Chapter Summaries

Chen Mobai discovered that a High-grade Spirit Stone beneath the Water Mansion’s cultivation room powered the Azure Water Formation and boosted the local spiritual energy, but he left it in place to preserve the mansion. After cultivating, he took Qing Nü’s Fire Clearing Pill and began to sense its effect on his Spiritual Sense.

• Chen Mobai used his phone to trace the unusually dense spiritual energy to a hollow floor tile beneath his meditation cushion.
• Chen Mobai uncovered the Azure Water Formation’s disk and recognized the embedded crystal as a High-grade Spirit Stone.
• Chen Mobai decided not to remove the activated Spirit Stone, fearing he would damage the Water Mansion and attract robbers if he carried it away.
• Chen Mobai cultivated with the Five Elements Technique, converted spiritual power into the Pure Yang Scroll, and noticed the process had become more efficient.
• Chen Mobai swallowed Qing Nü’s Fire Clearing Pill and circulated the Nurturing Thought God Forging Technique as a new green shoot appeared on his imagined Wutong sapling.

Chen Mobai learned that E Yun had dealt with two of the South Mountain Bandits and was pursuing their leader, Lei Tao, while Ding Ying came to escort him to South Stream Market. He joined the new Divine Wood Sect disciples there, where one group welcomed him as their senior brother.

• Chen Mobai’s Spiritual Sense grew stronger after he took a Fire Clearing Pill, and he tended the Green Wutong Sapling at his Water Mansion.
• Ding Ying contacted Chen Mobai through the Azure Water Formation and showed him the severed heads of He Qun and another South Mountain Bandit.
• Ding Ying told Chen Mobai that E Yun had killed the two bandits and was pursuing Lei Tao, who had escaped with a Second Grade mid-grade spirit talisman.
• Chen Mobai packed his backpack, secured the Water Mansion, and flew with Ding Ying aboard her Green Leaf Boat to South Stream Market.
• Ding Ying told Chen Mobai to keep her flying Magic Artifact secret, and a group of new Divine Wood Sect disciples welcomed him at the market.

Chen Mobai tried to avoid leading the new recruits to Divine Wood Sect, but his talent drew many Rogue Cultivators to his side. As the group boarded the sect’s airship, Foundation Establishment Elder Shan Hongyi took notice of him.

• Chen Mobai declined to lead the recruits, while Zhuo Ming and several Rogue Cultivators chose to follow him instead of Liu Wenbai.
• Chen Mobai learned that Yu Lian and the Luo Siblings were the other standout recruits from Yun Country’s cultivation markets.
• Yuan Chiye summoned the recruits to board Divine Wood Sect’s airship, where Shan Hongyi stood with Yuan Chiye and Ding Ying.
• Yu Lian and the Luo Siblings boarded first, and Liu Wenbai yielded the next place to Chen Mobai.
• Shan Hongyi asked Yuan Chiye about Chen Mobai, and Yuan Chiye said Senior Brother E considered him worth nurturing.

Chen Mobai and the other new disciples arrived at the Divine Wood Sect’s Giant Wood Ridge, where they began their probationary period and learned about the sect. After three days, Chen Mobai’s group entered the Scripture Pavilion to choose their cultivation techniques.

• Shan Hongyi took the new disciples aboard an airship and flew them from South Stream Market to Giant Wood Ridge.
• The group passed through the Grand Array into the Divine Wood Sect, where they saw the Three Divine Trees and arrived at the sect’s halls.
• Yuan Chiye registered the new disciples, explained their three months of firewood duty and other rules, and gave them Identity Tokens.
• Chen Mobai and the other disciples listened to Yuan Chiye’s daily lessons while eagerly cultivating in Giant Wood Ridge’s dense spiritual energy.
• Yuan Chiye led Chen Mobai, Liu Wenbai, Zhuo Ming, and four others into the tree-shaped Scripture Pavilion to select cultivation techniques.

Chen Mobai chose the Two Aspects Technique despite warnings about its heavy demands, then selected the Spirit Needle Technique as his spell. He learned more about the sect and storage bags while waiting, leaving with his choices registered.

• Chen Mobai asked to choose the Two Aspects Technique, and Senior Brother Hu and Yuan Chiye warned him about its costs and risks.
• Chen Mobai submitted a letter of willingness and received a copy of the Two Aspects Technique with Old Ancestor Fu's insights.
• Yuan Chiye recommended spells that could help Chen Mobai gain work in the medicinal fields, and Chen Mobai chose the Spirit Needle Technique.
• Chen Mobai asked Yuan Chiye about the Flying Needle Sect, and Yuan Chiye found that it was declining after its last Foundation Establishment Cultivator died.
• Chen Mobai asked about storage bags, and Yuan Chiye offered to sell him one while explaining how he had refined its former owner's Spiritual Sense brand.

Chen Mobai chose the Two Aspects Technique, arranged to obtain the Longevity Sutra from Liu Wenbai, and applied for seclusion at New Bud Hall. He secretly left for Chicheng Cave Heaven, where a young woman took the seat beside him on the train.

• Liu Wenbai chose the Two Aspects Technique as well, and Chen Mobai explained its cultivation requirements to Zhuo Ming.
• Chen Mobai asked Zhuo Ming for a copy of the Longevity Sutra, but she refused because of her Dao Heart Oath; Liu Wenbai offered to copy his family-prepared version for Chen Mobai.
• Chen Mobai and the other new disciples applied to Yuan Chiye for seclusion, though they still had to meet their daily Crimson Sun Wood chopping quota.
• Chen Mobai secretly packed his things and boarded a train bound for Chicheng Cave Heaven with the Longevity Sutra.
• A young woman arrived at Chen Mobai's seat, and he moved his schoolbag so she could sit beside him.

Chen Mobai studied the Longevity Sutra on the train to Chicheng Cave Heaven, where he met Shi Wanyu and several other students. After Wen Xiong asked whether he attended Longevity Academy, Chen Mobai revealed that he was from Wuqi Dao Academy, leaving the carriage stunned.

• Chen Mobai read the Longevity Sutra and met Shi Wanyu, who said she was headed to Flowing Light Academy.
• Gu Mingxuan joined them, then left after the tattooed passenger showed that Gu Mingxuan's ticket was for another carriage.
• Wen Xiong introduced himself as a new student at Pure Yang Academy and asked for Shi Wanyu's contact information, but she refused.
• Gu Mingxuan tried to keep Shi Wanyu company, while Chen Mobai declined to trade his seat for a soft sleeper ticket.
• Wen Xiong noticed Chen Mobai's book and asked if he attended Longevity Academy, and Chen Mobai announced he was from Wuqi Dao Academy.

After Chen Mobai revealed that he had entered Wuqi Dao Academy, the passengers treated him like a genius, and he moved to the train’s first-class cabin. He studied the Longevity Sutra and asked Yuan Chiye about its meaning and whether he would sell his Foundation Establishment Pill, learning that the sect’s true inheritance depended on succeeding at Foundation Establishment on the first attempt.

• Chen Mobai signed autographs for the passengers and exchanged contact information with Shi Wanyu, while Wen Xiong and Gu Mingxuan questioned whether he truly attended Wuqi Dao Academy.
• The Chief Conductor verified Chen Mobai’s admission certificate and escorted him to the first-class cabin, where he studied and translated the Longevity Sutra.
• Chen Mobai used Turtle Treasure to visit the Sky River Realm and paid Yuan Chiye to check his translation of the Longevity Sutra.
• Chen Mobai asked whether Yuan Chiye would sell his Foundation Establishment Pill, and Yuan Chiye refused, saying he would take it even if he died.
• Yuan Chiye explained that only True Disciples who established their foundation on their first attempt could enter the Three Divine Trees and gain the sect’s true inheritance.

Chen Mobai learned about the Divine Wood Sect’s Three Divine Trees and considered using their gifts to aid his cultivation. On the train to Chicheng Cave Heaven, he weighed his Foundation Establishment plans, failed to open a storage bag, and began taking a Fire Clearing Pill to strengthen his Spiritual Sense.

• Yuan Chiye told Chen Mobai that successful first-try Foundation Establishment disciples could visit the Three Divine Trees and receive treasures based on their spiritual roots.
• Chen Mobai returned to Earth Origin Star and considered how to help his father obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill, while resolving to aim for one-try Foundation Establishment himself.
• Chen Mobai reviewed his cultivation methods on the train and reflected on how slowly his Pure Yang Scroll progress had become without True Person Scarlet Robe’s help.
• Chen Mobai tried to open the storage bag from Green Light Island but found its previous owner’s Spiritual Sense was stronger than his.
• Chen Mobai entered the train’s rest room and began taking a Fire Clearing Pill to improve his Spiritual Sense.

Chen Mobai traveled to a station lounge to await Wuqi Dao Academy’s shuttle and discovered that the masked student beside him was the famous Meng Huang'er. He helped her evade reporters, while Gu Mingxuan later found candid photos of her online.

• Chen Mobai waited in the station lounge with two other Wuqi Dao Academy students and noticed that the masked girl seemed familiar.
• Chen Mobai boarded the school shuttle and recognized the girl as Meng Huang'er when reporters called out her name.
• Chen Mobai covered Meng Huang'er with his sun hat and urged the driver to hurry as station staff cleared a path through the crowd.
• Gu Mingxuan and Shi Wanyu arrived after the shuttle had left, and Wen Xiong told Shi Wanyu he would prove her choice was wrong.
• A reporter sold a front-facing photo of Meng Huang'er, and Gu Mingxuan found more candid photos in her fan circle.

Chen Mobai arrived at Wuqi Dao Academy and learned that other students looked down on specially recruited freshmen, especially since his entrance score was the lowest. As he climbed Chicheng Mountain, its Fifth Tier Spirit Land rapidly strengthened his Pure Yang cultivation, and he resolved to stay for ten years.

• Gu Mingxuan recognized Chen Mobai in intimate-looking photos with Meng Huang'er, while Shi Wanyu explained that they attended the same school.
• On the ride to Wuqi Dao Academy, Ma Xiaoming dismissed Chen Mobai as a low-scoring special recruit and revealed that he had lost to an eighteen-year-old Foundation Establishment genius.
• Chen Mobai learned that Wuqi Dao Academy's freshmen included many exceptional geniuses and that his own entrance score was the lowest.
• Meng Huang'er left to stay at a rented place outside the academy, and Chen Mobai realized he had forgotten to ask for her contact information.
• As Chen Mobai climbed Chicheng Mountain's Thousand-Step Stairway, the Fifth Tier Spirit Land's fire Spiritual Qi fueled his Pure Yang Scroll, prompting him to resolve to stay for ten years.

Chen Mobai enrolled at the Dao Academy and learned that his assigned counselor, True Person Lesser Yang, had been in seclusion for ten years. Because he needed a private place to live while traveling between realms, he rented a secluded mountain cabin near Meng Huang'er’s villa.

• Chen Mobai received his Student ID and learned about the academy’s courses, Credits, and cultivation facilities.
• Chen Mobai found that his assigned dormitory was a shared room and asked whether he could live alone or rent off campus.
• Chen Mobai decided to search for an isolated rental despite losing access to Chicheng Mountain’s superior spiritual veins.
• Chen Mobai visited a housing agent and asked to see a secluded Cave Mansion Villa with utilities and spiritual energy.
• Chen Mobai chose a shabby wooden house below Meng Huang'er’s villa after learning he might hear her sing each morning.

Chen Mobai learned how the Critical Point Method improved Foundation Establishment success by letting cultivators pause between its stages until their reserves were sufficient. Qu Hongyu explained that the method was exceptionally difficult to master, though Wuqi Dao Academy students usually managed it.

• Chen Mobai inspected his rented wooden house, confirmed its foundation was legal, and returned to Wuqi Dao Academy.
• Chen Mobai met senior students Meng Mu and Qu Hongyu and learned they were both preparing for Foundation Establishment with predicted success rates of fifty-five percent.
• Qu Hongyu explained how the Foundation Establishment Trio supported the body, spiritual power, and spiritual sense, while the Critical Point Method helped cultivators focus on the final leap.
• Qu Hongyu sent Chen Mobai materials and described how the method let cultivators pause after each transformation stage until their reserves were ready for the next.
• Qu Hongyu told Chen Mobai that most Wuqi Dao Academy students could comprehend the method, but only one percent of students at the Ten Great Academies could, and almost none at the Hundred and Twenty Mansions could.

Chen Mobai studied the Critical Point Method and learned of an unusual route to mastering it, then used modern tools to speed up his Divine Wood Sect firewood task. He handed in seven days’ worth of firewood and asked Yuan Chiye for another seven days of leave to enter seclusion.

• Qu Hongyu explained the Critical Point Method’s limitations and advised Chen Mobai to complete its transformations within ten years.
• Chen Mobai borrowed the original Critical Point Method text from the Wuqi Dao Academy library and read cultivation advice online, including Tian Wenguang’s account of mastering the method through the Jade Lock Golden Gate Art.
• Chen Mobai decided not to follow Tian Wenguang’s research path and prioritized the Longevity Sutra and Two Aspects Technique.
• After finding manual chopping too slow, Chen Mobai bought and assembled an electric saw and table saw, then used them secretly to process Crimson Sun Wood.
• Chen Mobai delivered 2,100 standardized pieces of Crimson Sun Firewood to Yuan Chiye and requested seven days of leave to enter seclusion.

Chen Mobai used his hidden woodcutting method to amass Crimson Sun Firewood, drawing attention from fellow disciples who wanted to buy or learn his supply route. After evading a follower, he harvested more than ten thousand pieces and gave Liu Wenbai a cover story about a senior practicing sword art; Liu Wenbai believed him.

• Chen Mobai delivered more than two thousand pieces of Crimson Sun Firewood, earned Yuan Chiye's approval to enter seclusion, and avoided explaining his supply to Luo Yixiu.
• Liu Wenbai admitted that he and the Luo Siblings bought firewood through Sect Market channels, then offered Chen Mobai five Spirit Stones to obtain seven days' worth.
• Chen Mobai detected followers with a Spirit-Seeking Talisman, led them around, and returned to tell Liu Wenbai that the seller's stock was gone.
• The Luo Siblings discussed their secret purchases from Earth Fire Hall, while Liu Wenbai explained how he had discovered the channel and Chen Mobai said he planned to reclaim Spirit Fields.
• Yu Lian offered to pay twice the market price for extra Crimson Sun Firewood, and Chen Mobai left to cut more in a remote part of Giant Wood Ridge.
• After two days and nights of work, Chen Mobai showed Liu Wenbai more than ten thousand pieces of firewood and claimed a senior's sword art had inspired the precise cuts.

Chen Mobai attended Wuqi Dao Academy’s opening ceremony after weighing his cultivation plans and meeting Meng Huang'er on the way. He was assigned temporary guidance from the dean of studies and was summoned to the principal’s office, where he wondered why the dean had chosen such a significant place to meet.

• Chen Mobai counted his 50 Spirit Stones, debated whether to begin cultivating the Two Yang Body, and decided to seek advice from a Wuqi Dao Academy teacher.
• Chen Mobai met Meng Huang'er on the mountain path, admired her expensive Magnetic Skateboard, and hurried to the academy with Divine Speed Talismans.
• At the opening ceremony, freshman representative Zhongli Tianyu said he had been accepted to Kunpeng Daoist Academy but came to Wuqi Dao Academy because he was better suited to the Cantong Qi than the Six Imperial Scripture.
• After the ceremony, the dean of studies called Chen Mobai and offered to guide his cultivation while True Person Lesser Yang was in seclusion.
• The dean of studies asked Chen Mobai to meet him in the principal’s office, leaving Chen Mobai wondering why he had chosen that location.

Chen Mobai and the other freshmen who chose the Spirit Transmutation Great Laws underwent an aptitude assessment at Wuqi Dao Academy. After the Crimson Heart Treasure Mirror revealed Chen Mobai's unusually high spirit root total, Director of Studies Che Yucheng began using Formless Puppets to simulate whether the students could reach Foundation Establishment.

• Chen Mobai arrived at the principal's office, where Director of Studies Che Yucheng gathered the freshmen who had chosen the Pure Yang Scroll or Cantong Qi, while Zhongli Tianyu was absent.
• Che Yucheng explained that the academy would assess whether the students' aptitude suited the Spirit Transmutation Great Laws and whether they could reach Foundation Establishment.
• Chen Mobai stood before the Crimson Heart Treasure Mirror and saw it record details of his cultivation; Che Yucheng noticed that his spirit root attributes totaled 117 and asked about his Pure Yang Dharma Body.
• Chen Mobai said he had cultivated One Yang, and Che Yucheng inferred that his original spirit root total had been 114 before the One Yang Body altered its values.
• Che Yucheng took the students to a laboratory and explained that Formless Puppets would simulate their cultivation using data from the mirror.
• Che Yucheng activated a Formless Puppet, which formed a student's likeness as its forehead display showed a longsword and its left-eye dial changed from zero to one.

Che Yucheng used Formless Puppets to simulate freshmen cultivating the Cantong Qi and Pure Yang Scroll, revealing their bottlenecks and Foundation Establishment prospects. Chen Mobai’s Pure Yang Scroll simulation succeeded at Foundation Establishment at age thirty-nine, though his low Fire Spiritual Root delayed his first attempt.

• Che Yucheng simulated Wang Xingyu cultivating the Cantong Qi, and the Formless Puppet predicted his Foundation Establishment would fail; Wang Xingyu still wanted to try after learning the Critical Point Method.
• Che Yucheng ran another Cantong Qi simulation for Lu Zixuan, whose Foundation Establishment failed, and she chose to abandon the method.
• Two of the next eight Cantong Qi candidates succeeded in the simulation, while most of those who failed wanted to try anyway and were told to consider their choices for three days.
• Che Yucheng explained that Pure Yang Scroll cultivators spent half their lifespan cultivating the Pure Yang Dharma Body, leaving little time for advancement after Foundation Establishment.
• Chen Mobai’s Formless Puppet predicted he would reach Qi Cultivation Ninth Layer at age thirty-nine, then unexpectedly succeeded in Foundation Establishment.

Che Yucheng reviewed the Formless Puppet’s Foundation Establishment deductions and allowed Chen Mobai, Yun Yangbing, and Ming Yihua to continue cultivating the Pure Yang Scroll despite mixed results. The students learned to recharge the puppets, and Ming Yihua formed a group chat for the Spirit Transmutation Class.

• Che Yucheng explained that Chen Mobai’s prior cultivation and powerful Spiritual Sense helped give him a better-than-fifty-percent chance of succeeding in Foundation Establishment, while Yun Yangbing and Ming Yihua’s deductions showed failure.
• Che Yucheng encouraged Yun Yangbing and Ming Yihua to continue with the Pure Yang Scroll and told Chen Mobai to do his best, despite his mediocre spiritual root.
• Che Yucheng warned the students that the Formless Puppets were valuable artifacts and showed them how to recharge their spirit stones in the Spirit Charging Room.
• Chen Mobai realized each deduction had consumed the energy of a Mid-grade Spirit Stone, and Che Yucheng said the students could not use the puppets again for two years.
• Ming Yihua added the students as friends and created a group chat called Spirit Transmutation Class.

Chen Mobai discussed coursework and life at Wuqi Dao Academy with fellow students Ming Yihua and Yun Yangbing, then considered using a puppet to handle his firewood business. His search revealed that command-recognizing puppet robots were costly because of their Spirit Stone-based circuits.

• Ming Yihua was elected spokesperson of the Spirit Transmutation Class and proposed a daily roster for helping with spirit charging.
• Ming Yihua, Yun Yangbing, and Chen Mobai discussed their elective plans, with Ming choosing artifact-related courses, Yun focusing on formations, and Chen choosing Talisman and Puppetry.
• Chen Mobai told the others he rented a small house off campus, then returned to his wooden house after they parted.
• Chen Mobai realized a puppet could chop firewood for him in the Sky River Realm and searched online for a suitable puppet robot.
• Chen Mobai learned that command-recognizing puppet robots cost nearly 100,000 Merit Points because they used expensive Spirit Stone-based integrated circuits.