Chapter Summaries

After Lin Qing defused the tension between Murong Xiaoxiao and Hu Yue, Shi Yue spoke with Xiaoyaozi about dual cultivation and the means of pursuing power. Shi Yue reaffirmed his resolve to follow his own heart, then returned upstairs to find the three women chatting together.

• Lin Qing eased the argument by explaining that Hu Yue had a good reason to ask Shi Yue to catch Jade Water Toads, and Hu Yue confirmed his help had saved her White Moon Spirit Lotuses.
• Lin Qing changed the subject and asked Murong Xiaoxiao to give her and Hu Yue cultivation pointers, while Shi Yue excused himself to go downstairs.
• Xiaoyaozi urged Shi Yue to pursue the women and use dual cultivation to advance, but Shi Yue criticized selfish methods that harmed others.
• Shi Yue declared that he wanted to cultivate through his own effort and remain true to himself, strengthening his Dao heart.
• Hu Yue called Shi Yue back upstairs, where he found Murong Xiaoxiao, Hu Yue, and Lin Qing chatting animatedly.

Shi Yue's companions discussed Luofu Hai's rare Purple Mist Tea and his difficult reputation before Shi Yue recounted his time in Ascension Cave. Yuan Yan offered Luofu Hai a second Foundation Establishment Pill and proposed that he take a Core Formation Cultivator as his master, but he refused and remained set on becoming Murong's disciple.

• Lin Qing and Hu Yue were surprised that Shi Yue had received Purple Mist Tea from Luofu Hai, and Murong Xiaoxiao explained that the rare tea came from the Luo Family's tree.
• Shi Yue defended Luofu Hai and began telling Lin Qing and Hu Yue about his time in Ascension Cave.
• Yuan Yan summoned Luofu Hai, asked about his needs, and gave him a second Foundation Establishment Pill.
• Yuan Yan suggested that Luofu Hai take a Core Formation Cultivator as his master, but he politely refused because he had long hoped to become Murong's disciple.
• After Luofu Hai left, Sun Hao remarked that he might one day become their equal, while Yuan Yan dismissed the prospect as far off.

After Shi Yue placed eighteenth on the Taixu Ranking, visitors flocked to Green Paulownia Pavilion, and he turned down their invitations. The next morning, two Green Cloud Peak disciples sought his advice, and Shi Yue promised to visit when he had time.

• Yuan Yan declined to take Shi Yue as a registered disciple to avoid getting drawn into a dispute between Senior Brother Zhou and Senior Brother Chen, but she and Sun Hao agreed to keep an eye on him.
• Lin Qing, Murong Xiaoxiao, and Hu Yue left Green Paulownia Pavilion, with Hu Yue asking Shi Yue to visit her the next day.
• Shi Yue crushed dozens of Sound Transmission Talismans carrying invitations and requests, then heard Li Yan speculate that Hu Yue and Murong Xiaoxiao were jealous over him.
• Shi Yue entered Palm Heaven Space and practiced drawing Talismans with the blank paper Lin Qing had given him.
• The next morning, Tang Yaoyao and Liu Sisi visited Shi Yue to ask for cultivation and alchemy advice, and he said he would visit them when free.

Shi Yue visited Hu Yue and learned about Sanxin Market, a large cultivator-only city where he hoped to sell his wine and talismans. Meanwhile, Murong Xiaoxiao told Chen Xing'er about Hu Yue’s attention toward Shi Yue and worried that the two were dining together.

• Shi Yue accepted Hu Yue’s invitation and went to her residence for a meal.
• Hu Yue served Shi Yue softshell turtle soup seasoned with Hundred Fragrance Powder and told him about Sanxin Market, its location, and its distance from Taixu Sect.
• Shi Yue considered traveling to Sanxin Market to sell his Hundred Fragrance Spirit Wine and Beginner Talismans, and Hu Yue advised him to wait until he reached Foundation Establishment.
• Murong Xiaoxiao told Chen Xing'er that many female cultivators had visited Shi Yue and complained that Hu Yue seemed especially interested in him.
• Murong Xiaoxiao and Chen Xing'er wondered whether Hu Yue and Shi Yue were eating together at Hu Yue’s residence.

Shi Yue dealt with a crowd of female disciples pursuing him and told Li Yan he would leave the sect after attending Sun Desheng’s banquet. Meanwhile, Zhao Sheng and Gao He plotted to challenge Shi Yue’s Taixu Ranking, and the chapter ended with Shi Yue meeting Sun Desheng.

• Murong Xiaoxiao called Shi Yue unfaithful, and Chen Xing'er decided to enter seclusion until Foundation Establishment while asking Murong to keep an eye on him.
• Eight female cultivators surrounded Shi Yue at his residence, and he spent the afternoon entertaining them before they left.
• Shi Yue told Li Yan he planned to leave the sect after Sun Desheng’s banquet and asked her to ignore messages claiming he was away on business.
• Zhao Sheng, Gao He, and the Red-robed Man planned to stir up protests against Shi Yue’s ranking and arrange a challenge to test his strength.
• Shi Yue went to Sun Desheng’s residence the next morning, and Sun Desheng asked gravely whether someone was giving him trouble.

Shi Yue joined Sun Desheng and the others for tea, learned how music changed Sound Tea’s flavor, and planned to visit Sanxin Market the next day. Meanwhile, a crowd of disciples gathered at Deacon Hall to demand justice from Li Hong.

• Sun Desheng invited Shi Yue to gather with Lan Kexin and the others, then served him Sound Tea whose flavor changed with the flute music.
• Shi Yue asked to buy Sound Tea, but Sun Desheng said the pot was his last and explained the tea was rare.
• Lan Kexin, Lin Yi, Qu Xiaoxiao, and the others invited Shi Yue to visit, but he declined because he had personal business the next day.
• Shi Yue asked Sun Desheng to bring out Hundred Years Spirit Wine, and Sun Desheng left with Lan Kexin to prepare food and drink.
• Hundreds of disciples crowded Deacon Hall and demanded to see Li Hong, and a tall, thin young man said they wanted justice.

Zhao Sheng’s effort to rally disciples against Shi Yue’s eighteenth-place Taixu Ranking collapsed when Li Hong dispersed the protest. Zhao Sheng then led a small group toward Green Cloud Peak to challenge Shi Yue, who remained unaware of the trouble as he drank with his companions.

• Outer sect disciples accused the Taixu Ranking of being rigged and demanded that Li Hong uphold justice for Shi Yue’s placement.
• Li Hong ordered the protest’s two leaders seized and threatened the crowd with the Law Enforcement Hall, causing the disciples to disperse.
• Li Hong declined Wang Fugui’s suggestion to notify the Law Enforcement Hall, fearing the uproar could bring the Sect Leader’s blame.
• Zhao Sheng regrouped with Gao He and other inner sect disciples and decided to challenge Shi Yue at Green Cloud Peak to ruin his reputation.
• Shi Yue drank with Sun Desheng, Lan Kexin, Lin Yi, and the others, then helped the drunken Sun Desheng back to his room before leaving.

Shi Yue returned to his residence and was cornered by Zhao Sheng and Gao He, who forced a fight on him despite his refusal to spar. He defended himself against Gao He's fire techniques and spirit artifact, but the Crimson Fire Flood Dragon's flames overwhelmed his water spears, leaving him to raise earth walls for protection.

• Shi Yue found Zhao Sheng, Gao He, and more than a dozen inner disciples waiting outside his courtyard, and refused Gao He's challenge to spar.
• Gao He attacked Shi Yue with a Crimson Fire Python, which Shi Yue destroyed using his Qingyuan Sword and Sword Splitting Art.
• Gao He summoned a fire cloud with his Red Banner, while Zhao Sheng and the others falsely claimed Shi Yue had agreed to spar.
• Gao He launched a Crimson Fire Flood Dragon at Shi Yue, who countered with water-spears talismans and his many Qingyuan Swords.
• The flood dragon's flames extinguished Shi Yue's water spears, so he raised two Yellow High Walls to shield himself.

Shi Yue defeated Gao He after breaking free of the Demon-Binding Rope and overpowering his fire techniques, then spared him and warned him not to provoke him again. Zhao Sheng refused to let Shi Yue leave and arranged for Zhang Bin, an early Foundation Establishment body cultivator, to challenge him.

• Shi Yue broke free of Gao He's High-grade Magic Tool, destroyed his Crimson Fire Flood Dragon, and struck through his Red Light Screen.
• Shi Yue knocked Gao He down and halted his final punch, warning him not to provoke him again.
• Zhao Sheng accused Shi Yue of thinking he could leave after injuring Gao He, and Shi Yue replied that Gao He had started the fight.
• Zhao Sheng signaled Zhang Bin, who challenged Shi Yue despite their difference in cultivation and lunged at him before Shi Yue could answer.

Shi Yue used talismans and martial strength to defeat Zhang Bin, after Gao He had also lost to him. When Zhao Sheng sent Zhang Da to challenge Shi Yue, Chen Tianhe and the Law Enforcement Hall arrived, and Zhao Sheng accused Shi Yue of starting the fight.

• Shi Yue trapped Zhang Bin with talismans and struck him with repeated lightning bolts, then broke his command flag and exchanged punches with him.
• Shi Yue and Zhang Bin were both pushed back five steps, and Zhang Bin realized Shi Yue had not cheated in the Ascension Cave.
• Zhao Sheng signaled Zhang Da to challenge Shi Yue after Zhang Bin lost.
• Chen Tianhe arrived with Law Enforcement Hall disciples and demanded to know who had started the private fight.
• Shi Yue told Chen Tianhe that Zhao Sheng had brought the group to surround and provoke him, but Zhao Sheng claimed Shi Yue had insisted on sparring.

After Shi Yue and Zhao Sheng’s group were taken to the Law Enforcement Hall, Shi Yue told an interrogator that they had attacked him first. Zhou Zhenyu arranged to summon Yue Luan to ensure the investigation would be seen as fair, while Xiaoyaozi offered Shi Yue a poison recipe to kill Zhao Sheng, which Shi Yue dismissed as overpriced.

• Zhao Sheng, Zhang Da, and Zhao Sheng’s companions blamed Shi Yue for starting the fight and injuring Gao He, so Chen Tianhe ordered the Law Enforcement Disciples to take everyone to the Law Enforcement Hall.
• Shi Yue told the interrogator that Zhao Sheng’s group had attacked him first, but admitted there had been no witnesses.
• Chen Tianhe reported the incident to Zhou Zhenyu, who told him to invite Tianquan Peak’s master, Yue Luan, to the Law Enforcement Hall.
• Xiaoyaozi teased Shi Yue about the fight and offered to kill Zhao Sheng with Soul Deprivation Powder for forty-five thousand Spirit Stones.
• Shi Yue questioned the poison’s value and said he might consider it only if it could kill a Nascent Soul Cultivator.

Shi Yue negotiated to buy Xiaoyaozi’s Ten Fragrance Bewildering Spirit Powder recipe, then faced a sect hearing over Zhao Sheng’s attack. Zhou Zhenyu arranged a settlement that treated the incident as a private spar, leaving Yue Luan suspicious of his motives.

• Shi Yue agreed to pay Xiaoyaozi twenty thousand Spirit Stones for the recipe, with the remaining thirty thousand due if he gathered its ingredients.
• A middle-aged interrogator took Shi Yue to Zhou Zhenyu, where Yue Luan and the other disciples were waiting.
• Zhou Zhenyu questioned Chen Tianhe about sect punishments, and Zhao Sheng confessed that he had instigated the fight at Shi Yue’s residence.
• Zhao Sheng and the others begged for mercy, while Yue Luan confirmed that Shi Yue had done nothing wrong.
• Zhou Zhenyu proposed treating the incident as a private spar, with each disciple fined four thousand Spirit Stones and Zhao Sheng’s group paying Shi Yue’s fine.
• Yue Luan dismissed the others and asked Zhou Zhenyu to explain his proposal, suspecting he had an ulterior motive.

Zhou Zhenyu settled the dispute between Shi Yue and Zhao Sheng’s group with fines instead of a harsh sect punishment, then advised Shi Yue to keep cultivating. Back at Green Cloud Peak, Shi Yue prepared to leave Li Yan behind and obtained the recipe for the Ten Fragrance Bewildering Spirit Powder from Xiaoyaozi.

• Zhou Zhenyu and Yue Luan agreed to treat the fight as sparring, and Zhou Zhenyu fined Zhao Sheng and the others four thousand Spirit Stones each, with Zhao Sheng paying Shi Yue’s share.
• Zhou Zhenyu advised Shi Yue to avoid deepening his feud with Zhao Sheng and praised his victory over two Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
• Shi Yue returned to Green Cloud Peak, told Li Yan to remain and cultivate while he traveled, and gave her several bottles of Qi Refining Powders.
• Shi Yue entered Palm Heaven Space, paid Xiaoyaozi twenty thousand Spirit Stones, and received the recipe for the Ten Fragrance Bewildering Spirit Powder.

Shi Yue reached Sanxin Market to search for the five unknown ingredients in the Ten Fragrance Bewildering Spirit Powder recipe and hired Lu Er to guide him. Lu Er explained the market’s districts, major shops, and auction house, leaving Shi Yue asking about how to attend its auctions.

• Shi Yue memorized the five main ingredients named in the recipe and left the Taixu Sect for Sanxin Market.
• Lu Er waited at the market entrance for customers and approached Shi Yue, who was disguised as Li Muxian.
• Shi Yue hired Lu Er to show him around and asked about Sanxin Market’s layout and major shops.
• Lu Er described the market’s five districts, six major shops, gambling dens, and the Treasure Competition Palace.
• Shi Yue asked how often the Treasure Competition Palace held auctions and what was required to attend.

Shi Yue explored Sanxin Market, bought a selection of spirit wines, and decided to stay for an upcoming auction featuring a Top-Grade Spirit Tool. He then visited Sheng Ji Magic Robe Shop, where he met its famous owner, Sheng Dong.

• Lu Er told Shi Yue that an auction would be held in three days and that its finale included a Top-Grade Spirit Tool.
• Shi Yue had Lu Er guide him to the spirit wine shops, then bought wine from Zhao Family Winery and other shops, finding twelve kinds that could improve magical power.
• Shi Yue decided to stay in Sanxin Market for the auction and explored its unusual shops and wares.
• Shi Yue entered Sheng Ji Magic Robe Shop and met its effeminate owner, Sheng Dong.

Shi Yue visited Sheng Ji Magic Robe Shop to see its Rainbow Feather Robe, then went across the street to Li Da Magic Tool Shop to order puppets. As he prepared to pay for two Foundation Establishment Puppets, Li Da turned his attention to a new female customer and began negotiating with her.

• Sheng Dong showed Shi Yue the Rainbow Feather Robe and demanded one hundred thousand Spirit Stones, then drove Shi Yue out when he questioned the price.
• Shi Yue recalled Lu Er's warning about Sheng Dong and decided to visit Li Da Magic Tool Shop to commission puppets.
• Shi Yue watched Li Da give a female customer a discount after she promised to recommend other female buyers.
• Shi Yue asked Li Da about custom puppets and arranged to order two Foundation Establishment Puppets for ten thousand Spirit Stones, with a thousand-Spirit-Stone deposit.
• A new female cultivator entered, and Li Da left Shi Yue to offer her a discount on a Coral Hairpin.

Shi Yue bought magical-power recovery pills, rented a room at Gathering Immortals Inn, and tested the pills and spirit wines in Palm Heaven Space. He packed jars of Hundred Fragrance Spirit Wine and went to a pavilion to sell them.

• Li Da sold a red hairpin to a young female cultivator at a discount, then accepted Shi Yue’s deposit for an item and gave him a receipt.
• Shi Yue visited Pill Stores and bought Spirit Recovery Pills, Qi Recovery Pills, and Qi Recovery Powder before renting a room at Gathering Immortals Inn.
• Shi Yue tested twelve spirit wines in Palm Heaven Space and found Plum Wine, Hundred Fruit Brew, and Yellow Date Wine the most effective after Hundred Fragrance Spirit Wine.
• Shi Yue compared pills by exhausting his magical power and found the Spirit Recovery Pill worked better than the Qi Recovery Pill, which had slightly worse side effects.
• Shi Yue packed forty jars of Hundred Fragrance Spirit Wine into the Hundredfold Storage Bag and arrived at an ornate pavilion.

Shi Yue sold his Hundred Fragrance Brew to shops in Sanxin Market under the alias Li Muxian, bargaining for a good price while hiding the full amount he owned. He left Hui Chun Building having asked whether it sold Foundation Establishment Pills.

• Shi Yue visited Tai Sheng Tower and offered Hu Xuan a sample of Hundred Fragrance Brew.
• Shi Yue negotiated a price of 150 spirit stones per catty and sold Tai Sheng Tower a thousand catties for 1,500 mid-grade spirit stones.
• Shi Yue disguised himself as a round-faced fat man and offered the brew to Madam Zhou at Hui Chun Building.
• Shi Yue agreed to sell Hui Chun Building five hundred catties for 145 spirit stones per catty.
• Madam Zhou asked whether Shi Yue had other spirit wine or wanted spirit herbs, and Shi Yue asked if the shop sold Foundation Establishment Pills.

Shi Yue sold his remaining Hundred Fragrance Spirit Wine, bought intermediate Talisman Paper, and repaid Xiaoyaozi part of his debt with interest. He then prepared to begin making Meridian Connecting Talismans.

• Shi Yue declined to order a Foundation Establishment Pill, ordered one bottle of Spirit Feeding Pills, and learned that more would be auctioned in three days.
• Shi Yue sold his remaining twenty-five hundred jin of Hundred Fragrance Spirit Wine to Tai Sheng Tower for nearly four hundred thousand Spirit Stones.
• Shi Yue bought a thousand bundles of intermediate Talisman Paper from Jin Yu Xuan after negotiating the price with manager Wang Ye.
• Xiaoyaozi asked Shi Yue to repay his hundred-thousand-Spirit-Stone debt with five thousand Spirit Stones in interest, and Shi Yue paid him one hundred and five thousand Spirit Stones.
• Shi Yue went to a nearby peak, studied a Jade Slip, and began preparing to make a talisman.

At Tai Sheng Tower, Elder Han ordered Hu Xuan to investigate the source of the potent Hundred Fragrance Brew, while a Black Skirt Woman continued searching Sanxin Market for the Seven-Colored Nine-Leaf Lotus needed to cure her illness. Inside Palm Heaven Space, Shi Yue celebrated making two Meridian Connecting Talismans and prepared to harvest his spirit plants.

• Elder Han concluded that the sellers of Hundred Fragrance Brew likely belonged to a wine-brewing family and ordered Hu Xuan to report any further sales.
• The Black Skirt Woman learned that no shops in Sanxin Market knew of the Seven-Colored Nine-Leaf Lotus, but agreed to stay while Sister Lin continued searching.
• Sister Lin told the Black Skirt Woman that the auction had no Seven-Colored Nine-Leaf Lotus but offered other interesting items.
• Shi Yue successfully made two Meridian Connecting Talismans after using more than ten thousand sheets of intermediate Talisman Paper.
• Xiaoyaozi warned Shi Yue to attempt Foundation Establishment in a remote place with strong spiritual energy and protective formations, then asked for ten thousand Spirit Stones if Shi Yue succeeded.
• Shi Yue flew to the Spirit Fruit Tree to gather its new fruit and the Dark Spirit Tea Tree's ready leaves.