Chapter Summaries

Ye Li uncovered the crimes at Red Furnace Mountain, killed those responsible, and moved on to investigate the Life-Extending Temple. He confronted True Person Everlasting Spring and the officials attending his birthday banquet with evidence that the temple had drained vitality from several cities, then asked whether anyone could defend the charges.

• Ye Li killed True Person Red Cauldron and destroyed Red Furnace Mountain’s grand array after learning from Red Cauldron’s Memory Scroll who had arranged the forced labor and falsified the deaths.
• Ye Li killed the cultivators and officials involved in the crimes at Red Furnace Mountain, suppressed the out-of-control furnaces, and moved on to the next case in Qin Mingshu’s dossier.
• At True Person Everlasting Spring’s birthday banquet, Ye Li accused the Life-Extending Temple of draining cultivators’ vitality from several cities to make medicine for clan cultivators.
• Ye Li revealed that officials who tried to investigate had been dismissed or killed, and identified an official in the banquet hall as another who had covered up the matter.
• After several guests protested that they were appointed officials, Ye Li calmly asked whether anyone could defend the accusations.

Ye Li confronted the Life-Extending Temple and killed its three Fortune-Mastery Realm True Persons in a one-sided battle. He then used their Memory Scrolls to expose banquet guests who had helped the temple conceal the source of its life-extending art, and sent souls after them.

• Ye Li rejected the guests’ excuses and blasted an official who challenged his authority out of the hall.
• True Person Everlasting Spring and two other True Persons attacked Ye Li, but he crushed their techniques and killed the sword-wielding True Person.
• Ye Li shattered True Person Everlasting Spring’s Dharma Form and killed the Life-Extending Temple Master despite his plea to yield.
• Ye Li chased down and killed the seal-wielding True Person as he fled.
• Ye Li’s Memory Scrolls revealed which guests had helped cover up the temple’s crimes, and he sent souls after them.

Ye Li uncovered the Life-Extending Temple’s ties to Longwind Divine Dynasty officials, then told Shen Lingyi he had killed the Third Princess and two retainers after learning she had used a city’s people as bait. He ordered Shen Lingyi’s managers to take over Red Furnace Mountain and the Life-Extending Temple, leaving them stunned as they prepared to act.

• Ye Li reviewed True Person Everlasting Spring’s Memory Scroll and found that imperial relatives and Eastern Palace officials had secretly used the Life-Extending Temple’s life-extending technique.
• Shen Lingyi and the Alliance Association managers discussed their difficulty obtaining records and building contacts in the capital.
• Ye Li contacted Shen Lingyi and told her to send people to take over Red Furnace Mountain and the Life-Extending Temple.
• Ye Li revealed that he had killed the Third Princess and her two retainers after she used a city’s people as bait to catch a Great Demon.
• Shen Lingyi and the managers were left stunned by Ye Li’s orders and began preparing to take over the two Dao Lineages.

Ye Li seized control of the Life-Extending Temple, killed those involved in its life-extension business, and offered the remaining disciples a choice to leave or join the Supreme Clarity Palace. As he prepared for the arrival of reinforcements, the second imperial princess, Qin Mingshu, arrived at the temple.

• Ye Li ordered True Person Everlasting Spring to gather everyone remaining in the temple, then broke into the treasury and refined its Treasure Medicines while studying the temple's cultivation methods.
• Ye Li addressed the assembled disciples, and True Person Everlasting Spring killed the elders and stewards who had participated in the life-extension business.
• Ye Li offered the remaining disciples the choice to leave or join the Supreme Clarity Palace, then checked his Malice Points and found he had three trillion nine hundred and eighty billion.
• True Person Everlasting Spring reported that about seventy percent of the disciples had chosen to stay and the rest planned to leave, and Ye Li told him to continue making arrangements.
• A gilded imperial Treasure Ship arrived outside the temple carrying the second imperial princess, Qin Mingshu.

Qin Mingshu arrived at the Life-Extending Temple after Ye Li had defeated its defenders and offered to shield him from the court if he became her vassal. Ye Li refused her terms and agreed to go to the Capital City to face punishment, leaving Qin Mingshu uncertain about his reaction.

• Qin Mingshu found the Life-Extending Temple in ruins and learned that three True Persons had died there.
• Qin Mingshu entered the Main Hall alone and confronted Ye Li, listing his crimes and warning him that the emperor and a True Lord could punish him.
• Qin Mingshu offered to suppress the charges and secure Ye Li authority at court if he became her vassal, adding that she would consider intimacy and marriage.
• Ye Li refused to become Qin Mingshu's vassal but said he was willing to go to the Capital City and face the court's punishment.

Qin Mingshu failed to persuade Ye Li to back down and returned to the capital, while Ye Li led Supreme Clarity Palace managers to dismantle corrupt sects across the provinces. After taking down the Life-Extending Temple, Blood Spirit Valley, and Blackwater Sect, Ye Li heard that Qin Baiyi had something to report.

• Qin Mingshu left Ye Li a punitive edict and contact token, warned him about the Divine Dynasty's power, and departed for the capital.
• Shen Lingyi, Qin Baiyi, Pei You'an, and An Ziqing arrived at the devastated Life-Extending Temple and found Ye Li unharmed with True Person Everlasting Spring.
• Ye Li ordered Shen Lingyi to organize the temple's handover, then set out with her managers to deal with three more sects.
• Ye Li destroyed Blood Spirit Valley's defenses and killed its two Fortune-Mastery True Cultivators, while the managers seized records and arrested surviving accomplices.
• Ye Li broke into Blackwater Sect's mines and executed its leadership as Qin Baiyi's team rescued trapped civilians.
• Qin Baiyi approached Ye Li while he inspected cultivation methods and said she had something to report.

Ye Li destroyed the Mystic Gale Sect and set sail for the Longwind Divine Dynasty’s capital, where he was due to face the emperor’s summons. As he studied the sects’ cultivation methods, An Ziqing walked past Qin Baiyi without acknowledging her.

• Qin Baiyi told Ye Li that the crown prince’s official He Jingming had courted An Ziqing’s support, and Ye Li calmly acknowledged the report.
• Ye Li broke the Mystic Gale Sect’s formation, killed True Person Mystic Gale, and had the fleeing elders intercepted and killed.
• Ye Li and his companions left for the capital, while he studied the sects’ inheritance Jade Slips and concluded that Longwind cultivators’ Fortune-Mastery powers depended on the imperial family’s national fortune.
• An Ziqing approached Ye Li on the Treasure Ship and ignored Qin Baiyi when she greeted him.

An Ziqing reported the Eastern Palace’s approach to Ye Li, who instructed her to keep him informed if they contacted her again. As their return to the capital neared, Ye Li told her he had refused the second princess’s offer to make him her vassal.

• Pei You'an suggested to Qin Baiyi that An Ziqing might be avoiding her because of Ye Li, and Qin Baiyi realized An Ziqing could be jealous.
• An Ziqing told Ye Li that He Jingming had removed the restrictions on Qin Baiyi’s parents and offered help from the Eastern Palace.
• Ye Li told An Ziqing to report any further attempts by the Eastern Palace to contact her, and she agreed.
• An Ziqing asked Ye Li whether he had killed the third princess, and he confirmed it and described the second princess’s offer.
• Ye Li said he had refused to become the second princess’s vassal, and An Ziqing’s expression softened as she poured him tea.

Qin Mingjun learned that Ye Li had destroyed several sects and was returning to the capital, and concluded that the emperor might appoint him at court. Fearing Ye Li would uncover his dealings, Qin Mingjun ordered an ambush before the imperial banquet and hinted that he had another way to ensure Ye Li would not reach it alive.

• He Jingming reported that Ye Li had destroyed five Mountain Gates and killed more than ten Fortune-Mastery True Cultivators in three days.
• Qin Mingjun dismissed the possibility that Ye Li was an older cultivator in disguise and suspected the emperor still intended to recruit him.
• Qin Mingjun told He Jingming that Ye Li had to be eliminated before the imperial banquet, fearing he would target Qin Mingjun after entering court.
• He Jingming reported that Mingshu had left the Life-Extending Temple without reaching an agreement and that Ye Li was traveling north toward the capital.
• Qin Mingjun ordered He Jingming to use An Ziqing's connection to recruit allies and summon the True Persons involved in the planned ambush.
• Qin Mingjun assured He Jingming that he had another means to prevent Ye Li from reaching the imperial banquet alive.

As Ye Li prepared for his audience with the Longwind emperor, He Jingming invited An Ziqing to meet the crown prince during the audience. Ye Li decided to take An Ziqing’s place and meet the Eastern Palace, then asked An Ziqing to turn around so he could examine him.

• Ye Li returned to the Imperial Palace and cultivated before his audience with the Longwind emperor.
• He Jingming invited An Ziqing to meet the crown prince privately while Ye Li was at the palace.
• An Ziqing pretended to accept the invitation, then went to tell Ye Li about it.
• Ye Li inferred that the crown prince was plotting something and decided to use the meeting to confront the Eastern Palace.
• Ye Li said he would go in An Ziqing’s place and asked him to turn around for inspection.

Ye Li used the Art of Transformation to take on An Ziqing’s appearance before the Longwind Divine Dynasty’s grand court assembly. As the assembly proceeded without Ye Li present, Qin Mingshu prepared to intercede for him after court.

• Ye Li asked An Ziqing for a spare robe, caught her trying to deceive him, and received a new one.
• Ye Li activated the Art of Transformation and copied An Ziqing’s appearance, aura, and Divine Soul fluctuations.
• Envoys from the Longwind Divine Dynasty’s subordinate states and other powers gathered at the Hall of Revering Heaven to present tribute.
• Qin Mingshu noticed the Crown Prince was absent and thought his absence would leave her free to plead for Ye Li.
• The Longwind Emperor postponed meeting Ye Li until after the assembly, while Qin Mingshu expected Ye Li to arrive at the palace soon.

Qin Mingjun gathered six Fortune-Mastery True Persons to ambush Ye Li in the capital and promised to bear the consequences and share the spoils. He then met Ye Li disguised as An Ziqing and asked him to spy on Ye Li and help kill him.

• Qin Mingjun convened six powerful allies, who agreed Ye Li had to be killed before he could use the Life-Extending Temple's ledgers against them.
• Qin Mingjun promised to take responsibility if the emperor learned of their plot and offered the group Ye Li's treasures and Cultivation Methods.
• He Jingming reported that Ye Li and the Supreme Clarity Palace Managers had not left their quarters, while the disguised Ye Li had followed the route to Qin Mingjun's residence.
• Qin Mingjun welcomed Ye Li, disguised as Cold Purity Palace Heir An Ziqing, and offered support for his return to the Three Continents or establishment of a new Dao ground.
• Ye Li questioned Qin Mingjun's motives, and Qin Mingjun asked him to stay beside Ye Li and report his movements so the conspirators could kill him.

Ye Li, disguised as An Ziqing, let Qin Mingjun believe he had agreed to help assassinate him while learning the Eastern Palace’s preparations. After the conspirators presented their plan and contract, Ye Li asked whether everyone in the courtyard was part of the ambush, leaving his next move unresolved.

• Ye Li, disguised as An Ziqing, questioned whether Qin Mingjun was confident he could kill Ye Li without letting him escape.
• Qin Mingjun brought him to the rear courtyard, where six Fortune-Mastery True Persons revealed the Eastern Palace’s strength.
• Qin Mingjun introduced Divine Dragon True Person, whose appearance delighted Ye Li because he had wanted to hunt him for Malice Points.
• Qin Mingjun appealed to An Ziqing’s supposed resentment of Ye Li, and Ye Li pretended to agree to cooperate.
• Qin Mingjun, Divine Dragon True Person, and An Ziqing discussed how to lure Ye Li into a formation, kill him, and keep An Ziqing from being implicated.
• When He Jingming presented a contract Jade Slip and requested a heart demon oath, Ye Li asked whether everyone in the courtyard was part of the arrangement.

Ye Li revealed himself in the Crown Prince’s Residence after Qin Mingjun exposed his forces and secret True Lord’s Magic Treasure. As seven True Persons attacked, Ye Li summoned more than ten powerful souls, and the courtyard’s isolation array began to shake.

• Qin Mingjun showed Palace Heir An his True Lord’s Magic Treasure and revealed that all seven attackers were inside the courtyard.
• Ye Li dispelled his disguise, revealing himself to Qin Mingjun and the others, and struck He Jingming into the covered walkway’s rubble.
• Ye Li unleashed his Blood Vitality, and Divine Dragon True Person ordered the others to attack while Qin Mingjun demanded Ye Li be killed.
• Six True Persons activated the sealing array and attacked Ye Li with their Magic Treasures and Divine Abilities.
• Ye Li summoned more than ten Fortune-Mastery souls, whose combined auras shook the courtyard and strained the isolation array.

Ye Li fought Divine Dragon True Person while their allies battled outside the courtyard, then used a True Lord’s Sword Talisman to unleash a devastating sword strike. Divine Dragon True Person tried to stop it with his dragon cauldron, but the strike overwhelmed his defense.

• More than a dozen True Person souls attacked the Eastern Palace forces, and Old Ancestor Lu and the chief guest elder helped hold them off.
• Divine Dragon True Person transformed into a half-dragon and battled Ye Li, overpowering him at first with his superior physical strength.
• Ye Li recovered from repeated injuries and summoned his silver Divine Spear, but Divine Dragon True Person continued to dominate their clashes.
• Ye Li chose not to break through to the Fortune-Mastery Realm and instead kept fighting with his existing abilities.
• Divine Dragon True Person blasted Ye Li’s abdomen, and Ye Li revealed and activated the Sword Song Valley True Lord’s Sword Talisman.
• Divine Dragon True Person summoned his dragon cauldron to block the True Lord’s sword light, but the sword strike overwhelmed it.

Ye Li gravely wounded Divine Dragon True Person with a True Lord Sword Talisman, while the resulting shock shook Longwind Capital City and disrupted the assembly of ten thousand nations. The Longwind emperor dismissed the disturbance as a retainer testing his arts, and the Supreme Clarity Palace Master hurried toward the city after recognizing the sword’s power.

• Ye Li’s sword strike shattered Divine Dragon True Person’s treasured cauldron and tore open his dragon body, leaving him gravely wounded.
• Divine Dragon True Person and six other True Persons joined forces to keep the grand formation from collapsing under the sword’s aftershock.
• The tremor interrupted the assembly of ten thousand nations, and the Longwind emperor claimed a retainer had disturbed the ceremony while testing his arts.
• Qin Mingshu noticed the crown prince’s empty place and grew uneasy during the hastened court proceedings.
• The Supreme Clarity Palace Master recognized the likely True Lord Sword Talisman and rushed toward the southern part of Longwind Capital City to reach Ye Li.

After the Sword Talisman was spent, Ye Li used Malice Points to advance to Path Opening Ninth Rank Peak and revealed another powerful ability. As Divine Dragon True Person and the other Fortune-Mastery experts tried to flee or resist, Ye Li trapped them beneath a recreated Demon Lord Heaven's Punishment, unleashing a storm of lightning over the Eastern Palace.

• Divine Dragon True Person survived the Sword Talisman's blast and urged the others to attack Ye Li, believing he had no second True Lord weapon.
• Ye Li revealed that he had spent forty-five million Malice Points to reach Path Opening Ninth Rank Peak, greatly increasing his Blood Vitality.
• Divine Dragon True Person recognized Ye Li's strength and tore through the failing sealing array to escape.
• Ye Li opened Dao Scripture My Book and recreated the Heaven's Punishment environment he had recorded in the Vast Wild Continent.
• Purple heavenly lightning struck Divine Dragon True Person and the other six Fortune-Mastery experts, overwhelming their defenses and engulfing the Eastern Palace.

Ye Li seized Qin Mingjun’s True Lord talisman while the heavenly lightning overwhelmed the seven True Persons. Mysterious Water True Person failed to save Qin Mingjun, who was killed as the sealing formation shattered and unleashed its aura over Capital City.

• Qin Mingjun used the ancient seal and golden talisman to shield himself from the heavenly lightning and tried to unleash the talisman’s True Lord power.
• Ye Li used the Heaven-Intercepting Spirit-Plundering Technique to snatch the talisman and put it away.
• Qin Mingjun called for Mysterious Water True Person and Old Ancestor Lu to protect him, but the seven True Persons were occupied fighting the lightning.
• Mysterious Water True Person rushed toward Qin Mingjun but was blasted backward by a violet lightning bolt.
• Violet lightning engulfed Qin Mingjun and killed him, while the sealing formation shattered and its aura spread across Capital City.

After Heaven’s Punishment crippled the Eastern Palace’s attackers, Ye Li killed the six gathered Fortune-Mastery True Persons and confronted Divine Dragon True Person. Divine Dragon True Person tried to ambush him from concealment, but Ye Li exposed and subdued him.

• Ye Li charged through the fading lightning and killed Withered Wood True Person, Azure Blade True Person, and Blazing Sun True Person with his silver spear.
• Ye Li ignored another Supreme Elder’s surrender and burned him to ashes with Divine Fire.
• Ye Li shattered Old Ancestor Lu’s defenses, seized his Divine Soul, and burned him to death.
• Ye Li broke through Mysterious Water True Person’s domain and killed him, leaving all six Eastern Palace True Persons dead.
• Divine Dragon True Person spoke to Ye Li while lying injured, but Ye Li struck a concealed figure and forced him to the ground as the distant half-dragon body shriveled into shed skin.

Ye Li killed Divine Dragon True Person and six other True Persons after they ambushed him at the crown prince’s residence, then faced the Longwind Divine Dynasty Emperor’s wrath. The Supreme Clarity Palace Master tried to take Ye Li away, but the imperial formation sealed the sky and trapped them in the capital.

• Ye Li killed Divine Dragon True Person by splitting his body with a spear and burning away his Divine Soul, then drew the souls of him and six other True Persons into his Spiritual Platform.
• The Longwind Divine Dynasty Emperor and other officials arrived at the destroyed crown prince’s residence and discovered Qin Mingjun was dead.
• Qin Mingshu and the officials recognized Ye Li as the likely killer, while Shen Lingyi and the Alliance Association’s Managers saw the devastation.
• The Supreme Clarity Palace Master arrived and asked Ye Li whether he had killed Divine Dragon True Person; Ye Li explained the ambush and showed her the contract Jade Slip.
• The Supreme Clarity Palace Master declared that Ye Li had acted in self-defense and tried to leave with him, but the Longwind Divine Dynasty Emperor activated the imperial formation and sealed the sky.