Chapter Summaries

After agreeing with Ye Wushang to duel again, Qing Chen ordered an intelligence-gathering operation targeting the Heavenly Illumination Archipelago and arranged to spend the sect’s resources on pills and materials for his cultivation. He entered secluded cultivation, hoping to open the Third Brahma Aperture.

• Qing Chen told Xu Jiuling to inform Ye Wushang that his secluded cultivation had gone smoothly and that he would honor their agreement to duel before answering about the Nanhua Continent.
• Qing Chen ordered the External Affairs Hall, Battle Hall, and Attendant Hall to investigate the Heavenly Illumination Archipelago and find a route there or covertly cooperate with the Lesser Cold Temple.
• Qing Chen ordered Xu Jiuling and Gao Yuliang to spend the sect’s congratulatory gifts on medicinal pills and the remains of demon beasts and cultivators, seeking additional supplies from other archipelagos if necessary.
• Qing Chen explained that sect rules and possible objections from elders would not stop the purchases, and gave the two a talisman from Ye Wushang to offer Cauldron True Person for higher-grade pills.
• After Xu Jiuling and Gao Yuliang left, Qing Chen reflected on Ye Wushang’s gifts and his progress in the Brahma Demon-Refining Art, then went to the secret chamber to cultivate and attempt to open the Third Brahma Aperture.

Yuji True Person and Xin Bairen fought a demon beast horde in the storm-wracked sea, with Yuji seeking a chance to advance to the late Golden Core stage. Yuji brought out the Yuji Sword to trap the Scarlet Blood Demon Lizard after his spells failed to kill it quickly.

• Yuji True Person used his Jade Heart Soul-Slaying Blades to wound and suppress the Scarlet Blood Demon Lizard while Xin Bairen attacked the surrounding demon soldiers.
• Xin Bairen recalled how he had discovered the demon beast gathering and revealed it to Yuji to secure a magic treasure for protection.
• Xin Bairen unleashed the Dragon-Slaying Golden Light Spell and cut down swathes of demon lizards as Yuji ordered him to hold the formation.
• Yuji True Person summoned the Yuji Sword and formed a great entrapment rune over the Scarlet Blood Demon Lizard.
• The Scarlet Blood Demon Lizard shattered several spirit patterns with its tail and scarlet flames, but the remaining patterns pressed down upon its head.

Yuji True Person killed the Scarlet Blood Demon Lizard and helped Xin Bairen clear the battlefield before they discussed Qing Chen’s growing abuse of power in the Sect. Yuji True Person planned to use the spoils and the Sect’s prestige to seek a Yu Yu Profound True Pill to break through his bottleneck.

• Yuji True Person trapped the Scarlet Blood Demon Lizard, broke through its defenses with a lightning-charged sword strike, and killed it with further attacks.
• Yuji True Person helped Xin Bairen defeat the remaining Demon Beasts, then harvested and sealed the demon lizard’s valuable materials.
• Yuji True Person told Xin Bairen to collect valuable materials, and Xin Bairen thanked him for the help.
• Xin Bairen accused Qing Chen of violating Sect Rules, plundering Sect resources, and possibly causing Black Ape Island’s destruction and Mo Huaian’s death.
• Yuji True Person acknowledged Qing Chen’s power and said the sale of the Demon Beast materials could fund a search for the Yu Yu Profound True Pill.

Eight Serpent Sect leaders debated whether to defy Qing Chen or send him belated congratulations after learning of his strength and reputation. The sect remained divided, but several leaders urged caution and warned against making an enemy of him.

• Yuji True Person told Xin Bairen that he expected to break through to the late Golden Core stage and warned him to avoid dangerous archipelagos while working for Qing Chen.
• Eight Serpent True Person questioned his subordinates about a message from the Illuminating Deity Sect announcing Qing Chen’s power and the need to submit a congratulatory address to the Condensed Jade Sect.
• Chilin True Person angrily opposed sending gifts, while Qingwei True Person argued that Qing Chen’s victory over Ye Wushang made it wiser to avoid provoking him.
• The Eight Serpent Sect’s leaders recalled how Qing Chen had killed Xuantan and ruined their secret trade with the Impermanence Sect, and learned that other Golden Core forces had already sent belated gifts.
• Poison Python True Person reported Jinghua True Person’s warning that Qing Chen was ruthless and urged the Eight Serpent Sect to stay cautious rather than make him an enemy.

Lin Changsheng faced the dangers of the Great Mystic Primordial Magnetism Mountain and encountered a powerful Primordial Magnetism Three-Horned Rhino. The chapter ended as the beast unleashed a tornado of magnetic needles at him.

• Eight Serpent True Person ordered Poison Python True Person to send two Foundation Establishment peak Purple Ancient Pythons as a belated congratulatory gift.
• Lin Changsheng narrowly dodged a storm of magnetic needles and used the Magnetic Essence Step to move across the mountain.
• Lin Changsheng relied on his gold-armored corpse body to withstand the magnetic needles and reflected on the mountain’s suppression of ordinary techniques.
• A Pseudo-Core-level Primordial Magnetism Three-Horned Rhino emerged from the mist and confronted Lin Changsheng.
• The rhino unleashed Magnetic Light Strangulation, sending a tornado of magnetic needles sweeping toward Lin Changsheng.

Lin Changsheng combined Great Heat Burns the Heavens Fist with Magnetic Essence Step to strike back against the Primordial Magnetism Three-Horned Rhino. He continued cultivating on Magnetic Origin Mountain because its magnetic environment was helping his magic power crystallize and improve his chances of reaching the golden core realm.

• Lin Changsheng used Magnetic Essence Step and Great Heat Burns the Heavens to blast the Primordial Magnetism Three-Horned Rhino, forcing it back half a step.
• Lin Changsheng recalled how the rhino had previously wounded him with magnetic needles and how he had survived by mastering Magnetic Essence Step alongside Start of Autumn Falling Leaves Leg Technique.
• Lin Changsheng reflected that Magnetic Origin Mountain's environment had helped crystallize his magic power while he trained and fought its beasts.
• Lin Changsheng resolved to keep cultivating on the mountain and increase his crystallized magic power before using his Golden Jade Liquid Returning Pill to pursue the golden core realm.

Lin Changsheng fought the Primordial Magnetism Three-Horned Rhino using the Yin-Yang Magnetic Wheel and his combat techniques, eventually destroying the beast. As he caught his breath, its body turned into magnetic sand that swarmed around his limbs.

• The Primordial Magnetism Three-Horned Rhino trapped Lin Changsheng in a magnetic storm, and he formed the Yin-Yang Magnetic Wheel to resist it.
• Lin Changsheng used the Start of Autumn Fallen Leaves technique and the Magnetic Essence Step to evade the beast’s attacks and break through its magnetic storm.
• Lin Changsheng struck the rhino’s left eye, smashed its nose with the Yin-Yang Magnetic Wheel, and snapped off two of its horns.
• Lin Changsheng delivered a final combined fist-and-finger strike that fractured the Primordial Magnetism Three-Horned Rhino’s body.
• The rhino’s body disintegrated into deep-blue magnetic sand that wound around Lin Changsheng’s limbs.

Lin Changsheng absorbed the magnetic sand of Primordial Magnetic Origin Mountain and broke through to the pseudo-core level, while Chang Ping'an explained his cultivation and protection to Chang Yao. Chang Yao asked whether Lord Lin Changsheng also entered the mountain.

• Lin Changsheng used the Yin-Yang Magnetic Wheel to draw magnetic sand into his body, strengthening his meridians and crystallized magic power.
• After hours of cultivation, Lin Changsheng raised his crystallized magic power above ten percent and tested his new strength by creating a spear that shattered a magnetic stone.
• Lin Changsheng noticed the mountain’s spiritual energy thinning and wondered why its intensity fluctuated.
• Chang Ping'an told Chang Yao that Magnetic Origin Mountain had helped his cultivation and that a secret treasure protected him.
• Chang Yao asked Chang Ping'an whether the mountain was the place Lord Lin Changsheng often entered.

Chang Ping'an revealed Chang Yao the Duer Sect’s hidden ties and opportunities at Magnetic Origin Mountain, while she concealed the influence Qing Chen’s gu had over her. After more than six years of preparation, Qing Chen began attempting to break through to the middle Golden Core stage in the Blood River Grotto.

• Chang Ping'an warned Chang Yao that Magnetic Origin Mountain was dangerous, then boasted that the Duer Sect’s inherited techniques and secrets gave him special advantages there.
• Chang Ping'an explained that Penglai Spirit Island had destroyed the Duer Sect after learning of Magnetic Origin Mountain’s secrets, and he said the mountain held treasure sites for him to explore.
• Lin Changsheng had located a hidden cave abode using information from a Duer Sect jade slip, while Tie Xiu had escorted the group to Magnetic Origin Mountain’s entrance and left them instructions.
• For more than six years, Xu Jiuling, Gao Yuliang, and the others supplied Qing Chen with pills, corpses, and blood-path materials outside the sealed Blood River Grotto.
• Qing Chen absorbed blood energy from three demon banners and used his resources to attempt a breakthrough from the early Golden Core peak stage to the middle Golden Core stage.

Qing Chen used the Taixuan Pill, Clear Void Yang-Transforming Pills, and blood energy from the Three Demon Banners to break through the Heavenly Surge Meridian Sea and reach the Middle Golden Core Stage. He emerged with greatly increased power and divine sense, while considering the formidable cultivators who might still challenge him.

• Qing Chen abandoned his attempt to open the Third Brahma Aperture and prepared to use his remaining resources to advance his cultivation.
• Qing Chen consumed the Taixuan Pill and drew blood energy from the Three Demon Banners as he forced his true essence toward the Heavenly Surge Meridian Sea.
• Qing Chen used nine blood needles and the power of a Clear Void Yang-Transforming Pill to break open the meridian barrier and complete the eighth-layer formula of the Brahma Demon-Refining Art.
• Qing Chen reached the Middle Golden Core Stage, manifested the Blood-Killing Heavenly Phenomenon, and gained the Eightfold Brahma Curse and roughly fifty additional years of lifespan.
• Qing Chen assessed his increased combat strength, reflected on Ye Wushang and other powerful rivals, and discovered that his divine sense extended seventy-eight li.

After six or seven years in seclusion, Qing Chen emerged with late Golden Core-level divine sense and demonstrated its reach by seizing three Foundation Establishment cultivators who mocked him. Their memories revealed ties to Lesser Cold Temple, while news of his breakthrough to the middle Golden Core stage spread across the Azure Wave Archipelago.

• Qing Chen tested his newly strengthened divine sense and found he could smoothly use several techniques at once while spending less true essence.
• Qing Chen heard three Foundation Establishment cultivators on a Spirit Boat insult him and blasted their boat with demon fire, capturing them alive.
• Qing Chen used the Soul-Seizing Technique to search the three cultivators' memories and discovered their connection to Lesser Cold Temple.
• News of Qing Chen's breakthrough spread through the Azure Wave Archipelago, and Xu Jiuling celebrated the prospect of gaining benefits from his growing power.
• Gao Yuliang joined Xu Jiuling in the great hall, where they joked about Qing Chen's favor and reflected on how far their positions had risen.

Gu Zhiruo’s elders pressured her to serve Qing Chen more effectively, while Yuji True Person blamed Qing Chen for his failed breakthrough and Xin Bairen considered switching sides. Months later, Poison Python True Person practiced the Lesser Cold Temple’s Blissful Lineage with Dharma Master Miao Xuan but questioned whether the temple could withstand Qing Chen.

• Songshan True Person and Spirit Crane True Person warned Gu Zhiruo to please Qing Chen and suggested she learn the Lesser Cold Temple’s arts.
• Gu Zhiruo, overwhelmed by humiliation and grief, resolved to fight Qing Chen to the death rather than endure further degradation.
• Yuji True Person failed to break through to the late Golden Core stage, smashed his pill bottle, and blamed Qing Chen for distracting him.
• Xin Bairen privately considered abandoning Yuji True Person and seeking a future under Qing Chen.
• Months later, Dharma Master Miao Xuan explained the Blissful Lineage to Poison Python True Person as they practiced its arts together.
• Poison Python True Person expressed concern that the Lesser Cold Temple might be threatened by Qing Chen if war broke out.

Dharma Master Miao Xuan explained how Lesser Cold Temple planned to keep Qing Chen occupied in war while Poison Python True Person helped it gain influence over the Heavenly Illumination Archipelago. The chapter traced the origins of Lesser Cold Temple and the split of the former Heavenly Serpent Sect, then ended with an author’s note about a map.

• Dharma Master Miao Xuan told Poison Python True Person that Lesser Cold Temple and Cold Mountain Temple had arranged to use the Heavenly Illumination Archipelago conflict to keep Qing Chen from visiting Wuji Island and cultivating the Magnetic Origin Great Art.
• Poison Python True Person worried that the Eight Serpent Sect could not withstand Qing Chen, but Dharma Master Miao Xuan said its Golden Core forces could hold out and that Xuanji True Lord could not enter the fighting.
• Dharma Master Miao Xuan promised Poison Python True Person that Lesser Cold Temple could take control of the region if the Eight Serpent Sect fell, and make him its ruler.
• The chapter recounted how Lesser Cold Temple split from Cold Mountain Temple after its founder adopted the Blissful Evil Technique and how the sect survived with help from neighboring powers.
• The chapter recounted how the death of Heavenly Serpent True Lord and the ensuing turmoil divided the Heavenly Serpent Sect into the Heavenly Illumination Sect, Eight Serpent Sect, and Radiant Night Palace.

The chapter recounts how Earth Pass Island grew into a prosperous, heavily policed trade hub under Qing Chen, earning the title pearl of Azure Wave. It leaves Earth Pass Island’s importance rising further after Guanyin Tower Master establishes an Elysium black market there.

• Qing Chen enforced harsh, impartial punishments on Earth Pass Island while allowing merchants and factions to conduct business for a price.
• Earth Pass Island expanded its ferry ports and trade, drawing thousands of visiting cultivators each day and generating over four hundred thousand spirit stones annually for the Condensed Jade Sect.
• Wan Hun, Yuji, and Elder Tianhuo resented Qing Chen keeping most of Earth Pass Island’s profits for himself.
• Earth Pass Island became the largest trade transit hub linking the Azure Wave, Three Corpse, and Cold Mountain Archipelagos.
• Guanyin Tower Master traveled to Heavenly Jade Island, met Xuanji True Lord, and established an Elysium black market on Earth Pass Island.

After emerging from seclusion, Qing Chen had strengthened Earth Pass Island’s influence, while rumors about his power spread through the archipelago. Li Lingzhu brought him news of an Eight Serpent Sect insult and an attempted self-detonation, then finished reporting as he listened from the shadows.

• Earth Pass Island’s black market flourished, and Songshan and Spirit Crane True Person increasingly acted as Qing Chen’s allies.
• At Tide Sound West Ferry, Li Xiao’er sold recordings of Qing Chen’s breakthrough while cultivators traded rumors, including claims that the Eight Serpent Sect had slighted him.
• Li Lingzhu arrived with Li Household cultivators and arrested the gossiping cultivators; a sword-bearing man tried to detonate his Sea of Qi, but she knocked him toward the sea.
• Li Lingzhu took the group to Earth Pass City, waited for an audience, and entered Qing Chen’s hall beneath his overwhelming killing intent.
• Qing Chen ordered Li Lingzhu to speak, and she recounted the ferry incident and the rumors about the Eight Serpent Sect before a tapping sounded from the shadows.

Qing Chen questioned Li Lingzhu and Xu Xiake about the Eight Serpent Sect’s spreading rumors and uncovered a high-ranking insider’s role in suppressing reports. He ordered everyone who had overheard the discussion killed, leaving Xu Xiake to invent an official reason for the executions.

• Qing Chen summoned Xu Xiake to verify Li Lingzhu’s account of the Eight Serpent Sect’s activity.
• Xu Xiake reported that rumors had spread across more than thirty islands and that the White Dragon Envoy was directing the sect from behind the scenes.
• Xu Xiake revealed that a deeply rooted Golden Core Elder had likely suppressed information on Heavenly Jade Island.
• Gao Yuliang warned that the discussion must not get out, and Li Lingzhu and the other captives begged for mercy.
• Qing Chen ordered Xu Xiake to kill them all and hand their bodies to Han Shi, then told him to draw up a reason for the executions.

Qing Chen spared Li Lingzhu and Li Xiao'er after learning that Li Xiao'er was a gifted merchant whose Mystic Treasure City had greatly increased the Li Household’s profits. He appointed Li Xiao'er to the General Affairs Hall and declared war over the Eight Serpent Sect’s humiliation and the suppression of news about it.

• Qing Chen threatened Li Lingzhu and Li Xiao'er with soul refinement or transformation into an armored corpse, but Li Lingzhu explained Li Xiao'er's business talents.
• Li Lingzhu described how Li Xiao'er built Mystic Treasure City at Tide Sound Ferry and increased the Li Household's earnings through shops, discounts, pet care, and Dao lectures.
• Qing Chen ordered Xu Xiake to deal with everyone except Li Lingzhu and Li Xiao'er according to the rules.
• Qing Chen appointed Li Xiao'er as a General Affairs Hall manager and deputy city lord of Earth Pass City, serving under Gao Yuliang.
• Qing Chen demanded an explanation from Heavenly Jade Island for suppressing news of the Eight Serpent Sect's humiliation and assigned Tide Sound West Ferry to the Li Household, ordering the Xu Household to relocate.
• Qing Chen declared war.

Qing Chen traveled in secret to Mystic Lotus Island to check on Qing An and the Demon Lotus Sect, while reflecting on his efforts to strengthen the Qing Household and its cultivators. He left the chapter poised to use the Demon Lotus Sect, whose true membership had grown far beyond its public limit, as a hidden force amid the turmoil caused by his declaration of war.

• Qing Chen stabilized his middle Golden Core stage cultivation and considered improving his aptitude and opening a third Brahma aperture.
• Qing Chen recalled that Qing An had become the Demon Lotus Sect's Deputy Hall Master and reviewed the secret techniques and resources he had provided to strengthen the Qing Household.
• Qing Chen remembered giving Qing An Blood Furnace Treasure Pills containing concealed Blood Furnace Gu and a self-destruct mechanism.
• Qing Chen's fourth edict declared war, stirring turmoil across the Azure Wave Archipelago and neighboring regions, while his whereabouts remained unknown.
• Qing Chen reached Mystic Lotus Island after two and a half days of travel and noted that the Demon Lotus Sect secretly had more than four thousand members.

Qing Chen returned to Mystic Lotus Island, tested Qing An’s strength, and personally taught him the next stage of the Mingwang Scripture. He asked about the Qing Household’s descendants, and Qing An reported that the family was flourishing.

• Qing Chen planned to strengthen the Demon Lotus Sect by training its cultivators in battle formations and deploying its treasure ships.
• Qing Chen passed through Mystic Lotus Island’s protective array and entered the Technique Transmission Hall.
• Qing An mistook Qing Chen for an assassin and attacked him, but Qing Chen effortlessly stopped his axe and restrained him.
• Qing Chen praised Qing An’s cultivation, demonstrated the fifth-level Mingwang Scripture method, and gave him purified Yellow Springs baleful qi to help him advance.
• Qing Chen joked with Qing An about the distance between them, then asked about the Qing Household’s descendants.
• Qing An told Qing Chen that the Qing Household was flourishing with descendants.

Qing An reported that the Qing Household had twenty-six descendants with spiritual roots, and Qing Chen supplied him with resources to expand the lineage and guide its cultivation. Qing Chen left Qing An confident that the household could soon raise a hundred spiritual-root cultivators while concealing the Blood Furnace Gu’s role in improving their roots.

• Qing An told Qing Chen that Qing Yun’s descendants had helped the Qing Household reach twenty-six younger members with spiritual roots, most of whom had taken Blood Furnace Treasure Pills.
• Qing Chen secretly considered how the Blood Furnace Gu could turn the qi and blood of deceased relatives into hidden spirit-supplementing furnace qi that improved their lineage’s spiritual roots.
• Qing Chen gave Qing An a Storage Ring containing five Foundation Establishment Pills, spirit stones, and other resources for the Qing Household.
• Qing Chen gathered spiritual herbs from the Nine-Luminaries Glazed Vidyaraja Pagoda and gave Qing An another Storage Ring filled with valuable medicines.
• Qing Chen told Qing An to nurture talented descendants, have them cultivate the Corpse-Blood Dao before pursuing body cultivation or dual cultivation, and seek more resources from him as needed.