Chapter Summaries

After Greenwood City’s victory, Li Mo learned that the Prince of Southern Pacification would not come to help and realized the coming battle would be worse. He tried to persuade Ying Bing to leave without him, but she saw through his plan and confronted him.

• Li Mo used the Heavenly Mandate Divine Eye to learn that Han Zhen intended to grow stronger through the deaths of countless people and wanted Ying Bing’s divine treasures.
• Li Mo privately asked Qu Sheng whether the Prince of Southern Pacification had ever planned to come, and Qu Sheng admitted the prince had been ordered back to the capital.
• Qu Sheng explained that he had hidden the prince’s absence to preserve the soldiers’ morale and said he would die before abandoning the civilians of Greenwood City.
• Qu Sheng returned to the tent and falsely announced that Li Mo would send another batch of supplies, lifting the generals’ spirits.
• Li Mo asked Ying Bing to leave with him, but she recognized that he meant to send her away before staying behind to defend the city.

Li Mo chose to remain in Greenwood City and face Han Zhen, while Ying Bing promised to be someone he could rely on. As Li Mo resumed deducing the Wukong Seeking the Dao Diagram, he saw a vision of the Heavenly Palace and a monkey warrior in golden armor.

• Li Mo told Ying Bing that he would stay to support Greenwood City's soldiers and try to end the conflict with Han Zhen in one battle.
• Ying Bing agreed to stay and told Li Mo he needed someone to rely on, then returned with him to prepare for the coming fight.
• Qu Sheng finished planning the next day's battle and asked after Li Mo and Ying Bing, relieved to learn they had left the military camp.
• At Jiawei Restaurant, Li Mo used the Gilded Creation Seal to continue deducing the Wukong Seeking the Dao Diagram as Ying Bing advanced in the Hundred Bird Phoenix Form.
• The diagram's power flowed into Li Mo's Will Soul, and he saw a magnificent Heavenly Palace with Heavenly Soldiers and generals before spotting a monkey warrior carrying an iron staff.

Li Mo received the Heaven-Equalizing Battle Secret from the Divine Intent of Great Sage Sun and broke through with Ying Bing’s help. He woke refreshed, and the two set out for the city wall as Ying Bing continued to consider the strange circumstances surrounding the Southern Border war.

• Li Mo understood that true courage meant facing stronger opponents and received Great Sage Sun’s vast Divine Intent inheritance.
• Ying Bing used Taiyin Clear Radiance and music from an ancient zither to steady Li Mo’s Will Soul as he absorbed the Heaven-Equalizing Battle Secret.
• Li Mo broke through a pass in his Will Soul and murmured, “Today we cheer... the Great Sage Sun,” while Ying Bing let him rest.
• Ying Bing wondered why Emperor Jingtai had obstructed the Prince of Southern Pacification and whether it connected to the later chaos and the absence of immortals.
• Li Mo woke, asked Ying Bing to accompany him to the city wall, and joked that Commander Qu would be shocked to see them.

Li Mo and Ying Bing led Greenwood City’s defenders in a counterattack, hoping to reach Han Zhen and turn the battle. As Ying Bing’s music empowered the troops, Li Mo charged toward the enemy ranks beneath the morning sun.

• Li Mo told Qu Sheng he could absorb a hundred units of soldiers and armor and planned to charge through the enemy to kill Han Zhen, while Ying Bing supported him with music.
• Qu Sheng offered Li Mo his armor, but Li Mo formed a white Cloud Horse and declined Huang Donglai’s proposed combination technique.
• Greenwood City opened its gates and sent out two cavalry groups, led by Li Mo and Qu Sheng, as the enemy army advanced with Witch Spirit War Colossi and Calamity Beasts.
• Han Zhen ordered his troops to stop the siege, then called for the enemy forces to surround and kill the charging cavalry.
• Ying Bing played Heavenly King Breaking Formation Melody and directed the formations with Rosy Phoenix Qi as Li Mo’s Heaven-Equalizing Battle Secret began to circulate.

Li Mo led the Greenwood Iron Cavalry into the enemy formation, destroying one War Colossus as the defenders tried to stop his advance. With Qu Sheng and Ying Bing joining the fight, the battle turned against the remaining colossi, but the Huodou unleashed a blazing attack at the end.

• Li Mo charged through the enemy ranks and smashed the Helian warrior and his vicious turtle Witch Spirit Statue with Forty.
• The Calamity Beast incarnations realized Li Mo was advancing on Han Zhen and ordered their forces to bring back his head.
• Wu Lang fired the Rongyuan Military Crossbows to delay the War Colossi, giving Qu Sheng time to arrive and cripple the Zhuyan Colossus with a spear strike.
• Ying Bing shifted the Greenwood Iron Cavalry into a roaming dragon formation that collided with the Human-Faced Serpent Colossus.
• The Huodou Colossus opened its mouth and unleashed a flame dragon toward Li Mo and his troops.

Li Mo resisted the Huodou Bronze Colossus's Sinful Flame with his Karmic Fire and destroyed it from within, then rejoined the Greenwood Iron Cavalry and led the charge deeper into the enemy formation. As the battle intensified, Han Zhen offered a place among the foremost on the Bronze Tree to whoever killed Li Mo, drawing the Calamity Beasts into the fight.

• Li Mo broke away from the military formation and charged straight into the Huodou Sinful Flame dragon.
• Li Mo's Karmic Fire overpowered the Sinful Flame, and he burned the Huodou Bronze Colossus from within before breaking out of its body.
• Ying Bing welcomed Li Mo back into the Black-Scaled Wandering Dragon formation, while Qu Sheng offered his troops to follow Li Mo.
• Li Mo led the growing force of Greenwood Iron Cavalry into the enemy ranks as Han Zhen watched his Great Dao Divine Form and growing battle intent.
• Han Zhen promised the foremost rank on the Bronze Tree to whoever killed Li Mo, and the Calamity Beasts stopped holding back.

Li Mo and Qu Sheng led a desperate counterattack against the Calamity Beasts and Han Zhen, as Qu Sheng summoned the War Souls of his fallen comrades and Li Mo struck down Han Zhen with the Heaven-Flipping Hammer. Li Mo survived the battle but collapsed amid the enemy troops, unable to move.

• The Calamity Beasts charged across the battlefield, frightening the Greenwood defenders, while Wu Lang rallied the soldiers and Huang Donglai proposed using Thunderfire Pills on crossbow bolts.
• Qu Sheng revealed his External Scene Realm, summoned more than fifty thousand War Souls, and led them in a suicidal charge that halted the Calamity Beasts.
• Li Mo drew on the power of his newborn Small World and charged toward Han Zhen, while his aura caused the enemy army to begin fleeing.
• Han Zhen used the blood sacrifice and the Blood God’s power to prepare for Li Mo’s attack, but Li Mo gathered his strength and unleashed the Heaven-Flipping Hammer.
• Li Mo destroyed Han Zhen and the Blood God phantom, then collapsed among the remaining enemy troops, unable to move.

After Li Mo collapsed from fighting at Greenwood City, the chapter revealed that the Prince of Southern Pacification was away and that no reinforcements were coming. The Hidden Dragon Ranking recorded Li Mo and Ying Bing’s extraordinary battle achievements, leaving the Clear Abyss Sect scrambling to learn whether they had survived.

• Li Mo collapsed into Ying Bing’s arms after the enemy troops fled, and he glimpsed a feather before falling asleep.
• Zhong Zhenyue learned that his father had left Southern Pass for the Imperial Capital, while Zhong Ling urged him to catch up with their father instead of returning alone to Greenwood City.
• The Clear Abyss Sect elders debated whether to stay and fight or prepare to retreat, then learned that the Prince of Southern Pacification’s troops had appeared in the Eastern Wasteland Domain.
• Shang Wu tried to contact Li Mo with the Concentric Bell, received no reply, and rushed to protect him as the sect’s great hall fell into chaos.
• Tian Miao read a Green Vein Jade Slip reporting Li Mo’s defeat of Han Zhen and Ying Bing’s transformation into a True Phoenix, and her master ordered the record spread across the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.

Li Mo lay injured but out of danger after his victory, while Ying Bing cared for him and heard that the system’s combat ranking was due. Qu Sheng learned he would likely die during the winter and insisted his condition remain secret until the Prince returned.

• The military doctor said Li Mo had damaged meridians and exhaustion but would recover with rest, and Qu Sheng reassured the gathered soldiers that Li Mo was safe.
• Qu Sheng privately asked the doctor how long he had left, learned he would likely die this winter, and ordered him to keep the news secret until the Prince returned.
• Ying Bing fed Li Mo medicine and tended his wounds as soldiers left the tent to prepare dumplings.
• Li Mo murmured in his sleep that the battle was over and asked Ying Bing for the present she had promised.
• Ying Bing heard the system begin compiling and comparing the Southern Border geniuses’ combat strength, then realized Li Mo’s injuries could affect the ranking.

While Li Mo slept, Ying Bing reached the top of the Southern Border rankings and decided to keep her promise to give him a gift. After Li Mo woke, she fed him bitter medicine and offered him a surprising taste of sweetness.

• Ying Bing memorized the Southern Border prodigies and saw that she had taken first place in the rankings.
• Ying Bing decided that, despite the system punishment being gone, she would honor her promise to give Li Mo a gift.
• Li Mo woke and found Ying Bing brewing medicine, then struggled to drink the bitter concoction she had made.
• When Li Mo asked for something sweet, Ying Bing put malt candy between her lips and leaned toward him.
• Li Mo leaned in to take the candy, and Ying Bing pinched his chin as the wind and snow intensified outside the tent.

While Li Mo recovered in the camp, Ying Bing cared for him and rewarded him with candy, leaving him wondering what she meant by a reward for growing up. Ying Bing returned to Jiawei Restaurant flustered by their closeness, where her system alerted her to an unclaimed first-place reward.

• Li Mo drank the medicine Ying Bing gave him and teased her about the candy she had fed him while he was injured.
• Ying Bing massaged Li Mo's meridians with her true essence as the medicine took effect, and they talked about making dumplings for the Winter Solstice.
• Ying Bing told Li Mo to rest and called him a childish fool, explaining that the candy had been a reward for growing up.
• Ying Bing returned to Jiawei Restaurant and stared at her reflection, relieved Li Mo was still injured and unable to put his arms around her.
• Ying Bing's system repeatedly notified her that she had an unclaimed reward for taking first place.

Ying Bing claimed her first-place rewards, including a divine sword, Immortal Spirit Qi, and a pair of matching yin-yang robes, while Li Mo sorted through his investment rewards and discovered a Life-Prolonging Longevity Pill. The chapter ended with Li Mo beginning to inspect the pill he received for helping Huang Donglai avoid serious injury.

• Ying Bing claimed Moon-in-Mid-Autumn, recognized it as the divine sword from her previous life, and promised to introduce it to a hammer friend.
• Ying Bing stored away a bottle of Immortal Spirit Qi and received a Pure Yang Long Robe and a Taiyin Immortal-Retaining Skirt as matching rewards.
• Li Mo lay awake beside his Pearl White Lotus Silk Socks, unable to move his hands, and decided to claim his accumulated system rewards.
• Li Mo found that his blue- and green-destiny investment feedback mostly consisted of valuables and curiosities, then received a Life-Prolonging Longevity Pill for helping Huang Donglai avoid serious injury when Greenwood City fell.

Li Mo received the Heaven-Returning Mirror, which could summon historical spirits to fight if powered by the Power of All Living Beings, and wondered how to use it safely. After waking in Greenwood Camp, he learned Commander Qu had arranged a victory banquet and Winter Solstice celebration, and began wondering what investment reward Commander Qu had received.

• Li Mo examined his investment rewards, including a Life-Prolonging Longevity Pill and several ordinary rewards, and concluded that rewards depended partly on the difference between his cultivation and his investees’.
• Li Mo received the Heaven-Returning Mirror as a reward for resolving Ying Bing’s concerns and realized it could let him fight spirits from the Divine Observation Diagram and history books.
• Li Mo considered drawing on the Power of All Living Beings but remembered Ying Bing’s warning and instinctively decided not to absorb it.
• The next morning, Li Mo woke at Greenwood Camp still weak and pretended he needed help so someone would bring him water, but Huang Donglai came instead of Ying Bing.
• Huang Donglai told Li Mo that Commander Qu had arranged a victory banquet alongside the Winter Solstice celebration, and Li Mo wondered what reward Commander Qu had received.

Li Mo joined Greenwood Camp’s Winter Solstice dumpling preparations and learned that Qu Sheng still longed to return home, but was fated to die defending the city. As the victory feast came together, Li Mo arranged to hide a supreme-grade treasure pill in a dumpling, then saw Ice Block entering the kitchen.

• Li Mo and Huang Donglai arrived at the mess hall, where Qu Sheng was struggling to make dumpling filling and recalled the pork-and-scallion dumplings of his hometown.
• Li Mo gave Qu Sheng an ancestral recipe and received an Arrow of Returning Heart, then used his Heavenly Mandate Divine Eye to discover Qu Sheng was still fated to die before returning home.
• Li Mo and Huang Donglai decided to put lucky items inside the dumplings, and Li Mo brought out golden beans for the cooks to wrap.
• Li Mo secretly asked Huang Donglai to wrap a supreme-grade treasure pill in a marked dumpling, then began teaching the barbecue recipe for the feast.
• Ice Block entered the kitchen, and Li Mo’s expression changed in alarm.

Ying Bing joined Li Mo and the others in making dumplings for Winter Solstice, while Li Mo’s investment in Qu Sheng rewarded him with a pagoda that could purify the Power of All Living Beings. The celebration ended with Ying Bing feeding Li Mo her disastrous dumpling soup and wishing him a happy Winter Solstice.

• Ying Bing came to the kitchen, ignored Li Mo’s attempts to distract her, and showed off her dumpling-wrapping skills by freezing the wrappers with her true essence.
• Qu Sheng ordered the dumplings served to the camps, tasted them, and said they reminded him of home.
• Li Mo greeted Qu Sheng with a Winter Solstice wish, triggering an investment reward that gave him the Empty-Bright Myriad-Color Pagoda and revealed it could purify the Power of All Living Beings.
• Ying Bing served Li Mo her black, vinegar-heavy dumpling soup, wished him a happy Winter Solstice, and fed him a spoonful.

After Greenwood City survived the battle, Shang Qinqing and the demon allies learned that Li Mo and Ying Bing had already defeated the enemy. The camp celebrated, and Li Mo ended the chapter sharing an intimate moment with Ying Bing as she helped him eat grilled meat.

• A scout told Wu Qing, Manbo, Peng Lingyuangou, and the other demons that Li Mo had killed Chief Han and Ying Bing had slain two clan elders.
• Shang Qinqing returned and reassured the demon kings that Greenwood City was safe and its people were eating dumplings.
• At Greenwood Camp, the soldiers toasted Li Mo, while the Empty-Bright Myriad-Color Pagoda absorbed the Power of All Living Beings.
• Li Mo entered the military tent with Ying Bing and asked her for grilled meat after the dumplings made him hungry.
• Ying Bing used her toes to help Li Mo pull meat from a skewer, leaving him surprised by her intimate gesture.

Li Mo and Ying Bing bantered in their tent before Shang Qinqing arrived with news that Wu Qing and the others were waiting outside Greenwood City. After Li Mo arranged for the demon clan guests to join the soldiers’ dumpling feast, the group reunited and discussed their past dealings over food.

• Ying Bing teased Li Mo with her foot, and he tried to retaliate before Shang Qinqing entered and caught them bantering.
• Shang Qinqing told Li Mo that Wu Qing and the others were waiting outside the city because they could not bypass Greenwood City’s demon-detecting defenses.
• Li Mo asked Commander Qu Sheng to let his demon clan friends enter, and Qu Sheng readily agreed.
• Li Mo arranged extra dumplings and skewers, then welcomed the demon clan leaders to the military tent.
• Li Mo promised to keep sharing the Heavenly Jade with the demon clans, while Peng Lingyuangou lamented that his hopes for noble children from Li Mo and Ying Bing had been misplaced.

Li Mo proposed posing as a Southern Border god to redirect worship away from the Calamity Beasts and weaken them. The demon elders agreed to help him stage the plan, and they began discussing how to approach the different tribes.

• Shang Qinqing teased Li Mo and Ying Bing about marriage and offered to officiate their wedding, but Ying Bing changed the subject.
• Li Mo asked whether worship could eventually revive the Calamity Beasts, and Wu Qing explained how the Prince of Southern Pacification had reduced their influence in the Southern Border.
• Li Mo suggested becoming the tribes' god so they would stop giving the Witch Spirit their worship and the Calamity Beasts their Power of All Living Beings.
• Li Mo explained that he could purify the power and use Image-Mimicking Martial Arts to impersonate a god, while the demons warned him about the dangers of absorbing it.
• Li Mo asked the demon elders to cooperate with his performance, and they started planning their approach to the Southern Border tribes.

Li Mo returned to Jiawei Restaurant with Ying Bing, then reassured Princess Little Jiang that he was safe in the Southern Border. He gave her a new sparring opponent, beginning a training path meant to restore her Sword Bone.

• Li Mo and the Demon Race elders finalized their plan to make him appear divine before the people of the Southern Border.
• Li Mo walked back with Ying Bing, holding her hand as they watched children play in the heavy snow.
• In the Small World, Li Mo wondered what Ying Bing had hidden in the Big-Headed Doll, and Princess Little Jiang asked whether he was safe.
• Li Mo reassured Princess Little Jiang and told her the Hidden Dragon Ranking would soon confirm his survival.
• Li Mo projected the Heir of Prince Helian from the age of Great Shang and ordered Princess Little Jiang to defeat him as the start of her training to revive her Sword Bone.

Li Mo pretended to be too weak to eat so Ying Bing would feed him, then used his recovery as an excuse to touch her foot. Ying Bing revealed matching practice clothes that could aid dual cultivation, and after they changed, Li Mo began testing whether foot massages could improve their practice.

• Li Mo faked weakness when Ying Bing brought his meal, and she fed him while he touched her foot and made excuses.
• Ying Bing showed Li Mo the Taiyin Immortal-Retaining Skirt and Pure Yang Long Robe, saying the practice clothes could help him recover through dual cultivation.
• Li Mo suddenly claimed he had recovered, and he and Ying Bing agreed to wear the garments together without calling them couple outfits.
• Li Mo and Ying Bing changed into the matching clothes and admired their reflection in the bronze mirror.
• Li Mo started removing Ying Bing's boots so he could test whether foot massages could enhance dual cultivation.