Chapter Summaries

Ren Ye advised Dragon Head to join Seat Cloud Dragon’s lineage, then Lin Ye brought him into the secret Recommendation Bureau, a private operation serving the Second Seat. After months working there and suspecting the Second Seat was behind the Bizarre Disappearance Case, Ren Ye heard Cloud Clear tell the Second Seat that Guo An had been found alive.

• Dragon Head asked Ren Ye which Seat to choose, and he advised her against joining the Second Seat’s lineage; she chose Cloud Dragon because of his flood dragon Spells and expected compensation for her delayed apprenticeship.
• Lin Ye summoned Ren Daniú from the Miscellaneous Affairs Courtyard and took him to the Fortune-Bearing Tower, where he explained that the Recommendation Bureau secretly matched disciples with recruitment requests from Divine Court bureaus and influential figures.
• Ren Ye realized the bureau could manipulate disciples’ lives while operating within legitimate rules, and he suspected the Second Seat had created it after the Bizarre Disappearance Case was exposed.
• Over the next three months, Ren Ye adapted to the bureau’s work, helped sell positions to veteran disciples, and watched several more Travelers choose the Second Seat as their master.
• Cloud Clear visited the Second Seat at Wanfu Palace and told him that Guo An had been found alive.

Cloud Clear and Cloud Boar planned to kill Guo An before he could expose their dealings, while Ren Ye received a joint assignment and withdrew a hundred thousand Star Source. After Geng Zhengliang reported Ren Ye for bribery, Ren Ye discovered that he had bribed the very discipline model who had set him up and then ran into Daoist Chu on his way to the Discipline Hall.

• Cloud Clear told Cloud Boar that Guo An likely knew about the spirit beast trafficking but had not confessed, and she proposed sending five disciples to kill him in the Watchtower Compound.
• Cloud Boar suspected Cloud Sea had helped arrange Guo An and Zhang Fangyi's capture, but he kept his suspicions from Cloud Clear.
• Lin Ye assigned Ren Ye to a joint operation with Cloud Clear's disciples, put him in charge of Golden Cicada Zi, and instructed him to withdraw a hundred thousand Star Source.
• Ren Ye bribed a Household Division steward with a Seven-Treasure Pill to obtain the Star Source, then learned that Geng Zhengliang had reported him and cost him ten Discipline Score points.
• Ren Ye realized the steward he had bribed was Geng Zhengliang, the Sect Discipline Model, and stormed toward the Discipline Hall.
• Outside the Discipline Hall, Ren Ye met Daoist Chu, who was going to report a fellow disciple, and slapped him for informing on his own group.

Little Bad King beat Geng Zhengliang after learning he had reported him, but Daoist Chu reported Little Bad King in turn, costing him Discipline Score points and earning him the title Sectarian Scum. Two days later, Ren Ye joined Golden Cicada and three others to plan Guo An’s rescue from the Watchtower Compound dungeon, where Golden Cicada pointed out that whoever impersonated the warden would face a high risk of death.

• Little Bad King confronted Geng Zhengliang for reporting him, then beat him outside the Discipline Hall after Geng was splattered with phlegm.
• Daoist Chu reported Little Bad King for spitting and assaulting a fellow disciple, costing him twenty-five Discipline Score points and unlocking the title Sectarian Scum.
• Cloud Boar ordered Lin Ye to send Golden Cicada and Niu'er to help Cloud Clear's disciples rescue Guo An from the Watchtower Compound dungeon.
• Ren Ye met Golden Cicada, Zhang Fuzi, Chen Zheng, and Xu Yuan to discuss impersonating dungeon warden Zhou Renquan and breaking Guo An out.
• Golden Cicada explained that the warden impersonator would likely have to die and revive repeatedly to complete the dangerous, time-limited mission.

Ren Ye and his companions accepted the prison-break assignment and studied Zhou Renquan’s memories to plan their infiltration. When Chen Zheng entered the Watchtower Compound disguised as Zhou Renquan, an unknown entity detected and killed him, causing the assignment to fail.

• Zhang Fuzi, Golden Cicada, Xu Yuan, and Ren Ye agreed that Chen Zheng would impersonate Zhou Renquan and lead the prison-break plan.
• The group viewed Zhou Renquan’s memories, and Golden Cicada and Xu Yuan identified the spirit beast, the registers, and the Duty Room’s unusual smell as clues to examine.
• Ren Ye reconnoitered Jia Number Six Watchtower Compound while Chen Zheng continued studying Zhou Renquan’s memories.
• At the beginning of You Hour, Chen Zheng used the Fifth Seat’s disguise items, entered the Watchtower Compound, and began inspecting Zhou Renquan’s Duty Room.
• When Chen Zheng opened the Suspect Register, the room began dissolving and an unknown shadow attacked him, killing him and causing the prison-break assignment to fail.
• The Heavenly Dao spared Ren Ye and the other companions because they had not entered the Dungeon, while an unknown entity received one Merit Point for detecting the impostor.

After the prison-break trial reset without turning back time, Chen Zheng and the others questioned why he had been discovered and killed in Zhou Renquan’s Duty Room. Ren Ye worked out that a piglet spirit beast identified impostors by their mannerisms, and the team prepared for Chen Zheng to try again by copying Zhou Renquan more precisely.

• Chen Zheng woke in the carriage after the trial reset and told the others that he had died in Zhou Renquan’s Duty Room after an unknown entity exposed him.
• The group realized that each reset cost time and that reporting later for duty could make Chen Zheng more suspicious to the prison’s unknown opposition.
• Golden Cicada Zi and Ren Ye pressed Chen Zheng to recall missing details, including the gradual dimming of the room, the piglet-shaped attacker, and a Heavenly Dao notification he had received upon entering the prison area.
• Ren Ye concluded that the piglet had been sent by the higher-ups to identify impostors through their physical mannerisms, and that Chen Zheng had drawn suspicion by failing to imitate Zhou Renquan’s habits.
• Ren Ye advised Chen Zheng to memorize Zhou Renquan’s posture and routines, and pointed out that his trip to purchase prison supplies explained his late arrival.

Little Bad King’s reasoning helped the group understand why Xu Yuan’s second Prison Break attempt failed, while Golden Cicada Zi devised a new plan for Zhang Fuzi to impersonate Zhou Renquan. Zhang Fuzi successfully entered the dungeon by following Zhou Renquan’s habit of using the latrine before reporting for duty, leaving the group to continue the trial.

• Chen Zheng and Xu Yuan grew wary of Little Bad King’s rapid reasoning, then Xu Yuan replaced Chen Zheng for the second Prison Break attempt.
• Xu Yuan imitated Zhou Renquan and entered the dungeon, but the piglet attacked when she chose the left corridor, killing her and causing the attempt to fail.
• Zhang Fuzi and Golden Cicada Zi concluded that Xu Yuan had been exposed because she did not know what to do at the junction, while Little Bad King reviewed the clues in his notebook.
• Golden Cicada Zi persuaded Zhang Fuzi to make the third attempt and told him to use Zhou Renquan’s habit of visiting the latrine before reporting for duty.
• Zhang Fuzi entered the latrine, and the Heavenly Dao confirmed that he had successfully impersonated Zhou Renquan and infiltrated the dungeon without alerting the unknown entity.

Zhang Fuzi identified Guo An as the prisoner in East No. 75, killed the little black pig that monitored the dungeon, and smuggled Ren Ye and the others inside. The team planned to free Guo An, but Ren Ye’s offer to meet him sparked suspicion and disagreement.

• Zhang Fuzi found that East No. 75 was listed as vacant despite being guarded, then intimidated the cook into confirming that Guo An was imprisoned there.
• Zhang Fuzi lured the little black pig with beef, discovered its sound-based surveillance ability, and killed it before it could alert the jailers.
• Zhang Fuzi summoned jailers to carry six sealed chests into the eastern Duty Room, where Ren Ye and the others emerged from four of them.
• Zhang Fuzi proposed drawing the four guards away from Guo An’s cell so the team could ambush them, while he freed Guo An and led him out.
• Ren Ye insisted on accompanying Zhang Fuzi to meet Guo An, but Zhang Fuzi and the others argued that his unfamiliar face could expose the group, leaving Ren Ye suspicious of their motives.

Ren Ye persuaded Zhang Fuzi to trade a fourth-grade Soul-Burning Pill for a plan to free Guo An, but Zhang Fuzi was exposed when the plan triggered the dungeon’s collapse. The group survived, and Ren Ye concluded that the prisoner was an impostor and that the rescue had been a setup.

• Ren Ye refused to accompany Zhang Fuzi to see Guo An, then traded his supposed rescue method for Zhang Fuzi’s Soul-Burning Pill and jade box.
• Zhang Fuzi entered Cell Seventy-five, identified the prisoner as Guo An, and persuaded the jailers to leave so he could speak with him privately.
• Ren Ye and the others hid in East No. 1 Duty Room, but Chen Zheng noticed the jailers heading toward the exit instead of the room.
• Zhang Fuzi told the prisoner the pickup code was nine plus one and that someone outside had reached terms with the Second Seat; the prisoner’s reaction preceded the secret realm’s collapse and Zhang Fuzi’s death.
• The Heavenly Dao announced that Ren Ye’s group had survived the assignment, while an unknown being received a merit point for a trap it had set.
• Ren Ye told the group that the prisoner was not Guo An and that someone had impersonated him, then thanked Zhang Fuzi for preventing him from joining the failed rescue.

Ren Ye and the others revised their prison-break plan, killed the fake Guo An, and discovered clues that other Travelers were involved in the trap. Zhang Fuzi examined the impostor’s memories and urged the group to seize the real Guo An, while secretly warning his companions that rival Travelers were hidden in the Secret Realm.

• Ren Ye explained why he suspected the prisoner in Cell No. 75 was an impostor, and Golden Cicada Zi proposed poisoning him and inspecting his Divine Soul memories.
• The group agreed that Zhang Fuzi would poison the fake Guo An, Golden Cicada Zi, Chen Zheng, and Xu Yuan would kill the four jailers, and Ren Ye would deal with Little Black Pig.
• Zhang Fuzi transported the chests into the East One Duty Room, then poisoned the impostor while the jailers were away; Ren Ye used Destiny to evade Little Black Pig and trap him in the latrine.
• The group gathered at Cell No. 75, where Zhang Fuzi confirmed the poisoned prisoner was an early-stage fifth-grade Cultivator impersonating Guo An.
• Ren Ye found a glowing moon-shaped mark made from Concealed Phosphor Powder on the corpse, and Zhang Fuzi said it had appeared only after the impostor died.
• After examining the impostor’s memories, Zhang Fuzi told the group to seize Guo An and secretly warned Chen Zheng, Xu Yuan, and Golden Cicada Zi that other Travelers had used the fake as bait.

Little Bad King and the Chaos Faction found and freed the real Guo An, but a scheme involving monitored gu insects left Little Bad King stranded with Chen Zheng and Xu Yuan. Realizing the others planned to abandon him, Little Bad King exposed Little Black Pig’s location, triggering an alarm that alerted the hidden Garden of Myriad Spirits Travelers and disrupted their trap.

• Zhang Fuzi showed Little Bad King the impostor’s memories, and the five Travelers found Guo An in the western prison storage room.
• The group dispelled the illusion, killed the two guards, and confirmed that the tortured prisoner was the real Guo An.
• Guo An warned them that Divine Flame Gu insects would alert their host if they died, so Zhang Fuzi and Golden Cicada Zi left with him while Little Bad King, Chen Zheng, and Xu Yuan stayed behind.
• Little Bad King realized Zhang Fuzi and Golden Cicada Zi were unlikely to return and suspected they had concealed clues to push him out of the assignment.
• Little Bad King used his destiny to reach the hidden Little Black Pig and free it from concealment, allowing its sonic roar to alert the unknown Travelers across the Watchtower Compound.
• A hidden Traveler reacted in disbelief when the alarm revealed that the prison breakers had let Little Black Pig notify the trap-setters.

Melon led Third Seat disciples to seal the Watchtower Compound after Little Black Pig’s distress signal, while Ren Ye used the prison riot to pursue a safer escape plan and uncover the Second Seat and Fifth Seat’s hidden secret. Ren Ye and Chen Zheng stayed behind to impersonate prisoners and await the Second Seat’s agent, as Melon chased Zhou Prison Warden’s carriage from the compound.

• Melon learned that Little Black Pig’s signal meant the dungeon was in crisis and led his disciples to seal the compound gates rather than rush into the dungeon.
• The Heavenly Dao Proclamation ended the reset trial, and Ren Ye persuaded Chen Zheng and Xu Yuan to free prisoners and trigger a mass breakout.
• Ren Ye led hundreds of prisoners toward the dungeon entrance, then turned back while Xu Yuan and Chen Zheng continued toward the surface.
• Ren Ye explained to Chen Zheng that they could disguise themselves as dead prisoners and wait for the Second Seat’s agent to free them, potentially exposing the prison mole.
• Chen Zheng chose to stay with Ren Ye, and they agreed on the password “Hiding in Plain Sight, rock solid.”
• Melon learned that Zhou Prison Warden had left with two wooden chests and led his disciples in pursuit.

Melon pursued Golden Cicada Zi through Heavenly Capital City, mistaking a bloodied prison uniform for a trail to Guo An before tracking the fleeing bait himself. After Golden Cicada Zi chose Dao Transformation and disappeared, Melon learned that Guo An and a woman’s scents had reappeared together, then suspected the escapees were hiding near an unusual place.

• Melon split the pursuit between East Street and West Street, while Little Bad King escaped the Watchtower Compound and secretly followed him.
• Golden Cicada Zi abandoned his empty carriage and fled into the crowd, but Melon tracked him by sensing the driver’s aura and continued the chase despite his disciples’ doubts.
• Melon and his disciples fought Golden Cicada Zi above Peach Garden Ancient Street; Little Bad King recognized Melon’s versions of the Returning Dragon Technique, and Golden Cicada Zi chose Dao Transformation to escape capture.
• Melon found Golden Cicada Zi’s dropped pill bottle and returned toward the Watchtower Compound, while Little Bad King followed him eating offal.
• Junsheng reported that Guo An’s trail and a woman’s trail had vanished and then reappeared together; Melon told the military official to pursue while he stayed to investigate a place that could conceal scents.
• A flashback revealed that Golden Cicada Zi had told Zhang Fuzi about the Edict-Bearing Envoy’s Residence, an unusual nearby location where they could hide.

Melon rejected the Edict-Bearing Envoy's refusal to allow a search and took Xu Nan hostage, forcing Xu Kunqian to cooperate by threatening his daughter and residence. When Melon set the residence ablaze, Zhang Fuzi emerged carrying Guo An, revealing that he had been hiding there.

• Little Bad King followed Melon to the Edict-Bearing Envoy's Residence and watched him seek permission to search for the fugitives.
• After Steward Xu rejected the search, Melon claimed he knew the eldest young miss, Xu Nan, and then kidnapped her and forced poison into her mouth.
• Melon pressured Xu Kunqian to reveal the residence's hidden rooms, arguing that his disciples had nothing left to fear if they failed their mission.
• When Xu Kunqian still resisted, Melon severed Xu Nan's leg and threatened to burn down the residence and destroy its secrets.
• Melon ignited the residence with a fire seed, and Zhang Fuzi flew out carrying Guo An.

Melon captured Guo An and drove Zhang Fuzi to suicide after burning much of the Command Commissioner's Residence. At a roadside tavern, Melon and Ren Ye negotiated an exchange: Melon handed over Guo An, while Ren Ye promised to reveal the location of a living prison breaker.

• Melon used divine fire to burn the Command Commissioner's Residence, recovered Guo An, and forced Zhang Fuzi to choose Dao Transformation rather than be captured.
• Melon found evidence linking Zhang Fuzi to the prison break, then left Junsheng to manage the wreckage while he took Guo An to meet someone.
• At a roadside tavern, Melon recognized Ren Ye as Little Bad King, and they discussed the secret realm's factions and their competing assignments.
• Ren Ye offered to trade Guo An for the location of a living prison breaker, and Melon agreed to the deal.
• Melon had six Watchtower Compound officers bring Guo An to the tavern and said he would kill the officers afterward to cover up the handover.
• Guo An warned Ren Ye to keep his promise, or he would reveal nothing.

Little Bad King persuaded the Second Seat to release Guo An’s family and arranged for Guo An to return, while learning that the Fifth Seat had secretly used him to carry letters to a Person of Chaos. The chapter ended with Guo An explaining why he and Zhang Fangyi had tried to flee Myriad Spirits Garden.

• Little Bad King revealed that he had guessed Guo An’s family was being held by Seat Cloud Clear, and Guo An admitted his wife and two children were her hostages.
• Little Bad King persuaded the Second Seat to release Guo An’s family by arguing that honoring his promise would bring Guo An back and settle the matter safely.
• The Second Seat released Guo An’s wife and children, and Little Bad King sent them away with a bead to reassure Guo An that they were safe.
• Xu Yuan returned to the Fifth Seat’s Dao Palace, where her senior sister struck her for failing to capture Guo An.
• Little Bad King accompanied Guo An back toward Myriad Spirits Garden, and Guo An explained that the Fifth Seat had secretly sent his letters to a Person of Chaos.
• Guo An said he and Zhang Fangyi had tried to flee because he feared the Fifth Seat’s letters had helped the People of Chaos root out Fulong Pavilion spies.

Little Bad King completed the Prison Break Assignment, gained evidence of the Seats’ dealings with Chaos, and earned promotion to Consecrated Disciple. Chen Zheng was rescued only to be transferred into the Third Seat’s Punishment Hall Dungeon, while two months later the first wave of transformed Outer Peak disciples arrived at the Inner Peaks.

• Guo An gave Little Bad King a memory orb documenting Seat Cloud Clear’s correspondence and business with Chaos forces, then destroyed much of his own remaining memories and died in the Soul-Nurturing Hall.
• Little Bad King buried Guo An on his Outer Peak and deflected Zhang Fuzi and Xu Yuan’s questions about the rescue and Chen Zheng’s disappearance.
• Little Bad King received seven Merit Points and qualified to become a Consecrated Disciple; Xu Yuan, Golden Cicada Zi, and Zhang Fuzi received lesser rewards, while Chen Zheng’s settlement remained pending.
• Melon rescued Chen Zheng from the Watchtower Compound, then brought him to the Third Seat’s secret chambers, where Chen Zheng discovered he had been transferred to the Punishment Hall Dungeon.
• Two months later, the first transformation tide brought many newly human-shaped Outer Peak disciples to the Inner Peaks, and the Yaoguang Peak group sought Little Bad King’s guidance.

Little Bad King hosted the Park District Squad on the Inner Peak, where they debated which masters to choose and divided themselves among the Fourth and Fifth Seats, with Brother Tiger taking the Third Seat. The gathering ended with a visitor from the Outer Peak asking for Little Bad King, whom he recognized from the description as looking like a great tree.

• Little Bad King hosted the newly arrived Park District Squad in an extravagant banquet room and showed off his status as a consecrated elder.
• The squad discussed Young Master Bao’s arrival and considered which lineages might offer useful clues and opportunities.
• Daoist Chu advised against sending many people to the Third Seat and said he planned to transfer to the First Seat once he qualified; Brother Tiger chose to join the Third Seat.
• Little Bad King recommended that most of the squad become disciples of Fourth Seat Cloud Dragon, while Little Songstress chose the Fifth Seat for himself, Brother Tiger, the Little Marquis, and Wang Lili.
• The Little Marquis announced he would join the Second Seat to help Little Bad King, and Dragon Head revealed that he had gained a Phoenix Feather Blade and a drop of divine phoenix blood.
• An Internal Affairs Office disciple told Little Bad King that two people from the Outer Peak had come looking for him, including one who looked like a great tree.

Little Bad King advised Liu Suihan on choosing a master, advanced in Myriad Spirits Garden, and reflected on letting Ox Little Mouse follow its own path. On New Year's Eve, the Second Seat refused to immediately recommend him to the First Seat, just as a force of Dao Realm experts arrived to search Wanfu Palace and threatened Cloud Boar.

• Little Bad King met Liu Suihan and Yang Youtian, advised Liu about the risks of joining the Second Seat, and accepted Yang's apology for their past fight.
• Little Bad King reached Fourth Grade and neared promotion to Hall Master, but lost Discipline Score and was disqualified from the sect tournament after Geng Zhengliang reported his match-fixing discussions.
• Buddha's Son Tuoba Chan, Black Brother Dog, Lei Hu, and the Three-Headed Azure Bird joined the Second Seat, while Ox Little Mouse remained on the Outer Peak and struggled to Transform.
• Little Bad King visited Ox Little Mouse, realized that it needed to follow its own path, and spent time reminiscing with it beneath the stars.
• Little Bad King asked the Second Seat for a Recommendation Letter to study under the First Seat, but the Second Seat stalled and refused to decide immediately.
• As fireworks lit the New Year's sky, a group of Dao Realm experts arrived and headed for Wanfu Palace to search Cloud Boar's hidden treasure chamber, declaring that Cloud Boar would die if they found the item.

After the Divine Court arrested Cloud Boar over a bloodied true dragon scale found in his secret treasury, First Seat Yunlu pleaded with the Divine Sovereign to spare him. A month later, Little Bad King visited Cloud Boar in prison and was told to investigate the case.

• The Ministry of War found a bloodied true dragon scale in Cloud Boar’s secret chamber and arrested him on Lunar New Year’s Eve.
• Little Bad King and Lin Ye feared their own crimes would be exposed, but Yunlu reassured the disciples and instructed them to keep the Inner Manor running.
• Yunlu took Lin Ye and Little Bad King to the Divine Court, then met the Divine Sovereign alone and argued that Cloud Boar would never collude with Chaos to steal a dragon scale.
• The Divine Sovereign ordered an investigation and said Cloud Boar would live if the scale had nothing to do with him.
• A month later, Little Bad King visited Cloud Boar in Fulong Pavilion Heavenly Prison, where Cloud Boar denied taking the scale and asked him to investigate.

After the Second Seat assigned Little Bad King to investigate the dragon scale case, the Heavenly Dao rules made the investigation a dangerous contest between the sect’s branches. Little Bad King chose to work with Lin Ye and headed to the Puppet Corpse Room to examine Chu Meidan’s body, hoping to use its anomaly to put the Third Seat in check.

• The Second Seat explained that the dragon scale had been planted in his secret chamber by someone inside his Dao Palace and identified Feng Yu and the Third Seat’s disciple Zheng Zhuo as suspects.
• The Second Seat gave Little Bad King his jade thumb ring, authorizing him to call on the Internal Affairs Office elders once if he uncovered crucial evidence.
• The Heavenly Dao assigned Little Bad King the case, forbade him from sharing clues outside his branch, and warned that all Travelers would receive related assignments.
• Little Bad King decided to form an investigation squad from his own unreliable associates rather than cooperate with other branches, then left the prison and met the Second Seat’s other disciples.
• At dinner, Lin Ye told Little Bad King that Feng Yu had recently spent lavishly and frequently met Zheng Zhuo, though he had found no solid evidence against either man.
• Little Bad King asked Lin Ye to take him to Chu Meidan’s body in the Puppet Corpse Room, intending to use the corpse’s unusual feature to put the Third Seat in check.