Chapter Summaries

Li Bufan traded Liu Ruyan’s secret Spirit-Seeking Art for the lives of Wang Tianfeng and Wang Tianyun, then left the trial with He Wanxing. Liu Ruyan remained alone in the pink mist, grieving after taking her revenge.

• Liu Ruyan revealed that she knew the Spirit-Seeking Art and agreed to hand it over if Li Bufan killed Wang Tianfeng and Wang Tianyun.
• Li Bufan killed Wang Tianfeng with Thunderclap Slash and verified the art Liu Ruyan gave him on a Jade Slip.
• Liu Ruyan stabbed Wang Tianyun to death after he begged her to spare him.
• Li Bufan offered Liu Ruyan the Forget Love Stone and Crossing Hatred Water, but she refused them.
• Li Bufan left with He Wanxing, while Liu Ruyan stayed behind and wept alone in the pink mist.

He Wanxing persuaded Li Bufan to bring Liu Ruyan with them through the trial, despite their being competitors. As they traveled, Li Bufan watched the Forget Love Stone and Crossing Hatred Water fuse, hoping to understand how opposing Five Elements could merge.

• He Wanxing asked Li Bufan to return for Liu Ruyan, and he agreed after warning her that they might later compete for the trial’s sole required item.
• He Wanxing and Li Bufan found Liu Ruyan still grieving, invited her to join them, and Liu Ruyan accepted their help.
• He Wanxing chatted with Liu Ruyan as the three traveled, and Liu Ruyan revealed that her family’s ruin had led her to Tianxiang Tower.
• Li Bufan studied the Forget Love Stone and Crossing Hatred Water as they gradually fused, wondering how forces that countered each other could merge.

Li Bufan fused the Forget Love Stone and Crossing Hatred Water, passed the trial of lust with He Wanxing and Liu Ruyan, and discovered that the secret realm had strengthened his Spiritual Sense. At the next gathering, Chief Steward Lan offered the candidates a choice between returning home to manage their Tianxiang Towers or continuing the assessment to enter the Tianxiang Cult.

• Li Bufan spent three days studying the fusion of the Forget Love Stone and Crossing Hatred Water, then combined them into a glowing substance that could calm the mind.
• Li Bufan smeared the substance onto his Tianxiang Token, and He Wanxing and Liu Ruyan did the same, causing a gate of light to appear and carry them out of the secret realm.
• Li Bufan sensed that his Spiritual Sense had changed and found that his Constant Stillness One Scripture proficiency had increased by a thousand.
• Chief Steward Lan arrived and told the gathered candidates they could return home and eventually manage their Tianxiang Towers, or continue the assessment for a chance to enter the Tianxiang Cult.
• He Wanxing was pleased at the prospect of returning home, while Li Bufan felt uneasy about Chief Steward Lan’s remarks concerning the original managers.

Li Bufan, He Wanxing, and Liu Ruyan entered the Gluttony Secret Realm, where overwhelming hunger and draining strength threatened to overwhelm them. After discovering that the trial required destroying Satiety Trees, Li Bufan woke He Wanxing and prepared to continue.

• He Wanxing chose to continue the assessment, and Li Bufan, He Wanxing, and Liu Ruyan registered with Chief Steward Lan.
• Chief Steward Lan led the remaining participants to seven secret-realm gates, and Li Bufan chose the yellow gate with He Wanxing; Liu Ruyan followed them inside.
• The three entered a gray forest where their strength drained and intense hunger took hold, and Li Bufan knocked He Wanxing unconscious when she tried to eat a Grain Abstinence Pill.
• Li Bufan restrained He Wanxing while Liu Ruyan struggled to resist the hunger, then used the Constant Stillness One Scripture to steady himself and studied the Spirit-Seeking Art.
• Li Bufan learned that the trial required grinding Satiety Trees into fragments for the Tianxiang Token to absorb, though their fragrance intensified hunger, and he woke He Wanxing.

Li Bufan endured the Satiety Tree’s hunger-inducing fragrance long enough to grind its wood into powder and advance the Tianxiang Tokens, while restraining He Wanxing and Liu Ruyan when they lost control. After three days, a light gate appeared, and the three survivors left the gray forest.

• Li Bufan explained the Satiety Tree trial to He Wanxing, took her Tianxiang Token, and used the Constant Stillness One Scripture to resist the tree’s fragrance while grinding its branch into powder.
• Li Bufan placed the powder on his and He Wanxing’s Tianxiang Tokens, and both began absorbing it as their dark yellow patterns formed.
• Liu Ruyan ground up a Satiety Tree branch and ate the powder, losing her reason; Li Bufan knocked her unconscious and restrained her when her scent triggered his urge to devour her.
• The Small Cauldron chimed in Li Bufan’s Spirit Sea, dispelling his urge, and he spent the next three days guarding the tokens and knocking He Wanxing and Liu Ruyan unconscious whenever they woke in hunger.
• Both Tianxiang Tokens completed their dark yellow patterns, a light gate appeared, and Li Bufan led He Wanxing through it; Liu Ruyan later freed herself and followed.

Li Bufan and He Wanxing entered the Slothbone Lost Domain, where slothful magic threatened to make He Wanxing sleep forever. Li Bufan resisted the realm’s influence and sensed a sign of the Heartburning Fire as he carried her onward.

• Li Bufan discovered that his Spiritual Sense had grown to a range of five hundred zhang after clearing the previous trial.
• He Wanxing recovered with Li Bufan, and the two asked Steward Lan to send them to another secret realm.
• Steward Lan directed them through the purple gate to the trial of sloth, the Slothbone Lost Domain.
• He Wanxing succumbed to the realm’s drowsiness, so Li Bufan carried her on his back and used needles to keep her awake.
• Li Bufan searched the domain with his Spiritual Sense and spirit art, then rushed toward a ray of light that triggered a response.

Li Bufan found the Burning Heart Flame underground and began refining it, but Nine Yang Body Protection activated and absorbed the Spiritual Fire instead. The refinement strengthened his secret art, transformed the flame into a controllable violet fire, and dispelled the laziness affecting He Wanxing.

• Li Bufan sensed a scorching fluctuation beneath a meadow, dug underground, and uncovered the solid, purplish-red Burning Heart Flame.
• The Burning Heart Flame awakened and struggled to escape, but Li Bufan trapped it with Crimson Fire Flowing Paste.
• Li Bufan used the Spring and Autumn Needle Technique to rouse He Wanxing, who asked how things were going.
• Li Bufan began refining the Burning Heart Flame, but Nine Yang Body Protection activated and drew the flame into itself.
• Nine Yang Body Protection absorbed the Burning Heart Flame, and its proficiency rose by thirty thousand as the surrounding laziness faded and He Wanxing regained clarity.
• Li Bufan opened his palm and shaped the transformed violet flame into a lotus and a flying bird.

Li Bufan and He Wanxing passed the remaining trials of Red Sleeve Fragrance and reached the final Trial of Pride. They entered the crimson gate together, leaving the outcome of the final trial unknown.

• Li Bufan shared the Burning Heart Flame with He Wanxing, and they refined their Tianxiang Tokens to pass the trial.
• Chief Steward Lan confirmed they had passed three trials, hinted at a benefit Li Bufan had earned, and advised them to enter the crimson gate last.
• Li Bufan and He Wanxing passed the orange, green, and blue trials over the following days, leaving only the red Trial of Pride.
• Li Bufan and He Wanxing discussed whether to attempt the final trial, and He Wanxing chose to follow him.
• Li Bufan and He Wanxing entered the crimson gate together.

Li Bufan and He Wanxing entered the Sovereign Abyss, where it magnified Li Bufan’s arrogance and He Wanxing’s inferiority. Lost in visions of his imagined supremacy, Li Bufan questioned whether he was truly invincible after seeing his saber technique’s actual mastery level.

• Li Bufan entered the Sovereign Abyss and was overwhelmed by memories of others praising him, while He Wanxing noticed nothing unusual.
• The Sovereign Abyss magnified Li Bufan’s pride and He Wanxing’s self-doubt as he failed to suppress his arrogance with the Constant Stillness One Scripture.
• Li Bufan ran into the mist, leaving He Wanxing frozen in place and wondering if she was useless.
• Li Bufan imagined killing Zhou Huoyun, winning the Pill Combat Tournament, and becoming the Eastern Domain’s unrivaled master.
• After practicing the Greedy Wolf Saber Technique in his vision, Li Bufan saw that it was only at mastery and wondered if he was truly invincible beneath heaven.

Li Bufan overcame the Trial of Arrogance in the Sovereign Abyss and helped He Wanxing break free of despair and awaken her pride. After both gained the crimson pattern on their Tianxiang Tokens, they left the secret realm together.

• Li Bufan realized the Trial of Arrogance had trapped him in a vision, understood that he had to follow his own path, and recovered his strength.
• Li Bufan rejected the two paths before him, forged a way forward, and gained the seventh, crimson pattern on his Tianxiang Token.
• Li Bufan returned to He Wanxing just as she tried to take her own life and stopped her by shattering the true qi in her palm.
• Li Bufan reminded He Wanxing of her former strength and worth, helping her regain confidence and awaken her pride over three days.
• He Wanxing gained the crimson pattern on her Tianxiang Token, and she and Li Bufan activated their tokens to leave Sovereign Abyss.

He Wanxing returned from the trials having passed all seven and earned the status of a True Disciple of the Tianxiang Cult. After parting from Li Bufan, she recounted the secret realm to Yun Niang, who realized Li Bufan had helped her largely to end their entanglement.

• Chief Steward Lan welcomed He Wanxing as a True Disciple and sent her and Li Bufan back to the Tianxiang Tower.
• He Wanxing showed Yun Niang her seven-striped Tianxiang Token, and the tower managers formally greeted her as a True Disciple.
• He Wanxing asked to spend a few more days with Yun Niang before leaving for the Tianxiang Cult, while Li Bufan said he had to leave and bid them farewell.
• Li Bufan departed, and He Wanxing watched him go before sitting down with Yun Niang.
• He Wanxing described the seven trials and Li Bufan's help, including her near-death experience in Sovereign Abyss.
• Yun Niang regretted how she had treated Li Bufan and understood that he had helped to fulfill his promise and end their ties.

He Wanxing comforted Yun Niang, who finally told her the truth about her parents and the sacrifices they made to protect her. He Wanxing vowed to take up their affairs, then spent the day walking through the city with Yun Niang.

• He Wanxing reassured Yun Niang that she did not blame her and secretly resolved to repay Li Bufan by marrying him.
• Yun Niang broke down in tears, and He Wanxing stayed beside her until she calmed down.
• He Wanxing asked about her parents, and Yun Niang revealed that her mother was a True Disciple of the Smoke Envelops Cold Moon Sect and her father was a True Disciple of the Courtyard Flowers Watch Fire Sect.
• Yun Niang explained that He Wanxing's father falsely claimed he had drugged and forced her mother to protect her, while her mother accepted confinement and claimed He Wanxing was Yun Niang's child.
• He Wanxing vowed to handle her parents' affairs, then took Yun Niang out to stroll and shop in the prefectural city.

Li Bufan returned to Yingtian Prefecture after his Spiritual Sense began surging uncontrollably, and Elder Chen diagnosed lingering damage from the seven Red Sleeve Fragrance trials. Elder Chen began a treatment in a hidden chamber, leaving Li Bufan submerged in medicinal liquid inside a massive alchemy furnace as he prepared to use two flames.

• Li Bufan hurried back to Yingtian Prefecture and asked Elder Chen about his unstable Spiritual Sense.
• Elder Chen discovered that Li Bufan had passed seven trials and warned that lingering power from the seven emotions could corrode his mind and cause his Spiritual Sense to collapse.
• Elder Chen revealed a hidden underground chamber and told Li Bufan to enter a huge alchemy furnace protected by his Heartburning Fire.
• Li Bufan entered the furnace, formed armor from the purple flames, and circulated the Constant Stillness One Scripture while Elder Chen filled the furnace with medicinal liquid.
• Elder Chen stopped pouring when the liquid covered Li Bufan to the neck, then summoned a crimson flame in one hand and the purple Heartburning Fire in the other.

Elder Chen spent a month refining Li Bufan’s body and spiritual sense in the pill furnace, purging the lingering poison of the seven emotions and bringing his essence, qi, and spirit into balance. After Li Bufan recovered, Elder Chen agreed to teach him alchemy, and began to tell him about his past when Li Bufan asked whether he could help.

• Li Bufan used his Heartburning Fire to refine the medicinal liquid while Elder Chen controlled the furnace flames, and the medicine strengthened Li Bufan’s body, dantian, and Spirit Sea.
• Elder Chen explained that Li Bufan’s spiritual sense had advanced too quickly and that the medicinal liquid would strengthen his essence and qi while purging the seven emotions’ lingering influence.
• Elder Chen intensified the flames, and Li Bufan endured a month of painful tempering as his spiritual sense grew denser and his body and true qi strengthened.
• Elder Chen withdrew the flames, and Li Bufan emerged with stable, purified spiritual sense and a darker, stronger Heartburning Fire.
• Elder Chen told Li Bufan to rest until his spiritual sense recovered, then offered to teach him alchemy before he returned to Songhe Gate.
• Li Bufan asked Elder Chen about his past and offered to help; Elder Chen agreed to tell him.

Elder Chen told Li Bufan how his love for a Tianxiang Tower Courtesan Queen drove him to pursue cultivation, only for her to sacrifice herself to save him and leave him searching for a way to restore her. Inspired by Elder Chen’s story, Li Bufan returned home determined to win the Pill Combat Tournament and found peace with his family.

• Elder Chen recalled meeting a Tianxiang Tower Courtesan Queen, falling in love with her, and winning the State Competition before the tower master took her away.
• Elder Chen became a Core Disciple of the Danxuan Sect and passed the first two stages of Red Sleeve Fragrance, making his beloved a True Disciple.
• Elder Chen explained that his beloved transferred her cultivation to him to save his life, leaving her aged and causing him to break with his master and sect.
• Elder Chen told Li Bufan that he studied alchemy to balance his cultivation and hoped to bring his beloved back with a Form-Spirit Unity Pill.
• Li Bufan left the Library Pavilion resolved to win the Pill Combat Tournament and returned home to share a peaceful evening with Li Ping'an and Doctor Liu.

After stabilizing his body and Spiritual Sense, Li Bufan went to Elder Chen to begin learning alchemy. Elder Chen tested his skills and identified flaws in his second-grade pill refining.

• Li Bufan examined his gains after a month in the alchemy furnace and decided to let his cultivation stabilize before advancing further.
• Li Bufan spent three days contemplating the Five Elements and practicing the fusion of water and fire, while Doctor Liu and Li Ping'an kept to their routines.
• Li Bufan confirmed that his physical body and Spiritual Sense had stabilized, then went to the Songhe Martial Arts School to find Elder Chen.
• Elder Chen brought Li Bufan to the underground chamber and asked him to demonstrate his alchemy.
• Li Bufan refined a flawless batch of Great Qi and Blood Pills, impressing Elder Chen, then struggled more with a Rejuvenation Pill.
• Elder Chen pointed out Li Bufan's mistakes in timing, heat control, and pill formation, and Li Bufan committed the advice to memory.

Li Bufan trained under Elder Chen, mastering Second-Rank pills before learning to refine the Third-Rank Essence Condensation Pill. After a month of intensive practice, his alchemy reached Third-Rank mastery, and he gained a deeper understanding of pill refinement.

• Elder Chen demonstrated Rejuvenation Pill refinement, then guided Li Bufan through ten days of practice until six of Li Bufan’s twelve pills bore Cloud Patterns.
• Elder Chen gave Li Bufan the Essence Condensation Pill formula and explained its herbs and refining process.
• Li Bufan successfully refined his first Essence Condensation Pill, and Elder Chen told him to keep practicing until he could produce one with Cloud Patterns.
• Li Bufan continued refining pills until the Heaven Rewards Diligence panel listed him as a Third-Rank Alchemist.
• After another month of practice, Li Bufan reached Third-Rank Alchemist mastery with proficiency at 556/1000.

Li Bufan completed his month of alchemy training with Elder Chen and prepared to leave Yingtian Prefecture for the Songhe Gate. He learned that the Lin Family had moved to the provincial capital, then spent a warm evening with Doctor Liu and Li Ping'an before telling his master he would depart in two days.

• Li Bufan refined a batch of Essence Condensation Pills, and Elder Chen ended his alchemy instruction after Li Bufan addressed him as Master Chen.
• Li Bufan visited the martial hall but learned from the steward that Lin Zhentian, Lin Zhennan, and the martial instructors had moved to the provincial capital with the Lin Family.
• Li Bufan returned home, reviewed Elder Chen's teachings, and cooked dinner for Doctor Liu and Li Ping'an.
• Li Bufan told Doctor Liu that he would leave in two days, urged him to practice the Five Animal Frolics, and resolved to seek ways to extend his master's life.

Li Bufan secretly treated Doctor Liu and Li Ping'an before Doctor Liu's blood awakened the Wordless Heavenly Book, revealing two cultivation techniques and restoring Li Bufan's true qi. After leaving silver notes for his master and Ping'an, Li Bufan departed without waking them.

• Li Bufan used his true qi and Wood True Meaning to improve Doctor Liu's and Li Ping'an's health, then healed the wounds on Doctor Liu's hands.
• Doctor Liu's blood stained the Wordless Heavenly Book, which absorbed Li Bufan's true qi and revealed the complete Spring and Autumn Needle Technique and the later chapters of the Five Elements Heaven Skill.
• The Wordless Heavenly Book imprinted both techniques into Li Bufan's mind and returned his true qi, leaving his Five-Colored Ring more abundant than before.
• Li Bufan bought breakfast, left ten thousand taels' worth of silver notes beside Doctor Liu's pillow, and departed without waking Doctor Liu or Li Ping'an.

Li Bufan studied the Five Elements Heaven Skill and learned about the Cave Heaven and Dharma Form realms, then focused on mastering the Spring and Autumn Needle Technique. After practicing its middle three needles on himself, he reached proficiency and discovered that the technique could also improve cultivation.

• Li Bufan studied the Five Elements Heaven Skill and learned that Cave Heaven and Dharma Form followed the Golden Core realm, while sensing that greater realms might lie beyond.
• Li Bufan reviewed the thirteen needles of the Spring and Autumn Needle Technique and realized its final three could form an array to extend Doctor Liu's life.
• Li Bufan decided to practice the middle three needles and used golden needles of true qi to test acupoints and meridians on himself.
• Li Bufan practiced for several days while traveling, refining his body and reaching proficiency in the middle three needles by the time he left Qi State.
• Li Bufan discovered that the needles stimulated meridians and acupoints, potentially doubling an ordinary Meridian Connecting Realm martial artist's cultivation speed.