Chapter Summaries

Chu Mu successfully refined four Soul Cleansing Pills and gave them to Zhao Shuang in exchange for information about the Jade Slip. Her account linked the slip to a Mysterious Fog and an ancient Secret Realm at East Lake, prompting Chu Mu to consider investigating once he was strong enough.

• Chu Mu failed his first attempt to refine the Soul Cleansing Pill, reviewed his mistakes, then succeeded on his second attempt and produced four pills, including one with One Pill Pattern.
• Chu Mu gave the pills to Zhao Shuang, who wept with relief, then told him that her younger sister had found the Jade Slip in ancient ruins inside a Secret Realm after being swept away by Mysterious Fog near Long Moon Island on East Lake.
• Chu Mu learned that Zhao Shuang's account raised questions about how her younger sister entered the Secret Realm and whether the Jade Slips acted as tokens.
• Chu Mu concluded that East Lake's Mysterious Fog was connected to the Jade Slips and a possible Secret Realm, but decided not to go there until his cultivation improved.

After hearing that an Enforcement Team squad had been wiped out, Chu Mu judged that Jade Serenity Town remained a safe place to stay for now and focused on strengthening himself. He advanced his cultivation, considered the value of Body Refining and a possible ancient relic at East Lake, and decided to pursue weapon refinement as a new source of income.

• Old Man Chen told the townspeople that an Enforcement Team squad had been killed and that Foundation Establishment cultivators were heading toward the mountains.
• Chu Mu dismissed the commotion and decided that Jade Serenity Town was still his best option because he could flee if danger came.
• Chu Mu reviewed his Light Screen Panel and found that his Qi Refining cultivation had reached the ninth layer while his Body Refining cultivation neared the late stage.
• Chu Mu reflected that Body Refining might complement Qi Refining by strengthening his meridians and energy center, and wondered whether the ancient cultivators had truly united law and body.
• Chu Mu considered Zhao Shuang's account of East Lake and its possible ancient cultivator's Relic Cave Estate as another reason to go there.
• Chu Mu set aside selling Nourishing Meridian Pills and planned to refine and sell Everlasting Rainbow Swords to earn Spirit Stones and improve his cultivation and knowledge.

Chu Mu began learning Artifact Refining, discovering that his failures came from attempting complex finished artifacts before mastering inscriptions and array restrictions. After practicing with simple explosive toys, he successfully refined several Everlasting Rainbow Swords and stored them, leaving his materials dwindling.

• Chu Mu failed ten times to refine a Low-Grade Dharma Artifact because he could not properly engrave its Artifact Inscriptions and Array Restrictions.
• Chu Mu made a simple Flame Stone toy resembling a grenade and realized that he had started with designs that were too complicated.
• Chu Mu spent more than ten days experimenting with simple attack toys, improving his understanding of Artifact Inscriptions and Array Restrictions.
• Chu Mu successfully refined an Everlasting Rainbow Sword but restrained himself from modifying its design because he had few materials left.
• Chu Mu refined more Everlasting Rainbow Swords over the next several days and stored them as his spiritual materials were consumed.

Chu Mu returned to the Black Market after learning that his neighbor Old Man Chen had died on a dangerous trip, then sold several Everlasting Rainbow Swords and earned more than two thousand Spirit Stones. He stopped selling to avoid attracting powerful attention and prepared to spend his earnings in the market.

• Chu Mu finished refining fifteen Everlasting Rainbow Swords and considered how his limited Artifact Refining knowledge constrained his ambitions.
• Chu Mu learned from Miao Yu that Old Man Chen and Niu the Eldest had died after Old Man Chen was forced by his son to seek an Alchemical Pill in the Black Market; Niu the Second had returned badly injured.
• Miao Yu warned Chu Mu that Enforcement Team members and Longevity Sect disciples were being ambushed, but Chu Mu left for the Black Market anyway and concealed his cultivation in the mountains.
• Chu Mu entered the increasingly busy Jade Emperor Valley Black Market, bought Body Tempering Pills, and noticed that more valuable goods were available than before.
• Chu Mu sold seven Everlasting Rainbow Swords for more than two thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones, then closed his stall to avoid attracting dangerous buyers.

Chu Mu sold Everlasting Rainbow Swords and spent most of his Spirit Stones on alchemy and artifact-refining supplies before traveling to the Phoenix Cry Mountain Black Market. He investigated the Blood Kill Pavilion’s bounty missions and contribution system, then continued trading across several markets and returned home with a full haul.

• Chu Mu left the Jade Emperor Black Market with only fifty-three Spirit Stones after buying formulas, a pill furnace, and related materials.
• Chu Mu traveled toward Phoenix Cry Mountain, killed an ambusher with his Flying Needle, and took the man’s belongings.
• The Blood Kill Pavilion demoted Chu Mu’s Blood Kill Token and offered him five missions, all bounties amid fighting between the Longevity Sect and nearby lineages.
• Chu Mu learned that higher-ranked Blood Kill Pavilion members could access a Contribution Treasure Trove and considered using the Pavilion as a channel to obtain scarce goods.
• Chu Mu sold Everlasting Rainbow Swords and bought supplies at several Black Markets, fought several battles, and headed home with a full haul.

After returning to Jade Serenity Town, Chu Mu learned that the Enforcement Team was registering residents and began to suspect that someone had traced one of his identities. He concluded that Wang Mazi had likely been captured, leaving him uncertain who was watching him and what they wanted.

• Chu Mu received Xu Yuan’s transmissions about Jade Emperor City and learned that the Enforcement Team had begun compiling household registers in Jade Serenity Town.
• Chu Mu entered Jade Serenity Town and considered the conflict between the Longevity Sect and the clans while watching the sect disciples on the streets.
• The Soul-Tempered Saber warned Chu Mu of surveillance, so he quietly sent a message and Xu Yuan left town with Wangcai.
• Chu Mu reasoned that the watcher was likely pursuing Li Gang or Xu Tao rather than his current identity, and he traced the flaw back to Wang Mazi.
• Chu Mu decided that Wang Mazi had probably been captured and tried to determine who was watching him and why.

Chu Mu refused Zhao Tang’s attempt to bind him to Hundred Herbs Hall and killed two Longevity Sect disciples while escaping. As the sect’s Enforcement Team pursued him, Chu Mu decided he would kill Zhao Tang despite the danger of provoking his powerful father.

• Chu Mu recognized Zhao Tang in an alley, and Zhao Tang offered him a hundred-year Soul Contract to join Hundred Herbs Hall.
• Chu Mu mocked Zhao Tang’s contract, then attacked him with a Fireball and killed two Longevity Sect disciples with the Formless Needle.
• Chu Mu fled across rooftops and into the forest as Zhao Tang called the Longevity Sect’s Enforcement Team to pursue him.
• Chu Mu used talismans, his Divine Wind Boots, and a Returning Spring Pill to evade pursuers while Zhao Tang and several disciples kept after him.
• Chu Mu’s frustration turned into intense killing intent, and he resolved to kill Zhao Tang rather than flee quietly.

Chu Mu turned to fight Zhao Tang and two other Longevity Sect disciples after drawing them far from Jade Emperor Valley. He killed one pursuer and broke through another’s defenses, leaving Zhao Tang as the remaining threat.

• Chu Mu tracked the pursuers’ dwindling numbers and conserved his strength while fleeing more than three hundred li from Jade Emperor Valley.
• Chu Mu abruptly attacked the three remaining pursuers with Second-Order talismans and the Minghong Saber, killing one Longevity Sect disciple and sending Zhao Tang flying.
• Chu Mu fought the remaining man’s shield defenses while Zhao Tang recovered, and he realized his unusual Divine Sense let him use multiple methods at once.
• Chu Mu redirected his Second-Order Ice Spear Art to keep Zhao Tang at bay while he bombarded the shielded man with First-Order talismans.
• Chu Mu feinted with the ice spear and then drove it into the collapsing defenses, killing the man and causing his Flying Sword to fall from the sky.

Chu Mu killed Zhao Tang and escaped to Luofu Prefecture, but the Divine Soul Blade left his own divine soul badly injured. He hid in the city to recover and worried about Xu Yuan, while realizing that using the blade was a dangerous last resort.

• Chu Mu ignored Zhao Tang’s offer to make peace, struck him with the Divine Soul Blade, and then killed him despite Zhao Tang’s defensive shield and pleas for mercy.
• Chu Mu burned Zhao Tang’s escaping soul, gathered the spoils, and fled before Longevity Sect disciples arrived at the bloodied site.
• By morning, Chu Mu reached Luofu Prefecture and considered the threat posed by Zhao Tang’s father and his worry for Xu Yuan, who he could no longer contact at that distance.
• Chu Mu disguised himself, entered Luofu Prefecture City, and rented a room at an inn, where he examined his severe divine-soul injuries.
• Chu Mu found no obvious divine-soul defense among Zhao Tang’s spoils and concluded that the Divine Soul Blade had to remain his final trump card.

After killing Zhao Tang and the other Longevity Sect disciples, Chu Mu examined their spoils and discovered a Talisman Treasure capable of unleashing part of a Golden Core cultivator’s Magic Treasure. He gained several valuable cultivation texts but found they did not suit him, and he wondered whether taking treasures from those he killed had made him a Heretical Cultivator.

• Chu Mu inspected the spoils and found Zhao Tang’s Top-Grade Magical Artifact shield, three Flying Swords, and several Storage Talismans.
• Chu Mu discovered a rune-less beast-hide Talisman whose pressure exceeded that of his Second-Order Low-Grade Talismans.
• Chu Mu consulted a book and learned that the Talisman was a Talisman Treasure containing part of a Golden Core True Person’s Magic Treasure, which could be dangerous to activate in battle.
• Chu Mu examined the Jade Slips and found five Foundation Establishment cultivation arts, including the Heavy Earth True Body Art, and a recipe for the Vajra Pill.
• Chu Mu realized Zhao Tang had not cultivated the Body Refining art and wondered whether killing people for their treasures had made him a Heretical Cultivator.

After nearly a year recovering from his divine-soul injury, Chu Mu studied alchemy and artifact-refining knowledge, then began practicing the recipes he had collected. Once his injuries had mostly healed, he left his closed room and took his first proper flight on a sword, heading into the mountains.

• Chu Mu reviewed his cultivation progress and found that he had reached the Qi Refining Tenth Layer and the third layer of Body Refining while recuperating.
• Chu Mu assessed his recovering divine soul and noticed that the Illusory Long Blade had gained a faint sense of substance and was strengthening his recovery.
• Chu Mu refined several furnaces of Body Tempering Pills, then began practicing artifact refinement using the materials and knowledge he had gathered.
• Chu Mu spent nearly two months refining artifacts before leaving his room as winter gave way to spring.
• Chu Mu left the city, mounted a High-Grade Magical Artifact Flying Sword, and tested flying through the sky before disappearing into the clouds.

Chu Mu discovered that the attackers who ambushed him were pursuing a massive bounty on his Divine Soul, so he fled toward Water Sky Market, a refuge beside East Lake. Arriving near the Xie Family’s city, he found its surrounding rice fields and began to suspect the mortals working them were the family’s own clansmen.

• Chu Mu defeated four cultivators who ambushed him, then found Blood Kill Tokens and a Jade Slip listing him and Xu Yuan as wanted fugitives.
• Chu Mu learned that the Longevity Sect had placed a five-thousand-Spirit-Stone bounty on him and the Blood Kill Pavilion offered fifteen thousand Spirit Stones and a Foundation Establishment Pill for his Divine Soul.
• Chu Mu hid his traces, traveled on foot toward Water Sky Market, and received familiar messages through his Sound Transmission Talisman that eased his worries.
• Chu Mu reached the outskirts of Water Sky Market and saw enormous rice plants being treated with medicinal rain by cultivators.
• Chu Mu concluded that the mundane rice fields were likely worked by mortals connected to the Xie Family.

Chu Mu reunited with Xu Yuan and discovered that Wangcai was transforming after swallowing a Heretical Cultivator’s corpse. After learning that Monster Beasts cultivated through bloodlines, Chu Mu fed Wangcai two pills, and its breakthrough began.

• Xu Yuan found Chu Mu in the fields and explained that he had been hiding in the secular city after escaping pursuit.
• Xu Yuan told Chu Mu that Wangcai had swallowed a slain Heretical Cultivator’s corpse and grown to calf-size while apparently preparing to break through.
• Chu Mu built a Spirit Gathering Array around Wangcai and gave Xu Yuan a Superior-Grade Flying Sword and a Low-Grade Magical Artifact shield to guard the area.
• Chu Mu read a book explaining that Monster Beasts cultivated through bloodlines, then considered the isolation of the Hanhai Chen Family and its connection to Monster Beasts.
• Chu Mu fed Wangcai a Body Tempering Pill and a Qi and Blood Great Pill, triggering a transformation as its body grew and spiritual pressure flickered.

Chu Mu observed Wangcai’s transformation into a monster beast and discovered that its Bloodline Power was changing its body and species. Seeing its potential as a loyal combat companion, he decided to take Wangcai with him as he continued cultivating.

• Chu Mu watched Wangcai complete its transformation, then fed it a Vajra Pill and examined its body with his Divine Soul.
• Chu Mu found that Wangcai’s Bloodline Power combined qualities of Mana and Divine Soul energy and was reshaping its body over the coming months.
• Chu Mu speculated about inherited bloodlines in humans and concluded that Wangcai could already kill an ordinary Early Qi Refining Stage cultivator.
• Chu Mu considered equipping Wangcai with armor and using it as a helper in battle, comparing its reliability with his other combat methods and Xu Yuan.
• Chu Mu set aside his concern about Wangcai’s potential and told it to follow him from then on.

Chu Mu explored Water Sky Market, learning about its prosperity, rules, and opportunities for Rogue Cultivators before studying its Flying Boat routes and Great Chu’s geography. He considered the Hanhai and the Chen clan’s Southern Sea Territory as a possible refuge if chaos engulfed the land.

• Chu Mu arrived at Water Sky Market and observed its prosperous community, where Xie Family descendants and Rogue Cultivators lived alongside mortals under strict protections.
• Chu Mu entered the marketplace, reviewed the Xie Family Laws, and found that the Longevity Sect had not posted a wanted notice for him there.
• Chu Mu learned that the Xie Family welcomed talented Rogue Cultivators as Guest Elders, but he dismissed the prospect because he wanted to remain free of obligations.
• Chu Mu visited the Flying Boat terminal and obtained a map of routes linking Water Sky Market to settlements across the Xie Family’s sphere of influence.
• Chu Mu considered Great Chu’s surrounding regions and concluded that the Hanhai and the Chen clan’s Southern Sea Territory might offer relative safety if widespread conflict broke out.

Chu Mu settled in Water Cloud Market and spent a year cultivating until his Qi Refining and Body Refining reached completion. He returned from searching for the East Lake Mysterious Fog still unsure how to approach Foundation Establishment, and left with most of his resources spent.

• Chu Mu moved into Courtyard No. 36 with Wangcai and gave the dog Body Tempering Pills to support its cultivation.
• Chu Mu focused on cultivation, gathering pills and spiritual materials while searching in vain for the Mysterious Fog.
• Wangcai grew quickly by taking Nourishing Meridian Pills and Body Tempering Pills, and another year passed.
• Chu Mu reviewed reports of the Mysterious Fog's appearances and found no pattern after another fruitless search at East Lake.
• Chu Mu reached complete completion in Qi Refining and Body Refining, but hesitated to pursue Foundation Establishment because he lacked knowledge and preparation.
• Chu Mu realized his year of cultivation had nearly exhausted his fortune and flew away on his sword.

After a year of cultivation, Chu Mu brought Wangcai to the lakebed Black Market to sell Dharma Artifacts and seek resources for his future Foundation Establishment. He left with nearly three thousand Spirit Stones, rare wild Monster Beast meat, and new Weapon Refinement materials, while the meat seller’s unexplained source hinted at something unusual.

• Wangcai rampaged through the forest, and Chu Mu assessed its strength as comparable to a Qi Refining Middle Stage cultivator with a formidable body.
• Chu Mu and Wangcai reached the Black Market beneath East Lake, where he considered the limits of his Divine Wind Boots and his need for stronger artifacts.
• Chu Mu rented a cottage, sold more than half his Dharma Artifacts for nearly three thousand Spirit Stones, and felt safer as hidden watchers withdrew.
• Chu Mu bought First Order High-Grade Blood Pig meat from a stallholder, who refused to reveal where the wild Monster Beast flesh came from.
• Chu Mu continued through the Black Market and acquired several Weapon Refinement recipes and books of basic knowledge.

Chu Mu recognized Zhao Shuang near the Black Market, then later rescued her from four pursuing Cultivators after she offered information about a Secret Realm. With Wangcai, he swiftly killed the pursuers and left Zhao Shuang alive, poised to hear her offer.

• Chu Mu spotted a woman whose eyes seemed familiar and suspected she was the woman who had once traded him information about Zhao Shuang.
• Chu Mu considered the great powers’ control of Secret Realms and wondered whether the Longevity Sect had seized Jade Emperor Valley for that reason.
• Chu Mu left the Black Market with Wangcai and encountered several Qi Refining Cultivators pursuing someone across the lake.
• Zhao Shuang ran toward Chu Mu and asked him to save her in exchange for information about a Secret Realm.
• Chu Mu and Wangcai killed the four pursuers, and Chu Mu stopped Wangcai from eating another corpse before turning to Zhao Shuang.

Chu Mu learned from Zhao Shuang about the East Lake Secret Realm and its dangers, including the powerful cultivators competing inside. Realizing his current arsenal might not be enough, he began preparing to refine more artifacts before the Mysterious Fog returned.

• Chu Mu brought the injured Zhao Shuang to a cave, where she recovered and gave him information about the East Lake Secret Realm.
• Zhao Shuang offered to reveal the location and details of an Ancient Cultivator's Cave Abode in exchange for a copy of its inheritance, and Chu Mu swore an Oath of the Dao Heart before accepting.
• Zhao Shuang gave Chu Mu a Sound Transmission Talisman and left, while he returned to Water Sky Market with Wangcai.
• Chu Mu learned that the great forces had opened a temporary passage into the Secret Realm, which restricted entrants to Qi Refining Realm cultivators and expelled them after one month.
• After reviewing his weapons and recalling his fight with Zhao Tang, Chu Mu concluded that powerful sect and Lineage disciples could overwhelm him if they joined forces.
• Chu Mu gathered his Artifact Refining formulas, spiritual materials, and the Spirit Radiance Blessing to prepare to refine more artifacts.

After absorbing the Puppet Art inheritance and building a solid foundation in Artifact Refining, Chu Mu began applying his new understanding to the Spirit Materials he had collected. He reverse-engineered his Divine Wind Boots and started designing a new pair of boots suited to himself.

• Chu Mu spent half a month studying the Puppet Art inheritance and integrated it into his Artifact Refining knowledge.
• With his expanded foundation, Chu Mu realized he could now develop ideas for artifacts instead of merely copying examples.
• Chu Mu dismantled one Divine Wind Boot to study its Artifact Inscriptions and Array Restrictions, documenting its structure over three days.
• Chu Mu accidentally broke the boots’ Wind Spirit Goose feathers and discovered they had been broken and skillfully reattached before.
• Chu Mu began drafting an original Divine Wind Boots formula using the Falcon Bones, broken feathers, Returning Spring Wood, and other Spirit Materials.