Chapter Summaries

Key events

• Elsewhere in the Forbidden Grounds, Han Tianya kills a Moon-Covering Sect woman after pretending to accept her offer of seduction. His feminine mannerisms and contempt for her make clear she chose the wrong target.
• Other cultivators are also killing one another as the competition grows increasingly bloody.
• Naruto approaches the central area through One-Line Sky, a narrow, dangerous pass. A hidden woman attacks him with silver needles, but he spots her with his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan and sends the needles into another dimension.
• The attacker, a wealthy cultivator known as the Treasure-Rich Woman, uses several high-grade Magical Artifacts against Naruto. He recognizes her reputation and says he wants her artifacts for someone else.
• Before Naruto can act, a powerful yellow streak bursts from the woods, pierces her defenses and kills her. A menacing, peak Qi Refining cultivator then rushes in, takes her Storage Pouch, and laughs triumphantly.

Character developments and interactions

• Naruto remains confident and ruthless: he taunts the hidden attacker, recognizes her reputation, and intends to kill her after she sees his eyes. His interest in her artifacts suggests he has someone in mind to receive them.
• The Treasure-Rich Woman is arrogant and relies on her collection of artifacts, but her confidence is cut short by a third party’s surprise attack.
• The scarred newcomer is revealed as a dangerous opportunist, killing the woman and immediately claiming her possessions.
• Han Tianya is introduced as a deceptive and cruel killer who uses charm and then mocks his victim.

Significant themes

• The Forbidden Grounds are ruled by violence, deception, and opportunism; even apparent moments of mercy can be traps.
• Wealth and powerful equipment offer no guarantee of safety.
• Naruto’s extraordinary abilities do not make him immune to interference: another cultivator can seize the moment—and the loot—before he acts.

Key plot points and events

• Naruto confronts Feng Yue, who has just killed the Treasure-Rich Woman with a powerful yellow blade. Feng Yue boasts about his reputation and demands Naruto’s possessions.
• Naruto identifies the blade as a likely Talisman Treasure and openly tells Feng Yue he intends to kill him.
• Feng Yue attacks with the blade, but Naruto evades it with an afterimage. Feng Yue uses his Black Boots to teleport five meters away.
• Naruto activates his Mangekyou Sharingan’s Time Acceleration and strikes before Feng Yue can react, killing him with the Heavenly Thunder Sword.
• Naruto takes Feng Yue’s Storage Pouches and Black Boots. He plans to give the boots to Hinata and Karin, since he has no need for them.
• With the first day’s slaughter leaving only about seventy disciples, Naruto heads toward the central area. There, he spots a powerful Giant Sword Sect disciple, whom he suspects may carry a golden page containing the Azure Essence Sword Art and the Three Revolutions Heavy Origin Art.

Character developments and interactions

• Naruto remains calm and confident under threat, quickly recognizes Feng Yue’s equipment and counters both his Talisman Treasure and teleporting boots. He also treats the boots as a possible gift rather than a prize he needs.
• Feng Yue is revealed as a notorious, sadistic cultivator who preys on weaker opponents and escapes to Heavenly Gate Fort when stronger enemies pursue him. His arrogance leads him to underestimate Naruto, and he dies before he can exploit his speed.
• Naruto’s encounter with Feng Yue is a direct contest of boasts and abilities: Feng Yue threatens and attacks, while Naruto answers with composure and decisive force. Naruto’s next target is the elite Giant Sword Sect disciple.

Significant themes

• Predator and prey: Naruto turns the expected purge on its head by hunting those who prey on others.
• Arrogance and miscalculation: Feng Yue’s confidence in his reputation and equipment cannot compensate for underestimating Naruto’s speed.
• Power and survival: The sects’ strongest disciples prepare to eliminate the weak, while Feng Yue’s history shows how power and institutional protection can let cruelty go unchecked.
• Opportunity and inheritance: Naruto reflects on taking equipment and a potential treasure that, in the original story, belonged to Han Li, highlighting the shifting ownership of key advantages.

Key plot points and events

• Naruto kills a burly swordsman with Time Acceleration and the Heavenly Thunder Sword, then searches his Storage Pouch.
• He finds a Silver Page, burns away its outer layer, and reveals a genuine Golden Page linked to the Azure Essence Sword Art. The page absorbs his Sword Aura, confirming its authenticity. He stores it in his Different Dimension to avoid enduring the painful inheritance process here.
• With one of his main objectives complete, Naruto heads toward the central region to collect spirit herbs and seek the Evil Flood Dragon.
• He reviews what he has learned about the region: an ornamental outer garden, a fog-covered mountain ring rich in medicinal plants but full of dangerous demonic beasts, and a mysterious inner area containing a huge pagoda behind an impassable restriction.
• Naruto reaches one of four bronze gates, finds it unopened, and becomes the first to enter from that direction. Inside, he encounters a lush garden full of rare but apparently ornamental plants.

Character developments

• Naruto remains decisive and confident, killing quickly and methodically. His discovery of the Golden Page lifts his spirits, while his knowledge of the Forbidden Grounds shapes his next steps.
• He recognizes that reaching the central pagoda requires a key held by the Evil Flood Dragon, giving his search a clear additional purpose.

Significant themes

• Power and preparation: Naruto relies on both force and information gathered from his victims’ Storage Pouches.
• Danger beneath beauty: The Forbidden Grounds’ picturesque garden gives way to deadly mountains, guarded spirit plants, and powerful restrictions.
• Inheritance and ambition: The Golden Page and the pagoda represent valuable knowledge and power, but both come with obstacles and risk.

Character interactions

• Naruto confronts and kills the swordsman without extended conversation, then takes his possessions.
• No other characters appear directly; the chapter’s broader context comes through Naruto’s recollection of other disciples’ reports and the events of the original story.

Key plot points and events

• Naruto sends a hundred Shadow Clones to harvest flowers, plants, and Spirit Herbs throughout the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land. They use their Mangekyō Sharingan to evade and control the demonic beasts, which then help them gather.
• He enters the underground swamp where the Evil Flood Dragon lives and finds a golden chest in a jade pavilion. Believing it contains the key to the tower and its powerful inheritance, he takes it into his Different Dimension.
• Taking the chest triggers the Lesser Sumeru Five Elements Forbidden Technique, sealing the passage and trapping him underground.
• A Black-Scaled Python emerges from the swamp and attacks. Naruto subdues it with his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, then feeds it a Purple Giant Snake and Spirit Herbs.
• After half an hour, the python transforms into an Ink Flood Dragon, growing larger and developing a horn and claws.

Character development

• Naruto is confident, resourceful, and openly opportunistic: he treats the Forbidden Land’s resources as ripe for harvesting and is eager to claim its inheritance. Rather than fear being trapped, he focuses on the beast’s potential.
• The Black-Scaled Python changes from a hostile guardian into Naruto’s controlled subject, then undergoes a dramatic transformation into a Flood Dragon.

Significant themes

• Power and inheritance: Naruto seeks to acquire and distribute the legacy of a formidable cultivator.
• Resourcefulness and control: His abilities let him turn dangers into tools and opponents into helpers.
• Transformation and cultivation: Feeding the python rare ingredients triggers a profound change in its nature.
• Opportunism: Naruto justifies taking the Forbidden Land’s resources by predicting the coming invasion and the sects’ loss of access.

Character interactions

• Naruto’s Shadow Clones work under his direction, using controlled beasts as guides and guards.
• Naruto confronts the python, suppresses its aggression through his Sharingan, and feeds it the snake and herbs that enable its transformation.

Key plot points and events

• Naruto defeats and recruits the Ink Flood Dragon, then opens a golden chest and finds a blue jade token. He learns it can control certain restrictions in the Forbidden Grounds, including the sealed passage.
• After using the token to leave the stone hall, Naruto witnesses the Moon-Covering Orb disperse the fog over the second level, revealing a vast mountain range.
• The Seven Great Sects’ disciples rush into the mountains for spirit herbs, but swarms of unusually aggressive demonic beasts attack them. Naruto’s hundred Shadow Clones have taken control of nearly all the beasts, using them to clear the mountains of rivals while gathering the herbs for him.
• Han Li survives and manages to evade the beasts, but Naruto’s clones have already collected most of the valuable herbs.
• Nangong Wan arrives with Moon-Covering Sect disciples to claim the chest. Finding it empty, she realizes someone got there first. The passage then shuts, trapping her group inside the restriction.
• A Shadow Clone explains that Naruto intends to keep Nangong Wan and her disciples trapped until near the time of departure, preventing them from interfering with his herb gathering. It returns the jade token to Naruto.

Character developments

• Naruto becomes more calculating and opportunistic: he uses the token, his clones, and his control of the beasts to secure both the chest’s contents and the mountain herbs, while turning the restriction into a means of controlling his rivals.
• Nangong Wan arrives confident but is left frustrated and trapped after discovering the chest has been emptied.
• Han Li remains elusive and resourceful, surviving the beasts and continuing to gather herbs despite Naruto’s plans.
• The Ink Flood Dragon is added to Naruto’s growing collection of allies.

Significant themes

• Resourcefulness and strategic power: Naruto combines supernatural abilities and careful planning to dominate the competition.
• Greed and danger: The disciples’ pursuit of rare treasures leads them into deadly encounters.
• Unequal knowledge: Naruto’s understanding of the restriction gives him a decisive advantage over Nangong Wan and her group.
• Survival amid chaos: Even when others are overwhelmed, Han Li’s caution and ingenuity keep him alive.

Character interactions

• Naruto recruits the Ink Flood Dragon and directs his Shadow Clones to control the mountain beasts.
• The beasts attack the sect disciples, who respond by avoiding danger or pushing onward for herbs.
• Nangong Wan leads her disciples to the chest, only to discover Naruto has already claimed its contents and later sealed them inside.
• Naruto’s Shadow Clone explains the plan to keep Nangong Wan’s group from competing for herbs, then uses the Flying Thunder God Technique to return the token to Naruto.

Key plot points and events

• Naruto enters the Central Tower through its powerful azure barrier and finds a breathtaking garden surrounding the tower.
• In the first-floor hall, he discovers a corpse beside three identical golden chests. He takes the corpse’s Storage Pouch, finding two valuable Six-Ding Heavenly Armor Talismans and other talismans.
• Uncertain whether the chests are dangerous, Naruto uses a Shadow Clone to open the center one. It triggers an inheritance reward, but the golden chests vanish and are replaced by three silver chests.
• Naruto chooses the center silver chest himself. It yields a jade slip containing the tower’s master’s cultivation inheritance. After absorbing its contents, the slip crumbles.
• Naruto leaves without gaining control of the Forbidden Grounds, but considers the talismans and inheritance substantial rewards.

Character developments

• Naruto is cautious but unwilling to abandon a potentially valuable opportunity. He balances risk and ambition by sending a Shadow Clone to test the first chest, then makes the second choice himself.
• He demonstrates practical foresight by taking the corpse’s remains and keeping in mind the need to protect his active Shadow Clones while absorbing the inheritance.

Character interactions

• Naruto pays his respects to the dead senior before taking the Storage Pouch, treating the corpse as the likely former master of the Heavenly Talisman Sect.
• He collaborates indirectly with his Shadow Clone: the clone tests the first chest while Naruto waits outside, then Naruto handles the final selection.

Significant themes

• Risk versus reward: Naruto must decide how far to trust an apparently dangerous inheritance trial.
• Ambition and limits: He hopes to claim the entire Forbidden Grounds but accepts that its owner has placed boundaries on what visitors may take.
• Power and protection: The talismans and the inheritance both offer means of survival, while the art itself relies on forces of immense destructive power. The Nine Heavens Wind-Thunder Art requires not only spiritual energy, but also Nine Heavens Astral Wind and Nine Heavens Divine Thunder—primordial forces capable of eroding matter and destroying spirits.

Key plot points and events

• Naruto inherits the Nine Heavens Wind and Thunder Art, which can refine astral wind and divine thunder, strengthen his elemental powers, and grant the exceptionally fast Wind and Thunder Wings movement technique.
• At the crater, Naruto’s Shadow Clones collect Spirit Herbs while holding off elite disciples. When Xiang Zhili notices a clone disappear after killing it, Naruto fears the powerful Deity Transformation cultivator will investigate his unusual abilities.
• Naruto dispels his clones and escapes to the Forbidden Grounds’ outskirts, hiding until the fifth day. He resolves to grow stronger and considers completing Foundation Establishment by refining astral wind and divine thunder near the sun.
• Outside the grounds, the entrance reopens. Ordinary cultivators emerge first, including Xiang Zhili in disguise. The expected elite disciples are delayed, and anxiety grows.
• Three wounded cultivators report that the Demonic Beasts went berserk and that the others are dead. Han Li, Chen Qiaoqian, and her cousin later emerge safely, explaining that they survived the attack together; Han Li also gathered some Spirit Herbs.
• The Moon-Covering Sect suspects the rampage may be connected to Nangong Wan’s visit to the stone hall and retrieval of a box, but she has not yet appeared.
• Naruto finally walks out of the passage, calm and unhurried.

Character developments and interactions

• Naruto shifts from excitement over his new art to caution when Xiang Zhili’s attention threatens to expose him. His decision to hide reflects his awareness of the vast gap in their power and strengthens his determination to advance.
• Xiang Zhili remains secretive and opportunistic: he investigates Naruto’s clones but ultimately continues pursuing his own search for a Spatial Rift.
• Han Li, Chen Qiaoqian, and her cousin cooperate to survive the beast assault. Han Li’s calm demeanor contrasts with the worry of those waiting outside, while his attention to Chen Qiaoqian hints at personal interest.
• The sect elders and Stewards move from expectation to alarm as the elite disciples fail to return, then learn of the massacre. Old monster Qiong is especially unsettled by the unfolding events.

Significant themes

• Power and vulnerability: Naruto gains a major technique but recognizes that new strength does not make him safe against top cultivators.
• Secrecy and suspicion: His unusual abilities attract the risk of discovery and exploitation.
• Survival and ambition: Naruto prioritizes concealment and future growth, while the survivors rely on cooperation and resourcefulness.
• Uncertainty and looming danger: The beast rampage, Nangong Wan’s absence, and Naruto’s composed arrival leave the cause and consequences unresolved.

Plot points and events

• Naruto returns from the Forbidden Grounds unharmed and joins Yellow Maple Valley. His sect now has the most survivors among the six sects.
• Other disciples assume Naruto survived by avoiding danger and accomplishing nothing. In reality, he came out late because he captured two rare bird demon beasts and their young as potential spirit beasts for Hinata and the others.
• As the deadline approaches, no Moon-Covering Sect disciples appear. Naruto realizes he had accidentally left Nangong Wan and her companions trapped in the Stone Hall by the Lesser Sumeru Five-Element Restriction after forgetting to release them.
• Nangong Wan and fewer than ten disciples eventually emerge. She explains that the group escaped only after exhausting their talismans and spiritual power; Nangong even damaged her vital essence to force open a brief gap. Most of their companions remain trapped, and the sect gained no spirit herbs or other rewards.
• The passage closes, sealing the Forbidden Grounds. The Giant Sword Sect elder sarcastically taunts Yellow Maple Valley about Naruto’s survival. Li Huayuan defends him, and Old Freak Qiong ends the dispute by conceding his wager and handing over three Talisman Treasures.

Character developments and interactions

• Naruto remains unconcerned by others’ contempt, but privately realizes his mistake endangered Nangong Wan and her group. His decision to capture the bird demons also reveals his thoughtfulness toward Hinata and the others.
• Nangong Wan emerges physically and spiritually depleted after leading the escape. Fairy Nichang rushes to her side, showing deep concern, while the other sects fail to recognize Nangong’s identity.
• Old Freak Qiong shifts from relief at the Moon-Covering Sect’s return to anger at its losses, then accepts the wager without further argument.
• Li Huayuan is pleased by Yellow Maple Valley’s strong survival count but shares the others’ doubts about Naruto’s conduct; nevertheless, he publicly defends him.
• The Giant Sword Sect elder expresses resentment over his own sect’s losses through a pointed insult, creating tension among the elders.

Significant themes

• Survival versus achievement: Naruto is judged as a coward despite surviving, while the chapter raises the question of whether survival itself is a valid success.
• The cost of ambition and confinement: The Moon-Covering Sect’s pursuit of the central region leaves its members trapped, nearly kills Nangong Wan, and yields no rewards.
• Appearances and hidden truths: The disciples misread Naruto’s actions, and the other sects do not know Nangong Wan’s identity.
• Responsibility and unintended consequences: Naruto’s forgotten restriction nearly causes a disastrous loss for the Moon-Covering Sect.

Key plot points and events

• Yellow Maple Valley wins the wager against the Clear Void Sect after Han Li produces enough century-old Spirit Herbs to put his sect ahead. Naruto contributes only two ordinary herbs, keeping his real harvest hidden in his Different Dimension.
• Li Huayuan collects the Bloodline Flood Dragon’s core and Old Monster Qiong’s three Talisman Treasures. He names Han Li his nominal disciple, with the promise of formal discipleship if Han Li achieves Foundation Establishment.
• A Scenting Spirit Beast checks the disciples for concealed herbs but fails to detect Naruto’s stash.
• Back at their Cave Dwelling, Naruto gives Hinata and Karin two fledgling flying beasts, and gives the adults to Qi Yunxiao and Xin Ruyin. He also plants flowers around the dwelling and transplants valuable herbs into his garden and the Different Dimension.

Character developments and interactions

• Han Li wins Li Huayuan’s attention but is uneasy about the recognition, fearing it could expose the Little Green Bottle. He nevertheless accepts the protection that comes with Li Huayuan’s patronage.
• Naruto deliberately conceals his true harvest and is pleased when the inspection misses it. He uses his resources to provide companions and protection for his friends, and plans to cultivate rare herbs for future profit.
• Hinata and Karin warmly welcome Naruto back and delight in the fledgling beasts. They, along with Xin Ruyin, enjoy tending the flowers Naruto plants.
• Qi Yunxiao and Xin Ruyin receive the adult beasts as guards and companions. Their growing closeness with Hinata and Karin is reinforced by sharing life in the Cave Dwelling.

Significant themes

• Secrecy and self-preservation: Han Li and Naruto both conceal valuable advantages, though Han Li is anxious about exposure while Naruto confidently relies on his hidden dimension.
• Patronage and security: Han Li’s new connection to Li Huayuan offers protection, but also brings unwanted attention.
• Practical use of resources: Naruto turns his gains into long-term investments—companions for his friends, a more welcoming home, and a cultivated stock of rare herbs.
• Care and affection: The group’s shared enjoyment of the animals and flowers provides a domestic counterpoint to the dangers and rivalry of cultivation.

Plot points and events

• After selling unneeded loot from the Forbidden Grounds, Naruto keeps Magical Artifacts for Xin Ruyin and Qi Yunxiao and retains enough Spirit Pills to support cultivation.
• He spends two years mastering the Nine Heavens Wind and Thunder Art, returning to the peak of Qi Refining. Having repeatedly restarted his cultivation, he has refined his Spiritual Power to its limit and stored an equal reserve in his Yin Seal.
• Seeking a powerful foundation and the Divine Powers of Astral Wind and Divine Thunder, Naruto decides to gather them himself rather than rely on a senior cultivator or a specially made Magic Treasure.
• He ascends into the upper sky, enduring freezing temperatures and increasingly violent winds. After three defensive artifacts fail, he spots purple lightning and uses his Mangekyō Sharingan to reveal the nearly invisible, hair-thin Astral Wind blades.
• Naruto activates one of his two Six-Ding Heavenly Armor Talismans, creating a powerful six-layered barrier. Using Kamui, he draws a small strand of Astral Wind into his Different Dimension.
• The strand’s violence shakes the dimension and damages Naruto’s eyes, forcing him to enter it. Protected temporarily by the talisman, he begins cultivating the Wind and Thunder Art while the Astral Wind surrounds him. The chapter ends as he removes the talisman.

Character development

• Naruto shows greater patience and discipline through years of cultivation, while his drive to build an exceptionally strong foundation leads him to take a dangerous, largely unsupported risk.
• His resourcefulness is evident in how he uses Kamui and the talisman to capture the Astral Wind, but the plan also exposes the limits—and costs—of his Mangekyō Sharingan.

Themes

• Ambition and risk: Naruto willingly faces a force said to threaten even Deity Transformation cultivators.
• Preparation and ingenuity: Careful resource management, accumulated tools, and unconventional techniques make his attempt possible.
• Power at a cost: The Astral Wind’s potential benefits come with immediate physical danger and damage to Naruto’s eyes.

Character interactions

• Naruto keeps his plan secret from Hinata and the other woman to spare them worry. The chapter otherwise focuses on Naruto acting alone, with no direct interaction with other characters.

Plot points and events

• Naruto absorbs and refines the Nine Heavens Astral Wind, spending most of his remaining Spirit Pills and mid-grade Spirit Stones. The wind settles in his dantian and purifies his Spiritual Power by about thirty percent.
• He tests the astral wind on a high-grade defensive Magical Artifact. It strikes almost instantly and shatters the Black Shield, confirming its formidable offensive power.
• Naruto then refines the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder using the same process. The effort consumes the Six-Ding Heavenly Armor Talisman, his remaining Spirit Pills, and his remaining Spirit Stones.
• With the astral wind and Divine Thunder refining his Spiritual Power, Naruto begins Foundation Establishment. His Spiritual Power starts turning from gas into liquid, while the completed transformation gradually strengthens his body and more than doubles his Divine Sense.
• After his breakthrough, Naruto returns from the Different Dimension to his Cave Dwelling. He reunites with Hinata, Karin, Qi Yunxiao, and Xin Ruyin, and gives Qi Yunxiao three Foundation Establishment Pills for his own upcoming seclusion.

Character developments and interactions

• Naruto gains two rare, powerful Divine Powers and reaches Foundation Establishment. Though he regrets losing valuable supplies and the talisman, his excitement over his new abilities outweighs the cost.
• Hinata welcomes Naruto’s breakthrough with delight. He jokes affectionately that he had to catch up because she and Karin had already reached middle-stage Foundation Establishment.
• Qi Yunxiao, now at the peak of Qi Refining, plans to attempt Foundation Establishment. Naruto supports him with three pills; Qi accepts them gratefully without prolonging the exchange.
• Xin Ruyin has reached the sixth level of Qi Refining despite being reborn in a new body. She credits her progress to Feng Ming’s help and plentiful Spirit Pills.

Significant themes

• Power earned through sacrifice: Naruto’s breakthrough consumes precious resources and destroys a valuable talisman, but brings exceptional abilities and advancement.
• Preparation and perseverance: Careful protection, sustained resource use, and repeated cultivation enable Naruto to master dangerous forces.
• Mutual support: Naruto’s generosity toward Qi Yunxiao and his encouragement of Xin Ruyin show the importance of sharing resources and celebrating others’ progress alongside personal achievement.

Plot points and events

• After reaching Foundation Establishment, Naruto weighs two techniques: the Nine Heavens Wind and Thunder Art and the Azure Essence Sword Art.
• The sword art grants useful Sword Aura and may provide an unusual power advantage, but from its fourth level onward it causes a growing share of newly refined Spiritual Power to dissipate. Naruto decides to keep the Wind and Thunder Art as his primary technique and postpone sword cultivation until after Core Formation, when he may use Green Bamboo Cloud-Swarming Swords.
• He visits Yellow Maple Valley to report his advancement, collect the sect’s rewards, and hopes to find Han Li and benefit from his opportunities again.
• Sect Master Zhong records Naruto as a Foundation Establishment cultivator and gives him three mid-grade Spirit Stones, five Illusion Flags for concealing a Cave Dwelling, and a Jade Slip with instructions and guidance.
• Before Naruto leaves, Zhong offers to help him find a Core Formation Stage cultivator to serve as his master.

Character development and interactions

• Naruto shows careful judgment in weighing the sword art’s promise against its costly drawback, choosing a reliable primary technique while leaving room to pursue sword cultivation later.
• He is amused and slightly embarrassed that Zhong remembers him chiefly as the Dao companion of Fairy Xiang Chu and Fairy Karin, rather than for his own cultivation.
• The young guards treat Naruto respectfully as a “Martial Uncle” once they recognize his Foundation Establishment status. Zhong initially fails to recognize him, then warmly acknowledges his achievement and offers further support.

Significant themes

• Risk and reward in cultivation: Powerful techniques can carry hidden costs, so advancement requires informed choices.
• Status and recognition: Naruto’s new rank changes how others address him, while his reputation is still tied to his relationships.
• Sect support and opportunity: Yellow Maple Valley’s rewards and Zhong’s offer show how institutional resources and mentorship can aid a cultivator’s progress.

Plot points and events

• Sect Master Zhong offers Naruto a chance to become a core formation elder’s disciple, but Naruto declines, preferring independence and feeling he already has the resources he needs.
• As Naruto is about to leave, a newly foundation-established cultivator arrives to report his breakthrough.
• The visitor is Han Li, whom Naruto recognizes immediately. Han Li also recognizes Naruto, and both are pleased to meet again.
• Han Li explains that he reached foundation establishment a few days earlier, crediting the sect’s Foundation Establishment Pill.
• Sect Master Zhong initially fails to remember Han Li, then recognizes him as the former recruit who entered Yellow Maple Valley with an Immortal Ascension Token. He is astonished that Han Li achieved foundation establishment despite having a four-element false spirit root.

Character developments

• Naruto reaffirms his preference for autonomy: taking a master would bring obligations without offering him much practical benefit. He is also eager to reconnect with Han Li, hoping to benefit from the opportunities that tend to follow him.
• Han Li has progressed from an obscure, low-profile disciple to a foundation-establishment cultivator. He remains modest and composed, attributing his success to luck and the sect’s pill.
• Sect Master Zhong shifts from regret at Naruto’s refusal to surprise at Han Li’s breakthrough. His delayed recognition of Han Li reflects how little attention the quiet disciple had attracted before.

Significant themes

• Independence versus mentorship: Naruto rejects the security and status of having a powerful master in favor of freedom from obligations.
• Talent, luck, and perseverance: Han Li’s breakthrough is remarkable given his poor spiritual aptitude, challenging expectations about who can advance.
• Recognition and reputation: A once-overlooked disciple gains recognition through achievement, while Naruto and Han Li’s calm reactions contrast with Zhong’s astonishment.

Character interactions

• Zhong makes a courteous but unsuccessful attempt to recruit Naruto into a master-disciple arrangement.
• Naruto and Han Li greet each other warmly and speak as old acquaintances, treating each other’s breakthroughs as unsurprising.
• Zhong initially struggles to place Han Li, then welcomes him and praises his achievement—though his disbelief at Han Li’s aptitude remains evident.

Key plot points

• Han Li reaches Foundation Establishment and explains that his pill came from the rewards for surviving the Blood-Colored Forbidden Land—not from Sect Master Zhong. Zhong realizes Han is Li Huayuan’s nominal disciple, treats him more cautiously, records his advancement, and gives him Spirit Stones and Ritual Flags.
• Naruto arranges to stay in contact with Han, secretly marks him with Flying Thunder God, and has Hinata and Karin track him. They discover Han’s new Cave Dwelling near the Yue–Yuan Wu border.
• Naruto predicts that Han will visit the Heavenly Star Sect Market and eventually acquire the Great Development Technique during an attack on Senior Brother Lin by Heavenly Bamboo Sect cultivators. Since Naruto has already brought Qi Yunxiao and Xin Ruyin under his control, he intends to claim the technique himself.
• Two months later, Naruto finds four Foundation Establishment cultivators besieged by a seemingly endless force of mechanical puppets. The group’s defensive barrier is close to collapsing. When one cultivator attempts to flee, a huge beam from the woods strikes him and sets him aflame.

Character developments and interactions

• Han Li presents his advancement matter-of-factly and remains guarded about his Cave Dwelling. He and Naruto part on friendly terms, but Naruto quietly ensures he can follow Han.
• Sect Master Zhong shifts from surprise to wary respect after recognizing Han’s connection to Li Huayuan.
• Naruto acts strategically, using his allies to locate Han and positioning himself to intercept the events that lead to the Great Development Technique. The puppets’ strength surprises even him.

Significant themes

• Ambition and foreknowledge: Naruto uses knowledge of the original events to redirect opportunities toward himself.
• Secrecy and surveillance: Han protects his privacy, while Naruto covertly tracks him.
• Attrition and danger: The puppet assault shows how relentless numbers and coordinated firepower can exhaust even powerful cultivators.

• A failed escape terrifies the cultivators: One Foundation Establishment cultivator tries to flee through the air, but a powerful beam kills him despite his protective spells and Magical Artifact. The survivors realize they cannot safely escape and grow fearful and divided, their attacks on the puppets losing force.
• Naruto watches from concealment: From several miles away, Naruto observes the battle and is startled by the beam’s strength. He spots a cloud above the fight and suspects Han Li is hiding inside a disguised flying Magical Artifact. Naruto reflects that Han Li has found a way to acquire another such artifact despite events differing from the original story.
• Negotiation fails: An older cultivator warns the hidden puppet master that killing the group will make him an enemy of the Yuan Wu Kingdom’s cultivation world. The puppet master refuses to be intimidated: since one cultivator is already dead, he says, he may as well kill everyone to prevent witnesses. He also reveals he is not from Yuan Wu. A younger cultivator offers to keep the matter secret, but the puppet master rejects the promise.
• The puppet master escalates: The older cultivator urges the others to fight back. The puppet master mocks their chances and sends out a gigantic tiger puppet, ridden by a hooded, burly man from the Thousand Bamboo Sect who is trying to lure Senior Brother Lin out. The other puppets withdraw as the tiger gathers energy for another beam.
• The barrier holds—for now: The cultivators pool their Spiritual Power and barely withstand the beam, but the effort drains and pales them. When the attack stops, they believe they have survived its only discharge. The burly man then feeds the tiger a mid-grade Fire-Attribute Spirit Stone, reigniting its weapon and leaving the survivors shocked.
  Character developments and interactions: The cultivators shift from frustration to fear and reluctant cooperation, while Naruto remains a cautious observer, assessing both the danger and Han Li’s position. The puppet master is cold, confident, and intent on eliminating witnesses; his exchange with the cultivators closes off peaceful solutions. The chapter ends on a cliffhanger, with the tiger ready to fire again and the defenders weakened.

Themes include survival and self-preservation, the danger of underestimating an opponent, and the strategic use of resources and deception.

Key plot points and events

• The wealthy cultivator Huang Long uses giant tiger puppets to overwhelm a group of cultivators, killing two and letting two others escape.
• He reveals that he has sensed someone hiding nearby. A stranger wearing a gray sack emerges and demonstrates that he knows Huang Long’s identity and secrets, including his search for the second half of the Great Expansion Art.
• The stranger reveals himself as Senior Brother Lin, whom Huang Long believed dead. Naruto recognizes Lin as his intended target.
• Huang Long feigns a warm reunion, then secretly poisons Lin’s wrists with Black Silk Gu. He explains that Master Jin ordered Lin killed after Lin tried to obtain the missing portion of the art; the secret shop helped arrange the trap in exchange for money.
• Two more Thousand Bamboo Sect protectors appear and mock Lin. Before Huang Long can introduce them, Lin summons more than two hundred armed puppet soldiers, escalating the confrontation.

Character developments and interactions

• Naruto watches the fight, covets Huang Long’s wealth, and remains focused on Senior Brother Lin as his target.
• Huang Long shifts from a cold, efficient fighter to a treacherous former disciple, exploiting Lin’s trust before openly taunting him.
• Senior Brother Lin initially welcomes his old junior brother, then recognizes the betrayal, treats the poison, and responds with a major display of force.
• Huang Long and Lin’s reunion exposes a fractured former bond: Lin recalls their shared history, while Huang Long’s loyalty now lies with Master Jin and the sect’s interests.
• The two newly appointed protectors arrive as reinforcements for Huang Long and insult Lin.

Significant themes

• Betrayal and misplaced trust: Lin is poisoned by someone he once considered a junior brother.
• Greed and power: Spirit Stones, money, and the coveted cultivation art drive the violence and the secret shop’s cooperation.
• Hidden identities and old ties: Lin’s supposed death and return reshape the confrontation, while past relationships become weapons.
• Escalation through resources: Huang Long’s costly puppets and Lin’s far larger puppet force turn the encounter into a contest of preparation and assets.

Plot points and events

• Senior Brother Lin, a former leader’s son of the Thousand Bamboo Sect, is attacked by three former sectmates seeking the second half of the Great Development Technique. A large battle between their puppet forces begins.
• Naruto realizes the puppet masters’ attacks consume valuable Spirit Stones and decides their puppets and supplies should be his.
• He ambushes the burly Foundation Establishment cultivator. The man’s defensive armor fails against Naruto’s attack, which he mistakes for a Core Formation cultivator’s Magic Treasure. Naruto then kills the other two attackers with wind and lightning techniques.
• The three puppet masters’ puppets go inert when their owners die. Senior Brother Lin braces himself for Naruto, using defensive gear and preparing to flee.
• Han Li, hidden in the sky, witnesses Naruto’s power and flees before being drawn into the conflict. Naruto privately reflects that this may prevent Han Li from obtaining the Great Development Technique as he did in the original events.
• Naruto recognizes Senior Brother Lin from their years as neighbors in Yellow Maple Valley. Lin agrees that the defeated sectmates’ puppets belong to Naruto. Naruto collects the puppets and their Storage Pouches, delighted by the abundance of Spirit Stones.

Character developments and interactions

• Naruto shows growing strength and confidence: his surprise attack defeats Foundation Establishment opponents, and his wind and lightning techniques pierce their defenses. He is also openly motivated by the material rewards and the chance to claim the Great Development Technique.
• Senior Brother Lin is wary and deferential toward Naruto, but secretly hides his poisoned arm and takes antidote pills. Naruto notices—or suspects—the deception but says nothing.
• Han Li recognizes Naruto as a serious threat and chooses caution, escaping rather than risking a confrontation.
• The Thousand Bamboo Sect cultivators underestimate Naruto’s capabilities; the burly man dies believing Naruto must be a Core Formation cultivator.

Significant themes

• Power and misjudgment: Naruto’s abilities make others mistake him for a much higher-level cultivator.
• Self-interest and resources: Naruto views the battle not only as a rescue or intervention but as an opportunity to acquire Spirit Stones, puppets, and a coveted technique.
• Changing fate: Naruto’s intervention alters the chain of events that originally led Han Li to the Great Development Technique.

Plot points and events

• Naruto exploits Senior Brother Lin’s love of puppets and urgent need to escape by offering to sell him the hundreds he has collected. Lin pays Naruto with Spirit Stones and Spirit Pills, then leaves with the puppets.
• Naruto has secretly marked Lin’s Storage Pouch with a Flying Thunder God Mark, allowing him to teleport to Lin despite the latter’s precautions.
• Once airborne, Lin lowers his personal defenses to conserve energy and suppress the poison, relying on the bamboo-house artifact’s defensive formation. Naruto appears behind him, fatally wounds him, and uses divine thunder to destroy his body and primordial spirit.
• Naruto takes Lin’s valuables and body, storing the corpse in his different dimension alongside those of the three Thousand Bamboo Sect cultivators. There, Qi Yunxiao and Xin Ruyin use Samehada to absorb spiritual power and restore their cultivation.
• Naruto leaves and returns to his cave dwelling.

Character developments and interactions

• Naruto poses as a needy junior seeking cultivation resources, but his apparent generosity is a setup. He remains methodical and cautious, concealing his identity and confirming that his teleportation mark evades even Lin’s divine sense.
• Senior Brother Lin is both a skilled puppet master and a desperate fugitive. His greed for the puppets outweighs his suspicion, while his poison and dwindling resources force him to drop protections—leaving him vulnerable.
• Naruto’s control over Qi Yunxiao and Xin Ruyin is reinforced: he has directed them to practice modified cultivation and body-tempering techniques, and they benefit from absorbing Foundation Establishment cultivators’ power.

Significant themes

• Deception and tactical patience: Naruto turns a seemingly ordinary trade into a means of tracking and killing Lin.
• Caution versus vulnerability: Lin takes precautions, but poison, limited energy, and competing priorities undermine them.
• Power and exploitation: Naruto treats enemies’ bodies and spiritual energy as resources, while directing his subordinates’ advancement.
• Hidden identity: Naruto’s concern that Lin might identify him shows how secrecy remains central to his survival.

Key plot points and events

• Naruto studies the first four levels of the Great Development Technique and its companion text, the Puppet True Explanation. The technique could make him a formidable puppet user, but he worries it might slow his cultivation and endanger Core Formation.
• He teaches the technique to Hinata and Karin, leaving the choice to them. His five main clones begin studying it, since their single Spirit Roots, rapid cultivation, and strong sect support leave them time to spare.
• Naruto gives Hinata nearly a thousand puppets to practice controlling with her Tenseigan. Qi Yunxiao takes a few to investigate how they were made.
• Naruto tests his Mangekyō Sharingan’s Time Acceleration on a Blood Spirit Flower. One minute of his True Essence adds five days of growth; with repeated use, he estimates he could add eighty days of growth to a herb per day.
• He then turns to two Golden Pages that together contain the complete Azure Essence Sword Art, intending to claim the inheritance. The chapter ends as he begins feeding Sword Aura into one page.

Character developments and interactions

• Naruto weighs powerful new abilities against the risk to his cultivation, but sees potential in combining his clones’ study of the Great Development Technique with Hinata’s ability to control many puppets.
• Hinata receives both the puppets and an opportunity to learn the technique; Karin is also invited to study it.
• Naruto’s five clones pursue body-refining techniques as well as the Great Development Technique, despite their masters’ initial puzzlement.
• Naruto’s excitement about Time Acceleration reveals his ambition: he imagines using it not only to cultivate herbs, but potentially to enhance movement or restore damaged bodies and objects.

Significant themes

• Power versus risk: Naruto must balance exceptional combat techniques against the possibility of delaying his cultivation.
• Preparation and cooperation: Clones, sect resources, Hinata’s Tenseigan, and shared knowledge allow Naruto’s group to develop complementary strengths.
• Rising potential: Naruto views his current limitations as temporary, expecting his abilities to grow alongside his cultivation.
• Competition with the original story: Naruto takes pride in claiming treasures and techniques that Han Li would otherwise have obtained.

Key plot points and events

• The Golden Page absorbs Naruto’s Sword Aura, then releases a burst of knowledge into his mind. The painful transfer leaves him incapacitated, but after three days of meditation he understands its contents.
• The first page contains the complete thirteen-level Azure Essence Sword Art, which can lead to Deity Transformation, and the Three Revolutions Heavy Origin Art. Naruto’s earlier use of its principles, together with the Heavenly Elephant Art, helped him reach Foundation Establishment without a pill.
• Naruto plans to repeat the process of dispersing and rebuilding his cultivation, using Samehada to absorb and refine other cultivators’ True Essence to speed his progress.
• The second Golden Page teaches how to forge Green Bamboo Cloud-Swarming Swords: wood-attribute flying swords made in sets of at least twelve. Naruto considers adapting them to lightning or wind, potentially with Xin Ruyin’s help.
• He begins hunting more systematically. By displaying his wealth in Markets, Naruto attracts would-be attackers, then lures them to locations marked with Flying Thunder God seals and kills them with surprise attacks. Shadow Clones help him handle groups.
• He targets mainly Foundation Establishment cultivators and avoids confronting Core Formation experts, whose Magic Treasures may withstand his attacks. He travels around Tian Nan’s Markets, taking his victims’ spoils and returning later in disguise to repeat the scheme.

Character development

• Naruto becomes markedly more ruthless: he no longer feels guilty about killing cultivators for their possessions and True Essence, treating this as a practical cultivation method.
• He remains calculating rather than reckless, using ambushes and teleportation to control risk and avoiding opponents he may not be able to defeat.
• His growing confidence is balanced by awareness that his current attacks are not strong enough to reliably penetrate powerful defensive treasures.

Significant themes

• Power through dangerous knowledge: The Golden Pages grant major cultivation secrets, but absorbing them comes at a severe physical and mental cost.
• Cultivation as predation: Naruto’s pursuit of advancement increasingly depends on killing others and taking their resources.
• Preparation and strategy: His success comes less from fair combat than from planning, marked escape routes, disguise, and surprise.
• Ambition balanced by caution: Naruto seeks rapid growth but recognizes the limits of his strength and avoids unnecessary high-level fights.

Character interactions

• Naruto has no direct confrontation with a major rival in this chapter; his targets are the cultivators he lures into ambushes.
• He uses Samehada as a tool for absorbing and refining True Essence.
• He imagines asking Xin Ruyin to modify a ritual circle for the swords, while his trips back to the cave dwelling give him time with Hinata and another woman.