Chapter Summaries

Luo Yunji and the Ghost King reached the Wildlands Divine Temple seeking a way into Nether Abyss, but Yuyangzi explained that the ancient ritual could only be used after the entrance appeared naturally. When the shadowy passage manifested, Luo Yunji prepared to enter alone, leaving the Quadruplets and the others in Yuyangzi’s care.

• Yuyangzi welcomed Luo Yunji and his companions to the Wildlands Divine Temple after receiving Luo Yunji’s letter.
• Luo Yunji confirmed the coming great calamity to Yuyangzi and explained that he and the Ghost King wanted to enter Nether Abyss.
• Yuyangzi told them the ritual could not open Nether Abyss and that they had to wait for its entrance to appear on its own.
• After several days, Yuyangzi alerted Luo Yunji that the entrance was about to appear, and a dark phantom formed before the Divine Temple as the sun set.
• Luo Yunji stopped the Quadruplets, Wild Dog, and Jin Ping'er from following him, and Yuyangzi promised to look after them while he entered Nether Abyss.
• Daoist Cangsong watched from the shadows, worried that Luo Yunji was heading into danger.

Luo Yunji and Wan Renwang entered the Nether Abyss, where Luo Yunji struggled through a strange realm with the Ghost King. The Ghost King eventually trapped him in the Dragon-Subduing Tripod and kept shaking it after deciding Luo Yunji’s threat to bully Bi Yao might mean he would marry her.

• A crystalline light from Luo Yunji’s brow opened a pit beneath the phantom image, and Luo Yunji and Wan Renwang entered the Nether Abyss.
• Luo Yunji fell through the darkness with his spiritual power bound, while the Ghost King caught up with him.
• Luo Yunji kicked the Ghost King to slow his fall, then used his restored ability to fly back and forth past him.
• The Ghost King grabbed Luo Yunji and scolded him before surveying the flat, unreal world around them.
• The Ghost King caught Luo Yunji in the Dragon-Subduing Tripod after he threatened to bully Bi Yao, then shook the tripod even harder as he considered the prospect of their marriage.

The Ghost King and Luo Yunji fell through a strange darkness where they perceived different surroundings, then found themselves trapped in a cave that felt unlike the mortal world. They stood on a ledge above an apparently bottomless drop, unsure whether to continue down.

• The Ghost King tossed Luo Yunji out of the Dragon-Subduing Tripod, and Luo Yunji drunkenly threatened to bully Bi Yao when they returned.
• As they fell, Luo Yunji followed a distant object while the Ghost King saw an inverted world, and the Ghost King beat Luo Yunji after realizing he had been pretending not to see it.
• Luo Yunji stopped the Ghost King from flying into jagged rock spires, revealing that the Ghost King’s vision of an inverted world had been a trap.
• Luo Yunji lit the darkness with the Mountain and River Fan and a Night-Shining Pearl, and the two discovered they were inside a sealed cave.
• The Ghost King sensed that the cave did not belong to the mortal world, while Luo Yunji peered over their ledge and found no visible bottom.

Luo Yunji and the Ghost King descended into a strange underground realm, where they discovered their surroundings were illusions and found a narrow passage. They continued through it, leaving the Ghost King stuck and bargaining with Luo Yunji to get free.

• Luo Yunji and the Ghost King reached a vast, brightly lit expanse of ancient buildings that crumbled into ash when they landed.
• Luo Yunji and the Ghost King realized they were trapped in an illusion, and Luo Yunji used a spell to reveal a narrow, winding passage.
• Luo Yunji chose which way to go by striking the rock wall and counting the falling stones, then he and the Ghost King squeezed into the passage.
• The Ghost King became stuck in the narrow passage, and Luo Yunji teased him instead of helping him out.
• The Ghost King offered to marry Bi Yao to Luo Yunji, who asked whether she would cook for him.

Luo Yunji and the Ghost King entered a secret chamber where a statue’s fragrance trapped Luo Yunji in illusions. After escaping and discovering the statue was made of Yin Corpse Wood, Luo Yunji stored it away and learned the Ghost King had never been affected.

• Luo Yunji and the Ghost King were squeezed by what they thought was a moving rock wall, then broke the illusion and found themselves wrapped in a giant snake’s coils.
• The Ghost King struck the snake with the Dragon-Subduing Tripod while Luo Yunji tried to bite it, but neither could escape before Luo Yunji suddenly woke.
• Luo Yunji found himself alone on a circular stone platform and recognized a nearby statue as Yin Corpse Wood that caused deep illusions.
• Luo Yunji used the Mountain and River Fan to put away the statue, and the Ghost King returned, unaware that any illusion had taken place.
• Luo Yunji concluded that the Demon Sect’s secret realm had spared the Ghost King because of his cultivation method, then followed him down from the platform.

Luo Yunji discovered that a Puppet Worm from the Corpse-Yin Wood had taken control of the Ghost King and used the Ghost Umbrella to kill it. He rescued the Ghost King on the narrow bridge and removed the worm, but the Ghost King's face was badly damaged.

• Luo Yunji and the Ghost King crossed a narrow natural stone bridge above a bottomless abyss while discussing the Nether Abyss.
• Luo Yunji noticed that Puppet Worms were controlling the Ghost King and attacked the parasite with the Ghost Umbrella.
• A grotesque Puppet Worm emerged from the Ghost King's head, and Luo Yunji drained it until it went limp.
• Luo Yunji caught the collapsing Ghost King with a Water Ribbon and laid him on the bridge.
• Luo Yunji pulled the dead Puppet Worm from the Ghost King's scalp, stored it in the Mountain and River Fan, and noted that the Ghost King's face was beyond saving.

Luo Yunji crossed a dangerous chasm, fought through a cave full of Puppet Worms, and discovered a Demon Sect altar containing Heavenly Book volumes. He found the fifth volume carved into the platform and wondered whether one of the damaged recesses had once held the Zhu Xian Sword.

• Luo Yunji dragged the Ghost King across a bridge and along a narrow path above an abyss until he reached a cave filled with Puppet Worms.
• Luo Yunji drove the Puppet Worms from the cave with repeated blasts of spiritual fire, then entered the tunnel and followed its stone steps to a vast platform.
• Luo Yunji found Demon Sect statues, a towering Corpse-Yin Wood statue, and an altar holding a Stone Box with four volumes of the Heavenly Book.
• Luo Yunji examined damaged recesses in the surrounding rock wall and suspected that a sword-shaped one might have held the Zhu Xian Sword.
• Luo Yunji discovered Heavenly Book Volume Five carved into the platform and concluded that it could not be removed.

Luo Yunji sealed a Boundary Rift opened by a monstrous being who threatened to invade the mortal world. The Ghost King recovered and examined the Heavenly Book, while Luo Yunji noticed that the signs of the Puppet Worm had disappeared from him.

• A glow from the Altar restored the Ghost King's damaged face while Luo Yunji studied the fifth volume of the Heavenly Book.
• A hideous being opened a Boundary Rift and confronted Luo Yunji, revealing that the stone platform was a passage to the Underworld.
• Luo Yunji used a blue talisman and a black talisman to seal the rift as the being vowed to claim the mortal world.
• The Ghost King awoke, startled Luo Yunji, and repeatedly trapped him beneath the Dragon-Subduing Tripod.
• The Ghost King read the Heavenly Book and explained that the Holy Sect kept it in a box to prevent others from learning its contents.
• Luo Yunji noticed that the Ghost King no longer showed signs of the Puppet Worm.

Luo Yunji and Ghost King escaped the collapsing cavern and discovered that the four volumes of the Heavenly Book had crumbled because they could not leave the Altar’s vicinity. Luo Yunji revealed that the Heavenly Book was at the Two Mountains, while dark mist began appearing around them in the Nether Abyss.

• Luo Yunji and Ghost King fled as the cavern platform collapsed, unaware that a green light slipped into Luo Yunji’s Black Silk.
• Luo Yunji and Ghost King saw the cavern’s upside-down Corpse-Yin Wood statue turn to face them before they flew back to their arrival platform.
• Ghost King found the four volumes of the Heavenly Book reduced to dust, and Luo Yunji explained that they could not be taken far from the Altar.
• Luo Yunji teased Ghost King about the Literature Pavilion before revealing that the Heavenly Book was at the Two Mountains.
• Luo Yunji considered consulting his senior brothers about Ghost King’s offer, while neither man noticed dark gray mist gathering around the platform.

Luo Yunji and the Ghost King were trapped in the Minglian Sea after following a light through the black mist, where a hidden monster attacked them. Luo Yunji realized the Altar that had once held the Boundary Rift had collapsed, leaving them without an apparent escape.

• The black mist surrounded Luo Yunji and the Ghost King, so they worked together to clear a path to a flickering light.
• Luo Yunji entered the light first, and the Ghost King followed, but they emerged in even thicker black mist.
• A giant claw attacked Luo Yunji, and the Black Silk wrapped around it before retreating from the mist.
• Luo Yunji identified their location as the Minglian Sea and searched for an Altar that could lead them out.
• Luo Yunji realized the Altar where he had sealed the Boundary Rift had collapsed, then warned the Ghost King that the Black Silk might protect him but not the Ghost King.

Luo Yunji and Ghost King escaped the Nether Abyss when Xiaohuan used the Qiankun Samsara Disk to close the passage just before a giant claw reached them. Back at the Wildlands Divine Temple, Luo Yunji explained how they were rescued, and then took He Dazhi and Wild Dog Daoist aside for an undisclosed task.

• Xiaohuan opened a passage through the illusory image and brought Luo Yunji and Ghost King back as a giant claw closed in; she then collapsed from exhaustion.
• Luo Yunji reunited with He Dazhi, Zhou Yixian, and the others, while Ghost King went to rest and Xiaohuan fell asleep.
• He Dazhi explained that Master had sent him searching for Luo Yunji, and Zhou Yixian's divination had led them to the Wildlands Divine Temple.
• Luo Yunji explained that the Qiankun Samsara Disk had activated the illusory image's passage rather than opened space itself, and warned Zhou Yixian that using it drained the mind and spirit.
• Jin Ping'er hurried to see Xiaohuan, while Luo Yunji stopped Wild Dog Daoist and led him and He Dazhi toward a secluded spot for a task.

After hearing about Luo Yunji’s dangerous trip to the Nether Abyss, He Dazhi agreed to discuss Luo Yunji’s plan to set up the Ghost King with their master before deciding whether to share the Mystic Realm’s Heavenly Book. Luo Yunji then brought Wild Dog Daoist to his quarters, where Blackheart Elder began teaching him, but Wild Dog struggled to understand the lessons.

• He Dazhi warned Luo Yunji not to take such reckless risks again, then agreed that his plan to set up the Ghost King might work but needed discussion with their master.
• Luo Yunji told He Dazhi to handle the Ghost King’s request for the cultivation method and left to find Wild Dog Daoist.
• Luo Yunji asked Wild Dog Daoist whether he and Jin Ping'er had followed him because of Blackheart Elder and Madam Jinling, then summoned Blackheart Elder.
• Blackheart Elder agreed to teach Wild Dog Daoist, who knelt and pledged himself to the Blood Refining Hall.
• Blackheart Elder scolded Wild Dog Daoist when he failed to grasp the first lesson, and Luo Yunji urged him to be patient and take things slowly.

Luo Yunji encouraged Wild Dog Daoist and planned ways to improve his cultivation as the Great Calamity loomed. Meanwhile, Daoist Cangsong visited He Dazhi, recalled how Big Bamboo Peak had changed the Demon Sect, and admitted he no longer knew what to do.

• Luo Yunji compared Wild Dog Daoist to Zhang Xiaofan and promised to arrange medicinal baths and other help to strengthen his cultivation.
• Luo Yunji worried that the Two Mountains and his fellow disciples were too weak to face the Great Calamity and the Underworld powerhouse.
• Daoist Cangsong secretly visited He Dazhi, who welcomed him with Clear Tea.
• Cangsong told He Dazhi that he had joined Longevity Hall to investigate Yuyangzi, but Yuyangzi later abandoned his ambitions and focused on teaching his disciples.
• Cangsong and He Dazhi reflected on how Big Bamboo Peak's disciples had changed the Demon Sect, and Cangsong said he did not know what to do next.

He Dazhi told Daoist Cangsong about the Great Calamity and revealed that Wan Jianyi was recovering at the Two Mountains, then urged Cangsong to return with them. The next day, the Ghost King asked Luo Yunji about the Heavenly Book, and Luo Yunji sent him to He Dazhi.

• He Dazhi explained the Great Calamity to Daoist Cangsong and invited him to come to the Two Mountains.
• He Dazhi revealed that Wan Jianyi was recovering at the Two Mountains and that Xiaofan and Yun Ji were helping treat the Zhu Xian Sword's evil aura.
• Daoist Cangsong asked after Daoxuan and Wan Jianyi, then left without deciding whether to return with He Dazhi.
• He Dazhi urged Cangsong to come back as an elder who could help guide them during the Great Calamity, and Cangsong said he would think it over.
• The next day, the Ghost King asked Luo Yunji about the Heavenly Book, and Luo Yunji sent him to He Dazhi.

He Dazhi agreed that Luo Yunji could tell Yuyangzi about the Great Calamity, and Yuyangzi was troubled when the group departed. At the Dark Cave, Hei Mu confronted a Fierce Spirit who accused him of betraying the Empress, and their dispute ended with Hei Mu revealed as a young man.

• The Ghost King left He Dazhi after deciding to seek the Heavenly Book and thinking of Bi Yao.
• He Dazhi agreed that Luo Yunji could tell Yuyangzi about the Great Calamity, and they finished breakfast with their own food.
• Luo Yunji told Yuyangzi about the Great Calamity, and Yuyangzi looked sorrowful when the group departed.
• A black-robed figure arrived at the Dark Cave and stood before a woman's statue until a Fierce Spirit appeared.
• The Fierce Spirit accused the black-robed figure of betraying the Empress and tried to stop him from entering the cave.
• The figure, Hei Mu, insisted the Empress had been wrong, and the wind tore away his hood to reveal his face.

Hei Mu visited a mysterious presence deep inside the cave and was ordered to go to the Central Plains, suffering a devastating transformation before collapsing near the entrance. Fierce Spirit rescued him and left him unconscious, while Xiaobai mourned at Xiao Chi’s grave at Mount Huqi.

• Hei Mu and Fierce Spirit argued, and Fierce Spirit struck Hei Mu with his shield before Hei Mu continued into the cave.
• Hei Mu knelt before a carving and reported to a mysterious voice that he had found what it sought.
• The mysterious presence stretched Hei Mu’s body through terrible agony and commanded him to go to the Central Plains.
• Hei Mu collapsed near the cave entrance, and Fierce Spirit carried him to safety, dried his robe, and left him naked beneath sand and gravel.
• Xiaobai burned yellow paper at Xiao Chi’s grave at the Ghost King Sect headquarters.

Xiaobai visited Xiao Chi’s grave and told the Ghost King that surviving members of the White Fox Clan were safe, then left with renewed purpose to live for her son and the Two Mountains. As the Great Calamity drew near, preparations continued across the Two Mountains and the Imperial City, while Daoxuan received a letter from Incense Valley.

• Xiaobai visited Xiao Chi’s grave, confessed her guilt, and told the Ghost King that she was the White Fox and the White Fox Clan had been wiped out.
• Xiaobai told the Ghost King that other Fox Clan survivors were doing well, declined his offer of help, and left resolved to live for her son, her people, and the Two Mountains.
• Zhou Mu and Liao Ming led preparations at Sub-mountain, where the soldiers stored food and hid much of it atop Spirit Mountain.
• Wuluo took charge of the Spirit Garden while Li Qinghe managed its daily work, and He Dazhi worked to prepare the Imperial City and searched books for useful formations.
• Daoxuan read a letter from Incense Valley and drank spirit tea from the Two Mountains.

The Azure Cloud Sect leaders discussed Incense Valley’s proposed marriage alliance and prepared for the Great Calamity. Su Ru offered Big Bamboo Peak’s Dao Follows Nature to the sect, explaining its benefits and risks, then shared Luo Yunji’s theory that physical training could help practitioners withstand more spiritual power.

• Daoxuan told the peak leaders that Yun Yilan wanted to deepen ties with the Azure Cloud Sect, and he proposed waiting for Incense Valley’s visit before responding.
• Watermoon True Person silently planned to challenge Incense Valley’s visitors to a friendly spar if they tried to arrange a marriage alliance with her disciples.
• Daoxuan asked the peak leaders whether they had prepared for the Great Calamity, and they confirmed they were improving their disciples’ cultivation.
• Su Ru announced that Tian Buyi had instructed her to offer Dao Follows Nature to the Azure Cloud Sect and explained that it could strengthen group attacks but might damage the user’s meridians.
• Su Ru relayed Luo Yunji’s theory that a stronger body could hold more spiritual power and described Big Bamboo Peak’s three years of Black-Joint Bamboo chopping as beginner training.

Su Ru explained that Yun Ji had developed a cultivation method for training in “jin,” while Tian Buyi searched for Luo Yunji and finally caught up with him at an inn. After Luo Yunji and Zhang Xiaofan confronted the inn for serving food made with spoiled ingredients, Tian Buyi stopped Luo Yunji from escaping and beat him.

• Su Ru told the other Peak Masters that Yun Ji had taught Big Bamboo Peak’s disciples a cultivation method for training in “jin.”
• Tian Buyi found He Dazhi in the Imperial City and learned that Luo Yunji had likely returned to Two Mountains, then traveled there only to discover Luo Yunji had gone to the Southern Border with Zhang Xiaofan.
• Tian Buyi set out for Azure Cloud Mountain with soldiers carrying supplies from Two Mountains and stopped at an inn for the night.
• Luo Yunji and Zhang Xiaofan confronted the innkeeper after tasting dishes made with spoiled ingredients, and Zhang Xiaofan sent Feng Dian to summon the person in charge.
• Tian Buyi arrived at the inn, told Luo Yunji not to run, and waited while Luo Yunji finished handling the complaint.
• At dusk, Tian Buyi caught and beat Luo Yunji while Zhang Xiaofan watched.

A Black-Clad Figure entered Luo Yunji’s Sea of Consciousness and asked him to go to the Demon-Suppression Cave. The White-Clothed Deity judged the trip dangerous but agreed that Luo Yunji should help, leaving the reason and consequences unresolved.

• Tian Buyi praised Zhang Xiaofan’s improved Clear Tea while a Black Robe figure secretly watched them at the inn.
• A shadow slipped into Tian Buyi’s room and altered his dream without waking him or leaving him with any memory of it.
• The Black-Clad Figure appeared in Luo Yunji’s Sea of Consciousness, where the White-Clothed Deity recognized him as another Deity.
• The Black-Clad Figure asked Luo Yunji to go to the Demon-Suppression Cave, warning that disaster and punishment would follow if he did not help.
• The White-Clothed Deity agreed that Luo Yunji should help the Black-Clad Figure while traveling to the Southern Border.