Chapter Summaries

Wang Lan explained why Zhang Ling and the others could not be rescued after the aristocratic families turned against them, and why their actions had made their situation worse. She offered a possible way forward, but asked whether Feng Ran would give up her qualification for the Virtual World.

• Feng Ran and Lin Yao asked Wang Lan whether experts such as the Academy Dean, Masters Faxian and True Meaning, or the Buddhist Kingdom could rescue Zhang Ling and the others, but Wang Lan said they could not.
• Wang Lan explained that the Imperial Tutor had ended negotiations, leaving the aristocratic families free to target them, while the Wang Family held back because of her efforts to build cooperation.
• Wang Lan said Cui Yunzheng had foolishly tried to surrender the Cui Family’s strength and that Zhang Ling and Jin Tu had provoked the Zheng Family by killing its members.
• Wang Lan explained that heroes like Zhang Ling and the others could not lead a powerful alliance because they would refuse to tolerate the wrongdoing within families such as the Wang Family.
• Wang Lan proposed a way forward and asked whether Feng Ran was willing to give up her qualification for the Virtual World.

Wang Lan explained which captives might be saved through negotiation and refused to risk the Wang Family over Baleful Shadow, Cui Yunzheng, and Jin Tu. Feng Ran agreed to focus on rescuing those they could and accepted that the Five Tigers Group would help defend the Wang Family’s migration, which would bring them into conflict with Wang Zhen.

• Wang Lan told Feng Ran that Virtual World qualifications could help secure Lu Zijian and Cao Mingxian, while Mo Bai, Zhang Ling, and Long Aotian had other possible paths to release.
• Wang Lan said Baleful Shadow, Cui Yunzheng, and Jin Tu were likely doomed, explaining that their enemies had no reason to negotiate and would not be swayed by the Imperial Tutor.
• Feng Ran asked Wang Lan to find a way to save the three, but Wang Lan refused and forbade Feng Ran and Lin Yao from interfering, citing the Wang Family’s cooperation with the Five Tigers Group.
• Feng Ran agreed to save whoever they could and offered Wang Lan everything they wanted, including Virtual World qualifications.
• Wang Lan said the Five Tigers Group would need to protect the migrating Wang Family from its opponents and warned them that Wang Zhen, a Heaven’s Chosen and master of the Hundred Flowers World, was the most determined to oppose the migration.

Feng Ran and Lin Yao accepted Wang Lan’s challenge to command the forces gathered for the migration, seeing it as a test of their ability to lead. At the Zheng Family Ancestral Tomb, Chen Changsheng brought Wang Hao to confront a young man, and Wang Hao boldly demanded that he kowtow.

• Wang Lan explained why he had withheld Wang Zhen’s role in the Hundred Flowers World and said he had sent thirty Immortal King experts and prodigies to help Feng Ran and Lin Yao.
• Lin Yao objected to taking command of so many people, but Wang Lan insisted the reinforcements were needed to face Wang Zhen and protect the migration plan.
• Feng Ran urged Lin Yao to rely on themselves and lead the unfamiliar forces, calling the assignment a test of their readiness for future responsibilities.
• Feng Ran reminded Lin Yao that they would eventually need to address the Buddhist Kingdom’s institutional reforms and the Demon Race Alliance’s chaotic situation.
• Chen Changsheng appeared in the Zheng Family Ancestral Tomb and introduced Wang Hao to a young man there.
• Wang Hao took courage from Chen Changsheng calling him a good person and demanded that the young man kowtow to him.

Chen Changsheng and Wang Hao confronted the Zheng Family over Jin Tu, arguing that the great clans’ abuses demanded their dismantling. The Zheng Family’s Star Lord released Jin Tu, but the conflict over reform remained unresolved.

• Wang Hao apologized to the Zheng Family’s foundation, then condemned its arrogance and defended Jin Tu as a fellow mud-legged peasant.
• Chen Changsheng demanded Jin Tu’s release, punishment for everyone involved, and the Zheng Family’s disbandment, saying the great clans had to be eliminated.
• The Zheng Family’s foundation summoned four powerful figures, and Chen Changsheng proposed a fair contest between the opposing sides.
• Chen Changsheng asked the Star Lord whether Jin Tu should be released, and the Star Lord removed the circle holding him.
• The Zheng Family’s foundation asked his father whether he truly intended to release Jin Tu.

Chen Changsheng rescued Jin Tu and Wang Zhigao from the Zheng Family’s ancient foundation and set a later battlefield reckoning. He then explained that the Chang Sheng Epoch would keep pressuring the aristocratic clans while delaying any confrontation with the Four Sects and Pill Domain.

• Chen Changsheng removed eighteen Dragon Trapping Nails from Jin Tu and persuaded the Zheng Family’s ancient foundation to release Wang Zhigao.
• Chen Changsheng declared that their grudges would be settled after the fourth trial, then left with Jin Tu and Wang Zhigao.
• Wang Hao accused the Zheng Family’s ancient foundation of trying to kill Jin Tu without paying, and accepted a fight in a sea of stars.
• Chen Changsheng told Lu Mingyu and Chen Feng to follow the original plan and keep pressuring the aristocratic clans without provoking the Four Sects.
• Chen Changsheng told Wang Zhigao that the Four Sects and Pill Domain would face a reckoning after the aristocratic clans were dealt with.

Chen Changsheng assigned his allies to contain the Four Sects and manage the Five Clans while preparing to reform the Pill Epoch with as little slaughter as possible. Lu Mingyu revealed a plan to pit aristocratic clans against each other, then took Chen Feng to Chaos to force Xuan Huo to forge a weapon for their coming fight.

• Chen Changsheng told Chen Feng to watch the Four Sects and assigned Lu Mingyu to manage the Five Clans, while he took responsibility for the Cui and Li Families.
• After Chen Changsheng left, Lu Mingyu explained that the Pill Epoch would need to use its own forces to dismantle the aristocratic clans and noble houses.
• Lu Mingyu said he intended to use the Lu Family against the other clans, while Chen Changsheng planned to unite the Lu, Li, and Clear River Cui Families to avoid their extermination.
• Lu Mingyu revealed that he had secretly ordered Lu Jun to oppose the New Era to expose young opponents and use him to handle Li Changming.
• Lu Mingyu invited Chen Feng to Chaos to beat up Xuan Huo and make him forge a weapon suited to fighting Chen Feng.

Chen Changsheng urged the rescued Jin Tu to look beyond revenge against the Zheng Family and stand against the aristocratic clans that oppressed the Pill Epoch. After visiting his family’s ruined home and his parents’ graves, Jin Tu swore vengeance and departed with Chen Changsheng’s help.

• Chen Changsheng told Jin Tu that he had saved him to inspire resistance against the aristocratic clans, not to recruit someone willing to die for revenge.
• Jin Tu admitted he wanted to stand up but did not know how, and Chen Changsheng challenged him to find his own path rather than remain consumed by revenge.
• Jin Tu asked to see his home and someone he had wronged, so Chen Changsheng took him to the ruins of the Jin Family estate.
• Chen Changsheng revealed that Jin Tu’s parents had died and been buried in unmarked graves by an old servant, then took Jin Tu to their graves.
• Jin Tu mourned his parents, swore to bring the Zheng Family to their graves to answer for their humiliation, and bit off part of his finger as an oath before entering the Teleportation Array.

Chen Changsheng revealed that Jin Tu and Zheng Qing'er had been victimized by the Zheng Family, then warned Jin Tu that revenge would not end the aristocratic families’ cycle of cruelty. Jin Tu vowed to overthrow them and persuaded Chen Changsheng to give him the lethal latter half of the Heavenly Demon Divine Canon.

• Chen Changsheng explained that Zheng Qing'er was pretending to be insane to protect Jin Tu, and that the Zheng Family had targeted them because Jin Tu rejected their perverse invitation.
• Jin Tu tried to take Zheng Qing'er away, but Chen Changsheng warned that confronting her with the truth could cause her to break down and die.
• After learning that aristocratic families created enemies to gain resources, Jin Tu vowed to overthrow them and stop such tragedies.
• Jin Tu asked for the latter half of the Heavenly Demon Divine Canon, and Chen Changsheng revealed that the technique was designed to exploit cultivators and burn their lifespans.
• Chen Changsheng warned that the technique could not be stopped and would leave Jin Tu with at most five hundred years to live, but Jin Tu accepted the cost.

Chen Changsheng sent Jin Tu away with a Jade Slip and reflected with the System on immortality and the passage of time before departing. In Chaos, Lu Mingyu challenged Xuan Huo, broke through his world of flames with overwhelming strength, and left Xuan Huo unwilling to continue fighting.

• Chen Changsheng admitted he did not have the second half of the Heavenly Demon Divine Canon, gave Jin Tu a Jade Slip, and sent him away.
• Chen Changsheng discussed the curse of immortality and the fear of time with the System, then vanished.
• Lu Mingyu and Chen Feng arrived in Chaos, where Xuan Huo accused Lu Mingyu of displeasing him and attacked him with Fire Sea Burns Heaven.
• Lu Mingyu absorbed the world of flames into his Heaven and Earth Avatar and struck Xuan Huo with a powerful punch.
• Chen Feng protected Guan Ping from the aftershock as Lu Mingyu prepared another attack, but Xuan Huo called off the fight.

Chen Changsheng and Xuan Huo began developing a supreme divine weapon for Lu Mingyu, combining four rare metals according to Chen Changsheng’s research. Xuan Huo received the fusion instructions and the required flames, leaving him ready to begin forging.

• Xuan Huo recognized Lu Mingyu’s Fighting Saint Technique and soul state, admitting he could defeat him temporarily but not forever.
• Xuan Huo asked Guan Ping for her materials and chose a Primordial Star Core to forge a cauldron suited to Lu Mingyu.
• Chen Changsheng joined them and told Xuan Huo he had research that could help create two supreme divine weapons.
• Xuan Huo supplied Chaos Meteoric Steel and Myriad Calamities Indestructible Iron, while Chen Changsheng provided Eternal Blue Gold to combine with the Primordial Star Core.
• Chen Changsheng gave Xuan Huo a Jade Slip explaining the required fusion process and supplied Samadhi True Fire and Netherworld Ghost Fire.

Chen Changsheng and Xuan Huo began forging a Giant Cauldron for Lu Mingyu, deciding that a woven cloth artifact could be made later. Xuan Huo shaped the cauldron with Kui Ox Root Bone, and Lu Mingyu began imprinting his lightning Dao into it.

• Chen Changsheng and Xuan Huo discussed what artifact to make for Lu Mingyu and settled on a woven cloth to trap enemies, though neither had suitable cloth ready.
• Xuan Huo began forging the Giant Cauldron from four metals and asked Chen Changsheng for the key to the Bitter Sea Emperor Weapon to complete a peerless artifact.
• Chen Changsheng gave Xuan Huo Kui Ox Root Bone, which he crushed and fused into the cauldron, forming a Taotie pattern that drew in Chaos Qi.
• Xuan Huo ordered Lu Mingyu to imprint his lightning Dao into the still-soft cauldron, and Lu Mingyu struck it with all his strength.
• Xuan Huo warned Chen Changsheng to step back because he could not withstand the vibrations from Lu Mingyu's blows.

Chen Feng discussed Lu Mingyu’s battle potential and challenged Xuan Huo’s attitude toward those who pursued greater strength. At the Clear River Cui Family’s Ancestral Tomb, Meng De urged the clan to join the Great Dao Contention, arguing that the world needed to change.

• Chen Feng learned from Chen Changsheng that Lu Mingyu grew stronger when fighting opponents more powerful than himself and reflected on how rarely Lu Mingyu had found worthy opponents.
• Xuan Huo argued with Chen Feng, who said that strong people should welcome being challenged and pointed out that Xuan Huo’s composure had faltered.
• Chen Changsheng advised Xuan Huo not to argue with sword cultivators, and Xuan Huo turned back to watch the Giant Cauldron.
• Meng De entered the Clear River Cui Family’s Ancestral Tomb and insisted that representatives of the clan’s younger generations join the meeting before negotiations could proceed.
• Meng De addressed the gathered Cui Family members about the Great Dao Contention, saying they had to fight their enemies to welcome a new world.
• When a Cui Family member challenged his call to action, Meng De said the reason to act was that the world should not be like this.

Meng De urged the Qinghe Cui Clan to fight the corruption among the great clans, and Cui Shuo and the younger generation backed him. The clan’s ancestor agreed to join the crusade, pledging two hundred thousand troops and allowing Meng De to recruit within the clan before its proclamation.

• Meng De argued that the great clans had become corrupt and said he would fight their parasites even without the Qinghe Cui Family’s support.
• A Cui Family Ancestor hesitated to risk the clan’s stability, while Meng De insisted the Qinghe Cui Clan should not obstruct him.
• Cui Shuo asked to join the fight, and the younger generation stepped forward to support him.
• Cui Shuo challenged the ancestor to honor his own teaching that no ground could be yielded in a Great Dao Contention.
• The ancestor recalled why he had left the Boling Cui Clan and agreed that the Qinghe Cui Clan had a duty to purge the great clans’ corruption.
• The Qinghe Cui Clan pledged Meng De two hundred thousand troops, authorized him to recruit within the clan, and planned to issue a crusade proclamation in one hour.

The Qinghe Cui Clan issued a manifesto denouncing the great clans, and Meng De planned to use the resulting upheaval to build his forces and seize territory. As Wang Lan halted the migration and ordered a counterattack, he guessed that Meng De was preparing to take control of three defecting Wang Family branches.

• Cui Shuo and younger Cui Family members joined Meng De after the ancestor vanished.
• The Qinghe Cui Clan published a manifesto condemning the great clans and vowing to destroy Zheng Xuan, the Boling Cui Clan, and the corrupt clans.
• Cui Shuo explained that his clan had secretly altered the rules governing the Ancestral Tomb and great clans, then agreed to provide Meng De with two thousand True Person Realm fighters.
• Meng De planned to aid Feng Ran and Lin Yao, who had persuaded three Wang Family branches to defect, and seize control of their territory and resources.
• Meng De said he needed to rescue Mo Bai to win over the Heavenly Lotus Sect, since Yi An Jushi listened only to Mo Bai.
• Wang Lan halted most of the migration and ordered a counterattack, predicting that Meng De was gathering elites to seize control of the three defecting branches.

Wang Lan explained how he believed the Imperial Tutor was using Feng Ran, Lin Yao, and others to expose the great clans' weaknesses and bring them down. Feng Ran challenged Wang Lan's motives, arguing that his resentment at never earning the Imperial Tutor's recognition had distorted his judgment.

• Wang Lan said Meng De's only option was to turn the Clear River Cui Family against itself and argued that the aristocratic clans could only be overthrown through open war.
• Wang Lan argued that the Zheng Family had kept Zhang Ling and Mo Bai alive while waiting for negotiations, and said the Imperial Tutor—not the aristocratic clans—truly wanted Feng Ran and Lin Yao dead.
• Wang Lan described the great clans as weakened by internal unrest and claimed the Imperial Tutor had chosen Feng Ran and his allies to uncover the clans' weaknesses and create an opportunity to destroy them.
• Feng Ran said he and his allies had chosen their path themselves and had no regrets about serving the Imperial Tutor.
• Feng Ran provoked Wang Lan by suggesting he resented never receiving the Imperial Tutor's recognition, then accused him of projecting his own thoughts onto the Imperial Tutor instead of understanding his intentions.

Feng Ran and Lin Yao left Wang Lan after challenging his motives, while Lu Mingyu realized that understanding the human heart was the answer to his teacher’s question. The teacher confirmed Wang Lan had killed Zheng Xuan and chose to keep pressuring him while investigating the Taiyuan Wang Family; meanwhile, Baleful Shadow and Cui Yunzheng recovered after a Tushan Fox saved them.

• Feng Ran told Wang Lan that the teacher had seen through his tricks, then left with Lin Yao to find Meng De and the others.
• Feng Ran admitted to Lin Yao that he had used sophistry to disrupt Wang Lan and said he suspected the Wang Family uprising concealed a deeper plot.
• Lu Mingyu concluded that understanding the human heart was the answer to his teacher’s question and withdrew his mind as his magic treasure reached a critical moment.
• The teacher said he had suspected Wang Lan after Zheng Xuan’s recording surfaced and explained that he had released it to make Wang Lan anxious; he decided to keep pressuring him while investigating the Taiyuan Wang Family.
• Baleful Shadow and Cui Yunzheng discussed the Tushan Fox who had saved them, and Baleful Shadow explained that the Bitter Love Giant Tree legend had originated as a story the teacher invented for the Fragrant Fox Ancestor.

Cui Yunzheng learned how Tushan had turned details from the Fragrant Fox Ancestor’s fake story into reality, then proposed killing Wang Zhen as proof of allegiance before joining Meng De. He and Baleful Shadow planned to exploit Wang Zhen’s pursuit of Wang Lan, though they did not know where Wang Zhen was.

• Baleful Shadow explained that Tushan had planted a spirit tree and renamed it the Bitter Love Giant Tree after the Fragrant Fox Ancestor’s story inspired Human-Fox marriages.
• Baleful Shadow said Tushan had developed abilities resembling the Insulation Claw and Moon-Gazing Palm, and that Tushan Honghong and her sisters were real experts.
• Cui Yunzheng decided that he and Baleful Shadow needed to join Meng De and bring a weighty Proof of Allegiance.
• Cui Yunzheng proposed killing Wang Zhen, the Wang Family’s top prodigy, as their Proof of Allegiance.
• Cui Yunzheng reasoned that Wang Zhen would pursue Wang Lan, who had handled Wang Zhen’s dirty work and now opposed the great families.

Cui Yunzheng and Baleful Shadow suspected Wang Lan knew about Zheng Xuan’s death, while Lu Jun revealed that the Wang Family’s three main branches and the Clear River Cui Family supported Long Aotian. Lu Jun tried to help Long Aotian escape, but Li Changming attacked him, leaving Lu Jun struggling against the power of the Undying Seal Art.

• Cui Yunzheng told Baleful Shadow that Wang Lan had connections to Wang Zhen and might know how Zheng Xuan died, and Baleful Shadow agreed that they needed to take Wang Lan seriously.
• Lu Jun visited Long Aotian and told him that the Wang Family’s three main branches and the Clear River Cui Family had begun supporting his resistance to the aristocratic clans.
• Lu Jun offered to take Long Aotian away, but Li Changming arrived and confronted Lu Jun over destroying the Grand Formation and killing his clansmen.
• Long Aotian removed a second Dragon Trapping Nail and said he could use only thirty percent of his physical strength, while Lu Jun dragged Li Changming away to give him a chance to escape.
• Li Changming pursued Long Aotian through the void, but Lu Jun intercepted him and took a Nirvana Seal strike that caused his body to wither.
• Lu Jun countered the withering effect with Gold Muscle Jade Bone and the Bitter Sea Phenomenon, then challenged Li Changming’s claim that he had used Nirvana Turn.

Li Changming and Lu Jun fought within a world of yin-yang energy, until Lu Jun revealed the Lu Family’s Primordial Bell to counter Li Changming’s Yin-Yang Bottle. Outside the domain, the wounded Long Aotian encountered Li Chengyu, who revealed his background and expertise in swordsmanship.

• Li Changming used the Undying Seal Art and Yin-Yang Bottle to trap Lu Jun, who countered with earth-vein dragon qi and his Sea of Bitterness Phenomenon.
• Li Changming’s Myriad Tribulations Silence overwhelmed Lu Jun’s defenses, so Lu Jun summoned the Primordial Bell and charged at him.
• Li Changming recognized the Lu Family’s supreme treasure and sent his nine Undying Seals against Lu Jun’s bell assault.
• Long Aotian, bleeding from forcing out the Dragon Trapping Nail, stopped when Li Chengyu appeared in his path.
• Li Chengyu explained that he was a young elite recommended by the Li Family’s main line, had lost to Li Changming, and specialized in swordsmanship rather than the Undying Seal Art.

Li Chengyu confronted Long Aotian, explaining that he had joined the aristocratic clans because he had already achieved the status he once sought. After nearly killing Long Aotian with his sword, Li Chengyu revealed that his apparent sword cultivator’s weakness concealed a powerful technique and exceptional physical strength.

• Li Chengyu told Long Aotian that he opposed overthrowing the aristocratic clans because he had already gained everything he once wanted.
• Li Chengyu struck Long Aotian, whose sealed cultivation and Dragon Trapping Nails left him barely able to defend himself.
• Li Chengyu repeatedly wounded Long Aotian with his swift sword strikes, but Long Aotian used a dragon roar to escape and then blasted Li Chengyu in the face.
• Long Aotian forced out a third Dragon Trapping Nail and collapsed, while Li Chengyu regenerated his destroyed face and held his sword to Long Aotian’s brow.
• Li Chengyu admitted that he had switched to a powerful technique that concealed his aura and made his cultivation, abilities, and body stronger than opponents expected.