Chapter Summaries

Phoenix Woman deflected the Cold Sect’s accusations over the Forbidden Lands by claiming she had punished Great Peng and the demons responsible. The Cold Sect and Blood Sect then demanded that she surrender Su Mo, exposing their real aim as the Demon Realm trembled under her rising pressure.

• The Cold Sect’s sect master accused the Demon Realm of slaughtering human prodigies in the Forbidden Lands, but Phoenix Woman defended the demon race’s right to enter.
• Phoenix Woman said she had expelled Great Peng and killed the demons who had committed violence in the Forbidden Lands, ending that dispute.
• The Cold Sect’s sect master raised the Demon Realm’s invasion of the Human Realm and demanded an explanation from Phoenix Woman.
• The Blood Sect’s elder accused Su Mo of using evil methods to cultivate and demanded that Phoenix Woman hand him over.
• The Cold Sect’s sect master added that Su Mo had stolen its Sacred Artifact, Frost, and demanded its return.
• Phoenix Woman’s pressure surged like a heavenly tribulation, causing the Demon Realm to shudder.

Phoenix Woman confronted the Cold and Blood Sects as Su Mo sensed outsiders had entered the Demon Realm, while the maids tried to keep him uninformed. The chapter ended with the Green-Robed Attendant relaying Su Mo’s complaint that his sealed cultivation left him unable to sense anything.

• Little Cat Demon asked why outsiders dared challenge Phoenix Venerable, and Old Tree Demon explained that they underestimated her strength and hoped to gain eternal life by devouring divine souls.
• Su Mo noticed pressure beyond Phoenix Palace and asked the maids whether outsiders had come for him, but the Green-Robed Attendant denied it.
• Phoenix Woman told the Cold Sect Master she did not know Su Mo and claimed Su Jingyan had left after their transaction ended.
• The Green-Robed Attendant arrived and told Phoenix Woman that Su Mo was uncomfortable because his cultivation remained sealed and he could not sense anything.

Phoenix Woman refused the Cold Sect and Blood Sect’s demands to hand over Su Mo while exchanging messages with him through the Green-Robed Attendant. She left to cook for him and ordered the demons to kill the intruders if they remained after three breaths.

• Phoenix Woman warned the Green-Robed Attendant to tell Su Mo to endure the pain, then refused the Cold Sect Sect Master’s demand to hand him over.
• The Green-Robed Attendant relayed Su Mo’s complaints about being hungry, and Phoenix Woman angrily answered that he could starve.
• The Blood Sect Sect Master claimed Su Mo was inside the Phoenix Palace, and Phoenix Woman injured him with a wave of pressure.
• Phoenix Woman and Su Mo argued through the Green-Robed Attendant about his seal and whether he should leave the palace.
• Su Mo said he did not want others to die for his sake, and Phoenix Woman agreed to cook for him.
• Phoenix Woman ordered the demons to give the sect members three breaths to leave, then kill them without mercy, and headed to the bedchamber.

The Cold and Blood Sects left the Demon Realm after Phoenix Woman refused to hand Su Mo over, while their greater demons expected the sects to return with powerful elders. Su Mo told Phoenix Woman he planned to leave before more realms came after his Soul Incense ability, and the chapter ended with her wondering where he could go.

• Phoenix Woman left the Cold and Blood Sects to face the Demon Realm’s greater demons, and the sects withdrew to report to their Ancestors.
• A fox demon said Phoenix Woman was avoiding a fight with the sects’ powerful elders, while a monkey demon suggested she had not noticed her own feelings for Su Mo.
• Two graceful women watched the sects depart, and the gauze-clad figure suspected Su Mo’s natal Spirit Artifact had caused his predicament.
• Phoenix Woman told Su Mo that representatives of the Cold Sect of the Seventh Realm and Blood Sect of the Sixth Realm had come for him.
• Su Mo said other realms and powerful old monsters would soon pursue his Soul Incense ability, and he planned to leave because he believed no one could harm him once he was gone.
• Phoenix Woman watched Su Mo standing in the snow and wondered where he could go.

Su Mo told Phoenix Woman that fear of his ill-omened fate had made him keep others at a distance, but she chose to stay beside him despite the risks. They reconciled as they prepared for the coming invasion of powerful outsiders, though the Demon Realm’s coming turmoil remained unresolved.

• Su Mo explained that he could no longer return to the Ninth or Eighth Realm and planned to retreat to the Divine Mountain, while Phoenix Woman said the Demon Realm’s affairs were not finished.
• Su Mo confessed to Phoenix Woman that he feared his presence would bring harm to those close to him, so he had avoided staying with people or asking them not to leave.
• Phoenix Woman told Su Mo that beyond Karma there was the human heart, then declared she would not fear becoming entangled with him and broke the distance between them.
• Su Mo and Phoenix Woman resumed their familiar conversation, discussed the approaching return of powerful enemies, and argued over whether she should remove his seal.
• The attendants listened to Su Mo and Phoenix Woman speaking in the Sleeping Hall, speculated about their relationship, and worried about the turmoil ahead.

Su Mo endured Phoenix Woman’s cooking and tended the Flowers of the Other Shore, while Luo Yin heard the world condemn him based on rumors. A Sacred Artifact Banner reached the Demon Realm to accuse Su Mo, and Phoenix Woman confronted the old man leading it.

• Su Mo ate Phoenix Woman’s awful cooking, then brushed snow from the Flowers of the Other Shore as he anticipated a world covered in their blooms.
• Luo Yin left the Academy after meeting the Confucian Sage Remnant Soul, carrying his warning that the Omen would arrive before the Calamity of the Nine Heavens.
• At a teahouse and along the streets, Luo Yin heard people accuse Su Mo of devouring Divine Souls and conspiring with the Demon Realm, and she continued toward the Demon Realm in grief.
• A blood-red Sacred Artifact Banner crossed the sky toward the Demon Realm, proclaiming that heaven and earth would not tolerate Su Mo.
• The Demon Realm’s protective light stopped the Banner, and Phoenix Woman appeared to confront the old man standing upon it.

Phoenix Woman confronted the Blood Sect Ancestor and Han Ye, who accused Su Mo of colluding with Great Peng and demanded that she hand him over. As she prepared to defend Su Mo by force, a third powerful elder arrived in a dragon carriage.

• The Blood Sect Ancestor arrived on the Blood-Soul Banner and accused Su Mo of bringing calamity to the world.
• Phoenix Woman summoned the Phoenix Palace, but Han Ye appeared and joined the Blood Sect Ancestor.
• Han Ye claimed Su Mo had colluded with Great Peng and demanded that Phoenix Woman surrender him.
• The Green-Robed Attendant defended Su Mo, but Phoenix Woman told her to stand down and refused to keep explaining.
• A dragon carriage arrived beside the two sect Ancestors, and an old man in imperial robes stepped out to address Phoenix Woman.

Phoenix Woman refused to surrender Su Mo to the Cold Sect Ancestor, Blood Sect Ancestor, and Great Xia Imperial Dynasty Ancestor, despite their threats against the Demon Realm. The Old Tree Demon and Divine Crow emerged as reinforcements, but the Imperial Dynasty Ancestor remained determined to capture Su Mo, setting the stage for a battle between six Difficult Realm experts.

• The Great Xia Imperial Dynasty Ancestor joined the Cold Sect Ancestor and Blood Sect Ancestor in demanding that Phoenix Woman hand over Su Mo for his Dao Arts.
• Phoenix Woman refused, and the Imperial Dynasty Ancestor threatened the Demon Realm's people if she continued to resist.
• The Old Tree Demon and Divine Crow appeared from within the Demon Realm Barrier and stood with Phoenix Woman.
• The Old Tree Demon warned the three intruders that a battle would devastate their own realm, but the Imperial Dynasty Ancestor insisted they would capture Su Mo even if many people died.

Su Mo emerged from Phoenix Palace as Phoenix Woman and the Demon Realm’s elders faced down the Cold Sect, Blood Sect, and Imperial Dynasty. While the crowd branded him a calamity and the elders demanded he surrender, a hundred-zhang figure burst from the void with a roar.

• Phoenix Woman released Su Mo from Phoenix Palace after he asked her to end the standoff.
• The people below cursed Su Mo, while a hidden woman in white watched and wondered if he had prepared for this.
• Phoenix Woman explained that the Demon Realm’s support would show the world Su Mo had a home, and the Old Tree Demon offered to kill his enemies.
• The Imperial Dynasty elder accused Su Mo of evil deeds and demanded that he surrender for an investigation, as the crowd’s hatred grew.
• A hundred-zhang figure burst from the void and roared, silencing the people below.

Su Mo refused the elders’ demands and prepared to leave with Big Strong after the crowd’s hostility drove him away. As the Blood Sect’s Ancestor moved to stop them, an unseen speaker from above declared that they wanted to see who dared bully Su Mo.

• Big Strong arrived in a fury but calmed when Su Mo called him back, and Su Mo refused to go with the Imperial Dynasty’s elder and the other two.
• The Blood Sect’s Ancestor attacked Su Mo with a curse, but Phoenix Woman’s divine crow destroyed it, while Big Strong turned savage again.
• Su Mo said he was leaving for the Divine Realm, then mounted Big Strong as the Green-Robed Attendant tearfully defended him and wished him well.
• The Blood Sect’s Ancestor struck the Blood-Soul Banner to stop Su Mo, but a voice from above asked who dared bully its little brother.

Great Calamity and Mysterious Maiden appeared as Su Mo was preparing to leave, and Great Calamity comforted him before confronting the Imperial Dynasty elder and his companions. Divine Tree and Divine Crow recognized the women as the Netherworld Lord and Spirit Lord, and Mysterious Maiden revealed cultivation close to the Sage realm.

• Great Calamity and Mysterious Maiden emerged from the void, and the Void Beast rushed to them while Su Mo greeted them as his elder sisters.
• Great Calamity embraced Su Mo, then told him to watch as she dealt with the people who had hurt him.
• Great Calamity demanded that the Imperial Dynasty elder and his two companions sever their arms and cripple half their cultivation, while Mysterious Maiden warned them to comply.
• Divine Crow and Divine Tree bowed to Great Calamity and Mysterious Maiden, recognizing them as the Netherworld Lord and Spirit Lord.
• Mysterious Maiden released a trace of her cultivation aura, leaving the Imperial Dynasty elder and his companions pale at its nearness to the Sage realm.

The Great Calamity and the Mysterious Maiden revealed themselves as Su Mo’s older sisters and confronted the three Difficult Realm cultivators who had mistreated him. The Great Calamity sent her Ghost Guards to slaughter their blood relatives and sects, leaving the three men desperate as they realized her threat was real.

• The Great Calamity warned the Imperial Dynasty's elder, the Blood Sect Ancestor, and the Cold Sect Ancestor that she would target their families and clans if they continued to bully Su Mo.
• The Mysterious Maiden said she would help the Great Calamity, and the Great Calamity summoned over a hundred Inquiry Realm Ghost Guards.
• The Ghost Guards knelt before the Great Calamity, who ordered them to find and kill every blood relative and clansman of the three cultivators.
• The Imperial Dynasty's elder sensed that some of his bloodline ties had been severed, while the Blood Sect Ancestor and the Cold Sect Ancestor received pleas for help from their sects.
• The Imperial Dynasty's elder shouted for the Great Calamity to stop, and she asked whether he now believed her threat.

Great Calamity forced the Imperial Dynasty elder and the Cold Sect and Blood Sect Ancestors to choose between dying and endangering their clansmen, and all three sacrificed themselves. Their Soul Incense raised Su Mo's cultivation to Spirit Transformation perfection and led him to question sentiment, bringing him into the Sentiment-Questioning Realm.

• Great Calamity refused the Imperial Dynasty elder's plea to spare their clansmen unless he and the other Ancestors took their own lives.
• The Imperial Dynasty elder performed Liberation by Violence, dispersing his cultivation and vanishing.
• The Cold Sect and Blood Sect Ancestors warned Su Mo that devouring Divine Souls could expose him to their sentiments, and the Blood Sect Ancestor gave him the Blood-Soul Banner as a safeguard.
• The Cold Sect and Blood Sect Ancestors performed Liberation by Violence and asked Great Calamity to spare their clansmen.
• Su Mo absorbed the three Ancestors' Soul Incense, which contained attachment and concern for their clans and raised his cultivation to Spirit Transformation perfection.
• Su Mo pondered the meaning of sentiment and entered the Sentiment-Questioning Realm.

After killing the three Ancestors and reaching the Inquiry Realm, Su Mo left for the Nine Realms with Great Calamity, Mysterious Maiden, Luo Yin, and the Void Beast, while leaving Little Fish with Phoenix Woman. As the group headed toward the Rain Sect, the world continued to fear Su Mo, and Red Mist began pouring out of a desolate Divine Realm.

• The three Ancestors’ deaths helped Su Mo enter the Inquiry Realm, but the people below remained terrified of his ability to absorb the Divine Soul power of the dead.
• Su Mo decided to return to the Nine Realms, and Phoenix Woman asked him to leave Little Fish with her; Su Mo agreed and entrusted Little Fish to her care.
• Luo Yin approached Su Mo and said that she, Gu Yu, and the others had met someone and learned a few things, but she did not explain further.
• Su Mo and his companions set off toward the Rain Sect, while people along their route avoided them and the Void Beast roared at those who feared Su Mo.
• Red Mist surged through a desolate Divine Realm, drove several Exotic Beasts mad, and forced open a crack through which it poured out.

Su Mo visited the Rain Sect and asked Du Pingsheng what love was, then told his master he planned to withdraw from the world’s affairs. Before leaving, he learned Little Qing Yi had gone traveling to defend his reputation, while Du Pingsheng chose to remain at the sect.

• Su Mo asked Du Pingsheng what love was, and Du Pingsheng told him to question his own heart.
• Su Mo said he wanted to find a secluded place and live in isolation, but Du Pingsheng declined to leave the Rain Sect with him.
• Du Pingsheng told Su Mo that Little Qing Yi had been upset by the rumors against him and went to fetch her.
• Du Pingsheng returned with Little Qing Yi’s letter, which explained that she had left to travel and prove Su Mo was not evil.
• Du Pingsheng promised to have someone find and secretly protect Little Qing Yi, while Su Mo put away her letter.
• Su Mo and Luo Yin left the Rain Sect together, and Du Pingsheng remained behind.

Prince Ying told his pregnant Princess Consort that Su Mo had disappeared and the National Fortune Power had fallen asleep, leaving rebellions in the former nations beyond the Hundred Ghosts’ reach. Prince Ying planned to lead a campaign against the rebels, and his Princess Consort insisted on going with him, leaving them set to depart together.

• Prince Ying returned from court and tried to hide the unrest from his Princess Consort, but she sensed his worry.
• Prince Ying explained that Su Mo had disappeared, the National Fortune Power was asleep, and princes of former nations were rebelling.
• Prince Ying said the Hundred Ghosts could not judge the rebels’ actions or the violence carried out through their soldiers while National Fortune slept.
• Prince Ying decided to lead troops against the rebellious princes, and his pregnant Princess Consort insisted on accompanying him.
• Prince Ying agreed to let her go with him, provided she did not intervene unless necessary.

After Prince Ying and his pregnant princess consort marched to suppress Yang Kai’s rebellion, Yang Kai claimed Su Mo was dead and challenged the legitimacy of Prince Ying’s rule. Prince Ying summoned the National Fortune Token and called on the sleeping National Fortune Power as he prepared to fight Yang Kai.

• Prince Ying and his princess consort worried over Su Mo’s long absence and the National Fortune Power’s slumber.
• Prince Ying issued a proclamation announcing that he would personally suppress the rebellions led by Yang Li, Yan Kai, and Zhuo Ji.
• At Cold Pass, a general explained that Yang Kai’s Spirit Transformation cultivation and the million civilians inside made an assault impossible.
• Prince Ying declared that he would face Yang Kai, and his princess consort insisted on accompanying him despite her pregnancy.
• Yang Kai argued that the National Sacrifice Bell and the National Fortune Power’s slumber proved Su Mo was dead, enraging Prince Ying’s princess consort.
• Prince Ying summoned the Holy King Spear, then poured Spiritual Power into the National Fortune Token and asked it to lend him the National Fortune Power.

Prince Ying awakened national fortune power to fight Yang Kai, while seeing the brutality of Yang Kai’s rule and condemning him. Though Yang Kai proved stronger in Spirit Transformation intent, Prince Ying summoned the Holy King’s power and continued attacking as the backlash rapidly drained him.

• Prince Ying used national fortune power to reach Spirit Transformation and saw the slaughter of civilians in Yang Kai’s territory, then condemned Yang Kai.
• Yang Kai said the Human Emperor was dead and defended his actions, while Prince Ying realized awakening national fortune was rapidly consuming his Divine Soul.
• Prince Ying attacked with the Holy King Spear, but Yang Kai countered with a saber strike that showed his superior understanding of Spirit Transformation.
• Prince Ying’s Princess Consort recognized his worsening condition but did not intervene after seeing his resistance.
• Prince Ying summoned the Holy King’s phantom, which shattered Yang Kai’s saber and struck at him; Yang Kai blocked the attack with his Cold Domain.
• Prince Ying shouted the Holy King Second Form despite the backlash draining him.

Prince Ying’s Princess Consort borrowed National Fortune Power to battle Yang Kai, despite its deadly backlash to her and her unborn child. As Yang Kai resisted her forbidden arts, National Fortune awakened fully and destroyed him, just as the Human Emperor returned.

• Yang Kai shattered Prince Ying’s Divine Soul Spear, forcing Prince Ying’s Princess Consort to take the National Fortune Token and borrow its power.
• Prince Ying’s Princess Consort reached late-stage Spirit Transformation, while the backlash began harming her Divine Soul and the unborn child.
• She attacked Yang Kai with Mount Sumeri’s forbidden arts, but he escaped Shared Destruction and resisted A Grain of Sumeri.
• The unborn child’s aura vanished, and Prince Ying’s Princess Consort coughed blood as Yang Kai realized she could no longer hold on.
• National Fortune fully awakened, turning her power into a force that drove the starlight into Yang Kai and erased him.
• The Human Emperor returned to Prince Ying and his princess consort on an Exotic Beast.

Su Mo returned to the Ninth Heaven and used his Inquiry Realm cultivation and the vitality of the Ninth Realm to revive the lifeless fetus in Prince Ying's Princess Consort's womb. After healing the fetus's injured Divine Soul with a seed of the Flower of the Other Shore, he assured Prince Ying and his wife that everything would be all right.

• Su Mo's return awakened the National Fortune Power, and the Hundred Ghosts entered the world to settle karmic accounts.
• Su Mo discovered that the fetus in Prince Ying's Princess Consort's womb had lost all signs of life and gently tried to revive it with the power of plants and trees.
• Su Mo formed a Heaven and Earth Pill Furnace and drew in the vitality of the Ninth Realm's plants and trees, restoring the fetus's life.
• Su Mo sensed that the fetus's Divine Soul remained injured and sent a seed of the Flower of the Other Shore into the womb to help it recover.
• The fetus stirred faintly, and Su Mo reassured Prince Ying and his wife that everything would be all right.