Chapter Summaries

Cui Yuanxi and Cui Zhaowei were taken back to Ancestral Continent Island after learning they could not safely help Zhang Yuan. Qin Jieyu and Jiang Xinyi searched the South Sea for the South Sea Dragon Clan, and Qin Jieyu attacked Wenren Shenchi after accusing the clan of being responsible for her missing disciple.

• Cui Yuanxi and Cui Zhaowei prepared to fly to Zhang Yuan, but [True Lord Jianmu Dinghai] stopped them and warned that their arrival would put Zhang Yuan in greater danger.
• Cui Yuanxi asked whether Cui Wenshan could go to the South Sea instead, but Cui Wenshan explained that the South Sea Dragon Clan would stop them and that Zhang Yuan's survival depended on his own fortune.
• [True Lord Jianmu Dinghai] took Cui Yuanxi, Cui Zhaowei, and the others back to Ancestral Continent Island.
• Qin Jieyu and Jiang Xinyi arrived above the South Sea, and Qin Jieyu used the [Light-Tracing Green Lotus Hairpin] to churn the waters and draw out the South Sea Dragon Clan.
• Wenren Shenchi emerged and asked Qin Jieyu to leave, but Qin Jieyu accused the clan of being responsible for her missing disciple and launched an Immortal Slaughter Technique at him.

Qin Jieyu attacked the South Sea Dragon Clan while searching for Zhang Yuan, forcing the Dragon Lord and Wenren Shenchi to face her overwhelming strength. Meanwhile, Zhang Yuan mistook the resulting disturbance for an ordinary storm and agreed to return to shore with Duan Zong.

• Qin Jieyu unleashed lethal treasure light against Wenren Shenchi and the seabed, until a Dragon Lord intervened to protect the South Sea’s inhabitants.
• The Dragon Lord apologized on behalf of the South Sea Dragon Clan, but Qin Jieyu punched him away before he could negotiate.
• Qin Jieyu remembered Wenren Shenchi was still present and struck at him with another punch.
• Zhang Yuan noticed the ship rocking in violent weather and asked Duan Zong whether anything unusual was happening nearby.
• Duan Zong called the storm ordinary for the South Sea and recalled how a storm fifteen years earlier had brought him and others cultivation opportunities.
• Duan Zong proposed returning to shore with the mortal crew, and Zhang Yuan agreed.

Zhang Yuan arrived at the Chu Family shore after noticing blood in the sea and learning that the storm may have been caused by a battle. The Chu Family mistook him for a low-realm cultivator and activated a formation to suppress him as he stepped ashore.

• Zhang Yuan saw that the seawater was stained with blood and confirmed through Myriad Coexistence that Xiao Yuanjun had not caused the previous night's storm.
• Chu Zhankuo proposed probing Zhang Yuan's cultivation and suppressing him if he proved weak, while Duan Xixi worried about her father, Duan Zong.
• Chu Zhankuo ordered the Firewatch Formation to probe Zhang Yuan twice, and both readings identified him as a low-realm cultivator.
• Chu Siniu and Chu Zhankuo ordered the Chu Family to prepare the Chief Star Formation and attack Zhang Yuan when he reached shore.
• Zhang Yuan heard the Chu Family's plans, and when their formation bore down on him, he remained motionless with his hands behind his back.

Zhang Yuan ignored the Chu lineage’s Chief Star Formation and subdued its members, then pursued Chu Zhankuo, Chu Qingyuan, and Duan Xixi. As he considered their fate, a strange spiritual light appeared by the shore, and he carried the three captives over to investigate it.

• Chu Siniu and Chu Zhankuo strengthened the Chief Star Formation, but Zhang Yuan walked through its suppression unharmed.
• Chu Siniu ordered Chu Zhankuo and Chu Qingyuan to flee with Duan Xixi, while Zhang Yuan pressed the remaining Chu lineage members to their knees with his celestial person status.
• Zhang Yuan appeared before the fleeing trio, and Chu Zhankuo knelt to ask him to spare the Chu lineage.
• Chu Qingyuan called Zhang Yuan a bad man, and he questioned what made him bad while weighing whether to punish the Chu lineage.
• Zhang Yuan spotted mysterious spiritual light by the shore and carried Chu Zhankuo, Chu Qingyuan, and Duan Xixi there to investigate.

Zhang Yuan found a dragon scale and the taihu dragonheart grass he needed at Treasure-Gathering Cliff, then asked the Chu siblings where he was. He learned that Wenren Shangzhi's Divine Ability had sent him far away to the Boundless Southern Heaven Realm, and he questioned how Chu Qingyuan knew its name.

• Zhang Yuan retrieved a dragon scale, several treasures, and the taihu dragonheart grass from the shore.
• Chu Zhankuo offered to give Zhang Yuan Treasure-Gathering Cliff, but Zhang Yuan declined and asked to go to the Chu Family's home.
• After Zhang Yuan revealed he came from the Azure Firmament Dust-Dyed Realm, Chu Zhankuo refused to answer his questions, while Chu Qingyuan spoke up.
• Chu Qingyuan explained that the Chu Family's land had merged with the Boundless Southern Heaven Realm and lay far from the Azure Firmament Dust-Dyed Realm.
• Zhang Yuan realized Wenren Shangzhi's Divine Ability had sent him far away and asked Chu Qingyuan how she knew the realm's name.

Zhang Yuan led the Chu Family survivors from Treasure-Gathering Cliff toward their home, learning that the Boundless Southern Heaven Realm had been split open by Li Huixi. They reached a vast chasm and prepared to cross it by ferry.

• Zhang Yuan questioned Chu Qingyuan about the realm's name and the Chu Family's home, but she refused to reveal the family's location.
• Zhang Yuan used karmic ties to lead the Chu Family members toward their home, which lay forty or fifty li from Treasure-Gathering Cliff.
• The group encountered a massive chasm that reached into the Outer Chaos, and Chu Qingyuan explained that the realm had split apart months earlier.
• Zhang Yuan recalled that Li Huixi had punched the Boundless Southern Heaven Realm open during the Chaos Calamity.
• Chu Qingyuan told Zhang Yuan that a ferry crossed the chasm twice daily for one spirit stone, so he dismissed most of the group and kept six people with him.

Zhang Yuan avoided using his Divine Ability while he and the Chu Family waited for a ferry across the Heavenly Chasm. Chu Siniu tried to use the ferry’s rules to turn the Ferry Guard against Zhang Yuan, but the chapter ended with him paying passage for six.

• Zhang Yuan refined his Sword Qi and chose not to reveal his abilities, wary that the South Sea Dragon Clan might be searching for him and Ao Xiu.
• Chu Siniu, Chu Zhankuo, Duan Zong, and Tan Sheng planned to board the ferry first so Zhang Yuan might be forced into a clash with its Ferry Guard.
• Duan Xixi asked Chu Qingyuan if they would survive, and Chu Qingyuan reassured her while warning that Zhang Yuan had killed Song Tao.
• A ferry arrived, and Shang Jianghuai of the hostile Shang Family greeted Chu Siniu before departing without taking the bait.
• Chu Siniu tossed six spirit stones onto the deck and requested passage for the six of them.

Zhang Yuan boarded a golden ferry crossing the Heavenly Chasm and met Ruan Jingxing of the Taihua Yutian Divine Sect, while concealing his strength behind his identity as an Azure Nether Immortal Sect disciple. Chu Siniu and his companions realized Zhang Yuan had gained the attention of a powerful cultivator, but remained unsure whether Ruan Jingxing would intervene in their dispute.

• Chu Siniu and his five companions boarded the ferry, and Zhang Yuan watched them while investigating the vessel and its golden light.
• Zhang Yuan paid a spirit stone and boarded the ferry, where Ao Xiu mocked its all-gold appearance and Zhang Yuan identified its material as chaos spirit iron.
• Zhang Yuan surveyed the passengers and spoke with the golden-robed cultivator, who introduced himself as Ruan Jingxing of the Taihua Yutian Divine Sect.
• Zhang Yuan claimed to be a disciple of Flying Immortal Peak in the Azure Nether Immortal Sect, and Ruan Jingxing accepted his identity and praised the sect.
• Chu Siniu, Chu Zhankuo, Duan Zong, Tan Sheng, and the others worried that Zhang Yuan's connection to Ruan Jingxing had put them at a disadvantage.

Zhang Yuan forced the Chu Family members off the ferry and toward home, where they encountered the hostile Fu Family. He stopped Fu Shanlai from killing Chu Zhankuo, leaving both groups poised for a confrontation.

• The Chu Family members recognized Fu Lingkun and feared his new Nascent Soul Realm power would threaten their Lineage.
• Fu Lingkun decided to kill the Chu Family members, while Fu Shanlai proposed capturing Chu Qingyuan to offer to a lord from the High Sect.
• Zhang Yuan drew in his Sword Qi as the ferry reached the landing nearest the Chu Family and secretly bound the six Chu Family members with iron chains.
• Zhang Yuan compelled Chu Siniu, Chu Zhankuo, and the others to disembark, and Fu Lingkun's group followed them ashore.
• Fu Lingkun ordered Fu Shanlai to avenge his elder brother by killing Chu Zhankuo, but Zhang Yuan shattered Fu Shanlai's sword and sent him crashing into a rock.

Zhang Yuan tried to stop Fu Lingkun from attacking the Chu Family, but Fu Lingkun fought on and was killed by Zhang Yuan’s divine radiance. With the immediate danger gone, the Chu Family leaders pursued the fleeing Fu Family members.

• Fu Lingkun rushed to Fu Shanlai, gave him a healing pill, and confronted Zhang Yuan about his identity.
• Zhang Yuan told Fu Lingkun to leave the Chu Family alive, but Fu Lingkun refused and attacked him with a fire dragon spell.
• Zhang Yuan caught the fire dragon in his palm, and Fu Lingkun followed with a Thunderclap Talisman that sent seven thunderbolts toward Zhang Yuan and the Chu Family.
• Zhang Yuan extinguished the thunderbolts with three-colored divine radiance, which swept over and killed Fu Lingkun.
• Chu Siniu, Chu Zhankuo, Duan Zong, and Tan Sheng drew their weapons and charged after the fleeing Fu Family members.

Zhang Yuan accompanied Chu Zhankuo and the others to Moon Laurel Town after Chu Zhankuo agreed to lead him to the Chu Family. Chu Dalong welcomed Zhang Yuan but, preoccupied with preparing to face Fu Lingkun, urged him up the mountain.

• Chu Zhankuo and the others burned the Fu Family’s corpses after Chu Zhankuo killed Fu Shanlai.
• Chu Zhankuo tried to negotiate with Zhang Yuan, who overwhelmed him with pressure and warned him not to voice his suspicions.
• Chu Zhankuo chose to cooperate with Zhang Yuan and led the group toward the Chu Family.
• The group reached Moon Laurel Town, where a Chu Family disciple secretly went up the mountain to report their arrival.
• Chu Dalong met Zhang Yuan and invited him up the mountain, while privately worrying about Fu Lingkun and his own risky plan to break through using a Realm-Breaking Pill.

Zhang Yuan arrived at the Chu Family’s Osmanthus Fragrance Mountain and settled into its guest courtyard while suspecting someone had laid a trap around the clan. As he contacted the East Sea Dragon Lord for help returning Ao Xiu, Chu Zhankuo told Chu Dalong that Fu Lingkun was dead and the Chu Family was no longer in immediate danger.

• Zhang Yuan sensed powerful formations around Osmanthus Fragrance Mountain and wondered who had provided them to the Chu Family.
• Chu Dalong showed Zhang Yuan to the guest courtyard, and Zhang Yuan told the Chu Family members to leave him undisturbed.
• Ao Xiu came out of Zhang Yuan’s clothes, joked with him, and tried to win his favor after he threatened to leave her behind or make her into a robe.
• Zhang Yuan asked the East Sea Dragon Lord to meet with him and provide support for returning Ao Xiu to the East Sea Dragon Clan.
• Chu Dalong prepared to use a Realm-Breaking Pill to force a breakthrough into the Nascent Soul Realm, but Chu Zhankuo arrived with Chu Siniu and Duan Zong.
• Chu Zhankuo told Chu Dalong that Fu Lingkun was dead and the Fu Family was near destruction, leaving Chu Dalong stunned and asking how it had happened.

Chu Zhankuo reported Fu Lingkun’s death, and Chu Dalong ordered the Chu Family to destroy the Fu Family while considering how to deal with Zhang Yuan, the mysterious powerful cultivator. The family decided to approach Zhang Yuan through Chu Qingyuan, if she agreed.

• Chu Zhankuo confirmed that Zhang Yuan had killed Fu Lingkun, Fu Shanlai, and the Fu Family cultivators, and recounted how it happened.
• Chu Dalong ordered Chu Sanbao to lead Household Soldiers to the Fu Family and leave no survivors.
• Chu Dalong and the others agreed to avoid provoking Zhang Yuan and observe him, while Duan Zong advised making contact before trouble arose.
• Chu Zhankuo proposed that Chu Qingyuan approach Zhang Yuan because she had spoken with him before, and Chu Dalong said they would ask whether she was willing.

Chu Qingyuan agreed to approach Zhang Yuan on behalf of the Chu Family Lineage, but she went to his courtyard that night instead of waiting until morning. Zhang Yuan summoned the East Sea Dragon Lord and demanded extra payment for continuing to escort Ao Xiu.

• Chu Zhankuo told Chu Qingyuan that the family wanted her to contact the senior halfway up the mountain, and she agreed despite the danger.
• Chu Qingyuan decided not to wait for Chu Zhankuo to arrange a pretext and headed down to the guest courtyard that night.
• Zhang Yuan used Ao Xiu's karma to call the East Sea Dragon Lord, threatening to abandon the delivery if the Dragon Lord did not answer.
• The East Sea Dragon Lord appeared through his karma and asked why Zhang Yuan had summoned him.
• Zhang Yuan argued that he had fulfilled his task by bringing Ao Xiu to the East Sea and demanded more payment to continue the dangerous escort.

Zhang Yuan pressed the East Sea Dragon Lord for aid and learned that the Ketu Thorn could not yield him another mystic wonder. The Dragon Lord gave him part of the method he had used to prove the Dao, leaving Zhang Yuan wary but with a new path to consider.

• Zhang Yuan asked the East Sea Dragon Lord for cultivators or Pre-Heaven Supreme Treasures to help return Ao Xiu, but the Dragon Lord said Heavenly Laws prevented him from sending either.
• The East Sea Dragon Lord explained that Zhang Yuan could not form a second Ketu Thorn mystic wonder, clarifying why he had sensed no breakthrough since reaching the Celestial Mid-Stage.
• The East Sea Dragon Lord secretly transmitted the middle third of his own Dao-proving method to Zhang Yuan.
• The Dragon Lord urged Zhang Yuan to cultivate the method and turn its effects into a mystic wonder, though it could not help him seek truth and prove the Dao.

Zhang Yuan accepted the East Sea Dragon Lord’s method for cultivating a mystic wonder and tried to comprehend it, but the text yielded no insight. Chu Qingyuan then arrived at night on the Chu Family’s orders to speak with him and report back to her father.

• The East Sea Dragon Lord gave Zhang Yuan a method and said he could guide him after three months, when others were less likely to watch him.
• Zhang Yuan suspected the Dragon Lord’s golden position involved stillness and considered whether it was the same position sought by Li Houjin and Wenren Qihan.
• Zhang Yuan gave Ao Xiu pastries, then repeatedly read the method without gaining any insight and wondered if the East Sea Dragon Lord had given him a fake.
• Chu Qingyuan visited Zhang Yuan at night and said her lineage had sent her to speak with him so she could report back to her father.

Chu Qingyuan questioned Zhang Yuan, learned that he was a young cultivator from the Bian Kingdom, and agreed to help make him a Guest Elder to conceal his presence. The next morning, she told her worried family that she had already visited Zhang Yuan and returned safely, with more information to share.

• Chu Qingyuan asked Zhang Yuan about his reason for staying, his origins, and whether he would harm the Chu Family, and Zhang Yuan agreed to become a Guest Elder.
• Zhang Yuan said he was from the Bian Kingdom, had not carried out massacres, and was old enough for the capping ceremony; Chu Qingyuan realized he was about twenty and suggested calling him Brother Zhang.
• Chu Qingyuan returned to her courtyard, wrote down their conversation, and went to report to Chu Dalong the next morning.
• Chu Dalong, Chu Zhankuo, and Chu Siniu worried about how to send Chu Qingyuan to Zhang Yuan, but she revealed that she had visited him the night before.
• Chu Qingyuan reassured her family that Zhang Yuan had done nothing to her and said she had learned something.

Chu Dalong and Chu Siniu decided that Chu Qingyuan should marry Zhang Yuan to bind the powerful young cultivator to the Chu Family. When Chu Qingyuan asked Zhang Yuan about the proposal, he dismissed it and told her to leave.

• Chu Qingyuan told Chu Dalong, Chu Zhankuo, and Chu Siniu that Zhang Yuan came from the Bian Kingdom, had agreed to serve as a Guest Elder, and was only twenty.
• Chu Dalong ordered Zhang Yuan to receive the highest stipend, and he and Chu Zhankuo speculated that Zhang Yuan was a prodigy from a powerful lineage.
• Chu Dalong proposed that Chu Qingyuan marry Zhang Yuan, and Chu Qingyuan said she would leave the decision to her father.
• Chu Qingyuan visited Zhang Yuan the next day and told him that her father wanted him to marry into the Chu Family.
• Zhang Yuan asked whom he would marry, learned Chu Qingyuan meant herself, then rejected the proposal and pointed her toward the gate.

Chu Qingyuan returned to Zhang Yuan’s courtyard and confronted him about keeping others at a distance because he feared they would be harmed through their ties to him. She asked him to marry her, but he said he would be leaving soon, and she departed without pressing him further.

• After several quiet days, Chu Qingyuan slipped into Zhang Yuan’s courtyard at night and asked whether he would marry a woman he liked.
• Chu Qingyuan guessed that Zhang Yuan avoided forming close ties because he feared those connected to him would lose their lives.
• Zhang Yuan fell silent as Chu Qingyuan said she would willingly accept the risk and asked him to marry her.
• Zhang Yuan told Chu Qingyuan that he would be leaving soon, and she said that did not matter.
• Chu Qingyuan left the courtyard, teasing Zhang Yuan to ask her to stay.

Zhang Yuan sensed an opportunity at Treasure-Gathering Cliff and left the Chu Family to investigate Geng Metal. He concealed himself above the stormy cliff and found no other cultivators nearby, leaving him uncertain whether he was the only one who had sensed the treasure.

• Chu Qingyuan visited Zhang Yuan and questioned whether he intended to stay with the Chu Family, and he admitted that she had guessed correctly.
• Zhang Yuan sensed a manifestation of the five aggregates and ten natures at Treasure-Gathering Cliff, divined that the trip posed no lethal danger, and decided to go.
• Zhang Yuan took the sleeping Ao Xiu and traveled through the Great Void, while Chu Qingyuan chased after him and found that he had vanished.
• Chu Zhankuo questioned Chu Qingyuan about Zhang Yuan's departure and whether she had fallen for him, and she denied it before secretly returning to the guest courtyard.
• Zhang Yuan reached Treasure-Gathering Cliff, concealed himself among the storm clouds, and spotted two golden lights, one of which appeared to be Geng Metal.
• Zhang Yuan searched the surrounding area with his divine sense and detected no other cultivators, so he continued watching from concealment.