Recaps

Qing Chen secretly deployed an elite body-cultivator force behind enemy lines while the main armies fought at Wind-Splitting Gorge. The force overwhelmed the defenders of Withered Skeleton County, and the chapter ended with the garrison fleeing and its commander incapacitated.

• Qing Chen's hidden formations sealed off communications around Wind-Splitting Gorge while his elite troops waited in Withered Skeleton and Black Miasma Counties.
• Two magic-treasure-grade warships emerged from the mountains and advanced on the county seats.
• The defenders of Withered Skeleton County panicked at the sight of the warship and its thousands of body cultivators.
• Lie Feng, Lian Chengbi, and "Little Stone" led the force as the warship's cannons shattered the county's defensive formation.
• The bombardment and the cultivators' overwhelming pressure knocked the Foundation Establishment commander unconscious and sent the remaining defenders fleeing.

Great Jin forces captured two counties in Miaochong Prefecture, swiftly replacing their formations and banners while Qing Chen kept Ma Kui occupied. Ma Kui sensed that the loss of the counties had weakened his army’s formation and fortune, leaving the battle’s outcome in doubt.

• Lie Feng ordered Great Jin’s body cultivators to seize the county’s strategic nodes, destroy rebel formations, and establish Great Jin’s formations.
• Bu Jingyun, Duan Lang, and Xiao Cangfeng led an assault on Black Miasma County, blasting through its defenses and killing its flag officer.
• Bu Jingyun’s forces seized key facilities and replaced the local fortune formations, capturing both counties in less than two hours.
• Qing Chen suppressed Ma Kui in battle, and Ma Kui sensed that his army’s battle formation and Miaochong Prefecture’s fortune had weakened sharply.

Qing Chen exploited the loss of the enemy’s fortune to break Ma Kui’s army and its battle formation. At Heavenly Abyss Pass, Wei Ting sensed the shift in Great Jin’s fortune and ordered his troops to press their advantage.

• Qing Chen detected that the earth-vein nodes had changed hands and ordered the Miao-Conquest Army to charge Ma Kui’s weakened forces.
• Lin Changsheng, Lei Bao, and Ye Wushang led their formations into the disordered Miaochong Prefecture army, whose ranks collapsed amid spreading panic and heavy losses.
• Ma Kui realized Qing Chen’s surprise force had captured the county seat, then suffered a severe backlash when Qing Chen’s Blood Prison Heaven-Crushing Formation shattered the gigantic ghost claw.
• At Heavenly Abyss Pass, Wei Ting sensed Great Jin’s fortune increase and Wu Gui’s army’s fortune decline, while Chan Master Wuxiang suspected Qing Chen’s surprise force had succeeded.
• True Lord Yunmiao doubted that Qing Chen could have captured a city, but Wei Ting ordered the central army and left wing to attack while the right wing held position.

Tie Ming sensed a major shift in fortune and suspected Qing Chen had succeeded in Qiongzhou. Qing Chen’s forces captured three counties, weakening Wu Gui’s fortune and leaving Wind-Splitting Gorge County isolated.

• Tie Ming sensed rising fortune power and wondered whether Qing Chen had caused it in Qiongzhou.
• True Lord Chongxu noticed Wu Gui’s forces weakening and led a counterattack at White Stone County, while Young Master Lingxu and Qingpeng True Person doubted Qing Chen could have taken a city.
• Lie Feng and Bu Jingyun sent two elite forces toward Coiled Snake County under Qing Chen’s secret orders.
• The Jin forces overwhelmed Coiled Snake County’s small garrison and established Great Jin’s formations there.
• Withered Skeleton, Black Miasma, and Coiled Snake Counties all changed banners, leaving Wind-Splitting Gorge County surrounded by Great Jin’s fortune.

Qing Chen routed Ma Kui’s army at Wind-Splitting Gorge and pursued Ma Kui after he fled using Blood Shadow Escape. Arhat Fengchi intercepted Ma Kui, who fought back with a ghost-faced shield as he tried to escape around him.

• Qing Chen ordered the Miao-Conquest Army to crush the fleeing Miaochong Prefecture forces and pursue them into neighboring counties.
• Ma Kui crushed a Jade Talisman to use Blood Shadow Escape and fled while Qing Chen chased him.
• Ma Kui gained thousands of li on Qing Chen, but a chilling battle intent continued to track him.
• Qing Chen summoned Arhat Fengchi, who appeared ahead of Ma Kui and halted his blood-colored escape light with a raised hand.
• Ma Kui unleashed his Dharma Nascent Soul’s origin power through a ghost-faced shield and tried to circle around Arhat Fengchi.

Qing Chen and Arhat Fengchi overwhelmed Ma Kui, and Qing Chen trapped him in the White Bone Immortal-Locking Yuanchen Gourd. Ma Kui’s body was ground away, and Qing Chen sealed his remaining Dharma Nascent Soul before withdrawing his treasures.

• Arhat Fengchi relentlessly attacked Ma Kui, breaking through his defenses despite the damage and spirit stones the fight consumed.
• Qing Chen arrived and activated the five demon banners to form the Twelve Earthly Branches Mara Grand Formation.
• Qing Chen summoned the White Bone Immortal-Locking Yuanchen Gourd and dragged the wounded Ma Kui inside.
• Ma Kui failed to escape or detonate his Dharma Nascent Soul, and Qing Chen refused his surrender.
• The gourd ground away Ma Kui’s body, and Qing Chen caught and sealed his remaining Dharma Nascent Soul.

Qing Chen led the pursuit that nearly wiped out Miaochong Prefecture’s forty-thousand-strong army after killing Ma Kui. The few survivors reached the city as its defenders and leaders confronted the scale of their defeat.

• Qing Chen displayed Ma Kui’s head, shattering the routed soldiers’ morale, and ordered the Miao-Conquest Army to pursue them.
• Lin Changsheng, Ye Wushang, Lei Bao, and the Demon Lotus Sect veterans led the slaughter as Qing Chen advanced aboard the Giant Whale Treasure Ship.
• Elite interception squads commanded by Lie Feng, Bu Jingyun, Duan Lang, Lian Chengbi, Xiao Cangfeng, and Little Stone trapped and drove the fleeing troops back toward Qing Chen’s forces.
• After two days of pursuit, fewer than two thousand wounded survivors reached Miaochong Prefectural City, leaving its defenders horrified by the army’s destruction and Ma Kui’s death.
• The Centipede-Insect Daoist recalled losing contact with Ma Kui, learning that the three counties had fallen, and discovering Ma Kui’s soul tablet had shattered; he dared not send more troops against Qing Chen.

The Centipede-Insect Daoist fortified the Prefectural City and blamed Ma Kui for Miaochong Prefecture’s defeat. At Heavenly Abyss Pass, Wei Ting received Qing Chen’s report of a stunning victory and praised him as a rare general.

• The Centipede-Insect Daoist ordered the Prefectural City’s defenses activated, demanded reinforcements from the remaining counties, and drafted cultivators to defend the city.
• The Centipede-Insect Daoist, the Ghost Fiend Sect Master, and the Prefectural Assistant blamed Ma Kui for the defeat and prepared a report that portrayed the city as still holding firm.
• At Heavenly Abyss Pass, Wei Ting received an urgent message from Qing Chen through the Mystic Origin Communication Array.
• Qing Chen reported that his army had retaken Wind-Splitting Gorge, Withered Skeleton, Black Miasma, and Coiled Snake, killed Ma Kui, and annihilated his forty thousand troops.
• Wei Ting praised Qing Chen, while Chan Master Wuxiang, the Guanyin Tower Master, Lingxu True Person, and the other commanders stared at the report in disbelief.

Qing Chen’s victory over Ma Kui and the recovery of four counties prompted Wei Ting to seek a generous reward for him from Xiao Canglan. At headquarters, a Qing Clan general questioned whether Qing Chen should be rewarded before Miaochong Prefecture was fully pacified.

• Chan Master Wuxiang and the Guanyin Tower Master praised Qing Chen’s victory, while True Lord Yunmiao was humiliated after his predictions proved wrong.
• Wei Ting ordered Qing Chen’s victory report circulated through the army and declared that he would personally petition for a reward.
• Wei Ting presented Qing Chen’s report to Xiao Canglan and the assembled Nascent Soul Battle Generals, confirming the capture of four counties and the defeat of Ma Kui’s forty thousand troops.
• Tie Zhan praised Qing Chen’s accomplishments and called for a generous reward.
• A Qing Clan Battle General acknowledged Qing Chen’s merit but argued that rewards should wait until he had pacified all of Miaochong Prefecture.

Xiao Canglan rewarded Qing Chen for his victories and promised to petition for a noble rank if he recovered all of Miaochong Prefecture. Unaware of the decree, Qing Chen captured Poison Drool County and prepared to continue his campaign against Wu Gui.

• Xiao Canglan silenced objections to Qing Chen's promotion and praised his battlefield achievements.
• Xiao Canglan promoted Qing Chen to Fifth Rank, granted him authority over Miaochong Prefecture, troops, supplies, treasures, and doubled battle rewards for his soldiers.
• Xiao Canglan promised to petition the Immortal Dynasty for a noble rank if Qing Chen recovered all of Miaochong Prefecture, while Wei Ting withdrew with credit for recognizing him.
• Qing Chen led twenty thousand soldiers and eight Giant Whale Treasure Ships against Poison Drool County, breaking its barrier and blasting its walls.
• Qing Chen killed the defenders' Golden Core commandant with the Pojun Battle Halberd, and the remaining defenders fled as his army captured the city within half an hour.

Tie Ming arrived in Wind-Splitting Gorge County to reward Qing Chen for conquering five cities and warn him that Wu Gui was sending a major force to attack Miaochong Prefecture. Qing Chen accepted the treasures and promised to hold the prefecture as Tie Ming arranged reinforcements and supplies.

• Tie Ming arrived with his guards and congratulated Qing Chen on his victories and the defeat of Ma Kui.
• Tie Ming gave Qing Chen an official seal, command token, spirit stones, Fortune Spirit Crystals, major merit, and a Nascent Soul Formation Pill.
• Tie Ming presented Qing Chen with a Golden Flood Dragon Blood Marrow Heart to aid his breakthrough to the Immortal Realm.
• Tie Ming warned Qing Chen that the Hundred Poisons True Lord and fifty thousand troops were advancing, while the Centipede-Insect Daoist could attack from within Miaochong Prefecture.
• Qing Chen declared he would face the attackers, and Tie Ming promised thirty thousand armored cavalry under Tie Qingniu and supplies for an army of a hundred thousand.

After securing five counties in Miaochong Prefecture, Qing Chen reviewed the state of his forces and the spoils of war. He learned that his combat-ready army had grown to nearly eighty thousand, leaving him confident enough to consider challenging the Shushan Sword Sect.

• Lin Changsheng reported that defenses across the five counties had been stabilized and surrendered troops were being incorporated into auxiliary battalions.
• Qing Chen heard how his subordinates had been promoted and rewarded, while Deng Ziyue and Spirit Crane True Person had died in battle.
• Xu Jiuling reported that Qing Chen's forces controlled five counties, home to nearly one billion mortals, over six hundred declared-loyal cultivation groups, and many rogue cultivators.
• Xu Jiuling said the army had recruited twenty-four thousand new troops, bringing its combat-ready strength to nearly eighty thousand alongside Sima Tie Qingniu's thirty thousand Anman Prefecture cavalry.
• Qing Chen considered the strength of his army and felt confident it could raze the Shushan Sword Sect.

Qing Chen reviewed the army’s enormous captured supplies and rewards from the Southeastern Circuit, then ordered five years of extra stipends for every officer and soldier. He approved Xu Jiuling’s reward schedule and tasked Lin Changsheng with helping distribute the rewards promptly and fairly.

• Xu Jiuling reported the captured spirit stones, Fortune Talismans, provisions, and other treasures, along with supplies allocated by the Southeastern Circuit.
• Qing Chen recognized the officers and soldiers’ sacrifices and ordered an additional five years’ stipends for the entire army.
• Xu Jiuling proposed rewards tailored to cultivation level, rank, and military merit, with options to exchange them for supplies and treasures.
• Qing Chen approved the schedule and ordered Lin Changsheng to escort Xu Jiuling and ensure the rewards were distributed in full without delays or theft.

Qing Chen rewarded his troops and arranged generous support for the fallen cultivators’ families, strengthening his army’s loyalty. Facing approaching enemies and the Three Lives Killing Tribulation, he decided to cultivate his body before attempting Nascent Soul formation and entered his hidden cave abode.

• Qing Chen ordered doubled death benefits for fallen soldiers, care for their dependents, and inquiries into whether other promised benefits had been paid.
• Xu Jiuling and Lin Changsheng withdrew, and news of five years’ stipends and other rewards spread through the camps, raising morale and Qing Chen’s prestige.
• Qing Chen considered the approaching forces of Hundred Poisons True Lord and Centipede-Insect Daoist, Tie Ming’s plans, and the danger posed by the Three Lives Killing Tribulation.
• Qing Chen decided to break through to the Immortal Realm in body cultivation before attempting Nascent Soul formation.
• Qing Chen opened a concealed passage beneath the City Lord’s Mansion and descended into his hidden cave abode.

Qing Chen began the Immortality Nirvana Art, using the Golden Flood Dragon Blood Marrow Heart, his demon banners, and asura flesh and blood to remake his Baleful Core. After five years of preparation and a perilous transformation, he drove the core into his heart aperture, leaving the outcome unknown.

• Qing Chen sealed himself in a stone chamber, strengthened its protections, and laid out spirit stones and Fortune Spirit Crystals for his cultivation.
• He prepared the Golden Flood Dragon Blood Marrow Heart, the remaining asura flesh and blood, and five demon banners to support his attempt to reach the Immortal Realm.
• Over five years, Qing Chen began reversing and smelting his Baleful Core with the Immortality Nirvana Art, enduring severe pain as it merged with his blood and body.
• Qing Chen drew on the Golden Flood Dragon's blood qi and called on the demon banners to pour purified qi, blood, and baleful power into him.
• As his meridians and organs began to fail, Qing Chen consumed the asura flesh and blood to repair them, then forced the shrinking Baleful Core into his heart aperture.

Qing Chen emerged from five years of seclusion after his Golden Flood Dragon’s Baleful Core transformed his body and advanced his Immortality Nirvana Art to the Immortal Realm. He learned from Xu Jiuling that the war had gone poorly and that repeated enemy raids were draining the counties’ troops and resources.

• The Baleful Core fused throughout Qing Chen’s body, rebuilding his bones, meridians, organs, and skin and granting him immense physical strength.
• Qing Chen tested his new strength, realized he had reached the Immortal Realm, and sensed that the Three Lives Killing Tribulation no longer felt as overwhelming.
• Qing Chen spread his divine sense across Wind-Splitting County and summoned Xu Jiuling from the county offices.
• Xu Jiuling reported that True Lord Tie Ming had suffered repeated defeats against Hundred Poisons True Lord near Coiled Snake County, with five thousand casualties and three Golden Core Commandants killed.
• Xu Jiuling explained that enemy raiders had repeatedly harassed Withered Skeleton and Venomous Spittle Counties, while Qing Chen’s commanders and defenses had repelled them at great cost.
• Xu Jiuling warned that the troops were exhausted, nearly twenty percent of the stockpiles had been spent, and falling revenue made the prolonged war increasingly difficult to sustain.

Qing Chen reviewed the troop deployments and neighboring battles, then realized the rebels’ true target might be Withered Skeleton County and his base at Wind-Splitting Gorge. He ordered Xu Jiuling to secretly prepare five concealed treasure ships and to send twenty thousand troops toward Coiled Snake County as a diversion.

• Xu Jiuling reported that nearly one hundred thousand troops were stationed across Miaochong Prefecture, while True Lord Tie Ming repeatedly sent urgent messages from Rock Formation Camp.
• Xu Jiuling recounted True Lord Chongxu’s defeat in Qiong Prefecture and said Yuxi Prefecture had been fully recovered.
• Qing Chen concluded that the enemy might be feigning an attack on Coiled Snake Camp to seize Withered Skeleton County and threaten Wind-Splitting Gorge.
• Qing Chen ordered Xu Jiuling to requisition five Giant Whale Treasure Ships and conceal them in Black Cloud Ravine.
• Qing Chen instructed Xu Jiuling to issue an order, supposedly from True Lord Tie Ming, sending twenty thousand elite troops to reinforce Coiled Snake County.

Qing Chen arranged a concealed counter-encirclement while ordering a false reinforcement march toward Coiled Snake County. Jia Daoyi redirected his anger at the defeated commanders along the White Stone River, and Young Master Lingxu erupted over the reprimand and withheld supplies.

• Qing Chen ordered Xu Jiuling to conceal twenty thousand troops in Black Cloud Ravine and Crouching Dragon Mountains while empty transports continued toward Coiled Snake County as a decoy.
• Qing Chen told Xu Jiuling to send Jia Daoyi a stern dispatch blaming Anman Prefecture for allowing the rebels to threaten Miaochong Prefecture's flank.
• Jia Daoyi angrily ordered his adviser to reprimand Chongxu, Lingxu, and Azure Roc's forces and withhold their promised supplies.
• Young Master Lingxu raged over Jia Daoyi's dispatch and the loss of supplies, while True Lord Chongxu urged him to stay calm.
• Lingxu also condemned Qing Chen and Qing Guhong, furious that Qing Chen had risen in power while he suffered defeat and humiliation.

Young Master Lingxu decided to leak Qing Chen’s military movements to Purple Spider True Lord, hoping to weaken Qing Chen and regain favor. Several days later, Purple Spider True Lord confirmed Qing Chen had reinforced Coiled Snake County and Withered Skeleton County, and joined Hundred Poisons True Lord in plotting to kill him.

• After receiving an Expulsion Order, Lingxu urged True Lord Chongxu and Qingpeng True Person to leak Qing Chen’s troop movements to Purple Spider True Lord, but they hesitated.
• Lingxu left for the inner chamber, determined to take revenge on Qing Chen.
• Several days later, Purple Spider True Lord contacted Hundred Poisons True Lord through a Communication Array and asked whether Qing Chen had sent twenty thousand troops to Coiled Snake County.
• Hundred Poisons True Lord confirmed that Qing Chen’s troops had gone to Coiled Snake County and that reinforcements had also strengthened Withered Skeleton County.
• Purple Spider True Lord and Hundred Poisons True Lord agreed that Qing Chen’s death would benefit them both.

Hundred Poisons True Lord and Purple Spider True Lord devised a plan to draw Qing Chen out of seclusion by attacking Withered Skeleton County. As Qing Chen strengthened his battle halberd, Tie Ming offered him equality and brotherhood, and Qing Chen prepared to defend the county while crediting Tie Ming with the coming victory.

• Hundred Poisons True Lord and Purple Spider True Lord planned to distract Qing Chen with attacks on Rock Formation Camp and White Stone River before Purple Spider True Lord struck Withered Skeleton County.
• Qing Chen, hidden in the Crouching Dragon Mountains, had Xin Bairen kill suspicious soldiers and upgraded the [Pojun Battle Halberd] to a high-grade magic treasure with forty-three blood marks.
• Tie Ming contacted Qing Chen and asked to address him as a brother, offering him a place as a superior guest elder in the Iron Household.
• Qing Chen accepted Tie Ming as his elder brother, and Tie Ming said he would keep Hundred Poisons True Lord pinned in Coiled Snake County while Qing Chen handled Withered Skeleton County.
• Qing Chen told Tie Ming that the battle’s foremost merit would belong to him if their plan succeeded.

Qing Chen waited in concealment as Purple Spider True Lord led thirty thousand Spider Demon Guards to attack Withered Skeleton County. The city’s defenders held behind their formation while Qing Chen prepared to strike when the enemy’s vigilance slackened.

• Qing Chen learned that the Qiong Prefecture Rebel Army had attacked and ordered his forces to remain hidden and at full readiness.
• Seven days later, Lin Changsheng received word that a large enemy force was approaching Withered Skeleton County and prepared the defenders according to Qing Chen’s plan.
• Purple Spider True Lord arrived with thirty thousand Spider Demon Guards and ordered them to break the city’s protective formation.
• Lin Changsheng linked ten thousand troops’ fighting spirit to the formation and used a High-Grade Fortune Talisman to withstand the assault.
• Qing Chen waited with twenty thousand elite soldiers aboard concealed treasure ships and ordered them to prepare to attack once Purple Spider True Lord had committed his strength.

Qing Chen led the Miao-Conquest Army in a surprise attack on Purple Spider True Lord's forces besieging Withered Skeleton County, while Lin Changsheng led the defenders in a counterattack from the city. When Purple Spider True Lord struck at Qing Chen with the power of his army, Qing Chen used the troops' Qi and Blood and a Fortune Spirit Crystal to shatter the attack.

• Qing Chen led five Treasure Ships and twenty thousand Miao-Conquest Army troops in a surprise assault on the rear of Purple Spider True Lord's army.
• Qing Chen ordered his troops to attack at close range, throwing the Spider Demon Guards into disarray.
• Lin Changsheng led ten thousand defenders out of Withered Skeleton County to strike the enemy from the front.
• Purple Spider True Lord gathered the power of more than twenty thousand soldiers and attacked Qing Chen with his spider Dharma Form.
• Qing Chen drew on the Qi and Blood of thirty thousand troops, crushed a Low-Grade Fortune Spirit Crystal, and shattered Purple Spider True Lord's strike with the Pojun Battle Halberd.

Qing Chen defeated Purple Spider True Lord with two halberd strikes, breaking his dharma form and smashing him into the ground. As the Miao-Conquest Army routed the Spider Demon Guards, Purple Spider True Lord fled under cover of exploding Soul-Devouring Demon Spiders, but Qing Chen pursued him.

• Qing Chen split Purple Spider True Lord’s spider dharma form with a halberd strike, causing the linked Spider Demon Guards’ formation to weaken.
• Qing Chen smashed Purple Spider True Lord into a trench with his second strike, breaking his defenses and badly injuring him.
• Qing Chen ordered the Miao-Conquest Army to slaughter the enemy, and Lin Changsheng led the soldiers in a renewed attack as the Spider Demon Guards’ morale collapsed.
• Purple Spider True Lord released Soul-Devouring Demon Spiders that detonated and sprayed venom, buying time for him and the surviving guards to flee.
• Qing Chen cleared away the attacking spiders and ordered his army to pursue and kill the fleeing enemies without mercy.
• Purple Spider True Lord fled with his damaged Purple Spider Banner raised as Qing Chen pursued him, and he demanded to know why Qing Chen would not stop hunting him.

Qing Chen lured Purple Spider True Lord into a trap and fought him with help from Venerable Flameheart. Qing Chen’s Primal Magnetism Divine Light disabled the Purple Spider Banner and weakened Purple Spider True Lord, allowing Qing Chen to sever his arm with a lethal halberd strike.

• Qing Chen and Purple Spider True Lord fought far from their armies, and Purple Spider True Lord claimed he had lured Qing Chen away from his troops until reinforcements arrived.
• Qing Chen revealed that he had arranged for fifteen thousand body cultivators to ambush the battered Spider Demon Guards and sent Lin Changsheng to cut off the thirty thousand troops at White Stone River.
• Purple Spider True Lord unleashed the Purple Spider Devil Cloud Art and fled, but Venerable Flameheart appeared ahead and struck him with the Mount Sumeru Seal.
• Qing Chen broke through the devil cloud, caught up to Purple Spider True Lord, and used Primal Magnetism Divine Light to suppress the Purple Spider Banner and hinder his true essence.
• Qing Chen struck Purple Spider True Lord with the Second Terror-Heavenly Severance Halberd Art, shattering his spiritual protection and severing an arm and part of his shoulder.

Qing Chen killed Purple Spider True Lord after trapping him with the Twelve White Bone Demon Mara Banners and resisting his soul-attacking curse. He secured the defeated True Lord’s remains and learned that the Eight Mystic-Exceptional Strange Ways, including the Moon-Eroding Way and Guisi Lingyuan, were connected to the other demon banners.

• Purple Spider True Lord unleashed the Heart-Devouring Purple Spider Gu, but Qing Chen’s Nine-Petal Demon Lotus absorbed and destroyed the phantom.
• Qing Chen activated his five demon banners, forming the Immortal-Locking Gourd that bound Purple Spider True Lord and suppressed his escape.
• Qing Chen beheaded Purple Spider True Lord with the Pojun Battle Halberd and gathered his possessions.
• Purple Spider True Lord’s Nascent Soul begged for mercy, but Qing Chen let the Yin-Yang binding force destroy its divine soul before sealing it in a dark jade box.
• Qing Chen reflected that Wu Gui’s rebel forces in Qiong Prefecture had suffered heavy losses and identified the Moon-Eroding Way and Guisi Lingyuan as clues to the remaining demon banners.