Chapter Summaries

As Chen Mu passed through Ghost Gate Pass, he realized Netherworld Insects, Yin Nether Silk, and Yin Soul Monsters were stages in a cycle that might let the Netherworld cultivate Yinling through living people. Invisible forces separated him from Le Dian and dragged him into the world of the living, where he arrived at Qiluo Mountain as a substitute.

• Le Dian explained that Rebirth Wine erased the final obsessions of Netherworld Insects, and Chen Mu approved his arrangement to send Qian Ning to Feng'an City under contract.
• Chen Mu entered Ghost Gate Pass with Le Dian and saw a Netherworld Insect burst into Black Threads that he recognized as Yin Nether Silk.
• Chen Mu connected the transformations of Netherworld Insects, Yin Nether Silk, and Yin Soul Monsters and suspected the Netherworld used living beings to create Yinling.
• Seven invisible forces pulled Chen Mu away from Le Dian and dragged him through the darkness of Ghost Gate Pass.
• Chen Mu emerged at Qiluo Mountain to cries welcoming the Divine Lord and realized he had become the substitute.

Chen Mu investigated the City God Temple’s miniature cave heaven and began cultivating the unfamiliar Lingbao Shuji Pian in hopes of escaping its confines. After half a month, he learned to project his divine sense into the real temple and set out to explore Luandu County.

• Chen Mu used the temple’s water screen to observe the real City God Temple and confirmed he was trapped inside a miniature cave heaven within its deity statue.
• Chen Mu wondered whether Qian Huan, Divine Lord Meng, or another force had made him a Living God, and worried he might have to guard the temple for a hundred years.
• Chen Mu studied the Lingbao Shuji Pian inscribed on the cave heaven’s steles and decided to cultivate it despite his suspicions.
• After half a month, Chen Mu gained the Lingbao Shuji Pian entry on the Gray Wall and discovered he could project his divine sense into the real temple.
• Chen Mu realized worshippers could not see or touch his projection and decided to explore Luandu County.

Chen Mu explored Luandu County and learned that he was trapped within the City God’s Statue Grotto-Heaven, then cultivated the Lingbao Shuji Pian to understand its prohibitions. He discovered that the City God Dao Field spread Yin Nether Insects among newborns and that its threads might offer him a way to escape.

• Chen Mu found that his body dissolved when he tried to leave Luandu County, so he returned to the Statue Grotto-Heaven to study the Lingbao Shuji Pian.
• At Qixia Teahouse, Chen Mu learned that he was in Great Gan of Yunzhou and heard two unusually muscular old men discuss joining the army.
• Chen Mu practiced the Lingbao Shuji Pian and realized its calming effect resembled the River of Forgetfulness’s influence on Yin Soul Monsters.
• Chen Mu sensed the City God Dao Field release Yin Nether Insects onto a newborn in Jian'an Ward, though he could not intervene.
• After advancing the Lingbao Shuji Pian, Chen Mu perceived threads of the City God Dao Field’s Prohibition and considered studying them to escape the Statue Grotto-Heaven.

Chen Mu discovered how the City God Dao Field’s network affected Luandu County and used his newly mastered Lingbao Shuji Pian to find a way out of the Statue Grotto-Heaven. The chapter ended with him escaping onto Qiluo Mountain and flying toward the horizon.

• Chen Mu observed that a Yin Nether Insect implanted in a newborn had become undetectable and found that Luandu County’s residents were unusually healthy.
• Chen Mu projected his Divine Sense to the Jade Belt River, saw the City God Dao Field’s network, and connected it to Luandu County’s abundant harvests and the Yin Nether Insects.
• After reaching Tier 4 in the Lingbao Shuji Pian, Chen Mu saw that the Prohibition network bound his Heavenly Demon True Body but not his true body.
• Chen Mu used Yellow Springs Crossing to leave the Statue Grotto-Heaven and emerge on Qiluo Mountain without triggering a reaction.
• Chen Mu celebrated his escape from the City God Dao Field’s restraints and flew toward the horizon.

After discovering that the Heavenly Demon True Body tethered him to the Statue Grotto-Heaven, Chen Mu remained confined to the area around Qiluo Mountain. At the Jade Belt River, he witnessed Pillar State General Jin Wuxia and his army arrive, leaving him uneasy about how dangerous and unfamiliar Dagan had become.

• Chen Mu flew across the Jade Belt River but was yanked back by an invisible force when he tried to travel farther.
• After several days of testing, Chen Mu realized his Heavenly Demon True Body limited him to a little over four hundred li from Qiluo Mountain, within Luandu County’s City God Dao Field.
• Chen Mu ate at Xinfeng Tower and resigned himself to seeking a way to escape his predicament.
• A huge ship bearing the Jin banner smashed through the river ice, and onlookers said Pillar State Great General Jin Wuxia had returned after conquering Southern Shu.
• Jin Wuxia transformed into a four-armed giant and beat back a crocodile Mutant Beast that was chained to his ship.
• Chen Mu recognized Jin Wuxia’s extraordinary power and wondered whether Dagan’s campaign against Qi Refining cultivators meant the world beyond the Statue Grotto-Heaven was even more dangerous.

After learning how dramatically Yunzhou had changed, Chen Mu calmed himself and planned how to continue cultivating while remaining hidden in the Statue Grotto-Heaven. As he searched for a way to obtain White Jade Coins, he spotted a group of Qi Refining cultivators meeting in a cave.

• Chen Mu eavesdropped on Luandu County and learned that Qi Refining cultivators were being branded as Demonic Daoists and hunted by mortal martial artists.
• Yuan Dong, Yuan Chun, and Yuan Xia arrived at Qiluo Mountain City God Temple, where Li Buxian briefed them on Qi Refining cultivators near Qiluo Mountain and the Jade Belt River.
• As Luandu County prepared for the New Year, Chen Mu accepted that life continued despite the upheaval and set out a cultivation plan focused on escaping the City God Dao Field and advancing both Yin Spirit and Qi Refining arts.
• Chen Mu resolved to use his Exquisite Jade Disk to cultivate despite Yunzhou's thin Earth Spirit Vital Qi, but worried that he had only 217 White Jade Coins.
• While observing the area around Luandu County, Chen Mu discovered seven or eight hooded Qi Refining cultivators meeting in an underground cave and saw a chance to earn White Jade Coins.

Chen Mu watched a gathering of Qi Refining cultivators trade supplies and learned they were fleeing the Black-skinned Hounds and Dagan’s purge. Seeing a chance to sell his stockpile of Fasting Pills, he ambushed Elder Sun, revealed him as Sun Ke, and forced him to help.

• At a masked gathering, Elder Sun said the Black-skinned Hounds had destroyed Pingfu Workshop and that he planned to flee toward the Hundred Thousand Mountains with other cultivators.
• Chen Mu observed the cultivators’ demand for Fasting Pills and White Jade Coins, then decided to use Elder Sun, the gathering’s organizer, to sell his hundreds of bottles of pills.
• After the gathering, Elder Sun changed his face, height, and aura before preparing to leave Ganzi Mountain.
• Chen Mu confronted Sun Ke, immobilized him with the Hundred Mile Qi Seal, and attached the Heart-Linking Gu to make him help sell the Fasting Pills.

Chen Mu met Sun Ke to arrange the sale of Fasting Pills and gave him Breath-Sealing Stones to evade Dagan’s searches. When Yuan Dong attacked, Chen Mu fought him off, then learned Yuan Dong mistook his Five Ghosts Possession for the Nether God Transformation and invited him to join the Dragon Locking Institute; Chen Mu deferred while Sun Ke prepared to leave Luandu County.

• Chen Mu gave Sun Ke fifty bottles of Fasting Pills to sell and Breath-Sealing Stones to help him avoid detection while traveling.
• Yuan Dong suddenly attacked Sun Ke, but Chen Mu intervened and struck Yuan Dong back with Five Ghosts Possession.
• Yuan Dong mistook Chen Mu’s transformed arm for the Nether God Transformation and explained the Dragon Locking Institute’s role and the Qing Nang Chapter.
• Yuan Dong invited Chen Mu to join the Dragon Locking Institute and said Sun Ke could be registered as his associate, but Chen Mu asked for time to consider.
• After Yuan Dong left, Chen Mu told Sun Ke to keep the Breath-Sealing Stones and use them after leaving Luandu County, and Sun Ke resolved to stay close to him.

Chen Mu learned that Yuan Dong and Li Buxian had noticed his movements and decided to stay hidden in the Statue Grotto-Heaven. He rewarded Sun Ke for selling his Fasting Pills, then watched the City God Temple fair through a water screen.

• Yuan Dong and Li Buxian discussed Chen Mu's strength and agreed to monitor him, while Yuan Dong prepared to return to the Dragon Locking Institute.
• Chen Mu overheard their conversation and resolved to remain in the Statue Grotto-Heaven rather than visit Luandu County.
• Chen Mu met Sun Ke after the Breath-Sealing Stone failed, accepted the proceeds from selling fifty bottles of Fasting Pills, and gave him a secret art containing the Breath-Stopping Supernatural Ability's Qi Mechanism.
• Chen Mu tasked Sun Ke with continuing pill sales and gathering Yellow Sprout Rice or Essence of Five Grains, offering him a ten-percent share.
• Chen Mu opened a water screen to watch the City God Temple fair while eating hot pot.

Chen Mu completed the eighth layer of his Divine Aperture Talismans and settled into cultivation in the Statue Grotto-Heaven. Sun Ke found the dwindling Pingfu Workshop gathering, then pressured its leader to rebuild it into a larger market using Breath-Sealing Stones.

• Chen Mu completed the eighth layer of the Yellow Springs General Outline and celebrated by planning a visit to Yicui Tower.
• Sun Ke reached the hidden gathering place in the Nanlin Mountains, sold forty-one bottles of Fasting Pills, and bought only around three hundred catties of Yellow Sprout Rice.
• The masked leader announced that the gathering would end, and Sun Ke resolved to keep Pingfu Workshop operating and attract more cultivators.
• Chen Mu cultivated in the Statue Grotto-Heaven, tended his vegetable plots, and assumed Sun Ke was merely delayed on the journey.
• Sun Ke persuaded the bruised leader to rebuild Pingfu Workshop on a larger scale and distributed Breath-Sealing Stones to help participants avoid detection.

Sun Ke secretly kept Pingfu Workshop running while delivering White Jade Coins to Chen Mu, who explored whether the Heart-Linking Gu could connect his bodies and continued cultivating in the Statue Grotto-Heaven. Chen Mu failed to link his bodies with Yin Nether Silk, but his cultivation advanced toward Nascent Aperture Condensation.

• Sun Ke counted Pingfu Workshop's earnings, decided the Market had to remain hidden, and prepared to give Gongsun the Demonic Daoist his share.
• Chen Mu studied his Heart-Linking Rope and considered using the Heart-Linking Gu to connect the Qi Mechanisms of his Heavenly Demon Body and Flesh and Blood Body.
• Five days later, Sun Ke gave Chen Mu four hundred White Jade Coins and persuaded him to supply Tongxi Baizhang Pills for the Market.
• Chen Mu suspected Sun Ke was concealing something, made him double his daily recitations of the Eastern Extreme Longevity Scripture, and let the matter go.
• Chen Mu's attempts to connect his bodies with Yin Nether Silk failed because the Heavenly Demon True Body devoured it.
• Chen Mu's cultivation progressed, with the Yellow Springs General Outline past halfway and Yin Wind Evasion reaching its limit.

Chen Mu learned that the Dragon Locking Institute had discovered the Qi Refining Market in Jiangyang County, while his Tongxi Baizhang Pills sold briskly to people preparing to flee toward East Ridge. As he continued training inside the Statue Grotto-Heaven, he noticed Pingfu Workshop was still operating and heard the name True Person Yunlong.

• Yuan Dong told Li Buxian that the Dragon Locking Institute had found a rebuilt Qi Refining Market in Jiangyang County and persuaded Li Buxian to help if Demonic Daoists threatened Luandu County.
• Chen Mu watched the exchange and hoped the Market would survive long enough for him to sell more Tongxi Baizhang Pills and save for Condensing Orifice.
• Sun Ke told Chen Mu that buyers seeking refuge in East Ridge had driven strong demand for the pills, and Chen Mu warned him to pause sales because the Dragon Locking Institute had discovered Pingfu Workshop.
• Chen Mu promised to rescue Sun Ke if he reached Luandu County, and Sun Ke decided the Market might continue operating with Chen Mu as protection.
• After years of training, Chen Mu neared Aperture Condensing Perfection and spotted Yuan Dong speaking with Li Buxian about Pingfu Workshop, whose elusive master Old Freak Tongfeng was associated with True Person Yunlong.

Chen Mu learned that Dagan’s pursuit of Qi Refining cultivators might be tied to City God Dao Fields and Incense Vital Qi. After Sun Ke led a powerful ghost-faced giant to him, Chen Mu was mistaken for the notorious Demonic Daoist Yunlong and faced capture.

• Yuan Dong and Li Buxian suspected Pingfu Workshop was connected to Dagan factions seeking Qi Refining cultivators and Incense Vital Qi for City God Dao Fields.
• Chen Mu realized Incense Vital Qi might be hidden among the auras he could see through the City God Dao Field’s prohibitions.
• Sun Ke fled through the mountains and collapsed after his Jia Ma Talismans burned out, then warned Chen Mu that he might have been tracked.
• A giant ghost-faced being arrived, identified Chen Mu as Demonic Daoist Yunlong, and accused him of being Entering Cloud Dragon Gongsun Sheng.
• Chen Mu learned that Sun Ke was Old Freak Tongfeng and had used Gongsun Sheng’s name to establish Pingfu Workshop and sell pills.
• Chen Mu tried to hand Sun Ke over and deny involvement, but the giant threatened to capture him and drain his vital essence.

Chen Mu tried to escape Li Buxian through Yellow Springs Crossing, but Li Buxian caught up and beat him badly in a ravine. After Chen Mu wounded him with his strongest techniques, Li Buxian vanished, leaving Chen Mu to confront Sun Ke, who had brought him this trouble.

• Chen Mu opened a vortex and pulled Sun Ke through it to escape Li Buxian, but Yellow Springs Crossing deposited them in the wrong place.
• Li Buxian appeared and struck Chen Mu, then overwhelmed him with a rapid barrage of punches.
• Chen Mu used Five Ghosts Possession, Giant Spirit God, and Five Dragon Manifestation to smash Li Buxian into a cliff and severely injure him.
• Chen Mu prepared his divine powers and techniques when Li Buxian seemed poised to unleash an ultimate move, but Li Buxian turned into white lightning and disappeared.
• Chen Mu found Sun Ke and blamed him for the trouble, while Sun Ke poured out tens of thousands of White Jade Coins; Chen Mu said he could send him only to Luandu County's eastern border.

Chen Mu discovered that the red-skinned giant who had beaten him was Li Buxian, then watched the Dragon Locking Institute’s purge drive Qi Refining cultivators from the surrounding counties. After eleven years of cultivation, Chen Mu formed his Divine Aperture and decided to celebrate with a visit to Yicui Tower.

• Li Buxian told Yuan Dong and Yuan Xia that True Person Yunlong had defeated him, but he had disguised himself so thoroughly that he could not identify the man’s background.
• Chen Mu overheard the conversation and realized Li Buxian had been the red-skinned giant who attacked him; he also learned that the Dragon Locking Institute would purge the counties around Luandu County.
• Chen Mu sensed that Sun Ke had fled far away and found a chest containing over twenty thousand White Jade Coins that Sun Ke had earned through Pingfu Workshop.
• As the Dragon Locking Institute withdrew and the area grew peaceful, Chen Mu stayed in the Statue Grotto-Heaven and continued cultivating until autumn.
• Chen Mu formed his Divine Aperture after eleven years of effort, reflected on the vanished Jilong Dao, and planned to celebrate at Yicui Tower.

After reaching the ninth layer of the Divine Aperture Spell Talisman, Chen Mu considered his cultivation options and escape from the Statue Grotto-Heaven. He resolved to improve Kuishui Yinlei and explored a possible way to use Yin Nether Insects to link his bodies.

• Chen Mu found that his enhanced senses made the beautiful girls at Yicui Tower unpleasant to be near.
• While listening to a storyteller at Hundred Years Tea House, Chen Mu reviewed the Qi Refining stages ahead and realized he lacked the inheritance needed for Yin-Yang Tempering.
• Chen Mu concluded that he needed to escape the Statue Grotto-Heaven before he could seek further cultivation methods beyond Luandu County.
• Chen Mu tested his abundant mana by repeatedly casting Kuishui Yinlei and decided to train the technique further.
• Chen Mu considered using the Heart-Linking Incantation and Lingbao Shuji Pian to aid his escape, then wondered if his Heavenly Demon Body could implant Yin Nether Insects into his Flesh and Blood Body.

Chen Mu tried to adapt the Heart-Linking Incantation for his Heavenly Demon Body, but after half a month of study he found no way to connect its magic talisman with Yin Spirit secret arts. Hearing prayers from Feng'an City gave him the idea of using a Heavenly Demon Spirit Seed to link with his Flesh and Blood Body, but his attempts failed.

• Chen Mu examined the Heavenly Demon Body and concluded that it could not cast the Heart-Linking Incantation because it lacked magical power and its True Meaning Magic Talisman.
• Chen Mu spent half a month searching the Gray Wall for a connection between True Meaning Magic Talismans and Supernatural Ability Ghost Marks, but made no progress.
• Chen Mu heard the Eastern Extreme Longevity Scripture being recited in Feng'an City and realized that Heavenly Demon Spirit Seeds could link across the distance between the living world and the Netherworld.
• Chen Mu suspected that Sun Ke had never recited the scripture, then tried planting a Spirit Seed in himself by reciting the Heavenly Demon Curse.
• Chen Mu's Protective Spiritual Light repelled the Spirit Seed, and his tough skin and stomach also prevented it from entering his body.

Chen Mu’s attempts to implant Heavenly Demon Spirit Seeds into living creatures failed, and he resigned himself to being trapped in the Statue Grotto-Heaven. He then discovered Li Buxian stealing a newly formed Yinhun and throwing it into the Dragon Locking Well, leaving Chen Mu suspicious of his purpose.

• Chen Mu tested Heavenly Demon Spirit Seeds on animals and people across Luandu County, but none could host them.
• Chen Mu accepted that he could not escape the City God Dao Field soon and considered the safety and stability of the Statue Grotto-Heaven.
• Chen Mu spotted Li Buxian sneaking into Luandu County and followed him with a Divine Sense Projection.
• Li Buxian waited outside a dying man’s home, captured the Yinhun that emerged after the man died, and sealed it inside his Black-Skinned Gourd.
• Li Buxian returned to the City God Temple and tossed the gourd into the Dragon Locking Well, prompting Chen Mu to wonder whether this was part of a larger plan.

Chen Mu discovered that the Dragon Locking Well contained a Bottomless Pool and suspected Li Buxian had been guarding it to brew a valuable wine. After Li Buxian found his Yellow Millet Gourd missing and jumped into the well, Chen Mu watched, pleased with his revenge.

• Chen Mu recognized the Dragon Locking Well as a Bottomless Pool and suspected Li Buxian's Black-Skinned Gourd was important.
• Chen Mu examined how his transformed Divine Aperture had changed his view of the Gray Wall and planned his future cultivation.
• Li Buxian prepared to collect the Yellow Millet Wine he had spent twelve years arranging to brew.
• Li Buxian reached into the Dragon Locking Well, discovered his Yellow Millet Gourd was gone, and jumped in to search for it.
• Chen Mu revealed that he had taken the gourd and joked that he had done it to protect the Netherworld.

Chen Mu repeatedly stole Li Buxian’s Black-Skinned Gourds until Li Buxian guarded the Dragon Locking Well, then focused on cultivating Lingbao Shuji Pian. Li Buxian finally succeeded in producing Yellow Millet Wine, unaware that Chen Mu’s interference had been behind his earlier failures.

• Chen Mu stole Li Buxian’s replacement Black-Skinned Gourds for several days, but stopped when Li Buxian began guarding the Dragon Locking Well.
• Chen Mu studied Lingbao Shuji Pian and wondered whether Netherworld secret arts could be bait, but found nothing unusual in himself.
• Chen Mu cultivated Lingbao Shuji Pian, causing its experience on the Gray Wall to rise.
• Li Buxian retrieved a Yellow Millet Gourd from the well and discovered that he had finally produced wine after five failed attempts.
• Li Buxian worried that bad luck was hurting his success rate and considered praying to the City God, while Chen Mu privately noted that he could help by not interfering.