Recaps

Chen Mu showed Xing Le the Rune Research Institute’s artifacts, and Xing Le left Chen Village unable to challenge his explanation. Two days later, Chen Mu traveled to Kuiming City to seek the Water of Supreme Yin and met Hou Sailei.

• Chen Mu brought Xing Le to the artifact assembly room, where Landuo, Chen Xuejun, and Chen Ju made battlefield runic artifacts while Chen Mu concealed that machines produced their components.
• Landuo and the two disciples finished the Rune Puppet No. 2 Spider Type, and Chen Mu insisted that they had made all the artifacts without his help.
• Xing Le accepted Chen Mu’s explanation and left Chen Village; Chen Mu and Chen Hongjie agreed to remain cautious, and the village’s danger alert was lowered.
• Two days later, Chen Mu traveled through Alkaid City to Kuiming City in search of the Water of Supreme Yin and was greeted by Hou Sailei.
• Chen Mu teased Hou Sailei about his weight and cultivation, then invited him to Chen Village for special training.

Chen Mu and Hou Sailei attended an auction in Kuiming City, unaware that Zodiac assassins were waiting to target Chen Mu. The auction began with a Demon King-level Azure Nether Demon Wolf skull, and bidding was about to start.

• Hou Sailei refused Chen Mu’s offer of more special training after recalling Chen Xuejun’s experiments on him.
• Chen Mu and Hou Sailei entered the Kuiming Auction House, took seats, and received bidding paddle 328.
• Honglian learned that Chen Mu had entered the auction house and assured a fellow Zodiac assassin that he would not escape them.
• Han Fang opened the auction and presented a fully grown mid-level Demon King Azure Nether Demon Wolf skull as the first lot.

Chen Mu won a demonic beast skeleton and a batch of Illusory Silver Water at the auction, while other bidders bought the Dao Convergence Pill and a sixth-grade magical treasure. As the auction reached its finale, Chen Mu recognized the massive lot revealed as Master Ming’s Imperial Zenith World-Shocking Cannon.

• Chen Mu outbid the competition with 150 fifth-grade spirit stones to acquire the demonic beast skeleton for the Rune Research Institute.
• Chen Mu passed on the Dao Convergence Pill, which sold for 120 fifth-grade spirit stones, and later gave up bidding on a sixth-grade magical treasure.
• Chen Mu bid 100 fifth-grade spirit stones for the Illusory Silver Water and won it without further competition.
• As the auction’s final three lots began, Chen Mu recognized the enormous covered lot as Master Ming’s new Imperial Zenith World-Shocking Cannon.

Chen Mu attended an auction hoping to buy the Water of Supreme Yin, but another bidder won it after the price exceeded his remaining funds. The auction then introduced a drop of otherworldly essence blood as its final item.

• Han Fang unveiled Master Ming’s Imperial Zenith World-Shocking Cannon, which sold for nine hundred and eighty fifth-grade spirit stones.
• Chen Mu reflected on how Elder Ming had recovered his strength with help from Chen Mu’s Runic Body technique and had rebuilt his influence in the Heaven-Questioning Pavilion.
• Han Fang presented the Water of Supreme Yin, and Chen Mu bid one thousand one hundred fifth-grade spirit stones.
• A woman outbid Chen Mu at one thousand three hundred fifth-grade spirit stones and won the Water of Supreme Yin.
• Chen Mu asked Hou Sailei to find out who bought the Water of Supreme Yin so he could meet the buyer.
• Han Fang announced a drop of essence blood from a creature of another world as the auction’s final item, claiming it could strengthen the body and add roughly two hundred years to one’s lifespan.

After the auction, Chen Mu met Wei Shuang, the woman who had bought the Water of Supreme Yin and whom he had once saved at Black Wind Cliff. Wei Shuang gave him the water as repayment, and Chen Mu offered to send her a batch of weapons from Chen Village.

• Han Fang revealed a drop of dragon-type essence blood as the auction’s final item, and a bidder bought it for three thousand six hundred fifth-grade spirit stones.
• Chen Mu collected the demonic wolf skull and Illusory Silver Water, then followed Hou Sailei to meet the buyer of the Water of Supreme Yin.
• Chen Mu recognized Wei Shuang, whom he had saved at Black Wind Cliff, and learned that she had come to Kuiming City to recruit soldiers for the Mountain Army.
• Wei Shuang gave Chen Mu the Water of Supreme Yin in gratitude, and Chen Mu promised to send her a batch of Chen Village’s weapons of war.

Chen Mu accepted Wei Shuang’s invitation to the Heavenly Pride Gathering at West Lake and shared his cultivation insights with the gathered young talents. The gathering ended with a cultivator breaking through to the Middle Stage of the True Spirit Realm after listening to him.

• Wei Shuang invited Chen Mu to her Heavenly Pride Gathering and arranged for him to stay at the Xuanfu Inn.
• Chen Mu left the Kuiming Auction House with Wei Shuang, leaving the demon wolf skull in Hou Sailei’s care.
• Chen Mu and Wei Shuang joined the gathering at West Lake, where renowned cultivators including Heize, Li Xiaofan, and Wu Bupo arrived.
• After Wei Shuang welcomed the guests, Chen Mu answered a cultivator’s question by openly sharing his cultivation insights.
• A middle-aged cultivator broke through to the Middle Stage of the True Spirit Realm while listening to Chen Mu.

Chen Mu expounded on the Dao, triggering a Great Dao resonance that advanced his Divine Soul and gave the cultivators at Wei Shuang’s feast a chance to break through. Wang Zhan interrupted the resonance, but Chen Mu stopped him from leaving and immobilized him as their confrontation began.

• Chen Mu explained that the Dao followed nature, and his words summoned a Great Dao resonance that rapidly advanced his Divine Soul to the peak of the Solid Realm Fourth Layer.
• Wang Zhan boarded the boat and interrupted the resonance, angering the gathered cultivators and ending their chance to benefit further.
• Li Xiaofan, Heize, and Wu Bupo confronted Wang Zhan, who backed down and tried to leave.
• Chen Mu stopped Wang Zhan, introduced himself, and accepted his challenge.
• Chen Mu immobilized Wang Zhan with a rune, while Wang Zhan gathered his Spiritual Power and used his Divine Soul to resist it.

Chen Mu defeated Wang Zhan at the banquet, then survived an ambush by Zodiac assassins using Soul-Locking Smoke. He captured Black Jackal, but Black Jackal killed himself with a hidden poison, while Honglian escaped.

• Chen Mu restrained and severely injured Wang Zhan, who was bound by Wei Shuang's guards.
• Chen Mu left the banquet to rest, and Zodiac assassins Black Jackal and Honglian ambushed his carriage with Soul-Locking Smoke.
• Chen Mu revealed himself above the carriage, broke Black Jackal's blade, and drove off the black mist with his staff.
• Honglian fled, while Chen Mu immobilized Black Jackal and learned he belonged to the Zodiac.
• Black Jackal died after biting a hidden poison pouch, and Chen Mu revived the driver before returning to the Mystic Fortune Inn.

Chen Mu returned to Chen Village after leaving Wei Shuang, bringing a demonic beast skull to the Rune Research Institute. At a clan meeting, Chen Hongjie announced that the Jianglan Tribe and the Flame Blessing Tribe were preparing to unite against Chen Village and called for a discussion of strategy.

• Wei Shuang told Chen Mu she had sent Wang Zhan back and gave him four sixth-grade spirit stones as ransom.
• Chen Mu left Wei Shuang, collected Hou Sailei, and returned to Chen Village carrying a huge demonic beast skull.
• Chen Mu handed the skull to Landuo at the Rune Research Institute, then rested before attending a clan meeting.
• Chen Hongjie announced that the Jianglan Tribe and the Flame Blessing Tribe seemed to be joining forces against Chen Village.
• Tong Wei volunteered to lead the vanguard, and Chen Hongjie brought out a military map to discuss Chen Village's strategic deployment.

Chen Hongjie organized Chen Village’s response to the Jianglan and Flame Blessing Tribes, assigning Nan Huaiyuan to defend Ghost Rock Mountain and trusting Chen Mu’s Five Elements Legion to face the enemy’s core forces. After the meeting, Chen Mu discussed A Huo’s long absence and his own plans to explore the Wilderness, then invited Mingye to join him.

• Chen Hongjie asked for battle plans, and Nan Huaiyuan proposed garrisoning Ghost Rock Mountain with an elite force; Chen Hongjie approved and gave him two units.
• Chen Mu revealed that the Five Elements Legion was ready for battle and named Chen Rufeng and Miao Ya as its commanders against the Jianglan Army and Blazing Flame Army.
• Chen Duo complained that she had been assigned to defend rather than fight the Flame Blessing Tribe, then left angrily when Chen Mu and Chen Hongjie discussed A Huo’s continued absence.
• Chen Mu told Chen Hongjie he planned to train his talisman arts and seek spiritual materials in the Wilderness, despite warnings that enemies might be watching him.
• Mingye sorted intelligence and assigned tasks to Chen Village’s hidden guards, and Chen Mu appeared in her room and invited her to explore the Wilderness with him.

A Huo decided to lead the Demon-Slaying Sword and their families out of the Otherworldly Demons’ territory and into the Wilderness. Chen Mu and Mingye left Chen Village to explore the Wilderness, where Chen Mu tested his strength against demonic beasts and collected spiritual materials.

• A Huo returned to the valley with nearly a thousand Demon-Slaying Sword members and learned that the Otherworldly Demons had nearly located their encampment.
• A Huo ordered the Demon-Slaying Sword and their families to move southeast toward the Orchid Mountain Range and cross into the Wilderness.
• Chen Mu, whose Divine Soul had reached the Solid Realm Fifth Layer, left Chen Village with Mingye to explore the Wilderness.
• Chen Mu traveled deeper into the Wilderness, gathering precious spiritual materials and fighting the demonic beasts that guarded them.

Xing Le tracked Chen Mu’s location and arranged for Jiang Ling to deal with him, while the Blazing Flame Army’s Third Unit attacked Chen Zihu’s forces at Iron Ridge Tribe. The chapter ended as Mo Xin’s unit smashed through the tribe’s gate and charged inside.

• Xing Le used the Suspended Light Realm to locate Chen Mu and contacted Jiang Ling, urging him to eliminate Chen Mu cleanly.
• At the Iron Ridge Tribe command center, Li Shantang warned Chen Zihu that the Blazing Flame Army was approaching, but Chen Zihu trusted the incoming Five Elements Army.
• A scout reported that a powerful enemy force was less than half an hour away, and Chen Zihu sent Chen Zishan to hurry the Five Elements Army while he prepared to meet the attackers.
• Mo Xin led the Blazing Flame Army’s Third Unit through Chen Zihu’s traps and formed the troops into a charging formation.
• Mo Xin used the combined battle skill Flame Demon Blade to destroy Iron Ridge Tribe’s gate, and the Blazing Flame Army charged inside.

Chen Zihu used an Energy Force Field Defense Net to hold off Mo Xin and the Blazing Flame Army while awaiting reinforcements. Meanwhile, Chen Mu and Mingye camped in the Wilderness, where Chen Mu spoke of his determination to control his own fate.

• Chen Zihu activated the Energy Force Field Defense Net to protect his troops from Mo Xin and the Blazing Flame Army.
• Mo Xin’s attacks strengthened the force field, so he withdrew the Blazing Flame Army and prepared a powerful combined attack while Chen Zihu’s soldiers rested behind the barrier.
• Chen Mu found a cave for the night, caught fish with lightning, and prepared dinner with Mingye.
• Mingye asked Chen Mu about his ambitions, and Chen Mu said he wanted to seize control of his fate and let nothing hold him back.
• Chen Mu finished grilling the fish and handed one to Mingye.

Chen Mu and Mingye camped near the Ancient Desolate Mining Area, where Chen Mu hoped to find Purple Soul Crystals. When an injured Purple-Gold Devil Fox came to the cave and died giving birth, they took in its newborn white fox and tried to care for it.

• After dinner, Chen Mu and Mingye planned to explore the edge of the Ancient Desolate Mining Area for Purple Soul Crystals the next day.
• Chen Mu sensed an injured Purple-Gold Devil Fox approaching their cave, so he and Mingye hid rather than confront it.
• The devil fox collapsed inside the cave, and Chen Mu used the All Things Meet Spring Talisman to revive it long enough to give birth.
• The Purple-Gold Devil Fox died after delivering a white cub, and Chen Mu and Mingye examined the newborn.
• The white fox leaped into Chen Mu's arms, and he went to catch fish to make it soup while Mingye held it.

Mo Xin led the Blazing Flame Army against Chen Village but waited for the energy force field to fade before charging. Chen Rufeng and the Five Elements Army confronted them with a true battle formation, and the battle continued as the Blazing Flame Army gained an advantage in close combat.

• Mo Xin stopped attacking the energy force field and ordered the Blazing Flame Army to rest while they waited for its defenses to weaken.
• At dusk, the force field vanished, and Mo Xin led his army toward Chen Zihu’s troops.
• Chen Rufeng brought a thousand members of the Five Elements Army through the Iron Ridge Tribe’s gates, and Mo Xin recognized their battle-formation discipline.
• Chen Rufeng formed the Five Elements Battle Formation and struck the Blazing Flame Army with a giant saber, but Mo Xin’s Flame Demon Shield withstood the blow.
• Mo Xin split his army to attack both flanks, so Chen Rufeng and Miao Ya divided the Five Elements Guards and answered with a Five Elements Cannon blast.
• The Blazing Flame Army closed in, and its superior individual strength began to give it the advantage in close combat.

Chen Zihu’s forces fought the Blazing Flame Army to a bloody stalemate before Mo Xin withdrew, while Chen Mu and Mingye reached the Ancient Desolate Mining Area. The chapter left them watching a golden-crowned eagle and a purple-striped tiger battle, wondering whether treasure had drawn them there.

• Chen Rufeng’s Five Elements Army used battle formations to withstand Mo Xin and the Blazing Flame Army, whose superior individual strength inflicted heavy casualties.
• Mo Xin led the Blazing Flame Army in a charge that broke through the Five Elements Army’s formation, then withdrew after threatening Chen Zihu’s forces.
• Chen Zihu declined to pursue the retreating army and ordered Zishan to send people to treat the wounded.
• Chen Mu and Mingye reached the purple-mist-shrouded Ancient Desolate Mining Area with the little white fox, and Chen Mu warned Mingye that the mist could disorient them.
• Chen Mu and Mingye used Invisibility Talismans to hide near a hill and watch a golden-crowned eagle fight a purple-striped tiger.

Chen Mu and Mingye tried to collect Purple Soul Crystals near the Ancient Desolate Mining Area, but Jiang Ji ambushed them with golden arrows and sent them into the purple mist. Xing Le learned they were trapped and planned to claim the injured demon beasts’ materials.

• Chen Mu spotted a pile of Purple Soul Crystals and sent Mingye to collect them while he covered her.
• Chen Mu restrained the Golden-Crowned Great Eagle, but Jiang Ji fired golden arrows from concealment at Chen Mu and Mingye.
• Chen Mu used his Five Elements Ring to punch the Golden-Crowned Great Eagle away, while Mingye blocked the arrows and collected the crystals.
• Jiang Ji’s arrows drove Mingye deep into the purple mist, and Chen Mu rushed in after her.
• Jiang Ji told Xing Le that he had trapped Chen Mu and Mingye in the Ancient Desolate Mining Area, and Xing Le decided to harvest the injured demon beasts.

After Chen Rufeng reorganized the Five Elements Guards and prepared them to face the Jianglan Army, Chen Village fought the allied Jianglan and Flame Blessing Tribes and won a decisive victory. Chen Village expanded into Jianglan territory, while the defeated tribes grew anxious as its lands neared the Flame Blessing Tribe.

• Chen Zihu scolded Chen Rufeng and the Five Elements Guards, and Chen Rufeng reassured them before planning a formation against the Jianglan Army.
• Chen Rufeng encouraged the Five Elements Guards to fight for Chen Village and promised support for the families of anyone killed in battle.
• Chen Duo delivered weapons and supplies as Chen Village entered an all-out war against the allied Jianglan and Flame Blessing Tribes.
• Jiang Kechang asked his council how to counter Chen Village's mosquito-sized reconnaissance puppets, but Jiang Tianrui could not decipher them, so the tribe chose to fight head-on.
• Over the following days, Chen Village repeatedly used new weapons and hidden tactics to defeat the allied forces, while its armies gained combat experience.
• Chen Village took broad stretches of Jianglan territory, bringing its lands close to the Flame Blessing Tribe and alarming both tribes.

Jiang Kechang and Tuoba Rong planned to wear down Chen Village, while Chen Mu wandered through the Ancient Desolate Mining Area and discovered a hidden village under attack by demonic beasts. The chapter ended with Chen Mu flying to help the village defend itself.

• Jiang Kechang and Tuoba Rong decided to focus on exhausting Chen Village's supplies, believing Chen Mu's absence would eventually weaken it.
• Chen Zihu's officers agreed to halt expansion for three months and concentrate on securing their territory and reorganizing the army.
• Chen Duo learned that A Huo planned to enter the Wilderness after hearing that Chen Mu had been missing for more than ten days.
• Chen Mu emerged from the purple mist and found a secluded village with thousands of people.
• A Demon King wolf and dozens of demonic beasts attacked the village, whose stiff, poorly skilled Divine Soul True Bodies struggled to defend it.
• Chen Mu flew toward the battle to help the villagers.

Chen Mu saved Nangong Ya’s village from a demonic beast attack and learned that its people lived in the Ancient Desolate Mining Area. Unable to find Mingye, he accepted Nangong Ya’s offer to stay while the villagers searched for her.

• Chen Mu immobilized the attacking demonic beasts and killed the demonic wolf king, saving the villagers.
• Nangong Ya introduced herself as the village leader and welcomed Chen Mu into the village.
• Chen Mu learned that the villagers had lived in the Ancient Desolate Mining Area for ten thousand years and that supplies there were scarce.
• Nangong Ya said she had not seen Mingye but promised to have her people report any strangers they found.
• Chen Mu accepted Nangong Ya’s invitation to rest in the village while its people helped him search for Mingye.

Chen Mu learned that Purple Soul Crystals and generations of adaptation had made Divine Soul cultivators common among the people of the Ancient Desolate Mining Area, then went with Nangong Tong to rest. The clan elders judged him mysterious and potentially powerful, and decided to find his companions before the new settlers could.

• Nangong Ya explained that abundant Purple Soul Crystals and generations of natural selection had produced many soul cultivators, though the clan had only a little over thirty Solid Realm cultivators.
• Nangong Ya sent Nangong Tong to escort Chen Mu to a guest cabin, while Chen Mu dismissed the idea that he could never escape the mining area.
• After Chen Mu left, Nangong Ya and the elders discussed his unusual technique and suspected that the pet on his shoulder was a Demon King.
• The elders decided not to offend Chen Mu and to keep him from joining the new settlers, so Nangong Ya ordered Qing Yi to find his companions first.
• Nangong Tong asked Chen Mu about life in the outside world as she led him to a cabin, then left him to rest until the next day.

Chen Mu learned that his missing companion might have caused trouble in the New Residents District and fled into a nearby forest. He and Nangong Ya and Nangong Tong flew there, then began searching on foot for Mingye.

• Nangong Ya told Chen Mu that a suspected companion had escaped from the New Residents District, a powerful settlement led by Late Core Formation Realm cultivator Wang Yu.
• Nangong Ya explained that an ancestral weapon protected her clan from the New Residents District, though using it would carry a heavy cost.
• Chen Mu took Nangong Ya and Nangong Tong aboard his flying ship and traveled to the forest where the fugitive's trail had gone cold.
• Chen Mu avoided a powerful leopard Demon King and landed, then agreed with Nangong Ya and Nangong Tong to search separate directions using their Divine Souls.

Chen Mu demonstrated that his Runic Body let him use talisman techniques without spiritual materials and accepted Nangong Tong as his disciple. While searching the Ancient Desolate Mining Area with Nangong Ya and Nangong Tong, he found Mingye under attack and teleported to her side.

• Chen Mu explained his combat talisman path and demonstrated talisman techniques that needed no spiritual materials.
• Nangong Tong asked to become Chen Mu’s disciple, and he accepted her.
• Chen Mu sensed signs of a fight and used a Light Body Talisman to speed Nangong Ya and Nangong Tong toward it.
• Chen Mu found Mingye battling a burly middle-aged man and three other experts, then sent her a Divine Soul message to flee toward him.
• Chen Mu teleported to Mingye after an explosion, and she emerged from the crater unharmed.

Chen Mu fought Wang Yu to help Mingye and the Nangong Family sisters escape, then withdrew when his Dharma Power ran low. After everyone returned safely to the Ancient Desolate Remnant Clan's settlement, Mingye chose to share Chen Mu's room.

• Chen Mu arrived beside Mingye and faced Wang Yu and his three subordinates.
• Chen Mu used Five Elements techniques to battle Wang Yu and fend off the subordinates' attacks.
• Chen Mu and Wang Yu exchanged blows, then Chen Mu teleported away after his Dharma Power was depleted.
• Wang Yu pursued Chen Mu but lost track of him because Chen Mu could teleport.
• Chen Mu returned to the settlement and confirmed that Mingye and the Nangong Family sisters were safe.
• Mingye said she would follow Chen Mu and chose to share his room.

Chen Mu studied the purple mist that trapped the Ancient Desolate Mining Area and sought spirit materials to improve his resistance talismans. Mingye’s scouting data confirmed that a colossal ancient beast lay at the area’s center, leaving Chen Mu with a clearer target but no way out yet.

• Chen Mu asked Mingye what she had learned about escaping, then began studying a sample of the purple mist.
• After two days of testing plants and runes, Chen Mu found that his talisman still could not guide people through the mist.
• Nangong Tong brought Chen Mu a meal and arranged for Nangong Ya to provide four kinds of spirit plants in exchange for spirit stones.
• Mingye returned from the forest and reported signs of a terrifying ferocious beast, then supplied her observations to Chen Mu’s intelligent analyzer.
• The analyzer estimated that the ancient beast exceeded the Creation Realm and was more than three thousand meters long, confirming that it had biological characteristics.