Chapter Summaries

Yu Ci discovered that the Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror had gained the power to display a vast, living miniature world around him. He tested the phenomenon as he ran through the mountains, then stopped to wonder how the mirror’s new ability had appeared and whether he could control it.

• Yu Ci realized the Five Directions Spirit Communication Talisman was still guiding him, though far beyond its usual range and duration.
• The Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror showed him a goshawk and a fleeing hare, then expanded its view to reveal the surrounding forest and its creatures in vivid detail.
• Yu Ci merged his awareness with the mirror’s view and explored the miniature world, observing life and terrain above and below the ground.
• Yu Ci ran deep into the mountains while the mirror tracked the living world around him, then saw his own figure at the center of its vast display.
• Yu Ci tried to calm himself and questioned whether the mirror’s new ability was inherent, how he had triggered it, and whether he could control it.

Yu Ci discovered that the Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror could reveal a vast area of the surrounding world through an ability he named the Zhaoshen Map. At the edge of the Sky Rifts, the map exposed a seemingly bottomless canyon, leaving Yu Ci wondering whether it reached the netherworld ghost domain.

• Yu Ci sensed the Five Directions Spirit Communication Talisman within the mirror’s cyan light and realized the bronze mirror itself was central to its strange changes.
• Yu Ci named the mirror’s ability to display the surrounding world the Zhaoshen Map and found he could hide the mirror in his sleeve while keeping the map visible.
• Yu Ci saw the map’s view extend beyond the ground near the Sky Rifts and reveal the canyon below.
• Yu Ci saw the Zhaoshen Map display more than fifty miles down without showing a bottom and wondered whether the Sky Rifts led to the netherworld ghost domain.

Yu Ci used the Zhaoshen Map to explore the Sky Rift, discovering its strange beasts and a terrace rich with Shrimp Whisker Grass. As she spent the night there, she found that the Map’s range had shrunk and watched the canyon grow even more active and dangerous after dark.

• Yu Ci surveyed the Sky Rift with the Zhaoshen Map and saw a blood vulture fighting a winged lizard among many other strange creatures.
• Yu Ci descended into the canyon, studied the blood vulture’s habitat, and spotted Shrimp Whisker Grass on a terrace far below.
• Yu Ci spent three hours finding a safe route to the terrace and discovered thousands of Shrimp Whisker Grass plants growing around the remains of a giant tree’s roots.
• Yu Ci decided to gather the herbs the next day and sheltered on the terrace overnight.
• Yu Ci noticed that the Zhaoshen Map’s range had contracted from fifty miles to thirty at night, then observed that the canyon’s beasts were more numerous and fought frequently.

Yu Ci discovered medicinal plants that he believed were Fish Dragon Grass and moved to a secluded gathering site, where the Zhaoshen Map showed the Poisonous Snake Monk battling a young cultivator. After the youth fell unconscious but was saved by his robe, Yu Ci rescued him from the Sky Rift and brought him back to safety.

• Yu Ci watched a wounded winged ape dig up and eat an insect-like medicinal plant, then used the Zhaoshen Map to locate more plants that he suspected were Fish Dragon Grass.
• Yu Ci spent nearly a day and a half excavating eight plants from the hard cliff walls and stored them carefully in Daoist Yan's stone box.
• After beasts noticed his noisy digging, Yu Ci abandoned the remaining Shrimp Whisker Grass and moved to a secluded gathering site four miles away.
• Yu Ci saw the Poisonous Snake Monk defeat a young cultivator on a sheer precipice, take his golden sabre, and leave him falling into the Sky Rift.
• Yu Ci saw the youth's robe slow his fall and, despite the dangers, traveled to rescue him and carried the unconscious boy back to the slope.

Yu Ci and Ye Tu finished gathering herbs while Ye Tu taught Yu Ci about the cultivation realms, then Yu Ci spotted the Poisonous Snake Monk approaching with two powerful companions. Yu Ci warned the shaken Ye Tu and tried to rally him by reminding him how he had beaten the monk before.

• Yu Ci dug out the last suspected Fish Dragon Grass while Ye Tu complained about their work and later explained cultivation realms to him.
• Ye Tu became despondent after realizing he could not clearly explain what Yin Spirits and Yang Gods were, and he sulked for two days.
• Yu Ci finished gathering the herbs and used the Zhaoshen Map to spot the Poisonous Snake Monk descending the cliff with two companions.
• Yu Ci hurried back to warn Ye Tu, who panicked and drew a jade saber when he heard the monk was coming.
• Yu Ci told Ye Tu to stop trembling and reminded him that he had beaten the Poisonous Snake Monk before.

Yu Ci ambushed Poisonous Snake Monk, Lu Quan, and Xu Lao Er in Sky Rift Valley after using the Zhaoshen Map to predict their route. He killed Lu Quan with a Seven Stars talisman and revealed himself to Poisonous Snake Monk, charging into the remaining men with his Nine Yang Talisman Sword.

• Yu Ci hid in a hollow on the cliff and prepared talismans while tracking the three men's approach with the Zhaoshen Map.
• Poisonous Snake Monk, Lu Quan, and Xu Lao Er discussed their search for a ghost beast and a buried treasure as they descended the cliff.
• Yu Ci used a ghost-face monkey to draw Lu Quan's attention, then struck him with a concealed Seven Stars Sword Talisman.
• Lu Quan died after his sword qi tore through his body, and Poisonous Snake Monk realized the attack had been a talisman.
• Yu Ci leaped from the mist with his Nine Yang Talisman Sword, and Poisonous Snake Monk recognized him as the Bai Ri Mansion junior.
• Yu Ci charged down the cliff toward Poisonous Snake Monk and Xu Lao Er through their incoming attacks.

Yu Ci fought Poisonous Snake Monk and Xu Lao Er in the Sky Rift, using talismans to destroy their weapons and gain the advantage. After killing Poisonous Snake Monk, he pursued Xu Lao Er and cut him in half with a sword strike that harmonized his sword, qi, and soul.

• Yu Ci charged Poisonous Snake Monk, knocked aside his golden saber, and drove him down the cliff while Xu Lao Er moved out of their way.
• Xu Lao Er attacked Yu Ci with the Spirit Binding Rope and Corrosive Soul Fire, forcing Yu Ci to leap away from the cliff.
• Yu Ci used a Five Thunder Talisman to destroy the rope and strike Poisonous Snake Monk with lightning.
• Yu Ci used a Divine Movement Talisman to step through the air and kill Poisonous Snake Monk with his sword.
• Xu Lao Er fled, but Yu Ci pursued him and severed him in two with a sword strike.

Yu Ci killed the Poisonous Snake Monk and his allies, then survived a night of chaos as beasts rampaged through the Sky Rift Valley. When the turmoil began to subside, Ye Tu recovered from his absent-minded state and showed Yu Ci a diagram he had drawn as his latest achievement.

• Yu Ci explained to Ye Tu that courage, clear intent, and breaking an enemy's nerve had guided his swordsmanship.
• A deafening roar sent Blood Vultures and other beasts fleeing or fighting wildly through the gorge.
• Yu Ci saw a giant Teng Snake thrashing in the mist, then tried to leave with Ye Tu but retreated when beasts blocked their way.
• Yu Ci and Ye Tu waited through the night as Yu Ci guarded their slope and watched the surrounding chaos with the Zhaoshen Map.
• After gathering more than four thousand stalks of Shrimp Whisker Grass, Yu Ci saw Ye Tu recover and unveil a crude diagram as his latest achievement.

Ye Tu explained his theory of the spirit and soul to Yu Ci, outlining the stages of Spirit Cultivation and the role of the primordial spirit, consciousness, and true spirit. Their discussion turned to primordial spirit sword-riding and Daoist Yan’s powerful strike before a sudden tremor interrupted them.

• Ye Tu used a diagram to explain how the primordial spirit, manifest consciousness, and hidden consciousness formed the spirit and soul, and how cultivation developed divine intent and refined the hidden consciousness.
• Ye Tu described the stages of Spirit Cultivation, identified Yu Ci as nearing the middle tier, and invited him to return to Half-Mountain Island for instruction in longevity techniques.
• Ye Tu explained that primordial spirit sword-riding relied on uniting spirit and qi, then concluded that Daoist Yan’s strike had likely drawn power from the Nine Yang Talisman Sword’s baleful talismanic scripts.
• A powerful tremor shook the ground, and Ye Tu stared toward the slope with his jaw dropped.

Yu Ci and Ye Tu were attacked by a massive ghost beast on the slope, and Yu Ci struggled to fight it despite its overwhelming speed and strength. The chapter left Yu Ci lunging toward the beast’s face after dodging its claw, while Ye Tu remained pinned beneath it.

• A giant ghost beast climbed onto the slope and killed a giant ape with one claw.
• Yu Ci recognized the beast as the ghost beast he had heard about and tried to retreat with Ye Tu.
• The ghost beast attacked, injuring Ye Tu and striking Yu Ci with its tail.
• Yu Ci’s sword failed to harm the beast, but he used the state of spirit and qi embracing each other to locate its teeth and glimpse it through the mist.
• The ghost beast raised its claw to strike Ye Tu, and Yu Ci dodged the blow and lunged toward its face.

Yu Ci fought a powerful ghost beast in Sky Rift until Ye Bin arrived, wounded it, and revealed herself as Ye Tu’s master. She rescued Yu Ci and Ye Tu, then used a trick to strike the supposedly escaped beast again, leaving its fate uncertain.

• Yu Ci struck the ghost beast with the Nine Yang Talisman Sword, severing one of its horns before its roar hurled him into a cliff.
• An unseen attacker wounded the ghost beast as it fled into the mist, and Yu Ci found Ye Tu alive but badly injured.
• Ye Bin introduced herself as Ye Tu’s master, thanked Yu Ci for protecting her disciple, and examined Ye Tu’s injuries.
• Ye Bin carried Yu Ci and Ye Tu out of Sky Rift and explained that the ghost beast had served the Rakshasa Ghost King and could escape her pursuit.
• Ye Bin suddenly shouted “Hit!” and a thunderous sound struck as blood-filled bubbles churned in the clouds near the cliff.

Yu Ci survived Ye Bin’s lingering Sword Qi and took her demonstration as a direction for his own sword practice. The story then shifted to Juebi City, where Zhao Wu nervously brought a Three Yang Talisman Sword to a Bai Ri Mansion shop for consignment.

• Ye Bin gave Yu Ci the severed Heart-Pulling Horn and pointed out the clouds holding the trace of her Sword Qi before leaving with Ye Tu.
• Yu Ci sensed Ye Bin’s sword intent in the clouds, was pierced by its mist-like Sword Qi, and then laughed as he accepted the experience.
• Zhao Wu hurried through Juebi City with a stone box, resisting the temptation to keep its contents.
• At the Bai Ri Mansion shop, Zhao Wu marked the form for consignment sale and identified the item as a Three Yang Talisman Sword.
• The pharmacist and clerk reacted uneasily to the consignment and the sword, then asked Zhao Wu to confirm what he had brought.

Yu Ci used a series of intermediaries to trade Shrimp Whisker Grass for four Three Yang Talisman Swords, while Bai Ri Mansion’s men failed to discover his identity. He then surveyed Juebi City and began observing Bai Ri Mansion through the Zhaoshen Map.

• Zhao Wu exchanged Shrimp Whisker Grass for a Three Yang Talisman Sword at Bai Ri Mansion and delivered it to Rugui Inn for ten taels of gold.
• Two men followed Zhao Wu, but they lost track of the sword after the inn proprietor sent it to an empty room booked by Wang Xiaoqi.
• Yu Ci inspected four Three Yang Talisman Swords at Fuan Inn and watched Bai Ri Mansion’s frustrated trackers through the Zhaoshen Map.
• Yu Ci used the Zhaoshen Map to survey Juebi City and reflected on how his growing cultivation had enabled its vast view.
• Yu Ci shifted his attention to Dan Cliff and began exploring Bai Ri Mansion through the map.

Yu Ci used the Zhaoshen Map to observe Bai Ri Mansion and discovered how its cultivators produced Fish Dragon Grass from Shrimp Whisker Grass. After three stalks formed, Jin Huan returned to the mansion, but the Map’s interference concealed him as the mansion’s leaders gathered.

• Yu Ci observed Tu Du’s secluded chamber and realized the Zhaoshen Map’s images became distorted around powerful cultivators.
• Yu Ci watched eight apothecaries activate the Water Pill Furnace with his thousand-odd stalks of Shrimp Whisker Grass.
• Three stalks of Shrimp Whisker Grass began transforming into Fish Dragon Grass, and a servant hurried to report the news to Lu Yang.
• Lu Yang learned of the successful transformation and told his disciple that Jin Huan had just returned.
• Yu Ci located a large area of distortion around Jin Huan in the discussion hall as Lu Yang and other stewards gathered there.

Yu Ci learned that Bai Ri Mansion had ordered the city sealed to capture the person who traded Shrimp Whisker Grass, so he left Juebi City and headed toward Youqiu Palace. From a distance, he watched Lu Yang and Kuang Zheng spar and discovered he could see light shining from within their heads, which he suspected came from their Yin Spirits.

• Lu Ding ordered Bai Ri Mansion's guards to seal Juebi City's gates and find the person who exchanged four Three Yang Talisman Swords, while explaining that the unusually potent Shrimp Whisker Grass suggested the person knew a special gathering method.
• Yu Ci realized Bai Ri Mansion was investigating him, left through the East Gate, and learned that people were traveling to Youqiu Palace for Xuan Yin Celestial's attainment day.
• Yu Ci avoided the commotion at the West Gate, followed the worshippers, and later watched Juebi City and Dan Cliff from a spot thirty li west of the city.
• Yu Ci observed Lu Yang and Kuang Zheng sparring while Kuang Yanqi watched, then noticed orange-red light inside Lu Yang's head and pale violet light inside Kuang Zheng's.
• Yu Ci recognized that the lights might be the stewards' Yin Spirits and realized his previous understanding of them had been mistaken.

Yu Ci investigated how the Zhaoshen Map reflected people and triggered a dangerous transformation when his reflection merged with his intent. He survived by using the Nine Palaces Moon Bright True Return Marvelous Method, gained a new bodily power, and ended by wondering what the Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror was as it shot light into his glabella.

• Yu Ci noticed that the Zhaoshen Map showed powerful beings less clearly than weaker ones and examined his own reflection within it.
• Yu Ci’s reflection moved independently, and his intent merged with it, causing his body to imitate its posture as his essence and physical strength surged out through his crown.
• The Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror absorbed the Zhaoshen Map and gathered Yu Ci’s escaping essence into a pearl, while his depleted body and spirit were drawn toward the mirror.
• Yu Ci guarded his Mud Pill Palace and shouted “Fix,” stopping the mirror and drawing the essence pearl back into his body, where it spread through his flesh and bones.
• Yu Ci tested a finger-sword that cut a smooth gash into a fir tree and recognized a resemblance to Ye Bin’s sword intent.
• Yu Ci called the Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror his old partner, and it sent a beam of light into his glabella.

Yu Ci received the Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror's refining method and began refining it, discovering that years of carrying and feeding it true qi had already fulfilled the mirror-nurturing step. As he followed Jin Huan's party toward Zhixin Temple, Yu Ci gained clearer visions through the Zhaoshen Map and learned the youths were being taken to seek entry into the Li Chen Sect.

• Yu Ci understood that the Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror's hidden refining method had awakened because he had carried it close and infused it with true qi for twelve years.
• Yu Ci used the mirror to see Jin Huan's party leave Dan Cliff, and the Zhaoshen Map's image became clearer than before.
• Yu Ci followed Jin Huan's group through the Duanjie Mountain Range, keeping his distance while observing Jin Huan's cultivation and identifying the party's members.
• Lu Yang told Kuang Yanqi and Jin Chuan that they would first go to Zhixin Temple, where Li Chen Sect elders would select them for the mountain gate.
• Yu Ci learned the party was heading to Zhixin Temple and began refining the Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror using the newly received method.

Yu Ci refined the Zhaoshen Bronze Mirror, transforming and purifying his vital essence, then traveled to investigate Zhixin Temple, the destination of Jin Huan’s party. As the Bai Ri Mansion party approached the temple, they encountered a Daoist whose aura suggested Core Formation, though Jin Huan could not determine his true cultivation.

• Yu Ci used the Zhaoshen Map and Bronze Mirror to refine the treasure and purify his vital essence toward what he believed was Innate Qi.
• Concerned by what Lu Yang and Jin Chuan had revealed about the Li Chen Sect, Yu Ci traveled into the southwestern wilderness and located Zhixin Temple.
• Jin Huan led the Bai Ri Mansion party toward Zhixin Temple and Lu Yang warned Jin Chuan and Kuang Yanqi to show respect to its senior cultivators.
• A handsome Daoist in a jade robe appeared on the mountain path, saluted Jin Huan’s party, and continued on his way.
• Lu Yang sensed an aura of astral energy and Baleful Intent around the Daoist, and Jin Huan warned the others not to treat him lightly.

Yu Ci infiltrated Zhixin Temple by posing as a refined daoist and overheard Jin Huan negotiate mountain cultivation for Jin Chuan and Kuang Yanqi. He revealed himself to request a fair trade for his Fish Dragon Grass, but Jin Huan attacked him with the Supreme Blazing Sun Method.

• Jin Huan brought Lu Yang, Jin Chuan, and Kuang Yanqi to Zhixin Temple to meet Temple Master Yu.
• Yu Ci entered the temple grounds behind Jin Huan's group, and both Jin Huan and Temple Master Yu mistook him for someone connected to the other.
• Jin Huan offered Fish Dragon Grass and a Seven Shines primordial stone to secure cultivation places for Jin Chuan and Kuang Yanqi.
• Yu Ci asked Temple Master Yu how much thirteen stalks of Fish Dragon Grass were worth and identified himself as a lone cultivator seeking a trade.
• Jin Huan recognized Yu Ci as an outsider and unleashed the Supreme Blazing Sun Method, overwhelming his senses with a vision of a blood-red sun.

Yu Ci offered his Fish Dragon Grass to Master Yu while Jin Huan threatened him, but the box appeared empty until a Fish Dragon emerged from its crack. Master Yu offered three hundred merit points and explained the creature’s transformation from Shrimp Whisker Grass, leaving Jin Huan demanding an explanation about Bai Ri Mansion’s rights.

• Yu Ci resisted Jin Huan’s pressure and argued that his thirteen stalks of Fish Dragon Grass had been naturally grown, not produced with Bai Ri Mansion’s exclusive formula.
• Yu Ci opened his stone box, found it empty, and considered attacking Jin Huan before Master Yu spotted a Dao Worm inside.
• The insect floated out of the box, and Master Yu identified it as a Fish Dragon and offered Yu Ci three hundred merit points for it.
• Jin Chuan protested the price, so Jin Huan ordered him to kneel and then demanded that Master Yu explain the sect’s agreement with Bai Ri Mansion.
• Master Yu invited Yu Ci to sit and explained how Shrimp Whisker Grass became Fish Dragon Grass and then evolved into a Fish Dragon.