Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary: “Foreseeing Danger”

Key plot points and events

• The armed assault on the Deng estate ends when police and helicopters arrive. The attackers retreat before they can be trapped, and Deng Ruiming’s expression suggests the Xiajiang families will retaliate against the Black Snake Gang.
• Tang Changsheng is shaken by how vulnerable he remains despite his cultivation. He resolves to protect himself by making his enemies fear him, rather than waiting until he reaches a level where ordinary weapons cannot harm him.
• Before leaving for the General’s Temple, Tang senses danger and refuses to travel by helicopter. A protected convoy takes him toward Yin-Yang Mountain instead.
• On the way, an explosion strikes the car ahead. Three armed ambushers are found foaming at the mouth, apparently incapacitated by Tang’s Flying Ants, which continue feeding on their black qi.
• Tang reaches the General’s Temple safely and learns that five well-equipped fighters attacked it earlier. Wu Shulan says a sudden fog appeared just as she was about to be overwhelmed.

Character developments

• Tang Changsheng confronts the limits of his new strength. The near-death danger makes him more determined and ruthless about eliminating threats, while his successful use of the Flying Ants shows that his supernatural abilities can still protect him.
• Wu Shulan has survived a dangerous attack, but her pale face and fearful recollection of the mysterious fog suggest the experience has deeply unsettled her.
• Deng Ruiming and the Xiajiang families are positioned to respond forcefully to the Black Snake Gang’s attack, though their retaliation has not yet begun.

Character interactions

• Tang’s sudden refusal to take the helicopter alerts Deng Xiancheng to the possibility of a missile attack; Deng quickly arranges an armored convoy.
• The convoy’s officers and gunmen witness the ambushers’ unexplained collapse and come to regard Tang with awe, even though they do not know exactly how he defeated them.
• At the temple, Tang checks on Wu Shulan, who recounts the attack and the strange fog that saved the defenders.

Significant themes

• Vulnerability and power: Cultivation has not made Tang invincible; bullets and armed attackers remain real dangers.
• Foreboding and intuition: Tang’s sense of danger influences his choices and helps him avoid a potentially disastrous journey.
• Fear as protection: Tang concludes that making enemies afraid to attack may be more practical than relying on distant future strength.
• Unexplained supernatural intervention: The fog at the temple hints at mysterious forces or abilities whose origin remains unclear.

Key plot points and events

• Wu Shulan reports that an attack near the General’s Temple left two people dead, while the others escaped. Tang Changsheng refuses to inspect the bodies, confident that the Ghost Domain beneath Yin-Yang Mountain makes the temple a dangerous place for attackers.
• He reconsiders the Ghost Domain: it may be not only a threat but also protection left by the sect’s founders. Still, he plans to strengthen the mountain’s defenses by raising one of a powerful tabby cat’s kittens as a spirit beast.
• Tang orders the bodies thrown below Dead Man Mountain and asks Wu Shulan to tell Da Xiang to report to him. He suspects Da Xiang’s secret schemes caused the trouble and believes Da Xiang should be responsible for resolving it.
• Da Xiang returns exhausted and ashamed, thanking Tang for saving his life. He explains that enemies used witchcraft to poison him by influencing him to choose a particular bottle of water.
• Tang explains that carefully arranged sights, sounds, and encounters can shape a person’s subconscious choices. Even cultivators may find such mental suggestion difficult to resist.
• Tang reflects that he knows many covert ways to kill, and that Deng Ruiming’s request to eliminate several people will be easy for him—and may give him a chance to visit Ling Xiaoyu.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang Changsheng remains cool and calculating. He recognizes Da Xiang’s disloyal maneuvering but has tolerated it so far; Da Xiang’s latest failure may be the last straw. He also shows practical concern for strengthening the sect.
• Da Xiang returns humbled by a serious setback and acknowledges Tang’s rescue. His account reveals that his opponents are subtle and resourceful.
• Wu Shulan is anxious about her husband’s ambitions and fears Tang’s judgment, especially because both their Life-Origin Talismans are under Tang’s control.
• Tang questions Da Xiang about the attack, while Wu Shulan’s confusion prompts Tang to explain how mental suggestion can guide someone toward a poisoned drink without their awareness.

Significant themes

• Protection and danger: The Ghost Domain that threatens the mountain may also serve as its defense.
• Control and trust: Tang tolerates Da Xiang’s schemes but emphasizes the need for oversight, reflecting the fragile balance between loyalty and suspicion.
• Hidden influence: Mental suggestion shows how small, unnoticed details can manipulate choices more effectively than direct force.
• Power and preparedness: Tang’s plans for a spirit-beast guardian underscore his belief that strength and vigilance are essential amid escalating threats.

Key plot points and events

• Da Xiang begs Tang Changsheng for help after an armed pursuit in Lower River leaves mercenaries, members of the Deng Household, and police dead.
• Pressed to explain himself, Da Xiang reveals that he and his companions once entered what they believed was a tomb but discovered was an Ancient Cultivator’s cave abode. Deadly traps killed more than half the group.
• The survivors recovered magical implements. Da Xiang secretly kept several items, including a bottle of rare Jade Marrow. Later, a shipment of their findings was hijacked, and the organization’s investigators suspected Da Xiang of theft and captured him.
• Da Xiang gives Tang the Jade Marrow, which can strengthen Tang’s Heartlight and help establish his Spirit Terrace. Tang accepts it and offers Da Xiang a Century-old Mountain Essence in return.
• Da Xiang explains that he escaped the worst consequences only because Wu Shulan asked Tang to intervene.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang Changsheng is willing to protect Da Xiang but insists on hearing the truth rather than being manipulated by an appeal to loyalty. He recognizes the Jade Marrow’s value and responds generously with a gift suited to Da Xiang’s needs.
• Da Xiang moves from pleading and concealment to candidly recounting his past. His gift and Tang’s countergift deepen his respect for Tang, whom he sees as powerful and difficult to fathom.
• Their exchange shows a relationship of mutual obligation: Da Xiang offers a treasure he cannot use well, while Tang repays him with a resource better suited to his cultivation.

Significant themes

• Trust and accountability: Tang’s protection is not unconditional; Da Xiang must be honest about the trouble he caused.
• Power and hidden value: The cave abode’s objects are far more than antiques, and the Jade Marrow may significantly advance Tang’s cultivation.
• Reciprocity and fitting generosity: The two men exchange treasures according to their respective needs, reinforcing loyalty and respect.
• Dangerous factional politics: The stolen shipment, suspicion, and internal power struggles suggest Da Xiang’s troubles stem from more than the cave’s dangers alone.

Key plot points and events

• Da Xiang confirms that his former organization used antique smuggling as a cover to collect magical artifacts, possibly for trade through Demon Web. He suspects the group may have powerful backing, though he has never encountered its experts.
• He reveals that, three years earlier, he and others entered the cave abode beneath Gourd Islet. They reached only the outer compound, where Leaping Corpses nearly killed them. They escaped with a shipment, which Da Xiang says should now be in Lufadan.
• Tang Changsheng explains that General’s Temple has long known of the dangerous cave abode and its refined-corpse guardian. He had suspected someone opened it after several people contracted Corpse Poison, but never expected Da Xiang to have entered.
• Tang decides to inspect the outer compound with Da Xiang, while warning that he will not risk facing stronger refined corpses.
• Tang summons Zhao Tiesheng, a local dredger with a boat, armed companions, and guns. Before dawn, Zhao hurries to General’s Temple, frightened by its reputation and recalling stories of brutal supernatural reprisals against those who angered it.

Character developments and interactions

• Da Xiang is candid and remorseful, answering Tang’s questions without concealment. His confession suggests he wants to return to the temple’s good graces, though his past involvement in the cave’s looting remains serious.
• Tang Changsheng is cautious and authoritative. He recognizes the Gourd Islet connection, interrogates Da Xiang firmly about the stolen goods, then chooses a limited reconnaissance rather than a full exploration.
• Zhao Tiesheng is introduced as capable and locally influential, but deeply intimidated by General’s Temple. His fear is grounded in both hearsay and his childhood memory of a horrifying incident.
• Tang and Da Xiang’s exchange combines Da Xiang’s excitement about returning to the cave with Tang’s warnings about the danger; Tang’s confidence against Leaping Corpses only makes Da Xiang more cautious.

Significant themes

• Danger and restraint: Even a sect master avoids the cave’s deeper threats, emphasizing the limits of strength and the wisdom of caution.
• Secrecy and illicit trade: Antique smuggling may conceal a broader effort to gather magical artifacts, linking criminal networks to supernatural markets.
• Power and fear: General’s Temple’s reputation is sustained by stories of seemingly supernatural vengeance, shaping how outsiders behave.
• Loyalty and accountability: Da Xiang’s return does not erase his role in taking the cave’s contents; Tang treats the matter as a potential betrayal of the temple.

Plot points and events

• Tang Changsheng orders Zhao Tiesheng to prepare a dredging boat for a visit to Gourd Islet, a place feared alongside the General’s Temple and Dead Man Mountain.
• As they travel up the flooded White Sand River, Tang asks about a worker who once fell into the water near the islet. After being rescued, the man’s body rotted and grew dense white hair before he died.
• Zhao confirms that the body was burned according to local custom for sinister deaths. Tang and Da Xiang agree that this was the right thing to do, implying burial might have caused a disaster.
• Tang asks Zhao about the legend explaining Gourd Islet’s origins. Zhao recounts a tale of an immortal’s gourd falling into the river and becoming the islet. A worker then offers to tell a different version.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhao Tiesheng remains deeply intimidated by places associated with supernatural danger, especially Gourd Islet. Though capable and obedient, he carefully manages his behavior around Tang, fearful of displeasing him.
• Tang Changsheng is calm and authoritative, but his unusual interest in Gourd Islet’s history suggests he is investigating its mysteries. He carries a small crystal bead shaped like a gourd.
• Da Xiang stays close to Tang and speaks bluntly, asking what happened to the dead worker. His agreement with Tang reinforces the seriousness of local burial taboos.
• Tang questions Zhao about the fatal incident and the island’s legend, while Zhao answers cautiously. The workers keep their distance, reflecting the group’s anxiety.

Significant themes

• Fear and superstition: Gourd Islet’s reputation shapes people’s choices even when its dangers are poorly understood.
• Tradition and ritual: Burning those who die under uncanny circumstances is treated as essential protection.
• Mystery and foreshadowing: The illness linked to the river and the competing origin stories suggest that Gourd Islet’s past may hold clues to the danger ahead.

Plot points and events

• A crewman tells Tang Changsheng the local legend of Gourd Islet: a monk stole a key and treasures from an immortal’s gourd-shaped abode, causing a flood that killed tens of thousands. The dead supposedly gathered on the islet, where ghostly fires still appear.
• Tang realizes the purple, crystal-like bead he carries is the key to the Gourd Immortal Abode. He recalls that powerful sects once fought over it and that the General’s Temple abandoned its ancestral home on Gourd Islet to avoid the conflict.
• Tang believes Da Xiang’s earlier entry into the abode may have weakened its protective formations, making an attempt possible—though dangerous.
• Near nightfall, the boat reaches the islet. Tang and Da Xiang leap from the boat to shore, startling the crew with their abilities. Tang sends the boat away and prepares to search for the entrance.
• Tang summons four Guardian Yin Soldiers. They will not leave until he gives them incense, then he orders them to find the abode’s entrance.

Character development and interactions

• Tang Changsheng shifts from quietly listening to the legend to recognizing the bead’s significance and confronting the risks of entering the abode. His confidence is tempered by caution and resolve.
• The crewman eagerly shares the legend, while Tang prompts him about the forgotten key and lightly corrects details. The crew’s initial awe gives way to nervousness when Tang’s presence turns imposing again.
• Da Xiang follows Tang onto the islet, demonstrating comparable jumping ability, but says little.
• Tang treats the Yin Soldiers with amused familiarity, teasing them for their greed before directing them to search.

Significant themes

• Fortune and changing power: Once-dominant sects have vanished, while the key has fallen to an obscure cultivator.
• Greed and danger: The legend links a stolen treasure to catastrophe, and the abode remains perilous despite its weakened defenses.
• Decline and decay: Waning spiritual energy may have weakened ancient protections, reflecting a world diminished from its former strength.

Key plot points and events

• Tang Changsheng and Da Xiang search Gourd Islet for the grotto entrance. Tang recognizes the islet as a powerful spiritual-energy site, though he suspects its hidden danger may be even worse than the one beneath Yin-Yang Mountain.
• Da Xiang explains that his group entered the grotto underwater when its restrictions failed. Inside, they encountered hundreds or thousands of unnaturally preserved drowned corpses.
• Tang finds a ring of Spell Bricks around a Taihu stone—the remains of an earlier General’s Temple. The bricks are valuable magical wards, and many appear to have been lost over time.
• A hole in the stone fits Tang’s Amethyst bead. When he inserts it, the stone sinks and a water-filled pit opens.
• Foul corpse water erupts from the opening. Tang dodges most of it, while four Yin Soldiers attack a cloud of black smoke rising from below. Two are dispersed but quickly reform, weakened.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang Changsheng shows caution and strategic restraint: he listens to Da Xiang’s account, inspects the site, and prepares his Ghost Soldiers before opening the entrance. His confidence is tested when the grotto immediately attacks.
• Da Xiang admires Tang’s growing power and leadership, while remaining deeply frightened by the memories of his previous visit. He points out the entrance and shares what he knows.
• Tang’s Ghost Soldiers demonstrate their increasing strength and loyalty by confronting the underground threat, though the encounter visibly diminishes their glow.

Significant themes

• Power and responsibility: Tang’s ambition to restore the General’s Temple must be balanced against the dangers hidden beneath the islet.
• The past’s lingering traces: The ancient temple, costly Spell Bricks, and preserved corpses show how history and spiritual forces remain active in the present.
• Courage amid fear: Da Xiang’s trauma and Tang’s composure contrast as they approach the grotto.
• Hidden value and hidden danger: Gourd Islet appears desolate, yet holds both powerful spiritual resources and a lethal underground threat.

Key events

• A gigantic, corpse-eating catfish bursts from the water. Da Xiang shoots it repeatedly with a large-caliber pistol, leaving it badly wounded. The Yin Soldiers cannot approach because the creature’s abundant vital blood overwhelms them.
• Da Xiang identifies it as a Corpse Catfish, explaining that it has eaten corpses, accumulated deadly Corpse Poison, and may be nearing spiritual transformation. It was likely responsible for poisoning Zhao Tiesheng.
• Tang Changsheng realizes Da Xiang had deliberately used corpse oil to lure Corpse Catfish during the earlier attack on Song Da and his companions.
• A submerged pool leads toward the underground “Immortal Realm.” Tang jumps in first, carrying a pistol, and Da Xiang follows. They swim through a dark, water-filled passage and emerge into a lit stone corridor, where an unseen barrier holds the water back.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang Changsheng is startled by the catfish and newly impressed by firearms, recognizing that even a cultivator can be killed by bullets. He is cautious but practical: he carries a gun and readily enters the dangerous passage.
• Da Xiang demonstrates confidence, firearm skill, and specialized knowledge of Corpse Catfish. He explains his earlier use of corpse oil and is mildly surprised that Tang also values modern weapons.
• Their exchange shows mutual respect and complementary approaches: Da Xiang relies on knowledge and preparation, while Tang learns from him but also brings his own experience and caution.

Significant themes

• Pragmatism over prejudice: Tang does not dismiss modern technology, even while belonging to an ancient religious tradition.
• Knowledge turns danger into a tool: Da Xiang’s understanding of the catfish and its behavior allowed him to manipulate it.
• Limits of technology and power: Guns are devastating in the ordinary world, but technological devices fail inside the Immortal Realm.
• Courage amid uncertainty: Tang proceeds into the dark water despite the threat and lack of knowledge about where the passage leads.

Plot points and events

• Tang Changsheng and Da Xiang discover a Water-Avoidance Pearl embedded in the passage. Tang recognizes its value but warns Da Xiang not to touch it, suspecting a trap.
• They reach the gate to the Gourd Immortal Realm. Tang opens it, releasing a cloud of dust; his Yin Soldiers clear the air, while Da Xiang is left covered in dust.
• Inside, they find a vast, damp estate of winding walkways and layered garden-like spaces. Da Xiang explains how its design uses shifting views and illusion to make a limited space seem expansive.
• Tang navigates by recalling a painting of the abode. In the next courtyard, he breaks a bone and triggers a burst of deadly Yin Fire, narrowly dodging it.
• They identify the remains as belonging to a ghost-path master and realize the abode remains extremely dangerous. Tang decides to retreat.
• As they withdraw, heavy thuds announce a Leaping Corpse, which appears and hops toward them.

Character development and interactions

• Tang demonstrates restraint, sound judgment, and practical leadership: he resists the pearl’s allure, recognizes the danger of the Yin Fire, and promptly chooses retreat.
• Da Xiang increasingly admires Tang, privately concluding that he is better suited to lead the General’s Temple. He also contributes his knowledge of tomb architecture and warns Tang about the bones.
• The two cooperate closely, quickly understanding one another’s signals and responding to danger together.

Significant themes

• Caution over greed: Valuable treasures are not worth pursuing blindly in a perilous place.
• Knowing one’s limits: Tang’s decision to retreat reflects wisdom rather than cowardice.
• Leadership and respect: Tang’s measured actions strengthen Da Xiang’s confidence in him.
• Hidden danger: The elegant, seemingly orderly abode conceals deadly traps and supernatural threats.

Key plot points

• Tang Changsheng and Da Xiang flee a massive Zombie, which proves too powerful for Tang’s Grade-D Yin Soldier to stop.
• The Zombie breaks through the old wooden walkway. Its fall into the water attracts several enormous Corpse Catfish, and part of the walkway collapses.
• The pair shut the Vermilion-Lacquered Gate, seal the flooded entrance, and return safely to Gourd Islet without taking the Water-Avoidance Pearl.
• Tang explains that the Gourd Immortal Abode has a deadly history: experts who entered it decades ago never returned, possibly killed by the catfish or transformed into Zombies.
• He directs Da Xiang to leak the abode’s location, intending to lure the Black Snake Gang into the dangerous site.
• After Da Xiang leaves, Tang secretly re-enters the abode through a hidden, dry passage. In a stone chamber, he uses a token and Heartlight to quiet dozens of restless Zombies sealed in coffins.

Character developments

• Tang Changsheng remains cautious and strategic. His retreat is not defeat: he has assessed the abode’s dangers and sees how to use them against his enemies.
• Da Xiang becomes increasingly impressed—and wary—of Tang. Their escape builds mutual respect, and Da Xiang’s suspicion gives way to genuine obedience after he recognizes how far ahead Tang has planned.

Significant themes

• Caution and survival: Tang prioritizes escape over combat and refuses to risk touching the pearl.
• Power through information and planning: Tang turns knowledge of the abode’s dangers into a weapon.
• Trust and authority: Da Xiang’s respect grows from seeing Tang’s competence, not merely from Tang’s formal power over him.
• Hidden danger and history: The abode’s deadly past suggests that the catastrophe inside it is older and more consequential than the pair initially knew.

Character interactions

• Tang and Da Xiang cooperate instinctively during the escape, strengthening their bond.
• Tang reveals the abode’s history and gives Da Xiang a covert assignment; Da Xiang understands the plan and carries it out.
• Tang’s secret return—and his ability to control the chamber’s Zombies with the token—shows Da Xiang has seen only part of his sect master’s intentions.

Plot and key events

• Tang Changsheng explains that Gourd Islet belongs to General’s Temple and is filled with dangers. Its Inner Abode once swallowed a group of powerful Central Land masters, and the sect believes it may be connected to the Heaven and Earth Cataclysm. Tang obeys the warning not to enter it before reaching the Manifest Divinity Realm.
• The Outer Abode contains numerous corpses and Armor Corpses. Tang believes the ancestors stationed there to contain threats from within, and expects the forces there to destroy anyone the Black Snake Gang sends in.
• Da Xiang spreads word about Gourd Islet. Within a week, outsiders begin investigating, while Tang returns to Yin-Yang Mountain and pretends to know nothing.
• Tang has brought three newborn kittens to General’s Temple. Wu Shulan feeds them a medicinal diet, hoping they will grow into powerful Guardian Spirit Beasts.
• Da Xiang messages Tang: “The fish has taken the bait.” Tang goes to the Deng Household, where he learns the Black Snake Gang’s people have been drawn to Gourd Islet. He and the Dengs intend to watch the trap spring and avenge the attack on their ancestral home.
• Tang meets Qiu Heping, a former major who now owns the Peaceful Escort Agency. Though he presents himself as a genial businessman, Tang notices a keen, dangerous quality beneath the friendly manner.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang Changsheng shows both caution and ambition: he resists the temptation to explore the Inner Abode, but confidently uses Gourd Islet’s dangers to bait the Black Snake Gang. He also shows a gentler side through his affection for the kittens.
• Wu Shulan is openly fond of the kittens and cares for them attentively, while Tang explains their potential future role at the temple.
• Da Xiang proves effective at spreading information and luring the gang toward the trap.
• Deng Ruiming works with Tang on the retaliation and introduces Qiu Heping, reflecting the alliance between General’s Temple and the Deng Household.
• Qiu Heping appears jovial and harmless, but Tang’s observation suggests he has not lost his former military sharpness.

Significant themes

• Hidden danger and restraint: Gourd Islet’s mysteries tempt Tang, but he respects the limits set by his sect.
• Strategy and revenge: The protagonists turn the Black Snake Gang’s interest in the Abode into a trap, motivated partly by the attack on the Deng family.
• Power and preparation: The temple’s corpses, medicinal practices, and future spirit beasts show its long-term cultivation of supernatural strength.
• Appearances versus reality: Gourd Islet’s apparent value conceals lethal risks, while Qiu’s cheerful businessman persona masks a formidable past.

Key plot points and events

• Tang Changsheng recognizes Qiu Heping as a former major, though Qiu now presents himself as a businessman. Qiu leads the Peaceful Escort Agency, whose scale and military connections suggest it has powerful state backing.
• At the agency’s command center, Tang sees drone surveillance of Gourd Islet. The feed suffers unexplained interference, which Qiu speculates may come from a metal deposit; Tang knows it is caused by the hidden Gourd Immortal Abode.
• Qiu explains that the attackers in Lower River were hired by the Flame Hound, a mercenary group recruiting veterans of Germany’s elite Hellhound Special Forces.
• Surveillance captures a diver being dragged underwater by a strange, finned creature. The unexplained attack unsettles everyone.
• The drone identifies twenty-seven hostile operatives positioned around Gourd Islet. Qiu offers to kill them, but Tang insists the General’s Temple should handle the trouble it caused. He warns that intruders will not leave alive, while leaving Qiu’s men to deal with any who escape.
• Qiu accepts and invokes Tang’s connection to his master, Mr. Yuan Zhen, the former temple head honored by the emperor. After nightfall, the drone resumes surveillance using infrared and thermal imaging, but interference intensifies near the islet.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang Changsheng shows composure and confidence, concealing his knowledge of the Immortal Abode’s influence while asserting that the temple can defend itself. He also demonstrates political tact by recognizing Qiu’s military identity and status.
• Qiu Heping is modest in words but pleased by his former rank being acknowledged. He displays confidence in his agency’s ability to eliminate the attackers and probes Tang’s credibility by referencing his distinguished master.
• Deng Ruiming quietly signals approval of Tang’s tact, then watches closely when Qiu makes his offer, reflecting awareness of the contractor’s power.

Significant themes

• Private security and state power: The agency’s civilian image masks close ties to the military and substantial resources.
• Hidden supernatural forces: The strange creature and interference reveal that ordinary surveillance cannot explain what is happening around Gourd Islet.
• Responsibility and authority: Tang argues that the temple should resolve the crisis it caused, even as outside forces stand ready to intervene.
• Reputation and inherited honor: Mr. Yuan Zhen’s imperial recognition remains meaningful, helping shape Qiu’s assessment of Tang despite the changed world.

Key plot points and events

• Tang Changsheng watches the Black Snake Gang enter the Gourd Immortal Abode and considers how modern detection technology might counter Daoist arts.
• He orders Qiu Heping’s forces to eliminate the gang’s outside guards and surround Gourd Islet. The remaining guard surrenders; no one emerges from the abode, even after weeks of surveillance.
• After more than half the gang is lost, Tang returns to the abode. He finds all twenty-two infiltrators dead in its outer section, along with many destroyed Zombies and one Bronze Armor Corpse.
• One corpse holds a damaged Sword Pellet, an artifact bearing talisman-like markings. Tang infers that a powerful Sword Qi master may once have entered the Inner Abode and died there.
• Suspecting the Black Snake Gang previously obtained treasures from the Inner Abode—and that this may explain its attacks on the Three Families of Xiajiang and the General’s Temple—Tang considers entering it himself. He ultimately decides the risk is unjustified and plans to buy Gourd Islet and bar others from entering.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang Changsheng shifts from reflecting on the limits of Daoist arts in a technological age to acting decisively against the gang. Discovering the Sword Pellet intensifies his curiosity and concern, but his caution wins out: he chooses to build strength rather than gamble with his life.
• Qiu Heping trusts Tang’s confidence and quickly carries out his order, mobilizing the waiting forces.
• Tang’s dealings with Qiu and the surrounding forces show his command over the response, while his investigation of the gang’s motives reveals growing suspicion about their past successes.

Significant themes

• Tradition versus technology: Tang worries that modern surveillance and genetic science may rival or surpass ancient Daoist arts.
• Caution versus ambition: The possibility of powerful treasures tempts Tang, but he judges patience and preparation more valuable than a dangerous expedition.
• Hidden dangers and uncertainty: The gang’s disappearance and the Sword Pellet point to the Inner Abode’s deeper, still-unexplored threats.
• Power and its cost: The gang’s firepower destroys many Zombies but cannot save its members from the abode.

Key plot points and events

• Tang Changsheng’s Sword Pellet flies back into the Gourd Immortal Abode, drawing him toward danger. A furious black-mist entity attacks as he tries to escape.
• Tang uses his Iron Armor Corpses to block its attacks, sacrificing several to buy time. He realizes the entity is confined to the inner abode and cannot bring its full power outside.
• After escaping, Tang discovers a wisp of black mist hidden in his Sea of Consciousness. He destroys it with the Primordial Yang Divine Lamp and his Heartlight, provoking the entity to shake Gourd Islet in fury.
• Tang leaves the island and questions Da Xiang about items taken from the abode. Da Xiang remembers an unsettling mirror that he and the others removed; he believes it may have served as a seal.
• The mirror has been shipped to Lufadan. Tang decides to retrieve it, both to reclaim the sect’s property and to address the danger it may have unleashed.
• Tang tells Wu Shulan to guard the General’s Temple while he and Da Xiang travel.

Character developments

• Tang becomes more cautious after confronting the entity. He recognizes the abode’s danger, suspects it wants to possess him and escape, and acts decisively to protect himself and the sect.
• Da Xiang reveals that he had monitored the Black Snake Gang’s shipping routes and now sees the recovery mission as a chance to regain Tang’s trust.
• Wu Shulan remains dutiful and concerned, in contrast to Da Xiang’s ambition.

Significant themes

• Hidden danger and deception: The Sword Pellet lures Tang into a trap, while the entity’s attempted possession shows that the threat extends beyond the abode.
• Consequences of disturbing the past: The stolen mirror may have been sealing the entity, suggesting that the group’s earlier actions awakened it.
• Trust and redemption: Da Xiang’s knowledge may prove useful, but his place in the sect depends on his loyalty and performance.
• Duty and protection: Tang prioritizes securing the mirror and safeguarding the General’s Temple.

Character interactions

• Tang and the entity engage in a desperate pursuit: he uses his corpses as shields, then defeats its lingering influence within his mind.
• Tang presses Da Xiang for the truth; Da Xiang’s recollection of the mirror gives Tang a new lead and a reason to take him along.
• Tang assigns Wu Shulan responsibility for the temple, reassuring himself that its two Guardian Yin Soldiers will deter intruders.

• Journey and setting: Three days after the preceding events, Tang Changsheng takes a leisurely, three-day sightseeing train across the ocean toward Lufadan. The train’s speed, comfort, and popularity underscore how technology has transformed long-distance travel. He is traveling alone: Da Xiang would attract too much attention, and Tang plans to visit Ling Xiaoyu at Blue Castle University first.
• Meeting the Rodneys: In the luxury-carriage lounge, Tang plays cards with a friendly elderly couple, Mr. and Mrs. Rodney, and repeatedly loses. The lighthearted game and their teasing help the strangers become acquainted. When Mr. Rodney offers him wine, Tang happily accepts: he remembers the Rodney family’s wine fondly and senses that it contains a small amount of spiritual energy.
• A troubling mystery: While speaking with the cheerful, apparently harmless couple, Tang notices a formidable aura of killing intent, grievance, and karmic sin behind Mr. Rodney. It seems far more fitting for someone who has committed terrible crimes than for the genial man before him. Tang’s curiosity about supernatural phenomena prompts him to keep investigating the apparent contradiction between the aura and the couple’s demeanor—and between it and their spiritually unusual wine.
• The wine’s explanation: Mr. Rodney boasts about the wine and hints at its secret, but Mrs. Rodney reveals that he was an astronaut before he can explain. Tang is surprised: although space travel has become much more common, he cannot see how Mr. Rodney’s career explains the wine’s taste.
  Character development and interactions: Tang comes across as observant, curious, and willing to engage with strangers, though he is cautious about the Rodneys’ hidden significance. The Rodneys appear playful and warm: they joke with Tang during cards, share their wine, and tease one another. Their friendly exchange contrasts with the ominous aura Tang detects, setting up the chapter’s central mystery.
  Themes: The chapter juxtaposes rapid technological progress with the supernatural, and outward appearances with hidden truths. Tang’s fascination with the Rodneys also emphasizes curiosity as a driving force in his investigations.

Key plot points and events

• Mr. Rodney hints that a forthcoming announcement concerns “a new world,” then his wife stops him because he has violated a nondisclosure agreement.
• Tang Changsheng suspects the discovery may explain both Rodney’s karmic taint and the spiritual energy in the grape wine, though he cannot tell whether it is another planet or something more supernatural.
• To learn the truth, Tang uses the Dream Entry Technique: a tiny creature enters Rodney’s ear while he sleeps, allowing Tang to witness scenes from his memories.
• Rodney abruptly wakes after the intrusion, coughing up a black shadow. Tang concludes he has uncovered an extraordinary secret: Rodney’s dream showed strange landscapes and animals that clearly did not belong to Earth.

Character developments

• Tang’s skepticism about space experiments gives way to intense curiosity when he hears about the “new world.” He chooses a direct, risky method to investigate.
• Rodney is talkative after drinking but becomes compliant when his wife reminds him of the legal consequences of leaking confidential information.
• Mrs. Rodney acts as the more cautious and responsible partner, cutting off her husband before he reveals more.

Significant themes

• Science and the supernatural: Tang weighs scientific explanations against the possibility of an otherworldly discovery.
• Secrecy and forbidden knowledge: Rodney’s nondisclosure agreement underscores the danger and importance of the information.
• Intrusion and discovery: Tang’s dream technique lets him access hidden memories, but the chapter hints that uncovering the truth may carry risks.

Character interactions

• Tang questions Rodney about the wine and listens as Rodney hints at a new world; Mrs. Rodney interrupts and takes him away.
• The couple argue privately over his disclosure, while Tang listens through his supernatural abilities.
• Tang later invades Rodney’s dream and observes its contents, though Rodney wakes before Tang can learn exactly what the new world is.

Plot and events

• Tang Changsheng is abruptly expelled from a vivid mental scene after probing Rodney’s memories. He infers that Rodney’s company discovered a habitable alien world decades ago and has secretly explored it, with a public announcement planned soon.
• He wonders whether the world is rich in spiritual energy and whether Rodney’s karmic miasma comes from violence against its native inhabitants.
• The night sky outside Tang’s train window suddenly turns bloodred. His Primordial Yang Divine Lamp appears to become a cobra, and the scene shifts into an eerie, overgrown amusement park.
• A masked attacker appears, but Tang discovers it is a plastic clown mannequin. He calmly disables it, breaking its limbs and crushing its knife hand.
• Tang concludes that he has been pulled into someone else’s dream, not merely caught in a normal illusion.

Character development

• Tang remains analytical and composed in the face of supernatural danger. Rather than panicking, he tests the apparent illusion and responds decisively when attacked.
• His suspicions about Rodney deepen: he considers the possibility that Rodney’s expedition has harmed the alien world’s inhabitants.

Themes

• Science and cultivation: Advanced space exploration and spiritual energy seem to coexist, challenging Tang’s assumptions about the worlds he encounters.
• Perception and reality: The dream makes familiar objects and surroundings appear threatening, but Tang’s ability to distinguish appearance from substance gives him an advantage.
• Exploration and moral consequences: Tang questions whether humanity’s expansion into a new world has involved colonization and bloodshed.

Character interactions

• Tang interacts with Rodney indirectly through the memories he has accessed, using them to piece together the secret alien expedition.
• In the dream, Tang confronts the masked clown. It tries to frighten and attack him, but he quickly recognizes its artificial nature and overpowers it.

Key plot points and events

• Tang Changsheng awakens from a nightmare and confirms he has returned to reality by examining the experience under the light of his Heavenly Heart, which can reveal the Primordial Spirit and resist sensory illusions.
• He discovers that his soul fragment carried Karmic Sin Aura back from Mr. Rodney’s dream. The aura pulled Tang into Rodney’s nightmare, explaining why the Dream Entry Technique is dangerous without strong spiritual cultivation.
• Tang uses a bottle of dreamlike vapor to strengthen his Heavenly Heart’s light. He purifies much of the poisonous black aura within himself, though he knows bodily impurities will keep accumulating and must be cleared periodically.
• The light also removes Karmic Sin Aura from a horse-shaped shadow. Tang remains puzzled by the extraordinary negative aura surrounding Rodney.
• The next day, the Rodneys keep to their compartment. At the destination, they exchange gifts with Tang: Rodney gives him wine, while Tang gives the couple a protective charm, hinting that it may be especially useful to them. They depart, and Tang predicts they will meet again soon.
• Tang is met at the station by Fan Qiang, sent by Deng Ruiming. Fan Qiang appears polished and professional, but regards Tang with some scrutiny; his surname and assignment suggest he belongs to the Fan Household.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang Changsheng demonstrates greater confidence in his spiritual discipline, carefully reconstructing how the illusion took hold and cleansing the harmful aura. His curiosity about Rodney’s condition remains unresolved, and his parting gift suggests concern or foreknowledge.
• Mr. Rodney remains friendly and apparently unaware of the danger associated with his aura. He and his wife share warm farewells with Tang, despite having avoided him the previous day.
• Fan Qiang is introduced as Tang’s new contact. His respectful manner is tempered by a quietly assessing gaze.

Significant themes

• Perception versus spiritual truth: Ordinary senses can be deceived, while the awakened Heavenly Heart can expose illusions.
• The risks of forbidden arts: Entering dreams can bring back unseen dangers and trap even the practitioner.
• Ongoing purification and vigilance: Like dust in a room, toxins and spiritual impurities continually accumulate and require regular cleansing.
• Unresolved danger and fate: Rodney’s powerful aura and Tang’s prediction of another meeting foreshadow further trouble.

Key plot points and events

• Tang Changsheng meets Fan Qiang, a low-ranking, distant relative of the Fan family who was assigned to receive him. Tang quickly realizes that Fan Qiang does not know his identity.
• Fan Qiang provides detailed files on the people who cheated Deng Ruiming, including photographs, dossiers, and their movements. They are expected to gather at a nightclub in three days, giving Tang a chance to deal with them all at once.
• Tang approves of Fan Qiang’s work and says he will mention it to Fan Corporation president Fan Zhifeng. Fan Qiang’s reaction makes him realize Tang has connections and status far beyond what he first assumed.
• During the drive to the hotel, Tang uses a scrap of his old Daoist robe and the Primordial Yang Divine Lamp to search for traces of the Gourd Immortal Abode. He senses nothing nearby.
• Tang arrives at the upscale hotel satisfied, while his broader aim—locating objects from the Abode—remains unresolved.

Character developments and interactions

• Tang Changsheng is observant, confident, and impatient to finish the matter involving Deng Ruiming. He treats Fan Qiang’s investigation as competent, but keeps his attention on his own priorities: finding the Abode’s objects and later seeking Ling Xiaoyu.
• Fan Qiang is ambitious and eager to make a good impression. Though initially unaware of Tang’s importance, he handles the assignment efficiently and becomes more cautious after hearing Tang casually name Fan Zhifeng.
• Their interaction shifts from Fan Qiang viewing Tang as an important guest to recognizing that he may be a powerful figure within the corporation’s circle. Fan Qiang politely accommodates Tang, even as Tang performs a magical ritual in his treasured new car.

Significant themes

• Status and perception: Tang’s authority is revealed indirectly through others’ reactions, while Fan Qiang’s limited family standing shapes his initial ignorance.
• Practical efficiency: Tang prefers to wait for the targets to gather rather than pursue them individually.
• The modern and the supernatural: Corporate investigations and city travel coexist with Tang’s cultivation and magical search.
• Limits of power: Even Tang’s supernatural sensing cannot easily overcome the scale and noise of a huge metropolis.

Plot points and events

• Tang Changsheng sends Fan Qiang away after getting his phone number, then divides work with Da Xiang: Da Xiang will trace a shipment, while Tang goes to Blue Castle University to visit Ling Xiaoyu before returning to Lower River.
• Ling Xiaoyu greets Tang warmly and takes him to her apartment, teasing him during the drive and promising a surprise.
• She tells him she joined the university’s Mary Rose Student Union—also called the Rose Society—after spending a night alone in the supposedly haunted Cross Church. Her protective talisman helped her stay calm despite unexplained noises and moving furniture.
• Tang senses that something may be wrong with the building and warns her that the talisman is not foolproof. He plans to examine her later.
• Ling explains that the Rose Society is a long-established, influential organization for women at the university. Tang recognizes it as a kind of secret society.

Character developments

• Tang Changsheng is practical and attentive: he keeps Fan Qiang’s contact for future use, delegates the shipment search, and makes time for Ling. His playful teasing gives way to concern when he hears about Cross Church.
• Ling Xiaoyu is affectionate, confident, and mischievous. Her earlier exposure to supernatural events seems to have made her bolder, and she takes pride in earning a place in the Rose Society.

Significant themes

• Affection and mentorship: Tang and Ling’s joking intimacy is balanced by his protective concern for her.
• Courage and recklessness: Ling’s bravery earns her status, but Tang cautions that confidence and a protective charm cannot guarantee safety.
• Mystery and the supernatural: Cross Church’s unexplained activity and the faint energy Tang senses suggest a genuine threat beneath the student legends.
• Belonging and tradition: The Rose Society’s long history shows how secret organizations shape student life and identity.

Character interactions

• Tang and Ling reunite warmly, teasing and flirting as they head to her apartment.
• Ling recounts her initiation with pride; Tang listens, asks what she experienced, and warns her against taking further risks.
• Their exchange shows an easy, affectionate bond, with Tang acting as both playful companion and protective master.