Chapter Summaries

Xiao Hua reached the Star Picking Tower in the Sacred Realm of a Thousand Demons with Fairy Xingyue and Xu Zhi, where their array contest revealed Xu Zhi’s overwhelming strength. At the tower, Xu Zhi and Fairy Xingyue discussed the mysterious destruction of three demon realms and five Pure Land temples, while Xingyue resisted the idea of handing over her tower.

• Xiao Hua learned that Zhu Qing had been taken to the Star Picking Tower after serving it and helping Princess Baihua.
• Fairy Xingyue gave Xiao Hua a jade pendant and showed him her Remnant Moon Cold Star Array, which Xu Zhi criticized as inferior to Xiao Hua’s Duotian Star Array.
• Fairy Xingyue attacked Xu Zhi with a meteor array, and he destroyed it with azure lightning before flying to the tower.
• Xiao Hua entered the tower’s highest palace and found Xu Zhi studying a jade slip while Fairy Xingyue lounged nearby.
• Xu Zhi asked about the vanished populations of three demon realms and five Pure Land temples, and Fairy Xingyue said the Star Moon Palace and their return to the Immortal Realm took priority.
• Xu Zhi hinted that others had time to act, but Fairy Xingyue angrily refused to let Xiao Hua or Xu Zhi take possession of her Star Picking Tower.

Xiao Hua recounted a fabricated story about how Bei Xian'er had released him, then left Xu Zhi and Fairy Xingyue to discuss returning to the Immortal Realm. At Star Picking Tower, he reunited with Zhu Qing, who presented him with a book connected to the Hero Register.

• Xiao Hua told Xu Zhi and Fairy Xingyue that Bei Xian'er had forgiven him and taken Little White Dragon and Bibo home, while Fairy Xingyue doubted his account.
• Xu Zhi asked about the Sea Red Domain, and Fairy Xingyue said she would investigate it after returning to the Law Enforcement Palace.
• Xiao Hua left the hall, admired the snowfall outside Star Picking Tower, and wondered whether it had snowed in Guo Village.
• Xiao Hua met Zhu Qing on the stairs, and Zhu Qing praised his rise toward earning a Hero Register of his own.
• Zhu Qing handed Xiao Hua a book, prompting Xiao Hua to ask why he was presenting a book when he had said the Hero Register was not one.

Xiao Hua examined the Star Picking Tower’s newly created Xiao Hua Imperial Records and learned that it recorded many of his secrets, though it had not uncovered his greatest ones. Zhu Qing then led him to Heroes Pavilion, where Xiao Hua saw his own statue beside Feng Wu’s.

• Zhu Qing explained that Xiao Hua’s record had been upgraded from Biographies to Imperial Records after his deeds shook the Sacred Realm of a Thousand Demons.
• Xiao Hua used the passage jade pendant to read his Imperial Records and discovered that they speculated about his origins and whether he had been disguised as Ci Hang.
• Xiao Hua found that the record linked the Creation Sect’s campaign to his rise, but had not exposed his Kunlun Immortal Realm army or the secrets of his avatars.
• Zhu Qing told Xiao Hua that Heroes Registers were kept at Lan Yue Palace and that copies had been gathered in the local Star Picking Tower, so Xiao Hua asked to visit Heroes Pavilion.
• Zhu Qing returned Xiao Hua’s record to Heroes Pavilion, where Xiao Hua saw a statue of himself beside Feng Wu’s demon-body statue.

Xiao Hua discovered records of demons and Buddhist temples that had vanished without a trace, then gained insight into cause and effect and transformed into a Hand of Cause and Effect. His power froze Star Picking Tower and spread through the Sacred Realm of a Thousand Demons until a spear-shaped object emerged from Xu Zhi’s lightning mark and shattered the stillness.

• Xiao Hua read Feng Wu’s Hero Record and found it identified the Heaven-Defying Thunder Phoenix Great Sage as a suspected surviving bloodline of the Phoenix Clan.
• Xiao Hua read records describing the overnight destruction of three demon realms and the disappearance of Qingzhao Temple and its surrounding population.
• Xiao Hua reflected on the hidden causes and effects behind past events and gained insight into breaking free of them.
• Xiao Hua transformed into a Hand of Cause and Effect, drawing inscriptions from the Hero Records and spreading waves through Star Picking Tower and the Sacred Realm of a Thousand Demons.
• The River of Cause and Effect froze Xu Zhi, Fairy Xingyue, and everyone in Star Picking Tower until a spear-shaped object flew from Xu Zhi’s lightning mark and shattered the stillness.

Xiao Hua’s presence in Heroes Pavilion prompted Xu Zhi and Fairy Xingyue to investigate, but they found nothing unusual and left him to his own devices. While exploring Star Picking Tower, Xiao Hua reunited with Mo Jianli, who was also preparing to enter Star Moon Palace.

• Xu Zhi sensed his Punishment Immortal Artifact react and rushed with Fairy Xingyue to Heroes Pavilion, where they found Xiao Hua alone before the Hero Register.
• Xu Zhi and Fairy Xingyue left to investigate elsewhere, and Zhu Qing soon departed to handle urgent business at Star Picking Tower.
• Xiao Hua lowered his cultivation level and went downstairs, hoping to find inexpensive spirit herbs, but entered a crowded hall of Star Moon Palace candidates instead.
• Mo Jianli recognized Xiao Hua, greeted him warmly, and explained through their conversation that he was also going to Star Moon Palace.
• Xiao Hua asked Mo Jianli to call him a fellow immortal, and Mo Jianli agreed before offering to introduce him to their old acquaintances.

Xiao Hua reunited with Mo Jianli and learned that the Confucian cultivators around him looked down on his friendship with Daoist cultivators. Gongshu Yixin then recognized Xiao Hua at Star Picking Tower and enthusiastically introduced him to Gongshu Yiming.

• Mo Jianli introduced Xiao Hua to the Confucian cultivators, including Gongshu Minghu, who insulted Daoist cultivators and warned Mo Jianli against befriending Xiao Hua.
• Mo Jianli defended his friendship with Xiao Hua, prompting Gongshu Minghu to rebuke him and the other Confucian cultivators to distance themselves from him.
• Xiao Hua asked Mo Jianli about his expulsion from the Chongyun Sect and the sect’s destruction, but Gongshu Yixin and Gongshu Yiming arrived before he could explain.
• Gongshu Yixin reprimanded Gongshu Minghu for publicly calling her Aunt, then told him that Uncle-grandfather Jingye had summoned him.
• Gongshu Yixin recognized Xiao Hua and greeted him excitedly, then told Gongshu Yiming about his formation skills, cultivation, and lightning abilities.

Xiao Hua reunited with Gongshu Yixin and Gongshu Yiming, then learned from Mo Jianli how the fall of Changsheng Town had led to Mo Jianli’s exile and Chongyun Sect’s destruction. He considered asking Mo Jianli to follow him but hesitated because he believed he could take only seven disciples and already had someone in mind for the final place.

• Gongshu Yixin and Gongshu Yiming introduced Xiao Hua to Gongshu Yiming and invited him to meet their Uncle-grandfather Jingye, while Gongshu Minghu followed them downstairs.
• Xiao Hua asked Mo Jianli about Xi Kingdom and learned that Mo Jianli had taken responsibility for his companions, been expelled from Chongyun Sect, and later advanced to Literary Master.
• Mo Jianli told Xiao Hua that Chongyun Sect had eventually been destroyed after Shan’s assassination, though the perpetrators and motive remained unknown.
• Xiao Hua offered to compensate Mo Jianli by having him follow him, but stopped short of making the offer because he believed he could take only seven disciples and had another candidate in mind.

Xiao Hua agreed to arrange for Mo Jianli to join the Creation Sect, then entered a hall where he encountered Gongshu Jingye and his old adversary Duanmu Qing. Duanmu Qing declared his love for Gongshu Yiming despite Gongshu Yixin’s rebuke, leaving Xiao Hua watching the confrontation.

• Xiao Hua offered to have his sword-skilled disciple take Mo Jianli as a student and make him a disciple of the Creation Sect, and Mo Jianli reluctantly agreed to meet him.
• Xiao Hua entered the hall with Mo Jianli and saw Gongshu Jingye waiting among several Confucian cultivators.
• Xiao Hua recognized Duanmu Qing, whose family had previously pursued him, and realized Star Moon Palace had drawn old adversaries together.
• Duanmu Qing presented Lightning Derivation Wood to Gongshu Yiming, and Gongshu Yixin accused him of using the gift to pressure her sister despite her rejection.
• Duanmu Qing defended his devotion to Gongshu Yiming, saying love was not determined by rank or strength, while Xiao Hua watched with interest.

Duanmu Qing tried to win Gongshu Yiming’s favor by offering her Lightning Derivation Wood, but Xiao Hua exposed her past conflict with him and the Duanmu Family’s Killing Order. Xiao Hua then challenged the wood’s value, and Duanmu Qing demanded to know what qualified him to dismiss it.

• Duanmu Qing recounted how she had searched for Lightning Derivation Wood for Gongshu Yiming and offered her a piece at the Star Moon Palace.
• Gongshu Yixin stopped Gongshu Yiming from accepting it and asked Xiao Hua to lend her his Lightning Devouring Bead instead.
• Xiao Hua confronted Duanmu Qing about her claim that he had used despicable means to win Lightning Derivation Wood at the Star Picking Tower auction.
• Xiao Hua recounted their earlier dispute and revealed that the Duanmu Family had issued a Killing Order against him, prompting contempt from the Gongshu family disciples.
• Duanmu Qing insisted that Gongshu Yiming should accept the wood, while Xiao Hua dismissed its usefulness for breaking her cultivation bottleneck.
• Duanmu Qing angrily questioned Xiao Hua’s qualifications to judge the Lightning Derivation Wood’s value.

Xiao Hua revealed the Five Brocade Cloud Diagram of the Immortal Palace, giving Gongshu Yiming hope of advancing her Five Qi True Thunder cultivation. Duanmu Qing challenged him to a wagered battle to settle their grudges, and Xiao Hua accepted through Mo Jianli.

• Xiao Hua showed Gongshu Yiming a silk handkerchief that Gongshu Yixin recognized as the Five Brocade Cloud Diagram of the Immortal Palace.
• Gongshu Yiming thanked Xiao Hua after learning the diagram could help her overcome a bottleneck in cultivating the Five Qi True Thunder.
• Duanmu Qing challenged Xiao Hua to the Battle to Resolve Grudges and suggested that winning could end the Duanmu Family’s Killing Order against him.
• Gongshu Yixin warned Xiao Hua that Duanmu Qing wanted to use another fighter to attack him, but Xiao Hua agreed to the wagered battle.
• Xiao Hua had Mo Jianli strike palms and swear the oath in his place, and Duanmu Qing agreed that life and death would not be discussed in the battle.

Xiao Hua clashed with Duanmu Qing and learned that the aristocratic families would settle grudges in a dangerous wager battle before entering Star Moon Palace. The Gongshu family offered to protect him through a marriage pretense involving Gongshu Yixin, but Xiao Hua refused to back down from the Duanmu Family.

• Gongshu Yixin praised Xiao Hua for confronting Duanmu Qing, who promised to explain himself during the Battle to Resolve Grudges.
• Gongshu Jingye explained that the families held the battle before entering Star Moon Palace, warning Xiao Hua that the matches were real and that Duanmu Lianheng was a formidable leader.
• Gongshu Yiming suggested that Xiao Hua form a marriage connection with Gongshu Yixin so Gongshu Jingye would have grounds to oppose the Duanmu Family.
• Gongshu Yixin agreed to pretend she and Xiao Hua had a relationship, then worried that he might cling to her like Duanmu Qing had.
• Xiao Hua thanked the Gongshu family but said he would not retreat from Duanmu Lianheng, while Gongshu Yixin urged him to put his own safety first.

Xiao Hua left the Gongshu family after offering to find teachers for Gongshu Yixin and Gongshu Yiming, then noticed a mysterious phantom repeatedly moving through Star Picking Tower. Suspecting something was wrong, he disguised himself and flew toward a guarded archway to investigate.

• Xiao Hua offered to find teachers for Gongshu Yixin and Gongshu Yiming, and Gongshu Jingye ordered the family to keep the Five Brocade Cloud Diagram secret and investigate Xiao Hua.
• Xiao Hua told Mo Jianli he did not fear Duanmu Qing and said his friend could teach Mo Jianli Confucian techniques.
• Xiao Hua sensed a phantom approaching them, but it veered away; he later saw it return and move through the corridor again.
• Xiao Hua suspected the phantom was involved in something amiss at Star Picking Tower and decided to follow it.
• Xiao Hua disguised himself and charged toward a guarded archway at the end of the corridor.

Xiao Hua infiltrated a secret meeting in the Star Picking Tower and learned that a plot involving the tower and Star Moon Palace had been postponed after a Human Mahayana appeared. As he climbed toward the upper floors, he encountered Murong Congyun, who was overwhelmed to find him alive.

• Xiao Hua entered a hall filled with powerful Confucian cultivators after the jade pendant dispelled the cloud glow that exposed him.
• A Warlord announced that their plan was temporarily shelved because the Star Moon Palace Master had returned with a Human Mahayana cultivator.
• Xiao Hua chose not to interfere with the conspirators and followed them through a hidden passage before heading upstairs.
• Xiao Hua recognized Murong Congyun's voice and stopped on the stairs as she appeared with several Confucian cultivators.
• Murong Congyun saw Xiao Hua, asked whether he was truly still alive, and dismissed her companions so she could speak with him.

Murong Congyun reunited with Xiao Hua and described the prosperity of the Xiao Kingdom he had founded by farming the former Divine Demon Blood Swamp. She brought him to meet Murong Jiang, who offered to make him a guest elder of the Murong family and formally induct him after their return from Star Moon Palace.

• Murong Congyun told Xiao Hua she had feared he died in the Divine Demon Blood Swamp and praised the Xiao Kingdom’s transformation into a prosperous refuge.
• Xiao Hua asked Murong Congyun what had happened after he fell unconscious, and she agreed to explain as they went to meet Murong Jiang.
• Murong Congyun said the clans had knowingly used themselves as bait, and warned Xiao Hua that the clans—not the Immortal Palace—held the true power behind events on the Cangxian Continent.
• Murong Congyun led Xiao Hua to the Murong family pavilion, where he reunited with Murong Jiang after more than two hundred years.
• Murong Jiang offered Xiao Hua the position of guest elder and promised to arrange his formal entry into the Murong family after they returned from Star Moon Palace.

Murong Jiang tried to pressure Xiao Hua into joining the Murong family and accepting Murong Congyun, but Xiao Hua refused and left. Afterward, Murong Congyun and Murong Jiang discussed Xiao Hua’s suspicions and the Murong family’s plans for Xiao Kingdom.

• Murong Jiang praised Xiao Hua and urged him to accept Murong Congyun and join the Murong family, but Xiao Hua declined the offer.
• Murong Congyun pleaded with Xiao Hua to understand her feelings, while Murong Jiang threatened him and gave him until after Star Moon Palace to decide.
• Murong Congyun shielded Xiao Hua from Murong Jiang, and Xiao Hua left after warning them not to repeat such pressure.
• Murong Jiang dismissed the other disciples and learned from Murong Congyun that she had encountered Xiao Hua outside the Changsun family.
• Murong Congyun realized Xiao Hua might be suspicious because he had escaped the Demon King who held him, and admitted she had pretended not to know about his plight.
• Murong Jiang explained that rescuing Xiao Hua from Biqingyu would have risked the Murong family’s Literary Saints, while Murong Congyun regretted not having an answer when Xiao Hua questioned her.

Xiao Hua left the Murong family after realizing Murong Congyun’s affection had been an act, then disguised himself as Zhang Xiaohua and explored Star Picking Tower. When the auction was halted for the challenge to bury old grudges, Star Picking Tower began transporting everyone to the event.

• Murong Jiang explained why he had been wary of Xiao Hua and warned Murong Congyun not to act recklessly; she went to seek information about the Sacred Realm of a Thousand Demons.
• Xiao Hua concluded that Murong Congyun had been pretending to care for him and left the Murong family’s pavilion, prepared to retaliate if Murong Jiang attacked.
• Xiao Hua changed his appearance to Zhang Xiaohua and found no worthwhile bargains while wandering around Star Picking Tower.
• A Star Picking Tower disciple announced that the auction would pause for the challenge to bury old grudges, prompting attendees to discuss the upcoming event.
• Martial cultivator Zhu accidentally revealed that he had paid Star Picking Tower yuan stones, and the tower’s formation transformed the auction hall into a star-shaped space to transport the attendees.

Nanhua Yue opened the challenge to bury old grudges beneath the Great Grandmasters gathered at Star Picking Tower. After Duanmu Lianheng and Meng Sheng clashed and Nanhua Yue calmed the damage, the families submitted their participants’ names to the General Dispatching Cauldron, and the challenge was set to begin.

• Nearly two hundred Great Grandmasters and thousands of family disciples gathered beneath the halos in the starry-sky arena as Nanhua Yue arrived to preside over the challenge.
• Duanmu Lianheng attacked Meng Sheng after their exchange of barbed words, and Meng Sheng blocked his blade with a fist formed from Vast Righteous Qi.
• The collision tore through space and endangered Nanhua Yue, but moonlight from the full moon calmed the forces and restored the damaged space.
• Nanhua Yue asked Duanmu Lianheng and Meng Sheng to register if they wished to participate, and both agreed to follow Star Picking Tower’s arrangements.
• Nanhua Yue presented the General Dispatching Cauldron, and the Great Grandmasters sent jade pupils containing the participants’ names into it as war drums stirred the disciples.

Mo Jianli faced Duanmu Qing in the first challenge to bury the hatchet, and Xiao Hua appeared after Duanmu Qing was pressured into accepting the fight. Xiao Hua revealed that the Duanmu Family had issued a Killing Order against him, and Meng Sheng offered the Meng Family’s support.

• Nanhua Yue announced that Duanmu Qing would challenge Mo Jianli in the first round.
• The crowd mocked Mo Jianli, but he drew on his hardships and stood his ground against Duanmu Qing.
• Mo Jianli refused to apologize for Xiao Hua, and Duanmu Qing accepted the fight after Duanmu Lianheng ordered him to proceed.
• Xiao Hua arrived and taunted Duanmu Qing, who declared that they would settle their old grievances in battle.
• Xiao Hua said the Duanmu Family had issued a Killing Order against him, and Meng Sheng vowed that the Meng Family would stand up for him.

Xiao Hua summoned his disciple Yuan Ya, who crippled Duanmu Qing with a single punch and then repelled Duanmu Lianheng’s attack. As Duanmu Lianheng prepared to challenge Xiao Hua, Nanhua Yue announced that Star Picking Tower had sent an update to the Xuanhuang List.

• Duanmu Lianheng ordered Duanmu Qing to fight Xiao Hua, but Xiao Hua summoned Yuan Ya from the Kunlun Mirror instead.
• Yuan Ya recognized Duanmu Qing from their past encounter and struck him, shattering his armor and crippling his cultivation.
• Yuan Ya defended his attack by recalling the Duanmu Family’s Killing Order against Xiao Hua, then challenged Duanmu Lianheng to fight.
• Duanmu Lianheng attacked Yuan Ya, but Yuan Ya shattered his blade light and wounded him with fist wind.
• Nanhua Yue warned Duanmu Lianheng that he could not interfere without entering the challenge, and he declared that he would challenge Xiao Hua.
• Nanhua Yue received a message that Star Picking Tower was updating the Xuanhuang List and offered to announce it to the gathered seniors.

Nanhua Yue secured additional Yuan stones from the Confucian families to let them receive the Xuanhuang List at the same time as the Cangxian Continent. The list appeared and revealed its rankings, but Xiao Hua was absent, prompting the Confucian cultivators to wonder about his return from Biqingyu.

• Nanhua Yue asked the Confucian families for fifty percent more Yuan stones to transmit the updated Xuanhuang List simultaneously, and Gongshu Jingye agreed to pay first.
• The families contributed Yuan stones, and Star Picking Tower opened a vast transmission formation above the round moon.
• The Xuanhuang List appeared amid thunder and Immortal Palace visions, displaying the Xuan Ranking and Huang Ranking.
• Xiao Hua examined the rankings and found familiar cultivators listed, but his own name was absent.
• Murong Jiang asked why Xiao Hua was missing, and Nanhua Yue explained that he had previously disappeared from the list.
• A Confucian Great Grandmaster recalled that Xiao Hua had been suppressed in Biqingyu, leaving the gathered cultivators silent and waiting.