Chapter Summaries

Wang Ping’s forces defeated the Lizard Yao and a strange creature fused with a demonic weapon, while Wang Ping secured the Shallow Beach and accepted a proposal to make it a river-trade transfer station. Zuo Xuan’s recovered memories revealed that the mission had drawn Wang Ping into a Six Hearts Sect power struggle—and that Young Master Ming was Lord Xiaoshan’s Puppet, made from the consciousness of the Prefect’s beloved youngest Disciple.

• Wang Ping restrained Young Master Ming’s head, while his Golden Armored Soldiers helped kill the Lizard Yao and the strange creature; he sealed away a poisoned soldier for later study.
• Hu Qianqian drained the strange creature’s energy until it reverted to an oil-paper umbrella, then swallowed the shadow formed from its stolen energy.
• Wang Ping sent a report to Jinhuai Prefecture and told the five Mountain Lords to pacify the tribes and govern the region.
• Yue Zong delivered a proposal from the Provincial Governor’s Yamen to establish a county yamen and river-trade transfer station at Wang Ping’s stronghold, and Wang Ping agreed in exchange for twenty percent of the profits.
• Zuo Xuan explained that Zhong Tong had opposed Wang Ping as an agent of Daoist Xiu Yu’s faction, which competed with Daoist Zi Luan’s faction in the Six Hearts Sect.
• Zuo Xuan revealed that Zhong Tong’s memories identified Young Master Ming as Lord Xiaoshan’s Puppet, created using the consciousness of the Prefect’s youngest Disciple.

Wang Ping examined Young Master Ming’s belongings and uncovered clues about his strange body and connection to the Great Demon. He left the final Storage Bag unopened for now, wary of the dangers in Young Master Ming’s memories.

• Zuo Xuan explained that she had read Zhong Tong’s memories, and Wang Ping said his Wood Spirit Qi had concealed her from the Great Demon.
• Hu Qianqian explained the risks of demonic weapons, and Wang Ping suggested she fuse the oiled-paper umbrella with a Puppet instead of her own body.
• Wang Ping sent Zuo Xuan back to Jinhuai Prefecture with case files for Daoist Zi Luan and ordered Hu Qianqian to guard the camp.
• Wang Ping used a divination sign before inspecting Young Master Ming’s Storage Bags, finding Puppet materials, pills, Wood Spirit Long Swords, and a damaged copy of the Art of Refined Wood.
• Wang Ping and Yulian suspected Young Master Ming had a Great Demon bloodline after finding an empty box apparently made for bronze bells.
• Wang Ping found a shielding formation on the final Storage Bag and chose not to break it, taking out Young Master Ming’s head instead.

Wang Ping used Sacred Divination to safely search Zi Ming's memories, learning about his painful cultivation, transformation, and the secrets of the Refined Wood Method. He then turned to examine the bronze bell's sealing formation with help from Daoist Tongyu and Yulian.

• Wang Ping spent ten years of his lifespan to cast Sacred Divination, then used the Soul Searching Technique on Zi Ming.
• Wang Ping learned that Zi Ming had suffered through years of cultivation, failed to advance normally, and turned violent after sect disciples mocked him.
• Wang Ping and Yulian concluded that Zi Ming was Lord Xiaoshan's youngest Disciple, though his memories contained almost no images of Lord Xiaoshan.
• Wang Ping read the Art of Refined Wood guide and learned that Zi Ming's bronze bells were artifacts made by the Prefect, while their enlarging spell required a long-armed ape Great Demon's bloodline.
• Wang Ping asked Daoist Tongyu to suppress the consciousness inside a bronze bell while Yulian prepared to stabilize his soul and sever his connection if danger arose.

Wang Ping discovered that the bronze bell contained the Taiyin Demon Suppressing Seal and learned its value and risks from Daoist Tongyu. After finding a Storage Bag full of Blood Pills, he decided to leave the camp before advancing the Purgatory Banner, which would cause a commotion.

• Wang Ping identified the bronze bell's seal as the Taiyin Demon Suppressing Seal, and Daoist Tongyu warned him to keep the secret because the technique was restricted to senior Taiyin Sect figures.
• Wang Ping learned that the bell held one tail of a Six-tailed Fiery Bird and that the seal could suppress Demon Race bloodlines and turn them into usable abilities.
• Wang Ping opened Young Master Ming's Storage Bag and found it packed with Blood Pills, including more than a dozen unusually potent ones.
• Yulian went to the river to catch shrimp after Wang Ping warned her not to eat the Blood Pills, while Daoist Tongyu explained that the Purgatory Banner could be advanced with their flesh-and-blood spirituality.
• Wang Ping put away the Blood Pills and Purgatory Banner, divined that it was safe to leave, and flew with Hu Qianqian and Yulian toward the site of his fight with Young Master Ming.

Wang Ping investigated a damaged formation near a Demon settlement and learned that the tribe’s missing Great Elder had visited it. He sent Hu Qianqian to observe the central market while he examined the alchemy chamber beneath Crescent Mountain and began recording its formation.

• Wang Ping and Yulian found a recently destroyed formation, and Hu Qianqian identified traces of Taiyin cultivation.
• A young fox Yao begged Wang Ping to take her as a disciple, and Wang Ping let Hu Qianqian decide whether to accept her while warning about the fox’s hatred.
• Hu Qianqian reported that the local Demon tribe’s Great Elder had disappeared after visiting the formation site, and the fox Yao said he had recently returned from the central market.
• Wang Ping gave Hu Qianqian a Jia Talisman and two Puppet birds, then sent her to watch the market in secret while he flew to Crescent Mountain.
• Wang Ping found evidence of an alchemist’s furnace fire in the underground chamber and meticulously recorded the alchemy formation’s runes and layout.

Wang Ping learned how to form an alchemy array and spent a month waiting at the central army camp while testing a poison that could corrode spirituality. Hu Qianqian returned with information about Young Master Ming’s great elder, and Wang Ping ordered a careful investigation after they returned.

• Wang Ping learned the principles for creating a Mystic Gate Eight-Combination Alchemy Array and explained his method of understanding array formations to Yulian.
• After the mountain search ended, Wang Ping waited at the central army camp for a month as Qi practitioners raided Demon Race settlements and he received more than a hundred thousand taels in silver.
• Wang Ping tested a poison that corroded spirituality, discovered how to imitate it with Wood Spirit Qi, and recalled that Yulian had lost her spiritual sense for four hours after trying it.
• Hu Qianqian returned with Hu Xin and reported that Young Master Ming’s great elder had met with a fox-clan alchemist.
• Wang Ping told Hu Qianqian to keep the portraits and have Undercover Agents investigate the two men after they returned, without rushing.

Wang Ping handed over his post to Daoist Priest Taishan and began returning to Jinhuai Prefecture with three hundred Qi practitioners and a cargo of Spirit Wood. Near Shunyang Prefecture, a disguised attacker tried to self-destruct aboard the warship, but Hu Qianqian killed him and found his memories had been destroyed.

• Daoist Priest Taishan arrived from Jinhuai Prefecture to take over Wang Ping's post, explaining that the Prefect had sent him amid the conflict between Zi Luan and Xiu Yu.
• Wang Ping left three days later with three hundred Qi practitioners and a large shipment of Spirit Wood, while Taishan warned him that Xiu Yu's disciples might seek trouble, especially a Second Realm Gold cultivator.
• Taishan told Wang Ping that the Daoist Scripture Hall had created a file on him because he was the only person since the rise of the Human Way to cultivate the Taiyan Talisman to the Second Realm in under two hundred years.
• Eight days into the return voyage, Hu Qianqian noticed a Qi practitioner acting strangely as he approached Wang Ping and began gathering power to self-destruct.
• Hu Qianqian used a pillar of light to destroy the attacker, searched his remaining head, and reported that his memories had been destroyed in advance.

After an attack on Wang Ping, he filed it as an official case and traveled to Jinhuai Prefecture to report to Zi Luan. Zi Luan assigned Wen Hai to investigate, leaving Wang Ping curious about how his old acquaintance had changed.

• Wang Ping recorded what he knew about Daoist Xiuyu and Wulang, then filed a report about the attack, expecting Zi Luan to support an official investigation.
• Three days later, Wang Ping handed over the warships in Nanlin Road and flew alone to Jinhuai Prefecture.
• Zi Luan told Wang Ping that the Serious Crimes Division had opened a case and that Wen Hai would investigate the attack.
• Wang Ping handed Zi Luan Young Master Ming's head and the six bronze bells, then agreed to let Wen Hai investigate.
• Wang Ping left for Thousand Wood Temple as Zi Luan rose into the sky, apparently to report the matter to the Prefect.

Zi Luan brought Lord Xiaoshan a former lover’s head, and Lord Xiaoshan extracted its bloodline essence before destroying it and giving Zi Luan six bronze bells. At Thousand Wood Temple, Daoist Yucheng explained the scarcity of higher-realm places to Wang Ping and discussed his discipleship and coming promotion to Fourth Seat.

• Zi Luan presented Lord Xiaoshan with a vine-wrapped head, and Lord Xiaoshan removed memories from his mind and extracted a drop of golden-threaded blood essence from it.
• Lord Xiaoshan destroyed the head, gave Zi Luan a bottle and six bronze bells, and watched him leave.
• An emerald figure secretly delivered coded Bamboo Slips to Lord Xiaoshan, who read reports on Zi Luan and reflected on the path to the Fourth Realm.
• Wang Ping recounted his journey to Ningzhou Road, and Daoist Yucheng advised him to choose his own side in the struggle between Zi Luan and Xiu Yu.
• Daoist Yucheng explained the limited places in the higher realms and urged Wang Ping to find a Personal Disciple before advancing to the Third Realm.
• Daoist Yucheng told Wang Ping he would give up his Fourth Seat position for him and asked him to attend a gathering the following month.

Wang Ping surveyed Thousand Wood Temple’s growth and began planning a pill-refining chamber, but an escalating battle between powerful Cultivators raced toward Shang'an Prefecture. He protected the temple and town as the pursuing fighters drew near, then heard Dan Chen call for him to stop them.

• Wang Ping looked over Thousand Wood Temple’s expanded grounds and the prosperous town below, then chose a solitary peak for a pill-refining chamber.
• Wang Ping spent ten days drafting the chamber’s design while Yulian visited him with fruit.
• Wang Ping sensed danger, saw a battle’s radiance in the northwest, and raised a protective barrier over Thousand Wood Mountain and the town.
• Hu Qianqian and Guangxuan joined Wang Ping as the battle approached Shang'an Prefecture, and Wang Ping dispersed Taiyin contamination from the surrounding vegetation.
• Wang Ping sensed that more than ten Cultivators were fighting, and Dan Chen called on him to stop them.

Wang Ping helped stop a group of Taiyin Cultivators fleeing through Shang'an Prefecture, then learned their sect’s dealings were connected to the attack on him. He made a deal with Dan Chen and returned to Thousand Wood Temple, where Zuo Xuan requested a place to attempt a breakthrough.

• Wang Ping intercepted the five fleeing Evil Cultivators with his Golden Armored Soldiers, while two Second Realm cultivators escaped by detonating Corpse Soldiers.
• Wang Ping and Dan Chen stopped the three remaining Evil Cultivators, and Wang Ping cleared the Netherworld Aura from the devastated land.
• Dan Chen told Wang Ping that Daoist Wen Hai’s investigation into the attack on him had uncovered an evil sect, and confirmed that Daoist Wulang’s disciples had ties to Evil Cultivators.
• Dan Chen offered Wang Ping two stalks of Sacred Heart Grass in exchange for a warning if the Imperial Court planned to attack the Northern Kingdom, and Wang Ping accepted.
• Wang Ping returned to Thousand Wood Temple, and Zuo Xuan asked to use its Taiyin-energy gathering place for a breakthrough, explaining that her Blood Pill had improved her chances.

Wang Ping arranged to help Zuo Xuan prepare Winter Water Mountain for her future advancement, then attended a gathering in Sanhe Prefecture with Daoists and other longtime acquaintances. The gathering revealed changes among its members and ended with Yang Tian arriving and trading barbs with Yuan Zheng.

• Wang Ping told Zuo Xuan how to improve Winter Water Mountain’s formation with five Taiyin-affinity treasures, and she agreed to fund the work before beginning twenty years of secluded cultivation.
• Wang Ping and Daoist Yucheng met Guangxuan and Daoist Wen Yang, who told Wang Ping that the promised Fire Spirit Vein would be delayed.
• Daoist Yuan Zheng revealed that his Heavenly Fire had failed to mature after Pill Toxin hindered his advancement, while Wen Yang criticized his impatience.
• Old Daoist Wu thanked Wang Ping for helping his advancement and said Xuanhe had opened a Daoist ground overseas; Li Xingwen warned Wang Ping to be cautious around Daoist Zi Luan.
• Liaoyuan announced that Daoist Shangliang had fallen into a slumber without leaving a successor, and Guangxuan recorded the loss of their gathering’s branch.
• Yang Tian arrived, exchanged insults with Yuan Zheng, and asked Guangxuan about several absent attendees.

Wang Ping and the other cultivators gathered to discuss the turmoil threatening their sects and negotiate several deals. The meeting ended with Li Xingwen suggesting they inform First Day about the First Sect cultivators who had troubled Jiang Xiaomei and Lü Wen’s disciples.

• Yang Tian explained how northern sect wars had devastated their lineages, and Lü Wen and Jiang Xiaomei arrived at the gathering.
• Guangxuan removed three chairs, and Yang Tian offered two completed formations in exchange for help finding two Demon Race cultivators with two hundred years of false-core cultivation.
• At Wang Ping’s signal, Guangxuan agreed to ask his Linshui Prefecture contacts for information and promised an answer within two months.
• Jiang Xiaomei offered to sell an Outer Realm Demonic Creature that produced Fire Spirit demonic weapons, provided the gathering first dealt with two Second Realm cultivators from the First Sect.
• Li Xingwen suggested telling First Day about the dispute with the First Sect.

Li Xingwen proposed using the Outer Realm Demonic Creature to provoke a clash between First Sect followers and the Madmen of First Day on Nanlin Road, giving Wang Ping grounds to intervene. The group agreed on terms for the plan, then discussed other trades and the Emperor’s plans for the Imperial Guard, while Yucheng reported no progress locating a person hidden in the Imperial Palace.

• Li Xingwen proposed arranging a clash on Nanlin Road using the Outer Realm Demonic Creature, and Wang Ping suggested having Daoist Zi Luan set it up so the others would not appear involved.
• Jiang Xiaomei agreed to sell the creature in exchange for a safe new Daoist ground for herself and Lü Wen, with the first demonic weapon reserved for their Disciple; Wen Yang agreed to help them relocate and jointly hold the creature with Wang Ping.
• Liaoyuan offered a red feather fan containing an enslaved Second Realm Yuqing Cultivator, but Wang Ping and Daoist Yuanzheng declined to buy it.
• Daoist Yucheng said two Emperors had considered sending troops north but abandoned the idea under public pressure, while Yang Tian and Wen Yang disagreed about whether to surrender or retain control of the Imperial Guard.
• Yucheng told Daoist Yuanzheng that the person he had been tracking was hiding in the Imperial Palace, but he had no news about their current strength.

Wang Ping learned why Daoist Yucheng had settled in the Capital City: he was searching for Li Yan, the former sworn brother who betrayed Thousand Wood Temple and stole its Cave Heaven Mirror. After hearing Yucheng’s warning about trust and advancement, Wang Ping arranged to contact Xia Yao and agreed to act with Lü Wen’s side after the Spring Festival.

• Wen Yang proposed that Wang Ping reveal his connection to Lord Xiaoshan and work with him, and Wang Ping agreed.
• After the gathering ended, Wen Yang and Lü Wen’s couple arranged for the Daoist Scripture Hall to transport the Outer Realm Demonic Creatures, while Wang Ping and Guangxuan decided to contact Xia Yao about Linshui Prefecture.
• Daoist Yucheng told Wang Ping that Li Yan and Bai Zhuo had ambushed him and his senior brother during the Baishui Lake operation, and that Li Yan had stolen the Cave Heaven Mirror.
• Yucheng explained that Li Yan had fled to the Capital City and warned Wang Ping never to trust anyone completely, especially in matters of advancement.
• Wang Ping wrote to Xia Yao and sent Hu Qianqian to Lü Wen’s dojo, where both sides agreed to act after the Spring Festival.

During the Spring Festival, Wang Ping heard his disciples’ plans and discussed growing tensions among Immortal Realm cultivators. Afterward, Wen Hai reported that his investigation into the attack on Wang Ping had uncovered a Taiyin Evil Cultivator organization and an Immortal Realm cultivator, and Wang Ping asked him to watch his courtyard at the Daoist Scripture Hall.

• Liu Shuang thanked Yulian for helping her accept that Zhao Yu'er could enjoy herself despite having reached the end of her path.
• Su Hai told Wang Ping he planned to fuse with a demonic horse-chopping saber and follow his father into the army, and Wang Ping offered his help.
• Wang Li told Wang Ping he had chosen the path of an Artifact Cultivator, and Yulian agreed to guard him when he advanced.
• Yulian warned Wang Ping that rivalry between families and rising numbers of Immortal Realm cultivators could bring turmoil, and Wang Ping and Guangxuan agreed to prepare for the worst.
• After Spring Festival, Wang Ping sent Yulian to meet Hu Qianqian about trading Outer Realm Demonic Creatures, then received Wen Hai's report that the investigation had exposed a Taiyin Evil Cultivator stronghold and an Immortal Realm cultivator.
• Wang Ping accepted Wen Hai's case file without reading it and asked him to keep watch over his courtyard at the Daoist Scripture Hall.

Zhao Qing's breakthrough ended in a fatal disaster when a secret art caused his Water Spirit Veins to mutate and explode. After regaining his composure, Wang Ping set out to confront the person directing the current scheme.

• Zhao Qing began breaking through in his dojo, and Wang Ping and Yulian watched as Water Spirit Qi gathered around him.
• After six days, Zhao Qing tried to merge his spirit veins, but his body crystallized and was destroyed by the violent Water Spirit Qi.
• Wang Ping suppressed the chaotic Qi and found the secret art Bind Water, while Daoist Yucheng warned that the person who sold it might already be gone.
• Wang Ping meditated for three days, then heard Hu Qianqian's report that the Outer Domain Demonic Weapon handover had been preliminarily agreed upon.
• Wang Ping summoned Liu Zixiu and Xingshan and said he would lay matters bare with the person directing the game; Liu Zixiu agreed it was time.

Wang Ping hosted Zi Luan for a private meeting and secured his willingness to serve the Prefect and Daoist Priest. They discussed Wang Ping’s conflict with the First Sect, and Zi Luan suggested negotiating with its two Second Realm cultivators while hinting at a more forceful solution.

• Wang Ping prepared Fortune Celebration Restaurant to receive Zi Luan and personally welcomed him when he arrived.
• Wang Ping and Zi Luan played chess and spoke about the changing world before Wang Ping agreed to serve the Prefect and Daoist Priest.
• After Liu Zixiu and Xingshan left, Wang Ping explained his dealings involving Outer Realm Demonic Creatures and the First Sect’s two Second Realm cultivators.
• Zi Luan recommended negotiating with Lü Wen and his wife, then described the First Sect’s Madman of the First Day as a fitting weapon against its old antiques.

Wang Ping uncovered a scheme in the Daoist Scripture Hall involving counterfeit secret arts that had led Zhao Qing to fail his attempt to enter a realm. Zi Luan took control of the case and planned to use it alongside the First Day matter, leaving Wang Ping aware that the investigation could serve Zi Luan’s political ambitions.

• Wang Ping questioned Yang Qin and learned that people at the Daoist Scripture Hall had been selling incomplete cultivation methods as secret arts, while officials received monthly payments to stay silent.
• Wang Ping ordered Yang Qin and Adviser Zhu to remain in the courtyard under guard, then told Dan Chen about the scheme and Zhao Qing’s failed attempt to enter a realm.
• Dan Chen urged Wang Ping to report the matter to Zi Luan, who summoned two Qi practitioners and made them admit they received two hundred taels of silver each month.
• Zi Luan promised to open an official case and personally oversee it, while Wang Ping realized he had known about the corruption and intended to use the case against his rivals.
• Zi Luan told Wang Ping to connect the investigation with the First Day matter, and Wang Ping understood that Zi Luan planned to implicate his competitors.

A group of First Day cultivators ambushed six Daoist Scripture Hall escorts at a crossroads, only for Yun Shan and others to reveal that the encounter had been a trap. The attackers and defenders discovered that their intelligence had led them to expect different targets, leaving Wang Ping and Dan Chen confused as the crimson-skinned man proposed ending the fight.

• Six riders from the Daoist Scripture Hall passed a tea stall, and two disguised First Day cultivators followed them before attacking with Fireburst explosions.
• The attackers used a disheveled woman's illusion and a barrage of arrows, while the escorts defended themselves with a bronze lamp and a short Daoist briefly intervened.
• Yun Shan protected the tea stall from the spreading flames and confronted a woman in a pale red Daoist Robe, who recognized him and realized they had entered a trap.
• Wang Ping and Dan Chen arrived with two other figures, and the woman explained that she had expected two First Sect Stewards trading for an Outer Realm Demonic Creature.
• The crimson-skinned man said both sides had been misled and suggested they call off the fight.