Recaps

Liu Yu prepared to help the wounded Xie Junjie leave Cold Mist Forest, but Xie Junjie ambushed him to seize his artifacts. As their battle escalated, Liu Yu activated a powerful talisman treasure, leaving Xie Junjie facing its golden light.

• Xie Junjie concealed his greed for Liu Yu's artifacts and pretended that his injuries prevented him from traveling alone.
• Xie Junjie attacked Liu Yu with a hidden top-grade flying needle, but Liu Yu blocked it with the Golden Steel Banner.
• Xie Junjie revealed his true strength and used an ancient-looking great halberd to overwhelm Liu Yu's Profound Departure Sword.
• Liu Yu used the Golden Silk Mirror to weaken the halberd and secretly charged his Vajra Halberd Talisman Treasure while accusing Xie Junjie of violating sect rules.
• Xie Junjie admitted he planned to blame Liu Yu's death on Hehuan Sect cultivators, but Liu Yu released the charged talisman and flooded the area with golden light.

Liu Yu killed Xie Junjie with the Vajra Halberd Talisman Treasure and escaped Hehuan Sect territory, then encountered Yan Kai near the Cold Mist Forest. Yan Kai explained that a talisman had let him travel ahead of the group and presented it to Liu Yu.

• Liu Yu overwhelmed Xie Junjie's ancient-looking halberd with the Vajra Halberd Talisman Treasure, ignored his pleas, and killed him with a golden strike.
• Liu Yu collected Xie Junjie's and the black-clad elder's storage bags, retrieved the damaged ancient-looking halberd, and set off south toward the Cold Mist Forest.
• Liu Yu traveled through Hehuan Sect territory without stopping to fight Qi Refining Period cultivators and reached the forest, which was largely controlled by the Primordial Yang Sect.
• Yan Kai recounted how he had left the main group, survived a fight with three Hehuan Sect disciples, and used a trump-card teleportation talisman to reach a location near the forest.
• Liu Yu questioned Yan Kai under his spirit pressure, and Yan Kai presented the pale-yellow talisman that had brought him there.

Liu Yu examined Yan Kai’s ancient Instant Thousand-Mile Talisman and learned it was one of four he had found in an old book. Liu Yu offered two Top-grade Magical Artifacts in exchange, and Yan Kai agreed.

• Liu Yu recognized the talisman’s Silver Seal Script and suspected it came from the ancient or Middle Antiquity era.
• Yan Kai explained that the Instant Thousand-Mile Talisman could transport its user a thousand li when torn and described how he had obtained and used three of the four talismans.
• Liu Yu inspected Yan Kai’s ancient book and confirmed it had a concealed compartment, though Yan Kai had found no trace of the rogue cultivator who sold it.
• Liu Yu offered Yan Kai two Top-grade Magical Artifacts for the remaining talisman, and Yan Kai accepted the exchange.

Liu Yu traded two Top-grade Magical Artifacts for Yan Kai’s Instant Thousand-Mile Talisman and secured Yan Kai’s silence with a Heart-Demon Oath. He offered to escort the injured Yan Kai back to Moonwatch City, where they would meet Senior Brother Zhou and the others.

• Yan Kai accepted Liu Yu’s two Top-grade Magical Artifacts in exchange for the Instant Thousand-Mile Talisman.
• Liu Yu considered using the trade to build a network of allies, while warning that he would punish Yan Kai and his lineage if the secret leaked.
• Yan Kai swore a Heart-Demon Oath not to reveal the talisman or their transaction.
• Liu Yu offered the injured Yan Kai a ride back to Moonwatch City, and Yan Kai enthusiastically praised him.
• Liu Yu set off with Yan Kai to meet Senior Brother Zhou and the others, reflecting on how times and circumstances had changed.

Liu Yu brought Yan Kai safely to Moonwatch City and gave him Foundation Establishment insights before they parted. Yan Kai planned to return to the sect and attempt Foundation Establishment, while Liu Yu went to find Wu Yuhan.

• Liu Yu flew Yan Kai from the Cold Mist Forest to Moonwatch City on the Mother-and-Son Soul-Chasing Blades.
• Liu Yu presented his Sect Token at the north gate, passed the city’s checks, and entered with Yan Kai.
• Yan Kai thanked Liu Yu for his help and said he planned to return to the sect to attempt Foundation Establishment.
• Liu Yu invited Yan Kai to visit him on Rosy Cloud Mountain and gave him a Jade Slip of Foundation Establishment insights.
• Liu Yu told Yan Kai to turn in his mission, then headed to the side hall to find Wu Yuhan.

After returning to Moonwatch City, Liu Yu waited with Zhou Zhuofeng and the surviving disciples while the mission’s losses became clear, then went back to his cave abode to inventory his spoils. He gained spirit stones, artifacts, and firefly amethyst, and decided to repair the Azure Flood Dragon Halberd while selling items that could expose him to suspicion or fund his cultivation.

• Liu Yu met Zhou Zhuofeng and an injured late-stage Foundation Establishment disciple in the mission hall, and Zhou Zhuofeng announced they would wait until noon for the others.
• Zhuang Shilong and an injured woman returned, but no one else arrived before Zhou Zhuofeng declared that the missing disciples were unlikely to have survived and released everyone.
• Liu Yu returned to his cave abode and counted the spirit stones, firefly amethyst, pills, and artifacts taken from the pink-robed man, Xie Junjie, and the black-robed elder.
• Liu Yu identified Xie Junjie's damaged Spirit Artifact as the Azure Flood Dragon Halberd and decided to repair it, while keeping the halberd and red flying daggers for himself.
• Liu Yu sorted the remaining loot for sale and chose to sell the Red Bone Staff and Pink Folding Fan to avoid drawing attention to demonic cultivation.

Liu Yu stored the spoils from his recent kills, tended the Immortal Mansion’s spirit field, and considered how the Mottled Ancient Well’s inexhaustible water might support it. He resumed cultivation and reflected on the severe consequences of using the Spirit-Shattering Soul-Searching Art.

• Liu Yu set aside the stolen artifacts and texts, then entered the Immortal Mansion with two Storage Bags to sort and store his spoils.
• Liu Yu harvested mature spirit plants, planted Essence-Refining Pill seeds, and watered them with the Mottled Ancient Well’s seemingly inexhaustible water.
• Liu Yu replenished the spirit field with Spirit Stones and wondered whether the well and the damaged Immortal Mansion World were gradually recovering.
• Liu Yu returned to his body, practiced the Primordial Yang Body-Tempering Fist, and cultivated with an Azure Origin Pill and a Spirit-Nourishing Pill.
• Liu Yu considered using the Spirit-Shattering Soul-Searching Art but resolved to avoid it unless necessity or a serious blood feud left him no choice.

After recovering from his mission, Liu Yu confirmed that four fellow disciples had died and prepared to sell resources he had acquired. He arrived at the Many Treasures Pavilion to meet its manager, Jia Fu, with plans to handle several other matters afterward.

• Liu Yu slept after cultivating the Divine Preservation Art, then studied cultivation texts and practiced the Primordial Yang Body-Tempering Fist after waking.
• Liu Yu received confirmation from his Sect Token that Lin Xiaoyue, Xie Junjie, Yao Yunsong, and Lou Cunjun had died, and collected his mission merit points.
• Liu Yu completed ten hours of cultivation and prepared resources worth about five thousand five hundred spirit stones to sell, along with plans to repair the Azure Flood Dragon Halberd and visit Yan Hongyu.
• Liu Yu went to the Many Treasures Pavilion and waited in a reception room for its Foundation Establishment manager, Jia Fu.

Liu Yu visited the Many Treasures Pavilion to sell resources acquired during a sect mission and negotiated a higher price with Jia Fu. After agreeing on 5,500 spirit stones for his crystals and assorted resources, Liu Yu revealed two more magical artifacts for Jia Fu to assess.

• Jia Fu greeted Liu Yu and exchanged pleasantries with him over spirit tea before either man raised the purpose of the meeting.
• Liu Yu presented a Jade Box of firefly amethyst and a Storage Bag of assorted resources for Jia Fu to value.
• Jia Fu offered 5,300 spirit stones, but Liu Yu challenged the price and said the resources were worth 5,500.
• Jia Fu accepted Liu Yu's valuation and placed fifty-five Mid-Grade Spirit Stones on the table.
• Liu Yu produced a Red Bone Claw and a Pink Folding Fan, and Jia Fu examined the two Top-grade Magical Artifacts.

Liu Yu sold two artifacts to Jia Fu, then visited the Li Family Refinery to repair the Azure Flood Dragon Halberd. Li Qiu agreed to repair it for the cost of materials, and Liu Yu left the halberd for seven days.

• Liu Yu sold the Red Bone Staff and Pink Folding Fan to Jia Fu for twenty-one Mid-Grade Spirit Stones and received a packet of Clear Lake Dragon Well.
• Liu Yu went to a small workshop in the East Market to avoid drawing attention while seeking repairs for his Azure Flood Dragon Halberd.
• Liu Yu introduced himself as a disciple of the Primordial Yang Sect to Li Qiu, the owner of the Li Family Refinery.
• Li Qiu examined the Azure Flood Dragon Halberd and said he could repair its two chipped areas because its essence soul remained intact.
• Li Qiu offered to waive his fee, charging Liu Yu four hundred and thirty spirit stones for materials, and said the halberd would be ready in seven days.

Liu Yu arranged for Li Qiu to repair the Azure Flood Dragon Halberd discreetly, then negotiated a pill-selling agreement with Yan Hongyu. Back at his cave abode, he realized that selling Essence-Refining Pills through Jade Pill Hall would be difficult because Jiang Qiushui’s cultivation was too low.

• Liu Yu refused Li Qiu’s discount, left the Azure Flood Dragon Halberd for repair, and secured his promise to keep the work secret and finish it in seven days.
• Liu Yu visited Yan Hongyu and told her he could refine second-tier pills.
• Liu Yu and Yan Hongyu reached a verbal agreement for him to supply the Yan Household with seven bottles of Essence-Refining Pills each year for four hundred spirit stones per bottle.
• Liu Yu sold Yan Hongyu five bottles of Essence-Refining Pills for two thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones and left her cave abode.
• Liu Yu reviewed his outing at home and wondered how he could sell pills through Jade Pill Hall when Jiang Qiushui’s qi refining period cultivation was insufficient.

Liu Yu spent a year cultivating and testing his spirit artifacts before receiving an urgent order to assemble at the City Lord’s Mansion. He found Moonwatch City under wartime controls and suspected that a major change was underway.

• Liu Yu decided to return to the sect in another year, collect Jade Pill Hall’s earnings, assess Jiang Qiushui’s situation, and consider giving her a Foundation Establishment Pill.
• Liu Yu spent a year cultivating with Azure Origin Pills and Spirit-Nourishing Pills, then tested the Profound Departure Sword and the repaired Azure Flood Dragon Halberd, finding the halberd superior.
• Liu Yu received a Sect Token message ordering disciples to assemble immediately at the City Lord’s Mansion and hurried there.
• Liu Yu found Moonwatch City deserted, with shops closed and City Guard Army patrols enforcing wartime controls.
• A City Guard Army disciple told Liu Yu the controls had begun seven days earlier but could not explain why, and Liu Yu continued toward the City Lord’s Mansion with a sense that something momentous was coming.

Liu Yu arrived at the City Lord's Mansion and found six Golden Core Cultivators presiding over a gathering of Foundation Establishment cultivators. He learned the meeting might concern the approaching end of the Spirit Stone Mine War, while an awkward reunion with Yan Qun'er left him weighing his ties to the Yan Household.

• Liu Yu entered the City Lord's Mansion and sensed that six Golden Core Cultivators were seated in the Main Hall.
• Liu Yu bowed to the elders and sat beside Yan Qun'er and Yan Hongyu among the Primordial Yang Sect cultivators.
• Liu Yu and Yan Qun'er exchanged news after nearly ten years apart, and he noted that she had reached the peak of the Foundation Establishment Early Stage.
• Yan Qun'er told Liu Yu that the elders had likely summoned them because the Spirit Stone Mine War was nearing its end.
• Liu Yu thanked Yan Qun'er but stayed silent about her affection, considering his cultivation goals and his strategy of building ties with the Yan Household.

After more than twenty years of war over the Cold Mist Spirit Stone Mine, Liu Yu gathered with Primordial Yang Sect cultivators as their elders prepared to attend negotiations at Cold Mist Camp. Elder Yan Shikuan began addressing the assembly, leaving the meeting’s outcome unknown.

• Liu Yu reflected that the war might be ending and resolved to keep a low profile during the negotiations.
• Foundation Establishment cultivators filled the City Lord's Mansion hall, where Liu Yu exchanged greetings with Yan Qun'er and Yan Hongyu.
• Wu Yuhan counted the assembly and reported that all one hundred and eight summoned Foundation Establishment cultivators had arrived.
• Liu Yu observed the six Golden Core cultivators presiding, including Primordial Yang Sect elders Yan Shikuan, Sun Zekun, and Zhou Quan.
• Elder Yan Shikuan dismissed Wu Yuhan to her seat and began explaining the cause of the kingdom-wide war.

Elder Yan announced that the Five Great Sects would end their long war and negotiate the division of the Cold Mist Spirit Stone Mine, with Liu Yu and the other Foundation Establishment cultivators ordered to attend. After the meeting, Liu Yu prepared to complete his pill transaction with Yan Hongyu and maintain his value to the Yan Household.

• Elder Yan described the allied army’s heavy losses and stirred the hall’s hatred toward the Hehuan Sect before restoring order with his Golden Core spirit pressure.
• Elder Yan announced that the Five Great Sects had agreed to cease hostilities and hold talks at Cold Mist Camp over the Cold Mist Spirit Stone Mine.
• Liu Yu told Yan Qun'er he planned to study alchemy after the war and attend the sect’s Disciple-Selection Ceremony, and he revealed that his cave abode was at Colorful Lotus Mountain.
• Elder Yan ordered the Foundation Establishment cultivators to assemble in three days and travel to Cold Mist Camp with him, Elder Ma, and Elder Zheng.
• Liu Yu left the hall with Yan Hongyu and planned to give her seven bottles of Essence-Refining Pills to complete their transaction and demonstrate his worth to the Yan Household.

Liu Yu sold seven bottles of Essence-Refining Pills to Yan Hongyu and kept his distance from Yan Qun'er, then prepared to join the expedition to Cold Mist Camp. Three days later, he arrived at the City Lord's Mansion gathering point and waited for the other cultivators.

• Liu Yu sold Yan Hongyu seven bottles of Essence-Refining Pills for twenty-eight Mid-Grade Spirit Stones and asked her about cultivation.
• Yan Qun'er wanted Yan Hongyu to keep Liu Yu from leaving, but Yan Hongyu advised her not to rush and explained that the Yan Household needed good relations with an alchemist like him.
• Liu Yu returned to his cave abode and deliberately maintained his distance from Yan Qun'er, wary that her affection could turn into resentment.
• Liu Yu continued his usual cultivation and judged that his existing preparations and treasures were sufficient for the coming expedition.
• Three days later, Liu Yu arrived at the City Lord's Mansion gathering point, where he sat apart from the early arrivals and waited.

Liu Yu and the other Foundation Establishment cultivators boarded Elder Yan’s Square-Hole Copper Coin Treasure and flew toward the Cold Mist Forest. They arrived above a vast area scarred by earlier battles.

• Liu Yu declined Yan Hongyu’s offer to introduce him to fellow disciples, while Yan Hongyu and Yan Qun'er mingled with the other cultivators.
• A massive Square-Hole Copper Coin Treasure appeared above the City Lord’s Mansion, and Liu Yu recognized the formidable power of a complete Treasure.
• Elder Yan ordered all the Qing Province allied forces to board the Treasure, and the cultivators obeyed.
• Elder Yan counted the assembled cultivators, raised a Protective Shield around the Treasure, and flew toward the Cold Mist Forest.
• The Treasure reached the Cold Mist Forest, where Liu Yu saw a broad area of uprooted trees and ground marked by cultivator battles.

Liu Yu and the other cultivators arrived at the Primordial Yang Sect’s camp in Cold Mist Camp, where Elder Yan summoned the Qing Province Allied Army. As the other factions’ Golden Core leaders arrived with their enormous treasures, Liu Yu identified which sects they likely represented.

• Elder Yan brought Liu Yu and the other Foundation Establishment cultivators to the Primordial Yang Sect camp on his Square-Hole Copper Coin treasure.
• Elder Yan ordered a cultivator to summon the Qing Province Allied Army, and more than a hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators and thousands of Qi Refining cultivators assembled.
• Four other Golden Core treasures arrived: a flying sword, an Eight Trigrams Mirror, an embroidered tower, and a dragon carriage.
• Liu Yu guessed that the treasures belonged to the Crescent Moon Valley, Void Clarity School, Snowfall Pavilion, and Hehuan Sect, respectively.

The Primordial Yang Sect and Crescent Moon Valley met to coordinate their approach to the Cold Mist Spirit Stone Mine, then joined the other three great sects there. The Golden Core elders argued over the mine as their forces waited, and the chapter ended before their negotiations were resolved.

• Elder Yan and Elder Zhou met Crescent Moon Valley's True Person Chongxuan and another Golden Core cultivator, then discussed an alliance behind a soundproofing barrier.
• The Primordial Yang Sect and Crescent Moon Valley marched to the mine, where cultivators from all five great sects gathered amid mutual hostility.
• Liu Yu observed Snowfall Pavilion's large force and the Primordial Yang Sect's prominent cultivators, including Zhou Zhuofeng and Zhao Wuji.
• The Golden Core cultivators took positions above the mine and argued for hours while the lower-ranking cultivators held their formations.

The Five Great Sects formally ended the war and divided the Cold Mist Spirit Stone Mine, then assigned cultivators to guard it. Elder Yan selected seven Foundation Establishment cultivators, including Yan Hongyu and Yan Qun'er, while Elder Zhou remained in charge of the mine.

• Liu Yu learned that the mine shares were set at twenty-six percent for Snowfall Pavilion, seventeen percent each for Crescent Moon Valley and Void Clarity School, and twenty percent each for Primordial Yang Sect and Hehuan Sect.
• Elder Yan and Elder Zhou announced that the war in the Chu Kingdom's Cultivation World was over, and the surviving forces received no celebration as they mourned their losses.
• Elder Yan told the Primordial Yang Sect cultivators that Elder Zhou would oversee the mine alongside seven Foundation Establishment cultivators and one hundred Qi Refining disciples.
• Many Foundation Establishment cultivators volunteered for the lucrative mine assignment, but Elder Yan silenced them and selected seven, including Yan Hongyu and Yan Qun'er.
• Liu Yu was not selected, and he considered that a mine posting would have let him secretly transfer spirit stones into his Immortal Mansion.
• Elder Yan entrusted the mine's affairs to Elder Zhou as the sects' garrisons assembled.

After the war ended, the sects assigned cultivators to guard the Cold Mist Spirit Stone Mine and sent the Qing Province Allied Army back to Moonwatch City. The Elders Council gave the allied cultivators three months to remain in the city while the situation stabilized, leaving Liu Yu closer to the end of his assignment there.

• Elder Yan agreed to station Zhou Quan at the Cold Mist Spirit Stone Mine, then departed as cultivators from the Five Great Sects began leaving.
• Zhao Wuji and Zhou Zhuofeng organized the Qing Province Allied Army’s return to Moonwatch City, with Foundation Establishment cultivators escorting the group.
• Liu Yu traveled with the allied army for nearly two days before the cultivators reached Moonwatch City and received a summons to the City Lord’s Mansion.
• Liu Yu discussed the dangerous fighting at Cold Mist Camp with Cui Liang and promised to sell him Essence-Refining Pills at a discounted price.
• Elder Yan and Elder Sun addressed the Foundation Establishment cultivators, explained the aftermath arrangements, and set a three-month timeframe before the allied army would be disbanded.

After returning to Moonwatch City, Liu Yu visited the Merit Hall to spend the points he had earned on missions. He exchanged them for a Red Flame Pill and left the hall, while Li Changxiu’s curiosity about him hinted at his connection to Yan Qun’er.

• Liu Yu returned to his cave abode, cultivated, and then headed to the City Lord’s Mansion to exchange his mission merit points.
• Liu Yu joined the queue at the Merit Hall and waited until he could inspect the Foundation Establishment exchange list.
• Li Changxiu greeted Liu Yu as Junior Brother and privately compared him with the cultivator her friend Yan Qun’er could not forget.
• Liu Yu examined the available treasures, decided his points were insufficient for a Purpleheart Barrier-Breaking Pill, and chose a Red Flame Pill suited to his Azure Yang Art.
• Li Changxiu deducted Liu Yu’s merit points and gave him the Red Flame Pill, which he inspected before leaving.

Liu Yu wrapped up his affairs in Moonwatch City and returned to the Primordial Yang Sect after the mine situation stabilized. He arrived at Azure Terrace Peak with Cui Liang and other cultivators, though the teleportation left him dizzy and nauseated.

• Liu Yu abandoned his thought of stealing Li Changxiu's Storage Ring after sensing powerful auras near the Merit Hall.
• During the next three months, Liu Yu traded Essence-Refining Pills at a Wu Household gathering, gaining rare spiritual herbs and five thousand spirit stones.
• Liu Yu left farewell Voice-Transmitting Talismans for Yan Hongyu and Yan Qun'er, then returned his cave abode token to Wu Yuhan.
• Liu Yu and Cui Liang decided to travel back together, and Cui Liang reluctantly paid two hundred spirit stones to use the teleportation formation.
• Liu Yu and four other cultivators teleported from Moonwatch City to Azure Terrace Peak, where Liu Yu suffered dizziness and nausea.

After returning to the Primordial Yang Sect, Liu Yu confronted Sect Master Zhuang Ziling with a veiled reminder of his resentment over being sent to the front lines, then went to inspect the Jade Pill Hall. He learned that Jiang Qiushui was entertaining a guest and waited for her upstairs.

• Liu Yu and Cui Liang returned to the Primordial Yang Sect and reported to Zhuang Ziling, who updated their assignments and contribution credits.
• Liu Yu privately resolved to repay Zhuang Ziling for helping send him to the dangerous front lines, while Zhuang Ziling believed the grievance was minor and tried to smooth things over.
• Liu Yu parted ways with Cui Liang and traveled to Benevolence Market Ward to inspect the Jade Pill Hall.
• Sun Ju recognized Liu Yu and told him that Jiang Qiushui was entertaining an honored guest on the second floor.
• Liu Yu instructed Sun Ju to summon Jiang Qiushui, then went to his room on the third floor and began brewing spirit tea.

After nearly twenty years apart, Liu Yu reunited with Jiang Qiushui, heard about the Jade Pill Hall’s affairs, and brought her back to Colorful Lotus Mountain. After their intimate reunion, he noted that her cultivation had reached the peak of qi refining.

• Jiang Qiushui visited Liu Yu at the Jade Pill Hall, and he welcomed her with spirit tea before asking about the shop’s operations and problems.
• Jiang Qiushui reported on the Jade Pill Hall and arranged for its staff before Liu Yu took her to Colorful Lotus Mountain on the Mother-and-Son Soul-Chasing Blades.
• Jiang Qiushui returned to her cave abode to change while Liu Yu cleaned and prepared his own cave abode.
• Jiang Qiushui arrived in a purple dress, and Liu Yu closed the formation and carried her to the bedroom.
• Afterward, Liu Yu observed that Jiang Qiushui had reached the peak of qi refining.