Chapter Summaries

Lu Qing and his companions raced toward Holy Mountain in a magically enhanced carriage, while he revealed to his master that Hu Ze Zhi possessed great destiny fortune. They reached Cloud Arriving Town after traveling three thousand li in one day, leaving Hu Ze Zhi stunned by their speed and the horses’ stamina.

• Lu Qing told the Old Doctor through Divine Sense Transmission that Hu Ze Zhi possessed great destiny fortune and suggested that his master consider taking her as a disciple, but the Old Doctor deferred the decision.
• Ma Gu drove the carriage at great speed, and a jade-faced young man in a caravan mistook it for a legendary Wind-Riding Carriage.
• Hu Ze Zhi worried about the horses’ endurance, while Lu Qing explained that they were fine steeds strengthened by the carriage’s formation; Xiao Li woke briefly, refused Hu Ze Zhi’s attempt to pet it, and went back to sleep.
• At dusk, Lu Qing had Ma Gu take the group into Cloud Arriving Town so they could find lodging and buy herbs for Hu Ze Zhi’s injured leg.
• Hu Ze Zhi recognized Cloud Arriving Town from her map and realized they had traveled three thousand li in a day; she was further astonished when the horses showed no sign of fatigue.

Lu Qing visited Renxin Medical Clinic to buy herbs, but when Old Wang arrived near death from a strange snakebite, Lu Qing used acupuncture and medicine to save him. The clinic's master returned and asked who had taught Lu Qing.

• Lu Qing asked the innkeeper for a reputable apothecary and went to Renxin Medical Clinic to buy herbs.
• The apprentice Xiao Yi told Lu Qing that the clinic was low on Angelica Root and Astragalus, then Uncle Li brought in unconscious Old Wang after a venomous snakebite.
• Lu Qing sealed Old Wang's wound and heart with silver needles, then recognized that the snake venom was unusually potent and strange.
• Lu Qing drained three bowls of poisonous blood, gave Old Wang a medicinal decoction, and said he would need time to recover.
• Uncle Li and the others thanked Lu Qing, who said his master had taught him to heal the sick and save lives.
• Doctor Zhao returned to the clinic, and Xiao Yi greeted him as Master.

Lu Qing saved Old Wang from a mutated snake venom and brought the poisonous blood back for the Old Doctor to study. As they began investigating it, a vast voice suddenly resounded between Heaven and Earth.

• Doctor Zhao examined Old Wang, confirmed he was out of danger, and learned that Lu Qing had treated him with extraordinary skill.
• Lu Qing left the clinic with the poisonous blood, recognized it as venom mutated by Baleful Qi, and worried that such creatures could threaten Nine Li Village.
• Lu Qing returned to the inn and told the Old Doctor about saving Old Wang and bringing back the unusual poison.
• Lu Qing and the Old Doctor discussed the danger of Baleful Qi venom and their duty to find and share remedies.
• As Lu Qing and the Old Doctor prepared to study the venom, a vast, majestic voice sounded between Heaven and Earth.

Lu Qing and the others witnessed the Heaven and Earth Dao Sound return as Moonlight Essence poured from the moon, and Lu Qing gathered it into a jade bottle for Xiao Li. Sensing that the world’s rules had advanced and a major opportunity awaited at the Holy Mountain, they decided to leave at dawn, while Hu Ze Zhi asked to join them.

• Lu Qing, the Old Doctor, Xiao Yan, Xiao Li, and Hu Ze Zhi climbed onto the inn roof and heard nine Heaven and Earth Dao Sounds beneath an increasingly bright full moon.
• Moonlight Essence descended from the sky, and Lu Qing used his Divine Soul Power to enchant a jade bottle and draw the essence into it for Xiao Li.
• Lu Qing told Xiao Li to wait while he studied the bottle’s contents, then explained that Moonlight Essence could awaken intelligence and transform living things throughout the world.
• Lu Qing and the Old Doctor agreed to set out for the Holy Mountain at dawn, and Lu Qing told Hu Ze Zhi they could not take her to the Profound Heart Sect first.
• Hu Ze Zhi gathered her courage and asked Lu Qing if she could travel with them to the Holy Mountain.

Lu Qing examined the Moon Essence he had collected and learned of its connection to the Rule Moon and its potential to become Emperor Flow Nectar. He fed it to Xiao Li, Xiao Yan, and the carriage horses, then went to sleep and heard a childlike voice call him in his dreamlike half-sleep.

• Hu Ze Zhi chose to accompany Lu Qing and the others to the Holy Mountain, and Lu Qing agreed to let her join them.
• Lu Qing inspected the Moon Essence and discovered that it could enlighten living things, purify bloodlines, and potentially condense into Emperor Flow Nectar.
• Xiao Li drank most of the Moon Essence and fell asleep, while Xiao Yan tasted a little and compared it to peppermint candy.
• Lu Qing fed the remaining Moon Essence to the two carriage horses, and they grew drowsy as well.
• Lu Qing returned to his room, found Xiao Yan asleep beside Xiao Li, and went to bed; later, he heard a childlike voice call, "A... A Qing..."

After consuming Moon Essence, Xiao Li awakened Divine Soul Power and the Size Alteration Divine Ability, while the carriage horses transformed into Dragon Blood Horses. Lu Qing collected medicinal ingredients and left Renxin Medical Clinic, where Doctor Zhao was asked why he had not questioned him about the previous night’s strange phenomenon.

• Lu Qing discovered that Xiao Li could use Divine Sense Transmission and had awakened the Dark Lurk and Size Alteration Divine Abilities after consuming Moon Essence.
• Xiao Li demonstrated that she could grow larger and stronger, but the transformation exhausted her and she could not use both Divine Abilities at once, so Lu Qing told her to keep her new powers and ability to communicate secret.
• Ma Gu showed Lu Qing that the carriage horses had grown larger, turned white, and developed horns; Lu Qing identified them as Dragon Blood Horses whose bloodlines had transformed after consuming Moon Essence.
• Lu Qing told Ma Gu to get used to the faster horses and said they would leave for the Holy Mountain after breakfast.
• Lu Qing visited Renxin Medical Clinic, collected the medicinal ingredients from Doctor Zhao and Xiao Yi, and learned that Uncle Wang had returned home to recover.
• After Lu Qing left, someone asked Doctor Zhao why he had not questioned Lu Qing about the strange phenomenon of heaven and earth.

Lu Qing and his companions traveled toward the Holy Mountain in a carriage pulled by transformed Dragon Blood Horses, while he treated Hu Ze Zhi’s severe leg injury with a powerful ointment. After noticing something unusual about Hu Ze Zhi the next morning, Lu Qing and the Old Doctor exchanged a glance, and the Old Doctor quietly asked whether Lu Qing had noticed it too.

• Doctor Zhao realized Lu Qing did not wish to discuss the previous night’s heavenly phenomenon and chose not to press him.
• Lu Qing’s transformed Dragon Blood Horses pulled the group’s carriage at tremendous speed, carrying them five thousand li in one day.
• Lu Qing caught rabbits and roasted them for the group, impressing Hu Ze Zhi with his cooking.
• Lu Qing brewed Muscle-Regenerating Tendon-Reconnecting Ointment for Hu Ze Zhi and gave her a jar to apply to her injured leg.
• Hu Ze Zhi woke the next morning to find her leg injury more than halfway healed, and Lu Qing and the Old Doctor noticed something unusual about her.

Lu Qing and his companions reached Holy City beneath the immense Holy Mountain, where Hu Ze Zhi’s ominous death sign grew stronger. As they headed for Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, an eerie black-robed pursuer followed their trail, and a young man inside the Pavilion received a surprising message.

• The Old Doctor warned Lu Qing that Hu Ze Zhi faced both great danger and a major opportunity, and they saw Holy Mountain looming in the distance.
• Lu Qing noticed the black qi over Hu Ze Zhi growing denser as they approached Holy City and urged her not to wander alone.
• After entering Holy City, Lu Qing and the others found Heaven’s Secret Pavilion by asking a sugar figurine vendor, while the city’s mysterious force suppressed their divine senses.
• A black-robed figure learned from the vendor that the group’s horned horses were headed to Heaven’s Secret Pavilion and pursued them.
• The Old Doctor’s jade token began to resonate clearly near the Pavilion, while a young man inside received a message on his jade compass and showed delight.

Lu Qing and the Old Doctor reunited with Lin Zhi Rui at the Heaven's Secret Pavilion in the Holy City, where Lin Zhi Rui discovered that he could not see through their cultivation and could not divine the source of Hu Ze Zhi's looming danger. A concealed Black-Robed Figure recognized the group as unusually valuable targets and began plotting to devour them.

• Lin Zhi Rui welcomed the Old Doctor, Lu Qing, Ma Gu, and Wei Zi'an to the Heaven's Secret Pavilion, then was shocked that he could not discern Lu Qing's or the Old Doctor's cultivation.
• Lin Zhi Rui arranged for the Pavilion disciples to care for the moonlight-changed horses and reacted gravely when Hu Ze Zhi left the carriage.
• A concealed Black-Robed Figure spotted the group's Great Luck, Mystic Yin Body, and Merit Light, then decided to pursue them secretly as the foundation for his demonic transformation.
• At Lin Zhi Rui's residence, Lu Qing brewed Plum Blossom Tea, and the group discussed the Old Doctor's reasons for coming to Central Province.
• The Old Doctor asked Lin Zhi Rui to investigate the calamity surrounding Hu Ze Zhi, but Lin Zhi Rui said his divination had failed and Tianji was obscured by gray mist.

Hu Ze Zhi learned that she faced a grave but uncertain calamity, and asked Lu Qing not to endanger himself to save her. Lin Zhi Rui explained the crisis gathering in the Holy City around the cultivation methods engraved on Holy Heart Cliff, then warned the Old Doctor that Yan Canghai had arrived with the Heavenly Azure Sect.

• Lu Qing told Hu Ze Zhi that Lin Zhi Rui’s divination showed she might soon face immense danger, and Lin Zhi Rui urged her to stay cautious and near fortunate people.
• Hu Ze Zhi thanked Lu Qing for saving her and asked him not to risk his safety if her calamity could not be resisted; Lu Qing promised not to act recklessly.
• Lu Qing asked Lin Zhi Rui about Central Province, and Lin Zhi Rui explained that the three Holy Lords had engraved ancient cultivation methods on Holy Heart Cliff for Martial Artists to comprehend.
• Lin Zhi Rui said the Holy Mountain’s suppressive power made Holy Heart Cliff difficult to reach, while fighting and unrest had spread through the Holy City as experts gathered there.
• Lin Zhi Rui told the Old Doctor that Yan Canghai had arrived in the Holy City with several Grand Elders from the Heavenly Azure Sect, surprising Lu Qing, Wei Zi'an, and Ma Gu.

Lu Qing and his companions visited the Holy Mountain’s Ascending Sky Ladder after learning about its challenges and the Holy City’s rules. They watched Central Province Ten Talents Bai Bufan and Situ Jin arrive, and the two rivals agreed to compete to see who could climb higher.

• Lin Zhi Rui warned Lu Qing and the others that Wang Cangyi was in the Holy City and explained that martial artists could fight there under special rules.
• Lu Qing asked about the Old Doctor’s promised opportunity to comprehend the Holy Pool, and Lin Zhi Rui agreed to report the matter to the Holy Mountain.
• Lin Zhi Rui led the group to the Ascending Sky Ladder, where they saw Bai Bufan leap thirteen steps up its jade-white stairs.
• Lin Zhi Rui identified Bai Bufan and Situ Jin as rival members of the Central Province Ten Talents.
• Situ Jin challenged Bai Bufan to climb higher on the ladder, and Bai Bufan accepted.

The Central Province Ten Talents gathered to climb the Ascending Sky Ladder, while Lin Zhi Rui explained its pressure, records, and the fate of the past record-holder Di Yu. As Bai Bufan and the others struggled toward the higher steps, Lu Qing sensed a warning in Lin Zhi Rui’s account and said the contest’s victor would soon be decided.

• Several remaining Central Province Ten Talents joined Bai Bufan and Situ Jin on the ladder, and Lin Zhi Rui explained that only seven remained after one died and two entered the Innate Realm.
• Bai Bufan and the others climbed past the hundredth step, where the ladder’s pressure sharply increased and began to slow their progress.
• Lin Zhi Rui revealed that he had once been one of the Ten Talents and had reached the hundred and seventy-first step, while another former member had reached the hundred and eighty-ninth.
• Lin Zhi Rui said Di Yu had set the Postnatal Realm record at the hundred and ninety-ninth step, then been assassinated the following day because his talent threatened powerful schemers.
• Ma Gu and Wei Zi'an abandoned the idea of urging Lu Qing to climb, while Lu Qing sensed a warning in Lin Zhi Rui’s story and said the winner would soon be decided.

Bai Bufan and Situ Jin reached their limits on the Heavenly Ladder, but the arrival of the Cloud Water Secret Realm’s people revealed a far greater standard of strength. A Brocade-Clothed Youth climbed to the two-hundredth step, leaving Lin Zhi Rui shaken and Lu Qing calmly focused on improving himself.

• Bai Bufan and Situ Jin agreed to call their contest a draw rather than risk damaging their foundations for pride.
• A group from the Cloud Water Secret Realm arrived on giant birds, and a Brocade-Clothed Youth mocked the Central Province Ten Talents.
• The Brocade-Clothed Youth leaped past Bai Bufan and the others and reached the Heavenly Ladder’s two-hundredth step while still in the Postnatal Realm.
• Lin Zhi Rui was stunned by the youth’s achievement, while Lu Qing said cultivators should compare themselves with their past selves and keep striving.

Lu Qing helped Lin Zhi Rui and the others recover their confidence after the Brocade-Clothed Youth’s display, then suspected a hidden pursuer was connected to Hu Ze Zhi’s tribulation. After settling at Heaven's Secret Pavilion, the group learned the pursuer might be targeting Hu Ze Zhi’s Destiny Fortune, and she revealed that something on the Holy Mountain had called to her.

• Lu Qing reminded Lin Zhi Rui and the others to keep striving, restoring their confidence after the Brocade-Clothed Youth climbed the sky ladder.
• The Cloud Water Secret Realm disciples left the Holy Mountain, and Lu Qing wondered whether they sought the same hidden opportunity that had drawn him and his master there.
• Lin Zhi Rui invited Lu Qing’s group to stay at Heaven's Secret Pavilion, and Lu Qing noticed a black-clothed watcher vanish around a street corner.
• The Black-Robed Figure speculated that Lu Qing possessed a detection treasure and plotted to devour Hu Ze Zhi, the Old Doctor, and the Cloud Water Secret Realm disciples to complete his demonic body.
• Lu Qing told the group that the watcher’s aura resembled Hu Ze Zhi’s Tribulation Qi, and he and the Old Doctor concluded the pursuer likely wanted her Destiny Fortune.
• Hu Ze Zhi told Lu Qing and the Old Doctor that she had felt something on the Holy Mountain calling to her.

Hu Ze Zhi sensed a mysterious summons within the Holy Mountain, while the Old Doctor received permission to contemplate the Holy Pool. As Lu Qing guided Ma Gu’s cultivation, Ma Gu broke through into the Inner Organs Realm.

• Hu Ze Zhi told Lu Qing that she sensed a strange summons from somewhere within the Holy Mountain, and Lu Qing advised her to wait patiently.
• Lin Zhi Rui reported that the other three great secret lands had arrived at the Holy Mountain and that the Old Doctor could enter the Holy Pool; the Old Doctor chose to go that afternoon.
• Lu Qing examined Ma Gu and Wei Zi An’s cultivation and found Ma Gu had perfected the Tendons and Bones Realm after driving the fast carriage on their journey.
• Lu Qing explained that Ma Gu’s mind and spirit had been tempered and guided him to sense how qi and blood could seep into his organs.
• Ma Gu’s qi and blood began trembling through his five viscera and six bowels, and he broke through into the Inner Organs Realm.

Lu Qing learned that Hanging Sky Mountain had trapped Old Doctor Chen and intended to force him to convert, so he rushed to the Holy Mountain to rescue him. He left Hu Ze Zhi and the others under the Heaven's Secret Pavilion Pavilion Master's protection, then astonished the crowd by racing up the Ascending Sky Ladder and vanishing into the clouds.

• Ma Gu broke through into the Inner Organs Realm after Lu Qing guided him, and Lu Qing also gave Wei Zi'an cultivation advice.
• Lu Qing sensed that Old Doctor Chen was in danger, and the Heaven's Secret Pavilion Pavilion Master revealed that Hanging Sky Mountain had trapped him after he refused to join them.
• Lu Qing decided to ascend the Holy Mountain alone, asked the Pavilion Master to watch over Hu Ze Zhi, and told Ma Gu to keep an eye on Xiao Yan.
• Lu Qing activated the Dharma Talisman in his glabella aperture and sped toward the Ascending Sky Ladder.
• Lu Qing bounded past the competing female Martial Artists and raced above the three-hundredth step, leaving the crowd below stunned.

Lu Qing reached the Holy Pool and found the monks of Hanging Sky Mountain using a Golden Bowl to trap Old Doctor. After Lu Qing broke their formation and Old Doctor escaped, Lu Qing killed the young monk Hui Xin, leaving the confrontation with the monks on the brink of violence.

• Lu Qing crossed the Holy Mountain, used the Earth Spirit Pearl to overcome its pressure, and followed Old Doctor’s aura to a clearing where the monks had trapped him.
• Lu Qing attacked the seven Great Monks with arrows and a saber, then shattered their Vajra Subduing Demon Formation with a punch.
• Old Doctor regained his senses and unleashed a Sword Qi Domain, forcing the Great Monks to retreat from the storm of sword qi.
• Lu Qing seized Hui Xin while Old Doctor confronted the monks over using the Golden Bowl to bind his soul.
• When the monks demanded Hui Xin’s release, Lu Qing twisted his neck and killed him.

Lu Qing killed Hui Xin and wounded Master Xuan Nu, a Great Perfection Innate Realm monk from Hanging Sky Mountain, with his War Blade. He challenged the remaining monks as the onlookers struggled to comprehend his strength.

• Lu Qing crushed Hui Xin to death, provoking Hui Xin's furious master, Master Xuan Nu, to charge at him.
• Lu Qing changed his blade's course to evade Master Xuan Nu's attempt to seize it and struck his shoulder.
• Lu Qing used Vibrating Dragging Saber Force to break Master Xuan Nu's Vajra Body and slash him nearly in two.
• Master Xuan Nu retreated into the other monks' group, while Lu Qing stood his ground and dismissed Hanging Sky Mountain's strength.
• The onlookers marveled that Lu Qing had wounded a Great Perfection Innate Realm expert without using Innate True Qi.
• Lu Qing challenged the remaining Hanging Sky Mountain monks to come forward.

Lu Qing confronted Hanging Sky Mountain after learning that its Vajra Subduing Demon Formation had been used against his master, while Xuan Ming tried to disguise the monks’ actions as benevolent. Lu Qing bought the Old Doctor time to recover and prepared to leave, but his terrifying killing intent stopped the monks when Xuan Ming called after them.

• Lu Qing accused Hanging Sky Mountain of using the Vajra Subduing Demon Formation to turn the Old Doctor into a puppet, and Xuan Ming claimed they had only tried to subdue the Old Doctor’s inner demon.
• Xuan Ming proposed taking Lu Qing and the Old Doctor to Hanging Sky Mountain, but Lu Qing refused to waste words and checked on his master.
• The Old Doctor said he had recovered more than half his strength after secretly taking Earth Vein Spirit Liquid, and Lu Qing told him they would leave.
• The watching experts realized Lu Qing’s confrontation had bought time for the Old Doctor to recover, while the Hanging Sky Mountain monks understood they had been distracted.
• Xuan Ming called out as Lu Qing and the Old Doctor prepared to depart, and Lu Qing’s killing intent made the experts recoil and the monks halt.

Lu Qing intimidated Hanging Sky Mountain into letting him and the Old Doctor leave, while Great Monk Xuan Ming tried to coerce Lin Zhi Rui into revealing their identities. After Daoist Yang Ming accused Hanging Sky Mountain of coveting the Old Doctor’s Merit Light, Xuan Ming threatened to detain Lin Zhi Rui, who agreed to speak.

• Lu Qing threatened the Hanging Sky Mountain monks with his killing intent and left with the Old Doctor without being stopped.
• Great Monk Xuan Ming claimed he did not know Lu Qing and the Old Doctor, then urged Lin Zhi Rui to reveal their origins.
• Lin Zhi Rui refused to disclose their identities and suggested the experts visit Heaven's Secret Pavilion to ask Lu Qing.
• Great Monk Xuan Ming branded Lu Qing and the Old Doctor as possible demons, while Daoist Yang Ming accused Hanging Sky Mountain of trying to seize the Old Doctor’s Merit Light.
• Great Monk Xuan Ming threatened to detain Lin Zhi Rui if he refused to answer, and Lin Zhi Rui finally agreed to speak.