Chapter Summaries

Mo Hua drew arrays for the Artifact Refining Guild project, astonishing Master Ban with his skill and first-grade formations. Master Ban warned Elder Yu that one Array Master could not handle the large number of arrays, leaving Elder Yu concerned about the workload and Mo Hua’s health.

• Master Ban watched Mo Hua draw and learned from Elder Yu that the arrays were first grade.
• Master Ban counted nine Array Patterns in one of Mo Hua’s arrays and praised the precision of his work.
• Mo Hua finished a Compound Array, rested to recover his divine sense, and reassured Elder Yu that he was all right.
• Master Ban asked how many Array Masters had been hired and learned that Mo Hua was the only one.
• Master Ban said the project would usually require five or six Array Masters, or even a dozen, and Elder Yu worried about exhausting Mo Hua.

Mo Hua steadily drew the Artifact Refining Guild’s many arrays alone, impressing Master Ban with his speed and skill. As construction advanced, the An Family discussed how the Guild could threaten local businesses and decided to watch for the Qian Family’s response.

• Mo Hua continued drawing arrays across the construction site, resting and studying between bouts of work.
• Master Ban discovered that Mo Hua had already completed many arrays exactly as planned and marveled at how quickly he worked.
• Master An and An Yonglu discussed how Elder Yu’s Artifact Refining Guild could affect the An and Qian families’ businesses.
• Master An advised An Yonglu to watch quietly and see whether the Qian Family would interfere.

Qian Hong consulted Master Qian about the Monster Hunters’ Array Master and the threat posed by Yu Changlin’s planned Artifact Refining Guild. Master Qian dismissed the rival Array Master as a serious concern and agreed to research a First-Grade Molten Fire Array for the Qian Family’s furnaces.

• Qian Hong warned Master Qian that an Array Master had helped Yu Changlin challenge the Qian Family in Great Black Mountain and was assisting his new Artifact Refining Guild.
• Master Qian argued that becoming a First-Grade Array Master was extremely difficult and concluded that the Monster Hunters’ Array Master probably knew only one or two First-Grade Array Techniques.
• Qian Hong said he had secretly arranged methods to trouble the Monster Hunters and planned to flood the market with Spirit Artifacts once their guild opened.
• Qian Hong asked Master Qian to develop the Array Technique for a batch of superior Artifact Refining Furnaces.
• Master Qian agreed to research the First-Grade Molten Fire Array while Qian Hong’s people worked to disrupt Yu Changlin’s construction.

The Qian Family repeatedly sabotaged the Artifact Refining Guild, but Elder Yu caught Qian Shunzhi and ransomed him and the other culprits for Spirit Stones. The Qian Family planned to keep harassing the Guild at opportune times, while Qian Shunzhi agreed to continue in hopes of earning Foundation Establishment pills.

• Qian Family cultivators disguised as Rogue Cultivators damaged the Artifact Refining Guild and injured craftsmen before demon hunters drove them off.
• Elder Yu secretly returned to the Guild, caught Qian Shunzhi and his companions sabotaging it, and exposed Qian Shunzhi’s identity.
• Elder Yu brought the captives to the Qian Family gate, cursed Qian Hong, and negotiated a ransom of one hundred Spirit Stones per person.
• The Qian Family elder paid to retrieve the captives, and Elder Yu returned with nearly a thousand Spirit Stones to compensate and reward the Guild’s workers.
• The Qian Family elder ordered Qian Shunzhi to resume the sabotage more carefully, promising a possible reward of Foundation Establishment pills if he succeeded.

After repeated Qian Family attacks damaged the Artifact Refining Guild, Mo Hua helped Elder Yu set Earth Fire Arrays and a Sinan Parent-Child Compound Array to protect the construction site. Qian Shunzhi’s next raid was routed, and the chapter ended with Qian Hong seeking Master Qian’s help against the arrays.

• Mo Hua gave Elder Yu Earth Fire Arrays and modified the Guild’s Array Diagram so the Demon Hunters could detect Spiritual Power fluctuations and coordinate their response.
• Mo Hua completed the Sinan Parent-Child Compound Array and explained the Sinan Compass to the patrolling Demon Hunters.
• Qian Shunzhi led Qian Family disciples and ruffian cultivators to attack the Guild, where several stepped on Earth Fire Arrays.
• Qian Shunzhi was burned and disoriented by an Earth Fire Array, and the Demon Hunters drove his group away.
• Qian Shunzhi reported the arrays to the Qian Family elders, and Qian Hong asked Master Qian how to break them.

Master Qian sent Qian Family array masters to map the Earth Fire Arrays around the Artifact Refining Guild so Qian Shunzhi could lead a nighttime attack. The attack failed, and Mo Shan caught Qian Shunzhi and captured one of the array masters.

• Master Qian explained that Qian Family array masters could locate the Earth Fire Arrays and agreed to send them to observe from afar.
• At night, Qian Family array masters mapped the Earth Fire Arrays, and Qian Shunzhi divided the attackers into teams with separate routes.
• Qian Family cultivators infiltrated the Artifact Refining Guild, but the fighting quickly ceased and none of them returned.
• Qian Shunzhi spotted approaching Monster Hunters and ordered his group to retreat, but Mo Shan caught up and injured him.
• Mo Shan bypassed the Qian Family guards, knocked out an array master, and handed him over to the Monster Hunters to be bound.

Mo Hua discovered the Qian Family Array Masters hiding near the Artifact Refining Guild and helped Mo Shan capture three of them. Elder Yu used the captives to force Qian Hong to pay Spirit Stones, leaving Qian Hong furious.

• Mo Shan led Monster Hunters in capturing three Qian Family Array Masters during the Guild raid, while Mo Hua watched from the wall.
• Mo Hua explained that the Qian Family Array Masters had tried to break his Earth Fire Array and urged Mo Shan to capture them alive.
• Elder Yu praised Mo Hua’s keen divine sense and took the captives to the Qian Family to demand compensation.
• Qian Hong accused Elder Yu of kidnapping the Array Masters and threatened to report him to the Dao Court Office.
• Elder Yu negotiated a ransom with Qian Hong and returned with Spirit Stones, while Qian Hong vowed to kill him.

At a feast for the Artifact Refining Guild, Master Ban worried that trouble from the Qian Family would delay construction and leave the craftsmen waiting for their Spirit Stones. After hearing how craftsmen could be exploited and punished when demanding payment, Mo Hua promised to draw the arrays faster and finish the project sooner.

• Elder Yu used part of the Spirit Stones to establish the Artifact Refining Guild and hosted a feast with food prepared by Liu Ruhua.
• Mo Hua noticed Master Ban's worry, and Master Ban explained that Qian Family attacks had damaged the construction and forced arrays to be redrawn.
• Master Ban told Mo Hua that delays would keep the craftsmen from receiving their Spirit Stones and recounted how his former master was imprisoned after they beat a cultivator who refused to pay them.
• Master Ban described corruption in some Dao Court Offices, while Mo Hua reflected on the dangers facing cultivators and craftsmen.
• Mo Hua reassured Master Ban that Elder Yu would pay and promised to draw the remaining arrays faster without overtaxing himself.

Mo Hua finished drawing the array techniques throughout the Artifact Refining Guild, easing Master Ban’s worries and strengthening his own array skills. Qian Hong and Master Qian inspected the completed arrays and were left wondering how many Array Masters the Monster Hunters had.

• Mo Hua reassured Master Ban that he would handle the array techniques, and Master Ban toasted him in relief.
• Mo Hua spent more than ten days drawing the Guild’s array techniques, despite repeated disruptions by the Qian Family.
• Mo Hua finished the array work, reviewed what he had learned, and left the remaining construction to Master Ban and the craftsmen.
• Qian Hong learned the Guild had entered its finishing stage and went with Master Qian to inspect it from a nearby Tea House.
• Master Qian judged the outer arrays unusually strong, and he and Qian Hong questioned how the Monster Hunters had completed them so quickly.

The Qian Family planned to undermine Yu Changlin’s Artifact Refining Guild by mass-producing cheaper Spirit Artifacts, while Master Qian studied the Molten Fire Array. At the guild, Mo Hua learned they lacked about ten Artifact Refiners and went to ask Master Chen to join.

• Master Qian identified the Earth Stone Array on the guild walls and concluded that the Monster Hunters’ Array Master knew only a few Arrays.
• Qian Hong planned to undercut the guild with cheaper Spirit Artifacts, and Master Qian said he had nearly mastered the Molten Fire Array in the Artifact Refining Furnace.
• Mo Hua struggled to learn the Molten Fire Array as Elder Yu told him the guild was short about ten Artifact Refiners and feared the Qian Family.
• Mo Hua decided to recruit Master Chen, brought wine and meat to Chen’s Smithy, and invited Master Chen and his disciples to eat.

Mo Hua invited Master Chen to join Elder Yu’s new Artifact Refining Guild, persuading him with its profit-sharing and meals for the disciples. He then tempted Master Chen with the prospect of using a First-Grade Artifact Refining Furnace, leaving Master Chen stunned that Mo Hua could draw First-Grade Array Techniques.

• Mo Hua treated Master Chen and the artifact refining disciples to beef and wine, then asked Master Chen to join Elder Yu’s new Artifact Refining Guild.
• Master Chen agreed because he trusted Mo Hua, and Mo Hua asked him to recruit other Artifact Refiners as well.
• Mo Hua explained that Guild earnings would be shared by contribution and that members would receive three meals a day, persuading Master Chen to speak with the others.
• Mo Hua proposed replacing Master Chen’s furnace with a larger, more powerful First-Grade Artifact Refining Furnace and adding a First-Grade Array Technique.
• Master Chen realized Mo Hua meant he could draw First-Grade Array Techniques and asked in shock whether Mo Hua could do so now.

Mo Hua asked Master Chen how Artifact Refining grades worked and learned how furnace quality and forging standards shaped Rogue Cultivators’ ability to make First-Grade Spirit Artifacts. The chapter ended with Mo Hua asking how Talisman Making differed from Array Techniques.

• Mo Hua told Master Chen that he could draw a First-Grade Molten Fire Array Technique and asked whether it would attract Artifact Refiners.
• Master Chen explained that Artifact Refiners, unlike Array Masters, could become First-Grade at Late Qi Refining, but Rogue Cultivators often lacked materials, manuals, and good Artifact Refining Furnaces.
• Master Chen described how furnace fire melted tough materials and how Spirit Artifact grades were measured by materials, processes, and especially the number of forgings, with a hundred forgings as a First-Grade benchmark.
• Mo Hua compared artifact forging with drawing Array Techniques and reflected on other array traditions and forbidden Demonic, Monster, Evil, Ghost, and Corpse Arrays.
• Mo Hua asked Master Chen whether Talisman Making differed from Array Techniques, but the chapter ended before Master Chen answered.

Mo Hua learned how talismans combined aspects of arrays and artifact refining, then discussed plans for guilds serving Rogue Cultivators with Elder Feng. Elder Feng agreed to support the Alchemy Guild while warning that good intentions could still end in ruin, and Mo Hua resolved to proceed anyway.

• Master Chen explained how talismans evolved from simple paper arrays into expensive Jade Talismans that sealed specialized spells.
• Mo Hua left Master Chen’s home with Da Zhu after confirming that Master Chen would help establish the Artifact Refining Guild.
• Mo Hua considered the difficulty of recruiting Alchemists and brought wine and meat to visit Elder Feng at Apricot Forest Hall.
• Mo Hua told Elder Feng about the proposed Artifact Refining Guild and Alchemy Guild, and Elder Feng agreed to support the effort.
• Elder Feng warned Mo Hua that tangled interests could ruin a well-intentioned project, but Mo Hua said they should still do what benefited everyone.

Mo Hua learned the First-Grade Molten Fire Array while Elder Yu prepared to establish the Monster Hunters' Artifact Refining Guild. Meanwhile, Master Qian mastered the same array and Qian Hong planned to use it to outclass the guild, unaware that Mo Hua had learned it too.

• Mo Hua told Elder Yu that Elder Feng and Master Chen had agreed to help the Alchemy Guild, and Elder Yu said the First-Grade Artifact Refining Furnace he had bought would arrive in a few days.
• Elder Yu asked whether Mo Hua could inscribe the furnace's Array Technique, and Mo Hua promised he would learn it soon.
• Master Qian told Qian Hong he had mastered the First-Grade Molten Fire Array, and Qian Hong ordered a family furnace prepared so Master Qian could inscribe it.
• Master Qian assured Qian Hong that the Monster Hunters' Array Master could not learn the difficult array, explaining its obscure patterns and high spiritual-sense demands.
• After four or five days of practice, Mo Hua learned to inscribe the First-Grade Molten Fire Array, finding its unfamiliar patterns harder than its spiritual-sense requirement.

Mo Hua and Master Chen saw the enormous First-Grade Artifact Refining Furnace Elder Yu had bought, and Mo Hua began designing a Compound Array for it. After Mr. Zhuang reviewed the design and confirmed Mo Hua had the ability of a First-Grade Array Master, he advised him to delay seeking a Dao Court ranking and keep learning.

• Elder Yu showed Mo Hua and Master Chen the unusually large First-Grade Artifact Refining Furnace he had bought at a bargain.
• Mo Hua measured the furnace, chose a First-Grade Molten Fire Spirit-Control Compound Array, and drafted a preliminary design for it.
• Mr. Zhuang reviewed Mo Hua’s Array Diagram, pointed out design flaws, and explained how its Array Hub needed to regulate the furnace’s fire.
• Mo Hua asked whether he qualified as a First-Grade Array Master, and Mr. Zhuang confirmed that he did.
• Mo Hua asked whether he should seek a Dao Court ranking, and Mr. Zhuang advised him to wait, gain experience, and avoid becoming famous too young.

Mo Hua postponed seeking Array Master grading and worked to master the difficult Array Hub for the Artifact Refining Guild’s furnace. While he trained, Qian Hong ramped up production at the Qian Family’s guild and pushed its exhausted Rogue Cultivator refiners to work harder.

• Mo Hua accepted Mr. Zhuang’s advice to wait until he reached the eighth or ninth layer of Qi Refining before seeking grading.
• Mo Hua repeatedly practiced the Array Hub of the First-Grade Molten Fire Spirit-Control Compound Array on the Dao Stele, but had not yet mastered it.
• Elder Yu began construction of the second phase of the Alchemy Guild while leaving its Array Techniques for Mo Hua to complete later.
• Master Qian finished putting First-Grade Molten Fire Arrays on three furnaces, and Qian Hong sent them to the Qian Family’s Artifact Refining Guild to increase production.
• When a steward raised concerns about the exhausted Rogue Cultivator refiners, Qian Hong refused to grant them rest and offered a reward to whoever produced the most Spirit Artifacts.

Mo Hua continued studying the First-Grade Molten Fire Spirit-Control Compound Array while Elder Yu explained his plans for the Artifact Refining and Alchemy Guilds and the ways he could protect the Monster Hunters if they could not compete with the Qian Family. After mastering the Array Hub and preparing the furnace, Mo Hua began drawing the Compound Array, with Elder Yu watching nervously.

• Elder Yu told Mo Hua that he had spent over a hundred years hoping to improve Rogue Cultivators’ lives and was not worried about a few more days’ delay.
• Elder Yu explained that if the guilds could not contend with the Qian Family, the Monster Hunters could sell them to the An Family, other lineages, or even the Qian Family, while keeping their own venture as the preferred outcome.
• Elder Yu advised Mo Hua to consider every angle and leave himself a way forward and a way out, and Mo Hua promised to remember the lesson.
• After about half a month, Mo Hua mastered the Array Hub, practiced adding the related arrays, and checked that the Compound Array fit the Artifact Refining Furnace.
• Mo Hua prepared the dismantled furnace and began drawing the First-Grade Molten Fire Spirit-Control Compound Array as Elder Yu watched nervously.

Mo Hua struggled to draw a First-Grade Molten Fire Compound Array on a large artifact refining furnace, then strengthened his divine sense through overnight practice on the Dao Stele. By the third day, he had completed the Array Hub and Molten Fire Array and began checking the compound array’s operation, realizing it needed a complete Spirit Gathering Array to supply Lingli.

• Mo Hua repeatedly failed to draw the compound array on the furnace because the large array required more divine sense than he had, and he spent the day meditating and trying again.
• After returning home, Mo Hua practiced the compound array on the Dao Stele through the night, improving his technique and strengthening his divine sense enough to cross the threshold.
• Mo Hua returned to the Artifact Refining Guild and continued drawing; on the third day, he completed the Array Hub.
• Mo Hua drew the First-Grade Molten Fire Array and prepared to test whether the Array Hub worked, while worrying about the Spirit Ink wasted on repeated attempts.
• Mo Hua remembered that the compound array also needed a Spirit Gathering Array as its Array Eye to supply Lingli and sustain a complete circulation system.

Mo Hua tested the First-Grade Molten Fire Compound Array and proved he could control its powerful furnace fire through the Array Hub. After Master Chen tested the assembled Artifact Refining Furnace, Mo Hua revealed that a second First-Grade Molten Fire Array still needed to be added.

• Mo Hua added a Spirit Gathering Array, connected to the Array Hub, and learned to control the furnace fire by directing Lingli into the Molten Fire Array.
• Mo Hua, Elder Yu, Master Chen, and the disciples assembled the Artifact Refining Furnace and tested its fire, which heated an iron rod quickly and made it easy to forge.
• Mo Hua shut down the furnace after the test, then told Master Chen to take it apart because the Array Techniques were unfinished.
• Mo Hua told Master Chen that the furnace would have two First-Grade Molten Fire Arrays, leaving him stunned by how powerful its fire could become.

Mo Hua completed the Artifact Refining Furnace’s compound array, producing unusually pure, bright scarlet furnace fire while the Cold Qi Array kept its heat from leaking out. With the Artifact Refining Guild’s preparations underway, Elder Yu obtained a worn manual that could help them build more furnaces.

• Mo Hua completed the Molten Fire, Cold Qi, and Metal-Stone arrays, and Master Chen reassembled the furnace.
• Master Chen and Elder Yu discovered that the furnace fire was bright scarlet and unusually pure, while Mo Hua explained that the Cold Qi Array kept its heat inside.
• Elder Yu and Master Chen organized the Artifact Refining Guild’s materials, furnaces, refiners, and processes.
• Mo Hua asked whether one furnace would be enough, and Elder Yu explained that buying more was costly and they lacked a refining manual.
• Elder Yu obtained a worn Artifact Refining Manual from an old acquaintance whose family had abandoned its former craft.