Chapter Summaries

Meng Qi opened the True Martial Emperor’s final Secret Vault and discovered the Heaven Severing Seven Swords inheritance and powerful treasures, but the Purple Thunder Earth Immortal’s remains attacked him. The inheritance’s green light burst beyond the Cao Family’s forbidden grounds, drawing the attention of figures elsewhere.

• Cao E watched the Purple Thunder Earth Immortal open his eyes and then plunge into the Ice Eye, repeating that the door was open.
• Meng Qi opened the black hall with the True Martial Emperor’s seal and found the Dao Spreads Across the Universe inheritance vessel, two Divine Weapon Main Materials, a space-breaking talisman, a pill, and two top-grade Treasure Weapons.
• Meng Qi sensed that the small green tree might be the vault’s divine-weapon-level treasure and moved to take it.
• The Purple Thunder Earth Immortal appeared and attacked Meng Qi, who used the Xuan Shui Demon Quelling Banner to meet him as the tree released a beam of green light beyond the Cao Family’s forbidden grounds.
• Han Guang remarked to Gao Lan that the aura rivaled the Buddha’s Palm, but Gao Lan refused to pursue it, and Han Guang stayed inside.
• A confused young Daoist on a boat in the East Sea recognized the aura vaguely, while nine ancient tombs in the Great Snow Mountain lit up and stopped the trembling.

Meng Qi outwitted the Earth Immortal Remains, claimed the treasures in the True Martial Hall, and escaped Earth Immortal Lake with Jiang Zhiwei and Lingbao Tianzun. Elsewhere, a disheveled young Daoist began to remember who he was.

• Cao Feiyue and another Grandmaster realized the treasure’s emergence had been a trick, while Lingbao Tianzun held off the Grandmasters and Jiang Zhiwei flew toward Earth Immortal Lake.
• Meng Qi used the Xuan Shui Demon Quelling Banner to get near the emerald little tree as the Earth Immortal Remains reached for the treasures.
• Curses hidden in the six treasures struck the Earth Immortal Remains, and Meng Qi seized the emerald little tree and gathered the other treasures.
• Meng Qi activated the True Martial Hall’s warding spells, breaking through the grand formation with help from Lingbao Tianzun and escaping with Jiang Zhiwei.
• Cao Feiyue arrived too late, while a young Daoist over the Eastern Sea said he was beginning to remember who he was.

Meng Qi and his companions examined the treasures recovered from True Martial Emperor’s Secret Vault and learned that the emerald-green tree was the Great Dao Tree, bearing the fifth Heaven Severing Seven Swords form. They left it with Immortal Trace for safekeeping, exchanged the chance to study the sword art for Lingbao Tianzun’s All Things Return to Void, and divided the remaining spoils.

• Meng Qi described how he cautiously claimed the emerald-green tree before removing curses from the other treasures, and Lingbao Tianzun and Jiang Zhiwei discussed the Secret Vault’s defenses and its mysterious history.
• Meng Qi, Lingbao Tianzun, and Jiang Zhiwei had the tree appraised by Six Paths, who identified it as the Great Dao Tree and said it carried the Heaven Severing Seven Swords form Dao Spreads Across the Universe.
• Meng Qi agreed to trade Immortal Trace’s chance to comprehend the Heaven Severing Seven Swords for Lingbao Tianzun’s All Things Return to Void, and left the Great Dao Tree in Immortal Trace’s care until the Journey to the West mission.
• Lingbao Tianzun chose the Xuanming Creation Pill, while Jiang Zhiwei took the Heaven River Sword and accepted the chance to study the sword art; Meng Qi kept the other treasures, including the Mysterious Tortoise Sword and two pieces of Divine Weapon Main Material.

After sharing his gains with the Immortal Trace, Meng Qi felt exhausted by the great powers’ influence and set out on a journey of the heart to reconnect with his past and old friends. A bell at Shaolin restored his resolve, and he left to prepare for his next mission determined to defy the gods and Buddhas.

• Lingbao Tianzun warned Meng Qi about the dangers of forging a divine weapon and arranged terms for sharing the comprehension of “Dao Spreads Across the Universe”; Jiang Zhiwei became a formal member of the Immortal Trace.
• Meng Qi gained an initial understanding of “All Things Return to Void,” then confided in Jiang Zhiwei that the shadows of great powers had left him feeling drained and powerless.
• Meng Qi visited Huang Liang on Yuyuan Snow Mountain, contemplated the stars for several days, and left with a clearer heart.
• Meng Qi walked through Ye Capital, met Wang Zai and Liu Su, and later gave He Mu a technique he had worked out two years earlier.
• At Lotus Platform Mountain, a bell rang and dispelled Meng Qi’s lingering gloom; when the Lord of Six Paths Samsara summoned him to prepare for a mission, he left Shaolin with renewed determination.

Meng Qi and his companions prepared for a dangerous mission to Five Finger Mountain, pooled their Merit Points, and obtained a Demon-Reflecting Mirror to help them face the Demon Race. The mission began with a task to stop the Demon Race from obtaining a fragment of the Heavenly Court, while the Daoist Old Man secretly drew a dark vortex into the Eight Trigrams Furnace.

• Jiang Zhiwei, Qi Zhengyan, Zhao Heng, and Ruan Yushu reunited with Meng Qi and shared their recent breakthroughs, resources, and Merit Points.
• The five companions pooled their Merit Points, kept three thousand five hundred each in reserve, and bought a top-grade Demon-Reflecting Mirror for Ruan Yushu to carry.
• The Lord of Six Paths Samsara announced that the fragment of the Heavenly Court had appeared atop Five Finger Mountain and tasked the group with preventing the Demon Race from getting it.
• Meng Qi recognized Five Finger Mountain and wondered what would happen there without the group following the Buddhist path or using the Six-Syllable Mantra.
• In Doushuai Palace, the Daoist Old Man sent an attendant to fetch a scripture, drew a dark vortex into the Eight Trigrams Furnace, and sealed the furnace.

Meng Qi and his companions entered the ruined Ancient Heavenly Court through the South Heaven Gate, where they discovered that flight was forbidden and Meng Qi devised a plan to frighten the monsters following them. Their false trail seemed to become a real horror as demons died mysteriously inside, and a black-robed demon king arrived to investigate.

• Meng Qi and his companions found the Heavenly Court fragment and entered it, discovering the collapsed South Heaven Gate and its inscription.
• Meng Qi proposed making a false trail to frighten incoming monsters and slow their progress, and the group continued into the ruins.
• After crossing the South Heaven Gate, Meng Qi discovered he could no longer fly and failed to move the gate when he tried.
• Python Vanguard sent the monsters to search the ruins, while Green Snake Demon and Black Snake Demon hid as their companions died without visible wounds.
• A Yin Wind killed Python Vanguard, and Green Snake Demon and Black Snake Demon fled in terror.
• A black-robed demon king arrived with several hundred monsters, heard the survivors say everyone inside was dead, and grew solemn.

The black-robed Demon King cautiously entered the Heavenly Court ruins after his scouts returned terrified, while Meng Qi and his companions searched ahead and reached the Celestial River. As more Demon Kings arrived outside, the seemingly dead Heavenly Soldier opened his eyes after Qi Zhengyan sensed they were being watched.

• The black-robed Demon King sent his demons to wait outside and cautiously searched the palace complex, but found no bodies where the Green Snake Demon and Black Snake Demon had hidden.
• Meng Qi, Zhao Heng, Jiang Zhiwei, Ruan Yushu, and Qi Zhengyan continued searching after using strange attacks to frighten the demons who had gone ahead.
• The group reached the Celestial River and cautiously crossed the bridge past a silver-armored Heavenly Soldier whose life force seemed frozen.
• Six groups of demons arrived at the Heavenly Court fragment, and the Silver Python King introduced his Old Ancestor, Dangshan Jun, to the other Demon Kings.
• After Qi Zhengyan sensed someone watching them and struck at empty air, the Heavenly Soldier opened his eyes and his life force surged back to life.

Meng Qi and his companions fought a silver-armored Heavenly Soldier whose grandmaster power let him control the surrounding Heaven and Earth. Meng Qi killed him with All Things Return to Void, but a black-robed demon king arrived as the group recovered.

• The silver-armored Heavenly Soldier awoke and attacked Meng Qi and his companions, using his grandmaster domain to restrain them and unleash falling-star strikes.
• Meng Qi blocked the Heavenly Soldier’s opening attack, while Jiang Zhiwei, Ruan Yushu, Qi Zhengyan, and Zhao Heng joined forces to slow him.
• Meng Qi unleashed Grandly Bury the Star River, but the Heavenly Soldier countered and both fighters were forced back.
• Jiang Zhiwei manifested the Taishang Sword Lord aspect and severed the future with her sword, while the others worked to hold the Heavenly Soldier in place.
• Meng Qi used the Divine Weapon Main Material and All Things Return to Void to destroy the Heavenly Soldier, who vanished without a trace.
• Meng Qi returned to normal and began recovering, then a black-robed demon king with golden-furred wings arrived.

Meng Qi and his companions fled across the Heavenly River after crippling the Great Peng Demon King and sensing more demons approaching. They discovered a floating island that appeared to be a Heavenly River military camp, where frozen Heavenly Soldiers stood beneath a damaged stele bearing the name Marshal Tianpeng.

• Ruan Yushu used the Monster-Revealing Mirror to freeze the Great Peng Demon King, while Jiang Zhiwei, Qi Zhengyan, and Zhao Heng wounded him with their swords.
• Meng Qi sensed a dangerous Grandmaster among the approaching demons and led his companions onto the bridge, choosing to escape rather than risk being surrounded.
• General Yin tried to devour the weakened Great Peng Demon King, but Dangshan Jun intervened and let him go because of his elder’s old connection.
• The Great Peng Demon King disappeared after heading toward the ruined palace, and Dangshan Jun found only lingering Death Intent where he had been killed.
• Meng Qi and his companions crossed the Heavenly River bridge and spotted a floating island laid out like a military camp, with more than a hundred motionless Heavenly Soldiers and a damaged stele reading “Marshal Tianpeng.”

Meng Qi and his companions searched for a way to evade the demon kings pursuing them through the Ancient Heavenly Court and discovered that the barracks pond offered safe access to the Heavenly River. While exploring the star-filled river, Meng Qi spotted a charred pig corpse on a sun and realized it might be Marshal Tianpeng.

• Meng Qi tested the Heavenly River with a clone, which was dragged toward a real sun and vaporized, so the group ruled out hiding in the river directly.
• The five crossed the silent barracks without awakening the Heavenly Soldiers or the Golden Armored Heavenly Generals and found Marshal Tianpeng's command tent empty.
• Meng Qi tested the pond behind the command tent and learned that its water formed a protective film, allowing someone to enter and move through the Heavenly River safely for a time.
• The group hid in the pond and entered the Heavenly River, planning to let their pursuers scout ahead and hunt any demon kings who fell behind.
• Meng Qi used his Wisdom Eye to inspect a black spot on a sun and saw a huge, charred pig corpse, then suffered a painful backlash from viewing it.

Meng Qi and his companions discovered Marshal Tianpeng’s enormous corpse burning on the Great Sun, then found a frozen Heavenly River Navy carriage behind an ancient Copper Door. They avoided disturbing the frozen Celestial Horses and followed the demons toward the Heavenly Court fragment, where a chilling wolf howl left them wary of what awaited.

• Meng Qi described seeing Marshal Tianpeng’s roasted corpse on the Great Sun, and Jiang Zhiwei sensed the area but found no floating objects nearby.
• Meng Qi accidentally struck an ancient Copper Door beneath the pond, revealing frozen Celestial Horses and a sealed Heavenly River Navy carriage.
• Qi Zhengyan suggested the carriage had been about to enter the Heavenly River when the upheaval froze it, but Meng Qi’s group chose not to investigate further.
• Meng Qi and his companions confirmed the demons had left the Heavenly River untouched, then followed their Demonic Aura across the bridge toward the Heavenly Court fragment.
• A distant wolf howl ended in a mournful cry, making Meng Qi and the others suspect that the demons had encountered something terrifying.

Meng Qi and his companions entered a celestial maze that separated them, and Meng Qi fought and killed the Wild Ox Spirit while searching for a way out. The chapter ended with a mysterious powerful figure approaching Meng Qi and demons confronting Jiang Zhiwei and Qi Zhengyan.

• Meng Qi entered the forest, which transformed into a maze and cut him off from Jiang Zhiwei, Ruan Yushu, Qi Zhengyan, and Zhao Heng.
• While navigating the maze, Meng Qi encountered the Wild Ox Spirit, defeated it, and collected its valuables.
• Meng Qi worried that his companions might encounter the demons trapped in the formation and continued searching for them.
• A black-robed Mysterious Person approached, and Meng Qi hid from him behind a pile of boulders.
• Jiang Zhiwei followed her instincts through the maze and encountered a burly man with a tiger-like pattern on his brow.
• Qi Zhengyan was confronted by a stocky demon who called him weak.

Ruan Yushu, Zhao Heng, Jiang Zhiwei, and Qi Zhengyan each escaped dangerous monster encounters in the maze, while Meng Qi hid and waited. When General Yin emerged and ended the formation, the group found themselves facing him and the black-robed figure, with Bear Mountain Lord and Te Chushi missing.

• Ruan Yushu used her music and Secret Treasures to drive off Silver Python King, then escaped through a side path while it headed toward the palaces.
• Zhao Heng blinded a goat spirit with the Eye-Piercing Bead, but withdrew when it raised its defenses.
• Jiang Zhiwei struck General Yin with her new sword move, Once a Startled Swan Appeared, then escaped using an illusion of countless swordlights.
• Qi Zhengyan wounded Bear Mountain Lord with a stone and restrained it with swordlight before fleeing with an Earth-Escape Golden Light Talisman.
• Meng Qi hid among the boulders and reunited with Qi Zhengyan as distant screams from a bear, a goat, and a serpent echoed through the maze.
• General Yin emerged and ended the formation, revealing Meng Qi and the others nearby; he saw that Bear Mountain Lord and Te Chushi were missing and fixed his killing intent on the group.

Meng Qi and his companions avoided confronting the powerful black-robed Dangshan Jun and searched a garden, where the Great Dao Tree absorbed the life force of a strange tree. The Lord of Six Paths Samsara changed the mission and ordered them to evade Dangshan Jun and General Yin, but a monstrous python emerged and trapped the group in combat.

• Dangshan Jun displayed strength approaching Half-step Dharma Body, then entered the palace with General Yin while Meng Qi and his companions chose not to fight them.
• Meng Qi led the group to search the left garden, where he spotted a Blood Shadow vanish into the palace.
• In the barren garden, the Great Dao Tree reacted to the sole living tree and absorbed its chaotic aura, causing the tree to wither and a bump to appear on the sapling.
• The Lord of Six Paths Samsara changed the mission and ordered the group to evade Dangshan Jun and General Yin and stop them from taking the Great Dao Tree.
• A gigantic, rotting winged python emerged from the palace, blamed Meng Qi for stealing its opportunity, and revealed a familiar figure in one eye; the group tried to return but learned they could leave only outside combat.

Meng Qi and his companions fought Dangshan Jun and General Yin, then tried to escape Dangshan Jun's pursuit. They hid in a pond to set an ambush and flee through the Heavenly River, but the shaking opened a sealed carriage that turned out to be empty.

• Meng Qi used Only I Am Supreme to confuse Dangshan Jun, then burned it with the Great Sun Flame Heart, but the monster survived and fled.
• Ruan Yushu revealed General Yin with the Monster-Revealing Mirror, and Jiang Zhiwei, Qi Zhengyan, and Zhao Heng attacked him until he fled wounded.
• Meng Qi planned to lure Dangshan Jun into an ambush, and Jiang Zhiwei used the Ice Eye Crystal Soul to freeze its tail after it struck Meng Qi.
• Dangshan Jun cut off its tail to escape the ice, so Ruan Yushu told everyone to hide in the pond and leave through the Heavenly River.
• The group hid underwater, where Meng Qi saw a sealed carriage open and discovered that it was empty.

Meng Qi and his companions escaped Dangshan Jun aboard a golden carriage pulled by Celestial Horses, which carried them through the starry river to Gao Family Village. After searching the ruined estate and finding an ordinary-looking copy of the Dao De Jing, they returned with their mission rewards and learned their next assignment would be a Death Mission.

• Meng Qi and his companions entered the carriage as Dangshan Jun attacked, and Jiang Zhiwei used the Dinghai Pearl while Meng Qi’s Entangle Karma saber technique forced the serpent to retreat.
• The Celestial Horses awakened, carried the carriage through the starry river, and briefly stopped on several planets before bringing the group to safety.
• The group emerged beside the ruined Gao Family Village, but the Celestial Horses fled when Meng Qi considered capturing them.
• Meng Qi and his companions searched the decaying Villa and found a copy of the Dao De Jing that seemed ordinary, which Meng Qi stored in his Mustard Ring.
• The Lord of Six Paths Samsara awarded each member 3,500 Merit Points and announced that their next mission would be a Death Mission beginning in one year.

After completing their previous mission, Meng Qi and his companions received their evaluations and rewards, then learned the rules and deadly objectives of their next Death Mission. They began planning how to use the year ahead to strengthen themselves, while Meng Qi and Jiang Zhiwei discussed their next exchanges.

• Meng Qi worried that the Death Mission’s ban on secret treasures and talismans would leave him unable to rely on a Divine Weapon, then recognized that he had been fixating on external power.
• The Lord of Six Paths Samsara awarded Merit Points and lottery draws; Jiang Zhiwei won a Fire-Spitting Xuan-Absorbing Pill, while Meng Qi won Pure Linen Shoes.
• The group exchanged their mission spoils and divided the Merit Points, leaving Meng Qi, Jiang Zhiwei, and Zhao Heng with 4,870 each and Qi Zhengyan and Ruan Yushu with 1,870 each.
• The Lord of Six Paths Samsara announced a Death Mission to join Du Huai Shang’s rebels, defeat the imperial court, and kill enemy Reincarnators, warning that failure or insufficient Merit Points would mean execution.
• Zhao Heng and Ruan Yushu spent most of their Merit Points on Heaven Materials and Earthly Treasures to improve their realms before the mission.
• Jiang Zhiwei planned to use Sword Nurturing Wine to sublime the White Rainbow Piercing Sun Sword over the coming year, and Meng Qi hesitated over his own plans.

Meng Qi and his companions planned their exchanges and secluded cultivation before the coming Death Mission, with Meng Qi focusing on integrating his techniques and upgrading Heaven's Wound. Ruan Yushu agreed to join Immortal Trace, but Qi Zhengyan refused, leaving Meng Qi concerned about his reasons as they prepared to cultivate.

• Meng Qi decided to spend half a year integrating his martial arts, exchanged for the Three Sabers and cultivation time, and upgraded Heaven's Wound to a high-grade Treasure Weapon.
• Jiang Zhiwei exchanged for half a year of cultivation, Sword Nurturing Wine, and a Seamless Heavenly Robe, while Qi Zhengyan exchanged for a year, a Dark Chaos Crystal, and an upgrade for his sword.
• Meng Qi offered Ruan Yushu Merit Points for cultivation time, and Zhao Heng left the reincarnation square after exchanging pleasantries.
• Meng Qi introduced Immortal Trace to Ruan Yushu and Qi Zhengyan; Ruan Yushu agreed to join, but Qi Zhengyan refused and went into seclusion.
• Ruan Yushu chose the title Guanghan Fairy, and Meng Qi began cultivating in seclusion after she gained insight into the Great Dao Tree.

Meng Qi found Qi Zhengyan in Ye Capital and learned that he had inherited the Devil Master's power and chosen a demonic path to challenge the unequal access to cultivation. Qi Zhengyan refused to join Immortal Trace and left, saying their different paths meant they could no longer work together.

• Meng Qi learned that Qi Zhengyan had left Flower Washing Sword Sect for Ye Capital and asked Six Doors to help find him.
• A Peak Expert drove Qi Zhengyan to Meng Qi in a black carriage, and the two traveled in silence to a riverbank.
• Qi Zhengyan revealed the blood-red Dharma Form within him and explained that he had inherited the Devil Master's blood, cultivation, and will.
• Qi Zhengyan described his resolve to fight a world that denied ordinary people equal chances to cultivate, calling that resolve the demon in his heart.
• Meng Qi accepted Qi Zhengyan as his brother so long as he did not act against his conscience, but Qi Zhengyan said their opposing paths meant he could not join Immortal Trace and walked away.

Meng Qi reflected on Qi Zhengyan’s ideals and the uncertain futures of his companions, then entered Divine Capital in disguise. He learned that news of the Nine Heavens Ruins had surfaced and planned to meet Zhao Heng, while Yuan Lihuo warned that joining Immortal Trace would do little for the closely watched Imperial Prince.

• After Qi Zhengyan left, Meng Qi considered his own limits and hoped to discuss Qi’s ideals with him during their next mission.
• Meng Qi entered Divine Capital disguised as the Green-robed Young Master and avoided the Su Residence, which enemies might watch.
• Meng Qi met Yuan Lihuo in his study and learned that Bai Ning was selling half a map said to lead to the Nine Heavens entrance beneath Divine Capital.
• Yuan Lihuo said he wanted an opportunity to advance beyond the Sixth Heaven, but Meng Qi advised him not to rush into the suspicious affair.
• Meng Qi asked Yuan Lihuo about surveillance around Zhao Heng’s residence, and Yuan offered to let Meng Qi visit openly while he was on duty.
• Yuan Lihuo argued that Zhao Heng should give up the Imperial Prince’s position and leave the Council of State’s watch, and Meng Qi agreed to discuss it with him.