Chapter Summaries

After killing Yibu Xin, Xu Yi discovered that Tao Jingsheng was possessed and attacked him rather than accept his offer to make peace. The possessor’s attacks failed against Xu Yi’s True Meaning and the Chiwu Worm, and he eventually tried to stop the fight.

• Yibu Xin burned his Divine Infant to unleash a final sword strike, then died as Xu Yi watched his Divine Infant dissipate.
• Xu Yi recognized that Tao Jingsheng had been possessed and rejected the possessor’s proposal to turn his enmity with Jingsheng into friendship.
• Xu Yi pretended to apologize, then struck Tao Jingsheng with clear light and wounded him.
• Tao Jingsheng summoned a Wind-and-Thunder Sword, but it could not pierce Xu Yi’s True Meaning, while the Chiwu Worm disrupted his techniques.
• After the Chiwu Worm dispersed his Heavenly Evolution Finger, Tao Jingsheng stopped fighting and pleaded with Xu Yi to let him withdraw.

Xu Yi defeated Tao Jingsheng after forcing him to swear that the Tao Family would not trouble him, then captured the fleeing wisp of true spirit. The Chiwu Worm vanished into the Soul-Summoning Banner, where its totem appeared to move, and Xu Yi left the Royal Court with the battlefield’s resources.

• Xu Yi pressed Tao Jingsheng with precise sword strikes until Tao Jingsheng agreed to swear to Heaven that the Tao Family would never make trouble for Xu Yi.
• Tao Jingsheng swore the oath without Xu Yi’s requested condition, so Xu Yi resumed attacking and shattered Tao Jingsheng’s body and Divine Infant.
• The Buffalo Monster pulled Tao Jingsheng’s escaping wisp of true spirit into its mouth, but the Soul-Summoning Banner flashed and drew in the Chiwu Worm.
• Xu Yi saw an ugly ox totem move across the Soul-Summoning Banner and stowed it away after failing to sense the Chiwu Worm directly.
• Xu Yi gathered the surviving resources and storage rings from the battlefield, then left the Royal Court.

Xu Yi confronted Cao Qi after slaughtering the Wufeng Royal Court, suspecting him of betraying their alliance and endangering Yan Zi. Cao Qi’s ambush froze Xu Yi and much of South Plaza, but the men preparing to kill him still feared his power.

• Xu Yi returned to South Plaza, where Cao Qi and Tang Shanhai awaited him, and asked after Yan Zi.
• Xu Yi gave Cao Qi three green spirit crystals and accused him of arranging for Yibu Xin to take his Starry Sky Ring.
• Cao Qi denied betraying Xu Yi and asked what share of his gains the three crystals represented.
• Xu Yi accused Cao Qi of getting Lu killed for the crystals and demanded that he reveal the men he had prepared.
• Tang Shanhai attacked Xu Yi with a burst of white light, freezing him and more than a thousand people across an area exceeding ten li.
• More than ten powerful cultivators surrounded Xu Yi’s ice sculpture, while the entity possessing Tang Shanhai urged Cao Qi to have him killed.

Xu Yi defeated Cao Qi’s forces with a silvery power and confronted Tang Shanhai’s true spirit. He traded spirit crystals for Tang Shanhai’s knowledge and learned why spirit crystals mattered to powerful cultivators.

• Xu Yi’s silvery disc destroyed Cao Qi’s formations and killed the experts, while Xu Yi captured Cao Qi’s Divine Infant.
• Xu Yi’s Soul-Summoning Banner unleashed black and white Qi that swept up Divine Infants and threatened Tang Shanhai’s true spirit.
• Xu Yi told Tang Shanhai that he had recently killed a Heavenly Decline Realm expert from the Tao Family, then offered to spare Tang Shanhai’s true spirit in exchange for instruction.
• Xu Yi gave Tang Shanhai three spirit crystals and swore a Blood Oath; Tang Shanhai also swore to answer truthfully.
• Tang Shanhai explained that spirit crystals contained immortal spirit energy and could refine artifacts, concoct pills, heal injuries, and nourish true spirits.

Xu Yi questioned Tang Shanhai about the Heavenly Decline Realm and learned how it transformed cultivators and constrained their true spirits. Tang Shanhai shared what he knew about higher realms, connected their Ruyi Pearls, and urged Xu Yi to strengthen his cultivation before facing Heavenly Decline.

• Xu Yi asked Tang Shanhai what a true spirit was, and Tang Shanhai explained the five signs of Heavenly Decline and how a true spirit survived the body's decay.
• Tang Shanhai told Xu Yi that Heavenly Decline experts had to shelter their dying bodies underground because their true spirits were vulnerable outside them.
• Tang Shanhai admitted he did not know what realm lay beyond Heavenly Decline, but said the Immortal Palace, the Demon Tower, and White Horse Temple might hold true immortals.
• Xu Yi asked how powerful Heavenly Decline experts were, and Tang Shanhai explained that Lightning Tribulation experts could attach their true spirits to all things while Heavenly Decline experts commanded all things within a domain.
• Tang Shanhai linked his Ruyi Pearl with Xu Yi's and advised him to raise his cultivation and build a strong foundation.

Xu Yi sought answers about Xue Zihan’s fading vitality and learned that Golden Core Academy might hold clues, then set out to find Yan Zi. He reunited with her and brought her away from Desolate Ancestor’s grave, while Xue Zihan’s fate remained uncertain.

• Tang Shanhai examined Xue Zihan’s body and told Xu Yi that Golden Core Academy might help explain her miraculous condition.
• Tang Shanhai revealed his surname was Cao and departed, leaving Xu Yi to weigh his urgent responsibilities.
• Xu Yi released Cao Qi’s Divine Infant and forced him to reveal Yan Zi’s location, then set out to find her.
• Xu Yi found Yan Zi atop a peak above the sea of clouds, and Cao Qi’s Divine Infant was caught and destroyed after fleeing.
• Yan Zi reassured Xu Yi that she could endure her hardships, and he smiled at how much she had grown.
• Yan Zi burned spirit money at Desolate Ancestor’s grave for three days before Xu Yi pulled her away.

Xu Yi returned to Xuanqing Sect and found it under attack by the Thirteen Alliances of the Eastern Union, who demanded the sect submit or be destroyed. He revealed his Calamity Tribulation Realm cultivation and faced the alliance’s leader, leaving the confrontation poised to begin.

• Xu Yi comforted Yan Zi by the Mo River, then set aside his plan to travel to Blackbrow Country and decided to change his appearance before visiting Golden Core Academy.
• Xu Yi planned to refine a Soul-Stabilizing Pill by meeting Qin Kong in Chishui Country, but first headed back to Xuanqing Sect out of regard for Sect Leader Hongyi.
• Xu Yi arrived to find several hundred cultivators from the Thirteen Alliances of the Eastern Union attacking Xuanqing Sect’s protective formation and demanding its submission.
• The Golden Crown Youth questioned Xu Yi and offered him a place in the alliance or destruction alongside Xuanqing Sect; True Man Scarlet Fire identified Xu Yi as Guanglong Hall’s Hall Master and recognized his Calamity Tribulation Realm cultivation.
• Xu Yi told the Golden Crown Youth to finish arranging his forces before they talked, while the alliance prepared for a confrontation.

Xu Yi revealed his identity as Young Master Yiling to the Thirteen Alliances of the Eastern Union and entered Xuanqing Sect under his protection. The alliance’s leaders were left arguing over whether to flee or stay, while Blood Night Demon Lord turned on Zhou Xingyao.

• Golden Crown Youth held back two elders until reinforcements led by his cousin, Blood Night Old Devil, arrived at Xuanqing Sect.
• Xu Yi tossed the Imperial Seal of the State to the white-robed youth and revealed that he was Young Master Yiling, whom the alliance feared as Old Demon Yiling.
• Xu Yi asked Blood Night Old Devil to gather the alliance and his uncle for a larger attack, then escorted Yan Zi into Xuanqing Sect.
• True Man Scarlet Fire opened the formation to welcome Xu Yi, while the alliance stayed frozen outside until he disappeared inside.
• The alliance elders argued over whether to flee or remain, and Blood Night Demon Lord silenced them before slapping and threatening Zhou Xingyao.

Xu Yi returned to Xuanqing Sect, where he reunited with old friends and learned that Sect Leader Hongyi had died. He refused to become the new Sect Leader but promised to protect the sect, leaving its leadership to True Man Scarlet Fire for now.

• Zhou Binglin examined the genuine Imperial Seal of the State but doubted that Xu Yi was Old Demon Yiling, and he ordered everyone to wait before acting.
• Xu Yi toured Xuanqing Sect with Yan Zi and exchanged greetings with Meng Fu and the Co-learning Society.
• Xu Yi asked True Man Scarlet Fire about Sect Leader Hongyi and learned that Hongyi had died, leaving a message asking Xu Yi to lead the sect or let it disband.
• Xu Yi refused the position but offered incense to Hongyi and promised that Xuanqing Sect would not need to disband yet.
• Xu Yi appointed True Man Scarlet Fire to lead temporarily and said the first person to reach the Calamity Tribulation Realm within ten years should become Sect Leader.

Xu Yi confronted the Thirteen Alliances of the Eastern Union, demonstrating his power by killing Wu Qijing and the Nine Dragon Sect delegation. He gave the alliance one hundred breaths to persuade him to spare them, and Zhou Binglin offered the alliance’s complete obedience and support for Xuanqing Sect and Xu Yi’s chosen ruler of Wufeng Country.

• Zhou Binglin recognized Xu Yi as Old Demon Yiling, presented him with the Imperial Seal of the State, and begged for mercy on behalf of the Thirteen Alliances of the Eastern Union.
• Wu Qijing arrived with more than twenty Tribulation Transcending Experts from the Nine Dragon Sect, mocked Zhou Binglin, and dismissed the warning that Xu Yi was Young Master Yiling.
• Xu Yi killed Wu Qijing and the Nine Dragon Sect delegation, then used the Soul-Summoning Banner to seize their Divine Infants.
• Xu Yi warned Zhou Binglin not to use him as a weapon and gave the Thirteen Alliances of the Eastern Union one hundred breaths to persuade him to spare them.
• After the alliance’s elders discussed how to appease Xu Yi, Zhou Binglin offered their obedience, protection for Xuanqing Sect, and help installing Xu Yi’s chosen ruler of Wufeng Country.

Xu Yi forced Blood Night Demon Lord, Zhou Binglin, and the others to submit, then agreed to let Zhou Binglin rule Wufeng in exchange for securing the Begonia Letter. After Zhou Binglin was installed as ruler and the letter arrived, Xu Yi took it and left, while the survivors remained haunted by their encounter with him.

• Blood Night Demon Lord and Zhou Binglin drove Soul-Piercing Spikes into themselves and urged the others to do the same to beg Xu Yi for mercy.
• Blood Night Demon Lord told Xu Yi about the Begonia Letter and the chance to trade for treasures at the Begonia Pavilion, and Xu Yi agreed to give Zhou Binglin the Imperial Seal if he obtained the letter.
• Xu Yi gave Zhou Binglin a pearl to swallow, then left with the people of the Eastern Alliance's Thirteen Leagues while the others continued suffering until their allotted time passed.
• The Eastern Alliance's Thirteen Leagues rebuilt Wufeng's royal court, announced the kingdom's restoration, and secured approval from the Immortal Hall.
• Zhou Binglin became ruler of Wufeng, and the Begonia Letter arrived two days later.
• Xu Yi took the Begonia Letter and departed, leaving Zhou Binglin and the elders relieved to have survived but still terrified of him.

Xu Yi prepared Yan Zi’s cultivation plan and refined a Soul-Stabilizing Pill before ascending into Exploding Canyon’s astral winds to undergo the Wind Tribulation. As his alts wrestled with fear and thoughts of betrayal, Xu Yi began the breakthrough method and formed a cycle of blood and qi within his body.

• Xu Yi arrived at Kongkong Pavilion, enjoyed Qin Kong’s banquet, and ordered Qin Kong to begin Yan Zi’s plan to reach Spiritual Root Layer Three within a year.
• Yan Zi entered seclusion, while Xu Yi refined a Soul-Stabilizing Pill in preparation for the Wind Tribulation.
• Xu Yi traveled with Qin Kong and the other alts to Exploding Canyon and waited to ascend at the third quarter of the Mao hour.
• Bai Jizi told the others that Old Demon Yiling had destroyed the Wufeng Royal Court, prompting Qin Kong, Lin Ming, and the others to reflect on their precarious position under Xu Yi.
• Xu Yi rose into the astral winds, opened his acupoints, and circulated his blood and qi until a perfect loop formed and scarlet suns appeared in his twelve main acupoints.

Xu Yi survived the Wind Tribulation without using his Soul-Stabilizing Pill, and his body and cultivation grew stronger. Afterward, he found Qin Kong and the other juniors missing and confronted five Lightning Tribulation Experts who had ambushed him.

• Xu Yi sent his Divine Infant into the astral winds, endured the first trial, and chose to face the final storm without taking the Soul-Stabilizing Pill.
• The astral windstorm nearly destroyed Xu Yi's Divine Infant, but it survived and transformed before returning to his body.
• Xu Yi's wounds healed, and he discovered that his defenses, physical abilities, and Infant Essence had improved.
• Xu Yi descended and found Qin Kong and the other juniors gone, with several cultivators lying in ambush.
• A white-clothed scholar and four other Lightning Tribulation Experts appeared, and their golden light blocked Xu Yi's sword intent.

Xu Yi defeated five Lightning Tribulation Experts who ambushed him with True Pattern Magic Robes, then rescued Qin Kong and the others from Liu Bingtang’s stronghold. He left Liu Bingtang’s forces for Qin Kong to deal with and agreed to stay to help Yan Zi advance to Spiritual Root Layer Three.

• The white-clothed scholar and four other Lightning Tribulation Experts ambushed Xu Yi, expecting the Soul-Stabilizing Pill to limit his power.
• Xu Yi unleashed nearly a hundred True Intent Supernatural Abilities, then destroyed the five True Pattern Magic Robes and killed their wearers.
• Xu Yi interrogated the five Divine Infants, learned where Qin Kong and the others were held, and offered the captives’ spirits to the Soul-Summoning Banner.
• Xu Yi stormed Liu Bingtang’s compound and incapacitated his core forces, allowing Qin Kong and the others to escape their prison.
• Bai Jizi praised Xu Yi’s strength, and Lin Ming asked to stay with Qin Kong to help Miss Yan advance to Spiritual Root Layer Three.

Xu Yi traveled toward Central City to visit Central Academy, but stopped at a roadside tea stall when his horse grew tired. There, he witnessed two cloaked attackers spring a trap on a powerful escort guarding an apparently empty carriage.

• Qin Kong failed to persuade Bai Jizi to stay at Kongkong Pavilion, while the others congratulated Bai Jizi and privately envied his favor with Old Demon Yiling.
• Xu Yi left Chishui Country and headed for Central Academy, switching to a plain disguise and continuing on foot and horseback after travel restrictions blocked his way.
• Xu Yi rested at a tea stall and noticed two cloaked figures attacking an escort of more than thirty Tribulation Transcending Experts.
• The cloaked figures overwhelmed the escort and tore open the carriage’s black felt covering.
• A golden net burst from the carriage and attacked the cloaked figures, revealing that the carriage contained only a glowing formation disc and had been set as a trap.

Two cloaked men fought the Great Sun Divine Palace’s forces after its Brocade Robe Youth tried to recruit them, then attacked them with a True Intent Supernatural Ability. The Unconventional Middle-aged Man escaped with the Faceless Man’s help, while the Faceless Man trapped the pursuing experts in a black mist vortex.

• The Tribulation Layer One cloaked man and his companion escaped the golden net, drawing praise from the Brocade Robe Youth, who introduced himself as Fu Mou of the Great Sun Divine Palace and offered them a place there.
• The Tribulation Layer One cloaked man asked Fu Mou to release their companion first, but Fu Mou refused and struck both men with a black True Intent Supernatural Ability.
• The two cloaked men charged Fu Mou together, forcing him onto the defensive until he called on the Tribulation Transcending Experts to attack.
• Fu Mou’s summoned beast shattered the Tribulation Layer One cloaked man’s silver river and sent both men flying, revealing the Unconventional Middle-aged Man and the Faceless Man beneath their torn cloaks.
• The Faceless Man hurled the wounded Unconventional Middle-aged Man into the distance, then formed a black mist vortex that dragged the pursuing Tribulation Transcending Experts toward him.

The Faceless Man endured the siege and unleashed a devastating Black Death Qi storm to protect the Unconventional Middle-aged Man, who returned and gathered his True Intent Supernatural Ability. Just as they prepared to escape, a mysterious white streak shattered his gathered power and vanished.

• The Brocade Robe Youth ordered the Tribulation Transcending Experts to attack the Faceless Man and capture him alive.
• The Faceless Man held the experts in place with his Black Death Qi vortex so the Unconventional Middle-aged Man could escape.
• The Unconventional Middle-aged Man returned after the Faceless Man called him Brother Cao, and the Faceless Man unleashed a storm of Black Death Qi that injured the attackers and killed four experts.
• The Brocade Robe Youth and the surviving experts retreated from the Unconventional Middle-aged Man's immense True Intent Supernatural Ability.
• The Unconventional Middle-aged Man reached the weakened Faceless Man and prepared to flee, but a white streak dispersed his gathered power before disappearing.

Xu Yi secretly rescued Xiong Bei Ming and Gold Corpse Old Cao from Sun King, who identified their mysterious protector as Old Demon Yiling. Xu Yi continued toward Central City, determined to conceal his identity and his larger plans for the Begonia Gathering.

• Sun King offered to take the Unconventional Middle-aged Man as his disciple, but Xiong Bei Ming deferred to Gold Corpse Old Cao, and both chose to fight rather than submit.
• Sun King suppressed Xiong Bei Ming's True Intent and attacked him and Gold Corpse Old Cao with a devastating white line.
• Xu Yi's clear radiance erased Sun King's attack, then pursued him until he retreated and lost sight of Xiong Bei Ming and Gold Corpse Old Cao.
• Sun King concluded that Old Demon Yiling had intervened and speculated that he had come to Central City for the Begonia Gathering.
• Xu Yi recognized Xiong Bei Ming and Gold Corpse Old Cao but chose not to reveal himself, then rode his Yellow Dragon Steed toward Central City.

Xu Yi entered Central City using his Golden Core Society badge and planned to join Central Academy as an instructor by publishing Ding Wen under his Black Quality Badge. Before beginning his research, he took out the rare phoenix blood he had saved for refining the Nine Spirit Sacred Blood Pill and decided he still needed to wait for a safer opportunity.

• Xu Yi reached Central City's crowded gates and entered after presenting his Gray Quality Badge and his Golden Core South Courtyard graduation certificate.
• Xu Yi rented a renowned trading house's finest alchemy chamber and chose to seek a faculty position at Central Academy rather than enter as a student or official.
• Xu Yi decided to publish several Ding Wen using his Black Quality Badge, whose history was safer than that of his Gray Quality Badge.
• Xu Yi reviewed his alchemy research options and considered how his mastery of the spectral system could support new Ding Wen.
• Xu Yi studied the phoenix blood needed for the Nine Spirit Sacred Blood Pill and postponed refining it because he had ingredients for only three attempts.

Xu Yi activated the Four-Colored Seal with Cloud Crane Pure Qi and entered its purple domain, where his belongings disintegrated into colored threads. He reassembled them and concluded that the seal had exhausted the energy needed to open the domain again.

• Xu Yi used Cloud Crane Pure Qi and the thirteenth restriction to open a gate into the Four-Colored Seal's purple domain.
• Xu Yi entered with Xue Zihan, Qiu Wa, the Ice Fire Rabbit, and his possessions, but nearly everything except those companions, the Dark Gourd, and spirit crystals disintegrated into colored threads.
• Xu Yi used Cloud Crane Pure Qi to gather the threads and restore his belongings, then stored them in the Starry Sky Ring.
• The purple domain collapsed, and Xu Yi caught the falling Four-Colored Seal.
• Xu Yi failed eleven times to reopen the domain and deduced that the seal needed more energy.