Chapter Summaries

Primordial Heavenly Lord and Zhun Ti arranged for the Nine-tailed Fox Spirit to use Great Shang's fortune, while Hong Yun saw through their plan and gave Xuanwu instructions. Di Xin became dissatisfied with his slow cultivation and asked Fei Zhong and You Hun how to find women who could help him cultivate.

• Di Xin felt invigorated after using the dual-cultivation technique and went to train, while Primordial Heavenly Lord and Zhun Ti observed that Great Shang's fortune had shifted.
• Primordial Heavenly Lord and Zhun Ti sent Zhun Ti's benevolent corpse to Xuanyuan Tomb, where he gave the Nine-tailed Fox Spirit a fortune-cultivation method.
• The Nine-tailed Fox Spirit absorbed Xuanyuan Tomb's fortune and decided to go to Chaoge to reach the greater fortune surrounding the Human Emperor.
• Hong Yun recognized the scheme and summoned Xuanwu to give him instructions, while Xuanwu asked whether he was meant to take the Nine-tailed Fox Spirit as a disciple.
• Di Xin's cultivation gains slowed because Empress Jiang and consorts Yang and Huang could no longer help him, so he asked Fei Zhong and You Hun for advice about finding suitable women.

Di Xin chose Su Daji as his consort after Fei Zhong and You Hun persuaded him to seek women suited to cultivation, while Hong Yun and Nu Wa discussed the consequences of his growing desires. Xuanwu intercepted Su Daji on the road to Chaoge, warned her that a deadly calamity awaited, and gave her the Martial Dao Soul Refining Method.

• Fei Zhong and You Hun persuaded Di Xin to select only a few women with special constitutions, and Di Xin ordered them to arrange it.
• Fei Zhong recommended Su Daji, daughter of Su Hu of Yizhou, and Di Xin ordered her brought to Chaoge.
• Nu Wa objected to Di Xin's manipulation, but Hong Yun said his conduct would teach future Human Emperors to restrain their desires.
• Xuanwu followed Su Daji's escort convoy and secretly took her to a nearby mountaintop.
• Xuanwu warned Su Daji that she faced a life-threatening calamity and gave her the Martial Dao Soul Refining Method.
• Su Daji recognized the method's depth but questioned how she could avert her fate when she had never practiced the Martial Dao.

Xuanwu taught Su Daji a martial cultivation method but refused to take her as a disciple, while Su Daji’s convoy continued toward Chaoge. Near Xuanyuan Temple, the Nine-tailed Fox Spirit saw a chance to possess Su Daji and slipped toward her carriage at night.

• Xuanwu sent Su Daji back to the convoy and concealed himself after deciding she was too untalented to become his disciple.
• Su Daji told Su Quanzhong about her dream of meeting an Immortal Master and asked him to teach her martial arts.
• Su Daji trained with Su Quanzhong during the journey but made no cultivation progress as Xuanwu followed and watched.
• The convoy reached Xuanyuan Temple outside Chaoge, where the Nine-tailed Fox Spirit learned Su Daji was nearby and planned to possess her.
• The Nine-tailed Fox Spirit evaded the guards and approached Su Daji’s carriage, surprised that Su Daji was still awake.

The Nine-tailed Fox Spirit tried to possess Su Daji, but Xuanwu’s safeguard destroyed her attempt and forced her into her original form. Xuanwu then appeared as Su Daji continued to call for help.

• The Nine-tailed Fox Spirit isolated Su Daji with an illusion barrier and tried to take over her body.
• The Nine-tailed Fox Spirit entered Su Daji’s mind and moved to devour her soul.
• A safeguard Xuanwu had placed on Su Daji unleashed white light that burned the fox spirit’s soul and drove it back into her body.
• The Nine-tailed Fox Spirit reverted to her original form, and Su Daji woke and cried for help.
• Xuanwu emerged between Su Daji and the injured Nine-tailed Fox.

Xuanwu killed the Nine-tailed Fox Spirit and used its essence blood and purified primordial spirit to help Su Daji cultivate. After reaching the Heavenly Immortal realm overnight, Su Daji learned that Xuanwu was Hong Yun’s disciple and tried to make him her master.

• Su Daji rushed toward Xuanwu but was stopped by an invisible force, while the Nine-tailed Fox Spirit begged him for mercy.
• Xuanwu condemned the Nine-tailed Fox Spirit for cultivating with human fortune, purged its primordial spirit, and extracted its essence blood before its body crumbled to ash.
• Xuanwu sent the essence blood into Su Daji and guided her through cultivation, allowing her to refine it and control the blank primordial spirit by dawn.
• With Xuanwu’s help, Su Daji reached the Heavenly Immortal realm and asked him to reveal his name.
• Xuanwu identified himself as a disciple of Ancestor Hong Yun, and Su Daji began bowing to him, asking if he would be her master.

Su Daji inherited the Nine-tailed Fox Spirit’s cultivation knowledge and reached Great Shang, where she confronted Di Xin over his unorthodox cultivation. She claimed to be Xuanwu’s disciple and used Hong Yun’s name to make Di Xin back down.

• Su Daji discovered Xuanwu had vanished, vowed to become his disciple anyway, and examined the Nine-tailed Fox Spirit’s memories and cultivation technique.
• Xuanwu left Xuanyuan Temple, decided he had completed Ancestor Hong Yun’s task, then turned toward Chentang Pass to visit Wu Tian and Spirit Pearl Child.
• Su Daji chose to continue to Chaoge rather than flee, knowing her departure could endanger her family and the people of Yizhou.
• Di Xin welcomed Su Daji to his palace and tried to use his bewitching aura to cultivate from her.
• Su Daji resisted Di Xin, accused him of cultivating through women, and claimed Xuanwu and Ancestor Hong Yun as her backing.
• Di Xin feared the matter reaching Ancestor Hong Yun and tried to appease Su Daji, who dodged him and rejected his claim that she was his consort.

Di Xin persuaded Su Daji to teach him the method of cultivating through Great Shang’s fortune, believing it could help him protect and strengthen the human race. As Di Xin began cultivating and drawing on the kingdom’s fortune, Primordial Heavenly Lord recognized that Hong Jun’s plan had reached Di Xin and summoned Jiang Ziya.

• Di Xin asked Su Daji for a cultivation method and argued that he would relinquish the throne to cultivate if he could learn a proper method.
• Su Daji hesitated because cultivating with human fortune was taboo, but Di Xin offered to make her a Noble Consort and share Great Shang’s fortune with her.
• Su Daji agreed and passed the method to Di Xin, who activated it and drew Great Shang’s fortune into his body as its golden dragon cried out.
• Primordial Heavenly Lord realized that Di Xin had obtained the method Hong Jun intended for him, but decided to wait and see how events unfolded.
• Primordial Heavenly Lord called on Immortal Official Nan Ji to summon Jiang Ziya.

Hong Yun suspected Dao Ancestor Hong Jun intended to use Di Xin’s fortune-based cultivation to interfere with the human path, so he acted to prepare against it. Meanwhile, Xuanwu traveled toward Chentang Pass as the rebellion against Di Xin grew, where Nezha’s fight with Ao Bing ended with Nezha overpowering the dragon prince.

• Nan Ji agreed to Primordial Heavenly Lord’s order and left Jade Void Palace to find Jiang Ziya.
• Hong Yun realized Di Xin’s cultivation method could let Dao Ancestor Hong Jun use the Investiture of the Gods to intrude upon the human path, so he placed safeguards in the human path.
• Xuanwu learned that Di Xin had deposed Empress Jiang, that her sons had fled, and that Jiang Wenhuan had rebelled; he chose not to intervene against Su Daji and continued toward Chentang Pass.
• Nezha washed his clothes in the East Sea with the Hun Tian Ling, disturbing the sea and drawing the Sea Patrol Yaksha and Ao Bing into a fight.
• Nezha used his treasures and spear to defeat Ao Bing, bind him with the Hun Tian Ling, and threaten to pull out his dragon tendons.

Nezha attacked Ao Bing after mistaking him for an enemy, but Candle Dragon intervened and revealed their clans were connected through Hong Yun's disciples. Nezha and Ao Bing made peace, and Candle Dragon asked whether Nezha was leaving.

• Nezha ignored Ao Bing's explanation and prepared to pull out his dragon tendons until Candle Dragon arrived.
• Candle Dragon recognized the aura of Nezha's spear and explained that Ao Bing was descended from Nezha's Dragon Clan martial uncles.
• Nezha realized he had attacked an ally and apologized to Ao Bing, who accepted to avoid angering Candle Dragon.
• Nezha recalled his Hun Tian Ling and Qian Kun Quan, and Ao Bing transformed back into human form.
• Candle Dragon asked Nezha whether he was leaving.

Wu Tian and Xuanwu arrived after Candle Dragon stopped Nezha from fighting Ao Bing, and Wu Tian explained that the clash had been part of Nezha’s destined tribulation. Candle Dragon invited them to the East Sea Dragon Palace, where Nezha was allowed to choose a treasure.

• Candle Dragon stopped Nezha from sneaking away, and Wu Tian and Xuanwu appeared and greeted him.
• Wu Tian ordered Nezha to apologize to Ao Bing, who accepted after learning Nezha was Spirit Pearl Child from Empress Wa’s Palace.
• Wu Tian explained that Nezha’s tribulation was tied to the Dragon Clan and thanked Candle Dragon for intervening.
• Nezha thanked Candle Dragon, who invited Wu Tian and Xuanwu to the Dragon Palace and offered Nezha a treasure from its treasury.

At the East Sea Dragon Palace, Candle Dragon asked Wu Tian about the Ancestral Dragon’s rebirth and learned it would come after the Investiture of the Gods Calamity. As the group discussed the calamity and its dangers to their disciples, Wu Tian teased Xuanwu about rumors that Su Daji claimed to be his disciple.

• Candle Dragon let Nezha choose a treasure from the Dragon Clan’s treasury, and Nezha promised Ao Bing that he would pick one as an apology.
• Candle Dragon asked Wu Tian when the Ancestral Dragon would be reborn, and Wu Tian told him it would happen sometime after the Investiture of the Gods Calamity.
• Candle Dragon warned Wu Tian and Xuanwu that their disciples’ ties to the human race could draw them into the calamity.
• Wu Tian said she would accept it if her disciples could not survive the calamity, then told Xuanwu that Su Daji was rumored to claim she was his disciple.

Xuanwu confronted Su Daji in Chaoge to deny that he had ever taken her as a disciple and investigate her role in Empress Jiang’s fate. He discovered that Su Daji and Di Xin were cultivating with Great Shang’s fortune, and Su Daji blamed Di Xin and the Chan Sect for the accusations surrounding Empress Jiang.

• Nezha asked whether Su Daji was Xuanwu’s new disciple, and Xuanwu denied it.
• Wu Tian urged Xuanwu to clarify matters with Su Daji and find out whether she was responsible for what happened to Empress Jiang.
• Xuanwu went to Chaoge, rejected Su Daji’s claim that he was her master, and questioned her cultivation.
• Su Daji explained that she and Di Xin cultivated with Great Shang’s fortune after Di Xin began doing so.
• Su Daji denied responsibility for Empress Jiang’s fate and accused the Chan Sect of spreading rumors, surprising Xuanwu.

Xuanwu relayed Hong Yun’s order to tell Di Xin about the Investiture of the Gods Tribulation, despite not understanding why. Di Xin learned that cultivators intended to use a dynasty’s fall for their disciples’ tribulation and realized Great Shang might be targeted, while Xuanwu said he would not interfere with what Di Xin did next.

• Su Daji told Xuanwu that Yun Zhong Zi had used the Ju Que Sword to attack her Nine-tailed Fox Spirit bloodline.
• Hong Yun telepathically instructed Xuanwu to set aside the matter of cultivating with dynastic fortune and tell Di Xin about the Investiture of the Gods.
• Xuanwu sent Su Daji to fetch Di Xin, then waited for them at a raised platform in the palace.
• Xuanwu explained the Investiture of the Gods Tribulation to Di Xin and Su Daji, and Di Xin realized cultivators had tried to manipulate the change of dynasties for their own purposes.
• Di Xin suspected his cultivation of Great Shang’s fortune would give those cultivators an excuse to act, then asked whether Xuanwu would interfere with his future choices.
• Xuanwu told Di Xin he would not interfere.

Di Xin ordered Marquis of the West Ji Chang to come to Chaoge, then imprisoned him and commanded his execution. Golden talismans blocked the guards’ blades and began carrying Ji Chang away.

• Xuanwu warned Di Xin and Su Daji that their cultivation was consuming Great Shang’s fortune, then disappeared without intervening in human affairs.
• Di Xin decided to target Ji Chang, and the next day he ordered Ji Chang to come to Chaoge to answer accusations against Western Qi.
• Ji Chang divined great ill fortune but chose to travel to Chaoge with Bo Yikao, hoping to turn danger into safety.
• Di Xin imprisoned Ji Chang on a charge of gross disrespect and, that night, ordered the guards to execute him while he watched.
• Golden talismans blocked the guards’ blades and began carrying Ji Chang away.

Di Xin killed Ji Chang and convinced Great Shang’s ministers that Western Qi threatened the dynasty, prompting preparations for war. In Kunlun Mountain, Primordial Heavenly Lord questioned why Ji Chang had died before fulfilling the fate he had foreseen.

• Di Xin killed Ji Chang with a saber, then ordered the guards to kill the rest of the Western Qi party and summoned Grand Tutor Wen back to Chaoge.
• Chaoge’s people demanded an explanation, but Di Xin met privately with Bi Gan, Huang Fei Hu, and other senior ministers and revealed that Ji Chang had been chosen by the Chan Sect to overthrow Great Shang.
• Su Daji claimed that a Nine-tailed Fox Spirit had tried to possess her and that her master, the Black Tortoise, had saved her.
• Bi Gan endorsed Ji Chang’s execution, while Huang Fei Hu urged Di Xin to prepare for Western Qi’s rebellion and recruit capable allies.
• Di Xin said he had summoned Grand Tutor Wen and called on the ministers to stabilize Great Shang and prepare to defeat Western Qi.
• Primordial Heavenly Lord wondered why Di Xin had killed Ji Chang, whose fate he had expected to lead him back to Western Qi to rebel against Shang.

Primordial Heavenly Lord sent Immortal Official Nan Ji to order Jiang Ziya to Western Qi after Di Xin executed Ji Chang, disrupting the Investiture of the Gods. Nan Ji interrupted Jiang Ziya’s wedding and insisted he leave at once to help Western Qi overthrow Great Shang.

• Primordial Heavenly Lord learned that Ji Chang’s soul was in his hands and ordered Immortal Official Nan Ji to send Jiang Ziya to Western Qi to erect the Platform of Investiture.
• Jiang Ziya, who had recently descended from Kunlun Mountain, married Ma Shi in Song Family Village after Song Yiren arranged the match.
• Immortal Official Nan Ji arrived during the wedding and told Jiang Ziya that Di Xin had executed Ji Chang, throwing the Investiture of the Gods into disarray.
• Jiang Ziya questioned whether Ji Chang was the worthy ruler he was meant to assist and said he had planned to seek a position in Di Xin’s court.
• Immortal Official Nan Ji told Jiang Ziya that he was destined to carry out the Investiture of the Gods and must hurry to Western Qi before Di Xin discovered his role.

Jiang Ziya fled toward Western Qi after Immortal Official Nan Ji warned him, while Shen Gongbao joined Di Xin and offered to help seize Jiang Ziya and the Investiture of the Gods. Di Xin later told Grand Tutor Wen what had happened, and Wen warned that draining Great Shang’s fortune could destroy the dynasty before it defeated Western Qi.

• Immortal Official Nan Ji left Jiang Ziya to choose, and Jiang Ziya decided to pack and flee to Western Qi.
• Shen Gongbao tore down Di Xin’s recruitment notice, revealed he was a Chan Sect disciple, then claimed he had been mistreated and feuded with Jiang Ziya.
• Di Xin agreed to make Shen Gongbao the State Preceptor if he proved his claims, and Shen Gongbao led soldiers toward Song Family Village to pursue Jiang Ziya.
• Shen Gongbao found that Jiang Ziya had already fled with Ma Shi, but his attempt convinced Di Xin that he had spoken truthfully.
• Grand Tutor Wen returned to Chaoge, heard Di Xin’s account, and said he would ask Golden Spirit Holy Mother about the Investiture of the Gods.
• Grand Tutor Wen warned Di Xin that using Great Shang’s fortune to cultivate could bring down the dynasty, while Di Xin remained silent despite having already gained power from it.

Grand Tutor Wen learned from Golden Spirit Holy Mother that the Investiture of the Gods involved the Interception Sect, while Sect Master Tong Tian urged his disciples to avoid the mortal tribulation. Wen Zhong nevertheless resolved to keep supporting Great Shang and fight for a chance of survival.

• Di Xin promised Grand Tutor Wen that he would step down after Western Qi was destroyed, while lamenting that Yin Jiao and Yin Hong had joined the Chan Sect.
• Grand Tutor Wen left Chaoge for the East Sea to ask Golden Spirit Holy Mother about the Investiture of the Gods.
• Golden Spirit Holy Mother told Wen Zhong that Sect Master Tong Tian had warned the Interception Sect disciples to stay out of mortal affairs, then went to report Ji Chang’s execution to him.
• Sect Master Tong Tian said he already knew of the changes and ordered Golden Spirit Holy Mother to remind the disciples to protect themselves and avoid interfering.
• Golden Spirit Holy Mother relayed Tong Tian’s words, but Grand Tutor Wen resolved to remain involved in Great Shang’s struggle and seek a way to survive the tribulation.

Jiang Ziya joined Ji Fa’s campaign against Great Shang and prepared for war after Chong Bohu attacked Western Qi. With Western Qi unable to defeat Chong Bohu’s army, Nangong Shi went to persuade Chong Heihu to turn against his brother, invoking Heaven’s Mandate and promising him a role in governing Chong City.

• Wen Zhong ordered Chong Bohu to attack Western Qi while Ji Fa declared himself King Wu, recruited worthy men, and prepared to avenge Ji Chang.
• Jiang Ziya joined Ji Fa as prime minister, obtained the Investiture of the Gods and the God-Beating Whip, and inscribed Ji Chang and Bo Yikao on the list.
• Chong Bohu’s army forced Western Qi to retreat behind its gates, and Jiang Ziya asked his ministers for a strategy.
• Nangong Shi proposed persuading Chong Heihu to attack his brother from within, and Jiang Ziya sent him to Caozhou.
• Nangong Shi met Chong Heihu, cited Great Shang’s declining fortune and the rumor of a phoenix crying on Mount Qi, and suggested that Chong Heihu could govern Chong City.

Chong Heihu allied with Western Qi, seized Chong City, and delivered Chong Bohu and his family to Nangong Shi’s camp. Back in Chaoge, Di Xin suspected Western Qi had enlisted Chan Sect cultivators and asked Grand Tutor Wen to assess the danger.

• Nangong Shi offered Chong Heihu Western Qi’s support and promised him control of Chong City, prompting Chong Heihu to agree to betray Chong Bohu.
• Chong Heihu brought three thousand Flying Tiger Soldiers to Chong City, deceived Chong Yingbiao, and arranged for him to summon Chong Bohu from Chaoge.
• After Chong Bohu returned, Chong Heihu captured him, and Chong Yingbiao, Chong Bohu, and their family surrendered to Western Qi.
• Marquis Chong Hu left Chaoge for Chong City after receiving Chong Yingbiao’s message, and Di Xin began to suspect a scheme involving Western Qi cultivators.
• Di Xin consulted Grand Tutor Wen, who agreed that cultivators might intervene in duels between generals despite the Nine Provinces Barrier.