Chapter Summaries

Sword Lord Yuan and the Dao-Seeking Hall elders discussed a mysterious connection to a remarkable disciple from the distant future. In the Primordial Era, Lu Qing sensed that the first Human Emperor was about to attain the Dao, within seven days.

• Sword Lord Yuan told Zhong Shaoxuan that the Ancestor Cloud Talisman had revealed a remarkable Master of the Dao-Seeking Hall in later generations.
• The Dao-Seeking Hall elders discussed the distant future and the current disputes over the Dao-Seeking Mandate, while noting that Zhuang Xu had gone to investigate the Human Path.
• Lu Qing sensed the thread of Providential Karmic Affinity linking him to the Dao-Seeking Hall and set it aside, deciding not to open the hall in the Primordial Era.
• Lu Qing discerned that the Human Emperor had attained the Dao and saw signs of the coming upheaval in the heavens and the River of Time.
• Lu Qing estimated that the first Humanity Human Emperor would attain the Dao within seven days.

Lu Qing took a rare break from cultivation, traveling to Qianli Lake to buy local wine and spiritual dishes before enjoying them at dusk outside his Daoist temple. As turmoil shook the Providence of the Human Path, he emptied his mind and found a new kind of stillness in the enduring world around him.

• Lu Qing went to Qianli Lake and bought its famed wine, A Day of Spring at Qianli Lake, along with the region’s signature spiritual dishes.
• Lu Qing carried the food and wine back up the mountain and sat at the stone table outside his Daoist temple as dusk fell.
• Lu Qing ate and drank while taking in the sunset and distant mountains, feeling unusually relaxed and content.
• Lu Qing set aside cultivation and thoughts of the raging Providence of the Human Path, entering a state of stillness as he contemplated heaven and earth’s quiet endurance.

Lu Qing watched the Six Paths’ providence surge as Wang Longxiang approached the Dao and the Human Path prepared for the rise of its first Human Emperor, Ming Zun. Amid thunder and storms, golden light filled the Nine Heavens, and Lu Qing recognized that the struggle to obstruct the Human Emperor would unfold through opposing providence rather than open combat.

• Lu Qing observed the restless providence of the Six Paths and sensed that a world-shaking moment was approaching.
• Cultivators across the realms watched Wang Longxiang’s rising Humanity Providence, with some hoping he would attain the Dao and others wishing to stop him.
• Rivals and observers concluded that Wang Longxiang’s Destiny Pattern, power, and the established grand trend made blocking his ascension difficult.
• A storm swept across the world, and golden light suddenly illuminated the Nine Heavens and the lands below.
• Lu Qing identified the moment as Wang Longxiang attaining the Dao as Ming Zun, the Human Path’s first Human Emperor.
• Lu Qing understood that opposition to the Human Emperor’s plans would take the form of clashing providence between the Six Paths.

Lu Qing watched a white-robed Human Emperor attain the Dao amid a heaven-shaking golden phenomenon and concealed his own traces from the man’s scrutiny. As the Human Emperor reflected on the limits of his understanding, Lu Qing sensed someone crossing the River of Time toward the past.

• Lu Qing considered how Humanity Providence could taint heaven and earth’s Dao arts and surveyed the ancient, chaotic Demonic Path.
• A golden Divine Bridge appeared across the sky as a white-robed Human Emperor attained the Dao, accompanied by sacred phenomena.
• Lu Qing used his Divine Sense to conceal Heavenly Secrets while the Human Emperor surveyed heaven and earth.
• The Human Emperor acknowledged that attaining the Dao had not let him see or understand everything in heaven and earth.
• Lu Qing sensed waves in the River of Time and realized someone was crossing through time to arrive.

A mysterious Dao Ruler crossed the Long River of Time and attacked the Human Emperor Ming Zun as he pursued enlightenment. Lu Qing recognized the treasure and sensed that its aura was unnaturally sinister as it struck.

• Lu Qing sensed a future powerhouse crossing time to interfere with the Human Emperor's path to enlightenment and concealed his own aura.
• The Dao Ruler emerged from the Long River of Time, and Lu Qing recognized it as a rare treasure capable of disrupting karmic threads and overturning cause and effect.
• Powerhouses across the world noticed the disturbance, including an old Daoist on Immortal Mountain and a distant voice among the stars.
• The Dao Ruler crossed into the age of the Human Path and charged toward the Human Emperor Ming Zun with overwhelming Great Dao pressure.
• Lu Qing sensed that the Dao Ruler's aura carried an unusually dense, icy, and sinister quality.

Lu Qing considered the cause behind the Dao Ruler’s attack on Human Emperor Ming Zun as their Dharma Combat shook the River of Time and scrambled the era’s Heavenly Secrets. The disturbance reached beings in distant eras, who wondered what ancient conflict had erupted.

• Lu Qing sensed resentment and Killing Intent around the Dao Ruler, then wondered whether its karmic history was connected to the Ancient Demon Sect and why it had attacked the first Human Emperor.
• Lu Qing calculated the Heavenly Secrets but found too few clues to uncover the Cause and Effect behind the attack.
• Human Emperor Ming Zun and the Dao Ruler’s Supreme Treasures clashed, stirring the Power of Time and throwing the era’s Heavenly Secrets into chaos.
• Powerhouses of the Ninth Heaven used the resulting confusion to conceal their intentions and set pieces in motion.
• The Dharma Combat’s fluctuations reached distant eras, awakening a Heavenly Spirit and drawing the attention of ancient watchers who wondered what was stirring the River of Time.

Lu Qing studied the Dao Ruler’s Profound Light while the Human Emperor fought it, seeking to understand how it crossed through time. He withdrew before probing the Demon Sect’s dangerous Cause and Effect too deeply, then used what he had seen to deepen his insight into Time Way.

• Lu Qing sensed that the Human Emperor had attained the Dao and recognized that the Dao Ruler’s arrival had drawn the attention of powerful figures away from him.
• Lu Qing examined the Dao Ruler’s Profound Light and inferred that it held the secret to traveling through time with little backlash.
• Lu Qing connected the Dao Ruler’s ancient Resentful Baleful Qi to the Ancient Demon Sect and suspected its enmity with the Human Emperor came from the Primordial Era.
• Lu Qing deduced some of the Dao Ruler’s methods of time travel, then stopped investigating to avoid provoking the Demon Sect’s dangerous Cause and Effect.
• Lu Qing entered a vision of Chaos and watched Temporal Light and Shadow unfold, unifying and refining the time-related spells he had previously comprehended.

Lu Qing witnessed the Primordial Era’s struggle over the Human Path and reflected on the Profound Heaven Dao Sect’s ancient origins. As his presence faded from the era, a tremendous force of time and reincarnation appeared, drawing the powerhouses’ attention away from the battle.

• The Dao Ruler attacked Ming Zun, while subtle changes in its spiritual treasure-light went unnoticed and time ripples hindered several figures from intervening.
• Lu Qing withdrew his gaze from the battle and sensed that his time in the Primordial Era was ending.
• Lu Qing considered how the Dao differed across Great Eras and sensed a distant connection to the Profound Heaven Dao Sect.
• Lu Qing recalled the founding Ancestor’s arrival from Beyond the Heavens and the establishment of the Profound Heaven lineage on Profound Abyss Mountain.
• Lu Qing dispersed into the mountains as time rippled sharply, and a phantom of the Nine-Nether and Reincarnation World appeared before the gathered powerhouses.

The upheaval in Nine-Nether Reincarnation drew the attention of ancient beings, who debated whether its future Lord would arise in another age and beyond Nine-Nether. A Crow suggested setting out to explore beyond Nine-Nether, while another awakened being in a blackwood coffin shattered visions of the Heavenly Secrets.

• The Heavenly Secrets grew chaotic after Nine-Nether stirred, and powerful figures tried to glimpse the Destiny behind the disturbance.
• Ancient Reincarnation beings sensed the upheaval and wondered who could command Nine-Nether, while recognizing that the Heavenly Mandate would not fall in the present age.
• The Reincarnation beings reasoned that the future Lord of Nine-Nether might come from beyond Nine-Nether, where a different path to the Dao of Reincarnation was possible.
• A Crow proposed that its fellow Daoists be the first to venture beyond Nine-Nether, then looked into the still water as gray mist rose in its pupils.
• A being in a blackwood coffin opened its eyes and repeatedly shattered the visions of the Heavenly Secrets that appeared before it.

Several ancient figures abandoned their plans to control Heavenly Secrets and sent strands of destiny into Reincarnation. In the Ancient Heaven and Earth, the Dao Ruler retreated after Nine-Nether’s manifestation unleashed overwhelming Power of Time, leaving the Human Emperor to contemplate the encounter.

• The figure in the black wooden coffin abandoned its final strand of Heavenly Secrets, which joined the Heaven-Earth Grand Trend in Reincarnation.
• Several other figures likewise abandoned their plans and sent threads of destiny into Reincarnation.
• Lu Qing departed after using Heaven-Earth Merit to conceal the Serene Daoist Temple and its Cause and Effect.
• The Dao Ruler blamed Nine-Nether’s appearance for the upheaval and withdrew downstream through the River of Time.
• The Human Emperor remained on the bridge and contemplated the encounter as his Celestial Sphere’s Dao Rhyme stirred.

Destinies from Nine-Nether entered the Heavenly Secrets of Nine Heavens, stirring a vast upheaval that even powerful cultivators struggled to understand. As the old fisherman chose not to interfere, observers saw celestial signs shift again, threatening to complicate the era shaped by the Human Emperor’s attainment of the Dao.

• Destinies from Nine-Nether passed through the hands of its mighty experts and entered the Heavenly Secrets of Nine Heavens, though their origins remained hidden.
• The old fisherman saw countless brilliant Destiny Patterns in the sea of Destiny and wondered what cause had drawn them into the world.
• The old fisherman connected the upheaval to Nine-Nether but could not determine whether the Human Emperor’s attainment or another Variable Fate had caused it.
• The old fisherman scattered the golden light with his fishing rod and chose not to touch the Cause and Effect behind the incoming Destinies.
• After Seven Stars Aligned shone, cultivators of the Heavenly Secrets Path observed the changed celestial signs and found their calculations in disarray.
• The cultivators recognized that the new celestial Variable Fate threatened to disrupt the established momentum of the Human Path after the Human Emperor claimed one-fifth of the world’s grand momentum.

A Heavenly Secrets cultivator’s attempt to uncover a new Great Era triggered a devastating backlash when he glimpsed a mysterious figure in golden light. Meanwhile, Lu Qing passed through the Dao Marker on his return to the present age and found that the Long River of Time no longer seemed as difficult to perceive.

• The old cultivator reasoned that none of the Six Paths seemed suited to bear Heaven and Earth's Destiny, yet his deductions revealed a powerful new Great Era after Ming Zun attained the Dao.
• The old cultivator tried to force his way through layers of Cause and Effect and saw a hazy figure walking amid golden radiance.
• The Heavenly Secrets backlash shattered the divination treasures and nearly destroyed the old cultivator's body, Divine Soul, and Humanity Fate Allotment.
• The old cultivator's disciples rushed to help him and asked what Heavenly Secrets he had seen.
• Lu Qing passed through the Dao Marker to return to the present age and realized that, after passing the Reincarnation Dao Tribulation, he could perceive the Long River of Time more clearly.

Lu Qing returned from the ancient era to the Nine Heavens, where his journey produced a dazzling Radiant Glow Phenomenon and revealed a Dao Resonance capable of concealing his ties to the sect’s fortune. He sensed that the Will of the Nine Heavens and the Merit Auspicious Cloud were involved, and found his Merit had grown enormously.

• Lu Qing used his Reincarnation Dao Resonance to glimpse the present through a Dao Marker, then returned to the Nine Heavens without viewing the great calamity directly.
• A young disciple assessed mortals in the West Sea when Lu Qing’s Radiant Glow Phenomenon swept across the sky and stunned everyone watching.
• The glow touched the Heavenly Net Chessboard and quietly altered the momentum of another Destiny and chess game.
• Lu Qing returned near the West Sea and realized his Radiant Glow Dao Resonance could conceal his Providence and Destiny, including his connection to the sect’s fortune.
• Lu Qing sensed the Will of the Nine Heavens at his return and discovered that his Merit had grown from the scale of a mountain range to that of a vast ocean.

Lu Qing examined the Radiant Glow Dao Rhyme and confirmed that it concealed a connection to the Dao Sect’s Providence, then returned to the sect. There, he tested his perception with the Profound Heaven Bell and offered it Years Wine.

• Lu Qing continued studying the Radiant Glow Dao Rhyme, suspecting that its unusual connection to Heavenly Secrets required him to examine its Cause and Effect.
• Lu Qing entered the Dao Sect’s territory and used the Dao Rhyme to confirm that a thread of Fate Allotment flowed within the sect’s Providence.
• Lu Qing emerged from his sleeve before the Profound Heaven Bell, which recognized him and sensed that his cultivation had surpassed the completion of the Dongzhen Realm.
• Lu Qing told the Profound Heaven Bell that he had not returned to borrow Fate Allotment and offered it several jars of wine.
• The Profound Heaven Bell recognized the River of Time in the Years Wine and praised its quality.

After returning to the sect at Dongzhen Perfection, Lu Qing sought his Master Li Luoyang to examine a mysterious rosy Dao Rhyme he had acquired during his journey through time. Li Luoyang began investigating it, stirring the sect’s Providence and alarming the Profound Heaven Bell.

• Lu Qing left the Profound Heaven Bell, which recognized his wine as Years Wine from the Primordial Era and realized he had likely returned from that era in person.
• The Profound Heaven Bell inferred that Lu Qing was preparing to pursue Dao Inquiry and marveled at his rapid cultivation and hidden higher Providence.
• Lu Qing returned to the sect and went to Li Luoyang’s Daoist Dojo, where he found unfamiliar young disciples attending the Dao.
• Lu Qing presented Li Luoyang with a rosy Dao Rhyme he could not understand and asked his Master to examine it.
• Li Luoyang inspected the Dao Rhyme with sword light, and the disturbance caused the Profound Heaven Bell to wonder what Lu Qing needed the sect’s Providence for.

Li Luoyang traced the origins of Lu Qing’s Radiant Glow Dao Resonance to the Human Path and revealed that it had formed in the Post-Calamity First Era. Lu Qing settled in a place Master had reserved for him in the Sword Lineage Dojo and began examining the Dao Resonance’s Cause and Effect through the sect’s Providence.

• Li Luoyang explained that the Radiant Glow Dao Resonance had been nourished by Humanity Fate Allotment in the Post-Calamity First Era and was safe for Lu Qing to cultivate.
• The Daoist Dojo disciples discussed Lu Qing’s rapid rise to the Dongzhen Realm after he left Master’s hall.
• A puppet on Divination Peak reflected that Lu Qing’s return had been noticed and that Master had reserved a place for him in the Daoist Dojo.
• Lu Qing accepted Master’s recommendation and settled in a lightly restricted area of the Sword Lineage Dojo.
• Lu Qing connected the sect’s Providence to the Radiant Glow and caused strands of Cause and Effect to emerge.

Lu Qing traced a thread of Human Path cause and effect through the First Era and discovered that a faint ripple in the Long River of Time had helped a rosy Dao Rhyme descend onto a mountain. Though the cause and effect seemed safe to refine, he hesitated over its hidden implications and began studying its Void Divine Ability.

• Lu Qing used the Daoist Dojo’s Sword Lineage force to unfold the thread of cause and effect across time.
• Lu Qing saw First Era Human Path Providence conceal the rosy light and later watched it descend onto a wilderness mountain peak.
• Lu Qing recognized that a faint manifestation of the Long River of Time had created an opportunity for the rosy Dao Rhyme to develop.
• Lu Qing reasoned that the Human Path Providence and temporal fluctuations had linked together to form the thread of cause and effect.
• Lu Qing chose not to accept the Human Path cause and effect immediately, despite confirming that it seemed harmless.
• Lu Qing settled down outside the sect to comprehend the mysteries of the Void Divine Ability.

Lu Qing contemplated the mysteries of the True Spirit, Reincarnation, and Heavenly Lifespan, realizing that his past life was both himself and not himself. His insight brought the figures on the path of the Great Dao back into view, drawing him closer to seeking the Dao.

• Lu Qing examined the mysterious qi in his palm and considered how truth and falsehood could transform within the True Spirit.
• Lu Qing pondered why Primordial Era powerhouses pursued Reincarnation despite their Longevity, and contrasted their aims with those of the present age.
• Lu Qing realized that his True Spirit had been his previous life, yet his previous life had not been him, triggering another creation of heaven and earth in the Great Dao Heaven-and-Earth Tree.
• Lu Qing concluded that the True Spirit should seek Immortal Transcendence through one lifetime, and the haziness before him cleared.
• Lu Qing saw figures on the path of seeking the Dao again and recognized that he had drawn closer to it after reaching Dongzhen Perfection.

Lu Qing used a strand of mystic qi to understand that reaching Dao-Seeking required breaking the fixed fate that had kept the highest positions unchanged for ten thousand years, and that Variable Fate offered the means. He turned his attention to Reincarnation and the Nether Sea, suspecting that Dao-Seeking figures sought to transcend death and that the current era had drawn powerful beings from across time.

• Lu Qing realized that Dao-Seeking cultivators had to break fixed fate, and that Variable Fate could disrupt the order preserving it.
• Lu Qing considered time and Reincarnation as sources of Variable Fate, while resolving not to let Reincarnation become the main focus of his Dao.
• Lu Qing recalled seeing the Human Emperor's True Spirit remain in Nine-Nether after the Human Emperor attained the Dao.
• Lu Qing reasoned that Dao-Seeking figures who died naturally might return through Reincarnation and cultivate their former Great Dao again.
• Lu Qing reviewed records of Dao-Seeking figures and found that none had peacefully reached the end of their Heavenly Lifespans.
• Lu Qing suspected that Dao-Seeking figures sought Transcendence and that the era of Variable Fate had attracted powerful figures from the past and future.

Lu Qing contemplated True Spirit, Heavenly Lifespan, and Variable Fate, gaining insight into how Variable Fate might open a road beyond Fixed Fate. His insight drew the attention of ancient observers, while he concluded that truly comprehending Heavenly Lifespan would be exceedingly difficult.

• Lu Qing reflected on True Spirit, Heavenly Lifespan, and Fixed Fate, then realized that Variable Fate might be the most important path forward.
• His insight caused a momentary disturbance in heaven and earth, and the figures in the Heaven of Universe noticed the Will of the Nine Heavens fluctuate.
• The observers discussed how Variable Fate could create a new road where Fixed Fate had left none, and how the first strands of it had begun to affect the ages.
• Lu Qing sensed the gazes from the turning chessboard but remained unmoved, judging that he had not truly attained enlightenment.
• Lu Qing considered the difficulty of comprehending Heavenly Lifespan and wondered how the Longevity Immortals of the Primordial Era had pursued Transcendence through Reincarnation.