Chapter Summaries

Zeng Anmin revealed the power of his Divine Artifact and defeated Mr. Xin before brutally killing Ji Hongli. The Empress was left suffering after Pan Shiba struck her with a Yin Fire Talisman and escaped.

• Zeng Anmin appeared, shielded the Empress, and demanded to know where Bai Ziqing was as Mr. Xin held the Empress's jade pendant.
• Mr. Xin attacked Zeng Anmin with his Shadow Domain, and the two clashed weapons while Ji Hongli brought Bai Ziqing out and tortured him to distract Zeng Anmin.
• The Empress charged Ji Hongli, but Pan Shiba intercepted her as Zeng Anmin unleashed his full power and killed Mr. Xin with a strike from the Short Axe.
• Zeng Anmin crushed Ji Hongli's bones and tortured him to death, then confirmed Bai Ziqing was alive.
• Pan Shiba struck the Empress with a Yin Fire Talisman and escaped, leaving her in pain.

Zeng Anmin rescued Bai Ziqing and the Empress, then learned that a Yin Fire Talisman from the Fu Sect Master was burning the Empress from within and could only be broken by someone near the Talisman Maker’s strength. As the Empress lost consciousness, Zeng Anmin realized the spiritual power Master Xu had left in his body might be strong enough to save her.

• Zeng Anmin killed the servants who witnessed him rescuing the Empress and carried her and Bai Ziqing back to Huitong Hall.
• Zeng Anmin asked Dao about the Yin Fire Talisman and learned that it would kill the Empress within an hour unless someone close to the Fu Sect Master’s strength infused spiritual power into her.
• Bai Ziqing used his icy Martial Arts Aura to ease the Empress’s pain, and she recognized Zeng Anmin as Bei after seeing him use the Eternal Night Three Slashes.
• Zeng Anmin told the Empress there was no second-rank expert in Capital City who could break the talisman, and she revealed that she was Nan and asked him to protect Wencheng and pass the throne to Gu Qingyu.
• The Empress gave Zeng Anmin her Phoenix Strategy Diagram, Mustard Seed Space necklace, and instructions for her death, then fell unconscious again.
• Bai Ziqing reminded Zeng Anmin that Master Xu had left an array on his body, and Zeng Anmin realized it might contain spiritual power strong enough to break the Fu Sect Master’s talisman.

Zeng Anmin used Master Xu’s spiritual power to clear the Empress’s talisman fire poison, but the treatment left her overwhelmed by desire and led them to a private room. Afterward, the Golden Tablet awakened in his Sea of Consciousness, guiding him to break through to fourth rank as a Sage Confucian cultivator and choose a new Martial Arts Entry.

• Zeng Anmin used his belt, tattoos, and Martial Arts Aura to channel Master Xu’s spiritual power into the Empress and destroy the black aura behind her fire poison.
• The Empress’s remaining flames vanished, but the power released from her Huiyin Acupoint made her unable to control herself, and Zeng Anmin carried her into a neighboring room.
• After the night’s encounter, Zeng Anmin found that the bizarre qi had disappeared and the six Confucian artifacts had recovered, with the Golden Tablet shining brightest.
• The Golden Tablet showed Zeng Anmin a vision of a man using Vast Righteous Qi to defeat demon soldiers, then prompted him to awaken and understand his path.
• Zeng Anmin’s Vast Righteous Qi turned dark gold as he broke through to fourth rank and chose the Extreme Confucian cultivator path.
• Zeng Anmin selected the Cross the Sea Under Camouflage Martial Arts Entry, which granted him a piece of Spirit Iron that could change its appearance.

After spending the night with Zeng Anmin, Gu Xiangnan offered him power and a place in the palace, but he said he wanted a life with her instead. She returned to the capital to address the uproar over Ji Hongli’s death, leaving Zeng Anmin with a jade pendant and a palace token while puzzling over how he had killed Prince Nan.

• Zeng Anmin discovered that Lesser Heart Scrutiny had granted him a Confucian method for planting and detonating Vast Righteous Qi like landmines.
• Gu Xiangnan woke beside Zeng Anmin and offered to bring him into the palace, share power with him, and help him control the Heavenly Dao Alliance.
• Zeng Anmin rejected her offer of power and told Gu Xiangnan he wanted to stay with her; she admitted she could not abandon her duties but promised there would be no other man.
• Bai Ziqing woke from his injuries, overheard Zeng Anmin and Gu Xiangnan, and struggled to control his body's response.
• Gu Xiangnan gave Zeng Anmin a soul-nourishing jade pendant, questioned him about Prince Nan's death, and left him a token allowing him to visit her at the palace.

Zeng Anmin suspected Duke Cao was probing Bai Ziqing for a connection to the necklace and the Night of the Blood Moon. As the two considered the evidence, they heard that Duke Cao had arrived at Huitong Hall.

• Zeng Anmin returned the jade pendant to Empress Gu Xiangnan, who left to handle the urgent political crisis.
• Empress Gu Xiangnan defended her response to Ji Hongli’s death and Prince Nan’s disappearance, then postponed the Holy Dynasty delegation’s reception.
• Bai Ziqing recovered at Huitong Hall while Zeng Anmin asked whether anyone suspicious had approached him about the necklace.
• Zeng Anmin recalled Duke Cao’s visit and realized he might have tested Bai Ziqing’s use of the Extreme Cold Domain, which could link him to the Jishui Weir incident.
• Bai Ziqing recognized that Duke Cao may have been probing him when a cry announced Duke Cao’s arrival.

Zeng Anmin and Bai Ziqing concealed their identities and explained Bai Ziqing’s injuries to Duke Cao, Jiang Chengxi. After Jiang Chengxi left, Zeng Anmin concluded that the guards’ actions on curfew night had not been aimed at him and decided to enter the palace to learn about the necklace and see Empress Gu Xiangnan.

• Zeng Anmin urged Bai Ziqing to act naturally when Duke Cao arrived with Black-Clad Guards and medicine.
• Bai Ziqing told Jiang Chengxi that studying his martial arts advice had caused him to lose control of his Martial Arts Aura.
• Bai Ziqing introduced Zeng Anmin as Wu Yanzu, an old friend from the Great Sage Dynasty, and Zeng Anmin explained why he had been out after curfew.
• Jiang Chengxi chatted with Zeng Anmin and Bai Ziqing about martial arts, then left without questioning them closely.
• Zeng Anmin told Bai Ziqing that Jiang Chengxi had shown no recognition of the petty criminals from curfew night, so his patrol had likely not been for Zeng Anmin.
• Zeng Anmin decided to enter the palace to see Empress Gu Xiangnan and investigate the necklace, while Bai Ziqing teased him about overindulging himself.

Zeng Anmin warned Gu Xiangnan that Duke Cao might rebel and revealed that the Great Ancestor’s Relic, the Void Necklace, had been stolen. He gave her a convincing fake for protection, then found Duke Cao’s memorial and concluded he was not the traitor.

• Gu Xiangnan admitted Zeng Anmin to the Imperial Study and greeted him privately with affection.
• Zeng Anmin warned Gu Xiangnan that Duke Cao might have rebelled, despite her belief in his loyalty to the Jiang Kingdom.
• Zeng Anmin told Gu Xiangnan that the Void Necklace, the Great Ancestor’s Relic, had been stolen in connection with the Eastern Cult spy investigation.
• Gu Xiangnan prepared to go to the Eastern Cult, but Zeng Anmin showed her a fake Void Necklace that could pass for the real one.
• Zeng Anmin read a memorial submitted by Duke Cao and concluded that Duke Cao was not the person they were looking for.

Gu Xiangnan deduced that Zeng Anmin was not Wu Yanzu and pressed him about his identity, but he deflected her questions and reconciled with her. After Duke Cao reported his investigation into Ji Hongli’s death, Zeng Anmin and Gu Xiangnan sparred and grew intimate before Gu Qingyu interrupted them to report that Aunt Wencheng had disappeared.

• Gu Xiangnan used the memorial’s handwriting and Zeng Anmin’s account of the diplomatic delegation to conclude that he had concealed his identity and might be Prince Nan.
• Gu Xiangnan confronted Zeng Anmin about his true face, but he soothed her by promising to reveal it when the time was right.
• Duke Cao reported that he had found no suspect in Ji Hongli’s death and asked to investigate the Eastern Cult, which Gu Xiangnan approved.
• Zeng Anmin and Gu Xiangnan sparred in the Imperial Study, then embraced and kissed on the Dragon Throne.
• Gu Qingyu interrupted them and announced that Aunt Wencheng had disappeared.

When Princess Wencheng vanished from Qianqing Palace, Zeng Anmin investigated the locked room and concluded that the person Niu Baiye had seen sleeping there was not the real princess. Wencheng suddenly returned from a pavilion, but Zeng Anmin remained suspicious because it had been empty when he passed it.

• Gu Qingyu told Gu Xiangnan that Princess Wencheng was missing, and the Empress hurried to Qianqing Palace as Zeng Anmin followed.
• At Qianqing Palace, Niu Baiye explained that he had seen Wencheng asleep and guarded her room, but she had disappeared when Gu Qingyu returned.
• Zeng Anmin inspected Wencheng’s neatly laid bed and reasoned that she could not have left during the locked-room interval, suggesting the sleeping princess had been fake.
• Before Zeng Anmin could question another witness, Princess Wencheng appeared from a pavilion and joyfully greeted Gu Xiangnan.
• Zeng Anmin noticed the pavilion had been empty when he passed it and closely examined the returning Wencheng.

After confirming Princess Wencheng was real, Zeng Anmin reasoned that someone had abducted her and left behind an illusion. Princess Wencheng then realized the Empress called Zeng Anmin “Wu Lang” and suspected he was the man her sister favored, though she was disappointed by his ordinary appearance.

• The Empress tested Princess Wencheng’s memories, then concluded she was truly Wencheng when her answers matched.
• Zeng Anmin suggested someone had abducted Wencheng and used an unknown method to create the sleeping figure Niu Baiye saw.
• Zeng Anmin proposed investigating who could create such an illusion, and the Empress praised his quick reasoning.
• Zeng Anmin invited Wencheng to seek him out if anything happened, and she began calling him Big Brother Wu.
• Wencheng heard the Empress call Zeng Anmin “Wu Lang” and realized he was likely the gentleman her sister had wanted to meet.
• Wencheng judged Zeng Anmin’s bearing favorably but was disappointed by his ordinary looks.

After Princess Wencheng questioned Zeng Anmin’s appearance, he reassured her that his face was disguised, while the Empress ordered an investigation into the palace crime. Zeng Anmin learned about the Blood Moon Grand Ceremony, then discovered the necklace was missing and suspected Duke Cao, Jiang Chengxi.

• The Empress rebuked Princess Wencheng for speaking disrespectfully to Zeng Anmin, and he told the princess his appearance was disguised to protect her sister.
• The Empress vowed to investigate the vile deed in the palace and find whoever was responsible.
• Zeng Anmin learned that the Blood Moon Grand Ceremony let the emperor contact the Eastern Cult Leader, Dongfang Cang, who had been in seclusion for 170 years.
• Zeng Anmin and the Empress discovered that the fake necklace had disappeared from the Imperial Study and connected its theft to Wencheng’s disappearance.
• Zeng Anmin reasoned that the thief must have known the necklace was in the Imperial Study, and the Empress named Duke Cao, Jiang Chengxi, as the person who had entered after it was placed there.

Zeng Anmin and the Empress investigated the theft of the Void Necklace and Princess Wencheng’s disappearance, concluding that Gu Yuqing had been possessed by the Fu Sect Master. The Empress struggled to accept the accusation and looked toward Qianqing Palace as Zeng Anmin connected Gu Yuqing to the Fu Sect’s past attacks.

• Zeng Anmin told the Empress that Gu Yuqing, not Duke Cao, had stolen the necklace, but she dismissed the idea because Gu Yuqing was a child.
• The Empress and Zeng Anmin searched Records of Strange Items and found that the Fu Sect’s Puppet Talisman could imitate a person and its Soul Hooking Talisman could seize a body.
• Zeng Anmin reasoned that Gu Yuqing had used the Puppet Talisman to fake Wencheng’s presence, then taken the necklace while the Empress was distracted by her disappearance.
• Zeng Anmin concluded that an old demon, likely the Fu Sect Master, possessed Gu Yuqing and recruited Duke Cao, Jiang Chengxi, to help him.
• Zeng Anmin linked the Fu Sect Master to Wu Wei’s words and to the short black-robed figure Pan Shiba had addressed as Master, leading the Empress to suspect Gu Yuqing was the Fu Sect Master.

Zeng Anmin arranged for Bai Ziqing to activate the altar and learned that a mysterious old man had emerged from it. As the Blood Moon Grand Ceremony began, Duke Cao publicly demanded that the Empress abdicate.

• Zeng Anmin told the Empress to summon Dongfang Cang, but learned the ritual required the essence blood of a virgin Fourth Rank Martial Artist.
• Zeng Anmin brought Bai Ziqing to the altar, where Bai Ziqing spilled his essence blood into its indentation before they left.
• A transparent old man emerged from a crack in the altar, wondered what Gu Yuqing wanted, and vanished to find her.
• Crowds gathered in the capital for the Blood Moon Grand Ceremony, and the Empress arrived with Wencheng and Gu Yuqing.
• As the altar ceremony was about to begin, Duke Cao demanded that the Empress abdicate and yield the throne to the worthy.

Duke Cao, revealed as Jiang Chengxi, led a thousand soldiers to the altar and demanded that Gu Xiangnan abdicate, accusing her of being a false emperor. He summoned an ally who arrived carrying Pan Shiba, and Zeng Anmin and the Empress recognized the newcomer as a member of the Demon Race, with the Empress identifying him as Bifang.

• Duke Cao emerged with a thousand armored soldiers and advanced toward the platform as the Empress’s guards drew their weapons.
• The Empress allowed Jiang Chengxi to approach and asked him why he had turned against her.
• Jiang Chengxi denounced Gu Xiangnan as a false emperor and demanded that she abdicate, while his soldiers echoed his call.
• The Empress offered to spare Jiang Chengxi if he revealed who was behind him and withdrew, but he refused and unleashed the pressure of a Third Rank Martial Artist.
• Jiang Chengxi called for his allies, and a crimson figure flew in carrying Pan Shiba before throwing him onto the altar platform.
• Zeng Anmin recognized the crimson figure as a Demon Race member, and the Empress identified him as Bifang.

Jiang Chengxi and Bi Fang threatened Zeng Anmin, but Zeng Anmin and the Empress summoned Dongfang Cang, who subdued the demon and exposed the plot’s apparent end. Pan Shiba’s sacrifice weakened the Capital City’s protective formation, allowing Ling Xuzi to arrive and demand the necklace, unaware that Zeng Anmin pitied him.

• Jiang Chengxi accused Zeng Anmin of using a Divine Artifact and ordered him to surrender it or face Bi Fang, while Zeng Anmin denounced Jiang Chengxi as a traitor consorting with demons.
• Zeng Anmin and the Empress called for the Old Ancestor to leave seclusion, and Dongfang Cang appeared, ordering Bi Fang to protect the Jiang Kingdom for a hundred years.
• Pan Shiba demanded the divine position his master had promised, then sacrificed himself with a talisman on the altar.
• The Empress sensed that Pan Shiba’s sacrifice had weakened the City Protection Formation, and Ling Xuzi arrived after breaking through to the Second Rank.
• Ling Xuzi demanded the necklace from the Talisman Sect and vowed to kill the Empress and Dongfang Cang, while Zeng Anmin wondered if he would regret getting the necklace.

Ling Xuzi tried to use a necklace to release the power of the Blood Moon and defeat Dongfang Cang, but Dongfang revealed that the necklace was fake. Enraged, Ling Xuzi turned to Duke Cao and demanded that Jiang Chengxi repay the help that had raised him to the Third Rank.

• Gu Yuqing used a talisman to appear beside Ling Xuzi, who insisted that Dongfang Cang could not wield his full strength because his true body was absent.
• Ling Xuzi invoked the Blood Moon ceremony and used the necklace to draw together the moon’s light and a golden radiance.
• Ling Xuzi failed to activate the necklace despite pouring more spiritual power into it, and Gu Qingyu demanded to know why he had not defeated Dongfang Cang.
• Dongfang Cang revealed that the necklace was fake and asked his opponents whether they would bind their own spiritual power or make him do it.
• Ling Xuzi lost his composure, called Dongfang Cang his former master, and told Jiang Chengxi that the time had come to prove useful.

Ling Xuzi sacrificed Jiang Chengxi to empower Dongfang Cang’s restraint, then sent the Empress, Zeng Anmin, Bai Ziqing, and Bi Fang to the Back Mountain to keep the battle away from the altar. With Bi Fang preparing to attack and the Empress urging Zeng Anmin to escape, Zeng Anmin announced he would fight under a different identity.

• Ling Xuzi seized Jiang Chengxi and sacrificed him, sending the altar’s power into Dongfang Cang and rejuvenating him.
• Ling Xuzi told Bi Fang and Gu Yuqing to kill the Empress within one incense stick, and promised Bi Fang a city and Zeng Anmin’s Divine Artifact.
• Gu Yuqing used a special talisman to teleport the Empress, Zeng Anmin, Bai Ziqing, and Bi Fang to the Back Mountain.
• Bi Fang lit an incense stick and threatened to kill the three of them before it burned down, while the Empress drew the Great Ancestor Sword and urged Zeng Anmin to flee.
• Zeng Anmin stopped the Empress from facing Bi Fang alone and declared that he would fight using a different identity.

Zeng Anmin revealed his Confucian identity and used his Vast Righteous Qi to save the Empress from the Bi Fang. He manifested a towering Confucian Dharma Aspect, leaving Bai Ziqing and the Bi Fang stunned by his Grand Confucian Realm.

• The Bi Fang attacked the Empress with a fireball, and she failed to stop it with her sword.
• Bai Ziqing tried to pull Zeng Anmin away, but Zeng Anmin shook him off and quoted the Sage.
• Zeng Anmin raised a dark-golden wall of Vast Righteous Qi that blocked the fireball and revealed his true appearance.
• The Bi Fang recognized Zeng Anmin as a Confucian Cultivator and recoiled from his power.
• Zeng Anmin summoned a towering Confucian Dharma Aspect with six artifacts, and Bai Ziqing realized he had reached the Grand Confucian Realm.

Zeng Anmin defeated and killed Bi Fang, then reunited with the Empress, who learned his identity and embraced him. Bi Fang’s final warning about the Xiangliu Demon Emperor targeting the Great Sage capital left Zeng Anmin worried for his father and the capital’s safety.

• Zeng Anmin humiliated Bi Fang, trapped its escape with a Golden Tablet Confucian attack, and let Vast Righteous Qi devour it.
• Zeng Anmin revealed himself to the Empress as her husband, and she admitted she had been frightened and embraced him.
• Bai Ziqing explained how Master Xu had helped Zeng Anmin and claimed the spiritual power he left behind had dispelled the Empress’s Yin Fire Talisman.
• Before Bi Fang died, it warned Zeng Anmin that the Xiangliu Demon Emperor had the Dragon Survey Map and planned to infiltrate the Great Sage capital.
• The Empress said Dean Shi was away at the northern border and that only her father might stop a first-rank demon, leaving Zeng Anmin staring north in concern.

During the Night of the Blood Moon, Ling Xuzi and Gu Yuqing continued the sacrifice while chaos engulfed the ancestral ceremony. Gu Yuqing confronted Princess Wencheng and summoned a wooden puppet shaped like her, leaving Die'er and Niu Baiye to defend the real princess.

• Ling Xuzi held Dongfang Cang suppressed as Gu Yuqing used the Spring's Return talisman to restore the Eastern Cult disciples' strength.
• Die'er and Niu Baiye fought off the Rebel Army to protect Princess Wencheng after Duke Cao's death.
• Gu Yuqing arrived and threatened Princess Wencheng when she called him Xiao Qingzi.
• Gu Yuqing revealed his Puppet Technique and grew a wooden block into a figure resembling Princess Wencheng.