Chapter Summaries

Zhang Chu and Ding Yi attempted to cross the Black River, but the Withered Bone Emperor emerged and forced them into battle. After Zhang Chu destroyed the Emperor, the river trapped him, and his East Sea Undying Tribulation Armor began absorbing its waters.

• Ding Yi used the Ten Thousand Poisons Grotto-Heaven's art to suppress the Black River's corrosive force as he and Zhang Chu tried to cross toward the island.
• A gigantic skeletal hand attacked Ding Yi, and the two retreated to shore, where the Withered Bone Emperor rose from the river.
• Ding Yi identified the Withered Bone Emperor as an ancient Extreme of Strength Realm expert and urged Zhang Chu to flee, but Zhang Chu fought it instead.
• Zhang Chu unleashed the Four Symbols Divine Skill and used Decomposition Power to destroy the Withered Bone Emperor with a single slash.
• The Black River surged into cages around Zhang Chu, and when he activated the East Sea Undying Tribulation Armor, the armor began absorbing the river water.

Zhang Chu was trapped and nearly assimilated when his Tribulation Armor absorbed the Black River’s Evil God Substance. He used Shenlan to purify it with Merit Points, transforming the armor with the power of the Return to Ruins and leaving him able to face Black River without fear.

• Black River awakened and trapped Zhang Chu, swallowing Ding Yi’s poison dragon when he tried to help.
• Zhang Chu realized his Tribulation Armor was drawing in Black River’s power, but the Evil God Substance corroded his body and could not be withdrawn.
• Shenlan offered to purify the contamination for 100,000 Merit Points per purification, and Zhang Chu ordered it to proceed.
• The purification stripped away the Evil God Substance and revealed the Return to Ruins power beneath it, while consuming nearly thirty million Merit Points.
• Zhang Chu’s armor transformed into the East Sea Return to Ruins Undying Tribulation Armor, gaining a vortex core and greatly increased defensive power.

Zhang Chu used the Return to Ruins Power in his completed Tribulation Armor to cross the Black River and claim the Myriad Phenomena Curse, purifying the Evil God Substance sealing it. After he returned to the shore, two armed strangers approached and demanded that he leave the treasure behind in exchange for his life.

• Zhang Chu explained to Ding Yi that his armor had become a miniature Return to Ruins, then crossed the Black River safely using its power.
• Zhang Chu discovered that the island was a flattened mountain and battlefield, where the Myriad Phenomena Curse was sealed inside a contaminated golden barrier.
• Zhang Chu spent eight million Merit Points to purify the barrier and took the Myriad Phenomena Curse into his Heavenly Palace.
• Zhang Chu returned to shore and sensed two figures approaching with greed and killing intent.
• A middle-aged man and a barefoot companion confronted Zhang Chu, and the middle-aged man demanded the Myriad Phenomena Curse in exchange for letting him leave alive.

Ding Yi recognized Shen Mo, the Heart-Devouring Scholar, and Qin Lie, the Barefoot Vanguard, as legendary warriors who had vanished in the Return to Ruins five centuries earlier. They demanded Zhang Chu surrender the Myriad Phenomena Curse, but when he exposed their ambush, they attacked together, and Zhang Chu vanished from their sight.

• Ding Yi identified Shen Mo and Qin Lie and recounted their histories and supposed deaths in the Return to Ruins.
• Shen Mo and Qin Lie demanded that Zhang Chu hand over the Myriad Phenomena Curse, threatening him with their strength and control of the terrain.
• Zhang Chu mocked them, refused to surrender the curse, and revealed that he had noticed their formation trap.
• Shen Mo and Qin Lie activated their weapons and launched a coordinated attack on Zhang Chu.
• Zhang Chu disappeared just as the two warriors struck.

Zhang Chu killed Heart-Devouring Scholar and Barefoot Vanguard, then destroyed the Evil God Vessel hidden in the Heart-Devouring Sword and sensed a distant consciousness watching him. As the island began to reveal a hidden gateway and a stone stele beneath the Black River, Zhang Chu and Ding Yi prepared to investigate.

• Zhang Chu defeated Heart-Devouring Scholar with the Nine Feathers Heavenly Saber, killing him and earning Merit Points.
• Barefoot Vanguard admitted he had been trapped in Return to Ruins for five hundred years, and Zhang Chu killed him at his request.
• Zhang Chu discovered Evil God Substance and a dormant consciousness inside the Heart-Devouring Sword, then destroyed them with Decomposition Power and received a Blood Bead and fifteen million Merit Points.
• A distant extraterrestrial consciousness briefly watched Zhang Chu as he destroyed the sword, and he reflected on the Myriad Phenomena Curse and its possible connection to Boundless Light.
• Zhang Chu and Ding Yi searched for an exit, but a hidden gateway appeared among the collapsed stones at the island's center as the Black River receded and revealed a stone stele on its bed.

Zhang Chu and Ding Yi used the stele's vision of the Return to Ruins in its heyday to infer that an ancient battle had devastated the Grotto-Heaven, then entered the Qingming Secret Realm through the azure gate. They found a road lined with strange God-Buddha statues and sensed a powerful battle ahead.

• Zhang Chu touched the stele and saw the Return to Ruins as a thriving land, then showed Ding Yi the vision.
• Zhang Chu concluded that an ancient conflict had ruined the Grotto-Heaven and that the Myriad Phenomena Curse could activate the stele and guide them toward uncontaminated regions.
• Zhang Chu and Ding Yi entered the azure gate, where the Myriad Phenomena Curse lit up and transported them to a realm rich in heaven-and-earth essence.
• Ding Yi identified the place as the Qingming Secret Realm, and Zhang Chu recognized that its God-Buddha statues seemed to embody martial arts techniques.
• Ding Yi noticed that a Buddha statue had moved, while Zhang Chu observed melted-looking stone and statues arranged like a battle frozen in time.
• Zhang Chu and Ding Yi heard a powerful battle ahead and decided to investigate.

Zhang Chu and Ding Yi reached the Martial God Hall, where Granny Kurong fought three Stone Statues, one of which contained the Old Character Stele. Beiming Kuang arrived seeking the hall’s inheritance, and Granny Kurong turned his attention toward Zhang Chu, whom she identified as the Little Martial Saint.

• Zhang Chu and Ding Yi found Granny Kurong battling three Stone Statues before the sealed Martial God Hall.
• Zhang Chu recognized the Old Character Stele’s power in one statue, while Ding Yi identified a Buddhist supreme art in another.
• Granny Kurong used her Kurong Great Method to counter the statues, but Beiming Kuang revealed that she could not defeat them and would eventually be worn down.
• Beiming Kuang declared his intention to claim the Martial God Hall’s inheritance after Granny Kurong fell.
• Granny Kurong directed Beiming Kuang’s attention to Zhang Chu and Ding Yi, identifying Zhang Chu as the Little Martial Saint.
• Beiming Kuang challenged Zhang Chu to prove he could leave the Qingming Secret Realm alive.

Zhang Chu battled Beiming Kuang in the plaza, overpowering his attacks with Return to Ruins Power and forcing him to reveal his five-century plan. Beiming Kuang broke through to the Extreme of Strength, but Zhang Chu claimed he had deliberately allowed it, leaving their confrontation poised to continue.

• Beiming Kuang attacked Zhang Chu with a powerful palm strike, but Zhang Chu blocked it and wounded him with Return to Ruins Power.
• Beiming Kuang drew his Duanhai saber and unleashed Duanhai Final Form, but Zhang Chu swallowed the attack and hurled him into a statue, shattering his right arm.
• Beiming Kuang revealed that he had remained in the secret realm for five hundred years to accumulate power and pursue the highest-grade Extreme of Strength breakthrough.
• Ding Yi warned Zhang Chu that Beiming Kuang was using their battle to break through, while Granny Kurong recognized his plan to make the three apertures resonate at once.
• Beiming Kuang ascended to the Extreme of Strength and challenged Zhang Chu, who said he had deliberately let him break through.

Zhang Chu let Beiming Kuang complete his breakthrough to the Extreme of Strength Realm so he could test his own power against a perfected opponent. After enduring Beiming Kuang’s attacks and exposing his weak physical defense, Zhang Chu overwhelmed and killed him, earning fifteen million merit points.

• Ding Yi urged Zhang Chu to attack before Beiming Kuang stabilized, but Zhang Chu chose to wait until the breakthrough was complete.
• Beiming Kuang condensed the Immovable Wisdom King Body and struck Zhang Chu with Heart-Piercing Stab and World-Suppressing Fist, but Zhang Chu’s Return-to-Ruins Tribulation Armor and power stopped both attacks.
• Zhang Chu identified Beiming Kuang’s weak Secret Treasury of Essence, revealed his four Manifestations, and trapped him in the Supreme Divine Qi Evil-Slaying September Sword Formation.
• Zhang Chu’s sword formation wounded Beiming Kuang and cracked his Martial Dao Intent, leaving him badly injured and terrified.
• Zhang Chu unleashed his blade and the sword formation together, shattered Beiming Kuang’s Immovable Wisdom King Body, and killed him.
• Zhang Chu received 15,000,000 merit points.

After killing Beiming Kuang, Zhang Chu learned from Granny Kurong that the Qingming Secret Realm’s true inheritance was held in its Stone Statues and that the Martial God Hall’s token was a formless Decree. Zhang Chu killed Granny Kurong, absorbed the Old Character Stele fragment from one Stone Statue, and confirmed that the Decree lay behind the Hall’s gate.

• Granny Kurong admitted he had used Beiming Kuang to divert danger and offered Zhang Chu a secret in exchange for his life.
• Granny Kurong revealed that the three Stone Statues contained supreme arts and that the Martial God Hall’s token was a Decree sensed through Spiritual Power.
• Zhang Chu sensed the Decree behind the Hall’s gate, but refused to let Granny Kurong leave and struck him down after defeating his Kurong Extinction technique.
• The three Stone Statues attacked Zhang Chu, who evaded their blows and shattered the statue containing the Old Character Stele fragment.
• Zhang Chu absorbed the Old Character Stele fragment, causing the other two Stone Statues to return to their places, then confirmed to Ding Yi that the Decree was behind the gate.

Zhang Chu awakened the Martial God Decree in the Martial God Hall and gained control of the Qingming Secret Realm’s Stone Statues. After helping Ding Yi obtain a Buddhist cultivation method, Zhang Chu began enhancing the Old Character Stele to prepare for the coming battle in the Sea Heart Grotto-Heaven.

• Zhang Chu matched his Spiritual Power to the Decree’s rhythm, opening the Martial God Hall’s gate without force.
• Zhang Chu accepted the Martial God Decree, gained a connection to the Qingming Secret Realm, and guided a Stone Statue to move.
• The Stone Statues bowed to Zhang Chu, confirming that the Decree had made him their master.
• Zhang Chu revealed the Buddhist Sect’s Three Lives Body cultivation method to Ding Yi, who swore loyalty and began studying it.
• Zhang Chu reviewed his gains, noted his nearly fifty million Merit Points, and asked Shenlan to enhance the Old Character Stele.

Zhang Chu purified and enhanced the Old Character Stele, then fused its power with the Tribulation and Bitter Character Steles to open the Secret Treasury of Qi and enter the Extreme of Strength. He condensed the Three Flowers at the top of his Heavenly Palace, leaving him on a unique path whose full power remained to be revealed.

• Zhang Chu spent 10 million Merit Points to purify the contaminated Old Character Stele and used 100 million Merit Points to enhance it.
• Zhang Chu cultivated the Old Character Stele’s Method of Decay, converting the power of decline into strength and forming a connection with the land and all living things.
• The powers of the Old, Tribulation, and Bitter Character Steles resonated within Zhang Chu, stirring the Qingming Secret Realm and drawing Ding Yi’s attention.
• Zhang Chu opened the Secret Treasury of Qi, completing his three apertures of essence, qi, and spirit and entering the Extreme of Strength.
• The Myriad Phenomena Curse and Boundless Light formed three flowers in Zhang Chu’s Heavenly Palace, giving him a unique Three Flowers Gathering at the Top.

Zhang Chu reached the Extreme of Strength Realm, and Ding Yi found a path toward breaking through after studying the Three Lives Body Technique. They left the Qingming Secret Realm through a gate opened with the Decree and arrived in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm, where the Eroding Fire Old Devil threatened them over the Sea Heart Flame.

• Zhang Chu confirmed that he had entered the Extreme of Strength Realm, while Ding Yi realized the Three Lives Body complemented his incomplete Ten Thousand Poisons Grotto-Heaven inheritance and could help him break through.
• Zhang Chu decided that Ding Yi needed to test his path in battle, then opened a hidden passage in the Martial God Hall with the Decree.
• Zhang Chu and Ding Yi crossed the passage and entered the Burning Heaven Secret Realm, where a qi spear attacked Zhang Chu and Ding Yi blocked it with Poisonous Miasma.
• The Eroding Fire Old Devil revealed that he had hidden in the secret realm for five hundred years, fused with a wisp of the Sea Heart Flame, and planned to sacrifice the gathered intruders.
• Ding Yi refused to join forces with the other cultivators and challenged the Eroding Fire Old Devil to kneel before his master, the Yellow Court Dao Master.

Zhang Chu defeated Eroding Fire Old Devil, extracted the Sea Heart Flame Remnant, and learned it may have been bait set by a powerful figure. A sword-wielding man in white then arrived at the Burning Heaven Secret Realm, declaring that the Sea Heart Flame was still there.

• Eroding Fire Old Devil attacked Zhang Chu and the others after revealing he had used the middle-aged man and woman as bait.
• Zhang Chu identified the Sea Heart Flame as a remnant that had parasitized Eroding Fire Old Devil and suppressed the old devil with his Extreme of Strength Realm power.
• Zhang Chu forced the Sea Heart Flame Remnant out of Eroding Fire Old Devil and killed him, earning 9,800,000 Merit Points.
• Zhang Chu suspected someone had sealed the complete Sea Heart Flame and released its remnant as bait for those seeking to control it.
• A sword-wielding man in white arrived and exclaimed that the Sea Heart Flame was still in the Burning Heaven Secret Realm.

Zhang Chu and Ding Yi entered the depths of the Burning Heaven Secret Realm with Su Ning and Liu Qing, following clues to a grand formation that concealed the true Sea Heart Flame. Zhang Chu opened one of its entrances with the residual flame and found Pei Yuan inside, wielding the Star-Slayer Sword as their confrontation began.

• Zhang Chu sensed that Pei Yuan had entered a powerful formation, then learned from Su Ning and Liu Qing that they had followed Sword Elder into the secret realm and been attacked by the Eroding Fire Old Devil.
• Zhang Chu led the group through the scorched rock layers, where he found traces of the Sea Heart Flame and a restriction the Eroding Fire Old Devil had been unable to open.
• Su Ning suggested that the residual Sea Heart Flame was a key to locating the true flame, and Zhang Chu used it to discover the grand formation's entrance.
• Zhang Chu determined that the formation required two keys and sensed that Pei Yuan had taken the other one inside.
• Zhang Chu opened the formation with his residual Sea Heart Flame, revealing Pei Yuan within the sea of fire as Pei Yuan drew the Star-Slayer Sword and shouted, "Die!"

Zhang Chu defeated Pei Yuan and claimed the complete Sea Heart Flame, only to discover that an Evil God Will had been hidden inside it. The Will awakened and spoke of a new harvest, leaving Zhang Chu and the others facing an expanding threat.

• Pei Yuan used half of the Sea Heart Flame to strengthen his sword, but Zhang Chu broke the Star-Slayer Sword and killed him with a palm strike.
• Zhang Chu, Ding Yi, Su Ning, and Liu Qing found the complete Sea Heart Flame floating above a stone platform, and Zhang Chu took hold of it.
• Zhang Chu sensed an Evil God Will hidden deep inside the Sea Heart Flame and explained that it could enter the body of anyone who tried to fuse with the flame.
• The Evil God Will awakened, transformed the flame grey-black, and expanded as Ding Yi urged Su Ning and Liu Qing to retreat.
• A voice emerged from the flame, asking whether it was time for another harvest and how many eras it had slept.

Zhang Chu and his companions faced an Evil God Will Avatar awakening in the flames, which drained life force and rapidly recovered its strength. The avatar adapted to Zhang Chu’s attacks and copied his saber techniques, leaving the battle unresolved as it continued evolving.

• The gray-black light awakened and began drawing life force from the circular space, forcing Ding Yi, Su Ning, and Liu Qing to protect themselves.
• The avatar formed a humanoid body and advanced into the Extreme of Strength Realm, while it recognized Zhang Chu’s complete Dao Embryo and compared his composure to the Sea God’s.
• The avatar attacked Zhang Chu from behind, but his Return to Ruins Power stopped its palm, and he countered with a Golden Heavenly Saber.
• Zhang Chu’s second saber strike drove the avatar back only seven steps, and Liu Qing realized it was adapting to his attacks.
• The avatar created a Black Heavenly Saber that imitated Zhang Chu’s weapon and combined it with stacked saber intent, prompting Ding Yi to warn that it could evolve beyond control.

Zhang Chu used the Myriad Phenomena Curse and a Sword Formation to destroy the Evil God Will that had possessed Sea Heart Flame, earning twenty million Merit Points. After discovering the Source Cult had tampered with the Burning Heaven Secret Realm, he left with Ding Yi, Su Ning, and Liu Qing to investigate other secret realms.

• Zhang Chu revealed that his Return to Ruins Power had been weakening the shadow while the Myriad Phenomena Curse recorded the power it copied, then unleashed the curse and Sword Formation to destroy it along with Sea Heart Flame.
• Zhang Chu received twenty million Merit Points, and Su Ning and Liu Qing knelt and asked to follow him; Zhang Chu accepted them.
• Zhang Chu examined the information gathered by the Myriad Phenomena Curse and found evidence that a high-ranking Source Cult member had set up the formation around Sea Heart Flame.
• Zhang Chu told Ding Yi that the Source Cult had deliberately trapped the Burning Heaven Secret Realm, then led the group out to investigate other secret realms.
• Zhang Chu stepped through the exit and sensed the damp, chilly aura of the deep sea.

Zhang Chu entered the Water Moon Secret Realm with his companions, defeated a gray-robed Source Cult swordsman, and took the Mirror Key. When they reached the enormous water mirror where the key had been found, it flew from Zhang Chu’s hand onto a stone pillar, awakening something beneath the water.

• Zhang Chu and his companions entered the Water Moon Secret Realm and found signs of a recent battle.
• Zhang Chu led the group to a fight where a gray-robed man was overpowering a young Swordsman, a middle-aged man, and a woman in black over the Mirror Key.
• Zhang Chu recognized the gray-robed man’s sword as a Source Cult weapon, defeated him, and took his token before the man disintegrated.
• The young Swordsman gave Zhang Chu the Mirror Key and explained that he had found it embedded in a stone pillar at the water mirror.
• Zhang Chu and the others reached the water mirror, where the Mirror Key flew onto a stone pillar and triggered a violent awakening beneath the water.

Zhang Chu and the others entered the Water Moon Secret Realm’s Inverted Palace and discovered that its token was a living, awakening cocoon. A black-robed swordsman from the Source Cult arrived and warned Zhang Chu that he might not leave alive if he had awakened it.

• The Mirror Key caused the Water Moon Secret Realm to surge, and Zhang Chu saw the Inverted Palace rise from the depths.
• Zhang Chu, Ding Yi, Su Ning, Liu Qing, and Liu Changfeng entered the palace and found an amber light surrounding what appeared to be the realm’s token.
• Zhang Chu’s Spiritual Power touched the token, breaking its jade groove and revealing a living pale-gold cocoon that began to beat and unfold faint wings.
• A black-robed swordsman arrived, said Lan Yan was dead, and explained that the Source Cult cared more about the cocoon than Lan Yan’s death.
• The black-robed swordsman asked whether Zhang Chu had awakened the cocoon, then warned that Zhang Chu might not leave alive if he had.