Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary: “We Hope to Buy Them All”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After completing the Three Days in Netherworld City mission, Yang Ling receives an unprecedented Diamond Chest, stunning the Ding Clan members. They have never seen such a high-tier chest in any game.
• The Ding Clan members initially assume the chest is their reward, but Yang Ling firmly warns them not to approach or covet his items.
• The four Ding Clan participants receive only a modest reward: 100 Mental Power each. Their excitement is overshadowed by the Diamond Chest.
• Yang Ling explains that the exceptional reward is connected to his status as the number-one player on the Divine Realm leaderboard. His widening lead over ordinary players causes the game to grant him increasingly valuable rewards.
• Ding Jiangyao realizes that Yang Ling—also known as Luo Kai—is an extremely valuable asset to Divine Realm, and that the Ding Clan’s insistence on controlling him through corporate rules is shortsighted.
• Ding Yunxi proposes a new cooperation agreement: the Ding Clan wants to buy all rewards Yang Ling receives from future Netherworld King kills.
• Yang Ling reveals another valuable drop, the Netherworld King’s Finger Bone, which suppresses Mental Power and could be used to forge a powerful anti-Mental Power Divine Weapon.
• The Ding Clan estimates the finger bone’s value at 10,000 Transaction Points, but cannot directly trade with Yang Ling because of the ban order.
• Yang Ling offers to sell future mission rewards on a buyout basis for 50,000 Transaction Points per attempt, warning that the quality of the reward will depend on luck.
• Ding Yunxi accepts the price as reasonable, believing that even one additional Diamond Chest could repay the group’s investment many times over.
• She and two other clan members leave the mission to negotiate the arrangement formally, while Ding Jiangyao stays behind and privately asks to purchase the Netherworld King’s Finger Bone. Yang Ling agrees.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling/Luo Kai demonstrates increased confidence and authority. He understands the value of his position and refuses to let the Ding Clan exploit him, while also setting terms that benefit him substantially.
• Ding Yunxi shifts from cautious cooperation to aggressive commercial pursuit. Recognizing Yang Ling’s importance, she uses the authority granted by Director Si Nan to negotiate a potentially lucrative long-term deal.
• Ding Jiangyao becomes increasingly aware of the Ding Clan’s strategic mistake in undervaluing Yang Ling. Unlike the others, she remains behind and personally seeks to obtain the rare finger bone.
• The other Ding Clan members are portrayed as awed and intimidated by Yang Ling’s strength, especially after witnessing his defeat of the Netherworld King.

Significant Themes

• Value and rarity: The Diamond Chest and Netherworld King’s Finger Bone demonstrate how rare rewards can radically alter power and wealth.
• Strategic recognition: The Ding Clan begins to understand that Yang Ling’s value comes not merely from his combat ability but from his unique status within Divine Realm.
• Power imbalance: Yang Ling controls access to rewards far beyond what the Ding Clan can obtain independently, allowing him to dictate the terms of cooperation.
• Corporate greed and opportunity: The clan is willing to invest heavily in uncertain rewards because a single Diamond Chest could yield enormous returns.
• Luck versus guaranteed profit: The buyout arrangement carries risk for the Ding Clan, since they pay a fixed amount without knowing whether the reward will be ordinary or extraordinary.

Character Interactions

• Yang Ling intimidates the Ding Clan members when they approach his Diamond Chest, establishing firm boundaries.
• Ding Yunxi questions Yang Ling about the chest and then proposes purchasing his future rewards.
• Ding Jiangyao warns Yunxi not to overstep but is silenced when Yunxi reveals she has Director Si Nan’s authority.
• Yang Ling and Ding Yunxi negotiate the future buyout price, with both recognizing the other’s leverage.
• After the others leave, Ding Jiangyao privately asks Yang Ling to sell her the Netherworld King’s Finger Bone, creating a more personal and direct business interaction between them.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Ding Jiangyao purchases the Netherworld King’s finger bone for 10,000 Transaction Points and withdraws from the Three Days in Netherworld City mission.
• Yang Ling realizes that although he has accumulated over 950,000 Transaction Points, he lacks enough supply channels to spend them on resources or strength improvements.
• At the Northern Sky Kingdom branch of the Ding Clan Alchemy Group, executives learn that Luo Kai has obtained a rare Diamond Chest.
• The executives discuss the extraordinary rewards such chests can contain and recognize that Divine Realm players have major advantages as members of a newly launched server.
• Ding Sinan refuses to remove Luo Kai from the blacklist, explaining that no major group can openly recruit him without provoking the other powerful factions. Instead, the groups must cooperate indirectly and cautiously.
• Ding Yunxi reveals that Luo Kai has agreed to a reward-packaging arrangement: the Ding Clan will provide goods worth 50,000 Transaction Points for each successful run, in addition to escort-related expenses.
• The executives learn that Luo Kai’s spirit body defeated the Netherworld King, proving that his real combat strength far exceeds his apparent Middle Third Grade cultivation.
• Ding Sinan concludes that Luo Kai is following the path of the earliest top players and could eventually reach the Ancient Immortal level if Divine Realm survives.
• The Ding Clan branch is ordered to avoid personal conflict with Luo Kai while continuing to cooperate with him discreetly.
• Meanwhile, Yang Ling waits nearly ten days for his Diamond Chest to finish forming. Just as it is almost complete, he receives his first mandatory mission after leaving the Grandmaster Network’s novice period.
• He is matched with a 500-player team and ordered to enter the Pangu Immortal-Slaying Forbidden Zone, forcing him to teleport away before claiming the completed chest.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling/Luo Kai: His growing Transaction Point wealth creates a new problem: he lacks reliable ways to convert those points into useful resources. His Diamond Chest and hidden strength elevate his status, but his mandatory mission arrives at the worst possible moment, leaving him anxious about losing the chest.
• Ding Sinan: Demonstrates strategic caution and political awareness. Rather than recklessly trying to recruit Luo Kai, he recognizes the danger of antagonizing the major factions and chooses limited, indirect cooperation.
• Ding Zhan: Initially believes the Diamond Chest should prompt the Ding Clan to aggressively win Luo Kai over. After hearing Ding Sinan’s explanation, he understands the broader political suppression imposed on emerging powers and becomes frightened by the risks.
• Ding Yunxi: Acts as the successful negotiator between Luo Kai and the Ding Clan, securing a profitable cooperation arrangement.
• The Ding Clan executives: Shift from surprise and curiosity to serious concern and respect after realizing Luo Kai’s spiritual combat ability may place him on the path toward Ancient Immortal-level power.

Significant Themes

• Political control and collective suppression: Powerful established groups cooperate to prevent any single faction from monopolizing a rising genius, using blacklists and indirect pressure to control emerging forces.
• Hidden strength and underestimated talent: Luo Kai’s apparent cultivation level conceals overwhelming mental and spiritual power, making ordinary assessments of his combat ability dangerously inaccurate.
• Resource versus power imbalance: Yang Ling possesses enormous financial resources but lacks sufficient channels to exchange them for cultivation materials, emphasizing that wealth is useless without access and opportunity.
• The danger of rapid advancement: Luo Kai’s unusual advantages attract both opportunity and hostility, while his sudden mandatory mission shows how quickly the Grandmaster Network can disrupt his plans.
• Potential and destiny: The discussion of Ancient Immortal-level power establishes Luo Kai as a figure with extraordinary future potential, provided he survives political suppression and dangerous missions.

Character Interactions

• Ding Jiangyao’s purchase indirectly adds to Yang Ling’s Transaction Point concerns and marks the conclusion of the Netherworld City transaction.
• Ding Sinan counsels Ding Zhan and the other executives, explaining why Luo Kai cannot be openly recruited and why cautious cooperation is necessary.
• Ding Yunxi reports her successful negotiations and recounts Luo Kai’s astonishing performance in the Netherworld City mission.
• The executives collectively reassess Luo Kai after learning that his spirit body overwhelmed the Netherworld King.
• Yang Ling’s personal anticipation of opening the Diamond Chest is interrupted by the Grandmaster Network, which assigns him a large-scale mandatory mission and teleports him to the Pangu Immortal-Slaying Forbidden Zone.

Chapter Summary: “Luckily, He Came Across Such a Windfall”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Yang Ling is transported to the Pangu Immortal-Slaying Forbidden Zone along with a Diamond Chest that is still forming. He is relieved that the Grandmaster Network did not confiscate it.
• Finding himself alone, Yang Ling tests his abilities and discovers that mental perception and mind-related techniques are completely suppressed. His White Bone Primordial Spirit, Divine Ape Spirit Body, Eye of Illusion, and related techniques all fail.
• His internal cultivation arts, close-combat abilities, Tier-3 White Bone Buddha Overlord Form, Spirit Pet Space, and defensive equipment remain usable. He summons Xiao Bai and equips both the Profound Fire Qilin Armor and another layer of armor.
• The mission’s requirements appear: Yang Ling must collect 100 Immortal Meteorites within one month, or suffer a random penalty.
• Rather than immediately searching for meteorites, Yang Ling waits for the Diamond Chest to finish forming.
• Six other Middle-Third-Grade players arrive after being attracted by the chest’s radiance. They identify it as a rare Diamond Chest and begin scheming to seize it.
• One player boasts about his financial difficulties and calls the chest a fortunate windfall. Yang Ling immediately attacks, throwing a lightning-infused knife that kills him almost instantly.
• Realizing they have vastly underestimated Yang Ling, the remaining five players attempt to withdraw. Yang Ling refuses to let them leave, declaring that he will deal with them after opening the chest.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling demonstrates caution and strategic thinking by systematically testing which abilities function in the forbidden zone. Although irritated by the suppression of his mental techniques, he confirms that his most important physical and defensive powers remain intact.
• His confidence grows once he verifies that he can still use his cultivation arts, armor, spirit pet, and close-combat skills. He becomes increasingly vigilant because of the forbidden zone’s dangerous reputation.
• Yang Ling also reveals a ruthless, decisive side. Instead of merely warning the intruders, he kills one immediately and intimidates the others into recognizing the gap between them.
• The other players shift from greed and aggression to fear after witnessing Yang Ling’s overwhelming attack. Their earlier confidence collapses once they realize he is likely far stronger than an ordinary Middle-Third-Grade player.
• “Big Ox,” himself a Spirit Armor Master, recognizes that Yang Ling’s equipment and strength are unusual, suggesting that Yang Ling may be an unknown or particularly powerful figure.

Significant Themes

• Caution in an unfamiliar environment: Yang Ling refuses to assume that his usual abilities will work and carefully tests his powers before acting.
• Suppression versus retained strength: The forbidden zone limits mental and spiritual techniques but does not completely weaken Yang Ling, creating uncertainty about what dangers he can face.
• Greed and its consequences: The players’ desire for the Diamond Chest blinds them to the danger of confronting Yang Ling. Their greed leads directly to one member’s death.
• Power and intimidation: Yang Ling establishes dominance through a single overwhelming attack, turning a potential group confrontation into a display of fear and submission.
• Fortune and opportunity: The Diamond Chest represents an extraordinary opportunity, but its presence also attracts conflict and exposes the risks associated with sudden wealth.

Character Interactions

• Yang Ling briefly interacts with Xiao Bai after summoning the spirit pet, using the companion as part of his preparation and protection.
• The first two players question Yang Ling about the chest, but he dismisses them and orders them to leave.
• The two groups discuss the chest among themselves, speculate about its origin, and debate Yang Ling’s identity and strength.
• Big Ox identifies Yang Ling as a Spirit Armor Master, while the group leader argues that the potential rewards justify attacking him.
• One player’s boast about his debts and future advancement prompts Yang Ling’s sudden attack. After the killing, the remaining six players apologize and attempt to retreat.
• Yang Ling rejects their apology and informs them that they must wait until he opens the chest, leaving their fate uncertain at the chapter’s end.

Yang Ling confronted a Forbidden Land Executioner that was chasing players toward his Diamond Chest. After killing the fleeing players who ignored his warning, he watched the Executioner leave with an Immortal Meteorite, while a large faction appeared nearby.

• Big Ox explained that the Forbidden Land Executioner hunted anyone carrying an Immortal Meteorite and warned that its strength exceeded 30,000.
• Yang Ling ordered Big Ox and his companions to redirect the fleeing players, but the twelve players ignored their warning and ran toward him.
• Yang Ling activated Tier-3 White Bone Buddha Overlord Form and prepared to defend the Diamond Chest as the Executioner approached.
• Yang Ling struck the twelve players with throwing knives, and the Executioner took an Immortal Meteorite from one of them before killing them and leaving.
• Big Ox and his companions stared in horror as Yang Ling said they had to deal with the heart of the problem, and a group of thirty to fifty players appeared nearby.

Chapter Summary: “Thunder God Armor”

1. Key Plot Points and Events

• Big Bull and the others realize that Yang Ling is the infamous Divine Realm player who has been blacklisted by major groups, with a bounty of 100,000 Transaction Points on his head.
• The opposing group is identified as the Savage Wilderness Lei Clan Divine Weapon Group, led by Lei Wanqi. They are a cleanup team assigned to the Immortal-Severing Restricted Zone.
• Both sides focus on a nearly formed Diamond Chest, an exceptionally rare reward that the Lei Clan players want to claim.
• Lei Wanqi reveals the Lei Clan’s special Divine Weapon Armor. He equips the Thunder God Armor, while his subordinates activate fire-based Five-Element Divine Weapon Armor.
• The Thunder God Armor grants Lei Wanqi a major attribute boost and includes the skill Thunder God Form, which transforms his body into lightning and dramatically increases his speed.
• Lei Wanqi attacks Yang Ling before he can open the chest. His lightning-based assault is so fast that Yang Ling is repeatedly struck, while the spectators cannot follow the battle.
• Yang Ling appears not to fight back, leading Lei Wanqi and his group to assume he has been severely injured or killed.
• When a Lei Clan player approaches to remove Yang Ling’s armor, Yang Ling casually flicks the man’s forehead and kills him instantly.
• Lei Wanqi launches a second assault, striking Yang Ling 999 times with Thunder God Form. Although the attack exhausts him, Yang Ling remains standing.
• A reluctant Lei Clan player is ordered to verify Yang Ling’s condition. Instead of relying solely on lightning, he uses a physical flaming blade attack. Yang Ling easily dodges it, proving that he is still unharmed.

2. Character Developments

• Yang Ling remains calm and confident despite being attacked. His refusal to retaliate is revealed to be deliberate rather than a sign of weakness. His powerful mental perception allows him to track Lei Wanqi’s lightning form even when others cannot.
• Lei Wanqi is introduced as an arrogant but capable leader. He possesses powerful equipment and initially believes the Thunder God Armor gives him a decisive advantage. His confidence begins to weaken when Yang Ling survives his attacks.
• Big Bull and the others shift from excitement at the bounty on Yang Ling to fear and caution after witnessing Lei Wanqi’s destructive armor and Yang Ling’s apparent invulnerability.
• The Lei Clan subordinates become increasingly frightened of Yang Ling. Their hesitation to approach him contrasts with Lei Wanqi’s authoritarian demands.
• The unnamed subordinate ordered to attack Yang Ling demonstrates practical caution, choosing a physical attack after recognizing that Yang Ling may resist or ignore lightning damage.

3. Significant Themes

• Appearances versus reality: Yang Ling seems helpless because he does not fight back, but his apparent vulnerability is misleading.
• Technological and equipment supremacy: The chapter emphasizes the importance of Divine Weapon Armor, particularly the Lei Clan’s specialized Thunder God Armor.
• Counters and weaknesses: Thunder God Form provides extreme speed and lightning power but lacks physical damage and may be ineffective against lightning immunity.
• Fear and authority: Lei Wanqi controls his subordinates through threats and status, but their fear of Yang Ling reveals the limits of his authority.
• Confidence versus true strength: Lei Wanqi’s confidence comes from his armor and reputation, while Yang Ling’s composure reflects genuine overwhelming power.
• Corporate ownership and exploitation: Lei Wanqi’s remark that the players became “property” of the Lei Clan Group highlights the organization’s oppressive control over its members.

4. Character Interactions

• Yang Ling and Lei Wanqi exchange taunts, with Lei Wanqi boasting about the Thunder God Armor and Yang Ling examining it with interest rather than fear.
• Big Bull and the others observe the confrontation, recognizing both Lei Wanqi’s lightning-based advantage and the potential value of the armor against Tribulation Lightning.
• Lei Wanqi repeatedly orders his subordinates to approach Yang Ling, but they hesitate after seeing one companion killed instantly.
• The chapter ends with a Lei Clan player successfully revealing that Yang Ling can still move when Yang Ling dodges his physical flaming blade, overturning the group’s belief that Lei Wanqi’s attack had defeated him.

Chapter Summary: “Not Bad, I’m a Coward”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lei Wanqi repeatedly attacks Yang Ling using Thunderclap Form and the Thunder God Armor, but Yang Ling remains unharmed by the lightning-based assaults.
• Once Lei Wanqi exhausts his Vital Blood, Yang Ling seizes him by the throat and demands the Thunder God Armor.
• Lei Wanqi attempts to resist by activating multiple cultivation techniques, but Yang Ling overpowers him. He reluctantly removes the armor from his Equipment Slots and hands it over.
• Yang Ling learns that the Thunder God Armor is a rare, limited-edition item with relatively low equipment requirements. It greatly boosts strength and agility, grants the Thunder God Form, and provides exceptional lightning-based speed and physical defense.
• After equipping the armor, Yang Ling tests its abilities. His strength and agility each increase by 2,200 points, and Thunder God Form allows him to transform into lightning and travel at a fixed, extremely high speed.
• Lei Wanqi explains that the armor can even outpace Upper Second-Grade Human Immortals, though its immense Vital Blood consumption limits how long it can be used.
• Yang Ling successfully combines Thunder God Form with Xiao Bai’s Fire Qilin Spirit Armor, proving that Spirit Armor abilities can function alongside equipment.
• Instead of considering the matter settled after obtaining the Thunder God Armor, Yang Ling demands that the Lei Clan Group surrender all of their Five-Element Divine Weapon Armor as well.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling is shown to be overwhelmingly powerful, durable, and increasingly confident. He treats Lei Wanqi’s strongest attacks almost casually and immediately recognizes the strategic value of the Thunder God Armor.
• Yang Ling also demonstrates curiosity and adaptability by testing the armor’s speed, Vital Blood consumption, and compatibility with Xiao Bai’s Spirit Armor.
• Lei Wanqi suffers a major blow to his pride. His confidence collapses after discovering that the armor cannot compensate for the vast difference in strength between him and Yang Ling.
• He admits that the Thunder God Armor made him arrogant and caused him to misjudge the situation. His willingness to call himself a “coward” reflects an unusual moment of self-awareness and humility.
• Xiao Bai continues to support Yang Ling by transforming into Spirit Armor and successfully merging with the Thunder God Armor.
• The Lei Clan Group players become fearful and demoralized after witnessing their leader’s defeat and the loss of his prized armor.

Significant Themes

• Power versus dependence on equipment: Lei Wanqi’s confidence depends heavily on the Thunder God Armor, while Yang Ling’s innate strength allows him to use it even more effectively.
• Arrogance and self-awareness: Lei Wanqi’s defeat exposes how the armor encouraged overconfidence, while his later admission shows reluctant growth.
• Adaptation and experimentation: Yang Ling quickly studies and tests his new weapon, demonstrating his ability to exploit unfamiliar powers.
• Humor through intimidation: Yang Ling’s casual demands, including threatening to “flick” Lei Wanqi’s forehead and calling him a coward, contrast sharply with the seriousness of the battle.
• Escalating greed and dominance: After taking the Thunder God Armor, Yang Ling immediately targets the group’s remaining valuable equipment, showing that he intends to maintain complete control over the situation.

Character Interactions

• Yang Ling humiliates Lei Wanqi by capturing him after enduring his strongest attacks and forcing him to surrender the armor.
• Lei Wanqi tries to negotiate by explaining the armor’s abilities and asking Yang Ling to treat the conflict as settled.
• Yang Ling rejects the offer and instead orders the Lei Clan Group members to remove their Five-Element Divine Weapon Armor.
• The surrounding players react with shock and fear, especially after seeing Xiao Bai’s true form as a Fire Qilin and witnessing Yang Ling use Thunder God Form with Spirit Armor.

Chapter Summary: SSS-Class Xuanhuang Abode

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Lei Clan Group surrenders fifty sets of Five-Element Divine Weapon Armor to Yang Ling after being defeated. The armor, especially the Blazing Armor, is valuable because its Flame Body skill can negate ordinary physical damage.
• Lei Wanqi reveals that each Blazing Armor would normally sell for around 20,000 Transaction Points, making Yang Ling’s haul worth roughly one million points.
• Yang Ling allows the Lei Clan players to leave but forces six unrelated Third Grade players to remain and serve as guards, humiliating them in the process.
• The next day, the Diamond Chest opens and produces an SSS-Class Xuanhuang Abode, a treasure capable of resisting attacks from a First-Grade Celestial Immortal while isolating all outside forces.
• The Xuanhuang Abode requires 400,000 Vital Blood to activate. Yang Ling realizes it could serve as a life-saving shelter if he is pursued by a Celestial Immortal.
• He cannot bind the treasure because his cultivation is below First Grade, nor can he store it in the Green Dragon Ring. He eventually hides it inside his spirit armor.
• The six guards speculate that Yang Ling may have obtained a Transcendent Grade internal art, but they conclude that his conflict with the Lei Clan Group will eventually bring disaster upon Divine Realm.
• Yang Ling spends the next half month using the six players to explore the Immortal-Severing Restricted Zone. He records several locations containing Restricted-Zone Executioners but encounters no other players.
• When Yang Ling notices that everyone seems to have disappeared, Big Ox suggests that the other players may have hidden after learning that Yang Ling had effectively eliminated or driven away the Lei Clan Group.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling becomes even more confident and resourceful. He exploits the Lei Clan’s vulnerable position to obtain an enormous amount of valuable equipment, then quickly assesses the defensive potential of the Xuanhuang Abode.
• His excitement over the treasure reveals how rare and powerful it is, but he remains cautious once he discovers that it cannot be bound or stored normally.
• Lei Wanqi is reduced to a submissive position, forced to negotiate with Yang Ling and accept the loss of the armor to preserve his group’s survival.
• The six Third Grade players shift from fear and resentment to curiosity and reluctant obedience. Though humiliated by being used as guards and scouts, they also recognize Yang Ling’s extraordinary advantages as a Divine Realm player.
• Big Ox demonstrates practical insight by proposing that the disappearance of other players is the result of widespread fear of Yang Ling.

Significant Themes

• Power and intimidation: Yang Ling’s strength allows him to rob an elite group openly, something considered unprecedented in the Grandmaster Network.
• The advantages of early access: The players recognize that Divine Realm, as one of the earliest games, benefits from extraordinary opportunities unavailable to later players.
• Security versus vulnerability: The Xuanhuang Abode promises near-absolute protection, but Yang Ling’s inability to bind or properly store it exposes the danger of possessing a treasure he cannot fully control.
• Reputation and isolation: Yang Ling’s brutal treatment of the Lei Clan causes other players to hide rather than confront him, demonstrating how power can drive others away and leave its wielder increasingly isolated.
• Survival in a hostile world: Equipment, defensive treasures, and cautious exploration are essential because powerful enemies and rival groups can threaten Yang Ling at any moment.

Character Interactions

• Yang Ling and Lei Wanqi engage in a tense negotiation in which Yang Ling calmly dictates the terms and Lei Wanqi reluctantly complies.
• Yang Ling humiliates the six Third Grade players by ordering them to stand guard, then further uses them as guides and scouts during his exploration.
• The six players privately discuss Yang Ling’s treasure and future, revealing both envy and a belief that his feud with the Lei Clan will eventually destroy him.
• Big Ox offers Yang Ling an explanation for the empty restricted zone, helping him understand the broader consequences of his actions.

Chapter Summary: Hero, Spare My Life!

Key Plot Points and Events

• Yang Ling formally accepts the six surviving players as teammates after they have worked together for more than half a month. They investigate why the other participants in the Immortal-Severing Restricted Zone remain hidden, but learn that major groups have coordinated to stay silent.
• A gigantic fist suddenly strikes the restricted zone’s invisible barrier. The attack is powerful enough to shake the ground and terrify everyone, proving that an expert far stronger than a Third Grade cultivator is trying to break in.
• The group realizes that the attackers are likely powerful figures from Pangu, targeting Yang Ling—also known as Luo Kai—rather than interfering with the Forced Mission itself.
• Yang Ling immediately begins collecting Immortal Meteorites as quickly as possible. He needs one hundred before the barrier collapses or the outside experts enter the zone.
• The Pangu groups’ assault could cause the mission to fail or greatly increase its difficulty, but the major organizations are willing to accept the consequences because they have suffered heavy losses to Yang Ling and possess enough players and resources to absorb a one-year ban from Forced Missions.
• Yang Ling reaches multiple meteorite markers while being pursued by Forbidden Land Executioners. He eventually collects ninety-three meteorites, leaving only seven at the final marker.
• Hidden players emerge and follow him, including Lei Wanqi and other experts from major organizations. Lei Wanqi taunts Yang Ling and reveals that giving him the Thunder God Armor was supposedly part of a trap: if Yang Ling activates Thunder God Form, his Vital Blood will be depleted, allowing the Executioners to kill him.
• Yang Ling turns the situation around by suddenly using lightning-speed movement to seize Lei Wanqi while continuing to flee. However, activating Thunder God Form costs him several thousand Vital Blood, and he remains under pressure from seven Executioners.
• The chapter ends with Lei Wanqi terrified and begging Yang Ling, “Hero, spare my life!”

Character Developments

• Yang Ling/Luo Kai: Becomes more openly accepting of the six players, treating them as genuine teammates rather than disposable followers. He demonstrates strategic awareness, prioritizing mission completion and preserving enough Vital Blood to activate the Xuanhuang Abode if necessary. Despite being hunted and surrounded, he remains focused and decisive.
• Big Ox: Establishes himself as the most clear-headed and dependable member of the group. He provides information about the mission and the likely motives of the Pangu experts.
• The Six Teammates: Their loyalty to Yang Ling is emphasized. They are nervous around him but gradually become more trusting and cooperative.
• Lei Wanqi: Shifts from a confident pursuer to a helpless captive. His claimed trap fails when Yang Ling captures him, leaving him pleading for his life.
• The Major Groups: Their fear of Yang Ling becomes clear. They have moved beyond trying to suppress his reputation and now seek extreme measures to eliminate him or protect themselves from further losses.

Significant Themes

• Trust and Teamwork: Yang Ling’s declaration that the six players are his teammates strengthens their loyalty and gives the group a sense of unity.
• Fear and Power: The major groups’ willingness to risk mission penalties demonstrates how seriously they regard Yang Ling’s growing strength.
• Strategic Survival: The chapter emphasizes resource management, especially Yang Ling’s careful preservation of Vital Blood and his race to complete the objective before external forces break through.
• Retaliation and Escalation: Yang Ling’s earlier victories, particularly his defeat of Lei Wanqi and seizure of the Thunder God Armor, have provoked increasingly desperate retaliation from powerful organizations.
• Mission Rules versus Outside Forces: The conflict introduces tension between the structured rules of the Forced Mission and powerful outsiders willing to interfere, potentially altering the mission’s difficulty or consequences.

Character Interactions

• Yang Ling reassures the six men that he considers them teammates, creating a warmer relationship while still maintaining authority.
• He questions them about hidden players and whether they secretly warned the major groups, showing both cautious suspicion and awareness of possible betrayal.
• Big Ox and the others explain the political situation and the risks of mission interference.
• Lei Wanqi taunts Yang Ling while pursuing him, but Yang Ling refuses to engage and continues collecting meteorites.
• Lei Wanqi boasts about his supposed plan to exhaust Yang Ling, only to be captured moments later and reduced to begging for mercy.

Chapter Summary: “Stay Calm, Don’t Do Anything Stupid”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Yang Ling, still posing as “Luo Kai,” continues beating Lei Wanqi while moving toward the next mission marker inside the Immortal-Severing Restricted Zone.
• Lei Clan Group members hesitate to rescue Lei Wanqi because seven Forbidden Land Executioners are nearby, making intervention extremely dangerous.
• Meng Yuan, a powerful member of the Pangu Gene Group, explains that Pangu’s experts are attempting to break into the restricted zone. He claims they will soon kill Yang Ling and rescue Lei Wanqi.
• When Lei Clan players ask Meng Yuan to help their boss, he coldly states that Lei Wanqi’s death would be compensated by providing his family enough resources to raise several replacements.
• Yang Ling suddenly uses the Thunder God Armor’s incredible speed to capture Meng Yuan as well.
• He tortures both captives with lightning. The Thunder God Armor severely suppresses their Flesh Derivation abilities, proving especially effective against Third-Grade Great Grandmasters.
• Lei Wanqi reveals that Meng Yuan’s unusually high attributes come from using a Beginner Bloodline Gene Mutation Potion. Such potions can raise a person’s attribute limit without changing their official realm classification.
• Yang Ling realizes that the potion he previously consumed may have raised his own Middle Third Grade attribute limit from 9,999 to 11,999.
• Taking advantage of this discovery, he consumes one hundred Counterfeit Blood Tyrant Pills, raising his Strength from 9,900 to 10,400.
• Yang Ling demands Lei Wanqi’s Transaction Points and possessions. Lei Wanqi transfers 1,208 points but admits he has already consumed the pills and resources he owned.
• Annoyed, Yang Ling increases the electrocution. Meng Yuan, briefly relieved when the voltage is reduced, warns Yang Ling to remain calm and avoid doing something foolish.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling/Luo Kai: Demonstrates overwhelming speed, combat control, and tactical awareness. He learns a crucial secret about Bloodline Gene Mutation Potions and realizes his own potential is much greater than he believed. His greed and aggression also become more pronounced as he exploits his captives.
• Lei Wanqi: Shifts from arrogance to fear and submission. He tries to preserve his life by offering Yang Ling his Transaction Points and cooperation, though his earlier spending leaves him with little to offer.
• Meng Yuan: Revealed to be a high-ranking and exceptionally strong Pangu Gene player with enhanced attributes. Despite his confidence and intimidating status, he is unable to resist Yang Ling’s lightning and becomes visibly desperate.
• Pangu Gene Group: Appears ruthless and pragmatic, treating Lei Wanqi as expendable while relying on superior forces to resolve the situation.

Significant Themes

• Power and helplessness: Even elite players become helpless when confronted with a stronger opponent and effective control abilities.
• Pragmatism and expendability: Meng Yuan’s willingness to let Lei Wanqi die highlights the impersonal, calculating nature of powerful organizations.
• Hidden rules and unequal knowledge: Yang Ling’s ignorance of the potion’s true effects shows how dangerous concealed information can be in the game’s competitive world.
• Greed and survival: Lei Wanqi’s attempts to bargain with Yang Ling and Yang Ling’s demand for all his resources show how survival reduces relationships to transactions.
• Control as a decisive advantage: The Thunder God Armor’s lightning does more than inflict damage; it suppresses powerful enemies’ abilities and prevents them from escaping.

Character Interactions

• Lei Clan members plead with Meng Yuan to rescue Lei Wanqi, but Meng Yuan dismisses their concerns and prioritizes Pangu Gene’s larger plan.
• Yang Ling captures Meng Yuan immediately after taking Lei Wanqi, shocking the surrounding players and exposing the limits of Meng Yuan’s reputation.
• Lei Wanqi warns Yang Ling not to kill Meng Yuan, explaining that Meng Yuan’s enhanced attributes come from a mutation potion.
• Yang Ling interrogates Lei Wanqi about his resources, while Lei Wanqi attempts to negotiate for his life and dignity.
• As Yang Ling tortures both captives, Meng Yuan eventually warns him, “Stay calm. Don’t do anything stupid,” creating a tense contrast between Yang Ling’s growing confidence and the danger posed by Pangu Gene’s approaching experts.

Chapter Summary: “Welcome to My Home as a Guest”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Luo Kai/Yang Ling confronts Meng Yuan and Lei Wanqi over the corporations’ attempts to kill him while he was completing the Forced Mission in the Immortal-Severing Restricted Zone. He compares their interference to someone forcing open a bathroom door, declaring that the corporations have created an irreconcilable grudge.
• Lei Wanqi and Meng Yuan try to persuade him to cooperate with the corporations by becoming their agent in the Divine Realm. They promise him immense resources, status, and an easy path to First Grade.
• They warn him that three Celestial Immortals from Pangu Gene are attacking the restricted zone and will soon break through the barrier to capture him. Yang Ling responds by repeatedly electrocuting them rather than accepting their negotiation attempt.
• Yang Ling collects enough Immortal Meteorites to complete his mission, reaching a total of one hundred. Instead of escaping directly, he deliberately circles around while being chased by eight Forbidden Land Executioners.
• When Pangu Gene’s experts finally break through the restricted zone’s barrier, Yang Ling activates the Xuanhuang Abode. The ability consumes 400,000 Vital Blood and transports him and hundreds of nearby players into a separate, self-contained world.
• The other players’ missions immediately fail because they are no longer inside the restricted zone. Yang Ling, however, receives confirmation that he has completed his Forced Mission and obtains an Immortal Spirit Pill, which can stabilize his foundation and resist genetic mutation.
• The Xuanhuang Abode proves powerful enough to isolate everyone from the eight Forbidden Land Executioners, whose attacks cannot damage the Xuanhuang Gate. However, the abode’s duration is limited by Yang Ling’s Vital Blood, giving him only fifty hours of refuge.
• Yang Ling reveals that the gathered players are now his “guests” and announces that his home has one rule: guests must kneel. When one player attempts to flee, Yang Ling kills him with a Thunder Blade, forcing the others to submit.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling/Luo Kai becomes increasingly defiant and dominant. Rather than panic under pressure from corporations, Forbidden Land Executioners, and approaching Celestial Immortals, he turns the situation into a trap and gains complete control over the other players.
• He demonstrates greater mastery of the Xuanhuang Abode, using it not only as a refuge but also as a means of isolating and intimidating his enemies.
• Meng Yuan and Lei Wanqi lose their confidence. Their attempts to negotiate fail, and they are repeatedly electrocuted, leaving them terrified and physically humiliated.
• The other players shift from arrogance and outrage to fear. Their status as powerful Middle Third Grade experts becomes meaningless inside Yang Ling’s domain, especially after witnessing the attempted escape and execution.

Significant Themes

• Defiance against corporate power: Yang Ling refuses to submit to the corporations’ offers or threats, rejecting the idea that wealth and influence can dictate his choices.
• Reversal of power: Those who intended to hunt and capture Yang Ling become trapped and powerless inside his own domain.
• Control and psychological dominance: Yang Ling uses fear, humiliation, and the threat of immediate violence to establish authority over hundreds of powerful opponents.
• Isolation and refuge: The Xuanhuang Abode represents both safety and limitation. It protects Yang Ling from overwhelming external forces, but its temporary duration makes his refuge precarious.
• Pride and submission: The players’ former status and dignity collapse when they are forced to kneel, emphasizing the chapter’s focus on hierarchy and power.

Character Interactions

• Meng Yuan and Lei Wanqi attempt to reason with Yang Ling and offer corporate cooperation, but he rejects their appeals and attacks them.
• Pangu Gene players demand Meng Yuan’s release, yet Yang Ling ignores them and uses their arrival to gather everyone in one place.
• Inside the Xuanhuang Abode, Yang Ling addresses the assembled players mockingly as guests and imposes his rule over them.
• When one player challenges his authority by fleeing, Yang Ling kills him instantly, convincing the remaining players to kneel in fear.

Chapter Summary: “I Won’t Be a Capitulationist”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Yang Ling kills a defiant player with lightning, reducing him to ash, then recalls his flying knives into his spirit armor. The remaining players, terrified, kneel and hope that submission will preserve their lives.
• He forces Lei Wanqi to choose between becoming a guest or an enemy. Lei Wanqi chooses survival and kneels, reassuring the Lei Clan players that temporary humiliation is preferable to death and need not become a psychological burden.
• Meng Yuan, relying on his status as a core disciple of Pangu Gene, initially refuses to kneel. Yang Ling threatens to kill him, so Meng Yuan reluctantly submits as well.
• Outside the Xuanhuang Gate, the eight Forbidden Land Executioners are destroyed. An elderly Celestial Immortal from Pangu Gene arrives and asks Yang Ling to open the gate.
• The old man attempts to negotiate, claiming Pangu Gene entered the restricted zone for unrelated reasons and offering Yang Ling a prestigious position as Divine Realm’s exclusive agent. He promises that Yang Ling could advance to First Grade within five years.
• Yang Ling recognizes the offer as a trap: the conglomerates intend to exploit Divine Realm’s resources and force him to betray his people. The old man openly suggests that Divine Realm could be shut down and replaced by another cooperative Grandmaster if Yang Ling refuses.
• Rather than capitulate, Yang Ling declares that he will advance before another Grandmaster can emerge and vows to destroy the clan of any Divine Realm Grandmaster who cooperates with the conglomerates.
• He then demands one Gold-Grade Technique Exchange Voucher in exchange for Meng Yuan. When the old man ignores the offer, Yang Ling massacres several nearby Pangu Gene players with a storm of flying knives and lightning, threatening to kill Meng Yuan next.
• The chapter ends with the old man losing his composure and attacking the Xuanhuang Gate with repeated punches.

Character Development

• Yang Ling becomes increasingly ruthless and uncompromising. He moves from enforcing his “house rules” to openly challenging an entire conglomerate and its Celestial Immortal representative. His loyalty to Divine Realm outweighs personal advancement or safety.
• Lei Wanqi shows practical survival instincts. He accepts humiliation and encourages his followers to do the same, reframing kneeling as a temporary necessity rather than a lasting disgrace.
• Meng Yuan experiences the collapse of his confidence and pride. His status as a Pangu Gene core disciple cannot protect him, and being forced to kneel leaves him shaken and fearful.
• The old Celestial Immortal initially presents himself as calm, benevolent, and reasonable, but his mask begins to crack when Yang Ling rejects the offer and kills Pangu Gene players. His final attack reveals the coercive force behind his supposed negotiation.
• The kneeling players shift from believing they have been saved through submission to realizing that Yang Ling may still kill them, leaving them trapped between obedience and panic.

Significant Themes

• Resistance versus capitulation: The central theme is Yang Ling’s refusal to sell out Divine Realm for personal power or advancement.
• Political and economic exploitation: The conglomerates disguise their attempt to plunder Divine Realm’s foundations as cooperation and opportunity.
• Survival and humiliation: The kneeling players accept shame to remain alive, while Yang Ling argues that surrendering one’s people is a far more serious moral failure.
• Power and status: Titles such as “core disciple” or “Celestial Immortal” provide no protection against someone willing to act decisively.
• Loyalty and responsibility: Yang Ling sees himself as responsible for the fate of Divine Realm’s 140 million inhabitants, making personal benefits unacceptable if they require betraying his people.
• Threats beneath diplomacy: The old man’s polite negotiation conceals coercion, manipulation, and the threat of replacing Yang Ling with a more compliant Grandmaster.

Character Interactions

• Yang Ling dominates his interactions with Lei Wanqi and Meng Yuan, forcing both to obey his conditions through the threat of immediate death.
• Lei Wanqi attempts to stabilize the Lei Clan players by explaining that kneeling is a rational survival strategy.
• The old Celestial Immortal tries to pressure Yang Ling through promises of status, cultivation resources, and a First-Grade breakthrough, but Yang Ling turns the negotiation into an accusation of betrayal.
• Yang Ling and the old man engage in a battle of wills: the old man relies on persuasion and implied political power, while Yang Ling responds with defiance and violence.
• Yang Ling uses Meng Yuan as leverage, offering to sell him back to Pangu Gene but demonstrating that he is fully prepared to execute him if the old man refuses.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• An old First-Grade Celestial Immortal repeatedly attacks Yang Ling’s Gate of Black and Yellow, but cannot damage or penetrate it.
• Believing the situation is hopeless, Meng Yuan and thirty-six other players consider using their Life-Substitution Bamboo Slips, which would save them at the cost of being unable to enter the Grandmaster Network for three years.
• The old man reveals that the bamboo slips cannot function inside Yang Ling’s Cave Mansion. The players’ confidence collapses, and they kneel again.
• The old man becomes interested in Yang Ling’s Cave Mansion, deducing that it is an exceptionally high-ranked reward from a recently established Divine Realm. He estimates that Yang Ling’s level is hundreds of levels above the other players.
• He offers Yang Ling five Gold-Grade Technique Exchange Vouchers, protection from the major groups’ ban orders, and time to grow in exchange for the Cave Mansion.
• Yang Ling refuses, viewing the Cave Mansion as his primary means of survival. He threatens to kill members of the old man’s groups, beginning with Meng Yuan, and vows to retaliate against future Divine Realm players if they are subjected to the Bone-Burning Inheritance.
• Meng Yuan clarifies that the Bone-Burning Inheritance cannot be used inside the Grandmaster Network because of its protective rules. The old man supports this explanation and argues that all the groups share a common origin and should cooperate rather than fight.
• Yang Ling remains unconvinced and prepares to kill Meng Yuan. The old man intervenes and offers to trade for Meng Yuan’s life.
• Yang Ling demands an Advanced Bloodline Gene Mutation Potion instead of the original vouchers. The old man agrees to have one delivered, but Yang Ling insists that the potion be produced immediately and that the old man withdraw from the Immortal-Severing Restricted Zone before Meng Yuan is released.

Character developments

• Yang Ling remains outwardly composed and increasingly assertive. He recognizes the Cave Mansion’s defensive advantage and uses it to reverse the power dynamic, refusing to be intimidated or manipulated.
• Meng Yuan shifts from defiance to fear and desperation after learning that his life-saving bamboo slip is useless. He prepares for a final attack but becomes hopeful when the old man negotiates for his survival.
• The old Celestial Immortal proves powerful but unable to overcome the Cave Mansion’s defenses. He is also highly perceptive, correctly inferring much about Yang Ling’s Divine Realm and rapidly changing tactics from force to negotiation.
• Lei Wanqi and the other players lose their arrogance once their escape method fails, submitting silently to Yang Ling’s control.
• The old man’s attempt to present cooperation as a shared racial and evolutionary interest reveals his political outlook, but Yang Ling interprets his earlier conduct as evidence that he cannot be trusted.

Significant themes

• Power through preparation and defensive resources: Yang Ling’s Cave Mansion neutralizes an otherwise overwhelming Celestial Immortal, demonstrating that strategic advantages can outweigh cultivation strength.
• Desperation and false security: The players initially rely on their Life-Substitution Bamboo Slips, only to discover that the location’s rules render them useless.
• Negotiation under threat: Once brute force fails, both sides use hostages, rewards, and threats to gain leverage.
• Trust versus self-preservation: The old man promotes cooperation and shared origins, but Yang Ling prioritizes survival and refuses to surrender the only protection he can rely on.
• The limits of institutional protection: The Grandmaster Network’s rules prevent the Bone-Burning Inheritance, suggesting that its restrictions may offer some protection even amid broader factional conflict.

Character interactions

• Meng Yuan challenges Yang Ling and insists that the players can escape, but the old man immediately destroys that confidence by exposing the bamboo slips’ limitation.
• The old man tries to persuade Yang Ling with both flattery and material incentives, while Yang Ling counters by threatening his people.
• Meng Yuan interrupts the confrontation by explaining the Grandmaster Network’s rules, and the old man confirms his statement to preserve the possibility of cooperation.
• Yang Ling uses Meng Yuan as bargaining leverage, forcing the old man to negotiate directly and demanding proof of good faith before releasing him.

Chapter Summary: “Long Live Understanding”

Key Plot Points and Events

• A powerful Celestial Immortal from Pangu Gene bargains with Yang Ling to save Meng Yuan. The players believe Pangu Gene would never accept an outrageous demand, since being manipulated by a newcomer from the newly reopened Divine Realm server would damage its reputation.
• The Celestial Immortal’s strength is severely suppressed inside the Immortal-Severing Restricted Zone, and he can remain there for only fifteen minutes. As a terrifying howl emerges from the zone, he realizes he must leave.
• Before departing, the Celestial Immortal leaves Yang Ling an Advanced Bloodline Gene Mutation Potion, effectively fulfilling the bargain. The invisible barrier repairs itself after he exits.
• Yang Ling sends Xiao Bai to retrieve the potion, confirming that he now possesses both an Advanced and Intermediate mutation potion and can undergo two successive gene mutations.
• Rather than immediately releasing Meng Yuan, Yang Ling questions him about the Immortal-Severing Restricted Zone, the mysterious howl, Pangu Gene’s previous incursions, and the purpose of the Immortal Meteorites.
• Meng Yuan reveals that the zone has existed since Pangu’s earliest server opening. The first exploration party—four Celestial Immortals and thirty-three Human Immortals—entered after breaking through the barrier, but none returned.
• Pangu’s leadership subsequently prohibited unauthorized Celestial Immortal incursions. A persistent rumor claims that the zone contains the remains of players from an earlier server opening, suggesting that the current “first” opening may actually be one of many.
• Meng Yuan explains that the Immortal Meteorites are reclaimed by the Grandmaster Network, while the zone’s rewards—especially the Immortal Spirit Pill—are considered far more valuable.
• The Immortal Spirit Pill can reverse severe gene collapse, cultivation deviation, and aberration in Second-Grade Human Immortals, while still offering significant help to First-Grade Earthly Immortals. Yang Ling realizes it may restore his sworn brother and help the mentally deteriorating Grand Ancestor.
• After obtaining the information, Yang Ling demands all of Meng Yuan’s equipment, including storage treasures, as punishment. He declares that since Divine Realm players will be targeted by Pangu regardless, he may as well profit from the conflict.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling becomes increasingly calculating and confident. He recognizes the strategic value of the potions and Immortal Spirit Pill, protects the pill carefully, and turns a diplomatic negotiation into a profitable extortion attempt.
• Meng Yuan shifts from fearing execution to cautiously hoping for release. Although he provides valuable information, he remains wary of Yang Ling and is ultimately subjected to further demands.
• The Pangu Gene Celestial Immortal is portrayed as pragmatic and decisive. Despite the immense prestige of Pangu Gene, he abandons Meng Yuan when forced to leave and pays Yang Ling with a rare potion.
• The surrounding players develop a deeper respect and fear for Yang Ling, while also becoming more aware of the hidden history and dangers surrounding the restricted zone.

Significant Themes

• Power and leverage: Yang Ling uses his control of the Cave Mansion and the restricted zone’s access to force a major faction into an unfavorable bargain.
• The hidden history of the game world: The possibility of repeated server openings and abandoned civilizations introduces uncertainty about the true origin of the current world.
• Strategic resources: Gene mutation potions and the Immortal Spirit Pill are not merely treasures but tools capable of changing characters’ cultivation paths and saving powerful figures.
• Pragmatism over reputation: Yang Ling openly prioritizes profit and survival over appearing honorable, summarized by his remark that everyone should show “understanding.”
• Fear of forces above the factions: Yang Ling’s concern shifts from Pangu Gene itself to the mysterious company or system overseeing all the games.

Character Interactions

• The Pangu Celestial Immortal and Yang Ling engage in a high-stakes exchange: the former leaves behind the Advanced Bloodline Gene Mutation Potion, while Yang Ling allows Meng Yuan to survive.
• Yang Ling interrogates Meng Yuan in front of the gathered players, turning him into a source of information about Pangu’s secrets.
• The players listen closely to Meng Yuan’s revelations, especially concerning the first failed expedition and the possibility of previous server cycles.
• Yang Ling’s final demand that everyone surrender their equipment shocks Meng Yuan and the other players, establishing that Yang Ling intends to exploit the situation fully rather than end the conflict peacefully.

Key plot points and events

• Meng Yuan surrenders his carried equipment to Yang Ling but explains that his 100-cubic-meter Profound Heaven Ring is bound to his account and cannot be taken or sold. He claims his valuable, non-combat goods are already stored in the game.
• Yang Ling lets Meng Yuan leave. After Meng Yuan passes through the Gate of Black and Yellow, he disappears, apparently ejected because his mission has failed. Yang Ling realizes his own mission may already be complete.
• Yang Ling examines Meng Yuan’s Supreme Unity Armor, learns it is high-end equipment worth at least 50,000 Transaction Points, and considers how valuable such gear could be in the Divine Realm.
• A supposedly unaffiliated player offers a Basic Treasure-Storing Talisman in exchange for his life. Yang Ling accepts it, then smashes the player’s bound spatial ring and Divine Weapon Armor before letting him go.
• Yang Ling announces a new procedure: players with unbound equipment are “VIPs” and should go first; players whose gear is bound must wait in a separate line.

Character developments and interactions

• Yang Ling shifts from simply collecting surrendered items to exploiting the rules around bound equipment. He honors his promise to release Meng Yuan, but shows little concern for destroying another player’s gear. His calculating, opportunistic attitude becomes clearer as he organizes the captives like customers.
• Meng Yuan tries to protect his valuable belongings by relying on account binding. He is briefly relieved when Yang Ling lets him go, then discovers that the exit is not immediately open; once released, he seems to be expelled from the restricted zone.
• The unaffiliated player tries to appear harmless and uses a talisman to bargain for survival. His precaution of binding his gear protects it from being taken but not from being destroyed.
• Lei Wanqi explains that players can pay to bind equipment, though the fee for his powerful Thunder God Armor was too high. He realizes that binding it might have prevented Yang Ling from taking it.
• The kneeling players’ fear eases when Meng Yuan is released, but Yang Ling’s destruction of bound gear quickly makes them reconsider their options.

Significant themes

• The limits of protection: Account binding prevents theft or transfer, but cannot stop an enemy from physically destroying equipment.
• Power and bargaining: Survival and possessions are negotiated under Yang Ling’s control; even a small talisman can buy a chance to leave.
• Greed and pragmatism: Yang Ling evaluates people and equipment chiefly by their usefulness and value.
• Trust under coercion: Yang Ling keeps his word to Meng Yuan, yet his arbitrary-seeming treatment of others keeps the captives uncertain and afraid.

Chapter Summary: “Extreme Evacuation”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Under Yang Ling’s command, the surviving players form a line to pass through the Gate of Black and Yellow and leave the Immortal-Severing Restricted Zone.
• Yang Ling demands that players surrender any unbound storage equipment and Divine Weapon Armor. Bound items must be destroyed, while players with insufficient valuables risk being killed.
• Lei Wanqi offers ten Small Marrow-Washing Pills in exchange for leniency. Yang Ling accepts, consumes them, and gains fifty levels, rising from level 601 to 651. Lei Wanqi is allowed to leave.
• Yang Ling kills a player who has only a small amount of Transaction Points and tries to borrow more, demonstrating that he will not tolerate excuses or dishonesty.
• Most players become cooperative, surrendering equipment and Transaction Points. Yang Ling accumulates numerous Divine Weapon Armors and Treasure-Storing Talismans, including enough armor to bring his total to one hundred sets of Middle Third Grade battle armor.
• Another player offers twenty Small Marrow-Washing Pills to save himself and seven companions. Yang Ling accepts the deal and allows all eight to retain their bound equipment. The exchange gives him another hundred levels and brings him closer to level 1,000 and the First Grade realm.
• Just as Yang Ling is about to consume the pills, a massive disturbance erupts outside the Gate. A gigantic hand bursts from the earth and strikes toward the Xuanhuang Abode.
• Suspecting that the attack may come from the mysterious entity responsible for the earlier howl, Yang Ling immediately stores away the Xuanhuang Abode and uses the mission-completion prompt to evacuate.
• Yang Ling escapes in time, but most of the remaining players cannot react quickly enough. The giant hand crushes hundreds of them.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling becomes increasingly ruthless, calculating, and opportunistic. He uses the evacuation line to strip the players of valuable assets while enforcing absolute obedience through the threat of death.
• His level rises dramatically through the Small Marrow-Washing Pills, reinforcing his growing power and bringing him closer to the First Grade realm.
• Despite his greed, Yang Ling shows selective flexibility. He grants mercy when players offer sufficiently valuable compensation and chooses not to expose suspected cooperation among players.
• Lei Wanqi demonstrates quick thinking by offering valuable pills instead of resisting. His deal allows him to survive and escape with his remaining assets.
• The eight-player group successfully negotiates as a unit, revealing the advantage ordinary players have when they can cooperate honestly.
• The broader player group becomes frightened and submissive after witnessing Yang Ling’s executions, while corporate players grow envious of ordinary players who receive more favorable treatment.

Significant Themes

• Power and exploitation: Yang Ling turns the desperate evacuation into an opportunity to seize resources from weaker players.
• Survival through negotiation: Characters survive by offering valuable items, cooperating, or accurately judging Yang Ling’s demands.
• The consequences of preparation: Players with bound equipment or few remaining Transaction Points are left especially vulnerable, showing the importance of maintaining reserves during dangerous missions.
• Conflict between ordinary and corporate players: Corporate players are treated more harshly because of their hostile relationship with Yang Ling, while ordinary players can still negotiate for mercy.
• Unpredictable danger: The sudden giant-hand attack shows that even after surviving the mission, far greater threats remain outside the characters’ control.
• Ruthlessness versus pragmatism: Yang Ling’s cruelty is balanced by his willingness to make profitable deals, making him a pragmatic rather than purely destructive antagonist.

Character Interactions

• Yang Ling bargains with Lei Wanqi, accepting pills in exchange for his release.
• He intimidates and executes an uncooperative player, warning the others not to rely on inadequate resources or last-minute excuses.
• Players voluntarily surrender armor, storage talismans, and Transaction Points to earn permission to leave.
• A leader negotiates on behalf of seven companions, offering twenty Small Marrow-Washing Pills and securing mercy for the entire group.
• The impending attack abruptly ends Yang Ling’s dealings, forcing him to prioritize emergency evacuation over further profit.

Chapter Summary: “The Situation Took a Sudden Turn”

Key Plot Points and Events

• At Song Yu Plaza, Yang Ling checks his Green Dragon Ring and confirms that his valuable rewards remain intact: Divine Weapon Armor, Treasure-Storing Talismans, Marrow-Washing Pills, and an Advanced Bloodline Gene Mutation Potion.
• He reflects on the terrifying palm strike in the Immortal-Severing Restricted Zone, realizing that the attacker was vastly stronger than the old Pangu Gene player he previously encountered. Although the Xuanhuang Abode should have blocked external power, the attacker’s aura still reached him through the Gate of Black and Yellow.
• Yang Ling worries that the hundreds of players who died may have been carrying valuable equipment and that their deaths will be blamed on him.
• The Grandmaster Network announces that the Forced Mission ended prematurely, reporting the deaths of 337 players. The announcement shocks the player community, since the mission had appeared to have a clear progression and was not expected to end in such a massacre.
• Players panic over the implications for their own upcoming Forced Missions, while others gather at Song Yu Plaza seeking information about what happened.
• Ding Zong arrives and confirms that members of the Mystic Antiquity Ding Clan Alchemy Group also died in the mission. He warns Yang Ling that the group’s leadership is holding an emergency meeting and that a massive retaliation or siege may soon be organized against him.
• The situation unexpectedly changes when major groups jointly announce that the Ban Orders against Luo Kai, Huo Si, and Ghost Crane have been lifted. All players are forbidden from targeting them in missions.
• This cancellation of the Ban Order allows Yang Ling to conduct business normally again, but he becomes more suspicious rather than relieved. He realizes that the major forces may believe he caused the massacre, yet they responded by removing restrictions instead of intensifying them.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling remains outwardly confident and defiant, but internally becomes increasingly cautious. He recognizes the overwhelming strength of the unknown attacker and begins reassessing the kind of enemies he may face in the future.
• His acquisition of the Advanced Bloodline Gene Mutation Potion further establishes his rapid rise and access to resources far beyond what ordinary newcomers can obtain.
• Yang Ling also demonstrates that he will not tolerate disrespect or incompetence. He orders Ding Zong to limit his appearances and demands that Ding Yuan be fired.
• Ding Zong shifts from concern and suspicion to open respect. Recognizing Yang Ling’s growing influence and potential, he congratulates him and orders his group to treat Yang Ling with greater courtesy.
• Ding Yuan, previously involved in dealing with Yang Ling, loses his position after Yang Ling declares that he will only conduct business through Ding Luo.
• Huo Si reacts with overwhelming joy upon learning that the Ban Order has been lifted, showing how seriously the restrictions had affected him.
• The players at Song Yu Plaza undergo a major change in attitude, abandoning their earlier mockery and replacing it with fear and awe.

Significant Themes

• Power and reputation: Yang Ling’s survival and access to rare resources dramatically increase his standing, causing others to reassess him.
• Hidden strength and danger: The mysterious attacker from the Restricted Zone represents a level of power far beyond Yang Ling’s current understanding.
• Political maneuvering: The sudden lifting of the Ban Order suggests that the major factions are acting strategically and may have more information or plans than they reveal.
• Fear and uncertainty: The deaths of 337 players undermine confidence in the Grandmaster Network’s missions and make even routine future missions seem dangerous.
• Respect earned through strength: Yang Ling’s treatment by Ding Zong and the surrounding players shows how quickly social attitudes change when someone demonstrates power and influence.

Important Character Interactions

• Yang Ling discusses the massacre and its consequences with Ding Zong, who warns him of an impending large-scale siege.
• Ding Zong questions how Yang Ling obtained the Advanced Bloodline Gene Mutation Potion, revealing the rarity of Yang Ling’s resources.
• Yang Ling rejects Ding Zong’s attempt at reconciliation unless business is handled through Ding Luo, and he orders Ding Yuan’s dismissal.
• Huo Si celebrates the lifting of the Ban Order, while the surrounding players react with shock to the announcement.
• The chapter ends with Yang Ling gaining greater respect and authority, even as he becomes more suspicious of the major factions’ sudden change in strategy.

Plot points and events

• After the blacklist order against Yang Ling is lifted, representatives of major groups immediately approach him to secure business.
• Ding Zhan offers a deep partnership with the Mystic Antiquity Ding Clan Alchemy Group, including priority supply and credit. His brother, Ding Zong, objects, but Ding Zhan says Ding Zong is likely to lose control of Song Yu Plaza and be replaced by Yang Ling.
• Yang Ling agrees to consider cooperation but warns that he will not help groups exploit scarce or hard-to-regenerate resources in the Divine Realm.
• He requests a thousand Counterfeit Blood Tyrant Pills, tens of thousands of low-requirement beginner equipment sets, and a large-capacity space ring. Ding Yunxi confirms the pills are available.
• Lei Wanqi arrives on behalf of the Savage Wilderness Lei Clan Divine Weapon Group, claiming he will be Yang Ling’s exclusive equipment liaison. He presents a Heaven-Imprisoning Ring with 200 cubic meters of storage, surpassing the ring Yang Ling requested.
• Yang Ling blocks a friend request from “Madman.” The chapter ends with Pangu-tagged players reacting angrily when Lei Wanqi insults Meng Yuan’s Profound Heaven Ring.

Character developments

• Yang Ling uses his growing influence to negotiate from a position of strength. He remains cautious about exploitation and focused on practical supplies.
• Ding Zong loses confidence and status as Ding Zhan suggests he may soon be removed from his post.
• Ding Zhan aggressively courts Yang Ling, while Ding Yunxi supports the offer and confirms stock is available.
• Lei Wanqi eagerly seeks Yang Ling’s favor, presenting himself as a loyal liaison and inwardly reassuring himself that his survival was due to his own skill.

Themes

• Power and leverage: Yang Ling’s reputation and Divine Realm access make major groups compete for his business.
• Pragmatism and boundaries: He welcomes useful deals but explicitly refuses to be used to strip scarce resources.
• Political rivalry: The groups’ eagerness to cooperate is matched by competition over territory, products, and influence.

Character interactions

• Yang Ling treats Ding Zhan warmly but gives Ding Zong little attention, sharpening their rivalry.
• Ding Zhan offers unusually generous terms; Yang Ling counters with clear limits and specific requests.
• Ding Yunxi and Lei Wanqi clash over which group should supply equipment, with Lei Wanqi claiming that business for Yang Ling belongs with his clan.
• Lei Wanqi flatters Yang Ling and disparages Meng Yuan’s ring, provoking the Pangu-tagged players.

Chapter Summary: Tripod-Seeking Conference

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Yuan arrives at Song Yu Plaza with other Pangu players, marking the first time a Pangu player has appeared there in years. He comes to deliver an important invitation rather than confront Lei Wanqi.
• Yang Ling finishes binding the Heaven-Imprisoning Ring to his account by paying 100,000 Transaction Points. Binding it automatically unbinds his Green Dragon Ring, so he transfers all his belongings into the new ring.
• The Heaven-Imprisoning Ring contains 200 cubic meters of storage space, making it vastly superior to ordinary Treasure-Storing Talismans. Its value causes envy even among powerful Third-Grade experts.
• Yang Ling accepts the goodwill of the Savage Wilderness Lei Clan Divine Weapon Group and agrees to continue cooperating with them.
• Ding Yunxi reveals that the Mystic Antiquity Ding Clan Alchemy Group also intends to give Yang Ling a gift and confirms that their previous cooperation can resume now that his Forced Mission has ended.
• Meng Yuan formally invites Yang Ling to attend the Tripod-Seeking Conference, a cooperative organization led by Pangu Gene and consisting of thirty-seven major groups.
• Yang Ling learns that the Lei Clan belongs to the Tripod-Seeking Conference, while the Ding Clan belongs to the rival Great Wilderness Alliance.
• The date and location of the conference have not yet been decided. Meng Yuan adds Yang Ling as a friend so he can notify him later.
• Ding Yunxi announces that the goods Yang Ling requested—including the counterfeit Blood Tyrant Pills—will be delivered during the upcoming Three Days in Netherworld City mission.
• Lei Wanqi proposes conducting trade in Netherworld City as well. Yang Ling requests several tens of thousands of cost-effective newbie equipment sets.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling becomes more deeply connected to the major factions. He secures continued cooperation with both the Lei Clan and Ding Clan while carefully assessing their political divisions.
• He also displays increasing ambition, viewing the rivalry between the Tripod-Seeking Conference and Great Wilderness Alliance as a source of business opportunities.
• Meng Yuan is portrayed as cautious, professional, and respectful. Despite representing Pangu Gene, he avoids unnecessary conflict and focuses on delivering the invitation.
• Lei Wanqi grows more enthusiastic about strengthening his relationship with Yang Ling and quickly offers further cooperation and trade.
• Ding Yunxi proves politically perceptive, immediately using the Lei Clan’s gesture as an opportunity to secure Yang Ling’s continued cooperation with the Ding Clan.
• Ding Zong and the other experts reveal their respect for the Tripod-Seeking Conference through their surprise at Yang Ling’s invitation.

Significant Themes

• Political factions and strategic alliances: The chapter introduces two major competing blocs and shows that the Divine Realm is divided into networks of cooperation and rivalry.
• Business as power: Yang Ling treats factional competition as a market opportunity, emphasizing trade, resources, and mutually beneficial partnerships.
• Status and wealth: The Heaven-Imprisoning Ring symbolizes the gap between ordinary experts and the elite. Even powerful groups envy an item that requires enormous resources to bind.
• Growing influence: Yang Ling is no longer merely an outsider conducting isolated transactions; major organizations now seek his participation and cooperation.
• Information and hidden agendas: The true purpose of the Tripod-Seeking Conference remains unclear, suggesting that Yang Ling may be drawn into larger political or economic conflicts.

Important Character Interactions

• Meng Yuan and Yang Ling interact formally, with Meng Yuan delivering Pangu Gene’s invitation.
• Yang Ling and Lei Wanqi establish a warmer partnership, agreeing to work together and conduct future trade.
• Yang Ling and Ding Yunxi resume their previous business relationship, with Ding Yunxi arranging supplies and favorable pricing.
• Lei Wanqi and Ding Zhan clarify the divide between their organizations, revealing that the Lei Clan and Ding Clan belong to rival alliances.
• Yang Ling’s request for large quantities of newbie equipment strengthens his commercial ties with both factions and sets up future cooperation in Netherworld City.

Chapter Summary: “Suddenly, He Felt a Little Tired”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Yang Ling enters Three Days in Netherworld City again with Ding Yunxi, Ding Jiangyao, and two new participants—the children of directors from the Mystic Antiquity Ding Clan Alchemy Group.
• The Ding Clan delivers 1,000 Counterfeit Blood Tyrant Pills as a gift, hoping to repair its relationship with Yang Ling after their previous conflict. Yang Ling accepts the gift but emphasizes that he prefers clear business boundaries.
• The group quickly defeats the Netherworld King when the Bone Emperor seizes and devours his soul. The mission receives only a B rating, granting everyone 100 Mental Power and Yang Ling an additional 1,000.
• Yang Ling’s Mental Power rises to 9,000. The mission reward is a Netherworld King’s Hair Strand, which can be used to refine mental pills. In accordance with their agreement, Yang Ling gives it to Ding Yunxi and receives 25 Black Tortoise Longevity Blood Pills.
• Yang Ling plans to use the Ding Clan’s protection and resources to exchange for large quantities of Black Tortoise Longevity Blood Pills, prioritizing cultivation over purchasing techniques.
• During another mission, his Mental Power climbs to 9,999, but it suddenly stops increasing. Yang Ling realizes he may have reached an unexplained limit just one point short of 10,000.
• The reward from this run is even worse: a Netherworld King’s Nail Scrap, described as a mental toxin. Yang Ling exchanges it for another 25 Black Tortoise Longevity Blood Pills.
• After leaving the mission, Yang Ling discovers that he can no longer join Ding Yunxi’s team on the Grandmaster Network. His access to Three Days in Netherworld City—and therefore the associated benefits—has apparently ended.
• Concealing his alarm, Yang Ling tells the others that he is merely tired and suggests suspending their cooperation.

Character Developments

• Yang Ling remains calculating and cautious. He values the benefits of cooperation but avoids becoming too dependent on the Ding Clan and refuses unnecessary discounts or favors.
• His confidence is shaken when his Mental Power stalls at 9,999, especially because he believes more mission opportunities remain. He is also forced to hide the loss of his access to the mission from the Ding Clan.
• Yang Ling’s strategic priorities become clearer: he intends to convert available resources into cultivation gains, particularly through Black Tortoise Longevity Blood Pills.
• Ding Yunxi continues acting as a diplomatic intermediary. Her acceptance of Yang Ling’s terms and her gift of the pills show the Ding Clan’s effort to rebuild trust.
• Ding Jiangyao and the two young directors’ children remain cautious and deferential, having been warned not to offend Yang Ling.
• The Bone Emperor demonstrates increased power, killing the Netherworld King effortlessly and appearing significantly stronger than before.

Significant Themes

• Fragile alliances and reconciliation: The Ding Clan uses the pills as a peace offering, while Yang Ling accepts them without fully abandoning his suspicion.
• Power and hidden limits: Yang Ling’s Mental Power reaching 9,999 suggests an unknown restriction and undermines his expectation of steady advancement.
• Resource management and cultivation strategy: The chapter emphasizes turning mission rewards, pills, and Transaction Points into practical combat strength.
• Concealment and self-protection: Yang Ling hides his inability to reenter the mission so others cannot infer his actual Mental Power or exploit his weakness.
• Uncertainty and loss of control: Although Yang Ling believes he can continue benefiting from Three Days in Netherworld City, the sudden loss of access reveals that important opportunities may disappear without warning.

Character Interactions

• Yang Ling deals directly with Ding Yunxi and Ding Jiangyao over the Counterfeit Blood Tyrant Pills, establishing a mixture of cooperation, guarded trust, and firm business boundaries.
• Ding Yunxi reassures Yang Ling after his disappointing mission rewards and continues exchanging the mission loot for the agreed Black Tortoise Longevity Blood Pills.
• The new Ding Clan participants observe Yang Ling cautiously and avoid speaking or interfering because of their families’ warnings.
• After Yang Ling fails to rejoin the team, Ding Zhan asks if something is wrong. Yang Ling conceals the truth, claiming fatigue and proposing a temporary suspension of their cooperation.

Yang Ling paused his cooperation on Three Days in Netherworld City and prepared to strengthen himself in the Cultivation Space. After advancing the White Bone Primordial Spirit Method to Return to Simplicity, he discovered it had granted him a one-use Rebirth skill and wondered if he now had a second life.

• Yang Ling told Ding Zhan and Lei Wanqi he was pausing missions to cultivate, while confirming their business would continue and asking for beginner equipment.
• Yang Ling weighed when to use the Intermediate and Advanced Bloodline Gene Mutation Potions and considered the threat posed by powerful players in the major groups.
• Yang Ling used twenty Small Marrow-Washing Pills, raising his level from 651 to 751 and saving 159 free attribute points.
• Yang Ling spent a Gold-Grade Pangu Internal Skill Exchange Voucher to advance the White Bone Primordial Spirit Method.
• The White Bone Primordial Spirit Method reached Return to Simplicity and granted Yang Ling 1,000 free attribute points and the one-use exclusive skill Rebirth, which he suspected could give him another life.