Chapter Summaries

Mo Cha defeated Xiao Qian in the opening duel, but the Dragon-Tiger Immortal Sect proved stronger overall and Zhao Lie later defeated Shi Jian. The chapter ended as Lei Yuan entered the arena, leaving the Dongting Immortal Sect to face the question of who could challenge him.

• Mo Cha defeated and humiliated Xiao Qian with his fire and earth techniques, earning a victory for the Dongting Immortal Sect.
• The Dragon-Tiger Immortal Sect elders recognized Mo Cha’s Mutual-Generation Triple Spiritual Root and noted that Ghost Elder had personally chosen him.
• Zhao Lie overpowered Shi Jian, shattered his shield, and won their duel for the Dragon-Tiger Immortal Sect.
• The remaining matches gave the Dragon-Tiger Immortal Sect more wins than the Dongting Immortal Sect, whose disciples struggled to recover from Xiao Qian’s loss.
• Lei Yuan entered the arena beneath a Thunder-Marked Azure Flood Dragon, and the crowd wondered who from the Dongting Immortal Sect could face him.

Jian Hanxin challenged Lei Yuan after Dongting Immortal Sect disciple Li Luan conceded, and he revealed the power of his lightning sword arts. He held his ground against Lei Yuan’s opening attacks, but Lei Yuan launched a giant lightning palm at him.

• Li Luan conceded without appearing, and Lei Yuan invited any Dongting Immortal Sect disciple to challenge him.
• Jian Hanxin stepped forward, and Pei Mo inferred that he had formed an Earth-Grade Golden Core with an awakened divine ability.
• Jian Hanxin drew Lan Tian’s growth-type soulbound spirit sword, Autumn Water, and blocked Lei Yuan’s lightning sphere with his Thunder Sword Art, Delusion-Breaking Slash.
• Jian Hanxin attacked with a swift barrage of metal-and-thunder sword strikes, but Lei Yuan stopped them with a Thunder-Pattern Light Shield.
• Lei Yuan counterattacked with Thunder Punishment, Suppress, sending a giant lightning palm crashing toward Jian Hanxin.

Jian Hanxin used his mutated Gold-Thunder Spirit Devourer to absorb Lei Yuan’s lightning attacks and overpower his defenses. Lei Yuan unleashed a terrifying pressure beyond the Golden Core Realm, leaving Jian Hanxin shocked and the duel poised to escalate.

• Jian Hanxin’s Gold-Thunder Spirit Devourer absorbed Lei Yuan’s thunder giant palm and strengthened him, drawing astonishment from the spectators.
• Lei Yuan filled the Duel Platform with multiplying lightning spears, wounding Jian Hanxin despite his ability to absorb their power.
• Jian Hanxin gathered the stolen lightning into a Gold-Thunder Vortex that shredded Lei Yuan’s Thunder-Pattern Light Shield and pierced his outfit.
• Jian Hanxin accelerated the vortex and struck Lei Yuan’s shoulder, enraging the Dragon-Tiger Immortal Sect’s foremost core disciple.
• Lei Yuan released overwhelming pressure and summoned the Thunder-Marked Azure Flood Dragon, destroying the vortex as Jian Hanxin realized Lei Yuan was not in the Golden Core Realm.

Lei Yuan revealed his Nascent Soul Realm cultivation during his duel with Jian Hanxin, forcing Ling Shuang to intervene and suppress him. Inside the Star Vault Palace, the sect elders revealed that his display was planned to provoke Dongting’s disciples and prepare them for the coming secret realm.

• Lei Yuan unleashed a Nascent Soul Dharma Aspect and a devastating lightning pillar against Jian Hanxin, but Ling Shuang blocked the attack and suppressed his power with Blood-Iron Peak’s formation.
• Lei Yuan claimed he had kept his cultivation at Perfected Golden Core Realm during the duel and challenged Ling Shuang to fight him, enraging disciples from both sects.
• Xu Changqing suspected the Grand Elder had allowed the confrontation to provoke Dongting’s disciples and strengthen the sect’s younger generation.
• Inside the Star Vault Palace, Zhao Tianxiong and Xuan Yan confirmed that Lei Yuan’s revelation was intended to provoke Dongting’s disciples, though Jian Hanxin had forced him to reveal his strength early.
• Xuan Yan announced that the Dragon-Tiger Immortal Sect would send Lei Yuan and Zhao Lie to the Nine Mountains Nine Bends Secret Realm, while Dongting would send Ling Shuang and choose another young cultivator.

After the duel, Xu Changqing and Zhao Chengdao suspected that Lei Yuan’s revealed Nascent Soul strength was part of a larger plan. Xu Changqing then learned that Dongting Immortal Sect would provide resources for Zhao Lie, and the chapter ended with Su Qinglan asking why Moon-Inviting Immortal Sect had been excluded from the duel.

• Xu Changqing returned to Red Maple Valley and agreed to visit Bei Qingtang at Azurewood Peak the next morning.
• Xu Changqing and Zhao Chengdao discussed Lei Yuan’s unexpected display of Nascent Soul strength and wondered why Star Vault Palace had not reacted.
• Bei Qingtang told Xu Changqing that the Spirit Fields and Azurewood Peak had to contribute resources, and Zhou Yan said the resources were meant for Zhao Lie.
• Xu Changqing inferred that the sects had arranged for Dongting Immortal Sect to help Zhao Lie break through to Nascent Soul.
• Zhou Yan brought Xu Changqing to meet Su Qinglan and Su Tiantian, where Su Qinglan asked why Moon-Inviting Immortal Sect had not been invited to the duel.

Su Qinglan tried to learn about the Nine Mountains Nine Bends Secret Realm from Xu Changqing, but he denied knowing anything and left after warning Zhou Yan about Su Tiantian’s lack of tact. Days later, Nü Tu brought word that the cave dwelling beneath Golden Light Cave was ready to investigate, leaving Xu Changqing eager to discover its connection to the Nether River and the Iron Boat.

• Su Qinglan told Xu Changqing that the Nine Mountains Nine Bends Secret Realm would open to young Nascent Soul cultivators and asked him to share what he knew, but he said his management meeting had never mentioned it.
• Su Tiantian invoked Zhou Yan to pressure Xu Changqing, and Zhou Yan rebuked her before escorting Xu Changqing out.
• Xu Changqing cautioned Zhou Yan that Su Tiantian could mishandle sect affairs, then visited Gu Qiao and saw that the Soul-Nurturing Grass had grown a second leaf.
• Several days later, Nü Tu arrived through the Portable Space’s Teleportation Array and told Xu Changqing that the entrance beneath Golden Light Cave had been fully explored.
• Nü Tu reported that an ancient, unfamiliar restriction surrounded the cave dwelling, and Xu Changqing prepared to investigate it with his clones.

Xu Changqing secured leave from Flower Elder after learning the Immortal Sect was tallying disciples in preparation for the Nine Mountains Nine Bends Secret Realm. He left Red Maple Valley for Southern Sky City to meet Nü Tu and Tai Bai, and discovered its famous Fragrance House was staffed entirely by cultivators.

• Xu Changqing finished arranging his duties in the Spirit Fields and asked Flower Elder for leave to travel for seven days to a month.
• Flower Elder told Xu Changqing that the Immortal Sect was recording disciples' ages and cultivation realms, likely in preparation for the Nine Mountains Nine Bends Secret Realm.
• Xu Changqing reported the information for Sun Shangxiang, Lin Feng, and Xu Linglong, then learned that young cultivators with strong combat experience were being summoned to a meeting.
• Xu Changqing told Ruo Qunshuang he was leaving and asked her to watch over the valley, Linglong, and the others.
• Xu Changqing departed the next morning on the Green Lotus Seat and traveled to Southern Sky City instead of Dongqing City.
• Xu Changqing explored prosperous Southern Sky City and learned that everyone at its well-known Fragrance House possessed cultivation.

Xu Changqing visited Fragrance House in Southern Sky City, leaving a false body behind while he traveled with Nü Tu to Golden Light Cave. There, he and Tai Bai prepared to explore Silver Light Cave, where the Nether River and iron ships appeared to originate.

• Xu Changqing paid twenty Mid-Grade Spirit Stones for Orchid Fragrance and spent time listening to Lan Xin play the qin and serve spirit tea.
• Xu Changqing created a false body at Fragrance House, entered the Portable Space, and teleported with Nü Tu to Cangyan Peak.
• Xu Changqing changed his appearance and aura, then flew with Nü Tu to Golden Light Cave to meet Tai Bai.
• Tai Bai explained that the Nether River and iron ships flowed out of Silver Light Cave, whose restrictions had prevented him from exploring further.
• Tai Bai led Xu Changqing and Nü Tu through Golden Light Cave, where Fire Spiritual Root Zhurong had been waiting by the connection between the cave abodes.

Xu Changqing and his incarnations broke through the three-layer restriction guarding Silver Light Cave and entered its dark interior. Zhurong recognized the force inside as Lunar Yin Force.

• Xu Changqing met Zhurong at the passage to Silver Light Cave, where Zhurong said he sensed something they needed inside.
• Nü Tu identified the restriction's Gold-Pattern, Wood-Pattern, and Water-Pattern layers and began breaking them with Earth Qi.
• Nü Tu broke the Gold-Pattern Restriction, then worked with Zhurong's fire aura to overcome the Wood-Pattern Restriction.
• Nü Tu exhausted the Water-Pattern Restriction after four hours, opening a gap for the group to enter Silver Light Cave.
• Xu Changqing used an Illumination Talisman to reveal the cavern's cracked black-stone floor, and Zhurong announced that he had sensed Lunar Yin Force.

Xu Changqing and his companions explored the Nether River, discovering a Ferry Boat and the Taiyin Hermit's records about the river, its dangers, and its treasures. They learned how to travel safely upstream and ended the chapter at a glowing pool beside a cushion made from Ten-Thousand-Year Soul-Nourishing Wood.

• Xu Changqing found a moored Iron Boat and read the Black Jade Stele's instructions for operating it and its Chronicle of Taiyin Spirit Control.
• Xu Changqing and Tai Bai learned from the Taiyin Hermit's records about Riverheart Isle, its treasures, the dangerous Darkunderworld Skeleton, and the safest time to travel the Nether River.
• Nü Tu recognized the Taiyin Hermit as someone known for finding nine underground apertures in the Heavenly Origin Realm and approaching a Dragon Vein.
• Zhurong called Xu Changqing, Nü Tu, and Tai Bai over after discovering a glowing pool beside a cushion woven from Ten-Thousand-Year Soul-Nourishing Wood.

Xu Changqing and his companions explored Silver Light Cave, examined its Soul-Nurturing Jade Pool, and tested whether spirit stones could lure Taiyin Beasts from the Nether River. They left Zhurong behind and found a wrecked Iron Boat by the river outside the cave, where the chapter ended with the distant darkness still unexplored.

• Nü Tu identified the pool as a Soul-Nurturing Jade Pool, and Xu Changqing found that the Spirit-Nurturing Meditation Mat improved the absorption of spiritual energy.
• Xu Changqing used spirit stones as bait in the Nether River and sensed wary Taiyin Beasts beneath the water, but none took the bait.
• Xu Changqing decided to stay one more day, while Zhurong remained to seek the Taiyin True Fire and Nü Tu planned to return on a full moon or new moon.
• Xu Changqing asked Tai Bai to lead him to the Nether River outside Silver Light Cave, and Zhurong stayed behind as Xu Changqing, Tai Bai, and Nü Tu retraced their path.
• Xu Changqing inspected a battered Iron Boat beside the river and found its runes and hull too damaged for use.

Xu Changqing and his companions tracked down five fugitives who had come to seize Golden Light Cave because of a Mystic Iron Token. They ambushed the group and trapped them in a valley, where Xu Changqing began overwhelming them with his cultivation arts.

• Xu Changqing agreed to help Tai Bai deal with the violent newcomers who had shown interest in Golden Light Cave, despite his reduced cultivation.
• Xu Changqing, Tai Bai, Nü Tu, and Zhurong found five fugitives from the Black Rust Dynasty in a valley where they had slaughtered a small cultivation sect.
• The fugitives revealed that they had robbed the Dynasty's imperial treasury and used one of its three Mystic Iron Tokens to locate Golden Light Cave.
• Zhurong attacked with a sea of fire, Tai Bai unleashed golden blades, and Nü Tu formed a Spirit-Locking Formation to trap the fugitives.
• Xu Changqing used the Return-to-Origin Art to turn the valley's weeds and trees into a vast forest, horrifying the scar-faced leader.

Xu Changqing defeated a group of treasure seekers, discovered their Mystic Iron Token pointed to Golden Light Cave, and returned to the Immortal Sect. Five years passed, and as his disciples grew and advanced in cultivation, Ruo Qunshuang prepared to attempt something that could extend her time with her family.

• Xu Changqing and his companions overwhelmed the scar-faced man's group, then found a Mystic Iron Token among their belongings that marked Golden Light Cave.
• Xu Changqing investigated the Nether River without finding a Nether Beast, then returned to Southern Sky City and told Lan Xin to keep playing the zither.
• Xu Changqing returned to the Immortal Sect and spent five years guiding his disciples and spending time with his family.
• Pei Mo attained an Earth-Grade Golden Core, while Hu Bugui attained a Human-Grade Golden Core and found a Dao companion.
• After five years, Ruo Qunshuang prepared to go to Water Immortal Peak, telling Xu Linglong that success would let her stay with her family longer.

Xu Changqing brought Ruo Qunshuang to Water Immortal Peak, where she faced Wu-Earth Turbid Lightning to complete her tribulation. She survived and attained an Earth-Grade Golden Core, awakening Divine Sense and a divine ability.

• Xu Changqing brought Ruo Qunshuang into Water Immortal Peak so she could undergo tribulation transcendence.
• Ruo Qunshuang prepared her protective treasures and used the Nine-Bend Tidebirth Art and Sea-Covering Seal to meet the Wu-Earth Turbid Lightning.
• The lightning dissolved Ruo Qunshuang's water defenses, shattered her Water-Pattern Shield, and consumed all three Body-Protecting Talismans.
• Ruo Qunshuang's spirit artifacts absorbed the remaining lightning, leaving her unharmed.
• Ruo Qunshuang attained an Earth-Grade Golden Core, advanced her Spiritual Sense into Divine Sense, and awakened a divine ability.
• Xu Changqing praised Ruo Qunshuang and noted that his preparations, including the Profound Origin Golden Light Talisman, had not been in vain.

Ruo Qunshuang broke through to the Golden Core Realm and returned to Red Maple Valley, where Xu Changqing hosted a celebration. That night, she reminded Xu Changqing of an invitation to visit the Nine-Bend Sect, leaving him wondering what she had planned.

• Ruo Qunshuang stabilized her Golden Core, awakened the Water-Eye Art, and celebrated her breakthrough with Xu Changqing and the gathered cultivators.
• Zhao Lie arrived at Water Immortal Peak and announced that he would attempt to break through to the Nascent Soul Realm there.
• Xu Changqing and Ruo Qunshuang returned to Red Maple Valley, where Linglong and the others welcomed them and Ruo Qunshuang explained her new divine ability.
• Xu Changqing held a banquet in Red Maple Valley for their friends and companions.
• That night, Ruo Qunshuang asked Xu Changqing whether he remembered her invitation from ten years earlier to visit the Nine-Bend Sect.

Ruo Qunshuang told Xu Changqing about the Nine-Bend Sect’s hidden treasure vault, and Xu Changqing promised to accompany her there someday. After Zhao Lie sought his help to join the Dongting Immortal Sect, Ruo Qunshuang revealed she was pregnant, leaving Linglong delighted that she would become a big sister.

• Ruo Qunshuang revealed that the Nine-Bend Sect’s treasure vault held resources and maps, and Xu Changqing promised to go with her to find it.
• Zhao Lie visited Red Maple Valley after reaching the Nascent Soul Realm and asked Xu Changqing to support his attempt to join the Dongting Immortal Sect as a true disciple.
• Xu Changqing agreed to help Zhao Lie, who then departed on the Black Altar Tiger.
• Two months later, Ruo Qunshuang told Xu Changqing that she was pregnant, and people across Red Maple Valley and the Spirit Fields came to offer congratulations.
• Linglong asked whether the baby would be a boy or a girl, then celebrated that she would no longer be the youngest and could become the big sister.

Ruo Qunshuang persuaded Xu Changqing to travel with her to the Nine-Bend Sect ruins while she was pregnant, hoping to recover the sect’s resources for their child. They descended into the Tainted Spirit Water, and Ruo Qunshuang’s Water-Eye Art guided them past dangers as they approached the ruined sect.

• Ruo Qunshuang urged Xu Changqing to visit the Nine-Bend Sect treasury before its resources were lost, and he agreed to go with her in secret.
• Xu Changqing prepared protective supplies, entrusted two disciples with guarding Red Maple Valley and Linglong, and left with Ruo Qunshuang.
• At the ruins, Ruo Qunshuang explained how the Tainted Spirit Water had flooded the Nine-Bend Sect and pointed out the treasury beneath Hidden Abyss Pavilion.
• Ruo Qunshuang used her Water-Eye Art to search the corrupted waters, but the Tainted Spirit Water obstructed her perception.
• Xu Changqing summoned Thunder-Gold Kui and followed Ruo Qunshuang’s guidance as they entered the water and avoided whirlpools and Water Fiends.
• The pair descended past the corrupted creatures and found the collapsed, corroded remains of Nine-Bend Sect buildings.

Xu Changqing and Ruo Qunshuang entered the Hidden Abyss Pavilion treasury, where they found a wealth of resources and two maps. The Underground Waters Map revealed how to fish for Nether Beasts in the Netherworld Frost Abyss, and Ruo Qunshuang recalled that the treasury might hold the required bait.

• Ruo Qunshuang guided Xu Changqing through the Tainted Spirit Water to the Hidden Abyss Pavilion treasury and used her identity to open its entrance.
• Xu Changqing and Ruo Qunshuang entered the treasury and found abundant spirit stones, materials, seeds, and ancient cultivation manuals.
• Ruo Qunshuang absorbed the extraordinary water surrounding a bronze box and handed Xu Changqing the two maps inside.
• Xu Changqing discovered that the Underground Waters Map described the Netherworld Frost Abyss, its treasures, and the Taiyin-attributed bait and fishing nodes needed to catch Nether Beasts.
• Ruo Qunshuang recalled that her father had mentioned Netherworld Frost Abyss Water Flea eggs and that some might be stored in the treasury.

Xu Changqing and Ruo Qunshuang found water flea eggs in the Nine-Bend Sect vault, took selected treasures, and repaired its defenses before returning to Red Maple Valley. At Silver Light Cave on the full moon, Xu Changqing’s clones revealed a second Mystic Iron Token and studied an Underground Waters Map as they prepared to fish at a Frost-Abyss Node.

• Ruo Qunshuang found the unusual clam shell, and Xu Changqing discovered three water flea eggs inside its cold jade box.
• Xu Changqing and Ruo Qunshuang took selected resources from the treasure vault, repaired its formation and restrictions, and left the rest in place.
• Xu Changqing and Ruo Qunshuang saw a procession bearing the Lifeless banner and suspected it might be connected to the Lifeless Insect Mother, but continued on to the Dongting Immortal Sect.
• Xu Changqing returned to Red Maple Valley, where he tended the Spirit Fields while Ruo Qunshuang nurtured her pregnancy.
• Zhurong gave Xu Changqing a second Mystic Iron Token from Wan Niang, which recorded a location in the Northern Domain.
• Xu Changqing showed Zhurong and Tai Bai the Underground Waters Map, and they began preparing to fish at the first Frost-Abyss Node.

Xu Changqing claimed the Taiyin Hermit's Ferry Boat and sailed with Tai Bai and Zhurong toward the first Frost-Abyss Node during a full moon. The Nether River became dangerously violent and swarmed with unrecorded Nether Fish, but the boat's defenses kept them safe.

• Xu Changqing replaced the Taiyin Hermit's faint imprint on the Ferry Boat with his own and learned its abilities.
• Xu Changqing loaded the boat with fifty High-Grade Spirit Stones, set the map to the first Frost-Abyss Node, and departed Silver Light Cave with Tai Bai and Zhurong.
• As they sailed farther into the Nether River on a full-moon night, the water surged, whirlpools formed, and the current swept debris through the submerged underground passage.
• Xu Changqing, Tai Bai, and Zhurong spotted Nether Beasts beneath the water and realized the old map did not record the barracuda-like Nether Fish.
• The Nether Fish gnawed at the Ferry Boat, but its Ringed Water-Suppressing Wave blasted them back beyond ten zhang without damaging the vessel.