Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• Atop Buzhou Mountain, the Three Pure Ones—Yuanshi, Tongtian, and Taishang—debate whether cultivation should follow Heaven’s order or welcome all beings with a chance to cultivate.
• The mountain spirit, Wang Shi, offers a perspective: “following” and “defying” Heaven are human judgments, while the paths living beings take are themselves part of the Great Dao. His words enlighten the Three Pure Ones, each of whom advances from mid-stage to peak Daluo Golden Immortal.
• Wang Shi reveals that he is preparing to take form and asks the Three Pure Ones to protect him. He has long feared that Buzhou Mountain’s eventual fall during the Witch-Demon Tribulation will also destroy him.
• The Three Pure Ones discover Wang Shi’s unusual wisdom and Pangu lineage, agree to guard his transformation, and begin protecting the mountain as a vast storm of spiritual energy and tribulation clouds gathers.
• The disturbance draws powerful figures, including Minghe, Zhen Yuanzi and Hongyun, and the Demon Court’s Di Jun and Taiyi. Minghe and Taiyi suspect a treasure is emerging and challenge Tongtian when he blocks their approach.
• Taiyi arrives with the Chaos Bell, escalating the confrontation. The chapter ends with the Three Pure Ones still guarding Wang Shi while the rival powers press toward Buzhou Mountain.

Character developments

• Wang Shi emerges as a thoughtful, powerful mountain spirit whose insight can awaken even the Three Pure Ones. He is cautious about taking form, knowing his survival is tied to Buzhou Mountain.
• Tongtian maintains his belief that any being with an affinity for cultivation deserves the opportunity, even as others question his approach.
• Yuanshi argues for choosing students by strength, origin, comprehension, and talent, emphasizing order and Heaven’s laws.
• Taishang tries to reconcile his brothers’ positions, stressing their shared bond and the value of different approaches to the Dao.
• The Three Pure Ones move from philosophical disagreement to a united commitment to protect Wang Shi.

Significant themes

• Chance, fate, and the Dao: Wang Shi challenges the idea that “following” or “defying” Heaven can be clearly separated.
• Who deserves cultivation: The brothers’ disagreement contrasts selective teaching with offering opportunity to all.
• Gratitude and alliance: Enlightened by Wang Shi, the Three Pure Ones feel indebted and pledge their protection.
• Power and suspicion: The spectacle of Wang Shi’s transformation attracts opportunists who assume a treasure is at stake.

Character interactions

• The Three Pure Ones debate their differing views but remain bound by kinship; Taishang urges harmony, and Wang Shi’s words ultimately bring them together.
• The Three Pure Ones show respect and gratitude to Wang Shi, then agree to guard him as he takes form.
• Tongtian politely asks arriving powers to stay back, but Minghe and Taiyi distrust his explanation and accuse the Three Pure Ones of trying to claim a treasure for themselves.

Key plot points and events

• Eastern Emperor Taiyi confronts the Three Pure Ones with the Chaos Bell, demanding they stand aside as Buzhou Mountain’s transformation draws powerful cultivators.
• Laozi and Yuanshi arrive to support Tongtian. Di Jun urges restraint and proposes that everyone witness the event, while Ancestor Minghe and the gathered cultivators press forward.
• Laozi claims that the being taking form is their disciple, warning the crowd not to interfere. Though this is a strategic bluff, it unsettles the Three Pure Ones, who feel an unexpected hint of genuine attachment.
• Wang Shi discovers that Buzhou Mountain’s immense karma is triggering backlash from heaven and earth. Since the mountain supports the world, his transformation requires something to replace it—a solution he cannot find.
• The Three Pure Ones advise him to take form only partially and seek a solution later. Wang Shi follows this counsel, drawing Buzhou Mountain’s essence and materials into its core.
• The mountain splits open, revealing that its spirit is becoming a towering, metallic stone giant. The crowd is stunned, but many suspect the Three Pure Ones invented the disciple story to claim him.
• Wang Shi completes his manifested body and leaps into the sky to face the Great Dao’s tribulation.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi shows determination despite the risk of failure, then acts decisively when the Three Pure Ones offer a way forward.
• The Three Pure Ones protect Wang Shi from interference. Laozi uses a false claim of discipleship as a deterrent, while the others appear affected by the possibility of a real bond.
• Di Jun plays the mediator, trying to prevent open conflict while ensuring his side can witness the event.
• Minghe and the crowd grow suspicious of the Three Pure Ones and shift their attention from the confrontation to the potential value of Wang Shi.

Significant themes

• Ambition and power: The gathering’s interest in Wang Shi quickly turns into suspicion and possessiveness.
• Duty and sacrifice: Buzhou Mountain’s role as the world’s pillar makes its transformation carry a cosmic cost.
• Pragmatism and trust: The Three Pure Ones’ improvised advice gives Wang Shi a chance to proceed, while Laozi’s bluff protects him but complicates how others view them.
• Transformation and uncertainty: Wang Shi gains a formidable body, but his emergence is only the beginning; he must still survive the tribulation.

Plot points and events

• Wang Shi deliberately enters his Transformation Tribulation and battles the Thunder Dragon, driven by long-suppressed anger and his desire to be free.
• The divine lightning repeatedly batters him, shrinking and compacting his Dharma Body until onlookers fear he will be destroyed. Instead, he eventually absorbs the lightning’s destructive energy; the thunderclouds disperse, and boundless merit descends.
• After completing his transformation, Wang Shi thanks the Three Pure Ones for guarding him and accepts them as both friends and masters.
• The Three Pure Ones give him powerful treasures: Tongtian presents the Twenty-Four Sea-Calming Divine Pearls, Yuanshi gives the Central Wuji Apricot Yellow Banner, and Laozi gives the Earth-Leaving Flame Light Banner.
• Wang Shi thanks the assembled elders. Tongtian then demands that they give the newly formed Wang Shi gifts, implying that they will face his anger if they refuse. Eastern Emperor Taiyi challenges him.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi reveals the depth of his yearning for freedom and his defiant resolve. His survival of the tribulation marks a major transition, and his humility afterward contrasts with his furious struggle.
• The Three Pure Ones show affection and investment in Wang Shi. Their lavish gifts also expose a competitive edge: each worries that Wang Shi might become closer to another.
• Tongtian is especially generous and protective, but his demand for gifts turns the celebration into a confrontation with the gathered powers.
• The spectators are moved by Wang Shi’s endurance, then caught off guard by Tongtian’s pressure. Taiyi openly objects, though he is wary of provoking the Three Pure Ones.

Significant themes

• Defiance and endurance: Wang Shi confronts immense power without yielding, turning the tribulation’s destruction into a path to survival and merit.
• Longing for freedom: His struggle reflects the suffering of a being confined for ages, making his transformation emotionally significant.
• Mentorship, loyalty, and rivalry: The Three Pure Ones’ bond with Wang Shi is sincere, but their gifts reveal competition over his allegiance.
• Power and obligation: Tongtian’s demand raises the question of whether a gift freely given remains a gift when backed by force.

Key plot points and events

• Sect Master Tongtian publicly pressures the powerful guests to give Wang Shi gifts, using mockery and the threat of future visits to make refusal embarrassing.
• Di Jun and Eastern Emperor Taiyi give Wang Shi an immortal Flat Peach and a Huangzhong Plum, then leave. Ancestor Minghe grudgingly offers a Blood-Dropper, a treasure that can create an external incarnation.
• Other renowned figures—including Hongyun, Zhen Yuanzi, and the East Sea King—also present gifts, ranging from a Fortune Green Lotus seed and Ginseng Fruit to Flat Peaches and Ancestral Witch blood essence. Wang Shi recognizes the gifts as valuable and remembers who gave them, viewing them as debts to repay.
• Once the guests depart, Wang Shi formally expresses gratitude to the Three Pure Ones and bows to confirm his discipleship. They assure him he is already their disciple.
• The Three Pure Ones ask why Wang Shi’s cultivation is only Golden Immortal level. He explains that he has awakened the Pangu Great Dao and will pursue “Proving Dao by Force,” a difficult path focused on strengthening himself. Despite his rank, he says ordinary Daluo Golden Immortals cannot harm him.
• Since the Three Pure Ones do not know this path, Wang Shi asks them to help by sparring with him. They agree, joking that his powerful body seems made to withstand beatings.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi shows gratitude, respect, and foresight: he values the Three Pure Ones’ guidance, understands his unusual cultivation, and treats the gifts as obligations he may one day repay.
• Tongtian displays his sharp, coercive humor by extracting gifts from the guests, then warmly draws Wang Shi into the family-like bond of the Three Pure Ones.
• The Three Pure Ones grow more impressed by Wang Shi’s potential and accept him wholeheartedly, though they recognize they cannot teach him the Pangu Great Dao directly.
• The guests react with resentment or unease but comply; Di Jun quickly manages Taiyi’s anger, while Minghe leaves in humiliation after Tongtian calls him stingy.
• Wang Shi and his masters shift from teacher-and-student formality to candid, affectionate cooperation, agreeing to discuss the Dao and train through combat.

Significant themes

• Power and social leverage: Tongtian turns the guests’ status and reputations into pressure to secure gifts.
• Reciprocity and karmic debt: Wang Shi remembers each gift and sees relationships as obligations that may need repayment.
• Chosen kinship and mutual respect: Wang Shi’s discipleship is grounded in gratitude, shared ideals, and genuine rapport.
• Destiny versus transformation: Wang Shi’s new Pangu path suggests he may challenge the established order of the Primordial World.
• Growth through struggle: His cultivation depends on battle and self-tempering, making hardship central to his development.

Plot points and events

• A spectacular display of rosy light, chaos purple qi, and merit appears over Buzhou Mountain. Wang Shi explains that it heralds his Companion Divine Artifact, long buried in the mountain, and suppresses the phenomenon to avoid attracting powerful outsiders.
• He returns carrying a formidable axe. Though he conceals its identity, it is the legendary Pangu Divine Axe, once used by Pangu to open heaven.
• Tongtian tries to lift it but finds it impossibly heavy; Wang Shi catches it before it can strike the ground.
• Yuanshi touches the axe and enters sudden enlightenment. Laozi soon does the same, followed by Tongtian. Wang Shi realizes that the demon-god blood on the axe carries traces of the three thousand great Daos, which resonate with the Three Pure Ones’ cultivation.
• After a thousand years of meditation, the Three Pure Ones awaken and immediately set off to break through into the Quasi-Saint realm—far earlier than Wang Shi believes they should.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi remains composed when the phenomenon appears, but later becomes anxious that his unusual rise and the Three Pure Ones’ early breakthroughs may disrupt the world’s expected course and attract Hongjun’s attention. He also acts as a guard while his masters cultivate.
• Tongtian is eager to inspect the axe, but its weight humbles him. He later gains insight into his Heaven-Severing Dao through its Dao rhythm.
• Yuanshi is drawn into deep enlightenment after examining the axe, and his cultivation surges.
• Laozi also enters enlightenment, showing how strongly the axe’s Dao rhythm resonates with the Three Pure Ones.
• The Three Pure Ones are amazed and envious of Wang Shi’s companion treasure. Their shared curiosity gives way to intense cultivation, while Wang Shi watches with a mix of pride, surprise, and envy.

Significant themes

• Destiny and disruption: Wang Shi’s unexpected transformation changes events that were supposedly destined to happen later.
• The power of inherited traces: Pangu’s axe preserves the Daos of the slain demon gods, allowing the Three Pure Ones to gain profound insights.
• Fortune and envy: Wang Shi’s extraordinary treasure inspires admiration among his masters, while their rapid progress leaves him envious in turn.
• Power with risk: The axe is so heavy and dangerous that even handling it carelessly could damage Buzhou Mountain.

Key plot points and events

• The Three Pure Ones—Taishang Laozi, Yuanshi, and Tongtian—begin breaking through to the quasi-saint realm, astonishing other powerful beings who watch from a distance.
• A Fortune Green Lotus appears over Buzhou Mountain. The Heavenly Dao attacks it with lightning, splitting it into a red blossom, white roots, green leaves, and four lotus seeds.
• The surrounding cultivators scramble for the pieces, but the three main fragments escape and fly into the Three Pure Ones’ lightning tribulations. Each Pure One takes one, while the seeds head west.
• The treasures’ arrival enrages the Heavenly Dao, intensifying the tribulations. Onlookers hope the Three Pure Ones will fail, but are afraid to intervene.
• Wang Shi warns them to keep their distance. Realizing his masters’ breakthrough is in danger, he considers teaching them the Method of Severing the Three Corpses, though he fears this may violate heavenly order.

Character developments

• Wang Shi shifts from bewildered observer to protective disciple. He understands the danger facing his masters and weighs the risks of sharing crucial cultivation knowledge.
• The Three Pure Ones gain powerful treasures but are placed in greater peril; their breakthrough remains incomplete.
• The watching cultivators reveal their envy and opportunism, presenting themselves as sympathetic while secretly hoping their rivals perish.

Significant themes

• Fortune and destiny: The lotus treasures seem destined for the Three Pure Ones, despite others’ attempts to claim them.
• Ambition and rivalry: The onlookers’ interest in the lotus—and their hopes for the Three Pure Ones’ deaths—shows how readily self-interest overrides sympathy.
• The cost of power: The treasures that could aid the Three Pure Ones also provoke the Heavenly Dao and make their tribulations more dangerous.
• Heavenly order versus intervention: Wang Shi must decide whether helping his masters is worth risking the consequences of revealing a breakthrough method.

Character interactions

• The hidden cultivators compete over the lotus fragments, insulting and threatening one another.
• Wang Shi addresses the gathered figures formally, asking them not to interfere with his masters’ tribulations.
• Though the bystanders voice regret for the Three Pure Ones, their private hope is that the tribulations will eliminate powerful rivals.
• Wang Shi’s concern for his masters contrasts with the crowd’s opportunism.

Plot points and events

• The Three Pure Ones struggle to break through the Daluo Golden Immortal realm, unaware of how to reach the quasi-saint realm. Amid the lightning tribulation on Buzhou Mountain, their disciple Wang Shi offers them a solution.
• Wang Shi explains the Method of Severing the Three Corpses, which advances cultivation by separating and suppressing the Good, Evil, and Self Corpses—the cultivator’s inner obsessions—using treasures as vessels. He claims to have learned it from a mysterious innate willow tree.
• The Three Pure Ones identify the supposed source as the ancient Great Immortal Yang Mei and begin by severing their Evil Corpses.
• Three treasures formed amid the tribulation—Three Treasures Jade Ruyi, Taiyi Whisk, and Qingping Sword—recognize their respective masters. The Three Pure Ones defeat and seal their Evil Corpses within the treasures, breaking through to the quasi-saint realm.
• The tribulation ends, and abundant merit descends. The gathered powerful figures congratulate the Three Pure Ones and immediately ask them to teach the method.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi shows initiative and composure, inventing a backstory for the method to persuade his masters. He stresses their shared fate and the embarrassment of failing publicly.
• The Three Pure Ones move from confusion and frustration to trust in Wang Shi, then to triumph and gratitude. Their breakthrough depends on his guidance and the treasures that appear during the tribulation.
• The surrounding cultivators watch in envy and astonishment, then approach the Three Pure Ones hoping to learn the secret.
• Wang Shi privately reflects that powerful figures likely hoard knowledge for personal gain, but recognizes that he cannot influence the larger politics of the Primordial World.

Significant themes

• Knowledge as power: A secret cultivation method can transform the balance of power, yet those who possess such knowledge may keep it to themselves.
• Trust and mutual obligation: Wang Shi’s appeal to the Three Pure Ones’ shared fortunes helps secure their confidence.
• Fortune and providence: The Three Pure Ones’ treasures arrive at a crucial moment and readily acknowledge them, reinforcing their extraordinary fortune.
• Self-interest in the pursuit of the Dao: Wang Shi sees the world’s spiritual advancement as entangled with ambition, secrecy, and the desire for greater power.

Plot points and events

• After Wang Shi quietly leaves the gathering, the Three Pure Ones tell the assembled cultivators that they cannot share the Quasi-Saint breakthrough method without its creator’s permission. The other cultivators accept the decision but plead with them to advocate on their behalf.
• Wang Shi says the method is known to others but should remain secret because it involves a powerful figure. The Three Pure Ones reluctantly agree not to reveal it.
• The Three Pure Ones return with Wang Shi to the Three Immortal Islands, where they begin an intensive training regimen: teaching him the Great Dao, putting him through body-tempering exercises, and spending his collected treasures and spiritual herbs on his growth.
• A thousand years later, Wang Shi has reached the Primordial Unity Golden Immortal realm, and his Pangu Great Dao—and practical strength—have improved greatly. His masters are disappointed by how slowly his cultivation has advanced despite their efforts.
• Wang Shi proposes a sparring match to demonstrate his strength. Tongtian agrees to test him.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi shows both caution and confidence: he recognizes the danger of revealing the secret method, but believes his strength exceeds what his cultivation rank suggests. He eagerly challenges his masters, softening the request with playful flattery.
• The Three Pure Ones remain devoted but increasingly uncertain that they can help Wang Shi through training alone. They worry about his safety and want to discover his true limits before considering letting him travel.
• The gathered cultivators reveal how desperately they want a path beyond the Daluo Golden Immortal realm, but they respect the Three Pure Ones’ inability to disclose someone else’s inheritance.

Significant themes

• Secrecy and responsibility: Powerful knowledge cannot be shared casually, especially when doing so may provoke a dangerous figure.
• Cultivation versus real strength: Wang Shi’s rank understates his abilities, while his unusual origins make progress unusually difficult.
• Mentorship and care: The Three Pure Ones invest heavily in their disciple, balancing their desire to protect him with the need to help him become independent.

Key plot points and events

• Wang Shi spars with Sect Master Tongtian in the void, opening with a dishonorable sneak attack. Tongtian evades it with illusory doubles and lectures Wang Shi about relying too heavily on raw strength instead of learning other Daoist arts.
• Tongtian temporarily restrains Wang Shi, but Wang Shi breaks free and lands a powerful punch, injuring him and bruising his pride.
• Tongtian unleashes a succession of techniques, but Wang Shi repeatedly smashes through them with sheer physical power and speed. Yuanshi and Laozi intervene, sealing off the surrounding space.
• Wang Shi breaks through their combined blockade, astonishing the Three Pure Ones. They then summon their three evil corpse counterparts and use all six fighters to trap him. Wang Shi finally surrenders, joking that his masters are fighting without honor.
• The masters conclude that Wang Shi’s body is extraordinarily durable for a Primordial Unity Golden Immortal and that few cultivators can harm him. Tongtian warns him to use his accompanying spiritual treasure decisively if his life is truly at stake.
• The Three Pure Ones send Wang Shi out to travel and experience the mortal world, insisting that cultivation must develop character as well as power. Though Wang Shi protests that he is still too weak, he ends up alone on a beach, worrying about the dangers ahead.

Character developments

• Wang Shi demonstrates remarkable speed, resilience, and confidence in his strength, but still lacks the breadth of techniques Tongtian recommends. His bravado gives way to anxiety when he is ordered to travel.
• Tongtian shifts from amused teacher to frustrated combatant after Wang Shi injures him, then offers serious advice about preparation and survival.
• Yuanshi and Laozi support Tongtian during the fight, prioritizing the lesson and the challenge over condemning Wang Shi’s sneak attack.

Significant themes

• Raw strength versus versatility: Wang Shi’s physical power can shatter many techniques, but his masters stress that strength alone is not enough.
• Cultivating the heart: Travel and worldly experience are presented as essential to personal growth, not distractions from cultivation.
• Humility and limits: Even a formidable fighter must recognize danger, prepare carefully, and know when to surrender.

Character interactions

• Wang Shi and Tongtian’s teacher-student relationship is playful but demanding: Tongtian tests and criticizes him, while Wang Shi answers with trickery and force.
• Yuanshi and Laozi join Tongtian when Wang Shi proves too difficult to contain alone.
• The masters’ final decision to send Wang Shi away contrasts with his desire to remain safely under their protection.

Plot points and events

• After a year crossing the sea, Wang Shi reaches land and encounters Ao Xi, a dragon princess fleeing Demon Court generals who are trying to capture her and pressure the Dragon Tribe into joining them.
• Wang Shi initially refuses to get involved, but the demons attack him too. He casually tears apart their supposedly powerful Heavenly Net and walks away with Ao Xi.
• The generals pursue them and are defeated. Wang Shi cooks and eats the demons, who had taken the form of chickens, while Ao Xi watches and then joins him.
• Ao Xi explains that she sneaked away from the West Sea Dragon Palace and became lost. Wang Shi urges her to go home, but she asks him to escort her in exchange for a reward.
• Rather than ask for treasure, Wang Shi requests access to the Dragon Tribe’s Dragon Transformation Pool, hoping to strengthen his body. Ao Xi is unsure whether it will work on him but agrees in principle, reasoning that she needs his protection.

Character developments

• Wang Shi is carefree, blunt, powerful, and ruled by practical appetites: he avoids trouble until attacked, then handles threats effortlessly. He is also resourceful, spotting a chance to gain access to a rare cultivation resource.
• Ao Xi is a sheltered, impulsive princess whose curiosity and lack of caution led her into danger. Though frightened at first, she becomes more comfortable with Wang Shi and negotiates for his help.

Character interactions

• Wang Shi repeatedly treats Ao Xi less like royalty than an inconvenient companion, prompting her to sulk; she nevertheless trusts him enough to ask for an escort.
• Ao Xi worries that Wang Shi’s actions will provoke the Demon Emperor, but he dismisses the threat.
• Their relationship shifts from reluctant rescuer and rescued princess toward a practical bargain: he will help her get home, and she will seek him access to the Dragon Transformation Pool.

Significant themes

• Power and confidence: Wang Shi’s casual destruction of the net and dismissal of the Demon Emperor contrast with the demons’ fear of punishment.
• Freedom versus protection: Ao Xi’s desire to escape palace confinement leaves her vulnerable, while her return home depends on Wang Shi’s strength.
• Self-interest and opportunity: Wang Shi’s involvement begins by accident, but he turns the situation into a chance to advance his cultivation.
• Clashing values: Wang Shi’s enjoyment of meat contrasts with his masters’ austere cultivation rules.

Key plot points and events

• Ao Xi agrees to honor her bargain with Wang Shi if he escorts her safely back to the West Sea Dragon Palace.
• Three greater demons reveal themselves and demand that Wang Shi surrender Ao Xi, threatening him on behalf of the Demon Court. They activate a Three Talents Formation, believing it will trap the pair and protect them.
• Ao Xi tries to break out but is thrown back. Wang Shi, who had noticed the demons setting up the formation, is unconcerned by it. One punch severely injures all three, though the formation spreads enough force to keep them alive.
• The demons flee. Wang Shi wants to pursue, but Ao Xi stops him, warning that they are sons of Demon Marshals and killing them would bring dangerous repercussions.
• At the coast, the West Sea Dragon King is searching anxiously for Ao Xi. She returns and introduces Wang Shi as her rescuer.
• Wang Shi asks to use the Dragon Transformation Pool, as agreed with Ao Xi. The Dragon King refuses, calling it a vital treasure of the dragon race and claiming it cannot benefit someone without dragon blood. Wang Shi calmly insists that the bargain be honored.
• As their disagreement begins, ominous thunderclouds gather over the palace.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi remains cheerful, confident, and seemingly oblivious to danger. His immense strength makes short work of the demons’ supposedly unbreakable formation, and he treats his request to use the pool as a matter of principle.
• Ao Xi moves from doubt to honoring her promise. She trusts Wang Shi enough to return with him, but also shows caution by preventing him from killing politically powerful enemies. Back home, she asks her father to keep his word.
• The three greater demons shift from arrogant threats to shock and retreat after discovering how powerful Wang Shi is.
• The West Sea Dragon King greets Ao Xi with relief and anger, then becomes protective and adamant when Wang Shi asks for access to the pool.

Significant themes

• Power and overconfidence: The demons’ confidence in their formation collapses against Wang Shi’s overwhelming strength.
• Promises and obligation: Ao Xi and Wang Shi expect the Dragon King to honor their bargain, while he weighs that promise against his clan’s interests.
• Justice versus consequences: Wang Shi sees punishing bullies as righteous; Ao Xi emphasizes the political dangers of retaliation.
• Loyalty and protection: Ao Xi’s concern for her father and her restraint of Wang Shi show that protecting others can mean preventing unnecessary violence.

Key plot points

• The West Sea Dragon King is pressured by the Heavenly Court’s Demon Tribe to accept its terms and submit the dragons to its authority. He has delayed for three years, hoping to consult the other Dragon Kings.
• Ao Xi reveals that the demons had just tried to capture her. Furious that they threatened his daughter, the Dragon King abandons his deferential stance and demands an explanation.
• The three demons identify Wang Shi as the man who defeated them—and claim he killed and ate their generals—and call on Demon Marshal Fei Lian to punish him.
• Fei Lian recognizes Wang Shi as a powerful disciple of the Three Pure Ones. Rather than confront him, he kicks the three accusers away, apologizes, and withdraws his army after Wang Shi orders him to stop harassing the dragon clan.
• Wang Shi asks to use the Dragon Transformation Pool. With Ao Xi’s pleas and reminder that Wang Shi saved her, the Dragon King agrees, though he warns that the pool’s Dragon Transformation Stone is dangerous for someone without dragon blood.
• As they travel to the West Sea Dragon Palace, Ao Xi presses Wang Shi to explain his identity. He begins to answer, but speaks so softly that she cannot hear him.

Character developments and interactions

• West Sea Dragon King: Moves from cautious submission to open defiance when he learns the demons targeted his daughter. His protectiveness ultimately helps persuade him to grant Wang Shi access to the pool.
• Ao Xi: Shows gratitude and trust toward Wang Shi, urges her father to help him, and demonstrates keen observation by noticing Fei Lian’s fear.
• Wang Shi: Remains casual and confident, effortlessly ends the confrontation, and uses his influence to protect the dragons. He is evasive—or playfully unhelpful—when Ao Xi asks who he is.
• Fei Lian: Initially arrives with a formidable force, but becomes deferential once he recognizes Wang Shi, revealing the latter’s high standing with both the Heavenly Court and Demon Tribe.
• The Dragon King and Wang Shi: Their exchange shifts from a request tied to a favor into an agreement to use the pool, with the Dragon King giving a clear warning about the risks.

Significant themes

• Family loyalty and protective love: The Dragon King’s anger and change of position are driven by the threat to Ao Xi.
• Power and hidden reputation: Fei Lian’s sudden retreat shows how recognition of Wang Shi’s status can overturn an apparently unequal confrontation.
• Coercion versus resistance: The dragons’ reluctance to submit contrasts with the Demon Tribe’s pressure and Wang Shi’s intervention.
• Gratitude and obligation: Ao Xi and the Dragon King treat Wang Shi’s rescue of her as a reason to repay his help.

Key plot points and events

• Wang Shi reaches the West Sea Dragon Palace to use its Dragon Transformation Pool. While the Dragon King fetches what is needed to open it, Ao Xi presses Wang Shi to reveal who he is. He teases her by claiming he is a star beyond her reach, flustering her.
• The Dragon King warns that the pool can destroy ordinary beings. Wang Shi enters anyway and, unharmed, absorbs the dragon race’s origin essence for three days, strengthening his body while visibly diminishing the pool’s power.
• Wang Shi emerges, thanks the Dragon King, and gives him the Sea-Calming Needle as compensation before quickly departing to avoid the Dragon King’s anger. The Dragon King is furious at the pool’s weakened state but accepts the treasure. He advises Ao Xi that Wang Shi is wild and impossible to rein in.
• Traveling toward Buzhou Mountain, Wang Shi senses something may have changed in his original body and hurries home. Along the way, he hears a beast’s roar and finds a hide-clad woman fighting a ferocious beast with traps and a special restraining rope.
• The beast proves unusually intelligent and can speak. A second identical beast ambushes the woman and bites her arm. Wang Shi intervenes in a rage, striking the attacker.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi remains bold, confident, and irreverent: he ignores the Dragon King’s warning, treats the pool’s peril as a pleasant bath, and leaves before facing the consequences. His physical strength increases through absorbing the pool’s essence.
• Ao Xi becomes curious and apparently develops a crush on Wang Shi, though his teasing embarrasses her. Her father recognizes her feelings but doubts Wang Shi is a suitable match.
• The West Sea Dragon King shifts from host to aggrieved guardian as the pool weakens. The Sea-Calming Needle partly eases his anger, but he remains wary of Wang Shi.
• The unnamed huntress is resourceful and skilled, using traps and a rope to control the beast, but is caught off guard by its double’s ambush. Wang Shi’s intervention establishes his protective response to her predicament.

Significant themes

• Power and risk: Wang Shi’s overwhelming strength lets him safely exploit a treasure dangerous to others.
• Consequences and compensation: He damages the Dragon Transformation Pool but offers a valuable treasure, balancing self-interest with strategic generosity.
• Misunderstood or changing nature: The speaking, cunning beasts challenge the assumption that their kind is mindless.
• Romance and incompatibility: Ao Xi’s growing interest contrasts with Wang Shi’s teasing detachment and the Dragon King’s belief that they are mismatched.

Key plot points and events

• A young woman, Little Tu, is ambushed by a horde of Fierce Beasts. Wang Shi joins the fight and recognizes the beasts’ aura as resembling that of the ancient Beast Emperor Shen Ni.
• Wang Shi suspects the beasts are Shen Ni’s clones, created to help him survive. He grows to enormous size and overwhelms them; the clones flee.
• After the battle, Wang Shi and Little Tu introduce themselves and travel together. Near Buzhou Mountain, Little Tu suddenly leaves, saying she is home, without telling Wang Shi where she lives.
• Wang Shi continues alone and discovers that the Witch Clan has built a huge Pangu Temple on Buzhou Mountain, which is his true form. Learning that the Witches believe they found a “Pangu Dao Fruit,” he goes to ask them about the construction.
• The temple’s occupants refuse to answer. Inside, ten Ancestral Witches debate whether Wang Shi is the “kid” they feared would come.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi shows courage and strength in protecting Little Tu. He becomes curious about her, enjoys their companionship, and feels regret when she leaves. His confidence gives way to suspicion and irritation when the Witches ignore him.
• Little Tu is exceptionally strong and fierce, yet compassionate: she often helps vulnerable beings and grieves over the endless violence and lost souls. She and Wang Shi form a warm friendship, though she keeps her home secret.
• Shen Ni appears indirectly through the attacking beasts, whose resemblance and shared aura suggest he may have survived through numerous clones.
• The Ancestral Witches are revealed as wary of Wang Shi and reluctant to face him, setting up a confrontation.

Significant themes

• Survival and fear of death: Shen Ni’s apparent use of clones reflects even great power’s instinct for self-preservation.
• Violence and compassion: Little Tu questions the ceaseless fighting and feels for its victims, contrasting with the brutal world around her.
• Companionship and separation: Wang Shi and Little Tu’s enjoyable journey ends abruptly, leaving him with a sense of loss.
• Belonging and home: Little Tu’s unexplained return and Wang Shi’s reflection on where home is give their parting a wistful note.

Plot points and events

• Wang Shi confronts the Twelve Ancestral Witches at Pangu Temple, which they built on his land without permission and where they have taken a treasure.
• Dijiang initially tries to smooth things over, suggesting they buy the land. Wang Shi demands that Houtu marry him, then—after the Witches reject the proposal—asks for other treasures instead.
• Dijiang admits the Witch Clan has little to offer. Wang Shi threatens to call on his masters, the Three Pure Ones, prompting Dijiang to promise they will obtain whatever Wang Shi requests—even by raiding or robbing others.
• Wang Shi asks for a bowl of Pangu’s blood essence from each of the Twelve Ancestral Witches. A comically huge bowl frightens them before he reveals a smaller one.
• Dijiang offers to provide the shares of two absent sisters, but Wang Shi insists that each Witch’s blood essence is distinct. To avoid losing face or appearing to bully a junior, Dijiang agrees.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi is calculating and confident. He turns the Witches’ attempt to settle the dispute into leverage for acquiring the blood essence he wants for his cultivation. His threats and exaggerated bowl are deliberate negotiating tactics.
• Dijiang shifts from defensive politeness to anger, then unease and reluctant compliance. Though powerful, he is constrained by the Witches’ limited resources, Wang Shi’s connection to the Three Pure Ones, and the need to preserve his clan’s reputation.
• Their exchange is framed as a tense but comic negotiation: Wang Shi treats the dispute like haggling, while Dijiang repeatedly reacts as though the stakes are escalating toward a fight.

Significant themes

• Power and face: Even mighty figures must consider reputation and social standing, especially when dealing with a junior.
• Cunning versus force: Wang Shi achieves his aims through pressure and negotiation rather than combat.
• Resource scarcity and exploitation: The poor Witch Clan is pushed to give up a valuable resource, while Wang Shi’s demand reflects his ambition to benefit from Pangu’s legacy.

Key plot points and events

• Wang Shi arrives at the Pangu Temple with Houtu, whom he knows as “Little Tu.” The Twelve Ancestral Witches discover that he is the Three Pure Ones’ disciple and the Stone Spirit formed from Buzhou Mountain.
• To avoid a fight—and because he values his friendship with Houtu—Wang Shi proposes letting the dispute go. Dijiang refuses, gives him the promised blood essence, and has him thrown out. The gift contains the essence of eleven Ancestral Witches, so Wang Shi notes that one portion remains unpaid.
• Back at Buzhou Mountain, Wang Shi raises a grand hall and names it the Buzhou Mountain Divine Hall. He spends a thousand years refining the blood essence and absorbing its Pangu lineage.
• His body recovers from a withered state, and his cultivation advances to Perfected Grand Unity Golden Immortal, one step short of great luo.
• Hongjun announces that he has become a saint and will lecture at Purple Firmament Palace in a thousand years. Wang Shi recognizes the significance of the coming lectures and decides to go.
• The Three Pure Ones tell Wang Shi they are already heading there and instruct him not to lag behind, leaving him to travel on his own.

Character developments

• Wang Shi shows restraint by seeking to resolve the conflict peacefully, but remains determined to claim the missing blood essence later. His cultivation and physical strength rise substantially.
• Houtu is warmly attached to Wang Shi, though she is surprised to learn his identity; she barely noticed him during their earlier encounter.
• Dijiang is protective and suspicious, interpreting Wang Shi’s familiar address as a sign that he may be courting Houtu. He ends the visit abruptly.
• The Three Pure Ones remain powerful but inattentive masters, departing for the lecture without taking Wang Shi along.

Significant themes

• Rivalry and factionalism: The Witches’ longstanding competition with the Three Pure Ones shapes their treatment of Wang Shi.
• Loyalty and protectiveness: Dijiang’s hostility stems partly from guarding his sister, while Wang Shi’s friendship with Houtu makes him reluctant to fight.
• Cultivation through inheritance: Wang Shi’s progress comes from carefully absorbing the Pangu bloodline in the Ancestral Witches’ essence.
• Opportunity and ambition: Hongjun’s lecture promises a major turning point, drawing powerful beings across the Primordial World.

Character interactions

• Houtu and Wang Shi greet each other as old companions, prompting Dijiang’s suspicion.
• Dijiang and the other Witches reject further ties with Wang Shi because of their rivalry with the Three Pure Ones, but still hand over the promised blood essence.
• Wang Shi complains that one portion is missing, and Dijiang promises to settle the debt later.
• The Three Pure Ones contact Wang Shi only to tell him to catch up, reinforcing his humorous frustration with their neglect.

Key plot points and events

• Wang Shi leaves Buzhou Mountain alone and races toward the Thirty-Three Heavens to hear Hongjun’s teachings. He sees the journey as a test of strength and speed, and is especially eager to secure one of the meditation cushions.
• In the Eighteenth Heaven, he hears fighting but initially tries to avoid it. Nuwa and Fuxi call for help, however, and he finds them trapped by Fierce Beasts led by Beast Emperor Shen Ni.
• Shen Ni’s clones have grown from Golden Immortal to Great Luo Golden Immortal strength. Wang Shi distracts him by hinting that he could expose Shen Ni’s survival, then breaks the formation and helps Nuwa and Fuxi escape.
• The three travel onward together. At the edge of the Thirty-Three Heavens, they find a huge crowd of cultivators waiting; the Purple Firmament Palace has not yet appeared or opened.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi shows both caution and loyalty: he avoids unnecessary danger but intervenes for Nuwa and Fuxi, whom he recognizes. His clever taunting gives them an opening to escape, and he is troubled by Shen Ni’s rapid recovery.
• Nuwa and Fuxi explain that they became trapped while defending a Demon Tribe settlement from the Fierce Beasts. They are grateful to Wang Shi, though they had already been able to hold their own and were not truly on the verge of defeat.
• Fuxi offers a calm, strategic perspective, arguing that Hongjun’s rise to sagehood makes a return to ancient chaos unlikely and that they should adapt to the new order.
• Shen Ni remains vengeful and secretive. He wants to kill Wang Shi but fears that news of his survival would disrupt his plans.

Significant themes

• “Destined affinity” as a trial: Reaching Hongjun’s gathering depends in practice on endurance, speed, and surviving the journey.
• Pragmatism and cooperation: Wang Shi initially avoids conflict, but joins forces when the situation—and his ties to the others—make it worthwhile.
• Power and hidden threats: Shen Ni’s sudden growth suggests that old dangers are returning, even as the world enters a new era under Hongjun.
• Adapting to change: Fuxi’s advice encourages following the new order rather than expecting the past to return.

Plot points and events

• At the edge of Chaos, a brash demon named Tiger Shark shoves Nuwa and tries to push Wang Shi aside. Wang Shi knocks him into the ground and stomps him nearly to death.
• Wang Shi learns that the crowd is waiting to reach the Purple Firmament Palace, which lies beyond a deadly chaos storm that has already killed many Great Luo experts.
• Tiger Shark’s companions, the Ten Guests of the Northern Darkness, surround Wang Shi and accuse him of killing their brother, though onlookers reveal that one of them had actually killed Tiger Shark. They use the accusation as a pretext to extort weaker targets.
• Wang Shi dismisses their threat and defeats all ten Daluo Golden Immortals with a single attack, leaving them helpless.
• The Swallowing-Heaven Young Master, ruler of the Northern Darkness Sea and younger brother of Daoist Kunpeng, asks Wang Shi to spare the group. Wang Shi refuses, extracts one victim’s soul, and slaps the Young Master twice when he attacks—mocking him as the “Big-Faced Young Master.”

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi is established as overwhelmingly powerful, fearless, and contemptuous of bullies and intimidation. He acts to defend Nuwa, then treats the Northern Darkness group and their influential leader with open mockery.
• Nuwa is protected by Wang Shi, though she takes little direct action in the confrontation.
• The Ten Guests are exposed as opportunistic intimidators who exploit their numbers and rank; their confidence collapses when Wang Shi easily defeats them.
• The Swallowing-Heaven Young Master tries first to invoke his status and family connections, then resorts to force. Both tactics fail, leaving him humiliated.
• Onlookers’ fearful reactions emphasize the gulf between Wang Shi’s strength and that of even renowned Daluo experts.

Significant themes

• Power versus status: Rank, reputation, and powerful connections mean little against genuine strength.
• Bullying and hypocrisy: The Northern Darkness group invents a grievance to extort others, while Wang Shi turns their intimidation back on them.
• Public spectacle and humiliation: Wang Shi’s exaggeratedly casual violence makes the confrontation both threatening and comic.
• The dangers ahead: The deadly chaos storm and the long list of experts gathered nearby foreshadow the peril of reaching the Purple Firmament Palace.

Key plot points and events

• After being mocked, the Swallowing-Heaven Young Master runs off crying to find his older brother. Wang Shi finishes off the Ten Guests of the Northern Darkness as the chaos storm begins to weaken.
• When no one else volunteers to test the storm, Wang Shi steps in despite Nuwa and Fuxi’s warnings. A tree demon enters first, but is torn apart almost instantly.
• Wang Shi withstands the storm using his Pangu bloodline and extraordinary physical strength, tearing open a passage through it. The Three Pure Ones follow to protect him; Nuwa and Fuxi join them rather than leave him alone.
• Their apparent progress prompts other cultivators to rush in, hoping to reach the Purple Firmament Palace first. Many are killed, proving the storm remains deadly; only the strongest can cross safely. The Two Buddhist Sages also enter in pursuit.
• Wang Shi reaches the Nine Meditation Cushions and is surprised to find nine seats of sagehood, more than he expected—evidence that the Primordial World’s established arrangements have changed. The Three Pure Ones arrive and angrily reprimand him for risking his life.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi remains fearless and confident, relying on his Pangu heritage and powerful body to force a path through the storm. His daring contrasts with the caution of those around him.
• Nuwa and Fuxi first try to restrain Wang Shi, then follow him out of loyalty and concern.
• The Three Pure Ones are alarmed by their disciple’s recklessness. They follow him to protect him and scold him once they catch up.
• The Swallowing-Heaven Young Master is revealed as a sore loser, fleeing in tears after being humiliated.
• The wider crowd shifts from hesitation to greedy competition, then back to fear as the storm claims many lives.

Significant themes

• Courage versus recklessness: Wang Shi’s boldness succeeds where another cultivator’s attempt fails, but it also puts his allies at risk.
• The cost of ambition: Desire to reach the palace first drives cultivators into a deadly hazard.
• A changing order: The unexpected nine seats suggest that the Primordial World’s rules or future have been altered.

Key plot points and events

• Wang Shi seats the Three Pure Ones on three of the Nine Meditation Cushions and warns them not to give them up. He claims another cushion for himself.
• Fuxi and Nuwa arrive. As the powerful cultivators crowd in, Hong Yun and Kunpeng take two seats; Fuxi secures another, and Di Jun claims the last with the Chaos Bell’s protection.
• The late-arriving Western Duo, Jieyin and Zhunti, find no seats. Zhunti stages a dramatic plea and pretends to attempt suicide, prompting Hong Yun to surrender his cushion. Zhunti takes it, leaving Hong Yun exposed to others’ resentment.
• Jieyin tries to force Wang Shi to give up his seat, but recognizes him and hastily redirects his threat toward Kunpeng, whom he throws off his cushion. Kunpeng blames Hong Yun for the loss and vows revenge.
• The Twelve Ancestral Witches arrive, chatting casually about the journey and the Purple Firmament Palace. Wang Shi spots them and calls out to “Little Tu.”

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Shi acts confidently, securing seats for himself and his masters, then remains unruffled when Jieyin challenges him—his masters’ presence gives him protection.
• Zhunti and Jieyin use emotional pressure to obtain a seat. Jieyin’s bluster collapses when he realizes whom he has challenged, and he takes his frustration out on Kunpeng instead.
• Hong Yun shows generosity by giving Zhunti his place, but the gesture earns him hostile looks and fuels Kunpeng’s anger.
• Kunpeng is humiliated and displaced, then directs his resentment toward Hong Yun rather than Jieyin.
• Eastern Emperor Taiyi uses the Chaos Bell to secure Di Jun’s place and weighs the risks of confronting the other seated cultivators, ultimately deciding against it.
• Fuxi and Nuwa secure places amid the rush, while the Three Pure Ones remain seated under Wang Shi’s warning.

Significant themes

• Power and status: The cushions symbolize rank, and possession alone does not guarantee safety; stronger cultivators can still take a seat by force.
• Manipulation and self-interest: Zhunti’s theatrical appeal wins him a seat, while others avoid helping until Hong Yun intervenes.
• Generosity and its consequences: Hong Yun’s kindness creates political resentment and unintended conflict.
• Fear and protection: Wang Shi’s confidence rests partly on his powerful masters, while Taiyi’s bell deters challengers.