Chapter Summaries

Xu Xiaoshou, disguised as Chen Ruyi, fought Five Declines of Heaven and Man and discovered that his power of the Five Declines weakened both his body and mind. After Five Declines pursued him into a new spacetime, he challenged Chen Ruyi’s identity and asked whether he knew the outcome of Sha Shengluo’s negotiations with Yama.

• Five Declines of Heaven and Man struck Xu Xiaoshou, blasted him into a wall, and weakened him with an aura of decline, while Xu Xiaoshou damaged Five Declines with his physical strength, sword will, and Sui Yin’s Eye.
• Xu Xiaoshou fled through the maze, but Five Declines left Gu Qing'er behind and pursued him, fixated on Chen Ruyi.
• As the weakening spread and his belongings withered, Xu Xiaoshou realized Five Declines had mastered the power of the Five Declines of Heaven and Man.
• Five Declines used a golden talisman to bring Xu Xiaoshou into a vast wilderness in a new spacetime, where Xu Xiaoshou stopped fleeing and addressed him as Senior.
• Five Declines questioned whether Xu Xiaoshou was really Chen Ruyi of the Grey Palace of the Xu Moon and asked whether he knew the outcome of Sha Shengluo’s negotiations with Yama.

Xu Xiaoshou, posing as Chen Ruyi, discovered that Five Declines of Heaven and Man was allied with the Grey Palace of the Xu Moon and had attacked Night Owl’s hidden surveillance of him. After Xu Xiaoshou claimed the alliance and explained his mission, Five Declines of Heaven and Man took his side and prepared to fight Night Owl.

• Xu Xiaoshou evaded Five Declines of Heaven and Man’s questions until the Yama member struck him with Decaying Power.
• Xu Xiaoshou realized the attack had exposed Night Owl’s Three-Legged Black Owl, which had been hiding on his shadow and watching him.
• Night Owl emerged with an army of ghosts and gave Xu Xiaoshou one last chance to surrender the Godslayer Edict and return with her.
• Five Declines of Heaven and Man revealed that the Grey Palace of the Xu Moon and Yama’s cooperation had succeeded, then asked Xu Xiaoshou why he had come to the First Hall of Sin.
• Xu Xiaoshou claimed he had come to retrieve Frostsky Weasel, and Five Declines of Heaven and Man believed him and affirmed the alliance.
• Five Declines of Heaven and Man summoned the Lord of Disaster and confronted Night Owl, leaving Xu Xiaoshou stunned as the two powerful enemies faced off.

Night Owl and Five Declines of Heaven and Man fought inside the sealed prairie spacetime as Night Owl unleashed the Three Calamity Gate. Xu Xiaoshou’s unexpected intervention created an opening for Five Declines of Heaven and Man to strike Night Owl with Curse Slaying, leaving her exposed and gravely wounded.

• Five Declines of Heaven and Man attacked Night Owl with the Lord of Disaster, but her Undead Archmage shattered it and his maggots of decay swarmed the battlefield.
• Night Owl opened the Three Calamity Gate, unleashing Hungry Ghosts, boiling broth, and karmic-fire soul blades that trapped Xu Xiaoshou in the chaos.
• Xu Xiaoshou tested a soul blade, suffered its karmic fire, and plunged into the broth using Immovable Wisdom King, urging Five Declines of Heaven and Man to act.
• Five Declines of Heaven and Man charged through the soul blades and forced Night Owl to interrupt the Three Calamity Gate, while Xu Xiaoshou’s technique backlash left her vulnerable.
• Five Declines of Heaven and Man injected Night Owl with decaying aura and drove a rusty nail through his own forehead with Curse Slaying, forcing her out of her owl form with a bloody hole in her forehead.

Xu Xiaoshou and Five Declines of Heaven and Man defeated Night Owl, but Xu Xiaoshou doubted she was truly dead and questioned why Five Declines had risked his life to help him. Five Declines departed after revealing he knew Xu Xiaoshou was not Chen Ruyi, leaving him with a cryptic warning about karma and retribution.

• Five Declines of Heaven and Man crushed Night Owl's head and explained that his decaying power should kill her, though she might have been pursuing the Undying Body.
• Five Declines told Xu Xiaoshou that Night Owl could not escape the spacetime while his curse remained on her, but Xu Xiaoshou still suspected she might be alive.
• Xu Xiaoshou questioned why Five Declines had helped him, and Five Declines gave only an ambiguous answer about their supposed connection through Yama and Grey Palace of the Xu Moon.
• Xu Xiaoshou admitted that he had killed Chen Ruyi and taken his identity, then identified himself as Chen Tan of the Pure and Quiet Sect.
• Five Declines said he did not care whether Xu Xiaoshou was Chen Tan or Chen Ruyi, reminded him that he had saved his life, and left with a warning that every evil deed would meet retribution.

Jiang Buyi visited the True Radiance Hall to obtain an Exile Immunity Order, but learned he needed fifty Void Crystals and accepted a mission to retrieve a fleeing black crow. Meanwhile, Xu Xiaoshou realized Night Owl might be the Three-Legged Black Owl and wanted to pursue her, but Five Declines of Heaven and Man left to act alone.

• Jiang Buyi awakened the giant statue in the True Radiance Hall, which identified itself as Void General Sin and offered an Exile Immunity Order for fifty Void Crystals.
• Jiang Buyi discovered he had no Void Crystals and failed to get any from the Forbidden Puppet, so Sin gave him a mission to bring back a black crow in exchange for a reward.
• Jiang Buyi left the hall with the Forbidden Puppet to search for the crow before his Exile Immunity Order expired.
• Xu Xiaoshou heard the Three-Legged Black Owl's cry and reasoned that Night Owl's apparent body might have been a puppet, with the owl as her true form.
• Five Declines of Heaven and Man refused to let Xu Xiaoshou intervene, then transformed into decaying mist and went after the shadow beyond the horizon.

Xu Xiaoshou wondered why Five Declines of Heaven and Man was protecting him, then sent his Second True Body to watch the fight with Night Owl. While searching the ruined First Hall of Sin for the main hall, he met Gu Qingyi, who mistook him for someone who had harmed his junior brother and challenged him to a sword test.

• Xu Xiaoshou ordered his Second True Body to follow Five Declines of Heaven and Man and Night Owl, and warned it to observe without intervening.
• Xu Xiaoshou worried over his four-day death countdown and searched the maze for the main hall.
• Xu Xiaoshou encountered Gu Qingyi, introduced himself as Chen Shu, and recognized Yuelian as the evil sword ranked first on the Famous Sword Twenty-One list.
• Gu Qingyi formed a sword array and pinned Xu Xiaoshou in place, then accused him of carrying his junior brother's aura and demanded a sword test.
• Xu Xiaoshou protested that he had just saved Gu Qingyi's junior brother, who was lying nearby.

Xu Xiaoshou joined Gu Qingyi and Gu Qing'er on the way to the True Radiance Hall, hoping to find the Death-Exemption Token before his time ran out. He followed Little Junior Sister's tree-seed signal and learned that Jiang Buyi was at the hall.

• Gu Qingyi told Xu Xiaoshou about the True Radiance Hall's Demi-Saint-aura statue, which called itself a Void General and might have been named Sin.
• Xu Xiaoshou told the Gu brothers he had less than four days to live, and Gu Qingyi agreed to travel with him to the True Radiance Hall.
• Xu Xiaoshou sensed Little Junior Sister's spiritual essence in a tree seed and fed it his life force until it burst into symbols.
• Gu Qing'er read the symbols aloud as “True Radiance Hall Jiang Buyi,” and Xu Xiaoshou smacked him to stop him.

Gu Qingyi and Gu Qing'er survived Jiang Buyi’s distant scrutiny and continued with Xu Xiaoshou toward the True Radiance Hall, while Jiang Buyi waited for his target. Night Owl arrived in Jiang Buyi’s Saint Domain while fleeing Five Declines of Heaven and Man, and the chapter ended as his pursuer mocked his faith in a lucky escape.

• Gu Qing'er accidentally invoked Jiang Buyi’s name, and Gu Qingyi used the Red-Character Ghost Talisman and an apology to withstand the Demi-Saint’s scrutiny.
• Gu Qingyi punished Gu Qing'er for provoking Jiang Buyi, and Xu Xiaoshou briefly mistook Gu Qing'er's illusion for a real fatal strike.
• Xu Xiaoshou, Gu Qingyi, and Gu Qing'er found more seeds pointing toward the True Radiance Hall and continued on their way.
• Jiang Buyi used Cloud-Flow Divination to wait at a weak point in space for the black crow he was tracking.
• Night Owl entered Jiang Buyi’s Saint Domain while fleeing his pursuer, and Jiang Buyi tried to send him away after recognizing him.
• Night Owl told Jiang Buyi that Rao Yaoyao had attained sainthood, then Five Declines of Heaven and Man arrived and mocked Night Owl’s belief that help would come.

At the True Radiance Hall, Xu Xiaoshou learned about Gu Qingyi’s Sword Awakening technique and immediately used it with a borrowed sword, astonishing the Gu brothers. The group remained outside the hall as Xu Xiaoshou concealed his identity and Gu Qing'er grew increasingly frustrated with his humility.

• Gu Qingyi cut a breach in the True Radiance Hall’s protective formation with Yuelian, then explained that his Sword Awakening technique drew on power accumulated through the Sword-Warming Technique.
• Gu Qing'er described how sword intent and momentum were nurtured in a sword’s sheath, and Xu Xiaoshou tried the technique with a seventh-grade spiritual sword.
• Xu Xiaoshou successfully unleashed Sword Awakening, but the sword’s radiance struck Gu Qingyi, who blocked it, and the borrowed sword shattered.
• Xu Xiaoshou admitted he could not use Dao Gathering and said he had inherited the Wind Clan’s teachings from a deceased senior without being formally acknowledged.
• Gu Qingyi asked about Xu Xiaoshou’s master, but Xu Xiaoshou declined to reveal the name; Gu Qing'er became angry and cut a corner from his senior brother’s robe.

Xu Xiaoshou entered True Radiance Hall with Gu Qingyi and Gu Qing'er, learned that Yu Lingdi had been imprisoned on Void Island, and pieced together a possible scheme behind the island’s arrival. The hall’s ancient Void General statue awakened, and Xu Xiaoshou asked how much a Death-Exemption Token would cost.

• Xu Xiaoshou noticed the hall’s strange puddles and grew wary that Yu Lingdi might be nearby, while Gu Qingyi confirmed he had seen Yu Lingdi imprisoned at a totem pole outside First Hall of Sin.
• Gu Qingyi described strange ringing linked to Yu Lingdi and suggested his water-element profundity might have been used to connect Void Island to the deep sea.
• Xu Xiaoshou suspected Ba Zunan and Water Ghost had orchestrated Void Island’s arrival by using Yu Lingdi and the spiritual energy of people drawn to Solitary Sound Cliff.
• Xu Xiaoshou speculated that Dao Qiongchang might send Demi-Saints to oppose the plan, then followed Gu Qingyi and Gu Qing'er deeper into True Radiance Hall.
• A giant statue identified as Void General, Sin, awakened and asked why Xu Xiaoshou had come; Xu Xiaoshou asked to exchange for a Death-Exemption Token.

Xu Xiaoshou used Gu Qing’er's Void Crystals to buy a Death-Exemption Token, clearing his death countdown, then learned that the Subdimensional Door had been exchanged one day earlier. As he suspected who might have obtained it, a figure outside True Radiance Hall demanded that the statue hand it over.

• Xu Xiaoshou found himself fifteen Void Crystals short of the Death-Exemption Token until Gu Qing'er gave him seventy crystals, which Gu Qingyi and Xu Xiaoshou suspected had come from Five Declines of Heaven and Man.
• Xu Xiaoshou exchanged fifty Void Crystals for a Death-Exemption Token and used it to erase his death countdown.
• Xu Xiaoshou examined the True Radiance Ranking and learned that the Subdimensional Door could control Void Island and connect it to the outside, but had been exchanged one day earlier.
• Xu Xiaoshou suspected someone had secretly collected Void Crystals over a long period, but declined to reveal whom he had in mind.
• A voice outside True Radiance Hall announced that it had ten thousand Void Crystals and demanded that the statue present the Subdimensional Door.

Xu Xiaoshou and the Gu brothers encountered Frost Lord, who attacked them and was swiftly defeated by Gu Qingyi’s Ten-Remnant Sword Ghost. Frost Lord recognized the Sword Ghost and invoked Ba Zunan before Gu Qingyi and Gu Qing’er realized Frost Lord knew their Eighth Martial Uncle.

• Xu Xiaoshou recognized the badly injured newcomer as Frost Lord and gave him clothes.
• Frost Lord attacked the Gu brothers, and Gu Qingyi summoned Ten-Remnant Sword Ghost, which sent Frost Lord crashing through the hall’s walls.
• Ten-Remnant Sword Ghost returned, overwhelmed Frost Lord, and nearly killed him with its embedded swords.
• Frost Lord pleaded for his life by naming Ba Zunan, so Xu Xiaoshou and Gu Qingyi asked Sword Ghost to spare him.
• Gu Qingyi questioned Frost Lord about Ba Zunan, and Gu Qing’er revealed that Ba Zunan was their Eighth Martial Uncle.

Xu Xiaoshou exposed Frost Lord’s lies and used Ba Zunan’s Eight-Character Order to force him to kneel, then questioned him about his ties to the Three Ancestors of the White Lineage. Frost Lord admitted that Divine Prison Azure Stone had sent him on a mission, and Xu Xiaoshou demanded that he reveal the full plan and his accomplices.

• Frost Lord claimed to have served Ba Zunan and the Grey Palace of the Xu Moon, but Xu Xiaoshou recognized that his story was false.
• Xu Xiaoshou revealed that he was Chen Tan and confronted Frost Lord about their earlier encounter at Unforgiven Hall.
• Frost Lord attacked Xu Xiaoshou, but Xu Xiaoshou threw down Ba Zunan’s Eight-Character Order and ordered him to kneel.
• Frost Lord recognized the order and submitted, while Xu Xiaoshou warned him to keep Ba Zunan’s identity secret from the others.
• Frost Lord revealed that he had come from Void Island’s Inner Island and served Divine Prison Azure Stone beneath the Three Ancestors of the White Lineage.
• Xu Xiaoshou demanded that Frost Lord disclose his mission, the White Lineage and Black Lineage schemes, and the names of his accomplices.

Xu Xiaoshou questioned Frost Lord about Divine Prison Azure Stone’s plans and the powers of Void Island’s Inner Island, then decided to recruit him. He claimed that the great powers had backed Chen Tan rather than Xu Xiaoshou and challenged Frost Lord to pledge himself to him.

• Xu Xiaoshou used Ba Zunan’s sword techniques to convince Frost Lord to explain that Divine Prison Azure Stone had sent him to obtain the Subdimensional Door and find Ba Zunan, with another contact as a fallback.
• Frost Lord described the Inner Island’s major figures and explained the status of Ancestor Wuji and Feng Yujin under the Forbidden Law Barrier.
• Xu Xiaoshou reasoned that Divine Prison Azure Stone might have intended Frost Lord to become his ally, but worried that taking him in could expose his hidden identity to Rao Yaoyao.
• Xu Xiaoshou healed Frost Lord, declared that he wanted to use him, and presented his ties to Ancestor Jinzhao, Seven Trees Emperor, and Demon Emperor Black Dragon as proof that the powers backed Chen Tan.
• Xu Xiaoshou warned Frost Lord that Divine Prison Azure Stone would abandon him if he became useless, recounted his supposed achievements, and asked Frost Lord to kneel and bet on him.

Xu Xiaoshou recruited Frost Lord, explored the Corner of Divine Prison, and exchanged ten thousand Void Crystals for Heavenly Ancestor's Blessing. After Gu Qingyi warned him to watch out for Yu Lingdi, Xu Xiaoshou sensed his junior sister might be at risk and set off with Frost Lord to find her, hoping they could slay a Saint.

• Xu Xiaoshou accepted Frost Lord's submission, took his ten thousand Void Crystals, and instructed him to conceal their relationship and obey the chain of command around Ba Zunan and Divine Prison Azure Stone.
• Xu Xiaoshou activated the Corner of Divine Prison and briefly encountered a chained figure who greeted him and promised him gifts.
• Xu Xiaoshou and Frost Lord left the Frost World, and Gu Qingyi warned Xu Xiaoshou to watch out for Yu Lingdi before leaving True Radiance Hall with Gu Qing'er.
• Xu Xiaoshou exchanged ten thousand Void Crystals for Heavenly Ancestor's Blessing, which required the Heavenly Ancestor's acknowledgment before it could grant power.
• Xu Xiaoshou asked Frost Lord to locate his junior sister, and Frost Lord sensed her aura through a tree seed and a cyan stone.

Rao Yaoyao became a Half-Saint and received orders to secure an Exile Immunity Order, while Mu Zixi faced three enemies at First Hall of Sin. Mu Zixi launched a sudden attack, but Five Declines of Heaven and Man activated his Three Aversions Eye and slowed her thoughts.

• Rao Yaoyao completed her tribulation in Azure Marsh and declared that she had become a Saint.
• Number Two delivered Dao Qiongchang's orders, gave Rao Yaoyao fifty Void Crystals, and told her to go to True Radiance Hall for an Exile Immunity Order.
• Lei Xier warned Mu Zixi that Jiang Buyi, Night Owl, and Five Declines of Heaven and Man recognized her, then urged her to take control of them and escape.
• Jiang Buyi accepted Five Declines of Heaven and Man's offer of sixty Void Crystals to help capture Night Owl, but Night Owl seized the spatial ring first.
• Mu Zixi revealed her God-Devil Pupils, controlled Jiang Buyi, and struck at Night Owl and Five Declines of Heaven and Man.
• Five Declines of Heaven and Man activated his Three Aversions Eye before Mu Zixi could use her pupils on him, slowing the thoughts of everyone present.

Five Declines of Heaven and Man and Jiang Buyi fought over Mu Zixi after her God-Devil Pupils were revealed, while Night Owl deduced her identity and attempted to possess her. Night Owl’s soul entered Mu Zixi’s spiritual world, and the abandoned Three-Legged Black Owl body suddenly spoke in a different voice and called its soul back.

• Five Declines of Heaven and Man used the spatial ring to trap Night Owl’s true body with decaying energy, then tried to seize Mu Zixi after discovering her God-Devil Pupils.
• Jiang Buyi attacked Five Declines of Heaven and Man to reclaim Mu Zixi, but Five Declines used the Three Aversions Eye to remind him of his three-day Banishing Countdown.
• Mu Zixi broke free of the apparent control, struck Five Declines with Divine Fall, and drained his life force while he recognized her Supreme Life Demon Body.
• Night Owl deduced that Mu Zixi was Mu Xiaogong and that Xu Xiaoshou was Saint Slave’s Xu Xiaoshou, then abandoned her decaying body and tried to possess Mu Zixi.
• Jiang Buyi took the fifty Void Crystals Five Declines offered and left the battlefield, while Night Owl’s soul entered Mu Zixi’s spiritual world.
• The abandoned Three-Legged Black Owl body raised its head, spoke in an aged voice, and called for Night Owl’s soul to return.

Huangquan offered Mei Suren freedom from the Abandoned Dimension Hall and his death countdown in exchange for killing Jiang Buyi. Elsewhere, Night Owl and Five Declines of Heaven and Man battled fiercely, and Five Declines of Heaven and Man ultimately survived and took control of Night Owl.

• Huangquan gave Mei Suren a Death-Exemption Token and asked him to help kill Jiang Buyi.
• Jiang Buyi realized his golden droplet was missing, sent a Half-Saint incarnation in another direction, and raced toward the True Radiance Hall.
• Xu Xiaoshou's Second True Body watched Mu Zixi become intoxicated while absorbing life force, then stayed hidden as Night Owl and Five Declines of Heaven and Man fought.
• Night Owl summoned the Soul-Stripping Scythe, which severed Five Declines of Heaven and Man's soul, but Ghost Beast power began repairing him.
• Five Declines of Heaven and Man recovered, approached Night Owl, and questioned her about her Body of Death and how close she was to an Undying Body.

Five Declines of Heaven and Man forced Night Owl to swallow the Bloodworld Pearl and undergo a Saint Tribulation, but Yu Lingdi appeared with the Subdimensional Door and used water-elemental Upanishads to seize control of the battlefield. As Yu Lingdi tried to escape, an other shore flower opened beneath him and Xu Xiaoshou’s side launched Heaven’s Punishment: Heart-Shattering Dao.

• Five Declines of Heaven and Man used the Bloodworld Pearl to probe Night Owl’s vision of death, then forced the pearl into her mouth and commanded her to undergo the Saint Tribulation.
• Night Owl began the tribulation, and Five Declines of Heaven and Man discovered Mu Zixi watching; Xu Xiaoshou’s Second True Body appeared disguised as Huangquan, but Five Declines of Heaven and Man recognized him.
• Jiang Buyi’s golden water droplet released Yu Lingdi and the Subdimensional Door, which swallowed Night Owl’s first bolt of black tribulation lightning.
• Yu Lingdi’s water-elemental profundity formation drained moisture from the battlefield and restrained the Second True Body, while Five Declines of Heaven and Man used a Space-Time Golden Talisman to weaken the lightning and help him survive.
• The Second True Body struck the golden droplet with the Slaying Buddha Blade, revealing Yu Lingdi’s avatar; Yu Lingdi sent Night Owl through the Subdimensional Door and used golden heavy water to expose and crush Five Declines of Heaven and Man.
• Yu Lingdi began twisting space to escape, but an other shore flower bloomed beneath him and an unseen attacker invoked Heaven’s Punishment: Heart-Shattering Dao.

Xu Xiaoshou reached the battlefield as Mu Zixi overwhelmed Yu Lingdi’s water avatar and the Second True Body and Five Declines of Heaven and Man protected her from a Void Attendant. Xu Xiaoshou agreed to a limited alliance with Five Declines, who then began a curse aimed toward True Radiance Hall, declaring that his prey could not escape.

• Xu Xiaoshou hurried through the First Hall of Sin with Frost Lord, planning to avoid the fight unless he found Yu Lingdi vulnerable.
• Mu Zixi returned and used the God-Devil Pupils’ Heart-Shattering Dao, Divine Fall, and Demonic Extremity to disable Yu Lingdi’s water avatar and interrupt his escape with Night Owl.
• A Void Attendant attacked Mu Zixi, and Xu Xiaoshou’s Second True Body and Five Declines of Heaven and Man simultaneously kicked it apart.
• Five Declines proposed cooperation, and Xu Xiaoshou agreed on the condition that Yama would not harm him or Mu Zixi; Five Declines then urged Mu Zixi to join Yama, but Xu Xiaoshou refused for her.
• Five Declines identified the Subdimensional Door at the scene as a phantom and performed a three-cup ritual with blood, a feather, and his own flesh, sending a curse toward True Radiance Hall and saying his prey could not escape.