Chapter Summaries

Lu Xuan prepared to lecture at the Inheritance Hall, where he shared his knowledge of cultivating spirit plants and raising spirit beasts. After meeting fellow Foundation Establishment cultivators and recognizing familiar faces among the audience, he began his lecture.

• Lu Xuan practiced the Flame Manipulation Art and spent two days preparing material for his lecture.
• He inspected his spirit field, harvested four mature flame fruits, and gained pills and Flame Manipulation Art rewards from their light orbs.
• At the Inheritance Hall, Lu Xuan met Senior Sister Guan and Senior Brother Zhang, who were also preparing to lecture.
• Senior Sister Guan recognized Lu Xuan as the one who had resolved the Azure Profound Deer's deathbed obsession and expressed interest in cooperating with him.
• More than fifty Outer Sect Disciples gathered for Lu Xuan's lecture, including Xia Chen and a round-faced cultivator he had helped before.
• Lu Xuan quieted the audience and began teaching cultivation methods and tricks concerning spirit plants.

Lu Xuan taught the Outer Sect Disciples why spirit plants mattered and demonstrated the arts and care needed to cultivate them. He invited them to bring their questions and troubled spirit plants to him at the Inheritance Hall.

• Lu Xuan challenged the disciples’ disregard for spirit plants, explaining their uses in refining tools and talismans and their importance to the Sword Hall.
• Lu Xuan demonstrated his mastery of the Spirit Rain Technique and other cultivation arts, including rapidly growing an Arrow Vine with the Wood Genesis Art.
• Lu Xuan explained that Spirit Plant Masters should treat each plant attentively, then showed the disciples his Demon Ghost Vine.
• Lu Xuan invited the disciples to ask him questions or bring in spirit plants for examination, and several disciples asked for help or wanted to touch the vine.

Lu Xuan taught the Outer Sect Disciples by diagnosing difficult Spirit Plant problems, including foul qi harming a Rotten Water Lotus and an underground-adapted Purple Sun Flower seed. The lecture continued when a gloomy Qi Refining Completion cultivator asked him to inspect an abnormal Azure Jade Branch.

• Lu Xuan answered the disciples’ questions about Spirit Plants and returned to the main hall for an afternoon discussion of difficult cases.
• A young cultivator showed Lu Xuan a Rotten Water Lotus with recurring Black Qi, and Lu Xuan used a Spirit Firefly Grass seed to identify foul qi in the lotus’s black mud.
• Lu Xuan explained how different kinds of qi could help some Spirit Plants and harm others, and the young cultivator thanked him before leaving the stage.
• A delicate-featured young man presented a Purple Sun Flower Spirit Seed that had failed to germinate, and Lu Xuan advised planting it in a dim cave at greater depth.
• Lu Xuan explained that Spirit Plant cultivation should adapt to each plant’s needs, then a gloomy Qi Refining Completion cultivator asked him to examine an abnormal Azure Jade Branch.

Lu Xuan discovered that Hidden Wood Insects were parasitizing a rare Azure Jade Branch, apparently as part of a plot to damage his reputation. He secretly fed them Azure Wood Source Qi, worsening the infestation, then told the owner the damage would be difficult to reverse as the branch began cracking.

• A gloomy young man brought Lu Xuan a Third Grade Azure Jade Branch with fine cracks, and Lu Xuan examined it while the gathered disciples watched.
• Lu Xuan planted the branch and used his Spirit Plant insight to identify Third Grade Hidden Wood Insects draining its vitality.
• Lu Xuan suspected that someone had deliberately infested the branch to make him look incapable, and he thought the three people from the blessed land were likely responsible.
• Lu Xuan fed the branch Azure Wood Source Qi, causing the Hidden Wood Insects to grow and bind more tightly to it.
• Lu Xuan told the young man that the Hidden Wood Insects had been inside for some time and the damage would be hard to reverse, and the branch’s cracks quickly widened.

Lu Xuan exposed a plot involving a Hidden Wood Insect in a precious Azure Jade Branch and continued teaching Spirit Plant cultivation at the Inheritance Hall. After class, he rejected a female cultivator who offered to tend his Spirit Plants, protecting his chance to receive their White Light Orb rewards.

• A gloomy young man accused Lu Xuan of damaging the Azure Jade Branch, but Lu Xuan explained that a Hidden Wood Insect had weakened it from within.
• Lu Xuan drew the Hidden Wood Insect out with a wooden crossbow artifact, proving his diagnosis and leaving the young man to take the damaged branch away.
• Lu Xuan resumed his lesson and patiently answered the cultivators’ questions until the day’s class ended.
• A lovely female cultivator offered to tend Lu Xuan’s Spirit Plants and help with his daily needs, but Lu Xuan refused because he valued caring for the plants himself.
• The female cultivator left him a Communication Talisman, while Lu Xuan resolved that female cultivators would only distract him from farming.

Lu Xuan agreed to cooperate with Guan Wan and the Alchemy Hall by cultivating high-grade spirit plants for them. He learned the plants might include a main ingredient for the Foundation Establishment Pill, and he believed its Light Orb could grant him the pill or its elixir recipe.

• Guan Wan praised Lu Xuan’s spirit-plant expertise and proposed that he cultivate spirit plants for the Alchemy Hall.
• Guan Wan explained that the Alchemy Hall would provide Spirit Seeds and guaranteed Sword Seals, with additional rewards for plants that matured in high quantity and quality.
• Lu Xuan accepted the cooperation and learned that the spirit plant might be a main ingredient for the Foundation Establishment Pill.
• Guan Wan dismissed Lu Xuan’s concern that outsiders cultivating the ingredient could expose the sect’s secret elixir recipe.
• Lu Xuan reasoned that cultivating the ingredient could let him obtain the Foundation Establishment Pill or its recipe from a Light Orb, and he gave Guan Wan a Communication Talisman.

After returning to the mountain, Lu Xuan tended to his Spirit Plants and joined Senior Brothers and Sisters for a gathering. When the Heaven Sword Sect called Inner Sect Disciples to hunt the escaped Five Hearts United Demons, he chose to stay behind and leave demon-slaying to them.

• Lu Xuan returned to his mountain, where the Demon Ghost Vine explored among his Spirit Plants and he played with the Wind Falcon, Dazzling Fire Flood Dragon, and Cloud Stepping Lynx.
• Lu Xuan reflected on how his Spirit Plant cultivation differed from that of other cultivators, then joined Liu Su and several Senior Brothers and Sisters to exchange experiences.
• The Heaven Sword Sect announced that Tong Yin of the Extreme Yin Sect had died and that his escaped Five Hearts United Demons had fled to Star Origin City, offering a Fourth Grade Flying Sword for each one killed.
• Liu Su explained that the Five Hearts United Demons were made through a cruel method and could slaughter cultivators to replenish their blood essence and souls.
• When the group decided to go hunt the demons, Lu Xuan declined, saying his strength was feeble and that demon-slaying was better left to his Shixiong and Shijie.

Lu Xuan declined to join the hunt for the Same Heart Demon so he could harvest his maturing Spirit Plants. He gathered Flame Fruits and an Ice Luo Fruit, receiving several rewards and a Hundred-Year Ice Soul, while the demon hunt continued without him.

• Lu Xuan refused to join the other Inner Sect Disciples in searching for the Same Heart Demon because his Spirit Plants were nearing their harvest window.
• Lu Xuan harvested fifteen Flame Fruits and opened their White Light Orbs, obtaining Explosive Flame Pearls, Burning Essence Pills, Flame Manipulation Art experience packs, a Red Lotus Flame, and a Burning Essence Pill Elixir Recipe.
• Lu Xuan fed a Flame Fruit to the Demon Ghost Vine and continued inspecting his Spirit Fields.
• Lu Xuan harvested a mature Ice Luo Fruit and received a Third Grade Hundred-Year Ice Soul from its White Light Orb.

Lu Xuan harvested mature Spirit Fruits and their rewards while the Inner Sect was quiet because many disciples had gone to hunt the Same Heart Demon. His harvest left him with healing treasures, rare materials, and a powerful Great Sun Sword Talisman.

• Lu Xuan discovered a Hundred-Year Ice Soul and harvested an Ice Luo Fruit, receiving a Third-grade Jade Muscle Elixir.
• Lu Xuan stayed behind as more than thirty Inner Sect Disciples left to encircle the Same Heart Demon, and he continued harvesting Spirit Fruits and light orb rewards.
• Lu Xuan harvested all eight Jade Scale Fruits and received Crimson Astral Jade, Yunshan Jade Talismans, and other treasures.
• Lu Xuan plucked a mature Sword Nurturing Gourd and obtained the Rank 4 Great Sun Sword Talisman, which could heavily injure or slay Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Lu Xuan hosted the Mystic Sky White Luan and the White Jade Sky Supporting Ape with spirit fruits and secured their promise to help him if anyone threatened him. He then visited Kong Shixiong, who explained that a True Disciple had killed the Same Heart Demon after its remnant soul helped three demons ambush and kill a Foundation Establishment Early Stage cultivator.

• Lu Xuan harvested three Rank 4 Sword Talismans from his mature Sword Nurturing Gourds and resolved to keep cultivating them.
• Lu Xuan invited the Mystic Sky White Luan and the White Jade Sky Supporting Ape to a spirit fruit banquet, where they enjoyed his high-quality fruit and Hundred Fruit Spirit Nectar.
• Lu Xuan told the two young spirit beasts that powerful cultivators might trouble him, and they agreed to come to his aid.
• Lu Xuan visited Kong Shixiong to ask about the Same Heart Demon, and Kong said the sect had sent a True Disciple to kill it.
• Kong Shixiong revealed that three Same Heart Demons, guided by a Core Formation Old Demon's remnant soul, had broken through their encirclement and killed a Foundation Establishment Early Stage cultivator.

Lu Xuan discussed the risks of pursuing fortuitous encounters with Cultivator Kong and realized the Same Heart Demons could help nourish his Saint Infant Fruit. After returning to his mountain and reflecting on his safer cultivation path, he was summoned by Guan Wan, who had come to deliver seeds.

• Cultivator Kong argued that cultivators had to contend for fortuitous encounters, while Lu Xuan maintained that they should not risk their lives needlessly.
• Lu Xuan learned that Inner Sect Disciples who captured Same Heart Demons could exchange them with the sect, and he considered obtaining one to nourish his Saint Infant Fruit.
• Lu Xuan planned to visit the Small Courtyard in Sword Gate Town and check on his Netherworld Spirit Plants after his watchers let down their guard.
• Lu Xuan returned to his mountain, reprimanded the Demon Ghost Vine for secretly eating Spirit Plants, and reflected that his opportunities were already there among his plants.
• The Grass Puppet alerted Lu Xuan that Guan Wan had arrived to deliver seeds, and he hurried to meet her.

Lu Xuan hosted Guan Wan and accepted twenty Third Grade Hidden Essence Grass seeds and five Fourth Grade Five Elements Fruit seeds from the Alchemy Hall to cultivate. After Guan Wan left, he planted all twenty-five seeds in his special Spirit Field.

• Lu Xuan showed Guan Wan his Spirit Plants, including his Water Firefly Grass and intelligent vine, impressing her with their quality.
• Lu Xuan entertained Guan Wan with Flame Fruits, Ice Luo Fruits, and Hundred Fruit Spirit Nectar.
• Guan Wan offered Lu Xuan twenty Hidden Essence Grass seeds and five Five Elements Fruit seeds, along with three hundred and fifty Sword Seals in guaranteed remuneration.
• Lu Xuan signed an agreement with Guan Wan and received the Spirit Seeds.
• After Guan Wan left, Lu Xuan planted the Hidden Essence Grass and Five Elements Fruit seeds in the Wu Spirit Soil Spirit Field.

Lu Xuan tended his Spirit Plants and attended a treasure-exchange gathering hosted by True Disciple Huo Liner, hoping to find Spirit Seeds, Spirit Beast eggs, a Same Heart Demon, or strange fire. The exchange began when a disciple offered a Phantom Sound Bamboo root segment, and Lu Xuan watched for an opportunity to obtain something he needed.

• Lu Xuan planted Hidden Essence Grass and Five Elements Fruit seeds, then inspected his Water Firefly Grass, Sword Grass, Earth Fire Heart Lotus, and Phoenix Wood.
• Lu Xuan spent the next ten or so days tending his mountain peak and learned that True Disciple Huo Liner would host a treasure-exchange gathering.
• Lu Xuan arrived at Huo Liner's residence and joined more than thirty Inner Sect Disciples for discussion and refreshments.
• Huo Liner explained the gathering's rules, and Lu Xuan spoke with fellow disciples about cultivation and Spirit Plant care.
• After the discussion ended, the treasure exchange began, and Lu Xuan watched as a disciple offered a Phantom Sound Bamboo root segment for a Third Grade offensive Magic Tool or Fourth Grade goods.

Lu Xuan exchanged Fourth Grade Crimson Astral Jade for a Phantom Sound Bamboo root, then tried to trade a Yunshan Jade Talisman for unusual spirit seeds. After finding no suitable offer onstage, he examined an unknown bloodthirsty spirit seed and eagerly considered adding it to his Netherworld Courtyard.

• Lu Xuan traded Fourth Grade Crimson Astral Jade to obtain the Phantom Sound Bamboo root, outbidding a cultivator offering a Frigid Flood Dragon Spear.
• Lu Xuan presented a Fourth Grade Yunshan Jade Talisman and sought Spirit Seeds, Spirit Beast embryos or eggs, Young Beasts, or strange flames in exchange.
• Lu Xuan rejected offers of Magic Tools, medicinal pills, and Talismans, then left the platform without making a trade.
• A short, plump old man privately showed Lu Xuan a blood orb containing an unknown spirit seed that stirred bloodthirsty impulses.
• Lu Xuan felt excited by the blood-colored flower inside the orb and thought it would make another fierce addition to his Netherworld Courtyard.

Lu Xuan traded for a mysterious Blood Orb Spirit Seed and then acquired the Wood Attribute Same Heart Demon he had come to seek. He left with the demon infant bound by a rune chain that would only hold it for about three months.

• Lu Xuan bargained with a short, plump old man and traded a Yunshan Jade Talisman plus five hundred Spirit Stones for the Blood Orb Spirit Seed.
• Lu Xuan judged the Blood Orb Spirit Seed likely to be a Fourth Grade or Fifth Grade Spirit Plant.
• A cold-as-frost female cultivator offered a Wood Attribute Same Heart Demon, which Lu Xuan recognized as the Wood Infant refined by Tong Yin.
• Lu Xuan offered a Good Grade Sword Nurturing Gourd and a Third-grade Explosive Flame Pearl for the Wood Infant and its rune chain.
• The female cultivator taught Lu Xuan how to control the rune chain and warned that it would stop binding the infant after about three months without further refinement.

After the treasure exchange, Lu Xuan returned to his mountain peak and planted the Fourth Grade Phantom Sound Bamboo root and the mysterious Blood Orb Spirit Seed. He discovered the seed was a Fifth Grade Blood Karma Flower and decided to move it to his Small Courtyard in Sword Gate Town.

• Lu Xuan reviewed the treasures he had traded and gained, and considered selling some of his duplicate items.
• After the gathering dispersed, Lu Xuan returned to his mountain peak and planted the Phantom Sound Bamboo root in a Spirit Field.
• The Demon Ghost Vine inspected and marked the Phantom Sound Bamboo root, which reacted with alarm until Lu Xuan chased the vine away.
• Lu Xuan planted the Blood Orb Spirit Seed and learned it was a Fifth Grade Blood Karma Flower that absorbed the blood qi of nearby creatures.
• Lu Xuan dug up the Blood Karma Flower Spirit Seed and decided to plant it in his Small Courtyard in Sword Gate Town.

Lu Xuan secretly traveled to his Small Courtyard in Sword Gate Town, fed its Netherworld Spirit Plants, and planted a Blood Karma Flower. He then brought out the Wood Attribute Same Heart Demon and struck it with his Violet Lightning Sword, leaving its fate unresolved.

• Lu Xuan tried to tempt the Wood Attribute Same Heart Demon with Azure Wood Source Qi, but it refused to submit, so he bound it again and put it away.
• Lu Xuan slipped out of Heaven Sword Sect and reached Sword Gate Town without finding anyone following him.
• Lu Xuan released over twenty Yin Soul Grudges to feed the five Ghost Face Stone Mushrooms and checked the mature Thorn Bone and Hundred Eyed Treant.
• Lu Xuan planted the Blood Karma Flower and divided a Rank 1 Demon Beast among his Netherworld Spirit Plants.
• Lu Xuan took out the Wood Attribute Same Heart Demon and struck it with the Violet Lightning Sword.

Lu Xuan forced the Wood Attribute Same Heart Demon to release infant Grievance Souls and fed them to the Saint Infant Fruit Spirit Seed, then tended his Blood Karma Flower and Ghost Face Stone Mushrooms. He harvested a Good Grade Ghost Face Stone Mushroom and obtained a Fourth Grade Soul Guiding Lamp from its White Light Orb.

• Lu Xuan shocked the Wood Infant until it released several ignorant infant souls, then guided them into the Saint Infant Fruit Spirit Seed, where the gray-black infant absorbed them.
• Lu Xuan secured the Wood Attribute Same Heart Demon in his Storage Bag, intending to keep it for a supply of infant souls.
• Lu Xuan poured three bottles of Flood Dragon Blood Essence into the Blood Karma Flower spirit seed, and its blood-colored flower bloomed more vividly.
• Lu Xuan fed the hungry Ghost Face Stone Mushrooms with Azure Wood Source Qi and Yin Soul Grudge, ripening one into a Good Grade plant.
• Lu Xuan harvested the Ghost Face Stone Mushroom and received a Fourth Grade Soul Guiding Lamp from its White Light Orb.

Lu Xuan sold rare materials at the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion and returned to his mountain, where true disciple Ge Pu arrived with an invitation for him to help raise bugs. The chapter ended with Lu Xuan learning that another true disciple had requested his help.

• Lu Xuan examined the reward from ripening a Ghost Face Stone Mushroom and found a fourth-grade Soul Guiding Lamp, which he decided to keep hidden.
• Lu Xuan sold Crimson Astral Jade and Hundred-Year Ice Soul to the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion for 3,700 Spirit Stones.
• Lu Xuan browsed the Pavilion, found little he wanted, and returned to his mountain.
• Ge Pu appeared at Lu Xuan's mountain and said a true disciple wanted to invite him to help raise bugs.

Ge Pu brought Lu Xuan to Insect Valley to care for Zhong Jingshan’s rare insects while Zhong was away. Lu Xuan accepted the task, met Zhong, and received instructions on raising and controlling the insects.

• Ge Pu told Lu Xuan that True Disciple Zhong Jingshan needed someone to care for his rare insects for about half a year, and Lu Xuan agreed.
• Ge Pu transported Lu Xuan to Insect Valley and introduced him to Zhong Jingshan.
• Zhong Jingshan welcomed Lu Xuan with Hundred Flower Spirit Honey and gave him a talisman sheet detailing the insects’ habits, care, and basic control methods.
• After Lu Xuan memorized the instructions, Zhong Jingshan sent a suona-shaped object flying before him.