Chapter Summaries

Chen Chuan and Ming Chengzi searched Emperor Wenguang’s hidden chambers, uncovering rare treasures, vast stores of cultivation resources, and records that revealed how the emperor had used Prince Lin and the Ancient Deities to pursue ascension. They entered a final stone palace and found the bones of palace consorts and attendants, apparently killed by Consort Teng’s Bite Snake Poison.

• Chen Chuan accepted the Cloud-Touching Lotus Root from Ming Chengzi and recorded the ancient scriptures and deity paintings in the chamber.
• Ming Chengzi identified every vessel in the alchemy chamber as Ascension Water and found a record showing that the Duan Chen Faction had supplied its formula.
• Chen Chuan learned that Emperor Wenguang had ordered Prince Lin to slaughter Ancient Deities, then used him as a shield and planned to take his body.
• Ming Chengzi found records showing that the next storehouse held enough cultivation supplies for a large martial corps and several high-level observers.
• Chen Chuan and Ming Chengzi followed a stone path to a neglected palace and found bones that Ming Chengzi attributed to Consort Teng’s Bite Snake Poison.

Chen Chuan and Ming Chengzi uncovered Emperor Wenguang’s use of his relatives’ bodies to make Blood Pills and destroyed the golden statues of the Yuan Clan ancestors at their ancestral temple. After receiving a report of another discovery, Chen Chuan flew with the others to Sleeping Dragon Villa, once granted to Consort Teng.

• Ming Chengzi used the True Appraisal Technique and concluded that the False Emperor had used his relatives to refine Blood Pills for his Ascension to Immortality ritual, likely with Consort Teng’s help.
• Chen Chuan left the stone palace, noting that the bodies should be inventoried and given rites of deliverance to prevent anomalies.
• Chen Chuan and Ming Chengzi entered the Yuan Clan Ancestral Temple, where Chen Chuan shattered the two golden statues of the Yuan Clan ancestors.
• Two malicious auras descended after the statues broke, but they withdrew without confronting Chen Chuan.
• Chen Chuan received a report of a discovery northeast of Nether Capital and flew there with Ming Chengzi, Mu Xiaoren, and the others.
• Ming Chengzi identified the ornate imperial garden as Sleeping Dragon Villa, where the False Emperor had once relaxed and which had been bestowed on Consort Teng three years earlier.

Chen Chuan inspected a hidden Old Imperial Household laboratory beneath Zanzhi Garden and secured its dangerous research and equipment. After returning toward Nether Capital, he reviewed reports on the city’s surrender, population, factories, and remaining political threats, then reported the emperor’s death and the army’s capture of the capital to headquarters.

• Guan Longwu reported an underground biological experimentation zone, and Chen Chuan ordered him to seal off the area.
• Chen Chuan explored the laboratory and learned it had researched large-scale field organisms and miniature Mutated Creatures; he decided to preserve the dangerous research under strict guard.
• Chen Chuan assigned Mu Xiaoren to guard the laboratory and returned toward Nether Capital with Ming Chengzi.
• Reports revealed that Emperor Wenguang and his direct line had been defeated, senior officials had surrendered or died, and the city’s residents posed a potential danger because of their ties to Ancient Deities.
• Chen Chuan learned that Nether Capital’s factories had produced High-Energy Nutrients for Great Shun and smuggled restricted Implant Bodies and Resonance Nests.
• Chen Chuan ordered a report to headquarters stating that the old emperor was dead and Nether Capital and its surroundings were secured.

Chen Chuan examined Emperor Wenguang’s possessions after the battle and discovered a mysterious item that stirred his Mutated Tissue. Meanwhile, Ren Xinshan watched the campaign’s progress and was summoned to a Command Center meeting as a new development arose.

• Chen Chuan reviewed the battle, inspected Emperor Wenguang’s belongings, and identified a likely Imperial Seal of the State and several Lost Objects.
• Chen Chuan uncovered a black, scale-like object beneath Black Powder, and his Mutated Tissue developed an intense craving for it.
• Ren Xinshan considered debate over the campaign’s pace and the strain of military mobilization, while the Command Center continued to support the frontline commanders’ steady advance.
• An internal affairs staff member summoned Ren Xinshan and Deputy Minister Guo to a Command Center meeting, and they suspected the Battle Situation had changed.

Qiao Dingguo announced that Chen Chuan’s army had captured the Nether Capital, and Great Shun began planning to destroy Prince Yi’s remaining forces. As political factions maneuvered over the coming Supreme Advisory Council nominations, Chen Chuan examined Emperor Wenguang’s spoils and prepared to travel to Haixi Province.

• Qiao Dingguo told the Command Center officials that Chen Chuan’s army had captured the Nether Capital, then outlined the campaign to crush Prince Yi on Tiger Fang Isle and eliminate the Old Imperial Household.
• Conservative Faction members recognized Chen Chuan’s decisive role in the swift victory, while the Fusion Faction discussed joining the next campaign and decided to distract the Nature Faction with an internal meeting.
• Chen Chuan inspected Emperor Wenguang’s possessions, found a valuable Precious Material and a black Jade Talisman that might open a rift, and decided to search Haixi Province for a Hidden Treasure.
• Fan Zhentong asked Chen Chuan about his Supreme Advisory Council prospects and the approaching Great Collision, and Chen Chuan said he would leave for Haixi Province the next morning.

Chen Chuan opened the Haixi Province rift with the black Talisman Artifact and entered an Outer Heaven with Ming Chengzi and Mu Xiaoren. There, they met Ji Shaoyou, whom Ming Chengzi suspected belonged to the Duan Chen Faction.

• Chen Chuan considered the planned attack on Prince Yi and heard Ming Chengzi explain why the Zen Sect was unlikely to oppose Great Shun over him.
• Chen Chuan, Ming Chengzi, and Mu Xiaoren traveled to the lake in Haixi Province, where Jiang Linghuai had been guarding the rift.
• Chen Chuan used the black Talisman Artifact to open and hold the rift wide, then entered with Ming Chengzi and Mu Xiaoren.
• The three emerged in a beautiful Outer Heaven, where Chen Chuan saw that his strand of Purple Qi had been expelled and retrieved it.
• Ji Shaoyou greeted Chen Chuan, Ming Chengzi, and Mu Xiaoren after leaving the palace-temple, and Ming Chengzi asked whether he was a disciple of the Duan Chen Faction.

Chen Chuan, Ming Chengzi, and Mu Xiaoren met Pi Lingzi, a Duan Chen Faction cultivator guarding an Outer Heaven and its Hidden Treasures. Pi Lingzi explained the debt binding him to the site and said only an Imperial Bloodline Descendant of the Chang Dynasty could claim the treasures, but he offered to settle the matter by force if they could defeat him.

• A young Profound Scholar from the Duan Chen Faction escorted Chen Chuan, Ming Chengzi, and Mu Xiaoren to a palace complex, where they saw a flood dragon rise from the lake.
• Pi Lingzi welcomed the three guests in a hidden ritual field and showed them a Purple Talisman proving his Duan Chen Faction lineage.
• Pi Lingzi explained how a senior of his sect guarded three Hidden Treasures for the Chang Dynasty, lent two to the Ding Dynasty, and left him responsible for the unresolved debt.
• Pi Lingzi said Emperor Wenguang had delivered enough wealth to repay the debt, but he would release the treasures only to an Imperial Bloodline Descendant of the Chang Dynasty.
• Chen Chuan learned that Pi Lingzi's secular surname was Cao, the Chang imperial surname, and Pi Lingzi said the matter could be decided by force if Chen Chuan could defeat him.

Chen Chuan accepted Pi Lingzi’s wager for the Hidden Treasures and entered a ritual-bound duel with him. As Pi Lingzi used the domain’s restrictions to evade attacks, Chen Chuan adapted and pursued his dispersed Divine Energy with Spiritual Fire.

• Pi Lingzi offered to wager the Hidden Treasures, promising to surrender them if he lost and demanding that Xuanji withdraw if Chen Chuan’s side lost.
• Chen Chuan accepted the wager and sent Mu Xiaoren and Ming Chengzi outside the boundary while he faced Pi Lingzi.
• Chen Chuan protected his stone block with Spiritual Fire and endured Pi Lingzi’s probing secret technique without being harmed.
• Chen Chuan tested the domain by moving away from his stone block, discovering that doing so caused Pi Lingzi to vanish from his perception.
• Pi Lingzi dispersed his Divine Energy to evade Chen Chuan’s Spiritual Impact, but Chen Chuan split the attack into countless streams of Spiritual Fire that pursued it.

Chen Chuan used Spiritual Fire, a Simulacrum Body, and his two Great Styles to counter Pi Lingzi’s hidden stones and layered Secret Techniques. He discovered that Pi Lingzi’s vapor-like defense depended on the Great Styles’ pressure, then resumed the simulacrum’s attack.

• Chen Chuan’s Spiritual Fire destroyed the Divine Energy and every visible floating stone, but Pi Lingzi remained hidden using a concealed stone.
• Pi Lingzi revealed himself and used the Void Encapsulation Technique to divert Chen Chuan’s Spiritual Impact into the Other Side World.
• Chen Chuan summoned a Simulacrum Body with his own power, but Pi Lingzi used the Divine Evasion Technique to make its first punch pass through him.
• Chen Chuan stepped off his stone to break their shared perception, forcing Pi Lingzi to abandon Divine Evasion and use Same and Different Birth against the simulacrum’s repeated punches.
• Chen Chuan withdrew the Simulacrum Body and both Great Styles, causing Pi Lingzi’s body to solidify, then sent the simulacrum forward to punch him again.

Chen Chuan defeated Pi Lingzi by disrupting the ritual that supported his defensive techniques, then offered to help find descendants of the Cao Clan so Pi Lingzi’s faction could keep its promise while retaining a connection to the Hidden Treasures. Pi Lingzi accepted defeat and thanked Chen Chuan, whose offer left their cooperation possible.

• Pi Lingzi used successive secret techniques to withstand the Simulacrum Body while preparing to activate the Nine Strikes Technique.
• Chen Chuan expanded his spirit image, Spiritual Impact, and force field, shaking the ritual space and disrupting Pi Lingzi’s defenses.
• The Simulacrum Body destroyed Pi Lingzi, whose Rebirth Technique restored him once before Chen Chuan’s light dispersed his remaining Divine Energy.
• Pi Lingzi appeared on the opposite cliff, conceded defeat, and promised to leave the Hidden Treasures under Chen Chuan’s side’s authority.
• Chen Chuan asked Pi Lingzi to wait and offered to search for descendants of the Cao Clan, earning Pi Lingzi’s gratitude.

Chen Chuan traced Empress Cao to the Duan Chen Faction and agreed to her requests concerning her son and the Cao Family’s share of the Hidden Treasure. After Empress Cao presented the token to claim it, Pi Lingzi offered to lead Chen Chuan to the three caches in the back mountain.

• Chen Chuan deduced that Empress Cao was likely connected to the Duan Chen Faction, and Ming Chengzi and Pi Lingzi traveled there to find her.
• Pi Lingzi explained that his cultivation involved taking part in dynastic changes and said he would help resist the Outer Heaven Demons if he failed to break through.
• Ming Chengzi and Pi Lingzi returned with Empress Cao, who confirmed that the Hidden Treasure belonged to her Cao Family ancestors.
• Empress Cao asked Chen Chuan to spare her son, Yuan Conglai, and reserve a share of the treasure for a Cao Family relative in Jibei Province; Chen Chuan agreed to both requests.
• Empress Cao gave Chen Chuan the token for claiming the Hidden Treasure, and Pi Lingzi offered to show him the three caches in the back mountain.

Chen Chuan used Empress Cao’s Tooth Ornament to open the first Hidden Treasure’s inner chamber and found two rare objects, including a Primal Relic that could help him break through to the Higher Realm. He discovered that the Divine Fetus in the second box might be useful to Red Dust.

• Pi Lingzi led Chen Chuan across a suspended bridge and into the first Hidden Treasure, explaining that its sealed contents might include agreements between the Chang Dynasty and the Ancient Deities.
• Pi Lingzi showed Chen Chuan the stored wealth and led him to a pair of sealed stone doors, then left him to open them with his credential.
• Chen Chuan used the Tooth Ornament to dissolve the doors and felt his Lost Object grow scorching hot as he entered the inner chamber.
• Chen Chuan opened the first Lacquer Box and found a rare Primal Relic that he recognized as nourishment for his breakthrough to the Higher Realm.
• Chen Chuan opened the second Lacquer Box and found a Divine Fetus, then sensed that it had increased Red Dust’s mental activity.

Chen Chuan searched the second Hidden Treasure and claimed Precious Materials that would help him approach a breakthrough, then promised Empress Cao a pardon in return for her cooperation. Back in the Nether Capital, he learned that Prince Yi was difficult to locate, but Ming Chengzi offered to use the Fu Long Faction’s Dragon Seeking Technique to find him.

• Chen Chuan found a Divine Fetus and other stored items in the first Hidden Treasure, but took only two boxes that might benefit Red Dust.
• In the second Hidden Treasure, Chen Chuan found Precious Materials that eased his Mutated Tissue’s hunger and took them along with other useful items.
• Chen Chuan promised Empress Cao a Pardon Letter and asked her to have Mi Zhuzi explain his past opposition to Great Shun.
• Pi Lingzi escorted Empress Cao and her companions away, while Chen Chuan returned to the Nether Capital with Mu Xiaoren and Ming Chengzi.
• After the Covert Department reported that Prince Yi was skilled at hiding underwater, Chen Chuan asked Ming Chengzi for help locating him.
• Ming Chengzi said the Fu Long Faction’s Dragon Seeking Technique could find Prince Yi because he regarded himself as a Hidden Dragon and heir to the old dynasty.

Chen Chuan arranged for Ming Chengzi to search for Prince Yi while agreeing to return some forces to defend Great Shun’s southern border. He also fed Zhao Ming and the Racoon Cat Rumor and watched Red Dust absorb the Divine Fetus’s energy, while faction leaders awaited the Advisory Council’s decision on candidate recommendations.

• Chen Chuan authorized Ming Chengzi to use the old palace altar and assigned him supplies and staff to locate Prince Yi.
• After receiving headquarters’ warning about the growing anomaly in Chi Luojia Duo, Chen Chuan agreed to send personnel back to the southern line within two days.
• Red Dust split open the Divine Fetus and absorbed its multicolored energy, while Chen Chuan judged that the process might take at least ten days and could endanger her consciousness.
• Chen Chuan fed rare ingredients to Zhao Ming and the Racoon Cat Rumor, then stopped the racoon from overeating.
• Fusion Faction council members learned that their recommendation quota would remain unchanged after the deadline passed, while Zhan Jiyue worried that smaller schools’ advice could affect the Advisory Council.
• Vice President Zhu drafted and destroyed a direct letter backing Chen Chuan, then began writing a more tactful version for the faction’s upper ranks.

Chen Chuan used Ming Chengzi’s ritual to locate Prince Yi near Tiger Fang Isle, then led an approved forceful operation to strike his underwater hideout. The chapter ended as Chen Chuan’s compressed Spiritual Fire pierced the sea and overwhelmed Prince Yi’s cavern in blazing light.

• Ming Chengzi’s ritual found Prince Yi within five hundred li of Tiger Fang Isle and showed him moving in a hidden location.
• Chen Chuan asked Ming Chengzi to keep watch, obtained approval from the Combat Command Center, and gathered the operation team and a Lost Object.
• Chen Chuan and the team flew to Zhen Hai, where Ming Chengzi confirmed Prince Yi’s location and Chen Chuan identified the target’s coordinates.
• Chen Chuan compressed Spiritual Fire into a tiny, powerful speck and sent it plunging through the sea toward Prince Yi’s cavern.
• Prince Yi sensed the attack and tried to dodge, but the cavern filled with blazing light.

Chen Chuan located Prince Yi beneath the sea and struck him down before he could use his Exotic Powers. Prince Yi regenerated and fled, while Chen Chuan and the assembled Fighters remained above the sea.

• Chen Chuan used a Platinum Light strike to probe Prince Yi and locate him and his two subordinates beneath the sea.
• Ming Chengzi displayed the two subordinates' locations, and the Fighters split into groups to pursue them.
• Prince Yi told his subordinates to flee, then transformed into a half-man, half-dragon divine general and charged toward Chen Chuan.
• Chen Chuan moved too quickly for Prince Yi to react and destroyed his body with a single punch.
• Prince Yi regenerated from a remnant of Mutated Tissue, realized how badly outmatched he was, and fled through the sea.

Chen Chuan pursued Prince Yi through a rift into the Other Side World, defeated the Golden Bell Demon, and captured Prince Yi. He sealed the rift and returned to the surface with the mission complete.

• Ming Chengzi spotted Prince Yi’s escape, and Chen Chuan repeatedly killed him as he fled toward the rift using his remaining Exotic Powers.
• The Golden Bell Demon appeared and pulled Prince Yi toward the rift, but Chen Chuan shattered its incarnation and followed them through.
• Chen Chuan crossed into the Other Side World and slashed the Golden Bell Demon’s true divided body with the Snow Monarch Blade.
• Chen Chuan blasted Prince Yi apart, captured his head, and gathered the demon’s scattered Divine Energy.
• Chen Chuan returned through the rift, sealed it with the government’s Lost Object, and flew toward the surface.

After killing Prince Yi, Chen Chuan captured Tiger Fang Isle and reported the victory to the Command Center. Back at base, he began considering how to obtain the resources and breakthrough location he needed next.

• Chen Chuan returned with Prince Yi's head after sealing the rift, and his team reported that the two fleeing enemies had been eliminated.
• Chen Chuan led the team to Tiger Fang Isle, where its residents surrendered, and left two avatars to oversee the island.
• A deity's curse-like aura settled on Chen Chuan, but his Aspect of Man absorbed it, allowing him to use the invasion to temper himself.
• Chen Chuan reported Prince Yi's death and Tiger Fang Isle's capture, then signed orders allowing the southern-border Fighters to return.
• Chen Chuan sent Gao Ming to deliver a message to Cao Guiqi about transferring the Hidden Treasure, then examined the Divine Energy taken from the Golden Bell Demon.
• Chen Chuan considered searching for Lost Objects and began looking for the location needed for his next breakthrough.

Chen Chuan continued searching Emperor Wenguang’s books for a suitable place while the Command Center celebrated the Old Imperial Household’s defeat and prepared to absorb the Convergence Zone. At the Advisory Council vote, Chen Chuan tied with Cen Xinwu for the reserve-member selection, forcing a second round.

• Chen Chuan studied Emperor Wenguang’s books for clues about places suited to practitioners of the Aspect of Man.
• The Command Center celebrated the elimination of Prince Yi and discussed accelerating the integration of the Convergence Zone ahead of the Great Collision.
• Geng Bocheng argued to Fan Zhentong that candidates with the Secret Diagram Bloodline represented the future and supported the Fusion Faction’s nominee.
• Fan Zhentong reviewed the candidates’ records and voted for Chen Chuan in the Advisory Council reserve-member selection.
• The first vote eliminated Qiu Yanbo, while Chen Chuan and Cen Xinwu tied, requiring a second round.

The Advisory Council selected Cen Xinwu over Chen Chuan for its alternate recommendation slot, a choice that still required higher approval and would be announced after the New Year. As factions prepared to constrain Chen Chuan, he remained focused on finding Precious Materials and the Old Imperial Household’s abandoned sites at the Nether Capital Frontline.

• Fan Zhentong and the other advisers held a second vote, but the Nature Faction advisers abstained, leaving the decision to the five-member advisory panel.
• Hong Jinkang told Fan Zhentong he had voted for Cen Xinwu because he believed Chen Chuan should remain at the Frontline until after the Great Collision, and asked Fan to convey his view.
• The panel selected Cen Xinwu for the alternate recommendation slot and said it would seek higher approval before announcing the result after the New Year.
• Zhan Jiyue objected to the outcome at Purity Faction Headquarters, while Vice President Zhu said approval was unlikely to be overturned; Zhan hinted Chen Chuan might not need their recommendation in three years.
• Fusion Faction council members agreed to push for Chen Chuan to sign the Safety Protocol, arguing that the war no longer justified delaying it.
• Fan Zhentong sent Chen Chuan the decision by telegram, but Chen Chuan set it aside and continued searching Old Imperial Household archives for sites and ways to obtain the remaining Precious Materials.