Chapter Summaries

Jiang Yuechu searched Elder Tianzhu’s treasury and found a rare Nine-Curved Purple Bamboo, a Supreme Heart Material. With four such materials now in her possession, she needed one more to reach the pinnacle of the Tower-Ascending Realm and attempt to enter the Chess-Player Realm.

• Jiang Yuechu followed Demon Emperor Juechen into Wanchuan’s treasury, bringing Wang Ziyu and Hu Cuihua along.
• Demon Emperor Juechen showed Jiang Yuechu the treasury’s spirit ores, pills, artifacts, and other valuables, but she showed little interest in them.
• Jiang Yuechu searched the jade boxes and found several unusual treasures she did not recognize.
• Jiang Yuechu discovered a twisted purple bamboo stalk among a bundle of dried bamboo.
• Wang Ziyu identified the stalk as Nine-Curved Purple Bamboo, one of the rarest Supreme Heart Materials.
• Jiang Yuechu realized the bamboo brought her total to four Supreme Heart Materials, leaving her one short of her goal.

Jiang Yuechu took the True Form Map of You Mountain and emptied the treasury at Wanchuan Valley before refining two supreme Heart Materials. After her Primordial Spirit and body grew stronger together, she opened her eyes with four Heart Materials.

• Jiang Yuechu had Demon Emperor Juechen search the treasury and retrieved the incomplete True Form Map of You Mountain.
• Demon Emperor Juechen said Elder Tianzhu had claimed the technique could make the soul impervious to harm at Major Achievement, though he eventually stopped discussing it.
• Jiang Yuechu swept the underground treasury clean, and Demon Emperor Juechen hid his frustration when she challenged him.
• Jiang Yuechu went behind the main hall and crushed the Water-Fire Cold Smoke Coal and Nine-Curved Purple Bamboo to absorb their power.
• Jiang Yuechu's Primordial Spirit and body strengthened together, and she opened her eyes after refining the two Heart Materials.

Jiang Yuechu spent millions of years of Dao Cultivation to raise the True Form Map of You Mountain and the Great Black Heaven Body-Forging Scripture to Supreme, gaining formidable soul defenses and power. After the valley witnessed her transformation, Wang Canglan found her and confronted her from the sky.

• Jiang Yuechu raised the True Form Map of You Mountain to Supreme, making her soul impervious to attacks and granting her telekinesis.
• She spent 3,770,000 years of Dao Cultivation to bring the Great Black Heaven Body-Forging Scripture to Supreme.
• Black mist engulfed Wanchuan Valley as Jiang Yuechu refined the demon souls imprisoned in her apertures and brought her body and Primordial Spirit into near-perfect harmony.
• Jiang Yuechu considered the Dao Cultivation she would need to break through to the Chess-Player Realm and prepared to summon Demon Emperor Juechen.
• Wang Canglan appeared amid a sky full of flames, met Jiang Yuechu's gaze, and said he had finally found her.

Wang Canglan arrived at Wanchuan Valley with nine Fire Phoenixes, and the demons recognized him as Jade Capital Pavilion’s chief disciple seeking Jiang Yuechu. Jiang Yuechu faced him, while Wang Canglan revealed to himself that he had secretly reached Tower-Ascending Perfection a century earlier.

• Wang Canglan’s Pure Yang flames swept across Wanchuan Valley, and nine Fire Phoenixes appeared above the demons.
• An armored ape demon identified Wang Canglan as Jade Capital Pavilion’s chief disciple and described his extraordinary rise through the realms.
• The demons suspected Jiang Yuechu had already offended Jade Capital Pavilion, while Jiang Yuechu recognized Wang Canglan’s flames and prepared to meet him.
• Jiang Yuechu emerged from her secluded place and faced Wang Canglan as he locked his gaze on her.
• Wang Canglan recalled their clash at Green Phoenix Mountain and revealed that he had secretly reached Tower-Ascending Perfection over a hundred years earlier.

Jiang Yuechu confronted Wang Canglan above Wanchuan Valley after he blamed her for ruining his plans and demanded she serve him. As Wang Canglan attacked with nine Fire Phoenixes, Jiang Yuechu unleashed a vast black fog and began transforming into a terrifying demon-like figure.

• Wang Ziyu tried to persuade Jiang Yuechu to let him negotiate with Wang Canglan, but she pushed him aside.
• Jiang Yuechu spread black fog across the sky and rose to face Wang Canglan above Wanchuan Valley.
• Wang Canglan praised Jiang Yuechu’s talent, blamed her for destroying Green Phoenix Mountain and his Dream-Borrowing plans, and offered to make her his right hand.
• Jiang Yuechu dismissed Wang Canglan’s offer, and he decided to capture her to help him attain the Great Dao.
• Wang Canglan unleashed nine Fire Phoenixes at Jiang Yuechu, who vanished inside black fog as enormous dark wings and two crimson wisps appeared.

Jiang Yuechu overwhelmed Wang Canglan with the Great Black Heaven Body-Forging Scripture, forcing the Jade Capital Pavilion chief disciple into a desperate final attack. Wang Canglan unleashed a golden Pure Yang technique and charged at her through a sea of fire.

• Jiang Yuechu's black mist endured Wang Canglan's nine Fire Phoenixes, and she struck him with a fist, elbow, and kick, driving him into the ruins.
• Wang Canglan realized Jiang Yuechu was using a Spirit Tempering Method, but her Great Black Heaven left him unable to defend himself.
• Jiang Yuechu prepared to finish Wang Canglan, disappointed that she had not needed to use her newly absorbed Heart Material.
• Wang Canglan rose from the crater, let Pure Yang True Fire erupt from within his body, and invoked the Nine-Turn Creation, Pure Yang Tribulation-Forging technique.
• Wang Canglan charged at Jiang Yuechu atop a fire lotus as golden flames swallowed the black mist.

Jiang Yuechu exploited Wang Canglan’s Pure Yang backlash and defeated him in Wanchuan Valley. As he lay dying, Wang Canglan accused her of ruining his chance to enter the Chess-Player Realm and warned her about what she was fighting against.

• Jiang Yuechu used Triple Burner Chaos to disrupt Wang Canglan’s qi and trigger the backlash of his Nine-Turn Pure Yang Golden Scripture.
• Jiang Yuechu struck Wang Canglan with a blood-red hand blade, a golden seal, and nine Flying Swords, leaving him near death in Wanchuan Valley.
• Wang Canglan complained that Jiang Yuechu had beaten him with underhanded tricks, and she called him a fucking idiot.
• Wang Canglan revealed that he had spent centuries on Green Phoenix Mountain and used Dream-Borrowing Dao to approach the Chess-Player Realm.
• Wang Canglan asked whether Jiang Yuechu understood what she was fighting against.

Jiang Yuechu prepared to kill Wang Canglan, but a red-robed elder intervened and explained that the Imperial Lineages had watched her rise because her relentless defiance threatened the rules of heaven and earth. He offered her a choice: kill his clone and continue her path, or accept the mandate to save the world and take the seat in the Painting Realm.

• Wang Canglan proclaimed himself the world's savior and mocked Jiang Yuechu for lacking the strength to stop the coming calamity.
• Jiang Yuechu dismissed Wang Canglan's claims and prepared to kill him.
• A red-robed elder appeared and blocked Jiang Yuechu's attack, then revealed himself as a figure from the Pure Yang Lineage.
• The elder defended the Lineages' inaction as a necessity imposed by heaven's rules and said they had allowed Wu Shisan to return to Great Tang while watching Jiang Yuechu's rise.
• The elder warned that Jiang Yuechu's rapid progress threatened the rules themselves, then challenged her to kill his clone and offered her the mandate to save the world and take the Painting Realm seat.

Jiang Yuechu rejected the old man’s warning, killed Wang Canglan, and declared that she would make Heaven bow to her. She then attacked the old man, whose arm was destroyed by her kick, and continued charging at him.

• Jiang Yuechu called Wang Canglan worthless and rejected the old man’s claims about Heaven and the rules of the world.
• Jiang Yuechu used the Great Black Heaven Body-Forging Scripture and the baleful power of imprisoned demon souls to kill Wang Canglan.
• The old man accepted Wang Canglan’s death and warned Jiang Yuechu that her path had only just begun.
• Jiang Yuechu told the old man she had never promised to spare him and attacked him with a whip kick.
• The old man blocked the kick, but its force shattered his right sleeve and arm and hurled him through Wanchuan Valley.
• The old man struggled to understand how Jiang Yuechu had gained such strength without a supreme lineage’s resources as she rushed toward him again.

Jiang Yuechu defeated Wang Canglan and drove off a Jade Capital Pavilion Chess-Player Realm elder, who left her a Chess-Condensing Method and urged her to enter the Chess-Player Realm. She suspected Wang Canglan had been raised as a vessel for a hidden scheme involving the Painting Realm.

• The old man dissolved into golden motes to escape Jiang Yuechu, leaving her unable to tell whether she had destroyed only an avatar.
• The golden motes formed a Crimson Gold Jade Slip, and the old man urged Jiang Yuechu to enter the Chess-Player Realm so his people could come for her.
• Jiang Yuechu inspected the jade slip and discovered the Great Evolution Pure Yang Supreme Chess-Condensing Record.
• Jiang Yuechu reasoned that the Jade Capital Pavilion elder had given her the method for an ulterior purpose, not out of goodwill.
• Jiang Yuechu suspected Wang Canglan had been cultivated as a vessel to break through into the Painting Realm, where a terrible hidden danger awaited.

Jiang Yuechu refused to cultivate Jade Capital Pavilion’s Chess-Condensing Method and killed Wang Canglan, then accepted Wanchuan Valley’s demons as her subjects. As the demons hailed her as emperor, Tiger Cuihua recorded the battle in its travelogue.

• Jiang Yuechu destroyed the Crimson Gold Jade Slip, deciding she would derive a safe Chess-Condensing Method of her own.
• Jiang Yuechu took Wang Canglan’s Storage Bag and wondered why his Primordial Spirit had not escaped when she killed him.
• Demon Emperor Juechen knelt before Jiang Yuechu and praised her, prompting the demons of Wanchuan Valley to swear allegiance to her.
• Wang Ziyu watched the demons worship Jiang Yuechu and wondered what he would do if she ever faced Xuanzhen Grotto-Heaven.
• Tiger Cuihua wrote an account of Jiang Yuechu’s victories over Tianzhu, Wang Canglan, and the Jade Capital elder.

True Lord Xuanyang ordered word sent that Wang Canglan had died and pressed his search for the Star Palace True Map, while reflecting on the Pure Yang Lineage’s plan to use Jiang Yuechu to reach the Painting Realm. In Wanchuan Valley, Jiang Yuechu searched Wang Canglan’s belongings and found a top-grade heart material.

• True Lord Xuanyang told a white-robed disciple to inform Zhuge Qing of Wang Canglan’s death and dismissed him as a failed chess piece.
• True Lord Xuanyang ordered the disciple to pressure the imprisoned elephant for the Star Palace True Map, using soul extraction if necessary.
• True Lord Xuanyang recalled that the Pure Yang Lineage planned to force open the Painting Realm through a painted scroll and saw Jiang Yuechu as a better candidate than Wang Canglan.
• Jiang Yuechu searched Wang Canglan’s Storage Bag in Tianzhu’s Cave Abode while Demon Emperor Juechen guarded the entrance.
• Jiang Yuechu opened a profound ice jade box and discovered a fist-sized crimson ore filled with flowing golden liquid, recognizing it as a top-grade heart material.

Jiang Yuechu swallowed the Golden Crow Blood Essence and fused it with her other Heart Materials, bringing her close to breaking through. After leaving seclusion, she heard about the Living Soil Lineage's rival elders and considered whether devouring the demons could help her deduce the Chess-Condensing Method.

• Jiang Yuechu swallowed the Golden Crow Blood Essence, and its power collided with the four Heart Materials she had already consumed.
• Jiang Yuechu's demonic body suppressed and fused the five forces, leaving her bottleneck close to breaking.
• Demon Emperor Juechen guarded Jiang Yuechu's cave with Qingyuan's Primordial Spirit and other Great Demons, explaining that he had chosen to bet on her potential.
• Jiang Yuechu emerged from seclusion, and Demon Emperor Juechen reported that four Living Soil elders might attack after Tianzhu's death.
• Jiang Yuechu ignored the warning and wondered whether devouring the demons could let her deduce the Chess-Condensing Method.

Jiang Yuechu accepted Elder Mang Mountain’s invitation to come to Qingwu Mountain alone, despite the obvious danger. After she reached the hall, a voice from within ordered that the new Demon Emperor be announced.

• Demon Emperor Juechen warned Jiang Yuechu that no one from Qingwu had come to intercept their approaching army.
• Banshan and Fuhai met Jiang Yuechu on the mountain path and said Elder Mang Mountain had invited her to Qingwu Mountain alone.
• Jiang Yuechu accepted the invitation and told Banshan and Fuhai to lead the way, leaving the Wanchuan demons stunned.
• Banshan and Fuhai escorted Jiang Yuechu through armed guards to the hall on Qingwu Mountain.
• Fuhai announced Jiang Yuechu’s arrival, and a voice from the dark hall ordered the guards to announce the new Demon Emperor.

Jiang Yuechu visited Qingwu Mountain and waited until all the Qingwu Lineage Demon Emperors had gathered in the hall. She then revealed that she intended to devour them, leaving the assembled demons facing her attack.

• Demon Emperor of Mang Mountain welcomed Jiang Yuechu to the hall, where eleven Qingwu Demon Emperors had gathered.
• Jiang Yuechu asked whether everyone had arrived and explained that she wanted to meet the Qingwu Demon Emperors.
• Jiang Yuechu took the throne while Demon Emperor of Mang Mountain yielded his seat and waited with the others.
• Iron Horn and Black Scale arrived, followed by Demon Emperor Nanyin, completing the gathering of thirteen Demon Emperors.
• After Demon Emperor Nanyin asked whether Jiang Yuechu had killed Tianzhu, Jiang Yuechu released black mist from all three hundred and sixty-five acupoints and announced that it was time to eat.

Jiang Yuechu revealed that she had come to Qingwu Mountain to kill the demons in the hall, then slaughtered the Demon Emperors and Elder Mang Mountain. The Silver-Haired Old Woman remained unharmed and told Jiang Yuechu she had come to see what sort of creature dared act so tyrannically in the You Mountain Range.

• Jiang Yuechu unleashed the demon souls within her and used her Great Black Heaven Dharma Form and five Heart Materials to kill Iron Horn as the demons attacked.
• Jiang Yuechu stopped Banshan and Fuhai's combined assault, killed Banshan, and destroyed Fuhai's Primordial Spirit.
• Jiang Yuechu hunted down the demons in the hall while Black Scale searched in vain for an escape.
• Jiang Yuechu trapped Elder Mang Mountain with her Flying Swords, crushed him beneath the Golden Seal, and ripped out his demon soul.
• Jiang Yuechu confronted the Silver-Haired Old Woman, who said she had come to see what sort of creature behaved tyrannically in the You Mountain Range.

Jiang Yuechu learned from the Silver-Haired Old Woman that the Daoist lineages wanted to use her to enter the Painting Realm and open a path to Cloud Dream Haven. The old woman warned that their method would drain the Dao-Integration Materials and make the collapsing world consume Jiang Yuechu.

• Jiang Yuechu confronted the Silver-Haired Old Woman, who revealed she knew Jiang Yuechu was human and had received a Chess-Condensing Method from Jade Capital Pavilion.
• The old woman warned Jiang Yuechu not to cultivate the Pure Yang Lineage’s method and explained that entering the Chess-Player Realm required a rare Dao-Integration Material.
• The old woman claimed Jade Capital Pavilion and the other Chief Seats would supply Jiang Yuechu with materials to push her into the Painting Realm.
• The old woman explained that the Chief Seats hoped to use Jiang Yuechu to reach Cloud Dream Haven, the true land of the Great Dao, and escape their painted world.
• The old woman warned that the Chief Seats’ hidden mechanism would drain the materials and cause the collapsing painting to devour Jiang Yuechu.

Jiang Yuechu struck a bargain with the Living Soil Lineage’s elderly Chief Seat, receiving its Great Dream Spring and Autumn Chess-Condensing Art in exchange for carrying a message to the Cloud Dream Palace. The old woman promised to bring her a Dao-Integration Material within three days, while Jiang Yuechu remained wary of the method and the deal.

• The old woman explained that she had come from the Cloud Dream Palace and had been trapped in the incomplete painting for years.
• She offered Jiang Yuechu the Living Soil Lineage’s Chess-Condensing Method and a Dao-Integration Material if Jiang Yuechu would deliver the painting’s location to the Cloud Dream Palace.
• The old woman admitted she could not make the journey herself because her lifespan was nearly spent and her body had grown too weak.
• Jiang Yuechu accepted the Great Dream Spring and Autumn Chess-Condensing Art, and the old woman promised to bring the Dao-Integration Material within three days.
• The old woman asked Jiang Yuechu to stop killing demons in the meantime and offered her the Living Soil Lineage’s cultivation resources.
• After the old woman left, Jiang Yuechu decided to examine the jade slip cautiously and considered using Heaven's Demon Martial Drill to refine the method.

After defeating Qingwu Mountain’s Demon Emperors, Jiang Yuechu began deriving a new Chess-Condensing Method and expanded her territory across the You Mountain Range. Three days later, the promised Dao-Integration Material still had not arrived, and she wondered whether the old man had deceived her.

• Jiang Yuechu added the Great Dream Spring and Autumn Chess-Condensing Art and her other cultivation methods to Heavenly Demon Martial Drill to derive a new method, while leaving out the Great Black Heaven Body-Forging Scripture.
• Jiang Yuechu summoned Demon Emperor Juechen and ordered the Wanchuan Demon Horde to occupy Qingwu Mountain and seize its resources.
• Jiang Yuechu ordered Juechen to claim nearby territory, including a spirit spring on the edge of Elder Black Rock’s lands, bringing nearly thirty percent of southwest You Mountain under her control in three days.
• The three elders petitioned the Chief Seat at Living Soil Mountain over Jiang Yuechu’s land grabs, but received no reply.
• Jiang Yuechu saw the new Chess-Condensing Method taking shape, then realized the old man had not delivered the promised Dao-Integration Material after three days and wondered if he had tricked her.

Jiang Yuechu received the Li Fire Gold Scabbard as the foundation for her first Dao Chess Piece and learned that a white elephant imprisoned beneath Spirit Mountain held the Star Palace Atlas, which could guide her to Cloud Dream Haven. Days later, she traveled back toward Spirit Mountain with Wang Ziyu and Demon Emperor Juechen, who insisted on serving as her personal guard.

• The old woman arrived at Qingwu Mountain injured and gave Jiang Yuechu the Li Fire Gold Scabbard, explaining that it could barely support her first Dao Chess Piece.
• The old woman told Jiang Yuechu that a white elephant demon imprisoned in the Cave of No Light beneath Spirit Mountain possessed the Star Palace Atlas, which recorded routes to Cloud Dream Haven.
• The old woman instructed Jiang Yuechu to retrieve the atlas after entering the Chess-Player Realm and then return to learn how to use it to leave the painted world.
• A few days later, Jiang Yuechu flew toward Spirit Mountain with Wang Ziyu and Demon Emperor Juechen aboard a black flying boat.
• Wang Ziyu questioned why Juechen had come along, and Juechen declared himself Jiang Yuechu’s personal guard and scolded Wang Ziyu for failing to read the room.