Chapter Summaries

As the factions gathered around Withered Bone Ridge, Li Yuan secluded himself and broke through to the Mid Golden Core Stage. He then used Realm-Breaking Tempering to reach the Late Golden Core Stage, leaving his Golden Core low-grade and gaining a permanent increase to his essence, qi, and spirit limits.

• Li Yuan sensed Golden Core forces from the Tianyue Sect, Yuan Sect, Fiend Demon Sect, Yuanyang Sect, and Bitan Sect gathering around Withered Bone Ridge, then chose to focus on cultivation.
• Li Yuan broke through to the Mid Golden Core Stage, gained two additional Divine Sense Threads, and made Adversity Reshaping a Permanent Affix.
• After stabilizing his realm, Li Yuan equipped the Mysterious Nether Jade Bead and activated Realm-Breaking Tempering.
• Realm-Breaking Tempering reduced Li Yuan's Golden Core from mid-grade to low-grade as it raised him to the Late Golden Core Stage and permanently increased his essence, qi, and spirit limits by ten percent.
• Li Yuan gained two more Divine Sense Threads, then stepped outside as Golden Core auras continued confronting one another near Withered Bone Ridge.

After reaching the Late Golden Core Stage, Li Yuan permanently converted several equipment affixes and strengthened his cultivation, perception, and demonic-qi detection. He reviewed the market’s progress and ordered increased patrols after reports of unusual activity near Ghost Mist Forest.

• Li Yuan permanently converted the Demon-Spirit Fusion Technique, Danyuan Jade Tablet, and Tianyuan Pill into affixes that improved energy conversion, cultivation speed, and Golden Core solidity.
• He inventoried the three storage pouches taken from Yuan Sect cultivators and permanently converted the Demon-Pattern Jade Tablet into an affix that sharpened his demonic-qi detection.
• Using the Mysterious Nether Pearl, Li Yuan experienced a Nascent Soul perspective and gained a clearer perception of spatial structures.
• Li Yuan trained his body-refining techniques, improving the Mystic Iron Bone-Forging Technique to Mastery and the Golden Body Technique to Minor Accomplishment.
• Ji Wenchuan reported that the Tianyue Sect members had taken their posts and that Yueqi Pavilion’s expanded purchases and auctions were underway; Li Yuan ordered regular auctions and new herbs planted in the Spirit Fields.
• After Ji Wenchuan reported growing disturbances near Withered Bone Ridge and Ghost Mist Forest, Li Yuan ordered more frequent patrols and an inspection of the outer Spirit Detection Talisman network.

Li Yuan secretly investigated the restriction at Withered Bone Ridge and learned that the rival factions suspected it sealed an Earth Origin Spirit Fetus, though none had proof. He postponed shattering his core, focused on perfecting his spatial techniques, and obtained a divination manual whose Affix could help him meet the Longevity Jade Pendant’s solidification condition.

• Li Yuan used Ghostly Concealment and the Earth Escape Technique to inspect Withered Bone Ridge’s restriction, recording four attack points and evidence that a failed attempt had triggered its backlash.
• Li Yuan overheard the Golden Core cultivators debate what the restriction contained, but every faction admitted they lacked confirmation.
• Li Yuan decided to delay shattering his core until he had perfected his spatial techniques and explored the stone chamber beyond the Spatial Rift.
• Li Yuan advanced the Shift Technique from Mastery to Minor Accomplishment after a week of cultivation.
• Xu Zhang brought Li Yuan two lifespan-consuming manuals, and Li Yuan chose the Heavenly Derivation Divination Technique after its Green Affix appeared to offset some lifespan costs.

Li Yuan tested the Divination Technique, then investigated the standoff at Withered Bone Ridge and reported its latest negotiations to Wulin Marketplace. He returned to cultivation and artifact refining, perfected his Second-Order Artifact Refining Technique, and observed his Golden Core slowly recovering toward mid-grade.

• Li Yuan used the Divination Technique without losing lifespan, but its ominous northwest signal merely pointed toward the already-known crisis at Withered Bone Ridge.
• Li Yuan agreed to Chen Yi’s request that Wulin Marketplace share intelligence about the gathering forces and activity near Withered Bone Ridge.
• Li Yuan secretly surveyed the ridge and learned that Foundation Establishment cultivators were guarding the perimeter while the Golden Core factions deadlocked over how to divide the possible Earth Origin Spirit Fetus.
• Li Yuan returned to his stone house and refined Dharma Artifacts until his Second-Order Artifact Refining Technique reached Perfection, activating an additional thirty-percent success-rate bonus.
• Li Yuan observed his low-grade Golden Core slowly compacting toward mid-grade and continued cultivating with the Mysterious Nether Fiend Technique.

Yuanyang Sect Master Zhou Mingyuan offered Li Yuan Golden Core materials, a formation chamber, and guidance in exchange for joining the sect and taking part in the Withered Bone Ridge standoff. Li Yuan remained suspicious of the offer, then agreed to a supply arrangement with the Bitan Sect and rapidly advanced his new water-element cultivation art.

• Zhou Mingyuan visited Li Yuan and offered him Golden Core resources and guidance in exchange for a ten-year sect Spirit Contract and service at Withered Bone Ridge.
• Li Yuan questioned Zhou Mingyuan’s need to recruit an outsider, heard about three Yuanyang Sect candidates with Golden Core Formation setbacks, and took the Spirit Contract to consider.
• Fang Qi negotiated a monthly procurement arrangement between the Bitan Sect and Yuanming Studio, and Li Yuan recorded the sect’s stockpiling activity.
• Li Yuan bought the Cold Creek Spirit Fusion Art and used his cultivation advantages to raise it from Entry Level to Mastery in eight days.

Li Yuan perfected the Void-Splitting Slash and used its precision to complete two Dharma Artifacts from the Mysterious Nether Sect. After handling trade across several provinces, he learned of an upcoming Inner Sea Trade Conference and arranged to travel there with Zhou He’s merchant ship.

• Li Yuan advanced the Demonic Shadow Step to Minor Accomplishment, then perfected the Void-Splitting Slash and demonstrated its precision on a stone table and Third-Order spirit material.
• Li Yuan completed trade in Yunyang and Baijing Marketplaces, returned to Mo Province, and took two unfinished Dharma Artifacts and artifact-refining records from Elder Shen.
• Li Yuan reached Nanyuan Marketplace, saw the notice for the Inner Sea Trade Conference, and agreed to travel with Zhou He’s merchant ship for safety.
• Li Yuan used the perfected Void-Splitting Slash to finish refining the Ghost-Erosion Dagger, which had the Green Bone-Eroding Cold Edge trait.
• Li Yuan completed the Profound Nether Spirit Disk, which had the White Spirit Vein Sense trait, and left the workshop as preparations for the voyage continued.

Li Yuan searched the Outer Sea for spirit veins, improving his Shift Technique to Major Accomplishment along the way. He bought three small spirit veins from a rogue cultivator, discovered the man had secretly marked him, and chose to use the mark as bait.

• Li Yuan entered the sea to search for miniature spirit veins and practiced his Shift Technique underwater until it reached Major Accomplishment.
• Li Yuan traveled into the volcanic seabed near the island factions and spotted a concealed array where a Foundation Establishment cultivator was extracting a small spirit vein.
• Li Yuan approached the cultivator and bought three small spirit veins for six hundred Mid-Grade Spirit Stones.
• Li Yuan detected a tracking mark the cultivator had planted during their exchange and decided not to remove it, considering how to use it for fishing.

After absorbing three spirit veins, Li Yuan secluded himself in Nanyuan Marketplace and advanced his demonic and water-attributed cultivation. He left for the docks after perfecting the Mysterious Nether Fiend Technique, strengthening the Cold Creek Spirit Fusion Art, and gaining the fused Tidal Surge Origin Return affix.

• Li Yuan absorbed three newly purchased spirit veins, bringing his total to six and increasing his spiritual energy supply.
• Li Yuan cultivated in seclusion, and the Mysterious Nether Fiend Technique reached Perfection as his Demonic Qi Golden Core’s quality approached the Mid-Grade threshold.
• Li Yuan advanced the Cold Creek Spirit Fusion Art to Minor Accomplishment on the eleventh day and Major Accomplishment on the twentieth day.
• Tidal Forging Texture became a Permanent Affix, and Water Spirit Essence, Tidal Pressure Gathering, Tidal Forging Texture, and Water Vein Overview fused into the Blue affix Tidal Surge Origin Return.
• Li Yuan ended his seclusion and walked toward the docks to return.

As conflict erupted around Withered Bone Ridge, Li Yuan perfected his Shift Technique and made the Teleportation Stone permanent, greatly enhancing his spatial abilities. He used them to enter a hidden Mysterious Nether Sect ruin, where he discovered sealed chambers saturated with spatial power.

• Li Yuan sensed the Earth Vein trembling and learned from Ji Wenchuan that Withered Bone Ridge had suffered a major earthquake and growing miasma.
• Li Yuan observed Late Golden Core Stage cultivators from Yuan Sect and Tianyue Sect clashing, while Bitan Sect supported Tianyue Sect and Yuanyang Sect intercepted two Fiend Demon Sect probes.
• Li Yuan spent twelve days in seclusion and perfected his Shift Technique, then made the Teleportation Stone permanent and gained stronger spatial perception and spells.
• Li Yuan traveled to the valley Sun Shiyi had described, carefully widened a Spatial Rift, and teleported into a hidden stone chamber.
• Li Yuan identified the chamber as part of the Mysterious Nether Sect Ruins and found a passage leading to more chambers with Second-Order Restrictions and unusually dense spatial power.

Li Yuan explored three chambers in the Ruins, uncovering the Mysterious Nether Sect's research into fusing spiritual power and demonic qi with spatial power. He removed the Spirit-Demon Source Stone, triggering a spatial fluctuation, then escaped through the shrinking Spatial Rift as several distant auras approached.

• Li Yuan opened the first chamber's Second-Order Restriction and found a study containing a Third-Order array design and research notes on Spirit-Demon Fusion experiments.
• Li Yuan explored the second chamber, permanently gaining the Spirit-Demon Affinity and Spatial Micro-Perception Affixes from two items.
• Li Yuan entered the third chamber and discovered that the Spirit-Demon Source Stone maintained spatial stability throughout the chamber and the Ruins.
• Li Yuan removed the Source Stone, breaking its Anchor Points and releasing a powerful spatial fluctuation that shook the chamber.
• Li Yuan collected the remaining research materials, crossed the Spatial Rift with Shift Technique, and sensed several auras moving toward him as the rift contracted.

Li Yuan used his disguise and spatial techniques to withstand attacks from True Person Xuanpu and Zhou Mingyuan after the Spatial Rift closed. The Golden Core Cultivators mistook him for a powerful Demonic Cultivator tied to the White Underworld Sect, offered him a place in the Yuan Sect, and let him leave with an Abyssal Demon Ring.

• Li Yuan disguised himself as a Late Golden Core Stage Demonic Cultivator and tried to preserve the closing Spatial Rift, but recalled that it would reopen in two months.
• True Person Xuanpu attacked Li Yuan, whose Void-Splitting Slash swallowed the sword beam as Zhou Mingyuan and a Yuan Sect cultivator arrived.
• Zhou Mingyuan and True Person Xuanpu attacked together, but Li Yuan dodged their strikes and destroyed the Fire Python with his spells.
• Zhou Mingyuan concluded that the closed Mysterious Nether Sect Ruins held no Earth Origin Spirit Fetus, and the cultivators ended their confrontation.
• The gathered Golden Core Cultivators speculated that Li Yuan had obtained the White Underworld Sect's inheritance, while a Yuan Sect cultivator offered him an Elder's seat and gave him an Abyssal Demon Ring.
• Li Yuan accepted the ring and departed into the night.

Li Yuan exchanged for the Demon Blood Substitute Technique and studied the Mysterious Nether Sect’s failed Spirit-Demon fusion research. Back in Wulin Marketplace, he permanently activated numerous White Affixes, strengthening his body and senses before beginning to practice the new demonic spell.

• Li Yuan met a gray-robed Fiend Demon Sect cultivator, learned that Tianyue Sect’s Nascent Soul patriarch planned to break through to Spirit Transformation, and received the Demon Blood Substitute Technique in exchange for keeping in contact.
• Li Yuan returned to Wulin Marketplace and reviewed the Mysterious Nether Sect’s records, concluding that its attempt to fuse spirit power and demonic qi through spatial compression had caused an Anchor Point to collapse.
• Li Yuan equipped the Ancient Array Pulse Pattern Interpretation and permanently activated Pulse Pattern Intuition, clarifying the array structures he had seen in the ruins.
• Li Yuan permanently activated several more White Affixes, improving his divination, healing, spiritual energy absorption, attribute conversion, meridian toughness, and passive array sensing.
• Li Yuan sensed the accumulated improvements to his body and began circulating the Demon Blood Substitute Technique.

Li Yuan strengthened Wulin Marketplace’s defenses, used divination to assess nearby dangers, and accepted a nominal Yuanyang Sect Guest Elder Dharma Protector role instead of signing a Spirit Contract. After gaining the Canming Demon-Seeking affix, he trained several techniques while preparing for an auction and a trip to Water Province.

• Li Yuan refined an array node and used low-cost divinations to find a dormant threat at an internal traitor’s shop and an inconclusive result about the Yuanyang Sect Spirit Contract.
• As tensions around Withered Bone Ridge shifted to clashes between Foundation Establishment cultivators, Zhou Mingyuan offered Li Yuan a nominal Dharma Protector title and asked him to investigate White Underworld Sect remnants and demonic aura array nodes.
• Li Yuan accepted Zhou Mingyuan’s terms and found the Canming Demon-Seeking affix on a damaged Token, permanently converting it to expand his demonic aura perception and mark hidden nodes in demonic aura arrays.
• Li Yuan began practicing the Demon Blood Substitute Technique and advanced Demonic Shadow Step, Mystic Iron Bone-Forging Technique, and Golden Body Technique while preparing for his next auction and a journey to Water Province.

Li Yuan collected three Affixes at the auction, received a Yuanyang Sect mission to investigate the White Underworld Sect in Jing Province, and traveled south to Water Province for a Trading Fair. While waiting for the fleet to depart, he restored his Lower-grade Demon Core to Mid-grade.

• Li Yuan made the Dust-Cleansing Talisman Brush and Spirit-Solidifying Ink Ingot Affixes permanent, then inspected the Double-Pupil Ancient Mirror's Green Affix.
• Li Yuan learned the Golden Core ancestors were nearing an agreement over the Withered Bone Ridge Ruins and received a Yuanyang Sect mission to investigate White Underworld Sect remnants in Jing Province.
• Li Yuan showed Xu Zhang the Yuanyang Sect's intelligence efforts, handed marketplace duties to Ji Wenchuan, and began a trade route through three provinces toward Water Province.
• Li Yuan reached Nanyuan Marketplace and learned from Zhou He that the merchant fleet would depart in two days, while early arrivals held a small Trading Fair aboard a linked ship island.
• Li Yuan cultivated in a concealed room and restored his Lower-grade Demon Core to Mid-grade.

Li Yuan killed the injured Golden Core cultivator and his Rogue Cultivator accomplice after they confronted him at sea, then discovered a Vein-Stripping Spirit Shuttle that could extract and nourish Spirit Veins. He headed toward the United Ship Island to continue his search for Spirit Veins of different attributes.

• Li Yuan sensed the aura mark placed on him transmitting a signal and waited on a reef for the Rogue Cultivator and an injured Early Golden Core cultivator to arrive.
• The Golden Core cultivator confronted Li Yuan and admitted he wanted Spirit Stones to buy pills for his recovery.
• Li Yuan revealed his Late Golden Core Stage strength, killed the Golden Core cultivator with Void-Splitting Slash, and killed the fleeing Rogue Cultivator with demonic qi.
• Li Yuan collected and searched their storage bags, finding a Vein-Stripping Spirit Shuttle with the Blue Vein-Extraction Spirit Transformation affix.
• Li Yuan cleaned the reef, disguised his appearance and aura, and traveled toward the United Ship Island.

Li Yuan traveled from United Ship Island toward the Inner Sea aboard a merchant ship, acquiring new techniques and refining Tide-Condensing Powder. When Sawtooth Sharks attacked the ship, he helped defeat them and discovered a new Green Trait.

• Li Yuan bought a detailed Inner Sea chart, then purchased the Tide-Breathing Technique and Fisherman Stance Technique, making both Gray Traits permanent affixes.
• Li Yuan boarded the Tianyue Sect escort fleet’s merchant ship, where Zhou He arranged a high-grade alchemy room for him.
• Li Yuan exchanged recipes with an alchemist and learned Tide-Condensing Powder, then refined it until he discovered a Green Trait that could improve water-attribute pill production.
• On the tenth day at sea, Green-Scaled Sawtooth Sharks attacked the merchant ship, and Li Yuan joined the Foundation Establishment cultivators fighting them.
• Li Yuan killed three Sawtooth Sharks and discovered the Green Trait Bone-Blood Sha Induction in one of their Inner Cores.

Li Yuan arrived at a Kunpeng Alliance island for a major Trading Fair, where he gained several new Affixes and learned that the Tianyue Sect was selling Nascent Soul-level resources as its patriarch prepared to pursue Spirit Transformation. After discovering that his inn was part of the special item Lingtai Palace, he spent ten days cultivating and perfected his Golden Body Technique while advancing his Mystic Iron Bone-Forging Technique.

• A Third-Order Sea Monster forced the merchant ship to detour, and Li Yuan perfected his Cold Creek Spirit Fusion Art before reaching the Kunpeng Alliance island.
• Li Yuan obtained permanent Affixes from a Navigation Compass, Moisture-Proof Cloth, and Floating Cloud Stone at the Trading Fair.
• A Nascent Soul aura revealed the island's power, and Li Yuan learned that the Tianyue Sect was supplying Nascent Soul-level resources for the Auction.
• Li Yuan observed righteous and demonic cultivators trading freely, then discovered that his jade inn, Lingtai Palace, was an equipable special item he could not inspect.
• Li Yuan cultivated in the Lingtai Palace room for ten days and advanced the Mystic Iron Bone-Forging Technique to Major Accomplishment and the Golden Body Technique to Perfection.

Li Yuan explored Lingtai Palace and Liupin Market, using his affixes to gain a tea-related Permanent Affix and a new array ability. He learned that the Yuanyang Sect was gathering spatial materials to stabilize the damaged Lingxu Secret Realm, then acquired an ancient Array Disk that broadened his understanding of linked arrays.

• Li Yuan examined Lingtai Palace’s defensive arrays, weakened the sensing array in his room, and obtained the Tea Guide Permanent Affix from a guest tea set.
• Li Yuan practiced Divination Technique to increase his Heavenly Derivation Remnant Count progress, then traveled to Liupin Market.
• Li Yuan noticed faint demonic qi on damaged Dharma Artifacts being sold openly at several stalls.
• Li Yuan learned from a Yuanyang Sect cultivator that the Fiend Demon Sect had attacked the Lingxu Secret Realm, leaving its space unstable and prompting the sect to buy materials for repairs.
• Li Yuan bought an ancient Old-Style Chain Array Disk and activated Residual Pattern Nesting, gaining a broader understanding of how to link residual array patterns.

Li Yuan investigated the Fiend Demon Sect’s hidden footholds on Kunpeng’s peripheral islands, then practiced the Demon Blood Substitute Technique and bought a Water-Avoiding Boat. Its Green Trait offered the Intent of Water Control, which he could acquire permanently by wearing it for sixty days in a deep-sea environment.

• Li Yuan sensed unfamiliar demonic cultivator auras at Liupin Market and identified two Fiend Demon Sect cultivators trading for marked Dharma Artifacts.
• Li Yuan secretly marked one cultivator and traced the Fiend Demon Sect’s movements to an inn, a pawnshop, and Haifeng Shipyard, where he discovered a concealed intelligence-gathering array.
• Li Yuan chose not to expose the sect’s footholds and spent several days cultivating the Demon Blood Substitute Technique, advancing it to Proficiency.
• Li Yuan bought a Blackwood Water-Avoiding Boat at Duobao Pavilion and discovered its Intent of Water Control affix and sixty-day acquisition condition.

Li Yuan descended into the deep sea, perfected his Mystic Iron Bone-Forging Technique, and extracted a miniature spiritual vein. He discovered that a magic-qi-tainted orca was helping Demonic Cultivators search for Earth Veins, and asked it about nearby spiritual veins.

• Li Yuan used the deep-sea pressure to temper his body and advanced the Mystic Iron Bone-Forging Technique from Major Accomplishment to Perfection.
• Li Yuan equipped the Vein-Stripping Spirit Shuttle, found a miniature water-element spiritual vein, and extracted it into his Portable Space.
• Li Yuan sensed a Third-Order Monster Beast with concealed magic qi and approached an intelligent orca beneath an Undersea Cliff.
• The orca asked Li Yuan for a token, and he pressured it until it revealed that Demonic Cultivators had recruited sea demons to locate Earth Veins in exchange for pills and spirit herbs.
• Li Yuan asked whether the orca knew the locations of spiritual veins, and the orca eagerly said that it did.