Chapter Summaries

Director Yu defended his decision to promote Chen Yan and send him to Xiang Prefecture, while Chen Yan reflected on his new saber mastery and learned that Old Daoist Liu was dying. Old Daoist Liu revealed his past and accepted Chen Yan as his disciple.

• Director Yu told Wu An that Chen Yan would become a banner for the Heavenly Supervision Department and ordered him to tell Zhang Jiuling that he would ascend Spiritual Mountain on the fifth day of next month.
• Chen Yan realized his Blood Fiend Saber Technique had reached divine mastery, but he restrained himself from breaking through to Grandmaster because his Daoist cultivation was too low.
• Deng Hong summoned Chen Yan to the yamen, where Chen Yan found Old Daoist Liu gravely ill and gave him a Life Creation Pill.
• Old Daoist Liu explained that he had planned to bury himself at Mass Grave after defeating the demonic Daoist, then described how a demon had destroyed Divine Firmament Dao Sect and killed his master and fellow disciples.
• Old Daoist Liu told Chen Yan that Liu Fujing of Divine Firmament Sect had died on the mountain, and Chen Yan kowtowed and called him Master.

Chen Yan called Old Daoist Liu his master as the dying elder passed him the Divine Firmament Sect’s seal and transferred his cultivation. Old Daoist Liu died peacefully, leaving Chen Yan to carry on the sect’s inheritance.

• Chen Yan called Old Daoist Liu his master, and Old Daoist Liu accepted while asking him to pass on the Divine Firmament inheritance someday.
• Old Daoist Liu gave Chen Yan the sect master’s seal, engraved with the words “Thunder Department.”
• Old Daoist Liu transferred his Magic Power to Chen Yan, raising his cultivation from mid-stage Essence Cultivation to mid-stage Embryonic Breath as his own cultivation dwindled.
• Old Daoist Liu urged Chen Yan not to cling to past obsessions and died in his chair after recalling his path into the Divine Firmament Sect.
• Chen Yan held Old Daoist Liu’s hand and recited a prayer as the elder’s soul appeared briefly before vanishing.

After burying Liu Fujing, Chen Yan strengthened his forces and prepared for his post in the dangerous Xiangxi Commandery. As he stayed behind to improve his own strength, the Heavenly Book of Merit revealed a damaged spiritual treasure: the Thunder Department Commander's Great Seal.

• Chen Yan buried Liu Fujing with the Fish Dragon Saber and ordered guards to protect the grave.
• Chen Yan sent Xu Ji and a thousand Yiling Prefecture Army soldiers to destroy a Rebirth Cult stronghold, then renamed the force the Dragon Sparrow Army and appointed Qin Chong as Xu Ji's deputy.
• Wu Guhan developed the mass-producible Lesser Return Pill, while Yuantong and Wu Guhan advanced to the Dao Foundation stage and left to scout Xiangxi Commandery.
• The Dragon Sparrow Army set out for Xiangxi Commandery without Chen Yan, who stayed in Shanxi Town to strengthen himself.
• Chen Yan opened the Heavenly Book of Merit and discovered the damaged spiritual treasure called the Thunder Department Commander's Great Seal.

Chen Yan discovered that Old Daoist Liu's sect-leader token was the damaged Spiritual Treasure called the Thunder Department Commander's Great Seal. Unable to activate or refine it, he wondered whether it was connected to the Divine Firmament Sect's destruction and was left with a powerful treasure he could not use.

• Chen Yan recognized the purple-bronze seal Old Daoist Liu had given him as the Thunder Department Commander's Great Seal, which the Heavenly Book of Merit identified as a damaged Spiritual Treasure.
• Chen Yan considered whether the seal had inspired the founding of the Divine Firmament Sect and whether it was linked to the Demonic Calamity that destroyed the sect.
• Chen Yan recalled that Old Daoist Liu had been the Divine Firmament Sect's sole known survivor and had later joined the Heavenly Supervision Department.
• Chen Yan tried to channel Magic Power into the seal and leave a Soul Imprint, but a protective restriction prevented both attempts.

Chen Yan used the Heavenly Book of Merit to repair the Thunder Department Commander's Great Seal, which bestowed him with a supreme thunder cultivation method and advanced both his martial and Daoist cultivation. He discovered that the seal had also granted him the Mastering Five Thunders spell.

• Chen Yan learned that he could spend merit points to repair the Thunder Department Commander's Great Seal and used ten thousand points to do so.
• The repaired seal shone and imparted knowledge about thunder, causing Chen Yan's Magic Power and cultivation to surge as the seal absorbed some of his energy.
• Chen Yan reached the early stage of Dao Foundation cultivation and broke through to the early stage of the Grandmaster realm.
• Chen Yan saw that the seal had replaced his old qi-induction method with the Supreme Nine Heavens Jade Clarity Great Brahma Violet Tenuity Mysterious Capital Thunder Jade Scripture.
• Chen Yan noticed that his spells now included Mastering Five Thunders at the beginner level.

Chen Yan gained Mastering Five Thunders and broke through to Martial Grandmaster and Dao Foundation, then spent another ten thousand merit points to obtain Abyssal Shrinking Ground. After discovering the Heavenly Book of Merit could deduce the Five Grains Qi Nourishment Record, he realized it could develop cultivation methods that did not directly raise his realm.

• Chen Yan received beginner-level Mastering Five Thunders from the Thunder Department Commander's Great Seal and learned that he would need to nourish the five qi in his viscera before he could cast the Five Thunders.
• Chen Yan recognized that he had reached Martial Grandmaster and Dao Foundation at sixteen, but resolved to stabilize his Magic Power and seek a strong escape technique.
• Chen Yan spent ten thousand merit points to obtain Minor Success Abyssal Shrinking Ground, then tested it by crossing one hundred zhang in a step and determined he could travel eight hundred li in a day while conserving Magic Power.
• Chen Yan decided to focus on improving his existing abilities rather than acquiring more spells, and his attempts to upgrade the Thunder Jade Scripture and Dragon Elephant Wisdom Skill received no response.
• Chen Yan spent a thousand merit points to advance the Five Grains Qi Nourishment Record from its second level to its third, and realized the Heavenly Book of Merit could deduce methods that did not directly increase his realm.

Chen Yan discovered that the Heavenly Book of Merit could deduce cultivation methods, then inventoried the Mustard Seed Bags taken from Zhan Yuming and Situ Yun. After deciding to travel to Xiangxi Commandery, he prepared to arrange a safe home for the old woman before leaving with Facai.

• Chen Yan learned that the Heavenly Book of Merit could deduce techniques and planned to buy spirit grains to cultivate the improved Five Grains Qi Nourishment Record.
• Chen Yan opened Zhan Yuming's Mustard Seed Bag and found one hundred Spirit Coins, the Five Thunder Spirit Sword Technique, and an incomplete cultivation method.
• Chen Yan searched Situ Yun's Mustard Seed Bag, kept the Soul Nurturing Ghost Jar and other salvageable items, and burned the demonic scripture he found.
• Chen Yan finished counting the spoils, decided not to pursue murder for wealth, and resolved to leave for Xiangxi Commandery after making arrangements for the old woman.
• Chen Yan told Facai it was time to go, and Facai agreed.

Chen Yan left Shanxi Town and delayed his journey to Xiang Prefecture so hidden enemies would reveal themselves. In the wilderness, he summoned the beasts with his Beast Summoning Bell, gained a Striped Black Tiger as a mount, and promised to help it transform into a demon; they headed north toward a cultivators' market.

• Chen Yan left Shanxi Town, trusting Zhao Gang to protect Granny Chen and her grandson.
• Chen Yan decided to travel slowly toward Xiangxi Commandery to draw out those threatened by his appointment as Pacification Commissioner.
• Chen Yan used the Beast Summoning Bell to gather the forest's animals and spotted a leopard as a possible mount.
• A massive Striped Black Tiger knelt before Chen Yan and asked for help transforming into a demon.
• Chen Yan offered to help the aging tiger transform if it carried him to Xiang Prefecture, and the tiger accepted.
• Chen Yan and Facai climbed onto the tiger, which refused a Beast Food Pill so it would not delay their journey, then carried them north toward a cultivators' market.

Chen Yan refined his Black Brocade Flying Fish Robe with century-old spider silk, making it as tough as a top-grade magic tool, then prepared to test Sleeve Universe on Facai. A sudden earthquake interrupted him as he traveled toward Xiyue Valley.

• Chen Yan rested with Facai and the Black Tiger less than a hundred li from Xiyue Valley after traveling north for three days.
• Chen Yan burned away the demonic aura and impurities in the spider silk using his Three Yang True Fire.
• Chen Yan fused the spider silk into his Daoist robe, creating a Black Brocade Flying Fish Robe that resisted fire and a sharp spider leg.
• Chen Yan turned toward Facai to test Sleeve Universe's power of imprisonment, but a violent earthquake shook the forest and nearly knocked him down.

A worldwide earthquake and a Blood Moon triggered strange transformations among beasts and spirits across the Martial Dynasty, while Chen Yan discovered that its black energy affected Facai and Black Tiger but not him. In Shangjing, Emperor Wuxuan dismissed warnings of disaster as Qin Zhihui sought to weaken the Heavenly Supervision Department, and Yu Huatian mobilized forces against the rising demons.

• Chen Yan saw Facai and Black Tiger stare at the Blood Moon and absorb its black energy, rapidly increasing their blood qi.
• An elder warned Zhao Longji that the Blood Moon and Mars Guarding the Heart foretold calamity, but Zhao Longji had him dragged away to be beheaded.
• Qin Zhihui called the Blood Moon auspicious and urged Zhao Longji to abolish the Heavenly Supervision Department and make the Rebirth Cult the state religion, but Zhao Longji postponed the decision.
• Yu Huatian ordered Wu An to mobilize Flying Fish Guards and call on the Spiritual Mountain Dao Sect and White Horse Buddhism to confront demons across the realm.
• Yu Huatian acknowledged that Qin Zhihui had proposed abolishing the department and ordering his execution, then looked upon the Blood Moon as reports of ghosts and demons spread.

After the Blood Moon, Facai awakened with greatly increased strength but still showed no signs of becoming a demon. Black Tiger nearly died during its demon transformation, but Chen Yan saved it with Beast Food Pills, and it left the chapter reborn and bowing to him.

• Facai awakened first and discovered that its claws could cut deeply into stone, though it had not transformed into a demon.
• Black Tiger began transforming into a demon, but its fur, claws, and fangs fell away as the process depleted its qi and blood.
• As Black Tiger lay near death, Chen Yan fed it five Beast Food Pills.
• The pills restored Black Tiger's qi and blood, allowing new fur, claws, and fangs to grow as its demon transformation succeeded.
• Black Tiger roared through the mountains and forest, then lowered its head before Chen Yan.

Chen Yan questioned Scholar Jia and Top Scholar Jia after Black Tiger brought them over, learning they had lost their way while fleeing a famine. A strange woman's laugh sounded nearby as they sat by the fire.

• A grandfather and grandson stumbled upon Chen Yan and Black Tiger, mistook the tiger for a man-eater, and tried to flee.
• Chen Yan ordered Black Tiger to stop the pair and bring them over.
• Scholar Jia explained that he and Top Scholar Jia had lost their way while traveling to seek refuge after a famine and an earthquake.
• Chen Yan learned that the old man was Scholar Jia, the boy was Top Scholar Jia, and their Provincial Graduate Jia was a dog.
• Top Scholar Jia stared hungrily at Chen Yan's roasted sheep until his grandfather kicked him.
• A sharp woman's laugh rang out to their right.

Chen Yan and his companions encountered a ghostly woman in the woods, and Facai drove her off, leaving yellow fur that Black Tiger tracked. They reached a moonlit cliff and found seven weasels performing an eerie ritual around an old-looking white weasel.

• A ghostly woman asked whether she looked like a person or a ghost, and Top Scholar Jia called her a ghost, provoking her attack.
• Facai clawed the woman, causing her to collapse into black mist as a yellow shadow vanished from her body.
• Chen Yan collected yellow fur from Facai’s paw, and Black Tiger followed its scent while Scholar Jia and Top Scholar Jia joined them.
• Chen Yan and the others arrived at a cliff, where they saw six skull-crowned weasels circling a wrinkled white weasel.

Chen Yan and his companions witnessed Great Immortal Yellow gather Moonlight Essence before the Yellow Weasels confronted them. After Black Tiger defeated the six attackers with a roar, the ancient white-furred Yellow Weasel bowed and begged Chen Yan to spare them.

• Chen Yan saw seven Yellow Weasels perform a ritual that collected Moonlight Essence in a bronze goblet, and the weasels noticed his group watching.
• The six Yellow Weasels charged Chen Yan and his companions with sticks, bones, and rocks, but Black Tiger’s roar knocked them down.
• The ancient white-furred Yellow Weasel approached Chen Yan’s group, making Scholar Jia and Top Scholar Jia fear an attack.
• The old Yellow Weasel threw itself face down, held the goblet over its head, and identified itself as Huang Shi Niang as it begged Chen Yan for forgiveness.

Chen Yan learned that Huang Shi Niang was a disgraced member of the Chuma Family and took the Bronze Wine Goblet she offered for their lives. After testing its Moonlight Essence and discovering it could increase spirits’ cultivation, he left Huang Shi Niang and the young Yellow Weasels kneeling before him.

• Huang Shi Niang begged Chen Yan to spare her and the other Yellow Weasels, offering him the Bronze Wine Goblet.
• Huang Shi Niang explained that the goblet had changed after the Blood Moon and that she had been expelled from the Chuma Family beyond the Pass.
• Chen Yan drank a little Moonlight Essence, then let Facai and Black Tiger drink most of what remained.
• Black Tiger’s Demonic Power increased, and Chen Yan identified the treasure as the Moon-Worshipping Wine Goblet, which turned moonlight into wine that could increase spirits’ cultivation.
• Huang Shi Niang and the young Yellow Weasels knelt and kowtowed before Chen Yan.

Chen Yan spared Huang Shi Niang and the six yellow weasels, then revealed that Scholar Jia and Top Scholar Jia were ghosts who had died years earlier and sent them into reincarnation. Afterward, he realized the Blood Moon might cause ghosts and demons across the Martial Dynasty to multiply, and grew especially concerned about Xiang Prefecture.

• Chen Yan used Spirit Sight to confirm that Huang Shi Niang and the six yellow weasels had not killed anyone, warned them, and let them return to the woods.
• Chen Yan told Scholar Jia and Top Scholar Jia that they were already dead and explained that they had died while traveling during the beginning of Chengping.
• Scholar Jia remembered that mountain bandits had killed him and his grandson, and their bodies took on the gruesome injuries they had suffered in death.
• Chen Yan chanted a scripture that dispelled their resentment, and Scholar Jia and Top Scholar Jia bowed before vanishing into a white glow.
• Chen Yan considered how the Blood Moon could turn ghosts and demons throughout the Martial Dynasty into threats, and worried about Xiang Prefecture in particular.

Chen Yan arrived at Xiyue Valley and entered its bustling Ghost Market, where humans, demons, and ghosts traded under Hermit Xiyue’s rules. He headed to the Myriad Treasures shop to sell miscellaneous items and seek five-element spirit grain.

• Chen Yan reached Xiyue Valley on the black tiger and paid one Spirit Coin to enter.
• A wolf demon escorted Chen Yan through the mist and warned him that fighting was forbidden in the valley.
• Chen Yan surveyed Xiyue Ghost Market’s stalls, shops, and diverse crowd while riding with the black tiger and Facai.
• Chen Yan stopped outside the Myriad Treasures shop, where a white-haired old man welcomed him and asked what he wanted.

Chen Yan visited a shop in Xiyue Ghost Market to sell pills, medicines, and broken Magic Tools he had collected. The white-haired shopkeeper bought the goods for 130 Spirit Coins, while remaining puzzled by Chen Yan’s connection to two rival sects.

• Chen Yan asked the white-haired shopkeeper whether the store bought goods and showed him a pile of pills, medicines, beast parts, and shattered Magic Tools.
• The shopkeeper identified pills from the Spiritual Mountain Dao Sect and medicines from the Mount Lao Daoist Sect, and wondered which sect Chen Yan belonged to.
• Chen Yan avoided explaining where the goods came from and told the shopkeeper to continue appraising them.
• The shopkeeper valued the pills and medicines at 121 Spirit Coins and the broken Magic Tools at nine Spirit Coins.
• Chen Yan accepted the 130 Spirit Coin offer and sold the goods.

After selling pills at the Hundred Treasures Shop, Chen Yan bought spirit grains and prepared to rest in Xiyue Valley before leaving the next morning. On the way, he recognized two Qingji from Shanxi Town imprisoned in a slave trader’s cage.

• Chen Yan refused the white-haired shopkeeper’s offer to join the Hundred Treasures Shop as a pill refiner.
• Chen Yan bought one hundred dou each of Wood Spirit Wheat and Earth Flame Rice, paid 150 Spirit Coins, and received a guest token.
• Chen Yan stored the spirit grains in his Sleeve Universe and left the shop with Black Tiger and Facai.
• Chen Yan decided to find an inn, eat well, and rest before setting out the next morning.
• Chen Yan spotted a slave stall and recognized the miniature woman and girl in a birdcage as the two Qingji he had met in Shanxi Town.

Chen Yan found two Qingji he knew imprisoned in Xiyue Valley and confronted the Daoist who had captured them. When the Daoist demanded an outrageous price, Chen Yan walked away, intending to track him down later.

• Chen Yan recognized the woman and girl Qingji in a birdcage, and the girl tried to call out to him for help.
• The Daoist owner shocked the girl with the cage’s talisman after she exposed his lie about another buyer placing a deposit.
• The Daoist demanded one thousand Spirit Coins for the two Qingji, far above their likely value.
• Chen Yan refused to pay and left, while Black Tiger memorized the Daoist’s scent so Chen Yan could pursue him later.