Chapter Summaries

After winning the Alchemy Convention, Xu Xiaoshou accepted a fourth-grade Alchemy Throne badge and Dong Ling’s offer to become honorary vice president of the East Heavenly King City Alchemist Association. Dong Ling publicly justified the appointment through Xu Xiaoshou’s Red-Gold Elixir, while Shi Ti suspected the Pill-Condensing Art linked Xu Xiaoshou to the Emberlight Lineage.

• Xu Xiaoshou asked Dong Ling about the Peaceful Lake Azure Flower and considered how its calamity power compared with the Three-Day Frost Calamity.
• Dong Ling presented Xu Xiaoshou with a fourth-grade badge and invited him to become honorary vice president of the East Heavenly King City Alchemist Association.
• The crowd and judges’ platform reacted with shock and anger, while Yu Chuchu realized Xu Xiaoshou’s standing had surpassed hers.
• Shi Ti connected Xu Xiaoshou’s Pill-Condensing Art to the Emberlight Lineage and wondered whether Dong Ling should call him Senior Brother Xu.
• Xu Xiaoshou accepted the honorary vice president position after learning it carried no required duties.
• Dong Ling told the crowd that Xu Xiaoshou had created the Red-Gold Elixir and asked him to endorse her explanation.

Xu Xiaoshou secured a profitable partnership with the Royal City Alchemist Association after the Alchemy Convention, then confronted Hua Xiang at First Pavilion Under Heaven. Hua Xiang revealed that she had been sent to bring him home to the Holy Palace, and Xu Xiaoshou wondered whether to accept the letter proving it.

• Xu Xiaoshou offered the Royal City Alchemist Association exclusive supply rights to the Red-Gold Elixir and Spirit-Refining Liquid, winning Dong Ling's gratitude and sealing a partnership.
• Xu Xiaoshou rejected approaches from local factions and kept Hua Xiang after she arrived at First Pavilion Under Heaven carrying a huge bathtub.
• Hua Xiang confronted Xu Xiaoshou about his Emberlight Pill-Condensing Art and called him her Senior Uncle Xu, but he denied the identity.
• Hua Xiang explained that Bai Lian had sent her to find the inheritor of Grandmaster Sang's lineage and said the Holy Palace wanted Xu Xiaoshou to return home.
• Hua Xiang refused to show Xu Xiaoshou the letter until he confirmed that he was her Martial Uncle Xu, leaving him unsure whether to accept it.

Xu Xiaoshou accepted Hua Xiang’s letter and met Mu Lin, who offered him a place in the Holy Palace and urged him to leave the Saint Slave. Xu Xiaoshou refused for now, and Mu Lin gave him Saint Blood and a way to summon his protection, leaving Xu Xiaoshou newly welcomed into the Emberlight Lineage.

• Xu Xiaoshou accepted the letter after agreeing to be Hua Xiang’s Uncle Xu, then burned its blank page with Ash-Illuminating White Flame to reveal Mu Lin’s message.
• Mu Lin asked whether Xu Xiaoshou would return to the Holy Palace, offering to take him in as a disciple and shield him from scrutiny.
• Xu Xiaoshou asked why Sang Qiye had defected, then refused to return to the Holy Palace or leave the Saint Slave for now.
• Mu Lin accepted Xu Xiaoshou’s decision and gave him a bottle of Saint Blood and a marked bottle he could use to summon Mu Lin’s help in a crisis.
• After Mu Lin vanished, Hua Xiang excitedly listed the many protective treasures she carried while Xu Xiaoshou listened.

Xu Xiaoshou kept Hua Xiang at First Pavilion Under Heaven, where she discovered that Mu Zixi was also her martial uncle and went off shopping with her. With the Royal City Trial approaching, Xu Xiaoshou began preparing for the dangers ahead and turned to the Peaceful Lake Little Azure Flower to strengthen himself.

• Xu Xiaoshou refused to return to the Holy Palace and allowed Hua Xiang to stay in Royal City, telling her to conceal his identity and avoid visiting First Pavilion Under Heaven without cause.
• Xu Xiaoshou introduced Hua Xiang to Mu Zixi and revealed that Mu Zixi was also her martial uncle; Hua Xiang reluctantly addressed her as Martial Uncle Mu.
• Mu Zixi took Hua Xiang shopping and promised to share stories about Xu Xiaoshou, while Xu Xiaoshou asked Xin Gugu to keep an eye on them.
• Xu Xiaoshou focused on preparing for the Royal City Trial and considered the Saint Slave, Yama, Red Robes, White Robes, and possible Ghost Beasts among the threats in Royal City.
• Xu Xiaoshou took out the Peaceful Lake Little Azure Flower, sensing that consuming it might interact with the Three-Day Frost Calamity and unleash the power of a true heavenly flame.

Xu Xiaoshou swallowed Peaceful Lake Little Azure Flower, which was overwhelmed by the treasures already residing in his sea of vital energy and finally accepted him as its master. After witnessing the Emberglow Primordial Seed and the Three-Day Frost Calamity reveal holy power, Xu Xiaoshou began to suspect that a great shackle restricted sainthood across the world and concluded that the answer lay on Gui-Zhe Holy Mountain.

• Xu Xiaoshou broke the azure lantern’s protective array and swallowed Peaceful Lake Little Azure Flower, relying on his physique and passive skills to withstand the heat.
• The Emberglow Primordial Seed attacked Peaceful Lake Little Azure Flower inside Xu Xiaoshou’s sea of vital energy, and the two flames clashed with their powers of calamity.
• Peaceful Lake Little Azure Flower called on holy intent, prompting the Three-Day Frost Calamity and Emberglow Primordial Seed to reveal and clash with their own holy powers.
• Xu Xiaoshou wondered whether a world-spanning restriction prevented beings and treasures from displaying their full power, and he linked the mystery to Gui-Zhe Holy Mountain.
• Uncle’s Sword Thought and Xu Xiaoshou’s Sword Thought glanced at Peaceful Lake Little Azure Flower, which cracked and finally submitted to Xu Xiaoshou as its master.

Xu Xiaoshou absorbed Peaceful Lake Little Azure Flower’s spiritual energy, reflected on the difficulty of reaching Sword Dao perfection, and received Liu Changqing’s report about a skilled tracker tied to the Red Robes. The chapter ended when Xiao Wanfeng announced that Situ Yongen had come to meet him.

• Peaceful Lake Little Azure Flower formally acknowledged Xu Xiaoshou as its master, and its spiritual energy stabilized his early-stage Celestial Phenomenon cultivation.
• Xu Xiaoshou considered whether he could perfect a Great Dao before reaching the Throne and thought of Ba Zunan’s mastery of the Nine Great Sword Techniques.
• Liu Changqing returned to First Pavilion Under Heaven, gave Xu Xiaoshou a Spatial Teleportation Array Disk, and accepted money to make more for the others.
• Liu Changqing reported that he had detected a water-element tracker at the Dao Severing level and suspected the Red Robes were secretly following the fleeing factions.
• Liu Changqing said another Heavenly Secrets Art practitioner had pursued him, and Xiao Wanfeng announced that Situ Yongen had come to see Xu Xiaoshou.

Xu Xiaoshou rebuffed Situ Yongen, a Dao Department genius sent to probe him, and their exchange revealed that Situ planned to enter the Royal City Trial despite his high cultivation. Xu Xiaoshou suspected the Holy Spirit Hall was sending powerful cultivators into the trial to pursue its interests on Void Island, and he looked forward to seeing who else would appear.

• Liu Changqing explained that Situ Yongen was a Heavenly Secrets Art master from the Dao Department, and Xu Xiaoshou agreed to meet him.
• Xu Xiaoshou mocked Situ for coming without Yu Zhiwen and repeatedly ordered him to leave, frustrating Situ’s attempt to probe him with the Heart of Truth.
• Situ announced they would meet again at the Royal City Trial, and Xu Xiaoshou learned that Situ was the Spirit Array Tournament champion entering under a special identity.
• Xu Xiaoshou traded barbs with Situ over their tournament entries, and Situ left in anger without completing his mission.
• Xu Xiaoshou inferred that Situ intended to reach Void Island through the Royal City Trial and wondered how many other high-level cultivators would enter by similar means.

As the Royal City Trial approached, Xu Xiaoshou prepared to enter the Yunlun Mountain Range with his companions while arranging a way for powerful allies to bypass the entry restrictions. At Pilgrimage Plaza, he discovered that numerous familiar experts had disguised themselves as Innate-level contestants to enter the trial.

• Xu Xiaoshou and his companions discussed the trial, and Liu Changqing revealed that the entry restriction was not set by the Dao Hall Master, giving them a chance to bypass it.
• Xu Xiaoshou told Xiao Wanfeng that rules restrained the weak, while Hua Xiang decided to enter the Yunlun Mountain Range through her Holy Palace position.
• The next morning, Xu Xiaoshou led his party through the enormous crowd at Pilgrimage Plaza as people discussed the powerful contestants gathered for the trial.
• Xu Xiaoshou recognized familiar contestants, including Luo Leilei, Lei Shuangxing, and the Three Swordsmen, and used Perception to spot older experts who had disguised their cultivation to enter the trial.

Cheng Ji explained the Royal City Trial’s rounds, points, risks, and rewards before the contestants began teleporting to the Yunlun Mountain Range. Xu Xiaoshou entered the array with Xin Gugu and Liu Changqing, while several suspicious contestants were left behind and ordered arrested.

• Cheng Ji outlined the three rounds of the trial, the Cloud Realm’s scoring system, and the rules for plundering points and losing trial jade pendants.
• Cheng Ji announced that only the top thirty-six contestants would receive Holy Palace Trial slots and explained that successful participants would gain a Cloud Realm Origin Crystal.
• Cheng Ji warned that power beyond the Master stage would be detected, then ordered the contestants to raise their jade pendants and special participants to join hands with their guardians.
• Xu Xiaoshou joined hands with the disguised Xin Gugu and Liu Changqing as Cheng Ji activated the teleportation array.
• Most contestants vanished from Pilgrimage Plaza, but several remained behind, prompting Cheng Ji to order their arrest and interrogation.

Rao Yaoyao monitored the Royal City Trial through the Cloud Realm and sent Red Robes to capture suspected stowaways. After Xu Xiaoshou, Xin Gugu, and Liu Changqing landed separately from their companions, they concealed their cultivation and registered for the trial, where the initial points ranking revealed Zhou Tianshen in second place.

• Rao Yaoyao confirmed that the trial participants had entered the Cloud Realm and dispatched Red Robes to capture people whose spirit mirrors remained black.
• Xu Xiaoshou, Xin Gugu, and Liu Changqing landed together in the Yunlun Mountain Range, while Mu Zixi, Mo Mo, and the others were scattered elsewhere.
• Xu Xiaoshou and his companions worried about Xiao Wanfeng surviving alone, then Liu Changqing sensed that the Cloud Realm was monitoring them.
• Liu Changqing altered their surroundings and processed their blood before Xu Xiaoshou, Xin Gugu, and Liu Changqing registered with their trial jade pendants.
• Xu Xiaoshou checked the points ranking and saw Chong Yuan in first place with 10,000 points and Zhou Tianshen in second with 100.

Xu Xiaoshou inscribed a conspicuous name on his Trial Jade Pendant and set out to earn points while heading toward the Nine Dragon Veins. Elsewhere, a trial official exposed Qiu Sheng’s disguised Throne-level guard, Wu Lao, and prepared to kill him for breaking the rules.

• Xu Xiaoshou inscribed his name as “Xiao Wanfeng, hurry to the east and find this young master!” so Xiao Wanfeng could locate him through the leaderboard.
• Xu Xiaoshou learned that trial participants had ten days to reach the Nine Dragon Veins, then chose to hunt Cloud Beasts for points while Xin Gugu and Liu Changqing held back their powers.
• Qiu Sheng and Wu Lao traveled toward the Nine Dragon Veins after Qiu Sheng killed a Dreadfang Sword Tiger, a spirit beast rather than a Cloud Beast.
• A black-clad trial official confronted Qiu Sheng and identified Wu Lao as a disguised Throne-level guard who had entered the trial illegally.
• The trial official ordered Qiu Sheng to step aside and declared that Wu Lao could die for impersonating a participant and breaking the rules.

A black-clothed Trial Officer killed the disguised Wu Lao after he exposed himself as a stowaway, convincing Xu Xiaoshou that the Red Robes were watching the trials for mistakes. Xu Xiaoshou rushed to earn points and reunite with his companions, while Xiao Wanfeng gathered his courage and approached a Cloud Orb guarded by seven contestants.

• The black-clothed Trial Officer beheaded Wu Lao when Wu Lao broke his seal, and Qiu Sheng realized the Cloud Realm World was being used to hunt stowaways.
• Xu Xiaoshou, Xin Gugu, and Liu Changqing discussed the danger of being watched and hurried off to find Cloud Orbs so the others would see Xu Xiaoshou on the leaderboard.
• Xiao Wanfeng hesitated alone in the wilderness, then decided to approach a Cloud Orb after seeing its spiritual light and hearing nearby fighting.
• Seven contestants agreed to join forces and seize Cloud Orbs from anyone who challenged them.
• Xiao Wanfeng strode around the bend toward the seven contestants guarding the Cloud Orb.

Xiao Wanfeng was cornered by Tong Zhong’s group, but Su Qianqian arrived and defeated them before helping herself to their points and the Cloud Orb. She asked Xiao Wanfeng where Young Master Xu was because she needed to speak with him.

• Tong Zhong’s group recognized Xiao Wanfeng as a powerless servant, took his trial jade pendant, and decided to destroy it despite his connection to Young Master Xu.
• Su Qianqian appeared, wounded Tong Zhong, killed one of his companions, and forced the others to surrender their points.
• Su Qianqian identified herself as Zhou Tianshen’s friend and returned Xiao Wanfeng’s jade pendant after learning he knew Young Master Xu.
• Su Qianqian collected points from the group, broke the Cloud Orb’s protective radiance, and absorbed the orb’s energy.
• Su Qianqian asked Xiao Wanfeng where Young Master Xu was because she needed to speak with him.

Xu Xiaoshou abandoned his search for Cloud Beasts and gathered more than sixty trial participants around a Cloud Pearl in the eastern Yunlun Mountain Range. He challenged the crowd, swiftly defeated Zhao Xiu, and discovered Hidden Pain was licking the blood from Zhao Xiu’s neck.

• After finding no Cloud Pearls or Cloud Beasts, Xu Xiaoshou decided to target other participants and followed a burst of spiritual light with Xin Gugu and Liu Changqing.
• Dozens of trial participants gathered around a Cloud Pearl whose spiritual shield resisted their attacks, while Xu Xiaoshou and his companions hid nearby and waited for the crowd to grow.
• When more than sixty participants had gathered, Xu Xiaoshou leaped out and declared that he had surrounded them all.
• Zhao Xiu challenged Xu Xiaoshou, but Xu Xiaoshou disarmed him with Hidden Pain and held the sword to his neck.
• Zhao Xiu surrendered with his neck bleeding, and Xu Xiaoshou saw Hidden Pain twisting and licking the blood.

Xu Xiaoshou revealed the strength of a Sword Way Throne while defeating Zhao Xiu and demanding that he buy his Red-Gold Elixir. When more than seventy trial participants tried to flee, Xu Xiaoshou stopped them all with a sword strike that cut only a lock of hair from each, leaving them trapped and facing the choice to become his prisoners or end their Royal City Trial.

• The crowd recognized Xu Xiaoshou as a demi-saint's successor and mistook him for a Sword Sect master after Hidden Pain defeated Zhao Xiu.
• Xu Xiaoshou healed Zhao Xiu with Red-Gold Elixir, made him swear to buy one hundred thousand portions, and ordered him to stay as a prisoner of war beside Xin Gugu.
• More than seventy trial participants fled when Xu Xiaoshou declared that the defeated would become prisoners, leaving the Cloud Orb behind.
• Xu Xiaoshou unleashed his Sword Intent and used Hidden Pain to cut a lock of hair from each fleeing participant, then sealed their escape with sword waves ten miles away.
• The trapped participants realized Xu Xiaoshou was a Sword Way Throne, while Zhao Xiu praised him and learned that his protectors served an alchemist.

After absorbing a Cloud Orb, Xu Xiaoshou weighed the value of pursuing both the Sword Dao and spirit cultivation, then studied the leaderboard and learned about the powerful contenders. He forced more than seventy recruits into a new organization, the Xu Gang, and sent them out to sweep the Yunlun Mountain Range for treasures and opponents.

• Xu Xiaoshou absorbed the Cloud Orb and realized he wanted to continue cultivating both the Sword Dao and the source rules understood by spirit cultivators.
• Xu Xiaoshou checked the leaderboard and questioned Tai Xing, Mo Beibei, Xi Guanghan, Zhu Dong, and Zhao Xiu about the leading contenders and their factions.
• Xu Xiaoshou warned the gathered recruits that they would be overwhelmed unless they banded together, then used Hidden Pain to compel them to obey him.
• Xu Xiaoshou divided the recruits into five teams and appointed Tai Xing, Mo Beibei, Xi Guanghan, Zhu Dong, and Zhao Xiu as their commanders.
• Xu Xiaoshou named the organization the Xu Gang and ordered its teams to search widely for treasures and call him when they encountered others.

Xu Xiaoshou’s Xu Gang expanded rapidly as his scoreboard name climbed into ninth place, drawing attention across the Yunlun Mountain Range. As rivals and potential allies reacted to his rise, Su Qianqian and Xiao Wanfeng set off east to find him.

• Xu Xiaoshou’s Xu Gang grew to more than five hundred members, and Tai Xing broke through to the peak of the Master Heavenly Phenomenon realm after eating Xu Xiaoshou’s barbecue.
• Trial participants across the Yunlun Mountain Range noticed Xu Xiaoshou’s name, “Xiao Wanfeng, hurry to the east and find this young master,” rise from beyond rank nine thousand to ninth place.
• Chong Yuan saw Xiao Wanfeng’s rapid rise on the scoreboard but remained confident he could hold first place.
• Jiang Xian declined to fight or cooperate with Duo’er, who refused his offer and said she wanted to work with Xiao Wanfeng instead.
• After learning that a sword-wielding madman had defeated Jiang Xian’s group, Duo’er studied Xiao Wanfeng’s name on her Trial Jade Pendant.
• Su Qianqian told Xiao Wanfeng that Big Brother Little Beast was east, then set off with him through the night to find Xu Xiaoshou.

Xu Xiaoshou decided to end the Xu Gang’s recruitment and begin plundering as the gang moved toward the inner regions. After Rong Dahao broke through to Grandmaster on Falling Cloud Peak and prepared to fight a Cloud Beast, Xu Xiaoshou’s Black Sword interrupted him, and Xu Xiaoshou called on everyone to surrender.

• The Five Tiger Generals reported a suspected Cloud Beast near Falling Cloud Peak, and Xu Xiaoshou led the Xu Gang toward it.
• Xu Xiaoshou decided to cap the Xu Gang at nine hundred members and begin plundering for points instead of relying on finding Cloud Orbs.
• Rong Dahao and his followers found a powerful Cloud Beast above Falling Cloud Peak, whose roar unleashed a spiritual attack.
• Rong Dahao broke through to Grandmaster, stabilized at the early Heavenly Phenomenon Realm, and prepared to attack the Cloud Beast with Lei Ze.
• A Black Sword flew in from the east and halted Rong Dahao and Lei Ze as they began their attack.
• Xu Xiaoshou announced from the foot of the mountain that his people had surrounded Falling Cloud Peak and demanded that everyone surrender and pay tribute.

Xu Xiaoshou confronted Rong Dahao’s group at Falling Cloud Peak and defeated ten newly advanced Grandmasters with one sword. He plundered their points, let them start over, and sent a survivor to warn Rong Dahao that even a hundred Grandmasters would not stop him.

• Xu Xiaoshou sealed Falling Cloud Peak with sword qi and ordered Rong Dahao’s group to surrender, but Rong Dahao chose to fight rather than join Xu Gang.
• Rong Dahao sent ten members of his first squad to break through to Grandmaster and charge Xu Gang’s formation.
• Xu Xiaoshou sent the Five Tiger Generals back and used West Wind Withers Snow to cut the throats of all ten Grandmasters before they could react.
• Xu Xiaoshou collected the ten fighters’ points and Trial Jade Pendants, then allowed them to return home and start over.
• Xu Xiaoshou left one fighter alive and sent him to tell Rong Dahao that he would defeat even a hundred Grandmasters with one sword.

Rong Dahao led nearly thirty Grandmasters down Falling Cloud Peak after Qian Gun reported that Xu Xiaoshou had defeated ten Grandmasters with one sword. Xu Xiaoshou confronted them and demanded they join Xu Gang, but Rong Dahao vowed to fight, prompting Xu Xiaoshou to declare that he would make him one of Xu Gang’s leaders.

• Twenty members of Rong Dahao’s group broke through to Grandmaster, bringing their force on the mountain to nearly thirty, while Rong Dahao and his men celebrated their strength.
• Qian Gun returned bloodied and reported that Xu Xiaoshou was a Sword Path Throne who had killed the ten Grandmasters sent down the mountain with one sword strike.
• Rong Dahao dismissed Qian Gun’s warning and led thirty Grandmasters down the mountain, refusing to submit because he could not work under Xu Xiaoshou.
• At the foot of the mountain, Xu Xiaoshou’s presence stopped Rong Dahao’s group, and Xu Xiaoshou offered to spare them if they joined Xu Gang.
• Rong Dahao rallied his men to fight rather than surrender, and Xu Xiaoshou praised his resolve and declared him destined to become one of Xu Gang’s leaders.