Chapter Summaries

Zhang Yuan and the three hundred Dao Soldiers of the Western Plains Dao Barracks ambushed the Azure Wolf Camp and routed its Horse Bandits. Zhang Yuan killed the camp’s leader, identifying himself before the dying man as the story ended.

• The Dao Soldiers launched a surprise arrow attack that killed nearly a third of the Azure Wolf Camp’s Horse Bandits.
• The Azure Wolf Camp’s leader ordered a retreat, but the Dao Soldiers pursued the fleeing bandits with javelins and sabers.
• Zhang Yuan rode down the leader and attacked him with the Overlord Halberd, forcing him to flee and then fight back.
• The leader detonated his arm to unleash a secret art and temporarily reach the peak of the Sixth Order.
• Zhang Yuan struck the leader with the God Slaying Flying Dagger and told him he was Zhang Yuan of the Western Plains Dao Barracks before the leader died.

After the Western Plains Dao Barracks annihilated the Azure Wolf Camp, Zhang Yuan stayed behind to perform last rites on the bandits’ corpses and harvested nearly sixty thousand Source Essence. With every Divine Nest Possession at Level 5, he was left deciding which one to advance next.

• The Western Plains Dao Barracks wiped out all 837 members of the Azure Wolf Camp, and Zhang Yuan received praise for leading the victory and killing the bandit leader.
• Wu Ziyu thanked Zhang Yuan for avenging the Wu Family, whose members had been killed by the Azure Wolf Camp.
• Zhang Yuan sent Mo Wei and the others back to the Western Plains with the wounded and fallen, while he stayed behind to handle the bandit corpses.
• Zhang Yuan used the Divine Nest’s last rites ability to turn every bandit corpse to ash and gained nearly sixty thousand Source Essence.
• Zhang Yuan considered which Level 5 Divine Nest Possession to upgrade, since spreading the Source Essence among them would not be effective.

Zhang Yuan stayed in Crescent Oasis to monitor the Savage Sand Army after destroying the Azure Wolf Camp, but rumors spread quickly and Crimson Tiger Camp members appeared nearby. Suspecting a traitor in the Western Plains Dao Camp, he secretly warned Mo Wei to work with Sun Yujiang to find the mole.

• Zhang Yuan listened in a tavern as people discussed the Azure Wolf Camp's destruction and heard that Crimson Tiger Camp members had been seen by the lake.
• Zhang Yuan returned to his rented house in the oasis slum and shared beef and wine with his neighbor, Scholar Guan.
• Zhang Yuan wrote to Mo Wei, asking him to discuss the suspected leak with Sun Yujiang and find the traitor within the Western Plains Dao Camp.
• Zhang Yuan secretly activated the Talisman Letter at the edge of the oasis and sent his message to Mo Wei.
• Zhang Yuan returned home and practiced circulating his qi while considering his next move.

The Crimson Tiger Camp Beacon Master and Rong Niang discussed how to avenge Azure Wolf Camp and Zhang Yuan’s defeat of its eight hundred men. An intruder suddenly attacked their tent and killed Rong Niang with a single blade strike.

• The Crimson Tiger Camp Beacon Master questioned three scouts who had found no bodies or traces of Azure Wolf Camp’s dead.
• The Beacon Master and Rong Niang discussed waiting for headquarters’ support before seeking revenge on Zhang Yuan.
• Rong Niang suggested they could target Zhang Yuan directly without attacking Western Plains Dao City.
• An assassin burst through the tent wall and struck at Rong Niang.
• The Beacon Master dodged the blade, but Rong Niang was split in two and killed.

Zhang Yuan infiltrated the Crimson Tiger Camp and killed Rong Niang and the bearded Beacon Master in a surprise attack. He then slaughtered and routed the leaderless horse bandits before other Crescent Oasis factions arrived to investigate.

• Zhang Yuan killed Rong Niang inside the great tent, then attacked the bearded Beacon Master with his Taotie Saber.
• The bearded Beacon Master tried to escape, but Zhang Yuan killed him with the God Slaying Saber as he crashed through the tent wall.
• Zhang Yuan displayed the Beacon Master's corpse on his halberd, terrifying the Crimson Tiger Camp horse bandits.
• Zhang Yuan cut down the horse bandits who tried to fight, and the rest fled in panic.
• Experts from other Crescent Oasis factions rushed toward the camp but arrived too late.

After Zhang Yuan’s attack on Crimson Tiger Camp spread through Crescent Oasis, Scholar Guan revealed that he knew Zhang Yuan’s identity and invited him to join the Nine Worlds Alliance. The chapter ended with Scholar Guan explaining that the Alliance was founded to fight the Celestials, whom it considered its mortal enemies.

• Zhang Yuan returned to his residence after successfully attacking Crimson Tiger Camp and planned to stay in Crescent Oasis in case the Savage Sand Army sent more forces.
• The next morning, Zhang Yuan heard rumors about the attack and saw messages being sent from Crescent Oasis to other regions.
• Scholar Guan invited Zhang Yuan to sit and revealed that he had recognized him as the Dao General of Western Plains.
• Scholar Guan explained that Zhang Yuan had given himself away by cultivating in the fragile house and returning with dense Blood Fiend Qi.
• Scholar Guan invited Zhang Yuan to join the Nine Worlds Alliance as a core True Disciple and said the Alliance had been founded to fight the Celestials.

Scholar Guan explained the Nine Worlds Alliance’s secret struggle against the Celestials and invited Zhang Yuan to join. Zhang Yuan accepted, learning that the Savage Sand Army was one of the Alliance’s pieces and that he should return to Western Plains City and wait for the Alliance’s future decisive battle.

• Scholar Guan told Zhang Yuan that the Nine Worlds Alliance had spent a century building strength and researching ways to defeat the Celestials.
• Scholar Guan invited Zhang Yuan to join the Alliance and explained that members kept their identities secret and were not given tasks that might expose them.
• Zhang Yuan accepted the invitation, hoping the Alliance would support him if his ability to destroy Celestials became known.
• Scholar Guan revealed that the Savage Sand Army was one of the Nine Worlds Alliance’s pieces and promised it would no longer trouble Zhang Yuan.
• Scholar Guan told Zhang Yuan to return to Western Plains City, strengthen himself, and wait for the Alliance to emerge and fight the Celestials.

Zhang Yuan received a Pure Spirit Jade Pendant from Scholar Guan and left Crescent Oasis after donating his ill-gotten silver. On the journey home, his Black Giant Ant advanced to Level 6, and Zhang Yuan tested its sixty-fourfold strength, discovering he could currently withstand a thirty-fivefold boost.

• Scholar Guan gave Zhang Yuan a Pure Spirit Jade Pendant that could dispel resentment and asked him to leave some silver for local relief.
• Zhang Yuan donated several hundred thousand taels to Scholar Guan and left Crescent Oasis the next morning.
• After reaching a deserted area, Zhang Yuan discovered that his Black Giant Ant had advanced to Level 6 and granted him sixty-fourfold strength.
• Zhang Yuan tested the strength boost, found that he could briefly withstand thirty-fivefold strength, and then rode the Gray-Toothed Lynx toward home.

After returning to Western Plains City, Zhang Yuan received rewards for his work in Crescent Oasis and spent half a month cultivating. He then set out to exterminate aberrations in the region, beginning with Liping Mountain, after Scholar Guan told him that doing so could help him reach the Divine Realm.

• Zhang Yuan returned to Western Plains City, and Upper Scene Heaven awarded him five thousand Dao Merit and mystical armor for his mission.
• Wu Ziyu thanked Zhang Yuan on behalf of the Wu Family, giving him thirty thousand taels of gold; Zhang Yuan declined the offer of twin maidservants.
• After half a month of secluded cultivation, Zhang Yuan summoned his three deputy generals and reviewed Feng Hui’s dossiers on aberrant incidents.
• Zhang Yuan told the deputy generals he planned to purge local aberrations and entrusted the Dao Camp’s affairs to them, including watching the Dao Yamen and Fei Hongming.
• Zhang Yuan left Western Plains City for Liping Mountain, where aberrations had frequently killed hunters and travelers.

Zhang Yuan reached an abandoned village in Liping Mountain and found an old man who had survived the aberrations with his dog, Big Black. After learning that the county had ignored the villages’ plight, Zhang Yuan revealed that he was Western Plains City’s newly appointed Dao General and had come to sweep away the aberrations.

• Zhang Yuan followed the Red-Eyed Crow to a valley village where he discovered signs of people still living.
• Big Black guarded Zhang Yuan until the dog’s owner, an old villager, came out to meet him.
• The old man said he was forty-four, though he looked much older, and told Zhang Yuan that aberrations had killed his family and the other villagers.
• The old man said the county had sent no help and that he had decided to remain in the village rather than flee.
• Zhang Yuan revealed his identity as the Dao General of Western Plains City and said he had come to Liping Mountain to sweep away the aberrations.

Zhang Yuan stayed with Old Man Wang and killed an uncanny weasel that tried to attack him in the night, gaining Source Essence for the Divine Nest. The next morning, Old Man Wang led him into the mountains to a ruined Mountain God Temple as Zhang Yuan began his search for the uncanny.

• Zhang Yuan reassured Old Man Wang that he could avenge the villagers alone and asked him to share what he knew about the uncanny.
• While Zhang Yuan cultivated in Old Man Wang's son's room, an enormous weasel tried to release gas through the window and attack him.
• Zhang Yuan killed the weasel with the Taotie Saber, performed last rites on it, and gained over a thousand points of Source Essence.
• Zhang Yuan invested the Source Essence in the Divine Nest's main body and wondered how Old Man Wang had survived with only an ordinary dog for company.
• The next morning, Old Man Wang led Zhang Yuan along a narrow mountain path to a ruined Mountain God Temple.

Zhang Yuan restored the ruined Mountain God Temple, carved a statue of the Primal Heavenly King, and empowered it with a spirit talisman. When Yellow Weasels tested the temple that night, he killed one with a strike of astral qi and waited for the real enemy to appear.

• Zhang Yuan sent Old Man Wang home with an Essence Cultivating Pill to repay him for his lodging and guidance.
• Zhang Yuan cleared and repaired the Mountain God Temple, then carved a statue of the Primal Heavenly King from a boulder.
• Zhang Yuan placed a life-protecting spirit talisman on the statue, which gained a mysterious power to protect the surrounding region from weird things.
• Yellow Weasels surrounded the temple and released dizzying gas, but stopped when they neared it.
• A large Yellow Weasel provoked the temple, and Zhang Yuan struck it dead from a distance with true astral qi.
• Zhang Yuan realized the Yellow Weasels had only been sent to test him and prepared for the real enemy.

Zhang Yuan fought the weird creatures surrounding the Mountain God Temple, killing a Bronze Zombie that he suspected had protected Old Man Wang. After using the Divine Nest’s salvation power to claim its Source Essence, he rushed toward an eerie chant coming from the dark forest.

• Demons and monsters surrounded the Mountain God Temple, but Zhang Yuan’s roar dispelled their curses and drove them into disorder.
• Zhang Yuan charged into the fog with the Overlord Halberd, cutting down weird creatures and killing a Ghost-faced Night Owl.
• A Bronze Zombie grabbed Zhang Yuan while strange vines attacked, but he escaped, severed the vines, and killed the zombie with the Overlord Halberd.
• Zhang Yuan recognized the zombie’s face as resembling Old Man Wang and suspected it had protected him, then used the Divine Nest’s salvation power to gain Source Essence from its remains.
• Zhang Yuan heard the eerie chant again and dashed into the dark forest toward its source.

Zhang Yuan fought his way up Liping Mountain toward a Great Weirdness, then withdrew when its zombie horde threatened to exhaust him. After spotting silver threads controlling the zombies, he turned to face them with the Taotie Saber.

• Zhang Yuan charged through the night wolves and drove toward the Great Weirdness on Liping Mountain’s summit.
• The Great Weirdness sent a black tide and iron-blue zombies against Zhang Yuan, forcing him to spend large amounts of True Astral.
• Zhang Yuan retreated rather than exhaust himself before confronting the hidden Great Weirdness.
• The Great Weirdness drove the zombies into a faster pursuit, and Zhang Yuan noticed silver threads controlling them.
• Zhang Yuan stopped, returned the Overlord Halberd to his Storage Space, and drew the Taotie Saber.

Zhang Yuan discovered that the Great Weirdness controlled the zombies with threads, then used the Mountain God Temple’s protection to withstand the horde. After defeating the giant zombie formed by the others devouring one another, he captured its Baleful Infant as the black tide receded.

• Zhang Yuan severed the threads controlling dozens of iron zombies with the Taotie Saber and escaped to the Mountain God Temple.
• Zhang Yuan guarded the temple gate as its divine power burned an attacking zombie to ashes and kept the horde at bay.
• The Great Weirdness drove the zombies to devour one another until a giant zombie emerged.
• Zhang Yuan used the God Slaying Flying Dagger to cut the giant zombie apart and sealed its head with a golden talisman.
• Zhang Yuan captured the condensed Baleful Infant as the black tide withdrew and the Great Weirdness howled in rage.

Zhang Yuan fought the Spider Monsters surrounding the Mountain God Temple, using the Primal Heavenly King Statue’s divine power to strengthen his attacks. As the Great Weirdness on Liping Mountain directed the spiders to unleash a volley of bristles, Zhang Yuan braced for their assault.

• Zhang Yuan stored the Baleful Infant and challenged the Great Weirdness entrenched atop Liping Mountain.
• Thousands of Spider Monsters surrounded the Mountain God Temple and sprayed spider silk at Zhang Yuan.
• The Primal Heavenly King Statue burned away the silk and lent Zhang Yuan divine power, letting his halberd destroy many Spider Monsters.
• Zhang Yuan stayed within the temple’s protective range and used his Eagle Shooting Bow to kill hundreds of spiders and gain Source Essence.
• The Great Weirdness screeched, rallied the spiders, and sent them firing their bristles at Zhang Yuan, who felt their attack threaten to pierce him.

Zhang Yuan destroyed the Spider Monsters’ assault and waited outside the Mountain God Temple for the Great Weirdness to emerge. At the darkest hour before dawn, a giant spider attacked from underground, and Zhang Yuan wounded it with the Overlord Halberd.

• Zhang Yuan blocked the Spider Monsters’ bristles with the Overlord Halberd and killed the remaining creatures with golden rays.
• Zhang Yuan challenged the Great Weirdness on the distant peak, but it ignored his provocation and stayed hidden.
• Zhang Yuan rested and recovered at the Mountain God Temple while the Red-Eyed Crow watched for danger.
• A giant spider attacked Zhang Yuan from beneath the temple entrance, but he dodged and stabbed it underground with the Overlord Halberd.
• The giant spider burst from the earth with a deep wound in its back, and Zhang Yuan prepared to fight it.

Zhang Yuan fought a giant spider Great Weirdness, enduring its shriek and countering its webs, blood spiders, and rapid strikes. After switching to the Taotie Saber and empowering himself with Divine Nest Possession, he severed two of its legs and charged in with a powerful finishing slash.

• The giant spider unleashed a piercing shriek that injured Zhang Yuan's soul consciousness and forced him back.
• Zhang Yuan summoned the God Slaying Saber, but the spider slowed it with mucus, and the blade only severed part of one leg.
• The giant spider attacked with webs, blood spiders, and a barrage of powerful leg strikes, while Zhang Yuan blocked and dodged.
• Zhang Yuan switched to the Taotie Saber and activated the Black Giant Ant, Golden Grasshopper, and Jade Mantis.
• Zhang Yuan severed two more spider legs, then rushed close and unleashed a full-strength saber strike.

Zhang Yuan defeated the Great Weirdness in Liping Mountain and discovered a dangerous insect that had nearly beguiled him. After restoring the Mountain God Temple and reassuring Old Man Wang, he continued cleansing Western Plains County of Weirdness and criminals, advancing his Divine Nest to level seven.

• Zhang Yuan killed the giant spider, which exploded and destroyed part of the Mountain God Temple, but he gained no Source Essence from the battle.
• The Red-Eyed Crow caught a strange flying insect that tried to make Zhang Yuan feel pity for it, but the Divine Nest Emblem revealed its deception, and the crow swallowed it.
• Zhang Yuan rebuilt the Mountain God Temple and carved a new Primal Heavenly King Statue before leaving Liping Mountain.
• Zhang Yuan told Old Man Wang that the mountain's Weirdness had been cleared, then departed without revealing that the old man's son had likely become a zombie.
• Zhang Yuan swept through Western Plains County, defeating Weirdness and villains, and his Divine Nest advanced to level seven with a new nest chamber.

After returning to Western Plains, Zhang Yuan found the city thriving and entered Secluded Cultivation, but Wu Ziyu soon asked him to help the Wu Family open the dangerous Raging Waves River waterway. Zhang Yuan recognized that the family had come to the right person because he was exceptionally capable of fighting aberrant monsters in water.

• Zhang Yuan's victory over the Savage Sand Army's divisions made the trade routes safer and brought prosperity and visitors to Western Plains City.
• Zhang Yuan entered Secluded Cultivation and assigned Deputy General Sun Yujiang to receive visitors and handle their gifts and requests.
• Wu Ziyu visited Zhang Yuan and asked for his help with an important matter.
• Wu Ziyu explained that the Wu Family wanted to open the Raging Waves River waterway, where swift currents and intelligent river monsters had defeated their previous efforts.
• Wu Ziyu offered Zhang Yuan a share of the Wu Family Caravan's profits in exchange for joining the effort, and Zhang Yuan realized he was well suited to fight the river monsters.