Chapter Summaries

Li Qingshan studied the Human Race God-Sealing List and applied to join eighty-six Titled Generals, but most rejected him. The final unanswered application went to Liu Xing of Pioneer Constellation No. 269, who chose to accept him despite his colleagues’ objections.

• Li Qingshan read the achievements of the Titled Generals on the Human Race God-Sealing List and noted that Tai Shang was lost in action.
• Li Qingshan applied to eighty-six Titled Generals, then waited a month for replies.
• Li Qingshan received seventy-seven rejections from nine Pioneer Constellations and suspected the generals had coordinated their decisions.
• Liu Xing consulted eight colleagues, who agreed to reject Li Qingshan because they considered it too risky to take the favored prodigy under their command.
• Liu Xing dismissed his assistant’s assumption that he would reject Li Qingshan and accepted the application.

After eighty-four Pioneer Constellations rejected Li Qingshan, Ye Tai and Liu Xing both approved his application. Li chose Ye Tai’s Myriad Ravine Fortress and politely declined Liu Xing, whose assistant had helped arrange the rejections to recruit him.

• Li Qingshan received another rejection and then read six more messages turning him away from their Pioneer Constellations.
• Mou Yu explained that the Titled Generals saw Li as a risky, underpowered Crown Prince they would have to protect.
• Li received invitations from Ye Tai and Liu Xing and chose Ye Tai’s Myriad Ravine Fortress.
• Li sent Liu Xing a courteous reply declining his offer.
• Liu Xing read Li’s refusal after his assistant praised his plan to recruit Li following the other generals’ rejections.

Ye Tai accepted Li Qingshan into Pioneer Constellation No. 269, intending to protect him by assigning him to logistics, while Li Qingshan received a mission escorting supplies and frontier-expansion fleets toward the Sinking Iron Barrier. In the Alien Races’ territory, Netherworld and Beo questioned Xie Sen about the person they had been seeking.

• Liu Xing confronted Ye Tai after learning that Li Qingshan had agreed to join him, then discovered Ye Tai had accepted him to attract the Network’s attention to Constellation No. 269.
• Ye Tai refused Liu Xing’s offer to take Li Qingshan and declared he would bear responsibility for him himself.
• After Liu Xing mentioned Ye Tai’s dangerous front line, Ye Tai decided to assign Li Qingshan to logistics at Myriad Ravine Fortress.
• Li Qingshan received a mission to escort development supplies and protect frontier-expansion fleets traveling toward the Sinking Iron Barrier, then prepared to leave Seven Stars Academy.
• Netherworld confronted the kneeling Xie Sen as Beo arrived and asked whether they had found the person who had prompted Netherworld’s earlier search and decree.

Beo confronted Youming over the failed hunt for the human prodigy and urged him to search battlefields for other human prodigies while pursuing Tai Shang. Before leaving, Beo recognized that Xie Sen had survived the Returning Ruins Sea again, though Xie Sen’s memories of him had been altered.

• Youming questioned Beo about Xie Sen, then revealed that Xie Sen was the only survivor to return from the Returning Ruins Sea.
• Beo mocked Youming for failing to kill the human prodigy and warned that the failure might damage the Flesh God Master's dignity.
• Youming explained that Xuan Xin had sought his help to ambush the prodigy in the Returning Ruins Sea, and Beo suggested adding human prodigies to the search for Tai Shang.
• Youming accepted the suggestion as a way to find more human prodigies, while Xie Sen trembled with an unexplained fear.
• Beo recalled that Xie Sen’s memories had been rewoven and recognized him as someone who had survived the Formless Sky Demon before; he then transformed into a Dark Green Data Stream and departed.

Li Qingshan traveled through the Wormhole Tunnel toward Wuhu Seat, while ten years later the Sinking Iron Barrier’s Star Forger Envoys waited for the newly appointed Supervisor Guard. The chapter ended as Li Qingshan appeared at their bridge and asked if they had been talking about him.

• Eight-year-old Wan Yongze completed a round of The Stars Are Calling and glimpsed a warm, sunlit realm inside the Wormhole Tunnel before Wan Keshan accused him of slacking and lying.
• Li Qingshan observed the Wormhole Tunnel’s heavenly curtains, suspected it was connected to a Supreme-level existence, and accelerated toward the tunnel’s end.
• Ten years later at Flowing Ying Seat, Tang Yetian, Song Mo, and Qiu Lan discussed the incoming Eighth-Order Supervisor Guard and speculated about his strength and arrival time.
• The bridge Entrance opened unexpectedly, and Li Qingshan appeared before the three Star Forger Envoys, asking if they had been talking about him.

Li Qingshan arrived at the [Sinking Iron Barrier], where he took command of the fleet and learned that the region was a safe rear area for human settlers in Pioneer Constellation No. 269. As the fleet departed, he recognized its people as pioneers at the beginning of the future Radiant Seat.

• Li Qingshan appeared after hearing Song Mo, Qiu Lan, and Tang Yetian badmouth him, startling the three with his strength and unexpectedly swift arrival.
• Tang Yetian admitted his mistake, and Li Qingshan let him off the hook; the three Star Forger Envoys pledged to follow Li's command.
• Li Qingshan ordered the fleet to depart, and the starships entered Wormhole Tunnels bound for Pioneer Constellation No. 269.
• Song Mo explained the command structure and regions of the Myriad Ravine Fortress, revealing that the [Sinking Iron Barrier] lay behind the other three barriers.
• Li Qingshan realized the fleet's settlers were pioneers establishing a new human territory and contemplated the birth of the future Radiant Seat.

Li Qingshan set his sights on expanding humanity’s Safe Zone across the Starry Sky and continued toward the Sinking Iron Barrier with the fleet. Meanwhile, Netherworld recaptured Xie Sen and decided to send spies through the Astral Rift to search humanity’s rear for the missing Human Prodigy.

• Li Qingshan told Song Mo, Tang Yetian, and Qiu Lan that humanity’s Safe Zone should eventually cover the entire Starry Sky and form the Radiant Seat.
• Li Qingshan recognized that Ye Tai had instructed Qiu Lan to watch over him, then accepted Qiu Lan’s assistance as the fleet continued its journey.
• Song Mo reported that the fleet’s route to the Sinking Iron Barrier would take around ten years, and Li Qingshan approved the arrangements.
• Xie Sen fled through a Hyperspace Channel but was seized by Netherworld and brought back to the Underworld Blood Palace.
• Netherworld questioned Xie Sen, then ordered spies to pass through the Astral Rift and scout humanity’s rear for signs of the Human Prodigy.

After escorting the Pioneer Fleet to Pioneer Constellation No. 269, Li Qingshan surveyed the [Sinking Iron Barrier] and recognized its Star Graveyards. He prepared to leave the fleet and pay a visit before reaching the Supervisor's Prefecture.

• During the ten-year journey, Tang Yetian praised Li Qingshan for keeping the Pioneer Fleet safe, and Li Qingshan agreed that everyone had worked hard.
• The Iron-Gray Fleet emerged from the Wormhole Tunnel at Pioneer Constellation No. 269, and the pioneers began their resettlement across the [Sinking Iron Barrier].
• Li Qingshan saw that most of the barrier's Star Systems had been reforged by Star Forger Envoys, while vast Star Graveyards remained in the voids.
• Li Qingshan recalled completing Materialization in a Star Graveyard a thousand years earlier and realized he had become a predecessor who could preserve such ruins for future cultivators.
• When Song Mo explained that the Sinking Iron would take another year to reach the Supervisor's Prefecture, Li Qingshan chose to go out and pay a visit, then vanished.

Li Qingshan visited the outer fortresses with General Ye Tai, who explained their expansion cycle and warned him about the danger of Alien Races breaking through from the front line. Ye Tai revealed that the strongest Titled Generals had advanced beyond the Star Extreme Nine Heavens, along a human path meant to contend with Evil Gods.

• Li Qingshan encountered Ye Tai while heading toward the Cast Copper Barrier, and Ye Tai offered to show him the surrounding fortresses.
• Ye Tai led Li Qingshan across the Cast Copper, Flowing Silver, and Molten Gold Barriers, which were vast ruined regions patrolled by Light Chaser Guards.
• Ye Tai explained that the Sinking Iron Barrier expanded after the three outer fortresses remained unbreached for one hundred thousand years.
• Ye Tai warned that any Alien Race entering the outer fortresses would be at least Tenth Order and that the Nine Titled Generals would need to join forces against it.
• Ye Tai refused to take Li Qingshan to the front line, then revealed that he had reached the Ninth Heaven while the top Titled Generals had advanced Above the Nine Heavens.

Ye Tai explained that the Starry Sky above the Star Realm was a reflection of the true Starry Sky Above the Nine Heavens, which had a missing piece and supplied Star Origin Power. Li Qingshan realized the missing piece was inside his Martial Arts Space and learned that ascending Above the Nine Heavens was the first step toward becoming a Venerable.

• Li Qingshan asked Ye Tai about Above the Nine Heavens, and Ye Tai explained that the Star Realm's sky reflected the true Starry Sky, which had a flaw.
• Ye Tai revealed that starlight and Star Origin Power came from the Starry Sky Above the Nine Heavens, clarifying Li Qingshan's earlier insights.
• Li Qingshan examined the Starry Sky in his Martial Arts Space and concluded that its missing piece was inside the space, though he could not yet investigate it further.
• Ye Tai said the human upper ranks concealed the secret of Above the Nine Heavens and explained that breaking free of the Nine Heavens was the first step to becoming a Venerable.
• Li Qingshan asked whether the path beyond Star Extreme Nine Heavens led Above the Nine Heavens, then remarked that an Alien Ancestral Land must contain many evil gods.

Ye Tai explained the dangers of Star Ascension and how Venerables grew stronger by establishing Pioneer Constellations, then urged Li Qingshan to stay safe in the Sinking Iron Barrier. Li Qingshan agreed and hurried off after receiving a message, leaving Ye Tai suspicious.

• Li Qingshan asked Ye Tai about the Alien Ancestral Land, but Ye Tai warned him not to risk entering it yet.
• Ye Tai explained that Star Ascension required a Martial Artist to fuse their celestial bodies into a Natal Great Star and raise it Above the Nine Heavens, while Evil Gods posed a danger that Supreme protection could suppress within Human Territory.
• Ye Tai described Illuminating the Myriad Universe, explaining that Pioneer Constellations served as Anchor Points for Venerables and reflected their strength.
• Li Qingshan vowed to forge ahead and sweep the Alien Ancestral Land, but Ye Tai urged him to cherish his life and remain in the Sinking Iron Barrier.
• After receiving a message, Li Qingshan said he understood and hurried away, prompting Ye Tai to wonder why he had changed his mind so easily.

Li Qingshan investigated coordinated First-Order Astral Rifts across [Sinking Iron Barrier], where thousands of Alien Races had been killed or captured without casualties. Ye Tai learned the attacks posed little danger and hoped they would keep Li Qingshan away from the front lines, but Xiang Ran asked why Ye Tai had taken him in.

• Li Qingshan questioned Song Mo, Tang Yetian, and Qiu Lan about Alien Races entering [Sinking Iron Barrier] through Astral Rifts.
• Song Mo reported that rifts had appeared on 7,381 Developed Stars, while Tang Yetian and Song Mo said the barrier’s defenses had prevented casualties and the captured Alien Races knew nothing.
• Li Qingshan asked to see the remaining prisoners, and Tang Yetian offered to lead him to Sinking Iron Jia-73 Star System.
• Xiang Ran told Ye Tai that the rifts came from Netherworld and that even higher-order rifts could not endanger [Sinking Iron Barrier].
• Ye Tai said he hoped the attacks would keep Li Qingshan occupied in the Safe Zone, then began explaining that he had taken Li Qingshan in for Venerable Zhihui, the others, and Pioneer Constellation No. 269.

Li Qingshan realized the First Order Exotic Races were being used to locate uninhabited planets, then ordered the Light Chasing Legion to search every planet and chose the Star Graveyard as his net. At the Evil Horn Tribe Ancestral Land, Xie Sen watched Soul Tablets shatter and felt that he had witnessed the scene before.

• Li Qingshan killed the First Order Exotic Races and concluded that their deaths and shattered Soul Tablets were being used to identify planets.
• Tang Yetian received word that rifts had opened on thousands of Developed Stars in Sector B, confirming that the Alien Races were searching for uninhabited planets.
• Li Qingshan ordered the Light Chasing Legion within ten million light-years to patrol every planet, then decided to cast his net in the Star Graveyard.
• At the Evil Horn Tribe Ancestral Land, Xie Chen dismissed the shattered Soul Tablets as expendable scouts while Xie Sen grew uneasy.
• Xie Sen recognized an inexplicable sense of déjà vu as more Soul Tablets shattered.

After three years of Li Qingshan handling First-Order Astral Rifts inside the Sinking Iron Barrier, Ye Tai gathered the other eight Titled Generals to relay Venerable Zhihui’s order. They were to ambush and kill the Tenth-Order Ancestor pursuing Tai Shang and help him escape alive.

• Ye Tai confirmed that Li Qingshan had spent the past three years inside the Sinking Iron Barrier, dealing only with First-Order Astral Rifts.
• The other eight Titled Generals arrived at Myriad Ravine Fortress, joining Ye Tai in a gathering of all nine generals of Pioneer Constellation No. 269.
• Ye Tai told the generals that Venerable Zhihui had ordered them to help Tai Shang escape and kill the Alien Races Tenth-Order Ancestor pursuing him.
• Ye Tai explained that Astral Storms had repeatedly swept Tai Shang away whenever Venerable Zhihui tried to intervene, delaying confirmation of Tai Shang’s identity for thirty years.
• Ye Tai said Venerable Zhihui would secretly watch Netherworld while the generals sought an opportunity to ambush Tai Shang’s pursuer.

Li Qingshan continued clearing scouting forces across Geng—Galaxy No. 89 while waiting for the Alien Races to reveal their invasion plans. After discovering Lang Lingfeng had inherited his Groin-Stabbing Blade, he arranged for the youth to receive more training, while Xie Chen and Xie Sen waited anxiously as one of seven Abandoned Ones died but the others survived.

• Li Qingshan cleared Alien Races across Geng—Galaxy No. 89 and gained only small amounts of experience while the invaders remained in their scouting stage.
• Lang Lingfeng used the Groin-Stabbing Blade to kill a Bone Armor Clan adult, and Li Qingshan recognized the technique as his own and learned that Lang Lingfeng's ancestors had passed it down from the Origin Seat.
• Li Qingshan praised Lang Lingfeng's decisiveness and told Dean Lu to give him plenty of training.
• Song Mo reported that the rifts in Geng—Galaxy No. 89 were cleared and that no rifts above First Order had appeared; Li Qingshan chose to wait for the Alien Races to act.
• At the Evil Horn Ancestral Land, Xie Chen raged over three years of losses while Xie Sen watched the Soul Tablets; after one of seven Abandoned Ones died, the other six remained alive.

Xie Chen investigated the deaths of the surviving “Abandoned Ones” and concluded that their planet lay beyond the Heavenly Demons’ reach. After reopening a rift and sending in a hundred scouts, he learned it was a desolate planet in the Battlefield Ruins, though the horrifying environment killed most of them.

• Xie Chen dismissed Xie Sen’s warning that the surviving Soul Tablets might signal a trap, then claimed their staggered deaths suggested a remote planet.
• Xie Chen carried Xie Sen to a Flesh Altar and reopened a First-Order Rift at the previous team’s coordinates.
• Xie Chen sent one hundred unconscious First Order Exotic Races through the rift after imprinting their True Spirits on Soul Tablets.
• Most of the scouts’ Soul Tablets shattered, but a small number returned through the rift, and Xie Chen seized them to inspect their memories.
• Xie Chen identified the planet as part of the Battlefield Ruins, or Star Graveyard, while Xie Sen watched the scouts die in its lethal conditions.

Li Qingshan deduced that the Alien Races had delayed their latest incursion to gather sacrifices for higher-order rifts, then killed a seventh-order Evil Horned Tribe scout. The scout’s memories pointed to a sacrificial plot in the Evil Horn Ancestral Land, and Li Qingshan awaited an eighth-order rift to learn more.

• Li Qingshan and Song Mo noted that the latest incursion came five days late and opened fewer than half as many First-Order Rifts as usual.
• Li Qingshan and Song Mo suspected the Alien Races had used the missing sacrifices to prepare high-order rifts, and Li Qingshan went to investigate a scout in a Star Graveyard.
• Li Qingshan killed the seventh-order Evil Horned Tribe scout, explaining that the scout was only a pawn and knew little.
• Li Qingshan asked Song Mo whether someone would abandon a difficult task after a small setback or press on, leaving Song Mo pondering the question.
• Li Qingshan recalled that the scout’s memories showed the Evil Horn Ancestral Land and flesh-and-blood altars, and concluded they needed an eighth-order rift to investigate its danger.

In the Evil Horned Tribe’s ancestral land, Xie Chen tried to use a Seventh-Order Rift to reach a Coordinate Planet, but Xie Bin died before returning. After confirming the planet remained undiscovered, Xie Chen resolved to pursue an Eighth-Order Rift, while Xie Sen sensed growing danger.

• Xie Chen rebuked Xie Sen over a lost Clan Artifact and prepared the Seventh-Order Altar to carry out Lord Youming’s decree.
• The Soul Tablet shattered, revealing that Xie Bin had died, and the Ninth Order elders blamed Xie Chen for risking the altar on his investigation.
• Xie Chen opened a First-Order Rift and examined the memories of Abandoned Ones, confirming that the Coordinate Planet had not been discovered.
• Xie Chen proposed building an Eighth-Order Altar with Clan Artifacts and sacrifices demanded from other tribes, and the elders approved the plan.
• Xie Sen warned Xie Chen not to open the Eighth-Order Rift, but the elders silenced him as Xie Chen remained determined to continue.

After five years of waiting, Li Qingshan learned that a mission targeting the Evil Horn Ancestor was underway, then watched an Eighth-Order Rift open on the desolate planet. In the Evil Horn Ancestral Land, Xie Chen’s coalition prepared to send eighteen Divine Sons through its own rift, but a blazing light from beyond it signaled the arrival of dawn.

• Li Qingshan contacted Ye Tai and learned that his mission’s confirmed target was the Evil Horn Ancestor, while Ye Tai warned him to stay away from the front lines.
• A rift opened above the desolate planet after Li Qingshan had watched it for five years, and he greeted its appearance with delight.
• In the Evil Horn Ancestral Land, Xie Chen saw that seventeen allied races had brought Elders, Clan Artifacts, and Divine Sons, spoiling his plan to claim the credit alone.
• Xie Chen spotted Xie Sen fleeing, but abandoned the attempt to retrieve him when the Eighth-Order Rift opened above the giant Altar.
• As Xie Chen rallied the eighteen Divine Sons to search for the Human Prodigy, blazing light burst through the rift and illuminated the blood-red Starry Sky.

Xie Sen watched sunlight pour through the rift into the Evil Horn Ancestral Land, where it annihilated the Divine Sons and Ninth Order Elders who attacked. Xie Chen resisted the torrent and tore through five heavenly curtains, but froze when he saw the blue Great Suns and three hundred thousand Star Systems above.

• Xie Sen recognized the light as sunlight and stood trembling in terror as it erupted from the rift.
• The sunlight turned the nearby Divine Sons of the eighteen races to ash, shocking the assembled Ninth Order Elders.
• The Gray Scale Race Elder urged the Elders to capture the Human Prodigy, and hundreds charged into the torrent.
• The sunlight stripped the charging Elders of their racial traits and Ninth Order power, then burned them and the fleeing survivors to ash.
• Xie Chen remained untouched, identified the prodigy as Star Pole Fifth Heaven, and tore through five heavenly curtains to reach him.
• Xie Chen looked up when the prodigy spoke and saw blue Great Suns and three hundred thousand Star Systems.