Chapter Summaries

After defeating Master Diantou and the Sea of Bitterness Dharma Protectors, Chu Tianshu invited the assembled martial heroes to Zongheng Temple. He prepared a fish banquet for them, ending by enlarging the fish and shrimp with his Taixu power.

• Chu Tianshu crushed the Sea of Bitterness Dharma Protectors and Master Diantou, while Gao Ye's name rose to sixth on the Ancient Heavenly Ranking and Great Immortal Zongheng's reached third on the Present Ranking.
• The Shaolin monk and a Wudang Daoist painted Chu Tianshu's likeness, prompting other sects' representatives to begin painting too.
• Chu Tianshu invited the gathered heroes up the mountain, and Lan Ziya reflected on Master Diantou's betrayal and accepted that his remains should be left to decay.
• Chu Tianshu joined the Dream-Eating Marquis, Lan Ziya, Yan Shisansheng, and the others to prepare a fish banquet at Zongheng Temple.
• Chu Tianshu used his power to enlarge the fish and shrimp, then invited the heroes to grill them or eat them raw.

After Gao Ye’s death, Gu Qiuxing tried to secure the capital, summon Hou Renyu, and preserve his plans for war and population reduction. Meanwhile, two pursued young men saw Great Immortal Zongheng’s name appear on the Heavenly Ranking and decided to seek him out after carrying out their original plan.

• Gu Qiuxing confirmed Gao Ye’s death, ordered the dowager consort’s faction to leave the duke’s residence untouched, and sent for Hou Renyu to bring his commissioned saber to the capital.
• Gu Qiuxing considered the threat posed by Great Immortal Zongheng, Lord Xuantan, and the Dream-Eating Marquis, while worrying that Ancestor Qianyang or Wan Longsheng might intervene.
• Gu Qiuxing reflected on his plan to start a war and reduce the population, then blamed the person using Zongheng’s name for disrupting his ambitions.
• Two young men outside the capital noticed the Heavenly Ranking’s change, and the blue-eyed man suggested they find Great Immortal Zongheng.
• The young man surnamed Fang agreed to follow their original plan and use tunnels to arrange a clash between their pursuers and his sect’s senior, calling out a surprise for his martial uncle.

At a feast on Zongheng Mountain, Chu Tianshu used fish infused with his power to bind martial heroes to him and discussed taking control of Fire God Gully with Lan Ziya’s help. He taught Lan Ziya how to open a Seven Souls Dantian, then began treating him by striking his kidney meridian with silver needles.

• The martial heroes ate Chu Tianshu’s fish, which revealed hidden injuries and linked a trace of his power to their intent, while Lan Ziya recognized the safeguard Chu Tianshu had planted.
• Lan Ziya advised Chu Tianshu to target Fire God Gully rather than the capital, warning that its earth fire and firearms could cause a devastating explosion.
• Chu Tianshu explained that he planned to subdue Fire God Gully’s leader, Hou Renyu, and asked Lan Ziya to help move nearby townspeople away through commerce.
• Lan Ziya described how his reputation as the God of Wealth had been compromised by the court and admitted that helping with Fire God Gully could begin his effort to set things right.
• Chu Tianshu taught Lan Ziya how to use the three hun to move the Seven Souls and open a Seven Souls Dantian, identifying the Filth-Removing Soul as his first step.
• Chu Tianshu struck fifty-four acupoints on Lan Ziya’s foot lesser yin kidney meridian with silver needles, making his Filth-Removing Soul twitch.

Lan Ziya cultivated through the day as Chu Tianshu refined power from the Heavenly Ranking and welcomed two fugitives from the Far West, Fang Zhenyi and Zhao Sijie. After hearing how the church persecuted Zhao Sijie’s family and learning that Fang Zhenyi had trapped his sect leader Hou Renyu, Chu Tianshu asked him to explain what happened.

• Lan Ziya cultivated while Chu Tianshu absorbed Heavenly Ranking power, and the Dream-Eating Marquis carved crystal beside him.
• The Dream-Eating Marquis intercepted Fang Zhenyi and Zhao Sijie on their way up the mountain, then brought them to Chu Tianshu.
• Fang Zhenyi was moved by the peaceful gathering in the square, and he and Zhao Sijie greeted Chu Tianshu as their founder and great immortal.
• Zhao Sijie explained his descent from Nicolaus Copernicus and described the church’s Divine Arts, persecution of dissenters, and the fugitives’ escape from a massacre.
• Fang Zhenyi admitted he had trapped his martial uncle Hou Renyu, the current sect leader, whom he suspected of harming his father.
• Chu Tianshu recognized Fang Zhenyi as possibly the son of former Fire God Gully leader Fang Mizhi and asked him to give the details.

Hou Renyu interrogated the Western church pursuers who had entered Fire God Gully and damaged four divine-weapon furnaces, then ordered the earthfire cooled so the furnaces could be retrieved safely. When he finally reached one furnace underground, he found it empty and heard someone on the other side praise a fine saber.

• Hou Renyu arrived at the riverbank and detonated the explosives attached to several captured churchmen to force their leader to explain why they had entered Fire God Gully.
• The cardinal priest said his group had been pursuing Tuoqi Gebaini and Ju Zhenli, whom Hou Renyu recognized as Fang Zhenyi, and claimed they knew nothing about the damaged furnaces.
• Hou Renyu ordered the survivors confined in the water prison and instructed the workshops to gradually calm the earthfire before retrieving the four furnaces.
• Hou Renyu blamed Fang Mizhi and his son for the disaster, then wrote to explain the situation as the workshops vented smoke while reducing the flames.
• During the chou hour the next day, Hou Renyu entered the earthfire tunnels and found a pale-gold furnace whose interior was empty.
• A voice from the other side of the furnace praised a fine saber, and someone flicked it with a finger.

Chu Tianshu confronted Hou Renyu in the earthfire passage and overwhelmed him with a two-saber technique. He left Hou Renyu dismembered and frozen, while the Dream-Eating Marquis and Lan Ziya watched from nearby.

• Chu Tianshu shattered the treasure furnace and revealed himself to Hou Renyu with a newly forged black saber.
• Hou Renyu used his Plum Blossom Numerology fist seals to block Chu Tianshu’s attacks while retreating toward the hotter outer passages.
• Chu Tianshu drew Sanqi and unleashed a storm of saber Qi that filled the passage with ricocheting droplets and blue-green threads.
• Hou Renyu struck the threads and was trapped as Chu Tianshu’s saber Qi cut apart his defenses and shattered his limbs.
• Chu Tianshu regretted breaking Hou Renyu’s limbs into pieces, while the Dream-Eating Marquis and Lan Ziya watched aboveground.

Chu Tianshu interrogated the captured church members about their ties to Xie Luoxian, while the Dream-Eating Marquis and Fire God Gully’s elders listened. The priest revealed that the church had once dealt with Xie Luoxian and two eastern sages; Chu Tianshu then asked whether Ancestor Qianyang was still with the church.

• The priest and the other captured church members were hauled from the water prison and brought before Chu Tianshu, where they saw Hou Renyu bound in a cocoon.
• Chu Tianshu had Zhao Sijie question the priests about the church’s supposed contact with the current imperial dowager consort.
• The priest explained that Xie Luoxian and two eastern sages had once organized displaced people, challenged local nobles, and entered a wager with the church’s Cardinal Order.
• The priest said the conflict ended in peace talks after the emperor of Great Xuan died and Xie Luoxian returned home, and that the church later exchanged letters with her.
• After hearing the account, Chu Tianshu asked whether Ancestor Qianyang was still with the church.

Chu Tianshu and the others concluded that Ancestor Qianyang had built his fame by falsely claiming to guide martial artists, then traveled west to study the Lord's Wooden Ark and escape some of the Heavenly Ranking's influence. Chu Tianshu kept the priest alive because he needed him to deliver a letter.

• The priest told Chu Tianshu that he had heard of a powerful, untrusted guest at the Roman Holy See who might be Ancestor Qianyang, though he had never met him.
• Lan Ziya and Chu Tianshu reasoned that many Heavenly Ranking experts' claims of receiving Ancestor Qianyang's guidance suggested he had deceived the world to gain fame.
• The Dream-Eating Marquis questioned how Qianyang could survive the dangerous consequences of stealing fame, and Chu Tianshu explained that Qianyang's strength and growing reputation had helped him bear them.
• Chu Tianshu and the others concluded that Qianyang went west partly to lessen the Heavenly Ranking's influence and partly to study the Lord's Wooden Ark.
• Chu Tianshu stopped the disciples from roughly dragging away the priest and ordered them to carry him out so he could deliver a letter.

Chu Tianshu questioned Hou Renyu about Fire God Gully’s failures and the treasured saber he forged, prompting Hou Renyu to reveal the general principles of Gu Qiuxing’s saber art. After Hou Renyu dismissed ordinary people, Chu Tianshu killed him and judged that the principles deserved little credit for the saber.

• Fang Zhenyi told Hou Renyu that the Brocade Guard had taken Fang Mizhi and criticized Hou Renyu for neglecting firearms craftsmanship and failing to train successors.
• Chu Tianshu examined Hou Renyu’s black saber, recognized its craftsmanship, and suggested Gu Qiuxing had provided the foundation for its spirituality.
• Hou Renyu recited the general principles of Gu Qiuxing’s Hell Buddha King Slash, which appeared designed to combine the powers of Prince Xuan Taizu and Venerable Changti.
• Chu Tianshu studied the principles while Hou Renyu demanded an assessment of their contribution to the saber.
• Hou Renyu called ordinary people lowly wretches, and Chu Tianshu cut through his silkworm cocoon and killed him, saying the principles deserved only half a part out of ten.

Chu Tianshu studied the black saber and adjusted his cultivation plans after realizing locals benefited more from Heavenly Ranking power. While drawing on the Death-Claiming Sword God’s name, he discovered the swordsman’s soul within the Ancient Heavenly Ranking and recognized him as an old friend.

• Chu Tianshu left the hall, sealed the Evil Spirit inside the black saber, and settled in a quiet room to study the saber technique.
• After examining Lan Ziya’s cultivation, Chu Tianshu concluded that locals were nourished more strongly by Heavenly Ranking power because they had been steeped in the Mist and Rosy Clouds Realm Layer since birth.
• Chu Tianshu invoked the Death-Claiming Sword God’s name and sensed a lively sword cry before sending his soul into the Mist and Rosy Clouds Realm Layer.
• Chu Tianshu found a young swordsman’s soul sealed beneath the Death-Claiming Sword God’s entry on the Ancient Heavenly Ranking and heard him recite a ballad from Poyang Lake.
• Chu Tianshu told the swordsman he was there, reached toward the Heavenly Ranking, and asked whether his old friend was still alive.

Chu Tianshu tried to free Lu Shuangyan from the Heavenly Ranking and learned that it had trapped and corrupted other renowned figures, possibly through an instinctive Evil Spirit. Before they could speak further, Wan Longsheng, Xie Luoxian, and Gu Qiuxing arrived, revealing their competing plans for the Heavenly Ranking and preparing to confront Chu Tianshu.

• Chu Tianshu pierced the Heavenly Ranking with the Phoenix Nirvana Sword Strike and sent a strand of power through to Lu Shuangyan, but Lu Shuangyan could not escape because he was bound fast.
• Lu Shuangyan warned Chu Tianshu that the Heavenly Ranking had drawn him in when he broke through, and said that Prince Xuan and Changti had been contaminated and dispersed while Yuhua was still resisting.
• Chu Tianshu and Lu Shuangyan ended their exchange, and Lu Shuangyan offered to help Chu Tianshu borrow the Death-Claiming Sword God's reputation.
• Wan Longsheng of Beihai arrived and admitted that he sought to reach and tame the Heavenly Ranking's spirituality, while Qianyang planned to control it by devouring the Ancient Ranking's true names and the Present Ranking's people.
• Gu Qiuxing and Xie Luoxian emerged behind Wan Longsheng, and Xie Luoxian claimed they had come to seek Chu Tianshu's guidance before the group faced him.

Chu Tianshu fought Xie Luoxian, Gu Qiuxing, and Wan Longsheng in the Mist and Rosy Clouds Realm after they attacked the Heavenly Ranking. He crushed Gu Qiuxing beneath the falling ranking, and Xie Luoxian urged Wan Longsheng to flee.

• Lan Ziya sensed Chu Tianshu was under attack, left his body to help, and the Dream-Eating Marquis guarded his body while Fang Zhenyi and Zhao Sijie stood by.
• Chu Tianshu confronted Xie Luoxian, Gu Qiuxing, and Wan Longsheng, and Xie Luoxian launched a surprise strike with her Distracted Sword Intent.
• Chu Tianshu reshaped his soul into an azure dragon to evade the attackers, then countered their sword, saber, and zither assaults.
• Wan Longsheng blocked Chu Tianshu's chop with his white hair, but the exchange left him shaken and unable to stop Chu Tianshu's next advance.
• Chu Tianshu struck the Heavenly Ranking and sent it crashing down, crushing Gu Qiuxing's soul.
• Xie Luoxian called to Wan Longsheng to retreat, saying they could not kill Chu Tianshu.

Chu Tianshu defeated Gu Qiuxing and Wan Longsheng, then rescued prisoners from the imperial prison while Xie Luoxian and Wan Longsheng fortified the Golden Throne Hall against him. He brought the prisoners to Duke Yi’s residence, killed Heir Apparent Gao, and left the capital’s struggle poised to continue.

• Heir Apparent Gao tried to win the Brocade Guard’s protection by offering his family’s hidden wealth and pledging allegiance to Gu Qiuxing.
• Chu Tianshu struck the Golden Throne Hall, but Xie Luoxian used the Temple Beyond the Mind to stop him and protect the palace.
• Xie Luoxian and Wan Longsheng decided to reinforce the Golden Throne Hall and rally Heavenly Ranking powers against Chu Tianshu.
• Chu Tianshu broke into the imperial prison and used Gang Qi bubbles to carry its injured prisoners out.
• Fang Mizhi recommended Duke Yi’s residence as a place for the prisoners to recover, and Chu Tianshu brought them there.
• Chu Tianshu recognized Heir Apparent Gao as Gao Ye’s son, condemned his lack of mourning, and killed him with a flick of his finger.

After rescuing the imperial prison’s captives, Chu Tianshu organized a campaign to spread accounts of Great Xuan’s abuses while preparing for his return to the fight. The chapter left him absorbing the power of his rising names as the court remained on the defensive.

• Lan Ziya arrived after Chu Tianshu defeated Heir Apparent Gao and guarded the people freed from the imperial prison while Chu returned to his body.
• The Dream-Eating Marquis asked why they were not attacking the imperial palace, and Chu Tianshu explained that Wan Longsheng’s cultivation made their abilities poor choices for the battle.
• Chu Tianshu ordered the Dream-Eating Marquis to produce three thousand copies each of two Crystal Dreams recording events in Jingxiang and the imperial prison.
• Chu Tianshu asked Lan Ziya to use his caravans and bookshops to spread concise, accessible accounts of the abuses across Great Xuan.
• Chu Tianshu declared that the masses held power and questioned whether the court’s continued retreat would turn people against him or against the court.
• The titles of Great Immortal Zongheng and Death-Claiming Sword God shone above Chu Tianshu, pouring colored power over him.

An old Daoist watched a Crystal Dream depicting how corruption and feuds in Jingxiang gave way to paid roadwork and cooperation after the Dream-Gathering Sect intervened. The crowd questioned where their taxes went and left stirred by the images, while the Daoist hurried away, wary of Great Immortal Zongheng’s influence.

• An old Daoist slipped into a crowd outside the city and watched a Dream-Eating Marquis disciple project a Crystal Dream about Jingxiang.
• The images showed local officials neglecting unpaid townspeople, whose desperation and feuds led to repeated violence.
• Disciples of the Dream-Gathering Sect and the Divine Machine Battalion intervened, compensated victims, and hired people to repair roads, prompting rival towns to work together.
• A landslide threatened the crews, but the workers escaped; the crowd then questioned why neglected roads had not been repaired and where road taxes had gone.
• The Crystal Dream showed broader changes across Jingxiang and explained the value of the Nine-Syllable Mantra and Vertical and Horizontal Method Seal.
• As the crowd stood with clenched fists, the old Daoist sensed their stirred emotions and hurried away, concerned that Great Immortal Zongheng was making a powerful impression.

Ancestor Qianyang warned Xie Luoxian and Wan Longsheng that Chu Tianshu’s influence among the people could grow beyond the power gathered in the Golden Throne Hall. He visited Chu Tianshu and proposed that they rule the world together as Great Immortal Zongheng, but Chu rejected his vision and defended the resolve of those who had sought change at Poyang Lake.

• Ancestor Qianyang criticized Xie Luoxian for failing to stop pernicious ideas from spreading out of the capital and explained that public sentiment could shift faster than she expected.
• Ancestor Qianyang demonstrated to Wan Longsheng that the people’s growing power could overwhelm a force that was easier to stir, then said he would meet Chu Tianshu while the others prepared.
• Chu Tianshu cultivated formless souls at Duke Yi’s residence when Ancestor Qianyang arrived and transformed his appearance into Chu’s, declaring himself Great Immortal Zongheng.
• Ancestor Qianyang revealed his belief that the world needed rule by a god and urged Chu Tianshu to join him in governing as Great Immortal Zongheng.
• Chu Tianshu challenged Ancestor Qianyang’s record of governing and rejected his proposal, insisting that he would not let Qianyang disparage the people’s efforts at Poyang Lake.

Ancestor Qianyang attacked Chu Tianshu with a mass of Heavenly Ranking power, but Chu Tianshu destroyed the white sphere and turned the Stargazing Tower's roof into a blade to drive Qianyang out of the city. The chapter left them facing off beyond the city walls as Qianyang pushed a brilliant pearl against Chu Tianshu's roof-blade.

• Ancestor Qianyang called down a huge sphere of white light, drawing power from the Ancient and present-day Heavenly Rankings to destroy the Stargazing Tower and the surrounding estate.
• Chu Tianshu tore off the tower roof, flew into the sphere, and shattered it with a storm of sharpened tiles.
• Lan Ziya attacked Qianyang with a golden needle, but Qianyang reversed its power and sent it back, knocking Lan Ziya away.
• Chu Tianshu hurled the tileless roof at Qianyang, then wielded it as a blade and pursued him through the estate and out through the city wall.
• Ancestor Qianyang formed a brilliant pearl between his hands and pushed it against Chu Tianshu's advancing roof-blade.

Chu Tianshu fought Ancestor Qianyang while the Dream-Eating Marquis, Fang Mizhi, and Lan Ziya held off Wan Longsheng and Xie Luoxian. Chu Tianshu destroyed Qianyang with the Great Void Heavenly Eye and his sword, then turned his attention to Xie Luoxian.

• Chu Tianshu broke through Ancestor Qianyang's layered pearl defenses, but Qianyang caught the Three-Seven Sword by tracing the thoughts attached to it.
• Ancestor Qianyang summoned his Temple Beyond the Mind and suppressed Chu Tianshu's sword while reinforcements rushed toward the fight.
• The Dream-Eating Marquis and Fang Mizhi's group used the Hell Buddha King Slash to block Wan Longsheng's zither melody, while Lan Ziya intercepted Xie Luoxian.
• Chu Tianshu sent the Great Void Heavenly Eye into the Yanxia Realm, where it absorbed mist and rosy clouds and attacked Qianyang with emerald light.
• Chu Tianshu endured Qianyang's counterattack and killed him with two sword strikes, then turned and aimed his green beams at Xie Luoxian's sword.

Xie Luoxian tried to seize Lan Ziya as leverage against Chu Tianshu, but Chu shattered her sword with a finger snap and killed her. Elsewhere, Wan Longsheng confronted a great peng at the Forbidden City, while the zither music continued to ring across the capital after its player had died.

• Xie Luoxian used the Transcendent Sword to break through Chu Tianshu’s gaze and struck Lan Ziya with a sword technique that began draining his life and spirit.
• Chu Tianshu caught Xie Luoxian’s sword between three fingers to stop her from killing Lan Ziya.
• Chu Tianshu snapped his fingers, shattered the Transcendent Sword, and killed Xie Luoxian.
• Wan Longsheng watched Ancestor Qianyang fall to second place on the Heavenly Ranking and remarked that he had not won.
• A great peng crashed into the Forbidden City gate tower and struck the protective zither notes as Wan Longsheng welcomed the challenge.
• The zither music continued through the night and into the next morning, though its player had already died.

Chu Tianshu recovered from the backlash of his recent battle and reassured the Dream-Eating Marquis that his martial path still had value. He ordered the church to capture Qianyang within seven days, while Lan Ziya warned that the church’s combined techniques made it dangerous.

• The Dream-Eating Marquis complained about the lingering zither music as Lan Ziya checked the capital’s accounts outside the Golden Throne Hall.
• Chu Tianshu explained that his overflowing power came from an imbalance in his Seven Souls and told the Dream-Eating Marquis that the Seven Souls Dantian did not suit his Dream-Savoring Divine Art.
• The Dream-Eating Marquis worried that his martial path had no future, but Chu Tianshu encouraged him to continue pursuing it.
• Zhenyi reunited with the Dream-Eating Marquis, and the group brought the church’s priests before Chu Tianshu.
• Chu Tianshu ordered the Dream-Eating Marquis to write a document listing Qianyang’s crimes and gave the priests seven days to bring Qianyang or his remnant soul to him.
• Lan Ziya cautioned Chu Tianshu about the church’s polished combined-attack techniques, but Chu Tianshu said there would be no great battle.