Chapter Summaries

Han Yi explored the Crimson Radiance Tribe and learned from Zuo Lie how shamanic runes and Grand Void Tokens worked in Chaozhen Tai Xu Tian. He discovered that Chaozhen Marks, which he needed, were extremely rare and costly, leaving him with little chance of buying one from the shaman.

• Han Yi arrived in the Crimson Radiance Tribe and wandered through the valley, observing its people and their training.
• Zuo Lie explained that the tribesmen's runes granted shamanic power but could not be used outside Chaozhen Tai Xu Tian without harmful consequences.
• Han Yi asked Zuo Lie about the Grand Void Token, and Zuo Lie explained how swallowing its fragments improved a cultivator's comprehension.
• Zuo Lie clarified that spiritual items exchanged for Grand Void Tokens could improve innate aptitude only if consumed by the original body outside the grotto-heaven world.
• Han Yi asked to buy a Chaozhen Mark, but Zuo Lie said they were precious and that the shaman was unlikely to sell one cheaply.

Han Yi learned that he could exchange the Grand Void Token fragment bound to his divine soul for origin qi, but he could not inspect it while inside the grotto-heaven. He chose to kill himself and return to the Tai Xu Illusory Realm to check for the resulting Chaozhen Mark.

• Han Yi asked Zuo Lie whether a Grand Void Token fragment bound to the divine soul could be removed, then decided to seek the tribal shaman.
• Zuo Lie warned Han Yi that Descenders who fought primitive tribes would lose their Chaozhen Mark and be sent back to the Tai Xu Illusory Realm.
• The shaman confirmed that he could extract the fragment and gave Han Yi a grayish-white stone to press against his forehead in exchange for origin qi.
• Han Yi realized he needed to die before he could sense the change to his divine soul and see the extra Chaozhen Mark.
• Han Yi handed his sword to Zuo Lie, struck his own glabella, and vanished, leaving Zuo Lie stunned.

After dying and respawning, Han Yi used a second Chaozhen Mark to bring his weapons into the grotto-heaven world, where he learned that a rare Jade Capital Grand Void Token had appeared. As cultivators gathered to compete for it, Han Yi decided he would trade any token he obtained for treasures that improved his innate talent rather than risk exchanging it for a first-grade immortal foundation.

• Han Yi discovered that his Chaozhen Mark had produced a second orb, stored it with his weapons, and transferred his divine soul into the Tai Xu Body.
• Han Yi descended near the Crimson Radiance Tribe and recovered the Shadow-Bearing Sword and six Wind Demon Daggers from his storage pouch.
• A voice announced that the Jade Capital Grand Void Token had descended upon Imperial Demon City, and a powerful cultivator declared his intent to seize a fragment.
• Han Yi joined Zuo Lie outside the shaman's stone house, where Zuo Lie explained that a Jade Capital Grand Void Token could be exchanged with Jade Capital Mountain for a chance to establish a first-grade immortal foundation.
• Han Yi judged that pursuing that exchange would expose him to danger and resolved to trade any token he obtained for treasures that improved his innate talent.

Han Yi and Zuo Lie joined Chu Qingguan’s group traveling to Imperial Demon City for the Jade Capital Grand Void Token. Aboard the Immortal Boat, Zuo Lie explained that the trial world restricted cultivators to Qi Refining and that the token’s appearance drew them into a battle against the strongest other races.

• Han Yi learned that Chu Qingguan of the Myriad Immortals Pavilion offered passage to Imperial Demon City aboard an Immortal Boat, and he and Zuo Lie joined the group.
• Han Yi discovered that the Jade Capital Grand Void Token’s appearance prevented ordinary Grand Void pillars from descending elsewhere until the token was seized, so he decided to travel to Imperial Demon City.
• The next day, Chu Qingguan gathered more than a hundred cultivators, expanded his miniature Immortal Boat, and set off with Han Yi, Zuo Lie, and the others.
• Han Yi asked Zuo Lie why the pocket-heaven world contained no Foundation Establishment or Golden Core cultivators and whether Qi Refining cultivators could survive in Imperial Demon City.
• Zuo Lie explained that the trial world barred Foundation Establishment cultivators and restricted demons’ bodies to ten meters, and that the Jade Capital Grand Void Token drew cultivators to hunt the strongest other races.
• Zuo Lie said legendary cultivators from the pocket-heaven world and Great Qian were converging for an unprecedented gathering around the token.

Han Yi and Zuo Lie traveled toward Imperial Demon City after the Myriad Immortals Pavilion’s Immortal Boat dropped them near the city. As Han Yi watched the gathering cultivators, he recognized a blood-robed young man as a legendary Qi Refining cultivator.

• Han Yi cultivated aboard the Immortal Boat, which repelled an attack by Winged Clan archers during the half-month journey.
• Chu Qingguan showed the cultivators their position near Imperial Demon City, put away the boat, and departed; Han Yi agreed to travel with Zuo Lie.
• Han Yi and Zuo Lie killed an Earth Demon together, and Han Yi pierced its head with his Shadow-Bearing Sword.
• Han Yi and Zuo Lie reached a mountain peak and saw Imperial Demon City, where Zuo Lie explained that powerful demons and many legendary Qi Refining cultivators would gather.
• Han Yi compared the minor world to a game, then saw other cultivators arrive and identified a blood-robed young man as a legendary Qi Refining cultivator.

Han Yi and countless cultivators charged Imperial Demon City to fight its demons for the Jade Capital Grand Void Token. The battle began, while a giant demon deep inside the city awakened with a thousand-year-old longing.

• Han Yi learned that cultivators from across the region had gathered around Imperial Demon City, including the legendary Rong E of the Ruthless Sect.
• A month later, the Void Light Pillar appeared, and eight Jade Capital Mountain legends, including its holy maiden, emerged as the cultivators prepared to fight for the token.
• Zuo Lie explained that the token could enable a first-grade immortal foundation and urged Han Yi to show no mercy in the battle for the immortal path.
• Thousands of Qi Refining cultivators charged as Imperial Demon City's gates opened and a towering demon led an army into battle.
• The two forces collided in a chaotic battle, while a giant demon deep within the city opened its eyes, longing to return after more than a thousand years.

Han Yi fought his way into Imperial Demon City as cultivators and demons clashed across the battlefield, and he encountered a rock demon as strong as a legendary Qi Refining cultivator. He realized his sword could barely harm it, leaving him blocked from advancing toward the Jade Capital Grand Void Token.

• A bronze-armored giant demon killed several cultivators before more than thirty legendary Qi Refining cultivators joined forces to destroy it.
• Han Yi spotted Geng Changxu leading Mystic Pill Sect disciples in a spirit formation, with He Fengdi among them, while other groups advanced toward Imperial Demon City.
• Han Yi killed a rock demon and rushed through the city gate toward the pillar of light, where the Jade Capital Grand Void Token awaited.
• A five-meter-tall rock demon intercepted Han Yi and damaged one of his daggers with its black axe.
• Han Yi struck the rock demon's neck with the Shadow-Bearing Sword, but the blow only knocked off a few stone fragments.

Han Yi escaped a Rock Demon after learning how overwhelming legendary Qi Refining cultivators could be, then reached the plaza where the remaining contestants awaited the Jade Capital Grand Void Token. A blood-red curtain sealed the plaza as nine tokens descended, and a demon heartbeat sounded beneath the ruins.

• Han Yi detonated the Crimson Radiance Sword and used a God-Slaying Talisman to delay the Rock Demon, then escaped with an Evasion Talisman.
• Han Yi became more cautious, using artifacts and talismans to evade demons as he made his way through Imperial Demon City.
• More than thirty legendary Qi Refining cultivators gathered around the Demon Emperor's corpse and wondered why the Void Light Pillar had not vanished.
• Han Yi arrived at the plaza, where more than five hundred cultivators waited along its edge.
• Blood-red light erupted from the Demon Emperor's corpse and formed a curtain that sealed the plaza, causing the Void Light Pillar to turn into nine descending tokens.
• A heartbeat began beneath the ruins of the Demon Emperor's corpse.

A ten-meter demon emerged from the ruins and revealed that the blood-red curtain trapped the cultivators in a realm where death was permanent. As the surviving cultivators panicked, a Jade Capital Mountain disciple called on them to unite against the demon.

• A ten-meter demon emerged from beneath the ruins and appeared to be in the Threshold State, the highest power allowed by the world's rules.
• The demon killed a Jade Capital Mountain cultivator with one punch, wiping out many Qi Refining Peak cultivators in the blast's path.
• The demon revealed that the Corpse Shroud isolated its space from the outside world, so the dead could not return to the Tai Xu Illusory Realm, and said he planned to break through the Threshold State and become a demon god.
• The survivors tried to escape or destroy the blood-red curtain, but their attacks had no effect.
• One of the surviving Jade Capital Mountain cultivators urged the others to join forces and kill the demon.

Han Yi and the other cultivators failed to harm the demon god and fought to seize the Jade Capital Grand Void Tokens as a possible means of survival. Just as Han Yi tried to swallow the token he claimed, an azure-robed figure appeared and stopped time throughout the blood-colored space.

• The demon god effortlessly shattered the cultivators’ combined attacks, and Han Yi realized they needed to escape rather than fight.
• Han Yi used his daggers to seize a Jade Capital Grand Void Token, fending off Fu You and other cultivators who tried to take it.
• With enemies closing in, Han Yi prepared to swallow the token, while the demon god watched the cultivators turn against one another.
• A solemn voice warned a junior brother to stop playing with fire, and another voice replied that everything was within the plan.
• The demon god attacked as an azure-robed figure appeared and brought the entire blood-colored space, including time, to a standstill.

Li Changsheng appeared in Imperial Demon City, destroyed the demon and removed the blood-colored barrier, before Han Yi died amid the resumed fighting and returned to the Tai Xu Illusory Realm with a Jade Capital Grand Void Token. He exchanged the token for a strange stone worm said to improve his innate aptitude, then swallowed it.

• Li Changsheng introduced himself as a cultivator of Jade Capital Mountain, erased the demon, removed the blood-colored barrier, and vanished.
• Time resumed, and Han Yi killed his Tai Xu Body to escape Xie Jingshan’s attack; Xie Jingshan then joined the scramble for the remaining tokens.
• Han Yi returned to the Tai Xu Illusory Realm with the Jade Capital Grand Void Token and reflected on the losses and mysteries of the Cave Heaven Trial.
• Han Yi descended into the Crimson Radiance Tribe, exchanged the token with Shaman Red Radiance for a strange stone worm, and returned to the Tai Xu Illusory Realm.
• Han Yi swallowed the stone worm, following the shaman’s instructions for using the spiritual item.

Han Yi and the other Mystic Pill Sect disciples were abruptly expelled from Chaozhen Tai Xu Tian, ending the Cave Heaven Trial early. As they returned to the sect, Han Yi suspected that Li Changsheng’s acquisition of the Corpse Shroud had triggered a version upgrade of the Cave Heaven.

• Han Yi found that the stone bug had caused no visible change, then discovered that his Tai Xu Body could not pass through the light gate.
• The light gate vanished, the Chaozhen Mark shattered, and Han Yi and the other disciples were expelled from the Tai Xu Illusory Realm beside Jade Capital Lake.
• Fu Xuanxu announced that Jade Capital Mountain had ended the trial and took the disciples back aboard the Crossing Tribulation Immortal Boat.
• Fu Xuanxu questioned the disciples about their experiences and concluded that something had happened inside Chaozhen Tai Xu Tian.
• Han Yi reviewed his gains, including the stone bug and a fragment of Chaozhen Tai Xu Tian’s origin aura, and suspected that Li Changsheng’s acquisition of the Corpse Shroud had caused the Cave Heaven to shut down for a version upgrade.
• Feng Jingyu asked Han Yi whether he had gained anything as the disciples continued to carry the murderous temperament of battle.

Han Yi realized that repeated deaths in the Cave Heaven World could erode cultivators’ reverence for death and damage their Dao hearts, but Feng Jingyu accepted the risk as the price of a rare opportunity. After Feng Jingyu began reflecting on his gains, He Fengdi approached Han Yi to discuss his performance in the trial.

• Feng Jingyu told Han Yi that he had died more than thirty times in the Cave Heaven World and described repeatedly fighting a powerful Fire Demon.
• Han Yi warned Feng Jingyu that repeated deaths could numb cultivators to death and leave flaws in their Dao hearts.
• Feng Jingyu acknowledged that many senior brothers from the previous trial had died but considered the side effect worth the opportunity.
• Feng Jingyu stopped talking and began digesting his gains from the journey.
• He Fengdi asked Han Yi about his gains, praised his strength, and invited him to exchange pointers after they returned to the sect.

After returning from the Cave Heaven Trial, Han Yi reviewed his gains and losses, then returned to the Mystic Pill Sect and assessed his resources. He went to find He Fangwei at the Nine Dragon Shop on Battle Arts Peak, where He Fangwei greeted him and asked whether he wanted to sell Magic Artifacts or buy talismans.

• He Fengdi invited Han Yi to exchange pointers and drink at Immortal Chess House, and Han Yi accepted while asking him to keep a low profile.
• Han Yi reviewed the Cave Heaven Trial, noted his losses and gains, and planned to buy a sword and high-grade daggers.
• In Lingfu Commandery, Fu Canghai and Su Changkong left the Immortal Boat and returned with sect master Yuan Shun, after which the boat accelerated and reached the Mystic Pill Sect seven days early.
• Han Yi returned to Azure Dragon Peak, inventoried his Magic Artifacts, talismans, and more than 2,800 Medium-grade Spirit Stones, and decided he could afford a top-grade sword.
• Han Yi visited the Nine Dragon Shop in Red Sun Market, learned that He Fangwei had moved to Battle Arts Peak, and chose not to sell anything there.
• Han Yi went to the Nine Dragon Shop on Battle Arts Peak, where He Fangwei greeted him and asked whether he wanted to sell Magic Artifacts or buy talismans.

Han Yi sold Magic Artifacts to He Fangwei, bought the Jiuli Daggers, and reserved the Green Duckweed Sword. After learning that You Wu had died in a duel with Mo Wen, Han Yi returned to his courtyard and resolved to stay cautious on the immortal path.

• Han Yi sold several Magic Artifacts, including the Silver Makeup Mirror, to He Fangwei for a total that brought his funds to three thousand five hundred Medium-grade Spirit Stones.
• He Fangwei showed Han Yi three top-grade sword artifacts and a set of Jiuli Daggers, and Han Yi decided to buy the daggers and reserve the Green Duckweed Sword.
• Han Yi paid the deposit for the Green Duckweed Sword and left Nine Dragon Shop with the Jiuli Daggers in his storage pouch.
• Han Yi heard that You Wu had died three days earlier after Mo Wen defeated him with three saber strikes at Dragon-Slaying Abbey.
• Han Yi returned to his courtyard, calmed himself, and took You Wu's death as a warning against carelessness and arrogance.

Han Yi tested the Green Duckweed Sword and discovered that the strange stone worm had improved his spiritual roots, accelerating his cultivation prospects. As he entered seclusion, the Mystic Pill Sect introduced new programs to strengthen the sect, and the chapter ended with the conflict with the Blood God Sect still ongoing fourteen years later.

• Han Yi and He Fengdi discussed You Wu’s death and the sect’s public announcement, then Han Yi said he planned to cultivate toward Qi Refining Layer 9.
• Han Yi collected the Green Duckweed Sword from He Fangwei, and Fu Canghai ordered that Han Yi’s purchase be kept secret and that future trades receive no special treatment.
• Han Yi tested the Green Duckweed Sword and Jiuli Daggers, then discovered through repeated spirit-stone cultivation that the strange stone worm had raised his spiritual energy absorption rate by ten percent.
• Han Yi calculated that his improved spiritual roots could cut his estimated time to Qi Refining Layer 9 from four years to two, then resumed cultivation rather than relying on pills.
• The Mystic Pill Sect introduced the Escort Program, the Advisory Elder Program, and the New Peak Master Plan, and subsequent rounds brought new Foundation Establishment disciples and consultant elders into the sect.
• Fourteen years after the Mystic Pill Sect and Blood God Sect began their all-out conflict, Han Yi was forty-three and had been in the world for twenty-two years.

After reaching Qi Refining Layer 9, Han Yi assessed his resources and decided to prepare for Foundation Establishment by improving his alchemy until he could refine Foundation Establishment Pills himself. He bought a large supply of Gold-Silver Pill ingredients, then considered an alchemy mission that would take him back to Mengshan City, where he had first been assigned after transmigrating.

• Han Yi met Yan Ru, learned Chu Jinmo had not returned, and declined to compete for an Outer Peak Master position.
• Han Yi sold surplus Magic Artifacts to He Fangwei, who told him about an upcoming Tong City auction featuring a set of peak high-grade daggers.
• Han Yi counted his Magic Artifacts and Spirit Stones, inspected a high-grade Spirit Stone, and resolved to prepare for Foundation Establishment by raising his Alchemy Technique to Pinnacle Mastery.
• Han Yi bought one thousand sets of Gold-Silver Pill ingredients and one thousand jin of spirit sand from Azure Dragon Palace.
• A duty deacon reminded Han Yi to complete an inner sect mission, and Han Yi asked about alchemy missions after hearing one would take him to Mengshan City.

Han Yi accepted an alchemy mission from the Gu Clan in South Huai City and discovered that its Yin-Yang composite pill used human bodies or souls as ingredients. When Gu Tongxuan confronted him with a bronze mirror and a formation surrounding the courtyard, Han Yi realized the Gu Clan had anticipated his discovery and trapped him.

• Han Yi chose the South Huai City mission and traveled to the Gu Clan estate, where Gu Tongxuan asked him to swear secrecy before showing him a copied pill formula with unnamed ingredients.
• Han Yi agreed to try refining the composite Yin and Yang Pills, set a limit of five failed batches, and began work in a private courtyard.
• Han Yi heard an infant-like shriek while refining the Yang Pill and used his Aura Observation Technique to discover that the black medicinal liquid contained the shrunken forms of infants.
• Han Yi inspected the remaining ingredients and found that at least nine components of the Yin Pill came from living people’s bodies or souls, so he stored the evidence and planned to report the Gu Clan.
• Gu Tongxuan arrived with two Qi Refining Peak elders, and Han Yi spotted a formation around the courtyard before Gu Tongxuan revealed a bronze mirror that had recorded his actions.

Han Yi exposed the Gu Clan’s scheme to refine Yin-Yang Soul-Replenishing Pills, killed three clan elders, and was attacked by Gu Zhijing while fleeing South Huai City. Fu Canghai killed Gu Zhijing and revealed that Sect Master Yuan had sent him to follow Han Yi.

• Gu Tongxuan demanded that Han Yi continue refining the Yin-Yang Soul-Replenishing Pill, but Han Yi refused and destroyed the magic artifacts of Gu Tongxuan and two other Gu Clan elders with the Green Duckweed Sword.
• Han Yi killed the three elders, burned their bodies, escaped South Huai City, and headed toward Tong City to return to the Mystic Pill Sect.
• Gu Zhijing ambushed Han Yi on the road, but Han Yi defended himself with the Green Duckweed Sword and realized the old Foundation Establishment cultivator was near the end of his lifespan.
• Fu Canghai appeared and incinerated Gu Zhijing, his black pagoda, and his storage pouch with a fire dragon.
• Fu Canghai told Han Yi that Sect Master Yuan had sent him to follow him and praised his abilities.

Fu Canghai explained how the Blood God Sect manipulated the Gu Clan and gifted Han Yi a powerful dagger set before returning him to the Mystic Pill Sect. Back at the sect, Han Yi learned about the approaching Mountain-Sea Immortal Gathering and its connection to Foundation Establishment Pills, giving him a reason to consider joining despite the danger.

• Fu Canghai told Han Yi that the Blood God Sect had used rogue cultivators to lure the Gu Clan into arranging Han Yi’s death and explained Gu Zhijing’s plan to impersonate him in Tong City.
• Fu Canghai gave Han Yi the Heavenly Capital Daggers, and they returned to Azure Dragon Peak before Fu Canghai departed for Mystic Pill Peak.
• Han Yi destroyed the Yin-Yang Soul-Replenishing Pill ingredients recovered from the Gu Clan, then sold the damaged Magic Artifacts at Nine Dragon Shop.
• He Fangwei told Han Yi that the Mountain-Sea Immortal Gathering would take place soon and that the Mystic Pill Sect would send a team to the Myriad Star Sea.
• Han Yi learned that the Gathering was tied to the Eastern Sea demon race and Foundation Establishment Pills, and that returning disciples would receive support toward Foundation Establishment.