Chapter Summaries

Li Chengjie used the Azure Flame Ice Soul Sword and Soul Shock Banner to withstand Gu Mengyan’s strongest attack, but both fighters were injured and Gu Mengyan began preparing an even more sinister technique. The chapter ended with Li Chengjie weakened against the mountain wall, fearing he could not survive what came next.

• Li Chengjie destroyed Gu Mengyan’s Blood Fire Poisonous Python with the Azure Flame Ice Soul Sword, but the clash injured him and damaged his sword.
• Gu Mengyan killed three fleeing Flowing Cloud Sect Qi Refining Disciples with flames from the White Bone Soul Lamp while Li Chengjie was unable to intervene.
• Gu Mengyan unleashed the Soul Corroding Blood Flame, and Li Chengjie countered with the Soul Shock Banner and Azure Flame Ice Soul Sword.
• The collision destroyed Gu Mengyan’s attack and injured him slightly, but the blast sent Li Chengjie into a mountain wall and damaged both of his magic tools.
• Gu Mengyan began invoking an ancient, evil power through the White Bone Soul Lamp as Li Chengjie feared he would die.

Gu Mengyan unleashed the Nine Nether Soul Erosion Flame, forcing Li Chengjie to use a Blood Escape Talisman to survive the attack. Gravely wounded, Li Chengjie fled toward Panshi Fortress with Gu Mengyan in pursuit.

• Gu Mengyan burned his Essence Blood and damaged the White Bone Soul Lamp to summon the Nine Nether Soul Erosion Flame.
• Li Chengjie activated a Blood Escape Talisman, but Gu Mengyan’s confinement interrupted it and left him badly injured as its remaining power hurled him toward the valley’s edge.
• Gu Mengyan pursued Li Chengjie, intent on killing him and reclaiming the Azure Flame Ice Soul Sword.
• Li Chengjie landed in a forest, swallowed healing and restorative pills, and used the Green Feather Pendant to flee toward Panshi Fortress.
• Gu Mengyan chased Li Chengjie through the wilderness as the wounded cultivator struggled to maintain his lead.

Li Chengjie fled Gu Mengyan and reached Zhao Qianfeng, but Zhao refused to help and escaped toward Panshi Fortress. With no other choice, Li Chengjie used his last Blood Escape Talisman and was hurled into an unknown place, where he crashed into a mountain pool in critical condition.

• Li Chengjie sensed Zhao Qianfeng nearby and flew toward him, pleading for help against Gu Mengyan.
• Zhao Qianfeng claimed he was injured, turned away from Li Chengjie, and sped toward Panshi Fortress.
• Gu Mengyan mocked Li Chengjie and launched Evil Fire at his back.
• Li Chengjie activated his last Blood Escape Talisman despite the danger to his body, and Gu Mengyan only partially disrupted its spatial power.
• The talisman sent Li Chengjie through a rift; he fell into a mountain pool and lost consciousness again.

Li Chengjie survived his grievous injuries after an underground current carried him into a cavern, where he spent a month recovering with pills he had refined. Still weak, he explored the cave and discovered a glowing pool of mysterious milky-white liquid.

• Li Chengjie drifted through an underground river and was swept into a cavern, where he swallowed healing pills to keep himself alive.
• Over the next month, Li Chengjie slowly stabilized his injuries, though his cultivation and meridians remained severely damaged.
• Li Chengjie remembered Zhao Qianfeng’s betrayal and resolved to recover enough strength to escape.
• After several days, Li Chengjie explored the cavern and followed a strange, spirit-refreshing fragrance to a stone hollow beside the water.
• Li Chengjie found a glowing pool of milky-white liquid in the hollow.

Li Chengjie discovered Ten Thousand Year Spirit Milk in an underground cave, used one drop to recover fully, and returned to Panshi Fortress. He met Wu Jiaxing and Zhao Qianfeng, whose false concern deepened Li Chengjie's concealed anger.

• Li Chengjie found and collected twenty drops of Ten Thousand Year Spirit Milk from a stone hollow.
• Li Chengjie consumed one drop, spent several days refining it, and healed his injuries while replenishing his depleted essence.
• Li Chengjie left the cave, emerged from the underground river, and flew south toward Panshi Fortress.
• Li Chengjie arrived at Wu Jiaxing's Cave Abode and found Wu Jiaxing, Zhao Qianfeng, Tang Zeye, Deng Wanghao, Jin Zichen, and Yang Sijing gathered there.
• Zhao Qianfeng feigned relief and claimed he had sought help after Li Chengjie was pursued, while Li Chengjie concealed his fury and said an Escape Talisman had helped him escape.

After a meeting about the Blood Fiend Cult’s growing activity, Li Chengjie asked Wu Jiaxing about the strongest Foundation Establishment cultivator in the Chu Kingdom. Wu Jiaxing named Meng Tianran, and Li Chengjie left with the powerful enemy in mind as someone he had decided to replicate.

• Wu Jiaxing briefed the gathered cultivators on the Blood Fiend Cult’s increased activity near the Black Cloud Mountain Range and ordered stronger vigilance and investigations.
• After the others left, Li Chengjie stayed behind to ask Wu Jiaxing about the frontline and the strongest Foundation Establishment cultivator in the Chu Kingdom.
• Wu Jiaxing named Meng Tianran of the Blood Fiend Cult, describing his failed Golden Core attempt, formidable power, and reputation for killing righteous cultivators.
• Wu Jiaxing warned Li Chengjie not to reach beyond his current strength, while Li Chengjie said he wanted to understand the strongest enemy and stay vigilant.
• Li Chengjie left Wu Jiaxing’s Cave Abode and found someone waiting to speak with him.

Li Chengjie agreed to refine Foundation Establishment Pills from Deng Wanghao’s rare ingredients, hoping to help Deng Wanghao’s grandson advance to Foundation Establishment. With Deng standing guard outside his Cave Abode, Li Chengjie began preparing for the difficult refinement.

• Deng Wanghao approached Li Chengjie and asked him to refine pills after confirming his reputation as an alchemist.
• Deng Wanghao revealed a complete set of Foundation Establishment Pill ingredients and explained that he wanted pills for his grandson, Deng Xintian.
• Deng Wanghao offered Li Chengjie a ten-thousand-Low-grade-Spirit-Stone fee and any extra pills, accepting the risk that the ingredients might be destroyed.
• Li Chengjie accepted the request and asked Deng Wanghao to guard his Cave Abode while he prepared to begin refining in three days.
• Deng Wanghao handed Li Chengjie the ingredients and stood watch as Li Chengjie adjusted his condition and reviewed the pill formula and Jin Leiwei’s experience.

Li Chengjie used the alchemical knowledge Jin Leiwei’s master had bestowed on him to refine Foundation Establishment Pills. He succeeded in forming three superior-quality pills and showed them to Deng Wanghao, who had anxiously waited outside.

• Li Chengjie spent three days reviewing and preparing to refine the Foundation Establishment Pills.
• Li Chengjie used the Earth Fire Array and followed precise alchemical techniques to melt the herbs and stabilize their conflicting medicinal powers.
• Li Chengjie condensed the medicinal liquid into pills, nurtured them over a faint flame, and produced three superior-quality Foundation Establishment Pills.
• Deng Wanghao rushed into the cave abode after Li Chengjie removed the isolation restriction, and Li Chengjie revealed the pills in his palm.

Li Chengjie secured a Foundation Establishment Pill and ten thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones from his deal with Deng Wanghao, then took the pill to Treasure Pavilion to auction it. Steward Qian recognized the pill and examined it, leaving the auction arrangement unresolved.

• Deng Wanghao received two Foundation Establishment Pills from Li Chengjie and promised him a favor in return.
• Deng Wanghao paid Li Chengjie ten thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones, and Li Chengjie kept another Foundation Establishment Pill for himself.
• Li Chengjie consolidated his cultivation before traveling to Black Cloud Market to obtain resources for stronger weapons and defenses.
• Li Chengjie, using the alias Mu, met Steward Qian at Treasure Pavilion and learned that a Monthly Auction would be held in three days.
• Li Chengjie revealed a Foundation Establishment Pill, and Steward Qian recognized it and carefully inspected it.

Li Chengjie consigned a high-quality Foundation Establishment Pill to Treasure Pavilion, arranging for it to be auctioned anonymously. At the auction, he watched the early bidding as a Barrier Breaking Pill sold for an unusually high price amid reports of scarce medicinal ingredients.

• Steward Qian praised Li Chengjie's Foundation Establishment Pill and offered to auction it with an eighty-thousand-spirit-stone starting price and a half-percent commission.
• Li Chengjie signed the Consignment Contract, requested secrecy, and received a Silver VIP Token for the auction three days later.
• Li Chengjie arrived at Treasure Pavilion and watched the auction from a private room as the first items sold to modest bids.
• A first-grade Barrier Breaking Pill sold for four thousand five hundred low-grade spirit stones after fierce bidding.
• Cultivators below discussed the high price, linking rising pill costs to lost Herb Gathering Teams and shortages in the Black Cloud Mountain Range.

Li Chengjie watched as the auction’s Foundation Establishment Pill drew fierce bidding from the private rooms, while Qi Refining cultivators discussed the sects’ control over the ingredients and pill supply. The price climbed beyond ninety thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones, and Li Chengjie remained calm as the competition continued.

• Li Chengjie waited for the auction’s main event, intending to sell his Foundation Establishment Pill for a good price.
• Qian Mancang unveiled the Foundation Establishment Pill and set its starting bid at eighty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones.
• Brother Wang told fellow cultivators that Flowing Cloud Sect had taken his Rogue Cultivator friend’s Essence Condensing Fruit and compensated him with only fifty thousand Spirit Stones.
• Qian Mancang began the bidding, and cultivators in third-floor private rooms rapidly raised the price past ninety thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones.
• Li Chengjie watched the bidding calmly and smiled faintly as the price continued to climb.

Li Chengjie won the Foundation Establishment Pill auction with a bid of 110,000 Low-grade Spirit Stones and collected the proceeds from Treasure Pavilion. He asked Steward Qian about the Star Luo Kingdom, and Steward Qian began explaining why its cultivation resources were more abundant than those of Chu Kingdom.

• A woman raised her bid to 100,000 Spirit Stones, but Li Chengjie outbid her at the last moment with 110,000 and won the Foundation Establishment Pill.
• Li Chengjie waited for the crowd to thin, then met Steward Qian in the settlement room and received 104,500 Low-grade Spirit Stones after Treasure Pavilion's commission.
• Li Chengjie asked Steward Qian about the Star Luo Kingdom's cultivation resources.
• Steward Qian explained that Chu Kingdom's two major sects controlled most of its high-quality resources, limiting what reached smaller groups and lower-level cultivators.

Li Chengjie bought a jade slip from Steward Qian and learned about Star Luo Kingdom’s major factions and the dangers of the Misty Marsh. The chapter left him asking about how travelers could cross the marsh as Steward Qian explained that merchant associations maintained several relatively safe trade routes.

• Steward Qian sold Li Chengjie a jade slip containing an overview of Canglan Continent for one thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones.
• Steward Qian described Star Luo Kingdom’s Ten Great Factions: four families, four sects, the Jin Family, and Medicine King Valley.
• Steward Qian explained that Star Luo Kingdom’s balanced factions supported more active trade and made resources such as Foundation Establishment Pills easier to obtain.
• Li Chengjie asked how people from Chu Kingdom could reach Star Luo Kingdom, and Steward Qian described the Misty Marsh’s poisonous miasma, dangerous beasts, and hostile groups.
• Steward Qian said that several relatively safe trade routes crossed the Misty Marsh and were maintained by merchant associations, including Treasure Merchant Association and Tongyu Trading Company.

Li Chengjie learned that crossing the Misty Marsh on a merchant boat was dangerous and extremely expensive, then discovered that Steward Qian had sold him a nearly useless jade slip. Determined to gain enough Replication Points to copy Meng Tianran, he converted most of his Spirit Stones through the System and was left with an unprecedented sense of wealth.

• Steward Qian explained the dangers of the Misty Marsh trade routes and quoted one-way fares of thirty to fifty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones.
• Li Chengjie left Treasure Pavilion, changed his appearance several times, bought supplies, and flew toward Panshi Fortress.
• Li Chengjie found that A Brief Record of Canglan Scenery contained little useful information and cursed Steward Qian for selling it to him for one thousand Spirit Stones.
• Li Chengjie reviewed his System Interface and calculated that replicating Foundation Establishment peak cultivator Meng Tianran would require at least seven thousand Replication Points.
• Li Chengjie recharged the System with 520,000 Low-grade Spirit Stones, keeping five thousand, and felt an unprecedented sense of wealth.

Li Chengjie witnessed Meng Tianran overwhelm two Flowing Cloud Sect cultivators in a fierce battle and became determined to replicate his talent. Meng Tianran unleashed his Boundless Sea of Blood, leaving Li Jiahui and Wei Tong struggling to resist while Li Chengjie watched from nearby.

• Li Chengjie concealed himself near a battlefield and saw Meng Tianran fighting Li Jiahui and Wei Tong.
• Li Jiahui attacked Meng Tianran with her Glazed Mirror, while Wei Tong struck with his Mountain Seal and Panshi Defense.
• Meng Tianran evaded their attacks and countered with Blood Shadow Stab, forcing Wei Tong back and making Li Jiahui warn him about the Blood Fiend Sword Qi.
• Meng Tianran unleashed Boundless Sea of Blood, overwhelming Li Jiahui's mirror light and threatening Wei Tong's defenses.
• Li Chengjie moved closer to observe, and, yearning for Meng Tianran's power, urged him to keep fighting so he could replicate his talent.

Meng Tianran overwhelmed Li Jiahui and Wei Tong with his Netherworld Blood River until Qin Mingyu arrived and broke through the attack with his Thunderclap Sword Array. The three Flowing Cloud Sect disciples launched a coordinated counterattack against Meng Tianran.

• Meng Tianran unleashed the Netherworld Blood River, forcing Li Jiahui and Wei Tong to shelter inside their Flowing Cloud Thick Earth Formation as it began to crack under the assault.
• As Li Jiahui and Wei Tong neared their limits, Qin Mingyu arrived and summoned the Thunderclap Sword Array.
• Qin Mingyu's lightning swords tore through Meng Tianran's sea of blood, weakening its pressure on the formation.
• Li Jiahui sent a mirror image of Meng Tianran toward him while Wei Tong charged in his Rock Armor with Earth Splitting Collapse.
• Meng Tianran dropped his mocking expression and faced the three-pronged attack with renewed seriousness and excitement.

Meng Tianran fought Qin Mingyu, Li Jiahui, and Wei Tong to a stalemate, while Li Chengjie was nearly killed by a stray shockwave. After Wei Tong warned him to flee, Li Chengjie recognized how weak he was and resolved to get stronger by seeking more Spirit Stones.

• Meng Tianran blocked Qin Mingyu's lightning sword rain with his Blood Fiend Wheel Seal and destroyed Li Jiahui's mirror image with Blood Moon Slash.
• Wei Tong shattered Meng Tianran's defense with a charging shoulder strike, forcing the fighters into a brief stalemate.
• A stray shockwave struck toward Li Chengjie, and Li Jiahui shielded him before the remaining force sent him crashing into rubble.
• Li Chengjie endured the Blood Fiend Qi in his body and received Wei Tong's urgent warning to leave the battle.
• Li Chengjie withdrew, humbled by the gap in strength, and recalled the Chen Family's Miniature Spirit Stone Mine near Qingshi Market.

Li Chengjie returned to the Spirit Stone mine, now fortified as the Chen Family’s stronghold, and was discovered by its newly advanced Foundation Establishment clan leader, Chen Liming. Chen Liming attacked him, convinced the Ninth Level of Qi Refining Li Chengjie would be an easy kill.

• Li Chengjie concealed his cultivation at the Ninth Level of Qi Refining and flew toward the Spirit Stone mine, hoping its resources could meet his needs.
• Li Chengjie found that the Chen Family had transformed the mine into Chen Valley, a heavily guarded clan stronghold protected by a high-grade first-rank formation.
• Chen Liming emerged from Chen Valley as its Foundation Establishment Early Stage clan leader and sensed Li Chengjie hiding nearby.
• Chen Liming recognized Li Chengjie as the Flowing Cloud Sect’s hired Alchemist who had killed Chen Xuan and believed him to be only at the Ninth Level of Qi Refining.
• Chen Liming unleashed his Foundation Establishment spirit pressure and sent azure Sword Qi toward Li Chengjie’s brow.

Li Chengjie revealed his peak Foundation Establishment Early Stage cultivation and killed Chen Liming with one strike from the Azure Flame Ice Soul Sword. The Chen Family cultivators were left stunned, while Chen Kun begged Li Chengjie to spare his life.

• Chen Liming launched a fatal Sword Qi attack at Li Chengjie, believing him to be a Ninth Level Qi Refining cultivator.
• Li Chengjie revealed his peak Foundation Establishment Early Stage cultivation and summoned the Azure Flame Ice Soul Sword.
• Li Chengjie infused the sword with Crimson Sun True Fire and sliced through Chen Liming's Sword Qi before piercing his heart.
• Chen Liming died, leaving the Chen Family cultivators frozen in shock and terror.
• Chen Kun knelt before Li Chengjie, blamed Chen Liming, and begged for mercy.

Li Chengjie slaughtered the Chen Family cultivators and looted their stronghold after accusing them of colluding with the Blood Fiend Cult and trying to ambush him. He discovered the family’s Spirit Stone mine had been exhausted, but their accumulated wealth still gave him an astonishing fortune.

• Li Chengjie rejected Chen Kun’s plea for mercy and used Meteor Fire Rain to kill the Chen Family cultivators at the gates, including Chen Kun, while destroying the formation.
• Li Chengjie confirmed no one remained alive at the gates, collected the cultivators’ Storage Bags, and entered Chen Valley to kill the hidden low-level cultivators.
• Li Chengjie broke into the Chen Family storehouse and took its refining materials, spiritual herbs, Dharma Artifacts, and medicinal pills.
• Li Chengjie entered the mine and discovered that the Chen Family had exhausted its core Spirit Stone vein through aggressive excavation.
• Li Chengjie gathered and counted the Chen Family’s Spirit Stones, finding hundreds of thousands of Low-grade Spirit Stones and a substantial number of Mid-grade Spirit Stones.