Chapter Summaries

After two years in the Eighty-seventh Branch, Zhang Qingyuan perfected the design of the Great Evolution Technique and advanced to the peak of the True Essence Sixth Layer. With the three-year deadline and Outer Sect Grand Competition approaching, he went to the Hall of Enlightenment to complete the technique’s final step.

• Zhang Qingyuan studied cultivation Jade Slips and drew inspiration from a Splitting Spirit Secret Technique to improve the Great Evolution Technique.
• Zhang Qingyuan taught Lu Yunxi and the other Separate Courtyard Disciples while bringing the Great Evolution Technique to a state he considered flawless.
• Zhang Qingyuan reached the True Essence Sixth Layer Peak and sensed growing unrest within the Cloud Water Sect.
• Zhang Qingyuan planned to fulfill his agreement with Master Lu and then travel to the South Sea.
• Zhang Qingyuan left the Eighty-seventh Branch and arrived at the Hall of Enlightenment, where the aged attendant gave him a complicated look.

Zhang Qingyuan used his final chance at the Enlightenment Secret Chamber to perfect the Great Evolution Technique. Meanwhile, a Core Disciple plotted to obtain the Water Sword Immortal’s inheritance from the aging cultivator, and Zhang Qingyuan emerged from ten days of meditation with his technique complete.

• The old cultivator let Zhang Qingyuan into the Enlightenment Secret Chamber and privately hoped he could unravel the secret of the worn Jade Slip.
• Zhang Qingyuan studied the Enlightenment Stone and refined the Great Evolution Technique, reflecting on how its deductions differed from the Stone’s insight.
• The old cultivator destroyed a Messaging Talisman from the white-robed Core Disciple, who grew furious that the cultivator would not hand over the Water Sword Immortal’s inheritance.
• After Tianlie suggested targeting the old cultivator’s descendants or inheritors, the Core Disciple ordered his followers to investigate everyone the old cultivator had met.
• Ten days later, Zhang Qingyuan opened his eyes, delighted that his work on the Great Evolution Technique had succeeded.

After creating the Great Evolution Technique, Zhang Qingyuan completed his ten days of cultivation in the Hall of Enlightenment. Gatekeeper Wu Zhengzong gave him a Jade Slip he had guarded for nearly two hundred years, then left the Hall of Enlightenment for good.

• Zhang Qingyuan realized the Great Evolution Technique would help him absorb cultivation knowledge and advance across many fields.
• The Hall of Enlightenment's ten-day period ended, and the Teleportation Array transported Zhang Qingyuan out of the Secret Chamber.
• Wu Zhengzong called Zhang Qingyuan back and gave him a Jade Slip left by a sect ancestor.
• Wu Zhengzong revealed his name after Zhang Qingyuan thanked him and promised to remember his kindness.
• After Zhang Qingyuan departed, Wu Zhengzong felt freed from his long obsession with the Jade Slip and walked out into the sunlight.

Zhang Qingyuan reflected on Wu Zhengzong’s disappearance and kept the elder’s sealed Jade Slip, which he could not yet access. After Lu Yunxi won the Eighty-Seventh Branch competition, Zhang Qingyuan prepared to leave for the South Sea and visit his Lineage.

• Zhang Qingyuan learned that Wu Zhengzong had disappeared and reflected on how even renowned cultivators were forgotten with time.
• Zhang Qingyuan found that Wu Zhengzong’s Jade Slip blocked his inspection until he reached the True Essence Ninth Layer or met other qualifications, so he stored it away.
• Zhang Qingyuan decided to apply for a Pioneering Order and return to the South Sea after the Outer Sect Grand Competition, and planned to visit his Lineage along the way.
• Lu Yunxi won first place in the Eighty-Seventh Branch competition, and the thirty disciples after her qualified for the Inner Sect Grand Competition.

Tianlie and the young man in white pressured the Wu Clan Leader to reveal what he knew about Wu Zhengzong, who had severed ties with the clan centuries earlier. Wu San disclosed that Wu Zhengzong had mentioned Zhang Qingyuan, leaving the visitors with a possible lead and Wu San planning to flee with his family.

• The Wu Clan Leader explained that Wu Zhengzong had left the clan after being mistreated and had never returned or shared his whereabouts.
• Tianlie used his pressure to force the Wu Clan Leader to his knees and threatened the clan when he insisted he knew nothing.
• The Wu Clan Leader brought in Wu San and demanded that he reveal what he knew about Wu Zhengzong.
• Wu San explained that Wu Zhengzong had kept him close and guided him because he was descended from Wu Zhengzong's younger half-sister.
• Wu San told the visitors that Wu Zhengzong had mentioned Zhang Qingyuan, then secretly resolved to leave with his mother and younger brother.

A white-robed Core Disciple identified Zhang Qingyuan as the likely holder of a valuable jade slip and decided to approach him, despite recognizing the risks of antagonizing a prodigy. At the Outer Sect Grand Competition, Zhang Qingyuan reunited with Wang Yuènián and sensed something troubling among the deputy peak masters.

• The white-robed youth concluded that Zhang Qingyuan was the person connected to the jade slip and asked Yang Tianlie about his strength.
• Yang Tianlie warned that Zhang Qingyuan was powerful, but the white-robed youth decided to investigate him and later speak with him.
• The white-robed youth resolved to obtain the jade slip, believing Zhang Qingyuan was vulnerable and that the timing was favorable.
• Zhang Qingyuan attended the Outer Sect Grand Competition and met Wang Yuènián, who introduced him to several deputy peak masters.
• Zhang Qingyuan sensed an uneasy atmosphere among the deputy peak masters and wondered whether he should leave before trouble began.

After the Outer Sect Grand Competition, Zhang Qingyuan left the Eighty-seventh Branch after seven of its disciples, including Lu Yunxi, entered the Inner Sect. He secured approval from the Mystic Water Peak Master to travel to the South Sea and open new lands, leaving the Cloud Water Sect as its atmosphere unsettled.

• Seven disciples from Zhang Qingyuan's Eighty-seventh Branch entered the Inner Sect, including Lu Yunxi.
• Zhang Qingyuan held a celebration and gave the disciples a final lecture before deciding to leave the branch.
• Zhang Qingyuan packed his belongings in his Jade Storage Bracelet and returned to the sect gate to turn in his Dean assignment, receiving an additional reward for his teaching results.
• Zhang Qingyuan visited the Mystic Water Peak Master and requested a mission to open new lands in the South Sea.
• The Mystic Water Peak Master approved Zhang Qingyuan's request and offered sect support, but gave him a meaningful look that left him puzzled.

Zhang Qingyuan left the sect for the South Sea after receiving the Town Origin Cauldron, detouring to visit the Zhang Family and settle his ties to his former body. On the way, Shen Jiliang and two companions blocked his path to demand a Jade Slip, and Zhang Qingyuan prepared to fight.

• The Mystic Water Peak Master approved Zhang Qingyuan's departure and gave him the Town Origin Cauldron.
• Zhang Qingyuan left Mystic Water Peak and flew toward Huainan Prefecture to visit the Zhang Family and seek its inherited secret techniques.
• Zhang Qingyuan sensed an ambush in the mountains, and Shen Jiliang, a Divine Fire Peak Core Disciple, appeared with Yang Tianlie and a high-crowned Daoist.
• Shen Jiliang demanded that Zhang Qingyuan return the Jade Slip Wu Zhengzong had given him and threatened to beat him into submission.
• Zhang Qingyuan rejected Shen Jiliang's demand as theft and unleashed his True Essence Aura.

Zhang Qingyuan faced Shen Jiliang, whose True Essence Seventh Layer cultivation and fiery attack seemed to give him the advantage. Zhang Qingyuan answered with his newly advanced Four Seas Suppressing Heaven Palm, leaving their clash unresolved.

• Zhang Qingyuan unleashed the aura of a True Essence Sixth Layer Peak cultivator, astonishing the High Crowned Daoist and Yang Tianlie with its strength.
• The High Crowned Daoist and Yang Tianlie discussed Zhang Qingyuan's potential and judged Shen Jiliang the likely favorite because of his higher cultivation.
• Shen Jiliang attacked with a vast river of Flame True Essence and declared that he would teach Zhang Qingyuan a lesson.
• Zhang Qingyuan suspected Shen Jiliang knew about his past tempering and South Sea training, but focused on the battle.
• Zhang Qingyuan countered Shen Jiliang with the Four Seas Suppressing Heaven Palm, a technique he had advanced after comprehending Water Sword Intent.

Zhang Qingyuan and Shen Jiliang fought a destructive battle across the sky and wilderness, with neither gaining the upper hand. As Zhang Qingyuan mocked Shen Jiliang for failing to defeat him, Shen Jiliang grew enraged and prepared to use his hidden ultimate move.

• Shen Jiliang and Zhang Qingyuan's opening attacks collided, producing a massive explosion that left Shen Jiliang surprised by Zhang Qingyuan's Water Momentum.
• Shen Jiliang launched a fierce series of attacks, but Zhang Qingyuan countered with the Heaven-Shattering Finger of Qiankun and evaded a flame beam with his movement skill.
• Zhang Qingyuan appeared behind Shen Jiliang and struck with an azure palm seal, forcing Shen Jiliang to block with a backhanded punch.
• The two battled across the sky and ground, devastating the wilderness while Yang Tianlie and the High Crowned Daoist retreated and watched in shock.
• Zhang Qingyuan taunted Shen Jiliang for failing to defeat him and said the battle had improved his control over his strength.
• Humiliated and enraged, Shen Jiliang vowed to show no mercy and prepared to use his hidden ultimate move.

Zhang Qingyuan revealed his mastery of Fire Momentum and defeated Shen Jiliang with a devastating sword strike. Shen Jiliang lay severely injured and unable to resist as Zhang Qingyuan looked down at him.

• Zhang Qingyuan mocked Shen Jiliang and transformed the surrounding water vapor into a vast sea of flames.
• Shen Jiliang refused to believe Zhang Qingyuan had truly mastered Fire Momentum and dismissed it as an illusion.
• Zhang Qingyuan formed a flaming sword and unleashed Spark Burns Nine Heavens at Shen Jiliang.
• Shen Jiliang tried to block the attack with a wheel of fire, but Zhang Qingyuan's strike blasted him into a crater and left him severely injured.
• Zhang Qingyuan told Shen Jiliang that he had disappointed him.

Zhang Qingyuan defeated Shen Jiliang, took his Storage Bag, and questioned Yang Tianlie about the Huainan Zhang Family’s troubles. Yang Tianlie warned that hidden forces might be behind the family’s conflict, leaving Zhang Qingyuan facing a more complicated situation than he had expected.

• Zhang Qingyuan spared the unconscious Shen Jiliang, took his Storage Bag, and ordered the High Crowned Daoist to keep him alive.
• Zhang Qingyuan brought Yang Tianlie aside and asked why he had become Shen Jiliang’s underling.
• Yang Tianlie said his future Dao Path and family interests had left him with little choice.
• Zhang Qingyuan asked Yang Tianlie about the Huainan Zhang Family’s severe injuries and learned that a stronger family had driven them into decline.
• Yang Tianlie warned that the conflict might involve forces operating behind the scenes.

While traveling toward Huainan Prefecture, Zhang Qingyuan examined Shen Jiliang’s Storage Bag and discovered a fortune that included Heavenly One Divine Water. The treasure could help him break through the Fifth Layer of the One Origin Gui Water Scripture, and Zhang Qingyuan continued his journey with it in his possession.

• After asking Yang Tianlie about the Huainan Zhang Family, Zhang Qingyuan left and continued toward Huainan Prefecture by Sword Flight.
• Zhang Qingyuan found five thousand Mid-grade Spirit Stones and other valuable materials and supplies in Shen Jiliang’s Storage Bag.
• Zhang Qingyuan discovered Heavenly One Divine Water and believed its Water Element law could help him advance the One Origin Gui Water Scripture to the Fifth Layer.
• Zhang Qingyuan realized Shen Jiliang had likely intended the Heavenly One Divine Water and other valuables as gifts for an important Core Disciple.
• Zhang Qingyuan kept the treasure, since Shen Jiliang had attacked him first and could not defeat him.

Wang Laoshi found a Vermillion Fruit but gave it away as a gift at a lavish Zhang Clan banquet celebrating a prodigy’s rise to fame. He secretly packed Spirit Rice to take home for his son, leaving with an exaggerated impression of the Zhang Clan prodigy’s power.

• Wang Laoshi found a Vermillion Fruit guarded by a beast with Demonic Qi and decided to save it for his seven-year-old son, Tie Dan, to help him achieve Successful Enlightenment.
• Wang Laoshi’s in-laws told him that a Zhang Clan prodigy had joined the Cloud Water Sect and urged him to attend the county celebration with a gift.
• Wang Laoshi reluctantly presented the Vermillion Fruit to the Zhang Clan and was surprised when the clan welcomed visiting cultivators of every rank to a lavish banquet.
• Wang Laoshi ate Spirit Rice and Monster Beast Meat Spirit Food, then secretly packed three Jade Boxes with Spirit Rice to take home for his son.
• Wang Laoshi imagined the Zhang Clan prodigy as a Heavenly Emperor-like figure capable of dominating Huashan County.

Zhang Qingyuan returned to the Zhang Clan, where the Clan Leader held a grand banquet to welcome him and display the family’s strength. After the celebrations ended, Zhang Qingyuan paid respects to his parents’ grave and felt a burden within him lift.

• Zhang Qingyuan told the Clan Leader that the banquet welcoming him was too extravagant, but agreed to let it continue.
• The Clan Leader apologized for arranging the celebration without consulting Zhang Qingyuan, who accepted that the Zhang Clan was using his reputation to deter its enemies.
• Zhang Qingyuan spent several days resting and studying the Heavenly One Divine Water as he planned to advance the One Origin Gui Water Scripture.
• After the banquet ended and Huashan City quieted down, Zhang Qingyuan visited his parents’ grave and offered incense.
• Zhang Qingyuan recalled the past before the grave, then felt something within him dissipate and his heart grow lighter.

The Second Boss of Lianyun Stockade led a massacre of an An Family merchant caravan and returned with its goods. Back at the stockade, the Strategist warned King Lianyun, Li Hongbo, to be wary of the Zhang Clan’s returning prodigy, but the Second Boss dismissed the rumors and threatened to kill him.

• The Second Boss broke the caravan’s formation, killed its steward, and ordered his bandits to slaughter the survivors.
• The bandits seized the caravan’s goods and returned through the mountains to Lianyun Stockade.
• The Strategist told King Lianyun, Li Hongbo, that the An Family belonged to the Zhang Clan and warned that the Zhang Clan’s prodigy was expected to return soon.
• The Second Boss dismissed the prodigy’s reported strength and vowed to kill him if he came to Lianyun Stockade.

King Lianyun Li Hongbo and his subordinates discussed Zhang Qingyuan’s growing reputation and decided to avoid provoking him while he remained nearby. Li Hongbo privately worried that Zhang Qingyuan’s arrival had disrupted a secret mission and waited for guidance from his powerful backer.

• The Second Boss dismissed claims about Zhang Qingyuan’s strength as an exaggeration spread by the Zhang Clan of Huashan County.
• The Strategist urged caution, but Li Hongbo agreed with the Second Boss that rumors about Zhang Qingyuan were likely inflated.
• Li Hongbo reminded his men that the Lianyun Stockade had become a regional power under his leadership and warned that the Cloud Water Sect could retaliate if provoked.
• Li Hongbo ordered the stockade to keep a low profile until Zhang Qingyuan left, after which they could resume their usual activities.
• Li Hongbo privately reflected that Zhang Qingyuan’s arrival had disrupted the secret mission he had pursued for decades and wondered why his backer had not replied.

Zhang Qingyuan destroyed Lianyun Stockade with a single sword strike and confronted Li Hongbo, revealing that he had come to avenge his parents. He attacked the last three survivors, leaving their fate in the balance.

• Li Hongbo ordered his men to monitor Zhang Qingyuan and planned to conquer the surrounding counties once Zhang Qingyuan left Huashan County.
• As Li Hongbo and his men celebrated their plans, Zhang Qingyuan’s sword strike shattered Lianyun Great Hall and reduced the stockade to ruins.
• Zhang Qingyuan arrived through the air and asked Li Hongbo to identify himself.
• Zhang Qingyuan explained that Lianyun Stockade’s men had killed his parents and declared that he had come to take the heads of everyone there.
• Zhang Qingyuan told Li Hongbo and the two other survivors to die, then swung his sword at them.

Zhang Qingyuan destroyed Lianyun Stockade’s hall and killed the Strategist and Second Boss, while Li Hongbo survived behind a Golden Light shield and claimed he served a True Essence Eighth Layer expert. Zhang Qingyuan struck Li Hongbo anyway, just as a thunderous voice called from the horizon for him to hold his hand.

• Zhang Qingyuan’s Sword Momentum shattered the hall and killed the Strategist and Second Boss, but Li Hongbo’s Golden Light shield withstood the strike.
• Li Hongbo begged Zhang Qingyuan to spare him and said an important figure had ordered him to establish Lianyun Stockade.
• Zhang Qingyuan asked who the important figure was, and Li Hongbo refused to reveal the identity while claiming the figure was a True Essence Eighth Layer expert.
• Zhang Qingyuan slashed through Li Hongbo’s weakened shield and cut toward his neck.
• A powerful voice rang out from the distant horizon, ordering Zhang Qingyuan to hold his hand.

Zhang Qingyuan killed Li Hongbo before the True Essence Eighth Layer cultivator who had come to intervene could stop him. He agreed to take three moves from the cultivator and withstood the first two, leaving his opponent shaken by his strength.

• Zhang Qingyuan killed Li Hongbo, destroying both his body and Divine Soul before the middle-aged Daoist cultivator arrived.
• The cultivator accused Zhang Qingyuan of killing Li Hongbo, his Named Disciple, and demanded that Zhang withstand three moves to settle the matter.
• Zhang Qingyuan met the cultivator’s first seal attack with a sword strike and held his ground after their collision.
• The cultivator’s second move formed a massive earth-yellow hand, and Zhang Qingyuan countered with the Sword-Drawing Heaven-Slaying Technique, retreating only two steps.
• The middle-aged cultivator realized that Zhang Qingyuan had withstood one of his strongest attacks despite being two cultivation layers below him, and fear arose in his heart.