Chapter Summaries

Zuo Changlu warned the leaders of the Three Continents that the Demon Alliance would return within three to five years and explained where its forces would strike. The leaders agreed to unite, but acknowledged that their combined strength fell far short of the Demon Alliance's.

• Great Shaman Bingming gagged himself with ice and cloth after apologizing, while the other Great Shamans remained angry with him.
• Zuo Changlu concluded that the Demon Alliance would return within three to five years, and Daoist Lei said his own estimate had been five to seven years.
• You Xingchen projected a map showing the Demon Alliance's former territory, and Zuo Changlu identified the Star Soul Continent and Witch Alliance Continent as likely to bear the first attack.
• The leaders of the Three Continents agreed to join forces against the Demon Alliance, though Flood Great Shaman and Daoist Lei said their strength was nowhere near sufficient.
• Flood Great Shaman said he could defeat any one of the three hundred and sixty-five Demon Gods but would have to retreat if three fought him together, and Great Shaman Bingming called that fleeing.

Zuo Changlu warned that the Three Continents faced overwhelming Demon Alliance forces and proposed measures to limit casualties when the Demon Alliance Continent returned. The leaders agreed to protect civilians and build an enormous No-Fly Domain, though creating it would require a blood sacrifice to Heaven.

• Flood Great Shaman admitted that he could not match the Demon Alliance's strongest fighters, darkening the leaders' expectations for the coming conflict.
• Zuo Changlu warned that the Demon Alliance's return would trigger a catastrophic Continent-Joining Calamity and urged the leaders to reduce civilian deaths.
• Zuo Changlu ordered local officials across the Witch Alliance, Dao Alliance, and Star Soul to organize forces to protect civilians, and the others agreed.
• Zuo Changlu proposed building the Other-Side Fortress beneath a vast No-Fly Domain to stop the Demon Alliance from flying over their defenses.
• Zuo Changlu proposed that the highest-ranking members of the three sides make a blood sacrifice to Heaven to create the No-Fly Domain, and he and his wife volunteered to go first.

Zuo Changlu, Flood Great Shaman, and Daoist Lei discussed preparations for the Demon Alliance’s return, including fortifications and the deployment of hidden experts. Flood Great Shaman revealed that the Witch Alliance would begin a brutal war of aggression in three months to forge stronger fighters, leaving the other leaders alarmed at the scale of the plan.

• Zuo Changlu warned that the Witch Alliance needed to build an indestructible fortress and cautioned that some of its sects traced their roots to the Demon Alliance.
• Zuo Changlu called for the Three Races to reveal their hidden experts, and the leaders argued over how many Star Soul Humans had survived the crossing at Tianguan.
• Flood Great Shaman announced that the Witch Alliance had authorized more student death matches and begun conscripting troops to temper its fighters.
• Flood Great Shaman declared that the Witch Alliance would launch an unending war against Star Soul and the Dao Alliance in three months, even if it had to face the Demon Alliance alone.

Zuo Changlu and You Xingchen agreed that the Star Soul Continent needed universal conscription and brutal martial training to survive the coming war. Zuo Changlu chose to sign the order and bear the public blame, while You Xingchen would later help undo its effects if humanity survived.

• Zuo Changlu proposed universal conscription for martial cultivators at Cloud Transformation or above and harsh education through the High Martial Schools.
• You Xingchen warned that the order would cause many deaths and leave Zuo Changlu cursed by the public for generations.
• Zuo Changlu argued that refusing to act would leave humanity vulnerable to annihilation, enslavement, or defeat by the Demon Alliance.
• Zuo Changlu insisted on signing the order himself and assigned You Xingchen the role of restoring matters if humanity won.
• You Xingchen reluctantly accepted Zuo Changlu's decision and saluted him, while Flood Great Shaman admired Zuo Changlu and Daoist Lei hesitated over the Dao Alliance's position.

Zuo Changlu, Daoist Lei, and Flood Great Shaman settled on a broad strategy against the Demon Alliance before turning to the Space Ruins in the Star Radiance Mountain Range. Flood Great Shaman revealed that the site was the Crown Prince Academy, a lethal training ground for Demon Race heirs.

• Zuo Changlu argued that the Dao Alliance had to cultivate its forces quickly or risk extermination.
• Flood Great Shaman criticized the Dao Alliance for its lack of rising young experts, and Daoist Lei defended its strength.
• Zuo Changlu redirected the discussion to the Space Ruins in the Star Radiance Mountain Range.
• Flood Great Shaman explained that the site was the Crown Prince Academy, where Demon Race crown princes and their followers trained and faced trials.
• Daoist Lei described how the Seventh Crown Prince and all two hundred and forty followers died during their trials.

Flood Great Shaman explained the Crown Prince Academy’s history and dangers, then laid out plans to salvage its resources and hold trials before it collapsed. The others learned that destroying the Kunpeng Primordial Spirit had left the small world only three months to survive.

• Daoist Lei described how past Demon Race princes entered the Crown Prince Academy and how the trial ground became a deadly contest among different races.
• Flood Great Shaman challenged Daoist Lei’s account and explained that the Academy was a vast small world built by the Demon Master, with trials matched to cultivators’ ranks.
• Flood Great Shaman revealed that shattering the Kunpeng Primordial Spirit had deprived the Academy of its energy source, leaving it three months before it vanished.
• Flood Great Shaman said the factions would wait seven days to assess the collapsing interior, then either send two thousand geniuses each for two months of trials or evacuate its resources if it was unusable.
• Zuo Changlu asked what happened to the treasures the geniuses collected, and Flood Great Shaman said they belonged to the individuals.

Zuo Changlu and Flood Great Shaman discussed how many cultivators could enter the Crown Prince Academy, but Flood’s calculations were wildly inaccurate. Daoist Lei set a safer limit, while Flood took out his embarrassment and irritation on Great Shaman Bingming.

• Zuo Changlu asked Flood Great Shaman about deaths inside the Crown Prince Academy and the number of cultivators it could hold.
• Flood Great Shaman proposed a limit of two thousand from each side, then revised his numbers after You Xingchen and Daoist Lei pointed out his arithmetic errors.
• Daoist Lei set the safer limit at eight thousand from each side, with strict caps for the higher cultivation levels.
• Great Shaman Bingming mocked Flood Great Shaman’s math, so Flood slapped and squeezed him before throwing him onto Liehuo’s face.
• Flood Great Shaman threatened Liehuo’s household if Bingming appeared before him again, and Liehuo stuffed his battered brother-in-law into his pocket.

Zuo Changlu and the alliance leaders discussed preparations for the Crown Prince Academy trial and the coming war, then considered Nan Zhengqian’s return to the Southern Army. The chapter left Zuo Changlu weighing the need to honor Old Master Nan’s final wishes against the Southern Army’s urgent need for a commander.

• Liehuo wrapped Bingming in strips of his robe, fed him a Ma Kernel, covered his eyes and ears, and hid him in his pocket while Flood Great Shaman glared at him.
• Daoist Lei confirmed the trial’s participant numbers and said the Crown Prince Academy would be inspected again in seven days before people could enter.
• Zuo Changlu ordered Yun Zhonghu to gather military and government leaders after the meeting to settle preparations without delay.
• Yun Zhonghu reported that Nan Zhengqian wanted to return to the Southern Army and that Old Master Nan intended to go to the front despite his failing health.
• Zuo Changlu ordered Old Master Nan to take another Heaven-Reversing Pill and promised to let him depart in glory after at most four years.
• You Dongtian argued that Nan Zhengqian’s return was imperative because the Southern Army lacked a central pillar ahead of the Demon Alliance’s return and the Witch Alliance’s advance.

Flood Great Shaman explained that the Witch Alliance had held back from conquering the continent because it was preparing for the Demon Alliance’s return and wanted other forces to grow stronger. Zuo Changlu agreed to restore Nan Zhengqian to the Southern Army, while Wu Yuting scolded You Xingchen over You Dongtian’s behavior.

• You Dongtian and Great Witch Dan Kong said the Witch Alliance could have swallowed the Southern Army without Nan Zhengqian.
• Flood Great Shaman explained that the Witch Alliance had long prepared to face the Demon Alliance and had encouraged the continent’s other forces to grow stronger.
• Zuo Changlu praised Flood Great Shaman’s strategy, and Flood warned that the coming Flesh-and-Blood Mill Mode could put the Southern Army at risk.
• Zuo Changlu agreed to take Nan Zhengqian off his blacklist and let him return to the Southern Army after the holiday.
• You Dongtian asked when the family banquet would begin and offered Wu Yuting the ingredients he had collected.
• Wu Yuting slapped You Xingchen and blamed him for You Dongtian using her as a shield.

Wu Yuting chastised You Dongtian and the Star-Seizing Emperor after You Dongtian tried to shift blame, while the leaders completed their talks about the ruins and the Demon Alliance. After the performance, Zuo Xiaoduo and his family headed home, where thick fog swallowed their surroundings.

• Wu Yuting slapped the Star-Seizing Emperor while You Xingchen blamed her for spoiling You Dongtian, and You Dongtian trembled under his father's furious stare.
• The leaders of the three sides concluded their meeting with preliminary plans for the ruins and further arrangements for the Demon Alliance's return.
• Flood Great Shaman accepted the Sky-Patrolling Imperial Seat's invitation to see his son's hammers, and Great Shaman Bingming returned to his seat.
• Zuo Xiaoduo watched the performances, including Gu Luoyan's song Blood Fell from the Sky, as people gradually left the venue.
• Zuo Xiaoduo and his family walked home, but dense fog appeared and hid the surrounding buildings and even their hands.

Zuo Xiaoduo and his family were trapped in a sealed battle space and attacked by hidden enemies. Separated from Zuo Xiaonian and his parents, Zuo Xiaoduo unleashed his Nine-Nine Kitty Hammers against a powerful opponent, and the fight continued as his Thousand Soul Nightmare Hammer gathered force.

• Zuo Changlu recognized the burly enemy, who declared that he would kill the family and refused to let anyone leave.
• Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian attacked to protect their parents, but enemies dragged them into separate battle spaces.
• Zuo Xiaonian urged Zuo Xiaoduo to lead Zuo Changlu and Wu Yuting away, and Zuo Xiaoduo told his parents to flee through the gate of life.
• Zuo Xiaoduo fought the burly opponent with sword techniques, but the enemy casually countered them.
• Zuo Xiaoduo released his sword and launched the Thousand Soul Nightmare Hammer with his Nine-Nine Kitty Hammers, putting all his Core Origin Realm strength into the attack.

Zuo Xiaoduo fought a tall, burly figure wielding sledgehammers, trading thousands of blows despite the opponent’s overwhelming strength. The man finally broke through Zuo Xiaoduo’s hammer technique and wounded him, but Zuo Xiaoduo grew even more fired up and remained ready to fight.

• Zuo Xiaoduo charged the burly figure with the Nine-Nine Kitty Hammers, and the man blocked his blows with a matching pair of sledgehammers.
• Zuo Xiaoduo used the force of their collisions to launch increasingly powerful attacks, unleashing the Thousand Soul Nightmare Hammer as the man intercepted every strike.
• Zuo Xiaoduo continued fighting at full force as the man gradually increased his strength, and their exchanges appeared evenly matched despite the man’s growing power.
• The burly figure abruptly unleashed a much stronger hammer blow, sending Zuo Xiaoduo’s hammers flying backward and leaving blood at the corner of his mouth.
• Zuo Xiaoduo realized he could hardly shake the stronger man, but the blow only made him more fired up.

Zuo Xiaoduo battled a burly hammer master, escalating his attacks with the Thousand Soul Nightmare Hammer and the Flame Sun True Scripture. He surprised his opponent by turning his flying hammers into remote-controlled weapons, then caught them and charged back into the fight.

• Zuo Xiaoduo's hammer blows developed annihilating black light, and he and the burly man exchanged hundreds of strikes.
• Zuo Xiaoduo unleashed the Flame Sun True Scripture with the Nine-Nine Kitty Hammers, but the burly man remained unharmed and matched his growing strength.
• Zuo Xiaoduo threw both hammers at the burly man, and the hammers flew back to attack him from behind.
• The burly man struck one hammer's cord, but Zuo Xiaoduo redirected the force, recalled both hammers, caught them, and launched another assault.
• The burly man swung his hammers to meet Zuo Xiaoduo's attack, and all four hammers collided again.

Zuo Xiaoduo fought the tall, stout figure with his Nine-Nine Kitty Hammers, using concealed weapons and enduring thousands of blows despite the vast gap in strength. As the chapter ended, he unleashed the life-ending move One Hammer Scatters All Under Heaven, and his opponent realized he was willing to die in the attack.

• The tall, stout figure knocked away Zuo Xiaoduo’s two hidden Heavenly Shaman Copper Awl Needles with a mouthful of phlegm.
• Zuo Xiaoduo kept swinging the Nine-Nine Kitty Hammers, resolved to buy time for his parents to escape.
• The tall, stout figure was astonished that Zuo Xiaoduo could sustain more than ten thousand hammer collisions without weakening.
• Zuo Xiaoduo roared and unleashed One Hammer Scatters All Under Heaven, a move that would kill him unless his cultivation exceeded Flying Heaven.

Zuo Xiaoduo survived a fierce fight with the Flood Great Shaman, who withdrew after recognizing his potential. The Flood Great Shaman then joyfully declared Zuo Xiaoduo his successor, leaving Zuo Changlu and Wu Yuting stunned.

• The Flood Great Shaman retreated into the fog, saying he would return when Zuo Xiaoduo had grown stronger and asking what his hammers were called.
• Zuo Xiaoduo named his weapons the Nine-Nine Kitty Hammers, and the name left the Flood Great Shaman speechless before he departed.
• After the enemy vanished, Zuo Xiaoduo collapsed from overexertion and eventually staggered away with his hammers stored in his ring.
• Zuo Changlu and Wu Yuting waited for the Flood Great Shaman, who arrived delighted and praised Zuo Xiaoduo as the perfect successor to his mantle.
• Wu Yuting objected when the Flood Great Shaman credited Zuo Changlu with their son's birth, and he quickly acknowledged her contribution.

Flood Great Shaman praised Zuo Xiaoduo’s hammer skills, gave Zuo Changlu his hammer technique insights, and agreed to modify Xiaoduo’s Annihilation Sky Pagoda. After Flood concealed himself, Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian reunited with their parents, relieved to find them safe.

• Flood Great Shaman praised Zuo Xiaoduo’s skill and endurance, then gave Zuo Changlu a jade pendant containing his hammer technique insights.
• Flood Great Shaman said he felt proud to have Zuo Xiaoduo as his godson and urged Zuo Changlu to arrange for him to trial at Crown Prince Academy.
• Zuo Changlu asked Flood Great Shaman to modify Zuo Xiaoduo’s Annihilation Sky Pagoda so it could bind to an owner, and Flood agreed.
• Flood Great Shaman concealed himself as Zuo Xiaonian and Zuo Xiaoduo rushed back to their parents.
• Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian found Zuo Changlu and Wu Yuting safe and finally relaxed.

After Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian barely survived a battle against their powerful opponents, Flood Great Shaman secretly modified the Annihilation Sky Pagoda and returned it to Zuo Changlu. As Great Shaman Liehuo warned that the young pair might one day threaten even the strongest experts, Flood argued that their rise could also become an asset against the returning Demon Alliance.

• Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian recovered with help from Zuo Changlu and Wu Yuting after admitting they had been outmatched.
• Zuo Changlu took the Annihilation Sky Pagoda from Zuo Xiaoduo, and Flood Great Shaman secretly modified it before slipping it into Zuo Changlu's pocket.
• Great Shaman Liehuo praised Zuo Xiaonian's strength and warned Flood that the pair's talents and engagement could make them dangerous enemies of the Witch Alliance.
• Liehuo argued that Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian might eventually reach the level of the Ancestral Shamans or Demon Emperor.
• Flood said that allowing new powers to rise had helped past generations and that Zuo Xiaoduo might become an ally against the returning Demon Alliance.

Flood Great Shaman advised Great Shaman Liehuo to broaden his vision and warned him against targeting geniuses such as Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian. Liehuo acknowledged his mistake, while Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian returned to the villa still shaken by the danger they had faced.

• Flood Great Shaman told Great Shaman Liehuo that enemies could serve as whetstones and urged him to look beyond revenge and worldly contests.
• Flood Great Shaman warned Liehuo that attacking Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian could provoke a blood feud and might fail even if they were caught vulnerable.
• Flood Great Shaman explained that Zuo Xiaonian had survived the Phoenix Vein Soul Impact because her family had prepared safeguards, and that Kill Break Wolf had suffered backlash for offending the Phoenix Vein's master.
• Flood Great Shaman described how destined figures gathered powerful followers as they grew, and Liehuo understood the warning in his words.
• Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian returned to the villa and continued to feel shaken by their ordeal.

After the battle, Zuo Changlu reassured Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian and told Zuo Xiaoduo to claim the Annihilation Sky Pagoda. Zuo Xiaoduo used a feigned injury to coax Zuo Xiaonian into kissing and cuddling, then went to bind the pagoda with his blood as she watched.

• Zuo Changlu told Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian that their attackers were unlikely to return and instructed Zuo Xiaoduo to claim the Annihilation Sky Pagoda.
• Zuo Xiaoduo pretended his back was injured, and Zuo Xiaonian carried him to his bedroom to get him treated.
• Zuo Xiaoduo used the supposed injury to draw Zuo Xiaonian onto the bed and kiss her, but she stopped him and urged them to focus on cultivation.
• Zuo Xiaoduo retrieved the Annihilation Sky Pagoda and dripped his blood onto it to claim ownership while Zuo Xiaonian watched.

Zuo Xiaoduo bound the Annihilation Sky Pagoda to himself with his blood and cultivated inside it with Zuo Xiaonian. The Winged Sword Tigers emerged as tiny cubs, and Zuo Xiaoduo brought them to Zuo Changlu.

• Zuo Xiaoduo bled repeatedly onto the Annihilation Sky Pagoda until it bonded to him and became a pagoda tattoo on his wrist.
• Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian entered the pagoda together and discovered that only Zuo Xiaoduo could let her leave or return.
• Zuo Xiaoduo cultivated for nearly thirteen days inside the pagoda, reached twenty-one suppressions, and helped collapse half of the star soul jade training room.
• Two tiny Winged Sword Tiger cubs appeared in the pagoda, bewildering the tigers and delighting Zuo Xiaonian.
• Zuo Xiaoduo and Zuo Xiaonian carried the tiger cubs to Zuo Changlu and announced that they had hatched.