Chapter Summaries

Cui Jiuyang used the absence of fish and shrimp to locate the Iron Rhino beneath Lake Taibai, then led Ninth Lady and Mama Liu into a dense underwater forest. After avoiding a giant softshell turtle, he wondered how the Japanese planned to retrieve the Iron Rhino and resolved that they could do the same.

• Cui Jiuyang realized the water creatures avoided the Malevolent Flood Dragon and used divination to find a northwest area where fish and shrimp kept away.
• Cui Jiuyang led the group to the underwater forest, where Mama Liu struggled to keep up through the tangled plants.
• Cui Jiuyang spotted a giant softshell turtle and stopped Ninth Lady from provoking it; the turtle passed without noticing them.
• Cui Jiuyang considered the danger ahead and concluded that if the Japanese could move the Iron Rhino, they could do it too.

Cui Jiuyang, Ninth Lady, and Mama Liu tried to reach the iron object beneath Lake Taibai by luring away the giant turtle, but the creature chased them into an underwater cave and collapsed its entrance. As the cave’s water receded, Ninth Lady shared liquor with her Nuo Mask and offered a drink to Cui Jiuyang and Mama Liu.

• Cui Jiuyang judged that the giant turtle was not naturally vicious, and Ninth Lady proposed making noise elsewhere on the lake to draw it away.
• Meng Da and two boatmen struck the water with noise poles while Cui Jiuyang, Ninth Lady, and Mama Liu descended toward the Malevolent Flood Dragon's aura.
• Cui Jiuyang found an underwater cave, but Mama Liu spotted the giant turtle charging back toward them.
• Ninth Lady used the Leaping the Dragon Gate Nuo Mask to propel the three into the cave, and Mama Liu hid its entrance with green smoke.
• Cui Jiuyang burned the turtle's eyelids with Fire Thunder talismans, and the enraged turtle collapsed the cave entrance behind them.
• As the water receded inside the sealed cave, Ninth Lady shared liquor with her Nuo Mask and then offered a drink to Cui Jiuyang and Mama Liu.

Cui Jiuyang, the Ninth Lady, and Mama Liu drank while waiting for the lake water to recede, then agreed to dive into the cave to search for a way out. Meanwhile, Miss Abe learned that the Qingyuan Tomb was probably a cenotaph and planned to use the giant softshell turtle and the Jidu Shrine to gain greater benefits.

• Cui Jiuyang and the Ninth Lady finished the Celadon Porcelain Gourd while Mama Liu watched, and Cui Jiuyang examined the cave walls.
• Cui Jiuyang persuaded the Ninth Lady to follow him as the three prepared to dive deeper into the cave, with Mama Liu guarding the rear.
• On the lake, Meng Er told Meng Da that Cui Jiuyang and the others had vanished underwater after golden light and a rumble rose from the lake.
• Miss Abe ordered Demon Horned Imperial Guard to choke Togo, then spared him so he could explain that the Qingyuan Tomb was likely a cenotaph and the Qingyuan Water God's remains might be elsewhere.
• Togo suggested that the thousand-year-old giant softshell turtle was a surviving member of the Jishui Water Palace, and Miss Abe decided the turtle could bring greater benefits at the Jidu Shrine.
• Lu Zhongqian reported conflicting accounts of who had entered the Jidu Shrine, then received a list of supplies; that night, a pleasure boat carrying the requested goods and the Japanese guests sailed onto Lake Taibai.

Cui Jiuyang, Ninth Lady, and Mama Liu entered the tomb of the Jishui Qingyuan Water God and escaped a collapsing underwater cavern with Toad Boy’s divine power. They reached a magnificent palace beyond the water, where Mama Liu had disappeared.

• Cui Jiuyang found a tablet identifying the tomb of the Jishui Qingyuan Water God and discovered a pit filled with remains taken from powerful aquatic creatures.
• Mama Liu retrieved a black pearl for Cui Jiuyang, a shriveled lotus root for Ninth Lady, and a turtle-shell fragment for herself.
• As explosions and gunfire shook the cavern and cracks spread through its walls, Mama Liu transformed into Toad Boy and cleared the thick water blocking their way.
• Toad Boy bowed toward the depths before leading Cui Jiuyang and Ninth Lady through a barrier into a vast space containing a divine palace surrounded by waterfalls.
• Cui Jiuyang and Ninth Lady looked back on the stone platform and realized Mama Liu was gone.

Cui Jiuyang and Ninth Lady discover that Toad Boy saved Mama Liu by transforming her into a tadpole, then find the Iron Rhino displayed on the water god’s offering platform. As Cui Jiuyang examines its clearer markings, he notices characters missing from Fifth Master Yang’s rubbing.

• Cui Jiuyang deduced that Toad Boy had used Shifting Stars and Changing Lodgings to save Mama Liu as a tadpole, and Ninth Lady released her into Lake Taibai.
• Cui Jiuyang suggested the Japanese had used the Five-Ghost Transport Technique to bring the Iron Rhino to the lake, alerting the Divine Attendants when Ninth Lady called out to them.
• Cui Jiuyang identified the figures as Divine Attendants and realized that aquatic followers had left parts of themselves as offerings to the Ji River water god.
• Cui Jiuyang and Ninth Lady found the Iron Rhino on the offering platform and approached it cautiously while the Divine Attendants watched.
• Cui Jiuyang noticed that the Iron Rhino bore characters absent from Fifth Master Yang’s rubbing and suspected the Divine Attendants had altered it.

Cui Jiuyang and the Ninth Lady were framed by Togo and Miss Abe, whose exploding beetles roused the divine attendants in the Water God's tomb. Cornered by the guardians and a powerful presence awakening below, Cui Jiuyang tried to provoke the Malevolent Flood Dragon so the Japanese would abandon their plan to keep it asleep.

• Togo detonated beetles above the offering platform, and the explosion caused the divine attendants to rise and attack Cui Jiuyang and the Ninth Lady.
• Cui Jiuyang took the jar of Golden Milk Stone Marrow while the Ninth Lady grabbed the three-foot sword, and they fled toward the palace as a mysterious power awakened.
• Cui Jiuyang drank some of the marrow before a divine attendant shattered the jar, while the Ninth Lady fought off the guardians with her Nuo Mask and Cui Jiuyang burned one with a talisman.
• Cui Jiuyang realized the Japanese wanted the Malevolent Flood Dragon to remain asleep and led the Ninth Lady toward the Iron Rhino.
• Cui Jiuyang arranged blood-marked copper coins around the Iron Rhino and used the Striking the Drum and Sounding the Metal spell to stir the Malevolent Flood Dragon.

Cui Jiuyang and the Ninth Lady escaped into the Water God’s tomb while the Japanese withdrew, then met the Turtle Chancellor, who explained how the Ji River Water God died fighting the Yellow River. The Chancellor’s account left Cui Jiuyang confronting the revelation that the Water God had been killed.

• Cui Jiuyang awakened the tomb guardian while fighting the Divine Attendants, and Abe and Togo withdrew rather than follow him into the palace.
• Cui Jiuyang collapsed after entering the empty palace, and he and the Ninth Lady found the Turtle Chancellor mourning the Water Lord.
• The Turtle Chancellor revealed that the Water God’s tomb was an empty cenotaph because the Ji River had lost its war against the Yellow River and had no wealth left for robes and a crown.
• The Turtle Chancellor recounted how the Ji River Water God refused to surrender, returned to fight, and was killed after the Yellow River seized the river’s course.

Cui Jiuyang learned that Jidu Shrine might be seeking a chief officiant to restore the Water Lord, while the Japanese were pursuing the same goal. The Malevolent Flood Dragon cornered Cui Jiuyang, Ninth Lady, and the Turtle Chancellor inside the Water God's palace, leaving them trapped behind its doors.

• The Turtle Chancellor explained that the Water Lord's spirit might survive and that a suitable chief officiant could reconstruct his divine body.
• Cui Jiuyang suspected the Japanese planned to use the Malevolent Flood Dragon and other offerings to win the Water Lord's favor at Jidu Shrine.
• The awakened Malevolent Flood Dragon roared outside the palace, and the Turtle Chancellor admitted he had invented the story of a powerful guardian to scare intruders.
• The Turtle Chancellor learned that his adopted son, the Little Turtle, might have been killed by the Japanese and angrily cursed them.
• The Malevolent Flood Dragon revealed itself coiled across the cavern ceiling and swooped at Cui Jiuyang, but Ninth Lady pulled him back into the palace.
• The Malevolent Flood Dragon could not enter the Water God's palace, and Cui Jiuyang realized that he and his companions might be trapped inside.

The Turtle Chancellor gave Ninth Lady the Ji River Ghost Masks, and she awakened their inheritance by taking the Drum-Thunder Sink mask. With Cui Jiuyang and the chancellor amplifying its power through the Water Palace, Ninth Lady drove the Malevolent Flood Dragon through the cave ceiling, collapsing the cavern; afterward, Cui Jiuyang and Ninth Lady were left injured and exhausted.

• The Turtle Chancellor decided Ninth Lady could inherit the Ji River Ghost Masks and warned that taking them would bind her soul to the Ji River.
• Ninth Lady touched the Flower-Blade Carp mask, saw a vision of the Ji River, and was recognized as the new master of the Ji River Ghost Masks.
• The Turtle Chancellor gave Ninth Lady the Drum-Thunder Sink mask and explained how she and Cui Jiuyang could use it with the Water Palace to drive out the Malevolent Flood Dragon.
• Ninth Lady activated Sudden Rain Rush as Cui Jiuyang and the Turtle Chancellor amplified its drumbeats, tormenting the Malevolent Flood Dragon.
• The Malevolent Flood Dragon dug through the weakened ceiling and escaped, causing the cave to collapse.
• Cui Jiuyang supported the exhausted Ninth Lady as her mask and iron box shrank and returned to her Treasure Bag.

Cui Jiuyang struggled to carry the exhausted Ninth Lady through the collapsing Divine Tomb until a rope dropped through the opening and he lost consciousness. He woke near the threshold of the First Extremity and sensed an unstable, fiery presence outside the room.

• Cui Jiuyang carried the Ninth Lady across the rubble while the Turtle Chancellor urged them to hurry toward the opening.
• Cui Jiuyang weakened and coughed blood as he climbed, refusing to let the Ninth Lady use the Nuo Mask and risk her soul.
• A knotted rope dropped through the opening, and Cui Jiuyang lost consciousness.
• Cui Jiuyang woke to find the Ninth Lady asleep nearby and realized he had reached the threshold of the First Extremity.
• Cui Jiuyang sensed a fiercely unstable person outside the room, then opened his eyes to see the sleeping Turtle Chancellor close by.

Cui Jiuyang awoke after three days and learned that Old Man Xiang had rescued him and divined the Japanese pair’s whereabouts. As torrential rain threatened Jining City, the Turtle Chancellor laid out a plan to wait for the Jidu Shrine to reappear, while the injured Japanese and Master Lu remained trapped in uncertainty.

• Cui Jiuyang woke in the association hall and thanked Old Man Xiang for saving him from the sinkhole.
• Old Man Xiang revealed that his divinations had located the injured Japanese at the Fuxiang Commercial Association and shared what he had learned about Master Lu.
• Old Man Xiang told Cui Jiuyang that relentless rain had flooded parts of Jining City, and Cui Jiuyang realized the Malevolent Flood Dragon was causing the storm.
• The Turtle Chancellor told Cui Jiuyang and Old Man Xiang to wait for the Ancient Ji River Course to fill, the Jidu Shrine to reappear, and the Japanese to seek its Water Palace Relic.
• Abe and Togo lay grievously injured in the Fuxiang Commercial Association hall as insects gnawed at Togo and a struggling presence distended Abe’s belly.
• Master Lu watched the rain and agonized over the Japanese guests and an order to send grain to Jinan.

Cui Jiuyang and his companions entered the Jidu Shrine, where Ninth Lady offered sacred relics in hopes of becoming its Chief Sacrificer. Abe and Togo arrived with the Turtle Chancellor’s demon core, interrupting the offering as the Japanese faced the group before the Water God’s statue.

• The Jidu Shrine appeared outside Jining City, and Cui Jiuyang, Ninth Lady, Old Man Xiang, the Turtle Chancellor, Meng Da, and Meng Er hurried there through the flood-stricken city.
• The Turtle Chancellor and Ninth Lady kowtowed before the shrine, and Cui Jiuyang opened its heavy doors for the group to enter.
• Cui Jiuyang asked about the offering ritual, and Ninth Lady agreed to seek the role of Chief Sacrificer despite the uncertain cost to her future.
• Ninth Lady placed a withered White Lotus Root and a black pearl on the altar, and their pure energies began to resonate with the Water God’s statue.
• A brown demon core flew onto the altar, and the Turtle Chancellor identified it as belonging to his supposed son.
• Abe and Togo entered the shrine with the Demon Horned Imperial Guard, and the demon core’s water vapor pushed Ninth Lady’s offerings away from the statue.

Fifth Master Yang arrived at the Jidu Shrine as Cui Jiuyang’s group battled the Japanese, Lu Zhongqian, and their allies. The fight intensified as the Malevolent Flood Dragon attacked the shrine from outside, while Togo unleashed a giant beetle against Cui Jiuyang.

• Fifth Master Yang brought armed men to the shrine, where the Turtle Chancellor’s power prevented their rifles from firing.
• Ninth Lady and Cui Jiuyang fought Abe, Togo, and the Demon Horned Imperial Guard as the merchant guild guards clashed and Meng Da and Meng Er captured Lu Zhongqian.
• The Malevolent Flood Dragon circled the shrine and used wind, rain, thunder, and lightning to weaken its mist defenses while seeking a magical treasure inside.
• Ninth Lady nearly defeated the Demon Horned Imperial Guard, and Cui Jiuyang drove Togo close to defeat with fire spells and Golden Thunder.
• Togo tore open his abdomen and released a washbasin-sized beetle to lead a swarm of insects at Cui Jiuyang, who answered by throwing copper coins.

Cui Jiuyang, Ninth Lady, and Old Man Xiang defeated Abe and Togo, but Old Man Xiang died after using Heart-Removal Divination to protect them. Ninth Lady became the Ji River Water Palace’s Chief Sacrificer, while the Malevolent Flood Dragon remained outside the shrine.

• Cui Jiuyang killed Togo with a formation and talisman, and Abe unleashed the Great Five Elements: Ghost Veil.
• Old Man Xiang shielded Cui Jiuyang and Ninth Lady from Abe’s attack, revealing that he had removed his own heart to perform Heart-Removal Divination.
• Cui Jiuyang used the Five Elements Evil-Breaking Technique to erase Abe’s attack, and Ninth Lady beheaded her.
• Old Man Xiang died after learning his divination had foretold certain death, and the others carried his body away.
• The Jidu Shrine’s investiture ceremony made Ninth Lady Chief Sacrificer of the Ji River Water Palace and gave her a jade talisman and seal.
• Ninth Lady received knowledge of the Water Palace as the Malevolent Flood Dragon remained outside.

Cui Jiuyang activated the Jidu Shrine’s Vast Marsh Jidu Heavenly Cycle Formation so Ninth Lady could fight the Malevolent Flood Dragon with the River-Swallowing Alligator Nuo Mask. Ninth Lady wounded the dragon and unleashed a massive attack of water and sand, while Cui Jiuyang struggled to sustain the formation.

• Ninth Lady explained that the shrine’s formation could amplify her power, and Cui Jiuyang volunteered to direct it despite his injuries.
• Cui Jiuyang reached the formation’s core and activated the Vast Marsh Jidu Heavenly Cycle Formation as the Malevolent Flood Dragon battered the shrine.
• Cui Jiuyang gathered the Ancient Ji River Course’s spiritual energy into Ninth Lady, who put on the River-Swallowing Alligator Nuo Mask.
• The Malevolent Flood Dragon entered the formation, and Ninth Lady met its charge with the Autumn Rainbow Sword.
• Ninth Lady dodged the dragon’s tail and cut a wound into its scales, then evaded its venomous spit.
• Ninth Lady summoned an immense surge of water and yellow sand with River-Swallowing Alligator: Turbid Waves Strike the Sky.

Cui Jiuyang sacrificed his meridians and vital blood to empower Ninth Lady with the Ghost-Mask Chi Dragon, allowing her to overwhelm the Malevolent Flood Dragon. As she prepared her third strike, the wounded dragon knelt and begged for mercy.

• Ninth Lady’s Dragon Tail Slash wounded the Malevolent Flood Dragon, but the collision shattered her Nuo Mask and left her badly injured.
• Cui Jiuyang reversed the formation’s spiritual energy into his body, damaging his meridians as he forced the energy into Ninth Lady.
• Ninth Lady manifested the Ghost-Mask Chi Dragon and struck the Malevolent Flood Dragon with Inverse-Scale Fury, piercing its belly.
• Ninth Lady’s Soul-Cleansing Rain shattered the dragon’s scales and riddled its body with sword wounds.
• Ninth Lady raised her sword for a third strike, but the Malevolent Flood Dragon knelt and begged for mercy.

Ninth Lady defeated the Malevolent Flood Dragon, and the Turtle Chancellor used the Dragon-Transformation Wall to save Cui Jiuyang, though Ninth Lady would be bound to the Jidu Shrine to keep its lord's spirit from fading. Afterward, Ninth Lady confronted Fifth Master Yang and Lu Zhongqian about information she had uncovered, and Lu Zhongqian began confessing to a vow he had made at the shrine.

• Ninth Lady killed the Malevolent Flood Dragon, while Cui Jiuyang collapsed from the strain of controlling the formation.
• The Turtle Chancellor explained that the Dragon-Transformation Wall could repair Cui Jiuyang's shattered meridians, but removing it would confine Ninth Lady to the Jidu Shrine for life.
• Ninth Lady agreed to the sacrifice, and the Turtle Chancellor used the Dragon-Transformation Wall to heal Cui Jiuyang's meridians and save him.
• The Turtle Chancellor said the Wall had become part of Cui Jiuyang's energy circulation, making his cultivation difficult but potentially extraordinary.
• Ninth Lady summoned Fifth Master Yang and Lu Zhongqian, ordered them to kneel, and asked Lu Zhongqian to explain himself.
• Lu Zhongqian admitted that he had vowed to build a temple for the Water God and erect a thirty-foot gilded statue after obtaining the Treasure-Gathering Copper Coin.

Ninth Lady judged Lu Zhongqian for stealing Yang Xiaowu’s pearl, breaking his vow, and siding with the Japanese, then gave his remaining twenty years of life to Yang Xiaowu. After the survivors left Jidu Shrine, Ninth Lady found a way to leave briefly and cared for the unconscious Cui Jiuyang, who awoke stronger after two days.

• Ninth Lady exposed Lu Zhongqian’s crimes, took back the Treasure-Gathering Copper Coin, and declared he had only six months to live.
• Yang Xiaowu refused to resent his lost fortune, and Ninth Lady gave him Lu Zhongqian’s twenty years of life.
• The Turtle Chancellor told Ninth Lady she could use the Malevolent Flood Dragon’s corpse to leave Jidu Shrine for a little over half a month.
• The groups left Jidu Shrine, and Fifth Master Yang arranged Old Man Xiang’s funeral while Ninth Lady stayed to care for Cui Jiuyang.
• Cui Jiuyang awoke after two days, healed and established in the ultimate unity realm, and Ninth Lady asked how he felt.

Cui Jiuyang and the Ninth Lady attended Old Man Xiang’s funeral after he died without family. They paid their respects at his home, where friends and religious figures had kept vigil, and Cui Jiuyang burned joss paper beside the coffin.

• The Ninth Lady accompanied Cui Jiuyang to breakfast and stopped him after six beef buns and two bowls of soy milk.
• The Ninth Lady and Cui Jiuyang shared a rickshaw to Old Man Xiang’s funeral, drawing gossip from onlookers.
• The Ninth Lady and Cui Jiuyang read funeral couplets and reflected on Old Man Xiang’s courage and death.
• The Ninth Lady and Cui Jiuyang entered Old Man Xiang’s home, where friends, monks, and Daoist priests had kept vigil in the absence of family.
• Cui Jiuyang lit joss paper from the eternal lamp and placed it in the brazier before Old Man Xiang’s coffin.

Cui Jiuyang and Ninth Lady wandered Jining City while he tried to learn how they had saved him and what strange presence lay in his dantian. Ninth Lady evaded his questions, and Cui Jiuyang ended the outing convinced she liked him.

• Cui Jiuyang reflected that his injuries and the lifespan he had burned left him with only a year to live.
• Cui Jiuyang asked Ninth Lady again how she and the Turtle Chancellor had saved him and what was inside his dantian.
• Ninth Lady ignored his questions while browsing embroidery patterns and buying snacks during their walk through the recovering city.
• Cui Jiuyang wondered whether their outing resembled a date and concluded that Ninth Lady liked him.