Chapter Summaries

At the Trial Edge Platform, Zhang Yuan faced Yang Hongyu in a duel that most spectators expected him to lose. Zhang Yuan unleashed a single, full-powered punch and saw panic in Yang Hongyu’s expression, leaving the outcome unresolved.

• Su Jingyao told Zhang Yuan she had wagered all her Dao Merit on his victory, and Zhang Yuan reassured her.
• Zhang Yuan and Yang Hongyu took their positions on the Trial Edge Platform under the duel’s rules, which forbade weapons, talismans, and pills.
• Yang Hongyu urged Zhang Yuan to surrender, but Zhang Yuan dismissed him and both rushed toward each other.
• Zhang Yuan activated Qian Yang Gang Fire and his Golden Grasshopper and Black Giant Ant hosts, then struck Yang Hongyu with a single Mountain Shattering Style punch.
• Zhang Yuan observed panic in Yang Hongyu’s expression as his fist tore through the air.

Zhang Yuan defeated Yang Hongyu with one punch on the Trial Edge Platform, leaving the Qian Capital Yang Family prodigy severely injured and crippled. After the crowd dispersed, Zhang Yuan reflected on how his eighteenfold Black Giant Ant enhancement and improving Six Harmonies Qilin Body had let him unleash its full power.

• Yang Hongyu sensed the danger in Zhang Yuan’s attack but could neither escape nor withstand the punch.
• Zhang Yuan struck Yang Hongyu’s raised palms, shattering his arms and severely injuring him before sending him off the Trial Edge Platform.
• A Law Teaching Elder rescued Yang Hongyu, declared Zhang Yuan the winner, and gave Yang Hongyu a Life Protecting Pill.
• Yang Hongyu’s friends threatened Zhang Yuan, but none accepted his offer to fight; they carried the unconscious Yang Hongyu away.
• Xiao Yan applauded Zhang Yuan’s victory, then left as the crowd dispersed.
• Zhang Yuan considered how his eighteenfold Black Giant Ant Power and advancing Six Harmonies Qilin Body had enabled him to crush an opponent of his rank.

After Zhang Yuan defeated Yang Hongyu with one punch, Su Jingyao shared her winnings with him, and the Martial Pavilion treated him with fear and respect. Yang Hongyu’s crippling threatened trouble with the Qian Capital Yang Family, but Zhang Yuan remained unconcerned and spent nearly all his new Dao Merit on treasures.

• Su Jingyao congratulated Zhang Yuan for defeating Yang Hongyu and offered him half of her wager winnings; he accepted three thousand Dao Merit in place of Guardian of the Dao compensation.
• Zhang Yuan found that news of his victory had spread through the Martial Pavilion, where people kept their distance from him.
• Su Jingyao told Zhang Yuan that Yang Hongyu was crippled and that the Yang Family might seek retribution; Zhang Yuan said he was ready for them.
• Zhang Yuan browsed the Merit Hall exchange catalog and spent nearly all the Dao Merit he had received on selected treasures.

Zhang Yuan traveled with Su Jingyao to the Azure Profound Secret Realm for Upper Scene Heaven’s Nine Peaks Tournament, learning that victory depended on collecting the most Baleful Infants. The flying vessels descended into a vast valley, where the tournament was about to begin.

• Zhang Yuan boarded one of Upper Scene Heaven’s flying vessels with Su Jingyao and observed its unusual flight and advanced construction.
• Su Jingyao explained that the Nine Peaks Tournament would take place in the Azure Profound Secret Realm, one of Upper Scene Heaven’s Eight Great Secret Realms.
• Su Jingyao told Zhang Yuan that participants would compete by slaying strange monsters and collecting Baleful Infants, whose formation depended partly on luck.
• Zhang Yuan noticed hostile and envious looks from fellow participants and prepared for possible schemes against him.
• The three flying vessels descended and stopped inside an enormous valley.

Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao entered the Azure Profound Secret Realm for the Nine Peaks Tournament and searched its shifting forests for a Desolate Village. They found one as night fell, where they could begin hunting bizarre monsters for Baleful Intent.

• Zhang Yuan passed through the array gate and felt the overwhelming power of the Eight Gates Eight Extremes Profound Heaven Grand Array before his Identity Token let him proceed.
• An Upper Scene Heaven elder warned the entrants that the Azure Profound Secret Realm would close in seven days, and the disciples and Guardians of the Dao scattered into the forest.
• Su Jingyao used a Wind Copper Compass to guide Zhang Yuan through the dense forest, while his Red-Eyed Crow failed to see through the mist from above the canopy.
• Su Jingyao explained that she was searching for a Desolate Village, where they could find bizarre monsters and hunt Baleful Intent.
• As darkness fell, Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao reached a village hidden deep in the forest.

Su Jingyao and Zhang Yuan found the Desolate Village, where Zhang Yuan used his bow to defeat a hidden weird monster and Su Jingyao extracted a Fourth Grade Baleful Infant. Before nightfall, Su Jingyao finished setting up a formation in the village and activated it.

• Su Jingyao spotted the Desolate Village, but Zhang Yuan stopped her and aimed his Eagle Shooting Bow at a hidden threat.
• Zhang Yuan struck a weird monster with four arrows, crippling it and pinning it to the ground as it tried to flee.
• Su Jingyao used a talisman to extract the monster’s Killing Intent and collect a Fourth Grade Baleful Infant before the creature crumbled to ashes.
• Su Jingyao began arranging formation plates and talismans in the village while Zhang Yuan kept watch.
• Su Jingyao completed the formation and activated it, causing the buried talismans to shine as the laws of the four directions stirred.

Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao established a camp in the Desolate Village, where Su Jingyao used an array and a sacred statue to make the area safer. As they kept watch through the night, she told Zhang Yuan that bizarre monsters had appeared after Celestials came to Upper Scene Heaven several hundred years earlier, and she hesitated when he asked where they came from.

• Su Jingyao activated the Five Elements Round Light Array, driving insects and snakes away from the Desolate Village and explaining how the array would help them search the area safely.
• Su Jingyao built an altar for the Primal Celestial Lord and placed talismans around it, while Zhang Yuan sensed a subtle feeling of security inside the array.
• Zhang Yuan cooked meat porridge over a campfire, and he and Su Jingyao ate together before deciding to stay awake and keep watch on their first night in the Azure Profound Secret Realm.
• Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao shared details about their backgrounds, and Zhang Yuan learned that Su Jingyao was the daughter of Bright Peak’s chief and had grown up in Upper Scene Heaven.
• Su Jingyao told Zhang Yuan that bizarre entities and monsters had appeared after Celestials came to Upper Scene Heaven several hundred years earlier, then hesitated when he asked where the Celestials came from.

Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao defended their Desolate Village base from a rival tournament pair, then found almost no monsters while scouting. On the second night, strange entities surrounded their camp and triggered the Five Elements Round Light Array.

• Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao prepared to explore the area around their Desolate Village base.
• A pair from Supporting Heaven Peak arrived, but Zhang Yuan intimidated the burly martial artist into leaving without a fight.
• Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao found very few strange entities or monsters and returned to camp, planning to search for another village if the next night brought no results.
• During Zhang Yuan's watch, an evil wind swept through the camp and the Five Elements Round Light Array activated.
• Su Jingyao took control of the formation while Zhang Yuan spotted strange entities closing in from every direction and drew the Taotie Saber.

Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao fought off Ji Meis surrounding the Desolate Village, and Zhang Yuan harvested thousands of Source Essence by slaying them. After the remaining Ji Meis fled, an underground creature ambushed him, and Zhang Yuan wounded it with the Taotie Saber.

• Over a hundred Ji Meis encircled the Desolate Village and used their eerie song to try to bewitch Zhang Yuan.
• Su Jingyao warned Zhang Yuan about the Ji Meis and empowered his Taotie Saber with an Evil Suppression Talisman.
• Zhang Yuan charged beyond the array and killed most of the Ji Meis, gaining several thousand Source Essence as Su Jingyao reinforced him with talismans.
• After the Ji Meis fled, the earth beneath Zhang Yuan turned to mud and black tentacles erupted to attack him.
• Zhang Yuan shattered the tentacles with his saber, then stabbed into the ground and wounded the hidden creature, drawing out ink-green fluid.

Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao worked together to defeat a Giant Worm attacking the Desolate Village and extracted a valuable Baleful Infant from it. Su Jingyao celebrated the Fifth Rank prize, and they prepared to continue hunting in the Azure Profound Secret Realm.

• As the ground shook and the Five Elements Round Light Array faltered, Zhang Yuan sensed a Giant Worm underground and dodged its sudden attack.
• Zhang Yuan slashed the Giant Worm's mouth and severed its tentacles while Su Jingyao strengthened the array and lifted the creature from the ground.
• Zhang Yuan used the Thousand Silk Net to bind the Giant Worm, then increased his strength and battered it until it was nearly dead.
• Su Jingyao used a Fiend Condensing Talisman to extract the Giant Worm's Yin Fiend Qi and obtained a Baleful Infant ranked Fifth Rank, close to Sixth Rank.
• Su Jingyao said the prize could greatly improve their tournament score, and Zhang Yuan agreed to keep hunting.

After Zhang Yuan accepted Su Jingyao’s Thousand Silk Net in exchange for giving her all the Baleful Infants and waiving his Guardian of the Dao payment, a Rock Golem advanced on the Desolate Village. Su Jingyao urged retreat, but Zhang Yuan charged the monster and struck at its head, only for it to block his attack.

• Su Jingyao gave Zhang Yuan the Thousand Silk Net in exchange for all the Baleful Infants they hunted, and Zhang Yuan waived his payment as her Guardian of the Dao.
• Su Jingyao and Zhang Yuan heard approaching crashes, and Su Jingyao used talismans to illuminate a gigantic Rock Golem heading toward the Desolate Village.
• Su Jingyao warned that the Five Elements Round Light Array could not stop the Rock Golem and called for retreat.
• Zhang Yuan told Su Jingyao to protect herself, charged the Rock Golem, and brought his Taotie Saber down on its head.
• The Rock Golem halted and crossed its arms, blocking Zhang Yuan’s saber-radiance strike.

Zhang Yuan fought Rock Golem, but its stone armor and rapid recovery kept his attacks from doing lasting damage. After Rock Golem struck and injured him, Su Jingyao intervened, and a streak of Blood Light pierced the crack in Rock Golem’s face, leaving it frozen as a cracking sound came from inside its head.

• Zhang Yuan used his speed to attack Rock Golem’s legs, but its stone armor quickly repaired itself and the battle stalled.
• Zhang Yuan struck the back of Rock Golem’s neck, but it twisted its head and hit him into a tree, injuring him.
• Su Jingyao pinned Rock Golem with talismans and vines, but it broke free and blasted her away.
• A streak of Blood Light pierced the crack in Rock Golem’s face, and the golem froze as a cracking sound came from inside its head.

Zhang Yuan defeated the rock puppet by dropping a massive rock onto it and striking its exposed neck with the Crimson Blood Blade. He secured the puppet’s yellow crystal core and found Su Jingyao alive, though unconscious from her injuries.

• Zhang Yuan’s Crimson Blood Blade shattered the rock puppet’s head, but the puppet began rebuilding itself and showed no sign of having been killed.
• Zhang Yuan used the Brocade Fur Rat’s Storage Space to take in a massive rock, then carried it above the rock puppet and dropped it onto the creature’s head.
• Zhang Yuan struck the damaged puppet through its neck with the Crimson Blood Blade, destroying its body and causing a yellow crystal to fall out.
• Zhang Yuan trapped the crystal in the Thousand Silk Net, stopping nearby stone fragments from gathering around it.
• Zhang Yuan reached Su Jingyao and saw her awaken after he called to her.

Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao defeated the Rock Golem and claimed its valuable Rock Puppet Heart Crystal, then gathered more rewards before returning toward the Azure Profound Secret Realm entrance. Just before reaching it, they encountered Yuan Zishan and her group, whose guardian martial artist demanded that Su Jingyao apologize.

• Su Jingyao learned that Zhang Yuan had slain the Rock Golem and recognized its crystal as a Sixth Grade Rock Puppet Heart Crystal, which they kept as a tournament trophy.
• Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao recovered at the Desolate Village and grew closer as they talked by the campfire.
• Over the following days, Zhang Yuan found two ordinary Baleful Infants and several precious medicinal herbs while Su Jingyao guarded the village.
• On the sixth day, Zhang Yuan and Su Jingyao headed back toward the secret realm entrance and encountered Yuan Zishan with five companions.
• Su Jingyao rejected Yuan Zishan's attempt to act familiar, and Yuan Zishan's guardian martial artist stepped forward and demanded an apology.

Su Jingyao used the Human-Faced Peach Blossoms Reflecting Red secret art to subdue a hostile Guardian of the Dao and deter Yuan Zishan’s group. She and Zhang Yuan returned from the Azure Profound Secret Realm, where some tournament participants had been left behind when its gate closed.

• A fifth-order Guardian of the Dao threatened Su Jingyao, but her smile caused peach blossoms to bloom and made him abandon his hostility.
• Yuan Zishan recognized Su Jingyao’s Reflecting Red secret art and admitted defeat, while Su Jingyao denied that she had cultivated it specifically for her.
• A blue-robed cultivator named Chen Shixiong challenged Su Jingyao, but her Peach Blossom Killing Intent alarmed him and Yuan Zishan led her group away.
• Su Jingyao regretted that Yuan Zishan had stopped the confrontation from becoming a real fight, and Zhang Yuan accompanied her back to the Azure Profound Secret Realm’s exit.
• The remaining tournament disciples returned to the valley camp by the next day, while those still inside when the stone gate closed were presumed lost.

After learning that Su Jingyao had placed third in the Nine Peaks Tournament, Zhang Yuan accepted her gift of five-hundred-and-thirty-year-old Qilin Grass. Su Jingyao told him she was leaving for Langya Heaven to cultivate, and asked him to visit her if he could.

• Su Jingyao reunited with Zhang Yuan and told him she had placed third in the tournament and defeated Yuan Zishan.
• Su Jingyao gave Zhang Yuan five-hundred-and-thirty-year-old Qilin Grass from the Dao Repository as thanks for his help.
• Su Jingyao told Zhang Yuan she had qualified to cultivate in Langya Heaven and explained her family history and feud with Yuan Zishan.
• Su Jingyao asked Zhang Yuan to visit her in Langya Heaven before leaving him with a trace of melancholy.

After Yang Chenguang offered Zhang Yuan a chance to marry into the Qian Capital Yang Family and settle the feud over Yang Hongyu, Zhang Yuan refused and openly challenged the family. The Yang Family left without fighting, but Zhang Yuan’s isolation in the Martial Pavilion grew before an unexpected visitor appeared.

• Short on Dao Merit, Zhang Yuan returned to the Merit Hall and decided to hunt Baleful Infants in Ink Abyss using Su Jingyao’s Thousand Silk Net.
• Yang Chenguang and two Fifth Order companions stopped Zhang Yuan outside the Martial Pavilion and identified Yang Chenguang as Yang Hongyu’s uncle.
• Yang Chenguang offered to erase the Yang Family’s grudge if Zhang Yuan married Yang Hongyu’s sixteen-year-old younger sister and joined the family.
• Zhang Yuan rejected the offer, shouted that the Yang Family should come after him, and watched Yang Chenguang leave with his companions.
• In the following days, Martial Pavilion members avoided Zhang Yuan because they feared the Yang Family’s influence, but someone unexpectedly came to see him.

After rejecting Xiao Yan’s attempt to recruit him against the Yang Family, Zhang Yuan left Upper Scene Heaven for Ink Abyss, determined to confront the people following him. He spotted their pursuit and prepared to strike with his Eagle Shooting Bow.

• Xiao Yan warned Zhang Yuan that the Yang Family might target him and offered the Xiao Family’s protection in exchange for his allegiance.
• Zhang Yuan paid for the meal and left without accepting Xiao Yan’s offer, provoking Xiao Yan’s fury.
• Three days later, Zhang Yuan left Upper Scene Heaven alone and headed into Ink Abyss.
• Seven martial artists followed Zhang Yuan into Ink Abyss, unaware that he was watching them through the Red-Eyed Crow.
• Zhang Yuan climbed into a tree, summoned his Eagle Shooting Bow, and drew a Meteor Iron Arrow toward his target.

Zhang Yuan ambushed Yang Chenguang’s team in Ink Abyss with his Eagle Shooting Bow, killing their scout and wounding Yang Chenguang. He stayed mobile and prepared another empowered arrow while the five remaining Fifth Order martial artists pursued him.

• Zhang Yuan killed the team’s Fourth Order scout with a surprise arrow as Yang Chenguang’s group entered Ink Abyss.
• Yang Chenguang ordered his team to attack after a second arrow grazed his shoulder and pierced a nearby tree.
• Zhang Yuan fired three more arrows at different enemies, then used a vine to escape and change positions.
• The Red-Eyed Crow helped Zhang Yuan locate another target as he drew the Eagle Shooting Bow and sensed its spiritual rhythm.

Zhang Yuan used his Eagle Shooting Bow and superior mobility to kill two of Yang Chenguang’s men and keep the remaining fighters at bay. When Yang Chenguang launched a direct attack, Zhang Yuan met him with the Taotie Saber and overpowered him, leaving the Fifth Order Peak expert badly injured.

• Zhang Yuan shot down a Fifth Order martial artist with two Meteor Iron Arrows after the man blocked the first and lost an arm.
• Yang Chenguang charged out to challenge Zhang Yuan, but Zhang Yuan’s arrow forced him back behind cover.
• Zhang Yuan used the Golden Grasshopper’s speed, his movement technique, and his bow to evade and harass the five remaining Fifth Order fighters.
• Yang Chenguang leapt above the canopy and attacked Zhang Yuan with a powerful sword strike.
• Zhang Yuan activated the Black Giant Ant and Jade Mantis abilities and countered with Mountain-Splitting, Peak-Severing, sending Yang Chenguang crashing into a tree with severe injuries.