Chapter Summaries

After the Witch-Demon Tribulation, Hongjun appointed Haotian and Yaochi to establish the Heavenly Court and govern the Primordial Wilderness. Haotian gathered a small force and summoned the disciples of the three sects, while Taiqing Laozi and Venerable Lord of Primordial Beginning decided to send representatives.

• Taiqing Laozi learned from Xuandu that the Human Race had spread across the Primordial Continent and considered waiting for Hongjun before plotting to seize its fortune.
• Hongjun appointed Haotian as Heavenly Emperor and Yaochi as Queen Mother, ordering them to establish the Heavenly Court and maintain order.
• Haotian and Yaochi moved into the ruined Demon Court, and Haotian recruited a small group of Golden Immortals and Grand Unity Golden Immortals.
• Haotian ordered the Human Religion, Chan School, and Jie Sect disciples to attend the Heavenly Court, claiming they were bound to obey the Dao Ancestor's decree.
• Taiqing Laozi agreed to let Xuandu attend the Heavenly Court to gauge the situation, while Venerable Lord of Primordial Beginning also agreed to send the Twelve Golden Immortals led by Guangchengzi.

Haotian summoned disciples of the three sects to the Heavenly Court, hoping to reduce conflicts and recruit them, but they rejected him and left. Humiliated and enraged, Haotian set off for Zixiao Palace to complain to the Dao Ancestor.

• Tongtian sent Duobao and three other Jie Sect disciples to the Heavenly Court, explaining that the court maintained order in the Primordial Wilderness.
• Guangchengzi insulted Haotian and objected to sitting with the Jie Sect disciples, but Xuandu persuaded the Chan School disciples to stay and hear Haotian out.
• Duobao and the other Jie Sect disciples arrived, and their exchange with Guangchengzi nearly sparked a fight before Haotian and Xuandu intervened.
• Haotian asked the three sects to reduce their conflicts and provide disciples to serve in the Heavenly Court, but the Chan School, Jie Sect, and Xuandu all refused and departed.
• Haotian's subordinates urged him to punish the arrogant disciples, and Haotian left for Zixiao Palace to ask the Dao Ancestor to uphold justice.

Haotian pleaded with Hongjun to resolve the Heavenly Court’s shortage of officials, prompting Hongjun to consider the Investiture Tribulation and the growing influence of the Human Race and Changsheng Heaven. Hongjun visited Lin Changsheng, where he was received with tea and fruit, while worrying that Changsheng Heaven’s rising power could threaten the Heavenly Dao.

• Haotian complained to Hongjun that the Heavenly Court lacked manpower and that the Chan School and Jie Sect ignored him, and Hongjun promised to summon the Three Pure Ones.
• Hongjun calculated that the Investiture Tribulation had become difficult to plan because of Tongtian’s ties to Changsheng Heaven and the Human Race’s growing fortune.
• Hongjun saw that the Human Religion’s fortune was weak, while the Chan School and Jie Sect were gaining fortune and the Western Teaching remained desolate.
• Hongjun suspected that Changsheng Heaven might help the Human Dao rise, then sent his Mana True Body to visit Lin Changsheng.
• Changsheng Heaven’s world power initially pressed against Hongjun, but Enlightenment welcomed him and led him to Lin Changsheng, who offered him a meditation cushion, spiritual fruits, and tea.

Lin Changsheng and Hongjun discussed the Heavenly Dao’s limits, the Primordial Wilderness’s declining origin, and the threat posed by Primordial Grand Luo Golden Immortals. Hongjun questioned whether Lin Changsheng could resolve that threat, and Lin Changsheng said he had considered it because he cared deeply about the Human Race and the Primordial Wilderness.

• Lin Changsheng asked Hongjun why he worried about the Changsheng Immortal Sect and its disciples becoming Primordial Grand Luo Golden Immortals.
• Hongjun explained that their growing numbers could drain the Primordial Wilderness’s origin and eventually trigger an Immeasurable Calamity.
• Lin Changsheng questioned Hongjun’s reasons for merging with the Dao and argued that the Heavenly Dao suppressed the Earthly Dao to protect its authority.
• Hongjun said he could not judge Lin Changsheng’s words and asked how they would resolve the danger posed by Primordial Grand Luo Golden Immortals.
• Lin Changsheng said he had considered the problem and revealed that his attachment to the Human Race and the Primordial Wilderness motivated his actions.

Lin Changsheng and Hongjun discussed the Primordial Wilderness’s weakening origin before negotiating over the Investiture Tribulation. Hongjun offered to lift the Heavenly Dao’s suppression of Changsheng Heaven, but Lin Changsheng proposed an additional condition, which Hongjun agreed to hear.

• Lin Changsheng questioned whether other Chaos Demon Gods and worlds existed in chaos and suggested the Great Dao had abandoned the weak Primordial Wilderness.
• Hongjun explained that he wanted to commence the Investiture Tribulation because the Heavenly Court lacked capable personnel and Calamity Qi was growing among the three teachings and the Human Race.
• Lin Changsheng said the muddled heavenly secrets and altered course of the Primordial Wilderness meant the tribulation could not follow its previous pattern.
• Lin Changsheng demanded sincerity if Hongjun wanted the Changsheng Immortal Sect to stay out of the tribulation, and Hongjun offered to lift the Heavenly Dao’s suppression of Changsheng Heaven’s cultivators.
• Lin Changsheng said he had another condition, and Hongjun set aside his frustration to hear it.

Lin Changsheng and Hongjun agreed that the Investiture Tribulation would involve the Human Race, the major sects, the Heavenly Court, the Earthly Dao, and Changsheng Heaven, with Lin Changsheng refining the Three Books of Heaven, Earth, and Man to distribute those caught in the tribulation. The chapter left Lin Changsheng preparing the treasures while Hongjun summoned the other leaders to begin making arrangements.

• Lin Changsheng told Hongjun that all the major powers must participate in the Investiture Tribulation and that Changsheng Heaven would only collect the primordial spirit origins of disciples who fell.
• Hongjun agreed to let Lin Changsheng refine the Heavenly Book alongside the Human Book and Earth Book, while Hongjun remained responsible for planning the tribulation.
• Lin Changsheng explained to Nuwa that the Human Race needed the tribulation to consolidate its fortune and that she could use its success to establish the Human Dao and break free from the Heavenly Dao.
• Lin Changsheng asked Nuwa to visit Houtu, inform her about the tribulation, and bring back the Earth Book.
• Lin Changsheng began preparing to refine the Three Books as Hongjun summoned the Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, Jieyin, and Zhunti.

Hongjun summoned the Six Saints to explain that the Investiture Tribulation would fill the Heavenly Court’s ranks and involve several realms. After the Saints argued over who would enter the list, they left to prepare their plans, especially concerning the Human Race.

• Hongjun told the Six Saints that the Investiture Tribulation would fill three hundred and sixty-five positions in the Heavenly Court and could send true spirits to the list, the Earthly Dao, reincarnation, or Changsheng Heaven.
• Taiqing Laozi and Jieyin and Zhunti pleaded to spare their disciples, while Yuanshi urged Tongtian’s Jie Sect disciples to enter the list and Tongtian resisted.
• Hongjun said the tribulation would focus on Chan School and Jie Sect but would also include the Human Religion and Western Teaching, with shallow-fortuned beings entering the list or other destinations according to their destiny.
• Tongtian returned to Golden Ao Island to prepare for the tribulation, while Nuwa returned to Changsheng Heaven to cultivate.
• Taiqing Laozi, Yuanshi, Jieyin, and Zhunti went to Shouyang Mountain to plan together around the Innate Human Race.

Lin Changsheng reforged the Investiture of the Gods List to include Changsheng Heaven’s destiny, and the Dao Ancestor entrusted the new treasures to Yuanshi. Yuanshi appointed Jiang Shang to carry out the Investiture, while Shen Gongbao left Kunlun Mountain resentful after being rejected.

• Taiqing, Yuanshi, Jieyin, and Zhunti planned for the Investiture Tribulation and discussed the risks posed by Lin Changsheng and Changsheng Heaven.
• Tongtian told Jie Sect’s disciples that they could either stay on Golden Ao Island or face the tribulation and seek an opportunity to enter Changsheng Heaven.
• Lin Changsheng completed the reforged Investiture of the Gods List, sent it to the Dao Ancestor, and the Dao Ancestor declared that the tribulation had begun.
• The Dao Ancestor gave Yuanshi the Investiture of the Gods List and God Beating Whip, and Yuanshi appointed Jiang Shang to oversee the Investiture and lent him the Four Unlike.
• Shen Gongbao offered to accompany Jiang Shang, but Guangchengzi and the other disciples mocked him, and Jiang Shang declined his help.
• Antarctic Immortal Elder noticed Shen Gongbao’s resentment, while Jiang Shang departed Kunlun Mountain to carry out his assignment.

Jiang Ziya planned to disperse and reunite the Human Race’s providence as King Zhou moved to replace Nuwa’s statue with one of Dao Venerable Changsheng. After Shen Gongbao attacked Jiang Ziya and was expelled from the Chan School, Luo Mo gave Shen Gongbao gifts and a message from Dao Venerable Changsheng that offered him a path to the Great Dao.

• Jiang Ziya planned to use King Zhou’s intent to replace Nuwa’s statue to scatter the Human Race’s providence and gather it anew.
• Shen Gongbao attacked Jiang Ziya to seize the Investiture of the Gods List and God Beating Whip, but White Crane Boy stopped him.
• Jiang Ziya asked White Crane Boy to spare Shen Gongbao, who was taken back to the Chan School and expelled by Yuanshi.
• Shen Gongbao left for the Jie Sect aboard a White-Browed Tiger, vowing to obstruct Jiang Ziya and the Chan School.
• Luo Mo intercepted Shen Gongbao, gave him five fruits and a treasured pearl, and conveyed Dao Venerable Changsheng’s promise that helping the Human Race gather its providence could bring him within reach of the Great Dao.

Shen Gongbao joined Yin Shang with Lin Changsheng’s support, disrupting the plans of Jiang Ziya and his allies as the Investiture Tribulation unfolded. Years later, Enlightenment advanced to the Primordial Grand Luo Golden Immortal realm and returned to Changsheng Heaven after sensing a mysterious gaze in Chaos.

• Luo Mo gave Shen Gongbao five fruits and a Calming Bead, and Shen Gongbao vowed to help the Human Race before heading to Chaoge City.
• Lin Changsheng explained that the altered heavenly secrets made Shen Gongbao a key figure in the tribulation, then continued repairing the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe.
• Shen Gongbao supported Yin Shang, used the Calming Bead to prevent King Zhou from being bewitched, and left Jiang Ziya’s allies to pursue their plans through officials and Ji Chang.
• Enlightenment crossed the Thunder Tribulation in Chaos and reached the Primordial Grand Luo Golden Immortal realm.
• Enlightenment sensed a gaze from the depths of Chaos, returned to Changsheng Heaven, and went to seek Lin Changsheng.

After Enlightenment sensed an unknown gaze in the Chaos, Lin Changsheng and the others discussed whether other powerful beings lived beyond the Primordial Wilderness. They accepted the possibility and resolved to remain vigilant, while Tongtian grew furious over Taiqing Laozi interfering in the Investiture Tribulation.

• Enlightenment told Lin Changsheng that she had sensed a gaze watching her from within the Chaos during her breakthrough.
• Lin Changsheng argued that the boundless Chaos could contain other beings and suggested the Great Dao’s activity might have drawn their attention to the Primordial Wilderness.
• Tongtian accepted that Jie Sect disciples would be placed on the list and hoped Zhao Gongming and others could enter Changsheng Heaven.
• Lin Changsheng said he would continue repairing the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe, and reminded the others that they must fight beyond the domain if they battled.
• Tongtian learned that Taiqing Laozi had used three incarnations to help Chan School disciples escape Duobao’s Immortal Slaying Sword Formation and became enraged.

Tongtian confronted Taiqing and Yuanshi for breaking the rule against Saints interfering in the Investiture Tribulation, then overwhelmed them both in battle. Yuanshi returned to Jade Void Palace hoping his disciples would restore his pride, only to discover that Jieyin and Zhunti had raided his home.

• Taiqing explained that he had used One Qi Transforms into Three Pure Ones to help Yuanshi's disciples escape Duobao's Immortal Slaying Sword Formation, and Yuanshi complained that Tongtian favored the Jie Sect.
• Tongtian demanded an explanation from Taiqing for intervening in the disciples' battle, while Yuanshi challenged Tongtian for giving Duobao the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation.
• Taiqing and Yuanshi attacked Tongtian, but Tongtian suppressed them both and warned them not to act recklessly again.
• Tongtian unleashed a sword strike that tore through the extraterritorial void, then left Taiqing and Yuanshi behind.
• Yuanshi returned to Jade Void Palace and checked on the Investiture Tribulation, where he discovered that Jieyin and Zhunti had raided his home.

After the Chan School’s Twelve Golden Immortals narrowly escaped the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation, Juliusun and three fellow disciples considered joining the Western Teaching to avoid the Investiture Tribulation. Jieyin promised to accept and protect them, and they prepared to defect, leaving Guangchengzi wondering why they were absent the next morning.

• Samantabhadra Zhenren, Manjushri Guangfa Tianzun, Cihang Zhenren, and Juliusun discussed how Taiqing’s intervention saved them from being trapped in the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation and sent to the Investiture of the Gods List.
• Juliusun proposed that the four join the Western Teaching, whose disciples had so far avoided the tribulation.
• The four hesitated over betraying the Chan School and provoking Yuanshi, until Jieyin’s benevolent corpse appeared and promised to welcome and protect them.
• Juliusun and the other three agreed to prepare to seek refuge with Jieyin and Zhunti at dawn, hoping to bring their disciples along.
• The next morning, Guangchengzi and the other Chan disciples gathered to plan against the Jie Sect and noticed Juliusun and the other three were missing.

Manjushri Guangfa Tianzun, Juliusun, Puxian, and another Chan School disciple defected to the Western Teaching, prompting Guangchengzi to pursue them. After Western Teaching disciples intervened, Yuanshi learned of the betrayal and went to the Western Lands to confront Jieyin and Zhunti.

• Dao Xing Tianzun told Guangchengzi that Puxian and three others had joined the Western Teaching and taken his disciple Wei Hu with them.
• Guangchengzi led the other Chan School disciples west to stop the defectors from joining the Western Teaching.
• Guangchengzi confronted Manjushri Guangfa Tianzun and the others, but they refused to return, citing the danger of the Investiture Tribulation and the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation.
• Maitreya and Mahasthamaprapta arrived with Western Teaching disciples and helped the defectors, while Guangchengzi left to report the matter to Yuanshi.
• Yuanshi learned of the betrayal and crossed into the Western Lands to confront Jieyin and Zhunti.

Jieyin and Zhunti welcomed Manjushri Guangfa Tianzun and other Chan School disciples into the Western Teaching, prompting Yuanshi to attack them in anger. After fighting the Two Saints, Yuanshi decided the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation made the tribulation unfair and headed to Zixiao Palace to seek the Dao Ancestor’s justice.

• Jieyin and Zhunti accepted Manjushri Guangfa Tianzun and the other Chan School disciples, bestowed spiritual treasures on them, and promised to expound the Dao.
• Yuanshi arrived at Mount Sumeru and attacked Jieyin and Zhunti with the Three Treasures Jade Ruyi.
• Jieyin and Zhunti defended themselves with the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree and the Twelve-Ranked Golden Lotus of Merit, and Yuanshi stopped fighting to avoid harming the Western Lands.
• Yuanshi demanded a proper fight in the void, and Jieyin and Zhunti battled him until his anger subsided.
• Yuanshi reflected that the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation made the tribulation unfair and went to Zixiao Palace to ask the Dao Ancestor to uphold justice.

Yuanshi appealed to Hongjun over the Chan School’s losses in the Investiture Tribulation, while Yang Mei returned from the chaos with a warning about powerful beings targeting the Primordial Wilderness. Hongjun brought Yang Mei to Changsheng Heaven, where Lin Changsheng agreed to hear the warning and readily accepted Hongjun’s request to address the tribulation.

• Yuanshi complained to Hongjun that Tongtian’s Immortal Slaying Sword Formation had driven Chan School disciples to join the Western Teaching and threatened to draw the whole sect into the tribulation.
• Yang Mei emerged from a spatial passage in Zixiao Palace and told Hongjun that powerful beings in the chaos might soon descend on the Primordial Wilderness because of its Primordial Grand Luo Golden Immortals.
• Hongjun brought Yang Mei to Changsheng Heaven, where Yang Mei was astonished by the Changsheng Immortal Sect’s strength and felt Lin Changsheng’s cultivation suppress the Great Dao of Space within him.
• Hongjun asked Lin Changsheng to address the Investiture Tribulation’s departure from its original purpose, and Lin Changsheng agreed readily.
• Lin Changsheng invited Yang Mei to explain what had happened in the chaos.

Yang Mei told Lin Changsheng and Hongjun about the Eternal Divine Kingdom, a powerful faith-based nation in Taiji Chaos that had captured him and whose Divine Lord governed the chaos as its Chaos Channel Steward. After Hongjun and Yang Mei left, Yang Mei questioned whether Lin Changsheng would take responsibility for the danger facing the Primordial Wilderness.

• Hongjun sent Yang Mei’s report about a danger in the chaos to Lin Changsheng, and Yang Mei explained that he had found a nation called the Eternal Divine Kingdom.
• Yang Mei said the kingdom used faith to cultivate, ranked its Heavenly Gods and Chief Gods comparably to Primordial Golden Immortals and Primordial Grand Luo Golden Immortals, and answered to a True God-level Divine Lord called the Chaos Channel Steward.
• Yang Mei explained that the Steward monitored Taiji Chaos and that the Divine Lord had learned the Primordial Wilderness already had a Primordial Grand Luo Golden Immortal, prompting plans to dispatch experts.
• Lin Changsheng suspected the Steward’s attention had been drawn by Enlightenment’s Chaos Spiritual Root and considered that the kingdom might tolerate only a limited number of Primordial Grand Luo Golden Immortals beyond its borders.
• Hongjun asked how many experts were coming and when they would arrive, but Yang Mei could not answer; Hongjun and Yang Mei then left Changsheng Heaven.
• Outside Changsheng Heaven, Yang Mei asked Hongjun whether Lin Changsheng should state his position, since the Primordial Wilderness’s trouble had ultimately been caused by him.

Hongjun and Yang Mei discussed the threat from the Eternal Divine Realm and the changing balance of the Primordial Wilderness, while Lin Changsheng planned to investigate the realm himself. After spending tens of thousands of years repairing it, Lin Changsheng completed the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe.

• Hongjun told Yang Mei that Changsheng Heaven might be the best place for him to recover, and explained why the Earthly Dao and Human Dao would strengthen the Primordial Wilderness despite dividing the Heavenly Dao's authority.
• Lin Changsheng told Nuwa, Fuxi, Tongtian, and Enlightenment about Yang Mei's warning that powerful beings from the Eternal Divine Realm might enter the Primordial Wilderness.
• Lin Changsheng said he would repair the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe and then investigate the Eternal Divine Realm, while the others offered to go in his place.
• Lin Changsheng explained that he would absorb the sect's fortune to grow stronger before leaving, and Enlightenment agreed that the sect's disciples could benefit from facing a decline in fortune.
• Lin Changsheng used a time formation to repair the three Supreme Innate Treasures into the Chaos Supreme Treasure, the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe.

Lin Changsheng repaired the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe and awakened Pangu’s remnant consciousness, who revealed that the Primordial Wilderness faced a calamity from chaos. Pangu began explaining the five chaos worlds and why he created the Primordial Wilderness and slew the three thousand Chaos Demon Gods.

• Lin Changsheng finished repairing the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe after ten thousand years and activated the Great Dao-patterned space hidden within it.
• Pangu’s consciousness appeared, and Lin Changsheng recognized that the axe had concealed his contingency.
• Pangu said his consciousness would awaken only if the Primordial Wilderness encountered an enormous variable and faced a calamity from chaos.
• Pangu marveled at Lin Changsheng’s power, cultivation, and mastery of several hundred Great Daos, then asked whether he knew the Primordial Wilderness’s origin.
• Pangu explained that chaos contained five worlds, that Taiji Chaos was the lowest, and that the Chaos Channel Steward controlled passages between them.
• Pangu began explaining why he created the Primordial Wilderness and slew the three thousand Chaos Demon Gods.

Pangu revealed to Lin Changsheng that he used the Primordial Chaos Bead’s Hongmeng power to open the Primordial Wilderness, while higher Chaos worlds sealed Taiji Chaos and established the Eternal Divine Kingdom to suppress it. Before disappearing, Pangu urged Lin Changsheng to protect the world, find the Primordial Chaos Bead, and seek a way to restore the Great Dao.

• Pangu told Lin Changsheng that the Primordial Chaos Bead was the supreme treasure he had obtained and that its Hongmeng power had enabled him to open the Primordial Wilderness.
• Pangu explained that the Primordial Chaos Bead lost its rank after he drew out its origin power, and that his body suppressed the Primordial Wilderness to hide it from Taishi Chaos experts.
• Pangu revealed that several Chaos worlds sealed the passage to Taiji Chaos, causing the Great Dao to vanish, and that the Eternal Divine Kingdom was established to monitor the world and prevent Primordial Grand Luo Golden Immortals from emerging.
• Lin Changsheng asked how to break the seal, and Pangu answered with the Origin of the Primordial Wilderness, the Eternal Divine Kingdom, and the Chaos Passage before his consciousness disappeared.
• Pangu urged Lin Changsheng to protect the Primordial Wilderness and find the Primordial Chaos Bead, leaving him the Heaven-Opening Divine Axe.