Chapter Summaries

Chen Changsheng warned the Virtual World holders that the second Imperial Tutor’s Relic would be guarded by powerful enemies and that their mission could cost them their lives. The group chose to face the danger, revealing that they had entered the Five Relics mission to revive the Imperial Tutor who had once made a path to survival for everyone.

• Liu Yidao told Li Changsheng that Yin Emperor, the Tiger Guard of the Pill Epoch, and other enemies would guard the relic, then Chen Changsheng appeared and explained that he had stirred up their murderous intent.
• Chen Changsheng told the Virtual World holders they would have to enter the second checkpoint, described its Quasi-Emperor enemies, and allowed them to bring one Dao Protector of up to the fifth level of the Quasi-Emperor realm.
• Chen Changsheng explained that the Virtual World was vital to the Cultivation World and that its future holders would face dangers, even from one another or from him.
• Long Aotian thanked Chen Changsheng for protecting him but insisted on joining the Five Relics mission, and Chen Changsheng told the group to call him Mister.
• Lin Yao asked why Chen Changsheng bore such hardship, and Chen Changsheng said he wanted to spare the younger generation the helplessness of their predecessors.
• Feng Ran told Chen Changsheng that the group had joined the mission not for its rewards but to revive the Imperial Tutor, who had opened a path to survival for all.

Chen Changsheng gave Feng Zhi and the others a month to prepare for the dangerous second checkpoint and explained that they might one day become his enemies if they believed he was wrong. Liu Yidao offered to help Feng Ran find a Dao Protector in exchange for the Wood Demon Tribe cooperating with him, and revealed two possible candidates.

• Chen Changsheng gave Feng Zhi more time to prepare, told Li Changsheng that even saints could make mistakes, and urged him to become strong enough to stop him if necessary.
• Li Changsheng left to consult his family, while Long Aotian and the others departed to seek powerful Quasi-Emperor Dao Protectors.
• Feng Ran explained that he would not ask the Wood Demon Tribe for a Dao Protector because its experts were not strong enough, and Liu Yidao offered to help if the tribe cooperated with him.
• Meng De objected to Liu Yidao poaching Feng Ran, but promised the Five Tigers Group would cover the cost of a Dao Protector; Feng Ran agreed to cooperate with Liu Yidao.
• Liu Yidao named Jiang Shan, whose past life had been the famed swordsman Jian Fei, as a possible Dao Protector, then mentioned another candidate he had sensed in the Buddhist Kingdom.

Feng Ran sought a powerful Dao Protector for the deadly second checkpoint, while Meng De left with Yin Jie and Zhang Ling learned he could try to reclaim his Virtual World qualification. When the trial began, the heavenly geniuses gathered with Quasi-Emperor protectors as the Chang Sheng Epoch and Pill Epoch awaited the spectacle.

• Liu Yidao told Feng Ran to seek out a reclusive expert guarding a checkpoint because ordinary Quasi-Emperors would likely die in the trial, and Feng Ran set off with the location slip.
• Yin Jie volunteered to protect Meng De, and Liu Yidao warned them that Meng De would need more magic treasures before they departed.
• Liu Yidao told Zhang Ling that deaths in the second checkpoint could open Virtual World slots, giving him a chance to regain his qualification despite his poor odds.
• After a month passed, the Virtual World announced a new trial to defeat a Demon Lord who had gathered vicious villains around a spiritual treasure.
• Mo Bai joked with Li Changsheng about the trial, and the other participating geniuses arrived with Quasi-Emperor protectors.

Li Changsheng, Mo Bai, Feng Ran, and the other prodigies entered the black mist trial, while Long Aotian learned that the mist came from Avici Hell and heard how its prison punished both criminals and those who enabled them. The chapter left the contestants inside the dangerous mist, with the nature of the trial still unfolding.

• Mo Bai entered the black mist after telling Li Changsheng that none of his companions could defeat him, and Feng Ran said that even he and Lin Yao together had never beaten Mo Bai.
• Li Changsheng’s ancestor explained that the Li clan had ordered him to protect Li Changsheng and that bringing him back would help the ancestor earn time to pursue a breakthrough.
• Long Aotian’s Second Uncle shielded him from the black mist and explained that it was resentment gathered from the Underworld’s Eighteen Levels of Hell.
• Long Aotian’s Second Uncle described Avici Hell as a prison for powerful criminals and those who enabled them, where neither could find release.
• Long Aotian learned that the person who designed Avici Hell had enough influence to release its prisoners without other factions objecting.

Long Aotian learned from his second uncle why clever people could selfishly obstruct the world’s development, and heard about the respect his uncle had gained for sir. In the Black Mist, Li Changsheng and Sword Come begged for help on a livestream, then received a warning that someone had targeted them as the Bai Ze and Li family Dao Protectors recognized a returned presence.

• Long Aotian’s second uncle explained that selfishness and cleverness could coexist, and that overcoming personal desires required great wisdom and courage.
• Long Aotian’s second uncle revealed that he had met sir nearly a hundred thousand years earlier and respected him deeply.
• Li Changsheng pleaded with his ancestors for help while Sword Come made an exaggerated appeal during a livestream in the Virtual World.
• The Li family Ancestor and Bai Ze restrained their anger because Dao Protectors could not interfere unless the prodigies faced a life-or-death crisis.
• A comment warned Li Changsheng and Sword Come that someone had set their sights on them, and the two became alert.
• Bai Ze and the Li family Ancestor inferred that an entity once believed dead had returned alongside another mysterious figure.

Li Changsheng and Sword Come were attacked by a powerful Ghost Cultivator, but their talismans and Beast Tooth Necklace drove it away. As they continued through the black fog, their ancestors warned of greater dangers ahead, while two shadowy figures discussed why they had spared the pair.

• Li Changsheng and Sword Come suffered a vicious ghost’s curse, and Sword Come identified the attacker as an exceptionally powerful Ghost Cultivator.
• Li Changsheng covered himself in Purple Talismans, while Sword Come used a Beast Tooth Necklace made from its ancestors’ teeth to strengthen their defenses.
• Li Changsheng and Sword Come moved forward after the hidden Ghost Cultivator was scared away.
• Ancestor Bai Ze and the Li family Ancestor discussed the danger lurking deeper in the black fog and followed the pair.
• Two black shadows appeared after the group left, and one asked why the other had not killed Li Changsheng and Sword Come.

Meng De and Yin Jie encountered an overwhelming Evil Ghost Legion and entered the Bewitching Inn, where a dangerous old woman warned that the Bewitching Valley ahead was inescapable. Yin Jie discovered that their attempts to flee brought them back to the same place, and even defeating the ghosts would not let them escape.

• Yin Jie explained that resentments from the Reincarnation War had formed an Evil Ghost Legion capable of killing a high-level Heavenly Emperor.
• Meng De chose to approach a dilapidated inn rather than face the ghosts behind them, and he and Yin Jie met a terrifying old woman inside.
• Yin Jie refused to fight the old woman because her Magical Artifact had wounded him and he could not guarantee Meng De's safety.
• Yin Jie tried to flee with Meng De, but they returned to their starting point, and Meng De could not detect an illusion.
• Yin Jie revealed that they might be able to break through the Evil Ghost Legion, but escaping the area would remain impossible.

Meng De sent Yin Jie into the Evil Ghost Legion and entered the Bewitching Inn alone, where he gambled that Ghost Granny would spare him. He revealed his understanding of Chen Changsheng’s trap and dared Ghost Granny to kill him, leaving Yin Jie’s fate uncertain.

• Yin Jie said the group was trapped by either an undetectable illusion or an unknown method, and asked Meng De what to do.
• Meng De told Yin Jie to charge through the Evil Ghost Legion alone while he went to the Bewitching Inn, arguing that their only chance was to seek life through danger.
• Meng De entered the inn, cut flesh from his thigh, and offered it to Ghost Granny, who knocked away his dagger and threatened to kill him.
• Meng De admitted he was gambling that Ghost Granny would not kill an insignificant man and said he had sent Yin Jie toward the Evil Ghost Legion to draw her attention.
• Meng De told Ghost Granny that Chen Changsheng had trapped them to make them fight and that she would eventually be worn down regardless of who won.
• Ghost Granny said killing Yin Jie would hurt Chen Changsheng, and Meng De urged her to kill either him or Yin Jie first.

Meng De was beheaded by the Ghost Crone, while Mo Bai and Feng Zhi fought through the Underworld’s resentment and zombie army. Feng Zhi confronted Xuan Hai, who revealed that he had revived from his remains as the Candle Dragon.

• Meng De offered his neck, and the Ghost Crone cut off his head.
• Mo Bai entered Death Valley to find the source of the ten-thousand-year resentment, and the Fire Kirin followed him.
• Feng Zhi fought through the Flying Corpses and Imperishable Bones until she destroyed a rotting Quasi-Emperor corpse with Phoenix True Fire.
• Xuan Hai revealed to Chi Ling that Chen Changsheng had once used him as a corpse puppet, and that he had revived as the Candle Dragon.

Chi Ling and Baleful Shadow fought monsters in Death Valley while Chen Changsheng explained his traps to Primordial Qilin, who warned him that the Master of the Netherworld Forest might ignore the Rules. At Bewitching Inn, Meng De woke after Ghost Granny had cut off his head and found a strange bloodstain on his neck.

• Chi Ling rebuked Xuan Hai for claiming to be Candle Dragon, then summoned a fire phoenix as Xuan Hai sent the Corpse Tide against him.
• Baleful Shadow fought an ancient chimei-wangliang and warned that the Qiongqi lineage had once slaughtered their kind.
• Chen Changsheng told Primordial Qilin that Death Valley contained corpses and ten-thousand-year yin energy that could weaken the Qilin fighters.
• Primordial Qilin warned Chen Changsheng that not everyone followed the Rules, then vanished after Chen asked whether he meant the Master of the Netherworld Forest.
• Meng De woke at Bewitching Inn and discovered a faint bloodstain on his neck after Ghost Granny told him he might soon stop thanking her.

Meng De agreed to help Ghost Granny lure the trapped geniuses and their Dao Protectors into danger, but he secretly signaled with Li Changsheng and Sword Come. Outside Bewitching Valley, Wang Hao revealed that Meng De, Li Changsheng, and Sword Come had all sacrificed their Dao Protectors as part of a hidden gamble.

• Ghost Granny twisted Meng De's doll to break his hand, then ordered him to retrieve the trapped geniuses and lure their Dao Protectors away within three hours.
• Meng De entered Bewitching Valley and asked Li Changsheng and Sword Come to help rescue the Vice Dean, but Ancestor Bai Ze suspected him and sent him away.
• Li Changsheng and Sword Come later returned to Meng De, who claimed he could lead them out of Bewitching Valley.
• Wang Hao told the Bai Ze Clan Leader and Jun Lin that Meng De, Li Changsheng, and Sword Come had sacrificed their Dao Protectors and were secretly exchanging signals with their fingers and ears.

Wang Hao explained how Meng De and his companions used their Dao Protectors as a diversion, then began deciphering their coded signals. After the group escaped Bewitching Valley and shut down their streams, Wang Hao warned that someone might interfere with them at a critical moment.

• Wang Hao and Liu Yidao explained that the youngsters had sacrificed their Dao Protectors’ protection to create a chance to strike back.
• Wang Hao described how he could crack Meng De and his companions’ code, prompting the gathered experts to start decoding it too.
• Meng De told Li Changsheng and Sword Come through coded signals that they had abandoned their Dao Protectors’ protection to escape their enemies’ control and prepare a counterattack.
• Meng De, Li Changsheng, and Sword Come left Bewitching Valley, and Meng De warned them that someone at the inn was a madman who might be their enemy.
• Meng De told Li Changsheng and Sword Come to shut down their Live Stream Rooms and switch to a new code, while Wang Hao warned that someone might attack them at a crucial moment.

Wang Hao warned Jun Lin to withdraw the Li Yang Dynasty’s army and other factions from the checkpoint, while Meng De explained how he survived Bewitching Inn and identified the ghosts’ obsession with revenge as the group’s only chance to escape. The chapter ended with Li Changsheng and Sword Come considering how to exploit that weakness.

• Wang Hao told Jun Lin that the Li Yang Dynasty’s army had two hours to withdraw and demanded that the other factions leave the checkpoint as well.
• Meng De sealed the group inside protective barriers at Bewitching Inn after they failed to find Ghost Granny.
• Meng De explained that Ghost Granny had spared him because she viewed him as an ordinary person and wanted time to torment him for emotional satisfaction.
• Meng De revealed that he and the Vice Dean had separated so the Vice Dean could draw the powerful ghosts’ attention while Meng De searched for a weakness.
• Li Changsheng and Meng De concluded that the ghosts prioritized revenge over the group’s identities and would overlook them after eliminating their Dao Protectors.

Meng De and Li Changsheng prepared to exploit Granny Ghost’s absence, while Jun Lin secretly met his wife Wu Yang and revealed his ambition to compete for Number One Under Heaven. After Granny Ghost confronted Meng De, he used the Virtual World to identify her witchcraft and prepared a plan to break the deadlock.

• Meng De told Li Changsheng and the others that Granny Ghost was away and urged them to find a flaw in the inn.
• Jun Lin met Wu Yang aboard her warship, explained that he had abdicated to pursue Number One Under Heaven, and hinted that he planned something to restore the Yin Family’s standing.
• Granny Ghost confronted Meng De about plotting against her, and Meng De claimed he had only been cautious while lying that the inn was formed from the Rules.
• After Granny Ghost left, Meng De used the Virtual World to identify her Witchcraft Doll technique and trace her origins.
• Meng De waited for Granny Ghost to leave again, then took a steel needle and stabbed it into his Baihui Acupoint.

Yuan Yi used the Desperate Array Diagram to trap powerful cultivators while discussing the Dreamscape Keystone with Chen Changsheng. When Yuan Yi attacked him, Chen Changsheng revealed strength far beyond his apparent cultivation and explained that he was suppressing his realm.

• In Bewitching Valley, the Li family Ancestor and Ancestor Bai Ze decided to join forces and break through the confusing array.
• Yuan Yi sent two Quasi-Emperor-level Ghost Kings into the valley through the Desperate Array Diagram, while Chen Changsheng questioned whether the array could kill everyone inside.
• Yuan Yi explained that Desperate Valley had studied the Dreamscape Keystone and left it behind because it was a consumable, while the Four Directions Continent could provide cultivators.
• Chen Changsheng rejected Yuan Yi's challenge, but Yuan Yi attacked him anyway, and Chen Changsheng met the blow with a punch that forced Yuan Yi back.
• Yuan Yi recognized Chen Changsheng's unusual physical strength and learned that Chen Changsheng had mastered dozens of ultimate arts while suppressing his cultivation through three minor realms above Immortal King Ninth Grade.

Chen Changsheng explained that Yuan Yi’s weak Primordial Spirit and insufficient foundation kept him from advancing beyond the Eighth Heaven Quasi-Emperor realm. He tested Yuan Yi’s spiritual sense against other powerful cultivators, leaving Yuan Yi stunned by the enormous gaps in their results.

• Chen Changsheng explained how a cultivator’s foundation and mastery of laws could matter more than realm alone, and said the three minor realms had no fixed standards.
• Chen Changsheng told Yuan Yi that his foundation was inadequate, especially his Primordial Spirit, and that this prevented him from surviving the next thunder tribulation.
• Chen Changsheng demonstrated his spiritual-sense test by dividing a blank sheet of paper into about 1.78 million pieces, while Yuan Yi managed only about 1.6 million.
• Chen Changsheng listed other experts’ results, including Wang Hao’s seven million pieces and the Founder of the Heavenly Dao Society’s fifty million, shocking Yuan Yi.

Chen Changsheng explained how cultivation scores measured Quasi-Emperors’ strength and declared that he would claim Second Under Heaven after twenty thousand years. At Bewitching Inn, Meng De prepared to locate the Ghost Matriarch’s true body using Sword Come’s Bai Ze bloodline ability.

• Chen Changsheng told Yuan Yi that five million was the score needed to qualify for the Great Emperor lightning tribulation and estimated his own future strength.
• Chen Changsheng said he would surpass the strongest cultivators and claim Second Under Heaven within twenty thousand years.
• Yuan Yi asked Chen Changsheng to preserve a wisp of his consciousness after death and offered him the Desperate Array Diagram in return.
• Li Changsheng and Sword Come returned bloodied after fighting the Ghost Matriarch, and Meng De urged them to act quickly.
• Meng De told Sword Come to push his Bai Ze bloodline ability to its limit to find the Ghost Matriarch’s hidden true body.

Sword Come, Meng De, and Li Changsheng searched the Bewitching Inn for Ghost Granny’s true body, while Meng De learned from livestream comments that the inn’s methods came from Evil Cultivator arts. The chapter left Meng De without a way to counter them, as he lacked both the cultivation and the Art of Luck Divination needed.

• Sword Come explained that Ghost Granny’s scent filled the inn, making her impossible for him to distinguish and track.
• Meng De, Li Changsheng, and Sword Come agreed to search the inn separately and livestream their efforts, then set a three-hour meeting time.
• In the east wing, Meng De told Yin Emperor that he and the Vice Dean were trapped in the black fog and searching for a way out.
• Jun Lin warned Meng De that the inn’s sinister methods appeared to be the work of an Evil Cultivator.
• Wang Hao explained that Evil Cultivator methods in the Chang Sheng Epoch came from the Eight Wastes and the Reincarnation Forbidden Ground.
• Wang Hao told Meng De that he could counter Evil Cultivator methods only with great cultivation or the Art of Luck Divination, and Meng De had neither.

Meng De, Li Changsheng, and Sword Come became trapped in the Seven Baleful Immortals Trapping Formation, while experts outside struggled to find a way to help them. A mysterious divination master guided the three to retreat, and Wang Hao recognized the newcomer as another expert with methods resembling Chen Changsheng's.

• Meng De asked the good person about divination and learned that the Seven Baleful Immortals Trapping Formation concealed a source of Killing Intent ahead, but he pressed on to stand by the Vice Dean.
• Jun Lin asked Wang Hao and the gathered experts for help, but Xu Qianzhui reported that neither the Ten Thousand Races Academy nor the Heavenly Court could find a way to break the formation.
• Sword Come prepared to enter the danger despite Xiao Hei's warning, prompting Bai Ze to decide to rescue him personally.
• Chen Changsheng sealed the Meteorite Cluster in a Grand Formation and warned Xiao Hei that he would be confined for half a month if he interfered.
• A mysterious commenter told Li Changsheng, Meng De, and Sword Come that the formation was incomplete and instructed them to retreat so they could learn how to break it.
• Wang Hao recognized the mysterious guide as a divination expert whose methods resembled Chen Changsheng's.

Chen Changsheng reunited with his son Nalan Zi Ping, who returned after years away and asked to cooperate with his father for resources. Chen Changsheng considered giving him a large share of the Virtual World but required him to prove himself first.

• Wang Hao recognized the expert moving to break the Seven Baleful Immortals Trapping Formation, while Chen Changsheng warned Yuan Yi not to provoke him.
• Chen Changsheng met Nalan Zi Ping at Bai Ze Garrison and took him to a mountain peak to talk.
• Nalan Zi Ping told Chen Changsheng he had traveled widely and did not plan to return to the Chang Sheng Epoch or move to the Pill Epoch.
• Nalan Zi Ping admitted he had nearly become a beggar and asked Chen Changsheng for money to support his forces.
• Chen Changsheng refused to give him money outright but offered to consider giving him a share of the Virtual World if he proved himself.