Chapter Summaries

Su Shi'er arrived at Night Demon Cliff as Night Demon Cloud City prepared to open and discovered Tan Fengchen, You Ruo, and Duanmu Fenlong among the gathered cultivators. He tried to retreat without being recognized, while Duanmu Fenlong wondered whether his family had already acted against him.

• Su Shi'er reached Night Demon Cliff and was astonished by the thousands of cultivators gathered for Night Demon Cloud City.
• Su Shi'er spotted Tan Fengchen and You Ruo and suspected one of them had placed a divine sense Tracking Mark on him.
• Su Shi'er saw Duanmu Fenlong speaking with You Ruo and feared that his connections to Li Canghai and Hou Sihai had been exposed.
• Su Shi'er began backing away, but Duanmu Fenlong and You Ruo noticed him; his disguise kept them from recognizing him.
• You Ruo remarked that the nearby cultivator seemed interesting, while Duanmu Fenlong flattered her and privately wondered whether Eldest Brother had moved against Su Shi'er.

Su Shi'er kept his identity hidden as Night Demon Cloud City opened and entered through a Teleportation Array after waiting for the crowds to thin. He arrived on a small island plaza filled with cultivators and vendors, intending to find the Six Bends Spirit Ginseng and Spirit Nourishing Pill before You Ruo or Duanmu Fenlong could endanger him.

• You Ruo remained suspicious of Tan Fengchen's claim about Su Shi'er's location, while Tan Fengchen feared her patience was running out.
• Su Shi'er avoided drawing attention after Duanmu Fenlong and You Ruo glanced his way, then resolved to leave Night Demon Cloud City as soon as he found the two items he needed.
• Three cultivators announced that Night Demon Cloud City was open for a year and warned that private fighting inside was forbidden.
• Su Shi'er waited until the following morning before using his Night Demon Token to enter a Teleportation Array.
• Su Shi'er arrived on a small island where cultivators crowded the plaza, browsing and selling goods.

Su Shi'er arrived in Night Demon Cloud City, learned how its islands and guide services worked, and questioned a guide about the value of Gathering Yuan Pills. The guide explained the local currency system, while Su Shi'er began considering an idea involving her.

• Su Shi'er found that Night Demon Cloud City consisted of many naturally formed islands protected by interwoven formations, with Teleportation Arrays linking them.
• Ning Caiyun approached Su Shi'er and offered to guide him around the city, explaining that guides ran errands, gathered information, and searched for resources.
• Su Shi'er noticed other guides approaching newly arrived cultivators and learned that guides received payment from the cultivators who hired them.
• Ning Caiyun said she charged three mid-grade Gathering Yuan Pills per day, prompting Su Shi'er to ask why she wanted pills used by Foundation Establishment cultivators.
• Ning Caiyun explained that Gathering Yuan Pills served as common currency in Muyun Prefecture and described their exchange rates against Spirit Stones.
• After hearing that top-grade Gathering Yuan Pills were especially valuable, Su Shi'er examined Ning Caiyun and began forming a bold idea.

Su Shi'er recruited Ning Caiyun to exchange his high-grade Gathering Yuan Pills for lower-grade pills, hoping to refine them into greater wealth without attracting attention. Ning Caiyun warned that private trades violated Night Demon Cloud City's rules and refused to proceed without using a Night Demon Token.

• Su Shi'er considered exploiting the Heaven and Earth Furnace to upgrade a large supply of low-grade Gathering Yuan Pills and asked Ning Caiyun about her background and Night Demon Cloud City.
• Ning Caiyun introduced herself as a rogue cultivator and explained the city's eighteen islands and their token-based trading areas.
• Su Shi'er gave Ning Caiyun a pouch containing a thousand high-grade Gathering Yuan Pills and asked her to exchange them for mid-grade or low-grade pills.
• Ning Caiyun mistook the pills for payment to buy her, but Su Shi'er clarified that he wanted her to carry out a trading task.
• Su Shi'er refused to use his Night Demon Token for the exchange, and Ning Caiyun warned that private transactions were forbidden and could bring serious trouble.

Su Shi'er arranged for Ning Caiyun to trade his Gathering Yuan Pills through other guides and took precautions to keep her loyal. After she left, he noticed a white-haired cultivator watching him and recognized him as Hou Sihai.

• Su Shi'er offered Ning Caiyun a cut of the profits for exchanging his Gathering Yuan Pills and buying discarded pills.
• Ning Caiyun agreed, swallowed Su Shi'er's poison pill, and exchanged communication talismans with him.
• Ning Caiyun asked to receive her reward after leaving Night Demon Cloud City, and Su Shi'er also asked her to look for rare herbs and Spirit Nourishing Pills.
• Su Shi'er noticed a white-haired late Foundation Establishment cultivator watching him in the plaza.
• The old man approached Su Shi'er, who recognized his voice as Hou Sihai's.

Su Shi'er met Hou Sihai in disguise and learned that Hou had failed to break the seal but had altered his puppet body to enter Night Demon Cloud City. Hou asked to borrow Su Shi'er's Lightning Attribute Cultivation Method in exchange for a Fire Barbarian Flower, then took him to Trading Grounds Number Fifteen to seek it.

• Hou Sihai recognized Su Shi'er through his disguise, and Su Shi'er cautiously confirmed his identity.
• Hou Sihai explained that he had not broken the seal and that his attempt to break the Five Elements Eight Trigrams Formation had exposed another layer of killing intent.
• Su Shi'er promised to help break the formation in twenty years, while Hou Sihai asked to borrow his Lightning Attribute Cultivation Method.
• Hou Sihai revealed that he was seeking a Fire Barbarian Flower and hurried Su Shi'er to the Teleportation Array.
• Hou Sihai and Su Shi'er traveled to Trading Grounds Number Fifteen, a larger and busier island market.

Su Shi'er and Hou Sihai explored Night Demon Cloud City’s astonishing outer market as Hou Sihai explained that a Fire Barbarian Flower could produce the legendary Southern Bright Leaving Fire. They reached a stall selling a fiery stone, where Su Shi'er sensed the apparently low-level owner was hiding his cultivation and struggling to suppress powerful lightning within his body.

• Su Shi'er was astonished by the rare spirit herbs and formation materials for sale in Night Demon Cloud City's outer district, and Hou Sihai remarked that its higher-tier market might hold resources for Nascent Soul cultivators.
• Hou Sihai told Su Shi'er that a mature Fire Barbarian Flower could give birth to Southern Bright Leaving Fire, a legendary flame whose growth could help break the metal seal on Hou Sihai's true body.
• Hou Sihai hurried Su Shi'er to a remote stall, explaining that the flame's presence there was due to someone failing to recognize a treasure.
• Su Shi'er saw a Bamboo Hat-wearing stall owner selling a fist-sized fiery-red stone and sensed that the man's displayed mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation was disguised.
• Su Shi'er sensed powerful lightning rampaging through the stall owner's body and concluded that he was seeking a Lightning Attribute Cultivation Method to control it.
• Su Shi'er wondered why the supposed Fire Barbarian Flower looked like fire-attribute ironstone, just before an impatient voice sounded beside him.

Zhu Wensheng tried to buy a Fire Barbarian Flower seed with pills and then threatened the stallholder when he refused. Hou Sihai brought Su Shi’er forward to trade for it, leaving Zhu Wensheng challenged over whether he had the required Lightning Attribute Cultivation Method.

• Zhu Wensheng offered the stallholder fifty thousand mid-grade Gathering Yuan Pills for the fiery-red stone, but the stallholder demanded a top-tier Lightning Attribute Cultivation Method instead.
• Su Shi’er asked Hou Sihai about the Phantom Star Sect and learned that it was the leading power among Muyun Prefecture’s five major factions; he wondered whether it was connected to the Heavenly Evolution Phantom Star Sect Shen Miaoyin had mentioned.
• Hou Sihai identified the stone as a Fire Barbarian Flower seed and urged Su Shi’er to prepare a Lightning Attribute Cultivation Method to obtain it.
• Zhu Wensheng threatened the stallholder after realizing he lacked a suitable Lightning Attribute Cultivation Method.
• Hou Sihai brought Su Shi’er to the stall and challenged Zhu Wensheng, asking whether he had the Lightning Attribute Cultivation Method the stallholder wanted.

Su Shi'er traded the Five Thunders Orthodox Method for a Fire Barbarian Flower seed and a powerful Defense Talisman, despite Zhu Wensheng's attempts to interfere. Zhu Wensheng then revealed the seed could nurture the legendary Southern Bright Leaving Fire, stirring an uproar among the onlookers.

• Zhu Wensheng mocked Su Shi'er and Hou Sihai, while Hou Sihai angrily challenged him and urged Su Shi'er to complete the trade quickly.
• Su Shi'er inspected the Fire Barbarian Flower seed and decided to trust Hou Sihai, then handed the stall owner the bamboo tube containing the Five Thunders Orthodox Method.
• The stall owner accepted the cultivation method and gave Su Shi'er the seed along with a third-grade top-quality Defense Talisman as extra compensation.
• Zhu Wensheng told the stall owner that the seed could nurture Southern Bright Leaving Fire, prompting the crowd to erupt in surprise.

Su Shi'er and Hou Sihai watched a powerful stall owner reveal an aura that suggested he was a Nascent Soul Stage titan before he vanished from Night Demon Cloud City. As they searched the city’s outer islands, Su Shi'er questioned why Hou Sihai had intervened to save Phantom Star Sect disciple Zhu Wensheng, but Hou Sihai denied any ties to the sect.

• Su Shi'er handed the Fire Barbarian Flower seeds to Hou Sihai, drawing the crowd’s greedy attention toward him.
• The stall owner unleashed a terrifying aura, rebuked Zhu Wensheng, and departed through the city’s array formations into the Endless Sea.
• Zhu Wensheng blamed Su Shi'er and Hou Sihai for his humiliation and marked them with resentment.
• Su Shi'er and Hou Sihai teleported to the tenth island to search for the Six Bends Spirit Ginseng and Spirit Nourishing Pill.
• Su Shi'er suggested Hou Sihai had saved Zhu Wensheng from the stall owner, but Hou Sihai denied being connected to the Phantom Star Sect and rejected Su Shi'er's teasing guesses.

Su Shi'er and Hou Sihai discussed the injured Nascent Soul cultivator who had traded Fire Barbarian Flower seeds and the risks facing a Rogue Cultivator. They considered how to nurture the seeds, but Su Shi'er kept the Thousand Year Jade Marrow Liquid for other plans; just as they decided to set up a stall, a Communication Talisman arrived.

• Hou Sihai denied having any connection to the Phantom Star Sect and explained that the injured Nascent Soul cultivator was likely a Rogue Cultivator because his top-tier cultivation method belonged to no known Muyun Prefecture faction.
• A powerful aura swept over Night Demon Cloud City as a figure pursued the departing stall owner, confirming that another Nascent Soul cultivator had taken an interest in him.
• Hou Sihai said Thousand Year Jade Marrow Liquid could make the Fire Barbarian Flower seeds bloom within ten years and yield at least three top-grade third-grade Southern Bright Leaving Fire spirit flames.
• Hou Sihai revealed that he knew Su Shi'er had the liquid, and Su Shi'er admitted he was saving it for another use before promising to spare any remainder for the seeds.
• Hou Sihai suggested setting up a stall to solicit information, and a Communication Talisman arrived before Su Shi'er could find a place.

Su Shi'er learned from Ning Caiyun that Six Bends Spirit Ginseng was being traded on the twelfth island and hurried there to buy it for his plan to refine a Spirit Sculpting Pill. At the marketplace, he found a stall piled with rare spirit herbs, but its owner would trade them only for Earth Spirit Pills, antidotes, or specified ingredients, and a proud female cultivator approached.

• Su Shi'er received Ning Caiyun's message that Six Bends Spirit Ginseng was available at the twelfth island's marketplace.
• Hou Sihai recognized the ginseng as an ingredient for the Spirit Sculpting Pill, warned Su Shi'er that the pill was nearly legendary, and learned Su Shi'er intended to pursue it anyway.
• Su Shi'er and Hou Sihai teleported to the marketplace, where Su Shi'er headed directly into its depths.
• More than twenty Foundation Establishment cultivators gathered around a stall displaying ten rare Grade 3 Supreme Spirit Herbs, including Six Bends Spirit Ginseng.
• The crowd learned that the stall owner wanted Earth Spirit Pills, comparable antidotes, or ingredients listed in the Earth Spirit Pill formula, and a sapphire-blue-dressed female cultivator strode toward the stall.

A female cultivator used her Earth Spirit Grass to pressure a vendor into offering ten Grade 3 Supreme Spirit Herbs, then demanded his secret cultivation method as well. Just as she prepared to leave after he swallowed his anger, Su Shi'er and Hou Sihai arrived, and Su Shi'er announced they had Earth Spirit Pills.

• The female cultivator demanded ten Grade 3 Supreme Spirit Herbs for one Earth Spirit Grass, and the vendor agreed because he needed an Earth Spirit Pill to save his master.
• The female cultivator changed her terms and demanded the vendor's spirit-herb cultivation method along with all ten herbs.
• The vendor accepted the new demand rather than lose his chance to save his master, and the female cultivator started to leave.
• Su Shi'er and Hou Sihai arrived, and Su Shi'er announced that he had Earth Spirit Pills.
• The vendor hurriedly asked Su Shi'er if he really had Earth Spirit Pills.

Su Shi'er traded a mid-grade Earth Spirit Pill for the stall owner's ten Grade 3 Supreme Spirit Herbs, including the Six Bends Spirit Ginseng he wanted. A female cultivator challenged the deal and invoked her Phantom Star Sect connections to pressure the stall owner, leaving the dispute unresolved.

• Su Shi'er showed the stall owner a mid-grade Earth Spirit Pill, and the stall owner offered all ten Grade 3 Supreme Spirit Herbs in exchange.
• Su Shi'er accepted the trade and gathered the herbs after the stall owner returned the pill bottle to him.
• A female cultivator claimed she had already agreed to trade Earth Spirit Grass for the herbs and accused Su Shi'er of cutting in.
• Su Shi'er argued that her earlier deal was never completed and warned her not to threaten him.
• The female cultivator pressured the stall owner by invoking the Phantom Star Sect and threatening to involve an arbiter.

Su Shi'er stood up to Xi Xiaoyun when she tried to use her Phantom Star Sect status to control a trade, refusing to give up the Six Bends Spirit Ginseng. After Xi Xiaoyun left, the stall owner warned Su Shi'er of her powerful family and offered him a wooden box and a book.

• Su Shi'er challenged Xi Xiaoyun to summon Night Demon Cloud City's adjudicator and refused to give her his name.
• Xi Xiaoyun tried to trade one Earth Spirit Grass for three top-quality spiritual herbs, then demanded Su Shi'er's Six Bends Spirit Ginseng, but he refused both offers.
• Xi Xiaoyun identified herself before leaving and threatening Su Shi'er; the stall owner revealed she was the Phantom Star Sect sect master's daughter.
• The stall owner thanked Su Shi'er for helping him obtain the Earth Spirit Pill and warned him that Xi Xiaoyun would seek revenge.
• The stall owner gave Su Shi'er a wooden box and a book, leaving him puzzled about the items.

Su Shi'er accepted Spirit Herb Cultivation Insights and Zhongyuan Xutu Earth from Jiang Xueyan, then gave her a high-grade Earth Spirit Pill in return. After Jiang Xueyan left, a black-clad cultivator approached Su Shi'er to trade for his Mysterious Ice Flower.

• Jiang Xueyan thanked Su Shi'er for helping her obtain an Earth Spirit Pill and gave him a cultivation book and a box containing Zhongyuan Xutu Earth.
• Hou Sihai explained that Zhongyuan Xutu Earth could support a spirit field and accelerate the growth of spirit herbs, while Su Shi'er concealed his surprise at already possessing much more of it.
• Su Shi'er gave Jiang Xueyan another Earth Spirit Pill, and she discovered it was high-grade and thanked him before leaving.
• Su Shi'er realized Jiang Xueyan had been disguised as a man and then prepared to ask Hou Sihai about finding a Spirit Nourishing Pill.
• A black-clad cultivator asked Su Shi'er to trade for the Mysterious Ice Flower in his possession.

Su Shi'er traded a Mysterious Ice Flower for information that Spirit Nourishing Pills would soon be made at Treasure Pill Pavilion, then learned that accessing the shop required an Earth-grade Night Demon Token. Hou Sihai offered the resources to upgrade it in exchange for Su Shi'er becoming his disciple and completing a task, but Su Shi'er refused and continued dealing with the cultivators at the stall.

• Su Shi'er offered nine Grade 3 Supreme Spirit Herbs in exchange for Spirit Nourishing Pills, Thousand Year Ganoderma, or other suitable items.
• A black-clad cultivator traded information about Spirit Nourishing Pills and Grade 3 Dark Iron for a Mysterious Ice Flower, explaining that Treasure Pill Pavilion expected to produce the pills within a month.
• Su Shi'er asked for the pill formula, but the black-clad cultivator said Treasure Pill Pavilion controlled another key ingredient and was the main source of Spirit Nourishing Pills.
• Hou Sihai told Su Shi'er that entering Treasure Pill Pavilion required an Earth-grade Night Demon Token and offered his stored resources in exchange for Su Shi'er becoming his disciple and doing a task.
• Su Shi'er refused Hou Sihai's offer and turned back to the cultivators still watching the spirit herbs.

Su Shi'er traded a steady stream of cultivation resources for spiritual plants, array materials, and information while advancing his Night Demon Token and earning Hou Sihai's respect. After a month of dealings with Ning Caiyun, he paid her agreed reward and suddenly noticed something in the crowd.

• Su Shi'er opened his stall to trades and exchanged a Wick Grass for information on the Golden Pill Cultivators of the northern Demon Shadow Palace.
• Su Shi'er moved between trading grounds whenever his Night Demon Token advanced, while Hou Sihai grew impressed by his resources and began trading on his own.
• Ning Caiyun regularly exchanged Gathering Yuan Pills for Su Shi'er, bringing back nearly three million low-grade pills over the month.
• Su Shi'er calculated Ning Caiyun's reward as sixty thousand middle-grade Gathering Yuan Pills and gave her six thousand high-grade pills to hold until they left Night Demon Cloud City.
• As Su Shi'er prepared to continue speaking with Ning Caiyun, he turned toward the crowded side of the trading ground after noticing something.

Su Shi'er received an Earth-Grade Night Demon Token after a month of trading, giving him access to Night Demon Cloud City's central district so he could buy Spirit Nourishing Pills. Meanwhile, the Cloud Master and Elder Sun discussed how the city was gathering resources and intelligence for Dragon Lord's grand plan.

• A Night Demon Cloud City adjudicator approached Su Shi'er, alarming Ning Caiyun, but Su Shi'er calmed her and sent her away.
• The adjudicator gave Su Shi'er an Earth-Grade first-rank Night Demon Token in exchange for his Human-Grade ninth-rank token, granting him access to the outer and central districts.
• Ning Caiyun realized Su Shi'er had amassed enough wealth to qualify for the upgrade, then found his stall empty as he left for the Treasure Pill Pavilion to buy Spirit Nourishing Pills.
• The Cloud Master asked Elder Sun about the city's first month, and Elder Sun reported that 375 people had upgraded their tokens, including powerful cultivators from Muyun Prefecture.
• The Cloud Master ordered Elder Sun to gather tradable resources and copy what could not be traded, while avoiding conflict that might jeopardize Dragon Lord's plan.

Bamboo Hat investigated a mysterious Nascent Soul cultivator and the flow of superior-grade Gathering Yuan Pills, unaware that a Foundation Establishment cultivator was behind the pill trade. Meanwhile, Su Shi'er and Hou Sihai arrived at the fifth trading ground, where they saw Night Demon Cloud City's secluded cave dwellings and organized shops.

• Bamboo Hat learned that a badly wounded stranger had injured Wen Yuan, who returned injured after pursuing him and described his cultivation technique as unfamiliar.
• An old servant reported that guides had exchanged more than ten thousand superior-grade Gathering Yuan Pills for inferior-grade pills, and Bamboo Hat ordered an investigation into factions recruiting Rogue Cultivators.
• Bamboo Hat chose not to stop the exchanges and instead ordered Night Demon Cloud City to sell its inferior-grade pills in return for the superior-grade pills.
• Bamboo Hat resumed cultivating, unaware that the superior-grade pills had come from a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator.
• Su Shi'er met Hou Sihai and traveled through a Teleportation Array to the fifth trading ground, where Hou Sihai admired the rented cave dwellings and Su Shi'er assessed Night Demon Cloud City's influence and shops.