Chapter Summaries

Duan Tianya and the Demon Lotus Sect began their planned attack on Black Ape Island, trapping the island and launching a bloody assault at its docks. Meanwhile, unaware of the attack, Gongsun Yang relaxed at Tidewatch Pavilion.

• Duan Tianya found a coded Jade Slip and told Jueqing that it was time to draw in the net.
• Han Shi’s disguised ships were exposed when Black Ape Island guards found Blackwood Island cultivators and the prisoner Ji Bochang aboard.
• The dark-robed manager ordered his men to surround Han Shi’s group and summoned Island Lord Gongsun.
• A blast beneath the ships sent up the Demon Lotus Sect’s signal, and a formation sealed Black Ape Island inside a barrier.
• Xie Yu revealed himself and attacked the Outer Sect disciples with Bone-Eroding Nails, killing and wounding them.
• Gongsun Yang lounged at Tidewatch Pavilion as four female cultivators attended to him, unaware of the violence at the docks.

Demon Lotus Sect forces launched a surprise assault on Black Ape Island while Qing Chen used Tianshu Hall’s meeting to conceal the attack. Lin Changsheng’s troops encountered Vice Island Master Di Huaiyi and Condensed Jade Sect disciples, and he prepared to follow Qing Chen’s order to kill them all.

• Gongsun Yang discovered that Black Ape Island was under attack, but the island’s formations failed to activate and the Formation Hub had been sabotaged.
• Su Zixuan sealed Black Ape Island with the Canhe Dragon-Imprisoning Formation, preventing messages from escaping.
• Lin Changsheng gave the signal for five hundred concealed Demon Lotus Guards to join the assault, while the chapter explained the sect’s battle organization.
• Qing Chen used Tianshu Hall’s in-person council as cover to order the attack on Black Ape Island.
• Lin Changsheng, Ren Carefree, Heku, and Wanwan encountered Di Huaiyi, a Foundation Establishment Protector, and three hundred Condensed Jade Sect disciples; Lin Changsheng recalled Qing Chen’s order to leave no one alive.

Lin Changsheng and the Demon Lotus Sect attacked Di Huaiyi and the Condensed Jade Sect forces, overwhelming them with corpse arts and the Suspended Skull Battle Formation. Di Huaiyi was forced to his knees, while Protector Li was gravely wounded as the battle continued.

• Lin Changsheng ordered the Demon Lotus Sect to attack, and five hundred Demon Guards formed the Suspended Skull Battle Formation.
• Lin Changsheng transformed into a silver-armored corpse and broke through Di Huaiyi's Lesser Profound Heaven Palm, while Ren Carefree wounded Protector Li.
• The Demon Guards' formation battered the three hundred Condensed Jade disciples, and Lin Changsheng's corpse qi corroded Di Huaiyi's magic power.
• Lin Changsheng used the Flying Blood Corpse Aspect to shatter Di Huaiyi's protective gang qi and force him to his knees.
• The Suspended Skull Battle Formation trapped and slaughtered Condensed Jade disciples as Ren Carefree's hook shredded Protector Li's legs.

Xie Yu, Han Shi, and Yue Ting led the Demon Lotus Sect’s forces into Black Ape Island’s Market Ward to kill Gongsun Yang and wipe out its defenders. As their forces attacked from three directions, Yue Ting followed a medicinal scent through the drains toward the fleeing target.

• Xie Yu and Han Shi chose to bypass Lin Changsheng’s battle and head for the Market Ward to kill Gongsun Yang, while Duan Tianya and Jueqing were ordered to attack the Condensed Jade Sect’s base.
• Han Shi split the five hundred Demon Lotus Guards into three groups, sending Xie Yu to East Street, himself to West Street, and Yue Ting through the drainage channel beneath Central Street.
• Xie Yu attacked the patrols on East Street with poisonous sand and black chains, killing Condensed Jade Sect disciples and rogue cultivators.
• Han Shi used the Hundred Ghosts Devouring Spirit Vines and his Mountain-Slaying Great Blade to slaughter defenders on West Street.
• Yue Ting detected the scent of Joyous Union Powder mixed into ambergris in the drains and followed it toward Gongsun Yang.

Yue Ting and the Demon Lotus Guards killed Gongsun Yang and seized Black Ape Island after wiping out its cultivators. Lin Changsheng ordered the island burned and declared that Blackwood would next destroy Diku.

• Yue Ting broke into Gongsun Yang’s secret chamber and defeated his traps with the Li Fire Chains and a Miasma-Clearing Pill.
• Han Shi and Xie Yu joined Yue Ting, and the Demon Lotus Guards crushed Gongsun Yang with the Suspended Skull Battle Formation.
• By dawn, Lin Changsheng’s forces had taken Black Ape Island, killed its leaders and cultivators, and gathered their belongings and manuals.
• Yue Ting, Duan Tianya, and Jueqing reported their forces’ losses and confirmed that the fallen Demon Lotus Guard disciples’ bodies had been collected.
• Lin Changsheng ordered the entire island burned and had the message carved: “Blackwood takes vengeance, impermanence claims lives; first slay Black Ape, then destroy Diku.”

Xin Bairen learned that Black Ape Island had been annihilated and questioned who was behind the attack. With Qing Chen and the Demon Lotus Sect apparently uninvolved, Wu Zhen suggested Ji Cangming and his allies might have carried it out.

• Xin Bairen received a report that Black Ape Island had been destroyed and that Gongsun Yang was presumed dead.
• Wu Zhen recounted how attackers from Blackwood Island and the Impermanence Sect had stormed the island and left a blood-written message threatening Black Ape and Diku.
• Xin Bairen realized the destruction of his stronghold would leave him blamed for failing to protect the Azure Wave Archipelago.
• Xin Bairen suspected Qing Chen, but Wu Zhen reported that Qing Chen and the Demon Lotus Sect had shown no unusual activity.
• Wu Zhen proposed that Ji Cangming and his allies might have attacked to free Ji Bochang and avenge their imprisoned clansmen.

Qing Chen used the corpses from Black Ape Island to advance his Demon Lotus Karmic Fire and expand his divine sense to nine and a half li. After reviewing months of accumulated intelligence, he issued orders to support Xin Bairen’s campaign against Blackwood Island and the Impermanence Sect remnants while keeping Lin Changsheng’s forces hidden and ready.

• Xin Bairen rejected the idea that Ji Cangming or Qing Chen could have destroyed Black Ape Island alone and blamed the Impermanence Sect and Blackwood Island for the attack.
• Three months later, Qing Chen used the corpses of cultivators killed on Black Ape Island to advance his Demon Lotus Karmic Fire and open a petal of its demon lotus.
• The demon lotus transformed Qing Chen’s sea of consciousness, expanding his divine sense to nine and a half li and allowing him to control the Di Jiang Demon Banner more smoothly.
• Qing Chen reviewed the information collected during his seclusion and ordered Gao Yuliang, Deng Ziyue, and others to support Xin Bairen’s campaign against Blackwood Island and the Impermanence Sect remnants.
• Qing Chen ordered Lin Changsheng to distribute the sect’s share of the spoils to participating demon envoys and demon guards, keep his forces disguised and dispersed, and await further orders.

Qing Chen recovered from mastering the Śarīra Method and reflected on how it had transformed his body and combat abilities. He had reached the Vajra Realm and gained a new defensive divine ability, while Condensed Jade Sect inspectors complained about Xin’s strict rules.

• Three Condensed Jade Sect inspectors drank in the Hundred Blossoms Pavilion and grumbled that Xin had stopped them from exploiting patrols and had punished one of them for harassing a female rogue cultivator.
• The inspectors criticized Xin for failing to catch the culprits behind the Black Ape Island raid and contrasted his rule with Qing Chen’s former patrols.
• Qing Chen relaxed at the Demon Lotus Sect’s bathing pool as Wanwan and Ren Yingying attended him.
• Qing Chen recalled refining nearly a third of his magic power into crystallized magic power through repeated demon-fire tempering.
• Qing Chen explained that Nine Swords True Person’s Golden Core and Yellow Springs Baleful Qi had helped him form a baleful core and break into the Vajra Realm.
• Qing Chen had mastered the seventh level of the Immovable Wisdom King Heart Method and gained the Indestructible Vajra divine ability, complementing his Golden Sinews and Silver Bones.

Qing Chen recalled the dangers of possession and wondered why he had escaped its first two tribulations. An urgent message from Lin Changsheng reported that Xue Qingxia had become a third-tier alchemist and was nearing the ability to refine the Golden Jade Liquid Returning Pill, while Mo Huaian obstructed her access to an earthfire room.

• Qing Chen remembered True Person Budong's warning that possession involved three deadly tribulations, then wondered whether his unusual method had spared him the first two.
• Wanwan delivered Lin Changsheng's urgently marked jade slip, and Qing Chen dismissed the female disciples before reading it in a secret chamber.
• Lin Changsheng reported that Xue Qingxia had successfully refined third-tier low-grade pills and had some confidence in refining the Golden Jade Liquid Returning Pill.
• Lin Changsheng warned that Rogue Person Mo Huaian was interfering with Xue Qingxia's access to the Pill Hall's high-grade Earthfire Room.
• Qing Chen praised Xue Qingxia's progress and dismissed Mo Huaian as a clown.

Xin Bairen berated Baili Tingfeng for failing to suppress border raids and considered recruiting Mo Huaian to stabilize the region. At Celebration Cloud Peak, Xue Qingxia thanked Qing Chen for helping her rise to Pill Hall Master, and Qing Chen remarked that Xin Bairen had failed to make use of his opportunity.

• Xin Bairen entrusted the Demon Lotus Sect to Lin Changsheng and the Condensed Jade Sect to Xu Jiuling, Gao Yuliang, and other capable subordinates, leaving Qing Chen free to focus elsewhere.
• Xin Bairen scolded Baili Tingfeng for failing to stop Ji Cangming's attacks and criticized his lack of experience and focus.
• Xin Bairen decided he might need to persuade Mo Huaian to oversee the troubled borderlands and guide Baili Tingfeng.
• Xue Qingxia thanked Qing Chen for helping her become Pill Hall Master and improve her alchemy.
• Qing Chen told Xue Qingxia that Xin Bairen had traded the Pill Hall position for peace but had failed to make good use of the chance.

Qing Chen reassured Xue Qingxia that Mo Huaian would no longer interfere with her use of the high-grade Earthfire Room, clearing the way for her to refine the Golden Jade Liquid Returning Pill. After receiving a signal that his plans had succeeded, Qing Chen gave her three sets of ingredients and urged her to apply for the room.

• Xue Qingxia explained that she needed about a year of uninterrupted access to the high-grade Earthfire Room to safely refine the Golden Jade Liquid Returning Pill, but Mo Huaian repeatedly claimed the room after her half-year sessions ended.
• Qing Chen said he had planned for months to send Mo Huaian away, while secretly manipulating sect personnel and border conflicts to make the transfer appear necessary.
• Xue Qingxia praised Qing Chen's progress in alchemy and explained the intricate steps required to refine even a Qi Gathering Pill.
• A jade slip shattered in Qing Chen's sleeve, and he announced that his undertaking had succeeded.
• Qing Chen gave Xue Qingxia three sets of Golden Jade Liquid Returning Pill ingredients and told her to apply for the Earthfire Room, promising her an extra pill if the refinement produced one.

Qing Chen traveled toward Hidden Spirit Island while investigating Xin Bairen’s plan to appoint Mo Huaian at Mysterious Pass Island, suspecting that the announcement was bait. He evaded detection and reflected on the limits of his body-and-magic cultivation, while preparing to overturn Xin Bairen’s scheme.

• Qing Chen learned from Xu Jiuling’s jade slip that Xin Bairen planned to appoint Mo Huaian Island Lord and Inspector of Mysterious Pass Island and reassign Baili Tingfeng as Vice Island Master.
• Qing Chen suspected Xin Bairen had leaked the news to intimidate border forces and draw out whoever was plotting against him.
• Qing Chen used concealment formations to descend deep beneath the sea and evade Golden Core cultivators’ divine sense searches.
• Qing Chen considered Xin Bairen’s plan to gather spirit stones and treasures for his Golden Core breakthrough, including a Dragon-Tiger Golden Core.
• Qing Chen concluded that his magic-cultivation origin meridian meant his lifespan remained two hundred and forty years despite his Vajra Realm body.

Mo Huaian and Zhu Qi led the Black Tiger Boat into an ambush by Ghost Manor’s undead forces, including a Pseudo-Core White Bone Demon General. As a Vajra Realm Arhat attacked and the battle turned desperate, someone aboard revealed that the enemies had followed them and vowed revenge for Elder Nine Swords.

• Mo Huaian commanded the Black Tiger Boat as it sailed toward Mysterious Pass Island, and ghostly mist surrounded it.
• Zhu Qi challenged the ghost boat, while Mo Huaian used his One-Qi Purple-Gold Cauldron to bind it with poisoned chains.
• A White Bone Demon General and its ghost and bone-soldier forces attacked the Black Tiger Boat, starting a fierce stalemate.
• The White-Faced Arhat arrived and struck at the boat with the Heavenly Eagle Drop, prompting Zhu Qi to recognize a Vajra Realm expert.
• An unseen person aboard the Black Tiger Boat shouted that the enemies had followed them and promised vengeance for Elder Nine Swords, then unleashed a sea of fire.

Arhat Fengchi and Qing Chen’s Di Jiang Demon General fought Heavenfire True Person but could not match his Golden Core cultivation and Magic Treasures. They fled across the sea while battling his pursuit, and the chapter left the three still locked in an escalating fight.

• Heavenfire True Person attacked Arhat Fengchi with the Five Qi Disk and Fire God Sword, overwhelming his defenses and knocking him into the sea.
• Qing Chen’s Di Jiang Demon General emerged and trapped Heavenfire True Person in a water prison, giving Arhat Fengchi time to recover and escape with it.
• Heavenfire True Person broke free, destroyed Demon General Pojun, and burned most of the Grudge Ghost Demon Soldiers while pursuing the pair.
• Arhat Fengchi struck back with Eagle Strikes the Nine Heavens, and the Di Jiang Demon General used a Demon Gate to help break Heavenfire True Person’s counterattack.
• Heavenfire True Person continued pursuing Arhat Fengchi and the Di Jiang Demon General as their battle across the sea intensified.

Qing Chen disguised himself as a demonic cultivator and attacked the Black Tiger Boat while its crew feared the Third Elder’s return. He shattered the boat’s defenses, killed Mo Huaian, and escaped with the One-Qi Purple-Gold Cauldron.

• Zhu Qi and Mo Huaian waited anxiously after the Golden Core battle, then Qing Chen arrived disguised as a demonic cultivator.
• Mo Huaian ordered the crew to activate the Black Tiger Boat’s formations and hold off the attacker until the Third Elder returned.
• Zhu Qi and another protector directed the disciples as they powered the Yin-to-Yang Transformation Formation and summoned the Heavenly Tiger Devours the Sun.
• Qing Chen used the Twenty-Four Solar Terms Soul-Shocking Art to unleash Third Terror: Earth Annihilation with the Awakening of Insects Blood Spear.
• Qing Chen shattered the boat’s defenses, struck Mo Huaian into pieces, seized the One-Qi Purple-Gold Cauldron, and flew away.

Qing Chen escaped Heavenfire True Person after killing Mo Huaian, then spent a year and a half cultivating while Xue Qingxia refined a Golden Jade Liquid Returning Pill. With the pill secured, Qing Chen visited True Person Budong, who asked whether he was ready to advance his cultivation.

• Qing Chen killed Mo Huaian and escaped Heavenfire True Person by using formations and fleeing for more than two thousand li.
• Qing Chen returned to Heavenly Jade Island and cultivated in seclusion for a year and a half.
• Xue Qingxia told Qing Chen that she had refined one Golden Jade Liquid Returning Pill using two sets of ingredients.
• Qing Chen praised Xue Qingxia, secured the pill, and reassured her that she could refine another batch.
• Qing Chen visited True Person Budong and said he had reached the pseudo-core stage and could no longer advance his cultivation.
• True Person Budong reminded Qing Chen that he had prepared a Kan-Li Golden Core and Water-Fire Spirit Liquid, and Qing Chen knelt and kowtowed.

Qing Chen prepared to attempt the Golden Core breakthrough in a fortified cave on Mingwang Peak, while True Person Budong promised to protect him. By making the attempt public, Qing Chen sought to deter hostile factions, and the sect’s leaders and cultivators reacted with a mixture of hope, doubt, and concern as the peak was sealed.

• True Person Budong offered Qing Chen a prepared cave abode and pledged to guard him during his breakthrough.
• Qing Chen entered Qingyun Cave, inspected its powerful spiritual resources, and set up defensive formations.
• Qing Chen sent Voice Transmission Talismans to trusted cultivators and the sect leadership to announce his Golden Core attempt.
• Xu Jiuling praised Qing Chen’s talent, while Li Feiyu and Xu Xiake worried about the risks and Xin Bairen mocked his chances.
• Yuji True Person watched the changes around Mingwang Peak with concern as news of Qing Chen’s attempt spread throughout the sect.
• The third-tier Mingwang Peak Formation activated, sealing the mountain as Xu Jiuling, Gu Jianchun, Xue Qingxia, and others gathered with True Person Budong to await the outcome.

Qing Chen used the Phoenix Blood Flower, Ice Heart Lotus, and Golden Jade Liquid Returning Pill to condense an embryonic Golden Core with the Nine-Bend Demon Lotus Golden Core Method. Nine streams of spiritual power converged over Mingwang Peak, confirming that he had passed the Core Condensation Pass, while Yuji True Person and Xin Bairen watched with concern and dismay.

• Qing Chen felt the opportunity to break through and refined the Phoenix Blood Flower and Ice Heart Lotus to spur his magic power.
• Qing Chen circulated his magic power through the Nine-Bend Demon Lotus Golden Core Method, but feared the materials' power would not last long enough.
• Qing Chen swallowed the Golden Jade Liquid Returning Pill, and its nine golden snakes accelerated the condensation of his embryonic Golden Core.
• After a day and a half, nine streams of spiritual power converged on Mingwang Peak, and True Person Budong declared that Qing Chen had passed the Core Condensation Pass with a high-grade embryonic Golden Core.
• Yuji True Person watched the phenomenon from a hill and worried about Qing Chen's exceptional progress.
• Xin Bairen secretly watched Mingwang Peak through an Observation Formation and grew furious when the nine streams appeared.

Qing Chen endured visions of his mortal life during the second Nascent Soul trial, reliving memories with Lin Yu, his parents, and his humiliating sales job. He broke free of the heart demon and passed the second trial.

• Xin Bairen raged as Qing Chen’s trial began and hoped later tribulations would make him fail.
• Qing Chen relived a rainy university day with Lin Yu and remembered their missed plans and closeness.
• Qing Chen saw his hardworking parents and offered to knit his mother a scarf.
• Qing Chen relived being demeaned by a customer and pressured by his manager at the auto mall.
• A Flood Dragon formed from a golden snake entered Qing Chen’s Sea of Consciousness while the pagoda protected his Golden Core embryo.
• Qing Chen dispelled the black vapor and declared that he had passed the second trial.

Qing Chen faced the lightning tribulation of the Heaven-and-Earth Spiritual Resonance Pass and endured all three bolts with his body and Vajra abilities. The tribulation ended with lightning refining his nascent Golden Core and crystallized magic power.

• Qing Chen activated his defenses as dark clouds gathered, and Xu Jiuling identified his trial as a single-aspect lightning tribulation.
• Qing Chen endured the first bolt without injury, then took scorching damage from the second as lightning began tempering his nascent Golden Core.
• Qing Chen confronted the third bolt with Immovable Wisdom King and shattered the purple-patterned lightning python with a punch.
• The scattered lightning serpents entered Qing Chen's meridians and further honed his nascent Golden Core and crystallized magic power.