Chapter Summaries

Luo Bin used Primordial Calculation to weaken Lu You, allowing Bai Wei to kill him despite Zhang Yunxi's warning. As the group faced the consequences of Lu You's death, the fallen Calling Bell began ringing in Luo Bin's mind.

• Lu You threatened Bai Wei for information about Primordial Calculation, but Luo Bin appeared and claimed it as its rightful owner.
• Lu You recognized Luo Bin and tried to ring the Calling Bell, but Luo Bin weakened him with Cloud Death Exhaustion.
• Luo Bin used Death-Life Return to restore Bai Wei's strength, and Bai Wei attacked Lu You while Zhang Yunxi shouted for him not to kill Lu You.
• Bai Wei killed Lu You, explaining that Lu You would have killed them all if he had survived.
• Luo Bin removed his mask and heard the Calling Bell ringing, its echo lingering in his mind.

After Lu You’s death, Luo Bin and Zhang Yunxi argued with Bai Wei over a jade bead that seemed to contain life force. The bead proved to be a false corpse pill that killed a Gray Immortal, leaving them more wary of Six Yin Mountain.

• Bai Wei stopped Luo Bin from letting him take the object from Lu You’s hand, while Zhang Yunxi accused Bai Wei of killing Lu You too quickly.
• Luo Bin handed the jade bead to Zhang Yunxi, who identified its abundant life force and insisted it had to be sealed away.
• A Gray Immortal seized and swallowed the bead, then exploded into bloody mist; Bai Wei was injured by the blast.
• Zhang Yunxi told Luo Bin to contact Chen Zu and keep Lu You’s visit and death secret, and Luo Bin passed the warning along.
• Bai Wei and Zhang Yunxi realized the bead was a false corpse pill and feared what its near-perfect imitation revealed about Six Yin Mountain.

Zhang Yunxi sealed Lu You’s corpse in a twenty-meter-deep golden well and warned Chen Zu about the Six Yin Mountains before the group returned to a Taoist temple. There, Bai Wei raised the question of finding Dai Zhixiong, just as a young Taoist reported that Abbot Kongchen had invited Zhang Yunxi and Luo Bin to Jin'an Temple.

• Zhang Yunxi collected Lu You’s fate-suppressing objects and ritual artifacts, then decided the group had to leave Nanping City quickly.
• Zhang Yunxi covered Lu You’s corpse in talismans and buried it headfirst in a deep golden well, while Luo Bin confirmed the corpse had not moved on its own.
• Hu Xing brought out two people controlled by the immortal creatures, and Zhang Yunxi ordered Bai Wei to hand them over to Chen Zu rather than kill them or provoke the Nether Market.
• Luo Bin received Chen Zu’s call, and the group met him at the foot of the mountain after clearing away the traces of the fight.
• Chen Zu drove Zhang Yunxi, Luo Bin, Bai Wei, Hu Xing, and the two controlled people to the Taoist temple, where Bai Wei mentioned looking for Dai Zhixiong.
• A young Taoist told Zhang Yunxi that Abbot Kongchen of Jin'an Temple had sent a monk to invite him and Luo Bin over.

Luo Bin learned that the women pursuing him were Miao Gu practitioners seeking a Gu Worm, and the group planned to leave Nanping City after trying to lure out the white silkworm. Their attempt revealed that the silkworm had been hiding inside Luo Bin’s body.

• Luo Bin explained that he had been followed by two women skilled with Witch Bugs, and Bai Wei identified their arts as a deviant offshoot of Gu.
• Bai Wei warned that the women might be seeking something Luo Bin had taken from Long Phu, and Luo Bin recalled Long Phu calling him “Gu.”
• Zhang Yunxi ordered the group to lure out the Gu, visit the Golden Peace Temple, and have Luo Feng and Gu Ya travel with Shang Liuli to Cauldron Mountain.
• Luo Bin placed a Flower Affection fruit beneath a threshold while Shang Liuli waited with a porcelain bottle, but the white silkworm did not emerge.
• A section of the white silkworm came out of Luo Bin’s nostril and slipped back inside before he could catch it.

Luo Bin went to the White Buddha Temple to ask Bai Guang how to remove the white silkworm inside his head. Bai Guang remained imprisoned and refused to help unless the temple restored his position as Chief Monk Overseer.

• Luo Bin decided to seek Bai Guang's knowledge of gu worms after the silkworm burrowed into his head.
• Luo Bin told Zhang Yunxi about the worm and traveled alone to the White Buddha Temple.
• Bai Zhi told Luo Bin that Bai Guang would not cooperate unless the temple released him and restored his post.
• Bai Zhi led Luo Bin to a sealed room where Bai Guang was restrained.
• Bai Guang invoked the Buddha and reminded Bai Zhi that he was still the Chief Monk Overseer.

Luo Bin interrogated Bai Guang, who refused to cooperate despite being accused of ties to the Witchfolk. After Luo Bin began removing a bone from Bai Guang’s finger, a white silkworm emerged from Luo Bin’s nose and burrowed into Bai Guang’s ear, silencing him.

• Bai Zhi left Luo Bin alone with Bai Guang, who denied being one of the Witchfolk and offered to help remove Luo Bin’s Gu if released.
• Luo Bin rejected Bai Guang’s terms and cut him repeatedly, but Bai Guang dismissed the wounds as ineffective.
• Luo Bin used his knowledge of the black shell sixty-four celestial calculations to gouge a segment of bone from Bai Guang’s finger.
• Bai Zhi entered after hearing Bai Guang scream, then withdrew as Bai Guang begged him to intervene.
• A white silkworm emerged from Luo Bin’s nose and crawled into Bai Guang’s ear, leaving Bai Guang frozen and unresponsive.

After the White Silkworm left Bai Guang a vacant, corpse-like figure, Luo Bin suspected his body could kill Witch Bugs and might counter the Gu Worms infecting the Monk Overseers. He proved his blood destroyed Witch Bugs, leaving the temple’s people stunned and raising hope that he could save the afflicted monks.

• Luo Bin found Bai Guang alive but mentally vacant after the White Silkworm burrowed into his head, and he realized he had failed to get information from him.
• Luo Bin recalled that Long Phu’s Witch Bugs had died on his body and suspected his blood could counter Witch Bugs and Gu Worms.
• Luo Bin told Bai Zhi he would try an uncertain method and went with him to the Monk Overseer Courtyard.
• Luo Bin opened the sealed Buddha head, cut his palm, and let his blood fall on the Witch Bugs, which sizzled and died.
• Bai Zhi and the other Monk Overseers realized Luo Bin could counter Witch Bugs.

Luo Bin realized that the Mountain-Wind Gu hexagram could counter the afflicted Monk Overseers’ Witch Bugs, then brought them to the White Buddha Temple entrance to use the Lake-Thunder Following hexagram. The chapter ended as he ordered the monks to untie and push the afflicted men toward the street.

• Luo Bin and Bai Zhi tried applying Luo Bin’s blood to an afflicted Monk Overseer and feeding it to him, but neither attempt worked.
• Luo Bin studied the Mountain-Wind Gu hexagram and suddenly realized that Dui and Zhen could counter Gu.
• Luo Bin ordered Bai Zhi to bring all the afflicted Monk Overseers to the temple entrance, and Bai Zhi obeyed despite the risk of drawing attention.
• At the entrance, Luo Bin used the street’s traffic and crossroads to identify the Lake-Thunder Following hexagram as a way to break Mountain-Wind Gu.
• After eighteen afflicted Monk Overseers arrived, Luo Bin ordered them untied and directed the monks to push them toward the street.

Luo Bin used the Lake-Thunder Following Hexagram to free the Monk Overseers from Gu Worms, but the White Silkworm inside him remained unaffected. After sending his family away from South Flat City, he continued studying the celestial calculations and sought the insight needed to master physiognomy.

• Luo Bin helped Bai Zhi release the Monk Overseers, whose Gu Worms fled as they returned to normal.
• Luo Bin left White Buddha Temple and concluded that he needed a stronger hexagram influence to counter the White Silkworm.
• Luo Bin returned to the Taoist abbey and told Luo Feng, Gu Ya, and Shang Liuli what had happened.
• Luo Bin urged Shang Liuli, Luo Feng, and Gu Ya to leave South Flat City while he and Zhang Xiyun handled the remaining loose ends.
• After his family left, Luo Bin studied Black Shell Sixty-Four Celestial Calculations and struggled to grasp the final step in its physiognomy section.

Luo Bin broke through a bottleneck in his Yin-Yang Arts by realizing that mastery required observing and practicing on people, not just studying texts. After spending the day using Rewind to study unusual physiognomies, he rejoined Zhang Yunxi and the others, who prepared to go to Jin'an Temple.

• Zhang Yunxi stopped Bai Wei and Hu Xing from disturbing Luo Bin and explained that Luo Bin was nearing a major breakthrough.
• Luo Bin realized that Physiognomy Arts required observing, distinguishing, and practicing on people, just as Feng Shui required studying landscapes and buildings.
• Luo Bin used Rewind to examine four rare types of physiognomy from the human heads in the Outer Field of the Heavenly Mechanism Taoist Grounds.
• Luo Bin left his room after dark and met Zhang Yunxi, Bai Wei, and Hu Xing, who noticed his presence had become more profound and dangerous.
• Luo Bin accepted Zhang Yunxi's congratulations and agreed to go with the group to Jin'an Temple, then warned Hu Xing that his Gu might emerge and kill her.

Luo Bin and the others traveled to Golden Peace Lake to investigate a mad monk, and Luo Bin unsettled Bai Wei by reading signs of illness and possible cultivation deviation in his face. At the lake, Kongchen explained that the monk was a Tantric pilgrim who believed a living Buddha was at Golden Peace Temple.

• Zhang Yunxi took Luo Bin, Bai Wei, and Hu Xing from the Jade Hall Taoist Grounds, leaving Wen Chang and Wen Qing behind to preserve support and seek help from the Regulatory Taoist Grounds.
• During the drive, Luo Bin read Bai Wei's face and identified his lower back ailment, signs of ghostly obscuration, and possible cultivation deviation, which Bai Wei denied.
• The group reached Golden Peace Lake, crossed by boat, and met Kongchen on the opposite bank.
• Kongchen told them the mad monk came from elsewhere and had performed daily devotions and prostrations around the lake, believing a living Buddha was present at Golden Peace Temple.
• Kongchen explained that he had brought the monk into the temple, had him washed, and arranged for him to learn Mahayana teachings alongside the monks.

Kong Chen recounted how Kong An’s madness led him to mutilate the dead, murder monks, and defeat Golden Peace Temple’s warriors. Bai Wei agreed to help kill Kong An in exchange for the remains kept in three pagodas, leaving Kong Chen to decide whether to accept.

• Kong Chen described Kong An’s exceptional Buddhist learning and the horrific mutilation of an eminent monk’s remains.
• Kong Chen explained that Kong An’s madness worsened until he murdered a young monk, ate monks’ flesh, and killed Warrior Monks who tried to stop him.
• Kong Chen said he moved the monks to a new temple while Kong An remained inside the old one, but Kong An had now come out.
• Bai Wei argued that Kong Chen’s decision to bring a lama into their Buddhist tradition had contributed to the disaster, then offered to kill Kong An for the contents of three pagodas.
• Kong Chen hesitated after Bai Wei asked for the remains of eminent monks as compensation.

Zhang Yunxi, Luo Bin, Bai Wei, and Hu Xing entered the old Golden Peace Temple to confront the mad monk. After finding two of Bai Wei’s rats roasted in the main hall, they pressed on and discovered three naked women sitting before a Buddha statue.

• Kong Chen asked Bai Wei not to hold back, then stayed behind as Zhang Yunxi and the others continued to the old temple.
• At the temple gates, Bai Wei warned the group about the powerful lama and sent two rats inside to scout.
• The group found the rats skinned and roasting beside a human skin stretched over a frame, prompting Bai Wei to try to retreat.
• Zhang Yunxi and Luo Bin refused to abandon the task, and Bai Wei used more animals to locate the mad monk.
• The group followed the rats through the vast temple and found three naked women seated on meditation cushions before a Buddha statue.

Luo Bin and his companions were lured toward three seductive women until Luo Bin used a Stillness Hexagram and Zhang Yunxi rang Lu You's Calling Bell to break the spell. Monk An Kong then appeared and fought Bai Wei, leaving Bai Wei's arms broken and his robe torn as An Kong seized him.

• Luo Bin recognized that the three women were exerting a supernatural influence, but he and Zhang Yunxi and Bai Wei continued advancing while Hu Xing froze.
• Luo Bin used the Stillness Hexagram on Zhang Yunxi, who rang Lu You's Calling Bell and stopped the women while restoring the others' senses.
• An Kong entered the hall and explained that he had prepared three Bright Consorts for the male guests and another welcome for Hu Xing.
• Luo Bin used a Yin Hexagram against An Kong, and Bai Wei charged him while the monk was weakened.
• An Kong spoke three syllables, knocked Bai Wei backward, broke both his arms, and seized him by the collar.

Kong An overwhelmed Bai Wei and Zhang Yunxi and revealed that he intended to sacrifice them to the monstrous deity at Golden Peace Temple. Luo Bin recovered with Emotion Flower Fruits and freed the others, but Kong An attacked him as the chapter ended with Zhang Yunxi placing the Calling Bell in Luo Bin’s pocket.

• Kong An defeated Bai Wei with a single exchange and suppressed Zhang Yunxi’s Calling Bell with his voice.
• Zhang Yunxi used the Bronze Clubs to stun Kong An, but Kong An dodged Bai Wei’s attack, causing Bai Wei and Zhang Yunxi to be pinned by the clubs.
• Kong An chose Luo Bin as the sacrifice, while Luo Bin recovered by eating Emotion Flower Fruits and pulled the Bronze Clubs free to release Bai Wei and Zhang Yunxi.
• Luo Bin tried to negotiate their departure, but Kong An declared that Luo Bin’s brains, intestines, flesh, and blood would be offered to the deity.
• Kong An charged Luo Bin with two pestles as Bai Wei shouted for him to run and Zhang Yunxi put the Calling Bell into Luo Bin’s pocket.

Luo Bin used the ritual artifacts to restrain Kong An, but Kong An repeatedly broke free while an unseen force disrupted the others. The chapter left Luo Bin under the Vajra Deity’s influence as Kong An revealed that the consort had been denied to him.

• Zhang Yunxi gave the ritual artifacts to Luo Bin, who used Form and Water Momentum to pin Kong An with the Bronze Clubs.
• Kong An broke free, disarmed Luo Bin, and struck him in the chest before trying to seize him.
• Luo Bin rang the Calling Bell, which incapacitated Zhang Yunxi, Bai Wei, and Hu Xing and briefly stopped Kong An.
• Kong An caught Luo Bin’s wrist and seemed to transform into a woman, while an unseen force made Luo Bin drop the bell and reach for him.
• Kong An revealed himself holding a black lotus-like object and told Luo Bin that the enraged Vajra Deity had withdrawn the consort’s blessing.

Luo Bin was nearly strangled by Kong An before the Miao woman and Miao Miao intervened with Gu Worms. They captured Luo Bin and prepared to leave, while Zhang Yunxi and Bai Wei remained at the mercy of the Miao pair.

• Kong An seized Luo Bin by the throat and choked him as Luo Bin waited in vain for Yuan Yinxin to appear.
• Gu Worms swarmed Kong An, released Luo Bin, and killed the Mad Monk.
• The Miao woman and Miao Miao emerged and claimed Luo Bin, while Miao Miao stopped him from reaching the Calling Bell.
• The Miao woman ordered Miao Miao to help Luo Bin up and seal his mouth with a centipede.
• Miao Miao asked whether they should kill Zhang Yunxi and Bai Wei, and Luo Bin could only watch helplessly.

Kong An attacked the Old Woman and drove Miao Miao and her hidden grandfather into retreat, then returned after burning the Gu Worms from his body. He overwhelmed Miao Miao with his words and a powerful chant, while Luo Bin collapsed.

• The Old Woman ordered Miao Miao to infect Bai Wei with Gu, but Bai Wei crushed the worm before it could reach him.
• Kong An grabbed the Old Woman, severed her limbs with his axe-vajra, and then walked away as Miao Miao tried to save her.
• Miao Miao revealed her grandfather's shriveled head inside a jar, and he urged her to flee with the wounded Old Woman.
• Kong An returned with most of the Gu Worms burned away, and Miao Miao's grandfather hid inside the jar.
• Kong An claimed he was human and said he would make Miao Miao the deity's consort, then chanted "Om ah hum" as she launched a venomous insect at him.
• The chant shook Luo Bin's consciousness, and he collapsed.

Kong An sacrificed the Old Woman of the Miao People and prepared to offer Luo Bin to the deity, but a white silkworm from the jar attacked him. Luo Bin and the others escaped the Buddha hall, leaving Miao Miao behind after cutting her free.

• Kong An skinned the Old Woman alive, killed her, and laid her skin and organs on the altar as offerings.
• Kong An brought Luo Bin to the altar and prepared to cut open his skull for the deity.
• A white silkworm emerged from the jar and burrowed into Kong An’s nostril, causing him to scream and collapse.
• Luo Bin freed Zhang Xiyun, who helped release Hu Xing and Bai Wei, and the group fled the hall.
• Luo Bin cut the ropes around Miao Miao’s wrists and left her as he followed Zhang Xiyun out.

Luo Bin and the others escaped the Old Temple after Kong An changed states, but Kong An remained behind its gates under an unknown rule. Luo Bin concluded that Kong An sought to build a temple and find like-minded followers while offering selected sacrifices, leaving the group to wonder how many people in Golden Peace Temple shared his beliefs.

• Kong An changed states, and Luo Bin, Zhang Yunxi, Miao Miao, and the others fled the hall as Immortal Creatures emerged from Bai Wei and Hu Xing.
• Hu Xing attacked Miao Miao, but a head from Miao Miao's jar spat green smoke and forced Hu Xing back while Kong An slowly approached.
• Luo Bin and the others escaped the temple, where Kong An prostrated himself before Kong Chen, then retreated inside and shut the gates.
• Miao Miao wept over her grandmother's death as Luo Bin blamed her and her grandmother for underestimating Kong An and failing to kill him when they had the chance.
• Luo Bin reasoned that Kong An followed a rule tied to his faith and wanted to establish a temple, attract like-minded people, and offer selected sacrifices.
• Luo Bin asked Kong Chen how many people in Golden Peace Temple shared Kong An's beliefs.