Chapter Summaries

Qing Chen killed the wounded soldiers at the tunnel, then planted Young Master Zhao’s head in the vanguard army’s camp to provoke an attack on Northern Mang Mountain. Lord Wang and the city lord ordered their forces to march against the mountain, with the city lord commanding them to bathe it in blood.

• Qing Chen ordered Twin Eagles Association soldiers to kill the survivors at the tunnel, dispose of the bodies, and conceal the evidence.
• Qing Chen met Qing Jie, learned the vanguard army was keeping watch over key strongholds, and then changed into night clothes to infiltrate its camp.
• Qing Chen hung Young Master Zhao’s head and a taunting plaque from the camp flagpole before slipping away unseen.
• Vanguard soldiers found the head at dawn, and Lord Wang ordered his army to prepare to attack Northern Mang Mountain and report to the city lord.
• After reading the report, the city lord ordered more than two thousand household troops to march on Northern Mang Mountain and sent the command to the vanguard army to bathe the mountain in blood.

Lord Wang launched a full-scale assault on Northern Mang Mountain while Qing Chen hurried through a tunnel to search the mountain for the immortal cultivation treasure. Disguised as Iron Ox, Qing Chen approached the meeting hall as Master Eagle sent men to investigate the city lord’s sudden attack.

• Lord Wang ordered the vanguard army to attack Northern Mang Mountain and leave no survivors.
• Qing Chen watched the army advance, then rode to the tunnel and continued on foot after killing his horse.
• Qing Chen reached the mountain’s rear, disguised himself as Iron Ox, and headed for the meeting hall.
• The vanguard army and the bandits fought fiercely as Master Eagle struggled to understand the unexpected assault.
• Master Eagle sent two men to investigate and ordered Iron Ox to watch Young Master Zhao, unaware Qing Chen was impersonating Iron Ox.
• Qing Chen neared the meeting hall, where Northern Mang Mountain’s flag flew from the roof.

Qing Chen infiltrated the Northern Mang Mountain meeting hall in Iron Ox’s disguise, killed the two guards, and found the hidden passage. After surviving its deadly traps, he reached a stone door that concealed the object for becoming an immortal.

• Qing Chen disguised himself as Iron Ox and persuaded the guards at the meeting hall entrance before killing them and arranging their bodies to look undisturbed.
• Qing Chen found the unusual talon on the North Mang Celestial Eagle Painting and used it to open a concealed passage beneath the tiger-skin chair.
• Qing Chen entered the passage and dodged a series of traps, including a stone blade, poisoned arrows, a sinking floor, a stone hammer, and an iron arrow.
• Qing Chen continued through the trapped passage, suffered a thigh wound from a spiked club, and reached a heavy stone door carved with a tiger’s head.

Qing Chen entered the hidden chamber at Northern Mang Mountain and took its books and artifacts, then learned from Records of Profound Mysteries that he lived on an isolated island and could cultivate immortality. After testing as a middle-grade five-elements spiritual root, he resolved to pursue cultivation and leave Immortal-Severing Island.

• Qing Chen opened the stone chamber using the hidden lock mechanism and searched it for traps.
• Qing Chen collected the chamber's books, artifacts, and meditation cushion before returning to the tunnel.
• Qing Chen read Records of Profound Mysteries and learned about Immortal-Severing Island, the Gouwu Sea, and the Condensed Jade Sect's spirit ship.
• Qing Chen used the Spiritual Aptitude Testing Stone and discovered that he had middle-grade five-elements spiritual roots.
• Qing Chen read about cultivation realms and lifespans, then decided to pursue immortality beyond Immortal-Severing Island.

Qing Chen spent three months failing to sense spiritual energy despite practicing the Everlasting Spring Inner Vista Art, and concluded that he needed to leave Immortal-Severing Island to pursue cultivation. When Li Muyun visited, Qing Chen realized his connection to the city lord might help him find a way off the island.

• Qing Chen hid the storage pouch and jade slip he had found, then returned to camp without being discovered.
• Three months after the battle at Northern Mang Mountain, Qing Chen served as assistant commandant at the western city gate, a position Li Muyun had obtained for him through fabricated merit.
• Qing Chen practiced the Everlasting Spring Inner Vista Art but failed to sense spiritual energy, despite confirming that he had a middle-grade spiritual root.
• Qing Chen reasoned that he needed a boarding token from the Condensed Jade Sect to leave Immortal-Severing Island and enter the Azure Wave Archipelago.
• Li Muyun visited Qing Chen with wine, and Qing Chen began considering whether Li Muyun's connection to the city lord could help him leave the island.

Qing Chen arranged to drug Li Muyun with specially prepared Five-Stone Powder and abducted the scholar-apothecary Li Yunyi to serve as part of his scheme. After the kidnapping, Qing Chen welcomed Li Muyun to Maple Grove Pavilion, where the plan was set to proceed.

• Qing Chen flattered Li Muyun and invited him to a private room at Maple Grove Pavilion, then ordered Niu Dali to abduct a handsome scholar who knew medicine.
• Niu Dali recruited eight former Twin Eagles Association men and rode to Clear Creek Village to seize Li Yunyi.
• Niu Dali's men bound Li Yunyi and injured his wife, Madam Wang, before carrying him back to the west gate and locking him in an abandoned granary.
• Qing Chen prepared infant millet shells and Five-Spider Fang, intending to use them in Five-Stone Powder for Li Muyun.
• Qing Chen met Li Muyun at Maple Grove Pavilion, where Li Muyun eagerly urged them to begin.

Qing Chen used drugged wine and conversation to draw information about immortal cultivation from Li Muyun. He learned Ford City had received a rare token for boarding an immortal ship, and resolved to pursue cultivation and take control of his fate.

• Qing Chen welcomed Li Muyun into the inner room, then waited for the medicine to make him excited and loosen his tongue.
• Li Muyun explained that immortal cultivation required an inborn spiritual root, and that the Jing Kingdom lacked what was needed to cultivate.
• Li Muyun told Qing Chen that a special token was required to board an immortal ship and cross to a place suited for cultivation.
• Li Muyun revealed that the city lord had received such a token from the sovereign, though he did not know where it was kept.
• Li Muyun said immortals orchestrated wars between kingdoms and distributed tokens and pills every thirty years.
• Qing Chen reflected on his past humiliations and resolved to climb to the top and control his own fate.

Qing Chen investigated a secret about the immortals and reflected on his rapid cultivation before breaking open the jade bottle from Northern Mang Mountain. After testing its pills on animals and prisoners, he discovered they strengthened martial artists but killed ordinary people, then swallowed portions himself to try to break through to second-rate.

• Qing Chen learned from Li Muyun that strange flagpoles and enormous patterns appeared on major battlefields, possibly connected to the immortals' purpose.
• Qing Chen reviewed how rare pills, diligent training, and studying the Taoist Canon had brought him close to becoming a second-rate master, while his Phantom Double lightness art had reached minor attainment.
• Qing Chen smashed and hacked at the jade bottle in his underground chamber until it cracked and released three green pills.
• Qing Chen tested pill powder on cats, dogs, and death-row prisoners, discovering it killed ordinary people but improved the internal force of a third-rate martial artist.
• Qing Chen swallowed a small portion of a pill and felt its potent medicinal current strain his meridians, then took another portion despite the pain.

Qing Chen used a pill to break through to second-rate master and enter Qi Refining Layer One, but found the spiritual energy on Immortal-Severing Island too thin for further progress. After cleansing his body and gaining strength and sharper senses, he turned his attention to finding the city lord’s token.

• Qing Chen endured the pill’s fierce spiritual energy and guided it into his dantian, breaking the shackle to become a second-rate master.
• Qing Chen circulated the Everlasting Spring Inner Vista Art through his meridians and reached Qi Refining Layer One.
• Qing Chen discovered that the spiritual energy around him was too thin to support meaningful cultivation.
• Qing Chen shed a layer of black grime and found his body, senses, and internal force greatly improved.
• Qing Chen reasoned that the city lord’s token was likely hidden in the city lord’s residence and began considering how to get inside.

Qing Chen broke into the city lord's treasury to search for valuables, but a powerful old man discovered him. After using a potent aphrodisiac to escape, Qing Chen evaded the guards and ended up hiding in a secluded loft.

• Qing Chen infiltrated the city lord's residence, incapacitated the treasury guards, and picked the lock.
• Qing Chen entered the treasury but was confronted by an old man who struck him and injured his shoulder.
• Qing Chen threw a packet of twentyfold aphrodisiac at the old man, then escaped through a rear window as the alarm sounded.
• Qing Chen fled toward the servants' courtyard, hid in a woodshed, and evaded searching guards.
• Qing Chen continued dodging pursuers across the residence and eventually hid in a secluded loft.

While fleeing pursuit, Qing Chen sneaked into the city lord's residence and found Zhao Ningyi bathing. The medicinal powder on his clothes affected her, and after she discovered him, he revealed the name Ximen Qing in hopes of gaining her help.

• Qing Chen slipped into a secluded loft in the city lord's residence while armored soldiers searched outside.
• He found Zhao Ningyi bathing and realized the potent medicinal powder on his clothes was affecting her.
• Qing Chen's stomach growled, alerting Zhao Ningyi, so he covered her mouth and pressed her down into the tub to keep her quiet.
• Zhao Ningyi questioned Qing Chen and offered help if he told her who he was.
• Qing Chen said his name was Ximen Qing and explained that he had entered the residence while fleeing his enemies.

After Zhao Ningyi helped Qing Chen escape the city lord’s residence through a secret passage, he returned to his lodgings and reconsidered how to obtain the immortal ship’s token. Li Muyun’s desperate request for Five-Stone Powder gave Qing Chen an idea involving Zhao Ningyi, whom he planned to approach later.

• Zhao Ningyi promised to keep Qing Chen’s identity secret and showed him a hidden passage leading from her loft to the moat.
• Qing Chen followed Zhao Ningyi through the passage, swam away into the night, and returned to his lodgings.
• The next day, Li Muyun asked Qing Chen for new things to help cure his craving for Five-Stone Powder.
• Li Muyun explained that his wife returned to the city lord’s residence on even-numbered days, giving him chances to seek medicine.
• Qing Chen realized Li Muyun’s wife was Zhao Ningyi and decided to wait before making his next move.

Qing Chen visited Li Muyun and met Li’s wife, Zhao Ningyi, who recognized him as the man she had been seeking under the name Ximen Qing. After Zhao repeatedly urged Li to drink, Li passed out, leaving Qing Chen and Zhao alone.

• Qing Chen told Li Muyun that bandits and strict inspections had delayed him from gathering the items Li wanted.
• Li Muyun invited Qing Chen to lunch, where Qing Chen met Zhao Ningyi, who recognized him as the masked man she had been searching for.
• Zhao Ningyi teased Qing Chen about the name Ximen Qing, while Qing Chen denied knowing what she meant.
• Zhao Ningyi served Qing Chen ants climbing a tree as Li Muyun brought out thirty-year-old wine and urged him to drink.
• Zhao Ningyi repeatedly encouraged Li Muyun to drink until he passed out, then ordered a maid to help carry him to his room.

Qing Chen secretly entered Li Muyun and Zhao Ningyi’s bedroom, then explained to Zhao Ningyi why he had pursued power and deceived her before persuading her that Li Muyun had exploited him. Over the next three months, Zhao Ningyi grew deeply attached to Qing Chen, and the chapter ended with him asking why he had sneaked into the city lord’s residence.

• Qing Chen immobilized Li Muyun and carried him to a side room before approaching Zhao Ningyi.
• Qing Chen and Zhao Ningyi became intimate, and he told her about his desperate past and ambition to climb higher.
• Qing Chen claimed that Li Muyun had used him to obtain drugs, companions, and silver, and Zhao Ningyi asked Qing Chen to stay with her.
• Over the next three months, Qing Chen met Zhao Ningyi several times through a secret passage, and her dependence and affection grew.
• Qing Chen met Zhao Ningyi in her secret chamber and asked why he had sneaked into the city lord’s residence.

Qing Chen sought a token to pursue immortal cultivation, and Zhao Ningyi promised to obtain one if he agreed to marry her should he lack the aptitude. Half a month later, he left his family in Hanchuan Ancient City and rode away to seek the immortal path.

• Qing Chen told Zhao Ningyi he wanted to investigate immortal cultivation and search for a token, while she explained the rarity of spiritual roots and offered to fetch one for him.
• Zhao Ningyi asked Qing Chen to promise he would stay with her and marry her if he could not cultivate; he agreed, and she said she would bring him a token in Sea City when the Condensed Jade Sect's envoy arrived.
• Half a month later, Qing Chen said farewell to Qing Jie, Second Mother, Qing An, and Qing Yun in Hanchuan Ancient City, giving Qing Jie advice and instructions for the family's foothold in Shu.
• Qing Chen declared that he would pursue the unknown immortal world and ride back once he succeeded, then rode away without looking back.

Qing Chen reunited with Zhao Ningyi in Sea City before the Condensed Jade Sect tested candidates for spiritual roots. Qing Chen qualified to board the immortals’ ship, leaving Zhao Ningyi behind as she tearfully wished him well.

• Qing Chen reached Sea City and learned from a local guide that distinguished visitors were gathering ahead of the Condensed Jade Sect’s arrival.
• Qing Chen met Zhao Ningyi at the Sea City Inn, where she gave him blue boots and Ford City’s token, and he gave her a piece of jade.
• Qing Chen and Zhao Ningyi went to the shore after the immortals’ arrival was announced by waves, thunder, and bells.
• An immortal tested the token holders, and Qing Chen was found to have a spiritual root and was invited aboard the ship.
• Zhao Ningyi ran after Qing Chen and cried out in disbelief, but a stern middle-aged man restrained her as Qing Chen boarded the ship.

As Qing Chen and the other new disciples sailed toward the Condensed Jade Sect, he reflected on cultivation and met the ambitions and attitudes of his companions. Their voyage was interrupted by a Red-Chain Sea Serpent, which Senior Brother Gu killed with his flying sword.

• Qing Chen told Xie Yu he wondered about the path of cultivation, while Yue Ting, Ding Buxing, and Xue Yubing shared their views and ambitions.
• The immortal ship was rocked by a collision, and someone announced that a late first-tier Red-Chain Sea Serpent had appeared.
• Senior Brother Gu attacked the serpent with his flying sword as it tried to smash the blade with its tail and block it with dark light.
• Senior Brother Gu shattered the serpent's dark-light attack and pierced its vital point, killing it as the passengers watched in shock.

Qing Chen arrived at the Condensed Jade Sect and learned about its history, rules, cultivation ranks, and halls. He received a token and a storage bag of joining rewards, then was directed to the outer sect residences and the Technique Transmission Hall.

• Senior Brother Gu brought Qing Chen and the other newcomers to the General Affairs Hall and explained the Condensed Jade Sect's history, cultivation method, hierarchy, and rules.
• Qing Chen learned that outer sect disciples had eight years to reach the middle Qi Refining stage or would lose their cultivation resources and become menial disciples.
• Senior Brother Gu warned the newcomers not to waste their time, then left them at the General Affairs Hall.
• A General Affairs disciple gave Qing Chen and the others tokens and storage bags containing their joining rewards.
• The General Affairs disciple told the newcomers to bind their tokens, follow their directions to the outer sect residences, and visit the Technique Transmission Hall.

Qing Chen arrived at Outer Disciple Peak, settled into his assigned cave abode, and discovered how much better he could cultivate in the Condensed Jade Sect. He headed for the Technique Transmission Hall to collect his cultivation arts and Fasting Pills, mindful of the three-day deadline and the eight-year requirement to reach the middle qi refining stage.

• Qing Chen and the new disciples followed their tokens down the mountain, where Senior Brother Gao explained how the sect’s formation guided them to their cave abodes and warned them to visit the Technique Transmission Hall within three days.
• Qing Chen followed his token to cave abode number five thousand five hundred and thirty-three and opened its restriction with the token.
• Qing Chen tried cultivating in the cave abode and felt spiritual energy far denser than on Immortal-Severing Island, giving him confidence he could reach the qi refining second layer within a year.
• Qing Chen examined his new disciple supplies: three spirit stones, two Qi Accumulation Pills, a gray Daoist robe, and a low-grade magical artifact short sword.
• Qing Chen set out for the Technique Transmission Hall, hoping to choose a better cultivation art and worrying that he had eight years to reach the middle qi refining stage.

Qing Chen entered the Scripture Repository to choose a cultivation art and learned from Qin Zigu that dangerous, flawed mystic-grade arts were hidden in the western corner. After weighing safer yellow-grade choices against the risks, he went to inspect the forbidden arts and uncovered black-wrapped jade slips marked “Danger.”

• Qing Chen bribed the repository guard, Qin Zigu, with a Qi Accumulation Pill and learned the entry rules and the value of contribution points.
• Qin Zigu told Qing Chen that the Everlasting Spring Inner Vista Art was not kept by the sect and warned him that flawed mystic-grade arts could ruin his foundation or kill him.
• Qin Zigu advised Qing Chen to choose the peak-tier yellow-grade Indestructible Vajra Body, and Qing Chen entered the repository under a strange sensation of being watched.
• Qing Chen compared several yellow-grade cultivation arts, weighing the safer Indestructible Vajra Body against the more powerful but perilous Seven Baleful Intents Heart Formula.
• Qing Chen decided to risk examining the flawed mystic-grade arts, walked to the dusty western corner, and lifted the black cloth marked “Danger” from several jade slips.