Chapter Summaries

As Zhang Jing prepared to travel to Dragon Lake Dao Academy for its entrance examination, his parents worried about the danger and struggled to support him. Determined to pursue immortality, Zhang Jing studied through the night to raise his Jade Talisman's skill proficiency, which increased by one point.

• Zhang Jing's mother packed his bundle and warned him to be cautious at Dragon Lake Dao Academy, while his father urged him to do his best.
• Zhang Jing's parents discussed the examination's low pass rate, the twenty-seven taels they had gathered for him, and selling their pharmacy to escape pressure from Hundred Herbs Pavilion.
• Zhang Jing read accounts of immortals and demons and resolved to pursue the immortal path rather than remain powerless as a mortal.
• Zhang Jing examined his Jade Talisman and planned to reach level 10 in Three Books and Six Classics before the examination.
• Zhang Jing studied Words to Attain Knowledge through the night, raising his proficiency from 9997 to 9998.

After mastering the Three Books and Six Classics, Zhang Jing transformed the skill into a Low-Tier Dharma Seed: Mind's Eye, giving him powerful insight that he hoped would secure his place at Dragon Lake Dao Academy. He left home for the examination and joined Master Liu and the other candidates in Yong'an Academy as the Dao Academy's arrival approached.

• Zhang Jing absorbed the Three Books and Six Classics and gained the Low-Tier Dharma Seed: Mind's Eye, which heightened his thinking and let him briefly perceive and analyze minute details.
• Zhang Jing said farewell to Mother Zhang and Father Zhang, then headed to Yong'an Academy for the examination.
• Zhang Jing arrived at Yong'an Academy, where Master Liu and a group of youths were waiting for the Dragon Lake Dao Academy representatives.
• Ji Bochang greeted Zhang Jing and asked him to critique the design of his painted fan.
• Master Liu reflected that Ji Bochang was Yong'an Academy's likely hope, while Zhang Jing's talent was held back by his lack of resources.
• A crane cried out and a strong wind swept through, announcing the Dao Academy's arrival.

Zhang Jing and the other Yong'an Academy recruits were carried to Dragon Lake Dao Academy aboard the Azure Firmament Spirit Crane. Once aboard, Ji Bochang joined three prominent clan prodigies while Zhang Jing chose to wait quietly in a corner for their arrival.

• An enormous immortal crane appeared, and Zhang Jing and the others bowed under its overwhelming aura, though Ji Bochang remained calm.
• A young Immortal Master welcomed the recruits aboard the crane and urged them to do their best in Dragon Lake Dao Academy's examination.
• The Azure Firmament Spirit Crane took flight, carrying Zhang Jing and the others through the clouds toward the Dao Academy.
• Inside the cabin, Ji Bochang was recognized by the recruits from other commanderies and warmly greeted by Deng, Wu, and Chu.
• Ji Bochang went to join the three clan prodigies, while Zhang Jing found a quiet corner and waited for them to reach Dragon Lake Dao Academy.

Ji Bochang agreed to join Chu Lingyun, Deng An, and Wu Mingyuan, then wagered twenty Spirit Stones that Zhang Jing would pass Dragon Lake Dao Academy’s assessment. After waking, Zhang Jing secretly used his Mind's Eye Dao Seed to observe the immortal master and began imprinting the Nether Flood Dragon’s Dao Rhythm.

• Chu Lingyun, Deng An, and Wu Mingyuan invited Ji Bochang to join their group and rely on Chu Lingyun’s older cousin’s support at the Dao Academy.
• Ji Bochang proposed that Zhang Jing join them, but Chu Lingyun said they would consider it if he earned a Grade B assessment.
• Wu Mingyuan wagered against Zhang Jing passing the assessment, and Ji Bochang accepted a twenty-Spirit-Stone bet.
• Zhang Jing woke and noticed Ji Bochang and the others sitting with their eyes closed, apparently cultivating.
• Zhang Jing stepped outside and saw the immortal master sitting cross-legged, then returned inside and used his Mind's Eye Dao Seed to observe him through a crack in the door.
• Zhang Jing perceived a black flood dragon swallowing clouds and vapor, and his jade talisman displayed the incomplete Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm.

Zhang Jing reached the Dragon Lake Dao Academy after secretly comprehending a fragment of Dao rhyme during the journey. At the Seventh Temporary Academy, he learned that lodging costs varied by quality and realized that the assessment had already begun.

• Zhang Jing's Mind's Eye collapsed after nine breaths, but he sensed that he had gained a fragment of Dao rhyme and decided to wait until he entered the Dao Academy to investigate it.
• Zhang Jing and the other recruits arrived at Dragon Marsh Lake aboard the Azure Firmament Spirit Crane and learned that the destination was the Dragon Lake Dao Academy.
• Instructor Wang welcomed the sixty-five recruits to the Seventh Temporary Academy, warned that fewer than ten would pass, and told them to choose their lodgings for the night.
• Ji Bochang explained that the best courtyards cost Spirit Stones, the middle-tier houses cost silver, and the outer huts were free, then warned Zhang Jing that the assessment had already begun.
• Zhang Jing, who had only twenty-seven taels of silver, hurried toward the single-story houses to ask about their price.

Zhang Jing attended his first lesson at Dragon Lake Dao Academy, where Instructor Wang introduced the thirty-day assessment and taught the students how to receive the Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method. Zhang Jing finally received the inheritance, and his Jade Talisman recorded that he had not yet begun learning it.

• Zhang Jing left his stone hut and encountered Ji Bochang on his way to the Teaching Hall.
• Instructor Wang explained that students had thirty days to reach the introductory level of the Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method or have their memories of it erased and be sent back.
• Instructor Wang gave the inheritance Jade Slip to Chu Lingyun and instructed her to organize the students' turns.
• Chu Lingyun studied the method first, while Zhang Jing waited until nearly evening for his turn.
• Zhang Jing pressed the Jade Slip to his brow, received its information, and saw his Jade Talisman display that the method was not yet initiated.

Zhang Jing acquired the Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method and began practicing it with help from his jade talisman. After activating the Mind's Eye spell seed, he found that his understanding and cultivation speed increased dramatically.

• Zhang Jing woke from studying the Jade Slip and learned that Chu Lingyun had taken it to pass to the next person, though the method had already become a skill on his jade talisman.
• Ji Bochang explained that his clan had cultivation traditions and offered to answer Zhang Jing's questions in exchange for ideas for painted fans.
• Zhang Jing saw that the Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method had appeared as an uninitiated skill, while the Mind's Eye spell seed and Dao rhyme were marked as unable to be upgraded.
• Zhang Jing attempted to visualize pure origin spirit light, failed to sustain it, but raised the method's proficiency to 1/50.
• Zhang Jing calculated that regular practice could help him meet the assessment threshold, then activated Mind's Eye and gained a rush of insights that greatly accelerated his cultivation.

Zhang Jing made rapid progress practicing the Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method and expected to master it before the Dao Academy assessment. At the lecture, Instructor Wang answered students’ questions and announced that Shen Qingqing had already mastered the method and earned a Grade-A evaluation.

• Zhang Jing realized that immortal cultivation strengthened the innate spirit by drawing nourishment from the myriad spirits of heaven and earth, then checked his progress at 4/50.
• Zhang Jing fell asleep after estimating that the mind’s eye state would let him master the Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method in about nine days.
• Chu Lingyun asked Instructor Wang how to visualize the formless pure origin spirit light correctly, and he explained that they should focus on its artistic conception rather than its appearance.
• Deng Yuan, Ji Bochang, and other students asked Instructor Wang about their cultivation difficulties, while Zhang Jing chose not to reveal his own questions.
• Instructor Wang announced that Shen Qingqing of the Second Provisional Academy had mastered the visualization method the previous night and received a Grade-A evaluation.

Instructor Wang explained the Dao Academy’s assessment grades and their corresponding inheritance rewards, while Shen Qingqing’s extraordinary talent stunned the students. At the Spirit Cuisine Hall, Zhang Jing tasted spirit beast meat and discovered it restored his qi, blood, and mental energy, giving him hope of passing with a higher grade.

• Instructor Wang announced that Shen Qingqing had reached the Visualization Method’s introductory stage in one night, astonishing Zhang Jing and the other students.
• Instructor Wang explained the four assessment grades, their time limits, and the inheritance rewards available to successful students.
• Zhang Jing resigned himself to aiming for a third-grade assessment because he needed nine days to reach the introductory stage.
• Ji Bochang invited Zhang Jing to the eastern dining hall and revealed he had bet twenty Spirit Stones that Zhang Jing would pass the assessment.
• Zhang Jing confidently backed his chances and discovered that spirit beast meat replenished his qi, blood, and depleted mental energy.

Zhang Jing discovered that spirit beast meat restored his Qi, Blood, and mental energy, and urgently sought Spirit Stones to buy more for his cultivation. Ji Bochang later raised his wager with Wu Mingyuan to fifty Spirit Stones, leaving Wu Mingyuan confident he had secured the bet.

• Zhang Jing confirmed that eating spirit beast meat restored his depleted mental energy and realized a steady supply could help him reach the beginner level of the Visualization Method within seven days.
• Zhang Jing asked Ji Bochang for ten Spirit Stones in advance, but Ji Bochang said he had none available until his Lineage sent more after the assessment.
• After Zhang Jing left, Ji Bochang guessed that Zhang Jing wanted to earn a grade C assessment rating and resolved to help him find Spirit Stones.
• Wu Mingyuan brought Chu Lingyun to the Spirit Cuisine Hall, but she hurried over to Ji Bochang, prompting Wu Mingyuan to challenge him over their wager.
• Ji Bochang pretended to hesitate, then proposed raising the wager to fifty Spirit Stones; Wu Mingyuan eagerly agreed and refused to let him back out.

Zhang Jing used spirit beast meat to strengthen his cultivation and then discovered that the Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm let him absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy. Two days later, he was close to initiating the Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method and hurried to the Lecture Hall for the instructor’s lesson.

• Zhang Jing used spirit beast meat while cultivating, held his Mind's Eye open for fourteen breaths, and raised his visualization method proficiency to 13/50.
• Zhang Jing resolved to pursue a Grade B assessment and considered how to secure a steady supply of spirit beast meat.
• Zhang Jing recalled the Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm and entered a state where he absorbed spiritual qi throughout the night.
• Zhang Jing woke to find his vitality and mental energy greatly strengthened, then resumed cultivating the visualization method.
• Two days later, Zhang Jing had reached 37/50 proficiency and hurried to the Lecture Hall for the instructor’s lesson.

Zhang Jing attended Instructor Wang’s lecture, where Ji Bochang announced that he had reached the introductory stage of the Visualization Method and sensed spiritual qi. As the others discussed Ji’s breakthrough, Zhang Jing resolved to cultivate harder and seek Instructor Wang’s guidance as soon as he advanced.

• Zhang Jing hurried from the distant Stone House Area to the Lecture Hall and sat among the few remaining empty cushions.
• A chubby young man told Zhang Jing he had given Brother Wang his seat in exchange for guidance, then recognized Zhang Jing as the lucky fellow close to Ji Bochang.
• Instructor Wang began the lecture and later asked Ji Bochang and the others how their cultivation was progressing.
• Ji Bochang announced that he had reached the introductory stage of the Pure Origin Qi-Gathering Visualization Method, developed spiritual sense, and sensed spiritual qi.
• Chu Lingyun and Deng An reported that they expected to reach the introductory stage soon, while Wu Mingyuan admitted he was still behind.
• Zhang Jing praised Ji Bochang and decided to cultivate harder so he could reach the introductory stage and ask Instructor Wang for guidance.

Zhang Jing advanced the Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method to its introductory stage and gained spiritual sense. The chapter left him examining the method’s newly awakened skill trait, Origin-Gathering Spiritual Light.

• Wu Mingyuan blamed Ji Bochang for his failed assessment and lamented that he could not retaliate against either Ji Bochang or Zhang Jing.
• Ji Bochang visited Zhang Jing to say goodbye before selecting an inheritance and gave him five Spirit Stones as an advance payment on their wager.
• After Ji Bochang left, Zhang Jing inspected the Spirit Stones and planned to practice the visualization method before restoring his mental energy with the Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm.
• Zhang Jing practiced the visualization method and advanced it to Level 1, awakening spiritual sense and perceiving the spiritual qi around him.
• Zhang Jing noticed that the method had gained the skill trait Origin-Gathering Spiritual Light.

After reaching the introductory stage of the Visualization Method, Zhang Jing discovered that his new skill had formed Origin-Gathering Spiritual Light in his dantian and learned to conserve spiritual sense while using his Mind's Eye Dao Seed. He passed the Grade B assessment and left the Seventh Temporary Academy with Senior Brother Lu to visit the Inheritance Pavilion and choose a cultivation method.

• Zhang Jing discovered the Origin-Gathering Spiritual Light in his dantian and adjusted his Mind's Eye to consume spiritual sense more slowly.
• Instructor Wang confirmed that Zhang Jing had reached the introductory stage on the sixth day, recorded his Grade B result, and told him to choose a compatible middle-grade inheritance.
• Zhang Jing learned that a graded cultivation method would be necessary to meet the requirements for entering the Inner Academy.
• Instructor Wang led Zhang Jing to Senior Brother Lu, while Chu Lingyun and Wu Mingyuan realized Zhang Jing had passed the assessment ahead of them.
• Senior Brother Lu brought out a Jade-Green Spirit Boat to take Zhang Jing and Deng An to the Inheritance Pavilion.

Zhang Jing and Deng An arrived at the Inheritance Pavilion, where Senior Brother Liu explained cultivation-method compatibility and Dao Merit before sending them to choose inheritances. Zhang Jing found several promising methods and ultimately discovered that the Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary had his strongest compatibility yet.

• Senior Brother Lu flew Zhang Jing and Deng An to the Inheritance Pavilion at reckless speed, where Senior Brother Liu greeted them and took charge of their inheritance selection.
• Senior Brother Liu explained how compatibility with a cultivation method was measured and warned Zhang Jing that an upcoming Dao Merit opportunity would reward stronger cultivation.
• Deng An entered the Inheritance Secret Repository first and quickly selected the Upper Origin Feathering Secret Art.
• Zhang Jing entered the repository and found that the Three Lights Yin-Transforming True Explanation and Mystic Origin Five-Grain Dao Deity Method were compatible with him.
• Zhang Jing discovered that the Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary had a compatibility distance of three and a half feet, the best result he had found, and reached for his Inheritance Jade Key.

Zhang Jing chose the middle-grade [Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary] but discovered that he resonated with the upper-grade [Sea-Covering Flood Dragon Void-Seizing True Method], which he could not currently obtain. After reaching the new disciples’ quarters, he reunited with Ji Bochang and learned that final assessment rankings granted monthly Dao Merit rewards.

• Zhang Jing acquired the [Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary] and felt his Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm resonate near the upper-grade [Sea-Covering Flood Dragon Void-Seizing True Method].
• Senior Brother Liu told Zhang Jing that middle-grade cultivation methods cost 1,500 Dao Merits and that only exceptional disciples could readily obtain upper-grade inheritances.
• Senior Brother Liu directed Zhang Jing to the new disciples’ quarters, where Zhang Jing encountered Ji Bochang, who invited him to choose the house next to his own.
• Ji Bochang revealed that seventeen Grade B geniuses had arrived so far and explained that the top thirty assessment finishers would receive monthly Dao Merit rewards, prompting Zhang Jing’s surprise at the top-ten reward.

Zhang Jing learned that the assessment’s top ten would receive substantial Dao Merit, settled into his courtyard, and advanced his cultivation toward Qi Refining. Meanwhile, Chu Lingyun received resources and a warning from her older clansman to compete for a top-ten place, as Outer Court teams began courting the new cohort’s geniuses.

• Ji Bochang told Zhang Jing that the assessment’s ranking method changed each time and that the top ten would receive fifty Dao Merit monthly for a year.
• Zhang Jing moved into his courtyard, and Ji Bochang visited to get pointers on painting fans before revealing he had chosen the [Fish-Dragon Union of Bliss Record] and planned to cultivate at a senior sister’s cave abode.
• Zhang Jing practiced the [Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary] and [Pure Origin Breath-Absorbing Visualization Method], using his Mind’s Eye and Nether Flood Dragon Dao Rhythm to accelerate his progress toward Qi Refining.
• Zhang Jing concluded that his body would complete its transformation within five days and reflected that ordinary mortals could not harm a cultivator who had entered Qi Refining.
• Chu Lingyun left the Inheritance Pavilion after achieving three feet and three inches of compatibility with a middle-grade method.
• A Senior Brother delivered Chu Lingyun ten Purple Spirit Pills, a cave-abode key, and a Low-Grade Protective Dharma Artifact, along with her older clansman’s message to strive for the assessment’s top ten.

Zhang Jing refused a mission squad’s offer because its members would take a share of his Dao Merit, and he resolved to aim for the assessment’s top ten. Four days later, Ji Bochang brought him to find Wu Mingyuan and collect their Spirit Stones so Zhang Jing could shop for a Law Artifact.

• Liu Nanshu visited Shen Qingqing, recognized her cultivation and talent, and offered Mistglow Squad’s support in exchange for help if the squad faced a crisis after Shen Qingqing entered the Inner Academy.
• A senior brother from Hundred Rivers Squad offered Zhang Jing pills, Cultivation Chamber access, and a monthly subsidy, but Zhang Jing declined because the squad would claim thirty percent of his Dao Merit for five years.
• Zhang Jing concluded that he needed to join a top-ten squad to keep his Dao Merit and gain more opportunities, then continued cultivating with the Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm.
• Four days later, Ji Bochang took Zhang Jing to Wu Mingyuan’s courtyard, explaining that he wanted to collect their Spirit Stones to buy more pills.
• Ji Bochang showed Zhang Jing his new robe and fan, then reminded him that twenty of the fifty Spirit Stones they expected to collect belonged to Zhang Jing; Zhang Jing hurried to confront Wu Mingyuan and asked about buying a Law Artifact.

Zhang Jing declined Chu Lingyun’s offer to join the Linked Mountains Squad, wary of surrendering thirty percent of his Dao Merit, while Ji Bochang secured a place for him in the Five-Colored Squad with a reduced cut. Zhang Jing then broke through to the Qi Refining Realm and tested his first offensive technique, empowering it with the Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm.

• Zhang Jing and Ji Bochang overheard Wu Mingyuan confessing his feelings to Chu Lingyun, who rejected him because she wanted to catch up to Senior Brother Chen Xiandao.
• Wu Mingyuan paid Ji Bochang and Zhang Jing the Spirit Stones he owed from their wager and apologized to Zhang Jing for betting against his assessment.
• Chu Lingyun invited Zhang Jing to join the Linked Mountains Squad, but he declined after learning it would claim thirty percent of his Dao Merit for five years.
• Ji Bochang told Zhang Jing that the Five-Colored Squad would accept him, and later persuaded his senior sister to lower his Dao Merit cut to twenty percent.
• Zhang Jing broke through to the Qi Refining Realm, formed his first spiritual power, and used the Ice Condensation Edge-Forming Technique to cut through a stone wall.
• Zhang Jing infused the technique with the Nether Flood Dragon Devouring the Void Dao Rhythm, sending a faster, more powerful edge flying as it devoured nearby spiritual qi.

Zhang Jing advanced his cultivation by mastering the Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary, then went with Ji Bochang to Dragon Marsh Market to buy a Law Artifact. Meanwhile, an old man brought his grandson and a precious inheritance into the market, unaware that four pursuers planned to steal it.

• Zhang Jing saw how Dao rhythm amplified the Ice Condensation Edge-Forming Technique and discovered that Origin-Gathering Spiritual Light was purifying his spiritual power.
• Zhang Jing completed the Five Viscera Water-Origin Guiding Commentary, cultivated its water-aspected spiritual power, and gained the five-law spirit river trait.
• Ji Bochang arrived and learned that Zhang Jing had reached the Qi Refining Realm; he then led Zhang Jing toward Dragon Marsh Market to shop for Law Artifacts.
• An old man entered Dragon Marsh Market with his grandson Ming'er, intending to offer an ancient inheritance to a Dao Academy figure in exchange for Ming'er's chance to cultivate, while four members of the Yu Lineage plotted to seize it.
• Zhang Jing and Ji Bochang reached the market and headed to a Law Artifact shop called There Is a Law Artifact Pavilion.