Chapter Summaries

Chen Mu advanced the Jade Gate Curse to Rank 5 and discovered it contained instructions for refining a Ghost Gate Pass. He shared the secret art with Shen Yan after choosing to help escaped Yinling survive by transmitting the Mountain Bearing Scripture to them.

• Chen Mu let Shen Yan manage the Yinling’s hunts while he cultivated and worked on his Culinary experience and Jade Gate Curse.
• Chen Mu sensed escaped Yinling activating Heavenly Demon Spirit Seeds and decided to transmit the Mountain Bearing Scripture to help them survive.
• More Yinling activated Spirit Seeds, and Chen Mu sent them secret arts when he had time while continuing to cultivate the Jade Gate Curse.
• After advancing the Jade Gate Curse to Rank 5, Chen Mu realized it contained instructions for refining a Ghost Gate Pass.
• Chen Mu transmitted the Ghost Gate Pass instructions to Shen Yan, who was shocked that Chen Mu had comprehended them from the curse.

Chen Mu devised and successfully tested a living Ghost Gate Pass made from Yinling, then began building a Bottomless Pool to collect Spiritual Mechanism for a return to the Netherworld. Meanwhile, Jian Chan pursued the Twelve Great Banners, and Chen Mu found that his gathered resources still fell short of what spatial travel required.

• Chen Mu explained that the Jade Gate Curse and Mountain Bearing Scripture could join the Yinling into a living Ghost Gate Pass, then spent two days teaching the curse to all of them.
• After two months of practice, Chen Mu used the Mountain Bearing Scripture to combine the Yinling and confirmed that their Ghost Gate Pass produced the expected Qi Mechanism.
• Jian Chan's Ghost Soldiers entered the mountains through Ghost Gate Pass and were struck by lightning; Jian Chan examined the pass and ordered his subordinate to focus on gathering Nether Demon Essence and refining the Soul Summoning Banner.
• Chen Mu established a Bottomless Pool and had Ghost Soldiers feed it Blood Sea Monster Fish and other prey, but he found the stored Spiritual Mechanism was far below the amount needed for travel.
• Chen Mu decided not to risk capturing a stronger creature and chose to gather more prey over time instead.

Chen Mu relocated Thousand Lantern City after the nearby hunting grounds were depleted, then settled into a new routine as the Yinlings began awakening Ghost Patterns. As he prepared to move again, his Jade Gate Curse reached tier 6 and he sensed the Flag You Ghost Gate Pass.

• Chen Mu moved Thousand Lantern City to a small island after the hunting teams depleted their prey and encountered dangerous Demon Monsters.
• Lan Zhang revealed that he had exposed Jian Chan's Main Camp to the Three-eyed Underworld Race so their attack would weaken their rear defenses for his planned raid.
• Chen Mu and Shen Yan discussed the dwindling prey and the Ghost Patterns awakened by Pu Lu and Hong Xiu.
• More Yinlings cultivated Ghost Patterns, and Chen Mu shortened their Calm Heart Scripture training to give them more time to strengthen themselves.
• After the hunting teams scoured the new island, Chen Mu prepared to relocate and advanced the Jade Gate Curse to tier 6, allowing him to sense the Flag You Ghost Gate Pass.

Chen Mu and Shen Yan devised a way to disguise Chen Mu’s ability to locate the main camp, and Chen Mu learned enough of the unreliable Nine Cups Calculation Scripture to support the cover story. When Chen Mu finally teleported there with Pu Lu and the others, he found Jigu City’s main camp destroyed and its mountains filled with the dead.

• Shen Yan told Chen Mu to use Pu Lu’s Yellow Springs Crossing and the Nine Cups Calculation Scripture to explain his sensing of the Ghost Gate Pass and locate the main camp.
• Chen Mu practiced the Nine Cups Calculation Scripture for seven or eight days until it appeared on the Gray Wall and gave him a vague sensing.
• After the Flag You Ghost Gate Pass’s Qi Mechanism became clear, Chen Mu gathered Pu Lu and the former Flag Hai Yinling and rehearsed their story before leaving.
• Shen Yan opened the Ghost Gate Pass, and Chen Mu led the group through it to the ruined main camp at Jigu City.
• Chen Mu found the Ghost Gate Pass shattered and the area covered with dead Ghost Soldiers and Three-Eyed People, then summoned thousands of Yinling from Thousand Lantern City to collect the bodies.

Lan Zhang discovered that Chen Mu had claimed the Three-Eyed People battlefield and attacked him, but Chen Mu escaped with a Gourd Heaven Method. Lan Zhang recognized Chen Mu as the Auxiliary Soldier who had rescued Shen Yan, while Eyeless Child mocked him for losing his spoils.

• Blood God Sons devoured the Three-Eyed People after Jian Chan destroyed eleven Ghost Gate Passes and routed their remaining forces into them.
• Lan Zhang learned that Jian Chan’s trap had nearly killed him, then flew to inspect the Three-Eyed People he planned to absorb.
• Chen Mu commanded Thousand Lantern City to gather corpses around the ruined Ghost Gate Passes for his own departure from Nether Demon Heaven.
• Lan Zhang found Chen Mu cleaning the battlefield and struck him with a massive Blood-colored Palm.
• Chen Mu resisted with Myriad Ghosts Bearing Mountain, Hundred Mile Qi Seal, and Kuishui Yinlei before disappearing as Lan Zhang’s attack crushed the ground.
• Lan Zhang identified Chen Mu as a former Auxiliary Soldier under Flag Hai who had rescued Shen Yan, and Eyeless Child laughed at Lan Zhang for losing his spoils.

Chen Mu recovered in Thousand Lantern City after escaping Lan Zhang, while the Bottomless Pool digested the Three-Eyed People corpses and the Yinling strengthened their abilities. After six months, he and the Yinling activated the humanoid Ghost Gate Pass to return to the Netherworld.

• Shen Yan identified Lan Zhang as the person who controlled the blood hand and said Chen Mu's theft of the corpses had disrupted Lan Zhang's Blood Scripture cultivation.
• Chen Mu stayed in Thousand Lantern City to heal and asked Shen Yan to scout for Lan Zhang, but Shen Yan refused and offered to do the splits instead.
• The Yinling helped the Bottomless Pool digest the corpses, filling it with enough Spiritual Mechanism to activate the humanoid Ghost Gate Pass.
• Chen Mu and Shen Yan suspected that the main camp's destruction had been connected to the Blood Scripture and might have been a trap.
• Over six months, Chen Mu recovered and the Yinling grew stronger, with several ghosts cultivating Ghost Patterns and Shi Dechun becoming a Ghost Soldier.
• Chen Mu gathered the Yinling and activated the humanoid Ghost Gate Pass, opening a vast black sphere in the sky as he sensed the River of Forgetfulness and the Netherworld.

After crashing into the Netherworld, Chen Mu recovered in hiding and discovered that his Yinling companions had been scattered during the journey. When soldiers searching for the meteor found his shelter, he learned a Ghost King ruled nearby and decided to deal with the search party before they exposed him.

• Chen Mu regained consciousness in a crater after falling into the Netherworld and returned to human size.
• Chen Mu hid his cabin in the forest, reflected on the scattered Yinling, and rested while recovering.
• Chen Mu considered capturing Yinling to improve his cultivation but insisted he would not casually plant Spirit Seeds in them.
• The Five Ghosts Little Paper Man brought two Yinling soldiers to Chen Mu, and he implanted Heavenly Demon Spirit Seeds in them while questioning them.
• The soldiers revealed that they were investigating the meteor for Qingshan City and that Unicorn Ghost King Shang Yang ruled Great Green Mountain.
• Chen Mu used the True Hearing Technique to locate the other eighteen soldiers and decided to turn them into his own people with the Yama Heavenly Son Order.

After learning about the Calamity Demons and Qingshan City's practice of feeding them captured Yinling, Chen Mu decided to leave Great Green Mountain for Qingyang City. He remained unable to locate Fengdu City or determine how he would return to the Mortal World.

• Chen Mu questioned the tall and short Yinling about Calamity Demons and learned that Qingshan City sent its Dare-to-Die Camp to feed them, while larger cities drove them off with Ghost Soldiers.
• Chen Mu asked about Fengdu City, but neither Yinling had heard of it, leaving him worried about finding a way back to the Mortal World.
• The next day, Chen Mu practiced Yellow Springs Guide and decided Qingyang City would be a better place to seek information than Qingshan City.
• Chen Mu recognized the Calamity Demons as the white-mist monsters he had encountered on Jilong Mountain, which Elder Song Wuji had killed.
• Chen Mu concluded that he should avoid fighting Calamity Demons and head for Qingyang City, though he still needed to learn about the city's requirements and how it would treat an outsider Yinling.

Chen Mu captured Lu Tong and learned that he needed a guarantor or a merchant-house retainer contract to enter Qingyang City, then decided to seek a merchant caravan's help. A family convoy carrying Living Gods encountered Chen Mu and the bandits, and its young master saw an opportunity to obtain a Ghost Soldier for the City Lord's quota.

• Chen Mu used the Yama Heavenly Son Order and Heavenly Demon Spirit Seed to subdue the bandits, including their leader, Lu Tong.
• Lu Tong told Chen Mu that Qingyang City admitted newcomers through Garrison Cities or with a merchant house's guarantee, and suggested he become a retainer.
• Chen Mu decided to seek a merchant caravan's guarantee so he could enter Qingyang City and investigate Fengdu City.
• A white-robed youth and a Gray-haired Elder discussed the City Lord's demand for another Living God and the cost of buying a Ghost Soldier from Qingshan City.
• The convoy encountered the bandits and Chen Mu, and the white-robed youth recognized Chen Mu as a wandering Ghost Soldier and welcomed the chance to claim him.

Chen Mu exposed Lu Liang’s plan to bind him to the Lyu Family Trading Company and forced Lu Liang and Lu Thirteen to answer questions about Fengdu City. He learned that Qingyang City could send Yinling back to the Mortal World and was recruiting Living Gods, leaving him eager to pursue the opportunity.

• Lu Tong told Chen Mu that the Lyu family had agreed to guarantee his entry into Qingyang City, while Lu Liang and Lu Thirteen privately discussed binding him with a harsh contract.
• On the caravan, Lu Liang tried to redirect Chen Mu to a Garrison City and steer him away from Qingyang City, but Chen Mu insisted on seeking information about Fengdu City.
• Chen Mu immobilized Lu Thirteen and offered Lu Liang a Heavenly Demon Spirit Seed, revealing that he had seen through the attempt to trick him into signing an Indenture Contract.
• Lu Thirteen and Lu Liang admitted they knew nothing about Fengdu City, so Chen Mu described its plans to build a City God Dao Field and recruit people to return to the Mortal World.
• Lu Thirteen inferred that Fengdu City might lie deep in the Western Wilderness, while Lu Liang revealed Qingyang City was recruiting Living Gods and his family had been assigned to find them.

After learning that the living world was dangerous, Chen Mu settled in Feng'an City and spent several months gathering information and improving his abilities. Once Yellow Springs Guide reached its limit and gave him a powerful new attack, he decided to visit Nightfall Pavilion to mingle with locals and gather intelligence.

• Chen Mu followed Lu Liang to Feng'an City and used his Dew Gathering Incantation to support himself while searching for suitable secret arts.
• Chen Mu settled into city life, explored the Market, restaurants, and teahouses, and continued cultivating the Calm Heart Scripture and Heavenly Demon True Form.
• Chen Mu reflected that his Divine Embryo might let him rival Dao Lord Dongli, though he worried his unconventional cultivation might not benefit his true body.
• Chen Mu perfected Yellow Springs Guide and created a bomb by fusing Nine Nether Azure Flame with River of Forgetfulness Water.
• Chen Mu chose to visit Nightfall Pavilion that night, intending to gather information from the local ghosts.

Lu Liang visited Chen Mu to obtain the Jade Gate Curse, which Chen Mu casually shared along with the complete Ghost Gate Pass refinement method. Chen Mu then used Shape Shift Technique to enter Nightfall Pavilion for free, while Lu Liang suspected the easy gift concealed a scheme.

• Lu Liang and Thirteenth Uncle discussed their inability to reveal information about Chen Mu and realized the Jade Gate Curse might be the key to refining Ghost Gate Pass.
• Lu Liang learned that Chen Mu spent his days drinking tea, strolling, and visiting Nightfall Pavilion, where he avoided paying the entrance fee and tips.
• Chen Mu met Lu Liang at Changle Tower, recognized him as the person repeatedly triggering the Heavenly Demon Spirit Seed, and asked him to find information and powerful secret arts.
• Chen Mu had Lu Liang trigger a star and transmitted the complete Ghost Gate Pass refinement method to him through the Spirit Seed.
• Lu Liang left unsettled by Chen Mu’s generosity, while Chen Mu changed faces, entered Nightfall Pavilion, and enjoyed tea before leaving for free.

Chen Mu learned Yin Wind Evasion and studied records about the City God Dao Field, while Lu Liang secretly began forging Ghost Gate Pass from Oblivion River Stones. Chen Mu remained puzzled about how the Dao Field related to Yunzhou.

• Chen Mu drank the Soul Departure Soup and learned Yin Wind Evasion, then tested its high speed around Feng'an City.
• Chen Mu examined a Jade Plate written in Xie Wen and immersed himself in its records about the City God Dao Field.
• Lu Liang and Lu Thirteen secretly gathered Oblivion River Stones beneath the City Lord's Mansion so Lu Liang could forge Ghost Gate Pass without alerting the City Lord or Qingyang City.
• Lu Liang used Nine Nether Azure Flame to begin refining Ghost Gate Pass from the Oblivion River Stones.
• Chen Mu learned that temples and Living Gods formed the City God Dao Field, which drew Yinlings into the River of Forgetfulness, but he could not explain why Yunzhou seemed to lack such fields.

Chen Mu avoided the dangerous City God Deification Contract and lived quietly in Feng'an City, but a terrifying Calamity Demon appeared in the skies outside the city. After learning Feng'an City had defenses against such creatures, he agreed to teach Lu Liang a secret art in exchange for the Five Dragon Scripture, only to discover Lu Liang wanted him to teach twenty thousand Ghost Soldiers.

• Chen Mu rejected the hundred-year Deification Contract and decided to stay in Feng'an City while investigating the Netherworld and a way home.
• Chen Mu spent half a year practicing Yin Wind Evasion as Lu Liang and Lu Thirteen discussed Ghost Gate Pass, Qingyang City's growing pressure, and the danger of Calamity Demons.
• Chen Mu flew beyond Feng'an City and encountered a gigantic whale-like Calamity Demon whose aura left him frozen before it vanished into the distance.
• Chen Mu rushed back to Feng'an City and asked Lu Liang about its defenses, learning that Moon Bark Trees, protective spells, and Ghost Soldiers guarded the city.
• Lu Liang offered Chen Mu the Five Dragon Scripture in exchange for teaching secret arts to his twenty thousand Ghost Soldiers, leaving Chen Mu stunned by the scale of the request.

Chen Mu agreed to seed Lu Liang’s Ghost Soldiers with Heavenly Demon Spirit Seeds in exchange for help bypassing the Deification Contract and returning to the mortal world. The scriptures spread far beyond the intended twenty thousand, and Chen Mu began cultivating the Five Dragon Scripture as the Divine Embryo replenished the seeds.

• Lu Liang promised to arrange a substitute to serve Chen Mu’s hundred-year Deification Contract, and Chen Mu gave him the Heavenly Demon Curse to distribute to twenty thousand Ghost Soldiers.
• Lu Liang and Lu Thirteen suspected Chen Mu was using the Spirit Seeds to strengthen himself, but spread the scripture to two hundred thousand soldiers to bolster Feng'an City’s defenses.
• A Qingyang City Secret Agent discovered that reciting the Eastern Extreme Longevity Scripture had caused a heavenly curtain and stars to appear in his mind, while his informant admitted the same had happened to him.
• Chen Mu watched large batches of Spirit Seeds vanish from his Divine Embryo and then saw the pearl replenish them automatically.
• After several days, Chen Mu suspected far more than twenty thousand people had received Spirit Seeds, then drank the Five Dragon Scripture Soul Departure Soup to begin cultivating the Five Dragon Scripture.

Chen Mu forged the Five Dragon Manifestation and used Lu Liang’s Ghost Soldiers to cultivate the Three Paths Curse in Thousand Lantern City. Meanwhile, Hu Mang and his agents learned that Qingyang City was moving against Lu Da and planned to send him away from Feng'an City to protect him.

• Chen Mu activated the Five Dragon Manifestation and realized it could help him withstand the Calamity Demon’s intimidating Qi Mechanism.
• Lu Liang asked Chen Mu to teach the Mountain Bearing Scripture, and Chen Mu brought him into Thousand Lantern City to gather a thousand Ghost Soldiers for the work.
• Hu Mang learned from Wen Han and Zhang Er that Lu Da could rapidly teach Ghost Soldiers secret arts, but reading the Eastern Extreme Longevity Scripture made all three agents want to protect him.
• Chen Mu used the Ghost Soldiers to amplify the Three Paths Curse and accelerate his cultivation, deciding he would ask Lu Liang for more people.
• Hu Mang learned Qingyang City had sent assassins after Lu Da, and he, Wen Han, and Zhang Er agreed to move Lu Da away from Feng'an City while pretending to act against him.

The Long-bearded Middle-aged Man and the Mustached Middle-aged Man failed to curse Lu Da and planned to assassinate him at close range. Chen Mu advanced his Five Dragon Scripture, stopped transmitting secret techniques, and went to Nightfall Pavilion, where the two conspirators approached him and he turned to face the brothel madam instead.

• The Mustached Middle-aged Man’s Heart-Piercing Nine Arrows curse backfired against Lu Da, and he and the Long-bearded Middle-aged Man decided to prepare for a close-range assassination.
• Chen Mu’s Five Dragon Scripture reached its third stage, and he used the Mountain Bearing Scripture and three thousand Ghost Soldiers to transmit secret techniques to a far larger group than expected.
• Hu Mang, Wen Han, and Zhang Er forced Shen Bu to keep reading the Black Leather Scripture as they tried to plant a Heavenly Demon Spirit Seed in him.
• Chen Mu returned the three thousand Ghost Soldiers, decided he had transmitted enough secret techniques, and went to Nightfall Pavilion after dining at Changle Tower.
• The Long-bearded Middle-aged Man and Shen Bu approached Chen Mu with tea trays, but Chen Mu turned around and greeted the brothel madam while wearing Mo Wuzhou’s face.

Chen Mu was teleported from Nightfall Pavilion into the Netherworld, where he killed a Three-Headed Fox Calamity Demon and discovered that devouring it strengthened his Five Dragon Manifestation. Back in Feng'an City, Shen Bu and Hu Mang tried to explain to the Soul Grinding Department commander why they had let Chen Mu escape, and Zhang Er presented a Black Leather Scripture as proof that Chen Mu was unusual.

• At Nightfall Pavilion, Chen Mu caught Shen Bu watching him and learned that Shen Bu was a Qingyang City secret agent who had received a Heavenly Demon Spirit Seed.
• Shen Bu warned Chen Mu about an assassination order, then used Yin Spirit Divine Power to teleport him away as the Long-bearded Middle-aged Man watched.
• In the Netherworld, a Three-Headed Fox Calamity Demon attacked Old Yang and the mountain hollow’s residents, but Chen Mu appeared and protected Old Yang with the Yang Cha Bone Shield.
• Chen Mu used Five Dragon Manifestation to tear apart the Three-Headed Fox, whose remains became Yin Nether Insects that were swept away by the River of Forgetfulness.
• Chen Mu noticed that devouring the Calamity Demon had strengthened his Five Dragon Manifestation.
• Back at Nightfall Pavilion, the Long-bearded Middle-aged Man confronted Hu Mang, Shen Bu, Wen Han, and Zhang Er over Chen Mu’s escape, and Zhang Er placed a Black Leather Scripture on the table to explain why Chen Mu was unusual.

Chen Mu learned that Black Wind Gully lay in an isolated wilderness far from Feng'an City, then stayed to cultivate the Five Dragon Scripture and help the locals prepare for winter. He planned to explore beyond the gully for other settlements and clues about returning to the world of the living.

• Old Yang explained that Black Wind Gully was a name the residents had invented and that he knew of no nearby cities or prefectural capitals.
• Chen Mu realized he had been stranded in an untamed region after becoming collateral damage in the conflict between Feng'an and Qingyang, and decided to settle in temporarily while asking about Feng'an City.
• After devouring the three-headed fox Calamity Demon, Chen Mu gained a surge of insight and raised his Tier 3 Five Dragon Scripture above five thousand experience, but chose not to hunt another Calamity Demon.
• Chen Mu gave the residents the Dew Gathering Incantation, and Old Yang said they would use the winter’s Jade Dew to water Moon Bark Trees for protection.
• Old Yang reported that no settlement lay within fifty or sixty li of Black Wind Gully and that Chen Mu would have to travel more than a hundred li to search farther away.

Chen Mu failed to find survivors in the ruined valley and focused on cultivating the Five Dragon Scripture and improving his calculations to locate Feng'an City. Meanwhile, Lu Liang and Lu Thirteen defended Feng'an from a Calamity Demon and feared Qingyang City was testing them while the City Lord was absent.

• Chen Mu searched the ruined mountain stronghold east of Black Wind Gully but found no people or Yinlings.
• Chen Mu inspected his improved Five Dragon Manifestation and decided to raise his Nine Cups Calculation Scripture proficiency to seek a direction to Feng'an City.
• Lu Liang and Lu Thirteen destroyed a Calamity Demon approaching Feng'an City with ghastly green fireballs.
• Lu Thirteen warned that Qingyang City might be using the Calamity Demons to test Feng'an while its City Lord was away.
• Lu Liang refused to flee Feng'an, and he and Lu Thirteen discussed their search for the missing Mr. Lu and the Round-Faced Spy.