Recaps

Lin Changheng entered the crowded Desolate Ruins Market hoping to spend his resources on useful supplies and potential Spirit Seizure targets. At the Spirit Fox Beast Pavilion, Shopkeeper Liu Fengxiu revealed that the shop had a spirit beast with a Profound Spirit Bloodline, and brought out a large egg.

• Lin Changheng arrived at the Desolate Ruins Market, paid for an expensive inn room, and made sure nobody was following him.
• The next morning, Lin Changheng visited the Spirit Fox Beast Pavilion in a new disguise and considered the crowded selection of spirit beasts as possible sources of essence blood.
• Shopkeeper Liu Fengxiu introduced several beasts, but Lin Changheng remained focused on finding one with a Profound Spirit Bloodline.
• Shopkeeper Liu Fengxiu said the shop had obtained such a beast and led Lin Changheng to a private guest room.
• Shopkeeper Liu Fengxiu used a spell seal to release an infant-head-sized spirit beast egg from a Spirit Beast Bag.

Lin Changheng examined a sickly Black-Armored Earth Turtle egg and learned its inherited poison had weakened its prospects. He bought it for his lineage and, while considering how to carry it, asked Shopkeeper Liu about reference books on beasts.

• Shopkeeper Liu explained that the Black-Armored Earth Turtle egg had a profound spirit bloodline but was afflicted by poison that could limit it to the late first tier.
• Lin Changheng sensed the egg's weak vitality and concealed his interest in its condition.
• Lin Changheng bargained with Shopkeeper Liu and bought the egg for one hundred and forty low-grade spirit stones, receiving a jade slip and Beast-Taming Plaque.
• Lin Changheng realized he had forgotten his Spirit Beast Bag and asked Shopkeeper Liu about buying one.
• Lin Changheng asked whether the shop stocked reference works such as the Demon Beast Compendium or Spirit Beast Notes.

Lin Changheng bought a poisoned turtle egg and used the Poison-Transforming Demon Method to stabilize it, then studied the Record of Savage Wilderness Monsters and Spirit Beasts to plan a Spirit Seizure. A day later, he returned to the Spirit Fox Beast Pavilion in disguise.

• Lin Changheng bought a turtle egg, a Spirit Beast Bag, and several jade items from Shopkeeper Liu.
• Lin Changheng examined the poisoned egg and used the Poison-Transforming Demon Method to stabilize its life force, though he needed several more sessions to cure it completely.
• Lin Changheng studied the Record of Savage Wilderness Monsters and Spirit Beasts and concluded that it was useful as a reference but could contain omissions.
• Lin Changheng learned that the Flame-Tailed Golden Mouse had metal, fire, and innate Demon Arts, and decided to perform Spirit Seizure and seek a deal for handling the Xu Family's Defective Pills.
• Lin Changheng changed his appearance and returned to the Spirit Fox Beast Pavilion a day later.

Lin Changheng bought demon beast essence blood, learned about a black market outside Desolate Ruins Market, and prepared new abilities and disguises before heading there. The chapter left him stepping into the red valley where the black market was to be held.

• Lin Changheng bought all the shop's Earthfire Lizard and Flame-Tailed Spirit Fox essence blood and asked Shopkeeper Liu Fengxiu to seek other kinds of turbid baleful essence blood.
• Lin Changheng overheard customers mention the black market, gathered its location and schedule at a teahouse, and decided to visit the next day.
• Lin Changheng refined the Fire-Repelling Art to True Ascension and advanced his Flame-Tailed Spirit Fox Treasure Seed through spirit seizure.
• Lin Changheng used Illusory Appearance Shift Foreign Method to alter his build and face, then added a Human-Skin Mask, black robe, and bamboo hat to disguise himself.
• Lin Changheng arrived at the valley outside Desolate Ruins Market at noon, where the black market was to be held.

Lin Changheng entered a hidden Black Market to search for demon beast essence blood and bought supplies of earthfire lizard essence blood from two stalls. After he left, three cultivators followed him with greed and malice in their eyes.

• Lin Changheng paid the guards and passed through a formation into the Black Market, where he found a crowded marketplace concealed in a valley.
• Lin Changheng rejected a dubious pill formula and found no useful goods at the early stalls, including a seller who had only Gold Mountain Ape essence blood.
• Lin Changheng bought twenty portions of earthfire lizard essence blood from the Red-Robed Elder, who told him he could return in three days.
• Lin Changheng obtained another ten portions of earthfire lizard essence blood at a different stall and left the Black Market without lingering.
• Three figures left the Black Market after Lin Changheng and followed him, exchanging looks of greed and malice.

The Black Wind Three Fiends targeted Lin Changheng after deciding he was a wealthy, weak cultivator, but Lin detected their pursuit and ambushed their leader. The leader survived the attack with his defenses damaged and unleashed a giant yellow cloth bag toward Lin’s hiding place.

• The Black Wind Three Fiends followed Lin Changheng from the Black Market and planned to rob and kill him away from the Law Enforcement Team.
• Lin Changheng noticed the three cultivators tailing him and used his [Spirit-Sensing Technique] to identify their cultivation levels.
• The burly leader and his companions split up to surround Lin, but he vanished behind a hillside and struck first.
• Lin’s mid-grade [Ice Cone Talisman] shattered the leader’s water curtain and badly weakened his ocher-yellow barrier, while an ice fragment cut his face.
• The burly cultivator cursed Lin and activated a yellow cloth bag that expanded into a huge, gaping maw aimed at him.

Lin Changheng used talismans and the Earth Escape Foreign Method to escape the [Sinking Sand Bag] and kill the tall, brawny cultivator. He then pursued the two fleeing bandits, killing the short one with an oversized [Fireball Technique] while the other remained alive.

• The tall, brawny cultivator attacked Lin Changheng with the [Sinking Sand Bag], but Lin Changheng escaped the yellow sand using the Earth Escape Foreign Method and killed him with a [Fireball Technique].
• The short and gaunt bandit cultivators arrived, saw their eldest brother dead, and fled in opposite directions.
• Lin Changheng sent the [Jade Bamboo Whip] after the short male cultivator and pursued the other with the [Wasp Blade].
• Lin Changheng's enormous [Fireball Technique] shattered the short male cultivator's shield and burned him to death.

Lin Changheng killed three bandit cultivators, collected their belongings, and discovered a large stock of [Earthfire Lizard] essence blood. He finished appraising the spoils at the Immortal Inn in Desolate Ruins Market and planned to begin Spirit Seizure.

• Lin Changheng killed the three bandit cultivators, retrieved their Storage Bags and Dharma Artifacts, erased his traces, and extinguished the burning trees with the [Fire-Repelling Art].
• Lin Changheng returned to the Immortal Inn at Desolate Ruins Market and found little of value in the first two Storage Bags.
• Lin Changheng opened the third Storage Bag and discovered nearly four hundred bottles of [Earthfire Lizard] essence blood sealed in a chenwu Wooden Box.
• Lin Changheng counted a little over two hundred Spirit Stones and appraised the assorted elixirs, talismans, and implements at roughly three hundred and thirty Spirit Stones.
• Lin Changheng refined the [Sinking Sand Bag] and realized it was an unusually powerful mid-grade Dharma Artifact, then inspected the remaining artifacts.

Lin Changheng bound the Sinking Sand Bag and absorbed demon beast essence blood, gaining the Earthfire Lizard’s fire-repelling ability and completing his second Demon Art. He tested the art outside the Market Ward and found that it could instantly dispel first-tier fire spells.

• Lin Changheng decided to keep the Sinking Sand Bag and sell the other stolen goods, then bound the bag over several days.
• Lin Changheng absorbed Earthfire Lizard essence blood and gained the Fire-Repelling Art, fire resistance, and increased spiritual-root resonance.
• Lin Changheng continued absorbing essence blood until the Earthfire Lizard treasure seed transformed into a supreme true core and yielded the Fire-Repelling Demon Method.
• Lin Changheng went outside the Market Ward and tested the art, instantly dispelling a Fireball Technique and a Fire Arrow Talisman.

Lin Changheng tested the limits of the [Fire-Repelling Demon Method] before attending the Grand Auction, where he became interested in a demon bird’s feather and essence blood carrying the [Nethervoid Bloodline]. He prepared to bid on the bundled items as other guests hesitated over their usefulness and the approaching Foundation Establishment Spirit Treasure.

• Lin Changheng confirmed that he could dispel at most two superior-grade fire spells in succession before risking exhaustion.
• Lin Changheng entered the crowded market and bought a seat for the Grand Auction, which was three days away.
• Lin Changheng restrained his bidding during the two-day auction and bought a Mid-Grade Wood-Type Pill Formula and a superior-grade fire-type pill formula.
• The old auctioneer presented a damaged feather and a drop of essence blood from an unidentified wind-aligned demon bird with the [Nethervoid Bloodline].
• Lin Changheng decided to bid on the feather and essence blood, which the auction house offered together for a starting price of two hundred low-grade spirit stones.
• The guests hesitated to bid, wary of the bundled items and intent on saving resources for the Foundation Establishment Spirit Treasure.

Lin Changheng won an earlier auction lot for 470 spirit stones after a white-robed woman stopped bidding, then watched as the auction’s main prize, the Azurefall Cold Branch, was unveiled. The bidding for the Foundation Establishment Spirit Treasure began at 3,000 spirit stones.

• Lin Changheng outbid a white-robed woman for a lot at 470 spirit stones after someone apparently stopped her through Sound Transmission Technique.
• Lin Changheng paid for the lot and returned to the auction hall, where bidding continued through the afternoon.
• The auctioneer presented the Azurefall Cold Branch under the protection of two Foundation Establishment cultivators.
• The auctioneer announced the Azurefall Cold Branch’s starting price of 3,000 spirit stones and opened bidding.

Lin Changheng watched bidders compete for a Foundation Establishment Spirit Treasure and suspected they were proxies for the powers in the VIP rooms. After the auction, he stayed in the Immortal Inn to avoid being followed and studied the pill formulas and demon-beast materials he had acquired.

• Lin Changheng observed that many hall bidders seemed unusually focused on the Foundation Establishment Spirit Treasure and conjectured that they represented the powers in the VIP rooms.
• The Foundation Establishment Spirit Treasure sold for nine thousand five hundred low-grade spirit stones to an elderly bidder behind Lin Changheng.
• Lin Changheng left the hall with the departing crowd, took a winding route through the market ward, and stayed inside the Immortal Inn for five days.
• Lin Changheng studied the Red Heaven Dharma Pill formula but found it too advanced to fully understand, while he quickly mastered the Jade Rong Pill formula.
• Lin Changheng examined his nethervoid demon-beast feathers and essence blood without making progress, but learned about their uses from the Beast Taming Master's Detailed Guide.

Lin Changheng used the Wind-Splitting Falcon’s essence blood to create a powerful new treasure seed, then searched for supplies and more blood to advance Spirit Seizure. He learned that the Beast-Taming Sun Clan was under pressure from the upper sect and had begun expanding its shops.

• Lin Changheng performed Spirit Seizure on the Wind-Splitting Falcon’s essence blood and formed a Wind-Splitting Falcon Treasure Seed with two points of progress.
• Lin Changheng learned the falcon’s name and discovered its nethervoid bloodline and three coveted talents: Blade-Splitting Void Wind, Wind-Howling Soul Throat, and Blue-Eyed Insight.
• Lin Changheng tried Spirit Seizure on the remaining feather, but the Origin Cauldron did not respond, so he sealed the feather away.
• Lin Changheng bought ingredients for a spirit liquid to strengthen the poisoned Black-Armored Earth Turtle egg and ordered large quantities of turbid-baleful-lineage essence blood.
• Lin Changheng learned that the Beast-Taming Sun Clan focused on its immortal city and several large market wards, but a shopkeeper said the upper sect’s suppression had forced the clan to adopt the Song Family’s broader shop model.

Lin Changheng learned that the Sun Clan might open a shop in the Xu Family’s new market ward at Dustless Valley, then suspected the caravan steward was protecting a passenger carrying something important. The Xu Family caravan was ambushed, and Lin Changheng recognized the attackers as surviving Chen Family cultivators seeking revenge.

• A shopkeeper told Lin Changheng that the Sun Clan might choose the Xu and Liu families’ new market ward in Dustless Valley for a shop, and Lin Changheng resolved to seek a posting there.
• While traveling with the Xu Family caravan, Lin Changheng noticed the steward repeatedly patrolling near his carriage and inferred that he was protecting the veiled female cultivator.
• Lin Changheng suspected the Xu Family had secretly won the bid for the Foundation Establishment Spirit Treasure and feared that the lightly guarded caravan might be carrying it.
• Xu Xulin stopped the caravan after detecting poison, and the Xu Family members and passengers took Antidote Pills before attackers launched an ambush.
• Xu Xulin recognized the attackers as Chen Family survivors seeking revenge, while Lin Changheng and the veiled passengers stayed hidden and remained protected inside the carriage.

Lin Changheng watched the battle between the Xu Family and the bandit cultivators before intervening after Xu Xulin asked him to help the Veil Hat woman. He headed toward her fight with Chen Guqing, having secured Xu Xulin’s promise that he would not be blamed if anything went wrong.

• The Veil Hat woman left the carriage to help Xu Xulin, while Lin Changheng used a Concealment Talisman to observe the battle.
• Lin Changheng recognized Chen Guqing as a Chen Family cultivator as Chen Guqing and another seventh-layer cultivator pressured Xu Xulin.
• The Veil Hat woman fought Chen Guqing with a Golden Bell Talisman and a silver disc, but his attacks threatened to break through her defenses.
• Lin Changheng and Xu Family members killed two bandit cultivators, shifting the battle in the Xu Family’s favor.
• Xu Xulin asked Lin Changheng to help the Veil Hat woman, and Lin Changheng agreed after Xu Xulin promised to take responsibility if the attempt failed.
• Lin Changheng put away his Dharma Artifact and headed toward the Veil Hat woman’s fight with Chen Guqing.

Chen Guqing used Crimson Powder to incapacitate the veiled cultivator and tried to implant a gu, but her hidden superior-grade talisman injured him. Lin Changheng seized the opening to attack Chen Guqing with three Cold Wind Talismans.

• Lin Changheng used a Swift Travel Talisman to rush toward the veiled cultivator as Chen Guqing drove her farther away.
• Chen Guqing spread Crimson Powder through the veiled cultivator’s Golden Bell, causing her to lose control despite taking an Antidote Pill.
• Chen Guqing revealed that the powder was a desire-inducing tonic and moved to implant a gu in the veiled cultivator.
• The veiled cultivator used a hidden superior-grade attack talisman, but Chen Guqing blocked most of its force with a superior-grade defensive Dharma Artifact.
• Lin Changheng, concealed nearby, attacked the off-balance Chen Guqing with three mid-grade Cold Wind Talismans.

Lin Changheng defeated and killed Chen Guqing after a fierce exchange of talismans and Dharma Artifacts. He concealed the evidence and planned to blame Chen Guqing’s death on the veiled-hat female cultivator.

• Chen Guqing used shields and a mana barrier to defend against Lin Changheng’s cold-wind talismans, but the cold injured him and Lin Changheng bound him with giant vines.
• Chen Guqing begged Lin Changheng for mercy and offered his family’s secret legacy, while secretly preparing to fight back.
• Chen Guqing released a giant sickle and black shield, but Lin Changheng blocked the sickle with the Azure Flood Dragon Banner and overwhelmed the shield with three enormous fireballs.
• Lin Changheng decapitated Chen Guqing with the Wandering Bee Sword, then stabbed the corpse repeatedly and burned it to ashes.
• Lin Changheng collected Chen Guqing’s Dharma Artifacts and Storage Bag, then decided to hide his role in the killing by claiming Chen Guqing had attacked the veiled-hat female cultivator and been gravely wounded by her talisman.

Lin Changheng rescued Xu Hanji from the crimson mist by absorbing it with the [Poison-Transforming Demon Method], then began refining the mist himself. Xu Xuheng, Xu Qianzhan, and Xu Xulin arrived to find him and Xu Hanji.

• Lin Changheng finished disguising the scene of the attack, then discovered that the unconscious female cultivator was Xu Hanji.
• Xu Hanji briefly recognized Lin Changheng before the crimson mist overwhelmed her and she clung to him.
• Lin Changheng used the [Poison-Transforming Demon Method] to absorb the crimson mist, calming Xu Hanji and leaving her asleep.
• Lin Changheng chose not to take Xu Hanji's Storage Bag and sat down to refine the mist he had absorbed.
• Xu Xulin arrived with Xu Xuheng and Xu Qianzhan, and Xu Xuheng called out to Ji'er.

Lin Changheng helped the Xu Family resolve the aftermath of a bandit attack and avoided drawing attention to himself. Nearly four years later, as the Xu Family faced growing pressure from the foundation establishment Qiu Family, Xu Xujun returned as a newly established foundation cultivator, changing the balance between the families.

• Lin Changheng told Xu Xuheng that Xu Hanwu was safe, and Xu Xuheng and Xu Qianzhan thanked him and promised rewards.
• Lin Changheng credited Xu Hanwu's talisman for the victory, and Xu Xulin advised the family to honor his wish to avoid the limelight.
• Lin Changheng, Xu Hanwu, Xu Xuheng, and Xu Qianzhan returned by Dharma Boat to the Xu Family.
• Over the next four years, the Qiu Family increasingly suppressed and provoked the Xu Family over properties taken from the Chen Family.
• When Xu Xujun left to attempt foundation establishment, Xu Xuheng publicly appeared within the lineage and foiled the Qiu Family's attack.
• Xu Xujun returned two months later as a stabilized foundation establishment cultivator, raising the Xu Family's status and strengthening its position against the Qiu Family.

Lin Changheng received a superior-grade Pill Furnace from the Xu Family and learned that Azure Spirit Ward was drawing new business. He advanced his Lantern Grass Spirit Treasure Seed to the fifth level and discovered he could refine the true intent of the divine ability Flourishing Life.

• The Xu Family rewarded Lin Changheng with a superior-grade Pill Furnace for his contributions and urged him to advance in alchemy.
• The Xu and Liu families welcomed the Beast-Taming Sun Clan to open a shop in Azure Spirit Ward after half a year of negotiations.
• Lin Changheng used the Liu Family’s final batch of Mountain and Marsh Spirits essence blood to raise his Lantern Grass Spirit Treasure Seed to the fifth level.
• Lin Changheng gained Lifespan bestowal at Transcendent Mastery, adding five years to his lifespan and bringing it to 143 years.
• Lin Changheng discovered that his Lantern Grass Spirit Treasure Seed could transform and let him refine the true intent of the bloodline-bestowed divine ability Flourishing Life.

Lin Changheng witnessed the Origin Cauldron reveal the cycle of withering silence and Flourishing Life, then advanced to the eighth layer of Qi Refining. Using his enhanced comprehension, he continued rebuilding his incomplete cultivation technique and left with the ninth layer’s framework nearly complete.

• The Origin Cauldron showed Lin Changheng a desolate world and a dying tree that burst into life, helping him grasp the relationship between Flourishing Life and withering silence.
• Lin Changheng decided to seek wood-element Profound Spirit Essence Blood by asking to be stationed at Azure Spirit Ward, where he could use the favor owed by Xu Hanwu.
• Lin Changheng revealed that he had reached the eighth layer of Qi Refining after refining the Crimson Powder, whose side effects his Poison-Transforming Demon Method neutralized.
• Lin Changheng used the fourth-tier origin treasure seed to understand and reconstruct his incomplete cultivation technique.
• Lin Changheng completed his revisions to the first seven layers and the eighth-layer technique, while the framework for the ninth layer had already taken shape.

Lin Changheng visited Xu Hanji to volunteer as chief alchemist for the Xu Family’s external assignment in Azure Spirit Ward and to request a superior-grade Dao of Alchemy inheritance. Xu Hanji agreed to submit both requests for family review, and Lin Changheng headed to the Alchemy Chamber, where he ran into an overly friendly veteran alchemist.

• Lin Changheng finished his cultivation practice and checked on the Black-Armored Young Turtle he had raised for two years.
• Lin Changheng visited Xu Hanji at the Hidden Peak Daoist Grounds and asked to serve as chief alchemist in Azure Spirit Ward.
• Xu Hanji said she would raise Lin Changheng’s application with her father and the family, noting that the position faced considerable competition.
• Lin Changheng also asked Xu Hanji to apply on his behalf for a superior-grade Dao of Alchemy inheritance, and she agreed to do so immediately.
• Lin Changheng headed to the Alchemy Chamber and encountered Alchemist Xu, who cheerfully walked alongside him despite Lin Changheng’s cool response.

Lin Changheng tested the enhanced defensive power of his [Limb Hardening Foreign Method] and reunited with Xu Fugui and Bai Fengxian, who urged him to pursue Foundation Establishment for all three of them. A month later, the Xu Family appointed him chief alchemist of its shop in Azure Spirit Ward and offered him access to a high-grade Dao of Alchemy Inheritance.

• Lin Changheng chose [Limb Hardening] from the [Flame-Tailed Golden Mouse Treasure Seed] and found that its improved defenses could withstand low-grade Dharma Artifacts and uninfused mid-grade ones.
• Xu Fugui hosted a banquet where Lin Changheng, Xu Fugui, and Bai Fengxian reunited and discussed how their lives and cultivation had changed.
• Xu Fugui and Bai Fengxian told Lin Changheng they hoped he would reach Foundation Establishment on their behalf, and Lin Changheng promised to try.
• The Xu Family appointed Lin Changheng chief alchemist of its Alchemy Shop in Azure Spirit Ward and told him he could obtain a high-grade Dao of Alchemy Inheritance from the Scripture Repository Hall.

Lin Changheng received the Xu Family’s superior-grade Dao of Alchemy inheritance and studied it until he gained a preliminary grasp of its techniques. As he prepared to take up his post at the Azure Spirit Ward, he learned that Mo Zhaoli was returning home to visit her family.

• The Xu Family entrusted Lin Changheng with its superior-grade Dao of Alchemy inheritance and told him to keep the news confidential.
• Xu Family members celebrated Lin Changheng’s appointment and spread gossip about his supposed romance with Tantai.
• Lin Changheng collected the Two-Yi Profound Furnace Secret Record from the Scripture Repository Hall, and the steward apologized for having doubted him.
• Lin Changheng studied the inheritance for half a month and gained a preliminary grasp of its complex alchemy techniques.
• Five days later, as Lin Changheng prepared to leave for the Azure Spirit Ward, he learned that Mo Zhaoli would return home to visit her family.

Lin Changheng learned that Mo Zhaoli was returning to visit her grandfather, Master Mo, and considered how her ties to the Xu Family could benefit both sides. That night, Tantai Feiyue visited Lin Changheng, and their reunion turned intimate.

• Lin Changheng delayed leaving the clan after hearing that Mo Zhaoli was coming to visit Master Mo, whom he continued to care for and respect.
• The Xu Family planned to welcome Mo Zhaoli warmly, while she prepared to gather the resources needed to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill.
• Tantai Feiyue arrived at Lin Changheng's gate at night and teased him for being difficult to meet.
• Lin Changheng told Tantai Feiyue she could visit whenever she missed him, and she embraced him in response.
• Lin Changheng kissed Tantai Feiyue and began caressing her as their reunion grew intimate.