Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary: “Knock!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After inheriting the Mocking Heaven Sect, Chen Qiu gains possession of its remaining treasures, including a Sword Bone that enhances comprehension of sword techniques. Though useless to him as a spell cultivator, he plans to trade it later.
• Only two artifact spirits remain active in the sect: those of the first trial, Severing Worldly Attachments, and the fourth trial, Sword Pavilion. Both fall dormant after the trials and require Spirit Stones to awaken.
• Chen Qiu realizes the Mocking Heaven Sect is effectively an empty shell. Its trial rewards were granted directly by the Heavenly Dao, not stored within the sect.
• After Chen Qiu clears the seventh trial and becomes sect master, everyone inside the secret realm is forcibly expelled. They reappear outside Windward City, where a massive, ominous beast tide is approaching beneath black clouds filled with demonic aura.
• The cultivators flee toward Windward City for protection. Chen Qiu struggles to keep up, realizing he lacks proper movement techniques and Sword Flight.
• Windward City seals its gates and activates its powerful city-protecting formation. Tens of thousands of demonic beasts charge toward the city walls.
• Chen Qiu and Fat Dragon reunite with the Scholar and the bearded muscular man. The Scholar reveals that a catastrophic event is underway: someone intends to sacrifice all one million inhabitants of Windward City to the heavens.
• The Scholar attempts to summon his blue-edged sword by saying “Knock!” but the sword refuses to leave his sleeve, indicating that the city’s restrictions are stronger than expected. He concludes that escape is no longer possible.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu formally assumes the position of Mocking Heaven Sect master and begins thinking strategically about the sect’s remaining resources and lost history.
• He shows practical judgment by postponing the awakening of the artifact spirits, unwilling to spend scarce Spirit Stones unnecessarily.
• Chen Qiu recognizes his weakness in mobility and resolves to learn movement techniques and Sword Flight.
• The Scholar remains calm and analytical despite the crisis, but his failed attempt to summon his sword reveals the severity of the city’s restrictions and hints at the limits imposed on his damaged cultivation.
• The Scholar also demonstrates concern for Chen Qiu and Fat Dragon, waiting for them at the city gate and showing relief when they arrive.
• Zhao Yishi reacts with immediate fear to the beast tide and prioritizes reaching the safety of Windward City.

Significant Themes

• The emptiness of inherited power: Although Chen Qiu becomes sect master, the Mocking Heaven Sect offers few tangible resources, emphasizing that authority does not guarantee wealth or answers.
• Preparation and survival: The chapter highlights the importance of cultivating practical abilities such as movement techniques, especially when facing sudden danger.
• Overwhelming natural and supernatural forces: The dark clouds, demonic beast tide, and oppressive city formation create a sense that the heavens themselves are closing in.
• Hidden catastrophe and sacrifice: The revelation that an entire city may be offered as a sacrifice raises the stakes and suggests a larger conspiracy involving the Heavenly Dao.
• Power restrained by circumstance: The Scholar’s normally reliable sword technique fails inside the city, showing that even powerful cultivators can be helpless when trapped by superior formations or restrictions.

Character Interactions

• Chen Qiu and Fat Dragon flee together and reunite with the Scholar and the bearded man inside Windward City.
• The Scholar urgently explains the crisis to Chen Qiu, while the bearded man helps pull the newcomers into the safety of an alley.
• The Scholar’s failed “Knock!” attempt contrasts with his earlier confidence and prompts him to admit that escape is impossible.
• The group is forced to remain together inside Windward City as both the beast tide and the mysterious sacrificial plan threaten them.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• The scholar reveals that the threat to Windward City comes from the evil cultivator Myriad Demon Child, who intends to sacrifice the city’s one million inhabitants to the heavens and use the power gained to break through from Foundation Establishment Peak to Golden Core.
• Myriad Demon Child controls an enormous horde of demon beasts surrounding Windward City. The beasts have lost their minds, fear neither pain nor death, and are waiting outside the city walls for the proper moment to attack.
• The city has mobilized its defenses, including armored soldiers, cultivators, talismans, disposable artifacts, war-grade treasures, and formation equipment.
• Chen Qiu initially reasons that Windward City should be able to survive: its city lord, the master of Heaven-Question Market, Great Xia’s authorities, and powerful sects or clans with descendants in the city could all potentially provide aid.
• The scholar explains why the situation is far more dangerous than it appears. Evil cultivators are exceptionally powerful in combat, possess strange and difficult-to-counter techniques, and can often fight above their cultivation realm.
• Myriad Demon Child’s most terrifying ability allows each demon beast killed under his control to explode into flesh and blood, which reforms into ten weaker demon beasts. Thus, killing the horde may cause it to multiply rather than diminish.
• The scholar suspects that Myriad Demon Child has joined the mysterious Evil Hall, an organization composed entirely of evil cultivators. The Evil Hall possesses a supreme Foundation Establishment treasure that massively enhances divine sense, explaining how Myriad Demon Child can control such a vast number of beasts.
• The disaster is therefore likely not the work of Myriad Demon Child alone but a coordinated action by the Evil Hall, which reportedly includes Golden Core experts.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu remains calm and analytical. Rather than reacting emotionally, he evaluates the city’s defenses and the possible reinforcements available, showing his strategic mindset.
• The scholar openly discusses his past and abilities for the first time. He reveals that his cultivation has fallen into ruin, that he once pursued Myriad Demon Child, and that he understands the enemy’s methods from personal experience.
• The scholar’s pessimism becomes justified as he reveals that the true danger lies not merely in the demon tide but in the Evil Hall’s involvement.
• Fat Dragon expresses doubt that a single Foundation Establishment Peak evil cultivator could threaten an entire city, prompting the scholar to explain the fundamental difference between evil cultivators and ordinary demonic cultivators.

Significant Themes

• Battle prowess over immortality: The chapter emphasizes the principle that evil cultivators “seek not immortality, only battle prowess,” prioritizing overwhelming combat ability over conventional cultivation goals.
• Hidden danger and incomplete information: What initially appears to be an isolated attack is revealed to be part of a larger conspiracy involving the Evil Hall.
• The horror of unchecked multiplication: Myriad Demon Child’s ability transforms defensive action into a potential catastrophe, making the demon tide nearly impossible to defeat through ordinary means.
• The limits of strength and preparedness: Although Windward City has substantial defenses and powerful allies may intervene, bizarre techniques and strategic preparation can make a seemingly manageable enemy extraordinarily dangerous.
• Past actions returning as present threats: The scholar’s former pursuit of Myriad Demon Child connects his past to the current crisis and gives him unique insight into the enemy.

Character Interactions

• Chen Qiu questions the scholar about how he learned of the sacrificial plan and whether evil or demonic cultivators are involved.
• The scholar explains Myriad Demon Child’s history and methods, establishing himself as the group’s primary source of information.
• Fat Dragon challenges the scholar’s grim assessment by comparing Myriad Demon Child to a demonic cultivator Chen Qiu previously defeated.
• The scholar distinguishes between demonic and evil cultivators, stressing that evil cultivators possess far greater battle prowess and more unpredictable techniques.
• The scholar then guides Chen Qiu and the others to the city wall on his azure blade, where they witness the massive demon army, the darkened sky, and the ominous silence before the attack.

Chapter Summary: “The Sky Fell”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Windward City is revealed to be the target of the Evil Hall, which has sealed the city with the Nether-Severing Soul-Breaking Formation. The formation blocks all communication and escape methods, isolating the city from the outside world.
• For two hours, the surrounding demon beasts do not attack. They merely encircle the city, suggesting that the Evil Hall is waiting for something.
• A powerful cultivator arrives from the horizon and destroys the formation with a single azure sword strike. Communication and teleportation abilities immediately become usable again.
• The hidden evil cultivator escapes, laughing that everyone has already arrived. His departure triggers the surrounding demon beasts to launch a suicidal assault on Windward City.
• Several Golden Core cultivators arrive, collect their disciples, and flee rather than defend the city. The Heavenward Sect Master explains that Windward City was used as bait to draw powerful cultivators into a trap.
• The Sect Master reveals that the Heavenly Dao is beginning a minor version change called “Devil Invasion,” preceding the larger event known as “Under-Heaven Strife.”
• Once outside the danger zone, the Sect Master and Zhao Yishi witness black clouds covering a thousand-mile radius and descending like the sky itself. Divine sense is completely cut off within the affected region.
• A Heavenly Dao Edict announces that the Devil Race has invaded the area around Windward City. They have thirty days to win; victory will free them from their status as Heavenly Prisoners, while defeat will cause them to be destroyed and the black clouds to disperse.
• Inside Windward City, the demon beasts attack amid dense black mist. The city’s defenders struggle to see or resist the assault as the walls shake under continuous attacks.
• The scholar explains that the Devil Race consists of remnants who lost in the previous Heavenly Dao version and have been imprisoned until given one final chance to reclaim their place.
• The black mist is revealed to be extremely concentrated spiritual energy, rapidly replenishing cultivators’ reserves. Chen Qiu realizes this creates an ideal battlefield for him and confidently prepares to demonstrate the power of a spell cultivator.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu remains observant and composed throughout the crisis. Rather than panicking, he studies the black mist and discovers that it constantly restores his spiritual energy, ultimately becoming confident that the situation benefits him.
• Fat Dragon provides skeptical and humorous reactions, questioning the terminology used by the evil cultivators and challenging the scholar’s grim interpretation of events.
• The scholar serves as the main source of historical and strategic information. He correctly identifies the true nature of the disaster and explains the relationship between the Devil Race and Heavenly Dao version changes.
• The Heavenward Sect Master shifts from a protective authority figure to a desperate survivor. He abandons Windward City and admits that even a Golden Core cultivator is powerless against a Heavenly Dao version change.
• Zhao Yishi initially questions the Sect Master’s decision to flee, showing concern for Windward City and its people. She is then shocked by the scale of the falling black clouds and the Sect Master’s fear.
• The City Lord and Heaven-Question Market Lord are implied to have escaped beforehand, suggesting that influential figures knew about the invasion and prioritized their own survival.

Significant Themes

• The insignificance of individual power before cosmic forces: Even Golden Core cultivators are portrayed as helpless against the Heavenly Dao’s version changes.
• Survival versus responsibility: Powerful figures abandon Windward City, raising questions about whether leaders should protect their people or preserve their own strength for the larger conflict.
• The cyclical nature of Heavenly Dao history: The Devil Race is made up of defeated remnants from a previous era, given a final opportunity to return before being erased.
• Fate and opportunity: What appears to be a catastrophe may become an advantage for Chen Qiu, since the spiritual-energy-rich black mist allows him to replenish his power indefinitely.
• The scale of impending conflict: The Devil Invasion is presented as only a preliminary event before the much greater “Under-Heaven Strife,” foreshadowing a massive future upheaval.

Character Interactions

• Fat Dragon questions the scholar about the term “evil cultivator,” leading to an explanation that such cultivators embrace the label rather than viewing it as an insult.
• Chen Qiu and Fat Dragon discuss the strange inactivity of the demon beasts while waiting for the formation to be broken.
• Zhao Yishi challenges the Heavenward Sect Master’s decision to abandon Windward City, but he insists that staying would mean certain death.
• The scholar and Fat Dragon exchange contrasting interpretations of the disaster, with Fat Dragon initially assuming a demon-beast siege and the scholar correcting him.
• The scholar explains the Devil Race’s origins to Chen Qiu and Fat Dragon, while Chen Qiu silently tests the black mist and recognizes its value.
• The chapter ends with Chen Qiu confidently declaring that the invading devils will witness the true strength of a spell cultivator.

Chapter Summary: “I Am Myriad Demon Child”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Black mist covers Windward City while countless demon beasts attack. Myriad Demon Child has already fled, leaving the beasts behind as a distraction or consequence of his escape.
• Fat Dragon and the scholar discuss the Devil Race. The scholar explains that they are humans imprisoned by the Heavenly Dao after the previous Heavenly Dao Version. Though trapped in worlds rich with spiritual energy, Heavenly Dao curses prevent them from increasing their cultivation.
• Because they cannot advance their realms, Devil Race members spend immense spans of time perfecting spells, combat techniques, and escape methods. They become nearly invincible within their cultivation level.
• The scholar reveals that Myriad Demon Child is extraordinarily difficult to kill. In the past, the scholar repeatedly killed him, yet Myriad Demon Child always returned, apparently through external incarnations or other mysterious methods.
• When Windward City’s gates are destroyed, Chen Qiu orders the others to fight the demon beasts before the Devil Race members appear.
• Far away, Myriad Demon Child hides in a cave, severely wounded after escaping pursuit by several Golden Core cultivators. Despite his pain, he is ecstatic because his plan has succeeded and his master can finally return.
• The chapter reveals that “Myriad Demon Child” is actually the last survivor of nine brothers who looked nearly identical. The other eight brothers have died over the course of their long effort to rescue their imprisoned master.
• The brothers’ master, a powerful but notorious rogue cultivator, raised them after their parents were killed. Though the righteous cultivators branded him evil, the brothers viewed him as their true benefactor.
• Their master was eventually made a Heavenly Dao Prisoner through a conspiracy involving several Golden Core cultivators. Before being imprisoned, he instructed the brothers to abandon their grudges and hide.
• The nine brothers instead devoted themselves to freeing him during the next minor Heavenly Dao change. Eight died in the process, leaving only the ninth—Myriad Demon Child.

Character Developments

• Myriad Demon Child: His apparent selfishness and brutality are reframed as the actions of a deeply loyal disciple and younger brother. He is intensely devoted to his master and mourns the eight brothers who sacrificed themselves. His fear of death made him the ninth-ranked brother, but he ultimately becomes the sole survivor carrying out their shared mission.
• The Scholar: He is established as a former top-ranked sword cultivator who once fought Myriad Demon Child repeatedly but could never permanently defeat him. His knowledge of the Devil Race and his complicated expression suggest personal history and perhaps regret.
• Fat Dragon: He serves as the audience’s perspective, asking questions that clarify the nature of the Devil Race and the difference between rogue cultivators and Heavenly Dao Prisoners.
• Chen Qiu: He remains practical and decisive, directing the group to handle the demon beasts before confronting the greater threat posed by the Devil Race.
• The Master: Though absent, he becomes central to the chapter. His reputation as an evil rogue cultivator is contrasted with the brothers’ memories of his kindness and protection.

Significant Themes

• Justice versus reputation: The chapter questions who truly deserves to be called righteous or evil. The brothers’ master is condemned by society, yet he was the one who saved and raised them.
• Sacrifice and loyalty: The nine brothers dedicate centuries to rescuing their master, accepting death one by one for their shared purpose.
• Identity and unity: Myriad Demon Child is not an individual in the usual sense but the surviving embodiment of nine brothers. His name conceals a collective identity and shared history.
• The cruelty of the Heavenly Dao: Heavenly Dao Prisoners are condemned to eternal life without advancement, making existence itself a punishment. The system also turns the prisoners’ return to cultivation into a life-or-death struggle.
• Persistence and survival: Myriad Demon Child’s repeated escapes and resurrection-like returns demonstrate extraordinary tenacity, while his survival carries the hopes and sacrifices of his entire family.

Character Interactions

• Fat Dragon questions the scholar about the Devil Race, prompting an explanation of their history, curses, and combat abilities.
• The scholar reflects on his past battles with Myriad Demon Child, revealing that even a peerless sword cultivator could not permanently overcome him.
• Chen Qiu interrupts the discussion with practical orders, shifting the group’s attention toward the demon-beast assault.
• In the cave, Myriad Demon Child speaks emotionally to his deceased brothers through their spirit tablets, celebrating the success of their plan and promising revenge against those who killed them.
• The brothers’ relationship with their master is shown through Myriad Demon Child’s memories: he views the master not as a criminal but as the family’s savior and the central figure of their lives.

Chapter Summary: “Evil Cultivators Must Be Put to Death!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Myriad Demon Child survives severe injuries and returns to the cave where the spirit tablets of his fallen brothers are kept.
• He mourns his brothers, especially the eldest, who instructed the survivors to abandon revenge and focus solely on rescuing their master.
• Believing the rescue plan has finally succeeded, Myriad Demon Child adds a ninth spirit tablet for himself and bids farewell to his brothers.
• He destroys the cave, symbolizing the end of his family and his old life.
• Although he had outwardly obeyed his eldest brother’s command to forget revenge, he secretly remembered the names of those responsible for his brothers’ deaths.
• As the final stage of the master’s plan begins in Windward City, Myriad Demon Child secretly arranges to punish the families and disciples of the Golden Core cultivators who killed his brothers.
• He travels to a mortal city connected to Carefree Daoist, Fourth Brother’s killer, and unleashes the technique “Blood Flood for a Thousand Miles.”
• The technique drives tens of thousands of demonic beasts into a murderous frenzy, causing widespread slaughter throughout the city.
• Myriad Demon Child openly declares himself an evil cultivator, determined to embody the monstrous identity the righteous world has assigned to him.
• Meanwhile, Windward City falls into chaos under the attack of demonic beasts. Chen Qiu confronts the horde and destroys vast numbers of beasts with a devastating lightning technique.
• Fat Dragon and the scholar discuss Myriad Demon Child’s extraordinary escape techniques and resilience. The scholar admits to killing Myriad Demon Child three times, though each time he destroyed only an incarnation rather than the true body.
• Their conversation examines whether the scholar killed Myriad Demon Child out of justice or partly to build his reputation as Great Xia’s foremost sword cultivator.

Character Developments

• Myriad Demon Child shifts from a frightened, survival-focused younger brother into a determined and vengeful figure. He has long appeared cowardly because he feared abandoning his family, but after losing everyone, he embraces death and revenge.
• His grief becomes rage when he questions why outsiders killed his brothers merely for “upholding justice.” He concludes that since the world considers him evil, he will show it genuine evil.
• The eldest brother’s influence remains important. His final command—to forget revenge and rescue their master—guided Myriad Demon Child’s actions, but Myriad Demon Child ultimately twists the final stage of the plan to pursue his own vengeance.
• Chen Qiu is portrayed as calm, efficient, and overwhelmingly powerful. He walks toward the danger rather than fleeing and eliminates the attacking beasts with a single command.
• The scholar reveals a more complicated motive beneath his righteous image. Though he claims that evil cultivators must die, Fat Dragon exposes that reputation and personal glory also influenced his repeated attempts to kill Myriad Demon Child.
• Fat Dragon acts as a blunt, humorous commentator, challenging the scholar’s self-justifications and adding levity to the grim events.

Significant Themes

• Grief, family, and revenge: Myriad Demon Child’s violence comes from profound loss and loneliness rather than simple cruelty.
• The ambiguity of good and evil: The chapter questions whether “righteous” cultivators truly act from justice, or whether pride, fame, and personal motives shape their actions.
• Labels creating reality: After being branded an evil cultivator, Myriad Demon Child deliberately accepts and performs that identity.
• Justice versus intervention: The discussion asks whether outsiders have the right to punish others in the name of Heaven, especially when they have no personal connection to the original crime.
• Sacrifice and lifespan: Myriad Demon Child repeatedly spends his life force to escape and execute revenge, showing that he now values vengeance more than survival.
• The loss of home: Destroying the cave emphasizes that a home is defined by the family within it, not by the physical shelter itself.

Character Interactions

• Myriad Demon Child speaks tenderly to the spirit tablets of his brothers, revealing both his affection and his hidden determination to avenge them.
• His relationship with his eldest brother is defined by loyalty and conflict: he respects the command to abandon revenge but ultimately cannot suppress his hatred.
• Fat Dragon questions the scholar about his repeated pursuit of Myriad Demon Child, exposing the tension between genuine justice and the desire for fame.
• The scholar defends his actions as the duty to “uphold justice on Heaven’s behalf,” while Fat Dragon suggests that the Heavenly Dao itself may not care.
• Their exchange ends with a shared recognition that, regardless of grand ideals, some individuals personally choose to care about injustice.

Chapter Summary: “One Demon Beast, Two Demon Beasts”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Fat Dragon reflects bitterly on his past at the Flower-Offering Sect, remembering that no heroic rescuer came to save him. He contrasts this with Little Fish’s genuine concern and loyalty.
• At Windward City’s gate, Chen Qiu launches a relentless assault against the demon-beast horde using repeated Palm Thunder techniques.
• Thanks to his Heavenly Dao Foundation, the “Overwhelming Spiritual Energy” and “Focus Power” traits, and his perfected spell, Chen Qiu can recover spiritual energy almost instantly and kill large numbers of demon beasts with ease.
• Chen Qiu counts each demon beast he kills because every death expands his Dao Foundation. Over the course of an hour, he kills more than eleven thousand demon beasts, increasing the width of his Dao Foundation to over twenty-one thousand li and doubling its spiritual-energy capacity.
• The demon beasts’ split souls and spirits become resentful spirit demon beasts. Although they do not count as additional kills, more than eighty thousand resentful spirits gather behind Chen Qiu, producing an overwhelming chill and dangerous resentment.
• Chen Qiu learns that the scholar and the others have entered the city to fight at the other gates. The scholar, normally weakened by poison, can temporarily fight because Windward City contains exceptionally dense spiritual energy.
• Exhausted and nearly crushed by the cold resentment surrounding him, Chen Qiu nevertheless enters the city with Fat Dragon’s support. He chooses to preserve the resentful spirits as a combat force rather than dispersing them into the black fog.
• Inside Windward City, widespread chaos has erupted: streets are filled with corpses, destroyed stalls, frightened civilians, and demon beasts attacking through the black fog.
• The chapter ends when a bear-like demon beast attempts to devour a crying little girl. Several resentful spirit demon beasts burst from the fog and knock it away, intervening to save her.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu demonstrates overwhelming combat power and efficiency, functioning almost like a living thunder god on the battlefield. His rapid growth shows how directly demon-beast deaths strengthen his Dao Foundation.
• Despite his exhaustion, cold, and the physical burden of controlling tens of thousands of resentful spirits, Chen Qiu continues into the city rather than retreating, revealing determination and a strong sense of responsibility.
• Chen Qiu also shows strategic awareness: he recognizes that dispersing the resentful spirits would remove one of his greatest weapons, but he still prioritizes helping deal with the demon beasts already inside the city.
• Fat Dragon remains loyal and useful, supporting the exhausted Chen Qiu physically and acting as an observer who understands the significance of Chen Qiu’s actions.
• The scholar is revealed to be less helpless than previously believed. His poison still limits him, but the dense spiritual energy allows him to fight with greater freedom.

Significant Themes

• Power gained through slaughter: Chen Qiu’s strength and Dao Foundation expand directly through the deaths of demon beasts, blurring the line between survival, cultivation, and mass destruction.
• The burden of power: The resentful spirits provide enormous military strength but also create physical and psychological pressure, nearly overwhelming Chen Qiu.
• Human indifference versus personal loyalty: Fat Dragon’s memories contrast the Heavenly Dao’s apparent indifference with Little Fish’s genuine care, emphasizing the importance of individual compassion.
• Chaos and fear: The black fog and scattered fighting show how terror destroys coordination, leaving civilians and cultivators vulnerable.
• Protection amid destruction: Although Chen Qiu’s battle is extremely violent, the ending shifts attention toward rescue, showing the resentful spirits being used to protect an innocent child.

Character Interactions

• Fat Dragon and Chen Qiu interact as companions, with Fat Dragon supporting Chen Qiu after his prolonged battle.
• Fat Dragon explains the scholar’s condition and why the dense spiritual energy allows him to fight despite his poison.
• Chen Qiu relies on Fat Dragon while entering the city, demonstrating trust between them.
• The resentful spirits respond to Chen Qiu’s simple commands and act as his defensive force.
• At the end, they intervene between the bear-like demon beast and the crying girl, establishing their role as protectors as well as weapons.

Chapter Summary: “This Isn’t Them Arriving?”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Qiu reflects bitterly on the mass deaths in Windward City, questioning why ordinary people should perish because of a sudden Heavenly Dao version change and the arrival of demon beasts.
• He realizes that surrounding cities, including Heaven-Question Market, may have suffered the same fate after their rulers fled to avoid the incoming Devil Race cultivators.
• Chen Qiu and Fat Dragon travel through Windward City with a growing army of wraith demon beasts. Every demon beast killed at the gates is transformed into another wraith.
• After several hours, Chen Qiu reaches the eastern city gate, where nearly 150,000 wraiths follow him. The immense resentment of the wraiths causes severe backlash, leaving him weak, freezing, pale, and nearly hallucinating.
• Fat Dragon urges Chen Qiu to stop controlling the wraiths before the backlash kills him, but Chen Qiu insists on waiting for the Devil Race’s arrival.
• The Devil Race cultivators finally emerge from the black mist. Chen Qiu sends the wraith army against them, while thousands of Foundation Establishment cultivators from Windward City join the battle.
• The battle becomes an all-out struggle for survival. Windward City’s cultivators unleash spells and attacks without restraint, using the area’s dense spiritual energy to replenish themselves.
• A powerful, bare-chested Devil Race cultivator demonstrates exceptional saber skill, easily killing dozens of wraith beasts with each attack.
• Despite expecting a massive invasion force, Chen Qiu observes that relatively few Devil Race cultivators have actually appeared. The prisoners are mostly Foundation Establishment cultivators, making Windward City’s large population of ordinary mortals less valuable as targets.
• Fat Dragon raises a new possibility: since Heaven-Question Market lies within the affected area and its lord fled, the treasures left behind in its shops might become rewards if they survive.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu becomes increasingly burdened by the deaths of innocent civilians and shows a growing sense of responsibility beyond his own survival. He is willing to endure devastating backlash to preserve the wraith army as a weapon against the Devil Race.
• His cultivation advances rapidly through killing demon beasts, reaching nearly ninety-nine percent progress toward the Foundation Establishment Second Layer.
• Fat Dragon remains deeply concerned for Chen Qiu, recognizing the danger posed by the resentment of nearly 200,000 wraiths. He acts protectively by wrapping Chen Qiu in a blanket and urging him to stop.
• Fat Dragon also demonstrates practical opportunism and foresight by considering whether the abandoned treasures of Heaven-Question Market can be claimed after the battle.
• The Devil Race cultivators are portrayed as violent, unstable, and eager to return to the Great Xia Kingdom after years of confinement. Their frustration grows because they have descended into a poor, sparsely populated location rather than a powerful cultivation center.

Significant Themes

• The cruelty of fate and impersonal systems: Ordinary people die because of a Heavenly Dao “version change,” emphasizing how powerless individuals are before larger cosmic mechanisms.
• Responsibility and sacrifice: Chen Qiu knowingly endangers himself to protect Windward City and maximize its chances of resisting the invasion.
• Survival amid chaos: The battle forces cultivators and civilians alike into a life-or-death struggle where every available weapon and technique must be used.
• The irony of opportunity: The Heavenly Dao’s changes bring both catastrophe and potential rewards, including Chen Qiu’s rapid cultivation progress and the possibility of claiming Heaven-Question Market’s abandoned treasures.
• Power versus circumstance: The Devil Race possesses formidable cultivators, but their strength is diminished by descending into an area with few worthy opponents.

Character Interactions

• Chen Qiu and Fat Dragon share a close, mutually dependent relationship. Fat Dragon worries about Chen Qiu’s physical condition, while Chen Qiu relies on Fat Dragon to command and sustain the wraith army.
• Chen Qiu’s decision to wait for the Devil Race creates tension between them: Fat Dragon prioritizes Chen Qiu’s survival, while Chen Qiu prioritizes the coming battle and the protection of the city.
• Windward City’s cultivators fight alongside Chen Qiu’s wraith army, combining their spells and weapons with the wraiths’ ability to entangle the enemy.
• The Devil Race cultivators clash directly with both the wraiths and Windward City’s defenders, revealing the disparity between individual combat skill and the larger strategic battle.
• Fat Dragon’s final question shifts the mood briefly from desperation toward possible reward, suggesting that survival may bring material gains from the abandoned market.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Qiu observes that the Devil Race cultivators are exceptionally powerful. Their techniques have reached Great Perfection, and they can cultivate and absorb spiritual energy while fighting—an ability normally considered nearly impossible.
• He realizes that combat itself is improving his control over spiritual energy more effectively than ordinary cultivation.
• A Devil Race archer ambushes Chen Qiu with a powerful golden arrow, destroying dozens of his Golden Bell Talismans and injuring his arm. The attack reveals that Chen Qiu needs stronger defensive equipment.
• In retaliation, Chen Qiu unleashes hundreds of lightning bolts using the Lightning-Channeling Art, targeting the hidden archer. The attack disrupts the battlefield and provokes hundreds of Devil Race cultivators to focus on him.
• The Devil Race cultivators assume Chen Qiu is a vulnerable Foundation Establishment First Layer spell cultivator who has exhausted his spiritual energy. They charge him, intending to kill him before he can recover.
• Windward City’s cultivators recognize Chen Qiu’s value as an extraordinarily powerful spell cultivator and rush to protect him. The battlefield begins to reorganize around the struggle to either kill or defend him.
• The Scholar appears and suggests retreating until Chen Qiu’s spiritual energy recovers. Chen Qiu calmly refuses, revealing that his spiritual energy has already fully recovered.
• With the line, “Blanket reply: I didn’t turn it on,” Chen Qiu prepares an even more devastating attack. His Heavenly Dao Foundation begins spinning, gathering increasing numbers of lightning bolts—eventually reaching tens of thousands.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu: Demonstrates growing mastery over spiritual energy and increasing confidence in his combat abilities. He remains calm despite injury and overwhelming odds, concealing the true capacity of his Heavenly Dao Foundation. His limitless-seeming spiritual reserves and willingness to confront hundreds of enemies establish him as far more formidable than his apparent cultivation level suggests.
• The Devil Race cultivators: Their combat experience, efficient cultivation methods, and superior technique are emphasized. However, their confidence causes them to underestimate Chen Qiu and mistakenly believe he is exhausted after his initial spell barrage.
• The Scholar: Shows concern for Chen Qiu and offers practical tactical advice. His ability to move while meditating on his sword also suggests that the dense spiritual energy is restoring some of his former strength and dignity.

Significant Themes

• Hidden strength and deception: Chen Qiu’s apparent weakness is a deliberate or circumstantial illusion; his enemies misjudge him because they cannot understand the source of his enormous spiritual reserves.
• Adaptation through combat: Fighting in the Heavenly Dao Prison is portrayed as a form of cultivation, helping Chen Qiu refine his spiritual-energy control.
• Experience versus overwhelming power: The Devil Race possess superior battle experience and technique, but Chen Qiu’s extraordinary foundation and spell power threaten to overturn that advantage.
• Cooperation amid chaos: The opposing cultivators recognize that Chen Qiu’s survival may determine the battle’s outcome, creating a temporary alliance around protecting him.
• Confidence and intimidation: Chen Qiu’s calm refusal to retreat and humorous declaration signal complete control, contrasting sharply with the panic and urgency of those around him.

Character Interactions

• The Devil Race archer attacks and taunts Chen Qiu, prompting his retaliatory lightning strike.
• The other Devil Race cultivators immediately identify Chen Qiu as the primary threat and abandon their existing opponents to pursue him.
• Windward City’s cultivators shout warnings and move to shield Chen Qiu, viewing him as essential to their chances of survival.
• The Scholar advises Chen Qiu to retreat and recover, but Chen Qiu dismisses the suggestion by revealing that he never activated the full power of his spiritual reserves.

Chapter Summary: “Spellcasters Should Be Played Like This.”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Qiu gathers tens of thousands of powerful Lightning-Channeling Arts, forming a massive wall of blue-violet lightning behind him.
• The approaching Devil Race cultivators are overwhelmed by the display and flee in terror. Even the Foundation Establishment reinforcements from Windward City retreat—though they move behind Chen Qiu to avoid being caught in his indiscriminate attack.
• Chen Qiu explains that the spell’s normal range is limited, allowing many enemies to escape beyond a hundred zhang.
• He asks the scholar to use his extraordinary sword speed to transport him across the battlefield while he carries the enormous mass of lightning.
• After initially overshooting the battlefield because of the scholar’s difficulty slowing down, they return above the fleeing enemies.
• Chen Qiu unleashes the lightning in a devastating carpet-bombing barrage, destroying the protective spiritual energy of nearly a thousand Devil Race Foundation Establishment cultivators and reducing them to ash.
• When more enemies attempt to flee on flying swords, the scholar’s speed allows Chen Qiu to catch them. Chen Qiu kills one fleeing cultivator with a concentrated lightning attack.
• He concludes that sword cultivators are indeed powerful, but spellcasters are not weak either, presenting his mobile, high-speed bombardment strategy as the proper way to use a spellcaster.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu demonstrates overwhelming combat power, confidence, and creativity. Rather than remaining stationary, he turns himself into a mobile magical artillery platform.
• His mastery of the Lightning-Channeling Art has advanced far beyond what should be possible for someone at the Foundation Establishment First Layer.
• The scholar reveals exceptional flying-sword speed and serves as Chen Qiu’s transportation and battlefield support. Although he feels the tactic is inelegant and beneath a sword cultivator’s dignity, he cooperates.
• The scholar’s mysterious claim that he lacks combat ability becomes more questionable, since his speed alone surpasses that of ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators. His unexplained personal difficulties remain unresolved.
• The Devil Race cultivators, initially aggressive, are reduced to panic and helpless flight after witnessing Chen Qiu’s power.
• The Windward City cultivators recognize that Chen Qiu’s spell has no ability to distinguish friend from foe and wisely keep their distance.

Significant Themes

• Innovation in combat: Chen Qiu rejects the conventional image of a spellcaster as a stationary attacker and combines spellcasting with high-speed sword flight.
• The power of preparation and overwhelming force: The lightning barrage becomes so massive that even experienced cultivators cannot imagine how to resist it.
• Cooperation between different cultivation paths: The scholar’s swordsmanship and Chen Qiu’s spellcasting complement each other, creating a devastating tactical combination.
• Fear and psychological warfare: The visual spectacle of the lightning wall terrifies enemies before Chen Qiu even attacks, causing their formation to collapse.
• Subversion of stereotypes: The chapter challenges the belief that sword cultivators are unquestionably superior, showing that spellcasters can dominate when used creatively.
• Battle as cultivation: Chen Qiu’s ability to control spiritual threads and remain on the flying sword improves through the pressure of actual combat.

Character Interactions

• Chen Qiu calmly asks the scholar whether he can use the flying sword to carry him and the accumulated lightning across the battlefield.
• The scholar reluctantly agrees but remarks that the method compromises the elegance traditionally associated with sword cultivators.
• Their first attempt is comically awkward: the scholar travels too fast, overshoots the battlefield, and struggles to slow down, while Chen Qiu shouts at him through the Voice-Transmission Ring.
• Once they return, Chen Qiu uses the scholar’s speed to pursue fleeing enemies, proving the effectiveness of their partnership.
• Chen Qiu taunts the Devil Race cultivators, first acknowledging the strength of sword cultivators and then asserting that spellcasters are equally formidable when properly utilized.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Qiu and the scholar cooperate in battle for the first time against nearly ten thousand Devil Race cultivators outside Windward City.
• Their combination proves extremely effective: the scholar uses his exceptionally fast flying sword to harass and distract enemies, while Chen Qiu unleashes clusters of Palm Thunder in a devastating “carpet bombing” assault.
• In less than half an hour, the Devil Race forces are almost completely annihilated. The plains fall silent, though the returning black mist once again obscures the battlefield.
• Chen Qiu asks whether the scholar’s cultivation can recover from the poison damaging his body. The scholar admits that, despite the Heavenly Dao Treasure Jade suppressing it, he currently knows of no way to purge the poison completely.
• Chen Qiu begins considering ways to help the scholar, including investigating the Mocking Heaven Sect’s treasures and possibly recruiting him into the sect. He also hopes to restore the scholar’s cultivation to at least the Middle Foundation Establishment Stage.
• Chen Qiu orders the shocked Windward City cultivators to loot the Devil Race corpses while he guards the area.
• News of Windward City’s fall and the Devil Invasion spreads throughout the nation. Numerous factions gather around the black mist, waiting for it to disperse.
• Elsewhere, the Heavenward Sect Master tries to comfort Zhao Yishi, who believes his friends inside Windward City may have died. The Sect Master explains that he arrived too late to save them and could only rescue his own disciples.
• The conversation reveals that the Heavenward Sect Master would have been unable to defeat the Devil cultivators inside the Heavenly Dao Prison, whose centuries of practice made them overwhelmingly powerful despite their lack of consumable resources.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu: Demonstrates strong battlefield coordination, tactical creativity, and overwhelming offensive power. He becomes more invested in helping the scholar recover and considers bringing him into the Mocking Heaven Sect.
• The scholar: Shows outstanding speed and control with flying swords, proving highly compatible with Chen Qiu’s combat style. However, his poisoned body severely limits his future prospects and prevents him from fighting at full strength outside spiritually rich environments.
• The Heavenward Sect Master: Reveals both his cautious pragmatism and his concern for Zhao Yishi. He recognizes that the Devil cultivators were far beyond his ability to defeat, while still attempting to maintain Zhao Yishi’s hope.
• Zhao Yishi: Despite his enormous physical strength and status as the sect’s future hope, he remains immature and single-minded. His concern shifts from his friends’ survival to his desire to find a dao companion, creating a humorous contrast with his intimidating appearance.

Significant Themes

• Cooperation and complementary strengths: Chen Qiu’s spell attacks and the scholar’s flying-sword techniques produce a highly effective partnership.
• Power and limitations: Even powerful cultivators may be constrained by poison, spiritual-energy availability, or the lack of external resources.
• Pragmatism versus idealism: The scholar feels Chen Qiu’s explosive attacks lack the elegance of sword cultivation, while Chen Qiu values efficiency and results.
• Hope amid catastrophe: The black mist and destruction of Windward City create widespread fear, yet characters cling to the possibility that survivors remain.
• Cultivation and desire: The promise that Golden Core cultivators can “pick any beauty under heaven” is treated humorously, exposing the gap between grand cultivation ideals and ordinary physical desires.
• The burden of nurturing talent: Zhao Yishi may become extraordinarily powerful, but supporting his growth could place immense strain on the Heavenward Sect.

Character Interactions

• Chen Qiu and the scholar develop trust through their first successful joint battle. Chen Qiu’s concern for the scholar’s poisoned cultivation suggests a growing partnership beyond temporary cooperation.
• Chen Qiu instructs the Windward City cultivators to collect the spoils, reinforcing his leadership and practical approach.
• The Heavenward Sect Master and Zhao Yishi engage in a comic master-disciple exchange. The Sect Master attempts to comfort Zhao Yishi and redirect his sexual desires toward future cultivation achievements, but Zhao Yishi bluntly challenges his claims and embarrasses him.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Heavenward Sect Master reflects on the exhausting consequences of his position, comparing his situation to the increasingly popular concept of “sunk cost.”
• At Heaven-Question Market, two powerful Great Xia attendants—both Golden Core Peak cultivators—play chess while discussing the coming “Turmoil Under Heaven” and the Emperor’s fear of releasing the Heavenly Dao Prisoners.
• The white-haired attendant, Qiu Lao, explains that Great Xia was founded by former Heavenly Dao Prisoners and that the Emperor sent them to suppress the Devil Race invasion because he fears the prisoners’ potential danger.
• Qiu Lao and the other attendant easily defeat two Golden Core Devil Race cultivators. Qiu Lao then secretly loots Heaven-Question Market and plans to claim that the market was destroyed by the Devil Race, intending to split the stolen treasures with his companion.
• Qiu Lao unleashes overwhelming Golden Core Peak pressure across a thousand-li area. Devil cultivators and ordinary people are crushed, while nearly all resistance becomes meaningless due to the qualitative gap between Golden Core Peak and lower realms.
• Chen Qiu experiences this pressure firsthand and realizes that his previous belief that immense spiritual energy and powerful spells might let him challenge a Golden Core cultivator was naïve. The difference in spiritual-energy quality makes survival nearly impossible against such an opponent.
• The Heavenly Dao announces that the Devil Race invasion has been defeated and that all remaining Devil Race prisoners are considered dead.
• With the major version change, “Turmoil Under Heaven,” the new Fame Leaderboard is introduced. It ranks cultivators by how many people know of them, updates in real time, and grants daily Heavenly Dao Blessings according to rank.
• As the black mist begins to fade, Chen Qiu breaks through to Foundation Establishment Second Layer. He deliberately delays examining his newly acquired traits so he can continue cultivating during the remaining period of unusually dense spiritual energy.

Character Developments

• Heavenward Sect Master: Shows regret and fatigue over the path he has taken, longing for the simpler days of being an outer disciple.
• Qiu Lao: Reveals himself as cynical, opportunistic, and openly contemptuous of the Great Xia Emperor. Though he serves the Emperor, he does so primarily because of a promised path to Nascent Soul. His willingness to steal from the market and threaten to take revenge shows his lack of loyalty.
• The other Great Xia attendant: Appears more cautious and respectful toward the Emperor, repeatedly warning Qiu Lao not to speak treasonously. However, he ultimately cooperates in the theft, revealing that his loyalty has limits.
• Chen Qiu: Gains a humbling understanding of the limitations of his current strength. He recognizes that spell mastery and abundant spiritual energy cannot yet compensate for the qualitative superiority of Golden Core cultivation. Despite this setback, he remains practical and resourceful, immediately taking advantage of the remaining spiritual-energy surge to improve himself.

Significant Themes

• Power disparity and cultivation limits: The chapter emphasizes that overwhelming differences in cultivation quality cannot be overcome simply through numbers, spell variety, or accumulated spiritual energy.
• Corruption and self-interest: Qiu Lao’s betrayal and theft demonstrate how political servants may pursue personal gain rather than genuine loyalty.
• Fear of the past: Great Xia’s anxiety over the Heavenly Dao Prisoners suggests that previous historical upheavals continue to threaten the current order.
• Opportunity amid danger: Chen Qiu turns the aftermath of the invasion into a chance for rapid cultivation, showing the importance of recognizing and exploiting temporary advantages.
• Fame as power: The introduction of the Fame Leaderboard establishes public recognition as a new source of Heavenly Dao rewards and potentially a major force shaping future conflicts.

Character Interactions

• Qiu Lao and the other attendant debate the Emperor’s motives and the proper degree of loyalty owed to him.
• Qiu Lao pressures his companion into accepting the theft from Heaven-Question Market, framing it as compensation for their service and a legacy for their descendants.
• The Golden Core attendants confront and effortlessly kill the Devil Race cultivators, illustrating the enormous gap between them.
• Chen Qiu’s interaction is primarily with the broader cultivation world: the Golden Core pressure forces him to reassess his abilities, while the Heavenly Dao announcement presents him with a new system that may influence his future advancement.

Chapter Summary: “A Note on Going Premium”

Key Events

• The author announces that I Cultivate Immortality Through Entries in a Chaotic Age will become a paid novel at midnight.
• Two free chapters will be released at 23:59, followed by ten paid chapters at 00:05.
• After the transition, the book will update with at least five chapters or 10,000 characters daily, at a fixed time of 23:59.
• Additional chapters will be earned through monthly votes and reader support, including bonuses for Leaders and Silver Leaders.
• The author thanks four writers who recommended the novel during its new-book period:
  • I Run Amok in a Time-Stopped World
  • Then Let Them Offer Their Loyalty!
  • High Martial Era
  • My Son Yang Jian Has the Potential of a Great Emperor
• The author reflects that he initially hesitated to ask established writers for recommendations but eventually overcame his embarrassment.
• He thanks readers for helping the novel rank as high as third during the highly competitive new-book rankings and promises exciting future developments.

Character/Author Development

• The author describes becoming more confident and less self-conscious after years of writing.
• He contrasts his current willingness to request recommendations with his earlier experience, when he was so nervous about receiving one from a prominent author that he asked the operations manager to cancel it.
• His growing “thicker skin” represents increased professionalism and familiarity with the publishing industry.

Character Interactions

• The author acknowledges supportive relationships with fellow writers, including senior and highly successful authors.
• He expresses gratitude toward readers, whose subscriptions, votes, and enthusiasm helped the book perform strongly.
• The note emphasizes the cooperative nature of the online fiction community, where authors promote and encourage one another.

Significant Themes

• Gratitude and mutual support: The author recognizes both fellow writers and readers for contributing to the novel’s success.
• Professional growth: His changing attitude toward self-promotion reflects maturation as a writer.
• Reader-author partnership: Rankings, votes, subscriptions, and updates are presented as direct ways readers influence the book’s future.
• Competitive achievement: Reaching third place among many established authors is celebrated as a major accomplishment.
• Anticipation: The announcement builds excitement for the novel’s premium launch and upcoming plot developments.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• The dense black mist covering Windward City disperses after roughly three cups of tea, restoring sunlight to the city. White-Eyed Black Crows appear overhead, their cries seeming to announce the change.
• The sudden surge of spiritual energy affects every Foundation Establishment cultivator in the city, including Fat Dragon. They immediately sit down and circulate their cultivation methods to absorb it.
• Chen Qiu’s cultivation rapidly advances from the Foundation Establishment First Layer to the Second Layer, reaching 6% progress.
• After breaking through, Chen Qiu receives three random Green Traits:
  1. Focus Power—increases the power of the Azure Lotus Sword Art by 50%.
  2. Revival Wind—allows injuries to heal while absorbing spiritual energy.
  3. Yin-Yang Reversal—changes his sex and doubles the effects of dual-cultivation techniques.
• Chen Qiu rejects Focus Power because he has no intention of abandoning the path of a spell cultivator to become a sword cultivator. He also rejects Yin-Yang Reversal as useless to him and selects Revival Wind.
• His new trait synergizes strongly with the Heavenly Dao Foundation, which constantly absorbs spiritual energy. This gives him continuous, potentially accelerated healing, especially in spiritually rich environments.
• Chen Qiu reviews his status and notes that he now possesses fourteen traits, though several are obsolete at the Foundation Establishment Realm. He considers some traits potential self-destruct weapons whose power will increase as his cultivation rises.
• He also reviews his limited arsenal: the Major Accomplishment spells Earth-Escaping Technique and Illusion Technique, and the Great Perfection Lightning-Channeling Art.
• The chapter ends with Chen Qiu recognizing that he lacks a spirit treasure suitable for a spell cultivator. Although he owns a sword-type spirit treasure, he feels using it would be awkward and contrary to his chosen path.

Character Development

• Chen Qiu demonstrates firm commitment to the spell-cultivation path, refusing to be distracted by traits connected to sword cultivation despite their potential benefits.
• His Heavenly Dao Foundation continues to distinguish him from ordinary cultivators, holding more than two hundred times the spiritual energy of cultivators at the same level.
• He becomes more strategically minded, evaluating traits not only by their immediate usefulness but also by their future value as self-destruct weapons.
• His growing awareness of his strengths and weaknesses leads him to identify a major equipment gap: he needs a spirit treasure designed for spell cultivation.

Significant Themes

• Specialization and commitment: Chen Qiu refuses to change paths simply because a trait offers a powerful short-term advantage.
• Long-term strategic value: Traits that seem obsolete can still become valuable resources as his cultivation increases.
• Synergy between abilities: Revival Wind becomes especially powerful because it complements the Heavenly Dao Foundation’s constant absorption of spiritual energy.
• Relative power and timing: Trait grades do not determine absolute usefulness; the same trait can have very different value depending on the user’s cultivation level, identity, and circumstances.
• Cultivation as resource management: Chen Qiu treats traits, spells, injuries, and spirit treasures as parts of a long-term progression strategy.

Character Interactions

• The chapter contains little direct dialogue or interpersonal interaction.
• The main collective interaction is between the spiritual-energy surge and the Foundation Establishment cultivators of Windward City, who all respond simultaneously by cultivating.
• Chen Qiu’s thoughts also reference the Scholar, Can Ren, and the Flower-Offering Sect as comparisons that reinforce his decisions about sword cultivation and dual cultivation.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Qiu reflects on the limitations of his current arsenal. His longsword spirit treasure benefits sword cultivators but offers no enhancement to spellcasting, prompting him to seek:
  • More powerful offensive spells
  • Defensive and life-preserving techniques
  • A powerful escape method like Myriad Demon Child’s
  • Spirit treasures suited to spell cultivators
• Fat Dragon and the others return with the spoils taken from the defeated Devil Race cultivators. Much of the loot was destroyed by Chen Qiu’s lightning, though several storage pouches and damaged spirit treasures remain valuable.
• Chen Qiu realizes that Heaven-Question Market is likely undefended after its master and merchants fled the Devil Race invasion. He immediately sets out with Scholar to loot or inspect the abandoned market.
• During the journey, Scholar explains the strength and versatility of sword cultivators. At higher realms, they can kill enemies from great distances, wield vast sword formations, and even defeat opponents above their cultivation level.
• Fat Dragon challenges Scholar about his failure to permanently kill Myriad Demon Child. Scholar explains that he killed him three times, even verifying one corpse, yet Myriad Demon Child somehow returned each time.
• Chen Qiu praises Scholar’s reputation as Great Xia’s number one sword cultivator and suggests that his pursuit of justice led to his downfall. Scholar’s younger brother humorously reveals that Scholar originally went to Windward City to save a storyteller who praised him, rather than solely to rescue the city’s people.
• The group arrives at Heaven-Question Market and finds it devastated. The market is deserted, drenched in blood, and filled with corpses. Nearly every building has been cut in half, and all valuable goods have been looted.
• Chen Qiu recognizes a former guard captain among the mutilated dead. An old familiar voice then explains that the market’s destruction had been foretold, but its master refused to leave.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu becomes increasingly aware of the weaknesses in his current fighting style, especially his dependence on lightning-based attacks. He resolves to broaden his spells, acquire defensive methods, and obtain better spirit treasures.
• He also develops an awkward suspicion about Fat Dragon, whose membership in the dual-cultivation Flower-Offering Sect might indicate possession of the “Yin-Yang Reversal” Trait. Chen Qiu chooses not to reveal this concern, fearing it would damage Fat Dragon’s Dao heart.
• Scholar demonstrates both the extraordinary power of sword cultivators and his lingering pride in his past reputation. His inability to permanently kill Myriad Demon Child remains a source of frustration and embarrassment.
• Scholar’s younger brother is revealed to be blunt and unexpectedly humorous, undermining Scholar’s heroic image by claiming his brother’s main goal was rescuing a storyteller.
• Fat Dragon continues to act as the group’s teasing, lively presence, especially when provoking Scholar.

Significant Themes

• The need for versatility: Chen Qiu’s reliance on lightning exposes the danger of having too narrow a range of abilities, particularly against enemies with specialized resistances.
• Sword cultivation versus spell cultivation: The chapter challenges the assumption that sword cultivators are merely close-range fighters, emphasizing their speed, long-range attacks, sword formations, and overwhelming battlefield power.
• The elusiveness of death: Myriad Demon Child’s repeated returns show that some enemies cannot be defeated through ordinary means, no matter how thoroughly they appear to be killed.
• Fame versus reality: Scholar is celebrated as a heroic defender of the people, but his brother’s explanation reveals a more personal and humorous motivation behind one of his famous deeds.
• Fate and ignored warnings: The destruction of Heaven-Question Market reinforces the idea that warnings about impending disaster are useless when people refuse to believe or act on them.
• The brutality of war and invasion: The ruined market and mutilated corpses show the devastating consequences of the Devil Race’s attack.

Character Interactions

• Chen Qiu and Fat Dragon discuss the damaged loot, while Chen Qiu hides his uncomfortable thoughts about Fat Dragon’s possible Trait.
• Scholar lectures Chen Qiu about the true capabilities of sword cultivators, despite Chen Qiu never having claimed they were inferior.
• Fat Dragon mocks Scholar over his repeated failures to kill Myriad Demon Child, provoking an indignant explanation.
• Chen Qiu reassures and praises Scholar, framing his past actions as evidence of a chivalrous and compassionate nature.
• Scholar’s younger brother interrupts to correct this flattering account, leading to a comedic exchange in which Scholar scolds him for speaking unnecessarily.
• Upon reaching Heaven-Question Market, Chen Qiu is confronted with the consequences of the invasion and the death of someone who had previously helped him, while the fortune-teller’s voice introduces the idea that the disaster had been predicted but ignored.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• The mysterious fortune-telling Daoist reappears amid the ruins of Heaven-Question Market. He confirms that he foresaw the calamity but chose not to warn everyone, arguing that moving the disaster elsewhere would merely trade one group of victims for another.
• The Daoist explains that he warned Chen Qiu only because he favored him. He also reveals that the vengeful spirits of the demon beasts have disappeared from Chen Qiu, but they have been replaced by the resentful spirits of the Devil Race cultivators Chen Qiu killed.
• He warns that chaotic times are approaching and that even the secretive Heaven-Avoiding Sect is beginning to act openly. He then vanishes without displaying any discernible spiritual energy, emphasizing his mysterious and possibly extraordinary cultivation.
• Chen Qiu resolves to eliminate the Devil Race spirits if they cannot be put to useful purpose before nightfall, recognizing that the danger of resentment invading his body may outweigh the combat strength they provide.
• The Barefoot Immortal, master of Heaven-Question Market and a Fourth-Layer Golden Core cultivator, arrives and overwhelms Chen Qiu and his companions with his aura.
• Believing them responsible for looting the market and killing its inhabitants, the Barefoot Immortal prepares to take them to the Great Xia capital for questioning, especially because traces of both Chen Qiu’s group and Great Xia Attendants remain at the scene.
• His attitude changes completely when he senses the aura of a Lower-Grade Golden Core Spirit Treasure—the miniature longsword hidden in White Robe’s sleeve. Greedy and excited, he abandons his immediate intention to imprison them conventionally and instead creates a powerful cage to prevent the treasure from escaping.
• White Robe attempts to use his former reputation as Great Xia’s foremost sword cultivator and former Golden Core expert to persuade the Barefoot Immortal to spare them, promising repayment once his cultivation recovers.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu: Becomes more aware of the spiritual consequences of his recent killings. Although he values the fighting power supplied by the vengeful spirits, he recognizes that carrying them is dangerous and begins setting a firm deadline for disposing of them. His humiliation under the Barefoot Immortal’s pressure also intensifies his desire to reach the Golden Core realm.
• The fortune-telling Daoist: Is established as a highly enigmatic and powerful figure who follows his own principles rather than conventional morality. He refuses to intervene broadly in disasters but shows a personal interest in Chen Qiu.
• The Barefoot Immortal: Initially appears calm and authoritative while investigating the destruction of his market, but his composure collapses when he discovers the spirit treasure. His greed exposes a sharp contrast between his public authority and his private desire to seize another person’s opportunity.
• White Robe: Demonstrates composure and confidence despite being helpless before a Golden Core cultivator. He relies on his former status and reputation to negotiate, revealing both his past importance and his current decline.

Significant Themes

• The ambiguity of good and evil: The Daoist rejects simplistic ideas about saving lives, arguing that preventing one disaster may only redirect suffering elsewhere.
• Karma and vengeance: Chen Qiu’s accumulated vengeful spirits symbolize the spiritual cost of violence and revenge. Power gained through killing may ultimately become a burden.
• The coming age of chaos: The Daoist’s comments about the Heaven-Avoiding Sect suggest that formerly hidden powers are beginning to enter the world openly, signaling major upheaval.
• Power imbalance and vulnerability: The repeated domination of Foundation Establishment cultivators by Golden Core experts highlights the vast hierarchy between cultivation realms.
• Greed and opportunism: The Barefoot Immortal immediately abandons justice when he discovers the spirit treasure, treating the crisis as a personal opportunity.

Character Interactions

• The Daoist speaks with Chen Qiu and the scholar, defending his decision not to warn Heaven-Question Market while offering Chen Qiu a personal warning about his vengeful spirits.
• The Barefoot Immortal confronts Chen Qiu’s group, accusing them of destroying and looting the market. His interaction with them shifts from judicial suspicion to predatory greed after he notices White Robe’s spirit treasure.
• White Robe directly appeals to the Barefoot Immortal’s knowledge of his former identity, hoping his past prestige and promise of future repayment will overcome the latter’s desire to seize the treasure.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• The barefoot Golden Core cultivator recognizes the scholar as the former White-Clad Sword Cultivator, once Great Xia’s foremost sword cultivator who had been hunted by the Zhang Clan.
• Mocking the scholar as a miserable “stray dog,” the barefoot man prepares to capture him and deliver him to the Zhang Clan.
• The scholar tries to stall him by claiming to know of a method to break through to the Nascent Soul realm, a revelation that momentarily unsettles and distracts the barefoot man.
• During this distraction, Chen Qiu appears behind him and launches a coordinated ambush.
• Chen Qiu unleashes four powerful Lightning-Channeling Arts at Golden Core Second Layer strength. The attacks shatter the barefoot man’s protective barrier and spirit treasure, severely damaging his body.
• Chen Qiu, Fat Dragon, the bearded man, and the scholar’s sword attack together, destroying the barefoot man’s physical body.
• The barefoot man’s Golden Core escapes in an attempt to possess another body and survive. However, the scholar controls his weakened bonded spirit treasure, Three-Foot Azure Edge, to intercept and pierce the fleeing Golden Core.
• The scholar coldly rejects the barefoot man’s insult, reminding him that he was once the cultivator who suppressed thirteen cities with a single sword.
• The Golden Core is then given to Chen Qiu, who swallows it to replenish some of the energy and resources expended during the battle. He immediately begins refining its immense spiritual energy.

Character Developments

• The White-Clad Sword Cultivator: Though his cultivation has fallen drastically and his bonded sword has weakened from a Golden Core treasure to a Foundation Establishment treasure, he remains intelligent, calculating, and dangerous. He uses deception, timing, and his sword’s remaining power to secure victory.
• Chen Qiu: Demonstrates the ability to fight above his apparent cultivation level by using the Self-Destruct Trait four times. His willingness to expend such valuable traits reveals his determination and combat decisiveness.
• The Barefoot Immortal: His arrogance leads him to underestimate the scholar and accept the false promise of information about reaching the Nascent Soul realm. His defeat highlights both the danger of distraction and the consequences of dismissing a fallen expert.
• Fat Dragon and the bearded man: Participate in the finishing assault, helping ensure that the barefoot man’s physical body is destroyed.

Significant Themes

• A fallen hero’s enduring strength: The scholar may have lost his former cultivation, but his experience, reputation, and combat instincts remain formidable.
• Arrogance and underestimation: The barefoot man’s contempt prevents him from recognizing the ambush until it is too late.
• Resource expenditure and recovery: Chen Qiu sacrifices four traits to defeat a stronger opponent, while consuming the Golden Core to recover some of what he lost.
• The value of bonded treasures: Even after Azure Edge’s decline, its spiritual connection allows it to move with extraordinary speed and precision while consuming almost no spiritual energy.
• Cultivation opportunities: The chapter introduces the idea that swallowing a Golden Core can rapidly increase a Foundation Establishment cultivator’s strength without side effects.

Character Interactions

• The barefoot man taunts the scholar about his ruined reputation and lowly condition, while the scholar responds with false information to manipulate him.
• The scholar and Chen Qiu work together through a carefully timed ambush: Chen Qiu breaks the enemy’s defenses, and the scholar prevents his escape.
• After the battle, the scholar calmly gives Chen Qiu the captured Golden Core, acknowledging that it can partially compensate for the traits he sacrificed.
• The chapter ends with Chen Qiu beginning to refine the Golden Core’s overwhelming spiritual energy, potentially preparing for a major increase in cultivation.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• After the battle, Chen Qiu completes his recovery and discovers that his cultivation has reached 96% of Foundation Establishment Second Layer, leaving him close to breaking through to the Third Layer.
• The Golden Core he consumed provided a massive cultivation boost. Chen Qiu reflects that advancing after Foundation Establishment is increasingly difficult, though his Heavenly Dao Foundation will allow him to break through within weeks even without intensive cultivation.
• Four traits on his Heavenly Dao Foundation—“Delayed Foundation Establishment,” “Start Over,” “Never Lose Heart,” and “Woodcutter’s Sacred Physique”—have disappeared because they are no longer useful to him.
• Chen Qiu analyzes how he and his companions managed to kill the Fourth-Layer Golden Core cultivator known as the Barefoot Immortal, despite the enormous difference in cultivation. Their victory depended on a chain of coincidences:
  • The scholar’s treasure distracted the Barefoot Immortal.
  • The scholar disrupted the enemy’s mind.
  • Chen Qiu used four traits in succession through self-destruction.
  • Chen Qiu’s recent breakthrough strengthened his attacks.
  • The scholar’s flying sword caught the fleeing enemy.
  • The Barefoot Immortal’s arrogance caused him to underestimate them.
• Chen Qiu now has only three traits available for self-destruction: “Alchemy Aptitude,” “Every Blade of Grass and Every Tree,” and “Man with a Missing Heaven.” He is reluctant to sacrifice the last one because its sensory enhancement remains useful.
• He considers using Heavenly Dao Retrospection Talismans to recover previously discarded traits, but hesitates because the talismans are limited and may be more valuable in future selections.
• Fat Dragon reports that three of the Barefoot Immortal’s storage rings survived. The group plans to break their restrictions, inventory the loot, and sell or distribute what they do not need.
• Chen Qiu formally invites the scholar to join the Mocking Heaven Sect as a sect elder. He ends the scholar’s status as a paid retainer, promising instead that the sect may provide an opportunity to restore his cultivation and improve his swordsmanship.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu becomes more cautious and strategic after recognizing how narrowly he survived the battle. He understands that self-destructing useful traits sacrifices future potential for immediate survival, making each use increasingly costly. He also takes on greater leadership responsibility by organizing the spoils and expanding his sect.
• The scholar transitions from an independent retainer into a genuine member of Chen Qiu’s group. Although he jokingly objects internally to losing his salary, he is deeply moved by the sense of belonging created by the invitation. He may also gain a chance to recover his cultivation and advance his swordsmanship.
• Fat Dragon continues acting as a practical and cheerful assistant, securing the surviving storage rings and helping manage the group’s material gains.

Significant Themes

• Victory through cooperation and circumstance: The battle demonstrates that even an impossible cross-realm victory requires teamwork, timing, enemy mistakes, and extraordinary luck.
• The cost of survival: Chen Qiu’s ability to self-destruct traits gives him tremendous power, but each sacrifice diminishes his future potential and creates an increasingly painful trade-off.
• Cultivation as an unequal hierarchy: The chapter emphasizes that every realm after Golden Core represents a major divide, making Chen Qiu’s victory exceptionally rare.
• Belonging and chosen family: The scholar’s response highlights the emotional importance of being accepted into a group rather than merely serving as a paid subordinate.
• Leadership and shared fortune: Chen Qiu’s decision to distribute or trade the spoils, while inviting the scholar into the sect, shows the group evolving from temporary allies into an organized community.

Character Interactions

• Fat Dragon enthusiastically informs Chen Qiu about the surviving storage rings and the wealth they may contain.
• Chen Qiu instructs the group to inventory and distribute the spoils, encouraging everyone to take what they need.
• Chen Qiu then surprises the scholar by replacing his monthly salary with a position as a Mocking Heaven Sect elder.
• The scholar outwardly accepts with resignation but inwardly feels genuine happiness, recognizing that Chen Qiu’s offer gives him something more valuable than payment: a sense of belonging and hope for his future.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xia Xundao, the renowned white-clad sword cultivator, joins Chen Qiu and realizes that cultivation can be pursued alongside companions rather than alone.
• Inspired by this new sense of belonging, Xia Xundao helps establish the Mocking Heaven Sect. Fat Dragon claims the position of Grand Elder, the scholar becomes Second Elder, and the burly bearded man becomes Third Elder.
• Windward City lies devastated after the battle with the Devil Race. Corpses and rubble fill the streets while the city lord organizes cleanup and recovery efforts.
• The Fortune City Wang Family head, who had considered sacrificing himself to defend Windward City, discovers that the crisis has already been resolved. A powerful sword cultivator surrounded by lightning effortlessly annihilated the invading Devil Race forces.
• The Wang Family head immediately shifts from survival to business, proposing that he remain in Windward City to profit from reconstruction.
• The Heavenly Dao announces a new Fame Leaderboard, ranking individuals according to how many people know them. Those on the list receive daily Heavenly Dao Blessings based on their rank.
• Major figures dominate the rankings, including Great Xia’s emperor, Crown Prince, famous cultivators, and renowned beauties.
• Liu Attendant devises a scheme to raise the Wang Family head’s fame by distributing Image Recording Stones showing him cutting down nine bulls. He plans to sell copies cheaply to influential local powers across all 365 major cities, allowing the recordings to spread rapidly.
• The Wang Family head worries that local powers may resell the recordings at prices ordinary people cannot afford, threatening the plan’s effectiveness.

Character Developments

• Xia Xundao begins moving away from his former solitary lifestyle. He now values companionship, group identity, and the possibility of relying on others.
• Chen Qiu demonstrates leadership by organizing the Mocking Heaven Sect and encouraging his companions to take meaningful roles within it.
• Fat Dragon, the scholar, and the bearded man formally commit themselves to Chen Qiu’s sect, establishing a hierarchy and strengthening their shared identity.
• The Wang Family head is shown to be cowardly and opportunistic, yet also possesses genuine moral courage. He had been prepared to use his Self-Destruct Traits to protect Windward City’s civilians before the battle ended.
• Liu Attendant proves to be highly strategic and commercially minded. He recognizes the potential of the Fame Leaderboard and develops an aggressive publicity campaign for his master.

Significant Themes

• From isolation to community: Xia Xundao’s change reflects the value of friendship, belonging, and collective cultivation.
• Reputation as power: The Fame Leaderboard transforms public recognition into a measurable resource that can grant real cultivation benefits.
• Entrepreneurship and opportunism: The Wang Family head and Liu Attendant treat fame as a business opportunity, showing how quickly people adapt to new systems.
• Heroism versus practicality: The Wang Family head’s willingness to sacrifice himself contrasts with his immediate desire to profit from Windward City’s reconstruction.
• The commercialization of fame: The Image Recording Stones reveal how heroic deeds can be packaged, reproduced, and marketed for personal gain.

Character Interactions

• Xia Xundao and Chen Qiu’s relationship encourages Xia Xundao to abandon his solitary habits and join a larger fellowship.
• Fat Dragon jokingly negotiates his seniority with the scholar, while the scholar accepts the role of Second Elder with mild helplessness.
• Chen Qiu warmly assigns positions within the Mocking Heaven Sect and entrusts his companions with its future reputation.
• The Wang Family head and Liu Attendant exchange contrasting perspectives: the master worries about practicality and risk, while Liu Attendant confidently explains how fame can be manufactured and distributed.
• Liu Attendant’s plan turns the Wang Family head’s modest feat—cutting down nine bulls—into a potential kingdom-wide publicity campaign.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Liu Attendant proposes a marketing scheme for the Wang Family head’s Replica Recording Stones: sell them to multiple buyers in one city so they compete rather than monopolize the market, creating a short-lived gossip frenzy.
• He records Wang Tiedan delivering a provocative challenge: “I, Wang Tiedan of Fortune City, dare gamble my life against the Heavenly Dao! Who dares take the stage with me!”
• The newly introduced Fame Leaderboard ranks cultivators according to accumulated fame. Fame points do not decay, allowing highly ranked cultivators to keep receiving daily Heavenly Dao Blessings even after public attention fades.
• Ji Taiping, Great Xia’s leading sword cultivator, discovers that he is only ranked thirteenth. His dissatisfaction reflects both his pride and his desire to surpass all rivals.
• Ji Taiping’s lover and distant cousin, Ji Renjian, is ranked fifth. She possesses the Heavenly Dao Beauty effect, which accelerates his sword comprehension.
• Ji Taiping learns that White Robe, his long-standing sword rival whom he believed dead, is ranked 986th. He realizes White Robe is still alive and becomes determined to find and kill him publicly.
• The chapter ends with Chen Qiu suffering under the crushing presence of the resentful spirit of a Fourth-Layer Golden Core cultivator. Fat Dragon and the others can only anxiously guard him.

Character Developments

• Wang Family Head/Wang Tiedan: Reluctant and embarrassed about exploiting his own reputation, he is persuaded to embrace shameless publicity for the sake of fame and profit.
• Liu Attendant: Demonstrates practical cunning and a strong understanding of rumor, competition, and the temporary nature of public attention.
• Ji Taiping: His ambition and insecurity are exposed. Although already considered Great Xia’s strongest younger-generation sword cultivator, he remains obsessed with proving his superiority over White Robe and eliminating all doubts about his reputation.
• Ji Renjian: Shows emotional vulnerability by questioning whether Ji Taiping truly loves her or merely benefits from her Heavenly Dao Beauty effect. Her relationship with him is affectionate but morally troubling because they are distant cousins and face opposition from the Crown Prince.
• Chen Qiu: Is placed in immediate physical danger, overwhelmed by the resentful spirit and unable to protect himself without outside assistance.

Significant Themes

• Fame as power: The Fame Leaderboard turns reputation into a lasting resource that grants tangible cultivation benefits.
• Manipulation of public attention: Liu Attendant’s scheme shows how fame can be manufactured through gossip, staged performances, and artificial competition.
• Pride and insecurity: Ji Taiping’s violent ambition stems from his inability to accept that others still compare him unfavorably to White Robe.
• Love versus self-interest: Ji Renjian questions whether Ji Taiping’s devotion is genuine, while his vow insists that his love is pure.
• Power and authoritarianism: Ji Taiping casually declares that anyone who opposes him should be killed, suggesting his ideal future is one in which his sword becomes the only law.
• Hidden survival and unresolved rivalries: White Robe’s appearance on the leaderboard reveals that past conflicts may not be over.

Important Character Interactions

• Liu Attendant coaches Wang Tiedan in creating a memorable public persona.
• Ji Taiping and Ji Renjian discuss fame, love, family, and the possibility of defying political opposition to their relationship.
• Ji Taiping’s tenderness toward Ji Renjian contrasts sharply with his possessiveness and violent worldview.
• Ji Taiping’s discovery of White Robe’s ranking reignites their old rivalry and gives him a new objective.
• Fat Dragon and the others helplessly watch over Chen Qiu as the resentful spirit threatens his life.

Chapter Summary: “If Only I Could Kill Another Golden Core”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Qiu’s condition deteriorates severely while traveling, forcing the group to stop in Windward City. He eventually regains consciousness, though he remains weak, cold, and drenched in sweat.
• The cause of his condition is the intense resentment from a Fourth-Layer Golden Core resentful spirit he is carrying. Although his Heavenly Dao Foundation and abundant spiritual energy allow him to suppress it temporarily, the spirit’s backlash is gradually damaging his body.
• Chen Qiu considers simply releasing or detonating the resentful spirit to resolve the danger, but instead becomes determined to use it to kill another Golden Core cultivator. Doing so would allow him to obtain another Golden Core and potentially create another powerful resentful spirit.
• He estimates that he can suppress the backlash for only about one more hour and asks the scholar to identify a weak Early Golden Core rogue cultivator with no powerful backing.
• The scholar names Poison-Thunder Old Fiend, a Golden Core cultivator living in the dangerous Poison-Thunder Marsh. The Old Fiend practices both poison arts and spell cultivation and has a history of abducting mortal women, murdering their families, and escaping official consequences.
• Chen Qiu immediately decides to target him. The group travels toward the marsh, repeatedly stopping so the scholar can consume Qi-Replenishing Pills and restore his spiritual energy.
• They eventually reach Poison-Thunder Marsh, a vast, poisonous swamp covered by black clouds and ancient traces of a devastating battle. The area is dangerous even for Golden Core cultivators and nearly lethal for Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Character Developments

• Chen Qiu: Despite his physical weakness and the threat of spiritual corrosion, he remains ambitious and ruthlessly opportunistic. Rather than discard the dangerous resentful spirit, he plans to turn his crisis into an opportunity for a major cultivation breakthrough.
• The scholar: He demonstrates knowledge of local cultivators and forbidden areas, recalling Poison-Thunder Old Fiend as a former enemy. He also reveals practical limitations, including his need to repeatedly use Qi-Replenishing Pills during the journey.
• Fat Dragon: He shows concern for Chen Qiu and questions the scholar’s morally ambiguous explanation of what counts as “abducting people within the rules.” His reaction highlights his more straightforward moral perspective.
• Poison-Thunder Old Fiend: Though he does not appear directly, he is characterized as cruel, predatory, and effectively demonic despite not formally being a demonic cultivator.

Significant Themes

• Power gained through danger: Chen Qiu views even life-threatening backlash as a resource that can be exploited for greater strength.
• The gap between cultivation realms: The chapter emphasizes the enormous difference between Foundation Establishment and Golden Core cultivation, as well as the exceptional capacity provided by Chen Qiu’s Heavenly Dao Foundation.
• Corruption and moral hypocrisy: Poison-Thunder Old Fiend avoids official punishment by technically following local rules, while committing atrocities that are clearly immoral. The authorities’ indifference exposes the limits and hypocrisy of institutional justice.
• Scarcity and resource management: The group’s reliance on Qi-Replenishing Pills shows the importance of managing spiritual energy during long-distance travel. The chapter also contrasts the speed of pills with the purity of naturally absorbed spiritual energy.
• Gambling with one’s life: Chen Qiu’s mindset resembles that of a gambler, willingly risking death for the possibility of obtaining greater power.

Character Interactions

• Fat Dragon anxiously checks on Chen Qiu after he awakens.
• Chen Qiu questions the scholar about suitable Golden Core enemies and pressures him to find a target.
• The scholar explains the existence and crimes of Poison-Thunder Old Fiend, while Fat Dragon challenges the scholar’s detached interpretation of abduction and official rules.
• Chen Qiu ends the discussion by ordering the group to travel to Poison-Thunder Marsh and confront the Old Fiend.