Chapter Summaries

Yun Yue persuaded Zhu Yi to pursue transcendence and make Star Ring a border army, as Great Xia’s factions mobilized and conflict threatened the Imperial Capital. After Zhu Yi became a Transcendent of the Orthodox Sequence, Li Wannian approved Star Ring’s border army application and prepared to leave office, while the Great Xia Think Tank disbanded and Li Keming disappeared.

• Yun Yue explained that Star Ring needed to become a border army to gain resources and answer directly to Azure Venerable, persuading Zhu Yi and Kong Siming.
• Zhu Yi delegated Star Ring’s management and focused on finding his path to transcendence as the twelve giant city wardens unified Great Xia’s factions.
• The wardens pressured the Imperial Capital, while the Viper Clan, Gothic, and Heishan border armies entered Great Xia and forced its armies to respond.
• Xiao Qian reported that Zhu Yi had become an Orthodox Sequence Transcendent and that Yuan Su had applied for a border army quota.
• Li Wannian ordered the military to approve Star Ring’s application and said the government must prepare to leave office as Transcendents emerged.
• The Great Xia Think Tank disbanded, its headquarters emptied, and Li Keming’s whereabouts became unknown.

Ye Linwang became a fifth-generation Mad Blood Ghoul Transcendent and sought signs of genuine defectors as Great Xia prepared its Border Armies. Zhao Huanhuan reached Transcendent level and bonded with Li Jun’s colossal dragon, then learned that Great Xia’s leaders planned to use internal disaster to counter cultural decline, leaving the fate of the Spark Authority uncertain.

• Ye Linwang advanced through the Progenitor’s true blood, became a fifth-generation Mad Blood Ghoul, and learned that Zhu Yi and other guild leaders were preparing to advance.
• Ye Linwang pressed Think Tank Number 004 for information about genuine defectors, but the man said their existence could not be ruled out.
• Zhao Huanhuan returned to the Azure Guild as a Fame Sequence Transcendent, and Li Jun showed him a living thousand-meter dragon suppressed by the Serpent Venerable’s Scales Authority.
• Zhao Huanhuan recited his true name, established an Authority link with the dragon, and gained control of it.
• Li Jun told Zhao Huanhuan that Great Xia’s leaders planned to use internal disaster to resist cultural decline and suggested Azure Venerable would intensify the pressure to survive.

As Great Xia descended into political chaos, Zhang Qing turned the Imperial Cities’ intervention into a crisis that could restore his path to advancement. He prepared for a broader struggle as the Imperial Cities sent armies to attack Great Xia’s outer cities.

• Zhao Huanhuan and Li Jun accepted that Zhang Qing might be vilified for the sake of Civilization, and Zhao Huanhuan declared she would become a villain as Huan Zun.
• Supernaturals infiltrated the Imperial Capital, Li Wannian stepped down, and Xin Dao and rival border armies took sides as Great Xia’s power struggle spiraled into chaos.
• She Qi suspected Zhang Qing had manufactured a crisis, but the Grand Elder of Serpent Emperor City ordered border armies to invade Great Xia’s outer sphere and slaughter its cities.
• Sheep Emperor City, Tiger Imperial City, Rabbit Emperor City, Monkey Emperor City, and Horse Imperial City sent armies into Great Xia, while reports of war stirred its people and weakened the garrison commanders’ control.
• Zhang Qing calmly watched the crisis unfold, judging that the Imperial Cities had placed their bets and preparing for the Great Dao Conflict.

Great Xia’s power structure shifted as Zhao Huanhuan’s Azure Army defeated Xin Dao’s Dragon Flame Army and her Blood Dragon became Great Xia’s Sole Highness. Star Ring and other factions concluded that Azure Venerable had changed, and Yun Yue reported that they had been branded rebels as opposition to his rule spread.

• Zhao Huanhuan and Li Chang led the Azure Army and Blood Dragon to defeat Xin Dao’s Dragon Flame Army, forcing Xin Dao to retreat.
• Li Wannian vanished after Xin Dao began purging corrupt associates, and Zhang Zhengguo established the Elder Council system.
• Border armies and guilds objected to the Elder Council, but Zhao Huanhuan’s Blood Dragon became Great Xia’s Sole Highness, silencing them.
• Zhu Yi, Kong Siming, and others in Star Ring struggled to accept that Azure Venerable had turned Great Xia into his private possession.
• Yun Yue reported that Serpent Emperor City’s border armies had cooperated with Zhao Huanhuan and that Star Ring had been branded rebels.
• Kong Siming vowed to kill Zhao Huanhuan, but Zhu Yi restrained him as opposition to Azure Venerable spread through Great Xia.

After taking charge of Sky City, Shavat judged Zhang Qing to be preparing a final gamble and chose to wait rather than interfere with Great Xia’s chaos. In the Dark Side, Zhang Qing prepared to enter the stage, while Little Loli realized the border armies were rapidly gaining rare experience in large-scale warfare.

• Si Bei Li took leave and left Sky City after the Venerable Lord approved her request.
• Shavat took charge of Sky City, reviewed the incident, and decided to kill Yun Xiaoxi before reconsidering and seeking an agreement with Zhang Qing.
• Shavat stopped opposing or cooperating with Great Xia’s plans, allowing the border armies’ conflict to spiral into uncontrollable chaos.
• The Imperial City and Sky City grew nervous that Zhang Qing would unleash a Mental Storm and advance amid the turmoil.
• Zhang Qing prepared to enter the stage in the Dark Side and asked Little Loli whether his border army could fight.
• Little Loli explained that Great Xia’s turmoil and the Spark Giant Gate’s revival mechanism were giving the border armies rare experience in large-scale warfare.

Lin Tian and the Dawn Frontier Army grew stronger through combat experience, while Zhang Qing secured the support of Ghoul Mother and Madblood Ancestor for a risky plan. He prepared to return to the Dark Realm and advance to Sequence Eight, determined to uncover who stood behind Sky City.

• Lin Tian used his faith in Zhang Qing to stabilize his Dawn Sequence and began developing the Dawn Frontier Army after its losses against the Dragon Scale Army.
• Zhang Qing explained that Great Xia needed battle-tested frontier armies to challenge the Imperial City's restrictions and prepare for future conflicts.
• Little Loli questioned whether Zhang Qing was planning for his death, and he admitted his chances of success were only twenty or thirty percent.
• Zhang Qing asked Ghoul Mother to bet on him, and Ghoul Mother agreed to try alongside Madblood Ancestor.
• Zhang Qing called Yun Xiaoxi over and told her they would return to the Dark Realm so he could advance to Sequence Eight and investigate who stood behind Sky City.

Zhang Qing returned to Ghoulblood Swamp and learned that Great Xia’s border army was growing while the Sixth Floor had gone quiet. He arranged for the Lords to witness his planned advancement to Sequence Eight and set off to meet Sky City Lord Shavat, bringing Yun Xiaoxi and the Ghoul Mother.

• Zhang Qing met with Li Keming and Li Wannian, who reported that the border army had taken shape, the Imperial Cities were cooperating, and the Sixth Floor had vanished.
• Li Wannian told Zhang Qing that Sky City had appointed Shavat as its new presiding lord and that Shavat wanted to speak with him.
• Zhang Qing arranged for the Celestial Troupe to contact the Lords and invite them to witness his advancement to Sequence Eight.
• Yun Xiaoxi insisted on accompanying Zhang Qing, unaware that the Nirvana Mark had fully bound itself to her.
• Zhang Qing left for the starry sky with Yun Xiaoxi and the Ghoul Mother to meet Shavat.

Zhang Qing asked Sky City Lord Shavat to have all thirteen Lords attend his advancement ceremony, including the mysterious figure in White Jade City. Shavat invoked equivalent exchange and demanded Yun Xiaoxi in return, leaving Zhang Qing furious.

• Zhang Qing told Shavat he would wait to join Sky City until he advanced and asked the Lords to attend his ceremony.
• Zhang Qing insisted that thirteen Lords attend, naming the mysterious figure in White Jade City.
• The Little Loli recalled Sky City's history, its wars with the Dark Realm, and the divine laws that ended the fighting.
• Shavat said he would agree to Zhang Qing's request only if Zhang Qing traded Yun Xiaoxi.
• Zhang Qing rejected Shavat's demand and warned him that Yun Xiaoxi was not a thing and that he was provoking him.

Sky City’s Lords triggered Yun Xiaoxi’s transcendent advancement to trap Zhang Qing, expecting her love-related Sequence to fail and kill her. Zhang Qing intervened and reincarnated with her in Great Xia, but Yun Xiaoxi’s advancement had collapsed and she was dying.

• Sky City’s Lords suppressed Zhang Qing with Lord-level Authority, but the Ghoul Mother’s Reproduction Authority kept them from killing him.
• Yun Xiaoxi began a transcendent advancement, drawing divine law into the battle and dispersing the Authority vacuum.
• Shavat and the Sky City Lords expected Yun Xiaoxi’s love-related Sequence to fail, using her advancement as a way to kill her and force Zhang Qing’s hand.
• The Pendulum of Fate stopped at 290, confirming that Yun Xiaoxi’s advancement path had collapsed.
• Zhang Qing charged to Yun Xiaoxi, held her, and reincarnated with her in Great Xia; Yun Xiaoxi then told him she was going to die.

Yun Xiaoxi's Sequence collapsed, and Sky City contacted Zhang Qing with an offer to preserve her if he joined them. Zhang Qing rejected the offer and headed with Yun Xiaoxi to the Sky City Battlefield, declaring that Deep Space would ascend in three days.

• Imperial City Venerables learned that Yun Xiaoxi's Sequence had collapsed and feared how the loss would affect Zhang Qing.
• Tiger Venerable realized Sky City could preserve Yun Xiaoxi by uploading her consciousness and warned that it was making its move.
• White Jade City of Sky City contacted Zhang Qing and offered to save Yun Xiaoxi if he joined Sky City.
• Zhang Qing pretended to consider using the Nirvana Mark, then rejected Sky City's offer and condemned its ruthless tactics.
• Zhang Qing severed contact, took Yun Xiaoxi with him, and headed for the Sky City Battlefield, promising that Deep Space would ascend in three days.

After Yun Xiaoxi’s Sequence collapsed, Zhang Qing stayed with her as she neared death, then returned alone with a fragment of the Wisteria Flower Enclave. He vanished after telling Li Liming to wait for dawn and promised Li Wannian that the coming round would end in victory.

• Dark Realm factions and Great Xia learned that Yun Xiaoxi’s Sequence had collapsed, while the Sixth Floor’s choices left no way to restore it.
• Zhang Qing brought Yun Xiaoxi to the wisteria flowers, where she confessed that she had met the Sixth Floor’s master and regretted not being able to stay with him.
• Yun Xiaoxi refused Zhang Qing’s offer to take her to Suzhou-Hangzhou and urged him to save his strength as she ran out of time.
• Three days later, Zhang Qing returned alone with a fragment of the Wisteria Flower Enclave and rejected Li Liming’s call to attack Sky City.
• Zhang Qing told Li Liming not to despair and to wait for dawn, then vanished.
• Zhang Qing told Li Wannian that a long round was about to begin and guaranteed victory before they agreed to meet at dawn.

Sky City and the Imperial City Lords gathered in deep space as Zhang Qing confronted Hao, Jie, and the forces seeking to claim him. As Jie’s power over time took hold, everyone vanished, leaving Zhang Qing in the ruined remnants of Suzhou-Hangzhou.

• Shavat led Sky City’s forces after Zhang Qing, while the Imperial City Lords also set out to witness the round’s outcome.
• Zhang Qing faced the Sky City Lord and the eleven Imperial City Lords in a dead zone, where they saw the imposing figure of Hao.
• Hao introduced himself as the Supreme Decree and said they needed to wait for Jie, Lord of the Sixth Floor.
• Jie arrived amid a surge of tides, and the Sea Emperor rushed toward him before Ghoul Mother Little Loli warned that the outcome was not settled.
• Zhang Qing challenged Jie over Yun Xiaoxi and refused his offer to join him.
• Jie’s power caused everyone to vanish as Zhang Qing lost his sense of authority and reality, until only the ruined remnants of Suzhou-Hangzhou remained.

Zhang Qing escaped a causal trap that tried to erase his present by cleansing his memories of the Dark Realm. As Hao invoked the River of Destiny to restore Yun Xiaoxi and secure victory, he discovered that she had been removed from destiny.

• Zhang Qing realized that a specter was killing his past self while his Dark Realm memories faded, and he shattered the illusion by calling out his own name and unleashing the Spark Authority.
• Zhang Qing concluded that Jie and The Pale had used Time to reverse cause and effect, but his will had let him break free of their trap.
• Jie told Hao that no one would win the round, while Hao questioned Zhang Qing about choosing between godhood and humanity.
• Zhang Qing said the Sixth Floor's plan had nearly run out of moves and asked Hao to reveal his trump card.
• Hao tore open space and displayed the River of Destiny, but found no trace of Yun Xiaoxi within it.
• Hao and Phoenix Venerable reacted in alarm when they realized Yun Xiaoxi had been stripped from destiny.

Zhang Qing revealed that he had never used the Nirvana Mark until he spent it saving Yun Xiaoxi, then faced Hao’s claim that Survival was already his unique Sequence. As Hao offered Zhang Qing a role in completing Survival, Zhang Qing rejected both of their paths and prepared to advance by granting humanity to all beings.

• Zhang Qing told Hao that he had used the Nirvana Mark to save Yun Xiaoxi, discouraging the Imperial City Lords from moving against him.
• Hao proposed making Zhang Qing the eighth Waypoint, and Zhang Qing realized that his ideal Survival Sequence would be closed off if Survival was not unique.
• Zhang Qing concluded that Hao had already reached Sequence Nine through Survival, and Hao revealed his Waypoints and how Sky City had formed around him.
• Hao described his goal of making all things accessories to a single god and asked Zhang Qing to give Survival a new ending.
• Zhang Qing answered that he would grant humanity to all beings, arguing that humanity’s contradictions created balance, and began preparing to advance.

Zhang Qing began his advancement ceremony while wagering that humanity’s brilliance would endure, but he broke from the expected path and sought another Sequence. After the 480th bell, he declared that Survival was his only Sequence and that he had seen Dragon Court, causing everything to stop in a Sequence collapse.

• Zhang Qing told Jie and Hao that someone had to win and wagered that humanity’s brilliance would illuminate the stars.
• Hao accepted the wager and allowed Zhang Qing’s advancement to proceed, despite knowing that killing him could end Hao’s own chance to advance.
• Zhang Qing’s advancement began as bells rang and divine chains descended, while the gathered Lords watched for his purpose.
• Phoenix Venerable realized Zhang Qing was attempting to skip a Sequence, and Ghoul Mother waited for his signal instead of activating the star array on her own.
• After the 480th bell, Zhang Qing declared, “Survival! It is my only Sequence! I! Have seen! Dragon Court!” and the process halted in a Sequence collapse.

Zhang Qing used the twelve star arrays to restore his strength, then burned his Imperial City Sequence through Ultimate Sublimation to attack the Lords. He put Jie into slumber and shattered the death domain, but could not kill a Lord and faced his own annihilation.

• Zhang Qing ordered Ghoul Mother to activate the twelve star arrays, which raised him to the peak of Sequence Eight.
• Zhang Qing ignited his body with Ultimate Sublimation, sealing the dead domain and gaining overwhelming power.
• Jie explained that Zhang Qing's sacrifice would buy Great Xia less than three years, and Zhang Qing challenged him to a duel.
• Zhang Qing struck Jie into slumber, shattered the death domain, and killed Sky City Lord's Great Venerables, but the Lords survived.
• Tiger Venerable asked Zhang Qing if his sacrifice was worth it, noting he could have rebuilt in the Dark Realm instead.

Zhang Qing sacrificed himself to put the City Lords and Jie to sleep for three years, leaving the Dark Realm and Great Xia with a temporary reprieve. He told Great Xia he was going to die, and his announcement plunged the nation into shock and grief.

• Tiger Venerable led the Imperial City Lords in exploding within the dead-zone seal, while Hao vanished after warning that Great Xia would be swallowed by time.
• Zhang Qing dismissed the Sky City City Lords and the Progenitors, who vanished into specks of light, and the Sea Emperor bowed before disappearing.
• Alone in the world, Zhang Qing used the Spark Marks to speak to every pure-blooded Great Xia person and explain that the City Lords would sleep for three years.
• Zhang Qing admitted that he was going to die and joked that he wanted everyone to shed a few tears for him.
• Zhang Zhengguo, Li Wannian, Li Liming, and the Dragon Scale Army reacted with disbelief, while Lin Tian spat blood and his Sequence became unstable.

Zhang Qing sacrificed himself in the River of Destiny, scattering Fate Stones over Great Xia before his name and existence faded from memory. With the Venerables of both the Imperial City and Sky City asleep, Si Bei Li took command and launched an attack that reignited the war.

• Zhang Qing used his final strength to churn the River of Destiny and send Fate Stones toward Great Xia, then plunged into the River of Time as an enormous claw reached for him.
• Zhang Qing's body fell beside the Imperial Capital and became an azure mountain range, while people gradually forgot who he was.
• The Imperial City discovered that its Venerables had fallen into an unawakable sleep and raised its defenses against Sky City.
• Si Bei Li returned to Sky City, found the Supreme Decree ordering the destruction of Great Xia, and realized Sky City's Venerables had also fallen asleep.
• Si Bei Li tested the Imperial City with an attack, confirmed its Lords were asleep, and ordered Sky City to destroy its garrison cities and invade the Dark Realm.

Si Bei Li exploited the Imperial City’s ignorance to drive its forces from the Sky City Battlefield, then tried to intimidate the Dark Realm while hiding Sky City’s losses. After both sides learned that their leaders had fallen asleep, they avoided a decisive battle, giving Sky City time for its Great Lords to revive.

• Si Bei Li ordered Sky City’s intelligent machines to overwhelm the Imperial City’s garrisons, forcing the Imperial City to withdraw from the Sky City Battlefield.
• Hu Sisi and the Sheep Emperor City council suspected that Sky City’s leaders had also fallen asleep and waited for news from the Dark Side.
• Si Bei Li recorded her victory and prepared to station troops in the Dark Realm, concealing that Zhang Qing had wiped out more than half of Sky City’s Great Lords.
• The Second Elder of Tiger Imperial City reported that the Dark Side’s Progenitors had fallen into deep slumber, and Hu Sisi concluded that Sky City’s leaders must be asleep too.
• Hu Sisi sent Imperial City forces to fight Sky City’s troops, but neither side’s Great Lords appeared, and the forces withdrew after a brief clash.
• The Imperial Cities accepted their losses on the Sky City Battlefield, while Si Bei Li bought time for Sky City’s Great Lords to revive.

Hu Feiyun, Yang Man, and others discovered that parts of their memories had vanished, while Great Xia realized its supposed Imperial City status did not match its actual strength. As the Imperial City Lords remained asleep, unrest spread through the Dark Realm, and Si Bei Li planned to target Great Xia.

• Hu Feiyun and Yang Man noticed gaps in their memories and suspected the Imperial City Lord or a forgotten cooperator was connected to them.
• Great Xia discovered that Li Liming, a Sequence Five, was its strongest expert, and Zhang Zhengguo ordered fewer merchant journeys and a ban on discussing Great Xia's structure.
• Orthodox lineages noticed the Imperial Cities' unusual restraint and learned that their Imperial City Lords were in deep slumber.
• Ambitious figures from the orthodox lineages and Dark Side began plotting to seize Imperial Cities without their Lords.
• Si Bei Li planned to draw Dark Side figures into causing trouble in the Imperial Cities, then infiltrate the Dark Realm and attack Great Xia.