Chapter Summaries

Ling Qing planted spirit bamboo around Qingyun Mountain to make the blessed land more secluded, then welcomed Tian Yong, Tian Ying, Zhang Zhe, Zhu Guang, Li Li, and Li Qing. The visitors met Ling Ji and Wenjun and gave them gifts, though Li Li objected when Li Qing offered the children Red Fire Pills.

• Ling Qing planted green and emerald bamboo at the foot of Tai Mountain, then placed yin bamboo and cold bamboo near Clear Water Lake and planted the rest of his spirit plants around the growing blessed land.
• Tian Yong, Tian Ying, Zhang Zhe, and Zhu Guang arrived at Qingyun Mountain, where Ling Qing, Ling Ji, and Wenjun welcomed them and discussed their gains from the Warring States instance.
• Li Li and Li Qing arrived, and the group exchanged greetings while teasing Li Qing about his immaturity and Foundation Establishment cultivation.
• Ling Qing introduced Ling Ji and Wenjun to Li Li and Li Qing as their Martial Uncle and Junior Martial Uncle.
• Li Li gave Ling Ji a Five Mountains Seal and Wenjun a Five Mountains Rosy Cloud Canopy, then Li Qing offered them Red Fire Pills, prompting Li Li to scold him.

Ling Qing hosted Li Li and the others on Qingyun Mountain, where Li Li gave the five peaks mountain roots before the group discussed Mount Lao’s upcoming sect-establishment ceremony. Ling Qing and his companions set out for Mount Lao, arriving by cloud road at the Golden Summit.

• Li Qing gave Ling Ji Scarlet Fire Pellets and small fans, then secretly returned the pellets to him as the group toured Qingyun Mountain.
• Li Li gave Ling Qing five mountain roots, strengthening the five peaks and accelerating the Realm Tree’s growth.
• Daoist Yunsheng and Li Li explained that Mount Lao’s sect would be established on the summer solstice and agreed to visit the headquarters together.
• Ling Qing arranged for his family to oversee Qingyun Mountain, then traveled toward Mount Lao with Daoist Yunsheng, Ling Ji, Wenjun, and the others.
• Tian Ying carried Ling Ji and Wenjun in the Hundred Flowers Agarwood Carriage as the group flew to Mount Lao and reached a cloud road leading to the Golden Summit.

Ling Qing and the others visited the newly transformed Shangqing Palace at Mount Lao, where Daoist Lingguan welcomed them and arranged for Ling Ji and Wei Wenjun to meet his disciples. The adults stayed to discuss the Dao while the children explored Mount Lao together.

• Han Fu and Zhao Zhen welcomed Ling Qing and the others, then showed them Mount Lao’s expanded mountain ranges and new blessed-land scenery.
• Daoist Lingguan received the group at the new Shangqing Palace and discussed their recent cultivation and contributions to the sect.
• Ling Qing introduced Ling Ji and Wei Wenjun, asking to have their names entered into the sect registers.
• Daoist Lingguan introduced his disciples Jiang Chengyan, Cheng Xinya, and Wen Ling, and asked Jiang Chengyan to look after the younger children.
• Wei Wenjun befriended Wen Ling and Cheng Xinya, while Jiang Chengyan led Ling Ji and the others around Mount Lao to see the scenery.

Ling Qing and his fellow disciples gave Daoist Lingguan cultivation methods, resources, pills, and dragon veins to strengthen Mount Lao as he prepared to establish the Mount Lao Sect. With the brothers reunited and the mountain’s foundation improved, Daoist Lingguan asked them to personally deliver invitations to established sects before the founding ceremony.

• Ling Qing presented Daoist Lingguan with cultivation manuals and resources, while Zhu Guang, Li Li, and the others contributed pills and dragon veins.
• Daoist Lingguan announced plans to take the group to the Nine Wards Sea Market after the sect was established.
• Yang Liyi, Bai Zhiyuan, and Sun Yuling arrived, and the disciples reunited to share their experiences and discuss the Dao.
• Ling Qing and the others helped Daoist Lingguan improve Mount Lao, increasing its foundation by thirty percent as preparations for the founding ceremony advanced.
• Daoist Lingguan asked his junior brothers to personally deliver invitations to Quanzhen, Zhengyi, and other fellow cultivators, and they agreed.

Daoist Lingguan assigned members of the Mount Lao Sect to deliver invitations to prominent Daoist lineages and officials before the sect’s founding ceremony. Ling Qing reached the Longhu Mountain Celestial Master Mansion and was sent to meet Zhang Hongdao, accompanied by the Celestial Master’s grandson, Zhang Yuanqing.

• Daoist Lingguan assigned Li Li to Mount Mao, Tian Yong to Mount Gezao, Ling Qing to Mount Longhu, Zhu Guang to White Cloud Temple, Zhang Zhe to Wudang Mountain, Bai Zhiyuan to Mount Qingcheng, and Sun Yuling to invite Wu Tiantong.
• Ling Qing rode Azure Lion to the Celestial Master Mansion’s hidden mountain gate with Ling Ji and Wenjun.
• Ling Qing introduced himself to Zhang Yuanquan and Zhang Yuanhong and presented an invitation for Manifest Dao True Person to attend the Mount Lao Sect’s founding ceremony.
• Zhang Yuanhong returned with Zhang Yuanqing, who was ordered to lead Ling Qing to see the Celestial Master, then casually told him to follow.

Ling Qing entered the Celestial Master Mansion and faced Zhang Yuanqing, who challenged him and attacked. After Ling Ji burned Zhang Yuanqing with a Crimson Fire Pill, Zhang Hongzhi arrived, apologized to Ling Qing, and ordered the others to do the same.

• Ling Qing passed through the hidden mountain gate with Zhang Yuanqing and Ling Ji, then heard Zhang Yuanqing criticize Mount Lao's plans to establish a sect.
• Zhang Yuanqing attacked Ling Qing with lightning, but Ling Ji struck him and revealed that Ling Qing had remained unharmed.
• Zhang Yuanqing summoned a thunderbolt, and Ling Ji used two Crimson Fire Pills to block it and engulf Zhang Yuanqing in thunderfire.
• Ling Qing swept aside the flames, and Zhang Hongzhi arrived, apologized for Zhang Yuanqing, and identified Ling Qing as an honored guest of the Celestial Master.
• Zhang Hongzhi rebuked the whisk-bearing Daoist and ordered Zhang Yuanquan, Zhang Yuanhong, and the Daoist to apologize to Ling Qing.

Ling Qing delivered Mount Lao Sect’s founding-ceremony invitation to Celestial Master Zhang Hongdao and was welcomed at the Celestial Master Mansion. As Zhang Yuanbai showed Ling Ji and Wenjun around Reishi Garden, an unidentified speaker mocked Wenjun’s interest in its rare plants.

• Ling Qing and Zhang Hongzhi exchanged courtesies after Zhang Yuanqing was injured, and Zhang Dansheng took him away for treatment.
• Zhang Hongzhi escorted Ling Qing and his companions to meet Zhang Hongdao at the Celestial Master Mansion.
• Ling Qing presented the invitation to Mount Lao Sect’s founding ceremony, and Zhang Hongdao agreed to attend.
• Ling Qing and Zhang Hongdao spoke at length about Daoism and current events before moving to a pavilion in Reishi Garden.
• At Zhang Hongdao’s request, Zhang Yuanbai led Ling Ji and Wenjun around the garden, where an unidentified voice mocked Wenjun for admiring its precious plants.

Zhang Yuanyi challenged Ling Ji and Wenjun to a spar after Zhang Yuanqing’s earlier defeat, hoping to restore the Celestial Master Mansion’s reputation. Zhang Hongdao accepted the situation and reassured Ling Qing that Mount Lao’s effort to build its name was understandable.

• Zhang Yuanyi rebuked Zhang Yunyao and Zhang Yuanqing, apologized to Ling Ji and Wenjun for their behavior, and proposed a spar to defend the Celestial Master Mansion’s honor.
• Zhang Yuanyi attacked Ling Ji, but Zhang Yuanbai intervened and warned that a fight could cause trouble with Zhang Hongdao and Mount Lao.
• Zhang Yuanyi went to True Martial Pool to ask Zhang Hongdao for permission to spar, despite her aunt and Zhang Danlong trying to stop her.
• Zhang Hongdao allowed Zhang Yuanyi to speak, and Ling Qing explained that Mount Lao needed to establish its reputation ahead of its founding ceremony.
• Zhang Hongdao told Ling Qing that Daoist Lingguan’s plan was the quickest way to build Mount Lao’s standing and urged him not to feel ashamed.

Ling Qing accepted Zhang Hongdao’s offer to support Mount Lao and agreed to let their disciples spar with the Celestial Master Mansion’s. Wenjun battled Zhang Yuanyi, and the fight left Zhang Yuanbai convinced that Zhang Yuanyi was about to lose.

• Zhang Hongdao offered to help Mount Lao establish its reputation, and Ling Qing thanked him.
• Zhang Danlong accepted his father’s decision, and Zhang Yuanyi prepared to spar with the Mount Lao disciples.
• Wenjun stepped forward to face Zhang Yuanyi, then shattered her opening flames with the Azure Dragon Ruyi.
• Zhang Yuanyi unleashed firebirds and nine fire dragons, while Wenjun countered with the Azure Dragon Ruyi and the Divine Light of Wither and Flourish.
• Zhang Yuanbai noticed crimson blossoms spreading across Zhang Yuanyi’s fire dragons and fire cloud, and predicted that she would lose.

Wenjun defeated Zhang Yuanyi with Instant Bloom and restored her mana, while Zhang Yuanqing challenged Ling Ji and was knocked unconscious. The Zhang siblings watched the fight and reflected on Zhang Yuanqing’s stubborn arrogance as he lay buried in the arena.

• Wenjun used Instant Bloom to drain Zhang Yuanyi’s mana, then restored her strength after Zhang Yuanyi conceded.
• Zhang Yuanqing challenged Ling Ji, hoping to avenge his earlier defeat.
• Ling Ji tricked Zhang Yuanqing into dodging an ordinary bitten plum, then struck him from behind.
• Ling Ji used Heavenly Horse Dust-Defying Step to stomp Zhang Yuanqing into a deep pit and knock him unconscious.
• Zhang Yuanyi and Zhang Yuanbai noted that Ling Ji had held back, while Zhang Yuanyao wondered why they treated Zhang Yuanqing’s beatings as normal.

Ling Ji challenged Zhang Yuanhuang and used a School of Names spell to inflame his anger before fighting him with the Windfire Dual-Qi Staff. Zhang Yuanhuang struggled to escape Ling Ji’s relentless attacks as the bout continued.

• After Ling Ji defeated Zhang Yuanqing, Zhang Yuanhuang challenged him, and Ling Ji accepted despite recognizing his stronger cultivation.
• Ling Ji repeatedly provoked Zhang Yuanhuang and cast the Candle of Wrath, making him quicker to anger and less able to think clearly.
• Zhang Yuanhuang invoked the Golden Light Mantra and formed a golden-light ruyi, while Ling Ji summoned the Windfire Dual-Qi Staff.
• Zhang Yuanhuang attacked first, but Ling Ji deflected his strike and countered with a powerful staff blow.
• Ling Ji pressed Zhang Yuanhuang with repeated wind-and-fire attacks, while the Candle of Wrath disrupted his attempts to break free.

Ling Ji defeated Zhang Yuanhuang in the younger generation’s contest, while Zhang Hongzhi then challenged Ling Qing to test their sword arts. The story left the elders preparing to compete.

• Ling Ji used the Candle of Wrath and his Wind-Fire Staff to break Zhang Yuanhuang’s Golden Light protection and defeat him.
• Zhang Yuanhuang accepted his loss and thanked Ling Ji for showing mercy, and Ling Ji returned the salute.
• Zhang Danlong announced Ling Ji’s victory and recognized that few young Celestial Master Mansion disciples could challenge him.
• Zhang Hongzhi invited Ling Qing to offer him instruction, hoping to compare the sword arts of their lineages.

Ling Qing accepted Zhang Danyuan’s challenge and countered his Sun and Moon Star Lords with the ancient gods Xihe and Changxi. The two goddesses overwhelmed Zhang Danyuan’s divine lords, leaving the duel’s outcome poised in Ling Qing’s favor.

• Zhang Danyuan challenged Ling Qing to demonstrate Mount Lao’s arts, and Zhang Hongdao invited Ling Qing to guide the Celestial Master Mansion disciples.
• Zhang Danyuan summoned the Solar Emperor Yuyi and Lunar Sovereign Jielin using the Zhengyi Alliance-Mighty Dao.
• Ling Qing manifested a starry river and summoned Sun Goddess Xihe and Moon Goddess Changxi.
• Xihe and Changxi’s Golden Crows and jade rabbits consumed and captured Zhang Danyuan’s streams of solar and lunar divine light.
• Xihe and Changxi struck with their weapons and cleaved the Solar Emperor Lord and Lunar Sovereign Lord in two.

Ling Qing helped Zhang Danyuan stabilize and strengthen his newly formed sun and moon divine sovereigns after defeating them in their contest. Zhang Yuanbai then challenged Ling Qing and revealed a celestial palace manifestation tied to a Heaven-bestowed scripture, leaving Ling Qing wondering about its origin and risks.

• Changxi and Xihe broke Zhang Danyuan’s divine sovereigns, and Ling Qing used their solar essence and lunar radiance to rebuild and stabilize them.
• Zhang Danyuan thanked Ling Qing, and the Celestial Master Mansion’s elders became more receptive to their guest.
• Ling Qing declined to contest swords with Zhang Hongzhi and proposed hosting a future meeting with his senior brother, Dao Yong.
• Zhang Yuanbai challenged Ling Qing and manifested the thirty-two-layer Taiwei Golden Palace, with a divine figure seated inside.
• Zhang Yuanbai explained that Heaven had bestowed him the Open Heaven, Wield the Talisman, Taiwei Golden Palace Jade Scripture in a secret realm.

Ling Qing and Zhang Yuanbai tested their Dao arts as their manifested realms and divine armies clashed. Zhang Yuanbai’s forces were routed, and he withdrew behind a heavenly river to save his marshals and soldiers.

• Ling Qing summoned the Myriad Phenomena Dharma Realm, led by the Wondrous Dao Sovereign and its three hundred and sixty-five spirit deities, to face Zhang Yuanbai’s Thirty-Two Heavens.
• Zhang Yuanbai opened the Taiwei Golden Gate and sent the four marshals and forty thousand celestial soldiers to battle Ling Qing’s divine lords and Earth Fiend army.
• The four marshals fought the Sun, Moon, Five Elements, and other divine lords while the Earth Fiend army attacked the celestial soldiers.
• Zhang Yuanbai’s forty thousand celestial soldiers were routed, and his four marshals began to lose ground.
• Zhang Yuanbai unfurled the treasured scroll to form a heavenly river, allowing the marshals and their troops to retreat into the Thirty-Two Heavens.

Taiwei Emperor absorbed the spirit gods and defeated Divine Lord of Numinous Illumination, while Zhang Yuanbai became trapped in the emperor's Dao resonance. Wondrous Dao Emperor smashed the emperor apart, leaving Zhang Yuanbai's mind shattered in chaos.

• Taiwei Emperor used his mirror and scroll to absorb spirit gods, then overcame Divine Lord of Numinous Illumination and created the Opening Heaven Divine Talisman.
• Taiwei Emperor took in the imperial bell and Azure Jade Disc, forming the Nine-Dragon Imperial Carriage and thirty-two layers of heavenly radiance.
• Zhang Yuanbai absorbed the spirit gods' Dao truths but became unable to control Taiwei Emperor as his cultivation and mana were drained.
• Wondrous Dao Emperor struck Taiwei Emperor repeatedly with the merit treasure wheel, breaking the heavenly radiance, carriage, and emperor apart.
• Divine Lord of Numinous Illumination reclaimed the Azure Jade Disc, spirit deities, and imperial bell as Zhang Yuanbai's mind plunged into chaos.

Ling Qing and Zhang Hongdao suppressed the strange treasure scroll that had endangered Zhang Yuanbai, while a distant figure tried to reclaim its planted seed. The scroll returned to the Taiwei Emperor, and Ling Qing’s authority and treasure wheel gained new power.

• The nine divine dragons devoured spiritual radiance until Zhang Hongdao and Ling Qing intervened to stop the treasure scroll from returning to Zhang Yuanbai.
• Zhang Hongdao invoked the Three Heavens Orthodox Law, and Ling Qing used the Primordial One Qi Divine Talisman to merge with the Heaven-Opening Divine Talisman and transform the scroll into nine streams of mystic qi.
• A figure in an immense tower gathered the spiritual radiance into a treasure scroll and tried to retrieve its planted seed, but a pair of heavenly eyes exposed it and made it vanish with the tower.
• Zhang Yuanbai regained consciousness, thanked Ling Qing and Zhang Hongdao, and learned they had saved him from the Taiwei Emperor’s influence.
• The treasure scroll returned to the Taiwei Emperor, whose radiance formed a Nine Dragons Imperial Carriage and the framework of thirty-five heavens.
• Ling Qing sensed that his Lord authority had gained power over the myriad heavens and that his Merit Treasure Wheel had advanced into a dharma treasure.

A mysterious golden lotus captured an old monk and drew him onto a Buddhist path, while figures across distant worlds reacted to their connections with a seed. At the Celestial Master Mansion, Ling Qing and Zhang Hongdao exchanged Daoist insights through cloud-light and heavenly flowers, leaving Ling Ji and Wenjun with revelations of their own.

• A golden lotus seized the old monk as he tried to exchange prayer beads, compelled him to recite a Buddhist invocation, and carried him away along a path of light.
• Figures in several distant places reacted to a seed, with some severing their connection, others trying to retrieve it, and some pouring their power into it.
• After the dangerous spell duels unsettled the Celestial Master Mansion, Ling Qing invited Zhang Hongdao to demonstrate their methods through Daoist cloud-light.
• Ling Qing formed the Myriad Phenomena Dharma Realm, and his realm merged with Zhang Hongdao's Three Cloud-Heavens to produce heavenly flowers bearing insights into the Dao.
• Ling Ji received an insight into struggle and slaughter in the wilderness, while Wenjun comprehended the renewal and continuity of life.

Ling Qing, Zhang Hongdao, and Zhang Yuanbai exchanged insights on their cultivation methods, allowing the gathering to deepen everyone’s understanding of the Dao. After three days and nights, the group awakened beneath auspicious clouds and radiant manifestations covering Mount Longhu.

• Wenjun cultivated the vitality of blooming and withering flowers, stirring the Myriad Transformations Spirit Seed that formed her Dao foundation.
• Zhang Yuanbai absorbed insights from Zhang Hongdao and Ling Qing, advancing his understanding of the Heaven-Opening method and manifesting thirty-two paradises behind him.
• Zhang Yuanqing gained the insight that his will should be boundless, though its future consequences remained uncertain.
• Ling Qing combined insights into opening, evolving, and forming the heavens, bringing him closer to transforming his Myriad Phenomena Dharma Realm into a Nine Heavens cosmos.
• Ling Qing, Zhang Hongdao, Zhang Yuanbai, and the others discussed the Dao for three days and nights, each testing and refining their own paths.
• Everyone awakened beneath auspicious clouds and radiant colors as the Great Dao’s mysterious essence manifested across Mount Longhu.

Ling Qing returned to Mount Lao after gaining the Celestial Master Mansion’s respect and helping its disciples benefit from a discussion of the Dao. As Mount Lao prepared for its founding ceremony, news of Ling Qing and the others’ achievements spread, and nearby Daoist lineages began arriving early.

• Zhang Hongdao thanked Ling Qing for helping Zhang Yuanbai and sharing the Dao, then saw Ling Qing, Ling Ji, and Wenjun off from Mount Longhu.
• Ling Qing reflected on the journey’s gains as he traveled back to Mount Lao with Ling Ji and Wenjun.
• At Shangqing Palace, Ling Qing and the others recounted their journeys to Daoist Lingguan, who praised their efforts and reminded them to prioritize cultivation.
• More than ten days passed as the Mount Lao disciples prepared for the founding ceremony and the ritual implements were checked.
• The Celestial Master Mansion and other lineages publicized Ling Qing and the others’ achievements, prompting smaller and nearby Daoist lineages to arrive early.