Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• Gu Chen sends his consciousness into the Immortal Han Ancient City and secretly adjusts its restrictions so a nearby Central Province Exploration Rocket can capture clearer images.
• Researchers and viewers marvel at the ancient city, its mysterious runes, and soldiers suspended in cocoons of Mysterious Yellow Spiritual Light.
• The rocket’s camera finds an enormous cocoon atop a central pavilion. Inside are a striking man carrying a bamboo scroll and a beautiful woman.
• A token marked “Grand Governor,” together with the Eastern Wu banners, leads observers to identify the pair as Zhou Yu (Zhou Gongjin) and Xiao Qiao.
• Gu Chen remotely manipulates Zhou Yu. His eyelids twitch, making observers fear he is waking. They pull the rocket away, and Zhou Yu appears to settle back into sleep.
• The incident sparks speculation that the cocooned soldiers across the Immortal Han cities may all still be alive.

Character developments

• Gu Chen quietly uses his system’s power to control what the rocket observes, then tests his influence over Zhou Yu.
• Zhou Yu shifts from a seemingly preserved historical figure to a possible living presence when his eyelids move.
• Xiao Qiao is recognized as the legendary beauty, though she remains motionless and offers no response.

Character interactions

• Gu Chen manipulates the city’s restrictions to help the rocket capture images, then intervenes directly in Zhou Yu’s apparent state.
• Researchers and control-room staff react to the discovery, identify the pair, and quickly retreat when Zhou Yu seems to stir.
• Online viewers share their excitement over seeing Xiao Qiao and alarm at the possibility of dormant armies still being alive.

Significant themes

• History made tangible: Famous Three Kingdoms figures may have survived beyond their own era.
• The mystery of suspended life: The spiritual-light cocoons may preserve people rather than merely contain their remains.
• Curiosity versus danger: Scientific observation brings extraordinary discoveries but may risk disturbing what lies dormant.
• The scale of the unknown: If every cocoon holds a living soldier, the ancient star cities may contain immense armies.

Key plot points and events

• Footage from a Central Continent exploration rocket reveals the Immortal Han Ancient City floating in space. Inside, Xiao Qiao, Zhou Yu (Grand Governor Zhou Gongjin), and many Three Kingdoms soldiers appear to be asleep in cocoons of mysterious yellow light.
• The discovery dominates public discussion. People debate whether to explore: supporters hope the city’s secrets could advance civilization and enable space settlement, while opponents fear exploration might awaken powerful ancient figures.
• Central Continent’s officials are similarly divided. The Security Bureau is especially worried, since the threat level of supernatural events has repeatedly escalated—from martial artists and cultivators to powerful beings such as Yang Guang.
• The Bureau has only ten Foundation Establishment fighters, who feel hopelessly outmatched by the legendary Three Kingdoms figures.
• Gu Chen, back in his original body in Coastal City, checks the results of his behind-the-scenes guidance. The revelation has earned him nearly 1.8 million Origin Points, with more accumulating. He celebrates the windfall and watches online reactions spread.

Character developments

• Gu Chen remains a calculating observer, pleased that a carefully staged revelation has generated enormous public attention and rewards.
• Central Continent’s Security Bureau personnel are portrayed as increasingly overwhelmed. Their resources and abilities have grown, but each new supernatural discovery dwarfs what came before.
• Online commentators and creators quickly reinvent themselves as experts on Han and Three Kingdoms history, often presenting speculation with unwarranted confidence.

Significant themes

• Fear of the unknown: The ancient city’s occupants may be dormant, but no one knows what might happen if they awaken.
• The costs of discovery: Exploration promises extraordinary progress while risking contact with forces far beyond modern humanity’s capabilities.
• Escalating power: Supernatural threats have advanced so rapidly that institutions struggle to keep pace.
• Public spectacle and misinformation: A major revelation fuels both genuine debate and opportunistic, sensational online speculation.

Character interactions

• The main interaction is collective: the public, government officials, and the Security Bureau all respond differently to the city’s discovery, arguing over whether it should be explored.
• Gu Chen does not engage with them directly; he observes their reactions from a distance, benefiting from the attention his actions have generated.

Plot points and events

• Western nations and Japan launch new Exploration Rockets toward the Immortal Han Ancient City, keeping them at a safe distance after earlier rockets were destroyed. They can observe the city, but Western researchers struggle to interpret its Dao-related mysteries.
• Japanese Onmyoji and Kōga-ryū Ninja recognize familiar traces of yin-yang and five-element traditions. They hope the city’s runes will reveal ancient powers and restore their arts.
• Gu Chen, observing from the Immortal Han Ancient City, decides to advance his plan to connect it with the Central Province Land.
• Using the system’s Refine Falsehood Into Truth, he spends 300,000 Origin Points to create giant teleportation arrays at the ruins of Ancient Luoyang, the Ancient Shu Capital, and Ancient Jianye. He spends another 100,000 to create activation tokens and clues leading to them.
• The arrays display names of Three Kingdoms-era cities and their legendary Warlords, suggesting they connect to the starry cities. Martial artists and Daoist cultivators gather, film the phenomenon, and speculate about entering—but fear the powerful generals who may be sleeping there.
• News of the arrays and their possible link to the Immortal Han Ancient City spreads rapidly online.

Character developments and interactions

• Gu Chen moves from observation to action, deliberately creating a route between the Central Province Land and the starry city.
• Japanese Onmyoji and Kōga-ryū Ninja show greater cultural familiarity with the city’s symbolism than Western researchers and become eager to study its runes.
• Martial artists and Daoist cultivators are intrigued by the arrays but temper their excitement with caution. They debate whether exploration is worth the risk of confronting the Three Kingdoms generals.

Significant themes

• Cultural knowledge and interpretation: Scientific tools alone cannot explain the Dao, while inherited traditions may offer partial insight.
• Opportunity versus danger: The arrays promise access to extraordinary discoveries, but the sleeping Warlords make exploration potentially fatal.
• Hidden history becoming accessible: Gu Chen’s intervention turns legendary places and figures into tangible destinations, attracting public attention and speculation.

Key plot points and events

• Teleportation Arrays appear at the Three Kingdoms ruins—Ancient Luoyang, the Ancient Shu Capital, and Ancient Jianye—linking them to the Immortal Han Ancient City in the starry sky. News spreads widely through social media, exciting the public and alarming officials.
• The Central Continent Security Bureau sends experts to secure the arrays while officials debate whether anyone should explore the ancient city, where Three Kingdoms generals and soldiers may still be sleeping.
• A martial artist tries to activate an array but is rejected by a warning: “Immortal Han Token missing! Teleportation failed!” The crowd learns that a token is required for passage.
• Interest in the tokens triggers a widespread search. Gu Chen has secretly used his system to create hundreds and seed clues to their locations, making them relatively easy to find.
• Foreign powers, including the United States, Britain, other Western European nations, and Japan, also pursue tokens. Competition creates unrest, prompting the Security Bureau to deploy experts and restore order.
• A traveler eventually activates an array with a token and reaches the starry ancient city. Security Bureau personnel follow, and the first expedition begins.

Character developments and interactions

• Gu Chen remains behind the scenes, shaping events by distributing tokens and clues.
• Security Bureau officials shift from containment to participation: concerned about the dangers, they initially guard the arrays but ultimately enter the city themselves.
• Martial artists and Daoist cultivators move from curiosity to active searching once they learn tokens are the key.
• The public is fascinated by the prospect of seeing famous Three Kingdoms figures and beauties, though some fear the consequences of awakening them.
• Foreign nations enter the contest, turning local exploration into an international rivalry.

Significant themes

• Discovery versus caution: The ancient city promises extraordinary encounters, but its sleepers may pose unknown risks.
• Control and access: A token becomes the gatekeeper to a newly revealed world, driving a scramble for power and opportunity.
• Public excitement and official authority: Viral news fuels exploration even as authorities try to manage the danger.
• Escalating competition: The appearance of the arrays quickly draws both domestic and international interests.

Plot points and events

• Two days before the expedition, the group discusses exploring Immortal Han Ancient City. He Wu has obtained an Immortal Han Token, and several members want to go; Zhou Haiyan declines to focus on cultivation.
• The group presses Gu Chen to join. Though he had planned to guide events from behind the scenes and gather Origin Points, he reluctantly agrees.
• At the Jianye Ruins, the explorers choose Nan Commandery—partly because Xiao Qiao is there—rather than Shu’s Han Vassal Capital, which Fang Xiu and Liu Qing’er preferred.
• The crowd watches teams successfully activate the ancient Teleportation Array with their tokens. The group then teleports to Nan Commandery.
• They arrive in the starry setting of Immortal Han Ancient City, are awed by the view of the city, Blue Star, and the sun, and promptly start taking photos and posting about it.

Character developments and interactions

• Gu Chen remains the quiet planner, but the group’s enthusiasm and persistence pull him into the expedition. He privately takes pride in the city he created.
• Fang Xiu and Liu Qing’er reveal their preference for visiting Zhao Zilong’s city, but Fang Xiu activates the token for Nan Commandery. Both are excited once they arrive.
• Li Xingming openly marvels at the city’s ancient, desolate beauty. Ye Zhen again casts himself as a heroic figure, while the others mostly ignore his grandstanding.
• The group’s initial nervousness gives way to wonder, then to tourist-like excitement as they take selfies together.

Significant themes

• Wonder and discovery: The working array and city among the stars inspire awe at the Immortal Han era’s achievements.
• Clashing expectations: Gu Chen expects an expedition, but his companions treat the arrival as a sightseeing opportunity.
• Social bonds and humor: Group teasing, competing preferences, and shared photo-taking give the journey a playful, communal tone.

Key plot points and events

• Gu Chen activates dormant contingencies in the Immortal Han Ancient Cities, causing the cities’ formations to stir and their spiritual-light cocoons to flicker.
• The Group Chat members exploring Nanjun Ancient City sense the disturbance and prepare for danger, but when no warriors appear at first, they cautiously continue exploring.
• New exploration teams arrive from Jianye, eager to claim treasures and inherit the legacies of famed Eastern Wu figures. They rush toward a pavilion, where one explorer reaches for a Jade Scroll and Long Sword.
• The sword repels him, waking the black-clad Colonel inside a cocoon. He condemns the explorers as thieves and, when they attack, cuts through their defenses with a powerful sword strike.
• His awakening triggers a chain reaction: cocoons shatter across Nanjun and the other Immortal Han Ancient Cities. The newly awakened warriors attack the intruders, including the Group Chat members.

Character developments and interactions

• Gu Chen remains composed and secretive, observing the others after setting events in motion. He hopes they will keep their composure against the ancient warriors.
• Fang Xiu responds to the city’s disturbance by warning the group and urging them to prepare; Liu Qing’er activates a defensive artifact; Li Xingming voices concern; Ye Zhen reacts with interest rather than fear.
• The arriving explorers’ excitement and greed lead them to rush ahead and disturb the Colonel. Their attack turns a dangerous encounter into open combat.
• The Colonel awakens furious and swiftly demonstrates the gulf between his power and theirs.

Significant themes

• Consequences of intrusion: The explorers’ pursuit of treasure awakens guardians who regard them as thieves.
• Greed and recklessness: The rush to secure legacies creates the very danger the teams feared.
• Hidden power and ancient history: The sleeping warriors and their artifacts reveal that the cities hold formidable forces, not merely treasures.
• Preparation versus uncertainty: The Group Chat members try to stay cautious, but the scale of the awakening quickly exceeds their expectations.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• The explorers’ arrival in Nanjun Immortal Han Ancient City appears to have awakened its dormant Eastern Wu soldiers. The soldiers accuse the newcomers of trespassing and demand their surrender.
• Fang Xiu urges the group to attack together. Liu Qing’er, Wang Xiaoai, and Li Xingming use their respective techniques—ice, earth, and fire—to slow and strike the advancing soldiers.
• Fang Xiu charges into the enemy ranks, combining Foundation Establishment cultivation with Marrow Cleansing Realm martial power. Her attacks send soldiers flying and astonish even Gu Chen.
• The explorers gain an aerial advantage, but the Eastern Wu soldiers unite their Mysterious Light into a colossal War Halberd. Its power overwhelms the group’s initial defenses, forcing Fang Xiu to warn everyone to evade it.
• Fighting spreads beyond Nanjun: explorer squads clash with awakened Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu soldiers in other starry Immortal Han cities. The battles are observed and recorded by foreign exploration rockets.

Character developments and interactions

• Fang Xiu emerges as a particularly powerful and inventive fighter, having forged a combat style that combines cultivation and martial arts. She takes command, assesses the threat, and warns her allies about the War Halberd.
• Liu Qing’er, Wang Xiaoai, and Li Xingming coordinate their distinct elemental abilities in support of the group.
• Gu Chen handles the soldiers with apparent ease and is impressed by Fang Xiu’s growing strength.
• The explorers, including Bureau personnel and other martial artists and cultivators, face a common enemy but struggle to gain the upper hand against the soldiers’ coordinated power.

Significant themes

• Past colliding with present: Modern explorers confront warriors awakened after nearly two thousand years.
• Cooperation and adaptation: The explorers combine different abilities and must adjust their tactics when the soldiers reveal a stronger attack.
• Power and competition: The battles demonstrate the ancient soldiers’ formidable strength and draw the attention—and envy—of foreign observers.
• Discovery under scrutiny: The conflict becomes an international spectacle as foreign agencies record events in the ancient cities.

Plot points and events

• As more Eastern Wu forces awaken in Nanjun Immortal Han Ancient City, exploration teams face increasingly powerful War Formations, officers, and Warlords. One team is overwhelmed by an Eastern Wu Warlord and captured.
• Fang Xiu, Liu Qing’er, Wang Xiaoai, Li Xingming, Gu Chen, and their Group Chat companions initially hold their own against the soldiers and Colonels.
• An Eastern Wu Warlord arrives and proves too strong for them. Fang Xiu calls a retreat, and the group fights its way toward the Teleportation Array.
• The others reach the array and Fang Xiu begins activating it with her Immortal Han Token. Gu Chen secretly uses the system to release the cloaked figure sealed in the Highest Pavilion.
• The figure awakens as Zhou Gongjin, the Eastern Wu Grand Governor. His Mysterious Light freezes the array’s Spiritual Light and prevents the group from escaping.

Character developments and interactions

• Fang Xiu recognizes the Warlord’s advantage, organizes the retreat, and helps hold him off while the group escapes.
• Liu Qing’er and Wang Xiaoai coordinate attacks with Fang Xiu, using ice and earth spells to slow the Warlord.
• Li Xingming and the other companions join the retreat and reach the array, but their relief turns to alarm when it is sealed.
• Gu Chen remains notably calm during the fighting. His concealed intervention awakens Zhou Gongjin, revealing that he has been manipulating events behind the scenes.
• Zhou Gongjin makes a dramatic entrance and immediately demonstrates overwhelming power, trapping the group just as they are about to flee.

Significant themes

• Escalating danger: Growing enemy numbers and stronger commanders rapidly turn a manageable battle into a desperate retreat.
• Teamwork under pressure: The group combines their abilities and fights while withdrawing, but coordination cannot overcome a vast difference in strength.
• False hope and miscalculation: Reaching the Teleportation Array seems to promise safety, yet the group has underestimated Zhou Gongjin’s ability to intervene.
• Hidden agency: Gu Chen’s quiet actions suggest that the apparent battle is only part of a larger plan.

Key plot points and events

• Grand Governor Zhou Gongjin of Eastern Wu interrupts the teleportation array in Nanjun Immortal Han Ancient City, using its formations and Restrictions to seize Fang Xiu, Liu Qing’er, Li Xingming, Wang Xiaoai, and the other explorers.
• He asks what year it is and who rules the realm. An explorer explains that nearly eighteen hundred years have passed since the Three Kingdoms era and that dynasties no longer exist.
• Gongjin accepts the news with quiet wonder, remarking on how much the world has changed. His awakening hints at a deeper mystery: the Three Kingdoms figures have apparently slept in the ancient cities for centuries.
• In other Immortal Han Ancient Cities, powerful Three Kingdoms generals also awaken and capture explorers. Zhao Zilong demonstrates immense strength with a spear strike that tears through the starry sky.
• Exploration Rockets record the events. Foreign observers celebrate Central Province’s setback, while its officials and the Central Continent Security Bureau respond with emergency meetings and assess the newly awakened figures’ power.
• Footage spreads widely, leaving the public shocked by the generals’ strength and wondering how Central Province will respond.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhou Gongjin is introduced as both formidable and composed. Though he captures the explorers, he reacts to the passage of time with reflection rather than immediate hostility. Xiao Qiao stands beside him, reinforcing his legendary, romantic image.
• The captured explorers share uneasy glances and a sense of solidarity in their predicament. One cautiously explains the modern world to Gongjin, while the group fears the implications of the Three Kingdoms leaders learning that no dynasty rules.
• Central Province officials shift from concern to urgent strategic deliberation as they recognize the awakened figures may rival even the Sui Demon Emperor Yang Guang.
• Foreign officials and commentators treat the capture as a gratifying defeat for Central Province, contrasting their glee with the explorers’ danger and their own governments’ alarm.

Significant themes

• The clash between past and present: Legendary figures awaken in a world radically different from the one they knew.
• Power and vulnerability: Modern explorers are helpless against warriors whose abilities can command ancient-city formations and damage the fabric of space.
• Historical reputation made real: The chapter presents the Three Kingdoms’ famous figures as genuinely worthy of their legends.
• Uncertainty and looming conflict: The reason for the generals’ long sleep remains unknown, and their awakening raises questions about how they will respond to the modern age.

Plot points and events

• Central Province officials debate how to respond to the Immortal Han Ancient Cities and their powerful Three Kingdoms rulers. Unable to reach the cities with modern technology and unwilling to risk conflict, they send Central Continent Security Bureau captains to negotiate.
• Using Immortal Han Tokens and ancient teleportation arrays, the captains travel to the cities and reach secret cooperation agreements with Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu.
• Western nations and Japan watch closely, hoping to imitate Central Province’s earlier cooperation with Daotang. Their representatives enter Central Province carrying tokens, but the chapter does not reveal whether they secure any deals.
• Captives—including Security Bureau teams and Civilian Faction warriors and cultivators—return safely to Blue Star. The explorers discuss the overwhelming strength of Three Kingdoms armies and leaders.
• Gu Chen secretly observes the negotiations. He reveals that Central Province paid a considerable price for its agreement, which focuses especially on studying the starborne cities and their potential for interstellar expansion. He supports Central Province’s development while remaining hostile toward foreign rivals.

Character developments and interactions

• Liu Qing’er emphasizes how formidable the Three Kingdoms formations are: even five hundred soldiers could challenge a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
• Fang Xiu recalls feeling powerless before Eastern Wu’s Zhou Gongjin, whose presence seemed to surpass that of a Gangsha Realm expert.
• Wang Xiaoai speculates that supernatural power grows more extraordinary the further back one looks in history, raising curiosity about the Pre-Qin era.
• Ye Zhen boasts that he will eventually challenge Zhou Gongjin; the others mock him as an unrealistic show-off.
• Gu Chen acts as a concealed observer and power broker, quietly supporting Central Province while pursuing his own interests.

Significant themes

• Diplomacy over confrontation: Central Province seeks cooperation because the ancient cities and their defenders are too powerful to challenge directly.
• Power and technological ambition: The cities offer the prospect of interstellar travel and a major advantage in civilization-building.
• Competition among nations: Western nations and Japan try to follow Central Province’s lead, but secret agreements and unequal access preserve uncertainty.
• Hidden influence: Gu Chen’s behind-the-scenes role suggests that public diplomacy is only one part of a larger struggle.

Key plot points and events

• After returning from Immortal Han Ancient City, Gu Chen checks the Origin Points generated by the Three Kingdoms figures’ appearance. Online attention has pushed his total above one million, bringing him close to earning back his investment.
• The Central Province Official announces cooperation agreements with Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu, with plans to begin research in the ancient city. The news excites the public, who imagine future travel and encounters with famous historical figures.
• Gu Chen quietly acknowledges that he helped make the agreements succeed, and is pleased to give Central Continent an advantage.
• Jealous of Central Continent’s success, Western Nations, Japan, and other countries send envoys bearing Immortal Han Tokens through teleportation arrays at the Three Kingdoms’ ancient capitals.
• Locals photograph the hooded envoys, suspecting them of espionage. The envoys reach the Immortal Han Ancient City, while the Central Province Official sends Security Bureau experts to investigate their intentions.
• Public discussion turns hostile, accusing the foreign powers of copying Central Continent and trying to steal the ancient city’s secrets.
• Gu Chen recognizes that the other countries cannot easily replicate Central Continent’s success without his hidden influence. He decides to use their envoys to attract attention and earn more Origin Points.

Character developments and interactions

• Gu Chen shifts from celebrating his gains to planning his next move. He remains the unseen force behind Central Continent’s diplomatic success and now sees the foreign envoys as an opportunity.
• The Central Province Official moves quickly from announcing cooperation to monitoring rival nations’ activity.
• The foreign envoys act covertly, but their disguises only increase suspicion among local martial artists and cultivators, who photograph and report them.
• The public responds with excitement about Central Continent’s prospects, then indignation when foreign powers follow its lead.

Significant themes

• Influence behind apparent success: Central Continent’s diplomatic achievement is presented as partly dependent on Gu Chen’s concealed assistance.
• Rivalry and imitation: Other powers try to reproduce Central Continent’s success, setting up a contest for access and influence.
• Public opinion as a resource: Online attention, gossip, and controversy generate Origin Points for Gu Chen.
• National pride and suspicion: Public enthusiasm quickly becomes resentment toward foreign competitors.

Key plot points and events

• Foreign envoys from Japan, the United States, Britain, and other Western nations enter Immortal Han Ancient City to seek cooperation with its famous Three Kingdoms generals and strategists.
• Gu Chen observes which figures the countries have chosen, then uses his System Power to possess Zhao Zilong and set his plan in motion.
• Zhao Zilong rejects the Japanese delegation, condemning Wa Country’s invasion of Han lands and blasting the envoys out of his residence. He orders that foreign envoys from nations that invaded Han territory be driven away.
• Zhuge Liang likewise dismisses the American envoys as “barbarians” and sends them flying from Marquis Wu’s Mansion.
• Dian Wei responds to the British and other Western European envoys with contempt for their talk of cooperation, declaring that he trusts only strength. He too throws them out.
• The Central Continent Security Bureau team witnesses the humiliating rejections, while news of the incidents spreads online and becomes a source of public mockery.

Character developments and interactions

• Gu Chen quietly directs events by possessing Zhao Zilong, revealing that he is pursuing a broader plan.
• Zhao Zilong is fiercely protective of the Han legacy and treats Japan’s request for cooperation as an insult given its historical invasion.
• Zhuge Liang calmly but scornfully rejects the Americans, refusing to treat them as worthy partners.
• Dian Wei is blunt and martial, judging would-be allies by their strength rather than their promises or technology.
• The foreign envoys arrive confident and respectful, but leave injured, humiliated, and angry. The Security Bureau team enjoys their downfall, and online commenters join in the ridicule.

Significant themes

• Historical memory and national pride: The generals’ decisions are shaped by memories of foreign invasions of Han lands.
• Strength over diplomacy: Dian Wei rejects rhetoric and cooperation proposals in favor of physical power.
• Cultural and historical mismatch: The envoys fail to understand the era and values of the figures they approach.
• Public humiliation and schadenfreude: The officials’ failed diplomacy becomes entertainment for the Security Bureau and the public.

Key plot points and events

• Western and Japanese envoys secretly enter the Immortal Han Ancient City seeking deals with its Three Kingdoms figures, but are expelled. The Central Province Foreign Affairs Office publicly mocks their failed imitation of Central Province’s cultural ties, provoking outrage abroad.
• Gu Chen learns that news of the envoys’ rejection has earned him nearly 500,000 Origin Points.
• With the Central Province government now cooperating with the city’s Three Kingdoms warlords and strategists, researchers and ordinary martial artists and cultivators can enter through Immortal Han Tokens.
• Thousands flock to the ancient capitals and then the starry cities, hoping to gain the favor of famous historical figures and learn their techniques. Interest sparks a “Three Kingdoms” craze in books and wildly sensationalized television dramas.
• As the city’s popularity—and Gu Chen’s Origin Points—grow, he spends 800,000 points to manifest four Immortal Han cultivation stages: Nurturing Essence, Drawing Qi, Refining Spirit, and Returning to the True. The methods appear in the minds of the city’s soldiers, generals, and strategists.

Character developments and interactions

• Gu Chen benefits from the diplomatic incident and the public’s fascination with the ancient city. He is amused by the influx of attention but appalled by the dramas’ absurd titles. He then commits his Origin Points to establishing the cultivation system, leaving its future effects to unfold.
• The Central Province government moves from relief at the envoys’ rejection to active partnership with the Three Kingdoms figures, opening the city to research teams and domestic visitors.
• Western and Japanese envoys are dismissed as barbarians by the Three Kingdoms figures. Their governments resent the humiliation and envy Central Province’s access.
• Visitors from Central Province treat the warlords and strategists almost like quest-givers, studying their biographies and interests in hopes of earning instruction.

Significant themes

• Cultural influence and rivalry: Central Province’s cultural connection gives it an advantage, while foreign attempts to imitate it are ridiculed.
• Public fascination and opportunism: The ancient city inspires genuine hopes of learning and advancement, alongside commercialized, sensational entertainment.
• Power through cultivation and knowledge: The new system formalizes a path from basic cultivation to near-immortal strength, potentially transforming the wider world.

Plot points and events

• Cooperation between the Central Province Official and the Immortal Han Ancient Cities expands. More people seek access, while some token-holders begin charging for entry.
• The most popular cities—those hosting renowned Three Kingdoms figures—fill rapidly. Visitors find ordinary officers approachable, but famous Warlords and Strategists remain guarded and out of reach.
• Visitors learn they can exchange military merit for equipment, cultivation methods, and other valuable goods. Blue Star residents work hard to earn it; the Central Province Official also trades merit for ancient creations and hires specialists for research.
• After accumulating nearly a million Origin Points, Gu Chen decides to advance from the Gangsha Realm to the Golden Core Realm. The breakthrough will cause a vast disturbance and require days of uninterrupted seclusion, so he chooses Hanzhong Ancient City, where Zhuge Liang’s Eight Trigrams Array can conceal it.
• At the Shu Capital Ruins, Gu Chen meets Zhao Ning, a student seeking access to Hanzhong for graduation research. He lets her accompany him without accepting her Essence-Gathering Pill, and they teleport there together.

Character development and interactions

• Gu Chen shows patience and foresight: he deliberately makes military-supply rewards difficult to obtain so they retain value, then carefully plans a protected setting for his breakthrough.
• Zhao Ning is nervous but resourceful, offering a pill to secure passage. Gu Chen responds generously, reassuring her that access is unrestricted and allowing her to keep it.
• The Blue Star arrivals become increasingly invested in the cities, though competition for military merit frustrates them. The Central Province Official turns its partnership into both a research opportunity and a source of ancient knowledge.

Significant themes

• Access, scarcity, and value: Crowds and opportunists grow around the cities, while limited rewards encourage competition.
• Cooperation and exchange: The cities, the Central Province Official, and individual visitors all benefit from trading labor, merit, knowledge, or access.
• Preparation for transformation: Gu Chen’s planned breakthrough highlights the risks of cultivation and the importance of a secure foundation and protected environment.

Plot points and events

• Gu Chen escorts Zhao Ning through the Immortal Han Ancient City to Marquis Wu’s Mansion, where visitors gather to see the historic site.
• Zhao Ning admires the mansion and recites a poem honoring Zhuge Liang. She then runs into her classmate Sun You, who boasts about gaining access through family connections and mocks Zhao Ning’s lack of status.
• Zhao Ning argues that martial arts and cultivation should rely on one’s own effort. Sun You’s cousin, Sun Chengdong, ridicules her ambition and bets that if Zhuge Liang accepts her as a disciple, he will “eat shit while doing a handstand.”
• Gu Chen records the boast, then uses his System Power to influence Zhuge Liang within the mansion. Zhuge Liang’s voice and a display of mysterious light announce that Zhao Ning seems promising and invite her to study Qi Men Dun Jia.
• The crowd is astonished. Gu Chen plays back Sun Chengdong’s recorded promise, and the onlookers begin demanding that he honor it. Sun Chengdong is left visibly humiliated; the chapter ends before he responds.

Character development

• Zhao Ning appears nervous in the unfamiliar city but shows conviction and independence when defending self-reliance. Zhuge Liang’s invitation validates her resolve and opens a major opportunity.
• Gu Chen is considerate toward Zhao Ning and quietly confident. He turns Sun Chengdong’s insult into a public consequence by arranging the invitation and preserving the wager on video.
• Sun You uses her family connections to boast and belittle Zhao Ning, while Sun Chengdong escalates the mockery with an arrogant wager that backfires.

Significant themes

• Self-reliance versus privilege: Zhao Ning rejects the idea that success must come through powerful patrons or connections.
• Humility and arrogance: The cousins’ condescension is overturned when Zhao Ning receives the very recognition they claimed she could never earn.
• Consequences of reckless words: Sun Chengdong’s boast becomes evidence of his promise, turning his mockery against him.

Character interactions

• Gu Chen reassures Zhao Ning and guides her through the city, establishing a supportive bond.
• Zhao Ning confronts Sun You and Sun Chengdong’s dismissive attitudes, with Gu Chen backing her up.
• Gu Chen’s intervention secures Zhuge Liang’s public invitation to Zhao Ning, while the crowd’s reaction shifts from amazement to teasing Sun Chengdong over his wager.

Plot points and events

• Sun Chengdong retracts his wager after Gu Chen plays a recording of him making it. The crowd mocks him and Sun You as they leave Marquis Wu’s Mansion in disgrace.
• Zhugeliang invites Zhao Ning to learn a technique from the Qi Men Dun Jia Art. Gu Chen reassures her, then receives a separate invitation to meet Zhugeliang and discuss mysticism.
• News of Zhao Ning’s good fortune spreads through Hanzhong Immortal Han Ancient City, prompting others to seek Zhugeliang’s favor, though none are admitted.
• In a secret chamber, Gu Chen spends 400,000 Origin Points to advance from the Gangsha Realm Peak to the Golden Core Realm True Person level. His Seven-Colored Gangsha Qi compresses toward a solid crystal.
• The breakthrough produces a huge surge of light and energy. Zhugeliang’s Eight Formations Diagram, powered by the ancient city, suppresses the disturbance. Gu Chen remains focused and continues compressing his Qi.

Character developments and interactions

• Gu Chen reveals both his influence with Zhugeliang and his generosity toward Zhao Ning. He treats helping her as a casual kindness, then turns his attention to his own advancement.
• Zhao Ning recognizes that Gu Chen helped secure her opportunity and feels deeply grateful. The lesson also offers valuable material for her graduation and internship.
• Sun Chengdong loses face by breaking his boastful promise, while the crowd openly condemns him.
• Zhugeliang, though not seen directly, demonstrates his authority by selecting Zhao Ning for instruction and protecting Gu Chen’s breakthrough with the Eight Formations Diagram.

Significant themes

• Humility versus arrogance: Sun Chengdong’s boasting ends in public humiliation, while Gu Chen’s quiet confidence is vindicated.
• Opportunity and favor: Zhao Ning’s unexpected chance shows how a personal connection can open doors others cannot access.
• Power and cultivation: Gu Chen’s costly breakthrough marks a major transformation in strength, while its dangerous effects underline the scale of advancement.
• Control amid spectacle: Zhugeliang’s formation contains the immense energy, allowing Gu Chen to cultivate undisturbed.

Key plot points and events

• Gu Chen secretly begins advancing from the Gangsha Realm Peak to the Golden Core Realm inside Marquis Wu’s Mansion, his breakthrough concealed by the Eight Formations Diagram.
• His unusual combination of peak Martial Dao, powerful Seven-Colored Gangsha Qi, and System Power lets him form a Seven-Colored Golden Core rapidly, using 400,000 Origin Points to overcome what would normally take decades.
• The breakthrough triggers a vast Sea of Thunder above Hanzhong Immortal Han Ancient City. Visitors from Central Province watch and record the spectacle, mistaking it for a possible divine punishment.
• The Eight Formations Diagram restrains the lightning, making it strike Gu Chen in manageable bolts. He uses the tribulation to temper himself and strengthen his Golden Core.
• The lightning intensifies after Gu Chen celebrates, eventually burning away his clothes and forcing him to counterattack with Seven-Colored Spiritual Light.
• After several days of enduring the storm, Gu Chen draws on the power of Hanzhong and nearby Immortal Han Ancient Cities, activating their walls’ formations. Their Mysterious Light tears apart the Sea of Thunder.

Character development

• Gu Chen demonstrates how exceptional his cultivation is: he has built a foundation beyond ordinary cultivators and can exploit System Power to advance at extraordinary speed.
• His confidence turns briefly into concern as the increasingly violent tribulation becomes difficult to endure, prompting him to use the ancient cities’ defenses.

Significant themes

• Defying fate and heaven: Golden Core cultivation is framed as a challenge to the heavens, with the tribulation serving as a test of Gu Chen’s unprecedented advancement.
• Preparation and hidden power: Concealment, the Eight Formations Diagram, and Gu Chen’s built-in advantages allow him to survive a breakthrough that would otherwise attract danger.
• Power through cultivation and infrastructure: Gu Chen’s strength extends beyond himself; the ancient cities’ defensive formations become a decisive weapon.

Character interactions

• Gu Chen has no direct conversation with the onlookers, but their shocked speculation and filming provide an outside perspective on the scale of his breakthrough.
• His main “interaction” is with the Sea of Thunder: he initially welcomes it as a means of tempering his core, then resists its escalating attacks before using the ancient cities’ formations to end the storm.

Key plot points and events

• Gu Chen completes a grueling, ten-day-plus tribulation, advancing from the Gangsha Realm to the Golden Core Realm and forming a perfect, seven-colored Golden Core.
• The tribulation’s enormous Sea of Thunder hangs over Hanzhong Immortal Han Ancient City and targets Marquis Wu’s Mansion. Zhuge Kongming raises the Eight Formations Diagram, while several nearby Immortal Han Ancient Cities link their formations and unleash Mysterious Light.
• The combined power of the cities tears apart the Sea of Thunder. Gu Chen, using the system, takes control of their Restrictions and Formation Patterns and clears away the remaining lightning in under fifteen minutes.
• Afterward, Gu Chen sheds his charred outer layers, changes into a scholar’s robe, and learns the spectacle has earned him nearly 600,000 Origin Points.
• Observers across Blue Star—including domestic and foreign aviation authorities and online audiences—are astonished by the cities’ power and speculate about the tribulation and the ancient technology behind the formations.
• Several light-years away, an interstellar fleet detects the cities’ energy release. Its computers identify a fluctuation of at least Level Six, setting up a potential new threat or encounter.

Character developments and interactions

• Gu Chen reaches a major cultivation milestone and gains immense confidence in his new strength, which he compares to that of legendary Land Immortals. He also demonstrates growing command over the ancient cities by controlling their formations directly.
• Zhuge Kongming is shown protecting Hanzhong with the Eight Formations Diagram, reinforcing his reputation as a formidable strategist.
• The chapter mainly shows Gu Chen’s impact on outside observers: officials, researchers, foreign authorities, internet users, and the distant spaceship fleet all react to the events, though they do not interact with him directly.

Significant themes

• Ancient power versus modern understanding: Modern governments and scientists can observe the cities, but their capabilities remain mysterious and far beyond known technology.
• The scale of Gu Chen’s advancement: His breakthrough produces effects visible across space and draws attention from both Earth and beyond.
• Power has consequences: Gu Chen’s success brings rewards, but the energy display also exposes the ancient cities to a wider, potentially interstellar audience.

Plot points and events

• The Omega Fleet, a Level Four civilization’s exploration fleet, detects a Level Six energy fluctuation in a remote part of the Milky Way. The Omegas debate whether it is a natural energy event, an abandoned world, or the remains of a powerful civilization.
• Excited by the possibility of discovering rare Level Six ruins, they change course and launch fast probes to investigate ahead of the fleet.
• On Earth, Gu Chen emerges from seclusion after reaching the Golden Core Realm. He meets Zhuge Kongming, who is playing the zither and serving tea in an atmosphere Gu Chen admires as convincingly masterful.
• Zhao Ning arrives, curious about the Sea of Thunder. Zhuge Kongming explains that a minor problem with the residence’s formation caused it; Gu Chen helps divert her attention by asking about her progress in Qi Men Dun Jia.
• Gu Chen and Zhuge Kongming sense something moving rapidly toward Hanzhong Immortal Han Ancient City and look up at the sky.

Character developments and interactions

• Gu Chen has advanced to Golden Core and undergone a striking change in appearance. He is pleased by Zhuge Kongming’s presentation and quietly amused by how easily he can distract Zhao Ning.
• Zhao Ning is impressed and momentarily flustered by Gu Chen’s changed appearance. She is also enthusiastic about learning Qi Men Dun Jia and trusts Zhuge Kongming’s explanation of the thunder.
• Zhuge Kongming maintains his composed, sage-like demeanor, concealing the true cause of the disturbance with a casual explanation.
• The Omegas shift from skepticism to eager anticipation, united by the prospect of a major archaeological discovery.

Significant themes

• Exploration and ambition: The Omega Fleet sees ancient ruins as a path to wealth and fame.
• Concealment and misunderstanding: Zhao Ning accepts a cover story about the Sea of Thunder, while Gu Chen and Zhuge Kongming know more than they reveal.
• A meeting of worlds: The fleet’s search for Level Six energy coincides with an unexplained presence approaching Gu Chen’s city, foreshadowing contact between interstellar and cultivation powers.

Summary

• Key events: Three highly advanced reconnaissance craft from the Level 5 civilization Aitas approach the Solar System at extreme speed. Hanzhong Immortal Han Ancient City detects them, and Gu Chen uses its array to identify them as alien spacecraft. They initially head toward the city, apparently drawn by energy it previously emitted. Gu Chen conceals the Immortal Han Cities, causing the craft to lose their target and turn toward Blue Star. He then activates the cities’ arrays and Restrictions, surrounding and destroying all three craft. Two light-years away, the Omega Fleet receives news of their destruction and becomes alarmed.
• Character development: Gu Chen’s distrust of unknown visitors drives him to assume the worst and act decisively. Though he first waits rather than risk an ineffective attack, he quickly adapts by hiding the city and preparing an encirclement. Zhuge Kongming, as controller of Hanzhong, detects the approaching objects through its array.
• Themes: The chapter explores fear of the unknown, the danger posed by the gap between civilizations, and the morality of power. Gu Chen’s thoughts about colonialism and exploitation on Earth shape his belief that Blue Star must be protected from a technologically superior civilization. The episode also highlights the strategic value of concealment, detection, and overwhelming defensive power.
• Character interactions: Gu Chen monitors the craft through the Immortal Han City’s systems, while Zhuge Kongming’s array first detects them. Gu Chen’s direct response is to the alien threat rather than to its occupants: he conceals the city, then destroys the craft when they flee. The Omega Fleet’s reaction establishes that the incident has broader consequences beyond the Solar System.