Chapter Summaries

Yi Yang won the incomplete Divine Bone Blood Refining cultivation art for six hundred and eighty spirit crystals, and the Heavenly Mandate panel recognized it. The defeated bidder, Helian Zhu, identified Yi Yang in private room seventeen as a target to kill when a major undertaking began.

• Lin Qi presented Jiang Zhongtian’s charred Divine Bone Blood Refining booklet, described it as an incomplete body-refining art above a true art, and set the starting price at two hundred and eighty spirit crystals.
• Yi Yang decided he had to acquire the art because his perfected Martial Extreme Dragon Elephant Body could advance no further, and he trusted his panel to recognize the incomplete method.
• Yi Yang and Helian Zhu competed in the bidding, raising the price to six hundred and eighty spirit crystals before Helian Zhu fell silent.
• Lin Qi sold the booklet to Yi Yang, who confirmed the panel recognized Divine Bone Blood Refining and stored it in his Storage Ring.
• Helian Zhu revealed that Divine Bone Blood Refining was one of the six great body-refining legacies and vowed that the person in private room seventeen would die when his major undertaking began.

Xia Haoyun explained that he auctioned an incomplete copy of Divine Bone Blood Refining to identify and cultivate ties with a rare martial prodigy, while the auction continued with a fierce contest over the incomplete spirit weapon Cold Firmament. The sword went to Han Ji, who taunted his rival Zheng Qingci, and Yi Yang waited to see the final two lots.

• Xia Haoyun told Jiang Zhongtian he had offered the damaged legacy to discover whether a hidden prodigy could cultivate it and become a future ally.
• Jiang Zhongtian noted that Box Seventeen had paid six hundred and eighty spirit crystals for Divine Bone Blood Refining.
• Lin Qi presented the incomplete spirit weapon Cold Firmament, and Han Ji and Zheng Qingci competed for it.
• Han Ji won Cold Firmament for one thousand four hundred and eighty spirit crystals, then mocked Zheng Qingci for his bid.
• Yi Yang considered Han Ji's spending and waited for Lin Qi to reveal the auction's final two lots.

At the Rare Treasures Pavilion auction, Zheng Qingci lost the Form-Congealing Profound Blossom to Bai Yuchen after bidding against other Profound Connection Realm experts. Lin Qi then prepared to unveil the final lot, drawing the attention of the four guests in the Supreme Boxes.

• Lin Qi presented the Form-Congealing Profound Blossom, which could help Profound Connection Realm martial artists condense or repair their Dharma Bodies, and opened bidding at one thousand Spirit Crystals.
• Zheng Qingci bid to obtain the flower, hoping to fix the flaw in his Dharma Body, while Yi Yang watched and Han Ji stayed silent after exhausting much of his funds.
• Bai Yuchen bid one thousand five hundred Spirit Crystals, forcing Zheng Qingci to give up, and Lin Qi sold him the flower.
• Yi Yang anticipated the final lot as Lin Qi paused before announcing it, while Lu Zui, Bai Yuchen, Chu Tiankuo, and Jiang Zhongtian all turned their attention to the stage.

Lin Qi auctioned the intact Spirit Weapon Azure Tide Sea Pearl, which contained the divine ability Azure Tide Prison, and Chu Tiankuo won it for 5,500 spirit crystals. As the auction ended, Yi Yang detected five people in the departing crowd whose blood and qi were surging as their bodies began to mutate.

• Lin Qi revealed the Azure Tide Sea Pearl’s intact spirituality and its sealed divine ability, Azure Tide Prison.
• Jiang Zhongtian, Chu Tiankuo, Bai Yuchen, and Lu Zui bid against one another, and Chu Tiankuo ultimately won the pearl for 5,500 spirit crystals.
• Yi Yang observed the experts’ divine sense clash, then planned to return to seclusion and cultivate Divine Bone Blood Refining.
• After the auction ended, Yi Yang detected five people in the crowd whose blood and qi surged and whose flesh began to mutate.

Five transformed Nine Evil Sect fighters attacked Lin Qi during the Heavenly Rhyme Pavilion auction, but Lin Qi, Jiang Zhongtian, Bai Yuchen, and Lu Zui killed them. Yi Yang realized the attack had exposed the experts’ positions for a second assault, as a blood-red arrow targeted Jiang Zhongtian and fighting erupted across Crossing Peak Stronghold.

• Five martial artists transformed into monsters and charged toward Lin Qi, killing guests and plunging the auction hall into chaos.
• Lin Qi killed the first monster, Jiang Zhongtian and Bai Yuchen killed two more, and Lu Zui crushed the last pair with a fist projection.
• Jiang Zhongtian ordered Heaven Patrol Office personnel to restore order, and Lu Zui identified the monsters as fighters altered by the Nine Evil Sect’s Spirit-Blood God lineage.
• Yi Yang realized the monsters had exposed the four experts’ locations for a larger attack when a blood-red arrow pierced the pavilion’s wards and raced toward Jiang Zhongtian’s private room.
• Fires and fighting broke out across Crossing Peak Stronghold as a voice shouted in Witch Kingdom Language to kill Xia Haoyun and seize the dragon qi.

Jiang Zhongtian deflected a deadly arrow aimed at the Heavenly Rhyme Pavilion, while Yi Yang escaped with the auctioned manual as Helian Zhu pursued him. The Blood Illusion Venerable emerged from a pool of blood and announced that he would enter the Grandmaster realm that night.

• Jiang Zhongtian stopped a blood-red arrow with his spear and redirected it into the sky, where it exploded above Crossing Peak Stronghold.
• Jiang Zhongtian sent Lu Zui to deal with the distant master archer and promised to protect Qinglan.
• Yi Yang left the pavilion with the Divine Bone Blood Refining manual and his possessions to escape the chaos.
• Helian Zhu recognized Yi Yang as the cultivator who had won the manual and jumped out of the pavilion to kill him.
• Blood from the slain monsters gathered before the auction platform, and the Blood Illusion Venerable emerged from the pool.
• The Blood Illusion Venerable identified the gathered experts and declared that he would enter the Grandmaster realm that night.

Yi Yang escaped the Heavenly Rhyme Pavilion as the Blood Illusion Venerable transformed into a Divine Envoy and fought Jiang Zhongtian, Bai Yuchen, and Chu Tiankuo. After spotting the Great Yu prince Xia Haoyun and realizing someone was following him, Yi Yang led his pursuer into an abandoned ward district, preparing to fight.

• Yi Yang fled the auction hall as the blood explosion and the clash between the Blood Illusion Venerable and three Hidden Dragon Ranking experts devastated the Heavenly Rhyme Pavilion.
• The Blood Illusion Venerable transformed his body into a six-armed, four-legged Divine Envoy and held his own against Jiang Zhongtian, Bai Yuchen, and Chu Tiankuo.
• Yi Yang spotted Xia Haoyun escaping with a girl, recognized him as the Great Yu prince, and continued toward safety after Xia Haoyun left without helping.
• Yi Yang sensed that the person who had competed for the cultivation art was following him and deliberately entered an abandoned ward district.
• Yi Yang prepared to test the three killing moves of the Heart Ape Mind Guarding Art: Moving Image Chapter against his pursuer.

Yi Yang lured Helian Zhu into the abandoned ward district and used the Moving Image Chapter’s Heart Prison, Body Incineration to overwhelm him with fear before killing him. Helian Zhu’s terror revealed that he served someone named Shang Yu and had a mission, leaving Yi Yang with new questions as the fighting in Crossing Peak Stronghold intensified.

• Yi Yang hid in the ruins and prepared to ambush Helian Zhu, who had pursued him from the auction.
• Yi Yang severed Helian Zhu’s right arm with Azure Dragon Emerges from the Abyss, then trapped him in Heart Prison, Body Incineration.
• Helian Zhu’s fear of Lord Shang Yu drove him to kneel, mutilate his own face, and reveal that he had a mission to complete.
• Yi Yang recognized Shang Yu as a name worth investigating but decided to leave before the battle near Heavenly Rhyme Pavilion reached him.
• Yi Yang beheaded Helian Zhu, collected his belongings and Storage Ring, and hurried back toward his lodgings.

Yi Yang was ambushed by Xie Tinglan and Han Ji while crossing the Ward District, then revealed his profound connection realm cultivation and fought Han Ji. He shattered Han Ji’s Blue-Faced Divine General dharma body with a spirit-weapon saber strike, but was left nearly out of true qi as the two faced each other.

• Yi Yang blocked Xie Tinglan’s lethal sword strike with his fist and revealed that he had advanced to the profound connection realm.
• Yi Yang sensed Han Ji nearby, and Han Ji demanded his Storage Ring before Yi Yang attacked him with the Mysterious Abyss Saber.
• Yi Yang’s first two saber forms forced Han Ji back and injured Xie Tinglan with their shock waves.
• Han Ji released his dharma body and transformed into the thirty-foot-tall Blue-Faced Divine General, then drove Yi Yang back with three halberd strikes.
• Yi Yang used Heart Mirror, Shattering Shadow to disrupt Han Ji’s senses and followed with White Tiger Howls at the Moon.
• Yi Yang’s saber shattered Han Ji’s dharma body and inflicted a massive wound, leaving both men exhausted and facing each other across the alley.

Yi Yang baited Xie Tinglan into attacking, then revealed the strength of his Profound Connection Realm physique and turned on her. He shattered Han Ji’s divine sense attack and set Han Ji’s true qi ablaze, leaving him screaming as the fire consumed him from within.

• Han Ji urged Xie Tinglan to attack Yi Yang so he could seize the Mysterious Abyss Saber.
• Xie Tinglan tested Yi Yang with the Azure Sky Sword Art, and Yi Yang appeared too weak to defend himself.
• Xie Tinglan charged with Thirteen Azure Frost Forms, but Yi Yang endured all thirteen strikes with his body and countered with a punch.
• Han Ji attacked Yi Yang’s sea of consciousness, but the Golden-Furred Giant Ape in Yi Yang’s mind shattered the attack and caused Han Ji a devastating backlash.
• Yi Yang used Heartfire Raging Across the Plains to ignite Han Ji’s true qi, which burned through his meridians and organs.

Yi Yang killed Xie Tinglan after Han Ji burned to death from his own true qi, then looted both corpses. To cover his tracks amid the chaos at Crossing Peak Stronghold, he left the name “Shang Yu” in Han Ji’s blood as a false clue.

• Han Ji’s true qi ignited inside his body, and Xie Tinglan fled after realizing the danger.
• Yi Yang killed Xie Tinglan with her own sword and dissolved her corpse with Corpse-Dissolving Water.
• Yi Yang took Xie Tinglan’s belongings and searched Han Ji’s charred corpse, claiming his Storage Ring and damaged Spirit Weapon Cold Firmament.
• Yi Yang connected the name “Shang Yu” to Helian Zhu’s final words and the upheaval at Crossing Peak Stronghold.
• Yi Yang wrote “Shang Yu” in Han Ji’s blood to mislead the Heaven Patrol Office and hide his own involvement.

After recovering from his battle with Han Ji, Yi Yang was pulled into the Ink Abyss Marsh by Mysterious Abyss and attacked a Giant Eel. As he prepared to kill it, a golden light appeared in its eyes and its fading aura began to rise.

• Yi Yang hid in an empty house, replenished his true qi, and reflected on how narrowly he had survived Han Ji’s dharma body.
• Yi Yang concluded that he needed to reach the manifestation realm before facing another dharma body opponent.
• Mysterious Abyss pulled Yi Yang’s consciousness into the Ink Abyss Marsh after he had used the Spirit Weapon’s power in battle.
• Yi Yang located a first profound connection realm Giant Eel and battered it against a rock.
• A golden light appeared in the dying eel’s eyes, and an unusual force from the abyss caused its aura to climb.

Yi Yang killed the Gray-White Giant Eel after destroying the strange force reviving it, then returned from Ink Abyss Marsh with a new Waterside Spirit Drop and a warning that an ancient presence had noticed him. After recovering in a ruined house, he killed a Shaman Kingdom intruder and witnessed the Blood Illusion Venerable flee from Gu Zhaohuang, whose arrival ended the battle at Crossing Peak Stronghold.

• Yi Yang destroyed the Giant Eel’s chaotic Sea of Consciousness, killed it, and saw the enormous golden eyes in Ink Abyss Marsh begin to rise before he was pulled back to his body.
• Yi Yang awoke in a ruined house, killed a Shaman Kingdom man who tried to steal his Storage Ring, and collected the man’s saber, belongings, and head.
• Yi Yang found a second, richer Waterside Spirit Drop on the Mysterious Abyss Saber and consumed the first drop, healing his wounds and restoring most of his True Qi.
• Yi Yang stayed inside as the battle at Heavenly Rhyme Pavilion continued, then heard the Blood Illusion Venerable cry out at the name Gu Zhaohuang and flee.
• The Blood Illusion Venerable’s blood-pulling power briefly threatened Yi Yang before it vanished along with the Venerable’s aura, and Yi Yang later left the house after the fighting ended.

Yi Yang returned to the courtyard after the chaos in Crossing Peak Stronghold and heard how Xu Min’s Pacification Guards had survived the night. He searched Helian Zhu’s Storage Ring for evidence of the mysterious Shang Yu but found none, leaving the Shaman Kingdom’s mission unresolved.

• Xu Min explained that his men had killed five Shaman Kingdom martial artists and held the courtyard rather than risk going out into the dangerous streets.
• Yi Yang told Xu Min that his decision had been right and ordered the Pacification Guards to keep watch in rotating shifts until dawn.
• Yi Yang searched Helian Zhu’s Storage Ring but found no written orders or clues identifying Shang Yu or the Shaman Kingdom’s mission.
• Yi Yang counted 793 spirit crystals and discovered a Supreme-Grade Treasure Artifact chain hammer, reflecting on how dangerous Helian Zhu would have been if he had managed to use it.

Yi Yang examined the spoils taken from Helian Zhu and Han Ji, finding valuable pills, weapons, and other items. After tallying his wealth, he swallowed a Profound Essence Pill and began cultivating with the Wood True Yang Scripture.

• Yi Yang stored Helian Zhu’s chain hammer and kept a mysterious parchment fragment after examining his other belongings.
• Yi Yang searched Han Ji’s Storage Ring and found spirit crystals, high-quality cultivation pills, and three Heavenly Heart Sect martial arts manuals.
• Yi Yang inspected Han Ji’s damaged Spirit Weapon, Cold Firmament, and recognized that its remaining power could be unleashed three times.
• Yi Yang counted his growing collection of spirit crystals, pills, weapons, lotus seeds, Roc eggs, and cultivation manuals.
• Yi Yang swallowed a Profound Essence Pill and circulated the Wood True Yang Scripture as his profound light seed absorbed its medicinal power.

Yi Yang received his reward from Jiang Zhongtian and learned that the previous night’s battle had been part of a trap meant to lure the Grandmaster Shang Yu. Shang Yu never appeared, and Jiang revealed that he had fought in the Battle of Dingfeng Mountain, where the target was a Martial Saint’s disciple.

• Yi Yang welcomed the battle-worn Jiang Zhongtian, who delivered 120 spirit crystals and two Profound Essence Foundation-Stabilizing Pills as a reward for Yi Yang’s recent kills.
• Jiang explained that Blood Illusion Venerable had fused his dharma body with a sliver of the Spiritblood True God’s might, giving him powers beyond those of an ordinary Profound Connection Perfection martial artist.
• Jiang told Yi Yang that Xia Haoyun had served as bait in a trap designed to draw out Shang Yu, with the auctioned Flawless Spirit Weapon helping attract Hidden Dragon Ranking experts.
• Jiang revealed that Shang Yu had stayed hidden and sent a Divine Archer to attack, while Senior Lu Zui pursued the archer.
• Jiang said Shang Yu had been the previous generation’s Hidden Dragon Ranking champion and had taken part in the Battle of Dingfeng Mountain, where a Martial Saint’s disciple was surrounded and killed.

Jiang Zhongtian explained that the battle at Dingfeng Mountain had involved the White Lotus Society and the Martial Saint’s disciple, and warned Yi Yang about the power of Shang Yu and Gu Zhaohuang. Two days later in Tooth-Copper City, a Shaman Kingdom lord revealed his plan to seize a Great Yu prince’s Dragon Qi and invade Qing Province with help from the White Lotus Society.

• Jiang Zhongtian told Yi Yang that the White Lotus Society had orchestrated the battle at Dingfeng Mountain, where the Martial Saint’s disciple fought two greater Grandmasters and Shang Yu survived.
• Jiang Zhongtian named the Grandmaster who had killed the Blood Illusion Venerable as Gu Zhaohuang, and Yi Yang resolved to stay cautious and focus on cultivation.
• Yi Yang took a Profound Essence Pill and resumed cultivating, while the numbers on his panel advanced.
• In Tooth-Copper City, Qi He reported to the black-robed lord that Gu Zhaohuang had appeared at Crossing Peak Stronghold and likely carried the Nine-Rhythm Azure Light Sword.
• The black-robed lord declared that he would take the Great Yu prince’s Dragon Qi to become a greater Grandmaster and wait for his northern partners, then vowed to break through the strongholds and conquer Qing Province.

After martial law followed the city’s chaos, Yi Yang learned that Han Ji had died and began cultivating the Divine Bone Blood Refining art to overcome the limits of his current physique. His illusion-breaking divine sense let him make rapid progress toward the iron-bone stage, and he continued refining his body.

• Yi Yang sent Xu Min to exchange the Shaman Kingdom martial artist’s head and four corpses for merit rewards, then ordered him to distribute half among the men.
• Xu Min reported that Bai Yuchen and Chu Tiankuo had been injured in the Heavenly Rhyme Pavilion battle, while Jiang Zhongtian appeared unharmed, and that Han Ji had died during the same night’s chaos.
• Yi Yang concluded that the name Shang Yu had diverted suspicion from Han Ji’s death and reflected on the danger posed by Han Ji’s Dharma Body.
• Yi Yang read the Divine Bone Blood Refining manual and learned its five stages, including the three stages whose methods were recorded.
• Yi Yang used his divine sense to guide true qi into his radius and vibrate its marrow until grayish-white impurities seeped out.
• Yi Yang’s Heavenly Mandate panel showed Iron Bone at Beginner progress, 360/500000, and he resumed cultivating.

Yi Yang accelerated his Divine Bone Blood Refining with a Waterside Spirit Drop, making rapid progress and preparing to meet Jiang Zhongtian. At the military headquarters tent, he joined a gathering of Heroes Ranking martial artists divided into rival circles.

• Yi Yang checked his cultivation panel and found that he had passed one-fifth of the first layer of Divine Bone Blood Refining in three days.
• After reaching his physical limit, Yi Yang used a Waterside Spirit Drop to restore his strength and resume cultivation without waiting through the usual recovery period.
• Yi Yang gained nearly a hundred thousand progress points, noticed his body had become lighter and faster, and considered seeking out evil thoughts in the Ink Abyss Marsh for more spirit drops.
• Yi Yang dressed in his Heaven Patrol Office uniform, wrapped the Mysterious Abyss Saber, and went to the military headquarters tent for his arranged meeting with Jiang Zhongtian.
• Yi Yang arrived at the tent and saw sect disciples, Heaven Patrol Office martial artists, and aristocratic scions gathered in separate groups before someone called out to him.

Yi Yang met with fellow Heaven Patrol Office martial artists at Crossing Peak Stronghold and reflected that the Heroes Ranking no longer matched his ambitions. The gathering drew attention when Lu Qinglan entered alongside Jiang Zhongtian, Chu Tiankuo, and Lu Zui, leaving the other ranked prodigies watching her.

• Yi Yang reunited with Luo Kaishan and Xie Yungui, who discussed the recent attacks and the likely purpose of the gathering.
• Luo Kaishan identified Han Linyuan, Fu Yunshen, and Gu Qiusheng as top-ranked representatives of powerful sects and clans, and told Yi Yang that Lu Qinglan had swiftly defeated Lu Wanyuan.
• Yi Yang considered that the Heroes Ranking was only a small contest compared with the Hidden Dragon Ranking, while keeping his true strength and ambitions concealed.
• Jiang Zhongtian, Chu Tiankuo, and Lu Zui entered the tent with Lu Qinglan, whose presence stirred whispers and envy among the gathered martial artists.
• Lu Qinglan ignored the watching prodigies as she walked past them beside the three powerful figures.