Chapter Summaries

Xiao Hua guarded the wounded Xun Shu while Qian Diheng and Kun Feiyan fought the last Huanling Sect disciple. When the disciple used a Transformation Spirit Talisman to turn into a blood-spined beast and break Qian Diheng’s attack, his body suddenly exploded, leaving the reason unclear.

• Xiao Hua released the Dust-Repelling Beast to protect Xun Shu while she healed, then watched Qian Diheng and Kun Feiyan battle the last Huanling Sect disciple.
• The disciple offered to reveal why the Huanling Sect had used the Dust-Repelling Beast in exchange for his life, but Xiao Hua urged Qian Diheng and Kun Feiyan to kill him.
• Kun Feiyan attacked with the Thunder-Trapping Pearls as Qian Diheng prepared the Minghao Halberd, and the disciple activated a Transformation Spirit Talisman.
• The transformed disciple blocked Qian Diheng’s three-colored attack with his fists, then struck himself as the blood spines on his body burst apart.
• The disciple collapsed and exploded in a burst of blood and flesh, prompting Qian Diheng and Kun Feiyan to retreat and protect themselves.

Xiao Hua reunited with Qian Diheng, Kun Feiyan, and Xun Shu after rescuing them from Huanling Sect disciples, then shared out the spoils and gathered extra Foundation Establishment Pills. The four set off toward Mingxi, while Xiao Hua kept two Soul Searching Technique jade slips and wondered how to repay Xun Shu’s generosity.

• Qian Diheng and Kun Feiyan thanked Xiao Hua for rescuing them, and the three recounted how Huanling Sect disciples had attacked them over the Dust-Repelling Beast.
• Xun Shu attempted to use the Soul Searching Technique on a dead Huanling Sect disciple but failed, then offered Xiao Hua her jade slip; Qian Diheng also lent him an orthodox technique jade slip.
• Xiao Hua divided the Huanling Sect disciples’ belongings among the four, took the Dust-Repelling Beast, and secretly kept two pieces of Qian Mo secret stone.
• Xiao Hua asked for the extra Foundation Establishment Pills, and Xun Shu, Qian Diheng, and Kun Feiyan gave him some, with Kun Feiyan keeping a portion for her junior sister.
• The four identified their direction and flew toward Mingxi.

While studying two versions of the Soul Searching Technique, Xiao Hua suspected that someone had once searched his soul and caused his memory loss. He calmed himself through the Big Dipper Divine Fist, then decided he could pair Xun Shu’s coercive technique with the Buddhist true word “Lin” to tempt and deliver extracted souls.

• Xiao Hua compared Xun Shu’s soul-extracting technique with the Thunder Control Sect’s more powerful method for searching the memories of living people.
• Xiao Hua wondered whether a soul search had erased his memories and flew into a rage, striking the cave wall with his Great Vajra Dharma Body.
• Xiao Hua practiced the Big Dipper Divine Fist until its cool current calmed him, then concluded his lost memories likely had another cause.
• Xiao Hua found Xun Shu’s technique’s final hand seals vicious but decided he could use them against wicked people.
• Xiao Hua realized he could combine soul extraction with the Buddhist true word “Lin” to tempt and deliver departed souls.

Xiao Hua and his companions resumed their journey toward Mingxi, and Kun Feiyan left them to meet familiar cultivators while the others waited in a maple forest. Xiao Hua learned more about the soul-cultivation realms in Xun Shu’s jade slip and noticed two injured cultivators hiding in a cave nearby.

• Xiao Hua practiced controlling Buddhist sense and bypassing restrictions in a jade slip before setting out with Qian Diheng, Xun Shu, and Kun Feiyan toward Mingxi.
• After months of travel, the group stopped near Mingxi, where Kun Feiyan said she needed to prepare something and flew off alone to meet familiar fellow cultivators.
• Qian Diheng questioned Kun Feiyan’s unexplained departure, but Xiao Hua said everyone was entitled to keep secrets, and he and Xun Shu accepted the explanation.
• Xiao Hua returned the jade slips and explained that he had read further contents describing the Nine Heavens of Spiritual Essence and the soul cultivators’ three souls and six spirits.
• Xun Shu and Qian Diheng could not explain why people were sometimes said to have seven spirits, and Xiao Hua dismissed the question as irrelevant to their cultivation.
• Xiao Hua detected two injured cultivators flying down from the mountains and hiding in a cave.

Xiao Hua, Xun Shu, and Qian Diheng encountered two injured cultivators who distrusted them despite their peaceful intentions. After the male cultivator brought them back for help, the woman introduced herself and her companion, leaving the three to learn about their origins.

• Xiao Hua, Xun Shu, and Qian Diheng discussed refusing to prey on other cultivators, though Xiao Hua warned that they would retaliate against anyone who bullied them.
• The trio approached a cave, where Zhong Peihan and Zhong Haoran emerged and accused them of pursuing the pair.
• Xun Shu and Xiao Hua tried to reassure the injured cultivators, but Zhong Peihan remained suspicious, so the trio left.
• When Zhong Peihan complained that they had no medicinal pills, she sent Zhong Haoran after Xiao Hua and the others to seek help.
• Xiao Hua, Xun Shu, and Qian Diheng returned with Zhong Haoran, and Zhong Peihan introduced herself and her junior brother as disciples of a cultivation family from Meng Kingdom.

Xiao Hua's group learned that the Zhong siblings had been injured trying to enter Mingxi, where three major sects guarded a rumored treasure that could advance Qi Cultivation. After giving them healing pills, Xiao Hua and his companions continued toward Mingxi, uncertain whether the new treasure would interfere with their own mission.

• Zhong Peihan explained that she and Zhong Haoran had joined a failed attempt to enter Mingxi and were wounded by a Shanghua Sect disciple guarding its entrance.
• Xiao Hua learned that the entrance had changed and that cultivators claimed a treasure inside could advance Qi Cultivation, though Zhong Peihan did not know what it was.
• Qian Diheng exchanged healing pills for the Zhong siblings' spirit stones, and Xiao Hua later gave them four more bottles without charge.
• Zhong Haoran admired Xiao Hua's generosity, while Zhong Peihan urged him to heal and prepare to return to Meng Kingdom with their relatives.
• Xiao Hua asked Xun Shu whether Mingxi's rumored treasure was the item their group sought, and she said they were likely different things.
• Qian Diheng proposed seeking both treasures, but Xiao Hua chose to wait for Sister Kun's explanation before deciding what to do.

Kun Feiyan, Xiao Hua, Xun Shu, and Qian Diheng traveled toward Mingxi in search of Zhong Yaoru, a rare body-tempering treasure said to improve the Lightning Evasion Technique. As they reached the perilous region, they learned that three sects were blocking its entrance and saw wounded cultivators fleeing.

• Kun Feiyan rejoined Xiao Hua and the others, and the group discussed Zhong Yaoru and the technique for using it to temper the body.
• Xiao Hua compared Zhong Yaoru’s effects to the Fire Marrow Blazing Crystal and copied the body-tempering method from the three jade slips.
• Qian Diheng told the others that Mingxi also held a treasure that could help qi cultivation disciples advance, while Xun Shu explained that the Shanghua Sect, Seven Wonders Sect, and Xunyan Sect had blocked the entrance.
• The four flew toward Mingxi, where Xun Shu described its deadly wind eyes and unstable spatial cracks.
• Xiao Hua declared that he wanted to confront the three sects, but before the group reached Mingxi, they saw wounded Qi Cultivation cultivators fleeing.

Xiao Hua and his companions arrived at Mingxi, where cultivators from several sects and Rogue Cultivators were fighting over a rumored treasure that could advance qi cultivators. Xiao Hua chose to observe as the Thunder Control Sect launched a coordinated assault against the formations guarding the entrance, and its disorganized attack began to falter.

• Xiao Hua and his companions reached Mingxi and found the Thunder Control Sect and other Rogue Cultivators facing Shanghua Sect, Seven Wonders Sect, and Xunyan Sect.
• Kan Ximing and several other Thunder Control Sect disciples recognized Qian Diheng, Kun Feiyan, and Xun Shu, then welcomed them as reinforcements.
• Kan Ximing explained that the cultivators knew only that a treasure inside Mingxi could help qi cultivation disciples advance, and he urged the newcomers to join the formation.
• Xiao Hua declined to enter the formation immediately and stayed with his companions to observe the coming battle.
• The Thunder Control Sect launched a group attack, but Shanghua Sect and its allies countered with tighter formations and overwhelmed much of the disorganized assault.

Xiao Hua and his companions watched the Thunder Control Sect and Shanghua Sect remain evenly matched, while Xiao Hua appeared confident that he had a plan. Their attempt to discuss their next move was interrupted by Kan Peng, who accused them of shirking their duty and ordered them to join the fight; Qian Diheng and Xun Shu resisted his demands.

• Xiao Hua, Xun Shu, Kun Feiyan, and Qian Diheng watched the rival sects' attacks and magic treasures cancel each other out in a stalemate.
• Xiao Hua laughed as he realized something about the battle, and Qian Diheng asked what benefit the Thunder Control Sect would gain if Xiao Hua broke the Shanghua Sect's formation.
• Kan Peng stopped Qian Diheng from going to speak with Kan Ximing and accused him and the others of avoiding the fight.
• Qian Diheng denied that he planned to hide and challenged Kan Peng's authority to direct him.
• Kan Peng invoked the sect rules and ordered them to join the Thunder Control Sect formation, but Qian Diheng refused and Xun Shu cursed Kan Peng and the other senior disciples.

Xiao Hua led Xun Shu, Kun Feiyan, and Qian Diheng into the battle and used the Town Cloud Seal to batter the formations of the Shanghua Sect’s allies. As his successive cloud attacks overwhelmed the Seven Wonders Sect’s rotating defenders, Kan Ximing ordered the Thunder Control Sect to attack and help break through.

• Xiao Hua rejected Xun Shu’s suggestion to wait and told his companions to follow him into the next attack.
• During the renewed clash, Xiao Hua revealed the Town Cloud Seal, surprising the opposing cultivators and prompting one Shanghua Sect disciple to send a magic treasure against it.
• Xiao Hua’s Town Cloud Seal struck down the rival treasure and formed a vast cloud that suppressed the Seven Wonders Sect disciples.
• The Seven Wonders Sect disciples coordinated their positions and magic artifacts to block Xiao Hua’s repeated cloud attacks, but their formation came under mounting pressure.
• Kan Ximing recovered from his shock and ordered the Thunder Control Sect disciples to attack and help break through the three factions’ formations.

Xiao Hua used the Town Cloud Seal to break through the Seven Wonders Sect’s formation and led Xun Shu, Qian Diheng, and Kun Feiyan through the opening. The Thunder Control Sect launched its attack, and Xiao Hua felt something strange in his left hand as he prepared to flee.

• The Thunder Control Sect’s commander sent an attack signal while the Shanghua Sect and the other sects struggled to respond to Xiao Hua’s Town Cloud Seal.
• Xiao Hua summoned another enormous cloud and drove the Town Cloud Seal down, then led Xun Shu, Qian Diheng, and Kun Feiyan into its radiance.
• Six Seven Wonders Sect disciples fled from the formation, leaving an opening for Xiao Hua and his companions to pass through.
• Xiao Hua scattered clouds at the disciples beside the gap, then beckoned to Kan Ximing as he landed beyond the formation.
• Kan Ximing understood Xiao Hua’s signal and ordered the Thunder Control Sect disciples to attack the opposing forces.
• Xiao Hua found no one behind the formation, caught the shrunken Town Cloud Seal, and felt a strange sensation in his left hand.

Xiao Hua's left-hand Eye of Delusion Breaking awakened in Mingxi and drained his Buddha consciousness, leaving him incapacitated until he recovered. After three days of rest, he prepared to continue toward Zhong Yaoru as Xun Shu began explaining why the destination had been kept secret.

• Xiao Hua's left palm reacted to the Nether Eye, and the Eye of Delusion Breaking awakened, drawing away his Buddha consciousness and causing him to collapse.
• Xun Shu and Qian Diheng carried Xiao Hua away from the other disciples, and the group found a shallow cave where Xiao Hua set up a formation.
• After three days of recovery, Xiao Hua saw spatial cracks and spiritual energy through the awakened eye and discovered a matching vertical crack on his Buddha Sarira.
• Xiao Hua recovered and agreed with the others to continue toward Zhong Yaoru, while Qian Diheng and Xun Shu explained that the site was known only to close descendants of the Thunder Control Sect.

Xun Shu activated the Seeking Conch to locate the Zhong Yaoru, which Xiao Hua realized lay within a spatial rift in Mingxi. The group followed its phantom deeper into Mingxi while preparing to defend Xun Shu, but a sudden rush of wind sounded above them.

• Xiao Hua, Qian Diheng, Xun Shu, and Kun Feiyan agreed to work together, and Xun Shu revealed that her Seeking Conch could locate places such as spatial rifts.
• Qian Diheng explained that the Zhong Yaoru was hidden in a spatial rift in Mingxi, and Xun Shu began activating the Seeking Conch.
• Xun Shu used her essence blood to complete the spell, then recovered her magic power before sending the conch's phantom out of the cave.
• Xiao Hua removed the cave's formation, and the Seeking Conch's phantom found a direction to follow toward the Zhong Yaoru.
• Xiao Hua, Qian Diheng, and Kun Feiyan prepared their magic artifacts to guard Xun Shu as the group followed the conch deeper into Mingxi.
• A piercing rush of wind suddenly sounded ten feet above Xiao Hua's head.

Xiao Hua and the others encountered unexpected spatial rifts in Mingxi, and Xiao Hua discovered that his awakened Dharma Eye could reveal rifts hidden from ordinary perception. He left the group safely circling a dangerous invisible rift after rescuing Xun Shu from flying into it.

• Xiao Hua saw a temporary spatial rift appear and vanish, and Qian Diheng and Kun Feiyan warned him that invisible rifts deep in Mingxi could kill without warning.
• Xiao Hua suggested turning back after realizing temporary rifts were appearing near the outskirts, but Qian Diheng and Kun Feiyan insisted they continue toward Zhong Yaoru.
• After another rift appeared, Xiao Hua used his Buddhist sense and the Buddha Sarira’s third eye to see faint spatial rifts within about ten yards.
• Xiao Hua spotted an invisible rift in the Seeking Snail’s path and pulled Xun Shu upward to keep her from flying into it.
• Xiao Hua warned Qian Diheng and Kun Feiyan to circle around the danger, then told Xun Shu he had sensed a threat and acted to protect her.

Xiao Hua and his companions discussed the legendary Five Auspicious Beasts and the talismans made from them. Kun Feiyan revealed that qilin-shaped jade talismans could bring good fortune, leaving Xiao Hua eager to learn how to use them.

• Qian Diheng joked that Xiao Hua would be their auspicious talisman for a journey to Mingxi.
• Kun Feiyan explained that the Five Auspicious Beasts were the Pixiu, qilin, peacock, golden toad, and Longevity Turtle.
• Kun Feiyan said spirit talismans made from the beasts’ fur and blood could turn danger into safety and misfortune into good fortune.
• Xiao Hua recognized similarities between Kun Feiyan’s description of the peacock and the Phoenix Illusion in his space.
• Kun Feiyan revealed that qilin-shaped jade talismans could bring good fortune and might serve as magical artifacts or magic treasures through special methods.
• Xiao Hua urgently asked about those methods, and Kun Feiyan wondered whether he possessed a rare Auspicious Jade Talisman.

Xiao Hua and the others discovered that invisible spatial rifts cut through Mingxi, and Xiao Hua led the group safely around them. When the Spiral Seeker stopped working, they detoured and found a strange, rune-marked black fragment whose purpose was unknown.

• Qian Diheng's spirit stone was split in two by an invisible spatial rift, and Xiao Hua confirmed the danger by tossing a jade bottle into it.
• Xiao Hua led the group past several more spatial rifts while Xun Shu trusted him to guide the way.
• The Spiral Seeker suddenly stopped, and Xun Shu said the Zhong Yaoru might have been annihilated or another object might be interfering with the seeker.
• Xiao Hua persuaded the others to detour around the rifts and search the area rather than proceed directly.
• Kun Feiyan spotted a black fragment among sparse vegetation, and Xiao Hua examined it before the group found they could not identify it.

Xiao Hua and his companions followed Xun Shu’s Seeking Snail through Mingxi while discovering that the black fragments had likely been cut from larger objects by spatial rifts. The chapter left Qian Diheng shaken after Xiao Hua saved him from an invisible rift, as Xiao Hua called out that he had identified the fragments.

• Xiao Hua led the group deeper into Mingxi, where they found more black fragments near spatial rifts.
• Xiao Hua compared the fragments’ smooth edges with spirit stones cut by a rift and proposed that spatial rifts had severed them.
• Xun Shu’s Seeking Snail resumed guiding the group, and they followed its phantom past several spatial rifts as fragments became more common.
• When Qian Diheng rushed toward a cluster of fragments, Xiao Hua spotted a spatial rift and knocked him out of its path.
• Qian Diheng discovered that the rift had sliced away half his magic-treasure sleeve, while Xiao Hua called for him and said he knew what the fragments were.

Xiao Hua and the others discovered that a puppet had been destroyed by a spatial rift, suggesting another cultivator had entered Mingxi and might also be searching for Zhong Yaoru. Guided by Xun Shu’s Seeking Snail, they reached a calm, spiritually rich clearing and waited for the rift to Zhong Yaoru’s space to appear.

• Xiao Hua and Qian Diheng identified the scattered remains as a puppet, and Xiao Hua suspected its owner had recently entered Mingxi to search for Zhong Yaoru.
• Xiao Hua stored several puppet fragments, and the group continued toward the Seeking Snail’s destination while Qian Diheng concealed what had happened between him and Xiao Hua.
• Xun Shu’s Seeking Snail led the group to a small, calm clearing where the surrounding winds canceled out and Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi was unusually dense.
• Kun Feiyan explained that the group needed to enter a periodically appearing spatial rift and search a vast, dangerous space for Zhong Yaoru.
• Xiao Hua used his Eye of Delusion Breaking and saw countless tiny rifts moving through the clearing, realizing that the rift they sought might move through space before appearing there.

Several cultivators gathered around a wind pillar in Mingxi hoped to claim the Ming You Lan within it, while news spread that many rival sect disciples had entered the region. At Xun Lei Palace, Xun Ming intervened as Xue Xue’s cultivation went dangerously awry.

• Fellow Daoist Ming and the others explained that Ming You Lan could transform Foundation Establishment Pills and discussed how rival sect disciples had entered Mingxi.
• The female cultivator predicted that few of the intruders would survive Mingxi’s spatial rifts, then noticed that the wind pillar’s power had weakened.
• A tiny bird-shaped puppet drifted near the wind pillar, unnoticed by the gathered cultivators.
• A surge of Spiritual Qi disturbed the restrictions around Xue Xue’s quiet chamber, prompting nearby female cultivators to summon Xun Ming.
• Xun Ming entered the chamber and struck Xue Xue’s lower dantian, stopping the Spiritual Qi surge as Xue Xue completed her hand seal.

Xun Ming saved Xue Xue from the dangers of her reckless breakthrough and gave her a sect secret art to repair its lingering effects. The chapter then shifted to Cold Ice Valley, where Fairy Hongxia cultivated amid its deadly winds, surrounded by a growing phoenix-shaped aura.

• Xue Xue thanked Xun Ming for saving her, and Xun Ming rebuked her for using Misty Mountain's secret art to break through two cultivation layers at once.
• Xun Ming confronted Xue Xue about rushing her cultivation for Xiao Hua's sake and reassured her that she would help with their relationship.
• Xun Ming gave Xue Xue a Xun Lei Palace secret art to reduce the danger from her breakthrough and departed.
• Xue Xue activated the quiet chamber's restrictions and sat staring into empty air as tears fell.
• Fairy Hongxia cultivated on an ice-sealed platform in Cold Ice Valley, where her azure aura gradually took the shape of a phoenix.