Chapter Summaries

Ning Qi fought the Fake Vermilion Bird in its magma territory, recovering from its fire poison and overpowering it with his combined abilities. After the Fake Vermilion Bird unleashed the Origin Flame’s souls, Ning Qi used the Thunder Roar Bead to weaken it and prepared another attack, while the Vermilion Bird remained trapped outside the barriers.

• The Fake Vermilion Bird revealed that its fire poison had reduced Ning Qi’s strength, but Medicine Spirit restored Ning Qi’s vitality and healed his injuries.
• Ning Qi battered the Fake Vermilion Bird with Devil Qi, Li River Water, incense aura, and Chaos Blazing Flames, forcing it to retreat into the magma.
• Ning Qi taunted the Fake Vermilion Bird and began recording it, enraging it into summoning fire dragons that were the Origin Flame’s souls.
• The Vermilion Bird contacted Ning Qi and warned him that the fire dragons could corrode his Divine Soul, then explained that barriers kept her outside.
• Ning Qi retreated from the Fake Vermilion Bird’s attack and used the Thunder Roar Bead to clash with its flames, weakening it before preparing another strike with Medicine Spirit’s aid.

Ning Qi trapped Fake Vermilion Bird and Vermilion Bird took him to the Inner Realm to refine him. After reuniting with Ji Wanru and learning her group had clashed with Xiao Haotian, he continued with them into an area full of sword-wielding spiritual creatures, where he began fighting while Ji Wanru's group prepared a formation to support him.

• Ning Qi shattered Fake Vermilion Bird's defenses and trapped him inside his protective waves of light.
• Vermilion Bird explained she could refine Fake Vermilion Bird in the Inner Realm, and she took him there with help from the Time Difference Array.
• Ning Qi reunited with Ji Wanru, whose guards had been injured in a conflict with Xiao Haotian, the Domain Lord Xiao Lingtian's brother.
• Ji Wanru led the group onward, and sword-wielding spiritual creatures emerged from the stone walls and surrounded them.
• Ning Qi tore Sword Qi from one spiritual creature and absorbed it into his palm as the others attacked; Ji Wanru ordered her guards to set up a formation to assist him if needed.

Ning Qi refined the Sword Qi from defeated spiritual beings and sensed that it could lead him to a powerful sword, while hiding his discovery from Ji Wanru. The group continued through the dangerous area, where they found signs that Demon Race fighters had also entered, and Ning Qi suspected the City Lord had sent Ji Wanru’s party into danger with little information.

• Ning Qi and Ji Wanru’s formation defeated a group of spiritual beings, and Ning Qi collected their Sword Qi.
• Ning Qi resisted and refined the Sword Qi with his Immortal-Demon Power, sensing that it would guide him toward a sword.
• Ning Qi hid his success from Ji Wanru and stored his own Sword Qi in a Storage Bag, letting her believe he had merely forced out one strand.
• Ji Wanru led the guards onward with her Compass, warning them to stay alert as spiritual beings grew more numerous.
• The group found corpses and sword marks from a battle; Ji Wanru identified the dead as Demon Race fighters and chose to continue rather than split up.
• Ning Qi and the Medicine Spirit suspected that the City Lord knew the truth about the area and had sent Ji Wanru’s group to take the risk.

Ning Qi warned Ji Wanru’s group that a dangerous spirit object was waiting in a stalactite cavern, but several guards ignored him and were killed by unseen Sword Qi. With the Compass offering only this route forward, Ning Qi laid out their options and left the group facing a difficult choice.

• Ning Qi noticed the Compass was leading Ji Wanru’s group through passages without spiritual beings and suspected it was avoiding them.
• Ning Qi sensed danger in a vast stalactite cavern and persuaded Ji Wanru to retreat to the entrance.
• Several guards disobeyed Ning Qi and entered the cavern, where unseen Sword Qi killed three of them.
• Ning Qi concluded that a powerful spirit object guarded the boundary and learned from Ji Wanru that her Compass showed no other route.
• Ning Qi proposed retreating, charging through the attack, or a third option that he had not yet explained.

Ning Qi forced Ji Wanru to reveal that their mission was to gather Sword Qi from a sword tomb for the City Lord’s plan to claim a Divine Sword. After the group agreed to follow his lead, Ning Qi confronted two powerful red Sword Spirits in Stalactite Cave and shielded himself from their attack with his Abyssal Glass Bell.

• Ning Qi explained that the Compass might not show a safe route and demanded that Ji Wanru reveal her mission and the secrets of the area.
• Ji Wanru handed Ning Qi the Compass and disclosed that the place was a sword tomb where Sword Qi could be collected, and that a rare Divine Sword lay within.
• Ning Qi deduced that the City Lord was using the group to gather Sword Qi before claiming the Divine Sword, and learned that Ji Wanru’s quota was twenty thousand.
• Ning Qi convinced the guards to continue the mission, then revealed that two stronger red Sword Spirits were nearby and asked the group to help with a sword formation.
• Medicine Spirit lent Ning Qi his life aura as Ning Qi confronted the two red Sword Spirits in Stalactite Cave.
• The red Sword Spirits attacked with powerful Sword Qi, but Ning Qi activated his Abyssal Glass Bell, whose inscriptions halted the incoming force.

Ning Qi defeated two red Sword Spirits, helped the surviving guards learn to see hidden Sword Spirits, and discovered that Ji Wanru’s mission was to reach a dangerous core area containing the Sword King. Though Ji Wanru wanted to take a detour, Ning Qi insisted they move straight through, trusting his strength.

• Ning Qi used the bronze bell to break the Sword Spirits’ Sword Qi, devoured the Spirits with a fire dragon, and sealed two red Sword Lights in his dantian.
• Ning Qi showed Ji Wanru and the guards his wound, then gave them Sword Qi so they could see hidden Sword Spirits.
• Ji Wanru revealed that the City Lord and Domain Lord had deliberately leaked news to draw other races toward the core area, where the Sword King waited.
• After studying the Compass, Ji Wanru proposed taking a detour around the dangerous area, but Ning Qi rejected the plan and said they should go straight through.

Ning Qi refined and subdued two strands of Sword Qi before leading Ji Wanru and her group deeper into the tunnel. After finding several corpses from the Demon Race, he urged the group onward, leaving the bodies behind.

• Ning Qi used the Medicine Spirit’s life aura to protect him as he refined two strands of Sword Qi and forced them to submit.
• Ning Qi and the Medicine Spirit discussed the dangers ahead and resolved to follow the other groups before making their move toward the Sword King.
• Ning Qi led Ji Wanru and her people into a wider tunnel, then went ahead alone after detecting a scent of blood.
• Ning Qi found several corpses and returned with Ji Wanru’s group to inspect them.
• Ji Wanru identified the dead as members of the Demon Race, and Ning Qi persuaded the group to continue onward without collecting the bodies.

Ning Qi confronted Xiao Haotian after Xiao Haotian’s men threatened Ji Wanru and her guards. To avoid attracting the Sword Spirits, they agreed to a contest of one move each, with Supreme Treasures at stake, and Xiao Haotian let Ning Qi go first.

• Ning Qi and Ji Wanru encountered Xiao Haotian, whose men mocked and threatened her while blocking their way.
• Xiao Haotian ordered his men to attack unless Ji Wanru agreed to go with him, but Ning Qi refused to abandon her.
• Ning Qi taunted Xiao Haotian and proposed a quiet contest because a full fight could draw the Sword Spirits.
• Ning Qi and Xiao Haotian wagered one Supreme Treasure each, and Xiao Haotian agreed to apologize to Ji Wanru and stop pursuing her if he lost.
• After both groups moved aside, Xiao Haotian told Ning Qi to make the first move.

Ning Qi defeated Xiao Haotian, took his Supreme Treasure, and continued exploring a dangerous passage after his companions left. He discovered an underground Dark River full of corrosive black insects and began searching for their weaknesses.

• Ning Qi defeated Xiao Haotian in a clash, and Xiao Haotian handed over a Supreme Treasure before leaving with his men.
• Ji Wanru and the others found corpses ahead and warned Ning Qi that the passage was dangerous, but Ning Qi chose to investigate alone.
• Ning Qi told Ji Wanru and the others to wait for three days, then continued through the passage with Medicine Spirit.
• Ning Qi discovered an underground Dark River of black water that periodically released waves of heat and thick liquid.
• Large black insects crawled out of the Dark River and attacked Ning Qi with green venom that corroded the stone walls.
• Ning Qi rose above the insects and used his divine sense to search for their weaknesses while Medicine Spirit watched anxiously.

Ning Qi used the Origin Flame and Nether Ghost Fire to destroy the insects blocking the passage, then led Ji Wanru and her guards onward. They reached a clearing to rest, but Ji Wanru remained worried because she could not contact her Senior Brother and the others.

• Ning Qi warned Ji Wanru and her group not to enter, then used the Origin Flame fused with Nether Ghost Fire to burn the insects to ash.
• Ning Qi contacted Ji Wanru, who brought her guards to the passage after he reported that the danger had been handled.
• Ning Qi and Ji Wanru's group crossed the insect corpses and entered the next passage, where Ning Qi explained that the insects had been burned by the flames from the Dark River.
• Ning Qi checked the Compass and confirmed the route, then led the group to a clearing where they arranged patrols and rested.
• Ji Wanru told Ning Qi she still could not contact her Senior Brother and the others, and Ning Qi reassured her that they were strong enough to be safe.

Ning Qi and Ji Wanru rested before leading their group toward the next level, but they entered an unmapped mountain area that Ning Qi suspected was an illusion. At an altar, Ning Qi defeated fire-attribute Sword Spirits and called Shi Xiaokun to interpret the sacrificial inscriptions, leaving their deeper secrets unknown.

• Ning Qi and Ji Wanru agreed to rest before continuing, while Ning Qi and the Medicine Spirit anticipated stronger Sword Spirits and more competitors below.
• After two hours, Ji Wanru rallied the group, and Ning Qi used the Compass as they headed toward the path leading downward.
• Ning Qi and Ji Wanru discovered an open area of mountain peaks that did not match the Compass, and Ning Qi suspected they had entered an illusion.
• Ning Qi approached an altar alone, where his Immortal-Demon Power triggered blazing attacks and fire-attribute Sword Spirits to appear.
• Ning Qi used the If Water Three Thousand Formation and his Wandering Dragon Spear to defeat the Sword Spirits, then gathered their Sword Qi.
• Ning Qi summoned Shi Xiaokun to read the Giant Cauldron’s inscriptions, and Shi Xiaokun explained that the altar was used to sacrifice to a heavenly god before examining it further.

Shi Xiaokun deciphered the inscriptions and revealed that Heavenly Tribulation had created the Sword Spirits and Sword Kings to lure in sacrifices, but the group escaped the illusion by moving the Giant Cauldron. They continued through the void passage and reached three routes, where Ning Qi rejected the one that seemed safest.

• Shi Xiaokun read the inscriptions and explained that Heavenly Tribulation had been sealed there, using Sword Spirits and Sword Kings to attract cultivators and strengthen its defenses.
• Shi Xiaokun could not move the Giant Cauldron alone, so Ning Qi and Medicine Spirit helped him send it into Ning Qi's Inner Realm.
• The illusion collapsed, but Ning Qi and the others survived and returned to the void passage.
• Ning Qi reassured Ji Wanru and her guards, then led the group onward as Ji Wanru admitted she had initially hidden the Compass from him.
• At a fork with three passages, Ning Qi examined their differing auras and rejected the route filled with life aura.

Ning Qi and Ji Wanru’s group entered a seemingly safe tunnel that led to a dangerous, interconnected nest of passages. Ning Qi discovered how to navigate it, found Sword Spirits trapped in cocoons, and extracted their Sword Qi before preparing to move on.

• Ning Qi chose the most dangerous-looking passage, and Ji Wanru’s group followed him through it to a beehive-like cavern.
• Ning Qi entered the hot, branching passages alone and realized that the walls’ linked threads would alert the beasts if he damaged them.
• Ning Qi and the Medicine Spirit learned to navigate the passages by taking three routes in the opposite direction and then one correct route.
• Ning Qi found a nest of cocoons containing trapped Sword Spirits and deduced that the beasts had gone forward to hunt more of them.
• Ning Qi extracted the Sword Qi from several thousand Sword Spirits while leaving them alive, then told the Medicine Spirit they would move on to another nest.

Ning Qi discovered that the Fierce Beasts were ant-like creatures that used Sword Spirits to hatch their eggs, then waited with Ji Wanru and her guards for the ants to leave. While waiting, he refined his Sword Qi and grew to half-step Primordial Unity Golden Immortal strength; the group prepared to move when the nest emptied.

• Ning Qi placed hidden Memory Spirit Stones in the ants’ nest and told Ji Wanru that the Fierce Beasts hunted Sword Spirits and would not target them while moving toward the next level.
• Ning Qi and Ji Wanru watched the nest through the Memory Spirit Stones and saw the ants hatch eggs with Sword Spirits, feed the larvae, and guard the new cocoons.
• Ji Wanru assigned guards to watch the nest while Ning Qi rested, entered his Inner Realm, and refined the Sword Qi in a Time Difference Array.
• Shi Xiaokun told Ning Qi that he had reached half-step Primordial Unity Golden Immortal strength and might break through after refining the Sword King’s Sword Qi.
• After waiting several days, Ning Qi and Ji Wanru saw the ants begin leaving the nest and prepared to wait another half hour before setting out.

Ning Qi entered the Origin Flame to refine it and break through, but the Fire Spirit revealed that it had been pretending to submit and tried to seize his body. The Vermilion Bird, Azure Dragon, and Black Tortoise cornered the Fire Spirit, while Ning Qi’s breakthrough remained unresolved.

• Ning Qi entered Shi Xiaokun’s Inner Realm and began refining the Origin Flame in a time-difference array.
• The Origin Flame scorched Ning Qi’s body and threatened to consume his will, so Medicine Spirit restored his body while Shi Xiaokun replenished his Immortal Power.
• Ning Qi used Incense Power to restore his physique as the flames continued to attack him.
• The Fire Spirit entered Ning Qi’s Consciousness Sea and revealed it had faked being subdued so it could take over his body.
• Ning Qi summoned the Vermilion Bird, Azure Dragon, and Black Tortoise, who attacked the Fire Spirit as it tried to flee.
• Black Tortoise blocked the Fire Spirit’s escape, and Vermilion Bird struck at it with a crimson whip.

Ning Qi defeated and refined the Fire Spirit, broke through to the Primordial Unity Golden Immortal realm, and shared resources with his companions. He returned to the passage and prepared to lead Ji Wanru and the guards after the ants in the Memory Spirit Stones began moving.

• The Black Tortoise captured the Fire Spirit, and Ning Qi crushed it while refining it as part of his breakthrough.
• Ning Qi endured the Thunder Tribulation as it clashed with the Origin Flame, completing his breakthrough to Primordial Unity Golden Immortal.
• Ning Qi gave the Vermilion Bird the Origin Flame to refine and distributed strands of Origin Power to his companions.
• Ning Qi left his Fine Space and returned to the passage, where Ji Wanru and the guards had been waiting for signs of movement.
• After the ants in the Memory Spirit Stones began moving, Ning Qi told Ji Wanru and the guards to follow him as they set out.