Chapter Summaries

He Pingsheng learned the Sword-Riding Technique and tested it despite still being in the Qi Refining Stage, then headed to a mountaintop to test the Great Banner Thunder-Rolling Technique. The chapter left him recalling the first spell he had practiced twelve years earlier.

• Xu Kunlun tried to ride a flying sword, crashed into a tree, and learned from Yu Ning that Foundation Establishment was normally required to use the Sword-Riding Technique.
• Yu Ning gave Xu Kunlun, Zhao Ling'er, He Pingsheng, and Tian Xiaoqing the Sword-Riding Method to copy.
• He Pingsheng used the Treasure-Gathering Basin on his copy, which produced a second unchanged copy, then spent six months learning the Sword-Riding Technique and two other techniques.
• He Pingsheng flew on his sword while the two Snow Rocs followed, and discovered that the flight consumed his divine sense.
• He Pingsheng rode Big White to a mountaintop to test the Great Banner Thunder-Rolling Technique and remembered practicing the Fire Crow Technique twelve years earlier.

He Pingsheng tested the Nine Luminaries Dragon-Slaying Banner and Great Banner Thunder-Rolling Technique, then returned to Bamboo Peak and learned that Xu Kunlun and Zhao Ling'er had gone searching for cultivation resources after reaching Foundation Establishment. He gave Wang Hao a Treasure Bag and prepared to eat the Water Essence Spirit Apricot in hopes of breaking through.

• He Pingsheng used the Nine Luminaries Dragon-Slaying Banner to unleash a Thunder Dragon that shattered a massive boulder.
• He Pingsheng returned to Bamboo Peak with Big White and Little White and found that Xu Kunlun and Zhao Ling'er were away seeking resources for Foundation Establishment cultivation.
• He Pingsheng gave Wang Hao a Treasure Bag in appreciation for caring for his courtyard and Snow Rocs.
• He Pingsheng entered his bedroom, took out the Water Essence Spirit Apricot, and decided to eat it to pursue a breakthrough.

After eating a Water Essence Spirit Apricot, He Pingsheng broke through to the eleventh layer of Qi Refining and spent two years raising all five dantian, divine refining, and body refining to that layer. When he left seclusion seeking a chance to advance further, Yu Ning sent him to deliver a wedding gift to his eldest senior brother Hou Muxian, and He Pingsheng wondered why no one else was going.

• He Pingsheng ate the Water Essence Spirit Apricot and broke through to the eleventh layer of Qi Refining.
• He Pingsheng spent two years cultivating until all five dantian, divine refining, and body refining reached the eleventh layer.
• Tian Xiaoqing told He Pingsheng that she had reached the twelfth layer but had failed to establish her foundation despite taking three pills.
• Yu Ning explained that Hou Muxian belonged to the Hou Household and gave He Pingsheng a jade box and map to deliver as a wedding gift.
• He Pingsheng left Yu Ning Palace puzzled that Yu Ning and his fellow disciples were not going to Hou Muxian's wedding.

He Pingsheng brought Cheng Siyu to the Hou Household, where she confronted Hou Muxian over abandoning their relationship to marry a Beast Taming Sect cultivator. Hou Muxian explained that his lineage’s survival depended on the alliance, then left after asking Cheng Siyu to spare him that day.

• He Pingsheng met Cheng Siyu, whose tearful account revealed that she and Hou Muxian had been a couple and planned to marry.
• Cheng Siyu told He Pingsheng that Hou Muxian had taken a new Dao Companion from the Beast Taming Sect, and He Pingsheng realized the Hou Household had shifted its allegiance from the Great Void Sect.
• He Pingsheng and Cheng Siyu entered the Hou Household using the invitation from Yu Ning.
• He Pingsheng delivered Yu Ning’s jade box and congratulated Hou Muxian on his marriage.
• Hou Muxian explained that his uncle had ordered him to form the alliance to protect their weak, isolated lineage, then kowtowed and left after asking Cheng Siyu to let him go that day.

After visiting Hou Muxian, He Pingsheng and Cheng Siyu stayed for the Hou Household’s trading fair, where cultivators exchanged treasures and techniques. He Pingsheng left with a jade slip from Qiao Huizhu and learned why the Cloud-Dispelling Talisman was valuable to sects.

• After Hou Muxian admitted his actions, Cheng Siyu and He Pingsheng prepared to leave, but Hou Muling invited them to attend the wedding banquet and trading fair.
• After the banquet, He Pingsheng and Cheng Siyu joined more than seventy cultivators from different sects in the Hou Household’s trading fair.
• Qiao Xiaoqiao gave He Pingsheng a jade slip from Qiao Huizhu and told him to read it privately later.
• Hou Muling offered a second-grade Cloud-Dispelling Talisman, and several cultivators, including Cheng Siyu, offered items in exchange.
• Cheng Siyu explained to He Pingsheng that dispersing clouds could relieve floods and help a sect accumulate fortune.

He Pingsheng attended a trading gathering, tested his divine sense, and exchanged a low-grade Foundation Establishment Pill for a defensive talisman. After the gathering, Hou Muling asked him and Cheng Siyu about the Black Frontier, a dangerous deadland north of the Daoist Profound Alliance.

• Cheng Siyu explained sect fortune to He Pingsheng, who showed no interest in the Cloud-Dispelling Talisman.
• He Pingsheng discovered that his divine sense could identify some Foundation Establishment cultivators and found six such disciples at the gathering.
• He Pingsheng traded his low-grade Foundation Establishment Pill to a man in black Daoist robes for a low-grade Golden Bone Talisman.
• Hou Muling approached He Pingsheng and Cheng Siyu after the gathering and asked whether they knew of the Black Frontier.
• Cheng Siyu identified the Black Frontier as a perilous deadland filled with demon beasts, poisonous miasma, and valuable spirit herbs and treasures.

Hou Muling invited Cheng Siyu to join a dangerous expedition into the Black Frontier to find Red Essence Ginseng, and He Pingsheng secretly enhanced defensive talismans while they considered going. Cheng Siyu agreed to the trip, and He Pingsheng was offered a place in the party, with the condition that he would rank seventh when the spoils were divided.

• Hou Muling told Cheng Siyu that Red Essence Ginseng guarded by a Foundation Establishment Realm Giant Ape had been spotted in the Black Frontier and invited her to join a party of cultivators.
• Cheng Siyu weighed the dangers and benefits of the expedition, while He Pingsheng hoped to go despite not being invited.
• He Pingsheng hid the Treasure-Gathering Basin inside his Treasure Bag and Storage Bag, then used it overnight to enhance a Golden Bone Talisman into two supreme-grade Diamond Talismans.
• Cheng Siyu agreed to go to the Black Frontier, and Hou Muling asked He Pingsheng whether he would join them or return to the sect.
• He Pingsheng asked if he could go, and Hou Muxian offered him a place on the expedition on the condition that he would rank seventh when the spoils were divided.

He Pingsheng joined Hou Muxian’s group on a hunt for Red Essence Ginseng in the Black Frontier, accepting that he would receive the smallest share. Daoist Changping betrayed the group with poison, but He Pingsheng and Cheng Siyu survived, leaving them facing the attackers after two companions were killed.

• He Pingsheng agreed to join the treasure hunt despite being placed last in the distribution order.
• Hou Muxian introduced the group, including several twelfth-layer Qi Refining cultivators, and led them north toward the Black Frontier.
• After checking their bearings, Hou Muxian gathered the group to hear Daoist Changping explain how to use his Beast Lure Pills.
• Daoist Changping shattered the bottle, releasing poison that struck He Pingsheng, Cheng Siyu, Zhuang Zhilong, and Zhong Xiangxuan.
• He Pingsheng escaped with Cheng Siyu and used Golden Bee Sacred Nectar to purge the poison from them both.
• He Pingsheng and Cheng Siyu saw that Zhuang Zhilong and Zhong Xiangxuan had been killed, and Cheng Siyu recognized the ambush.

He Pingsheng and Cheng Siyu learned that Hou Muxian had allowed a plan to kill them, and they tried to flee from two Foundation Establishment cultivators. He Pingsheng survived the old man's first attacks behind a Diamond Talisman, but the woman returned claiming she had killed Cheng Siyu.

• Hou Muling revealed that her brother Hou Muxian knew about the ambush, which had been planned to make the deaths look like losses in the Black Frontier.
• He Pingsheng attacked the old man with a lightning dragon banner and urged Cheng Siyu to flee on a Paper Crane.
• The old man and the Foundation Establishment woman pursued He Pingsheng and Cheng Siyu separately, and the old man knocked He Pingsheng from his Paper Crane with a golden fireball.
• He Pingsheng escaped into a forest, activated a Diamond Talisman, and withstood a strike from Daoist Changping's middle-grade Spirit Artifact Flying Sword.
• The woman arrived and told Daoist Changping that she had killed Cheng Siyu with one slash.

He Pingsheng defeated Daoist Changping with his talismans and pursued Qin Mingyue, who escaped. He returned to the mountaintop and captured Hou Muling alive as a witness to the plot against him and Cheng Siyu.

• Qin Mingyue and Daoist Changping fled when they saw He Pingsheng’s powerful talismans, but He Pingsheng sent his Mountain-Moving Talisman after Changping.
• Daoist Changping’s shield failed against the Mountain-Moving Talisman, and He Pingsheng pursued him through the air while Qin Mingyue escaped.
• He Pingsheng struck down Daoist Changping, searched his body, and took his flying sword and Storage Bag.
• He Pingsheng searched for Cheng Siyu but found no sign of her body, then returned toward the mountaintop.
• Hou Muling tried to flee when she recognized He Pingsheng, but he restrained her with poisonous vines and thorns, leaving her unconscious as a witness.

He Pingsheng looted the fallen cultivators, confirmed that the Red Essence Ginseng was real, and chose to return to the Great Void Sect with Hou Muling to report the attack. Meanwhile, Qin Mingyue fled after telling Liu Ruotong that He Pingsheng had escaped, and Daoist Nun Feng waited along his route, ready to kill him.

• He Pingsheng took valuables and jade slips from the two dead cultivators and Hou Muling, then found a map showing the Red Essence Ginseng and its Foundation Establishment Realm python guardian.
• He Pingsheng chose to return to the Great Void Sect, searched unsuccessfully for Cheng Siyu, and flew away with Hou Muling on his paper crane.
• Qin Mingyue told Liu Ruotong that she had killed Cheng Siyu but failed to kill He Pingsheng, then fled the Hou Household to avoid being blamed by the Beast Taming Sect.
• Daoist Nun Feng waited on a mountain along He Pingsheng's route and spotted him approaching on his paper crane.

He Pingsheng reached the mountains near the Great Void Sect but was intercepted by Daoist Nun Feng, who accused him of killing her brother, Jade Virtue. After she broke his defensive talisman, He Pingsheng used a sword thrust as cover to unleash his Golden Bell, and Daoist Nun Feng met its attack with a silver shield.

• He Pingsheng spotted a mountain near the Great Void Sect and kept Hou Muling paralyzed with another poison thorn.
• He Pingsheng fled into the woods as Daoist Nun Feng pursued him on a flying sword and struck his Diamond Talisman shield.
• Daoist Nun Feng broke He Pingsheng's shield with four sword strikes and accused him of killing her brother, Jade Virtue.
• Daoist Nun Feng's sword failed to pierce He Pingsheng's body, and he used the moment to draw his Golden Bell from his Invisible Storage Bag.
• He Pingsheng blasted Daoist Nun Feng with the Golden Bell, and she raised a large silver shield to block the sound wave.

He Pingsheng escaped Daoist Nun Feng after their attacks damaged both their Divine Senses, then returned to Bamboo Peak with Hou Muling and reported the ambush at the Hou Household to Yu Ning and the other disciples. The account left the Great Void Sect facing a grave threat from the Beast Taming Sect and the Hou Household.

• He Pingsheng struck Daoist Nun Feng twice with the Soul-Slaying Bell, damaging her Divine Sense but suffering damage himself.
• Unable to approach Daoist Nun Feng through her wild Sword Qi, He Pingsheng fled with Hou Muling aboard the Cloud-Piercing Boat.
• He Pingsheng returned to Bamboo Peak, sorted his belongings to protect evidence and conceal hidden items, and carried Hou Muling to Yu Ning Palace.
• Yu Ning showed He Pingsheng the broken Life Tablet and told him that Cheng Siyu was gone.
• He Pingsheng gathered the Bamboo Peak disciples and recounted the events at the Hou Household, revealing an ambush against the Great Void Sect.

After reporting Hou Muling’s role in the conspiracy, He Pingsheng prepared to search the Black Frontier for Red Essence Ginseng with his companions. Back in his courtyard, he discovered that Qiao Huizhu had sent him an erotic cultivation manual, while Qiao Xiaoqiao revealed she had delivered it to tease her sister.

• Yu Ning took the unconscious Hou Muling to report the matter to the Great Void’s Grand Ancestor, while He Pingsheng withheld his encounter with Daoist Nun Feng.
• He Pingsheng invited Zhao Ling'er and Xu Kunlun to join him in searching the Black Frontier for Red Essence Ginseng, and Tian Xiaoqing decided to go with them.
• He Pingsheng returned home, took a Divine Sense-Healing Pill, and examined the spoils he had taken from Daoist Changping.
• He Pingsheng opened the jade slip Qiao Xiaoqiao had delivered and found the nineteen-chapter manual titled Nineteen Chapters of Phoenix Riding, which described the union of yin and yang.
• At Heavenly Talisman Mountain, Qiao Huizhu scolded Qiao Xiaoqiao for giving He Pingsheng the manual, and Qiao Xiaoqiao teased her about her feelings for him.

He Pingsheng enhanced the Nineteen Chapters of Phoenix Riding into two Heaven-grade dual cultivation techniques and prepared to search for the Red Essence Ginseng, but the Great Void Sect's Grand Ancestor summoned him to answer questions about the Hou Household and the Beast Taming Sect. Grand Ancestor Chongyang escorted him to the Great Void Divine Hall, where its protective formation appeared as they approached.

• He Pingsheng enhanced the Nineteen Chapters of Phoenix Riding and a Foundation Establishment Pill in the Treasure-Gathering Basin, gaining two Heaven-grade techniques and two supreme-grade pills.
• Yu Ning told He Pingsheng that the Great Void Sect's Grand Ancestor wanted to see him about the Hou Household and the Beast Taming Sect.
• Grand Ancestor Chongyang praised He Pingsheng for defeating a Foundation Establishment cultivator and told him to stay adaptable on the path of cultivation.
• Grand Ancestor Chongyang carried He Pingsheng by Sword Riding to Jade Dragon Peak and explained that the Great Void Sect's Grand Ancestor was over nine hundred years old.
• He Pingsheng followed Grand Ancestor Chongyang toward the Great Void Divine Hall, where its golden protective formation appeared as they came within ten zhang.

He Pingsheng entered the Great Void Divine Hall with Ancestor Chongyang and met the Grand Ancestor of the Great Void and several Golden Core cultivators. The Grand Ancestor praised He Pingsheng’s achievements, then questioned him about the death of Daoist Changping and the disappearance of Qin Mingyue.

• Ancestor Chongyang brought He Pingsheng into the Great Void Divine Hall, where the Grand Ancestor of the Great Void told He Pingsheng to raise his head and look around.
• He Pingsheng greeted the Grand Ancestor, Ancestor Xuan Yang, Elder Hong, and two other Golden Core cultivators.
• The Grand Ancestor said a soul search had confirmed that the Hou Household and the Beast Taming Sect had conspired against them.
• The Grand Ancestor asked how He Pingsheng had killed Daoist Changping, and He Pingsheng claimed that a Falling Stone Talisman had knocked Changping from his flying sword.
• He Pingsheng said Qin Mingyue had pursued Cheng Siyu and that he had not seen Qin again.

He Pingsheng explained how he had caught up with Daoist Changping and revealed that he could use Sword Riding because he had practiced a Divine Refining method. After he presented two cultivation manuals for the elders to inspect, the Grand Ancestor of the Great Void suspected the method came from outside their sect.

• Elder Sword Bamboo questioned He Pingsheng's claim that he had knocked Daoist Changping from his Flying Sword and challenged how he could have caught up.
• He Pingsheng admitted that he had pursued Changping by Sword Riding, and the Grand Ancestor of the Great Void explained that exceptional Divine Sense could make it possible.
• Sword Bamboo inferred that He Pingsheng must have practiced a Divine Refining method and demanded to inspect it.
• At the Grand Ancestor's urging, He Pingsheng produced copies of the Mysterious Gate Tranquil Mind True Formula and the Heavenly Demon Soul-Sowing Method, while concealing parts of the originals.
• The elders examined the manuals, and the Grand Ancestor of the Great Void remarked that He Pingsheng's cultivation method was no ordinary technique and probably did not come from their sect.

He Pingsheng explained that he had obtained his unusual divine refining techniques from Xiao Bufan, whom he and Senior Sister Qiao killed in the Secret Realm. He claimed to have discarded a Heaven Tier Dual Cultivation Technique, leaving the elders desperate to find it but without a precise location.

• He Pingsheng told the elders he killed Xiao Bufan after catching him trying to violate Senior Sister Qiao, and said they killed him together.
• He Pingsheng explained that Senior Sister Qiao's marriage arrangement with him followed from their encounter and that he and Qiao had divided Xiao Bufan's spirit stones.
• Sword Bamboo asked what else He Pingsheng had taken, prompting Ancestor Chongyang to rebuke her for prying into his grand-disciple's belongings.
• He Pingsheng revealed that Xiao Bufan had possessed a Heaven Tier technique but claimed he threw it away because it contained pictures of men and women together.
• Elder Hong identified the discarded technique as a Heaven Tier Dual Cultivation Technique, and the elders realized Xiao Bufan had likely used it to target the Qiao Household's young lady.
• He Pingsheng said he had tossed the technique somewhere in the mountains over a thousand li south of the Secret Realm and had forgotten the exact location.

He Pingsheng defended himself against suspicion over the lost Heaven Tier dual cultivation technique, while Ancestor Chongyang recounted his generous deeds to prove his honesty. The Grand Ancestor of the Great Void dismissed calls for revenge against the Hou Household and Beast Taming Sect, then took He Pingsheng from Yu Ning as his own disciple.

• He Pingsheng said he had thrown the Jade Slip containing the Heaven Tier technique from the Qiao Household's immortal ship and could only recall a forested mountain below.
• Ancestor Chongyang defended He Pingsheng by telling how he had given his supreme-grade Storage Bag to Yu Ning and his two high-grade Foundation Establishment Pills to his senior brother and sister.
• The Grand Ancestor of the Great Void ordered everyone to stop pressuring He Pingsheng and said they must search for the technique themselves.
• Ancestor Chongyang raised the Hou Household's alliance with the Beast Taming Sect and demanded an accounting for Cheng Siyu's death, but the Grand Ancestor rejected retaliation and urged the sect to nurture its younger disciples.
• The Grand Ancestor ordered He Pingsheng to cultivate in a side hall and declared that he would personally teach him, ending his discipleship under Yu Ning.

He Pingsheng became the Grand Ancestor of the Great Void’s disciple and learned that the aging master was a ninth-level Nascent Soul cultivator. Taixu began explaining how spiritual roots and cultivation obstacles shaped progress beyond the Nascent Soul Realm.

• Sword Bamboo and several elders left to search for a Heaven Tier dual cultivation method, while Xuan Yang, Chongyang, and Elder Hong stayed behind.
• Elder Hong told Xuan Yang and Chongyang that the Grand Ancestor was nearing his thousand-year lifespan and had refused Soul Seizure, then raised the need to punish the Hou Household and Beast Taming Immortal Sect.
• Taixu confirmed He Pingsheng had a five-element spiritual root, told him to call him Master, and revealed he had reached the ninth level of the Nascent Soul Realm.
• He Pingsheng supported Taixu to a spirit-herb garden, where Taixu explained that Nascent Soul cultivators had to break Dao obstacles and flesh barriers before advancing.