Chapter Summaries

Wanjin and the others watched the Dao map’s ancient history collapse as Zhu Yucheng formed his divine ability and attached himself to the departing Taiheng Wu Blackbird. Xu Xuan emerged as a Celestial Person, destroyed the Dao map and the demons ravaging Red Cloud, and was greeted as a True Person by the survivors of Heavenly Tribulation Mountain.

• Wanjin and Lingjing believed Xu Xuan had died after his breakthrough failed, while the Dao map continued to reenact Great Shu’s fall.
• Sui Bai explained how Zhu Yucheng used the intent of rebellion and origin magnetism to form his divine ability as the demons overwhelmed the defenders.
• Song Shiyi rescued Zhu Yuanyun from the Dao map, but Qi Wen, Duan Chengsi, Ji Guang, Liu Qiuqi, and other Purple Mansion cultivators perished as the battle worsened.
• Zhu Yucheng formed his divine ability, attached it to the Taiheng Wu Blackbird, and sent the Blackbird toward Kunwei Heaven.
• Xu Xuan appeared as a Celestial Person, shattered the Dao map, and used his sword and thunder to kill the demons and flood Red Cloud with cleansing rain.
• The survivors of Heavenly Tribulation Mountain greeted Xu Xuan as a True Person.

After reaching the Purple Mansion, Xu Xuan rescued Xu Fayan and defeated Wei Xiuwen’s ally Rang'an, then negotiated with Wanjin about the forces threatening his sect. Back at Red Cloud, Xu Xuan discovered the Ancient Stele’s name and the origin of its sword qi, leaving him to question who he really was.

• Xu Xuan healed the survivors at Red Cloud, learned Wang Cheng Yan’s grandfather had died, and sensed Xu Fayan fleeing with Wei Fengnian’s strange sheep and snake.
• Xu Xuan captured Wei Fengnian in Heavenwater, restored Xu Fayan from the Grave Sheep, and confronted Rang'an over the Cloud-Ring Brocade Snake’s transformation.
• Xu Fayan destroyed Wei Fengnian after Xu Xuan turned him into a green worm, and Xu Xuan defeated Rang'an with his newly awakened sword intent before withdrawing at Ru Su’s warning.
• True Person Wanjin explained how the Grand Truth Sect had protected Red Cloud’s core disciples and warned Xu Xuan about Dust-Sweeping and True Person Lingjing.
• Xu Xuan returned to Red Cloud and found the Ancient Stele manifesting as [Supreme Clarity], while Tiantuo identified its sword qi as the first manifestation of mystic qi.
• Xu Xuan recalled the Chaos Divine Being’s words and began to suspect that he was not truly [Xu Xuan].

After attaining Purple Mansion, Xu Xuan sought a way to rescue Liu Xiaowen’s soul and prepared to fulfill his oath to help Tiantuo reincarnate. Tiantuo received a seal script, and Xu Xuan decided to explore relocating overseas as his dragon body neared its breakthrough.

• Xu Xuan and Wen Guang determined that Liu Xiaowen’s soul needed Purple Mansion true fire to form a new inner scenery, but it had only ten years before the bing fire faded.
• Xu Xuan considered the Western Sea as a source of true fire and a possible refuge beyond Great Li’s reach.
• Xu Xuan honored his oath by condensing seal scripts for Tiantuo, who chose [Eastern Radiance's Sublime Majesty] from an ancient decree.
• Tiantuo urged Xu Xuan to hold a Dharma assembly and reestablish his lineage, while Xu Xuan considered how Great Li’s immortals might respond.
• Xu Xuan sensed that his dragon body was close to completing its breakthrough and decided it could investigate the Western Sea while he pursued cultivation methods in Great Li.

Xu Xuan rebuilt Heavenly Tribulation Mountain, settled its sect foundations, and arranged aid for surviving clans and sects. He accepted Tip-Feng Mountain’s invitation to Heavenwater, where a vision of a black sun and a punished skeleton hinted at the powerful entity once sealed in the Demon Refining Tower.

• Xu Xuan gathered the spiritual veins on Heavenly Tribulation Mountain and restored its remaining luminaries, halls, and structures.
• Xu Xuan ordered Liu Xingfang to send sword tokens and aid to Bai Yuan and the surviving Void Sword cultivators, and to bury the Chen Household elder and seal Western Verdant Mountain.
• Xu Xuan asked Tiantuo whether Gao Xia could be restored, and Tiantuo said only a cultivator of reincarnation might have a chance.
• Cangmen delivered Tip-Feng Mountain’s invitation for Xu Xuan to meet True Person Ru Su in Heavenwater, and Xu Xuan agreed and traveled there with him.
• Xu Xuan sensed a terrifying presence beneath the former Heavenwater Blessed Land and glimpsed a black sun surrounding a punished featherfolk skeleton before his divine ability shattered the vision.

Xu Xuan met Ru Su True Person to discuss the unrest in the Six Prefectures, the treasures stolen from the Scarlet Radiance Abode, and Ru Su’s mysterious origins. Ru Su then questioned whether Xu Xuan had colluded with demons and revealed that several dangerous beings, including a sentient fragment of Jiaoyang True Lord’s demon bone, had escaped the Demon Refining Tower.

• Xu Xuan arrived at Tip-Feng Mountain, where his altar thunder disturbed the mountain’s metal spirits until he restrained his aura.
• Ru Su urged Xu Xuan to help defend Heavenwater if the Six Prefectures fell and warned that the Dust-Sweeping Sect might pressure him at his Dharma assembly.
• Xu Xuan asked about the Scarlet Radiance Abode’s stolen treasures, and Ru Su said the Heavenly Brilliance Brilliant Sun Mirror was held by the Dust-Sweeping Sect, while two spirit artifacts had gone to other regions.
• Ru Su described his uncertain origins as the sentient Vault-Sealing God-Locking Armor and said a Tantai True Person had claimed it was forged before Feng.
• Ru Su tested Xu Xuan for demonic collusion with a Song Clan decree, then named escaped demons including Lesser Sage Tiantuo and Immortal Aunt Cangyu.
• Ru Su revealed that a sentient fragment of Jiaoyang True Lord’s demon bone had escaped west and its whereabouts were unknown.

Xu Xuan and Tiantuo questioned Dongfang Guangxu about the dragonkind’s plans for Eastern Radiance Heaven and learned that its Dao discussions held secrets about attaining the Golden Core. They decided to wash the captured dragon’s life through the Celestial Palace’s mystic qi and bind him with a Dao seal, turning him into a Purple Mansion-tier laborer.

• Ru Su explained the history of Jiaoyang’s bones, and Xu Xuan asked him for a spirit treasure suitable for forging a sword; Ru Su promised to give him one when he held his Dharma assembly.
• Xu Xuan returned to Heavenly Tribulation and prepared his inner scenery before summoning Tiantuo to question Dongfang Guangxu.
• Tiantuo threatened Dongfang Guangxu, who revealed that the dragonkind’s Eastern Spirit branch sought Xu Xuan’s physical body to locate Eastern Radiance Heaven.
• Dongfang Guangxu said the dragonkind especially coveted Eastern Radiance Heaven’s ancient discourses on the Dao and accounts of attaining the Golden Core.
• Xu Xuan and Tiantuo decided to use the Celestial Palace’s mystic qi to renew Dongfang Guangxu’s life, then bind him with a Dao seal and make him perform hard labor.

Xu Xuan and Tiantuo transformed Dongfang Guangxu into the obedient ascendant Mu Xu and assigned him labor in the Dao Realm. Mu Xu began dismantling spirit artifacts in Xu Xuan’s Mystic Transformation Pool, while the pair planned to keep using his skills.

• Tiantuo used mystic azure qi to remake Dongfang Guangxu’s body and memories, and Xu Xuan bound his life to the Ancient Stele.
• Tiantuo showed Xu Xuan fragments of Dongfang Guangxu’s memories, including scenes of his brother Dongfang Guangyu harassing Bai Su and a woman from the Yang Household.
• Dongfang Guangxu emerged as Mu Xu, believed he had ascended to the Heavenly Court, and pleaded with Xu Xuan and Tiantuo for a place there.
• Xu Xuan gave Mu Xu a Purple Mansion spirit armor and instructed him to dismantle it in the Mystic Transformation Pool.
• Mu Xu began painstakingly breaking down the armor into spirit treasures as Xu Xuan and Tiantuo prepared to assign him more work.

Liu Xingfang received guests at Heavenly Tribulation Mountain as Xu Xuan celebrated his Purple Mansion breakthrough, while the visitors revealed mounting political and military tensions. When Guangji of the Supreme Good Dharma Path arrived to provoke Xu Xuan over the Great Flame Horn Furnace, the two fought fiercely, and the chapter ended with their battle still underway.

• Liu Xingfang welcomed True Person Wanjin, who presented Gengzi Cold Star Iron, and Ru Su of Tip-Feng Mountain, who offered a Precious-Aspect Silver Leaf.
• Wu An Qing and Wu Shaoyue arrived on behalf of the Heavenwater Wu Household, bringing Heart-Demon Desires and explaining that their True Person had gone to Sindhu.
• Xu Xuan told Wanjin he planned to obtain Great Li's Primordial Thunder Void Law and move his sect overseas, while Wanjin warned that the Six Prefectures might soon fall to Northern Liao.
• Ru Su urged Xu Xuan to help defend the border if the Six Prefectures were near collapse, then warned him that Guangji had likely come to test him on behalf of the Dust-Sweeping Sect.
• Guangji admitted that the Supreme Good Dharma Path held the Great Flame Horn Furnace taken from the Scarlet Radiance Abode, and Xu Xuan challenged him outside the mountain gate.
• Xu Xuan and Guangji exchanged devastating attacks over the Li River, damaging the surrounding land, and Xu Xuan challenged Guangji to continue fighting.

Xu Xuan defeated Guangji on the Li River and sought a Purple Mansion artifact refiner to improve his sword. After Ru Su pointed him toward Swordsmith Xue and answered questions about his sect, Xu Xuan received Wu Household envoys proposing an alliance, a marriage between Wu Shaoyue and Liu Xingfang, and cooperation to recover the Mount Tai Spring-Viewing Terrace.

• Xu Xuan overcame Guangji’s river and water-binding arts, then used [Heaven-Commanding Tribulation] to sever the Water Ape Dharma Body’s head and drive Guangji to flee, striking the Azure Cloud Gourd as he escaped.
• Xu Xuan collected a small amount of Kan Water and decided that his Dharma Sword needed a Purple Mansion refiner to reforge it into a middle-grade spirit artifact.
• Ru Su recommended that Xu Xuan seek Swordsmith Xue south of Witch South Commandery and bring Wang Cheng Yan and the Wang family’s artifact-refining art, then said Zhang Gaoxia’s condition could not be undone and he knew of no source for Purple Mansion true fire.
• Wu An Qing and Wu Shaoyue visited Xu Xuan with a marriage proposal and an offer from their household’s True Person to cooperate in recovering the Mount Tai Spring-Viewing Terrace from the Formless Temple.
• Xu Xuan left the marriage decision to Liu Xingfang, who agreed to spend more time with Wu Shaoyue before deciding, and she took his hand and asked when they would discuss swordsmanship.

Xu Xuan visited Sword Appraisal Mountain to arrange for Candle Sword to forge his spirit sword, Heavenly Patrol, and accepted an exchange that would also leave Wang Cheng Yan there to help refine and restore artifacts. As Candle Sword began preparing the work, Xu Xuan sensed a summons from Great Li’s Thunder Department and hurried back toward Red Cloud.

• Xu Xuan met Candle Sword at Sword Appraisal Mountain and asked him to advance Heavenly Patrol and Cinnabar Thunder into spirit artifacts, but Candle Sword initially refused because of his workload.
• Candle Sword recognized Wang Cheng Yan’s inherited Fire-Tempering Manual and explained that its complete version belonged to the path of the Smelting Father retainer position.
• After seeing Cheng Yan restore array patterns on damaged Great Feng artifacts, Candle Sword offered to prioritize Xu Xuan’s sword in exchange for the Immortal in the Flame cultivation method and Cheng Yan’s help on the mountain.
• Xu Xuan agreed to the terms, supplied materials for the sword, and left Cheng Yan with Candle Sword while the forging was expected to take about a year.
• As Xu Xuan traveled through the Great Void toward Red Cloud, he sensed that Great Li’s Thunder Department was summoning him and immediately sped back.

After Xu Xuan attained the Purple Mansion, Weihua promoted him to Mystic Punishment Thunder Judge and gave him a powerful divine artifact, hoping to bind him more closely to Great Li’s Thunder Department. Xu Xuan agreed to serve but reaffirmed that he would never forget what happened at Red Cloud, while Weihua sensed an unsettling grandeur in him.

• Weihua offered Xu Xuan the vacant Mystic Punishment Thunder Judge position, authority over the Five Directional Thunder Envoys, and the Kui Thunderclap Heavenly Sound Drum.
• Xu Xuan examined the drum and planned to have Xing Fang use it to help defend the Heavenly Thunder Shrine.
• Xu Xuan asked about the scarred Divine Thunder Envoy, and Weihua explained that Li Soldier had lost his face and true name to a demoness of Northern Liao’s Great Bliss Pure Land.
• Weihua warned that the Golden Core-level lineage might threaten the Six Prefectures and argued that Great Li’s Divine Dao protected its people from foreign powers.
• Xu Xuan promised to devote himself to the Thunder Department’s affairs but said he would never forget Red Cloud, then departed.
• Weihua watched Xu Xuan leave and sensed that he seemed to stand above the Dipper Pivot Supreme Punishment Seal and the entire Thunder Department.

True Person Nangang met Xu Xuan to arrange an alliance against the Formless Temple and recover the Mount Tai Spring-Viewing Terrace, while also proposing Liu Xingfang and Wu Shaoyue’s marriage. He explained that Shaoyue’s unusual temperament came from a demonic omen, and Xu Xuan agreed to prepare for the coming struggle.

• Wu Shaoyue and Liu Xingfang saw True Person Nangang arrive at Heavenly Tribulation, and they went to await his orders.
• Xu Xuan met Nangang, who proposed that they join forces to enter the Formless Temple before Arhat Wisdom Nature died.
• Nangang revealed that he sought a demonic head touched by Mara to cultivate his next divine ability, while Xu Xuan intended to reclaim the Mount Tai Spring-Viewing Terrace.
• Xu Xuan agreed to prepare for the expedition, and Nangang warned that immortal cultivators lurking in the shadows posed the greatest danger.
• Nangang proposed Liu Xingfang and Wu Shaoyue’s marriage and explained that Shaoyue’s temperament had changed after a golden crow demon bone triggered the Darkening Baleful Descent omen.

Liu Xingfang and Wu Shaoyue agreed to become Dao companions, and Xu Xuan and Nangang exchanged betrothal gifts. The marriage was arranged for after Xu Xuan forged his sword, while Wu Shaoyue hoped their affection would grow over time.

• Outside the hall, Wu Shaoyue admitted she feared Liu Xingfang might take her affection for granted, and he assured her that he respected her.
• Wu Shaoyue first declared herself unwilling to marry Liu Xingfang, then asked whether he would accept her as an equal; Liu Xingfang agreed, and she agreed as well.
• Nangang presented the [Avici Fire Pearl] as Wu Shaoyue's dowry, and Xu Xuan returned two strands of spiritual qi, including rare fortune official qi.
• Nangang expressed sincere gratitude for Xu Xuan's gift, and the two True Persons agreed to hold the wedding after Xu Xuan forged his sword.
• After Nangang left for the Formless Temple, Wu Shaoyue reflected that her betrothal rested on both affection and their lineages, and moved closer to Liu Xingfang.

Yang Yuanxin and Lu Lian discussed the Great Wilderness Sea’s affairs and the newly ascended Mu Wude while they awaited Xu Xuan’s breakthrough. Xu Xuan successfully attained his Divine Ability and returned to his followers, asking how the sea had fared.

• Yang Yuanxin told Lu Lian that Mu Wude had reached the Purple Mansion as Wu Yan and was seeking an audience with Youdu to ask about cultivation methods.
• Yang Yuanxin worried that her elder brother had yet to refine the baleful qi in his cultivation, while she waited for Xu Xuan to emerge from seclusion.
• Xu Xuan united the Three Fields, formed the Divine Ability Thunderfall Marsh, and passed the final breakthrough step with the Immortal Register’s help.
• Xu Xuan broke through the formation in dragon form, stirred the Great Wilderness Sea with his power, and received cheers from its aquatic folk.
• Xu Xuan returned to human form, and Yang Yuanxin, Lu Lian, and his followers congratulated him on attaining his Divine Ability.
• Xu Xuan returned to the Main Hall with Yang Yuanxin and Lu Lian and asked about the Great Wilderness Sea’s recent affairs.

After attaining [Thunderfall Marsh], Xu Xuan discussed its powers and the Dragon Court’s summons before deciding to remain near Flame-Offering Mountain while Yang Yuanyi’s breakthrough was uncertain. He then began studying [Thunder-Grasping Formation], a costly sixth-grade Thunder Palace art that required a Thunder Palace spirit artifact to master.

• Xu Xuan received a request from Mu Wude, a Mist Marsh Purple Mansion cultivator, and decided to learn what he wanted before making any promises.
• Xu Xuan explained [Thunderfall Marsh]’s power to gather thunder, strengthen his magical power, heal wounds, and form two Thunder Marsh Aspects.
• The Mist Marsh Edict revealed a beacon to Mistcloud Heaven, but Xu Xuan postponed his visit and chose to check on Yang Yuanyi at Flame-Offering Mountain.
• Yang Yuanxin told Xu Xuan that her father and other leaders had gone south, leaving her to oversee the mountain while Yang Yuanyi struggled to refine baleful intent.
• Xu Xuan brought out [Thunder-Grasping Formation] and began studying the sixth-grade spell, learning that perfecting it would require enormous resources and a Thunder Palace spirit artifact.

Xu Xuan investigated Yang Yuanyi’s stalled breakthrough and learned from Fei Xiang that Southern Sea Purple Mansion cultivators had gathered at the Great Salvation Holy Land to sustain the failing Primordial Mother. With Dao Yan unable to return, Xu Xuan decided to ask the Bing Fire cultivator Mu Wude to examine Yang Yuanyi’s condition.

• Xu Xuan visited Flame-Offering Mountain and discovered that baleful energy tainted Yang Yuanyi’s Yang-Bearing Origin, blocking his breakthrough.
• Yang Yuanxin told Xu Xuan that Dao Yan was away, so Xu Xuan traveled to the Vermilion Cliff Sea to consult Fei Xiang.
• Fei Xiang revealed that nearly ten Purple Mansion cultivators had entered the sealed Great Salvation Holy Land to help the ailing Primordial Mother.
• Xu Xuan learned that Dao Yan and the other elders could not return soon, and that Fei Xiang had found no remedy for Yang Yuanyi.
• Xu Xuan decided to contact Mu Wude, a Bing Fire Purple Mansion cultivator, and ask him to examine Yang Yuanyi.

Dao Yan and Stolen Script guarded the failing Great Salvation Holy Land as its boundary cracks began releasing signs of the Great Bliss Pure Land. Primordial Mother summoned the Southern Sea’s Divine Ability cultivators, and a surge of Dao resonance headed north toward Northern Liao.

• Dao Yan worried that Yang Yuanyi’s breakthrough had gone wrong after a Golden Crow lineage figure affected the Yang-Bearing Origin.
• Stolen Script warned that the Great Salvation Holy Land might collapse or become part of the Great Bliss Pure Land if Primordial Mother departed.
• Dao Yan and Stolen Script sealed cracks in the Holy Land’s boundary and burned away the desires and multicolored light pouring through them.
• Primordial Mother summoned cultivators with Divine Abilities to the main hall, and Dao Yan and Stolen Script joined the other Southern Sea cultivators.
• A Dao resonance surged from the Southern Sea toward Northern Liao, and Dao Yan recognized its direction.

Xu Xuan visited the sealed Great Salvation Holy Land, learned about its battle against the Great Bliss Pure Land and the crisis at Guixu, and consulted Dao Yan about Yang Yuanyi’s stalled breakthrough. He and Yang Yuanxin decided to seek Mu Wude’s [Darkening Obscurity] cultivation method in the Western Sea, where Xu Xuan prepared the Five-Demon Life-Devouring Halberd for the journey.

• Xu Xuan arrived at the Great Salvation Holy Land, where An Youyu explained that Mara had manifested inside and the tradition was suppressing Guixu while fighting the Great Bliss Pure Land.
• Dao Yan told Xu Xuan that he could not leave the Holy Land for months, then advised trading with Mu Wude for [Darkening Obscurity] so Yang Yuanyi could pursue another path to a breakthrough.
• Dao Yan warned Xu Xuan that True Person Miaolin had forbidden conflict in the Southern Sea, then returned to fighting the Heavenly Demons.
• Xu Xuan returned to Flame-Offering Mountain, where Yang Yuanxin showed him Mu Wude’s letter inviting them to Great Pei Mountain and requesting a trade for cultivation methods.
• Xu Xuan and Yang Yuanxin agreed to visit Mu Wude in the Western Sea after the Five-Demon Life-Devouring Halberd finished its ritual refinement.
• Xu Xuan subdued the Five-Demon Life-Devouring Halberd with his Clear Qi and prepared to wield it on the journey.

Wu Yan lured Piluo to Great Pei Mountain with the promise of a Greater Yang Crystal Seed, then used a black-gold bone to subdue him and reveal a hidden power behind his plan. The hidden being disclosed its intention to reincarnate in the Western Sea, obtain the Fire Crows’ spiritual fire, and pursue the Dao of Parched Yang.

• Jiuchiling delivered Wu Yan’s invitation to Piluo, who traveled to Great Pei Mountain to learn about the Greater Yang Crystal Seed.
• Wu Yan showed Piluo a Golden Crow of greater yang light, and Piluo attacked him in an attempt to seize the treasure.
• Wu Yan’s black-gold precious bone released black light that took control of Piluo while dark baleful energy concealed the battle.
• The hidden being speaking through Piluo questioned Wu Yan about the Fire Crows and learned that Dao Yan had delayed responding to their approach.
• The hidden being said the Great Deliverance Pure Land had moved its Purple Mansion cultivators and planned to reincarnate in the Western Sea before a coming upheaval.
• The hidden being described a future of returning golden ranks and named its intended Dao, Parched Yang, as the counterpart to Cold Yin.

Xu Xuan and Yang Yuanxin met the injured Singing Snake Wu Yan at Great Pei Mountain to discuss exchanging cultivation methods and information about a Greater Yang Crystal Seed. A Great Asura attacked during their negotiations, and Xu Xuan realized the meeting might be a trap as he fought to protect Yang Yuanxin and escape.

• Xu Xuan and Yang Yuanxin arrived at Great Pei Mountain and met Wu Yan, who said his breakthrough had injured him.
• Wu Yan offered methods for [Darkening Obscurity] and [Drought as Calamity], along with information about a [Greater Yang Crystal Seed], in exchange for the Fire Crow inheritance.
• Xu Xuan agreed to discuss pursuing the treasure with Dao Yan after the exchange and after peace returned to the Southern Sea.
• A Great Asura arrived to attack Wu Yan, claiming he had repeatedly encroached on Wuyunmojia Land.
• Xu Xuan sensed an invisible black light connecting to him, suspected Wu Yan was part of a trap, concealed Yang Yuanxin within his divine ability, and prepared to fight the Asura.