Chapter Summaries

Yang Zhen learned about the Nine Realms Exquisite Pagoda in Raging Fire City and met Wang Shuiyan’s group while traveling there. After he hurried away, the group recognized him as Yang the Skinflint, just as Tonglin Sect elder Ma Dexing arrived in pursuit.

• Yang Zhen asked Wang Shuiyan about the Nine Realms Exquisite Pagoda, and she explained its cultivation benefits and invited him to travel with her group to Raging Fire City.
• Yang Zhen fended off Young Master Lu’s objections with flattery and a made-up story about being ill-omened, then sensed danger and ran off after giving his name as Yang Zhen.
• Wang Shuiyan and her companions realized Yang Zhen was the infamous Yang the Skinflint who had attacked Zhang Zongjin, while Wang Shuiyan continued admiring him.
• Ma Dexing, an elder of the Tonglin Sect, flew toward Yang Zhen and shouted for him to stop.

Yang Zhen fled Ma Dexing while taunting him, then used the wooden stick he had carried to neutralize Ma Dexing’s Thunderclap sword. He grabbed the fallen weapon and ran, leaving Ma Dexing and the watching group stunned.

• Ma Dexing pursued Yang Zhen after learning about the Blood Silkworm, while Wang Shuiyan and the others watched from behind.
• Yang Zhen mocked Ma Dexing and continued fleeing, even after Ma Dexing struck him with a spear of True Essence and knocked him down.
• Yang Zhen picked up his wooden stick, challenged Ma Dexing to strike him three times, and drew the watching group’s attention.
• Ma Dexing sent his Thunderclap sword at Yang Zhen, who triggered a wave from the wooden stick that shattered it and knocked the sword to the ground.
• Yang Zhen seized Thunderclap and ran, leaving Ma Dexing and the onlookers bewildered.

Yang Zhen escaped Ma Dexing by using a formation-inscribed wooden stick to disable the Startling Thunder Sword and steal it, then traveled toward Raging Fire City. In a mountain forest near the Volcanic Forest, he came across a group of cultivators and pretended the woman in white was his cousin.

• Yang Zhen took Ma Dexing's Startling Thunder Sword and fled, leaving Ma Dexing roaring with rage as he failed to catch him.
• Yang Zhen used the Heavenly Book: Profound Principles Chapter to erase Ma Dexing's Divine Sense imprint from the sword over ten days, then recovered and advanced to the Foundation Establishment Realm Seventh Layer.
• Yang Zhen traveled toward Raging Fire City and sensed unusually strong fire essence and mournful cries coming from the Volcanic Forest.
• Yang Zhen found a group of cultivators, including a white-clad woman and a man whose cultivation was at the Foundation Establishment Realm Ninth Layer.
• Yang Zhen rushed toward the woman, called her his cousin, and claimed to be her eldest cousin when she demanded to know who he was.

Yang Zhen joined Lu Xueqing and Wu Guang’s group by pretending to be Lu Xueqing’s cousin, then accompanied them into the Volcanic Forest to investigate a deadly disturbance. As strange Fire Qi drew the women toward Yang Zhen, the group discovered a dark-red-mist-shrouded altar deep in the forest.

• Yang Zhen pretended that Lu Xueqing was his cousin, and Wu Guang invited him to join the Heavenly Martial Sect group investigating the Volcanic Forest.
• Wu Guang told Yang Zhen that fierce beasts had roared from the forest three days earlier and that no one who entered had returned.
• Yang Zhen sensed chilling Yin Qi mixed with the Fire Qi as Lu Xueqing and the other women repeatedly drifted closer to him.
• Wu Guang noticed something strange about the Fire Qi fluctuations, and a Heavenly Martial Sect disciple spotted an altar shrouded in dark red mist.

Yang Zhen and the others investigated a sinister altar whose influence weakened near him, then found the remains of missing cultivators and discovered the heart-shaped Heavenly Fragrance Fruits inside. Lu Xueqing explained that the fruits could drive a man into a fatal frenzy, but Yang Zhen had already started eating one.

• Yang Zhen reassured Lu Xueqing and the other women when they felt the altar's strange influence, and the women found that it lessened near him.
• Wu Guang agreed to lead the group into the altar while Yang Zhen followed behind with Lu Xueqing and the others.
• The group entered an underground chamber and found more than ten recently dead cultivators stripped of flesh and blood around a stone platform.
• Wu Guang and Yang Zhen found bright-red fruits inside the platform, and Yang Zhen felt a strong urge to eat one.
• Lu Xueqing identified the fruits as Heavenly Fragrance Fruits and explained that they could make a man lose control until his Qi and Blood were depleted.
• Yang Zhen continued chewing a Heavenly Fragrance Fruit as everyone stared at him in horror.

Yang Zhen used the Heavenly Fragrance Fruit to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm Ninth Layer, survived the altar’s collapse, and found a mysterious jade-green seed. He reached Raging Fire City, where a reckless carriage nearly struck him, and learned that its owner was someone people feared to criticize.

• Yang Zhen ate the Heavenly Fragrance Fruit, alarming Lu Xueqing, Wu Guang, and the others as its fragrance affected the women.
• Yang Zhen circulated the fruit’s power through his meridians, purified it into primordial catalyst, and rapidly advanced to the Foundation Establishment Realm Eighth Layer.
• The altar shook and collapsed as Lu Xueqing and Wu Guang led the others to safety, leaving Yang Zhen buried beneath the ruins.
• Yang Zhen crawled out with a bundle of Heavenly Fragrance Fruits and a jade-green seed, having reached the Foundation Establishment Realm Ninth Layer.
• Yang Zhen traveled to Raging Fire City, dodged a speeding carriage, and asked a young cultivator who its arrogant owner was.

Yang Zhen learned about Raging Fire City’s powerful figures from Ma Yuan, then headed to the Long Moon Pavilion and encountered Ding Keqi again. After the crowd warned him to avoid Ding Keqi, Yang Zhen slapped the young master on the back of the head, leaving the hall stunned.

• Yang Zhen met Ma Yuan, who warned him about Ding Keqi of the Ding Lineage and Lan Fangyue of the Lan Household.
• Yang Zhen gave Ma Yuan crystals for information, then secretly took Ma Yuan’s crystal pouch before leaving.
• Yang Zhen followed the crowd to the Long Moon Pavilion and examined the powerful formation protecting it.
• Yang Zhen recognized Ding Keqi as the man who had driven recklessly through the streets, while onlookers warned him that Ding Keqi might remember him.
• Yang Zhen entered the pavilion, found Ding Keqi blocking a notice board, and slapped him on the back of the head.

Yang Zhen provoked Ding Keqi in the Long Moon Pavilion, where Lan Fangyue intervened to enforce the rules and stop their fight. Yang Zhen then accepted the pavilion’s long-unsolved task to decipher part of a saint-level martial skill, leaving the crowd stunned.

• Ma Yuan watched Ding Keqi prepare to accept the Long Moon Pavilion’s task of deciphering a saint-level martial skill.
• Yang Zhen slapped Ding Keqi on the back of the head and claimed Ding Keqi had blocked his way.
• Ding Keqi attacked Yang Zhen with a golden lion of True Essence, but Lan Fangyue stepped between them and forbade fighting inside the pavilion.
• Lan Fangyue explained that she was maintaining order as a guest elder, while Ding Keqi angrily accused her of taking Yang Zhen’s side.
• Yang Zhen tore the task sheet from the board and accepted the challenge that no one in the city had solved.

Yang Zhen took the Long Moon Pavilion’s deadly saint-grade martial technique task, provoking the crowd with his confidence and insults. Lan Fangyue led him toward the secret chamber as news of his actions spread through Raging Fire City, where people dubbed him the city’s Number One Madman.

• Yang Zhen snatched the task paper despite warnings that two previous readers had died after studying the martial technique.
• Yang Zhen mocked Lan Fangyue’s comprehension, then challenged Ding Keqi to kill him inside the Long Moon Pavilion, where Ding could not act freely.
• Yang Zhen followed Lan Fangyue upstairs and boasted that only a fool would turn down a chance to study a saint-grade martial technique.
• Lan Fangyue threatened to gouge out Yang Zhen’s eyes after catching him looking where he should not.
• News of Yang Zhen’s task and his feud with Ding Keqi spread through Raging Fire City, where some called him the Number One Madman and others predicted his death.

Yang Zhen waited in the Long Moon Pavilion, where he clashed with a strange old man over a precious tea caddy. The two soon became accomplices, leaving Lan Fangyue watching in disbelief.

• Lan Fangyue left Yang Zhen alone in a reception room, where he drank tea and hid the tea caddy in his robes.
• An old man blocked Yang Zhen's exit and accused him of stealing priceless tea, but Yang Zhen pushed past him and pretended to be injured.
• Yang Zhen threatened to ruin the Long Moon Pavilion's reputation with scandalous rumors until the old man let him keep the caddy of Ten-Thousand-Year Spring.
• Yang Zhen and the old man bonded over tea and joked together as Lan Fangyue watched through a curtain of water and called them shameless scoundrels.

Yang Zhen joked with Elder Yao about mastering Crossing the Void in Midair, and Elder Yao agreed to call him grandpa if he succeeded. Two days later, a crowd gathered outside Long Moon Pavilion, and Pavilion Master Hua returned.

• Lan Fangyue watched Yang Zhen and Elder Yao become close, while worrying that Yang Zhen would die trying to comprehend Crossing the Void in Midair.
• Yang Zhen wagered that Elder Yao would call him grandpa if he mastered the martial skill, and Lan Fangyue heard the wager through the water screen.
• Elder Yao told Yang Zhen the secret chamber would open in two days and said Hua Youyue might return in time to help him.
• News of the wager spread, and a crowd gathered outside Long Moon Pavilion, mostly expecting to see Yang Zhen die.
• Pavilion Master Hua emerged from Long Moon Pavilion, and the crowd erupted at her return.

Yang Zhen shamelessly praised Hua Youyue’s beauty and unworldly bearing, making her smile and leaving the crowd stunned. He then entered the secret chamber, while Hua Youyue called him interesting and the jealous onlookers hoped he would not come back out.

• Yang Zhen stared at Hua Youyue until she asked why he was looking at her.
• Yang Zhen praised Hua Youyue as more beautiful and unworldly than words could describe, and she smiled.
• Yang Zhen sighed again, then criticized Hua Youyue for veiling her beauty and walked toward the secret chamber.
• Yang Zhen asked the guard to open the chamber and went inside, while Hua Youyue chuckled and called him interesting.
• The crowd relaxed when the chamber door shut, then worried that Yang Zhen might win Hua Youyue’s favor.

Yang Zhen entered the Long Moon Pavilion’s secret chamber to study Crossing the Void in Midair, but turned the Water Curtain Projection into a livestream and began preparing cumin mutton instead. Outside, Hua Youyue and the crowd watched in disbelief as he ignored the martial skill and entertained himself.

• Hua Youyue explained why the Long Moon Pavilion had revealed part of Crossing the Void in Midair and announced that she would cancel the task regardless of Yang Zhen’s result.
• Hua Youyue projected the secret chamber for the crowd, who saw Yang Zhen poke at the Water Curtain Projection and try to speak to it.
• Yang Zhen realized the projection could show him from afar and announced that he was starting a livestream.
• Yang Zhen introduced Gale Sheep meat and announced that he would teach viewers to make cumin mutton.
• The crowd, Lan Fangyue, Elder Yao, and Hua Youyue watched Yang Zhen’s cooking demonstration in frustration and astonishment.

Yang Zhen ignored the crowd’s anger and turned the secret chamber into a barbecue while claiming to demonstrate saber techniques. His astonishing Sword Intent impressed the observers, but he used it to chop up Hua Youyue’s valuable wooden table for firewood and skewers, then began grilling meat.

• Yang Zhen cut Gale Sheep meat with the Startling Thunder Sword and called his knife work a saber technique, infuriating the crowd outside the secret chamber.
• Hua Youyue let Yang Zhen continue despite the complaints, while the crowd wondered how he could cook without a pot or fire.
• Yang Zhen brought out Hua Youyue’s sunken flower wood table and announced that he would demonstrate a saber technique.
• Yang Zhen revealed powerful Sword Intent with the Startling Thunder Sword and chopped the table into firewood and skewers.
• Yang Zhen lit a bonfire, threaded the meat onto skewers, and started grilling it as an outraged old man noticed the delicious smell.

Yang Zhen roasted lamb and drank wine inside the secret chamber while the crowd and Hua Youyue, Lan Fangyue, and Elder Yao watched in astonishment. After joking about livestreaming his sleep, he announced that he would finally comprehend the Cultivation Method.

• Yang Zhen's roast lamb filled the area with its aroma, making the gathered cultivators drool and impressing Elder Yao, Lan Fangyue, and Hua Youyue.
• Hua Youyue wondered whether Yang Zhen could comprehend Traversing the Void in Midair, while Lan Fangyue and Elder Yao doubted he could.
• Yang Zhen feasted on lamb and wine, and Hua Youyue sensed Dao in the words he recited about drinking and inviting the moon.
• Yang Zhen said he would livestream his sleep, then sat up and joked with the crowd about who had requested it.
• Yang Zhen stood and announced that he would comprehend the Cultivation Method, telling the crowd to watch for a miracle.

Yang Zhen began comprehending Traversing the Void in Midair, enduring an overwhelming surge of Heavenly Dao chants that made onlookers believe he was failing. Azure light then appeared around him, and lifelike figures began demonstrating the martial skill's footwork, leaving Hua Youyue and the crowd stunned.

• Hua Youyue agreed with Elder Yao to watch Yang Zhen and intervene if necessary while he comprehended Traversing the Void in Midair.
• Yang Zhen read the inscription and took its contents into his mind all at once, enduring a force far more painful than the gradual comprehension that had killed the previous cultivator.
• Yang Zhen's body trembled as Qi and Blood surged through him, prompting onlookers to mock his apparent failure and leave to see visiting cultivators Zeng Bishu and Shi Feixue.
• Azure light and Primordial Qi fluctuations emerged from Yang Zhen, startling the crowd and drawing a shocked reaction from Hua Youyue.
• Figures formed in the azure mist above Yang Zhen and began displaying the footwork of Traversing the Void in Midair.

Yang Zhen successfully comprehended Traversing the Void in Midair, stunning Hua Youyue, Lan Fangyue, and the crowd. As the Three Kingdoms Trial approached, Hua Youyue warned him that powerful rivals would likely join forces against him and gave him a Dark Gold Guest Elder Identity Token.

• Yang Zhen demonstrated Traversing the Void in Midair, leaving Lan Fangyue, Elder Yao, and Hua Youyue astonished.
• Yang Zhen teased Elder Yao about their bet and offered to teach Hua Youyue and Lan Fangyue the movement technique.
• Hua Youyue explained that the Three Kingdoms Trial would determine who could enter the Nine Realms Exquisite Pagoda.
• Lan Fangyue and Hua Youyue warned Yang Zhen that formidable youths from major sects and the Youyang Kingdom could oppose him.
• Yang Zhen demanded compensation for being targeted, and Hua Youyue gave him a Dark Gold Guest Elder Identity Token.

Yang Zhen learned that his dark gold guest elder plaque had made him a target for geniuses from the Three Kingdoms, including Yun Jie, who planned to challenge him during the trial. As Lan Fangyue warned him that he stood alone against everyone, Yang Zhen confidently insisted that no crowd could trample him.

• Elder Yao explained that Yang Zhen's dark gold plaque was the Long Moon Pavilion's highest guest elder distinction, and Hua Youyue nearly stumbled after hearing Yang Zhen speculate that she fancied him.
• Yun Jie decided to challenge Yang Zhen's comprehension and take his plaque, while Yun Kong agreed to spread the news and Yun Jie said the other sects could be dealt with in turn.
• Rumors spread through Raging Fire City that Yun Jie, Zeng Bishu, Ding Keqi, and other geniuses were targeting Yang Zhen, leaving him isolated ahead of the Three Kingdoms Trial.
• Lan Fangyue warned Yang Zhen that the geniuses of the three kingdoms wanted to defeat him, but Yang Zhen answered that even the whole world could not trample him.

Yang Zhen arrived at Bright Peak for the Three Kingdoms Trial intent on having fun, but quickly drew the attention of rival geniuses by mocking Yun Jie, Zeng Bishu, and Ding Keqi. The trial’s opening bell rang while Yang Zhen still had no idea what the competition involved.

• Yang Zhen followed Lan Fangyue to the trial site on Bright Peak and reacted with surprise to the Heaven-Piercing Pestle.
• Yun Jie approached Yang Zhen and challenged his confidence, but Yang Zhen accused him of using underhanded tricks and mocked him.
• Zeng Bishu and Ding Keqi insulted Yang Zhen, who baited Ding Keqi into calling himself a jumping clown.
• Yang Zhen greeted the shy Ten Thousand Flowers Valley disciple Shi Feixue, prompting her senior sister Liang Qiushui to intervene.
• After the opening bell rang, Yang Zhen asked Lan Fangyue what the competition was and admitted he did not know, drawing laughter from Ding Keqi.

Yang Zhen discovered that the Three Kingdoms Trial’s first contest tested soul strength, a discipline he had never trained, and the crowd mocked him for being unprepared. The contest was about to begin, and Yang Zhen promised to remember those who had laughed at him.

• Ding Keqi mocked Yang Zhen for not knowing what the contest involved, while Zeng Bishu and Yun Jie discussed competing for Yang Zhen’s dark-gold pavilion token.
• Zeng Bishu revealed that he had comprehended the Heartless Sect’s Heartless Bewildering Phantom, astonishing the crowd.
• Tan Fengl​​ie, lord of Raging Fire City, arrived at Bright Peak with Hua Youyue and the other trial leaders, then announced that the top three contestants could be recommended for the Overseas Trial.
• Tan Fengl​​ie announced that the first stage would test soul strength in the Soul Refining Formation, where contestants would compete to get closest to the Heaven-Piercing Pestle and remain there longest.
• Yang Zhen realized he had not cultivated a soul-tempering method, and the crowd laughed at his lack of preparation.
• Yang Zhen told the people mocking him that he had remembered all of them.