Chapter Summaries

Key events

• Lu You is summoned by Hanyanzi to witness Chen Fangqing’s name appear on Kunlun’s Starweave Ranking. Chen’s name rockets through the lower and middle grades, with its momentum still rising.
• Lu You compares Chen’s progress with that of Dianyunzi, another Reincarnated Immortal who had powerful backing and quickly reached the second grade. Hanyanzi urges Lu You not to fixate on Chen’s ranking, reminding him that cultivation cannot be judged by a single moment.
• At Mount Zhongnan, Gao Bai uses a special connection to the ranking to send his will inside it, hoping to observe Chen’s ascent. There he encounters Xietongzi, a highly accomplished Kunlun disciple who can enter the ranking through talent alone.
• Xietongzi proposes that he and Gao Bai meet to exchange cultivation insights. Gao Bai is initially flattered, though he privately resolves to surpass Xietongzi.
• Chen’s advance meets a powerful force of resistance within the ranking. Gao Bai confidently predicts he will stop at the third grade, but Chen suddenly parts the crushing pressure and charges forward again.

Character developments and interactions

• Lu You feels the weight of Chen’s achievement and struggles with comparison, despite Hanyanzi’s advice to focus on his own cultivation.
• Hanyanzi offers calm, practical counsel, though Chen’s rapid rise visibly unsettles him too.
• Gao Bai is proud of his unusual access to the ranking and tries to dismiss Chen’s prospects. Xietongzi’s effortless talent briefly punctures his confidence, which he restores by telling himself he will soon surpass the Kunlun disciple.
• Xietongzi is open and enthusiastic, treating Gao Bai as a potential peer and offering mutual study. His innocence and natural ability contrast with Gao Bai’s guarded pride.
• Chen Fangqing is seen only from a distance, but his refusal to yield to the ranking’s pressure demonstrates remarkable strength and momentum.

Significant themes

• Rankings versus true cultivation: A rank captures only a moment; it can change and does not define a cultivator’s full potential.
• Talent, resources, and perseverance: Characters compare innate gifts and powerful backing, while Chen’s continued push shows the importance of determination.
• Pride and comparison: Lu You and Gao Bai both measure themselves against others, while the chapter cautions against letting another person’s progress dictate one’s own path.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Cuo’s manifested figure breaks through the pressure blocking him from the Second Rank, then surprises Gao Bai and Xietongzi by inhaling and absorbing the Eight Sects’ stray thoughts.
• Though the observers expect the thoughts to overwhelm him, they merge into his figure. Chen Cuo reaches the Second Rank and, seemingly without crossing the barrier normally, appears inside the First Rank’s ring of light.
• Gao Bai and Xietongzi are astonished. Xietongzi praises Chen Cuo and wagers that he may become the ring’s fifth occupant; Gao Bai declares him a future rival.
• Chen Cuo’s newly absorbed thoughts make him appear increasingly savage. He lashes out, using the pressure around him to sweep Gao Bai, Xietongzi, and the other two figures out of the First Rank ring.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo proves far more capable—and unusual—than anyone expected. His bold, unorthodox method carries him from the lower ranks into the First, but his control and state of mind remain uncertain.
• Gao Bai moves from skepticism to reluctant respect, then sees Chen Cuo as a rival. His confidence is shaken when Chen Cuo effortlessly expels him from the ring.
• Xietongzi repeatedly revises his judgment of Chen Cuo, praising him after each surprise. His offer to call Chen Cuo “Martial Uncle” if he reaches the First Rank becomes moot when Chen Cuo appears there directly.
• Great Hua Mountain’s elders and disciples follow Chen Cuo’s rise with growing hope. Qiongfa Zi and Xi Ran celebrate the sect’s new Second-Rank standing, while Chuiyunzi quietly recognizes that their small numbers still leave the sect vulnerable.

Significant themes

• Unexpected talent and humility: Chen Cuo’s progress overturns confident assumptions about what is possible.
• Ambition and rivalry: Gao Bai’s pride turns Chen Cuo’s ascent into a personal challenge.
• Risk and mastery: Chen Cuo’s absorption of dangerous stray thoughts brings extraordinary power, but may threaten his control.
• Sect prestige and insecurity: Great Hua Mountain’s success restores its reputation, yet its limited numbers remain a source of concern.

Plot points and events

• Chen Fangqing’s name rises to the top of the Starweave Ranking, placing him in first rank. The four other first-rank names immediately fall to second, startling observers across the sects.
• At Great Hua Mountain, Daoyinzi and Yan Yin Zi celebrate, while Xi Ran and her senior brothers share their excitement. Yan Yin Zi sees the result as a chance to boast; Daoyinzi cautions that the ranking may not be settled.
• In Kunlun, Hanyanzi is visibly shaken, while Lu You reflects on how consistently Chen defies expectations. Qiuyuzi is delighted that Chen has vindicated his earlier support, but wonders how he displaced the other contenders.
• Two fallen contenders, Xietongzi and Gao Bai, try to reclaim first rank. They discover that Chen’s thought-incarnation can command the stray thoughts sustaining the ranking. They attack him with their Divine Abilities: Xietongzi’s Everlasting Green tree and Gao Bai’s pill furnace and fire.
• Chen remains detached from the contest, focused instead on the Mind Monkey and the ranking’s mysteries. The Mind Monkey counters with Chen’s Heartfire, which combines with the stray thoughts and triggers a powerful transformation. The attackers’ manifestations are destroyed, and their conscious selves are expelled from the ranking.
• In the Flat Peach Forest, a mysterious man notices a peach blossom appearing on the ranking tablet. Flames and smoke consume the forest’s flowers and plants, though the blossom on the tablet remains. He recognizes Chen Fangqing and regrets that Great Hua Mountain claimed him.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fangqing/Chen Cuo demonstrates extraordinary influence over the ranking, but remains uninterested in prestige and uses the confrontation to investigate its workings.
• Daoyinzi is proud of his disciple yet measured, aware that the ranking’s outcome may not be final.
• Yan Yin Zi openly celebrates and treats Chen’s achievement as a chance to taunt rival sects.
• Qiuyuzi feels vindicated for believing in Chen, while the Peachwood Sword reminds him that Chen’s rise has come at the expense of powerful rivals.
• Xietongzi and Gao Bai respond to their demotion with defiance. Xietongzi chooses to risk himself to fight for his rank; Gao Bai follows with his own attack. Both are overwhelmed.
• Hanyanzi’s unusual bewilderment suggests the event has unsettled him deeply.

Significant themes

• Merit, status, and rivalry: The ranking provokes pride, resentment, and competition, but Chen himself does not value the distinction.
• Hidden power and uncertainty: Chen’s command of the ranking’s stray thoughts reveals that its apparent hierarchy conceals deeper forces.
• Struggle for the Dao: Xietongzi frames competition as inseparable from the pursuit of longevity and truth.
• Rebellion and transformation: Chen’s Heartfire draws out the concept of “Rebellion,” hinting at a larger change in his cultivation and the forces surrounding him.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Cuo awakens after claiming first rank on the Starweave Ranking. His senior brothers, Daoyinzi and Yan Yin Zi, sense heat and realize he is stirring Heart Fire.
• He forms three fires within himself: the People’s Fire from essence, the Minister’s Fire from qi, and the Sovereign’s Fire from the heart and Spirit Light. An illusory flower briefly appears above him, then collapses because his foundation is incomplete.
• Though he has not perfected the Five Elements, Chen Cuo has grasped the cycle of Fate Fire and Nature Fire. His insight is impressive, but he cannot yet complete the cultivation breakthrough it suggests.
• His insight gives rise to a new Divine Ability, Three Fires, whose influence spreads through the bamboo residence. Daoyinzi contains it after it begins to disrupt those nearby.
• Chen Cuo explains that the three fires can unsettle the body, qi and supernatural abilities, and the heart—eventually provoking rebellious thoughts. He admits that his thoughts also knocked the other sects’ first-rank disciples down the rankings.
• Daoyinzi initially urges caution about provoking rival sects, but changes his mind when he learns Chen Cuo was using the ranking to study its mysteries: cultivation and seeking the Dao take priority.
• Chen Cuo notices that his fellow disciples hold several ranks, then freezes when he spots Chen Jiao listed among the eighth-rank names. Daoyinzi meanwhile tells him to visit Azure Dragon Ridge to deepen his understanding.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo demonstrates startling insight and develops a powerful, if newly formed and difficult-to-control, ability. He is candid about its effects and willing to keep studying the ranking.
• Daoyinzi is cautious about political consequences but ultimately supports Chen Cuo’s cultivation above concerns about offending other sects.
• Yan Yin Zi is delighted by Chen Cuo’s achievement, teases him for affecting his elders, and recognizes the originality of his technique. Both senior brothers are briefly affected by Three Fires, feeling their emotions—and even an urge to fight—disrupted.
• The elders’ reactions reinforce their pride in Chen Cuo while also showing that his new power can affect even experienced cultivators.

Significant themes

• Insight versus foundation: Chen Cuo’s understanding is extraordinary, but incomplete cultivation prevents him from sustaining the illusory flower or advancing fully.
• Cultivation above reputation: The elders accept the risk of provoking rivals when Chen Cuo’s actions serve his pursuit of the Dao.
• Power and restraint: Three Fires is potent but immature, spreads beyond Chen Cuo’s control, and has clear limitations.
• Uncertainty and discovery: Chen Cuo’s exploration of the ranking produces unexpected insight—and the chapter ends by raising a new question about Chen Jiao’s appearance on it.

Key plot points and events

• After the public punishment of several disciples, Kongtong followers gather around the Starweave Ranking and complain that Chen Jiao received special treatment despite ranking only eighth grade.
• Third Senior Sister Lingya entertains the criticism, while Senior Brother Ning Dingzi warns the group against provoking Chen Jiao or her elder brother, Master Soaring.
• Ning announces that Master Soaring has been ranked first grade—alone at the top. Every previous first-grade name, including the admired Gao Bai, drops to second grade. The news astonishes the disciples and quickly spreads beyond Kongtong.
• Chen Jiao arrives, sees her brother’s name at the top, and is delighted. The sight recalls a memory of him walking alone amid peach blossoms.
• On Mount Zhongnan, Gao Bai struggles with pain after encountering Chen Fangqing’s influence within the ranking. He suspects Chen can control his projection there and resolves to regain first grade, driven by pride and concern for his clan’s reputation.
• Gao Bai is summoned by his master, who wants to hear about Master Soaring ahead of a future trip to the Divine Treasury. Gao Bai remains resentful about his demotion.
• On Great Hua Mountain, Yan Yin Zi leads Chen Cuo to the path up Azure Dragon Ridge. Chen must climb alone to find the Yi Wood Essence; Yan Yin Zi also urges him to use the spiritually rich site for meditation and cultivation.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Jiao remains anxious and deferential toward her fellow disciples, but her joy at her brother’s ranking shows her deep affection and pride in him.
• Lingya voices resentment toward Chen Jiao and tries to draw others into it; Ning Dingzi directly challenges her and shuts down the gossip.
• Ning Dingzi acts as a firm defender of Chen Jiao and Master Soaring, emphasizing that others’ achievements do not obstruct anyone’s own cultivation.
• Gao Bai is shaken and humiliated by his fall in rank. Rather than accept it, he plots to exploit moments when Chen is not monitoring the ranking, revealing the strength of his ambition and pride. His senior brother tries to reassure him and explain the summons.
• Yan Yin Zi guides Chen Cuo but insists he complete the final ascent independently, balancing practical instruction with advice about spiritual discipline.

Significant themes

• Jealousy and merit: Disciples debate whether Chen Jiao’s advantages are unfair, while Ning argues that another person’s success does not prevent their own progress.
• Status, pride, and reputation: Gao Bai’s reaction reveals how rankings and lineage can shape identity and fuel rivalry.
• The power of recognition: Master Soaring’s sudden placement at the top transforms how sects view him and prompts interest from powerful figures.
• Cultivation through discipline: Chen Cuo is encouraged to value meditation and self-directed effort, not merely the prize awaiting him at the summit.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Cuo reflects on the Old Beggar’s warning that a god’s remains are not necessarily an Immortal Shedding. He considers how gods’ bodies, worshippers, and images might serve as forms of fate.
• As he climbs Azure Dragon Ridge in search of the Essence of Yi Wood, he senses the dangerous, turbulent Spirit Vein buried beneath the mountain but withdraws his Divine Sense rather than risk entering it.
• The mountain’s vegetation grows increasingly ancient and vigorous. Chen Cuo recognizes that the plants have absorbed Wood Element essence, and life force begins gathering around him, healing and energizing his body.
• Amid that life force, he detects a faint, persistent warm current—possibly the clue he needs to find the Essence of Yi Wood.
• Back at Bamboo Abode, Yan Yin Zi and Daoyinzi discuss Chen Cuo’s talent and the need to avoid favoring him so visibly that the other disciples feel neglected.
• The Starweave Ranking shifts: four names surge toward first place, ending Great Hua Mountain’s sole hold on the top rank.

Character developments

• Chen Cuo shows caution and focus: he acknowledges the mountain’s dangers but stays committed to his original goal. His sensitive Divine Sense helps him notice an unusual current hidden among the life force.
• Daoyinzi reveals his concern for fairness and his responsibility as a teacher. He wants every disciple’s Dao Heart protected, not just the most gifted student’s.
• Yan Yin Zi accepts Daoyinzi’s point but also trusts the disciples to withstand praise and pressure, emphasizing their purity and resilience.

Significant themes

• Nature and fate in cultivation: The chapter explores how gods may cultivate through nature, while bodies, statues, and worshippers may serve as expressions of fate.
• Caution and discernment: Chen Cuo recognizes a perilous opportunity but does not let curiosity distract him from his purpose.
• Teaching and responsibility: Guiding disciples means more than passing on techniques; teachers must also shape character and avoid fostering resentment.
• Talent versus collective well-being: Chen Cuo’s exceptional gifts are acknowledged, but the sect’s strength depends on all its disciples.

Character interactions

• Yan Yin Zi asks Daoyinzi how soon Chen Cuo might find the Essence of Yi Wood, prompting a discussion of Chen’s talent.
• Daoyinzi gently rebukes Yan Yin Zi for repeatedly praising Chen, explaining how it could make other disciples feel overlooked.
• Yan Yin Zi agrees with the principle but argues that their disciples have strong Dao Hearts.
• Their exchange is interrupted when they notice the Starweave Ranking change.

Key plot points and events

• Gao Bai, Jiao Tongzi, and two Kunlun disciples simultaneously try to reclaim the Starweave Ranking’s top position, hoping Chen Cuo will be distracted. Chen Cuo instead repels all four, leaving their names in second place.
• Jiao Tongzi makes repeated attempts but cannot regain the first rank. He concludes that Master Soaring of Great Hua Mountain has understood the Ranking’s hidden method and returns to seclusion to improve.
• A Kunlun elder reaches a similar insight: Chen Cuo is not merely controlling an ordinary consciousness-incarnation, but has placed a spark of his true spirit in the Ranking to temper it against the Eight Sects’ stray thoughts. This realization gives the elder new hope for breaking through his own cultivation bottleneck.
• Though the elder withdraws to contemplate, Xietongzi remains determined to keep competing.
• The Taihua elders notice that Chen Cuo has begun to grasp the Essence of Yi Wood. They speculate that he could advance far faster than the nine-year period they had planned for teaching him.
• Meanwhile, Chen Cuo completes a perilous ascent. At the summit, vegetation bursts into life around him, forming a forest—a sign of a major breakthrough.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo/Master Soaring demonstrates extraordinary mental control and insight, defeating coordinated challengers while focused on cultivation. His unusual approach inspires others.
• Jiao Tongzi begins as a determined challenger, but after repeated failure recognizes his limits and chooses seclusion rather than persisting blindly. Gray Pigeon worries over his condition and questions his repeated attempts.
• The Kunlun elder turns defeat into inspiration, seeing Chen Cuo’s method as a path toward resolving his long-standing bottleneck. Xietongzi, however, remains competitive.
• The Taihua elders shift from planning a gradual education to wondering whether Chen Cuo may reach Longevity far ahead of schedule.

Significant themes

• Insight over status: Chen Cuo’s focus is on understanding and cultivation, not merely holding the ranking.
• Learning through defeat: His challengers’ failures reveal new possibilities and redirect their cultivation.
• Perseverance and restraint: Some characters keep competing, while others recognize when retreat and contemplation are wiser.
• Rapid growth and transformation: Chen Cuo’s mastery of Yi Wood is reflected in the sudden flourishing of life at the summit.

Plot points and events

• After three years in seclusion on Azure Dragon Ridge, Chen Cuo emerges having absorbed wood essence from a buried section of Jianmu. His cultivation has yielded Evergreen Qi and a deeper understanding of life’s renewal.
• His senior sister Xi Ran and senior brother Chuiyunzi meet him at the mountain. They explain that the Starweave Ranking has become fiercely contested while Chen Cuo was absent. Xi Ran has risen to Eighth Rank, and Chen Cuo’s name remains First.
• Chen Cuo returns to the Great Hua Secret Realm and visits his master, Daoyinzi. His master confirms he now possesses two of the Five Elements, has gained over a century of lifespan, and should prepare for a third element before reaching the Divine Treasury.
• Daoyinzi also reveals that their fourth senior brother went searching for a Five Elements Treasure and has been missing for two months.
• Elsewhere, Jiao Tongzi prepares to challenge for First Rank. He and other powerful cultivators—including Kunlun’s Dao Yezi and the Reincarnated Immortals Qingxiangzi and Dianyunzi—have advanced during the three-year lull and appear ready to compete.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo returns physically transformed by his long retreat, but remains surprised by how much time has passed. He can sense and communicate with plants, and his vitality and recovery have strengthened.
• Xi Ran is visibly older and anxious about Chen Cuo’s ranking. She has advanced to Eighth Rank, but Chen Cuo gently argues that cultivation should not be limited to rankings; he postpones the broader discussion when he sees she is not ready for it.
• Chuiyunzi and Xi Ran have spent the years watching over Chen Cuo’s seclusion and protecting the mountain’s Spirit Vein. Their conversation reveals their concern for his standing and the growing competition among sects.
• Chen Cuo and Daoyinzi share a respectful reunion. The master praises his progress while emphasizing the next stages of cultivation and disclosing the missing senior brother’s fate.
• Jiao Tongzi confides in Gray Pigeon that reclaiming First Rank will resolve a lingering inner “knot” and let him focus fully on pursuing Longevity. Gray Pigeon supplies news of rival cultivators and encourages his ambitions.

Significant themes

• Time and seclusion: Three years pass almost unnoticed for Chen Cuo, while the outside world and his companions change.
• Cultivation beyond status: Chen Cuo questions the importance Xi Ran places on rankings, contrasting spiritual growth with public recognition.
• Nature and renewal: Chen Cuo’s insight into Evergreen centers on growth, vitality, and life’s continuous renewal.
• Ambition and inner obstacles: Jiao Tongzi’s pursuit of First Rank is tied not merely to prestige but to resolving an emotional and spiritual impediment on the road to Longevity.
• Rivalry and transition: Multiple sects and rising cultivators are poised to reshape the Starweave Ranking, while Chen Cuo’s own path shifts toward completing the Five Elements.

Key plot points and events

• Daoyinzi tells Chen Cuo that Fourth Senior Brother Nanmingzi has lost contact while traveling. Nanmingzi is powerful and has perfected his Dao Foundation, so the sect suspects he is trapped rather than killed.
• Daoyinzi explains the whereabouts and histories of Chen Cuo’s scattered senior siblings, including several who have reached the Longevity Realm and Seventh Senior Brother Zhengqi Zi, a reincarnated celestial immortal awaiting rebirth.
• Chen Cuo recognizes that he must travel both to broaden his understanding of the Dao and to repay Nanmingzi for bringing him into the sect. Daoyinzi cautions him to retreat if danger arises and says Fifth Senior Brother Tu Nan Zi may be able to assist.
• Before leaving, Chen Cuo uses the Starweave Ranking to test his recent insights into the way of wood. His thought-form strengthens the Mind Monkey Thought, which withstands two challengers and knocks them back outside the circle.
• The next day, Chen Cuo sets out with Senior Brother Qiongfa Zi. Using jade tokens containing Nanmingzi’s blood, they try to locate him—but receive conflicting directions: Qiongfa Zi senses south, while Chen Cuo senses east.
• A purple-qi dragon suddenly emerges from Chen Cuo and vanishes with a mournful cry. He feels a powerful foreboding, and Daoyinzi realizes that the emperor of the Southern Dynasty has died.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo shows thoughtfulness and determination: he listens carefully to his master’s account of the sect, understands why travel matters to his cultivation, and immediately focuses on finding Nanmingzi. His recent practice has also made his thought-form more resilient.
• Daoyinzi is affectionate but visibly lonely over his disciples’ long absences. He balances concern for Nanmingzi with practical guidance for Chen Cuo’s journey.
• Qiongfa Zi offers to introduce Chen Cuo to the world, but readily shifts to helping locate Nanmingzi. Their conflicting readings of the tracking jade create uncertainty about the search.
• Nanmingzi, though absent, remains central to the chapter: Chen Cuo feels indebted to him, and the mystery of his location drives the journey.

Significant themes

• Cultivation through experience: Quiet study has reached its limits for Chen Cuo; he must encounter the mortal world and its emotions to progress.
• Duty and connection: Chen Cuo’s search is motivated by both obligation to his senior brother and gratitude for his place in the sect.
• Uncertainty and foreboding: The conflicting tracking signals and the dragon’s disappearance suggest that events are unfolding beyond the disciples’ control.
• A scattered but powerful lineage: Mount Taihua’s many accomplished disciples reveal the strength of the sect, even as their separation leaves its members isolated.

Plot points and events

• A disturbance in Southern Chen’s dynastic fortune weakens the purple qi that has been suppressing Chen Cuo’s Nine-Dragon Divine Fire. His Heart Fire begins to flare out of control.
• Chen Cuo decides not to return home, judging that the omen concerns the dynasty’s fortunes rather than immediate danger to his family. He and Qiongfa Zi instead pursue the White Jade’s clues about their Fourth Senior Brother, splitting up to investigate separate directions.
• Little White Pig and Little Turtle arrive, sent—or so the pig claims—by Master Daoyinzi. Little White Pig urges Chen Cuo to follow the great river, where the hidden object should be found.
• Chen Cuo realizes his surging fire needs a new balance. Little White Pig’s presence suggests the solution may involve harmony between water and fire, yin and yang.
• Qiongfa Zi warns Chen Cuo about turmoil and strange happenings in Qi, whose former ruler recently abdicated in favor of his young son. Chen Cuo sets out along the river, following the White Jade when it begins to tremble.
• The jade leads him toward a forest near an official road. There, he finds soldiers surrounding the wounded Zu Zhengzhao, a young woman, and Liu Nan. Zu Jian, Zhengzhao’s son, has joined the opposing side and orders their capture. As the group argues over loyalty, ancestry, and whether Northern Qi’s Gao family are truly Han, Chen Cuo emerges.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo shows restraint by refusing to interfere in Southern Chen’s affairs without clearer cause. He also recognizes that his spiritual imbalance requires a new source of harmony and accepts the journey as a chance to reconnect with mortal life.
• Qiongfa Zi acts as a cautious, supportive senior brother: he helps plan the search, shares warnings about Qi, and separates from Chen Cuo to investigate another lead.
• Little White Pig is boastful and hungry, but his advice proves useful. He encourages Chen Cuo to seek mortal company and regain his grounding.
• Zu Zhengzhao remains defiant despite his injuries, condemning his son’s allegiance and urging his nephew and Miss Qian to escape.
• Zu Jian is portrayed as a politically divided and disloyal son, while Liu Nan challenges his defense of the Gao family’s identity. Their argument turns a family conflict into a broader dispute about national loyalty and cultural identity.
• Chen Cuo’s arrival interrupts the threatened capture, setting up his involvement in the confrontation.

Significant themes

• Balance and spiritual cultivation: Chen Cuo’s weakening connection to dynastic purple qi destabilizes his fire, pointing toward the need for harmony between opposing forces.
• Family and political loyalty: Zu Jian’s betrayal of his father raises questions about duty to family, country, and political power.
• Identity and cultural belonging: The characters debate who can claim to be Han, revealing how ancestry and political allegiance are contested.
• The mortal world as grounding: Little White Pig suggests that contact with ordinary people and everyday life can counter Chen Cuo’s growing distance from the world.

Plot points

• Chen Cuo arrives as Zu Zhengzhao and his companions are surrounded by Gao Zhengxin, a prince’s heir, his general Tian Bode, and their soldiers. Chen’s unusual powers quickly subdue two attackers.
• Chen asks whether anyone has seen a young Daoist, but the conversation is interrupted when Gao orders Chen seized to keep the group’s secrets from spreading. Zu Zhengzhao reveals that Gao is actually Zu Jian, his estranged son, who has concealed his parentage.
• Chen incapacitates Gao, Tian Bode, and the soldiers with supernatural force, uses the Sovereign’s Fire to confuse them, and draws out their memories. He extinguishes the torches to prevent a forest fire, then tells Zu Zhengzhao, Liu Nan, and the young woman to come with him.
• The three follow Chen, judging him safer than their pursuers. Zu Zhengzhao refuses to take the unconscious Gao: despite his anger toward his son, doing so could provoke the powerful Prince of Zhao.
• Later, Gao and Tian wake with missing memories. Alarmed by the unexplained gap and recalling an earlier Evil Spirit incident, they decide to continue the pursuit. Tian suggests seeking help from the Greenedge Immortal.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo is composed and immensely powerful, but reluctant to get involved in political trouble. Once attacked, he acts decisively, then shows practical concern by preventing a fire. His search for a young Daoist remains unresolved.
• Zu Zhengzhao recognizes Chen as a possible rescuer and advises the others to follow him, while showing restraint by refusing to abduct his son.
• Liu Nan is cautious and observant; he notices Chen’s confidence and questions what the group should do.
• The young woman trusts Chen quickly and encourages Liu Nan and Zu Zhengzhao to see the encounter as an opportunity.
• Gao Zhengxin/Zu Jian is imperious and anxious to protect the secret of his parentage. After Chen’s intervention, he is frightened and confused.
• Tian Bode warns Gao about Chen’s strange abilities, but later proposes appealing to the Greenedge Immortal.

Significant themes

• Power and arrogance: Gao’s rank and military force are powerless against Chen’s supernatural abilities.
• Family loyalty and betrayal: Zu Zhengzhao’s anger at his son is complicated by his decision not to escalate the conflict.
• Uncertainty and memory: Chen’s intervention leaves his opponents unable to explain what happened, deepening fears of supernatural forces.
• Responsibility amid conflict: Chen’s brief reminder about preventing forest fires contrasts with the characters’ political and personal struggles.

Plot points and events

• Chen Cuo asks Zu Zhengzhao about a Daoist known as the Greenedge Immortal. Zu describes the figure’s reputation for defeating five notorious outlaws, but admits his knowledge is mostly hearsay.
• Chen questions Liu Nan by placing an image of Nanmingzi in his mind. Liu recognizes the man only vaguely, so Chen searches his memories directly and discovers that Nanmingzi taught him a Martial Path technique in a dream half a month earlier.
• The dream provides no clear explanation, and Chen’s jade tracking token gives no further sign. But learning that Liu was taken in by the Duke of Tang’s Residence links him to Nanmingzi, whose former name was Li Yu and who also came from that household.
• Chen decides Liu may be an important lead. He offers to protect Liu and his companions in exchange for their help, while making clear he will not force them.
• Qian Yuan reveals that a fortune-teller once predicted Liu would endure repeated trials—“three times three” before they ended at “nine times nine”—but survive great calamities and eventually prosper.
• Chen senses a distant disciple nearing a breakthrough and preparing a ritual to draw on his will. He begins meditating to observe the opportunity. As the boat enters dangerous waters, a mysterious dark shape with flashes of gold rises beneath it.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo moves from investigating Greenedge Immortal to recognizing Liu Nan’s possible connection to Nanmingzi. Though wary of getting involved in political entanglements, he commits to following the lead and offers the group protection.
• Liu Nan appears slow-witted, partly because of an old head injury, but his pure nature and potential in martial arts stand out. His forgotten dream-teaching suggests Nanmingzi deliberately reached out to him.
• Zu Zhengzhao admires Greenedge Immortal and urges Liu to trust Chen, whom he sees as a powerful benefactor.
• Qian Yuan admits she initially exaggerated her knowledge to secure Chen’s help, then shares the prophecy surrounding Liu’s unusual fate.
• Chen’s supernatural memory-probing deepens the group’s awe of him, while his direct offer gives them a choice rather than simply demanding cooperation.

Significant themes

• Fate and repeated trials: Liu’s prophecy, name, and troubled life suggest that hardship may be part of a larger destiny.
• Hidden connections and inheritance: Liu’s ties to the Duke of Tang’s household may connect him—and possibly Nanmingzi—to events beyond his understanding.
• Uncertainty and incomplete knowledge: Rumors, fading dreams, and an unresponsive jade leave Chen piecing together clues rather than finding definite answers.
• Trust and obligation: Chen balances his own mission with a sincere offer to protect those whose help he needs.

Key plot points and events

• Little Pig and Little Turtle tumble out of Chen Cuo’s bundle aboard the boat. Qian Yuan and Zu Zhengzhao assume they are his live provisions; Little Pig is furious but retreats after Little Turtle warns it.
• On the riverbank, Kongtong Sect disciples Lingya and Ling Mei watch a carp spirit lurking beneath Chen Cuo’s boat. The spirit has taken control of the stretch of river with the help of a fragment of a Divine Spirit Talisman.
• Ling Mei urges them to intervene quickly to protect the passengers. Lingya insists on waiting for a chance to save the people and claim the talisman fragment, hoping the feat will establish her reputation. She rejects the idea of seeking help from the Kunlun disciple Dianyunzi.
• In the Starweave Ranking, Chen Cuo meets Jiao Tongzi and Dao Yezi through manifestations of thought. Dao Yezi recognizes that Chen’s lively manifestation is sustained by a severed, unsettled thought.
• Jiao Tongzi explains that losing his first-grade standing to Chen has become a mental obstacle: he wants to regain that rank before pursuing Longevity, since a flaw in his state of mind could endanger his future cultivation.
• Dao Yezi admits that losing also bothers him, but treats the setback as a possible spur to growth. He has come to watch Jiao Tongzi challenge Chen and plans to seek Chen’s guidance himself later.
• Jiao Tongzi activates the red mark between his brows, transforming into a detached, formidable state. Chen agrees to give the challenge his all.

Character developments and interactions

• Lingya is ambitious and determined to make a name for herself, but her desire to secure the talisman makes her willing to delay action despite the danger.
• Ling Mei is cautious and compassionate, prioritizing the boat’s passengers and recognizing the risks of confronting the spirit without support.
• Jiao Tongzi reveals that his pursuit of first grade is tied to his need to resolve an inner fixation before seeking Longevity.
• Dao Yezi is more accepting of defeat and frames it as an opportunity, while enjoying the contest and anticipating future encounters with Chen.
• Chen Cuo remains composed and willing to face Jiao Tongzi directly. The passengers’ mistaken interpretation of his companions adds a brief comic contrast to the looming danger.

Significant themes

• Ambition versus responsibility: Lingya’s hunger for recognition and the talisman conflicts with Ling Mei’s urgency to protect others.
• Inner balance and cultivation: Jiao Tongzi’s story links spiritual advancement to a clear, integrated state of mind; unresolved pride can become a genuine danger.
• Different responses to defeat: Jiao Tongzi is burdened by losing, while Dao Yezi can turn the same setback into motivation.
• Appearance and misunderstanding: The boat’s passengers mistake Chen’s unusual animal companions for provisions, underscoring how little mortals understand the world of cultivators.

Key plot points and events

• In the Starweave Ranking, Jiao Tongzi uses an unwavering Dao Heart to turn the Eight Sects’ stray thoughts against Chen Cuo. Chen’s will repeatedly renews itself, but he eventually ends the contest by unleashing his Sovereign’s Fire Divine Ability, burning through the thoughts surrounding them.
• Jiao Tongzi’s thought is nearly extinguished and he falls from first rank to the second tier. Chen calls the victory a trick and leaves; Dao Yezi recognizes the power of Chen’s techniques and doubts he can reclaim first place. In the waking world, Jiao Tongzi sits silently as his aura fades.
• Meanwhile, a sudden storm traps Zu Zhengzhao, Liu Nan, and others on a boat. The Carp Demon emerges, and Lingya attacks him with her Soul-Fixing Hairpin, briefly pinning his soul.
• The demon reveals that he anticipated the Immortal Sect cultivators’ ambush and has lured them into his territory. He traps Lingya and captures Ling Mei, then prepares to seize the others aboard the boat. A hidden ally’s Seven-Star Wisdom Sword intervenes, but the demon stops it and turns his attack toward the boat.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo shows the strength of his inexhaustible will and fire technique, but remains modest about defeating Jiao Tongzi. He cuts the contest short because something in the waking world demands his attention.
• Jiao Tongzi demonstrates formidable discipline, yet loses when Chen’s renewable will and fire overwhelm his thought. His quiet, fading state suggests the defeat has deeply unsettled him.
• Dao Yezi studies both fighters, admires Chen’s foundations, and worries that the contest for the top rank may be effectively over.
• Lingya acts decisively, using the hairpin to seize an opening, but underestimates the demon and becomes trapped. Ling Mei follows her despite her misgivings and is captured.
• The Carp Demon proves cunning as well as powerful: he anticipated the cultivators’ plan and uses the river and an array to control the fight. His threat prompts the hidden ally to reveal the Wisdom Sword.

Significant themes

• Will versus force: Jiao Tongzi’s steadfast resolve initially dominates, but Chen’s endlessly renewing will outlasts it.
• The cost of ambition and defeat: Jiao Tongzi’s fall from the top rank leaves him visibly diminished.
• Overconfidence and hidden danger: Lingya mistakes a brief advantage for control, while the demon’s preparation turns the ambush against the cultivators.
• Uncertainty of appearances: The ranking battle and the river confrontation both show that apparent advantage can quickly reverse.

Plot points and events

• The Carp Demon attacks Lingya’s boat, using his authority as River Lord to control the water and unleash golden, blade-like waves.
• The Seven-Star Wisdom Sword bursts apart, flooding the demon’s mind with distracting images. Chen Cuo arrives and combines Myriad Manifestation Thought, lightning, a binding Starlight, and a thought of “severance” to disrupt the demon’s control of the river.
• Chen Cuo beheads the demon. Though the demon’s soul escapes into the river protected by a divine talisman, Chen Cuo pulls it back out and captures it. The river’s violence subsides.
• Chen Cuo rescues Ling Mei, and the survivors go ashore. He questions Lingya about how the demon became River Lord, but she has shared only a partial account.
• Little Pig tells Chen Cuo that the demon’s aura resembles the Old Dragon’s and may be connected to the Old Dragon’s Legacy.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo demonstrates powerful, inventive techniques and remains composed in battle. Afterward, he questions Lingya about the demon’s origins and authority.
• Lingya survives the attack and is impressed by Chen Cuo, but remains cautious because she does not yet know whether he is an ally. She has not told him everything about her mission.
• Ling Mei is grateful to Chen Cuo for saving her. She speculates that he is a young, accomplished cultivator from a renowned sect.
• Little Pig provides a possible lead by recognizing the Old Dragon’s aura in the demon.
• Zu Zhengzhao and the others watch Chen Cuo with fear and awe after witnessing his victory.

Significant themes

• Strategy over raw force: Chen Cuo wins by disrupting the demon’s thoughts and briefly severing his divine connection, not simply by overpowering the river.
• The danger of divine authority: The demon’s control of the river makes him far more dangerous than his ordinary cultivation would suggest.
• Trust and concealed information: Lingya’s caution leaves Chen Cuo’s role—and the purpose of her mission—unclear.
• Mystery and legacy: The demon’s possible connection to the Old Dragon’s Legacy hints at a larger conflict beyond the river.

Plot and key events

• Chen Cuo suspects a divine talisman may share the Dragon King Talisman’s origin, though the river’s identity is uncertain. He asks Little Pig to guard him while he investigates through Dream Marsh.
• In Dream Marsh, Chen Cuo reunites with the Black Banner, which has been isolated for three years. It offers to teach him Creation Dao techniques and help him investigate the group that attacked him, but Chen Cuo suspects it mainly wants to escape its seal.
• The Black Banner teaches Chen Cuo a method for Creation Dao members to recognize and contact one another. It also suggests using its ability to store true names for impersonation, but Chen Cuo refuses to unseal it.
• Chen Cuo examines a golden Edict Talisman containing a carp spirit. Dream Marsh can restrain the spirit but cannot separate it from the talisman. When the carp refuses to explain where it got the talisman, Chen Cuo uses his Longevity incarnation to extract it.
• Touching the talisman triggers a response in a distant black temple: red eyes open, huge wings unfold, and chains rattle as a demonic presence stirs.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo is cautious and methodical. He gathers useful intelligence from the Black Banner without trusting its motives, then uses force when the carp spirit withholds information.
• The Black Banner reveals its loneliness and growing desperation after three years of isolation. It tries to bargain with Chen Cuo by offering knowledge and power, but he remains wary.
• Little Pig confidently agrees to guard Chen Cuo, though his odd phrasing briefly catches Chen Cuo’s attention.
• The carp spirit shifts from defiance to panic under the Longevity incarnation’s overwhelming pressure, but its refusal to speak leaves the talisman’s origins unresolved.

Significant themes

• Trust and self-interest: The Black Banner’s offers may be useful, but its desire for freedom makes its motives suspect.
• Power and restraint: Chen Cuo uses Dream Marsh and his incarnation to control and investigate the spirit without immediately unsealing the Banner.
• Unresolved history and consequences: The talisman’s possible connection to the Dragon King remains uncertain, while its activation awakens a seemingly ancient force.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Cuo discovers that the Carp Demon’s golden talisman fragment grants authority over a stretch of river. He imprisons the demon’s soul for later questioning rather than letting it escape punishment.
• He projects the fragment from his Gourd so Little Pig can inspect it. Little Pig and Little Turtle recognize a trace of the long-departed Temple Dragon King, suggesting the fragment may be part of a plan involving his successor.
• Little Pig urges Chen Cuo to seek other fragments while traveling the great river, arguing that joining them could help him find the Water Element Supreme Treasure and wield greater power. Chen agrees to investigate, but refuses to promise anything until he understands how the fragments are connected to the Carp Demon’s crimes.
• Chen speaks with the rescued Kongtong disciples, Lingya and Ling Mei. They explain that they came to hunt the Carp Demon after learning it had terrorized the region and demanded children to devour every six months. Their source was Zhang Fang, a Daoist elder at Dingxin Abbey on the Fen River.
• The scene shifts to the Fen River, where the blue-robed cultivator Dianyunzi kills a flood dragon and takes another fragment—the second he has collected. He intends to assemble the fragments into the authority of the Great River Water Lord. Zhang Fang warns that fragment-bearing demons have caused widespread suffering and mentions the missing Kongtong disciples. Dianyunzi is unconcerned, claiming events are fated, and postpones further action to attend a banquet.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo is tempted by the fragment’s immense authority but remains cautious. His respect for the Temple Dragon King and sense of responsibility lead him to consider collecting the fragments, though he avoids making a firm commitment.
• Little Pig reveals a possible connection between the fragments and the Temple Dragon King’s plans. It asks Chen for help and promises that it and Little Turtle will assist.
• Lingya shows gratitude and restraint, choosing not to contest the fragment because Chen saved her and Ling Mei. Ling Mei is more openly curious about Chen’s power and worries about her senior sister’s feelings.
• Dianyunzi appears confident and fatalistic. He treats his collection of fragments—and the people’s suffering—as predetermined, while Zhang Fang voices concern for the victims.

Significant themes

• Power and responsibility: Divine authority offers near-total control, but its misuse harms ordinary people.
• Legacy and succession: The fragments may preserve the Temple Dragon King’s imprint and guide a successor.
• Fate versus choice: Dianyunzi calls events inevitable, contrasting with Chen’s deliberate sense of duty.
• Trust and obligation: Chen considers helping because of his debt to the Dragon King, while Lingya’s gratitude prevents her from demanding the fragment.

Key plot points and events

• Prince of Zhao’s heir, Gao Zhengxin, asks the arrogant Greenedge Immortal Adept Dianyunzi to investigate strange events near the great river. Dianyunzi refuses, then leaves a list of metals carved into the table—apparently the materials he expects Gao to provide before he will help.
• Gao considers seeking other supernatural allies. His aide Tian Bode agrees to contact them, while keeping the matter from Gao’s father, who disapproves of unorthodox arts.
• Chen Cuo continues south by boat after his fight with the Carp Demon. The crew, awed by the storm and river upheaval caused during the battle, privately compare his power with Dianyunzi’s legendary feats.
• Chen receives a message from Qiongfa Zi: their Fourth Senior Brother has appeared in Shu and taught a young man cultivation, apparently repeating a pattern of secretly guiding people. Chen suspects the two teachings—one in person and one through a dream—may have a deeper connection.
• Qiongfa Zi also reports that Chuiyunzi and Xi Ran have been sent down the mountain to investigate Xi Ran’s origins. Chen wonders whether their master is deliberately dispersing the disciples, but concludes he is too limited to intervene.
• Two black-clad men approach the boat. The scarred elder explains that they hope to use Tian Bode to gain influence with Gao Rui, the powerful Prince of Zhao, and reveals that Chen Cuo is Gao Zhengxin’s birth father. As the men prepare to confront the boat’s cultivator, they find someone waiting in their path.

Character developments and interactions

• Gao Zhengxin is proud and easily angered, but suppresses his temper when Tian Bode cautions him. He remains willing to challenge his father’s restrictions when he feels forced to defend himself.
• Tian Bode acts as a cautious adviser, managing Gao’s reactions and arranging alternative help.
• Dianyunzi displays confidence and a transactional streak: he will not be used as a tool without receiving what he wants.
• Chen Cuo remains detached from others’ comparisons of his strength, while privately piecing together clues about his senior brother and worrying about his master’s plans.
• The two black-clad men reveal a calculated political alliance: the scarred elder is strategic and wary, while his younger companion is overconfident and must be reminded not to underestimate Chen’s protection.
• The boat passengers’ reverence for Chen contrasts with their fearful silence when they realize he may hear them.

Significant themes

• Power and pride: Supernatural skill commands awe, but powerful people still bargain, posture, and resent dependence.
• Political ambition: The black-clad pair seek religious standing through ties to the Prince of Zhao’s family.
• Hidden connections and deliberate guidance: The repeated appearance of Chen’s Fourth Senior Brother suggests a larger design behind seemingly unrelated teachings.
• Limits of knowledge and agency: Chen suspects his master is orchestrating events but accepts that his own abilities may not yet allow him to affect them.
• Fear and reputation: The crew’s account of Chen’s battle—and the attackers’ concern that he might escape—shows how deeds and rumors shape others’ choices.

Plot points

• Chen Cuo confronts two Witch Poison Dao cultivators, Nie Huaiyu and his young companion, Nie Zhengrong. They intend to kill Zu Zhengzhao and capture Chen Cuo, using his Creation to strengthen their poison art.
• Chen Cuo secretly uses the Three Fires Divine Ability to inflame their thoughts. The spell exploits old resentment between the two: Zhengrong turns on Huaiyu, revealing accusations about family betrayal. Huaiyu then admits he is Zhengrong’s father and had kept him as a vessel for cultivation.
• Huaiyu kills Zhengrong and takes the Ten Thousand Poisons Pearl, then tries to flee while threatening to poison the river. Chen Cuo stops him with the Sea-Calming Star and kills him.
• The pearl releases poisonous creatures, malicious apparitions, and lingering thoughts when Chen Cuo breaks it. He contains the eruption with the Little Gourd, then uses the Soul Banner to summon and examine the two men’s souls.
• Chen Cuo learns that the Soul Banner can draw out a person’s soul and spirit, use their name to access some of their abilities, gather memories, and disguise its bearer with the person’s appearance and aura. He also uses a Talisman fragment to seal the poison and bodies beneath the river.
• Memories reveal that Gao Zhengxin summoned the two cultivators. Since Gao has continued causing trouble despite Chen Cuo’s warning, Chen Cuo decides to go to Jinyang and confront him. The boat cannot reach Jinzhou directly, so Chen Cuo agrees to travel first to Yao Xiang City.
• Meanwhile, a powerful figure watching from a hidden underwater palace observes Chen Cuo through Bronze Mirrors. He considers Chen qualified to enter the palace but threatens him if he refuses to surrender the Talisman fragment.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Cuo demonstrates patience and tactical restraint, using a subtle mental technique rather than relying on brute force. He studies the poison pearl, Soul Banner, and Talisman fragment, while accepting that his earlier reluctance to get involved with Northern Qi may no longer be practical.
• Nie Huaiyu and Nie Zhengrong are undone by their tangled family history and mutual resentment. Their exchange exposes Huaiyu’s exploitation of Zhengrong and ends in Huaiyu killing his own son; both ultimately become material for Chen Cuo’s investigation.
• Zu Zhengzhao and the boat crew remain safe and deferential to Chen Cuo. Chen’s decision to travel toward Jinyang is driven partly by the danger posed by Gao Zhengxin’s schemes.
• The underwater palace’s master emerges as a new threat, tracking Chen Cuo and coveting the Talisman fragment.

Significant themes

• Poison as excess: Huaiyu claims that anything becomes poison in excess; Chen extends this idea to resentment and regret, which can corrupt the heart.
• Small techniques, decisive effects: Chen reflects that a quiet, well-chosen ability can overturn a conflict more effectively than a spectacular display of power.
• Consequence and regret: The brothers’ accumulated grievances erupt into violence, and their souls retain regret for both past wrongdoing and rash action.
• Knowledge and power: Chen treats dangerous artifacts and techniques as subjects for study, while rival forces pursue them for cultivation and control.

Plot points and events

• In Jinzhou, Gao Zhengxin anxiously waits for news from two powerful men he enlisted to deal with Zu Zhengzhao. Tian Bode reminds him they are independent allies, not servants, and suggests seeking help from the Greenedge Immortal.
• The Immortal has left Dingxin Abbey and is expected back in a few days. Gao agrees to begin gathering the rare items the Immortal requested, while also considering help from the Prince’s Residence.
• Gao decides that writing to his adoptive father, the Commandery Prince of Zhao, is not betrayal: Zu’s revelations could damage both Gao and the prince, so Gao believes his father would support him.
• Aboard a boat, Chen Cuo studies the Witch Poison Dao’s Thickening Song, whose verses come from the Tao Te Ching. He realizes the art treats the body as “heaven” and manipulates essence, qi, spirit, and desire to refine Mind Poison.
• Liu Nan asks Zu Zhengzhao and Qian Yuan to explain the verses. They understand them as lessons against greed and excess, while privately wondering whether Chen’s recitation was a warning.
• Chen recognizes that the art’s true method reverses the verses’ apparent moral: it stirs, suppresses, and exploits people’s desires and thoughts. He considers adapting it, but notes its risks.
• A hostile figure approaches the boat underwater, intending to test Chen’s worthiness for a banquet. Chen senses him and pins him in place with a speck of Starlight, then draws him toward the surface.

Character developments and interactions

• Gao Zhengxin is revealed as deeply unsettled by his hidden origins. After learning he was not born into the Gao clan, he abandoned his former scholarly manner and adopted the Imperial Clan’s cruel behavior. His concern for the prince who raised him, however, remains strong.
• Tian Bode stays loyal and practical, guiding Gao toward options while recognizing that his young lord’s change is rooted in his conflict with Zu Zhengzhao.
• Chen Cuo proves both scholarly and perceptive: he unpacks the Thickening Song’s hidden mechanics and quickly detects the underwater challenger.
• Liu Nan, Zu Zhengzhao, and Qian Yuan share a respectful exchange about the verses. Liu seeks instruction; Zu and Qian provide their straightforward interpretation, unaware of Chen’s more sinister reading.
• The underwater stranger’s attempt to judge Chen is reversed when Chen effortlessly captures him.

Significant themes

• Identity and loyalty: Gao’s concealed origins have reshaped his behavior, but his gratitude and loyalty toward his adoptive father endure.
• The gap between appearance and intent: The Thickening Song sounds like moral instruction but is actually a technique for manipulating desire and thought.
• Desire, greed, and control: The chapter explores how inner impulses can be cultivated, suppressed, or exploited—and the danger of using them as a source of power.
• Power and judgment: The challenger assumes Chen is ordinary, only to discover that his apparent modesty conceals formidable ability.