Chapter Summaries

Perfected Zhe Hui and the other cultivators failed to seriously injure Black Reef Demon King and scattered to escape as more demons approached. Black Reef Demon King killed Zhe Hui and pursued another cultivator, while Zhou Xun continued tempering his body on Heaven Talisman Island after receiving the formation control token.

• Perfected Zhe Hui led the group in attacking Black Reef Demon King, but their combined strike only lightly wounded him.
• As Black Reef Demon King summoned thirteen water dragons and the other demons closed in, Perfected Zhe Hui ordered the cultivators to scatter and flee while he stayed behind.
• Perfected Zhe Hui feigned interest in surrendering, then attacked Black Reef Demon King with golden scissors and tried to escape using a talisman.
• Black Reef Demon King struck Perfected Zhe Hui with spatially traveling black light and his tail, then killed him with a claw and swallowed his corpse.
• Black Reef Demon King pursued one of the fleeing Core Formation cultivators.
• After Thousand Talisman True Man gave Zhou Xun the formation control token and tasked Luo Yuancheng with guarding Heaven Talisman Island, Zhou Xun returned to cultivating the Divine Thunder Body Tempering Method.

Zhou Xun discovered that a Beast Tide was approaching Heaven Talisman Island and took command of the sect’s defenses. After bringing two fleeing cultivators inside the formation, he faced the arrival of the Black Dragon-Serpent and its demon-beast horde.

• Zhou Xun finished cultivating and spotted two cultivators fleeing toward Heaven Talisman Island ahead of a Beast Tide led by a Black Dragon-Serpent.
• Thousand Talisman True Man traveled back with seven Core Formation cultivators and a large force, relying on the island’s defenses to hold until they arrived.
• Luo Yuancheng activated Heaven Talisman Island’s Mountain Protection Grand Formation as the Heaven-Reaching Drum sounded the alarm.
• Zhou Xun organized the sect’s disciples and False Core Elders into defensive teams, then appointed Fengheng True Man to control the formation.
• Zhou Xun met Perfected Hua Du and the middle-aged cultivator in yellow, brought them inside the formation, and faced the arriving Black Reef Demon King and its horde.

Zhou Xun faced the Beast Tide surrounding Heaven Talisman Island after learning that the Black Flood Dragon had defeated a group of Core Formation cultivators. Feng Zhong lost his first clash with the Black Flood Dragon, so Zhou Xun sent out his Bloodfiend Spawn and joined the battle himself.

• Zhou Xun told Perfected Hua Du and the middle-aged man in yellow that Hu Daoquan had died and they were the only other Core Formation cultivators on Heaven Talisman Island.
• The Beast Tide encircled the island, and Perfected Hua Du explained how the Black Flood Dragon had overcome their team's attacks.
• Fú Yóu tried to persuade the island's cultivators to surrender, but Zhou Xun challenged Black Reef Demon King and sent Feng Zhong to fight him.
• Black Reef Demon King defeated Feng Zhong in one clash, and Zhou Xun recalled the injured Earth Origin Beast.
• Zhou Xun released five Bloodfiend Spawn and led Perfected Hua Du and the middle-aged man in yellow into battle against the Great Demons.
• Zhou Xun unleashed thirty-six Lightning Seeds to surround the Black Flood Dragon.

Zhou Xun broke Black Reef Demon King's defenses and nearly killed him, but the South Abyss Demon Emperor's soul-split intervened and enabled Black Reef to escape. With the Beast Tide's leader defeated, the Human Race celebrated while Fú Yóu Demon King tried to distance himself from the battle.

• Zhou Xun used tribulation lightning to shatter Black Reef Demon King's black radiance, then struck his soul with yin lightning and stabbed his head with the Edge of Utmost Sharpness.
• The South Abyss Demon Emperor's soul-split emerged from Black Reef Demon King's head and warned Zhou Xun to withdraw.
• Zhou Xun dismissed the soul-split as no threat and gave his name as Wang Lin before attacking it with lightning.
• The South Abyss Demon Emperor's soul-split enveloped Black Reef Demon King in black light, allowing him to teleport away from the lightning cage.
• Perfected Hua Du and the Heaven Talisman Sect disciples celebrated the Human Race's victory, while Fú Yóu Demon King regretted provoking Zhou Xun and moved his fight farther away.

Zhou Xun drove off the Beast Tide at Heaven Talisman Island and hunted down its fleeing Great Demons. After witnessing his strength, Quanji True Man and the returning cultivators welcomed him warmly, and the survivors gathered for a victory banquet.

• The Great Demons fled after Zhou Xun defeated their leaders, and he killed the bird-headed, fish-bodied demon as he pursued them.
• The demonic beasts scattered, allowing Heaven Talisman Sect disciples to chase them and collect resources.
• Seven tower ships arrived, and Quanji True Man and the others watched Zhou Xun kill a Great Demon with one strike.
• Cao Feiyu introduced Zhou Xun to the returning cultivators, who praised his strength and greeted him respectfully.
• Zhou Xun learned that Quanji True Man's group had returned to support Heaven Talisman Island and that Perfected Hua Du was safe there.
• After two days of pursuit, the disciples returned to the island, where the cultivators held a victory banquet.

Zhou Xun turned down the Seatown Edict and helped Cao Feiyu take the position, then returned to secluded cultivation. The Black Reef Demon King vowed to avenge his defeat, and five years later Zhou Xun emerged to review reports of events in the South Sea.

• Zhou Xun declined the Seatown Edict, and Perfected Hua Du backed his recommendation of Cao Feiyu for the position.
• Cao Feiyu took over as Edict Master while the gray-haired Elder accepted the decision after learning Perfected Hua Du was Monarch Qian Chuan's grandson and Monarch Xi Zheng's son.
• After the banquet, Zhou Xun returned to cultivation as Perfected Hua Du and the other cultivators departed.
• The Black Reef Demon King reported his defeat to the South Abyss Demon Emperor and asked to face Wang Lin again after advancing to the Demon Emperor realm.
• The South Abyss Demon Emperor agreed to let the Black Reef Demon King seek revenge personally.
• Five years later, Zhou Xun emerged from cultivation, nearly two-thirds of the way to the peak of Mid-Stage Core Formation, and examined Jade Slips recording South Sea events.

Zhou Xun investigated whether True Lord Tian Ci was his old acquaintance, True Person Tian Ci, and tasked Luo Yuancheng with gathering information. After confirming Tian Ci’s identity from a Jade Slip, Zhou Xun wondered whether True Person Iron Mountain had also come to the Southern Sea.

• Zhou Xun read about the Southern Sea’s conflicts and noticed True Lord Tian Ci’s name, suspecting he was the True Person Tian Ci he had sent to the Central Continent.
• Zhou Xun summoned Luo Yuancheng and asked him to investigate True Lord Tian Ci’s background.
• Luo Yuancheng agreed to gather information, and Zhou Xun returned to seclusion while he waited.
• Zhou Xun refined the Thunderclap Wings for a further three days and judged that one final refinement would complete them.
• Six months later, Luo Yuancheng brought Zhou Xun a Jade Slip containing detailed intelligence on True Lord Tian Ci.
• Zhou Xun recognized Tian Ci as his old acquaintance, True Person Tian Ci, and wondered whether True Person Iron Mountain was also in the Southern Sea.

Zhou Xun sent Luo Yuancheng to deliver a letter to True Lord Tian Ci, then took his Mystic Jade Lotus Root to a deserted island to help it advance. After enduring nine tribulation bolts, he successfully raised the spirit plant to Tier 5 and fled before a golden-robed man arrived.

• Zhou Xun asked Luo Yuancheng to deliver a Jade Slip to True Lord Tian Ci in Seatown Immortal City and gave him a Tier 3 Lower Grade escape talisman.
• Zhou Xun moved to an uninhabited island to advance his Mystic Jade Lotus Root, using the essence of a Tier 4 Lower Grade Purple Monkey Flower.
• The Mystic Jade Lotus Root's advancement summoned a tribulation, and Zhou Xun used his Lightning Pool to withstand nine bolts and absorb some of their lightning.
• The Mystic Jade Lotus Root reached Tier 5, and Zhou Xun drew it into his body, destroyed traces of the event, and fled the island.
• A golden-robed man arrived at the island and frowned at the scattered remains.

Zhou Xun extracted the essence from a fifth-tier Mystic Jade Lotus Root and advanced to Mid-Stage Core Formation. He tested his spiritual root sensitivity and began measuring his divine sense while Xing Huaian, Yuan Pan'er, and the others waited outside his cave residence.

• A man failed to seize the fifth-tier Mystic Jade Lotus Root after his Diviner's Compass triggered backlash, while Zhou Xun traveled to the Heavenly Mystery Secret Realm and claimed the herb.
• Zhou Xun extracted the Mystic Jade Lotus Root's essence and absorbed it in his Forgetful River Lake Cave Residence.
• Zhou Xun gathered Spiritual Qi and used the essence to break through to Mid-Stage Core Formation at the age of one hundred and eighteen.
• Zhou Xun tested his spiritual root sensitivity and found it had risen by three points to eighty-six.
• Zhou Xun began extending his divine sense as Xing Huaian, Yuan Pan'er, and others waited outside his cave residence.

After breaking through, Zhou Xun tested his divine sense and mana, finding both comparable to those of a Peak Core Formation cultivator, then reunited with his former companions. Meanwhile, Luo Yuancheng reached Seatown Immortal City and used his connection to Zhou Xun to arrange a meeting with True Lord Tian Ci.

• Zhou Xun measured his divine sense at eleven thousand zhang and tested his mana by piercing a Tier 3 Top Grade spirit iron, confirming both had reached Peak Core Formation strength.
• Zhou Xun met Xing Huaian, Yuan Pan'er, and Song Yiqing, then shared spirit wine and discussed the Dao with them.
• Luo Yuancheng reached Seatown Immortal City after a difficult four-month journey and sought help from Perfected Hua Du to meet True Lord Tian Ci.
• Perfected Hua Du brought Luo Yuancheng to True Lord Tian Ci's cave abode, where True Person Iron Mountain played Luo Yuancheng's message.
• True Lord Tian Ci recognized the reference to an old friend from Heaven Han City thirty years earlier.

Zhou Xun reunited with True Lord Tian Ci and True Person Iron Mountain at Heaven Talisman Island, where he welcomed them under his true identity and hosted them with Spirit Mist Tea. As they caught up, Tian Ci began recounting how he and Iron Mountain had traveled from the Eastern Wasteland and how he entered the Nascent Soul Realm.

• Luo Yuancheng delivered Zhou Xun’s letter to True Lord Tian Ci, inviting him to Heaven Talisman Island.
• A month later, True Lord Tian Ci, True Person Iron Mountain, and Luo Yuancheng arrived by flying boat, and Zhou Xun greeted Tian Ci and Iron Mountain in his original appearance.
• Zhou Xun explained that he used the assumed name Wang Lin in the Central Continent and asked Luo Yuancheng to invite his Revered Teacher with the Ocean Taming Cups.
• Zhou Xun hosted Tian Ci and Iron Mountain in his cave abode with Tier 3 Mid-Grade Spirit Mist Tea brewed using water from beneath Forgetful River Lake.
• Tian Ci and Iron Mountain thanked Zhou Xun for helping them attain the Dao, and Tian Ci described their journey to the Chaotic Domain and his breakthrough into the Nascent Soul Realm.
• When Zhou Xun asked where Tian Ci had obtained his Nascent Soul Pill, Tian Ci shook his head.

Zhou Xun learned how True Lord Tian Ci and True Person Iron Mountain had survived and advanced, then heard that the coming war could let cultivators earn military merit for valuable resources. After asking True Lord Tian Ci to help find his final Nascent Soul Pill ingredient, Zhou Xun sent out his intelligence network and began refining pills with a demon beast core.

• True Lord Tian Ci told Zhou Xun that he had formed his Nascent Soul without a Nascent Soul Pill, while True Person Iron Mountain credited Brother Ji’s longevity pill with giving him time to reach Peak Core Formation.
• True Lord Tian Ci gave Zhou Xun two Tier 3 High-Grade demon beast cores and explained that the expanding war could bring Nascent Soul Pills and other resources to cultivators who earned military merit.
• Zhou Xun revealed that he had three of the four primary Nascent Soul Pill ingredients, and True Lord Tian Ci promised to help him find Nine-Veined Violet Spirit Ginseng.
• After spending three months on Heaven Talisman Island, True Lord Tian Ci and the other man returned to Seatown Immortal City, and Zhou Xun told Luo Yuancheng to investigate high-tier spiritual herbs and Nascent Soul items.
• Zhou Xun entered seclusion and opened one of the demon beast cores, an ice-element inner core, preparing to refine Ice Essence Pills.

Zhou Xun completed the final refinement of his Thunderclap Wings after three years of cultivation and used them to test his greatly increased speed. He left confident that, with the wings empowered by lightning, he could escape even a Nascent Soul Cultivator.

• Zhou Xun refined six Ice Essence Pills to the limit with more than thirty Tier 2 Spirit Herbs, then prepared pills from another wood-attribute inner core for his main body.
• After three years, Zhou Xun had advanced beyond two-thirds of the way through the Mid-Stage Core Formation and found his Thunderclap Wings ready for their ninth and final refinement.
• Zhou Xun completed the Thunderclap Wings’ refinement, summoned them onto his back, and flew a thousand zhang with each flap.
• Zhou Xun summoned Feng Chong and challenged the Earth Origin Beast to race one hundred thousand li westward.
• Zhou Xun quickly left Feng Chong behind, then channeled lightning power into his wings to increase their speed by another thirty percent.
• Zhou Xun concluded that his new escape speed could let him flee safely from a Nascent Soul Cultivator.

Zhou Xun and Feng Zhong discovered recent wind-blade marks on a remote island and encountered the powerful Demon Emperor Wind Rain Marquis. After bringing Zhou Xun to his underwater estate, Wind Rain Marquis was astonished by Zhou Xun’s transcendent-grade Ice Essence Pill and invited him to associate as an equal.

• Feng Zhong examined the island’s wind-blade marks and warned Zhou Xun that a fourth-realm wind-attributed Demon Emperor might be nearby.
• Wind Rain Marquis appeared and invited Zhou Xun and Feng Zhong to his underwater cave abode, the Wind Marquis Estate.
• Zhou Xun praised the estate’s elegant furnishings, and Wind Rain Marquis shared his interest in human culture and crafts, including alchemy.
• Zhou Xun showed Wind Rain Marquis an Ice Essence Pill he had refined, and Wind Rain Marquis recognized it as transcendent-grade.
• Wind Rain Marquis praised Zhou Xun’s alchemy and asked him to call him Brother Feng or Wind Rain Marquis.

Zhou Xun befriended Wind Feather Marquis, a powerful demon emperor, over wine and learned of cultivation worlds beyond Central Continent. He left with spirit herbs and thunder-attributed demon cores, resolving to advance his cultivation as quickly as possible.

• Zhou Xun shared Thousand Talisman Spirit Wine with Wind Feather Marquis, and they spent a month discussing cultivation arts and their experiences.
• Wind Feather Marquis revealed that his true form was a peak Tier 4 Middle-Grade Wind Feather Eagle and told Zhou Xun about the vast Great Abyss, where Fifth Realm cultivators lived.
• Wind Feather Marquis asked for Zhou Xun's supreme-grade Ice Essence Pill, and Zhou Xun gave it to him as a gift.
• At Zhou Xun's request, Wind Feather Marquis gave him two Tier 4 Grade 2 spirit herbs and gifted him two Tier 3 High-Grade thunder-attributed demon beast inner cores.
• After leaving Wind Feather Marquis's underwater cave, Zhou Xun reflected on the danger of stronger cultivators and resolved to reach Peak Core Formation as soon as possible.

After twenty years in seclusion, Zhou Xun reached Late-Stage Core Formation and learned that the Southern Sea conflict had erupted into a devastating battle between humans and demons. He discovered that his old acquaintance True Lord Tian Ci had distinguished himself in the fighting, while the wider conflict remained unresolved.

• Zhou Xun returned to Heaven Talisman Island and urged Thousand Talisman True Man to focus on cultivation.
• Zhou Xun refined the Blood Jade Coral and made twelve Lightning Essence Pills before entering seclusion.
• During Zhou Xun's seclusion, Song Yiqing's Crimson Fire Luan advanced to Tier 3, and Zhou Xun raised his wood spiritual root aptitude to eighty-eight points.
• After twenty years, Zhou Xun emerged at Late-Stage Core Formation and asked Luo Yuancheng for news about the Cultivation World.
• Luo Yuancheng reported that the Human Race and Demon Race had fought a costly battle near Seatown Immortal City, where True Lord Tian Ci slew the Overturning Sea Whale Emperor and escaped the South Abyss Demon Emperor unharmed.

After learning that Ironside True Lord guarded Ringless Island, Zhou Xun traveled there to meet him and pursue Nascent Soul resources. Meanwhile, a spy overheard True Person Mu Ji describe ruins containing rare spiritual materials, and Zhou Xun arrived at Ringless Island as the chapter ended with his hosts reporting his visit.

• Luo Yuancheng told Zhou Xun that Ironside True Lord guarded Ringless Island and that Nascent Soul materials could be earned through battle merit.
• Zhou Xun decided to visit Ringless Island and flew there on the Earth Origin Beast with Old Feng.
• A white-haired Elder told Old Taoist Hu about ruins containing the Void Tribulation Flower, Nine-Veined Violet Spirit Ginseng, and Dragon Blood Fruit, while a black-clad man overheard them.
• Xu Ziling and Lan Yanping recognized Zhou Xun as Wang Lin and escorted him into Ringless Island.
• Xu Ziling brought Zhou Xun to a guest pavilion and went to report his arrival to Ironside True Lord.

After leaving seclusion as a late-stage Core Formation cultivator, Zhou Xun reunited with Ironside True Lord and learned that True Lord Tian Ci had sent him a Blood Flame Fruit. A message about the Nine-Veined Violet Spirit Ginseng drew Zhou Xun toward an ancient ruin, where he rescued Li Daniu and was offered repayment.

• Zhou Xun visited Ironside True Lord, who praised his cultivation and explained that True Lord Tian Ci had helped him form his Nascent Soul with a Nascent Soul Pill.
• Ironside True Lord gave Zhou Xun a Tier 4 Grade 2 Blood Flame Fruit that True Lord Tian Ci had exchanged for him.
• Luo Yuancheng brought Zhou Xun news of an ancient ruin in Sea Clan territory and gave him a Jade Slip marking its location, where the Nine-Veined Violet Spirit Ginseng might be found.
• Zhou Xun hurried toward the ruin using his Thunderclap Wings and paused to recover before continuing his journey.
• Zhou Xun rescued Li Daniu from a Tier 3 Grade 1 Fish Demon, and Li Daniu earnestly offered to repay the favor.

Zhou Xun reached the ruin with Li Daniu and joined the Four Friends of Jun Mountain, whose array formation expert Wen Yue helped him study the Tier 4 formation guarding it. The next morning, Zhou Xun and Wen Yue went to inspect the ruin, where they found a gathering of powerful cultivators drawn by its Nascent Soul Material.

• Zhou Xun agreed to let Li Daniu guide him to the ruin, where Li Daniu’s sworn siblings welcomed him after hearing he had saved their fourth brother.
• Yuan Jinshan invited Zhou Xun to their camp and mentioned that Wen Yue, a Tier 3 Mid-Grade Array Formation Master, might help explore the ruin.
• Zhou Xun and Wen Yue discussed the Tier 4 Lower Grade formation protecting the ruin late into the night and agreed to inspect it together the next day.
• Yuan Jinkai grew jealous of Zhou Xun’s rapport with Wen Yue and tried to persuade Yuan Jinshan that Zhou Xun should not remain with them, but Yuan Jinshan refused.
• Zhou Xun and Wen Yue arrived at the island the next morning and saw many Core Formation cultivators gathered, including at least nine Late-Stage cultivators.

Zhou Xun discovered that the island’s shifting formation bases suggested the supposed ruin was a Sea Clan trap and warned Yuan Jinshan’s group to leave. Yuan Jinshan hesitated over abandoning the potential treasures, while Yuan Jinkai accused Zhou Xun of lying; Zhou Xun refused to leave because the place held opportunities important to him.

• Zhou Xun demonstrated that the island’s formation absorbed attacks, then spotted a newly refined, shifting formation base inside it.
• Zhou Xun suspected the site was a Sea Clan trap, and Wen Yue hurried with him to warn Yuan Jinshan’s group.
• Yuan Jinkai questioned the warning and accused Zhou Xun of staging the Fish Demon encounter, while Yuan Jinshan and Li Daniu defended Zhou Xun.
• Zhou Xun admitted he would stay because the site’s opportunities were important to him, and Yuan Jinkai took this as proof that Zhou Xun wanted to drive the group away from the treasures.
• Zhou Xun said he had given his sincere warning, and Yuan Jinshan thanked him for it.