Heavenly Pool Fortress

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Heavenly Pool Fortress (天池堡)
Affiliation	Li Family; a subordinate force of the Li Family 200
Occupation/Role	Fortress and mining settlement administering the Heavenly Pool Fire Poison Mine; later the base for Heavenly Pool Market 179 215
Location	Midway up Heavenly Pool Mountain, near Divine Wood City and Golden Thorn Mountain 173 179
Status	Operational
First Appearance	Chapter 179

Background & History

The fortress was established around the Heavenly Pool Fire Poison Mine, a Spirit Mine bestowed upon the Li Family by the sect. Heavenly Pool Mountain is an active volcano whose flooded crater formed Heavenly Pool Lake; the mine emerges from the lake amid dense earth-yellow Fire Poison. The mine was expected to yield at least 30,000 Spirit Stones annually and was considered essential to the Li Family's resurgence. 173 179

When Li Shuidao first arrived, Li Tianfeng served as Fortress Lord, while Li Shuidao's father, Haoshan Li, managed the warehouse and recorded every delivery from the miners. The fortress already contained an alchemy room and an artifact refining room, both dependent on the mountain's fire vein. 179

After Li Tianfeng fled the fortress, Li Shuihong appointed Li Shuidao acting Fortress Lord. Li Shuidao asserted control over the residents and guards, and the Li Family Elder Council formally confirmed him as Fortress Master shortly afterward. 187 189

Under Li Shuidao, the fortress shifted from an isolated mining post into a growing settlement and commercial center. Its expansion eventually produced Heavenly Pool Market, which received construction permission from the Five Poisons Sect and opened for business with trade facilities, an auction house, and specialized cultivation halls. 215 234 280

Geography & Environment

Heavenly Pool Fortress stands on a short, stout smoking mountain between two much taller peaks. Yellow poisonous smoke rises from the mountaintop, while Spiritual Energy becomes denser higher up the mountain. 179

At the summit lies Heavenly Pool Lake: a deep-blue, bottomless body of water with a small central island that emits dense Fire Poison smoke. Mining occurs on and around this island. 181

• Fire Poison — Ordinary mortals rapidly become seriously ill when exposed to the mountain's smoke. Gecko Companion cultivators can cultivate there effectively, though even they suffer irreversible harm from prolonged exposure and require rotation periods. 179 181
• Water Poison eruptions — The lake can erupt with white poisonous steam and scorching force, producing dark clouds that release acidic rain over the mountain. 181
• Stove Arching Fire Formation — The mountain's natural Feng Shui uses underground magma as its fire source, the fortress as a stone stove, and Heavenly Pool Lake as a pot of water. Damaging the formation could dissipate its Spirit Veins and trigger a volcanic eruption. 194

Appearance

The original fortress was an ancient stone-and-wood stronghold built into the mountainside. Its outer walls were blackened by fire, while thick stone slabs covered the roofs to shield inhabitants from poisonous smoke and acidic rain. 179 181

• A central stone building served as the Fortress Lord's residence and command post; its highest floor overlooks the settlement's streets and warehouses. 188
• The warehouse received ore by wheelbarrow and sorted it by type and quantity under steward supervision. 179
• Two towering cement Feng Shui pillars were erected at the entrance to replace the formation's original giant rocks and preserve the local Spirit Veins during expansion. 194 204
• A three-story cement-frame Main Hall was later built atop a flattened giant stone, with glazed roof tiles, wooden beams, and cement pillars. 211
• After the Fire Poison diversion formation was completed, the fortress's surface became safe enough for mortals to inhabit. 197

Resources

Resource	Value and use
Fire Poison Paste	The paste around the lake is valueless, but paste from the island is a first-tier Spirit Material worth more than a dozen Spirit Stones per piece. 181
Fire Poison Stone	Extremely hard material worth several hundred Spirit Stones per piece; used to forge mid-grade or higher magic artifacts, weapons, and armor. 181
Fire Poison Crystal	A poor-quality crystal can produce high-grade magic artifacts, while a flawless crystal can refine Magic Treasures. 181
Volcanic ash	Abundant on Heavenly Pool Mountain; Li Shuidao used it as raw material for cement production. 195 202
Earth Fire	Supplied the artifact refining area and was repurposed to support kilns for firing volcanic ash into cement clinker. 195
Crimson Lotus Black Fire	A Heaven and Earth Exotic Fire hidden beneath the fortress in underground magma and sealed by a Profound Iron Eight Trigrams Lock. 215

Administration

Position	Holder	Notes
Fortress Lord	Li Tianfeng	Held the position when Li Shuidao first visited; later left the fortress without authorization. 179 189
Acting Fortress Lord	Li Shuidao	Appointed by Li Shuihong after Li Tianfeng's departure. 187
Fortress Master	Li Shuidao	Officially appointed by the Li Family Elder Council. 189
Deputy Fortress Lord	Zhu Hongling	Appointed after the Li Family formed an alliance with the Zhu Family. 189
Warehouse Steward	Haoshan Li	Li Shuidao's father; supervised mineral intake and warehouse records during Li Tianfeng's tenure. 179
Warehouse Manager	Li Haojing	Appointed by the Li Family as part of its oversight of fortress resources. 189

Facilities & Security

• Alchemy Room — Available within the fortress and used by Li Shuidao for pill refinement. 179
• Artifact Refining Room — Connected to an Earth Fire source; initially underused because the Li Family had no artifact masters. 195
• Bird Pavilion — Built in Li Shuidao's study to house a Migratory Raven and maintain communication with Divine Wood City. 191
• Treasure vaults — The fortress maintained secured vaults, including an underground Lower-grade Treasure Vault protected by a Bronze Eight Trigrams Lock. 215 257
• Profound Iron Eight Trigrams Lock — Secured the hidden underground passage to the Crimson Lotus Black Fire. 215
• Fire Poison diversion formation — Channeled scorching Fire Poison into underground cultivation chambers, purifying the surface environment. 197

Expansion & Heavenly Pool Market

Li Shuidao initially ordered broad construction to relieve overcrowding and prepare for incoming Zhu Family cultivators. Formation masters Jiang Yunfei and Li Mingyue stopped the work after discovering that careless construction threatened the Stove Arching Fire Formation and the mountain's Spirit Veins. 191 193

Rather than abandon expansion, Li Shuidao proposed replacing the formation's critical giant rocks with stone pillars at the entrance. This would preserve the formation while allowing the fortress to extend toward the mountain and potentially increase its usable area tenfold. 194

Construction was financed through loans and investment from stewards, workers, and residents. Li Shuidao tied housing ownership and rental rights to contribution points and fortress investment, giving the population a direct financial stake in the settlement's growth. 202 204

Heavenly Pool Market

Heavenly Pool Market developed from the fortress expansion into a dedicated commercial district.

• Its core structures included the Assembly Hall, Alchemy Hall, Artifact Refining Hall, Hundred Herbs Hall, Talisman Hall, Spirit Beast Garden, Insect Pavilion, Formation Pavilion, free trade market, inns, restaurants, teahouses, and an auction house. 260
• Concrete roads and drainage ditches linked the central plaza to the market's districts. 260
• Li Shuidao planned to sell unfinished shops and residences through off-plan sales to fund continued construction. 260
• The market officially opened with cultivators from nearby cultivation families and Divine Wood City attending its first day of business. 280
• Li Shuidao intended to auction one high-grade magic artifact every month to attract merchants and cultivators. 280
• The Melodious Sound Pavilion was offered a dedicated Music House as a prospective Black Mountain branch base. 260

Notable Incidents

• A Water Poison eruption forced miners and cultivators to flee Heavenly Pool Lake; Li Tianfeng entered the toxic mining area to rescue a trapped miner. 181
• Li Shuidao halted construction immediately after learning that damage to the fortress's Feng Shui could destroy its Spirit Veins and provoke a volcanic disaster. 193
• The Fire Poison diversion formation transformed the surface environment enough that even mortals could live there safely. 197
• A red warning light from the fortress treasury drew the Li Family Elder Council to investigate, exposing the scale of the fortress's transformation under Li Shuidao. 215
• Lan Huaying later received a Sect Master's decree appointing her temporary Market Master of Heavenly Pool Market while Li Shuidao departed on a sect-assigned mission. 306