Chapter Summaries

Cao Wenzhao and Cao Bianjiao joined Shen Lian in a surprise attack that shattered Li Chuang’s forces and restored much of the territory east of the Taihang Mountains. In the Capital City, Dou Lao Liu was pressured to choose a new sovereign when Qin He sent Hou Xiaoliu and a girl to take up their posts.

• Cao Wenzhao and Cao Bianjiao led twenty thousand cavalry in a dawn assault on the Shun Army at Bazhou while Shen Lian attacked from the city.
• Shen Lian’s forces defeated the Shun Army, killed Gao Yigong, wounded Hao Yaoqi, and captured sixty thousand soldiers.
• Shun forces fled from Hejian, Zhending, and Daming, while Li Chuang’s army became trapped between the Capital City, Shen Lian’s forces, and Liu Biao’s defectors.
• Officials and gentry in the Capital City pressured Dou Lao Liu to choose between Prince Hui Zhu Miao and Prince Shu Zhu Zhen as the new sovereign.
• Qin He gestured for Hou Xiaoliu and the girl with him to go take up their posts.

Hou Xiaoliu and the little girl left Qin He’s alley with their memories altered, and Hou Xiaoliu emerged as Crown Prince Zhu Ci to claim the throne. His enthronement awakened the Golden Dragon of Fortune, while Li Chuang fell unconscious and hidden Demonic Creatures and Ghosts fled the city.

• Qin He gave Hou Xiaoliu three arts, a Nautical Chart, and the will to encompass the seven continents and five oceans, then warned him that Hou Xiaoliu would die in the alley.
• Hou Xiaoliu and the little girl left the alley, and the officials and gentry recognized him as Crown Prince Zhu Ci and bowed before him.
• Two days later, Zhu Ci was enthroned in the Hall of Supreme Extremity as the officials proclaimed him Emperor.
• The Golden Dragon of Fortune regained its strength and destroyed the Black Python of Fortune as Dragon Qi surged across the land.
• Li Chuang collapsed unconscious, hidden Demonic Creatures and Ghosts fled, Qin He listened to the Dragon’s Cry, and Wang Banxia cried out that he was blind.

Qin He celebrated after setting events in motion for Hou Xiaoliu to become emperor, leaving him free of worries about the dynastic struggle. While the Shun Army occupied the area outside the Capital City, he told Wang Tie Zhu that they would soon go out for a meal at the Dragon Palace Caves.

• Wang Tie Zhu noticed Qin He was in a good mood and asked what had changed, and Qin He said they no longer needed to worry about running out of plum wine.
• Qin He recalled choosing Hou Xiaoliu, whose wish to become emperor and the Golden Dragon of Fortune's response had convinced him the plan could work.
• Qin He told Wang Tie Zhu that Great Shun would soon withdraw and promised beef and dried tofu once they could go out again.
• Qin He said he and Wang Tie Zhu would visit the Dragon Palace Caves to eat after the Shun Army withdrew, and Wang Tie Zhu feared he meant to start a massacre.

Li Chuang fled west after believing Liu Biao had accepted Great Li’s offer of surrender, while Liu Biao realized the imperial envoys had been part of a scheme to isolate him. Trapped by Great Li’s forces and cut off from Li Chuang, Liu Biao chose to surrender.

• After learning that Liu Biao had accepted Great Li’s decree, Li Chuang fled the Capital Region and crossed Juyong Pass back to the Jin-Shan Region.
• Liu Biao accepted the imperial decree appointing him Grand General and argued with his generals over whether Great Li’s offer was a trap.
• Two days after the eunuchs departed, Liu Biao learned that Li Chuang had fled and sent a furious letter condemning his army.
• Liu Biao realized the envoys’ safe departure had made him appear to have surrendered, leaving his forces isolated and surrounded by Great Li.
• After hesitating for several days, Liu Biao decided to surrender to Great Li.

Yucheng’s annual River God Festival demanded silver and two young women as offerings to a supposed Toad Demon, while the city’s people endured the ritual in fear. Just as the River Maidens were about to be thrown into the river, a youth riding a donkey shouted for the procession to stop.

• Yucheng’s people held their annual River God Festival, offering animals, silver, and two bound girls to the River God.
• The chapter explained that a Wizard had blamed a Toad Demon for past floods and negotiated the yearly sacrifices and levy.
• The Wizard’s disciples prepared to cast the River Maidens into the river as the crowd watched without protest.
• A young man riding a yellow ox and a youth riding a donkey appeared at the procession’s rear.
• The youth on the donkey shouted, “Wait!” as the River Maidens were about to be offered.

Wang Tie Zhu and Qin He challenged the River God Festival’s leaders and exposed their offerings as a scheme to enrich themselves. Wang Tie Zhu summoned the Wei River Toad, which greeted the two men as esteemed masters.

• Wang Tie Zhu and Qin He gave the Wizard the aliases Passerby A and Passerby B, then rode to the riverbank despite the Wizard’s disciples surrounding them.
• Wang Tie Zhu accused the Wizard, the squire, and the County Official of using the River God Festival to line their pockets and questioned the purpose of their offerings.
• Qin He challenged the Wizard to summon the River God, and Wang Tie Zhu declared that he could do so.
• The Wei River Toad rose from the river and respectfully greeted Wang Tie Zhu and Qin He as esteemed masters.

Wang Tie Zhu and Qin He exposed the Wizard, Master Fan, and the County Official for causing Yucheng’s disasters and exploiting its people. The Toad Demon killed the three men, while Wang Tie Zhu, Qin He, and the demon disappeared as the townspeople turned on their accomplices.

• Wang Tie Zhu summoned the Toad Demon, which denied causing the dike to burst, and Qin He believed it.
• Wang Tie Zhu used the Truth Spell to make the Wizard confess that he had ordered the dike destroyed to force people to offer sacrifices.
• Master Fan confessed to impoverishing Yucheng’s people so he could buy their land, and the County Official admitted that the supposed river-god offerings had been stolen.
• The Toad Demon admitted it knew some of the scheme but had been hibernating when the Peach Flood occurred, and it said Daoist Lingyun had guided it centuries earlier.
• The Toad Demon swallowed the Wizard, Master Fan, and the County Official after Wang Tie Zhu signaled it to take revenge.
• The people of Yucheng worshipped Wang Tie Zhu and Qin He, then chased and beat the remaining servants and disciples after the three had vanished.

Qin He realized that destroying the False Heavenly Court might hasten the Silent Dharma Age and endanger the Cycle of Reincarnation, so he set out to investigate the Heavenly Court ruins beneath the Wei River. There, the Toad Demon revealed that Daoist Lingyun had predicted Qin He would arrive riding an ox after three hundred years.

• Qin He considered how the False Heavenly Court’s destruction could accelerate Silent Dharma and threaten the Underworld’s ability to maintain reincarnation.
• Qin He spoke with Old Master, then added investigating Heavenly Court ruins and the secret of reincarnation to his journey south.
• Qin He and his companions traveled to the Wei River with the Toad Demon’s guidance and descended to ruins beneath the riverbed.
• Qin He asked the Toad Demon whether it had guarded the ruins for centuries, and the demon said Daoist Lingyun had foretold that a man riding an ox would arrive after three hundred years.

Qin He learned that Daoist Lingyun had predicted his arrival three hundred years earlier and left a message for him through the Toad Demon. The message was only “Whale Fall,” leaving Qin He to puzzle over its meaning.

• The Toad Demon explained that Daoist Lingyun had awakened it and instructed it to wait for Qin He.
• Qin He asked whether Daoist Lingyun had truly predicted his arrival, and the Toad Demon confirmed it.
• The Toad Demon revealed that Daoist Lingyun had left only the words “Whale Fall.”
• Wang Tie Zhu and Lamborghini questioned the message until Qin He told them to be quiet.
• Qin He realized that the message’s brevity might have protected the Toad Demon from the dangers of carrying heavenly secrets, but he could not decipher its meaning.

Qin He searched the Ancient Heavenly Court ruins and found nothing, but the Toad Demon suffered Heavenly Secrets backlash after revealing that Daoist Lingyun had sent it to guard the site. Qin He agreed to become its Human Dao Sealing Immortal, allowing the Toad Demon to Achieve Title as a human and begin a new life.

• Qin He questioned the Toad Demon about the ruins, then searched the scattered fragments and found no anomaly.
• Wang Tie Zhu and Lamborghini noticed the Toad Demon suddenly weaken, and Qin He recognized it as backlash from Heavenly Secrets.
• The Toad Demon accepted that its three-hundred-year mission was complete and said it wished to live as a human.
• Qin He offered to become the Toad Demon's Human Dao Sealing Immortal, and the Toad Demon gratefully agreed.
• The Toad Demon underwent the title-bestowing ritual, and Qin He told it that it looked human and would live to a ripe old age.

Qin He sealed the Toad Demon into the human path and granted it a future of extraordinary fortune, then sent it away with instructions to live virtuously. As Qin He traveled south with Wang Tie Zhu and Little Calf, he dismissed concerns about the cost and refused Little Calf’s request to transform, though the journey held a transformation opportunity for it.

• Qin He completed the sealing ritual, turning the Toad Demon into a human and restoring its youthful vitality with a Blessing Technique.
• The Toad Demon thanked Qin He, promised to live well, and departed after learning Qin He’s name was Great Immortal Green Ox.
• Wang Tie Zhu warned Qin He that he had given the Toad Demon too much fortune, but Qin He said his merits could easily bear the cost.
• Little Calf asked Qin He to help it transform, but Qin He refused because he feared it would become a troublesome bull-man.
• Little Calf’s longing for transformation foreshadowed a fortuitous opportunity on the journey.

Qin He, Wang Tie Zhu, and Lamborghini arrived at Scale Demon City during the Scale Demon King's birthday banquet and announced their intention to stew the tyrant. The Scale Demon King recognized them as hostile intruders and threatened them, leaving the confrontation about to begin.

• The Scale Demon King celebrated his five hundred and ninety-ninth birthday as his demons presented treasures, including two kidnapped children.
• Qin He, Wang Tie Zhu, and Lamborghini arrived at the banquet, and the Scale Demon King demanded to know who they were.
• Qin He presented the Scale Demon King with a black cauldron as a congratulatory gift.
• Qin He called himself Passerby B and told the enraged Scale Demon King that they had come to stew him.

Qin He, Little Calf, Wang Tie Zhu, and Little Sable cornered the Scale Demon King and overwhelmed its forces. The Scale Demon King tried to escape after Qin He offered it a chance to survive, but the chapter ended with the group beating it mercilessly.

• The Scale Demon King ordered its Lesser Demons to attack Qin He and his companions, but Little Calf’s Bull Stomp shattered their weapons and scattered them.
• Little Calf and Wang Tie Zhu drove off the demons, while Wang Tie Zhu captured the fleeing Riffle Fish Spirit.
• The Scale Demon King recognized Qin He as the Great Immortal Green Ox and accepted his offer to fight a few subordinates for a chance at survival.
• The Scale Demon King attacked Wang Tie Zhu, but Wang Tie Zhu blocked its Dragon’s Tail Sweep with a Tortoise-Pattern Magic Shield, and Little Calf forced it to flee with Water Escape.
• Little Sable ambushed the weakened Scale Demon King, and Qin He explained that he had never promised to limit the fight to two subordinates.
• Little Calf, Wang Tie Zhu, and Little Sable joined in beating the Scale Demon King.

Qin He and his companions captured a Riffle Fish Spirit that claimed it could see Treasure Aura and offered to lead them to hidden riches in exchange for its life. The spirit began searching for the Scale Demon King’s treasure, but immediately wavered over which direction to follow.

• Wang Tie Zhu and Lamborghini beat the wounded Scale Demon King until he reverted to his fish form, and Wang Tie Zhu skewered him on an iron rod.
• Wang Tie Zhu suggested stewing the Riffle Fish Spirit, which had been pretending to be unconscious among the captured demons.
• The Riffle Fish Spirit begged for its life and claimed it knew where the Scale Demon King’s treasures—and other demons’ and the Dragon Palace’s treasures—were hidden.
• The Riffle Fish Spirit explained that it could see Treasure Aura, and Qin He promised to spare it if it found the Scale Demon King’s treasure.
• The Riffle Fish Spirit first pointed east, then changed its answer to west.

Qin He forced the Riffle Fish Spirit to explain the erratic Treasure Aura, then trapped the object when it rushed toward them. He identified it as a Divine Relic, though its connection to the Scale Demon King remained unclear.

• Wang Tie Zhu struck the Riffle Fish Spirit for giving confusing directions, and Qin He woke it by threatening to eat it raw.
• Under Qin He's Truth Spell, the Riffle Fish Spirit confessed that it had lied about its tribute and admitted it had tampered with the ginseng to find the Scale Demon King's hidden treasures.
• Qin He ordered the Riffle Fish Spirit to track the elusive Treasure Aura, and it led him, Wang Tie Zhu, and Little Calf in circles.
• When the Riffle Fish Spirit warned that the Treasure Aura was approaching, Qin He swept the others aside and trapped the object in his Merit Golden Body.
• Qin He examined the incomplete black iron ring and identified it as a Divine Relic.

After destroying Scale Demon City, Qin He sent a message to the Wei River Dragon Palace that he would visit as a guest. The Wei River Dragon King prepared a lavish banquet, but Qin He and his companions devoured it in moments and the black ox complained that they had not been fed enough.

• Qin He stored the strange Divine Relic and told the Riffle Fish Spirit to keep searching for the Scale Demon King's treasure.
• News of Scale Demon City's destruction reached the Wei River Dragon King, who recognized Great Immortal Green Ox as the likely culprit and feared his arrival.
• The Riffle Fish Spirit delivered Qin He's notice that he would visit the Wei River Dragon Palace the following day, and described his purpose as “Feast on the Rich.”
• The Wei River Dragon King prepared an extravagant banquet of aged delicacies to welcome Qin He and avoid becoming a meal himself.
• Qin He, two companions, and one ox finished the entire banquet in ten breaths, and the black ox complained that the Dragon King had not let them eat their fill.

At the Wei River Dragon Palace, Wang Tie Zhu pressured the Wei River Dragon King over the banquet’s insufficient food and drink, using the Riffle Fish Spirit to invent an insulting translation. The Dragon King promised to host them properly, and the Riffle Fish Spirit translated his promise as “all you can eat.”

• The Wei River Dragon King apologized for not preparing enough dishes, but Wang Tie Zhu and Little Calf remained dissatisfied.
• Wang Tie Zhu demanded that the Riffle Fish Spirit translate the Dragon King’s explanation, though it had only been brought along to search for the Scale Demon King’s treasure.
• The Riffle Fish Spirit accused the Dragon King of calling the immortals rice buckets, prompting Wang Tie Zhu, Little Calf, and Little Sable to confront him.
• The Dragon King swore he had not meant to insult the immortals, and Wang Tie Zhu insisted he explain himself again.
• The Dragon King promised to make sure the immortals ate and drank well, and the Riffle Fish Spirit translated his words as “all you can eat.”

Wang Tie Zhu and the others ate through the Wei River Dragon King's hoard, helped along by the Riffle Fish Spirit’s deceptive translations, before leaving the Dragon Palace stronger than before. Qin He chose the Yellow River Dragon Palace as their next destination.

• The Wei River Dragon King ordered a feast of dangerous, unpleasant ingredients, but Wang Tie Zhu and the three beasts ate for three days and nights and emptied the Dragon Palace’s stores.
• The Riffle Fish Spirit led Little Calf into the secret treasury, and the group continued feasting on the Dragon King’s private hoard until almost nothing remained.
• Wang Tie Zhu led Little Calf away while carrying Qin He and Little Sable, and the Riffle Fish Spirit hurried after them as the Dragon King wept.
• Traveling upstream, the group benefited from the feast: the beasts’ bloodlines and auras improved, while Qin He’s external force and magical power each rose three minor steps.
• Qin He declared that their next stop was the Yellow River Dragon Palace.

Ao Ding faced a gathering of aquatic and land demons afraid of Great Immortal Green Ox after the Wei River Dragon Palace was destroyed. When Qin He’s envoy softened his threat into a call for the demons to disperse, the gathered forces took it as a sign that Great Immortal Green Ox had backed down.

• Ao Ding worried that yielding to Great Immortal Green Ox would damage the Yellow River Dragon Palace’s prestige, but fighting could destroy it.
• A River Patrol Shrimp General announced that an envoy of Great Immortal Green Ox had arrived, and Ao Ding ordered him admitted.
• The demons accused the Riffle Fish Spirit of betraying its kind, and it delivered Qin He’s message in softened terms.
• The Riffle Fish Spirit urged the demons to disperse, leaving the gathered aquatic races with the impression that Great Immortal Green Ox had backed down.

The Riffle Fish Spirit delivered Great Immortal Green Ox’s message to the Yellow River Dragon Palace, where Dragon Lord Ao Ding agreed to wait for proposed terms. After the spirit falsely reported the demons’ insults to Qin He, Qin He sent Big Black Shovel flying toward the Dragon Palace.

• The Fox Clan elders and other demons denounced the Riffle Fish Spirit, but Ao Ding stopped them from attacking the messenger.
• Ao Ding asked what terms Great Immortal Green Ox proposed, and the Riffle Fish Spirit said it had to return and ask.
• Ao Ding gave the spirit two days to bring back an answer, then hosted a banquet while the demons waited.
• The Riffle Fish Spirit met Qin He in River City and claimed the Dragon Palace demons had insulted him and told him to bring the cattle over.
• Qin He used a Truth Spell to confirm the spirit’s report, then hurled Big Black Shovel toward the Yellow River Dragon Palace.