Chapter Summaries

Ren Ye returned from the Star Gate with the sealed Fallen Reincarnation Lotus Lamp and learned that evil reincarnation energy and a shattered soul were hidden inside it. After rushing to Qingliang Prefecture and checking on Xu Qingzhao, he summoned the Human Emperor Seal to help the Human Emperor Sword confront the lamp in his consciousness space.

• Ren Ye received his mission rewards and discovered that the Fallen Reincarnation Lotus Lamp was sealed, cursed, and associated with evil spirits and ill fortune.
• The Human Emperor Sword Spirit identified evil reincarnation energy and a shattered soul inside the lamp, then admitted it could not defeat the lamp alone and called for the Human Emperor Seal.
• Ren Ye brushed off Lin Xiang and Zhao Baicheng when they arrived, while a disturbance at Rebirth Forest prompted Lin Xiang to stop something from striking the barrier.
• Ren Ye hurried to Qingliang Prefecture, where Brother Huang was exhausted from handling the prefecture's affairs alone, then left for the underground cave abode.
• Ren Ye found Xu Qingzhao still refining Yin and Yang Qi and summoned the Human Emperor Seal, which joined the Human Emperor Sword in confronting the Buddha Lamp.

Ren Ye and the Human Emperor Sword and Human Emperor Seal suppressed the Reincarnation Lotus Lamp, but its power of reincarnation kept reviving, leaving it as a dangerous squatter in his consciousness space. After returning to Number Six Institute, Ren Ye told Lin Xiang and Zhao Baicheng what he had learned about the Demon Monk, including the rare Ksitigarbha inheritance.

• The Human Emperor Sword and Human Emperor Seal extinguished the karmic fire in the Reincarnation Lotus Lamp, but the power of reincarnation repeatedly revived.
• The Reincarnation Lotus Lamp retreated to the edge of Ren Ye’s consciousness space, and Brother Spirit explained that its hidden fragmented soul made it impossible to erase completely and could bring Ren Ye ill fortune.
• Ren Ye realized he had kept Lin Xiang and Zhao Baicheng waiting for nearly six hours and hurried back to Number Six Institute.
• Ren Ye told his masters that the S-Rank Star Gate had given him 92,000 star source and enough experience to reach level nine with overflow, and that he had found information about the Demon Monk.
• Ren Ye recounted what he had witnessed in the Binhai City Star Gate, and Lin Xiang and Zhao Baicheng discussed the rarity of a Ksitigarbha inheritance.

Ren Ye and his masters speculated that Ren Daguo had investigated the Demon Monk and reincarnation, while Lin Xiang warned Ren Ye that the Reincarnation Lotus Lamp contained a dangerous remnant soul. The Migration Land Star Gates suddenly began opening in large numbers, and Lin Xiang, Zhao Baicheng, and Fan Ming connected the surge to Ren Ye.

• Lin Xiang and Zhao Baicheng theorized that Ren Daguo had pursued the Demon Monk to uncover reincarnation and possibly prepare for resurrection.
• Ren Ye asked whether the Migration Land Star Gates might hold traces of his father, but Zhao Baicheng said the trail seemed to have ended without another invitation.
• Lin Xiang examined Ren Ye's Reincarnation Lotus Lamp and found a powerful remnant soul in its wick that he could not safely destroy.
• Old Liu learned that Migration Land Star Gates were suddenly appearing in greater numbers and asked the Gate Spirit to locate them.
• Fan Ming reported that 393 distinct Migration Land Star Gates had sent invitations to New Year's Watchers, including 76 above the third tier, and Lin Xiang and Zhao Baicheng turned toward Ren Ye.

After Lin Xiang and Zhao Baicheng praised Ren Ye and ordered a meeting about the surge in Migration Land Star Gates, Ren Ye told Fan Ming about his S-Rank mission while keeping its most dangerous secrets hidden. Fan Ming revealed that Lin Xiang held the Fengdu inheritance, but a mysterious light silenced him before he could finish warning Ren Ye to keep it secret.

• Lin Xiang ordered Zhao Baicheng to convene the Six Ministries and told Ren Ye to submit a report on the Binhai City Star Gate within a day.
• Fan Ming befriended Ren Ye and learned that he had completed an S-Rank Migration Land mission, though Ren Ye withheld information about the Reincarnation Lotus Lamp and the Demon Monk.
• Fan Ming speculated that the Demon Monk might be connected to the Ksitigarbha Inheritance and explained how keeping class secrets concealed could protect Players.
• Fan Ming disclosed that Lin Xiang possessed the God System's Fengdu inheritance, identifying him as the Yin Emperor.
• As Fan Ming began warning Ren Ye not to reveal the secret, clear light made his mouth disappear and left him unable to speak.

Ren Ye assessed his abilities and goals before returning to Qingliang Prefecture, where he found the Heaven-Dominating Sword Technique manual among the Prince’s Mansion’s belongings. As he went to check on the exhausted Lord Huang, a Southern Border stronghold prepared a brutal response to an arriving trading caravan.

• Lin Xiang silenced Fan Ming for revealing a secret, then wondered how Ren Daguo could seek the Demon Monk’s power of reincarnation and appeared in Rebirth Forest.
• Ren Ye reviewed his limited Star Source, dangerous mystical abilities, and plans to address Qingliang Prefecture’s finances, improve his combat options, and search for the Demon Monk.
• Ren Ye returned to the Prefectural Yamen and found Lian'er cataloguing belongings salvaged from the demolished halls.
• Ren Ye discovered the Heaven-Dominating Sword Technique-Part One manual and decided to ask his masters whether the technique suited him.
• Lian'er told Ren Ye that Lord Huang was exhausted and that his caravan had set out with over fifty experienced merchants to scout a trade route; Ren Ye went to visit him.
• In a Southern Border stronghold, a braid-haired leader decided to attack the caravan brutally, despite his brothers advising him to meet the merchants first.

Ren Ye learned that Jing Mountain bandits had massacred members of the returning trade caravan and threatened to keep Qingliang Prefecture’s trade route closed unless he negotiated with their three kings. He refused to abandon his people and sought Fan Ming’s help with a Super Empire project.

• Brother Huang briefed Ren Ye on trade preparations and plans to treat the Imperial Court soldiers stationed outside the city.
• Ren Ye submitted his Binhai City report to Zhao Baicheng, who assessed the Heaven-Conquering Sword Manual and promised to find him a matching manual.
• A surviving merchant returned with eight beheaded bodies and reported that Jing Mountain bandits had seized the caravan and demanded gifts and negotiations with their three kings.
• Ren Ye rejected Brother Huang’s warning not to go and declared that he would call in backup.
• Ren Ye went to the Ministry of War and asked Fan Ming whether he was interested in a Super Empire project.

Ren Ye sought Fan Ming’s help against the Jingshan Bandits, but learned Star Gate rules prevented outsiders from crossing into the Southern Border. After investigating the bandits’ political connections, Ren Ye confronted a messenger who delivered severed fingers as a threat and forced him to his knees with the Human Emperor Seal.

• Ren Ye asked Fan Ming to send New Year's Watchers to help Qingliang Prefecture, but Fan Ming explained they could not cross the fog barrier into the Southern Border unless appointed as officials.
• Ren Ye returned to the Prefectural Yamen and asked Old Wang about the Jingshan Bandits, learning they might be backed by the Thousand-Mile Green Battalion and connected to the Southern Border Witch-Demon Kingdom.
• Ren Ye and Huang Wei suspected the bandits’ attacks were meant to pressure Qingliang Prefecture for political reasons rather than merely steal goods.
• A Jingshan Bandit messenger entered the prefectural city alone and asked to see Prince Huai, then presented a sack of severed fingers as a second congratulatory gift from Chief Lu.
• Ren Ye activated the Human Emperor Seal and pressed the bandit messenger to his knees, shattering his kneecaps and the stone floor.

Ren Ye interrogated Jing Mountain’s messenger and learned that the remaining forty-two hostages were alive and that Jing Mountain had more than twenty second-tier Supernatural Ability Users. He arranged a meeting with Chieftain Lu in six days, leaving Huang Wei to wonder whom he was waiting for.

• Ren Ye suppressed the messenger and had Old Medicine Box torture him until he answered calmly.
• The messenger revealed that Chieftain Lu had ordered the threats to frighten Qingliang Prefecture, that the forty-two remaining captives were alive, and that Jing Mountain had more than twenty second-tier fighters.
• Ren Ye made the messenger write Chieftain Lu a letter proposing a meeting at the Clearwind Inn in six days in exchange for forty-two valuable red sandalwood logs.
• Chieftain Lu accepted the six-day wait and ordered his men not to harm the hostages.
• Huang Wei asked why Ren Ye had chosen six days, and Ren Ye said he was waiting for someone.

Ren Ye left Qingliang Prefecture with Fan Ming and three other players to negotiate with the Jing Mountain bandits and rescue the detained merchants. After promising the grieving families he would restore trade, Ren Ye crossed into the Southern Border with Zhang Yuan, where armed locals emerged from the forests.

• Ren Ye prepared four carriages of red sandalwood and set out with Fan Ming and three other players, who would be suppressed to second-tier strength in the Southern Border.
• Relatives of the detained caravan members and the eight dead pleaded with Ren Ye, and he promised to rescue the captives and reopen trade.
• The residents watched the carriages depart with little confidence, while Lian'er learned that only five people, including Ren Ye, had gone to the meeting.
• At the border, Ren Ye opened a gap in the mist, carried Zhang Yuan across, and told Fan Ming to wait for his signal.
• Dozens of armed Southern Border people emerged from the mountain forests as Ren Ye entered their territory.

Ren Ye met the Jing Mountain bandit chiefs at Clearwind Inn and feigned submission to secure the release of Qingliang Prefecture’s merchants while handing over red sandalwood. As negotiations continued, a plainly dressed woman accompanying Fan Ming slipped into the inn’s kitchen unnoticed, though Fan Ming sensed something was wrong.

• Chief Lu learned that Ren Ye had arrived with fewer than ten people and gathered sixteen second-tier Supernatural Ability Users before heading to Clearwind Inn.
• Ren Ye greeted Lu Long submissively and resisted being forced to his knees when Lu Long stepped on his shoulder.
• Lu Long’s men brought forty-two bound merchants before Ren Ye, who explained Zhang Yuan’s injuries and offered forty-two logs of red sandalwood to restore trade.
• Fan Ming and his companions delivered the red sandalwood to the bandits, while Ren Ye agreed to pay the price for reopening trade.
• A plainly dressed woman followed the innkeeper into the kitchen and blended in among the workers without being noticed, while Fan Ming wondered why her presence felt wrong.

Xu Qingzhao and Ren Ye launched a surprise attack on Jing Mountain’s leaders after Ren Ye agreed to their demands as a ruse, and the poisoned bandits lost their star source power. Fan Ming and his companions fought the unaffected guards while Xu Qingzhao confronted the supposedly dead Lu Long, who had revived through a Southern Border Substitute Death Gu.

• A disguised Xu Qingzhao infiltrated the inn’s kitchens and overheard the bandits discussing their plans to drug Ren Ye and his companions.
• Lu Long and Wang Xinggui demanded half of Qingliang Prefecture’s trade profits, four weapon arsenals, trafficking women, and limits on the prefecture’s army; Ren Ye pretended to accept their terms.
• Ren Ye lured the chiefs into turning toward Xu Qingzhao, who revealed herself and pierced Lu Long’s forehead with a sword strike.
• The inn’s food poisoned more than two hundred bandits, but twelve guards who avoided the meal attacked Ren Ye and Xu Qingzhao.
• Fan Ming summoned his divine equipment and power, killed one of the guards with a single punch, and joined his companions in battle.
• Lu Long revived and identified the attack as the work of someone from the Yin-Yang Legalist School, while Xu Qingzhao recognized his Southern Border Substitute Death Gu.

Xu Qingzhao used divination and her Mystical Abilities to defeat Lu Long, while Ren Ye and Ming-ge overpowered his allies. Lu Long was captured, but Wu Pangzi escaped into the woods after claiming the poisoned wine had left him unable to use his powers.

• Lu Long survived Xu Qingzhao’s sword strike with a Substitute Death Gu, then summoned the Great Marsh Demon Soul and attacked her.
• Xu Qingzhao used Formlessness to disappear from Lu Long’s awareness, then repeatedly divined until she received the auspicious Great Peace reading.
• Lu Long and his Corpse Gu-controlled corpse attacked Xu Qingzhao, but both missed; Ren Ye destroyed the corpse with the Human Emperor Sword.
• Xu Qingzhao struck Lu Long with copper coins, drained his Star Source Power, and sealed his abilities, while Ren Ye announced victory and mocked him.
• Ming-ge badly injured Wang Xinggui, and Wu Pangzi fled into the woods after saying poisoned wine and Zhenyuan Powder had prevented him from using his powers.

Ren Ye returned to Qingliang Prefecture with the rescued caravan members, the red sandalwood, and several captured Jing Mountain leaders, while Huang Wei turned the victory into a public show of confidence. After Ren Ye returned to the Academy in Vermilion Bird City, Director Yan told him that Tang Feng had disappeared inside a Star Gate.

• Ren Ye, Fan Ming, Xu Qingzhao, and the others rescued the forty-two caravan members, recovered four cartloads of red sandalwood, and captured Lu Long, Wang Xinggui, and two Arhats.
• Huang Wei arranged for the victory and captured bandit leaders to be announced to Qingliang Prefecture’s commoners, rallying their support for Prince Huai and the trade routes.
• Fan Ming asked Xu Qingzhao about her divination ability, and she said she had a Mortal Constitution.
• Huang Wei worried that capturing Jing Mountain’s leaders would complicate trade, but Ren Ye said Lu Long had only been trying to profit and that someone would come to negotiate again.
• Director Yan told Ren Ye that Tang Feng had entered a Star Gate eight days earlier and had not come back.

Ren Ye discovered that Tang Feng had entered a Migration Land Star Gate and had been missing for eight days, while the Ministry of War prepared Fan Ming’s team for a dangerous mission. Tang Feng remained trapped in an unknown gate, struggling against a growing desire.

• Ren Ye and Director Yan found Tang Feng’s unfinished message saying he was in the Migration Land and inferred that his Personal Star Gate was there.
• Ren Ye reassured Director Yan that Tang Feng might still return and asked the Ministry of War to have New Year’s Watchers look for him.
• Fan Ming told Dean Zhao he had invested one million Star Source in Qingliang Prefecture, and Dean Zhao warned him against pairing rare-class holders on life-and-death missions without approval.
• Dean Zhao revealed that around a hundred and fifty New Year’s Watchers had gone missing across four Migration Land Star Gates and ordered Fan Ming’s whole team to prepare for the highest-rank gate.
• Tang Feng, trapped for eight days in an unknown Star Gate, slammed himself against a wall and tried to resist his growing desire by thinking of Li Yan.

Ren Ye tried to force Jing Mountain to negotiate over Qingliang Prefecture’s trade, but Lu Long claimed the Thousand-Mile Green Battalion and Southern Border depended on him. The Dragon Head sent an agent to resolve the dispute while preparing to leave the Southern Border for the Migration Land.

• Ren Ye and Huang Wei found that Jing Mountain had made no move after Lu Long and Wang Xinggui were captured, and Ren Ye visited Lu Long in prison.
• Lu Long refused to write a letter and warned Ren Ye that the Thousand-Mile Green Battalion and bandits controlled the trade routes, demanding that Ren Ye release him with an apology.
• Ren Ye told Huang Wei that no one was indispensable and decided to wait for the other side to act first.
• In Meishan County, the Dragon Head judged that Lu Long had acted out of greed and ordered a lean agent to speak with Wu Pangzi or handle the Qingliang Prefecture dispute himself.
• The Dragon Head said he might leave the Southern Border and wondered aloud what the Migration Land was like.

Ren Ye confronted Wu Pangzi over the Thousand-Mile Green Battalion’s demands, then publicly executed Lu Long, Wang Xinggui, and two Arhats to demonstrate that Qingliang Prefecture would not become a puppet. He revealed that the executions could be a bargaining move, leaving Wu Pangzi to decide whether to report Ren Ye’s defiance or negotiate a payment for the four heads.

• Wu Pangzi pretended to be gravely ill to avoid going to Qingliang Prefecture, but Yan Bo forced him to travel by threatening to send someone else and left him a Beast Essence Pill and a wheelchair.
• Ren Ye and Brother Huang concluded that the Dragon Head wanted Qingliang Prefecture as a strategic foothold against Great Qian, and Ren Ye prepared a risky response.
• Ren Ye met Wu Pangzi with thousands of bandits waiting outside the mist, then led him on a mountain walk and warned that he could expel two-thirds of Qingliang Prefecture’s population rather than submit to a blockade.
• Ren Ye brought Wu Pangzi before a crowd of commoners as Lu Long, Wang Xinggui, and the two Arhats were escorted out of prison.
• Huang Wei announced that the four bandit leaders were sentenced to death, and executioners beheaded them as the commoners cheered.
• Ren Ye told Wu Pangzi that the executions showed the Dragon Head his resolve, but offered to charge him two hundred thousand Star Source for the four heads; Wu Pangzi called the price somewhat high.

Wu Pangzi allied with Ren Ye, helped remove Jing Mountain’s rival leaders, and took control of the bandit stronghold while Ren Ye secured star source and a steady payment for Qingliang Prefecture. After the trade dispute was settled, Ren Ye prepared to advance to the second tier and explore the Migration Land’s Star Gate.

• Wu Pangzi told Yan Bo that Prince Huai had threatened to exile Qingliang Prefecture’s residents, then negotiated trade terms and offered gifts to win support for taking control of Jing Mountain.
• Yan Bo endorsed Wu Pangzi, and Jing Mountain’s leaders rode into Qingliang Prefecture, where Huang Wei’s Qingzhou Guard arrested them instead of killing them.
• Wu Pangzi delivered two hundred thousand star source to Ren Ye, who arranged for the captured leaders to remain imprisoned in exchange for regular payments; the two then swore to become sworn brothers.
• Wu Pangzi returned to Jing Mountain, where Lu Long and Wang Xinggui were buried and Yan Bo publicly urged him to lead the stronghold toward prosperity.
• Ren Ye used the star source and other funds to plan repairs to Dangshan Pass and postwar resettlement, then prepared to advance and explore the Migration Land’s Star Gate.

Ren Ye prepared Qingliang Prefecture for his advancement and learned that he would be sent into a Second Tier Star Gate, so he began looking for teammates. His search for Liu Ji Shan ended with a young stranger claiming Liu was close to death.

• Ren Ye assigned Brother Huang responsibility for repairing Dangshan Pass City, organizing trade, and handling Qingliang Prefecture's administration while Ren Ye supervised him.
• Ren Ye visited Zhao Baicheng, who told him that the Ministry of War planned to send him into an invitation-only Second Tier Star Gate and that he needed to form a squad.
• Zhao Baicheng said Fan Ming and his squad had already entered another Star Gate, and Ren Ye silently worried about him.
• Ren Ye returned to the Real World and considered potential teammates, ruling out Brother Huang and wondering whether Gu Nian and his beloved consort could join.
• Ren Ye called Liu Ji Shan, but a young stranger answered and said Liu was in a very bad situation and might be dying soon.

Ren Ye met a fat Player who had taken Li Biao’s phone and learned that Li Biao was trapped in a dangerous Star Gate in the Migration Land. The fat man revealed that Li Biao might already be dead, leaving Ren Ye to decide how to reach the Star Gate before its remaining time ran out.

• Ren Ye agreed to meet the phone’s owner at the Tree Rings Teahouse, bringing Brother Huang with him.
• The fat man demanded repeated payments of Star Source for information, so Ren Ye slapped him while Huang Wei subdued his four companions.
• The fat man explained that Li Biao was trapped in a small, eighty-person Star Gate inside the Migration Land, where Players were divided into factions and could not leave normally.
• The fat man described how to enter the Star Gate through the One Step to Heaven Mahjong Parlor in Giant City’s Temple District.
• The fat man admitted Li Biao might be dead because he had been driven from the safe house, where dangerous bald men hunted Players during the day.

Ren Ye questioned a thieving Player about the Giant City Star Gate, and the fatty recounted how Old Liu entered its deadly twenty-day challenge hoping to change his life. The story left Old Liu trapped in a Player hierarchy led by Wang Dong, where weaker Players were exploited and dissenters disappeared.

• Ren Ye asked the fatty to explain the Star Gate after hearing that bald Enforcers and the Great Might Heavenly Dragon Squad were involved.
• The fatty explained that he had entered the Giant City Star Gate fourteen days earlier and stolen Old Liu's phone before being caught.
• Old Liu chose the double S-rank Star Gate because its promise to let Players defy fate spoke to his insecurity and hope of becoming someone worthy of his friends.
• Fifty Players entered the Great Fortune Safe House, where they learned they had to survive twenty days, earn chips, evade daytime Enforcers, and qualify for a final mission.
• Wang Dong organized the Players after their first nighttime mission ended in a bloody battle, earning their trust and gradually building a clique of talented Players.
• Wang Dong demanded chips and Star Source from weaker Players as lodging fees, then took the dissenters into a room from which they never returned.