Chapter Summaries

Hua Changdeng’s frenzied attacks on Ba Zunan’s Sword Self unknowingly helped Ba Zunan sever the shackles of his heart and complete his Dao. As Hua Changdeng trapped Ba Zunan’s Divine Shedding and brought Ghost Hunter down to kill him, Ba Zunan drew his sword and called out “Qingju.”

• Hua Changdeng unleashed the Rootless Ghost Domain and Ghost Hunter, draining soul power across the Five Domains and striking Ba Zunan’s Sword Self until it became a wisp of green smoke.
• Hua Changdeng’s repeated sword strikes could not destroy Ba Zunan’s “Me,” and Kui Leihan and the Devil Ancestor realized Ba Zunan was using the assault to cultivate and refine himself.
• Ba Zunan’s Sword Self transformed into a Divine Shedding as purple qi rose from the Five Domains, and Kui Leihan understood that Ba Zunan had severed the worldly disturbances binding his Dao heart.
• Hua Changdeng disrupted Ba Zunan’s Ancestral God tribulation with the Sword Pillar Flavor Formation and summoned a ten-thousand-foot Ghost Hunter to strike down his Divine Shedding.
• Ba Zunan glanced toward Moon Palace Slave, then faced Hua Changdeng and drew his sword toward the east, calling out “Qingju.”

Ba Zunan summoned Qingju from the Burial Sword Tomb and used the broken sword as his reliance to return from annihilation, uniting sword and self as one. He demonstrated his strange, ordinary-seeming Dao to Hua Changdeng before destroying his body, spirit, and intent as the Dao proclaimed him an immortal among mortals and a god above ancestors.

• Wen Ting watched Qingju weep in the Sword-Washing Pool, recalled Ba Zunan’s teachings, and realized Qingju had won the chance to reunite with him.
• Qingju rose from the Burial Sword Tomb and flew toward Lingyu Mountain, while Wen Ting used Sword Hemp and his own blood to help Ba Zunan cross the Dao Integration stage.
• Qingju arrived after Ghost Hunter had annihilated Ba Zunan’s Divine Shedding and Sword Self, but Hua Changdeng recognized Qingju’s Mountain-Sea Reliance and panicked.
• Qingju used Sword Thought to pull Ba Zunan back from nothingness, and Ba Zunan fused with the sword into a complete Sword Self without triggering an Ancestral God Law-Extinguishing Tribulation.
• Ba Zunan showed Hua Changdeng how he could shift between himself and Qingju, then used Qingju to destroy his body, spirit, and intent as the Dao proclaimed him an immortal among mortals and a god above ancestors.

The Devil Ancestor traced the history of the Ancestor Gods and realized that Ba Zunan had found an unprecedented way to return to zero by uniting sword and self through yin and yang. Though Ba Zunan’s Dao appeared perfect, the Devil Ancestor concluded that acting would expose him to tribulation and wear him down, creating a chance to replace him.

• The Devil Ancestor recounted how the Holy Ancestor divided himself into the Holy Ancestor and Magic Ancestor, and how later Ancestor Gods pursued different paths to transcendence.
• The Devil Ancestor explained how the Art Ancestor’s Self of Myriad Changes gave birth to Sui Yin, whose attempt to remake the Holy Spirit Continent led to the Godfall War and the collapse of the Heavenly Realm.
• The Devil Ancestor concluded that the Time Ancestor’s path could not be copied and that the Era of Spirit Refining had been engineered to produce someone who could return to zero.
• The Devil Ancestor examined Ba Zunan’s cultivation and recognized that his Sword Self united yin and yang, letting him bypass the one exalted state and return to zero directly.
• The Devil Ancestor understood that Ba Zunan had accepted the unknown future and severed the cages of the past and present, then relied on Qingju to restore his self through myriad changes.
• The Devil Ancestor reasoned that Ba Zunan could not act freely without provoking the Ancestral God Law-Extinguishing Tribulation, and resolved to wear him down and devour his Dao.

Ba Zunan returned to zero in one step, completed his Dao, and shattered Hua Changdeng’s Dao heart before the cultivators of the Five Domains. As Gou Wuyue and others struggled to understand his achievement, Dao Qiongchang considered the danger of Ba Zunan’s power and chose to wait outside the conflict.

• Ba Zunan used Qingju to complete his Dao and return to zero in one step, leaving Hua Changdeng’s plans in ruins and breaking his Dao heart.
• Gou Wuyue recovered from the display and tried to deduce how Ba Zunan had united his changing and immutable selves.
• Gou Wuyue recognized Ba Zunan’s long-standing resolve beneath his former weakness and recalled his defiant words about the Dao and authority.
• Xiao Kongtong understood that Ba Zunan’s Sword-Nurturing Art had been the foundation of his own sword technique.
• Dao Qiongchang judged that Ba Zunan’s strength could overwhelm the Holy Spirit Continent and restrained his desire to seize Ba Zunan’s Dao, choosing to watch who would act first.

Hua Changdeng fought Ba Zunan with a surge of life force, but Ba Zunan revealed the Dao of Change, struck him with Qingju, and set Heaven Abandoned in motion. The chapter left Hua Changdeng burning away as he questioned why heaven had given birth to him only to trample him.

• Hua Changdeng resisted the visions in his collapsing mental world and summoned a vast pillar of life force, declaring that the battle was not over.
• Hua Changdeng empowered the Three Swords of the Sword Ghost and charged Ba Zunan, but Ba Zunan halted the moment and explained his Dao of non-action.
• Ba Zunan drew Qingju and the Burial Sword Tomb’s Power of Reputation, then struck Hua Changdeng across the throat with Heaven Abandoned.
• Ba Zunan explained to Black Chicken that his sword’s principle was Change, while Reputation braced the separating lands of the Holy Spirit Continent.
• Wen Ting offered Ba Zunan bottles of Qingju’s sword tears, but Ba Zunan told him to use them himself and seek godhood.
• Hua Changdeng’s body, soul, intent, and self burned away under Heaven Abandoned, and he asked why heaven had given birth to him only to trample him.

After Hua Changdeng fell to Ba Zunan, Xi brought the Origin True Stele: Ghost to Yu Zhiwen and revealed his master’s instructions and history with it. Yu Zhiwen concluded that the guidance Hua Changdeng received came from Medicine Ancestor, because Ghost Ancestor had already fallen at least thirty years earlier.

• The realms mourned Hua Changdeng’s fall as his power returned to the Holy Spirit Continent, while Xi grieved for his master on a snowy peak.
• Xi recalled Hua Changdeng’s lessons about Ba Zunan and the Origin True Stele: Ghost, which Hua Changdeng had entrusted to him with instructions to give it to Ba Zunan if he failed.
• Xi met Yu Zhiwen, Moon Palace Slave, and Liu Fuyu beneath Fusang City and delivered the wrapped box to Yu Zhiwen for Master Shou.
• Xi explained that Hua Changdeng had obtained the stele and the Divine Court Yincao decades earlier, prompting Moon Palace Slave to infer that Hua Changdeng had received guidance from an ancestor.
• Yu Zhiwen identified the guidance as coming from Medicine Ancestor and declared that Ghost Ancestor had fallen at least thirty years ago.

Xu Xiaoshou investigated the Ghost Ancestor’s apparent sacrifice and the Medicine Ancestor’s hidden role while Ba Zunan’s power began to fade after attaining the Dao. The chapter left Ba Zunan meeting Kong Yuhen, who arrived to fulfill their agreement and reshape the Time Realm, though the plan’s success and their futures remained uncertain.

• Xu Xiaoshou questioned Dao Peipei about the Origin True Stele and the Medicine Ancestor, then asked why the Ghost Ancestor had willingly sacrificed himself for Hua Changdeng.
• People across the Holy Spirit Continent saw Ba Zunan turn half-transparent and speculated that he was about to ascend as the Three Ancestors stayed hidden.
• Xu Xiaoshou sent his suspicions about the Ghost Ancestor to Dao Qiongchang and Ba Zunan, while Ba Zunan sent Hua Changdeng’s Godhood and character into the Apricot Realm for Xu Xiaoshou.
• Ba Zunan considered how to protect the continent after his departure and revealed that his countermeasure depended on a prior agreement with Kong Yuhen.
• Kong Yuhen appeared from the Ancient Past Forget-Worry Pavilion and offered to fulfill his agreement with Ba Zunan by reshaping the Time Realm.

Xu Xiaoshou and Dao Qiongchang analyzed the Origin True Stele: Ghost and concluded that the Medicine Ancestor may have orchestrated Ghost’s death and manipulated Hua Changdeng as part of a long-running scheme. As Xu Xiaoshou searched for the Medicine Ancestor’s next move, a Ghost-Faced Sunflower appeared and addressed him as an otherworlder.

• Xu Xiaoshou and Dao Qiongchang reasoned that Origin True Steles emerged after Ancestor Gods died completely, and that Kong Yuhen’s many timelines could make his death threaten the Time Realm.
• Dao Qiongchang argued that the Medicine Ancestor likely engineered Ghost’s death and could have preserved Ghost’s apparent free will while secretly controlling it.
• Xu Xiaoshou and Black Chicken considered whether the Death God’s Scythe and the character “Hua” were traps tied to the Medicine Ancestor’s plans for Hua Changdeng, Ba Zunan, and the Devil Ancestor’s spirit.
• Dao Qiongchang explained that Hua Changdeng’s battle with Ba Zunan could have made Hua a puppet and helped the Medicine Ancestor consume Ba Zunan if Ba had not returned to zero in one step.
• Xu Xiaoshou wondered what contingency the Medicine Ancestor had prepared after Ba Zunan disrupted its plans, and Black Chicken suddenly saw a Ghost-Faced Sunflower.
• A hoarse voice spoke to Xu Xiaoshou, saying, “You’ve finally come, otherworlder...”

Xu Xiaoshou was drawn into the Medicine Ancestor’s Flower Sea and escaped the Thousand-Body Chaos Life Method by exploiting his knowledge of other Daos. The Medicine Ancestor then revealed a plan to use Ba Zunan and asked Xu Xiaoshou to delay Sui Yin for an hour, showing that He knew Xu Xiaoshou was the Name Ancestor.

• Xu Xiaoshou realized the Medicine Ancestor might use Sunflower Kong Yuhen to interfere with Ba Zunan and the Time Realm, but a voice pulled his consciousness into another world.
• Xu Xiaoshou found himself in a Flower Sea where the Thousand-Body Chaos Life Method made countless living beings seem like his bodies, and he used the Reincarnation Token to identify himself before the Medicine Ancestor countered it.
• Xu Xiaoshou pretended to be frightened and questioned the Medicine Ancestor, who appeared as an old farmer beneath a locust tree and gave him clothes.
• The Medicine Ancestor explained that He would use Ba Zunan’s return to zero to clear the way for His own return, then asked Xu Xiaoshou to hold Sui Yin back for one hour with all his pieces.
• The Medicine Ancestor named Kui Leihan, Ghost Gate’s god-called-god, and the Dao Hall Master as possible allies before solemnly asking whether Xu Xiaoshou was the Name Ancestor.

Kong Yuhen revealed his plan to use the Six Ancient Gates and the Time Realm Rift to create a realm where Ba Zunan could try to restore the Heavenly Realm, while warning that Zero-Return power would dissipate without it. The Five Domains doubted the plan and worried about the power struggle it could provoke, but Ba Zunan demanded that the three Ancestors help stabilize the Time Realm, and they agreed.

• Kong Yuhen displayed the Six Ancient Gates and explained that he had gathered them, while Lu Shiyu recalled that someone had entered the Void Tower months earlier with three gates.
• Ba Zunan warned that the destruction of the Heavenly Realm left Zero-Return Ancestor Gods without a place to stand, causing their power to fade and threatening other realms as well.
• Kong Yuhen announced that he would use the Six Ancient Gates and the Time Realm Rift to build a new Time Realm, where Ba Zunan would try to trace back the Heavenly Realm.
• The Five Domains questioned whether the plan could work and feared that Ba Zunan, Kong Yuhen, and the Ancestors would fight over control of the new realm.
• Moon Palace Slave asked how long Ba Zunan would be gone, and Kong Yuhen admitted that he did not know.
• Kong Yuhen asked the three Ancestors to help anchor the unstable Time Realm, and Ba Zunan's demand prompted them to agree.

Ba Zunan severed and moved the Seven Severance Prohibitions’ Time Realm Rift, while Kong Yuhen invoked the Time Ancestor’s power to reconstruct it as a separate plane. As the new passage strained Kong Yuhen’s strength, Holy Ancestor, Medicine Ancestor, and Sui Yin contributed power to keep it open.

• Ba Zunan used Qingju and the Power of Reputation to sever the Time Realm Rift from the Holy Spirit Continent and move it toward the Ghost Buddha Realm.
• Kong Yuhen chanted atop the River of Time, invoked the Time Ancestor’s power, and revealed his connection to the Time Ancestor.
• Kong Yuhen used the Ancient Past Forget-Worry Pavilion and the six gates to reshape the Time Realm Rift into a separate plane where cultivators could attain Ancestorhood.
• Kong Yuhen faltered from the strain of maintaining the passage, then drew in other versions of himself to recover some strength.
• Ba Zunan considered abandoning the Time Realm plan, but Holy Ancestor, Medicine Ancestor, and Sui Yin sent their power to help keep the passage open.

Ba Zunan confronted the Three Ancestors over their concealed strength and forced them to pour their full power into stabilizing the Time Realm. He then entered the passage to pursue the Heavenly Realm, leaving Moon Palace Slave with a promise that he would return within three days to three months.

• Ba Zunan exposed the contaminated Kong Yuhen projections and condemned Sui Yin for contributing only a weak stream of power to the Time Realm.
• Sui Yin proposed borrowing Shen Yi's body and releasing Xu Xiaoshou's puppet power, while Kong Yuhen explained how the Time Realm could accelerate Ba Zunan's journey.
• Ba Zunan marked the Three Ancestors' hidden arrangements with Qingju and threatened to destroy the Great World Locust Tree, Sword Tower, and Sui Yin Puppet unless they contributed fully.
• When Ba Zunan appeared in the Relics of the Gods and began counting down, Sui Yin, Holy Ancestor, and Medicine Ancestor each unleashed vastly greater power to stabilize the passage.
• Ba Zunan chose not to strike at Death God's Scythe, warned the Three Ancestors he would return, took one of Kong Yuhen's figures, and entered the Time Realm passage.
• Moon Palace Slave received Ba Zunan's promise to return within three days to three months and held the token marked Eight.

Xu Xiaoshou and Medicine Ancestor tested each other over the Name Ancestor, until Xu Xiaoshou appeared to reveal the ancient being’s presence. Medicine Ancestor’s composure broke when the apparent Name Ancestor pointed out a Nine-Lifetime World-Breaking Fruit.

• Xu Xiaoshou considered Medicine Ancestor’s choice between acting immediately or waiting for Devil Ancestor, while reasoning that Ba Zunan was likely preparing his own move.
• Medicine Ancestor probed Xu Xiaoshou about the Name Ancestor, claiming to know of his connection to Xi He and trying to determine whether he was the Name Ancestor’s hidden backhand.
• Xu Xiaoshou feigned a painful change, and Medicine Ancestor saw an ancient, indifferent gaze emerge from his body.
• Medicine Ancestor waited to see whether the apparent Name Ancestor would reveal himself, then realized Xu Xiaoshou had noticed his hidden life energy and escape preparations.
• The apparent Name Ancestor called Medicine Ancestor noisy, then pointed out a Nine-Lifetime World-Breaking Fruit in the Flower Sea.

Xu Xiaoshou used the Nine-Lifetime World-Breaking Fruit to convince Medicine Ancestor that Name Ancestor had descended, then delivered a warning about the coming great calamity and the chance for Ancestors to return to zero. Medicine Ancestor realized his suspicion had nearly cost him the chance to cooperate and provoked Name Ancestor to keep him from leaving.

• Xu Xiaoshou identified the Nine-Lifetime World-Breaking Fruit in Medicine Ancestor’s Flower Sea and used its connection to Name Ancestor to test and convince Medicine Ancestor.
• Medicine Ancestor probed Name Ancestor by calling the fruit a Golden Source Realm Fruit, but Xu Xiaoshou’s dismissive reaction made him believe Name Ancestor recognized the treasure.
• Medicine Ancestor asked why Name Ancestor had come, and Name Ancestor rebuked him for probing instead of discussing the main matter.
• Name Ancestor revealed that Ba Zunan had attained the Dao through Fame, Kong Yuhen had remolded the Time Realm, and the Ancestors could seek a return to zero as a great calamity approached.
• Name Ancestor warned Medicine Ancestor not to obstruct the Time Realm’s remaking or the Heavenly Realm’s return, then began to withdraw.
• Medicine Ancestor shouted after Name Ancestor and disparaged his judgment, hoping to stop him from leaving and preserve a chance to cooperate.

Xu Xiaoshou, acting as Name Ancestor, listened as Medicine Ancestor explained his plan to raise the Holy Spirit Continent to Heavenly Realm status and cultivate more Zero-Return Ancestor Gods. The chapter ended with Medicine Ancestor revealing that his divine seed for the plan would be a Technique Seed.

• Medicine Ancestor argued that the Holy Spirit Continent could nurture more Zero-Return Ancestor Gods because its many paths remained open to development.
• Medicine Ancestor described how he had cultivated increasingly powerful Nine-Lifetime World-Breaking Fruits and proposed turning the Holy Spirit Continent into the next Heavenly Realm.
• Medicine Ancestor claimed that Ancestor Trees limited the potential of cultivators and said his earlier attempt to evolve them was too slow.
• Medicine Ancestor demanded a promise from Name Ancestor, who refused to offer help before hearing the full plan.
• Medicine Ancestor proposed using a Zero-Return Ancestral God as a World Tree to raise the Holy Spirit Continent to Heavenly Realm level, then revealed that his divine seed would be a Technique Seed.

Xu Xiaoshou listened as Medicine Ancestor explained a plan to refine Sui Yin into a World Tree and use Sui Yin’s Dao Fruits to help the New Heavenly Realm’s cultivators approach Returning to Zero. Name Ancestor rejected the plan’s certainty, then warned Medicine Ancestor not to investigate the Great Calamity before surpassing Nuo and ordered Medicine Ancestor to forget the warning.

• Medicine Ancestor revealed that Devil Ancestor was also involved in a long-standing plan to sacrifice Sui Yin and raise the Holy Spirit Continent’s Dao Law Gate level.
• Name Ancestor judged Medicine Ancestor’s plan unsuitable, but Medicine Ancestor explained how Sui Yin’s Seed-Spell could grow into a World Tree bearing perfect Dao Fruits.
• Name Ancestor asked whether Sui Yin would let Medicine Ancestor carry out the plan, and Medicine Ancestor confidently told Name Ancestor to wait and see.
• Xu Xiaoshou struggled to regain control as Medicine Ancestor questioned Name Ancestor about the Great Calamity.
• Name Ancestor said the Great Calamity should not be investigated before Returning to Zero and warned Medicine Ancestor not to touch its cause unless standing higher than Nuo.
• Name Ancestor made Medicine Ancestor repeat the warning, then told Medicine Ancestor to forget it.

Ba Zunan and Kong Yuhen entered the Time Realm, but the three Ancestor Gods abruptly withdrew their support for its passageway. As the Ancestral God Law-Extinguishing Tribulation neared its end, Xu Xiaoshou and Cao Erzhu received mysterious aid, while a strange old man brought spring across the Five Domains and seized the Death God's Scythe.

• Ba Zunan entered the Time Realm passageway, followed by Kong Yuhen, and the three Ancestor Gods' pillars of light vanished moments later.
• Name Ancestor carved a character into Medicine Ancestor's palm, then collapsed; Xu Xiaoshou regained consciousness, and Medicine Ancestor decided to leave the Flower Sea with him.
• Cao Erzhu awoke on the reverse side of the River of Memory, where a figure he called Lord Li gave him the Ancestor God Godhood and instructions for using it.
• Cao Erzhu returned to life beside Uncle Ghost Buddha as the lightning tribulation continued, and a charred Golden Osmanthus stump began to sprout.
• A mysterious old man crossed the Northern Region and North Sea, brought flowers and spring to the land, and slapped Kui Leihan before appearing in Fusang City.
• The old man seized the Death God's Scythe in front of Yu Zhiwen, Liu Fuyu, and Moon Palace Slave and announced that spring had come.

Medicine Ancestor appeared in Fusang City as Kui Leihan completed his ascension as Ancestor Nian, and Xu Xiaoshou realized Medicine Ancestor might be scheming to exploit Kui Leihan’s Divine Shedding. After Xu Xiaoshou warned Kui Leihan not to use the mask, Kui Leihan confronted Medicine Ancestor and overwhelmed him with the power of God-Punishing Execution Tribulation.

• Medicine Ancestor appeared in Fusang City, causing flowers and other life to spread across the city as Kui Leihan completed his ancestor-sealing tribulation.
• Medicine Ancestor welcomed the rebirth of an Ancestor God, and Kui Leihan’s ascension pressure spread across the Five Domains as the two faced each other.
• Xu Xiaoshou suspected Medicine Ancestor intended to revive Kui Leihan’s Divine Shedding and use it as a puppet, then grew suspicious when Dao Peipei tried to stop him from intervening.
• Xu Xiaoshou warned Kui Leihan not to use the mask, and Kui Leihan evacuated the bystanders before confronting Medicine Ancestor at Fusang City.
• Kui Leihan struck Medicine Ancestor with God-Punishing Execution Tribulation, disabling him, then slapped off his head and declared that he was very weak.

Kui Leihan pursued the Medicine Ancestor’s seemingly endless incarnations while Xu Xiaoshou used Mask to help uncover the hidden sources sustaining them. The Medicine Ancestor lured Kui Leihan to the boundary of the Ghost Buddha Realm and began a Living Beings’ Sacrificial Rite.

• Kui Leihan destroyed the Medicine Ancestor’s body and razed Fusang City, but Death God's Scythe proved to be a decoy that had already been switched.
• Kui Leihan explained his limits to Xu Xiaoshou, then charged after the Medicine Ancestor while Xu Xiaoshou analyzed the Dao of Life and traced its hidden reserves.
• Kui Leihan repeatedly killed the Medicine Ancestor’s incarnations as the chase crossed the Central Origin Realm and reached the Nanli Realm.
• Xu Xiaoshou identified the Medicine Ancestor’s major power sources and warned Kui Leihan to sever them before the final battle, while cautioning him not to release Mask.
• The Medicine Ancestor retreated across the Ghost Buddha Realm’s boundary, stopped Kui Leihan from pursuing, and activated the Living Beings’ Sacrificial Rite.

Medicine Ancestor transformed the Ghost Buddha Realm into a life-filled sacrificial array, forcing Kui Leihan and Xu Xiaoshou to counter while managing the threat of the Devil and Sui Yin. As Yue Gongli completed his tribulation, Xu Xiaoshou’s questions about Seed-Spell enraged Sui Yin and disrupted his plans.

• Medicine Ancestor unleashed Living Beings' Sacrificial Rite, making plants overrun the Ghost Buddha Realm and drain anyone who could not escape.
• Kui Leihan rescued Cao Erzhu, threw the battlefield’s occupants outside the Ghost Buddha Realm, and blasted the life array with Thunder Punishment.
• Xu Xiaoshou told Kui Leihan to feign an attack, preserve Ghost Buddha if possible, and focus on removing Hometown of Flower Fragrance and the City of the Living Futu.
• Xu Xiaoshou discussed Sui Yin’s Seed-Spell with Brother Peipei and suggested using it as a World Tree seed to raise a New Heavenly Realm.
• Sui Yin completed Yue Gongli’s Ancestral Origin Emperor Tribulation and realized Xu Xiaoshou’s proposal threatened his plans, then materialized and roared, “You infuriate me!”