Recaps

Xu Yi escaped the Ghost Worm and realized it was tied to an attempt on his life involving the Netherworld Divine General. After learning the general had been murdered near Immortal Martial Cliff, he suspected Zhou Zongshi and flew toward Cold Sun Peak.

• Xu Yi destroyed the Ghost Worm with his True Fire Malice, then fled into the mountains and hid beneath a river’s current.
• Xu Yi connected the Ghost Worm to the Netherworld Divine General’s attempt to kill him during his breakthrough.
• Xu Yi reasoned that Elder Qin’s backing and the approaching imperial examinations would help him weather suspicion over the general’s death.
• Steward Fang told Xu Yi that the Netherworld Divine General sent to Huangdang Sand Dune had been found murdered near Immortal Martial Cliff.
• Xu Yi suspected Zhou Zongshi had impersonated the general and immediately flew toward Cold Sun Peak.

Xu Yi rushed to Immortal Martial Cliff just before the deadline to join the Special Imperial Examination’s formation drill. After registering, he entered the training ground and was overwhelmed by a brutal assault from the instructor he suspected was Deng Blackface.

• Old Cai told Xu Yi that he had to reach Immortal Martial Cliff that day or lose his place in the Special Imperial Examination.
• Xu Yi hurried to Immortal Martial Cliff, where a clerk warned him about Deng Blackface and advised him to remove his Body Concealing Pill.
• Xu Yi restored his original appearance, registered for the drill, and received a yellow jade tablet for the training and his upcoming trip to Jiannan Road’s provincial seat.
• Xu Yi entered the training ground and recognized Gong Xiuhua among the candidates practicing with black spheres.
• An unseen attacker struck Xu Yi repeatedly; Xu Yi suspected Deng Blackface, but even his Profound Thunder Body Tempering Art could not stop the beating.

Xu Yi endured Deng Blackface’s beating and then demonstrated exceptional control of two Heavy Beads, astonishing the other trainees. He remained composed in the field long after everyone else had finished or failed, leaving the trainees silently watching to see how long he could continue.

• Deng Blackface battered Xu Yi with over a hundred blows before calling off the exhausted assault and ordering him to control two Heavy Beads for an hour.
• Xu Yi used two threads of thought to move both Heavy Beads into position before his brow, impressing the trainees with his control.
• Xu Yi grew absorbed in moving the beads while Deng Blackface gave extra training time to those who had dropped theirs.
• As the others finished or failed, Xu Yi continued holding the beads without showing strain, and the trainees gathered in silence to watch him.

Deng Blackface stopped Zhou Kun from questioning Xu Yi about the murdered Netherworld General and claimed he had witnessed Xu Yi’s breakthrough. After testing Xu Yi’s soul sense, Deng recognized his strength and urged him to compete for a top-three finish in the imperial exam.

• Deng Blackface silenced Zhou Kun and made him wait until the departments closed before allowing him to question Xu Yi.
• Zhou Kun identified himself as an Imperial Guard Department officer investigating the Netherworld General’s murder, but Deng dismissed the inquiry and claimed he had protected Xu Yi during his breakthrough.
• Zhou Kun left without questioning Xu Yi, and Xu Yi thanked Deng for shielding him from trouble.
• Deng suspected Xu Yi had revealed the strength of his true soul and challenged him to a soul-sense test, where Xu Yi’s soul sense survived Deng’s interception and struck the drum.
• Deng admitted he had protected Xu Yi because he saw potential in him and urged him to train for a top-three finish in the imperial exam.

Deng Blackface agreed to mentor Xu Yi in exchange for Xu Yi placing in the top three, then explained how intent, soul thoughts, divided souls, and true souls worked. He demonstrated precise control over true fiend energy but said his technique could not help Xu Yi, leaving Xu Yi to pursue cultivation on his own.

• Deng Blackface told Xu Yi that they would use each other to improve their rankings and warned Xu Yi to place in the top three.
• Xu Yi asked Deng Blackface about intent, soul thoughts, and divided souls, and Deng Blackface explained their differences and uses in combat.
• Deng Blackface described how the Netherworld Divine Generals sent their true souls out of protected bodies and explained the dangers of that method.
• Xu Yi asked whether controlling true fiend energy with thoughts made divine techniques unnecessary, and Deng Blackface praised the question.
• Deng Blackface compressed earthy-yellow true fiend energy into a bead and then dispersed it, but refused to teach Xu Yi the technique because it depended on his Earth True Fiend.

Xu Yi asked Deng Blackface about cultivation and the Yin Venerate Realm, then learned the identities and powers of two spiritual artifacts. Deng Blackface sent him to the White Building, where Xu Yi spent hours nourishing the artifacts with his true soul and established faint connections with them.

• Deng Blackface advised Xu Yi to focus on strengthening his true soul and training his soul sense, while admitting he did not know where the Yin Venerate Realm ended or whether Yang Venerates lived in the residence.
• Xu Yi showed Deng Blackface the Golden Small Bottle and Golden Fine Spear, and Deng identified them as the Zhou Family's Soul Locking Bottle and Immortal Slaying Spear.
• Deng Blackface explained that the Soul Locking Bottle captured the true souls of the dead and that the Immortal Slaying Spear could damage true souls, then advised Xu Yi to nourish both artifacts with his true soul.
• Deng Blackface gave Xu Yi access to Number Three Refining Room at the White Building and supplied a box of Heavy Beads.
• Xu Yi used his split souls to nourish the Soul Locking Bottle, the Immortal Slaying Spear, and the iron essence, eventually forming faint connections with all three spiritual artifacts.

Xu Yi strengthened his soul thoughts by splitting the Immortal Slaying Spear into more than a hundred pieces and training with Heavy Beads. After five days of practice, he left the White Tower and arrived at the training grounds, where Deng Blackface and the other candidates were gathered with a second-rank Star Official.

• Xu Yi split the Immortal Slaying Spear into more than a hundred tiny spears and learned to control them in coordinated attacks.
• Xu Yi tested a tiny spear against one of Old Demon Zhong’s gleam needles and snapped the needle in two.
• Xu Yi discovered that his soul thoughts could bear more than three hundred pounds and used them to lift his own body.
• Xu Yi spent five days training with Heavy Beads, repeatedly failing to suspend five beads at his brow while improving his control.
• Xu Yi’s access token buzzed, ending his independent training, and he went to the training grounds, where he found the other candidates, Deng Blackface, and a second-rank Star Official.

Director Han tried to steer the candidates’ choice of leader away from Xu Yi, but Deng Blackface nominated him and a challenge was arranged to settle the dispute. Gong Xiuhua challenged Xu Yi and was swiftly overwhelmed by Xu Yi’s golden threads, leaving his defeat narrowly short of fatal.

• Director Han announced that the imperial examinations would be held at the Road Court in ten days and asked the candidates to choose a leader.
• Deng Blackface nominated Xu Yi, and Director Han proposed that anyone who defeated Xu Yi could take the position instead.
• Gong Xiuhua volunteered to challenge Xu Yi and attacked him with the Abusive Demon Blade.
• Xu Yi endured Gong Xiuhua’s blade strikes without moving, showing the candidates his powerful defensive art.
• Xu Yi sent golden threads through Gong Xiuhua’s baleful energy and nearly annihilated him before stopping with a shallow cut to his neck.

Xu Yi became team leader after defeating Gong Xiuhua, then trained with the other candidates to master the Bagua token’s Soul Sword formation. After exchanging for a Wind Spirit Stone in the Third-level Armory, he returned to Cold Sun Peak to refine Wind Talismans before the imperial examination.

• Xu Yi defeated Gong Xiuhua with the Immortal Slaying Spear, and Deng Blackface named him team leader.
• The eighteen candidates spent seven days practicing the Soul Sword formation embedded in the Bagua wooden token.
• Deng Blackface ended the training and sent the candidates with Director Ma to exchange for one treasure each in the Third-level Armory.
• Xu Yi exchanged for a mid-grade Wind Spirit Stone and hurried back to Cold Sun Peak.
• Xu Yi entered seclusion, activated the Spirit Gathering Array, and began refining Wind Talismans.

Xu Yi reached the island where candidates for the Jiannan Road court gathered and learned that Huaixi belonged to the Huai character faction. Chen Xuan attacked him over their old grievance, but Gong Xiuhua intervened as the chapter ended with Chen Xuan confronting Xu Yi.

• Xu Yi traveled to Immortal Martial Cliff, rested in the Octagonal Tower, and joined the other successful candidates the next morning.
• The Middle-aged Man in White led the candidates through a teleportation array to an island, where a man in brocade robes checked their credentials and assigned them jade bands.
• Xu Yi joined candidates from Huaidong, Huainan, Huaibei, and Huaizhong, forming the Five Prefectures of the Huai Character faction.
• Chen Xuan launched a sword attack at Xu Yi, but Gong Xiuhua struck the sword light aside and challenged Chen Xuan.
• Chen Xuan threatened Gong Xiuhua and fixed his hostile attention on Xu Yi, still resentful over losing the fragment of the Heavenly God Chart.

Xu Yi stopped Chen Xuan's attack, beat him down, and learned that the Huai eastern contingent was led by Cao Ji. The imperial examinations began as candidates flew toward Gale Force Canyon, where the first challenge and its rewards were announced.

• Xu Yi blocked Chen Xuan's Adamant Seal and struck him repeatedly before Cao Ji intervened.
• Cao Ji restrained Chen Xuan, who took pills and returned to the Huai eastern contingent.
• Xu Yi introduced himself to Cao Ji, and the candidates recognized his reputation.
• A green-robed Second-rank Star Official warned the candidates that the journey to the Road Court was dangerous and summoned their flying clouds.
• The candidates flew west and received instructions to cross Gale Force Canyon for points, marking the start of the imperial examinations.

Xu Yi led the Huaixi contingent through the Gale Force Canyon by linking them together with Clear Wind Silk and guiding them through the deadly winds. As they entered an even fiercer stretch, he ordered the group to change formation and announced that he would take the vanguard.

• Xu Yi warned the Huaixi contingent to stay together, but Tu Lao San rushed ahead as several other examinees did the same.
• Xu Yi linked his group with Clear Wind Silk, helping them survive the first gale and pass the other four contingents.
• An examinee who abandoned his cloud was torn apart by the wind, while the Huaixi group continued forward as one and took the lead.
• In a calm gray stretch, Tu Lao San revealed his Brocade Cloud Sail and crossed ahead alone after Fei Si hesitated to join him.
• Xu Yi urged the Huaixi contingent to pool their strength and hold nothing back before leading them into a much stronger gale.
• As the wind drove the group toward a cliff, Xu Yi ordered them to change into columns and said he would take the vanguard.

Xu Yi endured the full force of Gale Force Canyon so the group could escape, until Yang Jun organized them into the Four Symbols Suppressing Heaven Array. The formation carried them forward, but Xu Yi was left gravely exhausted and injured, and they found evidence that Tu Lao San had died.

• Xu Yi formed a line and used his Golden Membrane to shield the group from the gale while they pushed him forward with their baleful energy.
• Qiu Dao Ming noticed that the gale changed force every five breaths, and Yang Jun proposed the Four Symbols Suppressing Heaven Array.
• Xu Yi held out until the array was ready, then took the Li position as everyone joined their baleful energy to redirect the wind.
• Xu Yi refused Qiu Dao Ming's offer of medicine because his true soul was badly injured, and the group continued through the wind belt.
• The group spotted the Brocade Cloud Sail embedded in the cliff beside a smear of flesh and blood, confirming that Tu Lao San had died.

Xu Yi used seven Swift Body Talismans to help the group pass through the wind belt safely, then drew lots to decide who would leave first and who would maintain the array. He was chosen to go with the first ten, while Gong Xiuhua and Qiu Dao Ming stayed behind as the group charged toward the edge of Gale Force Canyon.

• Gong Xiuhua suggested that Xu Yi should be the first to leave the wind belt because he had done so much for the group.
• Xu Yi asked Yang Jun how many people could leave at once, and Yang Jun said the formation could send out ten while he stayed behind to control it.
• Xu Yi offered six Swift Body Talismans to the others in exchange for spirit stones, and the group contributed twenty-three stones while several promised to pay later.
• Xu Yi arranged a lottery to choose who would leave first, and the draw excluded him while selecting Gong Xiuhua and Qiu Dao Ming to stay behind.
• Xu Yi distributed the talismans, and Yang Jun shifted the array so ten people led the way while seven maintained the formation behind them.

Xu Yi and the other candidates completed the first trial and gathered on the cliff, where they recovered and received their team rewards. A green-robed man announced that passing the upcoming second trial would make them Star Clerks, then explained its scoring rules.

• Xu Yi finished the race among the last arrivals and received no first-place reward, while the first ten candidates each earned one hundred points.
• The candidates rested on their cushions, and Xu Yi recovered by eating, drinking, and meditating with the Still Water Art.
• After all five prefectures arrived, the Huaixi candidates thanked Xu Yi for leading them, and he urged them to recover for the next trial.
• The green-robed man announced that candidates who passed the second trial would meet the Official Recorder and become Star Clerks.
• Gong Xiuhua explained the Official Recorder's role, and the green-robed man stated that the second trial would award points to the first ten finishers and the strongest team.

Xu Yi and the Huaixi Prefecture team began the second trial by climbing an apparently endless staircase that grew more oppressive with every step. When the red staircase began disappearing behind them, the team realized that stopping to rest could leave them stranded.

• The green-robed elder conjured five colored stairways and announced that contestants could withdraw before the dangerous second trial began.
• Xu Yi followed Gong Xiuhua, Qiu Dao Ming, Yang Jun, and the others up the Huaixi Prefecture staircase, where a restriction after the hundredth step slowed their movement.
• Xu Yi urged the team to stay together and climb steadily, then helped a green-clothed woman back to her feet when her legs gave way.
• Fei Si suggested resting, but Yang Jun and Xu Yi argued that the staircase was testing their resolve and that they should keep climbing.
• Qiu Dao Ming questioned why the team could not rest, and the green-clothed woman pointed out that the red staircase was rapidly disappearing behind them.

Xu Yi kept the exhausted group moving up the vanishing steps and rescued three companions who had collapsed. He left them resting and continued climbing, while Gong Xiuhua tried to help and Xu Yi realized he might be able to use his soul sense instead of moving himself.

• After Young Master Zhang saw someone swept into Gale Force Canyon, Xu Yi calmed the group, estimated how many steps remained, and ordered everyone to replenish their strength.
• Xu Yi led the group onward, but Fei Si, Li Tong, and Qu Ying collapsed from exhaustion, forcing him to call a rest.
• Xu Yi gave Qu Ying water and meat, then revived Fei Si and fed him while continuing toward Li Tong.
• Fei Si reconsidered his resentment toward Xu Yi after Xu Yi went out of his way to save him.
• When Gong Xiuhua tried to get up and help, Xu Yi ordered her back, then realized he could try using his soul sense to control things from where he stood.

Xu Yi discovered that soul sense could move people through the staircase’s oppressive barriers, allowing the Huaixi team to cross safely and reach the cliffside. The teams from Huainan and Huaibei arrived with heavy losses as everyone rested and awaited the next trial.

• Xu Yi used soul sense to pour water over Li Tong and realized it could move objects freely through the obstructed area.
• Xu Yi organized the group to carry one another with soul sense, and all seventeen crossed the remaining staircase without effort.
• The Huaixi team landed at the cliffside, where Chen Xuan provoked them and Qiu Dao Ming countered by pointing out their superior survival and scores.
• Xu Yi told the group to stop arguing and recover while they waited for the next trial.
• The Huainan team arrived with only ten survivors, followed by the Huaibei team with only six.

Xu Yi and the surviving candidates passed the second trial and arrived at Immortal Pointing Hall, where a Water Qilin attacked them on the rainbow bridge. Xu Yi stopped the beast by offering it spirit stones, leaving the candidates in danger as it devoured them.

• Xu Yi rested, reflected on Xia Zimo, Qiu Wa, Xue Zihan, and Yan Zi, and decided he would need Elder Qin's help finding a Dark Mountain leading to Great Yue.
• The man in the green robe announced that the candidates had passed the second trial and explained that the Huaizhong Prefecture candidates had died pursuing immortality.
• The man in the green robe opened a golden portal, and the candidates entered it and arrived at a vast square before Immortal Pointing Hall.
• As the candidates crossed the rainbow bridge, a Green Eyes Golden Pupils Water Qilin rose from the turquoise gorge and unleashed a torrent upon them.
• Xu Yi resisted the attack and offered the Water Qilin over a hundred spirit stones, which it eagerly swallowed.

Xu Yi and the other civil examination candidates reached Immortal Pointing Hall, where Lord Lu announced a final trial and explained the consequences of withdrawing. The candidates were given thirty breaths to decide whether to continue or register as officials.

• The Water Qilin carried Xu Yi across the rainbow bridge, then let the other candidates cross after receiving spirit stones.
• Xu Yi and the surviving candidates entered Immortal Pointing Hall and took their places among the examination groups.
• Xu Yi noticed that Huaixi Prefecture had lost only one candidate, while Huaizhong Prefecture's row was empty and the Central Three Prefectures had full ranks.
• Lord Lu arrived and told the candidates that they could either attempt one final trial or withdraw and register as officials.
• Lord Lu warned that those who withdrew would be sent to remote regions without promotion for ten years, then gave everyone thirty breaths to decide.

Xu Yi and the remaining examinees learned that the third imperial examination trial required them to hunt sea demons in the Abundant Sea Market. After receiving scoring rules and Demon Spotting Bottles, they prepared to enter the dangerous sea.

• Qu Ying, Fei Si, Li Tong, and Xue Chun left the examination, thanking Xu Yi for his help.
• Lord Lu distributed booklets explaining that the third trial was to collect demon cores in the Abundant Sea Market, a sea enclosure in the Sea of Forgetfulness.
• A blue-robed welcoming envoy reassured the frightened examinees that the Road Court had monitored the market and sent the Huai character faction toward its destination.
• The envoy gave each examinee a Demon Spotting Bottle and explained how demon colors identified their strength and how cores earned points.
• Xu Yi judged that he could fight a Mid-stage Tongyu Realm demon with his current cultivation.

Xu Yi reunited all thirteen members of Huaixi Prefecture in the Abundant Sea Market and organized them to hunt demons in smaller groups. He chose to hunt alone while the others drew lots to form three teams.

• Xu Yi entered the Abundant Sea Market, landed alone on a beach, and flew east to search for his teammates.
• Xu Yi found Zhang Shaodong and other Huaixi Prefecture members, who described the market's boundary and helped him locate the rest of the group.
• Xu Yi reunited all thirteen Huaixi Prefecture members and proposed splitting into small teams to hunt separately.
• Gong Xiuhua objected to Xu Yi hunting alone and demanded to join his team, but Xu Yi insisted on deciding the arrangements.
• Xu Yi chose to hunt alone and had the other twelve members draw lots to form three teams.

Xu Yi organized the Huaixi cultivators’ hunt but chose not to kill demons himself, then hosted a feast after the squads returned with monster cores. Their celebration was interrupted by a hostile group that attacked Gong Xiuhua, and the chapter ended as Scarface was struck by golden light and Gong Xiuhua was hurled away by a giant hand.

• Xu Yi gave each squad voice-transmission beads, urged them to prioritize survival, and set a daily meeting time before the groups split up to hunt.
• Xu Yi stayed on the beach and slept in a birch tree rather than join the hunt because he could not bring himself to kill intelligent demons.
• At the evening gathering, Qiu Dao Ming, Yang Jun, and Gong Xiuhua reported their squads’ kills, while Xu Yi pretended to have brought back one monster core.
• Xu Yi warned the others not to hunt at night and organized a beach feast of grilled sea demon meat and chilled wine.
• More than thirty people surrounded the group, and Scarface threatened Gong Xiuhua over a monster core and mocked him.
• Gong Xiuhua attacked Scarface with the Abusive Demon Blade, but golden light pierced Scarface’s chest as a huge hand seized and flung Gong Xiuhua away.

Xu Yi drove Song Xitian’s group away after defeating and humiliating their leader, then followed a mysterious tug into the underwater Demon Domain. There, he heard a familiar voice and discovered that Fierce Rhinoceros was nearby.

• Xu Yi learned that Scarface’s group had feuded with Gong Xiuhua’s team over demon cores and challenged Song Xitian.
• Xu Yi’s Immortal Slaying Spear wounded Scarface, and Xu Yi punched Song Xitian into a bonfire before mocking him until he fled.
• Gong Xiuhua slashed Scarface again, and the gathered teams dispersed for the night.
• The next morning, Xu Yi followed a growing tug south until an invisible barrier forced him beneath the sea.
• Xu Yi rode a Dragon Swordfish through the water, and Fierce Rhinoceros recognized him by voice.

Xu Yi communicated with Fierce Rhinoceros, learned that the Golden Scale Young Master had gone missing, and agreed to look for him. He found a golden cage imprisoning a great demon and tried to convince its suspicious occupant to make a bet.

• Xu Yi and Fierce Rhinoceros explained how they could communicate, and Fierce Rhinoceros asked him to find the missing Golden Scale Young Master.
• Fierce Rhinoceros described the Sea of Forgetfulness's hierarchy and assured Xu Yi that the human fishing ground was too insignificant to provoke trouble.
• After they parted, Xu Yi swam alone through the sea, searching for the Golden Scale Young Master.
• Xu Yi discovered a golden cage that held its own enclosed space and entered it to question the imprisoned great demon.
• The great demon accused Xu Yi of killing its kin, so Xu Yi proposed a bet to prove he had come alone and meant no harm.