Chapter Summaries

Qiao Hong gathered the team at the canyon entrance and led them to vacant lofts in the valley. After Shangguan Qingyu rejected Chu Daofeng’s Oolong Spirit Tea and drew her sword to silence his persistent offers, the team settled into their lodgings.

• Qiao Hong arrived late, apologized for drinking, and invited the team to share drinks after settling in.
• Chu Daofeng offered Shangguan Qingyu rare Oolong Spirit Tea, but she refused and drew her Ice Jade Small Sword when he kept pressing her.
• Qiao Hong proposed that the team live in vacant lofts in the southwest corner, and everyone agreed.
• Cheng Buzheng inspected a loft near the canyon’s inner wall with his Divine Sense and began arranging its Cave Mansion.
• Chu Daofeng chose the loft to Cheng Buzheng’s left, Shangguan Qingyu chose one diagonally across from Cheng Buzheng, and the team members claimed their lodgings.

Qiao Hong proposed dividing the squad into two groups that would take turns guarding the island so the cultivators could cultivate. After the others agreed that Qiao Hong should count as two fighters to balance the groups, Cheng Buzheng volunteered to join Qiao Hong’s group.

• Qiao Hong proposed splitting the ten-person squad into two groups that would alternate guarding the island every three months.
• Chu Daofeng asked how the groups would be divided, while Cheng Buzheng chose not to take a position.
• Jia Rong supported the proposal on the condition that the groups have roughly equal fighting strength, and suggested counting Qiao Hong as two people.
• Qiao Hong formed a group with Ye Han, Shangguan Qingyu, and Chu Daofeng, then asked another cultivator to join them.
• Cheng Buzheng judged Qiao Hong’s group to be the more suitable choice and volunteered to join it.

Cheng Buzheng volunteered to join Qiao Hong’s group, which also included Ye Han, Shangguan Qingyu, and Chu Daofeng. After Chu Daofeng shared Jade Jade Wine and Oolong Spirit Tea, Qiao Hong finalized the teams and set their command arrangements for the mission.

• Cheng Buzheng volunteered for Qiao Hong’s group, surprising the other cultivators and pleasing Qiao Hong.
• Chu Daofeng served Jade Jade Wine to the cultivators and offered Oolong Spirit Tea to Shangguan Qingyu, who ignored him.
• Cheng Buzheng recognized the wine as Jade Jade Wine and discreetly pocketed his flask while drinking from the wine already on the table.
• The other five cultivators chose Jia Rong to lead their group, and Qiao Hong approved their choice.
• Qiao Hong said the groups would switch every three months, with his group starting the next day, and ordered everyone to assemble and obey him if anything unusual happened.

Qiao Hong used three toasts to welcome the cultivators, encourage them to set aside disputes, and rally them before their mission. Cheng Buzheng was swept up in Qiao Hong’s spirited manner but remained unsure whether it reflected Qiao Hong’s true nature.

• Qiao Hong asked the cultivators to avoid settling grudges during the mission and offered to mediate minor disputes.
• Le Heng proposed burying his disagreement with Mo Shang over a Sword-Toothed Spirit Fish’s Sword Bone, and Mo Shang agreed to make peace for the group’s sake.
• Qiao Hong toasted the cultivators’ cooperation and shared pursuit of the Immortal Dao, raising the banquet’s spirits.
• Cheng Buzheng noticed he had been unusually talkative and concluded that Qiao Hong’s charisma had swept him up, though he reserved judgment about Qiao Hong’s character.
• The banquet continued until sunset.

Cheng Buzheng joined Qiao Hong, Shangguan Qingyu, Ye Han, and Chu Daofeng on their way to the northern Monitoring Tower. Qiao Hong explained their squad’s defense duties and rewards before leading them into the tower.

• Cheng Buzheng arrived at Qiao Hong’s pavilion and greeted Qiao Hong, Shangguan Qingyu, and Ye Han.
• Chu Daofeng greeted Shangguan Qingyu, who ignored him, and Qiao Hong led the group north.
• Qiao Hong explained that his squad controlled the northern Monitoring Tower and had to coordinate defenses and rescue cultivators against Demonic Beasts and Desolate Beasts.
• Qiao Hong described the squad’s rewards, including additional Spirit Ascension Fruits for controlling a Monitoring Tower, and explained how the new squad arrangement increased the benefits.
• Qiao Hong flew toward the Tower Pavilion, and Cheng Buzheng and the others followed.

Cheng Buzheng and the other Monitoring Tower cultivators spotted a swarm of Blood Crystal Flying Snakes attacking Zimu Spirit Island. When the warning treasure showed they were second-tier rather than third-tier beasts, Qiao Hong proposed that their squad go fight them for their valuable Blood Crystals.

• Qiao Hong assigned the cultivators to rotate between coordinating from the Tower Pavilion and handling rescues, and Cheng Buzheng learned why the island's Spirit Vein drew attacks and how its formations protected the Spirit Ascension Ancient Trees.
• Ye Han detected a Demonic Beast attack, and the Tower Pavilion's warning treasure flared as winged snakes spat corrosive venom at the formation.
• Qiao Hong identified the attackers as Blood Crystal Flying Snakes and explained that their Blood Crystals could greatly strengthen resistance to spiritual toxins.
• After the warning treasure confirmed the snakes were second-tier, Qiao Hong invited Ye Han and the others to join him in fighting them, and the group agreed.

Cheng Buzheng and his companions attacked a swarm of Blood Crystal Flying Snakes, targeting the second-tier beasts first. As they fought, Cheng Buzheng saw Qiao Hong's powerful Flame Flood Dragon phenomenon and Ye Han's deadly swordsmanship.

• Ye Han and the others flew from the Monitoring Tower to the Blood Crystal Flying Snakes' landing site.
• Qiao Hong ordered the team to focus on the second-tier snakes, then charged a late-second-tier beast.
• Cheng Buzheng killed a mid-second-tier snake with his Willow Leaf Blades, restored his barrier after its venom weakened it, and collected its body.
• Qiao Hong's Flame Flood Dragons blocked a venom orb, and his punch struck the late-second-tier snake's vital point.
• Cheng Buzheng recognized that Qiao Hong's Flame Flood Dragon phenomenon gave him exceptional power and defense.
• Ye Han killed first-tier Blood Crystal Flying Snakes with single sword strikes and moved on to another target.

Chu Daofeng and Shangguan Qingyu helped drive the Blood Crystal Flying Snakes back toward shore, while Cheng Buzheng fought a second-tier, late-stage snake and killed it. He collected its body, securing a Blood Crystal for his poison resistance.

• Chu Daofeng used his Banner Flag to slaughter Blood Crystal Flying Snakes while keeping watch over Shangguan Qingyu.
• Shangguan Qingyu froze and killed a second-tier, early-stage Blood Crystal Flying Snake with her Ice Jade Flying Sword.
• The five cultivators pushed the battle line to shore and killed the second-tier snakes that had reached the island.
• Cheng Buzheng dodged a poisonous Ink Jade Orb and used his Willow Leaf Blades to wound the second-tier, late-stage Blood Crystal Flying Snake.
• The wounded snake tried to flee, but Cheng Buzheng cut it in two and collected its body in his storage bag.

Qiao Hong and the other cultivators finished killing the Blood Crystal Flying Snakes on the island, with Cheng Buzheng revealing more of his strength to protect his standing. The remaining snakes fled into the Endless Sea, bringing the battle to an end.

• Qiao Hong killed the last late-stage second-order Blood Crystal Flying Snake and urged everyone to clear out the remaining first-order snakes.
• Qiao Hong, Ye Han, Chu Daofeng, Shangguan Qingyu, and Cheng Buzheng unleashed their attacks and killed large numbers of Blood Crystal Flying Snakes.
• Cheng Buzheng deliberately displayed a powerful Treasure Art so the other cultivators would not regard him as the weakest Foundation Establishment Late Stage Cultivator.
• One clever Blood Crystal Flying Snake escaped into the Endless Sea, prompting the rest of the snakes to scatter and flee.

After months of delaying Ye Han’s request for a Sword Dao match, Cheng Buzheng finally faced him on an uninhabited island. Ye Han’s strongest strike shattered Cheng Buzheng’s summoned sword and continued toward him.

• After the Blood Crystal Flying Snakes fled, Ye Han asked Cheng Buzheng to spar, but Cheng Buzheng put him off until their missions ended.
• Cheng Buzheng and the others divided the spoils and returned to the Monitoring Tower, where he spent three months on guarding duty and beast-slaying missions.
• At the end of the three-month rotation, Ye Han confronted Cheng Buzheng again, and they flew to an uninhabited island to fight.
• Cheng Buzheng summoned six solid-looking swords and formed a dark-gold barrier as Ye Han attacked with his sword.
• Ye Han unleashed a powerful strike fueled by his Sword Soul, shattering Cheng Buzheng’s summoned sword while its weakened edge continued toward him.

Cheng Buzheng defeated Ye Han in a swordsmanship spar, then returned to Zimu Spirit Island and used his Magic Returning Ring to replenish his puppet’s energy core. Over the following months, Ye Han repeatedly challenged him, leaving Cheng Buzheng avoiding his persistent neighbor.

• Cheng Buzheng’s nine sword shadows broke through Ye Han’s defense, and Ye Han admitted defeat.
• Cheng Buzheng returned to Zimu Spirit Island and used the Magic Returning Ring to refill the puppet’s energy core.
• Cheng Buzheng concluded the ring should be replaced every nine months to keep the puppet supplied with power.
• Ye Han challenged Cheng Buzheng several more times after strengthening himself with Spirit Ascension Fruits.
• Ye Han moved into a loft across from Cheng Buzheng’s residence, and Cheng Buzheng began avoiding leaving his room to escape further spars.
• Cheng Buzheng reflected that Ye Han’s Sword Soul let Sword Cultivators sense goodwill and malice, helping their lineage endure.

Cheng Buzheng finished his rotation on Zimu Spirit Island and returned to his distant seabed Cave Mansion, where he used No. 3 Puppet to deliver valuable resources while his true body cultivated safely in seclusion. After two months, the puppet set out to return to Zimu Spirit Island.

• Ye Han thanked Cheng Buzheng for his guidance, then left the desolate island in a streak of sword light.
• Cheng Buzheng flew to his hidden Cave Mansion, which lay within the sensing range of the Heart Spirit Treasure Eye he had placed on No. 3 Puppet.
• No. 3 Puppet brought Cheng Buzheng five Spirit Ascension Fruits, Jade Jade Spirit Wine, and a Blood Crystal, then replenished its magical power with a Magic Returning Ring.
• Cheng Buzheng continued cultivating while No. 3 Puppet periodically exchanged its depleted Magic Returning Ring for a replenished one.
• After two months, No. 3 Puppet left the Cave Mansion and flew toward Zimu Spirit Island.

Eight years passed as Cheng Buzheng and his team guarded Zimu Spirit Island, where the team remained undefeated and earned the top reward at the annual assessment. After collecting his rewards, Cheng Buzheng visited Cheng Liu in Minghua Immortal City, sold spirit materials, and returned to his secluded cultivation cave to recharge No. 3 Puppet before heading back to Zimu Spirit Island.

• Cheng Buzheng repeatedly fought Ye Han over eight years, and Ye Han improved enough to withstand more than twenty of Cheng Buzheng's sword shadows.
• Cheng Buzheng kept No. 3 Puppet near Zimu Spirit Island during rotation breaks, while Qiao Hong led their casualty-free team through missions and handled dangerous Desolate Beasts.
• True Person Ma held the annual assessment, and Cheng Buzheng's team took first place again without any members falling outside the top ten.
• True Person Ma awarded Spirit Ascension Fruits, giving Qiao Hong nine and rewarding Cheng Buzheng's team among the most generously.
• Cheng Buzheng visited Minghua Immortal City, advised Cheng Liu on cultivation and pill refining, and sold collected spirit materials at the Treasure Tower.
• Cheng Buzheng returned to his secluded cave, recharged No. 3 Puppet and its Magic Returning Ring, then flew back toward Zimu Spirit Island.

More than a year later, two masked conspirators planned an attack on Purple Spirit Island to steal its Purple Spirit Peaches when they ripened in three months. They intended to kill every cultivator on the island and were still trying to confirm whether it had a second Golden Core cultivator.

• A Fiend God Masked cultivator met a black-masked informant near Purple Spirit Island, and the informant confirmed the peaches would ripen in three months.
• The Fiend God Masked cultivator said he had contacted two other Golden Core cultivators and planned to seize the peaches and kill everyone guarding the island.
• The black-masked cultivator asked which factions were involved, and the Fiend God Masked cultivator listed several, including the Ming Immortal Clan and the Evergreen Immortal Clan.
• The black-masked cultivator warned that Purple Spirit Island might have another Golden Core cultivator and that its defenders could summon reinforcements through a Teleportation Array.
• The Fiend God Masked cultivator ordered the black-masked cultivator to investigate whether another Golden Core cultivator was on the island.

Cheng Buzheng and cultivators across Zimu Spirit Island sensed spirit energy being drawn toward the forbidden center, where True Person Ma and True Person Ren watched the Purple Spirit Peaches near ripening. The two Golden Core cultivators prepared for a possible attack by evil cultivators and discussed Hall Master Chu’s junior while they waited.

• Cheng Buzheng noticed the island’s spirit energy flowing toward its center and went to look.
• Guan Da sensed the dwindling spirit energy, discovered it was gathering at True Person Ma’s Cave Mansion, and stopped complaining.
• The Purple Spirit Ancient Tree absorbed vast amounts of spirit energy as its thirty-six peaches neared ripening.
• True Person Ren warned True Person Ma that evil cultivators might target the forbidden grounds, and True Person Ma said they were guarding the tree in the open and in secret.
• True Person Ma told True Person Ren the rumors about Hall Master Chu’s junior, whom he described as a lovesick fool, and they continued waiting for the peaches to ripen.

Black-robed figures emerged from the sea and surrounded Zimu Spirit Island with a barrier of darkness as strange spiritual-energy changes and purple Rosy Cloud appeared over the island. Jia Rong and Qiao Hong alerted the defenders, who mobilized beneath the darkness to investigate and respond.

• A masked leader ordered the black-robed figures gathered on a barren island to move out, and they slipped into the Endless Sea.
• Cheng Buzheng watched spiritual energy gather above Zimu Spirit Island as purple Rosy Cloud formed over its central barrier.
• Jia Rong spotted four black pillars of light erupting around the island, sounded the warning, and sent a message to Qiao Hong.
• The black pillars burst into pitch-black fog that enveloped Zimu Spirit Island and obscured the Endless Sea.
• Qiao Hong alerted the island's defenders, including Ye Han, Shangguan Qingyu, Chu Daofeng, and Cheng Buzheng, and sent them toward their assigned locations.
• The island's cultivators rose into the air from the four Garrison Canyons and sprang into action beneath the darkness.

Cheng Buzheng discovered that masked evil cultivators had surrounded Zimu Spirit Island, and the assault began on its western side. Qiao Hong fought off the attackers until an unknown senior arrived and ordered him to assist the other defenders.

• Cheng Buzheng saw black fog surrounding the island and sensed about thirty Foundation Establishment evil cultivators approaching from each direction.
• Cheng Buzheng, Shangguan Qingyu, and Chu Daofeng watched as masked evil cultivators emerged beyond the southern Formation Light Screen.
• On the western side, Qiao Hong killed one Foundation Establishment Middle Stage evil cultivator and wounded a Foundation Establishment Late Stage opponent with his fists.
• Four Foundation Establishment Late Stage evil cultivators confronted Qiao Hong while the western defenders joined the battle.
• An old cultivator called Qiao Hong a Little Friend, claimed the four opponents for himself, and told Qiao Hong to help the other defenders.

True Person Ma confronted a Golden Core cultivator wearing the Fiend God Mask after saving Qiao Hong’s side from the attacking evil cultivators. The western battlefield remained fierce as Qiao Hong and Ye Han fought to keep the defenders from being overwhelmed.

• The Fiend God Mask figure decided that True Person Ma’s appearance meant the island’s defenses had been drawn out and prepared to act.
• True Person Ma’s giant hand shattered the defensive Treasure Tools and crushed a wounded Foundation Establishment Late Stage evil cultivator as four others fled.
• The Fiend God Mask figure intervened to save the fleeing evil cultivators, clashing with True Person Ma’s spiritual-energy attack.
• True Person Ma recognized that a Golden Core cultivator was backing the assault, while Qiao Hong charged at the enemy’s Foundation Establishment Late Stage fighters.
• Ye Han cut down several evil cultivators before Foundation Establishment Middle Stage enemies surrounded him amid the escalating battle.

Heavenly Fiend revealed himself as the leader of the Cloud Sea Ten Fiends and fought True Person Ma on the western battlefield. Unable to match True Person Ma’s strength, Heavenly Fiend trapped him in the Six Harmonies Array while the broader battle continued to turn in the evil cultivators’ favor.

• True Person Ma identified the masked cultivator as Heavenly Fiend and warned that the Immortal Alliance would put him on the Heavenly Dao Pursuit Order.
• Heavenly Fiend refused to retreat, and True Person Ma attacked him with a golden Great Seal.
• Heavenly Fiend blocked the weakened Great Seal with his jade-green Ruyi and realized he could not hold off True Person Ma for long.
• Heavenly Fiend activated the Six Harmonies Array and trapped True Person Ma inside its gray Light Screen.
• The garrison’s Foundation Establishment cultivators avoided the Golden Core fight as the evil cultivators maintained their numerical advantage and gained ground across the battlefields.

Cheng Buzheng led Shangguan Qingyu and Chu Daofeng out from the island’s protective formation to fight the heretical cultivators, explaining that the formation also concealed the Spirit Ascension Ancient Trees from nearby beasts. He engaged two Foundation Establishment Late Stage enemies and overwhelmed their defenses, while the battle elsewhere began to shift.

• Cheng Buzheng identified the enemy’s black-fog formation as a third-rank Forbidden Great Array and realized a Golden Core cultivator must be operating it.
• Cheng Buzheng explained to Chu Daofeng why the island’s defenders had to fight outside the formation, then assigned Shangguan Qingyu and Chu Daofeng to hold off one late-stage enemy while he faced two.
• The island’s cultivators charged from the Light Screen, and Cheng Buzheng confronted two masked Foundation Establishment Late Stage heretical cultivators behind a dark-gold barrier.
• Cheng Buzheng resisted the Soul-Falling Bell and used his sword shadows to knock aside the bone-like bowl and break through the enemies’ defensive barriers.
• One enemy replaced the ineffective Soul-Falling Bell with an ancient sword, but Cheng Buzheng’s barrier withstood its sword aura as the other battlefield turned against the defenders.