Chapter Summaries

Golden-Winged Peng ordered the demons to attack Fangcun Mountain, but Fu Donglai and several allies arrived to aid Shen Luo and the besieged defenders. The reinforcements had come alone, and Shen Luo learned that their sects had refused to send forces.

• Fu Donglai arrived with two rescued demon ape warriors and pleaded with Golden-Winged Peng to avoid starting another war, but Golden-Winged Peng ordered the demons to attack.
• Nie Caizhu arrived from Mount Putuo to support Fangcun Mountain, followed by Lu Huaming and Bai Xiaotian and Bai Xiaoyun from the Great Tang Government Office and Huasheng Temple.
• Wuman'er arrived from Divine Wood Forest with more than ten thousand gu insects, while Shen Luo welcomed the allies.
• Golden-Winged Peng suspected Shen Luo had summoned the allies, then pointed out that no armies or strong spiritual energy could be sensed nearby.
• Shen Luo asked why the allies had come alone, and Lu Huaming, Bai Xiaotian, Nie Caizhu, and Wuman'er explained that their sects had not sent support.

Shen Luo’s allies refused to abandon Fangcun Mountain, so Golden-Winged Peng sealed the secret realm and prepared to kill the witnesses. Patriarch Bodhi revealed he had recovered and offered to help open the Well of Gods and Demons in exchange for the others’ safe escape, but Golden-Winged Peng rejected the bargain, leaving them poised to fight.

• Bai Xiaotian, Lu Huaming, Nie Caizhu, Wuman'er, and the others chose to stand with Shen Luo and Fangcun Mountain despite Golden-Winged Peng’s warning.
• Golden-Winged Peng summoned a crystal Restriction guarded by nine golden dragons to seal the secret realm and prevent anyone from escaping.
• Nie Caizhu healed Shen Luo while his companions declared they were prepared to fight and face death together.
• Patriarch Bodhi suddenly appeared restored, shocking the demons and the traitor Juewu.
• Patriarch Bodhi offered to help Golden-Winged Peng open the Well of Gods and Demons if he let the others leave, but Golden-Winged Peng refused and the two prepared to fight.

Patriarch Bodhi negotiated with the Golden-Winged Peng, but refused to surrender the Mountains, Rivers, State and Society Diagram, and the demons prepared to attack. Shen Luo briefly resisted the Golden-Winged Peng’s pressure with Chi You Demonic Aura before Patriarch Bodhi shielded everyone; just as the battle was about to begin, someone outside struck the secret realm’s barrier.

• Patriarch Bodhi offered to trade his severed Great Dao to spare the others, but refused to hand over the Mountains, Rivers, State and Society Diagram.
• The Golden-Winged Peng unleashed his overwhelming pressure, and Shen Luo transformed with the Profound Yang Demon Transformation Secret Technique and struck back with a demonic fist.
• The Golden-Winged Peng increased the pressure, forcing Patriarch Bodhi to protect everyone with a phantom palm and revealing how badly the Demonic Poison had weakened him.
• Sun Wukong offered to sacrifice himself, but Patriarch Bodhi told him it was not yet his time to die.
• The Golden-Winged Peng ordered Hua Shiniang, Chi Rong, and the Six-Tusked Elephant King to attack Patriarch Bodhi.
• Purple lightning struck the secret realm’s barrier, and a second bolt tore a crack over a hundred zhang long through the sky.

Li Jing and Zhenyuan the Great arrived at Fangcun Mountain, broke the barrier, and stopped Golden-Winged Peng’s forces from continuing the attack. After the demons departed, Shen Luo executed the traitor Juewu.

• Li Jing’s Golden Pagoda shattered the weakened barrier, and he and Zhenyuan the Great descended into the secret realm.
• Li Jing condemned Golden-Winged Peng’s forces for attacking Fangcun Mountain and opening the Well of Gods and Demons, while Zhenyuan the Great backed him.
• Golden-Winged Peng agreed to withdraw and await punishment, but mocked the Human and Immortal Races for how they would answer to Fangcun Mountain.
• Shen Luo rejected Golden-Winged Peng’s attempt to sow division, then demanded that Juewu be left behind.
• Zhenyuan the Great stopped Juewu from escaping, and Shen Luo burned him to ashes with Nine Serenities.

After the attack on Fangcun Mountain ended, Patriarch Bodhi defended his teachings of accepting disciples from all races and fell unconscious when his Chiyou Blood Poison erupted. A sudden abyss swallowed the Sky Pit, leaving Shen Luo suspicious that the Well of Gods and Demons was involved, while Fangcun Mountain’s survivors began rebuilding.

• Yang Jian apologized to Patriarch Bodhi for Lingbo City’s role in the crisis and admitted Fangcun Mountain would likely have fallen if the Mountains, Rivers, State and Society Diagram had been there.
• Patriarch Bodhi challenged Yang Jian’s belief that the races should remain divided, and Yang Jian acknowledged that he had been wrong.
• Li Jing admitted the Heavenly Palace had stood by while the Demon Clan pressured Fangcun Mountain and proposed taking custody of the Mountains, Rivers, State and Society Diagram; Patriarch Bodhi refused and defended his teachings.
• Patriarch Bodhi’s Chiyou Blood Poison erupted, and Zhen Yuanzi gave him a Jade Clarity Demon-Transforming Pill before taking him to safety.
• The Sky Pit collapsed into a vast black abyss, and Zhen Yuanzi and Elder Wuchen concealed their suspicions about its cause as Shen Luo connected it to the Well of Gods and Demons.
• Elder Wuchen announced that the enemy had retreated and Patriarch Bodhi was safe, reassuring the surviving disciples as they began clearing the ruined sect grounds.

After Fangcun Mountain recovered from the fiends’ attack, Patriarch Bodhi agreed to give Shen Luo the Mountains, Rivers, State and Society Diagram if he could escape its illusion. Shen Luo emerged in less than a quarter of an hour with the treasure, and prepared to continue his journey while keeping it safe.

• Patriarch Bodhi and Zhenyuan the Great discussed the weakening of the Demon-Resisting Alliance and offered to help Shen Luo protect the Three Realms.
• Patriarch Bodhi agreed to give Shen Luo the Mountains, Rivers, State and Society Diagram, which required him to escape its illusion to earn its approval.
• Zhenyuan the Great revealed that Shen Luo was already inside the Diagram, and Shen Luo quickly found his way out and returned holding the scroll.
• Patriarch Bodhi and Zhenyuan the Great were astonished that Shen Luo passed in less than a quarter of an hour, while Sun Wukong revealed they had been betting on how long it would take.
• Shen Luo promised to protect the Diagram, declined to have Sun Wukong accompany him, and accepted a new jade pendant from Zhenyuan the Great so he could call for help.

After recovering from his injuries at Fangcun Mountain, Shen Luo visited Ao Hong at the heavily guarded East Sea Dragon Palace. He asked to borrow the Blood-Seeking Nine-Chi Pearl to repair an important Magic Treasure, leaving Ao Hong’s response unresolved.

• Shen Luo stayed at Fangcun Mountain until his injuries healed and the Pure Yang and demonic energies in his body were balanced, then departed.
• Shen Luo traveled to the East Sea and found the Dragon Palace under unusually strict guard.
• A shrimp soldier delayed Shen Luo in the reception hall for hours before Ao Hong arrived, looking exhausted.
• Shen Luo and Ao Hong discussed their cultivation and the East Sea Dragon King's condition after receiving the Ginseng Fruit.
• Shen Luo explained that City Lord Little Master could repair his damaged Magic Treasure if he obtained the Blood-Seeking Nine-Chi Pearl from the Dragon Palace.
• Ao Hong's expression darkened when Shen Luo named the pearl.

Shen Luo offered Ao Hong rare treasures in exchange for borrowing the Blood-Seeking Nine-Chi Pearl to repair his Magic Treasure, but learned the pearl was a closely guarded Dragon Palace treasure. He settled at East Sea Villa to wait for Ao Hong to consult the East Sea Dragon King and considered how to advance his cultivation.

• Shen Luo offered Ao Hong several priceless treasures as payment for temporarily borrowing the Blood-Seeking Nine-Chi Pearl.
• Ao Hong explained that the pearl was the East Sea Dragon Palace’s supreme treasure and had restored his brother Ao Zhong’s True Dragon bloodline after a Demonic Calamity attack.
• Shen Luo asked Ao Hong to seek the East Sea Dragon King’s permission, and Ao Hong said the Dragon King was occupied with an important matter that had nearly sealed off the Dragon Palace.
• Ao Hong brought Shen Luo to East Sea Villa, where Shen Luo was given an independent cave residence among several other powerful guests.
• Shen Luo inspected and secured his residence, then reviewed his cultivation and considered finding pills to help him advance the Huangting Scripture.

Shen Luo sought pills and spiritual items to help him cultivate the Huangting Scripture and set out for the East Sea Dragon Palace’s Sea Market. There he reunited with the Black Bear Spirit, who invited him to join an undisclosed opportunity at the market.

• After three days of cultivating the Huangting Scripture without progress, Shen Luo decided he needed supplementary pills or spiritual items.
• Shen Luo asked Sea Yaksha to take him to the East Sea Dragon Palace’s Sea Market.
• Shen Luo and the Black Bear Spirit unexpectedly met outside a nearby cave abode and recognized each other.
• The Black Bear Spirit learned that Shen Luo had reached the True Immortal Stage and switched to cultivating the Huangting Scripture.
• The Black Bear Spirit said he was heading to the Sea Market for an opportunity and took Shen Luo there, telling Sea Yaksha to stay behind.

Black Bear Spirit brought Shen Luo to Fu Lord Tower in the East Sea Sea Market to meet a group of True Immortal cultivators. He revealed that the shop’s owner knew where to find Earthcore Fire Lotuses and was gathering a team to harvest them, and Shen Luo joined the undertaking.

• Black Bear Spirit led Shen Luo through Fu Lord Tower’s side entrance and down to a hidden hall.
• Shen Luo learned that the shop’s owner was gathering True Immortal cultivators to harvest Earthcore Fire Lotuses from a dangerous location.
• Black Bear Spirit invited Shen Luo to join the expedition, and Shen Luo accepted.
• Black Bear Spirit and Shen Luo entered a lavish underground hall and joined five cultivators who had gathered there.

Shen Luo joined Black Bear Spirit and the others to gather Earthcore Fire Lotuses, despite Dragon Fang’s insults and warnings about the danger. Lord Fu revealed that the lotuses were in Zhurong Basin, a deadly forbidden region, and presented fire-resistant Cold Flood Dragon Pearls as preparation for the trip.

• Black Bear Spirit introduced Shen Luo to Lord Fu and the other True Immortals, while Turtle Thousand Years and Dragon Fang disparaged him.
• Black Bear Spirit rebuked Dragon Fang for insulting Shen Luo, and Lord Fu introduced the gathered cultivators.
• Lord Fu warned Shen Luo that the lotus-gathering expedition was dangerous and said he must accept responsibility for any losses.
• Turtle Thousand Years pressed Lord Fu to reveal the lotuses’ location, and Lord Fu announced they were in Zhurong Basin.
• Dragon Fang protested that Zhurong Basin was an almost unsurvivable forbidden region, while Lord Fu refused to let the group leave or delay their departure.
• Lord Fu revealed five Cold Flood Dragon Pearls to protect the group from heat, though he did not provide one to Hua Zhao.

Lord Fu led Shen Luo, Turtle Thousand Years, Black Bear Spirit, and the others to the Zhurong Basin to gather Earthcore Fire Lotuses, promising to split the harvest and refine their share into Fire Lotus Pills. At the basin’s edge, Lord Fu warned them about its deadly heat, fire poison, and flame beasts, while Dragon Fang pressed him to reveal where the lotuses grew.

• Lord Fu gave the group Cold Flood Dragon Pearls and Spirit-Replenishing Pills, then agreed to split the gathered Earthcore Fire Lotuses evenly and refine their share into Fire Lotus Pills.
• Turtle Thousand Years accepted Lord Fu’s offer, and Lord Fu used a magic formation to transport the group outside the Dragon Palace.
• Lord Fu brought everyone aboard the Azure Sea Cloud Boat and traveled with them to the Zhurong Basin.
• Shen Luo saw the basin’s scorching, waterless expanse as Lord Fu warned that its fire poison and powerful flame beasts posed serious dangers.
• Lord Fu explained that the sea above the basin was even more poisonous, and Dragon Fang urged him to identify the Earthcore Fire Lotuses’ location.

Lord Fu and Hua Zhao divided the party, sending the others to search for scattered Earthcore Fire Lotuses while they headed to the Zhurong Basin’s center. Shen Luo entered the basin alone and encountered a flock of Fire Crows that regenerated after his attack.

• Lord Fu shared a jade slip marking Earthcore Fire Lotus locations and proposed splitting up, while he and Hua Zhao planned to restrain the Scarlet Flame Beasts in the central region.
• Lord Fu used his Eight-Trigram Banner to send the youth away, then departed with Hua Zhao as the others scattered; Shen Luo and the Black Bear Spirit separated.
• Shen Luo traveled deeper into the Zhurong Basin, using fire-warding treasures and the Cold Flood Dragon Pearl to withstand the rising heat and fire poison.
• A flock of more than a thousand Fire Crows attacked Shen Luo, and he halted them with the Indigo Sea divine ability before sending two sword lights into their formation.
• Shen Luo’s sword lights killed nearly a hundred Fire Crows, but their scattered firelight gathered and reformed them.

Shen Luo discovered that Indigo Sea could destroy the fire-aspected Scarlet Flame Beasts and reached a canyon where two Earthcore Fire Lotuses grew. A powerful, intelligent beast guarding the lotuses attacked him, and Shen Luo vanished into a cloud of steam after blocking its assault.

• Shen Luo tested his attacks on Fire Crows and found that Indigo Sea’s frigid power destroyed them, unlike his wind, lightning, and swords.
• Shen Luo evaded the Fire Crows with the Soft-Smoke Silk Robe and traveled through the volcanic region, avoiding or defeating other Scarlet Flame Beasts with Indigo Sea.
• Shen Luo reached a lava-filled canyon and found two Earthcore Fire Lotuses growing in a rock crevice beside the lake.
• A toad-like Scarlet Flame Beast emerged from the magma, accused Shen Luo of trespassing on the Sacred Lotus of the Crimson Flame Tribe, and attacked him with fire and lava.
• Shen Luo raised a vast blue iceberg to block the assault, filling the area with steam and concealing himself and his aura.

Shen Luo battled a Scarlet Flame Beast in the Zhurong Basin, initially damaging it with a decoy and a surprise attack before its fire abilities turned the fight around. The beast trapped Shen Luo in the Crimson Flame Tribe’s Eight-Fierce Formation, where its sinister aura began to suppress his Magic Power and Divine Soul.

• The Scarlet Flame Beast sensed Shen Luo approaching and pierced his decoy with its tongue, but the decoy froze the tongue before Shen Luo cut the beast in two with the Water Cloud Sword.
• The Scarlet Flame Beast escaped by transforming into fire and reforming hundreds of meters away, then shattered Shen Luo’s sword attack with Bing-Fire Divine Thunder.
• Shen Luo sent the Pure Yang Sword and Bloodthirst Banner against the beast’s flames, but the flames redirected and exposed him by breaking through his concealment robe.
• The Scarlet Flame Beast unleashed Hellfire and formed an octagonal Eight-Fierce Formation that restrained Shen Luo inside a sea of flames.
• The formation’s sinister aura slowed Shen Luo’s Magic Power, exhausted his body, and weighed heavily on his Divine Soul.

Shen Luo broke the Scarlet Flame Beast’s formation and killed it with the Red Lotus Karmic Fire carried by the Pure Yang Sword. When he tried to collect its remains, a red bird shadow emerged and led him to discover a rune-covered crimson egg inside the beast.

• The Scarlet Flame Beast intensified its fire and lightning attacks, but Shen Luo poured Magic Power into the Thousand-Dipper Golden Goblet and shattered much of the Eight-Fierce Formation with the Heaven-Rending Chaotic Staff.
• Shen Luo sent the Pure Yang Sword and Water Cloud Sword against the Scarlet Flame Beast, and the Pure Yang Sword killed it with the help of the Red Lotus Karmic Fire.
• The sea of fire and the Eight-Fierce Formation disappeared, and Shen Luo realized the Red Lotus Karmic Fire had reached the beast’s Divine Soul while its body was insubstantial.
• Shen Luo tried to store the beast’s remains in the Free-and-Easy Mirror, but a red bird shadow burst out and resisted the Pure Yang Sword.
• Shen Luo used the Pure Yang Shadow-Cloning Sword to destroy the bird shadow, then cut apart the remains and uncovered a crimson egg covered in black demonic runes.

Shen Luo secured a giant egg and two Earthcore Fire Lotuses from the lava lake, then examined the egg in a protected cave. The Ba Serpent identified it as a Vermilion Bird Egg and explained that Shen Luo could hatch it or sell it, leaving him to weigh what to do with it.

• Shen Luo took the giant red egg and two Earthcore Fire Lotuses, then escaped the lava lake and set up the Two-Extremes Dust Formation in a mountain cave.
• Shen Luo examined the egg's devouring Demonic Formation and glimpsed a fierce red fledgling inside, but pulled away before it could drain his vitality.
• Shen Luo summoned the Ba Serpent, who recognized the egg as a divine beast egg containing Primordial True Fire.
• The Ba Serpent identified it as a Vermilion Bird Egg and said Shen Luo could imprint it and hatch it as a spirit beast or sell it to a fire-attribute cultivator.
• Shen Luo considered the long time and resources required to raise the Vermilion Bird and decided that selling it was not appealing.

Shen Luo activated the demonic formation on the Vermilion Bird Egg, which swallowed his swords and trapped the Pure Yang Sword inside. The formation then collapsed into the egg and began using the Demonic Embryo Rebirth Art to drain the Vermilion Bird hatchling’s life force.

• Shen Luo fed demonic qi into the Vermilion Bird Egg, activating a massive formation that pulled the Pure Yang Sword and Water Cloud Sword inside.
• The Vermilion Bird hatchling destroyed the Water Cloud Sword with Vermilion Bird True Fire and clashed with Shen Luo’s Red Lotus Karmic Fire.
• Shen Luo attacked the formation with the Demon-Slaying Remnant Sword, but the formation collapsed before the strike could land.
• Black demonic patterns surged into the hatchling, immobilized it, and formed a sphere that began refining its life force.
• Shen Luo recognized the Demonic Embryo Rebirth Art and realized a Demon Clan expert had intended to seize the Vermilion Bird Egg’s bloodline and abilities.

Shen Luo used the Demonic Embryo Rebirth Art to refine the Vermilion Bird Egg’s power into the Pure Yang Sword, while the Mirage Monster searched for the hidden egg. The sword gained a Vermilion Bird artifact spirit and rose to the peak level of a High-Grade Magic Treasure.

• Shen Luo realized he could channel the Vermilion Bird Egg’s fire energy into the Pure Yang Sword and began refining it while forming new Pure Yang Restrictions.
• Shen Luo concealed his cave with the Mountains, Rivers, State and Society Diagram as he continued the refinement.
• The Mirage Monster detected that someone was refining the Vermilion Bird Egg, then rode the Azure Spirit Snow Feather to the lava lake and searched for it.
• After a day and night, Shen Luo completed the refinement, and the Vermilion Bird’s primordial spirit emerged before fusing into the Pure Yang Sword as its artifact spirit.
• The Pure Yang Sword gained sixty Spirit Pattern Restrictions and reached the peak level of a High-Grade Magic Treasure.

Shen Luo refined the Vermilion Bird Egg into the Pure Yang Sword’s artifact spirit and tested its overwhelming power in Zhurong Basin. After discovering the Mirage Monster was following him under orders to seize the sword, Shen Luo let it trail him and headed toward the second Earthcore Fire Lotus, finding that Fire Crows could further strengthen the sword but made its power unstable.

• Shen Luo unleashed the Vermilion Bird True Spirit, which destroyed a towering peak, absorbed the basin’s fire toxins, and greatly enhanced the Pure Yang Sword.
• The Mirage Monster emerged after Shen Luo left, learned that he had reached the True Immortal Stage, and received an order to seize his flying sword.
• Shen Luo used the Heavenly Demon Eye to spy on the Mirage Monster and decided to let it follow him so he could discover who was behind it.
• Shen Luo rode the Vermilion Bird True Spirit toward the second Earthcore Fire Lotus and attacked a large flock of Fire Crows.
• The Vermilion Bird True Spirit absorbed the Fire Crows’ fire-spirit power and transferred it to the Pure Yang Sword, whose vital essence increased but began to grow unstable.