Chapter Summaries

Summary

Key plot points and events

• Daochen absorbs the primordial power of chaos, restoring his strength to 80% and revealing a major advantage: unlike others, he can wield chaos power directly, making his attacks exceptionally destructive and disruptive to opponents’ abilities.
• A Demon God’s resentment—a persistent mass of hatred that repeatedly reforms—is drawn toward Jieyin and Zhunti, whose Buddhist techniques can affect it, though only slightly.
• Daochen’s punches repeatedly shatter the entity, but cannot destroy its underlying foundation. He concludes that fully purifying it would take an impractically long time.
• Noticing that the resentment can influence weaker cultivators’ minds but has little effect on Sages, Daochen sees a potential use for it: a place where Demon Race members can strengthen their mental resolve.
• He decides to seal the resentment in Demon Gorge, a law-rich location in the Demon Realm, where it can gradually fade while serving as a heart-training ground for future Demon Race powerhouses.

Character developments and interactions

• Daochen demonstrates both his immense combat power and his ability to think strategically, turning a dangerous problem into a possible resource for the Demon Race.
• He protects Jieyin and Zhunti as allies, despite recalling their former hostility. They are relieved when Daochen chooses to seal the resentment rather than make them purify it indefinitely.
• Jieyin and Zhunti’s Buddhist arts prove relevant against the entity, but they are not powerful enough to resolve the threat quickly.

Significant themes

• Turning danger into opportunity: Daochen repurposes the resentment as a tool for cultivation rather than simply trying to destroy it.
• Mental resilience and growth: Enduring resentment can temper weaker cultivators’ minds and prepare them for higher realms.
• Pragmatism and shifting alliances: Former enemies cooperate when their interests align, and Daochen recognizes the value of allies even when their relationship has changed.

Key events

• Laozi warns that the sealed resentment could threaten the Demon Realm if someone tampers with it. Daochen accepts the risk, believing that any demons who unleash it will face the consequences of their fate.
• Daochen reflects that the Devil Race’s invasion, though devastating, has also released some of the Primordial World’s accumulated calamities. He believes this may ease the next immeasurable kalpa and, after the present disaster passes, allow the world to flourish under renewed order.
• Daochen explains that Sages avoid involvement in worldly calamities because living beings’ desires intensify during them, while the calamities themselves must be consumed before the world can enter a new period of growth. He also observes that the Heavenly Dao is weakening after failing to take physical form through Hongjun.
• After sealing the resentment, Daochen tells the Sages he will move most of the Demon Race into the newly formed Demon Realm, leaving a presence in the Northern Demon Territory as a link to the Primordial World. Travel between the two realms will be restricted.
• Daochen plans to enter seclusion and urges the Sages to consider creating worlds of their own—but warns them not to overreach. Establishing a world nearly killed him, and the others’ help was crucial to his survival.

Character developments and interactions

• Daochen shows greater caution and humility after nearly falling to the Demon God’s resentment. He admits he had become overconfident and is now more aware of the unknown dangers involved in creating worlds.
• Laozi voices practical concern for the Demon Realm’s long-term safety. Jieyin, Zhunti, and the other Sages are unsettled by Daochen’s warning and begin to question whether future world-creation attempts might bring dangers beyond resentment.
• Daochen’s account prompts the Sages to reassess their own plans and the risks they may face.

Significant themes

• Calamity and renewal: Catastrophes consume accumulated misfortune and may clear the way for a more ordered, flourishing world, though individual suffering remains immense.
• Fate and responsibility: Daochen sees the consequences of tampering with the resentment as part of the Demon Race’s fate.
• The limits of power: Even Sages—and figures as great as Pangu—may be vulnerable when creating worlds; confidence must be tempered by caution.
• Order versus desire: Heavenly order grows through successive calamities, while living beings’ desires continually expand and complicate attempts to maintain that order.

Key plot points and events

• The Sages reflect on the dangers of creating worlds after hearing about the crisis Daochen faced. They recognize that their own strength may not be enough to survive similar threats and decide to proceed cautiously.
• Jieyin and Zhunti announce that they will jointly establish a Buddha Realm attached to the Primordial World, accepting the limits this will impose in exchange for reduced risk. They ask Daochen to help once he emerges from seclusion.
• Daochen explains that they need both an anchor connecting the new realm to the Primordial World and a shared medium through which they can govern it. Jieyin and Zhunti propose fusing their Buddhist sariras into one.
• Daochen approves, expects to emerge from seclusion within a year, and tells them to prepare. He also explains that new worlds will need to absorb and convert chaos qi to sustain themselves.
• Laozi asks how the Sages should respond to the Heavenly Dao’s warning about the Netherworld Office’s invasion, especially given the risk of conflict with Lady Pingxin. Daochen’s guidance is not yet given.

Character developments and interactions

• Jieyin and Zhunti show their usual resourcefulness by quickly claiming the next world-building opportunity. Their decision to fuse their sariras also demonstrates deep trust and willingness to share their strength.
• The Moral Heavenly Venerable and Tongtian are impressed—and envious—of the pair’s unity. They regret that their own former closeness as the Three Pure Ones has been damaged by past grievances.
• Daochen respects Jieyin and Zhunti’s ingenuity and agrees to support their plan. He also notes their rare devotion to one another, comparing it to the loyalty he shares with his brothers.
• Laozi appears increasingly deferential to Daochen, prioritizing the Demon Emperor’s interests when raising the Netherworld issue.

Significant themes

• Caution in the face of the unknown: World creation carries serious risks, so ambition must be balanced against survival.
• Cooperation and sacrifice: Jieyin and Zhunti’s shared sarira symbolizes their unity and contrasts with the fractured relationships among the Three Pure Ones.
• Opportunity and pragmatism: The pair’s quick decision-making reflects their talent for finding advantageous paths.
• Worlds as living systems: Daochen describes realms as needing to absorb and transform chaos qi to sustain themselves.
• Loyalty and regret: The chapter contrasts enduring brotherly bonds with relationships damaged by pride and past conflict.

Key plot points and events

• Daochen tells the Sages that Human Sovereign Fuxi is seeking a way to establish the Human Path. He urges them not to harm Fuxi, and asks them to show restraint if they are forced to intervene.
• The Sages doubt the Human Race can establish a Great Dao, believing the Heavenly Dao would prevent it. Daochen, however, trusts Fuxi and sees the Human Race’s rise as proof that they can achieve what others consider impossible.
• Daochen reflects that the Demon Realm’s creation may have followed Fate’s design: it has helped him evade the Heavenly Dao while strengthening the Path of Fate. He recognizes that helping other Sages establish worlds could likewise serve Fate, but refuses to abandon the opportunity because it may let him reach the Heavenly Dao Realm.
• Before entering seclusion, Daochen tells Nüwa to remain in the Demon Realm. The other Sages return to the Primordial World and receive the Heavenly Dao’s angry warning for associating with its enemy.
• The Sages realize the Heavenly Dao is currently too weak to punish them. They see this as a rare chance to escape its control, while Daochen has already positioned himself to retreat to the Demon Realm if necessary.
• The chapter closes by framing the future conflict as a struggle between the Primordial World and the various worlds.

Character developments and interactions

• Daochen shows confidence in Fuxi and the Human Race, while also acknowledging that his own strategy may make him a pawn of Fate. Despite that risk, he commits to pursuing power and independence from the Heavenly Dao.
• The Sages initially dismiss the Human Race’s ambition, but the Heavenly Dao’s limited ability to punish them makes them recognize their opportunity to act.
• Nüwa is instructed by Daochen to wait safely in the Demon Realm.
• Laozi voices the Sages’ skepticism, arguing that the Heavenly Dao’s recognition is necessary for a Great Dao to emerge.
• Daochen’s exchanges with the Sages emphasize his role as both adviser and strategist: he warns them about the Human Race’s plans while urging them to avoid obstructing Fuxi.

Significant themes

• Ambition and the impossible: The Human Race’s rise suggests that apparent weakness does not rule out extraordinary achievement.
• Fate and agency: Daochen suspects Fate has shaped events, yet chooses to pursue the opportunities those events create.
• Power and vulnerability: The Heavenly Dao’s temporary weakness gives the Sages room to challenge its authority, but that opening may not last.
• A changing scale of conflict: The establishment of the Demon Realm shifts the stakes from individual rivalries toward competition between entire worlds.

Key plot points and events

• With the Heavenly Dao monitoring the Sages’ actions, Laozi proposes visiting Lady Pingxin to negotiate limits on the Netherworld Office’s expansion into the Primordial World. Jieyin and Zhunti agree, while privately recognizing that the Netherworld Office may be beyond the Heavenly Dao’s reach.
• The Sages fear the Heavenly Dao may strip them of their Sage Positions if they cease to serve its interests. Daochen’s example has encouraged them to consider resisting its control.
• At the Netherworld Office, the Sages present a friendly front and discuss Daochen’s establishment of the Demon Realm, but conceal their plans to oppose the Heavenly Dao.
• Laozi proposes establishing City Gods across the Primordial World. They would protect local regions and handle supernatural threats, while remaining barred from ordinary worldly affairs. Human members and ghost deities could both serve, with the Human Race providing faith.
• Lady Pingxin welcomes the plan. She explains that the Netherworld Office needs to gather dangerous, unquiet ghosts from the Primordial World, both to restore order and to advance her plans to establish the Eighteen Layers of Hell.
• Pingxin appoints the Mount Tai Prefect to represent the Netherworld Office and sends Laozi to consult the Heavenly Dao and Human Sovereign Fuxi. The City God system is to be settled alongside the campaign against the Demon Tide.

Character developments and interactions

• Laozi acts as a careful mediator, devising a compromise that gives the Netherworld Office a defined role while limiting its reach.
• Jieyin and Zhunti support the negotiation while sharing the Sages’ growing distrust of the Heavenly Dao.
• Lady Pingxin shows restraint: though her power has grown and she is preparing to extend the Earthly Dao, she prefers a negotiated arrangement to open war.
• The Sages and Pingxin shift from tension to cordial discussion, cooperating on a practical solution. Pingxin also delegates implementation to the Mount Tai Prefect and involves Fuxi in the decision.

Significant themes

• Power and autonomy: The Sages’ fear of losing their positions drives them toward resistance against the Heavenly Dao.
• Compromise and jurisdiction: The City Gods offer a way to balance the Heavenly, Earthly, and human interests.
• Order and responsibility: The Netherworld Office’s intervention is framed as necessary to manage dangerous ghosts and protect communities, but the chapter also warns that unchecked ambition could become an invasion.

Plot points and events

• Laozi appoints the Mount Tai Prefect to oversee the City Gods across the Primordial World. The Prefect is chosen for his strength, loyalty to Lady Pingxin, and lack of ties to the Witch Clan.
• Laozi and the other three Sages agree to take the proposal to the Human Sovereign and report it to the Heavenly Dao, expecting their united support to help secure approval.
• Lady Pingxin learns the Demon Emperor did not send the Sages; Laozi says they can settle the matter themselves while the Demon Emperor focuses on completing the Demon Realm.
• The Sages leave after insisting their relationship with the Demon Emperor has always been good. Lady Pingxin suspects they are concealing a new alliance or shared purpose.
• After their departure, she asks about Hell’s laws and construction. Her ten companions say the work is progressing gradually.

Character developments and interactions

• Laozi takes charge of the City God arrangement and presents himself as an efficient mediator. The other Sages back his plan, with Jieyin emphasizing the importance of acting together.
• Lady Pingxin accepts the Sages’ help but remains wary of their sudden deference toward the Demon Emperor. She also reveals a growing ambition: strengthening the Netherworld Office to challenge the Heavenly Dao.
• The Sages appear to have shifted from opposition to cooperation with the Demon Emperor, though they deny any change. Their new rapport with him may also make it easier for them to operate in the Netherworld Office.
• The Mount Tai Prefect is elevated to a major administrative role, becoming the Sages’ chosen link between the Netherworld Office and the City Gods.

Significant themes

• Power and political realignment: The Sages’ changed stance toward the Demon Emperor suggests that alliances follow shifting interests and strength.
• Authority and institution-building: The City Gods and Hell are being organized into systems that could reshape governance of the mortal and spirit worlds.
• Ambition beyond established ranks: Lady Pingxin’s goal has advanced beyond attaining Sagehood; she now seeks the Great Dao and greater power to oppose the Heavenly Dao.

Key events

• Laozi and the other Sages establish a palace on Mount Tai as the Mount Tai Prefect’s residence. The site is intended as a link to the Netherworld Office and a place to pray to, and possibly communicate with, the Heavenly Dao.
• The Sages visit the Human Race’s camp to discuss the Netherworld Office’s troops assisting against the devil race. Laozi explains that the Netherworld Office and the Primordial World have separate rules, and that the troops’ presence has disrupted the boundary between the two realms.
• Rather than demand that the troops withdraw, Laozi proposes a new City God office to regulate their deployment. Netherworld soldiers must register with the Mount Tai Prefect; requests for Netherworld aid will pass through the City God system and ultimately be decided by Lady Pingxin.
• City Gods will be appointed by the Human Race and serve within the Primordial World. They may also request Netherworld help with ghosts or spirits they cannot handle.

Character developments and interactions

• Fuxi shows perceptiveness by noticing Laozi’s distinction between the Primordial World and the Netherworld Office. He accepts the proposed arrangement but does not yet grasp its political advantages, and worries that Human Race control of City God appointments might slight Lady Pingxin.
• Laozi carefully guides Fuxi toward accepting the system, presenting it as a way to respect the rules of both realms while securing the Human Race’s role in administering City Gods.
• The Mount Tai Prefect is entrusted with guarding the new residence and registering Netherworld personnel, and responds dutifully to the Sages’ instructions.
• The Sages privately doubt whether the Heavenly Dao can truly communicate, but conceal their skepticism.

Significant themes

• Order and boundaries: The chapter treats the Primordial World and Netherworld as realms with distinct rules that must be respected.
• Political influence through institutions: The City God office appears to be administrative, but also gives the Human Race control over Netherworld activity within its territory.
• Caution and uncertainty: The Sages act carefully around both the Heavenly Dao and Lady Pingxin, while Fuxi accepts a system whose wider implications he has not yet understood.

Key plot points and events

• Laozi rebukes Fuxi for being too cautious about the Netherworld Office’s Ghost Soldiers entering the Primordial World. Fuxi accepts the need for the Human Race to assert authority and agrees that ghosts should face restrictions.
• Laozi directs Fuxi to consult the Mount Tai Prefect about establishing City Gods. He explains that the proposal must be approved by the Heavenly Dao, so Fuxi prepares the traditional six sacrifices.
• At Mount Tai, Laozi leads a rite asking the Heavenly Dao to approve rules for City Gods. They will register spirits entering the Primordial World—with joint consent from the Netherworld Office and the Human Race—and pursue spirits who refuse reincarnation.
• The Heavenly Dao approves the arrangement and grants substantial merit to the assembled Sages, Fuxi, and the Mount Tai Prefect.
• Laozi leaves future City God arrangements to Fuxi and the Prefect. He tells Fuxi to focus first on defeating the Devil Race, then unify the Human Race; unification will bring further merit and advance human rule.
• Before departing for secluded cultivation, Laozi offers to help with any difficulties. Fuxi recalls a problem that may require a Sage’s direct intervention.

Character developments and interactions

• Fuxi moves from political naïveté and hesitation toward confidence in the Human Race’s authority. The Heavenly Dao’s recognition and the Sages’ support strengthen his resolve to defeat the Devil Race and unify humanity.
• Laozi acts as mentor and political guide: he corrects Fuxi’s narrow thinking, secures formal approval for the City God system, and encourages human unification.
• The Mount Tai Prefect cooperates readily with Fuxi and gains significant merit, seeing this appointment as a sign that Lady Pingxin trusts him with important responsibilities.
• The Sages and the Prefect participate in the rites and share in the Heavenly Dao’s reward.

Significant themes

• Authority and governance: The City God system establishes a balance between Human Race oversight and Netherworld Office authority.
• Heavenly recognition and merit: Formal approval by the Heavenly Dao, rather than only heroic deeds, can bring great merit.
• Political maturity and human ambition: Fuxi learns to think beyond local concerns and embrace the Human Race’s wider claim to rule.
• Cooperation: Sages, humans, and Netherworld officials work together to impose order without undermining one another.

Key plot points

• Fuxi asks the Sages to investigate why the Human Race’s Holy War Squad can no longer recover Holy Monk Jin Chanzi’s power quickly. That power can purify demonic qi and reverse transformation into the Devil Race.
• Jieyin and Zhunti explain that Jin Chanzi’s power resembles Buddhist power but has mysterious, possibly fate-linked origins. They cannot explain or restore it.
• Laozi concludes that Demon Emperor Daochen, who once took Jin Chanzi in and understands fate better than anyone, is the best person to consult. He brings Fuxi to the Demon Realm, assuring him that the Sages can protect the Human Race while he is away.
• Daochen senses Laozi and Fuxi’s impending arrival and tells Nüwa to bring Fuxi to his secluded cultivation site, without disclosing anything further to Laozi.
• Nüwa reflects on Daochen’s extraordinary perception and growing strength. Meanwhile, their children, Qingchan and Qingxuan, have become more disciplined and made progress in cultivation.

Character developments and interactions

• Laozi is impatient with the Sages’ inability to solve the problem, but takes responsibility by arranging a visit to Daochen. He recognizes Fuxi’s concern for the Human Race and reassures him.
• Jieyin and Zhunti admit the limits of their knowledge, shifting responsibility to Daochen.
• Fuxi balances the urgency of Jin Chanzi’s problem against his duty to protect the Human Race; he also welcomes the chance to see Nüwa.
• Daochen demonstrates perception beyond ordinary Sage abilities and continues to prioritize his family’s safety.
• Nüwa has deepened her trust in Daochen, believing him more dependable than fate, the Heavenly Dao, or Hongjun. Her affection grows with his strength.

Significant themes

• Limits of knowledge and power: Even Sages cannot explain Jin Chanzi’s mysterious ability.
• Fate and exceptional individuals: Jin Chanzi’s importance is tied to fate, while Daochen’s understanding of it makes him the likely solution.
• Duty and family: Fuxi worries about the Human Race, while Nüwa’s faith in Daochen centers on protecting their family.
• Growth through discipline: Qingchan and Qingxuan’s recent progress contrasts with their earlier carelessness.

Key plot points

• After surviving the Fate Curse, Qingchan and Qingxuan took Nüwa’s warning to heart: they must cultivate diligently rather than assume their father can protect them from everything.
• Laozi and Fuxi reached the sealed Northern Demon Territory. Laozi used his Sage power to enter undetected and brought Fuxi to Nüwa.
• Nüwa explained that Daochen already knew why Fuxi had come and was waiting for him. She told Fuxi that a great opportunity awaited.
• Daochen led Nüwa and Fuxi into the Demon Realm’s World Core, a strange place where reality responds to thought and the Realm’s laws are taking shape.
• Daochen urged Fuxi to study those laws as preparation for establishing the Human Path. He cautioned that the Human Race’s current prominence and heavenly favor could obscure its real nature; Fuxi must understand what remains when those advantages are gone.

Character developments and interactions

• Qingchan and Qingxuan have become more serious about cultivation after facing helplessness and the possibility of death.
• Fuxi feels humble beside his sister, Nüwa, but takes in Daochen’s guidance with awe. Nüwa welcomes him warmly and reassures him that their titles do not divide them: they are family.
• Nüwa acts as a supportive guide, bringing Fuxi to Daochen and framing his visit as a chance to grow.
• Laozi recognizes that Daochen does not yet trust him enough to reveal the World Core. He worries that he and the other former fence-sitters must win Daochen’s confidence to escape the Heavenly Dao’s control.
• Daochen offers Fuxi an opportunity while stressing the difficulty and responsibility of creating a Human Path that truly belongs to humanity.

Significant themes

• Hardship can expose the limits of power and inspire discipline.
• Trust and political alignment shape who gains access to protection and opportunity.
• A people’s true identity and Dao must be found beyond status, favor, and outward glory.
• The World Core’s dreamlike nature mirrors the chapter’s emphasis on perception, inner calm, and understanding underlying laws.

Key plot points and events

• Fuxi is astonished that Daochen has created the Demon Realm despite not having mastered every law. Daochen explains that the realm copies the Primordial World’s laws; within it, he can command them as its god and study them toward eventually gaining true world-creating power.
• Daochen urges Fuxi to study the laws, especially as preparation for establishing the Human Path. He warns that the Demon Realm’s core is still repairing itself, and once it is complete, it will expel him.
• Fuxi hesitates, worried that the Human Race will be endangered if he leaves them unwatched. Daochen reassures him that little time passes in the outside world—but cautions that time spent there still ages them, making the Demon Realm a poor place to cultivate compared with the Primordial World.
• Daochen explains that Immortals are not truly immortal: they consume their lifespans and must repeatedly survive tribulations, which grow more frequent and eventually kill them. Sages, by contrast, can endure the destruction of their bodies because their origin imprints remain and allow them to be reborn.

Character developments and interactions

• Fuxi shows anxiety about his limited understanding, then reveals his deep devotion to the Human Race by considering giving up a rare chance to study the laws for their safety. Daochen’s reassurance lets him settle, and the explanation of tribulations reshapes his understanding of immortality.
• Daochen acts as Fuxi’s teacher, patiently clarifying the Demon Realm’s nature, the cost of its unusual time flow, and the distinction between Immortals and Sages. He is impressed by Fuxi’s selflessness.
• Nüwa listens closely, benefiting from Daochen’s explanations and learning alongside Fuxi.

Significant themes

• Knowledge through experience: Daochen says he only understood the laws and immortality more fully after creating the Demon Realm.
• Selflessness and responsibility: Fuxi places the Human Race’s welfare above personal advancement.
• The limits of immortality: Immortals remain subject to aging and escalating tribulations, while Sagehood offers a more enduring form of survival.
• Opportunity and sacrifice: The Demon Realm offers a rare chance to study the laws, but its unusual time flow carries a hidden personal cost.

Key plot points and events

• Daochen, Fuxi, and Nüwa cultivate in the Demon Realm, whose laws help them deepen their understanding of the Great Dao.
• Fuxi grows stronger but remains short of a breakthrough. Nüwa makes greater progress, and Daochen expects she may break through soon.
• Fuxi asks why Daochen abandoned the Heavenly Court. Daochen reveals that Nüwa and Fuxi’s children, Qingchan and Qingxuan, nearly disappeared, exposing how vulnerable even Sages are to hidden powers.
• Daochen warns Fuxi that Fate may be manipulating the Human Race, which could be only a pawn in a larger scheme. Establishing a Human Great Dao will be far harder than Fuxi realizes.
• Fuxi accepts the danger but vows to fulfill his mission and continue pursuing a Great Dao for the Human Race.
• Daochen leaves Fuxi to explore and cultivate. Fuxi recognizes that Daochen’s apparent journey into the distance is a trick: he has merely made himself smaller.
• Elsewhere, Laozi explores the Demon Realm and witnesses its laws gradually completing themselves. A dormant star begins burning, becoming a small Red Sun that lights and warms the realm.

Character developments

• Fuxi becomes more determined and clear-eyed about his mission, accepting that the Human Race may be caught in forces beyond its control.
• Daochen reveals the fear and uncertainty beneath his former authority, while continuing to guide Fuxi.
• Nüwa shows exceptional gains from cultivation and appears close to a breakthrough.
• Laozi gains insight into how the Demon Realm’s laws develop and maintain its structure.

Significant themes

• Fate and free will: The Human Race may be manipulated, yet Fuxi insists on choosing his own course.
• The cost of power and escape: Daochen’s flight from the Heavenly Court reflects the dangers faced even by the mighty.
• Perseverance and legacy: Fuxi sees creating a Human Great Dao as a mission worth enduring hardship for.
• World-building through natural law: The Demon Realm develops gradually as its laws refine and activate.

Character interactions

• Fuxi presses Daochen for the truth about the Heavenly Court, prompting Daochen’s candid warning about hidden powers and Fate.
• Daochen challenges Fuxi to consider whether the Human Race truly controls its future; Fuxi answers with a firm commitment to his mission.
• Daochen encourages Fuxi to keep cultivating, while Fuxi’s awareness of Daochen’s playful shrinking trick adds a light note to their exchange.

Plot points and events

• Laozi explores the Demon Realm and notices its blood-red moon, which radiates immense demonic power. He suspects the power may come from the Demon Emperor’s heart.
• The Demon Realm gives Laozi an insight: a world can be understood as a living thing that is born, grows, and eventually perishes. He decides to use this realm as a model—or “seed”—for the world he hopes to create.
• Laozi’s sage power begins circulating and absorbing spiritual energy on its own. He discovers that he can deliberately accelerate this process, greatly increasing his cultivation speed.
• Daochen observes Laozi’s method and copies it. He realizes, however, that the technique is dangerous for ordinary cultivators: uninterrupted energy absorption could overwhelm someone unable to break through. He concludes it is suited to Sages, whose bodies can store or release the excess power.
• Daochen passes the method to Nüwa, but not Fuxi, whose cultivation has already reached its limit and whose main obstacle is understanding.
• Elsewhere, Eastern Emperor Taiyi, Dijun, and Hongjun flee the Beyond Lands after Shichen tricks them into the River of Time and Space. They survive the terrifying five declines of heaven and man thanks to Hongjun’s knowledge of the Time and Space Great Dao, but their attempt to obtain the Waters of Time and Space fails.

Character developments and interactions

• Laozi shows exceptional insight and comprehension, gaining both a new vision for world-building and a powerful cultivation breakthrough.
• Daochen is impressed by Laozi’s talent and adapts the method, while carefully assessing its risks. His decision to share it with Nüwa—but not Fuxi—reflects his judgment of their different needs.
• Hongjun is shaken by being deceived again and wonders whether he is too trusting, recalling the Heavenly Dao’s past influence over him.
• Taiyi and Dijun share Hongjun’s anger at Shichen’s ambush and disappointment at the failed mission.

Significant themes

• Worlds as living beings: Creation, growth, and destruction are presented as a natural cycle.
• Talent and cultivation: Comprehension, not just accumulated power, determines whether a cultivator can advance.
• Power and danger: A technique that benefits Sages could kill ordinary practitioners, making power inseparable from responsibility.
• Deception and vulnerability: The group’s repeated betrayals leave Hongjun questioning his judgment and trust.

Plot points and events

• Dao Ancestor Hongjun reassures Eastern Emperor Taiyi and Dijun that their elder brother, Daochen, is unlikely to blame him for what happened. The two Demon Sages thank him and insist Daochen will not punish him.
• Hongjun realizes they are still in the dangerous Beyond Lands and recommends leaving. Devil Ancestor Luo Hou appears, revealing that Hongjun has walked into an ambush.
• Daoist Shichen arrives, joined by four powerful Chaos Demon Gods: Destruction, Gluttony, Primal Chaos, and Yuqing Chicken. They surround Hongjun, intent on capturing him and renewing the Beyond Lands’ ambitions against the Primordial World.
• Hongjun recognizes that he is outnumbered and cannot be sure he can defeat them. Rather than fight, he offers to surrender and negotiate: he will return with them under guard if they let Taiyi and Dijun go.

Character developments and interactions

• Hongjun stays composed and pragmatic. Though wary of the ambush—especially Yuqing Chicken, his natural enemy—he chooses negotiation over a likely losing battle and tries to protect Taiyi and Dijun.
• Taiyi and Dijun show gratitude and concern for Hongjun, promising their elder brother will not blame him.
• Luo Hou returns stronger, having stabilized his cultivation at the ninth heaven of the Saint Realm, and seeks revenge after his earlier defeat.
• Shichen appears to have coordinated the trap with Luo Hou and presents the capture as “hospitality.”
• Yuqing Chicken mocks Hongjun’s rise, while the other Chaos Demon Gods silently reinforce the threat around him.

Significant themes

• Power and vulnerability: Even a mighty Sage can be endangered when outnumbered and caught by surprise.
• Pragmatism and sacrifice: Hongjun accepts personal risk to give his companions a chance to escape.
• Old rivalries and renewed conflict: The Beyond Lands’ surviving Demon Gods still resent past defeats and are once again considering invasion.
• The legacy of Pangu: His past destruction of the Chaos Demon Gods—and his later death—continues to shape the balance of power and the threat to the Primordial World.

Key plot points

• Hongjun seeks to secure the release of two imprisoned companions before deciding whether to escape himself, hoping to avoid abandoning them.
• Luo Hou initially rejects negotiation, but Hongjun argues that the path from the Nine Heavens of the Saint Realm to the Heavenly Dao Realm is blocked by a thick barrier and reveals a way to progress.
• Luo Hou confirms that his own cultivation has slowed dramatically and admits he has found no way through the barrier. His desire to break through makes him willing to consider Hongjun’s offer.
• Hongjun explains that Sages must temper their sage power—not merely advance their realm—and that reaching the barrier’s limit is not enough: they must also find an opportunity or weakness through which to break it.
• The assembled Sages are surprised by this revelation. When one asks Luo Hou whether Hongjun’s explanation is credible, Luo Hou says nothing and begins tempering his own sage power.

Character developments and interactions

• Hongjun is more resolute and accepting of risk than before. He uses the Sages’ ambition to negotiate, presenting his knowledge as proof of sincerity while concealing that fear—not simply inability—has kept him from seeking a breakthrough opportunity.
• Luo Hou shifts from dismissing Hongjun to taking his claims seriously. Though he knows killing Hongjun might be his best chance to eliminate a threat, his own hunger for advancement leads him to pause and test the advice.
• The other Sages remain wary of releasing the prisoners. They recognize that even weak Sages could grow into serious rivals and look to Luo Hou, the only one among them at the Nine Heavens, for judgment.

Significant themes

• Knowledge as leverage: Hongjun turns an explanation of cultivation into bargaining power.
• Ambition and temptation: Luo Hou’s desire to reach the Heavenly Dao Realm makes him receptive to someone he had meant to kill.
• Trust under uncertainty: Hongjun offers partial proof, but the Sages must weigh his claims against the risks of freeing his companions.
• Growth through preparation: Progress depends not only on breaking through a barrier, but also on refining one’s power and recognizing the right opportunity.

Plot points and events

• Surrounded by the Sages, Hongjun agrees to let Luo Hou test his claim that Sage Power can be refined. He warns that if the method fails, they can fight.
• Luo Hou’s power rapidly increases, confirming Hongjun’s claim. The other Sages, worried about falling behind, stop guarding Hongjun and begin refining their own power.
• Hongjun sees a chance to escape, but Luo Hou soon stops and announces that the method works exceptionally well.
• Luo Hou proposes releasing Eastern Emperor Taiyi and Dijun, arguing that keeping the Demon Emperor’s brothers hostage would be pointless and could provoke a dangerous foe. The Sages accept his judgment.
• When Yuqing Chicken questions the Demon Emperor’s strength, Luo Hou and Hongjun sharply ridicule Yuqing’s weakness and lack of talent. Yuqing angrily insists that he will eventually surpass Luo Hou.
• Luo Hou opens a path for Taiyi and Dijun to leave and asks Hongjun to cooperate. Despite the opportunity, the two brothers refuse to go, remaining stubbornly beside him.

Character developments and interactions

• Hongjun shifts from resignation to cautious hope when the Sages become absorbed in cultivation. He remains defiant and joins Luo Hou in mocking Yuqing.
• Luo Hou proves the refining method works, gaining a major advantage. He shows pragmatism by recommending the brothers’ release, but remains openly contemptuous of Yuqing.
• Yuqing Chicken reveals deep resentment toward Luo Hou and insecurity about his standing. Rather than accept the comparison, he boasts that the new method will let him overtake Luo Hou.
• Taiyi and Dijun demonstrate loyalty and resolve by refusing to abandon Hongjun, even when given a safe route out.
• The Sages’ group shifts from acting against Hongjun to competing among themselves, then unites around Yuqing when he challenges Luo Hou.

Significant themes

• Self-interest and fragile alliances: The Sages’ priorities change as soon as they see a way to gain power; cooperation is driven by advantage, not trust.
• Power and insecurity: Luo Hou’s rapid growth unsettles everyone, while Yuqing’s boastfulness exposes his resentment and status anxiety.
• Loyalty and solidarity: Taiyi and Dijun’s refusal to leave contrasts with the opportunism surrounding them.
• Strength, reputation, and rivalry: The argument over the Demon Emperor highlights how power shapes respect—and how perceived weakness invites ridicule.

Key plot points and events

• Eastern Emperor Taiyi and Dijun try to sacrifice themselves to give Dao Ancestor Hongjun a chance to escape. Hongjun explains that their departure would actually free him from the enemy’s restraints, but their impulsive attack on Devil Ancestor Luo Hou ruins the negotiation.
• Realizing they are trapped, the two secretly use the contagious Fate Curse they carry to infect every Sage present. Fate senses the spread from afar and grows stronger by absorbing the cursed victims’ energy and resentment.
• Fate reflects that Demon Emperor Daochen could serve as his future vessel, though he must wait for the right opportunity.
• Taiyi invokes Daochen’s future breakthrough to the Heavenly Dao Realm to persuade their captors to spare them. Yu Qingji mocks the claim and insults Daochen, angering the others.
• Luo Hou orders Hongjun, Taiyi, and Dijun taken into custody, intending to summon Daochen to ransom them—and to let the skeptics test his strength.
• Hongjun agrees to send Daochen a message, offers to explain how to reach the Heavenly Dao Realm, and warns Taiyi and Dijun not to cause further trouble.

Character developments and interactions

• Taiyi and Dijun are devoted to Hongjun but act rashly. Once they realize escape is impossible, they reveal a more calculating side by spreading the curse and negotiating for their lives.
• Hongjun remains composed and strategic, trying to steer negotiations despite the pair’s interference. He accepts captivity and uses the situation to offer knowledge in exchange for restraint.
• Luo Hou treats the captives as leverage and appears genuinely confident that Daochen may rival his own strength.
• Yu Qingji is openly contemptuous of Daochen and overconfident, dismissing the possibility that a Primordial World Sage could reach the Heavenly Dao Realm.
• Hongjun, Luo Hou, and the others are increasingly united in their belief that Yu Qingji has underestimated Daochen.

Significant themes

• Impulsiveness versus strategy: Taiyi and Dijun’s attempted sacrifice nearly derails Hongjun’s plans, while their later covert use of the curse shows greater cunning.
• Power and ambition: Fate grows through the curse and considers using Daochen as a vessel; meanwhile, Daochen’s rumored future strength unsettles his enemies.
• Trust under pressure: Hongjun and the others must negotiate while wary of betrayal, and the captives’ safety becomes a bargaining tool.
• Arrogance and misjudgment: Yu Qingji’s dismissal of Daochen contrasts with the respect and caution shown by Hongjun and Luo Hou.

Plot points and events

• In the Beyond Lands, the Devil Ancestor invites Hongjun to go with him. Hongjun agrees, while Eastern Emperor Taiyi and Dijun also leave, apparently committed to the same course.
• Back in the Demon Realm, Daochen receives a puppet bearing news that trouble has erupted in the Beyond Lands and Hongjun needs help. He worries more about Taiyi and Dijun, whose deaths would be irreversible, than about Hongjun.
• Nüwa experiences an ominous premonition that she is about to lose someone important. Daochen suspects their children, Qingchan and Qingxuan, and rushes with her to the Demon Territory.
• A Demon King reports that the princes have suddenly grown stronger and fled the territory, beyond the guards’ ability to stop them. Daochen’s divination identifies the Twin-Heart Puppet and reveals that Fate has interfered with them.
• The Demon King is exposed as Fate in disguise. He attacks Daochen with an invisible weapon, declares that he will take the boys, and imposes a threat: Daochen must remain in the Demon Realm, with a single annual meeting with Nüwa allowed on Qixi Festival. The Demon King then explodes and disappears.
• Daochen discovers a Sea of Fate hidden in Nüwa’s consciousness and removes it, badly injuring her. He explains that Fate has been manipulating those affected by the Fate Curse and has apparently controlled Qingchan and Qingxuan into leaving willingly.

Character developments and interactions

• Daochen shifts from concern about events in the Beyond Lands to urgent fear for his family. He realizes that his safeguards failed because Fate manipulated the princes into fleeing rather than abducting them outright. Though wounded, he remains composed and plans to search for them discreetly.
• Nüwa is shaken by her premonition and the attack, then suffers serious pain when Daochen removes the Sea of Fate from her. She depends on Daochen for an explanation and reassurance.
• Fate is revealed as a hidden, powerful manipulator who can control minds through the Sea of Fate. He targets the children and threatens to confine Daochen.
• Hongjun, Taiyi, and Dijun depart for the Beyond Lands, setting up a separate danger whose outcome remains unresolved.

Significant themes

• Fate versus agency: Qingchan and Qingxuan appear to choose to flee, but their actions are controlled.
• False security and concealed threats: The heavily guarded Demon Territory and Daochen’s protective marks cannot prevent Fate’s covert influence.
• Family and irreversible loss: Daochen and Nüwa’s anxiety centers on their children, while Daochen also fears the permanent loss of Taiyi and Dijun.

Key plot points and events

• After the capture of Qingchan and Qingxuan, Daochen feels helpless and furious, but decides that an impulsive rescue would be reckless. He resolves to stay hidden, grow stronger, and wait for the right moment to strike decisively.
• Daochen’s cultivation path is unusually difficult, so he plans to accelerate his growth by combining different kinds of power: fate, chaos, spiritual energy, faith, and potentially the Devil Ancestor’s demonic power, along with time and spatial powers.
• He reassures Nüwa that the children will be all right, revealing privately that he has preserved their origins. Reincarnation remains a last resort, however, since it would cost them their exceptional bodies and uncertainly affect their future prospects.
• Daochen returns with Nüwa to the Demon Realm and suppresses news of the children’s capture to keep enemies from exploiting it. He begins preparing a soul doppelganger to continue his cultivation elsewhere.
• Fuxi departs to pursue his own ambitions. Daochen withholds the news of the children’s disappearance so that it will not distract or unsettle him.
• Daochen’s doppelganger travels to the Beyond Lands, where Devil Race scouts spot him and flee to report his arrival. He observes that this branch of the Devil Race appears powerful and close to Sagehood.
• Devil Ancestor Luo Hou arrives with several Sages. Daochen demands to know the whereabouts of Eastern Emperor Taiyi and Dijun, and asks after Hongjun, warning Luo Hou not to harm them. Luo Hou challenges Daochen’s confidence.

Character developments and interactions

• Daochen remains cautious and strategic despite his anger. His confidence comes from his growing strength, his plan to fuse powers, and the safeguard he has prepared for his children—not from a willingness to rush into battle.
• Nüwa is grief-stricken and furious over the children’s capture, resolving to cultivate harder and rescue them. Daochen comforts her, though he does not reveal the full extent of his preparations.
• Fuxi leaves after strengthening himself, unaware of the crisis because Daochen believes the truth would only trouble him.
• Luo Hou recognizes Daochen’s formidable, difficult-to-measure strength but responds with a taunt, setting up a confrontation between the two.

Significant themes

• Patience and calculated revenge: Daochen would rather wait years—or millennia—than risk an ill-considered attack.
• Strength through innovation: He seeks to overcome the limits of conventional cultivation by combining different forms of power.
• Family, sacrifice, and hope: The children’s preserved origins offer a fallback, but Daochen is reluctant to sacrifice their promising bodies and futures.
• Secrecy as protection: Daochen hides both the children’s disappearance and his plans, treating information control as part of survival.

Chapter Summary: “The Yuqing Chicken Conceded Defeat”

Key plot points and events

• The Devil Ancestor lets the Yuqing Chicken challenge Demon Emperor Daochen, partly to test Daochen’s strength and possibly to turn the other Sages against him.
• The Yuqing Chicken, a Saint Realm expert of the seventh heaven, assumes Daochen is a recently ascended newcomer and boasts that he will prove who rules the skies.
• Daochen accepts, mocks the chicken’s arrogance, and says he can defeat him with one hand.
• Daochen’s first casual slap sends the Yuqing Chicken crashing into the ground. A second flattens him into a sheet of dough.
• The Yuqing Chicken’s unusual body absorbs nearby matter and restores itself, but he is frightened enough to beg for mercy and concede.
• The gathered Sages are stunned by Daochen’s immense power. The Devil Ancestor tells the Yuqing Chicken to curb his arrogance, warning that there is always someone stronger.

Character developments and interactions

• Daochen displays confidence and overwhelming strength, while recognizing that the Devil Ancestor may be using the challenge for his own purposes. He nevertheless accepts because he has come seeking a favor.
• The Yuqing Chicken begins boastful and contemptuous, but his defeat quickly humbles him. His remarkable regenerative ability lets him recover from attacks that would devastate others.
• The Devil Ancestor stays out of the fight and watches Daochen’s abilities, then admonishes the defeated chicken.
• The Sages shift from watching a boastful challenge to fearing Daochen’s power, wondering how even Hongjun could have suppressed him.

Significant themes

• Arrogance meets humility: The Yuqing Chicken’s confidence, born partly from inexperience, collapses when he encounters someone far stronger.
• Power and perception: Daochen’s strength has grown significantly since his earlier defeat, surprising those who still judge him by his past.
• Manipulation and testing: The Devil Ancestor allows the duel to serve his own purposes, illustrating the political maneuvering behind apparently casual encounters.