Chapter Summaries

Wang Ping observed shifting alliances among the True Sun Sect and First Day, then spent ten years awaiting Shen Xiaozhu's cultivation. Zhi Gong emerged from secluded cultivation as a Fourth Realm cultivator, and Wang Ping began escorting her to meet someone while explaining the current state of the Central Continent.

• Yulian announced that Xu Chun had advanced to the Fourth Realm, increasing Wang Ping's Sky-Veiling Talisman fusion progress.
• Lord Rongyang joined Wang Ping outside Northern Continent, and they discussed Daoist He Feng, First Day, and the True Sun Sect's turmoil.
• Wang Ping told Liu Shuang to monitor First Day, then learned Shen Xiaozhu planned to spend ten years preparing before attempting her breakthrough to the Third Realm.
• Ten years later, Wang Ping concealed Crouching Dragon Mountain's Heavenly Secrets and suppressed outside interference when Zhi Gong's Earth Vein breakthrough began.
• Zhi Gong emerged from the collapsing mountain as a Fourth Realm cultivator and thanked Wang Ping for his help.
• Wang Ping offered to take Zhi Gong to meet someone and began telling her about the Central Continent as they traveled.

Wang Ping brought Zhi Gong before True Lord Yuanwu, who gave her authority over the northwest and responsibility for watching the Demon Race, while Wang Ping arranged Thousand Wood Temple’s takeover of Haizhou Road and investigated a cultivation method for his hidden Puppet. After Wang Ping foresaw a future consumed by fire, a widespread drought struck the north, and he realized the Northern Continent’s Fire Spirit had grown unusually active.

• True Lord Yuanwu granted Zhi Gong the northwest and the temporary post of Second Seat of the Dao Palace, instructing her to monitor the Demon Race and rely on the Snow Region Buddhists.
• Wang Ping ordered Liu Shuang to arrange Thousand Wood Temple’s handover of Haizhou Road and searched the Dao Palace repository for a Spirit Gathering artifact for Yulian.
• Wang Ping examined his hidden Puppet’s Great Earth Scripture advancement method and prepared to supervise its secluded cultivation through Li Hui and Wen Hai.
• Liu Shuang reported that Linshui Prefecture disciples were inciting rebels in Haizhou Road, but Wang Ping chose to wait and let the Imperial Court and local cultivators respond if needed.
• Wang Ping used the Fortune Array and saw its visions turn into a great fire, then later learned that drought had struck Qingpu Road and much of Beiyuan Road because the Northern Continent’s Fire Spirit had become unusually active.

Wang Ping and the other Fourth Realm cultivators debated whether to intervene in a devastating drought, then he left the matter unresolved and prepared to meet Bu Qiong in Mianzhu County. The chapter ended with Wang Ping arriving at the Gathering Wealth inn to seek a Third Realm Star God core for Yulian’s Spirit-Gathering artifact.

• Wang Ping, Yulian, Lord Rongyang, and Zhi Gong examined the drought in Sanmen County and warned that the dried riverbed could trigger an earthquake.
• Yulian proposed restoring the region’s vegetation and replenishing its underground river, but Kai Yun and Ao Bing opposed intervening in the ecosystem.
• Wang Ping let the drought matter rest and urged Ao Bing to address the Sun Sect’s role in the disaster; Lord Rongyang later accused Ao Bing of failing to understand the Five Sects’ alliances.
• Wang Ping completed the blueprint for Yulian’s Spirit-Gathering artifact and determined that it required an enhanced Third Realm Star God core.
• Wang Ping contacted Bu Qiong and traveled to Mianzhu County, where he arrived at the Gathering Wealth inn for their meeting.

Wang Ping met Bu Qiong and Quan Wen in Mianzhu County to receive a Star God core and negotiate trade between the Demon Race and the Southern Cultivation World. Bu Qiong then proposed granting the Demon Race seats in the Dao Palace, and Wang Ping left to consult the other leaders of the Five Sects of Mystic Gate.

• Wang Ping met Bu Qiong and Quan Wen, recognized Quan Wen as the rat Yao from the Yongming Port incident, and examined the Star God core Bu Qiong had brought.
• Quan Wen served Wang Ping and Yulian Ice Orchid tea and asked for Wang Ping's help selling it beyond the Demon Race; Wang Ping discussed the tea trade with Bu Qiong.
• Bu Qiong requested annual quotas of specially made and ordinary Power Pills in exchange for refined extraterrestrial energy, and Wang Ping agreed to provide only two thousand specially made pills each year.
• Bu Qiong proposed adding Demon Race representatives to the Dao Palace, but Wang Ping refused to advocate for the proposal and promised only to pass the message along.
• Wang Ping returned to Thousand Wood Temple and contacted Lord Rongyang, Ao Bing, Zhi Gong, and Kai Yun to relay Bu Qiong's proposal.

Wang Ping prepared a compact formation to suppress and refine the Star God core while arranging a meeting about trade with the Demon Race. At Golden Pavilion, the Prefects of the Five Sects of Mystic Gate began arriving for the scheduled discussion, leaving Wang Ping and Lord Rongyang facing Ao Bing and Kai Yun on the bridge.

• Wang Ping confirmed the Power Pills production line and sent Liu Shuang to negotiate with the Star God Alliance and investigate where the pills were going.
• Wang Ping built a spatial sphere with a Wood Spirit Formation, removed the Star God core from its crystal, and began violently suppressing its mad consciousness.
• Lord Rongyang told Wang Ping that Kai Yun wanted a face-to-face discussion about the Demon Race at Golden Pavilion on the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth month, and Wang Ping began preparations.
• News of the meeting drew crowds to Golden Pavilion, where Haizhou Road Dao Palace cultivators arrested and removed many onlookers before easing enforcement the next morning.
• Wang Ping welcomed Zhi Gong at Golden Pavilion, then Lord Rongyang arrived as Ao Bing and Kai Yun landed on the bridge ahead.

Wang Ping hosted Kai Yun, Ao Bing, Prefect Rongyang, and Zhi Gong as they negotiated terms for trade and cooperation between the Five Sects of Mystic Gate and the Demon Race. After they reached a preliminary agreement, Liu Shuang reported that a refugee uprising had spread through Qingpu Road, and Wang Ping chose to watch events unfold.

• Wang Ping welcomed Kai Yun and Ao Bing to the Golden Pavilion, where Prefect Rongyang helped begin negotiations.
• Kai Yun proposed five conditions for cooperation, and Prefect Rongyang accepted some while rejecting or revising others.
• Wang Ping, Prefect Rongyang, Kai Yun, Ao Bing, and Zhi Gong reached a preliminary agreement to provide one spirit-body Physical Body within a hundred years and set trading shares for Vajra Temple and Linshui Prefecture.
• A dispute over attempted abduction by county constables sparked a rebellion in Sanmei Prefecture, and the rebels captured Renning County and renamed it Savage County.
• Liu Shuang reported the uprising to Wang Ping, who declined to make a statement and decided to keep watching.

Wang Ping observed the Sanmei Prefecture rebellion through his puppets and concluded that the Imperial Court was underestimating it despite knowing the situation. He left Sun Qiang embedded in Zhao Liuyi’s Rebel forces, where Sun gained command of the Vanguard Camp and orders to block the government troops.

• Wang Ping told Yulian that the rebellion would not destroy the Datong Dynasty and discussed separating cultivators from the secular world, though he lacked the strength to do so.
• Wang Ping watched Sun Qiang help Zhao Liuyi’s Rebels defeat a rival peasant army in Savage County, then saw Zhao lead his forces north to confront government troops.
• After Zhao Liuyi executed captured opponents, he rewarded Sun Qiang for killing the enemy general and appointed him commander of the Vanguard Camp.
• Yuan Qin gave Sun Qiang authority to recruit and appoint officers, then ordered him to fortify Flat Mountain Gorge within ten days against the Prefectural Office troops.
• Wang Ping learned that the local government could muster only a small force and that officials were protecting themselves, while Yulian learned that the Imperial Court knew of the rebellion but dismissed it out of arrogance.

As the righteous army rose across Qingpu Road, Emperor Jiande secured permission to lead a campaign against it, while Wang Ping watched the conflict and sold the Imperial Court supplies without intervening. When Zhao Liuyi’s army faltered at Gorge Pass and Yuan Qin redirected its forces, Wang Ping foresaw the Emperor’s dragon carriage collapsing and discovered that someone had prepared to block his intervention.

• Zhao Liuyi’s righteous army captured Sanmei Prefecture City, spread across Qingpu Road, and grew to hundreds of thousands before the Imperial Court reacted.
• Wang Ping ordered Liu Shuang to sell the Imperial Court whatever it requested, then asked Yulian to have Qianqian explain his actions to Liu Shuang.
• Empress Dowager Liu Qing allowed the young Emperor to campaign against the rebels without openly supporting him, and he chose the imperial title Jiande.
• Emperor Jiande received the ministers’ approval to lead an expedition, and the Imperial Court prepared its troops and supplies for the campaign.
• Zhao Liuyi’s forces attacked Gorge Pass but suffered heavy losses; Yuan Qin then arranged for part of the army to hold the pass while Sun Qiang moved to defend Mingjiang Prefecture.
• Wang Ping’s divinations showed Emperor Jiande’s dragon carriage collapsing and revealed that someone had guarded against his interference, so he concealed his prediction.

Emperor Jiande and his officials were frozen to death at Gorge Pass during a staged battle, while Wei Xian offered the pass and his troops to Yuan Qin’s rebels. Wang Ping watched the turmoil unfold and planned to use it to advance the Dao Palace’s investigation and his struggle with Ao Bing, while prioritizing Ao Hong’s release.

• Emperor Jiande ordered Wei Xian to attack the rebel camp, but blue-lit arrows pierced the gate tower’s defenses and froze the Emperor and the officials around him.
• Wang Ping confronted Kai Yun and agreed with Ao Bing that Thousand Wood Temple would investigate the deaths, then hosted Rongyang and Zhi Gong while observing the rebels.
• Yuan Qin’s guards killed Zhao Liuyi, and Yuan Qin’s followers struggled to decide their next move after learning Emperor Jiande had died at Gorge Pass.
• A messenger reported that Wei Xian would surrender Gorge Pass and bring thirty thousand soldiers to Yuan Qin, who ordered his men to summon division leaders and seal the Prefectural Office.
• Wang Ping told Rongyang and Zhi Gong that he intended to use the crisis to challenge Ao Bing and help Ao Hong, while the Dao Palace would open an investigation into the Central Province killings.

Empress Dowager Liu Qing installed Wang Nian as emperor and directed the court’s response to the advancing Rebels. Wang Ping discovered that Linshui Prefecture had arranged for Wu Jingcai to suggest accepting Yuan Qin’s surrender, while he continued planning to lure Ao Bing into a trap.

• Liu Qing named Wang Nian emperor and ordered him to appear before the court the next morning.
• Liu Qing heard reports on the Rebels, supplies, and Emperor Jiande’s funeral before Wu Jingcai proposed negotiating Yuan Qin’s surrender.
• The ministers attacked Wu Jingcai, but Liu Qing defended him and ordered an offensive against the Rebels while removing Hu Min from office.
• Wang Ping discussed why the Imperial Court might eventually consider peace and said he wanted to draw Ao Bing toward the Central Province Divine Artifact.
• Wang Ping and Yulian learned that Linshui Prefecture had instructed Wu Jingcai to promote surrender so its Disciples could infiltrate Qingpu Road and expand their influence.
• Wang Ping brought out the Fortune Array to conduct another deduction.

Wang Ping gained a new Sky-Veiling Talisman ability that concealed people and events from other Cultivators’ deductions, while Central Province’s rebellion ended in an amnesty deal. After a Second Seat meeting failed to resolve the Sun Sect dispute, Wang Ping decided to provoke a direct confrontation between True Sun Mountain and Linshui Prefecture.

• The Imperial Court granted Yuan Qin amnesty, the title of Marquis Yong'an, and three prefectures after Yuan Qin sent Wei Xian’s head as a condition for negotiations.
• Wang Ping reached 50/100 progress merging with the Sky-Veiling Talisman and learned to conceal the aura of Heaven and Earth from deduction.
• Liu Shuang reported that Linshui Prefecture had expanded into Liangjiang and clashed with True Sun Sect disciples, and Wang Ping told her to cooperate with their allies.
• At the Second Seat meeting, Ao Bing, Lord Rongyang, and others argued over the Sun Sect and First Day, but they reached no agreement.
• Wang Ping deduced that the conflict might stem from two Fourth Realm True Yang Secret Art advancement slots and chose not to ask Lord Rongyang about it.
• Wang Ping ordered Liu Shuang to secretly send Cultivators from three routes of True Sun Mountain to Liangjiang and use the Third Seat conference and Dao Palace case files to provoke a direct clash with Linshui Prefecture.

Four Dao Palace cultivators attacked a hidden village and its Third Realm Water cultivator, whose blood-sacrifice saber carried Fourth Realm power. As Linshui Prefecture reinforcements arrived, more than a dozen Third Realm auras appeared across the Liangjiang region.

• Wen Hai, Dong Can, Ru Zheng, and Gong Yi traveled to Four Peaks Town to hunt a Water cultivator wielding a blood-sacrifice demonic saber.
• The four learned that the target had been traced to a village where a formation fed on the villagers’ spiritual essence and faith.
• Wen Hai raised a barrier around the mountain and used his tower to destroy the village, forcing the gray-robed Water cultivator out from beneath the altar.
• Dong Can intercepted the cultivator’s saber while Wen Hai, Ru Zheng, and Gong Yi joined the attack.
• The gray-robed cultivator resisted with freezing qi, but the four began to overwhelm him with their combined forces.
• Linshui Prefecture reinforcements arrived, and more than a dozen Third Realm auras appeared throughout the Liangjiang region.

Dong Can killed a gray-robed Daoist and seized his horse-chopping saber while Zi Luan confronted Chun Song’s Linshui Prefecture forces over Yunjiang Road. After Wang Ping ordered the arrest of the Linshui Disciples, Zi Luan’s group ambushed them, capturing Chun Song and defeating the others.

• Wen Hai helped Dong Can break the gray-robed Daoist’s defenses, and Dong Can killed him within five breaths and sealed away his horse-chopping saber.
• Zi Luan challenged Chun Song’s accusation that the True Sun Sect had killed Linshui Prefecture Disciples, while Wang Ping discussed the conflict with Rongyang and Zhi Gong and divined before deciding to act.
• Wang Ping ordered Zi Luan to detain the Linshui Disciples and kill them if they resisted, and Que Cai transferred both sides to the sea east of Yunjiang Road.
• Chun Song attacked with a vast Water Spirit Formation, but Zi Luan countered with his colossal bronze sword as Que Cai and the others pursued the Linshui group.
• Que Cai’s transfer formations brought Chun Song’s fleeing group back within reach, and Zi Luan trapped Chun Song inside a bronze bell while the others surrendered or were killed.

Wang Ping reflected on the True Lords’ hidden plans while the world enjoyed a fragile peace, then learned that political unrest was growing across the Imperial Court. As Shen Xiaozhu prepared to advance to the Third Realm, Wang Ping and Yulian arrived to watch over her.

• Wang Ping, Rongyang, and Zhi Gong discussed Ao Bing, the Sun Sect, and the looming catastrophe on Qingpu Road before Rongyang and Zhi Gong departed.
• Wang Ping and Yulian pieced together how the True Lords’ struggles had harmed other powerful cultivators, but the Sky-Veiling Talisman interrupted Wang Ping’s fearful speculation.
• After years of relative calm, the Sanhua cat visited Wang Ping and explained that Zuo Liang had reached the Third Realm and was serving the rat clan until their competition ended; Wang Ping promised to support her.
• Two years later, Wang Ping received news that Yuan Qin was resisting the Dao Palace’s order to abdicate, while unrest and rebellion spread across several regions.
• Shen Xiaozhu began preparing to enter the Third Realm, and Wang Ping and Yulian arrived at her dojo as spirit creatures gathered around Thousand Wood Temple’s barrier.

Wang Ping rescued Shen Xiaozhu after her advancement failed, but she was left with a damaged spiritual body and an uncertain future. After learning that political upheaval and Linshui Prefecture’s expansion had weakened the Dao Palace’s influence, he assigned Zi Luan to handle affairs in the north and learned that Hong Ze had been waiting to speak with him about an urgent matter.

• Shen Xiaozhu’s Huai Tree Soul seized her humanity during her advancement, so Wang Ping suppressed her spiritual vein consciousness while the Black Cat stabilized her in the Spirit Sea.
• Wang Ping painstakingly erased Shen Xiaozhu’s half-drawn Heaven Connecting Talisman, then gave her a Sacred Heart Pill and lifted the suppression; she awakened with her humanity intact but with a badly damaged spiritual body.
• Shen Xiaozhu thanked Wang Ping, described her exhaustion and pain, and confirmed that she had not lost any important human memories.
• Liu Shuang reported that Liu Qing had won a bloody struggle in the Capital City, while conflict and the Dao Palace’s heavy-handed response had allowed Linshui Prefecture to expand across Qingpu Road and weaken the True Sun Sect’s influence.
• Wang Ping praised Liu Shuang’s efforts, told her to maintain the Capital City’s political balance, and assigned Zi Luan to handle affairs in the north.
• Liu Shuang told Wang Ping that Hong Ze had waited since before the new year to deliver an urgent message, and Wang Ping suspected it concerned Ao Hong’s sealed retreat.

Wang Ping concealed Ao Hong’s Heavenly Secrets and began coordinating with Linshui Prefecture amid a devastating earthquake and growing unrest, while considering whether to reestablish the Taiyan Sect. True Lord Yuanwu told him it was too soon to enshrine Lord Xiaoshan, and Wang Ping prepared a covert move in Qingpu Road as Yuan Qin entered Sun Qiang’s tent.

• Hong Ze told Wang Ping that Ao Hong could escape his seal if Wang Ping concealed Heavenly Secrets and disrupted the Third Prince’s investigation, and Wang Ping agreed to help.
• After recovering, Wang Ping used the Fortune Array and Sky-Veiling Talisman to conceal Ao Hong’s Heavenly Secrets and disrupt Qingpu Road’s fortune as unrest spread across the realm.
• An earthquake devastated Northern Forest County and Qingpu Road, killing hundreds of thousands, and Wang Ping investigated human interference before secretly summoning Zi Luan.
• Wang Ping authorized Zi Luan to work with Linshui Prefecture in Qingpu Road, then asked True Lord Yuanwu whether it was time to reestablish the Taiyan Sect; Yuanwu said it was not yet time to honor Lord Xiaoshan as Ancestor Master.
• Wang Ping decided to conceal his involvement and strike after showing weakness, then watched through a Puppet as Yuan Qin entered Sun Qiang’s tent to meet with friends.

Ao Bing and Kai Yun discussed a possible struggle for control of Central Province, while Zi Luan secured the True Sun Sect’s cooperation against Linshui Prefecture in Qingpu Road. The chapter ended with Zi Luan seeking Taiyin Sect Puppets and Water Spirit-attributed souls as En Jing agreed to help.

• Ao Bing pressed Kai Yun to support his plans for Central Province, but Kai Yun warned him about Changqing, Rongyang, the Yuqing Sect, and the strength of their allies.
• Ao Bing revealed that he planned to exploit unrest in Capital City and identified Qingpu Road as the location of his army.
• Zi Luan learned from a Thousand Wood Temple contact that Marquis Yong'an was preparing to rebel and that he could meet the True Sun Sect at the Dao Palace.
• Zi Luan told En Jing that he supported an investigation into Linshui Prefecture's cultivators and promised to back En Jing at the Three Seat conference.
• Zi Luan asked En Jing to help him obtain Taiyin Sect Puppets and Water Spirit-attributed souls from Linshui Prefecture, and En Jing agreed.

As Marquis Yong'an’s rebellion engulfed the Capital City and ended with his retreat and escape, Wang Ping remained detached while the conflict advanced his Sky-Veiling Talisman progress. The chapter leaves Ao Hong trapped underground in an Earth Vein Formation, with Hong Ze asking Wang Ping for help redirecting it.

• Marquis Yong'an occupied the Capital City, fought the relief armies at Gorge Pass, and eventually escaped overseas from Shangbei Port as the Imperial Court rewarded the victorious governors and generals.
• Zi Luan and Que Cai discussed the Dao Palace’s actions against Taiyin Evil Cultivators and reflected on Wang Ping’s intentions while monitoring events on Qingpu Road.
• Wang Ping told Liu Shuang to hint to noble families that they had an opportunity, but he let Thousand Wood Temple’s disciples and his own descendants choose whether to join the war.
• After Yulian reported Shen Xiaozhu’s recovery, Wang Ping watched the Capital City fall and the war conclude, explaining that Ao Bing’s rebellion had weakened northern believers and could help him scheme for a divine artifact.
• Wang Ping’s Sky-Veiling Talisman fusion progress rose to 52/100, and Hong Ze reported that Ao Hong had escaped one seal only to become trapped beneath the earth in Demon Race Ruins connected to an Earth Vein Formation.
• Hong Ze asked Wang Ping to rescue Ao Hong and explained that redirecting the formation required a Fourth Realm Earth Vein cultivator.

Wang Ping investigated Hong Ze’s account of Ao Hong’s predicament and arranged for him to work with Zhi Gong to locate the trapped dragon. After a year of searching, Wang Ping prepared to meet Zhi Gong on an island south of Mozhou Road.

• Wang Ping examined Hong Ze’s consciousness and learned that Hong Ze communicated with Ao Hong through worship rituals, then used a deduction to glimpse a cavern and a palace covered in murals.
• Wang Ping sent Hong Ze to find Zhi Gong with his waist token, while he continued refining Star God consciousness and monitoring the Third Prince’s Disciples.
• The Imperial Court’s victory over the Rebels brought celebrations and peerages for six marquises, while the Third Seat conference later debated Zi Luan’s actions and the loss of northern water-element arrays.
• Liu Shuang visited Wang Ping and reported on Dao Palace disputes, funding requests, and Rong’er’s travels; Wang Ping then discussed his planned meeting with Zhi Gong about rescuing Ao Hong.
• After spending time with Hu Qianqian and Liu Shuang, Wang Ping took Yulian and the Sanhua cat and departed using the Transfer Talisman.

Wang Ping, Zhi Gong, and Hong Ze searched beneath the seabed for the Demon Race Ruins where Ao Hong was trapped. They found a vast underground city and palace protected by a powerful Earth Vein array, and Zhi Gong demonstrated how the palace’s defenses had captured Ao Hong.

• Wang Ping confirmed Zhi Gong’s location and joined her and Hong Ze at a remote reef, where Zhi Gong used an earth escape array to send a Puppet underground to search.
• While waiting, Wang Ping learned that Ao Bing had not appeared publicly for years and might not know Ao Hong had escaped.
• After half a month, Wang Ping transferred with Yulian and Hong Ze to the underground cavern where Zhi Gong had found signs of a city and possible life.
• Zhi Gong led the group through a passage under immense Earth Vein pressure until they reached a vast underground world containing a largely intact palace.
• Zhi Gong warned Wang Ping not to look at the black light within the array above the city, then showed how the palace’s Earth Vein defenses dragged down and swallowed a sword.