Chapter Summaries

He Pingsheng killed Lone Pine and the four cultivators who had ambushed him, then flew toward Vermilion Bird Emperor City. When Long Yue learned that Lone Pine was dead and found traces of all five attackers at the battlefield, she asked Mo Sang to take her to the Commerce Association so she could meet Dragon Hibernate.

• He Pingsheng poisoned and beheaded Lone Pine and the other four attackers, burned their bodies, and collected their rings.
• At Lone Pine Mountain’s trading hall, the attendees waited for Lone Pine before resuming their trades and eventually leaving.
• A disciple revealed that Lone Pine’s Life Tablet had shattered at noon, prompting Long Yue and Mo Sang to investigate the battlefield.
• Long Yue and the others found traces of all five cultivators’ auras and concluded that none had escaped.
• Long Yue asked Mo Sang to take her to the Commerce Association so she could meet Dragon Hibernate and seek the important item Lone Pine had carried.

After returning to Emperor City, He Pingsheng sorted the spoils from five slain cultivators and enhanced a Spirit Treasure and a Divine Ability Jade Slip. He rewarded Hao Cang with a supreme-grade metal-attribute Spirit Treasure and two Heaven-tier Divine Abilities, while keeping the mysterious Mystic Fire Token for later.

• He Pingsheng returned to his Small Courtyard, left Qiao Huizhu and Hao Cang in seclusion, and examined the rings taken from the cultivators he had killed.
• He Pingsheng sorted the rings’ Spirit Stones, artifact-refining and alchemy materials, and other treasures, finding enough fire radiance tiger blood stone to make Death-Substitute Puppets.
• He Pingsheng found a gold Mystic Fire Token bearing half a map, but could not determine its purpose and stored it away.
• He Pingsheng enhanced the Black Bead into gold and blue supreme-grade Spirit Treasures, then enhanced the metal-attribute Divine Ability Jade Slip into Annihilation Yellow Springs Finger and Nine-Zhang Golden Body.
• He Pingsheng gave Hao Cang the Golden Bead and both Heaven-tier Divine Abilities, and Hao Cang accepted them after He Pingsheng urged him to use them to become more helpful.

He Pingsheng failed twice to refine Death-Substitute Puppets, so he brought his remaining materials to the Sacred Fire Commerce Association to seek Mo Sang’s help. Mo Sang welcomed him and thanked him for the Sacred Essence Pill, while the chapter left He Pingsheng’s request unanswered.

• He Pingsheng enhanced materials for four supreme-grade Death-Substitute Puppets and studied puppet refining while honing his Daoist laws and divine abilities.
• He Pingsheng’s first puppet-refining attempt exploded, damaging his cauldron and the Daoist Grounds, and his second attempt ended in another explosion.
• He Pingsheng gave up refining the puppets himself and went to the Sacred Fire Commerce Association to find Mo Sang or ask him for a recommendation.
• Mo Sang welcomed He Pingsheng into a private room and privately wondered how he had defeated Lone Pine and the other four pursuers.
• He Pingsheng asked whether Mo Sang had taken the Sacred Essence Pill, and Mo Sang confirmed it and expressed his gratitude.

He Pingsheng met Immortal Maiden Hazy Moon, also known as Long Yue, who explained that the Mystic Fire Tokens revealed the location of the Nine-Heavens Mystic Fire. He agreed to investigate the place with her despite suspecting the map might conceal a trap.

• He Pingsheng asked Mo Sang to introduce him to an artifact-refining expert, and Mo Sang arranged a meeting with Immortal Maiden Hazy Moon.
• Long Yue met He Pingsheng privately and asked whether he had killed Daoist Lone Pine and obtained Lone Pine's ring.
• He Pingsheng confirmed that the ring had come into his possession and that he had seen the Mystic Fire Token.
• Long Yue explained that the four Mystic Fire Tokens formed a map to the Nine-Heavens Mystic Fire, which could help someone afflicted with Wisdom Severance grow a Wisdom Root anew.
• He Pingsheng considered the possibility of a trap but agreed to investigate the location with Long Yue.

He Pingsheng hired Long Yue to refine two Death-Substitute Puppets, then traded one of them for her unusual golden material. He left with the material, while Long Yue still awaited his answer about joining her expedition.

• He Pingsheng asked Long Yue to refine his Death-Substitute Puppet materials and offered her a Sacred Essence Pill if she succeeded.
• Long Yue spent sixteen days refining each of two low-grade Death-Substitute Puppets, and He Pingsheng enhanced them with the Treasure-Gathering Basin.
• He Pingsheng gave Long Yue the promised Sacred Essence Pill, and she asked again whether he would join her expedition; he said he would decide later.
• Long Yue offered her unusual golden material in exchange for one puppet, and He Pingsheng accepted the trade.
• He Pingsheng said he suspected the material was eighth or ninth grade but did not know its identity or use, then left with it.

He Pingsheng enhanced Death-Substitute Puppets and discovered that the Ninth-grade Thousand-Transformation Golden Soil could not be enhanced yet, so he fed it to the Primordial Purple Gold Staff. After giving a puppet to Qiao Huizhu, he found that the staff could transform its shape, color, and attributes.

• He Pingsheng enhanced a Death-Substitute Puppet into two Supreme-grade puppets that could teleport their nurturers hundreds of millions of li away from a fatal attack.
• The Treasure-Gathering Basin failed to enhance the golden material, and He Pingsheng identified it as Ninth-grade Thousand-Transformation Golden Soil that changed a treasure’s shape.
• He Pingsheng let the Primordial Purple Gold Staff absorb the Thousand-Transformation Golden Soil and began nurturing one of three enhanced Death-Substitute Puppets in his Dantian.
• He Pingsheng gave Qiao Huizhu a Death-Substitute Puppet, explained that she had to nurture it for two years, and she accepted it.
• Several days later, He Pingsheng discovered that the Primordial Purple Gold Staff could transform its shape, color, and attributes.

He Pingsheng reached the seventh layer of the Spirit Transformation Stage, prepared for danger with his Death-Substitute Puppet, and agreed to join Immortal Maiden Hazy Moon on a trip. The chapter left him and Hao Cang heading to Lone Pine Mountain to meet two other cultivators.

• He Pingsheng discovered that the primordial purple gold contained a vast inner space and began ten years of secluded cultivation with Dao-Gathering Pills and the Dao-Refining Heavenly Stele.
• He Pingsheng broke through a Dao Obstacle and a Flesh Barrier to reach the seventh layer of the Spirit Transformation Stage, while his Death-Substitute Puppet finished developing.
• He Pingsheng contacted Immortal Maiden Hazy Moon about meeting, and Qiao Huizhu returned his Ghost King Talisman and urged him to take Hao Cang along.
• He Pingsheng learned that Qiao Huizhu had reached the sixth layer and Hao Cang the tenth; Hao Cang said his abilities and treasures let him challenge powerful Spirit Transformation cultivators.
• He Pingsheng and Hao Cang met Immortal Maiden Hazy Moon at the Sacred Fire Commerce Association, agreed to join her, and set out for Lone Pine Mountain to meet two other cultivators.

He Pingsheng met the other holders of Tokens at Lone Pine Mountain to discuss their expedition to the Mystic Fire Sacred Land. The four agreed to compete for the nine-heavens mystic fire without attacking one another, while Hao Cang would stay out of the contest.

• Long Yue explained that Lone Pine Mountain was being abandoned because someone had extracted the dragon soul of its Spirit Vein.
• Long Yue introduced He Pingsheng, North Star, and Zhou Qingmei, revealing that Zhou Qingmei suffered from Wisdom Severance.
• Zhou Qingmei and North Star learned that He Pingsheng held Lone Pine's Token and suspected Hao Cang had helped him kill Lone Pine.
• He Pingsheng said Hao Cang would not compete for the nine-heavens mystic fire, and Zhou Qingmei, North Star, Long Yue, and He Pingsheng agreed that whoever seized it could keep it, provided they did not attack one another.

Zhou Qingmei, Beichen, He Pingsheng, and Immortal Maiden Hazy Moon joined their Tokens and learned that the map pointed to Azure Waves Canyon, despite the strange waterfall-filled setting for the Nine-Heavens Mystic Fire. After six and a half years searching the sixteen locations, He Pingsheng found the correct canyon, but detected no trace of the fire's aura.

• Zhou Qingmei and the others joined their four Tokens, revealing a map that marked Azure Waves Canyon and showed a secluded canyon surrounded by waterfalls.
• Beichen questioned whether the Nine-Heavens Mystic Fire could be hidden in such a water-filled place, but Zhou Qingmei insisted they investigate.
• He Pingsheng asked Hao Cang to list the sixteen places called Azure Waves Canyon, then took the group aboard his Silver River Heavenly Shuttle.
• He Pingsheng and the others searched the listed locations for six and a half years before reaching the eleventh Azure Waves Canyon.
• He Pingsheng examined the waterfall-lined canyon but found no trace of the Nine-Heavens Mystic Fire's aura.

He Pingsheng and his companions searched the canyon for the Nine-Heavens Mystic Fire but found a hidden cave protected by a sixth-grade formation. He opened it with the Mystic Fire Token, and the group discovered another formation farther inside the passage.

• Hao Cang merged a trace of Nine-Heavens Mystic Fire into his body but sensed no nearby aura, so the group suspected the treasure map was fake.
• He Pingsheng and the others entered the canyon and found a hand-carved cave entrance behind a waterfall.
• Long Yue estimated that breaking the sixth-grade defensive formation could take several years, but He Pingsheng opened it with the Mystic Fire Token.
• The group opened the stone door and entered a fragrant passage; Zhou Qingmei warned them not to breathe in the scent, while He Pingsheng determined it was not poisonous.
• The group saw a second golden defensive formation before another stone door about a thousand zhang down the passage.

He Pingsheng and the others passed through several sixth-grade formations while searching for the Nine-Heavens Mystic Fire, then entered an underground plaza containing a sealed coffin. Multiple formations trapped them inside, leaving He Pingsheng worried that someone had set another trap for him.

• Zhou Qingmei used her Mystic Fire Token to open the second stone door, and the group continued through more passages until all four tokens were spent.
• The group found a fifth stone door sealed by a sixth-grade Defense Formation and sensed a powerful fire-attribute aura beyond it.
• A crack opened in the formation, and Beichen rushed inside, attacking the others to stop them from following; Zhou Qingmei and Long Yue entered after him.
• He Pingsheng and Hao Cang entered the formation and found themselves in a circular underground plaza with a huge, sealed black coffin at its center.
• Two more formations rose around the plaza, trapping the group alongside the existing Defense Formation, and He Pingsheng feared he had been lured into another underground trap.

Zhou Qingmei revealed that she had lured the group into the formation to kill and eat them, then explained that she had died at her childhood sweetheart’s hands and been buried in the underground site. The group remained trapped with Zhou Qingmei, who claimed to be at the ninth layer of the Void Refinement Realm.

• Hao Cang and He Pingsheng attacked the coffin, but Zhou Qingmei blocked He Pingsheng’s strike and knocked both men down.
• Zhou Qingmei admitted that she had set the trap and sent out the other three Tokens to lure the group there.
• Zhou Qingmei revealed her enormous mouth and the yin qi emanating from her, then said she intended to eat everyone except He Pingsheng, whom she called a larger ant.
• He Pingsheng could not see through Zhou Qingmei’s cultivation, and she disclosed that she had reached the ninth layer of the Void Refinement Realm.
• Zhou Qingmei said the coffin was hers and recounted how her childhood sweetheart killed her when she was in the Nascent Soul Realm, after which her father buried her at the site.

Zhou Qingmei revealed that she had become a Void Refinement Realm corpse cultivator and lured cultivators into her tomb to consume their Glazed Nascent Souls. She attacked the group, but Long Yue escaped with a Death-Substitute Puppet, and He Pingsheng prepared a Ghost King Talisman to fight back.

• Zhou Qingmei explained that she had cultivated within her corpse for tens of thousands of years before hunting cultivators to break through her Dao Obstacles.
• Zhou Qingmei said her former lover was still alive and had reached heights she could only look up to.
• Long Yue questioned why Zhou Qingmei had gone to such lengths to lure them into the tomb, and Zhou Qingmei explained that the Heavenly Dao and Buddhist cultivators prevented her from acting openly.
• Zhou Qingmei attacked the group, shattered Beichen’s body, and seized his Glazed Nascent Soul.
• Zhou Qingmei struck Long Yue with black sword light, but Long Yue escaped using a Death-Substitute Puppet.
• He Pingsheng’s Divine Sense Nail and poison failed against Zhou Qingmei, so he brought out a sixth-grade Ghost King Talisman.

He Pingsheng used a Ghost King Talisman to overpower Zhou Qingmei and demand her surrender, but her powerful original body emerged from a coffin and attacked. After revealing a second talisman and a Death-Substitute Puppet, He Pingsheng forced Zhou Qingmei to negotiate over becoming his servant.

• He Pingsheng summoned a ghost king with a sixth-grade talisman, knocking Zhou Qingmei away and demanding that she surrender her Heavenly Dao Slave Mark.
• Zhou Qingmei pretended to consider his offer, but a black-clad woman burst from the coffin and attacked He Pingsheng.
• The black-clad woman revealed that she was Zhou Qingmei's original body, while the red-clad Zhou Qingmei was her clone.
• He Pingsheng produced a second Ghost King Talisman and a Death-Substitute Puppet, persuading the original body to call a halt to the fight.
• He Pingsheng offered Zhou Qingmei freedom after he reached Body Integration, and she questioned whether he could guarantee that outcome.

He Pingsheng forced Zhou Qingmei to become his slave, then gave her Glazed Nascent Souls and learned she could attempt to reach Body Integration within a hundred years. As they fled the canyon, Venerable Bright Moon of the Heavenly Buddha Emperor Domain appeared and attacked them with his kasaya.

• He Pingsheng threatened Zhou Qingmei with a Ghost King Talisman until she swore an oath to become his slave and restore her freedom when he reached Body Integration.
• He Pingsheng introduced Zhou Qingmei to Hao Cang, then gave her four Glazed Nascent Souls and Daoist laws to support her cultivation.
• Zhou Qingmei said she could attempt to reach Body Integration within a hundred years with ample resources and warned that demon slayers would soon arrive.
• He Pingsheng led Zhou Qingmei, Hao Cang, and his clone out of the canyon aboard the Silver River Flying Shuttle.
• Venerable Bright Moon appeared in the blood-red sky and pulled his kasaya down toward the Silver River Flying Shuttle.

He Pingsheng fought Buddha Venerable Bright Moon, who demanded that he surrender Zhou Qingmei or join the Buddhist Path. Just as Bright Moon pinned He Pingsheng down, Wang Dun crashed into the battlefield, leaving the two fellow disciples face to face on the ground.

• Buddha Venerable Bright Moon’s attack wounded Zhou Qingmei and sent He Pingsheng’s group flying, so He Pingsheng recalled her into his Magical Treasure.
• Bright Moon demanded that He Pingsheng hand over Zhou Qingmei, but He Pingsheng refused and said she had abandoned evil and would soon achieve Dao Union.
• Bright Moon grew to three hundred zhang tall, pinned He Pingsheng beneath his foot, and demanded that he become a Buddhist disciple or enter Reincarnation.
• He Pingsheng struck Bright Moon’s Sea of Consciousness with seven poisoned Divine Sense Nails, but Bright Moon pressed down harder.
• A streak of golden light struck near Bright Moon and sent He Pingsheng flying, and Wang Dun emerged from the dust and recognized his junior brother.

He Pingsheng reunited with Wang Dun, who tried to bargain with the vastly stronger Ming Yue after learning he was in the Void Refinement Realm. When Ming Yue attacked Wang Dun, He Pingsheng and Wang Dun joined forces, severed both of Ming Yue’s arms, and left him regenerating behind a ring of golden planets.

• Wang Dun mocked He Pingsheng’s cultivation, then learned that Ming Yue was a Void Refinement Realm cultivator and tried to persuade him to let them go.
• Ming Yue crushed Wang Dun underfoot, briefly released him to recover, then attacked him again when Wang Dun claimed his Dao injuries would take centuries to heal.
• He Pingsheng transformed the Primordial Purple Gold Staff into a spear and pierced Ming Yue’s kasaya and right arm with a powerful strike.
• Wang Dun attacked from above and severed Ming Yue’s left arm while He Pingsheng’s spear had already cut off his right hand and forearm.
• Ming Yue retreated, protected himself with his prayer beads transformed into golden planets, regrew his hands, and declared that the Human Race needed no one besides him.

He Pingsheng and Wang Dun escaped Ming Yue aboard He Pingsheng’s Silver River Flying Shuttle, then caught up on their years apart and the fate of those from their former Cultivation World. He learned that Ting Tong had ascended to the Immortal Emperor Domain and was hidden in the mountains, while he still had no news of Su Zhenzhen or He Tianya.

• He Pingsheng used a Ghost King Talisman to block Ming Yue’s attack, then fled with Wang Dun and Hao Cang aboard the Silver River Flying Shuttle after striking Ming Yue’s Sea of Consciousness with divine nails.
• Wang Dun praised He Pingsheng’s shuttle, and He Pingsheng explained that Ming Yue’s poison would keep him from pursuing them at full strength.
• Wang Dun told He Pingsheng that he had ascended about a century earlier and that those who ascended from their Cultivation World arrived in the Immortal Emperor Domain.
• He Pingsheng explained that he had been swept into the distant Celestial Roc Emperor Domain instead of the Immortal Emperor Domain.
• Wang Dun revealed that Ting Tong had ascended and that he had hidden her deep in the mountains before leaving the Immortal Emperor Domain.

He Pingsheng gave Wang Dun a Death-Substitute Puppet and learned about the Heavenly Pleiades Emperor Domain as they traveled toward Heavenly Light City. Wang Dun departed for the Heavenly Buddha Emperor Domain to seek revenge on Ming Yue, warning He Pingsheng to stay away from the Great Order Emperor Domain.

• He Pingsheng gave Wang Dun a Death-Substitute Puppet, and Wang Dun said he planned to reach Void Refinement before confronting Ming Yue.
• He Pingsheng learned from Hao Cang that Divine Lord Tianmao, a rooster-shaped Demon Emperor, kept venomous creatures in check across the Heavenly Fire Continent.
• He Pingsheng and Wang Dun chose to travel to Heavenly Light City, where Wang Dun hoped to find an Immortal Ship to the Heavenly Buddha Emperor Domain.
• Six days later, they arrived at Heavenly Light City and learned they would need to travel through Heavenly Pleiades Emperor City to reach the Heavenly Buddha Emperor Domain.
• He Pingsheng gave Wang Dun fifth-grade Ice Jade Loquat Paste, and Wang Dun departed after warning him not to go to the Great Order Emperor Domain.

He Pingsheng settled in a secluded mountain cave in the Heavenly Pleiades Emperor Domain and learned that Zhou Qingmei was a sixth-grade formation master who knew the Six Yin Pill formula. After refining and enhancing pills for Zhou Qingmei and her clone, he joined them in seclusion to cultivate and improve his formation skills.

• He Pingsheng decided not to return to the Vermilion Bird Emperor Domain and led Hao Cang to a remote mountain, where he carved out a cave abode and set up defensive formations.
• He Pingsheng entered the Primordial Purple Gold Staff's magical treasure space and told Zhou Qingmei that they had escaped Buddha Venerable Bright Moon.
• Zhou Qingmei confirmed that she was a sixth-grade formation master and gave He Pingsheng her Six Yin Pill formula.
• He Pingsheng sent Hao Cang to buy the missing ingredients, then refined three batches of Six Yin Pills and used the Treasure-Gathering Basin to enhance them into seventy-two supreme-grade pills.
• He Pingsheng gave the pills to Zhou Qingmei and her clone, then began secluding himself with them to cultivate and study the Heavenly Moon Divine Formation.