Chapter Summaries

Chu Mo entered the Tribulation Deliverance Sect and discovered that its disciple registry was a sinister banner that could preserve disciples as souls after death. Facing a thirty-day deadline to begin cultivation, he used his game panel to learn the sect’s qi-gathering method and successfully drew in spiritual energy.

• Jiang Yunya introduced the Profound Nether Grotto-Scenery Banner as the sect’s disciple registry, and the new arrivals, including Wang Quan and Chu Mo, gave it their names and blood.
• A Weak Yin Spirit warned Chu Mo and the other reserves that they had thirty days to condense true qi or enter the banner and take the Soul Path.
• Chu Mo inspected his game panel, used it to learn the Celestial Circuit Qi-Gathering Method, and discovered that the panel now showed his cultivation path and character information.
• Chu Mo sat down to cultivate with his Dharma Coin and sensed spiritual qi, drawing a warm wisp into his body and gaining experience in the method.

Chu Mo rejected Wang Quan’s plan to pool Dharma Coins, then discovered Wang Quan and Shao Ling intended to kill other disciples for their resources. After killing both of them, Chu Mo took Wang Quan’s three Dharma Coins and prepared to use them to reach the Qi Refining First Layer.

• Chu Mo refused Wang Quan’s proposal to pool Dharma Coins and help Wang Quan break through first, while Li Erhei and Shao Ling also declined.
• Wang Quan privately urged Shao Ling to help him eliminate the other disciples and steal their treasures.
• Shao Ling visited Chu Mo and pretended to seek his protection, but Chu Mo saw her red name and killed her before she could attack.
• Chu Mo searched Shao Ling’s body, found no Dharma Coin, and suspected Wang Quan had sent her.
• Chu Mo went to Wang Quan’s room and killed him, confirming he had orchestrated the attack.
• Chu Mo took three Dharma Coins from Wang Quan and resolved to use them to advance his cultivation.

After passing the Tribulation Deliverance Sect’s thirty-day trial, Chu Mo joined eight other disciples at the Scripture Repository to receive identity tokens and choose cultivation methods. Jiang Yunya offered them high-interest loans to buy a method, and the chapter ended when the old man introduced missions involving Otherworldly Conquest as a way to earn Dharma Coins.

• Jiang Yunya confirmed that Chu Mo had reached Qi Refining, then killed Li Erhei for failing to break through within the deadline and erased his corpse.
• Jiang Yunya led Chu Mo to the other successful disciples and carried all nine on a Spirit Cloud to the Scripture Repository.
• The old man gave each disciple a dark-gold identity token and presented three high-grade spirit cultivation methods, each priced at one hundred Dharma Coins.
• Jiang Yunya offered to guarantee one-year loans from the Upper Mound Commerce Association at one-percent daily interest, alarming the disciples.
• The old man said disciples could earn Dharma Coins through sect missions, especially Otherworldly Conquest missions.

Jiang Yunya explained the sect’s Dharma Coin loans and cultivation techniques, but Chu Mo refused to borrow money for a primary technique. After arriving at his Servant Disciples’ courtyard, Chu Mo chose the Dawncloud One-Qi Profound Grotto Scripture from the techniques he had learned.

• A blue-robed youth borrowed a hundred Dharma Coins and discovered that his token added thirty more for its cost; the other disciples followed his example.
• Chu Mo declined to choose a technique, explaining that he wanted to earn Dharma Coins first rather than risk failing to repay a debt Jiang Yunya had guaranteed.
• The disciples learned that their borrowed techniques contained only the first three levels and that they could obtain the rest after passing an Otherworld Assessment as Outer Disciples.
• Jiang Yunya took Chu Mo and the others to the Servant Disciples’ courtyards, then reminded Chu Mo that cultivating without a primary technique was unwise.
• Chu Mo entered his new room and chose the Dawncloud One-Qi Profound Grotto Scripture from the three techniques on his panel.

After completing his cultivation-art switch, Chu Mo was sent by Mu Ya to serve Talisman Master Liu, who offered him a chance to inherit his talisman-making skills. Chu Mo accepted Liu's gifts and received his first test: making one hundred sheets of talisman paper by next month.

• Chu Mo completed his switch to the Dawncloud One-Qi Profound Grotto Scripture and decided he needed Dharma Coins and spell manuals.
• Mu Ya told Chu Mo that Jiang Yunya had recommended him for an attendant position with Talisman Master Liu, and Chu Mo went along rather than risk offending Jiang Yunya.
• Liu Xian examined Chu Mo, explained that he wanted to pass on his talisman-making skills, and said Chu Mo was one of three candidates.
• Liu Xian gave Chu Mo the Heartfire Meridian-Forging Art, a Storage Bag, and materials and instructions for making talisman paper and spirit ink.
• After a gray-clad youth delivered spirit ink, Liu Xian assigned Chu Mo a preliminary test to hand in one hundred sheets of talisman paper next month.

Chu Mo completed Liu Xian’s talisman-paper trial and received ten Dharma Coins through his quest system, while Liu Xian discovered the coins had vanished from his Storage Bag. Liu Xian feared someone had robbed him, unaware that the quest reward had caused the loss.

• Zhao Yang introduced himself to Chu Mo and invited him to the North Cliff Gathering, but Chu Mo declined.
• Chu Mo learned that making spirit ink required a cultivator’s blood and began making talisman paper while cultivating.
• After a month, Chu Mo delivered one hundred sheets of talisman paper to Liu Xian and revealed he had reached the second level of Qi Refining.
• Liu Xian refused to pay Chu Mo directly, assigned him a new quota of two hundred sheets, and Chu Mo received ten Dharma Coins when his quest completed.
• Liu Xian counted his coins to buy pills and discovered ten Dharma Coins were missing from his Storage Bag.

Chu Mo visited the North Cliff Gathering hoping to learn a spell, but found the prices beyond his means. Luo Shan let him learn several spells from restricted scrolls before selling him the Mind-Cleansing Mantra, leaving Chu Mo with new abilities and only a few Dharma Coins spent.

• Chu Mo browsed spell stalls at the North Cliff Gathering and discovered he could not afford the spells on offer.
• Luo Shan invited Chu Mo to his stall and persuaded him to learn Soul-Severing Sand, Golden Baleful Bone-Piercing Art, and Dust-Treading Art from restricted scrolls.
• Chu Mo asked for more spells despite admitting he had little money, and Luo Shan took back his scrolls and dismissed him.
• Luo Shan stopped Chu Mo and offered him the Mind-Cleansing Mantra for three Dharma Coins.
• Chu Mo paid for the Mind-Cleansing Mantra, which could erase memories and was especially effective against yin spirit creatures.

After a month of training, Chu Mo mastered his three spells and delivered extra talisman paper to Liu Xian, earning three Heart-Burning Talismans and a new spirit-ink quest. Liu Xian dismissed him and the gray-robed youth, then later roared in shock and fury from inside his cave abode.

• Chu Mo left the market, returned to his courtyard, and began secluded cultivation after acquiring three spells.
• A month later, Chu Mo demonstrated his spells and their shortened casting time, then encountered Zhao Yang looking gravely depleted.
• Chu Mo delivered 300 sheets of talisman paper to Liu Xian, exceeding the quest requirement and earning three Heart-Burning Talismans.
• Liu Xian assigned Chu Mo a new quest to make at least three bottles of spirit ink and described later talisman trials.
• Liu Xian dismissed Chu Mo and the gray-robed youth, then a roar of shock and fury came from inside the cave abode.

After learning that Zhao Yang had died with a huge cultivation debt, Chu Mo bought spirit blood at the North Cliff market to avoid sacrificing his own blood for Liu Xian’s task. There he met Qing Xi, who had known Zhao Yang and approached Chu Mo with unexpected warmth.

• Chu Mo learned that Zhao Yang had died, and the Upper Mound Commerce Association seized his belongings and planned to summon his soul to serve for five hundred years over his unpaid debt.
• Chu Mo decided to buy spirit blood for Liu Xian’s spirit-ink task rather than damage his cultivation foundation by using his own blood.
• At the North Cliff market, Chu Mo bought a jar of spirit blood from a stallholder who claimed it came from intelligent beings equivalent to early-stage Qi Refining cultivators.
• Qing Xi recognized Chu Mo, said Zhao Yang had mentioned him, and chatted with him before leaving into the crowd.
• Chu Mo watched Qing Xi depart, then left the market with the jar in his Storage Bag.

Chu Mo turned Qing Xi’s attempt to seduce and drain him against her, gaining cultivation and several valuable drops. Ten days later, he tested a puppet refined from Qing Xi’s corpse in preparation for the Outer Disciple examination.

• Chu Mo pretended to fall under Qing Xi’s influence, then used the Black Serpent Molting True Heart Scripture to drain and kill her.
• Chu Mo advanced to the Qi Refining Third Layer and obtained Dharma Coins, Ecstasy Powder, Green Vine Bind, and Puppet Refinement Art.
• Chu Mo discovered that the Profound Nether Grotto-Scenery Banner had taken Qing Xi’s soul, leaving her unable to remember nearly half a year of memories.
• Ten days later, Chu Mo ordered his Qing Xi puppet to attack a boulder and found that it had roughly second-layer Qi Refining strength.

Chu Mo prepared for the Outer Disciple examination while remaining wary of Liu Xian, whose hostility had briefly flared. On a moonless night, someone called for Chu Mo from outside his courtyard gate.

• Liu Xian praised Chu Mo’s rapid cultivation and warned him that the upcoming examination could cost him his life, while Chu Mo saw Liu Xian’s name flicker between yellow and red.
• Chu Mo interrupted Liu Xian’s hesitation, received permission to leave, and hurried back to his quarters using the Dust-Treading Art.
• Chu Mo cultivated, studied spells, practiced with his puppet, and kept watch for Liu Xian as the examination approached without further trouble.
• Chu Mo reviewed his cultivation and skills, resolved to surpass Liu Xian, and worried that a Foundation Establishment overseer might be from the Upper Mound Commerce Association.
• Someone knocked at Chu Mo’s courtyard gate and called out to him in the darkness.

Chu Mo lured Liu Xian into a fight, let himself be killed, then used his resurrection to catch Liu Xian off guard and kill him. After collecting Liu Xian’s loot, Chu Mo learned that Liu Xian had targeted him to steal the fire meridian cultivated by the Heartfire Meridian-Forging Art.

• Liu Xian entered Chu Mo’s courtyard and tried to persuade him to surrender his body, but Chu Mo attacked him with the Golden Baleful Bone-Piercing Art and Soul-Severing Sand.
• Chu Mo bound Liu Xian with Green Vine Bind and sent Qing Xi to detonate, but Liu Xian survived behind a Flame Sun Protection Talisman and killed Chu Mo with the Scarlet Sun Needle.
• Liu Xian took Chu Mo’s Storage Bag, then Chu Mo resurrected and fired a Flowing Flame Arrow Talisman at point-blank range, killing Liu Xian and destroying his soul.
• Chu Mo collected Liu Xian’s Dharma Coins, talismans, talismanry manual, and Burning Heart Sutra.
• Chu Mo learned that Liu Xian had wanted to extract his fire meridian to suppress the dangerous heartfire produced by the Burning Heart Sutra.

After killing Liu Xian, Chu Mo sold some of the loot and bought supplies from Luo Shan at the North Cliff market. He returned to his lodgings, where he noticed a new disciple had moved into the room opposite.

• Chu Mo collected Liu Xian's Storage Bag and planned to sell unwanted loot and buy medicine.
• Chu Mo set up a stall at the North Cliff market, where Luo Shan recognized him despite his disguise.
• Chu Mo sold several spiritual materials to Luo Shan at a fair bulk price.
• Luo Shan offered Chu Mo spells and pills, and Chu Mo bought Detoxification Pills, Flesh-Regenerating Pills, and Qi-Restoring Powder.
• Chu Mo returned to his lodgings and noticed a new disciple in the room opposite.

Chu Mo prepared for the Outer Disciple assessment and heard High Person Xuanji announce that it would take place in the Savage Realm. The assessment began with a thirty-day mission to kill Savage Realm natives and collect their spines, leaving Chu Mo to decide whether to team up as the disciples prepared to enter.

• Servant Disciples crowded the North Cliff market to buy supplies and take out loans before the assessment, while Chu Mo saw that his Yin-Yang Jade had recovered to three points.
• At the Dharma Transmission Plaza, Ying Le reunited with Chu Mo and invited him to team up with Su Yao and Zhang Meng, saying that the other seven members of their intake had died or disappeared.
• Eight foundation establishment High Persons arrived at the plaza, and High Person Xuanji announced that the Outer Disciple assessment would be held in the Savage Realm.
• High Person Xuanji explained that disciples had to collect spines from totem warriors for contribution points, with thirty points required to qualify for Outer Disciple.
• High Person Xuanji said the assessment would last thirty days, allowed disciples to work alone or in teams, and left contribution sharing to negotiation or strength.

Chu Mo entered the Ruined Savage Realm for the sect assessment and discovered that its hostile energy could not replenish his True Qi. After defeating a sudden attack by Stonearmored Boars, he headed toward an area where the natives might gather.

• The sect opened a passage to the Savage Realm and announced that disciples could keep all their gains, while requesting rescue from Foundation Establishment enemies would void their results.
• Ying Le entered with Chu Yao and Zhang Meng, while Chu Mo waited before following alone.
• Chu Mo arrived in the wilderness, where a Level 2 Stonearmored Boar and three others attacked him; he killed them with golden light.
• Chu Mo collected the boars' tusks and realized that the realm's violent, malicious energy could not be refined to restore his True Qi.
• Chu Mo relied on the Dharma Coins he had prepared and set off toward a place where the natives might gather.

Chu Mo joined Ying Le, Su Yao, Zhang Meng, and Zhu Ming after helping them defeat a pack of Poison Claw Monkeys, then agreed to travel with them toward an active tribe. As the group rested in a swamp, Chu Mo spotted and struck a hidden level 7 Swamp-Scale Python before it emerged to attack.

• Chu Mo killed a Poison Claw Monkey and complained about the Savage Realm's unusually aggressive creatures.
• Chu Mo found Ying Le, Su Yao, Zhang Meng, and Zhu Ming fighting Poison Claw Monkeys, helped defeat them, and asked about the natives.
• Zhu Ming told Chu Mo's group about an active tribe southeast of them, and Chu Mo agreed to investigate it with the others.
• The group traveled southeast, gathered resources, and learned from Zhu Ming that Bloodline Fruits could sell for two hundred Dharma Coins each.
• While the group rested in a swamp, Chu Mo spotted a hidden level 7 Swamp-Scale Python and attacked it before it emerged.

Chu Mo and his companions struggled against a Level 7 Swamp-Scale Python before Ying Le used a costly Thunder-Summoning Talisman to kill it. The group collected the python’s valuable materials, while Chu Mo wondered how Ying Le had acquired so many expensive items and how much Spiritual Debt he owed.

• The Swamp-Scale Python shrugged off the group’s attacks, and Chu Mo ordered everyone to retreat rather than fight it head-on.
• The python pursued them relentlessly, and Chu Mo rejected Ying Le’s plan to lure it toward a gathering place of Poison Claw Monkeys.
• As the group’s true qi ran low, Zhu Ming urged Ying Le to use a Thunder-Summoning Talisman, and Ying Le reluctantly spent one to strike down the python.
• Chu Mo left the two glowing orbs untouched and comforted Ying Le by offering him a choice of the python’s materials.
• Ying Le extracted the python gallbladder and stripped off its skin while Chu Mo wondered how much Spiritual Debt he had taken on.

After resting, Chu Mo and the others discussed Savage Native shamans and the difference between Lower Vehicle and Register-Bearing Mansion Opening Foundation Establishment. Elsewhere, a Totem Warrior leader moved his people toward the Forbidden Land to escape the cultivators, troubled by the Spirit of Heaven’s sorrowful cries.

• Chu Mo and his companions rested and ate roasted snake meat, while Zhang Meng used it to advance his cultivation.
• Ying Le explained the Savage Natives’ totems and the roles of Totem Warriors, shamans, high priests, and saints.
• Zhu Ming described Lower Vehicle Foundation Establishment and Register-Bearing Mansion Opening, but could not explain the difference between a Dao Register and a Heavenly Register.
• A Totem Warrior leader mourned the fallen Royal Court and the tribespeople killed by cultivators, then ordered his clan to gather with other tribes near the Forbidden Land.
• The leader sensed faint cries of sorrow from the Spirit of Heaven as his people prepared to flee.

Chu Mo and his companions tracked a migrating group of Rock Tribe warriors and encountered the Liu brothers attacking them. As the battle began, Chu Mo effortlessly killed two charging warriors, while the fighting continued around him.

• Chu Mo found fresh tracks near an abandoned camp where three Tribulation Deliverance disciples' corpses hung, and Zhu Ming collected their bodies for money.
• Chu Mo's group followed the tracks and found two or three dozen Totem Warriors migrating through a valley.
• Liu Hu, Liu Bao, and Liu Lang ambushed the warriors, and Liu Hu proposed that his brothers join forces with Chu Mo's group to defeat them.
• Zhu Ming agreed outwardly while signaling Chu Mo and the others to respond according to circumstances, and the battle erupted.
• Chu Mo evaded two Rock Tribe warriors, bound them with Spiritual Vines, and killed them with Soul-Severing Sand and a Condensed Golden Ray.

The Liu brothers ambushed Chu Mo and the other cultivators after they wiped out a native tribe, forcing the group to scatter. Chu Mo lured Liu Hu into the woods, killed him with his hidden trump cards, and claimed his scarlet longbow.

• The native chief used his blood essence to strengthen his Giant Boar projection and tried to open a path for his people to flee, but Liu Hu shot a tribesperson and the cultivators killed the remaining natives.
• After congratulating the others, Liu Hu and his brothers launched a surprise attack on Chu Mo, Ying Le, Zhu Ming, Su Yao, and Zhang Meng.
• Chu Mo evaded Liu Hu and fled into the woods, while Ying Le and Zhu Ming escaped in another direction and Liu Lang and Liu Bao attacked the others.
• Chu Mo replenished his true qi, turned to fight Liu Hu, and used the Corpse Puppet refined from Liu Xian's body to break Liu Hu's protective barrier.
• Chu Mo killed Liu Hu with the Scarlet Sun Needle, then collected Liu Hu's scarlet longbow.