Chapter Summaries

Fang Xiao persuaded Yi Tianhe to summon Yan Tiandong, a newly advanced Spirit Transformation combatant, to help Ling Taichu’s battlefield. After receiving travel authorization, Fang Xiao left for Tianwen City, while Martial Uncle Xu revealed his suspicion and killed a disciple who questioned his unauthorized teleportation.

• Fang Xiao told Yi Tianhe that Yan Tiandong had reached the Spirit God Realm and could join the Spirit Transformation battle.
• Yi Tianhe sent Fang Xiao’s message to Li Mobai and the other Grandmasters, who decided Ling Taichu should contact Yan Tiandong for the desperate battle against Purple Flame and Lin Qi.
• Yi Tianhe gave Fang Xiao a guest elder token and an entry-and-exit command talisman so he could find Yan Tiandong and arrange his journey.
• Fang Xiao showed Martial Uncle Xu the command talisman and teleported to Tianwen City.
• An hour later, Martial Uncle Xu activated a teleportation array without authorization and killed a Golden Core disciple who questioned him.

Xu Jinzhong slaughtered everyone in Tianlan Sect’s Teleportation Hall before welcoming eighteen array masters sent by the Three Sects of the Eastern Domain. As Tianlan Sect’s sect-protecting grand array began to attack, they assembled the Nine Yuan Heart Extinguishing Array to break it.

• Xu Jinzhong killed the disciples in the Teleportation Hall and prevented anyone from escaping or sending a message.
• Eighteen cultivators arrived through the teleportation array, and Xu Jinzhong urged them to set up their array before Tianlan Sect could stop them.
• The eighteen array masters began forming the core of the Nine Yuan Heart Extinguishing Array while Xu Jinzhong used his token to hold off the sect-protecting grand array.
• The chapter revealed that Xu Jinzhong was a Xuanyuan Sect agent who had come to hate Tianlan Sect after it failed to punish the family that persecuted him.
• The array masters completed the core array and prepared to activate it against Tianlan Sect’s defenses.

After Xu Jinzhong’s betrayal, the Teleportation Hall fell and the Nine Yuan Heart Extinguishing Array’s core was destroyed, leaving Tianlan Sect exposed to invasion. As the three sects stormed inside, a spatial vortex appeared on the array Fang Xiao had used, drawing Xu Jinzhong’s attention.

• Yi Tianhe learned that Xu Jinzhong had seized the Teleportation Hall, and he warned Fang Xiao that enemy forces had infiltrated Tianlan Sect.
• Yi Tianhe tried to stabilize the sect-protecting array’s core, but it was destroyed, leaving only smaller arrays protecting key locations.
• Yi Tianhe rang the emergency bells and ordered Tianlan Sect’s disciples to gather at the Thirty-Seven Peaks to face the invaders.
• Chi Xuzi warned the three sects against fighting among themselves, and their forces entered Tianlan Sect from separate directions.
• Xu Jinzhong’s array masters worked to reactivate their teleportation array, while Xu Jinzhong noticed a spatial vortex appearing on the array Fang Xiao had used.

Fang Xiao and Yan Tiandong returned to Tianlan Sect, where they found the Teleportation Hall filled with the bodies of slain disciples. Fang Xiao killed the traitor Xu Jinzhong, captured the invading array masters, and asked Yan Tiandong to help defend the sect.

• Fang Xiao guided the newly advanced Yan Tiandong through the void back to Tianlan Sect after the sect's teleportation array failed.
• Fang Xiao called Xu Jinzhong and the array masters traitors and ordered Yan Tiandong to guard the hall while he dealt with them.
• Xu Jinzhong admitted killing the disciples and challenged Fang Xiao, invoking a Kui Ox manifestation.
• Fang Xiao outlasted Xu Jinzhong's manifestation and killed him, then took the surviving array masters captive.
• Fang Xiao asked Yan Tiandong to help Tianlan Sect withstand the invading enemies while the teleportation array was repaired.

Fang Xiao helped Tianlan Sect turn back the invading sects, and the Spirit Transformation battle ended in Tianlan Sect’s victory. As Xuanyuan Sect’s remaining forces were being routed, Fang Xiao was summoned to the True Spirit Hall, where the elders praised his role and Ling Taichu moved to finish the fighting.

• Fang Xiao arranged for Yan Tiandong to help Tianlan Sect fight the invaders, then went to reinforce the front against Xuanyuan Sect.
• Yan Tiandong went to the Nanhua Sect front, while Yi Tianhe redirected forces against Five Elements Sect.
• Yan Tiandong slaughtered Nanhua Sect within a day, and Tianlan Sect drove Five Elements Sect from its territory.
• Tianlan Sect surrounded Xuanyuan Sect, forcing Chi Xuzi and his remaining fighters to flee as the last invaders in the sect.
• Fang Xiao attended a gathering of Yi Tianhe and five Spirit Transformation cultivators, where Li Mobai praised his contributions and offered to grant him a request.
• Ling Taichu sent a sword and diagram out of the True Spirit Hall after Fang Xiao noted that the Xuanyuan Sect fighting was still underway.

After the Tianlan Sect defeated the three allied sects, its leaders explained to Fang Xiao why the Nanhua Sect and Five Elements Sect would be spared while the Xuanyuan Sect would be destroyed. Fang Xiao was tasked with representing the Tianlan Sect to the Five Elements Sect, while the sect prepared to seize the Xuanyuan Sect’s inheritance.

• Ling Taichu killed the Xuanyuan Sect invaders and kept the Five Peaks True Form Diagram in place to guard the Tianlan Sect.
• Fang Xiao agreed that the sect should keep the diagram and heard that he would be rewarded and given another assignment.
• Li Mobai explained that the Tianlan Sect would spare the Nanhua Sect and Five Elements Sect because of warnings from King Gan and the risk of provoking holy lands.
• Li Mobai tasked Fang Xiao with visiting the Five Elements Sect to establish its new subordinate relationship and obtain the Five Qi Cultivating Immortal Scripture and Five Qi Returning to Origin Method.
• The Tianlan Sect decided to destroy the weakened Xuanyuan Sect and claim its inheritances, with five Spirit Transformation Existences preparing to act.

After the Spirit Transformation cultivators discussed finding Fang Xiao a dao companion, Ling Taichu brought him to Heavenly Outer Heaven and confirmed that he did not wish to pursue romance. They then reviewed what Fang Xiao needed for his cultivation, leaving divine abilities as his main concern and prompting him to recall one that might help.

• Purple Flame proposed finding Fang Xiao a dao companion, but Ling Taichu said the choice was Fang Xiao's, and Yi Tianhe considered preparing to break through to Spirit Transformation.
• Ling Taichu hurried Fang Xiao back to Heavenly Outer Heaven and sealed its entrance before Purple Flame could follow them inside.
• Fang Xiao told Ling Taichu that he wanted to devote his life to the sword and the Dao, so Ling Taichu promised not to let matchmaking interfere with his cultivation.
• Ling Taichu explained the rewards Fang Xiao could request and asked him to identify his remaining weaknesses.
• Fang Xiao concluded that divine abilities were his only major need and remembered a divine ability he had encountered that might help him.

Fang Xiao warned Ling Taichu that he would avoid becoming consumed by powerful divine abilities, then focused on cultivation and helping Fatty Han recover from a failed Core Formation attempt. After learning that the family responsible for his relatives’ deaths had been exterminated, Fatty Han’s resentment eased, and Fang Xiao sent him to travel and recuperate before trying again.

• Fang Xiao told Ling Taichu he would remember the warning about divine abilities, and Ling Taichu advised him to stay in the Heavenly Outer Heaven while he departed.
• Fang Xiao returned to his cave dwelling, planned to obtain two cultivation methods from the Five Elements Sect, and learned that Maoqiu had advanced to the late second tier.
• Fatty Han failed to form a Golden Core and dispersed his nearly completed spiritual-power mark after realizing his unresolved grief would limit his future.
• Fang Xiao told Fatty Han that the family responsible for his relatives’ deaths had been exterminated, and Fatty Han’s knot of resentment began to dissolve.
• Fang Xiao gave Fatty Han Core Formation resources and advised him to travel and restore his body and dantian before attempting Core Formation again.

Fang Xiao was summoned to True Spirit Hall after the Tianlan Sect’s leaders returned from destroying the Xuanyuan Sect, and he received rewards for his contribution. He left with a Golden Core containing the Divine Ability he sought and three precious pills to help him reach the Nascent Soul Realm, while preparations for his trip to the Five Elements Sect remained ahead.

• Fang Xiao went to True Spirit Hall, where Li Mobai, Ling Taichu, Qin Qing, and Yi Tianhe had gathered after returning from the Xuanyuan Sect.
• Fang Xiao asked whether it was time to leave for the Five Elements Sect, and Li Mobai told him to meet the Five Elements Sect’s representative at Guest Reception Peak.
• Li Mobai gave Fang Xiao a Golden Core containing the Divine Ability he had sought.
• Li Mobai presented Fang Xiao with the Embryo Nurturing Pill, the Infant Rearing Pill, and the Shell Dissolving Pill as compensation from the Nanhua Sect.
• Fang Xiao learned how the three pills aided the stages of forming a Nascent Soul and accepted them.

Fang Xiao received pills and was appointed temporary chief disciple of the Tianlan Sect, with the right to choose three treasures from the inner treasury once his position was confirmed. He set out to meet the Five Elements Sect’s visitors, while Li Mobai, Ling Taichu, and Qin Qing discussed the danger facing the Five Elements Sect and the Tianlan Sect’s internal reforms.

• Fang Xiao accepted the pills and considered helping Xiao Yan join an exchange visit to the Nanhua Sect.
• Li Mobai appointed Fang Xiao temporary chief disciple and allowed former Top Ten True Inheritors and the Named True Inheritance to challenge him.
• Li Mobai promised Fang Xiao three treasures from the inner treasury after his position was confirmed and told him to handle the Five Elements Sect as he saw fit.
• Fang Xiao left the True Spirit Hall and headed to Guest Reception Peak to meet the Five Elements Sect’s visitors.
• Qin Qing questioned whether Fang Xiao could manage the Five Elements Sect’s affairs, and Li Mobai and Ling Taichu said the consequences would fall on that sect.
• Qin Qing reflected on losing influence in Tianlan Sect affairs as Ling Taichu reformed the sect and targeted the family faction.

Fang Xiao met three envoys from the Five Elements Sect and learned that they represented rival factions seeking different outcomes for their divided sect. He challenged Xiong Bingchuan to explain why the Tianlan Sect should support the Fire Vein, which had once tried to destroy it.

• Fang Xiao learned that Xiong Bingchuan, Mu Qing, and Ji Nanxing had arrived separately and refused to meet, then heard each envoy present a different request on behalf of the Five Elements Sect.
• Fang Xiao sent Xiong Bingchuan a private summons, and Xiong returned alone after the other envoys left.
• Xiong Bingchuan explained that the Five Elements Sect's four surviving veins disagreed over whether to unite under the Sect Master, preserve their autonomy, or split apart.
• Fang Xiao asked why the Tianlan Sect should help Xiong's Fire Vein after its earlier attempt to destroy the sect, especially when he could choose another faction to support.

Fang Xiao received the Five Qi Cultivating Immortal Scripture and Five Qi Returning to Origin Method from Xiong Bingchuan, then asked for the supposedly unworkable Great Five Elements Heavenly Heart Art. He agreed to visit the Fire Vein and discuss its request with Great Elder Yuan, arriving at the Five Elements Sect to a personal welcome.

• Xiong Bingchuan gave Fang Xiao the complete Five Qi Cultivating Immortal Scripture and Five Qi Returning to Origin Method on behalf of the Fire Vein.
• Fang Xiao learned that the Great Five Elements Heavenly Heart Art had been set aside because no one had managed to cultivate it, and asked to receive it.
• Xiong Bingchuan invited Fang Xiao to the Fire Vein, promising that Great Elder Yuan would also offer him a tremendous opportunity.
• Fang Xiao agreed to go at once and said he would discuss the Fire Vein's request directly with Yuan Ye, leaving Mu Qing and Ji Nanxing at Tianlan Sect.
• Fang Xiao and Xiong Bingchuan traveled through the teleportation arrays and reached the Five Elements Sect's Fire Vein in less than a day.
• Yuan Ye and three other Fire Vein Nascent Soul Cultivators welcomed Fang Xiao at the mountain gate.

Fang Xiao heard Yuan Ye’s account of how outside Holy Land forces had hollowed out the Five Elements Sect and how the Fire Vein had been forced into attacking the Tianlan Sect. He recognized that the Fire Vein wanted the Tianlan Sect’s help to break away, and he proposed targeting Lin Qi’s connected Wood Vein leaders while sparing ordinary disciples.

• Yuan Ye invited Fang Xiao into the Fire Vein’s council hall and promised to explain the Five Elements Sect’s invasion and discuss compensation.
• Yuan Ye explained that the branches had invited outside powers into the Five Elements Sect, leaving the Gold, Wood, Water, and Earth Veins tied to powerful forces while the Fire Vein relied on the Tianlan Sect.
• Yuan Ye said Lin Qi had forced the Fire Vein to join the attack on the Tianlan Sect, and that he had retreated after Lin Qi died and Tianlan Sect disciples pursued his people.
• Fang Xiao concluded that Yuan Ye wanted the Tianlan Sect’s help to free the Fire Vein from the failing Five Elements Sect, and Yuan Ye admitted he was willing to bear the blame for splitting it apart.
• Fang Xiao asked whether Yuan Ye would accept the destruction of the Water, Earth, and Wood Veins, then clarified that he would target only high-level Wood Vein cultivators connected to Lin Qi and allow Yuan Ye to take in innocent lower-level disciples.

Fang Xiao received compensation from the Fire Vein, including the Great Five Elements Heavenly Heart Art, and learned how it could cultivate a True Spirit Realm soul capable of wielding heaven-and-earth primordial energy. He left the exchange eager to study the art and open to sharing any insights with Yuan Ye and the Five Elements Sect.

• Yuan Ye thanked Fang Xiao and explained his plan to establish the Fire Vein as an independent orthodox Five Elements Sect with Tianlan Sect's help.
• Yuan Ye presented Tianlan Sect with compensation and gave Fang Xiao a Jade Slip and a command token as personal gifts.
• Fang Xiao examined the Jade Slip and discovered that the Great Five Elements Heavenly Heart Art aimed to cultivate a True Spirit Realm soul before the Five Qi Returning to Origin Method.
• Fang Xiao realized that a True Spirit Realm soul could let a cultivator control heaven-and-earth primordial energy, though the art's obscure details required further study.
• Yuan Ye asked Fang Xiao to share any discoveries about the art, and Fang Xiao agreed to help if he gained insights.

Fang Xiao learned that the Five Elements Sect’s grotto-heaven held a Five Elements Spirit Plant that empowered cultivators, and Yuan Ye gave him a Gold Vein token for entry. Fang Xiao accepted the opportunity and promised that Tianlan Sect would help with the Fire Vein’s affairs, then consulted Li Mobai and Ling Taichu about the situation and his plans.

• Yuan Ye explained that the token Fang Xiao received granted entry to the Five Elements Sect’s grotto-heaven, where a balanced five-element environment allowed the Five Qi Returning to Origin Method to be cultivated.
• Yuan Ye revealed that the Five Elements Spirit Plant overflowed with pure spiritual essence every three hundred years, empowering nearby cultivators without harming their foundations.
• Yuan Ye told Fang Xiao that each empowerment could accommodate five people, but the Fire Vein had lost its last spot more than five hundred years earlier and its Nascent Soul cultivator had died mysteriously.
• Fang Xiao accepted Yuan Ye’s opportunity and assured him that Tianlan Sect would not ignore the Fire Vein’s plight.
• Fang Xiao reported the situation and his plans to Li Mobai and Ling Taichu, noting that he could not break the Wood Vein’s protective formation alone.

Fang Xiao waited for the Five Elements Vein representatives while Ling Taichu headed to the Wood Vein, then faced Gongye Liyuan’s divine soul projection when it emerged through Liu Qingping. The projection failed to capture him, and the confrontation left Fang Xiao evading her attacks inside the council hall.

• Ling Taichu agreed to visit the Wood Vein, and Fang Xiao reported the Five Elements Ancestor Grotto-heaven and its talismans to him.
• Xiong Bingchuan brought Mu Qing and Ji Nanxing to the council hall, where they discussed the absent Gold Vein and Wood Vein representatives.
• Liu Qingping arrived, and Yuan Ye identified her as a Wood Vein Nascent Soul Cultivator who might not have originated there.
• Gongye Liyuan possessed Liu Qingping with a divine soul projection and accused Fang Xiao of ruining her plans and causing Qi'er's death.
• Gongye Liyuan attacked Fang Xiao with a spatial technique, but he repeatedly escaped through shifting teleportation points while her projections multiplied throughout the hall.

Fang Xiao used the Nascent Soul Dao Sword to weaken Gongye Liyuan’s possession of Liu Qingping, forcing her to retreat from the Fire Vein. He warned Ling Taichu to watch for Liu Qingping, while Yuan Ye and the others learned Gongye Liyuan had left.

• Fang Xiao spread his sword domain through the council hall and used Thought Swords to identify Liu Qingping among Gongye Liyuan’s phantom bodies.
• Fang Xiao struck the targeted Gongye Liyuan with the Nascent Soul Dao Sword and used the Primordial Sword Embryo’s power to weaken her possession.
• Gongye Liyuan threatened to return for Fang Xiao, then withdrew after judging she could not defeat him with her split soul.
• Fang Xiao sent Ling Taichu a message about the encounter and asked him to watch for Liu Qingping, whom Fang Xiao suspected might carry the Wood Vein’s Five Elements Grotto-heaven Command Talisman.
• Xiong Bingchuan reported that Gongye Liyuan had left the Fire Vein, relieving Yuan Ye and the other two.

Fang Xiao secured a Fire Vein token talisman from Yuan Ye, then demanded compensation and the dissolution of the Five Elements Sect’s other veins. He left Mu Qing and Ji Nanxing under a three-hour deadline to persuade the Water and Earth Veins and the forces backing them to accept his terms.

• Yuan Ye apologized to Fang Xiao for failing to intervene and gave him a Fire Vein token talisman as compensation.
• Fang Xiao demanded that Mu Qing and Ji Nanxing provide compensation equal to the Fire Vein’s, but Ji Nanxing argued that the Water and Earth Veins were not responsible for the other veins’ actions.
• Fang Xiao ordered the five veins to split apart, declared that the Fire Vein would inherit the Five Elements Sect’s name, and threatened to keep Mu Qing and Ji Nanxing there if they refused.
• Fang Xiao gave Mu Qing and Ji Nanxing three hours to consult their sides, while Yuan Ye confirmed that the Fire Vein’s teleportation formation remained open and its protective formation could repel hostile visitors.

Fang Xiao returned to Tianlan Sect after securing concessions and Five Elements Grotto-heaven tokens from Shuiyun Sect and Banshan Sect. Wen Daoyun rewarded him for his service and proposed sending him into Xuanming Grotto-heaven, which Li Mobai approved.

• Fang Xiao returned to Tianlan Sect after the Water and Earth Veins agreed to provide resources and Five Elements Grotto-heaven tokens, and the Fire Vein adopted the name Five Elements Sect.
• Fang Xiao met Wen Daoyun, who had returned from the Central Lands to take over as sect master while Yi Tianhe entered seclusion.
• Wen Daoyun gave Fang Xiao a High-grade Magic Treasure made from Ten Thousand Year Warm Jade as a meeting gift.
• Fang Xiao reported on his mission to Five Elements Sect and presented the items he had brought back for Wen Daoyun to inspect.
• Wen Daoyun returned a storage artifact and a Five Elements Grotto-heaven token to Fang Xiao as additional rewards for his contributions.
• Wen Daoyun asked to send Fang Xiao into Xuanming Grotto-heaven, and Li Mobai agreed after considering the request.

Li Mobai explained that Tianlan Sect’s Xuanming Grotto-heaven helped cultivators comprehend Yin-Yang principles and improve their chances of condensing a true spirit. Fang Xiao revealed that his Xuan Yin Spirit Forging Wine could grant divine souls Utter Yin attributes, but tests by Li Mobai and Wen Daoyun showed no effect on them.

• Li Mobai told Fang Xiao that the Xuanming Grotto-heaven surpassed the Five Elements Grotto-heaven because it aided true-spirit condensation and Spirit Transformation.
• Li Mobai explained how the grotto-heaven’s Yin-Yang qi helped cultivators comprehend Utter Yin and complementarity between Yin and Yang.
• Fang Xiao presented Li Mobai and Wen Daoyun with Xuan Yin Spirit Forging Wine and its recipe, explaining that it had helped him attain a Pure Yang divine soul during Core Formation.
• Li Mobai and Wen Daoyun sampled the wine, but neither experienced any change.
• Wen Daoyun suggested the half-step fourth-tier wine might be too weak to affect her nearly complete Pure Yang divine soul.