Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Chen Mu successfully summons mythic-grade King Yama, whose Book of Life and Death contains every being’s name in any world he enters. A red mark can kill someone and send their soul to the Underworld; a black mark can grant everlasting life.
• His tenfold summon yields powerful figures, including Black and White Impermanence, Daji, Ox-Head and Horse-Face, several Great Emperors, and mythic-grade Victorious Fighting Buddha, Lord Guan, and Nezha.
• Curious about mythic-grade Lord Guan’s strength, Chen Mu brings him out to confront the Dragon Clan, which is besieging the Desolate Heaven Ancient Clan.
• Guan Yu greets Chen Mu as his lord and confidently promises to defeat the enemy with one strike. Chen Mu sends him out alone, despite Qin Hao and Qin Wudi’s concern.
• The Dragon Clan remains shaken after an unseen force instantly neutralizes its attack and kills 300 elite Dragon Beasts. Long Yan urges Long Ao to withdraw, but Long Ao refuses, unwilling to return in disgrace.
• As Long Yan’s fear rises, a man carrying a dragon-headed blade emerges from the Sacred Domain’s great hall, setting up the impending confrontation.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu is pleased with his summons and increasingly confident in deploying his powerful allies. He treats the Dragon Clan as an opportunity to test Guan Yu.
• Guan Yu appears dignified and formidable, showing absolute loyalty to Chen Mu and total confidence in his own strength.
• Qin Hao and Qin Wudi trust Chen Mu but remain uncertain whether Guan Yu can truly match the threat outside.
• Long Ao is rattled by the Dragon Clan’s sudden losses but lets pride override caution.
• Long Yan acts as the voice of reason, repeatedly advising retreat to prevent further losses.

Significant themes

• Power and authority: King Yama’s book grants control over life and death, while the summoned warriors’ presence commands immediate respect.
• Pride versus prudence: Long Ao’s fear of humiliation keeps him from following Long Yan’s sensible counsel.
• Faith and uncertainty: Chen Mu trusts Guan Yu’s capabilities, while those around him—and the Dragon Clan—must judge power without knowing its limits.

Plot points and events

• Long Yan senses Guan Yu’s overwhelming presence, but Long Ao dismisses him as an insignificant human and leads more than ten thousand Dragon Clan warriors in an attack.
• The dragons transform, greatly increasing their strength. Guan Yu waits until they are within range, then kills Long Ao, Long Yan, and the entire force with a single slash of his Green Dragon Crescent Blade.
• The slash also splits the clouds, leaving the witnesses stunned by the scale of Guan Yu’s power.
• Qin Hao and Qin Wudi realize how mistaken their estimate of the battle was. They become even more convinced that submitting to Chen Mu was the right choice.
• Ye Qingcheng admires Guan Yu’s strength, though Chen Mu notes that the slash was barely a fraction of Guan Yu’s real power.
• As Guan Yu prepares to return to Chen Mu, a furious newcomer appears, accusing him of killing his son and the Dragon Clan. Chen Mu identifies him as Long Jue, Long Ao’s father and the former Dragon Lord, now a pinnacle expert of the Dragon Domain.

Character developments and interactions

• Long Yan recognizes Guan Yu’s danger, but Long Ao ignores the warning and leads the charge; both are killed instantly.
• Guan Yu remains calm throughout and demonstrates effortless, overwhelming power.
• Qin Hao and Qin Wudi shift from uncertainty about Guan Yu’s chances to renewed confidence in their submission to Chen Mu. Qin Hao also regrets not choosing that course earlier, when it might have prevented casualties.
• Ye Qingcheng is impressed and believes she could block the slash, while Chen Mu’s view of Guan Yu’s true strength is far more extreme.
• Long Jue enters in grief and rage, setting up a confrontation with Guan Yu and Chen Mu.

Significant themes

• The danger of arrogance: Long Ao dismisses a threat he cannot understand and leads his forces to their destruction.
• Power and loyalty: Guan Yu’s feat strengthens the clan’s belief that Chen Mu commands forces beyond their ability to oppose.
• Regret and irreversible consequences: Qin Hao recognizes that his earlier decisions cost lives, but cannot undo them.
• Hidden limits of strength: What appears to be Guan Yu’s decisive effort is revealed to be an almost casual display of his power.

Plot and events

• Long Jue arrives too late to save the Dragon Clan forces, whose members have already been annihilated by the Desolate Heaven Ancient Clan. Enraged by the deaths of his son, Long Ao, and the others, he confronts Guan Yu.
• Long Jue summons a giant red dragon made of spiritual energy, but Guan Yu destroys it with one slash.
• Facing Guan Yu’s overwhelming advance, Long Jue uses True Dragon Transformation, becoming a massive dragon despite the technique’s danger of causing permanent madness.
• Even in dragon form, Long Jue cannot stop Guan Yu: Guan Yu cleaves through his fire attack and then severs his head with a single, nearly unnoticed strike.
• Long Jue hopes his clan will come to rescue him through the Dragon Clan’s Soul Lamp system. Chen Mu ends that hope by exploding Long Jue’s detached head with a flick of his finger.

Character developments and interactions

• Long Jue shifts from furious confidence and thoughts of revenge to shock, fear, and regret. Realizing he cannot defeat Guan Yu, he tries to flee and then clings to the hope of rescue.
• Guan Yu remains utterly calm and self-assured throughout, answering every attack with decisive force and showing no hesitation in killing Long Jue.
• Chen Mu watches from the hall and intervenes at the end, ensuring Long Jue cannot survive long enough to be rescued.
• Onlookers among the Desolate Heaven Ancient Clan covet Long Jue’s valuable dragon blood, underscoring the hostility between the groups.

Significant themes

• Overwhelming strength and helplessness: Long Jue’s secret technique and full dragon form are useless against Guan Yu’s superior power.
• The cost of vengeance: Long Jue’s impulsive attempt to avenge his son leads directly to his own death.
• Power as a resource: The spectators’ interest in dragon blood reflects a world where even a defeated enemy’s body is viewed as valuable cultivation material.
• False hope: Long Jue’s expectation that his clan will rescue him is cut short by Chen Mu’s final attack.

Plot and key events

• After surviving Chen Mu’s attack, Dragon Clan Ancestor Long Jue preserves a fragment of his soul and hopes to rebuild his body and return to Ten Thousand Dragon Valley.
• Chen Mu captures him through a Spatial Teleportation Gate and brings him to Desolate Heaven’s Sacred Domain Hall, where Qin Hao, Qin Wudi, and Ye Qingcheng realize he has a dragon soul.
• Long Jue offers to negotiate peace, but Chen Mu demands that Ten Thousand Dragon Valley submit—or be destroyed. When Long Jue rejects the ultimatum, Chen Mu crushes his soul.
• In secret, Chen Mu’s system converts Long Jue and more than ten thousand dragons into undead, giving him the beginnings of a large Undead Legion.
• Chen Mu tests Qin Hao and Qin Wudi’s loyalty by asking whether they will fight Ten Thousand Dragon Valley. Qin Hao pledges the clan’s support, and Chen Mu takes the two leaders through a gate toward the next confrontation.
• Wanting Ye Qingcheng to gain combat experience, Chen Mu brings her along and intends to let her fight. Qin Hao and Qin Wudi follow.

Character developments and interactions

• Long Jue shifts from relief at surviving to desperation, bargaining for his life before defying Chen Mu and being killed.
• Chen Mu remains ruthless and confident, demanding submission and secretly turning defeated enemies into military assets. He also shows consideration for Ye Qingcheng’s wish to participate in battle.
• Qin Hao and Qin Wudi demonstrate pragmatic, absolute loyalty: they agree to fight despite the clan’s weaker position, knowing refusal could be fatal.
• Ye Qingcheng welcomes the chance to improve through real combat, rather than remaining on the sidelines.

Significant themes

• Power and coercion: Chen Mu’s offer of submission or death leaves his enemies no genuine choice.
• Loyalty and survival: The Desolate Heaven leaders support Chen Mu both from allegiance and self-preservation.
• Pragmatism and hidden advantage: What appears to be the wasteful destruction of Long Jue’s soul is actually a way to expand Chen Mu’s forces.
• Growth through action: Ye Qingcheng’s coming battle reflects the value of firsthand experience in strengthening oneself.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Mu, Ye Qingcheng, Qin Wudi, and Qin Hao arrive in Ten Thousand Dragon Valley, the Dragon Clan’s mountainous homeland.
• Two dragon guards attack them immediately. Ye Qingcheng kills them with a single sword strike, leaving Qin Wudi no chance to demonstrate his own strength.
• As more Dragon Clan guards gather, Ye Qingcheng cuts down dozens and proves capable of defeating even powerful elders. The remaining defenders are too intimidated to approach.
• At the Dragon Clan’s Peak Court, reports arrive that humans have invaded and that Ancestor Long Jue’s fate star has gone dark—confirming his death.
• Furious, Ancestor Long Bao sets off alone to kill the intruders. The other two Ancestors, Long Yan and Long Yi, decide not to follow, believing Long Bao can handle the situation and fearing his resentment if they interfere.
• From above, Long Bao witnesses Ye Qingcheng’s overwhelming strength but dismisses his doubts and resolves to attack.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Qingcheng establishes herself as an exceptionally powerful swordswoman, swiftly eliminating every opponent who challenges the group.
• Qin Wudi and Qin Hao realize Chen Mu likely brought them to witness the vast gap between their abilities and his allies’, rather than to contribute meaningfully to the fight. Qin Wudi is frustrated when Ye Qingcheng acts before he can show off.
• Long Bao is blunt, hot-tempered, and unable to accept the Dragon Clan’s losses. Though Long Yan restrains him from attacking a messenger, Long Bao’s grief and anger drive him to confront the humans alone.
• Long Yan takes a more cautious view, acknowledging that powerful humans may have killed Long Jue. He restrains Long Bao once, then lets him go to avoid provoking him further.
• Long Yi agrees with Long Yan that they should stay behind.
• Chen Mu remains in the background while Ye Qingcheng handles the attackers.

Significant themes

• Power and intimidation: Ye Qingcheng’s effortless victories leave the Dragon Clan’s defenders afraid to fight.
• Pride and retaliation: Long Bao’s anger and wounded clan pride push him toward a rash confrontation.
• Recognition of strength: Qin Wudi and Qin Hao come to understand how far they lag behind the group’s strongest fighters.
• Caution versus impulse: Long Yan and Long Yi favor restraint, while Long Bao chooses immediate violence.

Key plot points and events

• Long Bao, a powerful Dragon Clan Ancestor, arrives and orders everyone to stop. Chen Mu and Ye Qingcheng remain calm, which enrages him.
• Long Bao attacks, intending to kill them. Ye Qingcheng meets his charge with the Immortal-Grade Heavenly Dao Emperor Weapon Chen Mu gave her.
• Her sword strike shatters Long Bao’s dragon-headed shield—designed to absorb attacks and unleash a devastating counter—and erases him before he can react.
• The Dragon Clan guards lose hope and flee. Qin Wudi and Qin Hao realize that Chen Mu and Ye Qingcheng’s strength comes from their own abilities, not merely from a treasure or inherited technique.
• At Peak Court, Long Yi and Long Yan sense the sword strike and recognize it as extraordinary sword intent. Long Yan begins to suspect Long Bao has been killed.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Qingcheng demonstrates overwhelming confidence and power, establishing herself in Qin Wudi’s eyes as the Nine Provinces’ greatest sword cultivator.
• Long Bao goes from arrogant certainty to indecision and death when faced with Ye Qingcheng’s attack.
• Qin Wudi accepts that the old balance of power has been broken and decides to serve Chen Mu, hoping to remain useful to him. Qin Hao shares his awe at the pair’s strength.
• Long Yi and Long Yan shift from expecting Long Bao’s success to fearing the worst after witnessing the sword strike’s lingering power.
• Chen Mu identifies Long Bao’s strength for Ye Qingcheng; she responds with a decisive attack, while the two remain untroubled by the Ancestor’s intimidation.

Significant themes

• Overwhelming personal strength: Ye Qingcheng’s sword intent shows that her power is intrinsic, not simply borrowed from an artifact.
• The collapse of established order: The newcomers’ abilities disrupt the Nine Provinces’ longstanding balance among powerful lineages.
• Arrogance and misjudgment: Long Bao underestimates his opponents, while the witnesses learn not to judge Chen Mu and Ye Qingcheng by ordinary standards.

Key plot points and events

• Long Yan and Long Yi worry about Long Bao’s fate after he leaves. A Fate Star Pavilion elder arrives and confirms Long Bao’s fate star has gone out; a guard then reports that a human killed him with one sword strike.
• Shocked, Long Yan orders the Dragon Clan’s sleeping elders awakened, while he flies to confront the intruders and Long Yi heads deeper into the valley to rouse the old generation.
• Long Yan finds Chen Mu, Ye Qingcheng, Qin Wudi, and Qin Hao surrounded by tens of thousands of Dragon Beasts. The Dragon Beasts roar for the intruders’ deaths, while the Dragon Clan members hope the horde can defeat them.
• Chen Mu stops Ye Qingcheng from attacking, telling her to save her strength for stronger opponents. The onlookers misread this as fear or exhaustion and begin discussing whether the humans should surrender—or be killed.
• Chen Mu silently expands his instant-kill domain to encompass the entire Dragon Beast horde.

Character developments and interactions

• Long Yan shifts from anxious disbelief to resolve, deciding the Dragon Clan must prepare for a major battle. Though cautious, he still hopes the beasts can eliminate the intruders before the elders awaken.
• Long Yi shares Long Yan’s concern but takes responsibility for summoning the sleeping elders.
• Ye Qingcheng obeys Chen Mu without hesitation, sheathing her sword and conserving her strength.
• Chen Mu remains composed and controls the pace of the confrontation, concealing the threat he is already directing at the horde.
• The Dragon Clan members reveal their fear and hostility: they speculate about the humans’ power, then increasingly favor killing them rather than risking their survival.

Significant themes

• Misjudgment and hidden power: The Dragon Clan interprets Chen Mu’s restraint as weakness, unaware that he has already placed the entire horde within his domain.
• Fear and escalating conflict: Long Bao’s sudden death terrifies the clan, prompting preparations for war and calls for vengeance.
• Hierarchy and expendability: The clan’s weaker members see themselves as potential cannon fodder, while the old generation is expected to decide the conflict’s outcome.

Chapter Summary

• The Dragon Clan attacks: A Dragon Clan elder orders roughly 43,567 Dragon Beasts to kill Chen Mu, Ye Qingcheng, Qin Wudi, and Qin Hao. Chen Mu remains calm, while Ye Qingcheng trusts his lead.
• Chen Mu’s instant slaughter: As the beasts charge, they explode en masse within Chen Mu’s Instant-Kill Domain. Their blood fills the valley in a vast, terrifying mist and rain. Ancestor Long Yan, unable to believe what he witnessed, swallows a Fifth-Grade Clarity Pill to rule out an illusion—but the slaughter is real.
• Long Yan intervenes: Fearing Chen Mu could wipe out the Dragon Clan before its other elders awaken, Long Yan undergoes True Dragon Transformation. He attacks with Heaven-Burning Sea of Fire, pouring immense, pure-yang flames over the group. The Dragon Clan members transform to endure the heat, while the surrounding trees and vegetation rapidly wither.
• Chen Mu absorbs the flames: After Long Yan exhausts himself and assumes his enemies have burned to ash, a vortex appears in the fire. Chen Mu absorbs the entire blaze with Palm Black Hole, calling the dragon flame a valuable resource for strengthening his Fire Spiritual Root. He, Ye Qingcheng, Qin Wudi, and Qin Hao emerge completely unharmed.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Chen Mu remains composed and demonstrates overwhelming power, first eliminating the Dragon Beasts effortlessly and then turning Long Yan’s strongest attack into a cultivation resource.
• Ye Qingcheng follows Chen Mu’s lead and stands beside him without hesitation.
• Qin Wudi and Qin Hao defer to Chen Mu, recognizing that he is the one who must take charge.
• Ancestor Long Yan shifts from disbelief to desperate action. His confidence in his fire attack collapses when Chen Mu consumes it with ease.
• The Dragon Clan moves from aggression to shock and fear, witnessing both the mass slaughter and the failure of its ancestor’s attack.

Significant Themes

• Overwhelming power and helplessness: The Dragon Clan’s numbers and strongest techniques prove ineffective against Chen Mu.
• Composure and trust: Chen Mu’s companions rely on him in the face of overwhelming danger.
• Reversal of expectations: A deadly attack becomes a source of cultivation, while Long Yan’s hoped-for victory leaves his opponents untouched.
• The cost of underestimating an enemy: The chapter recalls that Ancestor Long Bao was killed before he could transform, and suggests that Long Yan’s own assumptions about Chen Mu are equally mistaken.

Key plot points and events

• Ye Qingcheng overwhelms Ancestor Long Yan, cutting through his dragon flames and defenses, severing his limbs, and finally cleaving him in two despite another ancestor’s attempt to intervene.
• Long Yi and several other Peak Court Dragon Clan ancestors arrive and demand to know why the humans are attacking. Chen Mu recognizes their claim of having “no grievance or enmity” as hypocrisy.
• The ancestors undergo True Dragon Transformation together, displaying a range of innate elemental powers. The Dragon Clan members regain confidence, believing seven transformed ancestors will surely defeat the humans.
• Ancestor Long Lei attacks Ye Qingcheng with massive lightning strikes, but Chen Mu absorbs and neutralizes them through the black hole in his palm.
• Long Lei escalates with lightning orbs and a barrage of bolts. Chen Mu absorbs everything, turning the attacks into cultivation fuel. Alarmed, Long Lei warns the others that Chen Mu is dangerous; the remaining ancestors hesitate.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Qingcheng proves herself decisively stronger than Long Yan, calmly dismantling his transformed body and killing him.
• Chen Mu remains composed amid the Dragon Clan’s counterattack. His ability to absorb lightning makes him an increasingly frightening opponent—and encourages him to invite further attacks.
• Long Yan goes from disbelief at his failed flames to desperation, but is killed before he can escape.
• Long Yi and Long Lei respond differently to the humans: Long Yi demands an explanation, while Long Lei recognizes Chen Mu’s unusual power and cautions the others.
• Qin Wudi and Qin Hao silently acknowledge that they are far weaker than the human combatants around them.

Significant themes

• Reversal of power: The dragons’ former dominance over humans contrasts sharply with their present inability to harm them.
• Overconfidence and denial: The Dragon Clan initially assumes its transformed ancestors can restore control, despite evidence that the humans are stronger.
• Turning strength against the attacker: Chen Mu converts Long Lei’s lightning into a benefit, making conventional attacks counterproductive.
• The cost of isolation: The Dragon Clan’s astonishment at human strength suggests that withdrawing into Ten Thousand Dragon Valley left it unaware of how much the outside world had changed.

Plot points and events

• The Dragon Clan Ancestors refuse to let Chen Mu absorb their spiritual qi, so he instead uses Undead Summoning to raise every Dragon Beast he previously killed. His army gains 43,567 Dragon Beasts and the two Flame Dragon Ancestors, Long Bao and Long Yan.
• Chen Mu opens portals to the Shadow World, unleashing the undead dragons against the living Dragon Clan. The Ancestors realize that the creatures they raised have become their enemies.
• Chen Mu gives the Ancestors three seconds to choose between submission and death. Qin Wudi and Qin Hao are awed by his power and assume the Dragon Clan has little chance but to surrender.
• The ground upheaves, revealing that the “mountains” encircling Ten Thousand Dragon Valley are actually enormous, ancient Bone Dragons. These beings are far older and stronger than the current Dragon Ancestors; their buried bodies had protected the valley from outside Demon Beasts.
• The Bone Dragons rise and focus on Chen Mu, Ye Qingcheng, Qin Wudi, and Qin Hao. Their intimidating presence leaves even Qin Wudi shaken, and the chapter ends with uncertainty over whether Chen Mu and Ye Qingcheng can defeat them.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu remains confident and pragmatic: he treats either submission or death as a route to adding the Dragon Ancestors to his undead forces.
• The Dragon Ancestors shift from defiance to uncertainty as their former Dragon Beasts turn against them and a greater threat emerges.
• Qin Wudi and Qin Hao move from astonishment at Chen Mu’s abilities to fear before the Bone Dragons. Qin Hao also regrets having brought such powerful figures to the Nine Provinces.
• Ye Qingcheng remains beside Chen Mu as one of the few people the others trust to face the new threat.

Significant themes

• Power and coercion: Chen Mu’s overwhelming strength leaves his enemies with the apparent choice of submission or death.
• Life, death, and allegiance: The summoned dead retain their forms but serve a new master, turning the Dragon Clan’s own forces against it.
• Hidden history and shifting hierarchies: The supposed mountains prove to be the Dragon Clan’s true, ancient ancestors, challenging the authority of the current generation.
• Confidence tested by escalation: Even after Chen Mu’s spectacular show of force, the arrival of the Bone Dragons creates genuine doubt about what he can overcome.

Plot points and events

• Qin Wudi and Qin Hao discover that Ten Thousand Dragon Valley has concealed more than a dozen ancient Bone Dragon Ancestors. The dragons surround the survivors, leaving them with little chance of escape.
• A Bone Dragon Ancestor offers to spare Chen Mu if he swears eternal service to the Dragon Clan, even promising that he might eventually receive Saint Dragon blood and become one of them.
• Chen Mu rejects the offer, insulting the Ancestors as “mongrels” and arguing that their bloodline is far from that of true Saint Dragons.
• He reveals a supply of pure Saint Dragon blood, shocking the Ancestors. They offer to let the attack go if he hands it over, but Chen Mu withdraws it and turns their offer back on them: they can submit to him and perhaps earn the blood later.
• The dragons decide to kill Chen Mu and take the blood by force. As the Bone Dragon Ancestor’s killing intent immobilizes Qin Wudi and Qin Hao, Chen Mu summons King Yama through a ghostly portal. King Yama’s overwhelming aura and chilling presence frighten the dragons and impress the witnesses.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu remains confident and defiant despite being surrounded. He refuses both submission and negotiation, using his hidden Saint Dragon blood to challenge the Ancestors’ authority.
• Qin Wudi and Qin Hao realize how outmatched they are and fear Chen Mu has provoked the Ancestors needlessly. Their desperation shifts to awe when King Yama appears.
• The Bone Dragon Ancestors move from condescending admiration and attempted recruitment to greed, anger, and a decision to kill Chen Mu for his treasure.
• Ye Qingcheng is wary of King Yama’s unfamiliar portal and powerful aura, but relaxes when Chen Mu tells her he is an ally.
• King Yama emerges silently and waits for Chen Mu’s command, his presence alone demonstrating formidable power.

Significant themes

• Hidden power and concealed resources: Ten Thousand Dragon Valley’s Ancestors and Chen Mu’s true dragon blood each overturn others’ assumptions.
• Arrogance and status: The dragons’ claims to prestigious lineage are challenged by Chen Mu, who refuses to be impressed by their age or numbers.
• Power, loyalty, and coercion: Both sides offer bloodline transformation in exchange for absolute service, revealing how power is used to demand allegiance.
• Reversal of control: Just as the dragons believe they have cornered Chen Mu, his summoning of King Yama changes the balance of power.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Mu tests King Yama’s Book of Life and Death against the Bone Dragon Ancestors. King Yama finds the first ancestor’s forgotten name, Long Tianxiang, and crosses it out in red.
• Underworld bailiffs immediately seize Long Tianxiang’s soul. His enormous body collapses, confirming that the book’s power cannot be resisted.
• Chen Mu has King Yama cross out more names. One by one, the Bone Dragon Ancestors are stripped of their souls and taken to the Underworld until only one remains.
• The Dragon Clan Ancestors, led by Long Yi, kneel and beg Chen Mu to spare them, offering to serve him. Chen Mu doubts they have any value alive.
• Chen Mu summons the thirteen Bone Dragon Ancestors as undead. They emerge behind him, terrifying the Dragon Clan and the witnesses, Qin Wudi and Qin Hao.
• When Chen Mu appears ready to have the remaining dragons killed, Long Yi and the other Ancestors perform True Dragon Transformation. Rather than fight Chen Mu directly, they drain the Dragon Clan’s dragon qi—even as its members protest—and pour it into the last Bone Dragon Ancestor to make him stronger and cause Chen Mu trouble.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu demonstrates a ruthless, controlled use of supernatural authority: he orders executions without hesitation, then turns the slain Ancestors into undead servants. He rejects the Dragon Clan’s pleas and remains confident that they cannot bargain from a position of strength.
• King Yama acts as Chen Mu’s instrument, identifying names and carrying out their erasure; the Underworld bailiffs enforce the book’s judgments.
• Long Yi and the Dragon Clan Ancestors shift from threatening Chen Mu to pleading for their lives, then resort to a desperate sacrifice when submission fails.
• Qin Wudi and Qin Hao witness the events with mounting disbelief. They conclude that Chen Mu’s power exceeds ordinary ideas of immortal or divine strength.
• The Bone Dragon Ancestors go from arrogant threats to helpless victims of the book; in death, the thirteen become Chen Mu’s undead forces.

Significant themes

• Power and inevitability: Once a name is crossed out, even powerful Ancestors cannot escape the Book of Life and Death.
• Life, death, and control: Chen Mu can not only command death but also summon the dead back into service.
• Desperation and survival: The Dragon Clan’s pleas and eventual sacrifice reveal how far its leaders will go once their former strength proves useless.
• Humiliation and reversed roles: Former enemies who threatened Chen Mu are reduced to supplicants or obedient undead, underscoring his overwhelming dominance.

Plot points and events

• The Bone Dragon Ancestor regains a flesh-and-blood body by absorbing the life force of the Dragon Clan Ancestors. He becomes a powerful Saint Dragon, while the drained Ancestors beg, curse, and finally look to him for revenge.
• Confident in his new strength, Long Lie attacks Chen Mu and his companions with a massive Dragon Essence Bomb. Chen Mu orders King Yama to cross Long Lie’s name out of the Book of Life and Death.
• King Yama’s ghost attendant pulls out Long Lie’s soul, killing him before the attack can hit the group. The Dragon Clan Ancestors then die as their last hopes disappear.
• Chen Mu uses the system to summon nearly 25,000 Dragon Clan undead and has them continue living under its rule in Ten Thousand Dragon Valley.
• Chen Mu returns to the Desolate Heaven Ancient Clan with Ye Qingcheng and Qin Wudi. Qin Wudi asks how Chen Mu views the other seven great Lineages.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu remains calm before Long Lie’s overwhelming attack, relying on the Book of Life and Death rather than meeting force with force. He treats the aftermath as an opportunity to secure and govern the Dragon Clan’s territory.
• Long Lie gains immense power and confidence, but his Saint Dragon transformation cannot protect him from King Yama’s authority.
• Qin Wudi and Qin Hao shift from expecting certain death to believing Chen Mu is invincible and divine. They are stunned when he restores the Dragon Clan as undead.
• Ye Qingcheng stays unimpressed by Long Lie’s size and power, seeing him as ordinary by comparison with the dragons at Tianyuan Holy Land.
• The dying Dragon Clan Ancestors plead with Long Lie to avenge them, only to witness his instant defeat and die in despair.

Significant themes

• Power has limits: Even a Saint Dragon can be helpless against the Book of Life and Death.
• Sacrifice and betrayal: The Ancestors’ life force is used to empower Long Lie, leaving them to die for a plan that fails.
• Death and control: Chen Mu turns the fallen Dragon Clan into undead subjects, making destruction another form of conquest.
• Contrasting perspectives: Qin Hao and Qin Wudi see Chen Mu’s power as godlike, while Ye Qingcheng regards the transformed dragon as unremarkable.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• After the defeat of Ten Thousand Dragon Valley, Qin Wudi recommends that Chen Mu subdue the seven remaining great Lineages and unite the Nine Provinces, preventing future challengers and allowing the regions to share resources.
• Chen Mu consults his wife, Ye Qingcheng. She supports the plan, arguing that Chen Mu is best suited to rule and that unity would strengthen the Nine Provinces alongside Great Cang.
• Chen Mu agrees and uses his system to summon 999 mythic-rank Kings Yama. Seven appear before the assembled elders, whose overwhelming spiritual presence leaves most of them collapsed or unable to move.
• Chen Mu sends the seven Kings Yama to the other continents with an ultimatum: submit or die.
• At the Lu Family’s Heavenly Evolution Sacred Domain, a King Yama delivers the decree. When elite disciple Lu Yu attacks, a crimson-robed ghost possesses him and forces him to stab himself. The chapter ends as Elder Lu Xiao arrives.

Character developments

• Chen Mu shifts from responding to threats to pursuing the outright unification of the Nine Provinces, confident in his power and system.
• Qin Wudi openly offers strategic advice and remains standing under the Kings Yama’s oppressive presence, though he is secretly immobilized.
• Ye Qingcheng acts as Chen Mu’s trusted partner, supporting his ambition while emphasizing stability and shared prosperity.
• Lu Yu becomes the first example of the Kings Yama’s supernatural force, dying after his attack is turned against him.

Significant themes

• Power and submission: Chen Mu intends to establish unity through overwhelming force.
• Order versus conflict: Unification is presented as a way to prevent future disputes and coordinate resources.
• The terror of the supernatural: The Kings Yama and their ghosts can overpower opponents in ways ordinary weapons cannot.

Character interactions

• Chen Mu seeks and accepts advice from Qin Wudi and Ye Qingcheng before committing to his campaign.
• The Kings Yama carry Chen Mu’s command across the continents.
• At the Lu Family, the messenger confronts the assembled disciples; Lu Yu’s defiance triggers the ghost’s attack, while the others panic and call for an elder.

Key plot points and events

• Elder Lu Xiao arrives at the Heavenly Derivation Lu Family and learns that King Yama has demanded the family submit or die—and that Lu Yu killed himself under Yama’s supernatural influence.
• Lu Xiao dismisses Yama as a sinister practitioner and threatens to execute him. Before he can attack, ghostly hands seize him from an eerie mire and pull him into the Hell World. His sword and fire techniques prove useless, and the gateway closes after he disappears.
• The Lu Family disciples are too frightened to intervene. They take heart when more than a hundred Enforcement Pavilion members, including numerous elders, arrive and surround Yama.
• The Pavilion’s leader orders Yama to come in for questioning. Yama ignores the demand and repeats his master’s Imperial Edict: will the Lu Family submit?
• Far away, Chen Mu watches the confrontation through the Heaven-Peering Mirror. He and the Desolate Heaven Ancient Clan elders see firsthand how formidable Yama’s abilities are, and the elders begin to understand why Chen Mu sent him alone.

Character developments and interactions

• Lu Xiao shifts from confidence to panic as Yama’s power overwhelms him; his threats and attempts to fight give way to desperate pleas for rescue.
• King Yama remains silent and unmoved by Lu Xiao’s challenge, then calmly repeats his demand even when surrounded by the Enforcement Pavilion.
• The Lu Family disciples are initially reassured by the Pavilion’s arrival, but remain wary and unwilling to confront Yama themselves.
• Chen Mu gains confidence in Yama after seeing his skills in actual combat. Qin Wudi and Qin Hao, already familiar with Yama’s strength, are less shocked than the clan’s other elders.

Significant themes

• Power and hubris: Lu Xiao’s rank and confidence cannot protect him against an overwhelmingly stronger opponent.
• Fear and helplessness: The disciples’ paralysis shows how Yama’s supernatural power destabilizes even a large, organized force.
• Faith tested by evidence: Seeing Yama in action turns the Desolate Heaven elders’ skepticism into belief.
• Authority versus defiance: The Enforcement Pavilion attempts to assert control, while Yama continues to act under his master’s command.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Mu initially worries whether King Yama can overcome the Lu Family’s Enforcement Pavilion, but the chapter makes clear that King Yama’s Mythic Rank power vastly exceeds theirs.
• An Enforcement Pavilion captain attacks the Red-Clad Vengeful Ghost. His protective aura and saber cannot harm her. When she cannot possess him because he has thrown away his weapon, she grabs him, reveals her terrifying face, and drains his life essence.
• The ghost’s strength grows after feeding. She then shrieks, lifting the Pavilion’s members into the air and extracting life essence from their seven orifices. She absorbs the cultivation, techniques, and memories of those she devours.
• Once she has drained more than a hundred people, she reduces their skeletal remains to dust. The surviving Lu Family members are overwhelmed by despair.
• Watching through the Heaven-Peering Mirror, Qin Wudi, Qin Hao, and the others feel relieved they submitted to Chen Mu early. They reflect that survival matters more than pride.
• Lu Chengyi, the Lu Family head, seeks help from three Ancestors and begs them to defend the family. They agree to emerge from seclusion.
• Ten li away, King Yama learns of their plans and turns the pages of the Book of Life and Death, setting up the next confrontation.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu watches with fascination and discovers the ghost’s ability to gain victims’ cultivation, techniques, and memories. He envies the power as another kind of “cheat.”
• The Red-Clad Vengeful Ghost proves to be both nearly untouchable and capable of escalating in strength by devouring life essence.
• Lu Chengyi shifts from relying on the Enforcement Pavilion to urgently appealing to the family’s Ancestors after witnessing its defeat.
• The Enforcement Pavilion goes from confidence and tactical probing to helpless panic. Its members’ failed attempts to counter the ghost deepen their terror.
• The three Lu Ancestors agree to protect their family, while King Yama calmly prepares to meet them.
• Qin Wudi, Qin Hao, and their companions compare the Lu Family’s defiance with their own earlier surrender and conclude that yielding preserved their lives.

Significant themes

• The futility of pride against overwhelming power: The Lu Family’s status and confidence offer no protection when faced with King Yama and his ghost.
• Survival over honor: The former opponents watching the battle see submission as wiser than needless resistance.
• Escalating supernatural power: The ghost’s ability to absorb life essence—and the victims’ knowledge and cultivation—makes her more dangerous with every attack.
• Judgment and mortality: King Yama’s authority over life and death contrasts with the Lu Family’s belief in its own strength.

Key plot points and events

• King Yama marks Lu Xiangyang for death, and Black-and-White Soul Reapers appear in the Lu Family courtyard to seize him.
• Lu Xiangyang is stripped of his cultivation and dragged to the Underworld. The other Ancestors cannot intervene.
• The Soul Reapers then take Lu Chengguang. Lu Hai’s attack passes through them, and his protective aura and spiritual tools prove useless.
• Lu Hai finally offers to submit, but the reapers ignore him and take his soul as well. The three Ancestors are condemned to endless torment in King Yama’s hell.
• Lu Chengyi, the family patriarch, breaks down and submits. Once the danger passes, he prepares to fly to King Yama and announce the clan’s surrender.
• The Desolate Heaven Ancient Clan witnesses the entire encounter through the Heaven-Peering Mirror and realizes how completely King Yama has overwhelmed the Lu Family.

Character developments and interactions

• Lu Xiangyang, Lu Chengguang, and Lu Hai go from confidence in their status and strength to helpless terror as their cultivation and defenses fail. Lu Hai’s late surrender comes too late.
• Lu Chengyi moves from shock and fear to decisive submission, judging that resistance is futile.
• The Soul Reapers act without hesitation or emotion, ignoring pleas and attacks alike.
• The Desolate Heaven Ancient Clan, including Qin Wudi, Qin Hao, and the elders, reassesses Chen Mu’s power and suspects he commands more than seven King Yamas.

Significant themes

• Powerlessness before overwhelming authority: Even the Lu Ancestors’ formidable cultivation cannot protect them from the Underworld’s rules.
• Fear and surrender: Repeated deaths break the Lu Family’s resolve, while submission offers its patriarch the only apparent chance of survival.
• The cost of defiance: The Ancestors’ pleas do not save them; their souls are taken for endless punishment.
• Hidden power: Chen Mu’s forces appear far greater than observers had assumed.

Key plot points and events

• The Heavenly Derivation Lu Family’s disciples wait for their Ancestors to defeat King Yama, unaware that the Ancestors have already been killed.
• Patriarch Lu Chengyi arrives and immediately kneels, declaring the Lu Family’s submission. The disciples are stunned and condemn him as a coward, chanting, “Rather die standing than live kneeling!”
• Lu Chengyi reveals the warm corpses of the three Lu Family Ancestors, warning that they died when their souls were torn out. He urges the disciples not to resist, knowing the family has no chance against King Yama.
• Some disciples reject the evidence and continue calling for battle. King Yama uses the Book of Life and Death to mark their names, sending Soul-Locking Chains through portals to extract their souls. Hundreds die, their bodies collapsing like those of the Ancestors.
• The survivors—including elders—finally surrender. The Lu Family becomes another force under Chen Mu’s command. King Yama takes Lu Chengyi through a Spatial Teleportation Gate.
• At the Desolate Heaven Ancient Clan, Qin Hao watches through the Heaven-Peering Mirror. As he turns to check on other lineages, seven of King Yama’s gates appear before him.

Character developments and interactions

• Lu Chengyi is revealed as pragmatic and protective rather than cowardly. He submits to spare his people and tries to stop them from dying in a futile show of defiance. His actions clash with the disciples’ idealized image of him as a heroic, peerless genius.
• The disciples move from confidence in their Ancestors and contempt for surrender to terror and submission after witnessing the deaths caused by King Yama.
• King Yama acts with cold efficiency, using the Book of Life and Death and Soul-Locking Chains to punish resistance, but stops once the family submits.

Significant themes

• Defiance versus survival: The chapter challenges the slogan “Rather die standing than live kneeling,” showing its cost when resistance is hopeless.
• The limits of pride and strength: Neither Lu Chengyi nor the family’s Ancestors can challenge the enemy; courage alone cannot change that.
• Leadership and responsibility: Lu Chengyi accepts humiliation to protect those under his care, distinguishing responsible leadership from performative bravery.
• Fear as a catalyst: The mass soul-extractions make clear the consequences of resistance and force the survivors to confront reality.

Key plot points

• Lu Chengyi witnesses multiple identical King Yamas and realizes that the major clans are being brought before Chen Mu. He is stunned to find the Desolate Heaven and Giant Clans—and then the leaders of the other great families—already gathered.
• Seven King Yamas report that every major clan except Ten Thousand Dragon Valley has been subdued. Their display of power overwhelms Lu Chengyi, whose reverence and loyalty to Chen Mu are instantly fixed by the system.
• The seven leaders, including Lu Chengyi, kneel and pledge allegiance. Han Zhenshi offers to lead an assault on Ten Thousand Dragon Valley, but Qin Hao reveals that Chen Mu has already wiped out the Dragon Clan.
• With the Nine Provinces now under his control, Chen Mu asks the system to manage a King Yama as his representative. He tells the clan leaders to seek the King Yama’s guidance if trouble arises while he is away.
• Chen Mu opens a passage back to Qingyun Prefecture and returns home with Ye Qingcheng. Settling into his recliner, he is content to be back, but Ye Qingcheng begins to ask him a question.

Character developments and interactions

• Lu Chengyi shifts from bewildered observer to fervent subordinate after seeing Chen Mu’s overwhelming authority and the clans’ submission.
• Han Zhenshi quickly embraces his new position under Chen Mu, offering military support in hopes of earning trust and influence.
• Qin Hao clarifies that the Dragon Clan is already extinct, shocking the newly submitted leaders.
• Chen Mu consolidates rule without lingering to govern personally, delegating the Nine Provinces to a system-managed King Yama. He then returns to a relaxed domestic life with Ye Qingcheng.
• The clan leaders collectively acknowledge Chen Mu’s command, while Ye Qingcheng’s final question sets up the next exchange.

Significant themes

• Power and submission: The King Yamas’ presence makes resistance seem futile, and the great families pledge themselves to Chen Mu.
• Loyalty as control: The system turns the leaders’ allegiance into unbreakable loyalty, beyond their awareness or ability to reverse.
• Delegation and order: Chen Mu relies on the system and his appointed representative to govern territories in his absence.
• Conquest contrasted with domestic peace: After taking control of an entire realm, Chen Mu is happiest returning to the comfort of home.

Plot points and events

• Chen Mu and Ye Qingcheng discuss why the Nine Provinces are stronger than Great Cang: spiritual qi is richer there, and more people awaken cultivation talent.
• A system reward gives Chen Mu 999 Great Dao Spirit Veins. He installs one in Great Cang, causing a tremendous surge of pure spiritual qi. The system’s thousandfold rebate then grants him 1,000 more.
• Chen Mu installs a second vein in front of his father, Chen Tianlin, triggering another surge and another rebate.
• Tianlin worries that the sudden increase in spiritual qi signals danger, but Chen Mu explains what he has done.
• Tianlin asks where Chen Mu and Ye Qingcheng have been. Chen Mu reveals they visited the Nine Provinces and subdued its people.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu remains casual about his extraordinary power and treats world-altering treasures as readily available. He reassures his father and wife, and offers Tianlin more cultivation power—an offer that only increases his father’s discomfort.
• Ye Qingcheng learns how spirit veins affect cultivation potential and is astonished by the Great Dao Spirit Veins’ power. She credits Chen Mu with ensuring her safety in the Upper Realm.
• Chen Tianlin arrives alarmed by Great Cang’s sudden spiritual-qi surge. His amazement at Chen Mu’s abilities turns into self-consciousness about not feeling worthy as his father; he then struggles to process Chen Mu’s claim that he conquered the Nine Provinces.
• The family’s exchanges are affectionate but comedic: Chen Mu’s matter-of-fact boasts contrast with Tianlin’s mounting shock, while Ye Qingcheng supports and reassures him.

Significant themes

• Power and transformation: A single treasure can dramatically improve Great Cang’s spiritual environment and future cultivation prospects.
• The widening gap between Chen Mu and those around him: His effortless use of overwhelming resources leaves even family members astonished and insecure.
• Family concern and pride: Tianlin’s alarm and questions stem from worry for Chen Mu, while his son’s achievements inspire both pride and disbelief.