Chapter Summaries

The Phoenix Race's Thirteenth Elder disrupted the Stone Terrace Heavenly Ladder to hinder He Pingsheng, but Wang Dun dodged the wind vortices while singing insults at her. He surged past the top-ranked climbers and claimed first place, leaving the Phoenix Race fearing a loss of fortune.

• The Great Order Wisdom King accused the Phoenix Race of interfering, but the Seventh Elder defended the Thirteenth Elder and Demon Emperor Vajra explained that Wang Dun could not retry the ladder under the rules.
• The Thirteenth Elder stirred up gale-wind vortices against He Pingsheng, so Wang Dun told him to stop shielding him and focus on dodging.
• He Pingsheng used the [Three Thousand Thunderbolt Technique] to evade the vortices while Wang Dun dodged and sang insulting lyrics about the Thirteenth Elder, prompting the crowd to join in.
• Wang Dun climbed past the other competitors and stopped at Feng Wanxi's fourth-place rank before declaring that she was not good enough.
• Wang Dun unleashed his power and passed third, second, and first place, surpassing Beichen's longstanding record as the Seventh Elder lamented the Phoenix Race's coming loss of fortune.

Wang Dun and He Pingsheng raced upward through the astral winds, surpassing the Phoenix Race elder’s hundred-thousand-zhang position. They left her humiliated as they reached the same height together at a hundred and ten thousand zhang.

• Wang Dun stopped after overtaking first place, and He Pingsheng guarded him while urging the Phoenix Race’s Thirteenth Elder to move aside.
• Wang Dun used his black scythe to cut through the astral winds and climbed to eighty-five thousand zhang, then He Pingsheng followed with his staff.
• Wang Dun advanced to ninety-five thousand zhang and revealed his Dharma Manifestation Golden Body, stunning the spectators.
• He Pingsheng transformed his staff into a Black Divine Spear and charged to a hundred and ten thousand zhang.
• Wang Dun followed with his crimson sword, reached a hundred and ten thousand zhang, and taunted the Phoenix Race elder for losing her wager.

Wang Dun and He Pingsheng climbed the Stone Terrace Heavenly Ladder together, with He Pingsheng reaching 150,000 zhang and Wang Dun stopping one zhang below. Wang Dun carved He Pingsheng’s name onto the stele in place of his own, then returned to retrieve He Pingsheng, leaving He Pingsheng ranked first.

• The Phoenix Race's Thirteenth Elder fled after Wang Dun teased her, while the Seventh Elder remained behind in anger.
• Wang Dun and He Pingsheng challenged each other to climb to 150,000 zhang without helping one another, thrilling the spectators as they traded the lead.
• He Pingsheng reached 150,000 zhang, and Wang Dun stopped one zhang below him, claiming he could go no farther.
• Wang Dun used Sword Qi to carve “Human Race, He Pingsheng” into the stone stele, saying he wanted He Pingsheng’s name to shine above all races.
• Wang Dun started descending while He Pingsheng remained confused at 150,000 zhang, and the Great Order Wisdom King warned him about his Heavenly Dao Oath.
• Wang Dun rushed back up to bring He Pingsheng down, and the stele ranked He Pingsheng first.

He Pingsheng took first place on the Heavenly Ladder, while the Phoenix Race’s efforts ended in disgrace and Feng Wanxi’s Dao Heart cracked. As the Great Order Wisdom King took He Pingsheng to her guarded palace, she moved to make the most of their remaining time before his presumed death.

• The Heavenly Ladder rankings changed to show a blank first place and He Pingsheng in second, revealing that the ladder itself had recognized him as the true first-place winner.
• Elder Feng Qi led the Phoenix Race away after Feng Wanxi vomited blood, and the others discovered that her Dao Heart had cracked.
• Demon Emperor Vajra warned He Pingsheng that a formation had sealed Stone Terrace City’s spatial law, while the Black Tortoise Demon Emperor said fortune was in store for him.
• Zhu Xuanlun returned the Sacred Essence Pill and asked He Pingsheng for a Soul-Linking Curse Talisman, which He Pingsheng gave him.
• The Great Order Wisdom King brought He Pingsheng to her palace, removed her hairpin, and said she wanted to make the most of their time before he died.

He Pingsheng spent the night with the Great Order Wisdom King, who believed a reincarnated person had entered her womb. He then consumed a Divine Pillar Pill and discovered it had erased his curse, the Phoenix Race's mark, his cultivation flaws, and his Heavenly Dao Oaths.

• The Great Order Wisdom King urged He Pingsheng to help her conceive Yuqing before he died and promised him the Nirvana Divine Stone.
• Wang Dun interrupted them, gave He Pingsheng a Divine Pillar Pill, and left without claiming the Phoenix Race's reward.
• The Great Order Wisdom King told He Pingsheng she felt a reincarnated person had entered her womb.
• He Pingsheng used the Treasure-Gathering Basin to duplicate the pill, then consumed one and lost control of his body as it took effect.
• The Divine Pillar Pill removed He Pingsheng's Soul-Linking Curse Talisman and the Phoenix Race's mark, repaired his cultivation flaws, and erased his Heavenly Dao Oaths.

He Pingsheng learned that Wang Dun had vanished and attended the awards ceremony, where the Golden Crow Demon Emperor discovered Zhu Xuanlun dead. He Pingsheng realized Zhu Xuanlun’s return of the Sacred Essence Pill had been connected to his death.

• The Great Order Wisdom King told He Pingsheng that the first-place award would be presented and asked whether it should go to him or Wang Dun.
• Nan Qiqi asked He Pingsheng if Wang Dun was with him, and He Pingsheng said Wang Dun had claimed he was leaving; they went to the awards ceremony and confirmed he had not returned.
• Yuan Wuyou told He Pingsheng that the Golden Crow Demon Emperor had punished Zhu Xuanlun with three hundred lightning-whip lashes after Zhu’s ranking fell to seventeenth.
• The demon emperors arrived and opened the Great Hall for the ceremony, where they found Zhu Xuanlun’s enormous Golden Crow body dead.
• The Golden Crow Demon Emperor rushed to Zhu Xuanlun, lamented that he had beaten him, and discovered that Zhu still had an avatar and a Soul-Linking Curse Talisman.
• He Pingsheng remembered that Zhu Xuanlun had returned the Sacred Essence Pill the previous day and realized Zhu had not returned it because he was about to break through.

After Zhu Xuanlun’s suicide, Demon Emperor Vajra awarded the nirvana divine stone to He Pingsheng on Wang Dun’s behalf. He Pingsheng left Stone Terrace City and discovered Demon Emperor Hollow had followed him, while another figure appeared nearby.

• Zhu Xuanlun’s final words confirmed that he had killed himself, and Demon Emperor Vajra sealed the great hall and ended the ceremony.
• Demon Emperor Vajra awarded the nirvana divine stone to He Pingsheng, who claimed to be collecting it for Wang Dun.
• The Phoenix Race’s demon emperors took Great Order Wisdom King away, while Nan Qiqi wished He Pingsheng luck before he left alone.
• He Pingsheng failed to open a Spatial Wormhole and called out the Mahayana Emperor Realm cultivator who had followed him.
• Demon Emperor Hollow appeared, accused He Pingsheng of killing his son and taking his imperial armament, and He Pingsheng admitted it.
• Demon Emperor Hollow said He Pingsheng could not stop him, and a red-robed figure emerged from the void nearby.

Duan Feihong intercepted Demon Emperor Hollow as he tried to kill He Pingsheng, and their clash gave He Pingsheng a chance to flee. Demon Emperor Hollow sent his clone after him, but after He Pingsheng’s Death-Substitute Puppet took a fatal blow, the emperor tracked its escape and pursued him through a spatial passage.

• Duan Feihong stopped Demon Emperor Hollow from killing He Pingsheng and blocked the emperor’s strike with his sword intent.
• Demon Emperor Hollow summoned his clone, which intercepted He Pingsheng as he fled and struck through his defenses.
• He Pingsheng used the Nine-Heavens Mystic Fire to form a Fire Lotus Platform, but his magic power ran dry.
• The clone blasted He Pingsheng apart, but his Death-Substitute Puppet took the blow and teleported him away.
• Demon Emperor Hollow followed the puppet’s aura through a spatial passage to pursue He Pingsheng.

He Pingsheng escaped Demon Emperor Hollow with a Death-Substitute Puppet, but Hollow tracked him down and attacked again. Zither Maiden Hong Luo’s hidden sonic power killed Hollow and saved He Pingsheng, who fled before the Phoenix Race arrived, leaving Hong Luo to face a gray-robed old man.

• He Pingsheng teleported to a mountain canyon with his Death-Substitute Puppet, but Demon Emperor Hollow used spatial arts to find him and seal his escape.
• He Pingsheng could not control his body or call on the Nine-Heavens Mystic Fire as Hollow struck, and a red sonic thread burst from his chest and killed Hollow.
• He Pingsheng recognized the attack as the zither music of Maiden Hong Luo, who appeared and explained that she had secretly left its power within him.
• Hong Luo told He Pingsheng that she was an unbound immortal who lost a hundred thousand years of lifespan by saving him, and warned that the Phoenix Race was approaching.
• He Pingsheng opened a spatial passage and escaped, while Hong Luo erased its traces before a gray-robed old man arrived and questioned her about acting against Hollow.

After emerging in an unfamiliar place, He Pingsheng reached Bamboo Joint City and learned it belonged to the unknown Divine Thunder Emperor Domain. He went to the Bamboo Joint Commerce Association to buy a map, paying with a high-grade spirit stone and arranging to receive the change in low-grade stones.

• He Pingsheng traveled down a river for about a month before reaching Bamboo Joint City, where he learned it was in the Divine Thunder Emperor Domain.
• He Pingsheng hired a spirit rabbit to take him to the Bamboo Joint Commerce Association.
• He Pingsheng asked for maps of the Emperor Domain and the continent, but the association had no continent-wide map.
• Manager Cui showed He Pingsheng the Divine Thunder Emperor Domain map, priced at one million low-grade spirit stones.
• He Pingsheng paid with a high-grade spirit stone, and Manager Cui agreed to return nine million low-grade spirit stones in change.

He Pingsheng left Bamboo Joint City with nine million spirit stones and learned that he had arrived on the Thunderwaste Continent. After discovering that he had advanced to the eleventh layer of the void refinement realm, he decided to seek resources in the Divine Thunder Imperial Capital, but spotted several suspicious cultivators approaching him.

• He Pingsheng collected ninety Storage Bags holding nine million spirit stones from Shopkeeper Cui and left Bamboo Joint City on the rabbit.
• He Pingsheng learned from the rabbit and his map that he was in the Divine Thunder Emperor Domain on the Thunderwaste Continent, far from the Heavenly Fire Continent.
• He Pingsheng discovered that he had advanced from the tenth to the eleventh layer of the void refinement realm after experiencing life and death during Demon Emperor Hollow's attack.
• He Pingsheng chose to travel to the Divine Thunder Imperial Capital to find resources, including sixth-grade spirit liquid and pills.
• He Pingsheng noticed several furtive streaks of light pursuing him and decided to wait and see who was coming.

He Pingsheng was ambushed by Shopkeeper Cui, the young city lord, and three companions, who coveted his spirit stones and treasures. After killing the young city lord, He Pingsheng faced the old city lord, who attacked him with a Divine Sense Flying Knife.

• Shopkeeper Cui led the young city lord and three companions to surround He Pingsheng and demand his High-Grade Spirit Stones.
• He Pingsheng revealed the Silver River Heavenly Shuttle, the Spacetime Golden Banner, and tens of thousands of supreme grade spirit stones, but the young city lord grew greedier.
• The young city lord ordered his companions to attack, and He Pingsheng killed the three companions without moving.
• The young city lord sent a message to his grandfather, but He Pingsheng struck him down before the old city lord could arrive.
• The old city lord gathered his grandson's soul, learned that He Pingsheng possessed Imperial Armaments, and attacked with a Divine Sense Flying Knife after rejecting He Pingsheng's warning.

He Pingsheng defeated the lord of Bamboo Joint City, but the Divine Emperor of Light arrived and demanded compensation under false pretenses. When He Pingsheng refused and the Divine Emperor attacked, He Pingsheng used Feng Wu and the Spacetime Golden Banner to trap him, leaving the Divine Emperor alarmed by the Imperial Armament.

• He Pingsheng shattered the city lord’s Divine Sense knives with his Divine Soul treasure and defeated him with a powerful punch, forcing him to beg for mercy.
• The Divine Emperor of Light arrived and questioned He Pingsheng and the city lord about spatial fluctuations he had sensed a month earlier.
• The Divine Emperor of Light accused He Pingsheng of bullying weaker cultivators and ordered him to compensate the city lord, but He Pingsheng refused.
• The Divine Emperor of Light attacked He Pingsheng with a palm of Daoist laws, and He Pingsheng vanished from its path.
• He Pingsheng released Feng Wu, who unfurled the Spacetime Golden Banner and suppressed spatial power across ten thousand li.
• The Divine Emperor of Light recognized the banner as an Imperial Armament and demanded to know who He Pingsheng was.

He Pingsheng and Feng Wu ambushed and killed the Divine Emperor of Light’s main body, then waited for his remaining avatar to respond. As they prepared to pursue him to the capital, He Pingsheng opened Wang Dun’s jade-box reward and discovered a Nirvana Divine Stone.

• Feng Wu distracted the Divine Emperor of Light while He Pingsheng struck him with Spear-Wielder Unity, leaving him gravely wounded.
• He Pingsheng killed the lord of Bamboo Joint City after the city lord begged for mercy, and Feng Wu reported that the Divine Emperor of Light’s soul had gone toward the capital.
• He Pingsheng and Feng Wu waited half a day for the Divine Emperor of Light’s avatar, but it did not appear.
• He Pingsheng planned to lure the avatar by opening a Spatial Passage near the capital, but decided to wait before acting.
• He Pingsheng opened Wang Dun’s jade box and found a Nirvana Divine Stone, which Feng Wu said was left behind by deceased Phoenix Race Mahayana Emperor Realm cultivators.

Agelei detected a spatial fluctuation and went to investigate, where He Pingsheng and Feng Wu ambushed him. Poisoned and unable to resist, Agelei fell into a valley as Feng Wu went to finish him off.

• After refusing to risk his life pursuing He Pingsheng, Agelei began gathering materials to form a new clone.
• Agelei detected a spatial fluctuation north of the imperial city and teleported to a deserted mountain wilderness to investigate.
• He Pingsheng, disguised as a woman, told Agelei that a spatial vortex had appeared there and lured him into the Spacetime Golden Banner’s range.
• He Pingsheng attacked Agelei with poison thorns and Formless Big Dipper Nails, overwhelming him with poison and damage to his sea of consciousness.
• Agelei fled but collapsed in a valley, and He Pingsheng told Feng Wu to approach cautiously and finish him off.

He Pingsheng learned about the Thunderwaste Continent from his new slave, Agelei, then spent twenty-four years refining two treasures and improving his divine sense. He left Agelei’s domain and reached the imperial capital of the Divine Thunder Emperor Domain.

• Agelei told He Pingsheng about the Thunderwaste Continent’s abundant spirit herbs, innate true lightnings, and thirty-six emperor domains.
• He Pingsheng plundered Agelei’s treasury, found no useful high-grade talismans, and considered the treasures he still needed to enhance.
• He Pingsheng refined the Lower Carapace and Spacetime Golden Banner over twenty-four years and raised his [Mysterious Gate Tranquil Mind True Formula] to the eleventh layer of its Void Refining Chapter.
• The Divine Emperor of Light reported that he had re-formed his avatar, and He Pingsheng ordered him to build a palace before departing through a void passage.
• He Pingsheng emerged near the Divine Thunder Emperor Domain, flew for a day on the Silver River Heavenly Shuttle, and arrived at its emperor city.

He Pingsheng visited the Mountain Spring Commerce Association to acquire ingredients for refining Seven-Colored Sacred Lotus Tea. He bought all seven Cloudmist Spirit Tea leaves and paid a deposit for several Seven-Colored Sacred Lotus Seeds, which were expected to arrive within a month.

• He Pingsheng entered the Mountain Spring Commerce Association openly displaying his eleventh-layer Void Refinement Realm cultivation and asked for Seven-Colored Sacred Lotus Seeds.
• Elder Dong told He Pingsheng that the association's seeds had been sold, but he could arrange for three to five to be transferred within half a month to a month.
• He Pingsheng found seven Cloudmist Spirit Tea leaves on display and decided to buy them all along with the incoming seeds.
• Elder Dong explained that the association bartered for precious materials and quoted ten supreme grade spirit stones per tea leaf and per lotus seed.
• He Pingsheng paid one hundred supreme grade spirit stones, covering the seven tea leaves and leaving a deposit for the lotus seeds.

He Pingsheng gathered the ingredients for Seven-Colored Sacred Lotus Tea but could not find advanced talisman or formation texts. After learning that a shop in Emperor City would be auctioned, he decided to bid on it and try running a business while tempering his state of mind.

• He Pingsheng asked Elder Dong about seventh grade talismans and advanced talisman and formation works, but the Mountain Spring Commerce Association had none to offer.
• He Pingsheng visited other commerce associations, gathered the tea ingredients except for the seven-colored sacred lotus seeds, and secluded himself outside the city to enhance his supplies.
• He Pingsheng returned a month later, received five seven-colored sacred lotus seeds from Elder Dong, and reviewed the auction lots.
• He Pingsheng noticed that a shop in a busy area of Emperor City would be auctioned for a hundred-year term and decided to try taking it over.
• Elder Dong invited He Pingsheng to the auction that night and the trading fair the following morning.

He Pingsheng won a shop on Cauldron Street for the starting bid of one hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones and completed the purchase. He learned that the street was crowded with competing pill shops, but planned to draw customers by selling enhanced pills.

• He Pingsheng studied the [Supreme Clarity Golden Liquid Scripture] while waiting for the auction to begin.
• The auction proceeded through ordinary items that He Pingsheng ignored until the Cauldron Street shop came up for bidding.
• He Pingsheng bid one hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones, and no one else placed a bid.
• Elder Dong explained that the shop had gone uncontested because Cauldron Street already had over two hundred pill shops.
• He Pingsheng completed the paperwork, received the formation key, and decided to use enhanced pills to attract customers.

He Pingsheng explored Cauldron Street and discovered how fiercely its alchemy shops competed before opening the shop he had acquired. He renamed it Taixu Alchemy Shop and put Feng Wu to work preparing it for business.

• He Pingsheng visited another alchemy shop, where a girl offered to refine fifth-grade Divine-Breaking Pills with four sets of ingredients and even proposed serving as his cultivation cauldron.
• He Pingsheng opened the auctioned shop on Cauldron Street and found its old True Fire Alchemy Shop sign still hanging above the entrance.
• The neighboring Celestial River Alchemy Shop's shopkeeper warned He Pingsheng that alchemy shops struggled to make money and suggested he sell something else.
• He Pingsheng renamed his shop Taixu Alchemy Shop and agreed to exchange supplies with the neighboring shop when either ran short.
• He Pingsheng brought Feng Wu out of his magical treasure, told him to clean the shop, and gave him pills to display.