Chapter Summaries

Summary: “Victory Makes Kings, Defeat Makes Bandits”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Ancestral Dragon reveals that Eastern Sovereign’s rise was built largely on the stolen foundations of the Dragon, Qilin, and Phoenix Clans.
• The Human Body Formation, previously believed to be Eastern Sovereign’s invention, originated from the Dragon Clan’s study of Pangu’s meridians and the Primordial World’s Dragon Veins. Eastern Sovereign merely refined and repackaged it before using it to influence the Wu Tribe.
• The three ancient clans each possessed unique knowledge derived from their origins:
  • The Dragon Clan, formed from Pangu’s meridians, understood Dragon Veins and developed the foundation of the Human Body Formation and the Heavenly Capital Divine Baleful Formation.
  • The Qilin Clan, linked to Pangu’s toenails and bones, sensed mineral deposits and reconstructed the distribution of Pangu’s bones. Their Qilin Formation later became the basis of Eastern Sovereign’s Myriad Immortals Formation.
  • The Phoenix Clan, connected to Pangu’s hair and the stars, studied stellar movements and developed the Phoenix Formation, predecessor of the Cosmic Star Formation.
• The Phoenix Clan’s connection to the stars also contributed to their powerful spiritual traits: enduring True Spirits, immortal wisdom, and rebirth through nirvana.
• Eastern Sovereign used the clans’ discoveries to gather resources:
  • The Qilin Clan provided ordinary and innate materials.
  • The Dragon Clan located high-grade treasures through Dragon Veins.
  • The Phoenix Clan found supreme treasures through stellar guidance and inherited wisdom.
• With these resources, the refined formations, support from the Wu Tribe, and awakened rogue cultivators, Eastern Sovereign rapidly expanded Penglai Immortal Mansion.
• Ancestral Dragon explains that the Human Clan’s physical structure was mostly sound because Nuwa used the complete Human Body Formation. However, its bone structure was flawed because Nuwa lacked knowledge of Pangu’s bone distribution.
• Nuwa likely modeled human bones on the Four Chaos Monkeys, whose bone structure descended from the Chaos Demon Ape, rather than on the true arrangement of Pangu’s bones.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang becomes disillusioned with Eastern Sovereign. He had admired Eastern Sovereign as a self-made creator but now recognizes him as a talented appropriator who refined and exploited the achievements of others.
• Chen Yang also gains a broader understanding of his own rise, acknowledging that his success depended on Duobao, the Jie Sect, the Human Clan, the Wu Tribe, and the Mystic Sect.
• Ancestral Dragon presents himself as a knowledgeable interpreter of ancient history and as someone seeking Chen Yang’s help to grow stronger. His bitterness toward Eastern Sovereign and the destruction of the three clans is evident.
• Eastern Sovereign is recontextualized as an opportunistic refiner rather than an original creator.
• Nuwa is portrayed as highly capable but limited by incomplete knowledge, particularly regarding Pangu’s bones.

Significant Themes

• History is written by the victors: The chapter’s central idea is that victorious powers claim the achievements, resources, and even reputations of the defeated.
• No success is truly achieved alone: Eastern Sovereign’s rise depended on the three clans, just as Chen Yang’s own advancement depended on allies and organizations.
• Appropriation and refinement versus creation: Eastern Sovereign did not invent the major formations; he took existing discoveries, altered them, and presented them as his own.
• Inheritance from Pangu: The origins of different clans determine what aspects of Pangu’s body and the Primordial World they can understand.
• The limits of incomplete knowledge: The Human Clan’s flawed bone structure demonstrates how even a nearly complete creation can contain weaknesses when its creator lacks the full underlying theory.
• Power depends on resources and foundations: Formations, treasures, bloodlines, and inherited knowledge are shown to be more important than individual strength alone.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang repeatedly questions Ancestral Dragon, gradually uncovering the hidden origins of several famous formations.
• Ancestral Dragon corrects Chen Yang’s assumptions and provides historical explanations, while also criticizing Eastern Sovereign’s manipulation of the three clans.
• Chen Yang and Ancestral Dragon briefly compare Eastern Sovereign’s rise with Chen Yang’s own, leading Chen Yang to recognize that both relied on broader networks of support.
• Their conversation shifts from historical revelation to practical concerns: Chen Yang asks how he can help Ancestral Dragon become stronger and whether the Human Clan contains flaws that can be exploited or corrected.

Chapter Summary: Fortune Treasures

Key Plot Points and Events

• Ancestral Dragon explains that the human body contains many elements derived from Pangu and the Chaos Demon Ape, making its complex structure almost miraculous.
• He offers to teach Chen Yang the distribution of Pangu Bones so Chen Yang can reorganize and strengthen his physical body.
• Chen Yang asks how to reach the Primordial Unity Realm quickly. Ancestral Dragon says that Chen Yang’s immense influence and the recognition of heaven and earth have already granted him tremendous Fortune, making advancement through gradual development likely.
• Chen Yang rejects relying on Fortune, suspecting that the cultivation system of the Primordial World may conceal a terrifying secret. He believes that becoming a “Son of Destiny” and accumulating Fortune may turn cultivators into its slaves.
• Ancestral Dragon confirms that he once shared these doubts. He warns Chen Yang not to investigate the truth yet, since his cultivation is insufficient, and reveals that the ancient Dragon Clan’s own investigation led to its decline.
• To help Chen Yang grow stronger, Ancestral Dragon gives him a Dragon Pearl containing an extremely rare Ancestral Dragon Vein, along with other treasures. The vein was discovered in a Chaos Demon God Secret Realm and had previously supported Ancestral Dragon’s cultivation.
• Ancestral Dragon identifies the place they are standing in as the Ten Thousand Dragon Nest, a Fortune-suppressing treasure made from the bones and bodies of countless Dragon Clan members, along with Pangu bones. It also preserves the possibility of rebuilding the Dragon Clan.
• He explains the Fortune treasures of the Phoenix and Qilin Clans:
  • The Phoenix Clan relies on Parasol Tree Wood, connected to the Chaos Green Lotus and fused with jade disc fragments.
  • The Qilin Clan uses a Qilin Seal made from partially formed Pangu bones and jade disc fragments.
• Chen Yang learns that the Fortune treasures of the Three Clans are bound to their respective racial Fortune and cannot be used by outsiders to suppress Human Fortune.
• Ancestral Dragon then reveals that the Human Clan may be able to suppress its Fortune through a Fortune Formation developed by Eastern Sovereign, astonishing Chen Yang.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang becomes increasingly suspicious of the Primordial World’s cultivation system. Rather than passively accepting Fortune and destiny, he seeks an independent path to power.
• His concern shifts from simply increasing physical strength to understanding the deeper laws governing cultivation, Fortune, Merit, and calamity.
• Chen Yang also gains a major resource—the Ancestral Dragon Vein—which could greatly accelerate both his physical cultivation and overall advancement.
• Ancestral Dragon acts as a mentor and benefactor. He shares forbidden historical knowledge, admits his past doubts, warns Chen Yang against premature investigation, and entrusts him with the Dragon Clan’s hidden treasures.
• Ancestral Dragon’s revelations show that his concern is not only for Chen Yang’s growth but also for preserving the possibility of the Dragon Clan’s revival.

Significant Themes

• Fortune versus personal cultivation: The chapter questions whether advancement through heavenly Fortune represents true freedom or enslavement to a larger system.
• The hidden danger of the Primordial World: Fortune, Merit, Thunder Tribulations, and calamities suggest that a powerful, concealed force governs existence.
• Inheritance and racial destiny: The Dragon, Phoenix, Qilin, and Human Clans each possess unique connections to Pangu and distinct methods of preserving their Fortune.
• Sacrifice for survival: The Ten Thousand Dragon Nest embodies the Dragon Clan’s willingness to fuse generations of members into a collective treasure to preserve its race.
• Knowledge and restraint: Although Chen Yang is eager to uncover the truth, Ancestral Dragon emphasizes that some mysteries cannot safely be explored until he becomes stronger.
• Resources as strategic power: Ancestral Dragon Veins and Fortune treasures are not merely cultivation aids; they are foundations of racial strength and survival.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang challenges Ancestral Dragon’s suggestion that he rely on Fortune, prompting a philosophical discussion about destiny and the structure of cultivation.
• Ancestral Dragon responds candidly, validating Chen Yang’s suspicions while urging him to remain cautious.
• Their relationship deepens through mutual trust: Ancestral Dragon gives Chen Yang the Dragon Pearl and explains the secrets of the Three Clans’ Fortune treasures.
• Chen Yang’s questioning leads directly to the revelation that the Human Clan may possess its own means of suppressing Fortune through Eastern Sovereign’s Fortune Formation.

Chapter Summary: Procreation Divine Artifact

Key Plot Points and Events

• Ancestral Dragon explains that the Eastern Sovereign’s four greatest formations were likely based on the achievements of the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin Clans:
  • Heavenly Capital Divine Baleful Formation: derived from the Dragon Clan.
  • Cosmic Star Formation: derived from the Phoenix Clan.
  • Myriad Immortals Formation: likely derived from the Qilin Clan.
  • Fortune Formation: probably a fusion of the Three Clans’ formations.
• Chen Yang receives the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin formations from Ancestral Dragon and confirms that the Eastern Sovereign was more of a perfecter than an original creator.
• Chen Yang begins studying how to merge the three formations into the Fortune Formation, which could allow the Human Clan to suppress and stabilize its fortune.
• Ancestral Dragon gives Chen Yang a strange treasure called the procreation divine artifact. It has no offensive power but can dramatically increase a race’s reproductive ability.
• The artifact was originally discovered in a Demon God Secret Realm and had previously been divided among the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin Clans to strengthen their populations.
• Chen Yang places the artifact in the Yellow River and orders Human Clan members to consume the water, hoping to accelerate humanity’s reproduction.
• After years of deduction, Xiao Ling’er confirms that the three clan formations can likely be fused into the Fortune Formation, though the process will be extremely time-consuming.
• Xiao Ling’er also suggests that the Eastern Sovereign may not have personally perfected the Cosmic Star Formation, intensifying Chen Yang’s doubts about the historical truth of the Primordial World.
• Concerned that Ancestral Dragon’s generosity may conceal ulterior motives, Chen Yang travels to the Land of Reincarnation and asks Pingxin to inspect the treasures and the changes within him.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang becomes more cautious and skeptical. He realizes that many widely accepted historical claims may be false and that the Eastern Sovereign’s reputation may have been exaggerated.
• He also accepts that he now owes Ancestral Dragon a significant debt, though he intends to repay it rather than reject the assistance.
• Ancestral Dragon is portrayed as knowledgeable and generous, but his motives remain ambiguous. His aid appears helpful to both Chen Yang and the Human Clan, yet Xiao Ling’er and Chen Yang suspect hidden intentions.
• Xiao Ling’er demonstrates increasingly sophisticated analytical abilities through her formation deductions. She serves as Chen Yang’s critical adviser, warning him not to trust Ancestral Dragon completely.
• Pingxin continues to act as a trusted and powerful evaluator, offering to use reincarnation to examine both the artifacts and Chen Yang’s condition.

Significant Themes

• Truth versus historical illusion: Chen Yang discovers that famous figures may have claimed credit for accomplishments built on the foundations of ancient clans.
• Trust and hidden motives: Ancestral Dragon’s help may be genuine, manipulative, or both. The chapter emphasizes that gifts create obligations and may conceal schemes.
• The growth and survival of a race: The Fortune Formation and procreation artifact both focus on strengthening the Human Clan’s collective power rather than Chen Yang’s personal cultivation.
• Inheritance and synthesis: The fusion of Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin formations symbolizes the combination of different racial legacies to create something greater.
• The limits of knowledge: Even powerful ancient beings lack complete understanding of the Primordial World’s secrets, forcing Chen Yang to remain cautious.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang and Ancestral Dragon: They discuss the origins of the great formations, exchange knowledge, and establish a relationship based on mutual benefit but incomplete trust. Ancestral Dragon gives Chen Yang both the three clan formations and the procreation artifact.
• Chen Yang and Xiao Ling’er: Chen Yang consults Xiao Ling’er about merging the formations and the origins of the Astral Formation. She confirms the feasibility of creating the Fortune Formation and warns him that Ancestral Dragon may have ulterior motives.
• Chen Yang and Pingxin: Chen Yang seeks Pingxin’s judgment because he fears Ancestral Dragon’s gifts may carry hidden dangers. Pingxin agrees to examine the Dragon Pearl, the Ancestral Dragon Vein, and Chen Yang’s own condition.

Chapter Summary: Engraving the Slaying Immortals Sword Formation

Key Plot Points and Events

• Pingxin examines Chen Yang, the Ancestral Dragon Vein, and the Dragon Clan’s treasures, confirming that they contain no hidden dangers. The mystery of why Ancestral Dragon prepared these resources—possibly for resurrection—remains unresolved.
• Chen Yang decides to stop dwelling on the mystery and focus on strengthening himself. Pingxin begins refining the Dragon Pearl, the Dragon Clan’s treasures, and Chen Yang’s stored resources into the Auspicious Cloud Realm. She also merges the Ancestral Dragon Vein into the realm, allowing Chen Yang to carry it with him.
• Chen Yang enters prolonged cultivation to perfect and expand his bones. He plans to use his meridians to support the All-Heaven Grand Formation and his bones to support the Myriad Immortals Formation.
• After tens of thousands of years, his bones, meridians, Primordial Spirit, and physical body undergo major transformation. His body eventually disintegrates completely under the immense flow of spiritual qi, leaving only his source origin.
• Using the Ancestral Dragon Vein’s energy, Chen Yang reconstructs his body with bones, flesh, blood, and meridians infused with the aura and Dao rhythms of Primordial Unity.
• His physical body completes the Ninth Turn and reaches the Half-Step Primordial Unity Realm. His strength, combined with the Slaying Immortals Sword Formation and the developing All-Heaven Grand Formation, places him among the strongest beings in the Primordial World.
• Chen Yang and Pingxin discuss the potential relationship between the All-Heaven Grand Formation, the Myriad Immortals Formation, and the Heavenly Capital Divine Baleful Formation. All are based on aspects of Father God’s body—his meridians, bones, or the power of the Ancestor Shamans—and may potentially merge into an extraordinarily powerful formation.
• Chen Yang begins engraving the complete Slaying Immortals Sword Formation into his body. The transformation of his Formation Dao mana causes his cultivation to break through even though he has not severed any of the Three Corpses.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang becomes physically far stronger, reaching Half-Step Primordial Unity through the reconstruction and refinement of his body. His confidence increases, and he believes he can now challenge genuine Primordial Unity experts.
• His understanding of cultivation also matures. He realizes that breakthroughs do not require Corpse Severing and that progress in Formation Dao can directly advance his cultivation.
• Chen Yang demonstrates greater composure than before, quickly calming himself after his breakthrough and maintaining a disciplined mindset despite his excitement.
• Pingxin continues to serve as Chen Yang’s guide, protector, and refining partner. Her knowledge helps him understand the connection between cultivation, formations, and Father God’s physical structure.
• Pingxin also encourages a more balanced view of cultivation, warning that excessive knowledge can sometimes create mistaken assumptions or hinder clear understanding.

Significant Themes

• Transformation through destruction and rebirth: Chen Yang’s body is completely destroyed and then rebuilt, symbolizing a profound physical and spiritual evolution.
• The relationship between body and formations: His meridians and bones are not merely physical structures but serve as foundations for increasingly powerful formations.
• Inheritance of ancient power: The Ancestral Dragon Vein, Father God’s body, and the Dragon and Qilin legacies all provide the basis for Chen Yang’s advancement.
• Cultivation beyond conventional methods: The chapter challenges the assumption that Corpse Severing is necessary for breakthroughs, emphasizing direct comprehension of the Dao and personal cultivation paths.
• Ambition and integration: Chen Yang seeks to combine multiple great formations, suggesting that future power will come from merging different inheritances rather than relying on a single technique.
• Unresolved mysteries: The purpose behind Ancestral Dragon’s arrangements remains unclear, preserving an undercurrent of suspicion and future conflict.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang and Pingxin repeatedly discuss the safety and purpose of the Ancestral Dragon’s resources.
• Pingxin assists Chen Yang by refining the Dragon Pearl and resources into the Auspicious Cloud Realm, then provides him with the Ancestral Dragon Vein’s immense energy.
• After Chen Yang’s physical breakthrough, Pingxin acknowledges his new strength while reminding him of the potential of his formations.
• Their discussion of the Heavenly Capital Divine Baleful Formation and Myriad Immortals Formation deepens their shared understanding of how Father God’s body underlies the major formations.
• Pingxin explains the purpose of Corpse Severing, while Chen Yang realizes that his Body-Forged Formation path allows him to advance through engraving and perfecting formations directly.

Chapter Summary: Jie Sect’s Fortune Soars

Key Plot Points and Events

• Several hundred years pass after Chen Yang’s extended conversation with Pingxin in the cycle of reincarnation. He leaves before its restraints can bind him more deeply and returns to the Human Clan.
• Chen Yang reveals that his physical body has reached the Half-Step Primordial Unity Realm, making him the first Human Clan member to achieve that level.
• He gives Suiren Clan, Youchao Clan, and Ziyi Clan the Heaven-Mending Scripture, a secret art he created after using the Qilin formation to perfect his own skeleton.
• The scripture addresses the Human Clan’s incomplete skeletal foundation, improving cultivation aptitude and supporting advancement in the Martial Dao System. However, it is too resource-intensive and painful for widespread use, so it will be reserved for blessed lands and exceptional prodigies.
• Chen Yang explains that the scripture cannot produce a new generation of naturally perfect humans through ordinary reproduction. Creating a separate Human Clan branch with perfect skeletons would be necessary, but this is impractical given the existing Human Clan’s established order.
• Human reproduction has accelerated dramatically due to the special Yellow River water and a reproduction divine artifact provided by the Ancestral Dragon. The population doubles within a few hundred years, allowing the Human Clan to absorb the territories conquered by Chiyou.
• Human Emperor Xuanyuan focuses on governance and restoring peace, integrating the newly acquired lands while the Human Clan continues expanding.
• After a period of secluded cultivation, Chen Yang is summoned back to the Jie Sect by Kui Ox on Duobao’s orders.
• Chen Yang learns that his reforms have transformed the Jie Sect. Its hundreds of thousands of outer disciples actively complete missions for resources and status, causing the sect’s strength, development, and fortune to rise rapidly.
• Duobao reveals that he will found his own sect in one hundred years. He has already emptied Dabao Peak to gather the necessary resources and is prepared to give up his position as Jie Sect chief disciple and potential future sect leader.
• Chen Yang and Duobao walk through Golden Ao Island together, reflecting on Duobao’s long history within the Jie Sect and his reluctance to leave.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang becomes a Half-Step Primordial Unity expert and demonstrates growing responsibility as both the Human Clan’s protector and a reformer of the Jie Sect. His creation of the Heaven-Mending Scripture shows his concern for improving the Human Clan’s long-term potential.
• Suiren Clan, Youchao Clan, and Ziyi Clan gain a clearer understanding of the Human Clan’s innate limitations and begin preparing to cultivate the Heaven-Mending Scripture.
• Human Emperor Xuanyuan is established as a stabilizing ruler who prioritizes governance, peace, and territorial integration rather than warfare.
• Duobao makes a momentous personal and political decision: despite his deep attachment to the Jie Sect, he chooses to establish an independent sect and willingly abandons the succession he might otherwise have inherited.
• Kui Ox acts as the messenger who reconnects Chen Yang with the Jie Sect and reports on the success of its reforms.

Significant Themes

• Improving innate limitations: The Heaven-Mending Scripture represents the Human Clan’s effort to overcome weaknesses in its original foundation, though progress requires immense resources, suffering, and perseverance.
• Growth versus practicality: Although the scripture is powerful, it cannot be distributed universally, emphasizing the limits imposed by resources and inherited nature.
• Expansion and stability: The Human Clan’s rapid reproduction and successful governance allow it to consolidate conquered territories and transition from wartime expansion to organized development.
• Institutional reform and fortune: Chen Yang’s reforms show how organization, incentives, and active participation can greatly increase a sect’s resources, strength, and fortune.
• Sacrifice and independence: Duobao’s decision to leave the Jie Sect highlights the emotional cost of pursuing an independent path and the willingness to surrender status for personal responsibility and leadership.
• Legacy and succession: Chen Yang’s reforms alter the traditional structure of the Jie Sect, while Duobao’s departure raises questions about how leadership and influence will be redistributed.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang discusses the Human Clan’s future with Suiren Clan, Youchao Clan, and Ziyi Clan, teaching them the Heaven-Mending Scripture and explaining both its benefits and limitations.
• He encourages the Human Clan’s leaders to cultivate the scripture themselves, assuring them that they may still have hope of reaching higher realms.
• Chen Yang instructs the leaders to continue reproduction and absorb Chiyou’s conquered territories, reinforcing his role in directing Human Clan policy.
• Kui Ox informs Chen Yang of the Jie Sect’s rapid growth and brings him back to Golden Ao Island.
• Chen Yang and Duobao discuss the upcoming sect founding. Chen Yang offers Duobao a place within the reformed Jie Sect, but Duobao insists that he must leave to set an example and avoid allowing their lineage to accumulate excessive influence.
• The chapter closes with Chen Yang accompanying Duobao on an emotional tour of Golden Ao Island, emphasizing their bond and Duobao’s attachment to the home he is preparing to leave.

Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• After a century, the Jie Sect’s disciples gather as chief disciple Duobao formally summons his master, Tongtian, from Biyou Palace.
• Duobao announces that he wishes to leave the Jie Sect and establish his own sect in the Primordial World. Although saddened, Tongtian grants permission and reassures Duobao that he will always remain his disciple.
• Duobao founds the Many-Treasure Sect, declaring that treasures will be honored and naming the Heaven-Earth Creation Pagoda as the sect’s Fortune-suppressing treasure. Heaven and the Saints acknowledge the founding.
• Heavenly Merit and Fortune descend upon Duobao. His three severed corpses, represented by the Many-Treasure Pagodas, merge into one Daoist, allowing him to break through into the Half-Step Primordial Unity Realm.
• Duobao vows that, despite founding an independent sect, he will remain a Jie Sect disciple and that the Many-Treasure Sect will stand with the Jie Sect.
• Duobao’s breakthrough triggers a wave of advances among the Jie Sect disciples. Golden-Spirit Holy Mother, Turtle-Spirit Holy Mother, and Wudang Holy Mother each comprehend the hidden flaw in Corpse Severing and successfully sever a corpse.
• The Saints compare the Jie Sect’s growing strength with the Human and Exposition Sects. The Jie Sect now possesses overwhelming talent, including Duobao’s breakthrough and Chen Yang’s concealed physical-body advancement into Half-Step Primordial Unity.

Character Developments

• Duobao matures from Tongtian’s dependent chief disciple into an independent sect founder while maintaining deep loyalty to his master and the Jie Sect. His sect founding also propels him to Half-Step Primordial Unity.
• Tongtian displays both parental sorrow at Duobao’s departure and immense pride in his disciple’s achievements. His confidence in the Jie Sect grows significantly.
• Golden-Spirit Holy Mother, Turtle-Spirit Holy Mother, and Wudang Holy Mother achieve major breakthroughs by recognizing that the established Corpse Severing method contains a hidden trap.
• Chen Yang is revealed to have already cultivated his physical body to Half-Step Primordial Unity, having deliberately concealed his aura and progress.
• Yuanshi Tianzun becomes increasingly bitter and concerned as the Jie Sect surpasses the Exposition Sect in both disciples and cultivation.
• Laozi views the Jie Sect’s gains as a blessing for the broader Mystic Sect, while Zhunti reacts with envy and sarcasm.

Significant Themes

• Mentorship, filial loyalty, and independence: Duobao’s departure resembles a child leaving home, but his emotional bond with Tongtian remains intact.
• Sect inheritance and expansion: Founding a new sect does not necessarily mean abandoning one’s origins; Duobao carries the Jie Sect’s identity and influence into the Many-Treasure Sect.
• Fortune and collective advancement: Duobao’s success creates a chain reaction, allowing other Jie Sect disciples to gain insight and break through.
• Hidden flaws in established cultivation methods: The discovery that Corpse Severing is based on a flawed or deceptive foundation suggests that true advancement requires independent comprehension.
• Competition among the Three Teachings: The Jie Sect’s rapid rise creates tension and imbalance among the Human, Exposition, and Jie Sects.
• Concealed strength: Chen Yang’s hidden breakthrough emphasizes that visible cultivation does not always reflect a character’s true power.

Character Interactions

• Duobao and Tongtian share an emotional master-disciple farewell, with Tongtian treating Duobao like a son.
• The Saints gather to witness and acknowledge Duobao’s sect founding, offering congratulations or expressing envy.
• Duobao reassures Tongtian and the other Saints that the Many-Treasure Sect will remain allied with the Jie Sect.
• Chen Yang and Duobao are confused by the sudden breakthroughs of the three Holy Mothers and seek explanations from Tongtian and the Saints.
• Tongtian proudly praises the Jie Sect’s achievements, while Yuanshi reacts with unease over his own sect’s comparative weakness.
• Laozi, Yuanshi, Nuwa, Jieyin, and Zhunti each comment on Duobao’s growth, revealing differing attitudes of approval, nostalgia, envy, and concern.

Chapter Summary: “Hard to Put into Words”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The saints discover that Chen Yang has reached the Physical Half-Step Primordial Unity realm, causing widespread shock. The Jie Sect now possesses two Half-Step Primordial Unity experts: Chen Yang and Duobao.
• Zhunti becomes envious of the Jie Sect’s overwhelming strength, while Tongtian, Laozi, Nuwa, and Yuanshi Tianzun each react with varying degrees of admiration, surprise, or frustration.
• After severing their corpses, Golden-Spirit Holy Mother, Wudang Holy Mother, and Turtle-Spirit Holy Mother express their desire to establish their own sects, inspired by Duobao’s example.
• Tongtian advises them to stabilize their cultivation and strengthen their Dao hearts before founding sects, though he privately worries that all of his disciples may eventually leave the Jie Sect.
• Tongtian formally abdicates as Jie Sect Master and appoints Chen Yang as the second-generation sect master.
• Chen Yang accepts the position and vows to expand the Jie Sect throughout the Primordial World, causing all Jie Sect disciples to acknowledge and pay respects to him.
• Laozi realizes that the Human Sect must also prepare for succession and considers passing its leadership to Xuandu. Yuanshi, however, struggles to find a suitable successor within the Exposition Sect.
• The saints eventually depart. Duobao remains to stabilize his new realm, while Chen Yang begins adapting to his responsibilities and implementing further reforms.
• News of Duobao’s sect, his breakthrough, Chen Yang’s physical cultivation, and the Jie Sect’s succession spreads throughout the Primordial World.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang rises from a highly influential disciple-grandson to the leader of the Jie Sect. His physical cultivation and long-standing contributions earn him universal respect.
• Tongtian demonstrates both pride in Chen Yang and anxiety over losing his disciples to independent sect-building. His abdication reflects his trust in Chen Yang, but also his concern for the Jie Sect’s future.
• Duobao successfully establishes his own sect and reaches Half-Step Primordial Unity. He remains humble and supportive toward his fellow disciples.
• Golden-Spirit, Wudang, and Turtle-Spirit Holy Mothers advance to the Corpse Severing realm and become determined to establish sects of their own.
• Laozi becomes aware that the Human Sect must accelerate its succession plans, while Yuanshi Tianzun grows increasingly discouraged by the Exposition Sect’s lack of suitable successors.
• Zhunti feels deep envy and bitterness toward the Jie Sect’s rapid growth and superior talent.

Significant Themes

• Merit, ability, and legitimacy: Chen Yang’s achievements make his succession broadly accepted, showing that authority is earned through contribution as well as formal status.
• Succession and institutional continuity: Tongtian’s abdication raises the question of how sects can survive as powerful disciples mature and seek independence.
• Ambition and independence: The disciples’ desire to establish their own sects reflects both personal advancement and the expanding influence of the Jie Sect’s teachings.
• Rivalry between sects: The Jie Sect’s rapid development exposes the growing gap between it and the Buddhist, Human, and Exposition Sects.
• Pride versus reluctance: Tongtian is proud of his disciples’ accomplishments but uneasy about their eventual departure and the fragmentation of his sect.

Important Character Interactions

• The saints collectively react to Chen Yang’s hidden cultivation, revealing their differing attitudes toward the Jie Sect’s success.
• The three Holy Mothers credit Duobao’s breakthrough and guidance for helping them sever their corpses, reinforcing their bond as fellow disciples.
• Tongtian attempts to delay their plans to establish sects, but his advice only confirms their determination.
• Tongtian and Chen Yang share a formal succession exchange: Tongtian entrusts the Jie Sect to him, and Chen Yang promises to make it flourish.
• The Jie Sect disciples publicly acknowledge Chen Yang’s authority, demonstrating their trust and loyalty.
• Laozi and Yuanshi discuss the implications of Chen Yang’s elevation, recognizing that he will now stand on equal footing with the leaders of their own sects.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Jie Sect celebrates Duobao’s establishment of a sect, since he remains connected to the Jie Sect. With Duobao and Chen Yang both at Half-Step Primordial Unity, plus three Corpse Severing experts, the Jie Sect declares itself the strongest sect in the Primordial World.
• Chen Yang, now the Jie Sect’s leader, gains access to the sect’s hidden foundations and accompanies an incarnation of Tongtian into the Biyou Sword Realm, also called the Shangqing Sword Realm.
• The Sword Realm is a vast world created entirely from Tongtian’s Sword Path. Its scenery—mountains, rivers, plants, and endless Sword Qi—contains profound sword principles, and even individual strands of Sword Qi can provide insight into sword techniques.
• Tongtian explains that the Jie Sect’s records conceal many secrets, including the true structure of the Primordial Unity Realm and the relationship between cultivators and Chaos Demon Gods.
• The Primordial Unity Realm is divided into twelve levels. Each level represents not merely increasing strength but gradual evolution toward becoming a Chaos Demon God.
• Tongtian reveals that the Primordial Unity Realm is only the beginning for Chaos Demon Gods. They are born at that level, while the highest stage known to cultivators—Primordial Unity Twelvefold—is merely the starting point of a true Great Path Demon God.
• The chapter ends with Chen Yang asking what lies beyond Primordial Unity Twelvefold, but Tongtian admits that even he does not know.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang is formally positioned as one of the Jie Sect’s strongest figures and gains access to secrets reserved for the sect leader. His admiration for Tongtian’s Sword Path deepens, but so does his awareness of the enormous gap between Primordial World cultivators and Chaos Demon Gods.
• Tongtian reveals himself as far more profound than Chen Yang had previously understood. His Sword Realm demonstrates that his Sword Path can create an entire great world, and he takes on the role of instructor by explaining the hidden hierarchy of cultivation.
• Chen Yang’s confidence is tempered by humility and existential unease. Learning that even Primordial Unity Twelvefold is only the foundation of Great Path Demon Gods causes him to feel the vastness and difficulty of the path ahead.

Significant Themes

• Cultivation as evolution: Reaching Primordial Unity is not the culmination of cultivation but the beginning of transforming into a Chaos Demon God.
• The limits of mortal perspective: Information about higher realms is deliberately hidden because it could damage cultivators’ confidence and determination.
• The vast hierarchy of power: The chapter emphasizes the overwhelming gulf between Innate Lifeforms, Primordial Unity experts, and Chaos Demon Gods.
• The nature of the Sword Path: Tongtian’s Sword Realm embodies the idea that the Sword Path can generate and contain all things, turning sword intent into an entire world.
• Despair versus perseverance: The revelations are psychologically crushing, yet they also clarify the ultimate direction of cultivation.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang and Tongtian’s incarnation engage in a teacher-disciple-style discussion within the Sword Realm.
• Chen Yang repeatedly questions Tongtian about the Sword Realm, Primordial Unity’s divisions, and the various types of Chaos Demon Gods.
• Tongtian responds with pride regarding his Sword Path but also with resignation when discussing the disparity between Primordial World cultivators and Chaos Demon Gods.
• Their conversation shifts Chen Yang from awe at Tongtian’s mastery to solemn reflection on how far he must still evolve.

Chapter Summary: “Formation Life”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Yang asks Tongtian about the Primordial Unity Realm and learns that Tongtian is currently at the Primordial Unity Fourth Heaven, potentially reaching the Fifth Heaven with Heavenly Dao assistance.
• Tongtian explains that each level within Primordial Unity represents a terrifying qualitative difference, emphasizing how distant Chen Yang still is from that realm.
• Tongtian brings Chen Yang deeper into the Sword Realm, one of the Jie Sect’s foundations. The realm contains Tongtian’s lifelong Sword Dao insights and can greatly accelerate sword cultivators’ comprehension.
• Tongtian laments that no Jie Sect disciple has inherited his Sword Dao. Chen Yang points out that although he chose the Formation Dao, he has inherited Tongtian’s Formation Dao legacy.
• Tongtian explains that he originally possessed Formation Dao inheritance but chose the Sword Dao because the era in which he was born was extremely violent. Formation cultivation was too slow and lacked immediate killing power, while the Sword Dao was better suited for survival.
• He describes the ancient Myriad Tribes Era as a time of constant warfare, massacre, and conflict between races and factions. Some races were even descended from remnants of Chaos Demon Gods.
• Chen Yang realizes that the peaceful conditions of the current era made it possible for him to develop the Formation Dao, unlike Tongtian’s dangerous age.
• Tongtian introduces Daoist Destruction, a living being formed from a strand of Sword Intent generated during Tongtian’s cultivation of the Destruction Sword Dao.
• Tongtian reveals that the Sword Realm contains many living Sword Dao manifestations. Five particularly powerful beings, including Destruction and representatives of the Stellar and Slaughter Sword Daos, serve as administrators and protectors of the realm.
• Tongtian entrusts the Sword Realm and its Sword Dao lives to Chen Yang, allowing them to follow Chen Yang’s commands and defend the Jie Sect in times of crisis.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang becomes more aware of the enormous gap between his current cultivation and the Primordial Unity Realm. He also gains a deeper understanding of the historical circumstances that shaped Tongtian’s path.
• Chen Yang’s confidence in the Formation Dao is reinforced. He recognizes that his ability to cultivate it is partly due to living in a comparatively stable era rich in powerful formations.
• Tongtian is shown as both a powerful expert and a survivor of a brutal ancient age. His choice of Sword Dao was pragmatic rather than purely personal, made to ensure survival.
• Tongtian also reveals a sentimental side, regretting that none of his disciples inherited his Sword Dao while still acknowledging Chen Yang as the successor to his Formation Dao.
• Daoist Destruction is introduced as an independent life rather than an incarnation. He embodies Tongtian’s Destruction Sword Dao and serves as a guardian of the Sword Realm.

Significant Themes

• Survival shaping cultivation: The conditions of one’s era determine which cultivation paths are practical. Tongtian chose the Sword Dao because the ancient world left no room for slow, defensive development.
• Formation and Sword Dao as contrasting paths: Sword Dao advances through combat and killing, while Formation Dao requires time, planning, and accumulated knowledge.
• The inheritance of great Dao paths: Even when direct inheritance fails, a master’s legacy can survive through other means. Chen Yang inherits Tongtian’s Formation Dao, while the Sword Realm preserves Tongtian’s Sword Dao.
• Dao giving rise to life: Advanced comprehension can cause a cultivated path—whether Sword Intent or Formation Dao—to develop independent life.
• Historical perspective: The current age appears peaceful only when compared with the violent Myriad Tribes Era, giving greater context to the development of the Primordial World and its major races.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang respectfully questions Tongtian about cultivation realms, ancient history, and the origin of the Sword Realm.
• Tongtian teaches Chen Yang about the differences between Sword Dao and Formation Dao, helping him understand the advantages of his current era.
• Their conversation reflects a mentor-grand-disciple relationship: Tongtian provides guidance and historical knowledge, while Chen Yang’s questions encourage Tongtian to revisit his past.
• Daoist Destruction greets Tongtian with familiarity but also expresses mild reproach that his master has not visited the Sword Realm for a long time.
• Tongtian formally places Chen Yang in authority over Destruction and the other Sword Dao lives, marking a major transfer of responsibility and trust.

Chapter Summary: Realms of the Formation Dao

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Yang learns that the Jie Sect possesses a vast and terrifying hidden foundation: the Tongtian Sword Realm.
• Destruction Sword Dao explains that the realm contains countless sword-dao lifeforms, including special beings capable of displaying extremely high cultivation within the Sword Realm. These beings can also recover from injuries through Sword Qi.
• Tongtian reveals that the visible Jie Sect is only the “tip of the iceberg.” Its true strength, accumulated through countless eras and battles, has been deliberately concealed.
• Tongtian entrusts Chen Yang with control of the Sword Realm and instructs him to seek out more inheritors for the Jie Sect’s strongest legacy—the sword dao.
• Tongtian then takes Chen Yang to a hidden area beneath Biyou Palace: the Formation Dao Space, which controls the Jie Sect’s grand formations and defensive formations throughout its territory.
• Within this space, Chen Yang meets the Formation Spirit, a living manifestation of Formation Dao Transformation.
• Tongtian explains that this being was created by combining ancient Formation Dao inheritances, including knowledge from a race connected to the Formation Dao Demon God that was destroyed during the Myriad Tribes Era.
• Tongtian introduces the eight realms of Formation Dao, revealing a detailed progression from using physical objects to creating entire Formation Dao chaos.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang is deeply shaken by the Jie Sect’s concealed power. His understanding of both sword dao and Formation Dao expands dramatically.
• He recognizes that his own Body-Forged Formation method corresponds only to the third realm, Formation by the Body, and realizes that Formation Dao is far more profound than he had imagined.
• Chen Yang also demonstrates ambition and loyalty by promising to spread the Jie Sect’s sword dao throughout the Primordial World.
• Tongtian is revealed as a cautious, highly experienced figure who has survived countless eras and battles. He values hidden strength, strategic secrecy, and the preservation of trump cards.
• Tongtian judges Chen Yang to be more calculating and ruthless than Duobao, suggesting that Chen Yang is better suited to handling future crises.
• Formation Transformation, embodied by the Formation Spirit, is presented as a major advancement of Formation Dao: formations can become intelligent, living beings capable of independent cultivation and combat.

Significant Themes

• Hidden foundations and strategic secrecy: Powerful factions conceal their true strength to survive in a dangerous world. The Jie Sect, Human Sect, and Exposition Sect all possess unknown trump cards.
• Inheritance and accumulation: Great power comes not only from personal cultivation but also from preserving and combining ancient inheritances across eras.
• The limitless nature of cultivation: Both sword dao and Formation Dao contain multiple increasingly profound realms, showing that Chen Yang has only begun to understand their true potential.
• Transformation of concepts into life: Formation Dao progresses from material arrangements to intelligent spirits, living beings, worlds, and finally an entire formation-based chaos.
• Leadership and responsibility: As the new Jie Sect master, Chen Yang must protect the sect’s secrets, control its hidden foundations, and expand its strongest traditions.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang questions Destruction Sword Dao about the Sword Realm’s inhabitants and power, reacting with disbelief to its scale.
• Tongtian reassures Chen Yang that the Jie Sect’s strength is the result of long-term survival and preparation, while warning him not to expose its secrets.
• Tongtian compares Chen Yang with Duobao, criticizing Duobao’s simplicity while praising Chen Yang’s resourcefulness and ruthlessness.
• Chen Yang asks whether the Human Sect and Exposition Sect also conceal hidden powers, and Tongtian confirms that they do.
• Tongtian formally hands Chen Yang control of both the Sword Realm and Formation Dao Space.
• The Formation Spirit respectfully acknowledges Tongtian and Chen Yang, while helping explain how formations can develop intelligence and ultimately become living entities.

Eight Realms of Formation Dao

1. Formation by Objects: Creating formations through physical materials and objects.
2. Formation by Artifacts: Using refined formation discs, charts, and similar tools.
3. Formation by the Body: Manifesting formations and divine arts through one’s own movements and body.
4. Artifacts from Formations: Condensing tangible artifacts directly from Formation Dao.
5. Spirits from Formations: Giving formations intelligence so they can act independently.
6. Formation Transformation: Turning formations into living human or beast-like beings.
7. Worlds from Formations: Creating complete worlds governed by their own Formation Dao order.
8. Formation Chaos: Interweaving numerous formation worlds into a vast Formation Dao chaos.

Chapter Summary: “Demon God Proliferation”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Tongtian explains the advanced realms of Formation Dao to Chen Yang, revealing that there are eight known realms and a lost ninth realm once practiced by the now-extinct Formation Dao Race.
• Chen Yang realizes that his Body-Forged Formation cultivation has only reached the third realm: using the body to manifest formations. His Corpse Severing process created formation diagrams that took human shape, rather than true formations developing intelligence and transforming into people.
• Tongtian clarifies that his own Formation Dao cultivation has reached only the fourth realm, despite possessing an extraordinary sentient formation.
• The formation spirit introduces himself as the Array Elder and explains that his consciousness arose from two factors:
  1. A trace of Formation Dao Demon God flesh and blood was incorporated into the formation.
  2. The formation’s enormous scale allowed it to undergo qualitative change.
• The Array Elder’s Four Symbols Formation uses the sea eyes of the Four Seas as formation eyes. It has already spread across the Four Seas and is gradually expanding toward the four extremities of the Primordial World.
• Tongtian reveals that this formation is one of the Jie Sect’s ultimate hidden weapons. If driven to desperation, he could use it alongside the Slaying Immortals Sword Formation to tear apart the Primordial World and recreate earth, fire, wind, and water.
• Tongtian entrusts the Four Symbols Formation to Chen Yang, allowing him to study Formation Dao through the Array Elder.
• Chen Yang becomes interested in creating a large-scale evolving formation of his own, but Tongtian warns that such formations are extremely difficult because even minor changes to their materials or structure can destabilize the entire system.
• Tongtian explains the existence of Demon God Descendants within the Primordial World. These beings arose from transformed Demon God flesh, fragments, or treasures, just as various Pangu-related races originated from parts of Pangu.
• He reveals that ancient eras were marked by devastating conflicts between the Pangu and Demon God lineages. These wars caused the collapse and ruin of much of the Primordial World, while the surviving Demon God Descendants gradually disappeared.
• Tongtian declares that the Four Symbols Formation and the previously revealed Sword Realm are two of the Jie Sect’s hidden foundations and killing moves, now entrusted to Chen Yang as the sect’s future leader.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang becomes more humble after learning that his Formation Dao cultivation, though rare and impressive, has only reached the third realm. His previous confidence gives way to a calmer, more disciplined attitude.
• He also gains a broader understanding of Formation Dao’s possibilities and begins considering the creation of a massive, evolving formation.
• Chen Yang’s status within the Jie Sect rises as Tongtian entrusts him with two major hidden powers and treats him as the sect’s future leader.
• Tongtian is shown to possess deep foresight and formidable preparations. His Four Symbols Formation is not merely a defensive structure but a potential weapon capable of destroying and reconstructing the Primordial World.
• The Array Elder emerges as an intelligent, transformed formation spirit and a potential mentor for Chen Yang. His cultivation and mobility depend directly on the continued expansion of his formation.

Significant Themes

• Humility and the vastness of cultivation: Chen Yang learns that even reaching the third Formation Dao realm is only the beginning of a much larger path.
• Quantitative change leading to qualitative transformation: The Four Symbols Formation became sentient through its immense scale and the incorporation of Demon God remains.
• Knowledge as power and inheritance: Tongtian passes hidden Jie Sect knowledge and weapons to Chen Yang, preparing him to shoulder leadership.
• The relationship between structure and change: Formations require stability, yet their expansion and evolution can eventually produce entirely new forms of existence.
• Ancient lineage and forgotten history: The chapter broadens the world’s history by revealing the coexistence and past conflicts of the Pangu and Demon God lineages.
• Destruction and reconstruction: Tongtian’s formation embodies both catastrophic destruction and the ability to recreate the world’s fundamental elements.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang questions Tongtian closely about Formation Dao’s realms, the Array Elder’s origins, the formation’s expansion, and Demon God Descendants.
• Tongtian instructs Chen Yang while also teasing him as a “little monkey” when he recognizes Chen Yang’s ambition to build a large-scale formation.
• The Array Elder respectfully addresses Chen Yang as “Young Master” and explains the principles governing his formation’s growth and limitations.
• Tongtian and the Array Elder jointly emphasize the difference between Chen Yang’s mobile Body-Forged Formations and the Array Elder’s immense but difficult-to-move formation.
• By handing over the Four Symbols Formation and revealing the Sword Realm, Tongtian formally strengthens Chen Yang’s connection to the Jie Sect’s deepest secrets and responsibilities.

Chapter Summary: Reining In Fortune

Key Plot Points and Events

• Tongtian gives Chen Yang two powerful Jie Sect foundations as life-saving trump cards: the Elder Formation, representing the sect’s killing techniques, and the Sword Realm, representing its powerful experts.
• He warns Chen Yang not to overestimate himself. Although Chen Yang possesses the Slaying Immortals Sword Formation and a Half-Step Primordial Unity physical body, ancient monsters from the Primordial World could still threaten him.
• Chen Yang asks about cultivation resources. Tongtian explains that resources for the Primordial Unity Realm are exceptionally rare and fall into two categories:
  • Materials that help practitioners evolve toward the level of the Chaos Demon Gods.
  • Resources containing Great Dao imprints, which accelerate Dao comprehension.
• Tongtian gives Chen Yang a ring containing Black-Yellow Qi, degraded Demon God remains, and materials with Formation Dao imprints, urging him to advance his realm quickly.
• Tongtian confirms that the Eastern Sovereign’s Treasure likely contains similar Primordial Unity cultivation resources. This explains why it is so valuable and why opening it would attract powerful Primordial Unity experts. The Jie Sect decides to continue waiting until it has sufficient strength.
• In the Shangqing Hall, Tongtian offers Chen Yang a place to cultivate, explaining that it contains concentrated spiritual energy and the gathered fortune of the Jie Sect.
• Tongtian discusses the difficulty of suppressing the sect’s growing fortune. Although fortune no longer directly improves his cultivation, it strengthens his connection with the Heavenly Dao, allowing him to receive greater blessings and comprehend the Great Dao more efficiently.
• Tongtian suggests that the Jie Sect collect more treasures formed from the Chaos Green Lotus to help suppress its fortune. Chen Yang reveals that he has already found many such treasures but gave most of them to the God-Slaying Spear, which is evolving by devouring them.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang gains a deeper understanding of the Jie Sect’s hidden strength and realizes that the sect is far more powerful and resourceful than he had believed.
• He accepts greater responsibility as the Jie Sect’s second-generation sect leader and promises to develop the sect so that Tongtian’s cultivation can progress.
• Chen Yang’s ambition is revealed through his efforts to evolve the God-Slaying Spear into an Innate Supreme Treasure.
• Tongtian is shown to be protective of Chen Yang, prioritizing his survival and supplying him with powerful resources. He also reveals more about his dependence on the Jie Sect’s fortune and the Heavenly Dao.

Significant Themes

• Preparation and survival: Even powerful figures must accumulate defensive measures before confronting ancient or unknown enemies.
• The value of rare resources: Primordial Unity cultivation depends on materials far more precious than ordinary treasures, especially those linked to Chaos Demon Gods and Great Dao imprints.
• Power and responsibility: As sect leader, Chen Yang must strengthen not only himself but the entire Jie Sect.
• Fortune and cultivation: The chapter explores how sect fortune indirectly enhances cultivation through the Heavenly Dao rather than granting immediate personal power.
• Strategic patience: The Jie Sect chooses not to open Eastern Sovereign’s Treasure prematurely, recognizing that insufficient preparation could benefit rival experts instead.

Character Interactions

• Tongtian acts as Chen Yang’s mentor and protector, repeatedly warning him against arrogance and providing him with hidden sect foundations and cultivation resources.
• Chen Yang questions Tongtian about the nature of Primordial Unity resources, the Eastern Sovereign’s Treasure, and the purpose of sect fortune, prompting Tongtian to explain the deeper workings of the Jie Sect and Heavenly Dao.
• Their relationship combines mutual trust with strategic discussion: Chen Yang promises to expand the sect, while Tongtian entrusts him with its foundations but retains responsibility for controlling its fortune.
• The conversation ends with Tongtian reacting to Chen Yang’s revelation that the God-Slaying Spear has been consuming Chaos Green Lotus treasures to evolve.

Chapter Summary: “Fortune Treasures”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Tongtian explains to Chen Yang the difference between innate and acquired spiritual treasures. Although innate treasures are powerful, they contain the dao imprints of their original creators and may not suit another cultivator’s path.
• A true dao-proving grand artifact must be personally forged so that it perfectly matches the cultivator’s cultivation and grand dao. Such an artifact grows alongside its master and may eventually reach the level of a chaos spiritual treasure.
• Tongtian warns Chen Yang that the God-Slaying Spear, despite its devouring and destructive power, does not suit Chen Yang’s formation dao and will eventually be replaced.
• Tongtian uses his Green Peace Sword as an example: it began as a blank divine material, allowing him to imprint his own sword dao into it. He then formally hands control of the Jie Sect to Chen Yang and withdraws from Biyou Palace.
• As the new master of the Jie Sect, Chen Yang reflects on Tongtian’s revelations, including the Tongtian Sword Realm, the Four Symbols Formation, the eight realms of formation dao, and the Primordial Unity realm.
• Xiao Ling’er advises Chen Yang to continue developing his cultivation, forge a personal dao-proving artifact, strengthen Kunlun City, advance the Human Clan’s development, complete Human Sovereign Xuanyuan’s rise, and expand the Jie Sect.
• Chen Yang orders the Jie Sect to recruit disciples regardless of background or aptitude, provided they pass the sect’s trials. The recruitment is even more successful than the previous one, greatly increasing the sect’s fortune.
• Chen Yang encourages three senior disciples to establish independent sects:
  • Golden-Spirit Holy Mother establishes the Dragon-Tiger Sect.
  • Turtle-Spirit Holy Mother establishes the True Martial Sect.
  • Wudang Holy Mother establishes the Orthodox Unity Sect.
• Through founding their sects and receiving Heavenly Dao recognition, the three women sever their corpses, creating the Dragon-Tiger Daoist, True Martial Daoist, and Orthodox One Daoist respectively.
• Chen Yang reveals that he allocated portions of the Jie Sect’s enormous fortune to their new sects, as well as one-tenth to Duobao’s Many-Treasure Sect. This prevents the Jie Sect’s fortune from overflowing and dispersing too rapidly.
• The new sects begin recruiting disciples and spreading throughout the Primordial World. The Jie Sect becomes the central organization from which these affiliated sects branch out.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang transitions fully from disciple to sect master and assumes responsibility for the Jie Sect’s cultivation, expansion, fortune, and future structure.
• He demonstrates greater strategic maturity, recognizing that personal power alone is insufficient and that he must manage sect development, resources, disciples, and alliances.
• Chen Yang becomes increasingly aware of the depth and complexity of the Primordial World, leaving him both shocked and thoughtful about his future path.
• He begins seriously considering the creation of a dao-proving artifact suited to his formation dao, rather than relying on the God-Slaying Spear.
• Tongtian entrusts Chen Yang with the Jie Sect, showing complete confidence in his successor.
• Golden-Spirit, Turtle-Spirit, and Wudang Holy Mothers each develop their own doctrines and sect philosophies. Their breakthroughs in cultivation culminate in corpse severing, bringing them closer to the Primordial Unity realm.
• Xiao Ling’er acts as Chen Yang’s practical adviser, helping him organize both his cultivation goals and his broader political and sectarian responsibilities.

Significant Themes

• Personal compatibility over inherited power: A treasure’s value depends less on its reputation than on how well it matches its wielder’s dao.
• Self-created destiny: Cultivators must forge their own grand artifacts and, by extension, their own paths to power.
• Leadership and responsibility: Chen Yang’s new position forces him to balance cultivation with administration, recruitment, resource gathering, and the development of civilization.
• Expansion through organization: The Jie Sect’s strength grows not only through individual experts but through disciples, affiliated sects, and a unified institutional structure.
• Fortune as a strategic resource: Sect fortune supports cultivation and breakthroughs but must be carefully distributed and controlled.
• Inheritance and transformation: Tongtian’s teachings and the Jie Sect’s traditions are preserved while being adapted into new sects with distinct doctrines.
• Unity through branching: The creation of multiple sects does not weaken the Jie Sect; instead, it spreads its influence while keeping the original sect as the central authority.

Important Character Interactions

• Tongtian gives Chen Yang a final lesson about dao-proving treasures and compares his own Green Peace Sword with Chen Yang’s unsuitable God-Slaying Spear.
• Tongtian formally passes the Jie Sect to Chen Yang, marking the end of one leadership era and the beginning of another.
• Chen Yang consults Xiao Ling’er about his next steps, revealing his uncertainty about managing both cultivation and sect development.
• Chen Yang grants Golden-Spirit, Turtle-Spirit, and Wudang Holy Mothers permission to found their sects and encourages them to continue the Jie Sect’s heritage.
• The three Holy Mothers question why their sects possess such abundant fortune. Chen Yang explains that he deliberately transferred portions of the Jie Sect’s fortune to them.
• Wudang offers to return her sect’s fortune treasure to the Jie Sect, but Chen Yang explains that each sect can only use one fortune-suppressing treasure and refuses the offer.
• The new sects acknowledge Chen Yang’s authority and promise to support the Jie Sect, reinforcing the relationship between the central sect and its branches.

Chapter Summary: “Ten Thousand Sects Pay Homage”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After several centuries, the Jie Sect has expanded to roughly one million outer disciples, though Chen Yang considers this far below his goal of more than one hundred million.
• To manage the sect’s growing population and fortune, Chen Yang orders qualified disciples to leave the main sect and establish subordinate sects.
• He creates a five-level hierarchy:
  • School — the highest rank, such as Hongjun’s Mystic School
  • Teaching — founded by Corpse-Severing cultivators
  • Palace — founded by cultivators with a Great Luo Dao Fruit
  • Temple — founded by cultivators above the Great Unity Realm but without a Great Luo Dao Fruit
  • Faction — founded by Great Unity Realm cultivators
• Only long-serving inner disciples, personal disciples, and core disciples with sufficient cultivation may establish these sects. This effectively targets the Jie Sect’s second-generation disciples, who had occupied its leadership positions for too long.
• The new sects serve two purposes: creating opportunities for newer disciples and distributing the Jie Sect’s immense accumulated fortune so that it does not become unstable.
• Numerous disciples establish subordinate sects, including:
  • Wuyun Immortal’s

Primordial Unity Palace

• Pilu Immortal’s

Vastness Palace

• Yunxiao’s

Three Xiao Palace

• Over several decades, the Jie Sect gains nine palaces and sixteen temples. Over the following millennium, this grows to four teachings, eight palaces, sixteen temples, and seventy-two factions.
• Chen Yang distributes fortune, resources, and blessed lands to the new sects, effectively making the Four Seas the territory of Jie Sect disciples.
• Heavenly Dao blessings accompany the establishment of these sects, causing rapid breakthroughs. Wuyun Immortal, Yunxiao, and others sever corpses, while Great Luo and Great Unity cultivators advance to higher realms.
• After a millennium, the Jie Sect possesses:
  • Tongtian, a veteran Primordial Unity powerhouse
  • Chen Yang and Duobao, both Half-Step Primordial Unity experts
  • Jin Ling and eight other Corpse-Severing powerhouses
  • More than thirty Great Luo cultivators
  • More than seventy Great Unity cultivators
  • Around one million disciples and a vast network of affiliated sects
• Chen Yang and Xiao Ling’er conclude that the transformed Jie Sect would be extremely difficult for the Exposition Sect and Buddhist Sect to challenge, even if the Investiture Tribulation returns.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang becomes increasingly strategic and confident. He shifts from merely expanding the Jie Sect to designing a structured system for its long-term growth and fortune management. His ambitions rise from “ten thousand immortals paying court” to “ten thousand sects paying court.”
• Yunxiao acts as Chen Yang’s trusted administrator and messenger. Though initially surprised by his plan, she understands its logic and eventually establishes the Three Xiao Palace herself.
• Wuyun Immortal and Pilu Immortal demonstrate loyalty and responsibility by willingly leaving their positions within the main Jie Sect to establish new palaces and support the sect’s broader development.
• Xiao Ling’er recognizes the strategic consequences of Chen Yang’s reforms and acknowledges that the Jie Sect has become vastly stronger than in its original trajectory.
• The second-generation disciples transition from being long-standing occupants of the Jie Sect’s inner positions to founders and leaders of new sects, helping create room for younger generations.

Significant Themes

• Institutional expansion and reform: Chen Yang turns the Jie Sect into a hierarchical network rather than a single centralized organization.
• Sharing fortune and responsibility: Sect founders must help bear the Jie Sect’s growing fortune, making expansion both a privilege and a duty.
• Generational succession: Older disciples are pushed outward to create opportunities for newer disciples and prevent stagnation.
• Collective strength: The Jie Sect’s power comes not only from individual experts but also from its huge disciple base and extensive network of affiliated sects.
• Fate versus preparation: The looming Investiture Tribulation remains a concern, but Chen Yang’s preparations have radically altered the Jie Sect’s destiny.
• Ambition and transformation: The chapter portrays Chen Yang’s goal of reshaping the Jie Sect into an overwhelming force capable of surviving future calamities.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang and Yunxiao discuss the Jie Sect’s expansion, the limits of its current disciple numbers, and the new sect-ranking system.
• Yunxiao questions whether Great Luo cultivators have enough foundation to establish sects, prompting Chen Yang to clarify the hierarchy and minimum qualifications.
• Chen Yang gives Yunxiao personal freedom to establish her own palace while assuring her she may still return to the main Jie Sect.
• Yunxiao conveys Chen Yang’s decree throughout the Jie Sect, leading many second-generation disciples to found subordinate sects.
• Chen Yang and Xiao Ling’er later assess the Jie Sect’s strength and compare it with the forces that might oppose it during a future Investiture Tribulation.

Chapter Summary

1. Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Yang enters closed-door cultivation and temporarily entrusts management of the Jie Sect to his only disciple, Chang’e.
• As many senior Jie Sect disciples establish their own sects, the Jie Sect expands rapidly throughout the Four Seas.
• Duobao establishes the Many-Treasure Sect and openly recruits disciples regardless of talent or background. Golden-Spirit Holy Mother, Turtle-Spirit Holy Mother, Wudang Holy Mother, and other major disciples soon follow by founding their own sects and recruiting members.
• Hundreds of millions of cultivators flock to the Four Seas, hoping to join the expanding Jie Sect network. Although many are accepted as outer members, very few become true personal disciples because Chen Yang has imposed strict limits on lineage succession.
• Duobao establishes his sect in the Western Sea and spreads Jie Sect teachings toward the Western Land, encroaching on territory traditionally associated with Buddhism.
• The Three Pure Ones observe the Jie Sect’s growth. Tongtian is pleased with Chen Yang and Duobao’s achievements, while Laozi and Yuanshi recognize that Chen Yang’s organizational ability far exceeds the development of the Human Sect and Exposition Sect.
• The Three Pure Ones consider whether Chen Yang should also help develop the other two sects, but Laozi and Yuanshi hesitate due to pride and the unwillingness to admit that Tongtian’s disciple-management methods are superior.
• Buddhism reacts angrily to the Many-Treasure Sect’s recruitment campaign. Zhunti accuses the Jie Sect of stealing Buddhist believers and deliberately challenging Buddhism, while Jieyin urges caution because Buddhism is currently too weak to confront the Jie Sect.
• After approximately a millennium, Jie Sect recruitment concludes. The subordinate sects have successfully established smaller versions of the Jie Sect’s organizational system.
• Chen Yang eventually ends his closed-door cultivation. Although the Jie Sect’s accumulated Fortune and spiritual energy accelerated his progress, he finds that his cultivation has barely advanced because reaching his level makes further breakthroughs extremely difficult.

2. Character Developments

• Chen Yang: Demonstrates exceptional strategic and organizational talent by turning the Jie Sect’s expansion into a structured hierarchy of sects. He also shows long-term foresight by deliberately positioning the Many-Treasure Sect near Buddhist territory. However, his cultivation reaches a temporary bottleneck despite prolonged effort.
• Chang’e: Gains greater responsibility as Chen Yang’s sole disciple and becomes the acting administrator of the Jie Sect during his seclusion, marking her growth in status and leadership.
• Duobao: Proves willing and capable of carrying out Chen Yang’s plans. He establishes a powerful sect, attracts huge numbers of followers, and shows restraint by refusing to accept additional personal disciples despite his broad recruitment.
• Tongtian: Takes great satisfaction in the Jie Sect’s flourishing and strongly supports Chen Yang’s accomplishments.
• Laozi and Yuanshi Tianzun: Acknowledge the Jie Sect’s success but retain a degree of pride and hesitation about relying on Chen Yang to improve their own sects.
• Jieyin and Zhunti: Reveal Buddhism’s insecurity and weakness in comparison with the Jie Sect. Zhunti reacts emotionally, while Jieyin adopts a cautious, defensive position.
• Medicine Master: Shares Zhunti’s concern that Buddhist followers will be absorbed into the Jie Sect.

3. Significant Themes

• Institutional growth and strategic expansion: The chapter emphasizes that sect development depends not only on individual cultivation but also on organization, recruitment, hierarchy, and control of spiritual Fortune.
• Competition between religious traditions: The Jie Sect’s expansion into the Western Sea creates an emerging conflict with Buddhism over territory, converts, and ideological influence.
• Power imbalance: Buddhism recognizes that it cannot yet challenge the Jie Sect directly, while the Three Pure Ones see the growing disparity between the Jie Sect and the other Mystic Sect branches.
• Pride and humility: Laozi and Yuanshi understand that Chen Yang could help their sects, but their pride prevents them from immediately admitting their own shortcomings.
• Limits of cultivation: Chen Yang’s lack of major progress illustrates that at the highest realms, breakthroughs cannot be achieved through effort alone and require opportunity, insight, or fate.
• Controlled succession: The distinction between outer members and true personal disciples shows the importance of preserving lineage quality and preventing the Jie Sect’s inheritance from becoming diluted.

4. Character Interactions

• Chen Yang entrusts Chang’e with the Jie Sect before entering seclusion, reinforcing their master-disciple bond.
• Duobao’s recruitment indirectly draws cultivators who want both his instruction and association with Chen Yang.
• Tongtian, Laozi, and Yuanshi discuss Chen Yang’s achievements, the Jie Sect’s expansion, and the possibility of using him to revitalize the Human Sect and Exposition Sect.
• Zhunti and Medicine Master complain to Jieyin about Duobao’s activities, but Jieyin restrains them and emphasizes Buddhism’s current weakness.
• The chapter ends with Chen Yang leaving Biyou Palace after realizing that his cultivation has reached a difficult bottleneck.

Chapter Summary: “Four Chaos Monkeys”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After emerging from seclusion, Chen Yang meets Chang’e, who reports that the Jie Sect is flourishing but experiencing competition for positions among its direct-line and personal disciples.
• Chen Yang orders Chang’e to organize a grand Jie Sect competition and leaves the sect’s administrative matters entirely in her hands.
• Realizing that he has only one disciple, Chen Yang begins considering accepting more disciples to help manage the vast Jie Sect.
• While traveling across the Four Seas and inspecting Jie Sect branches, Chen Yang follows a mysterious pull to a hidden blessed land in the East Sea.
• He discovers that the location is Flower-Fruit Mountain and that its inhabitant is Yanhuang Daoist, one of his Three Corpses and the incarnation of his past life.
• Yanhuang recounts his bizarre adventures: creating numerous alternate identities, stealing and eating qilin and phoenixes, impersonating legendary figures, and making enemies across the Primordial World.
• Yanhuang introduces Chen Yang to the Black Emperor, a powerful black dog he raised after imitating the tomb-raider Duan De.
• Chen Yang then discovers three extraordinary stones containing the origins or embryos of the other three Chaos Monkeys:
  • The Spiritual Bright Stone Monkey within the Five-Colored Stone
  • The Long-Armed Ape within a divine material containing Three Lights Divine Water
  • The Red-Buttock Macaque within a flame-filled stone
• Yanhuang explains that he has gathered three of the Four Chaos Monkeys and that only the Six-Eared Macaque, currently associated with Chen Yang, remains.
• He reveals an even larger plan to collect mythical beasts, raise legendary figures, and cultivate people into characters from fantasy stories.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang remains detached from routine administration, entrusting Chang’e with the Jie Sect’s affairs. However, he begins recognizing the need for more disciples and appears increasingly open to expanding his personal lineage.
• Chang’e demonstrates maturity and administrative ability, taking responsibility for organizing the Jie Sect competition and managing the sect’s growing complexity.
• Yanhuang Daoist is revealed to be wildly eccentric, mischievous, and driven by collector-like obsessions. Freed from Chen Yang’s direct oversight, he has built an extensive network of identities, allies, enemies, mythical creatures, and experimental projects.
• Black Emperor is introduced as Yanhuang’s loyal but aggressive pet and subordinate, possessing Sky Hound bloodline.
• The three developing Chaos Monkeys establish the possibility that Yanhuang is assembling a powerful and unusual group of mythical beings.

Significant Themes

• Order versus eccentricity: Chen Yang focuses on stable sect management, while Yanhuang pursues chaotic personal interests and absurd adventures.
• The independence of incarnations: Yanhuang’s actions show that Chen Yang’s Three Corpses possess distinct personalities and ambitions despite sharing his origins.
• Mythology and fantasy blending: The chapter combines traditional mythological creatures and figures with characters inspired by modern fantasy novels.
• Collector’s obsession and cultivation: Yanhuang treats mythical beasts and legendary figures as objects of collection and development, creating a playful parody of game-like progression and fan culture.
• Responsibility and delegation: Chen Yang acknowledges that the Jie Sect has grown too large for him to manage personally, leading him to rely on Chang’e and consider taking additional disciples.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang and Chang’e discuss the Jie Sect’s development, with Chen Yang formally assigning her responsibility for the sect competition.
• Chen Yang and Yanhuang reunite as main body and past-life incarnation, with Chen Yang reacting with embarrassment and disbelief to Yanhuang’s reckless behavior.
• Yanhuang proudly recounts his exploits, while Chen Yang repeatedly criticizes his childishness and lack of restraint.
• Black Emperor initially threatens Chen Yang but is corrected by Yanhuang and reminded that Chen Yang is also his master.
• Chen Yang and Yanhuang inspect the three monkey-bearing stones together, revealing Yanhuang’s plan to complete a collection of the Four Chaos Monkeys and expand his collection of mythical beings.

Chapter Summary: “Absorbing Battle Intent”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Yang gathers the divine materials containing the origins of the Four Chaos Monkeys: the Six-Eared Macaque, Red-Buttocked Macaque, Long-Armed Ape, and Spiritual Bright Stone Monkey.
• He and Yanhuang Daoist discuss the monkeys’ mysterious nature. They are nearly indestructible, can resurrect without reincarnation, and are rumored to be connected to the ancient War Demon God.
• Chen Yang decides to experiment by using divine fire to melt the materials and fuse the four monkey origins together, despite Yanhuang’s warning that the attempt is dangerous and unconventional.
• The four origins resist fusion. Their Dao rhymes manifest as avatars that immediately battle one another, suggesting that the monkeys are naturally antagonistic or bound to conflict.
• The attempted fusion causes space and time to freeze around the origins, creating a barrier that even Chen Yang and Yanhuang cannot break through with their current cultivation.
• Chen Yang summons Formation Elder, a sentient formation-being and one of the Jie Sect’s greatest foundations. Formation Elder uses the Four Symbols Formation to break the frozen space-time and assist the fusion.
• As the resistance intensifies to the level of the Primordial Unity Realm, Formation Elder activates the full Four Symbols Grand Formation, drawing power from the Four Seas and temporarily reaching Primordial Unity-level strength.
• The four origins finally merge, producing a powerful shockwave that Formation Elder suppresses to prevent it from devastating Flower-Fruit Mountain or attracting outside attention.
• After fusion, the resulting origin possesses the quality and aura of the Primordial Unity Realm. It resembles Chaos and begins absorbing formless battle intent as though converting it into energy.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang displays boldness, ambition, and confidence in his resources. Rather than cultivating the four monkeys separately, he risks destroying them to investigate their deeper connection and possibly recreate the legendary War Demon God.
• His status as Jie Sect leader is emphasized through his access to Formation Elder and the enormous Four Symbols Formation, revealing that his power and foundations have greatly expanded.
• Yanhuang Daoist remains cautious but supports Chen Yang’s dangerous experiment, demonstrating loyalty and a willingness to share in his risks. He also recognizes that the fusion contains secrets beyond ordinary cultivation.
• Formation Elder proves to be an exceptionally powerful asset. By drawing upon the Four Seas, he can temporarily wield Primordial Unity-level power, confirming his importance as a core foundation of the Jie Sect.
• The Four Chaos Monkeys are shown not merely as separate divine beings but as fragments of a deeper, war-oriented existence whose combined origin may possess extraordinary potential.

Significant Themes

• The pursuit of power through experimentation: Chen Yang is willing to risk valuable resources and unknown consequences to uncover a higher level of power.
• Hidden ancient origins: The Four Chaos Monkeys’ resistance and shared battle nature suggest that their true identity is connected to forgotten Primordial World secrets.
• Conflict as an essential nature: Their origins instinctively fight one another, yet their conflict ultimately becomes part of their fusion.
• Formation and collective strength: The fusion succeeds not through Chen Yang’s power alone but through the combined might of the Jie Sect’s formation system and its Four Seas foundation.
• Transformation through battle intent: The merged origin does not simply combine physical or elemental powers; it actively absorbs battle intent, hinting that warfare and combat may be the key to its evolution.
• The threshold of the Primordial Unity Realm: The chapter explores how close the fused origin comes to that realm while also questioning whether raw fusion can truly produce a genuine Primordial Unity powerhouse.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang and Yanhuang Daoist debate the risks and possibilities of fusing the monkey origins. Yanhuang warns against recklessness, while Chen Yang insists that the potential reward justifies the danger.
• Their conversation reveals mutual trust: Yanhuang questions Chen Yang’s decision but ultimately agrees to help him pursue it.
• Chen Yang commands Formation Elder to assist, highlighting their relationship as leader and powerful subordinate. Formation Elder obeys but warns Chen Yang that the resistance may require the full Grand Formation.
• After the fusion, Chen Yang and Yanhuang jointly observe and analyze the transformed origin, sharing their astonishment and uncertainty over its Primordial Unity aura and ability to absorb battle intent.

Chapter Summary: “Devouring the Four Seas”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Yang and Formation Elder investigate a mysterious origin that instinctively absorbs battle intent. Because it contains Primordial Unity-level pressure, Chen Yang cannot approach it directly.
• Formation Elder loosens the surrounding formations, allowing battle intent to flow into the origin. A demon ape phantom forms inside it and begins absorbing the battle intent.
• The phantom cries out for its “Indestructible Battle Body” and “Indestructible Battle Soul,” as well as Pangu, suggesting a connection to the legendary War Demon God—the Chaos Demon Ape.
• Chen Yang and Yanhuang Daoist are briefly overcome by an uncontrollable urge to fight when the phantom releases its battle intent.
• Chen Yang orders Formation Elder to continue supplying battle intent. As it absorbs more, the phantom becomes increasingly solid and begins imprinting the Great Path of War.
• The origin also starts extracting spiritual energy and condensing Chaos. It soon absorbs not only battle intent but other Dao rhythms, including those of fire and water, converting them into the Dao of War.
• Chen Yang gains a major breakthrough in understanding: cultivation fundamentally centers on comprehending and evolving the Grand Dao, rather than merely strengthening the body, Primordial Spirit, or divine abilities.
• He theorizes that Primordial Unity cultivation lays the foundation for becoming a Chaos Demon God, while later advancement may require comprehending and fusing multiple Grand Daos.
• The demon ape continues evolving, devouring divine materials, spiritual qi, formations, and every form of Dao energy around it. Even Formation Elder’s restraining formations are gradually consumed.
• Flower-Fruit Mountain becomes sealed off, but the phantom grows intelligent and begins following the formations’ energy outward toward the Four Seas.
• Realizing the situation is becoming uncontrollable, Chen Yang orders the origin sealed completely. When the sealing formations begin to be devoured as well, he decides to work with Formation Elder to deploy the Slaying Immortals Sword Formation and destroy the demon ape phantom.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang: Experiences a profound leap in understanding regarding cultivation and the Primordial Unity Realm. By observing the demon ape’s evolution, he recognizes the Grand Dao as the true foundation of cultivation and glimpses a possible path toward Chaos Demon God-level existence. His curiosity and desire for insight initially lead him to allow the phantom to grow, but he eventually recognizes the danger and takes responsibility for stopping it.
• Formation Elder: Remains cautious and repeatedly warns Chen Yang about the potential resurrection of the War Demon God. He provides the formations needed to control the origin but becomes increasingly alarmed as the phantom begins consuming even the formations themselves.
• Yanhuang Daoist: Shares Chen Yang’s shock and concern. He regrets being unable to directly benefit from the revelations because he cultivates the Formation Dao rather than the Dao of War. His unease grows as the phantom’s powers expand.
• Demon Ape Phantom: Develops from an unconscious manifestation into an increasingly intelligent and terrifying entity. It remembers fragments of the War Demon God’s identity, seeks battle and its lost body and soul, and eventually gains the ability to devour and transform all forms of energy and Dao rhythm.

Significant Themes

• Cultivation as Dao evolution: The chapter presents cultivation as the refinement and evolution of the Grand Dao, with physical strength, the Primordial Spirit, and divine abilities serving as secondary aspects.
• Transformation into Chaos Demon Gods: The events suggest that Primordial Unity cultivation is the foundation for evolving toward the level of the Chaos Demon Gods.
• Grand Dao fusion: The demon ape’s ability to convert the Dao of Water, Fire, and other paths into the Dao of War introduces the possibility that higher cultivation requires merging multiple Grand Daos.
• Knowledge versus danger: Chen Yang gains extraordinary enlightenment by allowing the phantom to develop, but the same experiment creates a potentially catastrophic threat.
• Resurrection and persistence: The phantom’s claim that it will revive wherever battle intent exists raises the possibility that the War Demon God’s existence is tied to an enduring concept or Dao rather than a single body.
• Uncontrolled consumption: The demon ape’s evolution reflects the return of all energies to Chaos, making it capable of devouring spiritual qi, divine materials, Dao rhythms, and even formations.

Character Interactions

• Formation Elder repeatedly advises Chen Yang to remain cautious and prevent the origin from absorbing more battle intent.
• Chen Yang overrides these warnings because he sees the origin’s evolution as an unprecedented opportunity for enlightenment.
• Yanhuang Daoist and Chen Yang discuss the nature of the phantom, the War Demon God, and the possibility of fusing multiple Grand Daos.
• Formation Elder and Yanhuang Daoist gradually become alarmed as the phantom’s devouring ability escalates.
• Once the danger becomes undeniable, Chen Yang abandons observation and cooperates with Formation Elder to seal and ultimately destroy the demon ape using the Slaying Immortals Sword Formation.

Chapter Summary: “Precaution is Paramount”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Yang manifests the Slaying Immortals Sword Formation to confront the demon ape phantom, which embodies the Battle Great Path.
• The demon ape challenges Chen Yang, declaring that if the Slaughter Great Path cannot defeat it, slaughter will become nourishment for the Battle Great Path.
• Chen Yang realizes that the sword formation’s power is not merely sword energy: it is the direct manifestation of the Slaughter Great Path, while the demon ape’s staff carries the Battle Great Path.
• Their clash becomes a direct collision between slaughter and combat, destroying space and time and shaking the surrounding Great Chiliocosm.
• Chen Yang and the demon ape eventually fight physically, with Chen Yang using the Slaying Immortals Sword and the demon ape wielding its Chaos Iron Staff.
• Chen Yang discovers that the Battle Great Path can absorb battle intent—including his own—to repair and strengthen the demon ape. This explains why cultivators of the Battle Great Path grow stronger during prolonged combat.
• Chen Yang gains a crucial insight: the sword formation and the Four Immortal-Slaying Swords are merely channels that transform Formation Dao into Slaughter Dao.
• Using this realization, he creates a powerful technique—“Formation Dao: Slaughter Great Path”—condensing the Formation Dao and Slaughter Dao into a slaughter heart.
• The resulting attack collides with the demon ape’s ultimate battle strike. The explosion shatters Formation Elder’s Formation Dao Space, damages Flower-Fruit Mountain, disperses spiritual energy, and causes disturbances throughout the East Sea.
• Powerful figures across the region sense the terrifying event but are unable to investigate it without suffering backlash from the Grand Dao.
• The sages—Tongtian, Yuanshi Tianzun, and Laozi—discuss the disturbance and suspect it may be connected to hidden secrets or the Jie Sect, but Heavenly Dao prevents them from investigating.
• Chen Yang is severely injured, but the demon ape is in an even worse state: much of its body has been erased, its staff destroyed, and its remaining form bound and eroded by slaughter.
• Formation Elder begins using Formation Dao to continue transforming slaughter and grind away the demon ape phantom.
• Just as Chen Yang believes the situation is under control, all sound stops and the world appears to freeze, ending the chapter on a dangerous cliffhanger.

Character Developments

• Chen Yang gains a deeper understanding of Primordial Unity Realm combat, recognizing that every movement is an expression and collision of Grand Daos.
• He advances in his comprehension of the relationship between Formation Dao and Slaughter Dao, discovering that formations can transform one Grand Dao into another.
• His combat style becomes more sophisticated, shifting from simply controlling a sword formation to using the Formation Dao as a mechanism for generating and amplifying slaughter.
• The demon ape demonstrates the terrifying nature of the Battle Great Path: it can absorb battle intent from opponents, heal itself, and grow stronger as combat intensifies.
• Yanhuang Daoist and Formation Elder both gain insight into the true nature of Grand Dao combat, recognizing that conventional divine techniques are merely manifestations of deeper Dao principles.
• The sages become increasingly cautious, realizing that the disturbance may involve dangerous secrets beyond their ability to investigate safely.

Significant Themes

• Grand Dao as the essence of combat: Weapons and techniques are only carriers; the true battle is between the underlying Great Daos.
• Transformation between Daos: Formation Dao can be converted into Slaughter Dao, suggesting that sufficiently profound understanding allows one Great Dao to manifest through another.
• The danger of prolonged battle: The Battle Great Path thrives on conflict, absorbing an opponent’s battle intent and turning it into strength.
• Power and restraint: Even sages hesitate to investigate the disturbance because Heavenly Dao and the unknown forces involved can punish curiosity.
• Hidden cosmic secrets: The reaction of outside powers indicates that Chen Yang’s battle may be connected to larger, forbidden matters affecting the balance of the world.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yang and the demon ape engage in both conceptual and physical combat, with each trying to overwhelm the other’s Great Dao.
• The demon ape taunts Chen Yang and frames their battle as a contest between the Slaughter and Battle Great Paths.
• Yanhuang Daoist observes the battle and articulates its deeper meaning, helping clarify that their weapons are carriers of Grand Dao power.
• Formation Elder reaches the same realization and supports Chen Yang by maintaining the Formation Dao Space and later binding the damaged demon ape.
• After the clash, Yanhuang Daoist checks on Chen Yang, who responds confidently that the demon ape suffered greater damage.
• The sages debate whether to investigate the East Sea disturbance but ultimately recognize that Heavenly Dao forbids them from doing so.
• The chapter concludes with Chen Yang, Yanhuang Daoist, and Formation Elder facing an unexplained change in reality as time and sound seemingly come to a halt.

Chapter Summary: “Fortune Came from Great God Pangu”

• The revived phantom of the Chaos Demon Ape is suddenly annihilated by an overwhelming, mysterious force. Its body, aura, and Battle Great Path are completely erased, while time appears frozen for Chen Yang, Yanhuang Daoist, and Formation Elder. Before disappearing, the Demon Ape cries out that it refuses to be erased and wants to fight Pangu.
• After the destruction, Flower-Fruit Mountain is restored and becomes even richer in spiritual energy. Only a fragment of the Four Chaos Monkeys’ origin remains, stripped of its Primordial Unity aura.
• Chen Yang and the others are unable to identify who destroyed the Demon Ape. They rule out Patriarch Hongjun, the saints, and the Heavenly Dao because none of them sensed those powers. The Demon Ape’s final mention of Pangu leads them to speculate that Great God Pangu may still exist, or may have revived after transforming his body into the Primordial World.
• Years later, Chen Yang and Yanhuang Daoist continue examining the event. They conclude that the destruction of the Demon Ape likely benefited the Primordial World, explaining the enormous amount of Merit granted to them. Merit is divided among Chen Yang, Yanhuang Daoist, Formation Elder, and Flower-Fruit Mountain, with Chen Yang receiving the greatest share.
• Alongside the Merit, their Fortune also increases dramatically. This creates a central mystery: if Merit comes from the Heavenly Dao, where does Fortune originate?
• Yanhuang proposes that Merit and Fortune are separate powers. Merit likely comes from the Heavenly Dao as a reward for protecting heaven and earth, while Fortune may come from Great God Pangu. Since Pangu created the Primordial World, Fortune could represent his favor and his willingness to grant opportunities, protection, and assistance to those he values.
• Chen Yang remains cautious, noting that this theory depends on the unproven assumption that Pangu destroyed the Demon Ape and survived. Nevertheless, the possibility that Pangu still exists—and that he secretly influences the distribution of Fortune—becomes the chapter’s major revelation.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Chen Yang shifts from shock and confusion to cautious analysis. He questions established beliefs about Pangu, the Heavenly Dao, and the origins of Merit and Fortune.
• Yanhuang Daoist acts as Chen Yang’s main intellectual counterpart, using myths and deductions to develop the theory that Pangu survived and controls Fortune.
• Formation Elder contributes observations about the sudden descent of Merit but has no explanation for the mysterious annihilation.
• Chen Yang and Yanhuang repeatedly debate possible explanations, gradually building a shared theory while acknowledging its uncertainties.

Significant Themes

• The mystery of Pangu’s fate: Pangu’s apparent death may have been a transformation or concealment rather than a true demise.
• Merit versus Fortune: Merit may be granted by the Heavenly Dao for benefiting the world, while Fortune may come from Pangu or another deeper source.
• Hidden powers behind the world: The chapter suggests that forces beyond the Heavenly Dao may influence the Primordial World.
• Uncertainty and inference: The characters must interpret incomplete evidence, and even their most promising conclusions remain speculative.