Chapter Summaries

He Song bought a Yin-Gathering Array in Yan Yun Prefecture and mastered it alongside the Golden Core puppet-refining method in the Lunar Yin Puppet Art. He left Yan Yun Prefecture to seek Golden Core materials elsewhere, planning to refine his puppet near a place of dense Yin energy.

• He Song purchased the more efficient Yin-Gathering Array at the Heaven-Reaching Pavilion and returned to an inn under a changed identity.
• He Song studied the array and realized it could rapidly gather lunar yin power, removing a major delay in transforming puppets into Lunar Yin Puppets.
• He Song spent several months mastering the Yin-Gathering Array and the Lunar Yin Puppet Art method that used precious materials and a cultivator's Golden Core.
• He Song decided not to buy Golden Core materials in Yan Yun Prefecture, where his identity had previously been exposed, and left the city.
• He Song waited several days in an array outside Yan Yun Prefecture, then traveled away underground while considering which Immortal Province Capital to visit for materials.

He Song traveled to Luofeng Prefecture under the false identity of Purple Sun True Lord and bought the costly materials needed to refine a Lunar Yin Puppet. He returned to a concealed Yin-rich valley and began refining the puppet, preparing to protect it with multiple arrays.

• He Song chose the concealed Yin-rich site in Luofeng Prefecture for refining his Golden Core puppet and planned to buy its materials while disguised as an outsider Golden Core cultivator.
• He Song approached Luofeng Prefecture from the east, changed his appearance and cultivation aura, and adopted the Daoist title Purple Sun True Lord.
• He Song set a Heavenly Dipper Divine Thunder Array outside Luofeng Prefecture, then purchased Lunar Yin Puppet materials worth nearly one hundred thousand mid-grade Spirit Stones from Treasure Gathering Pavilion.
• He Song left Luofeng Prefecture under the Purple Sun True Lord identity and returned to the secluded valley where he had hidden the Yin-rich site.
• He Song set another Heavenly Dipper Divine Thunder Array outside the Nether Smoke Array, took out his artifact-refining chamber, and began refining the puppet body.

He Song completed the body of a Lunar Yin Puppet and set up arrays to supply it with spiritual energy, Yin energy, and Lunar Yin power. The puppet began absorbing the gathered energy, though it still needed considerable time before it would be ready for use.

• He Song reflected on the immense costs and difficulties of refining a Golden Core puppet and felt fortunate he had not attacked the demonic cultivator who owned the previous one.
• He Song placed the cultivator's Golden Core into the puppet body, shaped it into a handsome humanlike form, and embedded spell seals that linked the core to the puppet and allowed him to control it.
• He Song refined array disks and flags, then set up the Complete Spirit Gathering Array, Yin-Yang Life-Generating Array, and Yin-Gathering Array in the valley.
• He Song laid the puppet in the spot where spiritual energy, Yin energy, and Lunar Yin power were most concentrated, and it immediately began absorbing the gathered energy.
• He Song judged that the arrays would speed the puppet's progress toward the Golden Core realm and looked forward to its completion, while recognizing that the process would still take time.

He Song returned to Luofeng Prefecture as True Person Feiyu, concealed his absence with a story about the Yan Yun Prefecture auction and black market, and established hidden gardens for growing Golden Core herbs. As he investigated why so many cultivators wanted to befriend him, he spotted Green Edge True Person, whom he had met before.

• He Song left half his mid-grade Spirit Stones and a golden-armored guard to protect the valley formations, then traveled back to Luofeng Prefecture.
• He Song returned under the identity of True Person Feiyu and told visiting Foundation Establishment Real Persons that he had stayed in Yan Yun Prefecture to shop after missing out at the auction.
• He Song opened several hidden medicinal gardens and planted Golden Core spiritual herbs to build up future income.
• He Song resumed his quiet life and gradually met more Foundation Establishment Real Persons, attracting a growing number of cultivators who wanted to befriend him.
• He Song secretly investigated the reason for their interest and saw Green Edge True Person enter his field of observation.

He Song discovered that Green Edge True Person’s praise had made him increasingly popular among Luofeng Prefecture’s Foundation Establishment Real Persons. Worried that the attention could expose his identity as an Immortal, He Song entered seclusion and waited for people who knew of him to move away.

• Green Edge True Person told fellow Foundation Establishment Real Persons about the benefits of befriending He Song, including his help with the Talisman Dao and the generous gift he returned for Moonwatch Spirit Tea.
• He Song observed Green Edge True Person’s conversation and realized that acquaintances had been spreading praise of him, attracting others who wanted to befriend him.
• He Song grew wary that his rising reputation could draw scrutiny and eventually reveal his identity as an Immortal.
• After confirming that people’s praise was the cause of the attention, He Song announced that he was entering seclusion.
• While He Song remained in seclusion, interested cultivators and some of his acquaintances left Luofeng Prefecture amid personnel shifts, and they gradually forgot about seeking his friendship.

After twenty years of seclusion in Luofeng Prefecture, He Song had strengthened his Golden Core cultivation, refined his skills, and developed new insights into body control and body-refining techniques. He remained in seclusion, continuing to cultivate and studying his arts while making pills and talismans to earn Spirit Stones.

• He Song spent twenty years cultivating in seclusion, advancing halfway from the middle stage of Golden Core toward the late stage.
• He Song strengthened the two Low-grade Spiritual Artifacts he nurtured and improved his physical control through the Mysterious God Body Refining Technique.
• He Song concluded that complete control of the body could greatly improve combat ability and decided to seek a Golden Core body-refining technique.
• He Song's understanding of array formations grew substantially after studying the Yin-Yang Life-Generating Array and combining insights from demonic-path and righteous-path arrays.
• He Song made limited progress in the Way of Pills and Talisman Dao because he spent much of his time refining Golden Core spiritual pills and drawing Golden Core spiritual talismans to exchange for Spirit Stones.

After twenty years in seclusion, He Song had rebuilt his Spirit Stone reserves, refined his mana, and improved his artifact skills. He emerged after hearing that Yan Yun Prefecture’s upcoming auction would offer a half-finished Golden Core puppet, and confirmed the news before planning to attend.

• Over twenty years, He Song sold Golden Core pills and talismans until his reserves grew to nearly three hundred thousand mid-grade Spirit Stones, while he became adept at refining Low-grade Spiritual Artifacts.
• The Origin-Gathering Array purified He Song’s mana, and the Purple Mansion Strengthening Yuan Technique gradually enlarged his dantian.
• He Song heard from a Foundation Establishment Real Person that the next Yan Yun Prefecture auction would feature a half-finished Golden Core puppet, so he emerged from seclusion.
• He Song hoped to buy the puppet and complete its refinement in the Yin-Yang Life-Generating Array, since the puppet he had been refining for twenty years was not yet ready to use.
• He Song disguised himself and visited the Treasure Gathering Pavilion in Luofeng Prefecture, where he confirmed that the auction news was true.

After emerging from seclusion, He Song confirmed that a semi-finished Golden Core puppet would be auctioned in Yan Yun Prefecture and reflected on the friends he had avoided contacting during his twenty years of seclusion. He learned that the Ancestor of Snow Wind had used her Nascent Soul Convention to secure alliances for Snow Wind Palace, while He Song continued preparing for the auction.

• He Song confirmed that the Treasure Gathering Pavilion in Yan Yun Prefecture would auction a semi-finished Golden Core puppet in half a month.
• He Song recalled that he had used twenty years of seclusion to keep a low profile and had not contacted Green Edge True Person or other friends in Luofeng Prefecture.
• He Song remembered declining invitations from Meng Guan, Wei Fan, An Ning, Luo Jing, and Yun Jing to attend the Nascent Soul Convention because he claimed his seclusion had reached a critical juncture.
• He Song learned from his friends that the Ancestor of Snow Wind had invited many Nascent Soul Ancestors and Golden Core True Lords to the convention in Cloudridge Prefecture.
• He Song learned that the Ancestor of Snow Wind had persuaded surrounding righteous-path sects to ally with Snow Wind Palace against the Devil Dao sects, and he approved of her efforts to secure the palace's foothold.

He Song learned that Snow Wind Palace had become a Nascent Soul sect and considered how it might expand, but he avoided the convention for fear the Ancestor of Snow Wind had discovered his past actions. After the convention’s news faded, reports reached him of a destructive battle between four Golden Core cultivators in the Myriad Monster Realm.

• He Song concluded that the Ancestor of Snow Wind would likely expand Snow Wind Palace once the sect and its disciples had grown stronger.
• An Ning, Meng Guan, Luo Jing, and others sent He Song accounts of the Nascent Soul Convention, including its gatherings, exchanges, lectures, and rewards.
• He Song admired An Ning’s progress to the Foundation Establishment Late Stage and reasoned that Snow Wind Palace’s new status and resources had helped her advance.
• He Song decided not to attend the convention because he feared the Ancestor of Snow Wind might recognize him and punish him for excavating a former sect master’s cave abode.
• After the convention ended, He Song heard reports that four Golden Core True Lords had fought in the Myriad Monster Realm, devastating the area and killing many cultivators and demonic beasts.

After twenty years in seclusion, He Song learned of deadly battles and newly emerged cave dwellings that had reshaped the cultivation world while he stayed safely away. As he adjusted to the changes, he reflected on why long-lived cultivators grew detached from a world that transformed during each seclusion, and considered how much more pronounced this would be for Nascent Soul Ancestors.

• He Song learned that four Golden Core True Lords had fought in the Myriad Monster Realm, then withdrawn without revealing their identities or the reason for their battle.
• He Song heard that cave dwellings had appeared across Luofeng Prefecture and nearby Immortal Provinces, bringing cultivators opportunities as well as deadly competition.
• He Song learned that a Golden Core True Lord had been surrounded and killed inside a newly emerged Golden Core cave dwelling, and resolved to flee quickly if he faced a similar situation.
• After ending his twenty-year seclusion, He Song reviewed the outside world's changes and reflected on how prolonged cultivation made cultivators feel distant from those changes.
• He Song considered that Nascent Soul Ancestors, with far longer lifespans and seclusions, would experience this detachment even more strongly.

After emerging from twenty years of seclusion, He Song reflected on how immortality could erode his emotions and resolved to guard his state of mind. He traveled to Yan Yun Prefecture under the identity of Mysterious Turtle True Lord to attend the Treasure Gathering Pavilion auction, where he recognized the maid Xiao Qing as someone who had hosted an auction twenty years earlier.

• He Song considered how endless life and prolonged seclusion might change his temperament, and resolved to remain cautious and protect his state of mind.
• He Song left Luofeng Prefecture while a golden-armored guard maintained the illusion that he was still in seclusion.
• He Song traveled to Yan Yun Prefecture disguised as Mysterious Turtle True Lord, displaying early Golden Core cultivation and preparing a Heavenly Dipper Divine Thunder Array as a retreat route.
• He Song checked into an inn near the Treasure Gathering Pavilion and waited for its once-in-ten-years auction to begin.
• The Treasure Gathering Pavilion escorted He Song to a private room for Golden Core True Lords, where maidservant Xiao Qing offered to assist him.
• He Song recognized Xiao Qing as likely the Foundation Establishment cultivator who had hosted the auction twenty years earlier and asked her to raise her head.

He Song attended the Treasure Gathering Pavilion’s grand auction and learned that Xiao Qing, who had hosted an auction twenty years earlier, now served as a maid. After hearing the auction’s offerings, He Song’s interest shifted from a half-finished Golden Core puppet to a cultivator’s Golden Core, alongside several other treasures.

• He Song recognized Xiao Qing as the woman who had hosted an auction twenty years earlier and asked why she had come to serve him.
• Xiao Qing claimed that hosting duties rotated among disciples, and He Song suspected she was lying because he knew the Pavilion’s auction practices.
• He Song asked Xiao Qing to describe the auction’s rare items, and she introduced treasures for cultivators at several stages.
• He Song considered whether his two to three hundred thousand mid-grade Spirit Stones would be enough to win the half-finished Golden Core puppet.
• He Song heard that the auction also offered a Golden Core body-tempering technique, a cultivator’s Golden Core, and a Water Spiritual Essence.
• The cultivator’s Golden Core drew He Song’s interest so strongly that he abandoned his original plan to bid for the half-finished puppet.

He Song abandoned his plan to bid on the half-finished Golden Core puppet, choosing instead to pursue a cultivator’s Golden Core and other auction items with his limited Spirit Stones. Before the auction began, he confronted Xiao Qing about her false explanation for her changed role, and she offered to reveal the Treasure Gathering Pavilion’s internal circumstances.

• He Song judged that the half-finished Golden Core puppet would attract competing Golden Core Forces and cost too much, so he shifted his attention to a cultivator’s Golden Core.
• He Song decided to reserve his Spirit Stones for the cultivator’s Golden Core, a Golden Core body-tempering cultivation method, and Water Spiritual Essence.
• He Song asked Xiao Qing why she had claimed that the auction host changed every time, despite his experience that hosts remained the same.
• Xiao Qing admitted that hidden internal affairs of the Treasure Gathering Pavilion explained her changed position and offered to tell He Song more if he wished.

He Song listened as Xiao Qing explained how she lost her auction-host position after avenging her master by killing her enemy and wiping out his clan. He approved of her decisive retaliation but suggested she could have gone further to prevent future revenge, leaving their conversation continuing before the auction began.

• He Song told Xiao Qing that he was close to two Treasure Gathering Pavilion masters and asked her to explain the matter as an apology for her earlier lies.
• Xiao Qing explained that her Foundation Establishment master had secured her a position as an auction host before dying without reaching the Golden Core realm.
• Years after her master's death, an old enemy of her master provoked Xiao Qing during an auction and threatened to return.
• Xiao Qing recruited several Foundation Establishment Real Persons using her master's connections and treasures, killed the enemy, and exterminated his clan and descendants.
• True Monarch Shadow Fox learned what Xiao Qing had done and moved her from hosting auctions to handling work behind the scenes.
• He Song approved of Xiao Qing's retaliation but suggested killing the enemy's friends as well to prevent future revenge.

He Song advised Xiao Qing on more thorough ways to eliminate the remnants and allies of enemies, and Xiao Qing gratefully accepted his guidance. He gave her his Dharma name, Black Tortoise, and asked her to send him news about nearby Golden Core figures and demonic beasts.

• He Song considered Xiao Qing's methods for killing her enemy and eradicating his family, then suggested ways to account for the enemy's close friends and hidden survivors.
• Xiao Qing realized how she could make future vendettas more thorough and thanked He Song for his guidance.
• Xiao Qing asked He Song for his name and said she hoped to repay him if she reached the Golden Core realm.
• He Song identified himself as Black Tortoise and asked Xiao Qing to relay news about nearby Golden Core True Lords, Golden Core demonic beasts, and other local developments.
• He Song assured Xiao Qing that he would not trouble her over the Treasure Gathering Pavilion's internal affairs.

He Song persuaded Xiao Qing to relay news from Yan Yun Prefecture, but she accepted only as repayment for his earlier kindness and refused compensation. To secure an enduring connection and gain early warnings about danger from the Myriad Monster Realm, He Song summoned a golden-armored guard to offer her.

• He Song proposed that Xiao Qing pass along information about developments around Yan Yun Prefecture and promised not to treat her poorly.
• Xiao Qing agreed, while reserving the right to withhold confidential Treasure Gathering Pavilion matters and declining compensation.
• He Song realized Xiao Qing might stop relaying information once she considered her debt repaid, threatening his plan to keep informed about the region and the Myriad Monster Realm.
• He Song summoned a golden-armored guard, hoping its value to Xiao Qing would persuade her to accept a lasting favor from him.

He Song offered Xiao Qing a Golden-Armored Guard, a puppet with strength comparable to a Perfect Foundation Establishment cultivator, hoping she would accept it and become his source of information from Yan Yun Prefecture. Xiao Qing was stunned by the gift and began to consider agreeing, while developing a favorable impression of He Song.

• He Song reasoned that a powerful puppet would protect Xiao Qing and persuade her to relay information to him.
• He Song presented the Golden-Armored Guard as a gift, saying it would help her stay safe and keep in contact with him.
• Xiao Qing saw the puppet’s strength and recognized the vast disparity between her power and He Song’s.
• Xiao Qing was caught off guard by He Song’s offer and began persuading herself that accepting the puppet and sharing news was reasonable.
• Xiao Qing’s favorable impression of He Song grew as the idea of accepting the Golden-Armored Guard took root.

Xiao Qing accepted He Song’s request to report important information and received his Golden-Armored Guard, then assisted him at the Yan Yun Prefecture auction. He Song bought several items before a Water Spiritual Essence like one he had found in the Canglan Secret Realm appeared for bidding.

• Xiao Qing agreed to share information with He Song and promised to warn him of threats in Yan Yun Prefecture.
• He Song gave Xiao Qing the Golden-Armored Guard, which she stored away rather than refining while on duty.
• He Song bid on several auction items, spending 170,000 mid-grade Spirit Stones on a cultivator’s Golden Core and tens of thousands more on a Golden Core body-refinement method.
• He Song reflected that openly displaying Golden Core cultivation attracted less attention than bidding on Golden Core treasures while disguised as a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
• A Water Spiritual Essence appeared at auction, reminding He Song of the item he had obtained in Lord of Falling Snow’s cave abode in the Canglan Secret Realm.

At an auction, He Song learned that Water Spiritual Essence had different grades and that the piece he possessed was only medium-grade, contradicting Lord of Falling Snow's account. As He Song weighed bidding on another piece to obtain its refinement method, Xiao Qing offered to retrieve the method from Treasure Gathering Pavilion instead.

• The auctioneer introduced a medium-grade Water Spiritual Essence, explaining its effects, grades, and the refinement method included with its purchase.
• He Song compared the auctioned treasure with his own and concluded that his piece was also medium-grade, while Lord of Falling Snow's account of its effects had been misleading.
• He Song considered bidding so he could obtain a reliable refinement method, though the medium-grade treasure offered little benefit to him.
• Xiao Qing noticed He Song's hesitation and offered to retrieve the refinement method from Treasure Gathering Pavilion without requiring him to buy the item.
• He Song understood Xiao Qing's offer and began forming an idea.

He Song obtained the secret art for refining Water Spiritual Essence from Xiao Qing and learned that the essence he already possessed was only medium-grade. After watching an unknown Golden Core True Lord buy the semi-finished Golden Core puppet, He Song left the auction and disguised himself as a Perfect Foundation Establishment itinerant cultivator.

• He Song accepted Xiao Qing's offer to retrieve the Water Spiritual Essence refining secret art and praised her for the solution.
• Xiao Qing brought He Song the Jade Slip, and He Song paid her one thousand mid-grade Spirit Stones for it and her future information services.
• He Song learned how to refine Water Spiritual Essence and judge its quality, discovering that the essence from Lord of Falling Snow's cave abode was medium-grade and of little use to him.
• He Song watched Golden Core True Lords bid the semi-finished Golden Core puppet up to nearly five hundred thousand mid-grade Spirit Stones, whereupon an unknown bidder won it and the auction ended.
• He Song said farewell to Xiao Qing, changed his appearance and displayed cultivation, and left in disguise as a Perfect Foundation Establishment itinerant cultivator.