Chapter Summaries

Chen Lin entered Danding City under the identity of Lin Feiyu and applied to join the Righteous Alliance, hoping its protection would help him survive the war. After Li Xuanming questioned his background, Chen Lin claimed ties to the Qingyang Sect as an alchemist, prompting Li Xuanming to summon Master Mu for verification.

• Chen Lin introduced himself to the West City Gate guards as Lin Feiyu, a newly established Foundation Establishment cultivator seeking to join the Alliance.
• The Guard Unit Captain inspected Chen Lin for signs of the Prayer Cult, then escorted him to meet the Enforcing Elder on duty.
• Chen Lin met Li Xuanming, who questioned his origins and his cultivation history.
• Chen Lin said that he had once received pill-refining guidance from Qingyang Sect master alchemist Mu Xingchen.
• Li Xuanming ordered the Guard Unit Captain to summon Master Mu to verify Chen Lin’s claim.

Chen Lin joined the Alliance’s Pill Pavilion in Danding City after Mu Xingchen vouched for him, and learned that the Qingyang Sect had been scattered after losing its mountain gate. He settled into his assigned courtyard and considered earning merit through alchemy while keeping clear of combat.

• Mu Xingchen recognized Chen Lin, vouched for his innocence to Li Xuanming, and secured him a position in the Pill Pavilion.
• Li Xuanming told Mu Xingchen to prioritize research into improving the Demon-Clearing Pill as demonic qi intensified.
• Mu Xingchen told Chen Lin that the Qingyang Sect had lost its mountain gate and that Luo Qinglan was overseeing Tenglong City; Chen Lin declined to visit her.
• Mu Xingchen registered Chen Lin as a Pill Master, assigned him a courtyard and two apprentices, and explained that Alliance members had to earn merit through tasks.
• Chen Lin inspected his courtyard with divine sense and decided he could earn merit by refining pills rather than fighting.

After reaching Foundation Establishment, Chen Lin discovered his talent ability had improved to Five Guaranteed Hits and began settling into his new role as a Pill Pavilion alchemist. He took Sun Yun'er and Sun Xingwang as pill-refining apprentices, explored the Alliance’s mission system, and ended up choosing to refine Foundation Establishment Pills because he lacked merit to obtain other formulas.

• Chen Lin welcomed Sun Yun'er and Sun Xingwang, learned about their spiritual roots and cultivation, and gave them the Pill Refining Records to study as his apprentices.
• Chen Lin explored the city, saw that Jinfeng Pavilion and his former residence had been taken over, and inspected the Alliance’s mission board.
• Chen Lin visited the Pill Pavilion mission hall and selected the Qingshuang Pill, Luobi Pill, and Great Returning Spirit Pill formulas to learn.
• The receptionist told Chen Lin that pill formulas required merit, so he requested a Foundation Establishment Pill formula and five hundred sets of ingredients instead.

Chen Lin visited the mission hall to collect Foundation Establishment Pill ingredients, where Mu Xingchen gave him Demon-Clearing Pills and explained his duty to care for the Sun Siblings. A Qi Refining woman then detonated herself in a sneak attack on Mu Xingchen, unleashing a monster that Li Xuanming drove away, but nearly everyone in the hall died.

• The receptionist told Chen Lin that his low Identity Level limited how many Foundation Establishment Pill ingredients he could collect without a deposit, and Mu Xingchen arrived to place the ingredients on his credit.
• Mu Xingchen gave Chen Lin three Demon-Clearing Pills and explained that the Sun Siblings' family had died fighting the Prayer Cult, so the Sect Master had entrusted them to him.
• A Qi Refining woman charged Mu Xingchen and detonated herself, blasting apart the mission hall and summoning tentacles from a black hole.
• Chen Lin fought off a tentacle with his purple-flamed fist but suffered ruptured meridians and spat blood.
• Li Xuanming appeared and drove the tentacled creature back into the black hole with his Dharmic Treasure.
• Chen Lin found Mu Xingchen unharmed but trapped in a barrier, while the other people in the hall had been killed.

After surviving an attack by a Tentacle Monster, Chen Lin decided to remain in Danding City and focused on refining pills and building up his resources. He browsed the Merit Exchange Catalog for a Foundation Establishment cultivation technique, narrowing his choices to two but not yet deciding between them.

• Chen Lin returned home injured, warned the Sun Siblings to stay in the courtyard, and decided that remaining in the city was safer than leaving.
• After several days of recovery, Chen Lin collected three hundred sets of Foundation Establishment Pill ingredients, refined them, and submitted five pills for merit points.
• Chen Lin decided to keep his reported pill success rate low, collected more ingredients, and exchanged merit points for the Qingshuang Pill formula.
• Chen Lin visited the Merit Exchange Office and studied the available Foundation Establishment cultivation techniques, rejecting the Spirit Condensation Art because of its poor prospects for advancement.
• Chen Lin narrowed his choices to two cultivation techniques after finding that the other options had requirements he could not meet.

Chen Lin reviewed cultivation techniques and exchange options, then redeemed four escape techniques. Outside the Exchange Office, he encountered Xu Ruolan and Ye Jingyun, denied they knew him, and fled; Ye Jingyun decided to investigate his current identity and seek a deal.

• Chen Lin compared the Heavenly Thunder Wood-Transforming Art and the Taiqing Naive Art, then browsed escape techniques, magical tools, and pills in the Alliance catalogs.
• Chen Lin redeemed the Metal, Wood, Water, and Fire Escape Techniques and left the Exchange Office.
• Xu Ruolan recognized Chen Lin outside and approached him, but he denied being the person she knew.
• Ye Jingyun appeared and teased Chen Lin, who rejected her claim to be his master and hurried away.
• Xu Ruolan confirmed her soul-based ability had identified Chen Lin, and Ye Jingyun decided to investigate his identity before approaching him with a deal.

Chen Lin weighed the risks posed by Ye Jingyun and searched for a suitable Foundation Establishment cultivation technique. After Mu Xingchen warned him away from his choices, Luo Qinglan sent him a technique through Mu Xingchen, leaving him wondering what she intended.

• Chen Lin decided to deny being Chen Lin to Ye Jingyun and resolved to learn more about Xu Ruolan's ability while continuing his work at the Pill Pavilion.
• Ye Jingyun learned Chen Lin was a Pill Pavilion alchemist connected to Mu Xingchen and asked Yuan Kuo to invite him to speak with her.
• After a month of earning merit, Chen Lin asked Mu Xingchen for advice, and Mu Xingchen rejected the Heavenly Thunder Wood-Transforming Art and Taiqing Naive Art as unsuitable.
• Yuan Kuo invited Chen Lin to a Pill Master exchange meeting, and Chen Lin considered attending if he could not find a cultivation technique before then.
• Mu Xingchen gave Chen Lin a Jade Slip containing a cultivation technique that Luo Qinglan had sent after hearing of his difficulty choosing one.

Chen Lin chose to cultivate the Sanyang Burning Wood Technique despite its dangerous tribulations, then received a request from Yuan Kuo to try refining a luck-based pill. The chapter ended with Chen Lin examining the unfamiliar Yin-Yang Twin Birth Pill formula.

• Chen Lin read the Sanyang Burning Wood Technique and decided to cultivate it for its increased chance of forming a golden core, despite the tribulations at minor breakthroughs.
• Chen Lin found Luo Qinglan's admonition against dalliances and dual cultivation in the jade slip, then set aside his speculation about her motives to study the technique.
• Sun Yun'er announced Yuan Kuo's visit, and Yuan Kuo asked Chen Lin to try refining a pill based on a formula modified by the Qi Luck Pill Refining Technique.
• Chen Lin suspected Ye Jingyun had sent Yuan Kuo but concealed his knowledge, and Yuan Kuo left him the pill formula.
• Chen Lin read the jade slip and discovered that the formula was for a Yin-Yang Twin Birth Pill.

Chen Lin decided to leave Danding City rather than risk drawing the Black Demon Sect's attention, then settled outside Tiger Roar City under a concealed identity. Ye Jingyun failed to find him and turned to other plans, while the Prayer Cult's growing activity left Chen Lin wary of traveling farther.

• Chen Lin rejected the Yin-Yang Twin Birth Pill formula and decided to leave Danding City after gathering supplies, including more than twenty Demon-Clearing Pills.
• Chen Lin gave the Sun Siblings pills and instructions before disappearing from his residence under the cover of seclusion.
• Ye Jingyun learned from Yuan Kuo that Chen Lin had not emerged, then visited his residence with Xu Ruolan but found only Sun Yun'er and no trace of his aura.
• Ye Jingyun told Xu Ruolan to cultivate the Soul Secret Art quickly so they could pursue a Secret Realm and its ancient Teleportation Formation.
• Half a month later, Chen Lin stayed outside Tiger Roar City to avoid exposing his registered identity and examined a ghost face fruit pit he had bought to conceal his divine soul fluctuations.

Chen Lin fortified an underground hideout, spent a year cultivating, and learned that the Alliance was losing badly to the Prayer Cult. After he avoided being recruited into the City Guard, a disguised pursuer followed him into a formation, where a Light Sword attacked.

• Chen Lin dug a maze of tunnels beneath his room, set up defensive formations, and cultivated underground for a year.
• Chen Lin mastered the Sanyang Burning Wood Technique and Metal Escape Technique, then learned from Old Five that the Alliance’s nine Enforcing Elders had lost to the Prayer Cult’s Seven Fiends.
• Chen Lin asked Captain Yu about the worsening war and learned that cultivators would be organized into units the next day.
• After Chen Lin left, a grey-robed man used a magical tool to track him, followed him outside the city, and entered a formation that attacked him with a Light Sword.

Chen Lin killed Captain Yu and learned through soul-searching that the Alliance might lose and major powers were preparing to flee Tianyuan Continent aboard Sea-Crossing Ships. While hiding among mortals in Tong County and looking for a way to leave, he encountered a Prayer Cult infiltrator.

• Chen Lin killed Captain Yu, captured his soul, and used a Soul-Searching Secret Art to learn that the Alliance was likely finished and the major powers were preparing to escape across the Wuding Sea.
• Chen Lin learned that Captain Yu belonged to Chu Country's Royal Family and had a boarding token for the Purple Dragon Boat, but the token's soul binding made impersonation impossible.
• Chen Lin decided to search for a Teleportation Formation or a way to secure passage aboard a Sea-Crossing Ship, then went to Tong County disguised as a scholar.
• Chen Lin sensed that a female performer in a teahouse belonged to the Prayer Cult and left without revealing himself.
• After Chen Lin left, the performer released red vapor that drove the teahouse patrons into frenzied behavior before she departed.

Chen Lin posed as a mortal scholar on the road, but a clash with Feather Divine Child and an Alliance Patrol cultivator forced him to reveal his strength and survive a deadly demonic attack. After escaping and recovering, he examined a soybean-sized piece of black crystal.

• Chen Lin killed five bandits with his sword after pretending to surrender his horse and belongings.
• Feather Divine Child and an Alliance Patrol Foundation Establishment Cultivator appeared, and she used red mist to enslave Chen Lin.
• Chen Lin ambushed and killed the Alliance cultivator, then pursued Feather Divine Child as she fled.
• Feather Divine Child transformed into a powerful monster and struck Chen Lin with a Red Beam before withering away.
• Chen Lin suppressed the evil energy with his purple flames and Buddhist power, destroyed a dark figure emerging from his head, and fled after cleaning up the battlefield.
• Chen Lin recovered in an Isolation Array, reflected on misjudging his enemy, and brought out a small piece of black crystal.

After defeating a Feather Divine Child, Chen Lin looted her companion’s Spiritual Tools and continued toward the Red Fire Sect, hoping to secure passage across the sea. He learned that the Alliance had suffered a major defeat and that the sect’s cultivators were seeking ways to escape, then headed for the sect to investigate further.

• Chen Lin stored the Feather Divine Child’s Divine Crystal and claimed two low-grade Spiritual Tools from an Alliance Foundation Establishment Cultivator’s Storage Bag.
• Chen Lin traveled through war-stricken towns, sensing Prayer Cult members and noticing that the plague spared those who worshipped the cult’s evil god.
• Chen Lin reached a city near the Red Fire Sect and decided to seek a place aboard its possible Sea-Crossing Ship.
• Chen Lin used the Soul-Bewitching Technique to question Zhou Shan, an Outer Disciple of the Red Fire Sect, about the sect and its cultivators.
• Chen Lin learned that the Red Fire Sect had heard of the Alliance’s defeat, was under orders not to let cultivators leave, and had members seeking a way out.
• Chen Lin left the city and headed toward the Red Fire Sect.

Chen Lin investigated the Red Fire Sect and discovered through a soul search that it had already built an Ocean-Crossing Large Ship and hidden it in the Distant Sea. He learned that the sect’s limited escape slots were reserved for core members and began considering how to board the ship.

• Chen Lin tracked a late-stage qi condensation disciple, Chu Chengyang, after tagging him with a Soul-Pulling Thread.
• Chen Lin overheard Chu Chengyang tell an outer disciple that the Red Fire Sect might retreat, then heard Chu kill her after she threatened to expose him.
• Chen Lin knocked Chu Chengyang unconscious, searched his soul, burned his body, and disposed of the woman’s remains.
• Chen Lin learned that the Red Fire Sect had already sent its Ocean-Crossing Large Ship to a secret location in the Distant Sea.
• Chen Lin discovered that the Red Fire Sect’s escape slots were scarce and mostly reserved for core members, leaving him to plan how to secure passage.

Chen Lin learned that the Red Fire Sect had discovered Chu Chengyang’s death and was about to seal its Mountain Gate as a great battle began. He abducted Huang Yiyi, who had recognized him as a Foundation Establishment Cultivator and offered to help him in exchange for a favor.

• Chen Lin stayed hidden while the Red Fire Sect investigated Chu Chengyang’s disappearance, then learned from Zhou Shan that Chu’s Soul Lamp had gone out and another disciple was missing.
• Zhou Shan told Chen Lin that the great battle had begun and the Red Fire Sect would activate its Guardian Mountain Formation the next day.
• Chen Lin questioned another disciple, then avoided two late-stage qi condensation cultivators because subduing them was too risky.
• Chen Lin recognized Huang Yiyi as Chu Chengyang’s intended bride and followed her into a secluded alley.
• Huang Yiyi recognized Chen Lin as a Foundation Establishment Cultivator and offered to help him obtain anything he wanted from the Red Fire Sect.
• Chen Lin knocked Huang Yiyi unconscious, bundled her up, and took her out of the city by carriage.

Chen Lin questioned Huang Yiyi after waking her and learned that she could offer him a way to leave on a secret small sea-crossing boat. He refused to kill her enemy but demanded the boat’s Refinement Blueprint, offering a powerful treasure in exchange for her handling the killing herself.

• Chen Lin questioned Huang Yiyi about how she had detected him, and she explained that her innate perceptiveness revealed only that a Foundation Establishment Cultivator was blocking her senses.
• Huang Yiyi guessed that Chen Lin had killed Chu Chengyang and Zheng Qiuyue, then asked him to kill Chu Chengyang’s younger brother in return for a Boarding Credential.
• Huang Yiyi revealed that her master had secretly built a small Spiritual Tool sea-crossing boat, which he planned to use when the Alliance retreated.
• Chen Lin refused to kill Chu Chengyang’s younger brother and demanded that Huang Yiyi copy the small boat’s Refinement Blueprint or submit to a Soul Search.
• Chen Lin offered Huang Yiyi a powerful treasure so she could try to kill Chu Chengyang’s younger brother herself.

Chen Lin continued gathering materials for the Ink-Hidden Spirit Boat as the Alliance war worsened. He intervened in a battle, killed a Prayer Cult Foundation Establishment cultivator, and helped the Alliance defeat the enemy force.

• Chen Lin found black-marked Prayer Cult cultivators, burned their bodies, and rejected the idea of joining the cult.
• Chen Lin reviewed the Ink-Hidden Spirit Boat method and collected yellow reef stones and other materials from Storage Bags taken from Prayer Cult cultivators.
• Chen Lin realized he still lacked many materials, especially ink gold, and considered returning to Danding City to obtain it.
• Chen Lin spotted an Alliance force losing a battle against the Prayer Cult and recognized Qian Li fighting the Foundation Establishment cultivator Muyuan.
• Muyuan transformed under the influence of the Divine Cult and attacked Qian Li, but Chen Lin ambushed and killed him with his Spiritual Tools.
• Chen Lin revealed himself and cut down more than a dozen Prayer Cult cultivators, allowing the Alliance fighters to rout the remaining enemies.

Chen Lin reunited with Qian Li after saving him, then headed to Danding City and avoided conscription by showing his Pill Pavilion token. He asked Zhao Qiankun to help find ink gold, and Nanmen Lingyue revealed that she had a piece.

• Chen Lin revealed his identity to Qian Li, and the two caught up before Qian Li returned to Danding City with the Qi Condensation cultivators.
• Chen Lin confirmed the dead Foundation Establishment cultivator was Muyuan, burned his corpse, and set out for Danding City.
• A Demon-Hunting Squad led by Zhao Qiankun tried to conscript Chen Lin, but he showed his Pill Pavilion Identity Token and was exempted.
• Chen Lin gave Zhao Qiankun Great Returning Spirit Pills and asked him to pass word to Qian Li if he heard of any ink gold.
• Nanmen Lingyue told Chen Lin that she had a piece of ink gold and offered to trade it to him.

Chen Lin traded three Luobi Pills for Nanmen Lingyue’s ink gold, then refined it into a rough blank before continuing toward Danding City. Nanmen Lingyue recognized him as Lin Feiyu and planned to seek him out again, while a jealous cultivator in her team resolved to have him killed.

• Chen Lin traded three Luobi Pills to Nanmen Lingyue for a large piece of ink gold and noticed a mark on her collarbone like one from his vision in Black Water Marsh.
• Chen Lin checked the ink gold for a tracking mark, refined it with burning lotus true fire into a rough blank, and continued toward Danding City.
• Nanmen Lingyue concluded that Chen Lin was Lin Feiyu and that their spirit fires were connected, allowing her to locate him and address her hidden problem.
• Nanmen Lingyue considered whether to pursue dual cultivation with Chen Lin or seize his fire spirit, then blushed at the thought.
• A jealous Foundation Establishment Middle Stage cultivator rebuked Nanmen Lingyue for smiling at Chen Lin and decided to find someone to kill him.

Chen Lin reached Danding City and learned that the Alliance’s merit system and depleted reserves had made survival and cultivation resources harder to secure. He joined his neighbors on the way to an exchange meeting, where a Foundation Establishment cultivator arrived, and wondered whether its organizer, High Person Yunhai, was the same person he had met before.

• Chen Lin settled outside Danding City and learned that merit rank determined rewards and priority during a possible retreat from the war.
• Chen Lin’s neighbors Zhang Qingfeng, Wugui, and an elderly cultivator told him that Alliance reserves, including Foundation Establishment Pills, had run out because ingredients and treasures had been depleted.
• Chen Lin realized his stored Foundation Establishment Pills could be valuable but that scarce resources would also hinder his plans to build the Ink-Hidden Spirit Boat.
• Chen Lin accompanied his neighbors to an exchange meeting aboard a ship on the Jinshui River.
• An old woman whose aura indicated the Foundation Establishment Realm arrived, and Zhang Qingfeng said the meeting was hosted by High Person Yunhai.
• Chen Lin recognized the name High Person Yunhai from a trading convention on Xiaoqiu Island and boarded the ship after paying the entry fee.