Chapter Summaries

Ye Han emerged from a three-month meditation session with a much taller body, peak fourth-level Qi Refining Realm cultivation, and an exceptionally stable foundation. He suspected the Purple Cauldron could absorb pill potency and help him cultivate without the usual drawbacks, but he had no Spirit Stones or food and decided to go outside.

• Ye Han examined the Purple Cauldron and discovered that his cultivation had reached the peak of the fourth level of the Qi Refining Realm and that he had grown several inches taller.
• Ye Han saw autumn leaves outside his Cave Abode and estimated that he had meditated for about three months, then realized his senses had sharpened enough to notice tiny details and distant sounds.
• Ye Han found that his cultivation and foundation were stable, unlike after he had taken an inferior Qi Refining Pill.
• Ye Han recalled that the Purple Cauldron had absorbed the potency of Azure Phoenix Fairy's Qi Refining Pills and reasoned that it might let him cultivate without pill toxins, unstable foundations, or other pill drawbacks.
• Ye Han recognized that he had no Spirit Stones to buy more pills, found his stored food moldy, and considered going outside now that he looked like a youth.

Ye Han explored Seven Mysteries Peak, learned that the seven peaks would soon hold a trial awarding Foundation Establishment Pills, and wondered whether anyone would recognize him. The chapter ended when he spotted three people watching him and feared they had recognized him.

• Ye Han wandered around Seven Mysteries Peak, confident that his changed appearance and improved cultivation made him less recognizable.
• Ye Han looked over the workshops and market stalls but had no money to buy anything, so he planned to spend his silver on food.
• Ye Han overheard disciples discussing a joint trial in which the top performers would receive Foundation Establishment Pills.
• Ye Han considered the difficulty of reaching Foundation Establishment and the long lifespans cultivators could attain.
• Ye Han noticed three people staring at him and feared they had recognized him.

Ye Han encountered Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai, three disciples who seemed to be sizing him up and looking for a way to use him. They invited him to help with a mission in exchange for a share of the reward, and Ye Han asked what they needed him to do.

• Ye Han recognized Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai as the three disciples who had followed Zhang Qingshan and worried they might recognize him.
• Zhang Sanlei asked which martial uncle Ye Han studied under, and Ye Han claimed he had just arrived at Seven Mysteries Peak without naming his master.
• Ye Han suspected the three had helped spread word of his identity, but praised their supposed unity to keep them from openly threatening him.
• Zhang Sanlei asked about Ye Han's cultivation, and Ye Han said he was at the fourth layer of the qi refining realm.
• Wang Fulai and Li Zongqing offered Ye Han a share of a mission's reward and promised to look after him if he helped them.
• Ye Han asked how he could help the three senior brothers.

Ye Han agreed to help Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai lure a Demon Beast, though he suspected they had bad intentions and planned to avoid them. When he returned to his cave abode with food, he found Zhang Qingshan waiting there and noticed that his hand was injured.

• Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai pressured Ye Han into agreeing to help them trap a Demon Beast in Thousand Mountains Valley after promising him protection and a share of the reward.
• Ye Han told the three men he lived at the New Disciple Residence and planned to hide in his cave abode once they left.
• Ye Han bought a large supply of food at the Food Hall and headed back to his cave abode.
• Ye Han spotted Zhang Qingshan outside his cave abode and exclaimed when he saw that Zhang Qingshan's hand was injured.

Ye Han reunited with Zhang Qingshan, who returned from a dangerous mission badly injured and missing an arm. Zhang Qingshan praised Ye Han’s rapid progress, leaving Ye Han wondering whether his recent growth came from advancing his Blood Refining Art.

• Ye Han welcomed Zhang Qingshan back and noticed that he had lost an arm.
• Zhang Qingshan explained that enemies had ambushed him after his Blood-Dry Bird mission, leaving him badly wounded, and said he had returned to the cave more than ten days earlier.
• Ye Han realized that cultivating with the Purple Cauldron might have cut him off from the outside world and resolved to use it only somewhere safe.
• Zhang Qingshan urged Ye Han to avoid reckless risks and prioritize staying alive.
• Zhang Qingshan noticed Ye Han’s rapid cultivation progress and height gain, and Ye Han wondered whether his Blood Refining Art had advanced.

Ye Han explained his rapid cultivation to Zhang Qingshan and learned why Zhang planned to enter the Dark Forbidden Land despite his injuries. After Ye Han revealed Zhang Sanlei and the others’ baiting scheme, Zhang suspected they had also betrayed him, and Ye Han proposed setting them up.

• Ye Han told Zhang Qingshan that the Azure Phoenix Fairy had given him Qi Refining Pills, explaining his rapid cultivation.
• Zhang Qingshan asked to use Ye Han’s Cave Abode while recovering, then explained the Dark Forbidden Land selection and his determination to compete for a Foundation Establishment Pill.
• Ye Han warned Zhang about the danger of entering the Dark Forbidden Land while injured, but Zhang explained why he could not afford to miss the opportunity.
• Ye Han told Zhang Qingshan that Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai wanted him to serve as bait while hunting demonic beasts.
• Zhang Qingshan suspected the three had leaked his confidential mission whereabouts, and Ye Han suggested that they set the three up.

Ye Han urged Zhang Qingshan to help him take revenge on Zhang Sanlei and the others and seize the Demon Beast they sought, but Zhang Qingshan refused and advised him to focus on cultivation. The chapter left Ye Han asking how to learn spells after reaching the peak of the fourth level of the Qi Refining Realm, and Zhang Qingshan promising him a suitable Wood Element Spell.

• Ye Han argued that Zhang Qingshan should stop letting fellow disciples bully him and proposed taking the Demon Beast from Zhang Sanlei and the other two.
• Zhang Qingshan refused to involve Ye Han in his personal grudge and said they should focus on recovering and cultivating.
• Ye Han dropped the subject and told Zhang Qingshan that he had reached the peak of the fourth level of the Qi Refining Realm.
• Zhang Qingshan explained that Ye Han could begin learning basic incantations and hand seals.
• Zhang Qingshan offered to teach Ye Han a suitable Wood Element Spell after he learned the basics, and Ye Han eagerly asked what spell it was.

Ye Han learned the basic incantations and hand seals from Zhang Qingshan, making rapid progress despite the difficulty of using Spell Power to perform them. After Zhang Qingshan saw him create faint vortices of Spell Power, he said Ye Han was ready to learn a spell.

• Ye Han eagerly asked Zhang Qingshan to teach him spells, but Zhang Qingshan insisted he first learn basic incantations and hand seals.
• Zhang Qingshan taught Ye Han how incantations and hand seals worked together to mobilize spiritual energy and form spells.
• Ye Han learned more than a dozen incantations and hand seals in two days while Zhang Qingshan restored his cultivation with Healing Pills.
• Ye Han practiced in the Cave Abode's main hall and formed faint vortices of Spell Power in the air.
• Zhang Qingshan saw Ye Han's progress and said he could teach him a spell.

Zhang Qingshan taught Ye Han the Vine Soul Technique, and Ye Han began practicing it in his Cave Abode. Just as his attempts started showing progress, an angry familiar voice called for him outside, leaving him wary that someone had discovered his identity.

• Ye Han let Zhang Qingshan recover in his Cultivation Room, and Zhang Qingshan praised Ye Han's firm foundation and skill with hand seals and incantations.
• Zhang Qingshan gave Ye Han a manual for the Vine Soul Technique and explained how it could summon vines to attack and entangle enemies.
• Ye Han studied the manual and asked Zhang Qingshan to explain the parts he did not understand.
• Ye Han tried the technique three times; his vines briefly coiled around a heavy stone block before shattering, but he saw the block shift and continued practicing.
• After a little over two hours, an angry familiar voice called Ye Han out from beyond the Cave Abode, and Ye Han worried that someone had discovered who he was.

Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai confronted Ye Han at his cave abode, demanding his help against a Demon Beast, and Wang Fulai accidentally revealed their role in Zhang Qingshan’s injuries. Zhang Qingshan emerged and asked Ye Han to explain his plan for dealing with the three.

• Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai shouted at Ye Han’s cave abode, urging and threatening him to honor his promise to help them deal with a Demon Beast.
• Ye Han stayed inside and wondered who had revealed his identity, suspecting Jin Feng or the Fifth Elder.
• Wang Fulai threatened Ye Han by invoking Zhang Qingshan, then let slip that Zhang Qingshan had been left in a badly injured state.
• Ye Han realized Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai were likely responsible for Zhang Qingshan’s injuries.
• Zhang Qingshan left the Cultivation Room, dismissed Ye Han’s concern, and asked him to share his plan for dealing with the three.

Zhang Sanlei, Wang Fulai, and Li Zongqing visited Ye Han to persuade him to help with a task and leave Seven Mysteries Peak. Ye Han kept them at a distance, and Zhang Sanlei ended by asking whether he was ready to set off.

• Zhang Sanlei, Wang Fulai, and Li Zongqing waited outside Ye Han's Cave Abode, worried he would refuse to come out.
• Ye Han emerged, apologized politely, and pretended he had been waiting for the three to take him demon-beast hunting.
• The three concealed their anger and said they wanted Ye Han's help, offering benefits and denying that they meant to seize his Cave Abode.
• Ye Han acted relieved but made clear he would not let the three enter his Cave Abode.
• Zhang Sanlei said they had prepared everything and asked Ye Han whether he was ready to leave with them.

Ye Han mastered the Vine Soul Technique and discovered that the Purple Cauldron could instantly replenish his spell power. He prepared to join Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai on a Demon Beast hunt the next day, confident the cauldron would help him deal with them.

• After following Zhang Qingshan's advice, Ye Han successfully cast the Vine Soul Technique but exhausted his spell power almost immediately.
• The Purple Cauldron restored Ye Han's spell power, allowing him to strengthen and control the vine long enough to hurl a stone stool into the Cave Abode's wall.
• Ye Han realized the Purple Cauldron could replenish spell power as well as convert pill energy into cultivation, and noticed its purple portion had grown.
• Zhang Qingshan concluded that Wang Fulai had revealed the three men's involvement in the ambush that cost him an arm, and he supported Ye Han's plan to deal with them.
• Ye Han resolved to use the Purple Cauldron's advantage when he hunted Demon Beasts with Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai the next day.

Ye Han joined Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai in Black Demon Forest while secretly carrying a Vajra Talisman from Zhang Qingshan and planning with him to deal with the three men. After Ye Han sensed the forest’s demonic energy, a monstrous hand burst from a tree and attacked them.

• Ye Han carried the Purple Cauldron, which could replenish his spell power, and a powerful Vajra Talisman Zhang Qingshan had bought for his protection.
• Ye Han traveled into Black Demon Forest with Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai, who kept him between them as they hurried through the trees.
• Ye Han sensed unfamiliar black energy in the forest, and Zhang Sanlei explained that it was demonic energy that benefited Demon Beasts and harmed cultivators.
• Li Zongqing and Wang Fulai praised Ye Han’s divine sense and invited him to hunt Demon Beasts with them, while the three privately regarded his talent as a threat.
• A monstrous hand erupted from a tree and reached for Ye Han and the others.

Ye Han watched Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai fight a Long-Armed Monkey Demon Beast and saw how dangerous their magic artifacts were. After they killed the beast with their combined technique, he worried that he and Zhang Qingshan might be unable to outmaneuver them.

• Ye Han hid behind Zhang Sanlei when the Long-Armed Monkey Demon Beast ambushed the group, and Zhang Sanlei used a dagger magic artifact to block its claw.
• Li Zongqing, Zhang Sanlei, and Wang Fulai attacked together with their dagger artifacts, wounding the beast as Ye Han observed their weapons and teamwork.
• The Long-Armed Monkey Demon Beast fled when the fight turned against it, but the three men joined their artifacts with the technique Three Swords as One.
• The combined daggers pierced the beast's back and throat, killing it, while Ye Han judged the trio's power a serious threat to his plans with Zhang Qingshan.

Ye Han traveled with Zhang Sanlei and his companions after they killed and harvested a long-armed monkey Demon Beast, while remaining wary of their intentions. A gray-clad follower and the Qin Mountain Twin Fiends then pursued the group, setting up a new danger.

• Zhang Sanlei and his companions killed a long-armed monkey Demon Beast, and Li Zongqing and Wang Fulai collected its valuable parts.
• Ye Han pretended to be frightened and tested whether the three men would use the beast to harm him; seeing them protect him, he concluded they intended to wait until later to make their move.
• Zhang Sanlei led Ye Han, Wang Fulai, and Li Zongqing onward through the forest while Ye Han stayed alert and kept his hand near the Vajra Talisman.
• A gray-clad figure secretly followed the group and wondered why a Demon Beast had appeared on the outskirts of the Black Demon Forest.
• The Qin Mountain Twin Fiends found the beast's remains, realized someone had taken their prey, and pursued Zhang Sanlei's group; the gray-clad figure recognized them and followed.

In the Black Demon Forest, Ye Han learned that Zhang Sanlei and the others planned to use him as bait to lure a cunning Claw Beast from its cave. He grew wary of their plan and regretted coming, but set out with them toward the beast’s lair.

• Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, Wang Fulai, and Ye Han ate and discussed their recent encounter with a Long-Armed Monkey.
• Zhang Sanlei promised to teach Ye Han the Object-Driving Art after they returned to the sect.
• Zhang Sanlei revealed that Ye Han was supposed to lure a Claw Beast from its cave while the others blocked its entrance.
• Ye Han suspected the Claw Beast was more dangerous than Zhang Sanlei claimed and worried that the three were targeting him at the Fifth Elder’s behest.
• Zhang Sanlei led the group away from the rocks toward the Claw Beast’s destination.

Ye Han entered a secluded valley in the Black Demon Forest as bait to lure out a Claw Beast, forced into the dangerous role by Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai. He found the beast’s cave and prepared his Vajra Talisman just as the Claw Beast charged out.

• Ye Han cautiously entered the valley where Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai had sent him to lure out the Claw Beast.
• Ye Han reflected on the harsh competition for cultivation resources and his reasons for agreeing with Zhang Qingshan to deal with Zhang Sanlei and the others.
• Ye Han followed the bloody stench deeper into the valley and found a cave after passing through a field of bones.
• Ye Han gripped his Vajra Talisman as a roar sounded from the cave and the Claw Beast charged out.

Ye Han fled from the Claw Beast, which proved far stronger and faster than the first-rank beast Zhang Sanlei had described. After its attacks destroyed his Vajra barrier and badly injured him, Ye Han used the Vine Soul Technique to trip it and continued running, hoping Zhang Sanlei and his companions would intervene.

• The Claw Beast spotted Ye Han and charged, tearing apart a boulder as he dodged.
• Ye Han activated the Vajra Talisman, but the Claw Beast's blows nearly broke the barrier and sent him crashing into a boulder.
• The Claw Beast fired gray claw-shaped energy that shattered Ye Han's barrier and wounded him, but he got up and kept fleeing.
• Ye Han stopped and cast the Vine Soul Technique, binding the Claw Beast's legs and making it crash to the ground.
• The Purple Cauldron replenished Ye Han's spell power as he ran on, still waiting for Zhang Sanlei and his companions to help.

Ye Han lured a Claw Beast to Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai, who trapped it with their coordinated formation. As they prepared to kill it, another Claw Beast charged out of a nearby cave.

• Ye Han fled toward Zhang Sanlei and his companions, who attacked the pursuing Claw Beast with their flying daggers.
• Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai formed the Three-Talent Formation and wounded the Claw Beast with nine blood-red streaks.
• The Claw Beast attacked Wang Fulai, but the three men coordinated their spells to sink and petrify it.
• Ye Han watched the three men trap the Claw Beast and noted he could not find Zhang Qingshan.
• As Zhang Sanlei called for them to kill the trapped beast, another Claw Beast charged out of a nearby cave.

Ye Han watched Zhang Sanlei and his companions battle two Claw Beasts while Zhang Qingshan warned him that hidden cultivators were watching. The men killed the smaller beast and badly wounded the larger one, but two newcomers emerged, claiming they had struck lucky.

• A second, smaller Claw Beast attacked Zhang Sanlei, and Wang Fulai blocked its strikes with the Cold Iron Shield while Li Zongqing and Zhang Sanlei counterattacked.
• Ye Han noticed the three men were tiring as the petrified Claw Beast began breaking free, but Zhang Qingshan warned him not to act because someone was watching.
• Zhang Sanlei and his companions sacrificed their blood essence and combined their daggers with Three Swords as One.
• The larger Claw Beast broke free and blocked the sword with its bones, but the attack snapped its arms and severely wounded it.
• The combined sword pierced the smaller Claw Beast, killing it, and a tall, burly man and a short fellow appeared, laughing that they had struck lucky.