Recaps

Li Qing and Rice Bucket reached Beast King Mountain after the Myriad Beast Spirit Tree vanished, and Li Qing gathered enough Beast King Tokens for himself and his companions to climb. The mountain tested them with unbreakable stone and overwhelming spiritual pressure, but Li Qing and Rice Bucket pressed onward toward its summit and the inheritances.

• Rice Bucket reunited with Li Qing, who said Chong Jiu was digesting a Myriad Beast Spirit Fruit and would transform after waking.
• The Myriad Beast Spirit Tree disappeared, revealing Beast King Mountain, while Bai Xing, the Bone Demon Giant Wolf, and the Azure Wave Snake tried to seize Beast King Tokens from weaker demons.
• Li Qing found seven Beast King Tokens on the Three-Headed Black Crocodile, bringing his total to sixteen, and brushed past Bai Xing as he headed for the mountain.
• Li Qing and Rice Bucket reached Beast King Mountain and found that the Breaking Army Blade could barely mark its self-healing stone.
• A Devil Ape phantom appeared as the Wind Ape began receiving an inheritance, then immense pressure from the mountain forced Li Qing and Rice Bucket to struggle uphill.
• Li Qing gave Rice Bucket five Beast King Tokens, and the two continued climbing despite the pressure bearing down on their spirits.

Li Qing climbed Beast King Mountain, where he passed a divine-soul trial and met the Hundred Spirits Dao Lord. After learning that the Moonfall Star Chart gave him access to the Soul Refining Scripture, Li Qing chose it and began receiving its inscription from an unnamed tombstone.

• Rice Bucket roared in frustration, activating the Heavenly Demon Tiger inheritance and drawing the attention of Bai Xing, the Azure Wave Snake, and the other demons gathered at the mountain’s foot.
• A Heavenly Demon Tiger phantom tested Rice Bucket with overwhelming pressure while Li Qing continued climbing alone.
• The Hundred Spirits Dao Lord appeared at the summit, used the Moonfall Star Chart to recognize Li Qing, and set him a trial of pressure from powerful demon clans.
• Li Qing endured the trial and reached the summit, where the Hundred Spirits Dao Lord revealed that he could choose between his broad inheritance and the Soul Refining Scripture.
• Li Qing chose the Soul Refining Scripture, and the Hundred Spirits Dao Lord sent its inscription from an unnamed tombstone into Li Qing’s sea of consciousness.

Li Qing memorized the Soul Refining Scripture while Rice Bucket passed the Heavenly Demon Tiger trial and claimed the right to enter the clan’s Tomb Mansion without abandoning its master. Inside, Rice Bucket encountered a powerful tiger skeleton and began learning the Demon Race’s writing from the Heavenly Demon Tiger Ancestor.

• Li Qing memorized the Soul Refining Scripture, knowing he would still need time to understand and cultivate it.
• Rice Bucket passed the Heavenly Demon Tiger clan’s trial, but refused to break its master-recognition Spirit Contract for the inheritance.
• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord reminded the Heavenly Demon Tiger Ancestor that Rice Bucket had passed the trial and carried five Beast King Tokens, so it deserved the inheritance.
• The Heavenly Demon Tiger Ancestor yielded and let Rice Bucket enter the Tomb Mansion, where it found a powerful dark-purple tiger skeleton.
• Rice Bucket struggled to read the Demonic Script, so the Heavenly Demon Tiger Ancestor taught it the Demon Race’s writing and noticed the skeleton resonating with it.

Li Qing received the Soul Refining Scripture from Hundred Spirits Dao Lord and learned that the Black Furnace was once the Heaven-Piercing Spirit Treasure called the Life-Extinguishing Furnace. With demons guarding the exit from the Myriad Beast Secret Realm, Hundred Spirits Dao Lord offered to help Li Qing escape.

• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord warned Li Qing to keep the Soul Refining Scripture secret, and Li Qing released Chong Jiu to try for Beast King Mountain’s Mystic Jade Spider inheritance.
• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord explained that the Mystic Jade Spider’s remnant thought had not survived, then asked Li Qing about the humans of the demon domain.
• Li Qing revealed that he came from the outer regions and that humans in the demon domain had long disappeared; Hundred Spirits Dao Lord warned that Demon Kings guarded the secret realm’s exit.
• Li Qing showed Hundred Spirits Dao Lord the Black Furnace, which he identified as the damaged Life-Extinguishing Furnace, once Life-Extinguishing Elder’s Natal Magic Treasure.
• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord said Li Qing might restore the furnace by gathering all thirty-six golden flame emblems, then asked him to take out his spiritual materials so he could teach him how to escape.

Li Qing gave Hundred Spirits Dao Lord his spiritual materials and learned that Moonlit Ridge was an ascension node before agreeing to let the Dao Lord’s obsession lodge in his Immortal Spirit Green Gold and leave the Myriad Beast Secret Realm. With Demon Kings waiting outside, Hundred Spirits Dao Lord began guiding Li Qing through refining a limited-use wing artifact for their escape.

• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord recognized Li Qing’s bronze fragment from Moonlit Ridge and explained that the Forbidden Zone was an ascension node occupied by Spirit Transformation cultivators.
• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord asked to lodge his obsession in Li Qing’s Immortal Spirit Green Gold so he could leave the secret realm and seek a successor, and Li Qing agreed.
• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord passed wind, lightning, and spatial dao patterns to Li Qing and instructed him to refine a pair of extremely fast wings.
• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord told Li Qing to begin smelting Void Bone Stone for the limited-use Forbidden Artifact, and Li Qing used his Spirit Devouring Demonic Flame to do so.

Li Qing struggled to inscribe Heaven-Piercing Spirit Treasure-level Dao patterns onto the wings he had refined while the demons emerged from their inheritance tombs. Rice Bucket finally left the Heavenly Demon Tiger Ancestor’s tomb with a new ancestral pattern and a charge to honor the clan, as Li Qing’s time in the secret realm neared its end.

• Li Qing repeatedly failed to inscribe the wind, lightning, and spatial Dao patterns, while Hundred Spirits Dao Lord explained how to use divine sense and the wings’ elemental powers.
• Bai Xing emerged with the Nine-Headed Golden Lion inheritance and a drop of its essence blood, while Chong Jiu left its tomb mansion and fell asleep near Li Qing.
• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord sensed that the secret realm was about to transport Li Qing out and used a small method to buy him more time for his work.
• Rice Bucket emerged from the Heavenly Demon Tiger Ancestor’s tomb with a violet ancestral pattern and a strengthened frame, then heard the ancestor’s voice tell it not to disgrace the clan.

Li Qing refined the Wind Thunder Silver Wings and prepared to leave the Myriad Beast Secret Realm as its delayed opening finally began. Outside, the Demon Kings learned that Jin Lie and the Three-Headed Black Crocodile had died, leaving the Golden Bear King and Black Crocodile King stunned.

• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord helped Li Qing refine the Wind Thunder Silver Wings, a forbidden artifact tempered by lightning, and explained that they might someday lead to a Heaven-Piercing Spirit Treasure.
• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord withdrew his interference, the secret realm began teleporting its inhabitants out, and he hid inside Li Qing’s bronze fragment while Li Qing stored Rice Bucket and Chong Jiu in his Beast Taming Pouches.
• A Mountain Ridge Giant Elephant completed the Elephant Clan inheritance and was teleported out of the Tomb Mansion.
• The Demon Kings waited anxiously for the delayed opening, and the Golden Bear King confidently claimed that his son Jin Lie might have awakened the Ancient Dragon Bear’s ancestral spirit.
• The Black Crocodile King seized a Golden Horn Brutal Ox and questioned it about the spirit fruits; it reported that Bai Xing and the Azure Wave Snake were among the eight who obtained them.
• The Golden Horn Brutal Ox revealed that Jin Lie and the Three-Headed Black Crocodile were dead, silencing the assembled Demon Kings.

After Li Qing killed Jin Lie and the Three-Headed Black Crocodile, the Golden Bear King and Black Crocodile King attacked him as he emerged from the Myriad Beast Secret Realm. Li Qing escaped with Kunpeng Extreme Speed and headed back toward his sect, while the two kings began hunting for him across other territories.

• The Golden Horn Brutal Ox revealed that a human cultivator had killed Jin Lie and the Three-Headed Black Crocodile inside the ancestral land, and a Wind Ape confirmed the report.
• The Golden Bear King and Black Crocodile King waited at the secret realm exit, where the Golden Bear King attacked Li Qing as he emerged.
• Li Qing evaded the kings' strikes with his Wind Thunder Silver Wings, then combined them with Kunpeng Divine Power to escape their senses.
• Li Qing landed on a lonely island, recovered from his injuries, and told the Hundred Spirits Dao Lord he would return to his sect and help find an inheritor.
• Li Qing flew north toward the Qingling Region as news of his escape spread through the Demon Domain.
• The Golden Bear King and Black Crocodile King joined forces and left the Demon Domain to hunt Li Qing across other territories.

After resting on a remote island, Li Qing discovered that its people worshipped the Five Elements Spirit Pearls and that his old acquaintance Suxin appeared to possess the Water Spirit Pearl. He decided to find her privately and learn about her circumstances, while the Hundred Spirits Dao Lord offered to help him bypass the island’s protective formation.

• Li Qing concealed his identity, hid near a spirit vein on the island, and restored his depleted mana.
• As Li Qing prepared to leave, the Hundred Spirits Dao Lord recognized the islanders’ worship of the Five Elements Spirit Pearls and their Spirit Pearl Envoys.
• An elderly Core Formation cultivator performed a ritual that drew Water Attribute spiritual power from the sea, and Suxin appeared before the gathered islanders.
• The Hundred Spirits Dao Lord urged Li Qing to seize the Water Spirit Pearl, but Li Qing refused to take another person's body and revealed that he knew Suxin.
• Li Qing decided to meet Suxin discreetly after the ritual, and the Hundred Spirits Dao Lord offered to guide him through the flawed third-rank formation.

Li Qing reunited with Suxin in the island cluster and learned how she had survived and sought revenge after the Tianhe Sect fell. He revealed that he had destroyed the Shangqing Sect and discovered that Suxin’s underwater cave abode held the Heavenly Origin Flowers he needed, leaving them preparing to retrieve them despite the sea beasts guarding it.

• Li Qing infiltrated the spiritual vein grounds and surprised Suxin at her cave abode, where she recognized him and learned he had survived.
• Suxin described awakening in the Nether Realm, finding a shattered Water Spirit Pearl, and advancing to Mid Core Formation while planning revenge on the Shangqing Sect.
• Li Qing revealed that he had reached Late Core Formation and destroyed the Shangqing Sect, and he told Suxin about some of his later adventures.
• Suxin told Li Qing that her underwater cave abode contained many Heavenly Origin Flowers over five hundred years old, but fierce sea beasts had gathered around it.
• After Suxin confirmed that no fourth-tier demon was nearby, Li Qing offered to accompany her to the underwater cave abode and deal with the sea beasts.

Li Qing and Suxin descended to an undersea estate to retrieve Heavenly Origin Flowers, but the Mountain-Bearing Tortoise attacked them. Li Qing defeated and subdued it, then arranged for it to sign a Spirit Contract with Suxin and guard Lingyun Sect’s waters.

• Suxin used the Water Spirit Pearl to part the seawater and guide them toward the hidden estate.
• Li Qing recognized the approaching attacker as the Mountain-Bearing Tortoise and told Suxin to enter the estate while he held off the sea beasts.
• Li Qing used the Kunpeng Treasure Art and Demonic Kun Absorbing Spirit Art to severely wound the Mountain-Bearing Tortoise.
• The Mountain-Bearing Tortoise agreed to submit and sign a Spirit Contract after Li Qing threatened it with his Breaking Army Blades.
• Suxin emerged from the estate, and Li Qing told the Mountain-Bearing Tortoise to recognize her as its master and guard Lingyun Sect’s waters.
• Suxin recognized the Mountain-Bearing Tortoise as the creature that had killed Tianhe Sect elders when the Tianhe Sect was destroyed.

Li Qing and Suxin returned to the Qingling Region after Suxin subdued the Mountain-Bearing Tortoise and left Cloud Net Island to seek the remaining Water Spirit Pearl fragments. They arrived at Lingyun Sect, where Suxin settled in, while the sect’s growing strength still lacked a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator.

• Li Qing gave Suxin control over the Mountain-Bearing Tortoise, and she subdued it with her water talisman before placing a spirit contract in its sea of consciousness.
• Li Qing and Suxin left Cloud Net Island and traveled across the sea toward the Qingling Region, surviving several dangerous encounters along the way.
• Li Qing and Suxin returned to Lingyun Sect, where Ancestor Ziqing returned Suxin’s Water Spirit Pearl Fragment and thanked her for helping the sect against the Devil Race.
• Li Qing showed Suxin around Lingyun Sect and offered her a spirit peak or Tianhe Sect’s former grounds, but she chose not to rebuild Tianhe Sect for now.
• Suxin remained in Lingyun Sect, bringing its number of Core Formation True Persons to six and adding the Mountain-Bearing Tortoise as a powerful guardian, though the sect still lacked a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator.

Li Qing handled Lingyun Sect affairs, responding to turmoil in the Great Desolation Region by deciding to lease the sect’s former grounds to informed Core Formation cultivators. He arranged to meet the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild, sought a protective formation from Hundred Spirits Dao Lord, and planned to choose a sect master so he could focus on cultivation.

• Li Qing read reports that the Crocodile Venerable had united the demons in the Great Desolation Region as the Devil Dao Sects fought among themselves, driving Rogue Cultivators toward Qingling Region.
• Li Qing decided to lease cave abodes at the former site of the Lingyun Sect to Core Formation cultivators after warning them that it was a weak Spatial Node connected to the Demon Realm.
• Li Qing agreed to meet the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild’s representative after Hundred Spirits Dao Lord described the guild’s far-reaching influence and possible Upper Realm backing.
• After learning that Sacred Hall Tribe cultivators had been seen in northern Qingling Region, Li Qing ordered nearby Cultivation Noble Families to stay vigilant and asked Hundred Spirits Dao Lord to guide the Lingyun Sect’s formation masters in building a sect-protecting formation.
• Li Qing decided to select a sect master before the next Ascension Ceremony so he could devote himself to cultivation, then summoned the sect’s formation masters and told them they would assist with the protective formation.

Li Qing followed Hundred Spirits Dao Lord’s instructions to build a Fourth-tier Great Formation protecting the Lingyun Sect. After the formation took shape and astonished the sect’s cultivators, Li Qing named it the Heavenly Origin Spirit Extermination Formation.

• Li Qing led Elder Ma and the other Formation Masters into the Sect Treasury to gather the materials Hundred Spirits Dao Lord requested.
• Li Qing had the Formation Masters spend four days refining formation flags, which Hundred Spirits Dao Lord judged barely usable.
• Li Qing surveyed the Lingyun Sect from above and directed the elders to bury spirit materials and plant formation flags at key terrain nodes.
• Li Qing transferred his true essence to Hundred Spirits Dao Lord, who activated the flags and linked them with spiritual formation veins.
• The completed Fourth-tier Great Formation shook the earth and astonished the Lingyun Sect’s cultivators, including True Person Fu Xuan and Wu Chong.
• Li Qing announced that the formation was called the Heavenly Origin Spirit Extermination Formation.

Li Qing completed and tested the Heavenly Origin Spirit Extermination Formation, giving Lingyun Sect a formidable defense. After arranging for the sect to search for a successor to Hundred Spirits Dao Lord, he received Lü Tianbao, a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild, who came to discuss cooperation.

• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord finished restoring the Heavenly Origin Spirit Extermination Formation and explained that it could contend with Nascent Soul Middle Stage cultivators before returning to the Immortal Spirit Green Gold.
• Li Qing took control of the formation and tested it by unleashing a spiritual spear that evaporated a vast stretch of seawater, frightening the Mountain-Bearing Tortoise.
• After recovering his mana, Li Qing asked Li Yuhuan to have everyone in Lingyun Sect touch the Immortal Spirit Green Gold and report anyone who made it glow.
• Lü Tianbao arrived at Lingyun Sect and revealed his Nascent Soul Realm aura, prompting Li Qing to welcome him and conceal the formation while Wu Chong and the other Supreme Elders stood ready.
• Lü Tianbao praised the formation and asked about its origins, but Li Qing attributed it to an unnamed senior he met overseas before inviting him to discuss the Merchant Guild's proposed cooperation in the main hall.

Li Qing strengthened the Lingyun Sect’s ties with the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild and prepared the sect for future growth while searching for a capable successor as sect master. He settled on four candidates, with the diligent inner disciple Xu Xia drawing his closest attention.

• Li Qing agreed to let the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild rebuild its towers in the Qingling Region, and True Lord Tianbao promised the guild would remain neutral in factional conflicts.
• Li Yuhuan tested the sect’s disciples and elders with the bronze fragment, but none awakened Hundred Spirits Dao Lord’s inheritance; Li Qing promised to search across the region for a suitable heir.
• The Merchant Guild selected five sites for new Myriad Treasures Towers, and three years later the Lingyun Sect held a second Ascension Ceremony as its membership and strength grew.
• Li Qing decided to choose a future sect master based chiefly on temperament and administrative ability, while the other Supreme Elders left the decision to him.
• Li Qing identified three Foundation Establishment Realm elders and the Qi Refining disciple Xu Xia as candidates, noting Xu Xia’s organizational talent, perseverance, and failed attempt to establish his foundation.

Xu Xia accepted two missions in West Ridge, unaware that Li Qing had arranged them as a test of his suitability to become sect master. After Xu Xia and his companion stopped in Dongwu Town, Li Qing watched them respond to a woman being beaten by her gambling husband, and Xu Xia and his companion were left furious.

• Xu Xia accepted a suppression mission against Shangqing Sect remnants and a mission to gather Ancient Pine Cones, while Li Qing secretly placed a spiritual glimmer in his identity token.
• Li Qing rewarded Lin Qi for arranging the missions and warned him to keep the matter secret.
• Xu Xia prepared for two days, brought a trusted fellow disciple, and traveled toward West Ridge, where Li Qing intended to test him.
• Xu Xia and his companion rested in Dongwu Town before continuing their journey the next day.
• Xu Xia gave money to a woman whose husband was gambling, but the husband beat her and took the silver back.
• Xu Xia and his companion watched the assault and clenched their fists in anger.

Xu Xia and Junior Brother Wang were captured by Shangqing Sect remnants after their mission to Western Ridge turned out to be a trap. As Elder Bai prepared to control them with a Withered Spirit Flower Seed, an unseen person sighed from the forest.

• Xu Xia stopped Junior Brother Wang from attacking a gambling den, then healed a sick child, gave the family money, and encouraged the boy to learn martial arts.
• Li Qing secretly rewarded the child with a seed of true essence and continued observing Xu Xia and Junior Brother Wang as they reached Western Ridge.
• Junior Brother Wang acted as bait among the ancient pines, where Shangqing Sect remnants ambushed him with a huge net and revealed themselves.
• Xu Xia struck the attackers with Talismans and his spear, but Elder Bai appeared and used the forest to capture both disciples.
• Xu Xia pretended to accept Elder Bai's offer to become a spy, then refused to betray Lingyun Sect when Elder Bai demanded they accept Withered Spirit Flower Seeds.
• Elder Bai ordered his men to take Xu Xia and Junior Brother Wang for interrogation, but an unidentified person sighed from throughout the forest.

Li Qing rescued Xu Xia and Wang Song from Shangqing Sect remnants, subdued Bai Qianfan, and searched his memories to uncover a plot involving the Lingyun Sect’s Dragon Blood Vine. After killing the remnants, Li Qing took the two disciples back to the sect to report the danger.

• Li Qing revealed himself as a Late Core Formation cultivator, stopped Bai Qianfan from escaping, and freed Xu Xia and Wang Song.
• Li Qing searched Bai Qianfan’s memories and learned that he had informed the grasslands’ Sacred Hall Tribe that the Lingyun Sect possessed a thousand-year Dragon Blood Vine.
• Li Qing killed Bai Qianfan with Nether Cold Fire and destroyed the remaining Shangqing Sect disciples with demonic flame.
• Li Qing praised Xu Xia and Wang Song, gave them Bai Qianfan’s Storage Bag, and carried them aboard his Serpent-headed Spirit Boat toward the Lingyun Sect.

Li Qing briefed Lingyun Sect's ancestors on the Prairie Sacred Hall Tribe's threat to their Dragon Blood Vine, appointed Xu Xia as the sect's first sect master, and tasked him with gathering intelligence on the prairie. Back in his cave, Li Qing considered how to strengthen himself and turned to the Spirit Nurturing Pill formula, but he still lacked a way to persuade Hundred Spirits Dao Lord to refine the pills.

• Li Qing returned to Lingyun Sect with Xu Xia and announced that he had chosen him as the sect's first sect master.
• Li Qing told the ancestors about the Shangqing Sect remnants, the Prairie Sacred Hall Tribe's interest in the Dragon Blood Vine, and the danger of future attacks.
• Xu Xia proposed sending Foundation Establishment elders to the prairie in disguise to investigate, and Li Qing assigned him to organize the mission.
• Li Qing returned to his cave residence and concluded that he needed to increase his strength quickly as the Qingling Region faced upheaval.
• Li Qing examined the Spirit Nurturing Pill formula and its gathered ingredients, then worried about what he could offer Hundred Spirits Dao Lord in exchange for refining the pills.

Li Qing asked Hundred Spirits Dao Lord to refine Spirit Nurturing Pills and agreed to help the Hua clan in Mingwang Valley if he ever reached the Spirit Transformation stage. With Hundred Spirits Dao Lord’s guidance, Li Qing successfully refined a batch of pills, leaving him with six usable pills and still dependent on his senior’s help to continue alchemy.

• Li Qing asked Hundred Spirits Dao Lord what he would accept in exchange for refining Spirit Nurturing Pills, and the senior requested that Li Qing look after the Hua clan in Mingwang Valley if he reached the Spirit Transformation stage.
• Li Qing presented the Spirit Nurturing Pill formula, and Hundred Spirits Dao Lord agreed to begin refining the pills immediately.
• Over half a month, Li Qing and Hundred Spirits Dao Lord attempted two batches, producing five usable pills in total, including two inferior-grade pills.
• Li Qing refined a third batch under Hundred Spirits Dao Lord’s guidance, dividing the pill liquid into seven portions and stabilizing one that nearly collapsed.
• Li Qing opened the Black Furnace and found that six pills had formed, with one inferior-grade pill and five finished spirit pills.

Li Qing refined forty-six Spirit Nurturing Pills and used thirty-two over seven months to reach the peak of the Core Formation Realm. As he began considering his breakthrough to the Nascent Soul Realm, Hundred Spirits Dao Lord warned him about its tribulations, especially the dangers of the Inner Demon Tribulation, leaving Li Qing resolved to retrace his past and examine his state of mind.

• Li Qing completed nine batches of Spirit Nurturing Pills, producing forty-six pills from nine Demonic Beast Inner Cores.
• Li Qing consumed thirty-two Spirit Nurturing Pills over seven months and advanced to the peak of the Core Formation Realm, one step from the Nascent Soul Realm.
• Li Qing considered how the Dragon Transformation Pill and the Exquisite Immortal Sound might help him form a nascent soul.
• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord advised Li Qing to secure a secluded place for his breakthrough and explained the risks of lightning and Inner Demon Tribulations.
• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord urged Li Qing to retrace his past and examine his regrets, prompting Li Qing to reconsider how prepared he was for the Inner Demon Tribulation.

As Elder Jin Gu passed away, Zar Tie inherited most of his cultivation through the Spirit Crossing Sage Transformation Technique and became a Late Core Formation cultivator, leaving the Sacred Hall Tribe determined to obtain the thousand-year Dragon Blood Vine. Li Qing reached the pinnacle of Core Formation, entrusted the Lingyun Sect to Xu Xia and its elders, and left to retrace his past, beginning at the former site of the Lingyun Sect.

• Elder Jin Gu transferred most of his cultivation to Zar Tie, who advanced from Foundation Establishment Late Stage to Late Core Formation.
• A Sacred Hall woman urged Zar Tie to pursue the thousand-year Dragon Blood Vine so the tribe could refine a Dragon Transformation Pill and seek the Nascent Soul Realm.
• Li Qing placed the Spirit Nurturing Pill formula in the Hall of Inherited Skills and gave Spirit Nurturing Pills to the sect's Supreme Elders.
• Li Qing revealed that he had reached the pinnacle of Core Formation and said he would leave to seek a path to the Nascent Soul Realm, leaving Xu Xia in charge of the sect.
• Li Qing departed the Lingyun Sect and chose its former site as the first stop on his journey to retrace his past.

Li Qing revisited the ruins of Lingyun Sect and retraced parts of his early cultivation journey, reflecting on how far he had come. Near Tianhe Marketplace, he witnessed a Foundation Establishment cultivator named Cao Xiu fleeing a pursuer with Fire Jade Bees and wondered if the pursued man was someone he knew.

• Li Qing remembered Lingyun Sect's destruction, bowed at its ruins, and said he had rebuilt the sect and repaid its blood debt.
• Li Qing traveled through the Tang Family's lands and released a Core Formation aura to warn them about the dangers their growing spirit vein might bring; Tang Lushan resolved to report the incident to Lingyun Sect.
• Li Qing visited Lin Xiaonan's family, learned that Lin Xiuzhu had failed Foundation Establishment and that Lin Ya was still cultivating in Lingyun Sect, then continued toward Liang Kingdom.
• Li Qing revisited the fissure where Heavenly Desire Flowers had once grown and recalled that a second-order white ape had helped him achieve Foundation Establishment.
• Outside Tianhe Marketplace, Li Qing watched an injured Cao Xiu flee a Foundation Establishment bandit wielding Fire Jade Bees and suspected he recognized Cao Xiu.

Li Qing watched Cao Xiu fight off a bandit cultivator and intervened after their mutual-destruction attack left Cao Xiu near death. While treating him, Li Qing learned of Fire Cliff Cave and heard Hundred Spirits Dao Lord question the usual ranking of spiritual roots.

• Li Qing recognized Cao Xiu and secretly watched him endure repeated Fire Jade Bee stings while fleeing the bandit cultivator.
• The bandit cultivator sent most of his Fire Jade Bees after Cao Xiu, who turned and used Golden Annihilation Slash to destroy the swarm and fatally wound his pursuer.
• Li Qing searched the dying bandit's memories, learned that Fire Cliff Cave held a Fire Jade Bee hive, and found Cao Xiu barely alive.
• Li Qing used the Spirit Devouring Demonic Flame and Nether Cold Fire to remove Cao Xiu's fire poison, then brought him to a cave to recover.
• Hundred Spirits Dao Lord said he wanted to pass his mantle to Cao Xiu but worried about his spiritual roots, then claimed Li Qing's aptitude was somewhat better.