Chapter Summaries

Jimò Qiu used the High Priest’s arts and the martial energy stored by Anointing to hold off Wei Cheng, while Shen Tang prepared to support his counterattack. Just as Wei Cheng unleashed his strongest strike, a familiar figure burst from his chest, and he recognized Jimò Cong.

• Shen Tang told Qian Yong that Wei Cheng’s surge was likely his final burst, and she confirmed with Gongxi Chou that the High Priest’s face still covered Wei Cheng’s.
• Jimò Qiu cut his palm to nourish a grove, using its plants to evade Wei Cheng and survive attacks that shattered his arm and flooded him with Death Qi.
• Jimò Qiu unsealed his vital points and awakened the martial energy stored from Anointing, forcing out the Death Qi at the cost of his strength and future cultivation.
• Wei Cheng realized Jimò Qiu was using the stored energy and grew furious at the Gongxi Clan, while Jimò Qiu marked the battlefield with his blood and prepared a counterattack.
• Shen Tang readied a Word Spirit as Jimò Qiu faced Wei Cheng’s strongest strike, then Jimò Cong burst from Wei Cheng’s chest in a blinding flash.

Shen Tang and the others encountered Jimò Cong, who revealed how she had secretly cooperated with Wei Cheng to contain the Assembly of Gods’ inner-sanctum souls. After Jimò Cong activated a formation to stop him, Wei Cheng refused to yield and summoned his troops.

• Shen Tang and the others saw Jimò Cong’s apparition, and Gongxi Chou identified her as a deceased Wu Kingdom High Priest and his ancestor.
• Jimò Cong explained that she had deceived Wei Cheng in the past to limit the Gu disaster and had later offered to help suppress the Assembly of Gods’ inner-sanctum members he had devoured.
• Jimò Cong revealed that the inner-sanctum members were descendants of people who stole Divine Blood, and that the divine tree’s roots had gradually bound and transformed them.
• Jimò Cong activated a formation made from Jimò Qiu’s blood and divine power, then asked Wei Cheng if he was willing to stop.
• Wei Cheng rejected her judgment, declared that he would decide who was right or wrong, and summoned those under his command.

Jimò Cong sealed Wei Cheng after he broke open an ancient burial ground, but the seal was temporary and the awakened dead began rising to fight both armies. As Wu Xian demanded answers from the National Teacher, the National Teacher revealed his contempt for him.

• Jimò Cong suppressed Wei Cheng and formed a seal, while Gongshu Wu explained that Wei Cheng's exposed soul was vulnerable to attacks.
• Wei Cheng's struggle caused a vast pit to open, revealing an ancient burial ground filled with resentful dead and a damaged seal.
• Jimò Cong taught Jimò Qiu a sealing forbidden art, then sacrificed her remaining soul to complete the seal around Wei Cheng.
• Thousands of skeletal soldiers climbed from the pit and formed ranks against both the Kang Country and Gao Country armies.
• Wu Xian challenged the National Teacher about the dead soldiers, and the National Teacher mocked him for his ignorance.

The National Teacher revealed his betrayal and unleashed white-boned soldiers against Wu and Kang, while Gongxi Chou and Jimò Qiu arrived to fight back. The National Teacher confronted Jimò Qiu as Lin Feng planted the Great Banner at the pit and held off the rising dead.

• Wu Xian ordered his guards to kill the National Teacher, but a white-boned general repelled them and hidden archers killed one of Wu Xian's men.
• The National Teacher ordered his soldiers to seize and cripple Wu Xian as the dead overwhelmed Gao's forces.
• Gongxi Chou and Jimò Qiu arrived, and Gongxi Chou used the divine power stored in his red flower to attack the white-boned soldiers.
• Jimò Qiu fought the National Teacher, who claimed he had been loyal to Wu Country's late lord and accused the Gongxi Clan of causing the lord's death.
• Lin Feng carried the Great Banner to the pit, planted it, and used her Killing Intent to drive back the white-boned soldiers.

Lin Feng led the Great Banner Camp against waves of skeletons, using shield formations and crushing tactics to tangle and break apart the bone army. The fighting continued without an apparent end, while Gu Chi and the other strategists struggled to find a way to stop the undead.

• Tu Rong fought beside Lin Feng with a shield, and Lin Feng discovered that roaring while channeling martial energy could shatter groups of skeletons.
• Lin Feng ordered the Great Banner Camp to form a shield wall, then led the soldiers in ramming the skeletons until their bones became tangled in heaps.
• The [Corpse Man Vines] went on strike because skeletons had no flesh or marrow, but Lin Feng calmed them by promising living prey and feeding them her blood.
• Lin Feng distinguished three waves of skeletons, including a small group of commoners whose bones and behavior differed from those of the elite soldiers.
• Tu Rong warned that the skeletons seemed endless, while Gu Chi found that his Will of the Martial Artist could not influence them and Bai Su used a wall of literary energy to blast them away.

The Kang army struggled against the tireless Skeleton Soldiers as the reversal of civil and military roles gave its fighters bizarre abilities. Ning Yan devised a way to trap some of the skeletons, while Shen Tang prepared an unusual form of support.

• Gu Chi filled his thoughts with battle cries as Chu Yao rescued Wei Shou from arrows and an invisible skeleton general, using his Will of the Martial Artist to predict attacks.
• Kang Shi’s extraordinary luck caused skeletons to suffer bizarre accidents, while Xun Zhen gained strength by accumulating layers of morale as he killed enemies.
• Ning Yan used her doppelganger and Zixu to attack armored skeletons, then ordered the troops to raise stone walls and create an illusory battlefield that temporarily trapped some Skeleton Soldiers.
• Scouts reported that certain skeletons glowed in the darkness but fought no better than the others, and Ning Yan guessed they had been buried alive.
• Shen Tang said she had asked Wangchao for a musical score, hinting that she was preparing powerful support for the battle.

Shen Tang played the score for “Soul Ferry,” and its music weakened the Skeleton Soldiers and eased their obsessions across the battlefield. As the skeletons stopped fighting and collapsed, the battle turned in Kang Country’s favor.

• Shen Tang obtained the score for “Soul Ferry” and played it on a short flute, despite her doubts about her musical ability.
• The first repetitions of the tune slowed the Skeleton Soldiers and cleared the murky flames in their eye sockets, while Ning Yan noticed the change.
• As Shen Tang infused the music with literary energy, the Skeleton Soldiers dropped their weapons and began to weep.
• The fourth repetition reached the battlefield in Gao Country, where the Skeleton Soldiers reacted violently as they regained awareness.
• Gongxi Chou noticed the skeletons falling apart, and wave after wave of them collapsed while Shen Tang’s flute music continued.

Shen Tang recovered after playing "Soul Ferry" and used her wandering soul to guide the battlefield dead onward, including a girl from the distant future who had become a zombie. She returned to learn that Kang had won a great victory and Gongxi Chou had captured Wu Xian alive, though Wu Xian remained in his hands.

• After playing "Soul Ferry" until she was drained, Shen Tang collapsed into Qian Yong's arms and meditated while he guarded her.
• Shen Tang's soul left her body, and she used "Soul Ferry" to help the dead soldiers pass on.
• Shen Tang met a frightened girl from the future who had become a zombie, persuaded her to reincarnate, and promised she could work for her someday.
• Shen Tang returned to her body, and Qian Yong reported that Kang had killed twenty thousand enemy soldiers and won a great victory.
• Qian Yong told Shen Tang that Gongxi Chou had captured Wu Xian alive, while Gongxi Chou held Wu Xian by the neck and warned him not to struggle.

Gongxi Chou captured Wu Xian, and Gao Country’s defeated officials debated replacing him as sovereign rather than risking another battle. Wu Xian was brought before Shen Tang, who freed him and invited him to name the terms of his captivity.

• Gongxi Chou captured Wu Xian and escaped his guards, while Chu Yao’s forces routed Gao Country’s main army.
• Ning Yan pursued Gao Country’s retreating forces for over a hundred miles, then withdrew when the reversal of civil and military power ended.
• Gao Country’s officials argued over rescuing Wu Xian or enthroning one of his children, and the proposal to choose a new sovereign gained support.
• Kang Country’s troops took Wu Xian to meet Shen Tang after his wounds had mostly healed.
• Shen Tang cut through Wu Xian’s binding, and he demanded that she state whether she wanted wealth, territory, or his life.

Shen Tang pressed the captured Wu Xian to abdicate and oversaw the aftermath of the battle. She then followed Gongxi Chou through a tunnel, where she encountered Wei Cheng and learned he had turned against his nephew.

• Shen Tang demanded all of Gao Country’s wealth and territory from Wu Xian, then urged him to abdicate and pass the throne to one of his children.
• Wu Xian refused to agree immediately, and Shen Tang turned to managing prisoners, casualties, medicine, and the fallen.
• Gongxi Chou led Shen Tang through a tunnel he had made with his Martial Gall Totem and explained that Wei Cheng had escaped during his pursuit of the Eternal Life Cult’s National Teacher.
• Shen Tang encountered Wei Cheng’s incarnation, who did not attack her, and Gongxi Chou told her that Wei Cheng and his nephew had turned against each other.
• Shen Tang asked Wei Cheng whether his nephew had worked with the Assembly of Gods.

Shen Tang, Gongxi Chou, and Jimò Qiu met Wei Lou beneath the ruined underground city, where Wei Cheng demanded to know why his uncle had betrayed the Wu State. Wei Lou revealed that he had rebelled because the late Sovereign intended to offer the Wu State’s achievements to an Evil God, leaving Shen Tang to realize she was entangled in the old betrayal.

• Wei Cheng led Shen Tang and Gongxi Chou through an underground passage to a ruined city with a functioning ventilation system.
• Jimò Qiu reunited with them and explained that he had trapped Wei Lou inside a cage of roots.
• Wei Cheng confronted Wei Lou about betraying the Wu State, while Shen Tang argued that the state had been far from ready to unify the world.
• Wei Lou denied betraying the late Lord and claimed the Lord had betrayed them by planning to hand their victory to an Evil God.
• Wei Lou insisted he had wanted a Sovereign, not a vassal serving someone else, and denounced the late Lord as a liar.

Shen Tang explained why Wei Lou had opposed the State of Wu’s ruler, arguing that he feared a god taking control of a mortal nation. Jimò Qiu assured Wei Lou that Shen Tang was not the kind of god he feared, but Wei Lou still called her an Evil God.

• Wei Cheng struggled to understand why Wei Lou had turned against the Sovereign he once served.
• Shen Tang argued that Wei Lou had feared divine rule and the unchecked power a god could wield over the State of Wu.
• Wei Lou’s reaction showed Shen Tang had guessed the reason for his betrayal correctly.
• Jimò Qiu explained that Shen Tang did not demand worship or obedience from High Priests and would even favor people who defied her.
• Wei Lou dismissed the reassurance and called Shen Tang an Evil God.

Jimò Qiu offered Wei Lou a new explanation for Sovereign Ji Sun’s choices, leaving Wei Lou shaken and willing to set aside his prejudice against Shen Tang. Shen Tang demanded that Wei Lou and Wei Cheng stay out of trouble until she unified the realm, but their argument about the skills needed to rule ended with Wei Lou claiming Luan Xin was dead.

• Jimò Qiu suggested that Sovereign Ji Sun may have stayed in Wu to save soldiers whose lifespans were being consumed by Gu Worms and to help the kingdom survive its food crisis; Shen Tang agreed that it was possible.
• Jimò Qiu compared Shen Tang to a cat owner who helped her own people and challenged Wei Lou to judge her by her actions; Wei Lou broke down before regaining his composure and agreeing to set aside his prejudice for now.
• Shen Tang asked Wei Lou why he had worked with the Assembly of Gods and the Eternal Life Cult, and Wei Lou explained that he had joined the Assembly’s Southwest Branch against Shen Tang because their interests aligned.
• Shen Tang demanded that Wei Lou and Wei Cheng keep their heads down until she unified the realm; Wei Lou mocked her prospects and said she had only twelve years, though he told Wei Cheng to ask Yun Da why.
• Wei Lou explained that a scholarly Word Spirit or a special Way of the Scholar could create a moat to restrain enemy generals, and Shen Tang insisted that Wuhui and her other scholars could manage it.
• Wei Lou claimed that a young man who had appeared in Wu Zhaode’s camp was one of Shen Tang’s people and that his seventh-day memorial had passed; Shen Tang thought of Luan Xin and called the claim impossible.

Shen Tang left Wei Lou and Wei Cheng after confronting Wei Lou, who explained that he had provoked her to test whether she still felt like a mortal. Back at camp, Shen Tang searched for news from Shang Nan and learned it was safe, then asked whether Gongyi was safe as well.

• Shen Tang and Wei Lou exchanged angry words about the deaths of soldiers and aides, and she left without fighting him.
• Wei Lou told Wei Cheng that he had provoked Shen Tang to test whether she had human feelings, and said they would learn in twelve years whether she would succeed.
• Wei Lou said Yun Da had learned about the Assembly of Gods and its underground cities, and that Yun Da planned to make his ideal come true in twelve years.
• The prison’s roots released Wei Lou, and a bluebird delivered Shen Tang’s message to him and Wei Cheng.
• Shen Tang searched the reports from Shang Nan, and Chu Yao told her Shang Nan was safe.
• Shen Tang asked Chu Yao whether Gongyi was safe, but the chapter ended before he answered.

Shen Tang learned that Shang Nan’s defenses had suffered heavy damage, then persuaded Wu Xian to abdicate as part of her plan to disrupt Mei Jinghe’s efforts in the southwest. The chapter ended with a Gao Country envoy receiving Wu Xian’s abdication edict after Shen Tang rejected peace talks.

• Shen Tang read the report on Shang Nan, worried about Duke Luan Yi and the damage to the city, and learned most commoners had been evacuated before the second inner city fell.
• After a restless night, Shen Tang asked Jimò Qiu whether her dreams foretold events, but he attributed them to exhaustion and her Literary Qi Incarnations keeping her awake.
• Wu Xian agreed to abdicate after Shen Tang explained that the move would ruin Mei Jinghe’s plans and sow discord between her and the lord she served.
• Shen Tang made Wu Xian write abdication edicts naming his youngest son, his fifth son, and Consort Mi’s child, threatening to eliminate the former royal family if he refused.
• Shen Tang rejected the Gao Country envoy’s request for peace and sent him one of Wu Xian’s abdication edicts.

Shen Tang sent Gao Country competing abdication edicts to fracture the factions around Wu Xian’s succession, while the envoy returned with an edict naming the six-month-old prince. The Fifth Young Master and Consort Mi’s son learned the prince would be enthroned, and Consort Mi’s son vowed to fight for the throne.

• The envoy accepted Wu Xian’s abdication edict for the young prince, then paid Gu Chi with a jade bead to see Wu Xian from a distance.
• Gu Chi gave Shen Tang the Golden Phoebe box and jade bead; Shen Tang revealed she had also sent edicts favoring Consort Mi’s son and Wu Xian’s fifth son to provoke a succession clash.
• Shen Tang explained that her plans would disrupt Mei Jinghe’s Perfection Ritual and weaken her political position, and agreed with Gu Chi to consult Shan Xiao about involving Cui Hui.
• The envoy returned to Gao Country with the edict, and the ministers accepted the young prince’s succession despite suspecting Shen Tang had chosen him.
• The news enraged the Fifth Young Master, while Consort Mi urged her son to accept the decision; he refused and vowed to fight for the throne.

Consort Mi learned that her sons wanted to contest the infant heir’s succession and chose to help them stage a palace coup before the next Court Session. As the banquet began, the consorts realized the inner court had been sealed and the palace had grown unnaturally quiet.

• Consort Mi slapped Fourth Brother after he insisted he would fight for the throne, and he left after accusing her of never understanding him.
• Consort Mi’s second son explained Fourth Brother’s grievances and affirmed that he wanted to compete for the succession too.
• Consort Mi ordered Lady Wang summoned and resolved to seize power that night, before the youngest’s position could be confirmed.
• Consort Mi and her allies locked the palace gates, detained resistant consorts, and arranged a banquet to gather the women of the inner court.
• Consort Mi announced Wu Xian’s abdication at the banquet, and the consorts noticed that the night watch and children were strangely silent.

Consort Mi trapped the palace concubines during a coup attempt and revealed that the Fifth Young Master had been captured while trying to kill the young prince. The inner palace was declared safe, but the other ambitious princes held back, believing Wu Xian had prepared for the rebellion.

• Consort Mi's guards killed a concubine's maid at the banquet entrance, and Consort Mi threatened the women and their children while claiming the maid had seemed suspicious.
• A concubine challenged Consort Mi to kill everyone, but Consort Mi drew a sword and forced her to drop a porcelain shard before ordering the musicians to resume playing.
• As fighting and firelight appeared outside, Consort Mi told the concubines that rebels were trying to seize the palace.
• Palace guards told arriving ministers that the Fifth Young Master had been captured after attempting to enter the inner palace and kill the young prince before morning court.
• The Fifth Young Master's brothers abandoned their own plans and waited through the night, fearing Wu Xian had arranged the coup's swift defeat.

The Fourth Young Master defeated the Fifth Young Master's palace coup and learned that Wu Xian had written an abdication edict naming the Fifth Young Master, not the infant heir. Mei Meng burned the edict, but feared Wu Xian might have written others; the chapter ended as the Fourth Young Master announced the Fifth Young Master's death at Court Session.

• The Fourth Young Master captured the Fifth Young Master after defeating his forces and planned to blame him for the infant heir's death.
• The Fifth Young Master revealed that Wu Xian's real abdication edict named him, and the Fourth Young Master found and read it.
• The Fifth Young Master took his own life with a sword, and Mei Meng burned the edict after arriving.
• Mei Meng told Qi Cang that both abdication edicts were real and worried Wu Xian might have written more for his other sons.
• When the Fifth Young Master failed to appear at Court Session, the Fourth Young Master announced that he had died after committing a grave crime.

Fourth Young Master was proclaimed temporary Sovereign after claiming the Fifth Young Master had killed the Youngest and died in the palace coup. The arrival of multiple abdication edicts and the Youngest’s birth mother exposed a plot, while Mei Meng’s plan aimed to make Fourth Young Master take power before she brought him down.

• Fourth Young Master told the ministers that the Fifth Young Master had killed the Youngest and several others, then swore he had not personally killed any siblings.
• Fourth Young Master was chosen as temporary Sovereign after his supporters urged the ministers to act quickly before Shen Tang could interfere.
• A Royal Kin member arrived with an abdication edict naming the Fifth Young Master and accused Fourth Young Master of twisting the truth.
• The Youngest’s birth mother appeared as a witness, and the Royal Kin member tried to strike Fourth Young Master with his sword.
• An unassuming minister stopped the attack and revealed another genuine abdication edict naming Fourth Young Master, claiming he and the prince had set a trap for the Royal Kin member.
• Mei Meng’s plan was revealed: she intended to put Fourth Young Master on the throne, expose him, and then kill him to complete the Way of the Scholar.