Chapter Summaries

Lin He defeated Zhongwu and Han Tianya, then prepared to explore the central area for demonic beasts and their treasures. After the Moon-Yang Orb cleared the fog on the third day, he rushed into the newly revealed mountain range.

• Lin He and Han Li killed the remaining demonic beasts, then parted ways after Han Li refused to travel together.
• Lin He inspected Zhongwu's and Han Tianya's Storage Bags and studied maps from seven sects to locate dangerous areas guarded by powerful demonic beasts.
• On the third day, Lin He hid near the central area's outer region and waited for the Moon-Yang Orb to disperse the fog.
• The Moon-Yang Orb cleared the fog and revealed the ring-shaped mountain range, prompting nearby cultivators to set off in different directions.
• Lin He charged into the mountain range as a yellow blur.

Lin He captured several powerful demonic beasts and collected rare spirit herbs before reaching an ancient stone hall. Inside, Nangong Wan and the Covering Moon Sect disciples confronted an Ink Flood Dragon guarding a golden chest.

• Lin He used his five Peak Level One spirit beasts to defeat an Upper Level One Blazing-Horn Deer and capture it.
• Lin He entered a cavern, defeated a Peak Level One Golden-Light Python with help from his spirit beasts, and harvested a thousand-year-old Cold Star Grass.
• Lin He spent the next day capturing demonic beasts and collecting spirit herbs, including a thousand-year-old Ice Spirit Flower.
• Lin He discovered restrictions around an ancient bluestone hall and entered it after hearing something.
• Nangong Wan led the Covering Moon Sect disciples into the hall, where they found a marsh, a golden chest, and what they first identified as a Black-Scaled Python.
• The marsh beast emerged as an Ink Flood Dragon, and Nangong Wan blanched at the sight.

Lin He and Nangong Wan fought the newly evolved Ink Flood Dragon after the Small Five-Elements Sumeru Formation sealed the passage, and Lin He killed it with his Golden Light Brick. After Nangong Wan claimed the golden chest and Lin He harvested the dragon’s materials, a red sphere from its body burst into pink mist around them.

• Nangong Wan restrained the Ink Flood Dragon with the Vermilion Bird Ring, but it shed its skin, advanced to the second tier, and escaped.
• The Small Five-Elements Sumeru Formation sealed the passage, trapping Nangong Wan with the Ink Flood Dragon as Lin He emerged and offered to prepare his talisman treasure.
• Lin He’s Azure Water Crocodile and Nangong Wan’s Vermilion Bird Ring helped hold off the Ink Flood Dragon while Lin He charged the Golden Light Brick.
• Nangong Wan stopped the dragon’s purple core liquid with a bead, allowing Lin He’s Golden Light Brick to smash its head.
• Nangong Wan took the golden chest and Lin He processed the dragon’s corpse, then he showed her a red sphere from its abdomen.
• The red sphere burst into pink mist that enveloped Lin He and Nangong Wan.

Lin He and Nangong Wan escaped the Small Five-Elements Sumeru Formation and kept their encounter secret. The Forbidden Land Trial ended with the disciples returning to their sects, while Martial Ancestor Li accepted Han Li as a nominal disciple after Han Li’s large spirit-herb offering.

• Nangong Wan warned Lin He to keep their encounter secret, then they worked together to escape the formation.
• After Nangong Wan and the Covering Moon Sect disciples left, Lin He released his spirit beasts and set out to gather demonic beasts and spirit herbs before the trial ended.
• On the fifth day, Chen Qiaoshan worried when Lin He had not emerged, then rejoiced when Lin He finally returned; Chang described Lin He’s abilities to reassure him.
• Nangong Wan emerged with the Covering Moon Sect disciples, and she and Lin He briefly met eyes without revealing their secret.
• During the harvest inspection, Lin He handed over ten spirit herbs and Han Li offered twenty, allowing Martial Ancestor Li to win his wager, though Old Monster Qiong ultimately won his own wager with the other sects.
• Martial Ancestor Li accepted Han Li as a nominal disciple, then carried the disciples back to the sect.

Lin He refined Foundation Establishment Pills and successfully established his foundation after returning to Yellow Maple Valley. He prepared to claim his sect rewards, then learned that Senior Sister Chen’s eldest brother had failed Foundation Establishment and revealed a Blue Pill that might change his fate.

• Lin He returned to his residence, reunited with Senior Sister Chen, and asked her to sell his magical artifacts in exchange for medium-grade spirit stones, agreeing to a twenty-percent handling fee.
• Lin He spent three months practicing pill refinement in an Earthfire Chamber and produced eight Foundation Establishment Pills and eight Youth-Preserving Pills.
• Lin He took Foundation Establishment Pills, advanced to the peak of the thirteenth layer, and completed Foundation Establishment after three more months in seclusion.
• The Ugly Man recognized Lin He’s new cultivation and treated him respectfully, while Lin He returned home to prepare to visit Sect Leader Zhong for his rewards and a cave residence.
• Senior Sister Chen told Lin He that her eldest brother had failed Foundation Establishment, and Lin He showed her a Blue Pill.

Lin He reached Foundation Establishment and traveled with Senior Sister Chen to collect his sect rewards and find a site for his cave abode. After helping Senior Sister Chang deal with Tan Ying, Lin He found the Spirit Eye Spring and began building his cave abode, where an unexpected visitor arrived three days later.

• Senior Sister Chen recognized Lin He's Foundation Establishment Pill, and Lin He let her take it to her brother while giving her a ride to the Chen Family.
• At the Kirin Pavilion, Senior Sister Chen confronted Tan Ying for berating Senior Sister Chang, and Lin He persuaded Tan Ying to leave her alone without risking retaliation against her.
• Lin He rented a Twin-Pupiled Mouse from Senior Sister Chang to find a place rich in spiritual energy, then parted ways with Senior Sister Chen.
• Senior Brother Ma agreed to provide medicinal ingredients for Senior Sister Chen's father and offered to have Han Li deliver them to Lin He's future cave abode.
• Sect Leader Zhong gave Lin He his Foundation Establishment rewards and explained how to choose a cave-abode site.
• Lin He used his foreknowledge to find the Spirit Eye Spring and began constructing his cave abode; three days later, an ordinary-looking young man arrived, wondering if Lin He was there.

Han Li delivered spirit medicines to Lin He and saw that his former fellow trial participant had reached Foundation Establishment. After Han Li and Tan Ying left, Lin He entered his Portable Space, where a system notification revealed the cost of accelerating a level two spirit beast’s growth.

• Tan Ying brought Han Li to Lin He’s cave abode to deliver spirit medicines assigned by Martial Uncle Ma.
• Lin He welcomed Han Li, confirmed the medicines were well cultivated, and watched him leave in a hurry.
• Lin He rewarded Tan Ying with two Low-Grade Spirit Stones and asked how Senior Sister Chang was being treated.
• Lin He considered helping Senior Sister Chang without inviting misunderstandings, then entered his Portable Space.
• Lin He surveyed his spirit liquid and tamed demonic beasts before the system announced that accelerating a level two spirit beast required one medium-grade spirit stone.

Lin He used medium-grade spirit stones to raise his Jade Mantis to level four and realized he would need a reliable way to earn more. Senior Sister Chen returned with a fortune from selling pills and magical artifacts, and a little over a month later Lin He left the sect for an assignment guarding Yellow Maple Valley Market.

• Lin He raised the Jade Mantis from level one to level four, then learned that nurturing it to level five would cost ten medium-grade spirit stones.
• Lin He decided he needed a steady source of medium-grade spirit stones to fund his spirit-beast nurturing and pill-making plans.
• Senior Sister Chen returned and told Lin He that her eldest brother had accepted a Foundation Establishment Pill and gone into seclusion with an estimated eighty percent chance of success.
• Senior Sister Chen gave Lin He two Storage Bags containing 110 medium-grade spirit stones from the pill and magical artifact sales.
• Lin He and Senior Sister Chen excavated a cave abode together, then spoke privately inside it.
• A little over a month later, Lin He had nurtured two more spirit beasts to level four and left the sect to guard Yellow Maple Valley Market.

Lin He took up his post at Yellow Maple Valley Market and learned from Old Cai that the four Foundation Establishment cultivators could take turns handling personal matters while three remained on duty. When his turn came, Lin He left for Heavenly Star Sect Market to find an artifact refiner and buy spirit tea for Old Cai.

• Lin He took over the market post from the reluctant cultivator surnamed Wu, and Old Cai explained Wu’s wish to spend time with his wife and son.
• Old Cai told Lin He that four Foundation Establishment cultivators were assigned so they could take turns attending to personal matters while three maintained the Market Grand Formation.
• Lin He spent a month at the market, studied books on spirit beasts and spirit tea, and failed to find either a suitable artifact refiner or a high-quality cultivation art.
• Old Cai informed Lin He that it was his turn to leave and asked him to buy spirit tea from the Tea Tasting Room at Heavenly Star Sect Market.
• Lin He accepted Old Cai’s request and set off aboard the Flying Spirit Boat toward Heavenly Star Sect Market.

Lin He came to the Heavenly Star Sect Market and intervened when Liu Ming accused Old Xu of making his younger brother Liu Qing disappear. After leaving Ink Flood Dragon materials with Old Xu for artifact forging, Lin He went to buy spirit tea and encountered a blue-clad woman.

• Liu Ming and his clan confronted Old Xu over Liu Qing’s disappearance, but Lin He arrived and drove them out with his Foundation Establishment power.
• Market warden Xu Yan stopped Lin He from continuing the fight, warned Liu Ming’s group, and tried unsuccessfully to learn Lin He’s identity.
• Lin He showed Old Xu his Ink Flood Dragon materials and gave him his requirements for forging, agreeing to leave the materials with him.
• Lin He considered finding another expert to forge his other grade-four demon beast materials and headed to the Tea Tasting Room.
• Lin He entered the shop and saw a blue-clad woman choosing spirit tea with a pretty maid.

Lin He met Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei while buying spirit tea, then learned Xin Ruoyin refused to let the Fu clan bind her to a lifetime of formation work. As Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei hurried out of the Market, Liu Ming and his group secretly followed them.

• Lin He bought spirit tea from a shopkeeper and secured a discount for Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei.
• Lin He recognized Xin Ruoyin, apologized for staring, and quickly left the shop.
• Xin Ruoyin mistook Lin He's gaze for lecherous interest and urged Xiao Mei to leave the Market before encountering him or the Fu clan.
• Xin Ruoyin explained that she worked for clans to afford formation materials but would not surrender her freedom to the Fu clan.
• Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei hurried out of the Market while Liu Ming led a group secretly following them.

Liu Ming and his followers pursued Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei to capture Xin Ruoyin for the Liu family, but Xu Yan cornered the women and forced Xin Ruoyin to agree to go with him. Lin He arrived, killed Liu Ming and his men, and confronted Xu Yan.

• Liu Ming followed Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei after learning Xin Ruoyin could set up powerful formations.
• Xin Ruoyin used Lost Track Formations to delay Liu Ming's group, but Xu Yan arrived and overpowered the women with his Foundation Establishment cultivation.
• Xu Yan struck Xiao Mei and threatened Xin Ruoyin, who agreed to go with him if he spared Xiao Mei.
• Lin He appeared on a flying boat and killed Liu Ming and his followers with his red flying knives.
• Lin He accused Xu Yan of colluding with the Liu family and bullying the women, and the two prepared to fight.

Lin He fought Xu Yan, whose Jadefire Blade was a powerful magic treasure fragment, while a Golden-Eyed Ape ambushed him with an invisibility veil. Xin Ruoyin tried to get help but Xu Yan threatened Xiao Mei, and Lin He smiled at Xu Yan just as he prepared to strike.

• Xu Yan attacked Lin He with the Jadefire Blade, and Lin He’s shield and Fire-Repelling Armor failed to withstand its spiritual-power-devouring flames.
• Lin He protected himself with the Yellow Gauze Umbrella and identified the Jadefire Blade as a magic treasure fragment, prompting Xu Yan to threaten to kill him.
• A Golden-Eyed Ape appeared and attacked Lin He, then vanished beneath a veil, helping Xu Yan keep Lin He on the defensive.
• Xin Ruoyin decided to return to the Residence with Xiao Mei to activate the Grand Array, but Xu Yan threatened Xiao Mei and stopped them.
• Xu Yan prepared a fatal blow against Lin He, who suddenly stared at him with a strange smile.

Lin He defeated Xu Yan and his Golden-Eyed Ape using his artifacts, then killed Xu Yan after the Azure Condensation Mirror immobilized the Jadefire Blade. After concealing the evidence and collecting the spoils, Lin He turned to face Ru Yin and Xiao Mei.

• Xu Yan used defensive talismans and the Jadefire Blade to withstand the Jade Mantis's fierce attacks.
• Lin He used blood to reveal the Golden-Eyed Ape, then overwhelmed and knocked it unconscious with a barrage of talismans and magic artifacts.
• Lin He immobilized the Jadefire Blade with the Azure Condensation Mirror, allowing the Jade Mantis to cut Xu Yan in two.
• Lin He took Xu Yan's belongings, destroyed his corpse, buried his Storage Bag, and collected the Golden-Eyed Ape, its veil, and the Jadefire Blade.
• Lin He turned to look at Ru Yin and Xiao Mei.

Lin He saved Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei from the Liu family, brought them to Xin Ruoyin’s refuge, and began building trust with them. After examining the treasures he had taken from Xu Yan, Lin He considered seeking Xin Ruoyin’s Five Elements Reversal Formation, but Xiao Mei suddenly called for help.

• Xin Ruoyin questioned Lin He’s intentions, and he reassured her while Xiao Mei collected the Liu family’s Storage Bags and Lin He burned the corpses.
• Lin He took Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei by Flying Spirit Boat to Xin Ruoyin’s second refuge, where she explained that she maintained three hiding places.
• Xin Ruoyin asked why Lin He had appeared during the fight, and he said he had followed the Liu family after noticing their suspicious behavior at the market.
• Lin He, Xin Ruoyin, and Xiao Mei shared tea and dinner, then Lin He cultivated and examined the treasures he had taken from Xu Yan.
• Lin He considered how to obtain Xin Ruoyin’s Five Elements Reversal Formation, but Xiao Mei knocked on his door and pleaded with him to save her young mistress.

Lin He discovered that Xin Ruoyin’s cultivation breakthrough had triggered her dragon chant body and endangered her life, then provided the millennium Cold Star Grass needed to prepare a remedy. After Xin Ruoyin recovered enough to wake, she asked Xiao Mei to leave so she could speak with Lin He alone.

• Xiao Mei summoned Lin He to see the unconscious Xin Ruoyin, whose dangerous condition worsened when he tried using his yang-aligned spiritual power.
• Lin He explained that Xin Ruoyin’s dragon chant body required either a powerful cold-yin cultivator or a millennium cold-yin spirit medicine to suppress its imbalance.
• Lin He gave Xiao Mei his millennium Cold Star Grass, and she went to prepare the medicine using the supporting ingredients Xin Ruoyin had already obtained.
• As Xin Ruoyin suffered in bed, she clutched Lin He’s hand and bit him until Xiao Mei returned with the medicine.
• Xin Ruoyin woke, apologized for biting Lin He, learned about his gift of the Cold Star Grass, and asked Xiao Mei to leave them alone together.

Lin He explained that saving Xin Ruoyin was an investment in her talent for formations and offered a way for her to overcome the cultivation troubles caused by her dragon chant body. Xin Ruoyin agreed to travel with him to the Yue Kingdom and asked him to call her Ru Yin.

• Xin Ruoyin tried to bow and repay Lin He for saving her, while fearing he might demand something in return.
• Lin He told Xin Ruoyin he was investing in her future as a formation master rather than seeking immediate repayment.
• Xin Ruoyin revealed that her dragon chant body made breakthroughs dangerous and feared she would remain at Qi Condensation forever.
• Lin He said his yang cultivation could not help directly, but suggested she join the Covering Moon Sect to find a cold yin cultivation method.
• Lin He offered to take Xin Ruoyin to the Yellow Maple Valley Market and later introduce her to a Core Formation woman from the Covering Moon Sect.
• Xin Ruoyin accepted his plan and asked him to call her Ru Yin.

Lin He gave Xin Ruoyin Array Essentials and arranged for her and Xiao Mei to accompany him to the Yue Kingdom. After learning the Market was searching for Xu Yan, Lin He hurriedly departed, while Xu Yan’s relatives mistakenly blamed his death on a Core Formation expert and promised the Xu family ancestor would seek answers.

• Xin Ruoyin agreed to travel with Lin He to the Yue Kingdom and join the Covering Moon Sect when an opportunity arose.
• Lin He gave Xin Ruoyin Array Essentials, and she offered to teach him the basics of arrays.
• Xiao Hei delivered Lin He’s commissioned magic artifacts and told him that Foundation Establishment cultivators were inspecting the Market while searching for Xu Yan.
• Lin He took Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei away on the Divine Wind Boat toward the Yue Kingdom.
• Two Xu family Foundation Establishment cultivators concluded that a Core Formation expert had killed Xu Yan, and their ancestor vowed to make the culprit answer to the Xu family.

Lin He, Xin Ruoyin, and Xiao Mei fled the Yuanwu Kingdom aboard the Divine Wind Boat, but a powerful pursuer caught up just before they reached Yellow Maple Valley Market. Lin He prepared the Five Elements Reversal Formation and faced two Foundation Establishment elders, ending the chapter as he unleashed an enormous jade-green figure against them.

• Xin Ruoyin explained that she and Xiao Mei had to leave the Yuanwu Kingdom because of the Liu family, Xu Yan, and the Fu family, while Lin He reassured Xiao Mei that he could settle them at Yellow Maple Valley Market.
• Lin He and Xin Ruoyin discussed opening a formation shop, but a powerful spiritual sense swept over them as they neared the market.
• Lin He suspected a Core Formation Stage pursuer was approaching, so Xin Ruoyin brought out the Five Elements Reversal Formation and the three of them set it up.
• Lin He waited outside the formation while Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei hid, and three flying figures arrived: a vacant-faced elder and two middle Foundation Establishment elders.
• The thin elder accused Lin He of killing Xu Yan, and the vacant-faced elder ordered the two elders to seize him while refusing to act himself.
• Lin He denied knowing Xu Yan, then waved his hand and sent an enormous jade-green figure lunging at the two elders.

Lin He fought the Xu ancestor while the Jade Mantis killed one of the Xu ancestor’s nephews and battled the other. After the Xu ancestor’s Golden Rain Sword destroyed most of Lin He’s magical artifacts, Lin He led him into the Five Elements Reversal Formation, which activated as they descended.

• The Jade Mantis killed the thin old man with a single strike, while Lin He engaged the Xu ancestor’s Spirit Puppet Clone in midair.
• The fat old man defended himself against the Jade Mantis with his Green Ruyi as the Xu ancestor fought Lin He with the Golden Sword.
• The Xu ancestor’s Golden Rain Sword shattered Lin He’s Child Blades, Blazing Fire Claws, and Mother Blade, but Lin He dodged its attack on his Divine Wind Boat.
• Lin He used the Jadefire Blade to hold back the Golden Rain Sword briefly, then withdrew as the Jade Mantis abandoned the fat old man and descended with him.
• The Xu ancestor and the fat old man followed Lin He down, and the Five Elements Reversal Formation activated around them.