Chapter Summaries

The Barbarian Tribe Army launched an enormous beast assault against Blackwater City, overwhelming the defenses with waves of Origin Beasts. Xiao Lie realized that high-ranking shamans were secretly directing the attack as Source Core Realm beasts joined the tide.

• Gu Chenfeng assessed the elite Barbarian Tribe Army as it halted outside Blackwater City, while Xiao Lie and Wushu Lang traded threats and recalled their battle ten years earlier.
• Wushu Lang ordered an attack, and dozens of Intermediate Shamans used their Beast Taming Method to send tens of thousands of Origin Beasts charging at the city.
• Xiao Lie ordered the Great Li troops to fire arrows, while Gu Chenfeng's defensive works and the City Defense Army stopped the beasts that broke through.
• Xiao Lie noticed the beast tide kept growing and the shamans replenished their Spiritual Power with Holy Water, while Blackwater City's defenders began suffering casualties.
• Several Source Core Realm Origin Beasts appeared in the beast tide, and Xiao Lie concluded that high-ranking shamans were secretly controlling them.

Xiao Lie left Blackwater City to find the High-Rank Shaman directing the growing beast tide, but Wushu Lang and Nalan Qing ambushed him in the air. As Xiao Lie became trapped between the two enemy Source Spirit Realm experts, Deputy Commander Lin appeared on a Flying Sword, having apparently reached the Source Spirit Realm.

• Xiao Lie took a Flying Source Weapon out of Blackwater City to search for the High-Rank Shaman while leaving a subordinate in command.
• Wushu Lang intercepted Xiao Lie, and the two Source Spirit Realm experts fought as Origin Beasts gathered against the city.
• Nalan Qing emerged from concealment and wounded Xiao Lie with a surprise attack before joining Wushu Lang against him.
• Gu Chenfeng watched Xiao Lie come under pressure while a Source Core Realm Origin Beast broke through the city's defensive line.
• Deputy Commander Lin flew from Blackwater City on a Flying Sword, and the soldiers recognized that he had advanced to the Source Spirit Realm.

Xiao Lie ordered Blackwater City's cavalry to charge the Barbarian Tribe's forces, and Gu Chenfeng joined Zuo Yutang's formation as it smashed through the beast tide. The two armies clashed in a fierce melee, but just as Great Li's cavalry regrouped for another attack, the Barbarian Tribe cavalry received a signal and began to retreat.

• Xiao Lie and Lin searched for the hidden High-Rank Shaman while fighting Wushu Lang and Nalan Qing, but could only locate the shaman's general direction.
• Xiao Lie ordered the city's cavalry to ride out and attack the Barbarian Tribe's main force, and Zuo Yutang selected Li Zicheng to join her charge.
• Gu Chenfeng joined the cavalry formation, which used its combined power to cut through the Origin Beasts and reach the Barbarian Tribe's position.
• Great Li's cavalry collided with the Barbarian Tribe's riders, and Gu Chenfeng fought beside Zuo Yutang as the armies became locked in melee.
• Great Li's cavalry regrouped into a stronger formation, but a signal from the Barbarian Tribe camp prompted its cavalry commander to order a retreat.

The Great Li cavalry’s charge was shattered by Origin Beasts that the Barbarian Tribe Shamans drove to self-detonate, forcing Zuo Yutang to order a retreat toward Blackwater City. Gu Chenfeng sensed a power near the Northern Plains Forest that could advance his Azure Dragon Transformation, and he disappeared before the cavalry reached safety.

• Zuo Yutang and the Great Li commanders ordered the cavalry to charge the Barbarian Tribe infantry after the enemy cavalry withdrew.
• The Origin Beasts attacked the charging Great Li cavalry and began detonating themselves, damaging its formation.
• Several source core realm Great Demons exploded, killing hundreds of cavalrymen and breaking apart much of the battle formation.
• Gu Chenfeng sensed a nature-filled power near the Northern Plains Forest that could help him break through the first level of the Azure Dragon Transformation.
• Zuo Yutang ordered a retreat and had the cavalry unleash their talismans to hold back the pursuing beasts.
• As the cavalry neared Blackwater City, Zuo Yutang realized Gu Chenfeng had disappeared.

After returning to Blackwater City, Zuo Yutang and the commanders faced mounting casualties as the beast tide’s self-detonating attacks battered the defenses, while Xiao Lie and Deputy Commander Lin struggled against their opponents. Presumed dead, Gu Chenfeng secretly reached the Barbarian Tribe’s rear and found the high-ranking Shaman controlling the Origin Beasts.

• Great Li’s cavalry returned to Blackwater City after losing two thousand soldiers, and Zuo Yutang discovered that Li Zicheng was missing and feared he had died.
• Zuo Yutang prepared to recover her Source Qi as self-detonating Origin Beasts attacked the city’s first defensive line.
• Xiao Lie and Deputy Commander Lin remained locked in difficult battles, leaving them unable to search for the high-ranking Shaman.
• Gu Chenfeng slipped away from the retreat and circled behind the Barbarian Tribe camp to investigate the mysterious energy.
• Gu Chenfeng found a Nine-Star Source Core Realm Iron-Winged Griffin carrying an elder whose Spiritual Power was driving the Origin Beasts into madness, and recognized him as the high-ranking Barbarian Tribe Shaman.

Gu Chenfeng ambushed the high-ranking Barbarian Tribe Shaman with the Falling Star Bow, but the Shaman survived using a Substitute Talisman and counterattacked. Trapped by the Shaman and five Origin Beasts, Gu Chenfeng spotted an opportunity as the Iron-Winged Griffin dove at him.

• Gu Chenfeng discovered the Shaman controlling the beast tide and saw that a crystal was powering his Spiritual Power.
• Gu Chenfeng climbed a tree and shot the Shaman with the Falling Star Bow, but the Shaman's Substitute Talisman took the hit, and the arrow knocked a chip from the crystal.
• Gu Chenfeng and the Shaman clashed with their Divine Senses, after which four late Source Core Realm Origin Beasts charged Gu Chenfeng.
• Gu Chenfeng fought the four beasts with the Mountain-Splitting Axe and realized the arrow had brought back a pea-sized piece of the crystal.
• The Shaman launched Divine Sense Arrows while the Iron-Winged Griffin dived at Gu Chenfeng, who looked into its open maw and formed a plan.

Gu Chenfeng was swallowed by the Iron-Winged Griffin while the Barbarian Tribe Shaman resumed using the Holy Crystal to drive Origin Beasts into suicidal attacks on Blackwater City. The defenses withdrew behind the City-Protecting Grand Formation, and Zuo Yutang feared the unknown fighter who had challenged the Shaman had died.

• The Iron-Winged Griffin swallowed Gu Chenfeng, and the blue-robed old man took the Mountain-Splitting Great Axe before returning to command the Origin Beast army.
• The Shaman's enhanced Beast Taming Art sent Origin Beasts into explosive attacks that overwhelmed Blackwater City's defensive lines and inflicted heavy casualties.
• Zuo Yutang fought at the front and narrowly survived a pounce from a Source Core Realm Great Demon when it unexpectedly stopped short of self-destruction.
• Xiao Lie and the commanders sensed a clash of Divine Sense behind the Barbarian Tribe Army, and Wushu Lang and Nalan Qing moved to help the Shaman before he told them he could handle the trouble.
• The beast tide resumed its suicidal assault, forcing the Blackwater Army to retreat behind the City-Protecting Grand Formation.
• Zuo Yutang wondered whether the mysterious fighter who had challenged the Shaman was Gu Chenfeng and regretted that she had never learned his name.

As Blackwater City's City-Protecting Grand Formation neared collapse under the Origin Beast assault, Gu Chenfeng refined the crystal inside the Iron-Winged Griffin and broke through his bottleneck. His breakthrough came as the city's defenders faced imminent defeat.

• The Origin Beasts battered Blackwater City's City-Protecting Grand Formation until it cracked, spreading panic among the Blackwater Army.
• Xiao Lie and Deputy Commander Lin saw the city's defenses failing and understood that the Blackwater Army's defeat was nearly certain.
• The Blue-Robed Elder sensed the formation was about to break and hurried his control of the Origin Beast army, whipping the restless Iron-Winged Griffin.
• Gu Chenfeng endured inside the Iron-Winged Griffin's stomach, concealed his aura, swallowed the crystal, and began refining its immense energy.
• Gu Chenfeng's aura surged as the shackles on his cultivation fractured, and he broke through into a new realm.

With Blackwater City's defensive array breached, Zuo Yutang and the Blackwater Army charged the beast tide while Xiao Lie fought Wushu Lang and Deputy Commander Lin battled Nalan Qing. Gu Chenfeng emerged from the Iron-Winged Griffin with greatly enhanced powers, killed four greater beasts, and advanced on the blue-robed elder.

• Zuo Yutang led the Seventh Thousand-Household Battalion and the assembled defenders in a desperate charge against the beast tide.
• Xiao Lie attacked Wushu Lang with a willingness to die, while Deputy Commander Lin forced Nalan Qing into a stalemate.
• The blue-robed elder celebrated the array's breach until an unseen attacker wounded him and Gu Chenfeng emerged from the Iron-Winged Griffin.
• Gu Chenfeng revealed his Diamond Realm Body Cultivator strength and killed the four late Source Core Realm greater beasts with his azure-scaled claws.
• Gu Chenfeng overpowered the elder in a clash of Divine Sense and blocked his attacks as he closed in to kill him.

Zuo Yutang led the Blackwater Army through the Origin Beast tide after a mysterious fighter disrupted and killed the Barbarian Tribe High-Rank Shaman. As the armies clashed and the Blackwater Army gained ground, a masked Great Li martial artist attacked the Barbarian Tribe camp from behind.

• Zuo Yutang sensed the Origin Beasts faltering as a battle erupted again behind the Barbarian Tribe's lines, and she realized the mysterious fighter was still alive.
• The High-Rank Shaman urgently called Wushu Lang and Nalan Qing for help, but Xiao Lie and Deputy Commander Lin blocked them while the Blackwater Army surged through the beast tide.
• Zuo Yutang ordered the Blackwater Army to push through toward the Barbarian Tribe's main force, and her soldiers charged with renewed morale.
• The Blackwater Army and Barbarian Tribe Army collided in a fierce battle as Intermediate Shamans sent Origin Beasts against the Blackwater formation from behind.
• Wushu Lang and Nalan Qing sensed the High-Rank Shaman's aura vanish and realized he had been killed, while the Blackwater Army gained the advantage.
• A masked Great Li martial artist wielding a Mountain-Splitting Great Axe attacked from the rear and carved his way into the Barbarian Tribe camp.

A masked Great Li warrior in the Diamond Realm charged through the Barbarian Tribe army, revealing that he was targeting the shamans directing beasts against the Blackwater Army. As the barbarians encircled him near their shamans, he unleashed the Mountain-Splitting Axe’s Earth-Splitting Form.

• The masked warrior cut through the Barbarian Tribe’s troops, with his golden body deflecting arrows and weapons and his axe killing several Source Core Realm experts.
• Xiao Lie, Deputy Commander Lin, and Zuo Yutang recognized him as the warrior who had killed the High-Rank Shaman and realized his target was the Intermediate Shamans in the guarded chariots.
• Wushu Lang charged toward the masked warrior, but Xiao Lie intercepted him, while Deputy Commander Lin held Nalan Qing back.
• The masked warrior broke through three thousand-man formations before a larger formation halted him and the surrounding barbarian troops moved to encircle him.
• The masked warrior drove his axe into the ground and activated the Mountain-Splitting Third Form, Earth-Splitting Form, shaking the earth and destabilizing the encircling formations.

A masked warrior shattered the Barbarian Tribe Army’s attack by killing or crippling most of its Intermediate Shamans, allowing the Blackwater Army to turn the battle around. As the Xuan Prefecture Army arrived and moved to encircle the enemy, Wushu Lang ordered a retreat.

• The masked man split the battlefield with an axe strike, then destroyed many of the chariots protecting the Barbarian Tribe shamans with arrows from his Darkgold Bow before escaping.
• With the Intermediate Shamans incapacitated, the Beast Taming Art ended, the Origin Beasts fled, and the Blackwater Army pressed the Barbarian Tribe Army into retreat.
• The Xuan Prefecture Army arrived with nearly ten thousand elite armored cavalry and was astonished to find the Blackwater Army winning despite the dire intelligence it had received.
• The Xuan Prefecture Army’s deputy commander ordered the cavalry to split into two forces and flank the battlefield.
• After seeing the reinforcements arrive, Wushu Lang ordered all Barbarian Tribe troops to retreat.

After the Blackwater Army and Xuan Prefecture Army defeated the Barbarian Tribe Army, Gu Chenfeng returned to Blackwater City disguised as the battered Li Zicheng. He fooled Zuo Yutang about how he had survived and concealed that he was the masked warrior who killed the shamans.

• The Blackwater Army and Xuan Prefecture Army pursued the retreating Barbarian Tribe Army, inflicting devastating losses before returning to Blackwater City.
• Zuo Yutang waited by the moat, hoping to see the masked warrior who had killed the Barbarian Tribe shamans, but instead spotted the bloodied Li Zicheng.
• Zhou Bin and the soldiers carried Li Zicheng to the city, where Zuo Yutang examined him and questioned how he survived the battle.
• Gu Chenfeng claimed that he had hidden in a hole and broken through to the Source Core Realm, convincing Zuo Yutang and the others.
• Zuo Yutang asked whether Li Zicheng had seen the axe-wielding warrior, and Gu Chenfeng denied seeing him before being carried into the city.

After his breakthroughs, Gu Chenfeng examined his new Source Core, Diamond Realm physique, and Azure Dragon Transformation Technique, then planned to study the Divine Sense secrets he had acquired. At Blackwater City, the First Prince heard of the masked warrior who had saved the city and asked Xiao Lie to tell him if the warrior was found, while the officers feared the Barbarian Tribe was preparing a larger invasion.

• Gu Chenfeng concealed his dormitory, inspected his new Source Core, and discovered he could sense many kinds of Heaven and Earth Power.
• Gu Chenfeng tested his Diamond Realm body and Azure Dragon Transformation Technique, then decided to recover before studying the beast-taming and Divine Sense text he had taken from the high-rank shaman.
• The First Prince arrived at the Blackwater Army’s council hall and asked Xiao Lie to recount the fighting at Blackwater City.
• Xiao Lie described how the masked warrior killed the high-rank shaman, broke the Barbarian Tribe’s formation, and helped defeat its forces, prompting the First Prince to ask to be told if the warrior was found.
• Xiao Lie warned that the attack might be a spearhead for a larger invasion, and the First Prince criticized the Northern Pass general and the Gu Family’s younger generation.

The Sixth Prince punished Wushu Lang and Nalan Qing for their defeat at Blackwater City and ordered his spies to find the Great Li warrior who had killed the High-Rank Shaman. Three days later, Gu Chenfeng was summoned by Zuo Yutang and learned that he had been promoted.

• The Sixth Prince heard Wushu Lang and Nalan Qing recount the defeat and identified the Great Li warrior as a threat to the Holy Clan.
• The Sixth Prince sentenced Wushu Lang and Nalan Qing to a hundred lashes each, while planning to let Wanyan Bulin lead future operations.
• The Sixth Prince told his guard captain that he expected to regain influence through a later victory and ordered scouts and spies to hunt for the Great Li warrior.
• Gu Chenfeng spent three days recovering and studying the High-Rank Shaman's manual before reporting to Zuo Yutang at her summons.
• Zuo Yutang examined Gu Chenfeng and told him that he had been promoted.

Gu Chenfeng was promoted to deputy thousand-captain and ordered to accompany Zuo Yutang to Heavenly Journey Garrison for military discussions. As the riders set out, he worried about meeting the great general, his father, while traveling alongside Li Yuanqi, who did not recognize him.

• Zuo Yutang told Gu Chenfeng that he had been promoted to deputy thousand-captain in her Seventh Thousand-Household Battalion.
• Zuo Yutang ordered Gu Chenfeng to collect his armor and accompany her to Heavenly Journey Garrison to meet senior officers and discuss the Barbarian Tribe's attack.
• Several hundred riders departed Blackwater City with Xiao Lie and Li Yuanqi at the head of the column.
• Gu Chenfeng recognized Li Yuanqi, the Emperor's eldest son, but was relieved when Li Yuanqi showed no sign of recognizing him.
• As Gu Chenfeng grew anxious about meeting his father, Zuo Yutang reassured him and promised to stay by his side.

Gu Chenfeng and Zuo Yutang arrived at Heavenly Journey City for a military conference, where Xiao Lie recounted Blackwater Army’s costly victory over the Barbarian Tribe. The conference began without General Gu Lingxiao, and Deputy General Xin revealed that the Barbarian Tribe had mobilized and was advancing toward the border.

• Gu Chenfeng and Zuo Yutang entered Heavenly Journey City and followed Xiao Lie’s troops to the command tent.
• Xiao Lie described how Blackwater Army and Li Yuanqi’s reinforcements repelled the Barbarian Tribe, while defending the army’s sacrifices against Commander Dong’s criticism.
• Xiao Lie speculated that the mysterious hero who killed the enemy shamans might have been a hidden Blackwater Army soldier, making Gu Chenfeng uneasy as Zuo Yutang looked at him knowingly.
• Deputy Generals Yu Chi Zhong and Xin Ruonan arrived and announced that General Gu Lingxiao would not attend the conference.
• Xin Ruonan reported that the Barbarian Tribe Army was crossing the Northern Plains Forest and advancing toward the border.

After Xin Ruonan confirmed the Barbarian Tribe’s invasion, the commanders learned that Holy Water and Holy Crystals had strengthened the enemy and began planning their defense. As the meeting ended, the Great General arrived at the command tent.

• Xin Ruonan announced that the Barbarian Tribe was preparing to invade the south, and the generals vowed to defend Great Li.
• Xiao Lie warned that the Barbarians were stronger than before and described how Holy Water and Holy Crystals had aided their attack on Blackwater City.
• Xin Ruonan displayed samples of Holy Water and Holy Crystals, and the generals experienced their power.
• Yu Chi Zhong explained that the treasures were scarce and presented new tactics and weapons developed to counter the Barbarians.
• The commanders planned their response while Emperor Xuan ordered a hundred thousand reinforcements to the Border Pass.
• After the meeting ended, an announcement declared that the Great General had arrived.

Gu Lingxiao arrived late to the military meeting and brushed off Li Yuanqi’s challenge, then arranged a terrain inspection outside Heavenly Journey City. He selected Zuo Yutang and Gu Chenfeng to accompany him, and the party headed toward the Northern Plains Forest.

• Gu Lingxiao entered the command tent late, and Li Yuanqi accused him of neglecting his duty by missing the meeting.
• Gu Lingxiao dismissed Li Yuanqi’s accusation with a joke about his childhood and claimed he had been planning a secret strategy.
• As Xin Ruonan and Yu Chi Zhong reported the meeting, Gu Lingxiao watched Zuo Yutang rather than recognizing Gu Chenfeng.
• Gu Lingxiao ended the meeting and announced he would inspect the terrain outside Heavenly Journey City with officers from the four garrisons.
• Gu Lingxiao selected Zuo Yutang and Gu Chenfeng for the expedition, and they set out toward the Northern Plains Forest as Zuo Yutang praised his poetry.

Gu Chenfeng followed Gu Lingxiao into a hidden cave, where he briefly mistook his father’s plan for an assault on Zuo Yutang before learning they had staged the meeting to avoid suspicion. Gu Lingxiao revealed a Teleportation Array that brought them to the Gu Lineage’s Treasure Vault, leaving Gu Chenfeng stunned by what he saw there.

• Gu Lingxiao led his party to a hill near Northern Plains Forest and ordered Gu Chenfeng to guard the summit while he took Zuo Yutang into a concealed cave.
• Gu Chenfeng sensed Zuo Yutang cry out, rushed into the cave, and aimed his spear at Gu Lingxiao beside her unconscious form.
• The Blood Tiger Guard explained that they had only put Zuo Qianhu to sleep, and Gu Chenfeng lowered his spear after realizing he had misunderstood.
• Gu Lingxiao revealed that he had recognized Gu Chenfeng and asked whether he had been the masked martial artist who helped the Blackwater Army defeat the Barbarian Tribe’s Shaman.
• Gu Lingxiao activated a Teleportation Array beneath the cave, taking Gu Chenfeng to the Gu Lineage’s Treasure Vault.
• Gu Chenfeng followed Gu Lingxiao out of the passage and was stunned by the sight of the vault.