Recaps

Lu Qing learned that Elder Yue had tampered with the Blood-Transforming Formation and connected the incident to missing disciples, a Blood Demon, and a dangerous divination. After hearing that Yue Youya had been sentenced to Heart-Questioning Cliff, Lu Qing avoided the confiscated goods and remained at Spirit Leaf Island.

• Lu Qing examined his Providence and saw pale blue Providence at its center.
• White Crane Boy contacted Lu Qing with a Radiant Circle Talisman and showed him Elder Yue's cultivation ground, where disciples were taking inventory after the Demonic Path affair.
• White Crane Boy told Lu Qing that Elder Yue had meddled with the Blood-Transforming Formation, and Lu Qing realized the missing disciples and the Blood Demon were connected.
• White Crane Boy explained that Yue Youya, Yue Jing's elder brother, had voluntarily accepted five hundred years at Heart-Questioning Cliff.
• Lu Qing declined White Crane Boy's offer to find him anything among the confiscated goods, ended the call, and stood by the shore of Spirit Leaf Island.

Lu Qing advanced his Aura Observation Art and used his understanding of wind, rain, and Providence to create a formation that could protect his Providence. The formation took shape and sank into his Providence, though its rank and effects remained unknown.

• Lu Qing reached major mastery in the Evergreen Qi Observation Art and fully integrated the Second Insight into his cultivation.
• Lu Qing used Call the Wind and Summon the Rain, observing how its rain moved and washed away traces across the sea and Spirit Leaf Island.
• Lu Qing realized he could use a formation to simulate a layer of Providence, causing schemes against him to fall into it first.
• Lu Qing formed a rough, imperceptible Providence protection formation and placed it into his own Providence.

Lu Qing advanced his Formation Dao by creating and operating a formation of his own. At the Outer Academy, Elder Yue died after confronting the consequences of his pursuit of Longevity, while Zhou Yaoming and Liu Changquan discussed Lu Qing’s future.

• Lu Qing used Call the Wind and Summon the Rain to set up his own formation, gaining insight as trapping, killing, and sealing formations formed around him.
• On the White Jade Platform, Elder Yue asked about the Yue Clan and declared that he had destroyed it while pursuing Longevity.
• Liu Changquan presented the head of a ten-thousand-year-old cultivator whose pursuit of Longevity had left him trapped and decrepit.
• Elder Yue acknowledged the terror of life and death before dying, as Zhou Yaoming watched in silence.
• After leaving the platform, Zhou Yaoming and Liu Changquan discussed the incident and Lu Qing’s aptitude, with Liu worrying about what awaited him when he entered that place.

Liu Changquan visited Lu Qing to test his formation practice and explain the Heaven-and-Earth-severing formation. After Liu Changquan demonstrated how Heaven and Earth could be gathered into an inch of space, Lu Qing gained a profound new insight and was told to attend his lesson in three days.

• Liu Changquan arrived at Lu Qing’s cave abode and asked whether the formations Lu Qing had cast were ones he had seen before.
• Lu Qing admitted he was struggling to understand how the Absolute Heaven and Earth formation could sever Heaven and Earth when its workings seemed to lack their presence.
• Liu Changquan demonstrated the formation by gathering the aura of Heaven and Earth into his palm, showing Lu Qing a world contained within an inch of space.
• Lu Qing comprehended the formation’s scope and felt an insight similar to his past comprehension of the Great Dao.
• Liu Changquan invited Lu Qing to his lesson at the Martial Arts Plaza in three days and departed.

After emerging from seclusion, Lu Qing collected news about his spirit-plant trade and attended Liu Changquan’s formation lecture. Immersing himself in the formation’s principles, he broke through to the Nine Realms of the Purple Mansion and formed an incomplete Absolute Heaven and Earth.

• Lu Qing learned that Li Xiaocheng had completed his spirit-plant transaction and agreed to continue trading plants from the Southern Sea.
• Lu Qing went to the Martial Arts Hall and listened as Liu Changquan introduced the fundamentals of formations.
• Lu Qing studied the formation visualization diagram and connected its shifting formation eyes to his Absolute Heaven and Earth formation.
• Lu Qing’s spiritual sea stirred, and a drop of spiritual liquid fell as he broke through to the Nine Realms of the Purple Mansion.
• Lu Qing found that his Absolute Heaven and Earth formation had taken shape, though it was not yet vast enough to draw on the surrounding spiritual qi.

Lu Qing completed his breakthrough into the ninth realm of the Purple Palace and observed the sect clearing treasures from its floating island. As unrest over the Yue Clan spread beyond the mountain gate, the chapter left the sect settling down while outsiders reacted to the clan’s collapse.

• Elder Liu taught Lu Qing that the essence of formations was change and warned him to avoid anyone claiming to teach the Great Dao.
• Lu Qing reviewed the Heaven-and-Earth Severing Formation and decided it would protect him during his coming breakthrough.
• Lu Qing entered the ninth realm of the Purple Palace and sensed changes throughout his body, soul, and dantian.
• Lu Qing saw White Crane Boy secretly stash treasures from the floating island, while the boy insisted the items were payment for its work.
• Several days later, the mountain gate’s unrest subsided as outsiders discussed the Yue Clan’s collapse.

As news of the Yue Clan’s fall spread, cultivators across the Profound Heaven Domain sensed a new era approaching. Lu Qing observed the stars shifting and wondered what great event was beginning to unfold.

• A sect master reflected on the Yue Clan’s destruction while his disciple called its downfall deserved.
• Zhu Longxiang recalled the Profound Heaven Dao Academy and reaffirmed his loyalty to the Heavenly Mountain Sect despite his master’s apology.
• Wind and Clouds welcomed a fiery streak in the sky as a chance for another fight.
• A youth traveling from Nether Province heard of the Yue Clan’s fall and felt his choice had been right.
• Song Wen told White Crane that a thousand-year great age was about to begin in the Profound Heaven Domain.
• Lu Qing used the Aura Observation Art to see the stars begin to move and suspected that a major event was approaching.

Lu Qing reflected on the unavoidable Golden Core tribulation and stopped trying to foresee its details, then resumed cultivation. After another month, he collected spirit stones and sold fresh Dragonheart Fruit before visiting Myriad Dragon Lake, where memories of the four-season rain and mountain came back to him.

• Lu Qing considered the hidden dangers surrounding his Golden Core tribulation, but realized that he could not peer into its nature while intending to form a Golden Core.
• Lu Qing set aside his thoughts and devoted himself to cultivation and refinement for another month.
• Lu Qing visited the Spirit Plant Academy and withdrew spirit stones from Li Xiaocheng.
• Lu Qing gave Li Xiaocheng fresh Dragonheart Fruit, and Li Xiaocheng agreed to handle the sale as before.
• Lu Qing visited Myriad Dragon Lake, watched the disciples fishing, and remembered the four-season rain and mountain.

Lu Qing rejected the time-bearing spirit rain’s temptation to hand him insight into the Great Dao of Time, while discovering that his Timekeeping Spell could predict nearby rain. After several days of cultivation on Spirit Leaf Island, White Crane Boy brought him a pile of treasures, but Lu Qing refused them and welcomed it to share tea instead.

• Lu Qing dispersed the spirit rain’s time aura and recognized that resisting its temptation had brought him into a tribulation involving the monkey mind and horse will.
• Lu Qing found that his Timekeeping Spell could predict rain over Myriad Dragon Lake and how long it would last.
• Lu Qing continued cultivating and tending Spirit Plants on Spirit Leaf Island for several days.
• White Crane Boy brought Lu Qing a pile of high-grade artifacts, spirit medicines, and pills as gifts.
• Lu Qing refused the treasures, explaining that friends did not need gifts to maintain their relationship, and offered White Crane Boy tea instead.
• White Crane Boy accepted Lu Qing’s explanation and eagerly drank the tea.

White Crane Boy visited Lu Qing, shared his tricks, and left him spiritual plant seeds before returning to the mountain gates. There, White Crane and Song Wen persuaded him to cultivate harder as the changing stars heralded a thousand-year grand age.

• White Crane Boy demonstrated how he could steal a pill unnoticed and told Lu Qing about his experiences on the floating island.
• White Crane Boy promised to bring Lu Qing fish from the East Sea and left him a bag of spiritual plant seeds before flying away.
• White Crane urged his younger brother to cultivate beyond Foundation Establishment, but White Crane Boy insisted that five hundred years was plenty of time.
• Song Wen reminded White Crane Boy that his death would grieve his elder brother and friends, prompting him to vow to cultivate an extra hour each day and reach Purple Palace.
• White Crane and Song Wen discussed the changing stars and the approaching grand age, when their sects' young talents would compete.

Lu Qing prepared for his impending tribulation by acquiring the high-grade defensive artifact Five-Colored Cloud Gauze and refining his cultivation to completion. When he finally set out, he sensed his tribulation drawing near and recognized that his bloodline would determine which tribulation came first.

• Song Wen and White Crane discussed the Outer Academy's lack of powerful chief seats and hoped its young disciples would grow stronger.
• Lu Qing sensed upheaval gathering in the world and exchanged spirit plants and contribution points for Five-Colored Cloud Gauze.
• Lu Qing obtained and refined the artifact, which could conceal itself, aid cultivation, and gather Primordial Qi.
• After several more months, Lu Qing reached the complete state of the Nine Realms of the Purple Mansion and felt his tribulation approaching.
• Lu Qing checked the divination signs, set out northwest toward the vicinity of the Grand Heaven Dao Sect, and sensed that his bloodline had revealed which tribulation would come first.

Lu Qing tracked a spiritual prompting to Little Peach Mountain, where he wiped out the bandits who had occupied it and uncovered the remains of one of his parents. After burying the deceased and offering incense, he saw the Cause and Effect tied to him grow fainter and grayish-white Providence regain the upper hand.

• Little Peach Stronghold's chief led his bandits in robbing an escort convoy after deciding they would flee south afterward.
• Lu Qing killed everyone in Little Peach Stronghold and learned they had settled on the mountain and disturbed graves there.
• Lu Qing sensed a connection to the mountain, found one of his parents' skeletons in a pond, and buried the remains beneath a tombstone.
• Lu Qing bought incense and candles in a nearby town, honored the grave, and saw no Ghosts clinging to obsession.
• After the incense smoke vanished, Lu Qing noticed his Cause and Effect had grown more transparent and grayish-white Providence had gained the upper hand.

Lu Qing followed a spiritual resonance to find his remaining relative, Old Liu, and quietly shared a bowl of wontons with him. After attending the infant’s hundred-day celebration, Lu Qing left behind a wooden carving bearing a blessing, while Old Liu’s family remarked that he resembled the younger son who had disappeared.

• Lu Qing followed the resonance to a county town and found Old Liu running a wonton stall after years of famine and hardship.
• Lu Qing told Old Liu he came from Crouching Dragon Township, and Old Liu spoke of his younger son who had disappeared there.
• Old Liu asked whether his younger son would live well in his next life, and Lu Qing assured him that he would.
• Old Liu invited Lu Qing to the infant’s hundred-day celebration, where Lu Qing gave the child a wooden carving inscribed with a blessing.
• After the guests left, Old Liu’s eldest son remarked that Lu Qing resembled his missing younger brother.

Lu Qing settled the Cause and Effect tied to his parents and faced the final mortal tribulation, which stirred conflicting thoughts within his Spirit Platform. He recognized his Restless Mind and prepared to debate the versions of himself before crossing the tribulation.

• Lu Qing drank with Old Liu, whose memories recalled his parents’ farewell words and his own childhood.
• Lu Qing entered the house-guarding stone’s remnant thought and discovered that Old Liu and his son had both died; he settled his parents’ Cause and Effect.
• Lu Qing sensed the remaining deadly Cause and Effect and gathered the final thread of Tribulation Qi as he surveyed the troubled Liang Kingdom.
• Conflicting versions of Lu Qing urged him to pacify the kingdom or trigger the Heavenly Tribulation, while Lu Qing used his Heart Sword to quiet them.
• Lu Qing decided that crossing the Tribulation required a debate, and one refined version of himself stepped forward to accept.

Lu Qing debated a refined version of himself over whether his confidence and path depended on Fortune Source and longevity, and reaffirmed that his original heart of steadiness came first. The refined self accepted Lu Qing’s reasoning and vanished, as another self appeared for the next debate.

• A refined Lu Qing urged Lu Qing to rely on Fortune Source and longevity and stir up trouble in the mortal world.
• Lu Qing challenged the refined self to consider how he would act if those advantages disappeared, then questioned whether they truly belonged to his original heart.
• Lu Qing recalled that his commitment to steadiness had begun during the three days before Fortune Source and longevity came into his life.
• Lu Qing argued that treating Fortune Source as part of himself could lead him to abandon his original heart and Dao.
• The refined Lu Qing conceded, saluted Lu Qing, and vanished; another self appeared.

Lu Qing befriended the freedom-seeking version of himself and cleared away part of the Restless Mind Tribulation. He then faced a battle-hungry self, while a smiling, suspicious self remained to confront him.

• Purple-clad Lu Qing shared wine with Lu Qing and described his pursuit of freedom.
• Lu Qing declined to walk the same Dao but called Purple-clad Lu Qing his Dao companion and friend.
• Purple-clad Lu Qing laughed, dispersed the other versions of Lu Qing, and eased the tribulation aura around Lu Qing.
• Lu Qing faced the brawny self, who attacked him with a crimson battle halberd, and the two fought without holding back.
• The brawny self and Lu Qing jointly obliterated the gentle self's illusory body, but the gentle self re-formed and addressed Lu Qing as the original self.

Lu Qing defeated the Reckless Brute and the Thought of Genius Arrogance, then understood how his choices had shaped his path. He emerged from seclusion and erased the Mortal World Karma surrounding him, leaving him ready to seek Primordial Qi.

• Lu Qing defeated the Reckless Brute and the Gentle Youth, who revealed himself as the Thought of Genius Arrogance and explained the path he represented.
• Lu Qing acknowledged that he had once considered the Heaven's Prodigy Path but had chosen against it, then dismissed both inner selves.
• Lu Qing recognized the purpose of his Golden Core Tribulation and saw that overcoming its trials would bring his Golden Core toward flawless completeness.
• After seven days in seclusion, Lu Qing sensed that a rebel army had reached the walls of the Liang Kingdom and broke the aura shielding its imperial clan.
• Lu Qing's understanding of cause and effect shattered the Mortal World Karma around him, and he set his sights on seeking Primordial Qi.

Lu Qing followed his senses into Northern Province while searching for a strand of qi connected to his Golden Core opportunity. At a market near Azure Ridge Volcano, he learned that Phoenix Gate was recruiting cultivators to enter the mountain and decided to seek more information there.

• Lu Qing left the fallen capital of the Liang Kingdom and traveled northwest toward Northern Province.
• After reaching a border market, Lu Qing found that his old map did not show the terrain inside Azure Ridge Volcano.
• A local cultivator told Lu Qing that Phoenix Gate held the best maps of the volcano and was recruiting people to explore it.
• A Phoenix Gate disciple invited Lu Qing to join their group, but Lu Qing refused and went to listen for local information at a tea stall.

Lu Qing learned why Phoenix Gate was hiring cultivators to capture a formidable White Phoenix and began to suspect that Azure Ridge Volcano’s depths might hold what he needed for his impending tribulation. He sought intelligence from Listening Wind Tower, where an attendant began quoting a price for information about the volcano.

• Lu Qing reviewed the history of Azure Ridge Mountain and learned that Phoenix Gate had spent a month recruiting cultivators to lure in a powerful White Phoenix.
• Lu Qing reflected on the Dao heart and the Primordial Qi he needed to form the foundation of a Golden Core.
• Lu Qing overheard cultivators agree that they would not pursue the White Phoenix into Azure Ridge Volcano’s depths.
• Lu Qing decided that the volcano might be worth investigating because his coming tribulation made the risk necessary.
• Lu Qing entered Listening Wind Tower and asked for all intelligence about Azure Ridge Volcano.
• A man behind the mirror began quoting Lu Qing a price for information, including news from the volcano’s depths.

Lu Qing investigated reports of Azure Ridge Volcano’s mind-bending illusions and learned that every cultivator who entered during an expedition died three months later. Drawn toward the volcano, he resolved to explore its outskirts, while Tang Ying led Phoenix Gate’s expedition to capture the White Phoenix.

• Lu Qing traded information at Listening Wind Tower, and its keeper suspected he was a Golden Core cultivator after he noticed a flaw in the formation.
• Lu Qing read records of past expeditions into Azure Ridge Volcano, where cultivators experienced conflicting illusions and all later died within three months.
• Lu Qing decided to investigate the volcano’s outskirts despite the danger, relying on the Academy Head’s divination and his own abilities.
• Tang Ying led Phoenix Gate’s group toward the mountain range to find and capture the White Phoenix, sending a vanguard ahead to scout.

At Phoenix Gate, Wu Yong joined forces with an evil cultivator to summon the White Phoenix and restore the sect, while the outsiders he had invited learned that a Purple Mansion cultivator had died of old age in Azure Ridge Volcano. Lu Qing entered the volcano and saw a distant fireworks signal, unaware of the danger gathering there.

• Cultivators invited by Wu Yong discussed Phoenix Gate’s decline and recalled a Purple Mansion cultivator who had aged to death inside Azure Ridge Volcano.
• Wu Yong revealed his fanatical allegiance to the Undying God and attacked the invited cultivators after they began to retreat.
• An evil cultivator killed one of the Purple Mansion cultivators and devoured his soul to replenish his lifespan, then claimed the fleeing people as prey.
• Wu Yong agreed to let the evil cultivator hunt the escapees while he continued with the phoenix-summoning plan.
• Lu Qing entered Azure Ridge Volcano, examined its unusual terrain and spirit trees, and spotted a fireworks signal in the distance.

Lu Qing used the Five-Colored Cloud Gauze to search the strange, lifeless land for Primordial Qi while evil cultivators slaughtered those trapped at Azure Ridge Volcano. He finally found a Treasure Herb by a misty lake, and its resonance confirmed it was his target.

• Lu Qing sensed that the mountain lacked earth veins and sent out cloud qi from the Five-Colored Cloud Gauze to locate the source of the strange resonance.
• Evil cultivators hunted the sealed cultivators at Azure Ridge Volcano, while Tang Ying feared Phoenix Gate would be destroyed and Wu Yong declared it would be reborn under his hand.
• Young Master Jiu Yuan learned that the Holy Maiden and Incense Master Tan were waiting for him, then attacked the fleeing cultivators.
• Lu Qing followed the cloud qi into a lush forest and found a Treasure Herb growing beside a mist-shrouded lake.
• Lu Qing felt the resonance in his heart surge as he recognized the Treasure Herb as the Primordial Qi he had been seeking.

Lu Qing obtained the Treasure Herb’s Primordial Qi and began refining it during a massive Golden Core Tribulation near Azure Ridge Volcano. As lightning battered him and strengthened his defenses, cultivators across Northern Province watched, while the chapter left his Core Formation still underway.

• Lu Qing sensed the Treasure Herb’s intertwined Primordial Qi, protected himself with artifacts, and drew it from the water.
• Lu Qing hurried to a mountaintop, established a formation, and absorbed the Primordial Qi into his dantian.
• Lu Qing’s Golden Core Tribulation engulfed the area around Azure Ridge Volcano in a vast sea of lightning.
• Cultivators and Golden Core patriarchs across Northern Province watched the tribulation and speculated about the unknown cultivator crossing it.
• Lu Qing focused on Core Formation as lightning transformed his body and Divine Soul, repeatedly shattering and renewing the golden light around him.
• The heavenly lightning strengthened Lu Qing’s formation as the tribulation continued.

Lu Qing endured the Lightning and Heart Tribulations as ancient genius imprints tested his cultivation, and he overcame their techniques by invoking formations and Water Essence. Outside the tribulation, a White Crane sensed evil nearby as Incense Master Tan's forces moved to kill the person undergoing tribulation.

• Incense Master Tan ordered the red-robed Holy Maiden and Young Master Jiu Yuan to attack the tribulation site, giving the Holy Maiden a Great Demon Unrestrained Talisman.
• Incense Master Tan urged his followers to destroy Phoenix Gate's Earth Vein source and sever the passage between the two regions.
• Lu Qing faced humanoid Lightning Tribulation manifestations that wielded the techniques and phenomena of ancient peerless cultivators.
• Lu Qing countered the manifestations with formations and divine abilities, then called forth Water Essence as their phenomena gave way to Dao aura.
• An old man and a massive White Crane observed Lu Qing's Golden Core phenomena, and the White Crane sensed evil aura nearby.

Lu Qing completed his lightning tribulation and formed a Golden Core as the Red-Robed Saintess and Young Master Jiu Yuan tried to attack him. White Crane intervened against the evil cultivators, while Lu Qing examined the Golden Core shining within his Purple Mansion Realm.

• The Red-Robed Saintess and Young Master Jiu Yuan tried to force their way through the thunder sea to sabotage Lu Qing’s tribulation, but their talisman could not break through.
• Young Master Jiu Yuan hurled a fleeing disciple toward the thunder sea to power the talisman, but another disciple warned that Lu Qing had already finished his tribulation.
• Lu Qing’s divine gaze killed the evil cultivators as they fled, and the Red-Robed Saintess’s escape techniques failed to save her from White Crane, who swallowed her shadow.
• White Crane sensed Incense Master Tan and went to deal with the remaining evil cultivators.
• Lu Qing condensed the thunder sea and spiritual power in his dantian into a Golden Core, which healed his injuries and illuminated his Purple Mansion Realm.