Chapter Summaries

Gu He bought a large quantity of rare herbs from Thousand Medicine Emporium after Pavilion Master Yao intervened to protect an old man who had offended him. He then visited the second floor to inspect its pill-for-herb exchanges and considered whether the listed prices were worthwhile.

• Gu He recognized Pavilion Master Yao, and she pleaded with him to spare Yao Qing after the old man begged forgiveness.
• Pavilion Master Yao offered Gu He a five-percent discount, and he agreed to let the offense go.
• Gu He bought more than forty precious herbs and over a hundred supplementary ingredients for more than ten million gold coins.
• Gu He asked Pavilion Master Yao to show him the second floor, where rare herbs were exchanged for pills.
• Gu He examined the exchange conditions and questioned the value of trading a Fourth-grade pill for a Blood Ganoderma used to refine another Fourth-grade pill.

Gu He traded pills for Thousand Medicine Emporium’s rare medicinal herbs, impressing Pavilion Master Yao and Elder Yan with their quality. He then invited Pavilion Master Yao to open a branch in Gu Ling City, leaving her to consider the proposal.

• Gu He selected reasonably priced herbs on the second floor and exchanged pills for them.
• Elder Yan appraised Gu He’s pills and praised their extraordinary quality, leading Pavilion Master Yao to recognize his standing as an alchemist.
• Pavilion Master Yao brought out herbs reserved for an upcoming auction, and Gu He exchanged a sixth-grade Spirit Dou Pill for them.
• Gu He asked Pavilion Master Yao whether she would open a Thousand Medicine Emporium branch in Gu Ling City and suggested starting at Gu Ling Pavilion.

Gu He proposed that Thousand Medicine Emporium open a branch in Gu Ling City, and Pavilion Master Yao weighed the benefits and risks before promising an answer within three days. After spending the day buying medicinal ingredients in Black Emperor City, Gu He reached the Black Emperor Pavilion and settled into his Heaven Grade quarters.

• Gu He offered Thousand Medicine Emporium favorable terms for opening a branch in Gu Ling City, and Pavilion Master Yao asked for three days to decide.
• Pavilion Master Yao consulted Elder Yan, who supported the plan and urged her to consider the advantages of befriending Gu He.
• Gu He spent over ten million gold coins and more than a hundred pills buying medicinal ingredients from pharmacies around Black Emperor City.
• Gu He presented his golden token to Che Cheng and entered the Black Emperor Pavilion, where he received lodging in the Heaven Grade area.
• Gu He declined the maid's offer to make his bed and examined a Magic Crystal Lamp before losing interest.

Gu He visited the Black Emperor Auction House and presented a high-quality Sect Breaking Pill for appraisal. He agreed to auction it in exchange for a Seventh-tier Magical Beast Corpse with intact wings.

• Gu He sorted his medicinal ingredients, cultivated overnight, and went to the city center to continue his preparations.
• Gu He entered the Black Emperor Auction House and asked to have a Sixth-grade pill assessed for auction.
• A maid brought Gu He to Elder Zhuo, the Black Emperor Sect's chief appraiser, who recognized him as Pavilion Master Gu.
• Gu He presented a Sect Breaking Pill, and Elder Zhuo confirmed its identity and high quality.
• Gu He told Elder Zhuo that he wanted to exchange the pill for a Seventh-tier Magical Beast Corpse with intact wings.

Gu He consigned a Sect Breaking Pill at the Black Emperor Auction House and received a first-tier VIP token. Elder Zhuo took the pill through the auction house’s guarded passages to report it to Sect Master Mo Tianxing, who asked what treasure he had found.

• Elder Zhuo gave Gu He a first-tier VIP token after accepting the Sect Breaking Pill for the auction.
• After Gu He left, Elder Zhuo dismissed a maidservant, secured the appraised treasures in a Ring, and entered a hidden passage.
• Elder Zhuo passed the guarded checkpoints and asked Elder Liu to report his valuable discovery to the Sect Master.
• Elder Liu obtained permission for Elder Zhuo to meet the Sect Master and directed him upstairs.
• Sect Master Mo Tianxing recognized Zhuo Zhaoming and asked what treasure he had uncovered.

Mo Tianxing learned that Gu He had entrusted a high-quality Sect Breaking Pill to the Black Emperor Auction House and confirmed its authenticity through Elder Qi Shan. The pill’s requested price—a Seventh-tier Magical Beast corpse with intact wings—left Mo Tianxing considering how difficult the exchange would be.

• Zhuo Zhaoming told Mo Tianxing that Gu He had entrusted a Sect Breaking Pill to the Black Emperor Auction House.
• Mo Tianxing became eager to acquire the pill, hoping it could help Mo Ya break through to Dou Zong, and promised Zhuo Zhaoming a promotion if the pill was genuine.
• Mo Tianxing summoned Elder Qi Shan, who confirmed that the pill was a high-quality Sect Breaking Pill and praised its unknown maker’s skill.
• Zhuo Zhaoming revealed that Gu He wanted a Seventh-tier Magical Beast corpse with intact wings in exchange for the pill.
• Mo Tianxing realized that Gu He wanted the corpse to cultivate a movement Dou Technique and frowned at the difficulty of finding one.

Mo Tianxing decided to seek an honest trade with the Gu Ling Pavilion Master for a Sect Breaking Pill and learned where the alchemist was staying. Meanwhile, Gu He continued buying medicinal ingredients around Black Emperor City, unaware that Mo Tianxing was investigating his activities.

• Mo Tianxing abandoned the idea of keeping the Sect Breaking Pill and decided to offer a rare Magical Beast corpse in exchange for it.
• Qi Shan warned that the corpse might contain a valuable Magic Core, but Mo Tianxing chose to proceed and agreed to let Qi Shan accompany him.
• Mo Tianxing summoned Che Cheng and learned that the Gu Ling Pavilion Master had stayed at the Black Emperor Pavilion but had left that morning.
• Mo Tianxing ordered two Blood Guards to investigate what the Gu Ling Pavilion Master had done in Black Emperor City without directly monitoring him.
• Gu He visited more apothecaries and bought precious medicinal ingredients, unaware that Mo Tianxing was looking into him.

Gu He returned to Black Emperor Pavilion after shopping and met with Mo Tianxing, who wanted to trade for Gu He's Sect Breaking Pill. Mo Tianxing revealed a dried Seventh-tier Magical Beast corpse with an intact wing, but Gu He kept his reaction guarded as the negotiation began.

• Gu He finished buying medicine from Black Emperor City's shops and returned to Black Emperor Pavilion after dark.
• Che Cheng told Gu He that Mo Tianxing wanted to meet him, and Gu He agreed but insisted that Mo Tianxing come to his room.
• Mo Tianxing and Qi Shan went with Che Cheng to Room Seven, where Mo Tianxing and Gu He exchanged pleasantries before discussing the Sect Breaking Pill.
• Mo Tianxing asked to trade privately for Gu He's Sect Breaking Pill and brought out a massive dried Magical Beast corpse with a jade-like skeletal wing.
• Mo Tianxing described the corpse's rank and possible blood essence and Magic Core, while Gu He kept his expression unmoved despite coveting it.

Gu He negotiated with Mo Tianxing over the Sect Breaking Pill, the Seventh-tier Magical Beast corpse, and the Black Emperor Sect’s medicinal ingredients. Mo Tianxing agreed to pursue the deal, while Qi Shan offered Gu He a fragmentary Seventh-grade pill formula in hopes of learning from him.

• Gu He rejected Mo Tianxing’s offer of the Seventh-tier Magical Beast corpse, questioning the usefulness of its bone wings and whether it contained a Magic Core.
• Mo Tianxing offered the Black Emperor Sect’s stored medicinal ingredients for the Sect Breaking Pill, but Gu He refused and outlined alternative exchanges involving the corpse, treasury resources, and an Azure Nether Longevity Pill.
• Mo Tianxing accepted Gu He’s terms and resolved to prevent anyone else from trading for the Sect Breaking Pill.
• Mo Tianxing introduced the Black Emperor Sect’s chief alchemist, Qi Shan, and Gu He denied being close to seventh grade.
• Qi Shan asked to study alchemy with Gu He and offered him a fragmentary formula for the Seventh-grade Yin Yang Life Soul Pill as compensation.

Gu He agreed to teach Qi Shan for three days in exchange for his fragmentary Yin Yang Life Soul Pill formula and help acquiring medicinal ingredients. After spending the night comparing the two fragments, Gu He began assessing Qi Shan’s alchemy in his sealed chamber.

• Gu He accepted Qi Shan’s offer and asked him to provide the formula fragment and buy ingredients for Fifth-grade pills and above.
• Gu He compared the two Yin Yang Life Soul Pill fragments and determined that together they contained about eighty percent of the complete formula, leaving the pill’s success rate very low.
• Gu He cultivated through the night to restore his mental strength, then found Qi Shan waiting outside in the morning.
• As Gu He led Qi Shan inside, Elder Ban attacked a young man in the pavilion after taking offense at his remarks about Qi Shan.
• Gu He brought Qi Shan into his sealed secret chamber and asked him to refine his most familiar Fifth-grade pill, the Windwalk Pill, so he could assess Qi Shan’s skill.

Gu He instructed Qi Shan in refining the Windwalk Pill, then spent several days cultivating as Black Emperor City prepared for the Black Emperor Sect’s auction. As the auction began, Gu He headed to the special entrance, where the sect’s elders welcomed him as the Gu Ling Pavilion Master.

• Qi Shan failed his first attempt at refining the Windwalk Pill under Gu He's watch, then succeeded after Gu He encouraged him to calm down and follow his method.
• Gu He criticized Qi Shan's impatience, taught him how to refine more carefully, and gave him three days of instruction before sending him away.
• Che Cheng gathered nearly thirty batches of ingredients for Sixth-grade pills and many materials for Seventh-grade pills, which Gu He bought for over twenty million gold coins and some pills.
• Gu He cultivated until his strength touched the Three-star Dou Zong bottleneck, then went to the Black Emperor Sect's auction as Black Emperor City filled with visitors.
• The Black Emperor Sect elders recognized Gu He as the Gu Ling Pavilion Master and escorted him through the special passage into the auction grounds.

Gu He arrived at the Black Emperor Auction House, took his VIP seat, and agreed to meet Demonic Flame Valley's Third Elder after the auction. The auction began with a Water Attribute defensive Dou Technique that Gu He considered buying for Xiao Yi Xian, but he held back from bidding.

• A black-robed elder escorted Gu He through the VIP passageway and showed him to the auction hall on behalf of Mo Tianxing.
• A maidservant checked Gu He's jade token and led him to a front-row VIP seat, where he greeted Han Feng and Demonic Flame Valley's Third Elder.
• The Third Elder asked Gu He to speak with him after the auction about the Azure Nether Longevity Pill, and Gu He agreed.
• A bell silenced the crowd as the auctioneer presented Water Array Wall, a High-grade Profound Water Attribute defensive Dou Technique, with a starting bid of three hundred thousand gold coins.
• Gu He thought Water Array Wall would suit Xiao Yi Xian but waited to bid so he would not discourage the other bidders or offend Black Emperor Sect.

Gu He bid on the Whirlwind Dragon Step, an Intermediate Earth Grade movement technique created by a Dou Zun, and outlasted the other bidders. The auction ended with him winning the scroll for nine million gold coins.

• Gu He spent two million three hundred thousand gold coins on a Jade Life Spirit Fruit and watched the auction continue.
• The auctioneer introduced the Whirlwind Dragon Step and began bidding at three million gold coins.
• Bidding climbed to six million nine hundred thousand gold coins before a VIP bidder raised it to seven million five hundred thousand.
• A scar-faced old man bid eight million, but Gu He countered with nine million.
• The other bidders withdrew, and the auctioneer sold the Whirlwind Dragon Step to Gu He.

At the Black Emperor Sect auction, the Great Flame Transformation Art and a Seventh-tier Earth Flame Fierce Tiger’s beast fire were offered together in a barter trade. Han Feng won them with an Imperial Pill and a Spirit Dou Pill, while Gu He suspected Han Feng hoped to use the technique to control his Sea Heart Flame.

• A white-robed elder bought the Ice Spirit Demonic Ape for eight million gold coins.
• The auctioneer introduced the Great Flame Transformation Art and the Earth Flame Fierce Tiger’s beast fire, then announced that the pair would be traded for items rather than gold coins.
• Han Feng offered an Imperial Pill, and another bidder countered with a Low-grade Earth offensive Dou Technique.
• Han Feng raised his offer to an Imperial Pill and a Spirit Dou Pill, causing the other bidder to withdraw.
• Han Feng acquired the Great Flame Transformation Art and beast fire, while Gu He judged that the technique would not prevent Han Feng’s Heavenly Flame eruptions.

The Black Emperor Sect unveiled a Sect Breaking Pill at its auction, drawing intense interest from Peak Dou Emperors and resentment from Han Feng, who believed Gu He had refined it. The auctioneer explained the pill’s effects, and Gu He wondered why Mo Tianxing had allowed such a clear account before bidding began.

• The auctioneer summoned Qi Shan, Che Cheng, and another Dou Emperor to guard the auction item against anyone attempting to seize it.
• The auction stage revealed a high-quality Sect Breaking Pill, which Han Feng recognized and suspected Gu He had refined.
• Han Feng resented Gu He for surpassing him in cultivation and alchemy, while Gu He decided he would deal with Han Feng after the auction.
• The auctioneer identified the pill as an Upper-grade sixth-grade Sect Breaking Pill, prompting several excited VIP guests to rise before the three elders forced them to sit back down.
• The auctioneer explained that the pill improved a Peak Dou Emperor’s chances of reaching Dou Zong by ten percent and prevented a failed breakthrough from reducing their strength.
• Gu He wondered why Mo Tianxing had let the auctioneer explain the pill’s effects so clearly, then reasoned that interested bidders would have recognized it anyway.

The Sect Breaking Pill failed to sell because no one could provide the required Seventh-tier Magical Beast corpse with intact wings. The auction then unveiled the Profound Gang Spirit Splitting Sword, an advanced Earth-grade Dou Technique, as its final main attraction.

• The auctioneer announced that the Sect Breaking Pill could only be exchanged for a Seventh-tier Magical Beast corpse with intact wings.
• A bidder offered a Sixth Tier Magical Beast corpse, but Gu He instructed Mo Tianxing to refuse it.
• The old man declared the Sect Breaking Pill unsold after no one met the exchange conditions.
• Qi Shan handed the old man a scroll containing the Profound Gang Spirit Splitting Sword, and the old man introduced it as the auction’s final main attraction.
• The Black Emperor Sect elders subdued the crowd’s excitement, and the old man explained how the sword technique grew stronger through formations of Profound Gang Sword Qi.

Gu He bid two Imperial Pills and three Spirit Dou Pills for the Profound Gang Spirit Splitting Sword, but Han Feng countered with an offer of a Seventh-grade pill. The Black Emperor Sect’s sect master, Mo Tianxing, appeared onstage as the auction hall reacted to Han Feng’s offer.

• Bidders exchanged increasingly valuable treasures for the Profound Gang Spirit Splitting Sword until the offers reached one Low-grade Earth Dou Technique and one Intermediate Earth Grade Dou Technique.
• Gu He bid two Imperial Pills and three Spirit Dou Pills, quieting the other bidders with his offer.
• Han Feng stood and proposed exchanging a Seventh-grade pill for the sword.
• The crowd erupted at Han Feng’s offer, and Mo Tianxing appeared on the auction stage.

Han Feng traded a Seventh-grade pill for the Profound Gang Spirit Splitting Sword, disrupting Gu He's plans and prompting him to target Han Feng. Gu He arranged to deliver Demonic Flame Valley's pill in two weeks, then secretly prepared to monitor Han Feng's residence.

• Han Feng claimed that Venerable Yao had refined the Yin Yang Profound Dragon Pill and explained its power to transform someone who recovered from severe injury or near death.
• Mo Tianxing accepted Han Feng's Seventh-grade pill, and the Black Emperor Sect's auction ended with the Profound Gang Spirit Splitting Sword exchanged to Han Feng.
• Gu He left the auction with Demonic Flame Valley's Third Elder and learned that the valley wanted the Azure Nether Longevity Pill within one or two weeks.
• Gu He agreed to deliver the pill in two weeks and suspected Old Ghost Demonic was in seclusion, potentially preparing to advance.
• Gu He learned that Han Feng was staying in room nine of the Heaven Grade area, then concealed a restriction nearby to sense auras.

Gu He collected his auction purchases from the Black Emperor Sect and exchanged a Sect Breaking Pill for a magical beast corpse and selected medicinal ingredients. He then negotiated with Mo Tianxing to trade an Azure Nether Longevity Pill for two-thirds of the sect’s remaining medicinal stores.

• Gu He visited the Black Emperor Sect, where Mo Tianxing welcomed him and presented his auction purchases.
• Gu He inspected the items, paid more than ten million gold coins, and agreed to exchange a Sect Breaking Pill for a magical beast corpse and selected medicinal ingredients.
• Gu He examined the corpse, accepted it, and stored it in his Ring after Mo Tianxing agreed to provide the marked ingredients.
• Mo Tianxing asked Gu He to trade an Azure Nether Longevity Pill for medicinal ingredients, and Gu He offered the pill in exchange for two-thirds of the sect’s remaining stores.
• Mo Tianxing accepted Gu He’s proposed exchange, though he concealed that he was willing to retain only one-quarter of the medicinal stores.

After leaving Black Emperor City, Gu He followed Han Feng as he tried to travel with two Dou Emperor escorts. Gu He killed the escorts and confronted Han Feng, revealing that he wanted Han Feng's life.

• Gu He learned through Soul Power that Han Feng had hired Elder Ban and Old Yin Bone to escort him to Elder Jin Yin's secluded location.
• Han Feng, Elder Ban, and Old Yin Bone left Black Emperor City, and Gu He secretly followed them.
• After the three had traveled several hundred li, Gu He ambushed Elder Ban and Old Yin Bone, killed them, took their Rings, and burned their bodies.
• Han Feng tried to appease Gu He by offering to surrender the Profound Gang Spirit Splitting Sword, but Gu He said he wanted Han Feng's life.