Chapter Summaries

Plot points and events

• Lin Tian foresees that Golden Turtle Island will eventually collapse, but the vision ends before he can learn why. Alarmed, he decides to test whether he can alter fate by changing Golden Fish’s future.
• His Fate Pen initially lacks ink. Lin Tian realizes he must channel the fate law into it, producing golden ink.
• He tries to write a promising future for Golden Fish: Immortal Wuyun will find and accept him as a disciple, and he will become a rising Jiejiao star. But the writing vanishes, and Lin Tian suffers dizziness and exhaustion.
• After a century of contemplation, Lin Tian understands the failure: his fate-related treasures and cultivation are still at an early stage, while Golden Fish’s life is deeply bound to Golden Turtle Island’s powerful karma. He cannot override that karma yet.
• Lin Tian concludes that he must cultivate gradually, starting with small changes in places free of strong karmic entanglements. He resolves to use the coming Journey to the West as an opportunity, while avoiding excessive interference that could disrupt its events.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Tian moves from alarm and frustration to a more cautious, informed understanding of fate and karma. He recognizes that forceful attempts to change major events could provoke devastating backlash or attract the Heavenly Dao’s attention.
• He calls on his Spirit Vine True Self for guidance, but receives no response, forcing him to work out the problem himself.
• The chapter also recalls Lin Tian’s role in helping Liu Xiu, whose destiny as Human Sovereign was ordained. That aid generated merit, which Yunxiao gathered into the Primordial Golden Measure, cleansing karmic burden from the Three Skies and strengthening the treasure.

Significant themes

• Fate versus karma: Fate can be altered only when one can overcome the karmic forces binding a person or place.
• Gradual cultivation and restraint: Lin Tian’s failure shows that profound laws cannot be mastered or manipulated abruptly.
• Merit and consequence: Merit can counteract karma, while powerful acts—especially killing—can create dangerous karmic debts.
• The Heavenly Dao’s authority: With the Great Dao withdrawn, the Heavenly Dao governs karma, making attempts to restore or impose fate especially risky.

Plot points and events

• Lin Tian’s hidden Spirit Vine True Self activates, absorbing the world’s spiritual energy, laws, and fortune. The armies of Liu Xiu and Wang Mang—and Liu Xiu’s status as Child of the Plane—are reduced to ash.
• Lin Tian realizes his life in this world was a temporary transition shaped by Pan Gu and Hongjun. His double dissolves into the vine as it enters the Great Dao River.
• The vine attacks the world’s Heavenly Dao Saints, consuming the Three Pure Ones, Zhunti, Jieyin, and Nuwa, then pierces Hongjun in the Purple Heaven Palace. Hongjun escapes, admitting defeat; Lin Tian vows to pursue him across realms.
• Lin Tian blames Hongjun for manipulating his choices and nearly trapping him in a karmic calamity. Returning through the Gate of Ten Thousand Worlds, he chooses Houtu—not Yunxiao—as his anchor in another Primordial World.
• Bound to Houtu as her favored junior, Lin Tian influences her rise to power and alters the world’s destined course. After many primordial cycles, the disturbance draws the attention of the saints and Hongjun.
• Nuwa and the other saints receive Hongjun’s summons and head to the Purple Heaven Palace.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Tian reveals his true identity and overwhelming power, shifts from escape to active vengeance against Hongjun, and deliberately changes his approach by selecting Houtu as his new anchor.
• Hongjun is exposed as the one who manipulated Lin Tian’s entry into the previous world; though he concedes defeat when struck, he escapes and later summons the saints.
• Houtu becomes Lin Tian’s new Dao Companion and anchor. With his support, she grows into a major power and disrupts the established order.
• The saints initially try to stop Lin Tian’s vine to save their world, but are overwhelmed. Later, they gather at Hongjun’s summons, while Nuwa also seeks answers about the nature of a Chaos Great Encompassing Golden Immortal.

Significant themes

• Illusion, manipulation, and agency: Lin Tian discovers that his apparent choices were engineered, then reclaims agency by selecting a new anchor.
• Power and cosmic order: The vine’s consumption of worlds, laws, and saints demonstrates the fragility of even supposedly eternal structures.
• Revenge and consequences: Hongjun’s deception turns Lin Tian’s earlier leniency into a personal vendetta.
• Destiny versus change: Lin Tian’s bond with Houtu redirects a world that had been following a predetermined course.

Plot points

• Dao Ancestor Hongjun summons the six Heavenly Dao Saints to the Purple Heaven Palace, the first such gathering since his Third Dao Lecture.
• The Saints arrive in three strained groupings: Taishang, Yuanshi, and Tongtian are distant from one another; Zhunti and Jieyin remain together; Nuwa stands alone. Yuanshi openly snubs attendants Haotian and Yaochi, while the Western Saints greet them warmly.
• Hongjun confirms that someone in the Primordial World has become a Chaos Great Encompassing Golden Immortal. He explains that this is a cultivation realm beyond Quasi-Saint, while a Heavenly Dao Saint is a position granted by Heaven: a Chaos Great Encompassing Golden Immortal is necessarily a Saint, but a Heavenly Dao Saint is not necessarily one.
• The Saints briefly question the value of their own status, but Hongjun reassures them that Heavenly Dao Saints are the rightful powers of the current age. He claims the newly ascended being has likely fled into Chaos, intimidated by their collective authority.
• Hongjun then reveals that the Witch Clan’s growing prosperity has disrupted the Heavenly Dao’s intended course. The Witches were supposed to decline alongside the Demon Race, allowing the Saints to spread their teachings and accumulate fortune and merit. Instead, they have allied with the Human Race and share in its fortune.
• The Saints verify Hongjun’s account through divination and grow hostile toward the Witches. Yuanshi, already antagonistic toward them, declares that the problem is easy to solve.

Character developments and interactions

• Hongjun remains composed and authoritative, offering the Saints a reassuring interpretation of the unknown cultivator’s disappearance while directing their attention toward the Witch Clan.
• Zhunti shows political opportunism: he quickly pledges obedience to Hongjun in hopes of gaining favor and benefits.
• Yuanshi displays contempt for Haotian and Yaochi and renewed hostility toward the Witches. His friction with Tongtian is visible in the Three Pure Ones’ strained grouping.
• Nuwa is the first to ask directly about the newly revealed realm, voicing the Saints’ shared curiosity.
• Zhunti and Jieyin remain allied, while their troubled expressions reflect their concern over the West’s karmic debt.

Significant themes

• Power and spiritual status: Heavenly Dao sainthood is a bestowed office, not necessarily the highest level of cultivation.
• Orthodoxy and control: The Saints are reassured that they remain Heaven’s appointed rulers of the current era.
• Destiny versus change: The Witch Clan’s alliance with humanity has altered the expected course of history.
• Political maneuvering: Saints seek advantage through alliances, deference, and control over the world’s fortune and merit.

Plot points and events

• Primordial Heavenly Venerable Yuanshi proposes that Nuwa order the Human Race to leave the Witch Clan, hoping to weaken the clan’s fortune. Nuwa refuses, pointing out that Yuanshi is unwilling to shelter the hundreds of millions of displaced humans.
• Yuanshi then suggests using the Demon Race to attack the Witch Clan’s settlements and massacre the humans who support the witches. A few children would be left alive so the Human Race could survive, while the demons took the blame.
• Nuwa agrees without hesitation, regarding humans as expendable creations rather than people to whom she feels responsible.
• Zhunti argues that the Human Race is only a minor concern; the real threat is the powerful Witch Clan. He urges the Saints to find a way to kill one or more Ancestral Witches.
• The Saints agree that the Witch Clan’s dominance threatens their influence. They consider acting together but decide to use the Demon Race as a proxy, avoiding direct responsibility and the Witch Clan’s accumulated merit.
• Hongjun ends the discussion by assigning the Saints the task of dealing with the Witch Clan.

Character developments and interactions

• Nuwa reveals how little attachment she feels toward the Human Race, despite having created them and gained sainthood through their birth. She refuses to take responsibility for them and accepts the proposed massacre.
• Yuanshi is openly contemptuous of humans and shows ruthless pragmatism, proposing their slaughter as a way to weaken the Witch Clan.
• Zhunti shifts the discussion from the humans to the greater political danger posed by the witches, and enthusiastically backs the use of indirect violence.
• Tongtian is troubled by the prospect of mass slaughter but stays silent, unable to challenge the other Saints.
• Hongjun remains detached and delegates the conflict to the Saints. Laozi and Jieyin likewise show no visible reaction.

Significant themes

• Power and self-interest: The Saints prioritize preserving their authority over protecting lives.
• Indifference to the powerless: Nuwa and Yuanshi treat the Human Race as disposable, despite Nuwa’s role in creating it.
• Proxy warfare and evasion of responsibility: The Saints intend to manipulate the Demon Race into carrying out violence and bearing its consequences.
• Competing legitimacy: The witches’ power, merit, and devotion to Pan Gu challenge the Heavenly Dao Saints’ supremacy.

Plot points

• After leaving the Purple Heaven Palace, the Six Saints realize Hongjun had transported them into Chaos without their noticing. Their awe of him grows, and they take comfort in believing he could defeat the mysterious powerful being they fear.
• Zhunti asks what Hongjun meant by mentioning Mount Buzhou. The Saints infer that the mountain may be central to his intentions, but recognize that damaging it themselves would bring immense karmic consequences.
• Zhunti proposes visiting the Demon Celestial Court to restore Di Jun’s confidence and encourage the Demon Race to keep fighting the Witch Clan. The others agree, seeing the visit as a chance to influence the demons.
• The Saints arrive at the Thirty-Three Heavens, where Di Jun has strengthened defenses since the Demon Race’s earlier raid. Demon Marshal Ghost Chariot initially fears the Saints have come to destroy them, but Zhunti assures him they intend to teach and support the Demon Race.
• Di Jun is delighted by the Saints’ arrival and believes their backing will give his people an advantage over the Ancestral Witches.
• As the Saints travel through the Demon court, many demons crowd around them hoping to become disciples. Most Saints are indifferent or dismissive. Zhunti and Jieyin, however, are impressed by the court’s apparent wealth and privately covet its treasures. The chapter ends with a demon offering Zhunti a cherished spiritual root in exchange for instruction.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhunti takes the lead in interpreting Hongjun’s hint and proposing a strategy. He and Jieyin show strong greed for the Demon Race’s resources, shaped partly by their impoverished homeland.
• Di Jun shifts from worry to exuberant confidence, viewing the Saints’ visit as powerful support against the Witches.
• Ghost Chariot moves quickly from terror to joy after Zhunti clarifies the Saints’ supposed purpose.
• Taishang, Yuanshi, Tongtian, and Nuwa respond differently to the eager demons: some look down on them, some dislike their flattery, and Nuwa tolerates their approach while remaining selective.
• The Saints’ visit presents a contrast between their public role as teachers and their private motives—especially Zhunti and Jieyin’s interest in the Demon Race’s wealth.

Significant themes

• Indirect influence and political maneuvering: The Saints aim to use the Demon Race to sustain conflict with the Witches rather than act openly themselves.
• Karmic risk and restraint: Mount Buzhou’s importance is clear, but the Saints fear the consequences of directly harming it.
• Power and confidence: Di Jun sees the Saints’ presence as a dramatic change in the balance of power.
• Greed beneath spiritual authority: Despite their status as Saints, Zhunti and Jieyin remain attracted to material wealth.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• After the Twelve Ancestral Witches summoned a phantom Pangu True Body, frightened demons flock to Saint Zhunti for protection. He accepts more than a thousand as Western Religion disciples and takes many offerings, declaring that each has an “affinity” with the Western Lands.
• When Demon Emperor Di Jun arrives with Xihe, Taiyi, Fuxi, and other demons, Zhunti asks Di Jun himself to become the Western Religion’s Mountain-Guarding Divine Beast. Di Jun suppresses his anger because the Saints vastly outmatch him.
• Zhunti says he will continue recruiting demons. Di Jun grows suspicious that Zhunti may have been responsible for an earlier theft from the Demon Race, though he has no proof.
• Taishang Laozi explains that the Saints have come to establish their teachings among the demons. Di Jun realizes the six Saints’ support could make his faction extraordinarily powerful and welcomes them to Lingxiao Hall to discuss matters.
• Meanwhile, Lin Tian and Houtu enjoy the scenery on Mount Buzhou, unaware of the negotiations. Lin Tian considers knocking Houtu unconscious as part of what he believes is a Witch-clan marriage custom. Houtu hears his thoughts and privately plans to knock him out first.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhunti is portrayed as shamelessly acquisitive, using “affinity” as a pretext to recruit demons and collect treasures. His request to Di Jun further strains relations.
• Di Jun moves from anger and suspicion to cautious optimism when he learns the Saints intend to establish lineages among his people. He chooses diplomacy over confrontation.
• Lin Tian and Houtu each secretly assume they can overpower and surprise the other. Their mutual plotting turns their romantic tension into comic competition, with Houtu confident that she will uphold the Witch custom herself.

Significant themes

• Power and political calculation: Di Jun recognizes when the Saints’ strength makes resistance unwise, then sees their support as a strategic advantage.
• Greed and misplaced blame: Zhunti’s appetite for recruits and treasure makes him an easy target for Di Jun’s suspicion, though the narrator reveals Lin Tian is actually responsible for the theft.
• Romance and cultural misunderstanding: Lin Tian and Houtu interpret the Witch-clan marriage tradition as a contest to knock the other unconscious, creating playful tension and foreshadowing a reversal.

Plot points and events

• Lin Tian distracts Houtu with an aurora he creates using the Light Great Dao, then strikes her with his club. Houtu is knocked unconscious, though Lin Tian is surprised at how easily she falls.
• He carries her down Mount Buzhou, treating the blow as part of the Witch Clan’s wedding customs, and brings her to her tribe.
• The humans and witches there assume Houtu is pretending to be unconscious and celebrate the marriage. Their celebration spreads to nearby Witch tribes, and Lin Tian receives Heavenly Dao merit for the wedding.
• Lin Tian carries Houtu into his sealed Great Thousand World. He finds Nine Phoenixes sleeping in a tree, tosses her outside, and seals the world behind him.
• Nine Phoenixes cannot get back in. After learning what is happening, she mistakenly blames Houtu for throwing her out so the couple could be alone.

Character developments

• Lin Tian shows both awkward tenderness toward Houtu and determination to follow through with the marriage. He enjoys the community’s joyful response and is surprised to receive merit.
• Houtu appears to misread Lin Tian’s intentions, taking his compliment as proof of his affection and letting down her defenses. She is unconscious for most of the chapter.
• Nine Phoenixes is baffled by being expelled from the Great Thousand World, then jumps to the wrong conclusion about why it happened.

Themes

• The chapter uses romantic comedy and dramatic irony: Lin Tian’s plan, Houtu’s interpretation, and the crowd’s assumptions all differ.
• Community and belonging are emphasized as humans and witches celebrate together, and the barrier between them seems to vanish.
• Marriage, blessings, and merit are linked through the wedding festivities and the Heavenly Dao’s unexpected reward.

Character interactions

• Lin Tian distracts Houtu with the aurora and carries her after knocking her out.
• The humans and witches interpret the scene as a willing, affectionate wedding and celebrate the couple.
• Lin Tian removes Nine Phoenixes from the wedding space without explanation; she assumes Houtu arranged it.

Plot points and events

• Houtu awakens in her palace after apparently passing out during her attempt to carry out a Witch Clan wedding ritual with Lin Tian. She is surprised to find him beside her.
• Lin Tian offers her nuptial wine, and they proceed with the ritual. They remain together inside a sealed Great Thousand World for three thousand years.
• Outside, the Ancestral Witches wait at the sealed gateway. Zhurong worries that Houtu may have worn Lin Tian out, while Gonggong dismisses his concern; their argument nearly turns into a spar before Dijiang transports them away.
• Xuanming waits too, curious about the couple’s private activities and wondering whether Houtu might let her experience marriage with Lin Tian.
• Houtu later wakes alone and discovers that she has advanced to the late quasi-saint realm. She suspects her time with Lin Tian may have helped her grow stronger and resolves to test that theory.

Character developments and interactions

• Houtu’s initial confidence and physical toughness give way to embarrassment and vulnerability around Lin Tian, but her competitive pride remains: she is determined not to be weaker than him.
• Lin Tian is presented as unexpectedly powerful and self-assured, though the chapter leaves the exact circumstances of Houtu’s collapse and their time together partly unexplained.
• Zhurong’s impulsiveness provokes Gonggong, who readily accepts his challenge; Dijiang intervenes and sends them away.
• Xuanming’s normally stoic exterior contrasts with her private curiosity about romance and marriage.

Significant themes

• Strength and rivalry: Houtu interprets her new advancement through the lens of competition and wonders whether intimacy can increase power.
• Changing relationships: The chapter shifts Houtu’s connection with Lin Tian from a planned ritual into a more personal, intimate bond.
• Comedic contrast: The Ancestral Witches’ dramatic concern, bickering, and curiosity contrast with the sealed couple’s private world.

Key plot points and events

• Houtu wakes ready to fight Lin Tian again, but becomes timid when he offers her an Innate Spirit Fruit and suggests continuing. Lin Tian notices her fear and privately plans to develop a Thought Intent Method to address the Ancestral Witches’ lack of primordial spirits.
• Lin Tian says Houtu’s brothers have been waiting outside for more than three thousand years. Embarrassed by the thought of facing them, Houtu eventually agrees to go out with him.
• The Ancestral Witches misread Houtu’s meekness as an act: they assume she has been the one exhausting Lin Tian during their long “wedding ceremony.” Houtu is furious that nobody understands she was the one enduring it.
• Dijiang asks Lin Tian to be patient with Houtu’s supposedly arrogant, willful nature. Lin Tian politely denies that she is difficult, while privately musing about her more daring side.
• Xuanming notices Houtu’s strength has risen to roughly the late quasi-saint level. Suspecting Lin Tian is responsible, she approaches with the intention of asking Houtu to lend him to her.

Character development

• Houtu remains formidable in principle but is now comically shy and fearful around Lin Tian. She is also mortified by her brothers’ assumptions and increasingly frustrated by being misunderstood.
• Lin Tian teases Houtu affectionately, recognizes her improved strength, and quietly works toward a method that could benefit the Witch Clan.
• Dijiang acts as a protective elder brother, though his attempt to defend Houtu only adds to her embarrassment.
• Xuanming emerges as observant and pragmatic: she notices Houtu’s rapid progress and decides to pursue the same opportunity.

Significant themes

• The chapter’s main humor comes from the gap between appearances and reality: Houtu’s brothers mistake her timid behavior for coyness, while she sees herself as the victim.
• It also emphasizes the contrast between public strength and private vulnerability, as Houtu’s warrior reputation clashes with her bashfulness around Lin Tian.
• Lin Tian’s planned Thought Intent Method introduces the theme of innovation and potential progress for the Witch Clan, though he keeps his plans secret for now.

Character interactions

• Lin Tian alternates between gentle gestures and teasing, while Houtu reacts with flustered resistance.
• Houtu’s brothers interpret her behavior through their own assumptions, creating an awkward misunderstanding.
• Dijiang tries to smooth things over with Lin Tian, but Houtu responds with a glare.
• Xuanming’s quiet observation of Houtu’s improvement leads her to approach the group with a request of her own.

Plot points and events

• Gonggong and Zhurong battle on Mount Buzhou, but their fight is a controlled spar rather than an attempt to kill each other. As their powers of water and fire mingle, their auras grow stronger, suggesting they are using the contest to advance their cultivation.
• Dijiang recognizes his brothers’ purpose. Other powerful figures watch the clash: Queen Mother of the West sees it as evidence of the Witch Clan’s deep foundations, while Zhen Yuanzi is reminded of his dead friend Red Cloud and renews his hatred of Di Jun.
• Di Jun watches eagerly, hoping the brothers will kill one another and weaken the Witch Clan’s Twelve-All-Heaven Baleful God Formation. He believes the Demon Race’s fortunes are recovering because the Six Saints have taken positions in its Heavenly Court and passed down teachings.
• Zhunti and Jieyin visit Di Jun and propose turning the spar into a fatal confrontation. Zhunti conceals the heavenly secrets and suggests that Di Jun use a Saint’s Imperial Talisman while the Witch Clan is weakened.
• Di Jun is tempted, unaware that his fixation on defeating the Witches has become a heart demon. Zhunti and Jieyin plan to secretly unsettle Gonggong and Zhurong, provoke them into killing each other, and potentially make the survivor topple Mount Buzhou—bringing calamity upon the Witch Clan.

Character developments and interactions

• Gonggong and Zhurong show discipline and mutual purpose: despite their fearsome display, they are sparring to improve, not trying to destroy one another.
• Dijiang understands their intentions and approves of their effort.
• Di Jun is increasingly consumed by ambition and resentment. Although he recognizes that the brothers are only sparring, Zhunti’s suggestion quickly inflames his desire to strike.
• Zhunti and Jieyin flatter Di Jun and exploit his weakness, concealing their real aim: engineering disaster for the Witch Clan for their own advantage.
• Zhen Yuanzi reacts to the battle through grief and lingering anger over Red Cloud’s death at Di Jun and Taiyi’s hands.
• Queen Mother of the West views the Witches’ water-and-fire cultivation as an intriguing alternative path toward the Dao.

Significant themes

• Ambition becoming self-destruction: Di Jun mistakes his obsession for confidence and fails to see that it has become a heart demon.
• Manipulation and opportunism: Zhunti and Jieyin present their scheme as a chance for Di Jun, while pursuing their own hidden agenda.
• Restraint versus escalation: Gonggong and Zhurong’s controlled spar contrasts with the Saints’ deliberate attempt to turn it into a catastrophe.
• Power, fortune, and consequences: The struggle for dominance is tied to the Demon Race’s recovering fortune, the Witch Clan’s formations, and the karmic cost of destroying Mount Buzhou.

Key plot points and events

• Zhunti and Jieyin believe they can exploit the Ancestral Witches’ lack of Primordial Spirits to overcome them with mind-targeting magic. They hope a Demon–Witch war will weaken the Witch Clan and let the Western Religion spread.
• Di Jun mobilizes the Demon Race after Zhunti promises to deal with Gonggong and Zhurong. Still wary of the Saints, Di Jun orders his forces to approach secretly and attack only if a safe opportunity arises.
• Zhunti sends his disciple Golden Cicada, a Quasi-Saint, to secretly place two offshoots of the Merit Golden Lotus inside Gonggong and Zhurong. A concealment talisman is meant to hide him, while the Saints plan to blame the Demon Race if the scheme fails.
• At the Witch Clan’s feast, Xuanming openly asks to borrow Lin Tian. Houtu refuses and guards him, while Lin Tian privately calls Xuanming blunt and speculates that the fighting brothers might endanger Mount Buzhou.
• Lin Tian’s thoughts reveal a future in which Gonggong’s defeat leads him to smash Mount Buzhou, causing catastrophe and eventually prompting Houtu to become the Six Paths of Reincarnation. Houtu overhears this and is shocked.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhunti and Jieyin are confident, calculating, and opportunistic, treating the conflict as a chance to advance their religion while concealing their own involvement.
• Di Jun is eager to exploit the Saints’ promise but remains cautious and distrustful, reflecting lessons from an earlier betrayal.
• Golden Cicada is devoted to Zhunti and accepts the dangerous mission in hope of gaining the Western Religion’s teachings; he underestimates the risks.
• Xuanming remains emotionally blunt and sees sharing Lin Tian as an ordinary request. Houtu is possessive and protective, and becomes increasingly jealous after hearing Lin Tian’s thoughts.
• Lin Tian provides comic, irreverent commentary while also revealing crucial knowledge of the future. His warning transforms Houtu’s mood from jealousy to alarm.

Significant themes

• Manipulation and hidden agendas: the Saints and Demon Race maneuver against one another, with blame-shifting built into the plan.
• Foreknowledge and fate: Lin Tian’s memories expose the potentially disastrous consequences of the brothers’ duel.
• Power versus vulnerability: the Witches’ physical might is offset by their supposed weakness against mental arts.
• Jealousy and comic misunderstanding: Houtu’s protectiveness and Xuanming’s bluntness create humor alongside the looming threat.

Plot points and events

• Houtu reasons that Gonggong would not destroy Mount Buzhou merely because Zhurong defeated him. She suspects the six Heavenly Dao Saints, whom she believes would benefit most, and considers rallying the Ancestral Witches to attack them.
• Lin Tian calms her by giving her a Jade Stone. While distracted, Houtu crushes it.
• The stone contains Lin Tian’s newly devised Thought Intent Method, which lets beings use consciousness to cultivate thought intent and strengthen the true spirit—providing a substitute for the primordial spirit that the Witch Clan lacks.
• Houtu receives the method and recognizes its immense value. Lin Tian pretends he merely found the stone and suggests it must be a legacy from Pan Gu.
• Houtu secretly transmits the method to her elder brother Dijiang for the Witch Clan to consider.

Character developments

• Houtu moves from suspicion and anger to cautious judgment: she realizes she lacks evidence to accuse the Saints and does not want to interrupt her brothers’ hard-won chance to advance. She is thrilled by the method, but also knows Lin Tian is pretending.
• Lin Tian reveals himself through his inward thoughts as the method’s creator. He engineered the stone’s delivery partly to help the Witch Clan and partly because its cultivation would grant him a share of their power and fortune.
• Dijiang appears in a comic drinking contest with Zhu Jiuyin, though he has not yet responded to Houtu’s discovery.

Character interactions

• Lin Tian’s gesture prevents Houtu from acting rashly; his cover story prompts her to privately mock him and add another grievance to her mental ledger.
• Houtu chooses to share the method with Dijiang discreetly, mindful that the Witch Clan has few ways to conceal information from the Heavenly Secrets.

Significant themes

• Suspicion versus evidence: Houtu restrains herself despite her suspicions about the Saints.
• Legacy and invention: Lin Tian’s original method is presented as Pan Gu’s legacy to make it acceptable to the Witch Clan.
• Power and mutual benefit: The method could transform Witch Clan cultivation while also strengthening Lin Tian.
• Comic secrecy and deception: Houtu sees through Lin Tian’s performance, even as she plays along.

Plot points and events

• Houtu gives her eldest brother, Dijiang, the Thought Intent cultivation method. It could let the Primordial-Spirit-less Ancestral Witches divine heavenly secrets and refine Innate Spiritual Treasures, potentially overcoming a major limitation of the Witch Clan.
• Houtu refuses to reveal where the method came from, choosing to protect Lin Tian’s confidence. Dijiang interprets her secrecy as a sign of maturity and teases her about her marriage to Lin Tian.
• Dijiang orders Zhu Jiuyin to stop Gonggong and Zhurong, whose prolonged duel could endanger Mount Buzhou and bring calamity upon the Witch Clan. Houtu impatiently goes herself, determined to prevent the fight from causing the catastrophe that would force her to sacrifice her body to become the six paths of reincarnation.
• Di Jun leads a concealed Demon Race force to Mount Buzhou, hoping to exploit the conflict between Gonggong and Zhurong. Having learned from earlier defeats, he has arranged defenses for the Demon Race’s home base and plans to attack only if one of the two Ancestral Witches dies.
• Lin Tian detects the hidden demons despite their concealment formations. Houtu hears his thoughts and realizes Di Jun has returned, but she prioritizes stopping her brothers first, trusting Lin Tian to locate the enemy.
• Di Jun’s attention is fixed on Golden Cicada, whose presence may be important to his plans.

Character developments and interactions

• Houtu shows discretion by protecting Lin Tian’s identity as the method’s source. She is also determined and protective of both her family and her future with Lin Tian. Dijiang’s affectionate teasing about their marriage embarrasses and frustrates her.
• Dijiang recognizes the method’s strategic value and hopes it can help secure the Witch Clan’s future. He treats Houtu like a younger sister who has grown up, though he misunderstands why she is being secretive.
• Lin Tian remains irreverent and dismissive in his private thoughts, but his vigilance makes him the first to discover the Demon Race’s ambush.
• Di Jun is more cautious after previous defeats, while still looking for an opportunity to weaken the Witches. His forces remain undetected by the Ancestral Witches, but not by Lin Tian.

Significant themes

• The Witch Clan’s vulnerability and potential renewal: The Thought Intent Method may compensate for the Ancestral Witches’ lack of Primordial Spirits.
• Trust and secrecy: Houtu protects Lin Tian’s confidence, while relying on him to handle threats she cannot personally detect.
• Family loyalty and responsibility: Houtu intervenes to stop her brothers from endangering their clan, even as the Demon Race prepares to exploit their conflict.
• Comedic misunderstandings: Dijiang misreads Houtu’s discretion as marital maturity, while Houtu’s private exasperation contrasts with her brothers’ assumptions.

Key plot points and events

• Golden Cicada, acting on Saint Zhunti’s orders, sneaks toward the duel between Zhurong and Gonggong. He plans to use two enchanted Golden Lotuses to intensify their hostility, hoping one will die and weaken the Witch Clan’s Twelve-All-Heaven Baleful God Formation.
• Houtu arrives and orders her brothers to stop fighting so they can attend Dijiang’s meeting. They ignore her, intent on continuing their battle.
• Houtu manifests her Ancestral Witch form and uses the power of the earth law to suppress both brothers. She then beats them until they submit.
• Golden Cicada panics at Houtu’s strength and tries to escape, but she detects him and declares that she has caught him.

Character developments

• Houtu reveals that her strength has reached the late Quasi-Saint level. Though reputed to be gentle and poor at fighting, she proves formidable, decisive, and physically fearsome.
• Zhurong and Gonggong are shown as so absorbed in their rivalry that they disregard Houtu’s warning and Dijiang’s summons; both are swiftly humbled.
• Golden Cicada shifts from confidence in his plan to fear and a desperate attempt to flee.
• Dijiang and the other Ancestral Witches recognize that Houtu may be stronger than they are, especially when they cannot counter her earth-law power.

Significant themes

• Appearances can mislead: Houtu’s reputation for gentleness hides immense strength.
• Power and restraint: Houtu uses force to halt a dangerous fight when persuasion fails.
• Schemes disrupted by unforeseen strength: Zhunti’s plan depends on the duel continuing, but Houtu’s intervention ruins Golden Cicada’s opportunity.
• Family loyalty and discipline: Houtu acts to protect her brothers and answer Dijiang’s call, even when they refuse to listen.

Character interactions

• Houtu confronts Zhurong and Gonggong, first urging them to stop, then overpowering them when they refuse.
• Golden Cicada watches Houtu’s intervention and attempts to retreat, but she catches him.
• Dijiang confirms Houtu’s strength to Zhu Jiuyin; the other Ancestral Witches react with awe and sympathy for Lin Tian, imagining how much trouble Houtu’s strength may have caused him.

Key plot points and events

• Di Jun begins withdrawing the hidden Demon Army after Houtu’s arrival makes the Saints’ scheme look likely to fail.
• Houtu suddenly attacks a seemingly empty space and exposes Golden Cicada, a concealed early quasi-saint. She claims she sensed the spy earlier, though she is actually concealing Lin Tian’s role in alerting her.
• Houtu kills Golden Cicada in three punches: the first reveals his true form, the second destroys his protective treasures, and the third reduces him to dust. His dying pleas name the Saints and Di Jun.
• Gonggong and Zhurong stop fighting Houtu and help surround Golden Cicada, alarmed that a powerful enemy had been hiding nearby.
• Zhunti and Jieyin are furious and embarrassed by Golden Cicada’s quick defeat. The other Saints watch with amusement, confident that the Ancestral Witches cannot ultimately rival them.
• Di Jun is enraged that Golden Cicada’s final cry has exposed his connection to the incident.

Character developments and interactions

• Houtu displays overwhelming power and ruthless decisiveness. She also protects Lin Tian by taking credit for sensing Golden Cicada herself.
• Golden Cicada proves helpless against Houtu’s law power despite his quasi-saint cultivation, dying in disgrace after begging for rescue.
• Zhurong is shaken by Houtu’s strength and privately regrets having offered to teach her how to fight.
• Gonggong and Zhurong abandon their quarrel with Houtu when they realize Golden Cicada had been watching them.
• Di Jun shifts from cautious retreat to panic and anger when Golden Cicada’s last words implicate him.
• Zhunti and Jieyin blame Golden Cicada for failing and humiliating them; the other Saints treat the episode as entertainment.

Significant themes

• Raw power over technique: Houtu’s earth-law strength overwhelms Golden Cicada’s concealment and cultivation.
• The limits of power beneath the Saints: The Saints dismiss the Witches’ strength as temporary, believing their own long-term advancement is inevitable.
• Secrecy and exposure: Houtu shields Lin Tian’s involvement, while Golden Cicada’s dying words accidentally endanger Di Jun.
• Humiliation and political rivalry: The failed scheme damages the reputations of Zhunti and Jieyin and complicates Di Jun’s position.

Summary

Key plot points and events

• After Houtu kills Golden Cicada, the dying demon’s cry for Di Jun to save him reveals that the Demon Race is hiding nearby.
• The demon leaders panic, remembering the Witch Clan’s terrifying Twelve-All-Heaven Baleful God Formation and its ability to summon a Saint-level Pangu phantom.
• Prompted by Lin Tian’s thoughts, Houtu sweeps a vast area with the power of earth laws, destroying the demons’ concealment formation and exposing Di Jun’s army above Mount Buzhou.
• Houtu challenges Di Jun. He orders his forces to form the Celestial Star Dou Formation, which draws power from the primordial stars and briefly reassures him.
• Di Jiang and the other Ancestral Witches arrive. Because Di Jun has broken his oath to keep the Demon Race within the Thirty-Three Heavens, they choose battle over negotiation.
• The Twelve-All-Heaven Baleful God Formation forms again, filling the heavens with baleful energy as the confrontation begins. Lin Tian remains alert to the possibility of the Saints intervening.

Character developments

• Houtu acts on her confidence in Lin Tian’s warning, using a sweeping law technique to uncover the demons. Her imposing reputation leaves the hidden army terrified.
• Di Jun goes from concealed observer to exposed commander. He responds urgently by deploying his army’s formation and relies on a Saint Zhunti’s sacred writ as protection.
• Lin Tian continues guiding events through private observations, recognizing that the demons’ defeat is likely once they are exposed.
• Di Jiang and the Ancestral Witches show that they treat broken oaths as grounds for immediate war, with little interest in further discussion.

Character interactions

• Golden Cicada’s final plea unintentionally points Houtu toward the demons.
• Lin Tian’s inward criticism prompts Houtu to search more decisively, though she misunderstands his “clear the screen” phrasing.
• Houtu directly confronts Di Jun after exposing him.
• Di Jiang’s arrival turns the encounter into a full clash between the Witch and Demon Clans.

Significant themes

• Oaths and consequences: Di Jun’s breach of his agreement makes armed conflict inevitable.
• Power and fear: The Witches’ past display of strength shapes the demons’ choices and panic.
• Trust and influence: Lin Tian’s unseen guidance affects Houtu’s actions.
• Preparation versus confidence: The demons rely on formations and Saintly protection, while the Witches answer the crisis with overwhelming force.

Key plot points

• The Twelve Ancestral Witches summon the Pangu True Body Phantom and smash apart Di Jun’s Celestial Star Dou Formation in two blows. The formation is weakened because the Chaos Bell—essential to anchoring it—is in Lin Tian’s possession.
• The Heavenly Dao Saints refuse to intervene, wary of the danger of fighting the Witches. Zhen Yuanzi, pleased by events, resolves to visit the Witch Clan and seek friendship with the Ancestral Witches. The Queen Mother of the West predicts Di Jun will pay dearly even if he survives.
• Di Jun uses a supposed Saint Zhunti’s Edict as his last defense, but Houtu’s Pangu Phantom destroys it effortlessly. It proves to be merely a written talisman carrying a trace of Zhunti’s aura, not a genuine protective strike.
• Desperate, Di Jun blames Zhunti for the attack. He claims Zhunti sent Golden Cicada to manipulate Gonggong and Zhurong into fighting and potentially damaging Mount Buzhou, thereby burdening the Witch Clan with immense karmic sin. Di Jun offers to make the Demon Race subordinate to the Witch Clan if spared.
• Zhunti, hearing this, erupts in fury. Jieyin restrains him with their Western Religion secret art, forcing Zhunti’s anger into a wrathful aspect. Zhunti’s aura drops, and he risks a lasting loss of cultivation unless he overcomes the resulting heart demon. He vows to destroy both Di Jun and the Ancestral Witches.

Character developments and interactions

• Di Jun shifts from confidence in his formation and talisman to panic, then betrays Zhunti’s alleged schemes to save himself. His offer to submit the Demon Race shows how completely his priorities have narrowed to survival.
• Houtu remains firm and contemptuous of Di Jun’s pleas, while exposing the weakness of Zhunti’s supposed protection.
• Zhunti is revealed as having deceived Di Jun with a sham talisman; Di Jun’s public accusations damage his already poor reputation and trigger a dangerous loss of control.
• Jieyin intervenes to steady Zhunti, helping him contain his rage at the cost of a temporary decline in his aura.
• Zhen Yuanzi responds to the Witches’ strength with admiration and a new desire for an alliance. The Saints’ refusal to act underscores their concern for their own safety.

Significant themes

• Self-preservation and betrayal: Di Jun abandons loyalty and exposes Zhunti’s alleged plot when his life is at stake.
• Power and vulnerability: Even Saints hesitate to confront the Ancestral Witches, while Zhunti’s anger threatens his own cultivation.
• Reputation and consequences: Di Jun’s accusations publicly humiliate Zhunti, turning a battlefield defeat into a lasting political and spiritual crisis.
• Karma and manipulation: The alleged scheme to make the Witches damage Mount Buzhou highlights the use of deception to shift karmic blame.

Key plot points and events

• As the Witch Clan overwhelms the Demon forces near Mount Buzhou, Houtu rejects Di Jun’s apparent attempt to change sides. Di Jun immediately flees.
• Eastern Emperor Taiyi stays behind and transforms himself into a blazing sun, intending to self-detonate and damage Mount Buzhou, buying Di Jun time to escape. Houtu abandons her pursuit of Di Jun to stop him; the other demons flee, while Fuxi uses Nuwa’s talisman to escape.
• Di Jun reaches the Houtu Tribe and spots Lin Tian. Hoping to hurt Houtu by killing her beloved, he attacks Lin Tian and the nearby Witch shamans.
• Lin Tian calmly summons the Chaos Bell, an Innate Supreme Treasure Houtu had obtained from Taiyi. Di Jun, unable to stop at full speed, crashes into it and dies.
• The watching powers of the Primordial World are stunned by Di Jun’s humiliating death. Many envy Lin Tian for possessing the treasure, while Zhunti is especially resentful that he lacks one himself.

Character developments and interactions

• Di Jun chooses escape over helping Taiyi, then turns his grief and fear into a vindictive attack on Lin Tian. His arrogance proves fatal.
• Taiyi sacrifices himself to protect his elder brother and strike at the Witch Clan, even knowing the Pangu True Body is beyond his ability to defeat.
• Houtu refuses to tolerate Di Jun’s wavering allegiance and prioritizes protecting Mount Buzhou from Taiyi’s self-detonation.
• Lin Tian remains unruffled under attack and reveals the Chaos Bell, decisively saving himself and killing Di Jun.
• Fuxi flees with Nuwa’s help and resolves to avoid further Demon Clan affairs.
• The Witch shamans, including Nine Phoenixes and Hou Yi, try to shield Lin Tian, but Lin Tian acts before they can intervene.

Significant themes

• Sacrifice and loyalty: Taiyi gives his life to help Di Jun escape, while Di Jun’s survival instinct leads him to abandon his brother.
• Arrogance and miscalculation: Di Jun underestimates Lin Tian and fails to account for the Chaos Bell.
• Fortune, power, and envy: Lin Tian’s possession of an Innate Supreme Treasure provokes jealousy, particularly from Zhunti.
• Dark humor and reputation: Di Jun’s death is treated as a cautionary tale about the absurd consequences of reckless flight.

Plot points and events

• Saint Zhunti envies Lin Tian for possessing the Chaos Bell, an Innate Supreme Treasure. Though he considers scheming to take it, he avoids confronting the Twelve Ancestral Witches while they are at full strength.
• Lin Tian rings the Chaos Bell, destroying the last remnant of Di Jun’s True Spirit and every hidden means of resurrection. Di Jun is now permanently dead.
• Lin Tian jokingly insists that Di Jun killed himself by charging into the bell, while privately regretting that he can no longer roast the Golden Crow’s wings.
• Houtu returns carrying the destructive Radiant Sun left by Eastern Emperor Taiyi’s self-detonation. Relieved that Lin Tian and her people are safe, she embraces him.
• Houtu silently considers ways to make Lin Tian stronger—including obtaining powerful treasures and finding a cultivation method they could practice together.
• Dijiang and the other Ancestral Witches celebrate their victory over the Demon Race: Di Jun and Taiyi are dead, many demons have been killed, and Fuxi and Bai Ze escaped. Dijiang gives Houtu two golden lotuses bearing the Western Religion’s aura.
• The lotuses, along with Di Jun’s dying accusation, confirm that Saints Zhunti and Jieyin helped engineer the Witch Clan’s recent crisis. Houtu cannot attack them directly, since the Saints are gathered in the Thirty-Three Heavens and would overwhelm the Witches. She turns to Lin Tian for advice.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Tian proves capable of using the Chaos Bell not only in battle but to prevent resurrection across time. He remains playful and unconcerned with the danger his treasure attracts.
• Houtu shows deep affection and anxiety for Lin Tian, while also displaying formidable strength by handling Taiyi’s volatile remains. Her concern turns into an ambitious, protective plan to strengthen and arm him.
• Zhunti is revealed as jealous and scheming, rationalizing his desire for Lin Tian’s treasure as benevolent.
• Dijiang and the Ancestral Witches celebrate their victory but recognize that taking revenge on the Saints would be suicidal. They defer to Houtu’s judgment.

Significant themes

• Power and temptation: The Chaos Bell draws the attention of powerful figures, especially those who covet its prestige and might.
• Finality and fate: Lin Tian’s bell destroys Di Jun’s last chance of return, making his death absolute.
• Protection and affection: Houtu’s love for Lin Tian motivates her to seek greater strength and treasures for him.
• Victory tempered by restraint: The Witches have won a major battle, but the Saints’ greater power forces them to consider strategy rather than immediate revenge.

Key plot points and events

• Houtu asks Lin Tian whether the Witch Clan should retaliate against Zhunti and Jieyin. Dijiang also invites Lin Tian to advise them.
• Lin Tian outwardly declines, saying the decision belongs to the Ancestral Witches. In his private thoughts, however, he condemns their hesitation and warns that attacking the Six Saints in the Thirty-Three Heavens would be suicidal.
• Lin Tian’s unspoken alternative is to strike the Saints at their western stronghold, Mount Sumeru: the Ancestral Witches could raid it by surprise and ambush the Saints as they respond.
• Houtu hears Lin Tian’s thoughts and decides to present the strategy as her own. She persuades Dijiang to discuss it in Pan Gu Hall, where Pangu’s power conceals their plans from heavenly divination.
• The Ancestral Witches enter the hall without Lin Tian. Houtu then repeats his private reasoning to her eleven brothers, leaving them stunned.
• Meanwhile, Zhunti assumes the Witch Clan will either accept the insult or attack the Thirty-Three Heavens and be destroyed. Confident either way, he heads to Lingxiao Hall to convert Di Jun’s ten surviving Young Golden Crows and plunder the Demon Clan’s treasury.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Tian maintains a cautious public distance from the decision, while privately demonstrating strategic insight—and insulting the Ancestral Witches for being slow to see the obvious.
• Houtu proves she can exploit Lin Tian’s thoughts, turning his plan into her proposal and enjoying the chance to surprise him. She also keeps the discussion from his ears by taking it into Pan Gu Hall.
• Dijiang trusts Houtu’s insistence on secrecy and agrees to gather the clan, though he initially expects little from her proposal.
• Zhunti is overconfident and self-serving: he believes every possible Witch Clan response favors him, and uses that confidence to justify taking advantage of the Demon Clan.
• The exchange between Lin Tian and Houtu is playful and ironic: he privately doubts her intelligence, unaware that she has already heard—and intends to use—his plan.

Significant themes

• Strategy over brute force: Lin Tian rejects a direct assault on the Saints and proposes an indirect raid and ambush.
• Secrecy and hidden knowledge: Pan Gu Hall blocks even a Saint’s ability to divine the Ancestral Witches’ plans.
• Overconfidence and miscalculation: Zhunti assumes he has anticipated every outcome, while Houtu’s actions suggest the Witch Clan may have another option.
• Appearance versus reality: Lin Tian appears uninvolved, Houtu presents another’s idea as her own, and Zhunti’s confidence masks the possibility that he has misjudged his opponents.