Chapter Summaries

Fang Qing used Xu Hei’s identity to advise Fang Daoling on cultivation paths and the dangers surrounding Water Virtue, then sensed that the Lord of the Charnel Forest had not perished. He suspected Earth Virtue was stirring again and began weighing a covert scheme involving Grand Yellow Heaven as the chapter left him contemplating the coming danger.

• Fang Qing explained to Fang Daoling the difference between seeking gold and attaining the Dao, then warned him about the risks of several Water Virtue paths.
• Fang Daoling shared the Fang Family’s cultivation inheritance, accepted Fang Qing’s guidance, and left resolved to avoid [Wall Water] and [Chariot Water].
• After Fang Daoling departed, Fang Qing remained at the celebration and used Xu Hei’s identity to observe the rising Earth Virtue qi.
• Fang Qing sensed that the Lord of the Charnel Forest had not truly perished and suspected the Yin Household Sect or another Earth Virtue power had aided Xu Hei’s breakthrough.
• Fang Qing considered using Fang Daoling as a bridge to Grand Yellow Heaven and recognized that the suspected Earth Virtue scheme could bring widespread danger.

Xu Hei arrived at Qingqiu Mountain and learned about Tu Shan Qi’s impending breakthrough and the Lunar Yin tradition. Meanwhile, Fang Qing opened the Primordial Thunder Secret Realm early, brought Great Cultivator Shaohuan along, and prepared to search for treasures connected to the [Profound Thunder] Golden Seat.

• Xu Hei entered Qingxuan Hall at Qingqiu Mountain, met True Person Suqing and other Purple Mansion cultivators, and learned that Tu Shan Qi of the Tushan Clan cultivated [Heart Moon].
• Fang Qing watched the Primordial Thunder Cave Abode’s lightning intensify as the Mystic Thunder Drum absorbed its power, drawing the attention of nearby cultivators and Great Cultivator Shaohuan.
• Fang Qing summoned Shaohuan and asked him about Tian Yin, learning that Tian Yin had been unpopular on Yunzhou Continent and that few had mourned his death.
• Fang Qing controlled the lightning, opened the Primordial Thunder Secret Realm, and invited Shaohuan to explore it with him.
• Fang Qing sensed no Golden Seat inside the secret realm but decided to collect objects bearing its aura and Causality.

Xu Hei watched powerful cultivators and demon kings gather at Green Hill for Tu Shan Qi’s Qiujin ceremony, noting the Esoteric Treasury’s sparse attendance and the presence of dangerous rivals. As the Great Sun set and the new Heart Moon rose, Tu Shan Qi began the ceremony with a clear chance to pursue the Golden Seat of Heart Moon.

• Xu Hei observed that only Duzi of the Great Treasury Temple had come from the Esoteric Treasury, while Shoucangxuan led the Esoteric monks and the Corpse Yin Sect’s masked Great True Person attended.
• Xu Hei surveyed the other arrivals, including cultivators from Cloud-Touching Cliff, the eastern Supreme Unity Arcane Sect, Nine-Heavens Fire Manor, and Wuyue Sword Pavilion.
• As dusk fell and the new Heart Moon rose, Xu Hei recognized the timing as ideal for undertaking Qiujin.
• Tu Shan Qi descended onto Green Hill’s summit, bowed to the gathered guests, and announced that he was undertaking Qiujin.
• The assembled guests praised the flourishing age and discussed how few cultivators had succeeded at Qiujin in earlier eras.
• Xu Hei reflected that Tu Shan Qi had a genuine chance to claim the Golden Seat of Heart Moon.

Tu Shan Qi’s attempt to seek the [Heart Moon] Gold seat failed, transforming him into a monstrous fox that the Demon Kings killed and devoured. In the aftermath, the Yuan Shou Envoy and Calamity Hound discussed the shifting balance among the Lunar Tradition, Phoenix, the Great Sun Tathagata, and the Secret Treasury, setting the stage for a possible assault on Great Black Heaven Temple.

• Tu Shan Qi failed to seek Gold as a blood moon rose, and his body transformed into a nine-tailed fox evil creature.
• Xu Hei witnessed the lunar calamity spread across Green Hill Mountain as osmanthus blossoms transformed demons and threatened cultivators.
• Demon King Vermilion Ibis led the Demon Kings in attacking the fox, and their battle split Green Hill Mountain in two.
• The Yuan Shou Envoy and Calamity Hound discussed the vacant [Heart Moon] seat, the strength of Phoenix and the Great Sun Tathagata, and Great Black Heaven’s hidden position in the Secret Treasury Domain.
• The Yuan Shou Envoy considered joining the Demon Race against the Secret Treasury, while the Demon Kings tore apart and devoured Tu Shan Qi’s body.

Fang Qing obtained a Jade Thunder Talisman in the Primordial Thunder Secret Realm and used its Causality to learn that the Thunder Palace wandered through the Great Void. After leaving, he explored an ascension passage and wondered what lay beyond the heavens.

• Fang Qing noticed that the Esoteric Treasury had sent only Shoucangxuan to the secret realm and reflected on Dark Candle Adept’s unexplained absence.
• Shaohuan delivered a Jade Thunder Talisman to Fang Qing, who discovered it was connected to the Thunder Palace and could weaken the Spirit Transformation heavenly tribulation.
• Fang Qing gave Shaohuan permission to take the remaining treasures and left, while Shaohuan realized in terror that Fang Qing’s Words Become Law had altered his mind.
• Nascent Soul cultivators arrived seeking treasure, and Shaohuan attacked them to vent his anger.
• Fang Qing used the jade talisman and related objects to sense the wandering Profound Thunder Golden Seat, then visited a dangerous region containing an ascension passage.
• Fang Qing considered exploring beyond the heavens after reaching Golden Core.

Liu Junyan warned the Fang Family that a coalition war against the Esoteric Treasury Domain was imminent and urged them to relocate there. Fang Qing assessed the conflict’s hidden motives, ordered the withdrawal of his people from Xituo Commandery, and concluded that the coming war would be devastating.

• Liu Junyan visited the Fang Family and warned Fang Daoling that the Corpse Yin Sect, Cloud-Touching Cliff, the Harmonious Bliss Sect, and the Demon Race would attack the Esoteric Treasury Domain.
• Liu Junyan advised the Fang Family to move its branch into the Esoteric Treasury Domain, where its source and defenses could offer protection.
• Fang Qing learned of the coming war and connected it to Tu Shan Qi’s pursuit of [Qiujin] and the struggle among True Lords for [Year Guardian].
• Fang Qing reasoned that the Phoenix and Great Sun Tathagata might be maneuvering against one another, while the demonic path sought revenge on the Secret Treasury Domain.
• Fang Qing ordered Sangji to withdraw Moonlight White and the other Dumu from Xituo Commandery, which he judged impossible to defend in the coming conflict.

Fang Qing comprehended the [Profound Thunder] Divine Ability, Primordial Thunder Palace, by sensing the Golden Seat. Meanwhile, the White Bone Way prepared to retreat from Xituo Commandery as the war resumed, but the Corpse Yin Sect’s new Sect Master attacked Deathless Temple.

• Fang Qing studied the Supreme Simplicity Golden Book, reasoned about the paths to [Year Guardian], and resolved to pursue Golden Core-level strength while remaining cautious.
• Fang Qing cultivated the Jade Thunder Art and used the Mystic Thunder Drum, Myriad Thunder Palace Diagram, and Jade Thunder Talisman to sense the Thunder Palace and its [Profound Thunder] Golden Seat.
• Fang Qing formed the Primordial Thunder Palace Divine Ability in his Purple Mansion and realized that [Profound Thunder] also embodied heavenly punishment, law, oaths, and life.
• Moonlight White Tara received orders to withdraw the White Bone Way to the Secret Treasury Domain and assigned White True Person, Empty Peacock Tara, and others to hold off approaching enemies.
• The new Sect Master of Corpse Yin attacked Deathless Temple with a Refined Corpse, forcing the four Dumu to rely on the Mandala formation while they awaited reinforcements.

Fang Daoling evacuated the Fang Family from Azure Departure Mountain while Xu Hei held off a Corpse Yin Sect True Person. At Deathless Temple, Sangji ordered the remaining White Bone Way forces to retreat into the Esoteric Treasury as the sect surrendered its foothold in Xituo Commandery.

• Fang Daoling abandoned the Spirit Rice and spiritual items and led the Fang Family toward the Secret Treasury Domain as danger approached.
• Xu Hei confronted a mid-stage Purple Mansion True Person of the Corpse Yin Sect and used Fang Qing’s Lunar Yin magic treasure to hold him back until the Fang Family escaped.
• Xu Hei and Bai Ziye joined Sangji outside Deathless Temple, where the Corpse Yin Sect Sect Master declared that the White Bone Way could no longer hold Xituo Commandery.
• Sangji ordered the four Dumu and the other monks to move into the Esoteric Treasury, then said the Steel Strength Duzi had a separate assignment.

At Great Snow Mountain, Dharma King Vilu ordered the temples to resist the Outer Dao invaders and warned that Ancient Shu’s shifting Spirit Atmosphere favored Earth Virtue. Meanwhile, the invaders transformed Xituo Commandery into mountains and raised a route across the highland barrier, bringing their forces to the edge of the Esoteric Treasury.

• Dharma King Vilu arrived before Sangji, Shoucangxuan, and Dharma King Zengmie, then declared the invaders Brahma Enemies and commanded the temples to fight.
• Dharma King Vilu warned that Ancient Shu’s Spirit Atmosphere was changing to favor Earth Virtue and cautioned Dharma King Zengmie about the threat to Great Black Heaven Temple’s Embodied Buddha.
• Xu Hei, Bai Ziye, and Moonlight White Tara watched as the Southern Barbarian forces raised mountains that buried Xituo Commandery’s plains and killed countless people.
• The Sect Master of Corpse Yin sacrificed offerings to ghosts and gods, who raised the mountains into a stairway reaching the Esoteric Treasury Plateau.
• Moonlight White Tara spotted Cloud-Touching Cliff’s cultivators and two envoys joining the advance, while Xu Hei and his companions anticipated a bloody battle.

Fang Qing visited the Fang Family’s refuge and learned that Fang Xuan Que was presumed dead after the Vast Sea Sect fell to the Corpse Yin Sect. When demon birds attacked a temple near the Secret Treasury, Fang Qing confronted E'mang Demon King and destroyed him, while the temple’s monk sensed the demon’s power collapsing.

• Fang Qing inspected the Fang Family manor and watched Fang Daoling learn that the Vast Sea Sect had been devastated and Fang Xuan Que was missing, presumed dead.
• Hu Yunqi blamed Fang Daoling for sending their son to the Vast Sea Sect and collapsed after grieving for him.
• Fang Qing spotted demon birds approaching a temple and saw the bones of people they had devoured outside it.
• Fang Qing incinerated the demon birds, then faced E'mang Demon King when it demanded to know who had killed them.
• Fang Qing trapped E'mang Demon King inside his Vajra Barrier, destroyed its strange black feather, and caused the demon’s divine ability to collapse.
• The monk inside the temple watched bloody rain fall and rejoiced as he sensed the demon’s power go out.

Fang Qing fought off the Calamity Hound Servant Deity while surveying the escalating deaths of Purple Mansion cultivators in the Secret Treasury Domain and considering how the coming conflict might unfold. He traveled to a vast island, discovered signs of an Earth Virtue Breath-Nourishing Dao legacy, and was attacked by a Spirit Transformation cultivator’s bound ferocious beast.

• Fang Qing lamented the deaths of Purple Mansion cultivators and escaped the Calamity Hound Servant Deity after it pursued and wounded him through the Great Void.
• Fang Qing reasoned that Purple Mansion deaths were being used to destabilize the Secret Treasury Domain’s caves and considered the Golden Core forces and their likely plans.
• Fang Qing returned to Yantou Golden Radiance Temple and planned to send Sangji into the Eight Great Capture Forest Buddha-Land when the Yi Realm fell into turmoil.
• Fang Qing traveled south across the sea and found a vast island covered in ancient statues bearing Earth Virtue qi from the Breath-Nourishing Dao.
• Fang Qing sensed a Spirit Transformation presence, whereupon the island split open and an Earth Virtue cultivator struck at him with a divine palm.
• Fang Qing dodged through the Great Void and summoned the Myriad Waters Cauldron, Landscape Fan, Mystic Thunder Drum, and Mystic Firmament Jade Talisman as the chained jade beast watched in surprise.

Fang Qing subdued the sealed True Spirit Feng Xi and learned that the Profound Heaven Divine Venerable had sealed it long ago, possibly after reincarnating into the Grotto-Heaven. He left Feng Xi imprisoned and resolved to pursue the Profound Thunder Position Seal while war gathered on the Breath-Nourishing Dao side.

• Fang Qing used his three Heaven-Penetrating Numinous Treasures and thunder spiritual power to overpower Feng Xi, who begged him to stop.
• Fang Qing noticed Feng Xi’s powerful healing ability and questioned it about its seal and its long-ago encounter with the Profound Heaven Divine Venerable.
• Feng Xi said the Profound Heaven Divine Venerable had appeared with wisdom from a former life, prompting Fang Qing to suspect he had reincarnated into the Grotto-Heaven.
• Fang Qing asked Feng Xi about the Kitchen Lord and Eastern Origin Fate-Commanding Responsive Divine Lord, but it knew nothing about them.
• Fang Qing left Feng Xi sealed and considered the Divine Venerable’s mysterious origins and the possibility that he had carried the Supreme Simplicity Golden Book.
• Fang Qing decided to continue seeking the Profound Thunder Position Seal and the Thunder Palace as war approached between the Esoteric Treasury and Monster Demon Way.

The Secret Treasury Domain’s defenders and the Monster Demon Way coalition suffered heavy losses as the coalition fought through the temples sealing the Great Void. Sangji prepared to resonate with the Eight Cold Forest Buddha Lands, while the fall of another Demon King caused those Buddha-Lands to appear in the northeastern heavens.

• A Zhaqu Temple monk killed True Person Zheluo by detonating his golden body, leaving behind a single Position Seal before the temple collapsed.
• Sangji appointed Duzi Invincible to command the Temple of All Living Beings Without Form if he was absent, with True Person Yuanzi as the next successor.
• Sangji began resonating with the Eight Cold Forest Buddha Lands, hoping to enter them before other cultivators when the Lord of the Charnel Forest fell.
• Fang Qing watched through the Dao-Born Pearl and planned to use the Lord of the Charnel Forest Human-Skin Thangka and [Lady] Golden Nature to guide Sangji’s Causality, while waiting for the right moment.
• Yuan Insect Envoy and the Corpse Yin Sect envoy discussed the coalition’s costly advance and the immense Buddha-Lands belonging to the Lord of the Charnel Forest and Great Black Heaven.
• Yuan Insect Envoy sensed another Demon King’s death, and the Eight Cold Forest Buddha Lands appeared in the Great Void.

Fang Qing used Sangji’s account and the [Maiden Earth] Golden Nature position to enter the Eight Cold Forest Buddha Lands and confront the Lord of the Charnel Forest. After surviving the Embodied Buddha’s single attack, he saw its body collapse and recognized the fallen skull crown as the [Maiden Earth] Position Seal.

• Fang Qing took over Sangji’s account and used the Temple’s method to enter the Eight Cold Forest Buddha Lands in reality.
• Fang Qing crossed the Eight Cold Groves, using his [Maiden Earth] Divine Abilities to withstand their dangers and reach Skull Mountain.
• Fang Qing discovered that Skull Mountain was one of the Lord of the Charnel Forest’s fingers and that the Buddha’s aura was briefly reviving the Buddha-Land.
• The Lord of the Charnel Forest seized Fang Qing and tried to devour him, breaking his bone pearls and destroying his robe, staff, and mask.
• After the Lord of the Charnel Forest’s attack ended, its body collapsed into a vast field of bones, and Fang Qing identified its fallen skull crown as the [Maiden Earth] Position Seal.

Fang Qing cleansed the Lord of the Charnel Forest’s Golden Core Position Seal and realized that refining it would grant power at the cost of severe restrictions. He had Sangji take the seal instead, planning to use Sangji’s eventual Golden Core strength without bearing its drawbacks himself.

• Fang Qing let the Position Seal’s corpse-wax enter Sangji’s body, then used the Dao-Born Pearl to erase the Lord of the Charnel Forest’s spiritual imprint and form a Bone Sarira.
• Fang Qing discovered that the Position Seal was the Lord of the Charnel Forest’s corpse and that refining it would bind its wielder to the Lord’s role and limit their cultivation.
• Fang Qing decided that Sangji could refine the Position Seal while Fang Qing used him as a means to access its power.
• Sangji accepted the Bone Sarira and began refining it as the Eight Cold Forest Buddha Lands’ skeletons chanted in praise of the Lord of the Charnel Forest.
• Fang Qing considered how he could later enter Sangji’s body and draw on the Position Seal’s power without inheriting its restrictions.

As the Outer Dao attacked the Esoteric Treasury, Fang Daoling defended Horse-Head Vajra Temple and faced increasingly dangerous Corpse Yin Sect enemies. Liu Ruchuan rescued him and revealed that Liu Junyan and other cultivators from Grand Yellow Heaven had entered the Esoteric Treasury under a Grotto-Heaven order.

• After the Buddha-Land sign vanished, Venerable Invincible took temporary command of Temple of All Living Beings Without Form, while Empty Peacock Tara arrived to help defend Horse-Head Vajra Temple.
• Fang Daoling organized Fang Family cultivators into a Four Waters Array and killed a Corpse Yin Sect Dao Foundation cultivator who had attacked their position.
• The fallen enemy's death technique killed one Fang Family disciple, and a hidden Corpse Yin Sect cultivator then killed three more and attacked Fang Daoling with a Purple Mansion magic treasure.
• Liu Ruchuan appeared and blocked the attack with an earth-yellow treasure, saving Fang Daoling from death.
• Liu Ruchuan told Fang Daoling that Liu Junyan had come to support the Esoteric Treasury and that cultivators from Grand Yellow Heaven had entered under a Grotto-Heaven order.

Fang Qing considered the turmoil threatening Grand Yellow Heaven and the nameless Grotto-Heaven, then agreed to meet Zhan Hongxiu on Shang Clan Island. There, he watched Shang Yuanxin undergo his Nascent Soul tribulation and wondered why it seemed easier than his own.

• Fang Qing learned that the Kitchen Lord had joined the Esoteric Treasury camp and considered how the Monster Demon Way’s assault might create an opening to investigate the nameless Grotto-Heaven.
• Fang Qing received messages about Shang Yuanxin’s impending breakthrough and Zhan Hongxiu’s wish to meet, then agreed to meet her on Shang Clan Island.
• Fang Qing learned through Turtle Elder that Zhan Hongxiu planned to offer him a secret art that could help a Spirit Transformation cultivator guide someone through a breakthrough to Great Cultivator.
• Shang Yuanxin condensed his Nascent Soul and passed the Heart Demon Tribulation as his lightning tribulation began on Shang Clan Island.
• Zhan Hongxiu arrived, and Fang Qing watched Shang Yuanxin’s lightning tribulation while comparing it to the far harsher tribulations he had faced.

Shang Yuanxin attained Nascent Soul, while Fang Qing revealed his Spirit Transformation and asked Zhan Hongxiu to investigate Profound Heaven Divine Venerable and Feng Xi. Zhan Hongxiu later uncovered a fragment apparently written by the ancient patriarch, ending with the cryptic words, “Only one scholar is lacking?”

• Shang Yuanxin passed the nine layers of lightning tribulation and became a Nascent Soul Venerable, and the Shang Clan ancestor suspected Fang Qing had reached Spirit Transformation.
• Fang Qing outpaced Zhan Hongxiu with lightning-aspect mana and asked her to investigate Profound Heaven Divine Venerable and the fifth-rank True Spirit Feng Xi in exchange for helping her cultivation.
• Fang Qing searched the Shang Clan’s secret library for records of Profound Heaven Divine Venerable, while the Myriad Stars Alliance maintained peace in the Eastern Sea.
• Zhan Hongxiu arrived on a silver, void-attributed great demon and gave Fang Qing the records she had gathered about the ancient patriarch.
• Fang Qing used the Dao-Born Pearl to observe Zhan Hongxiu discovering a fragmentary page attributed to Profound Heaven Divine Venerable, which ended with the words “Only one scholar is lacking?”

Fang Qing investigated the Profound Heaven Divine Venerable’s regret over a missing Earth Virtue treasure while supporting Zhan Hongxiu’s future cultivation. In the Breath-Nourishing Dao, Sangji attained the White Bone Wisdom King through the Yin Secondary Position, and Fang Qing used the resulting power to raise followers to temporary Buddha Son status.

• Fang Qing wondered whether an Earth Virtue treasure was sealed within the Primordial Beginning Heaven, then offered to support Zhan Hongxiu’s future ascent to the Immortal Realm.
• Sangji awakened the Eight Cold Forest Buddha Lands and manifested yin and yang bodies as he proved the Yin Secondary Position.
• Invincible Duzi ordered the temple scriptures revised to honor the Lord of the Charnel Forest as a dual-bodied deity.
• Fang Qing sensed Sangji’s Golden Core-level soul, took control of the Yin-Yang Secondary Body, and realized its Golden Seat could extend his Yin Divine Ability across the world.
• Fang Qing granted temporary Buddha Son power to Invincible Duzi and Xu Hei, who each felt their strength rise.

The battle spread across the Southern Border as envoys and Buddha Children fought, while Fang Qing used his newfound Golden Core-level power to watch the clashes. Grand Yellow Heaven began to undergo a dramatic change, becoming the first battlefield to show a result.

• The Yuan Cancer Envoy announced the arrival of a Dao-transformed wolf beast as Xu Hei confronted Corpse Yin Formless and joined the fight beyond Grand Yellow Heaven.
• The Calamity Hound Attendant Deity attacked Great Black Heaven Temple, killing Dharma King Zengmie and devastating the temple.
• The Encampment Fire Buddha Child fought the Calamity Hound Attendant Deity until Invincible Buddha Child arrived and joined the battle, drawing the deity into a Dharma realm.
• Fang Qing used his heightened perception to watch both battles and recognized that Golden Core True Lords were treating the deaths of envoys and Buddha Children as a means to open the Grotto-Heavens.
• Fang Qing sensed a major disturbance at Grand Yellow Heaven, where Kui Wood burned and two vortexes formed as heavenly spirit-light poured down and altered the spiritual mechanisms.