Chapter Summaries

Sixth Turn experts from the Human Race and Demon Race battled around Zhennan City while two Heavenly Devil Palace protectors joined the fray against the humans. As the fighting spread, more than a dozen Fifth Turn Round Marrow Great Demons arrived before the city walls, drawing Li Xiao and the other defenders toward an imminent battle.

• A burly Human Race expert and a giant ape left Zhennan City to fight, while Marquis Jingbian, Zhou Bai, Mu Xian, and other Sixth Turn experts engaged dragons and Great Demons.
• Two Black-Robed Men revealed themselves as protectors from the Heavenly Devil Palace, and Human Race cultivators condemned them for siding with the Demon Race.
• One Black-Robed Man aided a dragon against Mu Xian, leaving Mu Xian in a dangerous fight against both opponents.
• The other Black-Robed Man ambushed Marquis Jingbian during his battle with a dragon, forcing him to defend against two enemies and begin to falter.
• More than a dozen Fifth Turn Round Marrow Great Demons emerged before the Demon Race ranks, and Li Xiao and the city-wall defenders prepared to face them.

During the Demon Race’s assault on Zhennan City, Li Xiao faced the Azure Dragon Ao Li in battle. Ao Li’s Five Decays of Heaven and Man weakened Li Xiao’s body, True Qi, and mind, leaving the fight unresolved.

• Shark Cunt challenged the Human Race defenders, and an elderly monk met him in battle as a Dragon Race fighter ordered the Demon Race army to attack Zhennan City.
• Li Xiao and the other Human Race cultivators were forced to face the Demon Race’s Round Marrow Great Demons, and Li Xiao confronted the Azure Dragon Ao Li beyond the city wall.
• Li Xiao’s Iron Wire Fist failed to harm Ao Li, whose powerful dragon body shattered the attack without a mark.
• Li Xiao summoned his black Life-Slaying Amitabha Sword Qi, and Ao Li used the Five Decays of Heaven and Man divine ability to sap Li Xiao’s strength and overwhelm him with painful memories.

Li Xiao overcame Ao Li’s Five Decays of Heaven and Man by borrowing vital essence from Du Tianshan and the others, then joined battle with him as thunderclouds gathered overhead. Su Chen gained an advantage against a Sea Shark Palace Great Demon, but the Human Race’s ground forces remained outnumbered and under pressure.

• Li Xiao used the Seven Orifice Insect to draw vital essence from Du Tianshan and the others, recovering from Ao Li’s mental attack while they grew exhausted.
• Du Tianshan swallowed one of Li Xiao’s Pills and fought the Great Demon before him with renewed ferocity.
• Li Xiao attacked Ao Li with two streams of Sword Qi and his martial techniques, forcing Ao Li to summon dark thunderclouds.
• Su Chen overwhelmed a Sea Shark Palace Great Demon with Layered Wave Thousand Blade, killed two nearby Demon Race cultivators, and absorbed the black Qi from their corpses.
• The Human Race’s Sixth Turn experts remained in a stalemate, but their ground forces fell behind as Demon Race beasts surged toward the city walls and thunderclouds gathered overhead.

Li Xiao held off Ao Li until Ao Li called four peak Marrow-Piercing Demonic Beasts to surround him. Above the battlefield, Lin Tianyang evaded the Sea Shark Palace Master and Ao Li until the Palace Master revealed his enormous true form, trapping Lin Tianyang’s routes of escape.

• Li Xiao blocked Ao Li’s lightning with Sword Qi and withstood his dragon fist using the Three Absolutes Returning Origin Qi.
• Ao Li summoned four peak Marrow-Piercing Demonic Beasts, forcing Li Xiao to fight five opponents at once.
• Lin Tianyang used the Sacred Sun Transmutation Art to evade the Sea Shark Palace Master and Ao Li’s attacks.
• The Sea Shark Palace Master transformed into a colossal shark, restricting Lin Tianyang’s movement and joining Ao Li in encircling him.

Lin Tianyang fought Ao Xing and the Sea Shark Palace Lord in the sky, and both sides suffered severe injuries. In Zhennan City, Wu Daoxuan appeared behind the Cangwu Old Ancestor as he watched the battle and said it was not yet time for him to display his skills.

• The Sea Shark Palace Lord used suction and World-Annihilating Rain to trap and wound Lin Tianyang while Ao Xing attacked him with dragon breath.
• Lin Tianyang struck the Sea Shark Palace Lord with a blazing True Qi attack, badly injuring him, but took heavy wounds from the rain and Ao Xing's attack.
• Ao Xing held back from pursuing Lin Tianyang and judged that the battle remained under control as the Sea Shark Palace Lord began to recover.
• The Cangwu Old Ancestor watched the fight from a courtyard in Zhennan City until Wu Daoxuan appeared silently behind him.
• Wu Daoxuan told the Cangwu Old Ancestor that the time had not yet come for him to display his skills.

Cangwu Old Ancestor waited for Wu Daoxuan’s promised help as Wu secretly assessed the battlefield and its promising fighters. In a distant secret realm, Liu Qingyue continued her training at Qingwei Temple and firmly set boundaries with Wang Yuheng.

• Cangwu Old Ancestor thanked Wu Daoxuan for guiding him toward a true dragon body, while Wu told him to wait before entering the battle.
• Wu Daoxuan watched the Sixth Turn and Fifth Turn battlefields, praised the Human Race, and decided to invest in Li Xiao, Huangfu Yuan, Su Chen, Qingyunzi, and others with abundant Fortune and Destiny.
• Huangfu Yuan felt as though someone were watching him but found nothing unusual when he looked around.
• Jingyun observed Liu Qingyue cultivating in a secret realm and approved of her talent, steady temperament, and progress.
• Wang Yuheng offered Liu Qingyue spirit water, but she asked him to call her by her full name because they were not familiar.
• Jingyun told Liu Qingyue to rest and said she would teach her a new spell the next day.

Liu Qingyue learned that Li Xiao had become a Fifth Turn disciple of the Three Origins Sect and was fighting the Demon Race, strengthening her resolve to cultivate so she could help him. Wang Yuheng, unable to win her affection, asked his Master for permission to leave Clear Subtle Hall and travel, then headed for the Secret Realm’s exit.

• Jingyun warned Liu Qingyue that her attachment to Li Xiao could hinder her cultivation, but Liu insisted she would never let him go.
• Jingyun told Liu Qingyue that Li Xiao was a Fifth Turn disciple of the Three Origins Sect, had a chance to contend for the Saint Son position, and was fighting on the front lines.
• Liu Qingyue set aside her urge to find Li Xiao and vowed to reach Foundation Establishment so she could help him.
• Wang Yuheng asked Jingyun to support his pursuit of Liu Qingyue, but she told him that Liu's heart already belonged to Li Xiao.
• Wang Yuheng asked his Master to let him travel, and the old Daoist gave him a Clear Subtle Hall Token containing protective methods.
• Wang Yuheng looked toward Liu Qingyue's cultivation grounds, concealed his complicated feelings, and headed for the Secret Realm's exit.

Wang Yuheng left Clear Subtle Hall's Secret Realm as Xuanzhenzi prepared to break through to the Three Flowers realm in Feng Tianning's body. After the tribulation, Feng Tianning reappeared with control over their shared body and confronted his master about the Exotic Insect.

• Wang Yuheng left the Secret Realm and used the Earth Escape Technique to travel toward the Yu Kingdom.
• Xuanzhenzi struggled to suppress Feng Tianning's lingering hatred, which disrupted his attempt to break through.
• Xuanzhenzi summoned the Exotic Insect he had planted in Feng Tianning and successfully endured the lightning and heart demon tribulations.
• Xuanzhenzi reached the Three Flowers realm, but discovered Feng Tianning's head and extra arms had appeared on his body.
• Feng Tianning told Xuanzhenzi he had discovered the master's plan and asked who should control their shared body.

Xuanzhenzi and Feng Tianning shared control of one body after reaching the Three Flowers Realm and agreed to work together, though Feng Tianning insisted on avenging himself. At Zhennan City, Lin Tianyang fought Ao Xing and the Sea Shark Palace Lord while Wu Daoxuan promised the Cangwu Old Ancestor Ao Li’s dragon body and help advancing further.

• Xuanzhenzi failed to suppress Feng Tianning, who explained that his soul had survived within the Exotic Insect and now controlled half their body.
• Xuanzhenzi and Feng Tianning agreed to cooperate, stabilize their Three Flowers Realm, and later seek revenge on Li Xiao.
• Lin Tianyang fought Ao Xing and the Sea Shark Palace Lord in their full demon forms, sustaining severe wounds as the battle raged above Zhennan City.
• Wu Daoxuan asked the Cangwu Old Ancestor about Ao Li’s dragon body and promised to help him obtain it and advance further.
• The Cangwu Old Ancestor thanked Wu Daoxuan but grew wary of his motives as he watched the battle.

As the Human Race’s defenses faltered and Lin Tianyang was captured by Ao Xing, Wu Daoxuan revealed a formation diagram that could briefly restrain Ao Xing. The Cangwu Old Ancestor transformed into a black-gold dragon and hurled the diagram toward Ao Xing and the Sea Shark Palace Lord, leaving the battlefield stunned.

• The Human Race’s defenders lost ground across the city walls and battlefields, while Li Xiao and other Fifth Turn cultivators took Blood Explosion Pills to stabilize their fight against the Demon Race.
• Ao Xing and the Sea Shark Palace Lord trapped Lin Tianyang, leaving him unable to escape as the Human Race watched in despair.
• Wu Daoxuan handed the Cangwu Old Ancestor a formation diagram and told him it could briefly restrain Ao Xing if used at the right moment.
• The Cangwu Old Ancestor flew into the sky in his black-gold dragon form, shocking both armies and prompting Ao Xing to recognize him.
• The Cangwu Old Ancestor threw the formation diagram, which expanded into a vast curtain and descended toward Ao Xing and the Sea Shark Palace Lord.

Cangwu Old Ancestor trapped Ao Xing in a formation diagram and inflicted devastating injuries before the Sea Shark Palace Lord shattered it. Ao Xing fell near death, while Cangwu Old Ancestor escaped with much of his flesh and his Reverse Scale, leaving the battlefield facing a wider conflict with the Dragon Race.

• Cangwu Old Ancestor's formation diagram trapped Ao Xing and slowed him, allowing Lin Tianyang to break free from Ao Xing's claw.
• Cangwu Old Ancestor bit Ao Xing twice, tearing open his body and grievously wounding his Reverse Scale.
• Duan wounded another Seventh Turn Dragon Race member and kept him from rushing to Ao Xing's aid.
• The Sea Shark Palace Lord struck the formation diagram until it shattered, and the badly injured Ao Xing fell into a huge pit.
• The Sea Shark Palace Lord confronted Cangwu Old Ancestor over declaring war on the Dragon Race, while Cangwu Old Ancestor said he was already on their kill list.

Li Xiao seized a chance during the battle to cut two kidneys and several chunks of flesh from the nearly helpless Ao Xing before escaping to the Human Race camp. The Sea Shark Palace Lord conceded the battle, but Lin Tianyang demanded the Demon Race return occupied cities, promise a hundred years without initiating war, and pay compensation.

• Li Xiao rushed past Ao Li's attack and cut two kidneys and several chunks of dragon flesh from Ao Xing before fleeing to the city wall.
• Ao Li pursued Li Xiao, but Du Tianshan and Su Chen intervened and forced him to fight them.
• The Sea Shark Palace Lord condemned the Cangwu Old Ancestor for ambushing the Dragon Race and then conceded the battle.
• Lin Tianyang rejected the Sea Shark Palace Lord's warning about unrest in the Zhou Kingdom and demanded the Demon Race return its occupied cities, promise not to start a war for a hundred years, and compensate the Human Race.
• The Sea Shark Palace Lord mocked Lin Tianyang for demanding terms while badly wounded.

Lin Tianyang and the Sea Shark Palace Master negotiated an end to the battle after the Dragon Race demanded compensation for its losses. The Dragon King ordered the demons to withdraw, and the Sea Shark Palace Master enforced the order while the Human Race and Demon Race forces disengaged.

• Lin Tianyang stood firm against the Sea Shark Palace Master, who called off the Dragon Race cultivator fighting Consecrated Duan to discuss ending the battle.
• The Sea Shark Palace Master promised compensation and support against Cangwu Old Ancestor, and the Dragon Race cultivator consulted the Dragon King through a bone shell.
• The Dragon King ordered the Dragon Race to withdraw and told his forces to bring Seventh Elder back safely, while leaving compensation negotiations to them.
• The Sea Shark Palace Master agreed to withdraw from occupied cities but refused to promise a hundred-year truce, then ordered the Demon Race forces to stop fighting.
• When a giant lizard Great Demon ignored the order and attacked a Human Race general, the Sea Shark Palace Master wounded it, stopped the general from killing it, and pulled it back to his side.

The Demon Race retreated after its defeat at Zhennan City, and the Human Race celebrated its hard-won victory. Li Xiao reflected on the powerful enemies still ahead and planned to grow stronger as the defenders began collecting the battlefield’s valuable remains.

• The Sea Shark Palace Lord organized the Demon Race's retreat while Lin Tianyang and Elder Duan declined to pursue, and Ao Li threatened Li Xiao before leaving with the army.
• Li Xiao watched the retreating forces disappear and resolved to use his battle contributions and the Dragon Race materials to strengthen himself after returning to the Three Origins Sect.
• Zhennan City's defenders cheered the Demon Race's retreat, while Lin Tianyang and Elder Duan questioned how long peace would last.
• Li Xiao considered the weakening Heavenly Dao suppression and feared that the battle was only a prelude to a greater conflict involving Eighth Turn experts.
• The Human Race began cleaning the battlefield and gathering Demonic Beast corpses, bones, and demon cores as cultivation resources.

After the battle at Zhennan City, Li Xiao collected dragon blood and returned to rest while news of the heavy losses spread. Emperor Zhou and Wu Daoxuan discussed their plan to trap rival powers in the imperial city's grand formation, and Li Xiao later refined the Demonic Qi stored in his Sword Qi.

• Li Xiao collected dragon-blood-stained mud and stone from the battlefield but found no Sixth Turn Great Demon's Essence Blood.
• Li Xiao returned to the Three Origins Sect encampment, reassured Chen An, and fell into a deep sleep.
• News spread that Lin Tianyang, Ao Xing, and the Sea Shark Palace Master had been gravely wounded or forced to retreat in the battle of Zhennan City.
• Emperor Zhou told Wu Daoxuan he planned to eliminate his rivals, and Wu Daoxuan confirmed that a formation linked to the imperial city and national fortune could severely suppress Seventh Turn experts.
• Li Xiao refined the Demonic Qi gathered by his black Sword Qi, strengthening it as he cultivated.

Li Xiao discovered that Ao Xing’s flesh could rapidly strengthen the Life-Slaying Amitabha Sword Scripture and began refining the dragon meat. At the Sea Shark Palace, the Palace Master accepted compensation from the Heavenly Devil Palace, while his Sixth Turn commanders challenged the costs and outcome of the war.

• Li Xiao found that ordinary demonic qi had only modestly strengthened his sword qi, then tested a piece of Ao Xing’s flesh and absorbed a far greater supply of demonic qi.
• Li Xiao decided to use the remaining dragon meat and kidneys to strengthen the Life-Slaying Amitabha Sword Scripture, raising its power toward the Round Marrow Realm.
• The Sea Shark Palace Master accused the Heavenly Devil Palace envoys of failing to provide promised support, and the leading Black-Robed Man denied that they had promised to send a Seventh Turn expert before handing over a reward.
• Silver Flood Dragon and the other Sixth Turn Great Demons criticized the war’s losses and compensation demands, blaming the Heavenly Devil Palace’s limited help and questioning the concessions to the Human Race.

The Sea Shark Palace Master accepted the cost of defeat because an Eighth Turn Sea Shark Palace forebear’s corpse could help him break through. As the Yu Kingdom’s front lines stabilized, Li Xiao strengthened his black Sword Qi and began drawing Fortune and Destiny from people carrying his Sub-insects.

• The Sea Shark Palace Master silenced the Great Demons’ complaints and said he would negotiate compensation with the Human Race rather than continue the fighting.
• After the others left, the Sea Shark Palace Master examined an Eighth Turn forebear’s corpse and resolved to use it to pursue his own breakthrough.
• Several days later, Human forces under Marquis Jingbian began reclaiming and repairing the cities seized by the Demon Race, though few civilians returned to the frontier.
• Li Xiao absorbed the Demonic Qi from the final piece of dragon flesh, growing his black Sword Qi to more than three zhang while his golden Sword Qi remained unchanged.
• Li Xiao contacted the Seven Orifice Insect and began drawing Fortune and Destiny through the Sub-insects parasitizing Su Chen, Huangfu Yuan, Qingyunzi, and the others.

Li Xiao joined Huangfu Yuan and other Fifth Turn cultivators as they welcomed new members into the Under Heaven Society and discussed the fragile truce with the Demon Race. Huangfu Yuan warned that Lin Tianyang’s grave injuries would leave the Zhou Kingdom vulnerable to upheaval, while Li Xiao’s mention of Imperial Jade Liquor failed to reveal whether Huangfu Yuan shared his origins.

• Huangfu Yuan introduced several accomplished Fifth Turn cultivators and asked Li Xiao to sponsor their membership in the Under Heaven Society, which Li Xiao accepted.
• Li Xiao counted twelve members in the Under Heaven Society as the gathering celebrated and Huangfu Yuan urged everyone to use the truce to strengthen themselves.
• Li Xiao tested Huangfu Yuan by saying “Imperial Jade Liquor,” but Huangfu Yuan appeared confused and instead offered to buy Yu Kingdom liquor with contribution points.
• Huangfu Yuan said Lin Tianyang’s grave injuries would embolden the Military Governors and great sects, bringing upheaval to the Zhou Kingdom within months.

Huangfu Yuan warned his companions that upheaval in the Zhou Kingdom was approaching and asked them to help secure his position as heir to the Prince of Nanyang. They agreed to support him, while Li Xiao privately suspected the crisis was more dangerous than Huangfu Yuan let on; the gathering then continued over Imperial Jade Liquor.

• Huangfu Yuan warned the group that turmoil in the Zhou Kingdom was coming and urged them to prepare discreetly.
• Huangfu Yuan asked his companions to help him become the heir apparent to the Prince of Nanyang.
• Li Xiao weighed the political risks and questioned how Huangfu Yuan could overcome the Prince of Nanyang's influence.
• Du Tianshan, Su Chen, Li Xiao, and the others pledged to assist Huangfu Yuan against his brothers.
• Huangfu Yuan served Imperial Jade Liquor to the gathering, and he and Li Xiao drank together.

Li Xiao declined Huangfu Yuan’s invitation to explore a Seventh Turn expert’s inheritance because he needed to return to the Three Origins Sect and prepare for the Candidate Saint Son Battle. Before heading back to the encampment, he spent all his Contribution Points on two body-refining pill formulas and their ingredients.

• Huangfu Yuan invited Li Xiao and the others to explore a Seventh Turn expert’s inheritance Secret Realm, promising rich rewards but acknowledging the dangers.
• Li Xiao refused the invitation, explaining that the Candidate Saint Son Battle was approaching and he needed to return and prepare.
• Huangfu Yuan and the others praised Li Xiao’s strength and wished him well, while Huangfu Yuan promised to attend the battle.
• Li Xiao visited the Exchange Hall and bought the Jade Bone Pill and Golden Skin Pill formulas, along with the Herbs needed to refine them.
• Li Xiao spent his remaining Contribution Points and headed toward the Three Origins Sect encampment.