Chapter Summaries

Xiao Hua repaired the Zhong Family’s damaged magic artifact and left Zhongling Mountain Villa with Xue Xue after ensuring the family would distribute improved seeds fairly. As Zhong Haoran struggled with Zhong Peihan’s changed feelings, Xiao Hua and Xue Xue continued toward Qiang He Sea, giving seeds to poor commoners along the way.

• Xiao Hua accepted Zhong Tianyao’s materials and refining method, then repaired the Zhong Family’s severely damaged magic artifact in half a year.
• Xiao Hua reminded Zhong Yejing to ensure poor commoners received the improved seeds, and she promised to supervise their distribution.
• Xiao Hua and Xue Xue departed for Qiang He Sea, while Zhong Tianyao began preparing to awaken the Zhong Family disciples’ bloodlines.
• Zhong Haoran watched Xiao Hua leave and realized that Zhong Peihan’s gratitude had not become love as her cultivation and standing rose.
• Xiao Hua told Xue Xue he had plans for Zhong Haoran, then continued their journey with her while distributing improved seeds to impoverished commoners.

Xiao Hua and Xue Xue reached Qiang He Sea, where Xue Xue immersed herself in the sea breeze and Xiao Hua watched a fishing village await its men. Seeing the fishermen return, Xiao Hua reflected on the warmth of being awaited and the uncertainty of his own origins.

• Xiao Hua and Xue Xue discussed how he could help the people of Xiaoyu Continent, but they concluded he could not rely on the Immortal Alliance or the sect master.
• Xiao Hua and Xue Xue arrived at Qiang He Sea, and Xiao Hua was struck by its vastness and beauty.
• Xue Xue stood on a reef and let the sea breeze and waves wash over her as Xiao Hua realized the sea might help her establish her foundation.
• Xiao Hua noticed that a nearby fishing village had few adult men and that its women, children, and elderly anxiously watched the sea.
• Xiao Hua sensed two fishing vessels returning with their catches and reflected on the villagers’ faith that their loved ones would come home.
• Xiao Hua wondered about his own unknown origins and where his parents and siblings might be.

Xiao Hua reflected on the sand while Xue Xue enjoyed the sea breeze and waited for the fishing boats to return. Their quiet evening was interrupted when four overseas island leaders attacked a group of apparent Rogue Cultivators near the shore, and the group’s leader fled toward the two boats.

• Xiao Hua sat on the beach and contemplated the sand as Xue Xue watched him and savored the sea wind.
• Xue Xue noticed Xiao Hua had entered another state of cultivation comprehension and sat beside him as the fishing boats drew nearer.
• Kou Qinglian, Xiang Wenqing, Bai Min, and Ding Xuwen confronted a group of cultivators they accused of secretly hunting sea beasts.
• Kou Qinglian warned that the strangers’ calm behavior was suspicious, but Bai Min attacked and the other leaders ordered their disciples to join the fight.
• The overseas disciples summoned water-attributed spiritual energy as the strangers’ leader flew toward the two sea vessels.

Overseas Islands cultivators attacked a group they believed were Rogue Cultivators, but the defenders used black-hole artifacts and hidden mid Foundation Establishment cultivators to turn the fight against them. The leader revealed that the group belonged to the Immortal Music Sect, while Xue Xue watched helplessly and Xiao Hua remained absorbed in comprehending karma.

• Bai Min and the other Overseas Islands cultivators attacked the scattering disciples, but the defenders' black-hole artifacts swallowed their attacks and the seawater they controlled.
• The Overseas Islands cultivators poured waves and water dragons into the black holes, causing one Foundation Establishment cultivator to fall before a hidden mid Foundation Establishment cultivator froze and absorbed the released water.
• Bai Min attacked the newly revealed cultivator, but a hidden short mid Foundation Establishment cultivator used a flying sword to intercept him.
• The battle spread among the Qi Refinement disciples as Xue Xue worried and Xiao Hua continued handling sand while the ships and people on the beach were battered by the waves.
• Five mid Foundation Establishment cultivators blocked Xiang Wenqing and the others, and their leader declared that they were disciples of the Immortal Music Sect.

Xiao Hua remained unresponsive as five Immortal Music Sect cultivators froze the sea and attacked the Four Overseas Islands cultivators, putting two ships of fishermen in danger. Xue Xue awakened Xiao Hua by catching the sea sand falling from his hand, and he agreed to intervene after she asked him to save the people; she then asked him for the pink jade slip.

• The five Immortal Music Sect cultivators revealed their plan to kill the witnesses and unleashed a technique that froze the sea around Kou Qinglian, Xiang Wenqing, Ding Xuwen, Bai Min, and the others.
• Bai Min and the other cultivators tried to escape, but Kou Qinglian and two others were sealed in ice while Bai Min broke through with a fire pearl and continued fighting.
• The clash overturned one ship, and Bai Min's flames struck the other, leaving fishermen in the freezing water as people on shore cried out in distress.
• Xue Xue tried to wake Xiao Hua, then caught the sea sand falling from his hand; Xiao Hua opened his eyes, and Xue Xue glimpsed a brilliant river within his silver eyes.
• Xiao Hua sensed the battle and agreed to go save the people, while Xue Xue asked him to give her the pink jade slip first.

Xiao Hua rescued fishermen from a storm and confronted Zhang Qingxiao, whose renewed suspicions about Xiao Hua deepened when he saw how much his power had grown. The chapter ended with Zhang Qingxiao recalling that he had once deliberately let Xiao Hua escape and mocking his continued kindness.

• Xiao Hua flew to the burning sea vessel, broke through the ice with Samadhi True Fire, and used the Town Cloud Seal to extinguish the flames and calm the sea.
• Zhang Qingxiao revealed himself and suspected that Xiao Hua was connected to his master's death because Xiao Hua had survived and advanced to near mid Foundation Establishment strength.
• Xiao Hua rescued the fishermen and realized Zhang Qingxiao was present, though his divine sense could not detect him.
• Bai Min returned to ask Xiao Hua for help, then recognized Zhang Qingxiao and realized he had been allowed to escape as part of the cultivators' plan.
• Xiao Hua cautiously addressed Zhang Qingxiao, who recalled having deliberately let him escape before and remarked on his kindness.

Xiao Hua faced Zhang Qingxiao and his five subordinates while shielding the fishermen, revealing power that surprised Zhang Qingxiao. Their battle escalated as they recognized each other as former senior and junior brothers, and both developed killing intent over Xiao Hua’s origins and hidden strength.

• Zhang Qingxiao ordered five mid Foundation Establishment cultivators to attack Xiao Hua with ice dragons, but Xiao Hua’s Samadhi True Fire overwhelmed them.
• Xiao Hua destroyed the five cultivators’ weapons with the Soaring Flood Dragon Scissors while Zhang Qingxiao countered his fire techniques with a blood-red flag.
• Zhang Qingxiao brought out the Jingming Bell, but Xiao Hua used Soul Stab to disrupt him and cut through the bell’s golden radiance.
• Zhang Qingxiao sent a blood-colored Great Roc at Xiao Hua, who answered by releasing his Phoenix Dharma Body.
• Zhang Qingxiao recognized Xiao Hua’s true phoenix blood and grew intent on killing him, while Xiao Hua suspected Zhang Qingxiao might be connected to the cultivator who had sealed him.

Xiao Hua and Zhang Qingxiao prepared to kill each other until the Empress arrived, and Xiao Hua recognized Zhang Qingxiao as his supposedly dead Second Senior Brother. Zhang Qingxiao explained that he had been searching for Qiu Yin Liu and asked the Empress to let him leave, while Bai Min urged her to hold him accountable.

• Xiao Hua and Zhang Qingxiao readied their strongest attacks, but the Empress's token flew from Xiao Hua's storage bag and summoned her.
• The Empress interrupted Zhang Qingxiao's attempt to escape and made him identify himself as the Heavenly Demon Sect's Sect Master.
• Xiao Hua recognized Zhang Qingxiao's name as that of his Second Senior Brother and struggled to believe he had survived and become a Golden Core cultivator.
• Bai Min accused Zhang Qingxiao of plotting to provoke war between the Overseas Islands and Meng Kingdom, while Zhang Qingxiao claimed he had only been searching for Qiu Yin Liu.
• The Empress acknowledged that Zhang Qingxiao might have wanted to conceal the weapons, then he asked to leave as Bai Min pleaded with her to stop him.

Xiao Hua saved fishermen from a shipwreck while the Empress questioned him about the incident and asked whether Zhang Qingxiao should live or die. After Zhang escaped, the Empress examined Little Yellow and told Xiao Hua that she had expected him to discover the seals on his Niwan Palace and middle dantian much later.

• The Empress stopped Zhang Qingxiao and asked Xiao Hua to explain what had happened, and Xiao Hua said he had intervened only to save the fishermen.
• The Empress used her power to carry the fishing vessel, its survivors, and the wreckage to shore, then asked Xiao Hua whether Zhang Qingxiao should be killed or spared.
• Xiao Hua left the decision to the Empress, who flew away with him and ignored Zhang Qingxiao; Zhang and the Heavenly Demon Sect disciples fled, leaving Bai Min unable to free the cultivators trapped in ice.
• Dai Er rejoiced when Xiao Hua showed her that Little Yellow had recovered, and the Empress examined the sleeping spirit beast after hearing what it had eaten.
• The Empress learned that Xiao Hua knew his Niwan Palace and middle dantian were sealed, and remarked that he had established his foundation and discovered the seals earlier than she had expected.

The Empress identified Little Yellow as a possible young Ting Beast and explained its powers and dangers. After Xiao Hua described his journey with Xue Xue, the Empress set aside her business with him and revealed that she came from the Myriad Monster Realm, a land of monsters where she was not human.

• Dai Er asked what Little Sable was, and the Empress guessed that Little Yellow might be a Ting Beast.
• The Empress explained that Ting Beasts preyed on ghost souls and could perceive hidden secrets, though Little Yellow's future evolution was uncertain.
• Dai Er feared Little Yellow at first, but Xiao Hua encouraged her to hold him again because she had once saved his life.
• Xiao Hua told the Empress that he had established his foundation during his travels and had stayed with Xue Xue, so the Empress decided not to press her matter for now.
• The Empress told Xiao Hua that she came from the Myriad Monster Realm and was not human.

The Empress explained the spatial rifts linking Xiaoyu Continent to other realms and asked Xiao Hua to find Ming Hua, offering him a powerful demon-body technique as a reward. She gave Xiao Hua a tracking artifact and two jade slips before leaving with Dai Er, while Xiao Hua reunited with the fishermen and Xue Xue.

• The Empress told Xiao Hua that she had entered Xiaoyu Continent through a spatial rift and was searching for Ming Hua, who carried the Myriad Monster Realm’s supreme demon-body cultivation technique.
• The Empress offered Xiao Hua a basic External Incarnation mnemonic if he found Ming Hua, then gave him a ruyi-shaped artifact that would react when near him.
• The Empress said she sensed an opportunity north of Xi Kingdom and departed with Dai Er after giving Xiao Hua the Flowing Cloud Movement Technique and a jade slip about Myriad Monster Realm writing.
• Xiao Hua gave Dai Er a stalk of Youth-Preserving Grass, and she happily said it would help her when she transformed.
• Xiao Hua returned to Bai Min and the fishermen, who thanked him for saving them, and he warned them not to mistake the Empress for his companion.

Xiao Hua agreed to rescue the disciples from four overseas islands in exchange for three conditions, then pondered the Myriad Monster Realm and the origins of Xiao Huang and Minghua. The chapter left him reflecting on how several powerful cultivation arts might be connected.

• Bai Min thanked Xiao Hua for saving the island disciples, and Xiao Hua agreed to rescue them in return for three conditions.
• Xiao Hua used the repaired fire blanket to melt the ice without harming the fifty-seven disciples, who then went ashore to recover.
• Xiao Hua joined Xue Xue and examined a jade slip whose writing resembled simplified Green Seal Script.
• Xiao Hua wondered whether he came from the Myriad Monster Realm and considered why Empress had identified him as a cultivator from the Xiaoyu Continent.
• Xiao Hua recalled that Xiao Huang was a Truth-Listener and speculated about Xiaohei, Minghua, and the relationship between different cultivation arts.

After rescuing the fishermen, Xiao Hua and Xue Xue traveled with Bai Min and the island cultivators into the Qiang He Sea, where Xiao Hua sought information about Setting Sun Island. They left the coastline behind and learned that the sea’s dangerous regions and powerful beasts made the deep waters perilous.

• Xue Xue woke beside Xiao Hua, gave him a restricted pink jade slip, and said she was ready to establish her foundation.
• Xiao Hua accepted the island cultivators’ thanks and asked to hunt sea beasts, learn their Water Repelling Art, and find out where Setting Sun Island was.
• Bai Min invited Xiao Hua and Xue Xue to Qi Xi Island to search its records, while the other cultivators gave Xiao Hua gifts of sea-beast materials.
• Xiao Hua and Xue Xue flew with the island cultivators into the Qiang He Sea as the rescued fishermen raised a memorial arch and began worshiping Xiao Hua as their guardian deity.
• Bai Min led the group around a dangerous region that disrupted divine sense and cultivation, and Ding Xuwen explained that powerful sea beasts inhabited the deep sea but could not take human form because spiritual energy was too thin.

Xiao Hua reached Qi Xi Island and learned that no one there knew whether Setting Sun Island still existed, leaving him to search Qiang He Sea’s four great islands. After combining two sea charts, he sensed an unexplained warning of danger from Xiaoyu Continent and decided to use a Teleportation Array on the return journey.

• Ding Xuwen, Kou Qinglian, and Xiang Wenqing parted from Xiao Hua and asked him to visit their islands and report any news of Setting Sun Island.
• Bai Min explained how a Sinan and sea charts guided travelers across Qiang He Sea, then led Xiao Hua toward Qi Xi Island.
• Xiao Hua saw Qi Xi Island’s vast, heavily protected network of surrounding islands and heard from Bai Min about the sea’s dangerous weather and beasts.
• Island Master Zhang and a knowledgeable elder told Xiao Hua they had never heard of Setting Sun Island, but Zhang Ye gave him a Sinan, a sea chart, and directions to the four great islands.
• Xiao Hua combined Zhang Ye’s chart with Yu Chen’s, creating a chart covering ten thousand li, then sensed a possible danger coming from Xiaoyu Continent.
• Xue Xue urged caution, and Xiao Hua agreed that they should use a Teleportation Array for the final leg of their return.

Xiao Hua and Xue Xue traveled toward Setting Sun Island, where Xue Xue planned to establish her foundation, while Xiao Hua discovered that the Flowing Cloud Movement Technique was a form of Wind Evasion. During a violent storm, Xiao Hua decided to face the lightning in hopes of recovering his memories, and Xue Xue began establishing her foundation beside him; the Ling Lei Pill’s power reached her bloodline and began making it burst apart.

• Xiao Hua and Xue Xue traveled slowly toward Setting Sun Island, hunting sea beasts and resting on small islands along the way.
• Xiao Hua read the Flowing Cloud Movement Technique and realized it was a rudimentary form of Wind Evasion.
• As a tremendous storm engulfed the Qiang He Sea, Xiao Hua remembered a vision of himself enduring lightning and decided to face another strike to recover his memories.
• Xue Xue revealed that her parents had established their foundations in the Qiang He Sea and never returned, and that her fear had kept her from taking the Ling Lei Pill.
• Xue Xue swallowed the Ling Lei Pill and circulated its power through her meridians, but it then entered her bloodline and began causing it to burst apart.

Xue Xue used the Sky Mending Pill to survive the strain of her Thunder Beast bloodline and began Foundation Establishment, drawing powerful lightning to her. Her Thunder Beast phantom revealed an innate Lightning Driving Technique as Xiao Hua watched, and a surge of spiritual qi gathered above her.

• Xue Xue took the Sky Mending Pill, which repaired and strengthened her heart as the Ling Lei Pill's power coursed through her Thunder Beast bloodline.
• Xue Xue's true qi grew by more than thirty percent and began condensing into true essence, so she swallowed a Foundation Establishment Pill and released her divine sense across Qiang He Sea.
• Lightning gathered around Xue Xue's divine sense, and her Thunder Beast phantom rose to bear much of the lightning striking her.
• Xiao Hua moved away to avoid disrupting Xue Xue's breakthrough, then saw her Thunder Beast phantom use an innate Lightning Driving Technique to turn lightning against the descending bolts.
• Xiao Hua memorized the phantom's hand seals but found he could not command lightning, and a suction force above Xue Xue swallowed the spiritual qi from several miles around.

Xiao Hua used the Qiang He Sea thunderstorm to temper his Buddha Sarira and advance his Buddhist cultivation while Xue Xue completed Foundation Establishment. After they reunited, an approaching cultivator interrupted their intimacy, and Xue Xue urged Xiao Hua to help whoever had arrived.

• After Xue Xue’s divine sense withdrew, Xiao Hua flew into the thunderstorm and tried to use its lightning to recover his memories, but redirected the bolts to his Phoenix Dharma Body when the pain felt wrong.
• Xiao Hua released his Buddha Sarira and cultivated the Beiye Exquisite method as lightning tempered the Sarira and helped it grow.
• The thunderstorm ended after nine days, and Xiao Hua found Xue Xue at early Foundation Establishment; he stayed nearby while she continued stabilizing her cultivation.
• After another dozen or so days, Xue Xue opened her eyes, and Xiao Hua congratulated her before they began teasing each other.
• A distant strand of divine sense interrupted Xiao Hua and Xue Xue, who both looked toward its source; Xue Xue asked why Xiao Hua was reluctant to help someone.

Xue Xue and Xiao Hua joined a female cultivator fighting the sea beast Gen Zhe in Qiang He Sea. Xiao Hua used Sleeve Universe to blow away Gen Zhe’s poisonous ink mist, and the female cultivator recognized the technique and suspected he had mid Foundation Establishment cultivation.

• Xue Xue flew toward Gen Zhe with Xiao Hua following to protect her, and she summoned Beauty Like a Butterfly.
• The female cultivator called for help as Gen Zhe chased her, and Xue Xue attacked the beast with Fireball Talismans.
• Gen Zhe retaliated with an ice sword, but Xue Xue’s magic treasure blocked it.
• The female cultivator told Xue Xue to lure Gen Zhe aside so they could attack its weakness, then warned her about the beast’s poisonous ink balls.
• When black mist neared Xue Xue, Xiao Hua used Sleeve Universe to blow it away, prompting the female cultivator to recognize the technique.
• Xiao Hua used Sleeve Universe again to protect the female cultivator from Gen Zhe’s poisonous mist.

Xiao Hua and Xue Xue helped Kua Qiao'er drive off a powerful Gen Zhe in Qiang He Sea and recovered one of its tentacles for her. Kua Qiao'er explained that she had been hunting the beast for a Blood Radiance Island competition and revealed the demonic spearhead she had used to wound it.

• Xue Xue fought Gen Zhe with her Lightning Whip while Kua Qiao'er attacked it underwater with a demonic spearhead.
• Xiao Hua used his Sleeve Universe and Samadhi True Fire to counter Gen Zhe's black mist and spreading frost as Xue Xue struck it repeatedly.
• Gen Zhe fled into Qiang He Sea, and Kua Qiao'er asked Xiao Hua to retrieve one of its tentacles.
• Xiao Hua sent his Profound Iron needle after Gen Zhe and returned with a writhing tentacle.
• Kua Qiao'er introduced herself as a disciple of Blood Radiance Island and explained that she had risked hunting Gen Zhe for a ten-year competition.
• Kua Qiao'er showed Xiao Hua her demonic spearhead and explained that it could pierce sea beasts without being affected by spiritual power or controlled by divine sense.

Xiao Hua traded Gen Zhe’s tentacle for information on Demon Realm script and learned why Blood Radiance Island had lost the later portions of its Sleeve Universe technique. Kua Qiao'er planned to report that Xiao Hua possessed the complete technique and ask her island lord to visit him at the Thunder Control Sect.

• Xiao Hua exchanged Gen Zhe’s tentacle for access to Kua Qiao'er’s storage pouch and copied her jade slip about Demon Realm script.
• Xiao Hua told Kua Qiao'er that he had found the Sleeve Universe technique in a jade slip at Yanlin Mountain Marsh.
• Xue Xue learned that Blood Radiance Island’s former island lord and several other island lords had vanished at Yanlin Mountain Marsh, leaving their inheritances disrupted and Sleeve Universe incomplete.
• Xiao Hua confirmed that his jade slip contained the complete Sleeve Universe technique but refused to return it or meet Blood Radiance Island’s Golden Core island lord.
• Kua Qiao'er thanked Xiao Hua for the news and said she would report it to her island lord, who could visit him at the Thunder Control Sect.