Chapter Summaries

Xiao Ming reviewed the rewards he had accumulated from the Life Simulator and chose six hundred thousand gold coins over a medicinal pill or magic core. He decided to preserve his collection of techniques and other resources for himself and eventually use them to strengthen the Xiao Family.

• Xiao Ming rejected the Marrow Cleansing Ice Spirit Liquid and Second-Tier Wind Attribute Magic Core, choosing six hundred thousand gold coins instead.
• Xiao Ming recalled that rare treasures such as Heavenly Flames were hard to draw because common rewards dominated the Simulator's prize pool.
• Xiao Ming tallied his accumulated wealth, including nearly eight million gold coins, numerous Cultivation Methods and Dou Skills, medicinal pills, weapons, herbs, and storage rings.
• Xiao Ming decided to keep his techniques and other resources rather than sell them, planning to bring them back to the Xiao Family to improve its foundation.
• Xiao Ming blamed the Xiao Family's decline partly on the Ancient Clan and Gu Yuan, but acknowledged he could only help his clan by growing stronger himself.

After learning that the Inn's staff planned to drug and sell its guests to the Blood Sect, Xiao Ming decided to disrupt their scheme before they could act. He set the Inn on fire with Peach Blossom Flame and vanished from his room, leaving the guests to awaken and defend themselves.

• Xiao Ming chose six hundred thousand gold coins and stored them in his Na Ring.
• Ding Lao'er and a thin man discussed the Inn's plan to drug its guests and sell them to the Blood Sect.
• Xiao Ming overheard their conversation and realized the traffickers might act before the time shown in his simulation.
• Xiao Ming summoned Peach Blossom Flame and spread it across the door opposite his room to start a controlled fire.
• Xiao Ming put on his black robe and vanished from his room.

Xiao Ming discovered that the inn’s gang planned to capture and traffic its drugged guests, and he struck first against their leader, a Five-Star Great Dou Shi. The chapter ended as the Gaunt Old Man hurriedly raised a green barrier against Xiao Ming’s Three Flame Ethereal Seal.

• Ding Lao'er, Scarface, Black-faced Fatty, and the skinny man prepared to capture the inn’s guests, while the Gaunt Old Man arrived and ordered the operation to begin.
• A fire and the guests’ shouts alerted the gang that their targets had awakened, but the Gaunt Old Man ordered his men to capture them anyway.
• Xiao Ming watched from the shadows and assessed the Gaunt Old Man as a Five-Star Great Dou Shi, stronger than himself.
• Xiao Ming merged two flames and formed a Pink-Blue Seal with his Three Flame Ethereal Seal technique.
• The Gaunt Old Man sensed Xiao Ming’s attack too late and raised a green Dou Qi barrier with his crutch.

Xiao Ming killed the Gaunt Old Man with his Three Flame Ethereal Seal and followed-up sword attack, while Ding Lao'er ordered the Inn's traffickers to kill their captives and went downstairs to investigate the silence. The chapter left the battle upstairs nearly settled, with Ding Lao'er and his men heading toward Xiao Ming.

• Xiao Ming's Blue Powder Seal destroyed the Gaunt Old Man's cane and struck him, but the old man survived the initial attack.
• Xiao Ming charged through the dust and killed the Gaunt Old Man with the Vast Righteous Astral Flame Sword.
• Ding Lao'er and the white-bearded Strong Man Duo paused when the fighting downstairs abruptly went quiet.
• Uneasy about his boss, Ding Lao'er ordered his subordinates to kill the captives despite the plan to trade them to the Blood Sect.
• Ding Lao'er killed the two white-bearded men, then led his subordinates downstairs.

Xiao Ming fought the traffickers who entered the inn, using his medicinal pills and combat skills to defeat them. He left with a Na Ring from the Gaunt Old Man as the half-burned inn continued to blaze.

• Scarface, the skinny man, and Black-faced Fatty found their boss dead and realized Xiao Ming had killed him.
• Xiao Ming attacked the newcomers, killing several underlings with sword light and the Three Flame Ethereal Seal.
• Scarface, Black-faced Fatty, the skinny man, and Ding Lao'er led the remaining traffickers in a prolonged fight against Xiao Ming.
• Xiao Ming used medicinal pills to replenish his Dou Qi and killed Ding Lao'er and the remaining leaders with the Three Flame Ethereal Seal.
• Xiao Ming took a Na Ring from the Gaunt Old Man and left the burning inn.

Xiao Ming settled into another inn in Green Rock Town, assessed the spoils from his fight at the Black Inn, and learned where to find the Green Poison Twin Ghosts. The innkeeper began telling him what he knew about their abilities.

• Green Rock Town residents discovered that the Black Inn had burned down and its leaders had been killed.
• Xiao Ming checked into another inn, bathed, and examined Gaunt Old Man’s Na Ring.
• Xiao Ming found two genuine Profound Tier Low-Grade Cultivation Methods and enough valuables to recover his pill costs with a small profit.
• Xiao Ming questioned the innkeeper about the two people connected to Green Rock Profound Water.
• The innkeeper identified them as Green Ghost and Poison Ghost, the Green Poison Twin Ghosts, and said they lived in a conspicuous residence in northern Green Rock Town.
• Xiao Ming asked about their Dou Skills and techniques, and the innkeeper began to explain what he knew.

Xiao Ming searched the Green Poison Twin Ghosts’ residence for the green rock profound water but found it missing, so he waited for them to return. When the brothers decided to flee Green Rock Town with the water, Xiao Ming attacked them.

• Xiao Ming entered the Twin Ghosts’ poison-filled courtyard and searched their rooms, but found neither brother nor the green rock profound water.
• Xiao Ming hid on a beam and waited for the Green Poison Twin Ghosts to return.
• Green Ghost and Poison Ghost discussed the He Lai Inn massacre and feared the Blood Sect might target them.
• Green Ghost decided they should leave town, and Poison Ghost agreed to take the mysterious water with them.
• Xiao Ming launched two streams of beast flame and formed the Three Flame Ethereal Seal as the brothers prepared to leave.

Xiao Ming ambushed the Green Poison Twin Ghosts and killed Green Ghost after Poison Ghost sacrificed him to block the Three Flame Ethereal Seal. Xiao Ming then burned through Poison Ghost’s poison and defeated him, leaving with both men’s Na Rings.

• Xiao Ming attacked the Green Poison Twin Ghosts, and Poison Ghost threw Green Ghost into the Three Flame Ethereal Seal to save himself.
• Green Ghost crashed to the floor and died, while Poison Ghost tried to trap Xiao Ming in spreading poison gas.
• Xiao Ming summoned his Blue-Pink Flame, burned away the poison, and countered Poison Ghost’s Poison Python Whip.
• Poison Ghost swallowed a green pill to strengthen himself and clashed with Xiao Ming, but Xiao Ming’s flames bound his arms and feet.
• Xiao Ming struck Poison Ghost with the Three Flame Ethereal Seal, took Na Rings from both brothers, and left the room.

Xiao Ming found the hidden Rock Cavity and discovered the Green Rock Profound Water, along with valuable Corpse Eggplant Flowers. As he tried to pick one, a hovering Seven-Colored Shadow attacked him.

• Xiao Ming searched the largest pond east of Green Rock Town and found a submerged passage leading into a Rock Cavity.
• Xiao Ming followed the Moonlight Stones through the caverns and reached a chamber filled with green liquid and corpses.
• Xiao Ming spotted the Green Rock Profound Water growing on a small island and noticed nearly twenty Corpse Eggplant Flowers nearby.
• Xiao Ming dodged a Seven-Colored Shadow that attacked him as he bent to pick a flower, and the creature hovered nearby with a buzzing sound.

Xiao Ming defeated a Seven-Colored Flying Centipede and collected the Green Rock Profound Water after overcoming its defenses. He then found a hidden cave on the mountain and prepared to absorb it safely.

• Xiao Ming recognized the Seven-Colored Flying Centipede, killed it with his sword, and burned its remains with blue flames.
• Xiao Ming crossed the Green Pool and overcame the Green Rock Profound Water's attacks before severing its roots.
• The Green Rock Profound Water revealed its liquid source, which Xiao Ming sealed in a Jade Bottle before gathering the medicinal herbs and leaving the cave.
• Xiao Ming emerged from the pool, decided to absorb the Green Rock Profound Water in a mountain cave, and traveled toward the peak.
• Xiao Ming climbed to a natural cave on a cliff, lit it with Moonlight Stones, and carefully checked it for threats.

Xiao Ming used Ling to devour the Green Rock Profound Water and began refining it inside his Qi Cyclone. He planned to seek out more Beast Flames and strange objects to strengthen Ling, while intending to claim several ownerless Heavenly Flames for himself.

• Xiao Ming sealed the cave entrance and released the Green Rock Profound Water from its Jade Bottle.
• Xiao Ming sent Ling into the Mysterious Water, then used Dou Qi and the Peach Blossom Flame and Azure Crystal Flame to weaken its resistance.
• Ling absorbed the Green Rock Profound Water, and Xiao Ming reflected on how safely and efficiently Ling could devour strange objects and feed energy back to him.
• Xiao Ming resolved to strengthen Ling with more Beast Flames and eventually seek the Green Lotus Core Flame and the Fallen Heart Flames for himself.
• Xiao Ming returned the still jade-green Ling to his Qi Cyclone so it could finish refining the Green Rock Profound Water and feed him energy.

Xiao Ming refined the Green Rock Profound Water and used the energy Ling released to strengthen his body and advance rapidly. He tempered his unstable Dou Qi back to the peak of Two-Star Great Dou Shi, then ordered Ling to attack the stone blocking the cave entrance.

• Ling finished refining the Green Rock Profound Water and released a torrent of energy that Xiao Ming circulated into his Dou Crystal and body.
• Xiao Ming broke through to Two-Star Great Dou Shi, then advanced again to Three-Star Great Dou Shi as his Aura continued to rise.
• Worried that his frequent breakthroughs had made his Dou Qi unstable, Xiao Ming used Soul Power to temper it and lowered his realm to the peak of Two-Star Great Dou Shi.
• Xiao Ming tested his strengthened body and concluded that his physical strength could contend with a Tier 2 Magical Beast.
• Xiao Ming summoned Ling and ordered it to attack the stone blocking the cave entrance.

Xiao Ming tested Ling’s new long-range attack, left Green Rock Town, and traveled to Black Mark City to pursue a Secret Realm mentioned by the Simulator. He arrived before the city’s auction, knowing powerful forces and Rogue Cultivators could make the coming expedition dangerous.

• Xiao Ming had Ling fire a green energy beam that pierced a boulder and left behind corrosive liquid and Blue-Pink Flame.
• Xiao Ming ordered Ling to destroy the boulder, then jumped from the cliff, changed into new black robes, and departed Green Rock Town.
• Over fourteen days of travel, Xiao Ming encountered bandits, tempered his Dou Qi, sharpened his combat methods, and stabilized his realm.
• Xiao Ming reached a ridge overlooking Black Mark City and recalled that the Secret Realm lay in the Black Region Great Plains outside the city.
• Xiao Ming considered the powerful forces and Rogue Cultivators likely to seek the Secret Realm, then descended toward Black Mark City, resolving to be careful.

Xiao Ming entered Black Mark City amid its violent street life and prepared for the Secret Realm’s opening the next day. After deciding he needed a map of the Black Region Great Plains before finding an inn, he entered the Cartography Pavilion to look for one.

• Xiao Ming waited in line at Black Mark City’s gate and watched a frail man stab a bald man before escaping into the bushes, where the bald man was later heard screaming.
• Xiao Ming paid the gatekeeper and entered the city, then witnessed numerous violent fights as he walked its streets.
• Xiao Ming decided to find a map of the Black Region Great Plains before setting out for the Secret Realm the next day.
• Xiao Ming found the Cartography Pavilion and entered its spacious interior, where several customers browsed maps.

Xiao Ming bought an expensive map of the Black Region Great Plains at the Cartography Pavilion. As he was leaving, a saleswoman mentioned Heavenly Flame Maps, and his interest prompted her to call him back despite knowing little about Heavenly Flames.

• Xiao Ming asked a saleswoman at the Cartography Pavilion for the finest map of the Black Region Great Plains.
• The saleswoman showed him a detailed map and charged four thousand gold coins, which Xiao Ming paid before storing the map in his Na Ring.
• As Xiao Ming left, the saleswoman offered other maps, including Heavenly Flame Maps, and he stopped to ask about them.
• The saleswoman could not explain what Heavenly Flames were, so Xiao Ming turned to leave.
• The saleswoman called Xiao Ming back, hoping to sell him the Cartography Pavilion's Fragment Maps.

Xiao Ming examined an incomplete map to the Nether Poison Flame and learned why the Cartography Pavilion had been unable to sell it. He bought the map, planning to use his Life Simulation Simulator to search for the flame and have Ling devour it.

• A sales clerk told Xiao Ming that the Cartography Pavilion had a map related to Heavenly Flames and offered to retrieve it.
• Steward Bai showed Xiao Ming the damaged map and explained that it pointed to the Netherworld Marsh and the Nether Poison Flame.
• Xiao Ming recognized that the Nether Poison Flame was dangerously poisonous and had little appeal to Alchemists.
• Steward Bai admitted that the map had been authenticated but had not sold because of its incompleteness and the flame's danger.
• Xiao Ming bought the map because he believed it was genuine and could search for the Nether Poison Flame through his Life Simulations.

Xiao Ming bought the Heavenly Flame Remnant Map in Black Mark City, then traveled to the Black Region Great Plains to find the Secret Realm. When the realm’s opening sent a pillar of light and violent gale across the plains, he headed toward it.

• Xiao Ming bargained with Steward Bai and bought the Heavenly Flame Remnant Map for twenty-four thousand gold coins.
• Steward Bai told the sales attendant that the Cartography Pavilion had copied the map and decided not to send anyone after Xiao Ming.
• Xiao Ming gathered information in Black Mark City, stayed at an inn, and set out for the Black Region Great Plains the next morning.
• Xiao Ming searched for the Secret Realm’s opening site, then stopped and waited for the disturbance that would mark its appearance.
• A pillar of light rose and a fierce gale swept across the plains, carrying an unlucky traveler away as Xiao Ming anchored himself with his sword.
• After the gale subsided, Xiao Ming concealed his face beneath his black robe and rushed toward the pillar of light.

Xiao Ming reached the Secret Realm entrance and waited outside its dangerous Jade Stone Plaza as experts from Black Mark City converged on the pillar of light. After a trespasser was killed by the plaza’s defenses, Dou Wang and Dou Ling experts arrived, leaving the gathered groups facing powerful newcomers.

• Experts across Black Mark City spotted the pillar of light and hurried toward the Secret Realm, while Xiao Ming traveled there without knowing they were coming.
• Xiao Ming arrived at the Jade Stone Plaza and kept his distance from a nine-man group whose leader chose not to attack him.
• A Da Dou Shi stepped onto the glowing plaza and exploded into Blood Mist, warning everyone that the Secret Realm entrance remained sealed.
• More than a dozen Dou Wang experts arrived from the eastern sky, followed by Magical Beasts carrying affiliated forces that included Dou Ling experts.
• The burly leader trembled as he recognized the Dou Ling experts among the newcomers.

Xiao Ming watched the experts investigate the strange plaza as they waited for the Secret Realm to open. When a spatial passage appeared, the powerful cultivators entered first, and Xiao Ming slipped in ahead of the crowd while everyone else fought over the entrance.

• The Yao Clan Three Brothers, Tie Wu, Su Mei, and Yuan Yi discussed the suspected Secret Realm and whether to drive away the weaker cultivators, but Su Mei argued that they could serve as cannon fodder.
• Xiao Ming recognized Su Mei as a possible match for the female Dou Emperor from his simulation and decided to be cautious around her.
• Tie Wu seized the skinny man who had threatened Xiao Ming, then threw him onto the plaza, where he exploded into Blood Mist as the man had described.
• The plaza's markings brightened, and its white pillar of light gave way to a dark, rotating passage into the Secret Realm.
• The experts flew into the passage, and Xiao Ming used his Movement Dou Technique and position to enter ahead of the crowd as the others fought over access.

Xiao Ming entered the Secret Realm through a spatial passage and found himself alone on a gray plain, with a mountain range and buildings visible in the distance. As he hurried through the forest toward them, he discovered the skeletons of many Magical Beasts and humans, suggesting a devastating battle had once taken place there.

• Xiao Ming arrived in the Secret Realm, drew a black broadsword, and realized the other experts who had entered were nowhere nearby.
• Xiao Ming deduced that multiple spatial passages had scattered the entrants and set off toward the mountain range before anyone could catch up.
• Several bloodied cultivators appeared at Xiao Ming's former location, laughed at finding the buildings, and sprinted toward them as their spilled blood vanished into the soil.
• Xiao Ming entered the dense forest and considered how its trees would provide cover for ambushes and robbery.
• Xiao Ming passed a gigantic snake skeleton he estimated had belonged to a Sixth-Tier Magical Beast, then encountered more beast and human remains and suspected a fierce battle had occurred.