Chapter Summaries

The Demon Empress gave Kong Xuan the Five-Virtues Five-Elements Treasure Wheel and bestowed weapons suited to Jin Chanzi and Canaan. She then offered Demon Madara a dangerous opportunity tied to the Killing Sage, which he eagerly accepted.

• The Demon Empress explained that the Five-Virtues Five-Elements Treasure Wheel had been forged by Kong Xuan’s previous life, the Five Elements Ancestor, and warned him to retreat if he encountered Zhu Jiuyin; Kong Xuan refined it and left for the Heavenly Dipper Layers.
• The Demon Empress gave Jin Chanzi the Bloodflame Spear to strengthen his offense and aid his cultivation, and gave Canaan the Fiend-Refining Orb to purify his Killing Aura.
• The Demon Empress reminded Demon Madara of her promise to grant him an opportunity once he reached the Daluo Realm, and Demon Madara accepted despite the danger.
• The Demon Empress drew a strand of exceptionally pure Killing Aura from the Shadow Realm, and Canaan recognized it as the Killing Sage Opportunity.

Demon Madara accepted the dangerous Killing Qi refined by Demon Ancestor Luohu, and Canaan took him to a secluded hall to refine it. With help from Ren and Emperor Zun’s Cauldron Transformation Technique, Demon Madara contained the Killing Qi in a blood-red cauldron, though the cauldron revealed flaws in his Killing Dao.

• The Demon Empress explained that Luohu’s Killing Qi could strengthen Demon Madara but might kill him if he failed to refine it.
• Demon Madara chose to refine the Killing Qi, and the Demon Empress gave it to him before Canaan led him to secluded cultivation.
• The Demon Empress sent Jin Chanzi to congratulate Jiang Chen on founding his sect and gave him a jade pendant filled with corpses as a gift.
• Canaan warned Demon Madara that he could erase the Killing Qi at the cost of his cultivation, then left him to refine it alone.
• Demon Madara secretly connected to the Firmament Ledger instead of beginning his refinement, while Ren asked Emperor Zun to send him the Cauldron Transformation Technique.
• Emperor Zun transmitted the technique, and Demon Madara shaped his killing aura into a blood-red cauldron that exposed impurities in his Killing Dao and sealed the Killing Qi inside.

Ren questioned Demon Madara about the Demon Cult’s Shadow Realm and learned what he knew about Taiyi and Dijun’s hidden plans. Suspecting the Shadow Realm was connected to Jiang Chen’s Shadow Divine Ability Rune, Ren chose to investigate it himself while Demon Madara continued gathering information.

• Demon Madara used Emperor Zun’s Cauldron Transformation Technique to refine the Killing Qi and thanked him for his help.
• Ren arrived at Jinao Island and told Duan De that Demon Madara’s intelligence revealed how much of the Demon Cult’s power and plans remained hidden.
• Ren asked Demon Madara what he knew about the Shadow Realm, and Demon Madara said neither he nor Canaan had known of it before witnessing the recent events.
• Ren connected the Shadow Realm’s shadow powers to Jiang Chen’s Shadow Divine Ability Rune and told Demon Madara not to investigate the matter, though Demon Madara agreed to report any important discoveries.
• Demon Madara inferred that Taiyi and Dijun had faked their deaths and secretly developed a world using the former Demon Court’s resources, and Ren judged it was likely a peak Middle Thousand World rather than a Great Thousand World.

Ren received Demon Madara’s warning about Taiyi, Dijun, and the mysteries surrounding Northern Jambudvipa, then arranged for the others to help Demon Madara strengthen himself without exposing their connection. The contact ended with Demon Madara receiving methods to refine killing intent, while Ren urged him to stay cautious and focus on his standing in the Demon Cult.

• Demon Madara told Ren that Taiyi might possess several Small Worlds and warned that Dijun, Jiang Chen, and Northern Jambudvipa were tied to dangerous mysteries.
• Ren and Xuanming questioned Demon Madara about Zhu Jiuyin, and Demon Madara said Taiyi’s account was likely true and that Kong Xuan had gone to the Heavenly Dipper Layers.
• Ren warned Demon Madara to contact him only through the Firmament Ledger unless major events arose, and told him to prioritize cultivation and safety in the Demon Cult.
• Demon Madara asked Emperor Zun to share the core of the Cauldron Transformation Technique, and Jiang Taixu and Duan De proposed ways to adapt killing intent into new abilities.
• Wang Bo argued that Demon Madara could form a world of slaughter, but Ren rejected methods that might leave traces linking Demon Madara to their allies.
• Emperor Zun passed on a revised Cauldron Transformation Technique and Jiang Taixu taught the core of Battle Intent Body Tempering, which Demon Madara could adapt to killing intent.

Demon Madara fused the cores of Emperor Zun’s Cauldron Transformation Technique and Jiang Taixu’s Battle Intent Body Tempering with his Killing Dao to create a Killing Avatar and Killing True Body. He replaced his body with the true body’s components, endured the agony, and refined the Demon Empress’s Killing Qi.

• Demon Madara combined the two cultivation methods with his Killing Dao and condensed a Killing Avatar resembling himself.
• Demon Madara’s Killing Avatar devoured the Killing Qi bestowed by the Demon Empress.
• Demon Madara’s cultivation palace was blasted apart as his enormous Killing True Body emerged, drawing the Demon Cult’s attention.
• The Demon Empress recognized that Demon Madara was fusing his body with the Dao and judged that success could give him an invincible foundation.
• Demon Madara endured the painful replacement of his bones, meridians, flesh, skin, and organs with parts of the Killing True Body.
• Demon Madara refined the Demon Empress’s Killing Qi after completing the fusion.

Demon Madara forged a Slaughter True Physique and completed his breakthrough while Ren’s allies discussed the intelligence he had sent. Emperor Zun pressed Ren to clarify his purpose, and Ren resolved to pursue strength by fighting for dominion over the Primordial World; the group then prioritized Zhu Jiuyin and Northern Jambudvipa.

• Demon Madara fused his Killing True Body with his flesh to create a Slaughter True Physique that could grow stronger through killing intent and slaughter.
• Canaan recognized that Demon Madara had created his own cultivation path and felt delighted that his disciple might surpass him.
• Emperor Zun asked Ren to explain his goals, pointing out that Ren had repeatedly acted without a clear commitment to conquering the Primordial World.
• Ren decided that his sole personal goal was to grow stronger and that fighting for dominion could help him achieve it and support his allies’ goals.
• Ren and Emperor Zun set aside the Shadow Realm and deferred investigating Dijun and Taiyi, choosing instead to focus on Zhu Jiuyin and Northern Jambudvipa.
• Ren argued that Zhu Jiuyin’s return to the Wu Clan could greatly strengthen them, noting that he was now a member of the clan himself.

Ren arranged a search for Zhu Jiuyin and the Taiyi Avatar in the Heavenly Dipper Layers, while the group discussed the unknown power in Northern Jambudvipa and the risks of pursuing Ji Du in the Earthly Fiend Layer. The chapter ended with Emperor Zun warning that finding Ji Du could bring conflict with the Demon Cult and help revive Luo Hou.

• Ren asked the Wu Clan to find Zhu Jiuyin and planned to claim the Taiyi Avatar's share of the Celestial Dipper Origin.
• Emperor Zun volunteered to search the Heavenly Dipper Layers with Wushi, and Ren approved the trip.
• Ren and the others suspected a powerful figure in Northern Jambudvipa was behind Jiang Chen and decided to send him a gift to conceal their uncertainty.
• Ren assigned Duan De to deliver the gift to Jiang Chen, and Duan De reluctantly accepted after Ren mentioned Ji Du might be in the Earthly Fiend Layer.
• Emperor Zun warned that seeking Ji Du could provoke the Demon Cult, while trading Ji Du might help revive Luo Hou.

Ren and the others discussed exploring the resource-rich Earthly Fiend Layer, and Xuanming described the darkness, creatures, and restrictions that had nearly killed the Ancestral Shamans. The group learned that explorers would lose access to their Great Dao and divine abilities and could not replenish their strength with Spiritual Qi.

• Emperor Zun and the others agreed to trade what they knew about Ji Du and focus on exploring the Earthly Fiend Layer.
• Ren argued that the Earthly Fiend Layer’s resources and treasures made it worth exploring despite its dangers.
• Xuanming explained that Zhu Jiuyin and the other Ancestral Shamans had returned gravely wounded after encountering overlapping eras, impenetrable darkness, and powerful creatures.
• Xuanming said the layer suppressed the Great Dao and most divine abilities, leaving explorers dependent on their bodies and vulnerable to its creatures.
• Xuanming warned that the layer held only Fiendish Qi, so explorers had to ration their supplies or risk corruption by absorbing it.
• Duan De and the others realized that battles would steadily drain explorers who could not replenish their strength with Spiritual Qi.

Xuanming explained that the Earthly Fiend Layers held powerful, mindless creatures and treasures from many eras, while a mysterious force drew explorers deeper. Ren and the others learned how dangerous the layers were and considered their abundant resources, but the unknown lure and strongest creatures remained unexplored.

• Xuanming described Barbaric Beasts, Myriad Races, and Innate Demon God-era creatures living in the Earthly Fiend Layers, including one on the fifty-sixth layer that badly wounded Dijiang, Zhu Jiuyin, Zhurong, and Houtu.
• Xuanming said the deepest layers might contain multiple creatures with bodies at the Primordial Unity Realm, prompting Ren to call the layers more dangerous than the Primordial Land's forbidden zones.
• Xuanming explained that Primordial Unity experts had been common in earlier eras, and Ren concluded that the Hongjun Immortal Dao might have prevented cultivators from reaching that realm.
• Ye Fan asked why the creatures did not leave the layers, and Xuanming said an unknown force drew them deeper and had nearly trapped Dijiang's group.
• Xuanming revealed that Dijiang's group had returned with Earthly Fiend treasures and resources, most of which the Wu Clan had already used, and Ye Fan said they could make use of such resources despite their Fiendish Qi.

Ren and the others discussed clues suggesting the Earthly Fiend Layer was ruled by an Earthly Dao tied to Luo Hou and Ji Du. As Jiang Taixu and Wang Bo considered entering it, Xuanming warned that reaching it was extremely difficult and began explaining the barrier.

• Xuanming explained that the Earthly Fiend Layer increasingly suppressed powers connected to the Heavenly Dao while leaving the Wu Clan's bloodline abilities less affected.
• The Immortal Heavenly Emperor and Ye Fan reasoned that a force opposing the Heavenly Dao might rule the depths as an Earthly Dao, and Ye Fan connected it to Luo Hou and Ji Du.
• Xuanming said some creatures in the upper levels worshipped a stone statue and called for Ji Du, while deeper creatures offered no further clues about him.
• Ren suspected Luo Hou had deliberately lost to Hongjun as part of a larger plan, then urged everyone to focus on becoming stronger rather than worrying over incomplete information.
• Jiang Taixu and Wang Bo said they wanted to enter the Earthly Fiend Layer to fight and study it, but Xuanming warned that entry was difficult because of the barrier around the Heavenly Dipper Layers.

Ren agreed to let Jiang Taixu and Wang Bo explore the Earthly Fiend Layer after learning that they would be isolated there and that time passed far faster at its deeper levels. The group ended their discussion with plans to grow stronger, while Jiang Taixu and Wang Bo prepared to enter through a passage beneath the Ancestral Witch Hall.

• Xuanming explained that the Earthly Fiend Layer could only be reached through hidden passages and would block contact with the outside world, leaving Wang Bo stunned about the Firmament Ledger’s limits.
• Jiang Taixu and Wang Bo chose to enter the layer to cultivate through its battles, and Ren set a thousand-year deadline for their return.
• Xuanming told Ren that time passed ten times faster in the layer than on the surface and roughly doubled at each deeper level.
• Xuanming revealed that a permanent entrance lay beneath the Ancestral Witch Hall and supplied the Wu Clan with much of its Fiendish Qi.
• Ren approved Jiang Taixu and Wang Bo’s plan, while Duan De, Ye Fan, Emperor Zun, and the others resolved to pursue greater strength before the discussion ended.

Ren learned that Zhao Gongming had found interference disrupting Jinao Island’s Myriad Swords Formation and agreed to investigate its source in the Destruction Sword Pool. Zhao Gongming explained that the pool had formed through generations of sword cultivation on Jinao Island, but the chapter ended before Ren entered it.

• Ren told Xuanming that he planned to investigate Jinao Island’s connection to the Shadow Realm after answering someone outside the palace.
• Ren found Zhao Gongming, who explained that the Myriad Swords Formation had begun malfunctioning because of a disturbance in the Destruction Sword Pool.
• Zhao Gongming asked Ren to investigate the pool because its Destruction Sword Aura was too dangerous for him to approach.
• Ren asked about the unfamiliar Sword Pool, and Zhao Gongming explained how sword pools had formed as Interception Sect disciples practiced and refined their swords.

Ren and Xuanming investigated the Destruction Sword Pool on Jinao Island after its black mist began spreading. The Shadow Divine Ability Rune drew Ren toward the summit, where increasingly dense Destruction Sword Aura gathered around him.

• Zhao Gongming explained that Jinao Island had formed from Senior Sister Guiling's body and that its four Sword Peaks housed the Four Sword Pools.
• Xuanming noticed the Destruction Sword Pool's black mist spreading, so Ren and Xuanming went to investigate while Zhao Gongming stayed behind.
• Xuanming warned that the Destruction Sword Aura would destroy divine abilities, forcing them to climb the Sword Peak rather than fly.
• As Ren entered the mist, his Shadow Divine Ability Rune reacted and pulled him toward the Destruction Sword Pool.
• Ren took Xuanming toward the summit, where the mist darkened and the Destruction Sword Aura began gathering around him.

Ren and Xuanming climbed Sword Peak, where the Zhu Xian Formation Diagram absorbed the Destruction Sword Aura and revealed a mysterious presence in the black fog. After Ren defeated its attack with his own Destruction Sword Dao, the voice invited him into the fog, and he went to meet it.

• Ren used the Zhu Xian Formation Diagram to absorb the Destruction Sword Aura as he followed the Shadow Divine Ability Rune's pull toward the black fog.
• A mysterious voice ordered Ren to leave, but he continued forward and countered its Destruction Sword Aura with Heaven's Weeping Annihilation.
• The voice recognized Ren's mastery of the Destruction Sword Dao and questioned how he had learned it without visiting the Sword Pool.
• Ren suspected the voice belonged to the Sword Pool's Sentience, and the black fog opened a passage for him.
• Ren stepped through the passage and emerged on a level stretch of ground.

Ren met Destruction Sword Venerable, the sentience of Tongtian’s Destruction Sword Pool, and learned that the Three Sects had united. The venerable explained how he had taken human form and disrupted the Sword Formation, leaving Ren with a powerful new ally and knowledge of three other Sword Intent incarnations.

• Ren and Xuanming saw a phantom resembling Tongtian emerge from the Destruction Sword Pool.
• Destruction Sword Venerable explained that he was formed from Tongtian’s Destruction Sword Intent and had recently taken human form.
• Ren told Destruction Sword Venerable that the Human, Interpretation, and Interception Three Sects had united, then sent him an account of recent events.
• Destruction Sword Venerable learned about the Primordial World’s changes and reacted to Buddhism’s destruction and other upheavals.
• Destruction Sword Venerable explained that each of the four Sword Pools contained a Sword Intent incarnation and a complete Sword Dao inheritance.
• Destruction Sword Venerable admitted that forming his body had consumed energy and Sword Aura from the formation, and that Ren’s Destruction Sword Aura had helped him finish transforming.

Ren and Xuanming learned how Tongtian’s Heaven-Cutting Sword Dao produced the Heaven-Severing Sword Venerable, whose early transformation disrupted Tongtian’s plan to perfect the Dao by learning from forty-nine failures. The Destruction Sword Venerable then explained how Tongtian spread Sword Dao teachings through the Interception Sect and revealed Immortal Dingguang’s exceptional Sword Dao talent and Sword Rabbit bloodline.

• Ren asked where the fifth Sword Venerable was, and the Destruction Sword Venerable explained the Heaven-Severing Sword Venerable’s origins and Heaven-Cutting Sword Dao.
• The Destruction Sword Venerable recounted how the Heaven-Severing Sword Intent was shattered nine times before transforming during the Witch-Demon War, foiling his plan for it to learn from forty-nine cycles.
• Xuanming praised Tongtian’s Heaven-Cutting Sword Dao, and the Destruction Sword Venerable wondered whether it had contributed to the Three Pure Ones’ hostility and the Interception Sect’s downfall.
• The Destruction Sword Venerable described Tongtian’s efforts to teach Sword Dao to his disciples and named Duobao and Immortal Dingguang among those with unusual skill.
• Ren questioned Immortal Dingguang’s ability, and the Destruction Sword Venerable revealed that his Sword Rabbit Tribe bloodline gave him an innate aptitude for the Sword Dao.

Destruction Sword Venerable explained Immortal Dingguang’s lost potential and the perilous inheritance of the Heaven-Cutting Sword Dao, prompting Ren to consider finding a suitable successor. Ren then began thinking of recruiting sword geniuses from the Myriad Worlds.

• Destruction Sword Venerable revealed that Immortal Dingguang had possessed the Sword Rabbit Bloodline and nearly become his successor, but betrayed him and died before fulfilling his potential.
• Destruction Sword Venerable explained that the Sword Rabbit Tribe’s bloodline ability could no longer be obtained and that the tribe had long since perished.
• Destruction Sword Venerable told Ren that Duobao had nearly lost his Sword Heart trying to inherit the Heaven-Cutting Sword Dao and that Heaven-Severing Sword Venerable was its strongest wielder.
• Destruction Sword Venerable said Ren lacked the mastery needed to inherit the Heaven-Cutting Sword Dao, so Ren considered whether his disciple Jian You could succeed.
• Ren thought about seeking sword geniuses across the Myriad Worlds, including famous swordsmen from Martial Arts and fantasy worlds.

The Destruction Sword Venerable explained how Tongtian created several Sword Daos and revealed that Yuanshi Tianzun cultivated the Star Dao. The account left Ren and Xuanming aware of a vast unexplained gap in Tongtian’s memories, while Ren learned why Yuanshi Tianzun resented the Demon Race.

• Ren asked the Destruction Sword Venerable about the opportunity that had transformed him, and he traced it to the Destruction Demon God.
• The Destruction Sword Venerable recounted how Tongtian moved from formations to the Sword Dao, but Ren and Xuanming questioned the missing span between the Myriad Races Era and the Dragon-Phoenix Calamity.
• The Destruction Sword Venerable said Tongtian’s memories of that period were absent and that Tongtian had refused to explain them.
• The Destruction Sword Venerable described Tongtian creating Sword Formation, Thunder, and Creation Sword Daos, then infusing the Green Duckweed Sword with the Creation Sword Dao and Primordial Purple Qi.
• The Destruction Sword Venerable revealed that Yuanshi Tianzun cultivated the Star Dao and resented the Demon Race for controlling the stars and obstructing his power.

The Destruction Sword Venerable explained how Tongtian created the Destruction Sword Dao and revealed that a mysterious black sword and a familiar person were connected to his recent transformation. He also described Tongtian’s Sword Intent avatars, including his Benevolent Corpse, the Thunder Sword Venerable, and his Evil Corpse, the Killing Sword Venerable.

• The Destruction Sword Venerable explained that Laozi’s advantages made him the strongest of the Three Pure Ones, while Tongtian ranked second and Yuanshi Heavenly Venerable last, contributing to their eventual split.
• The Destruction Sword Venerable recounted how he developed the Destruction Sword Dao after gaining insights from a mysterious sword when Tongtian became a Saint.
• The Destruction Sword Venerable told Ren and Xuanming that a black divine sword had recently become clearer to him, deepening his destruction insights and enabling his transformation.
• The Destruction Sword Venerable said the sword seemed connected to the Destruction Demon God and that he sensed a familiar person whose aura resembled Tongtian’s avatars.
• The Destruction Sword Venerable explained that Tongtian used Sword Intent to create avatars, identifying the Thunder Sword Venerable as his Benevolent Corpse and the Killing Sword Venerable as his Evil Corpse.

Ren learned that Destruction Sword Venerable’s strange opportunity and the familiar sword aura were connected to the Demon Cult’s newly opened Shadow Realm. Xuanming revealed that Tongtian and the Wu Clan had long distrusted Hongjun, and recounted how the Wu Clan’s hidden formation wounded him before Dijiang chose to end the fight to protect Buzhou Mountain.

• Destruction Sword Venerable said the familiar aura carried many Sword Daos and could not belong to Tongtian’s Killing Sword Venerable.
• Ren concluded that the sword and aura Destruction Sword Venerable sensed were connected to the Demon Cult and its Shadow Realm.
• Destruction Sword Venerable explained that Tongtian feared Luo Hou and had cautiously examined the Four Zhu Xian Swords before refining them.
• Xuanming recounted how Tongtian, Laozi, and Yuanshi grew wary of Hongjun after discovering hidden schemes, and how Tongtian and Zhu Jiuyin investigated secrets with Dijiang.
• Xuanming said the Wu Clan’s Fiendish Deity Formation summoned a Heaven-Opening Axe phantom and heavily wounded Hongjun, but Dijiang dismissed the formation to spare Buzhou Mountain.
• Xuanming said Hongjun declared that the Wu Clan would rule the land and the Demon Race the heavens, while Dijiang led several Ancestral Shamans to the Earthly Fiend Layer.