Chapter Summaries

After failing Foundation Establishment, Li Yu lost his position as head senior brother of Hanging Moon Peak’s outer disciples and faced open disrespect from his former juniors. He arranged for Yin Ya to deal with Wang Xiang, who had challenged him.

• Wang Xiang and Xu Yao spread the rumor that Li Yu had failed Foundation Establishment, prompting disciples to mock him and regret the favors they had given him.
• Wu Su arrived with Li Yu and confirmed the failure by removing him as head senior brother and appointing Zeng Yang in his place.
• Zeng Yang claimed Li Yu’s former seat, and Wang Xiang demanded that Li Yu give up his own seat; Li Yu swallowed his anger and yielded.
• After Wu Su’s lecture, Li Yu privately spoke with Yin Ya, pointed out Wang Xiang, and secured Yin Ya’s agreement to help deal with him.

After Li Yu’s failed Foundation Establishment attempt, his allies and lineage abandoned him, leaving him injured, impoverished, and stripped of his branch’s spiritual vein. As he searched his returned belongings for anything to sell, he found a strange tablet.

• Zeng Yang and Yin Ya competed for the outer sect senior brother position, while Yin Ya went after Wang Xiang.
• Li Yu asked Yin Ya to prepare gifts so he could visit Elder Ge, then received a letter from Li Hun announcing that the lineage had cut off his support and would confiscate Heaven-Questioning Pavilion.
• Li Hun revealed he had reached Foundation Establishment and claimed Heaven-Questioning Pavilion’s spiritual vein for himself, causing Li Yu to cough blood and collapse.
• Li Hun left Li Yu’s childhood belongings and a hundred spirit stones before departing with Li Dong; Li Yu pretended to be unconscious, then vowed revenge despite knowing he was too weak to act.
• Li Yu searched the belongings for something to sell and discovered a rectangular tablet.

Li Yu discovered that a mysterious tablet hidden in the Heaven-Questioning Pavilion activated when shown Jiang Taiyi’s portrait. He explored its icons and encountered a strange broadcast selling powerful flying swords.

• Li Yu recalled the tablet’s history and found Jiang Taiyi’s portrait among the objects in the Heaven-Questioning Pavilion.
• Li Yu’s sigh triggered the tablet, which announced successful facial recognition and displayed glowing icons after he showed it Jiang Taiyi’s portrait.
• Li Yu touched the first icon and found a blank writing page, but his question to Patriarch Taiyi received no answer.
• Li Yu opened the second icon and watched a sword-haired girl livestream a Dao Void Sword demonstration and promote its sale.

Li Yu explored the Star River platform and discovered that it offered powerful treasures, livestreams, and medical advice far beyond anything he knew. After a healer sent him a prescription he could not use, she gave him the Purple Glow Art as a slower way to recover from his failed foundation establishment.

• Li Yu watched a sword-hairpin girl’s sales stream, followed her after she ended it, and then watched a mature cultivator perform the Heavenly Immortal Dance.
• Li Yu spent the night exploring Star River, where he saw rare treasures and a primordial spirit cultivator fishing in the Star Sea.
• Li Yu joined Ji Ganlin’s medical consultation stream and explained that he had injured himself after failing foundation establishment.
• Ji Ganlin sent Li Yu a Golden Crow Pill prescription, but he could not identify its ingredients.
• Ji Ganlin sent Li Yu the Purple Glow Art as an alternative, and then disconnected the call.

Li Yu studied the Purple Glow Art and learned from a Galaxy Alliance streamer how modern cultivation realms differed from the ancient system. He discovered that Jiang Taiyi’s account had passed to him with 128 star coins, reinforcing his belief that he was Taiyi’s chosen successor.

• Li Yu read the Purple Glow Art’s outline and decided his Taiyi Scripture was compatible with it, then began studying the art in earnest.
• Li Yu entered Xue Feng’s stream to ask about absorbing great sun ascendant purple qi and the meaning of the Purple Mansion.
• Xue Feng explained that the Galaxy Alliance had divided the ancient cultivation realms into more manageable stages and described the modern paths to Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, and beyond.
• Li Yu learned that Nascent Soul Formation was a major threshold, Primordial Spirit cultivators were powerful, and Mahayana cultivators existed above them.
• Xue Feng ended the stream and directed Li Yu to his shop, where Li Yu saw his username and a balance of 128 star coins on Jiang Taiyi’s account.

Li Yu studied and practiced the Purple Glow Art, which began healing his damaged meridians and calming his unruly true essence. After receiving Yin Ya’s message that Wang Xiang had been captured alive, Li Yu chose not to respond and later met Yin Ya, whose jealousy grew when he saw Li Yu’s improved condition.

• Li Yu studied Xue Feng’s teachings and Ji Ganlin’s instructions before practicing the Purple Glow Art at dusk.
• The Purple Glow Art calmed Li Yu’s true essence, cleared his damaged meridians, and expelled stagnant blood, giving him hope of recovering.
• Li Yu considered whether a seed descended from a Creation Divine Lotus might help him achieve immortal path foundation establishment.
• Yin Ya sent Li Yu a message saying he had captured Wang Xiang alive, and Li Yu burned it without replying.
• Three days later, Yin Ya brought gifts to Li Yu and was surprised by his recovery, then grew resentful as he wondered whether the Yiyang Li clan had helped him.

After his failed Foundation Establishment, Li Yu accompanied Yin Ya to seek Ge Jin’s help with the position of eldest senior brother of the outer disciples. Ge Jin assigned them a joint mission because she was secretly watching Yin Ya, and Li Yu tried to withdraw as they left the mountain.

• Song Lingxi told Li Yu and Yin Ya that Ge Jin had guests, and Li Yu learned that the visitors were Li Hun and Li Dong seeking support for Li Dong.
• Ge Jin accepted Yin Ya’s spirit bamboo gift and offered them a mission, promising to support Yin Ya’s bid and secure some Foundation Establishment resources as a reward.
• Li Hun tried to send Li Yu away, but Ge Jin’s icy response made him apologize and leave with Li Dong.
• Ge Jin told Song Lingxi that Yin Ya was a piece placed by a great cultivator, and that Li Yu might benefit by helping him while he was still obscure.
• At the foot of the mountain, Li Yu cited his unhealed injuries and the single mission reward as reasons to withdraw from the mission.

Li Yu and Yin Ya discovered that the Five Lotus Sect had sent them a covert invitation to join a rebellion against the Immortal Zhou Dynasty. Li Yu chose to stay out of it, while Yin Ya kept the scroll and considered pursuing the opportunity.

• Li Yu and Yin Ya read a mission scroll inviting the Ten Great Sects to gather at Kunlun and discuss overthrowing the Immortal Zhou Dynasty.
• Li Yu realized the scroll lacked sect markings, allowing the Five Lotus Sect to deny responsibility if the rebellion failed.
• Li Yu advised Yin Ya to travel to Kunlun under the cover of an herb-gathering mission and to keep the scroll.
• Yin Ya decided to consult his close brothers, while Li Yu left and said they no longer owed each other anything.
• Ge Jin and Song Lingxi learned of their choices and judged Li Yu's decision as timid.

Li Yu sought missions that would let him leave the Five Lotus Sect and avoid being drawn into the Heavenly Change Sect’s rebellion, while also trying to access more of the Taiyi Scripture. He registered missions to investigate stolen Sword Embryos and gather pearls, then learned that the complete scripture was difficult to obtain before Ma Song offered him a special edition.

• Li Yu decided to leave the sect for a long-term mission after fearing the Five Lotus Sect might send him to the rebellion’s front lines.
• At the External Affairs Department, Li Yu registered a mission to investigate stolen Sword Embryos in the Gentleman Kingdom and a pearl-gathering mission in the Zhao Kingdom.
• Li Yu learned from the registration clerk that many disciples had recently accepted pearl-gathering missions, possibly hoping to find a supreme-grade Spirit Pearl.
• Li Yu asked Ma Song at the Secret Arts Bureau about accessing more of the Taiyi Scripture, but learned that higher portions required an elder’s approval or a higher cultivation level.
• As Li Yu prepared to leave, Ma Song stopped him and offered an edition of the Taiyi Scripture reserved for inner sect True Disciples.

Li Yu learned that the True Disciple Taiyi Scripture could let him reach the twelfth layer of Qi Refinement, but Ma Song offered it for 950 spirit stones, far beyond his means. After preparing to travel to Zhao, Li Yu returned to find Song Lingxi waiting with news that Yin Ya had gone to Kunlun and urged him to follow, calling it his last chance to establish his foundation.

• Ma Song told Li Yu that the True Disciple Taiyi Scripture had twelve Qi Refinement layers and explained how cultivation at higher layers improved a cultivator’s future prospects.
• Ma Song offered to arrange the Scripture for 950 spirit stones, and Li Yu said he would try to borrow the money before leaving with Ma Song’s communication talisman.
• Li Yu booked passage on a Five Lotus Sect flying vessel to Zhao and bought pills, talismans, and other supplies.
• Song Lingxi told Li Yu that Yin Ya had left the sect alone for Kunlun.
• Song Lingxi urged Li Yu to follow Yin Ya to Kunlun, saying he might change his fate and that this was his last chance to establish his foundation.

After Song Lingxi left in anger, Li Yu studied the Purple Glow Art with Xue Feng and learned how the Galaxy Alliance’s cultivation realms differed from those of the Eastern Lands. He began studying basic educational material and discovered that the Galaxy Platform offered countless Primordial Spirit cultivation arts.

• Li Yu refused Song Lingxi’s offer to help him pursue Foundation Establishment, and she left after calling him rotten wood.
• Li Yu asked Xue Feng to explain the Purple Glow Art’s realms, learning that Whirling Illumination could prevent true essence from running out of control during Foundation Establishment.
• Xue Feng advised Li Yu to study introductory material, and Li Yu searched the Galaxy Platform for free educational videos.
• Li Yu spent his days cultivating, practicing Body Tempering, and studying Galaxy Alliance fundamentals while investigating the twelfth level of Qi Refinement.
• Li Yu searched for Galaxy Alliance cultivation arts and found thousands of Primordial Spirit cultivation arts available on the platform.

Li Yu explored heaven-tier Primordial Spirit cultivation arts on the Galaxy Platform and learned that they required proven legacies and extraordinary foundations. Discouraged by the barriers, he searched for Taiyi and found a local file titled “True Explanation of Taiyi.”

• Li Yu filtered the Galaxy Platform for heaven-tier Primordial Spirit arts after learning that each had multiple successful Spirit Transformation practitioners.
• Li Yu tried to read the Ancient Desolate Dao Body’s outline, learned it could grant a Mahayana immortal body, and decided his cultivation was too weak to attempt it.
• Li Yu read about Thousand Mechanisms Evolution’s demanding formation requirements and its path through Grand Evolution Academy.
• Li Yu examined Starry Heavens Sword River, recalled the sword-hairpin streamer, and learned that the art required sword Dao immortal bones and a sword heart.
• Li Yu concluded that heaven-tier arts generally required immortal path foundation establishment, then searched for Taiyi and received a prompt to open the local file “True Explanation of Taiyi.”

Li Yu discovered Jiang Taiyi’s Taiyi True Explanation on the tablet and learned how it could help him establish his foundation. He decided to cultivate the art, then spent a month healing his injuries until they were fully recovered.

• Li Yu made offerings to Jiang Taiyi, opened the tablet’s local file, and found the Taiyi True Explanation.
• Li Yu learned that Jiang Taiyi had planned to use a Five Divine Lotus to create Taiyi Immortal Qi and remedy his Dao foundation.
• Li Yu read that Jiang Taiyi had simplified the Taiyi Divine Chapter into an art suited to ordinary cultivators and decided to replace the Taiyi Scripture with the Taiyi True Explanation.
• Li Yu cultivated the Purple Glow Art with a medicinal pill for a month and fully healed his injuries.

Li Yu left the Five Lotus Sect for the Zhao Kingdom after recovering and receiving Jiang Taiyi's Heavenly Book legacy, hoping to pursue cultivation away from the Eastern Lands' turmoil. On the flying ship, he encountered Xu Yao and realized her aunt was Xu Ying, who had been in seclusion to attempt core formation.

• Li Yu received a departure notice from the Transport and Herding Bureau, packed up his cave abode, and asked Li Dong to look after it.
• Li Dong brought Li Ke and Li Ling to see Li Yu, then gave him twenty spirit stones when he learned Li Yu was heading to the Zhao Kingdom.
• Li Yu practiced the Purple Glow Art, collected his belongings, and left Hanging Moon Peak without telling Song Lingxi goodbye.
• Li Yu boarded the flying ship to the Zhao Kingdom and discovered Xu Yao was traveling there with her aunt, Xu Ying.
• Li Yu spotted Xu Ying seated near the front of the flying ship and wondered whether she had succeeded in her attempt to form a core.

Li Yu traveled to the Zhao Kingdom aboard a Five Lotus Sect flying ship, where he encountered Xu Ying, who mocked his decision not to go to Kunlun. After seeing the Sun God Stone above Hao City, he learned that a passenger had been secretly watching him.

• Li Yu recalled how Ge Jin had made him Hanging Moon Peak's outer sect senior brother over Ying Ruomu, and feared Xu Ying might resent him for it.
• Li Yu greeted Xu Ying aboard the flying ship, and she asked why he had not gone to Kunlun before deriding him as unworthy.
• The flying ship reached Hao City, where Li Yu saw the Sun God Stone, the Rizhao Hao Clan's ancient divine artifact.
• Xu Ying and Xu Yao disembarked and met Ying Ruomu, who gave Li Yu an icy smile before leaving with them.
• Xu Yao warned Li Yu that a passenger seated behind him had been secretly watching him since boarding.

Li Yu traveled toward Hao City while suspecting an enemy had followed him, and Wang Xiang ambushed him on the way. Li Yu killed Wang Xiang with an Yi Firmament Lightning Talisman and learned Yin Ya had betrayed him.

• Li Yu recognized a suspicious passenger from the flying ship and prepared his Yi Firmament Lightning Talisman while heading toward Hao City with Wandering Yi Void Steps.
• Wang Xiang followed Li Yu from the ship and blocked him in a grove near the harbor.
• Wang Xiang revealed that Yin Ya had used him to win Zeng Yang's favor and attacked Li Yu with seven throwing knives.
• Li Yu evaded Wang Xiang's knives with Wandering Yi Void Steps, then blasted through them and killed Wang Xiang with the lightning talisman.

Li Yu refined Wang Xiang’s face-concealing mask, found evidence linking Wang Xiang to Zeng Yang, and reported to the Five Lotus Sect office in Hao City. He learned about the pearl grounds, travel to the Southern Lands, and local lodging options, while Ying Ruomu searched for him at the same office without finding him.

• Li Yu removed Wang Xiang’s transparent mask and later used Micro-Yi Qi Control to refine it for himself.
• Li Yu searched Wang Xiang’s storage pouch, found the Lanshan Record of Spirit Objects, and grew more certain that Zeng Yang had sent Wang Xiang.
• Li Yu tested the Ordinary Mask, then visited the Five Lotus Sect office in Hao City and received a token for the pearl-harvesting grounds.
• A ponytailed junior sister told Li Yu about a recently discovered supreme-grade spirit pearl, options for traveling to the Southern Lands, and lodging in Lanshan Commandery.
• Li Yu decided to avoid Lanshan because of Zeng Yang’s clan and sought a place to rent in Hao City.
• Ying Ruomu arrived at the office with Li Yu’s portrait, but the branch disciples said they had not seen him.

Li Yu searched for affordable adult education on the Galaxy Platform and enrolled in Great Evolution Academy's program, hoping to use its resources even if he never graduated. He considered streaming pearl gathering to earn Star Coins and submitted his personal information, listing his address as Mountain Sea, Eastern Lands, Zhao Kingdom.

• Ying Ruomu asked cultivators to notify him if they saw Li Yu, then left as people gathered around him with offers and requests.
• Li Yu searched the Galaxy Platform for adult education, compared schools, and found that Great Evolution Academy required perfect scores to graduate and had a graduation rate below one percent.
• Li Yu paid 99 Star Coins to enroll, leaving his account with 19.1 Star Coins.
• Li Yu considered becoming a streamer and decided pearl gathering might attract viewers because it had little competition.
• Li Yu filled out Great Evolution Academy's enrollment form with his real details and entered his address as Mountain Sea, Eastern Lands, Zhao Kingdom.

Li Yu’s application to the Great Evolution Academy was approved, with adult primary school classes scheduled to begin in a month. While searching for safe, affordable housing in the Zhao Kingdom, he learned that Ying Ruomu was looking for him and discovered a cheap room in Shijiu Township.

• Li Yu signed the Great Evolution Academy agreement, passed its information check, and learned that classes would start in a month with online textbooks available for study.
• Li Yu studied and cultivated while searching for housing, but the affordable options he found were cramped or located too far from Hao City to feel safe.
• At the Five Lotus Sect office, Li Yu heard from Xiong Meng that Ying Ruomu was recruiting for another sea voyage, and he decided to avoid returning to the office.
• Li Yu explained that he wanted safer housing, and Xiong Meng described the protection and costs of Hao City and its outer townships.
• Xiong Meng pointed Li Yu to a room in Shijiu Township for fifteen Spirit Stones a month, and Li Yu asked to see it in person.

Li Yu moved into a rented room in Cuckoo Dove Village and learned that Shi Sang had been pregnant for three years while raising her daughter Jin Ling alone. After refusing to promise cultivation lessons to a child without spiritual roots, he settled in and used Jiang Taiyi’s notes to study the incomplete Supreme Unity Scripture.

• Xiong Meng brought Li Yu to Cuckoo Dove Village and explained that Jin Guang had abandoned his pregnant wife and daughter three years earlier after claiming a dream had revealed his immortal past.
• Shi Sang arrived with Jin Ling, and Xiong Meng told Li Yu that Shi Sang’s pregnancy had not ended in three years.
• Shi Sang offered to waive the rent if Li Yu taught Jin Ling to cultivate, but Li Yu declined after learning she had no spiritual roots.
• Li Yu rented a bare room from Shi Sang, then learned that the other room belonged to the village teacher and that Shi Sang and Jin Ling raised silkworms.
• Li Yu sealed his room against spying and sound, then studied Jiang Taiyi’s explanation of Supreme Unity Starlight and began cultivating.