Chapter Summaries

Xu Taiping told Lu Rushuang that he suspected Mo Yachu was possessed by a Profound Calamity Demon Seed, and she explained that the Golden Scale Platform offered the best chance to destroy it before it transformed. The chapter left the third prince and Tang Yan poised to fight as the next match between Mo Yachu and Dongfang Yuejian approached.

• Xu Taiping joined Chu Tiancheng and Lu Rushuang in the pavilion stands and reassured Lu Rushuang that his injuries were mostly flesh wounds.
• Xu Taiping secretly told Lu Rushuang that he suspected a Profound Calamity Demon Seed possessed Mo Yachu, Dongfang Yuejian's upcoming opponent.
• Lu Rushuang warned that disturbing the seed before its metamorphosis could turn the capital's people into corpse demons, but said the Golden Scale Platform was the best place to eradicate it.
• Xu Taiping told Lu Rushuang that he had given Dongfang Yuejian a Moonshadow Stone recording his defense of Tianhai Pass with the Red Armor Cavalry.
• Lu Rushuang reasoned that Dongfang Yuejian might defeat Mo Yachu because the seed could only use his host's strength, and the wall of Sword Qi between the third prince and Tang Yan exploded.

Third Prince Chu Yinan and Tang Yan exchanged powerful spells on the Golden Scale Platform, with Chu Yinan freezing the water monsters created from Tang Yan’s beans. Tang Yan then accepted Chu Yinan’s challenge to reveal Lingxu Grotto’s Dharma Form Heaven and Earth and grew to over thirty zhang tall.

• Tang Yan used his whisk to unleash a gale and scattered beans that became armored soldiers, while Chu Yinan countered with water and drowned them.
• The drowned soldiers transformed into multiplying water monsters that attacked Chu Yinan, whose flying sword and water curtain struggled to contain them.
• Chu Yinan turned his water curtain into ice spikes, then froze nearly half the Golden Scale Platform and trapped the water monsters.
• Chu Yinan urged Tang Yan to reveal Lingxu Grotto’s Dharma Form Heaven and Earth, and Tang Yan expanded into a giant over thirty zhang tall.

Tang Yan used Dharma Form Heaven and Earth to overwhelm Third Prince Chu Yinan, who finally broke a seal and revealed a vast reserve of sword qi. Lu Rushuang explained that Chu Yinan’s gui water spirit bone could store true essence on a scale comparable to a Transformation Realm cultivator.

• Tang Yan expanded to ninety meters tall and unleashed a gale that drove Chu Yinan backward across the Golden Scale Platform.
• Tang Yan turned his horsetail whisk into a sword and struck Chu Yinan with thousands of wind blades, breaking apart his ice defenses and sending him flying.
• Tang Yan asked whether he was still unworthy of making Chu Yinan fight at full strength, and Chu Yinan praised him as a fine opponent.
• Chu Yinan shattered a jade ring and broke the chain binding his left hand, releasing a pillar of sword qi that scattered Tang Yan’s gale.
• Lu Rushuang explained that Chu Yinan’s gui water spirit bone could accumulate true essence until his reserves surpassed those of Transformation Realm cultivators.

Chu Yinan defeated Tang Yan with overwhelming True Essence and halted his final wave of water swords before they could kill him. After Chu Yinan was declared the winner, Xu Taiping and Lu Rushuang turned their attention to the upcoming match between Mo Yachu and Dongfang Yuejian.

• Tang Yan attacked Chu Yinan with palm gales and Wind Blades, but Chu Yinan countered with his flying sword and surging waves.
• Chu Yinan recited lines about water and used his immense True Essence to raise waves that transformed into countless flying swords, overwhelming Tang Yan’s defenses.
• Chu Yinan broke Tang Yan’s Dharma Form Heaven and Earth, then froze the water swords into an iceberg before they could pierce him.
• Tang Yan thanked Chu Yinan for sparing his life and conceded, and Prefecture Lord Qiu Shanyuan declared Chu Yinan the winner.
• Lu Rushuang warned Xu Taiping that Chu Yinan’s vast True Essence made him dangerous, while Xu Taiping suspected it was meant to prepare a technique.
• Qiu Shanyuan announced Mo Yachu against Dongfang Yuejian, and Xu Taiping told Lu Rushuang that the thing was about to take the stage.

Xu Taiping and Lu Rushuang discussed the Mo Family’s living heavenly craft treasures and the lost Creation Art while watching Dongfang Yuejian fight Mo Yachu. Mo Yachu unleashed an army of living wooden kites and began overwhelming Dongfang Yuejian with successive volleys of weapons and spells, leaving the match ongoing.

• Lu Rushuang explained that the Mo Family’s Creation Art could combine living and dead parts to create new beings, and recalled how a crafted Taotie had turned the last Heaven-Demon War.
• Xu Taiping and Lu Rushuang watched as Dongfang Yuejian and Mo Yachu released their auras on the Golden Scale Platform.
• Mo Yachu summoned eighteen wooden kites with parts from living creatures and rode a puppet lion with an iron head.
• Dongfang Yuejian painted a battlefield that sent tens of thousands of arrows at the kites, but they evaded or shielded themselves from the barrage.
• Mo Yachu’s kites fired weapons and then spells at Dongfang Yuejian, whose Purple-Ribbon Immortal Robe deflected the first volley as another wave began.

Mo Yachu used a Demon Seed hidden in his whip to summon a mind-disturbing Divine Bird Bifang and attack Dongfang Yuejian. With Xu Taiping’s help, she recovered her focus long enough to draw the Tianhai Pass City Defense Map, summoning Red Armor Cavalry and a shield to protect her.

• Lu Rushuang and Xu Taiping recognized that Mo Yachu’s Wooden Kites were draining his opponents’ True Essence through relentless attacks.
• Dongfang Yuejian destroyed all eighteen Wooden Kites with the Immortal-Slaying Sword, while Mo Yachu revealed the Demon Seed hidden in his whip.
• Mo Yachu transformed the Bone Whip into a Divine Bird Bifang, whose cries confused Dongfang Yuejian and disrupted her summoned sword and garment.
• Mo Yachu sent a Bone Dragon after Dongfang Yuejian, but Xu Taiping’s voice prompted her to use a Moonshadow Stone to steady her memories.
• Dongfang Yuejian drew the Tianhai Pass City Defense Map, summoning Red Armor Cavalry and Xu Taiping in Dragon Whale form, and the cavalry raised a shield to protect her.

Dongfang Yuejian used One Stroke Opens Heaven to summon Xu Taiping and three hundred Red Armor Cavalry against Mo Yachu’s bone dragon, but Bifang’s cries disrupted her mind. After damaging her ears to gain a moment of clarity, she ordered the summoned forces to slay the bird and poured her True Essence into them as the bone dragon unleashed a fireball.

• Xu Taiping’s summoned phantom used the Mountain-Bearing Form to block and repel the bone dragon, astonishing the spectators.
• Mu Yuchen and Mu Yun wondered how Dongfang Yuejian had obtained a complete image of Xu Taiping’s strength, while Xu Taiping and Lu Rushuang were relieved that his gift had saved her life.
• The bone dragon repeatedly attacked Xu Taiping’s phantom until it broke his stance and sent him flying.
• Dongfang Yuejian struck her ears to resist Bifang’s cries, then wrote the character for “end,” shouted for the forces to slay the bird, and crushed her jade brush.
• Dongfang Yuejian poured most of her True Essence into the Red Armor Cavalry and the rest into Xu Taiping’s phantom as the bone dragon spat a huge fireball at them.
• Lu Rushuang identified the bone dragon as a Qiulong and feared Mo Yachu could threaten all of Youyun Heaven if he gained the Demon Seed’s full power.

Xu Taiping’s phantom used the Fearless Seal and Demon-Subduing Seal copied by Dongfang Yuejian’s One Stroke Opens Heaven Art to fight the Qiulong. Though the phantom began to weaken as Yuejian’s True Essence ran low, it stopped the dragon from striking her with its tail.

• The Red Armor Cavalry’s shield blocked the Qiulong’s fireball, but the blast destroyed dozens of riders and weakened the formation.
• Xu Taiping explained that Yuejian’s art had reproduced the Fearless Seal and Demon-Subduing Seal, and his phantom used their power to batter the Qiulong with punches and saber strikes.
• Lu Rushuang asked whether Xu Taiping still possessed the seals, and he said their power had vanished after the battle at Tianhai Pass.
• Mu Yun told Mu Yuchen that the seals were among Buddhism’s most powerful hand seals, prompting the two to plan a visit to the Mysterious Cloud Martial Hall.
• As Yuejian’s True Essence nearly ran out and Xu Taiping’s phantom weakened, the Qiulong swung its tail at her, but the phantom pinned it to the Golden Scale Platform with his saber.

Xu Taiping watched Zhang Kaitai’s phantom kill Bifang and decided to face Mo Yachu in the competition despite the danger. As Xu Taiping prepared to train during the five-day break, Prefecture Lord Qiu Shanyuan arrived and asked him to slay Mo Yachu on behalf of the people of Youyun Heaven.

• Zhang Kaitai’s phantom pierced Bifang’s wing and then its head, killing the divine bird as Xu Taiping’s phantom held Mo Yachu back.
• Dongfang Yuejian conceded, and Xu Taiping met Mo Yachu’s furious gaze from the stands.
• Xu Taiping decided to fight Mo Yachu, and Blade Ghost offered to train him in the blade domain during the five-day break.
• Qiu Shanyuan visited the Mysterious Cloud Martial Hall and asked Xu Taiping to kill Mo Yachu for the people of Youyun Heaven.

Qiu Shanyuan explained why he wanted Xu Taiping to kill Mo Yachu: a Nine Abysses Profound Calamity Demon Seed had possessed him, and defeating him before it awakened was the safest way to stop it. Lu Rushuang doubted Xu Taiping could survive the match, but Qiu Shanyuan pointed to Dongfang’s phantom of Xu Taiping and left Xu wondering what he meant.

• Xu Taiping and Lu Rushuang listened as Qiu Shanyuan used a Gold Essence Coin to shield their conversation from outside perception.
• Qiu Shanyuan revealed that Mo Yachu carried a Nine Abysses Demon Seed and described how the Old Dragon King had confirmed it.
• Qiu Shanyuan explained that the Profound Calamity Demon Seed awakened by defeating opponents, so defeating Mo Yachu before it grew stronger was the least costly solution.
• Lu Rushuang warned that Mo Yachu’s strength made the next match too dangerous for Xu Taiping to fight.
• Qiu Shanyuan said he would not have approached Xu Taiping if Dongfang had not summoned a phantom of him before Tianhai Pass, and Xu Taiping asked why.

Qiu Shanyuan tried to recruit Xu Taiping to fight Mo Yachu, and Xu Taiping negotiated for treasures to improve his chances. The chapter ended with Qiu Shanyuan reacting in disbelief when Xu Taiping asked for a Bloodrock Soulfire Stone.

• Qiu Shanyuan explained that Mo Yachu could use no more than three ancient fierce beasts, each no higher than Demon Venerable grade, and argued that Xu Taiping was suited to face them.
• Lu Rushuang cautioned Xu Taiping that Qiu Shanyuan's intelligence might prove unreliable, while Qiu Shanyuan promised a reward and offered to heal Xu Taiping after the match.
• Xu Taiping asked for a treasure to strengthen him before the match and specified a Buddhist Dhyana Seal to help him master his Blade Domain without advancing his cultivation realm.
• Qiu Shanyuan doubted Xu Taiping could master his Blade Domain within five days, but Xu Taiping made clear he would not fight without the seal.
• Blade Ghost urged Xu Taiping to ask for a Bloodrock Soulfire Stone as well, and Qiu Shanyuan was astonished that Xu Taiping knew of it.

Xu Taiping secured Qiu Shanyuan’s provisional promise of the Buddhist Dhyana Seal and Bloodrock Soulfire Stone in exchange for fighting Yachu, then learned from Blade Ghost that the altar concealed a passage to his true blade domain. Lu Rushuang decided she would tell Xu Taiping about the Taixuan Sect’s curse after his next match.

• Qiu Shanyuan agreed to consult the Great Emperor about providing the Buddhist Dhyana Seal and Bloodrock Soulfire Stone, and gave Xu Taiping a Gold Essence Coin to block demonic beasts’ senses.
• Xu Taiping told Lu Rushuang he would fight Yachu for a chance at first place, which could help protect True Martial Heaven, the Azure Profound Sect, and his master.
• Lu Rushuang resolved to tell Xu Taiping about the possible curse on the Taixuan Sect’s lineage after his next match.
• Xu Taiping asked Blade Ghost about the Bloodrock Soulfire Stone, and Blade Ghost explained that it came from the Taiqing Realm and was tied to an ancient struggle between Buddhism and Daoism.
• Blade Ghost restored the altar and revealed that the steps beneath it led to his true blade domain.

Xu Taiping learned that the Bloodrock Soulfire Stone could let him enter Blade Ghost’s Infernal Blade Prison for a punishing trial to cultivate a Blade Domain. After receiving the stone and Dhyana Seal, he ignited it and began the trial, while Dongfang Yuejian learned that she faced a Seven-Kill Tribulation and suspected Xu Taiping would help her overcome it.

• Blade Ghost explained that the Bloodrock Soulfire Stone could open the Infernal Blade Prison, where five nights of training might help Xu Taiping master a Blade Domain, but asking for help would end the trial permanently.
• Xu Taiping reminded Blade Ghost that Sister Lingyue would retaliate if he died, and Blade Ghost promised not to let him die inside the prison.
• Dongfang Yuejian’s mother revealed that a divination had foretold the Seven-Kill Tribulation upon her and said someone protected by the Golden Scale Ranking’s fortune would help her face it.
• Dongfang Yuejian believed Xu Taiping might be the person destined to help her, and her mother planned to meet him once her injuries improved.
• Prefecture Lord Qiu Shanyuan sent the Dhyana Seal and Bloodrock Soulfire Stone to the Mysterious Cloud Martial Hall.
• Xu Taiping ignited the Bloodrock Soulfire Stone, entered the Infernal Blade Prison with Blade Ghost, and resolutely descended its steps.

Xu Taiping entered Blade Ghost’s Heart-Pulling Blade Prison, where he had to slay every walking corpse using only his blade before losing his senses and mind. After surviving the first ambush, he began fighting his way through the gathering undead.

• Blade Ghost explained the prison’s effects and told Xu Taiping to find its gate of life himself while improving his eight-zhang blade domain.
• Xu Taiping admitted he was afraid, then calmed himself and entered the prison with his blade ready.
• Xu Taiping used his blade energy to push through the prison’s deadly gale and saw its corpse-filled landscape.
• Blade Ghost kicked Xu Taiping into the prison, awakening the wandering corpses around him.
• A Corpse Demon attacked Xu Taiping with a flaming blade, and he blocked it before breaking free of an undead encirclement and slaying isolated enemies as he fled.

Xu Taiping endured another three-year trial in the heart-pulling blade prison, improving his blade domain but suffering severe mental torment. With only two nights of aid remaining and his breakthrough still out of reach, he agreed to meet Dongfang Yuejian, who had returned with an urgent request.

• Xu Taiping spent a year and a half in the blade prison before his mind collapsed and he endured another year and a half as a walking corpse in despair.
• Three days after completing the trial, Xu Taiping woke exhausted, and Blade Ghost told him he could maintain his blade domain for ten breaths but still had not reached their goal.
• Xu Taiping joined Lu Rushuang, Chu Tiancheng, Chu Xiaoxiao, Lu Yun, and Lu Yun's older sister for breakfast, where Lu Rushuang told him Dongfang Yuejian had come to seek his help.
• Dongfang Yuejian knocked at the Mysterious Cloud Martial Hall and asked to speak with Xu Taiping about an urgent matter.
• Xu Taiping agreed to see Dongfang Yuejian and went to the gate with Lu Rushuang, hoping to recover his mind before entering the blade prison again that night.

Xu Taiping refused Dongfang Yuejian and Daoist Su's request to help her face the Seven-Kill Tribulation Curse, insisting he was powerless despite their offer of a divine artifact. As they prepared to leave, the Lotus Eye flared and showed him the Gate-Sealing Stone, leaving its purpose unclear.

• Daoist Su told Xu Taiping that Dongfang Yuejian had been afflicted with a Seven-Kill Tribulation Curse.
• Daoist Su said their ancestor had predicted that Dongfang Yuejian would meet someone who could break her tribulations, and she believed Xu Taiping was that person.
• Xu Taiping refused to help, explaining that he lacked the ability to face the curse and advising them to deal with the person who cast it.
• Daoist Su offered a divine artifact as payment, but Xu Taiping again said he was powerless, and Dongfang Yuejian asked Daoist Su not to pressure him.
• As Dongfang Yuejian and Daoist Su were about to leave, Xu Taiping's Lotus Eye burned and showed him the Gate-Sealing Stone.

Xu Taiping asked Dongfang Yuejian and Daoist Su for a Gate-Sealing Stone, claiming he was completely certain he could help Yuejian survive her Seven-Kill Tribulation. Daoist Su rejected his boast and left with Yuejian, while Xu Taiping prepared for his coming battle.

• The Lotus Eye urged Xu Taiping to seek a Gate-Sealing Stone from Dongfang Yuejian and Daoist Su in exchange for helping Yuejian break her tribulation.
• Xu Taiping told the two women he needed a Gate-Sealing Stone, and Daoist Su asked how confident he was he could save Yuejian if she provided one.
• The Lotus Eye pushed Xu Taiping to claim complete certainty, and Daoist Su took his answer as an outrageous boast and left with Yuejian.
• Xu Taiping teased the Lotus Eye and tried to feed it Gold Essence Coins, but it drew the coins into itself.
• Xu Taiping felt less weighed down and went to prepare for his battle that night.
• Daoist Su and Yuejian met Lu Rushuang, who apologized and explained that Xu Taiping might be too busy preparing for his next match to help.

Xu Taiping faced Yachu in the upcoming Golden Scale Assembly match despite warnings about the danger, while Lu Rushuang explained that he wanted to fight for himself and others. On the night before the match, Xu Taiping endured fifteen years in Blade Ghost’s Heart-Pulling Blade Prison and awakened a rare blade domain named Unceasing, whose powers astonished Blade Ghost.

• Lu Rushuang told Daoist Su and Dongfang Yuejian that Xu Taiping would fight Yachu because he wanted to give himself and others another chance.
• Daoist Su warned Lu Rushuang about the danger and offered the Dongfang Household’s help, while Dongfang Yuejian defended Xu Taiping’s intentions.
• Dongfang Yuejian’s mother predicted Xu Taiping would concede or fail to appear, but promised to ask their ancestor for the Gate-Sealing Stone if he fought Yachu.
• Blade Ghost watched Xu Taiping endure fifteen years in the Heart-Pulling Blade Prison and prepared to send him out after he appeared to lose his mind.
• Xu Taiping recovered, declared his blade domain was named Unceasing, and unleashed an Eight-Zhang Blade Domain that strengthened him.
• Blade Ghost realized Xu Taiping’s blade domain possessed two kinds of power at once.

As the eighth round began, the spectators debated whether Xu Taiping would face Mo Yachu, whose hidden power made him a deadly opponent. Lin Buyan believed Xu Taiping had recognized the danger and would stay away or concede, and the chapter ended with Dugu Qingxiao arriving at Moon Perching Pavilion.

• Mu Yun wagered with Mu Yuchen that Xu Taiping would take the stage, betting her seclusion against a trip to Yinghuo Island.
• Su Qingtan told Dongfang Yuejian she might ask the ancestor for the Gate-Sealing Stone if Xu Taiping challenged Mo Yachu, and explained the danger of killing the Demon Seed before its awakening.
• Prefect Qiu announced Xu Taiping’s match against Mo Yachu as the eighth round began.
• At Moon Perching Pavilion, Zhao Linglong and the others speculated that Xu Taiping could defeat Mo Yachu, while Lin Buyan warned Lin Buyu that Xu Taiping would probably avoid the match or concede quickly.
• Dugu Qingxiao suddenly shoved open the gate of Moon Perching Pavilion.

Dugu Qingxiao warned that Mo Yachu likely contained a Profound Calamity-level demon seed, but Xu Taiping entered the match anyway. Xu Taiping killed Mo Yachu’s Divine Bird Bifang with one saber strike and declared that he had accepted the challenge because he could kill Mo Yachu.

• Dugu Qingxiao returned and revealed that Mo Yachu likely contained a Profound Calamity-level demon seed as Xu Taiping and Mo Yachu entered the Golden Scale Platform.
• Mo Yachu offered to spare Xu Taiping if he conceded during the countdown, but Xu Taiping stood his ground.
• Mo Yachu transformed his Bone Whip into the Divine Bird Bifang, which unleashed a Divine Soul attack against Xu Taiping.
• Xu Taiping remained unaffected, drew his saber, and beheaded Bifang with a single strike.
• Xu Taiping pointed his Water-Cutting Blade at Mo Yachu and said he had accepted the challenge because he could kill him.