Chapter Summaries

Ouyang learned of Dongxu Zi’s plan to sacrifice himself during the Dao-Demon War and began folding paper as he considered how to escape their predetermined fate. The chapter ended with a travel-worn figure arriving at his courtyard after nightfall.

• Little Bie San fought Zhao Qiansun after becoming enraged by his teaching about accepting hardship and karmic rewards.
• Ouyang learned what had provoked the fight, healed Little Bie San, and ordered him to attend Dongxu Zi’s Dao lectures every day.
• Ouyang returned to Little Mountain Peak and reflected on Dongxu Zi’s plan to die in the Dao-Demon War and take the Immortals with him.
• Ouyang began folding paper cranes and continued until moonrise, when a travel-worn figure in black entered his courtyard.

Leng Qingsong returned from his journey in a foul mood and sulked at Ouyang, who ignored his attempts to provoke him. After Leng Qingsong demolished the courtyard roof in frustration, Ouyang finally addressed him and brushed the dust from his clothes.

• Leng Qingsong returned muddy and panicked, then angrily retreated to his room without greeting Ouyang.
• Leng Qingsong threw Little Bie San out of his room when he tried to tell him to be quiet.
• Ouyang ignored Leng Qingsong through the night, and Leng Qingsong hammered noisily at the roof the next morning.
• Little Bie San left the courtyard to avoid the tension while Ouyang folded paper cranes and Leng Qingsong kept hammering.
• Leng Qingsong collapsed the roof and raised his sword to destroy the house, prompting Ouyang to tell him to stop.
• Ouyang stood up, patted the dust from Leng Qingsong's clothes, and asked why he was still acting like a child.

Leng Qingsong told Ouyang what he had discovered in the Extreme Eastern Land: an immense living pillar bearing Green Lotus Sword Intent. After touching it, he saw a bald man in a strange place and was forcibly expelled from the vision, leaving him convinced that Ouyang had sent him there to uncover a secret.

• Leng Qingsong confronted Ouyang about sending him east, and Ouyang asked what he had seen.
• Leng Qingsong recounted flying across changing seasons and a vast sea filled with enormous creatures before reaching the Extreme Eastern Land.
• Leng Qingsong found a Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar that seemed alive and carried Green Lotus Sword Intent like the Sword Intent of Li Taibai.
• Leng Qingsong merged his Sword Intent with the pillar and was drawn into a vision of a bald man among strange buildings.
• The bald man noticed Leng Qingsong, and a tremendous force sent his consciousness back to his body.

Leng Qingsong raced back from the Extreme Eastern Land, convinced that Ouyang was hiding something important from him. After confronting Ouyang, he asked whether Ouyang had long known that he was Li Taibai reincarnated.

• Leng Qingsong ignored a mysterious voice at the Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar and hurried back toward the Azure Cloud Sect.
• Leng Qingsong tore through deep-sea creatures on his return and reached Little Mountain Peak after cutting his journey down to half a month.
• Leng Qingsong found Ouyang folding paper cranes and, exhausted and angry, went to his room and fell asleep without speaking to him.
• After waking, Leng Qingsong sulked until Ouyang raised his hands in surrender, then rushed to confront him.
• Leng Qingsong asked why Ouyang had sent him to the Extreme Eastern Land without explaining his situation, then asked if Ouyang had guessed that he was Li Taibai reincarnated.

Leng Qingsong recalled how Ouyang had rescued him as a child and become the person he trusted most. Back in the present, he told Ouyang he would be his sharpest sword and asked where to strike, even if they were walking into a scheme.

• Leng Qingsong remembered fleeing the Imperial City with his mother after his father’s failed coup, until his mother died and assassins cornered him in the snow.
• Ouyang rescued Leng Qingsong, covered his eyes, and gave him a roasted sweet potato in a ruined temple, where the child finally broke down crying.
• Leng Qingsong recalled growing up alongside Ouyang as a beggar in Maple Leaf City, stealing food and finding safety in Ouyang’s company.
• Leng Qingsong resolved to become like Ouyang or the sharpest sword in his hand.
• Leng Qingsong returned to the present, told Ouyang he had always been his sharpest sword, and asked him to name their target even if it was a scheme.

Ouyang reassured Leng Qingsong that he had never opposed his cultivation and urged him to pursue his own dreams. Though Ouyang carried guilt over how he and Hu Yun had changed Leng Qingsong’s fate, he left him free to choose his path.

• Leng Qingsong offered Ouyang his treasured sword and asked whether Ouyang wanted him dead, but Ouyang dismissed his fears and flicked his forehead.
• Ouyang reflected that Hu Yun’s intervention had changed Leng Qingsong from a destined Immortal Gate key into the reincarnation of the immaculate sword heart, binding his Dao to the mortal world.
• Ouyang invited Leng Qingsong to sit beside him and said Leng Qingsong should not blame Hu Yun when the time came.
• Leng Qingsong said he trusted Hu Yun and Ouyang and would listen to them.
• Ouyang told Leng Qingsong that he was himself, not someone’s reincarnation, and encouraged him to pursue his dreams.

Ouyang agreed to accompany Leng Qingsong back to the Extreme Eastern Land so he could investigate the mysteries surrounding the Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar and Li Taibai’s Green Lotus Sword Intent. Leng Qingsong was delighted to travel alone with his brother, while Ouyang warned him not to return without finding anything.

• Ouyang asked Leng Qingsong whether he had discovered anything in the Extreme Eastern Land, and Leng Qingsong asked about the Green Lotus Sword Intent he had sensed on both the Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar and a pillar in the Nine Hells.
• Ouyang told Leng Qingsong he would have to return to the Extreme Eastern Land to find the answers, but Leng Qingsong showed little interest in pursuing the mystery.
• Ouyang decided to go with Leng Qingsong on his next trip and urged him to make an effort to uncover an opportunity.
• Leng Qingsong happily agreed, carried wooden planks away to repair the collapsed roof, and listened as Ouyang warned him not to bring his bedding into Ouyang’s room if the roof was not fixed by nightfall.
• Ouyang picked up Gouzi and left the courtyard, telling Leng Qingsong he would not be back for dinner.

Ouyang visited Jade Maiden Peak, where he sold cards of Little Mountain Peak’s Three Rebellious Sons before meeting Su Ling'er. Su Ling'er confessed that she loved him, leaving Ouyang unsure how to respond.

• Ouyang entered Jade Maiden Peak, where the Jade Bees welcomed him and spared Liang Zai.
• Ouyang sold animated portraits of Leng Qingsong, Chen Changsheng, and Bai Feiyu to the eager junior sisters.
• Su Ling'er arrived and reprimanded the girls for neglecting their cultivation, leaving Ouyang alone with her.
• Ouyang tried to leave, but Su Ling'er stopped him and confessed that she loved him.
• Ouyang froze, unsure how to answer Su Ling'er's direct confession.

Ouyang struggled to respond to Su Ling’er’s confession, and she left after making clear that her feelings were her own. He then reached Jade Maiden Peak’s Main Hall, where the three women overwhelmed him with questions and scolding.

• Su Ling’er confessed that she liked Ouyang, then walked away without waiting for his answer.
• Ouyang watched Su Ling’er leave, remained uncertain about his feelings, and headed to Jade Maiden Peak’s summit.
• Mu Yunge and Su Xiaoqi discussed Su Ling’er’s confession while Mu Yunhai considered recruiting her as a disciple.
• Ouyang entered the Main Hall and greeted Su Xiaoqi, Mu Yunge, and Mu Yunhai, prompting them to argue and bombard him with questions.
• Ouyang shouted for the women to stop talking, and two of them grabbed his ears.

Ouyang returned to Jade Maiden Peak, where Su Xiaoqi and the Mu Yunge sisters examined his strange, self-repairing injuries. That night, he visited Mu Yunhai to enter her Life-Bound Dream again, but she used the Musical Dao to put him to sleep.

• Su Xiaoqi and the Mu Yunge sisters examined Ouyang and found his meridians repeatedly breaking down and repairing themselves.
• Ouyang reassured the three women that he had only overexerted himself, then ate a large meal and fell asleep on Su Xiaoqi's couch.
• After midnight, Ouyang crept to Mu Yunhai's room, and she pulled him inside.
• Ouyang asked Mu Yunhai to let him sleep, and she mistook his words for a lewd request before he explained he meant her Life-Bound Dream.
• Mu Yunhai invoked the Musical Dao, and Ouyang fell asleep before he could finish speaking.

Ouyang returned to the life-bound dream of the city where he had lived his previous life and met his former self at the orphanage. After sharing a cigarette, he let the dream disappear and made peace with himself.

• Mu Yunhai brought Ouyang back to his life-bound dream, where he drifted down through an illusory version of the modern city.
• Ouyang walked to the orphanage and saw the children playing in its yard.
• Ouyang met his previous-life self at the gate, and the two spoke about his return and the regrets between them.
• Ouyang accepted a cigarette from his former self and lit it; the orphanage shattered and vanished as Ouyang made peace with himself.

Ouyang and Leng Qingsong set out from the Azure Cloud Sect for the Extreme Eastern Land, with Ouyang riding a donkey and Leng Qingsong on a Unicorn Night-Qi. Ouyang unknowingly took the Spirit Beast Peak Master, disguised as a donkey, and the pair continued their journey at speed.

• Ouyang refused to let Leng Qingsong travel by Sword Flight and borrowed a Unicorn Night-Qi from Spirit Beast Peak.
• After the other Demon Beasts refused to carry him, Ouyang beat a blue-and-white donkey, saddled it, and took it along.
• The Night-Qi cautiously followed the donkey, which was led onward by a carrot tied to a bamboo pole.
• Ouyang and Leng Qingsong left the Azure Cloud Sect, while Spirit Beast Peak disciples realized Ouyang had taken their Peak Master, who had transformed into a donkey.
• Ouyang closed his attribute panel and traveled with Leng Qingsong, cutting paper butterflies as their mounts carried them swiftly along the mountain road.

Xuanlingzi, disguised as a donkey, was forced to carry Ouyang and appealed to Dongxu Zi for help. Dongxu Zi assigned him to accompany Ouyang to the Ethereal Pavilion, while Leng Qingsong confronted Ouyang about his secrets and offered him a sword.

• Xuanlingzi panicked when Leng Qingsong stared at him, then brayed to maintain his donkey disguise.
• Xuanlingzi contacted Dongxu Zi, who scolded him for transforming in front of outsiders and told him to accompany Ouyang to the Wind and Cloud Ranking ceremony.
• Dongxu Zi blocked Xuanlingzi after he protested, leaving the donkey to carry Ouyang with a carrot dangling in front of him.
• Leng Qingsong questioned Ouyang about his paper cutting and accused him of hiding things since returning from the Mortal World.
• Leng Qingsong stopped Ouyang, drew his sword, and told him to stab him if he was concealing something; Ouyang sighed at his reaction.

Leng Qingsong confronted Ouyang and learned that Ouyang and their Master had deliberately severed his Sword Dao. After realizing they had done so to spare him the fate Bai Feiyu had feared, Leng Qingsong accepted their choice and resolved to make the Dao pursue him instead.

• Leng Qingsong demanded to know why Ouyang had hidden something from him, while their pets faced off beside them.
• Ouyang revealed that he and their Master had personally broken Leng Qingsong's Dao during the trip to the Extreme Eastern Land.
• Leng Qingsong recalled Bai Feiyu's warning about the painful choice at the end of the Dao and understood why his brother and Master had intervened.
• Leng Qingsong laughed with relief, dodged Ouyang's worried slap, and declared that he would make the Dao pursue him.

Ouyang reassured Leng Qingsong that he had escaped the fate of becoming a pawn, then urged him to rethink what it meant to become an Immortal. As they approached the Ethereal Pavilion, Ouyang declared that someone needed to redefine true Immortality.

• Leng Qingsong rejected Supreme Heartlessness and said he would rather not cultivate than end up alone.
• Ouyang told Leng Qingsong that his Master had changed his fate and that Ouyang had guided him away from becoming a sacrifice to powerful factions.
• Ouyang questioned what cultivation and becoming an Immortal were ultimately for, and Leng Qingsong struggled to answer.
• Ouyang said the ancient Immortals had become parasites, so Li Taibai had been right to slay them.
• Ouyang and Leng Qingsong reached a mountaintop overlooking countless cultivators rushing toward the Ethereal Pavilion, while Xuanlingzi hoped to stop being a donkey.
• Ouyang pointed toward the approaching crowd and said someone needed to redefine what an Immortal truly was.

Ouyang learned about the Heavenly Ranking and its three leading prodigies, then revealed that he had brought Leng Qingsong to compete. He sent his Integration Realm junior brother to claim the title of number one under heaven.

• A young cultivator told Ouyang and Leng Qingsong about the Heavenly Ranking and named Ye Chen, Ji Yuze, and Song Mu as its leading contenders.
• After giving the young cultivator a top-grade spirit stone, Ouyang learned more about Song Mu and concluded the ranking posed no threat to the troublemakers on his mountain.
• Leng Qingsong questioned why Ouyang had brought him to the gathering and showed no interest in watching the younger cultivators compete.
• Ouyang praised Leng Qingsong for guessing his plan and ordered him to win the title of number one under heaven.

Ouyang sent Leng Qingsong to claim first place on the Heavenly Ranking, hoping the public contest would help him find a new Immortal Path. Ouyang reflected on the balance he was trying to create between Bai Feiyu’s God-Sealing Dao and the prodigies’ pursuit of Immortality, then discovered his donkey was missing.

• Leng Qingsong hesitated to compete for the Heavenly Ranking, but Ouyang told him to win first place publicly rather than merely defeat the leading contenders.
• Ouyang gave Leng Qingsong a golden Calling Card, and Leng Qingsong set off on his Unicorn Night-Qi with his sword strapped to his back.
• Ouyang reasoned that Bai Feiyu’s Divine Dao suited the masses but would shackle restless prodigies, who needed a difficult path toward Immortality.
• Ouyang saw Leng Qingsong as a key to the coming upheaval and entrusted the choice of how to use it to his brother.
• Ouyang turned to find his donkey so he could watch the contest, but the donkey was gone.

The Ethereal Pavilion prepared to host the Heavenly Ranking as young cultivators gathered in the Luminous Blessed Land. Ye Chen and Ji Yuze nearly fought before the event began, but Song Mu appeared and redirected their hostility toward himself.

• Young cultivators gathered at the arena in the Luminous Blessed Land as the Heavenly Ranking approached.
• Ye Chen arrived with Sage Manor scholars, and Ji Yuze mocked his grand entrance.
• Ye Chen and Ji Yuze sensed each other as formidable rivals and prepared to fight while onlookers placed bets.
• Song Mu appeared amid white-lotus mist and asked Ye Chen and Ji Yuze to stop.
• Ye Chen and Ji Yuze grew angry at Song Mu's arrogant entrance and nearly turned their attention to him.

Song Mu arrived in a flashy display and fought Ye Chen and Ji Yuze, reflecting their attacks with his white lotus sword technique. After exhausting his strength, he pretended to stop fighting and gambled that Ji Yuze would not kill him, but a familiar Sword Intent flew toward him.

• Song Mu landed between Ye Chen and Ji Yuze on an enormous white lotus and asked them to do him a favor.
• Ye Chen and Ji Yuze attacked Song Mu together, and Song Mu blocked them with his sword and reflected their strikes using his white lotus technique.
• The watching cultivators praised Song Mu, while Ye Chen and Ji Yuze felt humiliated at being made to look like his backdrop.
• Song Mu declared that he was done fighting, and Ji Yuze rushed at him but stopped his saber at Song Mu's neck.
• Song Mu revealed internally that the lotus technique had drained his strength and that he had gambled Ji Yuze would not dare kill him because his master was Tai'a, the Sword Sect Master.
• Song Mu sensed a familiar Sword Intent flying toward him.

Song Mu recognized Leng Qingsong, an Azure Cloud Sect sword cultivator whose talent had once shaken his confidence, and recalled how his master sacrificed his cultivation to give him a new path. When Leng Qingsong arrived, he only asked for directions to the Ethereal Pavilion, and Song Mu’s companions mistook his departure for a sign of respect toward Song Mu.

• Song Mu recognized Leng Qingsong’s Green Lotus Sword Intent and remembered the Azure Cloud Sect prodigies who had defeated great sword cultivators in the Immortal Tomb.
• Song Mu recalled that his master, Tai'a, had destroyed his own Dao foundation to remove Song Mu’s Green Lotus Sword Intent and reshape it into a White Lotus Sword Seed.
• Song Mu resolved to forge his own Sword Dao and surpass Sword Immortal Li Taibai.
• Leng Qingsong rode up to Song Mu, Ji Yuze, and Ye Chen, silencing the gathered cultivators with his formidable sword intent.
• Leng Qingsong asked how to reach the Ethereal Pavilion, and Song Mu pointed him in the right direction.
• After Leng Qingsong left, Ji Yuze, Ye Chen, and the onlookers admired Song Mu, believing the great cultivator had shown him deference.