Recaps

Yang Mingzhi’s two thousand Shenmu Soldiers destroyed the Tatar Tribe and isolated Kuku City, while Han Fei’s forces advanced behind them. Meanwhile, Song Dashan’s army fought the Ongud Tribe in a major field battle, where he committed Beiyuan Town’s heavy cavalry.

• Yang Mingzhi rested his troops, then swept through the Tatar Tribe’s settlements and left Han Fei’s thirty thousand soldiers to clean up the battlefields.
• Yang Mingzhi shifted his attacks to the Chici Tribe, destroying its smaller settlements and isolating Kuku City ahead of Han Fei’s approaching reinforcements.
• Yang Mingzhi arrived at Kuku City on September eighteenth and prepared to wait for the larger army to make its capture inevitable.
• Song Dashan led Beiyuan Town’s forces against the Ongud Tribe in a field battle south of its Banner Land on September twenty-second.
• Song Dashan ordered the central army’s heavy cavalry to charge the Ongud Tribe’s formation.

Song Dashan’s Heavy Armored Cavalry broke the Ongud Tribe’s army and drove it into a complete rout. In the Spirit Spring Space, Yang Zhengshan surveyed Longevity Village’s growth, approved plans to expand it and bring in more people, and found that the Dao Intent Sacred Lotus had grown thirty-six buds.

• Song Dashan sent two thousand Heavy Armored Cavalry into battle, where they inflicted devastating casualties on the Ongud Tribe’s Hu Cavalry and routed its army after two hours.
• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi walked through Longevity Village and saw its farms, orchards, horse herds, and thriving community.
• Yang Mingcheng proposed bringing in more workers to reclaim farmland and cultivate medicinal herbs, and Yang Zhengshan agreed to arrange for more people to move into the space.
• Yang Mingcheng reported that three villagers had reached the Fifth Layer of Postnatal Realm, and Yang Zhengshan considered moving in Yang Family descendants to help them cultivate.
• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi visited Red Cloud and Silly Big Guy, then found that the Dao Intent Sacred Lotus had grown thirty-six flower buds.

Yang Zhengshan left Great An after its northern campaigns stabilized the new dynasty and returned to Shenmu Island with Yu Qingyi. He reunited with his family and found the island more prosperous after his absence of over two years.

• Yang Zhengshan heard that Chongshan Town and Beiyuan Town had defeated several tribes, while the armies in Longbei and the west continued to pressure the Wuliang Royal Court and Great Yue.
• Yang Zhengshan hosted Innate Martial Artists across Great An and arranged for visitors to Shenmu Island to wait two years while Yang Chengye prepared to campaign against Chen Hengchang.
• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi returned to Shenmu Island after more than half a month at sea, and saw that its commerce and population had grown.
• Jiang He and Yang Minghao welcomed Yang Zhengshan at Shenmu City's docks, and word of his return brought many family members and visitors to greet him.
• Yang Zhengshan sent his numerous descendants away before visiting the rear courtyard, where Yu Qingyi spoke with family members including Yang Yunyan and Yang Yunxue.

Yang Zhengshan discussed Yang Chengan’s betrothal to Zhou Yunxian and learned that she had beaten him after he teased her. He decided to settle more of the family in the Spirit Spring Space, arranging for Wang Mingzhe’s family and other descendants to move there in half a month.

• Yang Zhengshan heard that Zhou Yunxian had punched Yang Chengan after he teased her, and Lady Zhu assured him she was a suitable match for the mischievous boy.
• Yang Yunxue said she and Liang Jinyan would stay on Shenmu Island, while Qingping would inherit the Duke of Ping’s title; Yang Zhengshan arranged for Liang Jinyan to serve in the Shenmu naval force.
• Yang Zhengshan met the Yang family’s descendants one by one, then summoned Wang Mingzhe’s family and told them to prepare to move to the Spirit Spring Space.
• Wang Mingzhe agreed to follow Yang Zhengshan’s arrangement, and Yang Zhengshan told him the family would move in half a month without traveling by boat.
• Yang Zhengshan asked Jiang He to prepare supplies and train a successor as preparations began for a larger migration of Yang family descendants into the Spirit Spring Space.

Yang Zhengshan relocated more than a thousand Yang family members and affiliates into the Spirit Spring Space and planned a family-and-sect-style system to govern them. He and his companions surveyed the land, deciding to begin with a temporary Clan Grand Hall while postponing larger construction plans.

• Yang Zhengshan moved branches of the Yang Family and its affiliated families into the Spirit Spring Space, prioritizing his own family, Yang Family Disciples, and loyal affiliates.
• Yang Zhengshan outlined a governing structure centered on himself and the Clan Hall, with councils and specialized Halls to manage family affairs, law, defense, external forces, resources, and instruction.
• Yang Zhengshan brought Luo Shang to inspect the wasteland and said he wanted the old man and other longtime allies to spend their later years in the Spirit Spring Space.
• Yang Zhengshan proposed sites for the Clan Grand Hall, administrative offices, medicine and weapon-forging areas, and a martial arts arena, while Luo Shang suggested placing the councils on the mountain.
• Yang Zhengshan rejected building the main complex on the mountain because it lacked access to the Spirit River, then decided to build a temporary Clan Grand Hall on the flat land and consider larger plans later.

Yang Zhengshan prepared his family and the Spirit Spring Space for a long voyage while the Great An New Dynasty finished conquering the Northern Territory. Yang Chengye and Chen Hengchang then began a decisive battle at Wanshan Ridge, where Great An’s disciplined army clashed with the Shenyang Sect’s savage believers.

• Yang Zhengshan taught Wang Mingzhe about the Spirit Attachment Pill recipes and planned to cultivate him as the Yang Family’s chief alchemist.
• Yang Zhengshan moved supplies and organized construction in the Spirit Spring Space while gathering information for the coming voyage.
• Yang Mingzhi killed Wutuo and other Wuliang Royal Court leaders, and Zhou Lan and Song Dashan captured Yemi City, ending the Wuliang Royal Court.
• The Great An New Dynasty reorganized the Northern Territory, while the Great Yue Dynasty withdrew and declared allegiance.
• Yang Chengye led 110,000 troops against Chen Hengchang’s 200,000 at Wanshan Ridge, and both sides charged into a bloody battle.
• Lin Fu'an brought Shenyang Sect Innate Martial Artists, including ten fighters raised through the Spirit-Continuing Blood-Refining Technique, into the battle against Great An’s stronger group of Innate Martial Artists.

An Yuxing and the others fought Lin Fu'an and the Shenyang Sect as the battlefield descended into a chaotic melee. Ding Qiu killed Fei Mingyue and more than a dozen other followers, revealing an extraordinary saber intent, while Yang Chengye continued charging toward Chen Hengchang.

• An Yuxing confronted Lin Fu'an, and the two clashed with tiger-shaped water qi and scarlet blood qi.
• Ding Qiu ignored Fei Mingyue’s seductive attack, cut her in half, and killed more than a dozen Shenyang Sect followers with his saber.
• Daoist Xuan Zhen arrived and learned that Ding Qiu was the commander of Yang Zhengshan’s guards, then wondered how many experts Yang Zhengshan had hidden.
• The fighting became a chaotic melee as the Heavy Armored Cavalry and Heavy Armored Infantry struggled against the Shenyang Sect’s larger force.
• Yang Chengye charged through the enemy with fewer than a thousand cavalry and finally collided with Chen Hengchang.

Yang Chengye defeated Chen Hengchang’s forces, ending the age of chaos and securing the Great An Dynasty. Years later, Yang Zhengshan established the Spirit Source Land as the Lingyuan Yang Clan’s center, expanded its council and population, and continued to oversee its growth.

• Yang Chengye killed Chen Hengchang, while his guards held Ji Feiyu and Yan Huichun in an encirclement; An Yuxing killed Lin Fu'an, and the battle ended with the Great An army victorious.
• Yang Zhengshan received news of Chen Hengchang’s defeat on Shenmu Island and focused instead on supplying and building the Spirit Spring Space.
• In the twenty-second year of Shenmu, Yang Zhengshan renamed Longevity Village as Longevity City, the Spirit Spring Space as Spirit Source Land, and the Yang Family as the Lingyuan Yang Clan, while establishing himself as Family Head.
• Ding Qiu and Yu Tonghai arrived from the Great An New Dynasty in the twenty-fifth year of Lingyuan, formalizing its subordination to the Lingyuan Yang Clan; the Song Family and other allied families later joined the Spirit Source Land.
• Yang Zhengshan barred unrelated noble families from settling on Shenmu Island as migration increased, while the Clan Council expanded to thirty-one families and Zhou Tianci and An Yuxing joined the Elder Council.
• Yang Zhengshan recognized that entering the Dao depended on personal comprehension as well as resources, and reserved the Dao Intent Sacred Lotus seeds for himself and Yu Qingyi for the time being.

By Spirit Source Year 28, Yang Zhengshan saw the thriving Spirit Source Land and prepared to cross the Storm Sea Region to reach the Great Zhao Dynasty. He left the island’s affairs with Jiang He and arranged to depart with Daoist Xuan Zhen and the others, while keeping the Spirit Spring Space and its inhabitants secret from the powerful Daoist.

• Yang Zhengshan surveyed the crowded Spirit Source Land, where the population had surpassed fifty thousand, and scolded Yang Wanqi for riding Tianyun before giving the Flying Slave Eagle another wind-attribute Spirit Attachment Pill.
• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi examined a young eagle whose bloodline showed promise, as Yu Qingyi continued cultivating Flying Slave Eagles toward becoming true exotic beasts.
• Yang Zhengshan visited Shenmu Island and told Jiang He to prepare the ship for departure in three days.
• Yang Zhengshan decided to cross the dangerous Storm Sea Region to reach the Great Zhao Dynasty, relying on his ability to predict celestial phenomena and the Spirit Spring Space.
• Yang Zhengshan met Daoist Xuan Zhen and prepared to travel with him, An Yuxing, Chen Zhongshu, and Lü Hua, while concealing the Spirit Spring Space from the Wuzhen Dao Palace elder.

Yang Zhengshan and Daoist Xuan Zhen set out from Shenmu Island to cross the Storm Sea Region and reach Great Zhao, stopping at Linfeng Island to wait for calmer weather. They settled into a courtyard for ten days, where Yang Zhengshan recognized both the island’s wealth and the danger posed by its powerful martial artists.

• Yang Zhengshan agreed to leave with Daoist Xuan Zhen, and they departed Shenmu Island with Chen Zhongshu, Lü Hua, Li Chang, Wang Lei, and their sailors.
• The group sailed through the Ninghai Archipelago, where they killed more than a thousand robbers who tried to attack them.
• After more than a month at sea, Yang Zhengshan’s ship arrived at Linfeng Island, where he and Daoist Xuan Zhen sensed many powerful martial artists.
• Yang Zhengshan hired Zhang Hanshan to find a courtyard for the group and learned that Linfeng Island’s accommodations and supplies were costly.
• Yang Zhengshan paid for the courtyard and superior meals, then ordered his party to stay there while they awaited the Storm Sea Region’s Calm Wind Period.

Yang Zhengshan turned away visitors seeking to join his crossing of the Storm Sea Region, while Li Shangyuan investigated his party and then visited him with a gift. Li Shangyuan recognized Yang Zhengshan as the North Sea Thunder Lord and knew he had Entered the Dao, leaving their meeting on friendly terms.

• Li Shangyuan asked Tang An to watch Yang Zhengshan's party and judge whether they were worth befriending.
• Yang Zhengshan received several days of visitors who wanted to travel with him, but he refused to change his plan to set out in six days.
• Duan Chaohai of Blue Sea Pavilion proposed crossing the Storm Sea Region together, and Yang Zhengshan declined because he planned to leave sooner.
• Yang Zhengshan learned that Li Shangyuan had sent a visiting card, then chose to spend the evening playing chess with Xuan Zhen.
• Li Shangyuan visited Yang Zhengshan with a gift and addressed him as the North Sea Thunder Lord, revealing that he knew of Yang Zhengshan's reputation and Daoist advancement.

Yang Zhengshan and his companions set sail with Li Shangyuan across the dangerous Storm Sea Region. After surviving towering waves and days of violent weather, they emerged into calmer waters and celebrated making it through.

• Li Shangyuan asked Yang Zhengshan to take him and his disciple Tang An aboard, trusting Yang Zhengshan to cross the Storm Sea Region safely.
• Yang Zhengshan's group departed Linfeng Island and entered the Storm Sea Region, where worsening winds and waves battered their ship.
• Xuan Zhen used his Wind Attribute Dao Intent to lift the ship while Yang Zhengshan split a towering wave with his spear, allowing them to pass over it.
• The group endured severe storms for days before the waves diminished and clear skies appeared.
• After the ship reached calmer waters, Li Shangyuan celebrated their survival, and Yang Zhengshan tripled the sailors' and guards' cultivation salaries.

Yang Zhengshan and his companions reached the Great Zhao Dynasty, crossed a remote mountain range, and learned that the dynasty had fractured into territories ruled by martial sects. They settled in hiding while weighing whether to investigate the nearby Hanyue Sect or find a safer place first.

• Yang Zhengshan spotted the Great Zhao coastline, landed with his companions, and stored their ship in the Spirit Source Land before they trekked inland.
• Yang Zhengshan scouted several impoverished villages and then recognized a prosperous village as a Martial Dao clan, so he avoided revealing the group.
• Yang Zhengshan sent ten guards to gather information, and they returned with news that the region belonged to Guan County in Lushan Prefecture, ruled by the Hanyue Sect rather than the Great Zhao court.
• Yang Zhengshan learned that martial sects had divided Great Zhao among themselves and asked his companions how they should proceed.
• Xuan Zhen urged them to investigate the Hanyue Sect's Martial God Realm inheritance, while Li Shangyuan advised them to settle safely before acting.

Yang Zhengshan and his group traveled east through desolate Lushan Prefecture, learning that the Hanshan Sect oppressed the people and that the Lingxiu Sea held the Martial God inheritances they sought. As they camped in an abandoned village, a man fleeing more than a hundred mounted pursuers tried to draw them into the fight by claiming they were his allies.

• Yang Zhengshan advised Xuan Zhen to gather information in Lushan Prefecture City before seeking a Martial God Realm inheritance, since such inheritances and Rune Dao knowledge were difficult to obtain.
• Yang Zhengshan's group disguised themselves as a merchant caravan and traveled toward Lushan Prefecture City, passing abandoned villages and learning that the Hanshan Sect and its subordinate forces preyed on the common people.
• Yang Zhengshan told Xuan Zhen that the Lingxiu Sea was their best destination for finding a Martial God inheritance and that they first needed to adapt to a world ruled by strength.
• Yang Zhengshan sensed more than a hundred mounted martial artists approaching while his group camped in an abandoned village.
• A man carrying a child rode toward Yang Zhengshan's group and called out to a supposed Brother Li, claiming he had lured the pursuers there; Yang Zhengshan ordered his men to capture him.

Yang Zhengshan’s group captured Tian Hu and a young heir while slaughtering the Hanshan Sect pursuers, then learned that the Great Zhao Dynasty had fallen and uncovered new information about Martial God cultivation. Yang Zhengshan spared Tian Hu and the heir, leaving them under his protection as he pursued knowledge of the Martial God Realm inheritance.

• Li Chang captured Tian Hu and the child, while Yang Zhengshan ordered the guards to kill the pursuing Hanshan Sect martial artists and Wang Lei tortured Ning Tongyuan for information.
• Ning Tongyuan revealed that the Lingxiu Sea’s Three Sects and Twelve Families possessed Martial God inheritances, and Tian Hu explained that Martial God cultivation involved refining the body and true qi rather than requiring Dao Intent at the Innate stage.
• Tian Hu identified himself as a guard of Prince Ji and revealed that the Great Zhao capital had fallen to Lu Fusheng and the Lu Clan, while Prince Ji’s estate had been attacked by the Hanshan Sect.
• Tian Hu said the imperial inheritance might have involved drawing Earthly Baleful Qi and Heavenly Stellar Qi into the body, but he knew no further details.
• Yang Zhengshan had Wang Lei kill Ning Tongyuan, then spared Tian Hu and the unconscious heir and told everyone to return to their meal.

Yang Zhengshan agreed to shelter Prince Ji’s young heir after Tian Hu offered him a Storage Bag filled with rare cultivation resources. Examining its contents revealed spirit pills, spirit stones, and methods unavailable in the lands west of the Storm Sea Region, leaving Yang Zhengshan with new clues about cultivation and Great Zhao’s fire-based martial heritage.

• Tian Hu fed the frightened child rice soup and asked Yang Zhengshan to shelter him, offering all his wealth in exchange.
• Tian Hu gave Yang Zhengshan a Storage Bag, and Yang Zhengshan used inner sight to discover its spirit fruits, herbs, pills, cultivation methods, and Spirit Stones.
• Tian Hu explained that spirit pills required the Runic Secret Technique and that spirit stones were scarce in Great Zhao and controlled by powerful sects elsewhere.
• Yang Zhengshan accepted the resources and promised to raise the child while keeping Tian Hu by his side.
• Yang Zhengshan studied the cultivation methods, learned they relied heavily on spirit pills, and recognized that Great Zhao’s Martial God Realm method was likely fire-attribute.

Yang Zhengshan and his companions traveled to Shanggu Prefecture, where he began planning how to settle in the Lingxiu Sea and obtain a Martial God Realm cultivation method. After learning that the Tianque Lu Clan likely held the prefecture with Huanyue Sect backing, he saw the rivalries among the region’s powers as an opportunity to advance.

• Yang Zhengshan discussed cultivation methods with Xuan Zhen, who decided to seek a place at Xuanqing Sect, while Li Shangyuan set out to temper himself with his disciples.
• Yang Zhengshan’s group traveled northeast for nearly three months and reached prosperous Shanggu Prefecture, where they parted from Xuan Zhen and Li Shangyuan.
• Yang Zhengshan surveyed the crowded city and resolved to settle in the Lingxiu Sea, gather resources, and wait for a chance to obtain a Martial God Realm technique.
• Li Chang brought Yang Zhengshan a map of the territories held by the Three Sects and Twelve Families.
• Yang Zhengshan reasoned that Huanyue Sect likely backed the Tianque Lu Clan’s hold on Shanggu Prefecture, leaving the Sun Family unwilling to challenge it.

Yang Zhengshan explored Shanggu Commandery’s martial cultivators’ market, learned about the local cultivation stages and trade, and recognized the resources his Spirit Source Land could provide. He began buying spirit-plant seeds and examining cultivation arts, leaving the chapter in the Myriad Arts Pavilion as he browsed Earthly Baleful methods.

• Yang Zhengshan sent Lü Hua to investigate the distribution of powers in northeastern Shanggu Commandery and decided to visit the martial cultivators’ market.
• Yang Zhengshan learned that the Innate Realm had Qi Sea, Earthly Baleful, and Heavenly Stellar stages, and considered how his Self-Only Spear Intent differed from local spirituality.
• Yang Zhengshan exchanged a Spirit Stone for Spirit Crystal Coins and identified spirit fruits, liquor, and tea as potential sources of income.
• Yang Zhengshan reasoned that the Lingxiu Sea might contain diluted Spirit Spring Water and compared it with his own Spirit Source Land.
• Yang Zhengshan bought spirit-fruit samples, Spirit Rice Paddy seeds, and other Spirit Plant seeds, then learned planting advice from Zhang Congye.
• Yang Zhengshan entered the Myriad Arts Pavilion and browsed several Earthly Balefal qi-guiding methods.

Yang Zhengshan bought the Azure Wood Longevity Art and two inexpensive spells while exploring the Lingxiu market, learning more about the region’s cultivation methods and spirit weapons. As he left, Sun Qingrui challenged Lu Fusheng, whose appearance and bearing reminded Yang Zhengshan of himself.

• Yang Zhengshan bought the Earthly Fiend Stage Azure Wood Longevity Art from Liu Yue for eighteen Spirit Stones and confirmed that it resembled the Yang Family’s Yi Wood Everlasting Technique.
• Yang Zhengshan inspected dubious curios at the stalls, rejected a supposed ancient relic, and bought copies of the Rain-Calling Technique and Growth Technique.
• Yang Zhengshan and Li Chang left the market after he had spent nearly all his Spirit Stones.
• Sun Qingrui rode a Cloud Tiger Colt above the market and challenged Lu Fusheng, prompting onlookers to identify him as the Sun Family head and an Innate Realm Tiangang Stage expert.
• Lu Fusheng arrived in dark-blue armor with a spear, and Yang Zhengshan was startled by how closely Lu’s appearance and aura resembled his own.

Yang Zhengshan witnessed the overwhelming power of Heavenly Stellar Realm fighters in Shanggu Prefecture and renewed his passion for martial cultivation. He and Yu Qingyi chose the Azure Wood Longevity Art, quickly transformed their true qi, and began advancing toward the Earthly Fiend Stage.

• Yang Zhengshan and Li Chang watched Sun Qingrui and Lu Fusheng clash, and the force of their battle drove nearby martial artists into hiding.
• After the fight, Yang Zhengshan encouraged Li Chang and realized that seeing a higher realm had restored his enthusiasm for the Martial Dao.
• Yang Zhengshan returned to the Drunken Immortal Restaurant, visited Yu Qingyi in the Spirit Source Land, and decided that they would cultivate the Azure Wood Longevity Art.
• Yang Zhengshan and Yu Qingyi studied the qi-guiding method and concluded that its wood attribute suited the Yang Family and the Spirit Source Land.
• The pair cultivated for just over two hours and transformed their Yi Wood True Qi into Azure Wood True Qi.
• Yang Zhengshan judged that they could soon reach the peak of the Earthly Fiend Stage by accumulating true essence.

Yang Zhengshan searched for a foothold in northeastern Shanggu Prefecture and chose the declining Lingxi Mountain Yang Family. He claimed kinship with Yang Xiangheng and Yang Zhenghe, then demanded Lingxi Mountain as his new home, leaving the family to decide whether to accept his protection or be displaced.

• Yang Zhengshan reviewed Lü Hua’s reports and selected the impoverished Lingxi Mountain Yang Family as a suitable target.
• Yang Zhengshan and his party traveled from Shanggu Prefecture City to Lingxi Mountain and reached the Yang Family’s ancestral village.
• Yang Zhengshan confronted a wary clansman and asked to meet family head Yang Xiangheng.
• Yang Zhengshan claimed to be Yang Xiangheng’s great-uncle, and Yang Xiangheng summoned Yang Zhenghe to verify the claim.
• Yang Zhengshan admitted his origins were not important, declared himself Yang Zhenghai’s blood brother, and demanded that the family either accept him or surrender Lingxi Mountain.

Yang Zhengshan secured control of the impoverished Lingxi Yang Family after Yang Zhenghe and Yang Xiangheng accepted him as their great-uncle and leader. He learned how the family had fallen and began assessing its remaining resources, including its cultivation arts, while identifying the Nanqing Xiang Family as the force behind its decline.

• Yang Zhenghe told Yang Xiangheng to pay respects to Yang Zhengshan, and both accepted Yang Zhengshan's command over Lingxi Mountain.
• Yang Xiangheng gave Yang Zhengshan his main courtyard and served him breakfast, then reported that the family had fewer than thirty jin of Spirit Rice and 121 Spirit Crystals left.
• Yang Xiangheng explained that the family had lost most of its spirit fields and its shop in Nanxia Market, leaving only a small barren field as a source of income.
• Yang Xiangheng told Yang Zhengshan that the Nanqing Xiang Family had persecuted the Lingxi Yang Family and that its old ancestor was an Earthly Fiend Stage martial artist.
• Yang Zhengshan paid respects to Yang Feng, inspected the empty Storage Room, and examined the cultivation arts guarded by Yang Zhenghe in the Library Pavilion.

Yang Zhengshan took control of the Lingxi Yang Family and began planning which cultivation methods, pills, and equipment to obtain for the Spirit Source Land. The Xiang Family learned that Yang Zhengshan’s group had settled on Lingxi Mountain and hesitated to proceed with its secret plan to destroy the Yang family.

• Yang Zhengshan learned that the Lingxi Yang Family lacked Heavenly Dipper Stage methods and examined its incomplete alchemy runic scroll before taking its cultivation methods to study.
• Yang Zhengshan introduced himself as the new family head, ordered Wang Lei to train the family’s younger members, and demanded that everyone obey his rules.
• Yang Zhengshan compared Lingxiu Sea cultivation methods with Great An’s methods and planned to acquire Earthly Fiend Stage methods, Spirit Pills, weapons, and Spirit Stones for the Spirit Source Land.
• Xiang Feihong told Xiang Feiying that Yang Zhengshan’s group had settled on Lingxi Mountain and that the Xiang Family could not investigate their origins.
• Xiang Feiying recognized that the Xiang Family’s secret plan to eliminate the Lingxi Yang Family was now complicated by Yang Zhengshan’s arrival.

The Nanqing Xiang Family prioritized helping Xiang Lin break through at Xuanqing Sect while sending someone to scout Lingxi Mountain. A mysterious shadow-based martial artist tested the Lingxi Yang Family, and Yang Zhengshan later assembled Zhou Tianci, An Yuxing, and Liang Shengze to begin seeking more cultivation methods.

• Xiang Feiying sent Feiye to scout Lingxi Mountain and ordered Xiang Feihong to take pills to Xuanqing Sect to help Xiang Lin break through.
• Li Chang detected a silent intruder in the courtyard, and he and Wang Lei fought the ghostly figure without landing a blow before it escaped.
• Yang Zhengshan concluded that the intruder was a Qi Sea Stage martial artist using a shadow-related cultivation method, and he suspected the Nanqing Xiang Family had sent the scout.
• Yang Zhengshan told Lü Hua and the others to remain cautious but not let the intruder constrain them, then decided to handle the Nanqing Xiang Family slowly.
• The next morning, Yang Zhengshan met Chen Zhongshu in the forest north of Lingxi Mountain and summoned Zhou Tianci, An Yuxing, and Liang Shengze to help obtain more cultivation methods.

Yang Zhengshan sent Zhou Tianci, An Yuxing, and Liang Shengze to buy cultivation methods and Storage Bags, then advanced to condense his first wisp of Azure Wood True Essence. He began practicing a flying spell and went to Nanxia County, where he arranged to have a wood-spirit long spear made.

• Yang Zhengshan sent Zhou Tianci, An Yuxing, and Liang Shengze to sell Spirit Fruits and purchase Earthly Fiend Stage cultivation methods and Storage Bags; they returned with six methods, three Storage Bags, and over a hundred Spirit Stones.
• Yang Zhengshan observed the poor villages around Lingxi Mountain and concluded that the Nanqing Xiang Family treated the commoners there as Servants.
• After more than a month of cultivation, Yang Zhengshan transformed his True Qi into Azure Wood True Qi and condensed his first wisp of Azure Wood True Essence.
• Yang Zhengshan studied the Crimson Flame Rainbow Transformation Art and practiced flying, finding that it offered a sudden burst of speed but little agility.
• Yang Zhengshan traveled with Li Chang to Nanxia County and asked the elder at Lingyan Casting Workshop to custom-make a wood-spirit long spear from Jade Wood Bronze.