Chapter Summaries

Liu Xingfang, Liu Xiaowen, and Yuan Lu defeated the Sword Pool’s spirits and discovered that its starry ceiling concealed a stabilized breach into the Great Void. There, the Purple Mansion cultivators Yuanchai and Wanjin discussed their schemes, the Sword Pool’s candidates, and a plan to begin events below.

• Liu Xingfang defeated the gray pool spirit with thunder and Great Thunder-Prayer Radiance, then faced a fresh imitation of himself despite his depleted magical power.
• Liu Xiaowen burned away his own imitation with Great Sun Radiant Flame and realized a True Person was maintaining a breach into the Great Void above the Sword Pool.
• Yuan Lu crushed his imitation with a Bone Talisman, summoned the Great Shaman’s aid, and opened a passage through the Great Void.
• Yuanchai and Wanjin confronted one another through the passage and discussed the Great Shaman’s plans, the [Mysterious-Purpose Evil-Dispelling Salvation Blade], and candidates Xu and Zuo.
• Wanjin said trouble below would force Zuo Hemo out of seclusion, and Yuanchai prepared to begin the scheme as Elder Yuan Zhi looked ahead with a smile.

When the Sword Pool cut off all contact with the disciples inside, Zuo Hemo ended his seclusion, stabilized the pool, and led the elders and Xu Xuan inside to investigate. Xiang Yunchi stayed behind, burdened by memories of the Hollow Sword Gate’s past calamities and his failure to protect the Qi Household.

• The Sword Pool erupted with Sword Qi, severing everyone’s connection to the disciples, and Xiang Yunchi could not approach it to investigate.
• Liang Xilan demanded that Xiang Yunchi summon Zuo Hemo, while he warned her not to harm anyone from the Qi Household and activated the sect leader’s token.
• Zuo Hemo emerged from seclusion, reprimanded Liang Xilan, and used the token to calm and unseal the Sword Pool.
• Zuo Hemo ordered Yuan Zhi to enter despite her claim that she could not cultivate the sword Dao, then led her, Liang Xilan, and Xu Xuan into the pool while Xiang Yunchi remained behind.
• Xiang Yunchi recalled the Demon Calamity, the deaths of the Qi Household’s former leader, and Daoist Kongliao’s warning that the Hollow Sword Gate’s prosperity would bring calamity.

Liu Xingfang awakened sword essence and defeated his Pool Spirit, while Wei Yan also slew his opponent. After the Sword Pool released everyone, Yuan Zhi used a Bone Talisman to draw Xu Xuan and Zuo Hemo into the Great Void, but then suddenly died as her dharma body disintegrated.

• Liu Xingfang endured the Pool Spirit's attacks until he awakened sword essence through Panpo, then killed it with [Long Breath Moves with the Clouds].
• Wei Yan defeated his Pool Spirit with [Blood Drinker] and suppressed the strange manifestations caused by the sword.
• The starfield shattered, revealing the other Dao Platforms, where Qi Wen lay gravely wounded and Yuan Lu was unconscious.
• The Dao Platforms carrying Qi Wen and Liu Xiaowen rose toward the Great Void, and Xu Xuan and Zuo Hemo rushed to rescue them.
• Yuan Zhi activated a concealed Bone Talisman, pulling Xu Xuan and Zuo Hemo into the Great Void and stopping the two Dao Platforms from rising.
• Yuan Zhi's qi sea erupted and her dharma body disintegrated over the unconscious Yuan Lu.

Xu Xuan and Zuo Hemo entered the Scarlet Radiance Abode and fought waves of monsters while their Dharma Swords awakened and their power neared Foundation Establishment. As they began to run out of magical power, the monsters gathered into the familiar figure of Xie Shu of Black Wind Valley.

• Xu Xuan and Zuo Hemo survived their fall into the Great Void and walked along an ancient road toward the Scarlet Radiance Abode.
• Xu Xuan recognized the abode as belonging to his temple, and Constant Light and Star River guided him and Zuo Hemo to its Dao Platform.
• Xu Xuan and Zuo Hemo's Dharma Swords awakened as ancient artifacts, and they faced a swarm of beast-gu monsters descending from the sky.
• Xu Xuan and Zuo Hemo fought the monsters, while Xu Xuan's nature root fused with the Immortal Register without his noticing.
• Tiantuo considered using the secret art Demon-Crossing Stairway to summon Heavenly Demons if Xu Xuan faced certain death.
• The monsters stopped attacking and gathered into the form of Xie Shu of Black Wind Valley.

Xie Shu forced Xu Xuan and Zuo Hemo to fight for the recognition of the sword mystic qi, while secretly manipulating the contest. Outside the Scarlet Radiance Abode, True Person Wanjin and Yuanchai discussed the oath and the plan to forge the Mysterious-Purpose Evil-Dispelling Salvation Blade as the duel reached a turning point.

• Xie Shu revealed that he had reached foundation establishment and forced Xu Xuan and Zuo Hemo to compete for the crimson sword mystic qi, threatening their sects if they resisted.
• Zuo Hemo drew his sword against Xu Xuan, and Xu Xuan sensed golden Hook Snake threads controlling them from the star chart.
• Xu Xuan fought back with all three swords and began to gain the upper hand, but Xie Shu sent blood-colored light to restore and strengthen Zuo Hemo.
• True Person Wanjin questioned Yuanchai about the sword mystic qi, and Yuanchai explained that Wen Fufeng had once been able to draw it down.
• Wanjin and Yuanchai discussed unraveling the profound-enshrining moon sword dao oath, while Wanjin watched the duel and prepared to stir the sword mystic qi.

Xu Xuan survived the Scarlet Radiance Abode’s ordeal as the Mysterious-Purpose Evil-Dispelling Salvation Blade was completed and a remnant of the Constant Light True Lord manifested. Wanjin returned the Scarlet Radiance Abode to Xu Xuan, who left with the damaged Zuo Hemo and his disciples, ready to return to the mountain and pursue Foundation Establishment.

• Zuo Hemo’s sword cultivation shattered after Xie Shu intervened, leaving Xu Xuan chosen to receive the descending Mysterious-Purpose Sword Mystic Qi.
• The sword mystic qi entered Xu Xuan’s thunder marsh and forged the Mysterious-Purpose Evil-Dispelling Salvation Blade, but Tiantuo used the Demon-Crossing Stairway to pull Xu Xuan toward the White Jade Dao Altar.
• The completed blade summoned a remnant of the Constant Light True Lord, who confronted the Tai Zhen decree before both vanished; Wanjin and Yuanchai then confirmed the Dao Oath had been dissolved.
• Wanjin healed Xu Xuan and Zuo Hemo, returned the Scarlet Radiance Abode to Xu Xuan, and warned him not to interfere in the Void Sword’s affairs.
• Xu Xuan learned from Tiantuo that the Constant Light True Lord had likely fallen, then left the Sword Pool with Zuo Hemo and told his disciples to return to the mountain.

Xu Xuan completed his Foundation Establishment with the fifth-rank [Thunderfall Marsh] immortal foundation, giving Green Luo its first Foundation Establishment cultivator. After Wang Xiwei welcomed him, Wen Si'an embraced Xu Xuan and they watched the sunrise hand in hand.

• Zhang Gaoxia and Jiang Zhoudu saw a storm gather over Green Luo and joined Wang Qiyun, Liu Xiaowen, Liu Xingfang, and Xu Fayan to watch the lightning above Azure Sky Peak.
• Xu Xuan broke through to Foundation Establishment and formed the [Thunderfall Marsh] immortal foundation, whose thunder manifestations strengthened his powers.
• Tiantuo explained the ancient lineages behind Xu Xuan's thunder foundation and how divine abilities had changed since antiquity.
• Xu Xuan emerged from seclusion, and Wang Xiwei congratulated him and celebrated Green Luo's new Foundation Establishment cultivator.
• Wen Si'an embraced Xu Xuan, told him that their father had been proud to take him as a disciple, and stayed with him as they watched the sunrise hand in hand.

After emerging from seclusion as a foundation-establishment cultivator, Xu Xuan took control of the Eastern Secret and received congratulatory visits from neighboring leaders and Duan Pingdu. Duan Pingdu offered an alliance and a powerful artifact, while Tiantuo warned that the Duan Clan’s Gen Earth lineage was mysterious; Duan Pingdu left sensing an unknown force opposing his cultivation.

• Xu Xuan ordered Liu Xiaowen to send Protector Liang and the Guarding the Azure camp to take Spirit Mountain and clear the Eastern Secret of evil creatures.
• Liu Xiaowen told Xu Xuan that Wei Yan had escaped the Hollow Sword Gate with [Blood Drinker] after Liang Xilan accused him of practicing Demonic Art, and Xu Xuan decided Green Luo would not intervene further.
• Shi Mingsong and Wen Xiuyun congratulated Xu Xuan, presenting spiritual seeds and array robes, and Wen Xiuyun reunited with Shen Shu outside the mountain gate.
• Duan Pingdu visited Xu Xuan, offered the [Earth Axis Mountain-Bearing Cauldron] to settle past misunderstandings, and suggested Xu Xuan meet his father about establishing himself in the Plainlands.
• Tiantuo told Xu Xuan that the Duan Clan appeared to cultivate the Gen Earth path, and Xu Xuan chose to avoid entangling Green Luo with the lineage.
• As Duan Pingdu departed, he sensed a chilling force opposing the Gen Earth he cultivated but could not identify its source.

After breaking through to Foundation Establishment, Xu Xuan received a spiritual treasure from the Liu Household and strengthened the Great Red Abbey while exploring his new sword mystic qi and sword exegesis. He decided to visit Eastern Secret to check on the disciples and inspect what remained in Black Wind Valley.

• Liu Baiming congratulated Xu Xuan on his breakthrough, gifted him the [Auspicious Rain Thunder], and invited the Great Red Abbey to consider entering the Plainlands, but Xu Xuan declined.
• Xu Xuan refined the [Auspicious Rain Thunder] and considered how to obtain the yang thunder and shock thunder needed to complement his [Thunderfall Marsh] immortal foundation.
• Xu Xuan discovered that the [Barrier-Parting Direct-Pointing Sword Exegesis] had unlocked and formed a thunder-pool false image by merging sword mystic qi into his immortal foundation.
• Xu Xuan surveyed the growing halls and disciples of the abbey, then decided to travel to Eastern Secret to check on the disciples and examine Black Wind Valley.

Xu Xuan joined Guarding the Azure Camp’s campaign to reclaim Eastern Secret and led the disciples into Black Wind Valley. At the valley’s black-stone hall, a hidden Foundation Establishment cultivator mistook them for people from the Great Red Abbey.

• Liu Xiaowen and Liang Yong surveyed the ruined Fish River Wilds, where Black Wind Valley’s creatures had killed the mortals and tainted the land.
• The disciples used Liu Fanqing’s rain-purifying technique to cleanse the route while Qi Xiuyu sought Liang Yong’s favor.
• Xu Xuan arrived, gave Liang Yong a petal from the Unsullied Pure Lotus to aid his breakthrough, and agreed to help him find a Foundation Establishment Pill.
• Xu Xuan led the disciples into East Secret Mountain and destroyed the attacking monsters with lightning while Liu Fanqing’s group cleansed the bloody filth.
• Xu Xuan and Liang Yong approached Black Wind Valley’s hall, where a hidden Foundation Establishment cultivator called out and asked whether they came from the Great Red Abbey.

Xu Xuan fought Xiong Youqi, a Foundation Establishment cultivator claiming Eastern Secret, and ended the conflict after learning about his Origin Poison cultivation. After Xiong Youqi left, Tiantuo revealed doubts about his own existence and warned Xu Xuan that he would soon fall into a long slumber.

• Xu Xuan confronted Xiong Youqi, who claimed Xie Shu had granted him Eastern Secret, and the two began fighting after Xu Xuan refused to surrender the territory.
• Xu Xuan overcame Xiong Youqi’s poison techniques and yin fire, forcing him to apologize and offer [Light-River Gold] in exchange for permission to leave.
• Xiong Youqi told Xu Xuan that he had not seen Xie Miao and left for Foolish Heart Mountain, while Xu Xuan asked him to report any news of the fugitive.
• Xu Xuan questioned Tiantuo about the Origin Poison lineage, and Tiantuo described the ancient Heavenly Poison Demon Lord and his connection to the Fortune Qi path.
• Tiantuo said he might be only a residue rather than a true remnant soul, warned that he would soon slumber, and Xu Xuan promised to help him rebuild his body.

Xu Xuan began refining gu methods and upgraded Cinnabar Thunder with Light-River Gold while preparing for the coming entry into Surging Tribulation Heaven. He traveled to Deep Abyss to meet the Fire Crows, where Yan Xiang told him the Daw Yan Demon King had summoned him to Mountain Flame City.

• Xu Xuan chose Xu Fayan to study twenty gu-refining methods and potentially establish a hall for refining gu in Eastern Secret.
• Xu Fayan suggested opening a sect trading court in Jade Glass Market, and Xu Xuan proposed starting with a shop while they waited for a better opportunity.
• Xu Xuan refined Light-River Gold into Cinnabar Thunder, revealing the Heavenly Gang Star mark on the blade, though it remained at Qi Refining grade.
• Xu Xuan considered the spiritual materials and scripture he wanted from Surging Tribulation Heaven, then sent his consciousness to Deep Abyss to meet the Fire Crows.
• Yan Xiang told Xu Xuan that Yuanxin was in seclusion and Yuanyi was occupied, then said the Daw Yan Demon King had summoned him to Mountain Flame City.

Xu Xuan met Dao Yan and Fei Xiang, received an edict from Mist Marsh, and learned about the coming expedition into [Surging Tribulation Heaven]. Dao Yan tasked him with finding the Thunder Pool, while Fei Xiang secretly confirmed that Xu Xuan’s inner thoughts seemed normal.

• Dao Yan and Fei Xiang discussed their alliance and plans to enter [Surging Tribulation Heaven], including the help their elders could provide.
• Yan Xiang brought Xu Xuan to the pavilion, where Dao Yan and Fei Xiang questioned him about his Foundation Establishment and dragon lineage.
• Dao Yan gave Xu Xuan a black-jade edict from Mist Marsh, which ordered him to go there after cultivating a divine ability.
• Dao Yan explained the history of [Surging Tribulation Heaven] and asked Xu Xuan to find its Thunder Pool, while warning him not to contend with the Immortal Sects.
• After Xu Xuan left, Fei Xiang told Dao Yan that Xu Xuan’s inner voice had seemed normal, though Mist Marsh might have shielded him.

Xu Xuan visited the Heart-Listening Pavilion and learned of a powerful rogue cultivator and rising tensions between the Li and Liao kingdoms. When Song Shiyi defeated Xin Chang in a dispute over his presence in Deep Abyss, Xin Chang singled out Xu Xuan and called on him to challenge Song Shiyi.

• Xu Xuan read the pavilion's postings, including a bounty on Zhou Shi, a foundation establishment cultivator who had attained sword intent.
• Song Shiyi and a purple-robed woman entered the pavilion, and Song Shiyi's arrival provoked the noble-blooded demons.
• Xin Chang challenged Song Shiyi, who revealed his Vermilion Bird lineage and overwhelmed the green-maned lion in a fight.
• Xu Xuan hid with Su Lan as she identified Song Shiyi's [Vermilion Decree] and Xin Chang's [Spring and Autumn of Ren] immortal foundations.
• After his defeat, Xin Chang pointed out Xu Xuan and urged him to uphold justice against Song Shiyi, leaving the two cultivators facing one another.

Xu Xuan was pressured into sparring with Gongsun Xi, a swordswoman who cultivated [Origin-Water Mountain], and their clash revealed the power of his Thunder Marsh techniques. The chapter ended as Gongsun Xi began a sword dance that manifested sword intent, alarming Song Shiyi.

• Song Shiyi and Xu Xuan exchanged polite words after the demons identified Xu Xuan as Dragon Prince Youdu.
• Gongsun Xi challenged Xu Xuan, and Song Shiyi blocked his departure and offered a Fire Crow feather to secure the match.
• A Purple Mansion cultivator promised Xu Xuan guidance in exchange for sparring, so Xu Xuan introduced himself as Mu Youdu and accepted.
• Su Lan identified Gongsun Xi's [Origin-Water Mountain] foundation as the two prepared to fight in the expanded pavilion.
• Xu Xuan's Thunder Marsh and [Heavenly Drum] pushed back Gongsun Xi's black-and-white currents, but she began a sword dance that revealed sword intent.

Xu Xuan dueled Gongsun Xi in the Heart-Listening Pavilion, where a borrowed flying-sword intent nearly destroyed his defenses before Elder Yuan intervened. After Xu Xuan learned the location of the Thunder-Planting Abyss and pursued a familiar Azure-Maned Lion, Gongsun Xi, Elder Yuan, and Demon King Stolen Script discussed their origins, Xu Xuan’s sword inheritance, and the Song Clan’s request for Elder Yuan to open the sword casket against a Liao Kingdom target.

• Gongsun Xi unleashed a borrowed flying-sword intent that shattered Xu Xuan’s thunder marsh, but Elder Yuan caught the intent in two sword pellets and stopped the duel.
• Gongsun Xi praised Xu Xuan, and Song Shiyi apologized by giving him a jade slip; Xu Xuan accepted it and left the pavilion.
• The demon king of White Fox Mound showed Xu Xuan the dangerous Thunder-Planting Abyss, and Xu Xuan then spotted an Azure-Maned Lion and rode toward it.
• Gongsun Xi, Elder Yuan, and Demon King Stolen Script discussed the sword casket’s hidden sword lineage and the possibility that Xu Xuan had mastered sword mystic qi.
• Gongsun Xi revealed that the Song Clan wanted Elder Yuan to go to the frontier and open the sword casket to kill someone, and Elder Yuan accepted the mission as his fate.

Xu Xuan punished Xin Chang, then questioned him and Lu Qiuxu about the Liao Kingdom, Xiao Xueya, and Sword Immortal Zhou Shi. After studying Song Shiyi’s Heavenly Canopy Demon-Slaying Diagram, Xu Xuan left for the sect, while Dao Yan and the others discussed their plan to find the Thunder Pool and its origin liquid.

• Xu Xuan attacked Xin Chang with lightning and sword qi, wounded him, and cut out his tongue after Xin Chang had provoked him.
• Lu Qiuxu and Xin Chang apologized, then told Xu Xuan about Liao’s gains in the war, Xiao Xueya’s background, and Zhou Shi’s reputation.
• Xu Xuan asked the demons to leave information about Xiao Xueya at the Heart-Listening Pavilion and watched them depart.
• Xu Xuan examined Song Shiyi’s jade slip and found the Heavenly Canopy Demon-Slaying Diagram, then resolved to return to his sect and await entry into the grotto-heaven.
• After Xu Xuan left, Dao Yan, Fei Xiang, and Demon King Stolen Script discussed finding the Thunder Pool, retrieving its origin liquid, and their alternatives if the plan failed.

Xu Xuan attended Liu Qiuqi’s successful immortal foundation breakthrough and discussed Zhu Yucheng’s power and the Plainlands’ response with him. Xu Xuan left without committing to an alliance, while Liu Qiuqi’s newly revealed demon companion Qingyun dragged him into a side room.

• Xu Xuan watched Liu Qiuqi complete his breakthrough using the Verdant Willow, then congratulated him and gave him the Unsullied Pure Lotus petal and red-patterned firestone.
• Liu Qiuqi told Xu Xuan that Zhu Yucheng had reached the peak of foundation establishment and appeared to possess two immortal foundations, Southern Zhuoye and Origin Pole Mountain.
• Xu Xuan suggested that he and Liu Qiuqi meet Duan Chengsi after his breakthrough to discuss how to respond to the Zhu Clan.
• Xu Xuan recognized Qingyun as a direct-lineage serpent demon from Jade Flow Demon Mountain, though Liu Qiuqi described her as the Liu Household’s Attendant.
• After Xu Xuan departed, Qingyun restrained Liu Qiuqi and pulled him into a side room, while the Verdant Willow tried to spy and had its branch cut off.

At Jianqing Shop, Liu Xiaowen met Zhang Yu, an Eastern Sea rogue cultivator who sought a sword sharp enough to pierce a magical body. Zhang Yu survived using White River to stab his heart aperture and then asked Liu Xiaowen to introduce him to the sword qi’s owner, but Liu Xiaowen sent him away.

• Liu Xiaowen served Zhang Yu, who bought the mid-grade qi refining dharma sword White River in exchange for a rare foundation establishment spiritual pearl.
• Zhang Yu unleashed White River’s metal energy against his own heart aperture, but emerged unharmed and revealed that he also cultivated Bing Fire.
• Liu Xiaowen tried to return the valuable pearl, while Zhang Yu asked to meet the person who had carved the sword-qi signboard and requested that they stab him.
• Zhang Yu produced three more spiritual pearls, and Liu Xiaowen felt an invisible force urging him to accept them and arrange the meeting.
• Liu Xiaowen returned the pearl and told Zhang Yu to leave because the abbey could not afford his business.

Xu Xuan rescued Zhang Yu from rogue cultivators and learned that Zhang Yu blamed himself for his wife’s death in a Dragon Palace massacre. After discovering that Zhang Yu possessed a fragment of jade linked to the Ancient Stele, Xu Xuan wondered whether Zhang Yu’s wife might still be alive, and Tiantuo revealed the words “Eastern Radiance.”

• Liu Xiaowen sent Zhang Yu out of Jade Glass Market after the four water-virtue pearls attracted greedy rogue cultivators.
• Silver fire within Zhang Yu destroyed attacks from his pursuers, and it burned Feng Chi to ash when he tried to kill Zhang Yu for the pearls.
• Xu Xuan killed an old rogue cultivator who stole a pearl, returned the pearl to Zhang Yu, and drove off the remaining woman.
• Zhang Yu told Xu Xuan that a Dragon King had swallowed the cultivators on Rosy-Haze Island, including Zhang Yu’s wife, who had saved him.
• Xu Xuan sensed a blue jade fragment in Zhang Yu’s belongings resonating with the Ancient Stele and took it, learning that Zhang Yu’s wife had carried its matching piece.
• Tiantuo formed the words “Eastern Radiance” in Xu Xuan’s Qi Sea as he considered whether Zhang Yu’s wife might have survived.