Recaps

Ning Chen trapped the Venerables in the Yellow Springs Divine Restriction and attacked them with the Immortal Bell and Yama. The Moonlit Tower Master revealed that he had helped Ning Chen master musical law by sacrificing part of his foundation in pursuit of an opportunity for the Fourth Realm.

• Di Mingtian unleashed his ultimate move, and the red-clad figure withdrew while the Venerables and hidden experts rushed to claim the Eastern Emperor Bell.
• Shenji stopped Moon-Worshiping Venerable from advancing as Ning Chen trapped the approaching experts in the Yellow Springs Divine Restriction.
• Ning Chen warned Moon-Worshiping Venerable not to interfere, and she stepped back after the Moonlit Tower Master confirmed the Venerables could not survive.
• Ning Chen entered the restriction and summoned Yama, whose zither waves struck the Immortal Bell and wounded a Venerable.
• Shenji realized the Moonlit Tower Master had helped Ning Chen develop his musical-law foundation, and the Tower Master said he sought an opportunity for the Fourth Realm.

Zhiming used the Yellow Springs Restriction, the Eastern Emperor Bell, and his divided bodies to slaughter the Starfield Venerables. Elsewhere, he continued teaching Lingzhi while waiting for the Phoenix Body to find the Time Restriction.

• Zhiming trapped the venerables in the Yellow Springs Restriction and attacked them with the Funeral Dirge of Yama and the Eastern Emperor Bell.
• The Moon-Worshiping Venerable questioned the Moonlit Tower Master and Shenji about the consequences of the venerables' deaths, while the Tower Master defended his choice to support Zhiming.
• At midnight, the Eastern Emperor Bell injured two venerables, and Zhiming's red-clothed body used Immortal Slayer to kill them.
• Zhiming taught Lingzhi swordsmanship by the Mishui River as he waited for the Phoenix Body to find the Time Restriction.
• Yama's final refrain sounded as the remaining venerables' bodies fell from the sky.

Ning Chen defeated Di Mingtian in the Ancient Battlefield and claimed the Eastern Emperor Bell before leaving with Qing Ling. After reuniting his three bodies, he reached the Ancient Sun Secret Realm and challenged the Ancient Sun Venerable.

• Ning Chen fought Di Mingtian with his twin swords, wounded him, and forced him to retreat beyond the Yellow Springs Divine Restriction.
• Ning Chen used the phoenix to swallow the Eastern Emperor Bell, then left the Ancient Battlefield after affirming his agreement with the Moonlit Tower Master.
• Qing Ling departed with Ning Chen, while the remaining cultivators turned toward their own opportunities in the mountain range.
• Three months later, Qing Ling agreed to wait for Ning Chen as he set out, and his three bodies reunited after thirty years.
• Ning Chen arrived at the Ancient Sun Secret Realm on Great Profound Star and challenged the Ancient Sun Venerable.

Ning Chen challenged Ancient Sun Venerable for the Time Restriction, unleashing the arts and powers of his three reunited bodies in a battle that shook the secret realm. The fight left both men wounded, with Ancient Sun Venerable finally taking Ning Chen seriously.

• Ning Chen and Ancient Sun Venerable began their duel for the Time Restriction, and Ancient Sun Venerable gained the early advantage with his palm force.
• After their exchanges shattered formations and raised a mountain, Ning Chen answered Ancient Sun Venerable’s cloud attack with a sword empowered by the four sources.
• Ancient Sun Venerable unleashed Cloud Bell Eleven Forms, Wind Thunder Heaven, and Ning Chen countered with the Six Heavenly Demonic Extremes, suffering his first injury.
• Ning Chen escaped Ancient Sun Venerable’s follow-up palm with Phoenix Speed, then attacked with the Scroll of Earth and One Sword, Formless.
• Ning Chen combined Four Symbols Consecration, Heavenly Dragon Quake, with One Sword, Formless, piercing Ancient Sun Venerable’s protective essence, but Ancient Sun Venerable seized the blade and struck Ning Chen in the chest.
• Ancient Sun Venerable suppressed the wound at his heart and regarded Ning Chen with newfound seriousness after being injured for the first time in a hundred years.

Ning Chen fought the Ancient Sun Venerable in the Ancient Sun Secret Realm to obtain the Time Restriction, unleashing his forbidden art after the Venerable Lord’s world-shaking attacks. Ning Chen won and took the jade slip, while the Ancient Sun Venerable punished the followers who had intervened.

• Ning Chen countered the Ancient Sun Venerable’s attacks with his swords, demonic arts, and three bodies, but the Venerable Lord broke through his thousand-year seal and reached a higher domain.
• The Ancient Sun Venerable struck Ning Chen with the Pure Moon Tide, and Ning Chen opened all four scrolls to block it before the red-clothed figure helped suppress his injuries.
• Ning Chen unleashed the Scroll of Life and the forbidden move All living beings perish, sacrificing the foundations of his Phoenix and demonic bodies as his attack collided with the Ancient Sun Venerable’s divine flames.
• The Ancient Sun Secret Realm collapsed, and Ning Chen appeared beside the wounded Ancient Sun Venerable with his sword at the Venerable Lord’s throat; the Venerable Lord conceded and let him take the Time Restriction.
• Ning Chen left with the jade slip, and the Ancient Sun Venerable ordered the followers who had arrived to spend thirty years reflecting at Black Moon Cliff.

Ning Chen mastered the Time Divine Restriction and used it with the Yellow Springs Restriction to accelerate the growth of the Immortal Peach Divine Tree, sacrificing his remaining cultivation and strength. He returned to Great Xia and told Xia Xinyu that he had come back to marry her.

• Ning Chen studied the Time Restriction for months while Qing Ling and Lingzhi worried over his worsening condition.
• Ning Chen revealed the Time Law and fused the Time Divine Restriction with the Yellow Springs Restriction to hasten the divine tree's growth.
• Ning Chen told Qing Ling that he had used the forbidden move of the Scroll of Life and accepted the cost because he hoped the tree would help bring back the Ghost Maiden.
• Ning Chen left Mishui Riverbank with Qing Ling and returned to the Princess's Residence in Great Xia.
• Ning Chen told Xia Xinyu that everything was done and he had returned, as promised, to marry her.

Qing Ling told Xia Chi to prepare a wedding for Ning Chen and Xin Yu, and invitations went to the Northern Mongol Royal Court and the Barbarian Dynasty. The former Barbarian King attacked Ning Chen in Zhiming Marquisate, but Ning Chen endured a grave wound and asked him to talk.

• Qing Ling visited Changsun's chamber, then told Xia Chi to prepare Ning Chen and Xin Yu's wedding and send invitations to Northern Mongolia and the Barbarian Dynasty.
• Mingyue decided to travel to Great Xia for the wedding and ordered Ling Xiao to arrange the journey.
• After receiving the invitation, the former Barbarian King left for Zhiming Marquisate in a fury.
• The Barbarian King attacked Ning Chen, who defended himself and fought back within the Yellow Springs Divine Restriction.
• Ning Chen took the Barbarian King's punch while aiming his sword at the king's throat, then asked whether they could talk.

Ning Chen explained to the Barbarian King why he could not wait for A'man and prepared to marry Xia Xinyu, who had chosen an ordinary life to remain with him. As the wedding drew near, Ning Chen visited the Changsun Tomb and faced the resentful spirits still demanding an explanation, promising to answer them when the Ghost Maiden awakened.

• Ning Chen told the Barbarian King that his ruined foundation and limited lifespan meant he could not wait a hundred years for A'man, and the Barbarian King learned that Xia Xinyu had given up martial cultivation by choice.
• News of Ning Chen and Xia Xinyu's marriage spread, prompting Great Xia's Martial Marquises and the Northern Mongol Royal Court's procession to head toward the capital.
• Ning Xi helped prepare the marquis's residence for the wedding, while Qing Ling discovered Soul Severing Grass among Xia Xinyu's herbs and heard her affirm that her choice was worth the cost.
• Ning Chen visited the Changsun Tomb and told the Empress Dowager that he and Xia Xinyu would marry in half a month.
• In the red maple forest, resentful spirits confronted Ning Chen over their deaths, and he promised to give them an explanation when the Ghost Maiden awakened before drawing them back into the Scroll of Chaos.
• Ning Xi told Ning Chen that the Northern Mongol Royal Court's procession was nearly there, and he left the maple forest with her.

Ning Chen welcomed Mingyue and the Northern Mongol delegation to Great Xia, then advised her on curbing the Ling Family’s growing power. That night, he began training Zijing in lethal sword arts, and the Venerable Lady appeared at his residence.

• Ning Chen greeted Mingyue, Zijing, and the Northern Mongol procession outside Great Xia’s imperial city and escorted them to the Guest Reception Hall.
• Mingyue told Ning Chen that the Ling Family was gaining influence through Yang Hong’s disciple, and Ning Chen advised her to investigate abuses and reclaim military authority.
• Ning Chen told Zijing to visit his residence for training, while Mingyue lamented her duties as emperor and secretly pinched him.
• Xia Chi ordered Marquis Dongzhi to protect the Northern Mongol delegation, and Ning Chen waited at his residence for Zijing after midnight.
• Ning Chen began teaching Zijing lethal sword arts, then greeted the Venerable Lady when she appeared.

Ning Chen arranged for Nu Chang to train Zijing, who learned about the paths to martial strength and witnessed Ning Chen demonstrate the sword’s Ultimate. Later, Ning Chen recounted his past to Nu Chang and gave her the Time Restriction to study, ending by saying he had no regrets or resentments and would choose an ordinary life if reborn.

• Nu Chang agreed to teach Zijing after Ning Chen explained that Mingyue’s maid needed training to protect her in the Northern Mongol court.
• Zijing fought Nu Chang, who defeated her and explained how experience, mastery of techniques, and understanding martial arts could strengthen her beyond cultivation alone.
• Ning Chen demonstrated the sword’s Ultimate, and he and Nu Chang advised Zijing to choose carefully which path of martial improvement to pursue.
• Nu Chang warned Ning Chen that his dissipated bodies and damaged foundation made returning to the path of immortality exceedingly difficult.
• Ning Chen told Nu Chang the story of his life and let her examine the Time Restriction, then said he had no regrets or resentments and would willingly be ordinary in another life.

Ning Chen and Xia Xinyu married in a grand ceremony at the imperial palace, attended by rulers and powerful guests from across the world. After sharing the ceremonial wine, Ning Chen returned to Heavenly Edict Hall to receive congratulations and invited the assembled dignitaries to speak.

• Xia Xinyu prepared for the wedding with Qing Ling, while Ning Chen set out from the Zhiming Marquisate amid a procession welcomed by the people.
• Ning Chen and Xia Xinyu entered Heavenly Edict Hall as guests from the dynasties and the four great divine lands gathered for their wedding.
• Ning Chen and Xia Xinyu completed the wedding bows, refusing to kneel to Heaven and Earth but kneeling to honor their elders.
• Ning Chen and Xia Xinyu shared ceremonial wine in Weiyang Palace, and Ning Chen left her to return to the guests.
• Ning Chen exchanged toasts with Mingyue, Su Feiyan, Zhao Liusu, and Wan Hongzhu before inviting the assembled great figures to raise their questions.

At his wedding feast, Ning Chen explained two possible paths to immortality, including his untested idea of destroying the Dragon Gate by force. After the guests departed, he joined Xia Xinyu in their bridal chamber, and they began their married life together.

• Ning Chen told the gathered sect leaders that he had not entered the Immortal Ascension Realm and described crossing the Dragon Gate as the established path to immortality.
• Ning Chen proposed that one might break the Dragon Gate’s laws by force, then cautioned that the idea was only his deduction.
• The visiting leaders thanked Ning Chen, and the wedding banquet continued before guests from the Four Domains and officials departed.
• Wan Hongzhu asked Ning Chen to visit Yuheng Sacred Land, and Ning Chen agreed before watching the imperial city in silence.
• Ning Chen went to Weiyang Palace, lifted Xia Xinyu’s bridal veil, and shared the prepared wedding meal with her.
• Xia Xinyu helped Ning Chen change, and Ning Chen embraced his wife as they began their life together.

Ning Chen paid respects to the Empress Dowager with Xia Xinyu, then killed attackers in the nearby maple forest. When dead warriors attacked Mingyue at the Honglu Temple, he rescued her and the wounded Zijing and took them to the marquisate, discovering that Zijing had been poisoned.

• Ning Chen and Xia Xinyu visited the Empress Dowager’s tomb, where Ning Chen spoke of their marriage and Great Xia’s well-being.
• More than thirty attackers ambushed Ning Chen in the maple forest, and he killed them before ordering the guards to dispose of the bodies quietly.
• Thirteen dead warriors attacked the Northern Mongol Emperor at the Honglu Temple, while three of them fought Zijing as she shielded Mingyue.
• Ning Chen arrived at the Guest Reception Courtyard, defeated the three dead warriors, and ordered the head of the Ministry of Justice to uncover their master.
• Ning Chen examined Zijing, found that she had been poisoned, and took her and Mingyue to the marquisate despite the Imperial Enshriners’ objections.

Xia Xinyu treated Zijing’s poison while Mingyue told Ning Chen that the Ling family likely plotted against her to provoke war between Northern Meng and Great Xia. That night, Bai Ye attacked Ning Chen to avenge the commoners sacrificed thirty years earlier, and Ning Chen defeated him but spared his life.

• Xia Xinyu said Zijing’s poison could be cured, though she would need a long recovery and must not fight during it.
• Ning Chen explained that Mingyue was Northern Meng’s last surviving imperial heir, and Mingyue suspected the pro-war Ling family had arranged the attack on her.
• A messenger delivering a letter attacked Ning Chen, revealing himself as Bai Ye and accusing him of sacrificing countless commoners thirty years earlier.
• Bai Ye fought Ning Chen with the sword he had honed for thirty years, then used a forbidden art to reach completion and pierced Ning Chen’s shoulder.
• Ning Chen drew the Star Soul Sword and defeated Bai Ye with one slash, then spared him and told him to remember his face.

Ning Chen let Bai Ye live and offered to teach him swordsmanship, while Mingyue learned the cost of protecting those she cared about. After Xia Xinyu returned from the palace, she told Ning Chen that Chi'er wanted him to attend the next morning’s court.

• Ning Chen defeated Bai Ye, gave him healing pills, and allowed him a month to attack before offering him a chance to learn swordsmanship.
• Xia Xinyu decided to visit the palace over the tensions caused by Mingyue’s assassination, while Ning Chen told her to let Chi'er decide how to respond.
• Ning Chen took Mingyue and Bai Ye to the Ministry of Justice, ordered the chief to keep the assassins’ confessions secret, and let Mingyue question them alone.
• Mingyue killed the three assassins, then broke down as Ning Chen comforted her and told her that growing up meant learning to protect others.
• Ning Chen watched Bai Ye study his sword techniques, and Xia Xinyu returned to say Chi'er had invited him to the next morning’s court.

Ning Chen attended court as Great Xia debated the assassination attempt on the Northern Mongol Emperor and whether to go to war. He supported peace, warned that the Barbarian Dynasty might benefit from the conflict, and left Xia Chi and the Martial Marquises to safeguard Great Xia.

• Ning Chen arrived at Heavenly Edict Hall, where Xia Chi delayed court until the Marquis of Knowing Fate took his seat.
• Great Xia's ministers argued over whether Northern Mongolia had staged the assassination or whether Great Xia should retaliate.
• Marquis Dongzhi proposed that internal turmoil in either dynasty could explain the attack and urged Great Xia to preserve peace.
• Marquis Anling, Kong Yu, and Ning Chen supported Marquis Dongzhi's opposition to war.
• Ning Chen warned Marquis Dongzhi to consider the Barbarian Dynasty as another possible beneficiary of the attack.
• Ning Chen advised Xia Chi to prioritize his people's peace and departed the hall.

After leaving the Zhiming Marquisate, Ning Chen and Xin Yu settled in a remote city and began living quietly among ordinary people. When they visited their student Xiao Wen’s sick mother, Ning Chen noticed the family’s heirloom sword, which Xiao Wen offered as payment for medicine.

• Ning Chen ended Bai Ye’s month of sword instruction and warned him that he would have only one chance to defeat him before Bai Ye left.
• Yang Hong arrived through the Dragon Gate to escort Mingyue back to Northern Mongol, and Mingyue departed with Zijing.
• Ning Chen and Xin Yu left the marquisate and settled in a remote city, where Ning Chen taught at a private school and Xin Yu tended a medicinal garden.
• Ning Chen agreed to examine Xiao Wen’s sick mother and brought Xin Yu to the boy’s home after dinner.
• Xin Yu examined Xiao Wen’s mother while Ning Chen noticed a sword on the wall; Xiao Wen offered the heirloom as payment, but could not draw it from its sheath.

Ning Chen and Xin Yu spent five years living quietly in Sunset City while caring for Xiao Wen and his dying mother. When thousands of soldiers arrived with a powerful official, Ning Chen and Xin Yu feared that unrest would reach their home, but chose to wait and help Xiao Wen prepare to leave for his studies.

• Xin Yu treated Xiao Wen's mother and learned that her illness would likely give her only five or six more years to live.
• Ning Chen and Xin Yu learned that Xiao Wen's family descended from generals and that his father had died suppressing a rebellion.
• Five years later, soldiers arrived in the ancient city, and Ning Chen helped Su Mei and her husband gather tofu after a carriage overturned their stall.
• Xin Yu told Ning Chen that Xiao Wen's mother was near death and planned to send Xiao Wen away to study with her savings.
• Ning Chen and Xin Yu decided to give Xiao Wen money for his studies and remain in the city for now, despite the arrival of the soldiers.

Ning Chen and Xin Yu saw Xiao Wen off to study, then spent a day shopping together. At a cloth shop, a fan-wielding young man demanded every bolt of fabric, and Ning Chen guessed the newcomer was a woman in disguise.

• Xiao Wen's mother sent him away to study, and Ning Chen and Xin Yu gave him travel money and encouragement.
• After Xiao Wen left, his mother coughed up blood, and Xin Yu helped her inside while Ning Chen comforted Xin Yu about her medical skills and their marriage.
• Ning Chen invited Xin Yu to shop with him, and the next day they bought rouge and face powder before visiting a cloth shop.
• Xin Yu chose a bolt of Yueyang Silk, while Ning Chen failed to distinguish the fabrics and embarrassed himself in front of the proprietress.
• A young man with a paper fan demanded all the cloth in the shop, and Ning Chen told Xin Yu he was certain the newcomer was a woman.

Ning Chen and Xin Yu were forced to leave Sunset City after Zhao Guoer threatened them, while Zhao Hongyun secretly arranged for them to be dealt with. As they traveled southwest, Ning Chen entered a snow-covered bamboo forest alone, where armed figures attacked him.

• Zhao Guoer attacked Ning Chen and Xin Yu at a cloth shop, then later tested Ning Chen with her sword and ordered the couple to leave the city within a month.
• Xin Yu and Ning Chen cared for Xiao Wen’s dying mother, who called for her absent child before she died; they buried her three days later.
• Mu Chengxue reached immortality at Heavenly Sound Pavilion, but the Pavilion Master ordered her to continue pushing the Sound Mill for another seventy years.
• Zhao Hongyun learned that Ning Chen and Xin Yu’s origins were unknown, ordered his subordinate to deal with them, and told her to keep the matter from Zhao Guoer.
• Ning Chen and Xin Yu left Sunset City; thirty li from the city, Ning Chen entered a bamboo forest alone while Xin Yu waited behind.
• Armed figures emerged from the bamboo forest and attacked Ning Chen with their weapons.

Ning Chen punished Zhao Hongyun for ordering an attack on him, crippling the official and his daughter before leaving the investigation to a Dark Dragon Guard. Back home, he and Xin Yu agreed to remain in Sunset City for a month and discussed traveling beyond Great Xia to explore the Outer Heavens.

• Ning Chen killed fifteen assassins in a bamboo grove and told Hong Ling to deliver a warning to her master.
• Zhao Guoer learned the assassins had died, then hurried with Hong Ling to Sunset City and warned Zhao Hongyun that Ning Chen was dangerous.
• Ning Chen confronted Zhao Hongyun at the City Lord's Mansion, immobilized the guards, sealed Zhao Guoer's cultivation, and crippled Zhao Hongyun.
• A Dark Dragon Guard recognized Ning Chen as the Marquis of Knowing Fate, and Ning Chen ordered him to report Zhao Hongyun's conduct to the court for investigation.
• Ning Chen returned to Xin Yu, and they agreed to stay for a month before traveling through the Four Domains and possibly visiting the Outer Heavens.

Ning Chen investigated the secret mining of a Dark Silver Ore Vein and confronted Marquis Yuanwu at his military camp. He defeated Yuanwu with a single sword strike, then left the rest of the matter to Marquis Dongzhi and Liu Zong.

• Liu Zong told Ning Chen that Zhao Hongyun had confessed Marquis Yuanwu’s role in concealing the Dark Silver Ore Vein and killing the messenger five years earlier.
• Ning Chen agreed to accompany Marquis Dongzhi and Liu Zong, saying Great Xia could not tolerate a rebellious Martial Marquis.
• Ning Chen entered Marquis Yuanwu’s guarded military camp, where Yuanwu dismissed his guards and met him outside the command tent.
• Ning Chen confronted Yuanwu about the murdered messenger and warned him to abandon his rebellion.
• Yuanwu challenged Ning Chen to prove his strength, and Ning Chen wounded him with a single sword strike that stopped just short of his heart.
• Ning Chen sheathed his sword, left the rest to Marquis Dongzhi and Liu Zong, and walked out of the camp.

Ning Chen returned to Yuheng Sacred Land with Xin Yu and helped Xiao Wuming break through the Dragon Gate into the Immortal Ascension Realm. After battling Heaven’s punishment and returning unharmed, Ning Chen left Xiao Wuming to stabilize his new realm and guided Wan Hongzhu and Jian Shui’er about their own cultivation.

• Ning Chen and Xin Yu arrived at Yuheng Sacred Land, where Xiao Wuming, Wan Hongzhu, and Jian Shui’er welcomed them.
• Ning Chen asked Xiao Wuming to summon the Dragon Gate and attempt to enter the Immortal Ascension Realm again.
• Ning Chen damaged the Dragon Gate with Star Soul, weakening its laws and allowing Xiao Wuming to ascend to immortality.
• Ning Chen fought off Heaven’s lightning punishment with Sword Art, Primal Chaos, and returned safely to the others.
• Ning Chen told Jian Shui’er she was not ready to attempt ascension and agreed with Wan Hongzhu that she should build her foundation first.
• Xin Yu told Jian Shui’er that Ning Chen’s realm was difficult to define but seemed to be Xiantian Great Perfection, despite Heaven preventing his own ascension.

Ning Chen and Xin Yu left Yuheng Sacred Land and traveled to the Ancient Land of Western Buddhism to visit the Changling Venerable Lady. Nu Chang welcomed Xin Yu but trapped Ning Chen in a formation, and the chapter ended with her still teasing him after he escaped.

• Ning Chen told Xin Yu they would leave Yuheng Sacred Land, while Jian Shui'er and Wan Hongzhu regretted his departure and wondered about his past and hidden secrets.
• Xin Yu told Wan Hongzhu something privately before she and Ning Chen departed, then the two traveled for six months to the Ancient Land of Western Buddhism.
• Ning Chen and Xin Yu visited the ruins by the Old Water Pavilion, and Ning Chen explained his objections to false Buddhists who exploited the people.
• Ning Chen and Xin Yu reached Changling Ancient Land, where Nu Chang appeared and took Xin Yu away, leaving Ning Chen trapped in a formation.
• Ning Chen escaped after more than half a day and joined Xin Yu and Nu Chang at a stone table, where Nu Chang continued mocking him.

Ning Chen and Xin Yu traveled through Changling and the Central Province, choosing a peaceful life together despite Nu Chang’s offer to help him restore his cultivation. After Ning Chen sent the Zhao Family the Po Shang Bow and Star Soul Iron Mother without meeting them, he and Xin Yu set out for the Northern Plains.

• Nu Chang showed Xin Yu Changling’s forbidden ground and explained the toll its accelerated time took on those who cultivated there.
• Nu Chang offered to help Ning Chen reach the Immortal Ascension Realm, but Ning Chen refused so he could spend his remaining time with Xin Yu.
• Ning Chen and Xin Yu traveled through the Ancient Land of Western Buddhism and then the Central Province, where sects grew alarmed at his return.
• Zhao Liusu ordered the Zhao Family not to pursue Ning Chen, and later received the Po Shang Bow and Star Soul Iron Mother from him.
• Ning Chen explained to Xin Yu that he avoided visiting the Zhao Family to prevent further entanglements, then continued with her toward the Northern Plains.