Chapter Summaries

Liu Yu sold Jade Spirit Pills to Liu Xueqin and bought an ancient Azure Origin Pill formula from her. Before leaving, he learned that a major auction would be held in about half a year and accepted an invitation to attend.

• Liu Yu showed Liu Xueqin thirty bottles of Jade Spirit Pills, and she verified their quality and quantity before agreeing to buy them for eight spirit stones each.
• Liu Yu asked about Foundation Establishment Realm pill formulas, and Liu Xueqin offered him an ancient formula written on beast hide.
• Liu Yu recognized the formula as one for Azure Origin Pills, saw that he knew seventeen of its twenty required herbs, and bought it for five hundred spirit stones.
• Liu Yu asked Liu Xueqin about auctions while preparing to leave, and she told him about the Primordial Yang Sect's auction at Jiatai Market in roughly half a year.
• Liu Xueqin gave Liu Yu an invitation to the auction, and he accepted it before taking his leave.

Liu Yu failed to find a suitable cultivation art, defensive artifact, or all the spiritual herb seeds he needed in Jiatai Market, so he planned to try his luck at an auction in half a year. While browsing the stalls, he recognized a damaged artifact that might be the missing wick for his Bronze Lamp and bought it cheaply after intimidating its seller.

• Liu Yu declined Liu Xueqin's offer to arrange another visit with her cousin and left the Jade Orchid Tower.
• Liu Yu searched Jiatai Market for Foundation Establishment pill formulas but found none for sale.
• Over five days, Liu Yu failed to find a superior-grade cultivation art or a satisfactory defensive artifact and decided to wait for the auction in half a year.
• Liu Yu browsed the square's stalls and bought seeds for more than a dozen unfamiliar spiritual herbs.
• Liu Yu recognized a damaged cyan artifact as a possible wick for his Bronze Lamp and bought it for fifty spirit stones after using his Foundation Establishment pressure to force the stall owner to lower the price.

After returning to his cave abode, Liu Yu discovered that the Bronze Lamp and its rope-like wick revealed the Azure Yang Art, a powerful but incomplete cultivation method. The lamp fell silent after he memorized the text, leaving him to consider what he had learned.

• Liu Yu left Jiatai Market without collecting all the herbs and seeds he needed and returned to his cave abode on Lotus-Picking Mountain.
• Liu Yu refined the Bronze Lamp and found that its azure flame burned through the Black Orb’s defensive barrier and dimmed the orb.
• Liu Yu refined the rope-shaped magical artifact and discovered that it fit the Bronze Lamp as a wick, greatly strengthening its flame.
• The Bronze Lamp floated into the air and projected the Azure Yang Art, including its cultivation method, secret technique, defensive spell, and treasure-refining methods.
• Liu Yu memorized the incomplete art, then watched the lamp and its displayed text vanish before he sat down to ponder its contents.

Liu Yu studied the Azure Yang Art and decided to use it if he found no better method at an upcoming auction. Jiang Qiushui visited after reaching late Qi refining, and Liu Yu offered her a position managing his planned pill shop; she accepted, then asked why he had chosen her.

• Liu Yu copied and studied the Azure Yang Art, planning to cultivate it if he found no better method at the auction in six months.
• Jiang Qiushui visited Liu Yu after breaking through to late Qi refining and shared her doubts about ever reaching foundation establishment.
• Liu Yu offered Jiang Qiushui a shop manager position with her usual sect stipend and three bottles of Jade Spirit Pills each year.
• Jiang Qiushui accepted Liu Yu's offer and took the three bottles of pills he gave her.
• Jiang Qiushui asked Liu Yu why he had chosen her among the sect's many disciples.

Liu Yu took Jiang Qiushui as a subordinate and used their intimacy to secure her cooperation. After she chose to stay, he ordered her to move to Colorful Lotus Mountain, where she would be available when he needed her.

• Liu Yu pulled Jiang Qiushui into his bedroom, and they spent six hours together.
• Jiang Qiushui asked Liu Yu why he had called her Senior Sister, and he sent her to wait in the sitting room.
• Liu Yu offered Jiang Qiushui a chance to leave, promising three bottles of Jade Spirit Pills as compensation, but she chose to stay.
• Liu Yu told Jiang Qiushui to move to Colorful Lotus Mountain, arranged for her to keep her stipend and avoid miscellaneous duties, and she agreed to pack her things.

Liu Yu studied the Azure Yang Art and Divine Preservation Art while Jiang Qiushui prepared to serve as his shopkeeper. He gave her a new cave abode and a defensive artifact, then tasked her with finding premises for their shop; Wu Chang was dismissed after Liu Yu decided he was no longer needed.

• Liu Yu comforted Jiang Qiushui, then returned to studying the Azure Yang Art and Divine Preservation Art as she left his cave abode.
• A day later, Liu Yu led Jiang Qiushui to a new cave abode he excavated near his own and gave her a Black Orb for protection.
• Liu Yu instructed Jiang Qiushui to find suitable shop premises in the sect's Market Ward and manage the shop without disturbing his cultivation.
• Two days later, Liu Yu dismissed Wu Chang after deciding Jiang Qiushui would serve as the shopkeeper.

Liu Yu agreed to take Geng Yuanzhang’s great-grandson, Geng Yunsong, under his protection and let him cultivate on Colorful Lotus Mountain. Geng Yuanzhang departed after arranging a cave abode for the boy, leaving Liu Yu to set expectations for his new charge.

• Liu Yu prepared pills for his future shop while resolving to keep cultivation as his priority and gradually reduce his pill production.
• Geng Yuanzhang visited Liu Yu with Geng Yunsong and asked Liu Yu to let the boy cultivate on Colorful Lotus Mountain, explaining that he had only a year or two left to live.
• Liu Yu accepted responsibility for Geng Yunsong in return for Geng Yuanzhang’s past help and allowed the boy to establish a cave abode at the mountain’s spirit-rich foothills.
• Geng Yuanzhang built the cave abode, entrusted Geng Yunsong to Liu Yu, and departed without saying goodbye to the boy.
• Liu Yu told Geng Yunsong to avoid trouble, cultivate diligently, and honor Geng Yuanzhang’s hopes.

Liu Yu reviewed the Jade Pill Hall’s finances with Jiang Qiushui and instructed her to gather herbs and seeds needed for his pill refining. After spending the night with her, he remained wary of sleeping and exposing himself to an attack.

• Liu Yu left Geng Yun Song at the foot of the mountain after agreeing to answer his cultivation questions every six months.
• Jiang Qiushui reported the Jade Pill Hall’s business and gave Liu Yu eighteen hundred spirit stones in monthly profits.
• Liu Yu gave Jiang Qiushui a list of herbs and seeds to collect, and told her she could hire two carefully vetted workers if needed.
• Liu Yu pulled Jiang Qiushui into his arms and kept her with him for the night.
• Liu Yu sent Jiang Qiushui away afterward and stayed awake to avoid the danger of being attacked in his sleep.

Liu Yu traveled to Jiatai Market ahead of a major auction and explored the surge of new cultivators and goods arriving for the event. After buying unfamiliar spirit herbs and seeds, he returned to the crowded stalls to inspect their wares.

• Liu Yu disguised himself as a young noble and rode to Jiatai Market two days before the auction.
• Liu Yu inspected the auction house and learned that entry required an invitation, two thousand spirit stones or equivalent goods, or qualifying Primordial Yang Sect status.
• Liu Yu toured the market and bought several unfamiliar spirit herbs and seeds from newly arrived cultivators.
• Liu Yu considered the uses of demonic beast materials and the dangers of hunting in the Hengduan Mountain Range.
• Liu Yu returned to the stall area, concealed his cultivation aura, and examined the vendors' goods.

Liu Yu failed to find useful treasures in the Market Ward, then spent two days studying the Azure Yang Art before attending an auction. After paying the entry fee, he took a seat in the hall and waited for the auction to begin.

• Liu Yu searched the Market Ward but found nothing worthwhile, then rented a cultivation residence at the Welcome Immortal Inn for seven days.
• Liu Yu studied the Azure Yang Art and the Divine Preservation Art until an inn attendant reminded him of the auction.
• Liu Yu checked his disguise and went early to the auction, where he qualified for entry by presenting two thousand spirit stones.
• Liu Yu entered the auction hall, chose a seat near the entrance, and waited as more cultivators arrived and noon approached.

Liu Yu attended a large auction hosted by Chi Yunxing, where the bidding began with a Foundation Establishment Pill and continued with a trapping formation. He watched without bidding, waiting for an item better suited to his needs.

• Liu Yu surveyed the gathered cultivators as the auction hall filled and Chi Yunxing appeared to host the sale.
• Chi Yunxing announced the auction rules, including a Golden Core overseer and a ban on leaving before the auction ended.
• The auction opened with a Foundation Establishment Pill, which sold for four thousand one hundred spirit stones while Liu Yu did not bid.
• Chi Yunxing presented the Yi Wood Life-Burial Formation and promoted its trapping and defensive uses.
• Liu Yu considered the later offerings but held back because he had limited spirit stones and wanted a formation focused on defense.

Liu Yu won the Golden Steel Banner at auction and later joined the bidding for a defensive formation. The Wu Earth Bluestone Formation’s price reached twenty-four hundred spirit stones as the chapter ended.

• A Foundation Establishment female cultivator won the Yi Wood Life-Burial Formation for sixteen hundred spirit stones.
• Liu Yu outbid the other contenders and bought the Golden Steel Banner for sixteen hundred spirit stones.
• Liu Yu watched as increasingly valuable pills, artifacts, and talismans were auctioned.
• Chi Yunxing presented the Wu Earth Bluestone Formation, and its price climbed past two thousand spirit stones.
• Liu Yu joined the bidding and offered twenty-four hundred spirit stones for the formation.

Liu Yu won the Wu Earth Bluestone Formation, then watched the auction continue as he ran out of spirit stones. When three cultivation cauldrons were auctioned, he wanted one for its bottleneck-breaking arts but could not afford to bid, and the women were sold to other cultivators.

• Liu Yu won the Wu Earth Bluestone Formation for two thousand six hundred spirit stones and collected it backstage.
• Liu Yu decided not to bid on more treasures unless a suitable cultivation art appeared, while the auction sold rare items and the Black Ice Art.
• Chi Yunxing introduced three qi refining female cultivators as cultivation cauldrons, explaining their skills and the secret arts they had practiced.
• Liu Yu considered bidding to use the cauldrons' energy to aid his cultivation, but his remaining spirit stones were insufficient.
• The three cultivation cauldrons sold for one thousand two hundred, one thousand three hundred, and one thousand three hundred and fifty spirit stones, then went backstage to await collection.

Liu Yu attended the auction in Jiatai Market, where Yan Wukui won the Heavenly Dust Pill, then returned safely to Colorful Lotus Mountain after evading any possible pursuers. Back at his cave abode, Liu Yu studied the jade slip containing instructions for the Wu Earth Bluestone Formation.

• Chi Yunxing presented the Heavenly Dust Pill as the auction’s final treasure, and Liu Yu decided not to bid for it.
• Yan Wukui outbid two cultivators in private rooms and won the Heavenly Dust Pill for sixteen thousand spirit stones.
• After the auction ended, Liu Yu left Jiatai Market and flew away from the Primordial Yang Sect before switching to the Wind-Evasion Boat and restoring his appearance.
• Liu Yu returned to Colorful Lotus Mountain, where Jiang Qiushui and Geng Yunsong remained unaware of his trip.
• Liu Yu examined a jade slip describing how to set up and control the Wu Earth Bluestone Formation.

Liu Yu established the Wu Earth Bluestone Formation around his cave abode, refined the Golden Steel Banner, and began cultivating the Azure Yang Art. After opening the meridian routes for its first three levels, he continued progressing toward the fourth.

• Liu Yu activated the Wu Earth Bluestone Formation and tested its defenses, finding that even his strongest attacks could not break through its regenerative stone barriers.
• Liu Yu carved a warning for visitors, adjusted the formation to create an entrance, and entered his cave abode.
• Liu Yu refined the Golden Steel Banner, then rested before attempting the Azure Yang Art’s delicate meridian-opening process.
• Liu Yu carefully opened the meridians for the first level of the Azure Yang Art, completed two circuits, and rested to recover.
• Liu Yu resumed cultivation and spent ten days opening the meridian routes for the first, second, and third levels.

Liu Yu began cultivating the Foundation Establishment portion of the Azure Yang Art but found that his ordinary aptitude made progress painfully slow, so he used the Immortal Mansion to grow herbs and began refining Essence-Refining Pills. Over the next three years, he improved his cultivation and pursued his studies while managing the Jade Pill Hall and instructing Geng Yunsong.

• Liu Yu switched to the Foundation Establishment portion of the Azure Yang Art, then sent Jiang Qiushui to search for the last herbs needed for Essence-Refining Pills.
• Jiang Qiushui delivered the herbs and the Jade Pill Hall's earnings, and Liu Yu rewarded her with half a bottle of Jade Spirit Pills.
• Liu Yu used the Immortal Mansion to grow fifty sets of Essence-Refining Pill herbs and refined thirty-one pills, including sixteen normal pills and fifteen inferior ones.
• Liu Yu began taking one Essence-Refining Pill each day while studying techniques, practicing spells, refining pills, and familiarizing himself with his magical artifacts.
• Jiang Qiushui and Sun Ju reported on the shop, while Liu Yu instructed Geng Yunsong once every six months; three years passed.

Three years later, Liu Yu mastered the Azure Yang Demonic Flame and strengthened it by absorbing the flame stored in the Bronze Lamp. After receiving a summons to the Primordial Yang Sect’s Main Hall for deliberations about the worsening war, he prepared his defenses and headed to Azure Cloud Peak.

• Liu Yu achieved initial mastery of the Azure Yang Demonic Flame after two years of cultivation.
• Liu Yu merged the Bronze Lamp’s flame into his own, increasing its power and exhausting the lamp.
• Liu Yu studied the Divine Preservation Art while continuing to improve his divine sense.
• Liu Yu received the Primordial Yang Sect’s order to attend deliberations and learned that the war had intensified and many Foundation Establishment cultivators had died.
• Liu Yu gathered his magical artifacts and defensive treasures, left Colorful Lotus Mountain, and arrived at Azure Cloud Peak.

Liu Yu joined seven other Foundation Establishment cultivators ordered to reinforce the sect’s depleted front lines, despite attempts by some to avoid the assignment. As he prepared to leave in three days, he reunited with Yan Qun'er, who was delighted to see him.

• Liu Yu arrived at the great hall and recognized Yan Qun'er among the waiting cultivators.
• Zhuang Ziling announced that the Golden Core elders had ordered eight Foundation Establishment cultivators to reinforce the front lines after several disciples died.
• Cui Liang and another cultivator tried to avoid the deployment, but Zhuang Ziling told them to appeal directly to the elders, and they fell silent.
• Zhuang Ziling ordered the group to gather at the General Affairs Hall on Clear Spring Peak in three days with two hundred disciples, and assigned Junior Brother Ma the Origin Returning Boat.
• Yan Qun'er called out to Liu Yu as they left the hall, and they walked together while catching up on their lives.

As his departure on a sect mission approached, Liu Yu settled affairs at the Jade Pill Hall and prepared the people under his care for his absence. Three days later, he finished his preparations and was ready to leave.

• Liu Yu said goodbye to Yan Qun'er and returned to Colorful Lotus Mountain, while Yan Qun'er felt disappointed by their reunion.
• Liu Yu summoned Geng Yunsong, answered his cultivation questions, and gave him two bottles of Pure Spirit Pills before leaving for several years.
• Jiang Qiushui brought the Jade Pill Hall's earnings to Liu Yu, who told her to manage the hall, collect spirit plant seeds, and keep a low profile during his absence.
• Liu Yu instructed Jiang Qiushui and Sun Ju on the Jade Pill Hall's affairs, then spent the remaining days cultivating and studying the Divine Preservation Art.

Liu Yu joined the Foundation Establishment stewards at Clear Spring Peak to oversee two hundred Qi Refining disciples preparing for a mission. After the brocade-robed steward verified the disciples’ identities and summoned the Origin Returning Boat, he ordered them to board in teams.

• Liu Yu left his cave abode and flew to Clear Spring Peak, where he greeted the other Foundation Establishment cultivators and exchanged a private divine sense message with Yan Qun'er.
• Liu Yu concealed his improving cultivation, while the gathered stewards formed separate groups along factional lines and Senior Brother Xu openly snubbed the brocade-robed steward.
• Cui Liang ordered the Qi Refining disciples to form orderly teams of ten as they gathered below the General Affairs Hall.
• The brocade-robed steward verified the identities of all two hundred disciples to prevent anyone from sending a substitute.
• The brocade-robed steward expanded the red Origin Returning Boat into a huge vessel and ordered the disciples to board in teams.