Chapter Summaries

Jing Wen refined Soul-Nourishing Pills and used them to raise his divine sense to a level near the early Gold Core stage, then arranged to buy more ghost mortar grass seedlings from Old Zhou. After months of seclusion, he left his chamber and encountered a woman in a pale purple dress.

• Jing Wen refined fourteen batches of Soul-Nourishing Pills, producing seventy pills, and worried that ghost mortar grass seedlings were scarce.
• Jing Wen swallowed all seventy pills, strengthening his divine sense to a level between peak Foundation Establishment and early Gold Core before stabilizing it through meditation.
• Jing Wen sent Old Zhou a Sound Transmission Talisman offering to negotiate for more ghost mortar grass seedlings, and Old Zhou replied with a meeting time and place six months later.
• Jing Wen spent three days adapting to his strengthened divine sense, then left his secret chamber after receiving Old Zhou's reply.
• Jing Wen stepped into the afternoon sunlight and saw a graceful woman in a pale purple silk dress approaching.

Jing Wen recruited Chen Qiaoqian to watch Han Li, gather valuable Pill Formulas, and pass along ordinary rumors in exchange for Foundation Establishment Pills. Chen agreed after seeing Jing Wen’s Golden Core-level divine sense and his pills, and left with a possible lead on her family’s ancient Spirit-Opening Pill formula.

• Jing Wen reminded Chen Qiaoqian that he had taken her Storage Bag as payment for saving her, then offered her a Foundation Establishment Pill for five years of work.
• Jing Wen asked Chen Qiaoqian to report when Han Li left Yellow Maple Valley, find rare Pill Formulas, and collect ordinary news from disciples and the Market.
• Chen Qiaoqian doubted Jing Wen’s promise, so he displayed Golden Core-level divine sense and showed her three flawless Foundation Establishment Pills.
• Chen Qiaoqian agreed and mentioned her family’s incomplete ancient Spirit-Opening Pill formula, which Jing Wen offered to evaluate for credit toward pills.
• Chen Qiaoqian and Jing Wen exchanged Sound Transmission Talismans, and she left after asking how to explain her attention to Han Li.

Jing Wen tested the lifespan of Green Liquid, used its weakening remnants to grow a jade marrow mushroom, and prepared to improve his Foundation Establishment Pill-refining skills before attempting millennium herbs. Chen Qiaoqian brought him the Spirit-Opening Pill Fragmentary Formula and a list of Pill Formulas, leaving with a Foundation Establishment Pill and Spirit Stones while Jing Wen secretly planned to investigate her family.

• Jing Wen found that Green Liquid lost potency after about a month in ordinary containers but remained stable inside a High-Grade Magical Artifact.
• Jing Wen used the weakened Green Liquid to grow a two-hundred-year-old jade marrow mushroom and decided to practice refining Foundation Establishment Pills with younger herbs before trying millennium spirit medicine.
• Chen Qiaoqian delivered the Spirit-Opening Pill Fragmentary Formula and a list of Pill Formulas to Jing Wen.
• Jing Wen rewarded Chen Qiaoqian with a Foundation Establishment Pill for the fragmentary formula and gave her three hundred Spirit Stones to exchange for three listed formulas.
• As Chen Qiaoqian left, Jing Wen resolved to investigate the Chen Family after learning the Soul Searching Technique, and blood-colored markings briefly appeared on a falling leaf.

Jing Wen spent his dwindling Spirit Stones, then killed three Black Sand Society cultivators and the woman they had attacked before looting their possessions. A Golden Core cultivator caught him at the scene and attacked, forcing Jing Wen to use the Blood Escape Art to flee.

• Jing Wen worried about his dwindling Spirit Stones after buying a Heavenly Thunder Pearl and medicinal herbs, then left the Market.
• Jing Wen encountered three Black Sand Society cultivators fighting a wounded woman and killed all four after pretending to leave.
• Jing Wen collected the four cultivators’ Storage Bags and magical artifacts, then prepared to burn their corpses.
• A Golden Core cultivator confronted Jing Wen, struck through his defenses, and forced him to rely on the Dark Tortoise Shell to survive.
• Jing Wen used the Blood Escape Art to flee as the Golden Core cultivator tried to stop him.

Jing Wen used talismans, pills, and his powerful divine sense to evade a Golden Core cultivator who pursued him for his unusual spiritual perception. He offered the cultivator a third-rank Soul-Nourishing Pill Formula in exchange for mercy, and the cultivator showed interest.

• Jing Wen fled toward the Heavenly Star Sect, using Blood Escape Art and Earth-Escape Talismans to keep ahead of the Golden Core cultivator.
• Jing Wen prepared defensive talismans, a Dark Tortoise Shell, and Heavenly Thunder Pearls, while the cultivator grew wary of his hidden strength and attacked with a Magic Treasure sword.
• Jing Wen disrupted the cultivator’s divine-sense lock with the Soul-Disturbing Art and continued escaping, replenishing his strength with pills whenever he surfaced.
• Jing Wen realized the cultivator was probing him and offered to negotiate, warning that he could destroy his Storage Bag and memories if forced.
• The Golden Core cultivator asked why Jing Wen’s divine sense was so powerful, and Jing Wen offered him the third-rank Soul-Nourishing Pill Formula.
• The Golden Core cultivator recognized the Soul-Nourishing Pill’s value and considered the offer.

Jing Wen used the Soul-Nourishing Pill formula and the threat of destroying his treasures to force a Golden Core master to swear not to pursue him for a month, then surrendered his pill book and most of his Storage Bags. After escaping, Jing Wen reflected on his mistakes and resolved to prepare better for future dangers before vowing revenge.

• Jing Wen threatened to burn the Soul-Nourishing Pill formula unless the Golden Core master agreed to let him leave and swore a heart-demon oath.
• Jing Wen negotiated the surrender of eleven Storage Bags and the pill formula in exchange for the Golden Core master's promise not to pursue him for one month.
• Jing Wen retreated in measured stages, handing over items until he gave the Golden Core master the scorched book and departed.
• While flying away, Jing Wen realized he had forgotten to use his talismans and Heavenly Thunder Pearls during the fight and resolved to avoid dangerous robberies near Markets.
• Jing Wen vowed to remember the humiliation and one day take revenge on the Golden Core master.

Jing Wen returned to Xin Ruoyin and tested the incomplete Five Elements Reversal Formation, which proved powerful enough to threaten late Foundation Establishment cultivators. He promised to secure the resources she needed to complete it, and their growing intimacy was interrupted by Qi Yunxiao’s arrival.

• Jing Wen learned that Steward Li had succeeded in Foundation Establishment and discovered that the Jade Purification Bottle had lost more of its medicinal potency.
• Xin Ruoyin showed Jing Wen the completed incomplete Five Elements Reversal Formation and explained how its five-element illusions could trap and attack enemies.
• Jing Wen entered the formation, broke through its illusions with his Divine Sense, and judged that it could threaten late Foundation Establishment cultivators.
• Xin Ruoyin said she lacked the Spirit Stones and materials to finish the formation, and Jing Wen promised to obtain what she needed.
• Jing Wen praised Xin Ruoyin and freed her hair from her Green Jade Hairpin; their fingertips touched before Qi Yunxiao’s footsteps interrupted them.

Jing Wen visited the Heavenly Star Tower to buy a Spirit-Testing Stone Stele and materials, then traded two Foundation Establishment Pills to fund additional purchases. He left with the stele, materials, a Heavenly Thunder Pearl, and 1,700 Spirit Stones.

• Jing Wen entered the Heavenly Star Tower disguised as a late Foundation Establishment cultivator and chose a one-zhang Spirit-Testing Stone Stele for 3,000 Spirit Stones.
• Jing Wen ordered 850 Spirit Stones' worth of rare artifact-refining materials after inspecting the stele.
• Jing Wen offered two Foundation Establishment Pills, and the attendant agreed to buy them for a total of 7,000 Spirit Stones.
• Jing Wen read the shop's Jade Slip, chose a Heavenly Thunder Pearl, and passed over the Talisman Treasures listed for sale.
• Jing Wen completed the transaction, collected the stele, materials, Heavenly Thunder Pearl, and other items, then left with 1,700 Spirit Stones remaining.

Jing Wen tested the transformed Baleful Bead and discovered it was forming an embryonic five-element baleful core, then used ghost mortar grass and Soul-Nourishing Pills to strengthen his divine sense. He reached early golden core-level divine sense and gained Microscopic Observation, but the sudden breakthrough left him struggling to adapt.

• Jing Wen tested his spiritual root and found that the Baleful Bead inside him had become an embryonic fire-aspected five-element baleful core.
• Jing Wen met Old Zhou at the Blackwater Restaurant, bought one mature stalk of ghost mortar grass and nine seedlings, and declined to hear about the Fallen Dragon Abyss.
• Jing Wen used the remaining Green Liquid to ripen four stalks of ghost mortar grass and refined eighty Soul-Nourishing Pills.
• Jing Wen consumed the pills until his divine sense broke through to the early golden core stage and gained Microscopic Observation.
• Jing Wen continued taking pills until their effects stopped, then withdrew most of his divine sense and began adapting to its new strength.
• Jing Wen's sudden burst of divine sense disrupted a pair of Dao companions practicing dual cultivation in a room on the inn's third floor, causing the male cultivator to spit blood.

Venerable Golden Light, Enchantress, and Mo Juren waited in the Mo Residence for Jing Wen, each uneasy about his power and their uncertain futures. Venerable Golden Light’s anger at Enchantress’s betrayal simmered as the three awaited Jing Wen’s verdict.

• Venerable Golden Light reflected on how his comfortable life under Jing Wen’s control had not eased his fear of the Poison Pill or its approaching deadline.
• Enchantress hid her eagerness to pursue cultivation while Venerable Golden Light accused her of betraying him and pressed her with spiritual pressure.
• Enchantress refused to kneel, prompting Venerable Golden Light to smash a tea table in anger.
• Mo Juren urged Venerable Golden Light to keep calm and reflected on his years of waiting and his caution toward the ruthless Cultivation World.
• Venerable Golden Light, Enchantress, and Mo Juren sat in tense silence, awaiting Jing Wen.

Mo Feng Wu and Mo Caihuan mourned Mo Yuzhu and First Madam while discussing the Immortal Master and the chance to learn cultivation. They agreed to seek an immortal destiny together and prepared for his expected visit.

• Mo Caihuan teased Mo Feng Wu about dressing for the Immortal, and the sisters mourned Mo Yuzhu and First Madam.
• Mo Caihuan blamed Fifth Madam for not warning Mo Yuzhu that their guest was an Immortal, while Mo Feng Wu defended her.
• Mo Feng Wu told Mo Caihuan that the Immortal Master had taught their father his Immortal Techniques, and Mo Caihuan resolved to learn cultivation despite their father's claim that they lacked spiritual roots.
• Mo Caihuan revealed that their father expected the sisters to be together and ready when the Immortal Master visited in the coming days.
• Mo Caihuan and Mo Feng Wu agreed to seek an immortal destiny together, and Mo Feng Wu pinned up her hair as she anticipated seeing the Immortal again.

Jing Wen gave Mo Juren, Enchantress, and Venerable Golden Light cultivation manuals and assigned them to gather information at three different markets. He left them under his control, then threatened Mo Juren when he tried to bring up his daughter.

• Jing Wen arrived at the Mo Residence and gave the three the first six layers of the Burning Blood Art and pills, telling them to reach the fourth layer of Qi Refining.
• Jing Wen sent Mo Juren to the Spirit Beast Mountain Market, Enchantress to the Covering Moon Sect's Market, and Venerable Golden Light to the Yellow Maple Valley Market to gather valuable information and complete assigned tasks.
• Jing Wen told Venerable Golden Light that the Burning Blood Art could lead to Foundation Establishment, inspiring him and the others to pursue their tasks.
• Jing Wen privately considered the three tools for advancing his plans, including arranging for them to release information about the Black Fiend Cult so the Seven Great Sects would destroy it sooner.
• When Mo Juren tried to discuss his daughter, Jing Wen rebuked him and warned that emotional entanglements could undermine his Dao heart, then left the hall.

Jing Wen returned to the Black Fiend Cult’s Capital and used a gift of rare pills to win Steward Li’s trust while probing how the cult obtained cultivation resources. Steward Li revealed that he hunted Foundation Establishment cultivators and might soon establish a new branch, and Jing Wen agreed to go with him.

• Jing Wen entered Still Garden under his eighth-layer Qi Refining disguise and congratulated Steward Li on reaching Foundation Establishment.
• Jing Wen told Steward Li that he had spent his absence recovering from cultivation deviation and studying alchemy.
• Jing Wen presented Steward Li with Marrow-Washing Pills and Qi-Nourishing Pills, earning his praise and greater trust.
• Jing Wen asked why Steward Li still held his old position, and Steward Li explained that the cult had few suitable posts and limited resources.
• Steward Li said he mainly hunted Foundation Establishment cultivators and that the cult leader was considering sending him to establish a new branch.
• Jing Wen eagerly agreed to accompany Steward Li and accepted the prospect of managing a stronghold.

Jing Wen persuaded Steward Li to let him distribute the Black Fiend Cult’s Fiendish Demon Art to rogue cultivators as a way to lure them into the cult’s reach. He left with the Foundation Establishment portion of the art, secretly intending to destroy the Black Fiend Cult and eventually make the cultivation world his pasture.

• Jing Wen raised concerns about transporting blood offerings and asked Steward Li whether the cult could share its cultivation arts with outsiders.
• Jing Wen proposed giving rogue cultivators the complete Foundation Establishment portion of the Fiendish Demon Art so they would practice it and become potential targets for the cult.
• Steward Li explained that a previous similar scheme had failed when rogue cultivators killed the cult members who offered them the art.
• Jing Wen reassured Steward Li that he understood the dangers, and Steward Li gave him the Foundation Establishment portion of the Fiendish Demon Art.
• Steward Li told Jing Wen to prioritize reaching the tenth layer of Qi Refining, and Jing Wen left with the Jade Slip.
• After confirming he was alone, Jing Wen secretly celebrated his unexpected gain and vowed to destroy the Black Fiend Cult before spreading the Fiendish Demon Art across the world.

Jing Wen established the Rose Garden as his home, studied the Fiendish Demon Art, and learned that deadly rivalry was spreading among the Black Fiend Cult’s strongholds. He then used his blood crows to spy on suspicious activity in the imperial palace and decided to expand his surveillance.

• Jing Wen cleared an abandoned residence, named it the Rose Garden, and began studying the Fiendish Demon Art with his newly attained Foundation Establishment cultivation.
• Ge Hong told Jing Wen that competition among the cult’s strongholds had intensified, causing clashes and deaths, and proposed that they hunt targets together for contribution credit.
• Jing Wen agreed to work with Ge Hong while concealing his true cultivation, then concluded that the cult’s growing disorder could benefit him.
• Jing Wen cultivated with a Second-Grade Qi-Nourishing Pill and later reviewed scenes recorded by his blood crows in the imperial palace, including suspicious actions by palace workers and guards.
• Jing Wen sent the blood crows back to keep watch and, seeing that their numbers were too small to cover the palace, resolved to speed up his efforts.

Jing Wen followed Ge Hong to a Black Fiend Cult operation, where Steward Li seized two captives and the gathered strongholds erupted into a bloody fight. Jing Wen secretly killed several cultivators and collected their Storage Bags before sensing a Foundation Establishment expert approaching and withdrawing.

• Ge Hong persuaded Jing Wen to investigate a suspected third brother linked to Cloudreach Market after Steward Li took two captives from the inn.
• The Black Fiend Cult members fought over the remaining captives, and their dispute turned into a chaotic battle for loot.
• Jing Wen sent Ge Hong to watch the suspected target, then secretly killed five departing cult members with the Soul-Disturbing Art and ghostly fireballs.
• Jing Wen returned to the battlefield’s perimeter and killed three groups of cultivators, collecting fifteen Storage Bags.
• Jing Wen sensed an approaching Foundation Establishment cultivator and left rather than risk revealing his strength.

Jing Wen arrived at the inn and defeated the Black Fiend Cult members who had trapped the Third Brother, then left Ge Hong to handle the aftermath. Ge Hong revealed his influence as a Hundred-Household Commander and told Jing Wen that Cloudreach Market was controlled by the Ma Family, whose golden core patriarch protected it.

• Ge Hong watched the fight at the inn and warned Jing Wen that the Black Fiend Cult was about to use the Blood Fiend Formation.
• Jing Wen knocked Ge Hong unconscious, burned the five black-clad cultivators to ash with ghostly blue fire, and used the Soul-Disturbing Art to shatter the Third Brother's consciousness.
• Jing Wen woke Ge Hong and took six Storage Bags, while Ge Hong believed Jing Wen had saved him and offered him all the contribution points for capturing the Third Brother.
• Ge Hong used his Embroidery Guard token to send the soldiers away and revealed that his patrol authority gave him access to information across the Capital City.
• Ge Hong told Jing Wen that Cloudreach Market was controlled by the Ma Family and that Black Fiend Cult cultivators abducted people near it, then Jing Wen left the remaining matters to him.

Li Poyun met with the Black Fiend Cult’s leaders to discuss missing members, scarce resources, and the role of Steward Li in their plans. He urged them to investigate the disappearances, avoid internal killings, and cultivate toward Core Formation, while the question of Steward Li’s fate remained unresolved.

• Ice Demon reported five deaths, at least a dozen injuries, and more than twenty missing people, prompting Tie Luo to warn that the cult was losing members too quickly.
• Li Poyun stopped Ice Demon and Tie Luo’s argument and ordered an investigation into whether outsiders or cult members were responsible for the disappearances.
• Ye She proposed killing Steward Li, while Tie Luo argued for sending him to establish a branch; Li Poyun postponed the decision until he could ask Steward Li himself.
• Ye She revealed that the five leaders shared five-color core markings, and Li Poyun reminded him that Qing Wen had reached mid-stage Foundation Establishment.
• Li Poyun gave Tie Luo and Ice Demon Iceheart Pills and urged all three to reach mid-stage Foundation Establishment before attempting Core Formation.

Jing Wen uncovered signs that the Yue Emperor was secretly cultivating the Young Prince for an unknown purpose, then prepared to leave the Capital and received secret techniques from Steward Li. He found the Soul Searching Technique in the gift but learned his divine sense was far too weak to use it safely.

• Prince Xin and his consort worried that Steward Wang closely monitored their household and showed unusual devotion to the Young Prince, while Prince Xin suspected the Yue Emperor still had no crown prince after nineteen years.
• Jing Wen used the Blood Crow to observe Steward Wang’s fanatical respect for Xin Ye and learned the Young Prince had been secretly taught the Black Fiend Asura Art; he suspected the Yue Emperor had a hidden purpose for him.
• Jing Wen decided to leave the Capital, partly to test the Black Fiend Cult’s response to Steward Li’s departure and partly to pursue Han Li’s Green Liquid and Xin Ruoyin’s progress with the Five Elements Reversal Formation.
• Jing Wen told Steward Li he would leave to lay the groundwork for him, and Steward Li gave him a jade slip containing Black Fiend Cult techniques and his cultivation insights.
• Jing Wen found the Soul Searching Technique in the jade slip but learned it required divine sense at least near the Nascent Soul stage for reasonably safe use, so he set it aside and wondered why Steward Li had become anxious.

Jing Wen visited Prince Xin's Residence to choose a cultivation manual and discovered evidence that the Young Prince had not practiced the Black Fiend Cult's basic arts. Suspecting that the cult's blood-pill users were prey for another group, Jing Wen followed the Young Prince to a banquet while resolving to gather more evidence before acting.

• Jing Wen entered the Cultivation Art Hall with the Young Prince and selected the Heavenly Demon Body-Tempering Art from a hidden chamber.
• The Young Prince warned Jing Wen that the body-tempering art had limited benefits and needed to be cultivated alongside the Fiendish Demon Art.
• Jing Wen tested the Young Prince with questions about the Fiendish Demon Art and Blood Escape Art, and concluded that the Young Prince had not mastered either technique or relied on blood pills.
• Steward Li summoned the Young Prince to the Hundred Flowers Garden for a banquet hosted by His Highness, and the Young Prince invited Jing Wen to join them.
• Jing Wen observed the Young Prince's unsteady bearing and decided to wait for more evidence before wiping out the Black Fiend Cult.