Chapter Summaries

Lin Xuan learned that Perfected Master Tongyu had named him Spirit Herb Mountain’s young master because they believed he possessed the rare Bitter Spirit Root, like the sect’s Founding Patriarch. Xu Jinqing gave Lin Xuan a poisoned ancient treasure, and Perfected Master Tongyu began to offer him another gift.

• Xu Jinqing visited Perfected Master Tongyu’s cave residence and praised Lin Xuan’s cultivation talent.
• Perfected Master Tongyu and Xu Jinqing explained that they believed Lin Xuan possessed the Bitter Spirit Root and that this was why they had made him the sect’s young master.
• Lin Xuan concealed that he was actually an ordinary mortal whose cultivation came from the Blue Star Sea, and promised not to disappoint the elders.
• Xu Jinqing gave Lin Xuan the Green Scale Needle, a rare ancient treasure made from Mystic Heaven Cold Jade and carrying deadly poison.
• Perfected Master Tongyu said he would make up for not giving Lin Xuan a gift when he achieved Golden Core and reached into his robe.

Perfected Master Tongyu gave Lin Xuan two magic treasures and sent him to assist the Ye clan, withholding the details of the mission. After refining the treasures and traveling across You Province, Lin Xuan arrived near the clan’s location, equipped with materials for earth-grade spirit talismans but still missing key ingredients for his armor.

• Perfected Master Tongyu gave Lin Xuan the Green Scale Needle and Carefree Fan, then ordered him to help the Ye clan without explaining the trouble they faced.
• After Lin Xuan left, Perfected Master Tongyu and Xu Jinqing discussed the mission’s danger and its possible connection to the Mountain within a Mountain and Lin Xuan’s Bitter Spirit Root.
• Lin Xuan returned to his cave residence and spent nine days refining the two treasures before setting out.
• Lin Xuan traveled through You Province, stopping at market cities to buy materials and sell spiritual weapons while refusing merchants’ gifts.
• After flying for seven days, Lin Xuan reached the Ye clan’s location with materials for earth-grade spirit talismans but without several important ingredients for the Green Flame Qilin Armor.

Lin Xuan arrived at Green Leaf Mountain, where he investigated the local cultivation forces and learned that the Liu family had recently gained the upper hand over the Ye family. As he set out for the Ye family manor, he heard a distant dispute involving the two clans and decided to investigate.

• Lin Xuan descended onto Green Leaf Mountain and used a jade talisman to enter its concealed market district.
• Lin Xuan concealed his Core Condensation cultivation and browsed the market, buying Fire Spirit Rat hides and gathering information from a shopkeeper.
• The shopkeeper told Lin Xuan that the mountain held more than one hundred and fifty Spirit Veins and that the Liu and Ye families led its cultivation forces.
• Lin Xuan learned that the Liu family had recently gained a second Core Condensation cultivator and become the strongest force in the region.
• Lin Xuan left the market for the Ye family manor, heard a distant dispute involving the Ye and Liu families, and chose to investigate.

Lin Xuan hid near a lakeside and watched Liu Jian attack Ye Ru, suspecting the apparent family dispute concealed a larger plot. As demon cultivators overwhelmed the Ye Family’s followers and Ye Ru recognized that her opponent was not Liu Jian, Lin Xuan remained concealed and alert.

• Lin Xuan disguised himself, traveled to a lake, and concealed himself to observe two groups of cultivators.
• Ye Ru confronted Liu Jian over the attack on the Ye Family’s general store, but Lin Xuan suspected their clash was not an ordinary family dispute.
• Liu Jian launched a killing attack on Ye Ru, destroying her handkerchief shield before she countered with a short sword.
• Lin Xuan recognized Liu Jian’s followers as demon cultivators and wondered whether they served the Supreme Demon of Extreme Evil.
• The Ye Family’s disciples fell behind in the fight, and Ye Ru struggled against Liu Jian’s strange techniques.
• Ye Ru asked her opponent who he really was after realizing he was not Liu Jian.

Lin Xuan secretly intervened to save Ye Ru from Liu Jian, then followed Liu Jian to discover he was a subordinate of Tian Xiaojian. The chapter ended with Lin Xuan recognizing the Golden Core cultivator and warily considering the danger he posed.

• Liu Jian attacked Ye Ru with a black-qi python that absorbed her Innate True Fire, but Lin Xuan stopped it with a strange black hand and forced Liu Jian’s group to retreat.
• Ye Ru thanked the unseen senior, then returned to Ye Family Fortress with her companions and ordered Xiao Liuzi’s body given a proper burial.
• Lin Xuan followed Liu Jian west to a cliff, where Liu Jian sent a black-crow talisman message and waited anxiously for his master.
• A black cloud arrived, and Liu Jian removed a human-skin mask to reveal his true appearance before paying respects to Young Master Tian Xiaojian.
• Lin Xuan recognized Tian Xiaojian, learned that he had condensed a Golden Core, and remained wary of his old acquaintance.

Lin Xuan secretly overheard Tian Xiaojian explain why he was trying to sow discord between the Liu and Ye families: he wanted the Nether Cold Iron rumored to be in an abandoned mine. The two families each held half of the treasure map, and neither knew how valuable the material was.

• Yuan San reported that his mission to stir up conflict between the Liu and Ye families had failed, and Tian Xiaojian accepted his explanation.
• Tian Xiaojian told Yuan San that a direct attack on the families would alert their Core Condensation experts and ruin his plans.
• Lin Xuan overheard Tian Xiaojian explain that he wanted to refine a Nether Heart-Shattering Sword but lacked the rare Nether Cold Iron it required.
• Tian Xiaojian revealed that the treasure map held by the Liu and Ye families pointed to an ancient abandoned mine and that Nether Cold Iron was likely inside.
• Tian Xiaojian explained that the Liu and Ye families had split the map between them and had not yet gone to search for the treasure.

Lin Xuan overheard Tian Xiaojian plotting to secretly obtain Nether Cold Iron and decided to claim it for his plan to refine two life-bound magic treasures. He headed toward Ye Family Fortress, where the chapter described the Ye Family’s defenses.

• Tian Xiaojian rebuked Yuan San for suggesting they seek help from the Supreme Demon and insisted that they acquire the Nether Cold Iron secretly.
• Lin Xuan emerged from hiding after Tian Xiaojian and Yuan San left, having overheard their plans and learned about the Nether Cold Iron.
• Lin Xuan decided to pursue the Nether Heart-Shattering Sword and the Nine Heavens Bright Moon Ring as two life-bound magic treasures, with Yue'er helping nourish the sword.
• Lin Xuan set out toward Ye Family Fortress, a heavily fortified stronghold on Green Leaf Mountain.

Lin Xuan arrived at Ye Family Fortress with a token from Perfected Master Tongyu, and Ye Xing mistook him for a Core Condensation expert. Ye Ru escorted him through the fortress to meet her father, while Lin Xuan took note of the family’s defenses and mechanisms.

• Ye Xing kept watch outside Ye Family Fortress as rumors of a conflict with the Liu Family and the fortress’s heightened alert troubled him.
• Lin Xuan arrived in a blue-green rainbow and presented Ye Xing with a Jade Slip identifying him as a friend of Fortress Master Ye.
• Ye Xing brought the Jade Slip into the fortress, and Ye Ru soon came out to escort Lin Xuan inside.
• Lin Xuan examined the fortress’s formation, mechanisms, and other defenses as he followed Ye Ru through the grounds.
• Ye Ru led Lin Xuan to the reception hall, where her father was waiting.

Lin Xuan met Ye Qingcheng, head of the Ye Family, and learned that he wanted help securing a share of an abandoned ancient mine’s treasures. Ye Qingcheng proposed that Lin Xuan impersonate his missing cousin to balance the Liu Family’s strength, but Lin Xuan questioned how he could maintain the disguise.

• Lin Xuan entered the reception hall and greeted Ye Qingcheng, who explained that the Ye Family had found a map to an abandoned mine from the remote ancient era.
• Ye Qingcheng said the map had been split between the Ye and Liu Families, who had planned to search together and divide the treasure.
• Ye Qingcheng explained that the Liu Family had gained another Core Condensation expert, making him fear they would seize the treasure after the search.
• Ye Qingcheng revealed that he planned to present Lin Xuan as his missing cousin so the Liu Family would accept him as a Ye Family member and ally.
• Lin Xuan asked how he was expected to impersonate Ye Qingcheng’s cousin, since his Heavenly Demon Appearance Alteration Technique lasted only one hour.

Lin Xuan accepted Ye Qingcheng’s Shape-Shifting Pill and prepared to impersonate Ye Family cousin Lin Xuan for a secret treasure hunt with the Liu Family. He and Ye Qingcheng reached the meeting place, where they waited for the Liu Family to arrive.

• Ye Qingcheng gave Lin Xuan a Shape-Shifting Pill and explained that it could change his appearance for twelve hours.
• Ye Qingcheng admitted that the treasure hunt had originally been intended to eliminate the Liu Family experts, but Lin Xuan’s early Core Condensation cultivation made him abandon that plan.
• Lin Xuan arranged to buy high-grade talismans, especially ones that could restrain demonic-path arts, and spent three days meditating and preparing.
• Lin Xuan and Ye Qingcheng left Ye Family Fortress alone and traveled to the desolate canyon where they had agreed to meet the Liu Family.
• Lin Xuan reminded Ye Qingcheng to call him cousin, and Ye Qingcheng waited with him at the meeting place after Lin Xuan assumed his cousin’s appearance.

Lin Xuan and Ye Qingcheng met Liu Junhao, Liu Yan, and Tian Xiaojian to search for an Ancient Relic Mine. After combining their map fragments, the group found a likely site and began searching, while Lin Xuan recognized Tian Xiaojian’s true strength beneath his disguise.

• Lin Xuan sensed Liu Junhao's group approaching and warned Ye Qingcheng that they had brought an extra helper.
• Liu Junhao introduced Tian Xiaojian as his nephew, while Lin Xuan recognized him as a Golden Core cultivator disguised as a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
• Ye Qingcheng and Liu Junhao combined their Jade Slips to reveal a complete map of the Ancient Relic Mine.
• The group followed the map for nearly half a day and descended near a small mountain they believed might be the treasure site.
• Lin Xuan suggested searching the area, and the five cultivators scattered to investigate.

Lin Xuan and the others entered an ancient spirit mine, where they found a vast trove of spirit stones guarded by a powerful demonic python. The python transformed into a human before their eyes, leaving them stunned and facing the possibility of a Nascent Soul-level monster.

• Ye Qingcheng and the others found a freshly broken hole in the mountain wall and decided to continue into the cave despite the risk that someone had arrived first.
• Lin Xuan took back the Jade Snow Ring and concealed his strength, while the group discovered that their spiritual senses could not reach far inside the cave.
• The group entered a huge underground pit filled with tens of thousands of spirit stones, and Ye Qingcheng and the Liu brothers rushed down to collect them.
• Lin Xuan and the others spotted a tier-three mid-grade demonic python beside the spirit stones, with the corpse of Taoist Tianming pinned beneath it.
• The giant python wrapped itself in black light and transformed into a human, shocking Lin Xuan, Tian Xiaojian, Ye Qingcheng, and the Liu brothers.

Lin Xuan and the others confronted Mo Mang, a third-rank demon beast who had taken human form and admitted to killing Taoist Tianming. Mo Mang attacked the group and killed Liu Yan, leaving Liu Junhao grieving and afraid.

• Lin Xuan identified the transformed python as a powerful third-rank demon beast, and Ye Qingcheng explained that some species could transform at that rank.
• Mo Mang introduced himself and admitted that he had killed Taoist Tianming after using him to break an ancient restriction.
• Liu Junhao, Ye Qingcheng, Liu Yan, and Lin Xuan fought Mo Mang as he attacked with snake-shaped blades formed from demonic power.
• Mo Mang suddenly appeared beside Liu Yan and fatally stabbed him through his protective light.
• Liu Junhao cried out for his brother and hesitated to attack Mo Mang.

Lin Xuan, Ye Qingcheng, and Liu Junhao fought Mo Mang until a strange poison attack revealed Lin Xuan’s powerful defenses. An ancient restriction then trapped everyone, forcing the fighters to agree to a temporary truce as an unknown danger gathered around them.

• Liu Junhao and Ye Qingcheng attacked Mo Mang alongside Lin Xuan, but the Demon Cultivator held them in a stalemate.
• Mo Mang sent a poisonous water arrow after Lin Xuan, who captured its snake-like form and blocked its light attack with the Nine Heavens Spirit Shield.
• A thunderous boom shook the earth as purple mist emerged and the surrounding rocks began to glow.
• Liu Junhao tried to escape but found a powerful barrier sealing the exit.
• Lin Xuan identified the trap as a possible ancient restriction, and he and Mo Mang agreed to stop fighting temporarily.

Lin Xuan used a secret art to pierce the purple mist’s barrier with his divine sense and discovered a way to weaken the ancient formation. After his Sword Qi drove most of the mist back, a sudden change interrupted his effort to clear the final patch.

• A bolt of purple lightning struck Tian Xiaojian, who revealed his strength and blocked it with a White Bone Shield.
• The formation unleashed repeated lightning attacks, and Mo Mang’s attempt to pierce the purple mist failed, leaving him badly injured.
• Lin Xuan boosted his divine sense with a secret art from the Nine Heavens Profound Art and found seven hidden black objects behind the mist.
• Lin Xuan fired Sword Qi at the hidden objects, making the purple mist recede and weakening the lightning.
• The remaining purple mist nearly vanished, but a sudden change arose before Lin Xuan could clear it completely.

Lin Xuan and the others were pulled into a strange vortex that transported them to a vast cavern, while Ye Qingcheng and Liu Junhao stayed behind and fought over the crystal stones. Lin Xuan found statues of powerful human cultivators and transformed Demon Race beings, leaving him wondering what secrets the cavern held.

• The purple mist formed a vortex that swallowed Lin Xuan, and Mo Mang and Tian Xiaojian followed him inside.
• Ye Qingcheng and Liu Junhao realized their supposed allies had entered the vortex, then agreed to split the crystal stones.
• Ye Qingcheng and Liu Junhao attacked each other, each seeking to kill the other and claim the treasure alone.
• Lin Xuan emerged in a huge cavern and determined that the vortex had been a teleportation array.
• Lin Xuan found statues of transformed Demon Race beings and seventeen human cultivators who appeared to have been Nascent Soul Realm experts.

Lin Xuan learned from Mo Mang that the site was a legendary Immortal Mine, once contested and shared by ancient human Nascent Soul cultivators and Demon Race experts. Mo Mang continued recounting how they joined forces to defend it, leaving the mine’s history still unfolding.

• Mo Mang revealed that he had followed Lin Xuan and proposed they cooperate to obtain the treasures inside.
• Lin Xuan questioned Mo Mang about the statues and the dangers within the mine before hearing his explanation.
• Mo Mang told Lin Xuan that the site was a million-year-old Immortal Mine discovered by human Nascent Soul cultivators and Demon Race Transformation Realm experts.
• Mo Mang explained that the ancient rivals shared the mine after neither side could defeat the other, then divided the work of excavating its treasures.
• Mo Mang said other powers entered the struggle, but the original occupants repelled them after several great battles.

Lin Xuan and Mo Mang formed a wary partnership to search the Immortal Mine, while Tian Xiaojian was stranded in the far north after the damaged teleportation formation sent him away from Green Leaf Mountain. Lin Xuan and Mo Mang entered a narrow passage, where Lin Xuan found Millennium Copper Essence and began to suspect something was wrong.

• Lin Xuan and Mo Mang agreed to cooperate and split the Immortal Mine’s treasures equally.
• Mo Mang told Lin Xuan that Tian Xiaojian had entered the purple vortex but likely been teleported far away after damaging the formation.
• Tian Xiaojian found himself in the far north of You Province and fought three Corpse Bat Birds.
• Lin Xuan copied Mo Mang’s treasure map as they entered the only passage together, both guarded against hidden danger.
• Lin Xuan picked up a piece of Millennium Copper Essence, then found another a few steps later and grew thoughtful.

Lin Xuan and Mo Mang found a cavern full of valuable magic-treasure materials and divided them evenly. Lin Xuan stayed behind to investigate the skeletons, suspecting one of the dead cultivators had been a formation master who cleared the passage ahead.

• Lin Xuan showed Mo Mang bloodstains and weapon marks on the Copper Essence they found along the passage.
• Lin Xuan and Mo Mang discovered a cavern filled with rare ores and two skeletons posed as if they had died fighting each other.
• Lin Xuan and Mo Mang divided the scattered refining materials and the contents of a Storage Bag between them.
• Mo Mang went ahead while Lin Xuan stayed behind to search the cavern for the missing second Storage Bag.
• Lin Xuan found nothing with his azure qi and reasoned that one of the dead cultivators had likely been a formation master who had broken the ancient restrictions in the passage.

Lin Xuan recovered a Jade Slip containing the array knowledge of Xuanji the Rogue, then joined Mo Mang at an ancient stone door that resisted their attacks. After reading its inscription, Lin Xuan learned it required blood from a Transformation Realm demon and a human Core Condensation cultivator, and prepared to test the method.

• Lin Xuan used a secret art from the Mystic Demon True Scripture to extract a remnant soul from a skull and locate the hidden Jade Slip.
• Lin Xuan found the Jade Slip in the Iron Stone wall and learned it held the lifelong array insights of the renowned Xuanji the Rogue.
• Lin Xuan reached a vast cavern and found Mo Mang unable to open a massive stone door protected by a powerful restriction.
• Lin Xuan recognized the ancient human script beside the door and read that it required blood from a Transformation Realm demon and a human cultivator above Core Condensation.
• Mo Mang shed blood for the door, and Lin Xuan took a drop of his own blood as they prepared to test the inscription's instructions.