Chapter Summaries

Zeng Anmin stopped Empress Gu Xiangnan and the Princess from killing each other in Qinghai City, then confronted them over their reckless fight. The Princess and Empress explained their reasons for being there, and Zeng Anmin led them to the City Lord's Mansion to discuss the urgent situation.

• Zeng Anmin and Zeng Shilin heard the fight erupt and hurried out to find Empress Gu Xiangnan battling the Princess.
• Gu Xiangnan and the Princess unleashed lethal attacks against each other, and Zeng Shilin's Vast Righteous Qi failed to stop them.
• Zeng Anmin activated his Time Domain, froze the scene, disarmed both women, and slapped each of them on the backside before time resumed.
• The Princess said Yuan Zhen's arrival made Qinghai City too important to admit visitors casually, while Gu Xiangnan defended her visit as a Jiang Kingdom ally.
• Zeng Anmin scolded both women and led them, Zeng Shilin, and the others toward the City Lord's Mansion for a discussion.

Empress Gu Xiangnan reunited with Zeng Anmin in Qinghai City, where they privately met while the Princess and Zeng Shilin waited outside. Afterward, Zeng Anmin revealed that he knew who was responsible for the strange snowfall, leaving the others demanding an answer.

• Gu Xiangnan claimed she had come to learn about the Mandarin Duck Army, but said she also needed to consult Zeng Anmin privately.
• The Princess left with Zeng Shilin after crushing her teacup, and Gu Xiangnan and Zeng Anmin reunited and discussed the heavy snow and the armies' dwindling supplies.
• The chapter's mock historical record described the pair's lengthy private meeting in suggestive terms, while Zeng Anmin and Gu Xiangnan departed looking satisfied.
• Zeng Anmin returned to his father, the Princess, and Xu Mingxin, who was troubled that he could neither identify nor stop the snowfall.
• Zeng Anmin announced that he knew who had caused the snowfall, and the others demanded to know who it was.

Zeng Anmin identified Shen Nian as the likely source of the blizzard and planned to end the snow while preparing for the New Emperor’s accession. Zeng Shilin’s accession edict reached the realm, publicly denouncing Rebel Xu and declaring the new Emperor’s rule, leaving Lou Yingqi stunned by the news.

• Xu Mingxin told Zeng Anmin that the blizzard had lasted two months and that his deductions could not reveal its source.
• Zeng Anmin reasoned that Shen Nian had interfered with Xu Mingxin’s formation and was helping summon the snow, while warning that Rebel Xu in the capital might act against them.
• Zeng Anmin set three priorities: ending the blizzard, preparing for the accession ceremony, and delaying the war; he promised to stop the snow within three days.
• Zeng Shilin showed Zeng Anmin an accession edict that declared the New Emperor’s reign, condemned Rebel Xu as a regicide and enemy of humanity, and ordered the realm to recognize Qinghai’s authority.
• The edict spread throughout the Great Sage Dynasty within a day, and Lou Yingqi learned that Emperor Jianhong had died and Master Xu had become a rebel.

Lou Yingqi pledged Fengqi Road’s support for Emperor Lide, while Zeng Anmin traced the blizzard to a fusion of Daoist arts and formations using Illusory Power. He set out with Zeng Shilin and Dean Shi to find the enemy, as Shen Nian learned that Zeng Anmin possessed the Illusory Power he needed.

• Lou Yingqi ordered Fengqi Road to proclaim its support for Emperor Lide and threatened to kill anyone who refused.
• Liu Shishi reported that snowfall grew lighter farther south, while Zeng Rongyu and Guanglingzi explained that only Illusory Power could fuse Daoist arts with formations.
• Zeng Anmin revealed his Illusory Power to Guanglingzi, who confirmed it could be used to locate the source of the blizzard.
• Zeng Anmin told Zeng Shilin he had found a lead, and Zeng Shilin agreed to bring Dean Shi with them to confront the Illusory Demon Lord and Shen Nian.
• At Lingyun Mountain, the Illusory Demon Lord told Shen Nian that Zeng Anmin had Illusory Power and had arrived in Qinghai City, sharpening Shen Nian’s intent to act.

Zeng Anmin and his allies broke the snow formation on the Han River, forcing Shen Nian and the Illusory Demon Lord to retreat. The snowfall ended, and Zeng Shilin ordered the armies to prepare for the Southern Mountains campaign while he and Zeng Anmin turned to the New Ruler’s Ascension Ceremony.

• Zeng Anmin arrived with Zeng Shilin, Shi Ze, and Liu Shishi to confront Shen Nian and the Illusory Demon Lord above the Han River.
• Shi Ze fought Shen Nian while Zeng Shilin countered the Illusory Demon Lord’s illusions, and Liu Shishi located the snow formation’s moving ice node beneath the river.
• Zeng Anmin dove into the Han River and shattered the Ice Crystal Core with his Short Axe, briefly glimpsing a colossal patterned object beneath it.
• The snowfall stopped and Shen Nian and the Illusory Demon Lord retreated as the formation collapsed.
• Zeng Shilin ordered the armies to reinforce their camps and investigate the Han River and Southern Mountains, then assigned the allied armies to seize the Southern Mountains while he and Zeng Anmin prepared to preside over the New Ruler’s Ascension Ceremony.

Master Xu forced Prime Minister Li Zhen to endorse Prince Wang Qi as emperor and cut off supplies to Qinghai City, then issued a proclamation branding Zeng Shilin and his allies as rebels. In response, Zeng Shilin prepared to enthrone the Crown Prince as Emperor Lide, counter Xu Huai’s accusations, and secure supplies for the army.

• Master Xu tortured Li Zhen and threatened his family until Li signed an edict enthroning Prince of Linchuan Commandery Wang Qi and condemning Zeng Shilin and Zeng Anmin as rebels.
• Master Xu ordered Li Zhen to cut off all provisions, weapons, and military pay to the Southern Campaign Army in Qinghai City.
• Zeng Anmin and Zeng Shilin read the proclamation accusing them of treason, collusion with demons, and rebellion, which carried Li Zhen’s seal and the seals of capital officials.
• Zeng Shilin ordered the Crown Prince’s ascension ceremony in Qinghai City and directed Qin Shouchang and Shi Ze to issue counter-proclamations condemning Xu Huai.
• Zeng Shilin sent Lou Tong to Fengqi Road to ask Lou Yingqi to bring provisions to Qinghai City, then declared that the Crown Prince would become Emperor Lide and that they would march against Xu Huai.

Wang Yuanzhen ascended as Emperor Lide in Qinghai, where Jiang State publicly backed his claim and Zeng Anmin’s forces prepared to campaign south against Xu Huai. Fengqi and Xiliu Roads pledged support, while other governors waited to see how the expedition fared; Zeng Anmin and the Princess set out together.

• Zeng Shilin proclaimed Xu Huai a traitor, and Wang Yuanzhen completed his ascension ceremony as Emperor Lide in Qinghai.
• Empress Gu Xiangnan sent lavish gifts and public support for Emperor Lide, and Zeng Anmin thanked her through her envoy.
• The Princess watched Zeng Anmin’s warm exchange with the envoy and crushed her Jade Thumb Ring in jealousy.
• Lou Tong returned safely to Lou Yingqi, who learned that Zeng Anmin had rescued the Lou family and tore up Xu Huai’s proclamation before pledging Fengqi Road’s support.
• An Jiuyuan declared Xiliu Road’s allegiance to Emperor Lide and ordered its forces and supplies to support the southern expedition.
• Zeng Shilin led the army’s departure toward the southern mountains, and Zeng Anmin and the Princess prepared to fight side by side.

Zeng Anmin and the allied armies fought for days to capture Lingyun Mountain, where the Red Eagle Demon King sacrificed himself to delay them. After discovering the demon’s real purpose, Zeng Anmin realized Shen Nian planned to unleash the Han River on nearly two hundred thousand troops, with the disaster less than half an hour away.

• The Princess’s Mandarin Duck Army captured four mountains in four days while Gu Xiangnan’s Jiang Kingdom army took only two.
• The allied armies repeatedly assaulted Lingyun Mountain, where the Red Eagle Demon King resisted with strength boosted by a formation that consumed eight Demon Kings.
• Shi Ze helped kill the Red Eagle Demon King, and the allied army occupied Lingyun Mountain the next day.
• Zeng Anmin found the drained corpses of eight Demon Kings and learned from Liu Shishi about the ten-day Water Urging Formation and its Profound Water Suppressing Jade.
• Zeng Anmin recognized that the jade beneath the Han River had been charging since the Snow-Breaking Formation was destroyed and that the Red Eagle Demon King had delayed the army to keep it in the valley.
• A scout reported that the Han River had receded and formed enormous whirlpools, and Liu Shishi warned that the stored water essence was about to be released.

Zeng Anmin used the Power of Space to locate the Profound Water Suppressing Jade beneath the Han River and destroyed it, stopping the Water-Urging Formation and averting a flood. The jade’s fragments released streaks of Shen Nian’s spiritual power that flew into different mountains, leaving Zeng Anmin wondering what they would do.

• Zeng Anmin decided he could locate the Profound Water Suppressing Jade and told the Princess and Gu Xiangnan to move the soldiers to higher ground.
• Gu Xiangnan insisted that Liu Shishi accompany Zeng Anmin, and he used the Power of Space to take her underwater.
• Liu Shishi used the Origin Formation Art to reveal the hidden Profound Water Suppressing Jade, and Zeng Anmin recognized it.
• Illusory Demon Lord discussed Shen Nian’s plans to use the Dragon Vein to establish a demon kingdom, but Shen Nian suddenly sensed that someone had broken his formation.
• Zeng Anmin shattered the Profound Water Suppressing Jade with his Short Axe, causing the whirlpool to vanish and the Han River to calm.
• Glowing fragments scattered from the broken jade and flew into separate mountains, and Liu Shishi identified them as Shen Nian’s spiritual power.

Master Xu agreed to work with the Dao Head after the latter offered the Grand Elder of the Sword Sect’s corpse for his plan to alter the Heavenly Dao. Father and Son Zeng returned victorious to Qinghai City, where Emperor Lide rewarded them with powerful titles, lands, and armies as they prepared to confront Xu Huai.

• Emperor Fengqian told Master Xu that he still could not sense the Dragon Vein, and Master Xu sent him back to the palace.
• The Dao Head appeared before Master Xu, offered the Sword Sect Grand Elder’s corpse for his plan, and secured Master Xu’s agreement to cooperate.
• Father and Son Zeng returned to Qinghai City with the victorious army and received a celebratory welcome from the people.
• Emperor Lide named Zeng Shilin Duke of the State and Grand Preceptor, granting him Fengqi Road, Xiliu Road, the Southern Mountains, and authority to form the Lide Three Guards.
• Emperor Lide promoted Zeng Anmin to Earl of Lide and Pioneer Great General, placed him in command of the Po Lu Guard, and rewarded the other victorious officials.
• Xiliu Road pledged its soldiers and supplies to Emperor Lide and Father and Son Zeng, who vowed to march north and defeat Xu Huai.

After the Southern Mountains became Qinghai Road, Zeng Anmin and Zeng Shilin planned their advance toward the capital and discussed how to counter Rebel Xu. Zeng Shilin nearly achieved a First Rank breakthrough but stopped himself, then ordered the realm told he had already broken through as his army prepared to march.

• Zeng Anmin told Zeng Shilin he possessed the dragon vein taken from Shen Qiu, and they discussed using it to establish a capital without first reaching the Holy Dynasty's capital.
• Zeng Anmin declared that he wanted to command all armies under heaven, and Zeng Shilin proposed announcing that Zeng Anmin had reached the First Rank.
• Zeng Anmin learned that Zeng Shilin had not yet reached the First Rank and had only gained an insight into Unity of Knowledge and Action.
• Zeng Anmin's explanation of Unity of Knowledge and Action triggered a powerful response in Zeng Shilin, who nearly broke through before stopping himself.
• Zeng Shilin ordered preparations to announce his First Rank breakthrough and march toward the capital, and the official claim stunned the Great Sage Dynasty.

Zeng Shilin and Zeng Anmin brought Yan'an Road under Emperor Lide’s command, while Master Xu prepared to settle matters with them. As their army neared the capital, Xu Huai appeared at Shouyang Flat and demanded to know where Zeng Anmin’s father was.

• Jiang Qi urged Jiang Linfeng to welcome Emperor Lide and join the campaign, but Zeng Shilin arrived and warned them that Master Xu’s decree could make them targets for a formation meant to alter the laws of heaven.
• Jiang Linfeng discovered a decree ordering him to enter the capital, and Zeng Shilin later told Zeng Anmin that his intimidation had secured Yan'an Road’s submission without bloodshed.
• Xu Huai learned that Zeng Shilin had reached First Rank and mocked him for using that power to win allies; he then stood before three Ice Coffins and declared that he and the Zengs would settle their conflict.
• The Qinghai army advanced toward the capital with Emperor Lide, the Princess, Wu Qianfeng, and Zeng Anmin, who reassured the emperor that the Dragon Vein would recognize his lineage.
• Xu Huai appeared at Shouyang Flat and overwhelmed the advancing army with his pressure before asking Zeng Anmin where his father was.

Xu Huai invoked the Dao Ancestor God’s decree to gather the Heaven and Earth Rules anew, changing the world and awakening fortune across the Nine Provinces Continent. After the darkness lifted, the newly youthful Xu Huai faced Zeng Shilin, who said he ought to thank him.

• Xu Huai confronted Zeng Anmin and unleashed a formation that raised three pillars of light from Nan Mountain, Shouyang Mountain, and the Capital City.
• Xu Huai declared that he would change the heavens and replace the moon, causing darkness to cover the Nine Provinces Continent and leaving every human with a profound sense of loss.
• The barbarian tribe’s fortune awakened, the Illusory Demon Lord recognized Xu Huai’s voice, and a colossal being stirred beneath the South Sea.
• Xu Huai thanked the Heavenly Dao, became young again, and sensed that thirty percent of the Dao Sect’s fortune had entered him.
• Zeng Anmin warned his father not to overplay his hand, and Zeng Shilin arrived to tell Xu Huai that he ought to thank him.

Zeng Shilin broke through to First Rank Establish Destiny and used the Dragon Vein to establish Xinyu as a refuge for humanity, overturning Xu Huai’s plan to monopolize destiny. Xu Huai fled after the Holy Dynasty pledged itself to Xinyu, while Gu Xiangnan considered bringing Jiang Kingdom under its protection.

• Xu Huai recognized that Zeng Shilin was still Second Rank and attacked him and the forces in the ravine with silver threads carrying Dao Sect destiny.
• Zeng Anmin freed the Princess from the silver chains, but she fainted after urging him to protect the little fat emperor.
• Zeng Shilin invoked the Unity of Knowledge and Action and broke through to First Rank Establish Destiny, stopping Xu Huai’s silver threads.
• Using a Dragon Vein, Zeng Shilin formed the Xinyu Dragon Vein Seal and declared Xinyu a refuge for humanity led by a Human Emperor.
• Wang Yuanzhen pledged the Holy Dynasty as a subordinate state of Xinyu, greatly strengthening Zeng Shilin and forcing Xu Huai to escape through a tear in space.
• Gu Xiangnan discussed temporarily submitting Jiang Kingdom to Xinyu because its National Destiny Power had weakened.

Zeng Shilin established Xinyu’s new center in Qiming City and brought the Holy Dynasty under his rule, while Gu Xiangnan arrived to submit Jiang Kingdom. Zeng Anmin reunited with Gu Xiangnan, who supported his plans for multiple marriages before revealing she was pregnant.

• Zeng Shilin told Zeng Anmin that the Holy Dynasty’s Eldest Princess would marry him and chose Two Rivers Prefecture as the foundation of the Human Emperor’s Mansion, which they named Dao Palace in Qiming City.
• Zeng Shilin gave Wang Li'er the Xi Huang Diagram as a betrothal gift and invited Bai Ziqing to serve as a Protector.
• After two months of construction, Zeng Shilin and Zeng Anmin left the Holy Dynasty’s capital for Dao Palace with Wang Li'er, Bai Ziqing, and the one hundred thousand Mandarin Duck Army soldiers.
• Gu Xiangnan arrived at Qiming City to submit Jiang Kingdom to Xinyu and sought an audience with Zeng Shilin.
• Zeng Anmin told Gu Xiangnan that he intended to marry her, Qin Wanyue, Wang Li'er, and Sai Chuxue, and Gu Xiangnan said he should have more wives.
• Gu Xiangnan told Zeng Anmin that she was already with child.

Zeng Anmin’s wedding brought Qin Wanyue, Sai Chuxue, the Princess, and Gu Xiangnan together as his wives, while Gu Xiangnan’s pregnancy secured Jiang’s submission to Xinyu. The morning after the wedding, the women clashed over the Main Wife position, and Qin Wanyue intervened before their argument became a fight.

• Gu Xiangnan declared Jiang a vassal of Xinyu, and Zeng Shilin used National Destiny Power to protect Jiang’s people while arranging for Gu Xiangnan to stay in Dao Palace until her wedding.
• Zeng Anmin considered his growing martial strength and the power of national destiny before setting out to collect Qin Wanyue, Sai Chuxue, the Princess, and Gu Xiangnan for the wedding.
• Zeng Anmin married all four women in Human Emperor Hall and brought them together in one bridal chamber.
• The next morning, Zeng Anmin struggled to recover from the night with his wives and declared that he would quit drinking.
• The Princess and Gu Xiangnan argued over seniority and the Main Wife position, citing the Princess’s Xi Huang Diagram and Gu Xiangnan’s pregnancy, until Qin Wanyue stepped between them.

Zeng Shilin appointed Qin Wanyue Holy Son’s Consort and told Zeng Anmin to seek a South Sea opportunity before confronting Xu Huai and the Sword Sect’s plans to seize the Demon Race’s fortune. After several months, the women became pregnant, Gu Xiangnan returned to Jiang, and Zeng Anmin met Dongfang Cang on his way to Dao Palace.

• Zeng Anmin brought Gu Xiangnan, Wang Li'er, Qin Wanyue, and Sai Chuxue to pay their respects to Zeng Shilin, who gave Gu Xiangnan’s father a Grand Elder appointment and granted Wang Li'er the Xi Huang Diagram.
• Zeng Shilin appointed Qin Wanyue Holy Son’s Consort and Qin Shouchang Imperial Father-in-Law, giving Qin Wanyue authority over the Holy Son’s Palace.
• The Dao Head and Xu Huai discussed joining forces to claim the Demon Race’s fortune after Xiangliu’s death, while acknowledging Xu Huai had once planned to seize the Sword Sect’s fortune too.
• Zeng Shilin told Zeng Anmin to go to the South Sea with Dongfang Cang to pursue a breakthrough, then challenge Xu Huai and the Sword Sect’s ambitions in the Myriad Demon Mountain Range.
• Over the following months, Qin Wanyue, Sai Chuxue, and Wang Li'er became pregnant, while Gu Xiangnan’s pregnancy advanced; Gu Xiangnan returned to Jiang Kingdom and informed Dongfang Cang of his appointment.
• Dongfang Cang traveled to Dao Palace, where Zeng Anmin greeted him as he arrived.

Zeng Anmin and Dongfang Cang traveled to the South Sea after Dongfang Cang was invested as Xinyu’s Grand Elder, gaining a forty-percent boost from its National Destiny. They found the sea gone and a vast abyss filled with black aura and fish corpses, and decided to investigate despite suspecting that the sealed Barbarian God had escaped.

• Zeng Shilin invested Dongfang Cang as Xinyu’s Grand Elder, and Dongfang Cang discovered that Xinyu’s National Destiny increased his combat power by forty percent.
• Zeng Anmin told Dongfang Cang that they were to travel to the South Sea, where Dongfang Cang had previously said the Barbarian God was sealed.
• After seven days of travel, Dongfang Cang and Zeng Anmin crossed Qingyun Mountain and found no barrier or sea, only a vast abyss filled with fish corpses.
• Dongfang Cang called for Kunpeng Demon Emperor but received no reply, and he and Zeng Anmin suspected the Barbarian God had broken its seal.
• Zeng Anmin sensed that the black aura in the abyss could help him break through, and Dongfang Cang agreed to descend after considering the possibility of a Longevity Elixir.

Zeng Anmin absorbed the abyss’s black mist and broke through to the Third Rank, gaining Second Rank combat power as his six Domains became laws. A new Martial Arts Entry selection appeared, leaving him to choose one of three abilities.

• Zeng Anmin touched the black mist, which surged into his Time Domain and began strengthening it while Dongfang Cang watched.
• As the black mist overwhelmed his Domains and body, Zeng Anmin tried to fuse the Domains with himself under the pressure.
• Zeng Anmin transformed into an Ancestral Dragon, completed the fusion, and broke through to the Third Rank with Second Rank combat power.
• Zeng Anmin discovered that his six Domains had become laws and considered absorbing more black mist to advance further.
• A Martial Arts Entry selection appeared, offering Prismatic Enhancement, Endless Source, and Martial God Sense.

Zeng Anmin enhanced Unyielding Martial God into Unbending Martial Ancestor, which triggered breakthroughs in both his martial and Confucian paths and forged the sword Ten Thousand Homes' Lights. After choosing a new entry and revealing his power to Dongfang Cang, he asked the elder to collect the abyss's black mist and listened as Dongfang Cang explained his understanding of spatial power.

• Zeng Anmin chose Prismatic Enhancement, and the system randomly upgraded Unyielding Martial God into Unbending Martial Ancestor, greatly enhancing his divine soul and Spiritual Power.
• Zeng Anmin's Confucian Path surged, and he fused six Confucian artifacts into the sword Ten Thousand Homes' Lights as a towering Dharma Aspect appeared.
• Zeng Anmin broke through to the Second Rank in both martial arts and the Confucian Path, then selected Refined Martial Artist from his new entries.
• Zeng Anmin's changed bearing awed Dongfang Cang, and he admitted that both of his paths had reached the Second Rank.
• Zeng Anmin asked Dongfang Cang to gather the remaining black mist; Dongfang Cang collected it in a black lotus and told him the mist might resemble what the Confucian Sage used to seal the Barbarian God.
• Dongfang Cang asked Zeng Anmin for guidance on spatial power and described how Xu Huai's Instantaneous Array used thirteen spiritual anchor points.