Chapter Summaries

After surviving the World Origin’s attempts to refine him, Zhao Li turned the tables and used his Golden Elixir to pursue his plan of evolving a World Embryo into an independent world. The Origin seized the Elixir, leaving Zhao Li poised to put his theory into action.

• Zhao Li realized the World Origin’s refining energy no longer harmed him and decided to collect his debt.
• The World Origin intensified its attacks and tried to reclaim the Power of Origin Zhao Li had condensed.
• Zhao Li countered the energy torrents with condensed Dou Qi, but neither side could overcome the other.
• Zhao Li released his Leak-Free Body and sent his shattered Golden Elixir toward the World Origin, drawing its attention away from him.
• Zhao Li resolved to evolve the World Embryo into a true, independent world rather than a Pocket World dependent on the Dou Qi Continent.

Zhao Li placed his shattered Golden Elixir into the World Origin, hoping to learn how it evolved a world and eventually create an Inner Universe of his own. When the World Origin began to leave with the Golden Elixir, Zhao Li manifested the Jade Emperor and used his own Dao as a lure to keep it from escaping.

• Zhao Li sent his shattered Golden Elixir into the World Origin, where it began repairing itself and forming illusory scenes.
• Zhao Li studied the World Origin's hatching process, then tried to retrieve the Golden Elixir but could not break through its layers of energy.
• The World Origin began to leave with the Golden Elixir, and Zhao Li realized he might lose the treasure he had placed there.
• Zhao Li manifested the Jade Emperor, the first deity he had condensed, and revealed his plan to populate his Inner Universe with deities and establish a Heavenly Court.
• Zhao Li and the Jade Emperor used a power resembling the World Origin's as a lure, hoping to draw it back with a result of the same level but distinct from its own origin.

Zhao Li used the Jade Emperor and Ye Yunsheng’s help to withstand the Origin of Heaven and Earth while transforming his Golden Elixir into the foundation of an Inner Universe. After stabilizing the newborn world, he tried to capture the origin but failed to find it, leaving him with the hope of hunting it down later.

• Zhao Li entered the origin light cluster, reclaimed his Golden Elixir, and catalyzed the World Seed in his Qi Sea while the Jade Emperor shared the refining pressure.
• After a patch of Chaos and a glowing egg appeared in his Qi Sea, Zhao Li sent the Jade Emperor inside to help create and stabilize a world.
• The Jade Emperor used the Eight Trigrams to settle the newborn world, while Ye Yunsheng used the Dou Di Body to draw some of the origin’s pressure away from Zhao Li.
• Zhao Li recovered and tried to capture the world origin, but it scattered its energy and vanished from his search.
• Zhao Li accepted that he could not yet find or seize the origin and resolved to look for it again while valuing the gains he had made.

After completing his breakthrough and developing his Inner Universe, Zhao Li returned his attention to Xiao Yan and learned what had happened in Wutan City during his year of cultivation. He explained that Yao Chen taught Xiao Yan the Flame Mantra because Yao Chen sought resurrection and Xiao Yan was willing to gamble on the technique.

• Zhao Li reflected on his Inner Universe, the Jade Emperor, and the possibility of creating more deities within himself.
• Zhao Li removed the strange phenomena caused by his cultivation and asked Ye Yunsheng how long he had been cultivating.
• Ye Yunsheng sensed an innate quality in Zhao Li, then told him about the past year, including Yao Chen becoming Xiao Yan's master and Xiao Yan's rapid breakthroughs.
• Ye Yunsheng questioned why Yao Chen had Xiao Yan cultivate the slow, risky Flame Mantra instead of a stronger technique.
• Zhao Li said Yao Chen wanted to resurrect and Xiao Yan was a gambler, leaving Ye Yunsheng puzzled about Yao Chen's plan.

Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng headed toward the Xiao Family as Zhao Li reflected on how much events had diverged from what he expected. Gu Yuan visited Xun'er and discovered traces of a Soul Body near Xiao Yan, leaving him intrigued by Xiao Yan's apparent fortuitous encounter.

• Ye Yunsheng questioned Zhao Li about Yao Chen, but Zhao Li denied causing the situation and suggested they visit the Xiao Family.
• Zhao Li observed Wutan City's crowds and reflected on the damage caused by the previous winter's celestial phenomenon.
• Zhao Li sensed Gu Yuan arriving at the Xiao Family but stayed among the crowd instead of greeting him.
• Gu Yuan delivered resources to Xun'er, who asked whether anything was wrong with Xiao Yan.
• Gu Yuan examined Xiao Yan after Xun'er mentioned his stalled cultivation and detected traces of a Soul Body, suspecting Xiao Yan had encountered a great fortune.

Gu Yuan investigated Xiao Yan and found only traces of a Soul Body, while Yao Chen suspected the Xiao Family might be connected to the ancient Xiao Clan. After Gu Yuan considered taking Xun'er back to the clan for safety, she persuaded him to let her stay longer, buying time for herself and Xiao Yan.

• Gu Yuan sensed traces of a Soul Body around Xiao Yan, while Yao Chen hid in the Storage Ring and wondered whether Xiao Yan's family was related to the ancient Xiao Clan.
• Gu Yuan reassured Xun'er that Xiao Yan was unharmed and explained what Soul Bodies were.
• Xun'er asked whether the Soul Body might be connected to the Soul Clan, prompting Gu Yuan to suggest she return to the clan for safety.
• Xun'er questioned whether the clan was truly safer and argued that returning might draw the Soul Clan's attention to her.
• Xun'er urged Gu Yuan to give the Soul Clan other problems to handle and said she would soon reach Dou Zong, persuading him to let her stay for now.

Gu Yuan let Xun'er stay with Xiao Yan for three or four years while he investigated Hun Tiandi, and Xun'er began planning how to make Xiao Yan recognize her feelings. Near the Xiao Family, Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng learned that Nalan Yanran was coming to Wutan City for the One-Year Agreement, as rumors and betting odds built anticipation for the duel.

• Gu Yuan agreed to let Xun'er remain near Xiao Yan for three or four years and left to provoke Hun Tiandi while keeping protections in place for her.
• After Gu Yuan departed, Xun'er worried that Xiao Yan still treated her like a younger sister and planned how to become the most important person in his heart.
• Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng arrived near the Xiao Family and heard people discussing Nalan Yanran's trip to Wutan City for the One-Year Agreement.
• Zhao Li noticed someone spreading detailed rumors about the duel and saw that betting odds heavily favored Nalan Yanran.
• Zhao Li reasoned that Xiao Zhan had likely arranged the publicity to build Nalan Yanran's reputation and reduce the ridicule Xiao Yan might face if he lost.
• Ye Yunsheng asked Zhao Li whom he favored, but he admitted he was unsure because the Misty Cloud Sect's strength and his own influence had changed the expected outcome.

Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng wagered on whether Xiao Yan or Nalan Yanran would prevail in their imminent contest. As the spectators gathered in Wutan City, Yun Yun led Nalan Yanran and a grand Misty Cloud Sect delegation to the Xiao Family.

• Zhao Li considered Nalan Yanran's advantages over Xiao Yan but acknowledged that Xiao Yan still had a slim chance to win.
• Ye Yunsheng gave Xiao Yan money, Zhao Li gave Nalan Yanran money, and the couple agreed that the loser of their wager would do one reasonable favor for the winner.
• Zhao Li decided to investigate Godfall Ice Plain and the Great Formation within Chaos after the contest, concerned about the threat of the Outer Realm Evil Race.
• Crowds gathered in Wutan City in anticipation of the contest between Xiao Yan and Nalan Yanran.
• Yun Yun arrived at the Xiao Family with Nalan Yanran and a large Misty Cloud Sect delegation, and the assembled people respectfully welcomed her.

Yun Yun arrived at the Xiao Family and agreed to let Nalan Yanran and Xiao Yan settle their dispute in the promised fight. As Nalan Yanran faced Xiao Yan on the platform, he recalled the humiliation that had driven his year of training and rose to confront her.

• Yun Yun apologized to Xiao Zhan for Nalan Yanran’s earlier offense and assured him that nothing unexpected would happen during the fight.
• Xiao Zhan accepted Yun Yun’s decision, and she sent Nalan Yanran to the platform.
• The gathered spectators admired Xiao Yan’s composure and noticed signs that he had reached the Dou Zhe level.
• Nalan Yanran landed before Xiao Yan, and the two met each other’s gaze with fighting spirit.
• Xiao Yan remembered how the annulment had spurred him to pursue strength and rose, addressing Nalan Yanran.

Xiao Yan faced Nalan Yanran at the arena and revealed that he had become a Three Star Dou Disciple, shocking the spectators. Nalan Jie regretted how his concern for face had damaged relations with the Xiao Family, but Xiao Yan had made clear that it was too late to repair the rift.

• Nalan Yanran prepared to fight Xiao Yan and insisted that she would sever their engagement regardless of his strength.
• Xiao Yan confronted Nalan Yanran over the humiliation she had brought upon the Xiao Family, and both fighters released their Dou Qi.
• The spectators discovered that Xiao Yan had reached Three Star Dou Disciple, astonishing Xiao Zhan, the elders, Nalan Yanran, and the gathered guests.
• Nalan Jie regretted his stubbornness and the harm it had caused his family’s relationship with the Xiao Family.
• Nalan Jie recognized Xiao Yan’s extraordinary potential and understood that he no longer had a chance to make amends.

Xiao Yan fought Nalan Yanran at the Xiao Family and, after being outmatched, used a hidden Large Black Ruler and Eight Extremities Collapse to land a devastating blow before collapsing himself. Nalan Yanran remained standing and returned the wrinkled paper, declaring that they had no connection anymore.

• Xiao Yan charged Nalan Yanran, but she easily redirected his punch and kept the advantage.
• Zhao Li told Ye Yunsheng that Xiao Yan had the makings of a future powerhouse, though he did not explain why he regarded him so highly.
• Nalan Yanran attacked with sword shadows, and Xiao Yan realized his limited Dou Qi left him with little chance of winning.
• Xiao Yan used the Large Black Ruler to block the sword shadows, then struck Nalan Yanran with Eight Extremities Collapse and fainted.
• Nalan Yanran stayed on her feet despite her injuries, returned the wrinkled paper to Xiao Yan, and said there was no longer any connection between them.

After Nalan Yanran defeated Xiao Yan, she broke through, and Yun Yun ended the marriage arrangement between their families. Xiao Yan won the crowd’s respect despite losing, while Zhao Li decided to travel to the Extreme North and reluctantly agreed to take Ye Yunsheng with him.

• Nalan Yanran gathered her Dou Qi and began a breakthrough, while Yun Yun protected her and dissolved the marriage arrangement between the Xiao and Nalan Families.
• The spectators praised Xiao Yan for nearly defeating the stronger Nalan Yanran, and the Xiao Family’s younger generation grew uneasy after seeing his ability.
• Zhao Li left with a Memory Orb recording the battle and decided to head to the Extreme North to investigate the Outer Realm Evil Race.
• Zhao Li asked Ye Yunsheng to stay behind and watch Xiao Yan, but she insisted on going with him.
• Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng agreed to travel to the Extreme North together, with Ye Yunsheng agreeing to follow his lead.

After losing to Nalan Yanran, Xiao Yan accepted that the defeat was only one battle and resolved to grow stronger. After half a year of dealing with family matters and threats to the Xiao Family, he left Wutan City with Yao Chen to train in the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

• Xiao Yan woke and learned from Yao Chen that he had lost to Nalan Yanran, then admitted he needed to keep improving.
• Xiao Yan told Yao Chen he sought power to protect those he cared about, and Yao Chen urged him to train in the Magical Beast Mountain Range.
• Xiao Yan spent half a year preparing to leave, while Xun'er helped keep the Xiao Family safe from those probing it.
• The Jia Lie Family allied with schemers against the Xiao Family, but Xiao Yan used Ghost Possession to kill a Dou Ling expert.
• Xiao Yan discovered that Xun'er was a sixteen-year-old Dou Wang, then said farewell to his family and left with Yao Chen.
• Xiao Yan arrived at Qingshan Town on the outskirts of the Magical Beast Mountain Range, carrying a huge Black Ruler.

Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng searched the desolate Extreme North for signs of an Outer Realm threat and found a white bear hiding from Zhao Li’s Soul Perception. The bear led them to a concealed gorge protected by a formation as powerful as the one surrounding the continent.

• Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng traveled across the Extreme North for more than half a month without finding signs of life or the anomaly Zhao Li had come to investigate.
• Zhao Li explained that he was unsure whether his earlier vision of the Outer Realm Evil Race was a real possibility, but he wanted to investigate rather than risk being unprepared.
• Ye Yunsheng spotted a white bear that Zhao Li recognized as a Soul Puppet connected to the Bone Chilling Flame.
• Zhao Li discovered that the bear contained a separate presence, which his Bone Chilling Flame consumed before he gained control of the puppet.
• Zhao Li followed the bear to a bottomless gorge hidden from his Soul Perception and realized that a formation there was no weaker than the one enveloping the continent.

Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng investigated a hidden canyon on the Godfall Ice Plains, and Zhao Li sent his Jade Emperor into the Abyss while explaining his method of preserving the gods within the body. The Jade Emperor then entered another space inside the Abyss.

• Zhao Li and Ye Yunsheng discovered that a massive Abyss was invisible to their Emperor Realm Souls and found that its sides looked as though they had been split apart by a sword.
• Zhao Li suspected the Abyss concealed a seal holding a living Dou Di, but found no clue to its Formation from above.
• Zhao Li reassured the worried Ye Yunsheng by manifesting the Jade Emperor and sending him into the Abyss to investigate.
• Zhao Li explained to Ye Yunsheng that the body was an Inner Cosmos whose faint inner wills could be sensed and trained as gods.
• Ye Yunsheng followed Zhao Li's guidance in sensing herself, while the Jade Emperor grew dizzy inside the Abyss and entered another space.

Zhao Li explored a dark Pocket Dimension filled with Nether Wind that seemed designed to wear away souls, and he concluded it might be a seal. When he crossed into a region where the winds converged, an unknown existence attacked his mind and welcomed him as her Demonic Servant.

• Zhao Li confirmed that he had entered a Pocket Dimension and found that his connection to his True Form had weakened.
• An unknown existence rejoiced that Zhao Li had entered the space and hoped to use him to escape before she faded away.
• Zhao Li investigated the Nether Wind and reasoned that the space was a seal meant to destroy an exceptionally powerful soul.
• Zhao Li noticed the winds ahead were moving toward a common target and crossed into the region where they converged.
• A surge of Soul Power struck Zhao Li's mind, and the unknown existence called him her Demonic Servant little brother.

Zhao Li allowed Nine Nether’s mark into his Sea of Consciousness and discovered that the supposed Tou She Ancient God was an illusion meant to tempt him with the secret of becoming Dou Di. The chapter ended with Nine Nether beginning to explain why no one could break through to Dou Di.

• Nine Nether tried to plant a mark in Zhao Li’s Sea of Consciousness, then discovered Zhao Li had a Heavenly Supreme-level soul essence but far weaker strength.
• Zhao Li found that the mark could not take root, then deliberately restrained his Soul Power and let it imprint itself.
• The mark transported Zhao Li to a grand palace, where a five-colored-haired man claiming to be Tou She Ancient God demanded that he bow.
• Zhao Li pretended to recognize and admire Tou She Ancient God, asking why Dou Di had vanished from the continent.
• Nine Nether, posing as Tou She Ancient God, grew confident that Zhao Li would be tempted by the prospect of reaching Dou Di and began explaining that something was missing between heaven and earth.

Zhao Li questioned Jiu You about the disappearance of Emperor's Origin and the barrier to becoming Dou Di, while Jiu You tried to manipulate him into accepting a demonic seal. The chapter left Zhao Li probing whether Origin Qi was finite and why it had been exhausted.

• Jiu You told Zhao Li that no one could become Dou Di without Emperor's Origin, then asked about Zhao Li's cultivation.
• Zhao Li claimed he had reached the late stage of Nine-Star Dou Sheng and learned that several Dou Di had left the continent after walking out of Chaos.
• Jiu You said he had used up the continent's last wisp of Emperor's Origin and explained that refining it was necessary to break through to Dou Di.
• Zhao Li acted despairing and asked whether Jiu You knew a way to become Dou Di, while Jiu You believed he had taken the bait.
• Zhao Li asked why Origin Qi had run out and whether each use consumed a finite amount, leaving descendants without it.

Jiu You deceived Zhao Li with a fabricated account of the Dou Qi Continent’s ancient wars and the Great Formation that hid it, while secretly planting a Soul Seal in his consciousness. With Zhao Li’s soul and strength under her control, she planned to use his body to recover and eventually conquer the continent.

• Jiu You told Zhao Li that Origin Qi had once regenerated and that ancient Dou Di had fought foreign enemies from the Outer Realm.
• Jiu You claimed the Dou Di had hidden the continent behind a Great Formation before departing into Chaos, and Zhao Li connected her account with what he had learned from Ye Yunsheng.
• As Zhao Li pondered the Great Formation, Jiu You’s Soul Seal began merging into his Sea of Consciousness and magnifying his desires.
• Jiu You planned to use Zhao Li’s body and Heavenly Supreme-level Soul Power to recover, then exploit the Dou Qi Continent’s Plane Embryo to create more Heavenly Supremes.

Jiu You tried to persuade Zhao Li that the Dou Qi Continent’s Formation could be broken, while Zhao Li secretly removed Jiu You’s Soul Seals and questioned his motives. Jiu You revealed that the Formation’s core was there and began explaining why he had left so little trace in history.

• As Jiu You’s Soul Seal entered Zhao Li’s Sea of Consciousness, Zhao Li’s True Form supplied purer Soul Power that let him remove the seals without Jiu You noticing.
• Zhao Li examined the marks and wondered whether Jiu You was Tou She Ancient God, a puppet controlled by Heavenly Flames, or an Evil Demon.
• Zhao Li asked where the Formation’s root was and said he was willing to challenge the danger of breaking it.
• Jiu You told Zhao Li that the Formation’s core was right there, then asked whether he had wondered why Jiu You had left no faction or inheritance.
• After Zhao Li asked why, Jiu You said he had once held the same thoughts as Zhao Li.