Chapter Summaries

Song Yan visited Lin Qing to ask about Breakthrough Pills and learned that large numbers of Devil Cultivators had appeared near the Chu-Qi border, prompting a two-year sect assignment and changes to the competition. The assignment and Whole-Sect Grand Competition had not yet begun, leaving Song Yan to weigh his future chances of earning a pill.

• Song Yan visited Lin Qing, who explained that his earlier cultivation mishap had passed and heard Song Yan ask about Breakthrough Pills.
• Lin Qing told Song Yan that large numbers of Devil Cultivators had appeared near the border between Chu Kingdom and Qi Kingdom, and that the Six Great Sects were organizing a two-year assignment to guard Changping.
• Lin Qing explained that disciples could earn contribution toward Breakthrough Pills by serving in rotations or by finding and killing Devil Cultivators.
• Lin Qing told Song Yan that the Inner Sect Grand Competition had been canceled and replaced by a Whole-Sect Grand Competition open to Outer Sect disciples, but it had been postponed until the assignment ended.
• Song Yan learned that the border assignment was still being planned and might begin several months later, then thanked Lin Qing and left.

Song Yan continued cultivating on Greenleaf Peak and learned that a Mingjue Pill would be auctioned at Spirit Stream Market next month. He left considering whether he could secure it to improve his chances of breaking through to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer.

• Song Yan spent more than half a month cultivating, honing his sword techniques, and confirming that his rapid progress had not weakened his foundation.
• Song Yan noticed that Joined Branches seemed to be growing stronger in the Sword Case, while Unmoored Boat showed no similar change.
• Song Yan visited Qin Xijun and found her stamping pills with a counterfeit Dongyuan Sect Pill Workshop seal to sell at auction.
• Song Yan asked Qin Xijun about pills for breaking through bottlenecks, and she told him a Mingjue Pill from Hanging Sword Mountain would be auctioned at Spirit Stream Market next month.
• Song Yan calculated that the Mingjue Pill, supplemented with Spirit Condensation Pills, could raise his chances of advancing to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer to roughly eighty percent.

Song Yan disguised himself as a rogue cultivator and entered the secret auction at Spirit Stream Market, wary of the dangers of revealing his sect ties. As the auction was about to begin, a strange little girl recognized his disguise and asked him to give her his fake face once they returned to the sect.

• Song Yan visited Qin Xijun, who warned him that Spirit Stream Market was more chaotic than Spirit Source Marsh Night Market and told him to be careful.
• Song Yan spent a month cultivating on Greenleaf Peak before traveling to Spirit Stream Market for its auction.
• Song Yan disguised himself as a rogue cultivator and entered the market, then used the password for a tavern's hidden entrance to reach the underground auction hall.
• Song Yan took an empty seat and noticed a barefoot little girl watching him and laughing.
• The girl leaned close to Song Yan, identified his face as fake, and asked him to give it to her once they were back at the sect.

Song Yan won the Mingjue Pill at the Spirit Stream Market auction and hurried to leave, but two cultivators began pursuing him after he crossed the market’s boundary. He concealed his presence and prepared to find an opening to escape.

• Song Yan watched the auction while wondering how the mysterious girl had recognized him as a Dongyuan Sect disciple.
• The girl bid on several spirit insects, while Song Yan waited for the Mingjue Pill and avoided drawing attention.
• Song Yan outbid a black-robed cultivator for the Mingjue Pill at six hundred and twenty Spirit Stones.
• Song Yan paid for the pill and left the auction through a side hall, then hurried toward the edge of Spirit Stream Market.
• Two cultivators approached Song Yan after he left the market, and he fled toward the Dongyuan Sect using Wind-Escape Talismans.
• Song Yan estimated his pursuers were at the Qi Refining eighth and seventh layers, concealed himself with the Hidden Sword Spirit-Concealing Art, and waited for an opportunity to escape.

Song Yan was nearly killed by the Zheng brothers, but a mysterious girl riding a giant toad intervened and helped him defeat them. The brothers died in the forest, while Song Yan was left wondering why the girl had aided him.

• Zheng Haiyan and Zheng Heqing used a talisman to flush Song Yan out of hiding and attacked him, but his Greenwood Calamity-Averting Talisman left them striking a wooden duplicate.
• A blue-clad girl riding a giant toad appeared and sent a blue butterfly to drain Zheng Heqing's spiritual power.
• Song Yan seized the opening and struck Zheng Heqing with his Sword Essence, breaking his Protective Spirit Jade and killing him.
• Zheng Haiyan tried to escape, but spider silk blocked his path and a scorpion stinger impaled him.
• The girl's insects dragged away both brothers' corpses as Song Yan watched and questioned her motives.

Song Yan was rescued from the black-robed cultivators by Xiang Zhaoling, an eerie girl from beyond the Central Plains who knew Gu Qingqing and had taken an interest in him. Back at his cave abode, he reconsidered his cultivation plans and resolved to advance steadily before taking advantage of future opportunities.

• Xiang Zhaoling used her giant scorpion to reveal Song Yan’s disguise and let him leave after taking his human-skin mask.
• Xiang Zhaoling introduced herself, asked whether Song Yan and Gu Qingqing were lovers, and invited him to become her lover or bedmate.
• Xiang Zhaoling departed on her giant toad, and Song Yan returned to Greenleaf Peak using a Wind-Escaping Talisman.
• Song Yan examined the Mingjue Pill he had won at auction and considered how it changed his plans for cultivation and obtaining a Breakthrough Pill.
• Song Yan decided to cultivate steadily toward the Late Qi Refining Stage before his future posting in Changping.

Shao Sichao reported Song Yan’s rapid progress and unusual Demonic Thoughts to his master as Song Yan consolidated his breakthrough to the late Qi Refining stage and entered the Heart-Refining Road to qualify for the Inner Sect. The trial began by recreating the Qingshan Thatched Cottage and the white-haired old man from Song Yan’s memories.

• Shao Sichao wrote to his master about Song Yan’s cultivation, Sword Cultivator inheritance, and likely participation in the Changping Garrison assignment, while minimizing his own false information about Song Yan’s hometown.
• Song Yan finished consolidating his breakthrough to the late Qi Refining stage and discovered that his Divine Sense had expanded considerably.
• Song Yan learned that Xiao He had become a first-tier early-stage Demon Beast and could conceal her presence.
• Song Yan decided to pursue Inner Sect entry and went to the General Affairs Hall to begin the Heart-Refining Road.
• Song Yan entered the trial and found himself at the Qingshan Thatched Cottage, where a white-haired old man tended a medicinal seedling.

Song Yan recalled his grandfather’s lesson about mortality and resolved that true immortality meant freedom from all restraints, completing his Heart of the Dao-Seeker on the Heart-Refining Road. After advancing to the Inner Sect, he received his robe and jade token and was invited to choose a main peak.

• As a child, Song Yan heard his grandfather explain that life and death were natural and that mortals should live freely rather than force life to endure.
• Song Yan recognized that mortals suffered and died under illness, hunger, and the power of others, and resolved to become free of all restraints.
• Song Yan’s resolve stirred the Dao Seed and Embryonic Dao Heart, and he completed the Heart of the Dao-Seeker as the Heart-Refining Road’s vision dissolved.
• An attendant disciple congratulated Song Yan on passing the trial and advancing to the Inner Sect, then gave him an Inner Sect robe and jade token.
• The attendant disciple escorted Song Yan to choose a main peak, explaining that six peaks had openings and that Lianyou Peak accepted no male disciples.

Song Yan chose Sword-Wiping Peak when he entered the Inner Sect and completed the sect’s formalities. He then visited Qin Xijun to share the news, and she insisted they celebrate his apprenticeship with wine.

• Song Yan chose Sword-Wiping Peak, hoping its battle-loving disciples would help him comprehend Sword Intent.
• An administrative disciple updated Song Yan’s jade token and robes, making him an Inner Sect disciple of Sword-Wiping Peak.
• Song Yan completed the incense, worship, and oath rituals in the Patriarch Hall, then wondered whether founding patriarch Li Jun had been a Sword Cultivator.
• Song Yan visited Qin Xijun and told her he had entered the Inner Sect.
• Qin Xijun stopped Song Yan from bowing and declared that they would celebrate their master-disciple bond by drinking spirit wine.

After advancing to the Inner Sect, Song Yan moved with Xiao He to a new cave abode on Sword-Wiping Peak. He studied the crisis in Changping and began planning for a dangerous mission he intended to join within three months.

• Song Yan woke from a drunken night with Qin Xijun, covered her with a blanket, and returned to Greenleaf Peak.
• Song Yan packed his belongings and Xiao He's toys, completed the handover at Sitting-and-Forgetting Peak, and moved into a spacious cave abode on Sword-Wiping Peak.
• Song Yan read a Jade Slip describing Changping, where devil cultivators, evil cultivators, and demon cultivators had gathered amid repeated disturbances.
• Song Yan learned that the Six Great Sects were sending disciples to Changping and offering merit redeemable for items from their pooled treasuries.
• Song Yan put away the Jade Slip and began planning how to prepare for the dangerous journey to Changping.

Song Yan prepared supplies for his upcoming year-long mission in Changping, carefully balancing cultivation needs against his limited Spirit Stones. After buying Yellow Sprout Pills and Little Spirit Gathering Formation disks at the Treasure Gathering Pavilion, he noticed an unusual gray talisman and asked what it was.

• Song Yan weighed the costs of a year in Changping and decided to buy durable cultivation supplies while preserving Spirit Stones.
• Song Yan recalled from the Evil Cultivator Notes that operating long-lasting spiritual talismans consumed spiritual power, and resolved to prioritize quality over quantity.
• Song Yan visited the Treasure Gathering Pavilion, where an attendant respectfully offered to help him shop.
• Song Yan bought ten bottles of Yellow Sprout Pills and formation disks for Little Spirit Gathering Formations, spending over two hundred Spirit Stones.
• Song Yan noticed a gray talisman marked with three beadlike pieces of jade and asked the attendant what kind it was.

Song Yan learned about a rare, incomplete Talisman Treasure at the Treasure Gathering Pavilion and bought it to guard against soul attacks on his coming journey to Changping. After finishing his preparations and spending more than three hundred and sixty Spirit Stones, he returned to his cave abode to cultivate while waiting for his departure.

• Zhou Baogui explained that Talisman Treasures contained some of a Law Treasure’s power and could be used by Qi Refining cultivators, though at reduced strength.
• Zhou Baogui told Song Yan that the jade-bead Talisman Treasure defended against spiritual-sense attacks but had only half an incense stick of power remaining and cost a hundred and fifty Spirit Stones.
• Song Yan bought the Talisman Treasure because he feared soul-targeting dangers in Changping’s ghost mountains.
• Zhou Baogui packed Song Yan’s purchases in a new Heaven and Earth Bag and gave him the bag as a gift.
• Song Yan bought more necessities, spending over three hundred and sixty Spirit Stones in total, then returned to his cave abode to cultivate and wait.

Song Yan arrived in Changping with Elder Yu Tian and settled into the disciples’ temporary lodgings, where the poor Spiritual Qi made cultivation difficult. He found Li Qingfeng confronting Cheng Yu over the dangerous patrol assignment given to Junior Sister Cen, and the chapter ended as Cheng Yu noticed Song Yan approaching.

• Song Yan traveled with Elder Yu Tian and the incoming Dongyuan Sect disciples to Changping Commandery City.
• Xu Ziqing welcomed the group and arranged lodging for the garrison disciples at Yangwu Courtyard.
• Song Yan inspected his room, set up a simple alarm formation, and found the local Spiritual Qi exceptionally poor.
• Li Qingfeng challenged Cheng Yu for assigning Junior Sister Cen to patrol the outskirts of the Corpse-Bone Abyss alone.
• Cheng Yu defended the assignment and mocked the objections before spotting Song Yan approaching.

Song Yan reunited with Li Qingfeng in Changping and learned that devil cultivators, evil cultivators, and demon cultivators had made the city dangerously chaotic. After considering the trouble Cheng Yu might cause, Song Yan went to Lianheng Tower for his assignment and saw Shen Huai among the gathered cultivators.

• Song Yan caught the token Cheng Yu tossed away and rejoined Li Qingfeng, revealing that he had reached the late Qi Refining stage.
• Li Qingfeng told Song Yan that Changping was overrun by competing forces and that Cheng Yu used his parents’ positions in the Sheyang Sect to interfere with Dongyuan Sect assignments.
• Song Yan considered killing Cheng Yu as the simplest way to avoid trouble, but recognized the danger of killing a fellow cultivator connected to Sheyang Sect elders.
• Song Yan cultivated with a Yellow Sprout Pill, then headed to Lianheng Tower with the other cultivators for duty assignments.
• Song Yan saw Cong Yuzhen, Xu Ziqing, and Shen Huai at Lianheng Tower, and regarded Shen Huai coldly because of their history in Silent Valley.

Song Yan joined Squad A-1’s standing patrol and learned that Shigu Flatland near the Corpse-Bone Abyss was their most dangerous patrol area. Outside the Abyss, Liu Ciming paid an ape demon on behalf of the Yellow Springs Way and then encountered two newly arrived disciples from the Seed Demon Way.

• Xu Ziqing assigned Song Yan to Squad A-1, where Dai Rui welcomed him and explained the patrol duties.
• Song Yan saw Shen Huai in the squad but remained wary of her because of the events in Silent Valley.
• Dai Rui led Squad A-1 out of Changping Commandery City and said they would patrol Shigu Flatland, which bordered the Corpse-Bone Abyss.
• Liu Ciming gave a Heaven and Earth Bag of requested items to an ape demon outside the Corpse-Bone Abyss, then left with his cultivators.
• Liu Ciming noticed two unfamiliar cultivators confronting his disciples and learned they were Lü Qin and Sheng Nian, disciples sent by the Seed Demon Way.

Sheng Nian concealed his plans while managing the threat posed by Lü Qin, as Song Yan adjusted to life in Changping and prepared to visit Cold Mountain Market. The chapter left Song Yan traveling toward the market to seek the local Yellow Springs Netherworld Pill.

• Liu Ciming ended the dispute and ordered the cultivators to avoid attracting the Six Great Sects before leaving with the Yellow Springs Devil Way.
• Sheng Nian rebuked Lü Qin, then learned from the demonic voice within him that the Rogue Cultivator of Xin Mountain intended to possess his body and that Lü Qin likely carried a demon seed.
• Sheng Nian considered killing Lü Qin but decided against it because the Rogue Cultivator of Xin Mountain would discover his death.
• After half a month in Changping, Song Yan grew frustrated with Cheng Yu, whose influence kept saddling him with extra patrols and disrupting his cultivation.
• On his day off, Song Yan set out for Cold Mountain Market to learn the route and look for the Yellow Springs Netherworld Pill.

Song Yan encountered a group of devil cultivators using a staged assault to lure victims near Cold Mountain. He killed the woman and nearly killed the man playing her attacker, then attacked the group's leader as the remaining ambushers emerged.

• Song Yan sensed a staged rescue trap, a hidden killing formation, and four other cultivators lying in ambush.
• Recognizing a familiar presence, Song Yan approached the rocks, where the woman pleaded for help and the rogue cultivator claimed to be one of the Five Demons of Cold Mountain.
• Song Yan asked whether they were devil cultivators and launched Joined Branches and Unmoored Boat at the pair.
• Joined Branches killed the woman, while Unmoored Boat nearly killed the fifth-layer cultivator before a small gong blocked it.
• Three more devil cultivators emerged from the woods, and Song Yan immediately sent Unmoored Boat toward their leader, declaring he had no interest in the identities of dead men.

Song Yan and Sheng Nian killed the Five Demons of Cold Mountain, then met at Cold Mountain Market to discuss why devil cultivators had gathered in Changping. Sheng Nian revealed that they were being used as cannon fodder in pursuit of a devil-path rogue cultivator named Jin Tianya, who had fled from the Central Region.

• A black-robed Sheng Nian ambushed the Five Demons of Cold Mountain, while Song Yan killed their leader with his sword essence.
• Sheng Nian killed the remaining demons, and Song Yan collected their heads and possessions before continuing to Lesser Cold Mountain.
• Song Yan reached Cold Mountain Market and met Sheng Nian at the Cloud-Drinking Tower.
• Sheng Nian told Song Yan that devil cultivators had been lured to Changping as cannon fodder while a rogue cultivator was pursued.
• Sheng Nian revealed that the rogue cultivator, Jin Tianya, had escaped a recently suppressed uprising in Great Tang in the Central Region.

Song Yan agreed to help Sheng Nian kill someone in exchange for Sheng Nian helping him kill a disciple of the Six Great Sects. After reporting the Devil Cultivators he had killed, Song Yan learned that they belonged to the Seed Demon Way, and the elders began investigating why multiple Devil Cultivator traditions had gathered near Changping.

• Sheng Nian told Song Yan that Devil Cultivators from the Yellow Springs Way and Corpse-Bone Abyss were searching for a possible person carrying a lost Central Region treasure, then asked Song Yan to help him kill someone.
• Song Yan proposed that Sheng Nian help him kill a disciple of the Six Great Sects, and Sheng Nian reacted with apprehension.
• Song Yan bought Yellow Springs Netherworld Pills, returned to Changping Commandery City, and told Dai Rui that he had killed five Devil Cultivators after stumbling on their fight.
• Dai Rui identified five identical scripture fragments among the Devil Cultivators' possessions as parts of the Blood Sacrifice Seed Demon Scripture and reported that the men were disciples of the Seed Demon Way.
• Dai Rui and Song Yan reported the discovery to the elders at Lianheng Tower, who worried about the presence of both the Yellow Springs Way and Seed Demon Way in Changping.
• An elder praised Song Yan for killing five Devil Cultivators without injury, and Song Yan said their strongest fighter had already been exhausted.

Song Yan registered merits for killing five Devil Cultivators, prompting the six sects to increase patrols across Changping. As he planned around Cheng Yu’s patrol assignment, he learned that Shen Yu would soon arrive as the Xuanyuan Sect’s new resident elder, raising the possibility of a more dangerous enemy.

• Song Yan registered sixty-five merit points for slaying the Five Demons of Cold Mountain, then rejected the idea of repeatedly hunting Devil Cultivators to avoid drawing suspicion.
• The six sects increased patrols throughout Changping, forcing internal-duty disciples such as Cheng Yu to take regular assignments.
• Song Yan used Yellow Springs Netherworld Pills to filter impurities from Changping’s Spiritual Qi while cultivating.
• Song Yan found Cheng Yu’s patrol assignment for the twenty-ninth in Cao Yuan Township and noted its details.
• Song Yan overheard that Shen Yu had reached the Foundation Establishment late stage and would arrive in Changping in a few days as the Xuanyuan Sect’s new resident elder.