Chapter Summaries

Gu Jinlai launched a surprise artillery attack on Longxiao City while Dragon Sparrow Manor’s leaders prepared to ambush him. As the shells streaked toward the city, Huo Yuqing ordered every Spirit Transformation cultivator to intercept what she mistook for flying swords.

• Gu Jinlai convinced Xin Tianqi and the others that a treasure from the Aries Star Palace could kill Huo Yuqing, then assigned the defenders their roles.
• Gu Jinlai used the Thousand-Mile Light and Shadow Mirror to inspect the artillery positions and ordered them to fire at Longxiao City.
• Huo Yuqing told Ye Qianqiu and Long Xiangtian to secretly train Celestial Masters to seek a life-extending treasure at the Aries Star Palace’s next descent.
• Huo Yuqing, Ye Qianqiu, and Long Xiangtian sensed dozens of incoming objects and mistook the artillery shells for flying swords.
• Huo Yuqing ordered all Spirit Transformation cultivators in Dragon Sparrow Manor to draw their swords and intercept the incoming attack.

Que Sparrow Manor’s defenders came under repeated artillery bombardment from Gu Jinlai’s forces, suffering heavy casualties despite their attempts to intercept the shells. Huo Yuqing ordered the entire force out of Longxiao City to attack the artillery positions on Longteng Mountain.

• Long Xiangtian and Huo Yuqing led flying swords to intercept the first artillery barrage, but explosions destroyed six Spirit Transformation cultivators’ swords and shells killed hundreds in Longxiao City.
• Ye Qianqiu identified the weapons as Gu Jinlai’s artillery, which had previously been used at the Battle of Baihe City.
• A second barrage overwhelmed the defenders’ interception efforts and killed more soldiers and Que Sparrow Manor disciples.
• Ye Qianqiu and Long Xiangtian warned that continued bombardment would exhaust the Primordial Spirit True Lords and urged an attack on the artillery positions.
• After another barrage struck Longxiao City, Huo Yuqing ordered all available cultivators, disciples, and soldiers to sortie toward Longteng Mountain.

Dragon Sparrow Manor launched an all-out attack on Dragon Soaring Mountain after Gu Jinlai’s cannons wounded six of its Spirit Transformation cultivators. Gu Jinlai withdrew his allies and prepared to use a hidden wide-area attack to destroy the gathered enemy experts, leaving his precise plan unresolved.

• Huo Yuqing, Ye Qianqiu, and Long Xiangtian decided to lead Dragon Sparrow Manor’s experts in a rapid assault on Dragon Soaring Mountain.
• Huo Yuqing led more than a thousand cultivators out of Dragon Roar City, and Xin Tianqi warned Gu Jinlai that they risked being surrounded.
• Gu Jinlai ordered Xin Tianqi and the other Spirit Transformation cultivators to withdraw and ready the Demon God Guards, saying he would use a wide-area attack against the advancing force.
• Xin Tianqi disguised Cheng Wanli as Gu Jinlai and exposed him to observers, while Dragon Sparrow Manor’s forces continued advancing through cannon fire with relatively few casualties.
• Gu Jinlai planned to disable Huo Yuqing’s flying sword, keep her from escaping into the sky, and lure Dragon Sparrow Manor’s experts close enough for a decisive strike.

Gu Jinlai ambushed Dragon Sparrow Manor’s advancing forces, but Huo Yuqing discovered him and attacked with her Spirit Sparrow Sword. Though Gu Jinlai countered her sword art and weakened her control, Dragon Sparrow Manor’s leaders ordered their forces to encircle him, leaving him surrounded as the battle escalated.

• Dragon Sparrow Manor’s cultivators charged toward Dragonrise Mountain through cannon fire while Long Xiangtian and Huo Yuqing held their Spirit Transformation elders back, wary of an ambush.
• Huo Yuqing sensed Gu Jinlai hiding in a dirt pit and intercepted his Eternal Heavenly Curse before launching her Dragon Sparrow Combined Strike.
• Gu Jinlai used the Great Sun Divine Radiance and Thousand Leaves to blunt Huo Yuqing’s attack, then purified the Sword Qi that pierced his body and battered her Spirit Sparrow Sword with the Chengying Sword.
• Huo Yuqing called for the others to draw their swords, and Long Xiangtian, Ye Qianqiu, and Long Yinfeng ordered Dragon Sparrow Manor’s forces to kill or contain Gu Jinlai.
• Spirit Transformation cultivators, Spirit Refining True Persons, and Core Forming guardians converged from all sides, surrounding Gu Jinlai in layers.

Gu Jinlai, surrounded and gravely wounded by Dragon Sparrow Manor’s cultivators, overloaded the Eternal Furnace and hurled the Chengying Sword at Huo Yuqing. The sword’s explosion annihilated Huo Yuqing and began destroying the encircling force, leaving the battle’s outcome beyond the blast uncertain.

• Thirteen Spirit Transformation cultivators and Long Xiangtian, Ye Qianqiu, and Huo Yuqing overwhelmed Gu Jinlai’s defenses and wounded him severely.
• Ye Qianqiu urged Huo Yuqing to use the Sigh of the Dragon Transformation Art, and she began gathering its power.
• Gu Jinlai overloaded the Eternal Furnace, causing his body to glow with energy, and Ye Qianqiu realized he was about to self-detonate.
• Huo Yuqing retreated as Gu Jinlai threw the Chengying Sword toward her and hurled the struggling Spirit Sparrow Sword in the opposite direction.
• Huo Yuqing dodged the Chengying Sword, but its explosion engulfed and annihilated her, then destroyed Long Xiangtian’s flying sword.
• The blast spread through Dragon Sparrow Manor’s encirclement, annihilating vegetation, creatures, martial artists, and cultivators in its path.

Gu Jinlai’s trump card detonated over Dragon Sparrow Manor’s gathered forces, killing Huo Yuqing and devastating the enemy ranks. As Gu Chifeng led the Demon God Guards toward the battlefield, Ye Qianqiu survived the blast and vowed that Dragon Sparrow Manor would not be defeated, just as Gu Jinlai emerged from the smoke.

• Gu Chifeng, Xin Tianqi, and the others waited for Gu Jinlai’s signal while preparing to attack Dragon Sparrow Manor.
• A blinding explosion and shockwave struck the battlefield, and Gu Chifeng recognized it as Gu Jinlai’s trump card.
• Gu Chifeng ordered the Demon God Guards to charge, while Xin Tianqi and the other grand cultivators rushed toward the battlefield.
• Ye Qianqiu crawled from the wreckage and discovered that the blast had killed everyone within the explosion’s central two-li area, including Huo Yuqing.
• Ye Qianqiu refused to accept Dragon Sparrow Manor’s defeat and shouted that Gu Jinlai could not defeat him.
• Gu Jinlai’s voice came through the smoke as a towering figure appeared before Ye Qianqiu.

Gu Jinlai survived the devastating blast, killed Ye Qianqiu, and joined his forces in wiping out Dragon Sparrow Manor’s fleeing elite army. The survivors gathered outside Dragon Roar City, where Gu Jinlai ordered them to break through and destroy the manor.

• Gu Jinlai emerged unharmed from the dust and killed Ye Qianqiu with a barrage of punches after shattering his flying sword.
• The Snow River Sword Master fled into the dust, while Xin Tianqi and Gu Jinlai’s allies pursued and killed Dragon Sparrow Manor’s Spirit Transformation cultivators.
• The Demon God Guards charged into the battlefield and slaughtered Dragon Sparrow Manor’s wounded survivors, including the escaped Primordial Spirit True Lords and Spirit Transformation grand cultivators.
• Other sects witnessed the blast and began investigating its source, while the Demon God Guards pursued the defeated forces to the outskirts of Dragon Roar City.
• Gu Chifeng, Xin Tianqi, Cheng Wanli, Lu Zhanfeng, and the others gathered before Gu Jinlai, who ordered them to break through the city and end Dragon Sparrow Manor.

Gu Jinlai’s forces overwhelmed Dragon Roar City and destroyed Dragon Sparrow Manor’s remaining resistance. Yun Chan escaped with the manor’s incomplete inheritance, vowing to avenge it, while Gu Jinlai’s troops secured the city.

• Shelling and close-in defense cannons shattered Dragon Roar City’s defenses as Gu Chifeng, Gu Luocen, Gu Qingmei, and the Demon God Guards advanced.
• Dragon Xuanguang gave Yun Chan Dragon Sparrow Manor’s inheritance Jade Slip and ordered her to flee; she vowed to become powerful enough to avenge the manor.
• Dragon Xuanguang tried to launch a final strike at Gu Jinlai, but Xin Tianqi killed him with a flying sword before he could attack.
• Gu Jinlai’s forces stormed Dragon Sparrow Manor, killing or capturing its remaining defenders and wiping out its Spirit Transformation experts.
• Breakout attempts failed as Star Province’s cultivators and Demon God Guards intercepted the fleeing forces, and Gu Jinlai personally hunted down hidden experts.
• By the second morning, the fighting in Dragon Roar City had largely subsided and Dragon Sparrow Manor’s resistance had been crushed.

Gu Jinlai’s forces captured Dragon Sparrow Manor and Dragon Roar City, ending the sect’s dominance in Jiang Province. He gave Xin Tianqi the Spirit Sparrow Sword and left him to guard the city while he set out to secure the remaining cities and complete the occupation of Jiang Province.

• Xin Tianqi reported that Dragon Sparrow Manor’s remaining forces were concentrated in Dragon Roar City, while Gu Jinlai returned after leading the hunt for its remnants.
• Gu Jinlai announced Dragon Sparrow Manor’s defeat, leaving Xin Tianqi and the others stunned by the fall of one of the Six Immortal Sects.
• Gu Jinlai gave Xin Tianqi the Spirit Sparrow Sword and arranged for Su Nanxing to teach him the Dragon-Transforming Art of Sighing Breath and sword techniques.
• Gu Jinlai asked Xin Tianqi to hold Dragon Roar City while he led the Demon God Guards to reclaim the other cities and deal with foreign agents.
• Xin Tianqi accepted the responsibility, and Gu Jinlai set out to occupy all of Jiang Province within a month.

The Purgatory Sect’s elders debated whether to aid Gu Jinlai as he fought Dragon Sparrow Manor, while Lu Zhanxian planned to use the conflict to make Gu Jinlai more dependent on the sect. The latest battle report left Lu Dengxian stunned by news that one side had been annihilated.

• Liu Jingtao urged the Purgatory Sect to risk war with the Yellow Springs Sect and support Gu Jinlai, but Zhang Liefeng and Lu Zhanxian argued against intervening.
• Lu Zhanxian revealed that Dragon Sparrow Manor’s hidden trump card was Huo Yuqing, the Sparrow Sword Immortal, who was believed to still be alive.
• Zhang Liefeng explained that the Purgatory Sect hoped Dragon Sparrow Manor’s strength would pressure Gu Jinlai and Star Province into relying more firmly on the sect.
• The elders learned that Gu Jinlai had ordered his forces to bombard Longxiao City with cannons while planning to ambush Dragon Sparrow Manor’s experts.
• After an hour’s wait, Lu Dengxian received a battle report and exclaimed that one side had been annihilated.

After Gu Jinlai destroyed Dragon Sparrow Manor, the other sects learned that Lingxiao City had won and rushed to reassess their relations with him. Purgatory Sect and Yellow Springs Sect prepared to offer congratulations, while neighboring sects withdrew their troops and sought to avoid provoking Star Province’s new power.

• Zhang Liefeng and Lu Zhanxian read reports that Dragon Sparrow Manor’s leaders and forces had been wiped out, and they initially doubted the news.
• Lu Zhanfeng sent firsthand information revealing that Gu Jinlai used a treasure of White Ram Star Palace to defeat Dragon Sparrow Manor and occupy Longxiao City.
• Lu Zhanxian recognized Gu Jinlai’s growing power and ordered Purgatory Sect to inform Yellow Springs Sect and send Liu Jingtao to congratulate him.
• Ancestor Nether Springs concluded that a Celestial might be supporting Gu Jinlai and sent Ancestor Three Lives to Jiang Province to offer congratulations.
• Yellow Heaven Sect and Cold Moon Sect withdrew their armies from the borders, and Cold Moon Sect sent Fang Yumian with gifts to congratulate Gu Jinlai.

Gu Jinlai demanded that Fish-Dragon City’s overseas factions obey his laws or leave, rejecting their gifts and warnings about the city’s trade. As he prepared to take control of the city, he reflected on his principles and the immense Karma and Pure Light he had accumulated while conquering Jiang Province.

• Cheng Wanli explained that Fish-Dragon City was jointly governed by Dragon Sparrow Manor, Li Province, and the Twelve Overseas Islands, whose factions were backed by Primordial Spirit True Lords.
• Xu Haiqing arrived with gifts and asked Gu Jinlai to preserve Fish-Dragon City’s cooperative, lightly regulated system of trade.
• Gu Jinlai ordered the factions to obey his rules or withdraw, and announced that his troops would take over the city the next morning.
• Xu Haiqing warned that strict laws would damage the city’s prosperity and provoke powerful investors, but Gu Jinlai dismissed his concerns and had him escorted out.
• Gu Jinlai saw that four of Xu Haiqing’s six companions had Red Names and that Xu Haiqing’s Karma was dark red, then resolved not to compromise his principles.
• Gu Jinlai reviewed his conquests across twenty cities and noted that his Karma stood at the high point of the nineteenth rank while his Pure Light had reached 103 strands.

Gu Jinlai advanced the Qian Heavenly Purple Qi Formula toward the True Spirit Realm, gaining insight into formations and improving his understanding of the Eternal Furnace and Chengying Mecha. He concluded that the Demonic Beast Kings were an imminent threat, then learned that forces from Li Province and the twelve overseas islands had withdrawn overnight.

• Gu Jinlai assessed the Heavenly Master Lineage and concluded that the Demonic Beast Kings in Mu Province and the Crocodile Dragon King could threaten the lands south of Tianhe once they were ready to attack.
• Gu Jinlai poured clear light into the Qian Heavenly Purple Qi Formula, perfecting and transforming it into a golden technique that could lead toward the True Spirit Realm and the Lord of Creation.
• Gu Jinlai gained insights into formations used for the Heaven and Earth Universe Diagram, the Dragon Profound Formation, and the nuclear-power engine, which could greatly increase Lingxiao City's Spirit Artifact production.
• Gu Jinlai set aside the Qian Heavenly Purple Qi Formula because its breakthrough carried unknown risks, then invested clear light in the Chengying Mecha and Eternal Furnace, stabilizing the latter and increasing its power.
• Gu Chifeng reported that the forces from Li Province and the twelve overseas islands had withdrawn overnight.

Gu Jinlai secured Yulong City and returned to Jiang Province, where Xin Tianqi showed him Dragon Sparrow Manor’s hidden reserves of 406 portions of immortal fine gold. Gu Jinlai decided to gather enough gold to build a Chengying Mecha, and Xin Tianqi warned that meeting his target would require buying up the reserves of four top-tier sects.

• Gu Jinlai let the retreating forces leave Yulong City, appointed Nie Shisan to govern it, and returned to Longxiao City after making arrangements.
• Gu Jinlai reviewed Jiang Province’s recovery with Xin Tianqi and entrusted him with holding the province together.
• Xin Tianqi led Gu Jinlai to Dragon Sparrow Manor’s vault, where they found 406 portions of immortal fine gold.
• Xin Tianqi explained that Dragon Sparrow Manor had likely saved the gold to trade for a Creation Immortal Fruit that could extend Huo Yuqing’s life by sixty years.
• Gu Jinlai said he planned to build a weakened version of an immortal golden body using the Chengying Mecha and ordered Xin Tianqi to obtain at least 180 more portions within a year.
• Xin Tianqi said they would likely need to purchase all the immortal fine gold held by the Yellow Heaven Sect, Cold Moon Sect, Purgatory Sect, and Yellow Springs Sect.

Gu Jinlai considered obtaining immortal fine gold from Wood Province and learned that Xuan Tianzun had defeated Witch Tian'e with Heaven's Extremity Sword, likely ending the Divine Sword Assembly. He met representatives of four sects and secured agreement in principle to form an alliance against the Demonic Beasts.

• Xin Tianqi warned that the four sects could supply only a small amount of immortal fine gold, and Gu Jinlai proposed raiding Wood Province's gold mine with the Cold Moon Sect's help.
• Xin Tianqi reported that Xuan Tianzun had defeated Witch Tian'e and killed many Human Immortal Hall cultivators with Heaven's Extremity Sword, making the Divine Sword Assembly unlikely to proceed.
• Gu Jinlai worried that the Assembly's cancellation would let the Demonic Beasts return to the Celestial River and free the Yellow Heaven Sect to cause trouble, so he agreed to meet the sect representatives.
• Gu Jinlai received representatives of the Yellow Heaven Sect, Yellow Springs Sect, Cold Moon Sect, and Purgatory Sect and argued that the factions south of the Celestial River needed to unite against the Demonic Beasts.
• Fang Yumian proposed an alliance for mutual defense against Demonic Beast invasions, and the other representatives agreed in principle.

Gu Jinlai formed the Southern Alliance and sought indestructible refined gold to forge a war Spirit Artifact, while explaining that his White Ram Star Palace achievement could draw Demonic Beast Kings to Lingxiao City. He ordered his allies to promote Star Province as an anti-demon stronghold and prepared to publicize the rise of the Heavenly Lord path.

• Gu Jinlai and representatives of the Yellow Heaven Sect, Cold Moon Sect, Yellow Springs Sect, and Purgatory Sect established the Southern Alliance, whose members agreed to provide him with indestructible refined gold.
• Liu Jingtao privately apologized for the Purgatory Sect's absence at Dragon Sparrow Manor and promised to persuade its leaders to transfer more refined gold to Gu Jinlai.
• Gu Jinlai told Liu Jingtao that he needed the refined gold to forge a war Spirit Artifact and feared Demonic Beast Kings would target him after learning he passed a White Ram Star Palace trial.
• Gu Jinlai ordered Xin Tianqi, Cheng Wanli, Gu Chaoyang, Nian Buwang, and the others to promote the alliance and form a Demonic Beast Slaughterer Legion.
• Gu Jinlai explained that opposing Demonic Beasts could win Star Province the people's goodwill, and that his achievements already made conflict with the beasts unavoidable.
• Gu Jinlai left Xin Tianqi in charge and declared that he would raise the torch of the Heavenly Lord path across Qiantian.

Mo Wen and Fang Qiuyuan decided to travel to Lingxiao City, while Xuan Tianzun confronted pursuers from the Three Clarities Hall in Yue Province. Days later, Gu Jinlai learned that Xuan Tianzun had killed a Heavenly Man with one strike, drawing the Three Clarities Hall into the conflict.

• Mo Wen persuaded Fang Qiuyuan to go with him to Lingxiao City and see whether it could offer Heavenly Masters safety and a new path.
• Xuan Tianzun overheard their conversation and reflected on how powerful factions had hunted him for wielding the Heavenly Extremity Sword.
• True Person Wusi and another Heavenly Man confronted Xuan Tianzun, who drew his sword and challenged them to show him how strong he must become to be number one beneath heaven.
• Several days later, Gu Jinlai received news that Xuan Tianzun had entered Yue Province and slain a Heavenly Man with one stroke.
• The Three Clarities Hall entered the struggle between the righteous and demonic paths for the first time in nearly a century.

Gu Jinlai reviewed designs for new war machines and selected the Black Tortoise fighter for rapid production to counter Primordial Spirit True Lords. He revealed that he could establish the Myriad Spirits Formation, leaving the Celestial Masters convinced he had touched the true spirit world.

• Gu Jinlai learned that the Three Pure Ones Sacred Hall, led by True Person Wushi, remained the world's strongest force and held two divine weapons.
• Gu Jinlai chose six designs from the war-machine plans and identified the Black Tortoise fighter as the most feasible near-term project.
• Zhang Lihuo reported that bullet and Sharp Sword heavy cannon production lines were nearing completion, with cannon output expected to reach ninety-eight a month.
• Gu Jinlai instructed Zhang Lihuo to produce eight Black Tortoise fighters and said the Myriad Spirits Formation could accelerate shared resonance more than sixfold.
• Zhang Lihuo, Guan Xingyun, and Zhang Yukun realized the formation required contact with the true spirit world and asked whether Gu Jinlai had reached that stage.
• Gu Jinlai confirmed that he had touched that domain and said the Aries Star Palace would descend upon Qiantian again for his sake in a few years.

Gu Jinlai advanced plans for Celestial Master weapons and prepared to exchange technical information with Blue Star, while considering nuclear weapons for the next Demon Realm rift. His delayed message finally reached Blue Star, where the struggling institution welcomed proof that contact remained possible.

• Gu Jinlai urged Zhang Lihuo and the other Celestial Masters to unite, produce heavy cannons, and develop high-velocity autocannons for fighter aircraft.
• Gu Jinlai and the Celestial Masters reviewed the simplified Xuannü fighter and Qingluan carrier blueprints, which he revised into a format Blue Star could understand.
• At Qiushan Base, Gu Jinlai sent Blue Star technical information and considered using nuclear warheads on Sky Sword missiles when the Demon Realm rift opened again.
• Gu Jinlai planned to refine nuclear materials and seek extraction technology to establish a Celestial Master-supervised military factory in the East Sea.
• After months without a reply, the Blue Star operator received Gu Jinlai’s message and announced it to the institution.

Gu Jinlai sent Blue Star data for a nuclear-fusion-powered Xuannü fighter, along with claims about the Chengying mecha, Qingluan mothership, anti-gravity, and psionic technology. The observatory’s staff treated the information as a potential technological breakthrough, sealed the facility, and prepared to verify the data.

• Gu Jinlai claimed his communications used divine sense and sent Xuannü fighter data, including a nuclear fusion engine, while asking Blue Star to refine the design.
• Gu Jinlai offered to provide electromagnetic-cannon and laser-cannon data, presenting the weapons as nostalgic childhood material.
• Fu Yunshan and Xie Yusheng saw the incoming data and reacted with shock at the fighter, nuclear fusion engine, and anti-gravity technology.
• Fu Yunshan ordered the observatory sealed, its network disconnected, and information kept from leaking.
• Qiu Yuyu and Wang Chixi arrived, and Wang Chixi said he would report the claims and seek weapons data while the staff waited for experts to verify the transmission.