Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng begins his fourth life in the Chiyan Realm, emerging alone from the Ascension Pool. A system notification reveals that he is currently the realm’s only player, making the experience similar to ordinary transmigration.
• The system explains that the Chiyan Realm’s immortal and divine traditions originated from Luo Xuan, the Southern Three-Qi Fire Virtue Star Lord, who subdued the Scarlet Smoke Colt and established the Fire Dragon Island lineage. Later, Lü Dongbin spread the Quanzhen and Pure Yang traditions, causing the realm’s cultivation civilization to flourish.
• Lu Qingfeng receives 30,000 experience points as the first player and spends two months cultivating, hunting beasts, and searching for civilization within the wilderness. His cultivation rises to the sixth stage of the True Qi Realm, restoring the peak strength of his previous life.
• During this period, his Scripture of the Yellow Court advances to level two. His comprehension improves significantly, allowing him to understand cultivation, alchemy, and artifact-refining problems more easily. Its traits—Technique Derivation, Dominion over All Techniques, and Karmic Erasure—also reach level two, though he has not yet understood the latter two abilities.
• Because of his poor bone structure, Lu Qingfeng expects no immortal sect will accept him. With no player guilds available, he decides that becoming a rogue cultivator is his most practical path, relying on his knowledge of alchemy, talisman-making, puppetry, and artifact crafting.
• While traveling through the mountains, Lu Qingfeng encounters a weak Malevolent Ghost General, who attempts to frighten him with illusory thunder and rolling boulders.
• The ghost attacks after realizing Lu Qingfeng can see it, but Lu Qingfeng destroys it effortlessly with a genuine lightning spell.
• After the ghost’s destruction, Lu Qingfeng discovers a mysterious Divine Seal containing divine-path talismans and capable of commanding a deity’s territory.
• He finds the ghost’s crude, abandoned temple nearby and begins considering how the Divine Seal and the existence of the wild god might help him establish himself in the Chiyan Realm.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng becomes more confident and self-sufficient after restoring his previous cultivation. He recognizes that, despite lacking sect support or player allies, his accumulated knowledge gives him substantial advantages.
• His advancement in the Scripture of the Yellow Court marks an important intellectual and spiritual breakthrough. His mind becomes clearer, his comprehension improves, and he gains greater confidence in solving complex cultivation problems.
• Lu Qingfeng demonstrates his calm, cautious, and pragmatic personality when he ignores the ghost’s intimidation tactics rather than reacting fearfully.
• He also begins showing interest in the divine path, suggesting a possible expansion beyond his established focus on immortal cultivation, alchemy, and puppetry.

Significant Themes

• Independence and adaptation: Lu Qingfeng must survive without players, guilds, or sect support and adapt by using his own accumulated abilities.
• Accumulated experience across lifetimes: His previous lives provide knowledge and cultivation experience that allow him to advance far more quickly than an ordinary practitioner.
• Immortal and divine cultivation paths: The chapter introduces the Chiyan Realm’s distinctive balance between immortal cultivators and orthodox deities, along with the tension between legitimate gods and wild or evil spirits.
• Appearance versus reality: The ghost’s dramatic displays of thunder and supernatural power are merely bluff and illusion, while Lu Qingfeng’s simple lightning spell possesses genuine destructive authority.
• Opportunity in unfamiliar circumstances: What initially seems like isolation becomes a potential advantage, as the Divine Seal and abandoned temple may offer Lu Qingfeng a new path to power.

Character Interactions

• Lu Qingfeng has no meaningful human or player interactions in the chapter, emphasizing his isolation in the new realm.
• His primary confrontation is with the Malevolent Ghost General, who attempts to deceive and intimidate him. Lu Qingfeng sees through the ghost’s performance, mocks its weakness, and destroys it with one lightning strike.
• Afterward, Lu Qingfeng interacts indirectly with the ghost’s former territory through its temple and Divine Seal, setting up a possible future relationship with the local divine order—or an opportunity to create his own position within it.

Chapter Summary: “Fufeng Mountain God!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng completely refines the Divine Seal of Fufeng Mountain and learns that it grants him the Seventh-Rank position of Fufeng Mountain God.
• The seal allows him to govern the mountain’s prosperity and decline and connect its yin and yang. It covers roughly six hundred li of territory.
• Through the seal, Lu Qingfeng learns the history of the position:
  • It originally belonged to an innate deity.
  • The Scarlet Dawn Sword Sect later officially installed and protected it.
  • The sect and its consecrated deities were destroyed three thousand years earlier during a demonic war.
  • Because the seal had been formed by heaven itself, it survived and eventually fell into the hands of the Malevolent Ghost General.
• Lu Qingfeng surveys Fufeng Mountain through the seal, noting its numerous minor hills, three major peaks—Cloud Ganoderma Peak, Immortal-Gazing Peak, and Jade Maiden Peak—and its eight-hundred-zhang main peak.
• He studies the nature of divine power. A Seventh-Rank deity can hold up to 999 stars of divine power, which is generated primarily from incense offerings.
• Lu Qingfeng considers how to gather incense:
  • Directly spreading faith among the mountain’s people would be fast but conspicuous and could cause immortal sects to label him a wild or evil god.
  • Performing his divine duties and improving the mountain would naturally earn gratitude, incense, and heavenly merit while attracting less suspicion.
• He realizes that the Scripture of the Yellow Court’s ability of “Karmic Erasure” might remove the impurities and karmic dangers within incense offerings. He begins preparing to test this possibility.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng gains a new identity and source of authority as Fufeng Mountain God, but he deliberately avoids merging his divine soul with the seal. He intends to retain his freedom as an immortal-path cultivator rather than becoming permanently bound to the Divine Path.
• He demonstrates caution and strategic judgment, recognizing that divine power is useful but that excessive reliance on incense can corrupt cultivation and create karmic entanglements.
• His concern for Qingshan and Qingyu is revealed. Because their poor spiritual roots may prevent them from cultivating successfully in the Primordial Wilderness, Lu Qingfeng considers the Divine Path a possible means for them to obtain longevity.
• His understanding of divine cultivation deepens, and he identifies a possible way to combine the Divine Path with the Yellow Court Scripture while avoiding its usual dangers.

Significant Themes

• Freedom versus permanence: The Divine Path grants longevity but confines a deity to a specific domain and rank. Lu Qingfeng chooses to hold the seal without integrating with it, preserving the ability to advance and travel freely.
• Power and corruption: Incense offerings provide rapid divine strength but carry the thoughts, karma, and desires of countless worshippers, threatening the cultivator’s purity and sanity.
• Legitimacy versus danger: A deity that openly spreads faith may be mistaken for an evil or wild god, while one that genuinely fulfills its divine duties can gain support from heaven and earth.
• Inherited authority and historical decline: Fufeng Mountain’s weakened spiritual energy reflects the devastation caused by ancient conflict between immortal sects and demonic forces.
• Innovation in cultivation: Lu Qingfeng seeks to use the Yellow Court Scripture’s karmic-erasing ability to overcome the traditional drawbacks of divine power.

Character Interactions

• There are no major direct interactions between characters in this chapter.
• Lu Qingfeng reflects on the former Malevolent Ghost General, understanding that it had attempted to use the Divine Seal but lacked the ability to refine it and had unknowingly chosen the irreversible path of divine integration.
• His thoughts about Qingshan and Qingyu show his protective concern for their futures.
• He also considers his potential relationship with the immortal sects, realizing that honest fulfillment of his office may lead them to recruit or tolerate him, whereas aggressive faith-gathering could make them view him as a threat.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng spends years restoring Fufeng Mountain’s damaged earth energy after the ancient battle that devastated it. By carefully regulating the mountain’s spiritual veins, he gradually reduces natural disasters and helps vegetation, wildlife, and spiritual vitality recover.
• The restored mountain begins to prosper. Buildings, training grounds, and several Mountain God Temples appear, attracting mountain folk, cultivators, spirits, and monsters under Lu Qingfeng’s protection.
• A Foundation Establishment–realm sword cultivator, Wang Pan, pursues a murderous Crimson-Tailed Civet Cat into Fufeng Mountain. The wounded monster hopes to use the mountain god’s reputation to escape.
• Instead of truly seeking protection, the civet cat intended to lure Wang Pan into conflict with the mountain god and exploit the chaos to survive.
• Before Wang Pan can finish the monster, a middle-aged scholar appearing from the Mountain God Temple declares that the civet cat’s crimes merit death. He attacks simultaneously with Wang Pan, and the monster is destroyed.
• The scholar explains that his divine lord—the Fufeng Mountain God—is currently undergoing a tribulation and cannot appear personally. He invites Wang Pan to witness it.
• Wang Pan accepts, and he and the scholar enter the mountain together.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng: Demonstrates patience, responsibility, and growing mastery of his divine office. Rather than merely receiving worship, he personally performs the exhausting work of repairing Fufeng Mountain. His efforts earn him increasing incense and divine power, creating a cycle in which his growing strength allows him to restore the mountain more quickly.
• Wang Pan: Revealed as a highly skilled and confident sword cultivator. Though only at Foundation Establishment, his swordsmanship is powerful enough to dominate the injured monster. He is also cautious and perceptive, recognizing the danger of confronting a mountain god and choosing to investigate rather than act recklessly.
• Middle-aged scholar: Acts as an agent or subordinate of Lu Qingfeng. His solid ghost-path body and powerful sleeve attack show that he is much stronger than Wang Pan. He is courteous but decisive, enforcing the mountain god’s judgment without hesitation.
• Crimson-Tailed Civet Cat: Shows cunning and desperation, attempting to manipulate both sides to secure its escape. Its long cultivation ultimately fails because of its accumulated crimes and dwindling strength.

Significant Themes

• Restoration through perseverance: Lu Qingfeng’s slow, painstaking repair of the mountain reflects the value of sustained effort over dramatic action.
• Divine responsibility and reciprocity: By protecting the land and its inhabitants, Lu Qingfeng earns their gratitude and incense, which in turn strengthens his divine power.
• Order versus evil: Fufeng Mountain has become a domain where harmful spirits cannot act freely, and the mountain god’s authority extends to judging and eliminating those who threaten its people.
• Cunning and consequence: The civet cat’s schemes cannot overcome the consequences of its past violence.
• Hidden power and cautious investigation: Wang Pan discovers that a seemingly desolate region conceals a flourishing spiritual domain and a powerful deity, encouraging him to act carefully rather than rely solely on his sword.

Character Interactions

• The civet cat attempts to use Fufeng Mountain and its mountain god against Wang Pan, but the plan backfires.
• Wang Pan and the scholar unintentionally cooperate to kill the monster through a pincer attack.
• Afterward, the scholar treats Wang Pan respectfully and invites him to observe Lu Qingfeng’s tribulation, establishing a potentially important alliance or connection between Wang Pan and the mountain god’s domain.

Key plot points and events

• Forty-six years after becoming Fufeng Mountain’s god, Lu Qingfeng prepares to cross the Foundation Establishment Tribulation. He has advanced rapidly with the aid of his divine office, but repeatedly returned to the True Qi Realm’s Sixth Layer to deepen his understanding before making the attempt.
• Wang Pan, a sword cultivator from the Luofu Sword Sect, arrives with Han Fang after pursuing an evil demon. He assumes Lu Qingfeng may belong to a major immortal sect, since the Mountain God’s background is unclear.
• Lu Qingfeng faces nine bolts of unusually powerful Foundation Establishment Tribulation Lightning. Rather than merely endure them, he lets much of their force reach his body. The lightning’s destructive power is counterbalanced by a seven-colored radiance that heals and strengthens him.
• The tribulation helps Lu Qingfeng’s Iron Refining Body advance from its eighteenth to its nineteenth layer. He survives easily, then breaks through into the Qi Guiding Realm, the first Foundation Establishment realm, gaining the ability to absorb and refine Heaven-and-Earth spiritual qi into True Essence.
• Afterward, Lu Qingfeng welcomes Wang Pan as a guest. Wang Pan leaves three days later, convinced Lu Qingfeng is unaffiliated with any sect and worth recruiting or befriending.

Character developments

• Lu Qingfeng completes a major cultivation breakthrough, moving from the Postnatal True Qi Realm into Foundation Establishment. His unusually deep preparation and powerful body let him turn the tribulation into an opportunity for growth.
• Han Fang is revealed as Lu Qingfeng’s trusted aide. Once a ghost-path cultivator rescued from an evil spirit, he has prospered under Lu Qingfeng’s guidance and now stands at the Origin Nurturing Realm, the third Foundation Establishment realm.
• Wang Pan moves from suspicion and assessment to admiration. Seeing Lu Qingfeng’s strength and apparent lack of sect ties, he recognizes a potential ally.

Significant themes

• Preparation and patience: Lu Qingfeng’s decades of repeated practice show that careful mastery can matter more than rushing toward a breakthrough.
• Calamity as opportunity: The tribulation threatens destruction, yet Lu Qingfeng uses it to strengthen both body and cultivation.
• Divine office and cultivation: Lu Qingfeng’s Mountain God position grants him access to Heaven-and-Earth destiny, accelerating his progress beyond ordinary cultivation.
• Appearances and assumptions: Wang Pan misreads the scale and circumstances of Lu Qingfeng’s cultivation, illustrating how little outsiders know about his origins and methods.

Character interactions

• Han Fang escorts Wang Pan to Lu Qingfeng, while privately worrying that an influential visitor could either threaten or benefit their Mountain God.
• Wang Pan and Han Fang watch Lu Qingfeng’s tribulation; Wang Pan compares it with his own difficult ordeal and is astonished by how easily Lu Qingfeng passes.
• Lu Qingfeng warmly receives Wang Pan after hearing how he came to Fufeng Mountain, treating their meeting as a matter of fate.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng watches Wang Pan leave to report his proposal to the Luofu Sword Sect. He plans to submit Fufeng Mountain, its ghost cultivators, Yin soldiers, and the Azure Origin Sword Sect to the rising immortal sect.
• Lu Qingfeng believes the Luofu Sword Sect will accept because it is expanding its influence and gathering destiny. His decades of good governance, righteous reputation, and support for local people make it unlikely that the sect would simply destroy him as an evil god.
• The Azure Origin Sword Sect served two purposes:
  1. It gave Lu Qingfeng practical experience in guiding cultivators, allowing him to better assist Qing Shan and Qing Yu.
  2. It demonstrated that the Fufeng Mountain God followed the righteous path by training disciples to eliminate demons and evil.
• Lu Qingfeng reassures Han Fang that, if the Luofu Sword Sect accepts his submission, Han Fang will likely receive an official position as a Ninth-Rank Patrol Mountain General or record-keeping clerk.
• Lu Qingfeng enters seclusion and leaves Fufeng Mountain in Han Fang’s care while awaiting Wang Pan’s response.
• Meanwhile, more than five months pass in reality. Following the God of War Association’s failed attack on Lu Qingfeng and his siblings, the War God Army collapses and most of the association’s senior experts are killed or flee.
• Lu Qingfeng’s bounty system causes the martial world to hunt the remaining members of the God of War Association. Rewards include medicinal pills, high-grade talisman artifacts, and special prizes for killing the association’s two War Gods.
• The God of War Association is ultimately destroyed without Lu Qingfeng, Lu Qingshan, or Lu Qingyu appearing publicly. Their revenge is completed, and the three siblings become famous throughout the Shangyang Kingdom.
• Rumors spread that the siblings are protected by the Lord of Miaoyin City, a mysterious Black-clad Man, or an even greater hidden power. Fear of retaliation prevents other forces from attacking them.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng: Demonstrates long-term planning, political awareness, and confidence. He has carefully prepared both a path toward recruitment by the Luofu Sword Sect and an escape route should the plan fail. His defeat of the God of War Association also establishes him as a powerful strategist who can destroy major enemies indirectly.
• Han Fang: Reveals anxiety over the uncertain future of Fufeng Mountain and his own position, but accepts Lu Qingfeng’s reassurance and responsibilities. His hopes of obtaining an official divine post strengthen his loyalty.
• Wang Pan: Though relatively insignificant within the Luofu Sword Sect, he becomes an important intermediary. His favorable impression of Lu Qingfeng leads him to promise to recommend Fufeng Mountain’s submission.
• Lu Qingshan and Lu Qingyu: They remain largely offstage, but Lu Qingfeng’s cultivation guidance and the destruction of their enemies contribute to their growing security and reputation.
• The Lu siblings collectively: Shift from obscure figures to feared and widely known powers in the Shangyang Kingdom.

Significant Themes

• Strategic patience and preparation: Lu Qingfeng’s years of governing Fufeng Mountain and building the Azure Origin Sword Sect create political legitimacy and multiple survival options.
• Power through reputation and influence: Rather than relying solely on personal strength, Lu Qingfeng uses righteous conduct, alliances, bounties, and public perception to protect himself.
• Indirect warfare: The God of War Association is destroyed through coordinated rewards and the actions of other martial experts, showing that influence can be more effective than direct confrontation.
• Legitimacy versus persecution: Lu Qingfeng works to ensure that immortal sects view him as a legitimate, righteous Mountain God rather than an evil deity deserving extermination.
• Fear as protection: The mysterious identity and overwhelming retaliation associated with the Lu siblings discourage potential enemies and grant them peace.

Character Interactions

• Lu Qingfeng and Han Fang discuss whether Wang Pan can be trusted and whether the Luofu Sword Sect will accept Fufeng Mountain. Lu Qingfeng uses humor and reassurance to ease Han Fang’s concerns.
• Lu Qingfeng explains to Han Fang the reasoning behind founding the Azure Origin Sword Sect and the broader strategy behind his actions.
• Lu Qingfeng entrusts Han Fang with governing Fufeng Mountain during his seclusion and promises him a secure official position if the recruitment succeeds.
• Wang Pan and Lu Qingfeng develop enough mutual trust during Wang Pan’s stay that Wang Pan agrees to advocate for Lu Qingfeng before his master and the Luofu Sword Sect.

Chapter Summary: Miaoyin Wants to Travel Together—Asking for Recommendation Votes!

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng establishes a secluded mountain residence at Azure Barrier Mountain for himself and his siblings, Lu Qingshan and Lu Qingyu.
• He divides his time between cultivation and the game, while using his resources to overcome the difficulty of transporting materials for puppet crafting.
• Lu Qingfeng instructs his siblings in cultivation, drawing on his extensive experience from his previous lives. His guidance helps compensate for their mediocre aptitude and comprehension.
• Daoist Miaoyin arrives on a Double-headed Wild Goose carrying a bundle containing the severed head of Duan Zhang, one of the God of War Association’s three War Gods.
• Duan Zhang was killed jointly by Murong Qi of the Murong Family and Zhang Xinzong of the Shanggu Zhang Clan, two powerful late-stage True Qi Realm experts from Upper Valley Commandery.
• Wang Yan, another major enemy, escaped after hearing of Duan Zhang’s death and fled into the dangerous Crying Swamp. Lu Qingfeng considers the conflict with the God of War Association effectively resolved.
• Miaoyin reveals that she wants Lu Qingfeng to take her with him when he eventually leaves the Shangyang Kingdom.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng continues to demonstrate his competence as a cultivator, teacher, alchemist, artifact refiner, and strategist. He remains calm and detached but sincerely values his siblings and appreciates Miaoyin’s assistance.
• Lu Qingshan is shown to be reserved and somewhat intimidated by powerful figures, especially Miaoyin. His cultivation depends heavily on Lu Qingfeng’s guidance.
• Lu Qingyu has grown close to Miaoyin. Unlike her initially suspicious attitude, she now treats Miaoyin familiarly, suggesting increasing trust and affection.
• Daoist Miaoyin becomes more openly invested in Lu Qingfeng. Her request to travel with him reveals both her confidence that he will leave Shangyang Kingdom and her desire to accompany him for safety and companionship.
• Wang Yan is portrayed as cautious and desperate. Rather than remain in Shangyang Kingdom and become the target of numerous experts seeking rewards, he risks entering the Crying Swamp.

Significant Themes

• Cultivation and limited opportunity: The Shangyang Kingdom is portrayed as too small and spiritually impoverished for ambitious cultivators to reach higher realms, making departure inevitable.
• Mutual dependence and cooperation: Lu Qingfeng and Miaoyin benefit from one another—she provides connections, resources, and intelligence, while he supplies powerful pills and talisman artifacts.
• Family responsibility: Lu Qingfeng’s cultivation is closely tied to his role as protector and teacher of his siblings.
• Ambition versus safety: Leaving Shangyang Kingdom promises greater opportunities but requires crossing the perilous Crying Swamp. Miaoyin recognizes that traveling with Lu Qingfeng offers better chances of survival.
• The value of relationships: Miaoyin’s request shows that their partnership has developed beyond a purely transactional alliance.

Important Character Interactions

• Lu Qingfeng patiently answers Qingshan and Qingyu’s cultivation questions, reinforcing his role as their mentor.
• Miaoyin jokes with Lu Qingfeng about his secluded lifestyle and the expensive rewards owed for Duan Zhang’s death.
• Qingshan behaves shyly around Miaoyin, while Qingyu interacts with her comfortably and affectionately.
• Lu Qingfeng sincerely thanks Miaoyin for organizing the hunt for the God of War Association and gathering cultivation materials.
• Miaoyin directly asks to accompany Lu Qingfeng when he leaves Shangyang Kingdom, marking a significant step in their relationship and setting up future travel together.

Spider Puppet — Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng accepts Daoist Miaoyin’s decision to travel with him, recognizing that her knowledge of the Three Mountains and Nine Waters will be invaluable when he, Lu Qingshan, and Lu Qingyu eventually enter the cultivation world.
• Daoist Miaoyin also depends on Lu Qingfeng, hoping he can help her return across the dangerous Crying Swamp. Their shared goals deepen their alliance and make their relationship increasingly cordial.
• Miaoyin’s influence and connections in Miaoyin City have greatly benefited Lu Qingfeng. Through her, he has gathered rare materials for pill refinement, artifact forging, and puppet construction.
• After destroying the Returning Truth Sect and the God of War Association, Lu Qingfeng gains enough prestige and confidence to openly sell higher-quality pills, talismans, and artifacts.
• Lu Qingfeng shifts his focus from the second-grade Truth-Annihilator Type One to more advanced puppet designs. Drawing on knowledge from previous lives, the Puppet True Classic, and improved comprehension from advancing the Scripture of the Yellow Court, he has mastered three of four new puppet types.
• He chooses to forge the Spider Puppet first because its primary purpose is locating and mining artifact-forging materials. After nearly a month of work, he completes the first enhanced Spider Puppet.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng: Becomes more confident and less cautious about revealing his skills. His growing power, resources, and reputation allow him to cultivate more openly. His accumulated experience from previous lives also makes him far more efficient at puppet crafting and other technical disciplines.
• Daoist Miaoyin: Moves from an uncertain ally to a mutually dependent partner. Her background in the Three Mountains and Nine Waters and her extensive local connections make her an important future guide and present-day supporter.
• Lu Qingshan: Is visibly affected by Daoist Miaoyin’s beauty, becoming flustered when he looks at her, though he says little.

Significant Themes

• Mutual dependence and alliance: Lu Qingfeng and Daoist Miaoyin cooperate because each needs the other’s help for future travel and survival.
• Accumulated knowledge and reincarnation: Lu Qingfeng’s experiences across multiple lives give him sharper comprehension and allow him to master complex crafts much faster.
• Preparation and resource gathering: The chapter emphasizes that advanced cultivation depends not only on combat power but also on obtaining rare materials and building reliable tools.
• Trade-offs in invention: The Spider Puppet’s large size makes it less elegant and portable, but enables it to carry more materials and house the many formations needed for broad detection and mining capabilities.

Character Interactions

• Lu Qingfeng warmly accepts Daoist Miaoyin’s companionship, strengthening their relationship.
• Their conversation reveals their shared plans: Lu Qingfeng needs her guidance in the cultivation world, while Miaoyin hopes to rely on him to return there.
• Miaoyin’s connections support Lu Qingfeng’s crafting ambitions, while his pills, talismans, and artifacts provide valuable compensation.
• After seeing Miaoyin off, Lu Qingfeng immediately returns to his artifact-forging cave and completes the Spider Puppet.

The Spider Puppet

• Enhanced from second grade to third grade, it possesses combat power equivalent to the Foundation Establishment Qi-Drawing Realm.
• Its true value lies in its autonomous ability to detect and mine vast numbers of materials, including ores, rare artifact-forging substances, and spirit stones.
• Its detection range has expanded from 500 meters to 20 li, increasing its searchable area by roughly four hundred times.
• Though Lu Qingfeng considers it overly bulky, the size is necessary to accommodate its many sensing formations and store the materials it mines.

Chapter 68: “Exploring All Directions” — Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng travels south and east through Azure Barrier Mountain in the enormous Spider Puppet, using it to clear paths through dense forests.
• He evaluates the Spider Puppet’s energy consumption. In the Spiritless Land of the Shangyang Kingdom, it takes half a month to recharge and can operate at full power for only about two hours. If its search formations remain active, its reserves last roughly three days.
• Because the Shangyang Kingdom contains few advanced materials and has weak spiritual energy, Lu Qingfeng orders the Spider Puppet not to search until it reaches the Crying Swamp, where spiritual energy is stronger.
• The Spider Puppet travels toward the Crying Swamp through the forests north of the Chengyang River at a steady, energy-efficient pace.
• Lu Qingfeng explains that he has deployed twenty-three Truth-Annihilator Type One puppets. Ten remain with him for protection, ten are exploring the Crying Swamp in search of a route to the Three Mountains and Nine Waters, and three have been sent north, west, and south to investigate unknown regions.
• The exploratory puppets discover that the surrounding terrain is far more difficult than expected:
  • The north is filled with cliffs, ravines, and dangerous mountain formations.
  • The west is barren and sparsely vegetated.
  • The south contains extremely dense populations of ferocious beasts, making it the most dangerous region, though it also has richer spiritual energy and valuable herbs.
• The puppets travel much less distance than theoretically expected because the mountains force them to detour around obstacles. Their effective exploration range remains limited.
• Lu Qingfeng concludes that the current sensing range of about 7,300 li is insufficient to map the enormous Crying Swamp, which took Daoist Miaoyin eight years to cross.
• He considers refining more advanced Thousand Mechanisms Stones. A future enhancement could increase the puppets’ sensing range to roughly 36,000 li, while the highest possible enhancements might theoretically allow a range exceeding twenty million li.
• He sends the Spider Puppet onward, instructing it to follow the routes already scouted and prioritize Spirit Stones, materials for stronger Thousand Mechanisms Stones, rare second-grade materials, and all third- through sixth-grade materials.
• Lu Qingfeng then returns to his room and logs into Primordial Wilderness.

Character Development

• Lu Qingfeng displays increasingly careful strategic planning. Rather than wasting the Spider Puppet’s limited energy in the Shangyang Kingdom, he reserves its search functions for the better-resourced Crying Swamp.
• He becomes more aware of the gap between theoretical calculations and practical exploration. Mountain terrain, danger, and travel limitations force him to revise his expectations.
• His curiosity and ambition expand as he considers whether vastly improved puppets could allow him to explore the entire cultivation world remotely.
• He continues developing from a combat-focused cultivator into an explorer, engineer, and logistical planner who relies on automated puppets and long-term resource management.

Significant Themes

• Theory versus reality: Lu Qingfeng’s estimates of travel distance and exploration efficiency are repeatedly undermined by difficult terrain and environmental conditions.
• Resource management: Spiritual energy, charging time, materials, and sensing range determine how effectively Lu Qingfeng can operate.
• Exploration of the unknown: The chapter broadens the world beyond the Shangyang Kingdom and emphasizes the vastness and danger of the surrounding cultivation regions.
• Technological advancement: Improved puppets and Thousand Mechanisms Stones represent Lu Qingfeng’s attempt to overcome geographical and spiritual limitations through refinement and invention.
• Preparation and patience: Progress depends on scouting routes, gathering materials, and building stronger tools rather than rushing directly into unknown territory.

Character Interactions

• There are no direct face-to-face interactions in the chapter.
• Daoist Miaoyin influences Lu Qingfeng’s plans through information about the Crying Swamp and the Three Mountains and Nine Waters.
• Lu Qingfeng interacts primarily with his puppets, issuing commands and using them as scouts, guards, miners, and explorers.
• His relationship with the puppets is increasingly strategic: he assigns each group a specific purpose based on regional danger, resource potential, and the likelihood of discovering an escape route.

Chapter Summary

Plot and key developments

• Nearly four shichen passed in reality, while only one month elapsed in the game. Lu Qingfeng’s strengthened Grain-Repelling Pills now sustain him for three months each, reducing the need to interrupt his real-world cultivation.
• He checks for news from Han Fang but finds no reply from Wang Pan or the Luofu Sword Sect, and patiently waits.
• Reviewing his progress, Lu Qingfeng sees how dramatically his character has advanced after decades of effort across several lives. He has reached the Foundation Establishment Realm’s Qi Guiding stage, with a lifespan of 300 years.
• His long tenure as Fufeng Mountain’s deity has earned him the title Fufeng Mountain God, a seventh-grade divine position with 999 stars of divine power. This lets him withstand a Spirit Void cultivator’s attacks, though he lacks the realm comprehension to defeat one.
• Lu Qingfeng has also become a first-rank Alchemist and Artifact Refiner, moving beyond the apprentice stage. His knowledge now includes many pill recipes, artifacts, and puppet designs.
• Since his real-world cultivation remains behind his in-game progress, he prioritizes equipment and protection over further cultivation. He plans to make puppets—especially the durable Giant Tortoise Puppet—to protect himself and his siblings during their journey across the Weeping Marsh.
• His longer-term plan is to gather materials in Shangyang Country, then travel through the richer Weeping Marsh toward Three Mountains and Nine Rivers, crafting stronger puppets along the way. He still lacks rare Sumeru Stone needed to make a Storage Bag.

Character development

• Lu Qingfeng’s growth reflects nearly fifty years of persistence, study, and repeated practice. The second layer of the Yellow Court Scripture has further improved his comprehension, helping him master demanding crafts.
• He remains measured and practical: he waits patiently for news, recognizes the gap between his in-game and real-world cultivation, and focuses on preparations that will genuinely help his journey.
• His ambitions have shifted from simply accumulating power to building reliable means of travel, defense, and self-sufficiency.

Character interactions

• No direct conversations occur in the chapter. Lu Qingfeng’s absent correspondence with Han Fang, Wang Pan, and the Luofu Sword Sect highlights that he is still waiting on others’ responses.
• His plans for the Giant Tortoise Puppet are shaped by the need to transport and protect Qingshan and Qingyu as well as himself.

Significant themes

• Patience and perseverance: Lu Qingfeng’s mastery comes from long-term effort, repetition, and contemplation.
• Practical preparation: He prioritizes defenses, mobility, and resources over cultivation gains that cannot yet carry over effectively into reality.
• Uneven progress: Divine power and technical expertise do not automatically equal mastery of a higher cultivation realm.
• Making time productive: Crafting and cultivating while traveling will let him advance without wasting the journey.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng continues developing Fufeng Mountain by refining and deploying more than a thousand Spider Puppets to mine resources. Through trade with nearby human settlements and small sects, he supplements their mining and improves the efficiency of puppet production.
• He successfully refines a ten-times-strengthened Thousand Mechanisms Stone and installs it in a Giant Ape Puppet. The puppet’s perception range reaches an astonishing 2.2 billion li, though this is still insufficient to control a puppet between Earth and Mars.
• A year later, Perfected One Ironfeather of the Luofu Sword Sect arrives at Fufeng Mountain, accompanied by Wang Pan.
• Ironfeather presents Lu Qingfeng with an edict from the Heavenly Court, officially recognizing him as an Orthodox Deity whose name is entered into the Register of Gods.
• Ironfeather immediately offers to accept Lu Qingfeng as his disciple. Lu Qingfeng agrees, performs the formal disciple ceremony, and becomes affiliated with the Luofu Sword Sect.
• Ironfeather gives him:
  • The Luofu Sword Scripture, the sect’s secret sword-cultivation method.
  • Wandering Among Flowers, a powerful movement technique.
  • The Fufeng Sword, a second-grade magical artifact refined by a master artifact maker.
• Ironfeather departs almost immediately. Wang Pan explains that Ironfeather’s swift, businesslike behavior is normal and that recruiting righteous wild gods is a routine task for the Luofu Sword Sect.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng grows increasingly powerful and resourceful. His improved puppets greatly expand his ability to explore and manage Fufeng Mountain.
• He gains official protection and status by becoming an Orthodox Deity, eliminating the insecurity associated with being an unaffiliated “wild mountain god.”
• By becoming Ironfeather’s disciple, Lu Qingfeng gains access to advanced cultivation techniques, a powerful movement art, and a sect-level backing.
• Despite these benefits, Lu Qingfeng remains practical rather than emotional. His main concern is stability and protection, not prestige or personal attachment.
• Wang Pan becomes an important intermediary and fellow disciple, helping Lu Qingfeng gain recognition and explaining the customs and intentions of the Luofu Sword Sect.
• Perfected One Ironfeather is shown to be direct, efficient, and emotionally detached. His acceptance of Lu Qingfeng is partly personal but primarily a sect assignment.

Significant Themes

• Power through organization and infrastructure: Lu Qingfeng’s strength comes not only from personal cultivation but also from puppets, resource networks, trade, and systematic development.
• Institutional protection versus independence: Lu Qingfeng trades some of his independence for the security and resources provided by the Luofu Sword Sect.
• Political and religious legitimacy: Entering the Heavenly Court’s Register of Gods transforms Lu Qingfeng from an unaffiliated deity into an officially recognized Orthodox Deity.
• Pragmatism over sentiment: Both Lu Qingfeng and Ironfeather approach their relationship practically. Lu Qingfeng wants stability, while the sect wants to secure a promising deity and strengthen its influence.
• Sect expansion and strategic recruitment: The Luofu Sword Sect deliberately recruits capable wild gods and cultivators to expand its foundation and fortune.

Character Interactions

• Lu Qingfeng and Ironfeather: Their meeting is formal but brief. Ironfeather grants the edict, offers discipleship, gives Lu Qingfeng several treasures and techniques, and leaves without ceremony.
• Lu Qingfeng and Wang Pan: Wang Pan’s earlier recommendation proves decisive. After Ironfeather’s departure, he congratulates Lu Qingfeng, clarifies the sect’s motives, and explains Ironfeather’s unusual efficiency.
• Lu Qingfeng and Han Fang: Han Fang enthusiastically reports Ironfeather’s arrival and reacts with excitement to Lu Qingfeng’s elevation as an Orthodox Deity.
• Lu Qingfeng and Fufeng Mountain: Through his expanding puppet network and material-gathering operations, Lu Qingfeng continues transforming the previously barren territory into a stable base of power.

Chapter Summary: “Incense Offerings!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng’s position as a seventh-rank Mountain God under the Luofu Sword Sect gives him a largely carefree life. He only needs to provide part of his yearly incense offerings and protect Fufeng Mountain, while the usual tribute of spirit herbs and treasures is waived because the mountain is still recovering from past devastation.
• He spends his time cultivating, refining pills, forging artifacts, teaching disciples of the Azure Origin Sword Sect, and discussing the Dao with fellow cultivators.
• His alchemy has advanced significantly across several lifetimes. After building a foundation in his second life and learning from accomplished alchemists in his third, he has now become a first-rank alchemist. He can easily refine unranked pills and has begun mastering first-rank formulas, though his success rate still needs improvement.
• His artifact-forging skills have likewise progressed. He frequently exchanges knowledge with other craftsmen and generously helps promising juniors, building goodwill throughout the cultivation world.
• Lu Qingfeng studies the Divine Path and investigates the nature of incense offerings. Although incense is considered spiritually “poisonous,” he discovers that the Scripture of the Yellow Court can purify its harmful effects.
• He examines the Fufeng Mountain Divine Path Domain, a spiritual realm formed through worship. The domain contains a Mountain God Temple, ghost cities, and structures for housing wandering souls, yin soldiers, and ghost clerks.
• Lu Qingfeng organizes the divine administration beneath him. Fufeng Mountain can support ten ninth-rank deities: Patrol Mountain Generals and brush-wielding civil clerks. He appoints Han Fang, several capable cultivators and spirit monsters, and eventually fills the remaining posts through connections within the Luofu Sword Sect.
• He draws accumulated incense offerings into his Mountain God Seal and explains their value. Once purified, incense becomes incense money, a currency comparable to spirit stones and jade dew.
• After personally refining incense for several days, Lu Qingfeng finds the process extremely inefficient compared with alchemy and artifact forging. He therefore abandons the work rather than wasting time on it.

Character Development

• Lu Qingfeng becomes increasingly established and secure. His alliance with the Luofu Sword Sect, benevolent conduct, and divine position allow him to avoid enemies and live with long-term stability.
• His expertise expands beyond cultivation into alchemy, artifact forging, teaching, administration, and the mysteries of the Divine Path.
• He demonstrates practical judgment: although incense money is valuable, he recognizes that personally refining it is not worth the time given his superior earning potential elsewhere.
• His character remains generous and pragmatic. He helps suitable juniors, gives away divine positions without demanding payment, and cultivates relationships rather than seeking conflict.
• Han Fang is rewarded for his loyalty and long service by becoming Left Route Patrol Mountain General of the main peak.
• The appointed ghost cultivators, spirit monsters, and Luofu Sword Sect connections gain a path toward longevity and official divine status.

Significant Themes

• Accumulation across lifetimes: Lu Qingfeng’s achievements result from knowledge and experience carried forward through multiple lives.
• The value of cooperation: His rapid progress comes from exchanging knowledge with skilled alchemists, artifact refiners, disciples, and fellow cultivators rather than studying in isolation.
• Divine authority and administration: The chapter presents godhood as both a source of power and a bureaucratic system involving domains, ranks, officials, worship, and the management of souls.
• Incense as both resource and danger: Incense offerings provide wealth, power, and spiritual nourishment, but contain harmful influences that must be purified.
• Generosity and social capital: Lu Qingfeng’s kindness and willingness to grant opportunities allow him to build broad networks and avoid unnecessary enemies.
• Pragmatism and efficiency: Despite the supernatural setting, Lu Qingfeng evaluates activities according to their returns and chooses to focus on alchemy and artifact forging instead of inefficient incense refinement.

Character Interactions

• Lu Qingfeng exchanges alchemical knowledge with Wang Tao, Yue Ran, and Mu Yuanyi, whose guidance greatly accelerates his growth.
• He instructs disciples of the Azure Origin Sword Sect and discusses the Dao with groups of fellow cultivators.
• His status as a disciple of a True Person and a seventh-rank Mountain God attracts friendships with ranked alchemists and other skilled practitioners.
• He assists juniors whose dispositions resemble his own, strengthening alliances through personal generosity.
• He appoints Han Fang and other trusted or capable beings to official divine posts.
• Members of the Luofu Sword Sect approach him to secure divine positions for deceased relatives, friends, or disciples, and Lu Qingfeng readily accommodates them until all ten posts are occupied.

Chapter Summary: “Seven Fiends Banner—Please Vote!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng studies the Scripture of the Yellow Court and discovers that its Karmic Erasure technique can purify incense offerings.
• At its second layer, the technique converts incense offerings into Heavenly Silver, an extremely pure and valuable form of incense currency. Lu Qingfeng can refine about one tael per day, though Fufeng Mountain’s yearly incense accumulation is limited.
• He tests Heavenly Silver by using it to nourish a Seven Fiends Banner, a ghost-path artifact that contains and commands seven evil ghosts.
• Lu Qingfeng feeds the ghosts Heavenly Silver-based dharma food, which strengthens their bodies, increases their power, and removes their resentment and sins.
• After seven years of cultivation and nearly three taels of Heavenly Silver, the seven ghosts rise from the True Qi Realm to roughly the Fluid Condensation Realm.
• The enhanced banner gives Lu Qingfeng a major combat advantage: despite personally being only at the Qi-Drawing Realm, he can now threaten Body Tempering Realm opponents.
• Impressed by the artifact’s effectiveness, Lu Qingfeng decides to obtain its refining method and improve it further.
• He also begins considering how to acquire a reliable source of incense offerings in reality, particularly by gaining the faith of the people of Shangyang Kingdom.

Character Development

• Lu Qingfeng demonstrates increasing mastery of the Scripture of the Yellow Court and becomes capable of converting limited divine resources into highly valuable Heavenly Silver.
• He displays a practical, strategic mindset by finding a useful application for Heavenly Silver rather than simply treating it as wealth.
• His approach to cultivating the Seven-Fiend Wraiths emphasizes orthodox Mystical Sect methods rather than demonic sacrifice. This shows his preference for controlled, sustainable power and his concern about backlash and corruption.
• Lu Qingfeng recognizes both the benefits and limitations of the banner. Although it greatly expands his combat ability, its expense and time requirements make it less efficient than puppets.
• He begins planning for long-term development, including artifact refinement, ghost cultivation methods, and the establishment of a future faith-based source of power.

Significant Themes

• Resource conversion and efficiency: Lu Qingfeng transforms scarce incense offerings into Heavenly Silver, then converts that wealth into combat strength.
• Orthodox versus demonic cultivation: The chapter contrasts demonic methods—using living souls and resentment—with orthodox techniques that cleanse and control evil ghosts.
• Power at a cost: The Seven Fiends Banner grants strength beyond Lu Qingfeng’s realm, but demands enormous quantities of Heavenly Silver and years of cultivation.
• Preparation and self-defense: Lu Qingfeng seeks multiple safeguards, combining puppets with ghost guardians to prepare for unpredictable dangers.
• Faith as power: The possibility of gaining the devotion of millions of people introduces the larger theme of divine authority and the economic and spiritual value of worship.

Character Interactions

• Lu Qingfeng interacts primarily with the seven evil ghosts inside the banner. He summons, feeds, refines, and strengthens them through Heavenly Silver-infused dharma food.
• The ghosts respond with mockingly respectful bows before eagerly consuming the food, showing that they retain distinctive, lively behavior despite being under his control.
• Though no direct dialogue occurs with other characters, Lu Qingfeng’s past discussions with fellow Daoists lead him to learn about the Seven Fiends Banner and motivate him to acquire its crafting method.
• The chapter also references the broader relationship between cultivators, deities, and ghost cultivators, who would compete for Heavenly Silver because of its rarity and usefulness.

Key plot points and events

• Lu Qingfeng considers establishing an orthodox sect in Shangyang Country to gather incense offerings. By spreading its teachings and using specially refined founder statues, he hopes to collect incense that can be converted into Heavenly Silver. He avoids heretical shrines and forbidden methods for creating Divine Path Seals.
• After joining Luofu Sword Sect as True Person Ironfeather’s disciple, Lu Qingfeng receives two arts: the incomplete Luofu Sword Scripture and the incomplete High-Grade escape art Flowerstride.
• He records both in his Attribute Panel and recognizes that his Yellow Court Scripture may let him complete and enhance Flowerstride beyond its current Foundation Establishment limit.
• The Luofu Sword Scripture contains only its Postnatal and Foundation Establishment sections. Lu Qingfeng expects he must pass the sect’s trials to obtain later portions.

Character developments and interactions

• Lu Qingfeng shows strategic restraint in planning how to gather incense, choosing a legitimate sect over faster but unrighteous alternatives.
• He initially sees Ironfeather’s gift of Flowerstride as casual, but reassesses it as a valuable life-saving art for a Foundation Establishment cultivator—and appreciates his master’s generosity.
• Lu Qingfeng recognizes that Luofu Sword Sect uses access to the Scripture’s later stages to attract and assess talented cultivators.
• His reflections show growing insight into how major sects manage cultivation, recruitment, and doctrine.

Significant themes

• Faith as a resource: Incense offerings can sustain cultivation, and spreading doctrine provides a legitimate way to gather them.
• Knowledge and institutional power: Sects control advanced methods, using restricted teachings to cultivate loyalty and select promising disciples.
• Strategic cultivation: Incomplete arts remain useful when paired with knowledge that can complete or improve them.
• Righteousness and restraint: Lu Qingfeng weighs efficiency against moral legitimacy and chooses the orthodox path.

Important techniques

• Luofu Sword Qi compresses Internal Breath and True Qi into powerful Sword Qi.
• Luofu Heart Lamp, formed at Foundation Establishment, aids cultivation and resists external demons; its flame can also become an offensive Sword Qi attack. Refining it with special materials can enhance both its power and cultivation benefits.

Chapter Summary: “Fusion of Cultivation Methods!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng acquires the Luofu Heart Lamp, a cultivation treasure that can accelerate spiritual-qi refinement and True Essence condensation. It can use mental focus, True Essence, incense offerings, or even Heavenly Silver as fuel, making it especially valuable to him given his weak innate talent.
• He decides to use the Technique Derivation system to integrate the Azure Origin Sword Manual with the Luofu Sword Scripture, rather than cultivating both separately.
• The resulting technique is named the Luofu Sword Canon. Although initially only heterodox grade and incomplete, it preserves the major traits of both techniques:
  • Luofu Sword Qi
  • Protective Sword Shield
  • Sword-Shadow Light-Splitting Technique
  • Luofu Heart Lamp
  • Great Geng Sword Formation
  • Luofu Ascension Method
• Lu Qingfeng strengthens the new canon five times, raising it to orthodox grade, and officially replaces the Azure Origin Sword Manual with it.
• Benefiting from his divine position in the game, Lu Qingfeng cultivates at an exceptionally fast pace. He repeatedly studies and experiences the Foundation Establishment stages, even undergoing the Foundation Establishment Thunder Tribulation three times.
• After turning one hundred, he focuses entirely on perfecting the Foundation Establishment Realm, repeatedly cultivating from early Qi-Drawing to its peak before finally advancing to Fluid Condensation.
• In reality, his Spider Puppets begin exploring the Crying Swamp, discovering scarce second-grade materials, several third-grade materials, and eighteen Spirit Stones in total.
• Although the Spirit Stone veins are valuable to ordinary sects and families, Lu Qingfeng considers their output modest. He marks the locations for possible future use and withdraws the puppet.
• With materials now being gathered from both the Shangyang Kingdom and the Crying Swamp, Lu Qingfeng, Daoist Miaoyin, and the Spider Puppets can produce approximately one Spider Puppet per month.
• Lu Qingshan and Lu Qingyu, having more free time, begin preparing for the establishment of a sect.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng continues to compensate for his poor innate talent through planning, experimentation, and resource accumulation. His successful integration of the two sword techniques demonstrates his growing mastery of the Technique Derivation system.
• He becomes increasingly focused on long-term cultivation efficiency, exploiting the Luofu Heart Lamp, divine-position blessings, repeated realm experiences, and Spirit Stones.
• His repeated cultivation cycles show his determination to eliminate weaknesses and fully understand each realm before advancing.
• Daoist Miaoyin contributes directly to Lu Qingfeng’s expanding puppet-production operation by helping gather materials and maintain the refinement process.
• Lu Qingshan and Lu Qingyu take on a more organizational role, preparing to establish a sect rather than concentrating solely on individual cultivation.

Significant Themes

• Innovation through synthesis: Lu Qingfeng improves his power not merely by acquiring new techniques, but by combining and refining existing ones into something stronger.
• Resourcefulness overcoming innate limitations: His weak talent remains a disadvantage, but treasures, divine blessings, careful experimentation, and accumulated knowledge allow him to progress rapidly.
• Accumulation and long-term planning: The chapter emphasizes stockpiling techniques, materials, Spirit Stones, puppets, and experience for future growth.
• Relative value of resources: Spirit Stones that would transform an ordinary family or sect are nearly insignificant to Lu Qingfeng, highlighting the difference between his ambitions and those of the wider cultivation world.
• Building a foundation for future power: The cultivation breakthroughs, puppet production, exploration, and sect preparations all support Lu Qingfeng’s larger objective of creating a stable and powerful organization.

Character Interactions

• Lu Qingfeng interacts primarily with his cultivation systems and tools, especially the Technique Derivation panel, the Luofu Heart Lamp, and the newly created Luofu Sword Canon.
• Daoist Miaoyin works alongside Lu Qingfeng and the Spider Puppets, helping maintain the increased pace of puppet refinement.
• Lu Qingshan and Lu Qingyu cooperate in preparing to establish a sect, expanding their involvement in the family’s broader plans.
• The Spider Puppets function as Lu Qingfeng’s extensions, exploring dangerous territory, mining resources, and enabling his cultivation and manufacturing efforts without requiring his direct presence.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• After destroying the Returning Truth Sect and the God of War Association, Lu Qingfeng takes control of Fujiang Cliff and establishes a new sect there.
• He names it the Azure Origin Sword Sect, after the sect on Fufeng Mountain and its foundational technique, the Azure Origin Sword Manual.
• Lu Qingfeng, Lu Qingshan, and Lu Qingyu become the sect’s founding Three Azure Patriarchs.
• Lu Qingfeng establishes the sect’s basic structure but leaves its daily management to Lu Qingshan. Lu Qingyu helps enthusiastically for three days before losing interest.
• Over the next two years, the sect grows rapidly, recruiting over 2,300 disciples. It emphasizes character over innate talent and supports its members through farming, mining, medicinal gardens, beast-rearing, and other enterprises.
• The sect gains a reputation for justice and aiding the weak, while Lu Qingshan struggles with—but enjoys—the enormous responsibilities of administration.
• Lu Qingfeng later creates three large statues depicting himself and his siblings, ordering that the disciples worship them daily before morning training. He explains that the statues serve an important purpose and that the three siblings are worthy of such reverence.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng remains the sect’s true foundation and benefactor, but withdraws from administration to focus on cultivation, refining, and long-term planning. His affection for his siblings remains strong, though he begins to recognize that Qingyu is no longer a child.
• Lu Qingshan matures into a steady eighteen-year-old and fulfills his dream of leading a powerful organization. Though inexperienced and overwhelmed by practical affairs, he learns through trial and error and becomes increasingly capable.
• Lu Qingyu grows from a dark, skinny child into a lively sixteen-year-old girl. She retains her playful, carefree nature and has little patience for mundane sect management.
• The siblings’ status changes dramatically: they are no longer merely survivors and fugitives, but respected patriarchs whose sect is becoming one of Shangyang Kingdom’s major powers.

Significant Themes

• Growth and transformation: The passage of time changes both the siblings and their circumstances, turning them from hunted children into influential leaders.
• Building a legacy: The Azure Origin Sword Sect represents the siblings’ effort to create something lasting after years of conflict and survival.
• Leadership and responsibility: Lu Qingshan’s experience shows that authority involves endless practical work, not merely prestige.
• Character over talent: The sect’s recruitment philosophy values moral character above natural aptitude, reflecting its more humane ideals.
• Family and changing relationships: Lu Qingfeng’s hesitation to pat Qingyu’s head highlights her transition into adulthood and the subtle evolution of their sibling bond.
• Public image versus reality: Although outsiders mock the young founders, the sect steadily proves its strength and earns genuine respect.

Character Interactions

• Lu Qingfeng entrusts Lu Qingshan with the sect’s management, allowing him to pursue his ambition while quietly supporting him from behind the scenes.
• Qingshan handles the sect’s burdens seriously, while Qingyu briefly assists before abandoning the work as tedious.
• Lu Qingfeng explains to Qingshan why the patriarch statues are justified, affirming that their teachings and protection have given the disciples direction.
• The chapter ends on a warm family moment: Qingyu runs off happily to watch the statues being moved, while Lu Qingfeng watches her with affection and reflects on how much she and Qingshan have grown.

Chapter Summary: “Preparing to Leave”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng’s fourth life in the game ends after three hundred years of peace in the Chiyan Realm. He deliberately avoids breaking through to the Spirit Void Realm, choosing reincarnation instead so he can continue strengthening his understanding of Foundation Establishment.
• His time in the game yields major gains:
  • Deep experience in the four Foundation Establishment stages.
  • Mastery of Heavenly Silver refinement and several new pill- and artifact-refinement techniques.
  • Advancement to Third-Tier Alchemist and Third-Tier Artifact Refiner.
  • Strengthening of several spells, including Flowerstride, Heaven’s Eye Technique, and Golden Light Technique.
• Lu Qingfeng estimates that his accumulated experience is enough to support nearly a century of cultivation in reality, making steady progress toward the peak of Foundation Establishment achievable.
• He completes three ancestor statues capable of storing vast amounts of incense power and refining it into Heavenly Silver.
• With the statues finished and his progress in Shangyang Country slowing, Lu Qingfeng decides to leave for Three Mountains and Nine Rivers. His immediate goal is to follow the route being explored through the Weeping Marsh by Truth-Destroying Type One.
• The route has not yet been fully cleared, and the Thousand Mechanisms Stone materials needed for further exploration remain difficult to obtain in reality.
• Lu Qingfeng informs Lu Qingshan and Lu Qingyu that they will depart in three days.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng has become highly confident in his long-term cultivation prospects. His game experience gives him a solid foundation, but he remains cautious and prioritizes survival over combat or adventure in reality.
• He adopts a practical strategy: use the game for dangerous trials and focus on preserving his life in the real world.
• Lu Qingshan is reluctant to leave the Azure Origin Sword Sect, which he founded and has painstakingly developed. Lu Qingfeng criticizes his attachment as vanity and warns that his cultivation has suffered because of his administrative responsibilities.
• Lu Qingyu remains carefree and strongly attached to Lu Qingfeng. She mocks Lu Qingshan’s reluctance, arguing that the family—especially their elder brother—matters more than the sect.
• Lu Qingshan and Lu Qingyu have both reached the Seventh Layer of the Embryonic Breath Realm, but Lu Qingyu may soon surpass him because he has been distracted by sect affairs.

Significant Themes

• Preparation and long-term planning: Lu Qingfeng carefully accumulates resources, knowledge, pills, artifacts, and spells before beginning the next stage of his journey.
• Survival over glory: His strategy in reality is to avoid unnecessary danger, relying on the game for combat experience and experimentation.
• The value of experience: Although Lu Qingfeng’s natural Root Bone is poor, his centuries of simulated cultivation allow him to rival more talented cultivators.
• Family versus personal ambition: Lu Qingshan’s emotional attachment to the sect conflicts with the need to prioritize his own cultivation and remain with his family.
• Leaving the familiar behind: The family’s departure marks the end of their initial period in Shangyang Country and the beginning of a broader journey.

Character Interactions

• Lu Qingfeng explains to Lu Qingshan that they must leave because Truth-Destroying Type One has advanced deep into the Weeping Marsh and needs them to keep up with its exploration.
• Lu Qingshan worries about abandoning the newly established Azure Origin Sword Sect, but Lu Qingfeng insists that he should delegate responsibility and resume focusing on cultivation.
• Lu Qingyu bluntly confronts Lu Qingshan, asking whether he values her and Lu Qingfeng—or the sect—more. Her words silence him.
• Lu Qingfeng supports Lu Qingyu’s criticism, teasing Lu Qingshan about his vanity.
• Over the following three days, Lu Qingshan hurriedly organizes the sect’s affairs, including its industries and ancestor-worship rituals, while Lu Qingfeng prepares pills and supplies for the family’s departure.

Chapter Summary: Shangyang Country Concluded!

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng finishes preparing for the group’s departure to the Weeping Marsh. Pills, talisman artifacts, refinement materials, and entire pill- and artifact-refinement rooms are loaded into the enormous Giant Tortoise Puppets.
• Daoist Miaoyin arrives at Fujiang Cliff on her Two-Headed Wu. The disciples admire her and view her visit as further proof of the strength of the three Lu siblings.
• Lu Qingyu introduces four Giant Tortoise Puppets:
  • One for Lu Qingshan
  • One for Daoist Miaoyin
  • One for Lu Qingyu
  • One for Lu Qingfeng
• Lu Qingfeng gives Daoist Miaoyin her own puppet because traveling through the dangerous Weeping Marsh on the Two-Headed Wu would be unsafe and inconvenient.
• He shows her the puppet’s interior, defensive formations, offensive thunderfire capabilities, living space, refinement areas, Spirit Nexus Formation, and emergency Spirit Stones.
• Daoist Miaoyin refines the Thousand Mechanisms Stone, the puppet’s control core, allowing her to operate it.
• Although her puppet matches the others in speed, offense, and defense, Lu Qingfeng secretly limits its sensing range to ten li rather than the astonishing seven thousand three hundred li possessed by the others. This reflects his continued caution toward even trusted allies.
• After Miaoyin completes the refinement, all four Giant Tortoise Puppets set off eastward toward the Weeping Marsh, accompanied by nine Skylarks.
• As Fujiang Cliff disappears behind them, Lu Qingfeng recalls fleeing the Return to Truth Sect with his siblings and later destroying it, recognizing that a major stage of their lives is ending.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng demonstrates extensive preparation, technical skill, generosity, and strategic caution. He provides Miaoyin with a powerful puppet but deliberately withholds its full capabilities.
• Daoist Miaoyin remains impressed by Lu Qingfeng’s abilities and increasingly suspects that he is an ancient expert or reincarnated old monster. Though grateful for the gift, she remains wary and avoids revealing her suspicions.
• Lu Qingyu is openly excited about the journey and proudly presents the puppets to Miaoyin. Despite her closeness to Miaoyin, she faithfully keeps the secrets Lu Qingfeng has instructed her not to reveal.
• The three Lu siblings appear unified and well prepared, with each possessing a Giant Tortoise Puppet and contributing to the group’s departure.

Significant Themes

• Preparation and self-reliance: The group brings along tools, materials, workshops, pills, weapons, and transportation to remain independent during the dangerous journey.
• Trust versus caution: Lu Qingfeng values Miaoyin’s assistance and friendship but still refuses to give her unrestricted access to the puppets’ abilities.
• Technological and cultivation mastery: The Giant Tortoise Puppets represent Lu Qingfeng’s exceptional artifact-refinement skills, combining defensive formations, spiritual energy systems, weapons, and living quarters.
• Transition and departure: Leaving Fujiang Cliff marks the end of the Shangyang Country chapter and the beginning of a new expedition into the unknown.
• The passage of time and memory: Lu Qingfeng’s comparison between this departure and his earlier escape from Huangzhi Mountain emphasizes how far the siblings have come.

Character Interactions

• Daoist Miaoyin and Lu Qingyu share a warm interaction, with Qingyu enthusiastically guiding her around the four puppets.
• Lu Qingfeng treats Miaoyin as a valued ally by giving her a puppet and emergency Spirit Stones, while maintaining a careful emotional and strategic distance.
• Miaoyin’s admiration and suspicion of Lu Qingfeng deepen as she observes the puppet’s extraordinary construction and his seemingly impossible abilities.
• The siblings’ cooperation is evident in their shared preparations, while Qingyu’s disciplined silence reinforces Lu Qingfeng’s authority and the group’s mutual trust.

Chapter Summary: “Crying Swamp”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingshan, Lu Qingyu, Lu Qingfeng, and Daoist Miaoyin enter the dangerous Crying Swamp from the border of Danyang Commandery.
• They travel in four giant tortoise puppets, accompanied by nine enhanced Cloud Sparrows, Daoist Miaoyin’s Double-headed Wild Goose and Silver-armored Horned Python, and her Ice Toad.
• The giant tortoise puppets prove highly effective in the swamp, crushing or frightening away fierce beasts and demonic beasts that attempt to block their path.
• Crying Swamp is portrayed as an extremely dangerous region: dense mist limits visibility, eerie cries disturb the mind, magnetic fields disrupt navigation, and travelers frequently become lost and disappear.
• When Lu Qingfeng asks why Daoist Miaoyin originally entered such a perilous place, she recounts her past.
• Daoist Miaoyin came from the Sunset Glow Sect in the Biyang Lake region, part of the wider cultivation world known as the Three Mountains and Nine Waters.
• During an expedition, she and a friend discovered a senior cultivator’s cave abode. Her companion betrayed and seriously wounded her, forcing Miaoyin to kill her in self-defense.
• Later pursued by demons and devils, Miaoyin fled into Crying Swamp while gravely injured and eventually emerged in the Shangyang Kingdom.
• During her long wandering, she obtained and practiced a Beast-Taming Secret Art, hatched the Ice Toad, and used it to suppress the cold poison caused by an Azure Heart Pill.
• The chapter ends by emphasizing that Miaoyin endured the debilitating cold poison for forty or fifty years, demonstrating extraordinary resilience.

Character Developments

• Lu Qingfeng is shown as knowledgeable, observant, and quietly impressed by Daoist Miaoyin’s endurance. His cultivation and alchemical abilities are also highlighted through the enhancement of the Spirit-Feeding Pill formula.
• Lu Qingshan and Lu Qingyu remain curious and impressed by Daoist Miaoyin’s tamed beasts, particularly the Double-headed Wild Goose and Silver-armored Horned Python.
• Daoist Miaoyin receives substantial backstory. Her betrayal, injuries, flight through Crying Swamp, mastery of beast taming, and decades-long struggle with cold poison reveal her determination, toughness, and survival instincts.
• The nine Cloud Sparrows continue evolving from ordinary birds into intelligent, potentially powerful spirit or demonic beasts due to Lu Qingfeng’s feeding regimen.
• The tamed beasts reflect Miaoyin’s capabilities: the Double-headed Wild Goose provides transportation, the Silver-armored Horned Python offers combat strength, and the Ice Toad helps control her poison.

Significant Themes

• Perseverance and endurance: Miaoyin’s decades of suffering from cold poison underscore her exceptional willpower.
• Danger and survival: Crying Swamp represents an environment where ordinary navigation and strength are insufficient; survival depends on preparation, luck, and adaptability.
• Cultivation and growth: Both humans and animals develop through cultivation, alchemy, hardship, and the acquisition of secret arts.
• Betrayal and trust: Miaoyin’s painful history with her former companion contrasts with her present cooperation with Lu Qingfeng and his family.
• The vastness of the cultivation world: The description of Biyang Lake and the Three Mountains and Nine Waters expands the story’s setting beyond the Shangyang Kingdom.

Character Interactions

• Lu Qingfeng praises Miaoyin for taming powerful demonic beasts, while she modestly dismisses them compared with his giant tortoise puppets.
• Lu Qingfeng and Miaoyin speak privately atop the lead tortoise, with Miaoyin explaining her origins and past.
• Lu Qingfeng listens sympathetically and admires Miaoyin’s ability to withstand the cold poison.
• Lu Qingshan and Lu Qingyu observe Miaoyin’s spirit beasts with fascination, while the Cloud Sparrows play around the traveling group.

Chapter Summary: “Making the Journey”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Daoist Miaoyin explains how she reached the Shangyang Kingdom. She survived the Crying Swamp by taming the Silver-armored Horned Python and Double-headed Wild Goose, an achievement made possible by her determination, luck, and a beast-taming inheritance.
• After arriving in Shangyang, a cold poison weakened her cultivation and prevented her from returning home. She spent forty-one years there before meeting Lu Qingfeng, whose arrival gave her hope of returning to the Sunset Glow Sect.
• Lu Qingfeng and Daoist Miaoyin exchange accounts of their pasts. Miaoyin shares her true experiences, while Lu Qingfeng conceals the existence of Primordial Wilderness, claiming that his alchemy and artifact-refining skills came from a senior’s inheritance.
• Lu Qingfeng questions Miaoyin about the Biyang Lake region while traveling through the Crying Swamp. Because the journey once took Miaoyin eight years, he realizes that reaching Biyang Lake will take several years and decides to use the time for cultivation, exploration, and puppet production.
• Over three hundred game-years, Lu Qingfeng creates four Giant Tortoise Puppets, fifteen Spider Puppets, and ten Truth-Annihilator Type Ones. Some puppets are lost while exploring, leaving seventeen Truth-Annihilator Type Ones.
• Ten Truth-Annihilator Type Ones remain behind to defend the Azure Origin Sword Sect, while seven scout routes through the Crying Swamp toward Biyang Lake.
• Lu Qingfeng prioritizes gathering second-grade materials and improving the Thousand Mechanisms Stones, whose current sensing range of 7,300 li is insufficient for crossing the swamp.
• The group continues deeper into the swamp for two months. Puppets scout, mine materials, fight demonic beasts, and help Lu Qingfeng manufacture stronger puppets. The Giant Tortoise Puppet advances slowly, facing dangerous terrain, beast migrations, rising water, and the treacherous Chengyang River.

Character Developments

• Daoist Miaoyin: Her history reveals her resilience, independence, and remarkable luck. Despite being weakened by poison and stranded for decades, she never abandoned the hope of returning home. Her decision to befriend Lu Qingfeng demonstrates initiative and practicality.
• Lu Qingfeng: He remains cautious and secretive, protecting the truth about Primordial Wilderness. He displays strong strategic planning by using the journey to improve his cultivation, expand his puppet forces, and gather resources rather than rushing into the dangerous Biyang Lake region.
• Qing Shan and Lu Qingyu: They begin gaining real combat experience by fighting demonic beasts. Previously protected from danger, they are now trained to rely on their own abilities and spells.

Significant Themes

• Perseverance and fate: Miaoyin’s survival and eventual meeting with Lu Qingfeng illustrate how determination and extraordinary luck can overcome seemingly impossible circumstances.
• Secrecy and trust: Lu Qingfeng values Miaoyin’s friendship but still withholds his greatest secret, showing the limits of trust in the cultivation world.
• Preparation over haste: The journey emphasizes the importance of strengthening oneself before entering a more dangerous region.
• Growth through hardship: Qing Shan and Qingyu’s battles with demonic beasts show that genuine cultivation requires practical combat experience, not merely protection or theoretical knowledge.
• Ingenuity and resourcefulness: Lu Qingfeng transforms the journey into an opportunity to mine materials, expand his puppet army, and develop tools that will improve his future survival.

Character Interactions

• Miaoyin and Lu Qingfeng share personal histories, deepening their mutual understanding and relationship.
• Lu Qingfeng carefully questions Miaoyin about Biyang Lake while avoiding revealing his own true origins.
• Lu Qingfeng trains Qing Shan and Lu Qingyu by exposing them to low-grade demonic beasts and teaching them powerful spells, combining combat practice with cultivation.
• The chapter ends with the group continuing their slow, methodical advance through the Crying Swamp as their growing puppet forces make the journey safer and more efficient.

Chapter Summary: “The Fifth Life—Asking for Recommendation Votes!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lu Qingfeng begins his fifth life in the Chiyan Realm after deliberately reincarnating at the end of his fourth life.
• Unlike his previous reincarnations, he chooses to remain in the same realm so he can continue exploring its potential and preserve the resources accumulated during his three hundred years as Fufeng Mountain God.
• Because reincarnation resets his identity, he cannot inherit his former status as a Luofu Sword Sect disciple or Fufeng Mountain God. However, he had secretly prepared properties, supplies, pills, and puppets for his future self.
• Lu Qingfeng emerges from the Reincarnation Pool near Fufeng City, a settlement he established in his previous life that has since grown into a small city populated by players and cultivators.
• He accesses a hidden courtyard using a prearranged password and retrieves preserved cultivation pills and puppets. Over the next fifteen years, he locates the rest of his hidden assets around the city.
• With abundant resources and his extensive cultivation experience, he rapidly advances:
  • Three years to the Embryonic Breath Realm
  • Twelve years to the True Qi Realm
  • Fifteen years to the Qi-Drawing Realm, after surviving the Foundation Establishment Thunder Tribulation
• By recovering his previous resources, he becomes extremely wealthy, surpassing ordinary Spirit Void cultivators and seventh-rank deities.
• He reviews the achievements of his first four lives and begins planning the direction of his fifth.

Character Development

• Lu Qingfeng becomes increasingly strategic and deliberate. His earlier lives were not wasted; each built upon the previous one through improvements in cultivation, alchemy, artifact refining, puppet-making, and divine administration.
• He recognizes that his current identity and aptitude will not allow him to rejoin a prestigious immortal sect such as the Luofu Sword Sect.
• Rather than remain an independent cultivator, he decides that his long-term goal should be to establish his own sect, allowing him to gather disciples, test his techniques, and acquire resources for further research.
• He also understands that he must avoid the Fufeng Mountain and Dongyu Kingdom regions, where his former relationships and identity could expose him.

Significant Themes

• Accumulation across reincarnations: Lu Qingfeng’s previous lives provide knowledge, resources, and preparation that dramatically accelerate his progress in the present life.
• Planning versus chance: He deliberately chooses his reincarnation location and prepares hidden assets, demonstrating his preference for careful preparation over relying on luck.
• Identity and reinvention: Although reincarnation erases his former identity, Lu Qingfeng retains his memories and abilities, allowing him to rebuild himself from a new starting point.
• The value of time: He fears the possible end of the game and therefore refuses to waste time, treating every life as an opportunity to advance his real-world cultivation.
• Building power independently: Unable to rely on his former sect or divine position, he turns toward creating a new organization and establishing his own influence.

Character Interactions and Relationships

• Lu Qingfeng has no major direct conversations with other characters in this chapter, but his past relationships strongly influence his plans.
• His former association with the Luofu Sword Sect and his many acquaintances and disciples around Fufeng Mountain make that region unsuitable for his new development.
• The players and independent cultivators who have gathered in Fufeng City benefit indirectly from the settlement he created in his previous life.
• The chapter also introduces the major political factions of the Northern Wastes: the righteous sects, demonic sects, Northern Carefree Alliance, and Southern Eternal Alliance. These factions form the broader political environment Lu Qingfeng must navigate as he begins his fifth life.