Chapter Summaries

At a Pingzhou Road manor, slaves and Tiger Demons were forced to prepare for the harvest under tight guard. One Tiger Demon suddenly self-destructed with devastating force, killing everyone within ten zhang and revealing power far beyond an ordinary Demon Race member.

• The manor’s Second Master oversaw the distribution of porridge, tea, and sickles to the slaves before sending them to work.
• The Second Master gave the overseer captain a token that controlled the formations in the slaves’ shackles.
• A Tiger Demon fixed the overseer captain with blood-red, hateful eyes as the tools were being distributed.
• The Tiger Demon charged past the men trying to stop him and self-destructed, blasting everyone within ten zhang into scraps.

Emperor Yuanding responded to the growing Pingzhou Road rebellion by ordering Imperial Guard troops south, while Yang Kui plotted to exploit the coming military deployment and sacrificial ceremony. The story left Yang Kui’s plan for the Demon Race army poised to unfold.

• Leng Kezhen reported that rebels south of Pingzhou Road had gathered more than twenty thousand armored troops and millions of slaves.
• Jiang Cun told Emperor Yuanding that the Grand Council had ordered Feng Wei to gather troops and planned to send thirty thousand Prefectural Army soldiers from Qingpu Road.
• Emperor Yuanding ordered an Imperial Guard unit to station south of the Nong River and sent Xia Shen to visit Duke Dingguo and Duke Zhenguo.
• Yang Kui urged Niu Zhen and the Demon Race officers to seize the chance to build power while the Imperial Court fought the rebels.
• Yang Kui predicted that the Qingpu Road Prefectural Army would be defeated and explained that the Demon Race could exploit the Bingguan garrison’s sacrificial ceremony.

Yang Kui persuaded Niu Zhen and the Demon Race generals to support a revolt while the Realm was in chaos, though Niu Zhen worried about the bloodshed and his lord’s position. In Jinhuai Prefecture, Zuo Xuan discussed how to handle Mozhou Road’s rebellions as Lord Xiaoshan’s golden bodies were prepared across the Six Hearts Sect’s territory.

• Yang Kui outlined a plan to use the Imperial Court’s forces and the Realm’s political turmoil to help the Demon Race strike at True Sun Mountain, and the generals applauded.
• After Yang Kui left, Niu Zhen and the Tiger Demon discussed the uprising, the artifact beneath Guest Pass, Niu Yi, and recent movements in the Southern Four Routes.
• Lord Xiaoshan’s order led cities across the Six Hearts Sect’s territory to gather funds and materials for golden bodies, while cultivators suppressed unrest in Mozhou Road.
• Gan Xing and Wu Quan argued over whether to deploy troops from the Southern Four Routes to Mozhou Road, with Wu Quan warning that local factions and hidden enemies could exploit the intervention.
• Gan Xing and Wu Quan suggested that the chaos could help them trace First Day and the Taiyin Evil Cultivator, then turned to Zuo Xuan for her decision.

Zuo Xuan assigned Gan Xing and Wu Quan to carry out Wang Ping’s operations against Daoist Hengle’s network and Guan Mao’s line, while Wen Hai and Li Lin uncovered links between Yu Min, the Provincial Governor’s Yamen, and several cases of corruption. The chapter ended as He Jiu reported that their scouts watching the Yamen had been discovered.

• Zuo Xuan gave Gan Xing and Wu Quan Wang Ping’s orders to target Daoist Hengle’s network and Guan Mao’s connections, and they agreed to act within half a year.
• Wen Hai told Zuo Xuan that undercover agents on Mozhou Road led back to the Provincial Governor’s Yamen on Nanlin Road.
• Li Lin connected the investigation into Ning’an Prefecture’s sacrificial ritual with Yu Min, who had taken control of Yongsui Prefecture, and described the persistent land contamination found in Ganhua County.
• Wen Hai and Li Lin traced a merchant caravan’s meeting with a Provincial Governor’s Yamen warehouse commissioner and its delivery of herbs to Yu Min.
• Li Lin suspected several factions, including the Taiyin Sect and First Day, were linked to the unrest on Mozhou Road.
• He Jiu arrived and told Zuo Xuan that their scouts watching the Provincial Governor’s Yamen had been discovered.

After a suspected Warehouse Bureau target and Governor Li Xiangxiang both died by suicide, Zuo Xuan moved to secure the Provincial Governor's Yamen and investigate the growing crisis. The chapter ended with Wen Hai revealing that grain depots near Jinhuai Prefecture were nearly empty, while no one knew how the harvest had fared.

• He Jiu reported that the Warehouse Bureau target had taken poison and killed himself, and Zuo Liang then reported that Governor Li Xiangxiang had hanged himself.
• Zuo Xuan ordered the Provincial Governor's Yamen searched and placed under guard, then went to the Daoist Scripture Hall as news arrived that rebels had occupied Pingzhou Road's provincial capital.
• Zuo Xuan summoned Lord Liu and arranged to send three thousand prefectural troops to Mozhou Road, ostensibly to help suppress the rebels and also to investigate the incident.
• Wen Hai and He Jiu reported that another suspect had died by suicide and that grain depots near Jinhuai Prefecture were almost empty.
• Zuo Xuan asked about regional harvest yields, but no one in the Daoist Scripture Hall knew.

Wen Hai’s investigation revealed severe crop failures and depleted granaries across Nanlin Road and Mozhou Road, leaving Zuo Xuan to prepare for mass refugees and a worsening food crisis. As Li Lin reported that contaminated corpses had caused crop failures and plague in Mozhou Road, Zuo Liang arrived with a military dispatch.

• Wen Hai inspected rice fields near Jinhuai Prefecture City and learned that farmers faced poor harvests and depended on government porridge sheds.
• Wen Hai presented Zuo Xuan with reports showing that Mozhou Road had suffered near-total crop failure across most of the region and warning that refugee numbers could greatly exceed those of previous years.
• Zuo Xuan ordered Yu Min executed and assigned Wen Hai to accompany the army to Yongsui Prefecture to stop refugees from Mozhou Road.
• Zuo Xuan sent letters to the Pacification Commissioners of Haizhou Road, Mozhou Road, and Ningzhou Road, then planned secret grain-buying caravans to Linshui Prefecture.
• Li Lin told Zuo Xuan that contamination in Nanlin Road was light and covert, while contaminated corpses in Mozhou Road had caused crop failures and plague.
• Zuo Liang arrived at Zuo Xuan’s doorway with a military dispatch brought back by a spy.

Zuo Xuan ordered measures to contain the crop contamination as famine spread across Nanlin Road and Mozhou Road. At Shoutai Mountain, Wen Hai learned that contaminated grain had transformed people into stronger, short-lived beings just as uncontrolled spiritual power erupted nearby.

• Zuo Xuan reviewed reports of the northern rebellion and ordered contaminated land treated with the old methods and wood-element formations while officials tied to the failure were arrested.
• A month later, the first grain shipment from Linshui Prefecture arrived at Shang'an Prefecture as famine worsened across the two roads.
• Wen Hai and Liu Tong learned that mutated rebels were attacking a checkpoint near Jade Lake and went to examine a captured man.
• A Daoist Scripture Hall practitioner explained that contaminated grain had created a substance in the victims' bodies that increased their strength but consumed their vitality, leaving them no more than five years to live.
• Wen Hai compared the mutations to the sacrificial captains protecting the imperial family, and uncontrolled spiritual power erupted ahead beneath the Clouds.

Wen Hai and two reinforcements disrupted a Taiyin Cultivators’ operation on a contaminated mountain, but a Third Realm Artifact Cultivator forced them to retreat. Liu Huaien followed that cultivator to a forest near Changwen Prefecture and told Wang Bing he had found a lead on Daoist Hengle, leaving Wang Bing worried about disturbing Wang Ping in secluded cultivation.

• Wen Hai and the reinforcements found commoners digging up strange fruits on a contaminated mountain while black-skinned patrolmen cooked human flesh.
• Wen Hai split the mountain with his giant tower, exposing Netherworld Aura and forcing two Taiyin Cultivators to emerge.
• A Third Realm Artifact Cultivator arrived, prompting Wen Hai and his companions to flee; the Artifact Cultivator punished one Taiyin Cultivator for acting recklessly.
• Liu Huaien secretly followed the Artifact Cultivator to a dead forest, then went to Changwen Prefecture and told Wang Bing that Daoist Hengle’s associates were suspicious.
• Liu Huaien urged Wang Bing to inform Wang Ping about the lead, but Wang Bing hesitated because Wang Ping was in secluded cultivation with Lord Xiaoshan.

As the Six Hearts Sect remained sealed while Wang Ping and others refined a formation, a puppet bird bearing Daoist Changqing’s aura arrived with news from outside. Zhao Yu'er brought it toward the secluded cultivators, but a young man instructed her to release it at a designated time so it could fly to Daoist Changqing itself.

• The Imperial Court’s recruitment orders curbed unrest, but a Demon Race living sacrifice killed a commanding general and twelve Captains at the Bingguan garrison.
• A puppet bird entered the Six Hearts Sect despite the guards’ attempts to stop it and was captured in the Inner Sect.
• Zhao Yu'er confirmed the bird carried Daoist Changqing’s aura and decided to take it toward the courtyard Daoist grounds.
• A young man stopped Zhao Yu'er and told her to release the bird at the fourth quarter of the Hour of the Rooster so it could reach Daoist Changqing.
• Zhao Yu'er waited, then released the puppet bird at the appointed time.

During secluded cultivation, Wang Ping received intelligence about the Empty Mountain Association and learned that Southern Sea Daoist had used a powerful demonic mask to reach the Fourth Realm. Lord Xiaoshan suspected the news was bait meant to disrupt his advancement, but decided to respond and said Central Province should make a move.

• Wang Ping raised his Heaven Connecting Talisman fusion progress to 7/100 while refining the formation, and Lord Xiaoshan urged Zi Luan and Xiu Yu to support his cultivation.
• A Puppet bird delivered intelligence from the Empty Mountain Association, and Wang Ping told Lord Xiaoshan everything he knew about it.
• Lord Xiaoshan revealed that Senior Yuxiao had founded the Jimin Association and that the group had once sought to destroy the Empty Mountain Association.
• Lord Xiaoshan explained that Southern Sea Daoist had used the demonic weapon Jia Shang Ling Si, a Mask of Faces said to alter fate and karma, to devour a Fourth Realm true spirit and advance.
• Lord Xiaoshan concluded that the Empty Mountain Association's activity was meant to unsettle his advancement, then decided to take the bait and said Central Province should make a move.

Lord Xiaoshan told Wang Ping that the Yang Family planned to declare independence and ordered him to prepare the northwest clans to make their own move if True Sun Sect did not act. He also required troops raised to quell unrest to build his golden body, then chose war as the simplest way to resolve the Empty Mountain Association matter.

• Lord Xiaoshan showed Wang Ping intelligence that the Yang Family planned to use Yunjiang Road and Pingzhou Road as its base to declare itself king and oppose the Xia Dynasty.
• Lord Xiaoshan explained that the Demon Domain might use the conflict to reclaim Demon Emperor Yaoxi's body and the demonic weapon buried beneath True Sun Mountain.
• Lord Xiaoshan ordered Wang Ping to tell his northwest clansmen that they could declare a title of their own if True Sun Sect did not strike at the Yang Family.
• Lord Xiaoshan praised Zuo Xuan's recruitment effort but ordered that all troops raised to quell unrest follow his name and build him a golden body.
• Lord Xiaoshan decided to settle the Empty Mountain Association matter through war, and Wang Ping sent three messages by Puppet birds before joining the others to refine the formation.

Zhang Xinghuai visited an old Daoist near Shangning City and discussed the political crisis following the Yang Family of Yunzhou Road’s plan to rebuild the imperial court. He decided to join the Jimin Association and meet its Sage.

• Zhang Xinghuai rode from Shangning City to the Daoist temple in the nearby mountains.
• Zhang Xinghuai and the old Daoist discussed his opposition to Central Province’s path and the consequences of declaring an independent title.
• Zhang Xinghuai explained that his Martial Uncle had told him to establish his own title only if the True Sun Sect ignored the Yang Family’s declaration of independence.
• Zhang Xinghuai worried that declaring independence would break his ties with the Imperial Court and Zhonghui Academy.
• Zhang Xinghuai decided to join the Jimin Association and meet its Sage.

Zhang Xinghuai sought to cultivate the Saint's Way, and Ming Kong explained its demands of conviction and balance before beginning the initiation. Zhang Xinghuai's consciousness left his body and entered a radiant hall.

• Zhang Xinghuai asked Ming Kong to help him cultivate the Saint's Way, and Ming Kong revealed that he had once stayed at Vajra Temple.
• Ming Kong explained that the Saint's Way required Zhang Xinghuai to follow his inner Way without wavering and to preserve balance.
• Zhang Xinghuai said he would hold to his greater conviction even if he killed the wrong person, satisfying Ming Kong.
• Ming Kong asked whether Zhang Xinghuai was ready, then touched a brilliant light to the center of his brow.
• Zhang Xinghuai's consciousness drifted away from his body and descended into a radiant grand hall.

Duke Dingguo Zhang Wei’s campaign against the Rebels ended in disaster, allowing them to establish a state and advance toward Capital City as rebellions spread. In the north, Xia Yao and Jiang Cun learned that the northwest army had answered the Rebels’ proclamation, raising questions about Fellow Changqing’s role.

• Duke Dingguo Zhang Wei led an encirclement campaign against the Rebels, but the Imperial Guard was annihilated and Zhang Wei was killed.
• The Rebels founded a state called Unity, issued a proclamation, and advanced to the North Bank of the Nong River while uprisings spread in Beiyuan Road and Jianglin Road.
• The Imperial Court debated the Monster Suppression Division, punished Niu Yi, and then sought help from True Sun Mountain to suppress the rebellions.
• Xia Yao continued cultivating in Cloud Sea City and refused the Grand Secretariat’s request to send border troops to suppress the rebellion.
• Jiang Cun and Xia Yao received word that the northwest army had answered the Rebels’ proclamation, and Jiang Cun wondered whether Fellow Changqing was behind it.

Wang Lian’s rebellion gained control of Shangning and Zhushan, while Zhonghui Academy split into northern and southern factions. At Thousand Wood Temple’s grand competition, Hu Qianqian sensed Liu Shuang advancing to the Second Realm and joined the cultivators gathering to watch over her.

• Wang Lian defeated the Zhushan rebels, accepted Xiyao and Kunpeng’s submission, and swore with them to establish Great Harmony Under Heaven.
• Students at Zhonghui Academy split into northern and southern factions, and a brawl outside Dalin Prefecture City left thirty-two people dead.
• Hu Qianqian heard that Demon Race members had been killed at a Daoist Scripture Hall checkpoint and sent Hu Xin to investigate their identities.
• Hu Qianqian ordered a shrimp soldier to detain the leader of the Disciples seeking to use local waterways to transport medicinal herbs.
• Hu Qianqian arrived at Thousand Wood Temple for its grand competition, sensed Liu Shuang advancing, and met Daoist Yucheng and Daoist Tianshan at Liu Shuang’s Daoist Grounds.
• Wu Quan and Gan Xing arrived at Thousand Wood Temple, prompting Daoist Tianshan to remark that they had come to serve as Hu Qianqian’s bodyguards.

Wen Hai's forces drove off two Taiyin Evil Cultivators near Yongsui Prefecture, but Liu Huaien captured them as they tried to flee. Wu Fu joined Liu Huaien, and they vanished under concealment while the enemy discussed their plans and Daoist Changqing.

• Wen Hai and the cultivators under his command attacked the rebel encampment with lightning, forcing two Taiyin Evil Cultivators to flee south.
• Liu Huaien intercepted the fleeing cultivators, killed their bodies, and sealed their divine souls and consciousness in a bamboo slip.
• Wu Fu arrived and showed Liu Huaien Wang Ping's token, then revealed his ability to suppress Evil Fire's killing intent.
• Liu Huaien concealed himself and Wu Fu beneath the clouds, and they disappeared before the Artifact Cultivator and Guan Mao could track them.
• The Artifact Cultivator decided not to pursue Liu Huaien and Wu Fu, while Guan Mao warned that a Prefect and the Jimin Association could be dangerous.

Liu Huaien and Wu Fu escaped a search in the withered forest, then reached Jinhuai Prefecture City to examine two captured souls. One soul’s memories revealed a scheme to use a Star God core and an enslaved Fourth Realm True Spirit to advance an Artifact Cultivator.

• Liu Huaien warned Wu Fu to stay hidden while a Spirit Wood Puppet searched the forest for traces of them.
• After the puppet left, Liu Huaien and Wu Fu crossed the forest and flew to Jinhuai Prefecture City.
• Liu Huaien told Zuo Xuan that Daoist Guan Mao was still at large and asked her to coordinate the hunt while her forces advanced through Mozhou Road.
• Liu Huaien released a soul from a sealed Five Elements Stone and used Soul Searching Technique to read its memories.
• The soul’s memories showed an underground palace where Artifact Cultivators used a Star God core, Taiyin arrays, and an enslaved Fourth Realm True Spirit in an attempt to reach the Fourth Realm.

Liu Huaien shared intelligence about the Taiyin Evil Cultivators’ plan to advance a Star God core, then urged Zuo Xuan to use her authority boldly. At Thousand Wood Temple, Liu Shuang successfully advanced to the Second Realm but was left overwhelmed by her emotions.

• Liu Huaien shared memories confirming the Taiyin Evil Cultivators planned to advance a Star God core using Mozhou Road’s pollution and captured Fourth Realm True Spirits, then fuse it into an artifact formation.
• Wu Fu judged the plan could succeed but was extremely dangerous, and Liu Huaien urged Zuo Xuan to act decisively while the Prefect was in Secluded Cultivation.
• Zuo Liang reported that Liu Shuang had successfully advanced, drawing cheers and adding prestige to Thousand Wood Temple during the sect competition.
• Liu Shuang sobbed after using the Soul Devouring Art because imagining her master abandoning her had stirred her fear of being left behind.
• Daoist Yucheng found Liu Shuang’s spiritual veins had swollen and told her to stabilize her emotions and refine them before leaving Secluded Cultivation, while Daoist Tianshan asked why she had been crying.

After the southern armies suppressed the rebellion in Mozhou Road, the cultivation world reacted uneasily to Lord Xiaoshan’s spreading influence and Zuo Xuan rewarded those who had served. Meanwhile, beneath a polluted forest, an Artifact Cultivator prepared to advance beside a Star God core as his disciple warned that the palace was no longer safe.

• Green radiance restored most of the Southern Four Routes, and armies from Haizhou Road, Ningzhou Road, and Nanlin Road defeated the rebels in Mozhou Road.
• Liu Shuang and Li Lin recalled their earlier visit to East Stone Mountain before the armies departed and the camp was dismantled.
• Zuo Xuan arranged rewards for those who had rendered meritorious service, promoting Wen Hai and appointing Liu Shuang a senior inspector.
• Pollution worsened beneath an unnamed forest, where an Artifact Cultivator sat beside the Star God core and a Fourth Realm True Spirit remained imprisoned in the ceiling.
• The Third Realm Artifact Cultivator warned his master that the palace might no longer be safe, and Daoist Guan Mao told him to leave while the master attempted his advancement.

Guan Mao and Dong Can escaped through an underground river while discussing a plot against Changqing and Zi Luan. At the nameless forest, the Third Realm cultivators destroyed the area and attacked a palace, where they confronted the elderly Lu Zhengping.

• Guan Mao and Dong Can emerged near Changwen Prefecture, and Dong Can lamented the prejudice he had faced from the major sects.
• Guan Mao urged Dong Can to help eliminate Changqing and Zi Luan, claiming Xiu Yu could be used as an ally.
• Wu Quan lifted the land beneath the nameless forest with the Mountain-Moving Art as Liu Huaien, Wu Fu, and Gan Xing arrived above the enormous pit.
• A crimson sword and golden-armored Corpse Soldiers emerged from a palace and attacked the three cultivators, who fought back with their weapons and powers.
• An old man identified as Lu Zhengping emerged from the palace and began devouring the true spirit held in a black crystal with the Soul Devouring Art.