Chapter Summaries

Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen fought the Black Demon Scorpion inside its poisonous mist and discovered that their sword-force Shockwaves could thin it. They left the scorpion driven back and the mist clearing as Gu Fengchen introduced himself to Qin Hao.

• Qin Hao realized the poisonous mist obscured his senses and gave the Black Demon Scorpion a major advantage.
• Qin Hao noticed a young swordsman nearby, and the stranger warned him when the Black Demon Scorpion attacked.
• Qin Hao and the young swordsman struck the scorpion together and found that their sword-force Shockwaves thinned the poisonous mist.
• Qin Hao and the young swordsman exchanged rapid attacks to clear more of the mist, prompting the Black Demon Scorpion to charge at the young swordsman.
• Qin Hao and the young swordsman struck the scorpion with the Unerring Sword Scripture and Thunderclap Sword Art, driving it back.
• The young swordsman praised Qin Hao’s swordsmanship, and then introduced himself as Gu Fengchen.

Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen joined forces to fight the Black Demon Scorpion, turning their sword attacks into a contest over who could defeat it first. After dispersing the poisonous mist, they wounded the scorpion’s pincers, with Gu Fengchen leading in the number of strikes.

• Gu Fengchen and Qin Hao recognized each other’s Sword Dao skill and agreed to split the Points Tokens from the Black Demon Scorpion.
• Gu Fengchen and Qin Hao raced to attack the scorpion, using their sword force to thin the poisonous mist.
• They drove the scorpion back but initially failed to wound it seriously while the mist weakened their attacks.
• After their attacks dispersed the mist completely, Qin Hao pierced the scorpion’s left pincer and Gu Fengchen attacked its right.
• Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen repeatedly struck the scorpion’s pincers, leaving twenty-eight bloody holes on Qin Hao’s side and thirty-nine on Gu Fengchen’s.

Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen killed a Black Demon Scorpion and approached its lair to collect the Points Tokens. A second scorpion attacked Gu Fengchen from inside, breaking his sword as he tried to defend himself.

• Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen crippled the Black Demon Scorpion’s claws, and Gu Fengchen severed its stinger and killed it with a strike to the head.
• The poisonous mist dispersed, revealing the scorpion’s lair and a pile of Points Tokens.
• Gu Fengchen rushed to the lair entrance and began collecting the tokens while Qin Hao followed.
• A second Black Demon Scorpion shot its stinger out of the lair at Gu Fengchen.
• Gu Fengchen raised his sword to block the sudden attack, but the stinger’s force snapped it.

Qin Hao saved Gu Fengchen from a female Black Demon Scorpion and killed it with three sword strikes. After Gu Fengchen recovered, Qin Hao shared the spoils he had collected from the lair.

• The female Black Demon Scorpion broke Gu Fengchen's sword and attacked him with its poisonous sting.
• Qin Hao severed the scorpion's sting, then killed it with three sword strikes while Gu Fengchen was thrown back by the poison.
• Gu Fengchen thanked Qin Hao and recognized that Qin Hao's strength surpassed his own.
• Qin Hao gathered the Points Tokens and treasures from the lair while Gu Fengchen healed.
• Qin Hao presented Gu Fengchen with the spoils, including Points Tokens worth two hundred and thirty thousand points.

Qin Hao accepted the treasures and Points Tokens from the Black Demon Scorpions after Gu Fengchen refused his share, raising Qin Hao's rank to 8,328. As Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen searched the Swamp Region, Yan Zijun led hundreds of half-step true gods into the mist-wreathed Rubble Forest, trying to reach the Lingchang Cave Abode Core Region.

• Gu Fengchen refused the treasures and Points Tokens because Qin Hao had saved his life and he was already ranked in the one-thousands.
• Qin Hao accepted the Points Tokens, bringing his rank to 8,328 and giving him a chance to compete for the top hundred.
• Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen agreed to search the Swamp Region together for more Points Tokens and powerful Insect Beasts.
• Qin Hao thought Yan Zijun might already have entered the Sea of Mist, though he doubted Yan Zijun could cross it.
• Yan Zijun urged hundreds of half-step true gods to charge into the Rubble Forest despite its powerful Insect Beasts and heavy casualties, seeking the Lingchang Cave Abode Core Region.

Lie Kong found Qin Hao in the Lingchang Cave Abode and tried to seize him, but chose to capture the nearby half-step true gods as well to conceal his interest in Qin Hao’s treasures. As he launched his attack, the Formless Ancestor and the other guardians sensed the threat and sprang into action.

• Lie Kong located Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen in the outer Swamp Region after searching for the Lingchang Cave Abode for decades.
• Lie Kong recognized Qin Hao’s ten thousand swords realm and decided to capture him for the Supreme Sword Tower and Primordial Feathered Wings.
• Lie Kong worried that targeting Qin Hao alone would expose his motives, so he planned to seize all nearby half-step true gods.
• Lie Kong sent an enormous palm down over Qin Hao, Gu Fengchen, and the surrounding area.
• The Formless Ancestor, Phantom Shadow True God, and Starfall Lord sensed the attack, and the Formless Ancestor shouted in anger.

A burly Ancestral God attacked the Lingchang Cave Abode during the Qiankun Sect's Disciple Recruitment Assembly, trying to seize Qin Hao and the other Half-Step True Gods. As Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen were pulled into the air, three Qiankun Sect guardians launched counterattacks.

• Phantom Shadow True God, the Starfall Lord, and the Formless Ancestor discovered the intruder and attacked him from outside the Lingchang Cave Abode.
• The burly man realized three guardians had found him but pressed on, aiming to capture Qin Hao and obtain the Supreme Sword Tower and Primordial Feathered Wings.
• After killing an Insect Beast, Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen were caught beneath the intruder's enormous palm as its suction force lifted them and thousands of other contestants.
• Qin Hao tried to activate the Primordial Feathered Wings, then saw three immense palms approaching as the Qiankun Sect's Ancestral God elders counterattacked.

Qin Hao and the other half-step true gods were caught in a Three-Star Ancestral God's enormous palm, but the Qiankun Sect elders and Lingchang Cave Abode's formation weakened its grip. Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen struck back, though their attacks could not harm the Ancestral God's palm.

• Qin Hao rejected using his incomplete Primordial Feathered Wings and kept the Supreme Sword Tower as his fallback escape.
• The burly Ancestral God intensified the suction, pulling Qin Hao, Gu Fengchen, and the other half-step true gods toward his palm.
• The Formless Ancestor, Phantom Shadow True God, and Starfall Lord struck the palm, tearing it open and weakening the suction.
• Shock waves from the Ancestral Gods' clash triggered Lingchang Cave Abode's formation, which attacked the palm and weakened it further.
• Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen attacked the palm with their swords, but neither they nor the other half-step true gods could injure it.

Ancestral God Lie Kong abandoned his attempt to seize the Half-Step True Gods when the Lingchang Cave Abode's formation and the Qiankun Sect elders thwarted him, then fled as the Formless Ancestor, Phantom Shadow True God, and the Starfall Lord gave chase. His shattered palm continued attacking the contestants, and just as it disintegrated, Qin Hao, Gu Fengchen, and the others were struck by a shock wave.

• Ancestral God Lie Kong gave up capturing the Half-Step True Gods after the cave abode's formation shattered his palm and he sensed the Formless Ancestor approaching.
• Ancestral God Lie Kong mocked the Qiankun Sect and fled, while the Formless Ancestor, Phantom Shadow True God, and the Starfall Lord pursued him into a fierce battle.
• Qin Hao and the other contestants continued attacking Lie Kong's weakening palm as the Lingchang Cave Abode's formation bombarded it.
• The enormous palm disintegrated, and a shock wave swept toward Qin Hao, Gu Fengchen, and the others, alarming them just as they began to relax.

Ancestral God Lie Kong’s attack sent deadly shockwaves across the sky, forcing Qin Hao, Gu Fengchen, and thousands of half-step true gods to seek shelter inside the Lingchang Cave Abode. The formation blocked the shockwaves, leaving the survivors within the dangerous cave abode alongside Yan Zijun.

• Ancestral God Lie Kong’s palm shockwaves killed numerous half-step true gods and overwhelmed Qin Hao and Gu Fengchen’s attacks.
• Qin Hao urged Gu Fengchen and the other contestants to dive into the Lingchang Cave Abode for protection from its formation.
• Thousands of half-step true gods entered the formation’s reach, and it blocked the incoming shockwaves.
• Contestants in the outer Swamp Region reacted to the deaths and argued over whether those inside the cave abode would survive.
• Yan Zijun resented that Qin Hao and the others had entered the cave abode after he had lost nearly all his enslaved subordinates getting there.

Yan Zijun spotted Qin Hao in the Depths of Lingchang Cave Abode and focused on reaching Ancestral God Lingchang’s Cultivation Palace to claim the Nine-Turn Indestructible Body. Qin Hao watched Yan Zijun approach the palace and wondered whether it held Lingchang’s treasures and inheritance.

• Yan Zijun recognized Qin Hao and ordered Situ Yu to keep watch on him, while Situ Yu sensed that Qin Hao had grown much stronger.
• Yan Zijun identified the ancient palace as Ancestral God Lingchang’s Cultivation Palace and resolved to obtain the Nine-Turn Indestructible Body above all other treasures.
• Yan Zijun led his slaves toward the palace, sending some ahead to scout while they guarded him.
• Qin Hao noticed Yan Zijun’s destination and considered whether the palace contained Ancestral God Lingchang’s treasures and inheritance.

Qin Hao and the other Half-Step True Gods sought a way into Ancestral God Lingchang’s Palace, but invisible restrictions killed several who rushed ahead. As Qin Hao tested the restrictions with world power, the white-veiled Luan Bing used an Ice-Sealing Art and began moving downward.

• Qin Hao decided to explore Lingchang Cave Abode rather than risk crossing the Sea of Mist again.
• Several Half-Step True Gods flew toward the Palace and were killed by unseen restrictions and Insect Beasts.
• Qin Hao and the others found that Divine Sense and chaos origin could not detect the restrictions.
• Luan Bing used her Ice-Sealing Art to envelop herself in white mist and moved downward, drawing astonished looks from the crowd.

Luan Bing and Duanmu Jie detected the restrictions in the Lingchang Cave Abode and raced toward Lingchang Palace to seek Ancestral God Lingchang’s Treasures. Qin Hao revealed that he could sense a safe route too, and led Gu Fengchen onward.

• Qin Hao recognized that Luan Bing had created her own Chaos Origin, while Gu Fengchen described her immense combat experience as a Gladiator.
• Luan Bing moved ahead through the restrictions, prompting Duanmu Jie to reveal his ability to perceive them and set off toward Lingchang Palace.
• Gu Fengchen told Qin Hao that Duanmu Jie was a renowned genius from the Immortal Thunder Continent.
• Qin Hao told Gu Fengchen to follow him because he could sense a safe path through the restrictions.
• Qin Hao used the power of his Self-World, an embryonic Heavenly Dao, to detect the restrictions and guide Gu Fengchen toward Lingchang Palace.

Qin Hao, Duanmu Jie, and Luan Bing navigated the restrictions on the way to the Lingchang Palace, while Gu Fengchen and the other Half-Step True Gods followed their routes. After a perilous journey, they reached the palace and found Yan Zijun and four others already at its entrance.

• Duanmu Jie recognized Qin Hao as a formidable rival and continued cautiously through the restrictions alongside Luan Bing.
• Qin Hao avoided the red areas he sensed, and Gu Fengchen followed his exact route to pass through safely.
• The Half-Step True Gods realized they could follow Qin Hao and Duanmu Jie's paths, but many died after stumbling into restrictions or being pushed off course.
• After more than half a day, the group descended to an area with fewer restrictions and hurried toward the Lingchang Palace.
• Qin Hao saw Yan Zijun, Situ Yu, and three others at the palace entrance, and Yan Zijun entered first.

Yan Zijun and his companions entered Lingchang Palace and found themselves beside a vast Flame River, where a massive creature began emerging from a shedding rock. Yun Chang escaped a sealed stone chamber into the same area, spotted Situ Yu, and faced the creature’s icy gaze.

• Yan Zijun entered Lingchang Palace with Situ Yu and the others, but they appeared on a platform beside a vast river of flames instead of finding Lingchang’s treasures.
• A huge rock began shedding its stone surface, releasing powerful pressure that churned the Flame River and opened an archway in a nearby rock wall.
• Yun Chang escaped the stone chamber where a Teleportation Restriction had trapped him and emerged near the Flame River.
• Yun Chang recognized Situ Yu and considered killing him, recalling their conflict over Qin Hao and the Sword Diagram in Dragon Marquis City.
• A horned head emerged from the shedding rock, and its icy eyes made Yun Chang’s heart jolt.

Qin Hao and the other Half-Step True Gods reached Lingchang Palace, where a sudden wave of intense heat suggested Yan Zijun had triggered something inside. They entered in pursuit of Ancestral God Lingchang’s treasures, leaving thousands of others to swarm after them.

• Qin Hao, Luan Bing, and Duanmu Jie accelerated toward Lingchang Palace after learning Yan Zijun had entered, while a reckless Half-Step True God died after straying from the safe route.
• Qin Hao reached the palace entrance with Duanmu Jie and Luan Bing and noticed that intense heat had arisen after Yan Zijun went inside.
• Duanmu Jie and Luan Bing entered Lingchang Palace, and Gu Fengchen warned Qin Hao to be careful before following him inside.
• Thousands of surviving Half-Step True Gods rushed toward the palace entrance, hoping to claim Ancestral God Lingchang’s treasures.

Qin Hao and the other Half-Step True Gods were transported from Lingchang Palace to a scorching, mysterious space, where they encountered a powerful Crystal Man radiating Ancestral God Pressure. Qin Hao found Yun Chang and learned that Yan Zijun’s slaves had died, leaving him wary of moving closer.

• Qin Hao entered Lingchang Palace, touched a scarlet Teleportation Restriction, and was transported to a jagged-rock platform amid extreme heat.
• Qin Hao sensed Ancestral God Pressure and saw a crystal-bodied being emerging from rock beside a Flame River.
• Qin Hao spotted Yan Zijun, Situ Yu, Luan Bing, and Duanmu Jie near the Crystal Man and felt renewed hostility toward Yan Zijun.
• Qin Hao saw Yun Chang, but Yun Chang warned him not to move or speak, so Qin Hao stopped before approaching.
• Qin Hao noticed the corpses of Situ Yu and Yan Zijun’s other slaves and stayed where he was.

Qin Hao and the other Half-Step True Gods discovered countless treasures suspended above the Flame River, but Yan Zijun and Yun Chang stayed back as others rushed to claim them. The river’s flames incinerated everyone who approached, leaving Qin Hao wary of the treasures.

• Half-Step True Gods appeared beside the Flame River and saw the awakening Crystal Man, while Qin Hao remained cautious after noticing Situ Yu and the others’ corpses.
• The cultivators discovered vast numbers of Ancestral God Lingchang’s treasures floating above the river and rushed toward them.
• Duanmu Jie charged for the treasures, but Qin Hao held back after noticing Yan Zijun and Yun Chang had not moved.
• The first Half-Step True God to reach the river was engulfed by flames that consumed his powers and burned him to ashes.
• Flames engulfed every Half-Step True God who approached the river, killing them and scattering their souls.

The Crystal Man's Ancestral God Pressure caused the Flame River's flames to kill those who approached, leaving the survivors to realize their movements were being controlled. After shedding his stone shell, the Crystal Man revealed that he had served Ancestral God Lingchang and addressed the gathered Half-Step True Gods with a chilling smile.

• Qin Hao realized the Crystal Man had sealed off the Flame River with his Ancestral God Pressure, and Duanmu Jie recalled stopping just short of being burned to death.
• The rock covering the Crystal Man fell away, revealing his transparent amber-like body as he gazed at the Flame River with emotion.
• The Crystal Man said that no one had come since his master fell, leading Qin Hao and the others to recognize Ancestral God Lingchang as his master.
• When an elderly Half-Step True God cautiously addressed him, the Crystal Man looked over the crowd and remarked that many people had come after his master's death.

Amber revealed that only Half-Step True Gods could enter the Lingchang Cave Abode and compete for Ancestral God Lingchang’s inheritance and treasures. He directed them to the Flame River, where the first to reach its end would have a chance to claim the inheritance, leaving the crowd eager to set off.

• Amber explained that the cave abode would collapse if an Ancestral God tried to enter, and that Half-Step True Gods alone qualified for Lingchang’s legacy.
• Qin Hao wondered why Ancestral God Lie Kong had attacked the cave abode and suspected there was more to it, unaware that Lie Kong’s true target was him.
• Amber introduced himself and told the gathered Half-Step True Gods that Lingchang’s treasures lay in the Flame River and his inheritance waited at its end.
• Yan Zijun resented that Qin Hao and others had entered the core region by chance, but accepted that they were eligible to compete for the inheritance.
• Qin Hao asked how they would leave the Flame River, but Amber told him he would find out after entering and urged everyone to begin.
• Amber said the farther they traveled along the Flame River, the more treasures they could obtain, and that the first to reach its end would have a chance at the inheritance, prompting an uproar.