Chapter Summaries

Wang Ba improved his Spiritual Root aptitude, raised the Mountain-Moving Ape to the second tier, and expanded his beast-taming knowledge while pursuing Spirit Chicken breeding. Seven years passed as he focused on cultivation and breeding with materials supplied by Bai Yu, under the Heavenly Gate Sect’s demand that he eventually produce a Spirit Chicken capable of bearing the Fanming Primordial Spirit.

• Wang Ba advanced the Body-Strengthening Scripture to the twelfth level, lost his fire Spiritual Root, and discovered that his cultivation speed had increased.
• Wang Ba bought a second-tier Spirit Beast Ring and deposited lifespan into the Mountain-Moving Ape, which grew stronger, defeated the Azurewater Spirit Turtle and Jia Thirteen, and reached the second tier.
• Wang Ba studied the Ten Thousand Beasts Office’s records, found methods for Spirit Chicken and Spirit Turtle breeding, and taught the Mountain-Moving Ape and male Azurewater Spirit Turtles new techniques.
• Wang Ba sent Bai Yu a list of breeding materials, and Bai Yu supplied many of them while warning him that he must breed increasingly high-grade Spirit Chickens or risk losing his life.
• Wang Ba returned to the Chicken Farm and devoted himself to cultivation and breeding for the next seven years.

Lu Yuansheng emerged from seclusion in the Heavenly Gate Sect, learned of threats from the Incense Dao and Wang Ba’s unusual breeding success, and was formally invested as an elder. At the Eastern Saint Garrison, Wang Ba unified his essence, Qi, and spirit and prepared for Foundation Establishment, but hid his powerful spirit beasts when Bai Yu announced he was coming.

• Bai Yu reported that the Longevity Sect had killed cultivators from three continents and that Incense Dao members Zheng Yuanhua, Li Canghai, and Wen Sheng were keeping Heavenly Gate Sect cultivators from leaving the garrison.
• Bai Yu told Lu Yuansheng that Cheng Shu had bred a second-tier middle-grade spirit chicken and that Wang Ba had bred a second-tier low-grade one.
• Lu Yuansheng inspected Wang Ba’s list of breeding materials with Cheng Shu, then attended his investiture ceremony under Ning Daohuan at the black swamp.
• Bu Chan fed the Chicken Farm’s spirit beasts and told Wang Ba that she had found the Red-Gold Fire he wanted.
• Wang Ba revealed that he had unified his essence, Qi, and spirit after seven years of cultivation and began preparing for Foundation Establishment.
• After receiving a Voice Transmission Talisman from Bai Yu, Wang Ba concealed his second-tier spirit beasts before Bai Yu arrived.

Over seven years, Wang Ba bred and advanced several kinds of Spirit Beasts, then mourned Yu Changchun over the Black Crystal Peach Spirit Wine they had once planned to share. Bai Yu brought the materials Wang Ba had requested and, after noticing that Wang Ba had united essence, Qi, and spirit, gave him another Foundation Establishment Pill.

• Wang Ba used bloodline breakthrough materials from Bai Yu to advance Spirit Chickens, including Jia Thirteen and two of its offspring, Jia Ten Five and Jia Ten Six.
• Wang Ba bred Psychic Ghost Loaches through nearly eight generations, advancing them from second-tier low-grade to second-tier high-grade.
• Wang Ba remembered that Yu Changchun had died three years earlier from a heart demon backlash while attempting Foundation Establishment.
• Wang Ba opened a jar of Black Crystal Peach Spirit Wine and drank with Bai Yu in Yu Changchun's memory.
• Bai Yu gave Wang Ba the rare materials he had requested and warned him that Elder Lu still threatened to kill him if he failed to produce results soon.
• Bai Yu noticed Wang Ba had united essence, Qi, and spirit, then handed him another Foundation Establishment Pill.

Wang Ba received a Foundation Establishment Pill from Bai Yu and prepared to advance while the Eastern Saint Garrison’s peace seemed likely to end. After taking precautions and using his lifespan ability to overcome the bottleneck, he completed Foundation Establishment and left his body as a Divine Soul.

• Bai Yu told Wang Ba that Lu Yuansheng had approved his request for precious spirit materials and warned him to show results.
• Bai Yu said Lu Yuansheng’s emergence from seclusion could lead the sect to act against the Incense Dao, though Wang Ba would remain focused on breeding spirit chickens.
• Bu Chan urged Wang Ba to take both Foundation Establishment Pills, and he agreed before leaving with her for the Small Wooden Hut.
• Wang Ba reviewed his preparations in a cultivation chamber, then spent 2.4 years of lifespan to break through the Foundation Establishment bottleneck.
• Wang Ba condensed his Law Power, guided it into his Yin Spirit Mansion, and completed Foundation Establishment as his Divine Soul left his body.

After achieving Foundation Establishment, Wang Ba advanced the Yin Spirit Great Dream Scripture and endured a mysterious voice that repeatedly shattered and strengthened his Divine Soul. He discovered the Scripture’s second-layer techniques, chose to return to the Chicken Farm, and found that his Clearwater Spirit Turtle had lost its Divine Soul to a Substitute Death activation.

• Wang Ba examined the deep-red mark between his brows and used his Lifespan Panel to advance the Yin Spirit Great Dream Scripture to its second layer.
• The Yin Spirit Mansion transformed into a vast temple as a mysterious cold snort repeatedly shattered Wang Ba’s Divine Soul, consuming most of his remaining lifespan while making his soul more resilient.
• Wang Ba found the completed Yin God statue in the temple and learned that the second-layer Divine Dream Technique included Dream Creation, but postponed learning it because of its lifespan cost.
• Wang Ba decided to leave the Cultivation Chamber and return to the Chicken Farm, keeping the unused pills for Bu Chan.
• Wang Ba checked his Spirit Beast Bag and discovered that his Clearwater Spirit Turtle’s Substitute Death Divine Ability had activated, leaving its body alive but its Divine Soul annihilated.

After surviving a deadly attack and establishing his foundation, Wang Ba returned to Bu Chan, then sought a second-tier cultivation abode suited to his new needs. He rented Winter Residence, Room Seven, at Spirit Valley Residence and began cultivating there.

• Wang Ba realized the Substitute Death Divine Ability had saved his life and bound his two male Azurewater Spirit Turtles.
• Wang Ba returned to the Chicken Farm, where Bu Chan learned he had established his foundation and celebrated with him.
• Wang Ba found that first-tier Spiritual Qi and Spirit Chicken Essence no longer adequately supported his cultivation, so he ended his Spiritwater Courtyard lease.
• A steward directed Wang Ba to Spirit Valley Residence, and Wang Ba briefly revisited the ruined Dingbaqi Manor on his way there.
• Wang Ba rented a north-side third-class cave abode at the internal rate and chose Winter Residence, Room Seven.
• Wang Ba settled into the room and began cultivating in earnest.

Wang Ba mastered Dream Creation and tested it on Li Qi, a mortal servant disciple, who suddenly became eager to follow him. Wang Ba took Li Qi to his cultivation grounds and arranged a cabin for him, while the crimson gleams in both their eyes hinted at the technique’s influence.

• Wang Ba used Divine Essence Dew to replenish his Yin Spirit Power, then spent lifespan to master Dream Creation.
• Li Qi recalled how the Heavenly Gate Sect had replaced the Eastern Saint Sect and kept him working as a servant disciple for over ten years.
• Wang Ba emerged from Room Seven and used Dream Creation on Li Qi, who became determined to become his disciple.
• Wang Ba brought Li Qi to his cultivation grounds, where Li Qi saw Wang Ba’s Spirit Beasts and a wooden cabin was built for him.

Wang Ba studied Li Qi’s thoughts until he could remove the illusions he had planted, then sent him home by choice. A recording from the Human Puppet revealed a grove of Thousand-God Wood bearing Divine Essence Dew, but Wang Ba held back from investigating; while Bu Chan cultivated and he tended the farm, an unwelcome visitor appeared again.

• Wang Ba spent a month using Yin Spirit Power to study and influence Li Qi, then withdrew the thoughts and illusions he had planted in him.
• The Human Puppet offered Li Qi three choices, and Li Qi chose to return to Meng Xing Village despite the dangers outside.
• After the Human Puppet returned, Wang Ba found a grove of Thousand-God Wood bearing Divine Essence Dew in its recordings and located it near Yutang Mountain, but suspected it belonged to the Incense Dao and did not go there.
• Wang Ba gave Bu Chan the Cultivation Chamber while she pushed against the Qi Refining Seventh Layer bottleneck, and he tended the Spirit Fields and studied bloodline breakthroughs for his spirit beasts.
• While Wang Ba pulled weeds at a field’s edge, his Divine Sense detected someone he had recently driven away returning.

After reaching Foundation Establishment, Wang Ba sold Spirit Chickens to Dong Qiyu and secured an exemption from a mission targeting Incense Dao cultivators. He later traveled to Swordwave Garrison and persuaded Bao Chao to teach him Spirit Chef techniques by paying him and swearing not to compete for business within the Heavenly Gate Sect.

• Dong Qiyu discovered that Wang Ba had reached Foundation Establishment, bought two thousand Spirit Chickens from him, and refused his offer of Spirit Turtles.
• Wang Ba received a mission notice offering rewards for slaying Incense Dao cultivators, then got Bai Yu's assurance that he and Bu Chan did not have to participate.
• Bu Chan returned, and Wang Ba reunited with her before traveling alone to Swordwave Garrison when the Teleportation Array opened.
• Wang Ba asked Bao Chao to teach him the Spirit Chef's craft, and Bao Chao recognized his Foundation Establishment cultivation.
• Wang Ba offered Bao Chao fifty middle-grade Spirit Stones and swore a heart-demon oath not to prepare Spirit Cuisine for others within the Heavenly Gate Sect, so Bao Chao agreed to teach him.

Bao Chao taught Wang Ba about Spirit Chef methods and their origins, then set him to learning how to dissect Eel-Tailed Toads. After two months of practice, Wang Ba mastered the basics and returned to Eastern Saint Garrison, determined to learn enough to make Spirit Chicken Essence before focusing on cultivation.

• Bao Chao explained how Spirit Chefs purified ingredients, described their origins in ancient Demonic Dao practices, and outlined the standards of their craft.
• Bao Chao assigned Wang Ba to dissect Eel-Tailed Toads, and Wang Ba reluctantly agreed despite his disgust.
• Wang Ba spent two months studying the toads and learned to separate their parts with precision, though he had yet to begin processing ingredients or making Spirit Chicken Essence.
• Wang Ba decided to learn the Spirit Chef methods needed for Spirit Chicken Essence and then focus on cultivation.
• Wang Ba informed Bao Chao and used the Teleportation Array to return to Eastern Saint Garrison, where the spirit rice near his Chicken Farm was nearly ready to harvest.

Wang Ba returned to the Eastern Saint Garrison, learned that the Heavenly Gate Sect was locked in a stalemate with the Incense Dao because stronger forces on both sides were holding back, and resumed his cultivation and work. At Yutang Mountain, Zheng Yuanhua revealed that the Dream Lord might revive and that the Yin Spirit Great Dream Scripture had to be recovered, while a larger confrontation seemed imminent.

• Wang Ba returned to the Chicken Farm, helped Bu Chan harvest the Spirit Rice, and learned that the Heavenly Gate Sect had been losing skirmishes against the Incense Dao.
• Wang Ba reasoned that the Heavenly Gate Sect's Gold Core cultivators were avoiding direct action because the Four Great Sects could provoke a wider battle, then returned to his work and cultivation.
• At Yutang Mountain, Li Canghai confronted Zheng Yuanhua for allowing a Heavenly Gate Sect cultivator to kill his Attendant Cultivator.
• Zheng Yuanhua told Li Canghai that a Third-Tier Envoy would arrive because the Dream Lord might revive after a faint outline appeared on the Divine Statue.
• Zheng Yuanhua and Li Canghai suspected that the Yin Spirit Great Dream Scripture had reached the Heavenly Gate Sect's Nascent Soul-level Sect Master and agreed they needed to recover it.
• Zheng Yuanhua explained that he had let the Heavenly Gate Sect score a loss to discourage its third-tier cultivators from intervening, and he anticipated the skirmishes would soon escalate.

Ning Daohuan secured the elders’ agreement to prepare for war against the Chen Kingdom’s five sects while pursuing covert plans involving the Mountain-Sea Sect and Spirit Chickens. Wang Ba completed the first step of his Law Power training and returned to the Swordwave Garrison to learn the next one.

• Ning Daohuan led a council where Lu Yuansheng described the stalemate with the Chen Kingdom’s five sects, and the elders debated whether to fight or withdraw.
• Ning Daohuan argued that entering Great Jin was their only viable path and declared that a battle with the five sects was unavoidable; Lu Yuansheng reported that trouble on the Western Sea coast might soon create an opening.
• After the elders left, Lu Yuansheng told Ning Daohuan that their agents had been planted in the Mountain-Sea Sect, and he reported that Cheng Shu’s Spirit Chicken could briefly reach second-tier supreme grade after receiving part of the Fanming Primordial Spirit.
• Ning Daohuan ordered Cheng Shu to keep breeding Spirit Chickens and said he would grant the Eastern Saint Sect’s wish to reclaim Fanming, though he intended to thwart them.
• Wang Ba spent two months learning to dissect an Eel-Tailed Toad instantly with Law Power, completing the first step, then waited for Spirit Beasts to hatch and cultivated them.
• When the Teleportation Array opened, Wang Ba took a batch of Spirit Chickens back to the Swordwave Garrison to find Bao Chao and learn the second step.

Wang Ba learned to prepare processing solutions for Spirit Beasts by recording experiments, then decided to leave Swordwave Garrison to find more beasts and refine his methods. After preparing for the trip and claiming several newly accessible weapons from old Storage Bags, he departed with Jia Ten Five and his other Spirit Beasts.

• Wang Ba practiced preparing processing solutions, recorded his results, and discovered patterns while processing several kinds of Spirit Beasts.
• Bao Chao showed Wang Ba a Burrowing Rabbit, whose unusual teeth caused Wang Ba's solution to explode and taught him that some ingredients needed special treatment.
• Wang Ba bought more Spirit Beasts, studied a map from the Spirit Beast Shop's proprietor, and decided to explore beyond Swordwave Garrison for new specimens.
• Wang Ba refined two Storage Bags from the Moon-Mirror Prefecture campaign and found Spirit Stones, resources, second-tier talismans, and the Iris Formless Needles.
• Wang Ba learned how to use the human-skin drum and black jar, practiced with his newly acquired weapons, and left Swordwave Garrison with Jia Ten Five and his other Spirit Beasts.

Wang Ba explored the forests around Swordwave Garrison, collecting spirit beasts and materials while searching for resources beyond the sect’s reach. After reaching the dangerous Wood-Forest Island, he chose to avoid it and fly toward a passage leading outside the garrison’s encirclement.

• Wang Ba compared maps and set out to find Shield-Armored Giant-Headed Turtles, hoping to collect unfamiliar spirit beasts and materials.
• Wang Ba found the turtles’ stream habitat empty but collected the Blood-Sucking Black Leeches that infested it.
• Wang Ba explored deeper into the forest, gathering spirit herbs, spirit beasts, and materials while finding no second-tier spirit beasts.
• Wang Ba reached a ravine opposite Wood-Forest Island and learned from his map that passages between the danger zones led beyond Swordwave Garrison toward settlements and ghost markets.
• Wang Ba decided not to enter Wood-Forest Island and doubled back to fly toward a safer passage.

Wang Ba traveled out of Swordwave Garrison, captured a Snowflake Python, and found a bird egg before surviving an ambush by Song Buping of the Profound Puppet Dao. After learning about ghost markets and accepting a Market Entry Token, Wang Ba left the forest and reached inhabited lands.

• Wang Ba used his Spirit Beasts to capture a second-tier Snowflake Python and collected a nearly hatched egg from a nest containing second-tier feathers.
• Two Foundation Establishment corpse puppets ambushed Wang Ba, but his Azurewater Spirit Turtle blocked their attacks, and he forced Song Buping into the open.
• Wang Ba showed his Heavenly Gate Seal and Bai Yu's Voice Transmission Talisman, prompting Song Buping to apologize and offer him a Qi Refining Realm ghost-market token.
• Song Buping explained ghost-market rules and warned Wang Ba that larger markets were controlled by powerful cultivators and that rogue cultivators could be harvested for profit.
• Wang Ba accepted the Market Entry Token, sealed it against possible communication, and flew beyond the forest until he saw signs of human habitation.

Wang Ba used the Dream Creation Technique to make Wu Hai believe he was Zhu Jianyi’s friend and learned how to enter a ghost market beneath the Jinlan River. After arriving at the market, Wang Ba found little of interest until Wu Hai greeted Zhu Jianyi.

• Wang Ba met Wu Hai at a butcher’s stall in Li Sanwan, and Wu Hai denied that the town had a market.
• Wang Ba used the Dream Creation Technique to convince Wu Hai that he was a friend of Zhu Jianyi, who had connections to several ghost markets.
• Wu Hai accepted two lower-grade Spirit Stones and promised to take Wang Ba to the nearby Jinhe City ghost market without an entry token.
• Several days later, Wu Hai led Wang Ba beneath the Jinlan River through a passage opened by a Water-Repelling Talisman.
• Wang Ba explored the underground market and found little worth buying before Wu Hai spotted Zhu Jianyi and called out to him.

Wang Ba attended the Jinhe Ghost Market, where Zhu Jianyi sold Crimson Origin Pills containing mysterious flesh worms. Wang Ba used his Dream Creation technique to extract information from Zhu Jianyi, but Zhu broke free and recognized Wang Ba as a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

• Zhu Jianyi arrived at the Ghost Market and announced that his master, True Cultivator Lin, had advanced in cultivation and sent him to sell treasures.
• Zhu Jianyi distributed Crimson Origin Pills cheaply to the cultivators, and Wang Ba noticed a living flesh worm inside his pill that had no Divine Soul presence.
• Wang Ba followed Zhu Jianyi and used the Dream Creation technique to make him believe Wang Ba was his junior brother.
• Zhu Jianyi revealed that he had distributed offspring worms from a second-tier Yin-Food Bug and carried entry tokens for Ghost Markets with second-tier treasures.
• Zhu Jianyi broke free of Wang Ba's influence and attacked with the Soul-Grasping Hand, but Wang Ba crushed the technique with overwhelming Law Power.
• Zhu Jianyi sensed Wang Ba's Foundation Establishment presence and stared at him in shock and terror.

Wang Ba subdued Zhu Jianyi and learned about the sinister Yin-Food Bugs, but Zhu Jianyi’s soul-searching revealed little about the Ghost Markets. Wang Ba tested whether he could give lifespan to a cultivator, triggering a failed transformation and a deadly explosion before he fled with Zhu Jianyi and a surviving disciple.

• Wang Ba restrained Zhu Jianyi and his followers, then learned that Zhu Jianyi distributed Yin-Food Bugs that drained cultivators to nourish True Cultivator Lin and his mother insect.
• Wang Ba questioned Zhu Jianyi about the entry requirements for nearby Ghost Markets, but Zhu Jianyi claimed an oath prevented him from revealing them and offered to guide Wang Ba instead.
• Wang Ba soul-searched Zhu Jianyi and discovered that speaking about the Exquisite Ghost Market’s requirements caused Zhu Jianyi to suffer a dangerous backlash, leaving Wang Ba with little information.
• Wang Ba deposited lifespan into an unconscious Qi Refining cultivator and watched the man begin undergoing a transformation resembling an attempt at Foundation Establishment.
• The cultivator’s body failed to withstand the transformation and exploded, so Wang Ba collected the remains and escaped with Zhu Jianyi and one surviving low-level cultivator as others approached.

Wang Ba forced Zhu Jianyi to reveal how to enter the Exquisite Ghost Market, then followed him through a Teleportation Array into the market. The chapter leaves Wang Ba arriving amid the Ghost Market’s crowded stalls and announcements.

• A middle-aged scholar learned that Chang Qu, Lin Wu, and Lu Xin had died, then caused destructive waves on the river while wondering who had attacked his people.
• Zhu Jianyi awoke in a tree hollow surrounded by the remains of his companions and realized Wang Ba had kept him alive because he was useful.
• Wang Ba told Zhu Jianyi that he had planted something inside him and promised to release him after completing a Ghost Market trade if he cooperated.
• Zhu Jianyi led Wang Ba to Cloud Dragon Valley and explained that the Exquisite Ghost Market opened during the full moon inside a bandit stronghold.
• The two descended through the stronghold’s dungeon and water prison, then used a Teleportation Array powered by Zhu Jianyi’s twenty Lower-grade Spirit Stones.
• Wang Ba arrived in the Exquisite Ghost Market and heard vendors advertising goods and news about a young palace master and a traveling sword cultivator.

Wang Ba entered the real Exquisite Ghost Market after swearing a Heart Demon Oath and learned how its hidden entrance worked. He bought six Mountain-Moving Apes and several books, then acquired the Golden Wind Jade Dew Art before someone recognized Zhu Jianyi.

• Zhu Jianyi led Wang Ba through a decoy market, where Wang Ba signed a Heart Demon Oath and followed a coded command through a Teleportation Array to the real Exquisite Ghost Market.
• Wang Ba bought six Mountain-Moving Apes from a Foundation Establishment cultivator, paying with Spirit Chicken Essence, talismans, and other supplies, and exchanged Voice Transmission Talismans with the seller.
• Wang Ba bought assorted books and cultivation notes after deciding the market's pills and talismans were poor in quality.
• Wang Ba bought the Golden Wind Jade Dew Art, which could be practiced by perfecting the Golden Wind Swift Arrow Technique and transforming it into a second-tier water-attribute law technique.
• As Wang Ba prepared to leave, someone nearby recognized Zhu Jianyi and asked what he was doing there.