Chapter Summaries

Bi Xingjian introduced Jiang Yang to their returning Third Senior Sister, Chu Qingjian, who eagerly agreed to spar with him. Chu Qingjian led Jiang Yang away to find a practice spot while Bi Xingjian slipped off to tend his spirit plants.

• Bi Xingjian panicked when Chu Qingjian called for him and tried to flee with Butterfly-Bearing, but she landed in the Courtyard and stopped him.
• Chu Qingjian said she had returned to meet her new junior brother, and Bi Xingjian introduced her to Jiang Yang.
• Chu Qingjian praised Jiang Yang's cultivation and began calling him Little Fifth.
• Bi Xingjian secretly warned Jiang Yang about Chu Qingjian, but she noticed their voice transmission and demanded to know what they had said.
• Bi Xingjian suggested Chu Qingjian spar with Jiang Yang, and Jiang Yang agreed to practice with her.
• Chu Qingjian took Jiang Yang to find a sparring spot while Bi Xingjian went to tend his spirit plants.

Chu Qingjian took Jiang Yang to Zhouhui Valley for a sparring match and overwhelmed him with her Pivot Thunder technique. Jiang Yang halted her Golden Mace with Grafting Flowers and Trees, but Chu Qingjian powered through the returned force with her Heavenly Balance Strategy.

• Chu Qingjian led Jiang Yang to Zhouhui Valley, where they introduced their cultivation paths and agreed to spar.
• Jiang Yang opened with One Qi Faces the Sun, but Chu Qingjian dodged his sword ray and smashed her Golden Mace into the ground.
• Chu Qingjian pursued Jiang Yang with rapid, thunder-charged mace strikes, leaving him unable to counterattack.
• Jiang Yang used Grafting Flowers and Trees to halt Chu Qingjian's descending mace and return its force against her.
• Chu Qingjian invoked the Heavenly Balance Strategy and forced the grafted power back down.

Jiang Yang sparred with Chu Qingjian, testing his new innate power against her thunder arts and swordsmanship. Chu Qingjian overwhelmed him with falling thunder, but Jiang Yang kept recovering and fighting, leaving Bai Tang to urge him to surrender and promising to teach him practical techniques.

• Chu Qingjian summoned golden Pivot Thunder while Jiang Yang used Punish the Unjust to weaken her before charging with Rainbow Pierces the Sun.
• Chu Qingjian parried Jiang Yang's rapid sword strikes and noticed that her blows had lost more than thirty percent of their strength.
• Chu Qingjian struck Jiang Yang with Pivot Thunder, breaking his Clear-Wave Mystic Shield, but his immortal foundation let him recover almost instantly.
• Chu Qingjian unleashed sustained thunder and controlled her mystic mace with her spirit sense, forcing Jiang Yang to dodge while he considered his limited attacks.
• Bai Tang warned Jiang Yang to surrender and offered to teach him practical moves so he could challenge Chu Qingjian again.

Jiang Yang fought Chu Qingjian through her lightning spell and managed to land a sword strike, tearing her robe but failing to pierce her armor. After she released him, Chu Qingjian suddenly realized something about the crater beneath their feet.

• Chu Qingjian trapped Jiang Yang beneath four bolts of Pivot Thunder, but one bolt veered away and opened a gap in her blockade.
• Jiang Yang broke through the lightning and attacked Chu Qingjian with [Illusory Wonder], forcing her to counter with [Ten-Thousand Ravines].
• Jiang Yang's final sword strike pierced the thunder lake and tore Chu Qingjian's robe, but her xin metal soft armor stopped the blade from wounding her.
• Chu Qingjian caught Jiang Yang as he nearly collapsed, then released him when he thanked her.
• Jiang Yang tried to point out Chu Qingjian's torn neckline, but she instead nudged the crater and said she understood something.

After their spar, Chu Qingjian explained that a hidden Metal and Stone Ore Vein had diverted her lightning, while Jiang Yang realized his Misfortune Suppression had created an opening against her. They settled their disagreement over her torn robe, and Chu Qingjian persuaded Jiang Yang to become her regular sparring partner.

• Chu Qingjian found traces of a Metal and Stone Ore Vein beneath Zhouhui Valley and explained that its Primordial Magnetism had drawn one bolt of her Thunder Spell astray.
• Jiang Yang realized his Misfortune Suppression had activated the vein at a crucial moment, giving him room to strike, though he understood it could not overcome an overwhelming difference in strength.
• Jiang Yang told Chu Qingjian that his wood-virtue immortal foundation helped him recover quickly, then offered to compensate her for the robe he had torn.
• Chu Qingjian dismissed the damage and said fellow disciples should not treat each other like strangers.
• Chu Qingjian asked Jiang Yang to spar with her regularly, and he readily agreed before asking her to be more careful about her exuberant embraces.

Jiang Yang returned to Fushu Peak with Chu Qingjian and told Xuan Guang about establishing his immortal foundation, Conjoined Branch. Xuan Guang had concealed the breakthrough’s Celestial Phenomena and encouraged Jiang Yang to cultivate the profound Broadwood Dao Lineage.

• Jiang Yang and Chu Qingjian agreed to spar every few days, then returned to Fushu Peak and went together to visit Xuan Guang.
• Chu Qingjian poured the tea and drank it in one gulp, prompting Xuan Guang to counsel her to steady her temperament as she cultivated Pivot Thunder.
• Jiang Yang told Xuan Guang that he had established his immortal foundation, and Xuan Guang revealed that he had already noticed the breakthrough’s Celestial Phenomena and concealed it.
• Jiang Yang described the powers of his Conjoined Branch immortal foundation, and Xuan Guang recognized it as the profound Broadwood Dao Lineage and urged him to cultivate diligently.

Jiang Yang received guidance from Xuan Guang, then began studying the Four Seasons Cloud's End Sword Canon. The chapter left him practicing its Autumn's Arrival forms and struggling to grasp their imagery.

• Jiang Yang avoided discussing the Immortal Art and asked Xuan Guang for help with several cultivation difficulties.
• Xuan Guang questioned Chu Qingjian about her travels, and she described strange Celestial Phenomena and deadly heat in the Wu Kingdom.
• Xuan Guang warned Jiang Yang and Chu Qingjian to stay within the sect because a Transformation might soon occur.
• Chu Qingjian invited Jiang Yang to visit her courtyard, then watched him leave.
• Jiang Yang studied the Autumn's Arrival volume of the Four Seasons Cloud's End Sword Canon and found that its power depended on mastering its imagery.

Jiang Yang trained with Chu Qingjian to improve his swordsmanship, but repeatedly lost and was left battered by her Golden Thunder. After he recovered, Bai Tang taught him the Scarlet Palace Heart Mansion Meridian-Pulsing Canon, a sword method that joined spirit and magic power, leaving him to begin learning a new way to strike with his sword.

• Jiang Yang practiced the Four Seasons Cloud's End Sword Canon while Bai Tang advised him on autumn's nature and the meaning of the sword art.
• Chu Qingjian returned and sparred with Jiang Yang, whose repeated defeats helped him make progress with the sword canon.
• After Chu Qingjian struck him with two bolts of Pivot Thunder, Jiang Yang suppressed the lightning and healed his injuries.
• Bai Tang told Jiang Yang she would teach him how to strike with his sword now that he had reached Foundation Establishment.
• Bai Tang guided Jiang Yang through the Scarlet Palace Heart Mansion Meridian-Pulsing Canon, which used the Middle Dantian to direct the spirit alongside the lower dantian's energy circulation.

Jiang Yang returned to Zhouhui Valley to challenge Chu Qingjian after mastering a technique that greatly increased his sword speed. Their exhausting duel ended in a draw, and they walked back together as Chu Qingjian asked whether anyone had ever told him he had a fragrance about him.

• Jiang Yang used the Scarlet Palace Heart Mansion Meridian-Pulsing Canon to attack Chu Qingjian with much faster sword strikes.
• Chu Qingjian used Heavenly Balance Strategy to reinforce herself with Gilded Armor and fought Jiang Yang for more than an hour.
• Both exhausted their strength, and Chu Qingjian acknowledged Jiang Yang while they rested in the ruined valley.
• Chu Qingjian jokingly claimed victory by kicking a clod of earth beside Jiang Yang, and they laughed together.
• Jiang Yang and Chu Qingjian supported each other on the walk back, where she asked if anyone had told him he had a fragrance about him.

Jiang Yang received a major cultivation boost when Shang Qingzheng broke through to Foundation Establishment, then realized his innate talent could reward him whenever a Dao companion advanced. He wondered how to find more companions and asked Bai Tang for advice.

• Jiang Yang took an Essence Refinement Pill and entered secluded cultivation to improve his Foundation Establishment cultivation.
• Shang Qingzheng broke through to Foundation Establishment, and her breakthrough sent true essence flowing into Jiang Yang through his suitable Dao companion talent.
• Jiang Yang refined the feedback, reaching about seventy percent of the way to the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.
• Jiang Yang realized that multiple Dao companions might provide further cultivation feedback when they advanced.
• Jiang Yang asked Bai Tang how to meet a Dao companion, and Bai Tang reacted with surprise and approval.

Jiang Yang learned that Shang Qingzheng had successfully emerged from seclusion and read her affectionate letter, which asked after his own breakthrough. He wrote back and sent a spirit crane, planning to visit her once she received his reply.

• Bai Tang teased Jiang Yang about his interest in a Dao companion and revealed that she had intervened during his encounter with Shang Qingzheng.
• Bai Tang told Jiang Yang to follow her arrangements, and he left seclusion after making gains in his cultivation.
• Jiang Yang learned that Shang Qingzheng had successfully broken through and formed the immortal foundation Jade Bamboo Chant.
• A spirit crane brought Jiang Yang Shang Qingzheng's letter, in which she shared her joy, asked how he was doing, and expressed her longing to see him.
• Jiang Yang wrote back to Shang Qingzheng and sent the letter by spirit crane, intending to visit her after she received it.

After Shang Qingzheng reached Foundation Establishment, she reunited with Jiang Yang at Rain Listening Pavilion and walked with him through the bamboo grove, recalling their earlier days together. They left their reunion holding hands and reflecting on the memories tied to the place.

• Shang Qingzheng told Wildcat Sixteen that Jiang Yang had already reached Foundation Establishment, then carried the excited cat out to meet him.
• Jiang Yang arrived at the spirit array, and Shang Qingzheng opened a way for him into the Bamboo Grove.
• Jiang Yang and Shang Qingzheng held hands as they walked, then remembered sharing spirit tea at the clearing.
• Jiang Yang found the three jade bamboo stalks he had planted, and Shang Qingzheng told him they had helped her gather qi.

Jiang Yang reunited with Shang Qingzheng and learned about the defensive powers of her Jade Bamboo Chant immortal foundation. After confirming that Civet Sixteen followed the fortune qi path, he offered the cat a matching fortune qi Pill to awaken its intelligence and nurture its transformation.

• Shang Qingzheng demonstrated the Jade Bamboo Chant's ability to steady the spirit and resist illusions, then explained that her Dao Lineage relied on musical scores and outside support.
• Jiang Yang encouraged Shang Qingzheng to use mystic artifacts and practice the Phoenix-Approaching Score, which she promised to play for him once she mastered it.
• Civet Sixteen returned, and Shang Qingzheng complained that the cat had grown fat and undisciplined while she was in seclusion.
• Jiang Yang asked which Dao Lineage Civet Sixteen followed, and Shang Qingzheng said the cat's magic power leaned toward fortune qi.
• Jiang Yang gave Civet Sixteen a matching fortune qi Pill, explaining that it could awaken the cat's intelligence and aid its transformation.

Jiang Yang learned that Shang Qingzheng's spirit beast Sixteen had been given the name Chi Yu and received a robe and crown that she had commissioned for him. The chapter left him about to try on the new garments.

• Jiang Yang gave Shang Qingzheng a Pill for Little Sixteen and explained that it might sleep for about a year while digesting its medicinal power.
• Shang Qingzheng revealed that her master Xuan Xi had formally named Little Sixteen Chi Yu after its bloodline stabilized.
• Jiang Yang teased Chi Yu about its name sounding like “eat fish,” and the cat fled when Shang Qingzheng tried to scold it.
• Shang Qingzheng presented Jiang Yang with the Pure Luminary Cloudlight Brocade Robe and Bright Flower Supreme Mystery Crown that she had commissioned at Craft Peak.
• Shang Qingzheng urged Jiang Yang to put on the new garments so she could check whether they needed alterations.

Shang Qingzheng gave Jiang Yang a custom-made robe and crown, then explained their two wondrous powers. Jiang Yang learned that she had traded valuable artifacts and called in a favor to have the set made for him.

• Shang Qingzheng helped Jiang Yang put on the Pure Radiance Cloudlight Robe and Bright Flower Supreme Mystery Crown.
• Jiang Yang admired the comfortable outfit and thanked Shang Qingzheng, then embraced her.
• Shang Qingzheng explained that the crown’s Bright Mystery power could dazzle and disorient foes, while the robe’s Mirage Mist could conceal Jiang Yang and mask his presence.
• Jiang Yang asked how much the set had cost, and Shang Qingzheng admitted she had traded two mystic artifacts and used a favor from Sister Zhou Ying to commission it from Weaver Song.

Jiang Yang advanced his swordsmanship and reached the threshold of sword essence before True Person Xuan Guang interrupted his sparring with Chu Qingjian. Xuan Guang took them to the Wu Kingdom to witness True Person Zhu Lin’s attempt to break through to Golden Core.

• Jiang Yang thanked Shang Qingzheng for arranging Master Song to weave his robes, and Wildcat later found him kissing Shang Qingzheng in the Bamboo Grove.
• After a month of sparring and practice, Jiang Yang performed “Leaning on Clear Autumn” and showed that he had reached the threshold of sword essence.
• Chu Qingjian arrived eager to spar with Jiang Yang, but True Person Xuan Guang appeared and told them to come with him.
• Xuan Guang transported Jiang Yang and Chu Qingjian through the Great Void toward the Wu Kingdom.
• Xuan Guang explained that True Person Zhu Lin had perfected his five arts and would soon attempt Gold-Seeking to break through to Golden Core, and said witnessing the ceremony would benefit their cultivation.

Chu Qingjian and Jiang Yang learned that the Golden Core breakthrough beneath the Heavy Mountains belonged to Zhu Lin of the Vermilion Flame Palace of Xiangli, an Attached Fire lineage. They met Xuan Guang’s eldest disciple, Zhi Yu, in the Great Void, where he welcomed Jiang Yang and scolded Chu Qingjian for her armor and reluctance to marry.

• Chu Qingjian asked Xuan Guang about Zhu Lin, and he explained that the reclusive True Person came from the Vermilion Flame Palace of Xiangli, an Attached Fire Dao Lineage beneath the Heavy Mountains.
• Xuan Guang spotted Zhi Yu in the Great Void and introduced him to Jiang Yang and Chu Qingjian as their First Senior Brother.
• Zhi Yu greeted Jiang Yang warmly and explained that he had been guarding the Cuiwei Ore Vein near the border between the Zheng and Wu Kingdoms.
• Zhi Yu teased Chu Qingjian about how much she had grown and urged her to wear dresses instead of armor.
• Zhi Yu told Chu Qingjian that her grandfather wanted her to find a husband and continue the family line, while she lowered her head under his lecture.

Xuan Guang explained how Sovereign Fire became Attached Fire after Zhuanyong yielded its Golden Nature to the Southern Bright Luan Phoenix, and why the Vermilion Flame Palace of Xiangli turned toward Li. He brought Jiang Yang, Chu Qingjian, and Zhi Yu to True Person Zhu Lin’s grounds, where they awaited Zhu Lin’s ascension and wondered whether he would risk a desperate gamble.

• Jiang Yang asked Xuan Guang why the path of Attached Fire was called the Palace of Xiangli, and Xuan Guang explained its ancient origin as Sovereign Fire, founded by Suifan.
• Xuan Guang recounted how the Sovereign Fire Fruit Position passed through ancient rulers, then fell vacant after Zhuanchun’s sudden death and was inherited by his unworthy younger brother, Zhuanyong.
• Xuan Guang said Zhuanyong surrendered most of the Golden Nature to the Southern Bright Luan Phoenix, causing Sovereign Fire to become Attached Fire and earning the history’s label of usurping the sovereign and clinging to Li.
• Xuan Guang brought his disciples through the Great Void to True Person Zhu Lin’s Vermilion Flame Palace of Xiangli in the Wu Kingdom, where Purple Mansion cultivators had gathered for an ascension.
• Zhi Yu speculated that Zhu Lin might risk everything to escape Attached Fire’s dependence on Li, while Xuan Guang said success might require guidance from an exalted being above the rank of Li.

Zhu Lin began his attempt to break through to Golden Core, unleashing his fire divine powers before gathered cultivators. Jiang Yang sensed an aura linked to the Nether Yin spirit treasure as Zhu Lin continued toward his third divine power.

• The fiery spiritual atmosphere harmed mortals beneath the Heavy Mountains, and Chu Qingjian worried they would not survive three days if Zhu Lin did not break through.
• Zhu Lin appeared atop the Vermilion Flame Palace of Xiangli and announced that he would attempt to break through to Golden Core before the assembled cultivators.
• Jiang Yang sensed a familiar aura near Zhu Lin and recognized it as resembling the Square Fang Vessel and the Nether Yin spirit treasure.
• Zhu Lin unleashed his fire divine powers, first invoking Zhu Mingye to draw the blazing spirit vigor into himself, then using Desiring Extinction Fire.
• As Purple Mansion cultivators debated Zhu Lin's gold-seeking method, he advanced step by step to unleash his third divine power.

Zhu Lin invoked the ancient Sovereign Fire divine powers and declared his subordination to Separation Fire to ascend as a True Lord. His declaration left Attached Fire without autonomy, while the chapter ended with him proclaiming its new role beneath Separation.

• Zhu Lin transformed into his youthful appearance and revealed Upper Flame Heart, an ancient Sovereign Fire divine power.
• Zhu Lin invoked Wielding the Sun Flint and declared Subordinate Position, making Attached Fire subordinate to Separation Fire.
• Ping Yan denounced Zhu Lin’s choice and a blossom of Separation Fire struck him dead.
• Jiang Yang saw Bai Tang brace against the danger as Zhu Lin struggled to sustain all five divine powers and waited for a sign from the heavens.
• The Shang Constellation star shone brightly, and Zhu Lin declared that he had attained the Dao as a True Lord and described Attached Fire’s new place in the world.