu through a hidden water passage to meet Liang Qu, who disciplined Yixing’s villagers and then returned to the Dragon Palace. Liang Qu promoted his followers and evolved several Water Beasts, but ran out of essence before he could reward everyone, while planning a journey west and a return to the underworld.

• Wen Shiyun led He Hanyu through a pond passage to Jiang Huai Great Marsh, where they rode River Dolphins toward Shang Rao Wharf.
• Liang Qu exposed villagers who had attacked tax collectors, imposed punishments, and announced that Yi Xing Town would become Yi Xing County.
• Liang Qu welcomed Wen Shiyun and He Hanyu, dried their clothes with Vortex Water, and took them home through an underground river.
• Liang Qu appointed Frog Duke as the Dragon Palace’s National Teacher and used his power to complete and bring the Dragon Man Tribe under his dominion.
• Liang Qu spent Marsh Essence evolving Fat Catfish, Cannot Move, Fist, and Round Head, but ran out before rewarding Little Mirage Dragon and the remaining Water Beasts.
• Liang Qu considered using the Ghost Mother Sect’s ritual to reenter the underworld and planned to travel west, as the evolved Water Beasts emerged from their golden cocoons.

Liang Qu organized the Dragon Palace’s ministries, military posts, and rebuilding plans, then traveled west with his companions to inspect his fief and reach Huang Province in time for its Great Hunting Assembly. He registered Guan Congjian for the competition and arrived at the Xu Family, where he offered Xu Rongguang a gift.

• Liang Qu appointed Dragonfolk and water beasts to the Six Ministries and military posts, then assigned them palace construction, diplomacy, trade, and security duties.
• Liang Qu gathered officials, martial artists, and beasts aboard the Creation Treasure Ship and sent teams to establish River God Temples and plan ports and waterways across his fief.
• Liang Qu reached Huang Province before the Great Hunting Assembly and registered Guan Congjian to compete, while joking that he would not enter himself.
• Xu Wanxing hosted Liang Qu and his companions at Qixia Tower and the Xu Family, where Liang Qu offered Xu Rongguang a small jade-like gift.

Liang Qu used Cannot Move’s longevity ability to negotiate construction and trade partnerships with the Xu Family, then toured the remaining ports and recruited local officials. Back in Huang Province, he transformed the Great Hunting Assembly into a thirteen-level water challenge and offered a Profound Yellow Token as its prize, while Huo Hongyuan encountered Xu Zishuai and the others.

• Liang Qu demonstrated Cannot Move’s longevity ability to Xu Rongguang, then proposed exchanging its use for construction work and recruiting clans to establish grand markets at his thirteen ports.
• Liang Qu used the ability on Xu Rongguang and Mother Xu, and the Xu Family agreed to introduce suitable clans and reserve shops for itself.
• Liang Qu explained his business strategy to Long E Ying over late-night dumplings, including using the Xu Family as a referral network for the limited longevity ability.
• Liang Qu inspected the western ports, assigned Cha Qing and Official Kou to oversee them, and invited Huo Hongyuan to meet him in Huang Province.
• Liang Qu persuaded Xu Wanxing to reform the Great Hunting Assembly, then announced a thirteen-level water challenge with a Profound Yellow Token for the winner.
• Huo Hongyuan watched Liang Qu unveil the water pillar, then met Xu Zishuai, Lu Gang, Hu Qi, Xiang ChangSong, Ke Wenbin, and Huaiyin Martial Hall’s disciples as they emerged from the Huai River.

Liang Qu created a thirteen-layer Heaven-Piercing Water Tower for Huang Province’s Great Hunting Assembly, using its spectacle to raise his River Rule Degree. The competition began with contestants entering the tower, while Liang Qu discussed holding a grand event on June 6, the River God Sacrifice; the first hunters began climbing and catching Treasure Fish.

• Liang Qu announced the water-only hunting rules, with increasing pressure and points across thirteen layers, and added bubbles, storage, and hidden passages for competitors.
• The Heaven-Piercing Water Tower’s spectacle raised Liang Qu’s River Rule Degree to 1, and he planned to create similar events at ports under his rule.
• On October 27, Liang Qu opened the Great Hunting Assembly; contestants entered the tower, and he rescued those who drowned or fainted during the transfer.
• Du Hanwen found a bubble to catch his breath, then began climbing through the tower as spectators watched magnified scenes on its outer surface.
• Liang Qu told Xu Wanxing he planned a summer event on June 6, the River God Sacrifice, while spectators spotted the first Treasure Fish catch and a hunter reaching the third layer.

Liang Qu transformed the Great Hunting Assembly into a spectacle, adding underwater routes, equipment, River Dolphins, and late entries to make the competition more exciting. As Huo Hongyuan led the scores, the Whale Emperor arrived and offered ten Whale Pearls as additional rewards, promising an especially generous prize for the champion.

• Liang Qu projected competitors' movements across the Sky-Reaching Water Tower, while Xu Wanxing and the clans sent people to maintain order below.
• A Galloping Horse Martial Master caught all three kinds of seventh-layer Treasure Fish and surged ahead, but Huo Hongyuan later took the lead with one hundred and ninety-five points.
• Liang Qu arranged for air bags, weapons, and River Dolphins to be released into the tower, adding new ways for competitors to fight and travel.
• Liang Qu allowed young competitors from other provinces to join until the final night, and the gambling houses and spectators grew even more excited.
• The Whale Emperor arrived above the mountain and sent a Cloud Giant bearing ten Whale Pearls as rewards, including an especially generous prize for the champion.

The Whale Emperor, a Southern Border Furnace, and a Da Shun Immortal gathered at the Great Hunting Assembly, transforming it with new prizes and dangerous challenges. At the Whale Emperor’s invitation, Liang Qu agreed to help organize a far larger competition in the Eastern Sea.

• The Whale Emperor announced ten Whale Pearls as prizes for the Great Hunting Assembly’s top ten contestants.
• The Bamboo-Hat Fisherman and a Da Shun Immortal appeared, added treasure fish and Great Merits as rewards, and watched as Liang Qu devised new challenges with Mist Beasts and released equipment.
• The contestants competed through the night, struggling over supplies, catching fish, and fleeing the Mist Beasts as the event grew more intense.
• After the Immortals left to observe other mountaintops, Liang Qu’s River Rule Degree rose to 1.1, and the Immortals later returned to discuss the Assembly’s scale.
• The Whale Emperor proposed a much larger Eastern Sea competition with participants and rewards from across the world, and Liang Qu agreed to help lead it.

Liang Qu watched the Great Hunting Assembly reach its final night while worrying about the Whale Emperor’s planned gathering of Martial Saints and Demon Kings. Guan Congjian captured the Blood Lion, broke through by eating it, and surged through the competition until he entered the thirteenth floor alone.

• Liang Qu considered the Whale Emperor’s Eastern Sea Great Hunting Assembly and decided he needed to return to the underworld soon.
• The Great Hunting Assembly drew huge crowds and business as clans flocked to Huang Province, while Xu Rongguang found Liang Qu two life-extension clients.
• Guan Congjian captured the Blood Lion with two Profound Water Spears, then ate it raw and began burying a Divine Power Seed.
• Guan Congjian used Cannot Move to restore himself between fights, defeated Mist Beasts on the eleventh floor, and climbed to seventh place.
• Guan Congjian swept through the twelfth floor, rose to third place, caught two more Blood Lions, and ate them to fuel his advance.
• Guan Congjian charged alone into the thirteenth floor, where a yaksha struck his golden bell with a steel fork.

The final day of the Great Hunting Assembly ended with Huo Hongyuan defeating Guan Congjian and taking first place after a chaotic fight in the water tower. As the gathering concluded, Liang Qu agreed to help the Whale Emperor, leaving General Yuan to suspect that Liang Qu was behind the mysterious invitation to a future grand gathering.

• Liang Qu judged Huo Hongyuan more likely to win because his Yaksha Bone and water-combat experience gave him an edge over Guan Congjian.
• Huo Hongyuan and Guan Congjian's duel was interrupted by a peak Hunting Tiger Mist Beast, then two ambushers joined the fight and turned it into a five-way melee.
• Huo Hongyuan used the Air-Bladder Floating Breath Method to conserve air, outlast the other fighters, and drive the ambushers from the water tower.
• Guan Congjian ran out of air and withdrew, leaving Huo Hongyuan to claim first place with 8,653.3 points as the Great Hunting Assembly ended.
• Liang Qu promised an immortal that he would help the Whale Emperor, and General Yuan later guessed that the mysterious grand gathering invitation must have come from Liang Qu.

Liang Qu’s Huang Province Great Hunting Assembly ended with Guan Congjian advancing, and he continued north to Hanging Temple after appointing Huo Hongyuan to guard his western fief. Along the way, General Yuan questioned him about the upcoming Eastern Sea assembly, and the chapter ended with Lu Jia arriving at Hanging Temple with something Liang Qu had sought.

• Pufferfish workers renovated King of North Water’s palace and built a new home for the Octopuses and salamanders, while Sea Market Master learned that the immortals were organizing a Great Hunting Assembly in the Eastern Sea.
• The Great Hunting Assembly in Huang Province awarded its prizes, and Liang Qu reminded Long E Ying that he had sold his own house and farmland to Frog Duke.
• Liang Qu forced Guan Congjian to swallow a Whale Pearl, helping him plant his second Divine Power Seed, while Liang Qu’s Dominance Level rose to 1.2.
• Liang Qu appointed Huo Hongyuan to guard his western fief, then sailed north toward Hanging Temple aboard the Creation Treasure Ship.
• General Yuan met Liang Qu and asked about the Eastern Sea Great Hunting Assembly; Liang Qu explained its format, but General Yuan refused to attend.
• Liang Qu arrived at Hanging Temple in November, read Long Zongyin’s proposal, and was approached by Lu Jia, who said he had found what Liang Qu wanted.

Liang Qu secured thirteen rare treasure trees and arranged to build landmark towers across his fief through a financing deal with Lu Jia, while realizing that his expanding territory needed stronger administrators. He delegated document revisions to Hedgehog and turned his attention to improving his cultivation before the coming Eastern Sea Great Hunting Assembly.

• Lu Jia delivered thirteen rare treasure trees, eight of which came from the Eternal King, and Liang Qu agreed to honor the Demon King's condition for future Jiang Huai Great Marsh treasures.
• Liang Qu and Lu Jia negotiated a nineteen-million-tael, interest-free arrangement that gave Sky Vessel Tower rent-free branches in all thirteen towers for thirty years, and Liang Qu explained how the towers could attract visitors and tourism.
• Liang Qu reflected on his growing administrative burdens, then summoned Hedgehog and assigned it to revise documents, though Little Mirage Dragon appeared to outsource the work as well.
• Liang Qu prepared for his next lecture and considered the approaching Eastern Sea Great Hunting Assembly, then pondered how to advance beyond the first stage of Martial Saint.

Liang Qu explained his innovative Dragon-Rising Method and described how Young Dragons advanced through Temple Meditation, while drawing interest from tens of thousands of listeners. The chapter left him considering ways to cultivate a Rank Fruit, particularly the Thousand Seas Boundless Method.

• Liang Qu reflected on his standing among Young Dragons and resolved to improve his strength.
• At Hanging Temple, Liang Qu taught a packed audience about the Dragon-Rising Method, explaining how it changed the cultivation stages and could help practitioners advance into True Image.
• Liang Qu described Temple Meditation as the Young Dragon path of placing successive selves within a Celestial Palace, and Yuan explained the significance of the Thirteenth Rank.
• Liang Qu agreed to meet Louguan Platform's awakening Ancestor Ge and considered the perilous Yin Yang Creation Method recorded in an immortal's booklet.
• Liang Qu weighed other Rank Fruit cultivation methods and focused on the Thousand Seas Boundless Method before taking another question.

Liang Qu managed his fief’s finances and development, arranged the departure of Huai Kong and the Old Monk, and expanded Huaiyin Martial Hall and its waterways. He then visited Ghost Mother’s former headquarters and prepared to establish a Ghost Mother Sect in the underworld.

• Liang Qu asked the Hedgehog to help address the fief’s finances, then sent Little Mirage Dragon to search the Huai River for surviving Mirage Clan members and dispatched the Hedgehog to recruit Scarlet Scale’s Snake Demons.
• Liang Qu bade farewell to Huai Kong and the Old Monk, who left by ship with their companions after a year-long journey.
• Liang Qu oversaw construction at his royal residence, planned a scenic avenue around Sturgeon Lake, and tested comfortable Water Spider travel between provinces.
• Liang Qu visited Ghost Mother’s former headquarters and prepared to use the souls and embryos she had gathered to establish a Ghost Mother Sect in the underworld.

Liang Qu used the Ghost Mother ritual and Pai Xiao Xing’s child body to return to the Blood River Realm, then traveled toward the River God Sect. Back in Jianghuai, he learned that Frog Duke was near death and hurried to the Frog Clan Grounds, where the Old Toad said he could no longer serve as National Teacher.

• Liang Qu studied the Ghost Mother ritual and used Pai Xiao Xing’s child body to descend into its death position and cross into the Blood River Realm.
• Liang Qu explored the Blood River Realm, discovered he was in Bai Sha Sect territory, and set out for the River God Sect after learning it was more than three hundred thousand li away.
• Liang Qu returned his attention to Jianghuai, discussed plans with Long E Ying, and asked whether the Whale Emperor had confirmed the Eastern Sea Great Hunting Assembly date.
• Long Yanrui rushed to the Yang Residence and told Liang Qu that Frog Duke was dying, so Liang Qu and Long E Ying hurried to the Frog Clan Grounds.
• Liang Qu found the Old Toad surrounded by grieving frogs; the Old Toad said his life had reached its natural end and that he could no longer serve as National Teacher.

Old Toad believed its lifespan was ending, distributed its treasures among the Frog Clan, and appeared to fall asleep for good. Wu Cangshou examined Old Toad and realized it was about to advance, leaving the Frog Clan in an uproar.

• Old Toad told Liang Qu that longevity treasures and divine powers could not extend its fixed lifespan, then handed him the National Teacher Seal.
• Old Toad divided its lands, keepsakes, and accumulated treasures among Liang Qu and the Frog Clan, and asked for the round stone to serve as its tombstone.
• Old Toad pretended to die, startled the grieving frogs awake, and then curled up and began snoring.
• Liang Qu explained to Long E Ying that he could command Treasure Fish but could not force creatures to advance, while Wu Cangshou arrived and hurried to see Old Toad.
• Wu Cangshou watched Old Toad through the night, struck its back, and declared that it was about to advance rather than die.

Liang Qu returned to the Frog Clan after learning that Old Toad was advancing into a Great Demon, and Wu Cangshou’s divination suggested Liang Qu was tied to the Elder’s chance of survival. As Liang Qu investigated Awei’s impending blood contract and cultivated, the Drought Demon Fruit stirred; Wu Cangshou’s completed formation then pointed directly at Liang Qu as the King of Huai.

• Wu Cangshou explained that Old Toad’s apparent end of life concealed a slim chance to survive by advancing into a Great Demon, and Liang Qu hurried back to the Frog Clan.
• Wu Cangshou sensed that Liang Qu’s arrival had strengthened Old Toad’s good fortune and began a formation to locate the Elder’s chance of survival.
• Liang Qu meditated while controlling Pai Xiao Xing toward the River God Sect, and the Heavenly Fire Sect elders discussed summoning Yu from seclusion during the New Year Festival.
• Liang Qu’s Drought Demon Fruit briefly stirred, while Awei warned that Li Xianghan planned to make him her Natal Gu after the New Year Festival; Liang Qu descended into Awei and decided to study the contract and try to reverse it.
• Wu Cangshou completed his divination formation, spun up a water tornado, and declared that Liang Qu was the King of Huai.