Chapter Summaries

Di Xin used braised pork to win Yun Zhongzi’s goodwill and tease him into compensating the court for the meal and an iron wok. Yun Zhongzi gave Di Xin a thundercloud-pine sword for the favor, leaving Di Xin furious when he realized it was the very sword he had expected Yun Zhongzi to give him anyway.

• Yun Zhongzi savored Di Xin’s braised pork, then pushed Di Xin away when he tried to take more.
• Queen Jiang, Yin Hong, and Yin Jiao arrived drawn by the food’s aroma, but Di Xin told them Yun Zhongzi had eaten it all.
• Heavenly Dao merit descended on Di Xin and the artisans who had made the iron woks, and Di Xin teased Yun Zhongzi about his merit golden body.
• Yun Zhongzi asked for an iron wok, and Di Xin pressed him to repay the meal with something valuable; Yin Hong and Yin Jiao also scolded him for asking.
• Yun Zhongzi gave Di Xin a thundercloud-pine wooden sword effective against demons, and Di Xin recognized it as the sword he had expected to receive from him.

Di Xin used Yun Zhongzi’s gifts and his desire for merit to persuade him to travel beyond the seas in search of famine-resistant crops and chili peppers. Yun Zhongzi left with Di Xin’s recipes and equipment, intrigued by the crops that could benefit Great Shang.

• Di Xin accepted Yun Zhongzi’s Pine Wooden Sword, then publicly praised its generosity to embarrass Yun Zhongzi into offering a Knockoff Heaven-Flipping Seal and a Knockoff Purple Ribbon Immortal Robe.
• Di Xin gave Yun Zhongzi an iron wok, seasonings, and recipes for braised pork and other dishes.
• Di Xin claimed that Sage Sovereign Shennong had revealed crops beyond the seas, including potatoes and other high-yield staples that could help people survive famine.
• Di Xin described a tall crop with large ears and seeds, then explained that potatoes would go well with braised pork.
• Di Xin described chili peppers as a pungent vegetable and seasoning, while Yun Zhongzi questioned whether they could serve as staple food.

Di Xin sent Yun Zhongzi across the ocean to search for high-yield crops, hoping to save lives and alter the course of Investiture of the Gods. After sharing a meal with Yin Hong, Yin Jiao, and Queen Jiang, Di Xin gave in to the attraction between them.

• Yun Zhongzi agreed to search for the crops Di Xin described, and Di Xin gave him supplies and several Spiritual Treasures.
• Di Xin teased Yun Zhongzi about lacking a sagehood seat, and Yun Zhongzi flew across the ocean to investigate.
• Yin Hong and Yin Jiao watched Yun Zhongzi depart, then helped Di Xin cook braised pork while he reassured them about their futures.
• Di Xin decided to keep the boys with him rather than send them to cultivate with Yun Zhongzi, while Queen Jiang’s affection for him increased.
• After the family shared a meal, Di Xin rebuked Queen Jiang for being vulgar, then changed his mind and reached toward her.

Di Xin harvested negative emotion points from his sons, received a disappointing system reward, and prepared to confront Daji. He headed for Shouxian Palace with Yun Zhongzi’s sword, hoping to subdue the fox demon and recruit the Qingqiu Fox lineage.

• Di Xin stopped his intimate moment with Queen Jiang when Yin Jiao and Yin Hong arrived, then spanked them to gain negative emotion points.
• Di Xin left the princes worried that he might hit them again, while Queen Jiang praised his parenting and fled when she thought he was making advances.
• Di Xin checked his Consort's Infatuation reward and found Dao-Merging Grass that raised his Minor Pickpocketing Art mastery by only two points.
• Di Xin took the Pinewood Tai'a Sword and set out for Shouxian Palace to confront Daji and seek leverage over the Qingqiu Fox lineage.

Di Xin used a chicken drumstick to provoke Daji, then revealed the Pinewood Juque Sword and forced her to reveal her true form as a nine-tailed fox. Daji feared that powerful figures were playing a grand game and that she was only a pawn.

• Di Xin visited Daji with a chicken drumstick and teased her by eating it while she watched.
• Daji lost control of her anger and lunged at Di Xin, who revealed the Pinewood Juque Sword.
• The sword’s overwhelming pressure left Daji trembling on the floor, and she wondered why a Chan Sect disciple had armed Di Xin against her.
• Di Xin commanded Daji to reveal her true form, and the sword’s power transformed her into a nine-tailed fox.
• Daji realized Di Xin had known her identity and suspected that she was a pawn in a larger scheme.

Di Xin convinced Daji that Empress Nuwa planned to leave her bearing the karmic burdens of Great Shang’s downfall. He offered her a way to survive, and the chapter ended with Daji swearing eternal loyalty to him.

• Di Xin told Daji he knew she had been sent to throw Great Shang into chaos in exchange for spiritual fruition.
• Di Xin warned Daji that Empress Nuwa would not shoulder the karmic debts of the calamity, citing her failure to save Eastern Emperor Taiyi.
• Daji feared Empress Nuwa intended to abandon her and realized that spiritual fruition might bring only death.
• Di Xin claimed a powerful being behind him could protect Daji and offered help if she pledged her loyalty.
• Daji swore upon the Heavenly Dao never to betray Di Xin and said he could command her as he pleased.

Di Xin broke Daji’s bewitchment and ordered her to help him recruit the scattered Demon Tribe, while claiming to be the Demon Emperor. The chapter left Daji in his arms after she accepted his command and misunderstood his invitation to return to human form.

• Nuwa sensed that Shang’s fortune had unexpectedly gained another stretch but decided the anomaly would not change Heaven’s decree.
• Di Xin questioned Daji about the Demon Tribe and learned that it was scattered among several factions and that she knew Ao Yu of the East Sea Dragon Palace.
• Di Xin ordered Daji to summon her two younger sisters and serve as his representative in gathering Demon Tribe experts.
• Di Xin claimed to be the Demon Emperor, shocking Daji and making her wonder whether he was Di Jun’s reincarnation.
• Daji returned to human form and leaned into Di Xin’s arms, and the two shared a day of pleasure.

Di Xin rewarded Zheng Lun’s loyalty and sent him to recruit his Chan Sect acquaintances to serve Great Shang, then summoned Bi Gan while considering how to use his system points. Outside the palace, Su Hu tried to turn Zheng Lun against Di Xin, but Zheng Lun defended the emperor, and Su Hu began probing what task he had been given.

• Di Xin gained Daji’s affection and unlocked her Infatuation side quest after their encounter.
• Di Xin urged Zheng Lun to invite his fellow disciples to Chaoge, promising him rank and rewards; Zheng Lun accepted and set out to write letters.
• Di Xin decided to summon Bi Gan and save half his negative emotion points for cultivation breakthroughs while using the rest for draws and exchanges.
• Su Hu met Zheng Lun outside the palace and complained that he could not return to Jizhou, earning Di Xin negative emotion points.
• Zheng Lun defended Di Xin’s treatment of Su Hu, who then asked what mission the emperor had assigned him.

Zheng Lun rejected Su Hu’s attempt to turn him against Di Xin, severed their ties, and affirmed his unwavering loyalty to Great Shang. After Zheng Lun’s loyalty mission was completed, Di Xin explored the newly unlocked Achievement Shop and discovered an array of powerful cultivation arts and treasures.

• Zheng Lun told Su Hu that Di Xin had ordered him to invite his former fellow disciples to serve Great Shang, prompting Su Hu to accuse Di Xin of trying to undermine Zheng Lun’s position.
• Su Hu tried to sow distrust between Zheng Lun and Di Xin, but Zheng Lun defended the emperor’s promise to honor his standing and condemned Su Hu for stirring discord.
• Zheng Lun ended their master-disciple relationship, left Su Hu behind, and taunted him about Daji, causing Su Hu to vomit blood.
• Di Xin received confirmation that Zheng Lun had reached full loyalty and completed the Unwavering Loyalty of a Subject mission.
• Di Xin claimed his mission rewards, unlocked the Achievement Shop, and eagerly examined its cultivation arts and spiritual treasures.

Bi Gan gathered Huang Feihu, Fang Bi, and Fang Xiang to plot forcing Di Xin's hand at the palace, believing it would make the king mend his ways. Jiang Ziya arrived and proved his divination by predicting a palace summons for Bi Gan, leaving the group convinced he might help them overcome Zheng Lun.

• Di Xin rejected the Four Immortal-Slaying Swords because their achievement-point cost was impossibly high and waited for Bi Gan to arrive.
• Bi Gan urged Huang Feihu, Fang Bi, and Fang Xiang to oppose Di Xin, then proposed forcing the king's hand at the palace.
• Yang Ren backed Bi Gan's plan and introduced his friend Jiang Shang, also known as Jiang Ziya and Flying Bear, who claimed powerful Daoist abilities.
• Jiang Ziya predicted that someone from the palace would soon summon Bi Gan, and a servant arrived moments later with exactly that request.
• Fang Bi told Bi Gan to hear the palace's message and suggested they would force Di Xin's hand if he continued causing trouble, with Jiang Ziya's help.

Jiang Ziya demonstrated his powers to Huang Feihu and the others, while Di Xin grew wary after detecting their shared resentment through his system. He ordered Bi Gan to organize refugees to build Deer Terrace, leaving Bi Gan protesting that the project would exhaust the people and squander their wealth.

• Jiang Ziya summoned the Five-Road Gods and used Samadhi True Fire to nearly burn the Water-Road God, impressing Huang Feihu, Yang Ren, Fang Bi, and Fang Xiang.
• Jiang Ziya told the others he had captured the Five-Road Gods for disrupting his friend's tower construction, while the spirits silently revealed that the tower would have deprived them of the earth's fortune they needed to survive and cultivate.
• Di Xin detected matching Negative Emotion Points from Huang Feihu, Yang Ren, Fang Bi, and Fang Xiang, suspected they were plotting together, and resolved to investigate and strengthen himself.
• Bi Gan arrived at Di Xin's summons, and Di Xin ordered him to gather the refugees and find able-bodied young men to build Deer Terrace.
• Bi Gan protested that the project would exhaust the people and squander their wealth, but Di Xin forced him to kneel and challenged him for pretending not to understand.

Di Xin provoked Bi Gan while ordering him to oversee plans for an extravagant construction project, then realized Bi Gan and other ministers were gathering to force his hand. As Di Xin prepared to advance his cultivation and confront them, the system unlocked the side quest “Slay the Human Traitors.”

• Di Xin gave Bi Gan plans for a major construction project and ordered him to carry them out, enraging the prime minister.
• Di Xin mocked Bi Gan until Bi Gan left the palace determined to force the king’s hand with Huang Feihu, Fang Bi, Fang Xiang, Yang Ren, and Jiang Ziya.
• Di Xin noticed the ministers’ Negative Emotion Points arrive almost simultaneously and concluded that they were plotting against him.
• Di Xin decided to advance to the qi refining into spirit realm and meet the ministers as a tyrant.
• The system detected Jiang Ziya’s Negative Emotion Points and unlocked the side quest “Slay the Human Traitors.”

Di Xin learned that Jiang Ziya had arrived in Chaoge and resolved to thwart the conspirators after reaching the Qi Refining into Spirit Realm. He broke through, gained several basic techniques, and set out to visit Daji.

• Di Xin recognized Jiang Ziya as a dangerous figure and decided to catch the plotters behind their attempt to force his hand.
• Di Xin spent 50,000 Negative Emotion Points to break through to the Qi Refining into Spirit Realm, allowing his primordial spirit to leave his body.
• The system unlocked basic Escape, Five Elements, Thunder, and Talisman techniques for Di Xin.
• Di Xin tested his new Thunder Technique by destroying an ornamental rock formation with a ball of lightning.
• Di Xin dismissed the palace attendants’ concerns and ordered his conveyance to Shouxian Palace to spend the night with Daji.

Di Xin learned about the extraordinary origins and abilities of Daji’s sisters, who were on their way to Chaoge, and spent the night with Daji. The next morning, Jiang Ziya confronted Zheng Lun and claimed authority as his martial uncle, but Zheng Lun rejected his claim.

• Daji told Di Xin that the Jade Pipa Spirit had a powerful primordial form despite her low cultivation, and described Hu Ximei as a Nine-Headed Pheasant Spirit with phoenix blood.
• Daji said her sisters would arrive in Chaoge the next morning, and Di Xin rewarded her by asking to see her fox ears and nine tails.
• After spending the night with Daji, Di Xin skipped morning court as the sun rose high.
• Zheng Lun prepared to report for duty after secretly inviting friends from Cloudlight Cave to Chaoge.
• Jiang Ziya confronted Zheng Lun, identified himself as a disciple of Heavenly Lord Yuanshi, and ordered him to leave Chaoge and confess to Du'e.
• Zheng Lun laughed at Jiang Ziya and denied that he was his martial uncle, saying his master’s only Jade Void Palace fellow disciples were the Twelve Golden Immortals.

Jiang Ziya defeated Zheng Lun and went to help Bi Gan as Yang Ren and the Fang brothers attacked the palace, while Di Xin prepared to confront the rebels. After Daji struck Consort Huang and Di Xin insulted her and Huang Feihu, Empress Jiang, the princes, and Daji pledged to accompany him.

• Jiang Ziya sealed his hearing against Zheng Lun's Hum Word Technique, struck him down with lightning, and pinned his souls with Long Nails.
• Jiang Ziya trampled Zheng Lun's face and left to help Bi Gan confront Di Xin.
• Yang Ren, Fang Xiang, and Fang Bi led soldiers in an assault on the palace, and Fang Bi shot the defending general from the wall.
• Empress Jiang brought Yin Hong and Yin Jiao to Shouxian Palace as Consort Huang blamed her and Di Xin for the attack.
• Daji slapped Consort Huang, and Di Xin mocked her by calling Huang Feihu the bull-licking warrior.
• Di Xin announced that he would confront the attackers, and Empress Jiang, Yin Hong, Yin Jiao, and Daji pledged to go with him.

Di Xin confronted Yang Ren and the soldiers who had stormed the palace, then revealed his lightning magic and killed Yang Ren. The shaken soldiers were left facing Di Xin as he challenged their claim to act under heaven’s mandate.

• Di Xin arrived at the palace gates with Huang Yu as the doors shattered, and Yang Ren led Fang Xiang, Fang Bi, and the soldiers inside to capture him.
• Di Xin confronted Yang Ren and offered the soldiers a chance to surrender, but Yang Ren and the brothers rallied them to continue the coup in the name of heaven’s will.
• Di Xin summoned a sphere of purple lightning to demonstrate that he had caused the thunder, then hurled it at Yang Ren and killed him.
• The soldiers trembled at Di Xin’s display of magic, and Di Xin asked them whether this was what they called heaven’s mandate.

Di Xin killed Yang Ren and the brothers Fang Xiang and Fang Bi, earning system rewards and terrorizing their soldiers. He spared the soldiers at Queen Jiang’s request but forced them to praise him, leaving his negative emotion points at 10,000.

• Di Xin burned Yang Ren’s body and destroyed his soul, completing a hidden mission and gaining achievement and merit points.
• Di Xin seized Fang Bi and Fang Xiang with earth-element hands, killed them, and destroyed their souls, earning another hidden mission reward.
• The soldiers surrendered and begged for their lives, and Queen Jiang asked Di Xin to spare them.
• Di Xin agreed to spare the soldiers but demanded that each recite twenty unique phrases praising him.
• Di Xin made Zhang Dazhu begin the praise, and the soldiers’ negative emotion points drove his total to 10,000.

Di Xin mocked Jiang Ziya when the Daoist arrived at the palace gates, then easily thwarted his Thunder Technique and provoked him further. After Jiang Ziya attacked with crimson flames, Daji intervened with an enchantment that began to overwhelm him.

• Jiang Ziya found the soldiers kneeling at the palace gates and asked where Yang Ren, Fang Bi, and Fang Xiang had gone.
• Di Xin exposed Jiang Ziya’s humiliating past and challenged his accusation of tyranny, while the soldiers insisted their king was merely infuriating.
• Jiang Ziya invoked Heaven’s will and struck at Di Xin with a bolt of lightning, but Di Xin canceled it and taunted him.
• Jiang Ziya attacked with crimson flames, but Di Xin’s Suiren Tranquil Heart Method cleared away the negative emotions they stirred.
• Daji rose to confront Jiang Ziya and used her enchantment, causing him to see seductive figures and lose control of his breathing and body.

Jiang Ziya attacked Daji and Di Xin after Daji exposed him, but Di Xin’s Heaven-Flipping Seal stopped above Jiang Ziya as an uncanny rhythm emerged from his body. The chapter ended with Di Xin sensing that the rhythm resembled the ordained course of the Heavenly Dao.

• Jiang Ziya recovered from Daji’s influence by silently reciting the Stillness Sutra, and Daji mocked him for his lecherous behavior.
• Daji absorbed Jiang Ziya’s Samadhi True Fire with her demon core, while Queen Jiang slapped Huang Yu for insulting Daji and Di Xin.
• Jiang Ziya struck Daji’s demon core with his Sword Qi, wounding her, and then used Thousand-Mile Ice Seal against her.
• Di Xin counterattacked with his Pinewood Juque Sword and Heaven-Overturning Seal, prompting Jiang Ziya to suspect Yun Zhongzi had given Di Xin the replica seal.
• The Heaven-Flipping Seal halted three feet above Jiang Ziya’s head as Di Xin sensed an uncanny rhythm coming from him.

Di Xin tried to kill Jiang Ziya, but the Heavenly Dao’s protection repeatedly helped him escape. With help from the Five-Road Gods and Yu Linglong, Di Xin struck Jiang Ziya with the jade pipa, costing him an arm but not his life.

• Di Xin’s Heaven-Flipping Seal faltered, and Jiang Ziya fled while summoning the Five-Road Gods to delay Di Xin.
• Di Xin persuaded the Five-Road Gods to turn against Jiang Ziya, but Jiang Ziya’s Heavenly Dao protection let him outrun them.
• Hu Ximei arrived on a Fire Phoenix and blocked Jiang Ziya’s escape with flames, which he prepared to use to flee as fire.
• Di Xin asked Yu Linglong to lend him her true form, and she transformed into a jade pipa for him.
• Di Xin struck the pipa and dazed Jiang Ziya, causing one arm to burn away before Jiang Ziya escaped into the flames alive.