Chapter Summaries

After Li Yunjing’s victory over Han Yanzhi strengthened his influence, he gathered his core companions at Qiwu Villa and founded the Purple Firmament Party. The chapter left them discussing its rules and membership as Li Yunjing continued developing his cultivation.

• Li Yunjing told Yu Yuanhua he expected to reach the Golden Core Realm and compete for Sect Leader, prompting Yu Yuanhua to leave unconvinced.
• News of Li Yunjing’s victory over Han Yanzhi spread through the Divine Firmament Dao Sect, and the sect approved his arrangements as his faction gained support.
• Li Yunjing cultivated the Divine Spirit-Forging Heavenly Secret Art, formed a Yin-Yang Taiji Bagua Diagram in his sea of consciousness, and demonstrated his earth-type ability by rebuilding a rockery.
• Yu Yunyi, Lu Ruoxi, Fu Chao, and Yang Wenzheng visited Qiwu Villa, where Fu Chao reported that their rivals had lost heavily in the bets on Han Yanzhi.
• At Yang Wenzheng and Fu Chao’s suggestion, Li Yunjing named their organization the Purple Firmament Party, and the five core members began discussing its rules and structure.

After founding the Purple Firmament Party, Li Yunjing left for Yingtian Prefecture and met Lu Ruoxi’s teacher, True Person Jingxuan, who offered him guidance. On the journey, he discovered a town whose residents had been slaughtered and followed a mysterious group’s trail into a hole beneath its ancestral shrine.

• Li Yunjing and the others established the Purple Firmament Party, with Li Yunjing as its leader and Fu Chao and Yang Wenzheng handling its daily affairs while he was away.
• Before leaving for Yingtian Prefecture, Li Yunjing visited True Person Jingxuan with Lu Ruoxi, reassured her of his feelings, and received cultivation advice.
• Li Yunjing departed aboard the Azure Cloud Boat after leaving Lu Ruoxi at Fragrant Pavilion for special instruction from True Person Jingxuan.
• While crossing the Central Plains, Li Yunjing found a town shrouded in death qi and discovered that every resident and animal had been killed.
• A golden light burst from the town’s ancestral shrine, and Li Yunjing entered the shrine after sensing faint auras and found a hole leading underground.

Li Yunjing entered the Underground Palace and encountered Canglan True Person, the Woman in Red, and Lin Kai, the old enemies who had killed people in a nearby town. After a tense clash, they revealed that they were seeking the Dao field of a Half-Step Spirit Transformation expert, and Li Yunjing weighed whether to join their exploration.

• Li Yunjing entered the Underground Palace alone and followed the marks left by the three tomb raiders through its maze.
• Canglan True Person, the Woman in Red, and Lin Kai recognized Li Yunjing, formed the Three Talents Array, and attacked him.
• Li Yunjing used his demonic treasures and the Great Five Elements Divine Thunder Demon-Extinguishing Array to hold the three at bay.
• Lin Kai proposed that they explore together and divide the treasure, while Li Yunjing asked about the vault's origins.
• Canglan True Person revealed that the Underground Palace was the Dao field of a Half-Step Spirit Transformation expert, and Li Yunjing questioned whether the three could explore it.

Li Yunjing refused to enter the Half-Step Spirit Transformation Realm expert’s daoist temple, but he and Canglan True Person’s group were interrupted by disciples of Louguan Dao. After Li Yunjing misled them about the outsiders, a fight broke out, leaving Lin Kai dead and Canglan True Person and the Woman in Red in grave danger.

• Li Yunjing refused to help Canglan True Person, the Woman in Red, and Lin Kai enter the daoist temple, then denied intending to report its location to the Divine Firmament Dao Sect.
• Zhu Danzi and seven or eight Louguan Dao disciples arrived, and Li Yunjing falsely told them that the three outsiders had slaughtered mortals in a nearby town.
• Canglan True Person, the Woman in Red, and Lin Kai attacked Louguan Dao, killing three disciples before Zhu Danzi summoned Yellow Turban Warriors with talismans.
• The Louguan Dao disciples joined their Four Symbols Killing Sword against Lin Kai, while Li Yunjing blocked the Woman in Red and wounded her with his Azure Sea Listening Waves Sword.
• The Four Symbols Killing Sword killed Lin Kai, and the Louguan Dao disciples then attacked the Woman in Red as Canglan True Person remained occupied by a Yellow Turban Warrior.

After escaping the battle in the Underground Palace, Li Yunjing reached a sealed mountain valley and carefully crossed its deadly restrictions. He discovered the Half-Step Spirit Transformation expert’s Daoist grounds and began collecting its rare spirit herbs.

• The Woman in Red killed one Louguan Dao disciple, but centipede poison weakened her before she trapped the three remaining disciples in Red Silk.
• The Yellow Turban Warriors’ talismans expired, allowing Canglan True Person to defeat the warriors and kill the three trapped Louguan Dao disciples; Zhu Danzi and Li Yunjing fled down separate passages.
• Canglan True Person and the Woman in Red pursued Zhu Danzi, while Li Yunjing found an untouched passage and opened a stone door into a vast underground mountain.
• Li Yunjing used Puppet Mechanism Beasts to discover the timing and patterns of the mountain’s lethal restrictions, then crossed the guarded path into a springlike valley.
• Li Yunjing spotted the manor at the valley’s far end but focused on its rare third-tier plants and successfully picked a spirit herb with his Puppet Mechanism Beast.

Li Yunjing harvested rare spirit plants in the maze, broke into Jade Spring Villa, and began searching its halls for treasures. Canglan True Person also emerged from the maze, while Li Yunjing discovered that the villa’s remaining bottles and jars were valuable—though collecting them did not go smoothly.

• Li Yunjing sent hundreds of Puppet Mechanism Beasts to harvest spirit plants and trees, then recalled them after many were lost beyond a three-li area.
• The sect experts entered the maze, lost about a third of their forces to its restrictions, and questioned Zhu Danzi when he reunited with them.
• Li Yunjing entered Jade Spring Villa after its stone lions destroyed his Puppet Mechanism Beasts, then took a huge Shoushan Stone made from High-grade Spirit Stone.
• Canglan True Person emerged from the maze alone and noticed the fragments of Li Yunjing’s Puppet Mechanism Beasts on the path.
• Li Yunjing searched the villa’s side halls, found an empty pill workshop and valuable bottles and jars, and tried to collect them.

Li Yunjing explored Jade Spring Villa, avoided its lethal restrictions, and discovered a Demon King trapped in the Spirit Beast Garden. The Demon King tried to persuade him to unlock its cage, but Li Yunjing became wary and questioned its story.

• Li Yunjing abandoned the medicine cabinet after its restrictions destroyed his Puppet Mechanism Beasts, then hurried toward the main hall when he sensed someone approaching.
• Li Yunjing identified the main hall’s statue as Wenqu Star Lord, paid his respects, and left its offerings untouched before exploring the second courtyard.
• Li Yunjing entered the study and coveted its treasures, then heard a Demon King in the Spirit Beast Garden offer him rewards for helping it escape.
• The Demon King directed Li Yunjing safely to the third courtyard and warned him that eight Golden Core Realm cultivators were approaching behind another group.
• Li Yunjing reached the Demon King’s electrified enclosure, where a Golden Ape told him to open its gate with an incantation.
• Li Yunjing questioned the Golden Ape about the lock and the villa’s master, and the ape realized he was not easy to deceive.

Li Yunjing freed the Armed Ape by securing a Heavenly Dao Oath, then collected treasures and books from Jade Spring Villa as others approached. After the Armed Ape secretly urged Canglan True Person to kill Li Yunjing, the two cultivators clashed.

• The Armed Ape explained that its clan had dwindled to a lone survivor and agreed to swear an oath before Li Yunjing would release it.
• Li Yunjing made the Armed Ape swear to protect him, avoid betraying him, and help him obtain the study’s contents, then opened the cell.
• The Armed Ape broke the study’s restrictions and gave Li Yunjing its four magical treasures and books, while memorizing useful information from the books.
• The Armed Ape took an eagle-shaped Puppet Mechanism Beast and Li Yunjing collected thirty-six other puppets before Canglan True Person arrived.
• The Armed Ape wounded Canglan True Person with a punch, then secretly offered to ally with him if he killed Li Yunjing.
• Canglan True Person attacked Li Yunjing, who met his flying sword with the Azure Sea Listening Waves Sword and retaliated with Fire God Thunder.

Li Yunjing escaped Canglan True Person and warned the Allied Sects Coalition about the dangers in Jade Spring Villa, but the coalition’s greed triggered a deadly garden restriction. As the six surviving Golden Core experts battled the Armed Ape, they trapped it with Demon Suppressing Talismans and struck it with thunder spells, while Canglan True Person pursued Li Yunjing deeper into the villa.

• Li Yunjing fled to the Allied Sects Coalition, warned them that Canglan True Person had allied with the Armed Ape, and described Jade Spring Villa’s dangers and layout.
• The coalition searched the second courtyard and shared its spoils, then entered the garden and triggered a seven-colored barrier that killed many Foundation Establishment cultivators and two Golden Core experts.
• The Armed Ape and Canglan True Person attacked the panicked survivors; Li Yunjing escaped, and the Armed Ape allowed Canglan True Person to pursue him.
• After the barrier vanished, six Golden Core experts surrounded the Armed Ape, which summoned its White Bone Staff and a Third-Order Puppet Mechanism Beast to resist them.
• True Person Cangyue and True Person Cangsong trapped the Armed Ape with Demon Suppressing Talismans, allowing Elder Wang and Elder Zhou to hit it with their strongest thunder spells.

The six Golden Core experts failed to kill the Armed Ape, which escaped as they continued deeper into Jade Spring Villa. Li Yunjing explored the villa’s dark forest, fought its awakened Tree Demons, and agreed to seek the Source of Life with True Person Canglan under a Heavenly Dao Oath.

• The Armed Ape broke through the experts’ attacks and fled Jade Spring Villa, while the six Golden Core experts decided to keep searching for treasures without calling for reinforcements.
• Li Yunjing collected twelve sets of third-order Demon King bones from the spirit-beast enclosures and continued deeper into the villa as its formations destroyed his Puppet Mechanism Beasts.
• In the dark mountain forest, Li Yunjing sensed and fought Tree Demons, using the Nine Yang Fire and his Azure Sea Listening Waves Sword to destroy them.
• True Person Canglan approached Li Yunjing and proposed that they cooperate to find a pool of Source of Life, which he said could increase cultivation and heal injuries.
• Li Yunjing agreed to split the Source of Life and accepted Canglan’s proposed Heavenly Dao Oath, despite realizing Canglan might hunt him after they left the villa.

Li Yunjing and Canglan True Person joined forces to find the Source of Life in the forest and fought their way to a colossal tree demon. They destroyed its cocoon and claimed the Source of Life, while the tree demon’s Primordial Spirit escaped and Canglan True Person began restoring his strength.

• Li Yunjing and Canglan True Person swore a Heavenly Dao Oath to cooperate in finding the Source of Life, then searched the forest for its largest tree spirit.
• The two cut and dug their way through the forest until they reached a giant tree in a valley, where they attacked after suspecting it was close to taking human form.
• Li Yunjing and Canglan True Person wounded the tree and entered its trunk, then descended through its interior to a vast root system and a giant cocoon.
• Li Yunjing destroyed the cocoon with Fire God Thunder, spilling out the Source of Life and the tree demon’s unfinished human body.
• Li Yunjing stored most of the Source of Life in containers while Canglan True Person drank it, and the tree demon’s Primordial Spirit escaped toward the crown.

Li Yunjing used the Source of Life to reach the Fourth Heaven of Foundation Establishment, then discovered a Spirit Vein beneath Jade Spring Villa and informed the Divine Firmament Dao Sect elders. The sect summoned reinforcements to claim the site as Li Yunjing returned from the villa, where six Golden Core experts arrived.

• Li Yunjing and Canglan True Person consumed the Source of Life; Li Yunjing advanced to the Fourth Heaven of Foundation Establishment, while Canglan True Person recovered to the peak of the Second Heaven of Golden Core.
• Li Yunjing found a Spirit Vein beneath the giant tree and reported it to Elder Wang and Elder Zhou, who crushed Elder Wang's Identity Token to summon sect reinforcements.
• Elder Wang and Elder Zhou told the other leaders that the Divine Firmament Dao Sect would take charge of the Spirit Vein and promised compensation for their groups.
• Canglan True Person killed the giant tree's Primordial Spirit and absorbed its life force, while Li Yunjing gathered materials and left for the villa entrance.
• Li Yunjing reunited with Elder Wang and Elder Zhou, and six Golden Core experts from Divine Firmament Hall arrived at the maze.

Li Yunjing helped the Divine Firmament Dao Sect and allied cultivators defeat Canglan True Person and the Armed Ape, then collected treasures from Jade Spring Villa before leaving to take up his post as Imperial Preceptor. The Yellow-Robed Ancestor secretly sent a Lightning Bird to follow him.

• Elder Wang and Elder Zhou revealed that Li Yunjing had discovered a Half-Step Spirit Transformation senior's cave abode, and Li Yunjing explained how he found Jade Spring Villa's treasures.
• Twelve Golden Core Realm experts and other cultivators returned to Jade Spring Villa, fought Canglan True Person and the Armed Ape, and forced both to flee badly wounded.
• The cultivators uncovered a top-grade Spirit Vein, while Li Yunjing gathered ancient flowers and spiritual water containing traces of Source of Life.
• After the elders sealed the ancestral hall, Li Yunjing received one million contribution points and left for Yingtian Prefecture to become Imperial Preceptor.
• The Yellow-Robed Ancestor watched Li Yunjing depart and sent his Lightning Bird to keep track of him.

Li Yunjing returned to Pinggang Town and discovered that Rogue Cultivators were hunting for the fallen Li Family’s inheritance, so he decided to protect them and settle his debt of cause and effect. Four Foundation Establishment cultivators confronted him, and their battle left Li Yunjing fighting defensively as he tried to break through their formation.

• Li Yunjing descended into Pinggang Town, sensed dozens of Qi Refining Realm cultivators, and learned from one man’s memories that they were searching for the Li Family’s ancestral home and inheritance.
• Li Yunjing decided to protect the Li Family, killed the Rogue Cultivator he had interrogated, and silently eliminated other Rogue Cultivators in town.
• A middle-aged Daoist challenged Li Yunjing and led him to a secluded valley, where three more Foundation Establishment cultivators appeared; Li Yunjing recognized the middle-aged scholar as an old acquaintance who believed Li Yunjing had cheated him out of a treasure share.
• The four cultivators surrounded Li Yunjing and attacked together in a formation, forcing him to defend himself with his sword, talismans, armor, and techniques.
• Li Yunjing summoned the Five Elements Divine Thunder, and four bolts of heavenly lightning destroyed the cultivators’ spirit weapons and injured them.
• Li Yunjing charged the Grey-Clad Elder and broke his shield, but a black hat protected the elder from the sword strike, and the other three cultivators rushed to help him.

Li Yunjing defeated two of the four Rogue Cultivators and drove the other two away before returning to Pinggang Town to investigate a faint trace of spiritual energy. He bought a fallen Li Family’s ancestral home and uncovered spiritual energy coming from its blue floor tiles.

• Li Yunjing killed the Grey-Clad Elder with his sword and Palm Lightning, then used the Five Dragon Wheel to refine the middle-aged Daoist to ashes.
• The injured white-robed scholar and the blue-clad woman fled, and Li Yunjing decided not to pursue them.
• Li Yunjing found the impoverished Li Family and offered Li Chuanzong ten gold ingots for their ancestral home.
• Li Chuanzong and his wife accepted the offer and left with their young daughter and the gold.
• Li Yunjing cleaned the house and searched it with Puppet Mechanism Beasts, then found spiritual energy rising from blue floor tiles in one room.

Li Yunjing uncovered the Li Family’s hidden vault, claimed the ancient Yin-Yang Treasure Mirror, and offered Li Chuanzong’s family a chance to restore their cultivation lineage. He then reached Yingtian Prefecture to take up his post as Imperial Preceptor, where the Divine Firmament Temple’s cultivators gathered to welcome him.

• Li Yunjing dug beneath Li Mansion, found the Li Family’s treasure vault, and collected its Spirit Stones, materials, and other valuables.
• Li Yunjing opened a golden box and discovered the Fourth-Tier Yin-Yang Treasure Mirror, which he began refining.
• Li Yunjing visited Li Chuanzong’s family, returned their Qi Refining Manual, and promised that descendants with good spiritual roots could study under him.
• Li Chuanzong accepted Li Yunjing’s promise and resolved to rebuild his family, while Li Yunjing departed toward Yingtian Prefecture.
• Li Yunjing refined the mirror aboard the Azure Cloud Boat as he traveled, then reached Yingtian Prefecture on the third night.
• The Divine Firmament Temple’s cultivators recognized Li Yunjing as the new Imperial Preceptor and assembled to receive him.

Li Yunjing arrived at Divine Firmament Temple as its new master and rejected an elaborate inauguration ceremony, ordering a swift, simple handover. After the Great Ming imperial family learned that a True Disciple had been sent to Yingtian Prefecture, its Foundation Establishment elders met in secret to decide what payment might keep him from interfering with them.

• Li Yunjing arrived at Divine Firmament Temple, displayed his Identity Token, and received bows from Wang Heyun, Li Linzi, Gu Wenzhuo, and the disciples.
• Wang Heyun arranged a luxurious palace for Li Yunjing, who reviewed his possessions and considered the many techniques and skills he still needed to cultivate.
• Wang Heyun proposed a lengthy inauguration, but Li Yunjing ordered the ceremony kept simple and completed within three days.
• Gu Wenzhuo invited the Great Ming imperial family to witness the ceremony, and the family agreed to follow Divine Firmament Temple's arrangements.
• Nine Foundation Establishment members of the Zhu Clan gathered in the palace to discuss Li Yunjing and considered paying him to avoid trouble.
• Zhu Hao proposed offering Li Yunjing thirty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones, prompting an uproar among the assembled imperial family members.

The Great Ming royal family agreed to pay Li Yunjing three thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones annually and ordered Zhu Wanyun to win his favor. Li Yunjing became Great Ming State Preceptor and attended a palace banquet, where Zhu Wanyun escorted him to meet the emperor.

• Zhu Hao persuaded the Zhu Clan elders to approve an annual payment of three thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones and urged Zhu Cunzhen to send Zhu Wanyun to cultivate Li Yunjing's favor.
• Li Yunjing declined visitors before the Divine Firmament Temple's inauguration ceremony, then received its grand seal and magic sword from Wang Heyun.
• Wang Heyun resigned as Great Ming State Preceptor, and Zhu Cunzhen appointed Li Yunjing to the position; Li Yunjing left the temple's daily affairs to Li Linzi and Gu Wenzhuo.
• Zhu Wanyun welcomed Li Yunjing at the imperial palace and rode with him to the banquet, where she spoke of her admiration while Li Yunjing remained wary of the royal family's intentions.
• Zhu Cunzhen greeted Li Yunjing at the banquet hall and invited him inside ahead of the royal family and nobles.

Li Yunjing attended a banquet with the Great Ming Emperor, accepted the royal family's gift, and agreed to leave its affairs alone while he cultivated. After Zhu Wanyun impressed him with her zither performance, he invited her to visit the Divine Firmament Temple, leaving the emperor and court officials hopeful and wary of the influence she might gain.

• The emperor hosted Li Yunjing in the main hall, presented him with thirty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones, and promised yearly gifts in exchange for his noninterference.
• Li Yunjing listened to a palace singer and praised her performance, prompting Princess Wanyun to offer to play the zither.
• The emperor tested whether Li Yunjing would help royal family members enter an immortal sect, but Li Yunjing gave no firm commitment.
• Princess Wanyun played High Mountains and Flowing Water, weaving her cultivation into a performance that captivated Li Yunjing and the assembled court.
• Li Yunjing praised Zhu Wanyun and invited her to visit the Divine Firmament Temple to discuss music, delighting the emperor and unsettling officials who anticipated the royal family's growing influence.

After emerging from seclusion, Li Yunjing learned that thousands of people had died under suspicious circumstances and that demonic cultivators had attacked Divine Firmament Temple disciples. He used the Heavenly Secret Art to locate the killers and led his companions to a courtyard, where the fight was already underway.

• Li Yunjing spent three months cultivating in seclusion and stabilized his Fourth Heaven of Foundation Establishment Realm cultivation.
• Li Linzi and Gu Wenzhuo told Li Yunjing that seven or eight thousand people had died in Yingtian Prefecture, and that five or six Divine Firmament Dao Sect disciples had been killed in an attack.
• Li Yunjing healed two wounded disciples, learned that five demonic cultivators had attacked them, and used the Heavenly Secret Art at the cost of ten years of his lifespan to find the killers.
• Li Yunjing led Li Linzi, Gu Wenzhuo, Zhu Wanyun, and several Attendants to the demonic cultivators' hiding place in a courtyard.
• Li Linzi and Gu Wenzhuo broke into the courtyard and began fighting the five black-clad demonic cultivators as Li Yunjing entered.