Chapter Summaries

Ye Xuan put away the Xuanyuan Sword and used the Kongtong Seal, empowered by Chaoge’s Human Clan fortune, to withstand Yuanshi Tianzun’s Pangu Banner. The two treasures clashed above Chaoge, and Ye Xuan ended the chapter taunting Yuanshi Tianzun while holding his ground.

• Ye Xuan put away the Xuanyuan Sword to avoid risking Chaoge’s destruction, then revealed the Kongtong Seal.
• Ye Xuan explained that Chaoge’s gathered fortune could empower the Kongtong Seal to contend with the Pangu Banner.
• Ye Xuan cast the Kongtong Seal into the air, where it grew colossal and bore down on Yuanshi Tianzun.
• Yuanshi Tianzun wielded the Pangu Banner, whose force collided with the Kongtong Seal and made it tremble.
• The Kongtong Seal barely withstood the Pangu Banner’s attack, and Ye Xuan taunted Yuanshi Tianzun about his use of the treasure.

Ye Xuan used the Kongtong Seal to resist Yuanshi Tianzun's Pangu Banner, but the seal began to falter under the assault. The Great Cauldrons of the Nine Provinces emerged and supplied the seal with Human Clan providence, letting it turn the tide and continue suppressing Yuanshi Tianzun.

• Yuanshi Tianzun intensified the Pangu Banner's assault, and Ye Xuan poured his magic power into the wavering Kongtong Seal to keep it stable.
• Saint Zhunti mocked Yuanshi Tianzun and Ye Xuan as their battle shook the sky above Chaoge.
• Nine enormous pillars of light appeared in the Primordial World and revealed the Great Cauldrons of the Nine Provinces.
• The Great Cauldrons of the Nine Provinces sent Human Clan providence to the Kongtong Seal, stabilizing it and greatly increasing its power.
• The Kongtong Seal expanded over Chaoge and resumed suppressing Yuanshi Tianzun, despite his continued attacks with the Pangu Banner.

Ye Xuan and Yuanshi Tianzun stalemated after their treasures suppressed each other, leaving both Saints unable to move. Yuanshi Tianzun called on Saint Zhunti to take advantage of the opening.

• Yuanshi Tianzun's Pangu Banner failed to break the Kongtong Seal's suppression, which drew debate among the watching figures over which Saint was stronger.
• Yuanshi Tianzun used the Wuji Apricot Yellow Banner and Myriad Heavens Auspicious Cloud to defend himself, then recalled the Pangu Banner.
• Yuanshi Tianzun sent the Pangu Banner over Ye Xuan and suppressed him, while the Prajna Asura Tribulation and Hongmeng Mystic Daoist Robe protected Ye Xuan from most of its pressure.
• Ye Xuan and Yuanshi Tianzun remained pinned by each other's treasures, and the onlookers realized neither had won.
• Yuanshi Tianzun urged Saint Zhunti to act while both he and Ye Xuan were immobilized.

Zhunti attacked Ye Xuan while demanding several treasures and the Ancestral Dragon, but Nuwa arrived and stopped him. The four Saints stood together in Chaoge, and Zhunti fell silent after Nuwa rebuked him.

• Zhunti demanded Ye Xuan's treasures and the Ancestral Dragon, then attacked him with the Blessing Divine Pestle.
• Ye Xuan prepared to use the Hongmeng Corpse-Driving System's ultimate move as Zhunti's attack descended.
• Nuwa's Tasseled Red Embroidered Ball struck the Blessing Divine Pestle away, and she appeared beside Zhunti.
• The Queen Mother of the West saw Nuwa arrive in Chaoge and concluded that she had rushed to save her lover, Ye Xuan.
• Nuwa rebuked Zhunti for his conduct, and he stood silent as his plan was thwarted.

Taishang Laozi arrived at Chaoge and used the Taiji Diagram to suppress the clash between Ye Xuan and Yuanshi Tianzun, but Yuanshi demanded the return of several treasures and relics, reigniting the conflict. As Ye Xuan prepared to fight, Sect Master Tongtian appeared, balancing the forces between the two sides.

• Nuwa called out Taishang Laozi, who appeared riding the auspicious beast Si and urged the Saints to stop fighting.
• Taishang Laozi manifested the Taiji Diagram, suppressing the Kongtong Seal and Pangu Banner until Ye Xuan and Yuanshi Tianzun recalled them.
• Ye Xuan ordered the hostile Saints to leave Chaoge, but Yuanshi demanded his magical treasures, the Xuanyuan Sword, the Kongtong Seal, and the corpses of the Primordial Qilin, Yuanfeng, and the Ancestral Dragon.
• Ye Xuan pointed the Xuanyuan Sword at Yuanshi and challenged him to fight, and Yuanshi raised the Pangu Banner to attack.
• Sect Master Tongtian arrived riding the Kui Ox and rebuked Yuanshi, giving Ye Xuan's side a third Saint.

Sect Master Tongtian arrived as Yuanshi Tianzun fought Ye Xuan, criticized his elder brother, and stepped in to defend the Human Dao Saint. The two Three Pure Ones clashed in the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation, where Yuanshi Tianzun’s Pangu Banner failed to break through, leaving their battle raging above Chaoge.

• Sect Master Tongtian told Yuanshi Tianzun to stop attacking Ye Xuan and reminded him of how he had treated Tongtian over the Investiture of the Gods Treaty.
• Yuanshi Tianzun rejected Tongtian’s warning and attacked Ye Xuan with the Pangu Banner, but Tongtian’s sword Qi blocked its power.
• Sect Master Tongtian summoned the Four Immortal-Slaying Swords and surrounded Yuanshi Tianzun, challenging him to a fight.
• Yuanshi Tianzun used the Pangu Banner against the Four Immortal-Slaying Swords, but its power was suppressed by the formation’s sword Qi.
• The Saints’ battle shook the area above Chaoge as onlookers debated who would prevail.

Ye Xuan asked Nuwa about the Three Pure Ones’ cultivation arts as Yuanshi Tianzun and Sect Master Tongtian continued battling. Yuanshi Tianzun’s Pangu Banner failed to break the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation, leaving the two Saints in a stalemate.

• Ye Xuan teased Nuwa with cigarette smoke, then asked her which of Yuanshi Tianzun and Sect Master Tongtian was stronger.
• Nuwa explained that Yuanshi Tianzun cultivated Yuanshi’s True Explanation, while Sect Master Tongtian cultivated the Hunyuan Sword Dao.
• Nuwa described Taishang Laozi’s Taiji Wuji Art, and Ye Xuan secretly warned her that Laozi also possessed One Qi Transforms into Three Pure Ones.
• Yuanshi Tianzun poured his power into the Pangu Banner and attacked the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation.
• The formation withstood the Pangu Banner, and Yuanshi Tianzun and Sect Master Tongtian remained locked in a stalemate.

Taishang Laozi intervened when Yuanshi Tianzun remained trapped in Sect Master Tongtian's Immortal Slaying Sword Formation, but his threat to summon their teacher deepened Tongtian's resentment. Tongtian and the other Saints departed, leaving the Saints divided into two camps.

• Taishang Laozi ordered Sect Master Tongtian and Yuanshi Tianzun to stop fighting, but Tongtian accused his brothers of joining the Two Sages of the West to force him to sign the Investiture of the Gods Treaty.
• Yuanshi Tianzun insulted Tongtian's Interception Sect, and the brothers prepared to fight again.
• Taishang Laozi warned Tongtian that he would summon their teacher if Tongtian did not stop, so Tongtian recalled the Four Immortal-Slaying Swords and vowed to fight his brothers next time.
• Yuanshi Tianzun left without recovering his magical treasures, and Taishang Laozi and Saint Zhunti also departed.
• The observers reviewed the battles in Chaoge and concluded that the Saints had split into two major camps.

After Chaoge recovered from the attack and the Human Clan strengthened under Ye Xuan’s reforms, Yunxiao, Bixiao, and Qiongxiao arrived with an invitation from Tongtian. Ye Xuan agreed to meet the sect master at Biyou Palace on Jin'ao Island.

• Nuwa warned Ye Xuan to act cautiously, then disappeared into the void.
• Ancestral Dragon, Yuanfeng, and Primordial Qilin suppressed the monsters and demons around Chaoge, leaving the city bloodied but secure.
• Ye Xuan’s cultivation inheritances helped the Human Clan grow stronger, while he and his officials prepared for spring planting and carried out reforms.
• Su Daji told Ye Xuan that three guests from Biyou Palace were waiting in the front hall.
• Yunxiao, Bixiao, and Qiongxiao greeted Ye Xuan and said Tongtian had sent them to invite him to Jin'ao Island.

Ye Xuan traveled with the Sanxiao to Jin'ao Island to meet Sect Master Tongtian, whose disciples wondered whether the Human Emperor could help them become Saints. He reached Biyou Palace and found Tongtian pretending to cultivate, while Tongtian privately marveled that he could not discern Ye Xuan's cultivation realm.

• Ye Xuan left Wushuang and Daji with tasks and traveled toward Jin'ao Island with the Sanxiao to meet Sect Master Tongtian.
• Bixiao asked Ye Xuan about rumors that he knew a method of becoming a Saint, and Yunxiao described Tongtian as approachable.
• Ye Xuan admired Jin'ao Island and Biyou Palace before Daoist Duobao welcomed him and escorted him toward Tongtian's hall.
• Daoist Duobao evaded Ye Xuan's invitation to serve in Chaoge, then vanished when Golden Spirit Holy Mother, Wudang Holy Mother, and Zhao Gongming pressed him with questions about Ye Xuan.
• Ye Xuan entered Tongtian's hall, sat down, and ate a spiritual fruit while Tongtian observed him and wondered at his unfathomable cultivation realm.

Ye Xuan told Sect Master Tongtian that the Investiture of the Gods was a struggle for control orchestrated by Dao Ancestor Hongjun and the Heavenly Dao, then warned him that the Interception Sect was vulnerable from within. He proposed an alliance among the Human Clan, the Interception Sect, and Empress Nuwa, leaving Tongtian with a possible path to resist their enemies.

• Sect Master Tongtian examined Ye Xuan and questioned him about the Human Dao Saint and the prospect of another one appearing.
• Ye Xuan asked Tongtian about the Investiture of the Gods, and Tongtian described it as a vast tribulation that could determine the fate of heaven and earth.
• Ye Xuan explained that Dao Ancestor Hongjun and the Heavenly Dao intended to weaken the Human Dao and Earthly Dao and seize control of the Primordial World.
• Ye Xuan recited a prophetic verse and warned Tongtian that the Interception Sect's mixed ranks and secret dealings threatened disaster.
• Tongtian challenged Ye Xuan for warning him while being a discarded pawn himself, but Ye Xuan praised Tongtian and criticized their enemies.
• Ye Xuan revealed that the Ancestral Dragon, Yuanfeng, the Primordial Qilin, and other experts were under his control, and proposed an alliance with the Interception Sect and Empress Nuwa.

Ye Xuan showed Sect Master Tongtian a vision of the Great Tribulation of the Investiture of the Gods, warning that the Interception Sect would be destroyed and Tongtian imprisoned. Tongtian recognized the vision as consistent with heavenly karma and saw that the other sects would target his disciples.

• Sect Master Tongtian mocked Ye Xuan, who retorted that Tongtian was also a pawn and claimed he could see the futures of Saints.
• Ye Xuan warned that Dao Ancestor Hongjun would be the only true winner of the Great Tribulation and that Tongtian would lose his disciples, be forced to swallow a Saint-Slaying Pill, and be imprisoned.
• Ye Xuan conjured a mirror that showed how Nuwa might have been deceived into severing the Human Clan's fortune and sending the Three Demons of Xuanyuan Tomb to Chaoge.
• The mirror showed Di Xin's downfall, Jiang Ziya's rise, and the start of the war between Yin Shang and Zhou that drew the Primordial World's beings into the tribulation.
• Sect Master Tongtian saw the Chan Sect, Human Teaching, Western Teachings, and other cultivators attack the Interception Sect in battles that left its disciples dead and its destruction inevitable.

Ye Xuan showed Sect Master Tongtian how the Great Tribulation of the Investiture of the Gods ended in disaster for the Eastern Saints, the Human Dao, and most of the great powers, leaving Dao Ancestor Hongjun and the Heavenly Dao in control. After seeing that the current course had changed because of Ye Xuan’s plans, Tongtian accepted that he needed to follow the Human Emperor.

• The images showed Sect Master Tongtian the deaths and fates of the Interception Sect’s great powers, his own imprisonment, and the decline of the Human Teaching, Chan Sect, and Nuwa.
• The images revealed that Western Buddhism was freed from its Saints’ control but became Dao Ancestor Hongjun’s cage, while the Human Dao was devoured and Great Celestial Venerable Haotian Shangdi ruled the Primordial World.
• The images vanished, and Ye Xuan asked Sect Master Tongtian what he thought of what he had seen.
• Sect Master Tongtian realized Ye Xuan’s actions had changed the tribulation’s course and brought Nuwa and a Human Clan Saint to their side.
• Sect Master Tongtian admitted that Ye Xuan’s planning surpassed his own and accepted that he had to follow the Human Emperor.

Ye Xuan and Sect Master Tongtian agreed on a new plan for the Great Tribulation of the Investiture of the Gods, and Tongtian ordered the Interception Sect to withdraw to Jin'ao Island. On his way back to Chaoge, Ye Xuan received a mission to raise the Twelve Ancestral Witches and decided to seek Empress Pingxin for the corpses’ locations.

• Ye Xuan persuaded Sect Master Tongtian to work with him, and they discussed their plans for more than ten days.
• After Ye Xuan left Jin'ao Island, Sect Master Tongtian told the Interception Sect disciples to return and remain on the island unless urgently needed.
• The Hongmeng Corpse-Driving System completed its upgrade and tasked Ye Xuan with raising the Twelve Ancestral Witches, protecting the Witch Clan’s survivors, and restoring the clan’s former glory.
• Ye Xuan learned that the mission’s reward was the Pangu essence blood bloodline and considered how it could strengthen him.
• Because Ye Xuan did not know where the Ancestral Witches’ corpses were, he decided to seek Empress Pingxin and win her support.

Ye Xuan entered the Netherworld as the Human Dao Saint to meet Pingxin Empress Houtu and offer her a matter of enormous karma. He discovered that the Netherworld remained chaotic and unfinished, and the chapter ended with Houtu questioning what he had come to offer.

• Ye Xuan returned to Chaoge and asked Grand Tutor Wen Zhong how to enter the Netherworld.
• Grand Tutor Wen Zhong arranged for Ye Xuan to enter through a city god, who guided him into the Nether Underworld.
• Ye Xuan saw that the Underworld was a chaotic place of wandering spirits, scorching depths, and a vast river of blood.
• Pingxin Empress Houtu came to meet Ye Xuan, and they exchanged greetings.
• Ye Xuan told Houtu he had come with a matter of enormous karma, and she asked what he had to offer.

Ye Xuan proposed that Houtu establish a complete bureaucracy and orderly reincarnation system in the Netherworld, which could free her from managing it herself. Houtu welcomed his advice and asked him to explain how the reincarnation process should work.

• Houtu brought Ye Xuan into the Reincarnation Hall, where they could discuss matters without the Heavenly Dao observing them.
• Ye Xuan asked Houtu about the Ten Yama Kings, the Eighteen Levels of Hell, and other underworld officials, and she admitted she knew nothing about them.
• Ye Xuan outlined a hierarchy of city gods, soul-reaping envoys, Netherworld officers, the Ten Yama Kings, and Great Emperor Fengdu to govern the Netherworld.
• Houtu praised Ye Xuan's proposal and explained that departed souls often escaped capture and grew powerful, leaving her overwhelmed with the work.
• Houtu asked Ye Xuan how to organize the steps of reincarnation, and he began considering an answer.

Ye Xuan explained how to organize the Netherworld and establish the Eighteen Levels of Hell, guiding Houtu as she created its landscapes, laws, and offices. The Netherworld’s construction was complete when an earth-shattering thunderclap sounded.

• Ye Xuan described the soul’s journey through the Netherworld and explained how the Three Lives Stone and the Eighteen Levels of Hell would support judgment and reincarnation.
• Houtu recognized the value of Ye Xuan’s guidance and declared that she would establish a complete underworld administration in the Netherworld.
• Houtu created Fengdu City, the Six Heavens Ghost-God Palaces, and the roads, rivers, bridges, and halls required for reincarnation.
• Houtu opened the Eighteen Levels of Hell and established rules for punishing departed spirits according to their deeds.
• Houtu set up the underworld’s divine offices, including Great Emperor Fengdu, the Five Ghost Emperors, the Ten Yama Kings, Meng Po, and Black and White Impermanence.
• An earth-shattering thunderclap rang through the Netherworld after its construction was complete.

Ye Xuan asked Houtu to join forces against the Heavenly Dao, offering to use his power to briefly revive the Ancestral Witches. Houtu agreed on the condition that he protect her brothers’ bodies, then brought him to the hall where the Eleven Ancestral Witches lay beneath red cloths.

• Merit from establishing the Netherworld’s institutions flowed to Houtu and Ye Xuan, and the Earthly Dao recognized the institutions as its orthodox system.
• Houtu asked Ye Xuan why he had helped establish the Netherworld, and he revealed that he had come to seek the Twelve Ancestral Witches.
• Ye Xuan explained that he could summon the Ancestral Witches through their remaining origin power and briefly restore their wills, as he had done with Ancestral Dragon, Yuanfeng, and Primordial Qilin.
• Houtu considered the shared opposition to the Heavenly Dao and Hongjun, then agreed to cooperate if Ye Xuan treated her brothers with care and protected their bodies.
• Houtu led Ye Xuan to the Reincarnation Hall and showed him eleven enormous forms; she uncovered the first statue, whose identity Ye Xuan began to recognize.

Houtu showed Ye Xuan the forms of the Ancestral Witches, including her brothers Zhu Jiuyin and Dijiang, then agreed to let him begin raising the corpses. As Ye Xuan prepared the ritual, Houtu recognized the Purple Gold Bell in his hand.

• Houtu uncovered the red cloths and identified the Ancestral Witches, including Wengzi, Ru Shou, Shebishi, Gou Mang, and Tian Wu.
• Houtu revealed Zhu Jiuyin and said he was the only sibling besides Dijiang who could stand against their eldest brother.
• Houtu uncovered Dijiang and described him as the leader of the Ancestral Witches, whose body could withstand the Chaos Bell.
• Ye Xuan asked to begin raising the corpses, and Houtu warned that the ritual could not be interrupted before asking him to treat her brothers well.
• Ye Xuan began preparing the ritual, summoned yin and yang forces, and produced a Purple Gold Bell that made Houtu's pupils contract.

Ye Xuan used the Purple Gold Bell and the Power of Yang and Yin to awaken the eleven Ancestral Witches’ corpses. He bound them with talismans, calmed their power, and established control over them.

• Ye Xuan rang the Purple Gold Bell and chanted, sending mysterious power toward the eleven stone statues as Houtu watched anxiously.
• The statues trembled and released the Ancestral Witches’ immense powers, prompting the Nether Clan members to kneel and weep.
• The statues transformed into their true forms and unleashed terrifying power and frigid Yin Qi inside the Reincarnation Hall.
• Ye Xuan used a brush-shaped artifact to trace talismans and attached one to each Ancestral Witch, calming their unrest and suppressing the Yin Qi.
• Ye Xuan sensed that the eleven Ancestral Witches now obeyed his commands, and they transformed into humanoid figures.