Chapter Summaries

Chu Zhiyuan rescued Shao Feng and Qu Ying, exchanged sabers with Qu Ying, and left her wondering how he had killed the Demonic Humans. Qu Ying later caught up with him and asked to fight the evil sects, but he told her to improve her cultivation first.

• Chu Zhiyuan arrived after Shao Feng and Qu Ying fought six Grandmasters, and the six men were found dead as white skeletons.
• Chu Zhiyuan exchanged his emerald-green saber for Qu Ying’s azure saber and told them the area was clear of Demonic Humans within fifty li.
• Shao Feng and Qu Ying concluded that Chu Zhiyuan had killed the Demonic Humans, rather than the legendary Emperor’s Sword, and Qu Ying praised his strength.
• Qu Ying parted from Shao Feng, then followed Chu Zhiyuan and said she wanted to kill Demonic Humans of the evil sects.
• Chu Zhiyuan warned Qu Ying that her First Heaven Grandmaster cultivation was too low and urged her to raise her realm before facing the Demonic Humans.

Chu Zhiyuan led Qu Ying, Shao Feng, and Zou Fang south to hunt Demonic Humans from the evil sects, using his mysterious ability to kill them and recover a strange statue. As they continued their journey, Qu Ying prepared to ask Chu Zhiyuan a question.

• Qu Ying explained that killing Demonic Humans had become important to her, and Chu Zhiyuan agreed to let Shao Feng join their journey out of respect for the White Cloud Sword Palace and Huang Shirong.
• Chu Zhiyuan led the group south, changing direction repeatedly to find Demonic Humans, whom he killed with a glance while Qu Ying tried to claim a kill for herself.
• Chu Zhiyuan left one enemy for Qu Ying, and she killed it with her three-strike saber technique.
• Zou Fang retrieved a two-faced statue from a corpse, and Chu Zhiyuan said he could use such statues to sense Demonic Humans; Qu Ying promised to send him the ones held by her sect.
• Qu Ying asked Chu Zhiyuan for an assessment of her saber technique, and he advised her to improve her mastery through practice.
• As the group continued over the treetops, Qu Ying said she had a small question to ask Chu Zhiyuan.

Chu Zhiyuan brought Qu Ying and Shao Feng to meet Xiao Ruoling and Shen Hanyue, where they watched the Moon Invitation Palace disciples fight Demonic Humans. Chu Zhiyuan identified flaws in their sword formation, helping them defeat the attackers, who then used Mutual Destruction.

• Qu Ying asked Chu Zhiyuan whether Huang Shirong or Xiao Ruoling had greater aptitude, and Chu Zhiyuan said they would meet Xiao Ruoling soon.
• Chu Zhiyuan led Qu Ying and Shao Feng to Xiao Ruoling and Shen Hanyue, who were overseeing twelve disciples fighting eight Demonic Humans.
• Chu Zhiyuan pointed out that Meng Xiaoyue needed a lighter sword and Ding Zhenling's old foot injury disrupted the Spirit Butterfly Sword Formation.
• Xiao Ruoling gave Meng Xiaoyue a different sword, and the formation's improved flow allowed the twelve disciples to defeat the eight Demonic Humans.
• The defeated Demonic Humans used Mutual Destruction, exploding into red mist and leaving a deep pit.

Chu Zhiyuan discussed Moon Invitation Palace’s improved sword formation and learned that the Evil Emperor had an heir living in Great Meng. When four powerful Demonic Humans arrived, Shen Hanyue sent the White-Clad Girls to confront them.

• Chu Zhiyuan explained that the sword formation had grown more dangerous, while the White-Clad Girls discussed how replacing one sword had greatly improved its power.
• Chu Zhiyuan advised Shen Hanyue that Ding Zhenling’s foot injury might require a body-tempering art, then agreed to examine Moon Invitation Palace’s methods.
• Xiao Ruoling told Chu Zhiyuan that the Evil Emperor had an inheritance and a living successor in Great Meng, whose lineage appeared to devour cultivation rather than Essence Blood.
• Chu Zhiyuan sensed four powerful Demonic Humans approaching and warned Shen Hanyue that they might be Grandmasters at Ninth Heaven or Grandmaster Perfection.
• The four azure-robed men focused greedily on Xiao Ruoling and Shen Hanyue, and Shen Hanyue ordered the twelve White-Clad Girls to attack them.

Twelve disciples of Moon Invitation Palace used their Spirit Butterfly Sword Formation to fight four blue-robed Demonic Humans, while Shen Hanyue relied on Chu Zhiyuan to judge whether they needed help. The girls perfected the formation and defeated the men, leaving Chu Zhiyuan to notice that its rhythm resembled the Bright Moon Blade.

• Ding Zhenlong revealed that the twelve girls were from Moon Invitation Palace, and the four blue-robed men tried to break free and escape.
• The four men used the Lamp Burning Technique to trade Essence Blood for power, but their sword force still struggled against the formation.
• Shen Hanyue worried that the girls might be injured, and Chu Zhiyuan told her he would intervene if necessary.
• The twelve girls combined their sword light into Spirit Butterflies Dancing Together, swallowing the four men in white radiance and leaving them covered in wounds.
• The girls celebrated perfecting the Spirit Butterfly Sword Formation, and Chu Zhiyuan noticed that its rhythm resembled the Bright Moon Blade.

Chu Zhiyuan's Spirit Butterfly Sword Formation reached a resonant state and defeated four Evil Sect Demonic Humans, while his Bright Moon Blade's Blade Soul broke through and released a devastating attack that knocked out those around him. After explaining that his blade technique had advanced, he sent his companions north to the manor and continued south alone.

• The Spirit Butterfly Sword Formation entered a resonance that multiplied its power, and it defeated four wounded middle-aged Demonic Humans in green robes.
• Shen Hanyue asked whether the formation could trap a Grandmaster, and Chu Zhiyuan said it still could not overcome the gap between realms.
• Chu Zhiyuan's Bright Moon Blade's Blade Soul grew brighter as his Spiritual Power flowed toward it, and a blade-like attack struck the brows of everyone nearby, leaving most unconscious.
• Chu Zhiyuan revived the group and explained that his blade technique had made a breakthrough, prompting Qu Ying and Shao Feng to realize it had caused the unexplained deaths of Evil Sect Demonic Humans.
• Chu Zhiyuan told Shen Hanyue, Xiao Ruoling, Qu Ying, Shao Feng, and the twelve White-Clad Girls to travel north to the manor while he continued south.

Chu Zhiyuan tested the new spiritual Blade God he gained at the Deity Conferring Stage, then began breaking through in Yujing City. His Sword Qi finally injured the Golden Tower, leaving him poised to advance.

• Xiao Ruoling, Shen Hanyue, Ding Zhenling, and Qu Ying praised Chu Zhiyuan's saber technique and discussed seeking his instruction.
• Zhou Qingqing arrived injured, explaining that Chu Zhiyuan's saber strike had caused severe trauma to those with Spiritual Power.
• Chu Zhiyuan discovered that his Blade Soul had become an independent Blade God and used it to empower six small blades.
• Chu Zhiyuan killed six Demonic Humans while searching for Grandmasters, then reunited with Xiao Ruoling and returned with her to the royal residence.
• Chu Zhiyuan began his breakthrough and used spiritual Sword Qi to inflict a small but significant injury on the Golden Tower.

Chu Zhiyuan investigated whether diligent cultivation and breaking through Grandmaster layers extended a Grandmaster’s lifespan, then uncovered the Emperor’s Sword’s role in protecting the realm. He and Chu Qingfeng decided the discovery about cultivation could be shared, but the Emperor’s Sword secret was better left unknown.

• Chu Zhiyuan observed that Golden Tower’s golden light seemed to restore his body and reasoned that continued Grandmaster cultivation might extend lifespan.
• Chu Zhiyuan asked Chu Qingfeng to investigate historical Grandmasters, and they reviewed records of their lifespans, habits, and cultivation realms.
• Chu Qingfeng concluded that Grandmasters who cultivated diligently generally lived longer, while those who reached the Second Layer had lived beyond four hundred years.
• Chu Qingfeng explained that the limits of martial cultivation had steadily declined, making a Second Layer breakthrough increasingly difficult.
• Chu Zhiyuan asked about the Emperor’s lifespan and learned from Chu Qingfeng that the Emperor’s Sword protected the realm; they agreed that secret should not be revealed.

Chu Zhiyuan met Huang Shirong, who decided to resign as Hall Master of the Town Martial Division and travel the world to advance her cultivation. After they parted, he watched her leave Yujing City with companions and returned to Prince Qing's Estate.

• Chu Zhiyuan saw Weng Qifeng nearing the Grandmaster realm and observed the people cultivating and spending time at Prince Qing's Estate.
• Chu Zhiyuan met Huang Shirong on Phoenix Avenue and told her that Shao Feng had not offended him.
• Huang Shirong told Chu Zhiyuan she would resign as Hall Master, leave the Town Martial Division, and travel the world to seek a clearer state of mind.
• Chu Zhiyuan and Huang Shirong wished each other well and promised to meet again when she became a Grandmaster.
• Chu Zhiyuan watched Huang Shirong leave through the south gate with an old man and several young people, then returned to Prince Qing's Estate.

Chu Zhiyuan continued cultivating and visited Xiao Ruoling and Shen Hanyue at Moon Invitation Palace’s mountain estate, where they discussed the moon-based practice and the threat of Demonic Humans. After helping them settle on tonight’s Moon Phase, he sensed that guests had arrived.

• Chu Zhiyuan noticed that the Golden Tower’s golden light had begun advancing the final level of the Dragon Transformation Technique as his tiny Sword Qi continued attacking it.
• Xiao Ruoling and Shen Hanyue practiced the Bright Jade Divine Palm and debated whether the moon was in the Flying Squirrel Phase or the Swimming Dragon Phase.
• Xiao Ruoling explained that Great Yin Refinement required identifying the correct Moon Phase and cultivating its matching method without interruption.
• Xiao Ruoling and Shen Hanyue discussed the evil sects’ search for the Evil Emperor’s inheritance and Chu Zhiyuan’s scheme to mislead them.
• Chu Zhiyuan arrived at the courtyard, identified the moon as the Golden Rooster Phase, and offered to help Xiao Ruoling judge future Moon Phases.
• As Shen Hanyue left, Chu Zhiyuan sensed that guests had arrived.

Chu Zhiyuan killed four Demonic Heart Sect Grandmasters who arrived at Moon-Inviting Villa and discovered they had been sent to ally with the Fearless Sect. The letter gave him a faint sense of the Demonic Heart Sect master’s location, and he looked westward.

• Four blue-robed Grandmasters approached Moon-Inviting Villa, and Chu Zhiyuan chose to confront them so Xiao Ruoling and Shen Hanyue could continue resting.
• The four men discussed abducting Moon Invitation Palace’s Saintess before Chu Zhiyuan killed them without even looking at them.
• Chu Zhiyuan stripped away the men’s robes and found a letter inviting the Fearless Sect to form an alliance with the Demonic Heart Sect.
• Xiao Ruoling and Shen Hanyue read the letter, and Chu Zhiyuan said the allied evil sects would be easier to deal with if gathered together.
• Chu Zhiyuan sensed the letter’s sender faintly and turned his gaze westward.

Chu Zhiyuan, Xiao Ruoling, and Shen Hanyue left Moon Invitation Palace and went to Chu Zhiyuan's nearby manor, where he called out to provoke the evil sects' Demonic Humans. More than twenty experts gathered below the mountain, and others were still rushing toward them.

• Chu Zhiyuan tried to sense the Demonic Heart Sect's sect master but said he could not leave until the Elders arrived the next day.
• Shen Hanyue proposed displaying the Demonic Humans they killed, and Chu Zhiyuan agreed with the idea but said they should use his manor rather than Moon Invitation Palace.
• Chu Zhiyuan, Xiao Ruoling, and Shen Hanyue traveled to a mountain peak near his manor under the moonlight.
• Chu Zhiyuan howled insults at the evil sects' Demonic Humans to lure them over.
• More than twenty evil sect experts gathered below the mountain as others followed Chu Zhiyuan's voice toward them.

Chu Zhiyuan gathered with Xiao Ruoling, Shen Hanyue, Xu Yingying, and Xu Suying as more than two hundred evil sect masters surrounded them. He invoked the extermination decree and killed them all with the Bright Moon Blade God, advancing his Deity Conferring Stage and hoping to find more Demonic Humans to kill.

• Chu Zhiyuan explained that the Imperial Court’s extermination decree had made evil sect masters targets for anyone seeking merit, drawing martial masters to Yujing City.
• Xu Yingying and Xu Suying joined Chu Zhiyuan, Xiao Ruoling, and Shen Hanyue as the evil sect masters gathered around them.
• Chu Zhiyuan criticized the Four Great Sects and the Imperial Court for allowing the evil sects to grow unchecked.
• Chu Zhiyuan declared that all Demonic Humans of the evil sects could be killed and used the Bright Moon Blade God to slay more than two hundred approaching masters.
• Chu Zhiyuan’s Deity Conferring Stage advanced, and he realized that killing Demonic Humans could help him complete it.

Chu Zhiyuan revealed that the Glazed Saber Scripture had let him slay hundreds of evil sect experts, then built a towering Bone Tower from their remains outside Ziyang Villa. The deed drew crowds from Yujing City, and Cheng Yifeng and Cheng Miaozhen arrived to see the grisly monument.

• Chu Zhiyuan explained that his Glazed Saber Scripture reflected into enemies’ hearts and killed them, while Xu Suying and the others discussed why he had mastered it.
• Chu Zhiyuan and the others surveyed a Bone Tower made from more than three hundred evil sect Demonic Humans and discussed the danger of retaliation.
• Cheng Yifeng, Cheng Miaozhen, and Consort Shu heard about the Bone Tower at a restaurant, and Cheng Yifeng persuaded his sister to go see it.
• Cheng Yifeng and Cheng Miaozhen traveled to Ziyang Villa with the crowds and solemnly regarded the towering Bone Tower.

Cheng Miaozhen witnessed the people celebrating Chu Zhiyuan’s execution of Demonic Humans from the evil sects, then left without meeting him. At Ziyang Villa, Chu Zhiyuan received a letter from the new Great Meng Emperor proposing peace negotiations and seeking his help over a secret realm, leaving him skeptical of her request.

• Cheng Miaozhen saw several Demonic Humans from the evil sects die and their skeletons join the Bone Tower as the crowd praised Chu Zhiyuan.
• Cheng Miaozhen declined Cheng Yifeng’s suggestion to meet Chu Zhiyuan and returned home, while Cheng Yifeng noted that Great Zhen still had evil sects.
• Chu Zhiyuan read in the pavilion as Xiao Ruoling handled Moon Invitation Palace documents and Xu Yingying fought Shen Hanyue outside.
• Su Qiuyan arrived at Ziyang Villa and delivered a letter from the new Great Meng Emperor to Chu Zhiyuan.
• Chu Zhiyuan learned that Great Meng wanted peace negotiations and that the Emperor sought his help regarding the secret realm, but he objected that she was asking without using the favor she owed him.

Chu Zhiyuan agreed to cooperate with Great Meng and learned from Li Hongzhao where the Jade Cauldron Sect’s lair was, giving him a possible path to uncovering the demonic sects’ power. As the Bone Tower rose at Ziyang Villa, its reputation and Chu Zhiyuan’s fame spread throughout the realm.

• Chu Zhiyuan accepted Li Hongzhao’s offer to cooperate with Great Meng on the same terms as Great Zhen, and sent her a Flying Dagger in return for her intelligence.
• Chu Zhiyuan told Su Qiuyan to warn Li Hongzhao not to let the throne hinder her cultivation, and said he had found a way into the Second Layer.
• Chu Zhiyuan learned from Li Hongzhao that the Jade Cauldron Sect’s true lair was in Great Meng and that demonic sect lairs were often hidden in other nations.
• Chu Zhiyuan told Xiao Ruoling that Great Jing’s emperor also wanted peace with Great Meng and that Great Meng would send statues as part of the arrangement.
• As the Bone Tower grew, demonic sect disciples stopped approaching Ziyang Villa, and Chu Zhiyuan’s reputation spread across the realm.

Chu Zhiyuan left Ziyang Villa to hunt the Demonic Heart Sect’s sect master, while Xiao Ruoling, Shen Hanyue, and Xu Yingying stayed behind. He discovered the target was bait, with four Grandmasters waiting in ambush.

• Chu Zhiyuan found the Demonic Heart Sect’s sect master heading toward Jade Capital and decided to go after him alone.
• Xu Yingying gave Chu Zhiyuan a Tranquil Mind Inscription to guard against the sect master’s mind-affecting secret art.
• Xiao Ruoling reassured Shen Hanyue that Chu Zhiyuan would not take a risk unless he was confident he could handle it.
• Chu Zhiyuan traveled southwest with Zou Fang and discussed Zou Fang’s progress toward the Grandmaster Gate.
• Chu Zhiyuan sensed an ambush and revealed that the sect master was bait, with four concealed Grandmasters nearby: two from evil sects and two from orthodox sects.

Chu Zhiyuan discovered that the Nine Li Divine Cult elders were confronting the Demonic Heart Sect, then killed the sect’s Elder Lu Yuanhang and his two Grandmaster Protectors with the Bright Moon Blade God. After the elders identified the dead men, Zou Fang found a strange silver statue among their belongings, which Chu Zhiyuan warned her not to touch.

• Chu Zhiyuan overheard Lu Yuanhang offering compensation to Nine Li Divine Cult elders Sun Haifeng and Zhou Shaotang, who demanded justice for those the Demonic Heart Sect had killed.
• Chu Zhiyuan used the Bright Moon Blade God to kill Lu Yuanhang and his two Grandmaster Protectors from seven li away, and the technique grew stronger.
• Chu Zhiyuan met Sun Haifeng and Zhou Shaotang, identified the dead men as members of the Demonic Heart Sect, and asked Zou Fang to search their belongings.
• Zou Fang found letters, pills, and a silver statue, and Chu Zhiyuan stopped her from touching the statue.
• Sun Haifeng and Zhou Shaotang realized Chu Zhiyuan’s power exceeded anything they had heard described and wondered whether their Cult Master or Supreme Elders could withstand it.

Chu Zhiyuan learned how Silver and Gold Venerable Statues aided demonic sect cultivation and discovered the Silver Venerable Statue was connected to at least ten thousand red threads. After three demonic Grandmasters’ bones were displayed at the Bone Tower and the city blamed the Emperor’s Sword, Chu Zhiyuan continued examining the statue.

• Chu Zhiyuan learned Sun Haifeng and Zhou Shaotang had secretly come to protect Xu Yingying and had followed three demonic Grandmasters who were plotting to kill him.
• Sun Haifeng explained that Silver Venerable Statues could aid Grandmasters’ cultivation, while Gold Venerable Statues were far more powerful and were kept at sect headquarters, including the Demonic Heart Sect’s base in the Southern Border.
• Chu Zhiyuan saw at least ten thousand red threads connected to the Silver Venerable Statue and grew wary of its reach.
• The bones of the three dead demonic Grandmasters were placed atop the Bone Tower, drawing crowds who assumed the Emperor’s Sword had killed them.
• Chu Zhiyuan spent the night and morning scrutinizing the Silver Venerable Statue without noticing any change.

Chu Zhiyuan discovered that the Bright Moon Blade God could weaken the Silver Venerable Statue and used Venerable Statues to hunt evil-sect disciples through the night. He killed nearly ten thousand, strengthening his cultivation, but the statues showed that at least half the sect’s disciples remained.

• Chu Zhiyuan tested the Silver Venerable Statue and found that the Bright Moon Blade God weakened it while spiritual power had no effect.
• Chu Zhiyuan took Xiao Ruoling out on Heavenly Dragon Divine Horses and used Venerable Statues to track evil-sect disciples.
• Chu Zhiyuan and Xiao Ruoling raced through the night as he killed evil-sect experts and depleted the red threads linked to the statues.
• At daybreak, Chu Zhiyuan told Xiao Ruoling that he had killed nearly ten thousand evil-sect disciples, including three Grandmasters, and advanced his Deity Conferring Stage by one-third.
• Chu Zhiyuan concluded that at least half the evil sects remained and resolved not to let them threaten Great Jing.