Chapter Summaries

Chen Mu encountered Zhuo Yinghai aboard a ship, where Zhuo tried to kill him after deciding his eyes resembled those of an enemy. Chen Mu defeated him with his Treasure Sword and Black Smoke, then realized Zhuo had brought other subordinates.

• Chen Mu met Zhuo Yinghai aboard the Tower Ship and listened as Zhuo lamented the cost of supporting his enormous family.
• Chen Mu suggested renting out luxury goods, and Zhuo invited him to share wine and food.
• A disguised attacker and two of Zhuo's men collapsed, and Zhuo revealed he had planned to kill Chen Mu because his eyes resembled an enemy's.
• Zhuo covered himself in Dark Soul Force and attacked Chen Mu, who dodged his blows and wounded him with a Treasure Sword.
• Chen Mu summoned five masses of Black Smoke, which tore through Zhuo's chest and consumed his corpse.
• Chen Mu regretted killing Zhuo, then remembered that Zhuo had brought many subordinates.

After settling into his new residence, Chen Mu asked Jie Jia about the Jade-Eyed Golden Ape Body Tempering Technique and learned that all Divine Intents were simplified versions of the Hundred Intents Spiritual Light Incantation. Jie Jia said only people born with Dao Bones could cultivate it, leaving Chen Mu to continue training and consider collecting more Body Tempering Techniques.

• Chen Mu stayed in his new residence despite Jie Jia saying the search had stopped and giving him papers for the identity Chen Yi.
• Chen Mu asked whether the Jade-Eyed Golden Ape Body Tempering Technique's Divine Intent had been tampered with, and Jie Jia explained that it was complete but simplified.
• Jie Jia revealed that all Divine Intents came from the Hundred Intents Spiritual Light Incantation, which only people born with Dao Bones could cultivate.
• Chen Mu abandoned the hope of learning the incantation and resolved to keep training and seek out more Body Tempering Techniques.
• Chen Mu advanced the White Ape Body Tempering Technique to Tier 3 and estimated he would soon complete Marrow Cleansing and begin Soul Nurturing.

Jin Wuduan learned that Hall Master Zhuo had gone missing and suspected rival forces, while Zuo Sheng denied involvement. In Nanyang, Chen Mu watched the aftermath of Zhuo Yinghai’s death and the attacks on his family, then stayed out of the ensuing investigation and reflected that a shallow search kept him safer.

• Jin Wuduan ordered a search for Hall Master Zhuo and warned Zuo Sheng to blame Zhu Yi Pavilion or Cheng Yi if questioned, while Zuo Sheng insisted he had done nothing.
• Chen Mu continued his routine after completing Marrow Cleansing with the White Ape Body Tempering Technique and noticed only a slight change to his physique.
• Chen Mu heard that bandits had looted Zhuo Family shops and killed people, and learned that the Jinghong Gang had captured several of them.
• Chen Mu suspected someone was targeting Zhuo Yinghai’s fortune, then avoided asking further questions as the Jinghong Gang’s investigation faded.
• Chen Mu noted that nobody had investigated his registered courtyard, though thieves had visited it and one had escaped with only a small grass carp.

Chen Mu studied the Dragon Transformation Pill, gained two Roaming Souls after mastering the White Ape Body Tempering Technique, and then mastered Black Tiger Muscle Strengthening. At Spring Breeze Tower, he overheard Old Ge describe the White Jade Toad technique, unaware that Chen Mu’s admiration was for Miss Yutao rather than the technique.

• Chen Mu identified another ingredient in the Dragon Transformation Pill and considered whether to collect more Body Tempering Techniques, but decided to put it off.
• Sikou Qing dismissed the search for Cheng Yi and ordered Jin Wuduan to prepare for her troop training expedition north.
• Chen Mu gained two Roaming Souls on January 21st and mastered Black Tiger Muscle Strengthening that afternoon.
• At Spring Breeze Tower, Old Ge explained that he had chosen the White Jade Toad technique for its benefits to future generations.
• Chen Mu watched Miss Yutao dance and murmured that she was wonderful.

Chen Mu secretly copied Old Ge’s Jade Toad Body Tempering Technique after drugging him, then left him two Dragon Transformation Pills. Old Ge discovered the theft and the pills, while Chen Mu decided to practice the new technique rather than risk further trades.

• Chen Mu followed Old Ge home, but Old Ge sensed something was wrong and checked his surroundings before studying the Jade Toad Body Tempering Technique.
• Chen Mu used Spirit-Disturbing Smoke to knock Old Ge unconscious and copied the technique without taking the original scroll.
• Old Ge woke with a painful neck, realized someone had drugged him and copied his technique, and found two Dragon Transformation Pills beside the scroll.
• Old Ge hid the pills despite angrily refusing to thank the thief.
• Chen Mu watched Old Ge from a breakfast stall and decided against trading more Dragon Transformation Pills for secret manuals.

Old Ge took a Dragon Transformation Pill and broke through to Body Tempering Mastery while Chen Mu secretly watched, then Chen Mu’s Medicine Crafting advanced enough to analyze the pill. Jie Jia revealed that Zhaodian Red was refined from living people and that the Five Ghosts Bag could extract the same essence, leaving Chen Mu alarmed that Jie Jia knew about his artifact.

• Old Ge swallowed a Dragon Transformation Pill, endured its effects, and achieved Body Tempering Mastery as Chen Mu observed through Yin Soul Paper Figures.
• Chen Mu stopped watching Old Ge, then spent half a month grinding the Black Tiger Body Tempering Technique while his Medicine Crafting advanced to Tier 4.
• Chen Mu analyzed a Dragon Transformation Pill and discovered he could identify its fifteen ingredients and their proportions, with only Zhaodian Red still unknown.
• Chen Mu paid Jie Jia to explain Zhaodian Red, and Jie Jia said it was refined from living people and contaminated a person’s essence, vitality, spirit, and Soul Force.
• Jie Jia told Chen Mu that Qingfeng Temple had caused the great fog in Qingshan County and revealed that the Five Ghosts Bag could extract the Essence of Three Treasures.

Chen Mu learned that the Five Ghosts Bag could refine Essence of Three Treasures and sought information about protective talismans and new Body Tempering Techniques. He overheard that Kui Tuo and the Jinghong Gang were heading north to fight Malevolent Spirits, then ended the night near Old Ge’s home, wondering whether he would see the old man again.

• Chen Mu considered the Five Ghosts Bag’s nature and decided to focus on Body Tempering while quietly seeking more techniques from aging martial artists.
• At Spring Breeze Tower, Chen Mu used his Five Ghosts Paper Figures to overhear Kui Tuo warn Jinghong Gang members that they were being sent north to fight Malevolent Spirits and could not flee the Sand Gathering Formation.
• Kui Tuo advised the men to buy Ancestral Radiance Talismans from the Ghost Market, saying they had saved his life during the previous expedition.
• Chen Mu suspected the talismans could protect against Yin Soul Monsters and resolved to ask Jie Jia about them, while reassuring himself that Sikou Qing would be occupied with the northern campaign.
• After leaving Spring Breeze Tower, Chen Mu changed his appearance and clothes before wandering through the night market and arriving near Old Ge’s home.

Chen Mu obtained Ge Qinghui's Sky Serpent Body Tempering Technique after watching the old man try to sell it for Dragon Transformation Pills. Meanwhile, the Bai and Shangguan families prepared to travel to Lijiang City, while Shangguan Ji sent Shangguan Yu north to find the Thousand Mechanism Token and left Nanyang Prefecture exposed to Malevolent Spirits.

• Ge Qinghui repeatedly praised his Sky Serpent Body Tempering Technique to the empty air, hoping to trade it for Dragon Transformation Pills, while Chen Mu watched from hiding.
• Bai Miaojin forced Bai Miaojun to change into proper clothes before their trip to Lijiang City with the Shangguan Family.
• After three nights of watching, Chen Mu used his technique to incapacitate Ge Qinghui, took the Sky Serpent scroll, and secretly copied it before discarding the original in the Luo River.
• Chen Mu read the Sky Serpent Body Tempering Technique and added it to the four other Body Tempering Techniques he possessed.
• Shangguan Ji told Shangguan Yu that their family had left for Lijiang City and ordered him to head north to find the Thousand Mechanism Token without the Exorcism Mirror.
• Shangguan Ji dismissed Shangguan Yu's fears about Malevolent Spirits attacking Nanyang Prefecture and suggested their rampage could let the family eliminate rival households.

Chen Mu watched the Jinghong Gang and Tangshan Army head north, learned what they sought, and bought an Ancestral Radiance Talisman to guard against Yin Soul Monsters. After a month of training at home, he discovered that improving the Red Falcon Body Tempering Technique’s Roaming Soul also enlarged his other Soul Forces, inspiring him to pursue more Roaming Souls.

• Chen Mu watched the Jinghong Gang’s ships depart and saw hundreds of Tangshan Army riders leave Nanyang, suspecting both forces were heading north to provoke Malevolent Spirits.
• Chen Mu completed his fourth Marrow Cleansing with the Black Tiger Body Tempering Technique after nineteen days of training.
• Jie Jia told Chen Mu that the Jinghong Gang and Tangshan Army sought a Thousand Mechanism Token, which was needed to Open Heavenly Gate after attaining Armor Soul, and explained that a person with a Dao Bone could serve as an alternative.
• Chen Mu bought an Ancestral Radiance Talisman from Jie Jia, while a Red Lacquer Ship lured Ruffians into the Luo River with visions of Dancing Girls.
• After training at home for a month, Chen Mu discovered that the Red Falcon Body Tempering Technique’s Roaming Soul had grown and had enlarged the Soul Force from his other techniques as well.

Chen Mu advanced his Body Tempering Techniques while learning that refugees were fleeing the chaos in the north and planning to prepare for worsening conditions in Nanyang. That night, he woke to a familiar song and spotted a red Tower Ship whose figures appeared to be watching him.

• Chen Mu concluded that improving one Body Tempering Technique could strengthen his Divine Intent and help him eventually cultivate an Armor Soul, but he decided to keep seeking more techniques.
• After five days, Chen Mu brought the Black Tiger Body Tempering Technique to its limit, gaining two Roaming Souls in his palms, then began cultivating the Jade Toad Body Tempering Technique.
• At Spring Breeze Tower, Chen Mu heard a refugee describe the northern warfare, massacres, and rebel King Chao, as well as the powerful clans' recruitment efforts.
• Chen Mu decided to stockpile supplies and go out less often as more refugees arrived in Nanyang.
• That night, Chen Mu woke to a familiar song, went to his roof, and saw hazy figures aboard a red Tower Ship watching him as it sailed away.

After encountering a Yinhun Monster, Chen Mu moved near the Inner City, stockpiled Ancestral Radiance Talismans, and resumed earning money while training. Just as he believed the monster had not been targeting him, the Long-Haired Woman appeared at his bedside and attacked again.

• Chen Mu rented a house near the Inner City, moved his belongings, and asked Jie Jia to exchange Dragon Transformation Pills for Ancestral Radiance Talismans.
• Jie Jia suggested Yinhun Monsters might target Chen Mu because of a special constitution, leaving Chen Mu worried about possession.
• Chen Mu secured his new home with seven Ancestral Radiance Talismans and later resumed selling imitation medicines to restore his dwindling income.
• As the White Jade Toad Body Tempering Technique advanced, Chen Mu heard the Red Boat had returned to the Luo River and concluded the Long-Haired Woman had not been targeting him specifically.
• On the fifth day of the fourth month, Chen Mu's talismans glowed and smoked as the Long-Haired Woman appeared beside his bed; he used his Five Little Paper Men to break free of the terror's hold.

Chen Mu fought off a Yinhun Monster that attacked him at night and survived until sunrise, though he suffered serious bruises and internal injuries. He realized the Five Ghosts Paper Figures had protected him from possession and that Yinhun could be used to make a Five Ghosts Bag.

• Chen Mu accused Jie Jia of leaving a threat behind and tried to reason with the Long-Haired Woman, but it attacked him.
• The Yinhun Monster struck Chen Mu repeatedly with its Black Smoke form, knocking him through a window and injuring him.
• Chen Mu used his Soul Force to seize the Yinhun Monster, then invoked Five Ghosts Moving Mountains to make the Five Ghosts Paper Figures devour it.
• Chen Mu kept the paper figures on his body and waited in the courtyard until sunrise, fearing another attack.
• In daylight, Chen Mu treated his injuries and realized the paper figures had prevented possession and that Yinhun were materials for a Five Ghosts Bag.
• Chen Mu entered his damaged room at noon to clean up and blamed Jie Jia for his ordeal.

After surviving a Yinhun attack, Chen Mu learned that his unusual constitution might make him vulnerable to repeated possession and recovered from his injuries in five days. He studied the Thousand Mountains Scripture and discovered that the Yinhun-raising method could extract the Essence of Three Treasures.

• Chen Mu demanded two Ancestral Radiance Talismans from Jie Jia, who charged him five thousand taels and explained that the talismans repelled but did not kill Yinhun Monsters.
• Jie Jia suggested that a Yinhun might have possessed Chen Mu when he was an infant, leaving him altered and more vulnerable to another possession.
• Chen Mu stayed home to recover and healed within five days, though he continued eating far more than usual.
• Chen Mu considered finding high-energy food and examined his remaining Dragon Transformation Pill as a possible source of money.
• Chen Mu opened the Thousand Mountains Scripture and realized its Yinhun-raising method could extract the Essence of Three Treasures.

Chen Mu considered how to earn enough to buy Ancestral Radiance Talismans and learned that living creatures besides humans could be used to refine medicines. After Jie Jia explained the role of human souls in some magical artifacts, Chen Mu began reciting the Soul Locking Curse, determined to keep imitating the Dragon Transformation Pill.

• Chen Mu tested his Tier 4 Sleeve Sword on an iron ingot and discovered that its new Piercing Cloud technique gave it formidable piercing power.
• Worried that two Ancestral Radiance Talismans would not be enough against the Yinhun, Chen Mu considered ways to make more money and gave Jie Jia a Golden Sun Pill imitation under the name Blue Pills.
• Chen Mu asked Jie Jia whether Zhaodian Red required human lives, and Jie Jia explained that livestock, spirits, and monsters could also be used, though humans were more efficient and some artifacts required human souls.
• After Jie Jia left, Chen Mu recited the Soul Locking Curse from the Thousand Mountains Scripture and resolved to imitate the Dragon Transformation Pill using livestock.

Shangguan Tong massacred families under the pretense of punishing rumors, while Shangguan Ji planned to use the unrest to eliminate rival great families and secure stability as Shangguan Yu searched for the Thousand Mechanism Token. Chen Mu advanced his Soul Locking Curse and considered using a potent medicine on livestock, while a rival group on the Luo River plotted to manipulate the Shangguan Family into fighting the Inner City families.

• Shangguan Tong led a night raid on Li Shentong’s residence, killed its occupants, and ordered his men to take its valuables after admitting he had attacked over an old grievance.
• Shangguan Ji urged Shangguan Tong to find evidence against Inner City families and said the family needed to keep Tangshan Camp stable until Shangguan Yu found the Thousand Mechanism Token.
• Chen Mu improved his Soul Locking Curse, used it to better restrain the Five Ghosts, and studied the Ascension Pill as a possible way to strengthen livestock.
• A square-faced man learned that Shangguan Tong had exterminated five of the seven families and concluded that Shangguan Ji had used the killings to intimidate rivals.
• The square-faced man ordered his men to keep testing the Shangguan Family, implicate Inner City families, and move their people into vacant residences.

Chen Mu resumed his routine after discovering Jie Jia could draw Ancestral Radiance Talismans, while his Blue Pills brought him enough income to buy more talismans on credit. Meanwhile, a group plotting against the Zhang Family arranged to seek out Demon Ape Tushan, and Chen Mu continued training while wondering whether the Soul Locking Curse could help him control the Five Ghosts Moving Mountains Incantation.

• Chen Mu raised his Soul Locking Curse Proficiency to 792 and estimated that he could finish mastering it within ten days.
• Jie Jia returned money from selling Chen Mu’s Blue Pills, and they negotiated a fifty-fifty split settled with Ancestral Radiance Talismans; Chen Mu learned Jie Jia could draw them.
• Chen Mu bought fifteen Ancestral Radiance Talismans from Jie Jia on credit and gathered the talismans around his room for protection.
• A Square-faced Middle-aged Man learned that Shangguan Ji had begun causing trouble for the Zhang Family and set out with his companion to meet Demon Ape Tushan.
• Chen Mu refined Blue Pills, practiced the Jade Toad Body Tempering Technique, and planned to keep studying the Soul Locking Curse in case it could help him control the Five Ghosts Moving Mountains Incantation.

Chen Mu strengthened the Soul Locking Curse and discovered that the Five Ghosts Bag devoured the Essence of Three Treasures from its contents. Meanwhile, Chao Fang prepared an ambush in Nanyang Prefecture, and Chen Mu’s Ghost Locking Curse eventually merged with the Five Ghosts Moving Mountains Incantation.

• Tushan agreed to help Chao Fang deal with Shangguan Ji, and Chao Fang said he would give Tushan the first Thousand Mechanism Token he found.
• Chen Mu learned to control the Five Ghosts with the Soul Locking Curse and fed live fish to the Five Ghosts Bag, discovering a trace of red essence inside it.
• Chao Fang brought twelve men into Nanyang Prefecture and arranged Soul Capturing Stakes around the Inner City while waiting for Tushan to wound Shangguan Ji.
• Chen Mu raised the Soul Locking Curse to Tier 3 and then Tier 4 by feeding the Five Ghosts Bag specially grown fish and continuing to train the curse.
• When the Ghost Locking Curse reached peak Tier 4, Chen Mu found it had merged with the Five Ghosts Moving Mountains Incantation.

Chen Mu refined more Zhaodian Red, gathered news about recruitment and the Zhang Family’s alleged support for King Chao, then returned home to find Chao Fang and his Roaming Souls moving into the house across the alley. Chao Fang claimed he had paid rent to Chen Mu, who silently realized he had received nothing.

• Chen Mu fed fish to the Yinhun Black Smoke and expanded the red mist in the Five Ghosts Bag to the size of a mung bean.
• At Spring Breeze Tower, Chen Mu overheard that the Jinghong Gang and Tangshan Camp were recruiting with Dragon Transformation Pills, and decided not to risk his life for their offers.
• Chen Mu heard rumors that the Zhang Family was supplying King Chao’s rebel army and that Prefect Shangguan might oppose them.
• Chen Mu returned to his alley and found Chao Fang moving into the residence opposite with several armed Roaming Souls.
• Chao Fang told Chen Mu they would be neighbors and claimed the landlord had charged him a high rent, prompting Chen Mu to realize Chao Fang had paid him nothing.

Chen Mu fled his watched residence after overhearing Chao Fang’s group plan a blood sacrifice, but Jie Jia revealed that Nanyang Prefecture was already under attack by Yin Soul Monsters. Chen Mu received Ancestral Radiance Talismans and learned that monsters surrounded the city, leaving him unable to escape.

• Chen Mu used a Little Paper Man to overhear Chao Fang and Zong Tai discuss eliminating witnesses and carrying out a blood sacrifice involving the Zhang Family, Shangguan Tong, Shangguan Ji, and twelve Soul Capturing Stakes.
• Chen Mu disguised himself and slipped away from Zong Tai, then returned to his old residence in Taohua Workshop and decided to leave Nanyang Prefecture.
• Chen Mu reached Great Mastery in the Jade Toad Body Tempering Technique and gained four Roaming Souls on his legs.
• Chen Mu met Jie Jia, asked for Ancestral Radiance Talismans, and said he planned to hide in Lijiang City.
• Jie Jia spotted signs that an attack had begun in the Inner City, gave Chen Mu more than twenty Ancestral Radiance Talismans, and warned him that Yin Soul Monsters filled the sky and blocked the roads outside the city.

With Yin Souls trapping Nanyang Prefecture City, Chen Mu waited out the danger while King Chao recruited soldiers and seized able-bodied men. After learning the enlistment rewards might be tied to a dangerous northern expedition, Chen Mu remained undecided until soldiers arrived to search his home.

• Chen Mu hid at home for several days as the Yin Souls haunted the city, then heard soldiers praise King Chao and blame Shangguan Ji for the Inner City's fall.
• Chen Mu saw corpses piled outside Jian'an Gate and tried to persuade Jie Jia to help him escape, but agreed to wait a month when Jie Jia pointed out the value of his Ancestral Radiance Talismans.
• King Chao's soldiers seized able-bodied men across the city, while Chen Mu and Jie Jia found their home ransacked and their cooking pot stolen.
• Chen Mu gathered enlistment rumors, learning that recruits received generous rewards and that King Chao might be recruiting for a northern search for the Thousand Mechanism Token.
• When soldiers came to search, Chen Mu and Jie Jia escaped over the wall carrying their food.