Chapter Summaries

Gao Wu attended a welcome banquet at Yuxiu Wild Garden, where he met members of the Chu Family and Wei Xiangjun. When Sito arrived and challenged him, Gao Wu killed the Level Six fighter with a single strike, leaving the banquet guests shocked.

• Wei Xiangjun disparaged Gao Wu, but Chu Dongjun warned her not to underestimate the young fighter and explained that he had killed Lightning Ars.
• Gao Wu practiced swordsmanship with Song Mingyue while helping her learn to control the Cangming Sword.
• Chu Shenxiu took Gao Wu and Song Mingyue to Yuxiu Wild Garden and explained the connections among the guests, including Wei Xiangjun and the Chu Family.
• At the banquet, Gao Wu confirmed that he had killed Hong Liufeng and declined to demonstrate his talent ability or swordsmanship.
• Gao Wu sensed Sito approaching, called him out, and rushed to meet his challenge.
• Sito tried to petrify Gao Wu and attacked with a double-bladed axe, but Gao Wu broke through the attack and killed him with one palm strike, shocking the guests.

Gao Wu killed Sito at a banquet, then traveled with Song Mingyue and Chu Shenxiu to the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls. After Qu Tianji admitted his role in the attack and killed himself, Qin Jiuyue warned Gao Wu about Qu Hanshan and prepared the group to enter the Secret Realm.

• Gao Wu blasted Sito apart with one palm, shocking Chu Yu, Wei Xiangjun, Pei Jidao, and the others who witnessed the fight.
• Chu Shenxiu took Gao Wu and Song Mingyue to a private villa, where Song Mingyue suspected Qu Tianji had arranged Sito's attack and kissed Gao Wu after he teased her about being jealous.
• Pei Jidao led Gao Wu, Song Mingyue, and Chu Shenxiu to the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls and explained that the Secret Realm would open around midnight.
• Qin Jiuyue arrived and praised Gao Wu's progress, then told him that Venus had returned to the Federation and that the traitor within would be dealt with.
• Qu Hanshan brought Qu Tianji before Qin Jiuyue, and Qu Tianji confessed, killed himself, and left Gao Wu wary of Qu Hanshan's power.
• Qin Jiuyue warned Gao Wu about the dangers of the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls, and Song Mingyue asked to enter it as well.

Gao Wu, Song Mingyue, and Chu Shenxiu entered the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls as Qin Jiuyue watched from outside. Qin Jiuyue reflected on Gao Wu’s inexplicable evolution and hoped he could recover the Tianming Jade Seal, while urging Pei Jidao to focus on cultivation and prepare to enter Divine Realm Yingzhou.

• Gao Wu entered the cave after equipping his armor and weapons, followed by Song Mingyue and then Chu Shenxiu.
• Qin Jiuyue watched the moonlight leave the cave entrance and asked Pei Jidao what he thought of Gao Wu and the day’s events.
• Pei Jidao said Gao Wu’s growth was inexplicable, noting that he had gone from matching him to killing Sito with one palm strike.
• Qin Jiuyue concluded that Gao Wu’s rapid growth came from an unusual evolution rather than the Tianming Jade Seal, and revealed that he hoped Gao Wu would help recover it.
• Qin Jiuyue advised Pei Jidao to cultivate steadily, condense his Source Power True Core, and aim to enter Divine Realm Yingzhou at level seven.

Song Mingyue and Gao Wu fought through illusions and waves of armored puppets inside the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls. Gao Wu reached the summit of the Black Gold High Platform and found an entrance to the Epang Palace Divine Realm, leaving him to decide whether to enter.

• Song Mingyue recognized the image of her dead mother as an illusion and used her Psychic Power to dispel it.
• Song Mingyue destroyed ten Level 5 armored soldiers, then faced a second wave twice as large.
• Gao Wu realized that the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls was a gigantic, sluggish Strange Spirit, but dismissed the idea of trying to subdue it.
• Gao Wu fought through six cycles of armored puppets and climbed to the top of the Black Gold High Platform.
• Gao Wu found a passage labeled as the entrance to the Epang Palace Divine Realm and considered whether to enter.

Gao Wu sent his Yin Spirit into the Epang Palace Divine Realm and discovered its immense palace complex was guarded by Twelve Metal Colossi powerful enough to repel him. There, he unexpectedly encountered Qin Liuhe, the Martial Emperor, who could see his Yin Spirit.

• Gao Wu realized the Martial Emperor's warning came from inside the Epang Palace and that the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls held separate Mirror Spaces for its visitors.
• Gao Wu sent his Yin Spirit down the black hole, reaching the Epang Palace and seeing its vast halls, towering gates, and enormous plaza.
• Gao Wu recognized the plaza's bronze guardians as Twelve Metal Colossi and tested whether they could detect his Yin Spirit.
• A Metal Colossus struck the ground and its surging source power hurled Gao Wu's Yin Spirit back, badly jolting his mental power.
• Qin Liuhe appeared behind Gao Wu's Yin Spirit, asked whether it was human, and Gao Wu recognized him as the Martial Emperor.

Gao Wu encountered Qin Liuhe’s manifestation in the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls and learned that the Martial Emperor was trapped in the Epang Palace Divine Realm. After verifying Qin Liuhe’s identity with Qin Jiuyue, Gao Wu prepared to return, while Song Mingyue warned him to remain cautious.

• Qin Liuhe explained how Spirit Gods and mental magnetic fields worked, said Gao Wu was too weak to help, and asked him to return with the message, “The Dragon Aspect takes the lead.”
• Qin Liuhe sent Gao Wu’s Yin Spirit back to the high platform, and Gao Wu left the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls without telling the others what he had seen.
• Gao Wu told Qin Jiuyue privately that he had found Qin Liuhe trapped in Epang Palace and relayed the secret message; Qin Jiuyue confirmed the man’s identity.
• Qin Jiuyue told Gao Wu to return to the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls the next day and keep the matter secret, but Gao Wu confided in Song Mingyue.
• Song Mingyue warned Gao Wu that Qin Liuhe and Qin Jiuyue were both dangerous men and urged him to be extremely cautious.

Gao Wu met Qin Liuhe beneath the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls, where his grandmaster praised his potential and explained the martial dao’s higher realms. Qin Liuhe revealed that he wanted to transfer the Tianming Jade Seal to Gao Wu, leaving Gao Wu to decide whether he could bear its dangerous power.

• Gao Wu prepared cautiously, empowered himself with the Qilin Divine Hero Incantation, and entered the passage to meet Qin Liuhe at the appointed time.
• Qin Liuhe recognized Gao Wu’s extraordinary physical abilities and his training in the Dragon Aspect Fist, and said he might someday reach Level Ten or beyond.
• Qin Liuhe explained the martial dao stages from Level Seven through Level Ten and distinguished them from the divine path system.
• Qin Liuhe said the Epang Palace was too dangerous for Gao Wu to enter and revealed that he had summoned him to assess whether his body could bear the Tianming Jade Seal.
• Qin Liuhe offered to transfer the Tianming Jade Seal and warned that if Gao Wu could not withstand Tianming, his Spirit God and consciousness would collapse; Gao Wu hesitated.

Gao Wu declined Qin Liuhe’s offer of the Tianming Jade Seal after learning that he had only a twenty to thirty percent chance of accepting it. Qin Liuhe instead passed on the Nine Dragons Boundless Dao and tasked Gao Wu with returning to bring Qin Jiuyue, while warning that they needed to hurry before the Otherworld merged with reality.

• Qin Liuhe explained that the Tianming Jade Seal gathered Human Dao Fortune and Vow Power, and taught Gao Wu to investigate the roots of extraordinary phenomena rather than worship gods and demons.
• Qin Liuhe estimated Gao Wu had only a twenty to thirty percent chance of accepting the seal, so Gao Wu refused to risk his life for it.
• Qin Liuhe asked Gao Wu to bring Qin Jiuyue into the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls and offered him the Nine Dragons Boundless Dao as a way to open an independent space.
• Qin Liuhe gave Gao Wu a Mystic Dragon Ring and warned him not to wear it, instructing him to hand it to Qin Jiuyue after leaving.
• Qin Liuhe revealed that a divine artifact in the Efang Palace could stop the Otherworld from merging with reality, then transmitted the Nine Dragons Boundless Dao to Gao Wu.

Gao Wu comprehended Qin Liuhe’s Nine Dragons Boundless Dao and learned about the resources and dangers awaiting him in Yingzhou. After returning to the valley, he delivered Qin Liuhe’s message to Qin Jiuyue, who agreed to cooperate with the plan and help Gao Wu master the Mystic Dragon Dao.

• Gao Wu studied the Nine Dragons Boundless Dao and saw a path toward higher martial levels that unified his sword and fist techniques.
• Qin Liuhe told Gao Wu to travel to Yingzhou, where he could cultivate using Jade Paste and Golden Nectar, and warned him about the dangers and bodily costs there.
• Gao Wu asked whether nuclear bombs could destroy the Hall of Ten Thousand Souls, and Qin Liuhe explained that an expert with Spatial Ability would be needed to imprison its Strange Spirit.
• Gao Wu returned to the valley and told Qin Jiuyue that he had thought of a method, then handed him Qin Liuhe’s Black Iron Ring.
• Qin Jiuyue received Qin Liuhe’s message and said they would go to Yingzhou to help Gao Wu master the Mystic Dragon Dao.

Yan Qiushui arrived at Jinsha Island with other Alliance geniuses and learned that Qin Jiuyue planned to take them into the dangerous Yingzhou Secret Realm after Gao Wu and Qin Jiuyue scouted ahead. As the group gathered at the island, Yuan Cheng challenged Gao Wu to a fight.

• Yan Qiushui met Chu Shenxiu at the airport and learned that Master Hai, Pei Jidao, Yuan Cheng, and Wei Yue were also coming to Jinsha Island.
• Yan Qiushui joined Hai Wuji, Chao Fengying, and Chu Shenxiu on the trip to Jinsha Island, where Qin Jiuyue and Gao Wu were waiting.
• Chao Fengying told Yan Qiushui that the group would enter Yingzhou for Golden Nectar and Jade Paste, while Song Mingyue explained that Gao Wu and Qin Gong would scout first.
• Yuan Cheng tried to approach the women, but Yan Qiushui shut the door on him and Wei Yue warned him not to provoke Gao Wu.
• Yuan Cheng challenged Gao Wu to a fight, and Gao Wu accepted.

Yuan Cheng challenged Gao Wu to a spar at sea, hoping to measure the famed young powerhouse’s strength. Gao Wu defeated him in one direct clash, leaving the others to recognize him as the strongest beneath the seventh rank.

• Yuan Cheng asked Gao Wu to spar, and Hai Wuji invited the group to watch them fight at sea.
• Yuan Cheng unleashed his Heaven-Overturning Fist, using his powerful physique and Fist Intent to pressure Gao Wu.
• Gao Wu activated the Divine Mantra and struck back with the Kang Dragon Fist, overpowering Yuan Cheng’s punch and forcing him to retreat seven steps.
• Yuan Cheng admitted defeat and praised Gao Wu, while Qin Jiuyue said Gao Wu deserved to be called the number one beneath the seventh rank.

After Gao Wu defeated Yuan Cheng, Qin Jiuyue and Hai Wuji prepared him for a mission in Yingzhou to find Song Mingyue, whose location was known through coordinates left by Qin Jiuyue’s father. Gao Wu and Qin Jiuyue entered the dangerous realm and flew toward their destination, where Qin Jiuyue confronted a Black Eagle guarding a Jade Pool with the Thunder Spear.

• Gao Wu defeated Yuan Cheng with his supernatural ability, and Hai Wuji encouraged them to put the fight behind them and become friends.
• Qin Jiuyue confirmed the plan with Hai Wuji: he would take Gao Wu into Yingzhou first, and Hai Wuji would bring the others to join them after Gao Wu contacted Song Mingyue.
• Hai Wuji warned Gao Wu about the powerful Strange Beasts in Yingzhou, then Gao Wu and Qin Jiuyue entered the realm the following morning.
• Gao Wu and Qin Jiuyue traveled through Yingzhou, where Qin Jiuyue killed two attacking Red-Crowned Giant Cranes by destroying their Source Power True Cores.
• When they reached a Jade Pool guarded by a Black Eagle, Qin Jiuyue told Gao Wu to wait and charged the beast with the Thunder Spear.
• The Black Eagle rose to meet Qin Jiuyue and swept a massive azure blade across the sky.

Gao Wu witnessed Qin Jiuyue kill two Level Eight Strange Beasts on Taiye Mountain and used the battle to deepen his understanding of Zhu Dragon Fist. After Qin Jiuyue returned to Jade Pool, he told Gao Wu to take the Jade Paste and asked whether Gao Wu would sacrifice his life to save the Alliance.

• Gao Wu watched Black Eagle unleash a vast Source Power Field that overwhelmed Qin Jiuyue's concealment and trapped him in spinning cyan blades.
• Qin Jiuyue summoned the Zhu Dragon Divine Aspect and used the blazing-white light of Zhu Dragon Fist to counter Black Eagle.
• Gao Wu activated the Qilin Divine Hero Incantation and studied Qin Jiuyue's techniques as Qin Jiuyue killed Black Eagle with a spear strike.
• Qin Jiuyue pursued the fleeing Red-Scaled Giant Snake and told Gao Wu to wait at Jade Pool, where Gao Wu saw signs of another battle and the second Strange Beast's Life Aura vanish.
• Qin Jiuyue returned exhausted, told Gao Wu to consume the Jade Paste in Jade Pool, and asked whether Gao Wu would give his life to save everyone in the Alliance.

Gao Wu consumed Jade Paste in the Jade Pool and entered a lucid state that let him comprehend the Mystic Dragon Dao. He condensed all ten of its required Apertures, leaving him with a newly formed cultivation foundation.

• Qin Jiuyue asked Gao Wu whether he would give up his life to save humanity, and Gao Wu said he could not decide without knowing the circumstances.
• Qin Jiuyue gave Song Mingyue directions to the Jade Pool and told Gao Wu to consume its Jade Paste while remaining alert to danger.
• Qin Jiuyue sent Gao Wu's Mechanical Warhorse into the pool, where it began eating Jade Paste.
• After consuming dozens of jin of Jade Paste, Gao Wu entered a heightened spiritual state and visualized the Mystic Dragon Dao within his body.
• Gao Wu used the Qilin Divine Hero Incantation to strengthen his visualization and condensed the Mystic Dragon Dao's ten required Apertures.

Gao Wu finished cultivating and joined Hai Wuji and Qin Jiuyue for a meal and drinks beside the Jade Pool. After performing the Dragon-Roaming Palm and singing “A Laugh in the Vast Sea,” he left the gathered group with a moment that eased the two Martial Saints’ strained feelings.

• Gao Wu realized his Source Power surpassed Yuan Cheng’s, though he still needed four Mystic Dragon Apertures to send his Divine Aspect outside his body.
• Gao Wu joined Hai Wuji and Qin Jiuyue by the bonfire, where they shared roasted giant snake meat and drinks and spoke with unusual warmth.
• At Hai Wuji’s urging, Gao Wu performed the Dragon-Roaming Palm and unexpectedly grasped the Divine Will of a roaming dragon crossing the vast sea.
• Gao Wu sang “A Laugh in the Vast Sea,” and its lyrics shifted Hai Wuji and Qin Jiuyue from wistfulness toward relief and ease.

Gao Wu trained with Qin Jiuyue in a mental projection and spent seven days strengthening himself and the others with Jade Paste and Red-Scaled Giant Snake meat. Qin Jiuyue then took Gao Wu to Jin Lake, where they found numerous powerful Fish Dragons, including several whose strength rivaled his.

• Gao Wu ate dozens of pounds of Red-Scaled Giant Snake meat, and Qin Jiuyue challenged him to spar inside a mental world projected into his mind.
• Qin Jiuyue guided Gao Wu through hundreds of exchanges, then ended the training and said they would go to Jin Lake when the Jade Paste's effects weakened.
• Over seven days at Taiye Mountain, Gao Wu condensed four more Apertures, while Chu Shenxiu condensed fourteen and reached Level 6 Grandmaster; the others also advanced.
• Qin Jiuyue took Gao Wu toward Jin Lake on the Mechanical Warhorse, whose speed had doubled after consuming Jade Paste.
• Gao Wu and Qin Jiuyue reached the vast golden lake and saw Fish Dragons swimming and flying through its waters.
• Qin Jiuyue sensed two or three Level 8 Fish Dragons and more than ten Level 7 ones, and warned Gao Wu to be careful.

Qin Jiuyue and Hai Wuji joined forces to kill three Level Eight Fish Dragons at Jin Lake while Gao Wu and the other young Martial Artists watched from a safe distance. Afterward, Qin Jiuyue assigned most of the Golden Nectar from the dragon heads to Gao Wu.

• Qin Jiuyue recognized that the Fish Dragons’ cooperation made them dangerous and summoned Hai Wuji and the others to Jin Lake.
• Hai Wuji brought the young Martial Artists to a mountain a hundred li away, where they discussed why the Martial Saints had brought them to Yingzhou.
• A battle erupted at Jin Lake, and Gao Wu used his Yin Spirit to observe Qin Jiuyue and Hai Wuji facing three Level Eight Fish Dragons.
• Hai Wuji and Qin Jiuyue killed all three Fish Dragons with a swift combination of attacks.
• Hai Wuji asked whether they should share some of the Golden Nectar with the others, and Qin Jiuyue allotted one-tenth to each of them and the rest to Gao Wu.

After Hai Wuji and Qin Jiuyue slew the Fish Dragons, Gao Wu studied the battle and rode across Yingzhou with his companions. At Jin Lake, Qin Jiuyue offered him Level 8 Fish Dragon Golden Nectar, and Gao Wu chose to face its dangerous spiritual imprint.

• Hai Wuji and Qin Jiuyue pursued the fleeing Fish Dragons and killed more than ten Level 7 Fish Dragons.
• Gao Wu replayed the battle in his mind, studying Qin Jiuyue's Ying Dragon Divine Image and marveling at his master's swordsmanship.
• Gao Wu joked with Wei Yue and the others, then rode the Mechanical Warhorse at high speed with Song Mingyue and Chao Fengying.
• Qin Jiuyue showed Gao Wu the slain Level 8 Fish Dragon and warned that its Golden Nectar carried a powerful spiritual imprint that could endanger his mind.
• Gao Wu chose to consume the Level 8 Fish Dragon Golden Nectar rather than start with the safer Level 7 kind.

Gao Wu endured the fierce effects of Level 8 Fish Dragon Golden Nectar, using its mental imprint to study the Ying Dragon Divine Image and the Fish Dragon’s wind-riding ability. After five days of cultivation and feasting, he reached the Level 6 Martial Dao Grandmaster threshold, though his Mystic Dragon Divine Aspect still needed further development.

• Gao Wu drank Level 8 Fish Dragon Golden Nectar and survived its damaging effects with help from his Azure Dragon Divine Image and Yin Spirit.
• Gao Wu studied the slain Fish Dragon’s mental imprint, gaining insight into Qin Jiuyue’s Ying Dragon Divine Image and the Fish Dragon’s wind-riding ability.
• Hai Wuji watched over Gao Wu while Qin Jiuyue arranged suitable nectar for the other geniuses, and Gao Wu continued drinking Golden Nectar under supervision.
• Gao Wu consumed the remaining Golden Nectar over four days, activated six Apertures, and reached thirty-six Apertures with source power exceeding that of other Level 6 experts.
• Gao Wu qualified as a Martial Dao Grandmaster but remained short of achieving the Mystic Dragon Divine Aspect’s Divine Aspect Out-of-Body Realm.

Gao Wu learned to cultivate the Nine Dragons Dao more broadly under Qin Jiuyue’s guidance, while struggling with the burden of saving the Universe. After Chao Fengying reassured him, his Nine Dragons Divine Aspect broke through and formed a black Heavenly Dragon beneath the moon.

• Gao Wu opened a two-cubic-meter space inside the Mystic Dragon Ring, but discovered that it would collapse and destroy anything inside if he could not maintain the Divine Aspect.
• Qin Jiuyue advised Gao Wu to cultivate all nine Dragon Daos together and began guiding him through their principles, starting with the Hidden Dragon Dao.
• Gao Wu refined the Hidden, Cang, Divine, Heavenly, Kang, Ying, and Zhu Dragon Daos with Qin Jiuyue’s help and used Fish Dragon Golden Nectar to strengthen his cultivation.
• Gao Wu voiced his anxiety about saving the Universe to Chao Fengying, who told him that everyone should share the burden and that he should do his best without regret.
• Gao Wu’s nine dragons fused into a black Heavenly Dragon that rose above him and danced beneath the new moon as the gathered young geniuses watched.