Chapter Summaries

Zhang Yuan pursued a small, elusive target through the underground passages and killed a group of Yan Clan warriors along the way. He was ambushed by a master of Hidden Weapons, but pressed through the attack and struck at the man as he prepared to use a black sphere.

• Zhang Yuan entered an underground burial chamber and killed more than a dozen Yan Clan warriors who had been resting there.
• Zhang Yuan inspected the Treasure Map, found the target farther away, and continued pursuing it through the maze-like passages with the power of the Golden Grasshopper.
• After repeated failed attempts to intercept the target, Zhang Yuan turned into a side passage and was ambushed by a group firing Three-Inch Iron Needles.
• Zhang Yuan used a lion's roar to sweep away the needles, then fought the group’s stern middle-aged leader as the man attacked with unpredictable throwing knives.
• When the middle-aged man took out a pitch-black sphere, Zhang Yuan surged forward with sixteenfold agility and engulfed him in the Taotie Saber’s Blood Fiend Qi.

Zhang Yuan killed a group of warriors and a young man from the Duanmu Clan after turning their explosive black ball against them. He discovered the young man’s Jade Token could track a distant target, but shattered it and disappeared.

• Zhang Yuan killed the middle-aged warrior and seized the black ball before the man could use it.
• Zhang Yuan hurled the black ball at the fleeing warriors, and its explosion devastated the passage and killed or injured the group.
• Zhang Yuan finished off the survivors and killed the young man, who claimed the Duanmu Clan had taken control of the Xia Ruins and stationed twelve Venerable Ones there.
• Zhang Yuan picked up the young man’s Jade Token and sensed it was tracking a distant, moving target.
• Zhang Yuan broke the Jade Token and vanished.

Zhang Yuan discovered that the tiny Golden Silk Net was a Profound Artifact and learned to wield it. After realizing the Treasure Map’s target was leading him in circles, he smashed through the maze walls and threw the net at the target, leaving its capture unresolved.

• Zhang Yuan found a tiny Golden Silk Net on the Fourth Order hidden weapon expert’s corpse and refined it with his blood essence.
• Zhang Yuan tested the Golden Silk Net and learned that it could expand, pierce stone, and drag heavy objects when infused with true essence.
• Zhang Yuan checked the Treasure Map and realized the target had been circling nearby to lead him astray.
• Zhang Yuan activated Black Giant Ant Power and smashed through four walls to reach the target’s location.
• Zhang Yuan threw the Golden Silk Net toward the target after the Fifth Level Divine Nest locked onto it.

Zhang Yuan captured a Brocade Fur Rat and added it as his Sixth Host Body, gaining a one-cubic-meter Storage Space. After treating the rat’s poisonous bite, he began investing Source Essence in his new host body.

• Zhang Yuan trapped a Brocade Fur Rat in the Golden Silk Net, caught it after it escaped, and endured its bite to absorb it into the Divine Nest.
• The Divine Nest gained a Level 1 Brocade Fur Rat host body with a one-cubic-meter Storage Space.
• Zhang Yuan cut away the bitten flesh and circulated his true essence to control the toxin, leaving his left hand temporarily crippled and his vitality dangerously low.
• Zhang Yuan discovered a mysterious sphere inside the Storage Space and tested how to store and retrieve items.
• Zhang Yuan decided the space was too small and poured ten thousand points of Source Essence into the Brocade Fur Rat.

Zhang Yuan escaped Xia Ruins, salvaged a fortune from shipwrecks in Great Dream Marsh, and continued north toward Upper Scene Heaven. He learned that Hui Zhi had ascended into immortality and left Xia Ruins grieving, while the chapter ended with Zhang Yuan traveling in a caravan and reflecting on the limits of the Source Essence he had spent raising the Brocade Fur Rat.

• Zhang Yuan escaped the underground passage in Xia Ruins after killing a squad of Yan Clan warriors, and the city launched a search that continued for three days after he left.
• Zhang Yuan returned to Great Dream Marsh and used his Storage Space to carry away hundreds of thousands of taels in gold and silver from shipwrecks.
• Zhang Yuan passed Xia Ruins without entering, then heard twelve tolls from the Heavenly King Hall and realized Hui Zhi had ascended into immortality.
• Zhang Yuan suppressed his urge to attack the Duanmu Clan's Celestials, recognizing that he was not yet strong enough to fight them, and resolved to continue his journey.
• One month later, Zhang Yuan traveled with a caravan toward West Shuo City and Upper Scene Heaven, having raised the Brocade Fur Rat to Level 3.
• Zhang Yuan reviewed his status and recalled that spending more than twenty-two thousand points of Source Essence had not been enough to raise the Brocade Fur Rat to Level 5.

Zhang Yuan spent most of his Source Essence upgrading the Brocade Fur Rat, greatly expanding its Storage Space, then traveled with a merchant caravan and kept to himself. At camp, he cooked a pheasant and offered a drumstick to a little girl from his carriage.

• Zhang Yuan invested more than ten thousand points of Source Essence in the Brocade Fur Rat, raising it to Level 3 and filling its twenty-seven-cubic-unit Storage Space with supplies and treasures.
• During the journey, Zhang Yuan ignored the middle-aged merchant and the white-haired elder, despite their repeated attempts to speak with him.
• When the caravan stopped to camp for the night, Zhang Yuan left the carriage and settled beside a fire.
• Zhang Yuan caught a pheasant with his bow, cooked it in a mud shell, and drew the attention of the other travelers with its aroma.
• Zhang Yuan gave a roasted drumstick to the little girl who had been watching the food hungrily.

Zhang Yuan’s caravan was stopped by Gu Yuan Zhao Family riders hunting a traitor, and a hidden Fourth Order expert fled with his grandson. After a traveler falsely implicated Zhang Yuan, he revealed his identity and Upper Scene Heaven Guidance Token, but the scar-faced rider demanded to inspect it.

• Zhang Yuan refused to sell the middle-aged man chicken, then heard Gu Yuan Zhao Family riders announce their search for a traitor.
• The caravan leader negotiated with the riders, who dismounted and searched the wagons and travelers.
• The white-haired old man fled into the forest with his grandson, and the Zhao Family’s Fifth Order expert chased them.
• When the riders confronted the travelers, the middle-aged man falsely accused Zhang Yuan of associating with the fugitives.
• Zhang Yuan presented his Dragon Pattern Token and identified himself as a Guardian Deity General of the Xia Ruins Heavenly King Hall.
• The scar-faced rider questioned Zhang Yuan’s token and reached to take it, but Zhang Yuan withdrew it.

Zhang Yuan used his fifth-tier strength to stop a Zhao Family knight from taking his Upper Scene Heaven Guidance Token, then accepted Zhao Zhengping’s apology and horse. After dealing with the man who had pursued the Zhao Family, Zhang Yuan left the caravan alone for West Shuo City.

• The scar-faced knight and the Zhao Family martial artists surrounded Zhang Yuan, but his fifth-tier aura frightened them into submission.
• The scar-faced knight slapped himself and begged Zhang Yuan for mercy, while Zhao Zhengping arrived and apologized on behalf of the Gu Yuan Zhao Family.
• Zhao Zhengping called off the dispute and later gave Zhang Yuan his horse as a conciliatory gift before departing with his men.
• Zhang Yuan seized the cowering middle-aged man and disappeared into the forest, then returned alone to the campfire.
• The next morning, Zhang Yuan left the caravan on Zhao Zhengping’s horse and headed toward West Shuo City.

Zhang Yuan reached West Shuo City, rested and explored before following a map into the mountains to Upper Scene Heaven. At its gate, a young Daoist demanded his token and insulted his rank, but a woman’s voice challenged the Daoist’s claim.

• Zhang Yuan arrived in West Shuo City, exchanged his gold and silver for bills, and spent three days exploring the city.
• Zhang Yuan followed the map Hui Zhi had given him and rode into the mountains toward Upper Scene Heaven.
• Zhang Yuan dismounted at the marked stone and reached the archway of Upper Purity Bright Yang Grotto Heaven.
• A young Daoist ordered Zhang Yuan to leave, then tried to inspect his Dragon Pattern Token; Zhang Yuan refused and said the Daoist was unqualified to verify it.
• The young Daoist insulted Zhang Yuan and told him to crawl back, but a woman’s voice said she would ask her Master whether a Guardian Deity General was unfit even to sweep the floors.

Zhang Yuan entered Upper Scene Heaven with help from Su Jingyao, who secured his registration and explained how the sacred land was organized. He received an Inner Disciple’s treatment for up to five years, but had no Dao Merit and would have to earn his place in the Martial Pavilion.

• Su Jingyao intervened when the gate-duty Daoist tried to take Zhang Yuan’s Upper Purity Guidance Token, then accepted his letter and pearl to handle his registration.
• Su Jingyao returned with approval for Zhang Yuan’s recommendation and guided him through Upper Scene Heaven’s mountain gate, while his horse stayed behind.
• Su Jingyao took Zhang Yuan to register, exchanged his Guidance Token for an Identity Token, and explained that his middle-grade token granted him Inner Disciple treatment for up to five years.
• Su Jingyao explained that Zhang Yuan, an outside martial cultivator, could join only the Martial Pavilion and would need Dao Merit to access resources and techniques.
• Zhang Yuan learned that he had no Dao Merit and would have to stay at Approaching Immortals Hamlet until he earned a place within the mountain gate.

Zhang Yuan continued his martial training at Upper Scene Heaven, learning from Wei Long and spending Dao Merit on private lessons. After class, he went to the Merit Hall to find a task that could replenish his dwindling balance.

• Zhang Yuan woke in Approaching Immortals Hamlet, enjoyed breakfast along its main street, and entered Upper Scene Heaven as usual.
• Zhang Yuan attended Wei Long’s lesson on circulating qi through the Eight Extraordinary Meridians and reflected on how much the instruction was strengthening his foundation.
• Zhang Yuan spent five Dao Merit each day on private lessons, drawing down the fifty Dao Merit granted by his Upper Purity Guidance Token.
• Zhang Yuan went to the Merit Hall and searched its task racks for a suitable assignment as other martial artists chose plaques around him.

Zhang Yuan learned about the dangers of the Ink Abyss and agreed to join Xiao Hong’s team for Dao Merit tasks. After claiming six Superior Grade Evil Suppression Talismans, Zhang Yuan kept four and gave Xiao Hong two to test his character.

• Zhang Yuan carefully studied the Merit Hall’s tasks before Xiao Hong approached him and invited him to join a team exploring the Ink Abyss.
• Xiao Hong explained that the Ink Abyss was a perilous canyon filled with strange creatures and treasures, where most Upper Scene Heaven Dao Merit tasks took place.
• Xiao Hong revealed that his team needed another member after one person died and another was injured, and that new arrivals could claim three Superior Grade Evil Suppression Talismans.
• Zhang Yuan applied for the talismans and received six, likely because of his former Upper Purity Guidance Token.
• Zhang Yuan agreed to join Xiao Hong’s team, kept four talismans, and handed Xiao Hong two to gauge his character.

Zhang Yuan joined Xiao Hong’s team and traveled with them into Ink Abyss, where he began exploring the dangerous canyon alongside his new companions. The team descended into its depths as the roars of unknown Ferocious Beasts sounded nearby.

• Xiao Hong accepted Zhang Yuan’s Evil Suppression Talismans and entered a Dao Contract with him.
• Three days later, Zhang Yuan met Xiao Hong, Chen Ziyi, Mu Feifei, and Zhang Feihu, and Xiao Hong introduced the team’s roles and abilities.
• Xiao Hong asked about Zhang Yuan’s skills, and Zhang Yuan said his archery and saber techniques were passable.
• Xiao Hong led the team on a difficult journey to Ink Abyss, where Zhang Yuan saw the vast canyon for the first time.
• The team descended through mist and unfamiliar vegetation into a deeper stretch of the canyon as unknown Ferocious Beasts roared in the distance.

Zhang Yuan impressed his Ink Abyss teammates with his archery and careful conduct before Mu Feifei’s Treasure Seeking Rat led them to a valuable Seven-Leaf Spirit Ganoderma. Xiao Hong warned the team to watch for a guardian, and Zhang Yuan suspected the discovery was a benefit for newcomers.

• Zhang Yuan killed a Black Scale Serpent with one arrow, and Mu Feifei harvested its valuable gallbladder.
• Xiao Hong and the others praised Zhang Yuan’s archery, while Zhang Yuan appreciated the team’s skill and reliability.
• Mu Feifei’s Treasure Seeking Rat detected a treasure and guided the team to a Seven-Leaf Spirit Ganoderma.
• Xiao Hong warned everyone that the ganoderma might be guarded by a Ferocious Beast or strange entity.
• Zhang Yuan regarded the ganoderma as a possible benefit for newcomers.

Xiao Hong and the others exposed and killed a Mu Xu Dragon that had used a Seven-Leaf Spirit Ganoderma as bait. After collecting the monster’s valuable materials, Xiao Hong praised Zhang Yuan’s strength and decided he wanted him on his team.

• Chen Ziyi struck the disguised tree with sword qi while Xiao Hong snatched the Seven-Leaf Spirit Ganoderma away from the Mu Xu Dragon.
• Mu Feifei caught the Ganoderma and stripped its rotten wood as the Mu Xu Dragon revealed itself and attacked.
• Zhang Feihu struck the Mu Xu Dragon with his shield, Zhang Yuan shot its eye, and Chen Ziyi pierced its head, killing it.
• Mu Feifei harvested the Mu Xu Heart and other valuable materials from the Mu Xu Dragon.
• Xiao Hong praised Zhang Feihu and told Zhang Yuan he was the strongest newcomer he had led, deciding to keep him on the team.

After Zhang Yuan helped Xiao Hong’s team secure a rich haul in the Ink Abyss, the team earned Dao Merit and grew more renowned through repeated expeditions. Xiao Hong then announced that Xiao Yan wanted to cooperate with them to explore the Mo Yuan Black Dragon Pool, leaving Zhang Yuan troubled by the prospect.

• Xiao Hong ordered the team to retreat when a Mist Wolf howl warned them that a pack was nearby, and they escaped the Ink Abyss safely.
• Xiao Hong arranged for the team’s spoils to be exchanged and distributed, giving Zhang Yuan twelve of their seventy-three Dao Merit.
• Xiao Hong treated the team to a feast, and Zhang Yuan spent the next five days studying and cultivating before joining further Ink Abyss expeditions every five or six days.
• Xiao Hong’s team earned a reputation for its hauls, including a three-hundred-year-old Mo Ginseng that brought four hundred Dao Merit.
• Xiao Hong gathered the team and announced that Xiao Yan wanted to cooperate with them to explore the Mo Yuan Black Dragon Pool, prompting Zhang Yuan to worry.

Xiao Hong tried to persuade his team to join Xiao Yan’s command for an expedition into Black Dragon Pool, but Zhang Yuan and Mu Feifei declined and left. Xiao Hong, Chen Ziyi, and Zhang Feihu agreed to join Xiao Yan, disbanding their team.

• Xiao Hong explained Xiao Yan’s offer and the dangers and rewards of exploring Black Dragon Pool, and Chen Ziyi accepted the plan.
• Zhang Yuan refused to join Xiao Yan’s organization, saying he would enter Secluded Cultivation, and Xiao Hong let him leave.
• Mu Feifei said she had to return to Qian Capital and also left the team.
• Zhang Feihu agreed to follow Xiao Hong, so Xiao Hong, Chen Ziyi, and Zhang Feihu joined Xiao Yan while Zhang Yuan and Mu Feifei departed.

After Mu Feifei warned Zhang Yuan that Xiao Yan belonged to the powerful Xiao Clan, Zhang Yuan spent his Dao Merit studying and cultivating before returning to Ink Abyss alone. Using the Red-Eyed Crow to scout, he found a spirit grass and cautiously surveyed the area around it.

• Mu Feifei thanked Zhang Yuan for protecting her and warned him that Xiao Yan was a descendant of the Xiao Clan, one of Great Qian's Celestial Imperial Relative clans.
• Mu Feifei explained that Celestial Imperial Relatives wielded immense influence and that Upper Scene Heaven's rules did not apply inside Ink Abyss.
• Zhang Yuan continued studying and cultivating in the Martial Pavilion until he had spent all his Dao Merit, then prepared to enter Ink Abyss again alone.
• Zhang Yuan sent his Fifth Level Red-Eyed Crow ahead to scout Ink Abyss and used its vision to guide his exploration.
• Zhang Yuan spotted a spiritually radiant blade of grass, approached it, and carefully searched the area for hidden dangers before collecting it.

Zhang Yuan discovered a valuable Jade Heart Grass and revealed an exotic beast hiding beneath it. He fought back with his bow and saber, severed the beast’s tail, and left the battle unresolved.

• Zhang Yuan identified the Jade Heart Grass as at least fourth rank and suspected a powerful beast was buried beneath it.
• Zhang Yuan struck the ground with the Taotie Saber, drawing a hidden pangolin-like exotic beast out of the earth.
• Zhang Yuan evaded the beast’s venom and peppered it with six arrows, but its wounds healed and its scales corroded the arrows.
• The exotic beast attacked with its claws, tongue, and tail, while Zhang Yuan blocked its strikes with the Taotie Saber.
• Zhang Yuan used the Black Giant Ant and Jade Mantis enhancements to slash through the exotic beast’s tail.

Zhang Yuan killed a strange beast in Ink Abyss and harvested a Fifth Rank Jade Heart Grass, earning Dao Merit when he sold it at the Merit Hall. As he left, an overbearing martial artist tried to summon him to meet Xiao Yan, but Zhang Yuan refused and walked away.

• Zhang Yuan dodged the strange beast’s attacks, wounded it with the Taotie Saber, and killed it with Po Jun - Overlord Slash, gaining 853 Source Essence.
• Zhang Yuan dug up the Jade Heart Grass, including its long roots and the unripe fruit, and stored it safely.
• Zhang Yuan returned to the Martial Pavilion and sold the Fifth Rank Jade Heart Grass at the Merit Hall for 215 Dao Merit.
• A martial artist in fitted attire blocked Zhang Yuan and demanded that he meet his young master, Xiao Yan.
• Zhang Yuan refused the invitation, ordered the martial artist to get lost, and walked away.