Chapter Summaries

Ouyang met Xiaoyaozi, the Ethereal Pavilion’s Pavilion Master, who came to investigate him with killing intent and threatened to banish him for disrupting a long-laid plan. When Xiaoyaozi tried to stop him from questioning the Heavenly Ranking, Ouyang revealed overwhelming power and confronted him directly.

• Xiaoyaozi appeared behind Ouyang with killing intent, and Ouyang identified him as the Ninth-Level Tribulation Transcendence Realm Pavilion Master of the Ethereal Pavilion.
• Ouyang used a Projection Stone to embarrass Xiaoyaozi with Dongxu Zi’s account of their past, then invited him to sit beneath a tree where tea and fruit were ready.
• Xiaoyaozi explained that he was curious about the person who had prompted Dongxu Zi to bring the Heavenly Ranking into the world five years early at the cost of his cultivation.
• Ouyang asked whether Xiaoyaozi considered him a threat to the plans laid over countless years, and Xiaoyaozi sealed their surroundings before threatening to banish him into chaos.
• When Ouyang began asking about the Heavenly Ranking, Xiaoyaozi tried to silence him, but Ouyang’s True Essence shattered the surrounding space and forced Xiaoyaozi back.
• Ouyang shattered his teacup and denounced the Heavenly Ranking as he faced Xiaoyaozi without his usual grin.

Ouyang condemned the Heavenly Ranking as a way to select vessels for dead Immortals and confronted Xiaoyaozi with overwhelming True Essence. He announced that after the ranking, he would take his second junior brother east and challenge those behind the scheme to show themselves.

• Ouyang concluded that the Heavenly Ranking selected prodigies to be occupied by Immortals or to replace them, and he condemned the Ethereal Pavilion's plan.
• Ouyang unleashed his True Essence against Xiaoyaozi, suppressing his cultivation and leaving him unable to resist.
• Xiaoyaozi asked who Ouyang was, and Ouyang identified himself as a disciple of the Azure Cloud Sect and said he would reveal one of his cards.
• Ouyang asked Xiaoyaozi why his sect master had agreed to bring the Heavenly Ranking forward, then declared that he would travel east with his second junior brother after the ranking and called on their hidden opponents to appear.

Ouyang confronted Xiaoyaozi over the Ethereal Pavilion’s ambition to replace the Old Immortals, then demanded the Heavenly Ranking be destroyed. As Leng Qingsong’s Green Lotus Sword Intent drew out the Heritage Golden Ranking, he challenged anyone to ascend it.

• Ouyang warned Xiaoyaozi that exposing the truth behind the Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar would plunge the world into chaos, and Xiaoyaozi panicked and denied that Ouyang could overturn Heaven and Earth.
• Ouyang reasoned that Dongxu Zi had allowed the Immortal Usurpation plan as a fallback, while trusting Little Mountain Peak’s prodigies to resist any new Immortals.
• Ouyang told Xiaoyaozi he was an old acquaintance of the reincarnated Sword Immortal and said he would not interfere with the agreement between Xiaoyaozi and Dongxu Zi, provided the Heavenly Ranking ceased to exist.
• A giant green lotus appeared above the Ethereal Pavilion and drew the Heritage Golden Ranking out of the void.
• Leng Qingsong’s voice rang across Heaven and Earth: “I stand beneath the Heavenly Ranking. Who dares ascend it?”

Leng Qingsong challenged every prodigy at the Ethereal Pavilion and refused to let anyone claim the Heavenly Ranking. After the Ethereal Pavilion sent three Mahayana cultivators to stop him, he effortlessly defeated them, leaving Song Mu awed by his swordsmanship.

• Leng Qingsong announced that none of the world's prodigies would make the Heavenly Ranking, drawing curses from the crowd.
• Xuanlingzi identified Leng Qingsong as a disciple of the Azure Cloud Sect but insisted the sect had no control over his actions.
• An Ethereal Pavilion elder offered to discipline Leng Qingsong, and Xuanlingzi agreed to let him try.
• Three Mahayana cultivators attacked Leng Qingsong, but he sent them flying with barely a movement of the green lotus beneath his feet.
• Song Mu watched Leng Qingsong and decided that carrying a sword on one's back was more badass than wearing it at the waist.

Leng Qingsong recognized the Heavenly Ranking as connected to the Immortals and resolved to stop anyone from ascending it. When an Ethereal Pavilion elder attacked with his laws true form, Leng Qingsong drew on the Green Lotus Sword Dao and struck back.

• Leng Qingsong sensed the Heavenly Ranking's presence and unleashed his Green Lotus Sword Intent, forcing the ranking to appear.
• Leng Qingsong concluded the Heavenly Ranking was connected to the Immortals and decided to prevent anyone from ascending it.
• An Ethereal Pavilion elder used his laws true form to suppress Leng Qingsong, while Xuanlingzi prepared to intervene.
• Leng Qingsong resisted the elder's law by invoking his Green Lotus Sword Dao and raising his sword.
• Leng Qingsong shouted “The Great River's Waters Come from Heaven!” and slashed down.

Leng Qingsong used the Green Lotus Sword Song to suppress a Tribulation Transcendence Stage elder, then destroyed the Heavenly Ranking with one strike. As heavenly punishment gathered around him, Ouyang challenged Xiaoyaozi’s Chess Players to overturning the Heaven and Earth Chessboard, while the author’s note announced a pause to plan the next volume.

• Leng Qingsong’s Green Lotus Sword Intent suppressed the Tribulation Transcendence Stage elder’s metal laws true form.
• Leng Qingsong transformed into a Green Duckweed Sword and cleaved the Heavenly Ranking in two, destroying the Dao Treasure and scattering the names of its past prodigies.
• Ouyang celebrated Leng Qingsong’s strike and told the pinned Xiaoyaozi that the Chess Players would face the consequences if their Heaven and Earth Chessboard were overturned.
• Leng Qingsong sensed a call from the Extreme Eastern Land as eyes of heavenly punishment opened around him and cursed him.
• The author said they would take time to adjust their writing and plan the next volume, and revealed that Ouyang would not be the Grand Ancestor.

Leng Qingsong attacked the Old Immortals after destroying the Heavenly Ranking, while Dongxu Zi watched from the Azure Cloud Sect, unable to intervene without endangering the larger plan. Leng Qingsong wounded several of the Immortals, but they trapped his remaining flying sword in a vast Net of Laws, and it charged toward the net’s center.

• The Immortals froze time in the area and fixed their countless eyes on Leng Qingsong after he destroyed the Heavenly Ranking.
• Dongxu Zi restrained himself from attacking, knowing the Immortals held the Mortal Worlds hostage and that their true forms had not appeared.
• Leng Qingsong turned his Green Lotus Sword Intent into twenty-five flying swords and launched them at the Immortals’ eyes.
• The Immortals suppressed the sword formation with their laws, but Leng Qingsong merged the swords into one and cut down several eyes.
• The remaining Immortals formed a vast Net of Laws around the flying sword, which thrust toward the net’s center rather than retreating.

Ouyang waited as Leng Qingsong’s Green Lotus Flying Sword was trapped by the Immortals’ net of laws, gambling that someone would intervene. Li Taibai appeared to rescue Leng Qingsong, but a black hand emerged to oppose him.

• The Immortals bound Leng Qingsong’s Green Lotus Flying Sword in their net of laws, threatening to destroy his Dao.
• Ouyang kept Xiaoyaozi motionless while Xiaoyaozi mocked his gamble and secretly reached into his Storage Space.
• As the sword neared breaking, it released a pillar of azure light that summoned Li Taibai from the Extreme Eastern Land.
• Li Taibai’s enormous azure hand reached to seize the Immortals and their net of laws, halting their power and time.
• A black hand emerged from the void and pressed down on Li Taibai’s azure hand.

Ouyang watched the azure and black giant hands battle after Leng Qingsong confronted the Immortals, while secretly overcoming the Time Stop. He concluded that Li Taibai and the Immortals were pieces in a larger conflict, then gathered strength to act now that he had drawn out evidence of a higher-level opponent.

• The Immortals’ Time Stop froze the Ethereal Pavilion as Leng Qingsong’s Green Lotus Flying Sword remained trapped in the Net of Laws between the battling giant hands.
• Ouyang slowly regained control of his body by resonating with the true essence in his Paper Cranes and Paper Butterflies, but continued pretending to be frozen.
• Ouyang recalled that he had brought Leng Qingsong to confront the Immortals to clarify his path and provoke the hidden mastermind behind the world’s destruction in Chen Changsheng’s previous life.
• A black giant hand appeared to oppose Li Taibai’s azure hand, and the two fought with raw strength, shattering and repairing space around them.
• Ouyang decided he had obtained the answer he wanted, widened his eyes, and unleashed the strength he had been gathering.

Ouyang stopped the clash between Li Taibai’s residual power and a mysterious force representing death, preventing further damage to the world. After time resumed and Xiaoyaozi fled, Leng Qingsong woke and mistook Ouyang for Ouyezi.

• Ouyang realized the black giant hand represented death and was naturally opposed to the vitality within him.
• Ouyang restrained both giant hands with his true essence, causing the black hand to flee and the azure hand to return to the Green Lotus Flying Sword.
• The sword repaired itself, and Ouyang confirmed that Leng Qingsong was still alive.
• Ouyang ended the time stop, leaving the Cultivators and Xiaoyaozi unaware of the clash between the giant hands.
• Ouyang told Xiaoyaozi that the grand show was about to begin, and Xiaoyaozi vanished.
• Leng Qingsong opened his eyes and asked Ouyang if he was Ouyezi.

Li Taibai took control of Leng Qingsong’s body to reunite with Ouyang, and the old friends discussed Ouyang’s plan to let all living beings choose their own paths. After drinking and playfully wrestling, they faced the danger ahead, with Ouyang telling Li Taibai to do his part and leave the rest to him.

• Li Taibai possessed Leng Qingsong and reunited with Ouyang across tens of millions of years.
• Li Taibai and Ouyang teased each other about their reunion and reflected on how they had changed.
• Ouyang said he wanted to give all living beings the chance to choose for themselves, and Li Taibai accepted his idea.
• Ouyang and Li Taibai drank wine, then wrestled playfully after Li Taibai flicked Ouyang’s forehead.
• Li Taibai questioned whether Ouyang had to take on a dangerous, uncertain task, and Ouyang told him to do his part and leave the rest to him.

Li Taibai awakened in Leng Qingsong’s body while Ouyang fell asleep, and he met Liang Zai, the dog-shaped sword scabbard who had once followed him. Liang Zai affirmed his loyalty to Ouyang, and Li Taibai’s curiosity about the dog’s sex left them both blaming Ouyang for their strange behavior.

• Ouyang fell asleep while Li Taibai watched over Leng Qingsong’s body.
• Liang Zai recognized Li Taibai’s aura and asked whether he was his former master.
• Li Taibai recognized Liang Zai as the dog-shaped scabbard of his sword and recalled his resentment toward Ouyezi for making it that way.
• Liang Zai told Li Taibai that he was Ouyang’s dog now, choosing loyalty to his current master.
• Li Taibai lifted Liang Zai and asked whether the dog was male or female, leaving Liang Zai frustrated.

Ouyang woke from a chaotic dream to find Li Taibai inhabiting Leng Qingsong and playing with Liang Zai. Li Taibai reassured Ouyang that he had staked the future on him and that he was not alone, then collapsed as Leng Qingsong returned to himself.

• Ouyang woke and saw Leng Qingsong, controlled by Li Taibai, imitating gunfire with Liang Zai at Little Bie San.
• Li Taibai explained that Liang Zai was his gift to Ouyang, recalling how Ouyang had once mimicked a gun with Li Taibai's sword.
• Ouyang admitted he was unsure whether Li Taibai was using him, and apologized for distrusting him.
• Li Taibai said they were alike in trying to change the future and assured Ouyang that he was staking the future on him.
• Li Taibai urged Ouyang to write a diary, then lost control of Leng Qingsong's body and told Ouyang there was someone behind him.

Ouyang reprimanded Leng Qingsong for risking his life and learned he intended to retrieve Li Taibai’s legacy from the Extreme Eastern Land. After Song Mu’s Sword Dao breakthrough made him the top-ranked young cultivator, Ouyang urged Leng Qingsong to prove his own claim to the foremost Sword Dao.

• Leng Qingsong woke in Ouyang’s arms, and Ouyang scolded him for charging into danger because he trusted his elder brother to save him.
• Leng Qingsong told Ouyang that Li Taibai’s legacy awaited him in the Extreme Eastern Land, though he concealed that it could let him comprehend the pinnacle of the Green Lotus Sword Dao.
• Sword Intent erupted from the Ethereal Pavilion, and Song Mu glimpsed the path of the White Lotus Sword Dao as his cultivation rose to the half-step Great Cultivator realm.
• The young cultivators praised Song Mu and raised him to first place on the Heavenly Ranking, prompting Ouyang to wonder whether Song Mu would surpass Leng Qingsong.
• Leng Qingsong dismissed Song Mu’s breakthrough as luck, and Ouyang tucked paper cranes into his robes and told him to let all Heaven and Earth know he was the foremost Sword Dao practitioner.

Ouyang went fishing at sea with Liang Zai and Little Bie San, while Leng Qingsong kept hearing strange breathing as they traveled east. Ouyang traced the sound to a Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar in the distance.

• Ouyang rode Liang Zai like a surfboard after a huge fish dragged his fishing line, but Little Bie San leaped out of the sea after hurling a whale into the air.
• Little Bie San chased the whale underwater and dragged Ouyang along, until Leng Qingsong cut the whale in two with Sword Qi.
• Ouyang surfaced with Little Bie San and scolded Leng Qingsong for nearly striking them with his Sword Qi.
• Leng Qingsong told Ouyang he had been hearing heavy breathing and seeing countless threads, with the sound growing clearer as they traveled east.
• Ouyang sensed the ragged breathing, formed a giant whale from seawater, and saw that the sound came from a Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar in the distance.

Ouyang realized the Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar was Li Taibai, merged with Heaven and Earth, and pondered the forces behind the Immortal-Slaying War and older calamities. He sent Leng Qingsong toward the pillar and decided to stop unraveling the mysteries and overturn the powers’ plans.

• Ouyang recognized the Heaven and Earth Breathing as coming from the Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar, where Li Taibai had become the backbone of Heaven and Earth.
• Ouyang recalled how the Immortals had forced Li Taibai to support Heaven and Earth, then wondered whether a hidden power had helped him defeat them.
• Ouyang connected the black hand at the Ethereal Pavilion and Tu Yun’s Grand Ancestor to forces from before the Immortal Era, possibly tied to the Dragon-Phoenix First Calamity.
• Ouyang reflected that the Immortal-Slaying War had left its victory and defeat unresolved, with Li Taibai dead and the Immortals fallen into the Mortal World.
• Leng Qingsong sensed challenges and opportunities at the Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar, and Ouyang gave him permission to investigate.
• Ouyang dismissed his unanswered questions and resolved to kick over the chessboard of the powers behind the mysteries.

Leng Qingsong touched the Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar and connected with a strange telephone from the Nine Hells, where Hui Zhi and Fan Rubin spoke with Ouyang. Fan Rubin delivered a message to Leng Qingsong that left him shaken, and Ouyang recognized it as words Fan Rubin had once told him.

• Leng Qingsong resonated with the Sky-Piercing Giant Pillar, affirmed his connection to Li Taibai, and insisted that he would remain himself.
• A ringing telephone fell from the sky, and Ouyang answered it, connecting with Hui Zhi in the Nine Hells.
• Hui Zhi praised Ouyang, while Ouyang realized that his modernization of the city had transformed the old speaking tube into a telephone.
• Fan Rubin took the receiver and asked to speak with Ouyang's younger brother, so Ouyang passed the telephone to Leng Qingsong.
• After Fan Rubin spoke to him, the telephone vanished, and Leng Qingsong said Fan Rubin had repeated words he had once said to Ouyang about chess players and pieces.

Ouyang realized the Grand Ancestor had left the same cryptic words for him and Leng Qingsong, then urged his second brother to investigate the Sky-Piercing Giant Pillars. He left Leng Qingsong to meditate with Liang Zai and a carved warning before departing west with Little Bie San.

• Leng Qingsong mistook Ouyang for a chess player secretly directing him and eagerly waited for orders to fight.
• Ouyang reasoned that the chess players were powerless to act directly once their pieces were on the board.
• Ouyang asked Leng Qingsong about the power Li Taibai had given him, and Leng Qingsong said it contained insights into the later stages of the Green Lotus Sword Dao.
• Ouyang told Leng Qingsong to discover the connection between the Sky-Piercing Giant Pillars in the Nine Hells and the Extreme Eastern Land.
• Ouyang raised a platform from the sea, left Liang Zai with Leng Qingsong, and carved “To know but not act is simply not to know” on a stone stele.
• Ouyang departed west with Little Bie San, and Leng Qingsong opened his eyes to read the words on the stele.

Ouyang returned to the Azure Cloud Sect after a long, leisurely journey and reunited with Dongxu Zi in the Main Hall. He questioned Dongxu Zi about sparing Xiaoyaozi and then asked where his Minor World was.

• Ouyang returned to the Azure Cloud Sect with Little Bie San after nearly half a year on the road.
• Ouyang walked up Azure Cloud Peak, rested on the steps, and was taken by Dongxu Zi to the Main Hall.
• Ouyang complained that Dongxu Zi had let Xiaoyaozi live, then realized Dongxu Zi considered him already doomed.
• Little Bie San slipped away while Ouyang and Dongxu Zi ate fruit and drank fruit wine.
• Ouyang recalled Dongxu Zi slashing the moon and plucking stars, then asked where his Minor World was.

Ouyang questioned Dongxu Zi about the differences between powerful tribulation transcendence cultivators and the existence of Immortal minor worlds, then asked about ancient history. Their conversation ended when Dongxu Zi revealed that Ouyang had mistaken the peak masters’ identities.

• Ouyang deduced that Immortals created minor worlds and asked why Dongxu Zi was far stronger than other ninth-level tribulation transcendence cultivators.
• Dongxu Zi explained that he remained at the ninth level but possessed half of a minor world left by Ouyang's Grand Ancestor, which Ouyang identified as the Pure White Space.
• Ouyang asked Dongxu Zi about the Dragon-Phoenix First Calamity, and Dongxu Zi said the Xiantian Three Clans had opened Heaven and Earth.
• Ouyang offered to explain to Martial Uncle Danyuan Zi why flowers were red if he came to find him.
• Dongxu Zi bound Ouyang's wrist and told him that Danyuan Zi was the Peak Master of Pill Peak and Chunyang Zi was the Peak Master of Questioning Sword Peak.