Chapter Summaries

Ji Shu defeated Tree Demon Granny and returned to Lan Ruo Temple with Nie Xiaoqian’s Ash Urn. Xiao Qing grew jealous of Nie Xiaoqian and hurried toward the temple, while the others wondered where Ji Shu had gone and what his return with the urn meant.

• Tree Demon Granny’s roots attacked her fleeing minions, and Ji Shu emerged from her lair carrying her Spirit Pill after dragging her back with a golden rope.
• Xiao Qing realized Ji Shu had likely destroyed Tree Demon Granny, envied Nie Xiaoqian, and considered destroying her Ash Urn.
• Xiao Qing reached Tombstone Forest, hid in fear when a powerful figure passed, then flew toward Lan Ruo Temple with her jealousy and resentment growing.
• At Lan Ruo Temple, the awakened group questioned Nie Xiaoqian about Ji Shu’s whereabouts, but she said she did not know.
• Ji Shu returned to the temple holding Nie Xiaoqian’s Ash Urn, leaving the others surprised and prompting them to speculate about his feelings for her.
• Nie Xiaoqian felt moved by Ji Shu’s actions, while Xiao Wei found herself thinking less about Wang Sheng and more about Ji Shu.

After killing Tree Demon Granny, Ji Shu celebrated with Yan Chixia and the others, then learned that Nie Xiaoqian feared reincarnation and wanted to follow him. As dark clouds gathered over Lan Ruo Temple, Yan Chixia reported that he had caught a ghost named Xiao Qing who had a secret to tell Ji Shu.

• Ji Shu told Yan Chixia and the others that he had killed Tree Demon Granny, and they celebrated around a brazier as he briefly described how he had done it.
• At dawn, Nie Xiaoqian asked Ji Shu to let her follow him rather than reincarnate, and he advised her to cultivate ghostly arts in seclusion.
• Xia Bing warned Ji Shu that Yan Chixia feared a great calamity was coming as dark clouds rapidly covered the sky.
• Yan Chixia told Ji Shu that he had caught Xiao Qing, who wanted to report a secret, and Ji Shu told Nie Xiaoqian they would discuss her request later.

Xiao Qing warned Ji Shu that Black Mountain Old Demon was coming to avenge Tree Demon Granny, and Ji Shu learned the demon’s power and history. As the group prepared to face him, Yan Chixia offered to pass his Immortal Sword methods to Ji Shu.

• Xiao Qing brought Ji Shu evidence that Tree Demon Granny had allied with Black Mountain Old Demon and warned that reinforcements were on their way.
• Ji Shu interrogated Tree Demon Granny’s soul and learned that Black Mountain Old Demon was nearly invincible in the Little Underworld and still overwhelming in the mortal world.
• Xia Bing, Pang Yong, and Yan Chixia offered to stay behind or fight Black Mountain Old Demon, but Ji Shu insisted the group face him together.
• Yan Chixia realized Ji Shu wanted to learn more cultivation methods and offered to teach him everything he knew.

Yan Chixia took Ji Shu aside to teach him techniques, and Ji Shu mastered both Palm Thunder and the Heavenly Eye with extraordinary speed. Yan Chixia was left astonished by Ji Shu’s talent as they continued their training.

• Tree Demon Granny realized Ji Shu had forced her to reveal her spells and deepest ambition, but she hoped Black Mountain Old Demon would kill him before her Spirit Pill was destroyed.
• Yan Chixia brought Ji Shu to a private room and explained that techniques such as Palm Thunder could be learned quickly and used without consuming one’s own mana.
• After hearing Yan Chixia explain Palm Thunder once, Ji Shu perfected it in nine attempts and could unleash lightning from his palm without drawing a Tai Chi Diagram.
• Yan Chixia taught Ji Shu the Heavenly Eye secret art, and Ji Shu achieved mastery after hearing the formula once, manifesting a shining eye on his forehead.

Ji Shu mastered Yan Chixia’s sword techniques and the Xuanyuan Divine Sword Scripture with astonishing speed, then joined the others as the Black Mountain Old Demon arrived with an overwhelming army of Yin Soldiers. A driver attacked Ji Shu with a horsewhip, and the chapter ended as it struck toward him.

• Yan Chixia taught Ji Shu numerous sword techniques, which Ji Shu quickly brought to perfection, and then taught him the complete Xuanyuan Divine Sword Scripture.
• Ji Shu formed a Sword Pellet and manifested a phantom divine sword, leaving Yan Chixia stunned by his cultivation speed.
• Yan Chixia and Ji Shu joined Xia Bing, Pang Yong, Nie Xiaoqian, Xiao Qing, and the others as thunder and dark clouds announced the Black Mountain Old Demon’s arrival.
• The Black Mountain Old Demon appeared in a lavish carriage surrounded by Yin Soldiers and Yin Generals, and asked Ji Shu whether he had killed Tree Demon Granny.
• One of the Old Demon’s drivers called Ji Shu’s question an insult and lashed a horsewhip at him.

Ji Shu fought Black Mountain Sacred Ancestor’s forces and revealed overwhelming sword power, destroying the Imperial Palace and routing the Yin Soldiers. He left Black Mountain Sacred Ancestor raging amid the battle, while Yan Chixia and the others watched in amazement.

• Ji Shu seized a carriage driver and struck him with Palm Thunder, sending one Dragon Horse fleeing toward Lan Ruo Temple.
• Black Mountain Sacred Ancestor ordered his Ghost Soldiers to kill Ji Shu and his companions, and Yan Chixia and Ji Shu raised sword shields against the arrows.
• Ji Shu’s sword pierced Black Mountain Sacred Ancestor’s summoned mountain and shattered the Imperial Palace, killing the beauties and Dragon Horses inside.
• Black Mountain Sacred Ancestor summoned more mountains and attacked, but Ji Shu dodged through them and slaughtered Yin Soldiers and Ghost Generals.
• Yan Chixia, Xia Bing, and Pang Yong rejoiced at Ji Shu’s crushing advantage, while Nie Xiaoqian gazed at him with admiration and Xiao Qing marveled at his strength.

Ji Shu defeated Black Mountain Old Demon by breaking the demon’s dark canopy and exposing him to sunlight, which melted him into black water. After the battle, his companions reacted with awe, while East City God observed from Guo Bei County and rejected the county magistrate’s offerings.

• Ji Shu overwhelmed Black Mountain Old Demon’s army and wounded the demon after he transformed into a towering mountain.
• Ji Shu used Divide Yin and Yang and the Zhu Xian Ancient Sword to tear open the dark sky and let sunlight through.
• Black Mountain Old Demon fled toward the City of the Wrongfully Dead but melted into black water under the sunlight.
• Yan Chixia and the others celebrated Ji Shu’s victory, while Xiao Qing knelt and asked to become his servant.
• East City God returned the county magistrate and his adviser’s offerings, refusing to confront Ji Shu.

After Ji Shu killed Black Mountain Old Demon's incarnation at Lan Ruo Temple, he agreed to stay with Yan Chixia and began absorbing Tree Demon Granny's tree core to strengthen himself. The chapter leaves Ji Shu cultivating as Yan Chixia watches and wonders about his technique.

• East City God chose not to report the events at Lan Ruo Temple, while Guo Bei County's magistrate and adviser sent spies to investigate why their god had not killed Ji Shu.
• Ji Shu reflected that sunlight and his attack on the Dark Cloud Formation's weak points had helped him defeat Black Mountain Old Demon.
• Yan Chixia, Nie Xiaoqian, and the others congratulated Ji Shu, while Xiao Qing resolved to follow him despite not receiving his promise.
• Ji Shu agreed to stay at Lan Ruo Temple after Yan Chixia urged him to remain, then began refining Tree Demon Granny's tree core to prepare for Black Mountain Old Demon's possible revenge.
• Tree Demon Granny begged Ji Shu to spare her and then cursed him as he burned her with Pure Yang True Fire and absorbed the tree core's energy.
• Yan Chixia saw Ji Shu's cultivation and wondered if his ability to absorb a demon's power leaned toward the Demonic Path, but decided his inheritance was still orthodox.

Ji Shu refined Tree Demon Granny’s tree heart, completed the Xuanyuan Divine Sword Scripture, and began mastering her techniques and the incomplete Dark Heavenly Demon Great Law. His rapid cultivation astonished the people at Lan Ruo Temple, while Flying Lizard remained imprisoned and feared his uncertain fate.

• Ji Shu’s cultivation finished refining Tree Demon Granny’s tree heart, destroying her soul and completing the Xuanyuan Divine Sword Scripture.
• Ji Shu mastered the Rainfall Technique and demonstrated it by summoning clouds, drizzle, clear skies, and torrential rain around Lan Ruo Temple.
• Nie Xiaoqian, Xiao Qing, Yan Chixia, and the others recognized that Ji Shu had learned Tree Demon Granny’s spell, and Xia Bing and Pang Yong described his earlier feats.
• Ji Shu cultivated Tree Demon Granny’s other techniques, feeding their special qi into his Myriad Laws Dao Sword and causing it to transform.
• Ji Shu began cultivating the incomplete Dark Heavenly Demon Great Law, which could absorb dark, evil, ghostly, and demonic qi; he spent the day drawing in Spiritual Essence and other energies.

Ji Shu defeated another Black Mountain Old Demon clone at Lan Ruo Temple and captured its consciousness. He examined the City Lord Seal, realizing it strengthened his demonic arts and could help him track Black Mountain Old Demon.

• Yan Chixia spotted Black Mountain Old Demon approaching Lan Ruo Temple and woke Ji Shu.
• Ji Shu pierced Black Mountain Old Demon's eyes with the turning Seven-Colored Sword Qi and then shattered his body with the Myriad Laws Dao Sword Art.
• Ji Shu seized Black Mountain Old Demon's fleeing consciousness and trapped it in the Mystic Fire Mirror for torture.
• Ji Shu examined the City Lord Seal and considered how its negative energy had helped him cultivate the Dark Heavenly Demon Great Law.
• Ji Shu realized the City Lord Seal and his growing mastery of the Dark Heavenly Demon Great Law could help him locate Black Mountain Old Demon.

After Ji Shu defeated Black Mountain Old Demon's avatar, the demon plotted revenge by sending Diao Chan against him. At dawn, Xiahou Sword arrived at Lan Ruo Temple to challenge Yan Chixia, only to hear Xiao Qing claim Ji Shu was the true world's greatest swordsman.

• Ji Shu told Yan Chixia and the others about the battle, then returned to Lan Ruo Temple to enter seclusion.
• Black Mountain Old Demon realized his avatar and one portion of his consciousness were lost, forced Diao Chan to surrender her true spirit, and sent her on a mission against Ji Shu.
• The East City God decided not to approach Ji Shu and warned himself to keep Guo Bei County's magistrate and adviser from provoking him.
• Xiahou Sword arrived at Lan Ruo Temple and challenged Yan Chixia to a duel for the title of the world's greatest swordsman.
• Xiao Qing and Nie Xiaoqian laughed at Xiahou Sword, and Xiao Qing declared that her master Ji Shu deserved the title.

Xiao Qing challenged Xiahou Sword to wait for Ji Shu to emerge from seclusion and duel him, while Diao Chan secretly approached Ji Shu and revealed that Black Mountain Old Ghost had sent her to seduce and kill him. Diao Chan offered to lead Ji Shu to Black Mountain Old Demon's true body, and Ji Shu learned how to reach it and destroy it.

• Xiao Qing claimed Ji Shu was the greatest swordsman under heaven, and Xiahou Sword demanded a duel, wagering that he would become Ji Shu's slave if he lost.
• Xiahou Sword waited for Ji Shu to finish his seclusion, determined to prove himself the peerless swordsman.
• Diao Chan appeared beside Ji Shu and confessed that Black Mountain Old Ghost had sent her as bait to kill him.
• Diao Chan told Ji Shu that demons and monsters had plagued the world since around the end of the Jin Dynasty and said she wanted Black Mountain Old Demon destroyed.
• Diao Chan offered to guide Ji Shu to Black Mountain Old Demon's true body and free the souls imprisoned in the City of the Wrongfully Dead.
• Ji Shu learned secrets about Black Mountain Old Demon, the City of the Wrongfully Dead, and how to destroy the demon's true body.

Diao Chan revealed that Black Mountain Old Demon's true body was a stone in the City of the Wrongfully Dead and advised Ji Shu to attack when the demon weakened three days later. After Ji Shu broke Xiahou Sword's blade with two fingers, Xiahou spent three days waiting to become his servant, then learned that Ji Shu and the others had entered the Little Underworld without him.

• Diao Chan told Ji Shu that her true spirit was inside Black Mountain Old Demon's body and that the demon would be weakest three days later, so Ji Shu agreed to wait before setting out.
• Ji Shu introduced Diao Chan to Nie Xiaoqian and the others, while Xiao Qing begged him to take her as his servant and maid.
• Xiahou Sword challenged Ji Shu, but Ji Shu caught his blade between two fingers and snapped his treasured sword; Xiahou then vowed to become Ji Shu's servant.
• Over the next two days, Diao Chan befriended Nie Xiaoqian and shared secrets of the Little Underworld, while Xiahou Sword struggled to accept how far Ji Shu surpassed him.
• On the third night, Xiahou Sword discovered that Yan Chixia, Nie Xiaoqian, Diao Chan, and the others had gone to the Little Underworld, and he rushed outside to find its entrance.

Xiahou Sword decided to ask Ji Shu to teach him swordsmanship so he could become a Sword God. Meanwhile, Ji Shu, Diao Chan, Yan Chixia, and Nie Xiaoqian entered the realm of the dead to reach Black Mountain Old Demon, but the city guards blocked their way when Diao Chan tried to pass its gates.

• Pang Yong encouraged Xiahou Sword, who resolved to ask Ji Shu to become his master and vowed to surpass him.
• Diao Chan led Ji Shu and the others to the fragile Gate of Two Realms, which Ji Shu opened with a light touch.
• The group entered the dead realm under a blood moon, where Diao Chan warned that Black Mountain Old Demon would transform that night.
• Diao Chan took Ghost Horses for herself and the others, and they rode along Yellow Springs Road toward a vast city.
• At the city gate, a Ghost General said the King had ordered Diao Chan escorted home, then soldiers formed a wall to block her passage.

Diao Chan led Ji Shu, Yan Chixia, and Nie Xiaoqian through the City of the Wrongfully Dead and into the Black Mountain Old Demon's palace. They reached the pool concealing his secluded core body, and Diao Chan explained how to identify the stone that was his true form.

• An Lushan let Diao Chan and her companions pass after she insisted on going through, then ordered his troops to patrol and guard against Underworld Lords.
• Ji Shu reflected on the fragmented Little Underworld and his growing control of the City Lord Seal as Diao Chan guided the group through the city.
• Pan Jinlian tried to block the group inside the royal manor, but Diao Chan threatened her until she and her maids moved aside.
• Diao Chan brought Ji Shu, Yan Chixia, and Nie Xiaoqian to the palace's deepest hall and pointed out the pool where the Black Mountain Old Demon's core body was hidden.
• Diao Chan explained that the Black Mountain Old Demon's true form was a dark-glowing stone among the pool's scattered stones, distinguishable because it reflected women's figures.

Ji Shu rescued Diao Chan’s true spirit from Black Mountain Old Demon and ambushed the demon while his power weakened. After cutting him into pieces and burning him with a fire dragon, Ji Shu left him imprisoned in a miraculous space.

• Diao Chan led Ji Shu, Yan Chixia, and Nie Xiaoqian through a pool into a mist-shrouded Lesser World where Black Mountain Old Demon’s half-city stood.
• Diao Chan searched the dead-sea beach for Shitou while Ji Shu concealed himself and entered the City Lord’s residence.
• Ji Shu found Black Mountain Old Demon absorbing the Nether Moon’s light and located Diao Chan’s true spirit inside his abdomen.
• When Black Mountain Old Demon’s aura weakened, Ji Shu tore open his abdomen, seized Diao Chan’s true spirit, and escaped into hiding.
• Ji Shu struck again during Black Mountain Old Demon’s next weakening, decapitated him, and cut his body into more than ten pieces.
• A hundred-zhang fire dragon engulfed Black Mountain Old Demon, who later awoke imprisoned in a miraculous space beside a chained person.

Ji Shu captured Black Mountain Old Demon's clones during their transformation and learned that they were all part of a nine-clone network. As the clones realized Black Mountain Old Demon's main body was being refined, they were left helpless in the Mystic Fire Mirror.

• Black Mountain Old Demon's clones appeared one by one in the Mystic Fire Mirror, where ropes bound them to pillars and flames tortured them.
• Number Two recognized that Ji Shu's Sword Qi resembled both Ji Shu's sword art and the Dark Heavenly Demon Great Law, and Number Three confirmed Ji Shu had killed him.
• The clones realized their main body was being refined and tried to resist, but chains whipped them down as their consciousnesses began falling under another's control.
• Ji Shu explained that he had struck each clone while its aura weakened during the transformation, then captured its consciousness in the Mystic Fire Mirror.
• Ji Shu learned he had killed eight of Black Mountain Old Demon's nine clones and credited Diao Chan for helping the operation go smoothly.

Ji Shu killed Black Mountain Old Demon's gathered clones, rescued Diao Chan, and helped her locate the demon's hidden true body. He began refining the nine-aperture stone into a Sword in Stone and entered seclusion to forge it.

• Ji Shu refined the recovered half of the City Lord Seal and restored Diao Chan's true spirit to her body.
• Ji Shu told Diao Chan, Yan Chixia, and Nie Xiaoqian that he had killed Black Mountain Old Demon, though the demon's true body remained.
• Ji Shu swept the beach with Sword Qi while Diao Chan searched among the stones for Black Mountain Old Demon's true body.
• Diao Chan found Black Mountain Old Demon's true body, a palm-sized black stone with nine apertures.
• Ji Shu began refining the stone into a Sword in Stone and asked Diao Chan, Yan Chixia, and Nie Xiaoqian to guard his retreat.

Ji Shu completed the Sword in Stone, refined the City Lord Seal, and forced Black Mountain Old Demon's nine consciousnesses to reveal their secrets. He mastered the demon's arts and the Dark Heavenly Demon Great Law with astonishing speed, leaving the clones terrified and wondering whether he was a Demon God reincarnate.

• Ji Shu finished the Sword in Stone and forged a scabbard that concealed its radiance.
• Ji Shu merged the two halves of the City Lord Seal, gaining control of a city contained within it.
• Ji Shu interrogated Black Mountain Old Demon's nine clone consciousnesses, then mastered the Soul Splitting Technique and Cloning Technique and created nine clones of his own.
• Ji Shu perfected Black Mountain Old Demon's other arts, including Mountain Moving Method and wind control, while the clones watched in shock.
• Ji Shu cultivated the Dark Heavenly Demon Great Law, summoned a towering Demon God manifestation resembling himself, and devoured dark qi as the clones feared he might be its reincarnation.

Ji Shu perfected the Dark Heavenly Demon Great Law, gained a second Golden Core and Primordial Spirit, and prepared to leave the Little Underworld. He made Diao Chan its ruler, ordered the Black Mountain Old Demons to assist her, and killed Number One.

• Ji Shu completed two days of cultivation and perfected the Dark Heavenly Demon Great Law, forming a second Golden Core and Primordial Spirit.
• Ji Shu decided to leave the Little Underworld and ordered Number Seven to summon Diao Chan and the others.
• Ji Shu appointed Diao Chan ruler of the City of the Wrongfully Dead and the Little Underworld, promising that Number Seven and the other Black Mountain Old Demons would help her.
• Ji Shu killed Number One, whom Diao Chan hated most, and the remaining Black Mountain Old Demons pledged to obey his command.