Chapter Summaries

Lu Ye registered for the Cloud River Hegemony and used the Dragon Ascent World's origin to explore the life of a powerful spear cultivator, gaining insights before recovering for another attempt. Three days later, the Hegemony began, and Lu Ye and his companions gathered around the Heaven's Mystery Pillar as a booming sound shook the Cloud River Battlefield.

• Hua Ci told Lu Ye that the Cloud River Hegemony registration period was nearly over and described its rewards, so they registered at the Heaven's Mystery Pillar.
• Lu Ye cultivated and entered the Dragon Ascent World's origin, selecting a bright star associated with a sharp, fierce aura and learning to move through the cultivator's life selectively.
• Lu Ye discovered that the cultivator was a famed spear wielder who died fighting off an ambush, then withdrew from the origin and spent a day recovering.
• Lu Ye made another attempt to explore the origin, and three days passed before he sensed that the Cloud River Hegemony had begun.
• Lu Ye, Li Baxian, Feng Yuechan, Hua Ci, and Jujia gathered around the Heaven's Mystery Pillar as a tremendous boom swept the clouds from the Cloud River Battlefield.

Lu Ye entered the Cloud River Hegemony and won his first match by overpowering a horned Demon Cultivator, earning Battle Merit and a victory. He began a second match against a nervous Tier Five cultivator, sending Amber to fight while he contemplated formation insights.

• The Heavenly Mechanism stirred battle intent across the Cloud River Battlefield, then sent Lu Ye into the arena.
• Lu Ye defeated the horned Demon Cultivator with a barrage of saber strikes, forcing him to surrender before his shield was destroyed.
• Lu Ye returned to the Heaven's Mystery Pillar and confirmed that his victory earned him fifty-five Battle Merit and one recorded win.
• Lu Ye reviewed the hegemony's rules, including its seven-day opening stage, one-hundred-battle limit, and later selection of the top three thousand.
• Lu Ye entered his second match against a Tier Five cultivator and sent Amber to fight while he sat down to contemplate formation insights.

Lu Ye finished his first hundred Cloud River Hegemony matches with a perfect record, then returned to the Nine Provinces to have Master Yu advance his Crag Mountain Saber. He asked her to raise it to the Dharma Artifact level, and she quoted a price of thirty thousand Merit.

• Amber defeated a Tier Five opponent in Lu Ye’s place, and Lu Ye went on to complete one hundred matches with one hundred consecutive victories.
• After finishing his matches, Lu Ye told Li Baxian he needed to return to the Main Sect, and Li Baxian agreed to inform Hua Ci and the others.
• Lu Ye returned to the Crimson Blood Sect, contacted Master Yu, and met her in the Heaven's Mystery Vault.
• Lu Ye placed his Crag Mountain Saber on the Stone Platform and asked Master Yu to advance it to the Dharma Artifact level.
• Master Yu warned that the work required valuable materials, and Lu Ye told her to name her price; she asked for thirty thousand Merit.

Lu Ye returned to the Crimson Blood Sect to have his saber upgraded and visited Shui Yuan, the Sect Master, and Madam Yun. After Lu Ye called Madam Yun his Master, she revealed her name and was astonished when he realized her maidservant was an Artificer's creation.

• Lu Ye bargained with a woman in the Heaven's Mystery Vault, agreed to pay twenty-three thousand Merit for a saber upgrade, and accepted that it would take up to half a month.
• Lu Ye reunited with Shui Yuan, then visited the Sect Master with Yiyi before sharing a meal with Shui Yuan.
• Lu Ye brought fish to Madam Yun and discussed the Spirit Pattern Path with her, then called her Master, which delighted her.
• Madam Yun told Lu Ye her name was Yun Xuechu and offered him a chance of survival if he invoked her name in a crisis.
• Lu Ye asked whether Yun Xuechu had studied the Artificer Dao and recognized that her maidservant was an artificial creation controlled by Yun Xuechu's divine sense.

Yun Xuechu revealed that her maidservant Xiao Die was her Clone and explained how the Spirit Pattern Path supported the subsidiary cultivation paths. After Lu Ye entrusted her with the damaged Dragon Seat and Dragon Spine Blade, Yun Xuechu seized the Sect Master and carried him to Bright Heart Peak; Lu Ye then prepared to enter the Cloud River Hegemony’s second round.

• Yun Xuechu explained that Xiao Die was her Clone and that the Spirit Pattern Path was the foundation of subsidiary paths such as Artificing.
• Lu Ye showed Yun Xuechu the damaged Dragon Seat and Dragon Spine Blade from the Dragon Ascent World, and she agreed to try repairing them.
• Lu Ye left Bright Heart Peak, returned to Green Bamboo Peak, cultivated, and later headed to the Heaven's Mystery Pillar for the next round of the Cloud River Hegemony.
• Yun Xuechu grabbed the Sect Master and carried him to Bright Heart Peak, while Shui Yuan told the worried Yiyi not to mind it.
• Lu Ye confirmed he had ranked in the top 3,000, put on a Face Mask, and prepared to begin the second round.

Lu Ye entered the Cloud River Hegemony’s second round disguised as a masked Tier Eight Spell Cultivator and overwhelmed a Tier Nine opponent with his spells. After sweeping through many elite cultivators, he faced Feng Rulie, a formidable spear-wielding Weapon Cultivator who endured his barrage and finally closed in on him.

• Lu Ye defeated a Tier Nine Spell Cultivator in ten breaths, then realized the second-round matchups came slowly and waited by the Heaven's Mystery Pillar while reading.
• Lu Ye won battle after battle with his powerful spellcasting, and rumors spread about a masked Tier Eight Spell Cultivator who might be Lu Yiye.
• Lu Ye fought Feng Rulie, whose skill and persistence made him the strongest opponent Lu Ye had faced so far.
• Feng Rulie endured Lu Ye's spells, broke through his defenses, and charged within spear range.

Feng Rulie returned from his battle with Lu Ye shaken by the Spell Cultivator’s unexpected spear strike, while Lan Ziyi revealed herself as a Cloud River Tier Nine opponent in Lu Ye’s final battle of the second round. Lu Ye recognized her strength and wondered how Boundless Island had advanced her so quickly without weakening her foundation.

• Feng Rulie conceded to Lu Ye after Lu Ye countered his close-range spear attack with a stunning thrust, then returned to his sect unharmed but shaken.
• Martial Uncle Nan comforted Feng Rulie and warned that pursuing both Weapon Cultivation and Spell Cultivation could hinder a cultivator’s future.
• After completing thirteen battles in the second round, Lu Ye was matched against Lan Ziyi on the Combat Platform.
• Lan Ziyi recognized Lu Ye as the rumored Spell Cultivator and summoned her twin blades when her instincts warned her of his threat.
• Lu Ye tested Lan Ziyi with a spell, saw her cut it apart, and realized she had reached Cloud River Tier Nine with a stable foundation.

Lu Ye defeated Lan Ziyi in the Cloud River Hegemony, then returned to Green Bamboo Peak to cultivate and reflect on the Dragon Ascent World’s origins. Three days later, he received word that Master Yu had finished upgrading his Crag Mountain Saber.

• Lu Ye overwhelmed Lan Ziyi with Small Fireball Technique spells, and she recognized him as the masked Spell Cultivator.
• Lan Ziyi warned Lu Ye that he would eventually see the truth about the conflict between their camps, then tried to use his concealed identity to stop him from attacking.
• Lu Ye charged Lan Ziyi, who admitted defeat and was removed from the Combat Platform.
• Lu Ye returned to Green Bamboo Peak and spent the next three days reflecting on the Dragon Ascent World’s origins while waiting for the second round’s results.
• Lu Ye received a message that Master Yu had completed the Crag Mountain Saber’s upgrade.

Lu Ye inspected his newly upgraded Crag Mountain Saber, bought magic-artifact-grade equipment, and learned he had made the Cloud River Hegemony’s Top Hundred. As the third round began, Ying Wuji challenged him and drew him into a forest arena rigged to favor a Ghost Cultivator.

• Lu Ye examined the Crag Mountain Saber after Master Yu upgraded it, then spent about thirty thousand Merit on a magic-artifact-grade Weapon Casket and Controlled Artifacts.
• Lu Ye received the Top Hundred results and saw his own name alongside Feng Rulie, Lan Ziyi, Li Baxian, Feng Yuechan, and Jujia.
• Lu Ye reviewed the third round’s rules, which let contestants choose five opponents and accept up to five challenges.
• Ying Wuji challenged Lu Ye, and Heaven’s Mystery transported him to a dense forest arena chosen by the challenger.
• Lu Ye sensed hidden formations and an Air Lock Grand Array, then realized the terrain and restrictions favored a Ghost Cultivator.

Ying Wuji challenged Lu Ye in the Cloud River Hegemony, hoping to prove his Ghost Cultivator techniques could overcome Lu Ye’s perception, but he quickly conceded after Lu Ye saw through his concealment. Lu Ye then drew Lan Ziyi as his next opponent, and she accepted his challenge.

• Ying Wuji ambushed Lu Ye with his Curved Blades, but Lu Ye turned and blocked his attack immediately.
• Lu Ye recognized Ying Wuji and broke through his Shadowless Concealment, forcing Ying Wuji to concede and leave the arena.
• Ying Wuji reported his defeat to his master and resolved to avoid Lu Ye in the future.
• Lu Ye randomly challenged available cultivators until the Battlefield Mark selected Lan Ziyi, who accepted.
• Lu Ye entered the Battle Arena and faced Lan Ziyi.

Lu Ye completed his ten battles in the Cloud River Hegemony’s third round and was ranked first despite being only Cloud River Tier Eight. As the fourth-round Ranking Battle began, he went to wait at Heaven’s Mystery Hall, where only the two cultivators ranked below him could challenge him.

• Lan Ziyi conceded to Lu Ye before they fought, and he defeated his next opponent after a six-hour wait.
• Lu Ye finished his ten battles and returned to Green Bamboo Peak to cultivate until his Battlefield Mark announced that the third round had ended.
• The provisional rankings placed Lu Yiye first, with Mu Qingyun second, Yang Yuan third, Jujia thirty-sixth, and Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan forty-second and forty-third.
• Lu Ye reviewed the rankings and noted that Lan Ziyi stood eleventh and Feng Rulie fifteenth.
• Lu Ye went to Heaven’s Mystery Hall to await the fourth-round challenges, since only Mu Qingyun and Yang Yuan were eligible to challenge him.

Lu Ye watched Jujia wear down a Tier Nine Spell Cultivator and Li Baxian win with the Book Sword Art as the fourth round’s rankings shifted. Lan Ziyi climbed to second place, but on the final day Lu Ye doubted she would challenge him, leaving the anticipated showdown uncertain.

• Lu Ye watched Jujia defeat a Tier Nine Spell Cultivator by relentlessly pursuing him until he admitted defeat.
• Li Baxian used two strikes inspired by the Book Sword Art to overcome his opponent, though he felt his cultivation limited how much farther he could climb.
• Lan Ziyi steadily defeated higher-ranked opponents, rising from eleventh place to second below Lu Ye.
• Lan Ziyi did not challenge Lu Ye on the sixth day, and spectators believed she was recovering from her difficult battle with Mu Qingyun.
• On the final day of the fourth round, Lu Ye doubted Lan Ziyi would challenge him and noted that Mu Qingyun was still injured.

Lu Ye collected the rewards for winning the Cloud River Hegemony and returned to Return Heaven Valley, while Mu Qingyun hesitated to advance to the True Lake Realm after sensing that doing so would make him miss something. He went to tell his master, Mu Suifeng, about the strange intuition.

• The fourth round ended with Lu Ye in first place, Lan Ziyi second, and Mu Qingyun third, while the other cultivators from Return Heaven Valley Spirit Land also secured rankings.
• Lu Ye collected twenty Golden Spirit Signs and received Heavenly Mechanism's Favor, but chose not to use the signs immediately because he wanted time to consolidate his cultivation.
• After two days on Green Bamboo Peak, Lu Ye returned to Return Heaven Valley with Amber and Yiyi when his one-month stay in the Nine Provinces ended.
• Mu Qingyun prepared to use a Golden Spirit Sign to advance to the True Lake Realm but sensed that he would miss something if he advanced then.
• Mu Qingyun visited Mu Suifeng and told him that he had encountered a strange matter.

Lu Ye agreed to escort Hua Ci to Five Poisons Pool, but diverted to settle a personal grudge at Sacred Universe Spiritual Land. He attacked the stronghold jointly held by Sacred Fire Sect and Universe Sect, shaking its Protective Grand Array.

• Mu Qingyun sought Mu Suifeng's guidance about a strange matter, and Mu Suifeng told him to follow his instincts.
• Lan Ziyi examined a Golden Spirit Sign, sensed something interesting, and went to Boundless Island's Heaven's Mystery Hall.
• Hua Ci offered Lu Ye two Golden Spirit Signs as payment to escort her to Five Poisons Pool, but Lu Ye told her to keep them.
• Lu Ye checked the Ten-Part Map, chose a route past Sacred Universe Spiritual Land, and set out with Hua Ci, Amber, and Yiyi.
• Lu Ye recognized Sacred Universe Spiritual Land as the base of cultivators who had hunted him and attacked its Protective Grand Array.

Lu Ye attacked Sacred Universe Spiritual Land and slaughtered its cultivators despite the Protective Grand Array remaining intact. As reinforcements arrived through Heaven's Mystery Hall, he charged inside, leaving Tu Guanxiong horrified as their auras began to disappear.

• Tu Guanxiong and Wang Xun discussed the danger Lu Ye posed to Sacred Universe Spiritual Land after his rise to the top of the Cloud River Hegemony Ranking.
• Lu Ye broke into Sacred Universe Spiritual Land and killed cultivators while his three controlled artifacts attacked alongside him.
• Wang Xun and Tu Guanxiong tried to restrain Lu Ye, but he wounded them both as the casualties surpassed a hundred.
• Tu Guanxiong sent for reinforcements, then joined Wang Xun in another attempt to hold Lu Ye back.
• When reinforcements appeared in Heaven's Mystery Hall, Lu Ye charged inside, and their auras began vanishing amid cries and beastly howls.

Lu Ye destroyed Sacred Universe Spiritual Land, captured its Spring Spirit, and set off with Hua Ci for Five Poisons Pool. That night, his Battlefield Mark received a mysterious message from Heaven's Mystery, leaving his expression changed.

• Tu Guanxiong fled with the wounded Wang Xun as Lu Ye emerged from the ruined Heaven's Mystery Hall after defeating Sacred Universe Spiritual Land's defenders.
• Lu Ye let the fleeing cultivators go, while Yiyi collected the spoils and Hua Ci entered the Spiritual Land to treat his wounds.
• Lu Ye used a Spirit Catching Net to capture a Spring Spirit, intending to bring it back to Return Heaven Valley and expand its Spiritual Land.
• Lu Ye and Hua Ci departed for Five Poisons Pool, and news of Sacred Universe Spiritual Land's destruction spread fear among Myriad Demon Ridge cultivators.
• At night, Lu Ye's Battlefield Mark received a message that appeared to come from Heaven's Mystery, and he studied it in surprise.

Lu Ye brought Hua Ci to Five Poisons Pool so she could cultivate in its potent poisonous environment, then explored the depths and cleared away threats before leaving her there. After giving her a Ghost Face Mandrake and teasing her with a spider, he departed with Hua Ci’s frightened embrace still fresh in his mind.

• Lu Ye and Hua Ci descended into Five Poisons Pool, where Hua Ci chose a rock-wall ledge as her cultivation spot.
• Lu Ye searched the depths for threats and fought poisonous creatures, finding no Overlord-level Demonic General.
• Lu Ye gave Hua Ci a Storage Bag of spoils that included a Ghost Face Mandrake, which she said would be useful to her cultivation.
• Hua Ci stopped Lu Ye from collecting more Ghost Face Mandrakes, saying she wanted to gather them herself one day.
• Lu Ye startled Hua Ci with an Eight-Claw Spider, and she clung to him in fright before pinching his waist and letting go.
• Lu Ye said goodbye and left Five Poisons Pool, promising to visit Hua Ci again when he had time.

Lu Ye followed Heavenly Mechanism’s guidance to a Spirit Peak, where a Heaven’s Mystery Merchant Guild representative delivered four miniature Heaven’s Mystery Pillars. He learned Jujia had left the Spirit Land under a mysterious constraint, while Ying Wuji followed his own guidance toward a mountain range.

• Hua Ci secretly left Five Poisons Pool to follow an unexplained sensation after Lu Ye departed.
• Lu Ye reached a Spirit Peak and received four crystal-sealed, miniature Heaven’s Mystery Pillars from a Heaven’s Mystery Merchant Guild representative.
• Fourth Senior Brother told Lu Ye that Jujia had left the Spirit Land, and Jujia explained that he had come out for a walk.
• Jujia secretly concealed the reason he had left because an unseen danger prevented him from telling Lu Ye the truth.
• Ying Wuji followed Heavenly Mechanism’s guidance and identified a mountain range as his destination.

Ying Wuji followed a mysterious sensation to a mountain peak, where he discovered Lu Ye and Lan Ziyi, then watched several top Cloud River cultivators gather. The strongest figures of Myriad Demon Ridge appeared to surround Lu Ye, while Ying Wuji wondered what had drawn them all there.

• Ying Wuji secretly approached a motionless figure on a peak, then recognized the arriving Lan Ziyi as she attacked Lu Ye and was repelled.
• Lan Ziyi said she had followed the Heavenly Mechanism's sensation to the peak, and Lu Ye's murderous intent toward her inexplicably faded.
• Ying Wuji recognized Lu Ye and tried to leave, but Lu Ye sensed him hiding nearby.
• Lu Ye called for the hidden observers to reveal themselves, and Feng Rulie, Lü Qing, and Yang Yuan arrived.
• Ying Wuji realized that the gathered cultivators ranked first, second, fourth, fifth, and sixth in the Cloud River Hegemony, and that the Myriad Demon Ridge cultivators had surrounded Lu Ye.

Lu Ye and several top Cloud River Realm cultivators gathered on a nameless peak, where they suspected the Heavenly Mechanism had summoned them to face a shared danger. Mu Qingyun and the hidden Ying Wuji arrived, leaving the group to wonder who else would come and what task awaited them.

• Ying Wuji considered whether the gathered Myriad Demon Ridge experts could join forces to kill Lu Ye, but Lan Ziyi warned that the Heavenly Mechanism had likely summoned them for another purpose.
• Lan Ziyi and Lü Qing reasoned that the Heavenly Mechanism had gathered the cultivators to work together, and Lu Ye denied knowing why they had been called.
• Mu Qingyun arrived and greeted Lu Ye, then offered to help if he encountered trouble.
• Mu Qingyun exposed Ying Wuji, who emerged from hiding and confirmed that he had also been guided to the peak.
• Lü Qing considered the gathered cultivators’ varied skills and concluded that the Heavenly Mechanism had likely brought them together to face a dangerous shared task.