Chapter Summaries

Key plot points

• Daochen gives Dijiang a portion of Chaos Demon God essence to help him break through, warning that it tastes like a rotten corpse. Dijiang forces it down.
• As the essence surges through him, golden shackles appear across his body. The energy nearly overwhelms him, but his growing strength allows the shackles to crack.
• The broken shackles merge into Dijiang, forming fewer, stronger restraints. He stabilizes and reaches the Saint Realm First Heaven.
• Daochen tells Dijiang to return to the Witch Clan and send any others seeking a breakthrough to the Demon Realm. Daochen plans to enter seclusion, with only one portion of essence currently remaining.

Character developments

• Dijiang goes from anxious hope to painful struggle, then joyful relief at succeeding. He is grateful and pledges the Netherworld Office’s friendship to Daochen and the Lord of Fate.
• Daochen shows both generosity and teasing humor, but recognizes that the Witch Clan’s shackles make their future cultivation unusually difficult. He also feels pressure to keep advancing himself.
• The Lord of Fate worries that Dijiang might die and acknowledges Daochen’s superior insight after the breakthrough succeeds.

Significant themes

• Power and suffering: The Witch Clan must endure dangerous, physical trials to advance.
• Hidden restraints and mystery: The golden shackles raise questions about who imposed them, why they exist, and what breaking them means.
• Gratitude and obligation: Dijiang offers lasting friendship, while Daochen and the Lord of Fate insist they acted for their own reasons.
• Ambition and insecurity: Daochen’s plans for seclusion reflect his concern that others may catch up with or threaten him.

Character interactions

• Daochen’s blunt warning and playful teasing contrast with Dijiang’s earnest gratitude and emotional response.
• The Lord of Fate and Daochen share alarm and speculate about the shackles, then watch anxiously as Dijiang’s body struggles to contain the essence.
• Though both downplay their involvement, Dijiang leaves convinced that the Witch Clan owes them a debt—and Daochen watches him depart with fond amusement.

Key plot points and events

• Dijiang passes the ruined Mount Buzhou and, moved by its decline, explores the area. A mysterious, familiar scream draws him to an apparently empty spot.
• An unseen voice says it has waited countless years for him. Dijiang challenges the hidden presence, but the space around him compresses and swallows him without a trace.
• More than a thousand years later, Daochen realizes Dijiang never returned to the Netherworld Office. Lady Pingxin (Houtu), believing Dijiang may still be in the Demon Realm, confronts Daochen.
• Daochen insists Dijiang left long ago and divines that he went to Mount Buzhou, where all trace of him disappears.
• Daochen and Houtu investigate. Daochen senses that the mountain’s space is deeply abnormal—possibly an illusion or a place that no longer exists—and orders Houtu to return while he seals off the area.

Character developments and interactions

• Dijiang begins confident, but nostalgia at Mount Buzhou makes him vulnerable to curiosity; he responds to the unseen voice with anger and defiance before being inexplicably taken.
• Daochen is initially absorbed in cultivation and reluctant to pursue the Witch Clan, but becomes alert and decisive once Dijiang’s disappearance is discovered. He trusts his divination and prioritizes containment.
• Houtu is anxious for Dijiang and initially suspects Daochen may be hiding something. Once he explains, she accepts his account and joins the search, though she resists leaving the scene.
• Daochen reassures Houtu, then firmly limits her involvement, showing both concern and authority.

Significant themes

• Ruins and fading fortunes: Mount Buzhou’s desolation mirrors the Witch Clan’s diminished position and prompts Dijiang’s reflection.
• Unseen forces and distorted reality: The mysterious voice and impossible spatial anomaly suggest a hidden danger beyond ordinary understanding.
• Trust amid uncertainty: Houtu and Daochen must rely on one another even though they cannot explain Dijiang’s disappearance.
• Power and restraint: Daochen considers the balance among the great powers, yet responds cautiously rather than provoking wider conflict.

Key plot points and events

• Daochen senses that the region around Mount Buzhou is becoming increasingly unreal and may be linked to an unknown, dangerous force. Though he can detect the mountain, it seems to exist between reality and nonexistence.
• He insists Houtu is too vulnerable to enter without the Earthly Dao’s protection. When she refuses to leave, he strikes her and sends her back into the Netherworld Office, then seals it to keep her safe.
• Houtu initially feels betrayed and humiliated, but realizes Daochen was trying to protect her. Trapped behind the seal, she vows never to forgive him.
• Alone at Mount Buzhou, Daochen considers entering the strange region but hesitates because he must also protect his family and rescue the missing crown prince.
• A voice imitating Dijiang calls for help from inside. Daochen recognizes the plea as a likely lure, reasoning that the stubborn Dijiang would not ask him for rescue.
• Daochen tests the region with his own body. It devours his finger almost instantly, despite his immense strength, and then begins forming a human shape resembling him.

Character developments

• Daochen reveals a conflict between curiosity and responsibility. He is drawn to the unknown but chooses caution, and his harsh treatment of Houtu is a deliberate attempt to protect her.
• Houtu moves from anger and hurt to understanding Daochen’s motive, though she remains furious at being confined.
• Dijiang remains missing; his apparent call for help raises concern but is likely a deception by the strange entity.

Significant themes

• Protection and sacrifice: Daochen accepts Houtu’s anger to keep her out of danger.
• Power and vulnerability: Even a formidable Saint Realm expert can be helpless before an unfamiliar force.
• Caution versus curiosity: Daochen’s desire to investigate clashes with his responsibilities.
• Deception and the unknown: The entity manipulates perception, imitates a familiar voice, and may be capable of copying Daochen.

Character interactions

• Daochen and Houtu clash over whether she should enter the dangerous region; he dismisses her strength, then forcibly sends her away.
• Houtu eventually understands his actions as protective, but cannot reach him because he has sealed the Netherworld Office.
• The entity’s imitation of Dijiang attempts to draw Daochen inside, while its consumption of Daochen’s finger—and emerging likeness—signals a new threat.

Key plot points and events

• A strange, illusory lifeform creates a copy of the Demon Emperor and offers Daochen “eternal life” if he joins it. Daochen suspects the being is intelligent but still learning.
• The entity’s spreading presence is made up of faint, wormlike creatures that feed on Daochen’s flesh, blood, and energy, growing as they consume and expanding the illusory region.
• Daochen tests ways to repel them. Chaos power, Saint Realm power, and faith power prove ineffective. He realizes faith can form a golden body, transforms himself, and enters the illusory expanse without being detected by the copy.
• Inside Mount Buzhou, Daochen finds the area seemingly emptied by the creatures. He gathers unusual rocks and surviving remains that may help him understand or counter the threat.
• Dijiang unexpectedly appears, unharmed and confused that Daochen thinks he has been gone only a few days. Daochen spots golden shackles on Dijiang that have protected him from the creatures.

Character developments and interactions

• Daochen shifts from alarm and puzzlement to methodical investigation, using careful observation and experimentation to find a way into the danger zone.
• The illusory Demon Emperor behaves like a stiff, inexperienced imitation, attempting to recruit Daochen while failing to notice when the real Demon Emperor enters.
• Daochen and Dijiang reunite, but their exchange raises questions about how time passes in the expanse and why Dijiang survived.

Significant themes

• Imitation and identity: The copy resembles the Demon Emperor, but its intelligence and motives remain uncertain.
• Persistence through inquiry: Daochen responds to a seemingly overwhelming threat by observing, testing, and adapting.
• Survival and hidden protection: Dijiang’s golden shackles prove to be an unexpected defense against the devouring creatures.
• Uncertainty: The nature of the lifeform, the fate of others, and the rules governing the expanse remain unresolved.

Key plot points and events

• Daochen tells Dijiang about the lethal illusory realm, including how it consumed his finger and how its strange bones may belong to beings that died there.
• Dijiang has been trapped in the realm, endlessly circling a small area. Daochen pulls him out, though the illusions surge after them. A mysterious force in the Primordial World restrains the illusions from following.
• Daochen suspects the realm is alien to the Primordial World and that Pangu anticipated its threat: the shackles may protect their wearers as well as imprison them.
• Dijiang explains that he was trapped after detouring to Mount Buzhou to revisit the site of the old Pangu Divine Hall—not while pursuing any urgent mission.
• Back at the Netherworld Office, Houtu confronts Dijiang. He and Daochen pretend Dijiang’s bruises came from a fall, and Houtu warns them not to repeat their foolish behavior.
• Daochen and Dijiang discuss how to contain the illusory realm. Daochen proposes sealing off the area but admits he has no way to destroy it. He suspects the remaining bones and stones may hold clues, especially an unusually large thigh bone.

Character developments and interactions

• Daochen shows confidence in navigating the realm and concern about its deeper purpose. He shifts from rescuing Dijiang to investigating the threat and its possible connection to Pangu.
• Dijiang is relieved to escape but admits his reckless curiosity led him into danger. He takes the realm’s threat seriously afterward.
• Houtu is angry and protective, rebuking both men for their actions and their attempt to mislead her.
• Daochen and Dijiang share a conspiratorial, comic exchange as Dijiang follows Daochen’s lead in explaining his injuries; their antics frustrate Houtu and amuse Nüwa.

Significant themes

• Protection and imprisonment: The shackles may be both restraints and safeguards, complicating assumptions about their purpose.
• A hidden, interconnected world: The alien realm’s containment and Pangu’s possible foresight suggest that the Primordial World’s laws conceal a larger design.
• Recklessness and consequences: Dijiang’s casual detour nearly costs him his life, while the chapter’s humor underscores the seriousness of that danger.
• Unanswered mysteries: The origin of the illusions, the identity of the being whose bone Daochen found, and how to destroy the realm remain unresolved.

Key plot points and events

• At Mount Buzhou, Dijiang and Daochen examine strange thighbones that have no aura left. They cannot explain why the remains survived, but suspect a deeper danger.
• Daochen leaves the matter with Dijiang and rushes to consult the Lord of Fate and Heavenly Dao Hongjun. He has sealed off the affected area, where a concealed phenomenon appears to consume the Primordial World’s energy and substance.
• The two powerful figures cannot detect the anomaly with divine sense: to them, Mount Buzhou still appears intact. They can see the illusion only with their eyes.
• Daochen explains that faith incarnations can pass through the phenomenon. Since his companions do not use faith power, he coats them in it so they can enter safely.
• Inside, Mount Buzhou is revealed as an empty expanse. The false Demon Emperor endlessly repeats movements, suggesting the anomaly may imitate intelligent beings rather than possess much intelligence of its own. Daochen’s enhanced sight reveals tiny worms, reinforcing his belief that it is a living creature.
• The group agrees to test whether different powers can harm it. The Lord of Fate and Hongjun will gather samples of demonic, Buddhist, immortal, oceanic, and other energies, while Daochen stays behind to monitor the sealed area.

Character developments and interactions

• Daochen takes charge: he contains the immediate threat, shares his observations, and coordinates the investigation. He worries that similar creatures may exist elsewhere, though the anomaly’s concealment makes them difficult to find.
• Dijiang is left to handle the bone mystery and is promised separate help if the Ancestral Shamans face danger.
• Heavenly Dao Hongjun views the anomaly as a potentially sinister fiend and reasons that a living creature should have a weakness or natural enemy.
• The Lord of Fate proposes testing diverse forms of power, but resents being pulled away from his own crucial transformation and feels unable to refuse.
• Daochen’s faith power enables Hongjun and the Lord of Fate to enter the illusion, highlighting both his practical cooperation with them and their dependence on a power they do not possess.

Significant themes

• Limits of perception and knowledge: Divine sense fails where ordinary sight—and Daochen’s special vision—can reveal the truth.
• Cooperation against unknown dangers: The characters pool observations and divide tasks rather than relying on any one power.
• Imitation versus intelligence: The false Demon Emperor’s repetitive behavior raises the possibility that the creature mimics its victims without understanding them.
• A threat larger than the known crisis: The possibility of hidden colonies elsewhere makes the anomaly’s containment only a first step.

Plot points and events

• As Heavenly Dao Hongjun addresses an emerging threat to the Primordial World, the Lord of Fate asks to leave and complete his transformation. He argues that his own power has stalled while Hongjun grows stronger. Hongjun reluctantly lets him go, though he worries the trouble-prone Lord may cause further chaos.
• Back in the Buddha Realm, the Lord of Fate gathers the Six Realms Origin and weighs two ways to take physical form: enter a fetus and be born naturally, or create a body directly from the origin.
• Having found that a body not truly his own could limit his growth and prevent his soul and body from fully merging, he chooses natural birth despite the danger of spending his early years helpless.
• He surveys several races but rejects them because of low potential or inherited limits. He selects the Human Race for its innate Dao body and limitless potential, despite the extreme vulnerability of human infants.
• After observing human life and considering where to be born, he avoids the prestigious Fuxi, Shennong, and Xuanyuan lineages. He settles on the unborn child of an early human, a Great Luo Golden Immortal whose wife has just become pregnant.

Character development

• Lord of Fate is ambitious and willing to accept serious short-term risk for greater long-term potential. His careful research contrasts with his usual reputation for reckless troublemaking.
• Heavenly Dao Hongjun remains cautious and responsible for the Primordial World, but ultimately allows the Lord to pursue his breakthrough rather than provoke a dispute.

Character interactions

• The Lord of Fate appeals to Hongjun for permission to leave, citing the imbalance in their growing power. Hongjun challenges the timing, then warns him not to cause trouble.
• The Lord’s eventual choice depends on the protection offered by the prospective parents: their status and the father’s strength make the vulnerable human infancy seem survivable.

Significant themes

• Power versus risk: Greater potential may require enduring a dangerous, vulnerable beginning.
• Natural growth versus artificial transformation: The Lord favors a body he can fully inhabit, even if natural birth brings limitations.
• Ambition and balance: The Lord’s desire to catch up with Hongjun strains the balance between powerful beings.
• Inherited limits and potential: Many races are constrained by their ancestors, while humanity offers unusually high potential despite a very weak starting point.

Key plot points and events

• The Lord of Fate chooses to reincarnate as a human, selecting someone ancient and powerful—older even than Fuxi—as his new identity.
• The Human Path’s fortune golden dragon intercepts his reincarnation, suspecting he might threaten the Human Sovereign. The Lord of Fate swears on his origin that he has no ambition to claim that role, and the dragon lets him proceed.
• To create an exceptionally powerful body, the Lord of Fate gradually fuses the Six Realms’ origin and fragments of his soul into a human embryo. The process takes three years, exhausting him and prolonging the mother’s pregnancy.
• When the child is born, the Human Race’s fortune golden dragon roars in celebration. The infant displays extraordinary signs, including drawing in spiritual energy, and his father names him Qingtian, hoping he will support the Human Race.
• Qingtian begins life in an ordinary household, though powerful figures—including Fuxi and the fortune golden dragon—closely watch over him. Demon Emperor Daochen senses his birth.

Character developments and interactions

• The Lord of Fate/Qingtian endures a difficult transformation, entering human life with immense potential and hopes of reaching the Saint and possibly Heavenly Dao realms. His first experiences as a baby—such as eating—are wholly unfamiliar to him.
• The fortune golden dragon acts cautiously to protect the Human Sovereign and the Human Race, but accepts the Lord of Fate’s oath and recognizes that his presence could strengthen the Human Path.
• Qingtian’s father, a Great Luo Golden Immortal, interprets the birth omens as signs of a great reincarnated being and gives his son an auspicious name.
• Daochen recognizes that the Lord of Fate has finally taken physical form.

Significant themes

• Rebirth and transformation: The Lord of Fate trades his former existence for a human body, despite the pain and vulnerability involved.
• Power versus responsibility: His immense potential raises fears that he could disrupt Human Race leadership, even though he disavows political ambition.
• Destiny and self-determination: Qingtian’s father hopes to shape his future, but the Lord of Fate privately rejects the idea that others can dictate his fate.
• The cost of power: Achieving an ideal body requires years of sacrifice and leaves the Lord of Fate weakened at birth.

Key plot points and events

• The Lord of Fate is born into a human family after transforming, retaining his full consciousness—but his infant body is frail, and he cannot speak or act freely. He immediately begins cultivating with exceptional diligence.
• Human Sovereign Xuanyuan visits and offers to take the child as his disciple. The child’s mother refuses, arguing that the Human Race should treat such a powerful being as an equal rather than gain advantage over him.
• Xuanyuan instead offers to raise the child under the protection of the Human Sovereign’s palace. His mother reluctantly agrees, trusting that he will be safe. Xuanyuan promises to honor the family and help restore the father’s damaged origin.
• The arrangement was guided by Human Sovereign Fuxi, who hopes that the care and familial affection shown to the Lord of Fate will bind him to the Human Race.
• Heavenly Dao Hongjun reveals that he has secretly guarded the child throughout his transformation, fearing attacks from Devil Ancestor Luo Hou and other opportunists.
• Luo Hou, who has been hiding among the Human Race, considers attacking but realizes the Lord of Fate is too well protected. After Hongjun leaves, the Fortune Golden Dragon appears and warns Luo Hou that an attack would have meant certain death.

Character developments and interactions

• The Lord of Fate remains silent and physically helpless as an infant, but his disciplined cultivation and retained awareness set him apart.
• His mother demonstrates clear judgment and principled concern for the Human Race, while also struggling with the pain of entrusting her child to others.
• Xuanyuan shifts from proposing discipleship to offering protection and support, showing respect for the mother’s wishes and commitment to the family.
• Fuxi works behind the scenes, viewing the child’s care as a strategic opportunity to secure the Lord of Fate’s future loyalty.
• Hongjun is revealed as a long-standing protector, worried that the child’s concentrated origin makes him a tempting target.
• Luo Hou is frustrated by the lost opportunity but ultimately recognizes the danger of attacking. The Fortune Golden Dragon confirms that the Human Path had detected him all along.

Significant themes

• Family affection as political strength: Fuxi believes genuine care can create lasting allegiance more effectively than coercion or manipulation.
• Human vulnerability and perseverance: Unlike beings born powerful, humans must cultivate and struggle from childhood, making their achievements hard-won.
• Protection and hidden danger: The Lord of Fate’s apparent helplessness conceals immense value, drawing the attention of powerful guardians and potential predators.
• Restraint and consequences: Luo Hou survives by withholding his attack; the chapter emphasizes that recognizing one’s limits can be the difference between survival and death.

Key plot points and events

• The failed attempt to overthrow the Lord of Fate ends without a major clash. Devil Ancestor Luo Hou retreats, while Human Sovereign Fuxi reveals himself after the danger has passed.
• The Demon Emperor, Daochen, has observed the episode with his newly developed ability to survey the world. He recognizes that several powerful figures coordinated to preserve stability, even if the Lord of Fate and Luo Hou may not know the full extent of it.
• Daochen continues absorbing Saint Realm Crystal Cores and nears the ninth heaven of the Saint Realm. He worries that he may not have enough power left to break through the realm barrier, but decides to try.
• Hou Qing, the legendary Ancestor of Zombies, emerges from the Nether Soil after a major increase in strength. He expects to command his vast army of resentment bodies and rely on three powerful allies—but finds that his allies have vanished and his army has been wiped out.
• Now at the peak of the ninth heaven, Hou Qing hesitates to attack the Primordial World because Daochen and Heavenly Dao Hongjun pose serious threats. He resolves to seek reinforcements from the Land of the Void and reflects that his zombie body is inadequate. The chapter ends by revealing that this Hou Qing is not the true Ancestor of Zombies.

Character developments

• Daochen grows more confident in his ability to perceive events across the world, but his breakthrough becomes uncertain as he considers the immense cost of breaking the realm barrier.
• Fuxi remains wary of the Lord of Fate, viewing his schemes as flawed and driven by selfish ambition.
• Luo Hou is frustrated by the failure of his plan but retreats rather than risk a confrontation.
• Hou Qing shifts from arrogance to confusion and caution after discovering that his army and allies are gone. Despite his formidable strength, he doubts he can face the Primordial World’s leaders alone.

Significant themes

• Strength as the basis of security: Daochen distrusts reliance on political balance and believes his own power is the surest guarantee of stability.
• The limits of control and scheming: The Lord of Fate’s plans are undermined by independent actors and unseen coordination.
• Uncertainty and shifting power: Even a powerful figure like Hou Qing can be left vulnerable by the disappearance of his forces and allies.
• Identity and deception: The final revelation casts doubt on Hou Qing’s apparent identity.

Character interactions

• Luo Hou confronts the apparent opposition of the Human Race, insults them, then withdraws; Fuxi emerges only afterward.
• Daochen observes the coordinated actions of Hongjun, Fuxi, Xuanyuan, and the Human Path, recognizing their shared effort to prevent conflict.
• Hou Qing expects support from his three Nether Soil allies, but their absence forces him to reconsider his plans and seek help elsewhere.

• Daochen’s plans: After sending several mysterious spheres into the Primordial World, Demon Emperor Daochen leaves to seek more power in Chaos. He considers recruiting survivors from the Void but rejects the idea, unwilling to share his chance with rivals.
• The Lord of Fate’s progress: Now three years old and an early Golden Immortal, the Lord of Fate has grown safely under Human Sovereign Xuanyuan’s care. Despite his extraordinary pace, he estimates it will take at least fifty years to reach the Saint Realm, and longer still to advance through it. He asks for Saint Realm Crystal Cores to speed his cultivation, but the Human Race has few—and only Daochen can refine them.
• A joint expedition proposed: Xuanyuan suggests that the Primordial World’s powers investigate the Chaos outside their world, where Resentment Aggregates remain and Daochen once found their source. The Lord of Fate agrees that they should not go alone. Xuanyuan proposes gathering the Human, Immortal, and Buddha Realms, the Demon Realm, and powers of the Beyond Lands under Heavenly Dao Hongjun’s leadership. They begin assembling Saint Realm experts.
• Daochen’s hidden motive: Xuanyuan withholds that Daochen requested the expedition. Daochen has provided coordinates to the Nether Soil and explained its dangers, expecting the expedition to collect Crystal Cores there. The participants can keep a large share; Daochen expects to gain resources when they later trade with him. Xuanyuan fears that revealing Daochen’s need for energy would invite dangerous speculation.
• Power and relationships: Xuanyuan is cautious about disturbing Hongjun, who is in seclusion, and prefers approaching the relatively reliable Immortal and Buddha Realms. The Lord of Fate questions why Daochen is not being informed, but accepts Xuanyuan’s approach. Xuanyuan remains protective and responsible toward his young charge, while the Lord of Fate’s ancient wisdom contrasts with his childlike appearance and limited current strength.
• Themes and world context: The chapter emphasizes the risks of exploring Chaos, the value of cooperation when facing unknown dangers, and the competition for scarce resources. Power is unevenly distributed: the Demon Realm is strongest, while the Human Race remains weaker but commands respect for its rapid rise. Xuanyuan stands out as the Human Race’s sole self-made Saint Realm expert, the battle-focused War Sage.

Key plot points and events

• The Human Race joins an alliance led by Heavenly Dao Hongjun to search Chaos for the Nether Soil, hoping to gain valuable Crystal Cores. Human Sovereigns Xuanyuan and Fuxi lead their people; Buddhist forces and factions from the Immortal Realm also assemble.
• Hongjun asks where the Demon Realm and Beyond Lands are. Laozi explains that the Devil Ancestor was notified and that many Beyond Lands experts may arrive alongside the demons.
• Luo Hou arrives with a formidable Devil Race host, including powerful Chaos Demon Gods. Their exaggerated apologies subtly challenge Hongjun’s authority. Unable to confront them openly, Hongjun suppresses his anger and leads the expedition.
• Fuxi guides the group using a route prepared by Demon Emperor Daochen. When Luo Hou questions whether they can find the Nether Soil, Fuxi mentions Daochen’s involvement. Luo Hou immediately backs down, then urges his followers to work hard and avoid causing trouble for the Demon Emperor.
• Hongjun warns the alliance that Chaos Magic Beasts are nearby. A colossal beast’s foot appears before them, revealing the danger they face.

Character developments and interactions

• Hongjun needs Crystal Cores for his breakthrough and must tolerate the Devil Race’s posturing because he cannot yet overpower them. He privately regrets that Daochen is no longer around to keep such factions in line.
• Luo Hou shifts from confrontational to fearful and deferential at the mention of Daochen, whom he once opposed. His Devil Race followers notice—and seem embarrassed by—his newfound eagerness to please the Demon Emperor.
• Fuxi takes responsibility for navigating, relying on Daochen’s preparations. His reminder of the Demon Emperor’s involvement quickly silences Luo Hou.
• Xuanyuan is presented as a capable war leader whose Way of War can improve the alliance’s effectiveness and reduce casualties.

Significant themes

• Power and political leverage: The factions’ cooperation is strained by competition for rewards and status.
• Fear and changing allegiances: Luo Hou’s reversal shows how dramatically respect can shift with a change in power.
• Risk and ambition: The alliance accepts danger in pursuit of advancement, but Chaos itself holds threats beyond their control.
• Daochen’s influence: Though absent, the Demon Emperor’s planning and reputation shape the expedition and its internal politics.

Plot points and events

• Heavenly Dao Hongjun’s group encounters a huge pack of Chaos magic beasts in the void. They stay motionless while the creatures pass, knowing that even a small disturbance could provoke them.
• A roar alerts the group to danger, and the beasts pursue them. Hongjun leads everyone toward the nearby Nether Soil rather than risk drawing the horde toward the Primordial World.
• The group discovers that Devil Ancestor Luo Hou provoked the beasts by testing his demonic qi on one and keeping a small beast in his Demon Ring. He releases it, but the horde continues chasing them.
• Human Sovereign Xuanyuan diverts the beasts by throwing out three slaughter-aura puppets. The creatures pursue the apparent challenge, allowing the group to escape.
• A head count reveals three Saint Realm Experts lost: two confirmed dead and one Devil Race member missing. The survivors continue toward the Nether Soil more cautiously.

Character developments

• Hongjun responds to the crisis with urgency and authority, then warns the group against recklessness. The losses make him more cautious.
• Luo Hou is revealed as careless and self-serving: his curiosity triggered the pursuit, and he shows little remorse. Hongjun threatens sanctions against the Devil Race, deepening Luo Hou’s resentment and ambition.
• Xuanyuan demonstrates quick thinking under pressure. His understanding of the beasts’ instincts earns the group’s admiration.
• Fuxi supports Xuanyuan’s solution with an approving look.

Significant themes

• The danger of recklessness: Curiosity and experimentation can endanger an entire group.
• Survival and instinct: The beasts respond to threats according to a primal law of challenge and strength.
• Adaptability and cooperation: Xuanyuan’s insight gives the group a chance to escape, while the survivors must rely on one another.
• The limits of power: Even the Primordial World’s strongest fighters are vulnerable in the vast, hostile Chaos.

Character interactions

• Hongjun confronts Luo Hou and blames him for the pursuit; Luo Hou submits outwardly but privately resents Hongjun.
• The other experts openly condemn Luo Hou and threaten retaliation against the Devil Race.
• Fuxi recognizes Xuanyuan’s quick thinking, and the group’s admiration of Xuanyuan grows after his plan succeeds.

Key plot points and events

• Demon Emperor Daochen continues studying the illusory void and its ravenous worms. He suspects the space may contain an intangible kind of energy he cannot yet perceive, and reasons that the worms might need to acknowledge him—just as the Human and Demon races do for his faith power—before he can use their abilities.
• He cautiously exposes part of his hand. The worms immediately devour his flesh, so he restores his protective barrier. Isolated from the void, the worms eventually become full, reproduce, and die; their eggs hatch into a new generation that does not attack his hand.
• Daochen discovers that soul power can affect the worms. By repeatedly reducing its strength, he eventually forms a weak connection with them and makes them favorably disposed toward him. He repeats the process until he can control many of them.
• Returning to the Demon Realm, Daochen finds that their acknowledgment has not granted him power or revealed the source of their abilities. The worms are too instinct-driven to answer his questions.
• A new possibility occurs to him: since Hou Qing said he came from the void, perhaps the worms operate similarly—and may transform energy into nothingness rather than into another form of energy.

Character development

• Daochen is an inventive, persistent researcher, willing to test risky hypotheses while carefully limiting the danger. His excitement at gaining the worms’ trust gives way to doubt when the breakthrough produces no usable power.
• Rather than abandon his theory, he reconsiders its assumptions and develops a fresh explanation.

Significant themes

• Limits of perception: The apparent absence of energy may reflect Daochen’s inability to detect it.
• Experimentation and uncertainty: Progress comes through cautious tests, repeated adjustment, and revising mistaken assumptions.
• Life cycles and instinct: The worms feed, reproduce, die, and hatch, yet remain creatures of limited awareness.
• Recognition versus understanding: The worms’ acceptance of Daochen creates a connection but does not give him command of their power or insight into how they work.

Character interactions

• Daochen interacts directly with the worms through physical exposure, observation, and carefully calibrated soul power. Their response is instinctive: they can tolerate and stay near him, but cannot communicate or knowingly help him.
• Hou Qing’s earlier statement that he came from the void informs Daochen’s final theory about the worms.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Daochen discovers that the Phantom Worms absorb energy and matter, turning what they consume into nothingness. With the right stimulus, he teaches them to expel transformed energy—specifically, sage power—back to him.
• Because each worm can only process a limited amount at a time, Daochen decides to bring all of them under his control. He takes them into chaos, where they can continuously consume and release chaotic energy.
• Daochen resumes his attempt to advance from the Eighth Heaven of the Saint Realm to the Ninth. The worms supply sage power while he also absorbs chaos energy himself, though less efficiently.
• When repeated attacks weaken the realm barrier but fail to break it, Daochen devours his entire supply of Crystal Cores to provide the final surge. The barrier shatters, and he successfully breaks through.
• His body becomes immensely stronger: even a light punch fractures space. Concerned that his new strength could cause destruction, Daochen carefully learns to restrain it.
• Returning to the Primordial World, he adopts an ordinary life in the Demon Realm, tending a vegetable garden. The Phantom Worms continue converting chaos energy into droplets of exceptionally potent sage-power essence, which Daochen uses to nourish his plants.

Character development

• Daochen moves from experimenting cautiously with the worms to mastering and taming them as a reliable source of power.
• His determination to advance is matched by growing awareness of the cost: he is exhausted by how much energy and resources each breakthrough requires.
• After reaching the Ninth Heaven, he becomes cautious and controlled, deliberately adapting to his overwhelming strength rather than flaunting it. He chooses a quiet, modest existence despite his immense power.

Significant themes

• Ingenuity and perseverance: Daochen combines experimentation, the worms’ abilities, his own cultivation, and Crystal Cores to overcome a seemingly impossible barrier.
• The cost of power: Even a formidable cultivator must expend vast energy and resources to advance.
• Power and restraint: Daochen’s new strength is so great that ordinary movement could be dangerous, making self-control essential.
• Transformation and cultivation: The worms turn chaos into usable sage power, while Daochen’s breakthrough transforms both his body and his place in the world.

Character interactions

• Daochen’s relationship with the Phantom Worms shifts from observation to communication, experimentation, and control. He trains them to respond to stimulation and feed him sage power.
• No other characters play an active role in the events. Heavenly Dao and the Crystal Cores are mentioned as potential support, but Daochen ultimately advances through his own efforts and the worms’ energy conversion.

Key plot points and events

• Daochen cultivates an orchard using collected Sage Power. His carefully bred plants—including the Xiantian Spiritual Root Yellow Middle Plum—absorb the energy and grow rapidly; some have even gained sentience.
• Daochen uses delicate farming to learn precise control over his overwhelming strength. Despite his efforts to restrain it, he sometimes damages the Primordial World’s spatial barriers and worries he might destroy the Demon Realm.
• Sage Power now permeates the Demon Realm. Though dangerous if absorbed by weaker beings, it is also driving its creatures and plants to adapt and evolve, potentially making the realm extraordinarily powerful.
• Daochen continues channeling Sage Power into the Demon Realm’s Origin, partly to support Nüwa’s cultivation and partly as an expression of guilt over not yet rescuing the Demon Emperor Crown Prince.
• In the Nether Soil, Hongjun’s group finds it stripped of undead creatures by the Primordial World’s experts. Fuxi explains that special worms supposedly consume resentment and produce Crystal Cores, and suggests they might also help reduce the world’s accumulated killing intent.
• When a Devil Race Saint falls into a cavern filled with bones and worms, Luo Hou pulls him out. The group finds that the worms do consume resentment, but cannot locate any Crystal Cores.
• The worms summon an enormous swarm of Resentment Aggregates for protection. The chapter ends as the experts face a seemingly endless mass of monsters.

Character developments

• Daochen remains immensely powerful but is actively seeking control and purpose through farming. His concern for the damage he might cause shows his unease with his strength.
• Fuxi acts as the group’s source of knowledge about the worms and their potential value.
• Luo Hou shows practical concern for his Devil Race subordinate, rescuing him despite berating him for panicking.
• Hongjun shifts his attention from the scarce Resentment Aggregates to the worms, seeing their possible usefulness.

Significant themes

• Power and restraint: Daochen’s strength is a burden as well as an asset; mastering it requires patience and precision.
• Adaptation and unintended consequences: Sage Power transforms the Demon Realm, while the worms’ defensive response escalates the Nether Soil expedition into a crisis.
• Turning danger into resource: The group hopes to use resentment-eating worms to address resentment—and perhaps killing intent—on a larger scale.
• Guilt and responsibility: Daochen’s continued aid to the Demon Realm’s Origin reflects his regret over the unresolved rescue.

Character interactions

• Daochen works alone in the orchard, tending plants and reflecting on his power, while maintaining an indirect connection to Nüwa and the Demon Realm’s Origin.
• Fuxi informs Hongjun and the others about the worms, prompting interest in capturing and breeding them.
• Luo Hou rescues a fallen Devil Race expert and questions Fuxi when the worms yield no Crystal Cores.
• The group’s investigation is interrupted when the worms summon the Resentment Aggregates, forcing the experts to confront a far larger threat.

Key plot points and events

• The group discovers that the Resentment Aggregates had been hiding in the Nether Soil. Their Crystal Cores prove highly valuable, drawing out the monsters and offering enough energy for the gathered cultivators to strengthen themselves and repair their foundations.
• Under Heavenly Dao Hongjun’s command, the group forms multiple Five Elements Great Formations, led by Human Sovereigns Fuxi and Xuanyuan, and rapidly slaughters more than half the creatures.
• The remaining monsters suddenly flee. Hongjun suspects they are being directed and warns against pursuing them, preferring to rest and send scouts.
• Devil Ancestor Luo Hou ignores the warning and leads the Devil Race—and then powerful beings from the Beyond Lands—in pursuit. Hongjun’s followers reluctantly follow to support them.
• A hidden, immensely powerful creature ambushes Luo Hou, nearly destroying him. He survives by reassembling his body and warns everyone to stop chasing. The group retreats and makes camp, resolving to proceed cautiously.

Character developments

• Hongjun remains measured and protective, prioritizing the group’s safety over the lure of more Crystal Cores. The ambush confirms his suspicions.
• Luo Hou is initially greedy and overconfident, dismissing the danger. After nearly dying, he admits he was arrogant and accepts the need to stay with the group—though he remains determined to find and confront his attacker.
• Fuxi and Xuanyuan, along with the Human Race, demonstrate their importance through their role in organizing and powering the formations.

Significant themes

• Caution versus greed: Valuable rewards tempt the group into danger, while Hongjun’s restraint proves justified.
• Strength through cooperation: The formations and the group’s combined power make the initial hunt successful, while the ambush shows the risks of splitting up.
• The Nether Soil’s nature: It is revealed as a vast burial ground of bones infused with resentment, where new forms of life can emerge.
• Power and vulnerability: Even a formidable Saint Realm expert like Luo Hou can be nearly killed by an unseen opponent.

Character interactions

• Luo Hou pressures the others to pursue the fleeing monsters, but they defer to Hongjun, whose caution initially holds them back.
• When Luo Hou charges anyway, Hongjun and the others follow to protect him rather than abandon him.
• After the ambush, Hongjun reassures Luo Hou that the group is safest together; Luo Hou acknowledges his mistake but vows to hunt down the hidden creature.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Human Sovereign Fuxi senses an approaching danger, though he cannot explain it. He and Xuanyuan debate whether to warn everyone, but worry that an unsupported warning will make others dismiss them or grow complacent.
• Fuxi instead orders the Human Race to stay alert and increases patrols. Their carefully built formation suddenly collapses into the earth. He reassures the group that their safety matters more than the formation.
• Heavenly Dao Hongjun notices that the dispersed Resentment Aggregates are gathering again, while swarms of insects stir nearby. Before the group can respond, a gigantic skeletal claw erupts from below.
• Hongjun calls for everyone to scatter, but the claw’s reach follows them through a subtle spatial shift, trapping them. He identifies the force as the law of karma and names its wielder: the reviving Chaos Demon God King Ashari.
• Hongjun explains that Ashari’s karma can make a desired outcome happen first and find its cause afterward, leaving victims almost no way to escape. Ashari had once died after failing to find any possible way to harm Pangu, causing karma to rebound upon him.
• When Ashari’s colossal skeletal body emerges, Hongjun confronts it directly. Their Great Daos collide, and the shock wave sends the gathered Saint Realm experts flying. Luo Hou is stunned by the scale of Hongjun’s power.

Character developments and interactions

• Fuxi acts cautiously and responsibly, trusting his unease enough to strengthen the Human Race’s defenses without making a dramatic, hard-to-justify warning. Xuanyuan recognizes the seriousness of Fuxi’s intuition but shares his uncertainty about what action to take.
• Hongjun shifts from observer to combatant. His knowledge of the ancient demon gods helps him identify Ashari, and his decisive attack reveals strength that others—including Luo Hou—had not expected.
• Luo Hou’s view of Hongjun begins to change: he had regarded Hongjun as overly cautious and lacking notable combat achievements, but now witnesses his formidable power.
• The group’s earlier confidence in their precautions is shaken by the sudden collapse and Ashari’s unavoidable-seeming attack.

Significant themes

• Intuition and caution: Fuxi senses danger before it becomes visible, but faces the difficulty of acting on a warning others may not believe.
• The persistence of the past: Ancient beings thought dead can revive from the smallest surviving remnant, showing that time and decay do not necessarily end old threats.
• Cause and effect: Ashari’s power twists ordinary causality, while Pangu’s overwhelming strength once made it impossible for Ashari to establish a harmful cause.
• Hidden strength and reputation: Hongjun’s apparent passivity has concealed a power that surprises even those who know him.

Key plot points and events

• Heavenly Dao Hongjun fights the giant skeleton evenly for hundreds of rounds, but the creature keeps growing stronger by absorbing resentment from the Nether Soil. Hongjun and the others fear it could advance beyond the peak of the Saint Realm and threaten the entire Primordial World.
• Luo Hou urges everyone to find the monster’s weakness and stop its growth. He notes that the surrounding Resentment Aggregates and worms are behaving unusually, as if watching the duel.
• Fuxi suspects the aggregates are somehow supplying the skeleton with energy. When he rushes toward them, the other powerful figures suddenly feel an inexplicable urge to stop or attack him.
• Luo Hou recognizes that the group’s hostility is unnatural. Several figures admit they felt the same anger and sense that Fuxi was breaking a forbidden rule, suggesting the Nether Soil is influencing their emotions.
• Fuxi cuts down an aggregate. The creatures immediately swarm him, and the skeleton’s growth briefly halts. Luo Hou realizes the aggregates are feeding it and orders everyone to attack them.

Character developments and interactions

• Hongjun remains composed and confident in his combat skill, but recognizes the danger of the skeleton’s seemingly limitless growth.
• Luo Hou shifts from alarm to decisive action, questioning the group’s strange behavior and identifying the link between the aggregates and the skeleton.
• Fuxi takes the initiative despite the group’s opposition, trusting his deduction enough to test it directly.
• The gathered experts turn on Fuxi under an unexplained influence, then become disturbed when they realize their hostility was not their own. Luo Hou challenges them and helps expose the effect.

Significant themes

• Power fueled by collective resentment: The skeleton’s strength depends on the surrounding creatures, making the source of its power as dangerous as its combat ability.
• Influence over free will: The Nether Soil appears capable of provoking shared emotions and suppressing independent judgment.
• Observation and decisive action: Fuxi’s willingness to test his theory reveals the enemy’s weakness and changes the battle’s direction.

Key plot points and events

• The Primordial World forces battle the Resentment Aggregates and their swarms of worm-like creatures. The worms are difficult to kill and can briefly disrupt their opponents’ minds.
• Laozi’s Samadhi True Fire proves highly effective, burning the resentment inside the worms. The Devil Ancestor adds Red Lotus Karmic Fire, which also destroys them and leaves small Crystal Cores behind.
• As the worms and Resentment Aggregates are cleared away, the giant resentment skeleton weakens. Hongjun credits Fuxi’s insight that these creatures are the skeleton’s weakness.
• A new enemy appears: a being at the ninth heaven of the Saint Realm, who claims the Primordial World’s ancestors—descendants of Pangu—wronged the Chaos Demon Gods by driving them from their home.
• Fuxi identifies him as a genuine Chaos Demon God who has returned to life after reversing extreme yin into yang. The newcomer recognizes that Fuxi is protected by a Great Dao.
• Hongjun identifies the newcomer as the Lord of Light, a powerful figure believed to have perished. The chapter ends with Hongjun asking whether he has reached the Heavenly Dao Realm.

Character developments and interactions

• Laozi uses his rare Samadhi True Fire despite its cost, turning the tide against the worms.
• The Devil Ancestor contributes with Red Lotus Karmic Fire. Though others had doubted his usefulness, his actions earn him greater respect.
• Fuxi demonstrates strategic insight by identifying the enemies’ weakness, then warns everyone about the more dangerous, resurrected Demon God.
• Hongjun recognizes the Lord of Light and exchanges observations with him about their respective origins and power.
• The Lord of Light reveals knowledge of the being behind the resentment skeleton, noting his former connection to Pangu and the possibility that he might once have reached the Heavenly Dao Realm.

Significant themes

• Old grievances and revenge: The Lord of Light sees the conflict as a continuation of Pangu’s ancient violence and accuses the Primordial World of threatening the Chaos Demon Gods’ last refuge.
• Cooperation through complementary strengths: Laozi’s and the Devil Ancestor’s different fires allow the group to overcome a threat that ordinary attacks struggle to defeat.
• Resurrection and transformation: The Lord of Light’s return—and his claim to have truly come back to life—raises the stakes and blurs the boundary between death and survival.
• Power and uncertainty: Even as the heroes gain ground, the arrival of another top-tier opponent leaves the outcome in doubt.