Recaps

Qing Chen and Hui'an fought high above the clouds, testing their evasion arts, rule powers, and magic treasures. Qing Chen intensified his attacks, but Hui'an activated the Prajna Indestructible Body and stopped the Blood River God-Slaying Spear with his khakkhara as something snapped.

• Qing Chen challenged Hui'an to fight and flew into the high heavens, where Hui'an followed to avoid harming others.
• Qing Chen used the Five Elements Void-Breaking evasion art to strike Hui'an with the Blood River God-Slaying Spear, but Hui'an blocked the attack with his Nine-Ring Khakkhara.
• Qing Chen used magnetic origin rule power to hinder Hui'an, but Hui'an swept it away and struck him with a Buddhist Mudra, sending him back with a bleeding mouth.
• Qing Chen empowered his body and spear, then combined a Yang Spirit Thorn attack with magnetic origin rule power against Hui'an.
• Hui'an activated the Prajna Indestructible Body and clashed his khakkhara with Qing Chen's spear, stopping its advance as a sharp snap rang out.

Qing Chen and Hui'an fought fiercely, escalating from magic treasures and the Lawless Devil Aspect to complete threads of their respective rules. Hui'an unleashed the Mount Sumeru Great Annihilation Finger as their clash reached a new peak.

• Hui'an attacked Qing Chen with the Three-Crossing Buddhist Prayer Beads, but Qing Chen dodged and countered with the Blood River God-Slaying Spear.
• Hui'an’s vajra ring drove Qing Chen back, and Qing Chen used the Lawless Devil Aspect to deflect it and escape the immediate attack.
• Qing Chen’s Lawless Blood Seal was shattered by Hui'an’s two complete vajra rules threads, leaving Qing Chen badly shaken.
• Qing Chen summoned the six White Bone Demon Mara Banners and manifested two complete life-and-death rules threads against Hui'an’s strengthened vajra ring.
• Qing Chen’s life-and-death chains began dissolving one arm of Hui'an’s Eight-Armed Vajra phantom, so Hui'an empowered his prayer beads with essence blood and invoked the Mount Sumeru Great Annihilation Finger.

Hui'an unleashed the Mount Sumeru Great Annihilation Finger at Qing Chen, shocking the watching Nascent Soul cultivators with the spell’s power. Qing Chen burned his essence blood and forced open the Immortal-Burying Coffin, from which a gigantic red-haired blood hand emerged.

• Yue Hanshan, Yaoyue, and the other observers recognized the power of Hui'an’s two-Rule-thread Mount Sumeru Great Annihilation Finger and reassessed their chances against him.
• Yinji worried that Hui'an might hold a grudge against her and considered using her relationship with the Guanyin Tower Master to protect herself.
• Fire Jiao True Lord recalled recordings showing Qing Chen’s dealings with Wu Gui and Kuang Sha and decided to tell them to make arrangements.
• Qing Chen, driven by rage as Hui'an’s finger bore down on him, burned his first three Brahma Apertures and unleashed his essence blood into the White Bone Coffin.
• Qing Chen opened the Immortal-Burying Coffin less than halfway, and a gigantic red-haired blood hand thrust through the gap.

Qing Chen blocked Hui'an’s Mount Sumeru Annihilation Finger with the Immortal-Burying Coffin’s Red-Haired Blood Hand, forcing the clash to end without a victor. Hui'an established the Golden Scale Pact and recognized Qing Chen as Deputy Alliance Leader, while Qing Chen declared the Demon Lotus Sect and Cangming Army would serve Great Jin and crush anyone who provoked them.

• Qing Chen’s Red-Haired Blood Hand caught Hui'an’s golden finger, and the collision’s shock wave battered the surrounding cultivators.
• Hui'an and Qing Chen both suffered damage, but Qing Chen held his ground and taunted Hui'an as the gathered cultivators watched in stunned silence.
• Hui'an acknowledged Qing Chen’s strength and announced the Golden Scale Pact, naming himself Alliance Leader and Qing Chen Deputy Alliance Leader.
• Hui'an proposed that Commissioner Yue accompany him and Qing Chen to Heavenly Abyss Pass, then departed for the Vajra Zen Sect Fleet.
• Qing Chen ordered the Demon Lotus Sect and Cangming Army to serve Great Jin and threatened to destroy the sect, clan, and family of anyone who provoked them.

After Qing Chen survived Hui’an’s attack, both sides withdrew, and the powers of Gouwu Sea recognized the Demon Lotus Sect’s rise. Yue Hanshan then summoned the leaders to Golden Scale Island to settle the rules of the newly established Golden Scale Pact.

• Qing Chen thanked his allies, ordered his fleet to return to the archipelagos, and reassured True Lord Budong.
• Hui’an ordered the Vajra Zen Sect’s forces to withdraw to Vajra Mountain without causing trouble.
• Yaoyue told Yinji and Guanyin to repair the Blissful Union Tower’s relations with Qing Chen and the Demon Lotus Sect.
• The assembled powers began withdrawing as Qing Chen’s elevation changed Gouwu Sea’s balance of power.
• Yue Hanshan stopped the departing fleets and summoned Hui’an, Qing Chen, and the other leaders to Golden Scale Island to discuss the alliance pact’s rules.

Yue Hanshan convened Gouwu Sea’s leaders to establish the Golden Scale Pact, praising Hui'an and Qing Chen and outlining the alliance’s leadership, territory, treasury, and communications framework. The meeting ended with the Blissful Union Tower tasked with organizing the alliance’s information network.

• Yue Hanshan sealed the hall and gathered the Gouwu Sea’s Nascent Soul True Lords to mark the founding of the Golden Scale Pact.
• Guanyin Tower Master showed Qing Chen to the foremost seat on the right, and Qing Chen took his place beside Ye Wushang and True Lord Budong.
• Yue Hanshan praised Hui'an’s spell and Qing Chen’s battle against it, then promised to recommend Hui'an for the Great Jin Heavenly Gang Nascent Soul True Lord Ranking.
• Hui'an thanked Yue Hanshan as the assembled cultivators discussed the prestige and benefits of the ranking.
• Yue Hanshan announced that Hui'an and Qing Chen would lead the alliance, set the initial rules for territories and membership, and establish an Alliance Treasury.
• Yue Hanshan assigned the Blissful Union Tower to organize the alliance’s communications and liaison network.

Yue Hanshan proposed a powerful Golden Scale Alliance that would centralize authority over the Gouwu Sea, alarming the assembled True Lords even as they considered its potential benefits. Abbot Hui'an challenged Yue Hanshan to clarify whether the Great Jin Immortal Dynasty intended the alliance to unite and govern the region.

• Yue Hanshan's proposal for an alliance treasury, communications, and centralized leadership left the True Lords wary of losing their factions' independence.
• Sea-Calming True Lord, Old Man Tianchi, Yaoyue, Fire Jiao True Lord, and Heavenly Shu True Lord each weighed how the alliance might threaten or benefit their powers.
• Qing Chen realized Xiao Canglan's ambitions for the alliance exceeded his own, but decided the resulting turmoil could help him bring others to heel.
• Hui'an questioned whether the Great Jin Immortal Dynasty intended the Golden Scale Alliance to be an ordinary pact or a central authority consolidating the Gouwu Sea.
• The gathered True Lords turned their attention to Yue Hanshan, awaiting his answer.

Yue Hanshan explained that the Immortal Dynasty hoped to unify and stabilize the Gouwu Sea, potentially making it Great Jin’s Ninth Circuit. He presented the Golden Scale Alliance as a semiofficial institution that could bring its leaders and members official ranks, stipends, and fortune-law blessings, then urged them to seize the opportunity.

• Yue Hanshan told Hui'an and the assembled True Lords that Spirit Venerable Xiao Canglan had long sought to integrate the Gouwu Sea into the Immortal Dynasty.
• Yue Hanshan explained that the sea’s vastness, limited fortune network, and history as a place of exile had made direct governance difficult.
• Yue Hanshan revealed that the Emperor and Grand Secretary Zhang Taiyue hoped the Gouwu Sea might become Great Jin’s Ninth Circuit if fortune-law techniques advanced enough.
• Yue Hanshan said the Golden Scale Pact would serve the Immortal Dynasty’s goal of creating a unified, stable Gouwu Sea and praised Qing Chen’s proposal.
• Yue Hanshan declared that the alliance could grant its leaders and members formal Immortal Dynasty appointments, stipends, noble ranks, and fortune-law blessings.
• Yue Hanshan asked Hui'an and the other leaders to recognize the alliance’s intended role and urged them not to let the opportunity pass.

Yue Hanshan pressed the Gouwu Sea’s leaders to support a Golden Scale Alliance, and Abbot Hui'an and Qing Chen agreed. Qing Chen then proposed expanding the alliance’s leadership and nominated First Tower Lord Yaoyue as another Deputy Alliance Leader.

• Yue Hanshan warned that the Gouwu Sea could lose the Immortal Dynasty’s support if its leaders failed to unite.
• Abbot Hui'an voiced his support for Yue Hanshan’s plan, seeking the opportunities that alliance with the Immortal Dynasty could bring.
• Qing Chen also backed the plan and reconciled publicly with Hui'an despite their recent battle.
• Qing Chen argued that the alliance needed more leaders and nominated First Tower Lord Yaoyue for a Deputy Alliance Leader seat.

Qing Chen proposed changes to the Golden Scale Alliance’s leadership and institutions, gaining support from Hui'an and the other major powers. The alliance framework was settled with Yaoyue as Deputy Alliance Leader, Yuan Chen heading the Alliance Law Division, and representatives from the Upper Eight Cave Spirit Islands joining the Deliberation Pavilion.

• Qing Chen recommended Yaoyue for Deputy Alliance Leader and proposed an Alliance Deliberation Pavilion with seats for the Upper Eight Cave Spirit Islands.
• Qing Chen proposed an Alliance Law Division and nominated Yuan Chen as its Director, while Hui'an agreed on the condition that its members came from various sects and islands.
• Yue Hanshan supported Yaoyue’s appointment, and Yaoyue coldly accepted the endorsement without acknowledging him.
• Heavenly Shu True Lord and the other major powers agreed to the proposals, and Yue Hanshan announced the Golden Scale Alliance’s framework.
• The representatives of Guixu Sea Tower, Thousand Puppet Sect, and Jiaogu Island acquiesced and drew closer together.

Yue Hanshan formally established the Golden Scale Alliance and ordered its leaders to prepare a charter, while the former enemies of Jiaogu Island, Guixu Sea Tower, and Thousand Puppet Sect began arranging trade and cooperation. Qing Chen left with Shushan, focused on finding the missing twelfth level of the Brahma Demon-Refining Art, as the factions departed into a new balance of power.

• Yue Hanshan announced the Golden Scale Alliance, assigned responsibilities to Hui'an, Qing Chen, and Yaoyue, and summoned Hui'an and Qing Chen to Heavenly Abyss Pass after the charter was completed.
• Hui'an left with Wuchen and Yuan Chen, while Sea-Calming True Lord, Old Man Tianchi, and Fire Jiao True Lord agreed on shipping, puppet, and Profound Yin Iron Marrow deals.
• True Lord Budong warned Qing Chen to guard against Jiaogu Island and capture the two True Lords from Penglai Spirit Island, and Qing Chen revealed that Tie Ming, Wei Ting, and Gong Shisan were already pursuing them.
• Qing Chen recalled Yue Hanshan's offer of the twelfth level of the Brahma Demon-Refining Art and wondered how Xiao Canglan had learned so much about him and his forces.
• Ye Wushang teased Yinji about her interest in Qing Chen, then caught up with Qing Chen as he left with Ye Wushang and Heavenly Shu True Lord.
• Heavenly Shu True Lord observed the departing factions and remarked that a new balance of power had emerged.

Yaoyue and Qing Chen made plans to strengthen their positions after the Golden Scale Alliance formed, while Qing Chen pursued Yunwu and Chonghe. As Wei Ting caught up, Yunwu betrayed Chonghe to secure his own escape.

• Yaoyue agreed with Guanyin that the Blissful Union Tower should draw closer to Qing Chen and Hui'an, and sent Guanyin and Yinji to Cangming Island.
• Qing Chen revealed that he had sent Tie Ming, Gong Shisan, and Wei Ting after Yunwu and Chonghe while he followed their trail.
• Wei Ting shattered Chonghe’s water barrier, forcing the two fleeing True Lords to fight for their lives.
• Chonghe trapped Wei Ting with his Jade Water Glazed Glass Lamp while Yunwu attacked Chonghe with fourth-tier talismans and fled.
• Chonghe recalled the blood oath he and Yunwu had sworn as young cultivators, then laughed as Yunwu abandoned him.

Yunwu escaped by shedding his body and flying away as a Nascent Soul, while Wei Ting defeated and killed True Lord Chonghe. As Yunwu threatened Qing Chen’s loved ones and outran his pursuers, a five-colored light raced toward him at astonishing speed.

• Yunwu used Penglai’s Nascent Soul Shedding Shell and Spirit Wing Evasion Technique to escape Wei Ting, Tie Ming, and Gong Shisan, vowing revenge against them and their kin.
• True Lord Chonghe burned his lifeblood to drive a counterattack with the Jade Water Glazed Glass Lamp, but Wei Ting shattered the treasure with the Heavy Water Axe Art.
• The fourth-tier talismans overwhelmed Chonghe, and Wei Ting beheaded him and sealed his weakened Nascent Soul in a jade box.
• Yunwu taunted his pursuers and threatened to slaughter everyone Qing Chen cared about as his spirit wings carried him farther away.
• A five-colored light bearing the phantoms of five Flood Dragons raced toward Yunwu at a speed of two hundred and forty thousand li an hour.

Qing Chen captured Yunwu's Nascent Soul and revealed that the Demon Lotus Sect's retreat was a feint. He redirected his allies toward Penglai Spirit Island to wipe it out and claim its resources, while preserving its original techniques as he had promised an old acquaintance.

• Qing Chen caught Yunwu's fleeing Nascent Soul with Primal Magnetism Divine Light-Bind and absorbed him into the Di Jiang Demon Banner.
• Qing Chen returned to Tie Ming, Gong Shisan, and Wei Ting, showing them Yunwu's trapped Nascent Soul and praising their contributions.
• Qing Chen ordered the group to change course for the Penglai Archipelago, revealing that the announced return to the Azure Wave Archipelago had been a feint.
• Qing Chen declared that Penglai Spirit Island must be wiped out and offered the three allies whatever they seized there.
• Qing Chen required them to leave the original cultivation techniques and mystic arts for the Demon Lotus Sect, and Tie Ming and Gong Shisan immediately flew toward Penglai.

News of the Golden Scale Alliance’s formation and the destruction of Penglai spread across the Gouwu Sea and into Great Jin, revealing the alliance’s immense military strength. The Heaven-Observing Divine Directorate raised the Gouwu Sea’s Upper Eight Cave Spirit Islands to second place among the Ten Heterodox Ways and renamed them the Golden Scale Alliance.

• Rogue cultivators in Paradise Ward Market discussed the battle between Master Hui'an and Blood River Old Devil, including Sect Leader Qing surviving Hui'an’s Mount Sumeru Great Annihilation Finger.
• The rogue cultivators recounted how Sect Leader Qing and the Demon Lotus Sect destroyed Penglai Spirit Island with the Six Demon Banner, leaving no survivors.
• Golden Core cultivators at Guixu Sea Tower discussed the Golden Scale Alliance’s leadership, its growing army, and the possibility that Great Jin would bring the Gouwu Sea under direct rule.
• A registrar at the Heaven-Observing Divine Directorate assessed the Vajra Zen Sect and Demon Lotus Sect’s strength and noted that the alliance could mobilize nearly six hundred thousand fighting troops.
• The registrar moved the Upper Eight Cave Spirit Islands from sixth to second place in the Ten Heterodox Ways ranking, renamed them the Golden Scale Alliance, and noted that its two leading sects individually merited the ranking.

Hui'an celebrated his place on the Heavenly Gang Nascent Soul True Lord Ranking while Xiao Canglan confronted Yue Hanshan over the Golden Scale Alliance. Xiao Canglan revealed that Qing Chen’s powerful cultivation technique could cripple him without its missing final portion, which the Immortal Dynasty held at an enormous merit cost.

• Wuchen told Hui'an that he ranked one hundred and fiftieth on the Heavenly Gang Nascent Soul True Lord Ranking, and Hui'an ordered the sect to carve his appraisal onto its stone stele.
• Wuchen told Hui'an that Qing Chen had been excluded from the ranking after the Profound Mirror Sky-Hunting Bureau objected to counting a middle-stage cultivator whose strength relied on external aids.
• Xiao Canglan questioned Yue Hanshan about claiming the Gouwu Sea might become the Immortal Dynasty’s ninth circuit, then made him recount the formation of the Golden Scale Alliance.
• Xiao Canglan promised to recommend Yue Hanshan to govern the Lingnan circuit after the current disturbances were settled, provided he strengthened his power of laws.
• Yue Hanshan warned Xiao Canglan that Qing Chen was difficult to control, but Xiao Canglan explained that Qing Chen was searching for the final portion of the Brahma Demon-Refining Art.
• Xiao Canglan revealed that the complete Brahma Demon-Refining Art was in the Immortal Dynasty’s Central Authority Treasury and cost three hundred major merit points, while Qing Chen risked cultivation deviation without it.

Xiao Canglan discussed how Qing Chen’s need for merit left him under the Immortal Dynasty’s control, while Yan Moyou and the Nine Nether Aristocratic Clans searched for the Nine Netherworlds Ancient Bloodline Forbidden Grounds. News of Qing Chen’s strength and lineage stirred plans against him, and Tie Ce raised his name before Tie Hengjiang.

• Xiao Canglan told Yue Hanshan that Qing Chen would need major merit to obtain the Brahma Demon-Refining Art and could only earn enough by serving the Immortal Dynasty and fighting the Demon Race.
• Yan Moyou learned Qing Chen had withstood Hui’an’s Mount Sumeru Great Annihilation Finger and approved of the Branch Master’s judgment as the Nine Nether Aristocratic Clans searched for the forbidden grounds.
• Qing Yuanjia received a report that Qing Chen was a surviving remnant of the Qing Household’s main lineage and resolved to kill him inside the forbidden grounds.
• Tie Hengjiang ordered Tie Ce to reinforce Dragon-Severing Pass and request supplies from the Immortal Dynasty after the Azure Wolf King Tribe withdrew.
• Tie Ce asked Tie Hengjiang whether he still remembered Qing Chen.

Tie Ce persuaded Tie Hengjiang to send Tie Zhan to meet Qingyao and Qing Chen after learning of Qing Chen’s strength and influence in the Gouwu Sea. As rival powers plotted to recruit or discredit Qing Chen, he recovered from his battle with Hui’an and confronted the barrier to advancing his cultivation before summoning two Hehuan Sect tower masters.

• Tie Ce told Tie Hengjiang that Qing Chen had survived Hui’an’s attack and commanded nearly four hundred thousand Dao soldiers, and Tie Hengjiang agreed to send Tie Zhan to the forbidden ground.
• Ji Yan ordered Ding Buxing to go to the Gouwu Sea and secure Qing Chen’s allegiance in exchange for continued support of the Golden Scale Alliance.
• Kuang Sha ordered Fire Jiao True Lord to spread recordings of Qing Chen’s cordial dealings with them to stir suspicion in the Gouwu Sea and Great Jin.
• Qing Chen recovered from the injuries caused by his battle with Hui’an but realized he could not advance beyond Nascent Soul middle-stage peak without the twelfth level of the Brahma Demon-Refining Art.
• After Jia Daoyi reported that two Hehuan Sect tower masters had arrived, Qing Chen ordered them brought to him.

Qing Chen examined Yinji and Guanyin’s cultivation techniques before questioning Yinji about the factions that had plundered Penglai and their intelligence network. He then asked what she knew about the two archipelagos once controlled by Penglai Spirit Island.

• Qing Chen used his magic power to examine Yinji and Guanyin’s cultivation techniques, then concluded that both complemented his own cultivation.
• Yinji admitted that she had brought five hundred Blissful Union Tower disciples to help plunder Penglai when it fell.
• Yinji described the strength, leaders, resources, and growing alliance of the Guixu Sea Tower, the Thousand Puppet Sect, and Jiaogu Island.
• Qing Chen questioned Yinji about the Blissful Union Tower’s intelligence network, and she insisted it gathered information only to protect itself.
• Qing Chen asked Yinji whether she knew about the two archipelagos once directly controlled by Penglai Spirit Island.

Qing Chen gave the Mistveil Archipelago to the Blissful Union Tower to draw it into an alliance with the Demon Lotus Sect, then met with Lin Changsheng, who had reached the Nascent Soul early stage. He rewarded his disciple with the next layers of his cultivation technique and a powerful corpse-thunder palm art.

• Qing Chen assigned the Penglai Archipelago to the Demon Lotus Sect and offered the Mistveil Archipelago to Yaoyue’s Blissful Union Tower, asking for the handover within a month.
• Yinji accepted the gift on Yaoyue’s behalf, and Qing Chen invited Guanyin to visit Jade Rock Mountain again.
• Yinji teased Guanyin about Qing Chen’s strength as they left Demon Lotus City.
• Lin Changsheng thanked Qing Chen for helping him attain the Dao and demonstrated his corpse Nascent Soul body, revealing that he had refined thirty percent of the Yin Marrow Bone Pearl’s origin corpse qi.
• Qing Chen gave Lin Changsheng the tenth and eleventh layers of the Mysterious Yin Corpse-Refining Secret Technique and the Yinkui Corpse Thunder Palm.

Qing Chen rewarded Lin Changsheng with cultivation guidance and a powerful magic treasure, then named him a Devil Lord and entrusted him with overseeing the Demon Lotus Sect. Lin Changsheng reported the sect’s forces and began detailing the Cangming Army’s strength.

• Qing Chen instructed Lin Changsheng to comprehend the Great Dao rules within corpse qi and warned him not to fixate on refining the Ten Thousand Souls Banner.
• Qing Chen gave Lin Changsheng the Azure-Scale Dagger-Axe, and Lin Changsheng refined it and tested its power.
• Qing Chen recalled Lin Changsheng’s two centuries of cultivation under him and named him the Demon Lotus Sect’s Longevity Devil Lord.
• Qing Chen said Lin Changsheng was the only one who could truly oversee the sect on his behalf and asked him to report its strength.
• Lin Changsheng reported that the Demon Lotus Sect had 77,243 cultivators, including eighty-one Golden Core cultivators, and described the 300,000-strong Cangming Army and its Golden Core and pseudo-Nascent Soul officers.

Lin Changsheng reported the Demon Lotus Sect’s enormous forces, resources, and inherited techniques to Qing Chen, then assessed its standing and growing threats in the Gouwu Sea. He urged the sect to conceal its strength, build alliances, and concentrate its best resources on advancing Qing Chen’s cultivation.

• Lin Changsheng detailed the Demon Lotus Sect’s warships, spirit stones, fortune talismans, provisions, medicines, materials, and cultivation legacies, including the gains from Penglai Spirit Island.
• Qing Chen praised Lin Changsheng’s stewardship and told him to guard the sect’s estate and its accumulated wealth.
• Lin Changsheng assessed the sect’s combat strength, True Lords, Dao Soldiers, territory, and resources, comparing them with the Vajra Zen Sect.
• Lin Changsheng warned that Hui'an, allied factions including the Guixu Sea Tower, and Heavenly Abyss Pass posed dangers to the Demon Lotus Sect.
• Lin Changsheng urged Qing Chen to befriend distant powers, confront nearby threats cautiously, and focus the sect’s resources on Qing Chen’s cultivation, then knelt and kowtowed.

Lin Changsheng revealed that he had secretly amassed a vast stockpile of demon beast corpses and blood-path treasures for Qing Chen and proposed expanding the purchases across the Golden Scale Alliance. Qing Chen approved the plan but warned him to screen future acquisitions for hidden traps.

• Lin Changsheng presented Qing Chen with records showing purchases worth 1.24 billion low-grade spirit stones, including demon beast corpses and blood-path treasures.
• Lin Changsheng admitted that he had bypassed the Blood Hall’s authority to build the stockpile through the Battle Hall and General Affairs Hall.
• Lin Changsheng proposed establishing a permanent Golden Scale Alliance purchasing station to gather resources from across the Gouwu Sea for Qing Chen’s cultivation.
• Qing Chen praised Lin Changsheng’s initiative and accepted the value of the supplies for replenishing his demon banners.
• Qing Chen warned Lin Changsheng that enemies might tamper with purchased goods and ordered him to screen acquisitions carefully, while marking any especially valuable items that might be compromised.

Qing Chen appointed Lin Changsheng Vice Sect Leader of the Demon Lotus Sect and considered turning him into a living corpse before deciding his disciple was more valuable alive. Half a month later, Qing Chen cleared the fifth layer of the Seven-Luminaries Immortal Realm trial and resolved to keep strengthening himself.

• Qing Chen appointed Lin Changsheng Vice Sect Leader and instructed him to manage the sect, continue acquisitions, and gather resources for Qing Chen.
• Qing Chen requested spirit crystals and spirit stones while Lin Changsheng eagerly accepted the responsibility and returned to his cave abode.
• Qing Chen considered refining Lin Changsheng into a living corpse because of his rare Corpse Nascent Soul Body and Netherworld Spirit Body, but decided to let him live and prove his worth.
• Half a month later, Qing Chen defeated the fifth-layer Pure Water Venerable in the Seven-Luminaries Immortal Realm trial after a six-hour battle.
• Qing Chen assessed his improved combat strength, recognized he still fell short of Hui'an's power, and continued the trial.

Qing Chen entered the Sixth Layer and fought Thunderclap Arhat, whose lightning attacks pushed him to use his Blood River God-Slaying Spear and a pseudo-domain. The chapter left Qing Chen facing Thunderclap Arhat’s enormous, mantra-empowered lightning dragon.

• Qing Chen entered the Sixth Layer and found an endless sea of thunder, where Thunderclap Arhat rose to challenge him.
• Thunderclap Arhat struck Qing Chen with a lightning bolt, and Qing Chen escaped with Five Elements Escape Void.
• Qing Chen summoned the Blood River God-Slaying Spear and used the Five-Dragon Carriage Talisman to attack Thunderclap Arhat from behind, but the Arhat blocked the thrust with his Thunder God Chisel.
• Thunderclap Arhat unleashed a vast lightning net, and Qing Chen countered with a spear-based pseudo-domain by fusing rules.
• Thunderclap Arhat invoked Thunder Sound Prison Suppression and formed a giant purple lightning dragon that grew stronger as it chanted the six-syllable mantra.