Arc 5Chapters 101–125
No recap yet.
No recap yet.
Xu Qingtong and his fellow Swallowtail Peak disciples joined Gloomwind Valley’s Autumn Sword-Tournament, and Gong Chu began his first match against a Sword Peak disciple. Gong Chu’s Spirit Artifact bowl withstood the opponent’s attacks, while Xu Qingtong’s powerful talismans forced the match into a more serious exchange.
Gong Chu won his first match, and Xu Qingtong defeated Wei Ming with his talismans in the third round. Xu Qingtong reunited with Dongfang Hui and Du Siwen, who headed to her own match after silencing insults against Swallowtail Peak.
Du Siwen advanced through the first round and faced Senior Brother Hong in the second, where she fought fiercely against his attempt to stop Xu Qingtong from reaching the top five. As Hong’s shield cracked under her attacks, he began considering retreat, but the match continued.
Du Siwen defeated Senior Brother Hong, and Xu Qingtong won his match before giving her the Soul-Chasing Spear and talismans to help her continue in the tournament. As the competition advanced, Du Siwen reached the top eight, while Dongfang Hui lost to Zhao Rufeng and Xu Qingtong advanced to the top fifteen.
Xu Qingtong advanced to the top eight, gained insight from Yu Tiancheng’s advice, and entered the fifth round against Zhuang Shengren of Sword Peak. Their duel left Xu Qingtong wounded after Zhuang Shengren broke through his defenses.
Xu Qingtong defeated Zhuang Shengren and secured a place among the Autumn Sword-Tournament’s top five, learning that Core Disciples gained great resources but had to undertake dangerous sect missions. He withdrew from the remaining matches, finished in third place, and received rewards as the Dongfang Ancestor canceled Dongfang Hui’s engagement and agreed she could become his future Dual Cultivation Dao Companion.
Xu Qingtong crafted a Water-Fire Heaven-Shaking Halberd for Du Siwen, then resumed cultivation after the Autumn Sword-Tournament. His master Yu Tiancheng summoned him and revealed that his minor heavenly tribulation would arrive next month, leaving Xu Qingtong worried about his fate.
Xu Qingtong refined a high-grade spirit artifact shield from a Xiqian Turtle shell to help Yu Tiancheng face his minor heavenly tribulation. After Yu Tiancheng ritually refined it, the two tested its defenses, and it reflected Xu Qingtong’s spirit artifacts.
Xu Qingtong prepared to witness his master Yu Tiancheng’s attempt at Golden Core formation and studied the process beforehand. Yu Tiancheng passed the Heart Tribulation, but his Thousand Cherish Shield began to crack under the Thunder Tribulation as Xu Qingtong watched.
Xu Qingtong intervened when Yu Tiancheng’s tribulation overwhelmed his defenses, using his Five Elements Divine Seals and body-tempering art to hold off the lightning while his master comprehended the power of heaven and earth. The tribulation clouds cleared, and seven-colored radiance descended upon them as Yu Tiancheng continued his breakthrough.
After Yu Tiancheng survived his Minor Heavenly Tribulation and formed a Golden Core, Xu Qingtong absorbed the immortal light and gained insights into the five elements. He broke through to the ninth layer of Qi Refining, but his fully liquefied Spiritual Power left him puzzled because he had not reached Foundation Establishment.
Xu Qingtong received a mission from Dongfang Jin to invite Azure Sea Gate’s Sect Master Mu to his master’s Core Formation ceremony, and he set out with Dongfang Hui. After they stopped in a market town to eat wontons, they realized neither of them had any silver to pay.
Xu Qingtong and Dongfang Hui stopped for the night in Worryfree Valley, where they shared a tender moment before sensing nearby cultivators and hiding. After the strangers passed, Xu Qingtong kept watch, and Xiao Qi warned him that the area was heavy with yin energy.
Xu Qingtong and Dongfang Hui delivered an invitation to Azure Sea Gate for Yu Tiancheng’s Golden Core ceremony, then hurried back toward Gloomwind Valley. In Worryfree Valley, Xiao Qi sensed heavy yin energy, and Xu Qingtong discovered a village family of four dead inside their home.
Xu Qingtong and Dongfang Hui discovered that every household in a village had been killed without visible injuries, then fled when a Foundation Establishment middle-stage pursuer detected them. Xu Qingtong stayed behind to fight the black-robed man, and his Talisman Treasure cut through the man's summoned monster and continued toward him.
Xu Qingtong defeated a Ghost Cultivator, escaped to Gloomwind Valley, and learned from Yu Tiancheng that his captured Soul Refining Pot was a ghost-path artifact. As Gloomwind Valley considered the danger, Worryfree Valley debated striking first, leaving both sects preparing for a possible conflict.
Worryfree Valley’s Wang Kunshan led a force to attack Gloomwind Valley after the sect discovered his soul-sacrificing scheme. With Dongfang Jin away, Fang Tianqi organized the defense, and the chapter ended as Gloomwind Valley’s cultivators charged out to fight.
Xu Qingtong helped Gloomwind Valley defeat Worryfree Valley’s attack and offered Yu Tiancheng heavenly sound bamboo for a life-bound treasure. After Dongfang Jin returned injured, Yu Tiancheng followed him into the valley, leaving Xu Qingtong worried.
Xu Qingtong studied the ghost path and learned that chaos was approaching, while Elder Dong offered to help him leave for safety. Xu Qingtong chose to stay in Gloomwind Valley and prepared to counter ghost cultivators, ending with a plan based on the Soul Refining Pot and the Soul-Breaking Awl.
After learning that Old Dong had taken Dongfang Hui to Central Province, Xu Qingtong prepared magical artifacts to defend against ghost cultivators and strengthened Xiao Qi. He remained determined to grow stronger, and gave Gong Chu a piece of Soul-Calming Jade.
Xu Qingtong and Du Siwen joined a patrol near Worryfree Valley and discovered that a town had been struck by ghost cultivators. As three black-clad cultivators approached their hiding place, Xu Qingtong sensed another pursuer behind them and prepared to fight.
Xu Qingtong and Du Siwen defeated three Worryfree Valley disciples, but their old acquaintance Tian Zongfei escaped with one of the souls. After fleeing and resting, they encountered a larger Worryfree Valley group, including a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and prepared to fight.
Xu Qingtong and Du Siwen defeated six Worryfree Valley cultivators, then took shelter in an abandoned temple, where Xu Qingtong revealed Xiao Qi’s identity to his senior sister. After dividing the spoils, they set off back to the Sect.
Xu Qingtong and Du Siwen captured a Worryfree Valley scout outside Gloomwind Valley, and Yu Tiancheng discovered the scout had come to contact a traitor inside the Sect. The chapter ends with Yu Tiancheng identifying Chai Long as the contact and suspecting his involvement in the earlier attack on the Forefather.
Yu Tiancheng and Fang Tianqi exposed Chai Long as a traitor, and Dongfang Jin punished him while sparing his life. With Worryfree Valley growing stronger and Dongfang Jin injured, the sect prepared to open the Creation Pool to strengthen its disciples.