Chapter Summaries

At Cheng Zhou’s birthday banquet, he spoke with Chen Chuan about his past and admitted that his old-fashioned rules had wronged Cheng Zitong, whose student had surpassed the Cheng Family’s. The family reconciled, and after the banquet Chen Chuan left with Xu Chan to discuss something privately.

• Cheng Zhou welcomed Chen Chuan, offered him Lingyun Tea, and asked to speak with him as a fellow townsman.
• Cheng Zitong teased Qiao Linhu about leaving abruptly and asked about his absent disciple, prompting Qiao Linhu to leave the hall.
• Cheng Zhou told Chen Chuan how his family had fought in the old dynasty’s final years and praised Chen Chuan’s work in Central City.
• Cheng Zhou admitted he had been wrong to doubt Cheng Zitong’s teaching and praised his student, and Cheng Zitong was moved by his father’s words.
• Cheng Zhou invited Cheng Zitong to sit beside him and stay longer, then the family and guests celebrated the birthday with gifts, performances, and firecrackers.
• After the banquet, Chen Chuan said farewell to Cheng Zhou, then asked Xu Chan to ride with him so they could talk somewhere privately.

Chen Chuan discussed the lingering threat from the other side with Xu Chan and gave him resources to aid his breakthrough before preparing to cultivate in the Convergence Zone after the New Year. The next day, he confirmed to Mister Zhuan and Masked Mister that he had mastered two Styles and revealed he had used a power he sensed through them to defeat Zhao Zhenye.

• Chen Chuan told Xu Chan that Zhao Zhenye was dead but might have colluded with entities from the other side, and said he would cultivate in the Convergence Zone after the New Year.
• Chen Chuan gave Xu Chan Mutated Tissue and a Nine Aperture Lotus Seed to support his attempt to break through the Fourth Limit, and instructed him on handling branch matters while Chen Chuan was away.
• Chen Chuan returned home, set dates on his calendar for his departure, and went to the Defense Department and then the South City Industrial Zone the next day.
• Mister Zhuan and Masked Mister asked Chen Chuan whether he had reached the Longevity Observation Realm and mastered the Great Bright Light Style and Great Azure Void Style; he denied the former and confirmed the latter.
• Chen Chuan told Mister Zhuan and Masked Mister that he had sensed and used a power after mastering the two Styles to defeat Zhao Zhenye, leaving them shocked.

Chen Chuan learned that his power was Profound Sky Fire and warned Mister Zhuan and Masked Mister about the Other Side entity connected to Zhao Zhenye. After reporting on Skyline’s progress and focusing on cultivation, he celebrated New Year’s Eve with his family in Central City.

• Mister Zhuan identified Chen Chuan’s power as Profound Sky Fire and warned him to keep it secret and avoid using it unless necessary.
• Chen Chuan told Mister Zhuan and Masked Mister that an entity from the Other Side had intervened during his fight with Zhao Zhenye and might have supplied Zhao Zhenye with resources.
• Chen Chuan reported that he planned to assimilate his recent gains, while Mister Zhuan said headquarters might commend the Jibei Province Branch for establishing Skyline.
• After Chen Chuan left, Masked Mister decided to bring out his true body to keep the secret of Profound Sky Fire from being detected.
• Chen Chuan visited the Branch Office, helped Gao Ming pursue qualification as a Lawyer for Fighters, and continued cultivating at home through the New Year.
• On New Year’s Eve, Chen Chuan told Yu Wan and Nian Fuli that Skyline could soon connect Yangzhi City to Central City and provide airship transport between them.

Chen Chuan sorted through New Year gifts and letters, celebrated with family, and visited friends before returning to the Convergence Zone to resume training. He left the expanded sentry fortress and entered the forest.

• Chen Chuan examined gifts and letters from government departments, Fighters, companies, and foreign organizations, including an unsigned letter from He Ruihai and He Zhilan and an illustrated booklet from Chang Ba.
• Chen Chuan looked through photographs from the Lower District and Wu Yi Academy, then joined Aunt and the children for New Year dinner.
• Chen Chuan visited friends and colleagues in Central City and went outside the city to pay a New Year visit to Mister Zhuan and the others.
• Chen Chuan traveled with Zhao Ming to his Hunting Ground and found the sentry fortress expanded and staffed by a rotating garrison.
• Chen Chuan imbued the captain's sword with a trace of mental power, then left the fortress the next morning and entered the forest.

Chen Chuan crossed the forest and found a mountain cave residence in a scenic valley, where he began cultivating through a Rift. The cave showed signs of ancient Xuan Sect construction, and the chapter left him cultivating inside while Zhao Ming guarded the entrance.

• Chen Chuan traveled from the forest to the mountains where the Pouched Apes had migrated and chose the area as a place to cultivate.
• Chen Chuan reached the summit of the highest peak and discovered an old, multi-level cave residence with signs of Xuan Sect construction.
• Chen Chuan sent scouting creatures to explore the caves, then arranged an Esoteric Sect Ritual and opened a Rift with the Snow Monarch Blade.
• Chen Chuan entered the Rift and began cultivating with his growing spirit image while Zhao Ming guarded the cave entrance.
• Zhao Ming detected a black snake-like creature, killed it, and swallowed it.

Chen Chuan cultivated in a cave on Jade Peak, discovered that black snakes and traces of the Xuan Sect lay beneath the mountain, and spent half a month strengthening himself. A mysterious Profound Scholar then appeared and claimed Chen Chuan’s cultivation method was unsuitable, pointing him toward a hidden Liquid Pool.

• Chen Chuan kept the Rift open for about seventeen hours, then emerged and found Zhao Ming had killed and eaten many black snakes.
• Chen Chuan watched a modified beetle’s recorded exploration and saw black snakes guarding underground tunnels marked with Xuan Sect ritual paintings.
• Chen Chuan chose not to investigate the tunnels, hunted for food, and noticed jade bamboo flowers growing where scraps were left.
• Chen Chuan cultivated morning and night for half a month while the cave’s surroundings filled with jade bamboo flowers.
• A Profound Scholar appeared in Chen Chuan’s cave, criticized his cultivation method, and claimed a Liquid Pool beneath the mountain could improve his cultivation by thirty percent.

Chen Chuan activated the Profound Scholar’s cultivation ritual and gained a temporary boost before it ran out. The Profound Scholar then taught him the Xuan Sect method of crossing the Connecting Heaven Bridge during the age of withdrawing yin, leaving Chen Chuan to consider whether to use it.

• Chen Chuan followed the Profound Scholar’s instructions, scattered the left-hand stone sand into the pool, and caused the ritual to release its power.
• Chen Chuan cultivated in the Rift for about ten days, benefiting from a more than one-third increase in efficiency until the ritual’s enhancement faded.
• Chen Chuan calculated his progress and considered how his preparations would cover his absence from Central City.
• The Profound Scholar returned and offered to explain how Chen Chuan could correct flaws in his cultivation method.
• The Profound Scholar taught Chen Chuan to lodge his spirit at the uppermost Heavenly Gate and described the method called “Light the Purple Lamp.”
• The Profound Scholar disappeared after finishing his explanation, leaving Chen Chuan with the method to consider.

Chen Chuan began cultivating with the Xuan Sect method left by the Profound Scholar, using his powerful foundation and modern Purity Faction techniques to manage its risks. After completing the first stage, he prepared to use Wan Song Company’s steadier method for the second stage.

• Chen Chuan decided to try the Profound Scholar’s three-stage cultivation method and hunted Convergence Zone creatures to store enough nutritional energy.
• Chen Chuan returned to Jade Peak, secured his cave with Protector You’s Pivot Stone, and began the first stage while Zhao Ming guarded the entrance.
• Chen Chuan used contamination to stabilize his spirit form as he absorbed energy, then discovered the Great Azure Void Style and Great Bright Light Style automatically purified it.
• Chen Chuan completed the first stage after a little over a month and chose Wan Song Company’s gradual method for the second stage.
• Chen Chuan gathered more nutrients and returned to Jade Peak to begin the second stage.

Chen Chuan completed the second stage of cultivation and hunted the Moon-faced Bird to gather energy for the final stage. After returning to Jade Peak, he heard the Profound Scholar’s cautionary tale about doubt and learned that more mysteries lay beneath the peak before the scholar departed.

• Chen Chuan steadily completed the second stage after more than a month, then hunted for additional energy to prepare for crossing the Connecting Heaven Bridge.
• With Zhao Ming’s help, Chen Chuan found the Moon-faced Bird and killed it with his spiritual form, taking its golden energy crystal and swallowing it.
• The Profound Scholar asked whether Chen Chuan doubted him, and Chen Chuan said he would judge the method himself and accept responsibility for its effects.
• The Profound Scholar told Chen Chuan how a Profound Jade Serpent became Serpent Hill after doubting its path to transformation on the final night.
• The Profound Scholar offered to reveal mysteries beneath Jade Peak, gave Chen Chuan a Profound Sect Bow, and vanished into the waterfall mist.

Chen Chuan examined the Xuan Sect’s stored resources and activated the ritual at Jade Peak to prepare for his final cultivation stage. He opened a rift and began the trial, aiming his Spirit Manifestation’s third eye into the luminous mist above.

• Chen Chuan concluded that the pill from the Non-Action Profound Scholar could reveal traces of Xuan Sect members and put it away.
• He found a bowl of accumulated spiritual liquid and a Dark Robe covered with diagrams of the ritual surrounding Jade Peak, but left the liquid untouched.
• Chen Chuan poured congealed essence into the Jade Pool, added sand to activate it, and caused mist to rise over the peak.
• He donned the Dark Robe, opened a rift with the Snow Monarch Blade, and stepped through to begin the final trial.
• Chen Chuan summoned his Spirit Manifestation and sent a beam from its third eye into the luminous mist above.

Chen Chuan endured the Essence Fiends while absorbing Purple Qi, then realized he had to claim the Heavenly Layer itself rather than simply draw energy from it. After merging his Second Self with his spirit form and joining Spiritual Fire to the Purple Qi, he completed his transformation and inscribed a new line of insight, leaving his cultivation at a breakthrough.

• Chen Chuan reached the Heavenly Layer of Purple Qi and was attacked by its Essence Fiends, which stripped away his Spiritual Fire.
• He absorbed Purple Qi to strengthen his spirit form and Mutated Tissue, then let Essence Fiends enter as fuel when his progress slowed.
• Chen Chuan repeatedly used the Great Bright Light Style to disperse the contamination before it could overwhelm his spirit form.
• Chen Chuan realized he needed to occupy and merge with the Heavenly Layer, then sat in a Xuan Sect seal and joined with his Second Self.
• His Spiritual Fire spread into the Purple Qi, transforming the Heavenly Layer and accelerating the Mutated Tissue's advance until the Essence Fiends vanished.
• Chen Chuan saw a purple glow between his brows and wrote, “One thought illuminates true intent; seeking the realm, immortality finds peace!”

Chen Chuan completed his cultivation on Jade Peak, reaching a new stage that strengthened his body and spirit and gave him a fresh source of power. After thanking the Xuan Sect's predecessors and leaving the ritual site, he flew back toward Central City.

• Chen Chuan left the Rift and sensed that his spiritual fire remained connected to the Other Side World, supplying him with power.
• His mutated tissue broke through a limit, granting him a major increase in strength and the ability to generate spiritual fire through both his Spirit Manifestation and physical body.
• Chen Chuan examined his new abilities and realized his cultivated tissue could preserve his peak condition, draw energy from the other side, and provide an additional internal power source.
• He stopped the empowering ritual, returned the Dark Robe to its place, and saluted the space in gratitude for the Xuan Sect's teachings.
• Chen Chuan flew from Jade Peak toward home, with Zhao Ming following behind him, and descended near the Hunting Ground's sentry post half a day later.

Chen Chuan returned to the watchtower, reunited with the soldiers, and set out for Central City after helping them clear nearby dangers. Xu Chan, now a Fighter, was investigating Green Source Ecology Company when Chen Chuan arrived at the seawall to meet him.

• Chen Chuan returned to the watchtower, learned that the soldiers were safe, and reviewed the messages from Central City.
• Chen Chuan ordered Zhao Ming to hunt dangerous creatures, then shared a feast and posed for photographs with the soldiers.
• Chen Chuan boarded a supply airship and returned to Central City four days later.
• Xu Chan, who had secretly become a Fighter, investigated Green Source Ecology Company's products and suspected the company had leaked them deliberately.
• Xu Chan received Chen Chuan's message, went to the seawall, and approached him after seeing him waiting there.

Xu Chan reported Green Source Ecology Company’s suspected dangers to Chen Chuan, who planned to press for an internal review at the Security Decision Meeting. Meanwhile, Cao Guiqi admired a rare painting before receiving a visit from Hu Zhanshan, who came on behalf of his master.

• Chen Chuan congratulated Xu Chan on becoming a Fighter and discussed the breakthrough with him.
• Xu Chan gave Chen Chuan a dossier on Green Source Ecology Company and explained why he believed it threatened Central City.
• Chen Chuan said he would propose a motion of no confidence and require the company to conduct an internal review.
• Xu Chan told Chen Chuan that headquarters planned to inspect the Jibei Province branch, and Chen Chuan said he would handle it.
• Cao Guiqi showed Uncle Ding Suizhi’s painting, “Thousand Birds on a Calm Lake,” and explained its history.
• Cao Guiqi agreed to receive Hu Zhanshan, who arrived to pay his respects on behalf of his master.

Hu Zhanshan asked Cao Guiqi for a key to an imperial Hidden Treasure in exchange for Life Yang Water, but Cao Guiqi suspected the real target was the Rift inside and alerted Gao Ming. Chen Chuan returned home after half a year away, and Gao Ming contacted him with news from the Cao Family Mansion.

• Hu Zhanshan offered Cao Guiqi Life Yang Water for a Hidden Treasure key, but Cao Guiqi denied knowing anything about it and sent him away.
• Cao Guiqi and Uncle Ding suspected Hu Zhanshan's group wanted access to the Rift, so Cao Guiqi told Uncle Ding to inform Gao Ming.
• Cao Guiqi showed Uncle Ding the rooster with a missing comb that completed the Thousand Birds on a Calm Lake painting.
• Chen Chuan advised Xu Chan to treat Wan Song Company as an ordinary Entrusted Company and avoid becoming too deeply involved.
• Chen Chuan returned to the villa, reassured Yu Wan, and confirmed Yangzhi would connect to the Domain Field signal next month.
• Gao Ming contacted Chen Chuan with news from the Cao Family Mansion.

After returning home, Chen Chuan learned that people from the Old Imperial Household had approached the Cao Family about a Hidden Treasure in Jibei Province. He called an emergency Security Decision Meeting, where the team connected the treasure to a possible sealed Rift and considered whether the Old Imperial Household was making a new move.

• Chen Chuan thanked Gao Ming for reporting the Old Imperial Household's visit to the Cao Family and asked him to keep the matter confidential.
• Chen Chuan reunited with his aunt and younger cousins, learned that schools were teaching students a Breathing Method, and later discussed government policies with Nian Fuli.
• Chen Chuan considered the Cao Family's history of government surveillance and decided to seek the Government Affairs Hall's help to protect Senior Brother Cao.
• Chen Chuan convened an emergency Security Decision Meeting, and the team approved designating Green Source Ecology Company as untrusted and subjecting it to a security inspection.
• Chen Chuan told the team that the Cao Family had half of a key to a Hidden Treasure somewhere in Jibei Province, and Liang Guanghai suggested it might be an ancient Rift sealed as a treasure.
• Qi Weizhao asked whether the Old Imperial Household's sudden search for the key meant they were making a new move.

Chen Chuan and the Government Affairs Hall planned to secure Yangzhi against a possible Old Imperial Household attack, while Chen Chuan investigated a disappearance that might be tied to the Hidden Treasure. In the Convergence Zone, Zhao Zhenye quieted the voices he had been hearing, then met Gai Shuhe and an elite force waiting to depart.

• Qiao Weiting warned that the Three Mountains could give the Old Imperial Household a defensible position around Yangzhi, and the team suspected the enemy was exploiting Chen Chuan's absence.
• Qi Weizhao ordered faster information coverage and troop deployments in Yangzhi, while Chen Chuan agreed to go there and secretly contact Yuan An Company about transferring two people.
• Chen Chuan recalled that Old Cheng's eldest son had disappeared on Jiao Mountain and asked Senior Apprentice Ren to help investigate.
• Zhao Zhenye visited the Flawless Wonderful Sound Venerable and understood that he could choose whether to listen to the voices from beyond the heavens.
• Gai Shuhe met Zhao Zhenye at the foot of the mountain beside an elite Old Imperial Household force and asked if they could set off.

Zhao Zhenye met with Su Kuo, Gai Shuhe, and an Imperial Household envoy to discuss a plan to use a Hidden Treasure in Jibei Province and retake the Three Mountains Land. He agreed to join their operation, which was scheduled to begin in the middle of next month.

• Zhao Zhenye arrived at Kuiwei Palace Mound with Gai Shuhe and met Su Kuo and an Embroidered Pattern Envoy.
• Su Kuo explained that merging field domains threatened to expose the Old Imperial Household's Hidden Treasure in Jibei Province.
• Gai Shuhe and the envoy outlined their forces and plans to defeat Chen Chuan and other likely defenders.
• Zhao Zhenye questioned whether they had accounted for Yuan An Company, then decided their preparations were sufficient.
• Zhao Zhenye agreed to join the operation and learned that the Hidden Treasure would be opened in the middle of next month.

Chen Chuan prepared for a security operation near Jiao Mountain, arranged a future visit to the Linax Federation, and traveled to his old house in Yangzhi. Ren Xiaotian and Lu Ke headed toward Jiao Mountain to investigate, with Ren promising to help Lu Ke free his friends after the mission.

• Chen Chuan questioned Cheng Shang about the Cheng Family’s decades-long search for Cheng Zishun near Jiao Mountain, then summoned Cheng Shang to the Handling Bureau under a security level one order.
• Chen Chuan prepared to travel to Yangzhi and agreed to join a visiting delegation to the Linax Federation later in the year.
• Chen Chuan drove to his old house near Yangzhi, settled in, and read about Xuan Sect and Zen Sect sites ahead of his planned Federation visit.
• Ren Xiaotian and Lu Ke drove toward Jiao Mountain, where Lu Ke said the Village Chief had prevented his friends from leaving.
• Ren Xiaotian promised Lu Ke he would help free his friends after they completed their mission.

Ren Xiaotian and Lu Ke began placing Esoteric Ritual devices around Jiao Mountain to monitor for a reaction from the Hidden Treasure of the Old Imperial Household. As Chen Chuan oversaw the Skyline Domain Field connection near Three Mountains, new intelligence identified a likely deception among the Old Imperial Household’s generals.

• Ren Xiaotian and Lu Ke traded a bearer Gold Note for a basket of Red Goods in a Jiao Mountain village and left with the goods.
• Ren Xiaotian and Lu Ke buried the first Esoteric Ritual device at a designated site after verifying their World Tokens.
• Chen Chuan waited at National Avenue as the Skyline Domain Field connection came online and received clearer signals from Central City.
• Lao Feng told Chen Chuan that General Who Conquers the East Su Kuo may have been represented by a double when he returned to the capital.