Chapter Summaries

Li Ping watched the Desolate Fire Sparrow face its transformation tribulation while Chen Hai escaped and two demon cultivators traveled toward the lightning. The sparrow survived the final wave, and a brilliant moon appeared in the clouds to shine upon it.

• Li Ping told Chen Hai to leave, then moved away from the island as the Desolate Fire Sparrow began its transformation tribulation.
• The Desolate Fire Sparrow used its flames and Vermilion Bird Fan to withstand successive waves of lightning while Li Ping watched from a distance.
• Chen Hai recalled how Li Ping had once helped him form his Golden Core and wondered how Li Ping had stayed hidden from the Immortal Alliance.
• A Thunder Flood Dragon and a Profound Abyss Spirit Octopus sensed the tribulation and redirected their Flying Boat toward it.
• The Desolate Fire Sparrow endured the final wave, and a brilliant white moon emerged from the clouds and cast its light upon it.

Li Ping waited for the Desolate Fire Sparrow to finish transforming, but two transformation-stage demon cultivators arrived and attacked them. The newly transformed Sparrow defended Li Ping, and the chapter ended as the demons unleashed their strongest attacks.

• The Desolate Fire Sparrow received the moon’s emperor’s elixir and began transforming inside a ball of flames while Li Ping waited nearby.
• The Thunder Flood Dragon and Profound Abyss Spirit Octopus detected Li Ping and attacked; Li Ping raised a formation to protect himself and the transforming Sparrow.
• The Sparrow transformed into a small boy, but the two demons destroyed Li Ping’s formation and wounded him.
• The Sparrow attacked with the Vermilion Bird Fan to protect Li Ping, and the demons realized it was his spirit beast and vowed to kill them both.
• The Profound Abyss Spirit Octopus released a vast torrent of abyss heavy water toward the Sparrow’s Flame Spirit Bird.

Li Ping and the newly transformed Desolate Fire Sparrow escaped the Thunder Flood Dragon and Profound Abyss Spirit Octopus, then returned to their spirit island to retrieve Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang. They fled for Great Zhou, while the Thunder Flood Dragon arrived days later to find the island abandoned and resumed its pursuit.

• The Desolate Fire Sparrow shattered the Profound Abyss Spirit Octopus's Darkdeep Heavywater River, and both demons tried to capture it and Li Ping.
• Li Ping used the Bloodwing Escape Art to evade the Thunder Flood Dragon and flee, rejecting the Desolate Fire Sparrow's suggestion that they turn and fight.
• After traveling tens of thousands of miles, Li Ping reached the spirit island where Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang were cultivating and warned them that two Transformation Great Demons were after them.
• Li Ping collected the formation banners, sent the recovering Desolate Fire Sparrow into the Spirit Beast Bag, and fled with Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang toward Great Zhou.
• Several days later, the Thunder Flood Dragon found the spirit island deserted, roared in anger, and continued pursuing Li Ping, suspecting he carried an extraordinary treasure.

Li Ping returned toward Great Zhou with Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang after the Desolate Fire Sparrow’s successful transformation, planning preparations for Wei Yiling’s Nascent Soul breakthrough and an upgrade to the Vermilion Bird Fan. Near the mainland, he encountered Yu Menghan, an old acquaintance who had formed her Nascent Soul, and was left wondering about her connection to the Yu Household and the strange aura that stirred his Scarlet Flood Dragon.

• The Thunder Flood Dragon pursued Li Ping for tens of millions of li before abandoning the chase near waters under human control.
• Li Ping explained to Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang how the Thunder Flood Dragon and Profound Abyss Spirit Octopus had appeared during the Desolate Fire Sparrow’s tribulation and forced them to flee.
• Li Ping planned to obtain Mind-Clearing Pills for Wei Yiling’s Nascent Soul formation, find a fourth-tier tanner, and reforge the Vermilion Bird Fan with the Desolate Fire Sparrow’s new tail feathers.
• Li Ping’s divine sense alerted Yu Menghan, and the two old acquaintances met aboard their Flying Boats near the mainland.
• Yu Menghan told Li Ping that Little Jade was glad to see him and asked whether the breath-sinking sand and dragon marrow jade had suited his needs.
• After Yu Menghan left, Li Ping wondered whether she had come because of his past conflict with Yinghai Trading Company cultivators, while his Scarlet Flood Dragon reacted restlessly to her presence.

Li Ping planned to use the Desolate Fire Sparrow and a formation to lure out and defeat Northern Mang Mountain’s fourth-tier Bloodwheel Baleful Corpse, securing a spirit land for Wei Yiling’s Nascent Soul breakthrough. He brought Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang to Creek Lake Commandery, where he arranged to rent a cave abode and have Cao Qi process a fourth-tier spirit hide.

• Li Ping told Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang that he planned to lure the Bloodwheel Baleful Corpse out with its Life-Bound Corpse Pearl and defeat it using a formation and the Desolate Fire Sparrow’s evil-slaying flame.
• Wei Yiling agreed that Li Ping’s plan had a good chance of success, and Li Ping chose Creek Lake Commandery as their first destination so Wei Yiling could cultivate and he could seek a fourth-tier tanner.
• Li Ping flew into the Cao Lineage’s spirit land and introduced himself as Alchemy Master Yan Buping, accompanied by Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang.
• Cao Qi welcomed the three and agreed to process Li Ping’s fourth-tier spirit hide and rent them a third-tier top-grade cave abode.
• Cao Qi asked Li Ping to refine third-tier pills for the Cao Lineage as payment, and Li Ping accepted.

Li Ping completed the Vermilion Bird Fan’s reforging and received the tanned spirit hide needed to inherit the Fourth-Tier Armor-Making Art. He entered seclusion to begin the inheritance and experienced the memories of Jiang Hongzhuang, a cultivator who defied criticism to make spell robes she liked.

• Cao Qi agreed to tan Li Ping’s spirit hide and arranged a cave abode for him, while Li Ping promised to refine pills for the Cao Lineage.
• Li Ping released the Desolate Fire Sparrow and his three other beasts, then began reforging the Vermilion Bird Fan with the sparrow’s fourth-tier tail feathers.
• After a year, Li Ping completed the fan, gave it to the Desolate Fire Sparrow to refine, and returned to cultivation.
• Two years later, Cao Qi delivered the finished fourth-tier low-grade spirit hide, and Li Ping prepared the required treasure and spirit stones to inherit the Armor-Making Art.
• Li Ping entered seclusion and saw memories of Jiang Hongzhuang, who pursued spell-robe making despite years of criticism and eventually became matriarch of the Jiang Lineage.

Li Ping absorbed Jiang Hongzhuang’s armor-making inheritance and learned about the Illusion-Escaping Robe, then sent Cao Xun to find cultivators with Gleaming Cicadas. When Li Ping discovered Cao Xun had brought a ghost back to his residence, he captured and questioned her, learning she was a timid ghost cultivator named Zou Yun who had never harmed anyone.

• Li Ping gained Jiang Hongzhuang’s fourth-tier armor-making knowledge and identified the Illusion-Escaping Robe’s death-substitution ability as a useful safeguard.
• Li Ping decided he needed a third-tier Gleaming Cicada’s shed shell and sent Cao Xun to buy information about cultivators who owned them.
• After Cao Xun returned with intelligence, Li Ping sensed a third-tier ghost’s aura on him and followed him to his residence.
• Li Ping interrupted Cao Xun and Zou Yun, trapped her with a formation, and used Soul Search to learn her history.
• Li Ping found that Zou Yun had become a third-tier ghost cultivator on Northern Mang Mountain, had harmed no one, and had fled after sensing that ghosts there were disappearing.

Li Ping spared Zou Yun, prepared to lure the Fourth-Tier Middle Stage Baleful Corpse near Northern Mang Mountain, and waited with the Desolate Fire Sparrow. Elsewhere, Xu Guike killed Yu Qianchuan, learned that Yu Shuangchi was behind the scheme at Northern Mang Mountain, and flew there to stop him.

• Li Ping spared Zou Yun after warning her to obey human rules, then reviewed information about Gleaming Cicada shells and postponed refining an Illusion-Escaping Robe.
• Li Ping refined three sets of pills for Cao Qi, then left Creek Lake after instructing Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang to flee if trouble arose.
• Li Ping reached a barren slope near Northern Mang Mountain, confirmed that nonhuman beings were fleeing the region, and decided to proceed with his plan to deal with the Baleful Corpse.
• Li Ping set out the Baleful Corpse's Life-Bound Corpse Pearl as bait within a formation and waited with the Desolate Fire Sparrow.
• Xu Guike confronted Yu Qianchuan outside Luojing, defeated him, and captured his Nascent Soul after Yu tried to flee.
• Xu Guike searched Yu Qianchuan's soul, learned that Yu Shuangchi was behind the scheme at Northern Mang Mountain, and flew there to stop him.

Yu Shuangchi activated a blood-sacrifice formation at Northern Mang Mountain to force a breakthrough to spirit transformation, but the sacrifice summoned a blood curtain tied to an ancient being and doomed him to become its puppet. As the calamity spread across the Oceanic Continent, Li Ping recognized the blood-shadow aura and realized the unfolding disaster threatened his plans.

• Yu Shuangchi waited with Chu Nishang until Northern Mang Mountain’s yin qi reached its peak, then told her to leave before he began the sacrifice.
• Yu Shuangchi placed an ancient altar in the formation’s core and sacrificed the mountain’s aberrant creatures and demon beasts to draw blood-colored spring water and attempt spirit transformation.
• A blood-robed man watched the blood-red light spread across the region and celebrated that his thousand-year plan had begun; Chu Nishang joined him and asked whether Shuang Chi could survive.
• The blood-robed man told Chu Nishang that Shuang Chi would become an ancient being’s puppet and unleash a calamity of blood.
• Li Ping saw the sky turn blood-red, recognized the aura of the blood shadows he had encountered before, and cursed the disaster for disrupting his plans.

Li Ping discovered that a blood curtain had trapped Northern Mang Mountain and that its blood shadows threatened to grow into a greater danger. Unable to break free, he disguised himself as one of the shadows and waited, while Chu Nishang and her brother pursued their plan and the Immortal Alliance began emergency preparations.

• Li Ping used the Desolate Fire Sparrow to destroy attacking blood shadows, then tried to escape through the blood curtain with Star Escape and the Vermilion Bird Fan, but neither worked.
• Li Ping transformed himself into a blood shadow, fooled the creatures, and decided not to explore deeper into Northern Mang Mountain while he waited for the curtain to fall or outside help to arrive.
• The burly blood-robed man praised Chu Nishang’s illusion techniques, and she expressed concern that Yu Shuangchi was innocent; her brother defended their plan by citing the Flood Dragon Clan’s history of human violence.
• The burly blood-robed man and Chu Nishang stayed near Northern Mang Mountain to retrieve the Altar after Yu Shuangchi lost control, then planned to return to the Eastern Sea.
• The Demon-Slaying Bureaus of Creek Lake, Flying Spring, and Cloud Summit prefectures reported the blood curtain to the Immortal Alliance and informed local powers, which were told to decide whether to evacuate.

Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang waited at the Cao Lineage while Xu Guike charged into Northern Mang Mountain to stop Yu Shuangchi’s blood sacrifice. As Li Ping remained hidden among the blood shadows, Xu Guike fought his way toward the mountain’s center and wondered how long he had been flying.

• Cao Qi informed Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang that a blood-colored curtain had appeared over Northern Mang Mountain, and Wei Yiling decided they would wait at the Cao Lineage and evacuate if the danger spread.
• Xu Guike arrived at the blood curtain, entered it, and slew the blood shadows as he headed toward the ancient aura at the mountain’s center.
• The blood-robed man sent Chu Nishang to trap Xu Guike and prevent him from interrupting Yu Shuangchi’s sacrifice.
• Li Ping spent more than ten days disguised as a blood shadow and discovered that the creatures possessed only a primal urge to devour.
• Wei Changzhou and the barefoot elder surnamed Su tested the blood shadows, confirmed their resemblance to those reported in the Western Wasteland, and agreed that Wei Changzhou would report to the Academy Head.
• Xu Guike fought through increasingly powerful blood giants, including Nascent Soul-level enemies, until his advance slowed and he wondered how long he had been flying.

Xu Guike saw through Chu Nishang’s illusion and killed the mist flood dragon, while Great Scholar Song entered the Blood Veil to confront the blood flood dragon as a sinister creature neared birth. The chapter ended with Xu Guike’s victory and Great Scholar Song locked in battle inside Northern Mang Mountain.

• Chu Nishang maintained an illusion to trap Xu Guike while she watched over Northern Mang Mountain, and Great Scholar Song arrived with Wei Changzhou to destroy the blood shadows.
• Great Scholar Song used the Sword of Utmost Sincerity and True Illumination to clear the Blood Veil, but the blood flood dragon blocked his next attack and warned that an evil creature was about to be born.
• Great Scholar Song entered the Blood Veil to fight the blood flood dragon, who revealed that he had fallen into a trap.
• Xu Guike realized he was caught in an illusion and used his sword qi to locate Chu Nishang above the mist.
• Xu Guike’s flying sword pierced Chu Nishang, then destroyed her fleeing essence and demon core.

Xu Guike killed the Mist Flood Dragon and hurried toward Yu Shuangchi, while Yu Shuangchi awoke from Chu Nishang’s illusion to find the blood entity forming inside him. Li Ping discovered Xu Guike’s trail and the dragon’s remains, then stayed near the outskirts in case Xu Guike needed help.

• Xu Guike used his sword intent to kill the Mist Flood Dragon, whose corpse was devoured by blood shadows, then set off to confront Yu Shuangchi.
• The Blood Flood Dragon sensed its sister’s death and fled from Great Scholar Song, who hurried toward the center after detecting Yu Shuangchi’s aura.
• Yu Shuangchi realized Chu Nishang had manipulated him into dissolving his Nascent Soul and preparing to become a vessel, but blood torrents and shadows began merging with him again.
• Li Ping followed the dragon’s dying cry, found Xu Guike’s sword intent and the ruined dragon hide, and retrieved its reverse scale and guqin.
• Li Ping learned the guqin could pass on fourth-tier low-grade musician arts, then chose to wait near the outskirts in case Xu Guike retreated.

Xu Guike and Great Scholar Song confronted Yu Shuangchi, who regained control long enough to kill himself and warn them about Chu Nishang. His death released a colossal blood giant that killed Great Scholar Song, while Li Ping rescued Xu Guike, who revealed a newfound sword domain and went to confront the giant.

• Xu Guike explained to Great Scholar Song how Yu Shuangchi had murdered Lin Yue, and Great Scholar Song recognized that his disciple had fallen under an Otherworld Demon's influence.
• Great Scholar Song pierced Yu Shuangchi's blood sphere with the Sword of Utmost Sincerity and True Illumination, briefly freeing Yu Shuangchi from the creature's control.
• Yu Shuangchi warned them to beware of Chu Nishang, then struck his own head and died; a towering blood giant emerged from his corpse and shattered the blood curtain.
• The blood giant killed Great Scholar Song and sent enormous hands crashing across the land, but Li Ping used Star Escape to rescue Xu Guike.
• Xu Guike revealed a sword domain, wounded the fleeing Blood Flood Dragon from thousands of li away, and set off to kill the blood giant.

Xu Guike used the slaughter sword of a past life to destroy the blood giant, but a mysterious hand seized him and carried him to the Nine Netherworlds. His senior brother Hongyun rescued him, and Xu Guike learned that his thousand reincarnations had been arranged to create a karmic connection with Li Ping, whose origin was tied to someone in Myriad Spirits Heaven.

• Xiao Yunzhi and Granny Suyue watched the deathly-silent regions across the Southern Sea surge north, clearing a path and restoring vitality to the land and ocean.
• Xu Guike summoned a gray sword formed from the slaughter aura, destroyed the blood giant, and was captured by an enormous hand that emerged through a rift.
• Hongyun entered the Nine Netherworlds on his master's order, defeated the Blood Sea's guardians, and persuaded Senior Blood Sea to let him take Xu Guike away.
• Xu Guike thanked Hongyun and learned he had been the master's sword spirit reincarnated to cultivate, and that his thousand reincarnations were meant to establish a karmic connection with Li Ping.
• Hongyun said Li Ping's origin was connected to the plans of a mysterious person in Myriad Spirits Heaven.

After the Northern Mang Mountain upheaval, Li Ping gathered the surviving treasures and decided to leave Great Zhou with Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang, fearing further conflict. To protect Yu Menghan and prevent division in the Immortal Alliance, he fabricated an account blaming the Blood Flood Dragon and planted copies across the commanderies before heading for the Island of Life.

• Xu Guike recovered his memories and left with Hongyun to return to Yuyu Heaven, while Li Ping searched the area and collected the fallen sword, flood dragon scales, and blood essence.
• Li Ping connected Yu Menghan to Yu Shuangchi and Chu Nishang, then decided Northern Mountain was too dangerous for Wei Yiling's Nascent Soul attempt.
• Li Ping reunited with Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang at Creek Lake and told them to leave Great Zhou for the Island of Life.
• Li Ping wrote a false account of the upheaval that blamed the Blood Flood Dragon and portrayed Yu Shuangchi, Great Scholar Song, and Chu Nishang as martyrs, protecting Yu Menghan and the Immortal Alliance's unity.
• Li Ping planted copies of the account at Demon-Slaying Bureaus in several commandery seats and set the flying boat toward the Island of Life.

Li Ping returned with Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang to the Island of Life, where they discovered that the Land of Deathly Silence had vanished and spiritual qi had revived. He settled at the Heavenly Craft Sect to cultivate and prepare for Nascent Soul formation, while planning to distribute longevity pills and a Confucian sword to old friends.

• Li Ping, Wei Yiling, and Feng Xishuang used the intact Teleportation Formation to return to the Island of Life, where they found the Land of Deathly Silence had retreated and spiritual qi had grown more active.
• Li Ping traveled over a million li and found that the deathly silent region was gone, while green growth and spirit veins had appeared across the expanded land.
• At the Heavenly Craft Sect, Wei Yiling and Feng Xishuang learned that the sect's spirit vein had recovered to the fourth tier, and Wei Yiling decided to attempt Nascent Soul formation there.
• Li Ping urged Wei Yiling to prepare for her breakthrough and chose to remain at the sect, where he released his beasts and gave Xuan Er the Corpse King's Life-Bound Corpse Pearl to refine.
• Li Ping planned to give Returning Yang Pills to seven old friends and the Sword of Utmost Sincerity and True Illumination to Qi Hanmo when he could arrange to reach them.

Li Ping sent four beasts to search the former Land of Deathly Silence for treasures that might have resurfaced with the return of spiritual qi. In Great Zhou, Yu Menghan learned that her father had used a blood sacrifice in an attempt to reach Spirit Transformation and suspected Li Ping had concealed the truth to protect her, while Bai Yaoyue continued to long for Yan Buping.

• Li Ping ordered the Desolate Fire Sparrow, the Earth Spirit Mouse, the Scarlet Flood Dragon, and the Mountain-Suppressing Softshell Turtle to search for surviving treasures, promising a share based on their results.
• Yu Menghan reviewed the aftermath of the Northern Mang Mountain incident, including the Immortal Alliance's retreat from the Eastern Sea and her inheritance of the Sage Emperor position after her parents died.
• Yu Menghan asked Thirteenth Uncle why her parents had gone to Northern Mang Mountain, and he told her that her father had sought to use a blood sacrifice to break through to Spirit Transformation.
• Yu Menghan connected Li Ping to the alias Yan Buping and wondered whether he had concealed her father's actions in the jade slips to protect her.
• Bai Yaoyue read about Yan Buping, rejected a fourth-tier spirit brew invitation from a Shadowkill Tower Nascent Soul cultivator, and resumed meditating.

Li Ping prepared Wei Yiling to attempt Nascent Soul formation, giving her Mind-Clearing Pills and arranging for the surrounding area to be evacuated. As he waited for her breakthrough to unfold, the wounded Ten Thousand Souls High Person fled into the former Land of Deathly Silence, pursued by Confucian cultivators.

• The four spirit beasts returned with treasures from their hunt, and Li Ping identified an egg-sized piece of void-sky spirit gold that could make the Dragon-Slaying Guillotine break spells.
• Li Ping rewarded the beasts with fourth-tier demon beast blood essence, planted herbs to prepare Nascent Soul Transformation Pills for Feng Xishuang, and refined six Mind-Clearing Pills.
• Li Ping delivered the pills to Wei Yiling and told her she was ready to attempt Nascent Soul formation; Feng Xishuang evacuated the disciples within ten li.
• Li Ping stayed near Wei Yiling's Cave Abode with the Desolate Fire Sparrow as the surrounding spiritual qi stirred and Wei Yiling began her breakthrough.
• Ten Thousand Souls High Person fled through the former Land of Deathly Silence after Confucian cultivators wounded him for slaughtering mortals and collecting their souls.

Li Ping intervened when Ten Thousand Souls High Person approached Wei Yiling’s nascent soul breakthrough, trapping him in a fourth-tier formation and joining the Desolate Fire Sparrow in battle. Ten Thousand Souls High Person abandoned his body and escaped beyond the barrier in the form of his nascent soul.

• Ten Thousand Souls High Person sensed Wei Yiling’s nascent soul formation and headed toward her, hoping to capture her after the breakthrough.
• Li Ping detected Ten Thousand High Person approaching the Heavenly Craft Sect and left Feng Xishuang behind to intercept him.
• Ten Thousand Souls High Person sent his banner souls against Li Ping, but Li Ping summoned the Desolate Fire Sparrow and trapped him inside a fourth-tier formation.
• The Desolate Fire Sparrow’s evil-slaying flames burned through Ten Thousand Souls High Person’s defenses while Li Ping destroyed his banner souls and attacked with the formation.
• Ten Thousand Souls High Person’s body was overwhelmed, so he fled as a tiny nascent soul carrying the White Bone Banner and a Storage Bag, escaping beyond the barrier.