Chapter Summaries

Lin Chuan and the others found a Buddhist restriction blocking the ruined temple, which Liu Suifeng could not safely dismantle and Du Heng failed to break with his sword. Qin Tiexin opened it with the Arhat Fist, leaving the group unsure whether the restriction recognized the Buddhist technique or simply yielded to his strength.

• Lin Chuan chose to investigate the temple before visiting the nearby medicinal garden, where Xu Ying hoped to find thousand-year-old spirit medicines.
• Qin Tiexin triggered a golden barrier around the temple, and Liu Suifeng found that its layered Buddhist structure would take days to study and risked self-destruction if forced.
• Du Heng struck the barrier with the Mysterious Gang Stone-Splitting Sword Instruction and was hurled backward without damaging it.
• Liu Suifeng identified the barrier as a protective and screening restriction but could not determine what conditions allowed entry.
• Qin Tiexin gathered Arhat Fist Gang in his left fist and struck the barrier, which flickered and shattered as the temple's Buddha and arhat murals lit up.
• Liu Suifeng wondered whether Qin Tiexin had broken the restriction through sheer strength or because it recognized his Buddhist martial technique.

Lin Chuan and the others searched the ruined Buddhist Alchemy Chamber and divided its surviving treasures. After Liu Suifeng called them into a concealed side room, they prepared to investigate another discovery.

• Xu Ying found and claimed a repairable Pill Furnace, while Liu Suifeng took the broken formation plate to study its Buddhist restrictions.
• Qin Tiexin discovered the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Pill Formula and a fragment of the Dragon Elephant Instruction, which Xu Ying assessed as valuable but difficult to use.
• Qin Tiexin declined the scrolls, so Xu Ying stored them and copied the Pill Formula onto a Jade Slip.
• Liu Suifeng shouted for everyone to come to the concealed side room beside the Pill Formula.

Lin Chuan and his companions found a battlefield map in a hidden chamber and used it to identify a route toward the Pure Land Chan Sect’s former main encampment. They then discovered a thousand-year-old herb garden containing rare spirit medicines, and Xu Ying organized the group to harvest them.

• Liu Suifeng copied a battlefield map that showed the Pure Land Chan Sect’s main force had been stationed about two hundred li northeast.
• The five followed the path to the herb garden as the sky darkened and the scent of blood grew stronger.
• Xu Ying identified three ancient Dragon Blood Fruit trees and a living Bodhi Tree in the garden.
• Xu Ying found White Jade Elephant Ganoderma and declared that the garden held all three principal ingredients for the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Pill.
• Xu Ying assigned Liu Suifeng and Du Heng to harvest the ganoderma and supplementary herbs, while Qin Tiexin and Lin Chuan helped pick the Dragon Blood Fruit.

Lin Chuan and the others discovered that the herb garden’s medicines had been harvested about a century earlier and realized something might be guarding it. As they hurried to gather what remained, Qin Tiexin sensed killing intent just as the group faced an imminent attack.

• Lin Chuan told Liu Suifeng to set up defensive, concealment, and warning formations before the group harvested the herb garden.
• Qin Tiexin and Xu Ying discovered that the dragon blood fruits were only about a hundred years old, and the group found the white jade elephant ganoderma was similarly young.
• Lin Chuan concluded that someone had harvested the garden before and that it had an owner; Liu Suifeng’s warning formation detected residual spiritual power heading northwest from the garden.
• Lin Chuan ordered everyone to harvest quickly and leave, so Xu Ying, Qin Tiexin, Liu Suifeng, and Du Heng gathered the remaining medicines.
• Qin Tiexin felt his Fire of Life surge and sensed killing intent as he reached for another dragon blood fruit, and someone shouted, “Watch out!”

A Blood-Eyed Devil Ape attacked Qin Tiexin and his companions at the herb garden after catching them taking spirit medicines. Qin Tiexin blocked its powerful strike, and Liu Suifeng’s binding formation caught the ape, leaving the fight poised to continue.

• Qin Tiexin sensed a threat above, and a Blood-Eyed Devil Ape descended on the five people at the herb garden.
• The ape’s first blow shattered Liu Suifeng’s defensive formation, but the group scattered before it struck the ground.
• The ape attacked Qin Tiexin, who met its fist head-on with his own and held his ground.
• Du Heng and Lin Chuan struck the ape from behind, but its Qi Gang deflected their attacks.
• Liu Suifeng’s binding formation wrapped the ape’s legs in vines, and he celebrated catching it.

Du Heng severed the Blood-Eyed Devil Ape’s right arm with his strongest sword technique, but the enraged beast broke free and charged at Du Heng and Xu Ying. Lin Chuan intercepted its blow and was sent flying with Xu Ying as Qin Tiexin rushed to help.

• The devil ape broke Liu Suifeng’s vines and knocked Du Heng into the herb garden wall, but Du Heng and Liu Suifeng coordinated another binding attempt.
• Du Heng used Earth Splitter Slash, severing the devil ape’s right arm and cutting a deep wound across its shoulder and chest.
• Liu Suifeng’s binding formation failed as the devil ape’s blood baleful intent intensified, and it targeted the injured Du Heng and Xu Ying.
• Qin Tiexin charged toward the devil ape, but Lin Chuan stepped in front of Xu Ying and blocked its fist with his Golden Thread Wood-Grain Armor.
• The devil ape shattered Lin Chuan’s armor and sent him flying into Xu Ying, while Lin Chuan spat blood.

Qin Tiexin held off the demonic ape long enough to knock it into a crater, where Liu Suifeng trapped it with a Confining Quicksand Formation and prepared another formation. The ape was pinned in the sand as the Thunder Pattern Strangling Formation began to rise.

• Qin Tiexin arrived in time to shield Du Heng from the demonic ape, while Liu Suifeng dragged Du Heng to safety.
• Qin Tiexin fought the demonic ape head-on, relying on his defenses and the Fire of Life to withstand its punches.
• Qin Tiexin caught the ape's wrist, swept its legs out from under it, and drove it into a crater with a Heavy Savage Chop.
• Liu Suifeng activated the Confining Quicksand Formation, sinking and binding the demonic ape in the crater.
• Liu Suifeng raised eight purple flags and activated the Thunder Pattern Strangling Formation.

Qin Tiexin, Liu Suifeng, and Lin Chuan badly wounded the demonic ape with lightning and coordinated attacks, but it survived and tried to flee. Qin Tiexin stopped it and stunned it with Lion’s Roar, allowing Lin Chuan to strike at the back of its head with Azure Ribbon.

• Liu Suifeng used eight formation flags to bombard the demonic ape with lightning, then collapsed from the spiritual power the formations consumed.
• The demonic ape survived the attack and limped toward the edge of the medicinal garden, frightened and badly injured.
• At Lin Chuan’s urging, Qin Tiexin intercepted the fleeing demonic ape and fought it with Arhat Fist.
• The demonic ape tried to blast Qin Tiexin with blood baleful intent, but Qin Tiexin’s Lion’s Roar overpowered the attack and left it momentarily dazed.
• Lin Chuan drew his hidden flexible sword, Azure Ribbon, and thrust it toward the back of the demonic ape’s head.

Lin Chuan and Qin Tiexin killed the demonic ape with help from their companions, then the group treated their injuries and prepared to spend the night in the damaged herb garden. Du Heng began examining the beast as they considered why it was so powerful.

• Lin Chuan pierced the demonic ape’s head with Azure Ribbon, killing it and freeing Qin Tiexin.
• Xu Ying treated Lin Chuan and Qin Tiexin, while Liu Suifeng praised Lin Chuan’s sword and rebuilt the garden’s defensive formations.
• Lin Chuan decided the group would rest in the herb garden overnight and leave the next morning.
• Xu Ying treated Lin Chuan’s chest injury and told him not to use his spiritual power that night.
• Qin Tiexin surveyed the ruined spirit medicines, and Du Heng examined the demonic ape’s severed arm and speculated about its strength.

Du Heng dissected the Blood-Eyed Devil Ape and explained the value of its demon core, eyes, heart, and Spirit Bones, revealing that his family specialized in hunting and selling Demon Beast materials. Qin Tiexin realized the Du Household might supply the flesh and blood his cultivation needed and asked Du Heng how his family handled those remains.

• Du Heng extracted the devil ape's demon core, eyes, heart, and two Spirit Bones, explaining their uses and market value.
• Qin Tiexin asked why Du Heng knew so much about Demon Beast materials.
• Lin Chuan explained that the Du Household ran mercenary companies and beast-hunting teams, and that Du Heng had hunted beasts since childhood.
• Qin Tiexin considered using the Du Household's Demon Beast flesh and blood for his True Fire Furnace Scripture.
• Qin Tiexin asked Du Heng how his family handled the flesh and blood left after removing valuable Demon Beast materials.

Du Heng, Qin Tiexin, and their companions discussed buying surplus Demon Beast flesh for Qin Tiexin’s body refinement, then Qin Tiexin began stewing the Demon Ape heart and meat. While the cauldron cooked, the group salvaged medicinal plants from the damaged herb garden, ending with Xu Ying carefully preparing to transplant its precious Bodhi Tree.

• Qin Tiexin asked Du Heng to sell him surplus Foundation Establishment Late Stage or stronger Demon Beast flesh, but Du Heng offered to give it to him for free.
• Lin Chuan suggested they settle the matter after leaving and proposed that Qin Tiexin keep the Demon Ape heart to stew and share.
• Qin Tiexin put the Demon Ape heart, meat, and medicinal ingredients into his rune-inscribed cauldron, and Xu Ying added two Dragon Blood Fruits.
• Lin Chuan directed Du Heng and Liu Suifeng to gather the remaining medicinal ingredients and told Xu Ying to transplant the intact Dragon Blood Tree.
• Du Heng uprooted the Dragon Blood Tree and placed it in Xu Ying’s special storage ring, while Xu Ying carefully dug around the Bodhi Tree’s roots to prepare it for transplantation.

Qin Tiexin and his companions recovered after defeating the Blood-Eyed Devil Ape, then followed a map and Liu Suifeng’s formation disc through the secret realm. After traveling northeast for two days, they had covered roughly a hundred and twenty li without finding another medicinal garden or encountering another beast as powerful as the ape.

• Qin Tiexin cooked the devil ape’s heart and flesh with the Dragon Blood Fruit, and Liu Suifeng, Du Heng, Lin Chuan, and Xu Ying each ate a small amount.
• Qin Tiexin consumed the remaining heart, meat, and broth, then refined their Qi and Blood overnight until his Essence Blood reached seventy-five percent.
• Xu Ying checked the group’s injuries and gave Lin Chuan pills, while Du Heng and Lin Chuan concealed the traces of their battle in the medicinal garden and Buddhist temple.
• Liu Suifeng confirmed their northeast direction with the temple map and his formation disc, and the five set out across the wasteland.
• The group traveled roughly a hundred and twenty li northeast over two days, avoiding dangerous areas and encountering no further powerful Demon Beasts.

The squad found several remnants of the ancient battlefield, including a fragment of a Golden Core formation disk and an incomplete wood-attribute sword art, before discovering a spiritual spring sustained by a deteriorating Spirit Gathering Formation. As they began collecting its water, six figures appeared across the lake.

• Liu Suifeng found and copied the patterns from a damaged Golden Core defensive formation disk.
• Lin Chuan found an incomplete Nascent Soul sword art called Azure Wood Sword Gang and kept its two surviving moves for later study.
• Qin Tiexin and Du Heng uncovered two green-patterned copper staff blanks, while the squad passed up other finds that were too risky or time-consuming to pursue.
• After two days, the squad reached a small lake whose Spirit Gathering Formation had accumulated a valuable spiritual spring from lingering spiritual power.
• Liu Suifeng explained that the spring was nearing the end of its life, so the five searched for containers and prepared to collect its water.
• Lin Chuan sensed danger across the lake, Qin Tiexin moved to shield Liu Suifeng and Xu Ying, and six figures emerged from behind the opposite hillside.

Lin Chuan and his companions confronted six Buddhist warrior monks who tried to claim the lake, and Liu Suifeng trapped them in two formations to begin a fight. Qin Tiexin bypassed the front line and attacked the formation master, leaving the battle unresolved as his kick struck toward the man’s chest.

• A tall monk ordered Lin Chuan and his companions to leave the lake, claiming it shared a karmic bond with his Buddhist order.
• Lin Chuan challenged the claim, but the monk argued that six Buddhist disciples outweighed Qin Tiexin, their lone monk.
• Liu Suifeng activated the Essence-Locking Spirit-Trapping Array and Confining Quicksand Formation beneath the six monks.
• Qin Tiexin, Lin Chuan, and Du Heng charged across the lake while Liu Suifeng and Xu Ying supported them from behind a defensive barrier.
• Du Heng and Lin Chuan engaged the monks at the front as Qin Tiexin used the shield’s recoil to vault toward the formation master.
• Qin Tiexin descended before the formation master and kicked toward his chest.

Qin Tiexin, Lin Chuan, and Du Heng drove off the monks by trapping their formation master and bombarding their defensive barrier, then collected the spirit spring. The group buried the remains of a Golden Core Buddhist cultivator and left the area quickly, while the departing monk hinted that he and Qin Tiexin would meet again.

• Liu Suifeng’s vines bound the formation master, and Qin Tiexin kicked the fallen formation disc back to Liu Suifeng.
• Qin Tiexin, Lin Chuan, and Du Heng retreated beyond the formation and attacked the five monks with talismans, but the monks joined their spiritual power to withstand the fire dragons.
• The tall monk conceded the spirit spring, and he led his four junior brothers away after Liu Suifeng released the formation master.
• Xu Ying used a jade bottle to drain the lake, revealing a Golden Core Buddhist cultivator’s remains and broken formation pieces.
• Lin Chuan collected and buried the golden bones, while Du Heng and Liu Suifeng erased the group’s traces before they departed northeast.

Six monks pursued Mingjue and the others, planning to kill him at a pair of peaks, while the five companions continued northeast after collecting spirit spring water. Liu Suifeng described his plan to inscribe formations on the body, and Qin Tiexin felt the idea stir a vague memory in his sea of consciousness.

• The six monks identified Mingjue as a surviving remnant of Zhaoming Temple and hurried northeast to prepare a trap for him.
• Du Heng buried the traces of the group’s visit to the lake, and Liu Suifeng retrieved the formation flags before the five continued onward.
• Du Heng teased Liu Suifeng about his cultivation, and Liu Suifeng defended his formation studies and boasted about his Ultimate Cultivation Formation.
• Liu Suifeng explained his idea of inscribing formations onto a cultivator’s body, while Du Heng and Lin Chuan warned him about the dangers.
• Liu Suifeng examined the confiscated Buddhist formation plate, and Qin Tiexin felt a vague fragment stir in his sea of consciousness.

Qin Tiexin and the others reached Sky-Splitting Cliff, where Liu Suifeng discovered that Spiritual Qi steadily declined toward the canyon until it vanished completely. They weighed detouring against crossing the dangerous passage, and Lin Chuan was left to decide their route.

• Qin Tiexin saw a fleeting vision of a golden rune merging into someone, then continued onward with the group.
• Liu Suifeng confirmed with his formation disk that they had reached Sky-Splitting Cliff, the former Pure Land Chan Sect encampment and a route to the ancient battlefield.
• Liu Suifeng found that Spiritual Qi grew thinner toward the cliff and would reach zero there, while Qin Tiexin sensed that the uniform decline was an ancient remnant.
• Liu Suifeng explained that spiritual power, Law Techniques, storage rings, Law Artifacts, and protective spiritual light would all fail inside the Spiritual-Qi-free area.
• Lin Chuan considered the detours, Du Heng suggested rushing through the two-li passage, and Xu Ying advised going around before everyone looked to Lin Chuan for a decision.

Lin Chuan devised a rope-guided plan to cross the spirit-devoid passage, with Qin Tiexin going first because his body cultivation made him best suited to face danger without Spiritual Qi. As the group approached Sky-Splitting Cliff, the thinning Spiritual Qi forced them to prepare equipment and stop just short of the canyon entrance.

• Lin Chuan asked for sturdy rope, and Liu Suifeng and Xu Ying provided coils that he tied together into a line long enough for the crossing.
• Lin Chuan assigned Qin Tiexin to scout ahead with the rope secured around him, while the others planned to follow in order and pull him back if danger appeared.
• As the group advanced, Lin Chuan told everyone to take out their equipment and supplies before the Spiritual Qi grew too thin to access their storage items.
• Du Heng put on bone armor, Lin Chuan readied his armor and sword, and Xu Ying distributed pills for injuries and protection against mental attacks.
• The group continued through the draining Spiritual Qi, and Lin Chuan stopped them fewer than three hundred paces from the entrance to Sky-Splitting Cliff.

Qin Tiexin entered Sky-Splitting Cliff to investigate the region without Spiritual Qi while his companions carefully managed a safety rope outside. His spiritual powers faded completely inside, leaving him to rely on physical strength as he cleared a path through the gorge.

• Qin Tiexin and the others examined the immense sword scars and prepared a rope-guided plan for his entry into Sky-Splitting Cliff.
• Lin Chuan instructed Qin Tiexin to clear hazards, signal danger with a hard tug, and signal Spiritual Qi or the end of the rope with distinct tugs.
• Qin Tiexin walked into the gorge and found that his Spiritual Qi had dwindled, his cultivation techniques were unusable, and his Fire of Life had weakened.
• Qin Tiexin confirmed that his physical strength remained and continued through the gorge after all Spiritual Qi vanished at its entrance.
• Qin Tiexin pushed broken weapons and debris aside to protect the rope as his companions paid it out beyond a li, waiting without any sign of trouble.

Qin Tiexin was trapped inside the gorge after attackers dropped two boulders to seal both exits, while Lin Chuan set out to reach him. Qin Tiexin spotted a concealed cave high on the cliff and braced for the ambushers’ next move.

• Qin Tiexin hurried toward the gorge’s exit, but a boulder crashed down ahead of him, revealing a deliberate ambush.
• Qin Tiexin ran back toward the entrance, but a second boulder blocked his retreat and pinned the rope around his waist.
• Qin Tiexin freed himself from the rope, readied his staff and pills, and searched the cliffs for the attackers.
• Liu Suifeng and the others felt the rope go taut, and Lin Chuan sent them to wait while he tied on the rope and ran to help Qin Tiexin.
• Qin Tiexin spotted a disguised cave partway up the cliff and prepared for the ambushers to attack.