Chapter Summaries

Qin Jiuge interacted with Bing Qingqing, sensed something strange about Bing Tian Ce, and received visits from Zhishan and Shi Feiyu ahead of the Buddhist-Daoist contest. He rebuffed their attempts to get close and left Shi Feiyu to explain why Cihang Jingzhai had sent its Young Abbot.

• Qin Jiuge teased Bing Qingqing, who blushed and ran away after mistaking his words for romantic advances.
• Bing Tian Ce thanked Qin Jiuge for his help at the great canyon, and Qin Jiuge privately noted his strange aura.
• Old Ghost You Quan warned Bing Tian Ce that Qin Jiuge had noticed him and urged him to avoid offending Qin Jiuge.
• Zhishan approached Qin Jiuge to ask questions about the upcoming Buddhist-Daoist contest, but Qin Jiuge warned him not to expect favoritism.
• Shi Feiyu came to see Qin Jiuge, who challenged her claim of familiarity and asked why Cihang Jingzhai had sent its Young Abbot.

Shi Feiyu and the Cihang Jingzhai disciples tried to force Qin Jiuge into accepting a marriage by publicly accusing him of taking advantage of her. Qin Jiuge summoned Bing Qingqing, who arrived with Ice Frost Sacred Land disciples and confronted them.

• Shi Feiyu pretended to be heartbroken, then shouted that Qin Jiuge had tried to take advantage of her.
• Cihang Jingzhai disciples who had been lying in ambush accused Qin Jiuge and demanded that he give their sect an explanation.
• The disciples pressured Qin Jiuge to marry Shi Feiyu, but he called for Bing Qingqing.
• Bing Qingqing rushed to Qin Jiuge's courtyard with Ice Frost Sacred Land disciples and challenged Cihang Jingzhai over trying to steal her man.

Bing Qingqing confronted Shi Feiyu for trying to get close to Qin Jiuge, but Shi Feiyu persuaded her that she meant to support her. Bing Qingqing welcomed Shi Feiyu as a future ally in the Qin Family, and Qin Jiuge vanished, leaving the two women to grow closer.

• Bing Qingqing challenged Shi Feiyu for coming to the Ice Frost Sacred Land to pursue Qin Jiuge.
• The Ice Frost Sacred Land's people praised Bing Qingqing to Qin Jiuge, boosting her confidence.
• Shi Feiyu claimed she wanted to befriend Bing Qingqing and promised to support her in the Qin Family.
• Bing Qingqing took Shi Feiyu's hand and told Qin Jiuge that the two women should resolve their misunderstanding as family.
• Qin Jiuge disappeared, while Bing Qingqing reassured Shi Feiyu and the onlookers praised her for turning an enemy into an ally.

Qin Jiuge broke through to the fifth level of the Supreme Realm before attending the Buddhist-Daoist Dispute at Ice Frost Sacred Land. The dispute began as a battle of insults between Zhishan and Shi Feiyu, leaving Qin Jiuge and Bing Tian Ce bewildered by the spectacle.

• Qin Jiuge consumed a Thousand Year Snow Lotus and advanced to the fifth level of the Supreme Realm, then chose to stabilize his cultivation before using his other treasures.
• Qin Jiuge and the Ice Frost Sacred Land representatives attended the Buddhist-Daoist Dispute while the Sacred Lord remained in seclusion recovering from his injuries.
• Zhishan of Sound of Dharma Temple and Shi Feiyu of Cihang Jingzhai took the stage, and Shi Feiyu initially gained the advantage by taunting the shy monk.
• Zhishan drew courage from his fellow monks and answered Shi Feiyu with insults of his own as Ice One and Ice Three loudly commentated.
• Qin Jiuge questioned whether this was truly the Buddhist-Daoist Dispute, while Bing Tian Ce felt humiliated that the event was being hosted at Ice Frost Sacred Land.

The Buddhist Sect defeated the Daoist School in a bitterly insulting Buddhist-Daoist Dispute, prompting Cihang Jingzhai to seek the Qin Family’s help securing its Fortune. Qin Jiuge left Ice Frost Sacred Land after its Sacred Lord thanked him, while a severe purge began there.

• Bing Tian Ce, Qin Jiuge, and the others watched the Buddhist Sect and Daoist School trade vicious insults until the Buddhist Sect won the dispute and claimed sixty percent of the Fortune, leaving Cihang Jingzhai with forty percent.
• Ice One and Ice Three praised the battle’s verbal combat, while Qin Jiuge, Bing Tian Ce, Ice Two, and Old Ghost You Quan wondered whether they had witnessed the same event.
• The master of Cihang Jingzhai told Shi Feiyu that the sect needed the Qin Family’s help to protect its share of the Fortune, and Shi Feiyu agreed to do whatever was necessary for her master and sect.
• The recovered Sacred Lord of Ice Frost Sacred Land thanked Qin Jiuge for saving the land and bowed to him, then praised him as a qilin child; Qin Jiuge departed without Bing Qingqing so she could rest at her maternal home.
• After Qin Jiuge left, Ice Frost Sacred Land began a sweeping purge, and corpses piled up at Repentance Cliff as Bing Tian Ce and Old Ghost You Quan realized the crisis was worse than they had thought.

After leaving Ice Frost Sacred Land, Qin Jiuge accepted Zhishan’s invitation to attend the Ullambana Festival at Sound of Dharma Temple for its Enlightenment Tea and Bodhi Fruit. He arrived at the temple, where Abbot Miaokong welcomed him and promised to prepare everything for the festival.

• Bing Tian Ce told Old Ghost You Quan that he would pursue control of Ice Frost Sacred Land patiently, and his master praised his resolve.
• Qin Jiuge left Ice Frost Sacred Land instead of returning to the Qin Family, seeking opportunities beyond home.
• Zhishan invited Qin Jiuge to Sound of Dharma Temple for the Ullambana Festival and promised him Enlightenment Tea and Bodhi Fruit; Qin Jiuge agreed on the condition that he could leave if dissatisfied.
• Mad Monk complained to Abbot Miaokong that Zhishan had been burdened with inviting Qin Jiuge, but Miaokong explained that Zhishan was the one Qin Jiuge would respect.
• Qin Jiuge and Zhishan arrived at Sound of Dharma Temple, where Abbot Miaokong greeted Qin Jiuge and promised to prepare for his visit.

Qin Jiuge joined young monk Zhishan for lunch at Sound of Dharma Temple and discovered that the monks lived simply while using their surplus resources to support Myriad Buddha Province. After Qin demonstrated his affinity with Buddhist cultivation, the monks recognized him as someone connected to their sect.

• Young monk Zhishan invited Qin Jiuge to share lunch at Sound of Dharma Temple after winning the Buddhist-Daoist Dispute.
• Qin Jiuge was astonished by the monks' plain meal, but found that the seemingly ordinary food was made from top-grade Spirit Rice.
• Qin Jiuge ate three bowls before the kitchen refused to serve more, explaining that the temple used nearly all surplus resources to support Myriad Buddha Province.
• Qin Jiuge observed the monks' disciplined cultivation and joined them, circulating the Azure Steel Glazed Gold Method.
• The monks heard Buddhist chanting from Qin Jiuge's cultivation and said he was fated with the Buddha and connected to the Buddhist Sect.

Qin Jiuge learned that Sound of Dharma Temple’s Demon Suppressing Pagoda was failing and that the temple hoped to use the Ullambana Assembly to resolve its crisis. After he decided to leave over the deception, young monk Zhishan offered him the Bodhi Heart as the assembly’s grand finale if he would help.

• Qin Jiuge watched the monks cultivate and refrained from entering the forbidden Demon Suppressing Pagoda without permission.
• Demonic Sound erupted from the pagoda, and Abbot Miaokong warned that Sound of Dharma Temple faced calamity if it could not contain the Devil Master before the eighteenth day of the eighth month.
• Mad Monk urged Abbot Miaokong to seek help from Cihang Pure Zhai or Qin Jiuge, but Abbot Miaokong refused to rely on outsiders except as a last resort.
• Qin Jiuge heard that the Demon Suppressing Pagoda held Ancient Yao-Mo and that three thousand Worldly Travelers might become dangerous if the temple weakened further.
• Qin Jiuge realized Sound of Dharma Temple had organized the Ullambana Assembly to address its crisis and decided to leave, accusing the Buddhist Sect of acting without telling him.
• Young monk Zhishan stopped Qin Jiuge and offered to ask the abbot to give him the Ullambana Assembly’s grand finale, the Bodhi Heart, if he helped the temple.

Qin Jiuge negotiated with Sound of Dharma Temple to help protect it from the crisis in exchange for a vast trove of Buddhist treasures and cultivation resources. After consuming Enlightenment Tea and other treasures, he advanced to the late stage of the fifth level of the Supreme Realm, while Zhishan was left exhausted from bargaining on his behalf.

• Zhishan told Qin Jiuge that the Bodhi Heart could aid his cultivation, and Qin agreed to consider staying if Sound of Dharma Temple offered it.
• Zhishan reported Qin Jiuge's terms to Monk Miaokong, who authorized him to offer any price for Qin's help.
• Qin Jiuge repeatedly raised his demands, and Sound of Dharma Temple provisionally agreed to give him three Bodhi Hearts, tea leaves from nearly half a Bodhi Tree, and other resources.
• Qin Jiuge consumed an Enlightenment Tea leaf and other treasures, reaching the late stage of the fifth level of the Supreme Realm and nearing the sixth level.
• Zhishan returned the next day visibly exhausted, and Qin Jiuge gave him a drop of morning dew.

Qin Jiuge persuaded young monk Zhishan to help with future negotiations, then learned he needed to recruit Ouyangzi to reinforce the Demon Suppressing Pagoda’s formation. He traveled to the Purple Bamboo Forest with Zhishan and Lian Nishang, where they admired the rare purple foxes before setting out to find Ouyangzi.

• Qin Jiuge gave young monk Zhishan condensed vital energy and promised him stone stalactite milk in exchange for helping with future negotiations.
• Qin Jiuge told Monk Miaokong that Ouyangzi and three Quasi-Emperors could restore the Demon Suppressing Pagoda’s formation, and Monk Miaokong left him to arrange it.
• Qin Jiuge encountered Lian Nishang after leaving the Sound of Dharma Temple, and she joined him and young monk Zhishan on the journey to the Purple Bamboo Forest.
• Lian Nishang and young monk Zhishan admired the purple foxes and discussed their legend while Qin Jiuge urged them to find Ouyangzi.
• Lian Nishang and young monk Zhishan mocked Qin Jiuge behind his back, and he stopped to confront them; Lian Nishang denied they had been speaking ill of him.

Qin Jiuge tried to persuade Ouyangzi to help with the Demon Suppressing Pagoda, but the formation grandmaster refused and proved difficult to sway. Qin Jiuge then lured Ouyangzi out with roasted rabbits and aged wine, leaving Ouyangzi protesting that the feast was tormenting him.

• Qin Jiuge introduced himself to Ouyangzi and asked him to meet, but Ouyangzi refused because of his acquaintance with Qin Ming.
• Qin Jiuge seized Ouyangzi, then apologized and asked him to help, but Ouyangzi remained determined not to act.
• Qin Jiuge admitted he had no immediate way to change Ouyangzi's mind, so he and his companions stayed in the Purple Bamboo Forest while he made plans.
• Qin Jiuge roasted wild rabbits and brought out eight-hundred-year-old Nü'er Hong, despite Lian Nishang doubting the bait would work.
• Ouyangzi rushed in, craving the food and wine, and accused Qin Jiuge of trying to torment him.

Qin Jiuge persuaded Ouyangzi to help repair Sound of Dharma Temple’s Demon Subduing Great Array, but Ouyangzi required the temple to supply three missing materials. He sent Qin Jiuge to seek the Tianshan Silkworm Clan’s Brilliant Dewdrops while he went to Sound of Dharma Temple to begin repairs.

• After sharing a meal, Qin Jiuge asked Ouyangzi to help restore Sound of Dharma Temple’s Demon Subduing Great Array, and Ouyangzi agreed to repair it if the missing materials could be found.
• Qin Jiuge pressed Ouyangzi to provide the materials, but Ouyangzi insisted he did not have them and named the Three Lives Lotus, Brilliant Dewdrops, and Seed of Life as the three missing items.
• Ouyangzi explained where the materials might be found and warned that the array could fail before the Ullambana Festival, releasing fiends from the Demon Suppressing Pagoda.
• Ouyangzi told Qin Jiuge to seek the Tianshan Silkworm Clan’s Brilliant Dewdrops while he went to Sound of Dharma Temple to start the repairs.
• Young Monk Zhishan thanked Ouyangzi, who credited Qin Jiuge for securing his agreement and cursed Qin Jiuge for his shameless bargaining.

Qin Jiuge and his companions reached the Tianshan Mountains to seek Brilliant Dewdrops for repairing Sound of Dharma Temple’s Demon Subduing Great Array. The Tianshan Silkworm Clan challenged their reason for getting involved, and Lian Nishang turned to Qin Jiuge to pressure him into negotiating.

• Qin Jiuge promised Ouyangzi another feast and left the Purple Bamboo Forest with Lian Nishang and young monk Zhishan.
• Young monk Zhishan pointed out signs that Ouyangzi had been eating badly cooked food, embarrassing Lian Nishang, while Qin Jiuge teased her.
• Qin Jiuge pushed young monk Zhishan to negotiate with the Tianshan Silkworm Clan for Brilliant Dewdrops, though Zhishan doubted himself.
• Young monk Zhishan called out at the foot of Tianshan, but received no reply for an hour.
• Lian Nishang demanded that the Tianshan Silkworm Clan appear and explained that the Brilliant Dewdrops would help Sound of Dharma Temple repair its array.
• The Tianshan Silkworm Clan asked why the demon’s release concerned them, and Lian Nishang then accused Qin Jiuge of refusing to help Sound of Dharma Temple.

Qin Jiuge persuaded the Tianshan Clan Elder to let him enter, but the Elder refused Young Monk Zhishan because of an apparent old grudge with Sound of Dharma Temple. The Elder then took Qin Jiuge and Lian Nishang to ask the Tianshan Silkworm Clan’s Saintess about the Brilliant Dewdrops.

• Lian Nishang embellished the story, and Qin Jiuge chided her for being shameless.
• Qin Jiuge introduced himself as the Qin Family Divine Son and offered the Qin Family’s and Sound of Dharma Temple’s help in exchange for an exception.
• The Tianshan Clan Elder let Qin Jiuge enter but refused Young Monk Zhishan and Sound of Dharma Temple.
• Lian Nishang speculated that Zhishan’s master, Mad Monk, had an old romantic entanglement with someone from Tianshan, and Zhishan could not deny the rumors about his master’s past.
• The Elder warned Zhishan not to look at the Tianshan Silkworm Clan that way and took Qin Jiuge and Lian Nishang to consult the clan’s Saintess about the Brilliant Dewdrops.

Qin Jiuge and Lian Nishang sought Brilliant Dewdrops from the Tianshan Silkworm Clan, but Saintess Xue Rou demanded that they settle her Karmic Entanglement with the Mad Monk first. They summoned him to the Tianshan Mountains, but he refused to go when Abbot Miaokong told him where he was being sent.

• Qin Jiuge and Lian Nishang met Saintess Xue Rou and asked to buy Brilliant Dewdrops.
• Xue Rou demanded that they find the Mad Monk and settle his Karmic Entanglement with her before discussing the Brilliant Dewdrops.
• Qin Jiuge agreed to handle the matter, and the group sent a communication Jade Slip to summon the Mad Monk.
• Abbot Miaokong told the Mad Monk to go to the Tianshan Mountains, but the Mad Monk refused, fearing he would not return if he saw Xue Rou.

Mad Monk went to Tianshan to negotiate with Saintess Xue Rou, but their unresolved past turned the meeting into a fight. Xue Rou refused to let him leave, while Qin Jiuge and the others watched from below.

• Abbot Miaokong insisted that Mad Monk go to Tianshan to deal with Xue Rou, arguing that Sound of Dharma Temple's survival mattered more than his old affairs.
• Mad Monk arrived at Tianshan and told young monk Zhishan that his disciple had dragged him into trouble, while Lian Nishang urged him to settle his past with Xue Rou.
• Mad Monk began explaining to Qin Jiuge that his relationship with Xue Rou had been a misunderstanding, unaware that she had appeared behind him.
• Xue Rou confronted Mad Monk and attacked him with the Heavenly Silkworm Great Law, while he dodged and defended himself without striking back.
• Mad Monk argued that their lives were incompatible, but Xue Rou declared that she would not forgive him or let him leave unless she died.

Qin Jiuge helped Xue Rou restrain Mad Monk and obtained the Brilliant Dewdrops, only to learn that Sound of Dharma Temple had run out of Three Lives Lotus and expected him to fetch more from Great Dao Province. At Cihang Jingzhai, the abbess prepared Shi Feiyu for Qin Jiuge’s arrival, wary of his growing influence and Lian Nishang’s presence.

• Young monk Zhishan revealed that he hoped to become abbot after Mad Monk and the current abbot died, prompting Mad Monk to try to break off his fight with Xue Rou.
• Mad Monk redirected Xue Rou’s attacks toward Qin Jiuge, but Qin Jiuge joined Xue Rou and helped her immobilize Mad Monk with the Heavenly Silkworm Great Law.
• Xue Rou handed Qin Jiuge the Brilliant Dewdrops, and he left Mad Monk behind as young monk Zhishan followed him away.
• At Sound of Dharma Temple, Monk Miaokong told Qin Jiuge that the temple had used all its Three Lives Lotus and asked him to obtain more from Cihang Jingzhai in Great Dao Province.
• The abbess of Cihang Jingzhai reflected on the hidden balance of interests between the Buddhist Sect and Daoist School, then told Shi Feiyu to prepare for Qin Jiuge’s arrival and remain wary of Lian Nishang.

Qin Jiuge and his companions visited Cihang Jingzhai to request a Three Lives Lotus, but Shi Feiyu said only the Abbot could approve it. Lian Nishang warned Qin Jiuge that the Buddhist Sect and Daoist School might be conspiring against him, and Shi Feiyu later tried to use Soul-Bewitching Incense on him; he remained awake and confronted her.

• Qin Jiuge stopped at the foot of Cihang Jingzhai's mountain because the place seemed strange to him, while Lian Nishang teased him about owing someone there.
• Shi Feiyu received Qin Jiuge and his party, then explained that the Three Lives Lotus was essential to the Buddhist-Daoist dispute and that only the Abbot could decide whether to give them one.
• Lian Nishang warned Qin Jiuge that the Buddhist Sect and Daoist School might have arranged the circumstances to lure him to Great Dao Province, and he agreed to stay vigilant.
• At midnight, Shi Feiyu entered Qin Jiuge's bedchamber with Soul-Bewitching Incense and prepared to climb onto his bed, believing he was asleep.
• Qin Jiuge revealed that he was awake and challenged Shi Feiyu over the damage her plan could do to Cihang Jingzhai's reputation, and she replied that her sect and Great Dao Province had no choice.

Shi Feiyu used the Three Lives Lotus to suppress Qin Jiuge and carry out Cihang Jingzhai’s plan, but Lian Nishang and Young Monk Zhishan intervened and stopped her. Shi Feiyu was left furious that her scheme had ended up helping Lian Nishang spend time with Qin Jiuge.

• Shi Feiyu revealed that the Three Lives Lotus had sealed Qin Jiuge’s powers and declared that Cihang Jingzhai’s plan would succeed.
• Lian Nishang burst into the room and challenged Shi Feiyu for trying to take Qin Jiuge.
• Young Monk Zhishan arrived after subduing the people outside, then trapped Shi Feiyu with his Buddhist prayer beads.
• Lian Nishang and Young Monk Zhishan stayed with Qin Jiuge while Zhishan escorted the nearly undressed Shi Feiyu outside.
• Shi Feiyu threatened Young Monk Zhishan and complained that her plan had made a wedding dress for Lian Nishang instead.

Lian Nishang revealed that the Qin and Lian families had arranged for her to marry Qin Jiuge, and she took advantage of the Three Lives Lotus’s effects to spend the night with him. After Qin Jiuge recovered, he beat Zhishan for helping arrange the encounter, and Zhishan demanded an explanation.

• Zhishan sided with Lian Nishang and refused to help Shi Feiyu, believing Lian Nishang would obtain the Three Lives Lotus.
• Lian Nishang told Qin Jiuge that the Qin and Lian families had agreed to their marriage alliance and that she had been waiting for him.
• Unable to move because of the Three Lives Lotus, Qin Jiuge called for Zhishan, but Zhishan encouraged him to accept Lian Nishang’s advances.
• Lian Nishang stayed with Qin Jiuge through the night while Zhishan remained outside and ignored his protests.
• The next morning, Qin Jiuge recovered his strength, sent Lian Nishang away, and beat Zhishan until his face was bruised and swollen.
• Zhishan complained about the beating, and Qin Jiuge threatened him again.