Recaps

Jiang Yi learned that the Great Talisman Sect’s blockade had disrupted trade and forced Yang Xun to change their cultivation plans. The Heavenly Book revealed chances for Jiang Yi to study under elders of either the True Gu Sect or the Illuminating Nether Sect, then began to show him a third opportunity.

• Yang Xun refused Jiang Yi’s offer of the Hanyuan Pill and took him back to Dai Tower to discuss their plans.
• Yang Xun explained that the blockade had stalled trade and decided to prepare the Water Pool and Fire Marsh ritual in Three Harmonies Ward so Jiang Yi could advance to the fifth level of Qi Refining.
• Yang Xun told Jiang Yi he had planned to provide Ding Fire Bright Hall Qi to help him open the Origin Gate’s Inner Mansion and gather Spirit Chance.
• Jiang Yi consulted the Heavenly Book and learned he could attract an elder of the True Gu Sect by refining a Snake Flood Dragon Gu, or catch an Illuminating Nether Sect elder’s attention by winning ten bets.
• Jiang Yi hesitated over leaving Yang Xun to join either lineage, and the Golden Paper began revealing a third opportunity.

Jiang Yi used the Heavenly Book to plan his breakthrough to the Fifth Level of Qi Refining and arranged to attempt it at Knowing Truth Garden. Yang Xun took him to meet Lord Lu of the Dongping Lu Clan, where Lord Lu’s grandson Lu Xuan asked Jiang Yi about his impending breakthrough.

• Jiang Yi set aside the three Master-Inheritance encounters and decided to learn more before choosing a path.
• Jiang Yi asked the Heavenly Book about his breakthrough chances and received an eighty-eight percent estimate.
• The Heavenly Book named Knowing Truth Garden’s Earth Number Seven meditation chamber as the auspicious place for Jiang Yi to break through two days later.
• Jiang Yi learned that his cultivation had advanced from fifty-eight to sixty-two percent of the Fourth Level of Qi Refining.
• Yang Xun brought Jiang Yi to meet Lord Lu, the chief steward of Three Harmonies Ward, and introduced him to Lu Xuan, his grandson.
• Lu Xuan asked Jiang Yi whether he was about to break through to the Fifth Level of Qi Refining.

Jiang Yi and Yang Xun secured the materials for Jiang Yi’s Vitality-Raising Ritual Ceremony from Old Master Lu, enduring Lu Xuan’s insults and accepting that they had to yield to the Lu Clan for now. Meanwhile, a Golden Talisman located the young cultivator’s whereabouts at Longhua Mountain, sending Northern Mang Ridge’s sect elders there.

• Lu Xuan belittled Jiang Yi’s cultivation, but Jiang Yi humbly praised Lu Xuan until the young clan heir was pleased with himself.
• Old Master Lu agreed to sell Yang Xun superior-grade cold jade and fire-cloud stone, and Yang Xun paid for the ritual materials.
• Yang Xun and Jiang Yi left Old Master Lu’s residence, where Yang Xun comforted Jiang Yi and reflected that their fortunes might someday reverse.
• The little Artifact Spirit told the young cultivator that the twelfth-level Qi Refining elders were still kneeling, and the young cultivator complained that he had been ordered to seal Northern Mang Ridge.
• The Golden Talisman identified Longhua Mountain as the place where the little ancestor had been found, and the Artifact Spirit ordered Illuminating Nether and True Gu to send people there.
• The sect elders departed for Longhua Mountain after an elder from the True Gu Sect warned them to respect the power of the grand sects.

Jiang Yi used an eighth-grade Water Pool and Fire Marsh ritual to refine his essence and spirit and break through the Fourth Realm’s cultivation barrier. He opened the Origin Gate, completing the first step toward the Fifth Realm of Qi Refining.

• Jiang Yi prepared for his breakthrough by resting for two days and entering the meditation chamber at an auspicious hour.
• Yang Xun explained the Water Pool and Fire Marsh ritual and encouraged Jiang Yi before he began.
• Jiang Yi removed his clothing, coated himself with Golden Paste, and sat in the ritual to refine his body with water and fire.
• Jiang Yi burned and condensed his true lead into a Qi pellet, bringing his Fourth Level cultivation to perfection.
• Jiang Yi joined his will to the Qi pellet and drove it through the Heavenly Gate, opening the Origin Gate.

Jiang Yi opened his Origin Gate and established his Inner Manor, reaching the Fifth Level of Qi Refining after five days in seclusion. He emerged to Yang Xun’s joy and left Lord Lu and Lu Xuan stunned by his success.

• Jiang Yi awakened to the subtleties of the world within his mind and learned that harvesting Spirit Chance required a type suited to his cultivation method.
• Jiang Yi petitioned the Heavenly Book and confirmed that his cultivation progress had reached 13% of the Fifth Level of Qi Refining.
• Yang Xun waited outside Jiang Yi’s chamber as Lord Lu and Lu Xuan visited and questioned whether Jiang Yi would succeed.
• Spiritual Qi surged from the meditation chamber, and a steward of Knowing Truth Garden came to investigate before the Qi settled back inside.
• Jiang Yi opened the chamber door, announced that he had reached the Fifth Level of Qi Refining, and Yang Xun celebrated his success.

After Jiang Yi reached the fifth level of Qi Refining, Yang Xun celebrated his achievement and planned their return to the Qianji Sect. Jiang Yi then revealed his insights into improving the Lesser Forging Origin Fire-Control Art, leaving Yang Xun astonished and newly enlightened.

• Lord Lu tried to recruit Jiang Yi for the Yin Puppet Sect, but Yang Xun refused and said Jiang Yi would enter the Qianji Sect's Azure Cloud Path.
• Lord Lu reassured his grandson Lu Xuan that the clan would provide Spirit Chances to help him surpass Jiang Yi.
• Yang Xun praised Jiang Yi for reaching the fifth level of Qi Refining and proposed returning to the Qianji Sect to plan his Inner Peaks place.
• Jiang Yi used the Heavenly Book to obtain guidance on improving a cultivation method and gathering more Spirit Chances.
• Jiang Yi explained how the Lesser Forging Origin Fire-Control Art could be improved, and Yang Xun listened as he spoke for a day and night.
• Yang Xun gained a new understanding of the art and asked Jiang Yi what he would call his exposition; Jiang Yi named it “Answering the Old Man Beneath the Couch's Question.”

Jiang Yi concealed his unusual Dao insight from others and resolved to perform the Heavenly Book’s ritual to summon the Exalted One. As he prepared, elders from the Illuminating Nether Sect and True Gu Sect arrived at Longhua Mountain.

• Yang Xun urged Jiang Yi to keep his Spell Refinement talent and Dao wisdom secret, fearing the sect leader would force him to cultivate the Cloud-Walking Rain-Generating True Spirit Art.
• Yang Xun decided to seek spiritual objects to help Jiang Yi raise the grade of the Lesser Forging Origin Fire-Control Art, while Jiang Yi left to pursue his own plans.
• After two days of cultivation, Jiang Yi consolidated his fifth-level Qi Refining realm and considered the dangers of joining a sect Dharma Lineage.
• Jiang Yi chose to follow the Heavenly Book’s ritual instructions, which called for preparing strips of Long-Feathered Pheasant breast and presenting them at a shack on Double Abundance Street.
• As Jiang Yi left Dai Tower to make preparations, two streaks of traveling light shattered Three Harmonies Ward’s barriers, announcing the arrival of elders from the Illuminating Nether Sect and True Gu Sect.

Jiang Yi helped Yang Xun refine his cultivation method, and Yang Xun broke through to the sixth level of Qi Refining. The chapter ended with Jiang Yi urging his grandfather to aim for the seventh level while preparing to upgrade the method again.

• Jiang Yi and He Laohun walked through Three Harmonies Ward as the two sect elders’ cultivation caused extreme shifts in the weather.
• Jiang Yi prepared spirit-bird soup for Yang Xun and froze the pheasant breast meat for the final steps of the Rite of Fulfillment.
• Yang Xun emerged from seclusion after breaking through to the sixth level of Qi Refining, then went with Jiang Yi to visit Lord Lu.
• Lord Lu grew furious at Yang Xun’s breakthrough, while Lu Xuan boasted that he would reach the seventh level after entering the Yin Puppet Sect’s Inner Peaks.
• Jiang Yi and Yang Xun reviewed the upgraded Lesser Origin Fire-Control Art, and Jiang Yi advised Yang Xun to refine Brilliant Flame Qi from Northern Mang Ridge’s firecloud ore veins.
• Jiang Yi said he could upgrade the cultivation method again and urged Yang Xun to strive for the seventh level.

Yang Xun devoted himself to cultivation and began selling his properties to fund Jiang Yi’s advancement, while Jiang Yi used the Heavenly Book to check for danger at Knowing Truth Garden. There, Jiang Yi encountered Lu Xuan, who had lost money betting on spell-slave fights and asked him for a loan.

• Yang Xun said he would sell his shops and other holdings to buy Jiang Yi cultivation resources and a Law Artifact.
• Jiang Yi left offerings for the [Supreme Venerable] and returned to find Yang Xun had cultivated through the night.
• Yang Xun took Jiang Yi to Knowing Truth Garden to sell his properties, and Jiang Yi divined that his visit held neither good fortune nor danger.
• Jiang Yi saw Lu Xuan at the Dueling Arts Pavilion after Lu Xuan lost money betting on fights.
• Lu Xuan asked Jiang Yi to lend him thirty thousand Talisman Money or place bets on a fighter he believed would win.

Jiang Yi used Lu Xuan to place ten winning bets at the Dueling Arts Pavilion, drawing the attention of an Illuminating Nether Sect elder seeking a promising disciple. Lu Xuan mistook the fortune for his own achievement and eagerly went to meet the elder, while Jiang Yi remained downstairs with the winnings.

• Jiang Yi agreed to partner with Lu Xuan at the Dueling Arts Pavilion, choosing fighters while Lu Xuan placed the bets.
• Jiang Yi’s choices won repeatedly, turning their thirty-thousand Talisman Money stake into several hundred thousand and completing ten consecutive wins.
• An Illuminating Nether Sect elder heard of the streak and summoned Lu Xuan, believing him to be a fortunate and promising talent.
• Lu Xuan arranged for the five hundred and ninety thousand Talisman Money to be given to Jiang Yi, then hurried upstairs to meet the elder.
• Lu Xuan prostrated himself before the yellow-crowned Daoist and introduced himself as a junior paying respects to an Illuminating Nether Sect high cultivator.

Song Chou manipulated Lu Xuan into believing that family bereavement could improve his chances of joining the Illuminating Nether Sect, while secretly gathering Fear-and-Dread Death Qi from deaths in the Dueling Arts Pavilion. After Elder Fang discussed the Demonic Dao’s constraints under the Immortal Dao, Song Chou asked whether the Great Talisman Sect had issued another decree.

• Song Chou rejected Lu Xuan as a disciple because his father and grandfather were alive, then suggested bereavement could change his fate and gave him a method to injure cultivators of Ding Fire.
• Lu Xuan memorized Song Chou’s instructions and left the Dueling Arts Pavilion in a daze.
• Elder Fang appeared and accused Song Chou of luring people into becoming medicinal ingredients, while Song Chou described how his methods exploited hidden desires.
• Song Chou refined the terror of the Pavilion’s deaths into Fear-and-Dread Death Qi, saying years of accumulation had yielded only ten strands.
• Elder Fang complained that [Sun] and [Thunder Pivot] constrained the Demonic Dao, and Song Chou asked whether the Great Talisman Sect had issued another decree.

Song Chou learned that Lou Zhenxiao had sealed Northern Mang Ridge while searching for a mysterious Little Ancestor who could not be divined, and he decided to drag his feet. Jiang Yi heard that Lu Ting had died, then went to the shrine at midnight to meet [Supreme Venerable] and found an imposing stranger who suspected him of being sent by Lou Zhenxiao.

• Elder Fang told Song Chou that Lou Zhenxiao was seeking a Little Ancestor from the Great Talisman Sect who could not be divined or found with Divine Abilities.
• Song Chou and Elder Fang discussed Lou Zhenxiao’s orders and the Southern and Northern Dipper Sword, and Song Chou resolved to stall rather than search.
• Yang Xun told Jiang Yi that Lu Ting had died after coughing up blood, then celebrated and vowed to outlive him by seventy-five years.
• Jiang Yi suspected Lu Xuan’s Fortuitous Encounter had caused Lu Ting’s death and reflected on the ruthless methods of the Illuminating Nether and True Gu sects.
• Jiang Yi carried dried meat to the shrine at midnight, where an imposing man accused him of being a Ding Fire cultivator sent by Lou Zhenxiao to kill him.
• Jiang Yi asked the man who Lou Zhenxiao was, doubting that the stranger was [Supreme Venerable].

Jiang Yi was caught between the wounded Xuanchanzi and Mu Qiu, who had been sent by Lou Zhenxiao to pursue him, while relying on the Heavenly Book’s prediction that he would be frightened but safe. After the Dao Palace ordered Lou Zhenxiao to let the mysterious little ancestor roam free, Mu Qiu confronted Xuanchanzi at the ruined temple, where a filthy cat appeared beside Jiang Yi.

• Jiang Yi remained calm when the imposing stranger questioned him, and the man warned him to leave before identifying the approaching pursuer as a reason it was too late.
• Lou Zhenxiao returned to the magic tower, lifted the seal over Northern Mang Ridge, and told Mu Qiu that the Dao Palace had ordered them to leave the little ancestor free.
• Lou Zhenxiao sent Mu Qiu to pursue Xuanchanzi, who had lost seventy percent of his cultivation, and Mu Qiu complained that Xuanchanzi’s destiny made him dangerous to confront.
• Mu Qiu found Xuanchanzi at the ruined temple, where Xuanchanzi mocked him and Jiang Yi worried that their battle would destroy the building.
• A filthy cat appeared beside Jiang Yi and stared at the plate of dried spirit-bird meat he was carrying.

Jiang Yi fed the mysterious kitten while Xuanchanzi fought Mu Qiu and a group of cultivators outside the ruined temple. After the battle moved away, the kitten revealed itself as the [Profound Mystery True Person] and offered to take Jiang Yi as its disciple.

• Jiang Yi realized the ritual offering was meant for him or the kitten and fed the kitten dried spirit bird meat.
• Xuanchanzi cut away part of Mu Qiu’s profound-light Law Power and spared him, while Mu Qiu recognized the danger of fighting a child of destiny.
• Cultivators from several Dharma Lineages arrived seeking revenge on Xuanchanzi, and Mu Qiu urged them to attack together.
• Xuanchanzi declared that the Zhongyi Sect lived on through him and flew away with his pursuers, while Mu Qiu followed at a distance.
• Jiang Yi emerged from the rubble with the kitten, which identified itself as the [Profound Mystery True Person] and asked him to become its disciple.

Jiang Yi won Profound Mystery True Person’s approval by offering to care for the kitten and became its disciple. As the kitten explained the limits of lower Dharma Lineages, Jiang Yi realized their cultivation methods deliberately prevented them from reaching Foundation Establishment perfection.

• Jiang Yi introduced himself to Profound Mystery True Person and offered to serve it in exchange for becoming its disciple.
• Profound Mystery True Person accepted Jiang Yi as its disciple after he promised to keep it fed and comfortable.
• Jiang Yi brought Profound Mystery True Person home, bathed it, and asked about the origins of its hidden Dharma Lineage.
• Profound Mystery True Person explained that only sect-ranked Dharma Lineages possessed complete inheritances capable of guiding cultivators to the True Lord’s golden seat and a Dao Fruit.
• Profound Mystery True Person said lower Dharma Lineages relied on Dao Ginseng consumption, which tainted cultivators’ life and nature and kept them from Foundation Establishment perfection.
• Jiang Yi concluded that the sect-ranked lineages allowed the Dao Ginseng Secret Art to persist so lower Dharma Lineages could not advance.

Jiang Yi asked the Profound Mystery True Person for a complete Dao legacy and accepted the dangers tied to it, hoping to reach the fifth realm of Foundation Establishment and attain True Lord status. Meanwhile, Lou Zhenxiao received a decree ordering him to let the little ancestor leave the Immortal Dao and halt trade between the Southern and Eastern Victory Continents.

• Jiang Yi reflected on the dangers facing lesser cultivators and carefully massaged and dried the Profound Mystery True Person, who revealed himself as a calico cat.
• Jiang Yi pleaded for a chance to pursue the Dao, and the Profound Mystery True Person warned that complete Dao legacies carried the karma and destiny of their Dharma Lineages.
• Jiang Yi accepted the legacy and vowed to seek the fifth heaven of Foundation Establishment and attain True Lord status, even at the cost of his life.
• Lou Zhenxiao contemplated how the [Sun] had constrained the Demonic Path Lineage and lamented that it hindered cultivators from gathering the Five Elements.
• The sect master's decree instructed Lou Zhenxiao to let the little ancestor leave but prevent his return to the Immortal Dao, and to prohibit trade between the Southern Continent and Eastern Victory Continent under the pretext of dealing with Zhongyi Sect remnants.
• Lou Zhenxiao accepted the decree and hoped Xuanchanzi would seize the chance to revive Zhongyi Sect and challenge him at the Cinnabar Essence Dharma Assembly.

Jiang Yi used the Heavenly Book to make sense of the profound Qi Refining section of Profound Mystery True Person’s Dao Inheritance, then learned that he and Yang Xun would leave Longhua Mountain before trouble spread. Yang Xun gave Jiang Yi three Law Artifacts taken from Lu Ting’s collection, equipping him for future adventures.

• Jiang Yi struggled to understand Profound Mystery True Person’s Dao Inheritance, and the Heavenly Book estimated that deriving its full meaning would take sixty-four years.
• Jiang Yi reframed his request around the maxim “Refining the Ancestral Origin, Commanding the Myriad Truths” and received a comprehensible derivation that would take six hours.
• Jiang Yi cared for the sleeping Profound Mystery True Person before visiting Yang Xun, who said two high-level cultivators had fought near Longhua Mountain and planned to return to the sect the next morning.
• Yang Xun showed Jiang Yi three Law Artifacts from Lu Ting’s collection: the Five Yin Bag, Blood Soul Mirror, and Black Sha Pagoda Lock.
• Yang Xun explained that the artifacts could capture ghosts, track living beings, provide swift travel, and subdue flying swords and ritual banners, and Jiang Yi gladly accepted them.

Jiang Yi prepared to leave Three Harmonies Ward with Yang Xun while refining a Law Artifact, and Lu Xuan gave Song Chou his family’s fortune to secure entry into the Illuminating Nether Sect. Meanwhile, Profound Mystery True Person discovered that Jiang Yi had mastered a profound Dao inheritance in a single day and recognized him as its potential heir.

• Yang Xun explained the value of Law Artifacts and gave Jiang Yi three artifacts before they planned to leave the next morning.
• Jiang Yi chose to refine the Five Yin Bag and worried that Lu Xuan’s connection to an elder of the Illuminating Nether Sect might bring dangerous attention.
• Lu Xuan offered Song Chou a million in Talisman Money from selling his family’s property, and Song Chou agreed to take him into the sect when its gates opened.
• Profound Mystery True Person woke and found Jiang Yi meditating as he drew in and refined myriad kinds of Spirit Chance.
• Profound Mystery True Person realized Jiang Yi had mastered the inheritance’s Qi Refining section in one day and considered him a worthy heir.

Jiang Yi mastered the cat master's Qi Refining method and found that it let him draw in Spirit Chance with ease, though Northern Mang Ridge offered little to cultivate. Profound Mystery True Person urged him to consider his Dao Path and claimed that joining his Dharma Lineage would give Jiang Yi an extraordinary background; Jiang Yi's Heavenly Book began an 8,800-year deduction into the origins of his inheritance.

• Jiang Yi used the cat master's guiding principle to refine Spirit Chance effortlessly and advance his cultivation.
• Jiang Yi absorbed fewer than five strands before the barren surroundings ran dry, and reflected on how difficult cultivation had been for his grandfather, Yang Xun.
• Profound Mystery True Person waited for Jiang Yi to finish cultivating, then kneaded him while asking about his future Dao Path.
• Jiang Yi said he planned to return to the Qianji Sect and feared that the stronger sects nearby might use him as medicinal material.
• Profound Mystery True Person declared that Jiang Yi would have an unparalleled background as his disciple, while the Heavenly Book began an 8,800-year deduction into the origins of Jiang Yi's Dao inheritance.

True Person Xuanmiao promised Jiang Yi access to a Primordial Womb Mother Pool if he reached the tenth level of Qi Refining within eight years, then Jiang Yi returned with the cat to meet Yang Xun and He Laohun. While waiting at a roadside stall, Jiang Yi was approached by Xuanchanzi, whose presence seemed stronger than before.

• True Person Xuanmiao explained the path to forming True Qi and offered to take Jiang Yi to the Primordial Womb Mother Pool at Bluefall Cliff if he reached the tenth level within eight years.
• True Person Xuanmiao advised Jiang Yi to stay with the Qianji Sect for now, and Jiang Yi prepared to travel with Yang Xun and He Laohun.
• Yang Xun and He Laohun left to buy horses while Jiang Yi waited, reflecting on mounting unrest in Northern Mang Ridge.
• Xuanchanzi sat across from Jiang Yi and greeted him, startling Jiang Yi with his unexpectedly powerful Qi presence.

Jiang Yi met Xuanchanzi, the surviving inheritor of the Zhongyi Sect, who offered him a chance to inherit the sect’s Dharma Lineage before leaving. Near the Qianji Sect, Jiang Yi, Yang Xun, and He Laohun encountered a suspicious roadside tavern whose occupants called themselves true demonic cultivators.

• Xuanchanzi shared noodles with Jiang Yi, praised his character, and invited him to call for help and inherit the Zhongyi Sect’s Dharma Lineage if a sign appeared over Northern Mang’s peaks.
• Xuanchanzi departed after reflecting that Jiang Yi had declined the chance to travel with him.
• Two days later, Jiang Yi told Yang Xun that he had refined the Five Yin Bag about seventy percent and the Blood Soul Mirror about thirty percent.
• As the group neared the Qianji Sect, they found an old tavern in the wooded ridges bearing a banner that read, “We True Demonic Cultivators Were Born Unbound!”
• Yang Xun recognized a chance to make money, while He Laohun staggered toward the tavern and its occupants prepared to test him.

Jiang Yi and Yang Xun uncovered a Yin Puppet Sect den where cultivators were preparing to butcher people and an ox for food. Yang Xun attacked first, and Jiang Yi revealed his strength as the tavern fight erupted.

• Jiang Yi and Yang Xun suspected the tavern was a bandit cultivator den and planned to catch its occupants off guard.
• Jiang Yi entered the tavern and introduced himself to Zheng Qing as a traveler from the Lujiang Jiang Clan.
• Zheng Qing revealed his admiration for ancient demonic cultivators while his followers prepared to butcher the bound yellow ox.
• Yang Xun burst through the second-floor wall and burned several tavern occupants with his flame techniques.
• Yang Xun used the Five Yin Bag to swallow and grind up an attacker while Zheng Qing ordered Red-Haired Ghost to seize Jiang Yi.
• Jiang Yi revealed his cultivation, killed Red-Haired Ghost with a flame-coated sword, and advanced to attack the remaining cultivators.

Jiang Yi and Yang Xun slaughtered the bandit cultivators in the tavern, rescued He Laohun, and uncovered their human-sacrifice wine and meat trade. Yang Xun explained why the bandits’ blood-fiend and yin-demon techniques were inferior to his Ding Fire Dao, leaving Jiang Yi wondering about his grandfather’s cultivation background.

• Yang Xun absorbed the blood Qi and corpses into his Law Artifacts, then told Jiang Yi to keep Zheng Qing alive to nourish the Black Sha Pagoda Lock.
• Yang Xun identified Zheng Qing’s illicit cultivation techniques and surmised that he had fled the Yin Puppet Sect, while Jiang Yi realized Zheng Qing was likely a Dharma slave meant to be harvested.
• Jiang Yi used a Pure Qi Talisman to restore He Laohun from ox form, and Zheng Qing revealed that the wine contained human placentas and the meat came from a Two-Leg Market.
• Yang Xun completed the ritual refinement of his Law Artifacts and dismissed Zheng Qing’s techniques as obsolete, explaining that his Ding Fire Dao could suppress blood-fiend and yin-demon arts.
• Yang Xun recalled Elder Sui’s saying that the Immortal Dao’s Thunder Pivot stood above blood fiends and yin demons, leaving Jiang Yi surprised by his grandfather’s contempt for Sect-tier Dharma lineages.

Jiang Yi tested how decisively Ding Fire overcame Zheng Qing’s blood-baleful cultivation and learned that the Five Phases had become the foundation of cultivation across the Jambudvipa Vast Land. After Zheng Qing was killed and his soul made into a Yin Horse, Yang Xun admitted that Jiang Yi’s Law Artifacts were cheap blood-baleful types and promised to replace them when he had more money.

• Yang Xun examined Zheng Qing’s cultivation for Jiang Yi and explained that blood baleful Qi and proximity to yin demons left practitioners inferior to other Dharma Lineages.
• At Yang Xun’s instruction, Jiang Yi struck Zheng Qing with a sword and then a saber using only twenty percent of his strength, severing both legs and confirming that Ding Fire easily overcame Zheng Qing’s True Qi.
• Yang Xun told Jiang Yi that the Five Phases were the foundation of cultivation and shared a rumor that an ancient Immortal Dao figure had weakened the Spirit Chance of blood baleful Qi and yin demons.
• Jiang Yi sent Zheng Qing into the Five Yin Bag to be ground to pieces, and Yang Xun refined Zheng Qing’s soul into a Yin Horse with the Black Sha Pagoda Lock.
• Yang Xun admitted that the Five Yin Bag, Blood Soul Mirror, and Black Sha Pagoda Lock were cheap blood-baleful Law Artifacts and promised to replace them when he had more money.

Jiang Yi slaughtered the cannibals of Two-Leg Market and, in the aftermath, gathered a wisp of Bright Hall fire that brought his fifth level of Qi Refining to perfection.

• Jiang Yi asked Yang Xun whether refining blood- and Baleful Intent-based Law Artifacts conflicted with Ding Fire cultivation, and Yang Xun assured him they would not.
• Yang Xun explained that killing Bandit Cultivators did not violate the [Immortal Dao]’s rules, and Jiang Yi suspected the Yin Puppet Sect used Dharma Slaves to evade those rules while harvesting people as materials.
• Jiang Yi asked Yang Xun how he would fare against Bandit Cultivators with his three refined Law Artifacts, and Yang Xun said only a suitably cultivated eighth-level opponent should be able to stop him.
• Jiang Yi traveled to Two-Leg Market, discovered its shops sold human flesh, and announced that the cannibals were fit to eat before attacking them with the Flame Blade Technique.
• Jiang Yi slaughtered the market’s inhabitants through the night while Yang Xun watched, then left the valley at sunrise with blood-soaked robes and a calm face.
• Jiang Yi sensed and absorbed a wisp of Bright Hall fire into his Inner Manor, bringing his fifth level of Qi Refining to perfection.