Chapter Summaries

Long Que and Zhou Xuan faced off in a duel before the Spirit Sword Pavilion, but Zhou Xuan provoked Long Que by claiming intimate knowledge of Liu Ruyan. Long Que unleashed a powerful dragon-shaped Sword Intent before the duel had officially begun, while Zhou Xuan remained unfazed.

• Long Que arrived at the Martial Arts Arena expecting to avenge Liu Ruyan, who had not come to watch.
• Zhou Xuan arrived with Little Stone, Zhou Ye, and Cloud Pavilion disciples as Zhou Ye confirmed he had wagered the group’s operating funds on Zhou Xuan.
• Sect Master Li Daoran called Long Que and Zhou Xuan to the platform for their duel.
• Long Que demanded that Zhou Xuan leave Main Peak and apologize to Liu Ruyan if he lost, and Zhou Xuan mocked Long Que’s devotion to her.
• Zhou Xuan told Long Que that Liu Ruyan had a red beauty mark on her inner thigh, sending Long Que into a jealous rage.
• Long Que drew his sword and formed a blazing dragon from his Sword Intent, while Zhou Xuan taunted him to attack.

Zhou Xuan defeated Long Que in the Martial Arts Arena, shattering his Sword Intent and sword before knocking him out of bounds. Li Daoran declared Zhou Xuan the winner, while Long Que was left unconscious and humiliated.

• Zhou Xuan shattered Long Que’s fire dragon of Sword Intent with a single punch, astonishing the disciples and elders watching.
• Li Daoran refused the Peak Master of Red Sword Peak’s request to intervene, saying Long Que had to face the consequences of losing his reason and misjudging his opponent.
• Long Que unleashed waves of Crimson Flame Sword Qi, but Zhou Xuan blocked them with his body and then rushed in to break Long Que’s sword with a punch.
• Zhou Xuan kicked Long Que out of the Martial Arts Platform, and Long Que passed out after realizing how completely he had been outmatched.
• Li Daoran announced that Zhou Xuan had won the contest.

After defeating Long Que, Zhou Xuan refused a treasure from Sect Master Li Daoran and asked him to answer his cultivation questions instead. Li Daoran confirmed a Great Demon was sealed beneath the Spirit Sword Pavilion, and Zhou Xuan ended by asking whether the Pavilion itself was a prison.

• Zhou Xuan shattered Long Que’s Red Qilin Sword with a punch and defeated him, stunning the Sect and leaving Long Que unconscious with his Sword Heart shattered.
• Sect Master Li Daoran offered Zhou Xuan one item from the Sect’s Treasure Vault, but Zhou Xuan asked for personal guidance about cultivation instead.
• Li Daoran took Zhou Xuan to a Quiet Chamber, where Zhou Xuan asked whether something was sealed beneath the Spirit Sword Pavilion.
• Li Daoran confirmed that the Pavilion had been built to seal an unkillable Great Demon beneath the mountains.
• Li Daoran explained that hidden experts beyond the Spirit Transformation Realm might exist among ancient powers, and Zhou Xuan asked whether the Pavilion itself was a prison.

Li Daoran revealed that the Spirit Sword Pavilion had been founded to maintain a seal on an undying Great Demon, and Zhou Xuan suggested the demon might be able to leave but was choosing to wait. Li Daoran warned him to keep the conjecture secret, then gave him the Sect Master Token and unrestricted access to the Pavilion’s Treasure Vault and Scripture Repository.

• Li Daoran sealed the Quiet Chamber and told Zhou Xuan that the Spirit Sword Pavilion had been built to replace a vanished Heavenly Sword in suppressing a Great Demon.
• Li Daoran recounted that an ancient cultivator had died trying to destroy the demon and had only managed to reinforce its seal.
• Zhou Xuan proposed that the Great Demon might not be trapped but could be waiting for the right moment to emerge.
• Li Daoran reacted with shock, warned Zhou Xuan never to repeat his conjecture, and feared it could divide the Spirit Sword Pavilion.
• Li Daoran gave Zhou Xuan the Sect Master Token, granting him access to the Treasure Vault and the top floor of the Scripture Repository.

Zhou Xuan presented the Sect Master with high-yield Spirit Rice, securing a major cultivation project and a rapid promotion for Tan Lei. After returning to his residence, he dismissed Qin Keqing’s warning that Liu Ruyan had gone missing.

• Zhou Xuan showed Li Daoran Spirit Rice that was nearly Second-Rank quality and yielded at least three times more than ordinary rice.
• Li Daoran summoned Dan Chenzi, assigned Medicine Peak the surrounding lands to cultivate the rice, and promoted Tan Lei to True Inheritor Disciple and leader of the project.
• Zhou Xuan returned to his upgraded residence, where Zhou Ye and Cloud Pavilion disciples were settling in.
• Qin Keqing told Zhou Xuan that Liu Ruyan’s Cave Abode was empty and contained a cold, unsettling aura, though her Soul Jade remained intact.
• Zhou Xuan dismissed Qin Keqing’s concerns, entered his Cave Abode, and ordered Zhou Ye to send her away.

Zhou Xuan refused Qin Keqing’s plea to protect Liu Ruyan in the Ancient Secret Realm, then discovered that Liu Ruyan had returned with Golden Core power fused with demonic energy. He realized she had willingly joined with a demon and now regarded him with emotionless hostility, making her a grave danger on the coming journey.

• Zhou Xuan pulled Qin Keqing’s hand from the Stone Gate and refused to protect Liu Ruyan, then ordered Zhou Ye and the others to cultivate in their Quiet Chambers.
• The Sect announced the Ancient Secret Realm expedition list, which included Zhou Xuan, Liu Ruyan, Qin Keqing, and Long Que, whose injuries had mostly healed.
• Liu Ruyan returned to Spirit Sword Pavilion with an unstable Golden Core aura, and Li Daoran and the Peak Masters suspected an external force had forced her breakthrough.
• Zhou Xuan used his divine sense and Heavenly Eye Technique to discover that demonic energy had merged with Liu Ruyan’s body, soul, and spiritual power.
• Liu Ruyan met Zhou Xuan’s gaze with hollow indifference, and he recognized that she had willingly accepted demonic power and might be the greatest danger in the Ancient Secret Realm.

Li Daoran examined Liu Ruyan with the Haoran Mirror, found no trace of demonic energy, and spared her while giving her medicines to repair her foundation. The Spirit Sword Pavilion then set out for the Heavenly Brilliance Sect ruins, where Zhou Xuan realized his Immortal Jade was connected to the expedition.

• Li Daoran used the Haoran Mirror to inspect Liu Ruyan and found only a damaged Golden Core and chaotic spiritual power, with no demonic traces.
• Li Daoran concluded Liu Ruyan had used a forbidden technique, spared her punishment, and gave her Shangqing Pills and spirit medicines.
• Zhou Xuan watched the examination through his divine sense and chose not to expose Liu Ruyan, deciding to observe her instead.
• Li Daoran led the Pavilion's disciples aboard a Mystic Crystal Flying Boat toward the Ancient Secret Realm, with Long Que, Qin Keqing, Liu Ruyan, and Zhou Xuan among them.
• Li Daoran revealed that their destination was the ruins of the Heavenly Brilliance Sect and warned the disciples about its dangers and rival Sacred Lands.
• Zhou Xuan connected the expedition to the Immortal Jade he carried, then sealed his chamber with restrictions while Liu Ruyan meditated in another secured room.

Liu Ruyan secretly revealed her powerful cultivation and learned that a demonic voice planned to use the Ancient Secret Realm’s Nirvana Dao Fetus and its visitors as sacrifices. The Spirit Sword Pavilion reached the shattered continent, where Zhou Xuan sensed its ancient resentment and Yang Mie confronted him.

• Liu Ruyan used a Formation Disk to conceal her chamber, then asked the demonic voice about the treasure she sought.
• The demonic voice described the Nirvana Dao Fetus and said Liu Ruyan must sacrifice the Flying Boat’s passengers and the Secret Realm’s prodigies to awaken it.
• Li Daoran searched the Flying Boat with his Divine Sense but found nothing unusual, unaware of Liu Ruyan’s plans.
• Three days later, the Mystic Crystal Flying Boat reached the shattered continent, where vessels from the Western Desolate Region’s major factions had gathered.
• Zhou Xuan sensed dense spiritual energy and vast resentment across the ruins, then Yang Mie landed before him and shouted his name.

Zhou Xuan encountered the region’s gathered prodigies before the Secret Realm opened and evaded Yang Mie’s challenge. Yang Mie rejected Liu Ruyan after sensing the evil hidden within her, leading Zhou Xuan to suspect she wanted the power of his Sacred Body.

• Zhou Xuan recognized Yin Yang Zi and Lang Kuang among the gathered Sects and noticed the Heavenly Secret Pavilion twins, Rakshasa and Luona.
• Yang Mie challenged Zhou Xuan to fight, but Zhou Xuan persuaded him to wait until after they found treasures in the Secret Realm.
• Liu Ruyan approached Yang Mie with feigned admiration and asked to speak with him alone.
• Yang Mie recoiled from Liu Ruyan and told her to get lost after his Chaos Sacred Body sensed the evil concealed within her.
• Long Que protested Yang Mie’s insult, while Zhou Xuan suspected that Liu Ruyan wanted the power of Yang Mie’s Sacred Body.

Yang Mie rebuffed Liu Ruyan and challenged the hostile prodigies to fight him all at once, igniting a confrontation just before the Secret Realm opened. An overwhelming pressure stopped the battle, and Lu Yuanshan, Great Elder of the Heavenly Brilliance Sect, appeared.

• Yang Mie insulted Liu Ruyan, prompting Bai Yifei and other prodigies to condemn him while Liu Ruyan hid her calculation behind a tearful appearance.
• Yang Mie mocked the crowd and challenged anyone who thought he was wrong to fight him, leaving his accusers too afraid to respond.
• Zhou Xuan watched and suspected that Liu Ruyan or the thing inside her was plotting something significant.
• A voice questioned whether Yang Mie deserved his reputation without the Jianmu Leaf, so Yang Mie erupted with rage and challenged all the hostile prodigies to attack him together.
• Bai Yifei and more than ten prodigies prepared their magic treasures, but Lu Yuanshan appeared and suppressed everyone with his immense pressure.

Lu Yuanshan stopped the sect prodigies from fighting and proposed a Dao Discussion Platform for them to spar later. Yang Mie told Zhou Xuan that the Secret Realm was an ancient battlefield containing a rumored True Immortal’s tomb, and Yin Yang Zi later approached them with newfound respect for Zhou Xuan.

• Lu Yuanshan quelled the standoff, warned the prodigies to save their strength for the Secret Realm, and offered to arrange a Dao Discussion Platform.
• Yang Mie and the other prodigies withdrew, though many remained resentful and wary of Yang Mie.
• Yang Mie told Zhou Xuan that the ancient Heavenly Brilliance Sect had been destroyed in a battle against Outer Realm Heavenly Demons, leaving behind a shattered battlefield and a rumored True Immortal’s tomb.
• Yang Mie explained that the current Heavenly Brilliance Sect had opened the Secret Realm to use the other sects’ prodigies to search for its lost inheritance and treasures.
• Yin Yang Zi approached Yang Mie and Zhou Xuan, acknowledged Zhou Xuan’s skill at the Treasure Appraisal Conference, and said he was impressed.

Zhou Xuan discreetly arranged to pass a mysterious piece of Immortal Jade to Wu Haole, claiming it was entrusted to him for the Heavenly Brilliance Sect. The chapter ended with Wu Haole sensing the jade’s extraordinary aura and freezing in shock.

• Lang Kuang confronted Zhou Xuan, while Yang Mie warned him to stop making sarcastic remarks.
• Wu Haole introduced himself and explained that Gong Qing was in seclusion but planned to fight Yang Mie again.
• Zhou Xuan noticed Rakshasa watching him and worried that the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion might discover his Immortal Jade.
• Zhou Xuan secretly asked Wu Haole to speak in private, and Wu Haole led him away from the others.
• Zhou Xuan formed a soundproofing Formation and revealed the Immortal Jade to Wu Haole, whose expression froze when his Divine Sense touched its aura.

Zhou Xuan returned the Founder's Source Jade to Wu Haole, who recognized it as a priceless legacy of the Heavenly Brilliance Sect and promised him a reward. Once the jade was out of Zhou Xuan's hands, he felt a sudden, unexplained danger, while Liu Ruyan's demonic voice revealed that the jade had protected him from its attacks and ordered her to kill him.

• Wu Haole recognized the Immortal Jade as the Heavenly Brilliance Sect's Founder's Source Jade and accepted it from Zhou Xuan with a formal salute.
• Wu Haole promised Zhou Xuan a choice of rare treasures from the Sect's Treasure Vault and hurried to report the jade's return to the Great Elder.
• Zhou Xuan felt intense unease as soon as the Immortal Jade passed beyond his control, but his Heavenly Eye Technique revealed no visible danger.
• Liu Ruyan watched Wu Haole leave with the jade, and the demonic voice in her Sea of Consciousness celebrated that Zhou Xuan had given away his protection.
• The demonic voice ordered Liu Ruyan to kill Zhou Xuan and take the secret treasure it believed he possessed.

Zhou Xuan sensed that Liu Ruyan had marked him as a target just as the mist around the ancient battlefield receded, revealing the ruins of the Heavenly Brilliance Sect’s Immortal Palaces. Lu Yuanshan warned the gathered factions that the Secret Realm was about to open and that anyone entering would face deadly dangers.

• After Wu Haole left, Zhou Xuan sensed malice and identified Liu Ruyan as its source.
• The mist above the shattered continent formed a vast vortex and revealed the ruins of Immortal Palaces and Divine Temples.
• The gathered disciples and elders reacted with awe, greed, and fear at the scale of the ruins and the power that had destroyed them.
• Liu Ruyan concealed her killing intent from Qin Keqing while Zhou Xuan assessed the ruins as a source of Gold Touch Value.
• Lu Yuanshan announced that the Secret Realm was about to open and warned everyone that entry meant accepting the risk of death.

Zhou Xuan entered the Secret Realm and discovered that its abundant Spiritual Energy was dead and poisonous, then slipped away from the group to explore the ruins. The chapter left him finding a damaged Formation Core Fragment that his system could convert into Gold Touch Value.

• Lu Yuanshan and the Heavenly Brilliance Sect elders used the Bronze Treasure Mirror to force open an unstable portal that admitted only Cultivators at the Golden Core Realm or below.
• Lang Kuang, Yang Mie, Yin Yang Zi, and other young elites rushed into the portal, and Zhou Xuan followed with the Spirit Sword Pavilion group while keeping watch on Liu Ruyan.
• After entering the Secret Realm, Zhou Xuan used the Heavenly Eye Technique to see that its dense Spiritual Energy was dead and drained vitality from those who absorbed it, so he protected himself with the Supreme One Art.
• Long Que gathered the Spirit Sword Pavilion disciples, while Zhou Xuan slipped away from the group and entered the ruins alone.
• A rogue cultivator weakened by the dead Spiritual Energy was killed and robbed by a sinister Cultivator as Zhou Xuan explored the silent ruins.
• Zhou Xuan found a damaged Third-Grade Formation Core Fragment in a ruined side hall, and his system offered to convert it into 200 Gold Touch Value.

Zhou Xuan converted a Metal shard into Gold Touch Value and searched the Immortal Battlefield for overlooked building materials, while Liu Ruyan left Long Que’s group to pursue her own opportunity. Zhou Xuan spotted a strange glimmer on a barren hill and headed toward a potentially valuable find.

• Zhou Xuan converted a Metal shard and received 200 Gold Touch Value.
• Long Que gathered the Spirit Sword Pavilion disciples and learned that Zhou Xuan had gone into the ruins alone.
• Liu Ruyan announced she was leaving alone, ignored Qin Keqing and Long Que’s objections, and flew away.
• Long Que stopped Qin Keqing from following Liu Ruyan and led the remaining disciples toward a nearby palace.
• Zhou Xuan avoided the group and watched two Cultivators fight over a broken saber, then continued searching for overlooked resources.
• Zhou Xuan used the Heavenly Eye Technique to spot a unique glimmer at the top of a barren hill about a dozen miles away.

Zhou Xuan found the Buddha Hand Flower, a rare spirit root that could improve comprehension, but Yin Yang Zi arrived and offered three fourth-grade Wither-Bloom Pills for it. Zhou Xuan accepted the trade and asked why Yin Yang Zi had chosen negotiation over taking the flower by force.

• Zhou Xuan used the Heavenly Eye Technique to locate a Buddha Hand Flower growing on a barren hill and learned that it could calm the mind and enhance comprehension.
• Yin Yang Zi appeared behind Zhou Xuan without being detected and asked to trade for the flower, which was vital to his cultivation.
• Yin Yang Zi offered Zhou Xuan three fourth-grade, upper-tier Wither-Bloom Pills, and Zhou Xuan judged the pills more valuable than keeping the flower.
• Zhou Xuan accepted the pills and let Yin Yang Zi take the Buddha Hand Flower, presenting the exchange as a favor.
• Zhou Xuan asked Yin Yang Zi why he had negotiated for the flower instead of taking it by force.

Zhou Xuan parted ways with Yin Yang Zi and examined the Wither-Bloom Pills, deciding to keep them as life-saving trump cards before continuing deeper into the ruins. Outside the Secret Realm, elders worried about the dangers facing the disciples inside as an amused voice interrupted them.

• Yin Yang Zi invited Zhou Xuan to explore three ancient Herb Gardens with him, but Zhou Xuan declined and left to continue alone.
• Zhou Xuan found a concealed place in the ruins and used the System to identify the Wither-Bloom Pills as powerful life-saving medicine that could harm healthy users.
• Zhou Xuan chose to keep all three pills instead of converting them into Gold Touch Value, then restored his divine sense and resumed searching deeper in the ruins.
• The elders gathered aboard the Flying Boat worried that the Secret Realm's dense Death Qi and dangers threatened the disciples inside.
• An amused voice interrupted the elders as they discussed their concerns.

The Heavenly Secrets Pavilion used the Heaven-Peering Mirror to observe the cultivators inside the Secret Realm, including Zhou Xuan heading toward its deadly core and Liu Ruyan standing at its unstable edge. Liu Ruyan revealed ancient Demonic Qi fused with her body and pulled three demonic objects from a Void Rift.

• The Vice Pavilion Master showed Lang Kuang gaining strength in an ancient Demon Saint’s Blood Transformation Pool and Rakshasa and Luona collecting Dao-bearing Jade Slips.
• Yang Mie subdued an intact fourth-grade upper-tier Ancient Halberd with his bare hand.
• The mirror showed Zhou Xuan ignoring nearby treasures and sneaking toward the Secret Realm’s dangerous core region.
• At Li Daoran’s request, the Vice Pavilion Master revealed Liu Ruyan standing alone beside a Void Rift in a desolate wasteland.
• Liu Ruyan formed a bizarre seal and sent ancient Demonic Qi from her body into the rift.
• Liu Ruyan dragged out a broken beast horn, a damaged Soul Banner, and half of a still-beating black heart.

The elders watching the Ruins of the Ancient Immortal Sect learned that Liu Ruyan had willingly become a demonic cultivator and that the expedition was a deadly trap meant to avert a greater calamity. As the prodigies continued into the ruins, the Vice Pavilion Master revealed that their only hope lay with them—and that Ye Changqing had disappeared.

• Liu Ruyan sensed the Heaven-Peering Mirror watching her, shrouded herself in black mist, and severed the connection.
• The Vice Pavilion Master of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion revealed that Rakshasa and Luona had divined the expedition would kill nine out of ten, but abandoning it would bring a region-wide disaster within a year.
• The Vice Pavilion Master explained that Liu Ruyan's fall was only the beginning of the Great Calamity and said the surviving disciples might find a path to survival.
• The Vice Pavilion Master lamented that Ye Changqing had disappeared, shocking Li Daoran and the other powerful figures who knew of his attempt to forge a new path with a Demon Seed.
• The Heaven-Peering Mirror showed Lang Kuang, Yang Mie, and Zhou Xuan pressing onward, while Li Daoran silently hoped the Spirit Sword Pavilion's prodigies would survive.