Chapter Summaries

Di Xin released the Old Marquis of the West in exchange for Xi Qi’s grain and treasures, and Bo Yikao delivered the payment to Chaoge. Di Xin recognized Bo Yikao’s Ziwei Imperial Qi and resolved that Bo Yikao would never claim the position of Great Emperor Ziwei while he remained in power.

• Fei Zhong and You Hun reported that Lady Tai Si was gravely ill and that Xi Qi wanted the Old Marquis of the West released; Di Xin ordered his release but fined Xi Qi Two Hundred Million Shi of Grain and a thousand treasures.
• Bo Yikao agreed to pay the demand to bring his father home, and he asked his younger brothers and the Western Lords to contribute treasures.
• Ji Fa brought Bo Yikao a White Ape, which he praised as a suitable treasure for his father.
• After half a year of preparation, Bo Yikao carried the grain and treasures through the Six Passes to Chaoge and paid respects to Di Xin.
• Di Xin perceived Bo Yikao’s Ziwei Imperial Qi and thought that the position of Great Emperor Ziwei would remain his as long as he lived.

Bo Yikao presented treasures to Di Xin, but the White Ape he brought suddenly attacked the king and was killed by Wen Zhong. Bo Yikao denied ordering the assassination, and Di Xin asked where the ape had come from.

• Bo Yikao showed Di Xin several treasures from Xi Qi, including a self-driving chariot, a Sobering Mat, and a performing White Ape.
• Di Xin ordered the White Ape released to perform, and it approached him before suddenly lunging to attack.
• Wen Zhong seized and killed the White Ape, then accused Bo Yikao of attempting to assassinate Di Xin.
• Bo Yikao pleaded that he had not known the ape would attack, while Di Xin accused him of ordering the assassination.
• Fei Zhong and You Hun urged Di Xin to investigate the incident, and Di Xin asked Bo Yikao where the White Ape had come from.

Bo Yikao was punished for bringing the White Ape to Chaoge and returned to Xi Qi with Ji Chang after Xi Qi paid another hundred million shi of grain. When Ji Chang returned to Qiyi, a phoenix cry announced Xi Qi’s rising fortune, and Primordial Lord of Heaven declared that the Investiture of the Gods Calamity had begun.

• Under Di Xin’s pressure, Bo Yikao blamed Ji Fa for providing the White Ape, and Di Xin fined Xi Qi another hundred million shi of grain.
• Di Xin revealed that he had used the Nine-tailed Celestial Fox’s fur to make the White Ape mistake him for a fox demon.
• Bo Yikao told Ji Chang what happened, while San Yisheng arranged to pay the grain demanded by Great Shang.
• Great Shang released Ji Chang and Bo Yikao after Xi Qi handed over the grain, and they returned to Qiyi.
• When Ji Chang took his seat in the Marquis of the West’s residence, Xi Qi’s fortune gathered into a phoenix and its cry resounded across the Nine Provinces.
• Primordial Lord of Heaven declared that the Investiture of the Gods Calamity had begun and ordered Immortal Weng of the South Pole to send Shen Gongbao to assist the Heroic Lord.

As the Phoenix omen appeared over Xi Qi, Taiqing Laozi ordered Xuandu to help raise Zhou, while Zhunti and Jieyin planned to make the Ren and Chan Sects look incompetent and win Xi Qi’s favor for Western Teach. Tongtian declared that he would support Shang, and the chapter left Kong Xuan setting out to confront the Phoenix omen.

• Immortal Weng of the South Pole headed to the Human Race to find Shen Gongbao.
• Taiqing Laozi instructed Xuandu to help the True Lord raise Zhou, telling him to act despite the Holy Hall’s authority.
• Zhunti persuaded Jieyin to sabotage Ren and Chan Sect disciples and draw the Xiqi Royal Family toward Western Teach.
• Tongtian denounced the plan to raise Zhou and ordered the Water Fire Boys to strike the Golden Bell in support of Shang.
• The Purple Phoenix over Xi Qi stirred debate among the Human Race, while Kong Xuan became furious that a National Fortune phantom was using the Phoenix Clan’s name.
• Kong Xuan told Chanyu to practice alone and vanished from Sanshan Pass.

Kong Xuan used Great Shang’s National Fortune to seize and crush Xi Qi’s Purple Phoenix, cutting Xi Qi’s National Fortune in half. Ji Chang, alarmed by the prophecy and urged on by his ministers and sons, secretly prepared to rebel while sending Di Xin a letter of loyalty; Di Xin remained calm and watched for what Ji Chang would do.

• Kong Xuan manifested as Great Shang’s Mysterious Bird, captured Xi Qi’s Purple Phoenix, and crushed it, causing Xi Qi’s National Fortune to fall by half.
• Ji Chang worried that the prophecy of a phoenix crying at Qishan identified him as the future ruler who would overthrow Great Shang and bring Di Xin’s retaliation.
• San Yisheng, Nangong Shi, Ji Fa, and Xi Qi’s other ministers and sons urged Ji Chang to rise up and attack Shang.
• Ji Chang ordered San Yisheng to reassure Di Xin while Xi Qi secretly gathered strength, and he told Taidian to contact the western lords and promised to share the realm with them.
• Ji Chang ordered Xi Qi’s divided lands reclaimed, while Di Xin read Ji Chang’s letter in Chaoge and said he hoped Ji Chang would not disappoint him.

Di Xin chose to delay attacking Xi Qi so Great Shang could gather strength against the Heavenly Dao, and he received an Immeasurable Heaven Sealing Banner. He began planning how to assemble and protect the Heaven Sealing Grand Array while preparing for the coming conflict.

• Di Xin chose to wait for Xi Qi to rebel and received an Immeasurable Heaven Sealing Banner that could help form an array to weaken the Heavenly Dao.
• Di Xin identified Styx and Xuanyuan as array members and considered Queen Mother of the West, Xiao Bai, a Humanity Path Saint, Yuan Feng, and Cangjie as candidates or reserves.
• Di Xin planned for Tongtian and his incarnations to hold off the other Saints while he gathered enough strength to protect the array.
• Di Xin wrote back to Ji Chang, acknowledging his professed loyalty while secretly choosing to stall for time.
• Wen Zhong questioned why Di Xin would not destroy Xi Qi, and Di Xin explained that the decisive struggle was against a power beyond the nations and their Saint lineages.

Su Hu rejected Ji Chang’s attempt to recruit Jizhou and sent his son Su Quanzhong to report Xi Qi’s treasonous plans to the Great King. Meanwhile, Cangyuan received two strands of Primordial Violet Qi from Nuwa and left for the Human Race Martial Dao Sacred Hall, while Nuwa wondered whether he truly had no desire for them.

• Su Hu refused Ji Chang’s invitation, denounced his treason, and ordered Su Quanzhong to deliver a report to the Great King in Chaoge.
• Ji Chang’s agents continued recruiting feudal lords across the realm and planned to assassinate those who refused, while Di Xin monitored their actions.
• Cangyuan met Nuwa and discussed the Chentang Pass tragedy and the Heavenly Dao’s intervention against Nezha.
• Nuwa gave Cangyuan two newly condensed strands of Human Dao Primordial Violet Qi.
• Cangyuan left for the Human Race Martial Dao Sacred Hall, and Nuwa wondered whether he truly was not tempted by Primordial Violet Qi.

Cangyuan gathered the Human Sovereigns and Human Ancestors to distribute two strands of Primordial Violet Qi to Fuxi and Shennong, then sought help for Di Yu and Cangjie’s Law Path cultivation. He offered another strand to Queen Mother of the West, who eagerly accepted, leaving her poised to receive it.

• Cangyuan sealed the Human Race Martial Dao Sacred Hall with the Kongtong Seal and told the gathered Human Sovereigns and Human Ancestors that the Human Race would gain another Saint.
• After everyone supported giving the Primordial Violet Qi to Fuxi, Cangyuan revealed two strands and gave them to Fuxi and Shennong.
• Cangyuan urged Di Yu and Cangjie to attain the Dao before the Investiture of the Gods Tribulation ended, but they explained that advancing their Law Mastery was exceptionally difficult.
• Cangyuan took Di Yu and Cangjie away, then traveled to West Kunlun instead of returning to his dojo.
• Cangyuan offered Queen Mother of the West Primordial Violet Qi, and she promised to remember his favor and eagerly agreed to wait for it.

Cangyuan returned to Chaos Three Immortal Island and reunited with Bai Lianxin and Little Yinglong, who had been resting beneath the Dao Comprehension Tea Tree. He asked how close Bai Lianxin was to attaining the Dao, and the chapter explained the dangerous final stage of the Three Corpses Severance Method.

• Cangyuan arrived at Chaos Three Immortal Island and found Bai Lianxin and Little Yinglong lounging in the Dao Comprehension Tea Tree.
• Little Yinglong recognized Cangyuan, flew to him, and clung to his back; Bai Lianxin complained that she had only been ordered to recite the Huang Ting for a few years.
• Cangyuan restrained Bai Lianxin so he could ruffle her hair, then indulged Little Yinglong when she asked for the same.
• Cangyuan asked Bai Lianxin whether she was far from attaining the Dao as a Three Corpses Hunyuan Great Luo Golden Immortal.
• The chapter explained how Bai Lianxin had severed her Three Corpses and described the perilous process of merging them to open Heaven and Earth within her body.

Cangyuan brought Xiao Bai into a blank Myriad Heavens Universe and set her, Emperor Yu, Cangjie, and Queen Mother of the West to cultivate with the Jade Disc of Creation. He returned to the Primordial World, where Little Yinglong greeted him, then checked on the inhabitants of Chaos Three Immortal Island.

• Cangyuan demanded that Xiao Bai attain the Dao as a Three Corpses Hunyuan Great Luo Golden Immortal within a hundred years, then explained that time dilation would give her ten million years.
• Cangyuan took Xiao Bai to the blank Myriad Heavens Universe, where Emperor Yu, Cangjie, and Queen Mother of the West were already waiting.
• Cangjie questioned how they could cultivate laws without Heaven and Earth, and Cangyuan presented the Jade Disc of Creation as an aid to Dao comprehension.
• Cangyuan explained the treasure’s functions, then had the four cultivators take positions around it and begin cultivating.
• Cangyuan returned to the Primordial World, gave Little Yinglong a Yellow Middle Plum, and swept his Primordial Spirit across Chaos Three Immortal Island to check on Three Xiao and the others.

Cangyuan sent Yang Jian, Yang Jiao, and Yang Chan to aid the Human Race as its calamity began, while Shen Gongbao planned to earn Ji Chang’s trust by helping Xi Qi after it suffered an initial defeat. Ji Chang mobilized Xi Qi’s allies and assigned his sons and generals their roles, leaving Bo Yikao wary of Ji Fa despite their father’s plea that they support each other.

• Cangyuan sent Yang Jian, Yang Jiao, and Yang Chan a decree calling them to contribute to the Human Race’s struggle, then took Little Yinglong fishing.
• Shen Gongbao recalled Feng Yuan’s advice and decided to wait for Xi Qi to be beaten before helping it repel Great Shang and gaining a powerful position.
• Shen Gongbao resolved to secretly ask Feng Yuan to have Chaoge’s military cooperate with his plan.
• Ji Chang ordered San Yisheng to contact allied armies and convene the Xi Qi Alliance, while Nangong Shi was tasked with arresting Shang Dynasty people and reclaiming Xi Qi’s lands.
• Ji Chang assigned Bo Yikao to oversee supplies and Ji Fa to serve as a grain transport officer, while Bo Yikao privately remained suspicious of his younger brother.
• Ji Chang took both sons’ hands and urged them to support each other.

Nangong Shi reclaimed Xi Qi’s fiefs after Great Shang’s officials vanished, while Ji Chang gathered two hundred lords and more than thirty million troops to launch a punitive expedition against Shang. As the new Calamity stirred the Prehistoric World, Kunpeng watched hopefully and the demon race considered exploiting the conflict.

• Nangong Shi searched Xi Qi’s fiefs for Great Shang’s officials, found they had disappeared, and reclaimed the territories for Ji Chang.
• Ji Chang and San Yisheng agreed to continue their rebellion despite Nangong Shi’s unease.
• Two hundred lords and their armies gathered outside Qiyi, where Ji Chang declared a punitive expedition against Shang and ordered three armies to attack Sishui Pass, Jiameng Pass, and Azure Dragon Pass.
• The alliance’s declaration stirred Karmic Tribulation Energy across the Prehistoric World, worrying cultivators.
• Zhenyuanzi tended the Ginseng Fruit Tree while Kunpeng watched the brewing conflict from the North Sea.
• Shang Yang, Ci Tie, and Qin Yuan asked Bai Ze whether the demon race should recall the crown prince and prepare to take advantage of the Human Race’s Calamity.

Bai Ze stopped three Demon Saints from plotting against the Human Race, while Great Shang ambushed Xi Qi’s advancing forces and launched a rapid invasion of its territory. Xi Qi lost nine million troops and the regions of Binzhou and Chuzhou, which Great Shang then emptied and destroyed.

• Bai Ze reprimanded Ci Tie, Shang Yang, and Qin Yuan for considering a challenge to the Human Race, and they abandoned the idea.
• Ji Chang sent Xi Qi’s thirty-million-strong army toward three Great Shang passes, but Wan Duzi, E Chongyu, and Su Hu blocked the vanguards while Great Shang cavalry attacked from behind.
• Great Shang’s forces routed Xi Qi’s three vanguards, killing or wounding more than half and capturing the survivors, for a total loss of nine million troops and generals.
• Di Xin marked Xi Qi’s northeastern and southeastern regions for conquest, intending to help Shen Gongbao infiltrate Xi Qi.
• Han Rong, Yu Hua, Zhang Guifang, the Mo Family Four Generals, and Chen Wu led blitzkrieg attacks that captured Chuzhou and Binzhou within three days.
• Great Shang relocated the civilians from Binzhou and Chuzhou, then burned houses, destroyed fields, tore down city walls, and polluted the water.

After Great Shang seized Binzhou and Chuzhou and destroyed Xi Qi’s vanguard, Ji Chang’s health and alliance deteriorated. A dream of a black tiger rescuing him led him to divine for a way out, and he found Shen Gongbao at Panxi Riverbank.

• Great Shang forces defeated Xi Qi’s vanguards and captured Binzhou and Chuzhou, leaving Ji Chang overwhelmed and causing several allied lords to consider abandoning the alliance.
• Ji Chang’s sons Bo Yikao and Ji Fa tried to comfort him, but Ji Fa’s blunt remarks about the lost territory and wavering lords further distressed him.
• Ji Chang dreamed that Shang soldiers had conquered Xi Qi City and a colossal winged black tiger rescued him, then awoke believing the tiger might be the key to averting disaster.
• Ji Chang divined that an extraordinary man was west of the city and went with his people to Panxi Riverbank.
• Ji Chang met the Taoist Shen Gongbao on a Green Stone and asked for his name.

Shen Gongbao tricked Ji Chang into pulling his royal carriage eight hundred steps, claiming the effort secured Xi Qi’s fortune for eight thousand years, then entered Ji Chang’s court as Prime Minister. After helping unify the feudal lords, Shen Gongbao urged an eastward advance, and Xi Qi faced an attack from Sishui Pass.

• Ji Chang recognized Shen Gongbao as the man from his dreams and believed the River Chart’s message confirmed him as Heaven’s chosen holy lord.
• Shen Gongbao persuaded Ji Chang to pull the royal carriage eight hundred steps east, then said the tribulation had been moved eighty thousand li and Xi Qi’s fortune secured for eight thousand years.
• Ji Chang appointed Shen Gongbao Prime Minister, and Shen Gongbao secretly celebrated how easily he had deceived him.
• Over the next half month, Shen Gongbao advised Ji Chang to execute, placate, or reward feudal lords to resolve their disunity.
• Shen Gongbao advised Ji Chang to abandon Binzhou and Chuzhou and concentrate Xi Qi’s forces for an eastward advance.
• A messenger reported that Sishui Pass was attacking, and Shen Gongbao urged Ji Chang to leave the city and fight.

Shen Gongbao gave Ji Tai Mei a treasure to help him fight Yu Hua, but Ji Tai Mei lost it and was killed. Yu Hua advanced to the Profound Immortal Realm, while Shen Gongbao decided to return to his sect for reinforcements.

• Yu Hua challenged Xi Qi from outside Eastern Capital City, and Nangong Shi backed down after Shen Gongbao warned him that Yu Hua was a True Immortal.
• Shen Gongbao gave Ji Tai Mei the Soul Distracting Pearl, and Ji Tai Mei rode out to fight Yu Hua for Xi Qi.
• Ji Tai Mei held his own against Yu Hua with martial skill but could not find the Soul Distracting Pearl when he tried to use it.
• Yu Hua killed Ji Tai Mei with the Blood Transformation Divine Blade, and Ji Tai Mei's soul joined the Investiture of the Gods at Qi Mountain.
• Yu Hua passed through the Tribulation of Killing and attained the Profound Immortal Realm, while Shen Gongbao called for a Truce Board and left to seek reinforcements.

Shen Gongbao's gift failed to save Xi Qi, and Great Shang captured Eastern Capital City, forcing Nangong Shi and the survivors to flee to Yu Dong City. Shen Gongbao returned to Kunlun to seek Chan Sect aid, where calling out to Qingxu Daode Zhenjun secretly brought karmic tribulation and misfortune into his Primordial Spirit.

• Yu Hua led three hundred thousand Great Shang soldiers against Eastern Capital City despite the Truce Board, and Nangong Shi's defense collapsed after five shichen.
• Nangong Shi, San Yisheng, and fewer than sixty thousand elite troops escaped to Yu Dong City as Great Shang seized Eastern Capital City and captured three hundred and twenty thousand soldiers.
• Ji Fa told Ji Chang that Ji Tai Mei had lost Shen Gongbao's victory-granting treasure, while Bo Yikao suspected Ji Fa wanted their father to die so he could seek the Crown Prince's position.
• Shen Gongbao returned to Kunlun Mountain to seek reinforcements and learned that the Chan Sect disciples were attending a sermon.
• Shen Gongbao called out to Qingxu Daode Zhenjun, and an unseen strand of karmic tribulation energy mixed with misfortune entered Qingxu Daode Zhenjun's Primordial Spirit.

Shen Gongbao returned to Kunlun Mountain to recruit Chan Teach disciples to help Xi Qi, and discovered that telling them to stay caused his cultivation to rise. He broke through to the Immortal Golden Immortal realm and prepared to descend with the others, while Randeng also asked to join them.

• Qingxu Daode Zhenjun agreed to help Shen Gongbao and led him to Contemplation Cliff, where Guangchengzi and the other disciples were gathered.
• Shen Gongbao called, "Daoist Please Stay," and the disciples who turned back were afflicted by Karmic Tribulation Energy as his cultivation surged.
• Shen Gongbao broke through from the peak of the Profound Immortal realm to the Immortal Golden Immortal realm, and Guangchengzi and the others congratulated him.
• Shen Gongbao explained Xi Qi's situation, and Guangchengzi agreed that the disciples would descend the mountain to help; Daoist Tianzun offered Wei Hu, Han Dulong, and Xue Ehu as generals.
• Randeng arrived on a Plum Blossom Deer and asked to accompany the disciples as they went to assist Xi Qi.

Primordial Lord of Heaven gave Shen Gongbao the Investiture-Smiting Divine Whip and the Four-Unlike Mount to aid his mission in the Conquest of Zhou. Daoist Zhunti secured permission to send Western Teach disciples into the Calamity and began plotting to recruit Randeng, while Primordial Lord of Heaven continued pursuing power over the Heavenly Dao.

• Daoist Randeng asked to join the Conquest of Zhou, but Guangchengzi and the others declined, saying he should save his strength in case Cangyuan entered the conflict.
• Primordial Lord of Heaven summoned Shen Gongbao and lent him the Investiture-Smiting Divine Whip, explaining that it and the Investiture of the Gods would eventually return to the Heavenly Court.
• Immortal Weng of the South Pole brought Shen Gongbao the Four-Unlike Mount, which Primordial Lord of Heaven said would remain his after the Canonization of Gods.
• Daoist Zhunti spoke with Primordial Lord of Heaven about the Conquest of Zhou and received permission for Western Teach disciples to enter the Calamity.
• Daoist Zhunti considered recruiting Randeng and other Chan Sect members, while Primordial Lord of Heaven continued seeking to seize authority from the Heavenly Dao.

Shen Gongbao received the Four-Unlike Mount and orders to oversee the Canonization of Gods in the human realm, then unexpectedly advanced to Late Golden Immortal after encountering Zhunti. Zhunti recruited him to assist The West in Xi Qi and began considering how to win him away from the Chan Sect.

• Immortal Weng of the South Pole gave Shen Gongbao the Four-Unlike Mount and ordered him to oversee the Canonization of Gods in the human realm.
• Shen Gongbao inadvertently laid a strand of Karmic Tribulation Energy on Immortal Weng of the South Pole by calling after him, then broke through to Mid Golden Immortal.
• Shen Gongbao encountered Zhunti trying to take a rabbit demon to The West and advanced to Late Golden Immortal after shouting, “Daoist Please Stay!”
• Zhunti named the rabbit demon Xiao Wu and told Shen Gongbao that disciples of The West would soon come to Xi Qi to support the New Lord of Heavenly Mandate.
• Zhunti gave Shen Gongbao a Gengjin Bodhi Seed, and Shen Gongbao accepted it before entering the human realm.
• Afterward, Zhunti decided to recruit Shen Gongbao and turn the Chan Sect’s child of the Calamity into one serving The West.