Chapter Summaries

The Earthen Soil Array fell after Min Longyu identified and exploited its weakness, leaving the Mountain Shattering Gang’s cultivators exposed to a massacre. Luo Chen was cut off from his allies and faced Gao Tingyuan as the attackers closed in.

• Dan Xiu’s attacks failed to break the Earthen Soil Array, but Min Longyu used an array disk to make Slanting Moon Valley quake and weaken the barrier.
• Sikong Shoujia rallied the valley’s cultivators against the invaders’ offer of surrender, and the Earthen Soil Array shattered as more than a hundred cultivators fled.
• Gao Tingyuan charged toward Luo Chen, but Lan Tianyun tried to stop him because Wang Haichao had personally ordered Luo Chen spared; Gao Tingyuan pushed past him and attacked.
• Sikong Shoujia drew Fu Zhang into battle, while Granny Yuan led her son toward the Medicine Hall and Luo Chen tried to escape with his companions.
• Dan Xiu blocked Luo Chen’s group, and Zhou Yuanli and Liu Qiang fought him while Murong Qinglian and Gu Cai Yi tried to get Luo Chen away.
• Gao Tingyuan’s blue Flood Dragon charged at Luo Chen, who shielded Gu Cai Yi with the Four Symbols Cauldron and then confronted Gao Tingyuan with his crimson spear.

Luo Chen revealed his Qi Refining Eighth Layer cultivation and defeated Gao Tingyuan’s ambush by detonating more than ten thousand Jade Marrow Scrap Beads. After overcoming Gao Tingyuan’s soul-binding technique and killing him, Luo Chen joined the others in the battle, where Duan Feng arrived and killed the fleeing Lan Tianyun.

• Gao Tingyuan recognized Luo Chen’s Soul Severing Nail and accused him of killing Gao Ting'e, then surrounded him with seven Late Qi Refining Stage cultivators.
• Luo Chen rode a cloud above the attackers and detonated more than ten thousand Jade Marrow Scrap Beads, devastating the battlefield.
• Luo Chen caught Gao Tingyuan as he tried to escape and killed him with the Fire Tipped Spear and two Soul Severing Nails.
• Gao Tingyuan’s ghostly gaze immobilized Luo Chen, but Luo Chen used Bright Spirit Breaking Evil to break the stalemate and finish him.
• Lan Tianyun drove Murong Qinglian, Gu Cai Yi, Zhou Yuanli, and Liu Qiang back with a talisman and fled, but Duan Feng arrived and killed him with a Flying Sword.

Luo Chen and his allies turned the battle for Slanting Moon Valley against the Great River Gang, only for Wang Haichao and Elder Zhou to arrive and claim the territory. Steward Miao drove them away, then invited Luo Chen into the Pill Hall.

• A mysterious black figure encountered a Jade Cauldron Sword Cultivator near the ruined Mi Family Residence, then vanished into the night.
• After Dan Xiu and Gao Tingyuan died, Luo Chen, Murong Qinglian, Duan Feng, and Gu Cai Yi helped turn the battle against the Great River Gang; Zhou Yuanli and Liu Qiang also joined after the Gang Leader’s control over them disappeared.
• Duan Feng broke Min Longyu’s formation, and Granny Yuan attacked the fleeing Min Longyu with her Kusanagi Gengjin Sword Art; Luo Chen shielded her from Min Longyu’s counterattack.
• Luo Chen’s side routed the Great River Gang, but Wang Haichao and Elder Zhou arrived and declared Slanting Moon Valley Great River Gang territory and invited Luo Chen to join the Connecting Cloud Commerce Alliance.
• Steward Miao arrived, asserted the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect’s claim to Slanting Moon Valley, and ordered Wang Haichao and Elder Zhou to leave; afterward, he invited Luo Chen into the Pill Hall.

After the battle at Slanting Moon Valley, Luo Chen examined the spoils and discovered a biography describing an unusual Soul Path Foundation Establishment method. With Mi Shuhua dead and the Mountain Shattering Gang shattered, Luo Chen founded the Luo Tian Association and began gathering its survivors under a new banner.

• Luo Chen learned that the Pill Hall and Medicine Hall had suffered heavy losses, then invited their survivors to follow him while promising a fair distribution of the spoils.
• Luo Chen recovered from the battle, inspected Dan Xiu's and Gao Tingyuan's Storage Bags, and read Gu Yue's Biography, which described Foundation Establishment through refining and merging nine hundred and ninety-nine souls.
• Luo Chen failed to find the Soul Path Foundation Establishment method among Gao Tingyuan's possessions, then learned from Murong Qinglian that Qin Liangchen had lost his arm escaping Nangong Qin's ambush.
• Luo Chen announced that Mi Shuhua was dead and the Mountain Shattering Gang had effectively fallen, then proposed establishing the Luo Tian Association and distributing spoils to both those who joined and those who left.
• Zhou Yuanli, Liu Qiang, Gu Cai Yi, Granny Yuan, Murong Qinglian, Duan Feng, and other cultivators joined the Luo Tian Association.

After Mi Shuhua’s death, Luo Chen established the Luo Heaven Association with Miao Wen’s backing, rewarded its survivors, and organized it into four halls. He ended the night by returning Qin Liangchen’s promised Foundation Establishment Pill, leaving Qin and Murong Qinglian determined to support him.

• Nearly all thirty-one low-level cultivators joined the Luo Heaven Association, while Mi Li learned that the Nangong Family had taken over the Mi Family Residence.
• Luo Chen distributed battle spoils to the survivors, then appointed Granny Yuan, Murong Qinglian, and Gu Cai Yi to lead the Pill, Merit, and Gold Halls.
• Luo Chen proposed establishing a Battle Hall and issuing a recall order to bring back surviving Mountain Shattering Gang cultivators, especially Wang Yuan.
• Luo Chen spoke with Qin Liangchen over wine and offered to ask Miao Wen about reattaching Qin’s destroyed hand.
• Luo Chen gave Qin Liangchen the Foundation Establishment Pill that Mi Shuhua had promised him, and Qin accepted it as his brother.
• Murong Qinglian told Qin Liangchen that they would help Luo Chen manage the association, and Qin called Luo Chen his brother.

After the Mountain Shattering Gang’s destruction, Luo Chen organized the Luo Tian Association while considering a dangerous Soul Path Foundation Establishment method and training in spells. The association began rebuilding its halls and recruiting cultivators, and Luo Chen planned to seek help for Qin Liangchen’s severed hand.

• The Great River Market factions competed over the Mountain Shattering Gang’s legacy as the Luo Tian Association emerged under Pill Dust Master and began rebuilding in Slanting Moon Valley.
• Murong Qinglian struggled to recruit former Mountain Shattering Gang members until Zeng Wen returned and agreed to serve in the Gold Hall.
• Luo Chen rejected the Soul Refining True Art’s method of Foundation Establishment but decided to learn its Soul Subduing Art and Soul Binding Oath, along with spells needed for Mountain Collapse.
• Luo Chen trained in the Earth Peak Technique with Zeng Wen and reviewed the association’s progress with Murong Qinglian, including plans to restore its halls and recover its shops.
• Luo Chen assigned the Sima siblings to separate halls and said he would seek help reattaching Qin Liangchen’s severed hand.

Luo Chen secured Miao Wen’s backing for the Luo Tian Association, but Miao Wen slaughtered the surviving Mi Family members and tested Luo Chen’s judgment before leaving Mi Li alive with her memories erased. As the association prepared its shops and Qin Liangchen sought artificial arms, Luo Chen concluded that only strength could keep others from forcing choices upon him.

• Luo Chen met Miao Wen, reported on the Luo Tian Association, and received a Small Five Elements Array and help with the association’s shops, supplies, and Qin Liangchen’s artificial arms.
• Miao Wen led Luo Chen, Mi Li, and Qin Liangchen to Severing Cloud Mountain, where he found the Mi Family survivors and discovered their grave held only a cenotaph.
• Miao Wen killed Sikong Yuanhong and the other Mi Family survivors, then asked Luo Chen whether Mi Li should also die; he ultimately spared her and gave her a Forget Worry Pill that erased her memories.
• Luo Chen realized Miao Wen had tested his character and resolved that his weakness had allowed others to impose choices on him, while the Luo Tian Association continued building its headquarters.
• Luo Chen trained Gold Hall’s attendants in customer service and VIP sales, then left with Qin Liangchen and Murong Qinglian to arrange Qin Liangchen’s artificial arms; they saw Mi Li sitting alone at the construction site.

Luo Chen arranged medicine and care for Qin Liangchen after Luo Tianhong successfully reattached his arm, then reunited with Wang Yuan and learned that Wang Yuan had advanced to the Second Realm of body refinement. As the Luo Tian Association expanded its pill business, Luo Chen sought a Fuzhu Deer milk deal with the Nangong Family but was rebuffed, and his party encountered the Fu Family’s newly built fort.

• Luo Tianhong successfully used the Golden Cicada Limb Regeneration Technique to reattach Qin Liangchen’s arm, and Luo Chen brewed Azure Golden Vitality Soup to support his recovery.
• Wang Yuan returned after surviving a dangerous fight, learned the Aura Concealing Spirit Art from Luo Chen, and revealed that his physique had reached the Second Realm of body refinement.
• Luo Chen expanded the Luo Tian Association’s pill operations, supervised Jade Marrow Pill production, and began training Qu Lingjun by giving him the Hundred Herbs Compendium to memorize.
• Luo Chen visited the Nangong Family to propose a Fuzhu Deer milk business, but Nangong Qin refused because the deal was unrelated to pills and the family wished to avoid displeasing Miao Wen.
• Luo Chen led his party through the wilderness and stopped when Sima Xian reported they needed to detour around a newly built Wubao Fort bearing the Fu Family name.

Luo Chen planned to use a staged Blood Talisman auction to provoke conflict between the Luo Tian Association and the Fu Family. After selling the talisman at the black market, he and Wang Yuan tracked a suspected ambush near Seven Stars Slope.

• Fu Zhang ordered the Fu Family to deny rumors that it possessed Blood Talisman techniques and arranged talks with the Chen Family and Divine Talisman Pavilion.
• Luo Chen convinced Wang Yuan that the Luo Tian Association needed a limited war, with the Fu Family as its target, and obtained Wang Yuan’s crude Blood Talisman.
• Luo Chen attended the Zhenlong Black Market auction, bought Golden Jade Liquid, and sold a Blood Talisman while claiming it had been made from a Fu Family cultivator.
• The Blood Talisman sold for two thousand three hundred Spirit Stones, and Tian Xingzi watched Luo Chen leave with suspicion.
• Luo Chen and Wang Yuan concealed their auras and waited outside the black market before Wang Yuan spotted activity near Seven Stars Slope, prompting them to move toward it.

Luo Chen and Wang Yuan ambushed the black-robed cultivator at Seven Stars Slope, where she used a Fu Family Blood Talisman to destroy Wang Yuan’s fake talisman and raze the slope. Luo Chen then advanced a plan to pressure the Fu Family, and the chapter ended with Fu Zhang raging after receiving Luo Chen’s letter.

• Luo Chen and Wang Yuan found three masked Luo Tian Association Battle Hall cultivators attacking the black-robed woman at Seven Stars Slope, then Wang Yuan joined the fight.
• The woman revealed herself as a skilled female cultivator and used a Fu Family Blood Talisman to unleash a blood-colored palm that destroyed Wang Yuan’s staff attack and left him dead in a vast crater.
• Luo Chen and Wang Yuan discussed how the battle publicized the Fu Family Blood Talisman, and Luo Chen was pleased that Great River Market’s cultivators were condemning the Fu Family.
• Luo Chen sent Sima Xian to deliver a letter to Fu Zhang and questioned him about nearby markets, powerful cultivators, and the possibility of Great River Market becoming an immortal city.
• After Sima Xian left, Luo Chen recognized the black-robed woman as Cool Moon Fairy of Snow Lotus Market, while Fu Zhang read Luo Chen’s letter and angrily smashed a sandalwood table.

Luo Chen forced the Fu Family into a confrontation at Wubao Fort, seeking to strengthen the Luo Tian Association and his influence with Miao Wen. Wang Yuan shattered the fort’s defenses with one punch, and the Battle Hall launched its attack.

• Fu Zhang rejected the Luo Tian Association’s demands to return Sikong Shoujia’s belongings and provide three Blood Talismans, while Luo Chen secured Miao Wen’s permission to act after presenting Jade Marrow Pills.
• Luo Chen led the Luo Tian Association’s Battle Hall toward Wubao Fort, with Duan Feng, Sima Xian, Sima Wenjie, Zeng Wen, Qin Liangchen, and Wang Yuan among the force.
• Fu Zhang offered Sikong Shoujia’s tortoiseshell and broken sword, but Luo Chen demanded three Blood Talismans as well and declared that the Fu Family’s fate was its own doing.
• Fu Zhang activated the Copper Walls Iron Walls Grand Formation, reinforced with Earth Guard Talismans, to defend Wubao Fort.
• Wang Yuan punched a ten-meter hole through Wubao Fort and shattered its grand formation, after which a shout to kill rang out.

Luo Chen directed the Luo Tian Association’s attack on the Fu Family and withdrew his forces as unaffiliated cultivators flooded the fort to seize the spoils. When Fu Zhang unleashed the Fu Family’s Talisman Treasure against him, Luo Chen advanced to face it, and their clash ended with a blazing golden light engulfing the battlefield.

• Luo Chen assessed the Luo Tian Association’s advantage over the Fu Family while watching Duan Feng battle Fu Zhang and tracking four hidden Foundation Establishment cultivators.
• Luo Chen arranged for an unaffiliated cultivator to stir up the crowd, prompting thousands of unaffiliated cultivators to rush into Fu Family Fort and fight over its resources.
• Luo Chen ordered the Luo Tian Association’s Battle Hall to withdraw, told Duan Feng and the others to retreat if necessary, and prepared to re-enter the fort once the fighting settled.
• Fu Zhang, wounded and grieving his family’s defeat, activated a golden Talisman Treasure and charged at Luo Chen with the phantom of a massive hammer.
• Luo Chen advanced instead of retreating and sent six Flood Dragons from his Azure Banner against the hammer; as the phantom dissipated, golden light engulfed Fu Zhang and Luo Chen.

After surviving the battle with the Fu Family, Luo Chen recovered from his injuries and advanced to Qi Refining Ninth Layer. He assessed the long road to Qi Refining Completion and reviewed his Attribute Panel, ending by wondering whether his Achievement Points were enough to learn a Tier 2 Pill Formula.

• Luo Chen explained to Wang Yuan why he had deliberately taken Fu Zhang’s Talisman Treasure attack, and Wang Yuan agreed that their preparations had made the risk manageable.
• Luo Chen instructed Wang Yuan, Murong Qinglian, Gu Cai Yi, and Zeng Wen to handle the Luo Tian Association’s affairs, compensate the families of fallen cultivators, and sell the refined Jade Marrow Pills while he recovered.
• Luo Chen descended into the Spirit Vein Cave to cultivate, and four days later he reached Qi Refining Ninth Layer.
• Luo Chen examined his Spiritual Qi Cloud and realized that filling his Dantian to reach Qi Refining Completion would likely take another five or six years.
• Luo Chen reviewed his Attribute Panel, noted that Spirit Eye Art was close to Great Perfection, and considered learning pill arts that could help him refine Blood Fiend Pills.
• Luo Chen saw that he had 34 Achievement Points and wondered whether they were enough to learn a Tier 2 Pill Formula at Entry Level.

After the Luo Tian Association strengthened its business and settled the Fu Family’s spoils, Luo Chen studied talisman-making materials to improve his spells and threaten Foundation Establishment cultivators. His overnight experiments advanced his Fireball Spell and brought his Spirit Eye Art to Great Perfection.

• Gu Cai Yi reported that the Nangong Family would supply Fuzhu Beast Milk, the Great River Gang had resumed its Jade Washing Herb supply, and the major families were considering the Luo Tian Association’s Jade Marrow Pills.
• Luo Chen tested Qu Lingjun’s knowledge of medicinal herbs, gave him an annotated Hundred Herbs Compendium, access to herbs for experiments, and a protective talisman.
• Wang Yuan told Luo Chen that the association was considering a Talisman Making hall; Luo Chen rejected the plan but asked to study the Fu Family’s talisman-making books and supplies.
• Luo Chen analyzed the Fireball Spell through the Spirit Eye Art, strengthening the spell and Flying Firefly while seeking a faster way to fuse fireballs.
• At dawn, Luo Chen realized that his Spirit Eye Art had reached Great Perfection.

Luo Chen achieved Great Perfection in the Spirit Eye Art and discovered its powerful new abilities before Miao Wen summoned him to Elder Pang Renxiong. After Pang extracted Mi Shuhua’s hidden Soul Seed from Luo Chen, they followed it toward a concealed enemy, where Luo Tianhong called on the elder to draw his sword.

• Luo Chen’s Great Perfection Spirit Eye Art let him see spiritual qi, distant details, vitality, deathly intent, and hidden formation patterns, though using it caused him pain.
• Luo Chen practiced observing his surroundings from the mountain, and Miao Wen arrived to take him to the Jade Cauldron Sword Pavilion.
• Pang Renxiong used a Soul Gathering Lamp to extract the Soul Seed Mi Shuhua had left inside Luo Chen and ordered them to follow it to its source.
• Miao Wen explained that Mi Shuhua had possessed several Magic Treasures and likely had not died in the earlier battle, revealing that they were hunting a hidden enemy.
• Luo Tianhong followed the Soul Seed to the Great River, where a powerful hostile Mana fluctuation rose from the water, and called for the elder to unsheathe his sword.

Luo Chen watched Pang Renxiong defeat and kill a black-robed Golden Core Cultivator with the Demon Locking Pagoda and a Sword Pellet, then learned the enemy’s treasures had been used in a scheme against the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect. After Pang Renxiong bestowed two Magic Treasures on Miao Wen and Luo Tianhong, he turned his attention to Luo Chen.

• Miao Wen and Luo Tianhong retreated with Luo Chen from the Golden Core battle, and Luo Tianhong saved Luo Chen when the shockwaves knocked him from the air.
• Pang Renxiong confronted the black-robed Golden Core Cultivator, who denied killing Fei Bai Wen and attacked with the Sky Moon Purple Gold Wheel and Demon Locking Pagoda.
• Luo Tianhong explained that Pang Renxiong had used Mi Shuhua and the abandoned treasures as bait to draw out the culprit behind Fei Bai Wen’s death.
• The black-robed cultivator trapped Pang Renxiong with the Demon Locking Pagoda, but Pang Renxiong broke free, struck him down, and used a hidden golden chain to seize his Golden Core before killing him.
• Pang Renxiong recovered a Sword Pellet that belonged to a fallen Jade Cauldron Sword Sect Golden Core Cultivator, then gave the Sky Moon Purple Gold Wheel to Miao Wen and the Rotten Ke Chess Piece to Luo Tianhong.
• Pang Renxiong recognized Luo Chen as Pill Dust Master Luo Chen and addressed him.

After Pang Renxiong killed the Black-Robed Cultivator, he accepted Luo Chen as his disciple and ordered him to leave for the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect. Luo Chen said farewell to Great River Market and entrusted the Luo Tian Association and Qu Lingjun to his friends, but three terrifying auras erupted as he reached the Inner City gates.

• Luo Chen praised Pang Renxiong for killing the Demon Cultivator, and Pang Renxiong ordered Miao Wen and Luo Tianhong to publicize the victory.
• Pang Renxiong rewarded Luo Chen with five bottles of Tier 2 Elf Pills and ordered him to join the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect as his disciple.
• Luo Chen told Wang Yuan he would leave the next day, gave him Elf Pills, and worried over leaving the Luo Tian Association behind.
• Luo Chen announced his departure, gave the association members plans for new businesses, and entrusted Qu Lingjun to Zhou Yuanli's care.
• Luo Chen said farewell to Great River Market and flew toward the Inner City with Liu Qiang and Zhou Yuanli escorting him.
• Three terrifying auras erupted inside the Inner City just as Luo Chen reached its gates, and someone shouted for them to run.

Three Ghost Kings emerged in Great River Market, where Pang Renxiong fought them while a Gray-Robed Cultivator and Zhenlong Black Market forces supported the attack. Luo Chen escaped to Slanting Moon Valley with his companions, where he learned that many association members’ relatives remained trapped in the Inner City and awkwardly asked Wang Yuan to return the Elf Pills he had given him.

• Three Ghost Kings broke free beneath Great River Market, and Pang Renxiong confronted the Gray-Robed Cultivator who had tampered with a Sword Pellet to weaken his attack.
• Luo Tianhong and Miao Wen activated the Jade Cauldron Grand Formation as Pang Renxiong fought the Ghost Kings, while the Gray-Robed Cultivator used his Divine Sense to control them.
• Luo Chen recognized the Ghost Kings and fled toward Slanting Moon Valley with Zhou Yuanli and Liu Qiang, then spotted Tian Xingzi leading Zhenlong Black Market cultivators toward the Inner City.
• Luo Chen met Wang Yuan and other Luo Tian Association members, explained the upheaval, and reached Slanting Moon Valley, where members grieved for relatives still trapped inside Great River Market.
• Luo Chen asked Wang Yuan whether he could return the bottle of Elf Pills Luo Chen had given him.

Luo Chen and Wang Yuan watched the Golden Core battle’s aftermath unfold as Great River Market’s Inner City became a deadly Ghost Domain. As survivors emerged and Luo Chen learned that Bai Mei Ling was missing, his grief was interrupted by a voice recruiting Li Wanchun into the Duan Family.

• Wang Yuan took Luo Chen to the Mass Burial Grounds, where they used changes in the ghosts to track the battle and saw signs that Pang Renxiong had slain the three Ghost Kings before another Sword Cultivator struck Fallen Phoenix Mountain.
• Half a month later, Luo Chen led Luo Tian Association cultivators to watch the Ghost City, where sixteen groups had entered without returning and the Inner City remained filled with the Ghost Kings’ essence.
• Old Chu escaped the Inner City with several Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion workers, and Luo Chen questioned Li Wanchun, who said he had survived inside the shop’s formation and agreed to join the Luo Tian Association.
• Senior Hua left the Inner City with four illusory figures, while other sect shops’ cultivators emerged without their missing workers, leading Luo Chen to fear Bai Mei Ling had died inside.
• Liu He Cai confirmed that Bai Mei Ling had belonged to Hundred Herbs Hall, and Luo Chen mourned her while Zhou Yuanli handled recruiting the abandoned independent cultivators.
• Luo Chen turned sharply when he heard someone loudly invite Li Wanchun to join the Duan Family.

After Li Wanchun chose the Duan Family over the Luo Tian Association, Luo Chen prepared the association for the power vacuum left by the destroyed Inner City and used Pang Renxiong’s token to restart trade with the Great River Gang. He left determined to secure more partnerships and seize an opportunity for the Luo Tian Association in Great River Market.

• Li Wanchun chose to join the Duan Family, and Luo Chen accepted his decision before leaving with the Luo Tian Association cultivators.
• Luo Chen told Murong Qinglian, Gu Cai Yi, and Duan Feng that sect cultivators were withdrawing and urged them to keep the association operating and capture the vacant pill market.
• Luo Chen presented Pang Renxiong’s token and explained how the association could use its apparent ties to the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect to deter rivals and attract partners.
• Luo Chen met Wang Haichao aboard the Great River Gang’s ship and persuaded him to resume their Jade Washing Herb trade by invoking the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect’s likely response to the massacre.
• After leaving the Great River Gang, Luo Chen planned to approach other families and resolved to use the upheaval in Great River Market to carve out a place for himself.