Chapter Summaries

At Xue Qinghe’s coronation, he named Zhongli the Vago Rock Emperor and Lord of Geo, leaving Zhongli and his companions baffled about how he knew Zhongli’s identity. The ceremony ended with Xue Qinghe’s authority strengthened and the kingdoms’ and duchies’ schemes stifled.

• Xue Qinghe called Zhongli the Vago Rock Emperor, and Zhongli, Xianyun, and Paimon were confused about how he had learned the title.
• Xue Qinghe’s officials praised his decision to grant Zhongli imperial authority, while the Qianyan Army stood ready to defend Zhongli’s honor.
• Xue Xing told Xue Beng that Xue Ye must have approved Xue Qinghe’s plan, which made rebellion against the new emperor seem even more dangerous.
• Xue Xing advised Xue Beng to accept life as an idle prince, and Xue Beng struggled to let go of his ambitions.
• The coronation ended at sunset, and representatives of the kingdoms and duchies abandoned their plans to exploit Xue Qinghe’s new rule.

After taking the throne, "Xue Qinghe" outlawed slave trading and ordered a purge of nobles who resisted, with Spirit Hall elders carrying out secret killings. The Abyss Order learned of the campaign and agreed to help, while Spirit Hall began to suspect another force was assisting the ruler.

• The Heaven Dou City Grand Auction House released newly captured and recently purchased slaves under "Xue Qinghe"'s decree, though women raised there as human-shaped puppets remained unable to leave.
• The crackdown on slave trading spread across the continent, and Spirit Hall elders secretly killed nobles who opposed the new ruler.
• Ci Xue Douluo left after slaughtering a gathering of nobles, while She Long and other Spirit Hall elders continued missions to eliminate opposition.
• Yuan Shang reported "Xue Qinghe"'s actions to Aether, who ordered him to find a chance to help the new ruler.
• Spirit Hall noticed that another force seemed to be clearing obstacles for "Xue Qinghe" and wondered whether the Body Sect had acted.

Qian Renxue faced noble resistance to her reforms and warned court officials to obey her decree, while many wrongly blamed Zhongli and the Body Sect for the deaths of rebellious nobles. In the Netherworld, Tang San neared the end of his ordeal in Tongue-Pulling Hell, having lost much of his memory and sense of time.

• Many noble houses cooperated with Qian Renxue's decree after the houses that resisted most fiercely were found slaughtered.
• Qian Renxue accused court officials of secretly obstructing her order and gave them until the next morning court to release the people they were holding.
• Ministers and nobles assumed Zhongli and the Body Sect were behind the killings, though Qian Renxue had deployed Spirit Hall people and Zhongli knew nothing of it.
• Tang San remained in Tongue-Pulling Hell, where decades of perceived punishment left him aged, dazed, and unsure who he was or why he had come.
• A speaker told Tang San that two more days would pass before he moved to the next level of hell, though it would feel like two more years to him.

Tang San endured decades of torture in the City of Slaughter as Asura secretly protected his soul and considered the ordeal a God Trial. At the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Oscar gained the Food God’s inheritance, while Ning Fengzhi was brought before the Nine-Colored Goddess after his Martial Soul evolved.

• Tang San retained his memories through nearly sixty years of torment, aided by a mysterious power, while Asura protected his soul and planned to treat the remaining ordeal as a God Trial.
• Asura decided that Tang San and other boys could be assessed as potential followers if Tang San became the Asura God.
• Oscar and Ning Rongrong remained confined at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Oscar vowed to become a Titled Douluo and take her out.
• The Food God appeared before Oscar, explained that he was not qualified for the inheritance, and gave him a divine mark after Oscar insisted on accepting it.
• The Nine-Colored Goddess summoned Ning Fengzhi and realized that his Martial Soul, rather than Ning Rongrong’s, had evolved into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda.

The Nine-Colored Goddess chose Ning Fengzhi to inherit her Deity Position, while Oscar received the Food God’s inheritance and resolved to rescue Ning Rongrong. In Star Luo City, Ma Hongjun’s power and loyalty kept Dai Mubai from being imprisoned.

• The Nine-Colored Goddess met Ning Fengzhi, offered him her Deity Position, and gave him the first of her Seven Trials.
• Ning Fengzhi accepted the inheritance and learned that his first trial required him to reach the Titled Douluo realm for a Soul Ring Age reward.
• Oscar received the Food God’s Seven Trials, whose first task required him to become a Soul Ancestor and rewarded him with Soul Power and Soul Ring Age.
• Oscar vowed to use his God Trial to take Ning Rongrong out of where they were being held.
• In Star Luo City, Ma Hongjun’s loyalty and strength helped protect Dai Mubai from being locked up by Dai Weisi.

Dai Mubai met the God of War, who resented being forced to offer him the divine inheritance despite judging him unworthy. Meanwhile, Du Siji was brought to the God of Fire’s divine temple, where the god revealed his rank and great strength.

• Dai Mubai thanked Ma Hongjun for risking himself for their brotherhood and accepted the Royal Family’s plans to find him wives for the sake of his Dark Phoenix Martial Soul.
• The God of War summoned Dai Mubai, called him a coward and an unworthy successor, and explained that another god had ordered him to offer Dai the inheritance.
• The God of War gave Dai Mubai the inheritance, then slapped him away after Dai boasted that he would one day surpass him.
• Du Siji woke in the God of Fire’s temple and attacked the stranger, who praised Du’s Divine Armor and said the Vago Rock Emperor had allowed him to bring Du there.
• The God of Fire introduced himself as a First-Level God who held the origin of fire and stood among the Divine Realm’s strongest gods.

The God of Fire explained his standing in the Divine Realm and offered Du Siji his God Position, hoping Du Siji would eventually raise it to the supreme rank. Du Siji accepted that the God of Fire was powerful and began to suspect that Zhongli had already become a god.

• The God of Fire rejected the idea of passing his position to Ma Hongjun and chose Du Siji as his preferred successor.
• Du Siji questioned how powerful the God of Fire was, and the God of Fire explained that only a few gods stood above him among tens of thousands.
• Du Siji reflected that the sect master, Zhongli, might already be a powerful god who had concealed his strength.
• The God of Fire bluntly offered Du Siji his God Position and urged him to raise it to the supreme rank.
• The God of Fire explained that his current rank reflected his own achievements, not the full potential of the God Position.

Du Siji questioned the God of Fire about Zhongli’s strength and learned about the God Realm’s divine ranks before returning to the Douluo Continent with the Fire God’s inheritance and trial. Afterward, the God of Fire rejected Asura’s demand to pass his Deity Position to Ma Hongjun and resolved to betray Asura if he fought Zhongli.

• Du Siji asked the God of Fire how strong Zhongli was, and the God of Fire judged him to be at least at the peak of the God King realm.
• The God of Fire explained the ranks of divine beings and said he had chosen Du Siji as his inheritor because Du Siji was kind.
• Du Siji returned to the Douluo Continent with the God of Fire’s inheritance and God Trial.
• Asura confronted the God of Fire for choosing Du Siji instead of Ma Hongjun, but the God of Fire said he had only agreed to consider Ma Hongjun.
• The God of Fire admitted he would support whoever was stronger and decided he would stab Asura in the back if Asura fought the War God.

The Asura God brooded over the God of Fire’s refusal to support him and considered other candidates for Deity Position inheritances. In Heaven Dou City, “Xue Qinghe” visited Zhongli in distress, leaving him wondering what had happened.

• The God of Fire dismissed Asura’s threat and vowed to retaliate if given the chance.
• Asura recognized that losing the God of Fire weakened his side in the coming divine war and resolved to focus on Rank Two Deity Positions.
• Asura considered Ning Rongrong, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ma Hongjun as possible inheritors, while questioning whether Zhu Zhuqing might join the Rock God.
• Zhongli sensed Asura’s plans and remained more concerned about the threat from other Demon Gods than the gods of this world.
• “Xue Qinghe” arrived at Zhongli Manor looking troubled, and Zhongli asked what had happened.

Qian Renxue sought Zhongli’s advice on how to help freed slaves after the Empire’s crackdown on slave-catching groups. She adopted his proposal for vocational schools, and the schools soon began opening across the Empire as she kept power centralized for the time being.

• "Xue Qinghe" asked Zhongli how the Empire could help freed slaves who remained bound by fear and lacked useful skills.
• Zhongli advised her to preserve the Empire for now, strengthen education, and return power to the people when the time was right.
• Zhongli proposed free vocational schools where former slaves could learn practical trades and receive lodging and meals.
• Qian Renxue drafted a plan for the schools, and the ministers and Xue Ye praised the policy.
• "Xue Qinghe" warned officials not to obstruct the plan and ordered inspections, after which vocational schools began opening across the Empire.

Qian Renxue’s vocational schools improved the lives of former slaves and helped her gather faith, while Diluc and Xianyun left Zhongli Manor to pursue their own journeys. A year later, the Heaven Dou Empire and Douluo Continent had changed dramatically, and Ning Fengzhi had reached Titled Douluo and secretly gained a divine inheritance.

• Qian Renxue established vocational schools for former slaves, earning their gratitude and gaining faith as her Soul Power rose to the Soul Douluo level.
• Paimon questioned Zhongli about Diluc leaving, and Zhongli said Diluc had to choose his own path.
• Xianyun told Zhongli she would travel to look for familiar faces and people from Liyue, then transformed into an azure crane and departed.
• Over the next year, the Heaven Dou Empire changed, Hillichurls and elemental Slimes appeared, and Spirit Hall put its major plans aside amid the upheaval.
• Ning Fengzhi broke through to Titled Douluo, had three newborns, and revealed to Chen Xin and Gu Rong that he had gained a divine inheritance.

Bibi Dong ordered Spirit Hall to bring the continent’s other sects under its control and learned that an unknown, evil force had helped Qian Renxue suppress the rebellion. She visited Qian Renxue in Heaven Dou City, where her daughter rejected her claim to be her mother.

• Bibi Dong told the elders to bring all sects except the Innate Sect and the Upper Three Sects under Spirit Hall’s control.
• An elder reported that an unknown force with an exceptionally evil energy had helped Qian Renxue during the rebellion, and Bibi Dong said she would ask about it herself.
• Bibi Dong traveled to Heaven Dou City and entered Xue Qinghe’s study without alerting She Long or Ci Xue.
• Qian Renxue rebuffed Bibi Dong and declared that Xue Qinghe’s parents were Xue Ye and Ji Mingxue, while Qian Renxue had no mother.

Qian Renxue rejected Bibi Dong and vowed to return the blood and flesh she had inherited from her, while Bibi Dong tried to postpone their conflict. They then discussed an unknown force aiding Qian Renxue, and Bibi Dong began wondering whether Qian Xunji had been controlled.

• Bibi Dong broke down after Qian Renxue said she had no mother, but insisted that Qian Renxue was still her daughter.
• Qian Renxue said she would return Bibi Dong’s blood and flesh one day so they could owe each other nothing, frightening Bibi Dong and the hidden She Long and Ci Xue.
• Bibi Dong set aside their personal conflict and asked Qian Renxue who was secretly helping her eliminate rebellious nobles.
• Qian Renxue denied having support beyond the Elder Hall, leaving Bibi Dong puzzled about the identity of the unknown force.
• Bibi Dong considered whether Qian Xunji might have been controlled, then dismissed the possibility that he could have been wronged.

Aether discussed his exposed allies and the changes in the Heaven Dou Empire while Tang San endured centuries of punishment in the eighteenth level of hell. In the Ice Seal Forest, Shui Bing’er and her companions faced deadly soul beasts until Xiao appeared and announced himself as their protector.

• Aether learned that Yuan Shang had been exposed during an accounting reconciliation and asked about news of the others.
• Aether reflected on the familiar changes in the Heaven Dou Empire and wondered when his sister would arrive on the Douluo Continent.
• Tang San endured more than four hundred years of punishment in the eighteenth level of hell, forgetting his name and losing the ability to speak.
• Shui Bing’er, Shui Yue’er, and their companions were cornered by five powerful ten-thousand-year soul beasts while seeking Shui Bing’er’s fifth soul ring.
• A young man appeared, intimidated the soul beasts with a glance, and identified himself as Three-Eyed Five Manifestations Immortal Xiao, summoned to protect them.

Xiao arrived in the Ice Seal Forest and effortlessly killed a pack of ten-thousand-year soul beasts, saving Shui Bing'er and the Skywater Academy group. Learning that he was in another world, he asked whether anyone had heard of Zhongli.

• Shui Bing'er and the others mistook Xiao for a child and urged him to flee from the approaching soul beasts.
• Xiao summoned Vortex Vanquisher and used Exorcising Demon Dance to kill the soul beasts in an instant.
• The Skywater Academy group thanked Xiao, and he asked them where he was.
• Their teacher identified the place as the Ice Seal Forest, on the border between the Heaven Dou Empire and the Far North.
• Xiao realized he had crossed worlds and wondered whether Zhongli and Cloud Retainer had crossed over before him.
• Xiao asked the group whether they had heard of a man named Zhongli.

Xiao learned that Zhongli had become a powerful figure in the Heaven Dou Empire and traveled to Heaven Dou City to find him. At the city gate, Ning Fengzhi paid Xiao’s entry fee, allowing him to enter.

• Xiao told the women in Ice Seal Forest that he was searching for Zhongli, and they revealed that the Vago Rock Emperor was in Heaven Dou City.
• The women warned Xiao about Zhongli’s immense power, and Xiao explained that he served the Lord of Geo and meant no harm.
• After asking for directions, Xiao traveled across unfamiliar territory and eventually reached Heaven Dou City.
• A guard told Xiao he needed an entry permit or one Gold Soul Coin to enter, but Xiao had neither.
• Ning Fengzhi paid Xiao’s entry fee and entered the city with Chen Xin.

Ning Fengzhi visited Zhongli with Chen Xin, still delighted by his divine inheritance, and recounted helping a short young man at the city gate. The man turned out to be Xiao, whose curse Zhongli discovered had vanished.

• Ning Fengzhi paid Xiao's city entry fee and later told Zhongli and Paimon about the encounter.
• Zhongli sensed someone at the manor entrance and personally opened the door for Xiao.
• Paimon recognized Xiao, and Zhongli welcomed him as the Great Demon Subduer, leaving Xiao confused by the unusual respect.
• Xiao thanked Ning Fengzhi for paying his entry fee, and Zhongli noticed that Xiao's curse had disappeared.

Zhongli told Xiao, Ning Fengzhi, Chen Xin, and Paimon that Cloud Retainer had reached the Sun Moon Continent, then explained the continents’ location on Douluo Star and the Sun Moon Continent’s reliance on Soul Tools. Paimon wanted to visit, and Zhongli agreed to go after they handled other matters, while Xiao wondered whether she had forgotten the Traveler.

• Xiao told Zhongli that Cloud Retainer had vanished a year earlier while he searched for her and Zhongli.
• Paimon revealed that Cloud Retainer had stayed with them and had since gone traveling.
• Zhongli sensed that Cloud Retainer had reached the Sun Moon Continent on the far side of the Douluo Continent.
• Zhongli showed the group a model of the planet and explained that the Sun Moon Continent used Soul Tools as its primary means of power.
• Paimon said she wanted to visit the Sun Moon Continent, and Zhongli agreed to take her after they handled other matters.
• Xiao wondered whether Paimon had forgotten the Traveler, who had searched Teyvat for her.

Ning Fengzhi visited Zhongli Manor to reveal that he had obtained a deity’s inheritance and ask Zhongli for help with its trials. He had completed the first trial and hoped to cooperate with Zhongli on the rest.

• Zhongli explained that Douluo Continent was one planet and described the potential of Soul Tools, drawing Ning Fengzhi’s interest.
• Ning Fengzhi asked Zhongli whether he had ever heard of gods, and Zhongli claimed he had never seen one.
• Ning Fengzhi told Chen Xin that he had kept a secret from him and Gu Rong, then revealed that he had obtained a Rank Two Deity’s inheritance.
• Ning Fengzhi said he had completed the first trial and planned to cooperate with Zhongli on the remaining trials, offering to help Zhongli and the Innate Sect if he succeeded.
• Ning Fengzhi released his martial soul and displayed his spirit rings.

Ning Fengzhi revealed that he had begun the Nine-Colored Goddess’s inheritance and offered Zhongli the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect’s support in exchange for help with its trials. His promises became awkward when Du Siji arrived and announced that he had completed the God of Fire’s second trial.

• Ning Fengzhi showed Chen Xin that his soul rings had each gained five hundred years of age, though the change had not strengthened his soul skills.
• Ning Fengzhi asked Zhongli to aid him and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect with difficult God Trials, promising protection and help seeking Zhongli a Deity Position in return.
• The Nine-Colored Goddess watched Ning Fengzhi’s offer and prepared to warn him against boasting before Zhongli.
• Du Siji rushed into the hall and announced that he had completed the God of Fire’s second trial and broken through to Soul Douluo.
• Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin realized that Du Siji was also a god inheritor, while Zhongli pretended he had not known about it.
• The Nine-Colored Goddess recognized Du Siji as the God of Fire’s inheritor and warned that Zhongli was powerful enough to make even God Kings wary.