Chapter Summaries

Key events

• Ye Qingcheng and the others face a gigantic Man-Faced Sand Serpent, which they fear may be a hundred-thousand-year beast. The serpent ignores the group and attacks Shadow Puppet.
• Shadow Puppet stops its jaws with enormous phantom hands, lifts the creature, and tears it apart in a single blow. Its death clears the dust, revealing the ruined Kingdom of Sand.
• He leaves to search the secret realm for treasure on Chen Mu’s behalf. The group is left stunned; when the elders arrive, they find heaps of dead beasts and no casualties.
• Ye Qingcheng tells the elders what happened. The Tianyuan Elder doubts the explanation until Shadow Puppet briefly appears, passes him, and slips back into Ye Qingcheng’s shadow. His presence leaves the elders paralyzed with fear.
• On the return journey, the Tianyuan Elder speculates that the figure may be connected to the Inner Court, then resolves to cultivate harder and seek advancement.
• Ye Qingcheng returns to Chen Mu’s courtyard. Seeing Shadow Puppet emerge from her shadow and head toward Chen Mu, she mistakes him for an assassin.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Qingcheng remains ignorant of Shadow Puppet’s origins, but begins imagining that she may have a hidden ancient lineage and that he is her guardian. Her awe shifts to alarm when she sees him approach Chen Mu.
• The Tianyuan Elder is shaken by Shadow Puppet’s overwhelming power. Unable to explain it, he retreats to a theory involving the Inner Court and turns his fear into renewed ambition.
• Shadow Puppet demonstrates immense strength and unwavering loyalty to Chen Mu, protecting Ye Qingcheng’s group while acting on Chen Mu’s behalf. His silent appearances unsettle both disciples and elders.
• The elders and disciples react with disbelief and fear, struggling to reconcile the untouched survivors with the devastation around them.

Significant themes

• Power overturns expectations: Shadow Puppet’s effortless victory makes even formidable elders question what they thought possible.
• Mystery and misinterpretation: No one understands his origins or purpose; Ye Qingcheng and the elder invent explanations from limited evidence.
• Hidden protection and loyalty: Shadow Puppet guards Ye Qingcheng while ultimately serving Chen Mu, whose connection to the events remains unexplained.

Key plot points and events

• Ye Qingcheng rushes to protect Chen Mu, believing the silver-armored Shadow Puppet has been pretending to serve him. She stops when she sees the puppet kneeling and presenting Chen Mu with a Spatial Ring.
• The ring contains the treasures the puppet recovered from the Sand Kingdom ruins, including more than ten thousand cultivation techniques and numerous powerful Heaven Rank techniques. Because Chen Mu can access the puppet’s memories, he knows what it collected.
• Chen Mu’s system grants him 10,000 Divine Rank Shadow Puppets. He realizes their combined strength could let him establish a holy land of his own, though he has no desire to leave his comfortable position.
• Chen Mu explains that he assigned the original Shadow Puppet to protect Ye Qingcheng in the secret realm. Grateful that it saved her life, she vows to devote her life to him.
• After eating, Chen Mu and Ye Qingcheng take a stroll through the holy land. Disciples greet Chen Mu with awe, discussing his rapid progress and the Saint Rank weapon he gave Ye Qingcheng.
• The chapter reveals that Chen Mu has advanced to late-stage Martial Warrior simply by breathing. His breathing-based cultivation ability has reached level two, doubling its gains, and he is nearing the Martial Master Realm.
• Their walk brings them to the holy land’s Tower of Trials, which Ye Qingcheng asks Chen Mu to identify.

Character development and interactions

• Ye Qingcheng shifts from suspicion of the Shadow Puppet to admiration for Chen Mu’s foresight. Her gratitude deepens into absolute loyalty, and his seemingly effortless cultivation further amazes her.
• Chen Mu remains relaxed and unconcerned with power for its own sake. He accepts the puppet’s treasures, enjoys his meal, and treats his extraordinary growth as almost routine.
• The disciples revere Chen Mu and take his achievements as motivation to work harder, though they do not know that he has not actually trained.

Significant themes

• Overwhelming power and effortless advancement: Chen Mu’s system makes cultivation and breakthroughs almost automatic.
• Loyalty through protection: The Shadow Puppet’s service saves Ye Qingcheng, strengthening her devotion to Chen Mu.
• Reverence and aspiration: Disciples regard Chen Mu as an exceptional figure and measure their own ambitions against his.
• Abundance and restraint: Chen Mu gains immense resources and power but remains content with his current status rather than seeking to build an empire.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Mu and Ye Qingcheng visit the Tianyuan Holy Land’s five-hundred-floor Trial Tower, where a learning spirit imitates past challengers. Clearing floors earns cultivation resources and recognition.
• Ye Qingcheng eagerly enters, hoping to grow strong enough to stay at Chen Mu’s side. She quickly reaches the ninth floor, fighting with her Purple Tenuity Sword and agile swordplay while drawing an admiring crowd.
• Chen Mu watches from a tree, uninterested in the tower’s rewards or challenge. During a relaxed breath, his cultivation surges: he breaks through to the Martial Master Realm, astonishing onlookers who recall how recently he was far weaker.
• Chen Yu, Chen Mu’s reserved younger cousin and celebrated sword prodigy, emerges after clearing the 350th floor. He greets Chen Mu and gives him a superior thunder-based sword technique, knowing Chen Mu has a thunder talent.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Qingcheng shows ambition and determination, choosing to test herself rather than rely on her title as Saintess. Her performance confirms her considerable skill.
• Chen Mu continues to advance effortlessly through his unusual cultivation method and remains unconcerned with conventional challenges. He is amused by others’ exaggerated assumptions about his motives.
• Chen Yu is established as a powerful, disciplined, sword-obsessed Grandmaster. Though normally taciturn, he is warmer toward Chen Mu and offers him a technique as a thoughtful gesture.
• The crowd praises Ye Qingcheng and Chen Yu, while treating Chen Mu’s rapid breakthroughs as evidence of extraordinary future potential. Chen Mu and Chen Yu’s respectful, familiar exchange highlights their family bond.

Significant themes

• Effort and ambition: Ye Qingcheng actively seeks trials to become stronger, contrasting with Chen Mu’s effortless progress.
• Different paths to power: The tower tests skill, adaptability, and resolve, while Chen Mu relies on cultivation gains; Chen Yu’s mastery comes through dedicated sword practice.
• Recognition and potential: Public admiration reflects the characters’ reputations, but the chapter also gently mocks how observers misread Chen Mu’s lack of interest as consideration for others.

Plot points and events

• Chen Yu gives Chen Mu the legendary Thunder Gate Sword Cultivation manual, a lost art that requires a heaven-rank supreme thunder spirit root—the very talent Chen Mu has awakened.
• Chen Mu reciprocates with a top-tier heaven-rank movement art, Light as a Swallow, and a saint-rank sword, the Heavenly Abyss Sword. Chen Yu accepts after Chen Mu insists that family should not stand on ceremony.
• Chen Mu’s gifting system triggers a hundredfold rebate, granting him 100 distinct top-tier movement manuals and 100 saint-rank weapons.
• After Chen Yu leaves to train, Chen Mu uses his max-level comprehension to master Thunder Gate Sword Cultivation in moments. His practice summons a vast storm, and a bolt of heavenly thunder targets him.
• Chen Yu and the watching disciples rush to protect Chen Mu, believing he is in mortal danger. Chen Mu awkwardly explains that he summoned the thunder himself, intending to test his new technique.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Yu shows loyalty and determination: he accepts Chen Mu’s gifts and vows to protect him, then immediately resolves to train hard enough to make good on that promise.
• Chen Mu demonstrates generosity toward his cousin while privately benefiting from the system’s rebates. His extraordinary comprehension and power become apparent when he masters the legendary art almost instantly.
• The disciples admire Chen Mu’s generosity and speculate about his close bond with Chen Yu. Their frantic attempt to shield him highlights their respect and concern.

Significant themes

• Family loyalty and reciprocity: Chen Mu and Chen Yu exchange valuable gifts as expressions of trust, not obligation.
• Power and hidden advantage: Chen Mu’s system and max-level comprehension let him gain far more than others realize.
• Misjudgment and spectacle: The disciples mistake Chen Mu’s self-created phenomenon for a dangerous heavenly tribulation, underscoring the gap between appearances and his actual abilities.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Mu uses the Thunder Gate Sword Cultivation technique to control a sword formed from heavenly lightning. With one gesture, he destroys a thousand-meter barren mountain, astonishing everyone watching.
• The strike leaves Chen Mu nearly drained of spiritual energy. A sign-in reward grants him an infinite dantian, which stores limitless energy and replenishes it at more than a hundred times the ordinary rate.
• Elder Mo arrives, believing an enemy has caused the disturbance. The disciples explain that Chen Mu himself created it, and Chen Yu confirms the account.
• Asked how he mastered the technique so quickly, Chen Mu claims the Thunder Gate Ancestor’s remnant soul was hidden in the manual and passed the cultivation on to him.
• Remembering that the disciples had risked their lives to protect him, Chen Mu gives all 534 of them a Ninth-Grade Dragon Blood Pill. His system triggers a hundredfold rebate, awarding him 53,400 pills.
• Elder Mo approaches Chen Mu with a favor to ask, but the chapter ends before he reveals it.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu displays overwhelming new power, remains casual about others’ praise, and quickly invents a plausible explanation for his rapid progress. He also recognizes the disciples’ loyalty and rewards them generously.
• Chen Yu is sincerely delighted by Chen Mu’s achievement and supports his account.
• Elder Mo shifts from alarm and anger at a supposed attacker to astonishment and admiration when he learns Chen Mu caused the phenomenon. He then seeks Chen Mu’s help.
• The disciples go from awe at Chen Mu’s sword strike to enthusiastic loyalty after receiving the pills.

Significant themes

• Power and its cost: Chen Mu’s devastating technique initially exhausts him, but the infinite dantian removes that limitation.
• Loyalty and reciprocity: The disciples’ willingness to protect Chen Mu inspires him to reward them.
• Reputation and deception: Others attribute Chen Mu’s success to talent and hard work, while he conceals the real reason behind a fabricated story.
• Abundance and reward: The sign-in system’s hundredfold rebate turns generosity into an even greater personal gain.

Key plot points and events

• Elder Mo asks Chen Mu to demonstrate the rare Thunder Gate Sword Cultivation technique, hoping to witness it firsthand. Chen Mu agrees to use his strongest move.
• Disciples gather, mistakenly treating the demonstration as a contest and speculating about whether Chen Mu could defeat Elder Mo.
• Chen Mu channels his power into an immense lightning sword. Its force terrifies the onlookers and convinces Elder Mo that taking the strike could kill him or severely damage his cultivation.
• Elder Mo asks Chen Mu to stop. Chen Mu disperses the sword, sparing him and easing the danger over the gathered disciples.
• The crowd marvels at Chen Mu’s strength, especially since he is still only at the Martial Master Realm. Chen Yu sees him as a personal ideal and praises his sword strike as the strongest of the age.
• Ye Qingcheng emerges from the Trial Tower, having failed to reach the fiftieth floor. She notices the crowd and the visibly shaken Elder Mo, and wonders what happened.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu shows confidence in his technique but also restraint: once Elder Mo admits he cannot withstand the attack, Chen Mu immediately withdraws it rather than risk harming a valuable ally.
• Elder Mo begins as a curious student of the technique, but the demonstration overwhelms him. He openly acknowledges Chen Mu’s superiority in that moment.
• Chen Yu becomes even more devoted to Chen Mu, treating him as a lifelong benchmark and hoping he will become Great Emperor.
• Ye Qingcheng returns frustrated by the Trial Tower’s difficulty and is puzzled by the extraordinary scene she encounters.
• The disciples’ awe turns a private demonstration into a public spectacle, with admiration and speculation replacing their initial uncertainty.

Significant themes

• Power beyond appearances: Chen Mu’s low cultivation rank contrasts sharply with the scale of his attack.
• Restraint and responsibility: His willingness to stop protects Elder Mo and the Holy Land.
• Legacy and potential: Chen Yu’s gift of the technique proves well suited to Chen Mu, while his example inspires others.
• Limits of effort and strength: Ye Qingcheng’s difficulty in the Trial Tower contrasts with Chen Mu’s seemingly overwhelming ability.

Summary

Key plot points and events

• Ye Qingcheng learns that Chen Mu’s sword strike caused a heaven-and-earth phenomenon and frightened off Elder Mo, a Human Immortal Realm expert. She is also stunned that Chen Mu has reached the Martial Master Realm so quickly.
• Ye reports that she failed to reach the Trial Tower’s fiftieth floor. Chen Mu reassures her that her first attempt was respectable, encouraging her to keep improving. The two then return to Qingyun Prefecture.
• A report about Chen Mu reaches his elder sister, Chen Juexin, through the Tianyuan Merchant Alliance. Delighted by his progress, she rewards the association’s staff and orders a search for powerful lightning- and fire-related resources to send him.
• The Heavenly Secrets Pavilion publicizes Chen Mu’s achievements. Great Wu’s emperor, Song Ao, reads the report and worries that Tianyuan’s growing power could threaten his dynasty. He considers strengthening ties by arranging a marriage with one of his unmarried princesses.
• Leaders of the rival Eastern Pole Holy Land dismiss the report as Tianyuan propaganda. The Saint Son, Zhao Yuhao, volunteers to visit Tianyuan under the guise of offering congratulations and investigate Chen Mu’s true abilities.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Qingcheng shifts from surprise and self-doubt to renewed determination after Chen Mu’s reassurance. Her rapid comparison of herself with Chen Mu highlights how extraordinary his progress appears.
• Chen Mu remains relaxed and supportive, treating Ye’s Tower result kindly and showing little concern over his own growing fame.
• Chen Juexin expresses pride in her younger brother and moves quickly to support his cultivation with resources.
• Song Ao is impressed and unnerved by Chen Mu’s reputation; his concern leads him to consider a political marriage alliance.
• Zhao Yuhao takes an active, investigative stance, while the Eastern Pole leadership displays skepticism and rivalry toward Tianyuan.

Significant themes

• Extraordinary talent and rapid advancement: Chen Mu’s cultivation and swordsmanship unsettle even powerful figures.
• Recognition and reputation: News of his feat spreads quickly, shaping the reactions of family, rulers, and rival sects.
• Political calculation: Tianyuan’s rising influence prompts Great Wu to seek accommodation, while the Eastern Pole Holy Land plans to verify the claims.
• Encouragement and support: Chen Mu’s reassurance helps Ye regain confidence, while Chen Juexin’s response shows family devotion expressed through material support.

Key plot points and events

• Concerned that Chen Mu’s sudden rise from a supposedly talentless cripple to an extraordinary genius might be real, Eastern Pole Holy Lord Zhao Guizhen sends Holy Son Zhao Yuhao to the Tianyuan Holy Land to investigate under the pretext of offering congratulations. He cautions Yuhao not to provoke the Holy Land, with which Eastern Pole is currently at peace.
• Yuhao gathers lavish gifts and agrees to bring Saintess Zhao Yueling along. She argues that their joint visit will appear more respectful, and he accepts on condition that she follow his lead.
• During the flight, Yuhao remarks that Yueling has seemed different since visiting the Longevity Mountain Range. She brushes off the comment and playfully lets him believe he was complimenting her; once he leaves, her smile turns cold.
• The next morning, Chen Mu enjoys his peaceful daily routine, attended by Ye Qingcheng.
• Flying Boats from both the Great Wu Dynasty and Eastern Pole arrive at Tianyuan. Great Wu’s envoy announces that the emperor has sent the dynasty’s eldest princess to discuss a marriage alliance with the Holy Lord. Yuhao is stunned that Great Wu would offer its celebrated princess to Tianyuan.
• Elder Mo notes the growing number of women seeking ties with Chen Mu, then asks the Eastern Pole party why they have come. Yuhao explains their congratulatory mission. The Great Wu envoy takes Eastern Pole’s visit as further evidence that the rumors about Chen Mu are true.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhao Guizhen is cautious and haunted by Eastern Pole’s past defeat, but recognizes that Chen Mu’s rumored strength could force his Holy Land to remain deferential for years.
• Zhao Yuhao is dutiful and diplomatic, yet wary of provoking Tianyuan. He accommodates Yueling despite his reservations and is startled by Great Wu’s apparent eagerness to form an alliance.
• Zhao Yueling presents herself as sweet and affectionate toward Yuhao, persuading him to take her along. Her sudden coldness in private suggests that her outward warmth conceals something.
• Chen Mu and Ye Qingcheng share a familiar, peaceful routine that contrasts with the political maneuvering unfolding around them.
• Elder Mo confidently manages the arrivals and lightly teases that Chen Mu is attracting marriage prospects from powerful groups.

Significant themes

• Reputation and verification: Rival powers make cautious moves because they cannot yet tell whether Chen Mu’s reputation is exaggerated.
• Political calculation and deference: Gifts, congratulations, and marriage negotiations serve as signs of respect and strategic alliance.
• Appearance versus reality: Yueling’s affectionate manner may conceal her true feelings, while Chen Mu’s quiet morning contrasts with the upheaval his reputation causes.

Key plot points

• Elder Mo allows the Great Wu delegation and the Eastern Pole Holy Land’s visitors into Tianyuan, while accompanying them in case trouble arises. He is confident Chen Mu could handle them, but remains wary after witnessing Chen Mu’s devastating sword strike.
• Tianyuan’s disciples celebrate the arrival of the Great Wu Eldest Princess, who is coming to propose a marriage alliance. They speculate about her place alongside Ye Qingcheng and dismiss the Eastern Pole Holy Land’s visit as potentially hostile.
• On the dynasty’s flying boat, the Eldest Princess quietly rereads poems and calligraphy written by Chen Mu. An elderly eunuch pities her, believing that imperial duty may keep her from choosing her own romantic future.
• Ye Qingcheng gives Chen Mu the proceeds from auctioning his calligraphy: 100,000 Supreme Spirit Stones. He tells her to keep them, triggering his hundredfold-rebate ability and earning him 10 million spirit stones.
• Zhao Yuhao and Zhao Yueling, the Eastern Pole Holy Land’s Saint Son and Saintess, arrive with companions to congratulate Chen Mu. Chen Mu accepts their gifts but tells them to leave, frustrating Zhao Yuhao’s plan to request a sparring match and test Chen Mu’s strength.
• As Chen Mu completes a breath while about to question Zhao Yuhao, a system warning announces that he is on the verge of breaking through to Grandmaster and must undergo Heavenly Tribulation.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu remains relaxed and uninterested in status or wealth for its own sake. He treats Ye Qingcheng generously, avoids unnecessary conflict with the visitors, and unknowingly approaches a major breakthrough.
• Ye Qingcheng shows initiative by selling Chen Mu’s calligraphy and loyalty by giving him the proceeds. Their exchange is warm and trusting.
• Zhao Yuhao is outwardly respectful but privately hopes to provoke a sparring match and assess Chen Mu. Chen Mu’s abrupt dismissal blocks him.
• Elder Mo acts as a cautious escort, confident that Chen Mu can protect himself while remaining alert to the visitors’ intentions.
• The Great Wu Eldest Princess is characterized through her devotion to Chen Mu’s writing, while the eunuch’s concern hints at the limits imposed by her imperial position.
• Tianyuan’s disciples are excited by the prospect of the princess joining their ranks and openly confident about facing the Eastern Pole Holy Land.

Significant themes

• Assumption and hidden intent: Characters interpret events according to their own suspicions, while Zhao Yuhao’s polite visit masks his desire to test Chen Mu.
• Duty versus personal desire: The Eldest Princess’s imperial role may restrict her romantic choices.
• Humility and generosity: Chen Mu values peace and freely gives Ye Qingcheng the auction money, even though the rebate system makes the gift highly profitable for him.
• Rising power and impending change: The chapter ends by shifting from social maneuvering to Chen Mu’s imminent breakthrough and Heavenly Tribulation.

Plot points

• Chen Mu realizes he has reached the Grandmaster realm, crossing a major cultivation threshold that triggers a Heavenly Tribulation. Failure could weaken his cultivation and limit his future prospects.
• The system rewards him with the Myriad Thunder Dao Body, a sacred physique that lets him endure and absorb lightning. Combined with his Heaven-Rank Supreme Thunder Spirit Root, it greatly accelerates his cultivation.
• Chen Mu asks everyone to leave the courtyard for their safety. Zhao Yuhao, Zhao Yueling, and the others retreat, while Elder Mo stays behind.
• A succession of increasingly powerful lightning bolts strikes Chen Mu, but none can hurt him. He initially remains so relaxed that he lies back in his chair.
• After more than a dozen bolts, Chen Mu gets up to end the disruption to his rest. He activates his physique and absorbs the Heavenly Thunder, causing his cultivation to surge. The witnesses realize he is not merely enduring the tribulation—he is using it.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu remains laid-back and wry despite facing a major breakthrough. He resents the system’s theatrics but accepts its helpful reward, then turns the tribulation into a source of power.
• Zhao Yuhao is stunned to discover how rapidly Chen Mu has advanced, and begins to grasp that Chen Mu may be the Tianyuan Young Master who once intimidated a Human Immortal with a single sword strike.
• Zhao Yueling and the others are frightened by the storm and retreat as instructed.
• Elder Mo Changyuan, a renowned Human Immortal and Spear Saint, trusts Chen Mu to handle the tribulation. Watching him withstand the bolts effortlessly leaves Mo humbled and astonished by the gap between Chen Mu and other “geniuses.”

Significant themes

• Extraordinary talent and rapid advancement: Chen Mu’s rise far exceeds what those around him consider possible.
• Turning danger into opportunity: His sacred physique transforms a potentially life-threatening tribulation into fuel for further growth.
• Contrast between spectacle and composure: The thunderstorm is terrifying to everyone else, while Chen Mu treats it as an inconvenience—and then a cultivation resource.

Plot points and events

• Chen Mu’s lightning tribulation ends after he awakens the Myriad Thunder Dao Body, a sacred physique ranked twenty-eighth. The visitors realize his talent and strength exceed even the rumors.
• Chen complains that the tribulation stopped just before helping him reach the second heaven of the Grandmaster Realm, having used its lightning to cultivate.
• Zhao Yuhao presents Chen with a congratulatory gift from the Eastern Pole Holy Land. He abandons his earlier idea of challenging Chen and prepares to leave.
• Zhao Yueling instead offers to remain at Qingyun Prefecture as Chen’s attendant, surprising everyone. Chen suspects her intentions and uses his newly acquired Heavenly God Eyes to examine her.
• Chen sees that Zhao Yueling is possessed by demonic energy and strikes her with Palm Thunder. As the demon is driven from her body, Zhao Yuhao recalls her strange behavior during their mission at the Longevity Mountain Range and recognizes how the possession may have occurred.

Character developments

• Chen Mu displays still greater power and confidence, treating a life-threatening tribulation as a cultivation opportunity. His Heavenly God Eyes also reveal a hidden supernatural threat.
• Zhao Yuhao shifts from wanting to test Chen to accepting his overwhelming superiority. His concern for Zhao Yueling prompts him to rush to her aid.
• Zhao Yueling appears to volunteer to serve Chen, but her behavior is being controlled by a demon; the true reason for her offer remains unclear.
• Mo Changyuan and the other onlookers are left astonished by Chen’s physique, cultivation, and casual handling of the tribulation.

Significant themes

• Extraordinary talent and widening power gaps: Chen’s accumulated gifts make even elite holy-land disciples feel insignificant beside him.
• Power used to expose hidden danger: Chen’s new vision allows him to identify possession that ordinary observers missed.
• Appearance versus reality: Zhao Yueling’s offer seems voluntary, but her actions conceal demonic control.

Character interactions

• Zhao Yuhao and the others congratulate Chen and present a gift, while Chen casually accepts it and lets them depart.
• Zhao Yueling’s offer to stay alarms Zhao Yuhao, who worries it could imply the Eastern Pole Holy Land has submitted to Tianyuan.
• Chen’s lightning attack initially appears hostile to Zhao Yuhao, but Chen explains the possession; Zhao Yuhao then connects it to Zhao Yueling’s suspicious conduct during their earlier mission.

Key plot points

• Chen Mu uses lightning transformed into a sword to kill the Demon Cult remnant hiding inside Zhao Yueling. The attack draws down heavenly thunder and destroys the enemy instantly.
• Zhao Yuhao thanks Chen Mu, kneels in gratitude, and promises that the Eastern Pole Holy Land will repay his favor. He leaves with his companions to report what happened.
• Mo Changyuan recognizes the political value of this debt: it should prevent conflict between the two holy lands for years to come. Chen Mu dismisses his achievement as trivial.
• After the others leave, Chen Mu asks Ye Qingcheng to make more tea. A system check-in rewards him with rare Enlightenment Tea, which he gives her to brew.
• At the Tianyuan Holy Land’s great hall, Holy Lord Chen Tianlin receives Great Wu’s Eldest Princess Song Wanjun and an old eunuch. They reveal that the Great Wu Emperor has sent them to propose a marriage alliance between Wanjun and Chen Mu.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu displays overwhelming power and restraint: he had carefully protected Zhao Yueling while driving out the possessing demon, then shows no mercy once it escapes her body. He remains outwardly modest about his success and casually shares the system’s valuable tea.
• Zhao Yuhao shifts from shock at the revelation to sincere gratitude, offering a formal debt of service on behalf of the Eastern Pole Holy Land.
• Mo Changyuan becomes even more admiring of Chen Mu, seeing him as both extraordinarily talented and humble.
• Ye Qingcheng remains dazed by Chen Mu’s display but promptly obeys his request and accepts the unfamiliar tea.
• Chen Tianlin is pleased by the visitors and by the marriage proposal, interpreting the Great Wu Emperor’s offer as proof of Chen Mu’s exceptional future.
• Song Wanjun is courteous and composed; she finds Chen Tianlin more approachable than expected.

Significant themes

• Power and reputation: Chen Mu’s victory demonstrates how far his abilities exceed expectations, while the holy lands’ concern for public standing shapes their political response.
• Reciprocity and diplomacy: Saving Zhao Yueling creates a powerful obligation that may avert conflict between the Eastern Pole and Tianyuan Holy Lands.
• Destiny and ambition: Chen Tianlin views the proposed alliance as confirmation that his son is destined for greatness.
• Humility amid exceptional ability: Chen Mu’s casual response contrasts with the awe and political significance others attach to his actions.

Plot and Events

• Chen Tianlin arrives late because he sensed an evil presence in Tianyuan Holy Land. He discovers that Chen Mu has killed the Martial Saint-level entity with one sword, leaving him amazed and proud of his son’s rapid rise to the Grandmaster realm.
• Chen Tianlin agrees to an imperial marriage alliance with Song Wanjun, but insists that Chen Mu choose for himself. Song envies his freedom to make that choice, though she follows Chen Tianlin to Qingyun Prefecture, viewing the marriage as a move from one “cage” to another.
• At Qingyun Prefecture, Ye Qingcheng drinks Chen Mu’s Enlightenment Tea and has an epiphany, advancing her mastery of a cultivation technique. Chen Mu explains the tea’s effects, and the system upgrades it to Top-Grade Enlightenment Tea, guaranteeing an epiphany with every cup and removing the usage limit.
• Chen Mu drinks a cup and comprehends a top-grade Heaven Rank technique, World-Ending Heavenly Thunder, which his Max-Level Comprehension immediately brings to full mastery. Ye Qingcheng drinks again and has another epiphany; Chen Mu invites her to drink freely.
• Chen Tianlin arrives with Song Wanjun and the old eunuch. He sees auspicious purple qi over Qingyun Prefecture, then enters, smells the tea, and recognizes it as Enlightenment Tea.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Chen Tianlin shifts from astonishment at Chen Mu’s strength to exuberant pride. Though he considers supporting his son’s rise, he prioritizes keeping their relationship intact and avoids imposing a marriage on him.
• Chen Mu remains casual about extraordinary advantages, sharing rare tea generously and treating the system’s upgrade as a minor convenience.
• Ye Qingcheng is awed by the tea’s power and the Holy Land’s apparent wealth. She initially feels unworthy of drinking it, but accepts Chen Mu’s hospitality and is astonished when the upgraded tea grants repeated epiphanies.
• Song Wanjun feels envy toward Chen Mu’s freedom to decide his future and regards the proposed alliance as another form of confinement.
• The old eunuch interprets Chen Mu’s status as exceptional, while Chen Tianlin’s arrival sets up a likely confrontation over the tea’s rarity.

Significant Themes

• Parental pride and autonomy: Chen Tianlin is thrilled by his son’s success but recognizes that Chen Mu should control his own marriage decision.
• Freedom versus constraint: Song’s situation contrasts with Chen Mu’s independence.
• Abundance and power: The tea’s near-limitless benefits—and Chen Mu’s indifference to them—underscore the extraordinary resources surrounding him.
• Rapid cultivation and comic exaggeration: Major breakthroughs become effortless through the tea and Chen Mu’s comprehension ability.

Key events

• Chen Mu and Ye Qingcheng drink rare Enlightenment Tea, producing an auspicious display of purple qi. Song Wanjun and the old eunuch watch with envy, knowing how extraordinarily valuable the tea is.
• Chen Tianlin assumes Chen Mu’s elder sister arranged the tea for him. Chen Mu gives his father an entire tea cake; the system rewards him with 100 more cakes. Chen Tianlin is so grateful that he tries to kiss his son, but Chen Mu stops him.
• Chen Tianlin introduces Song Wanjun, the Great Wu Dynasty’s eldest princess, and her old eunuch. He reveals that she has come to propose a marriage alliance with Chen Mu.
• Chen Mu politely refuses, explaining that he simply has no plans to marry. The eunuch accepts the answer, while Song Wanjun feels both relieved and strangely disappointed.
• Song Wanjun then presents Chen Mu with a cherished verse about a swordsman who kills decisively and disappears, wishing him success in his ambitions.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu remains generous and unassuming about his extraordinary resources. He treats Song Wanjun courteously but makes clear that he will not marry for political convenience.
• Chen Tianlin is delighted by his son’s gift and becomes comically affectionate, while his deference to Chen Mu’s resources surprises the visiting party.
• Song Wanjun encounters rejection for the first time despite her beauty and popularity. Chen Mu’s lack of romantic interest unsettles her self-image, and she briefly looks to Ye Qingcheng for comparison.
• Ye Qingcheng shares the rare tea with Chen Mu and witnesses the marriage proposal and refusal; Song Wanjun’s attention briefly turns toward her.
• The old eunuch acts as the dynasty’s messenger but recognizes that neither he nor even Great Wu’s emperor can force Chen Mu into marriage.

Significant themes

• Power and privilege: Even a princess’s status cannot compel Chen Mu, whose position and backing far exceed the dynasty’s.
• Wealth and generosity: Chen Mu treats a legendary cultivation treasure as something he can casually share, while others regard it as nearly unattainable.
• Romance and personal choice: Chen Mu rejects an arranged alliance because he wants marriage to develop naturally, not by decree.
• Pride and insecurity: Song Wanjun’s unexpected rejection prompts her to question her appeal, despite her relief that Chen Mu’s refusal is not personal.

Chapter 35: “You Wrote This Poem?!”

Key events

• Song Wanjun visits Chen Mu and is reluctant to part with the poems she bought at auction. Ye Qingcheng explains that Chen Mu wrote them himself.
• Song Wanjun is astonished and admires Chen Mu even more. Chen confirms the poems are his, then writes her a new poem praising her beauty. She is deeply moved and treasures the gift.
• Chen Tianlin, impressed by his son’s writing, gives Chen Mu fifty ninth-grade pills before leaving.
• Outside the residence, Song Wanjun asks Chen Tianlin to let her join Tianyuan Holy Land. He grants her an Inner Court token. The old eunuch assumes she hopes to serve as a political hostage and strengthen ties with the dynasty, but her real motive is to remain close to Chen Mu.
• Chen Tianlin returns home and eagerly prepares the Enlightenment Tea, unaware that it is unlike the tea he has had before.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu is open about his authorship and responds to Song Wanjun’s admiration with a personal poem. He accepts his father’s pills out of affection, though he expects they may be more useful to others than to himself.
• Song Wanjun shifts from admiring the poems to admiring Chen Mu personally. Though he has refused a marriage alliance, she finds another way to stay near him by joining the Holy Land.
• Chen Tianlin takes fresh pride in his son’s talent and shows his care through the pills. He also misreads Song Wanjun’s intentions, assuming her admission may serve political purposes.
• The old eunuch supports Song Wanjun’s request for reasons of state, unaware of her romantic feelings.

Significant themes

• Talent and admiration: Learning that Chen Mu wrote the poems transforms Song Wanjun’s respect into even deeper personal admiration.
• Affection expressed through gifts: Chen’s poem and his father’s pills show care in different forms.
• Romance versus political interpretation: Song Wanjun’s personal motives are mistaken for diplomatic strategy.
• Irony: Chen Tianlin anticipates a rare moment of enlightenment from the tea, unaware that this batch is different.

• Chen Tianlin discovers the tea’s power: Chen Tianlin brews the aged Enlightenment Tea cake Chen Mu gave him. Each cup triggers another sudden enlightenment, granting him multiple breakthroughs in comprehension—including mastery of a long-stalled technique and insight into an unfamiliar cultivation method. Realizing the tea is extraordinarily potent, he takes it into seclusion, hoping it will help him reach the Great Emperor Realm.
• Chen Mu gains a Great Emperor reward: Chen Mu hears that his father has entered seclusion and expects him to become a Great Emperor soon. He then receives a Great Emperor Cultivation Experience Pack from his system. Because using it before his father’s breakthrough could affect Chen Tianlin, Chen Mu decides to wait. Reassured by his family’s strength and his own future prospects, he relaxes in the sunshine, content to enjoy his leisurely life.
• Zhao Yuhao reports back: At the Eastern Pole Holy Land, Zhao Yuhao escorts the recovering Zhao Yueling home, then reports to the Holy Lord and elders. He says the rumors about the Tianyuan Young Master are not exaggerated: the young master has reached the Grandmaster realm, possesses the rare Myriad Thunder Dao Body and a Heaven-Rank Supreme Thunder Spirit Root, and can absorb Heavenly Thunder to strengthen himself.
• The possession is revealed: Zhao Yuhao explains that the young master found a hidden demonic entity inside Zhao Yueling, identified as a core Demon Cult member. He drove it out with Heavenly Thunder and killed it with one sword. Zhao Yueling is safe but weak and recovering. The elders are alarmed to learn that the entity had at least Martial Saint-level cultivation—and doubt Zhao Yuhao’s account, since they cannot reconcile that with the young master’s lower realm.
  Character developments and interactions: Chen Tianlin shifts from curiosity about the tea to determined pursuit of the Great Emperor Realm. Chen Mu’s confidence in his family’s protection grows, though he sensibly postpones using his reward. Zhao Yueling accepts Zhao Yuhao’s care while recovering; Zhao Yuhao speaks with conviction about the young master’s abilities, while the Eastern Pole Holy Lord and elders move from astonishment to skepticism.
  Themes: Extraordinary talent and power unsettle established expectations; security and privilege enable Chen Mu’s carefree outlook, yet his decision to wait reflects caution. The chapter also contrasts firsthand testimony with institutional disbelief, as the elders struggle to accept an account that defies their assumptions.

Plot points

• Zhao Yuhao presents a Recording Stone proving that Chen Mu summoned heavenly thunder to destroy a demon. The Eastern Pole Holy Lord, Zhao Guizhen, orders his people never to make an enemy of Tianyuan Holy Land, citing both Chen Mu’s extraordinary power and his help in exposing cult infiltrators and saving Zhao’s daughter.
• Song Wanjun completes her registration as an Inner Court disciple at Tianyuan. Disciples gossip that she is the Great Wu Dynasty’s princess, came to discuss a marriage alliance with Chen Mu, and was rejected. Sun Yu, Chen Mu’s sister-in-law, teases her about secretly hoping to win him over, leaving Song embarrassed.
• Chen Mu’s cousin Chen Xiao and Chen Xiao’s wife, Sun Yu, visit him. Sun Yu brings specially prepared, patterned ninth-grade pills suited to Chen Mu’s thunder- and fire-based spiritual roots.
• Chen Mu gives the couple a cake of Dao Enlightenment Tea. They discover that it is top-grade: each cup guarantees enlightenment, without a limit on repeated use. They accept the tea and realize it could help Sun Yu refine pills beyond the ninth grade.
• The couple encourage Chen Mu to pursue alchemy, believing his fire talent and their guidance could make him a legendary pill-maker. Chen Mu is unenthusiastic, finding the prospect exhausting. The system then announces that it is attempting an upgrade.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu continues to benefit from his rare abilities and generous family. He accepts Sun Yu’s pills and shares his valuable tea, while the system’s hundredfold rebate gives him even more. Despite others’ high expectations, he has little interest in alchemy.
• Song Wanjun begins settling into life at Tianyuan, but the disciples’ rumors and Sun Yu’s teasing expose her apparent feelings for Chen Mu.
• Chen Xiao and Sun Yu show their affection through practical support and playful marital banter. Their expertise and ambition lead them to hope Chen Mu will join the alchemical path.
• Zhao Guizhen responds to evidence of Chen Mu’s strength and past kindness by choosing diplomacy and protection over hostility.

Significant themes

• Reputation and political caution: Chen Mu’s demonstrated power and good deeds reshape relations between holy lands.
• Family generosity and reciprocity: The relatives exchange cultivation resources, with Chen Mu’s gift proving especially valuable.
• Hidden abundance and escalating rewards: Top-grade tea and the system’s rebate reinforce how exceptional Chen Mu’s resources are.
• Expectations versus personal inclination: Others envision Chen Mu as a future alchemy master, but his own interests do not match their ambitions.

Chapter Summary

• The system’s sixth upgrade succeeds, binding a one-click alchemy module to Chen Mu. It can instantly refine pills from selected ingredients, with quality ranging from low-grade to pill-veined.
• Sun Yu encourages Chen Mu to explore alchemy, but he would rather avoid its demanding study and practice. Before he can explain that he lacks equipment and ingredients, the system signs him in for 100,000 top-grade herbs and the Primordial Medicine King Cauldron, a legendary Divine-Rank furnace.
• Chen Mu produces the enormous cauldron and surrounds it with flames powered by his heaven-rank supreme fire spiritual root. Sun Yu and Chen Xiao recognize the furnace and flame as extraordinary, but worry that Chen Mu may not be able to control the cauldron.
• Using the system’s vast catalog—which includes known, lost, and hidden pill formulas from across Great Cang—Chen Mu selects a ninth-grade Beauty-Preserving Pill. The system chooses the required herbs, and Chen Mu places them in the cauldron, using it mainly to disguise the system’s one-click process.
• Chen Xiao and Sun Yu identify the rare, top-grade ingredients and assume Chen Mu is attempting an exceptionally difficult manual refinement. Convinced his odds of success are nearly nonexistent, they quietly prepare to protect him from a possible furnace explosion.

Character Developments and Interactions

Chen Mu remains reluctant to take up alchemy, but the system’s gifts abruptly make him appear equipped for mastery. He stays calm and conceals the true source of his abilities. Sun Yu is supportive and eager to see him develop; Chen Xiao shares her excitement, then joins her in worrying over the danger. Their concern contrasts with Chen Mu’s confidence in the system.

Significant Themes

The chapter highlights the gulf between apparent effort and effortless power: alchemy is dangerous and demanding to the couple, while Chen Mu can bypass its process with one click. It also continues the theme of system-driven escalation, as each upgrade and sign-in gives him increasingly legendary resources—and sets up dramatic irony, since his companions misunderstand what is happening.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Mu secretly uses his system’s one-click refinement feature to make three pill-pattern, ninth-grade Beauty-Preserving Pills in seconds, then slips them into the Medicine King Cauldron.
• Chen Xiao and Sun Yu initially expect him to fail, but the pill’s perfect-quality mist and rich fragrance astonish them. They realize Chen Mu has achieved something that would take even a master alchemist far longer.
• Sun Yu abandons her plan to send Chen Mu to the Sun family to study alchemy, saying their alchemists should learn from him instead.
• Chen Mu gives Chen Xiao the Medicine King Cauldron as a congratulatory gift for becoming a Pill King. Chen Xiao accepts and offers to serve as Chen Mu’s personal alchemist.
• Chen Mu gives Sun Yu a Beauty-Preserving Pill. She takes it immediately and sees its rejuvenating effect.
• The system rewards Chen Mu’s gifts with one hundred Divine Rank pill furnaces and one hundred more ninth-grade Beauty-Preserving Pills. The chapter ends with Chen Xiao asking where Chen Mu found the pill formula, which had been lost for centuries.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Mu hides the role of his system, presenting extraordinary results as casual skill. He uses generosity to strengthen family ties while benefiting from the system’s hundredfold rebate.
• Chen Xiao shifts from expecting to encourage Chen Mu to marveling at his ability. Grateful for Chen Mu’s past support, he accepts the cauldron and eagerly offers his alchemical services.
• Sun Yu moves from hoping Chen Mu will study under the Sun family to sincerely believing he surpasses their alchemists. She accepts his gift with warmth.
• The three share an affectionate, trusting family dynamic, though Chen Mu keeps the true source of his abilities and rewards to himself.

Significant themes

• Hidden power and false modesty: Chen Mu’s apparent humility masks near-instant mastery.
• Family loyalty and reciprocity: Gifts and past support reinforce bonds among the characters.
• System-driven abundance: The hundredfold rebate turns generosity into a source of immense personal gain.
• Disrupted expectations: Chen Mu’s feat challenges even accomplished alchemists’ understanding of what is possible.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Mu invents a casual explanation for how he found a ninth-rank Beauty-Preserving Pill formula, then gives it to Chen Xiao for the Sun family. The gesture builds goodwill and strengthens his connections.
• The system rewards the gift with a Longevity Pill formula. Chen Mu briefly questions why the “hundredfold” rebate yielded only one formula, but the system explains that the bonus can improve quality rather than quantity; he keeps that setting.
• After Sun Yu and Chen Xiao leave, Chen Mu examines the formula and discovers the extraordinary effects of Lifespan Pills: depending on grade, they can add from ten years to as much as a thousand years to a person’s life.
• Realizing that such pills could let Tianyuan Holy Land build an enduring lineage, Chen Mu summons his third aunt, Chen Xiang, and the alchemy-hall elders. He gives them the formula and asks them to produce pills for disciples to receive according to their contributions.
• Chen Xiang and the elders are stunned and skeptical, having never heard of a pill that extends lifespan. Chen Mu insists the formula is genuine. The system, offended by their doubts, then grants him 10,000 Veined Longevity Pills through a check-in reward.

Character development

• Chen Mu remains outwardly casual and privately prefers an easy, secluded life. Yet he recognizes that strengthening his family and sect will give him greater freedom in the long run, so he delegates the work to Chen Xiang.
• Chen Xiang is affectionate and exuberant toward her nephew, but quickly shifts into her responsible role as Tianyuan’s chief pill-resource overseer and strongest alchemist.
• The alchemy elders move from routine attention to disbelief and uncertainty when confronted with the unprecedented formula.

Character interactions

• Chen Mu presses the Beauty-Preserving Pill formula into Chen Xiao’s hand, treating the gift as a way to benefit both his relative and the Sun family.
• He warmly bids farewell to Sun Yu and Chen Xiao, then privately reflects on the effort required to manage relationships.
• Chen Xiang rushes in, embraces Chen Mu so tightly that he struggles to breathe, then apologizes. Their closeness is familiar to the elders.
• Chen Mu presents the Lifespan Pill formula to Chen Xiang and the elders, who question him but ultimately listen to his assurances.

Significant themes

• Power and longevity: Lifespan Pills turn longevity from an abstract cultivation ideal into something that might be distributed and managed.
• Family, influence, and responsibility: Chen Mu’s gifts and plans strengthen both his personal alliances and Tianyuan Holy Land.
• Delegation versus personal ease: Though he wants to avoid burdens, Chen Mu invests in the sect because its strength will ultimately serve his preferred carefree life.
• The extraordinary amid skepticism: The elders’ disbelief contrasts with Chen Mu’s confidence and the system’s seemingly limitless rewards.