Chapter Summaries

Zhang Yuan and Xiao Yuanjun used their abilities to overcome Ao Qing’s immense defenses, with Xiao Yuanjun’s [Dusk Veil] weakening the Flood Dragon enough for Zhang Yuan to sever his head. Ao Qing remained alive and began regenerating, so Zhang Yuan prepared to destroy his body and soul outright.

• Zhang Yuan’s Three-Colored Qi Light struck Ao Qing, shattering hundreds of dragon scales but failing to break through his formidable body.
• Ao Qing introduced himself as Ao Qing, Dao Epithet [Cloud-Covering], and asked Zhang Yuan to give his name, but Zhang Yuan turned to Xiao Yuanjun instead.
• Xiao Yuanjun declared that Ao Qing’s hidden ailments had relapsed, and her [Dusk Veil] mystic wonder weakened his body from the level of a Pre-Heaven True Treasure to an ordinary Outer Dao Dharma Treasure.
• At Xiao Yuanjun’s command, Zhang Yuan cut through Ao Qing’s neck with the [Flying Light Sword], separating his head from his body.
• Ao Qing began regenerating despite the decapitation, and Zhang Yuan decided to use [Three Calamities Returning to Origin Divine Radiance] and [Fivefold Body-Rending Qi] to destroy his body and soul.

Zhang Yuan battled Ao Qing while Wenren Qihan recognized Wenren Xuange’s armor and confronted Qin Tianyi, who had cultivated the Dragon Clan’s inherited scripture. As Wenren Qihan revealed his Late Celestial Person strength and summoned freezing rain, Ao Qing tried to flee toward the East Sea with his head and body still separated.

• Wenren Qihan recognized Wenren Xuange’s armor on Zhang Yuan and identified him as Ao Ruo’s killer.
• Qin Tianyi blocked Wenren Qihan from attacking Ao Qing, then launched a surprise lightning strike at him.
• Wenren Qihan dispersed Qin Tianyi’s lightning and recognized it as power from the Radiant Immortal-Shaking Scripture.
• Wenren Qihan revealed that he was a Late Celestial Person True Dragon and conjured freezing rain that made Qin Tianyi suspect a mystic attack.
• Zhang Yuan prepared to destroy Ao Qing, who begged for mercy while fleeing toward the East Sea in clouds with his head and body apart.

Zhang Yuan abandoned his pursuit of Ao Qing and watched Qin Tianyi struggle against Wenren Qihan’s rain-based ability before stepping in to save him. With the rain dispersed, Qin Tianyi and Zhang Yuan faced Wenren Qihan together, who remained wary of Zhang Yuan’s treasure.

• Zhang Yuan abandoned his pursuit of Ao Qing and saw Qin Tianyi trapped under Wenren Qihan’s rain curtain.
• Qin Tianyi called Zhang Yuan for help, but Zhang Yuan and Xiao Yuanjun pretended to be too injured to intervene and discussed the fighters’ mystic wonders.
• Xiao Yuanjun explained that Qin Tianyi’s [Thunder Rumbles] gave him a forty-percent chance to evade any divine ability or mystic wonder.
• Zhang Yuan used [Fixing the Celestial Seasons] to disperse Wenren Qihan’s rain cloud, freeing Qin Tianyi from [Object Immersion Stillness].
• Qin Tianyi and Zhang Yuan threatened Wenren Qihan, who realized Zhang Yuan’s treasure countered his divine ability.

Zhang Yuan and his companions drove off Ao Qing and Wenren Qihan, then returned to Cui Yuanxi as she prepared to break through to the Celestial Person realm. With the two dragons gone, Zhang Yuan planned to help her complete her breakthrough and escape the encirclement.

• Wenren Qihan transformed into a Red Dragon and vanished into the great void before Zhang Yuan and Qin Tianyi could hit him.
• Xiao Yuanjun explained that True Dragons could conceal themselves in the great void, while Deng Yici recognized Zhang Yuan and identified him to Deng Fufeng as the Return to True Celestial Person who had nearly wiped out Patriarch Shoulder the Mountain's branch.
• Ao Qing and Wenren Qihan fled, and Zhang Yuan returned to the hill where Cui Yuanxi was waiting.
• Cui Yuanxi asked whether Zhang Yuan was ready, and he told her to turn around and begin her breakthrough while he stood guard.
• Zhang Yuan planned to help Cui Yuanxi attain the Celestial Person realm, gather Cinnabar Yang Fire Qi, and lead their group east toward the Aohai Cui Clan.

• Cui Yuanxi attains Celestial Person status: With Junya Mountain’s destruction clearing the way through Reverence Pass, Cui Yuanxi completes the third trial and breaks through to become a Foundation-Building Celestial Person. Her breakthrough shakes the Great Void and draws the attention of powerful figures. She announces her Daoist name, Colorful Charm, and invites fellow Daoists to a Dharma Assembly in ten days.
• Her enemies prepare to kill her: The Jingyang Li and Wenshui Deng clans—despite being bitter enemies—temporarily cooperate against Cui Yuanxi. Deng Fufeng waits until her breakthrough is complete, while Deng Yici assumes she will not survive long enough to hold her assembly. Li Jiansong orders Li Wangshuo to attack. Cui Yuanxi wisely tries to escape rather than fight, but Deng Fufeng uses his Dao Domain and Divine Wonder to seal the Great Void, trapping her.
• Zhang Yuan discovers a hidden threat: Zhang Yuan assesses the attackers: Deng Fufeng can block escape, Li Wangshuo is a dangerous Sword Cultivator, and Deng Yici and Li Jiansong add further strength. He notices that Li Jiansong’s apparent Daoist name, Azure Frost, is accompanied by the label Cloud Harmony True Descent. Zhang suspects a True Lord has planted a hidden influence in Li Jiansong, possibly to ensure Cui Yuanxi’s death.
• The confrontation escalates: Li Jiansong senses Zhang Yuan’s scrutiny and asks whether Zhang sees something above his head. Zhang realizes Li can detect his Read People ability, suggesting a presence with a Dao Status above a Celestial Person—likely a True Lord. Keeping his alarm concealed, Zhang assigns Li Jiansong to Little Brother Qin, framing him as the weakest opponent.
  Character developments and interactions: Cui Yuanxi’s successful breakthrough marks her rise into a new realm, but her public declaration is immediately followed by an assassination attempt. Zhang shifts from assessing the visible enemies to recognizing a concealed, more powerful threat. The Deng and Li clans set aside their longstanding hostility for a shared target, though their leaders remain openly distrustful and resentful of one another. Lu Jianqing warns Zhang about Deng Fufeng’s ability to seal the void.
  Themes: The chapter contrasts public celebration of spiritual achievement with political violence; highlights how old rivalries can yield to temporary alliances; and builds suspense around concealed power, unreliable appearances, and the danger of forces operating above what ordinary perception can reveal.

Zhang Yuan and his allies fought Li Wangshuo and the Wen River Deng Clan while Cui Yuanxi escaped toward the East Sea. Xiao Yuanjun blocked Deng Fufeng and struck Deng Yici after she mocked Zhang Yuan, leaving the confrontation unresolved.

• Qin Tianyi claimed his strength had been weakened by hidden injuries, then charged Li Jiansong while Zhang Yuan confronted Li Wangshuo.
• Zhang Yuan blocked Li Wangshuo's sword qi and asked Xiao Yuanjun to hold off Deng Yici and Deng Fufeng.
• Cui Yuanxi flew toward the East Sea as Zhang Yuan warned her to watch for ambushes.
• Deng Fufeng tried to pursue Cui Yuanxi, but Xiao Yuanjun's pressure stopped him and made him recognize her strength.
• Deng Yici proposed that Zhang Yuan marry into the Wen River Deng Clan, provoking Xiao Yuanjun to close the distance and punch her in the abdomen.

Zhang Yuan helped Cui Yuanxi survive the clans’ ambush as she attained the Celestial Person realm, while the attackers’ formation crumbled. In the Chaos Void, True Lord Imperial Balance Myriad Turns revealed that he had deliberately let Zhang Yuan destroy Cloud Brocade Mountain and welcomed the loss of most of his clan’s useless members.

• Deng Yici was hurt in the fighting, and Xiao Yuanjun stood protectively before her and Deng Fufeng.
• Zhang Yuan used his pre-heaven artifact treasures to hold off Li Wangshuo, who questioned why he was interfering; Zhang Yuan said he was helping a friend.
• Li Wangshuo realized the ambush against Cui Yuanxi was failing as her helpers overwhelmed the attackers and Lu Jianqing was nowhere to be found.
• True Lord Imperial Balance Myriad Turns and other True Lords watched the battle from the Chaos Void, and Yuheng Wanzhuan praised Zhang Yuan’s growing fortune.
• True Lord Imperial Balance Myriad Turns admitted he had deliberately left Cloud Brocade Mountain for Zhang Yuan to destroy and was pleased that most of its residents had been killed.

Key plot points and events

• After Zhang Yuan helps Cui Yuanxi escape encirclement, the True Lords turn their attention to the ongoing fight between Qin Tianyi and Li Jiansong.
• The Western Bian Chu’s True Lord of Cloud-Shoal Radiance activates a hidden blessing placed on Li Jiansong. Though the Jingyang Li’s True Lord objects, she dismisses his complaint by invoking her clan’s ancestor.
• The True Lord of Ten Thousand Cycles of Balance pursues the Wenshui Deng’s separate plan involving Wen Crown Prince Liu Zezheng. He uses [Firefly Marsh Flame] to intensify the flames consuming Junya Mountain. The other True Lords realize the Wenshui Deng possess this coveted manifest-world metal position, jeopardizing the cultivation paths of anyone else seeking it.
• Qin Tianyi initially dominates the already-wounded Li Jiansong, celebrating his chance to reclaim his reputation. The blessing suddenly raises Li Jiansong from mid Celestial Person to Perfection, leaving Qin Tianyi unable to fight him.
• Li Jiansong then reveals that a Western Bian Chu Celestial Person named [Cloud Harmony] has arrived through “true descent” by a True Lord’s decree. Cloud Harmony’s superior Dao Status crushes Qin Tianyi’s attempt to escape, leaving him helpless.
• Zhang Yuan recognizes that a Western Bian Chu True Lord has intervened and cautiously withdraws, wondering which of the clan’s True Lords is responsible.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Tianyi shifts from triumphant confidence to panic and bitter self-pity when Li Jiansong’s sudden power-up makes victory impossible.
• Li Jiansong goes from struggling to survive to becoming the vessel for Cloud Harmony, whose calm, commanding presence replaces his own.
• Cloud-Shoal Radiance acts openly on behalf of the Western Bian Chu and stands her ground against the Jingyang Li’s protest.
• The True Lord of Ten Thousand Cycles of Balance advances the Wenshui Deng’s interests, while taking quiet satisfaction in the dispute between the other True Lords.
• Zhang Yuan remains wary and observant, choosing distance over confronting the newly arrived power.

Significant themes

• Clan politics and hidden agendas: True Lords manipulate battles and cultivate long-term plans through blessings, planted techniques, and control of rare resources.
• Power through patronage: Li Jiansong’s sudden breakthrough is not earned in the moment; it comes from a True Lord’s intervention and Cloud Harmony’s descent.
• Unequal power and frustrated ambition: Qin Tianyi’s strength and divine wonder become meaningless against a higher Dao Status, underscoring the steep hierarchy between cultivation realms.

Key events

• Celestial Person Yunhe arrives under a True Lord’s decree and spreads the [Azure Firmament Spirit-Cloud Dao Domain] across a hundred thousand li around Junya Mountain. Its immense, fully realized reach shows Yunhe’s superiority to Wang Dingzhong and highlights the gap between ordinary and aristocratic-clan Celestial Person Perfection.
• Cui Yuanxi is still trapped within the domain. Xiao Yuanjun considers delaying Yunhe to help her escape, but Zhang Yuan persuades her that they cannot overcome a True Lord’s carefully prepared trap without a True Lord’s intervention.
• Junya Mountain’s remaining half melts, revealing cinnabar yang fire qi. Because it naturally rises toward the Outer Chaos, Zhang Yuan recognizes its immense potential and immediately races after it in his Golden Chariot. The other gathered Celestial People pursue it too.
• At the Cui Residence, Chancellor Cui Qiezhe examines the poisonous clouds spreading through his kingdom. Though his clan had agreed not to interfere in Cui Yuanxi’s predicament, he decides that protecting the kingdom’s people gives him grounds to act. He sends his wife, Jiang Peilan, to help Li Jiansong expel his inner demon and bar demon cultivators from the Ya Kingdom.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhang Yuan recognizes the limits of his and Xiao Yuanjun’s strength, reassures her, and shifts his attention to the newly emerged fire qi.
• Xiao Yuanjun remains determined to act rather than accept defeat, but ultimately accepts Zhang Yuan’s judgment. She is also the first to notice the disturbance at Junya Mountain.
• Cui Qiezhe turns his sense of duty into a discreet way to intervene despite the True Lord’s restriction. Jiang Peilan, anticipating his decision, is already waiting to carry it out.
• Zhang Yuan and Xiao Yuanjun’s exchange emphasizes their trust and his concern for her; Cui Qiezhe and Jiang Peilan’s brief conversation shows how well she understands his resolve.

Significant themes

• Limits of power: Vast domains and high cultivation do not guarantee victory; refined attainment and backing matter.
• Duty and indirect resistance: Cui Qiezhe honors the agreement not to intervene directly while acting to protect his people.
• Acceptance amid danger: Zhang Yuan and Xiao Yuanjun confront the painful likelihood that they cannot save Cui Yuanxi.
• Opportunity amid crisis: The emergence of cinnabar yang fire qi redirects the gathered cultivators toward a rare prize with the potential to nurture a minor realm.

Jiang Peilan defeated the Western Bian Chu Clan’s [Celestial Person Cloud Harmony] with one sword, giving Zhang Yuan an opening to seize the Cinnabar Yang Fire Qi. As Xiao Yuanjun helped contain the burning fire qi, she warned that Mount Junya held another abnormal Celestial Person, whom Zhang Yuan recognized as Liu Zezheng.

• Jiang Peilan flew to Mount Junya and confronted [Celestial Person Cloud Harmony], who had possessed Li Jiansong.
• Jiang Peilan’s sword strike shattered the descended Consciousness Spirit and the [Azure Firmament Spirit-Cloud Dao Domain], leaving Li Jiansong unconscious.
• Zhang Yuan seized the Cinnabar Yang Fire Qi, but it burned his hand faster than [Life-Stealing Sha] could heal it.
• Xiao Yuanjun covered Zhang Yuan’s burning hand with both of hers and warned him not to put the fire qi into his Dao Domain.
• Xiao Yuanjun said Mount Junya hid an abnormal Celestial Person at Perfection, and Zhang Yuan recognized the cultivator as [Great Harmony Celestial Person] Liu Zezheng.

Liu Zezheng began seeking truth on Mount Junya, believing himself to be a Demonic Dao rogue cultivator of the Ya Kingdom, while those watching wondered at his identity and motives. Zhang Yuan and Xiao Yuanjun stayed at a distance to observe, but Xiao Yuanjun refused to remove the Golden Carriage’s curtains because others might see them together.

• Liu Zezheng announced that he had reached the celestial peak and would seek [Golden Palace Sand] on Mount Junya.
• Zhang Yuan recognized that Liu Zezheng seemed to have been altered like Wang Chengtian and moved the Golden Carriage ten thousand li away to watch with Xiao Yuanjun.
• [True Lord Imperial Balance Myriad Turns] wondered why Liu Zezheng had become a Demonic Dao rogue cultivator and decided that his success mattered only insofar as it served his plans.
• Deng Qiuzhi expected Liu Zezheng to fail because the Myriad Treasures Nod True Scripture would destroy his soul, and resolved to purge the clan branch that had kept him from Mount Junya.
• Zhang Yuan suggested removing the carriage curtains so they could watch without leaving the windows, but Xiao Yuanjun refused because others might see them together.

• Liu Zezheng begins his Truth-Seeking ritual: He compresses Junya Mountain into a sphere of Jade Liquid, then shapes it into a life-sized human statue. His plan is to transform a True Lord’s spine into his Dharma Body and use it to ascend into the profound, seeking a place among the metal positions. As the statue takes shape, [golden tower sand] notices him, and its presence shakes the cultivators who sense it.
• The observers weigh whether to intervene: Jiang Peilan watches closely but does not attack. She came to protect the Ya Kingdom’s people from [Celestial Person Cloud Harmony]’s Dao Domain, and Liu Zezheng’s ritual appears to endanger no civilians. With no reason to risk the backlash of her Metal position, she lets him continue.
• A prohibition is brought into question: In the Chaos Great Void, True Lord of Ten Thousand Cycles of Balance celebrates the appearance of [golden tower sand]. [Rainbow Radiance True Lord] reminds him that [True Lord Huitian Yanshi], after becoming the Heaven-and-Earth Lesser Monarch five hundred years earlier, forbade anyone from proving the Dao for five centuries. Though fewer than two years remain, Ten Thousand Cycles has arranged for Liu Zezheng to attempt Truth-Seeking anyway. He claims that the lack of intervention so far may mean the Lesser Monarch has forgotten—or that there is an opportunity to exploit. Liu Zezheng’s attempt is also a test of her response.
• Zhang Yuan and Xiao Yuanjun share an awkwardly intimate moment: While watching from their carriage, Xiao Yuanjun insists that the most practical way to look out the window is to ride on Zhang Yuan’s back, wrapping her arms around him and resting her head on his shoulder. Zhang Yuan finds the closeness uncomfortable and wonders whether such behavior is appropriate, while Xiao Yuanjun is relaxed and amused by his embarrassment.
  Character developments and interactions: Xiao Yuanjun’s playful confidence contrasts with Zhang Yuan’s self-conscious restraint. Jiang Peilan shows disciplined judgment, prioritizing her mission over needless confrontation. Ten Thousand Cycles reveals himself as a calculating risk-taker, while Rainbow Radiance acts as a reminder of the danger of defying the Lesser Monarch’s rule.
  Significant themes: The chapter explores the risks and ambitions of seeking greater power, the tension between rules and opportunism, and the responsibility to protect ordinary people. Its opening also adds a lighter contrast through the awkward boundary between master and disciple.

Liu Zezheng completed his Truth-Seeking Rite, but the Myriad Treasures Nod True Scripture transformed him into a soulless humanoid Pre-Heaven Supreme Treasure before he could ascend. The True Lords turned their attention to Deng Qiuzhi, planning to stop his ascension, when Liu Zezheng unexpectedly came alive again.

• Liu Zezheng reforged his body with his treasure-like internal organs and reached true Celestial Person Perfection, believing he had overcome the Scripture’s flaw.
• Liu Zezheng drew the gaze of [Golden Palace Sand] and tried to ascend, but its power turned his body back into jade and transformed him into a soulless humanoid Pre-Heaven Supreme Treasure.
• [True Lord Imperial Balance Myriad Turns] and the other True Lords considered whether the five-hundred-year ban on becoming a lord had ended.
• The True Lords watched Deng Qiuzhi and resolved to join forces to prevent him from securing a Lord position if he succeeded in Seeking Truth.
• Liu Zezheng unexpectedly came alive again despite the destruction of his Primordial Spirit and soul.

Liu Zezheng revived by awakening the part of his Primordial Spirit and souls hidden in his internal organs, revealing the plan he had used to evade True Lord Imperial Balance Myriad Turns. As Liu Zezheng continued his Truth-Seeking Rite, Yuheng attacked him, while the other True Lords waited to see whether he would ascend.

• Liu Zezheng awoke inside the Pre-Heaven Artifact Treasures formed from his internal organs and resumed seeking the Truth after his fabricated Ya Kingdom identity was destroyed.
• Xiao Yuanjun told Zhang Yuan that Liu Zezheng had split his Primordial Spirit and souls, and estimated he had at least a fifty-percent chance of becoming a True Lord.
• True Lord Imperial Balance Myriad Turns realized Liu Zezheng had deceived him and demanded to know who had interfered.
• The other True Lords discussed waiting to recruit Liu Zezheng after his ascension or kill him if he refused, while True Lord Rainbow-Haloed Rosy Clouds said she would not act.
• True Lord Imperial Balance Myriad Turns struck Liu Zezheng with a palm that gathered the forces of heaven and earth and grew large enough to cover the Azure Firmament Dust-Dyed Realm.

Liu Zezheng used [Golden Palace Sand] to enlighten [True Lord Imperial Balance Myriad Turns]'s descending palm, then temporarily wielded [Enlightenment] and declared himself [True Lord Grand Harmony Spirit Command]. As his name spread across the realm, the sky suddenly went dark, while Zhang Yuan realized Liu Zezheng had risen beyond his reach.

• The Celestial Persons fled toward the Great Void to escape [True Lord Imperial Balance Myriad Turns]'s descending palm, leaving Liu Zezheng alone.
• Liu Zezheng used [Golden Palace Sand]'s [Enlightenment] to give the palm thought, and it fled rather than strike him.
• Liu Zezheng reached [Golden Palace Sand] and temporarily gained the power and status of a Golden Core True Lord.
• Liu Zezheng announced himself as [True Lord Grand Harmony Spirit Command] and offered rewards to cultivators who aided him.
• Zhang Yuan felt [Enlightenment] surge toward him, suppressed its effects, and worried that Liu Zezheng could now threaten him.
• As Liu Zezheng's new name spread, the sky abruptly darkened and the sun, moon, and stars vanished.

Chapter Summary: “World Annihilation”

Key plot points and events

• The Azure Sky Dust-Stained Realm is instantly annihilated, leaving Zhang Yuan and others suspended in a directionless Chaos. Zhang’s divination reveals that a Divine Ability called [Obscure-Bright Heaven’s Favor Annihilates the Turbid World] caused the destruction.
• A woman bearing the Sun and Moon appears. Xiao Yuanjun recognizes her as Li Huixi, True Lord Huitian Yanshi of the Eastern Bian Li Clan, a Golden Core True Lord.
• Zhang realizes that Liu Zezheng, newly ascended as the True Lord of Supreme Harmony and Spirit Command, may be the target of her attack. He privately weighs his old grievances against both men and decides either outcome could benefit him.
• Liu, initially confident in his new status, is shaken by the world’s destruction. He hopes to survive long enough for his Dao Domain to stabilize, granting him the True Lord ability to revive and return at his peak.
• Li Huixi ignores Liu’s question and summons the other hidden True Lords. They appear deferentially, calling her Lesser Sovereign, then hurriedly deny responsibility for Liu’s rise.
• Li explains that she attained the Dao five hundred years earlier and used a thousand-year span around her attainment as a Truth-Seeking Ritual Array: she slew one ancient True Lord each century before attaining the Dao, then prevented any True Lord from arising for five hundred years afterward. The chapter ends with this revelation.

Character developments

• Zhang Yuan remains cautious and opportunistic. Though startled by the scale of Li Huixi’s power, he weighs his grudges pragmatically and sees advantage in either side’s defeat.
• Xiao Yuanjun demonstrates her knowledge of powerful figures by recognizing Li Huixi and explaining her identity.
• Liu Zezheng shifts from triumphant confidence to alarm. He tries to buy time, knowing his new immortality-like qualities will soon make him much harder to kill.
• Li Huixi is presented as composed, overwhelmingly powerful, and accustomed to command. Her brief account reveals a long, deliberate campaign to control the emergence of True Lords.

Character interactions

• Zhang and Xiao Yuanjun share the Golden Carriage as they observe the catastrophe; she identifies Li Huixi for him.
• Liu addresses Li Huixi directly, but she ignores him and instead orders the concealed True Lords to reveal themselves.
• The gathered True Lords respond with formal deference, then attempt to distance themselves from Liu’s ascension and avoid Li Huixi’s displeasure.

Significant themes

• Power and scale: The destruction of an entire realm establishes the vast gulf between ordinary cultivators and Golden Core True Lords.
• Control over destiny and succession: Li Huixi’s ritual array shows that the rise of True Lords can be deliberately restricted through centuries of violence and intervention.
• Survival and self-interest: Zhang assesses the conflict through the lens of personal advantage, while Liu focuses on surviving until his new status becomes secure.
• Fear and hierarchy: The other True Lords’ immediate submission and excuses reveal how thoroughly Li Huixi’s authority dominates even powerful figures.

Key plot points and events

• Liu Zezheng faces Li Huixi, who says Liu proved as a True Lord too early; had he waited another year and ten months, no one could have restrained him.
• Liu attacks with the [Enlightenment] mystery, but it has no effect. Li reveals that at his Dao attainment he possessed six mysteries and one divine ability, including the [Sun-Moon Wheel]’s fundamental mystery, [Sun-Moon Turning Wheel].
• Liu tries to flee, but Li’s Sun-Moon Arcane Radiance strikes him across space and time. The attack pierces his dharma body despite a shield created by [Enlightenment].
• The True Lords identify the attack’s second mystery as [Annihilation], which bypasses defenses and can pursue a target through time and reincarnation until they are utterly dead.
• Though badly wounded, Liu insists he can survive and ascend to the Metal Position. The observing True Lords quietly wager how many of Li’s attacks he can withstand.
• Liu discovers his advancement has stalled. The Sun-Moon attack suddenly returns and strikes again, leaving him stunned.

Character developments

• Liu Zezheng shifts from confidence in his True Lord status to fear, desperation, and disbelief as his powers fail and his ascent is halted.
• Li Huixi remains composed and reveals overwhelming strength, relying on a deep store of mysteries rather than a single technique.
• Hongni recalls surviving Li’s Annihilation only by changing her dharma body and shedding the karma of her former form. She accepts remaining in female form as the price of survival.
• The other True Lords, initially spectators, show their own apprehension and debate Liu’s chances as if his defeat is nearly certain.

Significant themes

• Power and timing: Liu’s early advancement leaves him vulnerable; a short delay might have changed the outcome.
• The limits of defense and survival: Annihilation overrides protection, resurrection, and escape, making even True Lords mortal.
• Transformation and sacrifice: Hongni’s survival depends on changing her form and abandoning her former identity.
• Confidence versus reality: Liu’s faith in his imminent ascension collapses when he learns that his progress has been stopped.

Character interactions

• Li calmly explains the disparity between them while Liu responds with anger, attacks, and attempted flight.
• The True Lords discuss Liu’s fate nearby, openly wagering on how many attacks he can endure; their casual commentary intensifies his humiliation and fury.
• Hongni’s private recollection contrasts with Liu’s defiance, showing that she understands from experience how final Li’s power can be.

Key plot points

• Li Huixi, the Eastern Bian Li Clan’s True Lord and the Heaven-and-Earth Lesser Monarch, kills Liu Zezheng with a second strike of Sun-Moon Arcane Radiance. His power combines Annihilation with Void-Leaping, allowing attacks to strike across space and time in repeated succession.
• Li then strikes the True Lord of Ten Thousand Cycles of Balance. The True Lord revives through his Metal Position, but loses much of his power. Li warns him that it was a punishment and threatens to kill him if he repeats his offense.
• Li reverses time, restoring the annihilated Azure Sky Dust-Stained Realm and the people within it. He decrees that, until the spring of the five-hundredth year, Golden Core True Lords must stay out of mortal affairs, and Foundation-Building Celestial People must not fight in the mortal world.
• After the True Lords depart, Zhang Yuan considers leaving the realm. Seeing Li Huixi’s overwhelming strength has extinguished his hope of taking revenge on the Eastern Bian Li Clan patriarch, Li Houcheng.
• Xiao Yuanjun points out that Li Huixi’s time-reversal might be able to restore Chen Xinqiao, who died during Zhang Yuan’s Dust-Fate Pass. Zhang Yuan doubts Li would ever help him, given their enmity.

Character developments and interactions

• Li Huixi displays both terrifying force and control: he destroys opponents, restores an entire realm, and imposes order on the surviving True Lords.
• The True Lord of Ten Thousand Cycles of Balance shifts from confident applause to panic, then relief after surviving Li’s warning.
• Zhang Yuan confronts the limits of his ambitions. He still carries resentment toward Li Houcheng, but now sees revenge as nearly impossible and contemplates fleeing. His silence at Xiao Yuanjun’s suggestion reveals that he has not truly abandoned the hope of bringing Chen Xinqiao back.
• Xiao Yuanjun, perceptive and teasing, recognizes Zhang Yuan’s buried wish and raises the possibility of asking Li for help. Zhang Yuan answers with bitter humor, dismissing the idea as dangerous.

Significant themes

• Power and helplessness: Even powerful True Lords are defenseless before Li Huixi.
• Revenge versus survival: Zhang Yuan must weigh old grievances against the reality of overwhelming strength.
• Loss and hope: Chen Xinqiao’s possible restoration offers a fragile hope, but one dependent on an enemy’s goodwill.
• Authority and order: Li uses his power not only to punish but to restore the realm and restrict future conflicts.

After Mount Junya’s battle, Cui Yuanxi safely returned to the Aohai Cui Clan and announced her Celestial Person status. Her father gave her a Pre-Heaven Supreme Treasure Jade Armor, which she immediately planned to give Zhang Yuan, but he forbade her from doing so.

• Xiao Yuanjun and Zhang Yuan agreed to return after matters at Mount Junya were settled, while Zhang Yuan planned to refine the Cinnabar Yang Fire Qi.
• He Yang passed the ruined Mount Junya, where True Lord Ceased Light Punishes Thoughts secretly collected golden palace sand and the Windy Reed Fruit and reflected on Liu Zezheng’s success.
• Cui Yuanxi crossed the Great Void safely and reached the Three Immortal Isles of the Inverted Sea, where Cui Wenshan welcomed her.
• Cui Yuanxi met her father, True Lord Jianmu Dinghai, and Cloud Ao Bearing the Mountain True Lord, announcing her Celestial Person status and her seven-day Dharma Assembly.
• True Lord Jianmu Dinghai gave Cui Yuanxi a Pre-Heaven Supreme Treasure Jade Armor, but sternly told her not to give it to Zhang Yuan.

Cui Yuanxi returned home as a newly ascended celestial, then learned that Chen Xinqiao had died after sacrificing herself to protect Zhang Yuan. Meanwhile, Zhang Yuan and Xiao Yuanjun discovered that refining the cinnabar yang fire qi required them to remain together until it was fully refined.

• Cui Yuanxi received a Pre-Heaven Supreme Treasure Jade Armor from [True Lord Jianmu Dinghai] and promised not to give it to anyone else.
• [Cloud Ao Bearing the Mountain True Lord] told [True Lord Jianmu Dinghai] that the Deputy Sovereign had killed Deng La Er and barred Golden Core True Lords from descending to the mortal realm for a year and ten months.
• Cui Yuanxi returned to her courtyard, told Xiao Shi she had attained celestial status, and learned that Chen Xinqiao had died after choosing to take her own life rather than put Zhang Yuan in a difficult position.
• Xiao Yuanjun told Zhang Yuan that cinnabar yang fire qi could only be refined during the chou-yin hours, forcing them to stay physically close until it was fully refined.