Chapter Summaries

Lin Xuan prepared to infiltrate the Ethereal Immortal Palace by posing as a mortal who met the palace’s demanding conditions. After he showed himself to attract people who could take him there, several cultivators fought over him.

• Lin Xuan decided the Heavenly Demon Infant Transformation Art’s loss of magical power would not leave him helpless, thanks to his formidable physical strength.
• Lin Xuan determined he could meet the mortal requirements by relying on his martial arts training, pills to preserve a youthful appearance, and a transformed face modeled on Tian Xiaojian.
• Lin Xuan spent half a month preparing, disguising his age and appearance before heading to a crowded place to draw the attention of cultivators seeking eligible mortals.
• Several cultivators spotted Lin Xuan and began fighting fiercely over him.

Lin Xuan traveled to Ethereal Immortal Palace disguised as a mortal, escorted by a lucky Core Condensation Realm elder who hoped to claim a reward. At the palace gate, a Spirit Division Stage cultivator arrived in person, reinforcing Lin Xuan’s suspicion that the gathering of mortals served an important purpose.

• After several Nascent Soul Realm cultivators died or fled, the Core Condensation Realm elder brought Lin Xuan toward Ethereal Immortal Palace.
• Lin Xuan and the elder reached Nine Immortals Mountain and climbed its long staircase for two days and two nights.
• The elder sent a Sound Transmission Talisman from the palace entrance, and a mountain gate appeared.
• A Spirit Division Stage cultivator emerged, and Lin Xuan inferred that the palace’s gathering of mortals was tied to a major secret and might help him steal the Ethereal Nine Immortals Pill.
• The elder was stunned when his Realm Compass identified the newcomer as a Spirit Division Stage cultivator.

Lin Xuan disguised himself as a young mortal martial artist and was brought into the Ethereal Immortal Palace by a Spirit Division Stage elder. The elder led him to a valley, while Lin Xuan memorized the route and prepared for his plans to steal treasure or escape if exposed.

• A Spirit Division Stage man examined Lin Xuan’s wrist and confirmed his apparent age and status as a rare young Heavenly Dao martial artist.
• The man accepted Lin Xuan for the Ethereal Immortal Palace and gave the Core Condensation Realm old man a Jade Pendant to collect the promised bounty at Flying Cloud Pavilion.
• The man wrapped Lin Xuan in spiritual light and carried him through the palace grounds without obstruction.
• Lin Xuan memorized the surroundings as they traveled, preparing to steal treasure or flee if his identity was exposed.
• The man brought Lin Xuan to a valley, where a beautiful young girl greeted him as Grand-Master.

Lin Xuan stayed in Hidden Hero Valley under Xueling’s watch while he waited for a chance to investigate Ethereal Immortal Palace. Elsewhere, the palace’s Supreme Elders gathered on Spirit Controlling Peak to discuss a grave matter.

• The Bearded Man entrusted Lin Xuan to Xueling, warning her that she would be held responsible if anything happened to him.
• Xueling welcomed Lin Xuan to Hidden Hero Valley, and Lin Xuan introduced himself as field Xiaojian while posing as a mortal.
• Over the next month, Lin Xuan gained Xueling’s trust and tried to learn information from her, but she knew nothing useful.
• Lin Xuan stayed in the quiet valley because his magic power and divine sense were unusable, leaving him unable to investigate elsewhere safely.
• More than ten Supreme Elders of Ethereal Immortal Palace gathered in a cultivation cave on Spirit Controlling Peak, with three late-stage great cultivators leading them.

Grand Elder Lingxu gathered his fellow elders to discuss the search for mortal martial artists and revealed that it was connected to the sect’s secret treasure, the Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pill. He left them questioning what the pill truly was and why the sect needed the martial artists.

• Lingxu rebuked Junior Brother He for failing to find enough qualifying mortal martial artists.
• The Bearded Man reported that a Rogue Cultivator had brought in one young Heavenly Dao martial artist and that disciples were pursuing two more.
• The elders asked Lingxu why the sect was searching for mortal martial artists, and he warned them to keep the answer secret.
• Lingxu revealed that the search concerned the sect-protecting Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pill, which even he had never seen.
• The elders recited the pill’s many legendary effects, then realized that its supposed uses seemed contradictory.

True Person Lingxu explained that the Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pill was a collective name for naturally occurring treasures in Lingmiao Garden, a place within a Spatial Rift. He revealed that the sect’s founding patriarch had discovered the garden, and the gathered cultivators admitted they would not have left its treasures for later disciples.

• The Spirit Division Stage cultivators doubted that a single pill could have all the miraculous effects attributed to the Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pill.
• True Person Lingxu confirmed the legends were accurate and explained that the name referred to several different spirit pills used together.
• True Person Lingxu revealed that the pills were naturally born treasures rather than medicines refined by cultivators.
• True Person Lingxu said the treasures came from Lingmiao Garden, a place in a Spatial Rift discovered by the sect’s founding patriarch.
• The Bearded Man and the other cultivators admitted they would not have left such treasures to later disciples.

True Person Lingxu explained that the Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pill had reappeared and required three late Spirit Division Stage cultivators and three mortal Heavenly Dao Martial Artists to retrieve it. Unaware of the plan, Lin Xuan was taken from Hidden Hero Valley by a Daoist acting on the Grand Elder’s command.

• True Person Lingxu told the cultivators that the Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pill could reform over time and that the Ancestral Master’s artifact would signal its return.
• True Person Lingxu explained that retrieving the pill required three late Spirit Division Stage cultivators and three young, attractive mortal Heavenly Dao Martial Artists.
• Lin Xuan spent more than a month waiting in Hidden Hero Valley, unable to gather information because he had lost his magic power.
• A middle-aged Daoist priest arrived with the Grand Elder’s Command Token and told Xueling that he had come to take Lin Xuan away.
• The Daoist priest flew Lin Xuan to the open summit of a mountain.

Lin Xuan was brought before Ancestor Ye, who recruited him for a sect mission alongside other mortal Heavenly Dao Martial Artists. Ancestor Ye flew him toward a desolate island, where their group was to gather.

• A middle-aged Daoist brought Lin Xuan to Ancestor Ye, who examined him without detecting his concealed abilities.
• Ancestor Ye dismissed the Daoist and told Lin Xuan that her sect needed mortal Heavenly Dao Martial Artists to help retrieve a treasure.
• Lin Xuan pretended to accept her promise of lifespan-extending medicines while privately doubting she would reward him.
• Ancestor Ye summoned a Painted Boat, and Lin Xuan boarded it using his movement technique.
• After several hours of flight, the Painted Boat slowed near a desolate island.

Lin Xuan overheard the cultivators discussing the Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pill and its possible aid in reaching the Tribulation Transcendence stage. The Great Elder Lingxu arrived fleeing demonic clouds, handed two Mortals to the Palace-Robed Girl, and turned back to face the pursuers.

• The Palace-Robed Girl and Lin Xuan landed on an uninhabited island and met Senior Brother Yun.
• Senior Brother Yun told the Palace-Robed Girl that Great Elder Lingxu had gone to receive two Mortals after the disciples escorting them encountered trouble.
• Lin Xuan secretly listened as Senior Brother Yun and the Palace-Robed Girl discussed the Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pill and its possible value for breaking through to the Tribulation Transcendence stage.
• Senior Brother Yun and the Palace-Robed Girl spotted an escaping figure pursued by demonic clouds and recognized the figure as Great Elder Lingxu.
• The Palace-Robed Girl caught the two Mortals Lingxu sent toward her, while Lingxu turned back toward the demonic clouds.

Lingxu True Person explained why he had fled from a late-stage Spirit Division ancient demon while protecting two mortal warriors, then ordered his junior sister not to interfere. He began fighting the demon alone, destroying its Wind Dragons with summoned Tigers.

• Lingxu True Person recounted how he had avenged his two slain disciples and decided to eliminate the demons emerging from a Spatial Rift.
• A late-stage Spirit Division ancient demon emerged, and Lingxu True Person fled while protecting the two mortal warriors needed for his plan to retrieve the Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pill.
• Lingxu True Person explained that he had intended to hand the mortals to Junior Brother Yun before turning to fight, and said his junior sister's arrival had helped matters.
• The Palace-Robed Woman returned to help, but Lingxu True Person ordered her to watch the formation and leave the fight to him.
• The ancient demon sent Wind Dragons at Lingxu True Person, who summoned white-browed Tigers that quickly tore them apart.

Lingxu True Person used a cunning sword technique to defeat a powerful Ancient Demon in a brief spell battle near the island. Lin Xuan watched the fight and recognized that Lingxu True Person’s strength and battle instincts made him a dangerous opponent.

• Lingxu True Person tested the demonic cloud with tiger-shaped attacks, then summoned crystalline sword lights that shattered its demonic shield.
• The demonic cloud revealed a hideous Ancient Demon whose forearms had become broadswords, while Lin Xuan watched from the nearby island.
• Lingxu True Person merged his sword lights into a giant sword, then split it apart just as the Ancient Demon raised its blades to block.
• The Ancient Demon’s strike missed, and the scattered sword lights pierced his demonic Qi and scales, dismembering him.
• Lin Xuan assessed Lingxu True Person’s victory and recognized his formidable strength, experience, and cunning.

Lingxu True Person gathered Lin Xuan and two other mortals to help retrieve a treasure, then brought them to a seemingly ordinary lake at the center of the island. He revealed that the area was concealed by a Spirit-Sealing Pillar, whose legendary powers Lin Xuan recognized.

• Lingxu True Person told Lin Xuan that he needed mortals to help retrieve a treasure and promised benefits for their cooperation.
• Lin Xuan met the siblings Su Yunxiu and Su Yunfeng, concealing his true identity and origins.
• Lingxu True Person and the Palace-Robed Girl flew toward the island's center, while the Confucian-Robed Cultivator carried Lin Xuan and the Su siblings after them.
• The group arrived at an ordinary-looking lake, where the Palace-Robed Girl and Confucian-Robed Cultivator could not detect the restriction.
• Lingxu True Person explained that the founding ancestor had placed a Spirit-Sealing Pillar there, and Lin Xuan recalled its legendary ability to seal powerful demons and cut off space.

Lin Xuan recalled how Nailong True Person had sealed a permanent rift to the Demon World with a Spirit-Sealing Pillar. Lingxu True Person then summoned a flood dragon to drain the lake and revealed a talisman that transformed into a landscape painting.

• Lin Xuan remembered that Nailong True Person had sealed an unhealing Spatial Rift with a Spirit-Sealing Pillar after exterminating the Ancient Demons that crossed into a Human World.
• The Confucian-Robed Cultivator urgently asked Lingxu True Person where the Spirit-Sealing Pillar was, but Lingxu said they would soon find out.
• Lingxu True Person released a huge water-attribute flood dragon from a Spirit Beast Bag.
• The flood dragon swallowed all the lake water, exposing the lakebed.
• Lingxu True Person opened a jade box and used its profound talisman, which transformed into a landscape painting.

Lingxu True Person uncovered a white-jade altar from the dried lakebed and used six Blood Spirit Stones to activate the Spirit-Sealing Array. The six carved divine beasts became Void Shadows, leaving Lin Xuan watching as the sealing process began.

• A Void Shadow sank into the lakebed, causing a white-jade altar to rise from beneath the ground.
• Lin Xuan saw six Spirit-Sealing Pillars and an ancient array at the altar’s center.
• Lingxu True Person placed six Blood Spirit Stones of different attributes into the array’s grooves.
• Lingxu True Person chanted incantations and activated the Spirit-Sealing Array.
• Six colored beams struck the pillars, and the carved True Spirits became Void Shadows.

Lingxu True Person, the Palace-Robed Girl, the Confucian-Robed Cultivator, and Lin Xuan entered a sealed space rumored to produce the Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pill. They found a strange gray land and reached a vibrant forest, where Lin Xuan noticed something unusual as the group entered.

• The six Void Shadows merged and exploded, creating an arc of light that Lingxu True Person entered first.
• The Palace-Robed Girl and the Confucian-Robed Cultivator followed, with the latter shielding Lin Xuan and the other mortal martial artists from the passage’s spatial power.
• The group emerged in a gray space with thin spiritual energy and suppressed divine sense, and Lingxu True Person used a scroll to guide them toward a forest.
• Lingxu True Person sent a Puppet into the forest and, after it remained unharmed, cautiously entered himself under the protection of several defensive treasures.
• The Palace-Robed Girl and the Confucian-Robed Cultivator brought Lin Xuan and the other martial artists down into the forest, where Lin Xuan was startled by something he saw.

Lin Xuan and the Ethereal Immortal Palace cultivators entered a grove rich in spiritual energy, but learned they had only twelve double-hours before the entrance closed and trapped them inside. Lingxu True Person revealed a cauldron among six jade statues and began preparing everyone to open it together.

• The Palace-Robed Cultivator and the Confucian-Robed Cultivator proposed cultivating in the grove, but Lingxu True Person refused and showed them a Jade Slip explaining the twelve-double-hour limit.
• Lin Xuan suspected a mysterious force had concentrated the surrounding spiritual energy into the grove.
• Lingxu True Person used Formation Flags and dharma seals to raise six jade statues and a round table bearing a small Cauldron from the ground.
• The Palace-Robed Cultivator could not lift the Cauldron's lid, and Lingxu True Person said all six cultivators had to work together to open it.
• Lingxu True Person told Junior Brother Yun and Junior Sister Ye to pour in their magic power and the three young cultivators to inject inner force into the palm prints on the statues.

Lin Xuan and the others opened the cauldron’s restriction, revealing a Medicine Spirit and a small cache of Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pills. Lingxu True Person captured the Medicine Spirit, while Lin Xuan kept his identity hidden and waited for a chance to act.

• Lin Xuan worried that the statue test would expose him as a counterfeit Heavenly Dao Martial Artist, but he used the True Explanation of Hundred Spirits to pour internal force into it.
• After the group sustained their efforts for two hours, the six statues opened their mouths and joined their lights to lift the cauldron lid.
• A Medicine Spirit burst from the cauldron, and Lingxu True Person captured it with a hand of light and sealed it in a Jade Bottle.
• Lin Xuan recognized the Medicine Spirit’s value for refining an Internal Incarnation and considered attacking the exhausted cultivators, but an uneasy feeling made him wait.
• The group inspected the cauldron’s dozen or so Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pills, and Lin Xuan identified a purple pill as a powerful healing medicine.

Lin Xuan watched Lingxu True Person claim the Tribulation-Transformation Pill after his fellow disciples yielded it to him. Before Lingxu could collect the pills in peace, a strange Spatial Rift appeared and he recognized the black qi emerging from it as a Heavenly Demon.

• The Palace-Robed Cultivator and Confucian-Robed Cultivator identified the pills, including a Tribulation-Transformation Pill that could raise the odds of reaching Tribulation Transcendence by ten percent.
• Lin Xuan expected the three cultivators to fight over the pill, but the Palace-Robed Cultivator and Confucian-Robed Cultivator stepped aside and let Lingxu True Person take it.
• Lingxu True Person promised to remember their generosity and offered them the other spiritual medicines, while the two accepted their choice to yield.
• A blood-red Spatial Rift streaked with purple-black lightning opened above the cultivators, and nearly invisible black qi drifted out.
• Lingxu True Person warned that a Heavenly Demon had appeared and used a hand of white light to scoop up the Piaomiao Nine Immortal Pills.
• Lin Xuan recalled hearing of the Heavenly Demon from the Youth surnamed Long, who had said a Tribulation Transcendence old monster guarded Star-Moon City against it.

Lin Xuan watched as a Heavenly Demon appeared and the Ethereal Immortal Palace cultivators attacked it, but the demon evaded them and possessed Su Yunfeng. As the cultivators struck at Su Yunfeng, Lin Xuan pulled Su Yunxiu to safety and prepared to exploit the chaos while guarding against danger.

• Lin Xuan recalled what he had learned about Heavenly Demons and wondered why one had appeared when no cultivator was breaking through to Tribulation Transcendence.
• The Palace-Robed Cultivator attacked the demonic Qi with a Flying Dagger, while the Confucian-Robed Cultivator struck it with an ancient character formed from purple Qi.
• The Heavenly Demon evaded both attacks, declared that the three cultivators had prepared a body for it, and rushed toward the Su Siblings.
• The Heavenly Demon entered Su Yunfeng's forehead, and Lin Xuan pulled Su Yunxiu away before she could rush to her brother.
• The three Ethereal Immortal Palace cultivators launched a Flying Dagger, a purple spear, and silver needle-like attacks at Su Yunfeng as Lin Xuan retreated with Su Yunxiu and watched for an opportunity to seize Lingxu True Person's treasures.

Su Yunfeng revealed his Heavenly Demon power and overwhelmed the three Ethereal Immortal Palace cultivators. The Palace-Robed Cultivator was killed, while Lingxu True Person and the Confucian-Robed Cultivator remained occupied fighting his Void Shadows.

• Su Yunfeng evaded the three cultivators’ attacks by bursting into blood threads and reforming more than a hundred zhang away.
• Lingxu True Person warned the Palace-Robed Cultivator, but a Ghost Claw struck her Falling Cloud Veil and trapped her in stagnant air.
• Su Yunfeng sent two Void Shadows to attack Lingxu True Person and the Confucian-Robed Cultivator, forcing both to defend themselves.
• The Ghost Claw broke through the Palace-Robed Cultivator’s barrier, seized her, and burned her to ashes with black-red demonic fire.