Chapter Summaries

Zuo Xuan tried to contain the rout after Wu Pingnan’s death while Yang Nan’s New Year’s Watchers unleashed their abilities to annihilate the trapped imperial troops at Canyon Pass. As the battle raged, a one-armed soldier walked alone against the fleeing army toward Qingliang Prefecture, and the chapter ended with a glimpse of an old man in the Real World.

• After Wu Pingnan fell, Zuo Xuan ordered his forces to encircle the enemy cavalry, keep the rout from spreading, and advance on Canyon Pass from both sides.
• Yang Nan signaled Er Leng, Zhang Gui, Tao Wenyuan, and Lin Zifu to withdraw, and Zhang Gui led the cavalry back toward Canyon Pass while drawing the pursuing forces after them.
• Yang Nan ordered the New Year’s Watchers to seal the pass, and Li Yan used Water-Ink World to bring them and their weapons to the entrance of First-Line Heaven.
• Wang Pei, Old Liu, Tang Feng, and the other New Year’s Watchers attacked the advancing imperial troops, killing and scattering them inside the pass.
• A one-armed soldier walked against the fleeing troops, passed through the New Year’s Watchers’ ambush without killing them, and continued alone toward Qingliang Prefecture.
• In the Real World, an old man’s hair had grown whiter and his wrinkles had deepened.

Zhang Gui and the other veteran generals led three thousand cavalry in a suicidal charge against the imperial armies, buying nearly two hours for the defenders at Canyon Pass. The gorge’s trapped imperial troops were wiped out, and Zhang Gui’s wounded eldest son returned alone with Prince Huai’s banner to report the cavalry’s sacrifice.

• Zhang Gui rallied his three thousand cavalry by reminding them that their homes and families lay behind Qingliang Mountain, then split them into two forces to charge the imperial formations.
• Yang Nan recognized that Zhang Gui’s cavalry were sacrificing themselves to buy time, while Liu Ji Shan urged the defenders to finish off the trapped enemy quickly.
• Zuo Xuan ordered the imperial armies to halt and withdraw, warning that the three thousand men were prepared to die and could kill far more.
• Zhang Gui and Lin Zifu broke through the Divine Engine Battalion, but Zhang Gui charged into the enemy ranks and Lin Zifu died after entrusting Prince Huai’s banner to Zhang Gui’s eldest son.
• Tao Wenyuan died fighting in the enemy formation, while the wounded Er Leng was carried south by Little Orange as a talisman began to glow.
• The cavalry’s charge bought nearly two hours, the defenders annihilated the enemy in Canyon Pass, and Zhang Gui’s eldest son rode in alone with the banner, reporting that the cavalry had fulfilled its mission and gone to their deaths.

After Qingliang Prefecture’s defenders defeated Wu Pingnan’s forces, Zuo Xuan regrouped his remaining army while the exhausted New Year's Watchers rallied themselves with a song. As the final battle approached, an unexpected one-armed soldier entered Princess Anping’s tomb, and Old Taoist Xu realized the Heavenly Dao had overlooked him.

• Zuo Xuan halted his remaining thirty thousand soldiers outside Canyon Pass and prepared them for another assault.
• Yang Nan’s defenders built corpse walls and obstacles, then Liu Ji Shan, Tang Feng, and the New Year's Watchers broke the somber mood by singing “Unity Is Strength.”
• Lin Xiang and Zhao Baicheng visited the Wordless Stele and discussed the sword strike left in reserve and Zhao Baicheng’s limited time remaining.
• A one-armed soldier climbed through the open levels of Princess Anping’s tomb, weeping as he passed the murals and trials.
• Ren Ye sensed the soldier enter the tomb, and Old Taoist Xu realized the Heavenly Dao had overlooked a piece.

Ren Ye received the Human Emperor’s inheritance while a one-armed soldier visited Princess Anping’s tomb and recounted why he had arrived decades too late to keep their appointment. As Ren Ye’s perception spread across Qingliang Prefecture and reached its boundary, Old Taoist Xu gradually lost his connection to the world, as though their roles were being handed over.

• The soldier reassured Ren Ye that he meant no harm, then approached Princess Anping’s coffin and mourned the appointment he had failed to keep.
• The soldier told how Wang Tong had persuaded him to abandon Princess Anping to protect her and her imperial family, and how he had severed his own right arm before leaving the Capital.
• The soldier placed peach cakes beside Princess Anping’s head while Ren Ye continued sensing every part of Qingliang Prefecture.
• Zuo Xuan ordered the imperial army to attack First-Line Heaven, and the Red-Clothed Cannons bombarded the cliffs as the infantry charged.
• Ren Ye’s consciousness spread across Qingliang Prefecture and met a barrier of white mist at its southern edge, which he understood to be the Star Gate boundary.
• As Ren Ye’s perception expanded, Old Taoist Xu’s perception diminished, and he felt both joy and reluctance as their mysterious handover progressed.

Zuo Xuan forced the Chaos Faction Players into obedience and ordered the imperial army to storm Canyon Pass as the exhausted defenders struggled to hold it. In Princess Anping's Tomb, Li Mu asked Ren Ye for a sword, and Ren Daguo began writing as the one-armed figurine came alive.

• Zuo Xuan killed a Chaos Faction Player who challenged his command, then threatened the others into silence.
• Zuo Xuan ordered nearly the entire imperial army to charge through Canyon Pass and promised to put Qingliang Mountain's city to the sword.
• Yang Nan, Liu Ji Shan, Li Yan, and the other New Year's Watchers fought on as their weapons and supplies ran low and the imperial attack intensified.
• The soldier beside Princess Anping revealed himself as Li Mu and asked Ren Ye for a sword to repay his kindness.
• Ren Daguo took up his pen as the figurine of the one-armed man glowed and seemed to come alive.

Ren Daguo recounted how his divorce and cancer diagnosis led him to write stories for Editor Xu, recover, and become a Star Gate Player whose abilities helped shape events around his children. As his health failed, he revived Li Mu to fulfill a final sword strike at Princess Anping's Tomb and call the Human Emperor back to his rightful place.

• Ren Daguo divorced his wife, learned he had intermediate-stage liver cancer, and resolved to provide for Ye and Qingning before he died.
• Ren Daguo began writing settings and stories for Editor Xu, discovered his cancer had healed, and became a Star Gate Player with the Scholar System profession of guest writer.
• Ren Daguo used his abilities to support Qingning and Ye, secretly help the New Year's Watchers, and kill visitors who threatened his children.
• Ren Daguo used Spirit Bestowal to revive Li Mu in Qinglian Township so he could keep his appointment at Princess Anping's Tomb.
• Ren Daguo told Li Mu to conceal a sword strike beneath the Heavenly Dao's rules, and Li Mu promised to summon the Human Emperor back to his rightful place.

Ren Daguo explained how he secretly guided Ren Ye through the Qingliang Prefecture Star Gate, then wrote a farewell to Ren Ye and Qingning before pouring all his vitality and star source into the white-clothed figurine to resurrect Li Mu. The clockwork stopped as Ren Daguo’s life ended.

• Ren Daguo admitted to Old Xu that he had helped shape the Qingliang Prefecture mission because he wanted to save Ren Ye and guide him without exposing him to outside organizations.
• After the New Year's Watchers freed Ren Ye from prison, Ren Daguo used a staged story and a planted letter to steer him toward crucial clues for the mission’s second act.
• Ren Daguo altered Mr. He's letter so it pointed Ren Ye toward jumping into the pool during the Sacrifice trial, and persuaded Old Xu to add a dream that supplied further clues.
• Ren Daguo reflected on the hardships Ren Ye and Qingning had endured and asked them not to grieve after his death.
• Ren Daguo wrote that he would be resurrected if a series of foretold signs came to pass, then transferred his vitality and star source into the white-clothed figurine to resurrect Li Mu.
• The sound of clockwork stopping rang out in the room as Ren Daguo's life came to an end.

Ren Daguo sacrificed his life force and Star Source Power to awaken Li Mu, who forged an overwhelming sword and used it to stop the Great Qian army at Canyon Pass. Li Mu left the battle victorious, while the sword’s power destabilized the Small Secret Realm and Old Taoist Xu struggled to suppress it.

• At Canyon Pass, Xu Peng and Yang Nan urged the exhausted defenders and New Year's Watchers to hold together as Zuo Xuan called for their surrender.
• Ren Daguo poured his life force and Star Source Power into Li Mu, who shaped the energy into an ancient longsword with two fingers.
• Li Mu announced that he was honoring his appointment and sending Princess Anping of Jing to her rest, then rose beyond the realm of the greatest beneath heaven.
• Zuo Xuan ordered the Great Qian troops to retreat, but Li Mu's sword flew toward the ancient pass and shook the Small Secret Realm.
• Old Taoist Xu tried to suppress the sword with the Heavenly Dao's enormous hand and called on Ren Ye for help, but Ren Ye refused to respond.
• Li Mu sent a rain of sword energy through Canyon Pass, piercing the right knees of all twenty-six thousand Great Qian soldiers still fit to fight.

Li Mu’s sword strike crippled the imperial army, but the Heavenly Dao’s wrath followed him through a Star Gate and found only Ren Daguo’s corpse in the Real World. As the battle at Canyon Pass turned against the imperial troops, Li Yan spotted a black-robed man on Qingliang Mountain and shouted for him to come down.

• Li Mu’s sword strike shattered the right kneecaps of twenty-six thousand imperial soldiers, and Zuo Xuan realized their Wound-Healing Pills could not overcome the sword intent.
• The Heavenly Dao’s sword pierced Li Mu in the Princess Tomb, but he had already died; it then followed his lingering aura through a Star Gate to the Real World.
• The sword found Ren Daguo’s corpse at the Tree Rings Hotel, where a bald old man appeared, left a Buddhist lamp beside him, and vanished.
• Guo Caier and the others led three thousand Supernatural Ability Users into Canyon Pass, while Yang Nan sent Xu Peng and two hundred New Year's Watchers toward Qingliang Mountain.
• Zuo Xuan rallied the generals who could still fight, but the exhausted imperial troops lost the pass after a brief clash.
• Li Yan retreated toward Qingliang Mountain, saw a black-robed man on its summit, and yelled at him to stop watching and save himself.

Ren Ye sealed Princess Anping’s coffin and was told to extend his perception toward heaven and earth, while the Court Faction’s players reached Qingliang Mountain. The black-robed man guarding the tomb killed more than twenty attackers with his bare hands, and Old Liu recognized him as Brother Li as the chapter hinted at the powerful being behind his body.

• Li Mu’s robe fell over Princess Anping’s corpse, and her body withered to a skeleton as she finally closed her eyes.
• Ren Ye sealed the coffin and surveyed all of Qingliang Prefecture before Old Taoist Xu urged him to extend his perception toward heaven and earth.
• The Court Faction’s Supernatural Ability Users broke through Canyon Pass and several groups raced toward Princess Anping’s Tomb.
• The black-robed man left the summit and killed the gloomy young man with one punch before eating his Bone-Eroding Gu.
• The black-robed man killed the remaining Chaos Faction players, and Old Liu recognized him as Brother Li.
• The chapter recalled the Outsider’s massacre in the tomb and suggested that a powerful figure had descended upon Qingliang Mountain in a peerless body.

Li Yan’s fleshly body fought off Chaos Faction players on Qingliang Mountain while Ren Ye continued taking over the Princess Tomb and discovered Xu Qingzhao hidden beneath the mountain. As Wei Yan’s forces reached the tomb, Guo Caier revealed her power and silenced all arts across the peak.

• Li Yan’s body slaughtered Chaos Faction players on a mountain trail, while Tang Feng and Liu Ji Shan helped him hold off the attackers and Li Yan failed to reclaim his body.
• Wei Yan sent Xu Meng and others to stall Li Yan’s body as he led the main force toward the Princess Tomb.
• Ren Ye used two streams of consciousness to perceive and take over the tomb, briefly saw Xu Qingzhao beneath the mountain, and confirmed she was alive but asleep.
• Xu Peng brought the remaining New Year’s Watchers to the ninth layer and prepared them to defend Ren Ye.
• Xing Tao persuaded Wei Yan and the others to let Guo Caier enter the tomb alone, and she flew toward the peak with a Buddha Amulet.
• Guo Caier shouted, “Once I speak, all arts fall silent,” and the Buddha Amulet released light over Qingliang Mountain’s peak.

Guo Caier sealed magic in the ninth-level burial chamber and attacked Ren Ye, while the New Year's Watchers risked their lives to hold her back. As Ren Ye’s perception accelerated, Xu Qingzhao awakened before fully refining the Yin and Yang Qi and moved to challenge Guo Caier’s Buddhist tablet.

• Guo Caier used her Buddhist tablet to silence magic in the burial chamber, then charged in to kill Ren Ye.
• Guo Caier struck down New Year's Watchers who tried to stop her, but the others rallied and attacked her with their bodies and mundane weapons.
• Ren Ye’s grief at the New Year's Watchers’ sacrifice disrupted his focus until Old Taoist Xu urged him to perceive the inheritance, causing Destiny to surge from Ren Ye and speed his perception.
• Scholar sent outside Players’ Mystical Abilities into the tomb, but the tablet’s golden light dissolved them; he then planned to wait until Guo Caier had killed most of the defenders before striking with the Sword Formation.
• Guo Caier broke through the defenders and launched her demon-subduing pestle at Ren Ye, but New Year's Watchers intercepted it with their bodies.
• Xu Qingzhao awakened inside the natural cavern before completing her refinement of the Yin and Yang Qi and prepared to oppose Guo Caier’s magic-sealing power.

Xu Qingzhao destroyed the Buddha Amulet, restoring the New Year's Watchers’ powers, and Xu Peng sacrificed himself to heal his wounded comrades as Ren Ye neared the completion of his inheritance. With Chaos Faction Players attacking the burial chamber, Xu Qingzhao sent the Watchers away and took their karma upon herself to protect Ren Ye.

• Wei Yan prepared the Chaos Faction Players to enter the burial chamber and attack the New Year's Watchers.
• Xu Qingzhao joined her Yin and Yang Qi and shattered the Buddha Amulet, ending its suppression of Mystical Abilities and Star Source Power.
• Guo Caier was driven back by the New Year's Watchers as Chaos Faction Players charged into the burial chamber.
• Xu Peng used his Mystical Ability to heal his wounded comrades, exhausted his Star Source Power, and died.
• Ren Ye's grief pushed his consciousness to the boundary of the Firmament, and Rosy Clouds appeared in the sky.
• Xu Qingzhao sent the revived Watchers toward the eighth floor and accepted their karma as Chaos Faction Players attacked Ren Ye.

Ren Ye faced a renewed assault in Princess Anping's Tomb while Xu Qingzhao used her Red Beauty and Retribution abilities to bear his karma and strike back at the Chaos Faction, risking her life. As Ren Ye neared the end of sensing Qingliang Prefecture, he revealed he might refuse the final authority and enthronement to keep the mission unfinished, while Emperor Jing sought a view of the battle.

• Xu Qingzhao tied a red thread to Ren Ye and used her phantom Dao Body to absorb the Chaos Faction's attacks, then returned their force and killed more than thirty players.
• Scholar led over a thousand Chaos Faction Players in another concentrated attack, leaving Xu Qingzhao gravely injured after her Dao Body absorbed the assault.
• The Human Emperor Sword emerged after its Divine Kingdom drew all of Qingliang Prefecture inside, and Old Taoist Xu told Ren Ye that he was about to receive authority and complete the enthronement ritual.
• Ren Ye questioned whether he could finish sensing Qingliang Prefecture but refuse the authority, thereby keeping the mission unfinished; Old Taoist Xu warned that the Heavenly Dao would punish him.
• Emperor Jing asked the Celestial Surveillance Bureau to show him the situation in Qingliang Prefecture, and the Imperial Preceptor said they could at least view Canyon Pass.

Emperor Jing and Landlord waited anxiously as Ren Ye’s battle for Qingliang Prefecture reached its climax. After gaining the inheritance and rising as Human Emperor, Ren Ye refused the authority offered to him and kept the mission from ending.

• Emperor Jing viewed Canyon Pass through the Water Reflection formation and wondered why its soldiers had matching kneecap injuries and why so many ambushers were there.
• Crow told Landlord that the Star Gate contest would end in less than an hour, and Landlord sent him away after he demanded food.
• Ren Ye grieved for the many allies who had died helping him, then unleashed his power as Chaos Faction Players began fleeing toward Canyon Pass.
• Ren Ye rose as the Human Emperor, silenced Old Taoist Xu, and deflected the authority sent from the heavens so the mission would not end.
• Ren Ye summoned the Human Emperor Sword, whose Divine Kingdom had become as vast as Qingliang Prefecture.

Ren Ye killed Coachman and Scholar, then used Imperial Brush Replication to strip the Chaos Faction players of their abilities and slaughtered them in Canyon Pass. He emerged from Qingliang Prefecture with the survivors and corpses, warning Emperor Jing that he would bring the fight to the Great Qian Dynasty’s Capital.

• Ren Ye appeared before Coachman and Scholar, killed them with the Human Emperor Sword, and dispersed the Heavenly Dao’s clouds by releasing his Dynastic Destiny.
• Ren Ye declared the exit of Canyon Pass without laws, suppressing the Chaos Faction players’ Mystical Abilities as they tried to escape.
• Ren Ye entered the crowd and killed the trapped players, while Yang Nan, Tang Feng, Liu Ji Shan, and the Qingzhou Guard arrived.
• Ren Ye led the surviving New Year's Watchers and soldiers through the closing mist, then sent the corpses of the enemy and the court’s forces into Great Qian’s territory.
• Ren Ye threatened Emperor Jing with a future attack on the Capital, and Emperor Jing destroyed the projected image in fury.

Ren Ye claimed the Human Emperor’s inheritance after the battle for Qingliang Prefecture, while the surviving New Year's Watchers killed Guo Caier and Xing Tao. As Ren Ye took authority over the prefecture and heard a mysterious voice invite him to the rooftop, the awakened Star Gate spirit revealed that a child had gained enlightenment and become an Enlightened Spirit Child.

• Ren Ye spared Guo Caier and Xing Tao, then walked away as the New Year's Watchers forced them to repeatedly kowtow to their fallen companions until both died.
• Old Taoist Xu welcomed Ren Ye as the Human Emperor on Dangshan, and the celestial phenomenon prompted people across Qingliang Prefecture to bow before Ren Ye lifted them back up.
• Ren Ye merged with the Qingliang Prefecture Star Gate and received the Human Emperor's inheritance, new powers, and the Heavenly Dao's charge to rebuild and govern benevolently.
• A mysterious ancient voice told Ren Ye to meet it at the rooftop, leaving him wondering who had spoken and where the rooftop was.
• A boy in Qingliang Prefecture witnessed the celestial phenomenon, made a vow to become an immortal, and gained enlightenment; the awakened Star Gate spirit told Ren Ye about him before asking to sleep again.

Ren Ye secured the Human Emperor Inheritance, helped arrange the recovery of Qingliang Prefecture, and left the Star Gate for Vermilion Bird City's Academy. There, Zhao Baicheng congratulated him and told him that his father was dead.

• Ren Ye learned that Yin Susu needed two or three days of Destiny to recover, then found Xu Qingzhao in the Natural Grotto and left the Human Emperor Seal to help her refine the Yin and Yang Qi.
• Ren Ye returned to Qingliang Prefecture, appointed Old Taoist Xu to oversee the city for three days, and asked him to restore order and care for the wounded soldiers.
• Ren Ye left the Star Gate through the Human Emperor Sword and emerged at Vermilion Bird City's Academy, where Zhao Baicheng and other leading figures witnessed the unusual Star Gate.
• Ren Ye credited the New Year's Watchers with obtaining the Human Emperor Inheritance, and Zhao Baicheng told him that his father had died.

After Ren Ye learned that his father had secretly been a Player and died after helping him, he began to doubt the circumstances of the death and rushed to seek answers at Moon-Gazing Pavilion. Meanwhile, the Landlord discovered that Black Cage Fortress’s three thousand fighters had vanished in Qingliang Prefecture and ordered Wang Tudou to investigate.

• The Landlord learned that the New Year's Watchers had returned safely while none of Black Cage Fortress’s three thousand fighters had come back, and ordered Wang Tudou to capture a returning Watcher and learn what happened in Qingliang Prefecture.
• The Landlord suspected that the Moon-Gazing Pavilion had deliberately leaked the news to taunt Black Cage Fortress, then imposed an extra monthly fee on his tenants and told the Rent Collectors to remain at their posts.
• Ren Ye read his dead father Ren Daguo’s letter and realized that his father had been a Player who had secretly prepared the way for him in Qingliang Prefecture.
• Ren Qingning arrived, read the letter, and carried Ren Daguo’s body toward his bedroom while Ren Ye lay stunned on the floor.
• Ren Ye noticed that the letter’s final words and repeated references to the roof ridge seemed wrong, then ran out to find the truth at Moon-Gazing Pavilion in Vermilion Bird City.

Li Yan returned from Qingliang Prefecture, recovered at the Fraud Merchants' Association, and learned the Chairman wanted him to take someone along as an “Opportunity.” Meanwhile, Ren Ye searched for answers about his father's death and confronted Lin Xiang, ending by threatening to cremate his father that night if Lin Xiang would not reveal the truth.

• Li Yan soaked in a medicinal pool and ate hot pot while insisting he would pay for the heavenly treasures used to treat him.
• The Chairman dismissed Li Yan's offer to pay and proposed that he take a person with him through the High-Rank Star Gates, prompting Li Yan to suspect the person was the Chairman's child.
• Ren Ye asked Huang Wei to send Gu Nian to check whether the figurines in his father's study were still there.
• After Gu Nian reported that the figurines were gone, Ren Ye rushed to Vermilion Bird City and confronted Lin Xiang at the Moon-Gazing Pavilion.
• Ren Ye demanded to know why his father's last letter referenced the pavilion and whether his father could still live, but Lin Xiang insisted he was dead.
• Ren Ye threatened to arrange his father's cremation that night, and Lin Xiang was briefly stunned by the threat.