Recaps

After leaving seclusion, Chen Lin discovered that male cultivators who had visited Ye Jinxuan were going mad and attacking cultivators. Suspecting a bizarre creature had possessed her, he bought protective gear and returned to seclusion, planning to leave once the danger passed.

• Chen Lin learned that Manager Shen had become a sect elder and suspected he had traded information about the spirit milk for the position.
• Chen Lin found that shops across the market had replaced their staff with ugly people, and the Yunhai Firm checked his identity with a detection tool.
• The Yunhai Firm's manager told Chen Lin that male cultivators who had visited Ye Jinxuan at Wuzhen Tower were going mad and assaulting cultivators, including a Qingyang Sect elder subdued by Luo Qinglan.
• Chen Lin suspected an evil specter had possessed Ye Jinxuan, bought a High-Grade Robe and an ugly Thin-Skin Mask, and traveled home by deserted routes.
• Chen Lin decided to continue his seclusion until the danger passed and then leave the area.

Chen Lin helped He Yunhuan and another Qingyang Sect disciple subdue Qian Li after Qian Li went mad, then fortified his cave abode and refined Marrow-Cleansing Pills while studying the Shadow-Shifting Art. Three days later, he opened his door to an unexpected visitor.

• Chen Lin watched He Yunhuan and another Qingyang Sect disciple fight Qian Li, then joined them when they called for help.
• Chen Lin used his Diamond Body-Refining Technique to incapacitate Qian Li, and He Yunhuan's companion bound him for confinement and treatment.
• Chen Lin returned to his cave abode, activated a new defensive talisman, and covered the interior with Evil-Warding Talismans.
• Chen Lin bought ingredients and refined three Marrow-Cleansing Pills, then began studying the Shadow-Shifting Art.
• After three days of practice, Chen Lin opened his door to a visitor and recognized them with surprise.

Sun Xingyun asked Chen Lin to help treat his grandfather, who had become afflicted by an evil presence, and offered a Talisman Codex as payment. Chen Lin initially refused, but He Yunhuan persuaded him to go to the Sun Lineage, where Chen Lin insisted the old master be brought outside before he would proceed.

• Sun Xingyun asked Chen Lin to expel an evil presence from an elder of his lineage and offered him a copy of their inherited Talisman Codex.
• Sun Xingyun said Qian Li had recovered through Chen Lin's methods, but Chen Lin refused the request and decided to leave his immortal cave.
• He Yunhuan arrived with Sun Xingyun and spoke privately with Chen Lin, after which Chen Lin agreed to accompany them and try to help.
• Sun Xingyun explained that his grandfather had become lecherous after secretly pursuing Ye Jinxuan, and the Sun Lineage had hidden him to avoid angering Luo Qinglan.
• At the Sun Lineage's residence, Chen Lin refused to enter an underground passage and asked that the old master be brought outside.
• A middle-aged man welcomed Chen Lin and He Yunhuan, then sent Sun Xingyun to take them to a quiet room while he fetched the old master.

Chen Lin used his Buddhist power to purge an evil specter from the Sun Lineage patriarch and received the promised Talisman Codex and a high-grade spirit stone. He Yunhuan then asked him to examine his master, Luo Qinglan, who had also been possessed by the evil qi.

• Chen Lin touched the Sun Lineage patriarch and began purifying the evil aura, but the specter retaliated by clouding his mind with a seductive illusion.
• Chen Lin broke free of the illusion and struck the patriarch with Buddhist power, forcing a wisp of black smoke out of him.
• Chen Lin told the Sun Lineage that their patriarch needed quiet rest and received a Talisman Codex and a high-grade spirit stone as payment.
• Chen Lin and He Yunhuan left the Sun Lineage residence, and Chen Lin warned that He Yunhuan's problem might exceed his abilities.
• He Yunhuan took Chen Lin to examine his master, Luo Qinglan, whom Chen Lin realized had also been possessed by Ye Jinxuan's evil qi.

Chen Lin was summoned to the Qingyun Sect to help treat Luo Qinglan, whose evil qi was stronger than that afflicting other victims and remained suppressed inside a secret chamber. He learned that several cultivators had been gathered to try their methods, and waited as Chengyangzi was called in first.

• He Yunhuan told Chen Lin that Luo Qinglan had been possessed by unusually powerful evil qi, though she could still suppress it.
• Chen Lin went with He Yunhuan to the Qingyun Sect’s main peak and met Mu Xingchen and a sharp-eyed Foundation Establishment cultivator.
• The sharp-eyed cultivator asked Chen Lin to surrender his Storage Bag, but Luo Qinglan’s voice ordered them to let him enter without doing so.
• Chen Lin was brought to a room with several other invited cultivators, including a monk and Chengyangzi of the Five Directions Temple.
• A White-Clothed Cultivator summoned Chengyangzi to treat Luo Qinglan, and Chengyangzi left to make the first attempt.

Chen Lin met Luo Qinglan and learned that her condition was a peach blossom demonic tribulation caused by Ye Jinxuan’s scheme. Luo Qinglan said Chen Lin’s power could help suppress it, but his mana needed to grow stronger first.

• After the Five Directions Temple Taoist and other cultivators failed to help, the White-Clothed Cultivator led Chen Lin through a Teleportation Gate to Luo Qinglan.
• Chen Lin approached Luo Qinglan, but her powerful aura filled his mind with desire until his Vajra Body-Refining Art helped him recover and retreat.
• Luo Qinglan explained that her inner demon had merged with the peach blossom baleful spirit Ye Jinxuan spread among cultivators.
• Luo Qinglan told Chen Lin that his power could suppress the tribulation while she used her divine phoenix bloodline to destroy it.
• Luo Qinglan said Chen Lin’s mana was not yet strong enough to help her.

Chen Lin traveled with Su Chenyu and three other Qingyang Sect Foundation Establishment Cultivators to a source of burning lotus true fire baleful intent in Black Water Marsh. They encountered Nanmen Wuji and Dark Yin Sect cultivators, and as a fight threatened to begin, Su Chenyu took out an object.

• Su Chenyu led Chen Lin to the burning lotus true fire baleful intent and warned him not to provoke cultivators from Chu Country.
• The group reached a flame-filled clearing, and Su Chenyu sent three guardians to check for danger while he stayed with Chen Lin.
• After distant rumbling, the Black-Faced Foundation Establishment Cultivator returned and reported an encounter with Dark Yin Sect members.
• Nanmen Wuji arrived with an Emaciated Old Man and a beautiful Qi Refining woman, then demanded that Su Chenyu's group leave the area.
• Nanmen Wuji and the Emaciated Old Man prepared for battle as Chen Lin retreated, and Su Chenyu suddenly took out an object.

Su Chenyu and Chen Lin entered the swamp to obtain Burning Lotus True Fire Baleful Intent for treating Luo Qinglan, while Nanmen Wuji's group sought the Cold Nether Flame. Chen Lin discovered that Buddhist power in the flames let him refine them with extraordinary speed, as Nanmen Wuji's group located their target.

• Nanmen Wuji recognized Su Chenyu's Xuanming Token but refused to be intimidated, then agreed to let Su Chenyu's group pursue the Burning Lotus True Fire Baleful Intent while his group sought the Cold Nether Flame.
• Su Chenyu warned Chen Lin that the baleful energy could injure him and that refining it themselves might contaminate his mana, so Chen Lin began absorbing the flames directly.
• Chen Lin found that Buddhist power within the flames resonated with his own and helped him refine the energy, strengthening his body and Buddhist power.
• Chen Lin rapidly absorbed flames from multiple openings, drawing astonished looks from Su Chenyu and the others as his refining speed approached that of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.
• The tall woman with Nanmen Wuji and the Emaciated Old Man completed her chant, revealed a pitch-black Crescent Mark, and pointed out the place where they would find the Cold Nether Flame.

Nanmen Wuji began setting up a formation to capture the nether fire spirit while Chen Lin used Thunderbolt Beads to make more baleful fire flow from the holes. His explosives caused the ground around the holes to collapse into a deep cavern.

• Nanmen Wuji and Nanmen Lingyue prepared a Subduing Spirit Great Array to capture the nether fire spirit, while Yin Wu guarded Lingyue.
• Chen Lin absorbed the burning lotus true fire baleful intent to advance his Vajra Body-Refining Art, but the flames began to weaken.
• Chen Lin tossed Thunderbolt Beads into the largest hole, increasing the flow of flames after each explosion.
• Chen Lin activated a Sound-Insulation Array Talisman and sent his Monkey Puppet to place and trigger stronger Thunderbolt Beads in the holes.
• Su Chenyu flew over to ask whether Chen Lin had reached his limit, but the ground shook and collapsed into a deep cavern.

Chen Lin discovered that a red line tied him to a powerful presence beneath the ground, while greed also influenced Nanmen Lingyue and drove her to pursue the nether fire spirit. The chapter ended with Nanmen Wuji preparing to capture it by force as Nanmen Lingyue used the Nether-Connecting Power.

• After the ground collapsed, Chen Lin warned Su Chenyu that something had influenced his mind and urged him to leave, but Su Chenyu insisted he continue refining the killing intent to help Luo Qinglan.
• Chen Lin applied Mingqing Spiritual Water and saw a red line connecting him to the underground presence; he also spotted another line leading toward Nanmen Wuji's group.
• Chen Lin found that Su Chenyu and the others had no red lines attached to them, and decided to observe the strange phenomenon before using his remaining Mingqing Spiritual Water.
• Nanmen Wuji's Array Disk rapidly drained its yin spirit stones, revealing that the nether fire spirit was far stronger than expected, and he proposed postponing the capture.
• Greed overcame Nanmen Lingyue, who insisted they capture the nether fire spirit immediately; Nanmen Wuji then used his blood essence to strengthen the Array Disk and ordered her to activate the Nether-Connecting Power.

A released shadowy entity escaped its fiery chains and sent an evil aura through red threads, affecting Chen Lin and Nanmen Lingyue before a lotus-shaped fire spirit purified them. Chen Lin refined the spirit, gained a new divine ability, and left with Su Chenyu after the cave was sealed.

• The shadowy entity twisted two red threads around its fiery chains, broke free, and vanished to seek its other split souls.
• The red thread filled Chen Lin with possessive fantasies, but a lotus flame emerged from the Earth Cave, drove away the evil thoughts, and entered him.
• Nanmen Lingyue was overcome by similar fantasies involving Chen Lin, and the nether fire spirit entered her brow and dispelled the evil aura.
• Nanmen Wuji took the unconscious Nanmen Lingyue back to the Lineage after the Emaciated Old Man warned that something might have gone wrong with the Young Lord's fusion.
• Chen Lin woke the next morning after refining the fire spirit, reached the second layer of his Vajra Body-Refining Art, and gained a red-lotus divine ability that could restrain evil entities.
• Su Chenyu crushed and filled in the cave, then departed with Chen Lin.

Chen Lin returned to the Qingyang Sect and helped Luo Qinglan suppress her inner demon by channeling Buddhist power into her. After Luo Qinglan regained control, her attendants escorted Chen Lin out but said she wanted to discuss matters with him once she emerged from seclusion.

• Mu Xingchen told Su Chenyu that Luo Qinglan's condition had worsened and that she had permitted Chen Lin to enter her secluded chamber.
• Chen Lin entered Luo Qinglan's room and was thrown to the ground when her inner demon made her attack him.
• Chen Lin struck Luo Qinglan with the Red Lotus Phantom, and she briefly regained her senses and ordered him to channel Buddhist power into her.
• Chen Lin poured Buddhist power into Luo Qinglan for over an hour until purple flames rose around her and she appeared to regain control.
• Luo Qinglan's two attendants thanked Chen Lin, then escorted him out and told him she wanted to speak with him after her seclusion.

After Luo Qinglan emerged from seclusion, she offered Chen Lin the choice of joining the Qingyang Sect or accepting compensation, and he chose to leave. He hid his departure by pretending to cultivate, then used an Earth Escape Talisman to head toward Chu Country while the Qingyang Sect celebrated Luo Qinglan’s strength.

• Chen Lin studied pill refining with Mu Xingchen and received several pill formulas, including the Foundation Establishment Pill formula.
• Su Chenyu announced that Luo Qinglan had emerged from seclusion, and she summoned the sect to announce a Golden Core Ceremony for one month later.
• Luo Qinglan offered Chen Lin a place as a disciple of the Sect Leader or treasures as compensation, and Chen Lin declined, claiming he needed to search for the Hanhai Kingdom.
• Luo Qinglan gave Chen Lin a Storage Bag and left, and Chen Lin returned to his Immortal Cave, posted a secluded-cultivation sign, and prepared to depart unnoticed.
• Luo Qinglan defeated three Golden Core cultivators at the ceremony, while Chen Lin escaped Qingyang Mountain with an Earth Escape Talisman and headed toward Chu Country.
• The cave manager later found Chen Lin’s Immortal Cave empty after his lease expired.

Chen Lin reached a ruined temple in the former Han Country, where he met a wary group of travelers and learned he had strayed from his intended route. Two young women carrying a baby arrived, and the chapter ended when the baby woke and cried, its faint demonic aura keeping Chen Lin on guard.

• Chen Lin took shelter from a storm in a ruined temple and concealed his cultivation before meeting five travelers.
• Chen Lin introduced himself as Iron Palm, Floating on Water, and spoke with Five-Tiger Saber Yang Yuanqing and a middle-aged man who claimed bandits had robbed his family while they traveled from Chu Country to Han Country.
• Chen Lin realized he had reached the fragmented former Han Country and considered staying there to cultivate.
• Two young women entered carrying a sleeping baby, and Chen Lin sensed a faint demonic aura from it.
• The baby woke and began to cry.

Chen Lin watched a Prayer Cult scheme to capture the strange baby called the Divine Child, then intervened when the conspirators turned on the little girl and the others. He killed the attackers and the baby, returned the girl to her mother, and left the temple in the rain.

• The baby's cries incapacitated everyone around the fire, and Chen Lin pretended to collapse while observing the two women.
• The baby broke free and lunged at the little girl, but the woman with a black flag froze him before the white-haired old man and a hidden dwarf captured him.
• The dwarf and the white-haired old man revealed themselves as Prayer Cult members and killed the two women after learning they belonged to the Demon God Hall.
• The dwarf seized the little girl, while the white-haired old man threatened the survivors, including Five-Tiger Saber Yang Yuanqing.
• Chen Lin killed the dwarf, Yang Yuanqing, and the white-haired old man, handed the girl back to her mother, crushed the Divine Child, and left the temple.

Chen Lin traveled toward the Danding Sect with Hu Xishan and Yu Zimo, who discussed Wuzhen Tower’s beauties and dual cultivation. Hu Xishan revealed that Wuzhen Tower was a continent-spanning superpower backed by a Nascent Soul True Lord.

• Chen Lin destroyed the black qi that had latched onto him after he killed the Divine Child, then left the area to avoid further danger.
• Half a month later, Chen Lin traveled down the Jinshui River toward the Danding Sect with Hu Xishan and Yu Zimo.
• Hu Xishan and Yu Zimo talked about Wuzhen Tower’s fairy attractions and claimed dual cultivation could help cultivators break through.
• Chen Lin asked how Wuzhen Tower could protect its many beauties from powerful cultivators seeking to seize them.
• Hu Xishan said Wuzhen Tower was a superpower spanning the continent and had a Nascent Soul True Lord backing it.

Chen Lin traveled with Hu Xishan and Yu Zimo to Danding City, where he considered joining the Danding Sect to settle down and cultivate. Near the city, a white-haired woman on a passing boat attacked him with a chilling aura, and Hu Xishan recognized her as a wicked woman.

• Hu Xishan told Chen Lin and Yu Zimo that Wuzhen Tower was protected by a Nascent Soul True Lord and warned them not to cause trouble there.
• The three arrived in Danding Sect territory, and Chen Lin learned that the prosperous city was protected by powerful factions because of its Pill Grandmaster.
• Seeing Danding Peak, Chen Lin decided to ask about joining the Danding Sect, while Hu Xishan and Yu Zimo eagerly anticipated meeting fairies.
• As the group approached Danding City, Chen Lin sensed Yin Nether Qi from a white-haired woman aboard a lavish boat.
• The woman’s icy aura struck Chen Lin, but he dispelled it with his mana and Red Lotus Phantom; her boat soon sailed away.
• Chen Lin questioned Hu Xishan about the women, and Hu Xishan admitted that he was frightened to encounter the wicked woman.

Chen Lin learned about Madam White Bone after she attacked his divine soul, while Madam White Bone rejected a Prayer Cult offer to join the Nethergod Hall. Chen Lin entered Danding City and learned that its costly fees could be paid with points, though he did not yet know how to earn them.

• Madam White Bone warned Chen Lin with a divine-soul attack after he stared at her, and Hu Xishan explained her reputation and connection to Li Xuanming.
• Yu Zimo remembered that Madam White Bone had once been Li Xuanming’s companion and had turned against him after he took a concubine.
• A veiled woman named Mo Xian tried to recruit Madam White Bone into the Prayer Cult, but Madam White Bone refused and urged Mo Xian to abandon the cult.
• Madam White Bone flew toward Danding City after Mo Xian vanished from her ship.
• Chen Lin, Hu Xishan, and Yu Zimo each paid one medium-grade spirit stone to enter Danding City.
• Hu Xishan told Chen Lin that the entry fee covered three days and that later stays cost one medium-grade spirit stone per day, while Yu Zimo explained that points could also pay the fees.

After learning how Danding City’s points system rewarded cultivators for selling treasures to the Danding Sect, Chen Lin joined Hu Xishan and Yu Zimo on a trip to Wuzhen Tower. The three ate at Xianshan Restaurant, where Chen Lin asked about the dangers and resources of the Wuding Sea.

• Hu Xishan explained that selling heaven and earth treasures earned points Chen Lin could use to offset Danding City’s residence tax, and Chen Lin decided to sell his spiritual herbs to the sect.
• Yu Zimo urged Chen Lin and Hu Xishan to stock up on points, and Hu Xishan gave Chen Lin a Jade Slip containing a Dual Cultivation Secret Art in exchange for payment at Wuzhen Tower.
• Chen Lin accepted the art and joked that he would arrange fine girls for Hu Xishan and Yu Zimo, and Yu Zimo offered to treat them to spirit food at Xianshan Restaurant.
• At the restaurant, Yu Zimo ordered costly seafood and spirit wine, and the three ate while discussing monster-beast hunting in the Wuding Sea and the dangers facing Qi Condensation cultivators.
• Yu Zimo said he planned to stay in Danding City and cultivate toward Qi Condensation Level 9, while Hu Xishan redirected the conversation to Wuzhen Tower and the three toasted.

Chen Lin used dual cultivation to make a small gain in his stalled cultivation, then continued refining pills to earn points in Danding City. Huang Su invited him to explore a Pill Refining Grandmaster’s Ascension Cave, but Chen Lin refused and Huang Su left alone.

• Chen Lin recalled how dual cultivation had helped him reach the Qi Condensation 8th Layer and mourned Lao Hu and Yu Zimo, who had both died.
• Chen Lin visited Jinfeng Pavilion’s new top courtesan and gained a slight improvement in cultivation before returning to refine pills.
• Huang Su visited Chen Lin and offered him a share of the treasures in a Pill Refining Grandmaster’s Ascension Cave.
• Chen Lin refused to join the expedition despite Huang Su’s claims about the cave’s pill formulas, treasures, and strange fire.
• Huang Su explained that he had approached Chen Lin because his body tempering could help break the cave’s formations, then left after Chen Lin continued to refuse.

Chen Lin discovered that Huang Yu and Yue Baifeng were plotting to lure him out of the city so a Divine Child could devour his vital essence. After learning that Yue Baifeng was a Divine Attendant of the Prayer Cult, Chen Lin recognized the danger but remained in Danding City.

• Chen Lin distrusted Huang Yu's invitation to hunt for treasure and considered changing his identity after his lease expired.
• Chen Lin refined God-Nourishing Pills and reflected on how they had greatly strengthened his spiritual sense and his ability to control puppets.
• Huang Yu met with the veiled Yue Baifeng, who ordered him to find a way to lure Chen Lin out so the Divine Child could devour Chen Lin's vital essence.
• Chen Lin's Scout Bird recorded Huang Yu and Yue Baifeng's conversation, and Chen Lin listened to it back at his residence.
• Chen Lin recognized Yue Baifeng as Jinfeng Pavilion's star courtesan and realized she was a Divine Attendant of the Prayer Cult.

Chen Lin secretly followed Huang Yu out of Danding City, killed him, and captured his soul to interrogate him about the Prayer Cult. After learning who was connected to Jinfeng Pavilion, Chen Lin decided not to attack Yue Baifeng, Yue Ningzhi, or Madam Xu until he understood their strength and connections better.

• Chen Lin disguised himself as a young man and used a Crow Puppet to monitor Huang Yu until Huang Yu left Danding City.
• Chen Lin ambushed Huang Yu with the Splitting Mountain Seal, Hanbing Sword, and Lotus-Burning True Fire, then captured Huang Yu's soul with a Soul-Detaining Talisman.
• Chen Lin tortured Huang Yu's soul until he revealed that Yue Baifeng and Yue Ningzhi were Divine Attendants and Divine Child of the Prayer Cult, and that Madam Xu was also a member.
• Chen Lin questioned Huang Yu about the women's abilities and cultivation, then destroyed his soul and cleansed the area.
• Chen Lin decided not to attack the Jinfeng Pavilion members yet, visited Yue Baifeng to probe her, and later reentered the city in another disguise.

Chen Lin hid in Danding City after uncovering Yue Baifeng’s scheme, but she and the Divine Child tracked him down and attacked. He resisted their ambush and ended the chapter charging Yue Baifeng with a fist wreathed in Burning Lotus True Fire.

• Chen Lin changed his identity, rented a new room, and used his Crow Puppet to watch his old residence for Yue Baifeng’s followers.
• Madam Xu came to Chen Lin’s old residence, then Yue Baifeng and a petite woman arrived the following day.
• The petite woman detected and destroyed the Crow Puppet, striking Chen Lin through his spiritual sense and inflicting a lustful illusion that he dispelled with the Red Lotus Phantom.
• Yue Baifeng and the Divine Child found Chen Lin at his new residence, and Yue revealed that her Soul-Pulling Thread had tracked him through a hair.
• Madam Xu activated a formation around Chen Lin as Yue Baifeng demanded he surrender to the Divine Child, but Chen attacked with a Fire Crow Talisman and then charged Yue with a Burning Lotus True Fire fist.

Chen Lin used a Talisman Treasure to kill Yue Baifeng and her two companions, then hurried to leave the city before the Danding Sect’s enforcers could detain him. After the gate briefly closed, it reopened, allowing him to escape and flee underground beyond the Jinshui River.

• Chen Lin’s Buddhist power dispelled the Divine Child’s attack, and Yue Baifeng ordered Madam Xu to kill him with a formation sword.
• Chen Lin activated his Talisman Treasure, whose Fire Phoenix destroyed the sword and burned Yue Baifeng, Madam Xu, and the Divine Child to ashes.
• Chen Lin collected the group’s belongings and hurried toward the West City Gate as Danding Sect enforcers arrived to investigate the fight.
• A brocade-robed captain and an elderly foundation establishment cultivator identified the Talisman Treasure’s aura and the Prayer Cult’s black qi, then decided not to interfere.
• Chen Lin found the city gate temporarily closed, changed his appearance, and considered reporting the attack himself before the gate reopened.
• Chen Lin surrendered his Identity Token, left the city, discarded his Jade Token Receipt, crossed the Jinshui River, and used an Earth Escape Talisman to flee.

Chen Lin traveled away from Danding City and encountered Prayer Cult members using strange abilities to make cultivators attack one another. He killed their Divine Child, questioned the Divine Attendant about the cult, then killed her and continued on his way.

• Chen Lin hid underground for a month, then emerged in the wilderness and traveled away from Danding City.
• Three months later, Chen Lin saw a Divine Child and Divine Attendant using their abilities to make a group of cultivators fight one another.
• Chen Lin attacked the pair, burned the Divine Child to ash, captured a black thread from his remains, and knocked out the Divine Attendant and the other cultivators.
• Chen Lin tried to capture the black thread with a Soul-Detaining Talisman, but the talisman exploded along with it.
• Chen Lin questioned the Divine Attendant and learned about Divine Children, their trials, and the Prayer Cult's growing ranks.
• After finding out that she knew nothing more useful, Chen Lin killed the Divine Attendant and continued on his way.