Chapter Summaries

Water Ghost revealed that he had secretly turned the rain and moisture across Void Island into an absolute Profound Meaning, then used Ink-Wash World to immobilize Rao Yaoyao. Xu Xiaoshou recognized the technique as an evolved form of Yu Lingdi’s water domain as Water Ghost’s control over the island became clear.

• Rao Yaoyao survived the Heavenly Secrets Divine Envoy’s self-destruction with her Life-Guarding Badge, but an unseen force began draining her holy power and turning her blood into ink-wash snakes.
• Water Ghost drew Rao Yaoyao out of the spatial rift inside a Black Sky Immortal, and she identified him as Yu Mo before breaking free with her wind technique.
• Water Ghost explained that Rao Yaoyao had been affected by something she had consumed, then identified Ten Thousand Scenes Dressing, Rule Adornment, and Mountain-Sea Reliance as related techniques.
• Water Ghost cast Profundity · Ink-Wash World, activating the black rain and water across Void Island and binding Rao Yaoyao with ink-wash strokes.
• Water Ghost uttered “Fade,” leaving Rao Yaoyao locked in midair, while Xu Xiaoshou recognized the technique as an evolved version of Yu Lingdi’s water domain.

Situ Yongen revived outside the Forest of Miracles and feared that Ba Zunan and Mei Suren would kill him, but their conversation revealed Ba Zunan’s hidden support for Xu Xiaoshou. When Situ challenged them to kill him, Ba Zunan asked why he should and walked away, leaving Situ stunned by the difference in their outlooks.

• Situ Yongen revived through his Substitute Paper Person and watched Elder Yan and Sword Saint Rao struggle amid the flooding ink rain.
• Mei Suren and Ba Zunan emerged from the Forest of Miracles, and Ba Zunan explained how he had secretly guided events to protect Xu Xiaoshou.
• Mei Suren praised Ba Zunan’s plans and Prajna-Nothingness as the pair passed Situ without acknowledging him.
• Situ called after them and asked why they did not kill him, and Ba Zunan admitted he did not know who he was.
• Mei Suren identified Situ as Dao Qiongchang’s disciple, but Ba Zunan dismissed the need to kill him because Situ had neither attacked nor insulted him.

Mei Suren recalled how Ba Zunan had once crushed his own confidence and tried to comfort Situ Yongen after Xu Xiaoshou defeated him. Meanwhile, Dao Qiongchang reflected on the Holy Spirit Hall’s defeat on Void Island before Xiao Qi warned that Water Ghost was about to strip Rao Yaoyao of her Half-Saint Godhood too.

• Mei Suren remembered Ba Zunan and Wen Ting refusing to accept him as their sword master, then compared Ba Zunan’s effect on Situ Yongen to his own past struggles against You Tu.
• Mei Suren told Situ Yongen that he was strong, but had been overshadowed by Xu Xiaoshou, whom he called the Ba Zunan of this era.
• Dao Qiongchang restored the Void-Sealing Stele and discussed with Number Seven how Yan Wuse’s defeat exposed the Holy Spirit Hall’s complacency.
• Dao Qiongchang admitted that he had anticipated the defeat and allowed external forces to force the Holy Spirit Hall to confront its weaknesses, but regretted the extent of the losses.
• Xiao Qi warned Dao Qiongchang that Water Ghost was about to strip Rao Yaoyao of her Half-Saint Godhood and was taking three Half-Saint Godhoods in total.

Water Ghost forced Rao Yaoyao to surrender her Half-Saint Godhood and moved to kill Yan Wuse, who sacrificed himself in a failed attempt to save her and used his final breath to call for Dao Qiongchang. Dao Qiongchang appeared as Yan Wuse died, leaving Water Ghost, Xu Xiaoshou, and the others facing the consequences of his sacrifice.

• Water Ghost extracted Rao Yaoyao's Half-Saint Godhood and prepared to kill Yan Wuse, rejecting Yan Wuse's offer to trade his life for hers.
• Yan Wuse ignited his fate and summoned his Saint Image and Source-Sealing Spear to try to stop Water Ghost and free Rao Yaoyao.
• Water Ghost evaded the spear and used Black Sky Immortal to pierce Yan Wuse's body with ink-wash blood serpents, killing him.
• As his holy statue shattered, Yan Wuse called out Dao Qiongchang's name, revealing that he had used the spear as a feint to draw the Saint's attention.
• Dao Qiongchang appeared near the Void-Sealing Stele, and Yan Wuse died after seeing him acknowledge his sacrifice.

After Yan Wuse died and Rao Yaoyao’s Half-Saint Godhood was forced out, Dao Qiongchang arrived on Void Island and confronted Water Ghost’s battlefield. When Dao Qiongchang recognized Xu Xiaoshou, Xu Xiaoshou called him “Master,” igniting rumors across the island.

• Yan Wuse died beneath the torrential rain, and Xu Xiaoshou resolved to oppose Five Declines of Heaven and Man until he severed his bond with the Bloodworld Pearl.
• Demon Emperor Black Dragon told Xu Xiaoshou that the Bloodworld Pearl had belonged to Seven Trees Emperor and that Five Declines of Heaven and Man’s presence helped drive Void Island toward chaos.
• Water Ghost continued forcing Rao Yaoyao’s Half-Saint Godhood out as Dao Qiongchang appeared near the First Hall of Sin and used the Heavenly Secrets Compass to reach Fallen Abyss.
• Dao Qiongchang looked toward Xu Xiaoshou and asked whether he was Xu Xiaoshou.
• Xu Xiaoshou called Dao Qiongchang “Master,” prompting a furious denial from Dao Qiongchang’s Heavenly Secret Sprite and stirring gossip among the people on Void Island.

Dao Qiongchang confronted Xu Xiaoshou about his rapid growth and hidden secrets, then invited him to join the Holy Spirit Hall and promised protection. He revealed that Xu Xiaoshou was part of Zero Plan and offered the Profound Void Box’s mysterious formation as a way to contact him.

• Heavenly Secret Sprite Number Seven challenged Xu Xiaoshou to explain how he had thrown Elder Yan with a punch despite lacking body-cultivation experience, and Xu deflected its questions and frightened it into hiding behind Dao Qiongchang.
• Dao Qiongchang recounted Xu Xiaoshou’s rapid rise and asked what he had encountered during a month of closed-door cultivation at Tiansang Spirit Palace.
• Dao Qiongchang unsettled Xu Xiaoshou by suggesting he had guessed the scale of Xu’s secret, then asked whether he would join the Holy Spirit Hall.
• Dao Qiongchang promised to forgive Xu’s past offenses and protect him if he joined, while leaving the invitation open indefinitely.
• Dao Qiongchang told Xu that the five hundred and twentieth Heavenly Secrets Formation in the Profound Void Box was a method of contacting him, and said Xu was one of Zero Plan and that the Holy Spirit Hall would always be his home.

Dao Qiongchang turned Xu Xiaoshou’s invented Zero Plan into a convincing story that made Void Island suspect he could defect from Saint Slave. When Xu Xiaoshou examined the Profound Void Box in reverse, he discovered a Heavenly Secrets message that appeared to have been planted long before the events on Void Island, then used its contact method to send a signal to Dao Qiongchang.

• Dao Qiongchang claimed Xu Xiaoshou had once belonged to the Holy Spirit Hall and invited him to return, while Xu Xiaoshou realized the claim was a scheme to sow distrust between him and Saint Slave.
• Xu Xiaoshou reinforced the story by accusing Dao Qiongchang of erasing their memories, and Dao Qiongchang answered cryptically about his past intentions.
• Dao Qiongchang urged Xu Xiaoshou to inspect the Profound Void Box, leading Xu Xiaoshou to take it out and make Void Island believe he had obtained a way to contact the Holy Spirit Hall.
• Dao Qiongchang told Xu Xiaoshou to view the five hundred and twentieth Heavenly Secrets Formation in reverse, revealing the words “Void Island, meet Xu Xiaoshou” and a contact talisman.
• Xu Xiaoshou inscribed the talisman and sent it, causing the piece of white jade at Dao Qiongchang’s waist to beep.

Xu Xiaoshou abandoned his battle of wits with Dao Qiongchang and provoked him into turning his attention to Water Ghost, whose old connection to the Dao Hall Master became clear. As Dao Qiongchang and Water Ghost clashed over the Half-Saint Godhood, Dao Qiongchang used his Firmament Scroll to foil Water Ghost’s strike and began probing the Saint Slave’s plans beyond Void Island.

• Xu Xiaoshou activated a communication Heavenly Secrets Formation, startling Dao Qiongchang and the onlookers by making the Hall Master’s offer to recruit him seem genuine.
• Xu Xiaoshou mocked Dao Qiongchang and then called on Water Ghost to take over the confrontation, prompting Water Ghost to shield him from the Hall Master’s pressure.
• Dao Qiongchang addressed Water Ghost as Brother Yu Mo and inferred from their exchange that Ba Zunan’s true body was on Void Island.
• Water Ghost raised a Half-Saint Godhood and feinted at Dao Qiongchang before emerging from Rao Yaoyao’s chest to strike at the Godhood with the Sea-Taming Divine Trident.
• Dao Qiongchang used the Firmament Scroll and Great Stripping Technique to separate Water Ghost, Rao Yaoyao, and the trident, stopping Water Ghost’s attempt to seize the Godhood.
• Dao Qiongchang asked whether Water Ghost’s wider plan involved releasing Crossroads Corner, entering the Four Symbols Secret Realm, or rescuing Saint Slave Wuxiu.

Xi reported that Saint Slave had coordinated attacks on all thirty-six Holy Spirit Hall branch halls across the Five Domains, prompting the Nine-Sacrifice Osmanthus and Ai Cangsheng to order relief and investigate seven suspicious locations. As new intelligence arrived, Ai Cangsheng recognized that Dao Qiongchang’s plans could reshape the Holy Spirit Hall by clearing space for younger talent.

• Xi reported that attacks linked to Saint Slave and Ba Zunan had struck all thirty-six Holy Spirit Hall branch halls simultaneously, with unrest already quelled in four Central Region Royal Cities.
• The Nine-Sacrifice Osmanthus issued a decree ordering nearby branch halls and powerful local factions to aid the attacked regions.
• Ai Cangsheng ordered Xi to investigate Desert Ridge, Half-Moon Residence, the Northern Region Heavenly Alliance, Moon-Joining Immortal City, Siling Mountain, Crossroads Corner, and the Dead Sea.
• The Nine-Sacrifice Osmanthus learned that Xi was twenty years old and acting head of both the Aberrant Division and the Darkness Division, and Xi confirmed that he was the assassin known by that name.
• Ai Cangsheng questioned Xi about his Ghost Sword Technique and connection to Hua Changdeng, then concluded that Dao Qiongchang’s plan would clear out established leaders and let younger talent rise.
• A ghost spirit delivered new information to Xi, who reported that it had arrived.

Ai Cangsheng received Xi’s reports on unrest across the regions and fired the Evil Sin Bow toward the City of the Dead Futu. In the Dead Sea, Elder Sang regained brief moments of clarity, continued researching how to form a Profound-Meaning Array Diagram, and challenged a one-armed swordsman to fight.

• Xi reported that the Blackheart Fruit Clan had vanished and that it was likely allied with Half-Moon Residence.
• Xi described riots in the City of the Dead Futu, and Ai Cangsheng fired an arrow from the Evil Sin Bow toward it.
• Elder Sang, still in cultivation deviation, killed a prisoner while his Scarlet-Scorching Hand scorched the Dead Sea.
• Elder Sang explained how his injuries and the Dead Sea had not stopped his plan to research forming a Profound-Meaning Array Diagram below the Throne Dao Realm.
• Elder Sang spotted a one-armed white-robed swordsman and called on the old dog to fight him again.

Gou Wuyue reflected on Ba Zunan’s defiance and Wuxiu’s words, awakening to the limits he had placed on himself in the Dead Sea. Meanwhile, Shen Yi drew Ai Cangsheng’s attention at Crossroads Corner, allowing Xiang Yaoyao to leave the City of the Dead Futu and set out to see Little Eight and Xu Xiaoshou.

• Gou Wuyue reconsidered Ba Zunan’s admonition and abandoned his remaining hopes in the Holy Spirit Hall, resolving that an ancient sword cultivator must not submit to rules.
• Remembering Wuxiu’s repeated words, Gou Wuyue drew Voice of Nulan and declared that the Dead Sea would one day boil over with sky-filling sword osmanthus fragrance.
• As chaos swept the City of the Dead Futu, Shen Yi stood at Crossroads Corner and repelled Ai Cangsheng’s Evil Sin Bow with one punch.
• Xiang Yaoyao appeared on West Street, used Shen Yi’s apparition to cow the attackers, and walked out of Crossroads Corner without being struck by an arrow.
• Xiang Yaoyao decided to visit Little Eight for Nu’er and then seek out Xu Xiaoshou.

Water Ghost fought Dao Qiongchang over Rao Yaoyao’s Half-Saint Godhood while Saint Slave launched attacks across the Holy Spirit Continent. After feigning an attempt to become a Saint and escaping God-Sealing Fort, Water Ghost revealed he had trapped Dao Qiongchang in the Forbidden Law Barrier and unleashed his true plan.

• Heavenly Secret Sprite Number Seven reported attacks on thirty-six Holy Spirit Hall locations and other groups across the continent, confirming Dao Qiongchang’s suspicions about Saint Slave.
• Water Ghost scattered clones across Void Island to attempt becoming a Saint, but Dao Qiongchang used the Great Embroidery Technique to purify the rain and pursued his true body to the Azure Marsh.
• Water Ghost merged blood into a Half-Saint Godhood and began a Saint Tribulation, but Dao Qiongchang summoned God-Sealing Fort to suppress him.
• Water Ghost escaped the fort by swallowing himself with the Subdimensional Door, then appeared at the First Hall of Sin with the door and Sea-Taming Divine Trident.
• Water Ghost activated the Forbidden Law Barrier, sealed Dao Qiongchang’s Saint power, and flooded Void Island with water-type power through the Sea-Taming Divine Trident.

Water Ghost used the Sea-Taming Divine Trident and the Deep Sea’s Forbidden Law Barrier to seemingly kill Dao Qiongchang, only to discover he had struck the disguised Heavenly Secret Sprite Number Seven. Dao Qiongchang escaped the trap and destroyed the Deep Sea, while Water Ghost seized several prizes and presented him with three choices.

• Water Ghost submerged Void Island in the Deep Sea, sealing everyone’s powers and draining Dao Qiongchang while Xu Xiaoshou realized the attack was part of Water Ghost’s scheme.
• Water Ghost pierced the apparent Dao Qiongchang with the Source-Sealing Spear, but the victim transformed into the Heavenly Secret Sprite Number Seven.
• Dao Qiongchang revealed that he had been disguised as Number Seven and had used his Saint Domain to stay beyond the Deep Sea’s reach.
• Dao Qiongchang used the Heavenly Secrets Thirty-Six Forms, Great Annihilation Art to destroy the Deep Sea and its Forbidden Law Barrier.
• Water Ghost hurled the Sea-Taming Divine Trident toward Rao Yaoyao’s Half-Saint Godhood, destroyed Number Seven, captured Situ Yongen, and claimed another Half-Saint Godhood.
• Water Ghost addressed Dao Qiongchang and told him to choose one of three options.

Situ Yongen was trapped by Water Ghost’s Subdimensional Door, while Bai Lian was caught in Dao Qiongchang’s attack during Water Ghost’s attempt to become a Saint. Bai Lian survived the Great Annihilation Technique with his Emberlight abilities and many defensive treasures, leaving the battlefield battered but mostly recovered.

• Situ Yongen realized that Yu Lingdi’s golden water had been Water Ghost’s trap, and the Subdimensional Door seized him above the Forest of Miracles.
• Bai Lian fled the Absolute Ashen Fire Domain when Water Ghost appeared to undergo his Saint Tribulation, then hurriedly dressed and denied colluding with the Saint Slave to Dao Qiongchang.
• Water Ghost’s words made Dao Qiongchang suspect Bai Lian, and Dao Qiongchang launched the Great Annihilation Technique while also sending a thought-incarnation toward Rao Yaoyao and the Half-Saint Godhood.
• Bai Lian activated the Emberglow Sacred Blood and used the Nine-Dragon Ancestral Burn and his Dragon-Fusion Realm to weaken and detonate Dao Qiongchang’s attack.
• Xu Xiaoshou arrived as Water Ghost began his Saint Tribulation, and Bai Lian survived the explosion through his techniques, Saint blood, and defensive treasures.

Water Ghost and Dao Qiongchang fought beneath Water Ghost’s Supreme Saint Tribulation, and Water Ghost maneuvered Bai Lian into its path. As Bai Lian faced the deadly lightning, Mu Lin arrived in fury and confronted Dao Qiongchang.

• Water Ghost began crossing the Supreme Saint Tribulation, and Dao Qiongchang entered it to fight him, causing the tribulation to intensify.
• As the lightning and their battle wore them down, Dao Qiongchang struck Water Ghost with the Great Annihilation Technique.
• Water Ghost let the attack send him crashing into Bai Lian, and the tribulation identified Bai Lian as interference and began striking him.
• Xu Xiaoshou worried that Bai Lian would die in the tribulation and wondered how he could save him.
• Mu Lin arrived on a white crane, saw Bai Lian caught in the tribulation, and angrily challenged Dao Qiongchang.

Mu Lin arrived too late to prevent Bai Lian from being swallowed by the Supreme Saint Tribulation, so he shielded his disciple and forced Dao Qiongchang to help. Dao Qiongchang's attempt to hide Bai Lian failed when Water Ghost intervened, and Water Ghost prepared to attain sainthood as the island's water-element profundity array lit up.

• Mu Lin reached the Absolute Ashen Fire Domain, rescued Bai Lian from the lightning, and endured the Supreme Saint Tribulation in his place.
• Mu Lin brought out his Half-Saint Godhood and threatened to attain sainthood and storm Holy Mountain unless Dao Qiongchang saved Bai Lian.
• Dao Qiongchang used the Great Concealment Art to try to remove Bai Lian from the tribulation's lock-on, but a Subdimensional Door disrupted the attempt.
• Water Ghost emerged from the lightning, revealed that he had prepared the Subdimensional Door for Dao Qiongchang, and challenged him while activating the water-element profundity array.

Xu Xiaoshou tried to stop Water Ghost and Dao Qiongchang from dragging Mu Lin into their battle, but Water Ghost’s schemes and Dao Qiongchang’s counterplans turned the fight into a contest of traps. As Dao Qiongchang activated the Siwu Formation and summoned the Heavenly Ancestor’s strike, Water Ghost called on Xu Xiaoshou to draw his sword.

• Xu Xiaoshou shouted at Water Ghost to stop, and Water Ghost agreed to give him face and intervene in the battle.
• Water Ghost opened the Subdimensional Door to sever the supreme Saint Tribulations attacking Mu Lin, but Dao Qiongchang used the Great Stripping Technique to take what appeared to be the door.
• Water Ghost revealed that Dao Qiongchang had taken a fake door, sealed him with the real Subdimensional Door, and severed the supreme Saint Tribulations from Mu Lin.
• Water Ghost possessed Dao Qiongchang, but Dao Qiongchang activated the Siwu Formation and revealed that he had prepared a trap for Water Ghost.
• Dao Qiongchang used the formation to unleash the Heavenly Ancestor’s strike and imprison Water Ghost inside his body, then demanded that Xu Xiaoshou draw his sword.

Xu Xiaoshou used the Time Ancestor Shadow Staff to freeze Void Island and realized that Ba Zunan’s plan had prepared him to claim the Emberglow Heart. After it merged with him and flooded him with Saint Emperor power, he attacked Heaven Ancestor’s Light with Yanmang.

• Xu Xiaoshou froze all of Void Island with the Time Ancestor Shadow Staff, stopping Heaven Ancestor’s Light from striking Water Ghost.
• Xu Xiaoshou deduced that the Absolute Ashen Fire Domain and the White Pearl were part of Ba Zunan’s arrangement for him, then summoned Yanmang and shattered the pearl with Sword Thought.
• White Flame erupted across the Absolute Ashen Fire Domain, and Xu Xiaoshou’s power surged as the Demon Emperor Black Dragon recognized its Saint Emperor Dragon Scale on him.
• The Emberglow Heart flew into Xu Xiaoshou and swallowed the Emberglow Primordial Seed, while the White Pearl’s will drove the Three-Day Frost Calamity back.
• After the Time Ancestor Shadow Staff’s effect ended, Xu Xiaoshou roared and slashed Yanmang at Heaven Ancestor’s Light.

Xu Xiaoshou drew on the Emberglow Heart and gained overwhelming Saint Emperor power, allowing him to cut through the Heavenly Ancestor’s attacks while his body broke apart from the strain. He pursued Dao Qiongchang to the First Hall of Sin, insisting he was in control as Water Ghost remained trapped inside Dao Qiongchang and a new attacker appeared.

• Xu Xiaoshou cleaved apart the Heavenly Ancestor’s light with Yanmang, and spectators mistook the Emberglow power flowing through him for his own ascension to Saint Emperor.
• Mu Lin healed by absorbing the leaking Emberglow power, then released Bai Lian, who regained consciousness and began absorbing it as well.
• Xu Xiaoshou’s gaze ignited Dao Qiongchang, and he attacked him while Dao Qiongchang and Water Ghost temporarily joined forces to resist.
• Dao Qiongchang escaped Xu Xiaoshou’s strike with the Great Shift Technique, but Xu Xiaoshou shattered the Absolute Ashen Fire Domain and followed him to the First Hall of Sin.
• Xu Xiaoshou said he remained calm and promised Water Ghost he would protect him after killing Dao Qiongchang, while Water Ghost pleaded to be released from Dao Qiongchang’s body.
• A sword-light streaked over Fallen Abyss as someone roared at Water Ghost for daring to insult them.

Rao Yaoyao returned to the battlefield seeking revenge on Water Ghost, but Xu Xiaoshou’s Saint Emperor power and taunts turned her fury toward him. After Xu Xiaoshou effortlessly destroyed her sword attack, he prepared to strike back, leaving the two facing off above the battlefield.

• Rao Yaoyao recovered her Half-Saint Godhood and rushed back to battle, determined to wash away Water Ghost’s humiliation.
• Rao Yaoyao arrived to find Xu Xiaoshou wielding Saint Emperor power, while Dao Qiongchang and Water Ghost warned her not to act rashly.
• Xu Xiaoshou taunted Rao Yaoyao and ordered her to leave Void Island, then blasted a fireseed that Dao Qiongchang displaced with the Great Shift Technique.
• Rao Yaoyao ignored the warnings and attacked Xu Xiaoshou with Royal Sword: Heaven's Son Executes.
• Xu Xiaoshou caught and incinerated Rao Yaoyao’s sword radiance, then declared that she had provoked and disrespected the invincible.