Chapter Summaries

Ye Zhen used Red Line Flash and Floating Cloud Finger to kill Tao Hui after Tao Hui’s forbidden art and endurance strategy pushed him into revealing his trump card. He left the arena victorious, while the other competitors and officials reeled from his power, and Ye Yuan faced a difficult choice among his remaining opponents.

• Tao Hui used the Blood Sword Body Forbidden Art to raise his cultivation and tried to wear Ye Zhen down, while Ye Zhen decided not to reveal the Battle Soul Blood Banner.
• Ye Zhen manifested crimson wings, vanished with Red Line Flash, and pierced Tao Hui’s forehead with Floating Cloud Finger.
• Ye Zhen taunted Zhisheng over Tao Hui’s death, and Qingyi announced Ye Zhen’s victory and awarded him two points.
• The spectators, officials, and competitors reacted with shock to Ye Zhen’s speed and killing strike as he left the arena.
• Ye Yuan saw that his remaining opponents were Caiyi, Mo Xinshui, and Hua Wushuang, and wondered whom to challenge.

Ye Yuan challenged the injured Hua Wushuang but lost when Hua forced him off the arena with a Three-Colored Spirit Mountain. Caiyi then defeated Mo Xinshui so thoroughly that he conceded, leaving the round’s final match resolved.

• Hua Wushuang woke after recovering for an hour, accepted Ye Yuan’s challenge, and rushed to Dragonhead Arena Eight.
• Ye Yuan used Geomagnetic Gravity to hinder Hua Wushuang, but Hua summoned a Three-Colored Spirit Mountain and forced Ye Yuan to retreat from the arena before dismissing the attack.
• Qingyi declared Hua Wushuang the winner, while Ye Zhen suspected Hua’s breathing technique had enabled his rapid recovery from soul injury.
• Mo Xinshui opened his match against Caiyi with five lightning bolts, but Caiyi’s Soul Power stopped them and turned them back toward him.
• Mo Xinshui deflected his own lightning attacks and conceded to Caiyi.

Ye Zhen resolved to challenge Hua Wushuang openly after giving him time to recover, while Zuo Bin seized his chance to fight Bu Changtian and lost despite nearly landing a decisive strike. The third round continued, and Ye Zhen challenged Bai Xin to learn more about her cultivation method.

• Ji Che and Zhong Li Jing urged Ye Zhen to challenge Hua Wushuang before his soul injuries healed, but Ye Zhen chose to fight him honorably the next day.
• Bu Changtian and Zuo Bin rushed onto Number Eight Dragonhead Arena at the same time and were matched against each other.
• Zuo Bin refused Bu Changtian's unspoken demand to concede and attacked with the Lotus Heart Illusory Sword.
• Zuo Bin used his Origin Vital Blood to strengthen Lotus Heart Stab, pierced Bu Changtian's arm, and was struck down by Bu Changtian's counterattack.
• The third-round matches sped up, and Ye Zhen challenged Bai Xin because he wanted to examine her Clear Heart Sword Intent-like method.
• Bai Xin greeted Ye Zhen by telling him he was very strong, leaving him unsure whether she intended to concede.

Ye Zhen overcame Bai Xin with the Crimson Jade Seal after discerning her Nirvana Sword Canon, then the ranking matches continued through bloody bouts and mounting concessions. As the first day’s final round began, Ye Zhen challenged Mo Xinshui to fight without holding anything back.

• Bai Xin’s swordsmanship repeatedly anticipated Ye Zhen’s moves, but he entered Clear Heart Sword Intent and recognized her natural, instinctive cultivation method as the Nirvana Sword Canon.
• Ye Zhen defeated Bai Xin by summoning the Crimson Jade Seal, and she conceded when it pressed close.
• Leng Tao narrowly defeated Lu Bei in a brutal fight, while Hua Wushuang received a bye in the sixth match.
• As the ranking matches progressed, competitors increasingly conceded against Hua Wushuang and Caiyi, and spectators debated the likely top rankings.
• Ye Zhen stepped onto Number Eight Dragonhead Arena during the sixth round and challenged Mo Xinshui to fight without holding anything back.

Ye Zhen defeated Mo Xinshui after breaking through his lightning techniques, while Ye Yuan overcame Bu Changtian with his Geomagnetic Force Field. The chapter left Ye Zhen preparing for his coming battle with Ye Yuan and the remaining arena matches drawing little interest.

• Ye Zhen used the Crimson Jade Seal to break Mo Xinshui's Lightning Net Prison, and Mo Xinshui conceded when Ye Zhen closed in.
• Ye Zhen won his sixth consecutive victory, securing a place among the top six of the Black Dragon Ranking.
• Ye Yuan used his Geomagnetic Force Field to slow Bu Changtian and overpower him despite Bu Changtian's Phantom God Palm.
• Bu Changtian conceded, but Ye Yuan continued attacking until Qingyi intervened and warned him against harming opponents after they surrendered.
• Ye Zhen studied Ye Yuan's abilities and resolved not to lower his guard when they fought the next day.

As the Black Dragon Ranking tournament resumed, Mo Xinshui used the storm clouds to channel a massive lightning strike at Hua Wushuang. Hua Wushuang’s protective qi and high-grade treasure armor failed to stop it, leaving him unconscious after another one-move defeat.

• The Qi Yun Sect elders celebrated Caiyi and Ye Zhen’s strong first-day records while Ye Zhen wondered about the sect’s past genius Tu Fangye.
• A fierce storm gathered overnight, and Ye Zhen planned to challenge Ye Yuan before facing Hua Wushuang.
• Mo Xinshui challenged Hua Wushuang on Number Eight Dragonhead Arena, despite the crowd expecting him to lose.
• Hua Wushuang attacked with his water-and-fire Butterfly Hand, but Mo Xinshui drew lightning from the storm clouds with his Thunder Control Sword.
• Mo Xinshui’s lightning destroyed Hua Wushuang’s attack and overwhelmed his protective qi and high-grade treasure armor, knocking him unconscious.

Mo Xinshui defeated Hua Wushuang with lightning, destroying his high-grade treasure armor and leaving him badly injured. Ye Zhen then challenged Ye Yuan, defeated him with a rapid combination of techniques, and secured his seventh consecutive victory.

• Mo Xinshui used the Lightning Control Heart Sutra to strike Hua Wushuang down, and Hua Wushuang’s high-grade treasure armor shattered as Steward Hua carried him away for treatment.
• Hua Wushuang woke and lamented the loss of his armor, while Qingyi announced Mo Xinshui as the winner and spectators feared facing him.
• Ye Zhen stepped onto the arena and challenged Ye Yuan instead of taking advantage of Hua Wushuang’s injury.
• Ye Yuan unleashed his Geomagnetic Force Field, but Ye Zhen used Silver Thread Flash and Floating Cloud Finger to break through Ye Yuan’s defenses.
• Ye Zhen formed two Soul Thorns, prompting Ye Yuan to surrender before his soul could be injured; Ye Zhen won his seventh consecutive match.

Ye Zhen defeated Ye Yuan with a Soul Attack, while Mo Xinshui's control of the storm clouds forced Bu Changtian to concede. As the fourth round began, Ye Zhen challenged Caiyi instead of Hua Wushuang, and Hua Wushuang realized he understood Ye Zhen's intentions.

• Ye Zhen defeated Ye Yuan in two moves, pushing his Black Dragon Ranking record to seven consecutive victories and making Caiyi the likely first-place contender.
• Mo Xinshui used the dark clouds overhead to force Bu Changtian to concede, even as the clouds soon cleared and the sun came out.
• Bu Changtian's frustration nearly triggered cultivation deviation, but sect elder Hong Feng calmed his blood and qi and urged him to recover his confidence.
• Steward Hua watched anxiously as Hua Wushuang recovered from the lightning strike, then believed his young master had gained time when Ye Zhen called Caiyi to the arena.
• Hua Wushuang shook his head at Steward Hua's relief and said that he understood Ye Zhen's intentions.

Caiyi conceded to Ye Zhen, securing him first place on the Black Dragon Ranking and leaving Hua Wushuang unable to claim second. Ye Zhen delayed his final fight with Hua Wushuang for an hour so Hua Wushuang could heal, determined to settle the humiliation of their three-move agreement.

• Caiyi conceded to Ye Zhen without entering the arena, giving him first place on the Black Dragon Ranking.
• Qingyi tried to persuade Caiyi to reverse her decision, but Caiyi reaffirmed her concession and explained that she would not risk hurting Ye Zhen with her Soul Power.
• Caiyi told Qingyi that she disliked him, and Ji Che condemned Qingyi for trying to sow discord between her and Ye Zhen.
• Ye Zhen insisted that his match with Hua Wushuang wait an hour, as the rules required a rest between rounds.
• Ye Zhen watched Hua Wushuang heal and resolved to fight him to wash away the humiliation of their agreement of three moves.

Ye Zhen challenged Hua Wushuang after the final match on Arena Number Six ended in a fatal, bloody victory. Their battle began on Arena Number Eight, where Ye Zhen dodged Hua Wushuang’s Water-Fire Drill and launched a sword attack from behind.

• A saber wielder sacrificed his left arm to kill the swordsman in the final match on Arena Number Six.
• Ye Zhen stepped onto Arena Number Eight and challenged Hua Wushuang, who had recovered nearly ninety percent of his strength.
• Ye Zhen mocked Hua Wushuang about his bald head and earlier defeat, but Hua Wushuang dismissed the taunts and approached the arena.
• Hua Wushuang countered Ye Zhen’s Floating Cloud Finger with Water Spiritual Power vortices, then attacked with a Water-Fire Drill.
• Ye Zhen used Silver Thread Flash to escape the exploding drills, appeared behind Hua Wushuang, and attacked with the Profound Yang Sword and Soul Thorn.

Ye Zhen tested Hua Wushuang’s Soul Power, then combined lightning, explosive seals, and an illusion to overwhelm him with a barrage of Crimson Jade Seals. The seals struck Hua Wushuang before he could distinguish the real ones from the illusions, leaving the fight’s outcome unresolved.

• Ye Zhen used a Soul Thorn to gauge Hua Wushuang’s Soul Power and found it weaker than his own.
• Ye Zhen unleashed Wind Cloud Moves Four Directions with lightning, but Hua Wushuang’s Whirlpool Scattering Hands shredded the attack.
• Hua Wushuang turned his water-and-fire defense into a vortex drill, and Ye Zhen slowed and detonated it with a Crimson Jade Seal.
• Ye Zhen sent three more Crimson Jade Seals toward Hua Wushuang while using the Phantom Soul Beast King’s illusion talent to make them appear as sixteen.
• Hua Wushuang mistook most of the seals for illusions and raised water and fire defenses, but the sixteen seals struck him before he could identify the real ones.

Ye Zhen defeated Hua Wushuang in the final match of the Black Dragon Ranking tournament, exposing how Ye Zhen’s illusion had made Hua Wushuang see sixteen Crimson Jade Seals instead of three. Hua Wushuang survived Ye Zhen’s Floating Cloud Finger with his Flower King Fan but conceded, and Ye Zhen left him with a final insult.

• Ye Zhen’s illusion made Hua Wushuang see sixteen Crimson Jade Seals, while the spectators saw only three, and the blasts hurled Hua Wushuang into the Rosy Sky Curtain.
• Ye Zhen attacked Hua Wushuang with the Floating Cloud Finger, but Hua Wushuang blocked it with his Flower King Fan and was badly injured.
• Hua Wushuang conceded, and Qingyi shielded him and declared Ye Zhen the winner.
• Ye Zhen’s victory silenced the spectators, and he released his pent-up resentment with a howl.
• Ye Zhen passed Hua Wushuang and said, “Number One Viscount Under Heaven, no more than this,” shattering Hua Wushuang’s pride.

Qingyi announced the Black Dragon Ranking, with Ye Zhen taking first place and Caiyi second for Black Water Country. After the rankings were settled and no one accepted a challenge, the tournament concluded and the Dragon Spirit was called to reveal the rewards.

• Qingyi and the other acting stewards summoned the Black Dragon Platforms, and Qingyi announced Ye Zhen as the champion.
• Ye Zhen stepped onto the first-place platform, and Qingyi named Caiyi second, giving Black Water Country both top spots.
• Qingyi asked Hua Wushuang, Ye Yuan, and Mo Xinshui to settle their tied scores with extra matches or let the Dragon Spirit decide; they chose the Dragon Spirit, which placed them third, fourth, and fifth respectively.
• Qingyi announced the remaining rankings, with Bu Changtian sixth, Bai Xin seventh, and Zuo Bin eighth, followed by Leng Tao and Lu Bei in ninth and tenth.
• Qingyi opened the free challenge matches, but no martial artist challenged anyone, and Wen Zimo abandoned his plan to challenge Ye Zhen.
• Qingyi declared the tournament concluded and invited the Dragon Spirit to reveal its divinity as the ranked martial artists awaited their rewards.

The Black Dragon Spirit absorbed the twelve Black Dragon Tokens and bestowed dragon-shaped rosy light on the Black Dragon Ranking martial artists, with the top-ranked receiving the greatest share. During the Dragon Roar, Ye Zhen discovered that a mysterious force had destroyed most of his Storage Ring’s contents, and the chapter ended as the rosy light triggered violent tremors in all four of his Talent Bloodlines.

• Qingyi called for the Dragon Spirit to manifest, and the rosy dragon absorbed the twelve temporary stewards’ Black Dragon Tokens.
• Ye Zhen’s Storage Ring grew scorching hot during the Dragon Roar, burning his finger and destroying nearly everything stored inside it.
• Ye Zhen found that only the Marrow Spirit Pearl, the strange black pearl, and the Blood Spirit Pearl had survived the destruction.
• The Dragon Spirit sent rosy light into the ranked martial artists, giving Ye Zhen and Caiyi far greater shares than the lower-ranked competitors.
• The rosy light entered Ye Zhen and made all four of his Talent Bloodlines tremble violently.

Golden dragon-shaped radiance transformed Ye Zhen’s Talent Bloodlines, greatly increasing their length and his ability to absorb Worldly Essence. As the changes settled and he awakened, Qingyi began the Black Dragon Ancient Land’s final farewell ritual.

• Golden radiance healed Ye Zhen’s body and expanded his First Sword Meridian to nearly one zhang and his other three Talent Bloodlines to seven and a half feet.
• Ye Zhen sensed that the dragon-shaped shadow was slowly merging with his body and discovered that his expanded Talent Bloodlines could absorb Worldly Essence at least three times faster.
• Ye Zhen realized how valuable first place on the Black Dragon Ranking had been and thought of Caiyi, who had given him the place.
• Ye Zhen opened his eyes as Caiyi and the others watched him awaken.
• Qingyi announced the final ritual and instructed the Black Dragon Ranking martial artists and everyone else to pray to the Dragon Spirit and bid it farewell.

As the Black Dragon Ancient Land expedition ended, the Dragon Spirit’s prayer ritual opened the long-lost Black Dragon Secret Palace. Ye Zhen and the other Black Dragon Ranking martial artists qualified to enter, and the chapter ended as thousands of martial artists rushed toward the completed gate.

• Qingyi prepared to leave after the Black Dragon Ranking expedition ended, while the Thousand Illusions Eagle King considered killing Ye Zhen with help from Zhisheng and Kong Shan.
• Ye Zhen offered an extraordinary pillar of purple aura to the Dragon Spirit, which began forming the gate to the Black Dragon Secret Palace as Caiyi and other ranking martial artists added their aura.
• Qingyi explained that only martial artists ranked on the Black Dragon Ranking were qualified to enter, but many others gathered at the gate and ignored his warning.
• After half an hour, the Secret Palace Gate finished forming, and Xie Lu led thousands of martial artists in a rush toward it.

Ye Zhen entered the Black Dragon Secret Palace and used its martial trials to improve his Wind Cloud Sword Technique and Clear Heart Sword Intent. After defeating a phantom of himself, he encountered Hua Wushuang, who had appeared behind him.

• Xie Lu and the other warriors were blasted back by the palace’s purple barrier, and Qingyi allowed the Black Dragon Ranking warriors to enter in order.
• The warriors appeared in a barren landscape, where Bi Zheng was swallowed by a trial and Ye Zhen sensed him fighting a stronger phantom of himself.
• Hua Wushuang threatened Ye Zhen before fleeing from Caiyi’s Soul Power, and Ye Zhen and Caiyi flew into separate trials.
• Ye Zhen fought a phantom that copied his Wind Cloud Sword Technique, learned its sword principles, and destroyed it with Wind Cloud Like Thunder.
• Ye Zhen emerged with his Wind Cloud Sword Technique improved and his Clear Heart Sword Intent seventy percent complete, then turned to find Hua Wushuang behind him.

Hua Wushuang confronted Ye Zhen after the Black Dragon Ranking Tournament, and Ye Zhen led him above the clouds to fight where no one could witness the battle. Hua Wushuang unleashed the Tiannan Hua Family’s ultimate art, Hua Mantian, and its nine Water Fire Spiritual Flowers converged on Ye Zhen from every direction.

• Hua Wushuang activated a painful secret art that made his spiritual power more violent and aggressive.
• Ye Zhen summoned Cloud Winged Tiger King Xiao Mao and fled to avoid endangering his sect and family or letting others witness their battle.
• Hua Wushuang pursued Ye Zhen while threatening to destroy the Qi Yun Sect and Ye Zhen’s companions.
• Ye Zhen stopped above the clouds and had Xiao Mao seal the area with cloud qi so no one could see the fight.
• Hua Wushuang explained that Hua Mantian was the Tiannan Hua Family’s clan-defending ultimate art and formed nine Water Fire Spiritual Flowers.
• Hua Wushuang controlled the flowers from a distance and sent all nine converging on Ye Zhen from every direction.

Ye Zhen used his newly strengthened Origin Sword Meridian to grievously wound Hua Wushuang, who begged for his life and offered Hua Family secret arts. Ye Zhen took the Seven Revolutions Soul Nurturing Technique from him, then killed him anyway.

• Hua Wushuang revealed that Flower King required a secret art that left its user weakened afterward, then attacked Ye Zhen with nine Water Fire Spiritual Flowers.
• Ye Zhen feigned an opening and struck Hua Wushuang with a golden Origin Sword Meridian, whose power had grown more than threefold after the Black Dragon Ranking.
• Cloud Winged Tiger King Xiao Mao carried the badly wounded Hua Wushuang into the air, and Hua Wushuang pleaded with Ye Zhen to spare him in exchange for secret arts.
• Hua Wushuang inscribed the Seven Revolutions Soul Nurturing Technique onto a Jade Talisman and offered to share another Hua Family secret art.
• Ye Zhen raised his palm and killed Hua Wushuang.

After killing Hua Wushuang, Ye Zhen kept his belongings and worried about the Tiannan Hua Family’s revenge. He later found a mountain covered in Green Wood Spirit Crystals but could not get past its force field, and the chapter ended when the Black Stone Bead reacted after he took it out.

• Ye Zhen searched Hua Wushuang’s belongings, found no treasures that especially interested him, and kept everything after burning the corpse.
• Ye Zhen considered how the Tiannan Hua Family might retaliate and left when Caiyi did not appear at the mountain peak.
• Ye Zhen discovered a mountain radiating immense wood spiritual power and was hurled away when he tried to approach it.
• Ye Zhen saw millions of Green Wood Spirit Crystals on the mountain but failed to obtain even one despite more than a thousand attempts.
• Ye Zhen took out the Marrow Spirit Pearl, the Blood Spirit Pearl, and the Black Stone Bead to investigate their connection to the Dragon Roar, and his expression changed when the bead appeared.