Chapter Summaries

A woman left a gravely injured infant with a chaos saint body at Cold Mountain Temple, where the monks discovered he had no heart and little chance of survival. When they used him to absorb the rampaging Devil Ancestor's Heart, it fused with him, and his new heartbeat rang through the hall.

• A woman in blue left her swaddled infant at Cold Mountain Temple, and Zhao Manzi carried him inside.
• Sword Demon and the others found that the infant's heart, right eyeball, and two bones were missing, while the white-browed old monk prepared to perform rites for him.
• The Devil Ancestor's Heart erupted beneath the Buddha statue, overwhelming the five guardians as they tried to suppress it.
• Sword Demon proposed that the infant absorb the Devil Heart's energy, and the sinister young man placed him before the Buddha statue.
• The Devil Heart fell still and fused with the infant, whose heartbeat grew strong; the white-browed old monk realized it had connected to the child's heart vessels.

After the Devil Heart broke free of its seal, the white-browed old monk persuaded the other four prisoners to spare the infant Fang Ling and protect him with the Golden Soul Mantra. Five years later, Fang Ling practiced the Galaxy Boundless Fist while his masters argued over who was truly good or bad.

• Sword Demon tried to gouge the Devil Heart from the infant, but the baby clasped his finger, and the others passed the child around rather than kill him.
• The white-browed old monk explained that Fang Ling's chaos saint body had trapped the Devil Heart and promised to shield him with the Golden Soul Mantra.
• The five men agreed to take turns caring for Fang Ling and teaching him their skills, and the old monk named him Little Fang Ling after finding his name embroidered on his swaddling cloth.
• Five years later, Fang Ling attacked the meditating old monk with the Galaxy Boundless Fist and was caught and spun by the old monk's white eyebrow.
• The old monk told Fang Ling about his four masters' violent pasts, but Flower Thief, Xiao Luosheng, accused the old monk of being worse than them.
• Fang Ling defended the old monk, and the old monk praised him before offering to teach him the Galaxy Boundless Fist again.

Fang Ling forced the Devil Heart’s lingering consciousness out of his chest, and the old monk erased it, ending the danger that had threatened his life. His masters realized how much his abilities had developed, and Fang Ling woke the next day free of the nightmare that had haunted him for five years.

• Zhao Manzi and the others worried that the Devil Heart was weakening Fang Ling’s heartbeat and might stop keeping him alive.
• Fang Ling woke and pulled the Devil Heart’s consciousness out of his chest, and the old monk erased it with the Swastika Mantra.
• Zhao Manzi explained that Fang Ling’s chaos saint body had recovered and grown stronger, while his blood eye and treasure bones had also developed powerful abilities.
• Flower Thief admitted he had secretly taught Fang Ling the Divine Movement Art before the masters’ agreed starting age for cultivation.
• Sword Demon woke Fang Ling the next day and told him he would no longer have the nightmare caused by the Devil Heart.

Sword Demon taught Fang Ling Blood Sword and promised he could leave Cold Mountain Temple once he condensed a life-bound blood sword, but the other masters refused to let him go yet. That night, Zhao Manzi suffered another episode and attacked Fang Ling, forcing the masters to subdue him.

• Sword Demon taught Fang Ling Blood Sword, which used killing intent and vital blood to form a life-bound sword, and promised to let him go down the mountain once he succeeded.
• Fang Ling condensed an extremely evil blood sword by that evening, but the old monk said he had to wait until he was older before leaving.
• After Fang Ling returned to his room, the masters speculated that the Devil Ancestor's Heart had influenced his blood sword, though his training had helped him suppress its madness.
• Fang Ling felt itching in the two bones near his chest and sensed strange runes stirring within them.
• Zhao Manzi entered Fang Ling's room in a monstrous state and tried to eat him, but Flower Thief rescued Fang Ling and the masters joined forces to subdue Zhao Manzi.

After Zhao Manzi recovered from a nightlong frenzy, he explained that the Taotie Divine Art had filled his soul with vengeful spirits. Despite its dangers, he taught the art to Fang Ling, who hoped to find a way to cure him.

• The Old Monk told Fang Ling that he had once killed people who refused to take refuge in him.
• Zhao Manzi recovered from his episode, and Fang Ling went to speak with him in the Meditation Room.
• Zhao Manzi explained that the Taotie Divine Art made him eat people and that their resentment caused his episodes; he also warned Fang Ling that the Blood Sword Divine Art could affect his temperament.
• Fang Ling asked to learn the Taotie Divine Art, arguing that the Old Monk's Golden Soul Mantra could protect him from vengeful spirits.
• After receiving Flower Thief's advice, Zhao Manzi passed the Taotie Divine Art to Fang Ling and warned him to keep it secret once he left the mountain.

Fang Ling learned that his fat master specialized in poison and possessed the Heavenly Pestilence Cauldron, an innate spirit treasure. His master transferred the cauldron to him and began teaching him to cultivate poison, leaving Fang Ling absorbing toxins from venomous scorpions.

• Fang Ling ate scorpion stew with his fat master and heard about the dragon, phoenix, and qilin delicacies his master had tasted.
• Fang Ling's fat master said he would teach him his supreme arts and showed him the Heavenly Pestilence Cauldron.
• The fat master explained that the cauldron absorbed poisonous creatures and that his own accumulated poison could kill all living things in its path.
• The fat master transferred the Heavenly Pestilence Cauldron into Fang Ling's body and explained that he no longer needed it after reaching a bottleneck in his poison cultivation.
• The fat master gave Fang Ling two venomous scorpions to absorb, and Fang Ling drew them into the cauldron and began taking in their toxins.

After reaching the Heavenly Authority Realm, Fang Ling received his masters’ blessing to leave Cold Mountain Temple and venture into the world. He departed promising to grow strong enough to break the Ten-Directions Annihilation Formation and free the five masters.

• Fang Ling’s breakthrough to the Heavenly Authority Realm prompted his five masters to agree that he was ready to leave the mountain.
• The masters reviewed Fang Ling’s skills and warned him to stay cautious, grow stronger, and not rush his revenge.
• Fang Ling bowed to his masters and vowed to break the Ten-Directions Annihilation Formation and free them one day.
• Fang Ling opened the gates of Cold Mountain Temple and left as peach blossoms drifted around him.

After leaving Cold Mountain Temple, Fang Ling learned that tens of thousands of years had passed and reached Willow City, where Zhao Xilian offered him shelter with the Zhao Family. Zhao Tianlong and Zhao Xilian agreed that Fang Ling was unusual and might help them amid pressure from the Qin Family.

• Fang Ling met He Dayou, who explained that the Great Chu Kingdom had fallen and Smelting City was now called Willow City in the Southern Sun Kingdom.
• He Dayou brought Fang Ling to Willow City, and Fang Ling asked for help finding work with the Zhao Family.
• Zhao Ruixiang considered turning Fang Ling away, but Zhao Xilian arrived and allowed Fang Ling to stay at the residence.
• Zhao Xilian told Zhao Tianlong she had taken Fang Ling in because the Zhao Family needed more help against the Qin Family.
• Zhao Tianlong and Zhao Xilian concluded that Fang Ling was no ordinary person and could not have been sent by the Qin Family.

Fang Ling spent over a month studying the Zhao Family’s books, then offered to help when he learned the family was in trouble. Qian Ling arrived to assist Zhao Xilian but suspected Fang Ling was a fraud.

• Zhao Xilian brought Fang Ling pastries and guided him to the Thatched Study, where he received a key to read whenever he wished.
• Fang Ling studied the books in the Thatched Study day and night for more than a month.
• Zhao Tianlong asked Zhao Xilian about Fang Ling and discussed the Zhao Family’s conflict with the Qin Family and the arrival of her senior brother.
• Fang Ling appeared beside Zhao Tianlong and Zhao Xilian, thanked them for their hospitality, and offered to help the Zhao Family once.
• Qian Ling arrived, met Fang Ling, and later warned Zhao Xilian that Fang Ling was probably a swindler.

Fang Ling killed Qian Ling after he attacked him, then absorbed the man’s life essence and discovered he enjoyed the sensation. That night, Zhao Xilian visited Fang Ling with soup and tried to grow closer, but he remained focused on his reading.

• Qian Ling left the Zhao Residence expecting Zhao Xilian to chase after him, while Zhao Tianlong warned his daughter to keep her distance from the narrow-minded man.
• After Zhao Xilian explained that Qian Ling had repeatedly proposed she become his cultivation partner, Zhao Tianlong reassured her that Fang Ling could protect the family.
• Qian Ling blamed Fang Ling for ruining his chance with Zhao Xilian and attacked him with Wind Spirit Slash, but Fang Ling’s Blood Sword pierced and killed him.
• Fang Ling absorbed Qian Ling’s life essence with the Gluttonous Demon Stomach and felt himself grow excited by using the Blood Sword and Taotie Divine Art together.
• Zhao Xilian brought Fang Ling blood ginseng soup, asked him to call her Xilian, and left disappointed when he showed little interest beyond reading.

After Fang Ling slaughtered the Qin Family and left Willow City, he used what he had learned in the Zhao Family’s library to choose the Blood Marsh as his next destination. He suspected he was the sole survivor of the Fang Family, but focused on growing stronger and detoured to seek a mount.

• Zhao Tianlong learned that Zhao Xilian had failed to win Fang Ling’s interest and urged her not to lose heart.
• Fang Ling went to the Qin Family estate, where the awakened beast within him thrilled at the prospect of killing.
• Zhao Tianlong told Zhao Xilian that someone had slaughtered the Qin Family, and they concluded Fang Ling had done it before leaving a note of thanks.
• Fang Ling disposed of the Qin Family’s bodies and used them to nourish his Blood Sword and Taotie Divine Art.
• Fang Ling recalled that the Fang Family had been destroyed eighteen years earlier and suspected he was its surviving orphan.
• Fang Ling headed for the lawless Blood Marsh and detoured toward a nearby gathering place of demons and monsters to find a swift mount.

Fang Ling camped in Heavenbreak Mountain, where Yun Shuiqing and a little girl named Little Yao joined him. Yun Shuiqing revealed to Python Venerable that Little Yao was the Heavenly Net Church leader’s daughter and that she planned to reclaim the Heavenly Net Divine Art for her.

• Fang Ling used spirit stones from the Qin Family to cultivate and sensed Yun Shuiqing and Little Yao approaching his campfire.
• Little Yao offered Fang Ling flatbread and warned him that demons lived in Heavenbreak Mountain, while Yun Shuiqing told him to leave.
• Python Venerable arrived and threatened Fang Ling, but the gray snake around him panicked at Fang Ling’s aura and fled.
• Yun Shuiqing put Little Yao to sleep and told Python Venerable that the girl was the missing church leader’s daughter, preserved in ice until a few years earlier.
• Yun Shuiqing explained that she had concealed Little Yao’s identity until their group could defeat the beast guarding the Heavenly Net Divine Art, and asked Python Venerable for support.

Yun Shuiqing and Man Tianning agreed to make Xiaoyao the Heavenly Net Church’s new leader, with Fang Ling assigned to protect her. The group waited in Heavenbreak Mountain for Hu Yue and his allies, and the chapter ended with Hu Yue confronting Yun Shuiqing about the Church Leader’s death.

• Yun Shuiqing persuaded Man Tianning to help install Xiaoyao as the Heavenly Net Church’s leader, and he agreed to hold back the others while she dealt with Hu Yue.
• Yun Shuiqing stopped Man Tianning from killing Fang Ling and recruited him to protect Xiaoyao; Master Qingye emerged from hiding and joined them.
• The group rested overnight, then entered Heavenbreak Mountain and stopped when Yun Shuiqing feared they might encounter a powerful beast.
• Tiger Venerable Hu Yue arrived with the Water Guard and Fire Guard and asked Yun Shuiqing whether the Church Leader had died in the Netherworld Beast’s lair.

Yun Shuiqing and Hu Yue disputed who should lead the Heavenly Net Church, and Yun Shuiqing proposed the church leader’s daughter, Xiaoyao, as successor. After Fang Ling vanished, the group heard the Netherworld Beast’s cries and rushed toward its lair, where Fang Ling had subdued it and made it his mount.

• Hu Yue argued that his experience and greater cultivation made him the best choice to lead the Heavenly Net Church, while Man Tianning backed Yun Shuiqing as successor.
• Yun Shuiqing revealed that Xiaoyao was the late church leader’s daughter, and Master Qingmu confirmed her bloodline before supporting her succession.
• You Yu noticed that Fang Ling had disappeared, prompting Yun Shuiqing and Hu Yue to agree to find him.
• The Netherworld Beast roared in pain from deep within Heavenbreak Mountain, so the rival groups joined forces and headed toward its lair.
• Fang Ling subdued the Netherworld Beast, forced it to submit, and spared it so it could serve as his mount.

Fang Ling found the Heavenly Net Divine Art in the Netherworld Beast’s lair and emerged with the beast under his control. Yun Shuiqing and the other experts accepted him as Church Leader, leaving Fang Ling with a group of potential subordinates.

• Fang Ling discovered a broken Sanskrit tablet containing the Heavenly Net Divine Art, whose primary scripture let its practitioner briefly absorb the cultivation of those using the subsidiary scripture at the cost of severe bodily damage.
• Fang Ling ordered the Netherworld Beast to collect its hoard, and it swallowed the treasures into its alternate space.
• Yun Shuiqing and five other experts prepared to fight the Netherworld Beast, but froze when Fang Ling emerged riding on its back.
• Man Tianning’s gray snake forced their merged form to end out of fear of Fang Ling, and Yun Shuiqing and Master Qingmu knelt to greet Fang Ling as Church Leader.
• Hu Yue challenged Fang Ling with the Tiger Baleful Force Fist, but his attacks failed to move Fang Ling; Hu Yue then submitted, followed by You Yu and Lord Yan.

Fang Ling took charge of the Heavenly Net Church, ordered its members to gather in Dragon City, and went there to cultivate the Heavenly Net Divine Art. After mastering its first level, he encountered a woman and her apprentice, who discovered his adult Netherworld Beast in the inn’s stables.

• Fang Ling spared Man Tianning and the other Heavenly Net Church experts, then ordered them to recall the church members and meet him in Dragon City before traveling to the Blood Marsh.
• Yun Shuiqing, Hu Yue, and the others agreed to carry out Fang Ling’s orders and set off to contact church members and gather the disciples.
• Fang Ling reached Dragon City, stayed at an inn, and cultivated until he formed a purple inner core and mastered the first level of the Heavenly Net Divine Art.
• Fang Ling saw an elegant woman in a red dress and her young apprentice leave their room to move into the White Family’s residence and investigate a young woman’s unusual poison.
• The woman noticed that the stable’s mounts were listless and recognized Fang Ling’s fully grown Netherworld Beast, while her apprentice asked how powerful it was.

Fang Ling discovered the White Family’s offer to reward anyone who could cure their young lady’s poison and went to the White Estate to try. There, he encountered the woman and girl from the inn as the gathered physicians prepared to discuss the poison.

• A woman recognized the Netherworld Beast’s royal bloodline and left the inn with her frightened disciple.
• Fang Ling wandered through Dragon City’s market and learned the White Family was seeking a cure for their young lady in exchange for a Bodhi Fruit.
• Fang Ling flew onto the charity platform, introduced himself, and agreed to examine the White Family’s young lady.
• Dayong brought Fang Ling to the White Estate, where Fang Ling sensed four Heavenly Balance Realm cultivators and joined the waiting physicians.
• The gray-robed elder rebuked Mo’er for insulting Fang Ling, and Physician Dou arrived with her disciple as the physicians prepared to discuss the poison.

Fang Ling removed the poison afflicting the White Family's young lady and discovered that it came from a Seven-Colored Heavenly Butterfly pupa, which he secretly kept in his Heavenly Pestilence Cauldron. The young lady survived but needed time to recover, while Bai Jiang celebrated Fang Ling's success and the promised Bodhi Fruit remained at stake.

• Fang Ling left the hall and went to examine the White Family's young lady, telling Bai Jiang he would treat her only if the family honored its promise of a Bodhi Fruit.
• Fang Ling made Bai Jiang leave the bedchamber so he could use the Heavenly Pestilence Cauldron in private.
• Fang Ling drew a Seven-Colored Heavenly Butterfly pupa from the young lady and stored it in the cauldron, removing the poison from her body.
• Fang Ling told Bai Jiang that the poison was gone and that the young lady needed recuperation, and Bai Jiang rushed inside to confirm her recovery.

Fang Ling cured Bai Ying by removing a Seven-Colored Heavenly Butterfly from her body, earning Bai Jiang’s gratitude and the physicians’ admiration. Dou Qin visited Fang Ling to ask about the strange toxin, but he warned her that the butterfly was still alive and dangerous.

• Bai Jiang announced that Fang Ling had cured Bai Ying, then rebuked Zi Sheng for questioning Fang Ling’s abilities.
• Physician Dou examined Bai Ying, confirmed that no toxins remained, and prescribed treatment to restore her health.
• Dou Qin’s disciple speculated that Fang Ling owned the Netherworld Beast, and Dou Qin went alone to visit him.
• Fang Ling told Dou Qin that a venomous insect had caused Bai Ying’s symptoms and identified it as a Seven-Colored Heavenly Butterfly.
• Fang Ling warned Dou Qin that the butterfly was still irritable and could poison her, so she ended her visit.

Bai Jiang gave Fang Ling an ancient amber containing a powerful sword, and Fang Ling agreed to stay at the White residence until Bai Jiang’s daughter woke. When Tian Quanzi tried to buy the Bodhi Fruit with an insulting offer and threats, Fang Ling killed him and Zi Sheng, then used their corpses to cultivate his divine art.

• Bai Jiang presented Fang Ling with a large piece of amber containing a sword whose pure Sword Qi resisted spiritual probing, and explained that he had found it in the Lost Ancient Mine.
• Fang Ling accepted Bai Jiang’s invitation to remain at the White residence until his daughter could thank him, and asked the family to bring his Netherworld Beast from the Fortune Inn.
• Bai Jiang and Bai Bo recognized the Netherworld Beast as the one their ancestor had fought at Heavenbreak Mountain and nervously led it back to the White residence.
• Tian Quanzi visited Fang Ling with Zi Sheng and offered his Medical Classic and a hundred thousand spirit stones for the Bodhi Fruit.
• After Fang Ling rejected the offer, Tian Quanzi threatened him through his connections, so Fang Ling killed Tian Quanzi and Zi Sheng and used their corpses to cultivate his divine art.