Chapter Summaries

Xue Fuyao learned that the Gold Centipede Gu had afflicted a Zhang Family cultivator connected to Zhang Yongqing, then spotted a stranger whose eyes seemed familiar. Shadow Three insisted that she was the only surviving member of the Xue Clan, leaving Xue Fuyao shaken and uncertain about what she had seen.

• Xue Fuyao questioned the Tofu Beauty about recent events and learned that a Zhang-surnamed guest at the nearby inn suffered from mysterious bouts of pain.
• Xue Fuyao concluded that the Gold Centipede Gu had struck a Zhang Family cultivator connected to Zhang Yongqing rather than Zhang Yongqing himself.
• Xue Fuyao saw Zhang Yongqing hurry into the inn with a gray-haired old man and nearly considered attacking him again.
• Xue Fuyao noticed another approaching figure whose eyes felt familiar and watched him enter the inn.
• Xue Fuyao asked Shadow Three whether any other Xue Clan survivors remained, and he said the rebels had killed everyone with Xue Imperial Clan blood.

Xue Fuyao learned that Princess Fangfei had faked her death to marry Zhang Xian and had two children, Zhang Xueheng and Zhang Xueyan. She withheld judgment on the siblings and wondered whether they had died in her previous life, when the Zhang Family may have obtained the Spirit-Mind Purifying Flame.

• Xue Fuyao told Shadow Three that she sensed Xue Imperial Clan blood in someone associated with the Zhang Clan and asked about a past marriage proposal to Princess Fangfei.
• Shadow Three recounted that Zhang Xian and Princess Fangfei had secretly loved each other, and that she was believed to have died of lovesickness after their marriage was refused.
• Xue Fuyao suspected Princess Fangfei had faked her death and that the person she had seen was her child, then returned to her lodgings to consider the matter.
• Shadow Three reported that Princess Fangfei had escaped with the emperors' knowledge, married Zhang Xian, and given birth to Zhang Xueheng and Zhang Xueyan before dying in childbirth.
• Xue Fuyao said Zhang Xueheng and Zhang Xueyan had no claim on her mercy and wondered whether they had died in her previous life after the Zhang Family acquired the Spirit-Mind Purifying Flame.

Zhang Xueheng brought the Fifth Elder a Hundred Remedies Pill and prepared to seek support from the Delusion City Zhang Family after the Flowing Cloud City Zhang Family’s treasures were stolen. The Delusion City Zhang Family arrived at the inn, while Zhang Xueheng and Zhang Xueyan remained in danger if the purifying flame was found.

• Zhang Xueheng stopped Zhang Yongqing from pressuring the physician, who said the Fifth Elder’s strange illness caused unbearable pain and disrupted his meridians.
• The Fifth Elder emerged pale and drenched in sweat, then learned Zhang Xueheng had brought him a Hundred Remedies Pill from his father.
• The Fifth Elder swallowed the pill, felt reassured, and invited Zhang Xueheng and Zhang Yongqing into his room.
• Zhang Xueheng explained that the Flowing Cloud City Zhang Family had come to seek help from the Delusion City Zhang Family after their treasures and resources were stolen.
• The Fifth Elder praised Zhang Xueheng’s preparations but recognized that he and Zhang Xueyan could be killed if the family found the spirit-mind purifying flame.
• The Delusion City Zhang Family arrived at the door.

Xue Fuyao discovered that the Wine God Heartflame needed wine to form a contract and used a large collection of wines to draw it into her body. After sleeping off a three-day drunken stupor, she found the flame subdued and prepared to try refining Fasting Pills.

• Xue Fuyao used her Heavenly Eye to discover that contracting with the Wine God Heartflame required wine.
• Xue Fuyao bought more than a hundred varieties of wine and drank until she passed out.
• The Wine God Heartflame drained the wine, entered Xue Fuyao's body, and vanished along with the Spirit-Mind Purifying Flame.
• Xue Fuyao woke three days later and summoned the subdued Wine God Heartflame into her palm.
• Xue Fuyao took out her Pill Furnace and prepared to refine Fasting Pills.

While refining Fasting Pills with the Wine God Heartflame, Xue Fuyao was found by Fan Lingyin, who was searching for the person who had taken the bronze lamp. Xue Fuyao captured Fan Lingyin with a drug and demanded ransom, leaving Fan Lingyin to decide what she was worth.

• Xue Fuyao successfully refined Fasting Pills with the Wine God Heartflame, though they carried a faint scent of wine.
• Fan Lingyin followed a lead to Xue Fuyao’s residence while searching for the person who had taken the bronze lamp containing the Wine God Heartflame.
• Xue Fuyao denied having an older sister and refused to let Fan Lingyin inside, then drew Shattered Star when Fan Lingyin accused her of hiding the Heartflame.
• Xue Fuyao threw powder into Fan Lingyin’s face, weakened her, and tied her up instead of fighting in Delusion City.
• Xue Fuyao threatened to sell Fan Lingyin, then asked how much she thought she was worth after Fan Lingyin offered to pay a ransom.

Xue Fuyao accepted Fan Lingyin’s treasure map and then agreed to attend a banquet at the City Lord’s Mansion after Wang Zheng thanked her for healing his father. On the way there, she revealed her younger appearance and higher cultivation to Wang Zheng while keeping part of her disguise in place.

• Fan Lingyin offered Xue Fuyao a treasure map in exchange for being released, and Xue Fuyao recognized its material as matching another map she had obtained.
• Xue Fuyao tossed Fan Lingyin out of the courtyard, where Fan Lingyin recovered and hurried away as Xue Fuyao spoke with Wang Zheng.
• Wang Zheng thanked Xue Fuyao for healing his father and invited her to a banquet at the City Lord’s Mansion, which she accepted.
• Xue Fuyao considered the possible threat from the Delusion City Zhang Family and set out with Wang Zheng for the City Lord’s Mansion.
• During the carriage ride, Xue Fuyao removed her disguise to reveal that she looked eight or nine and had reached Qi Refining, ninth layer.

Wang Zheng brought Xue Fuyao to a banquet at the City Lord's Mansion, where guests learned she was Elder Lingmu's disciple and the mansion's benefactor. Mu Wei challenged Xue Fuyao over how she became Elder Lingmu's disciple, and Xue Fuyao accused her of wanting to betray her sect, leaving them in open conflict.

• Wang Zheng told Xue Fuyao that he had admired Elder Lingmu since meeting him while seeking medicine, and revealed that his poisoned body prevented him from cultivating despite his high-purity wind spiritual root.
• Wang Zheng explained that the Water Spirit Sect, Shuntian Sect, Medical Sect, and Delusion City's clans had been invited to help treat his illness, and that Xue Fuyao's Lingzhi Grass had been more useful than the other offerings.
• Wang Zheng introduced Xue Fuyao at the banquet as Elder Lingmu's disciple and the City Lord's Mansion's lifesaving benefactor.
• Mu Wei questioned how Xue Fuyao had become Elder Lingmu's disciple, implying that it was suspicious because he never accepted disciples.
• Xue Fuyao refused to explain and suggested Mu Wei wanted to betray her sect to become Elder Lingmu's disciple, prompting Mu Wei to angrily call her a possible fraud.

At the City Lord's Mansion banquet, Xie Yichu punished Lin Ye for attacking Xue Fuyao, and the city lord invited the Yuanji Sect to explore ancient Demon Race ruins. Xue Fuyao told Xie Yichu about the invitation, while Shadow Three and his companions accepted that their cultivation was too low to join the expedition.

• Lin Ye attacked Xue Fuyao with Heavy Water Darts, but Xue Fuyao blocked them with Water Silk.
• Xie Yichu's phantom struck Lin Ye with a sword, leaving her gravely injured and ending the doubts about Xue Fuyao.
• The city lord revealed that he had discovered dangerous ancient Demon Race ruins and invited the guests to explore, asking that the inheritance go to his son, Wang Zheng.
• Xue Fuyao agreed to report the invitation to the Yuanji Sect, and the city lord said the ruins' entrance would not open until certain conditions were met.
• Xue Fuyao told Xie Yichu about the ruins, and he said he would inform the sect leader and that reaching Delusion City would take about half a month.
• Shadow Three and his two companions said they could not join because of their cultivation, and resolved to pursue Foundation Establishment after giving up on finding suitable Foundation Establishment Objects.

Wang Zheng took Xue Fuyao to Delusion City's Sea of Flower Tides, hoping to win her favor, but she spotted one of the wanted Male and Female Baleful Fiends and hurried back with him to the City Lord's Mansion. Wang Zheng went to alert his father, while Xue Fuyao stayed behind, remembering her past with the fiends and her determination to avenge her family.

• Wang Zheng invited Xue Fuyao to Delusion City's Sea of Flower Tides, where she admired the spirit flowers and he privately hoped to gain her favor.
• Xue Fuyao spotted a figure she recognized as one of the Male and Female Baleful Fiends and pulled Wang Zheng back to the City Lord's Mansion.
• Xue Fuyao told Wang Zheng that she had seen one of the fiends, and he decided to inform his father because their appearance in Delusion City was dangerous.
• Wang Zheng asked whether Xue Fuyao had ever been to school, and she revealed that her parents had died and her family had been slaughtered when she was five.
• Wang Zheng left to report the fiends, while Xue Fuyao recalled that the male fiend had once captured her and resolved to avenge herself and her family.

Xue Fuyao followed Big Treasure to the Strange Stone Forest, where she found the badly injured Female Baleful Fiend and took her Heaven-and-Earth Spirit Treasure eyes. She left the woman alive after making sure she saw Zhang Qin’er’s face, setting up a future target for revenge.

• Big Treasure sensed a treasure, and Xue Fuyao disguised herself as Zhang Qin’er before following it toward the Strange Stone Forest.
• Xue Fuyao found blood and mismatched footprints, then discovered the unconscious Female Baleful Fiend in the forest.
• After confirming the woman could not resist, Xue Fuyao severed her tendons, wounded her, took her storage bracelet, and forced her awake.
• Xue Fuyao gouged out the Female Baleful Fiend’s bewitching blue eyes, showed her Zhang Qin’er’s face, and left her alive because the fiends were bound by a secret method.

Xue Fuyao returned to Delusion City, concealed her discoveries, and examined the treasures taken from the Male and Female Baleful Fiends. After finding an enlightenment stone and several rare items, she asked Big Treasure which remaining jade box held the treasure it had sensed.

• Xue Fuyao returned to the City Lord's Mansion, sealed her room, and took out Demoness and the storage bracelet.
• Xue Fuyao purified Demoness's blue eyes and stored them away, deciding to trade the spirit treasure at the Ghost Market.
• Xue Fuyao opened the first jade box, recognized an enlightenment stone, and merged it into her dantian.
• Xue Fuyao bonded with an unidentified insect egg and found high-quality spirit paste and four spirit medicines over ten thousand years old in the next boxes.
• Xue Fuyao asked the sulking Big Treasure which of the final two jade boxes contained the treasure it had sensed.

Xue Fuyao opened the last Jade Box and absorbed a mysterious multicolored treasure that seemed to grant her water-controlling abilities. Wang Zheng later told her that the Male and Female Baleful Fiends had stolen Three Luminaries Divine Water from Consort Ming Mountain, leaving Xue Fuyao to wonder whether the treasure inside her was the stolen prize.

• Xue Fuyao opened a Jade Box containing withered wood, then opened the final box and watched a multicolored droplet fly into her lower abdomen.
• Xue Fuyao checked herself for harm and discovered she could summon water, while her Water Silk had changed appearance.
• After cultivating for several days, Xue Fuyao learned from Wang Zheng that the Male and Female Baleful Fiends had escaped, though his father had severely wounded one of them.
• Wang Zheng explained that the Fiends had stolen a treasure from Consort Ming Mountain after the Female Baleful Fiend was injured trying to claim it.
• Xue Fuyao learned the stolen treasure was said to be Three Luminaries Divine Water, ranked first in the Heavenly Water Rankings, and wondered if it was the droplet she had absorbed.

Xue Fuyao realized she had absorbed the legendary three luminaries divine water and decided to keep it hidden while she prepared for the Ghost Market. Meanwhile, the Male Baleful Fiend found his beloved Ran'er gravely wounded, then absorbed her essence blood and cultivation to heal himself and pursue revenge.

• Wang Zheng explained that the three kinds of divine water combined into sacred healing water and warned Xue Fuyao that important figures in Delusion City might cause trouble over its theft.
• Xue Fuyao concluded that she had absorbed the three luminaries divine water, chose not to summon it, and focused on preparing trades for the Ghost Market.
• The Male Baleful Fiend returned to the Strange Stone Forest and found Ran'er badly wounded, with her eyes missing.
• The Male Baleful Fiend vowed revenge after realizing Ran'er was still alive, then absorbed her essence blood and cultivation to heal his injuries.
• The Male Baleful Fiend gained Ran'er's memories and vowed to find the person responsible.

Xue Fuyao entered the Ghost Market in disguise and learned its strict rules while browsing the stalls. She discovered that a stallholder was offering the lost Azure Profound Pill and Essence Condensation Pill formulas, which she remembered the Zhang Family had used to build its wealth.

• Xue Fuyao disguised herself, bought a cloak and mask, and entered the Ghost Market after nightfall.
• Xue Fuyao reviewed the Ghost Market’s rules, including concealment of identities, barter, careful inspection of goods, and the prohibition on revealing secrets.
• Xue Fuyao browsed the stalls and saw a sarira offered in exchange for pure, vicious baleful energy.
• A girl in icy attire tried to take pill formulas without meeting the stallholder’s demand, and her companions hurriedly apologized and led her away.
• Xue Fuyao examined the formulas and recognized them as the lost Azure Profound Pill and Essence Condensation Pill formulas, which the Zhang Family had once used to prosper.

Xue Fuyao traded a Bright Moon Pill for a bundle of Pill Formulas, then bought a collection of poisonous herbs and seeds with ten earth-tier spiritual artifacts. Remembering that a maid’s discovery in the Ghost Market would save the Poison Venerable, she searched for it but instead spotted a Water-Repelling Pearl.

• Xue Fuyao exchanged a Bright Moon Pill for the stallholder’s remaining Pill Formulas and an old book.
• Xue Fuyao bought a hundred kinds of poisonous herbs and their seeds by placing ten earth-tier spiritual artifacts on the stall.
• Xue Fuyao recognized that the herb seller might be the Poison Venerable’s maid and recalled that the maid would find something in the Ghost Market that saved him after his disciples betrayed him.
• Xue Fuyao searched the stalls with her Heavenly Eye for the maid’s discovery but could not find it.
• Xue Fuyao noticed a Water-Repelling Pearl and compared it with the higher-quality one she had owned in her previous life.

At the Ghost Market, Xue Fuyao traded for a Jade Pendant and collected rare seeds while avoiding trouble with Heavenly Sword Manor. The chapter ended with a stallholder asking her for at least ten thousand pills in exchange for ancient, nearly lifeless seeds and a dried piece of wood.

• Xue Fuyao sensed Zhang Clan members nearby and traded an offensive spiritual artifact for a Jade Pendant, receiving an old Compass as a bonus.
• Xue Fuyao found Heavenly Sword Manor seeking ten-thousand-year-old spirit medicine in exchange for a favor.
• Heavenly Sword Manor singled out Xue Fuyao and a teenage boy, but she escaped while the manor focused on him.
• Xue Fuyao traded for unusual seeds, including ancient ones that resembled stones, and asked to buy the entire stall's stock and a dried piece of wood.
• The stallholder asked Xue Fuyao for at least ten thousand pills, preferably ones that restored spiritual power or healed injuries.

Xue Fuyao exchanged a large haul of spirit artifacts at the Ghost Tower for rare treasures and began selecting Heaven-and-Earth Spirit Treasures. She chose a black datura flower and an Immortal-Binding Rope, while the appraisal and exchange continued.

• Xue Fuyao traded ten thousand pills for seeds and stored them in the space inside her body to preserve their dwindling vitality.
• Xue Fuyao entered the Ghost Tower and told Mr. Sun that she had brought at least a thousand items, including four Heaven-and-Earth Spirit Treasures.
• Mr. Sun brought in three other appraisers and moved Xue Fuyao's goods to a larger room for appraisal.
• Xue Fuyao reviewed the Ghost Tower's catalog and chose a black datura flower as her curse-type treasure.
• Xue Fuyao selected the golden Immortal-Binding Rope from the control-type treasures.

Xue Fuyao completed her Ghost Market exchanges and received a Golden Ghost Token before following a Zhang Family member outside and attacking him. When his mask came off, she recognized Zhang Xueheng, who claimed he was not Zhang Xian’s child and begged her to let him treat his wound.

• Xue Fuyao chose four natural spirit objects, including the healing baby's breath and the wound-corrupting treasure called "Evil," and exchanged her spirit artifacts for Red Chalcedony earrings and an Ancient Bloodthirsty Vine corpse.
• Mr. Sun gave Xue Fuyao a Golden Ghost Token, granting her free access to the Ghost Market and its protection.
• Xue Fuyao followed a gloomy Zhang Family member out of the Ghost Market and struck him with Shattered Star.
• Xue Fuyao stopped when the man's mask fell away and revealed Zhang Xueheng, who said his mother was from the Xue Imperial Clan.
• Zhang Xueheng removed the false skin covering his face and insisted he was not Zhang Xian's child or a Zhang Clan member.
• Xue Fuyao demanded the truth and threatened Zhang Xueheng, who asked to treat his wound before explaining.

Xue Fuyao learned from Zhang Xueheng about Princess Fangfei's past and the Zhang Family's role in her death, then sent him back with Soul-Devouring Butterfly Gu to aid his revenge. After returning to the City Lord's Mansion, she invited Wang Zheng to help steal and roast the Zhang Family Clan Leader's prized crane.

• Xue Fuyao weakened Zhang Xueheng with a pill, took him to a forest cave, and threatened him into telling the truth.
• Zhang Xueheng explained that Princess Fangfei had faked her death, that he was the child of her true love, and that Zhang Xueyan was a mistress's daughter.
• Zhang Xueheng said Zhang Xian and his current wife had poisoned Princess Fangfei, and he vowed to take revenge.
• Xue Fuyao gave Zhang Xueheng two Soul-Devouring Butterfly Gu to poison the Zhang Family and monitor him, then let him leave.
• Xue Fuyao returned to the City Lord's Mansion and asked Wang Zheng to help catch and roast the Zhang Family Clan Leader's Mandarin-Duck Water Spirit Crane.

Xue Fuyao bound the Heaven-and-Earth Spirit Treasures she had acquired at the Ghost Market, then examined an old Compass that had been included as a free extra. She found that spiritual power activated some of its intricate internal components, but she still did not know what it pointed to or how to operate it fully.

• Wang Zheng and Xue Fuyao agreed to capture the Mandarin-Duck Water Spirit Crane that night, with Wang Zheng arranging to draw away its guards.
• Xue Fuyao returned to her room, used fresh blood to bind her Heaven-and-Earth Spirit Treasures, and recovered with blood-replenishing pills.
• Too weak to deal with her other Ghost Market items, Xue Fuyao examined the old Compass and saw its needle point south of Delusion City.
• Xue Fuyao avoided testing a Blood Contract and instead poured spiritual power into the Compass, causing some of its internal components to turn.
• After a quarter hour, Xue Fuyao observed that the rest of the Compass's components remained still and wondered whether she was supplying it with spiritual power incorrectly.