Chapter Summaries

Wang Ping returned to Thousand Wood Temple, oversaw Shen Xiaozhu's secluded cultivation, and continued his work investigating the Southern Cultivation World. After Yuan Zheng brought him two Earth Dragon Primordial Spirits, strange changes in Heaven and Earth's energy prompted Wang Ping to perform divinations, then begin refining one of the spirits.

• Wang Ping returned to Nanlin Road with Zi Luan and the others, and Shen Xiaozhu entered secluded cultivation to seek advancement to the Second Realm.
• Wang Ping entrusted Mu Yun to Xia Weny and spent the next half year advancing his Primordial Spirit cultivation with the Divine Art Array.
• Yuan Zheng brought Wang Ping two Third Realm Earth Dragon Primordial Spirits and shared what he knew about Cheng Xi's secretive activities.
• Wang Ping sensed a disturbance in Heaven and Earth's energy, received two Sacred Divinations, and went to his underground cavern with Yulian.
• Wang Ping released one Earth Dragon Primordial Spirit, restrained it with a refining formation, and began refining it.

Wang Ping learned to refine faith spirituality into Divine Art Radiance and successfully cast a sword spell after mastering a state of Self-Control. His cultivation was interrupted when Hong Yuan and Qin Zifeng arrived with news that Zi Luan had disappeared.

• Wang Ping decided to continue refining Primordial Spirits while gathering calculation data, then began practicing the second step of Divine Arts cultivation.
• His first attempt to refine faith spirituality failed when he instinctively reacted to its warmth, so he spent months training himself to remain in a state of Self-Control.
• Wang Ping used the Luck Borrowing Talisman to access calculations from his fate array, gaining two calculation data points before the array was destroyed.
• Wang Ping completed a grand Heavenly Cycle, formed Divine Art Radiance, and cast a sword spell that left a mark in the ground.
• Hong Yuan and Qin Zifeng arrived at the Mountain Top Dojo and told Wang Ping that Zi Luan had disappeared.

Wang Ping learned that Zi Luan had disappeared after taking his belongings and disrupting traces of his aura, leaving the Six Hearts Sect and Dao Palace without their leader. With Zi Luan’s plans for the Chu Kingdom Imperial Court now uncertain, Wang Ping moved to take control himself before Spring Festival.

• Hong Yuan and Qin Zifeng told Wang Ping that Zi Luan had vanished the previous year, taking his puppets, artifacts, gold, and stored treasures with him.
• Wang Ping ordered Hong Yuan to maintain stability at the Six Hearts Sect and Dao Palace, and secretly placed Jia Talismans on him and Qin Zifeng before they departed.
• Wang Ping ordered his puppets to monitor Daoist Huai Mo and search for Ming Xin, then summoned Yuan Zheng and Xia Weny to discuss taking control of the Chu Kingdom Imperial Court.
• Wang Ping told Yuan Zheng and Xia Weny that Zi Luan was missing, and Yuan Zheng suspected Zi Luan had disappeared deliberately.
• Wang Ping ordered Xia Weny to arrange a meeting with the Liu Family patriarch and summon every Immortal Realm cultivator in the sect.

Wang Ping considered the risks of pursuing the Fourth Realm and received Leng Kezhen's request to join Thousand Wood Temple. Just as he met Liu Qin, rumors spread that he had ambushed Zi Luan, leaving his allies and the surrounding factions watching his response.

• Wang Ping and Yulian discussed whether to seek refuge at her parents' dwelling in Hushan Kingdom as a possible advancement site.
• Leng Kezhen prostrated himself before Wang Ping and asked to join Thousand Wood Temple, but Wang Ping dismissed him until he decided how to use him.
• Xia Weny brought Liu Qin, the Liu Family's clan head and Wang Ping's descendant, to pay respects to his ancestor.
• Wang Ping received Wu Quan's message that people were accusing him of ambushing Zi Luan, and his Puppets confirmed the rumor had spread through Jinhuai City.
• Yuan Zheng told Wang Ping that Wu Quan had moved to Mozhou Road and that everyone was waiting to see what Wang Ping would do.

Wang Ping mobilized the Liu Family and his allies to prepare for a brewing crisis, then rushed to save Hong Yuan and Qin Zifeng from a large ambush in Five Dao Prefecture. He killed the attackers by severing their life force and returned to the Mountain Top Dojo, where Heaven’s lightning punishment briefly struck him.

• Wang Ping ordered Liu Qin and Xia Weny to act against corrupt court officials and sent Yuan Zheng to inventory supplies.
• Wang Ping told Dong Can to assist Xia Weny and bring Leng Kezhen along, then learned Hong Yuan and Qin Zifeng were under attack.
• Wang Ping located Hong Yuan and Qin Zifeng in Five Dao Prefecture, where Qingjiang helped defend them against multiple Second Realm cultivators.
• Wang Ping and Yulian arrived with Golden Armored Puppets, and Wang Ping stopped Hu Qianqian from joining the fight.
• Wang Ping used the Wood Spirit Form and Heaven Connecting Talisman to kill the four attackers and subdue the hidden ambushers, then returned to the Mountain Top Dojo.
• A bolt of lightning struck Wang Ping as punishment for using Heaven and Earth’s power, but it quickly dissipated.

After recovering from the Lightning Tribulation, Wang Ping sent Hong Yuan, Qin Zifeng, and Qingjiang to help stabilize Jinhuai City, then discovered that seven captured cultivators had been dispatched south through broker temples. He discussed Zi Luan’s deliberate disappearance with Wu Quan and Gan Qi, who announced that he would leave for East Continent with his followers.

• Wang Ping recovered from the lightning punishment, then sent Hong Yuan and Qin Zifeng back to Jinhuai City with Blessing Talismans to keep the city stable.
• Qingjiang asked to accompany them and use Sanhe Prefecture’s waterways to seek advancement into the Third Realm, and Wang Ping approved.
• Wang Ping used Puppets to search the memories of seven captured Second Realm cultivators and found that they had been sent south by Rogue Cultivator temples to county towns north of Mozhou Road.
• Wang Ping learned that the temples involved included Shiquan Temple and Qingyuan Temple, then disposed of the dangerous captives.
• Wang Ping told Wu Quan that Zi Luan had deliberately vanished, and Gan Qi announced he would relocate to East Continent with his disciples and adopted sons.

Gan Qi withdrew his support from Wang Ping and warned that the Ji Clan Regime might break its pact and march south, leaving Wang Ping to secure Nanlin Road. As Wang Ping coordinated with allies and prepared for further threats, new news confirmed that Linshui Prefecture was about to act.

• Gan Qi told Wang Ping and Wu Quan that he had decided to leave the alliance and would maintain Fuming Prefecture for only another half year.
• Wang Ping accepted Gan Qi's decision, while Wu Quan promised to secure Mozhou Road and deal with the Chess Pieces of Linshui Prefecture.
• Wang Ping and Yulian discussed Zi Luan's disappearance before Daoist Zhi Gong contacted Wang Ping to ask about him.
• Hu Yin joined the communication, and Zhi Gong and Hu Yin both pledged support for Wang Ping while warning about threats from the East Sea region.
• Wang Ping received another message and told Hu Yin that Linshui Prefecture was about to make a move.

Wang Ping learned that Linshui Prefecture was secretly assembling naval troops and arranged defenses and allies for the expected attack. Meanwhile, Xia Weny heard Leng Kezhen propose a violent purge of Chu Kingdom’s court, leaving him to decide whether to authorize it.

• Ruan Chunzi warned Wang Ping that Linshui Prefecture’s islands were gathering naval troops, and Wang Ping judged that Changwen Prefecture could hold out for half a year to a year.
• Hu Yin promised aquatic-tribe troops within three months, while Zhi Gong arranged a Core Formation cultivator and a Yuqing Sect ally to defend Thousand Wood Temple.
• Wang Ping asked Hu Yin to send Second Realm cultivators to the Dao Palace headquarters and directed them to coordinate with Xia Weny.
• Liu Qin proposed using imperial censors to weaken rival families, but Leng Kezhen urged Xia Weny to issue an edict and arrest their leaders with Dong Can’s support.
• Leng Kezhen offered to cleanse Chu Kingdom’s court within three days if Xia Weny provided legitimacy and personnel, despite Liu Qin warning that the plan would cause bloodshed.

Wang Ping directed Xia Weny’s purge of the Chu Kingdom’s court while preparing special-grade Power Pills for trade and possible war with Linshui Prefecture. After the purge sparked unrest in Jinhuai City, Wang Ping told Xia Weny to protect the garrison and sent him to sell the pills, and Xia Weny presented Daoist Wanzhi’s reply card.

• Wang Ping told Xia Weny to purge Fan Lian and Yang Qing, then prepare the troops for war with Linshui Prefecture and arrange a visit to Daoist Wanzhi.
• Wang Ping inspected his stock of enhanced Power Pills and planned to sell one thousand to the First Sect while keeping the rest for a possible conflict.
• Silver-armored knights announced the Emperor’s decree in Zhonghui County Town, and the Yang and Fan families were sentenced to extermination.
• Xia Weny reported that military camps and officials had rebelled in Jinhuai City, and the Imperial Guard had suppressed them by force.
• Wang Ping ordered Xia Weny not to interfere with the purge but to keep the Jinhuai City garrison in order, then gave him Power Pills to sell through the First Sect’s caravan.
• Xia Weny gave Wang Ping Daoist Wanzhi’s reply card.

Wang Ping visited Daoist Wanzhi at the Six Hearts Sect to ask about Zi Luan and the Fourth Realm. After learning that his lineage’s Fourth Realm slot was now his, he committed to pursuing advancement despite the burdens it would bring.

• Wang Ping arrived at the Six Hearts Sect, where Tong Jing escorted him to Daoist Wanzhi.
• Daoist Wanzhi told Wang Ping that Zi Luan was hidden from most investigation methods and had help from a faction within First Day.
• Daoist Wanzhi explained that Zi Luan and Xiu Yu could not enter the Fourth Realm and that Wang Ping was Lord Xiaoshan’s sole inheritor.
• Daoist Wanzhi warned Wang Ping that pursuing the Fourth Realm would bring pressure, obligations, and karmic debts.
• Wang Ping affirmed his resolve, and Daoist Wanzhi granted him his lineage’s Fourth Realm slot while telling him to handle his own affairs.

Wang Ping left his meeting with Daoist Wanzhi and returned to the Six Hearts Sect’s gate, where he confronted a critic and asserted his authority. He departed for Thousand Wood Temple as Tong Jing declared the Six Hearts Sect’s support for him and ordered an investigation into the critic’s allies.

• Wang Ping and Yulian discussed the Wood Spirit quotas and cautioned each other against treating their theories as fact.
• Tong Jing escorted Wang Ping through the Six Hearts Sect to prevent a confrontation from damaging the alliance with Thousand Wood Temple.
• At the sect gate, Hong Yuan, Qingjiang, and Qin Zifeng greeted Wang Ping, but an Immortal Realm cultivator accused him of betraying Zi Luan and colluding with the Demon Race.
• Hong Yuan subdued the accuser, and Wang Ping ordered him dealt with in the name of maintaining stability.
• Wang Ping left with Yulian, while Tong Jing announced that the Six Hearts Sect supported Wang Ping and ordered an investigation into the accuser’s supporters.

Wang Ping learned that Linshui Prefecture had begun mobilizing for war against Nanlin Road and discovered that Yue Ziyu was advising the Seventh Prince’s forces. The chapter left Yue Ziyu resisting a plan to invade Nanlin Road while his martial nephew pressed for an advance.

• Wang Ping and Yulian arrived at the Mountain Top Dojo as bells summoned cultivators after Linshui Prefecture warships appeared south of Shang'an Prefecture.
• Wang Ping used a Puppet at a Linshui military dock to observe warships, supply convoys, and a Third Realm cultivator arriving at the fortress.
• The arriving cultivator met Yue Ziyu and urged him to support an invasion of Nanlin Road.
• Yue Ziyu warned that Changqing and his allies could resist a prolonged war and that Nanlin Road possessed an unknown supply of Power Pills.
• Yue Ziyu accused his martial nephew of undermining the Seventh Prince’s plan, but the nephew challenged him to overcome his fear of Changqing and return to the world.

Wang Ping welcomed Daoist Ying Qing of the Yuqing Sect and the monkey demon Hou Jun to Thousand Wood Temple, where Ying Qing explained how Qimen Dunjia used deductions about Heaven and Earth to cultivate. Their discussion was interrupted by news that Lu Shan of the Nine Tripod Sect had sent someone to the border waters between Nanlin Road and Ningzhou Road.

• The Chu Kingdom faced hail, pirate raids, and the slaughter of more than two thousand people near Jinhuai City, prompting the emperor to order an investigation and another prison purge.
• Wang Ping received Ying Qing, a Yuqing cultivator, and Hou Jun, a monkey demon sent by Hu Yin, at his Daoist field.
• Ying Qing read Wang Ping's face as bearing the fate of a ruler, while Yulian and Hou Jun challenged his physiognomy claims.
• Ying Qing explained that he cultivated Qimen Dunjia by using a Golden Core to deduce the evolution of Heaven and Earth, while warning that mistaken deductions could cost a cultivator their life.
• Xia Weny arrived and told Wang Ping that Lu Shan of the Nine Tripod Sect had sent someone with a calling card to the border waters between Nanlin Road and Ningzhou Road.

Wang Ping secured Nine Tripod Sect's support while preparing for his Fourth Realm advancement and assigned defenses amid rising regional conflict. He then learned that Li Miaolin had taken charge of the Dao Palace, blocked Hu Yin's reinforcements, and faced a rebel assault that captured six cities.

• Lu Shan offered Nine Tripod Sect's aid until Wang Ping advanced to the Fourth Realm in exchange for settling their five agreed matters and receiving a promise of future protection; Wang Ping agreed to help once.
• Wang Ping estimated that he could attempt advancement in fifty years, though he planned to gather Third Realm Primordial Spirits to improve his chances.
• Wang Ping ordered Xia Weny to send Zuo Liang to oversee the border defenses and instructed her to focus on defense unless he ordered otherwise.
• Daoist Taishan's Disciple delivered a letter stating that Li Miaolin would assume office as a Dao Palace Chief in half a month.
• Li Miaolin stopped Hu Yin's aquatic soldiers from reinforcing Wang Ping and ordered Dao Palace members to clear their backlogged cases within two years.
• After True Sun Mountain's rebel army captured six cities in Ningzhou Road, Wang Ping ordered Xia Weny to mobilize the government's troops in the Imperial Court's name.

Wang Ping prepared for the growing conflict between Chu Kingdom and Linshui Prefecture while monitoring Li Miaolin and waiting to learn the enemy’s hidden plans. The chapter left him with a warning from Qiu Wang that the Great Sects at True Sun Mountain might be maneuvering against Thousand Wood Temple.

• Wang Ping ordered Xia Weny to gather information on Li Miaolin and secretly remove the transfer formations Li Miaolin had set up in Ningzhou Road.
• After Linshui Prefecture’s forces advanced toward Changwen Prefecture, Wang Ping told his allies to let Chu Kingdom fight first and sent instructions for Leng Kezhen and Qingjiang to command the Imperial Court’s forces in secret.
• As the coastal war intensified, Xia Weny reported that Chu Kingdom had ample grain and that Leng Kezhen’s military merit system had kept morale steady despite heavy casualties.
• Wang Ping said he had sent Disciples to persuade the Third Prince of Linshui Prefecture and expected a reply, but instead received a coded letter from Qiu Wang.
• Qiu Wang warned that the Great Sects at True Sun Mountain appeared to be targeting the Single Saber Sect, though their real aim might be to use True Sun Mountain’s forces against Thousand Wood Temple.

Wang Ping prepared to seize Li Miaolin after learning that the priest had arrived alone in Ningzhou Road, while the Liangjiang regime launched an invasion. He enlisted the Jimin Association and arranged for Liu Huaien and three helpers to use the Spirit Communication Stone to seal Li Miaolin.

• Wang Ping discussed the growing encirclement with Yulian and Xia Weny, and identified Ningzhou Road as the key to the northern situation.
• Internal Affairs confirmed that Li Miaolin had arrived in Ningzhou Road alone, while the Ji Clan Regime declared war and sent 150,000 troops south.
• Wang Ping retrieved the Jiaxia-07 Spirit Communication Stone and contacted the Jimin Association for help sealing Li Miaolin.
• Wang Ping received a high-level Dao Palace investigation dossier to justify acting against Li Miaolin, while Zuo Liang reported that the Rogue Cultivators Alliance could hold out for only half a month without reinforcements.
• Liu Huaien arrived at Thousand Wood Temple and advised Wang Ping that the Spirit Communication Stone could seal Li Miaolin; Wang Ping offered Lu Shan and two other Nine Tripod Sect members as helpers.

Liu Huaien and Lu Shan went to the Ningzhou Road Dao Palace to question Li Miaolin over allegedly interfering in Ningzhou Road’s northern campaign. Li Miaolin agreed to go with them but revealed that he had been using Linshui Prefecture’s scheme against them and proposed deploying Hu Yin’s fifty-thousand-strong Demon Race army south.

• Liu Huaien and Lu Shan discussed their plan to confront Li Miaolin while eating at a mutton restaurant near the docks.
• Liu Huaien presented his credentials at the Dao Palace and demanded to see Li Miaolin, then led his group to the backyard.
• Liu Huaien accused Li Miaolin of secretly manipulating Ningzhou Road’s northern campaign to interfere with the Chu Kingdom’s bid for the divine artifact.
• Li Miaolin calmly agreed to go to Jinhuai City for questioning, leaving Liu Huaien and his companions stunned.
• Li Miaolin proposed taking Hu Yin’s fifty-thousand-strong Demon Race army south and revealed that he had turned Linshui Prefecture’s scheme against them.

Li Miaolin explained that he had entered the southern conflict deliberately and revealed that Daoist Priest Zhi Yuan and Daoist Priest Cheng Xi were behind his invitation to Ningzhou Road. He left Wang Ping with a lead on Cheng Xi’s location and the limits of Li Miaolin’s Puppet network.

• Liu Huaien questioned Li Miaolin’s risky plan, and Li Miaolin said he would rather risk death than miss the chance to enter the Southern Cultivation World’s affairs.
• Liu Huaien and the others escorted Li Miaolin back to Thousand Wood Temple, where Wang Ping apologized for having startled him.
• Yulian told Wang Ping that Li Miaolin’s actions had caused deaths on a scale approaching half the population of the Xia Dynasty at its height.
• Wang Ping asked Li Miaolin who had invited him, and Li Miaolin named Zhi Yuan, who was acting on behalf of Cheng Xi.
• Li Miaolin said he had refined the contact arranged in Ningzhou Road into a Puppet, traced the network, and learned where Cheng Xi was cultivating; he explained that such Puppets could live for no more than half a year.

Wang Ping questioned Li Miaolin’s intelligence, discussed the Jimin Association’s request and the aftermath of the Capital City battle with Liu Huaien, and received a promise of support for his advancement. Ten days later, Hu Qianqian brought word that the Demon Domain would trade its spirit-vein cultivation method after speaking with Wang Ping.

• Wang Ping ordered Xia Weny to organize intelligence and prepare for fifty thousand Demon Race naval troops to wear down Liangjiang and Seventh Prince’s forces.
• Liu Huaien returned the Spirit Communication Stone and demonic weapons, then advised Wang Ping that Li Miaolin was trustworthy for now but should be transferred when Wang Ping advanced.
• Liu Huaien confirmed Daoist Wuma and nearly all his disciples had fallen, and said Daoist Guan Mao’s Primordial Spirit had shattered in Capital City.
• Liu Huaien told Wang Ping that the Jimin Association wanted permission to spread its teachings in the Southern Cultivation World, and pledged the association’s full support for Wang Ping’s advancement.
• One day later, the Liangjiang offensive slowed and True Sun Mountain’s rebels withdrew from Ningzhou Road.
• Ten days later, Hu Qianqian told Wang Ping that the Demon Domain had agreed to trade its secret spirit-vein cultivation method but wanted to speak with him first.

Ke Yue brought Wang Ping intelligence about Zi Luan’s escape, Zheng He’s plans in Mozhou Road, and Chongyuan Prefecture’s offer. Wang Ping agreed to cooperate against Zheng He but left the Chongyuan Prefecture proposal undecided, then received an invitation from Le Shan and a reply from the Third Prince.

• Ke Yue told Wang Ping that First Day had helped Zi Luan escape to an unknown region of the West Continent and that Zheng He had aided him.
• Ke Yue revealed that Zheng He had joined forces with Wu Quan to establish a secret dojo and teleportation network in Mozhou Road, where hundreds of cultivators were preparing to target Wang Ping.
• Ke Yue offered her assistance in removing Zheng He and proposed that Wang Ping accept Chongyuan Prefecture’s offer of support in exchange for building an observation point.
• Wang Ping agreed to work with Ke Yue against Zheng He but said he needed time to consider Chongyuan Prefecture’s proposal.
• After Ke Yue left, Xia Weny delivered an invitation from Le Shan of the True Sun Sect and a reply from the Third Prince of Linshui Prefecture.