Chapter Summaries

Xu Xiaoshou, disguised as Elder Sang, convinced Saint Slave to stop waiting and move out by warning of the dangers gathering in White Cavern. Meanwhile, Lan Ling traced the mysterious force that redirected Yousi Sword to Storyteller and sent Black Nether to confront him.

• Xu Xiaoshou rebuked Mu Zixi and the Saint Slave members for overlooking Yu Zhiwen, the Red Robes, and the Ghost Beast hosts, then insisted they could not keep waiting for reinforcements.
• Storyteller and the others agreed to move out, while Xu Xiaoshou maintained his Elder Sang act and suppressed their suspicions with his seniority.
• On Sword-Severing Prairie, Xin warned the pursuers that Yousi Sword was too dangerous to seize, and a hidden sword aura suddenly altered its course.
• Lan Ling and Xin concluded that the aura concealed power above Throne and ruled out the Three Swordsmen as its source.
• Lan Ling assigned Black Nether to confront Storyteller, identifying him as the likely source of the hidden intervention.

He Yuxing seized the Yousi Sword and survived its demonic backlash, revealing that his Grandmaster sword intent and connection to the Eighth Sword Immortal let him wield it. When Red Robes refused to protect him because the sword had not truly acknowledged him, he unleashed the sword’s domain and began slaughtering the contenders.

• The Yousi Sword called to He Yuxing, who burst from hiding and caught it despite Lan Xinzi’s warning.
• He Yuxing survived the sword’s demonic backlash, and the Yousi Sword killed an attacker before his own sword intent crushed the remains.
• A Red Robes member identified He Yuxing as a recently advanced Grandmaster and Tiansang Spirit Palace Inner Academy Thirty-Three whose demonic patterns came from a Fallen Sacrificial Carving Fragment.
• Lan Ling said Red Robes would protect He Yuxing only if the Yousi Sword had acknowledged him, prompting the other contenders to prepare to seize it.
• He Yuxing summoned the surrounding demonic energy into a vast domain and declared, “Domain Expansion, Savage Demon World!”
• Black sword energy tore the nearby crowd into chunks of flesh.

Gu Qing'san challenged He Yuxing for the Yousi Sword and revealed the power of his Ultimate Sword Dao Body, while Gu Qingyi effortlessly destroyed He Yuxing's runaway sword aura. Gu Qing'san then struck He Yuxing with the Heaven-Hanging Sword, knocking the Yousi Sword from his grasp and into a crater.

• Gu Qing'san asked the Red Robes to honor their promise to protect him if he earned the Yousi Sword's recognition, and they confirmed he was a Sword Sect disciple with an Ultimate Sword Dao Body.
• He Yuxing attacked Gu Qing'san with the Yousi Sword, but Gu Qing'san used Heaven's Knowledge: No Self to let the sword qi and spatial snowflakes pass through him.
• Gu Qingyi briefly drew Yuelian and split the black sword qi before it could reach him and Gu Qing'er.
• Gu Qing'san transformed into a colossal Heaven-Hanging Sword and struck He Yuxing, sending him flying and knocking the Yousi Sword into a crater.

The younger generation rushed to claim Yousi Sword, while Xu Xiaoshou stayed hidden and watched the clash. Lei Shuangxing nearly killed He Yuxing, then took up Yousi Sword and his Soul-Drawing Staff as he faced the Holy Spirit Hall again in a world of darkness.

• Lan Ling asked Yu Zhiwen to use the Heaven-Sealing Formation to protect the unstable space around Sword-Severing Prairie.
• Xu Xiaoshou restrained Mu Zixi and stayed underground while Unhappy grabbed Yousi Sword and fought off the others with wild swings and his Wrathful-Eyed Buddha technique.
• He Yuxing called Yousi Sword to himself, but Lei Shuangxing appeared behind him and pierced his throat with a sword strike that left him unable to fight.
• Gu Qingyi recognized Lei Shuangxing's mastery of several Sword Daos and warned that even Gu Qing'er might not match him.
• Lei Shuangxing took Yousi Sword in his left hand and the Soul-Drawing Staff in his right, reflecting on his return before the Holy Spirit Hall and the darkness of his world.

Lei Shuangxing gained Yousi Sword’s recognition and used its heart-demon sword technique to devastate Gu Qing'san, prompting Gu Qing'er to attack before Gu Qingyi stopped him. As Gu Qingyi and the others reacted to Gu Qing'san still breathing, Sword-Severing Prairie began splitting open and flooding with blood.

• Lei Shuangxing’s body was covered in Yousi Sword’s demonic patterns, and a beam of black light shot into the sky as onlookers wondered if the sword had recognized him.
• Xu Xiaoshou noticed Mu Zixi’s God-Devil Pupils reacting to Lei Shuangxing and held her close while warning Storyteller that Lei Shuangxing was losing control.
• Lei Shuangxing showed his Exquisite Stone, declared that Yousi Sword had recognized him, and unleashed a heart-demon sword technique that struck Gu Qing'san and left him battered and covered in demonic patterns.
• Gu Qing'er attacked Lei Shuangxing with nine swords, but Xin blocked them and said Red Robes would protect the recognized sword wielder.
• Gu Qingyi stopped Gu Qing'er and had him bring Gu Qing'san over; Gu Qing'er discovered that his Junior Brother was still breathing as the ground cracked and filled with blood.

Xu Xiaoshou watched Xin Gugu reveal his complete Ghost Beast form and devastate the Red Robes at Sword-Severing Prairie. Shouye sealed the shattered battlefield in a Throne domain, but Lan Ling spotted the minotaur again and was left terrified.

• Xin Gugu unleashed a blood sea that dragged Red Robes and White Cavern trial-takers beneath its surface, and Lan Ling used the Heaven-Sealing Formation to boil it away.
• Xin Gugu emerged as a colossal blood-soaked minotaur and kicked Lei Shuangxing into the torrents of shattered space.
• Lan Ling used Heaven's Decree to erase the minotaur's surroundings, but Xin Gugu reappeared among the Red Robes and attacked her.
• Xin intercepted the minotaur's kick, and their clash shattered the space and earth of Sword-Severing Prairie.
• Shouye arrived, repaired the fractured space, and enclosed the battlefield in a Throne domain while Lan Ling locked it down with her formation.
• Lan Ling called for Shouye and Black Nether to find the Yousi Sword, then stopped in terror when she saw the minotaur.

Xin Gugu absorbed the sea of blood and entered a catastrophic battle with the Red Robes while Jiao Tangtang found Cheng Xingchu beside Yousi Sword. After Cheng Xingchu was fatally drawn into the sword’s influence, Jiao Tangtang turned him into a Ghost Beast and sent him to fight the Red Robes.

• Xin Gugu swallowed the sea of blood, shattered Shouye’s domain, and swelled with power as the Red Robes and survivors struggled to withstand the battle.
• Cheng Xingchu found Yousi Sword at a spatial crack but resisted its temptation until Jiao Tangtang trapped him in her Throne Domain and urged him to draw it.
• Jiao Tangtang revealed that she served the Ghost Beasts, and Cheng Xingchu discovered he had already taken hold of Yousi Sword and been mortally wounded.
• Xin Gugu’s explosive attack blasted away Shouye, Black Nether, and the Red Robes as the Heaven-Sealing Grand Formation cracked.
• Jiao Tangtang placed a Fallen Sacrificial Carving Fragment and a Ghost Beast Pearl into Cheng Xingchu, ordering him to transform, wield Yousi Sword, and kill the Red Robes.

A second Ghost Beast appeared as Cheng Xingchu transformed into the rapidly strengthening Saint War Black Angel, forcing the Red Robes to split their forces between it and the two Minotaurs. While Shouye went to find the hidden mastermind, Xu Xiaoshou prepared to seize control of the Heaven-Sealing Grand Formation and escape.

• Cheng Xingchu became the Saint War Black Angel, which wielded the Yousi Sword and rapidly rose in strength after Shouye identified it as one of Grey Palace of the Xu Moon's Ghost Beast Orbs.
• The blood-soaked Minotaur split into two weakened beasts, and Xin charged them while the other Red Robes helped hold one back.
• Black Nether restrained the Saint War Black Angel with Yin Corpse Prison, but Shouye left him to fight it and went to locate the hidden mastermind.
• Xu Xiaoshou sent Mu Zixi into the Origin Mansion and told Storyteller to hold steady, then moved to the edge of the Heaven-Sealing Grand Formation.
• Xu Xiaoshou brought out the Heavenly Pivot Mechanism Plate and planned to take control of the formation to escape, asking Storyteller to conceal their presence.

Xu Xiaoshou used the Heavenly Pivot Mechanism Plate and Xu Xiaoji’s sword form to gain partial control of the Thirty-Six Heavens Sealing Void Formation and tried to escape Sword-Severing Prairie. He discovered that the rest of the White Cavern had become deadly spatial fragment currents, leaving him with no safe way out.

• Xu Xiaoshou failed to understand the Heavenly Pivot Mechanism Plate’s patterns, then had Xu Xiaoji transform into a sword and inserted it into the plate.
• Lan Ling sensed someone interfering with the Heaven-Sealing Grand Formation, while Yu Zhiwen suspected Xu Xiaoshou had the Heavenly Pivot Mechanism Plate and offered to handle the intruder.
• Xu Xiaoshou connected to the Thirty-Six Heavens Sealing Void Formation through the plate and realized he could control some of its functions without fully understanding it.
• Xu Xiaoshou began thinning a barrier gate to escape, but Yu Zhiwen detected Dao Severing power disrupting the formation and Lan Ling learned the Red Robes could not contact the outside world.
• Xu Xiaoshou extended Perception beyond the opening and found spatial fragment currents where the rest of the White Cavern should have been.

Xu Xiaoshou realized that Storyteller had moved everyone into a replicated Sword-Severing Prairie inside the Ancient Book Space, then warned him that Gou Wuyue might sever White Cavern. The Red Robes tried to break the false realm, but Storyteller froze them and revealed himself beside Lan Ling.

• Xu Xiaoshou deduced that Storyteller had transferred the battle into a copy of Sword-Severing Prairie within the Ancient Book Space and considered using his disguise to escape.
• Xu Xiaoshou assessed the fighting, then warned Storyteller that the Red Robes might detect the interference and that Gou Wuyue could sever White Cavern if he lost contact with them.
• Storyteller realized the danger and praised Xu Xiaoshou for anticipating Gou Wuyue’s possible intervention.
• Lan Ling ordered the Red Robes to assemble and break the realm, and they gathered to attack the Ancient Book Space.
• Storyteller froze the Red Robes and Ghost Beasts, then appeared beside Lan Ling and praised her for discovering his scheme.

Lan Ling used the Heaven-Sealing Grand Formation to free and gather the Red Robes, but Storyteller overpowered them and badly injured Xin. After Lan Ling persuaded him to return Xin, Storyteller was interrupted again by the Saint War Black Angel and killed it.

• Lan Ling drained the Red Robes’ power to break Storyteller’s restraints, gathered them overhead, and transferred the Saint War Black Angel and four Minotaurs away.
• Storyteller seized Xin after Xin insulted him, pierced his throat, and crushed his body while Shouye prepared to attack.
• Lan Ling stopped Shouye and persuaded Storyteller to return Xin, arguing that killing the Red Robes would endanger Saint Slave outside.
• Storyteller kicked the unconscious Xin back to Shouye and warned the Red Robes to stay quiet.
• The Saint War Black Angel returned and attacked Storyteller, who split its sword energy and cut off its head.

The Storyteller seized Yousi Sword and killed Cheng Xingchu, while Jiao Tangtang arrived seeking the Sealed Ghost Beast and prepared Saint War Black Angel. After the Storyteller erased Xin Gugu, Jiao Tangtang swallowed the Ghost Beast Orb and attacked him in a fury.

• Lan Ling restored the Red Robes’ fighting spirit and agreed to let Jiao Tangtang confront the Storyteller while they withdrew.
• The Storyteller took Yousi Sword and Cheng Xingchu’s head was recognized by Yu Zhiwen as belonging to someone from the Cheng Clan.
• Jiao Tangtang entered from a spatial rift, confirmed the Storyteller held the Sealed Ghost Beast, and activated the Xu Moon Mark to awaken Saint War Black Angel.
• The Storyteller swallowed Xin Gugu’s charging minotaur form in a collapsed space, killing him as Jiao Tangtang watched.
• Jiao Tangtang swallowed the Ghost Beast Orb and charged the Storyteller, vowing to kill him.

Jiao Tangtang swallowed the Ghost Beast Pearl and transformed into an Eight-Winged Red Twin Dragon Python, combining the powers of two Ghost Beasts. As the Heavenly Dao’s lightning tribulations and the Storyteller’s attacks drove her toward demonic possession, her remaining consciousness faded, leaving Xin Gugu’s death unavenged.

• Jiao Tangtang’s Ghost Beast Pearl awakened her Saint War Black Angel power, and she transformed further into an Eight-Winged Red Twin Dragon Python through Dual Ghost Beast Possession.
• Jiao Tangtang attacked the Storyteller at tremendous speed while crimson and orange lightning tribulations struck her, and she repeatedly re-formed her body.
• The Storyteller used the Yousi Sword to infect part of Jiao Tangtang’s body with demonic patterns, then entered her body and spread Fiend Demon Sword energy across it.
• The Golden Essence Light Tribulation pinned Jiao Tangtang in place, and the Yousi Sword’s demonic aura spread until it engulfed her.
• Jiao Tangtang’s final awareness recalled Xin Gugu and vanished as she apologized that she could not avenge him.

Xu Xiaoshou wrestled with his fear and helplessness as Xin Gugu and Jiao Tangtang fought Storyteller, then realized he wanted freedom more than mere survival. He emerged from underground, caught the Yousi Sword, and unleashed his power upon the battlefield.

• Xu Xiaoshou watched Xin Gugu and Jiao Tangtang face devastating danger while he hesitated underground, fearing he would die if he joined the battle.
• As memories of Xin Gugu surfaced, Xu Xiaoshou recognized that he had been seeking freedom from the constraints shaping his life.
• Xu Xiaoshou abandoned his plan to switch the Yousi Sword for a fake and prepared to face the battle openly.
• Storyteller called for Xu Xiaoshou to catch the sword, and Xu Xiaoshou burst from the earth and seized the Yousi Sword.
• Xu Xiaoshou released his power, causing space to collapse again, and declared that he would fight without needing a reason.

Xu Xiaoshou disguised himself as Saint Slave’s second-in-command and took up Yousi Sword, suppressing its demonic power with Sword Thought while everyone mistook him for a fearsome expert. As he struggled to control the sword and conceal his identity, he focused on saving Jiao Tangtang, the corrupted Red Twin Dragon Python.

• Xu Xiaoshou appeared in the collapsing battlefield wearing a straw hat and holding Yousi Sword, leading the Red Robes to believe he was Wuxiu, Saint Slave’s second-in-command.
• Xu Xiaoshou resisted Yousi Sword’s demonic influence until a faint Sword Thought from his Sword Observation Technique drew the sword’s power and unleashed a vast Sword Intent.
• The Red Robes believed Yousi Sword had acknowledged Xu Xiaoshou, while Shouye briefly suspected that the Straw Hat old man might be Xu Xiaoshou before dismissing the idea.
• Xu Xiaoshou ordered the Storyteller to be quiet, and the Storyteller apologized for revealing his arrival and failing to switch Yousi Sword with its imitation.
• Xu Xiaoshou endured the destructive turmoil inside his body while maintaining his disguise and turning his attention toward the corrupted Red Twin Dragon Python, Jiao Tangtang.

Xu Xiaoshou, posing as Elder Sang, used the Yousi Sword to drain demonic energy from the Crimson Twin Dragon Python and save it from its injuries. After intimidating the Storyteller and the Red Robes into standing still, he stored the python in his Origin Mansion and turned to confront the Storyteller about the minotaurs.

• Xu Xiaoshou sensed the Yousi Sword’s power settle and, despite his injuries, used Vanishing Art and One Step to Heaven to appear atop the Crimson Twin Dragon Python.
• Xu Xiaoshou suppressed the python with Swallowing Mountains and Rivers and All Things Are Swords, then began drawing the Yousi Sword’s demonic energy out of it.
• Xu Xiaoshou rebuked the Storyteller’s objections and told the Red Robes not to move while he worked, using the Emberglow Primordial Seed’s heat to frighten them into obedience.
• Xu Xiaoshou sent the drained Crimson Twin Dragon Python into his Origin Mansion and asked the Storyteller about the minotaurs he had taken into a spatial paper slip.

Xu Xiaoshou secured Xin Gugu’s preserved remains and prepared to leave Storyteller’s Ancient Book Space, but Yu Zhiwen asked whether he had a disciple named Xu Xiaoshou. As the Red Robes began connecting the old man to Xu Xiaoshou and Elder Sang, Xu Xiaoshou denied the connection and gave another name.

• Xu Xiaoshou demanded a second gift from Storyteller, who handed over a spatial paper slip containing Xin Gugu’s blood droplets and explained that he had preserved a thread of Xin Gugu’s soul.
• Xu Xiaoshou announced that his business was finished and moved to leave the Ancient Book Space.
• Yu Zhiwen stopped Xu Xiaoshou and asked whether he had a disciple named Xu Xiaoshou.
• Storyteller and the Red Robes reacted to the name, while Shouye and Lan Ling connected Xu Xiaoshou to Elder Sang and Saint Slave’s Number Two.
• Xu Xiaoshou denied that Xu Xiaoshou was his disciple and claimed his disciple was named Wen Ming.

Xu Xiaoshou, disguised as Saint Slave’s Second, forced the Red Robes into a deadly question game while Yu Zhiwen tried to exploit its rules. He declared that her first question had cost a life and left the Red Robes facing the consequences.

• Storyteller recognized Wen Ming as Second’s disciple and recalled that his brother had found Wen Ming interesting.
• Xu Xiaoshou rebuffed Yu Zhiwen’s attempt to connect his abilities to her friend and threatened the Red Robes with a game of one question per life.
• When Lan Ling tried to refuse, Xu Xiaoshou crushed the space before her, and Yu Zhiwen stepped in to continue the game.
• Yu Zhiwen offered three Master-level White Skeletons as payment and asked to play on credit, but Xu Xiaoshou ruled that her earlier question had already counted.
• Xu Xiaoshou burned the White Skeletons with White Flame, explained that they did not qualify as human lives, and reminded Yu Zhiwen that he had demanded three human lives.
• Xu Xiaoshou announced that one of the Red Robes had already died because Yu Zhiwen had asked a question.

Yu Zhiwen challenged Saint Slave’s Second Brother to a question game, then used her suspicions about Xu Xiaoshou and the grand formation to expose his connection to him. Xu Xiaoshou struck her to stop her from revealing more, but Yu Zhiwen declared that he had lost and openly claimed he had taught her.

• Yu Zhiwen insisted the question game needed a way for her side to win, and Xu Xiaoshou ruled that a question he found interesting would count as victory.
• Yu Zhiwen connected an earlier attempt to seize control of the Heaven-Sealing Grand Formation to Xu Xiaoshou’s abilities and described how he could have done it.
• Storyteller confirmed he had imprinted the formations in the area, while Yu Zhiwen argued Xu Xiaoshou could bypass the usual requirements with his spirit-array skill and a particular item.
• Xu Xiaoshou struck Yu Zhiwen before she could name the item, prompting Storyteller to demand that she be allowed to continue.
• Yu Zhiwen announced that Xu Xiaoshou had lost, realized the Straw Hat old man was Xu Xiaoshou, and told everyone that he had taught her.

Xu Xiaoshou used the Heavenly Pivot Mechanism Plate to control the Heaven-Sealing Grand Formation and make the Red Robes’ deductions about Second Saint Slave collapse into confusion. He openly revealed that he was Xu Xiaoshou, but Yu Zhiwen’s fate and the identity of the real Second Saint Slave remained uncertain.

• Xu Xiaoshou secretly brought out the Heavenly Pivot Mechanism Plate and used it to control the Heaven-Sealing Grand Formation while Yu Zhiwen questioned Second Saint Slave.
• Xu Xiaoshou declared that he had lost the game, then teleported the Red Robes away and attacked Yu Zhiwen with White Flame.
• Lan Ling believed Yu Zhiwen had been killed, but her final cry of “Run” left Lan Ling unsure whether their deductions about Second Saint Slave were correct.
• Xu Xiaoshou revealed the Heavenly Pivot Mechanism Plate, deepening the Red Robes’ confusion about whether he was Second Saint Slave.
• Xu Xiaoshou mocked the Red Robes’ deductions and openly declared, “I am Xu Xiaoshou!”