Chapter Summaries

Huo Lian told Wu Xuancang that the first Demon Hall Master might still be alive and that his defection had delayed the threat to the Three Immortal Mountains by a thousand years. After Wu Xuancang left to seek allies, Huo Lian resolved to obtain the Heavenly Evil Imperishable Art if he could not return to the Central Plains, while Huang Xiao sparred with Demon Phoenix and revealed his formidable strength.

• Huo Lian told Wu Xuancang that the first Demon Hall Master might still be alive at full strength, and that Huo Lian's defection had disrupted his plans a thousand years earlier.
• Wu Xuancang said he would visit Imperial Remnant Manor to unite allies and offered the Three Immortal Mountains' support for Huang Xiao.
• Huo Lian accepted the offer and thought that, if he could not return to the Central Plains, he would have to obtain the Heavenly Evil Imperishable Art.
• Demon Phoenix mocked Huang Xiao during their sparring, but Huang Xiao's Sound Art Qi Control greatly increased his strength and surprised the bird.
• Huang Xiao and Demon Phoenix exchanged powerful blows, while Huang Xiao tried to end the spar quickly to keep his secret operation hidden from the God-Burying Hall People.

Huang Xiao sparred with Demon Phoenix and discussed his abilities and cultivation with Huo Lian. Huo Lian said Huang Xiao could not learn Heavenly Demon Indestructible until he reached the Shattering-Void Realm, but offered him another path.

• Huang Xiao exchanged blows with Demon Phoenix, showing strength comparable to someone newly in the Enlightenment Realm, until Huo Lian stopped their sparring.
• Huo Lian questioned Huang Xiao about his match with Pang Yi, and Huang Xiao explained how Sound Art Qi Control and his Imperishable True Qi had helped him.
• Huo Lian praised Huang Xiao for creating Imperishable True Qi but said his own Heavenly Demon Indestructible was his most important cultivation method, surpassing the Supreme Demonic Art in its current state.
• Huo Lian said Huang Xiao would need the strength of the Shattering-Void Realm to cultivate Heavenly Demon Indestructible, and that ascending to the Hall Master's Seat was his only chance to reach that level in time.
• Huo Lian told Huang Xiao that although he could not yet cultivate Heavenly Demon Indestructible, he could still learn Heavenly Demon Disintegration.

Huo Lian revealed an improved, staged version of Heavenly Demon Disintegration whose immense power came with fiercer backlash, and explained that Huang Xiao’s Imperishable True Qi would determine which stages he could withstand. He offered to teach Huang Xiao the later-stage techniques, leaving Huang Xiao determined to train before competing for the Hall Master's Seat.

• Huo Lian explained that his refined Heavenly Demon Disintegration sacrificed reduced backlash for greater power, and Huang Xiao eagerly asked to learn it.
• Huo Lian said Huang Xiao’s ability to endure three uses of the original technique gave him a chance to master the second stage, which released the force of three uses at once.
• Huo Lian revealed that the method had five stages, each requiring three times the backlash capacity of the previous one, and confirmed that he had mastered the fifth stage.
• Huo Lian warned Huang Xiao that Pang Yi also had a power-boosting cultivation method, then agreed to teach him the later stages and said Huang Xiao might reach the third before the Hall Master's Seat competition.

Huo Lian showed Huang Xiao the Demon Hall’s Minghong Saber and explained that it was the saber body, while Huang Xiao’s Minghong Saber held the original saber soul. He said the two parts had been separated after the Supreme Demon Saber fought the Xuanyuan Sword, leaving both weapons gravely damaged.

• Demon Phoenix demanded to know when he would receive his Minghong Saber, and Huo Lian revealed that there were two nearly identical sabers.
• Huo Lian showed Huang Xiao his own Minghong Saber and explained that the Demon Hall wanted to retrieve it, but Pang Ji was waiting for Huo Lian to name his terms.
• Huo Lian explained that his saber was the saber body, while Huang Xiao’s saber contained the original saber soul.
• Huo Lian said the Supreme Demon Saber and the Xuanyuan Sword had fought long ago and both had been gravely damaged.

Huo Lian explained the ancient damage to the Supreme Demon Saber and why God-Burying Hall sought the craftsman Ou Jin. Huang Xiao revealed that he had met Ou Jin on Mist Mountain, but Huo Lian had missed the chance to find him.

• Huo Lian told Huang Xiao and Demon Phoenix that the Xuanyuan Sword and Minghong Saber had been damaged in a battle long before the first Hall Master.
• Huo Lian explained that the Supreme Demon Saber remained incomplete and that God-Burying Hall hoped to forge a weapon that could surpass it.
• Huo Lian said God-Burying Hall needed Ou Jin to finish its forging plans, but had been unable to locate him.
• Huang Xiao revealed that he had met Ou Jin on Mist Mountain while the craftsman searched for Thousand-Year Black Iron.
• Huo Lian concluded that Ou Jin had likely been the old man Huang Xiao met and lamented that he had let the chance to find him slip away.

Huang Xiao learned that the formation beneath the dry well could take them back to the Central Plains, a return Huo Lian hoped to make if Ou Jin united the halves of the Supreme Demon Saber. Huo Lian urged Huang Xiao to abandon thoughts of his family and pursue becoming Demon Hall Master, while Demon Phoenix grew curious about the Central Plains.

• Huo Lian said he had searched for Ou Jin because he wanted to know whether Ou Jin could unite the two halves of the Supreme Demon Saber and make a return to the Central Plains possible.
• Huo Lian rebuked Huang Xiao for thinking about his family and told him that becoming Demon Hall Master required ruthlessness; Huang Xiao quietly agreed.
• Huo Lian led Huang Xiao and Demon Phoenix through a hidden passage beneath a dry well to a stone chamber containing a formation resembling the one in the Great Song Stone Chamber.
• Huo Lian explained that the formation could take them back to the Central Plains and that Li Bai had discovered it before guiding a junior of the Liu family.
• Demon Phoenix learned that Wu Xuancang and Li Bai also came from the Central Plains and wondered whether it was a place that produced exceptional talents.

Huo Lian brought Huang Xiao to the formation that could return them to the Central Plains and revealed that the Supreme Demon Saber was needed to activate it. He then used his Minghong Saber to trigger part of the formation, forcing Huang Xiao to endure its powerful demonic might as a way to improve his strength.

• Huo Lian told Huang Xiao that Li Bai and Wu Xuancang had no intention of returning to the Central Plains, while Huang Xiao still hoped to reunite with his loved ones.
• Huo Lian explained that the formation required the true Supreme Demon Saber and that the incomplete saber could only work if combined with Huang Xiao's Minghong Saber.
• Huo Lian revealed that he had brought Huang Xiao to cultivate because the formation could improve his strength.
• Demon Phoenix warned Huang Xiao to leave the formation, but Huo Lian ordered him to stay as he inserted the Minghong Saber into the central slot.
• The formation spread black and red light across a third of its area, and Huang Xiao collapsed in pain as Huo Lian told him to learn to adapt.

Huang Xiao tried to endure the auras released by the Minghong Saber and formation, but the pressure overwhelmed his divine sense and knocked him unconscious. Huo Lian set him three days to endure two hours at the formation’s edge and explained that Huang Xiao needed to cultivate divine sense indestructible to overcome a weakness in his bid to become Demon Hall Master.

• Huang Xiao endured the Demonic Qi and pressure from the Minghong Saber and formation until he lost consciousness.
• Huo Lian withdrew the Minghong Saber, and Demon Phoenix checked Huang Xiao and found that he had only fainted.
• Huo Lian ordered Huang Xiao to endure two hours at the formation’s edge within three days or return to the Heavenly Demon Hall without his support.
• Huo Lian warned that Imperishable True Qi could not protect Huang Xiao from every threat and that he needed to surpass the other Hall Master candidates in every respect.
• Huang Xiao recognized that the formation’s pressure on his divine sense was his weakness, and Huo Lian said he needed divine sense indestructible.
• Huo Lian explained that the First Demon Hall Master’s Imperishability Chapter covered both flesh and divine sense indestructibility, while he hoped to obtain the Three Great Families’ Heavenly Evil Imperishable Art to improve his own divine sense.

Huo Lian explained how the formation drew out the auras stored in the Minghong Saber and why the Patriarch’s blade had to be purified before its true saber soul could be reunited with it. He returned Huang Xiao’s saber to Demon Phoenix, then prepared to activate the formation again for Huang Xiao’s three days of cultivation.

• Huo Lian explained that the formation rapidly released the auras stored in his Minghong Saber and that Demon Phoenix’s flames could help Huang Xiao’s saber soul recover.
• Huo Lian returned Huang Xiao’s Minghong Saber to Demon Phoenix after warning it to use the blade with restraint.
• Huo Lian told Huang Xiao that he had to erase the formed saber soul in his own blade so it would not resist the true saber soul.
• Huo Lian suppressed the resisting saber soul in his Minghong Saber and told Huang Xiao not to let compassion interfere with gaining strength.
• Huo Lian directed Huang Xiao to stand at the formation’s edge and reinserted his Minghong Saber to activate the formation for three days.

Huang Xiao repeatedly tried to endure the formation’s Demonic Might, but his divine sense became severely damaged before he could last two hours. With only one day left, he rested at the stone doorway, leaving the Demon Phoenix doubtful that he could still contend for the Hall Master’s Seat.

• Huang Xiao repeatedly entered the formation, fell unconscious, and was swept outside by Huo Lian until two days passed without him lasting two hours.
• The Demon Phoenix urged Huang Xiao to rest, then slapped him when he tried to charge back into the formation in a frenzy.
• Huang Xiao regained his clarity and realized repeated attempts would not help him meet Huo Lian’s challenge.
• Huang Xiao went to the stone doorway to compose himself, but a sudden surge of pain revealed how badly the formation had injured his divine sense.
• Huang Xiao’s pain subsided enough for him to begin regulating his breathing, while the Demon Phoenix feared he had lost his chance at the Hall Master’s Seat.

Huang Xiao searched for a way to restore his damaged Divine Sense, but neither imperishable true qi nor supreme demonic qi worked. He began using the Upper Clarity Scripture to calm his mind, and his Divine Sense started rapidly repairing itself.

• Huang Xiao tried to heal his Divine Sense with imperishable true qi, but it did not help.
• Huang Xiao guided a strand of supreme demonic qi through his meridians, but it could not reach his Divine Sense and dispersed.
• Demon Phoenix warned Huang Xiao to calm down when his aura began to fluctuate.
• Huang Xiao recalled the Upper Clarity Scripture and began reciting its mental cultivation formula.
• Huo Lian recognized the scripture and stayed silent to see what effect it would have.
• Huang Xiao entered a state of empty clarity, and his true qi circulated faster as his damaged Divine Sense rapidly repaired itself.

Huang Xiao used Heart Fire and the Upper Clarity Scripture to cultivate and strengthen his Divine Sense, then returned to the formation to test his new defenses. After holding firm at the edge, he stepped toward the center despite Demon Phoenix’s warning.

• Heart Fire began tempering Huang Xiao’s Divine Sense, and the Upper Clarity Scripture kept it from collapsing under the pain.
• Huang Xiao understood that the Longevity Chapter offered a risky method for cultivating Divine Sense and used the Upper Clarity Scripture to hide and strengthen it within his Spiritual Platform.
• After half a day, Huang Xiao emerged with recovered, stronger Divine Sense, and Demon Phoenix noticed his changed aura.
• Huang Xiao entered the formation again and found that his clear Spiritual Platform neutralized most of the Demonic Might’s assault.
• Huang Xiao moved closer to the formation’s center, and Demon Phoenix urgently told him to stop.

Huang Xiao endured the formation’s pressure for two hours, passed Huo Lian’s test, and explained how he learned the Upper Clarity Heart Scripture. Huo Lian speculated that ancient Martial World experts had visited the Central Plains and left behind scriptures and treasures.

• Huang Xiao advanced three steps into the formation, then endured its pressure for two hours until Huo Lian removed the Minghong Saber and ended the test.
• Huo Lian recognized Huang Xiao’s use of the Upper Clarity Heart Scripture and asked whether Daoxuanzi had taught it to him.
• Huang Xiao said his eldest senior brother had devised the mental cultivation method from an incomplete scripture in the Central Plains, and Huo Lian accepted his explanation while noting he might be withholding details.
• Huang Xiao asked how Martial World cultivation methods had appeared in the Central Plains, and Huo Lian said he suspected ancient experts had traveled there and left behind scriptures, treasures, and legends.
• Huang Xiao told Huo Lian that the Minghong Saber had sealed the formation and that its message described the seal as protection for the Central Plains during an ancient Martial World turmoil.
• Huo Lian praised Huang Xiao for enduring beyond the expected goal, and Huang Xiao was relieved he would not be sent back to the Heavenly Demon Hall.

Huo Lian allowed Huang Xiao to keep practicing the Upper Clarity Heart Scripture for now and arranged for him to cultivate alongside Demon Phoenix. He also revealed that the Three Immortal Mountains would support Huang Xiao, including arranging for Li Bai to teach him his swordsmanship, while Huang Xiao still hoped to obtain the Demon Daoist Canon and Ghost Daoist Canon.

• Huo Lian warned Huang Xiao that the Upper Clarity Heart Scripture did not suit someone of the Demonic Path, but allowed him to continue using it until he competed for Hall Master.
• Huang Xiao learned there had been no alternative way to endure the formation except adapting, and Huo Lian confirmed he would not have punished him for failing.
• Huo Lian said Huang Xiao and Demon Phoenix could cultivate in the area without disturbing each other.
• Huo Lian revealed that the Three Immortal Mountains had agreed to provide Huang Xiao with resources and treasures to strengthen him.
• Huo Lian offered to have Li Bai teach Huang Xiao his complete swordsmanship, and Huang Xiao accepted while hoping to obtain the Demon Daoist Canon and Ghost Daoist Canon.

Huang Xiao and Demon Phoenix stayed in Huo Lian’s formation to cultivate after Huo Lian left, and Huang Xiao told Demon Phoenix about his recent adventures. Their conversation turned to Huang Xiao’s relationships with Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli, leaving Demon Phoenix amazed and lamenting that he was still alone.

• Huo Lian offered to seek Wu Xuancang’s Taixuan Mystical Art for Huang Xiao, then left the Minghong Saber in the formation and warned Demon Phoenix to help Huang Xiao if needed.
• Demon Phoenix confirmed that Huo Lian had left, and Huang Xiao agreed to continue cultivating with him.
• Demon Phoenix asked Huang Xiao about the Heavenly Demon Hall, his match with Pang Yi, and the events in the Evil Water Region, and Huang Xiao recounted them.
• Demon Phoenix questioned Huang Xiao about Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli, and Huang Xiao eventually told him about their relationships.
• Demon Phoenix praised Huang Xiao for winning over both women and complained that he remained alone despite his own charm.

Huang Xiao worried that the girls trapped in the Evil Water Region might be in danger after Wang Jiu and two others entered, and Demon Phoenix warned him not to trust the Patriarch. Huang Xiao acknowledged the suspicions but resolved to keep his doubts hidden and return to cultivating.

• Huang Xiao lamented that he could not rescue the girls, and Demon Phoenix reassured him that the Grand Formation would eventually be broken.
• Demon Phoenix realized that Wang Jiu and two others had entered the Evil Water Region and warned that the Three Old Fellows might focus on them instead of the girls.
• Demon Phoenix suggested that the Three Old Fellows or the Patriarch might kill the girls to prevent them from becoming leverage against Huang Xiao.
• Demon Phoenix suspected that the Patriarch might have ordered Wang Jiu and the others to kill the girls, and Huang Xiao admitted that the possibility had crossed his mind.
• Demon Phoenix told Huang Xiao to hide his doubts from the Patriarch, and Huang Xiao agreed before they returned to cultivating.

Huang Xiao steadied his mind and entered the formation to cultivate, determined to become strong enough to protect Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli. Meanwhile, Huo Lian followed the fragmentary map into Mist Mountain and found Chao Hun beside a pool filled with supreme demonic qi.

• Huang Xiao accepted Demon Phoenix's warning that his patriarch might use Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli as leverage, and resolved to secure the Demon Hall Master's Seat.
• Huang Xiao settled his aura, began cultivating his Indestructible Divine Sense, and charged into the formation.
• Huo Lian sent Wu Xuancang a coded message asking him to have Li Bai teach Huang Xiao swordsmanship, then traveled into Mist Mountain.
• Huo Lian followed the fragmentary map's route through dangerous illusion formations and reached a boiling, pitch-black pool of supreme demonic qi.
• Huo Lian recognized Chao Hun, Sect Master of the Mixed Demon Sect, sitting by the pool and connected the supreme demonic qi to the map's origin.

Huo Lian secretly watched Chao Hun cultivate with the supreme demonic qi, then traveled through Mist Mountain to confront Mo Pozheng, the Tomb Clan patriarch. Mo Pozheng accused Huo Lian of planning the qi’s leakage, but Huo Lian said he had only recently learned about it.

• Huo Lian watched Chao Hun cultivate and realized he had reached the Entering Dao Realm using the supreme demonic qi, the Ten Thousand Demons Skill, and the Demon Refining Formula.
• Chao Hun lamented that he knew only the first ten levels of the Ten Thousand Demons Skill and returned to cultivate by the pool.
• Huo Lian traveled through Mist Mountain’s formations and reached a hidden valley, where Mo Pozheng identified himself as the current patriarch of the Tomb Clan.
• Huo Lian and Mo Pozheng argued about Huo Lian’s past betrayal of the Demon Hall and his promise to find someone to take his place.
• Huo Lian asked whether the supreme demonic qi had been leaking out, and Mo Pozheng accused him of planning it; Huo Lian said he had only recently found out.

Huo Lian confronted Mo Pozheng about the Tomb Clan’s past agreement with him, the weakened formation, and the Tomb Clan’s contact with Pang Ji. He urged Mo Pozheng to support his candidate in the Thousand-Year Period, leaving Mo Pozheng to question whether the Pang Family had ulterior motives.

• Mo Pozheng recalled that Huo Lian’s battle with the Tomb Clan had loosened the formation and caused Supreme Demonic Qi to escape.
• Huo Lian warned Mo Pozheng not to interfere in the contest for Demon Hall Master, then revealed that Pang Ji had visited the Tomb Clan at least five times.
• Mo Pozheng said Pang Ji’s visits concerned discussions about the selection and denied that the Tomb Clan intended to support the Pang Family.
• Huo Lian asked the Tomb Clan to back his candidate, but Mo Pozheng refused to break its ancestral rules.
• Huo Lian questioned the loyalty of both families and threatened to disregard his old agreement, prompting Mo Pozheng to ask whether the Pang Family harbored ulterior motives.

Huo Lian told Mo Pozheng that the Pang Family had taken control of the Demon Hall and accused the Tomb Clan of deliberately allowing the supreme demonic qi to leak so they could escape their confinement. Mo Pozheng admitted that the Tomb Clan had distributed maps leading outsiders to the leak, while insisting they remained loyal to the Demon Hall.

• Huo Lian described how the Pang Family, under Pang Ji, had come to dominate the Demon Hall, and Mo Pozheng was shaken by the news.
• Huo Lian argued that the Tomb Clan had not repaired the formation because they wanted the supreme demonic qi to drain and free them from their confinement.
• Huo Lian revealed that he had seen a divine-beast-hide map marking the leak and accused the Tomb Clan of sending maps out to attract outsiders who would worsen it.
• Huo Lian offered to help accelerate the leak and free some Tomb Clan experts so they could investigate the Demon Hall before the Thousand-Year Period.
• Mo Pozheng admitted that the Tomb Clan had sent out several maps in hopes of escaping, but said they still remained loyal to the Demon Hall.