Chapter Summaries

Zhang Qingyuan effortlessly shattered the Grey Clothed Big Man’s blade and killed him with a devastating beam that split the sea. When the Scar-faced Big Man and the others fled, Zhang Qingyuan used his pressure to force them out of the sky and into the water, then approached them.

• The Scar-faced Big Man watched in terror as Zhang Qingyuan stopped the Grey Clothed Big Man’s blade between two fingers.
• Zhang Qingyuan shattered the Mid-grade Magic Treasure and vaporized the Grey Clothed Big Man with a dark red beam that split the sea for more than ten miles.
• The Scar-faced Big Man abandoned his search for the Divine Wood Seal and fled, prompting the others to escape as well.
• Zhang Qingyuan shouted for the fleeing group to get down and used the Thick Earth Momentum and True Meaning of Suppression to slam them into the sea.
• Zhang Qingyuan remarked on the force of his suppression and moved toward the fallen men.

After defeating the Scar-faced Big Man and his companions, Zhang Qingyuan searched the leader’s soul and uncovered fragmentary secrets linking Medicine King Valley and several major Yuzhou factions to the Ancient Orthodox Five Elements Sect. He was left wondering what had happened a thousand years ago and where the man had learned these secrets.

• Zhang Qingyuan’s display of power broke the Scar-faced Big Man and his companions’ resistance, and he killed them.
• Zhang Qingyuan performed a Soul Search on the Scar-faced Big Man and learned that Medicine King Valley’s inheritance came from the Wood Element of the Ancient Orthodox Five Elements Sect.
• Zhang Qingyuan learned that the Divine Wood Seal was tied to an ancient secret and that the Golden Extremity Sect demanded it be handed over to them.
• Zhang Qingyuan connected the Thick Earth Sect and the Cloud Water Sect to the ancient Five Elements Sect’s Earth and Water lineages.
• Zhang Qingyuan recalled that the Huangtian Cult and Thick Earth Sect had vanished around a thousand years ago as the Cloud Water Sect rose, but could not discover where the Scar-faced Big Man had learned the secrets.

After killing the scar-faced man, Zhang Qingyuan realized the man’s memories contained rare secrets about the Ancient Five Elements Sect and the origins of powerful forces. Yang Yuyan gave Zhang Qingyuan the Divine Wood Seal he requested, but as he flew away with it three days later, he remained suspicious of how readily she had surrendered it.

• Zhang Qingyuan regretted using Soul Search too hastily, since it had destroyed many of the scar-faced man’s memories and left him unable to learn the man’s full background.
• Zhang Qingyuan considered the secrets he had uncovered about the Ancient Five Elements Sect and planned to investigate its connection to his Five Elements cultivation path and Cloud Water Sect.
• Yang Yuyan thanked Zhang Qingyuan for rescuing her, and he told her to call him Fellow Daoist Zhang before asking what she intended to do about the conflict.
• Zhang Qingyuan asked Yang Yuyan for the Divine Wood Seal, and she handed it over after only a few questions.
• Three days later, Zhang Qingyuan flew over the sea with the Divine Wood Seal, wondering why Yang Yuyan had given it to him so easily.

Zhang Qingyuan studied the Divine Wood Seal and found that it greatly advanced his understanding of Wood Life Intent. After a month of travel, he reached Tianheng Island, where Wang Yuènián told him that their Master had summoned all his disciples.

• Zhang Qingyuan accepted the Divine Wood Seal from Yang Yuyan and discovered its power could help him comprehend Wood Life Intent.
• Zhang Qingyuan promised to help Yang Yuyan if they met again, then continued toward Tianheng Island while visiting Black Markets to buy Natal Magic Treasures.
• After a month, Zhang Qingyuan arrived at Tianheng Island and used his True Disciple Token to reach Peng Li's Cave Dwelling.
• Zhang Qingyuan found Wang Yuènián with Peng Li, and Wang Yuènián explained that their Master had summoned all his disciples.
• Zhang Qingyuan was surprised and asked whether their Master had emerged from Death Seclusion.

Zhang Qingyuan learned that Daoist Ming Shui had abruptly ended preparations for Death Seclusion and summoned his disciples, while the reason remained unknown. Zhang reported evidence that the Sea Clan was preparing to counterattack and that Ouyang Qianqiu might be allied with them, then waited on Tianheng Island for his Cheap Master's summons.

• Peng Li told Zhang Qingyuan that Daoist Ming Shui had stopped preparing for Death Seclusion after visits from the Mystic Water Peak Master and other Cave True Realm cultivators, then summoned his disciples to Tianheng Island.
• Zhang Qingyuan warned Peng Li that the Sea Clan might launch a counterattack and recounted what he had learned in the Deep Sea Region, while hiding some details of his journey.
• Wang Yuènián reasoned that Ouyang Shihong had ties to the Sea Clan and that Ouyang Qianqiu was likely among them, prompting the group to plan to inform Daoist Ming Shui.
• Zhang Qingyuan and Wang Yuènián discussed the wider turmoil in the Yuzhou Cultivation World with Peng Li before leaving in the evening.
• Zhang Qingyuan rented a Cave Dwelling, reviewed his intelligence, considered ways to improve his cultivation, and waited for Daoist Ming Shui's summons.

Zhang Qingyuan spent three months cultivating and getting acquainted with Daoist Ming Shui’s other Core Disciples, then mastered Wood Life Intent after buying an unusual spiritual medicine from Senior Brother Yuan. He tested its healing power and wondered whether Yang Yuyan and the Divine Wood Seal might lead him to a Wood Element inheritance.

• Zhang Qingyuan met Daoist Ming Shui’s other Core Disciples through Wang Yuènián and Peng Li and joined them for a discussion of the Dao.
• At the gathering, Zhang Qingyuan bought an unusual spiritual medicine from Senior Brother Yuan after thinking it might help him master Wood Life Intent.
• Several days later, Zhang Qingyuan completely mastered Wood Life Intent and tested how quickly it healed a wound on his palm.
• Zhang Qingyuan considered how far he remained from comprehending Wood Element force and put away the Divine Wood Seal.
• Zhang Qingyuan thought that Yang Yuyan might know of a Wood Element inheritance and suspected they would meet again.

Daoist Ming Shui announced that his lifespan was nearly exhausted and met privately with Zhang Qingyuan half a month later. He asked whether Zhang Qingyuan resented his lack of personal attention, then discussed his cultivation prospects, while privately comparing his rapid progress to someone from the past.

• Daoist Ming Shui told his gathered disciples that his life was nearing its end, leaving them shocked and unsettled.
• Zhang Qingyuan sensed Daoist Ming Shui's fading life force and wondered what great upheaval might have caused his sudden decline.
• Half a month later, Daoist Ming Shui recalled how he had chosen Zhang Qingyuan and asked whether he resented being left to cultivate mostly on his own.
• Zhang Qingyuan said he held no resentment and cited Daoist Ming Shui's past guidance, the Town Origin Cauldron, and the Jade Slips on Cave True cultivation.
• Daoist Ming Shui recognized Zhang Qingyuan's nearing True Essence Eighth Layer cultivation and reflected that his progress resembled, or surpassed, someone from the past.

Zhang Qingyuan told Daoist Ming Shui that he intended to walk the exceptionally difficult Way of Five Elements, despite the low chance of success. Though Daoist Ming Shui believed the choice would likely ruin his prospects, he accepted Zhang Qingyuan’s resolve and offered what help he could.

• Zhang Qingyuan considered how long it would take to comprehend the remaining elements and realized he could seek guidance from his master.
• Zhang Qingyuan told Daoist Ming Shui that he had chosen the Way of Five Elements and explained his determination to pursue it.
• Daoist Ming Shui warned that the path had almost no hope of success but accepted that Zhang Qingyuan had to choose his own Dao.
• Daoist Ming Shui offered Zhang Qingyuan ancient records on the Five Elements and a token to seek Wood Element opportunities from Daoist Tongmu of Tianmu Peak.
• Zhang Qingyuan thanked Daoist Ming Shui for his help.

Daoist Ming Shui gave up on bringing Zhang Qingyuan into the Water Element Lineage’s core, believing he lacked time to guide him onto the right path. Zhang Qingyuan studied the Jade Slips and began to suspect they were connected to the Ancient Five Elements Sect, then set aside the mystery to focus on preparing for the Way of Five Elements.

• Daoist Ming Shui and Wang Yuènián discussed Zhang Qingyuan’s talent, but Ming Shui said his approaching end left him unable to nurture him or wait for him to return to the proper path.
• Daoist Ming Shui placed the lineage’s hopes on Xuanyuan Xilai, while Wang Yuènián wondered whether Zhang Qingyuan could succeed on his chosen path.
• Zhang Qingyuan returned to his rented Cave Dwelling and spent three days studying and organizing the Jade Slips from Daoist Ming Shui.
• Zhang Qingyuan questioned how the incomplete notes described the Way of Five Elements so profoundly and suspected a connection between Daoist Ming Shui’s lineage and the Ancient Five Elements Sect.
• Zhang Qingyuan set aside his suspicions and focused on preparing to complete the Way of Five Elements.

After three months of refining his understanding of Wood Life Intent, Zhang Qingyuan resolved to pursue the Five Elements path while keeping the secrets of his cultivation method hidden. He used the Breath Soil to break through to the True Essence Eighth Layer as Daoist Ming Shui left Tianheng Island with Xuanyuan Xilai.

• Zhang Qingyuan organized Daoist Ming Shui’s Five Elements notes and advanced his understanding of Wood Life Intent.
• Zhang Qingyuan concluded that mastering all five elements to the level of Momentum was necessary to pursue the Five Elements path, and kept his Golden Finger and Great Evolution Technique secret.
• Zhang Qingyuan decided to use the Breath Soil to reach the True Essence Eighth Layer before visiting Tianmu Peak with Daoist Ming Shui’s token.
• Daoist Ming Shui left Tianheng Island with Xuanyuan Xilai, while the other disciples of his lineage departed as well.
• Zhang Qingyuan silently broke through to the True Essence Eighth Layer using the Breath Soil.

Zhang Qingyuan broke through to the True Essence Eighth Layer, then spent a month stabilizing his cultivation and reconsidering how to use the remaining Breath Soil. He left Tianheng Island to seek Daoist Tongmu’s help in comprehending the Wood Element, with only the Gold Element left to complete his Five Elements path.

• Zhang Qingyuan advanced to the True Essence Eighth Layer and found that his True Essence, body, and divine sense had all grown substantially stronger.
• Zhang Qingyuan realized the remaining Breath Soil would not carry him to the Ninth Layer and decided to cultivate the Eighth Layer himself before using it to break through a later bottleneck.
• Zhang Qingyuan spent a month stabilizing his cultivation until he had full control over his new strength.
• Zhang Qingyuan left Tianheng Island after discovering that Daoist Ming Shui and the other familiar cultivators had departed.
• Zhang Qingyuan headed for Tianmu Peak to seek Daoist Tongmu’s help in advancing his Wood Element comprehension.

Zhang Qingyuan visited Tianmu Peak and reunited with Qian Sen, a fellow disciple he had known when they first entered the Inner Sect. Their meeting revealed how far Zhang Qingyuan had risen from an obscure newcomer, while Qian Sen reflected on the changing fortunes of their generation.

• Zhang Qingyuan admired Tianmu Peak’s extensive spiritual medicine fields and considered how its cultivation methods compared with his own.
• Zhang Qingyuan decided to visit Qian Sen before seeking out Daoist Tongmu’s Dojo.
• Zhang Qingyuan found Qian Sen after several days, and the two reunited more than twenty years after their first meeting.
• Qian Sen compared his own progress to Zhang Qingyuan’s fame and cultivation, marveling at the difference between them.
• Zhang Qingyuan and Qian Sen discussed their experiences, their former cohort, and how once-celebrated disciples had faded as new generations arrived.

Zhang Qingyuan spent three days with Qian Sen, exchanging insights on cultivation and learning about Daoist Tongmu and Tianmu Peak. After Qian Sen’s breakthrough opportunity emerged, Zhang Qingyuan left him to cultivate and flew on toward his own business, reflecting on how much time had passed.

• Qian Sen recalled how Zhang Qingyuan had risen from an obscure Inner Sect disciple to surpass the former geniuses of their generation.
• Zhang Qingyuan and Qian Sen spent three days discussing cultivation, and Zhang Qingyuan’s guidance clarified Qian Sen’s problems and loosened his bottleneck.
• Zhang Qingyuan learned from Qian Sen about Wood Attribute cultivation and Spiritual Medicines, deepening his understanding of Wood Intent.
• Zhang Qingyuan asked Qian Sen about Tianmu Peak and Daoist Tongmu, learning public information about Daoist Tongmu’s temperament and Dojo.
• Qian Sen offered to lead Zhang Qingyuan to Daoist Tongmu’s Dojo, but Zhang Qingyuan declined so Qian Sen could pursue his breakthrough.
• Qian Sen escorted Zhang Qingyuan partway before returning to his Cave Dwelling, while Zhang Qingyuan flew away and reflected on the passage of time.

Zhang Qingyuan met Daoist Tongmu at Divine Wood Valley and insisted on pursuing Wood Element comprehension despite the risks and an offer of cultivation resources. Daoist Tongmu tested him by arranging a spar with Wei Tianxing, whose Wood Element technique summoned a massive dragon as the fight began.

• Daoist Tongmu warned Zhang Qingyuan that his Water Attribute Cultivation Method would make comprehending the Wood Element difficult and offered resources to help him reach the True Essence Ninth Layer.
• Zhang Qingyuan refused to change course and reaffirmed his decision to pursue the Wood Element.
• Daoist Tongmu asked Zhang Qingyuan to spar with Wei Tianxing so he could assess Zhang Qingyuan's Wood Element understanding.
• Zhang Qingyuan attacked first, summoning huge vines that surged at Wei Tianxing from every direction.
• Wei Tianxing countered with bamboo spears, then summoned the surrounding trees into a massive Wood Dragon and challenged Zhang Qingyuan to show his methods.

Zhang Qingyuan defeated Wei Tianxing in a spar by using six powerful Treants summoned through Grass and Trees Soldier Summoning. Impressed by Zhang Qingyuan’s Wood Element talent, Daoist Tongmu reconsidered what inheritance to offer him.

• Wei Tianxing narrowly dodged Zhang Qingyuan’s sudden attack, then countered with his Wood Dragon’s tail.
• Zhang Qingyuan revealed six enormous Treants, shocking Wei Tianxing with their power and his command of Grass and Trees Soldier Summoning.
• Daoist Tongmu recognized that Zhang Qingyuan had grasped Wood Life Intent and predicted that Wei Tianxing would lose.
• The Treants overwhelmed Wei Tianxing’s Wood Dragon and blasted him away, ending the battle in Zhang Qingyuan’s victory.
• Daoist Tongmu told Zhang Qingyuan that his talent might qualify him for a different choice than the deeper Wood Element inheritances he had planned to pass on.

After recovering from his defeat by Zhang Qingyuan, Wei Tianxing rejected Gongsun Lan’s proposal to ally over the Divine Wood Secret Realm. He anticipated that Gongsun Lan’s faction would encounter Zhang Qingyuan when the realm opened.

• Wei Tianxing recovered from his injuries and vowed to surpass Zhang Qingyuan, drawing confidence from a trump card in his Storage Ring.
• Si Jiu visited Wei Tianxing on Gongsun Lan’s behalf and proposed an alliance to explore the Divine Wood Secret Realm.
• Wei Tianxing refused, arguing that Gongsun Lan had no authority over Tianmu Peak and that he did not trust his promises of compensation.
• Si Jiu warned that Gongsun Lan’s allies might clear the field and treat Wei Tianxing as an enemy if he declined to join them.
• Wei Tianxing drove Si Jiu away with his killing intent and wondered whether Gongsun Lan sought to pursue multiple elemental paths like Zhang Qingyuan.
• Wei Tianxing left the Spirit Wood Forest, looking forward to Gongsun Lan’s people meeting Zhang Qingyuan in the Divine Wood Secret Realm.

Zhang Qingyuan entered Tianmu Peak’s Divine Wood Secret Realm to seek a Wood Element inheritance and hoped its legendary divine tree might reveal secrets about the Ancient Five Elements Sect. As the passage opened, several disciples rushed past him, and he entered after memorizing their figures.

• Zhang Qingyuan recalled choosing to explore the Divine Wood Secret Realm rather than accept an incomplete Wood Element inheritance from Daoist Tongmu.
• Zhang Qingyuan considered whether the legendary divine tree could have survived from the Ancient Five Elements Sect’s era and know what had happened to it.
• Zhang Qingyuan noticed that some people in the waiting crowd appeared to be watching and forming groups.
• Daoist Tongmu and other Tianmu Peak experts gave formal speeches before opening the Secret Realm passage with a formation.
• Several figures surged past Zhang Qingyuan and entered the passage ahead of him, and he memorized their appearances before following them into the Space Channel.

Zhang Qingyuan entered the Divine Wood Secret Realm, where he discovered that its vibrant forest was dangerous and that Wood Life Intent was needed to detect hostile plants. His unusually powerful Spiritual Sense let him sense abnormalities that might conceal opportunities, and he headed toward one such location.

• Daoist Tongmu defended Zhang Qingyuan's entry into the Divine Wood Secret Realm to another Cave True Cultivator.
• Zhang Qingyuan arrived in the secret realm and sensed its extraordinary vitality and suitability for cultivating Wood Attribute methods.
• Zhang Qingyuan struck down a hidden green vine that attacked him, then realized the mutated plants made the realm dangerous.
• Zhang Qingyuan used Wood Life Intent to sense threats because the realm's dense vitality suppressed Spiritual Sense.
• Zhang Qingyuan's Spiritual Sense detected an abnormal location that might conceal an opportunity, and he headed into the forest toward it.

Zhang Qingyuan entered a hidden inheritance site in the Divine Wood Secret Realm and faced its trial of three powerful Spider Puppets. He destroyed them with a phantom and his Sword Pellet, clearing the way to claim the inheritance.

• Zhang Qingyuan discovered a concealed valley entrance and entered the hidden space within it.
• A light-shadow of a stern old man explained that Zhang Qingyuan had to defeat three True Essence Eighth Layer Spider Puppets to qualify for the inheritance.
• The three Spider Puppets attacked Zhang Qingyuan from the front and behind, apparently cutting his body into pieces.
• Zhang Qingyuan revealed that the Puppets had struck a phantom made with Water Mirror Light Shadow and Wood Life Intent.
• Zhang Qingyuan used his Sword Pellet to slice all three Spider Puppets in half and destroy them.

After defeating the three Spider Puppets, Zhang Qingyuan received an inheritance from an old cultivator who had perfected the humble Spring Breeze Fine Rain Technique into a Dao-level art. The palm’s Dao Essence advanced Zhang Qingyuan’s cultivation, and he left to find a vital place in the Divine Wood Secret Realm to study the inheritance.

• Zhang Qingyuan exploited the Spider Puppets’ mechanical flaws and destroyed all three with a decisive strike.
• A formation appeared, and Zhang Qingyuan touched the emerald crystal to enter a boundary of consciousness.
• The old man described devoting his life to the Spring Breeze Fine Rain Technique and demonstrated its Dao-level palm, which transformed the surrounding land with life force.
• Zhang Qingyuan recognized the palm as an evolved Spring Breeze Fine Rain Technique and revered the old cultivator’s lifelong perseverance.
• The inheritance’s Dao Essence advanced Zhang Qingyuan’s cultivation from the Eighth Layer Initial Stage, and he left to find a place rich in vitality to absorb it.