Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• The Chen Family First Grand Elder reports that Chen Fan’s Camp No. 37 remains standing near the end of the rainy season. A persistent Eerie Fire at Nameless Mountain—and twenty fires that appeared briefly overnight—suggest that Chen Fan built a branch camp and fought a major battle there.
• Chen Quan erupts at the Council Hall, insisting that he alone is the Chen Family heir. The Family Head rebukes him, while the First Grand Elder privately predicts that Chen Quan is headed for trouble.
• Chen Quan seeks comfort from his mother, a powerful figure connected to the Sky-Pacifying Merchant Association. She reveals that his struggle for the heir position was merely practice: after the rainy season, she plans to take him away from the Chen Family.
• She explains that the Merchant Association’s real purpose is to break the Heaven-Imprisoning Array at Nameless Mountain. The mountain was once the residence of a powerful being known as “That One,” and the array protects a Snow Lotus and Earthheart Fruit. The Snow Lotus is being cultivated to save an exotic beast.
• The mother’s associate reports that Monkey Chief redirected a meatworm wraith tide toward Nameless Mountain, but a change in the wind kept the mountain’s Eerie Fire from going out. The mother considers another attempt, though it depends on the tide’s movements.
• Chen Quan returns to ask whether his mother loves his father and whether the Chen Family Head is truly his biological father. She says neither question matters, leaving him shaken and questioning what does matter.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Quan is insecure about his status and increasingly unsettled as he learns that his inheritance—and perhaps even his parentage—may be irrelevant to his mother’s plans. His clash with the First Grand Elder exposes his arrogance, while his private questions reveal deeper fear and confusion.
• The mother is beautiful, composed, and calculating. She reveals herself as the architect of a decade-long scheme, yet her brief physical reaction to the name “That One” hints at fear or unresolved history.
• The First Grand Elder remains tactful toward Chen Fan and wary of Chen Quan, suggesting Chen Quan’s behavior may end badly.
• Chen Fan does not appear directly, but his survival and apparent battle at Nameless Mountain make him a potential complication in the Association’s plans.
• The mother’s conversation with Chen Quan shifts from reassurance to revelation; his confrontation with her about Nameless Mountain leads her to disclose the Association’s hidden purpose, but she withholds further details.

Significant themes

• Power, status, and identity: Chen Quan clings to the heir title, but his mother treats it as meaningless, extending the question to his paternity and sense of self.
• Hidden schemes and unequal knowledge: Ordinary residents misunderstand the wraith tide, while the mother and her allies manipulate events from behind the scenes.
• Danger and uncertainty: Chen Fan’s unexplained battle, the shifting wraith tide, and the fragile plans around Nameless Mountain all suggest the rainy season’s threats are far greater than people realize.
• Ambition and sacrifice: The Association’s long effort to break the array centers on the Snow Lotus and a larger, undisclosed objective.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Quan presses his mother for the identity of his biological father. She first jokes that it is Chen Fan, then admits she does not know and tells him to seek the answer when he is older.
• After Chen Quan leaves, the woman discusses Chen Family Head Chen Fan’s plans with Shao Qiu, an agent from the Sky-Pacifying Merchant Association. She knows little beyond his construction of ordinary buildings and suspects he is strengthening his Family to absorb rival powers. Shao Qiu warns that Chen Fan’s secrecy may require reporting to their master, but she insists she is in charge and dismisses the risk.
• At his base in the Sinkhole, Chen Fan approves the new white faction flag marked with “Fan” and an eerie, red-pupiled eye.
• He upgrades the Vehicle Workshop to Level 3, unlocking Wraith Camels and a protective horse-drawn carriage. He builds the carriage, admires its imposing design, and learns to drive it.
• Chen Fan then upgrades the workshop to Level 4. The rare upgrade unlocks the exclusive Nine-Five Dragon Chariot, a lavish vehicle drawn by nine Flame Dragon Horses. Crafting it will require a Wraith King’s remains.
• Chen Fan resolves to strengthen his base during the Rainy Season in preparation for an anticipated attack by Okra’s man. He promises Wang Mazi the ordinary horse-drawn carriage once the season ends and his merchant association is established.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Quan is anxious but determined to learn his parentage; his mother offers no real answer.
• Chen Quan’s mother remains playful and guarded, then turns cold when Shao Qiu challenges her authority.
• Shao Qiu is wary of Chen Fan’s secrecy and prioritizes reporting potential risks to his superior.
• Chen Fan grows more ambitious and confident, jokingly embracing the idea that he is destined for imperial grandeur after unlocking the Dragon Chariot. He also shows practical concern for defense, production, and staffing.
• Crippled Monkey eagerly volunteers to be Chen Fan’s driver. Wang Mazi envies the carriage and is delighted when Chen Fan promises it to him; Zhou Mo teases Wang Mazi.

Significant themes

• Secrecy and power: Chen Fan’s hidden plans alarm outside observers, while his mother’s control of the operation creates tension with Shao Qiu.
• Ambition and identity: The Dragon Chariot prompts Chen Fan to reconsider whether he is worthy of a grander name and destiny.
• Faction-building through material strength: Flags, vehicles, production upgrades, and loyal personnel all help establish the Mortal Sect’s identity and power.
• Preparation and looming conflict: Chen Fan’s excitement over new technology is tempered by the need to prepare for a coming attack.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Fan’s Trade Association prepares for a more impressive public image, while Wang Mazi is eager to build a carriage like Chen Fan’s.
• In a distant palace, a cloaked man submits to a mysterious power and receives a Mountain-Skeleton Embryo, which will help him become a Wraith King. His master orders him to rise during the Rainy Season and unleash terror on humanity.
• The cloaked man secretly resents his forced submission. He has learned that Chen Fan’s Camp occupies the Sinkhole near Nameless Mountain and is heavily defended, but he plans to become a Wraith King, destroy it, and seize the hidden contingency there.
• A subordinate reports that a meatworm wraith tide has destroyed Flat City. The survivors’ deaths and gathered materials are being used to prepare a Blood Sacrifice Formation. The cloaked man sends supplies ahead and plans to arrive in ten days, at the end of the Rainy Season.
• Chen Fan has spent the Camp’s recent windfalls on a formidable defense: 140 Level-5 Cannon Towers along the Canyon, more around the Sinkhole, and additional artillery at the main wall. Only a modest reserve of eerie stones remains.
• Zhou Mo finally masters the entry-level Water-Cutting Saber Art after sustained training. His saber energy can scar a Level-1 wall, though it cannot damage the Camp’s stronger Level-3 wall.
• As Eternal Night approaches, Chen Fan reflects that the Rainy Season’s end will bring the Mortal Sect’s public debut—and a likely confrontation with the Wraith King. The chapter closes on the silent, devastated ruins of Flat City.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan remains ambitious but pragmatic: he invests heavily in defense, encourages Zhou Mo’s training, and recognizes the danger ahead despite having prepared as thoroughly as he can.
• Zhou Mo makes a breakthrough after years of stagnation. His new technique revives his youthful dream of becoming a wandering swordsman and gives him a tangible measure of strength.
• The cloaked man is revealed as both a resentful subordinate and a calculating threat. He lies about the fate of his forces at Nameless Mountain, conceals what they learned about Chen Fan’s Camp, and intends to turn his assigned transformation into a path toward personal revenge.
• Chen Fan supports Zhou Mo’s progress, first congratulating him and then testing the technique against walls of different strengths. Their exchange highlights both Zhou Mo’s growth and the limits of his current power.

Significant themes

• Preparation against looming danger: Chen Fan’s defenses are built in anticipation of a threat whose abilities remain unknown.
• Ambition and revenge: The cloaked man’s desire for independence turns into a plan to seize power and punish those who humiliated him.
• Hard-earned growth: Zhou Mo’s breakthrough comes through persistence, discipline, and renewed purpose.
• Public identity and destiny: Chen Fan sees the Mortal Sect’s coming debut as a chance to establish his name and influence across Jiangbei.
• Contrasting worlds: The warmth of Chen Fan’s soup and Camp life contrasts sharply with the Rain, approaching darkness, and Flat City’s corpse-filled ruin.

Plot and key events

• Millennium and Qianqiu complete a Blood Sacrifice Formation outside Flat City. It is meant to help their king ascend to Wraith King once he places the Mountain-Skeleton Embryo on its central platform.
• Millennium fears their absent mistress may have died in a human camp, taking the king’s Godslaying Spear with her. Without his Main Weapon, the king may be unable to reach his full strength. Neither Millennium nor Qianqiu will abandon the king, and they decide to tell him when he arrives.
• The month-long Rainy Season in Jiangbei is nearing its end. Northbank City’s people hope to celebrate their survival, but they dread the final night, when the Wraith King may attack.
• A Gongyang Clan caravan bearing its ominous Death Banner arrives in Jiangnan Water City. Its passengers are the relaxed, teasing Jiangbei Old Devil and a young woman who is nervous about killing. They plan to enter Jiangbei after the rain ends.
• Other factions are preparing to enter the wasteland to scavenge corpses. Medicine King Valley’s young leader learns that the Gongyang Clan has brought Gongyang Yiyue, its formidable Night Watcher, and Gongyang Gao’s daughter. The Pill Sect is also involved, having planned to seek a marriage alliance with the Gongyang Clan; tensions may lead to conflict.
• A white-robed youth carrying an enormous, ruler-like sword walks alone into the darkness, apparently unfazed by the danger.
• At Nameless Mountain, Chen Fan and the camp stand ready behind the wall, awaiting the Wraith King’s arrival on the season’s final night.

Character developments and interactions

• Millennium’s calm exterior conceals growing unease; Qianqiu shares his concern but remains devoted to their king.
• The Jiangbei Old Devil and the young woman trade playful, fatalistic banter. She is anxious about taking a life, while he treats killing as straightforward and describes their connection as an “ill-fated bond.”
• The Medicine King Valley youth is vain and eager for spectacle, but Gongyang Yiyue’s presence visibly frightens him. His elder advises him to keep a low profile and promises to protect him.
• Chen Fan meets the approaching danger with confidence, openly challenging the Wraith King.

Significant themes

• Loyalty and sacrifice: Millennium and Qianqiu accept the possibility of dying for their king.
• Survival at a turning point: The end of the Rainy Season offers relief, but also brings the threat of the Wraith King and a new contest among factions.
• Ambition and historical legacy: Powerful figures and factions are converging in Jiangbei, where rivalries may produce the next great figures of the era.
• Fatalism and uncertainty: The chapter repeatedly hints that stories tend toward tragedy, while characters face unpredictable dangers and alliances.

Plot and key events

• The Wraith King completes a Blood Sacrifice Formation using the Mountain-Skeleton Embryo and the lives, souls, and materials gathered from Flat City. He ascends, then vows to avenge Okra and reclaim the Godslaying Spear. Millennium and Qianqiu kneel to welcome him.
• At Nameless Mountain, Chen Fan finishes inspecting his defenses and prepares for the long-anticipated attack. When the Wraith King’s ascension appears in the sky, Weiwei panics and flees into the canyon.
• The Wraith King’s emergence alarms people and factions across the region. Travelers abandon plans to enter Jiangbei, and Chen Quan’s mother realizes the North River Chen Family may not survive an attack.
• The Wraith King’s army advances into Chen Fan’s Sinkhole camp. Chen Fan’s cannon towers and reinforced walls initially inflict heavy losses, but the strange tide continues to grow.
• Chen Fan activates the first phase of his “Meat Grinder,” sealing off the Sinkhole and bringing thirty-eight hidden cannon towers to bear. The Wraith King breaks the barrier, destroys most of the towers, and attacks the unusually resilient Cave No. 1 wall.
• With his defenses and eerie stones under pressure, Chen Fan triggers the second phase. Twenty hidden eerie fires ignite along the canyon passage, revealing the vast force of strange entities gathered there.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan remains composed and methodical, relying on preparations he has made over the past month. He adapts his strategy in stages rather than confronting the Wraith King directly.
• Weiwei displays unexpected fear and an ability to leap out of the camp, raising questions about the creature’s nature.
• Zhou Mo, Monkey, and Big Fish show their anxiety in different ways: Zhou Mo grips his weapon despite knowing his skills may be inadequate, Monkey broods over the Godslaying Spear, and Big Fish nervously clutches his clothes.
• The Wraith King is newly empowered, furious over Okra’s death, and confident enough to taunt Chen Fan as a “little mouse” hiding behind his walls.
• The Jiangbei Old Devil explains to Gongyang Gao’s daughter that a Wraith King is a level-5 strange entity, yet can fight three human Martial Kings. Their conversation underscores the danger and disparity between humans and strange entities.

Significant themes

• Preparation versus overwhelming force: Chen Fan’s planning and layered defenses buy time, but the Wraith King’s strength threatens to overwhelm them.
• Human vulnerability: The chapter emphasizes that humans are not the dominant power in this world; even strong human cultivators are outmatched by powerful strange entities.
• Escalation and uncertainty: The attack unfolds in phases, and Chen Fan’s hidden defenses suggest that neither side has yet revealed everything.
• Cost of power: The Wraith King’s ascension is achieved through mass sacrifice, linking supernatural strength to death and destruction.

Plot points and events

• Chen Fan’s preplanned ambush begins as 140 Level-5 Cannon Towers unleash a coordinated barrage through the Thousand Meters canyon, devastating the Strange Tide.
• Trapped under fire, the Wraith King orders his followers to unite. The Strange Entities—including the commanders Millennium and Qianqiu—offer themselves, and their bodies transform into wraith blood that pours into him, greatly increasing his power.
• The empowered Wraith King withstands the cannons and blasts a hole through Chen Fan’s Level-3 City Wall. A concealed Level-6 Cannon Tower wounds him, while a Wind Tower first knocks him off course and then pulls him toward the breach.
• As the Wraith King approaches, a hidden Vertical-Pupil Cannon Tower—made with Okra’s skin—hits him with a powerful beam. He destroys both it and the Level-6 Tower, however, and resumes his advance.
• With his strongest defenses gone, Chen Fan orders a retreat. He and his companions prepare to escape through the Meat Grinder Passage, prioritizing survival over the camp and its resources.
• Weiwei, a giant crocodile, arrives and ignores Chen Fan’s call to return. Drawn by the shattered Porcelain Crock inside the camp, it confronts the Wraith King. He stabs its skull, but Weiwei bites him and begins a violent Death Roll.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan proves methodical and resourceful, having built the canyon defenses and prepared an escape route. He accepts that his plan has failed and chooses to preserve his people rather than risk their lives for the camp.
• The Wraith King shifts from commanding confidence to fury and desperation as his army is destroyed. His rage keeps him fighting despite severe wounds, leading him to underestimate Weiwei.
• Millennium and Qianqiu demonstrate absolute devotion by joining the Strange Entities in the sacrifice that empowers their king.
• Zhou Mo voices the group’s fear and asks whether they should flee; Chen Fan initially holds his ground, then orders retreat once the remaining defenses fall.
• Weiwei breaks from its usual obedience and charges into danger, driven by fear and anger—apparently in response to the destroyed Porcelain Crock. Its attack marks the first direct challenge to the Wraith King after Chen Fan’s defenses fail.

Significant themes

• Preparation versus overwhelming power: Chen Fan’s elaborate defenses inflict enormous losses, but the Wraith King’s strength ultimately exceeds what his resources can contain.
• Sacrifice and loyalty: The Strange Entities give up their lives to empower their king, illustrating the extremity of their devotion.
• Pragmatism and survival: Chen Fan accepts the loss of the camp and its supplies, placing lives above possessions.
• Rage and instinct: The Wraith King’s anger prevents him from retreating, while Weiwei’s primal bloodline attack turns fear and injury into a fierce counterattack.

Key plot points and events

• Weiwei finally stops thrashing after Chen Fan calls to him. He has killed the Wraith King but is badly wounded, so Chen Fan plans to heal him at the Cave’s Altar.
• The Wraith King’s death ends the rainy season and triggers a striking Heaven and Earth phenomenon: the Eternal Night splits open, revealing green and red auroras. The Wraith King’s blood is absorbed by the Level-3 City Wall’s Wraith Blood Vein Patterns, strengthening it.
• The battle leaves behind eerie stones and several exotic treasures. Monkey’s Godslaying Spear sheds its disguise, revealing itself as a Yellow Grade growth-type weapon that boosts martial and Wraith Techniques by 100%. Chen Fan realizes it was the Wraith King’s main weapon and that Okra had likely been trying to reclaim it.
• Across the region, powerful groups notice the Wraith King’s death and begin turning their attention toward Nameless Mountain. The Gongyang Clan plans to investigate and establish ties; Medicine King Valley hopes to negotiate a pill-supply arrangement.
• Northbank City survives the rainy season. Its Wild Wolf Gang leader believes the gang’s support for the people has won it new merchants, though the gang is depleted and may face pressure from rival powers.
• The next day, the Gongyang Clan caravan reaches Nameless Mountain and discovers the Mortal Sect. Its leader, Chen Fan, is recognized as the person who slew the Wraith King.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan emerges as the leader of a formidable force. He tends to Weiwei’s injuries, organizes cleanup and repairs, and welcomes visitors with confidence—though he privately knows little about the Gongyang Clan.
• Weiwei shifts from uncontrollable fury back to his familiar, affectionate self, crawling to Chen Fan for comfort despite his severe wounds.
• Monkey tests the Godslaying Spear against the Wraith King’s corpse, unintentionally revealing the weapon’s true form.
• The Green-Robed Man arrives expecting to approach the Mortal Sect as a representative of the Gongyang Clan. Crippled Monkey corrects him: Chen Fan is the sect master and sole authority. The visitor is embarrassed, then formally pays his respects and presents gifts.
• The Green-Robed Man’s companion is surprised to learn the aurora marks a Wraith King’s death. He recognizes that the force responsible must be dangerously powerful.
• The Wild Wolf Gang leader reflects that his gang’s sacrifices may pay off through public support and new business, even as he anticipates conflict with stronger rivals.

Significant themes

• Survival and renewal: The rainy season ends, and the survivors begin rebuilding after an ordeal that has reshaped the region.
• Power and reputation: Chen Fan’s rise from a persecuted station master to a Wraith King-slayer transforms the Mortal Sect into a force that other factions must court or assess.
• Victory’s cost: The battle brings valuable rewards, but Weiwei is gravely injured and communities have exhausted resources.
• Changing alliances and opportunity: Powerful organizations move quickly to secure ties, trade, and influence with the newly ascendant Mortal Sect.
• Humility before strength: The Green-Robed Man’s awkward reversal—from treating Chen Fan as an acquaintance to respectfully addressing him as a sect master—underscores how dramatically Chen Fan’s status has changed.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Fan brings the Gongyang Clan’s party through the Canyon into the Mortal Sect’s Sinkhole. Qi Yue is stunned by the human-shaped holes in the rock, which Chen Fan explains were made when the Sect fought a Wraith King.
• Chen Fan hosts Qi Yue, Gongyang Yiyue, and the others in a newly built reception area, keeping them away from the secret-filled Cave No. 1.
• Gongyang Yiyue recognizes an apparently ordinary woman working inside the cave as a Night Watcher. Because she has already used her power several times, he realizes she is willing to sacrifice herself for the Mortal Sect—and raises his assessment of the Sect’s threat.
• Chen Fan learns that Northbank City survived the recent danger with limited damage. He then notices the Medicine King Valley’s arrival and goes with Qi Yue to welcome its delegation.
• Qi Feng, the Valley Master’s son, presents a large congratulatory gift. Together with the Gongyang Clan’s offering, the gifts amount to 15,000 Eerie Stones, along with treasures and medicines. Chen Fan is pleased to benefit from the Sect’s new reputation after killing the Wraith King.
• Chen Fan asks Qi Feng about exotic beasts and learns that altar holy water should rapidly heal their external injuries. He takes Qi Feng to examine Weiwei, whose severe head wound has not healed despite a full day and night under holy water.
• Qi Feng cannot identify Weiwei or explain why the treatment has failed. He offers to consult his father remotely, but warns that doing so could expose the surrounding structures.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan acts as a confident, welcoming Sect Master, while carefully controlling access to the Sect’s inner areas. He is also practical and opportunistic: he welcomes the gifts and seeks expert help for Weiwei.
• Qi Yue is unusually deferential toward Chen Fan, partly because he once boasted before him and now feels embarrassed by the reversal in their relative standing.
• Gongyang Yiyue shifts from polite visitor to wary observer after sensing the Night Watcher. His recognition makes him more conscious of the Mortal Sect’s power and deterrence.
• Qi Feng initially behaves casually, then quickly adopts a respectful manner once he understands Chen Fan’s rank. He is confident when discussing alchemy and treatment, but admits the limits of his expertise.
• Weiwei is frightened by Qi Feng at first, but trusts Chen Fan enough to obey him and let the physician examine the wound.
• The Gongyang Clan’s modest gift becomes a source of discomfort for Yiyue when compared with the much larger Medicine King Valley offering.

Significant themes

• Reputation and power: Slaying a Wraith King brings the Mortal Sect recognition, visitors, gifts, and increased caution from other factions.
• Sacrifice as deterrence: A Night Watcher’s willingness to expend their life for their faction is presented as a major source of strategic strength.
• Hospitality and diplomacy: Chen Fan welcomes rival or unfamiliar factions while maintaining control over what they can see.
• The limits of knowledge: Even experts such as Qi Feng cannot explain Weiwei’s condition, leaving an unresolved problem and potential risk to the Sect’s secrecy.

Key plot points and events

• Qi Feng identifies Weiwei as a Sky-Swallowing Crocodile, a rare beast with a genetic condition that prevents wounds from healing. Without Chen Fan’s continued support, Weiwei will eventually bleed to death.
• The only known cure is a rare, century-matured Snow Lotus. Chen Fan realizes he already has one in his Warehouse, likely planted by the mysterious figure who raised Weiwei. He suspects that figure taught Weiwei to fear injury, explaining the creature’s timid behavior.
• Factions arrive at the Mortal Sect to offer congratulations and gifts. Wang Kui confronts the head of the Qiuhe Wang Family, who once kept him in a station-master role despite his proven competence. Wang Kui orders the family disbanded and sentences its head to thirteen years as a Mortal Sect station master.
• The Wang Family Head accepts readily, having surrendered the family’s wealth to preserve his life. Wang Kui is unsettled by how calmly his former superior submits.
• While guarding the sect’s canyon entrance, the Wang Family Head is knocked unconscious by a party of riders who ride straight past him.
• The riders arrive at the gathering. Their leader, Zhou Yi, introduces himself as the Pill Sect Young Master, offers 10,000 Eerie Stones, and addresses Gongyang Yue, saying he has searched for her.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan responds to Weiwei’s diagnosis with concern, but remains composed because he has the cure. He also pieces together clues about Weiwei’s past and its inherited condition.
• Weiwei is revealed to be powerful yet unusually timid, likely because it retained warnings about injury but forgot the instruction to eat the Snow Lotus.
• Wang Kui turns his old resentment into a forced reversal of roles: he makes the Wang Family Head serve the same kind of long station-master term that trapped him. The encounter also shows Wang Kui’s lingering surprise at the man’s willingness to yield.
• The Wang Family Head proves pragmatic and survival-minded. He gives up his family’s assets and accepts subordination, believing the rising Mortal Sect offers better prospects than his old position.
• Zhou Yi arrives with a large gift but quickly makes his personal interest in Gongyang Yue clear, creating a potential new conflict.

Significant themes

• Power and reversal: Wang Kui’s former subordinate status gives way to authority over the man who kept him there.
• Survival and pragmatism: The Wang Family Head chooses surrender and adaptation over pride or resistance.
• Care and responsibility: Chen Fan’s willingness to sustain Weiwei—and his access to its cure—highlights his concern for the creature.
• Legacy and preparation: The Snow Lotus suggests that Weiwei’s mysterious guardian planned for its future long before Chen Fan found it.
• Rising influence and new threats: The stream of gifts signals the Mortal Sect’s growing stature, while Zhou Yi’s arrival hints at complications beyond the ceremony.

Key plot points and events

• At the Mortal Sect’s celebration for slaying the Wraith King, Pill Sect Young Master Zhou Yi arrives with a large gift but openly insults the sect. He demands that Gongyang Yue, his fiancée, leave with him and threatens Gongyang Yiyue, who tries to stop him.
• Zhou Yi also admits he injured the Wang Family Head, a new Mortal Sect member, and offers a paltry compensation. The gathered guests avoid intervening, wary of the powerful Pill Sect.
• After confirming the Wang Family Head had warned Zhou Yi three times that he was on Mortal Sect territory, Chen Fan lets Zhou Yi’s party leave—then seals the canyon and unleashes the Mortal Sect’s hidden defenses. The Heaven-Earth Formation Disk’s barrier breaks under the attack, killing Zhou Yi and his convoy. An elder’s projection vows future retaliation.
• Chen Fan resumes the celebration, but the guests now regard him with greater fear and respect. Later, as his followers worry about the Pill Sect’s likely retaliation, Chen declares that the Mortal Sect will become the Mortal Domain and plans to destroy the Pill Sect, using the campaign to establish the new faction’s reputation.
• The chapter ends with his followers speculating about how he will attack. Meanwhile, news of Zhou Yi’s death spreads through Jiangbei and Jiangnan, leaving the region bracing for the conflict.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan shifts from quiet restraint to decisive, overwhelming retaliation. He frames his actions as a response to repeated warnings being ignored, then openly commits to expanding the Mortal Domain’s power and reputation.
• Zhou Yi embodies arrogant privilege: he humiliates the hosts, disregards their authority, and assumes his status will protect him. His confidence collapses into pleading when the defenses overwhelm his formation.
• The Wang Family Head proves unexpectedly loyal by trying to stop Zhou Yi, despite his age and severe injuries. His awkward honesty afterward provides comic relief, and Wang Kui assigns him a station-master role.
• The guests initially stay neutral, believing the Mortal Sect will have to endure the insult. After witnessing Chen’s response, they treat him with newfound caution and respect.
• Chen’s followers worry that the Pill Sect’s influence could isolate or undermine their faction. Zhou Mo, Monkey, and the others debate Chen’s plan, while Big Fish earnestly volunteers to sacrifice himself as a Night Watcher.

Significant themes

• Respect and boundaries: Chen treats the repeated warning to leave Mortal Sect territory as the decisive point; an insult becomes an attack when the boundary is knowingly ignored.
• Power and reputation: Chen concludes that remaining quiet invites others to mistake restraint for weakness. He intends to make the Mortal Domain’s name—and its consequences—widely known.
• Consequences of arrogance: Zhou Yi’s status and confidence cannot save him once he underestimates the Mortal Sect.
• Escalation and uncertainty: The killing settles the immediate confrontation but turns it into a larger conflict, while the elder’s threat and the impending rainy season foreshadow further danger.

Plot and key events

• After the rainy season ends, Chen Fan discusses the Pill Sect’s provocation with Crippled Monkey. He explains that displaying a willingness to fight back can deter future attacks—a “single punch” can prevent many more.
• Chen Fan plans to attack the Pill Sect before it can use its powerful connections and assassins against the Mortal Domain. He intends to exploit the sect’s dependence on those assets by striking quickly and decisively, while cultivating a fearsome reputation to protect his weaker faction.
• He reviews the spoils from the Wraith Kings: seven Eerie Eyes that can upgrade Arrow Towers into Level-6 Cannon Towers, a Harbor blueprint, a powerful Heavenly Derivation Sand Table for monitoring maps and defenses, and a Starwatching Platform wonder-building blueprint.
• Wang Kui reports that seventeen prominent factions brought gifts, raising the Camp’s total to 112,300 Eerie Stones. The Qiuhe Wang Family gave an especially enormous offering—nearly all its apparent wealth—while the Northbank Merchant Association gave the least.
• Chen Fan begins inspecting the exotic treasures, looking for valuable items among the mostly unopened gifts.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan reveals that his earlier anger was partly deliberate: he wants others to see him as dangerous so they hesitate to exploit the Mortal Domain. Though he speaks confidently about attacking the Pill Sect, he privately recognizes the risks and plans to bring substantial defenses.
• Crippled Monkey seeks to understand how to respond to bullying, drawing on his own experience of being mocked as sickly. Chen Fan advises him to resist even when he cannot win outright, and Monkey grasps the lesson.
• Wang Kui reports the inventory and faction gifts. Chen Fan is surprised by the Qiuhe Wang Family’s sacrifice, which signals the family head’s considerable authority.

Significant themes

• Deterrence and reputation: A show of force can prevent repeated challenges, especially for a vulnerable faction seeking recognition.
• Pragmatism and survival: Chen Fan balances bold public posturing with careful preparation, using strategy to compensate for limited reserves.
• Power and dependence: The Pill Sect’s influence rests less on its defenses than on its control of pill supplies and its assassination network.
• Preparation and uncertainty: New treasures strengthen the Camp’s surveillance and defenses, but Chen Fan knows that major factions may have hidden advantages.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Fan reviews the gifts from the Qiuhe Wang Family, noting that two ordinary Building Blueprints—an Arrow Tower and a City Wall—would be especially valuable to them. He resolves to speak with the Wang Family Head later.
• He inspects the Nine-Five Dragon Chariot, a spectacular vehicle drawn by nine Flame Dragon Horses. It can fly briefly, but flight consumes eerie stones rapidly.
• Chen Fan transforms the chariot into its combat form, the Heaven-and-Earth Chessboard, and equips it with 187 Level-5 Cannon Towers and seven Level-6 Cannon Towers. The weapon’s firepower may exceed that of the Meat Grinder, though operating it is costly.
• With the Rainy Season over, Chen Fan plans to lead an expedition against the Pill Sect. He leaves Wang Kui behind to guard the Mortal Sect’s base and orders him to kill any intruders, then boards the chariot with Crippled Monkey, Zhou Mo, and the others.
• The Pill Sect’s leader responds to the Rainy Season’s end by ordering a broad campaign against Chen Fan: assassinations, trade restrictions, political isolation, and other measures intended to weaken the Mortal Sect and force Chen Fan to submit.
• Other factions in Northbank City receive instructions not to intervene. Medicine King Valley likewise refuses to support the Mortal Sect unless Chen Fan takes the first, extreme step of attacking the Pill Sect.
• Qi Feng sympathizes with Chen Fan and argues for helping him sooner, but his father and Elder Xu urge caution. Qi Feng is warned that his empathy may put his own faction at risk.
• The Jiangbei Old Devil says he could save Chen Fan if Chen agrees to abandon his new territory, but doubts Chen will give up what he has worked to build.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan shifts from inspecting rewards to preparing for war. Despite his private wish for a quiet life, he commits nearly all available resources to the coming fight and leads the expedition himself.
• Qi Feng becomes more deeply invested in Chen Fan’s fate after witnessing the humiliation and danger he faces. His idealism clashes with his father’s pragmatic policy of minimizing risk.
• Medicine King Valley’s leader and Elder Xu value survival and calculated returns over acting on sympathy. They offer conditional support, making Chen Fan responsible for proving his resolve first.
• The Pill Sect leader reveals a vindictive, coercive strategy: he intends not merely to defeat Chen Fan but to isolate and publicly humiliate him.
• The Jiangbei Old Devil is willing to help Chen Fan escape, but only if Chen abandons his base—an option likely incompatible with Chen’s investment in the Mortal Sect.
• Wang Kui is entrusted with defending the base while Chen and the others depart, marking him as the expedition’s remaining protector.

Significant themes

• The cost of power and ambition: Chen’s new weapon gives the Mortal Sect tremendous firepower, but it consumes scarce resources and commits the faction to an all-or-nothing confrontation.
• Pragmatism versus compassion: Qi Feng wants to help Chen out of empathy, while Medicine King Valley insists on acting only when the potential gain outweighs the danger.
• Political power beyond territory: A faction’s influence depends not just on its defenses but on its ability to reach, pressure, and isolate others.
• Building versus abandoning: Chen has struggled to establish the Mortal Sect and is unlikely to flee, even when retreat might save his life.
• Reluctant violence: Chen insists he only wanted to farm and live safely, yet repeated provocations and threats push him toward war.

Key plot points

• Chen Fan travels through the Eternal Night in the Nine-Five Dragon Chariot, protected by its speed and Zhou Mo’s saber. He crosses the Great River into Jiangnan without using the faction-controlled bridges, keeping the journey concealed.
• Chen Fan arrives at Pill Sect City and launches an immediate aerial assault with the Heaven and Earth Chessboard. Its cannon towers devastate the city, prioritizing important buildings, then destroy the city-protecting formation.
• When the Pill Sect offers to surrender, Chen Fan refuses to accept and then attack later: he wants future enemies to believe surrender remains a genuine option. He continues the bombardment until the city is ruined and the chariot’s eerie-stone supply is nearly depleted.
• The Pill Sect elder survives the attack by taking a Feign-Death Pill. Chen Fan stays outside while Zhou Mo and the others search the ruins, taking precautions against survivors who might fake death.
• The group discovers valuable treasures and a medicinal garden. Unsure how to preserve the plants, Chen Fan contacts Qi Feng of Medicine King Valley for identification and transplanting advice. Qi Feng is stunned to learn Chen is already inside Pill Sect City.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan acts decisively and ruthlessly, but shows strategic restraint: although he refuses the Pill Sect’s surrender, he explains that honoring surrender in future conflicts matters for his faction’s reputation.
• Zhou Mo continues improving his saber skills and takes charge of the dangerous search through the ruins. He is methodical and cautious, insisting that apparent corpses be mutilated to prevent anyone from reviving.
• Crippled Monkey and the others assist with the attack and looting, examining bodies and gathering valuables and plants.
• Qi Feng moves from giving Chen Fan practical botanical advice to incredulity when he learns Chen has invaded and destroyed the Pill Sect’s city.

Significant themes

• Speed, secrecy, and overwhelming force: Chen Fan’s rapid, unexpected strike prevents the Pill Sect from preparing or responding effectively.
• Reputation and trust: Chen Fan recognizes that abusing an offer of surrender would make future enemies fight to the death.
• Power and consequence: The attack establishes the Mortal Domain as a formidable Jiangnan threat, but its brutality shocks observers and announces its arrival through mass destruction.
• Pragmatism amid danger: The survivors conserve resources, secure the ruins, and treat even apparently dead enemies as possible threats.

Key events

• After learning that Chen Fan was inside the Pill Sect’s herb garden, Qi Feng realizes the Mortal Domain has attacked. The news soon confirms that it has renamed itself the Mortal Domain and annihilated Pill Sect City in a rapid aerial bombardment.
• Medicine King Valley abandons any thought of opposing Chen Fan. Qi Feng offers help harvesting the Pill Sect’s herbs, and his father, Valley Master Qi Yishi, arrives with hundreds of disciples to transplant them.
• Chen Fan organizes a four-hour looting operation before the rainy season can trap his forces in Jiangnan. His people collect rare plants, books, treasures, and anything else valuable; Crippled Monkey and the Wang Family Head discover a hidden chamber full of chests.
• The group loads its spoils into the Nine-Five Dragon Chariot, which contains an inner world. Chen Fan invites Medicine King Valley to attend a future Mortal Domain auction.
• After the ruins are cleared, the dead are gathered and burned. Chen Fan says this is to prevent Strange Entities from feeding on them.

Character developments and interactions

• Qi Feng is stunned by the speed and scale of the Pill Sect’s destruction, then promptly aligns Medicine King Valley with the Mortal Domain.
• Chen Fan remains calm and genial while overseeing the aftermath. He prioritizes his safety so his followers can work freely, and recognizes that the attack exposed a weakness: the Mortal Domain needs defenses against aerial assaults.
• Valley Master Qi begins wary of Chen Fan but finds him courteous and approachable. Their mutual flattery establishes a friendly relationship, though Qi is also eager to acquire the Pill Sect’s resources.
• Crippled Monkey and the Wang Family Head work together to ransack the Book Repository and uncover its secret treasure room; Zhou Mo digs through the Treasure Pavilion.

Significant themes

• Power and political realignment: The Pill Sect’s sudden destruction makes other factions reconsider resistance and seek friendship with the Mortal Domain.
• Pragmatism and opportunism: Victory is followed immediately by organized looting, resource recovery, and plans for trade.
• The costs of overwhelming force: The bombardment wins quickly but destroys some valuable herbs and leaves the city’s structures destined to collapse.
• Humor amid brutality: The characters’ casual banter and enthusiasm for plunder contrast sharply with the massacre and devastation.

Chapter summary

After the Pill Sect’s destruction, Chen Fan leaves Valley Master Qi a chest of medicinal ingredients in thanks and invites him to the Mortal Domain’s upcoming auction. Qi feels relieved and honored by Chen Fan’s respectful treatment, especially given the Mortal Domain’s new power.
On the return journey to Nameless Mountain, Chen Fan reads a Jiangnan newspaper full of reports about the Mortal Domain’s raid, its new name, and its victory over a Wraith King. The coverage sparks the idea of creating a Mortal Domain newspaper to build unity. He also studies information about faction stations and communications, recognizing that the Mortal Domain will need its own network to support trade and maintain privacy.
Back at the mountain, Chen finds that the Altar cannot repair the damaged Cannon Towers on his Heaven and Earth Chessboard; they can fire only twice more before breaking. The group unloads and inventories its enormous haul from the Pill Sect: Eerie Stones, pills, cultivation and martial arts manuals, Exotic Treasures, alchemy furnaces, medicinal mud, timber, jade lions, and other supplies.
Chen meets with Wang Qiuhao, the former Wang Family Head, to discuss his new role. Wang Qiuhao says life in the Mortal Domain feels freeing and exciting compared with the burdens of managing his family. Chen acknowledges that Wang Kui may resent the thirteen years Wang Qiuhao kept him as a Station Master, and says he will not promote Qiuhao out of consideration for Wang Kui. However, Chen offers to bring Qiuhao’s family, former clansmen, and Station Masters from Northbank City to join the Mortal Domain, where they can earn positions and advancement. He also credits Qiuhao’s role in confronting the Pill Sect’s young master to his son. Overcome with gratitude, Qiuhao accepts. Chen then challenges his old justification for keeping Wang Kui in one post simply because he excelled at it.
Alone on the City Wall, Chen plans the Mortal Domain’s development during the Rainy Season, when trade is impossible. He intends to establish formal departments, uniforms, rules and incentives, expand the settlement, and cultivate the medicinal plants taken from the Pill Sect. Wang Kui reports that the haul includes 172,500 Eerie Stones, thousands of pills, valuable treasures, manuals, furnaces, and construction materials. Chen considers the raid a complete success and tells the exhausted Wang Kui to rest before accompanying the group to Northbank City the next day to recruit more people.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan shifts from leading a successful military raid to thinking like an administrator: he plans communication networks, publicity, organizational structure, infrastructure, and recruitment. He shows generosity toward Qi and Qiuhao, while also taking Wang Kui’s grievances into account.
• Wang Qiuhao moves from the responsibilities of family leadership into a subordinate role he finds liberating. His family’s future and the chance for them to advance in the Mortal Domain bring him to tears.
• Wang Kui is revealed as a trusted core member, responsible for supplies and reporting the inventory despite going without sleep. Chen recognizes his past mistreatment and protects his standing.
• Qi Chong and the workers oversee the removal of the Pill Sect’s remaining belongings; the workers are paid, though those caught stealing lose their wages.
• Valley Master Qi leaves the encounter feeling respected and newly prestigious after Chen’s gift and invitation.

Significant themes

The chapter emphasizes institution-building after conquest: defeating the Pill Sect is only the beginning, and the Mortal Domain must organize itself to grow. It also explores fairness and leadership, particularly Chen’s effort to balance Qiuhao’s family’s opportunities with Wang Kui’s past service. Communication and shared identity emerge as strategic needs, while the large-scale looting and careful inventory highlight the practical resources required to build a lasting faction.

Chapter summary

Key plot points and events

• Chen Fan reviews the Pill Sect’s records and learns that Eternal Night is cyclical: it devastated the world eight thousand years ago, disappeared, and returned 378 years ago. The Pill Sect had also found ruins of an ancient force that helped it rise, though the ruins contained no especially powerful discoveries.
• He inspects the exotic treasures seized from the Pill Sect. Among them are alchemy-related items, materials for crafting weapons and armor, six building blueprints, cultivation pills, and a Dragon-Headed Staff that provides powerful defensive protection. He plans to upgrade the Life Workshop, seek more people and specialists, and improve his own cultivation.
• Chen Fan recognizes that his faction’s growth depends on manpower, not just valuable objects. He considers recruiting workers and skilled specialists, but has no immediate source for alchemy or artifact-refining masters.
• In Northbank City, the Wang Family faces the deadline to repay a loan secured against its residence and defenses. With its resources depleted, the family decides to dissolve and let its members go their separate ways, with the possibility of reuniting in three years.
• The Wild Wolf Gang considers hiring the Wang Family’s dismissed station masters, but postpones the decision until it sees whether the Mortal Domain will take control of the station business.
• Chen Quan’s mother secretly contacts her superior. She is ordered to abandon the attempt to investigate beneath the Sinkhole and instead retrieve the Snow Lotus and Mountain Embryo, avoiding the Mortal Domain. She is also told to capture Chen Fan if possible, as their Supreme Lord suspects he possesses a supreme builder treasure.
• Chen Quan, terrified by Chen Fan’s growing power and reputation, fears that Chen Fan may come for him. With the nearby stations closed and no Skeleton Horse, he has no way to escape.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan is cautious and strategic: he values the staff’s protection but does not intend to fight personally unless necessary. He focuses on building a secure domain, gathering people, and strengthening its infrastructure.
• Wang Wufan issues the order dissolving the Wang Family on his father’s behalf, accepting that the family has no capital to rebuild.
• The Wild Wolf Gang Leader shows restraint, choosing to wait and assess the Mortal Domain’s ambitions before entering the station business.
• Chen Quan’s mother shifts from covert observer to a reluctant agent facing a dangerous mission. She plans to use her identity as Chen Fan’s stepmother as cover if discovered, while privately hoping he would not harm her.
• Chen Quan is consumed by fear and depends on his mother’s protection, even though she may be working against Chen Fan.

Significant themes

• Power depends on people and organization: treasures and blueprints are useless without workers and specialists.
• Security and preparation: Chen Fan’s goal is to make his domain—and eventually Jiangbei—a safe refuge from Eternal Night.
• Cycles of history and hidden knowledge: the Pill Sect’s records reveal that the catastrophe has happened before and that forgotten ancient factions once shaped the world.
• Decline, uncertainty, and shifting power: the Wang Family dissolves, while other factions hesitate over whether the Mortal Domain will dominate former trade routes.
• Kinship as both protection and leverage: Chen Quan’s mother hopes her stepmother status might shield her, while Chen Quan fears his family connection will not save him.

The author asks readers to submit their monthly votes at the start of the month and simplifies the voting rewards: the author will continue posting three chapters daily, with additional bonus chapters depending on how many monthly votes are received. Each regular chapter is 4,000 Chinese characters—about the length of six chapters by some other authors—and the author thanks readers for their support.

Key plot points and events

• In secret, North River Chen Family agents prepare the Myriad Spirits Blood-Transformation Array throughout Northbank City. They hide 100,800 Soul-Calling Lanterns and smear wraith blood through the city’s drainage channels.
• The Chen Family Head reveals that he has spent over a decade preparing the array. It requires sacrificing tens of thousands of living people to destroy every being within its boundaries. He intended to use it against the strange entities entering Northbank City during the rainy season—and to claim the resulting treasures for his family.
• With Chen Fan now powerful and likely to confront him, the Family Head plans to use the array as a final weapon if Chen Fan refuses to rejoin the family. He rejects the idea of simply joining Mortal Domain: he wants the Chen Family to dominate it.
• After the rainy season, Chen Fan and his companions travel from Nameless Mountain to Northbank City. Crippled Monkey is eager to return and confront people who once mocked and bullied him. Chen Fan lets him fly the Nine-Five Dragon Chariot over the city so he can make a triumphant entrance.
• From above, Chen Fan notices that the blood-smeared drainage channels form a network of lines converging on the North River Chen Family estate. He recognizes the signs of a formation, destroys one section himself, and sends Zhou Mo and the others to find and break more lines.
• Chen Fan and Crippled Monkey head for the Chen estate, while Zhou Mo’s group works to disable the array. Outside the estate, visiting factions gather in a teahouse, expecting to watch the meeting between Chen Fan and the family.

Character developments and interactions

• The Chen Family Head is revealed as calculating and ruthless, willing to sacrifice thousands—including his own son—to secure the family’s power. Yet his memories of his late wife show that he once loved her and that the array helped destroy their relationship.
• Chen Fan shows both growing knowledge and composure: he recognizes the formation and responds quickly, while also showing kindness by indulging Crippled Monkey’s wish to make a grand entrance.
• Crippled Monkey seeks to reclaim his lost dignity and is thrilled to return to Northbank City in style. Chen Fan supports him rather than dismissing his desire for recognition.
• Zhou Mo follows Chen Fan’s instructions promptly, taking the others to dismantle the array’s channels.
• The Family Head’s aide cautiously suggests joining Mortal Domain, but the Family Head rejects the idea, exposing the conflict between practical alliance and his prideful ambition.

Significant themes

• Power versus morality: The Family Head’s ambition rests on mass sacrifice and the exploitation of ordinary residents.
• Family, love, and legacy: He claims to act for the Chen Family, but his choices have already cost him his wife and may cost him his son.
• Dignity and recognition: Crippled Monkey’s dramatic return reflects his desire to overcome past humiliation.
• Preparedness and perception: Chen Fan’s awareness of the formation turns a planned ambush into a race to dismantle it before it can be activated.

Plot points and events

• Various Jiangbei and Jiangnan factions gather at a teahouse, expecting to watch Chen Fan confront the North River Chen Family. The Jiangbei Old Devil is especially invested because he sees Chen Fan’s estrangement from his family as resembling his own past.
• The Under-Heaven Pavilion’s delegation arrives seeking resources for its faction. Its young disciple Tianqi tries to smooth over an inner disciple’s hostile remarks toward Chen Fan, who responds with playful sarcasm.
• Chen Fan receives a signal and sends a letter to the Chen Family’s elderly head, who arrives and proposes that Chen Fan return to the family by renaming the Mortal Domain after it. Chen Fan refuses.
• The Family Head reveals that the Chen Family has activated a long-prepared Myriad Spirits Blood-Transformation Array, fueled by wraith blood in the city’s drainage system. He intends to kill everyone in Northbank City, seize the Mortal Domain’s resources, and escape before the rainy season ends.
• A white-clad youth attacks the Family Head, but a protective barrier repels him. Realizing the array makes the Family Head invulnerable, the youth flees. Most of the teahouse’s occupants also escape; Chen Fan, the Jiangbei Old Devil, and their companions remain.

Character developments

• Chen Fan remains composed and self-assured, refusing to yield the Mortal Domain or accept the Chen Family’s terms. His teasing response to the Pavilion’s disciple contrasts with the deadly seriousness of the looming threat.
• The Jiangbei Old Devil reveals a personal identification with Chen Fan, having once been rejected by his own family and killed its members after returning from training. He hopes Chen Fan will prove similarly ruthless.
• Elder Xu shows his fear of death and hopes the rapidly rising Mortal Domain might hold the key to extending life. He quickly recognizes the danger of the citywide array and tries to escape with Qi Feng.
• The Chen Family Head shifts from a conciliatory invitation to open menace, admitting that his apparent compromise was a prelude to a carefully planned takeover.
• Tianqi tries to restrain his impulsive fellow disciple and keep the Pavilion focused on its practical mission: finding eerie stones rather than creating enemies.

Significant themes

• Family loyalty versus independence: The Chen Family Head uses blood ties to pressure Chen Fan into surrendering the Mortal Domain, while Chen Fan refuses to let family identity dictate his choices.
• Power, ambition, and ruthlessness: The Family Head’s claim that success requires ruthlessness is embodied in his plan to sacrifice an entire city for the family’s gain.
• Survival and mortality: Elder Xu’s concern about lifespan and the city’s imminent slaughter underscore the characters’ desperation to live.
• Appearance versus intent: The Family Head presents himself as willing to step aside, but his real aim is to seize power and eliminate witnesses.

Character interactions

• The Jiangbei Old Devil and Gongyang Yue watch Chen Fan with eager curiosity, while others in the teahouse monitor the gathering cautiously.
• Chen Fan and the Under-Heaven Pavilion delegation exchange a tense, sarcastic conversation; Tianqi apologizes for his disciple, whose resentment stems from a lost business opportunity.
• Chen Fan and the Family Head first negotiate over the Mortal Domain’s name, then confront one another after Chen Fan refuses.
• As the array activates, Elder Xu attempts to get Qi Feng to safety, while the white-clad youth briefly attacks the Family Head before fleeing.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Fan confronts Jiangbei Old Devil in a teahouse after the North River Chen Family’s Head activates the Myriad Spirits Blood-Transformation Array, which threatens to sacrifice everyone in Northbank City.
• The array suddenly fails. Chen Fan reveals he had sabotaged its formation patterns beforehand. The panicked Family Head attacks, but Crippled Monkey knocks him down; Jiangbei Old Devil kills him, then mutilates the body at Chen Fan’s insistence to prevent any chance of survival.
• Chen Fan persuades Jiangbei Old Devil to guard the collapsing Chen estate and help train people from the Mortal Domain. Their exchange turns comic when the Old Devil mistakenly claims they share the experience of killing their fathers.
• Elsewhere, Qi Feng and others escape the city, while bystanders celebrate the vanished crimson beams as if they had been fireworks.
• Chen Fan gathers former station masters and other recruits at Osmanthus Tower, then accepts the Wild Wolf Gang’s members into the Mortal Domain. Its leader stays behind, worried that joining might make others suspect him of building a faction within the organization.
• At the Chen estate, Chen Fan confronts Chen Quan and Yu Ning’er. Chen Quan begs for his life, while Yu Ning’er disowns him and pleads for mercy. She reveals that she comes from the Slaying Immortal Holy Land, a powerful secret she had been ordered to conceal.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan is calm, strategic, and increasingly influential: he arranges outside muscle rather than wasting a powerful artifact, recruits new manpower, and remains composed while confronting his family’s betrayers. His humor—especially with Jiangbei Old Devil—softens his otherwise ruthless pragmatism.
• Jiangbei Old Devil shows respect for Chen Fan and agrees to assist him, though his exaggerated killing precautions and pride in his appearance provide comic relief. He also proves capable of holding the Chen Family members captive.
• Crippled Monkey is given a clear challenge: cultivate faster so Chen Fan will not have to rely on others’ strength in future conflicts.
• Chen Quan collapses from arrogance into terror and despair, especially when his mother abandons him.
• Yu Ning’er drops her alluring, confident façade and begs for her life, revealing her hidden connection to a major power.
• The Wild Wolf Gang Leader demonstrates loyalty to his men by finding them a future in the Mortal Domain, even while declining to join himself.

Significant themes

• Power, preparation, and survival: Chen Fan’s foresight in sabotaging the array and securing a powerful ally prevents catastrophe.
• Loyalty and betrayal: The Wild Wolf Gang Leader protects his followers, while Yu Ning’er sacrifices her son to save herself.
• The cost of ambition: The Chen Family Head’s grand scheme ends in failure and death.
• Building a community: Chen Fan expands the Mortal Domain by taking in displaced workers and gang members, while urging his own people to grow stronger.
• Humor amid violence: Banter and absurd misunderstandings contrast with executions, fear, and the destruction of the Chen estate.