Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary: “Important Matters”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After Jiang Yan and Li Dragon Son leave for the Falling Star Sect, the Second Elder expresses concern that they are walking into an obvious trap.
• He urges the Great Elder to secretly send protection, especially for Li Dragon Son, a former Saint Son and one of the sect’s most promising talents.
• The elders’ reluctance to avenge Elder Qin Feng is explained:
  • The Battle Saint Ape, who killed Qin Feng, is an ancient and immensely powerful Dao-Summit being.
  • The force behind the Falling Star Sect is likely the Sun Holy Palace and its Human Supreme, the Sun Holy Master.
  • Confronting the Battle Saint Ape could provoke the Sun Holy Master and bring disaster upon the entire sect.
• The Great Elder rejects the idea of sending aid. He explains that protecting Li Dragon Son would require the sect’s strongest elders to act personally, yet none could guarantee victory or survival against the Battle Saint Ape and the Sun Holy Master.
• The Second Elder suggests asking the True Dragon for help, but the Great Elder refuses. The True Dragon is nearing the end of his lifespan, and every battle would consume his remaining origin energy.
• The Great Elder ultimately decides that Jiang Yan and Li Dragon Son must rely on their own fate, whether they live or die.
• He declares that the sect’s true priority is preserving its legacy before the True Dragon returns to the Return to Ruin and the sect is destroyed by rival powers.

Character Developments

• The Second Elder is shown to be compassionate and deeply invested in Li Dragon Son’s future. He recognizes Li’s exceptional talent and believes he may eventually reach the Supreme Realm and restore the sect’s former glory.
• The Great Elder appears cold and indifferent on the surface, but his decisions arise from grim pragmatism. He prioritizes the survival of the sect’s heritage over individual lives, even those of valuable disciples.
• Li Dragon Son is established as a former Saint Son with deep roots in the sect and extraordinary potential. His possible death would be a severe loss.
• Jiang Yan is regarded as an outsider and external elder, meaning the sect has fewer emotional and political obligations toward him.
• The Battle Saint Ape is characterized as an ancient, terrifying powerhouse whose strength has only grown since attaining the Dao.
• The Sun Holy Master is presented as the true source of fear: a peak Human Supreme capable of destroying the sect’s elders with ease.
• The True Dragon remains the sect’s greatest deterrent, but his weakening condition and limited lifespan make his intervention too costly.

Significant Themes

• Pragmatism versus loyalty: The elders must choose between rescuing valuable individuals and protecting the sect as a whole.
• The decline of a great power: The Yu Long Sect is facing inevitable collapse once the True Dragon dies or enters the Return to Ruin.
• Preserving legacy over preserving lives: The Great Elder believes that maintaining the sect’s teachings and descendants is more important than avenging Qin Feng or saving Li Dragon Son.
• Powerlessness before supreme beings: Even powerful Great Dao Lords are insignificant before a true Human Supreme, emphasizing the vast hierarchy of strength.
• Sacrifice and long-term survival: The elders accept present losses so that future generations might one day rebuild the sect.
• Fate and uncertainty: Jiang Yan and Li Dragon Son’s survival is left to their own abilities and fortune as they enter enemy territory.

Character Interactions

• The Second Elder privately approaches the Great Elder after Jiang Yan and Li Dragon Son depart, attempting to persuade him to send protection.
• The Great Elder systematically counters each proposal, explaining the risks posed by the Battle Saint Ape and the Sun Holy Master.
• The Second Elder argues that Li Dragon Son’s talent makes his survival essential and proposes seeking the True Dragon’s assistance.
• The Great Elder rejects this suggestion out of concern that using the True Dragon’s remaining strength would hasten his death and endanger the entire sect.
• Their exchange reveals a conflict between the Second Elder’s protective attachment to an individual disciple and the Great Elder’s broader responsibility to preserve the sect’s future.

Chapter Summary: “Clash”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Jiang Yan and Li Dragon Son arrive at Falling Star Sect to confront the Battle Saint Ape, seeking revenge for the Yu Long Sect elder and three thousand disciples he killed.
• Jiang Yan publicly challenges the Battle Saint Ape and unleashes an enormous sea of Innate Divine Flame, reducing much of Falling Star Sect’s territory to ash and overwhelming the sect’s hidden disciples.
• The Battle Saint Ape emerges from the sect’s main peak, confident that Jiang Yan and Dragon Son are too young and inexperienced to threaten him. He reveals that he had prepared an elaborate ambush, expecting Yu Long Sect to send veteran experts.
• Jiang Yan displays a powerful fire technique, condensing five Innate Divine Flames into a terrifying white radiance. The attack surprises the Battle Saint Ape and forces him to reconsider Jiang Yan’s abilities.
• Recognizing Jiang Yan as a future heaven-chosen talent, the Battle Saint Ape becomes excited at the prospect of killing him and activates his preparations.
• By throwing his Black-Gold Iron Staff into the air, the Battle Saint Ape triggers nearly a million interconnected killing formations throughout Falling Star Sect. The formations isolate Jiang Yan and Dragon Son from the outside world and unleash an overwhelming barrage of attacks and curses.
• Dragon Son steps forward to handle the formation while leaving the Battle Saint Ape to Jiang Yan. Using the Ice Dao empowered by Destiny Power, he freezes more than half of the massive killing formation, halting its attacks.

Character Developments

• Jiang Yan demonstrates exceptional confidence and destructive power. His mastery of the Fire Dao proves advanced enough to surprise the Battle Saint Ape, establishing him as a genuine heaven-chosen figure rather than an ordinary young Great Dao Lord.
• Li Dragon Son reveals extraordinary control over the Ice Dao and Destiny Power. His seemingly simple attack neutralizes a formation capable of threatening even powerful Great Dao cultivators, showing that he is also far stronger than the Battle Saint Ape initially expected.
• The Battle Saint Ape begins arrogant and dismissive, believing Yu Long Sect has sent only insignificant juniors. After witnessing Jiang Yan’s white flame, he acknowledges Jiang Yan’s talent but becomes even more eager and confident in killing him.
• The confrontation establishes a division of roles: Jiang Yan will face the Battle Saint Ape directly, while Dragon Son takes responsibility for breaking through the killing formation.

Significant Themes

• Revenge and justice: Jiang Yan’s challenge is motivated by the deaths of Yu Long Sect’s elders and disciples.
• Underestimation and hidden strength: The Battle Saint Ape misjudges both visitors because of their age, only to discover that they possess exceptional abilities.
• Confidence versus arrogance: Jiang Yan’s calm certainty contrasts with the Battle Saint Ape’s boastful self-assurance.
• Talent and future potential: Jiang Yan is recognized as a rare heaven-chosen cultivator whose survival could significantly affect the future of Yu Long Sect.
• Preparation and overwhelming force: The Battle Saint Ape relies on a vast network of formations, while Jiang Yan and Dragon Son counter him through superior individual abilities and coordination.

Character Interactions

• Jiang Yan openly taunts the Battle Saint Ape, demanding that he face death and use every hidden arrangement before it is too late.
• The Battle Saint Ape mocks Yu Long Sect for sending only two young cultivators, then changes his attitude after witnessing Jiang Yan’s fire technique.
• Dragon Son calmly proposes that he deal with the killing formation while Jiang Yan fights the Battle Saint Ape, demonstrating trust in Jiang Yan and confidence in his own abilities.
• The chapter ends with Dragon Son freezing most of the formation, setting the stage for Jiang Yan’s direct battle with the Battle Saint Ape.

Chapter Summary: “Fraud”

Key plot points and events

• Li Longzi uses his Ice Dao to freeze the million-strong Killing Formation surrounding the Falling Star Sect, revealing that the Yu Long Sect sent a second young genius alongside Jiang Yan.
• The Battle Saint Ape is delighted rather than alarmed. He realizes that Jiang Yan and Li Longzi possess exceptionally pure origin Dao Foundations and intends to suppress and refine them to increase his own strength.
• The ape transforms into a colossal, demonic form and launches his ultimate attack against Jiang Yan with his enormous Black-Gold Iron Staff. The strike locks space and time, while black chains restrain Jiang Yan.
• Jiang Yan remains calm and unveils a self-created version of the Buddhist Sect’s Five-Colored Divine Light, formed from his five Innate Flames and his understanding of the Five-Element Fire Dao.
• The divine light instantly destroys the restraining chains, annihilates the Battle Saint Ape’s powerful weapon, and tears away more than half of his body.
• Horrified, the Battle Saint Ape retreats and accuses Jiang Yan of deceiving him, stunned that Jiang Yan’s imitation of the Five-Colored Divine Light is even more powerful than expected.

Character developments

• Jiang Yan demonstrates extreme composure and confidence under an apparently unavoidable attack. His mastery of the five Innate Flames has advanced enough for him to create a powerful new divine ability modeled on the Peacock Buddha Venerable’s technique.
• Li Longzi is revealed as another major young genius of the Yu Long Sect, capable of freezing the enormous Killing Formation through the Ice Dao.
• The Battle Saint Ape shifts from greed and triumph to shock and fear. His confidence in his own strength is shattered when his ultimate weapon and much of his body are effortlessly erased.

Significant themes

• Overconfidence and miscalculation: The Battle Saint Ape assumes the Yu Long Sect’s decision to send two geniuses is foolish, but his arrogance prevents him from recognizing their true power.
• Innovation through imitation: Jiang Yan adapts the Buddhist Sect’s Five-Colored Divine Light into his own Five-Element Fire Dao technique, showing that understanding and personal cultivation can transform an existing ability.
• Power versus technique: The ape relies on overwhelming physical strength and a devastating weapon, while Jiang Yan defeats him with a refined, specialized divine ability.
• Predator becoming prey: The Battle Saint Ape intends to devour Jiang Yan and Li Longzi to advance his cultivation, but he is instead severely wounded and forced to flee.

Character interactions

• The Battle Saint Ape openly regards Jiang Yan and Li Longzi as valuable prey and boasts that refining their origins will strengthen his Dao.
• He targets Jiang Yan with his strongest attack, believing the spatial restraints and Black-Gold Iron Staff will guarantee victory.
• Jiang Yan responds without fear, treating the assault as an opportunity to test his newly developed Five-Colored Divine Light.
• Their confrontation ends with Jiang Yan decisively reversing the power dynamic, leaving the Battle Saint Ape terrified and accusing him of fraud or deception.

Chapter Summary: “Dharma Form”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Battle Saint Ape accuses Jiang Yan of falsely claiming to possess the Buddhist Sect’s Great Divine Art of Five-Colored Light. He recognizes that Jiang Yan’s version is far more destructive than the genuine technique he once faced.
• Jiang Yan’s Five-Colored Divine Light continuously prevents the Battle Saint Ape’s wounds from healing and completely annihilates his Innate divine weapon, the Black-Gold Iron Staff.
• Jiang Yan dismisses the argument over the technique’s name, stating that its ability to kill is what matters. He launches another attack with the five-colored lights.
• The attack distorts time and space, suppresses the surrounding Great Dao laws, and makes the Battle Saint Ape feel as though the entire world is rejecting and imprisoning him.
• Facing certain death, the Battle Saint Ape reveals his greatest trump card: his natal divine art, Heavenly Dharma Form.
• His injuries heal, and his body expands to roughly one hundred thousand zhang. He transforms into a dark-gold, rune-covered demonic giant surrounded by overwhelming killing intent.
• The Heavenly Dharma Form multiplies his physical strength and divine power tenfold, making him confident that he can forcibly tear apart Jiang Yan’s divine light.
• Despite gathering all his strength, the Battle Saint Ape’s palms, arms, and enormous body are rapidly shattered and erased by the Five-Colored Divine Light.
• His Dharma Form is completely destroyed within fifteen breaths, leaving only his head. Horrified, he realizes that Jiang Yan is no ordinary Great Dao Lord and may have reached the Half-step Supreme Realm.

Character Developments

• Jiang Yan displays extreme confidence and composure. He is unconcerned with the origin or legitimacy of his divine art and focuses solely on its effectiveness.
• Jiang Yan’s strength is revealed to be vastly beyond what the Battle Saint Ape expected. His Five-Colored Divine Light can destroy an Innate divine weapon and overwhelm a powerful innate species’ ultimate technique.
• The Battle Saint Ape shifts from anger and contempt to desperation and disbelief. He initially considers Jiang Yan an arrogant junior who merely gained unusual fortune, but is forced to acknowledge him as a possible Half-step Supreme.
• The Battle Saint Ape’s pride in his Innate Divine Species heritage and Heavenly Dharma Form is severely shaken when the technique is destroyed almost effortlessly.

Significant Themes

• Power beyond appearances: Jiang Yan’s technique resembles the famous Great Divine Art of Five-Colored Light but possesses an even more terrifying level of destructive power.
• Pride and humiliation: The Battle Saint Ape’s confidence in his ancient lineage and unrivaled battle body collapses as his strongest ability fails.
• Recognition through defeat: The Battle Saint Ape only understands Jiang Yan’s true realm after suffering an overwhelming defeat.
• Absolute suppression: The battle emphasizes Jiang Yan’s ability to control not only physical matter but also time, space, and the Great Dao itself.

Character Interactions

• The Battle Saint Ape angrily challenges Jiang Yan’s claim to the Five-Colored Divine Light, invoking his past battle with the Peacock Buddha Venerable.
• Jiang Yan responds with disdain, refusing to debate the technique’s identity and taunting the Ape to either beg for mercy or flee.
• When Jiang Yan attacks again, the Battle Saint Ape abandons his previous restraint and reveals Heavenly Dharma Form, declaring Jiang Yan unworthy of challenging an Innate Divine Species.
• After his ultimate transformation is destroyed, the Battle Saint Ape’s accusations become a desperate realization: Jiang Yan has likely attained a realm approaching Supreme power.

Chapter Summary: “Return”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Battle Saint Ape realizes that the Yu Long Sect’s young genius, Jiang Yan, has reached the Half-step Supreme Realm. This discovery shatters his confidence, as he understands that neither his innate ferocious strength nor his Great Dao Realm abilities can contend with Jiang Yan.
• Abandoning his earlier arrogance, the Battle Saint Ape flees at tremendous speed, traveling hundreds of thousands of miles.
• Jiang Yan does not pursue him directly. Instead, he asks Li Longzi, who controls the Dao of Destiny, to stop the ape and force him back so that Jiang Yan can defeat and suppress him permanently.
• Li Longzi invokes the power of Destiny. His Fate River expands, producing one hundred images of the Battle Saint Ape. By having his divine soul enter these images and make them return to the river, Li Longzi establishes a destiny in which the real Battle Saint Ape must also return.
• The ape’s escape gradually weakens. His speed declines, his body becomes restrained, and Destiny Power begins forcibly reversing his path. Despite burning his origin blood and unleashing immense killing intent, he cannot resist.
• Once the final phantom enters the Fate River, Li Longzi’s prophecy becomes reality. The Battle Saint Ape is completely compelled to turn around and retrace his path back toward the Falling Star Sect.
• In desperation, the ape calls upon the Sun Holy Master, hoping that Supreme Power will rescue him.
• Before help can arrive, Jiang Yan seals the area with a vast dome of flame. The seal cuts off all heavenly opportunities and prevents outside forces from interfering unless a true Supreme intervenes directly.

Character Developments

• Battle Saint Ape: His arrogance and confidence collapse when he recognizes Jiang Yan’s superior realm. He shifts from predator to desperate fugitive, eventually losing all resistance and pleading for the Sun Holy Master’s aid. His helplessness against Destiny Power highlights the limits of his innate strength.
• Jiang Yan: He demonstrates not only overwhelming combat power but also strategic judgment. Rather than chase the ape, he coordinates with Li Longzi to guarantee its capture, then seals the battlefield to prevent rescue.
• Li Longzi: He displays extraordinary mastery of the Dao of Destiny. His manipulation of fate is precise and terrifying, allowing him to impose a predetermined outcome on a powerful opponent from a great distance.
• Sun Holy Master: Though not physically present, the Holy Master’s reputation as a Supreme-level existence makes the Battle Saint Ape believe rescue may still be possible.

Significant Themes

• The overwhelming gap between realms: The difference between the Dao Summit and Half-step Supreme Realm is portrayed as a qualitative divide that cannot be overcome through numbers or ordinary techniques.
• Destiny versus free will: The Battle Saint Ape struggles with all his strength, yet Li Longzi’s Destiny Dao turns his return into an unavoidable outcome. His resistance becomes meaningless once fate is fixed.
• Arrogance transformed into desperation: The ape’s initial confidence is replaced by fear and helplessness, emphasizing how quickly pride can disappear before overwhelming power.
• Strategic cooperation: Jiang Yan and Li Longzi combine direct destructive power with fate manipulation, showing that coordinated abilities can completely control the battlefield.
• Isolation and containment: Jiang Yan’s final fire seal reflects the importance of preventing outside intervention and ensuring that an enemy cannot escape or receive assistance.

Character Interactions

• Jiang Yan acknowledges Li Longzi’s specialized control over Destiny Power and entrusts him with intercepting the fleeing ape.
• Li Longzi responds immediately, using the Fate River and multiple destiny projections to influence the Battle Saint Ape’s true body.
• The Battle Saint Ape’s internal struggle against Li Longzi’s control forms the central conflict of the chapter.
• When the ape calls for the Sun Holy Master, Jiang Yan acts at once, sealing the battlefield and cutting off the possibility of external aid.

Summary

This chapter is an author’s note rather than a story episode. The author apologizes for the irregular and slow updates, explaining that domestic matters have repeatedly interrupted the writing process. They reflect that the story has continued for so long that many readers may have married and had children during its publication.
The author explains the planned structure: after completing Mother River and the section about what lies beyond it, they intend to end the story rather than extend it indefinitely. Although this gives the project a clearer goal, the author acknowledges that their slow pace means readers may still be following the work for a long time.
The author promises to work faster, finish the current book, and then begin writing a new one. They invite readers to suggest genres or books for that future project and offer to recommend reading material to readers who want to write their own stories.

• Key events: The author discusses the delayed updates, clarifies the intended ending of the story, and previews plans for a future book.
• Character development: There is no fictional character development; the author presents themselves as reflective, apologetic, and committed to completing the work.
• Themes: Perseverance, responsibility to readers, the passage of time, creative ambition, and the relationship between author and audience.
• Character interactions: The main interaction is between the author and readers, characterized by gratitude, apology, reassurance, and an invitation for continued feedback.

Chapter Summary: “Ruining Your Future”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Jiang Yan completes a powerful flame barrier around the battlefield, severing space-time and preventing the Battle Saint Ape from receiving reinforcements or escaping.
• Confident in his overwhelming advantage, Jiang Yan taunts the Battle Saint Ape and demands that he reveal his final trump card. Jiang Yan had expected more from the legendary Innate Seed but now regards him as comparatively weak.
• The Battle Saint Ape activates the Myriad-Bodies Divine Ability, causing countless golden hairs to transform into avatars. He hopes that even one avatar can slip through a crack in the barrier and preserve a chance of escape.
• Jiang Yan destroys nearly all the avatars with the flame barrier’s divine fire. When he notices the Battle Saint Ape’s true body hiding within space-time, he uses the Five-Colored Divine Light to shatter the surrounding void and drag him out.
• The divine light severely damages the Battle Saint Ape’s body, divine soul, origin power, and Great Dao. His Dao Foundation is nearly destroyed, leaving him on the verge of death.
• Accepting that he cannot survive without intervention from a Supreme Realm expert, the Battle Saint Ape abandons the hope of escape. Instead, he prepares to burn his own origin, soul, and Great Dao in a final suicidal attack.
• He declares that, even if he dies, he will damage Jiang Yan’s Dao Foundation and destroy his future prospects of advancing toward the Supreme Realm.

Character Developments

• Jiang Yan is revealed to possess strength approaching the Supreme Realm. His control over the battlefield, flame barrier, and Five-Colored Divine Light demonstrates overwhelming power and confidence.
• His attitude becomes increasingly arrogant and aggressive. He mocks the Battle Saint Ape for fleeing, challenging the dignity associated with being an Innate Ferocious Species.
• The Battle Saint Ape shifts from desperate escape to defiant acceptance of death. Though badly wounded and unable to win, he retains his pride and ferocity.
• His final decision shows that his goal is no longer survival but revenge: he intends to sacrifice himself to cripple Jiang Yan’s cultivation path.

Significant Themes

• Pride and dignity in defeat: The Battle Saint Ape refuses to beg for mercy or die passively, choosing a final act of defiance.
• The gap between innate talent and supreme power: Although Innate Seeds are naturally favored by heaven and earth and can reach the Great Dao Realm with ease, Jiang Yan’s near-Supreme strength places him far beyond the Battle Saint Ape.
• Destruction of the future: The chapter emphasizes that victory is not limited to killing an opponent; damaging an enemy’s Dao Foundation can permanently sever their potential for advancement.
• Desperation and sacrifice: The Battle Saint Ape’s transformation from escape attempt to suicidal counterattack highlights the extreme stakes of the confrontation.

Character Interactions

• Jiang Yan directly taunts and pressures the Battle Saint Ape, insisting that a legendary Innate Ferocious Species should not flee.
• The Battle Saint Ape responds not with submission but with renewed hostility, attempting to escape through his avatars.
• After Jiang Yan exposes and cripples him, the Battle Saint Ape acknowledges Jiang Yan’s superior strength while refusing to acknowledge him as an unquestioned victor.
• Their confrontation ends with the Battle Saint Ape threatening to trade his life for damage to Jiang Yan’s Dao Foundation, setting up a final, potentially catastrophic clash.

Chapter Summary: “Return to the Sect”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Battle Saint Ape launches a final desperate attack, burning his bloodline essence, Great Dao Origin, and soul power to create a destructive beam from a newly formed vertical eye.
• Jiang Yan acknowledges the ape’s courage but counters with the Yu Long Sect’s supreme treasure, the Heavenly Blade.
• Declaring the Battle Saint Ape guilty of invading the sect’s territory, killing Elder Qin Feng, and massacring sect disciples, Jiang Yan executes him with a single overwhelming slash.
• The Heavenly Blade destroys not only the ape’s physical body but also his soul and origin power. The Battle Saint Ape accepts his fate, viewing death beneath such a supreme weapon as worthy of his status as an Innate Spirit Seed.
• Jiang Yan preserves the ape’s head and returns to the Yu Long Sect with Dragon Son Li.
• The sect is in a tense and fearful state because the True Dragon Supreme’s lifespan is nearly exhausted. Other powerful sects are waiting to attack once the True Dragon enters the Return to Ruin.
• Upon arriving, Jiang Yan publicly announces the Battle Saint Ape’s defeat and presents his head as proof of vengeance for Elder Qin Feng and the dead disciples.
• He orders the head to be sealed in the eighteenth level of the Dragon-Slaying Platform, where it will be tortured by earthfire and divine punishment for ten thousand years.
• The sect’s disciples witness the punishment and regain confidence, while several figures praise Jiang Yan and Li Dragon Son for their achievement.

Character Developments

• Jiang Yan demonstrates authority, decisiveness, and loyalty to the Yu Long Sect. He acts not merely as a victorious warrior but as an enforcer of sect justice, using the Heavenly Blade as a symbol of institutional power.
• His preservation and punishment of the Battle Saint Ape’s head reveal his determination to honor the dead and reassure the sect during a period of crisis.
• The Battle Saint Ape displays fierce pride and courage by refusing to surrender. Even while dying, he accepts his fate with dignity and recognizes the Heavenly Blade’s exceptional power.
• Dragon Son Li remains Jiang Yan’s companion and ally, helping carry out the sect’s orders and return with him to report their victory.
• The Yu Long Sect’s disciples and elders shift from fear and despair toward renewed confidence after witnessing the enemy’s destruction and punishment.

Significant Themes

• Honor and defiance: The Battle Saint Ape’s final counterattack preserves his dignity, showing that courage in defeat can still uphold one’s status.
• Justice and retribution: Jiang Yan frames the execution and prolonged punishment as repayment for the massacre of sect members.
• Institutional authority: The Heavenly Blade and Dragon-Slaying Platform represent the Yu Long Sect’s remaining power and ability to enforce judgment despite its vulnerable situation.
• Fear and morale: The sect’s anxiety over the True Dragon’s approaching death contrasts with the emotional relief created by Jiang Yan’s return and victory.
• Mortality and decline: The impending fall of the True Dragon Supreme signals that even powerful organizations and beings are subject to fate and eventual collapse.

Character Interactions

• Jiang Yan and the Battle Saint Ape confront one another in a final clash, with Jiang Yan recognizing the ape’s spirit even as he condemns him.
• Jiang Yan and Dragon Son Li cooperate in defeating the enemy and returning to the sect.
• Jiang Yan addresses the sect’s elders, disciples, and the True Dragon Supreme, publicly presenting the Battle Saint Ape’s head and explaining the punishment.
• The sect’s figures respond by bowing to and praising Jiang Yan and Li, marking their victory as a major boost to the sect’s morale.

Chapter Summary: The Scheming of Human Hearts

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Great Elder and Second Elder discuss Jiang Yan’s growing influence after he killed the Battle Saint Ape and avenged Fourth Elder Qin Feng. They recognize that Jiang Yan may soon absorb Qin Feng’s faction, especially with Li Longzi supporting him.
• The Second Elder suggests suppressing Jiang Yan, fearing that he will become a powerful independent force within the sect.
• The Great Elder rejects this plan. He believes Jiang Yan’s aggressive stance toward external enemies may be useful, drawing attention away from the elders’ own preparations.
• The Great Elder reveals that the sect is facing an approaching catastrophe connected to the True Dragon Supreme’s decline. His priority is not victory, but preserving the sect’s “sparks”—selected disciples and inheritances—so they can escape through a teleportation array in the True Dragon Secret Realm.
• The elders are divided over how to respond to the crisis: some favor fighting foreign enemies, some prioritize preserving the sect’s future, and others hope to profit from the True Dragon’s return to the ruins.
• After Jiang Yan returns to Blazing Sun Peak, the surviving disciples of Qin Feng’s faction come to pay their respects. Led by Qin Feng’s chief disciple, they praise Jiang Yan for killing the Battle Saint Ape and avenging their fallen master.
• Qin Feng’s faction formally submits to Jiang Yan, asking to join his command and receive his protection.
• Jiang Yan accepts them conditionally. He warns that he is not yet a Supreme and cannot guarantee everyone’s safety. The disciples accept these risks and pledge loyalty to him.

Character Developments

• Jiang Yan emerges as a significant new power within the sect. His victory over the Battle Saint Ape earns him both prestige and political influence.
• He demonstrates pragmatism and honesty by accepting Qin Feng’s followers while openly acknowledging the limits of his strength. His authority is therefore built on mutual need rather than empty promises.
• The Great Elder is shown to be cautious, calculating, and focused on long-term survival. Rather than confronting Jiang Yan, he intends to use Jiang Yan’s reputation as a shield while secretly preparing an evacuation plan.
• The Second Elder appears more politically defensive and concerned with preserving his faction’s dominance. He views Jiang Yan’s rise as a threat.
• Qin Feng’s disciples, especially their leader, shift from being a leaderless and vulnerable faction to becoming Jiang Yan’s followers. Their submission is motivated by gratitude, fear, and the need for protection.

Significant Themes

• Factional politics and competing interests: The sect’s elders are united only superficially; beneath that unity are conflicting plans for survival and power.
• Survival versus honor: Qin Feng’s faction values vengeance and resistance, while the Great Elder prioritizes preserving the sect’s future, even if that means abandoning its current position.
• The instability of loyalty: Qin Feng’s disciples quickly transfer their allegiance after his death, showing how political loyalty depends on protection and circumstance.
• Mutual dependence: Jiang Yan needs followers to establish his influence, while Qin Feng’s disciples need a powerful protector. Their alliance is practical as well as emotional.
• The coming catastrophe: The True Dragon Supreme’s failing lifespan and the sect’s approaching destruction create an atmosphere of urgency, fear, and opportunism.

Character Interactions

• The Great Elder restrains the Second Elder’s attempt to oppose Jiang Yan, arguing that Jiang Yan may be useful against external enemies.
• The elders’ conversation reveals their differing priorities: the Second Elder seeks political control, while the Great Elder secretly prepares for evacuation.
• Qin Feng’s disciples approach Jiang Yan with gratitude for avenging their master and openly offer themselves to his command.
• Jiang Yan responds with measured acceptance, establishing clear expectations and refusing to promise more protection than he can provide.
• The disciples accept his conditions without hesitation, binding themselves to Jiang Yan and marking the formation of a new faction within the sect.

Chapter Summary: “Entrustment”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After Elder Qin Feng’s former subordinates depart, the True Dragon summons Jiang Yan to the True Dragon Secret Realm.
• Jiang Yan finds the True Dragon Supreme in a severely weakened state. Its scales have lost their radiance, its body is surrounded by the aura of death, and its Return to Ruin is approaching.
• The True Dragon offers Jiang Yan a chance to become a Supreme instantly by borrowing its origin power.
• The price is lifelong service to the Yu Long Sect: Jiang Yan would have to replace the True Dragon as the sect’s guardian and remain bound to it forever.
• Jiang Yan rejects the offer, recognizing that the seemingly priceless opportunity would actually become a karmic shackle preventing him from traveling the myriad heavens and pursuing the Origin Dao.
• He confidently declares that he will reach the Supreme realm through his own efforts within a hundred years.
• The True Dragon accepts his decision, acknowledging Jiang Yan’s firm Dao heart and strong potential.
• The True Dragon then reveals its alternate plan: it will transfer part of its origin into Li Longzi, helping him establish the foundation for becoming a Supreme.
• Because the inheritance will attract enemies from within and outside the sect, the True Dragon asks Jiang Yan to guard the sect and protect the inheritance ceremony.
• Jiang Yan agrees and asks how they will defend against a genuine Supreme who might attack.
• The True Dragon promises to personally intervene and threatens to perish together with anyone who attempts to seize its inheritance.

Character Developments

• Jiang Yan: Demonstrates a powerful commitment to freedom, self-cultivation, and his own Dao path. Despite being offered a guaranteed Supreme Dao Fruit, he refuses to sacrifice his independence. His confidence and resolve impress the True Dragon, who recognizes that Jiang Yan has an unusually pure Dao heart and a strong chance of proving the Dao naturally.
• The True Dragon: Is revealed to be close to death but remains concerned with securing the Yu Long Sect’s future. It is willing to sacrifice its remaining origin to create a successor and has already selected Li Longzi as the most suitable inheritor.
• Li Longzi: Though absent from the chapter, his importance greatly increases. His profound Frost Dao, powerful foundation, and Fate Dao talent are revealed to be the result of the True Dragon’s guidance. He is chosen to inherit the True Dragon’s legacy.
• The Yu Long Sect: Its future becomes uncertain as the True Dragon nears death. The sect will require a new Supreme-level protector, making Li Longzi’s inheritance crucial.

Significant Themes

• Freedom versus security: Jiang Yan rejects guaranteed power because it would cost him his freedom and restrict his cultivation.
• The price of power: The True Supreme opportunity is not a gift but an exchange involving heavy karmic obligations.
• Dao heart and personal conviction: Jiang Yan’s refusal reflects his unwavering belief in achieving greatness through his own path rather than relying on borrowed strength.
• Legacy and succession: The True Dragon prepares for its death by selecting Li Longzi as an inheritor capable of carrying on the sect’s future.
• Duty and sacrifice: Although Jiang Yan refuses permanent guardianship, he is still willing to help protect the sect during a dangerous transition.
• Threat of conflict: The inheritance ceremony is expected to attract hidden enemies and powerful outsiders, foreshadowing an impending confrontation.

Character Interactions

• Jiang Yan and the True Dragon: Their conversation centers on trust, choice, and responsibility. The True Dragon tempts Jiang Yan with immediate ascension, while Jiang Yan explains why such power would compromise his Dao. Their mutual respect deepens when the True Dragon recognizes his determination.
• Jiang Yan and Li Longzi: They do not interact directly, but Jiang Yan learns that Li Longzi has been selected as the True Dragon’s successor. Jiang Yan accepts the responsibility of protecting him and the inheritance process.
• The True Dragon and the Yu Long Sect: The True Dragon’s origin is inseparably tied to the sect, and its final actions reveal its desire to preserve the sect even after its own death.

Chapter Summary: “Visitors”

Key Plot Points and Events

• True Dragon assures Jiang Yan that, despite his advanced age and impending decline into the “Return to Ruin,” he still possesses enough power to fight one or two old enemies to the death if necessary.
• Jiang Yan agrees to guard True Dragon and Li when the appropriate time comes, giving True Dragon confidence that his future arrangements are secure.
• As compensation, True Dragon gives Jiang Yan a jade-green Wind Dao token from Cangyuan Palace, the Human Race lineage founded by Emperor Canggu.
• True Dragon reveals that he once heard Emperor Canggu preach the Dao fifty million years earlier and received the token directly from him. The token is a Guiding Token, allowing its holder to enter Cangyuan Palace and become a disciple.
• When Jiang Yan accepts it, the token immediately transforms and strengthens his body while deepening his comprehension of the Wind Dao. Jiang Yan recognizes its immense value and accepts it, while remaining uncertain whether he will ultimately join Cangyuan Palace.
• True Dragon sends Jiang Yan back to Blazing Sun Peak. Soon afterward, Jiang Yan senses an extraordinary disturbance within the Yu Long Sect.
• A vast azure sea suddenly floods the entire sect, drawing water from space, history, legend, and even imagination. An enormous black whale emerges from it, radiating a trace of Supreme-level power.
• The whale is a Half-Step Supreme Exotic Beast with the potential to become a true Supreme. Its arrival indicates that a Human Supreme—or someone of comparable standing—has entered the sect, causing widespread fear and oppressive tension.

Character Developments

• True Dragon is portrayed as ancient, powerful, and prepared to sacrifice himself in a final battle to protect his interests and allies. Though weakened by age, his lingering strength remains terrifying.
• Jiang Yan demonstrates loyalty by agreeing to protect True Dragon and Li. He also shows ambition and discernment, recognizing that even after grasping the Origin Dao, entering an Emperor’s lineage could provide valuable insight and further opportunities for advancement.
• Jiang Yan’s physical constitution and understanding of the Wind Dao are enhanced through contact with the Guiding Token, suggesting that his potential continues to rise.
• The sudden arrival of a Supreme-level visitor places Jiang Yan and the entire Yu Long Sect in a situation far beyond ordinary sect conflicts.

Significant Themes

• Legacy and inheritance: True Dragon passes on an artifact tied to Emperor Canggu, allowing Jiang Yan access to one of the Human Race’s greatest Dao lineages.
• Aging, sacrifice, and mortality: True Dragon’s reference to the Return to Ruin emphasizes that even ancient powerhouses eventually decline, though they may still choose a final act of defiance.
• The pursuit of higher realms: Jiang Yan has already reached the Origin Dao but remains open to learning from other traditions and seeking greater opportunities.
• The scale of supreme power: The whale’s arrival demonstrates how overwhelming a Supreme’s influence can be, with the entire sect submerged and shaken merely by the visitor’s presence.
• Uncertainty and looming conflict: The chapter ends by introducing a powerful outsider whose arrival may trigger a battle between Supremes within the Yu Long Sect.

Character Interactions

• True Dragon and Jiang Yan share a respectful exchange based on mutual trust: Jiang Yan promises future protection, while True Dragon rewards him with the Guiding Token.
• True Dragon explains the token’s origins and significance, encouraging Jiang Yan to pursue the Emperor’s lineage for further cultivation.
• Their conversation is interrupted in effect, though not directly, by the arrival of the mysterious whale and its master, shifting the chapter from a private negotiation to a sect-wide crisis.

Chapter Summary: Origin Emperor

Key Plot Points and Events

• Origin Emperor, a Human Supreme who cultivates the Water Dao, arrives at the Yu Long Sect riding her transformed mount, the Thousand-Water Profound Whale, a Half-step Supreme-level Fierce Beast.
• The Great Elder recognizes her arrival as a serious threat, especially because the True Dragon is nearing his Return to Ruin and many powerful cultivators are beginning to reveal themselves.
• Origin Emperor’s presence unconsciously transforms the Yu Long Sect into an underwater world. The Water Dao begins influencing the sect’s land, environment, and even the cultivation methods of its disciples.
• The True Dragon Secret Realm and Jiang Yan’s Blazing Sun Mountain resist the transformation. Jiang Yan’s white sword counters Origin Emperor’s spreading power, maintaining a fragile balance.
• Origin Emperor briefly examines Blazing Sun Mountain. Her gaze causes Jiang Yan’s sword to crack, demonstrating the overwhelming gap between their levels, though she withdraws before destroying it.
• The True Dragon initially assumes Origin Emperor has come to exploit his weakened condition. He attacks with terrifying killing intent, severely injuring the Thousand-Water Profound Whale.
• Origin Emperor suppresses the attack with the power of the Water Dao and explains that she has come to negotiate rather than fight. She offers to protect the Yu Long Sect after the True Dragon Returns to Ruin, in exchange for an unspecified agreement.
• The True Dragon accepts the negotiation and invites her into the secret realm. The realm then seals itself, cutting off their conversation and causing all external transformations to cease.
• Jiang Yan prepares for the possibility of a Supreme-level battle. He uses his sword to purge the abnormal Water Dao influence from the disciples and gathers them into his sleeve so they can escape if necessary.
• Other powerful figures within or near the sect make similar preparations, watching the secret realm closely in case negotiations fail and a large-scale conflict erupts.

Character Developments

• Origin Emperor / Chu Lianyi: Revealed as a powerful and politically calculating Human Supreme. She demonstrates overwhelming control over the Water Dao but chooses diplomacy over immediate confrontation, suggesting long-term plans and restraint.
• The True Dragon: Despite his declining vitality and impending Return to Ruin, he remains extremely dangerous and aggressive. His killing intent can seriously injure a Half-step Supreme beast, but he is pragmatic enough to consider a deal that may protect the sect.
• Jiang Yan: Shows caution and realism. Although he promised to protect the True Dragon, he recognizes that he cannot influence a battle between Supremes. He takes responsibility for the sect’s weaker disciples while preparing to abandon the area if necessary.
• The Great Elder: His awareness of Origin Emperor’s identity and concern over the sect’s survival emphasize his experience and understanding of the dangerous situation.
• The Thousand-Water Profound Whale: Its transformation into a Half-step Supreme is established, but it is still vulnerable to the True Dragon’s power.

Significant Themes

• Power and vulnerability: Even supreme beings face danger when weakened, and the True Dragon’s declining state attracts challengers and opportunists.
• Political bargaining amid crisis: Origin Emperor’s visit shows that powerful figures may prefer negotiation and future advantage over needless combat.
• The limits of loyalty: Jiang Yan remains willing to help the True Dragon but will not sacrifice himself or the sect’s disciples in a hopeless battle.
• Suppression and influence: Origin Emperor’s unconscious Water Dao aura demonstrates how powerful cultivators can alter entire environments and affect weaker beings without deliberate action.
• Impending catastrophe: The chapter builds tension around the True Dragon’s Return to Ruin, suggesting that any failed negotiation could trigger a chain reaction involving multiple Supremes and the destruction of the Yu Long Sect.

Character Interactions

• Origin Emperor respectfully addresses the True Dragon while subtly asserting her power through the transformation of the sect.
• The True Dragon responds with hostility, accusing her of exploiting his weakened condition and threatening to kill her.
• Their confrontation shifts from violence to negotiation when Origin Emperor offers protection for the Yu Long Sect.
• Jiang Yan does not directly confront Origin Emperor but counters her influence through his sword and later prioritizes protecting the sect’s disciples.
• The Great Elder and other cultivators observe the confrontation anxiously, ready to flee if the True Dragon and Origin Emperor fail to reach an agreement.

Chapter Summary: “A Request for Cooperation”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Human Supreme Origin Emperor visits the True Dragon in its secret realm. The True Dragon is ancient and near death, surrounded by deathly aura, but remains immensely dangerous because of its True Spirit bloodline and hidden contingencies.
• The True Dragon jokingly—or perhaps half-seriously—asks for Origin Emperor’s pet, the Thousand-Water Profound Whale, as payment for cooperating with her. Origin Emperor refuses and hides the whale.
• Origin Emperor proposes an exchange: she will protect the Yu Long Sect after the True Dragon dies and help it produce a future Supreme, while the True Dragon gives her its Dragon Essence.
• The True Dragon immediately understands her motive. Origin Emperor’s cultivation is limited by her Water Dao, and she hopes to combine its Dragon Essence’s powerful fire energy with her water-based foundation to forge a Water-Fire Dao and advance further.
• Origin Emperor openly acknowledges her predicament and produces a contract sealed by her Supreme Domain, promising to protect the Yu Long Sect.
• The True Dragon hesitates, recognizing that Origin Emperor may be sincere but also suspects it has another method of preserving its sect. Origin Emperor warns that rival cultivators will soon attack the Yu Long Sect for its legacy treasures.
• Rather than accept the contract, the True Dragon proposes a different form of cooperation: joining forces to kill someone. The chapter ends as Origin Emperor expresses interest.

Character Developments

• Origin Emperor is shown to be cautious, frank, and politically calculating. She respects the True Dragon’s power despite its weakened state and is willing to take significant risks to obtain its Dragon Essence.
• Her cultivation has reached a bottleneck: the Water Dao that enabled her rise now prevents further progress. This reveals both her vulnerability and her ambition to break through by balancing water and fire.
• The True Dragon remains sharp-minded and intimidating despite approaching death. It sees through Origin Emperor’s motives immediately and demonstrates that it still possesses plans and leverage beyond simply preserving itself.
• The True Dragon’s concern for the Yu Long Sect becomes evident. Although it refuses to commit immediately, its reluctance suggests it has prepared possible revival or inheritance arrangements for the sect.
• The Thousand-Water Profound Whale is portrayed as intelligent and fearful, instinctively hiding behind Origin Emperor when the True Dragon expresses interest in eating it.

Significant Themes

• The decline of ancient powers: Even a True Spirit of immense bloodline strength is nearing death, emphasizing the inevitability of decay and the temporary nature of power.
• Mutual exploitation and cooperation: Both Origin Emperor and the True Dragon seek to use one another’s resources while disguising their deeper intentions.
• Cultivation bottlenecks and transformation: Origin Emperor’s attempt to combine water and fire reflects the broader theme of overcoming one’s established path to reach a higher realm.
• Legacy and succession: The likely collapse of the Yu Long Sect after the True Dragon’s death highlights the struggle to preserve ancient inheritances in a world ruled by powerful opportunists.
• Trust, contracts, and hidden contingencies: The formal contract offers a method of binding promises, but neither side fully trusts the other, and the True Dragon clearly retains undisclosed plans.

Character Interactions

• Origin Emperor greets the True Dragon respectfully, maintaining caution despite their past acquaintance.
• The True Dragon teases her by targeting the whale and tests whether she is genuinely willing to negotiate.
• Origin Emperor refuses to sacrifice her companion but remains polite, then directly states her demand for the Dragon Essence.
• The True Dragon exposes the weakness in Origin Emperor’s cultivation, demonstrating its superior insight.
• Origin Emperor responds with unusual openness and offers a binding oath to protect the Yu Long Sect.
• The True Dragon rejects an immediate agreement but turns the negotiation toward a new, more dangerous alliance centered on assassination.

Chapter Summary: Intractable

Key Plot Points and Events

• Six months after the Origin Emperor left the True Dragon Secret Realm, the realm remained sealed and the True Dragon ceased communicating with the Yu Long Sect.
• During this period, the sect came under repeated probing attacks, placing its divine ability cultivators under increasing pressure.
• A terrifying phenomenon suddenly erupted from the True Dragon Secret Realm: decaying aura filled the sky, a colossal, death-shrouded True Dragon phantom appeared, and the entire sect was briefly engulfed by extreme cold.
• The True Dragon’s phantom gazed toward the Yu Long Sect before cracking apart and disintegrating. The Frost Dao then manifested through chains of white light before disappearing.
• The Great Elder concluded that the True Dragon had entered Return to Ruin. He publicly honored the True Dragon’s protection of the sect and declared that the Yu Long Sect would now have to rely on itself.
• He struck the ancient bell on the Dragon-Slaying Platform ninety-nine times, formally announcing the death and Return to Ruin of a sect Supreme.
• The disciples were shocked and frightened, since the True Dragon’s decline had been known, but his disappearance had occurred far earlier and more suddenly than expected.
• Jiang Yan investigated the True Dragon Secret Realm with his divine soul, searching through space and even history, but found no trace of the True Dragon or his corpse.
• This absence was highly suspicious because the True Dragon’s remains should have produced a valuable Relic Aperture, which outside Great Beings had clearly been waiting to claim.
• Before Jiang Yan could determine what had happened, the void above the Yu Long Sect shattered. A gigantic hand covered in frost and Dao patterns emerged from a spatial black hole, revealing that an outside Supreme had begun attacking the sect.

Character Developments

• The True Dragon: His apparent Return to Ruin marks the loss of the Yu Long Sect’s ancient protector. However, the lack of a corpse or relic suggests that his fate may be more complicated than simple death.
• The Great Elder: He assumes full responsibility for the sect’s future, publicly pays tribute to the True Dragon, and symbolically declares that the sect must now stand on its own.
• Jiang Yan: He becomes increasingly suspicious and analytical, refusing to accept the obvious explanation of the True Dragon’s death. His investigation demonstrates his powerful divine soul and his awareness that hidden forces may be involved.
• Yu Long Sect disciples: Their confidence collapses as they realize the sect has lost its only Supreme and may now be vulnerable to external enemies.

Significant Themes

• The end of protection: The True Dragon’s disappearance represents the collapse of the sect’s long-standing security and the beginning of a more dangerous era.
• Mystery and deception: The apparent Return to Ruin does not fully explain the True Dragon’s disappearance, creating uncertainty about whether he truly died or enacted another plan.
• Legacy and succession: The Great Elder’s declaration emphasizes that the current generation must inherit the True Dragon’s responsibilities.
• Power and vulnerability: The moment the sect loses its Supreme protector, an enemy Supreme immediately appears, highlighting the brutal balance of power among major forces.
• Death versus transformation: The chapter questions whether Return to Ruin is genuinely an ending, especially since no remains or relics are left behind.

Character Interactions

• The Origin Emperor and True Dragon previously held a secret discussion, the contents of which remain unknown and may be connected to the True Dragon’s strange disappearance.
• The Great Elder addresses the True Dragon in a ceremonial farewell, thanking him for protecting the Yu Long Sect across countless years.
• Jiang Yan reflects on the True Dragon’s earlier conversation with him regarding the protection of Li Dragon Son’s Dao, comparing that deliberate plan with the suddenness of the True Dragon’s supposed death.
• The chapter ends without a direct confrontation, but the emergence of the enormous frost-covered hand establishes an imminent clash between the Yu Long Sect and an outside Supreme.

Chapter Summary: “Backup Plan”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After the True Dragon’s final wisp of vital aura disappears, the Nine Heavens shake and space breaks apart.
• A Human Supreme, seeking the treasures of the True Dragon and the True Dragon Secret Realm itself, attacks the Yu Long Sect from tens of millions of miles away. His enormous hand destroys the sect’s protective formation, buildings, and surrounding mountains.
• The Supreme initially stops before seizing the True Dragon Secret Realm, revealing that his first attack was only a test to determine whether the True Dragon was truly dead or still protected by a hidden backup plan.
• After waiting and detecting no resistance, he attacks again. He uproots the entire True Dragon Secret Realm, compresses it into a small object, and claims it for himself.
• He announces that the Yu Long Sect now belongs to him and warns other powerful cultivators not to interfere.
• With the Secret Realm removed, a massive abyss opens beneath the Yu Long Sect. The Secret Realm had been suppressing dangerous earth veins filled with earth, fire, wind, and water. The sect’s remaining disciples panic as the area becomes unstable.
• Thirty million miles away, the unnamed Human Supreme appears in starlight with a gray bead containing what he believes to be the True Dragon’s treasure. He intends to use the True Dragon Pavilion’s Ice Dao insights to advance toward the Origin Dao.
• Before he can leave, the True Dragon and the Origin Emperor appear and surround him. The Supreme realizes he has fallen into the True Dragon’s trap but remains confident in his strength.
• The three Supreme-level figures clash, briefly disrupting space and the Heavenly Dao, before moving into the depths of space-time to begin a major battle.

Character Developments

• The unnamed Human Supreme: Demonstrates overwhelming power, caution, and ambition. He first tests the True Dragon’s apparent death rather than acting recklessly, then confidently claims the Secret Realm and its treasures. Despite being caught in an ambush, he remains composed and willing to challenge both the True Dragon and the Origin Emperor.
• The True Dragon: Initially appears to have returned to ruin, but the later ambush reveals that his death—or at least his complete defeat—was deliberately concealed. His backup plan involves using the Supreme’s greed and confidence to lure him into a trap.
• The Origin Emperor: Joins the True Dragon against the invading Supreme, showing that the struggle over the True Dragon’s legacy involves multiple top-level powers.
• The Yu Long Sect’s Great Elder and disciples: The Great Elder can only witness the disaster and question the attacker’s identity, while the disciples are left helpless and terrified by the destruction of their sect and the emergence of the dangerous abyss.

Significant Themes

• Deception and hidden survival: Apparent death does not necessarily mean true destruction. The True Dragon’s concealed plan turns an apparent defeat into an ambush.
• Greed and overconfidence: The invading Supreme’s desire for the True Dragon’s treasures drives him to seize the Secret Realm, ultimately leading him into danger.
• Powerlessness beneath the Supreme realm: The Yu Long Sect’s elders cannot meaningfully resist a Supreme figure, emphasizing the enormous gap between ordinary cultivators and the highest realm.
• Inheritance and the pursuit of transcendence: The True Dragon’s remains, Secret Realm, and Ice Dao are valuable not merely as treasures but as routes toward greater comprehension and the Origin Dao.
• Consequences of removing ancient safeguards: Once the True Dragon Secret Realm is taken, the hidden dangers beneath the Yu Long Sect are unleashed, showing that ancient treasures may also serve as seals or stabilizing forces.

Character Interactions

• The Human Supreme directly challenges the True Dragon’s legacy by testing, then claiming, the True Dragon Secret Realm.
• He publicly warns other powerful figures not to interfere, asserting ownership over the Yu Long Sect.
• The True Dragon and Origin Emperor later confront him together, exposing the Supreme’s assumption that the True Dragon was truly dead.
• Their brief exchange reveals mutual hostility and the enormous stakes of the conflict, which escalates into a battle among three Supreme-level beings.

Chapter Summary — Dragon Son

Key Plot Points and Events

• Three days after departing, the True Dragon returns to the Yu Long Sect in the form of an icy-blue dragon-shaped shadow. Its return causes the vanished True Dragon Secret Realm to reappear and suppress the sect’s unstable elemental forces.
• Observers outside the sect realize that the True Dragon has defeated—and likely killed—a genuine Human Supreme. Although its aura and condition suggest it is near death, its victory makes the surrounding powers hesitant to attack.
• The True Dragon summons the sect’s elders and reveals that it forcefully burned its own origin to achieve an extreme ascension and defeat its opponent. Its life force is nearly exhausted, and it will soon “return to fate.”
• Believing the elders have already prepared their own escape plans, the True Dragon orders them to disperse after leaving while preserving the Yu Long Sect’s legacy. It then sends them away through a spatial rift.
• Jiang Yan remains behind. The True Dragon privately explains that its death is genuine, but because outsiders fear acting without certainty that it is weakened, there is a brief opportunity to transfer its Great Dao Origin to Li Longzi.
• The True Dragon asks Jiang Yan to protect the secret realm and hold off any attackers for one hour while the inheritance takes place. Jiang Yan agrees without hesitation.
• Li Longzi is forcibly brought before the True Dragon. Before he can ask questions, the True Dragon begins transferring its entire Great Dao Origin into him, causing his cultivation and physical nature to undergo tremendous changes.
• The True Dragon reveals that Li Longzi is its biological son. His name—“Dragon Son”—was meant to hint at this connection, and his bloodline makes him the only suitable inheritor of the True Dragon’s Great Dao.
• The chapter ends as Li Longzi begins transforming into a dragon.

Character Developments

• The True Dragon: Returns victorious but fatally weakened after burning its origin to kill a Human Supreme. Rather than cling to survival, it accepts death and focuses on preserving its Dao and protecting the sect’s future. It is revealed to be Li Longzi’s father.
• Jiang Yan: Demonstrates unwavering loyalty and courage by agreeing to guard the True Dragon during its final moments, despite the danger posed by hostile forces and the mysterious inheritance ritual.
• Li Longzi: Is suddenly elevated from sect prodigy to heir of the True Dragon’s entire Great Dao. His shock and suspicion gradually give way to an involuntary transformation, while the revelation of his parentage radically changes his identity and destiny.
• The Sect Elders: Their loyalty is questioned as the True Dragon acknowledges that they have likely made private plans for survival. They are nevertheless entrusted with preserving the sect’s legacy after dispersing.

Significant Themes

• Sacrifice and succession: The True Dragon willingly gives up the last of its existence to create a successor capable of defending the sect.
• Legacy over survival: Its final concern is not its own life, but ensuring that its Great Dao and the Yu Long Sect endure.
• Hidden identity and bloodline: Li Longzi’s name foreshadows his true heritage, suggesting that his bloodline has always marked him as the True Dragon’s successor.
• Power and deterrence: Although dying, the True Dragon’s recent victory creates enough fear and uncertainty to discourage immediate attacks.
• The cost of transcendence: Reaching the brink of Return to Ruin grants overwhelming power but destroys the user’s origin, emphasizing the severe price of defeating a Supreme.

Character Interactions

• The True Dragon addresses the elders with stern detachment, releasing them from their obligations while reminding them to protect the sect’s inheritance.
• It speaks candidly with Jiang Yan, trusting him with the truth about its impending death and relying on his loyalty to safeguard the inheritance.
• The True Dragon’s interaction with Li Longzi shifts from abrupt and mysterious to deeply personal when it reveals their father-son relationship.
• Li Longzi reacts with confusion and suspicion, even considering the possibility of possession, but the True Dragon’s revelation reframes the entire inheritance as an act of paternal succession.

Chapter Summary: “Probe”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The True Dragon reveals that Li Longzi’s name and destiny were connected to his lineage: Li Longzi possesses the True Spirit Bloodline and is the True Dragon’s descendant.
• Li Longzi reflects on his extraordinary life—from being discovered as a child in a remote village, to joining the Yu Long Sect, attaining the Dao Fruit, being expelled, and eventually returning after inheriting the True Dragon’s destiny. He realizes that what he believed was fate may actually have been the True Dragon guiding events.
• The True Dragon begins transferring his inheritance and Origin to Li Longzi. Li Longzi’s body transforms, developing azure dragon scales and condensed True Dragon Blood, while his cultivation rises rapidly.
• The inheritance is extremely painful and dangerous, forcing Li Longzi’s body, soul, and origin power to repeatedly break apart and reform. His existing Great Dao Lord cultivation allows him to survive the process.
• Li Longzi asks Jiang Yan to protect him and the others while the inheritance proceeds. Jiang Yan promises to honor his agreement with the True Dragon, though he is prepared to flee if an overwhelming enemy arrives.
• The True Dragon Secret Realm activates numerous sealing formations, concealing the changes within. Jiang Yan nevertheless remains vigilant, knowing that a Human Supreme outside the realm is suspicious of the True Dragon, especially after the True Dragon recently killed another Human Supreme.
• A woman named Qing Shui arrives above the Yu Long Sect, claiming to have come on behalf of her Dao Lord to pay respects to the True Dragon. Her appearance is deceptive, as her smile reveals rows of sharp teeth.
• Qing Shui attacks the secret realm with a divine ability combining shifting form, changing position, and annihilation. The attack cuts through and relocates layers of the realm’s defenses, destroying more than half its sealing power.
• Realizing that the True Dragon is likely in a weakened or compromised state, Qing Shui prepares a second strike. Her goal is to create a tiny opening through which her soul power can observe everything inside the secret realm.

Character Developments

• Li Longzi: Learns his true identity as a descendant of the True Dragon and begins transforming into a genuine dragon. He accepts the revelation relatively quickly because he can directly feel the power of the inheritance reshaping him. His cultivation and potential rise dramatically, possibly allowing him to enter the Supreme Realm.
• The True Dragon: Acts as the hidden force behind much of Li Longzi’s destiny and entrusts his inheritance to his descendant. Though weakened or unable to defend the realm personally, his legacy remains powerful enough to transform Li Longzi.
• Jiang Yan: Demonstrates loyalty and responsibility by agreeing to protect Li Longzi and the others. He also shows caution and strategic awareness, recognizing that the secret realm cannot remain hidden from a determined Human Supreme indefinitely.
• Qing Shui: Is introduced as an apparently ordinary woman but is revealed to be a powerful agent carrying the will or divine ability of a Human Supreme. She is aggressive, calculating, and intent on confirming the True Dragon’s condition.

Significant Themes

• Fate versus manipulation: Li Longzi reinterprets his entire life after realizing that the “fate” guiding his rise may have been deliberately shaped by the True Dragon.
• Inheritance and transformation: The True Dragon’s legacy is not merely knowledge or power; it physically and spiritually remakes Li Longzi into a higher, draconic existence.
• Power and vulnerability: Even a Supreme-level being can become a target when weakened. The secret realm’s defenses provide concealment, but Qing Shui’s attack proves that overwhelming power can penetrate them.
• Loyalty and obligation: Jiang Yan’s promise to protect the True Dragon’s successors contrasts with the hostile probing of the Human Supreme’s envoy.
• Deception and hidden strength: Qing Shui’s ordinary appearance conceals terrifying power, while the seemingly normal secret realm hides Li Longzi’s dangerous transformation.

Character Interactions

• The True Dragon reveals Li Longzi’s bloodline and passes his inheritance to him, fundamentally changing their relationship from distant guide and chosen successor to ancestor and descendant.
• Li Longzi entrusts his safety and the success of the inheritance to Jiang Yan.
• Jiang Yan reassures Li Longzi and the True Dragon that he will uphold his promise, while acknowledging that he may need to retreat if a stronger enemy appears.
• Qing Shui formally addresses the True Dragon before immediately attacking the secret realm, using a false gesture of respect to disguise her probing assault.

Chapter Summary: “A Greeting”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Qingshui Dao Lord arrives above the Yu Long Sect’s True Dragon Secret Realm and attacks its outer barrier without warning.
• Using power infused with the will of a Human Supreme, she destroys a large number of the realm’s defensive formations. More than half collapse within a few breaths.
• The lack of resistance leads Qingshui to conclude that True Dragon has been severely weakened and that the Yu Long Sect is in turmoil.
• Believing she can now investigate True Dragon’s condition, Qingshui sends her divine soul power through the breach.
• Instead of seeing True Dragon, she encounters Jiang Yan, who notices her intrusion and smiles at her through the connection.
• Qingshui immediately senses danger and attempts to withdraw, but Jiang Yan attacks first. His Spiritual Energy sword light follows her probing power through the breach, cuts off her divine soul, and strikes her right eye.
• Though injured and bleeding, Qingshui quickly heals herself.
• Jiang Yan exits the secret realm and introduces himself as a Yu Long Sect elder. He explains that True Dragon is occupied comprehending a supreme secret art and rebukes Qingshui for invading the realm.
• Qingshui identifies herself as a disciple of Qingyao Empress and claims she came only to check on True Dragon because of her Empress’s close relationship with him.
• Jiang Yan appears cordial and invites her to stay as a guest, but suddenly launches another attack with his longsword.
• Qingshui, having anticipated further hostility, prepares to defend herself as the chapter ends.

Character Developments

• Qingshui Dao Lord: Initially confident and prepared for a potentially fatal confrontation, she is surprised by the lack of resistance and becomes convinced that True Dragon is near death or otherwise incapacitated. Her confidence turns into caution after Jiang Yan detects her divine soul and wounds her. She then adopts a diplomatic posture while remaining wary.
• Jiang Yan: Demonstrates exceptional vigilance and combat ability. He is entrusted with guarding True Dragon and takes that duty seriously, immediately punishing Qingshui’s intrusion. His polite words conceal a sharp and unpredictable nature, as he attacks even after offering hospitality.
• True Dragon: Does not appear directly, but his apparent weakness and need for protection drive the entire confrontation. Jiang Yan claims that he is comprehending a supreme secret art rather than being incapacitated.

Significant Themes

• Deception and hidden strength: The ruined formations and apparent lack of resistance suggest weakness, but Jiang Yan’s sudden counterattack reveals that the Yu Long Sect may still possess formidable defenses.
• Duty and protection: Jiang Yan acts according to his responsibility as True Dragon’s guardian, refusing to allow even a potentially friendly visitor to investigate without permission.
• Diplomacy masking hostility: Both sides use polite language and formal identities while probing one another’s intentions and preparing for conflict.
• Misjudgment and vigilance: Qingshui misreads the situation by assuming True Dragon is helpless, while Jiang Yan remains alert and exploits her moment of intrusion.
• Power and reputation: References to True Dragon, Qingyao Empress, Human Supreme power, and the “might of Heaven” establish the immense status and political danger surrounding the encounter.

Character Interactions

• Qingshui attacks the secret realm and attempts to spy on True Dragon.
• Jiang Yan detects and counters her intrusion, injuring her and forcing her to retreat.
• He formally reprimands her while invoking the authority of True Dragon and the Yu Long Sect.
• Qingshui invokes her connection to Qingyao Empress to present herself as a friendly visitor and justify her actions.
• Jiang Yan responds with apparent hospitality, then abruptly attacks again, turning the exchange back into open combat.

Chapter Summary: “Not So Impressive”

Key plot points and events

• Qingshui Dao Lord effortlessly neutralizes Jiang Yan’s initial sword strike by manipulating countless layers of space and using them as barriers. She dismisses his abilities as merely decent and urges him not to obstruct her audience with the True Dragon.
• Jiang Yan responds by drawing his snow-white sword and unleashing a far more powerful attack. The strike contains immense fortune, Five-Colored Divine Fire, Space Dao power, and the layered essence of countless Great Daos and divine abilities.
• Recognizing that the sword cannot be avoided or blocked normally, Qingshui invokes a Supreme-level divine ability. A hazy projection of her master, Qingyao Empress, appears behind her, radiating the pressure of a Human Supreme.
• The projection’s two divine rays collide with Jiang Yan’s peerless sword strike and completely shatter it. The remaining Supreme power follows their karmic connection and pierces Jiang Yan’s body, leaving two wounds in his chest.
• Jiang Yan survives the attack and acknowledges that he is still far from the Supreme realm, but he is also encouraged by his ability to withstand the attack without his soul being destroyed.
• Qingshui, surprised by his resilience, warns him to withdraw. Jiang Yan instead provokes her, claiming that the Supreme’s power is not as overwhelming as expected and asking her to attack again.
• Angered by his arrogance and refusal to retreat, Qingshui declares that she will grant him the death he seeks.

Character developments

• Jiang Yan: Demonstrates a much stronger sword technique after his first attack is dismissed. Although he recognizes the gap between himself and a Human Supreme, surviving Qingyao Empress’s projection strengthens his confidence. His fearless, battle-hungry nature becomes more pronounced as he deliberately challenges Qingshui to use the Supreme technique again.
• Qingshui Dao Lord: Initially regards Jiang Yan as beneath serious consideration, believing his earlier success depended on the True Dragon Secret Realm’s formations. After witnessing his second strike, she takes him more seriously and invokes her master’s power. Her surprise at his survival shifts into irritation when he refuses her offer to withdraw.
• Qingyao Empress: Does not appear directly, but her projection and Supreme-level divine intent demonstrate the overwhelming power of the Human Supreme realm.

Significant themes

• The gap between realms: Jiang Yan’s survival highlights the immense difference between a Great Dao Lord and a Human Supreme, while also showing that exceptional strength can partially bridge that gap.
• Pride and defiance: Both cultivators refuse to yield. Qingshui protects the dignity of the Supreme realm, while Jiang Yan treats the confrontation as a rare opportunity to test and improve himself.
• Testing limits through combat: Jiang Yan views danger as a chance for growth, willingly enduring Supreme power to better understand the level he must eventually reach.
• Underestimation and reversal: Qingshui initially dismisses Jiang Yan, but his resilience forces her to reconsider him, even though she still believes she can ultimately defeat him.

Character interactions

• Qingshui verbally belittles Jiang Yan after neutralizing his first attack and demands that he stop delaying her meeting with the True Dragon.
• Jiang Yan answers not with words but with a dramatically stronger sword strike.
• Qingshui counters by summoning the projection of Qingyao Empress, using Supreme power to destroy his attack and wound him.
• Afterward, she acknowledges his unusual durability and advises him to retreat rather than risk death.
• Jiang Yan rejects her warning, taunts her by saying the Supreme technique is “no more than this,” and explicitly asks her to attack him again, provoking Qingshui into promising a more lethal response.

Chapter Summary: “Everyone, Please!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Dao Lord Qing Shui attacks Jiang Yan using the Female Emperor’s supreme-level divine ability. The technique binds the surrounding forces, traps Jiang Yan in space, and disassembles his body, thoughts, soul, and power into 180 million fragments.
• She then uses Destruction Force to grind the fragments into nothing, believing Jiang Yan has been eliminated.
• Qing Shui returns to the breach in the True Dragon Secret Realm, intending to investigate the True Dragon’s condition as part of Empress Qingyao’s commission.
• Jiang Yan suddenly reappears and ambushes her from behind with the Five-Colored Divine Light. Qing Shui is reduced to a crystalline drop of blood, though she reforms several breaths later. The attack injures or weakens her and prevents her from examining the secret realm.
• Jiang Yan reveals that he knows other powerful observers are hiding nearby. He summons them by attacking several spatial nodes with wind and white flames.
• Stone Dragon, the Heaven-Opening Sect’s Saint Son and a likely member of the Human Race’s Azure Dragon Ranking, emerges first. He challenges Qing Shui for relying on supreme power and attacks her with an enormous iron staff, forcing her to retreat.
• Stone Dragon then exposes three additional hidden investigators: two men and a woman, all possessing powerful Great Dao auras, with some reaching the Half-Step Supreme Realm.
• Jiang Yan identifies himself as a Yu Long Sect elder and announces that the True Dragon is occupied comprehending a supreme method. He boldly invites all the visitors to fight him together.

Character Developments

• Jiang Yan: Demonstrates extraordinary resilience, surviving what appears to be total physical, spiritual, and conceptual destruction. His ability to counterattack Qing Shui reveals that he possesses an unusual defensive or revival technique. He becomes more confident and assertive, openly confronting multiple powerful enemies at once.
• Dao Lord Qing Shui: Initially dominates Jiang Yan through borrowed Supreme Power, but her confidence is shaken when he survives and successfully ambushes her. She is forced to retreat from both Jiang Yan and Stone Dragon, losing the opportunity to investigate the True Dragon Secret Realm.
• Stone Dragon: Introduced as a powerful, direct, and aggressive prodigy. He scorns Qing Shui’s use of a Supreme’s divine ability and insists on testing Jiang Yan through his own strength. His actions reveal both great confidence and a combative personality.
• The hidden investigators: Their presence establishes that the Yu Long Sect is being closely watched by several elite figures from the Human Race. Their advanced cultivation suggests that Jiang Yan is facing a serious collective threat.

Significant Themes

• Power versus borrowed authority: Qing Shui’s strength comes from wielding a Human Supreme’s power, while Stone Dragon values combat based on one’s own abilities.
• Deception and hidden strength: Jiang Yan’s apparent death is revealed to be a trap, emphasizing that appearances are unreliable and that his true capabilities remain mysterious.
• Defiance under pressure: Despite the Yu Long Sect’s crisis and the presence of numerous powerful outsiders, Jiang Yan refuses to show fear and challenges them all.
• Political and strategic tension: The investigation of the True Dragon Secret Realm reflects a broader struggle among powerful factions seeking access to its secrets and the True Dragon’s supreme method.

Character Interactions

• Qing Shui attacks and apparently destroys Jiang Yan, but Jiang Yan reverses the situation with a surprise attack that forces her to reform from a blood pearl.
• Jiang Yan deliberately exposes the hidden observers, transforming their covert surveillance into an open confrontation.
• Stone Dragon criticizes Qing Shui for using Supreme-level power, then attacks her and drives her away.
• Jiang Yan formally greets the revealed experts but immediately challenges all of them to fight him together, positioning himself as the Yu Long Sect’s defender while the True Dragon remains occupied.