Chapter Summaries

Li Xiao met Qingluo and Bitao, two sect-assigned maids who feared being sent to the mines if he refused them. He let them stay under strict rules and had them begin settling into the courtyard.

• Qingluo and Bitao arrived at Li Xiao’s courtyard and introduced themselves as maids assigned to serve him.
• Li Xiao initially told the two women to leave, but they explained that returning to the sect could get them sent to the mines.
• Li Xiao asked what they could do and learned that both were orphans raised by the Three Origins Sect with little martial talent.
• Li Xiao agreed to let Qingluo and Bitao stay, forbidding them from entering his room, touching his belongings, or telling outsiders about him without permission.
• Li Xiao assigned the two women the rooms on the east side and told them to clean the courtyard and prepare the rooms.

Li Xiao learned that Flying Cloud Peak had several hundred Inner Sect disciples, around a dozen Fifth Turn disciples, and no current Candidate Saint Son. He went to the Martial Arts Hall to collect his stipend and choose a Cultivation Method, then was sent to the Scripture Repository.

• Qingluo and Bitao told Li Xiao about the Inner Sect’s size, its age limit, the Fifth Turn disciples, and the death of the previous Candidate Saint Son.
• Li Xiao realized he would have to compete against hundreds of disciples for the Candidate Saint Son position and resolved to fight for strength and status.
• The next morning, Li Xiao dressed as an Inner Sect disciple and set out for the Martial Arts Hall to collect his stipend and select the Flying Cloud Leg Cultivation Method.
• The Steward warmly welcomed Li Xiao, asked if he was satisfied with his courtyard and maids, and arranged for a disciple to escort him to the Scripture Repository.

Li Xiao visited the Flying Cloud Peak Scripture Repository and selected the Flying Cloud Leg manual, then collected his monthly salary and learned that Inner Sect disciples had to complete a monthly mission. He arrived at Elder Feng’s courtyard to visit him.

• A disciple guided Li Xiao to the Scripture Repository, where the guardian allowed him to select one Cultivation Method and told him to return it within three days.
• Li Xiao chose the Flying Cloud Leg manual and left the repository with the guiding disciple.
• At the Salary Hall, the Steward gave Li Xiao three Viscera Refining Pills and explained the monthly mission requirement or its Contribution Point exemption.
• The guiding disciple brought Li Xiao to Elder Feng’s courtyard, where a young disciple admitted him and led him to the reception hall.

Feng Qing advised Li Xiao to cultivate Flying Cloud Leg, choose low-risk Sect tasks, and avoid factional entanglements. Li Xiao began training and reached Minor Accomplishment by nightfall, then learned that Inner Sect Disciples could buy Exotic Beast meat with money or Contribution Points.

• Feng Qing told Li Xiao to master Flying Cloud Leg before pursuing other techniques, choose manageable monthly tasks, and keep his distance from other Disciples' factions.
• Li Xiao returned to his courtyard, recorded Flying Cloud Leg in the Panel, and began practicing its stances in the bamboo grove.
• After an afternoon of training, Li Xiao raised Flying Cloud Leg to Minor Accomplishment and consolidated his new insights.
• Bitao served Li Xiao dinner and explained that the Sect raised Exotic Beasts whose meat Inner Sect Disciples could buy with money or Contribution Points.

Li Xiao spent the day studying the world’s history and learning about the legendary figures who had transcended beyond the Ninth Turn. He left the Scripture Repository wondering where they had gone and what other powerful beings still existed.

• Li Xiao went to the Scripture Repository to read books about the world’s history and geography.
• The Old Man directed Li Xiao to the books on the top floor, where he read about the Human Race’s early struggles and Ying Tian’s creation of martial dao.
• Li Xiao learned that the Human Emperor, the Dao Ancestor, Taiyi, the Buddha, and the Devil Ancestor had all transcended after reaching extraordinary realms.
• Li Xiao studied records of cultivation realms and realized how powerful the world’s hidden experts could be.
• After reading until dark, Li Xiao thanked the Old Man and left, pondering where the transcenders had gone.

Li Xiao reflected on the brutal competition for cultivation resources and resolved to fight his way toward greatness, relying on the Panel as his advantage. Back at his courtyard, he took a Viscera Refining Pill and practiced Swift Wind Thunderclap Arrow, raising its proficiency to Minor Accomplishment.

• Li Xiao read the ancient texts as evidence that wars had depleted the world's resources and made cultivation harder for later generations.
• Li Xiao decided he would fight for opportunities rather than fade into obscurity, and drew confidence from his Panel.
• Li Xiao returned to his courtyard, where Qingluo and Bitao were preparing a meal, and took a Viscera Refining Pill to nourish his body and help heal his wound.
• Li Xiao practiced Swift Wind Thunderclap Arrow from a bamboo stalk, repeatedly shattering distant bluestones with his shots.
• Li Xiao retrieved his arrows and checked the Panel, which showed Swift Wind Thunderclap Arrow at 1300/3500 and Minor Accomplishment.

Li Xiao went to the Merit Affairs Hall to find a task for the month and chose to ask about testing pills for an elder in the Alchemy Hall. The steward warned him about possible side effects, but said a physician would be present to treat the testers.

• Li Xiao practiced the Flying Cloud Leg for several days as his cultivation experience increased.
• Li Xiao remembered that Inner Sect disciples had to complete one task each month and went to the Merit Affairs Hall.
• Li Xiao saw a bounty for information about Chen Feng and considered revealing Qian Li's whereabouts, but feared being implicated.
• Li Xiao found the Medicine Testing Disciple task and asked the steward how it worked.
• The steward explained that Elder Gu needed people to test new pills and warned Li Xiao about side effects, including one case of a disciple losing consciousness for three days.

Li Xiao accepted a medicine-testing task from Elder Gu at the Alchemy Hall, hoping to use his Herbal Mastery. After hearing about the pills’ humiliating side effects, he continued toward Elder Gu’s courtyard despite his fears.

• Li Xiao accepted the Medicine Testing Disciple task and received a token from the Merit Affairs Hall Steward.
• Li Xiao traveled to Returning Origin Peak and reached the Alchemy Hall, passing Inner Sect Disciples from Azure Wave Peak and Iron Wire Peak.
• A disciple directed Li Xiao to Elder Gu’s courtyard and warned him that few people accepted the medicine-testing task.
• The disciple told Li Xiao that Elder Gu’s pills had caused diarrhea, itching, dizziness, unconsciousness, and uncontrollable laughter in previous testers.
• Li Xiao feared a humiliating reaction but gritted his teeth and continued toward Elder Gu’s courtyard.

Li Xiao entered Elder Gu’s Alchemy Room to take a pill-testing task, hoping to learn alchemy and build a connection with the elder. After seeing previous testers carried out sick, he watched Elder Gu prepare a new batch of pills, and the chapter left him facing the strange piece of meat Elder Gu brought in.

• Li Xiao decided that pill testing could help him become familiar with Elder Gu and give him a chance to learn alchemy.
• Li Xiao arrived at Elder Gu’s courtyard and saw two Outer Sect disciples carried out while foaming at the mouth.
• A Daoist Boy admitted Li Xiao to the Alchemy Room, where Li Xiao introduced himself as Li Feiyu and accepted the pill-testing task.
• Elder Gu examined Li Xiao’s physique and said he was a suitable specimen for testing pills, explaining that earlier testers had suffered diarrhea after taking Yangli Pills.
• Li Xiao watched Elder Gu add herbs to the Pill Furnace and memorized their order as the Daoist Boys controlled the fire.
• Elder Gu returned from the rear of the room carrying a large piece of black-red meat with golden meridians visible beneath its surface.

Li Xiao learned how several herbs contributed to Elder Gu’s Blood Explosion Pill and earned an invitation to help in the Alchemy Room. After swallowing one of the freshly made pills, he endured escalating heat and violent bodily reactions as Elder Gu recorded his symptoms.

• Li Xiao identified the herbs for Elder Gu and learned how each ingredient affected the Blood Explosion Pill.
• Elder Gu invited Li Xiao to visit often and help in the Alchemy Room, and Li Xiao accepted.
• Elder Gu opened the furnace and revealed ten rough-looking Pills, then asked Li Xiao to try one.
• Li Xiao swallowed a Pill and developed rising heat, a racing heartbeat, bloodshot eyes, blurred vision, and a nosebleed.
• Elder Gu recorded Li Xiao’s symptoms as the Pill’s Medicinal Power began battering his internal organs.

Elder Gu refined an improved Blood Explosion Pill using Demonic Beast meat while Li Xiao watched and identified the herbs in the formula. Elder Gu tested Li Xiao’s medicinal knowledge, then picked up another inconspicuous plant to quiz him.

• Elder Gu used True Qi to divide the Demonic Beast meat and add it to the medicinal brew in the Pill Furnace.
• Elder Gu guided the fusion of the meat and herbs with True Qi and hand seals, then condensed the brew into Pills.
• Elder Gu told Li Xiao that the Pills were an improved version of the Blood Explosion Pill, refined for the first time and awaiting a test.
• Li Xiao identified several herbs and described their ages and effects, impressing Elder Gu.
• Elder Gu quizzed Li Xiao on more plants and picked up an inconspicuous one.

Li Xiao endured severe and humiliating side effects while testing Elder Gu’s pill, then learned they were caused by impurities Elder Gu had failed to clean from the ingredients. Elder Gu offered him three hundred Contribution Points as compensation, easing Li Xiao’s anger.

• Elder Gu recorded Li Xiao’s escalating reactions to the pill, including black smoke, foul gas, chills, vomiting, and diarrhea.
• After several shichen, Li Xiao left the Alchemy Room, exhausted and humiliated by the ordeal.
• Li Xiao asked Elder Gu why the pill caused so many adverse reactions, and Elder Gu admitted he had left Demonic Beast fur, blood vessels, and other scraps in the ingredients.
• Elder Gu explained that the impurities had disrupted the pill’s balance and caused most of Li Xiao’s suffering.
• Li Xiao restrained his anger because Elder Gu was stronger and he still wanted to learn pill refinement from him.
• Elder Gu offered to count the mission as three hundred Contribution Points, and Li Xiao accepted the compensation gratefully.

Li Xiao completed Elder Gu’s Blood Explosion Pill test and earned an offer to learn alchemy, but he left the Alchemy Hall weak and humiliated by other Disciples’ reactions to his lingering odor. He returned to his courtyard, where Qingluo and Bitao realized he had taken the infamous medicine-testing task.

• Elder Gu told Li Xiao he would need to test the improved Blood Explosion Pill later and invited him to visit the Alchemy Room to learn about Pills.
• Li Xiao left the Alchemy Hall with weak legs and a lingering odor, drawing disgusted looks and whispers from passing Disciples.
• Li Xiao took secluded paths back to his courtyard to avoid further encounters.
• Qingluo and Bitao stopped practicing and helped Li Xiao inside after seeing his pale, unsteady state.
• Li Xiao admitted he had tested a Pill, and Qingluo and Bitao recognized the task as the notorious Alchemy Hall medicine test.

Li Xiao recovered from testing a potent Pill and spent several peaceful days cultivating before three Flying Cloud Peak disciples visited him. They told him about the Iron Wire Peak Master's upcoming advancement ceremony, which Li Xiao planned to attend as tensions grew around the Three Origins Sect.

• Li Xiao rested after the Pill's effects passed and resolved to continue his dangerous medicine-testing task so he could learn pill refinement from Elder Gu.
• Zhou Yuan, Cai Kuang, and Wang Zhirou visited Li Xiao and introduced themselves as fellow Inner Sect disciples of Flying Cloud Peak.
• Zhou Yuan told Li Xiao that the Iron Wire Peak Master had advanced to the Sixth Turn and would hold a ceremony in five days at Returning Origin Peak.
• Li Xiao agreed to attend the ceremony with the three disciples and considered the growing strength of the Three Origins Sect and the unease it caused among the Military Governor's people and Imperial Court officials.

Li Xiao discovered a rare Seven Orifice Insect hidden in the residue of a pill and learned that it could parasitize others to absorb their energy and fortune. The insect’s Fusion Ritual offered powerful abilities, but its stages required increasingly rare and costly materials.

• Iron Wire Peak’s disciples celebrated their Peak Master’s breakthrough to the Sixth Turn while Li Xiao continued cultivating in seclusion.
• Li Xiao found that his Viscera Refining Pills were nearly gone and decided to wait until the Peak Master’s Promotion Ceremony before taking missions.
• Li Xiao opened the bottles he had brought back from the mine and found an insect feeding on the residue in one of them.
• Li Xiao recorded the Seven Orifice Insect after the panel identified it and received information about its rarity and Fusion Ritual.
• Li Xiao read that completed rituals let the insect create Sub-insects that could drain targets’ Essence Qi, True Qi, Fortune and Destiny, and other resources.

Li Xiao discovered that the Seven Orifice Insect hidden in the Jade Bottle could grant seven powerful abilities, though its rituals required rare materials he could not yet obtain. He realized the insect was likely meant for Shi Xin and began planning to use its Sub-insects to gather cultivation resources for his Life-Slaying Amitabha Sword Scripture.

• Li Xiao examined the Seven Orifice Insect and found that each of its seven rituals required materials he could not currently acquire.
• Li Xiao traced the insect to Pills from the great hall near Shi Xin and realized he had taken several opportunities that might otherwise have belonged to Shi Xin.
• Li Xiao reflected that Shi Xin could have completed the insect’s rituals more easily through his fortune and powerful connections.
• Li Xiao realized Sub-insects could absorb Killing Intent, baleful aura, ghost Qi, and Demonic Qi from hosts and feed those resources back to him.
• Li Xiao put away the Jade Bottle and went to the window, excited by the insect’s potential.

Li Xiao devised a plan to rise through the Three Origins Sect and gather Great Fortune Bearers, but focused first on breaking through to the Fifth Turn. He hoped Shi Xin would attend the Iron Wire Peak Master's Promotion Ceremony, where Li Xiao might meet him, and arrived at the crowded venue with his fellow disciples.

• Li Xiao considered seeking Shi Xin's essence blood but set the idea aside because Shi Xin was far away and asking for it would be difficult.
• Li Xiao planned to become a Candidate Saint Son and eventually control the Three Origins Sect, using his Exotic Insects and Great Fortune Bearers to strengthen himself.
• Li Xiao realized the Lotus Chan Monastery might send Shi Xin to the Iron Wire Peak Master's Promotion Ceremony and decided to watch for him.
• The next morning, Zhou Yuan, Cai Kuang, and Wang Zhirou joined Li Xiao on the journey to Iron Wire Peak.
• Li Xiao and the others reached the decorated training ground and took seats among the Flying Cloud Peak and Azure Wave Peak disciples as more guests arrived.

Li Xiao watched dignitaries and representatives arrive at the Three Origins Sect’s promotion ceremony with lavish gifts. Wu Lingshuang arrived as the Weiyuan Military Governor’s daughter, spotted Li Xiao, and walked straight past Zhou Yuan to him.

• Li Xiao and Zhou Yuan watched guests from across the Three Prefectures arrive to congratulate the Iron Wire Peak Master, bringing valuable gifts.
• Imperial Court officials sent representatives, and Zhou Yuan explained that the court was wary of the Three Origins Sect.
• Representatives from three Military Governor’s Mansions arrived with especially lavish gifts.
• Li Xiao recognized Wu Lingshuang among the Weiyuan delegation and watched her search the crowd and smile when she spotted him.
• Zhou Yuan assumed Wu Lingshuang was approaching him, but she walked past him and went straight to Li Xiao.

Li Xiao met Wu Lingshuang at the Three Origins Sect gathering, and she invited him and his fellow disciples to seats near the front. He watched the major sects’ representatives arrive, but Shi Xin was absent; the chapter ended as the Three Origins Sect’s leaders appeared on the high platform.

• Wu Lingshuang greeted Li Xiao, introduced her second brother, and invited Li Xiao and his fellow disciples to sit with her near the front.
• Li Xiao waited for Lotus Chan Monastery’s representatives, but Shi Xin was not among the monks who arrived.
• Representatives from the Heavenly Blade Sect, the Mysterious Yin Sect, and other major powers entered the square, and Li Xiao studied them.
• The Iron Wire Peak Master, the Azure Wave Peak Master, and the Sect Master of the Three Origins Sect arrived on the high platform.

Li Xiao attended the Iron Wire Peak Master's promotion ceremony, where the Three Origins Sect displayed its power and the newly promoted Sixth Turn Master expounded on his breakthrough. Wu Lingshuang told Li Xiao that Daoist Yang had left to seek an opportunity and that her second brother was asking the Sect to mediate the stalemate with the Fengyang Military Governor.

• The Sect Master and three Peak Masters arrived, and the Sect Master welcomed the guests gathered to celebrate Junior Brother Lu's breakthrough.
• The Iron Wire Peak Master thanked the guests, announced a banquet, and offered to expound on his breakthrough after the ceremony.
• Li Xiao and the other guests ate Exotic Beast and Demonic Beast meat served at the lavish banquet.
• Wu Lingshuang told Li Xiao that Daoist Yang had departed to seek an opportunity and that the conflict with the Fengyang Military Governor had settled into a stalemate.
• Wu Lingshuang said her second brother had come to ask the Three Origins Sect to mediate, but she did not know whether the Sect would intervene.