Chapter Summaries

Yu Sheng and Shi Guang used a staged hunt to lure a cautious sixth-level falcon demon beast into attacking, then killed it together. The falcon died bewildered by the humans’ alliance with a disguised demon beast.

• Yu Sheng stored the demon beast corpses and asked Shi Guang where they could find sixth-level beasts.
• Shi Guang led Yu Sheng to a bamboo grove, where they staged a chase and made her appear gravely injured.
• A sixth-level falcon watched the scene, grew tempted by Shi Guang’s blood energy, and charged in to claim her.
• Yu Sheng struck the falcon from behind while Shi Guang attacked from the front, and they severely injured it.
• Yu Sheng hit the falcon again with a hammer, killing it before it could understand their deception.

Yu Sheng and Shi Guang used disguises and staged injuries to lure Demon Beasts, sparking rumors and a craze for white apes. After the beasts learned to recognize and avoid them, Yu Sheng and Shi Guang found themselves with no targets left on the Demon Plain.

• Yu Sheng and Shi Guang repeatedly pretended to be gravely injured and trapped Demon Beasts, while humans mistook Yu Sheng for a tamed white ape and drove up white ape prices.
• Yuan Zhong bought a dyed yellow ape, discovered the scam, and had the merchant arrested after announcing that his grandfather was Yuan Qingshan.
• Demon Beasts spread warnings about the white ape and fled whenever they saw Yu Sheng, so he changed into a yellow ape disguise and resumed hunting with Shi Guang.
• The Demon Beasts began avoiding Shi Guang regardless of Yu Sheng’s disguise, forcing Shi Guang to hide in a skin while Yu Sheng posed as a human.
• After a month of hunting and thwarting the Demon Beasts’ traps, Yu Sheng and Shi Guang found that the remaining beasts fled from them, while the seventh-level Demon Beasts stayed out of the conflict.

Yu Sheng and Shi Guang left the Demon Plain for Barbarian City, but turned back to kill more demon beasts after the beasts gathered to celebrate their departure. Upon reaching the city, Yu Sheng learned it held many high-rank demons and wondered whether slaughtering them could bring out his fourth awakening object.

• Shi Guang told Yu Sheng that Barbarian City was a chaotic trading hub where humans could enter, though leaving alive depended on their strength.
• Yu Sheng and Shi Guang traveled east across the Demon Plain, where hunting squads greeted them from afar.
• After the demon beasts gathered and roared in relief at their departure, Yu Sheng and Shi Guang turned back and killed dozens of lower-level beasts.
• Yu Sheng and Shi Guang continued toward Barbarian City, killing occasional demons along the way and storing their carcasses in the Mountains and Rivers Bottle.
• Shi Guang told Yu Sheng that Barbarian City held mostly level-five and level-six demon beasts, with occasional demon kings, and Yu Sheng regretted that he could not slaughter the whole city.

Yu Sheng entered Barbarian City with Shi Guang after convincing its Fire Lion gatekeeper that his ten sixth-level Demon Crystals qualified him to enter. Inside, the demons feared him, while the city’s growing unrest and impending reforms left the Fire Lion considering whether to leave.

• Shi Guang explained Barbarian City’s entry requirements and its rules for transactions, while Yu Sheng hung Demon Crystals around his neck as proof of funds.
• The Fire Lion gatekeeper rejected Yu Sheng’s fifth-level Demon Crystals, so Yu Sheng replaced them with ten sixth-level crystals.
• The Fire Lion let Yu Sheng pass and falsely claimed that killing Fire Lion Clan members at the gate was forbidden; Shi Guang told Yu Sheng that was not a real rule.
• After Yu Sheng entered, the Fire Lion feared he might be a human at the seventh awakening and decided to leave once it had earned its wages because Barbarian City was becoming unstable.
• As Yu Sheng and Shi Guang walked through the city, nearby Demon Beasts backed away from Yu Sheng in fear, and he asked Shi Guang why they were afraid.

Yu Sheng and Shi Guang entered Barbarian City, where the Demon Beasts watched them with hostility. Meanwhile, the Azure Birds and Cheetahs argued over their orders and agreed to report to their superiors before deciding what to do next.

• Yu Sheng and Shi Guang walked into Barbarian City, making nearby Demon Beasts retreat from them.
• The Demon Beasts discussed the Human Race’s expansion and warned that further encroachment would provoke a counterattack.
• Azure Bird (One) and Cheetah (One) taunted each other over War God Ji Hong’s involvement in Barbarian City.
• Azure Bird (Three) said they were all pawns expected to turn on one another, but Cheetah (One) rejected the idea that they could be allies and left with the other Cheetahs.
• The Azure Birds judged the Cheetahs dangerous and decided to request instructions and report what they had observed in Barbarian City.

Azure Bird (One), Azure Bird (Two), and Azure Bird (Three) investigated who secretly controlled Barbarian City and assessed the surrounding demon factions. They planned to report the Great Rift Valley’s possible involvement to their Master and proceed with their task, reasoning that the hidden power would not dare kill them outright.

• Azure Bird (One) sent a tiny bird carrying a message and said they would wait for instructions from their Master.
• Azure Bird (Two) reviewed the tribes around Barbarian City and ruled out the Thousand-Li Demon Plain, the Ten Thousand Demon Forest, and Hundred Desolate Mountain as the force controlling it.
• Azure Bird (Two) explained that many Great Rift Valley tribes could be behind Barbarian City, though Golden Toad and Moon Wolf were unlikely candidates.
• Azure Bird (One) sent another bird to report the Great Rift Valley information to their Master.
• Azure Bird (Three) said uncovering the hidden controller was not part of their task and argued that their actions would force that power to reveal itself.
• Azure Bird (One) reasoned that the hidden power would not risk killing them because they represented Skyvault Ravine and War God Ji Hong.

Azure Bird (One) and Cheetah (One) used their authority as envoys to provoke Barbarian City and force its inhabitants to carry out sweeping construction projects. Yu Sheng and Shi Guang watched from the crowd, while the envoys tried to draw out the unseen power behind the city.

• Azure Bird (One) sent Azure Bird (Two) and Azure Bird (Three) into hiding to recruit followers while it drew attention to itself.
• Cheetah (One) and Azure Bird (One) appeared in public, boasting about their backing and competing over whose platform would be taller.
• Yu Sheng and Shi Guang discussed asking the envoys why they had come, deciding to wait until fewer people were around.
• Azure Bird (One) suspected the unseen power behind Barbarian City was watching and used its provocations to force it to act or risk losing the city.
• Demon Beasts spent a day hauling stones and building two rough platforms as the envoys issued orders to construct more buildings, pave roads, clear weeds, and dig toilets.
• The envoys invoked Skyvault Ravine, the War God, and the Demon Lord to brand anyone who resisted a rebel, leaving Barbarian City's inhabitants complaining.

Barbarian City prepared an auction featuring treasures and residence qualifications from Skyvault Ravine, drawing Demon Beasts back despite strict entry checks. As rival schemes for the Demon Lord’s qualifications stirred brief violence, Azure Bird and Cheetah continued their hostile standoff.

• Many Demon Beasts fled Barbarian City, but an auction announcement soon drew them back with the promise of Skyvault Ravine treasures and a residence qualification.
• Heavenly Star Leopard, Earthfire Wolf, and Golden Shuttle Eagle guarded the gates, enforcing asset and strength requirements for entry to Ji Hong’s auction.
• The Demon Lord offered personal belongings and three Skyvault Ravine qualifications, including two to be awarded by a vote among Barbarian City’s Demon Beasts.
• Two disguised humans took advantage of the ensuing disorder to kill sixth-level Demon Beasts, but the fighting ended after two days when the rivals realized they needed others’ support.
• Azure Bird and Cheetah traded insults from raised platforms and remained poised to fight.

Yu Sheng and Shi Guang discussed robbing the goods gathered for an auction in Barbarian City, where Yu Sheng’s Demon Crystal necklace kept hostile Demon Beasts at a distance. They agreed to act before the auction and began planning how to divide the risk and supplies.

• Yu Sheng wore a Demon Crystal necklace and then added a seventh-level Demon King's Demon Core, forcing nearby Demon Beasts to keep their distance.
• Shi Guang told Yu Sheng that Barbarian City was holding an auction of items from Skyvault Ravine, including Demon Plants that could help them cultivate faster.
• Yu Sheng proposed robbing the auction goods before the auction, and Shi Guang agreed.
• Yu Sheng warned that powerful Demon Beasts in the city could cause trouble if they joined forces and suggested Shi Guang wait outside to help him escape.
• Shi Guang refused to stay behind, saying she would take forty percent of the supplies and therefore had to do forty percent of the work.

Yu Sheng cultivated in Barbarian City while waiting for Shi Guang to find the auction goods, then was pulled into a building by Cheetah, who revealed his undercover identity as the Mountain-Guarding Old Man. Cheetah warned Yu Sheng not to steal his supplies, while Yu Sheng questioned whether the senior had become too immersed in his role.

• Shi Guang agreed to search Barbarian City for the auction goods and told Yu Sheng to meet her that night.
• Yu Sheng cultivated through his Demon Crystal while nearby Demon Beasts mistook his focus for a sinister fascination and fled from him.
• The Mountain-Guarding Old Man dragged Yu Sheng into a building and said he would keep him safe at the foot of the mountain.
• Yu Sheng said he had come to make money, and the Mountain-Guarding Old Man warned him not to steal his supplies.
• The Mountain-Guarding Old Man explained how he had infiltrated the Cheetah Clan over three years and hoped to earn Lady Seven-Tailed Fox's favor.
• Yu Sheng asked whether the Mountain-Guarding Old Man was at the Eighth Awakening and wondered if he had become too deep in character.

Yu Sheng questioned the Mountain-Guarding Old Man’s undercover strategy and learned that his mission to undermine Ji Hong was driven by a personal vendetta as well as a plan to keep Skyvault Ravine in turmoil. The old man insisted he remained undiscovered, while Yu Sheng pointed out that his suspicions about Seven-Tailed Fox made his loyalties and plans seem inconsistent.

• Cheetah warned Yu Sheng to address Seven-Tailed Fox respectfully in the Demon Domain, then transformed into a small gray snake to hide.
• The Mountain-Guarding Old Man explained that Seven-Tailed Fox had ordered him to strike at Ji Hong and described how disrupting Ji Hong could keep Skyvault Ravine unstable.
• Yu Sheng observed that the old man’s campaign against Ji Hong came from personal hostility, and the old man admitted that Ji Hong had killed people from his generation.
• The Mountain-Guarding Old Man outlined his plan to exploit the ensuing chaos, gain a higher-ranking identity, and eventually help bring down the Demon Domain from within.
• The old man claimed Seven-Tailed Fox secretly controlled two Level Eight Demon Lords and might already be powerful enough to become Demon Lord.
• Yu Sheng questioned why the old man would not ally with Ji Hong against the Demon Lord, suggesting he could infiltrate Ji Hong’s side by disguising himself as an Azure Bird.

Yu Sheng asked the Mountain-Guarding Old Man to help him rob the Demon Lord’s auction, but the Old Man refused to abandon his undercover position. At Peach Blossom Pool, Old White Ape discussed Barbarian City’s purpose and suggested the Human Race might be controlling it from the shadows, much like Yu Mo operates.

• Yu Sheng admitted he could not hide his feelings from Ji Hong, and the Mountain-Guarding Old Man agreed that helping Ji Hong was best for the Human Race.
• Yu Sheng learned the Demon Lord’s auction was in the building and that the Mountain-Guarding Old Man was guarding it, then asked him to start over undercover so they could rob it.
• The Mountain-Guarding Old Man refused, threatening to expose Yu Sheng if he tried to rob the place in public, and Yu Sheng dropped the matter to think.
• At Peach Blossom Pool, Ji Hong explained that Barbarian City needed safe trade and a firm ban on killing, while Old White Ape said their real aim was to make the political game more complicated.
• Old White Ape argued that the Great Rift Valley was unlikely to control Barbarian City and pointed to the Human Race as a possible power behind it, comparing its hidden methods to Yu Mo’s.

Old White Ape explained his plan to enlist Yu Mo and the Human Race in a covert alliance against Eight-Tailed Fox, using Skyvault Ravine treasures and entry quotas as bait. Ji Hong questioned the risks, while Old White Ape wondered how Eight-Tailed Fox planned to cause chaos in Barbarian City.

• Old White Ape told Ji Hong that Yu Mo would enter the contest over Barbarian City in exchange for Skyvault Ravine treasures and an entry quota.
• Old White Ape proposed that the Human Race send an undercover agent to gather intelligence about Skyvault Ravine while helping him oppose Eight-Tailed Fox.
• Ji Hong asked whether Eight-Tailed Fox could outbid Old White Ape and block his plan, but Old White Ape argued that their goals and relationships with the Human Race differed.
• Old White Ape said Eight-Tailed Fox's city-entry slots had been reported to the Demon Gods, while his own had not.
• Old White Ape wondered whether Eight-Tailed Fox wanted chaos or peace in Barbarian City and what it would use to cause chaos beyond the three cheetahs.

Eight-Tailed Fox revealed that its plan was to keep Ji Hong and Old White Ape occupied in Barbarian City while events elsewhere were settled, and left Seven-Tailed Fox in charge of the city. After reading reports about Barbarian City, Yu Mo inferred that Yu Sheng was there and decided the opportunity was worth pursuing.

• Ji Hong taunted Old White Ape about failing to uncover Eight-Tailed Fox's hidden plan, prompting Old White Ape to promise he would find it within one day.
• Eight-Tailed Fox told Seven-Tailed Fox that the turmoil and auction in Barbarian City would keep its rivals distracted, then ordered its younger brother to manage affairs there.
• Seven-Tailed Fox accepted the assignment and left, while Eight-Tailed Fox warned that greed could bring its younger brother eternal darkness.
• Yu Mo read a detailed report about Barbarian City and suspected Old White Ape was trying to recruit him against Eight-Tailed Fox, though the offer seemed too small.
• Yu Mo noticed reports of missing demon beasts and two humans carrying sixth-level Demon Crystals, then called to ask whether Yu Sheng had appeared in Human Race territory.
• After learning Yu Sheng had not appeared there, Yu Mo concluded that Yu Sheng was likely in Barbarian City and decided to use him as his piece in the conflict.

Yu Mo recruited another pawn while Yu Sheng persuaded the Mountain-Guarding Old Man to let him steal the supplies at Skyvault Ravine. Later, Shi Guang gave Yu Sheng six suspicious locations, and they decided to question Azure Bird and Cheetah.

• Yu Mo sent a message to a contact, then ignored the person's repeated calls for half an hour.
• Yu Sheng asked to take the supplies, and the Mountain-Guarding Old Man agreed to split them fifty-fifty and continue working undercover.
• Yu Sheng left without explaining why he planned to return later, leaving the Mountain-Guarding Old Man puzzled by his two murmured replies.
• Yu Sheng watched Azure Bird and Cheetah argue until Shi Guang arrived with a map marking six suspicious buildings.
• Yu Sheng suggested asking someone to identify the correct building, and Shi Guang agreed to handle Cheetah.

Yu Sheng and Shi Guang attacked and captured Skyvault Ravine’s Azure Bird envoy and Cheetah in coordinated ambushes. After taking twice as long as Yu Sheng, Shi Guang judged her performance insufficient, and the two turned to face the watching Demon Beasts.

• Yu Sheng used the Dragon-Patterned Staff to disorient Azure Bird, then broke its wing and battered it with the Phoenix Hammer before knocking it unconscious within five seconds.
• The watching Demon Beasts chose not to intervene, deciding that saving the envoys was not worth the risk of fighting Yu Sheng and his allies.
• Shi Guang and her shadow attacked Cheetah from multiple directions, wounding it until she knocked it unconscious.
• Shi Guang compared her ten-second victory with Yu Sheng’s and concluded that she still was not strong enough.
• Yu Sheng and Shi Guang turned to face the Demon Beasts gathered below the raised platforms.

After Yu Sheng and Shi Guang captured two special envoys, Yu Sheng calmed the surrounding Demon Beasts by turning a confrontation into a speech that brought them a huge surge of Gray Aura. About half an hour after the pair left with the envoys, Azure Bird (Two) and Cheetah (Two) arrived to find the beasts silently feigning terror.

• The Demon Beasts surrounded Yu Sheng and Shi Guang, but none dared attack them over the two captured special envoys.
• Yu Sheng tried to explain that he had only been sparring, then praised his own strength as the Demon Beasts' angry roars faded.
• Yu Sheng returned to the platform and recited inspirational quotes, first stirring the Demon Beasts and then crushing their hopes with bleak revisions.
• The Demon Beasts released a great surge of Gray Aura into Yu Sheng's Scroll, and he thanked them before flying away with Shi Guang and the two envoys.
• Half an hour later, Azure Bird (Two) and Cheetah (Two) arrived with more than a dozen sixth-level Demon Beasts and accused the crowd of failing to defend Skyvault Ravine's dignity.
• The assembled Demon Beasts prostrated themselves in apparent terror, while their hidden eyes showed no fear.

Azure Bird reflected on why the Demon Beasts below cared only about their own interests, then used that understanding to motivate them to search for two humans. He offered a Skyvault Flower for accurate information and entry into Skyvault Ravine for anyone who captured them.

• Azure Bird looked over the Demon Beasts and considered how the Human Race’s legacy and broader perspective differed from the Demon Domain’s survival-driven ways.
• Azure Bird remembered Old White Ape teaching him that a person’s position shaped their horizons and helped him understand why the Demon Beasts did not care about the Demon Domain as a whole.
• Azure Bird ordered a full-scale search for the two humans and promised one Skyvault Flower for accurate information.
• Azure Bird offered anyone who captured the two humans a chance to enter Skyvault Ravine, and the Demon Beasts stared at him in disbelief.

Azure Bird (Two) and Cheetah (Two) competed to rally the Demon Beasts, while Yu Sheng and Shi Guang interrogated their captive and headed to the Mountain-Guarding Old Man’s building. Yu Sheng’s shouted “Robbery!” exposed Cheetah (Three), and he entered the building to confront it.

• Cheetah (Two) declared the humans wanted and promised rewards, but Azure Bird (Two) won over the Demon Beasts by offering immediate rewards to rescue Azure Bird (One).
• The Demon Beasts scattered, leaving Cheetah (Two) with only the forces it had gathered over the past two days.
• Yu Sheng told Shi Guang he had already interrogated the captives, then woke Cheetah (One) and struck it silent when it threatened him.
• Yu Sheng and Shi Guang raced to the Mountain-Guarding Old Man’s building, where Yu Sheng shouted “Robbery!” and Cheetah (One) realized what he was doing.
• Shi Guang kicked open the door, and Yu Sheng entered as Cheetah (Three) demanded to know who he was; Yu Sheng replied that it had been exposed long ago.

Yu Sheng and Shi Guang realized that Seven-Tailed Fox had already exposed the Mountain-Guarding Old Man and was using him for a final mission in Barbarian City. The Old Man learned how Yu Sheng had suspected the truth, but was left bewildered by the explanation.

• The Mountain-Guarding Old Man panicked when he realized the Cheetah had identified him, and Yu Sheng suggested he had been exposed before arriving in Barbarian City.
• The Old Man insisted Seven-Tailed Fox had promised to introduce him to the Demon Lord, but Shi Guang explained that the promise was likely a ploy to use him one last time.
• Shi Guang collected the Demon Plants, Demon Crystals, Demon Cores, Divine Beast Blood, and invitations from the room.
• The Mountain-Guarding Old Man asked when Yu Sheng had realized he was exposed, and Yu Sheng explained that the Cheetah had recognized him too quickly for it to be a spontaneous reaction.
• The Old Man struggled to understand Yu Sheng's explanation and wondered whether asking him to repeat it would be embarrassing.