Chapter Summaries

Wang Ping and his allies joined the forces gathering near Yongming Port for a decisive battle, while plotting how to deal with Gao Ding. Liu Qi summoned Wang Ping to witness an apparent fight within the Yao Race Barracks, where Wang Ping found Gao Ding already beheaded.

• Wang Ping rejected Liu Qi's conditions and ordered Thousand Wood Temple disciples to travel in groups and monitor Baishui Sect and Iron Art Sect.
• The Demon Race army drove the Corpse Soldiers toward Yongming Port, and Thousand Wood Temple's Qi practitioners were assigned to hold back Evil Cultivators on the right flank.
• Wang Ping, Liu Shuang, and Zhao Qing discussed killing Gao Ding before the decisive battle, then learned Iron Art Sect would be assigned to the right-flank battlefield.
• Liu Qi sent word that Gao Ding had gone to the Yao Race Barracks and asked Wang Ping to witness what happened there.
• Wang Ping and Guangxuan reached the barracks and found Demon Race soldiers fighting among themselves, with Gao Ding's head already severed from his body.

Wang Ping answered three perfunctory questions about the Yao Race Barracks incident, after which the Daoist Scripture Hall let the matter drop. As the armies launched a new assault on the Corpse Soldiers, Wang Ping suspected that a larger operation would put the front-line cultivators in danger.

• Zhang Li questioned Wang Ping about his presence at the Yao Race Barracks, Gao Ding’s death, and a written account of the incident; Wang Ping denied the accusation and confirmed the account.
• Hongchen reported the questioning to his master, who decided to settle the matter and prioritize the Taiyin Evil Cultivator instead.
• Guangxuan told Wang Ping that the Daoist Scripture Hall would not investigate further without evidence, and Hong An warned Wang Ping to survive until a mission to explore the Evil Cultivator’s underground palace.
• Baishui Sect, Iron Art Sect, and two other Daoist sects moved their encampments overnight.
• Wang Ping led Thousand Wood Temple’s Qi practitioners into battle as the Yao Race army charged the Corpse Soldiers, then warned Liu Shuang and Zhao Qing to keep their Disciples cautious.

Wang Ping and the Demon Race survived a brutal battle against the Corpse Soldiers, but the Imperial Court moved to recruit the Demon Race as the conflict escalated. The next morning, Wang Ping’s group was ordered toward a gathering of Netherworld energy, where Immortal Realm cultivators began fighting, leaving Wang Ping scrambling to protect his Disciples.

• The Demon Race fought the Corpse Soldiers for hours before a muffled boom caused the Corpse Soldier army to collapse, and the remaining forces withdrew after a cavalry charge.
• Wang Ping returned to camp and learned from Liu Shuang and Zhao Qing that an Imperial Court envoy, a Great Demon, had arrived to reward the Demon Race for its service.
• The Imperial Court envoy’s visit revealed its intention to absorb the Demon Race army, while Wang Ping dismissed the political implications as beyond his concern.
• The next morning, Wang Ping was ordered to advance toward a pillar of Netherworld energy and gave his Inner Armor to Liu Shuang before leading his Disciples forward.
• Wang Ping moved cautiously through areas crowded with Corpse Soldiers, but Immortal Realm cultivators began fighting before his group reached the gathering point, and he urged his Disciples to flee while preparing thorn-vine soldiers.

Wang Ping and the others fled the devastation caused by the battle between Immortal Realm cultivators, then encountered Hong An and his allies in a familiar town. Wang Ping launched a pursuit of Hong An, but their fight remained unresolved as he and Yulian turned their sword toward the giant eagle attacking them.

• Wang Ping ordered the retreat, and he and the other survivors withdrew to a town where Yulian no longer sensed danger.
• Wang Ping realized that divinations had been disrupted in recent days, and Zhao Qing said her own attempts had produced little but chaos.
• Wang Ping and Hong An faced off when their groups arrived in town, and Wang Ping sent his Thorn Vine soldier puppets to attack Hong An.
• Hong An blocked the puppets with Ice Spikes and fled north, while Wang Ping pursued him and told Guangxuan, Zhao Qing, and Liu Shuang to leave Hong An to him.
• A giant eagle attacked Wang Ping, and Yulian used the Sword Control Art to intercept it as Wang Ping pursued Hong An to a stream.
• Wang Ping used thorny plants as shields and hurled Power Pills at Hong An, then joined Yulian in controlling the sword against the giant eagle.

Wang Ping killed Hong An and struck a deal with the Martian Daoist to conceal the killing. After the battle ended and the armies departed, the Daoist Scripture Hall allowed the Cultivators to explore the Taiyin Evil Cultivator’s underground palace.

• Wang Ping used a crushing technique to kill Hong An, but the backlash exhausted his true essence and withered nearby vegetation.
• The Martian Daoist asked for Hong An’s intact defensive bracelets in exchange for keeping silent, and Wang Ping also required him to burn the bodies.
• Liu Shuang reported that the Iron Art Sect disciples had been dealt with, while Wang Ping learned that Sanhe Temple and Thousand Wood Temple had lost eight disciples.
• Two powerful figures ended the wider battle with a brief exchange, and Zhao Qing later confirmed that their former camp and Yongming Port had been devastated.
• A day later, the Demon Race army and prefectural troops departed under the Ox Demon Envoy, and Liu Qi asked Wang Ping to keep the unrest at the Yao Race Barracks secret.
• The Daoist Scripture Hall permitted the Cultivators to explore the underground palace of the Taiyin Evil Cultivator, and Wang Ping and the others hurried to go.

Wang Ping uncovered the Nine Extremes Array’s secrets and found a small black flag at a corpse-filled ritual site. Back in his tent, he discovered that the flag contained a living consciousness willing to speak with him.

• Wang Ping flew above the underground palace and used his Light Screen Panel to learn that the incomplete Nine Extremes Array could awaken monsters and raise corpses.
• Wang Ping traced concentrated Netherworld Aura to a forest clearing, where he found corpses and a bone blade and small black flag placed in an array.
• An old man in a True Sun Daoist robe claimed the bone blade and left Wang Ping the flag before vanishing.
• Wang Ping returned to camp, secluded himself in his tent, and examined the small black flag.
• Yulian sensed a living consciousness inside the flag, and a tiny gray figure appeared and spoke to Wang Ping.

Wang Ping learned that Tongyu, a Taiyin Sect cultivator who survived in the Purgatory Banner, blamed Lord Xiaoshan for exploiting his planned advancement to forge a demonic weapon. Wang Ping let Tongyu remain in the banner and decided to report the matter to his Master, then discussed the banner’s abilities and costs.

• Yulian spotted Tongyu’s Primordial Spirit emerging from the Purgatory Banner, and Wang Ping questioned him about his identity.
• Tongyu explained that he belonged to the Taiyin Sect and had been asleep beneath Yongming Port while a demonic weapon was forged using energy gathered there.
• Wang Ping recounted the Yongming Port incident, and Tongyu denied causing the tsunami and described how he had escaped into the banner.
• Tongyu identified Lord Xiaoshan, the Fourth Realm Second Seat of the Daoist Scripture Hall, as the likely person who plotted against him.
• Wang Ping let Tongyu stay in the Purgatory Banner and said he would report the matter to his Master.
• Wang Ping learned that using the banner could imprison souls but caused a day of pain unless he copied the Exhortation to Learning twenty times.

Wang Ping learned that Daoist Tongyu had left a Puppet hidden on the seabed and went with Yulian to find it. After Yulian located the buried coffin, Wang Ping lent Tongyu his true essence, and the Puppet began to emerge.

• Wang Ping saw that the camp was distributing lamb and farming supplies to the commoners, then ate with Liu Shuang and Yulian.
• Zhao Qing told Wang Ping that the sects had divided the underground palace and that they would mine earth iron in their assigned southern section.
• Daoist Tongyu revealed that he had hidden a Puppet near Yongming Port and explained how Wang Ping might make it a useful ally.
• Wang Ping and Yulian flew southeast over the Great Sea, and Yulian dove underwater to search for the Puppet.
• Yulian found the coffin beneath the seabed silt, and Wang Ping supplied Tongyu with true essence to awaken the Puppet.

Wang Ping returned to Thousand Wood Temple after completing the underground palace mission, claimed his rewards, and discussed the losses at Yongming Port with Hong Chen. He reached the temple and reunited with Daoist Yucheng, while the dead Disciples were to be buried behind the Training Ground.

• Wang Ping examined Daoist Tongyu's Puppet and learned that it could be refined with Wood Spirit treasures to serve as a powerful shield.
• Zhao Qing led the group back to Shang'an Prefecture after they excavated the vein iron ore, where the Disciples exchanged their mission rewards for materials.
• Hong Chen registered Wang Ping's personal and sect points, told him the Water Spirit Vein would be assessed by Qi practitioners, and promised a report on the missing Iron Art Sect and Baishui Sect practitioners.
• Wang Ping chose to buy Spirit Gathering Array materials for Liu Shuang and assured his junior brother that he had made preparations for him too.
• Wang Ping returned to Thousand Wood Temple, saw the gathered Disciples and the graves planned for their fallen companions, then joined Daoist Yucheng for tea.

Wang Ping told Daoist Yucheng about Tongyu and learned more about the old war and Thousand Wood Temple’s history. After visiting his father’s grave and seeing his mother and family from afar, he returned to his courtyard, where Yulian reported that Liu and Yang had stopped fighting.

• Wang Ping recounted Tongyu’s situation, and Daoist Tongyu revealed that he had witnessed Lord Yuxiao protect southern Central Province during the war between the Mystic Sect and the Heaven Sect.
• Daoist Yucheng used the Art of Borrowing Luck to bind Tongyu’s lifeline to Wang Ping’s, then told Wang Ping to help Tongyu rebuild his body if he reached the Fourth Realm.
• Daoist Yucheng urged Wang Ping to focus on entering the realm, warned him that Hong Chen might become a rival, and told him that his father had died and his disciple had married.
• Wang Ping visited his father’s grave and saw his elderly mother watching children at the family home, then returned to Thousand Wood Mountain without approaching her.
• Liang Tao told Wang Ping that Liu and Yang were fighting, but Wang Ping went into his courtyard; Yulian later returned and said they had stopped as soon as they saw her.

After perfecting the Spirit Talisman, Wang Ping received Daoist Yucheng’s permission to enter the realm and learned of upheavals across the empire, including Wang Kang’s deployment against General Liu Yue. In secluded cultivation, Wang Ping endured two years of practice with the Huai Tree’s spirit soul before Daoist Tongyu saw him summon the blank talisman within his body.

• Wang Ping perfected the Spirit Talisman, distributed money and exchange points to Liu Shuang and Yang Ziping, and asked Daoist Yucheng to look after Liu Shuang before entering the realm.
• Wang Ping met Zhao Qing and Liu Shuang, learned that a junior brother had bought a residence outside the temple, and declined a request to refine Power Pills for the Imperial Court.
• Zhao Qing reported that the Imperial Court envoy had entered Mozhou Road with troops, King Ning’s forces had rebelled, and Liu Yue had declared himself King Beiyi after seizing thirty-two cities.
• Wang Ping learned that Wang Kang had joined the campaign against Liu Yue and decided he could not help Su Dun by refining Power Pills because he was entering the realm.
• Wang Ping spent two years meditating with the Huai Tree’s spirit soul, whose brief moods affected his success rate, while Yulian and Daoist Tongyu kept him company.
• Daoist Tongyu criticized the difficulty of entering the realm through the Taiyan Talisman, then stopped when Wang Ping summoned the blank talisman within his body.

Wang Ping completed the Spirit Talisman and endured a prolonged transformation as he entered the realm, gaining a Wood Spirit body and new memories of talismans and incantations. After nearly a month, he awoke and was told to master his transformed body and newfound knowledge before continuing his cultivation.

• Wang Ping connected with the Huai Tree and completed the Spirit Talisman, sending a pillar of Wood Spirit Qi into the sky.
• Daoist Yucheng cleared the gathered disciples from the mountain while Wang Ping endured the process of transcending mortality.
• Daoist Gu Heng came to Thousand Wood Mountain as Wang Ping slowly regained awareness and control of his transformed body.
• Wang Ping discovered that his body had become Wood Spirit in nature, his lifespan had greatly increased, and his Spirit Talisman absorbed spiritual energy.
• Wang Ping received memories of the Jia Talisman and dozens of other talismans and incantations, then opened his eyes two days later.
• Daoist Gu Heng praised Wang Ping’s rapid entry into the realm, and Daoist Yucheng told him to master his new body and memories before resuming cultivation.

After entering the realm, Wang Ping tested his newfound abilities and learned from Daoist Tongyu that he should focus on talismans. He secluded himself while Yulian slept and advanced, and the chapter ended with her eager to go flying and catch shrimp.

• Wang Ping flew rapidly over Yongshan County, then toured Shang'an Prefecture and Sanhe Prefecture with Yulian.
• Daoist Tongyu advised Wang Ping to focus on talismans and demonstrated the power of Sword Talismans, which Wang Ping used to form emerald swords.
• Wang Ping spent three days learning how entering the realm had changed his body and his control over spiritual energy.
• Yulian told Wang Ping that his Qi Sea was affecting her, then slept on the Huai Tree while he entered secluded cultivation.
• After about a month, Yulian announced that she had advanced and flew with Wang Ping around Shang'an Prefecture and Sanhe Prefecture.
• Yulian played with water before asking Wang Ping to catch shrimp, but he suggested they visit his Master first.

Daoist Yucheng taught Wang Ping the Seven Star Killing Array and gave him the Taiyan Talisman method for advancing to the Second Realm. Wang Ping learned that the advancement required long-term Spirit Talisman fusion and nurturing the Huai Tree’s divine soul, and he ended by thinking of Third Senior Brother Mao Yulong.

• Daoist Yucheng explained to Wang Ping that studying the Annotation of Heaven and Man was meant to keep him thinking and preserve his humanity while cultivating.
• Daoist Yucheng passed the Seven Star Killing Array to Wang Ping, whose instructions described using seven Wood Spirit Long Swords to attack and accelerate fusion with his Spirit Talisman.
• Daoist Yucheng retrieved Wang Ping’s Jia Talisman and Bing Talisman, saying Wang Ping could now manage without them.
• Daoist Yucheng gave Wang Ping the Taiyan Talisman’s Second Realm cultivation method, which required daily cultivation, nurturing the Huai Tree’s divine soul, and fusing it with his own.
• Wang Ping absorbed the method, felt daunted by its long timelines, and thought of Third Senior Brother Mao Yulong.

Daoist Yucheng warned Wang Ping about the dangers of talismans and spiritual meridians, then told him he would need to accompany him on a trip to secure a Fifth Seat for Thousand Wood Temple. Wang Ping weighed the costly plans ahead and learned from Zhao Qing that wars were driving up demand for Power Pills, the emperor had been replaced, and their Second Senior Brother had become a trusted court official.

• Daoist Yucheng gave Wang Ping a booklet of Wood Spirit spells, warned him not to draw the Luck Borrowing Talisman or fuse with metal- or fire-attributed spiritual meridians, and advised him against pill refinement.
• Daoist Yucheng told Wang Ping that Thousand Wood Temple lacked a Fifth Seat quota and that Wang Ping would need to accompany him on a trip to seek one.
• Wang Ping considered the expenses of his plans, including fusing with the Spirit Talisman, practicing the Seven Star Killing Array, awakening the Huai Tree's divine soul, and enlightening the Puppet.
• Wang Ping summoned Zhao Qing and asked whether the Imperial Court was still buying Power Pills; Zhao Qing said war on three fronts had driven prices up and described the rebellions and fighting.
• Zhao Qing told Wang Ping that the emperor had been replaced and their Second Senior Brother had become the Imperial Court's Left Vice Minister of Works; Liu Shuang then arrived with two young disciples and called Wang Ping Master.

Wang Ping reviewed Liu Shuang’s Wood Gathering Art and helped her sense Wood Spirit Qi after months of failed attempts. He returned to his Dao field after confirming she could practice safely, leaving her to continue cultivating toward marrow cleansing.

• Liu Shuang brought her registered disciples, Liu Ling and Zhao Yu'er, to visit Wang Ping at Thousand Wood Temple.
• Wang Ping examined Liu Shuang’s Wood Gathering Art and considered how its stages gathered and fused Wood Spirit Qi.
• Wang Ping took Liu Shuang to her Dao field in the Northern Mountain Forest and injected a strand of Wood Spirit Qi into her Qi Sea.
• Liu Shuang completed a Heavenly Cycle, sensed Wood Spirit Qi for the first time, and was overcome with relief.
• Wang Ping cautioned Liu Shuang to keep cultivating and not exceed the prescribed daily practice, then returned to his Dao field.

Wang Ping practiced the Seven Star Killing Array, learning to imbue its swords with Wood Spirit poison under Daoist Tongyu’s guidance. He returned to Thousand Wood Mountain and spent the afternoon refining Power Pills, still waiting for a response to his request for wood-attributed materials.

• Wang Ping flew with Yulian to a small island in the Great Sea to practice his sword array with Daoist Tongyu.
• Wang Ping used seven Sword Talismans to cut apart the island’s peak and destroy a boulder with help from Yulian.
• Daoist Tongyu advised Wang Ping to add Wood Spirit toxicity to his swords, and Wang Ping tested poison he had inscribed onto a talisman.
• Wang Ping practiced attaching and removing poison from his swords until he could apply it directly, though its strength remained inconsistent.
• Wang Ping cleaned the island with the Green Wood Technique, returned to Thousand Wood Mountain with Yulian, and spent the afternoon refining Power Pills.

Wang Ping reviewed Thousand Wood Temple’s finances and planned a gradual construction of the Nine Extremes Great Array. He then began studying the Enlightenment Technique to prepare for creating conscious puppets.

• Zhao Qing reported that Power Pill sales had earned Wang Ping a profit of two million six hundred and sixty-five thousand taels and warned that the Daoist Scripture Hall wanted to manage the business.
• Zhao Qing estimated the Nine Extremes Great Array would cost over eight million taels, but Wang Ping said the temple could build it gradually over thirty to fifty years.
• Wang Ping practiced the sword array with Yulian and Daoist Tongyu, then studied Wood Spirit spells instead of refining pills.
• Wang Ping began experimenting with the Enlightenment Technique on a simple puppet he had made himself.

Wang Ping began modifying Daoist Tongyu’s puppet with the Blood Demon Vine, following Tongyu’s instructions to replace its core material and reconnect its formations. After three days of guiding Wood Spirit True Essence through the puppet, Wang Ping paused to drink tea before attempting to awaken it.

• Wang Ping built a simple wooden puppet, but it collapsed after he gave it too much awareness, so he recorded Daoist Tongyu’s advice about refining and teaching puppets gradually.
• Zhao Qing acquired a Blood Demon Vine in Hushan Kingdom and arranged for the Daoist Scripture Hall to escort it to Wang Ping.
• Wang Ping dismantled Daoist Tongyu’s puppet, removed its valuable Bone Stone, and replaced the core material with the Blood Demon Vine under Tongyu’s guidance.
• Wang Ping reassembled the puppet and spent three days circulating Wood Spirit True Essence through its runic paths while Yulian waited nearby.
• Wang Ping finished guiding the essence through the puppet, cleansed himself, and prepared tea before attempting the next step of awakening it.

Wang Ping brought his Puppet to life, taught it alchemy, and registered it as his Disciple Zi Hong while Liu Shuang began gathering qi and took up artifact refining and Puppet making. After Daoist Yucheng summoned Wang Ping to meet allies following his promotion to Fifth Seat of the Daoist Scripture Hall, they arrived at a hidden cavern near Sanhe Temple, where several Cultivators gathered and Wang Ping encountered familiar faces.

• Wang Ping infused the Puppet with prepared consciousness, named it Zi Hong, and taught it until it could refine Power Pills.
• Liu Shuang began gathering qi after completing marrow cleansing, and chose to study artifact refining and Puppet making after losing to Wang Ping's Puppet.
• Daoist Yucheng summoned Wang Ping and took him to meet allies from the Daoist Scripture Hall at a hidden cavern near Sanhe Temple.
• Wang Ping met Daoist Gu Heng, the monk Liaoyuan, a scholar, and Daoist Yuanzheng at the gathering.
• Old Daoist Wu arrived, surprising Wang Ping.