Chapter Summaries

Xiang Lan'er and Shi Chun defeated the Origin Sword Palace fighters, with Xiang Lan'er subduing Chao Zhilin and Mao Zhong while Shi Chun incapacitated Zhu Ze. The battle ended with Shi Chun sheathing his saber and meeting Xiang Lan'er's gaze beneath the moonlight.

• Xiang Lan'er knocked Chao Zhilin unconscious and restrained him while Mao Zhong and Zhu Ze attacked Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang.
• Wu Jinliang used his saber as a shield against Mao Zhong and Zhu Ze's sword-shaped attacks, then charged Mao Zhong despite being struck.
• Shi Chun rushed Zhu Ze and landed a Demon-Undoing Hand strike that left him unable to control his body.
• Xiang Lan'er swept away Mao Zhong's sword rain with her cloak, bound him in black mist, and knocked him unconscious.
• Shi Chun sheathed his saber as Zhu Ze fell to his knees, and he exchanged a look with Xiang Lan'er.

Shi Chun defeated the Suyuan Sect members and used a looted Mother-Child Talisman to lure Huyan Dao, while the other sects withdrew safely. Huyan Dao suspected the messenger was Wang Sheng, and Shi Chun ended the exchange by promising to settle accounts with him.

• Shi Chun warned Chu Jingtang that the Suyuan Sect was silencing witnesses, and Chu Jingtang later confirmed that his group had withdrawn safely.
• Xiang Lan'er questioned Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang about their cultivation and their looted Wind Scales, while Wu Jinliang searched the fallen Suyuan Sect members.
• Shi Chun made the wounded Xun Lingyin identify the talisman used to contact Huyan Dao, then waited for Chu Jingtang's group to get clear.
• Lao Changhai secretly received confirmation that the Jade Tide Sect group had left and coordinated the other sects' withdrawal.
• Shi Chun sent Huyan Dao a false report to draw him out, but Huyan Dao guessed the messenger might be Wang Sheng.
• Shi Chun spared Xun Lingyin and sent Huyan Dao a threat, saying he would not escape the reckoning.

Shi Chun used the captured disciples to pressure Huyan Dao and Mulan Qingqing, demanding Huyan Dao’s death in exchange for resolving the crisis. While Mulan Qingqing went to confront Huyan Dao, Shi Chun’s group left with their living hostages, and Huyan Dao learned the Jade Tide Sect’s people had disappeared.

• Huyan Dao confirmed that Shi Chun had captured his junior brothers, and Shi Chun threatened to kill Zhu Ze in response to Huyan Dao’s threats.
• Mulan Qingqing contacted Shi Chun, learned Chao Zhilin was alive, and ordered Huyan Dao to control the Jade Tide Sect’s people.
• Shi Chun demanded Huyan Dao’s head, while Mulan Qingqing chose to travel to Huyan Dao and investigate in person.
• Xiang Lan’er reduced Zhu Ze’s body to dust, and Shi Chun departed with the surviving hostages.
• Jin Zaogong told Huyan Dao that the Jade Tide Sect’s people were gone.

Mulan Qingqing investigated the escape of the Jade Tide Sect and Purple Cloud Sect and learned that eleven sects had quietly departed, while Shi Chun discovered why the Origin Sword Palace had betrayed him. The chapter ended with Mulan Qingqing challenging Shi Chun to meet face-to-face, and he told her to choose the place.

• Jin Zaogong reported that the five Jade Tide Sect members and Lao Changhai’s Purple Cloud Sect had escaped, and Huyan Dao admitted the failure to Mulan Qingqing.
• Mulan Qingqing explained that they needed to learn whether the escaped sects had spread the Suyuan Sect’s crimes before deciding how to deal with Wang Sheng and their captured allies.
• Shi Chun questioned Xun Lingyin and Mao Zhong, who said the Origin Sword Palace feared the Suyuan Sect and that Huyan Dao hoped to win Mulan Qingqing’s favor.
• Jin Zaogong discovered that eleven sects had left the camp in different directions without spreading the news.
• Mulan Qingqing sent Shi Chun a message challenging him to meet in person, and Shi Chun replied, “You pick the place.”

Mulan Qingqing and Shi Chun prepared to negotiate after Wang Sheng’s group captured several Suyuan Sect and Origin Sword Palace disciples. Mulan learned that Wandering Rosy Clouds Mountain was little known, then set out to meet Wang Sheng alone while making contingency plans for the sect.

• Mulan Qingqing arranged to meet Wang Sheng in two hours and told Huyan Dao to stall while she handled the crisis.
• Shi Chun took his companions and three hostages to meet Chu Jingtang, whose group was stunned to see Chao Zhilin and other powerful disciples captured.
• Shi Chun promised the assembled sect representatives that he would explain the situation after negotiating with Mulan Qingqing.
• Guan Yingjie reported that Wandering Rosy Clouds Mountain was an obscure sect, and Mulan Qingqing concluded that her side had pushed its people too far.
• Mulan Qingqing instructed Guan Yingjie to invoke the Regional Lord’s name and continue the championship plan if she failed to return, then insisted on negotiating alone.

Shi Chun and Xiang Lan'er met Mulan Qingqing to negotiate over the Suyuan Sect’s attempt to silence them and the other sects. Shi Chun demanded Huyan Dao’s and Chao Zhilin’s lives as the price for resolving the conflict, leaving Mulan Qingqing to answer his ultimatum.

• Shi Chun and Xiang Lan'er flew to the meeting place while Wu Jinliang stayed behind to guard the hostages.
• Mulan Qingqing arrived alone, recognized Shi Chun, and recalled that her sect had underestimated his strength.
• Mulan Qingqing accused Shi Chun of instigating Yan Ji’s search for Guan Wen, but Shi Chun denied advising Yan Ji and admitted only that he had forced Yan Ji into the Moon Sea.
• Shi Chun told Mulan Qingqing that the other sects knew what the Suyuan Sect had done, but would stay silent if the matter was settled peacefully.
• Shi Chun said he would kill Huyan Dao and Chao Zhilin, insisting that the Suyuan Sect pay for the attempt on his life.

Shi Chun negotiated with Mulan Qingqing for half of Mystic Continent’s forces and proposed a contest to determine their contributions, hoping to secure protection for Wandering Rosy Clouds Mountain. Mulan rejected his arrangement without a public justification and insisted that they announce a temporary engagement.

• Shi Chun demanded half of Mystic Continent’s forces so he could compete for first place and secure a guarantee for Wandering Rosy Clouds Mountain.
• Mulan Qingqing proposed marrying Shi Chun and asked him to eliminate Huyan Dao’s defectors, but he refused to betray his followers or accept her offer.
• Shi Chun suggested dividing the forces and insect core crystals, then letting each side compete; the winner would receive the crystals and decide the rankings by merit.
• Mulan Qingqing questioned whether Shi Chun was married and explained that she could not assign him followers without a valid reason.
• Mulan Qingqing proposed publicly announcing that Shi Chun was her temporary fiancé, and Shi Chun objected to returning to a relationship-based solution.

Shi Chun agreed to a nominal engagement with Mulan Qingqing so she could try to control the Suyuan Sect’s forces, while refusing to spare Chao Zhilin. After returning to the assembly grounds, Gong Shaoci arranged for Shi Chun to receive more attention in the image projection as Miao Yilan’s family arrived.

• Mulan Qingqing persuaded Shi Chun to accept a fake engagement as the basis for dividing the Mystic Continent forces, and he refused her request to spare Chao Zhilin, saying he was already dead.
• Mulan Qingqing left to seek her sect’s approval, and Xiang Lan'er told Shi Chun that Immobilizing Talismans did not work on Suyuan Sect disciples or cultivators who released demonic qi.
• Shi Chun wondered why Sun Shigang had not broken free of his Immobilizing Talisman, then questioned Xiang Lan'er about Sun Shigang’s ambush; she instead criticized Shi Chun’s disguise.
• Shi Chun and Xiang Lan'er returned to their group’s hiding place as dawn broke, and later Miao Yilan arrived at the Tournament Grounds with her parents.
• Gong Shaoci saw Miao Yilan’s family arrive and asked for Shi Chun’s image projection to be moved up the queue and held longer.

Shi Chun took Chao Zhilin away to practice against him, then struck him hard enough to make him cough up blood in full view of the Sky-Gazing Mirror. The public beating revealed that the Suyuan Sect’s forces were vulnerable and drew alarm from its elders and other observers.

• Gong Shaoci greeted Miao Yilan and her parents, and Lan Qiaoyan encouraged the young couple to go enjoy themselves.
• The Sky-Gazing Mirror showed Shi Chun with the captured Chao Zhilin, prompting Miao Dingyi and Young Master Nan to recognize the Suyuan Sect disciple.
• Shi Chun had Wu Jinliang carry him, Xiang Lan’er, and their three hostages a few dozen li away, then asked Xiang Lan’er to help keep Chao Zhilin from escaping.
• Shi Chun said he wanted to practice against Chao Zhilin before a possible fight with Mulan Qingqing and asked Xiang Lan’er to lend him her Insect Core Crystals.
• Shi Chun struck Chao Zhilin and made him cough up blood, causing an uproar among the Tournament Grounds spectators.
• Elder Ji Qinghe, Young Master Nan, Elder Ke, Elder Yin Huixin, and other observers reacted as Chao Zhilin’s capture suggested the Suyuan Sect’s forces were not as secure as they had seemed.

Shi Chun dismissed Xiang Lan’er's warnings about the Suyuan Sect and released the badly injured Chao Zhilin to fight him. Chao Zhilin prepared a lethal opening move as the Tournament Grounds watched their confrontation through the projection.

• Xiang Lan’er warned Shi Chun that Chao Zhilin and the Suyuan Sect were dangerous, but Shi Chun remained determined to fight him.
• Shi Chun struck the unconscious Chao Zhilin again, then released his restrictions while Xiang Lan’er watched uneasily.
• Wu Jinliang pulled Mao Zhong and Xun Lingyin back as Chao Zhilin woke, accused them of being from the Demonic Path, and faced Shi Chun’s challenge.
• Shi Chun told Chao Zhilin that he had killed Guan Wen and Yan Ji, frightening him as he prepared to fight despite his injuries.
• Chao Zhilin raised two fingers and drew in his aura, while Xiang Lan’er and Wu Jinliang stood ready and the Tournament Grounds focused on the coming fight.

Shi Chun observed and countered Chao Zhilin’s Silverglow Swordsmen before narrowly evading Chao Zhilin’s sudden sword attack. The chapter ended with blood spraying from Shi Chun as the onlookers feared he had been struck.

• Chao Zhilin used his spell to create three hidden Silverglow Swordsmen around Shi Chun.
• Shi Chun studied Chao Zhilin’s web-like domain as the spectators debated their chances and Wu Jinliang asked whether he could handle the duel.
• Chao Zhilin sent the Silverglow Swordsmen to attack, and Shi Chun destroyed the one at his side and the one beneath the ground with his saber.
• Chao Zhilin launched himself at Shi Chun with a lightning-fast sword strike, but Shi Chun anticipated its direction and flipped away.
• The crowd saw blood spray from Shi Chun’s body, and Miao Yilan turned away in alarm.

Shi Chun endured Chao Zhilin’s relentless attacks, used the hidden spiderweb threads to create an opening, and killed him in a close-range clash. The Royal Capital’s Tournament Grounds remained stunned as Shi Chun stood wounded but alive, while Wei Mo celebrated his victory.

• Shi Chun dodged Chao Zhilin’s rapid attacks and severed the invisible spiderweb threads with the Demonic-Blight-Free Saber.
• Shi Chun endured more than two hundred charges while spectators, Wu Jinliang, and Xiang Lan'er watched anxiously.
• Shi Chun used the severed threads to make Chao Zhilin’s launching web tilt, then rushed in to attack.
• Chao Zhilin abandoned his technique and blocked Shi Chun’s strike, but Shi Chun killed him with a backward saber slash.
• Shi Chun turned to the fallen Chao Zhilin, and Wei Mo stood up and celebrated as the crowd fell silent.

Shi Chun killed Chao Zhilin in the tournament, drawing outrage and concern over the Suyuan Sect’s response. After rejoining Xiang Lan’er and Wu Jinliang, he killed two more unconscious opponents before they could stop him.

• Chi Rang questioned how Shi Chun had entered the tournament and tried to end the projection, while Wei Mo defended him and refused Chi Rang’s wager.
• Spectators celebrated Shi Chun’s victory, while Feng Chi privately thrilled at Chao Zhilin’s death and worried about Shi Chun’s future.
• Suyuan Sect elder Ji Qinghe considered investigating Shi Chun’s connection to missing disciples, then decided that pursuing the matter would diminish the sect’s dignity.
• Miao Dingyi explained that Suyuan Sect leader Mulan Qingqing was the daughter of former sect master Mulan Jin and might seek revenge to protect the sect’s reputation.
• The steward told Chi Rang that Gong Shaoci had paid for the projection, and Chi Rang swallowed his anger after learning of Gong’s powerful family ties.
• Shi Chun rejoined Xiang Lan’er and Wu Jinliang, then raised his blade and killed two unconscious men.

Shi Chun killed two Suyuan Sect disciples in the Sky-Gazing Mirror broadcast, while Mulan Qingqing persuaded Guan Yingjie to accept her plan to pose as Wang Sheng’s fiancée. In the Prison of Life, Du Huoguan reported Shi Chun’s breakthrough to Advanced Martial to the Prison Master.

• Shi Chun killed the two captured disciples after Chao Zhilin’s warning made keeping them as hostages too dangerous, and the Sky-Gazing Mirror continued broadcasting his actions.
• Gong Shaoci admitted he had requested the broadcast to please the Miao family, then hurried to stop it when he realized Shi Chun had offended powerful sects.
• Mulan Qingqing told Guan Yingjie about her arrangement with Wang Sheng to pose as an engaged couple, and she warned him that she would kill him if he interfered.
• Du Huoguan told the Prison Master that Shi Chun had broken through to Advanced Martial, causing the Prison Master to still the peach blossoms in his hand.

Mulan Qingqing killed Huyan Dao and Jin Zaogong with her conjured swordsmen, then worked with Shi Chun and Xiang Lan'er to reshape the situation among the sects. As the other leaders waited for her, Guan Yingjie revealed that Wang Sheng was Mulan Qingqing’s fiancé, and a staged disturbance drew them outside.

• Mulan Qingqing trapped Huyan Dao and Jin Zaogong with the Silverglow Swordsmen and killed them while Shi Chun and Xiang Lan'er watched.
• Mulan Qingqing told Shi Chun she had fulfilled his request, and they agreed to cooperate; Shi Chun and Xiang Lan'er then returned to their hiding place.
• Shi Chun persuaded Chu Jingtang and the people from five sects to return to their original camp, leaving Mulan Qingqing to reorganize the remaining followers.
• While the leaders waited for Mulan Qingqing, Guan Yingjie told Wan Daoxuan, Tang Zhen, and Li Shanshan that Wang Sheng was Mulan Qingqing's fiancé.
• Guan Yingjie secretly signaled that he had delivered the news, and messages passed from Mulan Qingqing through Shi Chun to Chu Jingtang and the others.
• Wan Daoxuan, Tang Zhen, and Li Shanshan heard an argument and clanging outside, then hurried to the cave entrance.

Chu Jingtang and Lao Changhai turned a sect quarrel into a public dispute over Mulan Qingqing’s marriage agreement with Wang Sheng and whether Wang Sheng had avoided contributing to the Mystic Continent. After Mulan confirmed the agreement and explained Wang Sheng’s disappearance, Chu claimed he had recently found Wang Sheng hiding nearby, and Mulan demanded to be taken to him.

• Wan Daoxuan and the others separated the Jade Tide Sect and Purple Cloud Sect disciples after hearing Mulan Qingqing’s name in their insults.
• Chu Jingtang revealed that Wang Sheng was Mulan Qingqing’s fiancé, and Mulan confirmed that their elders had arranged their marriage agreement.
• Disciples from several sects admitted they had heard about the engagement, while Lao Changhai accused Wang Sheng of hiding instead of risking his life for Insect Core Crystals.
• Mulan said Wang Sheng had joined the Mystic Continent’s efforts near the Moon Sea before disappearing with Guan Wen and the others.
• Chu claimed he had encountered Wang Sheng hiding nearby and said other sects had followed his example.
• Mulan Qingqing demanded that Chu take her to Wang Sheng immediately.

Mulan Qingqing found Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang hiding in a mountain cave and tried to bring them back to the others. Shi Chun refused and publicly challenged her authority, while several sects offered to stay and support him as Mulan and the other leaders departed.

• Chu Jingtang led the crowd to a nearby cave, where they found Shi Chun and Wu Jinliang sheltering.
• Mulan Qingqing asked Shi Chun to return with her, but he refused and claimed he was doing his best for the Mystic Continent Championship.
• Shi Chun provoked Mulan and criticized the larger sects for making smaller sects take risks while they claimed the rewards; Mulan restrained herself and ordered the others to leave.
• Shi Chun insulted Wan Daoxuan when he tried to intervene, and Chu Jingtang proposed that the Jade Tide Sect stay to keep an eye on him.
• When Wan Daoxuan confronted Chu Jingtang, Chu claimed he intended to kill Shi Chun to prevent Mulan from marrying him, so Wan Daoxuan and his companions let the matter go.
• Several other sects announced that they would remain to support Shi Chun, while Mulan Qingqing and the other departing groups left the hollow.

Mulan Qingqing discovered that Wang Sheng’s refusal to return had exposed deep resentment among the lower-tier sects toward the major sects. After questioning their forces, she considered addressing their grievances by redirecting the system rather than suppressing their complaints.

• Shi Chun told the remaining sects to wait for the others to hear the news while they kept watch at the hilltop.
• Wan Daoxuan, Li Shanshan, and Tang Zhen warned Mulan Qingqing that news of Wang Sheng’s actions had spread and urged her to restore morale.
• Mulan Qingqing visited the sects’ forces, asked what they thought of Wang Sheng’s actions, and heard their complaints about how the major sects treated them.
• Mulan Qingqing told Wan Daoxuan, Li Shanshan, and Tang Zhen that Wang Sheng refused to return unless the lower-tier sects received fair benefits for risking their lives.
• Mulan Qingqing explained that she had uncovered widespread resentment and said she was considering whether to channel it rather than suppress it.

Mulan Qingqing persuaded the major sects to divide the Mystic Continent’s forces and Insect Core Crystals, giving the lesser contingents a chance to prove themselves under Wang Sheng. When the newly separated group reached Shi Chun, they unexpectedly named him their commander, and he realized his status as Mulan Qingqing’s fiancé had made his planned efforts unnecessary.

• Mulan Qingqing proposed splitting the Mystic Continent’s forces into elite and lesser groups and dividing their Insect Core Crystals between them.
• Wan Daoxuan, Tang Zhen, and the third leader agreed to the plan after Mulan Qingqing explained that each group’s final results would determine the benefits and rankings.
• Mulan Qingqing and the three sect leaders spent nearly two days reorganizing the forces before a large contingent arrived at Shi Chun’s camp.
• Mai Zhanchang and the newcomers greeted Shi Chun as Wang Sheng and presented him with bags of Insect Core Crystals.
• Mai Zhanchang announced that the contingent had chosen Wang Sheng as their commander, and Shi Chun realized they had rallied behind him because he was Mulan Qingqing’s fiancé.

Shi Chun accepted the gathered disciples’ insistence that he lead them, then organized and drilled their forces while suppressing complaints. He later gathered intelligence from Xiang Lan’er’s infiltrators and marked the other continents’ positions, numbers, and strength on a map.

• Shi Chun accepted the crowd’s offer to make him Chief after demanding that they obey his orders and work toward winning the Mystic Continent Championship.
• The gathered forces handed over 1,837 insect core crystals, and Shi Chun divided more than 3,800 people into ten groups for Wu Jinliang to drill.
• When some recruits complained about the repeated drills, Wu Jinliang and Chu Jingtang took them aside for private talks, after which the training ran more smoothly.
• Xiang Lan’er gave Shi Chun the 477 insect core crystals her teams had found, and Shi Chun divided them into three sacks before asking her for intelligence on her twelve infiltrating teams.
• Xiang Lan’er contacted her teams with the Mother-Child Talismans, and Shi Chun used their reports to mark the Illustrated Map.