Chapter Summaries

Rujie asked Chen Changqing to help subdue the Ghost Emperor at Yulan Stronghold so he could earn merit in the Buddhist Sect Holy Son contest, and Chen Changqing agreed. At Evergreen Peak, Chen Changqing introduced Rujie to Xiaoqian, the ghost cultivator he had taken in after the monks of Thunder Sound Temple slaughtered her town.

• Rujie explained that defeating powerful ghosts at Yulan Stronghold could strengthen his bid to become the Buddhist Sect Holy Son, and asked Chen Changqing to join him against its Ghost Emperor.
• Chen Changqing agreed to help Rujie without asking for conditions, then told Little Black to wander on his own.
• Chen Changqing informed Liu Mu that he was leaving Evergreen Peak with Rujie and entrusted him with the peak's affairs, especially recruiting disciples.
• Chen Changqing brought Rujie to meet Xiaoqian, who explained that Chen Changqing had taken her in after Thunder Sound Temple's monks slaughtered everyone in her town.

After learning that Thunder Sound Temple monks had massacred a town, Chen Changqing, Rujie, and Xiaoqian traveled to Yulan Stronghold to investigate its ghosts. Xiaoqian discovered that the Yulan Ghost Emperor’s wedding was three days away and that three other Ghost Emperors would attend, leaving Rujie wary while Chen Changqing remained confident.

• Xiaoqian told Rujie that Thunder Sound Temple monks had slaughtered a town, and Chen Changqing confirmed he had heard the monks admit it.
• Chen Changqing asked Xiaoqian to accompany him and Rujie to Yulan Stronghold, and Rujie led them toward the mountains.
• After three days of travel, Chen Changqing sent Xiaoqian to infiltrate Yulan Stronghold while he and Rujie concealed their auras.
• Xiaoqian returned and reported that the Yulan Ghost Emperor would marry a resentful Profound Yin Female Ghost in three days, with three allied Ghost Emperors attending.
• Rujie suggested postponing their plans, but Chen Changqing asked whether he no longer wanted the merits from Yulan Stronghold.

Chen Changqing persuaded Rujie to wait until the Yulan Ghost Emperor’s wedding, planning to wipe out all four Ghost Emperors and the ghost cultivators at Yulan Stronghold. As the wedding began, Chen Changqing, Rujie, and Xiaoqian hid among the guests, and Rujie braced himself for the attack.

• Xiaoqian reminded Rujie that the Yulan Ghost Emperor’s wedding was three days away, giving them a chance to act before the other Ghost Emperors arrived.
• Chen Changqing proposed waiting until the wedding to kill all four Ghost Emperors and wipe out every ghost cultivator in Yulan Stronghold, and Rujie agreed.
• Three days later, the Yulan Ghost Emperor welcomed the Blood Spring Ghost Emperor, the Withered Bone Ghost Emperor, and the Hundred-Child Ghost Mother to his wedding.
• Chen Changqing, Rujie, and Xiaoqian hid in a corner of Yulan Stronghold while the wedding guests gathered.
• Rujie grew anxious at the number of Ghost Deities and Ghost Generals present, but Chen Changqing told him to leave everything to him.

Chen Changqing, Rujie, and Xiaoqian waited in hiding as the Yulan Ghost Emperor married the Profound Yin Female Ghost, planning to strike when the time was right. Just as the wedding ended, Dao Sect cultivators arrived to attack the ghosts, threatening to take the merit Rujie needed.

• Chen Changqing told Rujie and Xiaoqian to wait until the ghosts were gathered so they could defeat them all at once.
• The Profound Yin Female Ghost arrived at Yulan Stronghold, and the Yulan Ghost Emperor held the wedding ceremony with her.
• After the ceremony, the Yulan Ghost Emperor celebrated with the gathered ghosts and prepared to take his bride to the bridal chamber.
• A middle-stage Spirit Transformation Daoist and six crimson-robed Dao Sect disciples descended into the stronghold and declared they would destroy the ghosts.
• Rujie cursed the Daoists for arriving at the worst possible moment and threatening his chance to earn merit.

Chen Changqing and Rujie watched as the Dao Sect’s seven cultivators confronted the ghosts at Yulan Stronghold, unaware that four Ghost Emperors awaited them. Yulan Ghost Emperor shattered their formation and battled the azure-robed Daoist, who was steadily overwhelmed.

• Chen Changqing decided to let the Dao Sect make the first move, and Rujie realized the seven cultivators were outnumbered by four Ghost Emperors.
• Yulan Ghost Emperor led Blood Spring Ghost Emperor, Withered Bone Ghost Emperor, and Hundred-Child Ghost Mother out of the hall to confront the Dao Sect.
• The Dao Sect members discovered the four Ghost Emperors and formed the Seven Star Demon Subduing Array to block Yulan Ghost Emperor’s attack.
• Yulan Ghost Emperor released his ghost domain and broke the array, sending the six Nascent Soul Cultivators crashing to the ground.
• Yulan Ghost Emperor fought the azure-robed Daoist cultivator and steadily suppressed him.

Daoist Qingxu and six Dao Sect disciples turned the Seven Star Demon Subduing Array against the Yulan Ghost Emperor, trapping him in destructive sword storms. Chen Changqing and Rujie watched from the shadows as Daoist Qingxu invoked the Five Thunders Orthodox Method: Palm Lightning, while three other Ghost Emperors remained poised to act.

• Rujie questioned Daoist Qingxu's ability after seeing him struggle against the Yulan Ghost Emperor, but Chen Changqing urged him to wait before joining the fight.
• Daoist Qingxu and the six Dao Sect disciples formed the Seven Star Demon Subduing Array and strengthened it enough to withstand the Yulan Ghost Emperor's attacks.
• The array's seven pillars of sword light suppressed the Yulan Ghost Emperor and ground his ghostly forces into fragments, putting him in danger of being slain.
• Chen Changqing warned Rujie that the Blood Spring Ghost Emperor, Withered Bone Ghost Emperor, and Hundred-Child Ghost Mother had yet to join the battle.
• Daoist Qingxu chanted an incantation and invoked the Five Thunders Orthodox Method: Palm Lightning.

Daoist Qingxu and the six Dao Sect disciples were overwhelmed when the Blood Spring Ghost Emperor, Withered Bone Ghost Emperor, and Hundred-Child Ghost Mother joined the attack. As Chen Changqing prepared to intervene, Daoist Qingxu invoked the Dao Sect’s God Invocation Technique, raising his aura to the Tribulation Transcendence Realm.

• Daoist Qingxu’s lightning attack failed to overcome the Yulan Ghost Emperor’s ghost tide, and the Blood Spring Ghost Emperor joined the fight with a sweeping Blood Sea.
• Daoist Qingxu shielded the seven Dao Sect members with a golden barrier, but the Blood Sea, the Withered Bone Ghost Emperor’s attacks, and the Hundred-Child Ghost Mother’s cries shattered their defenses.
• The six Nascent Soul Realm disciples were injured and thrown from the battlefield, while Daoist Qingxu suffered grievous injuries fighting off the combined assault.
• Rujie urged Chen Changqing to intervene, but Daoist Qingxu began chanting to summon his patriarch’s divine presence.
• Daoist Qingxu’s aura surged to the Tribulation Transcendence Realm, and Rujie recognized the technique as the Dao Sect’s God Invocation Technique.

Daoist Qingxu invoked his ancestor’s power and nearly defeated the Four Great Ghost Emperors, but his injuries caused the technique to fail. Chen Changqing, Rujie, and Xiaoqian arrived just as Yulan Ghost Emperor moved to kill him, and Chen Changqing confronted the ghosts.

• Chen Changqing held back from intervening while Daoist Qingxu used the God Invocation Technique to raise his power to the Tribulation Transcendence level.
• Daoist Qingxu summoned a Faxiang and struck at the Four Great Ghost Emperors, breaking their combined defenses and pinning them down.
• Daoist Qingxu’s injuries made him lose control of the technique, freeing the Four Great Ghost Emperors; Yulan Ghost Emperor charged to kill him.
• Chen Changqing’s sword strike blasted Yulan Ghost Emperor backward, and Chen Changqing descended with Rujie and Xiaoqian.
• Chen Changqing identified himself as a Mount Shu disciple and declared that the ghosts would be executed, while Blood Spring Ghost Emperor mocked his cultivation.

Chen Changqing revealed the Immortal Artifact Heavenly Thunder Sword and wounded the Blood Spring Ghost Emperor, but the four Ghost Emperors surrounded him. He extracted mastery of the first four forms of the Eight Desolations Spear Technique, then summoned a figure beside him.

• Chen Changqing drew the Heavenly Thunder Sword, shocking the Four Great Ghost Emperors, Rujie, and Daoist Qingxu.
• Chen Changqing struck the Blood Spring Ghost Emperor with the Heaven-Slaying Sword Drawing Technique, splitting his blood wall and injuring him without killing him.
• The Blood Spring Ghost Emperor called the Yulan Ghost Emperor, the Withered Bone Ghost Emperor, and the Hundred-Child Ghost Mother to attack, and the four Ghost Emperors surrounded Chen Changqing.
• Xiaoqian tried to help Chen Changqing, but Rujie stopped her, while the injured Daoist Qingxu could not join the fight.
• Chen Changqing extracted mastery of the first four forms of the Eight Desolations Spear Technique and summoned a figure beside him.

Chen Changqing revealed that his incarnation matched his true body's Spirit Transformation aura and wielded a second Immortal Artifact, the Dragon-Patterned Sky-Splitting Spear. As the Four Great Ghost Emperors attacked, Chen Changqing countered their assaults with the Immortal Execution Sword Technique, grievously wounding Blood Spring Ghost Emperor.

• Chen Changqing summoned an incarnation with the same aura and combat strength as his true body, shocking the Four Great Ghost Emperors and the Dao Sect onlookers.
• The incarnation produced the Dragon-Patterned Sky-Splitting Spear, another Immortal Artifact, intensifying the Ghost Emperors' greed.
• Yulan Ghost Emperor and Blood Spring Ghost Emperor attacked Chen Changqing while Withered Bone Ghost Emperor and Hundred-Child Ghost Mother fought his incarnation.
• Chen Changqing used Spirit Slaying to destroy the black ghost blades and blood-colored skulls launched by Yulan Ghost Emperor and Blood Spring Ghost Emperor.
• Chen Changqing unleashed Immortal Slaughter, evaporating much of Blood Spring Ghost Emperor's Blood Sea and forcing him to retreat with grievous wounds.

Chen Changqing and his incarnation battled four Ghost Emperors, overwhelming them with their weapons and techniques. The Withered Bone Ghost Emperor and Yulan Ghost Emperor were slain, while the chapter ended with the Heavenly Thunder Sword and Dragon-Patterned Sky-Splitting Spear piercing Blood Spring Ghost Emperor and the Hundred-Child Ghost Mother.

• Chen Changqing's incarnation blocked the Withered Bone Ghost Emperor and Hundred-Child Ghost Mother's attacks with Black Tortoise Suppresses the Abyss.
• Chen Changqing's incarnation wounded the Withered Bone Ghost Emperor and Hundred-Child Ghost Mother with Azure Dragon Explores the Sea and Vermilion Bird Burns the Heavens.
• Chen Changqing's incarnation killed the Withered Bone Ghost Emperor with White Tiger Splits the Earth.
• Chen Changqing destroyed Yulan Ghost Emperor's Ten Thousand Ghosts Soul Devour Array and killed him with God Burial.
• Blood Spring Ghost Emperor and the Hundred-Child Ghost Mother tried to flee, but the Heavenly Thunder Sword and Dragon-Patterned Sky-Splitting Spear pierced them.

Chen Changqing killed the Four Great Ghost Emperors and every other ghost cultivator at Yulan Stronghold, earning 200,000 AFK Points. Rujie collected the battle merits and prepared to return to Heavenly Sound Temple, confident they would help him contend for the Buddhist Sect Holy Son position.

• Chen Changqing received 200,000 AFK Points after slaying the Four Great Ghost Emperors, leaving Rujie, Xiaoqian, and Daoist Qingxu stunned.
• The remaining ghost cultivators fled, but Chen Changqing trapped them in his Invincible Sword Domain and killed them all with the Heavenly Thunder Sword and Dragon-Patterned Sky-Splitting Spear.
• Rujie praised Chen Changqing's strength and suggested targeting a stronger foe, but Chen Changqing said he was not ready to fight a Tribulation Transcendence powerhouse alone.
• Rujie collected the battle merits from the Four Great Ghost Emperors' deaths with a Buddhist Sect Dharma artifact, believing they would secure him the Holy Son position.
• Rujie thanked Chen Changqing and said he had to return to Heavenly Sound Temple, parting ways with him.

Chen Changqing and Xiaoqian left Yulan Stronghold after Chen Changqing defeated the Four Great Ghost Emperors, shocking Daoist Qingxu and the Dao Sect disciples with his identity and cultivation. On their way to Shu Mountain Sacred Land, they discovered cultivators gathering near Tianyuan City and went to investigate.

• Rujie thanked Chen Changqing and departed after the ghosts were defeated and Yulan Stronghold returned to normal.
• Daoist Qingxu and the Dao Sect disciples thanked Chen Changqing, then realized he was Mount Shu's Eleventh Sequence Holy Son and the Azure Dragon Ranking's top-ranked cultivator.
• Chen Changqing collected the ghost cultivators' corpses and left with Xiaoqian, while Daoist Qingxu decided to report his strength and cultivation to the Dao Sect.
• Chen Changqing and Xiaoqian headed toward Shu Mountain Sacred Land but stopped after he noticed many cultivators gathered in a nearby town.
• At an inn, a waiter told Chen Changqing that the cultivators were traveling to Tianyuan City, a hundred li to the east, prompting Chen Changqing and Xiaoqian to investigate.

Chen Changqing and Xiaoqian learned that the chessboard-like sealed land over Tianyuan City held the Heavenly Question Chess Game, a contest for Old Man Heavenly Question’s legacy. When the game opened, they entered the sealed land and found a vast lake beneath a radiant sky.

• Chen Changqing and Xiaoqian arrived in Tianyuan City and saw a sealed land resembling a giant chessboard above it.
• At Listen-to-the-Wind Pavilion, Chen Changqing learned that the Heavenly Question Chess Game opened every three years and that its winner could claim Old Man Heavenly Question’s legacy.
• Chen Changqing asked the waiter about the opening and decided to wait three days in Tianyuan City with Xiaoqian.
• Three days later, the chessboard sealed land opened, and Chen Changqing and Xiaoqian entered it with the other cultivators.
• Chen Changqing and Xiaoqian found themselves in another world, with a vast, tranquil lake beneath a sky filled with rosy light.

Chen Changqing and Xiaoqian arrived at the Heavenly Question Chess Game, where a Title True Lord explained that each move tested a player’s Dao. Lin Yiqiu of the Chess Sword Pavilion challenged the Green-Robed Elder, but his sword-based chess path was overwhelmed, leaving Chen Changqing still watching from the sidelines.

• Chen Changqing and Xiaoqian entered the Secret Realm and saw the Green-Robed Elder presiding over the chessboard.
• The Green-Robed Elder announced that the winner of one game could obtain Old Man Heavenly Question’s inheritance, and Chen Changqing learned that the moves tested a player’s Dao Heart, comprehension, and Great Dao.
• After the Green-Robed Elder urged the gathered cultivators to step forward, Lin Yiqiu of the Chess Sword Pavilion accepted the challenge and played black.
• Lin Yiqiu’s sword intent surged with each move, but the Green-Robed Elder’s white pieces repeatedly dispersed and redirected his attacks.
• After seventy moves, the Green-Robed Elder made a small knight’s move that shattered Lin Yiqiu’s Sword Momentum and sent him flying as he questioned whether his sword and Dao were so easily defeated.

The Green-Robed Elder defeated a series of challengers at the Heavenly Question Chess Game, including Yin Jiuyou, Huiming, and the Tribulation Transcendence cultivator True Person Profound Ice. The challengers suffered backlash or withdrew, and the crowd was left intimidated by the elder’s skill.

• Yin Jiuyou of Hundred Ghost Cliff used ghostly traps and a Ten Thousand Souls Heart-Devouring Array, but the Green-Robed Elder broke the array and sent him flying with backlash.
• Huiming of Thunder Sound Temple tried to purify the game with Buddhist Dharma, but the elder’s final move shattered his pure land and left him injured.
• Chen Changqing recalled Thunder Sound Temple’s slaughter of Xiaoqian’s town and muttered disdainfully about Huiming’s manner.
• True Person Profound Ice of North Pole Palace challenged the elder with icy moves, then admitted defeat and left without apparent injury.
• Other challengers played and lost, leaving the lakeside silent as the crowd watched the calm Green-Robed Elder.

Chen Changqing watched the Heavenly Question Chess Game defeat every challenger until his martial uncle Bai Wuya, the White-Clad Spear King, arrived to take a turn. The cultivators were stunned by Bai Wuya’s immense power, and the chapter ended before he made his move.

• The Green-Robed Elder asked for another challenger after every previous attempt to solve the Heavenly Question Chess Game had failed.
• Xiaoqian asked Chen Changqing whether he would take a turn, but a familiar voice interrupted him.
• Bai Wuya appeared in white robes with a silver spear, and his overwhelming aura frightened the cultivators.
• The cultivators recognized Bai Wuya as the Half-Step Heavenly Monarch known as the White-Clad Spear King, ranked among the Nine Provinces Continent’s top fifty.
• Chen Changqing recognized Bai Wuya as his martial uncle from Mount Shu and recalled how Bai Wuya had once saved him from his enemies.
• The Green-Robed Elder stared at Bai Wuya in shock as the cultivators wondered whether he could solve the chess game.

Bai Wuya challenged the Heavenly Question Chess Game with his spear Dao but lost after 247 moves. After the crowd despaired, Chen Changqing stepped forward to try the game and introduced himself as a Mount Shu disciple, greeting Bai Wuya as his martial uncle.

• Bai Wuya and the Green-Robed Elder began a game using pieces formed from their respective laws.
• Bai Wuya’s spear Dao killing formation clashed with the elder’s network of order, but the elder broke its core on the 247th move.
• Bai Wuya calmly conceded defeat, and the crowd wondered whether the Heavenly Question Chess Game could be solved at all.
• The Green-Robed Elder prepared to end the challenge, but Chen Changqing volunteered to try.
• Chen Changqing identified himself as a disciple of Mount Shu and greeted Bai Wuya as Martial Uncle Bai, stunning the onlookers.

Chen Changqing revealed his identity as the Azure Dragon Ranking’s top genius and sat down to challenge the Heavenly Question Chess Game. Though he admitted he knew nothing about Go, he began placing black stones with a relentless focus on slaughtering every white stone.

• The cultivators recognized Chen Changqing as the Azure Dragon Ranking’s first-ranked genius and were astonished that he had reached the early Spirit Transformation Realm.
• The crowd realized Chen Changqing had called Bai Wuya Martial Uncle and concluded that Bai Wuya was connected to Mount Shu.
• The Green-Robed Elder invited Chen Changqing to attempt the Heavenly Question Chess Game, and Chen Changqing took the black stones and moved first.
• Chen Changqing admitted that he was not skilled at Go, then placed a black stone without considering any Go principles.
• Chen Changqing continued attacking with black stones, disregarding strategy and weaknesses in his formation as he aimed to eliminate every white stone.

Chen Changqing played the Heavenly Question Chess Game without understanding chess, placing black stones with a relentless will to kill. Though his pieces seemed doomed, his assault began to disrupt the Green-Robed Elder’s flawless formation.

• The spectators realized Chen Changqing genuinely did not understand chess as he placed black stones seemingly at random.
• Chen Changqing placed a black stone near the Heavenly Origin, and the Green-Robed Elder sensed it distort the board’s rules and answered with a white stone that stabilized the area.
• Chen Changqing attacked the elder’s white stones with moves that manifested as killing intent, while the elder countered with a softening path.
• Chen Changqing kept targeting connections and strongholds, ignoring territory and the survival of his own black groups as the spectators ridiculed his play.
• The Green-Robed Elder encircled and slaughtered Chen Changqing’s black stones, but noticed his own harmonious formation beginning to stagnate under the relentless assault.