Chapter Summaries

After Chu Xinghe defeated Zheng Yu, he faced Luo Ying'er in an alchemy contest between the Vast Heaven Sect and the Heavenly Medicine Palace. Chu Xinghe engineered extra obstacles to ensure he would lose, and the chapter ended when Luo Ying'er revealed her Qilin True Fire.

• Luo Ying'er skipped the victory banquet and resolved to defeat Chu Xinghe, while Wan Lin comforted her in the pill room.
• Chu Xinghe and Luo Ying'er met at the Medicine King Palace as the alchemy contest began under the great elder and Wu Qun.
• The great elder announced that they would refine a Feather Ascension Pill, and Chu Xinghe proposed that each contestant add an ingredient chosen by the other.
• Luo Ying'er added sea-blue stone to Chu Xinghe's ingredients, while Chu Xinghe chose the relatively harmless plantain herb for her.
• Luo Ying'er summoned Qilin True Fire, shocking the spectators and delighting Chu Xinghe, who thought the contest was finally certain to end in his defeat.

Chu Xinghe expected his pill-refining attempt to end in a furnace explosion, but it unexpectedly produced a divine-grade Feather Ascension Pill. The chapter leaves the sect convinced he mastered Water-Fire Fusion, while Chu Xinghe remained bewildered by the result.

• Luo Ying'er refined a supreme-grade Feather Ascension Pill using the plantain herb Chu Xinghe had prepared.
• Chu Xinghe added the aquamarine stone to his Vermilion Bird Furnace, which began shaking violently as he intensified the Vermilion Bird Spirit Fire.
• The furnace exploded, but its flames and the water-element power from within formed a harmonious Water-Fire Fusion around it.
• A golden divine-grade pill emerged, and lightning struck it before it descended intact into the Medicine King Palace.
• Wu Qun, the Great Elder, and the disciples believed Chu Xinghe had mastered Water-Fire Fusion, while Chu Xinghe wondered how his attempt to cause an explosion had made a divine pill.
• Luo Ying'er stared at Chu Xinghe with awe and found herself thinking he was handsome.

Chu Xinghe accidentally refined a divine pill and helped the Vast Heaven Sect defeat the Heavenly Medicine Palace in an alchemy contest, though he privately lamented his success. The next morning, he learned Qin Xiangqian had brought important news to Haotian Palace, leaving Chu Xinghe hopeful that the report might finally bring a setback to the sect.

• Gu Mingchao and the Vast Heaven Sect elders witnessed the divine pill appear and celebrated Chu Xinghe’s achievement as proof that the sect had found a peerless talent.
• The grand elder presented the divine pill to Wu Qun, who conceded the Heavenly Medicine Palace’s defeat, while Luo Ying'er praised Chu Xinghe and left with Wu Qun.
• The Vast Heaven Sect preserved the lightning-blasted hole in the Medicine King Palace, and news of Chu Xinghe’s victories over Martial Emperor City and the Heavenly Medicine Palace spread.
• The Spirit Crane Palace held a feast for Chu Xinghe, who later mourned his unwanted triumphs and blamed Zheng Yu and Luo Ying'er for thwarting his plans to fail.
• The next morning, Chu Xinghe learned the grand elder had gone to Haotian Palace after Qin Xiangqian reported important news to Gu Mingchao and the palace heads.

The Vast Heaven Sect learned that its No. 1 Spirit Mine had run dry and struggled to find someone willing to select a replacement. Chu Xinghe seized the chance to volunteer, and the chapter left Qin Xiangqian stunned when the Great Elder calmly confirmed Chu Xinghe’s mention of the sect’s secret.

• Qin Xiangqian reported that the No. 1 Spirit Mine had produced no spirit stones for more than half a month, and Gu Mingchao asked the elders to choose a replacement.
• The elders hesitated to take responsibility for selecting such an expensive and consequential spirit mine, so Gu Mingchao postponed the decision.
• Qin Xiangqian told Chu Xinghe about the exhausted mine and suggested that Chu Xinghe choose a new one because of his skill at judging raw stones.
• Chu Xinghe urged Qin Xiangqian to bring the proposal before the sect leaders and dragged him into the Haotian Grand Hall.
• The Great Elder let Chu Xinghe speak despite his interruption, and Chu Xinghe mentioned the No. 1 Spirit Mine’s exhaustion; the Great Elder confirmed it, shocking Qin Xiangqian.

Chu Xinghe was entrusted with choosing a replacement for the depleted No. 1 Spirit Mine, receiving full authority from the Vast Heaven Sect. He gathered a group of troublesome but devoted disciples and prepared to leave for Spirit Vein Mountain.

• Qin Xiangqian told the sect master and elders that Chu Xinghe's raw-stone appraisal ability made him the best candidate to select a replacement spirit vein.
• Gu Mingchao and the elders agreed to let Chu Xinghe handle the mine matter, deciding that the experience would be worthwhile even if he made a mistake.
• Gu Mingchao gave Chu Xinghe the Haotian Token and authorized him to act without reporting back to the sect.
• Chu Xinghe recruited Ma Liang, Wan Lin, and other troublesome disciples to accompany him.
• Chu Xinghe received supplies from disciples across the sect, and the sect master arranged a teleportation formation for their departure.

Chu Xinghe traveled to Spirit Vein Mountain with Qin Xiangqian and took charge of the Vast Heaven Sect’s search for a replacement spirit mine. He insisted on buying the supposedly exhausted Tianyi Spirit Mine, and Qin Xiangqian completed the purchase from the Shi Clan.

• Chu Xinghe arrived at Spirit Vein Mountain with Qin Xiangqian and told his junior brothers and sisters the purpose of their trip.
• Qin Xiangqian’s staff questioned why Chu Xinghe had been entrusted with the No. 1 Spirit Mine matter, then showed him information about available mines.
• Chu Xinghe rejected the promising options and demanded to buy the Tianyi Spirit Mine after learning the Shi Clan was about to remove it from sale.
• Qin Xiangqian followed Chu Xinghe’s order despite his deputies’ concerns and went to negotiate with the Shi Clan.
• The Shi Clan’s representative eagerly agreed to sell the supposedly dead mine, completing the transaction on Chu Xinghe’s first day in Spirit City.

Chu Xinghe bought the supposedly worthless Tianyi Spirit Mine, prompting widespread disbelief while Zheng Yu recognized the purchase as a sign of hidden value and moved to acquire a neighboring mine. The Vast Heaven Sect’s elders chose to trust Chu Xinghe, who eagerly pushed to pay for the mine so he could finally earn punishment, though the Misfortune Compass had not reacted.

• Chu Xinghe bought the Tianyi Spirit Mine for the Vast Heaven Sect, and people across Spirit City called him a fool for spending a fortune on a worthless mine.
• Zheng Yu dismissed the rumors, concluded Chu Xinghe must have uncovered a secret, and ordered his steward to secure the neighboring small mine with the Martial Emperor Token.
• Shi Qingshan and the Shi Clan elders celebrated the sale until Shi Qingteng burst in warning that the Tianyi Spirit Mine was an unparalleled mine, and they had him dragged away.
• The Vast Heaven Sect’s elders received news of the purchase, but the sect master persuaded them to wait and trust that Chu Xinghe had a reason for his decision.
• Chu Xinghe kissed the purchase contract and urged Qin Xiangqian to complete the payment, wondering why the Misfortune Compass had not reacted.

Chu Xinghe discovered that Vast Heaven Sect miner disciples lived in slave-like conditions and ordered their treatment improved, despite Qin Xiangqian warning that every sect would oppose the change. He promised the miners that they would receive meat every day, whether he stayed or not.

• The Vast Heaven Sect paid for the Tianyi Spirit Mine, and the Shi Clan withdrew as the sect took ownership.
• Chu Xinghe visited a spirit mine with Qin Xiangqian and saw that miner disciples lived in squalor and were forced to toil without rest.
• Qin Xiangqian explained that competition among sects had driven miner disciples' benefits down until they were treated like slaves.
• Chu Xinghe used the Haotian Token to order better treatment and meals for all Vast Heaven Sect miner disciples, despite the risk of angering other sects.
• After Tieniu said the miners only got meat while a big shot was present, Chu Xinghe promised they would eat meat every day and threatened anyone who withheld their due.

Chu Xinghe radically improved the Vast Heaven Sect miners’ food, rest, uniforms, resources, and cultivation opportunities, despite Qin Xiangqian warning that the changes would sharply reduce the sect’s spirit-stone supply. The miners learned that Chu Xinghe’s promises were real and began to believe they could pursue advancement in the sect.

• Chu Xinghe took the unlucky Wang Tieniu under his wing, hoping Tieniu’s bad luck would counter his own extraordinary fortune.
• Chu Xinghe gave the miners an hour of rest after lunch and arranged new uniforms, then raised their benefits until they consumed thirty percent of the spirit mine’s annual output.
• Qin Xiangqian warned that the changes would cut the sect’s spirit-stone supply and provoke unrest, but Chu Xinghe had Ma Liang post the plan under the Haotian Token’s authority.
• Miners across the Vast Heaven Sect’s spirit mines gathered around Ma Liang, who confirmed the benefits and praised Chu Xinghe’s achievements.
• The miners realized Chu Xinghe had restored their chance to advance, study stronger techniques, and potentially become outer sect or inner sect disciples.

Chu Xinghe’s new benefits for the Vast Heaven Sect’s miner disciples inspired them and sparked unrest among miners at other sects. As the Vast Heaven Sect’s leaders debated the backlash, the sect master defended Chu Xinghe’s intentions and refused to let the great elder rush in to suppress the matter, leaving the sect’s response unresolved.

• The Vast Heaven Sect’s miner disciples read Chu Xinghe’s notice, knelt in gratitude, and celebrated their chance to pursue cultivation and their dreams.
• Wan Lin, Ma Liang, and the other disciples realized how narrow their earlier thinking had been and vowed to follow Chu Xinghe.
• News of Chu Xinghe’s benefits spread to other sects, whose miner disciples refused to work and demanded equal treatment until rumors of his impending punishment temporarily quieted them.
• The great elder and the other leaders told the sect master that other powers demanded Chu Xinghe’s punishment and that his policies would cost the sect more than half its annual spirit stones.
• The great elder offered to go to the mine and handle the crisis, but the sect master warned that doing so would harm Chu Xinghe’s standing and praised his benevolent intentions.

The Vast Heaven Sect's sect master backed Chu Xinghe and left him to handle the fallout from his actions, while Chu Xinghe welcomed the sect's isolation and tried to turn its loss of the Shi Clan's stone-identifying services into a costly failure. He chose Wang Tieniu to learn stone identification, confident that Tieniu would fail, as the Vast Heaven Sect's improved treatment of miners sparked strikes elsewhere and raised its own mine's production.

• The sect master refused to answer the other sects, voided the Shi Clan contract, and ordered the elders to leave Chu Xinghe to deal with the situation.
• After receiving no response from the Vast Heaven Sect, Chu Xinghe rejoiced when Qin Xiangqian reported that the other sects had ended cooperation and the Shi Clan contract was void.
• Chu Xinghe ordered Qin Xiangqian to buy a stone-identifying technique and selected Wang Tieniu as the candidate to learn it.
• Miners from other sects began striking after seeing the Vast Heaven Sect's better food, lodging, and rest arrangements, while its own miners worked harder and raised production by thirty percent.
• Qin Xiangqian bought the technique and questioned Chu Xinghe's choice of Wang Tieniu, but Chu insisted Tieniu would help the Vast Heaven Sect surpass the Shi Clan.

Chu Xinghe’s choice of Wang Tieniu as a stone-pointer drew ridicule from the sects and the Shi Clan, while miners at the Tianyi Spirit Mine uncovered only one high-grade spirit stone. Wang Tieniu then mastered the Stone-Pointing Technique on his own and revealed an astonishing extraction rate, leaving Qin Xiangqian and Chu Xinghe stunned.

• Chu Xinghe assigned Wang Tieniu the Stone-Pointing Technique, prompting outsiders and the Shi Clan to mock his choice.
• Zheng Yu heard that the Tianyi Spirit Mine was still producing waste rock and ordered the miners to keep digging.
• The miners found one raw stone containing a high-grade spirit stone, but Qin Xiangqian doubted the mine’s prospects.
• Wang Tieniu told Qin Xiangqian that he had comprehended the technique and successfully extracted spirit stones from raw stones.
• Qin Xiangqian realized Tieniu had achieved a fifty percent extraction rate, and Tieniu claimed he could reach ninety percent after a few more days of practice.
• Chu Xinghe arrived in time to hear Tieniu’s claims and nearly fainted.

Chu Xinghe was horrified when Wang Tieniu independently mastered and improved the Stone-Pointing Technique, but he regained hope when a collapse at the Tianyi Spirit Mine exposed a vast deposit of high-grade and supreme-grade spirit stones. The sect members credited Chu Xinghe with foreseeing the mine's value, while he privately despaired that another unexpected success had ruined his plans.

• Ma Liang told Chu Xinghe that Wang Tieniu had mastered the Stone-Pointing Technique, and Chu Xinghe saw that Tieniu had transformed it into a divine technique.
• Chu Xinghe tried to reassure himself that Tieniu's achievement would not affect his plans, then heard that a tunnel had collapsed at the Tianyi Spirit Mine.
• Chu Xinghe and the others entered the newly revealed tunnel and found it filled with high-grade spirit stones and a wall of supreme-grade stones.
• Wang Tieniu used his technique to extract a high-grade spirit stone and a supreme-grade spirit stone, confirming the mine's riches.
• Wan Lin, Qin Xiangqian, and the others praised Chu Xinghe for buying the mine, while Chu Xinghe privately lamented his good fortune.

The Tianyi Spirit Mine proved to be the greatest spirit mine under heaven, and the Vast Heaven Sect celebrated Chu Xinghe’s supposedly brilliant plans and Wang Tieniu’s stone-appraisal talent. Chu Xinghe remained miserable over the outcome until Qin Xiangqian reported that Zheng Yu had bought the smaller mine, triggering a reward from the Misfortune Compass.

• The Tianyi Spirit Mine’s enormous spirit stones emerged, shocking Spirit City and leaving the Shi Clan devastated over its lost mine.
• Zheng Yu and the sects praised Chu Xinghe as an unfathomable strategist, while Wang Tieniu’s stone-appraisal success made him famous.
• The Vast Heaven Sect’s elders and disciples celebrated Chu Xinghe, and those who had doubted him apologized as Chu Cheng continued to denounce him.
• At the Vast Heaven Sect’s Spirit City compound, Qin Xiangqian regretted forgetting the smaller mine and told Chu Xinghe that Zheng Yu had bought it.
• The Misfortune Compass spun after Qin Xiangqian’s news, and Chu Xinghe was stunned to receive a reward.

Chu Xinghe gained cultivation after the Misfortune Compass rewarded him, but news of the Vast Heaven Sect’s success in Spirit City left him convinced the trip had gone badly. As he left the city, he encountered Zheng Yu under attack and fled, only for the black-clad attackers to abandon Zheng Yu and pursue him instead.

• The Misfortune Compass raised Chu Xinghe’s cultivation to the peak of the Fourth-Rank Martial Ancestor realm after Qin Xiangqian reported that the other sects had resumed cooperating with the Vast Heaven Sect.
• Chu Xinghe visited the spirit mine and saw Wang Tieniu’s Stone-Pointing Technique progress and his gifted new disciples, then decided to leave Spirit City.
• Qin Xiangqian and the Vast Heaven Chamber of Commerce’s disciples saw Chu Xinghe off as he headed toward the teleportation array with Wan Lin, Ma Liang, and the others.
• Chu Xinghe heard fighting and found Zheng Yu and the Martial Emperor City disciples surrounded by men in black, but he shouted that the Vast Heaven Sect was uninvolved and ran away.
• A Seventh-Rank Martial Saint among the men in black identified Chu Xinghe and led the attackers in pursuit, leaving Zheng Yu and the Martial Emperor City disciples behind.

Chu Xinghe surrendered to the Demonic Shadow Sect after drawing its attackers away from Zheng Yu and the disciples of Martial Emperor City, and Meng Yong captured him. Zheng Yu revealed what happened, prompting the Vast Heaven Sect, Martial Emperor City, and other powers to launch a desperate search across Spirit City.

• Chu Xinghe fled toward Spirit City, surrendered to Meng Yong and the Demonic Shadow Sect, and was carried away in a sack.
• Zheng Yu arrived, found signs of the Demonic Shadow Sect, and concluded that Chu Xinghe had been captured while drawing the attackers away from Martial Emperor City.
• Zheng Yu crushed his Martial Emperor Token and told Ma Liang, Wan Lin, and the arriving disciples that Chu Xinghe had been taken.
• Ma Liang and the other Vast Heaven Sect disciples crushed their tokens to alert the sect, while experts from Spirit City rushed to the scene.
• Qin Xiangqian ordered Spirit City mobilized, and the Vast Heaven Sect, Martial Emperor City, and other sects began searching for Chu Xinghe.

After Chu Xinghe was captured by Meng Yong, the Vast Heaven Sect and Martial Emperor City issued their divine tokens and sent experts to search for him. In Meng Yong’s basement, Chu Xinghe tried to win the Devil Lord’s trust by handing over sect treasures and claiming he wanted to join the demonic path.

• Ma Liang reported Chu Xinghe’s capture to Gu Mingchao, who summoned the Vast Heaven Sect and ordered its forces to Spirit City.
• Gu Mingchao issued the Haotian Token, and Cheng Xiaotian issued the Martial Emperor Token, sending their factions and other experts to search for Chu Xinghe.
• Zheng Yu blamed himself for Chu Xinghe’s capture as experts converged on Spirit City.
• Meng Yong questioned Chu Xinghe after he was brought to a basement near Tianrun City, but Chu Xinghe claimed the Vast Heaven Sect should be destroyed.
• Chu Xinghe gave Meng Yong the Divine Stone-Pointing Art, his storage rings, and their spirit stones, then claimed he had always wanted to join a demonic sect.

Chu Xinghe tried to ingratiate himself with the Demonic Shadow Sect by giving Meng Yong the Haotian Battle Intent, hoping its dangerous incomplete form would bring down the sect. Instead, Meng Yong broke through to the eighth rank, and Xu Zhi proposed using the Truth Mirror to uncover Chu Xinghe’s real intentions.

• Chu Xinghe eagerly gave Meng Yong the spirit stones, Divine Stone-Pointing Art, and Haotian Battle Intent, claiming he wanted to destroy the Vast Heaven Sect and join the demonic path.
• Xu Zhi arranged for the guards to leave Chu Xinghe an opportunity to escape, but Chu Xinghe locked his cell door and urged them to keep watch over him.
• Meng Yong cultivated the Haotian Battle Intent, broke through from the seventh rank to the eighth, and became a Devil Venerable.
• After learning that Chu Xinghe had refused to escape, Meng Yong and Xu Zhi questioned whether he was truly sincere about joining them.
• Xu Zhi suggested testing Chu Xinghe with Meng Yong’s Truth Mirror, and they headed to the dungeon.

Chu Xinghe convinced Meng Yong and the Demonic Shadow Sect that he sincerely wanted to join the demonic path, then urged them to attack the Vast Heaven Sect and drafted a battle plan. The chapter left Xu Zhi convinced that Chu Xinghe was more sinister than anyone in the sect, while Chu Xinghe’s supposed plans were actually designed to lead the demonic forces into disaster.

• Chu Xinghe passed the Truth Mirror’s tests, convincing Meng Yong that he sincerely wanted to join the Demonic Shadow Sect and destroy the Vast Heaven Sect, so Meng Yong released him and welcomed him.
• Meng Yong learned that the Vast Heaven Sect and Martial Emperor City had issued tokens to search for Chu Xinghe and that righteous forces had struck Demonic Shadow Sect branches; Chu Xinghe angrily demanded a counterattack.
• At a banquet, Chu Xinghe cursed the righteous path and urged the demonic path to attack, while Meng Yong tried to calm him and secretly confirmed his words were true.
• Xu Zhi watched Chu Xinghe make friends with nearby disciples and improve the hidden sentries’ concealment instead of trying to escape.
• Chu Xinghe gave Xu Zhi a battle plan targeting the righteous path’s weak points and urged him to deliver it to Meng Yong, while privately intending the plan to make the demonic path destroy itself.

After Demon Venerable Meng Yong died while cultivating Chu Xinghe’s incomplete Haotian Battle Intent, the Demonic Shadow Sect attacked Chu Xinghe, forcing him to fight his way out with the Haotian Sword Casket’s newly unlocked third sword. Badly wounded and out of spiritual power, he collapsed beneath a willow tree and was taken away by a compassionate young miss and her attendant.

• Xu Zhi brought Chu Xinghe’s battle plans to Demon Venerable Meng Yong, but Meng Yong’s body was overwhelmed by Haotian Battle Intent and he exploded.
• Xu Zhi blamed Chu Xinghe for Meng Yong’s death and led the Demonic Shadow Sect disciples in an attack.
• Chu Xinghe killed Xu Zhi with Thunder Shadow’s Purple Lightning Flash and fought the other attackers with Flying Locust and Suspended Shears Sword Wings.
• Chu Xinghe slaughtered his way out of the compound, then collapsed beneath a willow tree from his injuries and exhaustion.
• A young miss ordered Uncle Feng to take the bloodied Chu Xinghe into their carriage and bring him along.