Chapter Summaries

Luo Bin arrived at Four-Rules Mountain and settled into Concentrating Spirit Hall, where he reflected on the Blackblood Vine’s life-saving power and its threat to his humanity. As he drifted off, he saw a skeletal Taoist beside his bed, then woke to find the room empty.

• Luo Xianshen and He Youtian guided Luo Bin through Four-Rules Mountain and showed him to Concentrating Spirit Hall.
• Luo Bin entered the guest room with Miao Zi, then sent Miao Zi to wait in the reception room.
• Luo Bin washed and examined the strange marks on his chest, then considered how the Blackblood Vine had saved him while making him fear he would become something like Moss Eater.
• Luo Bin called Mao Yousan, but the phone was switched off, and he fell asleep.
• Luo Bin saw a skeletal Taoist standing beside his bed, then jolted awake to find no one there.

Luo Bin experienced a terrifying encounter with a corpse-like Daoist at Four-Rules Mountain, though Rewind showed only darkness and he woke unharmed beside Miao Zi. After Xiang Ke explained that Luo Bin had seemed to act in his sleep, the Dao Corpse appeared again as Luo Bin lost consciousness.

• Luo Bin used Rewind after waking from a disturbing dream, then watched a purple-robed Dao Corpse enter his room and attack him.
• Luo Bin could not summon his Gu or activate his ritual artifacts effectively, and the Dao Corpse strangled him before suddenly vanishing.
• Luo Bin found himself sitting upright beside Miao Zi with his lantern and compass in hand, without any injuries, and Rewind showed only darkness during the episode.
• Xiang Ke introduced himself as a Four-Rules Mountain disciple and said Luo Bin had called for Miao Zi and handled his ritual objects while apparently asleep.
• Luo Bin saw the Dao Corpse again as Xiang Ke closed the door, then a figure he mistook for Miao Zi pressed down on his head and knocked him unconscious.

Four-Rules Mountain celebrated the return of the White Clan and its powerful inheritance, but Female-One Patriarch manifested and sent everyone into Heart Inquiry. On Thunder God Cliff, Heaven-Dumping Qin saw the patriarch leave to investigate, then unexpectedly fell into a deep sleep.

• The elders and disciples celebrated the return of the White Clan, whose nine Real Persons and more than forty Red-Robed Taoists greatly strengthened Four-Rules Mountain.
• Two spirit tablets bearing the names Bai Huan Gang and Bai Yanshan fell into the incense burner, and Bai Lushu asked Patriarch Bai Zi for forgiveness on Divine Firmament Mountain's behalf.
• A wisp of smoke rose from Female-One Patriarch's statue, spread through the shrine, and entered everyone present except Luo Xianshen as rain began to fall.
• Luo Xianshen explained Heart Inquiry, and He Youtian suggested Female-One Patriarch was granting insight and seeking another Fated One.
• On Thunder God Cliff, Heaven-Dumping Qin saw Female-One Patriarch emerge from the mist and glide away, then collapsed into a deep sleep as he tried to follow.

Luo Bin woke to find Miao Zi warning him to leave Four-Rules Mountain, while Xiang Ke and the Taoists behaved as though possessed by a powerful Dao corpse. Despite the warnings and his own transformed reflection appearing in the rain, Luo Bin continued uphill to find Luo Xianshen, where he encountered Heaven-Dumping Qin.

• Luo Bin woke as Miao Zi repeatedly told him to go down the mountain, then learned that Xiang Ke was possessed when a talisman failed to affect him.
• Luo Bin restrained Xiang Ke with Miao Zi's silkworm silk, packed the Primordial White Flower Lantern, and left the Concentrating Spirit Hall to find Luo Xianshen.
• A group of Taoists confronted Luo Bin with strange questions and repeated voices, so Miao Zi bound them with silkworm silk.
• Luo Bin saw his abnormal true appearance reflected in puddles and raindrops, while the Gu Silkworm Gold warned him of danger.
• Luo Bin ignored Miao Zi's urgent calls to descend and continued uphill as more Taoists followed and spoke to him.
• Heaven-Dumping Qin appeared in Luo Bin's path and approached him quickly, leaving Luo Bin unsure whether Qin was possessed.

Qin Tianqing led Luo Bin to a lake and threw him into it after sealing Miao Zi with the Heavenly Mechanism Jade Slip. Revealing herself as Patriarch Female-One, Qin Tianqing destroyed the Black Miao Corpse-Liberation Immortal’s Soul Fragment, then continued watching the water as Luo Bin remained submerged.

• Luo Bin tested Qin Tianqing with the Primordial White Flower Lantern, but it revealed no soul, and Qin Tianqing hurried him toward Four-Rules Mountain’s Patriarch Shrine Hall.
• Qin Tianqing struck Miao Zi with the Heavenly Mechanism Jade Slip, sealed him, and pulled Luo Bin into a lake hidden beneath the rain.
• Qin Tianqing retrieved the floating lantern and waited while the Six-Thread Golden Silkworm Gu emerged from the lake.
• Qin Tianqing used rain and thunder to destroy the thread-shaped Gu and reveal the Black Miao Corpse-Liberation Immortal’s Soul Fragment.
• The Soul Fragment explained its plan to possess Luo Bin and revive the Black Miao, but Qin Tianqing’s spells annihilated it and pinned the Six-Thread Golden Silkworm Gu with silver needles.
• Qin Tianqing was revealed to be Patriarch Female-One, while Luo Bin remained beneath the lake.

At the Spirit Official Hall, Luo Xianshen discovered that Luo Bin had been overtaken by the Blackblood Vine and a vicious presence. Female-One used Qin Tianqing and then her Yang Spirit to fight Luo Bin and drive the shadow from him, ending with a thunder barrage against the pool.

• Luo Xianshen spotted sinking ash and signs of decay at the Spirit Official Hall, while He Youtian’s chanting drove the spreading corruption away.
• Luo Xianshen realized Luo Bin was missing and rushed toward Thunder God Cliff as Qin Tianqing confronted a pool filled with ghosts and monstrous infants.
• Luo Bin burst from the pool transformed and attacked Qin Tianqing, who used thunder, wind, hail, and frost incantations to slow and wound him.
• Luo Xianshen arrived and pleaded for Female-One to spare Luo Bin, but Female-One withdrew from Qin Tianqing and called forth her Yang Spirit.
• A blackish-red shadow fled Luo Bin and plunged into the pool, so Female-One redirected her thunder strike and filled the water with lightning, revealing thick vines beneath the surface.

Female-One Patriarch removed the Blackblood Vine from Luo Bin and saved him from its hidden danger, then revealed that the mountain fiend was trapped beneath the pool. Luo Bin recovered but was left alarmed when he found Six pinned down by silver needles.

• Qin Tianqing realized Female-One Patriarch had attacked the Blackblood Vine rather than Luo Bin and rejoiced that she had removed the dangerous Heaven-Veiling Object.
• Luo Xianshen gave Luo Bin medicine person blood, and Luo Bin regained consciousness after the rain stopped.
• Luo Xianshen explained that Female-One Patriarch had stripped away the Blackblood Vine, and Luo Bin bowed to the Patriarch.
• Female-One Patriarch said she had driven out Luo Bin’s external evil and preserved his true self, then told them the mountain fiend was trapped beneath the pool.
• Qin Tianqing pointed out Six, the Gu Silkworm Gold Thread, which lay pinned to the ground by silver needles, and Luo Bin was shocked.

Luo Bin discovered that the six-thread Golden Silkworm Gu contained a soul fragment of the Black Miao Corpse-Liberation Immortal and chose to kill it rather than risk trusting it. After returning to Spirit Concentration Hall, he reunited with Qin Tianqing and Xiang Ke, and Qin asked whether the Female-One Patriarch had revealed Luo Bin’s inner demon.

• Luo Bin realized the six-thread Golden Silkworm Gu had concealed a soul fragment of the Black Miao Corpse-Liberation Immortal and saw that the thread Gu had been burned away.
• Luo Bin used his three Golden Silkworm Gu to drain and kill the six-thread Golden Silkworm Gu, which they then entered to form cocoons.
• Luo Bin retrieved the Primordial White Flower Lantern, bowed to the Female-One Patriarch, and left with Qin Tianqing after returning the Heavenly Mechanism Jade Slip.
• Luo Bin and Qin Tianqing found Xiang Ke freed from the silkworm threads at Spirit Concentration Hall, and Xiang Ke offered to help them.
• Qin Tianqing asked Luo Bin whether he had seen his inner demon, then anxiously asked if the Female-One Patriarch had done anything beyond beating him.

After losing the Blackblood Vine, Luo Bin heard Qin Tianqing’s advice to strengthen his own abilities before becoming involved in Mao Yousan’s affairs. He waited for the Female-One Patriarch to perform Heart Inquiry, but Xiang Ke warned that persistence could not make a Yang Spirit intervene, leaving Luo Bin uncertain whether the opportunity would come.

• Luo Bin told Qin Tianqing what had happened at Divine Firmament Mountain, and Qin Tianqing agreed that Black City Monastery should be dealt with first.
• Qin Tianqing offered to help Luo Bin and advised him to adapt to life without the Blackblood Vine, seek the Female-One Patriarch’s Heart Inquiry, and build enough strength before intervening in Mao Yousan’s affairs.
• Luo Bin spent three days waiting beside the mountain pool for the Female-One Patriarch, but the Patriarch did not respond.
• Xiang Ke told Luo Bin that the Female-One Patriarch would initiate Heart Inquiry if she wished and that persistence alone could not secure it.
• Luo Bin questioned whether the Female-One Patriarch would give him the opportunity he had been waiting for.

Luo Bin learned that the Taoist abbeys were organizing a major force to confront the demons, but Immortal Cave Mountain had become inaccessible. Luo Xianshen revealed that the mountain held a spring capable of freeing cultivators from the Three Corpse Worms, and the elders reacted with excitement.

• Xiang Ke escorted Luo Bin to the Spirit Official Hall, where He Youtian explained that several Taoist abbeys had agreed to send Real Persons and other forces.
• He Youtian and Bai Lushu outlined the strength of the planned alliance, while Luo Xianshen said he would proceed with their original plan once the abbeys were ready.
• Luo Xianshen received word that people could enter Immortal Cave Mountain but could not leave, and that investigators sent by the Nether Market had disappeared.
• Luo Bin offered to accompany Luo Xianshen, declaring that he could counter ghosts even without the Blackblood Vine.
• Luo Xianshen revealed that Tiangong Spring in Immortal Cave Mountain could remove the Three Corpse Worms and Body Worms, prompting the Real Person elders to leap up in excitement.

Luo Bin and the Real Persons decided to travel to Immortal Ascension Taoist Abbey to confront the danger there, while debating the risks and promise of eliminating body worms. Before departing, Luo Bin visited Qin Tianqing, who sensed that the journey would not be simple.

• Bai Xiannan explained that Divine Firmament Mountain’s Real Persons feared death and that eliminating their body worms might help them face their limits.
• Bai Chuanyun and Bai Xiannan agreed to drink from Tian Gong Spring, and the Real Persons decided to travel together to Immortal Ascension Taoist Abbey.
• Luo Bin left Spirit Official Hall to tell Qin Tianqing about the expedition and say goodbye.
• Qin Tianqing agreed that the Heavenly Mechanism Taoist Grounds would join the journey and recalled that Wu Jinluan was at Immortal Ascension Taoist Abbey.
• Qin Tianqing felt a palpitation and warned that the journey would not be simple.

Qin Tianqing cast a Heavenly Mechanism death hexagram for himself and decided he had to travel with Luo Bin to Immortal Cave Mountain, leaving succession instructions for the Heavenly Mechanism Taoist Grounds. At the Mountain Gate, Luo Bin reunited with Fourth Master Gray and learned that Luo Xianshen was worried about Qi Hua, who had gone to a cave months earlier.

• Qin Tianqing’s Jade Coins shattered after revealing a Heavenly Mechanism death hexagram, and he concluded that Immortal Cave Mountain was closely connected to the Taoist Grounds.
• Qin Tianqing ordered his disciples not to follow him and left the Heavenly Mechanism Jade Slip at Thunder God Cliff as a succession token if he died.
• Qin Tianqing and Luo Bin set off with Xiang Ke toward the Mountain Gate, while Luo Bin warned Xiang Ke not to spread fearful speculation about Four-Rules Mountain.
• At the Mountain Gate, Luo Bin found Luo Xianshen and Si Yan waiting with Fourth Master Gray, who joined Luo Bin and teased him about leaving secretly.
• Fourth Master Gray revealed that Luo Xianshen had received troubling news about Qi Hua, and Si Yan reassured Luo Xianshen that Qi Hua’s good destiny would protect her.

As the group prepared to enter the Immortal Ascension Taoist Grounds, Luo Xianshen revealed that Qin Weizi had been his master, prompting Qin Tianqing to reconsider the connection to his own Taoist grounds. On the way down the mountain, Luo Bin opened a talisman from Mao Yousan and then encountered a mysterious Taoist in the stream whose light overwhelmed his senses.

• Luo Xianshen told Qin Tianqing that Qin Weizi had been his master, though Qin Weizi had died and his Yin-Yang Arts had been destroyed.
• Bai Lushu and Bai Xingtai brought a dozen young Taoists from Divine Firmament Peak and Jade Purity Peak to join the journey into the mountains.
• Qin Tianqing became absorbed in thought about the Taoist Grounds, while Luo Bin watched over him as they descended.
• Luo Bin opened the wooden box Mao Yousan had given him and examined the talisman inside, which drew Luo Xianshen's attention.
• Luo Bin received a text from Mao Yousan, then spotted a glowing Taoist standing in the stream and felt his consciousness falter.

Luo Bin agreed to return to Primordial Calculation Mountain Gate after the Blackblood Vine appeared, then worried that Mao Yousan might be attempting a dangerous challenge of his own. After traveling to Immortal Cave Mountain, Luo Bin sensed that its feng shui was obscured and prepared to enter with the group after dark.

• The Female-One Patriarch subdued the Blackblood Vine, and Luo Bin agreed to return to Primordial Calculation Mountain Gate to investigate Heaven-Veiling Objects.
• Luo Bin read Mao Yousan's message about entering seclusion and worried that his master might pursue a perilous challenge despite the risks.
• Old Gong urged Luo Bin to focus on his own survival, and Luo Bin resolved that he could not afford to fail the people relying on him.
• Luo Bin studied the One Goodness Talisman during the journey but could not understand its Taoist Art.
• At Immortal Cave Mountain, Luo Bin used the Jade Star Qimen Compass to identify the mountain's Coiled Dragon Sand feng shui and warned that an invisible mist obscured it.
• Luo Xianshen proposed that the group wait until dark for Old Gong to protect them before they entered the mountain.

Luo Xianshen’s group planned to investigate Immortal Cave Mountain after learning that people and creatures could enter but not leave, while Old Gong warned them that multiple Plague Ghosts might be involved. Luo Bin cast a Primordial Calculation hexagram that foretold worsening darkness and danger on the mountain, and Qin Tianqing suspected Immortal Cave Mountain was under a Heaven Veil.

• Luo Xianshen mapped a route from the Immortal Ascension Taoist Grounds to Thunder-Peace Taoist Abbey and explained how the group would proceed.
• Old Gong warned that Lü Kan might have been taken over by a Plague Ghost and advised the group to stay together inside the ominous prison.
• Fourth Master Gray summoned nearby mountain rats, but they vanished after entering the mountain and did not respond again.
• Luo Xianshen concluded the Plague Ghost might have appeared, while Luo Bin used the six Real Person elders’ movements to cast a Primordial Calculation hexagram.
• Luo Bin interpreted the hexagram as foretelling an escalating eclipse, madness, and severe danger, and Qin Tianqing asked whether Immortal Cave Mountain was under a Heaven Veil.

As the group approached Immortal Cave Mountain, Luo Bin discovered that the hexagram contained a changing hexagram pointing to lake-wind great exceeding. A heaven-veiling black qi then engulfed them and began pulling them inside while devouring Old Gong’s ghost aura.

• Qin Tianqing warned that Lü Kan might be behind the danger at Immortal Cave Mountain and reviewed the many ghosts and monsters gathered there.
• Old Gong explained that the Eight-Fail Widow was Lü Kan’s woman and that Qin Weizi might have become three worms.
• Old Gong led the group toward the mountain and asked Luo Bin to explain the hexagram as they walked.
• Luo Bin calculated the changing hexagram as lake-wind great exceeding and realized the original reading held another meaning.
• Black qi surrounded the group, devoured Old Gong’s ghost aura, and began dragging everyone inside.
• Qin Tianqing grabbed Luo Bin and Si Yan and ordered everyone to hold on to one another.

Luo Bin and the others entered Immortal Cave Mountain inside Old Gong’s ghostly form, but the mountain’s Plague Ghost split the group apart and left Si Yan missing. Luo Bin, Qin Tianqing, and Xiang Ke headed toward the Immortal Ascension Taoist Grounds, wary that anyone on the mountain could be a manifestation of the Plague Ghost.

• Luo Bin interpreted the changed hexagram and warned the elders and disciples to proceed cautiously as Old Gong carried them toward the mountain.
• The Plague Ghost dragged Old Gong into the mountain, and the darkness separated Luo Bin, Qin Tianqing, and Xiang Ke from Si Yan and the others.
• Xiang Ke grabbed a Green-Robed Disciple, whose arm was bitten off, while Qin Tianqing suffered bite wounds trying to fend off the ghosts.
• Luo Bin concluded that the Plague Ghost had split them up and warned that it could disguise itself as people, while Qin Tianqing urged them to find Si Yan.
• Xiang Ke directed them toward the Immortal Ascension Taoist Grounds, and Luo Bin brought out the Daylight Hexagram flower lantern as they set off together.

Luo Bin and his companions encountered He Lin'an on Immortal Cave Mountain and learned that two Plague Ghosts had fought, trapping everyone on the mountain. As He Lin'an led them toward the Immortal Ascension Taoist Grounds, Luo Bin detected something wrong with him and brought him down with a gu.

• Qin Tianqing explained that the Plague Ghost could walk in daylight and assume the forms of those it had eaten.
• Luo Bin and Qin Tianqing discovered that a formation was turning their route back down the mountain, and they met He Lin'an after Miao Zi sensed him nearby.
• He Lin'an described how a second Plague Ghost had found and broken the seal, fought the sealed Plague Ghost, and left the mountain isolated.
• He Lin'an led Luo Bin, Qin Tianqing, Xiang Ke, and Miao Zi toward the Immortal Ascension Taoist Grounds while explaining that the grounds had been keeping visitors away from the roaming Plague Ghost.
• Luo Bin revealed that he had placed a gu on He Lin'an, and the centipede gu emerged as He Lin'an collapsed; Luo Bin then used Iron Severing Nail Slash.

Luo Bin detected that He Lin'an and the Immortal Ascension Taoist Grounds might be dangerous, then uncovered a ghostly reed-rat spy and suspected Qi Hua was watching them. A woman emerged from hiding, challenged Luo Bin’s suspicion, and caught Fourth Master Gray crawling at her waist.

• Luo Bin used the black-gold toad to knock He Lin'an unconscious after it sensed danger from him, and explained that questioning him might ruin his usefulness as a guide.
• Qin Tianqing searched He Lin'an and found only ordinary ritual artifacts, while Xiang Ke warned that trouble at the Immortal Ascension Taoist Grounds could affect everyone there.
• The black-gold toad exposed and destroyed a bamboo rat and its soul wanderer, prompting Xiang Ke to recognize Qi Hua’s Reed Arts.
• Luo Bin stopped Xiang Ke from following the reed rats, suspecting Qi Hua was spying and that their apparent invitation to the Taoist Grounds might be a trap.
• A woman emerged from the bushes and criticized Luo Bin for being overly cautious, then pulled Fourth Master Gray from her waist and threatened him.

Luo Bin and his companions encountered Hua Qi, who explained that people at the Immortal Ascension Taoist Grounds had suffered soul seizure and that Immortal Cave Mountain had been in trouble for months. She led them to a hidden cave to avoid danger, where Luo Bin spotted three Black Rakshasas passing nearby.

• Hua Qi dismissed Fourth Master Gray, then told Luo Bin that He Lin'an had undergone soul seizure and that the Ghost Dean and Lü Kan had disappeared.
• The black-gold toad stopped reacting to Hua Qi, and Qin Tianqing recognized that Luo Bin’s suspicion of her had been a misunderstanding.
• Hua Qi sent her reed rats into the woods, and Xiang Ke bound He Lin'an before the group followed her farther up the mountain.
• Hua Qi warned them of approaching danger and guided them into a concealed cave, where she surrounded the entrance with bamboo creatures.
• Luo Bin saw three dark-skinned figures in vermilion robes pass outside and recognized them as Black Rakshasas.