Recaps

A monster horde attacked the cultivators in Ten Thousand Ghosts Ridge, and Wang Xiujie exploited his formation to pursue the unconscious Gu Sheng. When a black spirit stone entered Gu Sheng’s brow, it triggered a devastating change in the Blood River, and Gu Sheng opened his eyes with a spinning vortex in each pupil.

• Thousands of grotesque monsters emerged from the darkness, and Wang Xiujie raised the Nine Revolutions Heavenly Dipper Formation to protect his group.
• Wang Xiujie claimed his Space Teleportation Talisman could save them, then secretly led the formation after Gu Sheng while Lu Feng and the others followed under attack.
• Wang Xiujie admitted he meant to seize Gu Sheng’s corpse, forcing Lu Feng and the survivors to chase the formation as Ling Xiao followed from a distance in his golden bowl.
• A red-furred monster caught Gu Sheng, but a black spirit stone flew into Gu Sheng’s brow and released beams that destroyed the monster and several Saint Lord-level creatures.
• The resulting Blood River waves threw everyone into the air, and Gu Sheng opened his eyes as the spirit stone became a vortex that devoured nearby Spiritual Power.

Gu Sheng absorbed the power of the Blood River’s monsters, broke through to the Heavenly Palace Realm, and raced toward the Sky Slaying Sword while Wang Xiujie’s group pursued him. As the Qinghe Saintess watched him suffer, a familiar soul above the sword called to Gu Sheng, and he ignited his blood essence to surge forward.

• Gu Sheng absorbed the monsters’ power through the relic between his brows, reached the Heavenly Palace Realm, and gained formidable physical strength as the Blood River’s whirlpool subsided.
• Wang Xiujie and his followers found Gu Sheng alive and chased him toward the Sky Slaying Sword, while Ling Xiao recognized the monsters as remnants of an ancient war between immortals and demons.
• Gu Sheng used the river currents and his newfound strength to outrun his pursuers, but Wang Xiujie took a Burning Blood Pill and struck him repeatedly with sword qi.
• The Qinghe Saintess entered the Blood River and watched Gu Sheng’s wounds deepen, confused by the pain she felt as Dragon Palace praised his apparent defeat.
• A familiar soul floating above the Sky Slaying Sword called Gu Sheng to it, triggering a sudden surge of power as he burned his blood essence and charged toward the sword.

Gu Sheng endured attacks from Wang Xiujie and Lu Feng’s forces as he struggled toward the peerless sword, while the rival camps fought over who would seize him. A soul pulled Gu Sheng to the sword, and when he grasped it, its violent power surged as the soul’s Dao inscription tried to suppress it.

• Gu Sheng pushed through the Blood River’s attacks, reached within twenty meters of the sword, and vowed revenge on Wang Xiujie.
• Lu Feng and Wang Xiujie clashed over Gu Sheng, and Wang’s battle formation injured the surrounding cultivators while both camps pursued him.
• Wang Xiujie’s formation blasted Gu Sheng into the air, but Lu Feng’s intervention interrupted his attempt to capture him.
• Lu Feng spent her life token to attack Wang Xiujie, who wounded her and drove back the others before turning toward Gu Sheng.
• A mass of black Soul Power dragged Gu Sheng to the sword, and he grasped its hilt as the Qinghe Saintess watched.
• The sword’s power erupted, and the soul became a Dao inscription marked “Trapped” that suppressed the blade’s violent aura.

Gu Sheng formed a bond with the Ancient Divine Sword and used it to kill Wang Xiujie after Wang Xiujie trapped him and tried to capture him. Gu Sheng then turned his attention to the fleeing survivors.

• Wang Xiujie ordered the cultivators to attack Gu Sheng, but Lu Feng rallied them to fight Wang Xiujie as well, throwing the battlefield into chaos.
• Gu Sheng connected with the Ancient Divine Sword, whose power awakened and dissolved Wang Xiujie's attack when it struck to protect him.
• The Qinghe Saintess urged Gu Sheng to run, but he refused, while Wang Xiujie's forces advanced and he prepared to seize Gu Sheng alive.
• Wang Xiujie trapped himself inside a spatial barrier and reached for Gu Sheng as his followers attacked the barrier from outside.
• Gu Sheng drew the Ancient Divine Sword and cut through Wang Xiujie's defenses, killing him with a single strike.
• Lu Feng called for everyone to flee, and the surviving cultivators ran from Gu Sheng.

Gu Sheng wiped out the experts pursuing him with the Ancient Divine Sword, then escaped Ten Thousand Ghosts Ridge with Ling Xiao under disguises as rival Holy Lands converged. The Qinghe Fifth Elder dismissed warnings about Gu Sheng’s power and urged the assembled forces to pursue him, while Tianlan’s First Elder secretly followed at a distance to protect him.

• Gu Sheng unleashed the Ancient Divine Sword’s remaining energy, killing the fleeing experts and sparing Dragon Palace because he had not attacked him.
• The Qinghe Saintess and Dragon Palace escaped, while experts from the Seven Great Holy Lands rushed toward Ten Thousand Ghosts Ridge after sensing the sword’s eruption.
• Gu Sheng left the ruined ridge disguised with a Black Mask, loose black robe, and Bamboo Hat, and Ling Xiao changed his appearance before joining him.
• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao crossed the desert as pursuers headed toward the ridge, avoiding a group of cultivators who passed them without recognizing them.
• Dragon Palace told the assembled experts that Gu Sheng had drawn the Ancient Divine Sword and killed everyone in the Blood River, but the Qinghe Fifth Elder insisted the sword’s energy had exhausted itself and called for a pursuit.
• The First Elder of Tianlan told his disciple to follow the pursuers while keeping his distance, intent on confirming Gu Sheng’s safety without revealing their connection.

As Qinghe Holy Land’s forces closed in on Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao, Ling Xiao proposed infiltrating Qinghe’s disciple selection, and Gu Sheng rapidly learned his Thousand Faces Illusory Form Art. Tianlan Holy Land mobilized its elders and Shadow Guards while its First Elder delayed the pursuers, but the Qinghe Fifth Elder cornered the pair in a forest cave until a thunderous voice intervened.

• Tianlan’s First Elder sent the disciples home with a warning that Qingyun had appeared, then used a talisman to pursue Gu Sheng.
• Gu Sheng sensed danger as he and Ling Xiao traveled, and Ling Xiao proposed entering Qinghe Holy Land disguised as recruits.
• Ling Xiao taught Gu Sheng the Thousand Faces Illusory Form Art, and Gu Sheng mastered it overnight after fleeing into a forest.
• The Tianlan Holy Lord ordered the elders to gather at Two Realms Mountain, released Xuan Feng from Repentance Cliff, and placed the Shadow Guards on standby.
• The First Elder lured the Qinghe pursuers away from their route, but the Fifth Elder led dozens of cultivators to Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao’s cave and began sealing the mountain.
• As the Qinghe cultivators formed their array, a furious voice thundered that they dared bully Tianlan’s disciples.

Daoist Guanyu defeated Qinghe Holy Land’s Fifth Elder and forced its Eighth Elder to flee, then urged the other holy lands to seize Gu Sheng before Qinghe’s leaders arrived. The five holy lands attacked Qinghe’s defenses, and the Black Profound Heaven Suppressing Pagoda’s barrier began to crack under their combined assault.

• Daoist Guanyu overwhelmed the Qinghe experts, wounded the Fifth Elder, and cornered the Eighth Elder, who escaped using Blood Escape.
• Gu Sheng remained in the cave, worried by the fighting outside and searching for a way out.
• Experts from Chiyan, Xuanbing, and Tianxian Holy Lands joined the conflict as Daoist Guanyu revealed powerful auras approaching and urged them to capture Gu Sheng.
• The five holy lands attacked Qinghe’s mountain-protecting formation, forcing the Fifth Elder to raise the Black Profound Heaven Suppressing Pagoda as a defensive barrier.
• The Tianxian elders struck the pagoda’s barrier with their secret art and bronze mirror, shaking it and opening dozens of cracks.

Qinghe Holy Land’s Eighth Elder used the Soul Severing Remnant Sword to drive back the five holy lands, but Tianlan Holy Land’s First Elder defeated him and destroyed the sword. As the two First Elders searched the ruins for Gu Sheng, Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao hid among the crowd at Qinghe Holy Land’s main gate.

• Fifth Elder’s barrier began to fail, so Eighth Elder used the Soul Severing Remnant Sword’s final charge to unleash a crimson strike that injured the five holy lands’ attackers and killed two elders.
• Tianlan Holy Land’s First Elder confronted Eighth Elder, broke the peachwood sword with the Star Spirit Vine, and left Eighth Elder gravely wounded.
• Qinghe Holy Land’s First Elder arrived on an azure tiger and collapsed the mountain while trying to stop Tianlan Holy Land’s First Elder from reaching the cave.
• The two First Elders searched the ruins for Gu Sheng, but found no trace of him and ordered their followers to scour the forest.
• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao disguised themselves and blended into the crowd at Qinghe Holy Land’s main gate while their pursuers continued searching the ruins.

Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao entered Qinghe Holy Land’s selection while hiding their identities, and Gu Sheng narrowly kept the Gate of Eternal Life concealed during the aptitude test. As the screening began, Qinghe Holy Land’s disciples mocked the contestants, and Gu Sheng urged Ling Xiao to endure it rather than risk exposing them.

• Ling Xiao and Gu Sheng agreed to infiltrate Qinghe Holy Land, then encountered a silver-haired elder who announced the selection’s three rounds and opened the aptitude screening.
• Ling Xiao passed through the light gate safely, while Gu Sheng’s test nearly exposed the Gate of Eternal Life before an unseen force expelled him.
• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao met Liang Yu of the Huatian Sect, who explained the selection rounds and gave them jade slips detailing the rules and arrays.
• Qinghe Holy Land’s inner disciples arrived, and a blue-robed half-step Earth Palace Realm cultivator defeated a contestant who challenged him.
• The aptitude screening began across three plazas, and Qinghe Holy Land’s disciples mocked the failed contestants while Gu Sheng restrained Ling Xiao from reacting.

Ling Xiao and Gu Sheng began the Qinghe Holy Land’s dangerous Five Pass Formation assessment, with Gu Sheng urging Ling Xiao to hide his strength. After Holy Land disciples mocked him, Ling Xiao provoked them and completed the formation in two hundred breaths, placing near the top of the rankings.

• Liang Yu explained that the second round required candidates to pass five tests, with only the ten fastest advancing, and that the Holy Land had only ten entry slots.
• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao watched other candidates attempt the formation before deciding to enter midway through the assessment.
• Qinghe Holy Land disciples mocked Ling Xiao, prompting him to challenge them until the black-robed elder intervened and forbade private fighting.
• Ling Xiao entered the formation and smashed through its combat trial with a single punch, then proceeded through the remaining tests.
• Ling Xiao emerged after two hundred breaths, earning a near-top result and leaving the mocking disciples stunned.

Gu Sheng entered the Qinghe Holy Land assessment under the name Qing Feng and tried to hide his strength, but accidentally awakened a Dao seed and finished all five trials in a record 110 breaths. His result made him the top-ranked candidate, prompting accusations of cheating and attracting the examiner’s scrutiny.

• Ling Xiao drew attention after his assessment, while Liang Yu passed and took fourth place on the rankings.
• Gu Sheng deliberately slowed down through the combat, speed, physical, and willpower trials, but his divine sense caused the Dao seed in the final trial to sprout and illuminate the assessment space.
• Gu Sheng was expelled from the formation and wrote Qing Feng as his name, taking first place ahead of Ling Xiao with a time of 110 breaths.
• Ling Xiao rebuked Gu Sheng for failing to keep a low profile, while Liang Yu watched him with suspicion and the Third Elder offered to recommend him to his master.
• Qinghe Holy Land disciples accused Gu Sheng of cheating, but the examiner silenced them and warned that anyone disrupting order would be expelled from the Holy Land.

Ling Xiao dominated the selection gauntlet, earning Gu Sheng's team six slots before the examiner changed the rules and let Tian Kun and Qingshan fight for the last one. After Qingshan won, Wang Chenyu accused Gu Sheng of cheating in the formation examination, leaving the chapter on the accusation.

• Bai Xin, Dai Hongmao, Zhao Tieshan, Tian Kun, and Qingshan challenged Ling Xiao in turn, but he defeated each of them with ease.
• The examiner changed the rules and let Tian Kun and Qingshan duel for the final slot, and Ling Xiao agreed to step aside.
• Qingshan concealed his tempered body and defeated Tian Kun after luring him into striking his hardened abdomen.
• Wang Yun thanked Ling Xiao for helping him obtain a slot, and the examiner announced the recruitment competition's end.
• Wang Chenyu interrupted the announcement, accused Gu Sheng of cheating in the formation examination, and Liang Yu defended him.

Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao advanced to the third round of the sacred land assessment, where the contestants fought for the remaining entry slots. Ling Xiao decisively defeated Jiang Dashan, while Gu Sheng began his match against Dai Hongmao and concealed his true strength as their weapons clashed.

• Gu Sheng learned that a sacred land disciple targeted him out of jealousy, and he told Ling Xiao to wait for the third round before responding.
• Gu Sheng noticed a blue-robed cultivator bearing the Blood Fiend Sect's aura, raising his suspicions about the assessment.
• The third round began with individual battles, and Ling Xiao challenged Jiang Dashan, snapped his broadsword between two fingers, and kicked him off the arena.
• Tian Kun defeated his opponent with a single palm strike, while the remaining contestants prepared for their matches.
• Gu Sheng chose Dai Hongmao as his opponent, blocked the attacks from his rune-covered fan, and clashed swords with him while suppressing his aura to mid-Nascent Soul.

Ling Xiao accepted Wang Chenyu’s proposed rematch, defeated Wang Yuchen, and claimed the Frost Sword as his wager. The Holy Land prepared Ke Yucheng and Zhuang Feichen for the remaining matches, but Gu Sheng’s side hesitated to face them.

• Wang Chenyu challenged Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao to an additional match, and the examiner ordered three one-on-one battles between the sides.
• Ling Xiao demanded a fifth-grade spiritual pill as the prize, and Wang Chenyu offered his Frost Sword when he could not provide one.
• Wang Yuchen attacked Ling Xiao, but Ling Xiao revealed that he also had half-step Earth Palace Realm strength and overpowered him.
• Ling Xiao beat Wang Yuchen unconscious and claimed the Frost Sword, while the examiner ordered Ke Yucheng and Zhuang Feichen to win the remaining matches.
• Ke Yucheng and Zhuang Feichen faced Gu Sheng’s side, where no one volunteered to fight, and Zhuang Feichen singled out a frail young man.

Wang Yun surrendered to Zhuang Feichen after the latter’s aura injured him, and Gu Sheng gave him a healing pill. Gu Sheng then fought Ke Yucheng while concealing his true strength, and the chapter ended with Ke Yucheng’s sword halted just before it pierced Gu Sheng’s dantian.

• Wang Yun surrendered after Zhuang Feichen’s aura inflicted internal injuries, and the examiner confirmed the surrender was valid.
• Gu Sheng gave Wang Yun a Grade 3 Spirit Pill, prompting Zhuang Feichen to urge Ke Yucheng to prevent Gu Sheng from surrendering.
• Gu Sheng revealed an Earth Palace Late Stage aura and surprised Ke Yucheng by wounding his fist with the Azure Jade Sword.
• Ke Yucheng unleashed the Myriad Manifestations Sword Art, and Gu Sheng took several wounds while appearing to struggle against the attack.
• After counting one hundred exchanges, Gu Sheng deliberately exposed an opening, and Ke Yucheng thrust toward his dantian until the examiner stopped the sword with his pressure.

Gu Sheng manipulated his sparring match with Ke Yucheng to leave the arena, then revealed overwhelming power when Ke Yucheng pursued him with a killing strike. After Ke Yucheng was sent to Dragon Subduing Hall and the entrance examination ended, Gu Sheng and the other successful candidates traveled toward Qinghe Holy Land to learn their disciple rankings.

• The examiner stopped Ke Yucheng's first dangerous attack, but Ke Yucheng resumed the match and wounded Gu Sheng with the Nine Revolutions Azure Peak Art and Blood Fiend Sword.
• Gu Sheng used calculated retreats and concealed injuries to maneuver off the arena, where the examiner declared Ke Yucheng the winner.
• Ke Yucheng ignored the ruling and attacked Gu Sheng again, but Gu Sheng unleashed a terrifying pressure that disrupted Ke Yucheng's Spiritual Power before the examiner struck him down.
• The examiner ordered Ke Yucheng to face punishment at Dragon Subduing Hall, while Gu Sheng concealed his strength and rapidly healed as the examiners watched him warily.
• After the examination concluded, the examiner led the ten successful candidates toward Qinghe Holy Land and said their talents, potential, and performance would determine their disciple rankings.
• Liang Yu and the others saw Qinghe Holy Land's mountains and palaces emerge through the clouds as their group approached the sect-protecting grand formation.

Ling Xiao and Gu Sheng arrived for Qinghe Holy Land’s talent test, where they learned that a mysterious figure from Tianlan Holy Land had nearly slaughtered the six great Holy Lands’ finest disciples. As the Archaic Eye began testing the newcomers, Su Yongchang exempted Ling Xiao and Gu Sheng, leaving their true talents and identities unexamined.

• Li Su challenged Ling Xiao over his defeat of Wang Yuchen, but Su Yongchang stopped the inner sect disciples from confronting him before the test.
• Su Yongchang revealed that a figure from Tianlan Holy Land had nearly killed the geniuses of the six great Holy Lands during the Sacred Path trial, and Gu Sheng reacted uneasily to the news.
• At Earth Spirit Palace, Ling Xiao and Gu Sheng worried that Qinghe Holy Land’s Archaic Eye could expose their disguises and talents.
• The Archaic Eye classified the first tested newcomers as outer sect disciples, while Xu Guangzhi and Liu Qingshan earned inner sect places.
• Just as Ling Xiao and Gu Sheng were called to take the test, Su Yongchang exempted them and ordered the other newcomers assigned to their residences.

Su Yongchang brought Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao to meet his one-armed master, who examined their cultivation and made them his final disciples. After recounting his hatred of Gu Sheng and Daoist Xiushan, he sent the pair to Profound Nether Sacred Mountain, where Su Yongchang warned them that powerful cultivators trained in seclusion.

• Su Yongchang led Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao through the Nine Heavens Silver River, where they saw a powerful beast beneath the water and met his master fishing on the riverbank.
• The one-armed old man examined Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao, saw through their concealed cultivation, and sensed that Gu Sheng's spiritual circulation was unusual.
• The old man blamed Gu Sheng of Tianlan Holy Land and Daoist Xiushan for his severed arm and ruined foundation, then demanded that the two young men kill them if they had the chance.
• The old man accepted Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao as his final disciples and ordered Su Yongchang to take them to Profound Nether Sacred Mountain.
• As they approached the mountain, Su Yongchang warned them that powerful cultivators, including Holy Sons and Saintesses, practiced there.

Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao entered Profound Nether Sacred Mountain, found a cave, and began cultivating with the techniques Daoist Yong'an had given them. After Gu Sheng made rapid progress with the Heaven Measuring Sacred Fist and Heavenly Sorrow Sword, footsteps stopped outside their cave.

• Su Yongchang warned Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao about the dangers of Profound Nether Sacred Mountain and left them with the Xuanming Emissary after they presented their Azure Dragon Tokens.
• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao reached the mountain during the night, saw ghostly creatures flee from a sudden white light, and found a cave with a defensive formation.
• Gu Sheng discovered that the Taiji Seven Stars Sword strengthened his yin cultivation art, then completed the first level of the Heaven Measuring Sacred Fist.
• Gu Sheng gained an initial grasp of the Sorrowful Wind Stance while Ling Xiao practiced the Nine Heavens Soaring Cloud Steps.
• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao heard someone approach and stop outside the cave, so Gu Sheng prepared for battle.

Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao sharpened their skills on Profound Nether Sacred Mountain while Ke Yucheng and Tang Zhiyuan plotted to kill Gu Sheng and steal his treasure. As night fell, a clash of terrifying sword qi and black demonic aura erupted at the summit, drawing the cultivators’ attention.

• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao questioned Daoist Yong'an’s generosity before resuming their cultivation on Profound Nether Sacred Mountain.
• After leaving the Dragon Subduing Hall, Ke Yucheng learned Gu Sheng was Daoist Yong'an’s disciple and enlisted Tang Zhiyuan to ambush him on the mountain.
• Liang Yu interrupted Wang Yuchen’s cultivation and said he had information about Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao’s true identities.
• Gu Sheng revealed his progress with sword techniques, and he and Ling Xiao planned to explore the mountainside after hearing rumors of Profound Nether True Water near the summit.
• Ke Yucheng and Tang Zhiyuan followed Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao with Stealth Talismans, but a sudden yin wind darkened the mountain and a vast clash erupted at the summit.
• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao sensed the summit’s sword qi, while Gu Sheng’s own sword qi began to resonate with it.

Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao joined Pan Zhuang’s group to seek Saint Infant Grass in a dangerous cave, where Gu Sheng’s sword skill and perception proved valuable. At the cave entrance, Pan Zhuang told them to discard their Azure Dragon Tokens because the demonic beasts could sense them.

• Gu Sheng used the Heavenly Sorrow Sword to kill an Ink Abyss Tiger while Tang Zhiyuan watched and grew greedy for the secret behind Gu Sheng’s skill.
• Pan Zhuang invited Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao to join his group in search of Saint Infant Grass, and they agreed despite Ling Xiao’s suspicions.
• The group traveled through the darkness, avoided an Earth Palace Peak wolf, and reached the gorge leading to the cave.
• At the cave entrance, Jin Xianyun entertained Yu Tianyi and Pan Zhuang as they promised her treasures and Saint Infant Grass.
• Pan Zhuang asked who carried an Azure Dragon Token, then warned Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao to throw theirs away because the cave’s demonic beasts could detect them.

Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao were betrayed by Pan Zhuang, who sealed them inside a cave to claim the Saint Infant Grass. They killed the injured Three-eyed Scaled Wolf and obtained the herb, while Pan Zhuang and the others entered the blood-soaked cave and feared the guardian had been slain.

• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao discarded the Azure Dragon Token and approached the cave with Pan Zhuang's group, but Pan Zhuang struck them inside and sealed the entrance with the Seven Absolute Spirit Sealing Array.
• Pan Zhuang deceived Yu Tianyi and Jin Xianyun, claiming a demonic beast had dragged Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao into the cave, then left to pursue his plan.
• Gu Sheng realized Pan Zhuang had targeted the Saint Infant Grass and explained that the Azure Dragon Token ruse and their position at the front had been part of the betrayal.
• A wounded early Heavenly Palace Realm Three-eyed Scaled Wolf attacked Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao, and Gu Sheng killed it with one strike of the Azure Jade Sword.
• Gu Sheng collected the Saint Infant Grass in a Jade Box and prepared with Ling Xiao for Pan Zhuang's return.
• Pan Zhuang's group entered the cave, found the ground covered in fresh demon beast blood, and feared that the Seventh-tier Blood Pattern Python guarding the herb had been killed.

Ling Xiao and Gu Sheng faced Pan Zhuang’s group in the Blood Pattern Python’s cave, where Ling Xiao revealed overwhelming strength and Gu Sheng killed their attackers. They eliminated the survivors and left no one alive to carry word back to Qinghe Holy Land.

• Pan Zhuang’s group found the dead Blood Pattern Python and discovered Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao beside its treasure hoard, then demanded the Saint Infant Grass.
• Ling Xiao defeated Yu Tianyi with a series of punches after Yu Tianyi attacked him.
• Ling Xiao crushed Pan Zhuang’s spirit blade and sent him flying, and Gu Sheng beheaded Pan Zhuang with the Azure Jade Sword.
• Pan Zhuang’s three remaining junior disciples tried to flee, but Gu Sheng killed them with sword qi.
• Gu Sheng killed Jin Xianyun after she pleaded for her life and threatened him with her bloodline restriction.

Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao lured Ke Yucheng and Tang Zhiyuan into the cave by hinting at treasure and leaving bloody evidence behind. After the pair discovered signs of powerful deaths and tried to retreat, Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao confronted them, and Tang Zhiyuan attacked Gu Sheng.

• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao met Ke Yucheng and Tang Zhiyuan outside the cave, where Gu Sheng hinted that unusual treasures lay within.
• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao retreated into the cave, and Ke Yucheng persuaded a wary Tang Zhiyuan to follow them.
• Ke Yucheng found Pan Zhuang's bloodstained jade pendant and assumed Pan Zhuang and the others had died, while Tang Zhiyuan remained suspicious.
• Tang Zhiyuan and Ke Yucheng discovered a powerful demon beast's corpse and dead core disciples, then realized that a person had killed some of them with sword qi.
• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao emerged from the darkness as Ke Yucheng and Tang Zhiyuan tried to flee, and Tang Zhiyuan attacked Gu Sheng.

Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao escaped after Gu Sheng killed Tang Zhiyuan and Ke Yucheng, then Gu Sheng used the Saint Infant Grass to cultivate the second layer of the Nine Dragon Qiankun Art. His breakthrough failed because the spiritual energy at the mountain’s foot was too weak, so they moved higher up Profound Nether Sacred Mountain, where they encountered Qinghe Holy Land disciples and a crowd gathered along the path.

• Gu Sheng caught Tang Zhiyuan’s sword barehanded, shattered it, severed Tang Zhiyuan’s arm, and killed him before killing Ke Yucheng, who recognized him as a fugitive wanted by the Seven Great Holy Lands.
• Ling Xiao reduced the corpses to ashes and concealed them while Gu Sheng collected their belongings and temporarily blocked the tracking mark on Tang Zhiyuan’s Azure Dragon Token.
• Gu Sheng returned with Ling Xiao to their cliffside cave and attempted to advance the Nine Dragon Qiankun Art using the Saint Infant Grass, enduring severe pain as the herb’s yin energy tempered his body.
• Gu Sheng later failed three times to break through because the spiritual energy at the foot of Profound Nether Sacred Mountain was insufficient, so he and Ling Xiao decided to seek a denser cultivation site higher up the mountain.
• Gu Sheng and Ling Xiao passed several Qinghe Holy Land core disciples and then came upon a crowd of twenty or thirty disciples gathered at a bend in the mountain path.