Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Bian Chunchou and Chen Zui recover after the previous night’s battle, but Wen Xu-Xu remains unconscious far longer than expected.
• The Mysterious Physician, Lin Rujian, assures them that Wen Xu’s injuries are minor and that he is merely exhausted. Chen Zui tries to give Wen Xu medicine, but Lin takes control and sends the anxious disciples back to rest.
• Wen Xu’s prolonged unconsciousness is actually caused by an encounter within his Small Jade Bottle Secret Realm. Her Majesty Zhaoxia, the spirit of the Radiant Dawn Tower, has followed him into the secret realm and continues trying to persuade him to cultivate Buddhism.
• Zhaoxia gives Wen Xu a precious fifth-tier Fox Jade Grass, instantly easing the strain on his spiritual energy. She also asks him to take her out to see the mortal world once he recovers, and he agrees.
• After Zhaoxia eventually releases him, Wen Xu awakens and learns that his fellow disciples are safe. The arrival of Elder Zhao Qi and the sect reinforcements has greatly stabilized the situation.
• Zhao Qi reports the results of interrogating the two attackers from the previous night. They claim to have been hired by Wei Min, a member of Baigu City’s Wei Household, to kill the eyeless person Wen Xu had taken in. Because of the heavy rain and their unfamiliarity with the target, they mistakenly attacked Wen Xu instead.
• Wen Xu and Zhao Qi both suspect this explanation is incomplete. Zhao Qi concludes that the two attackers were likely only expendable scouts sent ahead by a larger force.

Character developments

• Wen Xu-Xu: Revealed to be more physically and mentally exhausted than he admits. Although he remains calm and polite, he recognizes that his actions the previous night were rash and that he could have been overwhelmed if more Golden Core cultivators had appeared. He also agrees to indulge Zhaoxia’s curiosity about the mortal world.
• Bian Chunchou: Shows deep concern for Wen Xu and recognizes that Wen Xu hides considerable emotional burdens beneath his composed exterior. His anxiety also reveals the strength of their friendship.
• Chen Zui: Demonstrates sincere loyalty by immediately worrying about Wen Xu and bringing him a healing pill.
• Lin Rujian: Acts as the practical authority in the recovery effort, humorously dealing with the disciples’ refusal to follow medical advice while protecting Wen Xu’s rest.
• Her Majesty Zhaoxia: Becomes more intrusive but also more caring. She continues to push Buddhism on Wen Xu, provides him with a valuable healing herb, and reveals her desire to experience the mortal world after centuries of isolation.
• Elder Zhao Qi: Remains stern and suspicious, but proves reliable and efficient by capturing and interrogating the attackers. His investigation suggests a broader conspiracy.

Significant themes

• Hidden exhaustion beneath strength: Wen Xu appears unshakable, but the chapter emphasizes that even strong people can become worn down by past experiences and present responsibilities.
• Fellowship and loyalty: Bian Chunchou and Chen Zui’s concern for Wen Xu highlights the mutual care among the disciples.
• Appearances versus reality: The assassins misidentify Wen Xu as their target, while their official story likely conceals the true motive behind the attack.
• Power and manipulation: The Wei Household may be using disposable agents, suggesting a larger political or personal plot.
• Humor amid danger: Medical arguments, Zhaoxia’s playful persistence, and Zhao Qi’s dry suspicion provide comic relief after the serious battle.

Important character interactions

• Bian Chunchou, Chen Zui, and Lin Rujian argue indirectly over Wen Xu’s treatment, with the physician forcing the worried disciples to rest.
• Wen Xu and Zhaoxia interact within the Small Jade Bottle Secret Realm; she pressures him toward Buddhism while helping heal him and asking him to show her the mortal world.
• Wen Xu reunites with Zhao Qi after awakening, thanking him for his assistance.
• Zhao Qi explains the attackers’ testimony, and his skeptical exchange with Wen Xu establishes that the assassination attempt probably extends beyond the two captured men.

Chapter Summary: “At the Door”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhao Qi arrives at Yonglu Mountain’s residence and quickly reconstructs the previous night’s events by interrogating the captured Golden Core assassins and questioning the younger disciples.
• He identifies three major suspicions:
  1. The Hidden Cloud Incense at the Wei Household’s Immortal Shrine may be connected to the earlier appearance of the eyeless people, implicating Baigu City’s City Lord’s Office.
  2. The assassins’ immediate attempt to blame the Wei Household suggests someone is deliberately redirecting suspicion and involving Yonglu Mountain in Baigu City’s internal conflicts.
  3. The Wei man taken in by Wen Xu may have targeted Wen Xu because he realized Wen Xu’s eyes were physically intact despite his apparent blindness.
• Wen Xu explains that the Wei man deliberately allowed him to feel his eyeballs, leading him to suspect that someone is interested in the rumored power of his eyes.
• Zhao Qi initially worries that Wen Xu’s eyes may possess a special ability, but Wen Xu denies being able to read minds or predict the future. He argues that if his eyes truly had such powers, Yonglu Mountain would have openly announced it.
• Convinced, Zhao Qi decides to act forcefully. He leaves the residence with the testimony and the two bound Golden Core assassins and publicly confronts Baigu City’s City Lord’s Office.
• At the office entrance, Zhao Qi declares himself a Nascent Soul True Lord and accuses the Wei Household of attacking Yonglu Mountain’s estate, injuring Wen Xu and several disciples.
• Steward Ye Yi, a Golden Core cultivator from the Ye Household, is shocked by the accusation and tries to calm the situation. Zhao Qi refuses to enter the office, implying that the seven great households may be cooperating.
• Zhao Qi throws the captured assassins before Ye Yi, revealing that they confessed to acting under Wei Min’s orders. He threatens to report Baigu City to Yonglu Mountain’s Sect Master and the Divine Venerable if the city attempts to shield the culprits.

Character Developments

• Zhao Qi is established as highly capable, decisive, and politically aggressive. He quickly analyzes the situation and uses his status to pressure Baigu City rather than remaining passive.
• Wen Xu remains calm and rational about the rumors surrounding his eyes. He rejects exaggerated claims about his abilities and explains that the rumors likely arose from his deliberate pretense of blindness.
• Wen Xu’s mysterious nature becomes more significant. His eyes may not possess the rumored prophetic or mind-reading powers, but they are clearly valuable or important enough for others to target.
• Ye Yi is shown as cautious and politically skilled, attempting to avoid directly confronting Yonglu Mountain. However, Zhao Qi’s evidence and intimidating threats leave him struggling to respond.

Significant Themes

• Political manipulation and scapegoating: The assassins’ attempt to blame the Wei Household suggests a larger conspiracy designed to turn Yonglu Mountain against Baigu City.
• Hidden identities and concealed powers: Wen Xu’s eyes, the eyeless people, and the Wei man’s unusual condition all reinforce the chapter’s mystery surrounding sight and hidden abilities.
• Power and intimidation: Zhao Qi uses Yonglu Mountain’s influence—and the threat of its Body Integration expert—to force Baigu City into a defensive position.
• Truth versus rumor: Wen Xu challenges the exaggerated stories about his eyes, while Zhao Qi relies on testimony and captured attackers to establish an official version of events.
• Collective responsibility: Zhao Qi argues that the seven Baigu City households share responsibility, even if the City Lord’s Office claims ignorance of the attack.

Character Interactions

• Zhao Qi and Wen Xu: Their conversation shows mutual trust and strategic cooperation. Zhao Qi seeks clarification about Wen Xu’s motives and abilities, while Wen Xu candidly explains why he accepted the Wei man.
• Zhao Qi and Ye Yi: Their confrontation is openly hostile. Ye Yi attempts diplomacy, but Zhao Qi deliberately refuses compromise and publicly accuses the city of collusion.
• Zhao Qi and the captured assassins: By displaying and citing their confessions, Zhao Qi turns them into evidence against the Wei Household and a tool for pressuring Baigu City.
• Yonglu Mountain and Baigu City: The chapter escalates their relationship from suspicion to direct political confrontation, with Zhao Qi making clear that further evasion could provoke intervention from Yonglu Mountain’s highest authorities.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhao Qi, an elder of Yonglu Mountain, pressures City Lord Ye Yi to summon Wei Min, whom Yonglu Mountain accuses of leading the night assault on its Baigu City residence.
• Ye Yi complies, but Zhao Qi refuses to wait passively, warning that Yonglu Mountain will not tolerate attempts to use the city’s authority or influence against it.
• Ye Ronghuan, head of the Ye Household and Baigu City’s true political force, arrives and apologizes diplomatically for the previous night’s events. She offers to bring gifts, but Zhao Qi rejects the gesture and demands Wei Min’s head.
• To demonstrate Yonglu Mountain’s resolve, Zhao Qi cripples the cultivation of two Golden Core cultivators who appear to be obstructing or shielding the Wei Household.
• Ye Ronghuan recognizes that Yonglu Mountain is powerful enough to destabilize Baigu City and understands that failing to placate Zhao Qi could bring even harsher consequences.
• Although she could sacrifice the Wei Household to protect her own clan, Ye Ronghuan refuses to act rashly. The seven aristocratic clans are tightly bound together, and the other clans would likely retaliate against the Ye Household later.
• The chapter reveals that all seven clan heads are stuck at the Nascent Soul Late Stage and have been unable to break through into Spirit Transformation. This limitation has preserved the balance of power among the clans but leaves them vulnerable to major sects such as Yonglu Mountain.
• The leaders of all seven clans gather at the City Lord’s Office. Zhao Qi remains completely un intimidated despite being surrounded by seven Nascent Soul Late Stage cultivators.
• Wei Mian, head of the Wei Household, learns that Wei Min is missing. Though he doubts Wei Min could have dared attack Yonglu Mountain, he knows the family cannot refuse to surrender him if he is found.
• Under pressure, Wei Mian orders the household to use the Bloodline Tracking Technique, requiring members of the Wei clan to contribute blood so Wei Min can be located.
• Meanwhile, Wen Xu and Bian Chunchou wait for Zhao Qi to return at Yonglu Mountain’s residence. They discuss sending more people if the City Lord’s Office causes trouble.
• A visitor arrives claiming to be the owner of the restaurant “A Friend Comes From Afar,” a person the group has apparently encountered only once.

Character Developments

• Zhao Qi is shown to be forceful, uncompromising, and fiercely protective of Yonglu Mountain’s disciples. He refuses to be manipulated by Baigu City’s political structure and backs his demands with immediate violence.
• Ye Ronghuan demonstrates greater composure and political sophistication than Ye Yi. She understands both Yonglu Mountain’s strength and the danger of allowing the seven clans’ alliance to fracture.
• Wei Mian appears practical but trapped by family loyalty. He does not necessarily believe Wei Min is guilty, yet realizes that resistance is impossible and orders him tracked down.
• Wen Xu remains calm and reassuring, trusting Zhao Qi’s ability to handle the situation.
• Bian Chunchou is prepared for conflict and humorously reveals that he has stocked up on Communication Talismans, suggesting both caution and enthusiasm for calling reinforcements.

Significant Themes

• Power and political leverage: Yonglu Mountain’s authority far exceeds that of Baigu City’s aristocratic clans, making formal alliances and local rules almost meaningless in the face of overwhelming strength.
• Loyalty versus self-preservation: Ye Ronghuan must choose between sacrificing the Wei Household and preserving the fragile unity of Baigu City’s seven clans.
• The consequences of stagnation: The clans’ inability to advance beyond Nascent Soul Late Stage explains their political deadlock and dependence on maintaining balance.
• Justice and collective responsibility: Yonglu Mountain demands accountability for an attack, while the Wei Household faces pressure to surrender one of its own—even if his guilt has not been proven.
• Hidden escalation: The arrival of the mysterious restaurant owner hints that the confrontation may soon expand beyond the current dispute.

Character Interactions

• Zhao Qi confronts Ye Yi and later Ye Ronghuan, rejecting apologies and gifts in favor of a direct demand for Wei Min.
• Ye Ronghuan and Zhao Qi engage in a tense diplomatic exchange: she attempts to soften the conflict, while he makes clear that Yonglu Mountain will not be placated.
• Zhao Qi intimidates the City Lord’s Office by crippling two Golden Core cultivators.
• The seven clan heads unite at the City Lord’s Office, but their collective presence fails to intimidate Zhao Qi.
• Wei Mian is forced to cooperate with Yonglu Mountain’s demand by ordering his clan to use the Bloodline Tracking Technique.
• Wen Xu and Bian Chunchou discuss Zhao Qi’s absence and prepare to summon help if necessary before receiving the unexpected visitor.

Chapter Summary: “Conflict”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Wen Xu agrees to receive a visit from the shopkeeper, Chun Wangshui, despite Bian Chunchou’s suspicion that he may be connected to the mysterious attackers from the previous night.
• Chun Wangshui arrives with an elaborate spread of healing spiritual food and introduces himself as a cultivator from Awakening Sea, immediately raising the group’s suspicions.
• After playful but evasive banter, Wen Xu rejects the gifts and directly asks Chun Wangshui about his true purpose.
• Chun explains that he recently visited the Wei Household Immortal Shrine and detected the scent of Hidden Cloud Incense, a specialty of Awakening Sea.
• He reveals that Hidden Cloud Incense should never be used with Soul-Attracting Wood because the two materials interact and alter the incense’s fragrance.
• Chun confirms that Soul-Attracting Wood is present in the shrine, suggesting that someone deliberately combined the two materials. Although he claims the result is not dangerous, the discovery makes the Wei Household Shrine suspicious and potentially connected to larger events.

Character Developments

• Wen Xu becomes more assertive and cautious. Unlike his former habit of avoiding offense and accommodating others, he now feels confident enough to reject Chun’s gifts and question him openly.
• Bian Chunchou remains suspicious and blunt, quickly challenging Chun’s claims. His playful logical arguments also reveal his tendency to use humor and verbal sparring defensively.
• Chun Wangshui presents himself as friendly and harmless, but his evasiveness suggests hidden motives. He is witty, shameless, and unusually skilled at matching Bian’s banter. His stated desire to make friends appears sincere, yet his curiosity about the shrine clearly drives his visit.
• The injured saber-wielding companion is absent, emphasizing that Wen Xu and Bian must handle the encounter themselves.

Significant Themes

• Trust and suspicion: The group must determine whether Chun is an ally, an enemy, or someone pursuing his own interests.
• Growing independence: Wen Xu’s willingness to refuse hospitality and confront a potentially powerful cultivator reflects his increasing confidence.
• Hidden dangers beneath ordinary objects: Incense, spiritual food, and the shrine appear harmless but may conceal important clues or manipulation.
• Humor amid tension: The absurd exchanges between Bian and Chun relieve the seriousness of the investigation while also revealing their personalities.
• Information as power: Chun’s specialized knowledge of incense provides a crucial lead concerning the Wei Household Immortal Shrine.

Character Interactions

• Wen Xu and Bian initially debate whether Chun should be admitted, with Bian urging caution and Wen Xu preferring to question him directly.
• Bian and Chun engage in circular, deliberately ridiculous arguments about whether Chun is a “good person.” Their verbal duel establishes an entertaining but suspicious rapport.
• Wen Xu observes their exchange with amusement, recognizing that both possess unusual skill in meaningless but persuasive banter.
• Wen Xu refuses Chun’s healing food, signaling distrust and independence.
• Chun shifts from playful hospitality to serious explanation, while Wen Xu presses him for the truth about his connection to Awakening Sea and the shrine.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Bian Chunchou learns that when Hidden Cloud Incense is combined with Soul-Attracting Wood, it becomes unpleasant-smelling and leaves a long-lasting fragrance. The scent can be removed only with special Fragrance Powder.
• Since Bian had visited the Wei Household Immortal Shrine and still carried the scent, Wen Xu and Chun Wangshui realize that the shrine may be using Hidden Cloud Incense and Soul-Attracting Wood to mark visitors.
• The discovery suggests that the shrine’s purpose goes beyond comforting immortal spirits and accumulating yin virtue. Because it is funded not only by the Wei Household but also by Baigu City’s City Lord’s Office, the entire city may be implicated.
• Wen Xu reveals that the people who attacked him were sent by the Wei Household. He considers visiting the shrine and disrupting its operations, especially because the Soul-Attracting Wood there is likely small and vulnerable. Chun Wangshui eagerly offers to join him.
• Elder Zhao Qi returns from investigating Baigu City’s seven great Aristocratic Clans. Although the clans cooperate outwardly, the investigation yields little useful information.
• The Bloodline Tracking Technique leads investigators to a secret chamber in the Wei Household, where Wei Min is found dead. Evidence suggests he committed suicide after the failed attack on Yonglu Mountain, even destroying his Nascent Soul to ensure no information could be extracted.
• Wei Min appears to have been prepared as a scapegoat, allowing the Wei Household and the other clans to distance themselves from the attack. Their sudden ambiguity after his death further arouses suspicion.
• Zhao Qi demands that the six eyeless people be handed over to Yonglu Mountain for investigation. He believes the strange condition may be connected to the appearance of the Demon Seed and must not be dismissed.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Bian Chunchou shifts from thinking the incense matter is harmless to realizing he may have been unknowingly marked during his visit to the shrine. His confusion and fear highlight his lack of understanding of the larger conspiracy.
• Chun Wangshui proves observant and commercially knowledgeable about Awakening Sea’s incense. He also uses the information to pressure Wen Xu into revealing what he knows, showing both curiosity and opportunism.
• Wen Xu becomes increasingly proactive. Rather than waiting for the enemy to expose themselves, he plans to investigate or disrupt the Wei Household Immortal Shrine directly.
• Elder Zhao Qi remains stern and protective, criticizing Bian while defending him from others. He adopts a decisive approach by taking custody of the eyeless victims.
• Chen Zui remains confident and impulsive, insisting he can fight Nascent Soul cultivators despite having been seriously injured. Zhao Qi silences him and reinforces the hierarchy between them.
• The exchanges among Wen Xu, Chun Wangshui, Bian Chunchou, Zhao Qi, and Chen Zui mix tension with humor, especially as their suspicions deepen.

Significant Themes

• Hidden surveillance and manipulation: The lingering incense fragrance may function as a covert mark, suggesting that the Wei Household Immortal Shrine monitors or identifies everyone who enters.
• Conspiracy and scapegoating: Wei Min’s carefully timed suicide and destruction of his Nascent Soul suggest that his death was arranged to conceal the true masterminds.
• The limits of evidence: Although the seven clans behave suspiciously, Yonglu Mountain lacks proof strong enough to accuse them openly.
• Responsibility in uncertain times: Zhao Qi’s decision to investigate the eyeless people reflects the belief that even seemingly isolated abnormalities may become crucial, especially with demonic forces already emerging.
• Human effort versus an unknowable future: The chapter closes by emphasizing that cultivators cannot predict every outcome; they can only investigate carefully, respond to present dangers, and prevent small clues from becoming catastrophic consequences.

Chapter 306 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhao Qi defends Yonglu Mountain’s decision to shelter the six mentally broken victims, refusing to bow to Baigu City or the seven Aristocratic Clans.
• Lin, the Mysterious Physician, examines the victims and explains that their insanity likely results from severe damage or instability to their divine souls.
• Divine-soul repair is revealed to be an Immortal Realm technique requiring rare heavenly treasures. Even then, treatment could kill the victims, and their recovery is far from guaranteed.
• The group realizes that whoever harmed the six deliberately subjected them to prolonged psychological or spiritual torment. The damage may persist even through reincarnation, making the crime especially cruel.
• The victims are placed under Lin’s care in a separate residence. Wen Xu and Bian Chunchou discuss the situation, including the possibility that the eyeless man surnamed Wei fled because he feared losing his sanity as well.
• He Zhizhuo arrives from Baigu City. Wen Xu, claiming his injuries prevent him from receiving guests, sends Bian Chunchou to meet him instead.
• He Zhizhuo apologizes for the City Patrol Guard’s failure to detect the previous night’s attack. Bian reveals that two powerful Golden Core cultivators—one mid-stage and one late-stage—were responsible.
• Bian warns that without the timely arrival of Yonglu Mountain’s elders, the consequences would have been disastrous, and makes clear that the attackers’ actions will not be forgiven because of the importance of Wen Xu’s identity.

Character Developments

• Zhao Qi demonstrates loyalty and resolve, prioritizing the victims and Yonglu Mountain’s principles over political pressure.
• Lin, the Mysterious Physician, establishes the limits of his expertise while offering the only possible direction for treatment.
• Wen Xu remains compassionate but pragmatic. He comforts Bian Chunchou and urges him to focus on useful action rather than despair. He also cleverly uses Bian as his representative when He Zhizhuo arrives.
• Bian Chunchou is deeply disturbed by the victims’ fate and begins to sympathize more with the eyeless man’s decision to flee. He also takes on the responsibility of confronting Baigu City.
• He Zhizhuo appears concerned and apologetic, acknowledging Baigu City’s failure to protect Yonglu Mountain’s residence.

Significant Themes

• Cruelty beyond death: The chapter emphasizes that destroying a person’s mind and divine soul can be more horrifying than killing them, especially when the damage may carry into future reincarnations.
• Limits of medicine and cultivation: Even an expert physician cannot guarantee recovery when the divine soul is involved, highlighting the boundaries of human knowledge and power.
• Moral restraint versus selfishness: Wen Xu reflects on how morality restrains people’s darker impulses, while those without such restraint can commit unimaginable acts.
• Political independence and justice: Yonglu Mountain refuses to submit to Baigu City’s authority and intends to pursue accountability despite pressure from powerful factions.

Character Interactions

• Zhao Qi and the others discuss the victims’ condition with Lin, balancing hope for recovery against the grim risks of divine-soul treatment.
• Wen Xu comforts Bian Chunchou and reframes his grief as a reason to take action.
• Wen Xu and Bian exchange humorous sarcasm over Wen Xu’s excuse for avoiding He Zhizhuo, easing the chapter’s otherwise bleak mood.
• Bian and He Zhizhuo speak about the attack, with Bian stressing its severity and warning that Yonglu Mountain will not let the matter go unpunished.

Chapter Summary: “The Bottom of the Cauldron”

Key Plot Points and Events

• He Zhizhuo reveals that, after leaving the previous day, he investigated the Wei Household Immortal Shrine and the Hidden Cloud Incense.
• His investigation found no obvious irregularities: the incense had been legitimately purchased from the Awakening Sea, transaction records were intact, and the burned ash showed nothing unusual.
• Bian Chunchou questions why the Wei Household has continued using such extraordinarily expensive incense when cheaper alternatives exist, especially since the City Lord’s Office helps bear the cost.
• He Zhizhuo explains the tragic history behind the shrine. Wei Family Village was once massacred by demons while the ancestors of the other six Aristocratic Clans were pursuing an evil demon. Although those ancestors did not directly kill the villagers, their actions allowed the disaster to happen.
• To atone, the six clans helped the Wei Household build the immortal shrine and continue sharing responsibility for it.
• The discussion shifts to the purpose of temples and the concept of Divine Cultivation, a rare path based on gathering faith rather than relying on a Spiritual Root.
• Divine Cultivation requires earning genuine trust and reverence through great personal merit and selflessness. It is described as extraordinarily difficult, demanding that one enter mortal life and progress from saving oneself to saving others.
• Wen Xu returns from speaking with Elder Zhao and finds Bian Chunchou discussing temples and the shrine with Chen Zui. Chen mentions that his mother knew a powerful Divine Cultivator whose temples once stood throughout the mortal world.

Character Developments

• He Zhizhuo appears earnest and investigative rather than politically motivated. Though he initially seems to be discussing the Wei Household’s possible guilt, he admits the evidence does not support wrongdoing and openly acknowledges what he does not know.
• Bian Chunchou remains skeptical and observant. He notices the unexplained expense of the Hidden Cloud Incense and begins connecting the shrine’s history, lingering spirits, and possible hidden purpose. His outwardly casual behavior contrasts with his serious internal deductions.
• Wen Xu becomes increasingly burdened by the mystery surrounding Chen Zui and his family. Learning that Chen’s mother associated with powerful Divine Cultivators makes him wonder about her identity and heightens his sense of pressure regarding his own master and fellow disciples.
• Chen Zui demonstrates surprising knowledge through his family connections. His mother’s background suggests that she was extraordinarily influential, though he reveals this matter-of-factly.

Significant Themes

• Guilt and atonement: The shrine represents the six clans’ responsibility for failing to prevent the massacre of Wei Family Village.
• The persistence of the dead: Bian Chunchou questions whether the shrine’s original purpose—to comfort the murdered villagers’ spirits—remains meaningful if those souls should already have reincarnated.
• Faith and power: Temples gather faith, which can fuel cultivation. The chapter explores how spiritual power may come not from innate talent but from the trust and reverence of others.
• Moral integrity: Genuine Divine Cultivation cannot be achieved through manipulation or deception. It requires living honorably, accumulating merit, and sincerely helping others.
• Hidden motives beneath tradition: The continued use of costly Hidden Cloud Incense suggests that the shrine may serve a purpose beyond ordinary memorial rites.

Character Interactions

• Bian Chunchou and He Zhizhuo: Their conversation combines investigation with political sensitivity. Bian presses He on the Wei Household’s practices, while He provides historical context and admits the limits of his own knowledge.
• Bian Chunchou and Chen Zui: Bian asks Chen about the practicalities of temples, but treats the discussion casually and teasingly, calling him a “blockhead.”
• Wen Xu and the others: Wen Xu returns to find Bian discussing clues related to the shrine. Bian jokes that he expected Wen Xu to have attacked the shrine, while Chen’s comments about his mother deepen Wen Xu’s curiosity and anxiety.

Chapter 308 Summary

• Divine Cultivation and faith: Chen Zui-Zui recalls his mother saying that Divine Cultivation both flourished and collapsed through faith. To escape its constraints, practitioners might need to “destroy before establishing,” though he is unsure of the exact wording. Her former friend, apparently involved in this path, had already fallen, suggesting that Divine Cultivation was extremely dangerous and difficult.
• Suspicion surrounding the Wei Household Immortal Shrine: Chunchou recounts He Zhizhuo’s explanation of the shrine’s origins. The ancestors of six households supposedly fought an evil demon, while the Wei Household later returned to the area when it was about to become a land of great calamity. However, the corpses of those who died were apparently left unburied for a long time, allowing resentment to accumulate. Chunchou finds this suspicious, since the cultivator ancestors should have been capable of returning to bury the dead.
• Possibility that the evil demon survives: Chunchou worries that the demon may not have been killed. Wen Xu tries to reassure him by joking that the demon would first target the seven great Aristocratic Clans, giving them time to summon help. His attempt is so uncomfortably cold that Chunchou jokes he has achieved enlightenment instead of feeling comforted. Chen Zui-Zui and the others continue their lighthearted teasing.
• Meaning of “Immortal Shrine”: Chen Zui-Zui questions the shrine’s name, arguing that an ordinary memorial structure accumulating merit should not be called an “immortal shrine.” He suggests that it may actually be suppressing the resentment of the dead. Since Chunchou never entered the main hall, the group decides that they must return to the shrine and determine whom it truly enshrines.
• A larger conspiracy: Wen Xu suspects that the information about the shrine was deliberately delivered to lure him there. The revelation may be connected to earlier events: people testing his strength, the framing of the Wei Household, and the mysterious disappearance of the eyeless man surnamed Wei. Although Wei Mian, the current Wei Household head, appears completely ordinary, the surrounding circumstances remain deeply abnormal.
• The seven clans’ cultivation limit: Wen Xu reflects on the fact that Baigu City’s seven great Aristocratic Clans possess many late-stage Nascent Soul cultivators, yet not a single Spirit Transformation cultivator. This appears less like simple bad fortune and more like an imposed cultivation ceiling or shackle. Even investigations by Spirit Transformation Venerables found nothing, so the cultivation world dismissed it as a lack of fortune. Wen Xu now suspects the phenomenon may be tied to the Immortal Shrine.
• Wen Xu’s personal concerns: The investigation causes Wen Xu to revisit his own past. He wonders who suppressed his Destiny Pattern, abandoned him in the wilderness, and later tried to kill him before he could complete the old scholar’s final wish. For the first time, he seriously considers whether his biological relatives—or people connected to his bloodline—might be responsible.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Wen Xu becomes increasingly suspicious and analytical, linking the shrine, the seven clans’ cultivation stagnation, the Wei Household, and his own mysterious origins.
• Chunchou provides the crucial information about the shrine but remains nervous and skeptical. His banter with Wen Xu and Chen Zui-Zui keeps the conversation from becoming too grim.
• Chen Zui-Zui offers an instinctive but important interpretation that the shrine suppresses resentment, prompting the decision to investigate it directly.
• The trio’s teasing—especially Chunchou mocking Wen Xu’s poor reassurance and dismissing Chen Zui-Zui with tea—contrasts with the increasingly serious implications of their discoveries.

Significant Themes

• Faith as both power and restraint: Divine Cultivation may depend on belief while simultaneously trapping those who practice it.
• Buried resentment and manipulated history: The unburied corpses and the shrine suggest that accumulated grudges may have been deliberately preserved or exploited.
• Hidden cultivation restrictions: The seven clans’ inability to reach Spirit Transformation may reflect an unseen curse, structure, or control rather than natural limitations.
• Bloodline and identity: Wen Xu begins confronting the possibility that his abandonment and suppressed Destiny Pattern are connected to his own family.
• Appearance versus reality: The ordinary appearance of Wei Mian, the shrine’s respectable public role, and the clans’ supposed “lack of fortune” may all conceal deeper secrets.

Chapter Summary: “Pulling the Firewood”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Wen Xu, now at the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage and approaching the Golden Core realm, prepares to investigate the Wei Household Immortal Shrine.
• Bian Chunchou and Chen Zui volunteer to accompany him, but Wen Xu assigns them a different task: distributing Chun Wangshui’s Fragrance Powder throughout Baigu City.
• The powder is meant to eliminate the lingering scent created when Hidden Cloud Incense interacts with Soul-Attracting Wood. Since many people have visited the shrine and offered incense, Wen Xu decides to remove the scent from the entire city before nightfall.
• Bian Chunchou enthusiastically recruits others, including people who have recently fought members of the Rogue Cultivator Alliance, while Chen Zui resignedly follows along.
• Wen Xu and Chun Wangshui then travel openly to the Wei Household Immortal Shrine. Elder Zhao follows secretly to avoid making Yonglu Mountain appear overly aggressive after its previous confrontation at the shrine.
• The chapter ends as they arrive at the shrine, a dignified and peaceful structure located at the center of Baigu City.

Character Developments

• Wen Xu demonstrates caution, strategic thinking, and moral responsibility. Rather than immediately exposing the shrine’s secret, he chooses to remove the mysterious scent and limit the danger to the city’s inhabitants.
• Bian Chunchou shows his energetic, impulsive personality. He quickly understands Wen Xu’s plan and eagerly takes charge of gathering helpers.
• Chen Zui remains practical and obedient, accepting his assignment despite some reluctance.
• Chun Wangshui reveals more of his personality. He is highly confident in his abilities, openly arrogant, socially provocative, and unconcerned with appearing virtuous. However, his bluntness makes him seem more honest than someone who hides malicious intentions behind politeness.
• Chun Wangshui also explains his unusual interest in incense: he experiments with incorporating the scents of spiritual food and pills, viewing conventional incense as overly refined and monotonous.
• Wen Xu recognizes Chun Wangshui’s exceptional talent but remains skeptical of his self-serving claims and refuses to be manipulated by his probing questions.

Significant Themes

• Strategic action versus direct confrontation: Wen Xu’s plan to “pull the firewood from beneath the cauldron” focuses on weakening the source of the threat rather than confronting its consequences directly.
• Trust and verification: Chun Wangshui questions why Wen Xu trusts him with material capable of affecting an entire city. Wen Xu clarifies that his trust is based on expert inspection, spiritual confirmation, and his judgment of Chun Wangshui’s character—not blind faith.
• Moral ambiguity: Chun Wangshui admits he does not care about the lives of Baigu City’s commoners, though he also has no desire to personally slaughter them. His indifference contrasts with Wen Xu’s sense of responsibility.
• Honesty versus hypocrisy: The chapter suggests that openly admitting one’s flaws may be preferable to presenting a false image of virtue. Chun Wangshui is unpleasantly arrogant, but his lack of pretense makes him seem less dangerous than a deceptive “gentleman.”
• Incense as power and experimentation: Incense is not merely ceremonial; its scents can reveal hidden phenomena and potentially affect an entire city. Chun Wangshui’s experimental approach also expands incense-making into a form of sensory and spiritual innovation.

Character Interactions

• Wen Xu firmly redirects Bian Chunchou and Chen Zui away from the shrine and gives them a citywide mission.
• Chun Wangshui repeatedly tests Wen Xu’s trust, identity, and opinion of him, while Wen Xu responds with blunt observations rather than being drawn into his provocations.
• Wen Xu accurately describes Chun Wangshui as indifferent rather than actively murderous, prompting Chun Wangshui to admit the truth behind his actions.
• Their conversation establishes a dynamic of mutual skepticism and reluctant recognition: Wen Xu disapproves of Chun Wangshui’s character but acknowledges his talent and relative honesty, while Chun Wangshui is intrigued by Wen Xu’s judgment and unwillingness to flatter him.

Chapter Summary: “Speculation”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chun Wangshui remarks that Baigu City’s Immortal Shrine appears surprisingly ordinary from the outside, despite the enormous wealth invested in its construction and maintenance.
• Wen Xu suspects that the seven households may not have funded the shrine merely out of guilt. The shrine’s Hidden Cloud Incense seems perfectly natural there, though Chun Wangshui finds its scent disturbing.
• Upon entering the main hall, Wen Xu senses that he is being watched. Unbeknownst to him, hidden figures discuss testing or attacking him, believing he may have anticipated the earlier ambush and alerted Yonglu Mountain.
• The conspirators debate whether Wen Xu possesses protective treasures because he is the disciple of a Body Integration Realm Divine Venerable. They ultimately consider using someone else to kill him, while claiming the Wei Household has already received more than enough mercy.
• Wen Xu notices nothing suspicious on the shrine’s surface but realizes the true secret must be concealed extremely well. He refuses to rely solely on others’ investigations.
• Chun Wangshui’s spirit insects detect that the memorial tablets contain writing made with spiritual ink mixed with an unusual substance. The Hidden Cloud Incense rises around the tablets, suggesting that the writing—or something embedded in it—is connected to the hidden Soul-Attracting Wood.
• Wen Xu places his incense in the censer and summons one of the shrine’s caretakers. The caretaker reacts badly, prompting Wei Mian, head of the Wei Household, to arrive.
• Meanwhile, Bian Chunchou and Chen Zui continue clearing the contaminated incense from Baigu City. Their work proceeds smoothly, and they expect to finish an initial purification before midnight.
• Wei Mian becomes deeply alarmed, unable to understand why Yonglu Mountain appears to be targeting his household. He questions the accusation that Wei Min created the eyeless man, especially since two Golden Core cultivators are risking their lives to support Wei Min.

Character Developments

• Wen Xu: Demonstrates caution, insight, and independence. Although he cannot perceive the shrine’s hidden details directly, he recognizes that its apparent normality is suspicious and actively seeks another way to investigate.
• Chun Wangshui: Provides crucial assistance through his spirit insects and shows his usual blunt, irreverent personality. His detection of the tablets’ unusual ink reveals the likely location of the Soul-Attracting Wood.
• Wei Mian: Shifts from confusion to serious anxiety. He begins doubting the official explanation that Wei Min is solely responsible for the eyeless man and recognizes inconsistencies in the behavior of Wei Min’s allies.
• The hidden conspirators: Reveal their willingness to manipulate events and sacrifice others to protect themselves, while fearing Wen Xu’s connection to Yonglu Mountain.

Significant Themes

• Hidden corruption beneath apparent normality: The plain shrine conceals a carefully constructed secret, suggesting that evil or manipulation can be embedded in respected institutions.
• Suspicion and incomplete knowledge: Wen Xu cannot see the shrine’s danger directly, while the conspirators cannot confirm his true abilities. Nearly every character must act based on partial information.
• Political guilt and collective responsibility: The seven households’ funding of the shrine may reflect deeper wrongdoing rather than simple remorse, and the Wei Household’s role remains uncertain.
• Manipulation and expendability: The conspirators plan to “kill with a borrowed knife,” treating other people as tools while avoiding direct responsibility.
• Limits of appearances: The shrine, the memorial tablets, and Wei Min’s alleged guilt all appear straightforward on the surface but conceal more complicated truths.

Character Interactions

• Wen Xu and Chun Wangshui exchange sarcastic remarks about the shrine, incense, and Wen Xu’s blindness, while still cooperating effectively.
• Chun Wangshui reveals the tablets’ hidden significance to Wen Xu, allowing Wen Xu to focus his investigation despite being unable to see them.
• Wen Xu’s conversation with the shrine caretaker indirectly summons Wei Mian, creating a confrontation that may expose the shrine’s secrets.
• Bian Chunchou and Chen Zui work in parallel with Wen Xu’s investigation, purifying the city while he probes the Immortal Shrine.
• The unseen conspirators discuss Wen Xu’s arrival and potential threat, establishing that his investigation has already triggered a dangerous response.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Wei Mian agonizes over the mystery surrounding Wei Min’s attack on Yonglu Mountain. He cannot determine whether Wei Min acted independently, was manipulated, or was framed.
• The Wei Household is financially weak despite ruling Baigu City. Its limited resources, few descendants with Spiritual Roots, and obligations to the Wei Household Immortal Shrine leave it unable to withstand retaliation from Yonglu Mountain.
• With Wei Min dead and unable to explain himself, Wei Mian fears the entire Wei lineage will be blamed and destroyed. He feels he has failed both his ancestors and his household.
• A message from the shrine keeper summons Wei Mian to the Immortal Shrine, where he encounters Wen Xu and Chun Wangshui. Wei Mian initially assumes Wen Xu has come to punish or interrogate him.
• Wen Xu reassures him that Yonglu Mountain does not indiscriminately punish the Wei Household for Wei Min’s actions. He says he only wants answers and accepts Wei Mian’s invitation to speak at the Wei residence.
• At the residence, Wen Xu shows Wei Mian a Shadow Recording Stone depicting the eyeless man involved in the incident.
• Wei Mian recognizes the figure as nearly identical to a portrait of Wei Mulan, an ancestor of the Wei Household.
• The discovery reveals a major connection between the mysterious eyeless man and the Wei family’s history. Wei Mulan was originally an ordinary villager called Wei San, but later renamed himself after leaving Wei Family Village and entering the wider world.

Character Developments

• Wei Mian becomes increasingly despairing and guilt-ridden, convinced that his inability to uncover the truth has doomed his household. Despite his fear, he remains cautious and protective of the Wei Household.
• Wen Xu demonstrates patience, perceptiveness, and diplomatic skill. Rather than treating Wei Mian as an enemy, he separates Wei Min’s guilt from the rest of the household and earns Wei Mian’s trust.
• Chun Wangshui continues to act as an amused observer. He recognizes Wen Xu’s ability to read people and deliberately encourages the misunderstanding surrounding his identity and role.
• Wei Mulan is introduced indirectly through the portrait and backstory. His transformation from the nameless village child “Wei San” into a self-named cultivator suggests an important and possibly mysterious past.

Significant Themes

• Guilt and inherited responsibility: Wei Mian fears that Wei Min’s crime will condemn the entire Wei lineage, raising questions about whether families should bear responsibility for one member’s actions.
• Appearance versus reality: The Wei Household appears powerful as the lord of Baigu City but is actually impoverished and vulnerable. Similarly, the eyeless man’s identity is hidden behind an unusual appearance.
• Trust and diplomacy: Wen Xu’s refusal to seek blind revenge contrasts with Wei Mian’s expectation of violence, showing how compassion and understanding can break through fear.
• Hidden ancestry and buried history: The resemblance between the eyeless man and Wei Mulan suggests that the current crisis is tied to events from the Wei family’s past.
• The burden of leadership: Wei Mian’s anguish reflects the pressure of protecting a household while lacking sufficient information or power.

Character Interactions

• Wei Mian anxiously tries to determine whether Wen Xu has come to destroy the shrine, demand justice, or retaliate against the Wei Household.
• Wen Xu calmly reassures him and praises his apparent honesty, quickly turning Wei Mian from a frightened suspect into a cooperative host.
• Chun Wangshui silently admires Wen Xu’s ability to manipulate the conversation and later helps interpret the portrait for Wen Xu, who cannot see.
• The meeting between Wen Xu and Wei Mian shifts from confrontation to investigation when the Shadow Recording Stone is compared with the portrait of Wei Mulan.

Chapter Summary: “Learning from Others”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Wen Xu deliberately reveals to the Wei family that the eyeless man he encountered carried the Wei surname. This leads Wei Mian to suspect that the man may be connected to the Wei Household—possibly even an abandoned descendant or its ancestor.
• The mystery deepens because the Wei Household records all blood relatives, yet the eyeless man is not known to them. Wei Mian resolves to search Baigu City and uncover the truth.
• Wen Xu and Chun Wangshui discuss the possibility that the eyeless man is actually the Wei Household’s ancestor, whose damaged divine soul may have caused him to become mentally unstable after reincarnation.
• Wen Xu connects the eyeless man to Wei Mulan, whose appearance is remarkably similar, and recalls the Mysterious Physician Lin’s theory that severe soul damage can persist through reincarnation.
• The existence of seven eyeless madmen—corresponding to Baigu City’s seven great Aristocratic Clans—suggests that each clan may conceal a similar buried secret.
• Chun Wangshui examines the six other madmen and detects an unusually strong “scent” clinging to their divine souls. He explains that this scent likely comes from prolonged exposure to something in the temple and may have accumulated over several hundred years.
• He introduces his unconventional belief that souls retain traces of former lives and may return to places tied to powerful obsessions, even after reincarnation.
• Chun Wangshui remains at the Yonglu Mountain residence under the excuse of accompanying an injured friend, implying that he has a hidden reason for staying.
• Meanwhile, Bian Chunchou and Master Chen return after working to spread Fragrance Powder throughout Baigu City. Because ordinary distribution would be inefficient and conspicuous, Bian devises a more effective method: using fireworks to disperse the powder over a wide area.

Character Developments

• Wen Xu becomes increasingly suspicious and analytical. He links the eyeless man, Wei Mulan, the damaged souls, and the seven Aristocratic Clans into a larger theory about Baigu City’s hidden history.
• Wei Mian shifts from disbelief to determination after hearing that the eyeless man may be connected to the Wei bloodline. He resolves to investigate, despite the contradictions surrounding the man’s identity.
• Chun Wangshui demonstrates unusual knowledge of divine souls and reincarnation. Though he often jokes and boasts, his ability to detect soul scents makes him an important source of information.
• Bian Chunchou shows practical ingenuity by adapting fireworks into a tool for dispersing Fragrance Powder, solving the logistical problem of covering the enormous city discreetly.
• Master Chen supports Bian’s operation, helping him carry out the citywide plan.

Significant Themes

• Hidden histories and inherited secrets: The eyeless figures may represent buried truths tied to the founding ancestors of the city’s great clans.
• The persistence of identity: The chapter explores whether memories, obsessions, and soul damage can survive death and reincarnation.
• Appearance versus truth: The eyeless man’s resemblance to Wei Mulan and possible connection to the Wei Household challenge assumptions about lineage and identity.
• Knowledge gained from others: Wen Xu and Chun Wangshui exchange theories, each contributing different forms of perception—Wen Xu through reasoning and Chun Wangshui through his supernatural sense of smell.
• Cleverness and adaptation: Bian Chunchou’s fireworks strategy reflects the broader idea of learning from existing methods and modifying them to solve new problems.

Character Interactions

• Wen Xu provokes Wei Mian by revealing the eyeless man’s surname, intentionally stirring the Wei family’s suspicions.
• Wen Xu and Chun Wangshui trade theories and insults, with their sharp banter revealing both familiarity and rivalry. Chun Wangshui is particularly embarrassed when Wen Xu points out that he has more friends.
• Chun Wangshui shares his theory of soul scents and reincarnation with Wen Xu, giving Wen Xu a major clue about the madmen and the temple.
• Bian Chunchou and Master Chen collaborate with the Rogue Cultivator Alliance, using its members to produce Fragrance Powder fireworks for the citywide operation.

Chapter 313 Summary

Plot and events

The Rogue Cultivator Alliance successfully prepares a large fireworks display. Once ignited, the fireworks will release fragrance-dispersing powder across Baigu City, potentially affecting everyone in the city. Wen Xu and Bian Chunchou decide to set them off that very night.
Wen Xu reveals that he visited both the Wei Household Immortal Shrine and the Wei Household. He shows Chunchou a painting depicting a figure who appears to be an ancestor of the Wei Clan. From this, they deduce that the mysterious powerful figure pursuing them may actually be seeking revenge for his own death. Wen Xu suspects that the origins of Baigu City—and the true role of the seven Aristocratic Clans in its founding—have been deliberately obscured by history. The city’s official story may have been written by the victors, concealing an old crime.
That night, a large group of masked cultivators wearing Wei Household insignia arrives at Yonglu Mountain’s secondary residence. Their numbers and cultivation levels are far greater than those of the previous attackers. They demand that Wen Xu surrender, claiming they will spare the others. Wen Xu agrees immediately, having anticipated the trap.
After Wen Xu is taken away, two Nascent Soul cultivators remain behind to kill the others, proving that the Wei Household never intended to honor its promise. Before they can attack, however, Chun Wangshui suddenly appears and kills both of them by slitting their throats and destroying their Nascent Souls. He reveals that Wen Xu had arranged for his assistance, using their developing friendship as leverage.

Character development

• Wen Xu demonstrates composure, strategic foresight, and a willingness to place himself in danger to protect his companions. He has already anticipated the enemy’s betrayal and arranged a countermeasure through Chun Wangshui. His investigation also shows him moving closer to understanding Baigu City’s buried history.
• Bian Chunchou remains expressive and easily alarmed, but he is also resourceful and loyal. He helps organize the fireworks plan and begins to grasp the larger conspiracy involving the Wei Household.
• Chun Wangshui becomes an unexpected ally. Though he jokes and exaggerates his motives, his intervention proves that he is willing to protect Wen Xu and honor their connection.
• Chen Zui is prepared to fight but is held back by Wen Xu until the true trap is revealed.

Character interactions

Wen Xu and Bian Chunchou work together on the fireworks operation, with Chunchou admiring Wen Xu’s cleverness. Their discussion of the painting allows them to speculate about the mysterious figure’s revenge and the hidden origins of Baigu City. Wen Xu also reassures Chunchou and Chen Zui when they prepare to resist the kidnappers, showing his control over the situation. Finally, Chun Wangshui’s sudden appearance transforms the apparent kidnapping into a planned counterattack.

Significant themes

• History controlled by victors: Baigu City’s celebrated founding story may conceal betrayal, murder, and the suppression of inconvenient truths.
• Revenge and buried wrongdoing: The mysterious figure’s actions are driven by a past injustice, suggesting that the present conflict is rooted in the city’s hidden origins.
• Trust and alliance: Wen Xu’s ability to form unexpected relationships, particularly with Chun Wangshui, gives him support beyond formal sect or clan alliances.
• Deception and counter-deception: The Wei Household uses false promises and masked identities, while Wen Xu anticipates their methods and turns the situation into a trap for them.

Chapter Summary: “From Nothing”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Bian Chunchou questions Wen Xu after Wen Xu casually admits that he ran away from home with a Nascent Soul Late Stage guard. Wen Xu assures him that Elder Zhao is following and that he possesses enough protection to act safely.
• Chunwang Shui eagerly agrees to help Wen Xu “set off fireworks,” treating the dangerous situation almost like an entertaining outing.
• Wen Xu is brought to the Wei Household Immortal Shrine, where he is confronted by people who mock him as a supposedly overrated genius from Yonglu Mountain.
• Wen Xu reveals that he knows others have been hiding nearby and calls them out. A lean, masked man emerges from the shadows, deliberately imitating Wen Xu’s covered eyes and creating an eerie resemblance.
• The chapter shifts to Wei Mulan’s past, revealing that the supposed supernatural evil surrounding Wei Family Village was not caused by demons, but by human greed and violence.
• Wei Mulan grew up as the carefree third son of a farming family. His village was destroyed by fire, and his family forced him to escape. A passing immortal master later saved him and introduced him to cultivation.
• After struggling alone, Wei Mulan became a cultivator, advancing through Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, and eventually Nascent Soul. His master died naturally after Wei reached the Nascent Soul Realm, leaving him alone again.
• Wei Mulan spent years searching for his homeland while continuing to cultivate. Six hundred years after leaving, he returned to find Wei Family Village reduced to ruins, filled with resentment and evil energy.
• Overcome with grief and regret, Wei Mulan attacked a group of cultivators who entered the village. After being rescued, he learned that the villagers’ remains had been collected and buried, while their violent deaths prevented their souls from reincarnating.
• A divination from the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion identified Wei Mulan, as the last surviving member of the Wei bloodline, as the person destined to help the villagers. His offerings could gradually restore their clarity and allow them to enter the Netherworld.
• Though initially consumed by anger, Wei Mulan eventually recognized the villagers’ remorse. He joined them in building Baigu City, hoping that helping the dead move on would release him from his own fixation on his lost homeland.

Character Developments

• Wen Xu remains confident, irreverent, and seemingly fearless. His casual attitude masks careful awareness of the protection surrounding him and the hidden dangers of the situation.
• Bian Chunchou acts as the more cautious and practical counterpoint to Wen Xu, questioning his reckless behavior while still following him.
• Chunwang Shui is enthusiastic and carefree, responding to danger with excitement and humor rather than fear.
• Wei Mulan is revealed as a tragic figure shaped by displacement, loneliness, grief, and regret. His desire to return home evolves into an obsession, but he eventually transforms his pain into responsibility toward the dead villagers.

Significant Themes

• Human greed as the true evil: The chapter emphasizes that ordinary human cruelty and avarice can be more destructive than supernatural demons.
• Displacement and the meaning of home: Wei Mulan’s journey shows that returning home may not restore the past; after six hundred years, his homeland exists only as a memory.
• Grief, regret, and obsession: Wei Mulan’s inability to return sooner becomes a lifelong wound, reflected in the resentful spirits of the ruined village.
• Fate and obligation: His bloodline makes him the villagers’ “fated one,” forcing him to confront a past he had longed for but could no longer recover.
• Redemption through acceptance: Wei Mulan begins with anger toward the villagers but ultimately helps them because he understands their remorse and shares their inability to let go.

Character Interactions

• Wen Xu and Bian Chunchou interact as an irreverent, confident figure and his skeptical companion, with Wen Xu dismissing danger and Chunchou questioning his choices.
• Chunwang Shui joins the exchange with playful enthusiasm, treating Wen Xu’s dangerous plan as an adventure.
• Wen Xu directly confronts the hidden attackers at the shrine, showing his awareness and control of the situation.
• Wei Mulan’s relationship with the villagers develops from rage and distrust into reluctant cooperation and mutual dependence. His role becomes both caretaker of their souls and a means of confronting his own unresolved past.

Chapter Summary: “Speculation”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Wei Mulan reveals the truth behind the Wei Family tragedy: the Wei Family’s special bloodline, particularly their Soul Eyes, was exploited by the six great Aristocratic Clans.
• The eyes of Wei descendants could be gouged out, refined into pills, and consumed to grant prophetic dreams containing information beneficial to the user. This secret helped the six clans rise to power.
• After Wei Mulan escaped Wei Family Village, he eventually became a Nascent Soul cultivator, only to discover that his entire life had been manipulated by the people seeking to exploit his bloodline.
• Before his death, his eyes were removed and his divine sense destroyed. After entering the Yellow Springs and drinking Meng Po’s Soup, he reincarnated without his memories, but his soul retained his hatred.
• Evil ghosts connected to the Wei Family repeatedly hunted down members of the Wei household, gouging out their eyes and refining them into pills. Over time, the bloodline’s power weakened, and the Wei Family approached extinction.
• Wei Mulan deliberately guided the six clans toward Wen Xu, hoping to use the influence of Yonglu Mountain—one of the five great sects—to destroy the clans that had tormented his people.
• He admits that he manipulated events so the clans would seek Wen Xu’s eyes, but insists that Wen Xu is free to kill him if he wishes.
• Wen Xu refuses to kill Wei Mulan, recognizing that Mulan is nearly a ghost already and is driven by a desire for revenge.
• Wei Mulan explains that the six clans’ failure to produce a Spirit Transformation cultivator was not caused by a curse from him; they simply lacked the ability to advance that far.
• As Wei Mulan’s ghostly aura intensifies, the situation becomes dangerous. He removes the ribbon covering his empty eye sockets, revealing his horrifying half-human, half-ghost state.
• Zhao Qi appears to protect Wen Xu and urges him to leave. At that moment, dragon-shaped fireworks erupt over Baigu City—apparently connected to the Fragrance Powder plan involving Bian.

Character Developments

• Wei Mulan: His past and motivations are fully exposed. He is revealed as both a victim and an active manipulator, using Wen Xu and the arrival of Yonglu Mountain as tools for revenge. His hatred has transformed him into something close to an evil ghost, though he retains enough reason to pursue a specific goal.
• Wen Xu: He shows restraint and moral distance by refusing to kill Wei Mulan, even after learning that Mulan intentionally targeted his eyes. He also begins to understand the larger conspiracy surrounding the Wei Family bloodline.
• Zhao Qi: He becomes openly protective of Wen Xu, calling him his junior granduncle and acting quickly once Wei Mulan’s ghostly power emerges. His confusion over the dragon-shaped fireworks adds a moment of comic relief amid the tension.
• The Six Aristocratic Clans: Their prosperity is exposed as being built on exploitation, secrecy, and shared complicity. Even those who did not personally use the pills are implicated through their collective protection of the practice.
• Bian: Though absent from the confrontation, he is revealed to have transformed the Fragrance Powder into fireworks, suggesting that Wen Xu’s broader plan is unfolding in an unexpected way.

Significant Themes

• Exploitation and inherited guilt: The six clans’ power rests on the systematic abuse of the Wei Family, implicating entire institutions rather than only individual villains.
• Fate and manipulation: Wei Mulan believes his life was controlled by forces beyond his understanding, turning him into a pawn even while he attempts to manipulate others.
• Revenge versus justice: Mulan’s desire to destroy the clans is understandable given his suffering, but his willingness to use Wen Xu as bait blurs the line between justified vengeance and becoming another perpetrator.
• Memory and identity: Although Mulan forgets his hatred after reincarnation, his soul preserves the emotional imprint of his past, suggesting that identity and trauma survive beyond memory.
• Humanity and monstrosity: Mulan’s transformation into a half-ghost reflects how prolonged cruelty has stripped away much of his humanity, while the supposedly respectable clans are revealed to be morally monstrous beneath their human appearances.
• Karmic consequence: Even those who did not directly consume the Wei Household pills remain entangled in the consequences of benefiting from the bloodline’s exploitation.

Important Character Interactions

• Wei Mulan and Wen Xu: Mulan confesses that he guided the clans toward Wen Xu, while Wen Xu responds with refusal rather than vengeance. Their exchange establishes a tense relationship built on suspicion, pity, and moral contrast.
• Wei Mulan and the Aristocratic Clans: Mulan condemns them as demons hiding behind human appearances and seeks to destroy them by turning their own greed against them.
• Zhao Qi and Wen Xu: Zhao Qi intervenes protectively when Mulan’s ghostly nature emerges, demonstrating his loyalty and concern for Wen Xu.
• Zhao Qi and Bian: Zhao Qi’s bewilderment over Bian’s dragon-shaped fireworks provides comic relief and hints that Wen Xu’s preparations may have produced effects beyond what Zhao Qi expected.

Chapter Summary

Key events

The fireworks display above Baigu City takes the form of a Divine Dragon, based on the true form of Yonglu Mountain’s revered Divine Dragon. Zhao Qi and Wen Xu realize that the display could be mistaken for the Divine Dragon’s actual descent. When several enemies panic and assume the dragon has arrived, Wen Xu deliberately strengthens the deception by activating an illusion formation across the Wei Household Immortal Shrine. Combined with the fireworks, the formation creates overwhelming “divine” pressure, causing the Six Great Aristocratic Clans’ cultivators to believe that a supreme expert has descended.

Battle and slaughter

While the enemy is frightened and attempts to flee, Wei Mulan remains completely focused on revenge. Using a secret art that temporarily grants him the strength of a Nascent Soul Late Stage cultivator, he attacks the gathered clansmen. Despite being outnumbered, he kills them one after another, turning the battle into a one-sided massacre. The scene becomes increasingly bloody, with many of the clans’ Nascent Soul cultivators dying beneath his attacks.

Character developments

Wen Xu is impressed by Zhao Qi’s insight that cultivation gained through shortcuts is unstable, like a butterfly unable to break its own cocoon. This observation awakens Wen Xu’s ambition: he begins to desire genuine strength and hopes to see what lies beyond the Nascent Soul realm, independent of revenge or past grievances. He also develops a deeper understanding of Wei Mulan, realizing that Mulan’s apparent madness is restrained by a final thread of clarity—the determination to survive long enough to complete his revenge.
Wei Mulan demonstrates terrifying resolve. Though his power is artificially acquired and temporary, his will and battle instinct allow him to overwhelm powerful opponents. His transformation into a near-ghostlike figure emphasizes both his hatred and the cost of his vengeance.

Character interactions

Zhao Qi initially tries to withdraw Wen Xu and the others from the dangerous situation, but Wen Xu persuades him to remain and exploit the misunderstanding. Their exchange highlights Zhao Qi’s caution and Wen Xu’s growing strategic confidence. Zhao Qi also explains why the enemy cultivators are so easily defeated: their borrowed power lacks a solid foundation.
Wei Mian, the head of the Wei Household, arrives after sensing the slaughter and recognizes Wei Mulan as his ancestor. Despite the danger, he tries to enter and assist him, but an elder from Yonglu Mountain stops him, warning him not to approach.

Major themes

The chapter explores the contrast between borrowed power and genuine cultivation, suggesting that strength without a firm foundation collapses under pressure. It also examines revenge and sanity: Wei Mulan’s hatred is extreme, but his desire for vengeance gives him a remaining purpose and keeps him from completely losing himself. Finally, Wen Xu’s reaction marks a shift from merely surviving political and personal schemes toward pursuing cultivation for its own sake and seeking a higher, more authentic ideal of strength.

Chapter Summary: “The Fall”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Wei Mulan continues his massacre of the enemies responsible for the Wei Household’s downfall. When Wei Mian tries to intervene, Mulan violently throws him aside, insisting that the conflict is a personal blood feud.
• Wen Xu questions Wei Mian about the Six Great Aristocratic Clans’ long-standing hostility toward the Wei Household. Wei Mian explains that his family has few members and no genuine Wei bloodline since the time of their ancestor, allowing the other clans to exclude and isolate them from their schemes.
• Wen Xu learns that the former rulers of Baigu City secluded themselves in the Wei Household Immortal Shrine for two centuries before dying there. He suspects their souls may have been contaminated by Hidden Cloud Incense and Soul-Attracting Wood, possibly as part of a plan to reincarnate and reclaim power.
• Wen Xu further considers whether the Six Great Clans’ use of Wei Household Pills may have given their descendants the Wei bloodline, allowing old enemies to hide among their heirs. The possibility suggests a deeper, long-term conspiracy connected to reincarnation and control of Baigu City.
• As the illusion formation begins to collapse, Wei Mulan confronts the final enemy, a man named He who resembles Mulan’s former master. Despite his badly mutilated body, Mulan kills him with decisive force.
• The final Divine Dragon firework illuminates Baigu City as the illusion formation dissipates. Wei Mulan collapses, exhausted, experiencing both relief at his revenge and overwhelming sorrow over the destruction of his family.
• Mulan orders Wei Mian to burn down the Wei Household Immortal Shrine, declaring that all evil began there and must end there. Wei Mian obeys, though he is deeply troubled because the shrine has been central to the Wei Household’s identity.
• The chapter ends with Mulan hinting to Wen Xu that he used forbidden methods to temporarily obtain Nascent Soul cultivation despite possessing a mortal body. He says that he is finally “about to be free.”

Character Developments

• Wei Mulan: His revenge reaches its conclusion, but victory brings no true peace. The massacre reveals the depth of his grief, guilt, and exhaustion. He admits that he trusted the wrong people and allowed the Wei Household to fall into ruin. His decision to destroy the shrine symbolizes his rejection of the past and his willingness to end the Wei Household’s old order.
• Wei Mian: Initially impulsive and protective, Wei Mian gradually recognizes the magnitude of Mulan’s trauma and accepts his authority. His obedience in burning the shrine marks a painful break from the traditions and beliefs he has inherited.
• Wen Xu: He remains observant and analytical, piecing together the possible connection between the aristocratic clans, Wei bloodline, forbidden cultivation, and reincarnation. His refusal to show much interest in Mulan’s forbidden technique contrasts with Mulan’s need to explain himself.
• The Six Great Clans: Their desperation and decline become clearer. Their schemes appear less like the work of flawless masterminds and more like the final, reckless efforts of dying powers trying to preserve their influence.

Significant Themes

• Revenge versus healing: Mulan achieves vengeance but finds that killing his enemies cannot erase his grief.
• The destruction of legacy: Burning the Immortal Shrine represents the collapse of the Wei Household’s old identity, traditions, and possibly its reason for continuing to exist.
• Corruption beneath revered institutions: The shrine, once treated as sacred, is revealed as the source of evil and manipulation.
• Bloodline and inherited power: The chapter questions whether bloodlines define legitimacy, identity, and authority, especially when they can be artificially acquired or manipulated.
• Reincarnation and the fear of return: Wen Xu’s suspicions suggest that the old rulers may have sought to survive through souls, descendants, and Wei Household Pills.
• Freedom through destruction: Mulan’s claim that he is “about to be free” implies that liberation may require abandoning his body, his family’s legacy, or the cycle of hatred altogether.

Character Interactions

• Wei Mulan and Wei Mian: Mulan rejects Wei Mian’s attempt to help but later entrusts him with destroying the shrine. Their relationship shifts from confusion and physical confrontation to obedience and shared mourning.
• Wen Xu and Wei Mian: Wen Xu questions Wei Mian about the Six Clans and the Wei Household’s history, using his answers to form theories about the city’s hidden conspiracy.
• Wei Mulan and He: Their final confrontation is deeply personal because He resembles Mulan’s former master. Mulan’s anger toward him reflects unresolved hatred connected to his past.
• Wei Mulan and Wen Xu: Mulan begins to reveal the secret behind his temporary Nascent Soul power, apparently seeking to explain himself even though Wen Xu shows little curiosity. His statement about impending freedom foreshadows a major change or release.

Chapter Summary

• Wei Mulan’s impending death and desire for liberation: Having used a forbidden technique to temporarily restore his cultivation and kill his enemy, Wei Mulan has burned away his soul and no longer wishes to live or reincarnate. He admits that his ambitions—becoming a Nascent Soul expert and city lord—ultimately feel empty, and he longs instead for the simple happiness of his childhood.
• Wen Xu confronts Wei Mulan about past crimes: Wen Xu asks whether Wei Mulan orchestrated Wei Min’s death and manipulation of the Six Great Aristocratic Clans. Wei Mulan confesses that he ordered Wei Min to fake a defection, act as a test subject for Wen Xu, and secretly release several dangerous Wei Family Bloodlines. He offers to be punished, but Wen Xu refuses, saying he has no interest in whipping a corpse.
• Wen Xu reveals the truth about the “Divine Dragon” and the fireworks: The apparent appearance of the Divine Dragon was only an illusion array, but the fireworks were real. Wen Xu explains that the fireworks contained incense capable of erasing the Soul Fragrance created by Hidden Cloud Incense. This means the remaining Wei Family Bloodlines—and potentially others—will no longer be tracked or reincarnated through that mark.
• Wei Mulan’s remorse is revealed: Wei Mulan had planned to burn the Wei Household Immortal Shrine because he had no use for it and did not know how else to erase the lingering Soul Fragrance. His supposed acceptance of liberation was partly a form of martyrdom born from guilt and helplessness. Wen Xu’s revelation gives him unexpected relief, and Wei Mulan thanks him and apologizes.
• A final revelation about the Six Great Aristocratic Clans: Wen Xu tells Wei Mulan that the ancestral tablets of the Six Great Aristocratic Clans are also enshrined in the Wei Household Immortal Shrine. Since the clans’ members consumed the “Wei Household Pill,” they too possess Wei Family Bloodline and the same Soul Fragrance. Therefore, the clans may eventually become subject to the same fate they inflicted on others.
• The clans’ greed turns against them: Wen Xu explains that the clans’ unity was likely maintained by a shared atrocity and their dependence on the increasingly scarce pills. Their competition and desire for survival drove them to manipulate others, including Wen Xu, but their schemes have ultimately trapped them in their own cycle of exploitation. Wei Mulan realizes that his enemies may unknowingly suffer the same fate and laughs with satisfaction before finally accepting death.

Character development and interactions

• Wei Mulan shifts from a vengeful, guilt-ridden figure prepared to die in penance to someone capable of accepting relief and finding closure. His memories of his family and childhood reveal the person beneath his ambitions and crimes.
• Wen Xu demonstrates compassion overcoming his instinct for revenge. Though he knows Wei Mulan’s role in the conspiracies, he chooses to comfort him and reveal information that will ease his final moments.
• Their conversation transforms their relationship from one of suspicion and hostility into one marked by honesty, pity, and mutual understanding.
• Major themes: The chapter explores the cost of forbidden power, the emptiness of ambition, guilt and atonement, the corrupting force of desire, and the cyclical nature of revenge. It also emphasizes the contrast between grand cultivation goals and the simple, meaningful happiness of family and childhood.

Chapter Summary: “Decisive”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Wei Mulan dies after destroying the Wei Household Immortal Shrine and killing the Nascent Soul leaders of the Six Great Aristocratic Clans. As he dies, he imagines his deceased family welcoming him home, finally finding peace after a thousand years of wandering.
• Wen Xu reflects on the price of fate and realizes that the extraordinary good fortune he has received may eventually demand repayment. Witnessing Wei Mulan’s tragic fate gives him clarity: he is no longer paralyzed by fear of the unknown.
• Wen Xu chooses to prioritize living and cultivating over immediate revenge. Although he still desires vengeance, he no longer wants to return to his former isolated, selfish existence.
• Bian Chunchou arrives worried about Wen Xu’s safety. Wen Xu reassures him and shields him from the horrific corpses surrounding the shrine.
• The shrine burns completely. Wei Mian arrives too late to speak with Wei Mulan and discovers the shrine’s hidden atrocities: a prison containing dozens of eyeless captives and a vast mound of bones.
• The next morning, Baigu City awakens to chaos. The Wei Household Immortal Shrine has vanished, and the direct leaders of the Six Great Aristocratic Clans are dead.
• The surviving members of the six clans attempt to accuse the Wei Household and exploit the disorder, but Wei Mian surrounds them after learning the truth from Elder Zhao of Yonglu Mountain.
• Enraged by the clans’ crimes and his own past cooperation with their system, Wei Mian destroys the Six Great Aristocratic Clans and executes those who knew of their wrongdoing.
• Unable to face his complicity, Wei Mian decides to leave Baigu City. Before departing, he transfers control of the city to Yonglu Mountain’s junior grandmaster, recognizing that person’s role in allowing Wei Mulan to die peacefully.

Character Developments

• Wei Mulan: His death completes his emotional journey. After enduring exploitation, guilt, and longing for his family, he finally experiences release and symbolically returns home.
• Wen Xu: He becomes more decisive and mature. He accepts that fate may exact a cost, but refuses to let fear control him. Revenge remains important, yet he now values life, human warmth, and companionship more.
• Bian Chunchou: His immediate concern for Wen Xu demonstrates his affection and loyalty. His sensitivity to the corpses also emphasizes his gentler nature.
• Wei Mian: He transforms from a cautious, moderate leader into a ruthless avenger. Horrified by the truth of the shrine and ashamed of having indirectly tolerated the clans’ abuses, he eradicates them completely before relinquishing power.
• The Six Great Aristocratic Clans: Their authority collapses overnight. Once powerful and united through exploitation, they are left leaderless and defenseless.

Significant Themes

• The price of fate and fortune: Good fortune is portrayed as carrying an eventual cost, though recognizing this truth can bring clarity rather than despair.
• Justice and retribution: The clans’ crimes are exposed, and their destruction is presented as the consequence of long-standing cruelty and exploitation.
• Decisiveness and moral courage: Both Wen Xu and Wei Mian must stop hesitating—Wen Xu in facing his uncertain future, and Wei Mian in confronting the evil he once tolerated.
• Home, family, and release: Wei Mulan’s final vision of his family symbolizes forgiveness, belonging, and freedom from centuries of suffering.
• The dangers of complicity: Wei Mian’s remorse shows that failing to oppose evil can create guilt nearly as painful as committing it directly.
• Life beyond revenge: Wen Xu’s priorities shift from vengeance toward cultivation, relationships, and preserving his own life.

Important Character Interactions

• Wen Xu and Wei Mulan: Though their interaction is largely indirect, Wei Mulan’s death becomes a decisive lesson for Wen Xu about fate, suffering, and the cost of past blessings.
• Wen Xu and Bian Chunchou: Their exchange reveals Chunchou’s deep concern and Wen Xu’s protective affection, strengthening their emotional bond.
• Wei Mian and the Six Clans: Wei Mian confronts them with overwhelming anger, rejecting the restraint and compromise that had characterized him before.
• Wei Mian and Wei Mulan: Wei Mian arrives after Wei Mulan’s death and is left unable to question or help his ancestor, deepening his grief and rage.
• Wei Mian and Yonglu Mountain: Through Elder Zhao, Wei Mian learns the truth and later entrusts Baigu City to Yonglu Mountain’s junior grandmaster as an act of gratitude and responsibility.

Chapter 320 Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Wei Mian explains that he intends to leave Baigu City with the Wei Household because he feels guilty and believes he is unfit to govern the place.
• Wen Xu challenges this decision, arguing that fleeing will not resolve Wei Mian’s guilt. Since Baigu City was once the Wei family’s ancestral home, abandoning it would mean abandoning the very people and history Wei Mian feels responsible for.
• Wen Xu urges Wei Mian to remain, rebuild the Wei Ancestral Shrine, and take control of Baigu City rather than allowing the six Aristocratic Clans to manipulate him again.
• Persuaded, Wei Mian decides to stay and become a responsible city lord. He promises that the Wei Household will obey Wen Xu’s future commands.
• Wen Xu entrusts Wei Mian with investigating the origins of the Wei bloodline and discovering how the six clans learned about it and created the “Wei Household Pill.”
• As Wei Mian leaves Yonglu Mountain Estate, his stagnant cultivation begins to advance, suggesting that Spirit Transformation may soon be within reach.
• Chun Wangshui appears and comments on Wei Mian’s likely future as Baigu City’s diligent city lord. He also thanks Wen Xu for allowing him to make amends after interfering with the Hidden Cloud Incense deal.
• Wen Xu refuses Chun Wangshui’s offer to reveal the nature of his divine soul’s aura, stating that knowing it would only create more complications.
• Wen Xu nevertheless expresses a willingness to remain friends with Chun Wangshui throughout their lives. Chun Wangshui is deeply moved and promises to meet Wen Xu at the end of his life, while deciding to cultivate harder and celebrate by preparing spirit food.

Character Developments

• Wei Mian: Moves from guilt, confusion, and the desire to escape toward accepting responsibility. He gains a clear purpose: govern Baigu City well, honor his ancestors, and investigate the conspiracy surrounding the Wei Household.
• Wen Xu: Demonstrates his sharp judgment and firm moral stance. Although blunt, he offers Wei Mian practical guidance and shows that beneath his cold exterior he values loyalty and meaningful friendship.
• Chun Wangshui: Reveals a more emotionally open and affectionate side. He is genuinely pleased to be acknowledged as Wen Xu’s friend and responds with unusual sincerity and enthusiasm.

Significant Themes

• Responsibility versus escape: Guilt cannot be erased by running away; true redemption requires confronting the past and repairing what was damaged.
• Power and independence: Wen Xu argues that only by gaining sufficient strength can Wei Mian prevent others from manipulating or exploiting his family again.
• Ancestral memory and belonging: Baigu City remains the Wei family’s homeland, and rebuilding the shrine symbolizes restoring dignity to ancestors who were deceived and mistreated.
• Trust and friendship: Despite distrust of human nature, Wen Xu chooses to form a lasting bond with Chun Wangshui, suggesting that genuine relationships can exist even in a corrupt world.
• Hidden conspiracies: The origins of the Wei bloodline and the Wei Household Pill remain an unresolved mystery, hinting at a larger scheme involving the six clans.

Character Interactions

• Wen Xu and Wei Mian have a direct, confrontational conversation that forces Wei Mian to recognize his duty.
• Wen Xu gives Wei Mian both emotional encouragement and a concrete mission, transforming their relationship from a temporary alliance into one based on mutual trust.
• Chun Wangshui teases Wen Xu and attempts to draw closer to him, while Wen Xu responds with restrained but sincere friendship.
• Their farewell establishes a warmer bond between them, with Chun Wangshui openly promising continued loyalty and companionship.