Chapter Summaries

As the Imperial Tomb returned to Great Qian, a heavenly lightning bolt struck Li Shun and Li Qing, reducing them to ash. Sun Chengyou left for the Sacred Capital to ask the Grand Arbiter why it happened, while Fang Xun remained in East Mountain Town awaiting further word.

• Li Shun watched the Imperial Tomb dissolve as the human effigies rose into the sky and its world gave way to Great Qian.
• A sudden tribulation struck Li Shun; Li Qing leaped in front of him, but the lightning killed both brothers and destroyed their courtyard.
• Fang Xun and Sun Chengyou examined the scorched site and concluded the lightning had arisen naturally, leaving them to wonder whether it targeted Li Shun or the Mu Clan bloodline.
• Sun Chengyou forbade speculation about the imperial bloodline and flew to the Sacred Capital to question the Grand Arbiter of the Heaven Oversight Bureau.
• Fang Xun stayed behind as news of Li Shun's death spread and heightened anxiety throughout the commandery.

Li Shun learned that Imperial Tomb Heaven’s return had carried its old judgment against him into Mystic Yellow Heaven, leaving him at risk of heavenly punishment for evading the Lifespan-Seizing Shadow. Li Qing explained how Li Shun could avoid being judged defiant, then revealed that extending lifespan with gold and silver was also an act of defiance against heaven.

• Fang Xun heard Sun Chengyou declare that the lightning strike had come from an inherited error, not the imperial clan’s bloodline, and learned that Li Qing had tried to shield Li Shun.
• On the second reflection, Li Shun realized the lightning would descend when Imperial Tomb Heaven returned and went to the sealed grounds to question Elder Mu, who denied that the Mu Clan bloodline incurred heavenly punishment.
• Li Shun reasoned that Imperial Tomb Heaven’s old judgment against him had resurfaced because he had used the Empty Boat, Self-Erasure method to evade the Lifespan-Seizing Shadow.
• Li Shun confessed the coming tribulation to Li Qing, who identified it as the Tribulation of Law Discord and explained that the local judgment had followed Li Shun into Mystic Yellow Heaven.
• Li Qing told Li Shun that he could avoid being judged defiant by facing the Lifespan-Seizing Shadow when Heaven’s Lifespan Demand came, and said that extending lifespan with gold and silver was also defiance against heaven.

Li Qing explained how cultivators’ use of gold and silver to avert disaster accumulated karmic burdens that could trigger the world-wide Tribulation of Law Discord. Li Shun defeated his Lifespan-Seizing Shadow, then, as Imperial Tomb Heaven rejoined Mystic Yellow Heaven without heavenly punishment, drew vast winds into his body.

• Li Qing told Li Shun that Gold-and-Silver Calamity Transformation had accumulated karmic burdens and could bring the Tribulation of Law Discord upon all living beings.
• Li Shun revealed himself and sensed the approaching Lifespan-Seizing Shadow more clearly, realizing his Primordial Ten Blessings practice had sharpened his perception of Heaven and Earth.
• Li Shun used the Sage’s words to slow and destroy the shadow, suppressing his second lifespan demand.
• When Imperial Tomb Heaven rejoined Mystic Yellow Heaven at noon, no heavenly punishment descended, and the death qi in the tomb was swept away by incoming vitality.
• Li Shun began chanting as ten-thousand-mile winds poured from the shattered firmament into his body.

Li Shun used Azure Wood Invocation and drew in more life force than his body could withstand, causing him to explode. After time rewound, he began a third Reflection with a plan to avoid the Tribulation of Law Discord, while leaving open whether Li Qing should learn the invocation.

• Li Shun chanted Azure Wood Invocation, but the life force overwhelmed his frail body and made him burst apart.
• Sun Chengyou arrested Li Qing, then stopped his torture after learning that Li Qing's master was an old man surnamed Wei.
• Sun Chengyou concealed Li Qing's connection to the Witch God Cult and explained that its followers were remnants of Great Xiang who resisted the court.
• After the day ended, Threefold Self-Reflection rewound time, and Li Shun began his third Reflection.
• Li Shun considered teaching Azure Wood Invocation to Li Qing but decided to wait, then avoided the Tribulation of Law Discord and waited out the upheaval.

After Imperial Tomb Heaven submitted, Fang Xun managed the settlement of refugees from Langya Commandery and uncovered an extortion scheme that he suspected was arranged by Yin Fengshuo. Meanwhile, Li Shun received a startling letter from faraway lands pleading for help.

• Sun Chengyou renamed Imperial Tomb Commandery Old Tomb as its people returned to Great Qian.
• Fang Xun learned that an Earth-Sinking Calamity had devastated Langya Commandery and ordered the refugees to be carefully registered.
• A farmer later identified as Brother Duan confronted Fang Xun over officials extorting refugees, and Fang Xun promised an investigation.
• Fang Xun discovered that an unknown instigator had persuaded the bailiffs to extort migrants and suspected Yin Fengshuo was behind it.
• Li Qing delivered Li Shun a letter that began, "Cripple, save me!"

Li Shun read a letter describing how Feng Guan’s marriage ended in tragedy and a prison escape led to a death sentence. Though Li Qing questioned the justice of Feng Guan’s punishment, Li Shun decided he had to save him, while insisting they prepare carefully.

• Li Shun explained that someone had once broken his leg in Cold Mountain County, but the Twelve Longevity Method had healed it.
• Li Shun learned from Feng Guan’s letter that Feng Guan’s new wife had secretly loved another man, who attacked Feng Guan before the couple fled and drowned themselves in a river.
• The woman’s family accused Feng Guan of causing the deaths, and the Yunguan County magistrate sentenced him to prison and stripped him of his Public Servant rank.
• Feng Guan joined a prison escape, was recaptured, and received a death sentence with additional punishments.
• Li Qing questioned the magistrate’s rulings, but Li Shun said the first case allowed competing interpretations and Feng Guan had brought the later punishment upon himself by joining the escape.
• Li Shun decided to save Feng Guan and said they first needed to make every possible preparation.

Li Shun decided to rescue Feng Guan despite suspecting the plea was a trap, and secured Duan Jiuzhang’s help for the dangerous journey. The group prepared to depart for Yunguan County that day, with Li Shun asking Fang Xun for Moonlit Whites.

• Li Shun told Li Qing that Feng Guan might have been lured into danger to draw him out, and Li Qing insisted on accompanying him.
• Fang Xun reported to Sun Chengyou after dealing with the corrupt runners, while Duan Jiuzhang warned him to prepare for millions of refugees entering the territory.
• Li Shun came to the government office and explained Feng Guan’s plea for help, then asked his elders for protection on the rescue mission.
• Duan Jiuzhang agreed to accompany Li Shun to Yunguan County, and Li Shun chose to leave that day.
• Li Shun asked Fang Xun to lend him several Moonlit Whites for the journey to Cloud Passage.

Fang Xun learned that a major Hundred Schools undertaking was already fueling open and covert competition, then reunited with his nephew Zhang Han, whose arrival had been arranged by the newly appointed governor Yin Fengshuo. Yin warned Fang Xun that visiting him could be seen as currying favor, and Fang Xun left suspecting the encounter was a deliberate trap.

• Duan Jiuzhang left refugees in Sun Chengyou's care and rode toward Yunguan County with Li Shun and Li Qing; Sun warned that the county magistrate had ties to the Right Chancellor's lineage.
• Sun Chengyou told Fang Xun that the Hundred Schools would select candidates for an undertaking two years away, with successful participants gaining the potential to enter the Creation Realm and rise within their schools.
• Zhang Han arrived seeking Fang Xun after his mother, Fang Yao, died, and explained that Lord Yin had given him a ride in his flying carriage.
• Fang Xun realized Yin Fengshuo's help might not have been accidental and visited the governor's residence with Zheng Zhi.
• Yin Fengshuo reprimanded Fang Xun for visiting and warned that others might accuse him of currying favor; Fang Xun left, concluding that the accusation would have been unavoidable either way.

Angry Cuttlefish publicly accused He Shou Yue Manchi of repeatedly plagiarizing his work, condemned him for dismissing the similarities as “overlap,” and announced he would publish the accusation despite possible consequences. He ended by saying he would not update that day and was unsure whether he would continue afterward.

• Angry Cuttlefish recalled tolerating similarities between his work and He Shou Yue Manchi’s earlier novels because he believed they were borrowing and had assumed their success came from their own skill.
• Angry Cuttlefish compared Azure Sun Immortal Sect’s first chapter with Sword Emerges from Great Tang and said its Taoist acolyte, talisman water, pun-based name, sect slogan, disciple-taking, blame-taking, and escape scenes closely copied the earlier novel.
• Angry Cuttlefish described how readers condemned Azure Sun Immortal Sect while He Shou Yue Manchi’s management team controlled the comments, and said he had initially responded with restraint.
• After seeing screenshots from He Shou Yue Manchi’s WeChat group, Angry Cuttlefish accused him of plagiarizing across Chief True Disciple, First Sage, and Azure Sun Immortal Sect, and rejected his explanation of “overlap.”
• Angry Cuttlefish said he would publish his accusation for himself and his readers despite the risk of attacks or losing his livelihood on Qidian.
• Angry Cuttlefish announced that he would not update that day and that future updates would depend on fate.

The author said the team fight had temporarily ended and reflected on the support he received. He apologized for threatening to stop updating and announced that Master of Square Inch would resume that night.

• The author concluded that the team fight was temporarily over and said the support came because justice lived in people's hearts.
• He thanked the friends who had supported him and urged them to remain patient for any future conflict.
• The author apologized for saying he would stop updating and said he needed to be responsible to his readers and himself.
• He announced that Master of Square Inch would resume updates that day, with three chapters at nine that night.
• The author said his inner demons were gone and that he would hide his edge and wait for the right time to strike again.

Li Shun, Li Qing, and Duan Jiuzhang traveled into Jiuyi Commandery, where they learned about the beloved former governor Ge Linfeng and visited his shrine. As Li Shun looked at Ge Linfeng’s statue, he sensed that the man might still exist in some form, and Square Inch thundered within his sea of consciousness.

• Li Shun and his companions crossed into the hot Southern Blazing Heaven and rested in Blazing Fire County, where Duan Jiuzhang explained the region’s climate and customs.
• The group saw a procession honoring Ge Linfeng, and Duan Jiuzhang described how the former governor had served Jiuyi for two hundred years and earned the people’s lasting devotion.
• Li Shun noticed criticism of Ge Linfeng’s successor in the shrine’s inscription, while Duan Jiuzhang acknowledged that few officials could match the late governor.
• After the townspeople finished paying their respects, Duan Jiuzhang, Li Shun, and Li Qing offered incense at Ge Linfeng’s shrine.
• Li Shun met the statue’s compassionate gaze, sensed that Ge Linfeng had not truly died, and heard Square Inch rumble within his sea of consciousness.

Li Shun drew a tiny strand of Heaven-and-Earth Mystic Yellow Qi from Ge Gong’s statue, triggering Heaven and Earth’s judgment and revealing Duan Jiuzhang as a Celestial Phenomenon Realm expert. Duan Jiuzhang identified Li Shun as an Outworld Heavenly Demon and killed both Li brothers, after which the thunderclouds dispersed.

• Li Shun saw the Heaven-and-Earth Mystic Yellow Qi surrounding Ge Gong’s statue and drew a tiny strand toward Square Inch Space.
• The statue blazed with golden light as Heaven and Earth unleashed a devastating tribulation against Li Shun.
• Duan Jiuzhang called Li Shun an Outworld Heavenly Demon and revealed his Celestial Phenomenon Realm cultivation.
• Li Qing tried to protect Li Shun, insisting that Li Shun was his brother, and awakened his Sword Dao.
• Duan Jiuzhang crushed Li Shun and Li Qing beneath his phantom millstone, and the thunderclouds dispersed.

At the Heaven-Watching Tower, a little girl learned that an Outworld Heavenly Demon had appeared in Great Qian and set out to investigate. Meanwhile, Li Shun’s Heaven-and-Earth Mystic Yellow Qi began transforming Square Inch Space and revealed new insight into Three Reflections Upon Myself.

• The little girl woke when the old Daoist reported an Outworld Heavenly Demon, then identified a flashing red point on the map of Great Qian.
• The little girl claimed the Great Heaven-Monitoring Mirror might be malfunctioning, but agreed to leave and investigate; the old man examined images from Blazing Fire County and identified Li Shun.
• Fang Xun lost himself in thought in his study, while Li Shun’s Heaven-and-Earth Mystic Yellow Qi expanded Square Inch Space and pushed into the Threefold Self-Reflection Stone Statue’s domain.
• Li Shun received information about Three Reflections Upon Myself and realized that “three” meant many reflections rather than exactly three.

Li Shun absorbed Chi’s knowledge of Threefold Self-Reflection through the mystic yellow qi, then considered the danger of being identified as an Outworld Heavenly Demon. In Blazing Fire County, the Grand Arbiter searched for an Outworld Heavenly Demon but accepted Duan Jiuzhang’s denial and left, believing the Great Heaven-Monitoring Mirror was broken.

• Li Shun learned the rules and methods of Threefold Self-Reflection, along with Chi’s memories and experience, until the mystic yellow qi ran out.
• Li Shun reflected that the mystic yellow qi could expand the Square Inch Space and let him absorb the Sage puppets’ abilities, but its world had attacked him for stealing it.
• Li Shun worried that Great Qian’s hostility toward Outworld Heavenly Demons could endanger him, while deciding that Li Qing was worthy of his trust.
• The Grand Arbiter arrived at the Ge Gong Shrine and asked Duan Jiuzhang whether anything unusual had happened in Blazing Fire County.
• Duan Jiuzhang denied seeing anything unusual, and the Grand Arbiter concluded that the Great Heaven-Monitoring Mirror was broken before promising him a longevity pill and departing.
• Duan Jiuzhang’s pleased expression faded after the Grand Arbiter left, and he muttered about the longevity pill.

During the second reflection, Li Shun discovered that the Heaven-and-Earth Mystic Yellow Qi had changed the Square Inch Space in a way that Threefold Self-Reflection could not rewind. The Grand Arbiter noticed the missing qi and secretly traveled to Blazing Fire County, where she encountered Duan Jiuzhang and learned why he was there.

• Li Shun found that the Square Inch Space retained changes caused by the Heaven-and-Earth Mystic Yellow Qi after time rewound.
• The Great Heaven-Monitoring Mirror showed the Grand Arbiter a black speck and revealed that some Heaven-and-Earth Mystic Yellow Qi had disappeared.
• The Grand Arbiter disguised Watermelon as herself and secretly flew to Blazing Fire County.
• Li Shun noticed the Grand Arbiter among the Ge Gong mourning procession and memorized her appearance as Duan Jiuzhang went to meet her.
• The Grand Arbiter told Duan Jiuzhang she had come to find someone, then asked why he was in Blazing Fire County and heard his explanation.

Li Shun tried to take Mystic Yellow Qi from Lord Ge’s statue, but the guarded statue resisted and the Great Minister of Life caught and restrained him. Duan Jiuzhang established that Li Shun could not have committed the earlier theft, and the group accepted that his actions at the shrine were a misunderstanding.

• Li Shun saw Mystic Yellow Qi around Lord Ge’s statue and decided to try to take a wisp, but the statue resisted his divine sense and released divine light as thunderclouds gathered.
• The Great Minister of Life flew in, bound Li Shun, and accused him of stealing Mystic Yellow Qi; Duan Jiuzhang stopped Li Qing from intervening.
• Duan Jiuzhang argued that Li Shun had been with their group far outside the city before dawn, when the theft occurred, and could not have been the thief.
• After finding no trace of Mystic Yellow Qi on Li Shun, the Great Minister of Life released him, and Li Shun explained that he had only seen the qi and become absorbed in it.
• Duan Jiuzhang and the Great Minister of Life accepted that Li Shun’s imperial bloodline may have let him see the Mystic Yellow Qi and that the incident was a misunderstanding.

Li Shun learned why Heaven-and-Earth Mystic Yellow Qi gathered around Ge Gong’s statue and why its disappearance could signal an Outworld Heavenly Demon. The Grand Arbiter hurried back to the capital to report the possibility, while Duan Jiuzhang continued his journey with Li Shun and Li Qing, only to be met by his son.

• The Grand Arbiter explained that Heaven-and-Earth Mystic Yellow Qi came from the primal essence of creation and the merit of people, and Li Shun realized that revered figures like Ge Gong could gather it.
• The Grand Arbiter said the Heaven Oversight Bureau had found no trace of the missing qi, and Duan Jiuzhang suggested that an Outworld Heavenly Demon might have taken it beyond Great Qian.
• Duan Jiuzhang urged the Grand Arbiter to report the suspected demon to the emperor, and she reluctantly flew back to the capital.
• Duan Jiuzhang dismissed Li Shun and Li Qing’s concern and continued their journey after leaving Blazing Fire County.
• Duan Jiuzhang’s son caught up with the group, and Duan Jiuzhang questioned why he had left his regional duties.

Duan Jiuzhang rebuked his son, the governor of Jiuyi Commandery, for neglecting his duties, then explained to Li Shun why lasting devotion to the people mattered more than matching Ge Linfeng’s achievements. As Duan Jiuzhang, Li Shun, and Li Qing reached Yunguan County, a robber confronted them, but time reversed before Duan Jiuzhang could act.

• The governor of Jiuyi Commandery arrived to pay respects to the Grand Minister of Life, and Duan Jiuzhang scolded him for abandoning his duties to curry favor.
• Duan Jiuzhang urged his son to govern diligently and love the people, then rode away with Li Shun and Li Qing.
• Duan Jiuzhang told Li Shun that Ge Linfeng had served Jiuyi for more than two hundred years without changing his original aspiration, and warned that his son must remain committed to his post.
• Li Shun praised Duan Jiuzhang, who replied that he could not compare with Ge Linfeng.
• The three men entered Yunguan County, where a figure descended to rob them, but time reversed as Duan Jiuzhang prepared to intervene.

Li Shun tested the third reflection of Threefold Self-Reflection, then continued toward Yunguan County with Duan Jiuzhang and Li Qing. There, they discovered a famine caused by a strange blight that turned the county’s crops to ash, and Duan Jiuzhang connected the events to Li Shun’s brother.

• Li Shun activated the third reflection for the first time, but cracks spread across the statue, so two Cold Mountain Venerables repaired it.
• The three left Blazing Fire County and entered Yunguan County, where a burly man tried to rob them for food to save his starving mother.
• The man explained that crops across Yunguan County had withered, grain prices had soared, and the strange disease had spread from wheat to other crops and trees.
• Duan Jiuzhang touched a withered crop, causing it to turn to ash as shrill cries filled the air and the surrounding crops crumbled.
• Duan Jiuzhang suppressed the bizarre sounds and said the strange happenings in Yunguan County seemed connected to Li Shun’s brother.

Duan Jiuzhang revealed that Yunguan County was suffering the Owl God Seizing Food tribulation, which was corrupting its farmland as a cultivator sought to break through to the Creation Realm. After explaining that the court would not intervene, he prepared to confront the cultivator himself.

• Li Shun inspected black crystals beneath the fields and recognized their deathly stillness and malice.
• Duan Jiuzhang purified the corrupted soil with the Agricultural School’s Way of Growth, but the land remained unable to grow grain for at least three years.
• The black crystals quickly returned, and Duan Jiuzhang identified the calamity as the Owl God Seizing Food tribulation caused by a Celestial Phenomenon Realm cultivator.
• Duan Jiuzhang explained that the court would leave the tribulation alone rather than risk the cultivator’s breakthrough and the destruction that might follow.
• The burly man grew furious over the court’s disregard for Yunguan County’s people, so Duan Jiuzhang knocked him unconscious and said he would erase his memories.
• Duan Jiuzhang told Li Shun and Li Qing to find food, then set out to meet the cultivator undergoing tribulation.