Chapter Summaries

Chen Daoxuan learned that the Chen Family could use its stock of Vital Energy Essence to raise more than 480 Foundation Establishment cultivators to the Purple Mansion stage. At the Artifact Research Institute, Chen Daochu revealed a breakthrough: Spirit Armor powered directly by the White Lotus of Creation, potentially giving Foundation Establishment cultivators extraordinary defenses.

• Chen Daoxuan discussed the Vital Energy Essence with Chen Daolian, Chen Daochu, and Chen Fusheng, and learned that the Chen Family had 967 Foundation Establishment cultivators from whom it could choose more than 480 candidates.
• Chen Daoxuan urged Chen Daolian to look beyond raising Purple Mansion cultivators and prepare them to eventually become Nascent Soul True Lords.
• Chen Daochu told Chen Daoxuan that the Artifact Research Institute had made a breakthrough in Spirit Armor technology and insisted that its prototype remain inside the institute under its rules.
• Chen Daoxuan and Chen Daochu went to the Artifact Research Institute, where Chen Daochu showed him a Top-Grade Second-Rank Spirit Armor combined with the White Lotus of Creation.
• Chen Daochu explained that the White Lotus of Creation could power the Spirit Armor directly, and Chen Daoxuan recognized that this could give Foundation Establishment cultivators defenses exceeding ordinary Third-Grade Spirit Armor.

Chen Daoxuan tested the Chen Family’s second-grade Powered Spirit Armor, then used Creation Force to upgrade it to third-grade inferior Spirit Armor. Chen Fusheng survived Chen Daoxuan’s powerful strike while wearing it, demonstrating its formidable defense, though the family still could not mass-produce high-grade Spirit Armor.

• Chen Daoxuan struck Chen Daochu’s second-grade Powered Spirit Armor with a mid-stage Purple Mansion attack, leaving Chen Daochu injured but the armor intact.
• Chen Daoxuan explained that Qianyuan Sword Sect controlled the methods and materials for forging high-grade Spirit Armor, which could greatly increase the Chen Family’s military strength.
• Chen Daoxuan poured a drop of Creation Force onto the Azure Spirit Armor, upgrading it to third-grade inferior, and Chen Daochu refused to test it himself.
• Chen Daoxuan summoned Chen Fusheng, who put on the upgraded armor after learning the family had not mastered third-grade Spirit Armor forging methods.
• Chen Daoxuan struck Chen Fusheng with a powerful Flying Sword attack, and Chen Fusheng remained unscathed as Chen Daoxuan shielded Chen Daochu from the shockwave.

Chen Daoxuan tested the Azure Spirit Armor, strengthened it with Creation Force, and gave Chen Fusheng permission to keep it while assigning Chen Daochu to produce more armor. He then comforted Luo Li, who was nervous about meeting his Thirteenth Uncle, and the two prepared to visit him together.

• Chen Fusheng tested the Powered Spirit Armor, and Chen Daoxuan found it could withstand attacks powerful enough to threaten an ordinary Purple Mansion cultivator.
• Chen Daoxuan used three drops of Creation Force to raise the Azure Spirit Armor to Third-Tier Upper Grade, then ordered Chen Daochu to keep its capabilities secret.
• Chen Daoxuan attacked Chen Fusheng at full strength inside the Fourth-Grade Defense Formation, but the armor left him unharmed.
• Chen Daoxuan gave Chen Daochu ninety-six drops of Creation Force to make Spirit Armor and told him to deliver ten sets within three days.
• Chen Daoxuan let Chen Fusheng keep the Azure Spirit Armor and reminded him to repay the Chen Family by carrying out his responsibilities and nurturing its younger generation.
• Chen Daoxuan reassured Luo Li about meeting his Thirteenth Uncle, and Luo Li agreed to go with him.

Chen Daoxuan weighed his gains from the True Immortal Origin Realm and focused on improving his strength before the campaign to retake Zhennan Pass. After reforging his armor with Creation Force, he created an enhanced Fourth-Grade Upper Spirit Armor that he believed could withstand attacks from anyone below the Nascent Soul stage.

• Chen Daoxuan worried that Vital Energy Essence could not help Chen Xianhe extend his life or reach Foundation Establishment, and resolved to strengthen himself for the battle at Zhennan Pass.
• Chen Daoxuan reviewed his gains, including the Primordial Enlightenment Scripture’s Dao Derivation function, abundant Chaos Qi, Blood Marrow, and Creation Force, and decided to upgrade his equipment.
• Chen Daoxuan fused his Lifebound Spirit Armor with the third-grade White Lotus of Creation, but the resulting Glazed Spirit Armor did not rise in grade without Creation Force.
• Chen Daoxuan used Creation Force to advance the Glazed Spirit Armor, drawing Spiritual Qi from the Spirit Pond and startling Luo Li with the spectacle.
• Chen Daoxuan’s Glazed Spirit Armor advanced through Fourth-Grade Lower and Fourth-Grade Middle to Fourth-Grade Upper, becoming nearly as strong defensively as a Fifth-Grade Lower Spirit Armor.

Chen Daoxuan refined powerful spirit armor and swords, advanced his cultivation, and met with Chen Daolian to address the clan’s resources and competition over Guanhai Immortal City. He decided to launch the Chen Family’s Industrial Immortal City Plan.

• Chen Daoxuan used Creation Force to advance his spirit armor and Flying Snow and Shadowcatcher, then raised his cultivation to the ninth layer of Purple Mansion.
• Chen Daoxuan and Luo Li discussed visiting Spirit Shell Island to witness Zhou Minghao’s Golden Core tribulation ceremony.
• Chen Daoxuan learned that 483 of the 488 selected Foundation Establishment cultivators had advanced to Purple Mansion and agreed with Chen Daolian to lease most of the clan’s Third-Grade Spirit Armor.
• Chen Daolian explained that the Zhou and Yang families had coordinated to draw cultivators away from Guanhai Immortal City after the Chen Family expanded its Spirit Stone Coin scheme.
• Chen Daoxuan proposed changing how the Chen Family competed by putting the Industrial Immortal City Plan into action.

Chen Daoxuan explained how Guanhai Immortal City could become the center of an industrial city cluster by training Artifact Forgers and industrial workers, strengthening the Chen Family’s competition for Rogue Cultivators. Meanwhile, Jiang Chenye traveled to Cangzhou with his Seventh Uncle-Ancestor, who planned to help him sever his heart demon and revealed that the Jiang Family favored the Chen Family as a potential proxy.

• Chen Daoxuan told Chen Daolian that Guanhai Immortal City’s industrial expansion would require large-scale schools for professional Artifact Forgers and ordinary industrial workers.
• Chen Daoxuan explained that factory employment would let the Chen Family offer Rogue Cultivators better benefits than the Zhou Family and Yang Family, and Chen Daolian recorded his plans.
• A silver-haired elder defeated Jiang Chenye at Go and urged him to maintain an enduring Dao heart before promising to help him sever his heart demon in Cangzhou.
• The silver-haired elder said Zhou Minghao’s chances of surviving the Golden Core lightning tribulation were poor, and the Jiang Family would favor the Chen Family if he failed.
• The silver-haired elder revealed that the Jiang Family favored the Chen Family because it had risen in less than thirty years and could be enticed with the method for forging Ziyin Armor.

Chen Daoxuan visited the dying Chen Xianhe, vowed to find a way to restore his divine soul, and announced his plan to bring Cangzhou under the Chen Family’s control. On the way to Spirit Shell Island, he chose Chen Fusheng to become the family’s public face, tasked with reaching the top ranks of the Purple Mansion Prodigy Ranking.

• Chen Xianhe gave Chen Daoxuan his remaining Vital Energy Essence and said the family would have to rely on him, while Chen Daoxuan vowed to save him and help him achieve Foundation Establishment.
• Chen Daoxuan covered the sleeping Chen Xianhe with a blanket, instructed a maid to care for him, and declared his intention to bring Cangzhou under the Chen Family’s control.
• Chen Daoxuan and Luo Li traveled with ten Fu generation cultivators aboard the Chen Family’s Large Transport Ship toward Spirit Shell Island.
• Chen Daoxuan praised Chen Fusheng’s progress in the Sword Dao and urged him to prepare to create his own Sword Art.
• Chen Daoxuan named Chen Fusheng the Chen Family’s public face and said he must reach at least the top ten, preferably the top three, of the Purple Mansion Prodigy Ranking.

Chen Daoxuan imparted the Three Heads Six Arms divine ability to Chen Fusheng before arriving in Guang'an Prefecture immortal city for Old Ancestor Zhou’s Observation Ceremony. After Zhou Mubai welcomed him, Chen Daoxuan revealed that Luo Li was his cultivation partner, while he and Zhou Mubai considered why the Jiang Family and Yuan Chen Immortal City had sent representatives.

• Chen Daoxuan passed the Three Heads Six Arms divine ability and his cultivation insights to Chen Fusheng.
• Chen Daoxuan arrived in Guang'an Prefecture with Luo Li and the Chen Family clansmen, where Zhou Mubai and the Zhou Family welcomed them.
• Zhou Mubai recognized Luo Li as a member of the Merfolk Tribe, and Chen Daoxuan declared her his cultivation partner.
• Zhou Mubai congratulated Chen Daoxuan and Luo Li, then said that nearly all Cangzhou Great Immortal Clans, Yuan Chen Immortal City, and the Taizhou Jiang Family had sent representatives to observe the tribulation.
• Chen Daoxuan asked Zhou Mubai about the visitors’ intentions, and Zhou Mubai argued that the Qianyuan Sword Sect’s restrictions made expansion beyond one prefecture too dangerous for the great clans.

Jiang Zuyi explained the dangers of pseudo-Core cultivation to Jiang Chenye while the Zhou Family prepared for Zhou Minghao’s Golden Core lightning tribulation. As the gathered cultivators rushed to watch, Chen Daoxuan and Zhou Mubai arrived at Tongtian Peak, where the Jiang Family and Yuan Chen Immortal City’s representatives exchanged barbs and greeted them.

• Jiang Zuyi told Jiang Chenyan that she would meet her future husband, then ordered Jiang Chenye to carry out the Jiang Family’s plans despite their shameful nature.
• Jiang Zuyi explained to Jiang Chenye that pseudo-Core cultivators avoided lightning tribulation but had limited lifespans and could never advance further.
• Jiang Zuyi concluded that Zhou Minghao would face the tribulation, and black thunderclouds gathered over Tongtian Peak as cultivators flew to watch.
• Jiang Zuyi and Qi Guangxiao traded insults about their families and factions while waiting near the summit.
• Chen Daoxuan and Zhou Mubai arrived with other cultivators, greeted Qi Guangxiao and Jiang Zuyi, and prepared to observe Zhou Minghao’s tribulation.

Zhou Minghao survived the Golden Core lightning tribulation, raising the Zhou Family’s prestige across Cangzhou. After the celebration, Jiang Zuyi offered Chen Daoxuan a marriage alliance backed by the Third-Grade Spirit Armor Forging Method, leaving Chen to weigh the proposal.

• Chen Daoxuan explained the three stages of the Golden Core lightning tribulation as Zhou Minghao began his breakthrough.
• Zhou Minghao passed the fleshly-body and Magical Power tribulations but was struck down by the Divine Soul tribulation.
• Zhou Minghao emerged alive with injuries, and Cangzhou cultivators congratulated him on becoming a Golden Core True Person.
• The Zhou Family hosted a banquet that strengthened its standing among Cangzhou’s cultivators.
• Jiang Zuyi visited Chen Daoxuan with Jiang Chenye and Jiang Chenyan and proposed a marriage alliance between the Jiang and Chen Families.
• Jiang Zuyi offered the Third-Grade Spirit Armor Forging Method, while Jiang Chenyan asked whether Chen Daoxuan found her unworthy.

Chen Daoxuan refused the Jiang Family’s offer to join its opposition to the Qianyuan Sword Sect and left the Zhou Family with the Chen cultivators. On the voyage back to Twin Lakes Island, Jiang Zuyi intercepted the Chen Family’s spirit ship and demanded that Chen reconsider.

• Jiang Zuyi tried to persuade Chen Daoxuan to join the Jiang Family by invoking the Qi Family’s destruction and promising the Ziyin Armor refining method, but Chen refused.
• Chen Daoxuan learned that the Jiang Family had offered Zhou Mubai ten sets of Third-Grade Superior Creation Spirit Armor, and Zhou agreed with Chen’s belief that Cangzhou belonged to its own cultivators.
• The Chen Family cultivators departed the Zhou Family, and Chen Daoxuan resumed training Chen Fusheng in close combat aboard their spirit ship.
• Jiang Zuyi intercepted the Chen Family’s ship in an azure Spirit Boat and insisted that Chen Daoxuan reconsider his refusal.

Chen Daoxuan fought Jiang Zuyi and revealed strength that let him suppress the late-stage Golden Core cultivator despite being at the Purple Mansion stage. After his Golden Scripture shielded him from Jiang Zuyi’s Divine Soul attack, Jiang Zuyi fled, leaving the confrontation unresolved.

• Chen Daoxuan charged Jiang Zuyi with his twin swords and used his Spirit Armor to withstand the elder’s attacks.
• Chen Daoxuan outmatched Jiang Zuyi in close combat, while Jiang Chenye watched in shock.
• Jiang Zuyi released a Lightning Tribulation Pearl to blast Chen Daoxuan away, but Chen Daoxuan emerged uninjured.
• Jiang Zuyi attacked Chen Daoxuan’s Divine Soul with his Heavenly Sound zither, but the Golden Scripture stopped the attack.
• Jiang Zuyi realized Chen Daoxuan had a Divine Soul defensive artifact and fled on his Azure Spirit Boat.

Chen Daoxuan defeated Jiang Zuyi but ordered the Chen Family not to publicize the battle, while the family began recruiting Rogue Cultivators for schools offering training, guaranteed jobs, and interest-free loans for Foundation Establishment Pills. The recruitment drew eager applicants in Guanhai Immortal City and began attracting Rogue Cultivators from nearby Lingzhou City.

• Jiang Zuyi fled after Chen Daoxuan defeated him, and Chen Daoxuan comforted Luo Li while Chen Fusheng praised the victory.
• Chen Daoxuan told Chen Fusheng to keep the battle secret because the Chen Family was not ready to attract attention from powerful families.
• At Guanhai Immortal City, Chen Daoxuan noticed something interesting as the Chen Family returned to Twin Lakes Island.
• Nie Zhong learned that Chen Fuzhou's school offered a job paying at least one hundred Spirit Stones per month after study and interest-free loans for Foundation Establishment Pills, so he enrolled.
• Rogue Cultivators flocked to the Chen Family's school registration desks, and news of the recruitment spread to Lingzhou City, where more people decided to investigate.

Chen Daoxuan and Chen Daolian discussed the Chen Family’s plan to industrialize Guanhai Immortal City and the problem of finding buyers for its vast output of pills and Magic Artifacts. Chen Daoxuan proposed using Yuan Chen Immortal City as an outlet after he reached Golden Core, then prepared to enter seclusion beneath the Myriad Star Sea to accept its inheritance.

• Chen Daolian reported that the Chen Family’s schools were recruiting rogue cultivators and expected to train more than two hundred thousand Artifact Forgers and Alchemists within a year.
• Chen Daoxuan warned that the expanded production would outstrip Cangzhou’s market, while seizing other families’ markets risked conflict as Zhennan Pass was about to be recovered.
• Chen Daoxuan considered markets beyond the Myriad Star Sea, then proposed cooperating with Yuan Chen Immortal City as an external sales outlet once he broke through to Golden Core.
• Chen Daolian was startled that Chen Daoxuan was already planning a Golden Core breakthrough, given that he had only recently reached the Purple Mansion stage.
• Chen Daoxuan said he would enter seclusion beneath the Myriad Star Sea to accept its inheritance, and teased Chen Daolian for asking whether Luo Li would accompany him.

Yang Linyuan concluded that the Chen Family possessed far more Vital Energy Essence and hidden strength than the Yang Family had realized, so he ordered Yang Gongwan to mend relations with them. Yang Gongwan arrived at Twin Lakes Island carrying an Enlightenment Tea Tree and apologized to Chen Daoxuan on Lingzhou City's behalf.

• Yang Linyuan told Yang Gongwan that Luo Li's rapid breakthrough suggested the Chen Family had enough Vital Energy Essence to empower its vassals and likely concealed many Purple Mansion cultivators.
• Yang Linyuan ordered Yang Gongwan to stop Lingzhou City's cooperation with the Zhou Family against Guanhai Immortal City, allow Chen Family banks and Spirit Stone Coin into Lingzhou Immortal City, and offer Chen Daoxuan an Enlightenment Tea Tree.
• Yang Gongwan arrived at Twin Lakes Island and was escorted inside by Chen Fusheng.
• Yang Gongwan watched Chen Daoxuan and Luo Li before confessing that she had come on Lingzhou City's behalf to apologize to the Chen Family's Guanhai Immortal City.

Chen Daoxuan accepted the Yang Family’s vassalage, then took Luo Li to Demon Ape Mountain. There, he planned to enter the Myriad Star Sea Inheritance Trial again and prepare for his Golden Core breakthrough, though he remained uncertain he could survive the lightning tribulation.

• Yang Gongwan proposed cooperation, and Chen Daoxuan persuaded her to make the Yang Family a vassal of the Chen Family.
• Chen Daoxuan and Yang Gongwan signed the vassalage terms, and she presented him with an Enlightenment Tea Tree while he gave her Vital Energy Essence.
• Chen Daoxuan told Luo Li that the Chen Family’s strength mattered more than its vassal forces, then took her to visit her father at Demon Ape Mountain.
• Chen Daoxuan revealed that he had come to Demon Ape Mountain to undergo the Myriad Star Sea Inheritance Trial again and eventually break through to Golden Core.
• Chen Daoxuan considered the danger of the Golden Core lightning tribulation and recognized that his body-refining cultivation had only just reached the minimum threshold to withstand it.

Chen Daoxuan brought Luo Li to Demon Ape Mountain and used Enlightenment Tea to help her enter the Myriad Star Sea Inheritance trial. After proving he had mastered the Six-Arm Combined Attack, he reached the Sky-Reaching Pagoda, where the white-robed Daoist presented three treasures and demanded that he choose one.

• Chen Daoxuan told Luo Li that he intended to secure the Myriad Star Sea Inheritance, and she teased him about also claiming the trip was to meet her father.
• Chen Daoxuan and Luo Li reached the gorge, where his Black-Robed Clone had guarded the True Demon Realm Passage and cultivated for nearly a year.
• Chen Daoxuan brewed Enlightenment Tea for Luo Li, who drank it and looked toward the stars to begin the inheritance trial.
• Chen Daoxuan met the white-robed Daoist and demonstrated the Six-Arm Combined Attack, earning approval and advancement to the next test.
• The white-robed Daoist brought Chen Daoxuan to the Sky-Reaching Pagoda and revealed three treasures for him to choose from.

Chen Daoxuan chose the Starry Sword Dao Chart, learned that the Sea of Divine Light was tied to it, and entered the Sky-Reaching Pagoda, where a Patrolling Goblin defeated him immediately. Back in his body, he discovered that the chart had changed his dantian and poured a vast torrent of information into his consciousness.

• Chen Daoxuan chose the Starry Sword Dao Chart after the white-robed Daoist identified the Sea of Divine Light as his sect’s basic Soul Refining method.
• The white-robed Daoist sent the chart into Chen Daoxuan’s dantian, where it absorbed the stars representing his Space Sword Intent and Silk Rain Sword Intent.
• Chen Daoxuan entered the Sky-Reaching Pagoda’s first layer, where the world suppressed his abilities and a Patrolling Goblin knocked him unconscious with one blow.
• The white-robed Daoist told Chen Daoxuan that the first layer was not meant for someone of his cultivation level and urged him to study the chart.
• Chen Daoxuan returned to his body beside the True Demon Realm channel, saw Luo Li still comprehending, and discovered that the chart had altered his dantian and sent information flooding into his consciousness.

After helping Luo Li obtain a Myriad Star Sea inheritance trial qualification, Chen Daoxuan learned that his Starry Sword Dao Chart could fuse Sword Intent with Immortal Swords and raise the Sword Intent by nurturing the swords. He began using the chart on his two swords, then realized upgrading them might bankrupt the Chen Family.

• Luo Li revealed that she had obtained the inheritance trial qualification and had two attempts, and Chen Daoxuan praised her and encouraged her to pursue immortality with him.
• Luo Li told Chen Daoxuan that she had entered the first realm of the Dao realm and comprehended Water Element Sword Intent.
• Chen Daoxuan and Luo Li ended their affectionate moment and resumed cultivation, with the Black-Robed Clone standing guard.
• Chen Daoxuan studied the Starry Sword Dao Chart and learned that it could merge Sword Intent into Immortal Swords, allowing the swords’ growth to elevate the Sword Intent.
• Chen Daoxuan placed Flying Snow and Shadowcatcher into the chart, where Silk Rain Sword Intent merged with Flying Snow and Space Sword Intent merged with Shadowcatcher.
• Chen Daoxuan realized that raising the swords’ grades could leave the Chen Family bankrupt.

Chen Daoxuan learned that the Starry Sword Dao Chart could rapidly raise his Sword Intent and Dao realm, then tested its power and discovered it briefly made him comparable to a Nascent Soul True Lord. He prepared to enter seclusion and break through to the Golden Core stage by improving his Body Refining cultivation.

• Chen Daoxuan questioned the white-robed Daoist about whether refining treasures made the pursuit of Dao enlightenment meaningless, and the Daoist told him to recognize his own limits without belittling himself.
• Chen Daoxuan asked Luo Li to use the Chen Family Patriarch token to fund the upgrade of Demon Ape Mountain's Spirit Vein to the fourth tier, then entered seclusion.
• The Starry Sword Dao Chart advanced Chen Daoxuan's Space Sword Intent and Silk Rain Sword Intent, allowing him to break through to the Dao Domain Realm.
• Chen Daoxuan summoned the Starry Sword Dao Chart and amplified his Dao Domain more than a hundredfold, but its power drained his Magical Power and Lifebound Spirit Armor in 132 breaths.
• Chen Daoxuan decided to pursue his Golden Core breakthrough and began refining the Blood Marrow he had obtained from the True Immortal Origin Realm to advance his Body Refining cultivation.