Ch. 341"Isn't This Condition a Bit Too Harsh?"
Chapter Summary: “Isn’t This Condition a Bit Too Harsh?”
Key Plot Points and Events
- Chen Qiu returns to the Great Xia Kingdom after more than a decade away, bringing the Mocking Heaven Sect disciples with him. He pauses in Quzhou, where his journey on Mystic Heaven Continent began, reflecting on his long path from Golden Core Peak to his current overwhelming strength.
- Using the Mocking Heaven Sect Master Token, Chen Qiu opens the barrier protecting Great Xia and enters the kingdom with his followers.
- His return causes widespread excitement. The Great Xia Emperor personally welcomes him with a palace banquet, while many former Supreme Elders who left with Chen Qiu also return to their families with improved cultivation and gifts.
- At the banquet, Xia Xundao reveals that the cultivation restriction in Great Xia mysteriously disappeared after Chen Qiu left, allowing people to advance to Nascent Soul. However, a powerful sword cultivator puppet later reached Spirit Transformation and prevented most cultivators from leaving.
- Fat Dragon recounts Chen Qiu’s legendary achievements outside Great Xia, including slaughtering the Evil Race, suppressing Mystic Heaven Continent, creating twelve milestones, defeating powerful immortals, and becoming a Heavenly King. His stories captivate both the banquet guests and the returning Mocking Heaven Sect disciples.
- Chen Qiu quietly leaves the banquet and decides to explore the Boundless Ice Wastes, whose cold has expanded dramatically across southern Great Xia. He also hopes to locate the former Mocking Heaven Sect Master’s mysterious treasure, which may summon or reveal information about transmigrators.
- Over the following days, Chen Qiu revisits places connected to his past, including the forest where he once chopped wood and first met Fat Dragon. His return inspires ordinary people and has turned his former home into a tourist and enlightenment site.
- Xiong Gao learns that the Boundless Desert has become the Boundless Oasis and that humans and demons now coexist peacefully. His former clansmen have returned to celebrate their changed homeland.
- Former Golden Core Peak cultivators who refused to leave Great Xia with Chen Qiu regret their decision after seeing how powerful the returning Mocking Heaven Sect disciples have become.
- In Fortune City, Liu Zide visits the Wang Family Patriarch and discovers the Weird Buddha he owns is nearly dead. The Wang Family Patriarch unknowingly buried millions of branches of Fierce Baleful Wood beneath his estate and used even more as fuel, a substance extremely harmful to beings connected to ghosts and evil spirits.
- Liu Zide realizes that the Fierce Baleful Wood has slowly killed the Weird Buddha. The statue sheds tears of gratitude before finally dying.
Character Developments
- Chen Qiu: Becomes more reflective and nostalgic upon returning to his homeland. Despite his nearly unmatched power, he values his past and revisits the places that shaped him. He also begins considering deeper mysteries surrounding the Boundless Ice Wastes and transmigrators.
- Fat Dragon: Acts as Chen Qiu’s enthusiastic storyteller and public representative. He proudly recounts their adventures, exaggerating the disciples’ contributions and reinforcing the legend of the Mocking Heaven Sect.
- Xia Xundao: Has recovered from near death, advanced to Nascent Soul, and remained in Great Xia because the strengthened sword puppet made escape impossible.
- Xiong Gao: Reacts emotionally to the transformation of the Boundless Desert and the progress of his people, who now live in a prosperous oasis alongside demons.
- Former Mocking Heaven Sect Master: Reflects on Chen Qiu’s success and questions whether spell cultivation, rather than sword cultivation, may be the correct path for the current era. Near death, he considers revealing important secrets to Chen Qiu and jokingly imagines claiming to be Chen Qiu’s father.
- Old Cao and Xian Yi: Their fear of Chen Qiu has shifted into relief and admiration. They believe entering the Land of Eternal Life saved them from becoming involved with Chen Qiu’s rise.
- Wang Family Patriarch: Remains content with a peaceful life in Great Xia but unknowingly causes the destruction of the Weird Buddha through his attempts to protect his family and collect valuable Fierce Baleful Wood.
- Liu Zide: Serves as the knowledgeable observer who recognizes the Weird Buddha’s condition and explains the consequences of the Wang Family Patriarch’s actions.
Significant Themes
- Return and nostalgia: Chen Qiu’s homecoming allows him to reconnect with his origins and measure how far he has come.
- The passage of time and changing circumstances: Former treasures and safeguards that once mattered greatly to Chen Qiu are now insignificant, while Great Xia itself has transformed dramatically.
- Fame and legend: Chen Qiu’s accomplishments have become almost mythical, inspiring ordinary people and making his past a source of hope and ambition.
- Regret and missed opportunities: Those who stayed behind or refused to follow Chen Qiu now bitterly regret their decisions, while others find that remaining in Great Xia suited their peaceful goals.
- The absurdity of power and fate: The chapter repeatedly contrasts overwhelming cultivation achievements with mundane or humorous situations, especially the Weird Buddha’s accidental death.
- Transmigrator identity and protagonist status: New transmigrators realize that Chen Qiu has already occupied the “chosen protagonist” role, leaving them to fear becoming disposable supporting characters.
- Preserving legacy: The former Sect Master wants the Mocking Heaven Sect’s inheritance and spirit to survive, while Chen Qiu’s travels and Fat Dragon’s stories preserve the history of their rise.
Important Character Interactions
- Chen Qiu and Xia Xundao discuss the lifting of Great Xia’s cultivation restriction and the dangerous sword puppet that prevented people from leaving.
- Fat Dragon entertains the palace guests by narrating Chen Qiu’s adventures, while the Mocking Heaven Sect disciples interrupt to boast about their own limited battle contributions.
- Chen Qiu, Fat Dragon, and Xiong Gao revisit the woodcutting forest where Chen Qiu and Fat Dragon first met, deepening their shared memories.
- Old Cao invites the wary Xian Yi to meet Chen Qiu, both recognizing that avoiding him may have saved their lives.
- The former Sect Master privately reflects on Chen Qiu’s growth and considers whether to reveal his secrets.
- Liu Zide examines the dying Weird Buddha and explains to the Wang Family Patriarch that his attempts to protect the estate with Fierce Baleful Wood have effectively tortured and killed it, creating the chapter’s darkly comic conclusion.