Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• Gungun needles Hou Yi, joking that Hou Yi is destined to remain single and threatening to report him to the Ancestral Witch if he tries to hit back. Hou Yi restrains his anger.
• Gungun offers Kui Ox an iron staff in exchange for lessons on winning over female immortals. Kui Ox initially considers the gift insulting, but accepts after weighing his options and teaches Gungun his romantic tactics.
• After the lesson, Gungun uses the Spirit-Washing Cauldron to erase Kui Ox’s memories of conflicts with the Witch Race. He then sets off for Kunlun with Kui Ox and Crown Prince Changqin. Hou Yi joins them, saying the Ancestral Witch asked him to check on Nine Li.
• At Sun Valley, Kunpeng encounters Zhunti. Their meeting recalls Zhunti’s role in forcing Kunpeng to surrender his seat at Zixiao Palace, costing him the chance to become a saint.
• Zhunti lists Kunpeng’s recent misfortunes, then claims he has come to repay his old karmic debt. He whispers a secret plan to Kunpeng, who reacts with astonishment.

Character developments and interactions

• Gungun is playful, brazen, and calculating: he teases Hou Yi, bargains with Kui Ox, and quietly erases Kui Ox’s memories afterward.
• Hou Yi is visibly provoked by Gungun but chooses restraint. He also shows responsibility by continuing his mission to check on Nine Li.
• Kui Ox is vain and opportunistic, but his expertise in courtship makes him useful to Gungun. He accepts the staff despite doubting its value.
• Kunpeng remains resentful toward Zhunti but submits respectfully, knowing the power imbalance. Zhunti’s proposal leaves him stunned.
• Zhunti presents himself as friendly and indebted, but his pointed reminders of Kunpeng’s losses make his motives seem potentially manipulative.

Significant themes

• Power and restraint: Hou Yi and Kunpeng both suppress anger when confronting stronger or more dangerous figures.
• Bargains and self-interest: Gungun trades a weapon for knowledge, while Kui Ox accepts despite feeling undervalued.
• Memory and control: Gungun’s use of the cauldron shows how easily past conflicts can be erased—and how he manages relationships through force.
• Old grudges and hidden agendas: Kunpeng’s unresolved resentment toward Zhunti resurfaces as Zhunti offers help that may carry its own purpose.

Plot points and events

• Zhunti recruits Kunpeng into a scheme to prolong the Witch-Demon War. He argues that a united Primordial World would make it harder for Western Buddhism to spread, regardless of which side wins.
• Kunpeng agrees, partly because he resents Dijun and Taiyi for forcing him into the role of Demon Master. Zhunti promises to take the Demon-Summoning Banner from Dijun and restore Kunpeng’s true spirit, freeing him from their control. Zhunti then leaves, and Kunpeng returns to the Demon Master Palace.
• On the way to Kunlun, Zhunti appears before Gungun and Hou Yi. Gungun and Hou Yi greet him as a Saint, while their companions prostrate themselves.
• Zhunti playfully reproaches Gungun for never visiting the Western Lands, despite having invited him before. He offers to heal Gungun’s past injuries, then invites him to travel west with him. Gungun tries to decline, but Zhunti gives him a bamboo shoot and insists that Hou Yi can deliver Kui Ox and Crown Prince Changqin to Tongtian instead.
• Zhunti leaves with Gungun, declaring that they share a karmic affinity and that he is inviting Gungun to discuss the Dao. Hou Yi is left worried and unsure how to respond.
• Hou Yi sends Changqin and Kui Ox onward to Kunlun and heads back to inform the Ancestral Witch. The two Iron-Eating Beasts follow Changqin, hoping to consult Xiong Zhan about Gungun’s sudden departure.

Character developments

• Kunpeng reveals his resentment toward Dijun and Taiyi and accepts Zhunti’s offer as a possible route to freedom, though he had already been inclined to act against them.
• Zhunti shows himself to be strategic and persuasive with Kunpeng, but teasing and forceful with Gungun.
• Gungun is intimidated by Zhunti and tries to appease him, but ultimately cannot avoid going with him.
• Hou Yi is concerned for Gungun yet defers to Zhunti’s authority, choosing to report the matter to the Ancestral Witch.

Significant themes

• Factional ambition: Zhunti seeks to prevent either major power from unifying the world, protecting the Western Lands’ influence.
• Freedom and coercion: Kunpeng longs to escape the role imposed on him, while Gungun is swept into Zhunti’s plans despite his unease.
• Power and deference: The companions’ prostration and Hou Yi’s hesitation show how a Saint’s status constrains others’ choices.

Character interactions

• Zhunti secures Kunpeng’s cooperation by acknowledging his grievances and promising to remove the Demon-Summoning Banner’s threat.
• Zhunti’s affectionate teasing of Gungun contrasts with Gungun’s nervous politeness; the bamboo shoot becomes part of his persuasion.
• Hou Yi’s concern clashes with Zhunti’s insistence that Gungun’s journey is harmless, leaving Hou Yi to manage the consequences.

Plot points

• Zhunti transports Gungun to Mount Sumeru in the Western Lands, hoping to introduce him to the region and its promising disciples.
• Gungun recognizes the place and inwardly distrusts Zhunti, though he remains polite because he is a guest—and because resisting a Saint is difficult.
• When Gungun gets hungry, Zhunti orders a banquet, assuring him that the Western Lands can provide for him.
• Gungun privately considers joining the Western Religion only if the offer includes a prestigious, largely independent title. He imagines himself as a “National Treasure Buddha,” or even Buddha Lord, with no one giving him orders.
• At Mount Youdu, Houtu tells Hou Yi that she permitted Zhunti to take Gungun west after making him promise not to force or enchant Gungun into joining. Zhunti hopes to recruit Gungun as a Dharma Protector and possibly relocate the Iron-Eating Beast Clan.
• Houtu is confident Gungun will return: the Western Lands are too poor to support his enormous appetite and demanding tastes.

Character developments and interactions

• Gungun is wary of Zhunti but adapts pragmatically, accepting the hospitality and weighing the possible benefits of joining while insisting on independence.
• Zhunti is courteous and persuasive, using a tour and a feast to court Gungun, while pursuing the larger goal of strengthening the Western Religion.
• Houtu shows strategic trust in Gungun’s judgment, allowing him to consider the offer under safeguards. She also trusts that practical matters will outweigh Zhunti’s persuasion.
• Hou Yi worries that Gungun might join another sect; Houtu reassures him and explains the bargain.

Significant themes

• Recruitment and power: Saints seek to expand their factions through alliances and followers.
• Autonomy and loyalty: Gungun is open to opportunity but unwilling to surrender control over himself.
• Material limits: The Western Lands’ poverty—and Gungun’s appetite—undercuts Zhunti’s grand ambitions.
• Humor through contrast: Zhunti’s solemn recruitment effort clashes with Gungun’s self-interested title negotiations and Houtu’s blunt assessment of his eating habits.

Plot and key events

• Houtu tells Hou Yi that the Witch Race can afford to feed Gungun, whose enormous appetite gives her confidence that he will eventually return. She orders Hou Yi to announce a victory banquet at Mount Youdu, offering the Witch Race’s Great Shamans and higher-ranking figures Five-Needle Pinecones.
• Hou Yi is confused about how to classify the Ancestral Witches, until Houtu reminds him of the rank of Witch Scribe. She urges him to learn from Gungun—while joking that combining Gungun’s cleverness with Hou Yi’s strength might spoil Gungun’s charm.
• In the Western Lands, Zhunti introduces Gungun to his disciples, including Sunlight, Moonlight, Mahasthamaprapta, Dizang, and Medicine Buddha. Gungun judges them talented despite the region’s poverty and praises Dizang’s contentment with serving others and restoring the land.
• When Jinnaluo arrives to announce that a vegetarian banquet is ready, Gungun recognizes his future importance—and worries that Jinnaluo may one day conquer the Underworld and capture him. To protect his future position, Gungun proposes marrying Jinnaluo to Great Shaman Jiu Feng. Jinnaluo is alarmed, while Zhunti sees the match as unsuitable.
• Jieyin invites Gungun to stay and study Western teachings. Gungun agrees, partly because he has time before he can tend to the Chaos Seed again, and the Western Sages are pleased at the chance to keep such a powerful and fortunate visitor close.
• At the banquet, Gungun devours the fruit on his table almost instantly, complains that it contains too few innate Spirit Fruits, and then offers to help Sunlight and Moonlight finish their food. The company is left speechless.

Character developments and interactions

• Houtu is strategic and confident that the Witch Race’s resources can keep Gungun supplied. She values his intelligence as well as his strength, though she finds his laziness and appetite endearing.
• Hou Yi shows his straightforwardness by forgetting Gungun’s formal role as Witch Scribe and misunderstanding the Witch hierarchy. He accepts Houtu’s instructions and intends to learn from Gungun.
• Gungun combines strategic thinking with shameless gluttony: he recognizes Jinnaluo’s future threat to his rule, tries to alter that future through matchmaking, and accepts the Western Sages’ hospitality while quickly testing their ability to feed him.
• Jinnaluo is startled and anxious about being paired with Jiu Feng, whom he regards as terrifying. His brief, ordinary errand unexpectedly makes him the center of Gungun’s scheme.
• Zhunti and Jieyin welcome Gungun warmly, hoping to retain him as an asset for their underpowered Western Religion. Zhunti is caught off guard by both the proposed marriage and Gungun’s appetite.
• Dizang earns Gungun’s respect through his calm, purposeful attitude toward the Western Lands’ hardship.

Significant themes

• Practical power and resources: Gungun’s appetite is both comic relief and a measure of which factions can sustain him.
• Strategic foresight: Gungun uses knowledge of future events to anticipate danger and try to shape political relationships.
• Humility amid hardship: Dizang finds meaning in helping others despite the Western Lands’ barrenness.
• Status and hierarchy: Characters’ formal ranks matter, but Gungun’s standing lets him treat even Saints’ disciples with casual confidence.
• Comedy through contrast: The Sages’ solemn welcome and hopes for a powerful ally collide with Gungun’s blunt food demands and overwhelming eating habits.

Concise Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• At a Western Religion feast, Gungun’s enormous appetite becomes immediately apparent. Sunlight and Moonlight, then Mahasthamaprapta, Medicine Buddha, and Dizang, reluctantly let him eat the food from their tables. He even swallows the silver utensils.
• Still hungry, Gungun asks Zhunti for better-quality food. Zhunti serves bitter bamboo shoots, which Gungun finds delicious and eats in great quantity—thirteen in all.
• Jieyin and Zhunti worry about the cost of keeping Gungun. Zhunti initially assumes the shoots will keep him full for ten thousand years, but Jieyin recalls Gungun’s Heaven-Swallowing Earth-Devouring Divine Ability and realizes he can digest them rapidly.
• Gungun asks for food again the next day and continues eating heavily. By the ninth day, Zhunti accepts that the Western Religion cannot sustain him with its current resources.
• Convinced that Gungun’s fortune could benefit the religion, Zhunti decides to recruit him as a disciple and sets out to beg for treasures in the East. Jieyin reluctantly agrees to keep Gungun there.
• While Zhunti is away, Jieyin feeds Gungun lotus seeds from his Merit Golden Lotus, more food, and beast milk. Meanwhile, Zhunti visits Emperor Donghua on Penglai Island and politely asks for a spiritually valuable ginseng plant, claiming it has a karmic affinity with him.

Character developments

• Gungun is cheerful, shamelessly hungry, and appreciative when offered food, but his extraordinary appetite proves far greater than the Western Religion can comfortably support. His ability to digest spiritual treasures quickly makes the problem worse.
• Zhunti shifts from welcoming Gungun as a potentially valuable guest to treating him as an investment worth supporting. When the cost becomes unsustainable, he decides to seek resources elsewhere, even though his justification for asking the East is ethically questionable.
• Jieyin is more cautious and troubled by both the expense and the fairness of Zhunti’s plan. Despite his misgivings, he helps care for Gungun and recognizes his junior brother’s determination.
• The other immortals initially hope to keep their food, but Gungun’s appetite—and the awkwardness of refusing him—leaves them little choice but to share.

Significant themes

• Appetite and abundance: Gungun’s hunger is played for comedy, while also exposing the gap between his needs and the Western Religion’s limited resources.
• Ambition and sacrifice: Zhunti believes Gungun could help the religion prosper and is willing to endure personal and institutional costs to retain him.
• Fairness versus self-interest: Jieyin questions whether the East owes the West further aid, since Zhunti and Jieyin have already received benefits for the West’s past sacrifices. Zhunti chooses ambition over those concerns.
• Hospitality and obligation: The religious leaders feel compelled to feed Gungun, even when each meal leaves them distressed about the expense.

Character interactions

• Gungun’s polite requests for “leftover” food put the Western disciples in awkward positions, and his innocent manner contrasts with how thoroughly he clears their tables.
• Zhunti and Jieyin discuss whether Gungun’s fortune justifies the burden of keeping him; Jieyin voices doubts, while Zhunti insists on recruiting him.
• Gungun’s respectful bow after a meal amuses Zhunti, who feels the gesture is richly deserved after providing so much food.
• Zhunti’s visit to Donghua ends on a courteous but pointed request, setting up his effort to gather resources in the East.

Key plot points and events

• Zhunti visits eastern powers claiming their treasures have a “karmic affinity” with him. Donghua refuses to surrender his Jiechuan Ginseng, but Zhunti magically takes it anyway, then insists he meant no offense. Donghua is left furious.
• Zhunti next takes Flat Peaches from the Queen Mother of the West, settling for fruit when she refuses to give up her trees. He continues visiting eastern tribes and regional powers, returning to the Western Lands with a vast haul.
• Meanwhile, Jieyin struggles to feed Gungun. To stop him from attending Houtu’s upcoming Youdu Banquet, Zhunti proposes getting him drunk on powerful monkey wine.
• Zhunti welcomes Gungun with an elaborate feast, including Jiechuan Ginseng. But when he again invokes “karmic affinity,” Gungun hesitates: joining the Western Religion could benefit him, but he is unsure whether to commit.
• On Mount Youdu, chiefs from the tribes Zhunti visited appeal to Houtu for justice, accusing him of using spiritual affinity as a pretext to plunder them. Houtu silently seethes at the complaint.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhunti presents himself as sincere and benevolent, yet repeatedly takes what he wants through magical force or pressure. He justifies his actions as destiny and sees them as necessary to enrich the Western Lands and retain Gungun.
• Donghua is powerless to stop Zhunti and can only vent his anger after the Saint leaves. The Queen Mother of the West resists more successfully, though she still loses some peaches.
• Jieyin sympathizes with Zhunti’s efforts but shares the burden of managing Gungun’s enormous appetite. The brothers plan together to keep Gungun from leaving.
• Gungun enjoys the Western Lands’ food and appreciates its disciples, but Zhunti’s flattering offer—and especially his repeated talk of “affinity”—makes him cautious about joining.
• Houtu becomes the tribes’ advocate and recognizes Zhunti’s strategy. Though she does not yet respond publicly, the petition clearly angers her.
• The Western disciples privately resent having to entertain and feed Gungun, despite his belief that they are kind and accommodating.

Significant themes

• Power disguised as destiny: Zhunti’s claims of karmic affinity turn coercion into the language of inevitability.
• Self-interest and hypocrisy: He insists he is not targeting or harming others while taking their treasures for his own religious community.
• Resistance and justice: The tribes’ appeal to Houtu frames the episode as a struggle between powerful Saints and vulnerable communities.
• Belonging and choice: Gungun weighs the practical benefits of joining the Western Religion against his uncertainty and existing ties to the Witch Race.

Summary

• Houtu confronts Zhunti: After dismissing the leaders of the eastern races, Houtu challenges Zhunti for exploiting his claim that Gungun is “bound to him by fate” to take treasures in the east. Zhunti admits his actions may damage his reputation but says he will accept the consequences for the sake of his Dao and the Western Lands. Houtu recognizes that she cannot safely oppose him: the Witch Race would face both Saints and the Demon Race. The encounter strengthens her resolve to attain the Dao and protect her people.
• Gungun agrees to join the Western Religion: Unaware of Houtu and Zhunti’s exchange, Gungun tells Zhunti and Jieyin that he will join their religion only if Houtu consents and he can continue serving the Witch Race. The Saints agree. Zhunti then urges him to stay for food, and Gungun eats and drinks until he falls unconscious. Zhunti reveals that he deliberately got Gungun drunk to keep him from attending Houtu’s banquet the next day and to make the Western banquet seem more appealing. Jieyin worries about the cost of supporting Gungun’s enormous appetite.
• Gungun becomes deputy leader: Nine days later, Gungun wakes in a new palace built for him, Crouching Bear Hall. Zhunti tells him Houtu had already agreed not to stop him from joining and appoints him deputy leader of the Western Religion. Gungun is delighted, imagining he may eventually lead the religion himself.
• A troubling blueprint appears: While asleep, Gungun’s system sells him a blueprint for a Demon-Slaying Sword. The weapon is meant to destroy Demon Souls; its counterpart, the Witch-Slaying Sword, is designed to shatter Witch bodies. Gungun fears the swords’ legendary connection to mass slaughter of humans, but the blueprint does not mention human sacrifice. It calls for rare materials and points him toward the Yellow River, leaving him suspicious about what the key ingredient is.
• Gungun asks Zhunti for blood: Remembering the blueprint’s implications, Gungun makes a solemn request of Zhunti: a drop of the Saint’s blood. The chapter ends with Zhunti startled by the request.

Character developments and interactions

• Houtu is pragmatic but frustrated: she cannot protect the eastern races from Zhunti without endangering the Witch Race, so she turns toward gaining greater power.
• Zhunti openly prioritizes his ambitions and the Western Religion over his reputation, using hospitality—and Gungun’s appetite—to keep him from Houtu’s feast.
• Gungun remains humorous and food-loving, but his concern for humans and the future Witch-Demon war reveals a serious, protective side. His new leadership role may give him influence, though his request for Zhunti’s blood hints at a plan.
• Jieyin supports Gungun’s appointment but worries about the practical burden of feeding him.
• Key interactions: Houtu and Zhunti clash over responsibility and reputation; Gungun negotiates terms with the two Western Saints; Zhunti manipulates the timing of Gungun’s departure; and Gungun later approaches Zhunti with an unexplained request.

Significant themes

The chapter explores power and moral compromise, as Houtu accepts that protecting her people may require pursuing greater strength, while Zhunti embraces questionable methods for his cause. It also raises concerns about war’s cost to the vulnerable, especially the Human Race, and contrasts Gungun’s comic appetite with his growing political importance and genuine concern for others.

Key plot points and events

• Zhunti gives Gungun three drops of his Saint’s blood, telling him to use two for cultivation. Gungun is touched by the generosity and sees his new position as deputy leader of the Western Religion as a promising opportunity.
• Houtu clarifies that she never formally approved Gungun’s decision to join; she simply chose not to stop him. Gungun, however, sees the appointment as too advantageous to refuse and expects the Western Religion to prosper.
• Gungun returns to Mount Youdu with the Demon-Slaying Sword Forging Blueprint, which he claims to have found while doing good deeds. The design calls for Saint’s blood, Shouyang copper, and other materials to create a weapon capable of subduing demon souls.
• Houtu recognizes the blueprint’s potential and orders the earth’s races to gather the required materials in secret, hoping to surprise the Demon Race in the coming decisive battle.
• Gungun reveals that he secured a drop of Zhunti’s blood specifically to help forge the weapon. With that ingredient supplied, the Witch Race can avoid taking blood from humans.
• At Mount Kunlun, Tongtian resents Gungun for choosing the Western Religion over Jiejiao. He orders his disciples to pack and leave Kunlun, though he has not yet decided where they will go. Yinglong begins suggesting a possible destination in the East Sea.

Character developments

• Gungun remains opportunistic and self-satisfied, but also shows loyalty to Houtu: he uses his new religious position to obtain what the Witch Race needs. He also tries to act more like an authoritative Witch Scribe.
• Houtu is initially exasperated by Gungun’s choice, but is moved when she learns he obtained Saint’s blood for her plan. Her confidence in his fortune and value grows.
• Zhunti appears generous toward Gungun, despite privately lamenting the loss of his precious Saint’s blood.
• Tongtian feels rejected and insulted by Gungun’s choice. His frustration contributes to his decision to leave Kunlun with his disciples.

Significant themes

• Self-interest and loyalty: Gungun joins the Western Religion for its future prospects and benefits, yet uses those benefits to support Houtu and the Witch Race.
• Fate, fortune, and ambition: Gungun imagines himself destined for increasingly powerful roles, while Houtu repeatedly marvels at his uncanny luck.
• Preparation for conflict: The Demon-Slaying Sword could change the balance of power between the Witch and Demon Races, and Houtu’s secret gathering of materials sets up a future confrontation.
• Misunderstanding and wounded pride: Houtu and Gungun interpret his choice differently, while Tongtian takes it as a personal rejection.

Character interactions

• Zhunti’s warm offer of blood contrasts with his private regret, while Gungun interprets it as proof of the Western Religion’s generosity.
• Houtu teases Gungun about being the Western Religion’s deputy leader, then listens as he explains why he joined. His gift of the blueprint and Saint’s blood softens her response.
• Gungun and Houtu share a moment of affection when she praises him for helping the Witch Race.
• Tongtian’s resentment toward Gungun is expressed to his disciples; Yinglong’s proposed East Sea destination may shape the next stage of their journey.

Plot points and events

• Ao Yue offers Golden Turtle Island to Tongtian as Jiejiao’s new home, hoping to secure the Dragon Race’s goodwill and protection from a Saint. Yinglong leaves to share the news.
• Tongtian and Yuanshi argue over Jiejiao. Yuanshi urges Tongtian to expel immoral disciples and reform the sect to protect its fortune; Tongtian refuses to abandon his disciples or surrender his own path. Yuanshi ends their conversation in anger.
• Laozi counsels Yuanshi to let Tongtian choose his own Dao, warning that forcing reforms could destroy their brotherly bond. He says they should intervene only if Jiejiao’s fortune truly threatens Tongtian, and decides to visit Tongtian at Golden Turtle Island. Yuanshi eventually agrees to go too.
• Yuanshi permits his disciple Nine Li, who belongs to the Witch Race, to obey the Earth Emperor’s order to help mine divine copper at Shouyang Mountain. His divination reveals that the Witch Race’s plans involve Gungun, but another Saint is concealing the details.
• At Mount Buzhou, the Ancestral Witches work on forging the Demon-Slaying Sword. Hou Yi reports that the Demon Race is spying on the races gathering materials.
• Gungun advises Hou Yi not to provoke a war. Instead, he proposes feeding the spies a planted story: that the Witch Race is building a magnificent carriage for Gungun and values him highly, while Kunpeng is distrusted and controlled by the Demon Emperor and Demon Sovereign. Hou Yi recognizes the plan’s promise.

Character developments and interactions

• Tongtian remains committed to his inclusive Jiejiao and his disciples, even at the cost of conflict with Yuanshi.
• Yuanshi is angry and anxious about Jiejiao’s corruption, but Laozi’s advice—and Gungun’s earlier counsel, recalled by Laozi—softens his stance toward his younger brother.
• Laozi acts as mediator, emphasizing both respect for Tongtian’s Dao and the importance of preserving the brothers’ bond.
• Gungun appears carefree and self-indulgent, but proves strategically perceptive. He turns Hou Yi away from a rash military response and suggests manipulating the Demon Race with misinformation.
• Hou Yi initially looks to the Ancestral Witches for direction, then begins to trust Gungun’s judgment.

Significant themes

• Following one’s Dao: Tongtian’s refusal to change Jiejiao reflects the difficulty—and cost—of abandoning one’s principles.
• Family loyalty and restraint: Laozi urges the brothers not to let disagreement sever their bond.
• Appearance versus ability: Gungun’s indulgent, bear-like exterior hides considerable strategic intelligence.
• Deception as a weapon: Rather than fight the Demon Race directly, the Witch Race may use carefully planted information to influence its rivals.

Plot points and events

• Gungun tells Hou Yi to spread damaging comparisons between himself and Kunpeng. The rumors should emphasize that Gungun is highly respected and influential among the Witches, while Kunpeng—despite being Demon Master—is sidelined, cannot rescue his imprisoned younger brother Kong Xuan without violating the Dao Ancestor’s truce, and has little real authority.
• Gungun’s boast that Hou Yi would obey even an outrageous personal request irritates Hou Yi, who pinches his cheeks. Gungun turns the incident into a bargaining opportunity, demanding either years of free Spirit Fruit or a favor. Hou Yi chooses the favor and drinks a bottle Gungun gives him.
• The bottle contains Love-Cutting Water, which Gungun secretly uses to prevent Hou Yi from falling in love with Chang’e and suffering a possible future betrayal. He asks Hou Yi to provide him with nine supreme divine birds someday, hinting that Kunpeng may be the real target.
• Gungun’s campaign soon spreads across the Primordial World. Rumors also claim Houtu is gathering rare materials to build a magnificent litter for Gungun, reinforcing the contrast between his favored status and Kunpeng’s neglected position.
• Kunpeng recognizes the scheme’s intent to divide him from Demon Emperor Dijun and Eastern Emperor Taiyi. However, the rumors reflect genuine grievances: he lacks authority, his brother remains imprisoned, and his true spirit is controlled through the Demon-Summoning Banner. He grows even more resentful of the Demon leadership.
• Dijun hears the rumors at the Jade Pool and is troubled.

Character developments and interactions

• Gungun shows himself to be a shrewd manipulator, using humor, publicity, and a concealed magical remedy to pursue several aims at once. He claims his actions are for Hou Yi’s protection, though he keeps his motives—and the requested birds—unclear.
• Hou Yi is fond and indulgent toward Gungun, but cares about preserving his dignity. He reluctantly accepts the favor after Gungun threatens to involve Houtu, unaware that the drink will alter his romantic feelings.
• Kunpeng sees through Gungun’s provocation but cannot dismiss its truth, making his anger toward the Demon leadership harder to contain.
• Gungun and Hou Yi’s teasing, cheek-pinching, and bargaining provide comic relief while advancing Gungun’s broader plan.

Significant themes

• Manipulation through truth: Gungun’s rumors are crafted to sow discord, but their impact comes from exposing real inequalities within the Demon Race.
• Power and status: The chapter contrasts Gungun’s practical influence among the Witches with Kunpeng’s impressive title but limited authority.
• Protective interference and free will: Gungun secretly alters Hou Yi’s capacity for romantic attachment, believing he is shielding him from future suffering.
• Humor alongside political intrigue: Their playful exchange masks consequential schemes involving love, factional loyalty, and the balance between the Witch and Demon Races.

Key plot points and events

• Rumors spread that the Demon Race mistreats Kunpeng, contrasting his constrained position as Demon Master with the honor and trust Gungun receives as the Witch Race’s Witch Scribe.
• Dijun worries the gossip will alienate Kunpeng but cannot safely restore his freedom or grant him major authority. Xi He explains that the comparison exploits the very real difference: Kunpeng was forced into the Demon Race and remains distrusted, while Gungun is trusted by the witches.
• Xi He proposes striking back with a counter-rumor: Gungun supposedly betrayed the Witch Race by joining the Western Religion, securing a fallback if the witches lose and a path to greater power if they win. The story spreads rapidly.
• Gungun is stunned and indignant, since he joined the Western Religion for reasons unrelated to the War of the Liches. Although the Great Shamans dismiss the rumor, many ordinary witches are unsettled.
• Suspecting the Demon Race—especially because the rumor follows his own effort to stir trouble between Kunpeng and the demons—Gungun decides to end the matter directly. He swears before Heaven that he will stand with Houtu and never betray the Witch Race unless she betrays him.
• The oath rallies the witches and Iron-Eating Beasts, while making the counter-rumor collapse. At the Heavenly Court, Dijun is furious and Xi He feels personally insulted by Gungun’s denunciation of the rumor-monger as “despicable” and “shameless.”

Character developments

• Dijun recognizes that Kunpeng’s forced recruitment and his own distrust make the Demon Race vulnerable to accusations of mistreatment. He remains frustrated when Gungun neutralizes the counterattack.
• Xi He demonstrates political insight by identifying the rumor’s purpose and devising a retaliatory strategy, but is left feeling aggrieved when Gungun publicly condemns whoever spread it.
• Gungun moves from bewilderment and anger to decisive action. His public oath confirms his loyalty to Houtu and the Witch Race, while his suspicions of the Demon Race deepen.
• Kunpeng does not appear, but his precarious standing within the Demon Race is central to the conflict.

Significant themes

• Rumors as political weapons: Both factions use gossip to sow mistrust and weaken alliances.
• Trust versus coercion: Kunpeng’s reluctant service contrasts with Gungun’s genuine loyalty, making public perceptions difficult for Dijun to control.
• Reputation and allegiance: Gungun’s oath turns a potentially damaging accusation into a public demonstration of commitment.
• Strategic self-interest: Gungun’s Western Religion alliance is pragmatic, but others interpret it as betrayal or a safety net.

Character interactions

• Xi He advises Dijun and reframes the problem, prompting him to retaliate through rumor.
• Gungun consults an Iron-Eating Beast about the witches’ reaction, then answers the accusations with a solemn oath addressed to Heaven and the wider world.
• The witches and Iron-Eating Beasts respond with enthusiastic support, while Dijun and Xi He react angrily to the failure of their scheme.

Key plot points and events

• After Gungun foils Xi He’s plan to turn him against the Witch Race, Dijun vows to kill him someday. Xi He admits the scheme failed and feels humiliated, but Dijun comforts her. They agree to leave Kunpeng’s position unresolved for now, relying on the Demon-Summoning Banner’s hold over him.
• On Mount Buzhou, Gungun celebrates his oath to advance and retreat alongside Houtu, which publicly confirms his loyalty to the Witch Race. The Witches acclaim him as their teacher and Witch Scribe, and the resulting surge of their fortune helps him break through to Great Luo peak.
• Jieyin and Zhunti welcome Gungun’s breakthrough and see him as a powerful asset to the Western Religion, though Jieyin cautions that their sect still lacks the Three Pure Ones’ resources. Zhunti argues that Gungun belongs to the Central Wilderness rather than the east.
• The Three Pure Ones discuss Gungun’s loyalty and advancement. Laozi and Yuanshi praise him; Tongtian resents that Gungun chose the Western Religion and predicts its weakness will hinder his progress. His brothers regard this judgment as arrogant and note that Tongtian himself may be leading Jiejiao toward trouble.
• After more than two months of sleeping through his seclusion to stabilize his cultivation, Gungun wakes. He steps outside and sees ten small suns racing across the sky.

Character developments and interactions

• Dijun and Xi He: Xi He moves from anger and shame over her failed scheme to accepting Dijun’s reassurance. The couple remain concerned about Gungun and Kunpeng, though Dijun prioritizes control over respect.
• Gungun: His oath reinforces his loyalty to Houtu and the Witch Race, while the Witches’ recognition raises his standing and cultivation. He remains confident, irreverent, and unconcerned with how others assess his choices.
• Jieyin and Zhunti: Zhunti is proud of Gungun’s growth and his value to their religion; Jieyin tempers that optimism with concern about the West’s poor foundations. Their exchange reflects both their shared ambition and Jieyin’s caution.
• The Three Pure Ones: Laozi and Yuanshi admire Gungun’s loyalty and criticize Tongtian’s dismissive certainty. Tongtian’s jealousy and pride become more apparent, while his brothers privately worry about his leadership.

Significant themes

• Loyalty and identity: Gungun’s public oath defeats attempts to cast him as a traitor and ties his future to Houtu’s path.
• Fortune, recognition, and power: The Witches’ acclaim directly strengthens Gungun, showing how social legitimacy and collective fortune can advance cultivation.
• Pride versus humility: Xi He accepts responsibility, Jieyin urges restraint, and Laozi and Yuanshi favor measured judgment; Tongtian’s arrogance contrasts with them.
• Rivalry among factions: The Demon Race, Witch Race, Western Religion, and Three Pure Ones assess one another’s strengths and prospects, setting up broader political conflict.

Plot points and events

• The Ten Golden Crows’ passage scorches the land and kills countless beings. As they approach the Youxiong Ruins, the heat threatens the humans there.
• Great Shaman Kuafu shields the people by turning his wooden staff into a cooling Peach Grove, then confronts the Golden Crows and warns them to stop.
• Though Bo Huang initially hesitates because the Witch and Demon races are under a truce, Lu Ya and the others persuade him to attack. The Crows press on, pelting Kuafu with solar fire.
• Gungun’s Cooling Fireproof Pearl protects Kuafu from serious injury. Kuafu retaliates with his iron chain, eventually striking Lu Ya and drawing blood.
• The Golden Crows intensify their attack. Gungun arrives, reveals his enormous Ancestral Bear form, and joins the battle, grappling with Bo Huang. Encouraged, Kuafu turns back on the remaining Crows.

Character developments and interactions

• Kuafu acts decisively to protect the humans, then grows furious when the Golden Crows ignore his warning. He proves resilient and capable in combat.
• Bo Huang shows some initial restraint but yields to pressure from his younger brothers; after Lu Ya is hurt, he becomes fiercely protective.
• Lu Ya is impulsive and eager for a fight, urging the others to attack Kuafu, but is wounded by Kuafu’s chain.
• Gungun arrives in time to aid Kuafu and reveals the full scale of his power. He privately recognizes the Crows’ potential while believing they are doomed in the coming Witch-Demon Calamity.
• Kuafu and Gungun become allies in the fight, while the Golden Crows’ brotherly loyalty—especially Bo Huang’s protectiveness toward Lu Ya—drives the conflict forward.

Significant themes

• Protecting the vulnerable: Kuafu’s intervention prioritizes the humans endangered by the Crows’ destructive passage.
• Arrogance and recklessness: The young Golden Crows dismiss warnings and underestimate their opponents.
• Power and its costs: The Crows possess immense destructive force, but their actions bring suffering and provoke resistance.
• Foreknowledge and fate: Gungun’s thoughts introduce the approaching Witch-Demon Calamity and the gap between the Crows’ promising potential and their doomed future.

Key plot points and events

• Gungun overwhelms Bo Huang in close combat, but Bo Huang summons the Sun-Moon Wheels, high-grade treasures given to him by his parents, and uses them to break Gungun’s yin-yang attack.
• Gungun counters with its Yin-Yang Grinding Bamboo and strikes Bo Huang with Yin-Yang Annihilation, gravely wounding him.
• In the Heavenly Court, Taiyi senses danger near the Yellow River and rushes to intervene. Kunpeng watches him go, pleased, and leaves without concern for the consequences.
• Hou Yi arrives and kills one Golden Crow with an arrow. As the surviving brothers flee, he fires eight arrows at once, bringing down the remaining Golden Crows.
• Gungun uses the Spirit-Washing Cauldron to draw in the fallen Golden Crows’ Demon Souls.
• Lu Ya is the last to remain in danger. Just as Hou Yi’s arrow is about to hit him, Taiyi appears and deflects it with his ancient bell, confronting Hou Yi.

Character developments and interactions

• Gungun proves that its skill as a Witch Scribe, combined with unusual tools and tactics, can overcome even a powerful opponent armed with exceptional treasures. It is playful and boastful, but merciless when dealing with the Golden Crows.
• Bo Huang begins with pride in his status, talent, and presumed future as Heavenly Emperor. Being beaten by Gungun enrages him, but his treasures let him mount a brief counterattack before Gungun defeats him.
• Hou Yi enters as a decisive protector of the Earthly Beings. He shows no mercy to the Golden Crows after their slaughter and efficiently shoots them down.
• Taiyi shifts from watching events at a distance to immediate action when his sons are threatened. His arrival halts Hou Yi’s attack on Lu Ya.
• Kunpeng quietly welcomes the conflict, viewing it as deserved and choosing not to intervene.

Significant themes

• Pride and power: Bo Huang’s confidence in his rank and gifts cannot protect him from a more resourceful opponent.
• Retribution and justice: Hou Yi’s attack is framed as a response to the Golden Crows’ devastation of the land and its inhabitants.
• Ingenuity versus force: Gungun counters powerful treasures through specialized knowledge and unconventional tools.
• Escalating conflict: The deaths of the Golden Crows and Taiyi’s confrontation with Hou Yi set up a larger clash between the Demon and Witch factions.

Key plot points and events

• Eastern Emperor Taiyi arrives as Hou Yi’s arrow is about to kill Lu Ya. Enraged by the deaths of his nine other nephews, he attacks Hou Yi.
• Gungun rushes toward Lu Ya, forcing Taiyi to abandon his attack on Hou Yi and strike the bear instead. Gungun is knocked back, and Hou Yi and Kuafu catch him.
• Gungun urges Hou Yi to summon the Ancestral Witches. Before Taiyi can attack again, the Western Saint Zhunti arrives and heals Gungun.
• Zhunti confronts Taiyi over injuring his deputy leader. Taiyi argues that he must avenge his nephews, but Yuanshi and Tongtian arrive and condemn him for allowing the ten suns to devastate the world in defiance of the Dao Ancestor’s decree.
• Tongtian challenges Taiyi and demands the Chaos Bell as the prize. Zhunti also wants to settle the matter himself, while Gungun tries to claim the bell as compensation. All three Saints refuse him, each insisting he cannot have it.
• As Taiyi prepares to fight, a messenger arrives announcing that the Dao Ancestor’s decree has come. The messenger is the young Haotian.

Character developments and interactions

• Taiyi shifts from furious avenger to a cornered opponent, increasingly resentful as the Saints judge him and dispute who will take the Chaos Bell.
• Gungun plays up his injuries to gain sympathy and tries to turn the conflict into an opportunity to acquire the Chaos Bell. When the Saints reject him, he privately condemns all three teachings and imagines founding his own Panda Sect and ruling the Three Realms.
• Hou Yi and Kuafu show concern for Gungun and support him after Taiyi’s strike.
• Zhunti, Yuanshi, and Tongtian each intervene for their own reasons: Zhunti defends his deputy, Yuanshi condemns Taiyi’s destruction, and Tongtian wants to fight him and claim the bell.

Significant themes

• Power and justice: The Saints denounce Taiyi for permitting widespread destruction, though their interventions are also shaped by personal and institutional interests.
• Self-interest beneath righteousness: The argument over the Chaos Bell exposes the Saints’ competing ambitions, while Gungun’s own opportunism is played for comedy.
• Comic ambition and hypocrisy: Gungun’s grand plans for a Panda Sect sharply contrast with his helpless performance and the Saints’ dismissive treatment of him.

Plot points and events

• Haotian arrives carrying Dao Ancestor Hongjun’s decree: the nine fallen Golden Crow princes’ deaths settle the matter; the Witch and Demon Races must stop fighting and remain in their territories, and the Saints must stop intervening.
• Taiyi protests that the decree dismisses the deaths of his nephews, but Haotian warns him against defying Hongjun.
• Gungun sarcastically recalls Taiyi’s past disregard for the Dao Ancestor, then pretends to faint. Three Saints—Zhunti, Yuanshi, and Tongtian—each give Hou Yi a healing gift for the bear.
• Hou Yi and Kuafu escort Gungun away. Hou Yi accepts the settlement reluctantly, recognizing that the decree and Taiyi’s strength leave him little choice.
• Haotian challenges Taiyi to accept the decree. Taiyi resents Haotian’s authority but ultimately backs down, calling him “a fox borrowing the tiger’s might”—using Hongjun’s power to command respect.
• When Taiyi prepares to leave with Lu Ya and the princes’ bodies, he discovers the nine corpses are missing. He erupts in anger.
• The chapter reveals that Houtu secretly took the bodies to Mount Buzhou, considering them valuable spoils for the Witch Race.

Character developments and interactions

• Haotian asserts himself as Hongjun’s representative, using the Dao Ancestor’s authority to restrain Taiyi despite his low status.
• Taiyi remains furious and resentful, but yields when faced with the decree and the Saints’ scrutiny. The missing bodies push him past his usual composure.
• Gungun uses comic feigned weakness to mock Taiyi and draw sympathy; his relationship with the Saints is underscored by their gifts, despite Tongtian’s lingering disappointment that Gungun rejected his discipleship.
• Hou Yi shifts from indignation toward practical acceptance, choosing to retreat rather than challenge an overwhelming force.
• Houtu acts covertly and pragmatically, turning the crisis into a gain for the Witch Race.
• The Saints’ gifts to Gungun reveal unexpected affection and concern, while their presence helps keep Taiyi from pursuing the departing Witches.

Significant themes

• Authority and power: Hongjun’s decree overrides personal grief and political anger, while Haotian’s authority comes from his connection to the Dao Ancestor.
• Restraint versus retaliation: The Witches and Taiyi are ordered to halt hostilities, but unresolved resentment remains.
• Pragmatism and opportunism: Hou Yi retreats when resistance is futile, while Houtu quietly secures the fallen princes’ bodies.
• Humor amid conflict: Gungun’s theatrical fainting and pointed mockery lighten the tension without diminishing the stakes.

Key plot points

• Gungun learns that the Iron-Eating Beast he sent to collect the nine fallen Golden Crow princes found all the bodies missing. Enraged, he kicks the messenger away and vows to demote him.
• The corpses were valuable not only because the Golden Crows were powerful, but because their royal status made them politically significant. Gungun also wanted them as materials for crafting especially powerful Immortal-Slaying Flying Blades.
• Gungun persuades Hou Yi to help recover the bodies, reminding him of a promise to give him nine supreme divine birds. Hou Yi agrees, though he doubts he can retrieve them if a Quasi-Saint—or Saint—took them.
• When asked about his injuries, Gungun boasts that he is invulnerable, then admits Eastern Emperor Taiyi’s strike hurt him. His black-pearl necklace reduced the blow’s force by ninety percent.
• Hou Yi suspects the necklace may be the World-Destroying Black Lotus. Gungun vehemently denies owning it, but Hou Yi points out that Gungun has concealed other treasures before.

Character developments and interactions

• Gungun shifts from furious disappointment to opportunistic pleading, using Hou Yi’s promise to get help. His boastful self-image contrasts with his evasiveness about his injuries and necklace.
• Hou Yi proves dependable by honoring his promise, but grows increasingly perceptive about Gungun’s hidden possessions.
• Kuafu prompts the others to address Gungun’s injuries, having mostly stayed quiet until then.
• The Iron-Eating Beast messenger accepts blame meekly, while Gungun reacts harshly to the failure.

Significant themes

• Status and political value: The Golden Crows’ royal identity makes their bodies far more consequential than their strength alone would suggest.
• Promises and obligation: Gungun invokes Hou Yi’s earlier promise, and Hou Yi agrees to honor it.
• Secrets and trust: Gungun’s concealed treasure and Hou Yi’s suspicions highlight the limits of what even longtime companions know about one another.
• Comic contradiction: Gungun claims invulnerability but admits to being hurt, and insists he has no legendary treasure while wearing an unusually protective necklace.

Plot points and events

• Gungun remains frustrated that Hou Yi suspects he owns the World-Destroying Black Lotus. Hou Yi explains that, years earlier, he saw black light and heard Gungun singing about a lotus while bathing, which convinced him the bear was hiding the treasure. Gungun insists he was mistaken, but Hou Yi still doesn’t believe him.
• On the way back to Mount Buzhou, Gungun jokes that Hou Yi has wounded his heart and asks for the bamboo shoots, divine water, and golden cores given to him by the Three Saints.
• At the Houtu Tribe, Gungun discovers the nine Golden Crow corpses hanging in front of Pangu Hall. He is delighted, assuming Houtu recovered them from the thief who had taken them before the tribe’s elders could collect them.
• Eager to claim the corpses and obtain the Immortal-Slaying Flying Blade, Gungun proposes showing Hou Yi how to refine a treasure from the Golden Crows. Kuafu stays behind to treat his minor injuries.
• When Gungun asks Houtu who the corpse thief was, her awkwardness prompts him to guess that Jieyin was responsible. He decides not to press her, while Houtu silently thanks Jieyin for taking the blame in Gungun’s mind.

Character developments and interactions

• Gungun is boastful, irreverent, and highly motivated by treasure and spoils, though he also considers helping avenge the Golden Crow victims sufficient generosity. He uses humor and exaggerated complaints to deflect Hou Yi’s suspicions.
• Hou Yi remains convinced that Gungun possesses the World-Destroying Black Lotus, despite Gungun’s denial. Their teasing argument ends with Gungun striking Hou Yi with a slipper.
• Houtu is caught off guard by Gungun’s assumption that she recovered the corpses and his mistaken guess about the thief.
• Kuafu is more cautious, choosing to tend to his injuries rather than follow Gungun and Hou Yi.

Significant themes

• Distrust and misunderstanding: Hou Yi’s vivid but unreliable memory keeps him convinced of Gungun’s secret treasure.
• Greed and self-interest: Gungun is chiefly pleased that the corpses—and the treasure he hopes to obtain from them—are back within reach.
• Comic dramatic irony: The reader sees that Gungun’s confident explanation of the corpse theft may be wrong, while Houtu’s reaction hints at the truth.

Key plot points

• Houtu agrees that Gungun may use the nine dead Golden Crows’ bodies and souls to forge a Demon-Slaying Flying Blade, a weapon intended for use against the surviving Golden Crow. At her request, the bodies remain displayed for several more days to boost Witch morale.
• Gungun gives Hou Yi a list of supplementary materials to collect, then relaxes with a spirit fruit while privately insisting that only he is allowed to slack off.
• In the Heavenly Court, Dijun, Taiyi, and Xi He mourn the nine slain princes. Xi He demands immediate vengeance, but Dijun refuses to attack: a Dao Ancestor-mandated truce remains in force, the Witch Race has the moral advantage, and the Demon Race is not ready for war.
• Dijun reveals that his divinations point to Saint Nuwa as connected to a future way of defeating the Witch Race. He asks Xi He to wait until the truce ends and their preparations are complete.
• Xi He rejects his delay, leaves for the Lunar Star with Lu Ya, and asks Dijun for a divorce so she can seek revenge independently. Dijun refuses to accept the separation and follows her.
• Half a month later, Xi He summons Chang’e, her good corpse, and plans to have her reborn as a human in the Youxiong Tribe. Once Chang’e befriends the Iron-Eating Beasts and gains access to Hou Yi and Gungun, Xi He intends to restore her powers and memories so she can kill them without openly involving the Demon Race.

Character developments and interactions

• Houtu balances Witch military morale with Gungun’s practical plan, allowing the bodies to remain on display before they are used.
• Gungun turns the Golden Crows into materials for a future weapon and treats Hou Yi as a worker to keep busy, while indulging in his own idleness.
• Dijun is torn between grief as a father and responsibility as Demon Emperor. He promises eventual revenge but prioritizes the truce, the Demon Race, and his political ambitions.
• Xi He moves from grief to defiance. She puts her children’s vengeance above her title, marriage, and the Demon Race, and devises a covert plan rather than waiting for Dijun.
• Taiyi supports Dijun by securing the Jade Pool for their private discussion, but has little to say against Xi He’s grief.
• Chang’e questions whether the plan will implicate the Demon Race, then reluctantly agrees to carry it out.
• Xi He and Dijun’s conflict exposes a deep divide: he urges patience and collective responsibility, while she sees delay as an intolerable betrayal of their children.

Significant themes

• Personal grief versus political duty: Dijun’s obligations as ruler conflict with Xi He’s maternal desire for immediate revenge.
• Revenge and its consequences: Both sides turn the fallen Golden Crows into instruments of future conflict—Gungun through a weapon, Xi He through Chang’e’s covert mission.
• Power and moral justification: The characters maneuver around the truce and the Dao Ancestor’s authority, seeking ways to retaliate without openly triggering war.
• Freedom, identity, and loyalty: Xi He considers abandoning her role as Heavenly Empress, while the plan to rebirth Chang’e disguises revenge as an act by someone outside the Demon Race.

Key plot points and events

• Gungun worries that its black pearl necklace could reveal its connection to Luo Hou and the World-Destroying Black Lotus. It hides the necklace in the Dark Abyss, but Luo Hou’s demonic qi drags it back and knocks Gungun around.
• Luo Hou explains that the necklace conceals its true nature unless it is destroyed, and that it protected Gungun from Taiyi’s attack. He orders Gungun to wear it for protection during the coming upheaval.
• Luo Hou says he plans to hold Hongjun back, though his injuries make a direct challenge impossible. He also offers guidance on the Yin-Yang Great Way: true mastery requires the essences of utmost yang and utmost yin.
• Gungun guesses these essences may belong to the Golden Crows and the lunar gods. It already has the nine Golden Crow corpses and their souls, but does not know how to obtain the lunar essence.
• In the Heavenly Court, Xi He sends Lu Ya to carry out a plan against Gungun and Hou Yi. He descends in disguise, and Xi He’s good corpse is reborn as a human girl in the Youxiong Tribe. Her mother is prompted to name her Chang’e.

Character developments and interactions

• Gungun’s fear of exposure and death is balanced by its attachment to the necklace; despite its bravado, it obeys Luo Hou and puts it back on.
• Luo Hou acts as Gungun’s stern protector and mentor, revealing his broader intentions while keeping the details of his plan secret.
• Lu Ya is reluctant to follow Xi He’s scheme, but obeys out of loyalty and grief for his slain brothers.
• Xi He remains determined to avenge the Golden Crows and uses a covert rebirth plan rather than open confrontation.

Significant themes

• Trust and protection: Gungun’s distrust of Luo Hou conflicts with the practical safety the necklace provides.
• Ambition and power: Luo Hou’s rivalry with Hongjun frames the coming upheaval and the struggle between Dao and devil.
• Fate and hidden schemes: Chang’e’s birth is engineered through spiritual influence, foreshadowing her role in future events.
• Limits of mastery: Luo Hou challenges Gungun’s belief that it has mastered the Yin-Yang Law, defining true mastery as a far greater attainment.