Chapter Summaries

Qiao Jiang's cannon shell failed to harm Zhao Cheng, whose Steel Qi both annihilated bullets and redirected the shell. Just as Qiao Jiang lost the will to resist, his cloud qi revived his fighting spirit and drove his body into an unprecedented frenzy.

• Qiao Jiang turned a city-wall cannon toward Zhao Cheng and fired, scorching his hands on the hot barrel.
• Zhao Cheng's Steel Qi accelerated and redirected the cannon shell while annihilating stray bullets, leaving Qiao Jiang convinced nothing could defeat him.
• Qiao Jiang stood dazed as the shell hurtled back toward the city tower and despair overcame him.
• Qiao Jiang's cloud qi poured into his spiritual world, breaking his despair and reminding him that armies had once slain even mighty warriors.
• Qiao Jiang vowed that Zhao Cheng could not kill everyone and entered a frenzied state that pushed his physical speed to its peak.

Qiao Jiang escaped Zhao Cheng’s explosion on Heaven's End Pass, only to be shot and killed as Zhao Cheng reached the gate tower. Zhao Cheng then urged the conscripted civilians to defect, and they turned their weapons on Great Cang’s supervising officers.

• Qiao Jiang leapt from the gate tower as Zhao Cheng’s shell exploded, then stopped his fall by lodging his short sword in a crack in the wall.
• Qiao Jiang resolved to survive and continue training troops for Liu Guangzheng, but Zhao Cheng shot him in the back of the head, killing him.
• Zhao Cheng climbed the gate tower and promised the conscripted civilians forgiveness and rewards if they joined the Heaven-Answering Army.
• Heaven-Answering Army spies among the civilians called for rebellion, and the conscripts turned their guns on the supervising officers.
• The defectors fired on Great Cang’s officers as the spies urged them to kill the regime’s forces and fight for their freedom.

Zhao Cheng’s forces took control of Heaven’s End after the conscripted laborers rebelled and the Heaven-Answering Army broke through the city gates. Sun Yuantai was captured while trying to flee, recalling his earlier dream as he was hauled away.

• Zhao Cheng’s arrangements and the laborers’ resentment sparked a rebellion across the city walls, and the conscripts overwhelmed their supervisors.
• The Heaven-Answering Army’s vanguard joined the rebels, used rockets to set the barracks by the gates ablaze, and forced Sun Yuantai’s troops to surrender or scatter.
• Lin Yi’s troops announced that Heaven’s End had fallen and promised not to kill those who surrendered.
• The Heaven-Answering Army took the gates and entered the city as Sun Yuantai’s attendants urged him to retreat.
• Zhao Cheng’s five hundred soldiers ambushed Sun Yuantai’s thousand cavalrymen, killed the survivors, and captured Sun Yuantai, who remembered his dream.

Wei Ye captured Sun Yuantai and maimed his hands, while Zhao Cheng consolidated Heaven’s End Pass and expanded into Qing Province. After seeing the society Zhao Cheng had built in the Southern Wasteland, Sun Yuantai lost faith in his convictions and ended his own life.

• Wei Ye captured Sun Yuantai, cut off the fingers of both his hands, and ordered a physician to bandage his wounds.
• Wei Ye reflected on how Zhao Cheng’s army had emerged from the Southern Wasteland and conquered Heaven’s End Pass.
• Zhao Cheng purged and reorganized Heaven’s End Pass, then advanced into Qing Province, where more than thirty cities surrendered and over half the province fell under his control.
• Sun Yuantai traveled through the Southern Wasteland, saw Zhao Cheng’s peaceful society, and concluded that his former judgment of Zhao Cheng was wrong.
• Sun Yuantai’s convictions collapsed, and he took his own life in a wooden cabin.

After conquering Qing Province, Zhao Cheng consolidated the New Nation’s rule through severe laws, mass relocations, and local militias, then sacrificed at Yuntian Mountain and advanced to a Celestial Immortal Dao Fruit. He left the story contemplating the power of future sacrifices as the sun rose over the land.

• Zhao Cheng halted territorial expansion after Qing Province fell and broke apart local powers with harsh laws enforced by Dao officials and troops.
• Local families tested Zhao Cheng’s rule by arranging two official murders, and Zhao Cheng had everyone in the village and city where they occurred executed.
• Zhao Cheng publicized the massacres, and resistance in Qing Province dwindled as the New Nation’s policies took hold.
• By the sixth month of Heaven-Answering Four, population relocations were complete and Qing Province had recruited and drilled local militiamen.
• In the ninth month, Zhao Cheng sacrificed to Yellow Heaven and the thick earth atop Yuntian Mountain, advancing to a Celestial Immortal Dao Fruit with twenty-five petals fully bloomed and the twenty-sixth halfway formed.

Liu Guangzheng oversaw the secret construction of an East Wind Missile while weighing its military power and the realm’s worsening disasters. Zhao Cheng dismissed a report about the missile, then resumed his campaign and captured twenty-two cities across Yong and Liang Provinces.

• Liu Guangzheng reasoned that Zhao Cheng’s Steel Qi was limited and that sustained missile bombardment could kill even extraordinary opponents.
• Liu Guangzheng visited Azure Cloud Palace, where Daoists were secretly assembling an East Wind Missile and producing improved firearms.
• Liu Guangzheng worried that the Daoists might one day turn the missile against Great Cang, even after Zhao Cheng was defeated.
• Zhao Cheng received a crude sketch of the missile, dismissed it, and crushed the report in his palm.
• In May of the fifth year of Heaven-Answering, Zhao Cheng split the Heaven-Answering Army and attacked Yong and Liang Provinces, capturing ten and twelve cities within half a month.

Zhao Cheng secured Qing Province and expanded his campaign into Yong and Liang Provinces while mobilizing millions of armed youths to break the influence of powerful families and spread the New Nation’s ideas. With the war in Yong and Liang over and nearly seven million youths moving through the occupied provinces, the New Nation’s momentum left the realm’s observers convinced of its future.

• Zhao Cheng used grain reserves, relay stations, and recruits from the Southern Wasteland to send two million armed youths into Qing Province to educate the people and suppress powerful families.
• As Zhao Cheng’s army captured most of Yong and Liang Provinces, the study-tour force grew to three million and helped clear destabilizing forces from the occupied territory.
• In the third month of the sixth year of Heaven-Answering, He Jie died in battle and Qi Shang killed himself after his defeat, ending the war in Yong and Liang Provinces.
• The New Nation came to occupy four of the realm’s twelve provinces, while its armed study-tour force grew to nearly seven million.
• The youths spread through Qing, Yong, and Liang Provinces, singing ballads that rallied the poor and terrified supporters of the old Cang.

Liu Guangzheng prepared to kill Zhao Cheng with East Wind Missiles as Zhao Cheng’s expanding New Nation threatened to outgrow anyone’s control. Zhao Cheng attained a Golden Immortal Dao Fruit, while a conspiracy to ambush him began unfolding.

• After Qing Province and Yong Province fell, Liu Guangzheng found that the remaining local powers rallied behind Great Cang and his industrialization and missile production accelerated.
• Liu Guangzheng calculated how many missiles he would need to kill Zhao Cheng before Zhao Cheng’s power grew further.
• In the eighth month of the sixth year of the Heaven-Answering Kingdom, Zhao Cheng performed a sacrifice to Heaven and Earth at the border of Qing Province and Yong Province.
• Zhao Cheng’s flower bloomed to thirty-six grades, withered, and formed a Golden Immortal Dao Fruit.
• A conspiracy devised to ambush and kill Zhao Cheng quietly unfolded.

Fan Qingmeng explained the Eight Aspects Demon Slaughter ritual, a method derived from the true Yi that could suppress supernatural powers and keep the Heavenly Demon from escaping. The court still needed eight powerful martial artists appointed as generals, while the five East Wind Missiles remained their real means of killing the target.

• Fan Qingmeng told Liu Guangzheng and the Human Immortals that the Eight Aspects Demon Slaughter ritual could suppress supernatural powers within its bounds.
• Fan Qingmeng explained that the true Yi was different from the Book of Changes known in the mortal world and might contain only the character “one” or have become a concept.
• Fan Qingmeng said the ritual required eight skilled martial artists granted official general titles to hold the Heavenly Demon in place.
• The Human Immortals recognized that suppressing supernatural powers would not make eight ordinary martial artists enough to kill the Heavenly Demon.
• The court relied on five East Wind Missiles, which the Daoists called Purple Firmament Divine Thunder, as its true killing move.

Liu Guangzheng sought Yang Yue as a potential divine general for Fan Qingmeng’s plan to gather eight exceptional martial artists. Yang Yue demonstrated his martial Steel Qi and explained how he had used the power of the earth to extend his life.

• Liu Guangzheng considered Yang Yue and Gu Daotian among the strongest martial artists as he assessed how to find eight divine generals.
• Liu Guangzheng visited the declining Yang residence in the Divine Capital and found Yang Yue farming in his quarters.
• Yang Yue welcomed Liu Guangzheng, who told him about Steel Qi extending three zhang.
• Yang Yue turned a bronze wine cup into mud and explained the difference between martial and Daoist Steel Qi.
• Yang Yue said he had comprehended the power of the earth at ninety, which had allowed him to live beyond his expected lifespan.

Liu Guangzheng watched Yang Yue use Steel Qi and reflected on the general’s extraordinary martial arts, long life, and rise through Great Cang’s military. Yang Yue’s past ended with him leading a hundred thousand troops to the barbarians’ royal court and forcing them to pay tribute.

• Yang Yue turned hard bronze to mud with Steel Qi, surprising Liu Guangzheng and thrilling the imperial guards who witnessed it.
• Liu Guangzheng considered how Yang Yue’s immense resources, careful upbringing, and disciplined life had helped him live long and reach the pinnacle of martial arts.
• Yang Yue left the martial world in his twenties and built his military career through battlefield merit, forming a circle of capable allies along the way.
• When the barbarians invaded and Great Cang’s frontier forces collapsed, Yang Yue led two thousand men to defeat thirty thousand and rallied fifty thousand routed soldiers to drive the enemy back.
• In his fifties, Yang Yue led a hundred thousand troops to the barbarians’ royal court and compelled them to pay tribute.

Yang Yue urged Liu Guangzheng to seek out Gu Daotian, whose extraordinary martial arts might help defeat a powerful enemy. He recalled how Gu Daotian introduced him to the possibility of Divine Transformation, a realm beyond Steel Qi that Yang Yue was only beginning to understand near the end of his life.

• Yang Yue warned Liu Guangzheng that even without divine strangeness, their enemy’s Steel Qi made him nearly impossible to defeat.
• Yang Yue proposed finding Gu Daotian, believing the peerless master would welcome a chance to fight a worthy opponent.
• Liu Guangzheng remembered Gu Daotian killing Wang An in a military camp and learned from Yang Yue that Gu Daotian had comprehended Steel Qi at twenty-four.
• Yang Yue explained Gu Daotian’s theory that martial arts could surpass Steel Qi through the transformation of the body’s divine treasury.
• Yang Yue recalled meeting Gu Daotian as a young man, receiving a breathing technique, and later hearing him describe Divine Transformation as a realm beyond ordinary martial arts.

At ninety-five, Yang Yue refused to seek out Gu Daotian and told the emperor how to approach the martial artist, prompting the Daoists to send Xuanzhenzi north. Xuanzhenzi headed for Gu Daotian’s home by the frozen North Sea, recalling their meeting in youth.

• At ninety-five, Yang Yue told the emperor he was too old for another battle and advised sending a formidable Daoist to Gu Daotian with a direct challenge.
• Liu Guangzheng informed the Daoists that Gu Daotian was alive and asked them to invite him to help destroy the demon.
• The Daoists discussed Gu Daotian’s unmatched martial prowess and agreed that his aid could improve their chances.
• Xuanzhenzi accepted the task and left the Divine Capital for the North Sea.
• As Xuanzhenzi traveled north, he recalled meeting Gu Daotian when they were both young.

Xuanzhenzi found Gu Daotian’s body frozen in a deep North Sea ravine and nearly succumbed to despair before his sword roused him. When he touched the corpse, Gu Daotian revived and regained his youth, leaving Xuanzhenzi wondering how far his martial arts had advanced.

• Xuanzhenzi crossed the North Sea ice fields and descended into a deep ravine to search for Gu Daotian.
• Xuanzhenzi found Gu Daotian frozen and apparently lifeless, then reflected on his death and nearly fell into a demonic obstruction.
• Xuanzhenzi’s sword rang and brought him back to clarity, and he decided to bury Gu Daotian in the ravine.
• Xuanzhenzi touched Gu Daotian’s body and experienced the illusion of being consumed by a volcanic eruption.
• Gu Daotian revived, and his aged body transformed into the appearance of a young man.
• Xuanzhenzi wondered whether Gu Daotian had surpassed the Martial Dao Gang Condensation realm and blazed a new path in martial arts.

Xuanzhenzi reunited with Gu Daotian, whose martial prowess and connection to the earth astonished him. After learning about the heavenly demon’s growing power and the preparations made to confront him, Gu Daotian agreed to help after examining the method.

• Gu Daotian emerged from the ice and greeted Xuanzhenzi, who recognized that his old friend’s peak had passed despite his immense Vitality.
• Gu Daotian explained how his ice-sealing art prolonged his life and brought him closer to the earth, while Xuanzhenzi realized the earth was the source of his overwhelming presence.
• Gu Daotian sensed an intense aura of death and asked Xuanzhenzi what had changed in the world.
• Xuanzhenzi told Gu Daotian that a demon from beyond the heavens had expanded his rule to one-third of the realm and grown more powerful.
• Gu Daotian judged that the demon was beyond his current ability to fight, asked what preparations had been made, and listened as Xuanzhenzi explained the plan, including the missiles and the method created by Heavenly Emperor Jun.
• Gu Daotian accepted the matter and asked to examine the method first.

Gu Daotian demonstrated his immense Steel Qi and consumed a huge amount of food, while Xuanzhenzi sensed that a killing trap was forming. Zhao Cheng toured the newly conquered provinces to consolidate his rule and build his prestige, teaching Zhao Xiang how he judged officials along the way.

• Gu Daotian blasted a three-zhang hole through thick ice with his Steel Qi, then ate more than a thousand jin of raw fish to replenish his strength.
• Xuanzhenzi considered Gu Daotian's power and suspected that his Steel Qi had not reached its full limit as a killing trap began to take shape.
• Zhao Cheng inspected the four provinces under his control, planning to root out corruption, train reserve officials, and let his exhausted troops recover before the next campaign.
• Zhao Cheng traveled through Qing Province with a visible escort, hearing cases and changing officials to make himself familiar to the people of the newly conquered provinces.
• Zhao Xiang questioned why Zhao Cheng demoted Wen County's chief official, and Zhao Cheng explained that the man avoided mistakes by suppressing useful proposals and was unfit to lead.

Zhao Cheng sensed a hidden threat and advanced to confront it, while Zhao Xiang reflected on his unusual training. On a mountain altar, a Human Immortal and two Fan Qingmengs carried out a ritual to conceal their presence from Zhao Cheng.

• Zhao Xiang considered Zhao Cheng’s lessons about imperial succession and the accumulation of governing experience.
• Zhao Cheng sensed danger and recalled intelligence about missiles secretly moved from the Divine Capital, deciding not to avoid the coming tribulation.
• Zhao Cheng ordered his party to retreat, then stepped out of the carriage and advanced toward the threat.
• A Human Immortal on a five-colored-earth altar wondered how Zhao Cheng had detected their ritual, which used two Fan Qingmengs to fill two of its eight positions.

Zhao Cheng entered a ritual-altered region and found Gu Daotian waiting at Purple Sun Temple, where the old martial artist had fused Heavenly Emperor Daoist arts into his own path. Gu Daotian claimed the changed heavens gave him an advantage, and Zhao Cheng faced him as the ritual’s pressure intensified.

• Eight Human Immortals used Great Cang’s fate to activate a ritual that changed heaven and earth across a vast area.
• Zhao Cheng walked into the ritual’s range, sensed the world growing heavier, and continued toward Purple Sun Temple while studying its changes.
• Several young wanderers entered Purple Sun Temple seeking a legendary martial art and discussed how firearms had eclipsed martial arts.
• Gu Daotian revealed himself as the source of the temple’s freezing aura and turned his attention to Zhao Cheng.
• Zhao Cheng dismissed Gu Daotian’s challenge, but Gu Daotian said the ritual’s changed heavens now strengthened him as his aura merged with them.

Zhao Cheng recognized that Gu Daotian drew upon the martial fortune of all ages to unleash the Heavenly Emperor Method, while the seven True Gang masters supporting him had been raised at a terrible cost. As Gu Daotian’s will focused on him, Zhao Cheng rescued the young people caught in the ritual, creating the first opening in the seemingly flawless trap.

• Zhao Cheng saw the martial fortune of ages gathered upon Gu Daotian and understood that Gu Daotian drew upon it rather than comprehending the Heavenly Emperor Method alone.
• Zhao Cheng recognized that six of Gu Daotian’s seven True Gang masters had been forcibly elevated and had sacrificed fifty years of lifespan for power that would last only a hundred days.
• Gu Daotian’s shifting mind overwhelmed the young people in the ruined temple, though he had focused his spirit and will on Zhao Cheng.
• Zhao Cheng swept the young people out of the courtyard and onto the road, sparing them despite the deadly confrontation.
• Zhao Cheng’s movement disturbed his sealed stillness, and the change meant Gu Daotian’s trap was no longer flawless.

Gu Daotian and Zhao Cheng clashed in a battle that joined Gu Daotian’s martial force with the power of heaven and earth against Zhao Cheng’s sword, forged from the spirit of the people. As Gu Daotian broke through toward a new realm of martial arts, Zhao Cheng chose to face the gathering tribulation rather than evade it.

• Gu Daotian seized the moment and led seven experts in a formation that united heaven, earth, Dao, and martial arts to empower his attack.
• Zhao Cheng drew his reforged sword and swept it through the rain, wielding the gathered spirit of the people against Heaven.
• The young people outside the Daoist temple awoke to the thunder and recognized Gu Daotian, while the unnatural storm and battle shook the surrounding earth.
• Gu Daotian used a seal inspired by the Heavenly Emperor Method and glimpsed a new beginning beyond True Steel Qi.
• Zhao Cheng sensed Gu Daotian’s transformation and resolved to confront the accumulating tribulation instead of hiding or fleeing.