Chapter Summaries

Ye Wushang and Wuchen fought evenly until Ye Wushang rejected the battlefield fortune that could have won him the duel, then challenged Wuchen to continue fighting away from the battlefield. As the two peerless prodigies battled in the heavens, Wuxin focused on holding the Demon Lotus Army’s formation while Xin Bairen waited for their fight to decide the conflict.

• Wuchen unleashed his Jialan Immortality Body and fought Ye Wushang’s Azure Nether Sword Domain with his golden body.
• Xin Bairen used a High-Grade Fortune Talisman to channel fortune power to Ye Wushang, who formed a powerful azure-purple sword gang.
• Ye Wushang cut off much of the fortune power and weakened his strike, driving Wuchen into the ground without seriously injuring him.
• Ye Wushang challenged Wuchen to a fair duel away from the battlefield, and Wuchen followed him into the heavens.
• The two fought a thousand li from the battlefield as cultivators watched their clashing sword and Buddhist lights.
• Wuxin concentrated on defending with the Vajra Demon-Subduing Formation while Xin Bairen recognized that he was stalling for the duel’s outcome.

Xin Bairen drove the Demon Lotus army into a desperate assault on Wuxin’s Buddhist formation, using suicidal tactics to exploit its weak points. As Wuxin gathered the formation’s power at its core, Xin Bairen led three thousand elites in a blood-fueled charge straight at the Vajra Wall.

• Xin Bairen changed the Demon Lotus army’s tactics, sending scattered units to attack the Buddhist formation’s nodes while the right wing undermined its foundations with yin-thunder.
• Demon Lotus cultivators tore through breaches in the Buddhist light and attacked the formation’s defenders, while Wuxin struggled to repair its weakened points.
• Xin Bairen abandoned defense and led three thousand elites in an arrowhead assault toward the Buddhist formation’s core.
• Xin Bairen invoked the Ape-Demon Transformation and burned his essence blood as his troops poured their power into the charge.
• Wuxin gathered the Buddhist formation’s light into a massive Vajra Wall, and Xin Bairen’s blood-colored force crashed into it.

The Demon Lotus Army broke into the Buddhist formation after Xin Bairen damaged its base, but Yuan Chen and Yinji moved to kill him. Heavenly Shu True Lord and Fire Jiao True Lord arrived in time to stop their attack, and Qing Chen unleashed his killing intent as he faced them.

• Xin Bairen feinted against Wuxin's pagoda and smashed a bronze formation base, weakening the Vajra Battle Formation.
• The Demon Lotus Army charged through the breach and fought the Buddhist Soldiers in a brutal melee.
• Yuan Chen attacked Xin Bairen with a Grotto-Heaven Fist while Yinji sealed off his escape with rosy ribbons.
• Heavenly Shu True Lord and Fire Jiao True Lord arrived and their Purple Frost Sword Gang deflected Yuan Chen and Yinji's attacks.
• Qing Chen's killing intent surged as he prepared to confront Yuan Chen and Yinji.

Qing Chen attacked Yuan Chen and Yinji with the Xun Wind Banner and Purple Mansion Thunder Cauldron, forcing Hui'an to intervene with a supreme-grade Buddhist treasure. Yaoyue arrived to shield Yinji, and the chapter ended with Qing Chen challenging her to fight.

• Qing Chen unleashed a wind-and-lightning strike against Yuan Chen and Yinji, overwhelming their defenses.
• Abbot Hui'an used the Vajra Heavenly Dragon Seal to protect Yuan Chen and Yinji, then raised the Three-Crossing Buddhist Prayer Beads to defend himself and the flagship.
• Qing Chen summoned six White Bone Demon Mara Banners, including the supreme-grade Di Jiang Demon Banner, and Hui'an recognized the danger they posed.
• Yaoyue appeared between Qing Chen and the lingering attack, then displayed the Taiyin Su-nü Silk and Thousand-Illusion Cold Moon Wheel.
• Qing Chen asked Yaoyue if she wanted to try fighting him.

Qing Chen cowed the allied forces with his strength, then claimed his two hundred thousand Demon Lotus Sect cultivators had come only to drill with the Cangming Army. His explanation left the Vajra Zen Sect and its allies bewildered and furious, while the threatened battle paused.

• Yaoyue sensed Qing Chen’s power and the Di Jiang Banner, then called Yinji back to the flagship and ordered her to stand down.
• The allied True Lords and Abbot Hui'an reconsidered their chances against Qing Chen’s forces and six demon banners.
• Qing Chen withdrew the banners and told Yaoyue and Hui'an that he had no intention of fighting them to the death.
• Qing Chen announced that the Demon Lotus Sect’s voyage was a joint battle formation drill with the Cangming Army to prepare for future threats.
• The Demon Lotus Sect and Cangming Army were relieved by his announcement, while the opposing leaders felt misled and the Vajra Zen monks grew furious.

Qing Chen accused the allied sects of provoking the conflict, then proposed the Golden Scale Pact to establish peace and recognize the Demon Lotus Sect as one of the Upper Eight Cave Spirit Islands. He revealed that Tie Ming and Wei Ting represented Heavenly Abyss Pass and Spirit Venerable Xiao, shocking the opposing army.

• Qing Chen condemned the Vajra Zen Sect and its allies for their attacks, while sparing Yuan Chen and Yinji from having their souls extracted because of their sects’ past aid to the Demon Lotus Sect.
• Qing Chen blamed the region’s turmoil on infighting and called for the leaders to form an alliance for peace.
• Guanyin Tower Master asked how Qing Chen planned to secure peace, and Qing Chen proposed the Golden Scale Pact.
• Qing Chen demanded that the Demon Lotus Sect replace Penglai Spirit Island among the Upper Eight Cave Spirit Islands and offered mutual nonaggression and joint defense against foreign enemies.
• Qing Chen brought Tie Ming and Wei Ting forward and revealed that they were emissaries bearing Heavenly Abyss Pass Command Tokens with authority from Spirit Venerable Xiao.

Qing Chen used his strength and Spirit Venerable Xiao’s decree to pressure the Golden Scale Sea Region’s powers into accepting the Demon Lotus Sect’s standing, leaving the rival forces silent. Ye Wushang and Wuchen then arrived after a fierce battle, both having advanced, and Qing Chen asked if they were done fighting.

• Qing Chen invoked Spirit Venerable Xiao’s order to defend Annan Province and threatened anyone who undermined the Demon Lotus Sect with retaliation from Heavenly Abyss Pass and his forces.
• Abbot Hui'an and Grand Tower Master Yaoyue recognized Qing Chen’s layered strategy, which had used military strength, battlefield pressure, and the Immortal Dynasty’s authority to pursue the Golden Scale Pact.
• The assembled cultivators fell silent as Qing Chen’s show of force and appeal to Heavenly Abyss Pass made open opposition to the Demon Lotus Sect dangerous.
• Ye Wushang and Wuchen arrived from the east and clashed, revealing that both had reached the nascent soul early stage peak and advanced their respective Laws.
• Ye Wushang and Wuchen traded taunts and prepared to resume their duel, ignoring the tense gathering below, until Qing Chen asked whether they were done fighting.

Ye Wushang and Wuchen returned from their breakthrough battle to find Qing Chen had proposed Abbot Hui'an as Alliance Leader at the Golden Scales Alliance Meeting. Qing Chen then exposed a hidden watcher, who emerged as a towering, black-armored man radiating overwhelming spear intent.

• Ye Wushang and Wuchen reported their breakthroughs to their masters and realized the assembled factions had stopped preparing to fight.
• Qing Chen proposed appointing Abbot Hui'an as Alliance Leader to unite the Gouwu Sea.
• Qing Chen called out to a hidden watcher five hundred li away, startling the gathered Nascent Soul cultivators.
• A towering man in black armor stepped through a tear in space, his manifested spear intent making the sea sink around him.

Yue Hanshan intervened in the Gouwu Sea conflict, invoking Heavenly Abyss Pass’s authority to end the fighting and establish the Golden Scale Pact under Hui'an. Hui'an refused to accept the settlement, leaving Yue Hanshan confronting him as tensions rose again.

• Yue Hanshan revealed himself and rebuked Qing Chen for launching an unauthorized war, while Qing Chen defended his actions as preparations for defending the coast.
• Tie Ming and Wei Ting reluctantly confirmed Qing Chen's account when Yue Hanshan questioned them.
• Yue Hanshan ordered the fighting to end and declared that Hui'an would lead the Golden Scale Pact, with Heavenly Abyss Pass witnessing the agreement.
• The Sea-Calming True Lord, Old Man Tianchi, and most allied forces supported Yue Hanshan's proposal, while Tower Master Yaoyue remained silent.
• Hui'an refused to accept the settlement, prompting Yue Hanshan to demand whether he opposed it.

Hui'an refused Yue Hanshan's demand to withdraw until Heavenly Abyss Pass offered compensation for the Vajra Zen Sect's losses. He then demanded a place in the Nine Netherworlds Ancient Bloodline undertaking and a bout with Qing Chen that would determine the Demon Lotus Sect's standing and freedom to expand.

• Hui'an challenged Yue Hanshan's withdrawal order by citing the Vajra Zen Sect's enormous expenditures and the deaths of eight thousand elite soldiers.
• Qing Chen backed Hui'an's refusal to yield and raised six White Bone Demon Mara Banners, creating a three-way standoff.
• Yue Hanshan offered spirit stones, Healing Pills, spirit rice, and Fortune Talismans for Hui'an and the Demon Lotus Sect to distribute after the Golden Scale Pact was established.
• Hui'an deemed the compensation sufficient but demanded participation in the Nine Netherworlds Ancient Bloodline undertaking.
• Hui'an challenged Qing Chen to a bout, offering recognition of the Demon Lotus Sect's Upper Eight Caves position and deputy alliance leadership if Qing Chen held out.
• Hui'an demanded Qing Chen's place in the undertaking, the disbandment of the Cangming Army, and a thousand-year ban on the Demon Lotus Sect's expansion if Qing Chen failed.

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.