Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• Chen Yuan condemns the Ji Clan’s pride in its ancient imperial heritage, arguing that its failure to reclaim power shows its present weakness. His remarks enrage Ji Man, while other martial artists privately welcome the criticism.
• Qingchenzi refuses Ji Man’s offers of compensation or a favor. He insists on entering Longevity Hall, partly because he opened it and does not want to abandon the effort while his abbey’s sealing formation remains in place.
• Zhongli urges Qingchenzi to withdraw, but Qingchenzi answers that he has been stronger than Zhongli since three years earlier. Zhongli takes the challenge personally, and the two clash.
• Ji Man orders the Xiao Clan to attack the gathered martial artists. Chen Yuan and his allies choose to fight rather than back down from the Ji Clan.
• Cui Xuanye explains the resentment his clan feels toward the Ji Clan, which still treats the Cui family as former subjects despite their long-standing service and good reputation.
• Chen Yuan engages Ji Man. Ji Man unleashes the Ji Clan’s phoenix-based sword arts, but Chen Yuan answers with the exceptionally lethal Nine Deaths Netherworld Slash, burning his vitality to overwhelm Ji Man’s attack. Ji Man recognizes how recklessly powerful the strike is and counters with a fire phoenix. Their attacks collide at a level far beyond ordinary True Condensation Realm combat.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Yuan shows that his calm nature does not mean restraint: when he speaks harshly, he cuts directly at his opponent’s pride, and in battle he is willing to spend vast vitality to test Ji Man.
• Qingchenzi rejects an easy, face-saving exit and openly asserts his own standing against Zhongli, turning a tense negotiation into a personal contest.
• Zhongli shifts from offering Qingchenzi a dignified retreat to attacking him once his offer is refused.
• Ji Man proves that his strength is more than inherited status: he is perceptive, highly trained, and able to identify the cost behind Chen Yuan’s technique.
• Chen Yuan’s allies—including Gu Linchuan, Luo Lie, Lu Chuanshan, Yue Ling’er, and Cui Xuanye—unite behind him. Cui’s decision to stop tolerating the Ji Clan reflects a broader challenge to inherited hierarchies.

Significant themes

• Pride versus present ability: The Ji Clan’s ancient prestige is challenged by its inability to match its former political power.
• Courtesy and coercion: Ji Man presents his demands as courtesy, but treats refusal as defiance, exposing the threat behind his manners.
• Resisting inherited hierarchy: The younger generation rejects the idea that old political relationships should dictate present status.
• Ambition and rivalry: Qingchenzi’s challenge to Zhongli and the alliance’s stand against Ji Man turn the confrontation into a test of reputation as well as strength.

Chapter Summary: The Tide Turns

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Yuan battles Ji Man, heir to Heavenly Radiance City’s Ji Clan and fifth-ranked on the Hidden Dragon Ranking.
• Although Chen Yuan had not ranked in the top ten before entering the Heaven-Piercing Tower, he now suppresses Ji Man through relentless, life-burning techniques, including the Nine Deaths Netherworld Slash and Hell-Piercing Chain Arrow.
• Ji Man counters with the Ji Clan’s powerful Nine Heavens Phoenix Dance Illustrated Canon, dispersing Chen Yuan’s arrow and launching a devastating phoenix-shaped sword attack.
• Chen Yuan blocks the attack with Buddhist spiritual techniques. His Tara Mother Obstacle-Breaking Karma-Subduing Mantra briefly disrupts Ji Man, but Ji Man uses Heavenly Phoenix Body Protection to neutralize it.
• Their battle shifts into close combat. When their physical techniques collide, Chen Yuan proves decisively stronger. He follows with the Bloodslaughter Heaven-Calamity Hand and Gouli Bloodflame God-Burning Seal, overwhelming Ji Man with concentrated blood-flame power.
• Chen Yuan’s advantage is partly due to the four drops of Divine-Demon Blood he absorbed after killing the divine generals guarding the hall, which greatly strengthened his Blood Fiend Power.
• Elsewhere, Qingchenzi dominates Zhongli despite Zhongli’s higher ranking. Qingchenzi uses profound mastery of Dao Essence and its origins to dissolve Zhongli’s attacks and injure him with seemingly effortless palms.
• Gu Linchuan completely overwhelms Xiao Jing with all six swords, nearly forcing Xiao Jing to use his Divine-Artifact Avatar.
• The other martial artists allied with Ji Man, despite coming from powerful vassal factions, are crushed by Luo Lie and the opposing forces. Several are killed, while the survivors lose the ability to resist.
• The once-dominant side of Heavenly Radiance City collapses, leaving the battle overwhelmingly one-sided.

Character Developments

• Chen Yuan: Demonstrates that his strength now surpasses his former ranking. He combines deadly life-burning techniques, powerful Buddhist arts, exceptional physical strength, and blood-based abilities, revealing himself as a combatant with virtually no weaknesses.
• Ji Man: His confidence and pride are shattered as he realizes Chen Yuan is stronger in physical power and equally formidable in secret arts. Ji Man had believed he could contend with figures such as Jiang Mu and Holy Son Si Bai, but being suppressed by Chen Yuan humiliates him.
• Qingchenzi: Reveals extraordinary mastery of Dao Essence, including its origins, despite remaining in the True Condensation Realm. His strength appears deliberately restrained, since he could advance to the Origin Pill Realm at will.
• Zhongli: Despite ranking above Ji Man and possessing impressive combat experience, he is unable to break through Qingchenzi’s defenses and is forced into a clearly inferior position.
• Gu Linchuan: Establishes overwhelming superiority over Xiao Jing through his six-sword technique.
• Xiao Jing and Ji Man’s allies: Their reputations and expectations collapse as they are quickly defeated by stronger opponents.

Significant Themes

• The reversal of hierarchy: Rankings and pedigree no longer guarantee victory; Chen Yuan and Qingchenzi prove that actual combat ability can surpass established reputations.
• Comprehensive strength versus specialization: Chen Yuan’s balanced mastery of body, spirit, secret arts, and weapon techniques gives him an advantage over Ji Man, who neglected body tempering.
• Pride and humiliation: Ji Man’s confidence in his noble lineage and ranking is challenged when a previously unranked opponent surpasses him.
• Suppressed potential: Qingchenzi’s ability to remain in a lower realm while possessing near-advanced-level power emphasizes the gap between apparent cultivation and true mastery.
• The collapse of political power: Heavenly Radiance City’s influence and elite support fail under direct confrontation, showing that prestigious factions can be defeated when their strongest young talents are outmatched.

Important Character Interactions

• Chen Yuan and Ji Man: Their duel evolves from long-range techniques to spiritual arts and finally brutal close combat. Chen Yuan controls the battle’s pace and eventually suppresses Ji Man completely.
• Qingchenzi and Zhongli: Qingchenzi effortlessly redirects and dissolves Zhongli’s overwhelming punches, demonstrating superior understanding of Dao Essence.
• Gu Linchuan and Xiao Jing: Gu Linchuan’s six swords overwhelm Xiao Jing, leaving him on the verge of using his strongest defensive transformation.
• Luo Lie and Ji Man’s vassals: Luo Lie and the opposing forces annihilate the supporting martial artists, ensuring that Ji Man’s side cannot recover.
• The broader battle: The defeat of Ji Man’s allies mirrors Ji Man’s personal loss, marking a complete reversal in momentum.

Chapter Summary: Heir of the Divine King

Key Plot Points and Events

• Before the Longevity Hall, Ji Man realizes that the situation is far worse than expected. Although he had partnered with Zhongli, fourth on the Hidden Dragon Ranking, their group is being suppressed:
  • Chen Jiutian proves stronger than anticipated.
  • Qingchenzi overwhelms Zhongli through his mastery of Dao Essence.
  • Xiao Jing fails to defeat even a loose cultivator.
• Ji Man decides that obtaining the treasure inside the Longevity Hall matters more than preserving his reputation or settling personal rivalries. His mission is to secure the Fate Stones for the Ji Clan of Heavenly Radiance City and the True Martial Temple.
• Using the Nine-Phoenix Talisman Seal, Ji Man summons a massive fire phoenix from a genuine Phoenix Feather and enters the Longevity Hall while ordering Zhongli to retrieve the Fate Stone.
• Zhongli ignores him, consumed by his desire to defeat Qingchenzi and prove his superiority.
• Chen Yuan counters Ji Man’s Phoenix Feather with his Black Dragon Visualization. He then uses the Gouli Bloodflame God-Burning Seal to severely injure Ji Man, knocking him into the hall.
• Ji Man blocks the hall’s entrance with an array disk and breaks open one of nine coffins positioned around the central formation. Inside a mummified corpse, he discovers a thumb-sized crystal: a Fate Stone, containing strange powers resembling vitality, death intent, and Primordial Spirit energy.
• Before Ji Man can claim it, Cui Xuanye destroys the array disk, allowing Chen Yuan to enter. Chen Yuan and Ji Man reach for the Fate Stone simultaneously, but Jiang Mu suddenly uses a powerful suction force to seize it.
• Jiang Mu, heir of the Divine King and second on the Hidden Dragon Ranking, declares that he wants every Fate Stone in the Longevity Hall.
• Qingchenzi and the injured Zhongli enter as well, ending their duel. Jiang Mu then openly challenges Ji Man’s authority and insults the Ji Clan, claiming its ancestors were once servants of Peerless City who later founded their own dynasty.

Character Developments

• Ji Man: Loses much of his initial arrogance as he recognizes the gap between expectations and reality. He prioritizes his clan’s interests over pride, but remains domineering and possessive regarding the Fate Stones. His defeat by Chen Yuan damages his public image and exposes the limits of his confidence and resources.
• Chen Yuan: Demonstrates substantial combat growth. His enhanced spiritual power, gained from refining the Red Lotus Holy Mother’s true spirit, allows him to use both the Black Dragon Visualization and the Tara Mother Obstacle-Breaking Karma-Subduing Mantra without exhausting himself. He decisively suppresses Ji Man and becomes more confident in confronting the ranking elites.
• Zhongli: Suffers a major psychological setback after Qingchenzi suppresses him. His pride and concern over his reputation cause him to abandon the larger objective and recklessly continue fighting.
• Qingchenzi: Reveals himself as a hidden powerhouse. His calm, elegant movements and Dao Essence easily injure and suppress Zhongli, suggesting that he may truly be superior to the long-regarded “foremost” disciple of the Daoist younger generation.
• Jiang Mu: Makes a dominant entrance, effortlessly taking the Fate Stone and asserting control over everyone present. His confidence reflects both overwhelming strength and the authority of Peerless City.
• Cui Xuanye: Plays a crucial supporting role by destroying Ji Man’s barrier and enabling Chen Yuan to enter the Longevity Hall.

Significant Themes

• Reality versus reputation: Public rankings, ancestry, wealth, and social status prove unreliable when confronted with genuine strength.
• Pride versus purpose: Ji Man understands that clan interests should come before personal glory, while Zhongli’s pride prevents him from making the same practical choice.
• Hidden strength: Several characters have concealed their true abilities, especially Chen Yuan and Qingchenzi, disrupting established assumptions about the younger generation.
• Hierarchy and historical legitimacy: The confrontation between Ji Man and Jiang Mu reflects a larger dispute over inherited status, ancestral origins, and which factions possess true authority.
• Immortality and forbidden power: The Fate Stone and the decayed corpses reveal the Endless Immortal Palace’s grotesque methods of pursuing longevity and accumulating mysterious life-and-death powers.

Character Interactions

• Ji Man and Chen Yuan: Their battle shifts from Ji Man’s confidence to Chen Yuan’s decisive advantage. Chen Yuan destroys Ji Man’s Phoenix Feather attack and wounds him severely.
• Zhongli and Qingchenzi: Their fight is driven less by strategy than by Zhongli’s wounded pride. Qingchenzi remains composed while damaging Zhongli’s internal organs with Dao Essence.
• Ji Man and Zhongli: Ji Man orders Zhongli to pursue the Fate Stone, but Zhongli ignores him, showing that their alliance is undermined by Zhongli’s obsession with proving himself.
• Ji Man and Jiang Mu: Jiang Mu humiliates Ji Man by taking the Fate Stone and dismissing the Ji Clan’s noble claims. Their exchange establishes a direct conflict between Peerless City and Heavenly Radiance City.
• Chen Yuan and Jiang Mu: Chen Yuan does not immediately challenge Jiang Mu after his arrival, choosing to observe the situation and allowing Ji Man to bear the pressure.
• The gathered elites: Jiang Mu’s arrival temporarily halts the fighting and forces Chen Yuan, Ji Man, Qingchenzi, and Zhongli into a tense confrontation over control of the Fate Stones.

Plot points

• Jiang Mu provokes Ji Man by revealing that the Ji Clan’s ancestor had once been a servant in Peerless City. Though the ancestor later gained a cultivation art, rose to power, and founded the first unified human dynasty, Jiang Mu dismisses the Ji Clan’s origins as unremarkable and emphasizes that Peerless City alone has endured.
• Ji Man threatens to fight Jiang Mu over the insult. He explains that the Fate Stone is vital to the Heavenly Radiance City Ji Clan’s plans, but Jiang Mu refuses to yield it, arguing that the Ji Clan’s failure to obtain it is their own weakness.
• Chen Yuan challenges Jiang Mu for treating Longevity Hall’s contents as already his. Jiang Mu recognizes Chen Yuan’s talent and offers him a position as his guard, promising entry into Peerless City and a bright future.
• Chen Yuan rejects the offer, insisting that he will make his own future rather than serve another person. Jiang Mu boasts of Peerless City’s ancient prestige and belittles the Martial Suppression Hall, but Chen Yuan remains unmoved.
• Ji Man, Chen Yuan, Qingchenzi, and Zhongli stand together against Jiang Mu. Jiang Mu calls them fools, activates a formation that seals off Gu Linchuan and the others outside, and orders his subordinate Flying Shadow to attack Chen Yuan.

Character developments and interactions

• Ji Man’s pride in his lineage turns to fury when Jiang Mu exposes and mocks his ancestor’s humble beginnings. Despite his rivalry with Chen Yuan, he joins the others in resisting Jiang Mu because the Fate Stone matters to his clan.
• Chen Yuan refuses to be impressed by Peerless City’s status or tempted by Jiang Mu’s patronage. His answer underscores his independence and willingness to oppose a powerful opponent.
• Jiang Mu is confident and openly condescending, viewing Peerless City as above all other powers. Yet his offer to Chen Yuan is sincere: he admires Chen Yuan’s ability and wants to cultivate him as a future guard and trusted subordinate.
• Qingchenzi and Zhongli support the confrontation, showing that they would rather risk defeat than retreat in humiliation.
• The exchange between Jiang Mu and Chen Yuan shifts from recruitment to open hostility; Jiang Mu’s order to Flying Shadow begins the impending fight.

Significant themes

• Lineage versus merit: Ji Man prizes ancestral honor, while Chen Yuan rejects inherited status and believes in forging his own future.
• Power and historical prestige: Jiang Mu uses Peerless City’s ancient survival and dominance to justify its superiority, while the others refuse to accept that history as a claim to present-day submission.
• Dignity and resistance: The group is willing to fight rather than surrender their pride or their claims to the Fate Stone.
• Opportunity versus autonomy: Jiang Mu sees service in Peerless City as an extraordinary opportunity; Chen Yuan sees it as dependence and refuses it.

Key plot points and events

• Jiang Mu enters Longevity Hall while the battle outside continues. The formation seals the hall, trapping Jiang Mu, Chen Yuan, Qingchenzi, and Cui Xuanye inside; those outside must try to break in by force.
• Jiang Mu’s guard Flying Shadow confronts Chen Yuan, furious that Jiang Mu offered Chen Yuan a place in Peerless City so readily. Flying Shadow has powerful cultivation and Heaven Tier weapons, but has spent years suppressing his advancement to protect Jiang Mu.
• Chen Yuan provokes him by calling him a servant who has surrendered his name and potential. The insult exposes Flying Shadow’s buried regret and drives him to attack.
• Flying Shadow initially matches Chen Yuan with his demonic blades and later uses the Shadow-Form Secret Art to strike from behind. Chen Yuan interrupts him with a Buddhist mantra, then counters with a palm strike and a death-charged arrow.
• Flying Shadow evades the arrow through Void Shadow Transformation. Chen Yuan uses the Son of Heaven Qi-Watching Art to predict the secret art’s fixed movement paths, strikes with the Divine Firmament Evil-Slaying Sword, and lands a follow-up arrow. Chen Yuan then beheads Flying Shadow before he can escape again.

Character developments

• Chen Yuan remains confident but assesses Flying Shadow’s genuine strength. He also shows tactical adaptability, combining his abilities to counter Flying Shadow’s speed.
• Flying Shadow is revealed as a formidable but compromised fighter: he has sacrificed his name, independence, and cultivation progress for Peerless City. His anger stems not only from loyalty to Jiang Mu but also from jealousy and regret over the life he might have had.
• Jiang Mu’s influence is shown through the rigid hierarchy of Peerless City and the personal sacrifices demanded of his guards.

Significant themes

• Power at the cost of freedom: Flying Shadow’s strength and status as a personal guard have come at the price of his identity and potential.
• Regret and resentment: Chen Yuan’s words force Flying Shadow to confront choices he has tried to justify.
• The value of a coherent path: Chen Yuan argues that Flying Shadow’s assorted techniques and prolonged suppression have left his cultivation powerful but poorly integrated, unlike the more deliberately developed paths of the Hidden Dragon Ranking’s leaders.
• Pride and status: Flying Shadow’s contempt for the ranking’s fighters is undercut by his dependence on Peerless City and his defeat by Chen Yuan.

Character interactions

• Chen Yuan and Flying Shadow’s fight is as much verbal as physical: Chen Yuan’s taunts expose the insecurity behind Flying Shadow’s loyalty and aggression.
• Flying Shadow attacks to defend both Jiang Mu’s authority and his own standing, while Chen Yuan counters with a mix of psychological provocation, spiritual techniques, and precise tactical prediction.

Plot points and events

• Jiang Mu attacks Ji Man, Zhongli, and Qingchenzi, revealing the overwhelming strength of his God-King Power, a force derived from Peerless City’s divine bloodline and unlike ordinary true qi.
• He defeats or repels each of them with signature techniques: the Peerless Heaven-Flipping Seal breaks Ji Man’s sword attack, and the God-Descending Finger disperses Qingchenzi’s Dao Essence.
• Chen Yuan kills Flying Shadow, whose Void Shadow Transformation had been sent to counter him. Chen Yuan’s Son of Heaven Qi-Watching Art had neutralized the secret technique.
• Chen Yuan then attacks Jiang Mu with a Netherworld-infused arrow. Jiang Mu counters with the God-King Formation-Breaking Arrow; their source-level powers clash nearly evenly.
• Ji Man, Zhongli, and Qingchenzi launch their strongest attacks together, using Ji Man’s sword formation, Zhongli’s full bodily force, and Qingchenzi’s Primordial Chaos formation.
• Jiang Mu releases the immense Divine Power sealed at the golden mark on his forehead, dispersing their attacks. He follows with a wide-ranging burst of God-King Power that shakes the Longevity Hall and breaks open its coffins.
• The coffins reveal altered bodies, but one is completely empty. Chen Yuan suspects its occupant may have awakened and left from within, rather than being removed by an intruder.

Character developments and interactions

• Jiang Mu displays supreme confidence in his bloodline and status, but the combined assault forces him to use his forehead’s formidable Divine Power and leaves him somewhat pale. Flying Shadow’s quick defeat also embarrasses him.
• Chen Yuan demonstrates that his abilities exceed his reputation: he counters Flying Shadow, uses source power effectively, and earns Jiang Mu’s respect for his exceptional potential.
• Ji Man finds satisfaction in seeing Jiang Mu underestimate Chen Yuan, having made the same mistake himself. He contributes powerful clan treasures to the group’s assault.
• Zhongli, already wounded and previously defeated by Qingchenzi, attacks in fury with everything he has left.
• Qingchenzi joins the others’ coordinated assault, using Dao Essence and a formation to turn the environment’s energies into Primordial Chaos Power.
• The three allies coordinate their strongest techniques against Jiang Mu, but his power ultimately drives them back.

Significant themes

• Bloodline and inherited power: Peerless City’s God-King lineage gives Jiang Mu a force beyond ordinary martial cultivation.
• Reputation versus true ability: Chen Yuan’s ranking understates his strength, while Flying Shadow’s prestigious equipment and techniques prove insufficient.
• The limits of power: Even a formidable, coordinated attack can be overcome by Jiang Mu’s exceptional reserves.
• Mystery and immortality: The empty coffin raises the possibility that one of the Longevity Hall’s occupants survived or awakened, deepening the mystery of the palace’s attempts to preserve life.

Chapter Summary: “Fate Stone”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After Jiang Mu destroys the balance of the Longevity Hall, he uses his immense power to pull the Fate Stones toward himself.
• The other cultivators compete against him:
  • Ji Man transforms into a fiery phoenix and claims one stone.
  • Zhongli relies on his physical strength to seize another.
  • Qingchenzi uses Dao Essence and a formation to take one.
  • Chen Yuan uses the Son of Heaven Qi-Watching Art and his Hell-Piercing Chain Arrow to intercept and secure two.
• Of the eight Fate Stones, Jiang Mu obtains three, while Ji Man, Zhongli, and Qingchenzi each obtain one, and Chen Yuan takes two.
• The formation imprisoning the group is broken by Cui Xuanye, Gu Linchuan, and others. They warn that the Endless Immortal Palace is collapsing because the battle in the Longevity Hall damaged its core.
• Everyone abandons the fight and escapes through spatial gateways. They emerge outside the palace rather than through its main entrance.
• Ji Man, having been defeated by Chen Yuan earlier and humbled by Jiang Mu’s strength, attempts to purchase Chen Yuan’s and Qingchenzi’s Fate Stones with access to the Ji Clan’s treasure vault. Both refuse.
• Ji Man warns that the stones are wanted by someone from the mysterious Soaring Clouds Grotto, implying that possessing them may bring serious danger.
• Qingchenzi explains that the Fate Stones were once called Reincarnation Stones. Ancient records claim they can replace a person’s death and allow their Primordial Spirit to reincarnate into a new life, though Qingchenzi doubts this theory.
• Cui Xuanye recalls several historical encounters with Soaring Clouds Grotto. Its agents repeatedly interfered with dynastic changes, imperial fate, dragon qi, and other major shifts in the world’s destiny.
• The chapter ends with Chen Yuan and Qingchenzi realizing that Soaring Clouds Grotto may be an ancient organization devoted to altering heavenly fate and influencing the rise and fall of kingdoms.

Character Developments

• Chen Yuan demonstrates tactical intelligence rather than relying solely on strength. He reads the Fate Stones’ energy, intercepts them, and secures two. His refusal to sell them shows growing confidence and curiosity about their true nature.
• Jiang Mu is established as overwhelmingly powerful. He could have dominated the previous generation’s geniuses, yet even he cannot completely suppress the current era’s top prodigies.
• Ji Man suffers a major blow to his pride. His confidence collapses after losing to Chen Yuan and realizing that he is far below Jiang Mu’s level. Although he becomes more diplomatic, he remains arrogant and attempts to pressure others through his clan’s influence.
• Qingchenzi remains calm, independent, and skeptical. He rejects Ji Man’s treasures, values the Fate Stones for scholarly research, and questions the idea of predetermined fate.
• Cui Xuanye reveals the depth of his family’s historical knowledge. His recollections provide crucial information about Soaring Clouds Grotto and suggest that the organization has operated for centuries.
• Zhongli is shown as physically formidable, capable of resisting Jiang Mu’s power long enough to seize a Fate Stone.

Significant Themes

• Power versus strategy: Jiang Mu possesses superior strength, but the other characters use speed, formations, insight, and teamwork to prevent him from taking everything.
• Fate versus free will: The Fate Stones are connected to reincarnation and the possibility of changing one’s destined lifespan. Qingchenzi challenges the idea that fate controls human life, arguing that cultivation—not predetermined destiny—determines longevity.
• The danger of forbidden knowledge: The Fate Stones and Soaring Clouds Grotto represent powers capable of manipulating life, death, dynasties, and the course of history.
• Ambition and humility: Ji Man’s humiliation forces him to recognize the gap between his own strength and that of the era’s true prodigies.
• Historical manipulation: Soaring Clouds Grotto appears to interfere repeatedly in political and cosmic changes, suggesting that the world’s recorded history may have been shaped by hidden forces.

Important Character Interactions

• Jiang Mu versus the group: His attempt to claim all the Fate Stones leads to a brief struggle demonstrating the immense gap between his power and ordinary geniuses, while also showing that the current generation can resist him collectively.
• Ji Man and Chen Yuan/Qingchenzi: Ji Man shifts from commanding them to politely negotiating after recognizing that force will not work. Chen Yuan mocks the timing of his offer, while Qingchenzi rejects it outright.
• Chen Yuan and Qingchenzi: Their discussion combines curiosity and skepticism about the Fate Stones. Chen Yuan is interested in their possible connection to immortality, while Qingchenzi approaches them as objects of study.
• Cui Xuanye and the group: Cui’s historical account transforms Ji Man’s warning into a serious threat, revealing that Soaring Clouds Grotto has long manipulated fate and major political events.

Chapter Summary: “Soaring Clouds Grotto”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Gu Linchuan questions why Soaring Clouds Grotto is absent from the Jianghu Wind and Cloud Ranking despite its influence over powerful factions and even dynastic succession.
• Wen Rou explains that Soaring Clouds Grotto is not a conventional faction. It appears to be a single-person lineage or possibly a place associated with one mysterious master. Skywind Rain-Listening Tower has information about it but has avoided publicizing it.
• In exchange for details about the group’s experiences inside Endless Immortal Palace, Wen Rou reveals the history of the Master of Soaring Clouds Grotto:
  • He has appeared during major periods of chaos throughout history.
  • He repeatedly interfered in dynastic changes and sought powerful treasures or individuals.
  • He fought legendary figures such as the founding emperor of Great Wei, Wu Yuanqing, Ning Canghai, Lü Chongyang, and Qin Wuye, but was defeated or severely wounded each time.
  • He was most recently active five hundred years ago, when he interfered with Great Xia’s succession and was defeated by Qin Wuye.
• Wen Rou reveals that the Master of Soaring Clouds Grotto may have been connected to Endless Immortal Palace, possibly one of its original nine high-ranking figures. Chen Yuan suspects he escaped with a Fate Stone and may have survived for seven to ten thousand years.
• Chen Yuan reasons that the master is neither invincible nor insignificant. His enemies were all supreme figures of their eras, and his long periods of inactivity suggest severe limitations or injuries.
• The group discusses whether to surrender the Fate Stone to Ji Man and the Ji Clan. Chen Yuan refuses in principle, saying that once something is in his hands, there is no reason to give it away.
• Chen Yuan reveals privately that the Fate Stone has already fused with the jade left by Qin Wuye after the jade consumed both Fate Stones. He therefore cannot trade it away and is unwilling to surrender Qin Wuye’s legacy.
• Chen Yuan plans to seek out Lu Beiming, Qin Wuye’s former confidant, to learn more about the Master of Soaring Clouds Grotto and how to oppose him.

Character Developments

• Chen Yuan demonstrates increased strategic maturity and confidence. He evaluates the Master of Soaring Clouds Grotto realistically, recognizing both his danger and his limitations.
• Chen Yuan also becomes more protective of his possessions and inheritance, especially Qin Wuye’s jade and the power it may contain.
• His connection to the Radiance Cult becomes increasingly important, since the Master of Soaring Clouds Grotto was defeated by Qin Wuye and may harbor hostility toward the cult.
• Wen Rou is shown as an efficient intelligence gatherer and a trusted source of historical information. She is deeply impressed by Chen Yuan’s strength and predicts that he may soon enter the top three of the Hidden Dragon Ranking.
• Qingchenzi does not immediately commit to trading away the Fate Stone and instead asks Chen Yuan’s position, suggesting that Chen Yuan’s judgment strongly influences him.
• Cui Xuanye and the others shift from viewing Soaring Clouds Grotto as an invincible hidden power to recognizing its complicated and unstable history.

Significant Themes

• Myth versus reality: Soaring Clouds Grotto initially appears to be an invincible ancient force, but its history reveals repeated defeats by the strongest figures of each era.
• Longevity and immortality: The possibility that one person has survived for thousands of years raises questions about the true nature of immortality, the conditions required to extend one’s life, and the secrets of Endless Immortal Palace.
• Hidden power and historical influence: The chapter emphasizes how unseen individuals can manipulate dynasties, factions, and major historical events without being officially recognized.
• Uncertainty and incomplete knowledge: Even Skywind Rain-Listening Tower lacks a complete explanation of the Master’s identity, motives, and survival.
• The danger of powerful treasures: The Fate Stones are valuable enough to provoke cooperation between major factions, yet their true function remains unclear. Possessing one may bring both opportunity and danger.
• Inheritance and loyalty: Chen Yuan’s refusal to surrender Qin Wuye’s jade reflects his loyalty to his predecessor and his determination to preserve the legacy entrusted to him.

Character Interactions

• Wen Rou and Chen Yuan: Wen Rou trades intelligence for firsthand information and is visibly shocked by Chen Yuan’s accomplishments. Her private awareness of his Radiance Cult identity adds an undercurrent of trust and secrecy.
• Chen Yuan and Qingchenzi: Their discussion over the Fate Stone shows mutual respect. Qingchenzi seeks Chen Yuan’s opinion before deciding whether to cooperate with Ji Man.
• Chen Yuan and the group: Chen Yuan persuades everyone that the Master of Soaring Clouds Grotto should not be underestimated, despite his repeated defeats.
• Chen Yuan and the absent Master of Soaring Clouds Grotto: Their conflict is indirect but becoming central. The master’s attempts to obtain the Fate Stones may eventually place Chen Yuan in direct danger.
• Chen Yuan and Qin Wuye: Qin Wuye’s legacy continues to shape Chen Yuan’s choices. The fused jade may be both a source of power and a link to the ancient conflict with Soaring Clouds Grotto.

Chapter Summary: The Last Opportunity

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Yuan and Qingchenzi both refuse to surrender the Fate Stone. Qingchenzi warns that anyone seeking it must confront his grand-uncle master, Jing Xuzi, the legendary “Immortal Mystic Adept” of Yellow Court Abbey and one of the Ten Supremes.
• The Endless Immortal Palace undergoes a catastrophic collapse. Its ruins and surrounding space are crushed and drawn upward, marking the final destruction of the once-great sect.
• Wen Rou receives intelligence that the upper levels of the Heaven-Piercing Tower are also collapsing. Nearly half the ruins have already vanished, and the group is warned that their generation may be the last capable of fully exploring the tower.
• While traveling upward, Chen Yuan consults the Human-Skin Evil Book. It knows little about Soaring Clouds Grotto or the Fate Stone, though it confirms various rumors that the stone may come from the Immortal Realm or Netherworld. Its true function remains unverified.
• After a day of travel, the group reaches the tower’s upper levels. The region is surrounded by black annihilating void that slowly consumes the remaining ruins, making exploration increasingly dangerous.
• The only route inward is a path of shattered white jade steps containing a powerful, ancient killing formation. The formation activates only when a living being steps onto it and can be broken only by enduring its initial assault. More than ten martial artists, including a top-thirty Hidden Dragon Ranking cultivator, have already died attempting to cross.
• Qingchenzi and Cui Xuanye try to decipher the formation but fail to find a safe solution. Qingchenzi concludes that powerful-bodied cultivators must act as sacrifices or “shock absorbers,” though even the strongest experts might not survive the entire path.
• Additional major figures arrive: Ji Man, Jiang Mu with four new powerful guards, Si Bai, and Tan Wujie. Most of the leading prodigies within the tower are now gathered.
• Si Bai proposes using weaker martial artists as cannon fodder to trigger the formations, asking Jiang Mu whether he agrees.

Character Developments

• Chen Yuan: His reputation continues to rise. After defeating Ji Man and matching Jiang Mu, he is now viewed as one of the tower’s most formidable young experts. He also remains cautious and investigative, using the Human-Skin Evil Book to learn more about the Fate Stone.
• Qingchenzi: Reveals both confidence and political protection through his connection to Jing Xuzi. His status as the foremost figure among the Daoist sects is effectively confirmed. He also demonstrates significant Formation Dao knowledge and takes responsibility for investigating the dangerous passage.
• Cui Xuanye: Acts alongside Qingchenzi as a fellow formation expert, though even their combined abilities cannot solve the ancient formation.
• Jiang Mu: Returns with four additional guards whose strength rivals Flying Shadow, suggesting that he has strengthened his position considerably. His rejection of Ji Man’s attempt to trade for the Fate Stone intensifies tensions.
• Ji Man: Appears resentful after failing to obtain the Fate Stone from Jiang Mu. His defeat by Chen Yuan has also damaged his standing.
• Zhongli: Feels overshadowed as Qingchenzi’s superiority becomes widely recognized, causing his expression and mood to darken.
• Si Bai: Displays arrogance and ruthlessness by suggesting that weaker cultivators be sacrificed for the benefit of the stronger prodigies.
• Tan Wujie: Arrives as another major contender, reinforcing the gathering of nearly all top-ranked young experts.

Significant Themes

• The end of an era: The destruction of the Endless Immortal Palace and the impending collapse of the Heaven-Piercing Tower emphasize the disappearance of ancient legacies and the closing of a historic opportunity.
• Scarcity and urgency: As the tower rapidly collapses, cultivators must act quickly or lose access forever, creating intense competition.
• Power and protection: Qingchenzi’s refusal to yield the Fate Stone shows how powerful alliances and legendary elders can deter even major forces.
• Sacrifice and moral corruption: The formation’s danger raises the question of whether weaker cultivators should be sacrificed so elites can advance. Si Bai’s proposal exposes the ruthless hierarchy of the martial world.
• Uncertainty of ancient treasures: Despite the Fate Stone’s immense value, even the Human-Skin Evil Book cannot confirm its origin or purpose, preserving its mystery.
• Reputation and hierarchy: The arrival of the leading prodigies and the changing perceptions of Chen Yuan, Qingchenzi, Ji Man, and Zhongli demonstrate how quickly status can shift after major battles.

Character Interactions

• Qingchenzi indirectly challenges the Master of Soaring Clouds Grotto by invoking Jing Xuzi’s protection of the Fate Stone.
• Chen Yuan questions the Human-Skin Evil Book about Soaring Clouds Grotto, the Endless Immortal Palace’s upper leadership, and the Fate and Reincarnation Stones.
• Qingchenzi and Cui Xuanye cooperate to analyze and break the white jade-step formation, but ultimately acknowledge its extreme difficulty.
• Ji Man and Jiang Mu’s strained relationship becomes evident after Jiang Mu refuses Ji Man’s attempt to obtain the Fate Stone.
• Si Bai openly appeals to Jiang Mu to endorse sacrificing weaker cultivators, setting up a potential conflict over ethics, authority, and control of the passage.
• The assembled prodigies closely observe Chen Yuan and Qingchenzi, whose reputations have risen sharply and altered the balance among the younger generation.

Chapter Summary: Gu Linchuan Draws His Sword Against Injustice

Key Plot Points and Events

• Si Bai, the seemingly holy and flawless Holy Son of Radiance City, reveals his extreme contempt for ordinary martial artists. He views those with weak divine bloodlines as insignificant “ants.”
• To test the danger of the Heaven-Piercing Tower’s formation, Si Bai uses several martial artists as sacrifices, throwing them onto the stairs. The formation kills them instantly, after which Si Bai destroys the formation so the others can proceed.
• Jiang Mu allows Si Bai’s actions as long as none of his own people are harmed. Ji Man is similarly indifferent because the dead are not his allies.
• Gu Linchuan and Qingchenzi intervene, objecting to Si Bai’s disregard for human life. Gu Linchuan’s actions reflect his long-standing willingness to oppose injustice, even when the victims are strangers or potential enemies.
• Si Bai dismisses their interference and attacks Gu Linchuan with a devastating sword-shaped blast of divine light.
• Chen Yuan secretly assists by firing the Maudgalyayana Hell-Piercing Arrow, infused with deathly power. Although the arrow weakens the attack, Gu Linchuan must still use six swords and merge six Sword Intents to completely neutralize the remaining force.
• Si Bai recognizes Chen Yuan as “Chen Jiutian,” the powerful martial artist who refused to join Peerless City, and questions why he would risk fighting for people he considers insignificant.
• Chen Yuan replies that he is willing to support Gu Linchuan and also wants to personally test the strength of the Holy Son, just as he previously tested Jiang Mu.
• Luo Lie and the others join Chen Yuan, while Qingchenzi also takes a stand. Si Bai’s four powerful guards draw their weapons, bringing the opposing groups to the verge of battle.

Character Developments

• Si Bai: His sacred appearance contrasts sharply with his cruel, elitist worldview. He is not motivated by bloodlust but by complete dehumanization of weaker martial artists. His overwhelming power establishes him as an even greater threat than Jiang Mu.
• Gu Linchuan: Demonstrates his defining sense of justice by confronting Si Bai despite having no connection to the victims. His willingness to risk his life reinforces his identity as a swordsman who acts according to conscience rather than practical gain.
• Chen Yuan: Shows loyalty and strategic courage. Though normally uninterested in minor disputes, he chooses to support Gu Linchuan and accepts the opportunity to measure himself against Si Bai. His intervention also reveals that he values his companions and principles more than avoiding unnecessary danger.
• Qingchenzi: His usually detached, serene demeanor gives way to moral action. He refuses to ignore Si Bai’s abuse of innocent lives and willingly stands beside Gu Linchuan.
• Jiang Mu and Ji Man: Both remain largely indifferent to the deaths because their own people are unharmed, highlighting their pragmatic and self-interested attitudes. Jiang Mu is also displeased when Si Bai misrepresents his conflict with Chen Yuan.
• Luo Lie and the others: Their readiness to follow Chen Yuan and support Gu Linchuan shows their loyalty, courage, and willingness to confront overwhelming strength.

Significant Themes

• Justice versus indifference: Gu Linchuan and his allies oppose Si Bai’s belief that power determines whose lives matter.
• The hypocrisy of holiness: Si Bai’s divine appearance and sacred title conceal an ideology as ruthless and dehumanizing as that of the demonic path.
• Bloodline-based hierarchy: Radiance City and Peerless City both divide people according to inherited or cultivated bloodline strength, exposing the cruelty of aristocratic power structures.
• Moral courage and solidarity: Chen Yuan and the others choose to stand with Gu Linchuan despite the danger, showing that righteous action becomes stronger when individuals refuse to face oppression alone.
• Power and restraint: The chapter contrasts Si Bai’s overwhelming strength with the others’ willingness to resist him despite knowing they may be outmatched.

Important Character Interactions

• Si Bai and Jiang Mu: Their exchange reveals that Si Bai is even more arrogant than Jiang Mu, while Jiang Mu resents Si Bai’s distorted account of his conflict with Chen Yuan.
• Si Bai and Gu Linchuan: Si Bai treats Gu Linchuan as an example to be destroyed, while Gu Linchuan challenges his authority in the name of justice.
• Si Bai and Chen Yuan: Si Bai recognizes Chen Yuan as a significant rising power and attempts to question his motives. Chen Yuan responds by openly accepting the challenge.
• Gu Linchuan and Chen Yuan: Chen Yuan’s decision to stand beside him deeply moves Gu Linchuan, who had deliberately avoided involving his companions.
• Gu Linchuan and Qingchenzi: Both independently act against Si Bai, united by their inability to tolerate the sacrifice of innocent martial artists.
• The two opposing groups: Chen Yuan, Gu Linchuan, Qingchenzi, Luo Lie, and their allies face Si Bai and his four guards, ending the chapter with an imminent confrontation.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Tensions rise after Si Bai’s ruthless use of other martial artists as sacrifices to test the dangerous formation blocking the stairs. Chen Yuan, Qingchenzi, and others prepare to oppose him, while Jiang Mu watches eagerly, hoping Si Bai will expend strength before reaching the tower’s highest levels.
• Tan Wujie, the Buddhist prodigy of Nagarjuna Zen Monastery, intervenes and offers a way to break the formation without sacrificing human lives. He explains that the formation responds to vitality and blood energy, not necessarily human flesh.
• Tan Wujie asks Long Yao, a Miao Borderlands Gu Master, to provide Gu insects. He uses Buddhist techniques to intensify their vitality, allowing them to activate and ultimately destroy the formation.
• The stairway is cleared, earning Tan Wujie widespread gratitude and further enhancing his reputation as a “Buddhist Son.”
• Chen Yuan realizes that Tan Wujie deliberately waited until Si Bai had killed enough people to create fear before revealing his solution. He also notices that Tan Wujie minimizes Long Yao’s contribution by repeatedly calling her “young lady” rather than acknowledging her by name.
• At the upper end of the stairs, the group discovers several mysterious spatial passages formed from fragments of shattered ancient ruins. Their destinations are unknown.
• Si Bai and Jiang Mu reveal that both are seeking a powerful, mysterious object within the tower. They argue over whether their respective bloodlines can control it.
• Si Bai expresses Radiance City’s extreme belief in its divine and demonic ancestry, declaring ordinary human bloodlines inferior. Jiang Mu represents the more moderate attitude of Peerless City, which still considers itself part of humanity.
• Si Bai enters one passage, and Jiang Mu chooses the central one. Guided by the heated jade stone connected to Qin Wuye’s opportunity, Chen Yuan selects a passage on the edge and warns everyone that they may be separated.

Character Developments

• Chen Yuan: Becomes increasingly perceptive and cautious. He recognizes Tan Wujie’s concealed ambition and understands that the jade stone is guiding him toward Qin Wuye’s opportunity. He also takes responsibility for directing his allies through the spatial passages.
• Tan Wujie: Demonstrates both profound Buddhist knowledge and political cunning. Though he genuinely solves the formation problem, he carefully times his intervention and claims most of the resulting prestige.
• Long Yao: Cooperates readily and sacrifices expendable Gu insects to save lives. She remains uninterested in fame, allowing Tan Wujie to receive public credit despite her essential role.
• Si Bai: Is revealed as ruthless, arrogant, and deeply committed to Radiance City’s belief in divine superiority. He recognizes Tan Wujie’s schemes but considers reputation meaningless.
• Jiang Mu: Continues to regard Si Bai as his primary rival. He challenges Si Bai’s confidence and embodies Peerless City’s comparatively broader acceptance of humanity.
• Qingchenzi and Gu Linchuan: Help oppose Si Bai’s slaughter, showing that they are willing to intervene against his methods rather than stand by passively.

Significant Themes

• Reputation versus genuine contribution: Tan Wujie gains public acclaim, while Long Yao—whose Gu insects are indispensable—receives little recognition.
• Manipulation and political calculation: The chapter emphasizes that subtle scheming can be more dangerous than open aggression. Tan Wujie’s patience and timing make him more threatening than hot-tempered fighters.
• Bloodline supremacy and prejudice: The divide between Radiance City and Peerless City highlights competing views of inherited power, humanity, and social hierarchy.
• Pragmatism versus honor: Si Bai values results and strength alone, while others are concerned with minimizing deaths and protecting reputations.
• Uncertainty and exploration: The spatial passages introduce a new stage of danger, with the characters forced to choose paths without knowing where they lead.

Important Character Interactions

• Tan Wujie and Long Yao: Their cooperation breaks the formation, but Tan Wujie subtly exploits Long Yao’s willingness to help by taking most of the credit.
• Chen Yuan and Tan Wujie: Chen Yuan silently sees through Tan Wujie’s public image, recognizing the monk as a calculating strategist rather than a purely benevolent savior.
• Si Bai and Jiang Mu: Their exchange exposes their rivalry and the ideological difference between their cities. Si Bai sees non-divine bloodlines as inferior, while Jiang Mu rejects his certainty.
• Chen Yuan and Gu Linchuan: Gu Linchuan relies on Chen Yuan to choose a passage, reflecting Chen Yuan’s growing importance as a guide and strategist.
• Si Bai and Jiang Mu: Both independently move ahead into the upper tower, emphasizing their confidence and their refusal to yield the opportunity to one another.

Chapter Summary:

Demon Monk Tan Wujie

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Yuan emerges onto the ruined upper levels of the Heaven-Piercing Tower, finding a chaotic maze of floating sect ruins, annihilation spaces, traps, and killing formations.
• Gu Linchuan and the others do not emerge from the same spatial passage, so Chen Yuan marks his location and proceeds alone, following the jade’s guidance.
• Although Chen Yuan has already gained enough from the tower to reach the Origin Pill Realm after leaving, he continues searching because he wants to discover what Qin Wuye, the former Radiance Cult leader, left behind.
• After five hours of navigating dangerous terrain and triggering numerous formations, Chen Yuan encounters Tan Wujie, who appears to have been waiting for him.
• Chen Yuan accuses Tan Wujie of hypocrisy and of abandoning weaker martial artists to die for the sake of preserving his reputation. Tan Wujie defends himself by arguing that greed—not he or Si Bai—caused their deaths, since they would have entered the tower and died regardless.
• Tan Wujie admits that he deliberately cultivates his reputation because, unlike the other powerful figures around them, he recognizes its practical value and protection.
• Tan Wujie reveals that the Red Lotus Saintess, Su Mei, had been marked by him. After her death, the mark transferred to Chen Yuan, allowing him to deduce that Chen Yuan killed her.
• He proposes a trade for the Life-Transmutation Pearl, the Endless Divine Tree, and a trace of the Red Lotus Holy Mother’s true spirit.
• Chen Yuan admits killing Su Mei but explains that the Endless Divine Tree has collapsed and that he already refined the Red Lotus Holy Mother’s true spirit. Only the Life-Transmutation Pearl remains available.
• Tan Wujie reveals his shocking ideology: he supported the Red Lotus Sect because he wants the world to descend into chaos. He believes the empire, its officials, nobles, and even many martial sects are irredeemably corrupt.
• His goal is to accelerate the world’s collapse so that a destined savior can eventually rebuild it and restore peace. He accepts that millions may die, viewing their deaths as necessary sacrifices for future stability.
• Chen Yuan recognizes Tan Wujie as a “Demon Monk,” despite his Buddhist identity and outwardly saintly appearance.
• Tan Wujie remains unconcerned that Chen Yuan might expose him, trusting that his long-established reputation would cause the martial world to dismiss the accusations as slander.
• With Su Mei dead and the Red Lotus Sect no longer useful, Tan Wujie offers to cooperate with Chen Yuan inside the tower, particularly against Si Bai and Jiang Mu.

Character Developments

• Chen Yuan: Becomes increasingly wary of Tan Wujie and demonstrates strong moral opposition to his destructive philosophy. He remains pragmatic, however, questioning Tan Wujie rather than attacking him immediately and considering the possibility of cooperation against stronger enemies.
• Tan Wujie: His true nature is exposed. Beneath his compassionate Buddhist image, he is calculating, manipulative, and willing to cause mass slaughter for what he believes is a greater good. He is not motivated by cruelty alone; he sincerely believes destruction is the necessary path to salvation.
• Su Mei/Red Lotus Saintess: Though already dead, her importance becomes clearer. She had apparently been working with Tan Wujie to obtain the treasures, making the relationship between the Red Lotus Sect and the Buddhist monk more significant than Chen Yuan previously realized.
• Gu Linchuan: Not present in the chapter, but Tan Wujie invokes his origins in Liangzhou as evidence of the empire’s suffering and corruption.

Significant Themes

• Destruction as a path to renewal: Tan Wujie believes a rotten world must be shattered before it can be rebuilt, raising the question of whether mass suffering can ever be justified by hoped-for future peace.
• Moral extremism and twisted compassion: Tan Wujie frames genocide and social collapse as an act of salvation, showing how noble ideals can become monstrous when separated from individual human lives.
• Reputation as power: The chapter emphasizes that public virtue can function as political armor. Tan Wujie’s reputation protects him even while he openly confesses to horrific plans.
• Greed and responsibility: Tan Wujie shifts blame for the weaker martial artists’ deaths onto their own greed, while Chen Yuan challenges the moral convenience of such reasoning.
• Appearance versus reality: Tan Wujie looks more like a holy Buddhist saint than ever, yet his beliefs reveal him to be a dangerous “Demon Monk.”
• Pragmatic alliances: Even enemies with fundamentally opposed values may cooperate when facing greater threats such as Si Bai and Jiang Mu.

Important Character Interactions

• Chen Yuan and Tan Wujie: Their conversation is the chapter’s central event. It begins with mutual suspicion and accusations, develops into a debate over responsibility and reputation, and culminates in Tan Wujie revealing his apocalyptic philosophy.
• Tan Wujie and the Red Lotus Sect: Tan Wujie secretly supported the sect as a tool for destabilizing the world, despite the sect’s conflict with Buddhist and Daoist traditions.
• Chen Yuan and Su Mei: Chen Yuan confirms that he killed the Red Lotus Saintess and destroyed or refined the items Tan Wujie hoped to obtain through her.
• Tan Wujie and the wider martial world: Tan Wujie manipulates his saintly public image to ensure that even a true accusation against him would likely be rejected.
• Chen Yuan and potential allies: Tan Wujie proposes a temporary alliance against Si Bai and Jiang Mu, creating tension between Chen Yuan’s distrust of him and the practical advantages of cooperation.

Key events

• Chen Yuan is wary of cooperating with Tan Wujie, whose unsettling philosophy holds that saving the world may require first plunging it into chaos. Tan, however, treats neither former allies nor current opponents as fixed: after Chen Yuan disrupts his plan by killing Red Lotus Sect members, he immediately proposes working together.
• Tan reveals that Jiang Mu and Si Bai entered the Heaven-Piercing Tower seeking the Hungry Ghost Path, one of the legendary Jambudvipa Six Paths—supreme divine weapons said to surpass all other weapons and together possess the power to remake Heaven and Earth.
• Tan does not want the weapon for himself. He wants to keep it from the Northwestern Twin Cities, especially Radiance City, because combining the Hungry Ghost Path with a God-Demon Bloodline could upset the martial world’s balance and potentially let the cities expand into the Central Plains.
• Tan warns Chen that Si Bai is likely to target him. Using his innate Buddhist Wisdom Eye, Tan saw that Si Bai’s four guards each conceal a powerful Primordial Spirit; one has reached the Ninth Realm. They entered the tower to eliminate challengers and clear Si Bai’s way to the Hungry Ghost Path.
• Tan says he has already survived an attack by a Radiance City cultivator and intends to warn others: Radiance City must not be allowed to obtain the weapon.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Yuan remains cautious of Tan but becomes intensely interested once he learns the Hungry Ghost Path is in the tower. His ambition to claim the Corpse-Soul Path makes him especially aware of the weapon’s significance. He does not yet commit to Tan’s plan.
• Tan Wujie shows that his priorities are strategic rather than personal: he neither seeks the Hungry Ghost Path nor holds a grudge against the Twin Cities; he wants to prevent a dangerous shift in power. He shares his knowledge openly and tries to recruit Chen by explaining that Si Bai will attack him regardless.
• Their exchange is wary but direct. Chen probes Tan’s motives and asks who would get the weapon; Tan clarifies that denying it to Radiance City—not possessing it—is his goal.

Significant themes

• Unconventional morality: Tan’s belief that destruction may serve salvation challenges ordinary ideas of good, evil, and loyalty.
• Power and political balance: A supreme weapon combined with hereditary supernatural power could destabilize the realm as the imperial court approaches collapse.
• Hidden identities and danger: The guards’ concealed Primordial Spirits reveal that appearances in the tower can disguise far greater threats.
• Ancient mysteries: The name “Jambudvipa” links the Six Paths, the tower, and strange beings at Milantuo Temple, hinting at an unexplained secret about the world itself.

Key plot points and events

• Tan Wujie abandons his attempt to obtain the Life-Transmutation Pearl. He explains that he had wanted it to help revive a sealed fiend and accelerate chaos, but the Red Lotus Saintess is dead, her true spirit has been refined, and the Endless Divine Tree is gone. Before leaving, he warns Chen Yuan to be wary of Radiance City.
• Chen Yuan continues toward the center of the Heaven-Piercing Tower’s upper level, following the jade’s guidance. It reacts strongly near a vast, seven-colored cloud barrier that blocks both senses and inner energy, suggesting the opportunity Qin Wuye left behind lies within.
• A Radiance City guard kills a Half-Step Origin Pill martial artist. Chen Yuan suspects Radiance City is eliminating rivals to clear Si Bai’s path to the Hungry Ghost Path.
• The guard attacks Chen Yuan. Chen Yuan’s arrows and overwhelming strength initially defeat him, despite the guard’s Holy King Bloodline and powerful divine light.
• When the guard is nearly beaten, the ancient powerhouse Chi Feng takes control of his body. Chi Feng’s Primordial Spirit is so powerful that the young guard’s body begins to crack under the strain. He declares that Chen Yuan forced him to sacrifice a junior’s body and challenges him to die by Chi Feng’s hand.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Yuan remains cautious about Tan Wujie’s claims but takes the warning seriously. In battle, he demonstrates that his primal power, vitality, and physical strength can contend with Radiance City’s bloodline abilities. He also openly rejects the city’s claim to superiority.
• Tan Wujie reveals the extent of his reckless desire to unleash chaos, then leaves once his plan becomes impossible. His warning about Radiance City proves relevant almost immediately.
• Radiance City’s guard first presents his killing as a defense of the city’s honor, but his attack suggests he sees Chen Yuan as a threat. Once defeated, he loses control of his body to Chi Feng.
• Chi Feng embodies Radiance City’s contempt for outsiders, calling Chen Yuan a “human ant.” Chen Yuan fires back that the city’s people are merely “mongrels” with diluted God-Demon blood.
• The exchange escalates from a clash between Chen Yuan and a young guard into a confrontation with a powerful, near-decayed elder spirit occupying the guard’s body.

Significant themes

• Power and inherited status: Chen Yuan challenges Radiance City’s belief that God-Demon ancestry makes its people superior, arguing that present strength—not distant bloodline—defines the age.
• The cost of ambition: Tan Wujie’s scheme to hasten chaos and Chi Feng’s willingness to consume a junior’s body both show how powerful figures sacrifice others for their aims.
• Rising danger and uncertainty: The hidden cloud-shrouded opportunity, the struggle over the Hungry Ghost Path, and Chi Feng’s unexpected intervention all foreshadow greater conflict.

Key plot points

• Chi Feng, a sealed Ninth-Realm Heavenly Profound expert of Radiance City, possesses a junior’s body to help Si Bai claim the Hungry Ghost Path, a treasure in the Heaven-Piercing Tower. He has sacrificed his chance at survival because Radiance City sees this as its last opportunity to gain control of the artifact.
• Chi Feng identifies Chen Yuan—known here as Chen Jiutian—as a major threat and attacks him with overwhelming divine power.
• Chen Yuan counters with his Netherworld death intent and other powerful techniques. Though the clash wounds him, he realizes Chi Feng’s borrowed body is breaking under the strain.
• Chen Yuan presses the advantage, using twin thunder swords to destroy the possessed body. Chi Feng’s Primordial Spirit survives and attacks directly, burning its own power for greater strength.
• Chen Yuan’s Buddhist techniques fail to hold back the Primordial Spirit. He then combines the power of his Daoist, Buddhist, and demonic lineages, summoning a black dragon to confront Chi Feng. The battle remains unresolved at the chapter’s end.

Character developments

• Chen Yuan: Demonstrates tactical awareness as well as strength: he recognizes that Chi Feng’s borrowed body is his weakness and forces the fight until it collapses. Despite serious injuries, he remains composed and continues adapting.
• Chi Feng: Reveals fierce loyalty to Radiance City, willingly accepting death for its future. Once his body is destroyed, desperation drives him to burn through his Primordial Spirit’s remaining power.

Significant themes

• Sacrifice for collective ambition: Chi Feng gives up his remaining life in service of Radiance City’s plan.
• Power and its limits: Even an immensely powerful spirit is constrained by the body it inhabits; Chen Yuan wins an advantage by exploiting that mismatch.
• Adaptation and layered strength: Chen Yuan draws on multiple traditions when one approach fails, reflecting the value of flexibility against overwhelming force.

Character interactions

• Chi Feng treats Chen Yuan as an obstacle to Si Bai’s mission and attacks with intent to kill. Chen Yuan answers each escalation directly, turning Chi Feng’s physical limitations against him.
• After losing his host body, Chi Feng attacks Chen Yuan as a Primordial Spirit, forcing Chen Yuan to shift from physical combat to spiritual and combined-lineage techniques.

Chapter Summary: “The Mysterious Man and Qin Wuye”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Yuan attacks Chi Feng’s Primordial Spirit with the Black Dragon Visualization, tearing away a large portion of it.
• Chi Feng counters by igniting his Primordial Spirit, using its golden flames to destroy the Black Dragon Visualization.
• Because Chi Feng is burning his remaining power and has become desperate, Chen Yuan retreats into the seven-colored mist connected to Qin Wuye’s legacy.
• Inside the mist, Chen Yuan loses awareness of his physical body and finds himself in a boundless white void. The jade stone containing the Fate Stone projects a vision of the Heaven-Piercing Tower as it appeared five hundred years earlier.
• The vision shows Qin Wuye sitting beside a mysterious white-robed man, who is roasting the flesh of a dragon-elephant beast.
• Their conversation reveals that the Great Radiance Church once controlled Great Xia’s Dragon Vein and held enormous influence over the imperial succession.
• The white-robed man warns Qin Wuye that after his death, the Zhao imperial family and the martial world will eventually turn against the Great Radiance Church and attempt to erase it.
• Qin Wuye argues that the imperial court and martial world must balance each other to preserve order, but the mysterious man considers him naïve and overly idealistic.
• The mysterious man notices Chen Yuan and speaks directly to him, proving that he is not merely a recording or illusion but a conscious existence.
• Chi Feng enters the white void while pursuing Chen Yuan. The mysterious man identifies him as a trespasser from Radiance City and destroys his Primordial Spirit with a single finger.
• Chi Feng dies completely, unable to warn Si Bai about the mysterious figure.

Character Developments

• Chen Yuan: Demonstrates tactical judgment by refusing to fight Chi Feng head-on once Chi Feng begins burning his Primordial Spirit. His entry into the mist leads him to a major revelation about Qin Wuye and the history of the Great Radiance Church.
• Chi Feng: Becomes increasingly desperate and reckless, sacrificing his own Primordial Spirit to kill Chen Yuan. Despite once being a Ninth-Realm Heavenly Profound expert, he is effortlessly destroyed by the mysterious man.
• Qin Wuye: Is portrayed as powerful but principled and politically idealistic. He believes stability requires cooperation between the imperial court and the martial world and refuses to replace Zhao Yuanzhang despite possessing the power to do so.
• The mysterious white-robed man: Emerges as an extraordinarily powerful, irreverent, and perceptive figure. He speaks casually to Qin Wuye, challenges his political beliefs, recognizes Chen Yuan’s presence across time, and annihilates Chi Feng effortlessly.

Significant Themes

• Idealism versus political realism: Qin Wuye believes institutions can restrain one another, while the mysterious man predicts that fear, resentment, and ambition will eventually destroy the balance.
• The impermanence of power: The Great Radiance Church’s influence over the empire appears unshakable, yet the mysterious man predicts that it will later be betrayed and erased.
• The danger of legacy: Qin Wuye’s choices stabilize the current era but may create enemies who will attack the Church after his death.
• Hidden power and fate: The white void and the mysterious man suggest that forces beyond ordinary time and history are influencing Chen Yuan’s journey.
• Mortality and insignificance: Chi Feng’s former status means nothing before the mysterious man, who destroys him instantly.

Character Interactions

• Chen Yuan and Chi Feng: Their confrontation shifts from direct combat to pursuit, with Chen Yuan relying on evasion and the mysterious mist for survival.
• Qin Wuye and the mysterious man: Their exchange contrasts Qin Wuye’s calm, responsible leadership with the white-robed man’s mocking, rebellious worldview.
• The mysterious man and Chen Yuan: The man recognizes Chen Yuan as a possible descendant or inheritor of Qin Wuye and questions him about the fate of the Great Radiance Church.
• The mysterious man and Chi Feng: After dismissing Chi Feng as a trespassing “pest,” he destroys the Ninth-Realm expert with a casual gesture, establishing the vast gap between them.

Key plot points

• After Chi Feng’s Primordial Spirit vanishes, Chen Yuan tells the white-robed figure that the Great Radiance Church was nearly destroyed after Qin Wuye disappeared. Its remaining followers became the Radiance Cult, with Lu Beiming surviving as a vice-leader.
• The figure recognizes that the church’s downfall followed the failure of his own warning: he had urged Qin Wuye to deal with a man surnamed Zhao, but Qin refused. The “opportunity” Chen Yuan came seeking was really a message left to settle their old disagreement.
• The figure cannot identify himself, explaining he is only a remnant mark. He sends Fate Stones into the River of Causality, describing them as tiny fragments that can make limited changes to cause and effect—not tools for resurrection or immortality.
• He confirms that Radiance City’s target, the Hungry Ghost Path, lies within the Heaven-Piercing Tower and may emerge as the tower’s upper levels collapse. He warns that the Jambudvipa Six Paths are natural manifestations of the world’s origin and cannot be refined or controlled.
• To help Chen Yuan accommodate the Hungry Ghost Path, he teaches him the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva’s Fundamental Vow Sutra. The sutra can strengthen spiritual power and protect against the Path’s lethal yin-death energy, though the attempt remains extremely dangerous.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Yuan is cautious and candid before the powerful figure, while carefully asking about the man’s identity and the Fate Stones. He realizes he narrowly avoided disaster: he had planned to seize and control the Corpse-Soul Path.
• The white-robed figure is irreverent and warm toward Chen Yuan, joking about his flattery, but becomes stern when explaining the Six Paths’ true nature. His affection for “Little Qin” comes through in his exasperated account of their disagreement.
• The two share a conversational, teasing rapport despite their vast difference in power; the figure rewards Chen Yuan for delivering the message and offers practical guidance.

Significant themes

• The limits of control: The Six Paths are forces of the world, not artifacts to be mastered; survival depends on accommodation rather than domination.
• Causality and uncertainty: Fate Stones can alter events only slightly, and even the figure does not know what his other selves may do with them.
• Warnings and consequences: The Great Radiance Church’s collapse fulfills the figure’s ignored prediction.
• Knowledge as protection: Learning the truth about the Six Paths saves Chen Yuan from repeating Chao Hongtu’s fundamental mistake.

Key plot points and events

• The white-robed figure explains how three of the Jambudvipa Six Paths can be contained:
  • Hungry Ghost Path: Chen Yuan already has its method, preserved in the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva’s Fundamental Vow Sutra.
  • Corpse-Soul Path: One must separate soul from body, sense the boundary between life and death, then return to the body. The process is extremely dangerous: the soul may drift away and dissipate, or become death-tainted and turn into a self-aware corpse.
  • Mortal Path: This is the Human Sovereign Sword, formed from humanity’s fortune. It chooses rulers favored by Heaven’s mandate; before unified dynasties, it could be contained by controlling the Dragon Vein.
• The figure reveals that Qin Wuye could wield the Human Sovereign Sword because he controlled Great Xia’s Dragon Vein, and laments that Qin trusted the wrong person.
• Before the vision ends, the figure implants Qin Wuye’s Sun-Moon Manual into Chen Yuan’s mind. It explores the opposing principles of sun and moon, yin and yang, Heaven and Earth, and life and death. The figure says Chen Yuan may derive a Heaven Tier technique from it and use it to confront the Northwestern Twin Cities’ God-Demon Bloodlines.
• Chen Yuan wakes before the ruined hall, then begins cultivating the Sutra and studying the Manual. After a day, he has made rapid progress: the Sutra manifests Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva’s image and strengthens his spiritual power.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Yuan gains crucial knowledge about the Six Paths and receives two major inheritances. He recognizes that the Sutra is far more powerful than he first assumed and plans to prepare carefully before pursuing the Hungry Ghost Path.
• The white-robed figure acts as Chen Yuan’s mentor, freely sharing what he knows because he likes him. His teasing confidence and bitterness toward Qin Wuye reveal both his formidable depth of knowledge and lingering resentment.
• Qin Wuye is shown to have been a devoted martial cultivator whose Sun-Moon inheritance remains powerful, though his rigidity and misplaced trust contributed to the downfall of the Great Radiance Church.
• The white-robed figure urges Chen Yuan to challenge the Northwestern Twin Cities’ bloodline elites, arguing their inherited power is a shortcut that limits their ultimate potential.

Significant themes

• Power and its price: Containing the Paths demands dangerous trials, while inherited power may come easily but has limitations.
• Balance and opposition: The Sun-Moon Manual frames creation through paired forces—yin and yang, life and death, Heaven and Earth.
• Inheritance and judgment: Chen Yuan benefits from Qin Wuye’s legacy while hearing a sharply critical account of Qin’s choices.
• Preparation and growth: Chen Yuan treats each inheritance as a foundation for the greater risk of obtaining the Hungry Ghost Path.

Chapter Summary: Reversing Sun and Moon, Chaotically Disrupting Yin and Yang

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Yuan begins cultivating the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva’s Fundamental Vow Sutra, but stops after establishing a foundation because its progress requires prolonged effort.
• He instead focuses on the Sun-Moon Manual, urgently seeking a way to strengthen himself without relying on the remaining vitality from the Endless Divine Tree. Chen Yuan estimates that this reserve will last only two or three more major battles.
• The Sun-Moon Manual is revealed to contain the origin Great Dao left by Qin Wuye, not a fixed cultivation technique. Its principles represent opposing forces such as yin and yang, life and death, heaven and earth, and creation and destruction.
• Chen Yuan rejects the orthodox path of harmonizing the sun and moon. He deliberately makes them collide, reversing yin and yang and transforming their power into chaotic, destructive energy.
• After suffering internal injury from the violent comprehension process, Chen Yuan successfully creates the foundation of a new technique: the Chaos-Reversing Yin-Yang Spirit-Brightening Art.
• He realizes that Qin Wuye’s original path was righteous and creative, while his own interpretation is more unorthodox and destructive. However, he believes the technique may eventually grow powerful enough to reverse the origin Great Dao itself.
• Chen Yuan awakens after three days of cultivation and learns from the Human-Skin Evil Book that the upper levels of the Heaven-Piercing Tower are nearing collapse. The Hungry Ghost Path, one of Jambudvipa’s Six Paths and the tower’s power core, is about to emerge.
• He moves toward the center of the tower and encounters a major battle. Gu Linchuan, Luo Lie, and Qingchenzi are fighting Jiang Mu, while numerous martial artists struggle against Jiang Mu’s three powerful guards.
• Jiang Mu’s forces dominate the battle. He offers the opposing martial artists a chance to survive by crippling their own cultivation and leaving the tower, threatening to kill them if they continue resisting.
• Qingchenzi mocks Peerless City for supposedly becoming Radiance City’s subordinate. Jiang Mu angrily insists that they are only temporary allies, though he privately admits Radiance City has forced him into cooperation.

Character Developments

• Chen Yuan advances significantly by creating a unique cultivation method rather than merely inheriting Qin Wuye’s Sun-Moon Manual. His power now centers on destruction through reversed yin-yang and chaotic fusion.
• Chen Yuan also demonstrates increasing confidence and severity, refusing to explain his gains to the Human-Skin Evil Book and maintaining strict control over it.
• Qin Wuye’s legacy is reinterpreted: his cultivation was not an evil path but an orthodox, righteous method based on transforming cosmic opposites into divinity.
• The Human-Skin Evil Book becomes more fearful and submissive toward Chen Yuan after its perception was sealed in the seven-colored clouds. Its curiosity about Chen Yuan’s transformation is immediately suppressed.
• Qingchenzi remains calm and defiant despite his injuries, using verbal attacks to expose the tension between Peerless City and Radiance City.
• Jiang Mu is shown to be under considerable pressure. Although powerful and outwardly dominant, he resents Radiance City’s overwhelming strength and becomes emotionally agitated when Qingchenzi challenges his dignity.
• Gu Linchuan continues to rely on explosive sword power, becoming stronger under pressure but struggling to maintain prolonged combat.
• Luo Lie displays excellent endurance but lacks the explosive strength and origin power needed to withstand Jiang Mu’s God-King Power.
• Radiance City’s hidden strength is revealed through disciples carrying additional Primordial Spirits, allowing them to bypass restrictions and bring the power of senior elders into the tower.

Significant Themes

• Orthodoxy versus unorthodoxy: Qin Wuye’s original cultivation path is righteous and balanced, while Chen Yuan intentionally chooses a dangerous, destructive deviation.
• Creation versus destruction: The Sun-Moon Manual can produce divine, creative power through harmony, but Chen Yuan seeks ultimate destruction by forcing opposing forces into conflict.
• Power and limited resources: Chen Yuan’s dependence on the Endless Divine Tree’s vitality highlights the cost of overwhelming strength and the urgency of finding a sustainable path.
• Greed and danger: The dead martial artists in the tower demonstrate how ambition drives people to ignore overwhelming risks for the possibility of treasure or advancement.
• Political alliance and coercion: The partnership between the Northwestern Twin Cities is not truly equal. Jiang Mu and Peerless City cooperate with Radiance City because of pressure, creating resentment and instability.
• Transformation of inherited traditions: Chen Yuan does not simply copy Qin Wuye’s legacy; he reshapes it according to his own temperament and ambitions.

Important Character Interactions

• Chen Yuan rebukes the Human-Skin Evil Book for asking about the seven-colored clouds, reinforcing their master-servant relationship.
• Qingchenzi provokes Jiang Mu by calling Peerless City Radiance City’s “lapdog,” exposing Jiang Mu’s humiliation and anger.
• Jiang Mu threatens Qingchenzi, Gu Linchuan, Luo Lie, and the other martial artists, demanding that they cripple themselves or face death.
• Chen Yuan arrives just as the battle reaches a critical point, recognizing Gu Linchuan’s distinctive sword cry and preparing to intervene.

Chapter Summary: Confronting the God-King Bloodline Head-On

Key Plot Points and Events

• Radiance City and Peerless City effectively seize control of the upper levels of the Heaven-Piercing Tower. Jiang Mu accepts that obtaining the Hungry Ghost Path is nearly impossible, but intends to eliminate the remaining outsiders and claim the other treasures.
• Jiang Mu attacks Gu Linchuan, Qingchenzi, and Luo Lie relentlessly. He offers to spare them if they cripple their cultivation and withdraw, but plans to kill them if they continue resisting.
• The three prepare to use their strongest Divine-Artifact Avatars and techniques to escape. Before they can act, Chen Yuan—referred to by Jiang Mu as Chen Jiutian—launches a surprise attack with the Maudgalyayana Hell-Piercing Arrow.
• Jiang Mu reveals an additional trump card: divine-light armor powered by his God-King Bloodline. He easily destroys Chen Yuan’s initial arrow and prepares to kill him alongside the others.
• Chen Yuan orders Gu Linchuan, Luo Lie, and Qingchenzi to deal with the other Peerless City guards while he confronts Jiang Mu alone. Though surprised, they trust Chen Yuan’s judgment and comply.
• Chen Yuan uses his newly comprehended Chaos-Reversing Yin-Yang Spirit-Brightening Art. By reversing the forces of yin and yang into sun-and-moon power, he breaks through Jiang Mu’s divine defenses and sends him crashing into the ground.
• Although the technique injures Chen Yuan’s own body because he has not mastered it fully, he immediately channels its power into three Maudgalyayana Hell-Piercing Arrows.
• Jiang Mu blocks the first arrow with his God-King Formation-Breaking Arrow and the second with the Peerless Heaven-Flipping Seal, but the third shatters his armor and cripples his right arm.
• Enraged and humiliated, Jiang Mu burns his Divine King’s Blood and attacks with a golden dragon. Chen Yuan counters with Primordial Yellow Chaos Qi and the Black Dragon Visualization.
• The chapter ends with Jiang Mu’s God-King Bloodline losing its usual dominance. Chen Yuan suppresses him throughout the battle through superior technique, combat experience, and adaptability.

Character Developments

• Chen Yuan: Demonstrates a dramatic increase in power after comprehending the Chaos-Reversing Yin-Yang Spirit-Brightening Art. Though the technique remains unstable and damages his body, he can now directly challenge a God-King Bloodline heir without relying on vitality-burning secret techniques.
• Jiang Mu: Reveals greater strength than he had previously displayed, including powerful divine armor and several Peerless City techniques. However, his confidence turns to fury when Chen Yuan seriously injures him. His reliance on bloodline power is exposed as a weakness against Chen Yuan’s superior martial understanding.
• Gu Linchuan, Luo Lie, and Qingchenzi: Recognize Chen Yuan’s confidence and strength, trusting him enough to leave Jiang Mu to his solo battle. They shift their attention to the other Peerless City guards.
• Radiance City and Peerless City: Their contrasting strategies are emphasized. Radiance City is willing to risk elite young members and ancient elders, while Peerless City is more cautious because its smaller bloodline population makes every loss extremely costly.

Significant Themes

• Risk versus preservation: Radiance City’s willingness to gamble elite forces contrasts with Peerless City’s reluctance to sacrifice its limited bloodline heirs.
• Bloodline power versus individual mastery: Jiang Mu’s God-King Bloodline grants overwhelming physical strength, but Chen Yuan proves that powerful techniques and combat experience can overcome inherited advantages.
• Growth through dangerous power: Chen Yuan’s new technique gives him unprecedented strength but threatens to destroy his own body because he has not yet mastered it.
• Pride and humiliation: Jiang Mu’s confidence in his supposedly invincible bloodline collapses after Chen Yuan wounds him, turning his battle strategy increasingly emotional and vengeful.
• Trust among allies: Chen Yuan’s companions accept his decision to fight alone, showing their growing faith in his abilities and judgment.

Character Interactions

• Jiang Mu and Qingchenzi clash verbally and physically, with Qingchenzi’s criticism aggravating Jiang Mu and intensifying his assault.
• Gu Linchuan consults Qingchenzi about using his ultimate sword strike, while Qingchenzi assesses the danger posed by Peerless City’s Divine-Artifact Avatars.
• Chen Yuan interrupts their desperate planning and takes responsibility for confronting Jiang Mu, directing the others toward the remaining guards.
• Jiang Mu dismisses Chen Yuan as arrogant and assumes he can simply exhaust him, but Chen Yuan’s new technique reverses the power balance.
• Their battle becomes the chapter’s central confrontation: Jiang Mu relies on bloodline, armor, and inherited techniques, while Chen Yuan prevails through chaotic yin-yang power, superior combat experience, and greater versatility.