Chapter Summaries

Key Plot Points and Events

• Mo Yexue encounters a fourth-tier Gold-Eating Ant and its venom, which is highly corrosive and causes severe injuries to her face.
• Lan Chen intervenes, using her spiritual power to counter the venom and heal Mo Yexue's wounds.
• The Gold-Eating Ants are revealed to be controlled by an unknown higher-tier creature.
• Lan Chen and Mo Yexue decide to retreat but end up at a dead end where Song Wen and Blood Brow are hiding.
• Lan Chen suspects Blood Brow of hiding something and attacks her.

Character Developments

• Mo Yexue demonstrates her combat skills and resilience, surviving a severe injury from the venom.
• Lan Chen showcases her powerful spiritual abilities, healing Mo Yexue and controlling the Gold-Eating Ants.
• Blood Brow maintains her composure under pressure, revealing her identity and trying to deceive Lan Chen.
• Song Wen reveals himself to protect Blood Brow, showing a willingness to intervene in the conflict.

Significant Themes

• The power of venom and its corrosive nature, symbolizing the destructive potential of hidden dangers.
• The use of spiritual power for healing and combat, highlighting the versatility of cultivation abilities.
• The theme of deception and hidden agendas, as seen in the unknown higher-tier creature controlling the Gold-Eating Ants and Blood Brow's evasive answers.

Character Interactions

• Mo Yexue and Lan Chen work together to fight against the Gold-Eating Ants, showcasing their trust and cooperation.
• Lan Chen is suspicious of Blood Brow, leading to a tense standoff between them.
• Song Wen reveals himself to protect Blood Brow, indicating a potential alliance or friendship between them.
• The unknown higher-tier creature controlling the Gold-Eating Ants is implied to be manipulating events from behind the scenes, interacting with the other characters indirectly.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Song Wen and Blood Brow encounter Lan Chen and Mo Yexue, who are besieged by Gold-Eating Ants.
• Song Wen initially considers avoiding the fight but joins after Mo Yexue's irritation.
• Mo Yexue defeats a fourth-order Gold-Eating Ant, while Song Wen uses Blood Tide to absorb the essence blood and souls of the dead ants.
• The group decides to travel together and break through the Gold-Eating Ants' blockade.
• A fifth-order Gold-Eating Ant ambushes them from above.

Character Developments

• Song Wen: Shows initial reluctance to help but eventually joins the fight. He demonstrates the power of his Blood Tide magic treasure.
• Mo Yexue: Despite her disfigurement, she remains formidable in combat and determined to exact revenge on the Gold-Eating Ants.
• Lan Chen: She is more perceptive and less trusting of Song Wen, seeing through his initial intentions to avoid the fight.

Significant Themes

• Friendship and alliance: The four cultivators decide to travel together for mutual benefit.
• Revenge: Mo Yexue's desire for revenge drives her actions.
• Power and strength: The characters' abilities and magic treasures are showcased in their fight against the Gold-Eating Ants.

Character Interactions

• Song Wen and Lan Chen: Their interaction is tense due to Lan Chen's suspicion of Song Wen's initial intentions.
• Mo Yexue and Song Wen: They have a brief exchange, with Mo Yexue expressing irritation at their conversation while fighting.
• The group: They decide to travel together, showing a level of trust and cooperation.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Mo Yexue uses her flying sword to attack a Gold-Eating Ant, but it's resilient and nearly indestructible.
• Lan Chen attempts to control the Gold-Eating Ant with spirit sense, but an external force crushes it.
• Lan Chen uses her Red Silk to bind the Gold-Eating Ant, which struggles but is eventually blinded by Mo Yexue's sword.
• More Gold-Eating Ants appear, and Blood Brow warns the group to retreat.
• Blood Brow creates illusions to distract the ants, while Lan Chen and Mo Yexue attempt to escape.
• The ants spray venom at the women, but Blood Brow creates a blood wall to block it.
• The ants break through the blood wall and continue their pursuit.

Character Developments

• Mo Yexue demonstrates her precise control over her flying sword.
• Lan Chen shows her ability to control spirit sense and uses her Red Silk to bind the Gold-Eating Ant.
• Blood Brow reveals her illusion technique, creating lifelike clones to distract the ants.

Significant Themes

• The power of unity and cooperation among the group members is highlighted as they work together to escape.
• The resilience and strength of the Gold-Eating Ants emphasize the danger and challenges they face.

Character Interactions

• Mo Yexue and Lan Chen work together to attack the Gold-Eating Ant, showcasing their complementary abilities.
• Blood Brow provides crucial information and support, helping the group evade the ants' pursuit.
• Song Wen acts as the group's lookout, warning them of the incoming ants and urging them to flee.

Key Plot Points and Events

• The group encounters Gold-Eating Ants, which spit highly corrosive venom, damaging their spiritual power shield.
• Blood Brow uses his Maha Blackwater natal magical artifact to neutralize the venom.
• They decide to fight the three fourth-rank Gold-Eating Ants instead of fleeing.
• Song Wen's continuous blood attacks weaken one Gold-Eating Ant, allowing Blood Brow's Soul-Breaking Awl to corrode its carapace, which is then exploited by the Void-Breaking Blade, injuring the ant.
• The Gold-Eating Ants spit out poisonous yellow mist, which corrupts Song Wen's blood wall. Lan Chen uses a cloth bag to create a hurricane, slowing the mist's advance.
• The Gold-Eating Ants fire tail stingers concealed within the mist, targeting Lan Chen.

Character Developments

• Mo Yexue demonstrates her spiritual power shield and flying sword.
• Blood Brow reveals his Maha Blackwater artifact's ability to neutralize corrosion.
• Song Wen shows improvement in controlling his blood abilities, keeping the Gold-Eating Ants at bay.
• Lan Chen uses her Red Silk and a cloth bag to create a hurricane, showcasing her versatile magical artifacts.

Significant Themes

• Teamwork: The group works together to combat the Gold-Eating Ants, with each member contributing their unique abilities.
• Adaptability: They adapt their strategies based on the ants' abilities, switching from fleeing to fighting when the threat of venom is neutralized.
• Resourcefulness: Characters use their magical artifacts creatively to counter the ants' attacks.

Character Interactions

• Mo Yexue and Blood Brow work together to block the venom, with Blood Brow's artifact proving crucial.
• Lan Chen and Song Wen coordinate their attacks on the Gold-Eating Ants, with Song Wen's persistent blood attacks setting up the final strike by Lan Chen's Void-Breaking Blade.
• The group communicates and adapts to the ants' changing tactics, demonstrating their ability to work together under pressure.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lan Chen uses a defensive artifact, a treasure tower, to protect against Gold-Eating Ants' tail stingers.
• Song Wen, Mo Yexue, and Blood Brow attempt to intercept the tail stingers but fail.
• The Gold-Eating Ants target Lan Chen's cloth bag, stopping the gale that was blocking the yellow poisonous mist.
• The four cultivators decide to fight together instead of fleeing separately.
• They successfully drive away the Gold-Eating Ants, who retreat into the underground rock layers.
• The four cultivators leave the area, keeping watch for any pursuing Gold-Eating Ants.

Character Developments

• Lan Chen demonstrates strategic thinking and concern for the group's safety by advising against using the Blood Escape Technique and suggesting they fight together.
• Song Wen shows resilience and adaptability in his battle against a Gold-Eating Ant, using his movement technique to escape when necessary.
• Blood Brow chooses to stay and fight rather than using the Blood Escape Technique, showing she values the group's survival over her own immediate safety.
• Mo Yexue displays concern for the group's potential loss of treasures due to the blood tide's obstruction.

Significant Themes

• Teamwork vs. Individualism: The characters initially consider fleeing separately but later decide to fight together, highlighting the importance of teamwork in survival situations.
• Adaptability: Each character adapts their strategies based on the changing circumstances, showing the importance of flexibility in the face of adversity.

Character Interactions

• Lan Chen takes a leadership role, advising the group and making strategic decisions.
• Song Wen, Mo Yexue, and Blood Brow work together to fight the Gold-Eating Ants, showing a level of cooperation and coordination.
• Mo Yexue expresses concern about Song Wen potentially hiding treasures from the group, highlighting the tension between his actions and the group's interests.

Key Plot Points and Events

• The group travels over a hundred li without encountering danger or valuable treasures.
• They find two Starshine Spirit Dew Grasses, which they divide evenly.
• Later, they discover a Purple-Gold Spiritwood, which Mo Yexue claims in exchange for not taking any other treasures.
• They encounter dense corpse qi and the environment changes, suggesting danger ahead.

Character Developments

• Mo Yexue shows excitement and eagerness when she sees the Purple-Gold Spiritwood, revealing her desire for it.
• Lan Chen demonstrates calm and reason, warning the group about potential danger ahead.
• Song Wen and Blood Brow show understanding and cooperation, agreeing to Mo Yexue's proposal for the Purple-Gold Spiritwood.

Significant Themes

• The allure and value of rare treasures, and the willingness to take risks for them.
• The importance of cooperation and understanding among the group for their shared goals.
• The changing environment as a symbol of potential danger and transformation.

Character Interactions

• Mo Yexue, Lan Chen, Song Wen, and Blood Brow work together, dividing treasures fairly and respecting each other's claims.
• Lan Chen and Mo Yexue seem to have a pre-arranged understanding about the Purple-Gold Spiritwood.
• Song Wen and Blood Brow exchange a glance, suggesting they have a shared understanding or plan as well.

Key Plot Points and Events

• The group continues through a narrowing cave passage with dense corpse qi, limiting their vision and spiritual perception.
• They discover a small bamboo grove containing six stalks of extraordinary 'Withered Corpse Bamboo'.
• A late fourth-tier zombie, guardian of the bamboo, attacks when they approach, but retreats when Song Wen lures it away.
• Song Wen attempts to attack the zombie with a blood-colored tentacle, but it defends and turns its attention back to the bamboo.

Character Developments

• Song Wen demonstrates strategic thinking and combat prowess by luring the zombie away and attempting to attack it.
• Blood Brow reveals knowledge about the rare 'Withered Corpse Bamboo' but keeps its true uses secret.
• Lan Chen and Mo Yexue show understanding and cooperation by allowing Song Wen and Blood Brow to harvest the bamboo without immediate questions.

Significant Themes

• Obsession: The zombie's single-minded focus on guarding the Withered Corpse Bamboo, even when attacked, highlights its obsessive nature.
• Trust and Cooperation: The group works together, sharing information and resources, demonstrating a level of trust despite their initial reservations.

Character Interactions

• Song Wen and Blood Brow work together to harvest the bamboo, showing a level of understanding and coordination.
• Lan Chen and Mo Yexue allow Song Wen and Blood Brow to take the bamboo, showing trust and understanding of each other's needs.
• The zombie's interaction with Song Wen highlights its single-minded obsession and defensive nature.

Key Plot Points and Events

• A late fourth-rank Golden Corpse zombie, obsessed with a Withered Corpse Bamboo grove, attacks Song Wen and others.
• Song Wen attempts to lure the zombie away but fails. Blood Brow uses Purple Palace Divine Thunder and Soul-Breaking Awls to uproot the bamboo grove, enraging the zombie.
• Mo Yexue's flying sword severely injures the zombie. Song Wen attempts to subdue it for its powerful corpse qi.

Character Developments

• Song Wen: Shows strategic thinking in trying to lure the zombie away and later attempting to subdue it for its corpse qi.
• Blood Brow (Ghost Suanni): Demonstrates her powerful abilities with the Purple Palace Divine Thunder and Soul-Breaking Awls, showing she's a formidable opponent.
• Mo Yexue: Proves her skill as the number one sword cultivator, severely injuring the zombie with precise strikes.

Significant Themes

• Obsession and Fixation: The zombie's single-minded focus on the Withered Corpse Bamboo, even in the face of grave danger, highlights this theme.
• Power and Control: Characters seek to control the zombie and the bamboo grove, showcasing their desire for power and influence.

Character Interactions

• Song Wen and Blood Brow: They work together to deal with the zombie, with Blood Brow providing powerful support.
• Song Wen and Mo Yexue: They briefly collaborate, with Mo Yexue's flying sword attack setting up Song Wen's attempt to subdue the zombie.
• The Zombie and the Withered Corpse Bamboo: The zombie's intense, unyielding attachment to the bamboo grove drives its actions and resistance.

Key Plot Points and Events

• A blood-colored tentacle belonging to Song Wen's cultivation technique subdues and controls a zombie.
• Song Wen attempts to use the Corpse-Control Curse on the zombie but fails, suggesting the zombie might have developed intelligence.
• Blood Brow clears the rocks around six Withered Corpse Bamboos, which are between 5,000 to 8,000 years old.
• Song Wen and Blood Brow decide to split the Withered Corpse Bamboos evenly.
• After harvesting the bamboo, Song Wen kills the zombie to prevent it from causing further trouble.
• Lan Chen reveals that the cavern they're in is called the Orchid Realm and that she's searching for a Phantom Wing Butterfly.
• Blood Brow discovers that the cavern is sealed by an array barrier, trapping them inside.

Character Developments

• Song Wen: Shows his ability to control zombies using his cultivation technique and the Corpse-Control Curse. He also demonstrates his ruthlessness in killing the zombie to prevent potential future problems.
• Blood Brow: Exhibits her strength and precision in clearing the rocks around the Withered Corpse Bamboos without damaging their roots. She also shows knowledge about the zombie's obsession with the bamboo.
• Lan Chen: Reveals her goal in the Orchid Realm – finding the Phantom Wing Butterfly. She also displays her knowledge about the cavern's layout.
• The Zombie: Initially thought to have developed intelligence due to its fixation on the Withered Corpse Bamboo, it ultimately proves not to be the case.

Significant Themes

• The struggle for resources and power, as seen in the competition for the Withered Corpse Bamboo and the search for the Phantom Wing Butterfly.
• The ruthlessness of cultivators, exemplified by Song Wen's decision to kill the zombie despite its apparent fixation on the bamboo.
• The consequences of cultivation and the pursuit of power, as seen in the trapped cultivators and the zombie's existence.

Character Interactions

• Song Wen and Blood Brow: They work together to harvest the Withered Corpse Bamboos, showing a level of cooperation despite their initial competition.
• Song Wen and Lan Chen: They discuss their plans after harvesting the bamboo, with Lan Chen revealing her true goal in the Orchid Realm.
• Blood Brow and Lan Chen: They both explore the cavern, with Blood Brow confirming Lan Chen's findings about the cavern's end and the array barrier.

Key Plot Points and Events

• The group discovers an impenetrable array barrier blocking their exit.
• They learn that the Phantom Wing Butterfly, Lan Chen's target, is symbiotic with the Gold-Eating Ants.
• Song Wen reveals he knows the location of the Gold-Eating Ants' nest.
• Mo Yexue uses her flying sword to create a deep crack in the cavern floor, revealing a stone stairway leading to the nest.
• The group descends the stairway, encountering and eliminating low-rank Gold-Eating Ants.

Character Developments

• Lan Chen shows concern for her companions' safety, warning them about the Gold-Eating Ant Queen's high intelligence and spiritual cultivation.
• Song Wen uses his Myriad Poisons Primordial Body and tentacles to defend against Gold-Eating Ants and secretly devours their souls for nourishment, demonstrating his cunning and resourcefulness.

Significant Themes

• Teamwork and mutual aid: The group works together to navigate the dangerous environment and overcome obstacles.
• Adaptability: Characters adapt their strategies and methods to suit the challenges they face, such as using different techniques to defend against the Gold-Eating Ants.

Character Interactions

• Blood Brow reveals information about the Phantom Wing Butterfly and offers to accompany Lan Chen to the Gold-Eating Ants' nest, raising suspicions about her motives.
• Mo Yexue volunteers to accompany Lan Chen without hesitation, showing loyalty and camaraderie.
• Song Wen's defensive methods draw Mo Yexue's disdain, hinting at tension between them.
• The group works together to clear a path through the Gold-Eating Ants, demonstrating unity and cooperation.

Key Plot Points and Events

• The group encounters Gold-Eating Ant eggs on the stone steps, which they destroy.
• They reach an enormous underground cavern hall, a Gold-Eating Ant colony.
• The ant queen, Fu, communicates with them telepathically, offering a deal: one Bronze Key Coffin in exchange for anything in the nest.
• Fu reveals there's a bloodstone exit leading outside and that there are Phantom Wing Butterflies in the nest.
• Fu sends a fourth-rank Phantom Wing Butterfly to Lan Chen as a show of good faith.

Character Developments

• Lan Chen shows interest in the Phantom Wing Butterflies and is cautious but delighted when Fu sends one to her.
• Blood Brow demonstrates knowledge about the Gold-Eating Ants and their eggs.
• Fu, the ant queen, reveals resentment towards her confinement in the Orchid Realm and desire for freedom.

Significant Themes

• Freedom vs. Confinement: Fu's desire to escape the Orchid Realm contrasts with her predecessors' fate, highlighting the theme of freedom versus confinement.
• Trust and Caution: Lan Chen's cautious yet hopeful approach to Fu's offer, showing the balance between trust and caution in their interactions.

Character Interactions

• Lan Chen and Blood Brow work together to gather information about the Gold-Eating Ants and the cavern hall.
• Song Wen and Mo Yexue communicate with Lan Chen and Blood Brow using secret transmissions.
• Lan Chen and Fu engage in a telepathic conversation, with Fu trying to persuade Lan Chen to accept her offer.

Key plot points and events

• Song Wen’s group asks the Gold-Eating Ant queen, Fu, about breaking the Orchid Realm’s protective formation and finding a way out. Fu admits she cannot break the formation or activate the Teleportation Array, but gives them directions to one.
• The group agrees to inspect the array before handing over the promised Bronze Key Coffin. Mo Yexue’s caution reflects their awareness that Fu controls the ant nest and could be manipulating them.
• Blood Brow recognizes a flaw in Fu’s story: an ant queen would need powerful ant kings to survive beyond the Orchid Realm, so asking only for the coffin makes little sense. She concludes the array is likely a trap.
• Fu drops her friendly pretense and orders the ants to attack. Thousands of Gold-Eating Ants release poisonous mist into the confined cavern.
• The group tries to retreat to the upper cavern, but the stairway has been deliberately collapsed. Song Wen clears part of it with a blood tentacle, only to find a fourth-tier ant blocking the way.
• Mo Yexue cuts a new shaft upward through the rock. Fu sends four fourth-tier ants to ambush the group inside it. Song Wen is struck hard and injured, then uses the Blood Sea Seal to retreat toward the lower cavern. The other three women also fight their way back down.

Character developments and interactions

• Blood Brow proves perceptive, using her knowledge of ant queens’ weaknesses and needs to expose Fu’s deception.
• Mo Yexue remains wary and practical: she refuses to surrender the coffin before verifying the array, then quickly creates an escape route when the stairs are blocked.
• Song Wen stays cautious by keeping his Profound Scale Shield active. Though injured by an ant’s powerful attack, he responds quickly and adapts by using the Blood Sea Seal to retreat.
• Fu, the ant queen, shifts from apparently cooperative negotiator to openly hostile predator once her scheme is uncovered.
• The four cultivators coordinate under pressure, but the ants’ numbers, poison, and ability to move through rock leave them trapped and fighting defensively.

Significant themes

• Deception and mistrust: Fu’s helpful answers conceal a trap, and the humans’ caution proves justified.
• Power without knowledge: The queen has immense authority over her colony but cannot use human formations or arrays.
• Confinement and survival: Poisonous mist, blocked passages, and ambushes turn the cavern into a deadly trap.
• Adaptability under pressure: The cultivators repeatedly change plans, from clearing the stairs to carving a new shaft and retreating when it too is ambushed.

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Gold-Eating Ants surround the four cultivators but don't attack immediately, instead using poisonous mist to wear down their spiritual power.
• The cultivators discover a poison-free corridor, but the Ant Queen reveals it's a trap.
• They search for the Ant Queen but can't find it. Song Wen uses his blood mist to sense the Ant Queen's location behind a reinforced stone wall.
• Mo Yexue attempts to break the wall with her sword, but it's too hard. She then tries to send her sword through the wall's holes, but the dense poisonous mist weakens her control over it.

Character Developments

• Song Wen demonstrates his ability to sense the Ant Queen's location using his blood mist.
• Mo Yexue shows her determination and skill in using her flying sword but faces limitations due to the dense poisonous mist.

Significant Themes

• The theme of perseverance and resilience in the face of overwhelming odds is evident as the cultivators continue to search for the Ant Queen despite the difficult circumstances.
• The theme of adaptability is shown as the cultivators try different strategies to deal with the Ant Queen's defenses.

Character Interactions

• The cultivators work together to find the Ant Queen, with each contributing their unique abilities.
• Mo Yexue and Song Wen have a brief exchange, with Song Wen reminding Mo Yexue about the different sizes of Gold-Eating Ants, showing a level of understanding and cooperation.

Chapter Summary: “Breaking Free”

Key plot points and events

• The ant queen taunts the four cultivators, claiming its stone sphere—reinforced over thousands of years—cannot be broken. As its poisonous mist recedes, the group sees that the queen is a huge, sluggish egg-layer, though it can shrink its body at will.
• Mo Yexue mocks the queen, but the group’s situation worsens as the Gold-Eating Ants fill the cavern with poisonous mist, steadily draining the cultivators’ magical power.
• Blood Brow recalls that heavenly goldwater is vulnerable to yang-aligned spirit fire. Mo Yexue reveals her Origin Brightness True Flame, which begins burning through the stone sphere.
• The ant queen panics and frees the four ant kings from Lan Chen’s control. Lan Chen, Song Wen, and Blood Brow hold off the kings and other ants while Mo Yexue focuses on the sphere.
• Mo Yexue’s flame cracks and consumes the stone barrier until it explodes. She attacks through the debris, but the queen vanishes into dense poisonous mist.
• The queen declares that the cultivators have finally freed it from its long-standing confinement. The chapter ends with Mo Yexue searching the mist for its location.

Character developments and interactions

• Mo Yexue answers the queen’s mockery with defiance and takes the lead in breaking the sphere, revealing a powerful spirit flame. She continues attacking even after losing track of the queen.
• Song Wen contributes his knowledge and combat strength, using his corpse transformation and Blood Sea Seal to hold off an ant king.
• Blood Brow demonstrates knowledge of the ants’ weaknesses, though her own fighting ability is limited; illusions and maha blackwater barely keep an ant king at bay. The queen’s question about her knowledge raises suspicion about her identity or background.
• Lan Chen coordinates the defense, dividing the ant kings among the group and using her Jade Ruyi and Red Silk to restrain enemies.
• The ant queen shifts from arrogant confidence to apparent panic as the sphere burns, but its final claim suggests the panic may have been part of a scheme. It thanks the cultivators for setting it free.

Significant themes

• Cooperation under pressure: The cultivators must divide their efforts between breaking the barrier and surviving the ant attack.
• Knowledge as power: Blood Brow’s insight into heavenly goldwater’s weakness gives the group a way forward.
• Deception and uncertain appearances: The queen’s apparent desperation may have concealed its true intentions, leaving the group unsure whether they have won or helped unleash a greater threat.

Key plot points and events

• The Gold-Eating Ant queen explains that her colony imprisoned her in a stone sphere from birth to protect her, leaving her trapped until the four cultivators freed her.
• She mocks them for helping her escape, then attacks their minds with Divine Sense spikes. Lan Chen shields the group with a high-grade soul-defense bottle, though the queen concentrates her assault on her.
• When the mental attack proves insufficient, the queen pierces old ant eggs, unleashing a foul stench that harms the cultivators even through their protections. Mo Yexue tries to counter it with Origin Brightness True Flame, but the queen’s attack overwhelms her and extinguishes the flame.
• Lan Chen attempts to retreat with Mo Yexue, but the queen reveals that the Teleportation Array they need lies within her nest, beneath the poisonous mist. The group realizes they are trapped.
• Song Wen proposes injuring the queen to distract the colony while the others activate the array. The others agree, though the plan leaves him exposed to the queen and the ants.

Character developments and interactions

• Song Wen shifts from appearing cowardly and self-preserving to volunteering for a dangerous role, surprising the others. He proposes the escape plan and insists the others focus on activating the array.
• Lan Chen takes charge during the crisis, protects the group with her soul-defense treasure, and organizes the retreat and response. She agrees to Song Wen’s plan while checking whether he is confident.
• Mo Yexue is incapacitated by the queen’s mental assault after trying to burn away the stench. Despite her pain, she watches Song Wen with a complicated, newly uncertain regard.
• Blood Brow confirms that the queen is supposedly physically fragile and unskilled in combat, but cannot guarantee that Song Wen’s plan will work.

Significant themes

• Protection becoming imprisonment: The colony’s attempt to safeguard its queen has confined her for her entire life.
• Sacrifice and shifting perceptions: Song Wen’s willingness to risk himself challenges the group’s assumptions about his character.
• Desperation and limited choices: With the queen controlling the only escape route and her attacks steadily weakening them, the cultivators must gamble on a dangerous plan.

Plot and key events

• The ant queen realizes the Teleportation Array has lured the humans into stopping and sends the Gold-Eating Ant swarm to attack. It targets Blood Brow with a divine-sense assault, hoping to disable the group and isolate Lan Chen.
• Blood Brow uses the rare Tranquility Curse, a soul-defense spell, to withstand the attack without losing control of her mind. As Song Wen prepares his own strike, he tells the others to get ready to move.
• Lan Chen, Blood Brow, and the still-injured Mo Yexue hold off the swarm together: Lan Chen’s Red Silk shields them, Blood Brow’s blackwater protects it from ant-king venom, and Mo Yexue uses her flying sword against the smaller ants.
• Song Wen locates the ant queen through the poisonous mist and uses Blood Escape to attack. The queen unexpectedly expands into its enormous true form, shifting its head out of the sword’s path. Song Wen’s strike instead cuts off its tail, then he drives in the Void-Breaking Blade as well, devastating its body.
• The queen’s apparent body transforms into a badly wounded fourth-tier Phantom Wing Butterfly. Its shriek draws the ants away from the women, allowing them to hurry toward the array, but Song Wen is trapped in the toxic mist and surrounded by pursuing ants.
• As Song Wen prepares to escape, Blood Brow telepathically asks him to bring the Phantom Wing Butterfly with him. He is puzzled by her sudden interest.

Character developments and interactions

• Blood Brow reveals her command of the rare Tranquility Curse and remains mentally composed under the ant queen’s attack. Her request to save the butterfly hints at an undisclosed motive.
• Song Wen risks a direct assault on the queen and adapts when its transformation ruins his intended strike. His attack inflicts severe damage, but leaves him in immediate danger.
• Lan Chen, Blood Brow, and Mo Yexue coordinate defensively under intense pressure. Mo Yexue’s lingering injury underscores her weakened state.
• The ant queen acts strategically, trying to incapacitate the group, but its transformation and the swarm’s reaction to its cry create an opening for the humans.

Significant themes

• Teamwork under pressure: The women combine their abilities to survive the swarm while Song Wen attacks.
• Risk and imperfect victories: Song Wen’s strike succeeds in crippling the apparent queen but does not eliminate the danger; he remains surrounded.
• Hidden identities and motives: The “ant queen” is revealed to be a Phantom Wing Butterfly, and Blood Brow’s urgent request raises new questions about the creature’s importance.

Key plot points and events

• Song Wen retrieves the gravely wounded Phantom Wing Butterfly and tries to reach the Teleportation Array while the ant queen and Gold-Eating Ants pursue him.
• Four ant kings attack from different directions. Song Wen transforms into a giant corpse and strikes toward the ant queen, but two ant kings intercept him. Venom and poisonous mist hit him; his unusual poison-resistant body limits the venom’s effects, while the blast sends him closer to the array.
• Lan Chen, Blood Brow, and Mo Yexue are already at the array. Lan Chen is preparing to activate it, while Blood Brow and Mo Yexue fend off the pursuing ants.
• Ghost Suanni appears and attacks Song Wen with a powerful ghostly palm. He wants to keep Song Wen from reaching the array, seize the Phantom Wing Butterfly, and obtain Song Wen’s divine-sense attack technique.
• Song Wen weighs using his secret Life-Substitution Technique or revealing his Thunder Arts. He chooses the latter, reasoning that Lan Chen and Mo Yexue have little reason to covet his cultivation method—and deciding to kill Ghost Suanni later.
• Song Wen’s lightning spears destroy the ghostly palm, exploiting Thunder Arts’ advantage against ghostly energy.

Character developments and interactions

• Song Wen shows quick tactical judgment and resilience, enduring attacks while protecting his most valuable secret technique. He is willing to reveal another secret when circumstances demand it, and begins viewing Ghost Suanni as a target for elimination.
• Ghost Suanni reveals his opportunistic ambitions: he has been following the others not only to escape the realm but to steal the butterfly and Song Wen’s technique.
• Lan Chen, Blood Brow, and Mo Yexue cooperate to activate the array and cover Song Wen’s escape. Song Wen trusts that Lan Chen and Mo Yexue will not expose or pursue his unusual cultivation path.
• The ant queen and ant kings remain focused on stopping Song Wen and reclaiming the butterfly, though their attacks fail to prevent his advance.

Significant themes

• Survival through calculated risk: Song Wen chooses which secret to reveal based on the immediate danger and the likely consequences.
• Opportunism and betrayal: Ghost Suanni exploits the chaos to pursue his own gains.
• Strategic cooperation and self-interest: The group helps Song Wen escape, but Ghost Suanni’s actions show how quickly alliances can be undermined by personal ambition.

Key plot points and events

• Song Wen—still disguised as “Yinshuo”—strikes the Ghost Emperor with two lightning spears, shattering its ghostly aura and weakening it.
• As Song Wen nears the Teleportation Array, the ant queen sends a Divine Sense attack at him and Ghost Suanni. Suanni sacrifices his Ghost Emperor to intercept the attack, but the four spikes destroy the Ghost Emperor.
• The spikes also hit Song Wen, causing only brief pain and barely slowing him. He reaches the array, where Lan Chen completes the activation.
• Before teleporting, Song Wen, Mo Yexue, and Blood Brow each leave a trap behind: a volatile blood sphere, a strand of Sword Qi, and a bottle of poison.
• The group escapes. When Ghost Suanni reaches the array, the traps explode. They do not seriously hurt him, but the blast destroys the array, cutting off his escape.
• Furious, Suanni vows that he and “Yinshuo” cannot coexist. The ant kings and queen then attack him, seeking the Bronze Key Coffin.
• Song Wen and the others arrive in a safe mountain cave, accompanied by the gravely injured Phantom Wing Butterfly. Lan Chen discovers that another butterfly in her pouch has shrunk dramatically and fallen from the fourth tier to the late second tier.

Character developments and interactions

• Song Wen reveals a powerful, previously concealed command of Thunder Arts, surpassing Blood Brow’s apparent skill. He also withstands the ant queen’s mental attack far better than Ghost Suanni expects.
• Ghost Suanni loses his carefully cultivated Ghost Emperor and his only immediate escape route. His anger toward Song Wen becomes an explicit, personal vendetta.
• Lan Chen successfully operates the array and later grows uneasy about the Phantom Wing Butterfly’s condition.
• Song Wen, Mo Yexue, and Blood Brow coordinate their escape by leaving separate traps for Suanni. Mo Yexue contributes Sword Qi; Blood Brow contributes poison.
• The ant queen’s attack harms both pursuers, while her forces turn on Suanni after Song Wen’s group escapes.

Significant themes

• Concealed strength: Song Wen’s hidden Thunder Arts and unusual resistance to the Divine Sense attack reveal that his abilities remain underestimated.
• Sacrifice and survival: Suanni sacrifices the Ghost Emperor in a desperate bid to catch Song Wen and escape.
• Retaliation and consequences: The escape succeeds, but the destroyed array leaves Suanni trapped and fuels his hatred.
• Uncertainty and danger: The butterfly’s unexpected decline hints that the group’s arrival—or the teleportation itself—may have had a serious cost.

Plot points and events

• Blood Brow realizes the group had mistaken a second-tier Phantom Wing Butterfly for a fourth-tier one because of the ant queen’s illusion. The queen’s strong reaction to the injured butterfly—and her casual willingness to give another away—supports this conclusion.
• Song Wen, who captured the gravely wounded butterfly, asks what it is worth. Blood Brow explains that it can be raised to create illusions that blur reality and deception. Its core can aid her illusion cultivation, while its soul can be used with rare ingredients to refine a Wisdom Light Pill, which strengthens divine sense and may help overcome a cultivation bottleneck.
• Lan Chen confirms she wants the butterfly’s soul for the pill. Song Wen briefly takes interest in the pill, but loses it when he learns how difficult it is to make.
• Song Wen sells the butterfly to Lan Chen and Blood Brow for one hundred superior spirit stones each. In return, he asks Lan Chen and Mo Yexue to keep secret that he and Blood Brow can use Thunder Arts. Both women agree and swear soul oaths.
• Blood Brow cannot identify which region of the Divine Blood Hall they are in. The four recover from poison, injuries, and depleted magical power for ten days, then set out west, following the direction of denser spiritual energy.

Character development and interactions

• Song Wen shows his pragmatic nature: he treats the butterfly as leverage, negotiates payment, and protects the secrecy of his and Blood Brow’s abilities. His interest in the Wisdom Light Pill proves short-lived once he learns its ingredients and formula are hard to obtain.
• Blood Brow demonstrates extensive knowledge of the Divine Blood Hall and the butterfly, prompting Lan Chen’s suspicion that she had coveted it from the beginning. She negotiates for it to use its core in cultivating illusion arts.
• Lan Chen is focused on strengthening her divine sense and agrees to Song Wen’s terms, while showing caution about Blood Brow’s knowledge.
• Mo Yexue is surprised to be included in the bargain but supports Lan Chen and readily agrees to keep the secret.

Significant themes

• Deception and perception: The butterfly’s illusions make falsehood appear real, explaining the group’s mistaken understanding of the ant queen and the beast.
• Knowledge as power: Blood Brow’s information shapes the negotiation and influences the group’s exploration, but also makes others wary of her.
• Pragmatism and trust: The characters exchange valuable resources and promises, with sworn oaths used to protect a sensitive secret.

Key Plot Points and Events

• The group arrives at Divine Blood Peak, the core region of the Divine Blood Hall.
• They find a towering mountain with a transparent barrier, protected by restrictions.
• A flight of stone stairs, the Path to Heaven, is discovered on the opposite side, with Gou Jun and Yang Yu already climbing it.
• Mi Hai, injured, is found meditating at the foot of the stairs and joins the climb.

Character Developments

• Blood Brow reveals she knows about Divine Blood Peak and the Divine Blood Hall's secrets.
• Mi Hai demonstrates his physical prowess and cultivates a body-tempering art, using a Wisdom King phantom to aid his climb.

Significant Themes

• Perseverance: The Path to Heaven requires only perseverance to climb, reflecting the importance of determination and resilience.
• Gravity Restriction: The mountain's gravity restriction increases with cultivation level, challenging high-level cultivators physically.

Character Interactions

• Song Wen and the others discuss their strategy for climbing the mountain, with Song Wen expressing concern about Gou Jun's potential interference.
• Mi Hai invites the group to climb together but is declined due to their desire to first restore their spiritual power.
• Lan Chen and Mo Yexue discuss Mi Hai's physical prowess and compare it to Song Wen's.