Chapter Summaries

Luo Chen and Wang Yuan met Qiu Liangyue at Snow Lotus Hall and learned that Great River Market had become a vast Ghost Domain ruled by Ghost King Pang Renxiong. After Qiu Liangyue left, they realized she was the woman they had once deceived and robbed, and Luo Chen turned his attention to recruiting Foundation Establishment talent for the Luo Tian Association using Emperor Flow Paste.

• Shi Boying asked Qiu Liangyue to host Luo Chen and Wang Yuan and tell them about the auction treasures.
• Qiu Liangyue recognized Wang Yuan as a former fighter from Great River Market, and Luo Chen and Wang Yuan concealed their past involvement in robbing her.
• Qiu Liangyue recounted how she found a Foundation Establishment Pill in an abandoned cave after escaping the robber cultivators, then joined the Ice Fortress.
• Qiu Liangyue told Luo Chen and Wang Yuan that Ghost King Pang Renxiong had turned Great River Market and the surrounding thousand miles into a Ghost Domain filled with Ghost Generals.
• After Qiu Liangyue left, Luo Chen and Wang Yuan admitted they had recognized her as the woman they had framed and robbed, then discussed the dangers of the Ghost Domain.
• Luo Chen studied the auction list, noticed five Second-Order Demon Beasts, and resolved to use Emperor Flow Paste to help the Luo Tian Association gain more Foundation Establishment True Cultivators.

Luo Chen used rumors about the Luo Tian Association’s spoils to conceal his plan to refine Emperor Flow Paste, then attended an auction in Skybillow and bought two Demon Beast corpses for alchemy. The auction ended with Wang Yuan bidding fiercely on Netherworld Yin Fiend, a key ingredient for Blood Fiend Pills, after Luo Chen promised he could refine them.

• Luo Chen arranged for Sima Hui Niang to spread rumors that the Luo Tian Association had obtained several Foundation Establishment Pills, giving him cover to refine and distribute Emperor Flow Paste.
• Shi Boying opened the Snow Lotus Hall auction by presenting an intact Second-Order Extreme Ice Toad corpse, and Luo Chen won it for thirteen thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones.
• Luo Chen bought a Frost Demon Wolf corpse for ten thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones after watching the other Demon Beast corpses sell at similarly high prices.
• Luo Chen considered which trusted people might receive Emperor Flow Paste and wondered whether it could help Brother Qin attempt Foundation Establishment.
• Wang Yuan bid twenty thousand Spirit Stones on a Hundred-Year Netherworld Yin Fiend, and Luo Chen confirmed he could refine Blood Fiend Pills from the collected ingredients.
• When another bidder offered twenty-three thousand, Wang Yuan raised the price to twenty-five thousand and declared he would take the Netherworld Yin Fiend no matter what.

Wang Yuan bought a huge quantity of Netherworld Yin Fiend, while Luo Chen won a defensive robe for Sima Hui Niang and quietly gave Shi Boying a bottle containing a Mid-Grade Jade Dew Pill. Tantai Jin mistook the gift for a calculated move and began preparing for Luo Chen’s demands, while Luo Chen waited for Ice Fortress to respond so he could earn more Spirit Stones.

• Wang Yuan won more than a thousand portions of Netherworld Yin Fiend for thirty thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones, then stayed at Luo Chen’s urging to watch the rest of the auction.
• Luo Chen bought the Ice Filament Jade Garment for Sima Hui Niang for nine thousand Spirit Stones and learned from Shi Boying that Frost Immortal had ordered Snow Lotus Hall’s resources sold.
• Luo Chen gave Shi Boying a jade bottle, and Shi Boying later found a Mid-Grade Jade Dew Pill inside and brought it to Tantai Jin.
• Tantai Jin decided the pill was probably a deliberate signal from Luo Chen, ordered Shi Boying to investigate him and the Luo Tian Association, and resolved to agree to his demands if necessary.
• Luo Chen began preparing to refine Emperor Flow Paste from the Frost Demon Wolf’s remains and wondered why Ice Fortress had not yet responded about the pill.

Luo Chen successfully refined a stronger batch of Emperor Flow Paste from the Extreme Ice Toad, discovering that its Profound Yin Power could strengthen Bai Mei Ling. He reviewed the Luo Tian Association’s progress and sensed that someone had finally come to see him.

• Luo Chen finished three portions of Emperor Flow Paste using the Frost Demon Wolf and later used Bai Mei Ling to safely dissect the poisonous Extreme Ice Toad.
• Luo Chen refined a more potent batch of Emperor Flow Paste, found it carried powerful Profound Yin Power, and gave Bai Mei Ling a portion to test after she absorbed some of the power herself.
• Luo Chen prepared to open Fei Changqiu’s Storage Bag and refine Blood Fiend Pills for Wang Yuan while continuing to cultivate.
• Luo Chen read the Luo Tian Records and learned that Sima Hui Niang had organized the Luo Tian Nine Halls, bought a Spirit Testing Disk, and recruited a hundred new members in a month.
• Luo Chen sensed that someone had arrived to see him and replaced the Luo Tian Records with the Esteemed Fox Pill Explanation.

Luo Chen negotiated with Tantai Jin for resources and support in exchange for refining Mid-Grade Jade Dew Pills for the Heartless Lineage. He agreed to pursue high-grade pills through Tantai Jin’s introduction to Tao Wan, then returned to refining the Blood Fiend Pill.

• Tantai Jin asked whether Luo Chen could refine Mid-Grade Jade Dew Pills, and he complained that the work would take time away from managing the Luo Tian Association.
• Tantai Jin offered him a Foundation Establishment Pill and introduced a skilled beast tamer willing to serve the association for ten years at a salary of four thousand Spirit Stones a month.
• Luo Chen asked to study the Heartless Lineage’s Core Formation secret techniques, but Tantai Jin refused and offered instead to connect him with a source of high-grade cultivation pills.
• Luo Chen agreed to refine Mid-Grade Jade Dew Pills for the Heartless Lineage, while Tantai Jin planned to introduce him to Tao Wan.
• Luo Chen considered how to win Tao Wan’s favor, then focused on the Human Placenta, Netherworld Yin Fiend, and Cultivator Essence Blood needed for the Blood Fiend Pill.

Luo Chen struggled to refine the Blood Fiend Pill without relying on the system, then turned to the Luo Tian Association’s expansion and Sima Hui Niang’s cultivation. He left Danxia Peak for the Skill Transmission Hall, hoping its collected Cultivation Methods would explain his failures.

• Luo Chen processed the Essence Blood and other ingredients, but his first fifteen attempts to refine the Blood Fiend Pill failed despite his knowledge and powerful flames.
• Luo Chen visited Danxia Peak, where Sima Hui Niang reported that Xu Huanzhen had proposed raising Azure Golden Silkworms and Amber Silkworms for their valuable silk.
• Luo Chen approved renting the former Geng Family estate as a breeding base for the Luo Tian Association’s spirit beasts and silkworms.
• Luo Chen gave Sima Hui Niang a monthly bottle of Mid-Grade Jade Dew Pills and insisted that her Foundation Establishment Ceremony be grand enough to reflect her position as association president.
• Luo Chen left Grace Heart Hall and headed to the Skill Transmission Hall to search for an answer to his Blood Fiend Pill refining failures.

Luo Chen searched the Luo Tian Association’s library for Fire Element methods and secret arts to solve his Pill Refining bottleneck. After studying them, he identified a path through Fire Control, Fire Fusion, and Fire Absorption, and left to begin practicing Fire Fusion.

• Luo Chen visited the Skill Transmission Hall, where Min Longyu described the disciples he had chosen to inherit his teachings and Wang Yuan gathered fire-related texts for Luo Chen.
• Luo Chen spent half a month reading seven Tier 1 Fire Element methods and several secret arts, learning Wang Yuan’s Blood Flame Art and copying the Fire Fusion secret art.
• Luo Chen rested, resumed cultivation, and spent another month studying the Tier 2 Ding Fire One Qi Method, Blazing Sun True Scripture, and Azure Sun Art.
• Luo Chen concluded that Pill Fire mastery progressed through Fire Control, Fire Fusion, and Fire Absorption, with Divine Soul Fire Transformation as a legendary fourth level.
• Luo Chen decided to cultivate the Fire Fusion Secret Art first and headed to the Pill Room.

Luo Chen mastered Fire Fusion and independently refined Blood Fiend Pills, then began organizing Sima Hui Niang’s Foundation Establishment ceremony and inviting powerful cultivators. As preparations began, he turned to opening Fei Changqiu’s Storage Bag, hoping to find valuable items missing from the Divine Craftsmen Sect’s treasury.

• Luo Chen used the Fire Fusion Secret Art to refine Essence Blood separately and successfully produced Blood Fiend Pills without relying on the system.
• Luo Chen celebrated his breakthrough, then instructed Bai Mei Ling to prepare hot water and began writing invitations for Sima Hui Niang’s Foundation Establishment ceremony.
• Luo Chen assigned Sima Xian, Murong Qinglian, Gu Cai Yi, and Qin Liangchen tasks for the ceremony and urged them to consider their own chances at Foundation Establishment.
• As the four Luo Tian Association members discussed who might receive a Foundation Establishment Elixir, Murong Qinglian encouraged Gu Cai Yi to pursue cultivation so she could remain beside Luo Chen in the future.
• Luo Chen kept invitations for Chu Kui and Tantai Jin to deliver personally and began breaking the restriction on Fei Changqiu’s Storage Bag, hoping to find a Foundation Establishment Pill and Spirit Stones.

Luo Chen divided Fei Changqiu’s spoils among his personal stores and the Luo Tian Association, then delivered Jade Dew Pills to Tantai Jin and invited her to Sima Hui Niang’s Foundation Establishment Ceremony. As Luo Chen’s confidence in his own abilities grew, the Connecting Cloud Grand Elder sent Zhou Qing to the ceremony to seek an understanding with the Luo Tian Association and avoid future conflict.

• Luo Chen opened Fei Changqiu’s Storage Bag and found a Foundation Establishment Pill, cultivation and artifact-forging manuals, a matching axe Magic Tool, and a large haul of Spirit Stones.
• Bai Mei Ling counted the Spirit Stones, including one High-Grade Spirit Stone, while Luo Chen set aside the recovered resources and inheritances for the Luo Tian Association’s halls.
• Luo Chen sold ten bottles of Jade Dew Pills to Tantai Jin, accepted her promise that the Ice Fortress would send a representative to Sima Hui Niang’s Foundation Establishment Ceremony, and learned that Tao Wan would send someone from Azure Pill Valley.
• Luo Chen refined pills through a peaceful month, surpassed the system’s apparent limit by producing five Top-grade Netherworld Pills in a batch, and grounded his confidence in his own hard work.
• The Connecting Cloud Grand Elder ordered Zhou Qing to attend the ceremony, bring a gift, and prioritize peace and cooperation with the Luo Tian Association; Zhou Qing agreed.

As the Luo Tian Association prepared for Sima’s Foundation Establishment Ceremony, Luo Chen explained to Wang Yuan why the group now needed to act with confidence and use the gathering to shape alliances and business ties. Guests arrived at Danxia Peak beneath a spectacular Rainbow Bridge, and Xu Huanzhen emerged to welcome the Connecting Cloud Commerce Alliance as its imposing flying boat approached.

• Luo Chen recorded Wang Yuan’s account of the Blood Fiend Pills and learned that they helped open his meridians and unleash the Blood God Tribulation Finger more quickly.
• Luo Chen told Wang Yuan that the Luo Tian Association’s greater strength and backing from Ice Fortress meant it should stop acting like a small Marketplace force and use the ceremony to establish its standing.
• Unaffiliated cultivators gathered at Danxia Peak, where shops sold snacks as they waited for the ceremony and speculated about the Luo Tian Association’s guests.
• Wei Bufan arrived from Must Dust Mountain with Wei Pingan and Wei Yungao, and the Luo Tian Association welcomed them across a Rainbow Bridge.
• The Chang Family leader and the Feather Transformation Sect’s sect master arrived and entered Danxia Peak through the bridge.
• As a huge flying boat approached without using the Rainbow Bridge, Xu Huanzhen rode out on a Tier 2 white crane and announced that he had come to welcome the Connecting Cloud Commerce Alliance.

Luo Chen welcomed influential cultivators to the Luo Tian Association’s Foundation Establishment ceremony as its prestige became clear. Sima Hui Niang prepared to step into the public eye as the association’s president, while Zhou Qing and other old acquaintances saw how far Luo Chen had risen.

• Xu Huanzhen of the Luo Tian Association welcomed Zhou Qing and the Connecting Cloud Commerce Alliance, and Zhou Qing disembarked after Nangong Jin suggested admiring Danxia Peak.
• Nangong Jin and Li Yixian crossed Min Longyu’s illusionary Rainbow Bridge, met Murong Qinglian, and realized Chen Xiuli of Heavenly Robe Workshop had arrived as well.
• Luo Chen assessed Sima Hui Niang’s steady Foundation Establishment cultivation, and she prepared to meet representatives of the major powers as the Luo Tian Association’s president.
• Luo Chen greeted Zhou Qing, Wei Bufan, and other Foundation Establishment cultivators before welcoming Chen Xiuli into Grace Heart Hall.
• Zhou Qing and Nangong Jin reflected on Luo Chen’s rise, while Li Yixian watched him from a distance.
• The herald announced congratulations and gifts from Iron Sword Hall, Rakshasa Market, and Peach Mountain, and Luo Chen invited the arriving cultivators to join the feast.

Luo Chen welcomed powerful guests to the Luo Tian Association’s celebration, including representatives of three Golden Core sects. Their arrival transformed the association’s standing in Sky Wave Immortal City, leaving it recognized as one of the city’s foremost powers.

• Qiao Xiyue proposed that Peach Mountain receive exclusive supplies of All Wonders Pills, and Luo Chen redirected her to discuss the deal with President Sima Hui Niang.
• Luo Chen reunited with Li Yixian and Nangong Jin, encouraged Li Ao after his failed Foundation Establishment attempt, and learned that Li Yixian and Nangong Jin had advanced their cultivation.
• Tantai Jin of Ice Fortress and Tao Yisheng of Azure Pill Valley arrived to congratulate the Luo Tian Association, stunning the guests and ending Zuo Song’s interest in the Profound Heaven Crystal.
• Luo Chen welcomed Tantai Jin and Tao Yisheng at Danxia Peak as cultivators across Sky Wave Immortal City watched, and the Luo Tian Association gained recognition as a leading local power.

At Sima Hui Niang’s Foundation Establishment celebration, Tantai Jin presented Luo Chen with a Core Formation Secret Technique, making the Luo Tian Association appear closely tied to Ice Fortress. After the guests departed, Chu Kui visited Danxia Peak, where Luo Chen hinted he would personally deal with the forces that had ignored his invitation.

• Tantai Jin gave the Luo Tian Association a Foundation Establishment Pill, Sima Hui Niang Ice God Jade, and Luo Chen a one-use Jade Slip containing Ice Fortress’s Core Formation Secret Technique.
• Tao Yisheng presented gifts for Sima Hui Niang, and the guests took their carefully assigned seats in the great hall.
• Sima Hui Niang discussed her Foundation Establishment insights while the Qi Refining cultivators listened, and the celebration proceeded without incident.
• After the celebration, Luo Chen told Sima Hui Niang to negotiate freely with the remaining guests and reflected on the burden of Ice Fortress’s support.
• Chu Kui arrived at Danxia Peak, and Luo Chen said he would personally visit the forces that had failed to attend before inviting Chu Kui in for a drink.

At the Luo Tian Association’s Foundation Establishment celebration, Sima Hui Niang negotiated several major partnerships and received congratulatory gifts, including a Lingxi Gu and a Top-Grade Magic Tool. After the guests left, she told Luo Chen that her favorite gift was the Daoist robe he had given her, then embraced and kissed him, leaving their relationship at a turning point.

• Sima Hui Niang negotiated cooperation agreements with visiting cultivation forces, while Min Longyu and Duan Feng witnessed the results of Luo Chen’s careful planning.
• Sima Hui Niang learned that Luo Chen was drinking with Chu Kui and went to the Luo Tian Grand Hall after Gu Cai Yi urged her to rest.
• Chu Kui gave Sima Hui Niang a Lingxi Gu, explaining that it linked two cultivators and could absorb much of one bearer’s cultivation if raised to Tier 3 and the other died.
• Wang Yuan gave Sima Hui Niang the Top-Grade Magic Tool Heavenly Net, and she then excitedly recounted the celebration’s valuable gifts to Luo Chen.
• Sima Hui Niang said Luo Chen’s Daoist robe was her favorite gift, embraced him, and kissed him after telling him she wanted to end the happy day with something even happier.

After sleeping with Sima Hui Niang, Luo Chen heard her analysis of Ice Fortress’s interest in the Luo Tian Association and realized the sect wanted the whole faction as an ally, not merely him. The next morning, Sima Hui Niang arrived to lead a business meeting, and Gu Cai Yi suspected she had spent the night with Luo Chen.

• Luo Chen told Sima Hui Niang about Tantai Jin’s offer and his dealings with Ice Fortress, and Sima explained how their support would benefit the Luo Tian Association.
• Sima Hui Niang pointed out that powerful factions in Sky Wave needed a great sect’s protection, leading Luo Chen to understand that Ice Fortress valued the Luo Tian Association itself.
• Luo Chen and Sima Hui Niang discussed the black-market auction where he had saved her, then spent the rest of the night together.
• The next morning, Luo Chen left Danxia Peak while Sima Hui Niang prepared to discuss the celebration’s business arrangements with the association’s members.
• Gu Cai Yi noticed signs that Sima Hui Niang had recently slept with someone and, remembering Luo Chen’s departure, bitterly thought that she had been there first.

Luo Chen studied the Dragon Phoenix Tribulation technique and concluded that his best path to faster cultivation was to use Blood Fiend Pills to open more meridians. After spending three months refining them, he took his first pill and began forcing open blocked meridians.

• Luo Chen returned to Sky Wave Peak and read the Core Formation Secret Technique Tantai Jin had given him, discovering it was the Dragon Phoenix Tribulation, which raised the chance of forming a Golden Core by only ten percent.
• Luo Chen decided to keep the technique as a last resort and focus on reaching Foundation Establishment Fifth Layer, but he lacked cultivation pill formulas to speed his progress.
• Luo Chen reasoned that opening and strengthening more meridians could increase his cultivation speed, and chose to use Blood Fiend Pills to help him do so.
• Luo Chen spent three months refining Blood Fiend Pills and produced more than one hundred and thirty, far exceeding his expected yield.
• Luo Chen entered his secret chamber, swallowed a Blood Fiend Pill, endured its surging Blood Fiend force, and directed it against his blocked meridians.

Bian Zhen received a Foundation Establishment Pill for his service, while Luo Chen offered Qin Liangchen, Murong Qinglian, and Sima Xian gentler Foundation Establishment Elixirs under strict secrecy. After arranging future succession and disciples for the Luo Tian Association, Luo Chen and Sima Hui Niang shared an intimate moment, and he asked her to stay the night.

• Sima Hui Niang awarded Bian Zhen a Foundation Establishment Pill and ordered him to prepare for seclusion while Feng Xia temporarily handled the Spirit Medicine Hall.
• Sima Hui Niang brought Qin Liangchen, Murong Qinglian, and Sima Xian to Luo Chen, who offered them mild Foundation Establishment Elixirs and secured their secrecy with oaths and soul restrictions.
• Luo Chen explained that his body had recovered from injuries caused by using a Blood Fiend Pill to open hidden meridians, then told the three recipients they would have to wait for Bian Zhen's attempt before taking their turns.
• Murong Qinglian and Qin Liangchen speculated about Luo Chen and Sima Hui Niang's relationship, while Sima Hui Niang later reported on the Luo Tian Association's new disciples and inheritance system.
• Sima Hui Niang massaged Luo Chen as they discussed cultivation, and Luo Chen asked her not to go home that night.

Luo Chen learned that Azure Pill Valley tightly rationed high-grade pills, but Tao Yisheng hinted that there was a way to obtain them in bulk in exchange for Luo Chen’s pill-refining guidance. After realizing he had been too impatient, Luo Chen resolved to keep negotiating until he discovered what Tao Yisheng wanted.

• Luo Chen studied Pill Origin Master’s alchemy texts and considered trying the Blood Increasing Pill formula with leftover cultivator Essence Blood.
• Tao Yisheng returned from his ten-year assignment guarding Yuanzhao Kingdom and told Luo Chen about Azure Pill Valley’s strength and demanding assignments.
• Luo Chen asked about the sect’s pill supplies, and Tao Yisheng revealed that even its Late-Stage Great Cultivators received only enough high-grade Rising Dragon Pills for themselves.
• Tao Yisheng hinted that large quantities of high-grade pills could be obtained, but asked Luo Chen to exchange pill-refining ideas with him.
• Luo Chen returned to his cave mansion, calmed his impatience, and decided to continue negotiating to discover what Tao Yisheng wanted.

Luo Chen learned that Tao Wan was preparing to compete for Azure Pill Valley’s Golden Core Dao Seed position and realized Tao Yisheng was testing his pill-refining skills. After demonstrating his mastery and helping Tao Yisheng refine high-grade Life Restoration Water, Luo Chen returned to his cave mansion and began opening his final hidden meridian.

• Sima Hui Niang told Luo Chen that Azure Pill Valley planned to choose a new Golden Core Dao Seed in roughly three or four years, and that candidates could enlist skilled Pill Refiners for the selection contests.
• Luo Chen concluded Tao Yisheng had been testing his abilities on Tao Wan’s behalf and decided to reveal more of his pill-refining skill without openly asking for their help.
• Luo Chen chose Sima Xian to attempt Foundation Establishment before Qin Liangchen because the Battle Hall could spare him more readily than the Glow Hall.
• Luo Chen demonstrated how to refine Blue Silt Flower and guided Tao Yisheng through refining Life Restoration Water, helping him produce a high-grade batch.
• Tao Yisheng thanked Luo Chen and accepted his invitation to discuss Alchemy Dao again after going into seclusion, while Luo Chen left pleased that his strategy was working.
• Luo Chen returned to his cave mansion, swallowed a High-Grade Blood Fiend Pill, and began working toward opening his final hidden meridian.

Luo Chen completed Meridian Opening, doubled his cultivation speed, and planned to train with his newfound strength. Meanwhile, Tao Yisheng returned to Azure Pill Valley to praise Luo Chen to Tao Wan, who challenged him to explain what made the wandering pill refiner so impressive.

• Luo Chen used a High-Grade Blood Fiend Pill to open his hundredth meridian and advance his Ageless Evergreen Scripture to Grandmaster Level.
• Luo Chen found that his cultivation speed had more than doubled and estimated that he could reach Foundation Establishment Great Perfection within two or three hundred years.
• After recovering, Luo Chen recognized that his broader meridians had improved his combat abilities and headed to the Dao Discussion Stage to train.
• Tao Yisheng returned to Azure Pill Valley, where Tao Wan's supporters discussed the coming Golden Core Dao Seed Competition and learned that Danyangzi could compete again.
• Tao Yisheng praised Luo Chen as a gifted pill refiner, angering Tao Wan and unsettling her supporters, including Huang Hezi.
• Tao Wan scolded Tao Yisheng for returning and offending Huang Hezi, then agreed to hear what he had learned about Luo Chen.