Chapter Summaries

Xiao Hei succumbed to demonic madness and wandered into the icy plains seeking prey, while the Sunset Dynasty and the Upper Realm man devised a scheme to capture Ning Chenxin by slaughtering mortals and Rogue Cultivators. After the plan led to brutal killings across the Northern Region, Ning Chenxin declared that they had to intervene.

• Xiao Hei lost his reason to demonic madness and walked deeper into the icy plains, driven to fight and kill.
• The man with the folding fan, the Buddhist Sect elders, and the Sunset Dynasty leaders agreed to use Ning Chenxin by provoking him with attacks on mortals and Rogue Cultivators.
• Ten days later, news reached the Northern Region Alliance that the Sunset Dynasty was slaughtering Rogue Cultivators and ordinary people who refused to submit.
• Yun Jing smashed a formation disk in anger as the alliance discussed the killings.
• Ning Chenxin said they had to stop the Sunset Dynasty to prevent the people of the Northern Region from suffering.

Ning Chenxin and the Northern Region Alliance decided to stop the Sunset Dynasty’s massacres, while Hong Ying warned that the attacks might be a trap meant to draw someone out. Ning Chenxin led a team to Azure City, where they found the city devastated and its walls hung with human heads.

• Ning Chenxin grew furious at the Sunset Dynasty’s massacre and insisted the Alliance had to stop it.
• Wu Deshi and Ding Yunhe proposed sending small teams, and Ning Chenxin volunteered to lead one.
• Hong Ying warned Ye Qiubai not to go, reasoning that the sudden, deliberate massacres might be bait intended to lure him out.
• Ning Chenxin left the Valley of Heavenly Punishment with Jian Chaomian, Liang Feng, and others for Azure City.
• Ning Chenxin’s team found Azure City filled with black Qi and ghostly souls, with screams rising from within and human heads displayed along the ruined walls.

Ning Chenxin and the others infiltrated Azure City, where the Sunset Dynasty’s troops had massacred its inhabitants. After Ning Chenxin killed two Qianyuan Realm commanders, they sent up a signal that drew several powerful presences toward the city.

• The Azure Sect's sect master nearly attacked after seeing severed heads displayed on Azure City’s wall, but Liang Feng and Jian Chaomian persuaded him to scout first.
• The Azure Sect's sect master, Liang Feng, Jian Chaomian, and Ning Chenxin entered through a breach and found the city devastated, with corpses drained of their flesh and blood.
• The four determined that the Sunset Dynasty’s strongest forces were two Qianyuan Realm experts in the city lord’s manor.
• Liang Feng and Jian Chaomian killed four Sunset Dynasty soldiers who were about to execute a woman and her little girl, while Ning Chenxin helped the two escape.
• Ning Chenxin confronted the two commanders and summoned a heavenly general, who killed them after they activated a jade pendant that released black mist.
• Several powerful presences approached after the jade pendant’s explosion.

Lu Changsheng followed a mysterious presence to the deepest part of the Land of the Extreme North, where the Heart of the Realm asked him to take it, but he refused and left. Meanwhile, Xiao Hei continued his frenzied slaughter until an Early Void God Realm Sharp-Toothed White Rat overwhelmed him and lunged to bite him.

• Lu Changsheng reached a halo containing a still-beating heart and learned that it was the Heart of the Realm.
• The Heart of the Realm chose Lu Changsheng, explaining that it could grant him strength and that its destruction would doom the realm.
• Lu Changsheng refused to take the Heart of the Realm because it would attract trouble, and he left as the heart lamented that little time remained.
• Xiao Hei rampaged across the ice fields, killing Devil Beasts until his body was bloodied and his strength began to waver.
• An Early Void God Realm Sharp-Toothed White Rat charged Xiao Hei and knocked him back twice.
• The Sharp-Toothed White Rat caught up to the airborne Xiao Hei and opened its jaws to bite him.

Ning Chenxin was lured from Azure City by the Sunset Dynasty and the Buddhist Sect, then taken to the imperial palace as a supposed guest. Huang Tian Ming confronted him with powerful Corpse Qi, but a man with a folding fan stopped him from attacking because Ning Chenxin still had a use.

• A white-robed phantom killed the Sharp-Toothed White Rat with one finger and used green light to heal Xiao Hei before he fell into a deep sleep.
• Ning Chenxin realized the figures in Azure City had targeted him, and the two Buddhist Sect elders confirmed they had come for him.
• The Azure Sect's sect master, Liang Feng, and Jian Chaomian left to seek reinforcements while Ning Chenxin agreed to go with the elders as their guest.
• Ning Chenxin arrived at the Sunset Dynasty's imperial palace, where he sensed Corpse Qi around Huang Tian Ming and warned him that retribution would come.
• Huang Tian Ming attacked Ning Chenxin with Corpse Qi, but a man holding a folding fan stopped him, saying Ning Chenxin still had great use.

Ning Chenxin refused the folding-fan man's offer to become his follower and fought him, impressing him with his talent. The man revealed that he had brought Ning Chenxin there to draw out Lu Changsheng, then placed a restriction mark on Ning Chenxin as leverage.

• Huang Tian Ming withdrew his Corpse Qi, and Huang Yitong and the Buddhist elders respectfully addressed the folding-fan man as an exalted envoy.
• The folding-fan man invited Ning Chenxin to follow him to the Upper Realm, but Ning Chenxin showed no interest because he was devoted to Lu Changsheng and the Cottage.
• At the folding-fan man's request, Ning Chenxin attacked with the Dao Scripture's six words, but the man's breeze of blades drove back the heavenly general and forced Ning Chenxin to stagger.
• Impressed by Ning Chenxin's resistance, the folding-fan man offered him inner-sect treatment in the Upper Realm if Lu Changsheng would speak with him.
• The folding-fan man placed a restriction mark on Ning Chenxin's chest, claiming even Lu Changsheng could not remove it, but Ning Chenxin doubted the man's plans would succeed.

Ye Qiubai and Hong Ying set out for the Sunset Dynasty after learning that Ning Chenxin had been captured, expecting to confront those responsible. They entered the imperial palace and found Ning Chenxin unharmed, but discovered Huang Tian Ming had been possessed by the Yin Corpse Elder.

• Liang Feng reported that the Sunset Dynasty had taken Ning Chenxin as a guest without explaining its demands, and Ye Qiubai and Hong Ying decided to go there.
• Ye Qiubai revealed his Half-Step Sword Ancestor realm and set off with Hong Ying, while Yun Jing assured the others that their master’s arrival would leave the dynasty in danger.
• Ye Qiubai and Hong Ying reached the imperial capital and were welcomed through the gates at the emperor’s invitation.
• Hong Ying sensed corpse Qi throughout the city and realized the Yin Corpse Elder intended to turn its people into corpse puppets.
• Ye Qiubai and Hong Ying entered the palace, where they found Ning Chenxin reading, Huang Yitong below the throne, and Huang Tian Ming seated nearby.
• Hong Ying recognized the corpse Qi in Huang Tian Ming and told Ye Qiubai that someone had possessed the prince.

Lu Changsheng hurried toward the Sunset Dynasty after hearing that his disciples had run into trouble, while Ye Qiubai and Hong Ying fought off a Buddhist Sect elder who had come looking for their master. Hong Ying’s spear revealed her identity as the reincarnated Empress Yunhuang, and Huang Tian Ming attacked her to seek revenge.

• Lu Changsheng learned his disciples were in trouble and hurried toward the Sunset Dynasty with Xiao Hei.
• The man with the folding fan asked Ye Qiubai and Hong Ying where their master was, then sent a Buddhist Sect elder to attack them.
• Ye Qiubai and Hong Ying combined their attacks to withstand the elder’s golden palm and countered his next assault with their Sword Domain and Intent of Samsara.
• Hong Ying conjured a flaming phantom spear, and Huang Tian Ming recognized her as the reincarnated Empress Yunhuang.
• Huang Tian Ming unleashed his Corpse Qi and charged at Hong Ying from the right.

Huang Tian Ming revealed his hatred of the reincarnated Empress Yunhuang and attacked Hong Ying, but Ning Chenxin intervened to fight him. As the battle continued, the man with the folding fan ordered a Buddhist elder to kill Hong Ying.

• Huang Tian Ming explained that he sought to discover the mysterious expert's intentions and kill Empress Yunhuang before she recovered her strength.
• Possessed by the Yin Corpse Elder, Huang Tian Ming attacked Hong Ying with a wave of Corpse Qi while she was occupied fighting the long-bearded elder.
• A heavenly general intercepted the Corpse Qi, and Ning Chenxin told Hong Ying to leave Huang Tian Ming to him.
• Huang Tian Ming formed a bone-armored ghost soldier, but Ning Chenxin used the Dao Scripture's purifying light to weaken it and keep Huang Tian Ming occupied.
• The man with the folding fan ordered the other elderly man from the Buddhist Sect to kill Hong Ying.

Ye Qiubai confronted a Void God Realm Buddhist elder to keep him from reaching Hong Ying, revealing terrifying Sword Dao talent as they fought. Their clash destroyed the hall’s defensive formation and exposed the battle to the imperial palace, while the folding-fan man resolved to eliminate Ye Qiubai and the others before they could threaten his master's plan.

• The folding-fan man explained that Empress Yunhuang's return threatened his master's plan, and he and the fierce-eyed elder moved to kill Hong Ying.
• Hong Ying asked Ye Qiubai to hold off the long-bearded elder, then left to fight the fierce-eyed elder herself.
• Ye Qiubai drew the Dark Demon Sword and revealed his half-step Sword Ancestor attainment and Sword Domain, astonishing the Upper Realm observers.
• Ye Qiubai used the Primordial Sword Scripture's Pacify Mountains and Rivers against the long-bearded elder, who countered with a giant golden hammer formed from sound waves.
• The collision shattered the hall's defensive formation and began collapsing the hall, while the long-bearded elder and folding-fan man recognized Ye Qiubai's threat.

Hong Ying, Ye Qiubai, and Ning Chenxin fought the Sunset Dynasty and Buddhist Sect’s powerful forces, but their opponents gradually gained the advantage. As Hong Ying prepared to unleash more of her strength, a phantom of a white-robed man suddenly appeared in the great hall.

• The folding-fan man and the glaring old man joined forces against Hong Ying, who held off their attacks with the Samsara Long Spear.
• Ning Chenxin summoned a heavenly general to fight the bone-armored yin corpse, then used a golden barrier to stall Huang Tian Ming’s two half-step Void God corpse puppets.
• Ye Qiubai fought the long-bearded old man with Sword Intent, while both he and Ning Chenxin struggled to keep up with their opponents.
• The Sunset Dynasty’s fighters began to overwhelm the three disciples, and Hong Ying decided to release part of her strength.
• Hong Ying formed a seal and revealed a red mark between her brows, but a phantom of a white-robed man appeared before her power erupted.

Lu Changsheng’s phantom arrived to protect Ye Qiubai, Hong Ying, and Ning Chenxin, effortlessly breaking their enemies’ attacks and killing a Void God Realm elder with one finger. After scolding Ye Qiubai for causing trouble, Lu Changsheng faced the folding-fan man, who asked why he had come to this realm.

• Lu Changsheng’s phantom appeared and shattered the attacks of the Buddhist Sect elders, Huang Tian Ming, and the folding-fan man.
• Ye Qiubai, Hong Ying, and Ning Chenxin greeted Lu Changsheng, who complained that his disciples kept dragging him into trouble and threatened to confine Ye Qiubai.
• Lu Changsheng killed the long-bearded elder with a single strand of Sword Qi, destroying his soul.
• The remaining opponents recognized Lu Changsheng’s overwhelming power, while Huang Yitong regretted that his investigation had failed to uncover Ye Qiubai’s master.
• The folding-fan man bowed to Lu Changsheng, apologized for summoning him this way, and asked what purpose he had in this realm.

Lu Changsheng lost his temper when the man with the folding fan threatened him and his disciples. He unleashed his overwhelming presence, killed the fierce-eyed old man, and turned his attention back to the man with the folding fan.

• The man with the folding fan questioned Lu Changsheng's purpose in the Wilderness Realm and hinted that they could become allies if their goals aligned.
• Hong Ying and Ye Qiubai challenged the man's right to question their master, and he boasted about his master in the Upper Realm.
• Lu Changsheng confronted the man with the folding fan, condemned his threats, and unleashed a crushing presence that trapped him.
• The fierce-eyed old man stepped in to protect the man with the folding fan and summoned an Asura phantom.
• Lu Changsheng's presence overwhelmed the Asura phantom, and his Sword Qi cut the fierce-eyed old man into dust.

Lu Changsheng crushed the folding-fan man and stopped Huang Tian Ming from escaping, but a phantom from the Upper Realm intervened to save the man. Lu Changsheng then killed the folding-fan man with a single flick, leaving the phantom and everyone present to face his warning.

• The fierce-eyed elder of the Buddhist Sect died intervening for the folding-fan man, who Lu Changsheng then pinned beneath his overwhelming presence.
• Lu Changsheng's pressure shook the imperial capital, while Ye Qiubai, Hong Ying, and Ning Chenxin watched and Huang Tian Ming tried to flee.
• Lu Changsheng restrained Huang Tian Ming, saying he could not let him escape because he was Hong Ying's target.
• A phantom emerged from the folding-fan man's jade pendant, freed him, and revealed itself as one of the seven who had previously gone to the Cottage.
• The phantom warned Lu Changsheng against opposing the Upper Realm, but Lu Changsheng pierced the folding-fan man's brow and annihilated his soul with a flick of Sword Qi.

Lu Changsheng drove off the Upper Realm phantom, then left Huang Yitong and Huang Tian Ming to Ye Qiubai. Ye Qiubai killed Huang Yitong, broke through to the half-step Qianyuan Realm, and moved to finish Huang Tian Ming himself.

• The Upper Realm phantom warned Lu Changsheng that its people would return, then vanished as the jade pendant that sustained its projection cracked.
• Lu Changsheng told Ye Qiubai to settle his feud with Huang Yitong and Huang Tian Ming himself.
• Huang Yitong attacked Ye Qiubai, but Ye Qiubai's eighth sword of the Nine Swords of the Heavenly Demon pierced him and killed him.
• The Sunset Dynasty's dragon Qi began to disperse, and Ye Qiubai broke through to the half-step Qianyuan Realm as the knot in his heart loosened.
• Ye Qiubai charged at Huang Tian Ming, and Lu Changsheng withdrew the presence restraining him so Ye Qiubai could kill him without help.

Ye Qiubai defeated and killed Huang Tian Ming, resolving the knot in his heart and advancing to the early-stage Qianyuan Realm and Sword Ancestor level. Huang Tian Ming’s death also caused the seal around Jiang Chan to vanish.

• Lu Changsheng sealed the imperial palace so Huang Tian Ming could not escape.
• Ye Qiubai fought Huang Tian Ming’s bone-armored yin corpse with his strongest sword strike, and his Intent of Unending Life gradually wore down its Corpse Qi.
• Huang Tian Ming tried to flee, but discovered Lu Changsheng’s barrier had sealed the area; Ye Qiubai then destroyed the yin corpse and struck at Huang Tian Ming.
• Huang Tian Ming attempted to unleash the power in his soul banner, but Lu Changsheng suppressed it, allowing Ye Qiubai to cleave Huang Tian Ming in two and destroy his soul.
• Ye Qiubai resolved his inner knot, advanced to the early-stage Qianyuan Realm, and reached the Sword Ancestor level.
• Huang Tian Ming’s death caused the seal around Jiang Chan underground to disappear.

After the Sunset Dynasty fell, Jiang Chan learned that Ye Qiubai had killed Huang Tian Ming and discovered she was free at last. With nowhere else to go, she became a nun, abandoned her cultivation, and chose to pray for Ye Qiubai for the rest of her life.

• Jiang Chan emerged from the underground chamber and found the royal capital in ruins, with the Sunset Dynasty's sovereign and eldest prince dead.
• A minister told Jiang Chan that Ye Qiubai, his master, and his junior brothers and sisters had destroyed the dynasty.
• Jiang Chan recalled that she had secretly arranged for an assassin to save Ye Qiubai, though he had believed she was behind the attempt on his life.
• Jiang Chan wandered through the mountains for several days before deciding to become a nun.
• Jiang Chan took the tonsure, dispersed her cultivation, and vowed to pray for Ye Qiubai and his safety.
• Years later, Jiang Chan's father learned where she was but chose not to disturb her secluded life.

After the Sunset Dynasty fell, Lu Changsheng became known across the continent as its strongest expert, and the Cottage attracted a flood of would-be disciples. As Qin Tiannan visited the Cottage to discuss the pressure of recruitment, he found Lu Changsheng floating in the air, absorbed in planning an upgrade to his grand array.

• The continent learned that Lu Changsheng had killed two Void God Realm experts, and the Hidden Sword Sect elders praised Lin Rufeng for securing his favor.
• The Hidden Dao Academy sent instructors and elders to strengthen its Southern Region academy, drawing crowds from across the continent who hoped to join the Cottage.
• The Cottage's disciples returned, while Xiao Hei sat alone for days and Lu Changsheng devoted himself to improving the Nine Nether Yellow Springs Grand Array.
• After his first attempt to add more yin and yang power nearly destroyed the Cottage, Lu Changsheng considered combining smaller arrays with the grand array instead.
• Qin Tiannan arrived to ask Lu Changsheng about the influx of applicants, looked up, and wondered whether his eyes were playing tricks on him.

Qin Tiannan visited the Cottage to find Lu Changsheng improving an array, then brought Ye Qiubai to the academy’s recruitment plaza. Ye Qiubai tested the eager applicants with his Sword Domain while Lu Changsheng prepared three arrays to complement the Nine Nether Yellow Springs Grand Array.

• Qin Tiannan arrived at the Cottage and learned from Ye Qiubai that Lu Changsheng was occupied improving an array.
• Qin Tiannan told Ye Qiubai that the recruitment candidates hoped to join the Cottage, so Ye Qiubai went with him to the plaza.
• Ye Qiubai offered to recommend talented applicants to Lu Changsheng, and the crowd rushed to stand before him.
• Ye Qiubai released his Sword Domain to test the candidates, eliminating nearly half within five breaths.
• Lu Changsheng settled on three small arrays to pair with the Nine Nether Yellow Springs Grand Array and began preparing them.

Lu Changsheng added three suppression formations to the Nine Nether Yellow Springs Grand Array, but their conflicting operation stopped it from activating. As he studied the failed formation, Ye Qiubai’s recruitment test continued, with only two candidates remaining after three days, including the frail Shi Sheng.

• Lu Changsheng set up the Jianmu Dragon-Trapping Formation, Spirit-Sealing Cloud River Formation, and Spatial Lockdown within the Nine Nether Yellow Springs Grand Array.
• The Willow Tree created a leaf puppet for Lu Changsheng to test, and his three formations successfully restrained it and blocked its Spiritual Qi.
• The Nine Nether Yellow Springs Grand Array stalled before it could unleash its power, and the Willow Tree explained that the formations clashed.
• Lu Changsheng remained in the air studying the formation for three days without finding a solution.
• At the recruitment plaza, Ye Qiubai watched as only two people remained in the Sword Domain after three days, including the early-stage Purple Mansion Realm cultivator Shi Sheng.