Chapter Summaries

Chen Chuan uncovered the Imperial Edict Record’s hidden ritual and used it to enter three Immortal Abodes, finding that their energies did not suit him. In the third abode, Lord of Seeking Sameness appeared and urged him to consider becoming ruler over men as an external calamity approached.

• Chen Chuan and the Active Consciousness Entities traced the Imperial Edict Record’s clues to a version of the Your Heart Record that concealed a ritual.
• Chen Chuan used the ritual and its pill formulas to open a rift into an Immortal Abode linked to the Aspect of the Gods, then withdrew because its aura was incompatible with him.
• Chen Chuan opened a second Immortal Abode linked to the Variant Appearance and likewise left without exploring further because it rejected him.
• Chen Chuan entered a third Immortal Abode linked to the Aspect of Man, found a booklet of writings by earlier Mystic Martial Experts, and considered whether the place could be put to use.
• Lord of Seeking Sameness appeared as a wisp of aura and asked Chen Chuan whether he would seize the moment to become ruler over men amid an approaching external calamity.

Chen Chuan rejected Lord of Seeking Sameness’s proposal to cooperate in establishing a new regime, but received instructions for removing aberrant energy from the Immortal Abode. After consulting the Celestial Mystery Sect and preparing to begin cultivation, he received a telegram from Wu Yi Academy about a league tournament.

• Chen Chuan dismissed Lord of Seeking Sameness’s appeal for cooperation, and Lord of Seeking Sameness warned him about the Outer Heaven Demons and the coming Profound Tribulation.
• Lord of Seeking Sameness dispersed some aberrant energy, vanished, and left Chen Chuan a paper describing how to restore the Immortal Abode and cultivate Immortal Seeds.
• Chen Chuan returned to camp and asked the Celestial Mystery Sect for advice, then received True Person Longxian’s promise to send a detailed explanation by package.
• Chen Chuan prepared to begin cultivation of the Aspect of Man after the Mutated Tissue transformation neared completion.
• A telegraph operator gave Chen Chuan a telegram from Wu Yi Academy in Zhongjing about a league tournament.

Chen Chuan meditated beyond the rift with the Snow Monarch Blade, fought off the entities drawn by his communion with the world, and reviewed growing threats across the globe. He remained at the Frontline for the New Year, where Fang Yanxing delivered the Advisory Council’s appointment naming him a consultant of the Highest Security Advisory Group and requested his return to Zhongjing.

• Chen Chuan reopened a rift with the Snow Monarch Blade and meditated on the other side, where waves of hostile entities attacked him until he withdrew after dawn.
• Chen Chuan reviewed military reports and learned that the growth-type anomaly Chi Luojia Duo was moving toward Great Shun’s northern border, while crises were emerging across other regions.
• Chen Chuan decided to spend the New Year at the Frontline rather than make an exception and return home.
• Fan Zhentong and Fang Yanxing arrived from Zhongjing aboard a classified airship and told Chen Chuan the Supreme Advisory Council had appointed him a consultant of the Highest Security Advisory Group.
• Fang Yanxing presented Chen Chuan with a temporary letter of authorization and asked him to return to Zhongjing within two days for the formal appointment ceremony.

Chen Chuan learned that Tianshu had appointed him a full member of the Advisory Council, but he refused to leave the Frontline for an early vote. Gao Ming arrived at the fortress and viewed the Nether Capital with Chen Chuan.

• Fang Yanxing told Chen Chuan that Tianshu had designated him as a full Advisory Council member while Cen Xinwu remained a reserve candidate.
• Chen Chuan declined to return to Zhongjing for the Advisory Council vote, insisting that he would not abandon his troops before a replacement took command.
• Fan Zhentong supported Chen Chuan's decision and urged him to focus on his own position against the Surrender and Conservative Factions.
• Gao Ming traveled to the Frontline, taking suppressive medicine during the airship journey to guard against mutation contamination.
• Chen Chuan welcomed Gao Ming at the fortress, and Gao Ming asked whether the distant Nether Capital might become the new Frontline.

Chen Chuan sent Gao Ming to reassure Cao Guiqi about the Hidden Treasure and continued overseeing Great Shun’s victory over the End Dynasty. Cao Guiqi entrusted the third Hidden Treasure to Chen Chuan’s discretion, leaving Chen Chuan to investigate its contents after the New Year.

• Chen Chuan warned Gao Ming to keep Aunt and the others in Central City, showed him around Nether Capital, and asked him to reassure Cao Guiqi about the Hidden Treasure.
• Gao Ming reminded Chen Chuan that the Fighter Council had pressed him to sign an agreement, but Chen Chuan told him to send any objections to the Great Shun Central Command Center.
• Great Shun’s forces continued occupying the End Dynasty’s territory, and the Executive Council’s Command Center announced the End Dynasty’s destruction.
• Gao Ming delivered Chen Chuan’s message to Cao Guiqi, who wrote to Chen Chuan that he could keep, give away, or hand over the third Hidden Treasure as he saw fit.
• After receiving Cao Guiqi’s reply, Chen Chuan decided to inspect the third Hidden Treasure after the New Year, suspecting it contained an item important to the old dynasty.

Chen Chuan celebrated the New Year with the Nether Capital Frontline and considered the role he might play in Great Shun’s preparations for the Great Collision. After opening the last Hidden Treasure, he encountered Mi Zhuzi, who apologized for obstructing his side and offered to accept punishment.

• Chen Chuan attended the Frontline’s New Year banquet, where officials announced commendations and appointments and the army held performances and contests.
• Special Commissioner Chi discussed Chen Chuan’s invitation to the Wu Yi League and the need to train reserve talent, while warning that some government and Advisory Council members favored surrender.
• The army welcomed Year 99 of Jianzhi with artillery fire, then rested and reorganized for the first three days of the year.
• Chen Chuan left a duplicate behind and traveled with Ming Chengzi and Mu Xiaoren to Haixi Province to open the last Hidden Treasure.
• At the sealed area near Boxin Lake, Chen Chuan entered alone and met Mi Zhuzi, who apologized for acting at the False Emperor’s request and offered to accept punishment.

Mi Zhuzi sought to mend the Duan Chen Faction’s relationship with Great Shun and offered Chen Chuan compensation and three pieces of the Heavenly Human Secret Map. After Mi Zhuzi left, Chen Chuan opened the third Hidden Treasure and discovered agreements with Ancient Deities, then sensed more valuables sealed behind portraits of Chang Dynasty emperors.

• Mi Zhuzi explained that the Duan Chen Faction wanted friendly relations with Great Shun and would join forces against the Outer Heaven Demons, even alongside the Zen Sect.
• Mi Zhuzi gave Chen Chuan a jar of black scale-like substance and three fragments of the Heavenly Human Secret Map, and Chen Chuan accepted them.
• Mi Zhuzi left, and Chen Chuan flew to the third Hidden Treasure and carefully removed its ritual.
• Chen Chuan searched the Hidden Treasure and found Old Era books, records, and technical works preserved in the style of the Chang Dynasty.
• Chen Chuan opened Book Caskets and found agreements between the Chang Dynasty’s Founding Emperor and Ancient Deities.
• Chen Chuan sensed three sealed wall niches behind portraits of Chang Dynasty emperors, where the most precious items were likely stored.

Chen Chuan discovered three intact Heavenly Human Secret Map fragments in Senior Brother Cao’s Hidden Treasure, and the imperial portraits guarding them burned away as he left. Meanwhile, Gai Shuhe led his clan toward Whitefirefly Road to flee across the sea, but Huo Zhuifeng intercepted him on Chen Chuan’s orders.

• Chen Chuan uncovered three jade fragments matching the Heavenly Human Secret Map and kept them for Senior Brother Cao.
• The three imperial portraits burst into flames after Chen Chuan removed them from the niche, and he left the Hidden Treasure behind.
• Gai Shuhe led the surviving Gai Clan airships toward Whitefirefly Road, hoping to escape across the sea by following the sleeping Night Fire Duke.
• After Gai Clan forces fought suspected Chang Dynasty survivors near the route, Gai Shuhe ordered the airships to speed ahead as he grew uneasy.
• Huo Zhuifeng destroyed the last airship and confronted Gai Shuhe, saying Commander Chen had specifically requested him.
• Gai Shuhe tried to escape, but Huo Zhuifeng used Divine Energy to pursue him and began counting down three seconds.

Chen Chuan received Gai Shuhe and learned that Chen Bitong had been buried alive at Yin Ridge with a Life-Sustaining Pill. Chen Chuan and Huo Zhuifeng reached the ridge, where Chen Chuan sensed three people still alive underground.

• Chen Chuan examined the six Heavenly Human Secret Maps and suspected they might need to be studied at a higher level, but decided not to take them to the Other Side World yet.
• Huo Zhuifeng delivered Gai Shuhe to Chen Chuan and reported that one of Gai Shuhe's daughters had disappeared into the sea.
• Gai Shuhe admitted that he had buried Chen Bitong at Yin Ridge after giving him a Life-Sustaining Pill.
• Huo Zhuifeng explained the Urn Punishment and agreed to accompany Chen Chuan to find Chen Bitong.
• Chen Chuan and Huo Zhuifeng flew to Yin Ridge, where Chen Chuan sensed three people alive beneath the ground.

Chen Chuan rescued Chen Bitong from Urn Punishment, restored his failing body, and arranged treatment while keeping his survival from Chen Xiaojin for now. Back at the Frontline, Chen Chuan received guidance from the Celestial Mystery Sect about cultivation and watched Red Dust finally overcome the sparkling mist.

• Chen Chuan used Spiritual Fire to remove Chen Bitong's overgrown Mutated Tissue and stabilize him, then told him that the Pure Essence had succeeded and that four years had passed.
• Chen Bitong learned that the Old Imperial Household had fallen and asked Chen Chuan not to tell Chen Xiaojin that he was alive yet.
• Chen Chuan carried Chen Bitong to Anbei Province and arranged regenerative transplantation for his severed limbs at Central City Hospital.
• Chen Chuan returned to the Frontline, where pressure from incursions had eased and the war had entered its final stage.
• Chen Chuan read True Person Longxian's letter warning him not to follow an Ancient Deity's cultivation path and concluding that he could return the Immortal Abode to an Immortal Seed.
• Red Dust swallowed the final wisp of sparkling mist and gained the upper hand.

After Red Dust absorbed the Divine Fetus and the Snow Monarch Blade awakened with greater capacity, Chen Chuan worked to cleanse alien energy from an Immortal Abode and prepared to join the Advisory Council. As he traveled back to Zhongjing, he saw political factions disputing the credit for the war and concluded that the internal struggle would be difficult to avoid.

• Red Dust absorbed the Divine Fetus's energy, strengthening her field and giving her the possibility of further growth.
• The Snow Monarch Blade awakened, and Chen Chuan sensed that it could now sustain his full power more easily.
• Chen Chuan entered the Immortal Abode and began forcing out its alien energy, estimating that he could restore it in about twenty days.
• On January 10, Chen Chuan handed over command of the Frontline, then departed for Zhongjing on January 12 after preparations and a farewell ceremony.
• During the airship journey, Chen Chuan read opposing articles arguing over the military's and Central Cities' roles in destroying the Old Imperial Household.
• Chen Chuan recognized that the struggle over the war's rewards had begun and considered dealing with obstructive factions before the Great Collision.

After returning to Zhongjing, Chen Chuan was confronted by Fighter Council members demanding that he sign a Safety Protocol. Fan Zhentong arrived and confirmed Chen Chuan’s new status as a formal advisor, allowing him to proceed to his post.

• Chen Chuan read competing newspaper articles in which both factions praised his achievements while claiming his support.
• Chen Chuan’s airship arrived in Zhongjing on the fifteenth, where Fighter Council member Peng Jinghui approached him about signing a Safety Protocol.
• Chen Chuan refused to sign immediately and told Peng Jinghui that he was going to take up a post with the Highest Security Advisory Group.
• Peng Jinghui insisted that Chen Chuan could not enter Zhongjing until his appointment was verified.
• Fan Zhentong arrived and said formal advisors did not need to sign Safety Protocols, then invited Chen Chuan to join the waiting advisors.

On the way to Zhongjing, Chen Chuan learned from Fan Zhentong about the Advisory Council’s power, internal structure, and duty to produce higher powers before the Great Collision. The conversation ended with Chen Chuan asking how many current advisors possessed the Secret Diagram Bloodline.

• Chen Chuan left the plaza with Fan Zhentong as Peng Jinghui remained behind, suspended from duty.
• Fan Zhentong explained that international and domestic forces had influenced the attempt to probe Chen Chuan, and that the Advisory Council had kept its incoming advisor list unannounced.
• Fan Zhentong described how the Advisory Council’s authority came from Tianshu and how its members represented competing factions and institutions.
• Fan Zhentong explained that the Advisory Council was a reserve force for the nation and world, but its main mission was to break through to the Higher Realm or support people who could.
• Chen Chuan asked whether Great Shun’s Fighter numbers had declined, and Fan Zhentong said public figures excluded many trained through official channels for national security reasons.
• Chen Chuan asked whether many current Advisory Council members possessed the Secret Diagram Bloodline.

Chen Chuan underwent his appointment ceremony and became a formal Advisor of the Great Shun National Security Advisory Council, receiving a Jade Talisman that represented his Council identity. At a meeting afterward, he asked whether the Council could provide enough Immortal Seeds to help him cultivate.

• Fan Zhentong told Chen Chuan that people with Secret Diagram Bloodlines were becoming more common and had advantages in surviving the coming confrontation with the Other Side World.
• Chen Chuan arrived at Dan Xin Hall, received the Council’s World Token, and connected with the Active Consciousness Entity Kaiyang.
• Dai Xuming read Chen Chuan’s letter of appointment, and Chen Chuan received his Jade Talisman after sensing gazes from enormous figures in the Other Side World.
• Dai Xuming introduced Chen Chuan to the five-member Advisor Group, including Xiao Yuanguang, Pei Xiyan, Tong Xin, and Xu Yingqing.
• Chen Chuan told the Advisor Group that he wanted to know whether the Advisory Council could provide enough Immortal Seeds.

Chen Chuan joined the Advisory Council, exchanged his request for a Flash Domain for a rare Primal Relic, and announced that he planned to fight at the World Ring. After he criticized the Council and vowed to change it, a higher power summoned him, while Dai Xuming and Tong Xin discussed the threat he might pose.

• Pei Xiyan offered Chen Chuan several inherited locations, but Chen rejected them and asked for Primal Relic instead.
• Xiao Yuanguang gave Chen Chuan the Advisory Council's stored wisp of Primal Relic, completing the set of Lost Objects he needed.
• Chen Chuan told the advisors he would fulfill his Council duties, then go to the World Ring to fight the existence on the other side.
• Chen Chuan said he was dissatisfied with some Council decisions and advisors' conduct, and promised to find a way to change things.
• Rainbow light summoned Chen Chuan to meet a higher power, leaving the advisors startled by the unusual invitation.
• Dai Xuming and Tong Xin discussed Chen Chuan's power and ambition, and agreed they should be cautious about the support he seemed to receive from above.

Chen Chuan met three Tianshu members, learned why the factions tolerated partnerships with entities beyond the domain, and reviewed the Advisory Council’s duties as the Great Collision approached. He left planning to focus on cultivation, gather what he needed, inspect the World Ring, and return to Jibei Province first.

• Elder She introduced Yu Chenggang and Meng Zhenyang, who explained that Tianshu had promoted Chen Chuan because he was the likeliest candidate to break through to the Higher Realm.
• Elder She described the growing pressure from entities beyond the domain and explained that Tianshu tolerated partnerships with some of them because the world needed their strength to defend the World Ring.
• Meng Zhenyang said that opposition to those partnerships would provoke internal strife, so the Purity Faction had to compromise until its strength could overwhelm the other side.
• After the meeting ended, Chen Chuan reviewed the Advisory Council’s factions and concluded that some interest groups obstructed effective action, though their backing from higher powers complicated any response.
• Chen Chuan reviewed the Council’s duties, including approving major state policies, guarding the Eternal Rift beneath Red Hill, and pursuing breakthroughs, then decided to return to Jibei Province before inspecting the World Ring.

Chen Chuan learned about the authority and benefits of Advisory Council advisors, then traveled to his assigned residence in a Ritual Field Domain. He discovered that the residence was connected to the Eternal Rift and asked Kaiyang to take him there first.

• Chen Chuan reviewed advisor privileges, including access to resources, private services, and direct communication with Tianshu.
• Gao Geliang and Tie Yinyang contacted Chen Chuan to welcome him and invite him to spar, and he added them both.
• Chen Chuan rode with an armed escort and used Kaiyang to inspect information about Zhongjing and his assigned guards.
• Chen Chuan entered a Ritual Field Domain containing his lakeside residence and learned that he could claim it by imprinting his Mental Field Domain.
• Chen Chuan noticed an energy source beneath the residence, identified it as the Eternal Rift, and asked Kaiyang to take him there.

Chen Chuan visited the Eternal Rift at Red Hill with Xiao Yuanguang, learning how the defenses and the rift’s history shaped the region. After entering the rift, the two passed unharmed through a surge of creatures and light and emerged into another world.

• Chen Chuan traveled by tunnel train to Red Hill and saw the fortress and military defenses built to hold back creatures from the Eternal Rift.
• Xiao Yuanguang explained that the rift had to be opened periodically to release pressure and described how modern troops and weapons had reduced casualties.
• Xiao Yuanguang told Chen Chuan about a Wu Yi Academy comrade who entered the rift and became a demon after failing to bring change to the old world.
• Xiao Yuanguang led Chen Chuan to the rift, where Chen saw its vast cracks, the remnants of ancient fighters, and the layered defenses rebuilt under Great Shun.
• Chen Chuan and Xiao Yuanguang entered the rift, passed through the rushing light and mutated creatures without harm, and emerged in another world.

Chen Chuan entered the Eternal Field Domain and crossed beyond the World Ring with Xiao Yuanguang, where he encountered a dangerous realm crowded with powerful domains. Xiao Yuanguang taught him how to identify threats and avoid traps, leaving Chen Chuan to consider whether to patrol alone or with a partner.

• Xiao Yuanguang explained that the Eternal Field Domain was the World Ring's defensive outpost and described the Fighters guarding its breaches.
• Chen Chuan asked to inspect the Other Side World, and Xiao Yuanguang accompanied him after sending him a number to remember.
• Chen Chuan crossed the breach and withheld his response when Xiao Yuanguang's domain tried to contact him until Kaiyang confirmed the agreed number.
• Xiao Yuanguang warned Chen Chuan that domains could lure advisors into deadly traps and explained how demons and monsters concealed their connections.
• Xiao Yuanguang asked whether Chen Chuan preferred to patrol the Other Side World with a partner or alone.

Chen Chuan accompanied Xiao Yuanguang beyond the World Ring, learned how advisors traveled and searched the Other Side, and returned safely after finding no significant demons or monsters. He arranged for a personal Active Consciousness Entity and planned to exchange an unsuitable Lost Object before asking Kaiyang to investigate Great Shun’s Ascension Ladder.

• Chen Chuan accepted Xiao Yuanguang’s advice to prepare equipment and a customized Active Consciousness Entity before beginning watch duty.
• Xiao Yuanguang taught Chen Chuan to travel through Hun Jiang Field Spaces, use concealment and search techniques, and avoid dangers in the Other Side.
• Chen Chuan and Xiao Yuanguang crossed several domains, found the area cleared of significant demons and monsters, and returned to the fortress.
• Xiao Yuanguang explained the defenses around the World Ring and warned Chen Chuan that an advisor had become a demon of the Other Side ten years earlier.
• Chen Chuan exchanged contact information with Xiao Yuanguang, then asked Kaiyang to customize a personal Active Consciousness Entity and planned to replace an unsuitable Lost Object.
• Chen Chuan asked Kaiyang to search for Great Shun’s Ascension Ladder, and Kaiyang began checking its information database.