Chapter Summaries

Xiao Hua studied Buddhist formations and learned to produce a faint trace of thought force while Han Zhu prepared a group of Buddhist cultivators to enter the Buddhist Sect ruins. Han Zhu explained why the ruins might still hold undiscovered techniques, and the group expressed their eagerness to go inside.

• Han Zhu gave Xiao Hua jade slips on cultivating thought force and basic Buddhist formations, and Xiao Hua quickly learned the formation methods.
• Xiao Hua struggled for days to produce thought force before finally creating a faint trace and receiving Han Zhu's summons.
• Han Zhu gathered Xiao Hua and six other disguised disciples, reminding them to conceal their Buddhist cultivation from Dao Sect cultivators.
• Han Zhu explained that Buddhist cultivation could offer advantages and that the ruins might still be undiscovered because their entrance required Buddhist cultivation.
• One disciple told Han Zhu he wanted to find Buddhist techniques and Golden Kun script in the ruins and urged him to lead them inside.

Han Zhu led Xiao Hua and six other cultivators to the ruins of the Buddhist Sect near Reclining Buddha Ridge, explaining the ridge’s origin and his hopes of discovering how Buddhist fruition was attained. At a hidden basin, he used a Nine-Ringed Vajra Staff to reveal the ruins beneath the earth, where hundreds of ruined temples and compassionate statues appeared in the rain.

• Han Zhu assigned Xiao Hua and the other six cultivators the Buddhist names Jia, Yi, Bing, Ding, Wu, Ji, and Geng, then led them toward the ruins.
• Xiao Hua recognized Reclining Buddha Ridge from a jade slip and learned from Han Zhu how a Buddhist master’s body became the ridge while suppressing evil spirits.
• Han Zhu said he hoped to discover the Buddhist Sect’s true lineage and learn how Buddhist fruition was attained.
• Han Zhu found an isolated basin near the ridge and summoned his Nine-Ringed Vajra Staff to open a passage into the ruins.
• A giant swastika peeled back the earth and revealed hundreds of dilapidated temples and Buddhist statues as rain fell around the basin.

Xiao Hua entered the Buddhist Sect ruins with Han Zhu and the other disciples, where they began the trials of the Futuo Path. As Xiao Hua followed them onto the path, a powerful bell rang from the Buddha niche, leaving Han Zhu astonished.

• Xiao Hua entered the Buddhist light and arrived at the foot of the stairs leading to a Buddha niche, where he questioned Han Zhu about the Buddhist Sect’s destruction.
• Han Zhu explained that the Futuo Path began a trial of Buddhist cultivation and told the disciples to make their choices before stepping onto it.
• Yi stepped onto the path first, followed by Bing, and Buddhist lotuses bloomed beneath their feet with each step.
• Han Zhu agreed that Jiang Liuer should awaken and return to his parents before deciding whether to remain with the Buddhist Sect.
• Xiao Hua stepped onto the Futuo Path, and the Yellow Reed Great Bell rang loudly enough to make Han Zhu stare at him in astonishment.

Xiao Hua crossed the Futuo Path by resisting waves of heart demons and gained Han Zhu’s praise for his Buddhist comprehension. Inside the Buddha niche, he discovered a vast chamber and learned that its second trial required everyone to work together.

• Xiao Hua used his Buddha Sarira’s Fight ability to withstand the heart demons and illusions assailing him on the Futuo Path.
• A golden bell in Han Zhu’s hand rang out, dispelling the blood sea, and Xiao Hua, Yi, and the others reached the Buddha niche.
• Xiao Hua said that turning back from the boundless bitter sea was reaching the shore, and Han Zhu praised his insight as worthy of Buddhist fruition.
• The group entered the Buddha niche, where Xiao Hua noticed an apparently endless Futuo Path and realized the ruins contained a Sumeru Buddha Array.
• Xiao Hua faced the lifelike Buddha statue with sincere reverence, and Han Zhu explained that the second trial required everyone to work together.

Han Zhu and the seven disciples opened the gate to Jialan Temple by joining their Buddhist consciousness and power of faith, which the formation returned ninefold. Inside, the disciples rushed for the trial’s offerings, but the scriptures crumbled and Han Zhu urged them to keep looking for better rewards.

• Han Zhu told the disciples that the ruins likely held eighty-one trials and warned that opening the next gate might consume their Buddhist consciousness and power of faith.
• Han Zhu led the group in forming a Buddhist formation beneath the reclining Buddha, and the formation opened a doorway to Jialan Temple while returning their offerings ninefold.
• Han Zhu and the disciples entered Jialan Temple and found a ruined hall, an incense altar, several Golden Laws, and Buddhist scriptures.
• Yi and Bing rushed for the Golden Laws, while Ding and Wu tried to seize the scriptures, which shattered when touched.
• Han Zhu explained that Dao Sect abilities were restricted inside the temple and told Yi and Bing to keep the Golden Laws they had obtained.

Xiao Hua and Han Zhu prepared to awaken Jiang Liuer from the Nirvana Realm by drawing on the Buddhist formation and the toppled Buddha statue. As they joined their Buddhist sense and power of faith, eight glowing swastika characters formed above their heads, and mysterious Buddhist seals began to appear.

• Xiao Hua explored the ruined plaza, then found Han Zhu and the others kneeling before a fierce, toppled Buddha statue whose remaining power forced two disciples to their knees.
• Han Zhu rang his golden bell to dispel the pressure, then sent the others into the main hall to search for opportunities while he examined a gold tablet and prepared to activate the formation.
• Yi, Bing, and the others returned with two gold tablets and a wooden fish, and Han Zhu directed them to sit in the Buddhist formation.
• Han Zhu explained that awakening Jiang Liuer could earn them great merit, help open a gateway above the main hall, and perhaps lead to the Buddhist Fruit; Xiao Hua brought Jiang Liuer out of his spirit storage pouch.
• Han Zhu, Xiao Hua, and the six others released their Buddhist sense and power of faith, forming eight glowing swastika characters above their heads as Buddhist seals appeared within them.

Han Zhu revealed that he had lured Xiao Hua and the other disciples into a Futuo Buddhist formation to sacrifice them and absorb their power. Xiao Hua resisted Han Zhu’s attempts to seize his sarira, while Han Zhu began to explain the truth about the supposed Buddhist ruins before stopping himself.

• Han Zhu summoned a Buddha statue with the golden bell and had the disciples pour their Buddhist consciousness and thought power into it to awaken Jiang Liuer.
• Han Zhu’s Dharma body emerged and merged with the statue, then drew sariras from the disciples and destroyed six of their bodies to absorb their blood and power.
• Xiao Hua realized Han Zhu had orchestrated the events at Jialan Temple to trick them into giving up their power, and accused him of betraying Buddhist compassion.
• Han Zhu merged the disciples’ sariras and essence blood into his own, while the statue suppressed Xiao Hua’s abilities and tried to crush him.
• Han Zhu revealed that the site was a Futuo Buddhist formation rather than Buddhist ruins, but stopped before explaining more and continued trying to pull out Xiao Hua’s sarira.

Xiao Hua confronted Han Zhu inside the Futuo Buddhist formation, learning that Han Zhu had used the formation to devour Buddhist cultivators and even Nascent Souls. The chapter left Xiao Hua facing Han Zhu after Han Zhu relaxed his mental power, still intent on drawing out Xiao Hua’s relic.

• Han Zhu questioned Xiao Hua about his relic and explained that his Wrathful Vajra cultivation devoured other cultivators’ relics.
• Han Zhu revealed that the supposed Buddhist Sect ruins were a Futuo Buddhist formation, and that he had trapped and devoured people within it.
• Han Zhu told Xiao Hua he planned to raise Xiao Hua’s blood relative only if the child showed potential, and otherwise would devour him.
• Xiao Hua disclosed that he cultivated the Baye Linglong Scripture, shocking Han Zhu, who then declared that Xiao Hua would become his prey.
• Xiao Hua summoned the As-You-Wish Staff and prepared to attack, while Han Zhu relaxed his mental power to test whether Xiao Hua could reveal his relic.

Xiao Hua struggled against Han Zhu, who used the Futuo Buddhist formation’s power of faith to suppress him and devour his Buddha Sarira. Just as Xiao Hua’s sarira was collapsing, he unleashed lightning that disrupted Han Zhu’s connection to the formation.

• Xiao Hua summoned the Buddha Sarira projection and tried to strike Han Zhu, but Han Zhu overwhelmed it with the power of faith and knocked the As-You-Wish Staff from Xiao Hua’s hand.
• Han Zhu forced Xiao Hua toward the ground and began tearing apart his Buddha Sarira, revealing his plan to keep Xiao Hua’s blood relative and raise the child to control the world.
• Xiao Hua projected his Buddha Sarira with a three-grade Lotus Platform, and Han Zhu recognized it as evidence that Xiao Hua had attained the Rúgòu Realm.
• Han Zhu’s Wrathful Vajra Dharma Body absorbed the Lotus Platform and began devouring Xiao Hua’s sarira, while Xiao Hua noticed that his Buddha Fire resisted the pressure.
• Xiao Hua recalled the power of belief and his soul techniques from Million Meng Mountain, then released dark green lightning that surrounded Jialan Temple and disrupted Han Zhu’s connection to the Futuo Buddhist formation.

Xiao Hua narrowly defeated Han Zhu in Jialan Temple by combining Innate True Water, Spirit Severing Primordial Light, and spirit fire, but he still had no way to awaken Jiang Liuer. After securing Han Zhu’s belongings and studying Buddhist records, Xiao Hua left the ruined hall with more questions about the Buddhist sect.

• Han Zhu attacked Xiao Hua while lightning battered his Wrathful Vajra Dharma Body, but Xiao Hua summoned more lightning and weakened it further.
• Han Zhu used a bell to disable Xiao Hua, but the Purifying Vase released Innate True Water that cut Xiao Hua off from the Futuo Buddhist formation.
• Xiao Hua used spirit fire to open a gap in Han Zhu’s Buddhist defenses, allowing the Spirit Severing Primordial Light to kill him.
• The Buddhist formation shattered the Innate True Water, and Xiao Hua rested before checking on Jiang Liuer, who remained in Nirvana.
• Xiao Hua collected Han Zhu’s sarira, weapons, cassock, and storage pouch, then destroyed his remains and avoided using the damaged Buddha Sarira.
• Xiao Hua spent several days examining Buddhist records from Han Zhu’s storage pouch, then put away a battered jade slip.

Xiao Hua mastered the Futuo Buddhist formation and discovered the Myriad Buddha Diagram hidden within it, a Buddhist legacy left behind after the sect’s destruction. He began using the Nine-Character Mantra to activate the diagram, and its power surged into his Buddha Sarira.

• Xiao Hua found Han Zhu’s Wrathful Vajra cultivation method and searched the Golden Kun scripts for clues about the Buddhist Sect ruins.
• Xiao Hua learned to control the Nine-Ringed Vajra Staff, and the Buddhist disciples’ thought power repaired his Buddha Sarira and advanced his Baye Linglong Scripture.
• Xiao Hua used the fourth Buddhist divine ability to destroy Jialan Temple’s rear wall, then flew above the Futuo Buddhist formation and sensed a hidden mystery.
• Xiao Hua activated the formation with the Nine-Ringed Vajra Staff and was drawn into a place filled with tens of thousands of broken Buddha statues, which he recognized as the Myriad Buddha Diagram.
• Xiao Hua sent the four true words of the Nine-Character Mantra into the Myriad Buddha Diagram, causing its statues to move and a force comparable to the Heavenly Dao to surge into his Buddha Sarira.

Xiao Hua entered the true Buddhist Sect ruins and was drawn to Mount Sumeru, where a Buddha statue resembling his Buddha Sarira repaired his sarira and restored several Buddhist treasures. The chapter left him examining the statue’s power and the objects he had brought to it.

• Xiao Hua’s Buddha Sarira re-formed, and the Myriad Buddha Diagram wrapped it in a kasaya-like robe before revealing the true Buddhist Sect ruins.
• Xiao Hua was engulfed by a force within the ruins and transported to Mount Sumeru above a sea of blood.
• A beam of Buddhist light carried Xiao Hua to a Buddha statue that resembled his Buddha Sarira, and he bowed before it.
• The statue’s mirror repaired the outline of Xiao Hua’s Buddha Sarira and restored the Pure Water Vase and Great Evolution Exquisite Pagoda.
• Xiao Hua put away the restored treasures and brought out Han Zhu’s kasaya, the Nine-Ringed Vajra Staff, and a small golden bell.

Xiao Hua was expelled from the Buddhist Sect ruins before he could awaken Jiang Liuer, then encountered two Nascent Soul cultivators in the storm. True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi tried to capture him, but Xiao Hua broke through their restraints and continued to fight his way free.

• Xiao Hua collected the Buddhist artifacts and presented Jiang Liuer to the Buddha Lord, whose bell and golden light pulled them into a mirror.
• Xiao Hua realized the Buddha Lord was sending Jiang Liuer elsewhere, but the pair were expelled from the Buddhist Sect ruins into a storm.
• Xiao Hua failed to locate Reclining Buddha Mountain and flew off to find someone who could direct him there.
• True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi recognized Xiao Hua, imprisoned the surrounding space, and pursued him as he tried to escape.
• Xiao Hua shattered their restraints with his staff and spirit fire, but Shanshengzi cast a blood curse to restrict his Lightning Evasion Technique.
• Xiao Hua broke Shanshengzi's quagmire with sword radiance, startling the two cultivators as he continued to resist capture.

Xiao Hua was cornered by True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi, so he unleashed the Phoenix Jade Talisman and badly wounded them before escaping toward the Qiang He Sea. The two pursued him from opposite directions, while Xiao Hua’s Lightning Evasion slowed as his magic power mysteriously dwindled.

• True Person Du'e blasted Xiao Hua out of his Sword Transformation and secretly sent ink-black blood threads into his sword light.
• Xiao Hua confronted True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi, then activated the Phoenix Jade Talisman when they blocked his escape.
• The Phoenix Illusion’s void storm destroyed the cultivators’ magic treasures and defenses, gravely injuring both men before Xiao Hua fled.
• True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi took pills and split up to pursue Xiao Hua toward the Qiang He Sea, planning to force him into a region with little Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.
• After several hours, Xiao Hua’s Lightning Evasion slowed as his magic power mysteriously vanished, allowing True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi to draw closer.

Xiao Hua was cornered by True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi, while True Person Leixiao tried and failed to reach him in time. As Xiao Hua prepared to make his last stand, Xue Xue and Helpless appeared and sacrificed themselves to protect him, leaving Xiao Hua using the willow branch to try to save them.

• Xiao Hua fled toward Million Meng Mountain but could not shake True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi, and True Person Leixiao pursued him after realizing they had been tracking him for a long time.
• After several days of pursuit, Xiao Hua stopped in a bamboo grove and prepared to fight rather than be captured or sealed again.
• Xue Xue appeared and urged Xiao Hua to flee east toward the Qiang He Sea, while Helpless arrived to stand against Shanshengzi.
• Xue Xue self-destructed to attack True Person Du'e, but he contained her blood mist with his Nascent Soul hand.
• Xiao Hua used the willow branch Other Shore to send rosy light into Xue Xue's blood mist in an attempt to save her.
• Helpless self-destructed against Shanshengzi, who weakened the blast with a secret art, and Xiao Hua sent another stream of rosy light into Helpless's blood mist.

Xiao Hua fought True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi after Xue Xue and Wu Nai sacrificed themselves to curse the two Nascent Soul cultivators. Unable to defeat them, he escaped toward the Qiang He Sea, while the blood curse briefly disrupted his pursuers.

• The blood mist from Xue Xue and Wu Nai’s sacrifice broke through True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi’s defenses and infected them with a blood curse.
• Xiao Hua attacked True Person Du'e with the Spirit Severing Primordial Light and Shanshengzi with his Spirit Fire, but the two cultivators blocked his strikes with their Nascent Souls and rings.
• Shanshengzi and True Person Du'e counterattacked with restraints, a lightning-absorbing bead, and a needle, leaving Xiao Hua trapped and unable to avenge Xue Xue and Wu Nai.
• Xiao Hua decided to flee east toward the Qiang He Sea, hoping to preserve the chance of reviving Xue Xue and Wu Nai and taking revenge later.
• The blood curse disrupted both enemies’ Nascent Souls, allowing Xiao Hua to break free with lightning and flee as True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi renewed their pursuit.

Xiao Hua escaped True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi through a mysterious power, prompting them to pursue him toward Qiang He Sea. Meanwhile, the otherworldly Zhang Jie followed the aura of the Other Shore eastward, learned about the Wumeng Mountain Range and the Lost Land from Du Peng, and exposed him as a demonic fiend before continuing on.

• Xiao Hua vanished as the fine needle and Shanshengzi's giant hand attacked, and True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi realized capturing him could benefit their cultivation.
• True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi set off toward Qiang He Sea to pursue Xiao Hua despite the blood curse slowing them.
• The seven-colored figure sensed the Other Shore's power twice, flew east, and transformed into a woman named Zhang Jie near a natural restriction.
• Du Peng approached Zhang Jie and told her that the Wumeng Mountain Range lay beyond the restriction and that the Lost Land lay beyond the range.
• Zhang Jie called Du Peng a demonic fiend and struck him with white light, revealing his demonic nature before she flew east.
• After recovering, Du Peng wondered why Zhang Jie sought the Wumeng Mountain Range and watched the eastern horizon with a faint smile.

After Xiao Hua placed the willow twig carrying Xue Xue and Wu Nai’s souls into his space, black-and-white radiance transformed it into a vast world where life and death coexisted. Xiao Hua realized the souls were likely on the newly revealed yin side, while his green-robed Primordial Spirit remained behind to cultivate.

• Du Peng rejoiced at learning someone had crossed the Wumeng region and rushed off to confront Diluo.
• A humanoid beastlike being emerged from a stone, suspected the woman was in the Lost Land, and followed Zhang Jie’s direction.
• Xiao Hua placed the willow twig carrying Xue Xue and Wu Nai’s souls into his space, triggering a violent transformation that created suns, moons, stars, mountains, and rivers.
• Xiao Hua found Zhi Ma restored to its original form, Little Yellow and Xiaohei changed, Little Silver nearby, and Dai Er meditating as a little girl.
• Xiao Hua discovered that his divine sense had become a lotus-shaped jade tablet and reasoned that the souls’ arrival had brought yin and yang, life and death, into his space.
• Xiao Hua concluded that Xue Xue and Wu Nai were likely on the yin side, then left his green-robed Primordial Spirit to refine the Pingtian Rod and practice the Lightning Drawing Technique.

Jade Slip Xiao Hua explored the newly formed Netherworld Yin Face and discovered that Xue Xue’s soul had become its first soul, sleeping within a Netherworld Lotus. He left a demonic stone statue to guard her, honored his master’s soul in a Netherworld Bamboo, and returned to the Yang Face determined to learn how Xue Xue and his master had come to his aid.

• Jade Slip Xiao Hua found the Yin Face filled by a silent blood sea and recognized Xue Xue’s soul sleeping in the Netherworld Lotus at its center.
• Jade Slip Xiao Hua tried to leave a fragment of his Primordial Spirit beside Xue Xue but could not separate one after the spatial mutation.
• Jade Slip Xiao Hua brought his original-form stone statue and the Chiyou Banner to the lotus, then used demonic fire to begin cultivating the statue as Xue Xue’s guardian.
• Jade Slip Xiao Hua realized Xue Xue could not leave the Yin Face because her soul had created and become bound to it.
• Jade Slip Xiao Hua honored his master, whose soul rested in a Netherworld Bamboo, and promised to care for Mistress, Wu Qing, and Myriad Thunder Valley.
• Jade Slip Xiao Hua returned to the Yang Face, retrieved the pink jade slip, and sought to learn how Xue Xue and his master had found him in danger.

Xiao Hua read Xue Xue’s final confession and learned that she had foreseen his danger and deliberately prepared to sacrifice herself and Wu Nai to save him. He left the space determined to survive and avenge Xue Xue and his Master, while True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi spotted him flying a hundred li away.

• Xue Xue’s jade slip revealed that she had long foreseen her death and planned to sacrifice herself and Wu Nai to protect Xiao Hua.
• Xiao Hua grieved over Xue Xue’s love and realized that his feelings for her had grown despite his earlier uncertainty.
• Xiao Hua vowed to survive and avenge Xue Xue and his Master, then left the space.
• True Person Du'e and Shanshengzi detected Xiao Hua a hundred li away and were astonished that he had appeared so far ahead.