Chapter Summaries

Ding Yi unleashed a devastating lightning sword strike against Zhao Keyi in the final, drawing power from the exposed sky. When the lightning faded, Zhao Keyi survived and revealed a nine-aperture Innate Sacred Body.

• Ding Yi explained that Shen Qian’s absence and Wang Shuo’s refusal to fight had left her to represent Northern Martial University, then warned Zhao Keyi that her single strike could kill him.
• Ding Yi asked the referee to disable the venue’s weather system, revealing the black-gray sky and its three suns, then summoned lightning from the heavens with her sword.
• The lightning engulfed Zhao Keyi, while Ding Yi’s sword was destroyed and her strength was greatly depleted.
• Shen Qian determined that Zhao Keyi was still alive as the lightning cleared and his charred body began to move.
• Zhao Keyi shed the charred remains of his body, revealed nine brilliant apertures, and transformed into a three-meter-tall Innate Sacred Body.

Zhao Keyi revealed the Nine Extremes Sacred Body and defeated Ding Yi, securing the College Cup championship for Jiangzhong Military University. As the celebration continued and Northern Martial University students blamed Wang Shuo for their loss, Wang Shuo challenged Shen Qian.

• Shen Qian learned from Cheng Qingqing that Zhao Keyi had awakened the Nine Extremes Sacred Body, an embryonic Innate Perfected Body that required Nine Orifices and could take nine Heavenly Tribulations to perfect.
• Zhao Keyi returned to normal after blocking Ding Yi’s sword strike, and Ding Yi conceded the match, giving Jiangzhong Military University the championship.
• Jiangzhong Military University celebrated the victory and its generous team bonuses while the crowd erupted in cheers.
• Northern Martial University students fought after arguing over whether Wang Shuo’s arrogance or weakness had cost them the championship.
• Wang Shuo appeared on the arena and challenged Shen Qian.

Wang Shuo revealed overwhelming power at the Nine Heavens Cup and challenged Shen Qian to a fight with no concern for life or death. Shen Qian accepted, and as the two faced each other in the arena, he unleashed a heaven-shaking aura.

• Wang Shuo rose into the air and displayed a Spiritual Energy Storm, causing an expert to declare that he had reached the Mountain Sea Realm.
• Wang Shuo challenged Shen Qian to fight with no concern for life or death, while Shen Qian's companions warned him not to accept.
• Wang Shuo taunted Shen Qian by invoking Marquis of Jingcheng, and Shen Qian decided to take the challenge.
• Shen Qian appeared in the arena and faced Wang Shuo as the crowd watched.
• Shen Qian released a tremendous aura that shook heaven and earth.

Shen Qian revealed that he had reached the Mountains and Seas realm, then defeated Wang Shuo with a concealed blade strike and killed him despite Ji You’s intervention. Shi Dingyan shielded Shen Qian from Ji You’s retaliation as Shen Qian left the arena.

• Shen Qian revealed his Mountains and Seas realm, shocking the spectators and prompting Chai Haotian to decide to visit Shen Qian’s parents.
• Shen Qian accused Wang Shuo of fearing him and placed a God Burying Coffin on the arena before their life-or-death duel.
• Wang Shuo displayed his Dragon’s Roar Transformation, Big Dipper Immortal Body, and Dao Projection, reaching combat power above thirteen thousand.
• Shen Qian drew his blade and struck Wang Shuo down with one attack, then killed him with a hidden blade shadow when Ji You tried to protect him.
• Ji You attacked Shen Qian in rage, but Shi Dingyan appeared and blocked the blow with a giant chess piece, allowing Shen Qian to leave.

Shi Dingyan stopped Ji You from retaliating against Shen Qian, then warned Shen Qian that the vanished Xu Nian had returned. Meanwhile, Guo Zhouyuan received Wang Shuo’s God Burying Coffin, and Xu Nian appeared beside him and Ji You.

• Shi Dingyan confronted Ji You over Shen Qian’s victory, threatened him with a vast chessboard, and forced him to leave the arena with Wang Shuo’s Mental Core in the God Burying Coffin.
• The College Cup ended as the crowd celebrated Shen Qian, who left the ceremony and reflected on his battle with Wang Shuo while walking beside the Yellow River.
• Shi Dingyan joined Shen Qian and revealed that Ji You had reached the Seventh Heaven of Mountain Sea before warning that Xu Nian, Duke of Yanshan’s vanished second disciple, had returned.
• Guo Zhouyuan took the God Burying Coffin from Ji You and said their teacher could not act and they could not use Creation again to save Wang Shuo.
• Xu Nian revealed himself at the top of a tower, told Ji You that Wang Shuo would not die, and startled Ji You with his unexpected return.

Shi Dingyan revealed that Xu Nian was the lone surviving infant from a failed gene-modification experiment, while explaining how ancient martial artists and other figures shaped humanity’s recovery after the Ten Gates Opening. Meanwhile, Guo Zhouyuan and Ji You discussed the return of Shen Qian’s Second Senior Brother and hinted that another person might soon awaken.

• Shi Dingyan explained that ancient martial artists and Immortal Martial Practitioners appeared during the crisis after the Ten Gates Opening, and that some were suppressed rather than helping humanity.
• Shi Dingyan told Shen Qian that King Zhouyi was linked to the Zhou Dynasty and was believed to have written the Book of Changes.
• Shi Dingyan revealed that Xu Nian was the infant survivor of a gene-modification experiment and was later adopted by Duke of Yanshan.
• After the black-cloaked figure disappeared, Ji You worried that Second Senior Brother’s return to Magic City could cause trouble, but Guo Zhouyuan said great changes were coming and King Zhenbei could protect him.
• Guo Zhouyuan suggested that the person connected to Wang Shuo might awaken soon, and Ji You expressed hostility toward Shen Qian.

After Shen Qian got drunk, Tantai Qin confronted him outside his room and attacked when she learned Ji Ruoshui was inside, prompting Shen Qian and Ji Ruoshui to reveal extraordinary forms. Tantai Qin left after recognizing Ji Ruoshui and speaking of reincarnation and two thousand years, while Shen Qian discovered she had left him a powerful sword called “Promise.”

• After the celebration, Shen Qian found Tantai Qin waiting outside his hotel room, and she asked whether the woman inside mattered to him.
• Tantai Qin drew her sword and attacked Ji Ruoshui, but Shen Qian transformed and blocked the strike.
• Ji Ruoshui stepped in front of Shen Qian, then revealed a radiant, regal form that stunned Tantai Qin.
• Tantai Qin spoke cryptically of Ji Ruoshui, reincarnation, waiting, and two thousand years before fading away and leaving an azure gem behind.
• Ji Ruoshui returned to her ordinary form and fainted in Shen Qian's arms; Shen Qian asked Wan Ning to handle the damage and then found a black shortsword marked “Promise.”
• Shen Qian realized Tantai Qin had left the sword as compensation for the wooden sword destroyed months earlier.

Shen Qian cared for Ji Ruoshui after she woke, then joined Qu Bai and Feng Manlin at Earl Luoshen’s residence, where guests gathered over rumors of a mysterious Nine Heavens Ranking. As Shen Qian entered the estate, he sensed an unidentified powerful person watching him.

• Shen Qian examined his notes on ancient history and martial arts, then comforted Ji Ruoshui when she woke and responded to her request to repeat what he had done beside the elevator.
• On January 15, Shen Qian met Qu Bai and Feng Manlin and encountered young fans who asked for his autograph and a photo.
• Qu Bai explained that the guests at Earl Luoshen’s residence might learn about the rumored Nine Heavens Ranking, which a mysterious person was expected to reveal that day.
• Shen Qian sensed a dark, scrutinizing gaze from an unknown source outside the estate, then entered with Qu Bai and Feng Manlin.

At Earl Luoshen’s estate, the young elites gathered to discuss rumors of a Kun and scrutinized Shen Qian when he arrived. Ning Zhaoyi confronted and attacked him, but Qu Bai intervened before Earl Luoshen appeared and stopped her from using Yama’s Call.

• Sha Bi described strange overseas signs of a possible exotic beast, and Wu Yi argued that it was likely a Kun.
• Wu Yi redirected the gathering’s attention to Lin Sanmo, who announced that Shen Qian had arrived.
• The young elites discussed Shen Qian’s strength, and Bai Fei confirmed that Shen Qian had defeated him two months earlier after using his full power.
• Ning Zhaoyi insulted Qu Xiangyun and confronted Shen Qian, who mocked her and drew an attack from her.
• Qu Bai blocked Ning Zhaoyi’s strike, and she produced two Yama’s Call before Earl Luoshen appeared and warned her to stop.

At Earl Luoshen’s banquet, Shen Qian confronted the younger generation’s hostility and dismissed Song Jinyao as unworthy of testing him. Before they could fight, an old man revealed his overwhelming strength, brushed aside Earl Luoshen’s attack, and announced that he would unveil the Nine Heavens Ranking.

• Earl Luoshen forced Ning Zhaoyi to put away her forbidden Yama’s Calls and leave the estate after she threatened Shen Qian and Qu Bai.
• Shen Qian and Qu Bai climbed to the raised platform, where Shen Qian noticed Lin Sanmo, Bai Fei, and other young martial arts prodigies.
• Song Jinyao provoked Shen Qian, but Shen Qian publicly declared that Song Jinyao was not worthy of testing his strength.
• Song Jinyao tried to attack Shen Qian, but an old man sweeping the platform seized him and carried him into the sky.
• Earl Luoshen attacked the old man with a giant azure hand, but the old man broke through it and announced that he would unveil the Nine Heavens Ranking.
• The old man pointed toward the heavens, causing a streak of golden light to descend toward him.

The Heavenly Machine Guest unveiled the Nine Heavens Ranking, which listed China’s younger generation by precise combat power and bestowed permanent boosts on those named. As the rankings climbed through the Sixth Heaven, Shen Qian watched the benefits grow while realizing the list included an astonishing number of powerful young martial artists.

• The Heavenly Machine Guest hurled Song Jinyao into the golden light, then revealed the Nine Heavens Ranking and declared it would include China’s younger generation.
• The ranking began with names from one thousand upward, and Ma Guangxi’s listed combat power closely matched his own recent test.
• Golden light empowered Ma Guangxi, increasing his origin energy and combat power, and later recipients reported even greater boosts.
• The Heavenly Machine Guest revealed the Second and Third Heaven Rankings, listing Ye Shicong, Geng Qianqiu, Xiao Ye, and Yue Dakuan among others.
• The Fourth Heaven Ranking bestowed a thirty percent increase on Feng Manlin, while the Heavenly Machine Guest continued unveiling the Fifth and Sixth Heaven Rankings.

Heavenly Machine Guest revealed the Nine Heavens Ranking and its golden light, which granted increasingly powerful boons to the listed martial artists. When Shen Qian’s name was finally written onto the ranking, it began absorbing all the blessings it had given out and unleashed a massive beam of golden light upon him.

• The rankings advanced through the Seventh and Eighth Heavens, and martial artists such as Sun Zhen and Fu Tian discovered that the golden light could help them attain the Dao and raise it by a full zhang.
• The Nine Heavens Ranking listed Cao Yi, Qu Bai, Bai Fei, Lin Sanmo, Wu Yi, Mu Ziyan, Sha Bi, Fang Fan, and Qin Xiaoke; Lin Sanmo and Qu Bai rejected their golden light while the others accepted it.
• When the crowd noticed Shen Qian was missing from the list, Heavenly Machine Guest forced the trembling brush to write Shen Qian’s name onto the ranking.
• The Nine Heavens Ranking shook violently, expelled Heavenly Machine Guest, and pulled back nearly a thousand beams of golden light from the martial artists it had blessed.
• The gathered golden light converged into Shen Qian’s name, which shone brilliantly before a pillar of golden light struck him.

Shen Qian absorbed all the Nine Heavens Ranking’s golden blessing, provoking the young martial artists, but Earl Luoshen protected him and ended the confrontation. In private, she revealed that the ranking’s origins had far-reaching implications, and Shen Qian began to suspect that Heavenly Machine Guest might be beyond the Nine Kings.

• The Nine Heavens Ranking poured its golden blessing into Shen Qian, and Qu Bai defended him when the other martial artists tried to seize it.
• Shen Qian provoked the crowd, then called on Earl Luoshen to stop the attackers; she calmed many of them and took Shen Qian away.
• Heavenly Machine Guest laughed strangely and vanished, while the crowd turned its hopes toward the coming Nine Heavens Competition.
• Earl Luoshen kept Shen Qian at her residence and told him she did not know Heavenly Machine Guest’s identity but suspected the ranking had far-reaching implications.
• Earl Luoshen pointed out that neither the Martial Arts Department nor Magic City had sent a powerhouse to the event, and Shen Qian suddenly realized Heavenly Machine Guest might be stronger than the Nine Kings.

Shen Qian heard Earl Luoshen’s allegory about the Nine Kings and rejected her proposal to marry Qu Xiangyun, then investigated the energy absorbed from the Nine Heavens Ranking. The system’s record revealed a mysterious incantation and a Fengshen Bang Fragment, leaving Shen Qian wondering whether King Zhouyi was connected to the ancient legend.

• Shen Qian suspected the Heavenly Machine Guest was one of the Nine Kings, and Earl Luoshen told him an allegory about nine great trees that had blocked others from growing.
• Shen Qian inferred that the story concerned the first generation of Nine Kings and their influence on later martial artists.
• Earl Luoshen proposed marrying Qu Xiangyun to Shen Qian, but he refused by claiming his chaotic private life made him an unsuitable husband.
• Earl Luoshen sent Shen Qian away after saying that moving forward while tainted was better than remaining in place.
• Shen Qian checked his system records and learned that he had activated a Mysterious Incantation and absorbed energy from a Fengshen Bang Fragment, expanding the system’s capacity.
• Shen Qian wondered whether the Fengshen Bang was behind the Nine Heavens Ranking and whether King Zhouyi’s era connected to its ancient legend.

Shen Qian discovered that his system had gained a second battery pack, then prepared to break through to Advanced Martial Artist before the Nine Heavens Competition. In a hidden cave outside Magic City, he began taking an enormous stockpile of pills to strengthen his Origin Energy.

• Shen Qian saw that his system had a second battery pack and much greater energy reserves, which gave him confidence about the Nine Heavens Competition.
• Shen Qian returned to the hotel, ate Ji Ruoshui’s peach flesh, and carried the sleeping Ji Ruoshui to bed before leaving again.
• Shen Qian met Great Sage outside Magic City and found that it had reached the middle stage of Advanced Martial Artist and evolved from a T-Class beast to an S-Class beast.
• Shen Qian followed Great Sage to a hidden cave and set up an isolation formation so he could break through without revealing his strength in Magic City.
• Shen Qian spent 140 million yuan on pills and began taking Peak Gathering Pills and Ascension Origin Pills to advance from Intermediate to Advanced Martial Artist.

Shen Qian used Ascension Origin Pills to break through to the Advanced Martial Artist realm, then tested his combat power and discovered that the system could bring it close to 47,000. He returned to the story as the Nine Heavens Competition began, facing nearly 300,000 elite contestants gathered outside Magic City.

• Shen Qian swallowed more than a dozen Ascension Origin Pills at once, then spent hours absorbing their effects and mastering his increased origin power.
• After a day of cultivation, Shen Qian broke through to the Advanced Martial Artist realm, and Great Sage celebrated with him.
• Shen Qian visited a concealed military outpost, gave its commander Zhang Song a Peak Gathering Pill for the soldiers, and tested his strength in a Martial Arts Simulator.
• Shen Qian recorded an average combat power of 27,573 and a peak of 31,903, while the system's control raised his combat power to 46,912.
• On January 19, 2298, Shen Qian and the Jiangzhong Military University students arrived at the Nine Heavens Competition venue and saw the vast crowd of contestants.
• Shen Qian learned that 278,973 people had registered for the competition and recognized that the remaining contestants were formidable elites.

At the Nine Heavens Competition’s opening ceremony, Ma Gongzuo revealed that the nine stages led to a secret realm containing treasures left by all Nine Kings. King Zhouyi appeared to explain the realm, but most people immediately forgot seeing him, leaving Shen Qian and Qu Bai disturbed by the king’s power.

• Shen Qian entered the competition arena with the other students and saw the vast jade square, its giant stone statues, and the platforms holding powerful observers.
• Wu Wei welcomed the contestants, and Ma Gongzuo announced that competitors would ascend nine stages to reach the Nine Kings Secret Realm.
• King Zhouyi appeared and explained that the Nine Kings had placed treasures gathered in their youth inside the realm for future generations.
• After King Zhouyi vanished, Li Jiaqi and Ouyang Fei could not remember seeing him, while Qu Bai confirmed that their memories had been erased.
• Shen Qian and Qu Bai considered the implications of King Zhouyi’s power as the competition’s opening ceremony continued.

Ma Gongzuo explained the Nine Heavens Competition’s token-based progression, rewards, and deadly risks, while Wu Wei gave competitors a chance to withdraw. After tens of thousands left, King Zhouyi opened the enormous gate to the First Heaven, and the remaining contestants prepared to enter the battlefield.

• Ma Gongzuo explained that competitors needed Nine Heavens Tokens and an entrance to advance, and that extra tokens could be exchanged for martial arts resources.
• Ma Gongzuo warned that the competition involved real life-and-death combat without on-site rescue, though competitors could use a wristband to withdraw and be teleported out.
• Wu Wei offered everyone a chance to withdraw, and more than forty thousand people turned away, including over a hundred from Overlord Military University and twenty or thirty from Jiangzhong Military University.
• Ma Gongzuo announced that malicious killing was forbidden, then staff distributed positioning wristbands to the remaining competitors as the countdown began.
• Qu Bai told Shen Qian that they should gather Jiangzhong Military University’s students if they emerged in the same place.
• King Zhouyi activated the formations on the plaza’s statues, which joined together to reveal a colossal gate.

Wang Hou constructed the Nine Heavens worlds, and the young martial artists entered the First Heaven to begin the competition. Shen Qian arrived in a strange forest, found a Nine Heavens Token granted for his Hidden Dragon List rank, and set out to find the Second Heaven checkpoint.

• King Zhouyi, Wu Wei, Duke Tianning, Duke Baili, Marquis Xuanming, Marquis of Qingcheng, Marquis Tuodong, Earl Minnan, Earl Pingyang, Earl Luoshen, and Earl Yuntian created the Nine Heavens worlds using the stone statues.
• Shen Qian and Qu Bai spoke about ambition and how Shen Qian had changed before Jiangzhong Military University's group entered the gate.
• Ma Gongzuo closed the gate after the participants entered and watched a projection of the First Heaven appear, with markers showing their progress.
• Shen Qian arrived alone in a forest in the First Heaven, examined its unfamiliar surroundings, and concluded that the world might be assembled from fragments of worlds beyond gates.
• Shen Qian found a Nine Heavens Token in a stream and learned that reaching the Hidden Dragon List granted him one, while entering the Second Heaven required two tokens.
• Shen Qian discovered that the token's glow could not be concealed and hurried through the forest to seek the Second Heaven checkpoint.

Shen Qian escaped the Misty Forest after defeating a powerful tree demon and collecting nine Nine Heavens Tokens and a mysterious key, then entered the Second Heaven. He learned there that the top-ranked competitors had advanced before him, while people discussed a plot against him, and the chapter ended as he rushed toward a battle in which six fighters were attacking Xiao Ye and another person.

• Shen Qian discovered that Great Sage could absorb demon-beast cores and realized the Misty Forest prevented him from finding his way out.
• Ning Zhiyuan challenged the fairness of Shen Qian's arrival in the Misty Forest, and Wu Wei reassured him that Shen Qian could escape and might find the First Heaven's greatest treasure there.
• Shen Qian and Great Sage defeated a powerful tree demon, took its nine Nine Heavens Tokens, and found an ancient key in its treasure chest.
• After finally leaving the forest, Shen Qian reached the Second Heaven Gate and learned that Ning Zhaoyi, Lin Sanmo, Wu Yi, and other leading competitors had already entered.
• Shen Qian entered the Second Heaven and heard that competitors considered him a target because he had received the Great Dao golden light from the Nine Heavens Ranking.
• Shen Qian rushed toward a swamp battle where six people were attacking Xiao Ye and another fighter.