Recaps

Lin Ke arranged spirit-insect and Solar Mulberry production, then asked Chang Qing to improve the Green Mulberry Garden’s defenses. Chang Qing strengthened the Earth Cicada Warm-Sand Formation and added a way to store excess heat for its controllers to use against pests.

• Lin Can produced Stinger Hawk Moths while Lin Ke arranged for Lin Fusang and a Giant Sun Dragonfly to produce Solar Mulberries.
• Lin Ke met Fang Du at the Great Wilderness Palace and learned the materials for the grand formation would be ready within a month or two.
• Fang Du told Lin Ke that the Jade Great Radiance Church’s solar essence had arrived safely and been given to Chang Qing.
• Lin Ke asked Chang Qing to set up formations at the Green Mulberry Garden, and Chang Qing agreed to help without payment.
• Chang Qing criticized the Earth Cicada Warm-Sand Formation, then strengthened it so it stored unused heat that its controllers could use to kill pests.

Chang Qing modified the Green Mulberry Garden’s formations, creating a vast defensive barrier with a control core that Lin Ke entrusted to Fang Tong. As Lin Ke planned new work growing light-spot cordyceps and raising Whitegrass Snails, he asked Fang Tong if he wanted to cultivate.

• Chang Qing enhanced the Earth Cicada Warm-Sand Formation so it could attack and help mortals, mulberry trees, and spirit insects recover.
• Chang Qing built a spirit-grade superior formation that protected an area about ten li above and below ground, and Lin Ke installed its Stone Bamboo Tube control core underground.
• Lin Ke gave Fang Tong a Mid-Grade Spirit Stone and authorized him to activate the formation in an emergency.
• Lin Ke told Fang Tong that the garden’s extra workers would help grow light-spot cordyceps and use Whitegrass Snail mucus to nourish whitegrass.
• Fang Tong asked about his son joining the sect, and Lin Ke said it would take longer because the sect had recently gone to war.
• Lin Ke suddenly asked Fang Tong whether he wanted to cultivate.

Lin Ke taught Fang Tong the Dianchi Fishing Records and began preparing Green Mulberry Garden to raise Whitegrass Snails. After promising to keep the secret, Fang Tong agreed to help organize the garden, while Lin Ke created a pond and brought water and aquatic life to it.

• Lin Ke taught Fang Tong the Dianchi Fishing Records, explaining that its secret cultivation method had to remain hidden from the sect.
• Lin Ke proposed that Fang Tong use a Whitegrass Snail as his first life-bound spirit fish, and Fang Tong asked whether others in Green Mulberry Garden could learn the method.
• Fang Tong agreed to keep his cultivation secret and began organizing Green Mulberry Garden, while Lin Ke planned to bring in a Spirit Planter and train two helpers.
• Lin Ke used Mountain-Moving and Sea-Overturning to dig a shallow pond on the right side of Golden Silkworm Peak.
• Lin Ke carried water, aquatic plants, fish, shrimp, snails, and crabs from a Red River tributary to the pond, which he named Whitegrass Pond.

Lin Ke hired a Spirit Planter at the Giant Strength Fire Prison Sect's station and discovered that the sect also sold body-refining techniques. He browsed the available options and became interested in the Five-Colored Glazed Body.

• Lin Ke finished stabilizing Whitegrass Pond and flew to Year Festival Square to hire a Spirit Planter.
• An attendant at the Giant Strength Fire Prison Sect showed Lin Ke the available Spirit Planters, and he chose Wu Yu, a Spirit-Grade Superior planter.
• Lin Ke noticed the cultivation techniques category and asked the attendant whether the sect sold body-refining techniques.
• Lin Ke browsed the techniques, found that most cheap options were untested, and considered spending his savings on a proven body-refining method.
• Lin Ke spotted the Five-Colored Glazed Body and found it interesting.

Lin Ke bought the Five-Colored Glazed Body manual at a discount and hired Wu Yu, a spirit-grade superior Spirit Planter, to improve his cultivation grounds. Wu Yu proposed expanding the Whitegrass Pond for mixed cultivation, giving Lin Ke a way to raise valuable resources alongside Whitegrass Snails.

• Lin Ke bought the Five-Colored Glazed Body manual for twenty-five thousand spirit stones after the attendant offered him a fifty percent discount and the chance to become the sect's Saint Son.
• Lin Ke met Wu Yu, a spirit-grade superior Spirit Planter, and hired him for one hundred days for ten thousand spirit stones.
• Lin Ke gathered the materials Wu Yu requested to expand his light-spot cordyceps planting.
• Wu Yu inspected the Whitegrass Pond and proposed expanding it to support mixed cultivation of whitegrass, Whitegrass Snails, azure origin white lotuses, and red maple toads.
• Lin Ke recognized the lotus and toad as valuable ingredients for popular pills and thanked Wu Yu for the suggestion.

After hiring Wu Yu to cultivate light-spot cordyceps, Lin Ke went to buy more spirit plants and learned that clam maidens from the Clouddream Great Marsh were being sold. He suspected clam maidens might be connected to jade rabbits and lunar yin moonlight essence, and rushed to the auction house as a crowd recognized him.

• Wu Yu advised Lin Ke to buy spirit soil and spirit water to improve the chances that propagated light-spot cordyceps would retain their grade.
• Lin Ke left the Green Mulberry Garden to purchase azure origin white lotus and red maple toads.
• Lin Ke heard cultivators discuss a convoy carrying clam maidens from the Clouddream Great Marsh and considered the history linking clam maidens, the Mingcang Clam Maiden, and the Lunar Yin Jade Rabbit.
• Lin Ke wondered whether clam maidens could produce jade rabbits and help him obtain lunar yin moonlight essence, then hurried to the auction house.
• A crowd of Dao Foundation cultivators gathered to buy the clam maidens, and someone recognized Lin Ke from the Genius Ranking.

Lin Ke discovered that his feats had raised him to eighth place on the Genius Ranking, drawing a crowd of disciples eager to recruit him, trade with him, or stay in touch. He bought an azure origin white lotus and Purple Maple Toad, then left to return to the auction house in three days.

• A young auction-house cultivator announced that the venue needed three days of preparation before visitors could view goods and that the auction would run in separate sessions.
• Dao Foundation disciples crowded around Lin Ke with invitations to explore, offers to trade, and requests to exchange contact details.
• A burly disciple told Lin Ke that his deeds had moved him up to eighth on the Genius Ranking, and Lin Ke checked his Disciple Token to confirm it.
• Lin Ke read the lengthy account of his exploits in the ranking and worried that his rising reputation had put him at the center of attention.
• Lin Ke recorded the disciples' contact details in his Mystic Vein Book and said he was too busy to venture out for now.
• Lin Ke bought the azure origin white lotus and Purple Maple Toad, then headed back and planned to return in three days.

Lin Ke and Wu Yu prepared Whitegrass Pond to raise Purple Maple Toads and Whitegrass Snails. Lin Ke hatched a Whitegrass Snail and placed it in the pond, while Wu Yu offered to help with the nearby mulberry trees.

• Lin Ke gave Wu Yu the Azure Origin White Lotus and Purple Maple Toads, and Wu Yu reshaped Whitegrass Pond and transplanted the lotus.
• Wu Yu used Grafting and Transplanting and Moving Clouds and Spreading Rain to establish the lotus and pond plants, then placed the male and female Purple Maple Toads in the water.
• Lin Ke considered the limited profits of breeding Purple Maple Toads and Whitegrass Snails and thought mass-producing Stinger Hawk Moths could earn more, though buyers might be scarce.
• Wu Yu said the pond was ready for Whitegrass Snails, and Lin Ke refined a Whitegrass Snail egg, accelerated its hatching, and put the newborn snail in the pond.
• Wu Yu offered to help Lin Ke with the mulberry trees on the nearby mountain.

Lin Ke discussed future work with Wu Yu and learned how Wu Yu could improve Green Mulberry Garden through understory planting. The chapter ended with Lin Ke eager to put Wu Yu’s plan into practice.

• Wu Yu explained that Spirit Planters were rarely hired at the sect outpost and that Lin Ke’s three-month contract eased his financial hardship.
• Lin Ke proposed hiring Wu Yu long-term to tend Green Mulberry Garden and potentially manage a shop, but offered no shares in the Great Wilderness Palace.
• Wu Yu praised Lin Ke’s arrangement of the mulberry trees and learned that Lin Ke had bred the Stinger Hawk Moths himself.
• Wu Yu suggested planting understory crops beneath the mulberry trees, where silkworm droppings could enrich the soil and the Stinger Hawk Moths could eat pests.
• Lin Ke praised Wu Yu’s expertise and recognized the plan as a valuable way to improve the garden while feeding his Stinger Hawk Moths.

Lin Ke and Wu Yu expanded the Green Mulberry Garden into a profitable spirit-planting enterprise, then discovered that Lin Fusang had awakened exceptional intelligence while forming his Dao Foundation. After Lin Ke buried Blood-Devouring True Person’s Golden Core among Lin Fusang’s roots, he hoped the tree spirit would eventually reach Golden Core.

• Lin Ke bought spirit soil, spirit water, flowers, herbs, and crops, and Wu Yu helped him improve the Green Mulberry Garden.
• Lin Ke calculated that the garden could earn tens of thousands of spirit stones annually from its new plantings.
• Wu Yu recognized Lin Fusang’s intelligence as evidence of origin-tier potential and urged Lin Ke to nurture him.
• Lin Ke told Wu Yu he possessed Blood-Devouring True Person’s corpse and Golden Core, and Wu Yu agreed to help use them as nourishment for Lin Fusang.
• Wu Yu used the Earth-Fixing, Essence-Nurturing Great Method to bury the Golden Core among Lin Fusang’s roots while the garden’s farmers learned spirit-planting from him.

Lin Ke studied the Five-Colored Glazed Body, a legendary body-tempering art that required a Niwan Palace and had defeated generations of Giant Strength Fire Prison Sect cultivators. Though he recognized its brutal risks and impossible-sounding demands, its promise of overwhelming strength convinced him to cultivate it.

• Lin Ke examined the Five-Colored Glazed Body and learned that no one in the Giant Strength Fire Prison Sect, not even its creator, had ever mastered it.
• Lin Ke realized the art aimed to temper every part of the body through eight elements, though methods existed only for wind, water, fire, thunder, and marsh.
• Lin Ke understood that practitioners had to conceal their mind, spirit, soul, and vitality in the Niwan Palace while their body endured elemental tempering.
• Lin Ke considered the art's dangers, including unbearable pain and the risk that a body separated from its vitality for too long would become lifeless.
• Lin Ke was tempted by the promise that mastering a single color could make him invincible at the Dao Foundation stage, and decided to cultivate the art.

Wu Yu warned Lin Ke that the Five-Colored Glazed Body had not been mastered in a thousand years, but Lin Ke was glad he had purchased it through official channels. After preparing a cave dwelling for Wu Yu, Lin Ke began cultivating the method and entered his Dual-Origin Palace, where he prepared to count down his first three seconds.

• Wu Yu told Lin Ke that the Five-Colored Glazed Body had never been successfully cultivated and that Lin Ke had overpaid for it.
• Lin Ke explained that buying the method through official channels protected him from accusations if he mastered it, and decided to keep any success secret.
• Lin Ke carved out a cave dwelling for Wu Yu on the Underground World's sixth level and showed him around.
• Lin Ke prepared with Pure Source Incense and began circulating Spirit Power according to the Five-Colored Glazed Body.
• Lin Ke entered his Dual-Origin Palace with his Mental Power body and began counting down for his first three-second cultivation attempt.

Lin Ke began cultivating the first color of the five-colored glazed body, enduring intense pain as his body grew stronger and his spirit power increased. After buying a Clear Wind Formation to create airflow for further training, he returned to seclusion determined to cultivate until he reached a bottleneck.

• Lin Ke endured severe pain as his spirit power repaired his body, reaching the introductory stage of the first color of the five-colored glazed body.
• Lin Ke practiced body tempering for twelve hours, progressing from lasting three seconds to five minutes and deciding to keep the method secret.
• Lin Ke exhausted his spirit power during training and replenished it with spirit stones, strengthening his spirit power as well as his body.
• Lin Ke checked on the Green Mulberry Garden and found it running smoothly while Lin Can, Fang Tong, and the other residents made progress.
• Lin Ke purchased a Clear Wind Formation and returned to seclusion to continue cultivating the first color.

Lin Ke cultivated the wind-color layer of the five-colored glazed body technique, enduring repeated wind tempering and painful recovery. After a day, his bones, muscles, and organs had transformed, and he left the stone chamber to check on the Clam Maiden as the auction approached.

• Lin Ke activated the Clear Wind Formation and used the wind blades to temper his skin, muscles, sinews, and bones while his consciousness rested in the embracing origin palace.
• Lin Ke endured a surge of pain after returning to his body, then repeatedly circulated spirit power to heal himself and resumed wind tempering.
• After nine rounds, Lin Ke sensed his bones growing denser and lighter, his muscles becoming more compact, and his heart and lungs growing stronger.
• Lin Ke dented the stone wall with a punch and concluded his physical toughness had more than doubled.
• Lin Ke calculated that the auction was about to begin, left the stone chamber, and went to check on the Clam Maiden.

Lin Ke visited the auction house to inspect the Clam Maidens, but decided their prices were too high to justify buying one. Qu Binli tried to draw him to Azure Lightning Peak and, when Lin Ke refused, challenged him to attend a Dao discussion gathering in ten days.

• Lin Ke arrived at the auction house and saw that each auction session would end with a Clam Maiden.
• Lin Ke inspected the Clam Maidens and noticed the holy maiden, whose starting bid was five hundred thousand spirit stones.
• Qu Binli, a disciple under True Person Qing Dian, approached Lin Ke and urged him to visit Azure Lightning Peak.
• Lin Ke declined to buy a Clam Maiden or visit Azure Lightning Peak, judging both options unnecessary.
• Qu Binli challenged Lin Ke to attend a Dao discussion gathering at Azure Lightning Peak in ten days.

Lin Ke accepted Qu Binli’s challenge to exchange insights at Azure Lightning Peak in ten days, then felt a sudden premonition at the auction house. He suspected the captured Cloud Dream Saintess was a decoy and began searching for the true saintess among the imprisoned Clam Maidens.

• Qu Binli publicly challenged Lin Ke, and Lin Ke agreed to meet him for an exchange of insights at Azure Lightning Peak in ten days.
• Lin Ke left the goods yard but grew increasingly agitated, recognizing the feeling as a sudden premonition like the one he had experienced when Zong Ya was in danger.
• Lin Ke examined the Cloud Dream Saintess and considered her Nine-Turn Tidal Body, her capture, and the Clam Maidens’ attempts to rescue her.
• Lin Ke concluded that the Cloud Dream Saintess might be a false saintess and searched the caged Clam Maidens for the hidden true one.

Lin Ke identified the real Cloud Dream Saintess among the Clam Maidens and considered attending Qu Binli’s potentially hostile Dao Discussion Assembly. He entered the auction to study the lots and their bidders, and the first Yunmeng Clam Maiden went up for sale as the finale began.

• Lin Ke examined the Clam Maidens’ traits and realized the Cloud Dream Saintess had many attendants, helping him locate the true saintess.
• Lin Ke decided to attend the Dao Discussion Assembly despite expecting Qu Binli and True Person Qing Dian’s allies to try to humiliate him.
• The auction opened, and Lin Ke entered easily because of his eighth-place ranking on the Genius Ranking.
• Lin Ke watched a variety of expensive treasures sell, noting that he could afford few of them.
• The auctioneer presented an ordinary Yunmeng Clam Maiden as the thirty-ninth lot and opened bidding at thirty thousand low-grade spirit stones.