Chapter Summaries

Lu Li planned to spend six months cultivating among the Azure Pool Sect’s menial disciples while secretly stockpiling spirit ore for his future in the outer sect. During his next mine visit, Wang Zhiwen told him that Great Xia had made a major breakthrough in purifying spirit ore and asked him to send more samples.

• Lu Li decided to hide the danger of his situation from his parents and ask Director Li to reassure them with a cover story.
• Lu Li cultivated with Five Elements Instruction Version 2.0 while Ye Chenfeng asked Elder Jian about his prospects; Elder Jian dismissed Lu Li’s potential and hinted that the Azure Pool Sect concealed dangers.
• Lu Li planned to enter the mine every seven days during his six-month wait, estimating that he could stockpile about 2,500 pieces of spirit ore.
• Seven days later, Lu Li entered the mine, found a secluded spot, and contacted Director Li through his fish-shaped jade pendant.
• Wang Zhiwen took over the call and asked Lu Li to send another batch of azure gold spirit ore samples after Great Xia made a major breakthrough in purification research.

Lu Li sent Azure Gold Spirit Ore and cultivation insights to the nation, then asked it to reassure his parents that he was safe. When Ma Liu stumbled upon his secret communication, Lu Li used a strange black iron object to confront him.

• Wang Zhiwen told Lu Li that researchers had developed a promising method for refining Azure Gold Spirit Ore and asked for samples.
• Lu Li sent a hundred pieces of Azure Gold Spirit Ore and his cultivation insights to the nation.
• Lu Li asked Li Yuanchao to tell his parents that he was safe and had been called away by the nation.
• Ma Liu overheard Lu Li communicating and suspected he had a valuable jade pendant, planning to extort him or report him to Senior Brother Bai.
• Lu Li showed Ma Liu a strange black iron object and a tube, assembled them, and aimed the object at Ma Liu's forehead.

Lu Li killed Ma Liu with a .50-caliber pistol and concealed all evidence, then resolved to contact Blue Star less often and keep a low profile. After Ma Liu's disappearance was discovered, Bai Sheng searched the mine while Group 749 accelerated its cultivation research to help Lu Li.

• Lu Li shot Ma Liu before he could react, stored his corpse in the jade pendant, and removed the remaining traces.
• Lu Li decided to reduce his contacts with Great Xia and sent Blue Star a note explaining what had happened.
• After two days, Bai Sheng noticed Ma Liu was missing, searched the mine, and left without finding Lu Li's evidence.
• Lu Li resolved to spend the next six months mining and cultivating discreetly.
• On Blue Star, Li Yuanchao urged Group 749 to speed up its research after learning how dangerous Lu Li's situation was.

Group 749 struggled to purify spiritual power while Li Yuanchao arranged official recognition and support for Lu Li’s family. Soldiers informed Lu Dahai and Liu Xiulan of Lu Li’s mission and honors, then another convoy arrived at Jing City No. 3 Middle School looking for his sister, Lu Yao.

• Wang Zhiwen told Li Yuanchao that simulations of spiritual power’s molecular sequence had failed, but promised the seventh physical experiment would begin that week.
• Li Yuanchao ordered officials to formalize Lu Li’s status, reassure his family, and arrange security and support for them.
• Soldiers visited Lu Dahai and Liu Xiulan at Fengnan Machinery Factory, explained that Lu Li was on a special national mission, and presented them with a one-million-yuan check and a Household of Merit plaque.
• A military convoy arrived at Jing City No. 3 Middle School, where its leading major asked students for Lu Yao from Class Two, Senior Year.

After months of worrying about her missing brother, Lu Yao learned that Lu Li had been carrying out a secret mission and earned major merit for the country. The major reassured her that Lu Li was well, passed along his private message, and announced that the organization would support her until his mission ended.

• Lu Yao's classmates and Teacher Li tried to comfort her about Lu Li's disappearance and her declining grades.
• A major and several soldiers entered the classroom and told Lu Yao that Lu Li had been selected for a strategic mission and rendered major meritorious service.
• The major announced that Lu Yao had been granted admission to Jinghua University without an entrance examination and could choose any top university in the country.
• Lu Yao asked to see Lu Li, but the major said he could not leave his mission and shared Lu Li's message that he was well and wanted her to focus on her studies.
• The major promised that the organization would take care of Lu Yao's education and daily life, and the classroom applauded.

Group 749 successfully purified Azure Gold Spirit Ore into spiritual liquid and stored it in a container made from the same material. Their attempt to awaken Lu Li’s jade pendant with the liquid failed, leaving them wondering whether only Lu Li could activate it.

• Wang Zhiwen and the Group 749 researchers began the seventh purification experiment under Li Yuanchao’s supervision.
• The Azure Gold Spirit Ore released spiritual power, which the protective liquid condensed into spiritual liquid with 80% purity.
• The researchers stored the spiritual liquid in a container made from Azure Gold Spirit Ore powder, preventing its energy from escaping.
• Wang Zhiwen and Li Yuanchao brought the spiritual liquid to the command hall to test whether it could awaken Lu Li’s jade pendant.
• Two drops of spiritual liquid failed to activate the pendant, and a young researcher wondered whether only Lu Li could use it.

Lu Li suspected the strange Ye Chenfeng was a hidden protagonist and resolved to keep his distance while cultivating cautiously. After months in the menial quarters, Lu Li broke through to the fourth layer of Qi Refining and prepared to enter the Azure Pool Sect’s outer sect.

• After Ma Liu vanished, Bai Sheng intensified searches of the mining area, so Lu Li stayed cautious and focused on cultivation and communicating with Great Xia.
• Lu Li noticed Ye Chenfeng’s unusual confidence and behavior, suspected he was a hidden protagonist, and decided to avoid him.
• Lu Li reached the third layer of Qi Refining, while Ye Chenfeng advanced to the fourth layer and left for the outer sect.
• Over the following months, Lu Li continued cultivating as other menials advanced and new menials arrived.
• Lu Li broke through to the fourth layer of Qi Refining, received congratulations from the menials, and walked outside ready to enter the outer sect.

After reaching the Qi Refining Fourth Layer, Lu Li was promoted to the Azure Pool Sect’s outer sect and learned that Bai Sheng wanted to recruit him for Upper White Peak. He arrived at the outer sect to register, planning to call Great Xia back.

• Lu Li reported his breakthrough to Bai Sheng, who warmly agreed to take him into the outer sect.
• Bai Sheng explained the outer sect’s missions and inner sect competition, then offered Lu Li a Bai Household token and invited him to remember Upper White Peak.
• Bai Sheng told Lu Li that sect factions recruited menial disciples once they gained strength and became useful, and Lu Li accepted the token while reconsidering the sect’s treatment of menials.
• Bai Sheng brought Lu Li to the outer sect registration hall, told him to find him at Yi Five Cave if he needed help, and departed.
• Lu Li took in the outer sect’s grand landscape and decided it was time to call Great Xia back.

Lu Li became an outer sect disciple of the Azure Pool Sect and found his assigned cave abode, then prepared to contact Great Xia through the Twin Fish Jade Pendant. In Great Xia, Li Yuanchao and the research team had made little progress until the pendant lit up and Lu Li’s voice came through.

• Lu Li received his outer sect identity Jade Slip, Storage Bag, supplies, and instructions to complete three missions each month.
• Lu Li followed the Jade Slip’s guidance to a remote cave abode and found its spiritual energy denser than the menial disciples’ area.
• Lu Li reflected that the Twin Fish Jade Pendant might eventually let him return to Blue Star, then shut the cave door and took it out to contact Great Xia.
• Wang Zhiwen reported that Great Xia’s research had found no usable information about Azure Gold Spirit Ore or cultivation, and Li Yuanchao silently waited beside the pendant.
• The Twin Fish Jade Pendant blazed with light, and Lu Li’s voice reached the command hall as he asked whether Li Yuanchao could hear him.

Lu Li contacted Group 749, reported his progress in the Azure Pool Sect, and learned that the country had purified azure gold spirit liquid and begun investigating cultivation. The Battle Command Department advised him to stay safe and grow stronger, while its analysis supported Lu Li’s suspicion that Ye Chenfeng had an old grandpa with him.

• Lu Li contacted Li Yuanchao and Wang Zhiwen, reassured them that he was safe, and described his entry into the outer sect and what he had learned there.
• Lu Li shared his cultivation insights, while Wang Zhiwen revealed that Group 749 had successfully purified azure gold spirit liquid and sent him ten portions.
• Wang Zhiwen asked why the selected soldiers could not cultivate, and Lu Li explained that cultivation required both a Spirit Root and Spiritual Qi before promising to send a Spirit-Testing Stone.
• Li Yuanchao relayed the Battle Command Department’s advice for Lu Li to choose safe missions, improve his cultivation, gather resources, and avoid leaving the sect.
• The Battle Command Department concluded there was a seventy-five percent chance that Ye Chenfeng had an entity known as an old grandpa with him.

Lu Li read Great Xia’s strategic analysis of Ye Chenfeng and followed its plan to stay safe, train, and eventually establish his foundation. He began testing industrially purified Azure Gold Spirit Liquid, which strengthened his cultivation as he absorbed more bottles.

• Lu Li read the report’s assessment that Ye Chenfeng was likely a protagonist and took its advice to keep his distance and remain vigilant.
• Lu Li accepted the Battle Command Department’s plan to choose safe missions, learn cultivation arts, and delay Foundation Establishment until age forty-eight.
• Lu Li decided to study artifact refining so Great Xia could combine its industrial technology with cultivation techniques.
• Lu Li opened a bottle of Azure Gold Spirit Liquid and absorbed it through his skin, enduring its sharp metallic Spiritual Power as he refined it for several hours.
• Lu Li found that one portion was worth about a month of cultivation and began absorbing more bottles, steadily growing stronger.

Lu Li searched for safe outer-sect missions and secured a long-term Artifact Hall assignment that let him observe artifact refining. An astonished observer then recognized him and wondered whether Elder Jian had misjudged him.

• Lu Li examined the outer sect’s missions and expenses, realizing that safe missions were heavily contested and the sect’s prices made it difficult for disciples to save contribution points.
• Xu Xiong took the available patrol and Hundred Arts missions, and a disciple explained that he preferred staying inside the sect despite his strong cultivation.
• Lu Li used a Spirit Stone to attract the duty disciple’s attention and register for the furnace slag cleanup mission, which offered two contribution points per assignment and a monthly chance to observe artifact refining.
• Lu Li left the General Affairs Hall pleased with his safe, long-term mission, while someone watching from a corner recognized him and asked whether Elder Jian had misjudged him.

Lu Li gathered records about the Azure Pool Sect and the surrounding world, then sent his latest observations to Great Xia. The chapter ended with Wang Zhiwen announcing a breakthrough in the research into the Five Elements Instruction cultivation method.

• Ye Chenfeng accepted several dangerous missions after Elder Jian urged him to temper his sword heart through slaughter.
• Lu Li visited the Scripture Repository and studied histories, geography, cultivation knowledge, and other records about Eastern Desolation Star and the Azure Pool Sect.
• Lu Li questioned the sect’s claims of protecting the common people after noticing that the population figures for its three commanderies had remained unchanged for thousands of years.
• Lu Li recorded his observations and concerns, then sent the booklet to Director Li through their cross-world communication.
• Lu Li asked about Spirit-Testing Stones, and Li Yuanchao told him Great Xia would prioritize his cultivation resources instead.
• Wang Zhiwen told Lu Li that the research team had made a major breakthrough in studying the Five Elements Instruction cultivation method.

Lu Li tried the nation's improved Five Elements Instruction and used it to break through to the Qi Refining Fifth Layer. Ye Chenfeng arrived at his cave abode after sensing signs of an advanced cultivation method and was stunned to recognize him.

• Wang Zhiwen showed Lu Li the version 3.0 Five Elements Instruction, which researchers had optimized through millions of computer simulations.
• Lu Li followed the new cultivation method, felt Spiritual Qi gather around him, and realized it rivaled the Advanced Five Elements Instruction.
• Lu Li used two bottles of Azure Gold Spirit Liquid and broke through from the Qi Refining Fourth Layer to the Qi Refining Fifth Layer.
• Lu Li hid the holographic player and spirit liquid when someone knocked, then opened the stone door to find Ye Chenfeng.
• Ye Chenfeng recognized Lu Li and sensed that he had reached the Qi Refining Fifth Layer.

Lu Li concealed his sudden breakthrough and advanced insight from Ye Chenfeng, then left to take an artifact-refining mission after stabilizing at the Qi Refining Fifth Layer. At the Artifact Hall, his unexpectedly powerful Water Ball Technique caught Master Wu’s attention.

• Lu Li told Ye Chenfeng that he had gained an epiphany while cultivating, and Ye Chenfeng left after Elder Jian urged him not to pursue the matter.
• Lu Li planned to obtain protective, Spirit Gathering, and offensive formations, then continued consolidating his cultivation.
• The next day, Lu Li went to the Artifact Hall to complete a mission and met Master Wu, who told him to cool and clear the forging furnace.
• Lu Li used an unusually powerful Water Ball Technique on the furnace, and Master Wu recognized it as the Advanced Five Elements Instruction.

Lu Li mastered a demanding furnace-cleaning task, collecting slag and ash that still contained traces of spiritual essence to send to Great Xia for research. After reporting to the staff on duty, he planned his next steps toward learning artifact refining and building a protective formation, hoping Great Xia could help him become the first to ascend to immortality.

• Wu Changgeng observed Lu Li's advanced mastery of the Five Elements Instruction but decided the first-tier method was not worth further attention.
• Lu Li struggled to pry spiritual slag from the forging furnace, recognized it might retain value, and stored a sample.
• Lu Li spent five or six hours clearing the furnace, collecting around a hundred lumps of slag and several handfuls of ash before washing the furnace clean.
• Lu Li contacted Great Xia from his cave abode and sent the slag and ash to the staff member on duty, giving them a few instructions.
• Lu Li reviewed his plans to complete tasks, save contribution points, study artifact refining, and eventually acquire a protective formation.
• Lu Li wondered whether Great Xia's researchers could refine a surprise from the discarded slag.

Wang Zhiwen and researchers at Group 749 investigated whether particle bombardment could restore or awaken the properties of artifact-refining residue. After thousands of simulations, Li Ming discovered a successful set of parameters, leaving the researchers ready to pursue the breakthrough.

• Wang Zhiwen arrived at Group 749 after learning that Lu Li had sent artifact-refining residue for analysis.
• Zhang Yi proposed using a particle collider to reorganize the residue’s disrupted molecular structures and possibly awaken its properties.
• Wang Zhiwen ordered the researchers to carefully divide the samples and run computer simulations before attempting physical experiments.
• After several days and many failures, Li Ming spotted a successful result in the 38,962nd simulation, where particle bombardment made the residue’s molecules glow.
• Li Ming checked the results and called Wang Zhiwen to report that the simulation had awakened the residue.

After Wang Zhiwen’s simulations showed promise, Great Xia reorganized Group 749 into Bureau 749 and moved its research operations to a vast underground base beneath Mount Baiwang. Meanwhile, Lu Li returned to the Azure Pool Sect’s Artifact Hall for his furnace-slag task and came face-to-face with a familiar, stubbled man.

• Wang Zhiwen urged preparations for a physical experiment, including a large particle collider and a controlled nuclear fusion power supply.
• Li Yuanchao secured approval to move the research base and elevate Group 749 into Bureau 749, appointing Wang Zhiwen as research group head and Lu Li as honorary group leader.
• Bureau 749 relocated to the underground base inside Mount Baiwang and brought Lu Li’s fish-shaped jade pendant to its command hall.
• Lu Li completed his cultivation, reflected on the value of the Azure Gold Spirit Ore he had saved, and went to the Artifact Hall to clear furnace slag.
• Lu Li opened the side hall door and recognized a familiar, stubbled man.

Lu Li watched Xu Xiong attempt to refine a Law Artifact, discovering that the senior brother repeatedly forgot the steps and failed. After absorbing the process through Xu Xiong’s repeated recitations, Lu Li began to understand artifact refining and finally offered him a correction.

• Lu Li recognized Xu Xiong at Master Wu’s hall, where Xu Xiong invited him to watch an artifact being refined.
• Xu Xiong began refining a first-tier, intermediate-grade magic armor but repeatedly forgot the process and ruined each batch.
• As Xu Xiong recited the steps before each attempt, Lu Li memorized them and asked questions about the forging methods and artifact runes.
• Over two hours, Xu Xiong failed twelve times while Lu Li gained a rough understanding of artifact refining.
• When Xu Xiong prepared for a thirteenth attempt, Lu Li told him to use one-tenth of his spiritual power to warm the furnace.

Lu Li guided Xu Xiong through refining a suit of magic armor, and Xu Xiong successfully inscribed its artifact patterns. Wu Changgeng witnessed the process and was astonished by Lu Li’s talent, while Xu Xiong noticed his master only after celebrating the finished artifact.

• Lu Li instructed Xu Xiong to control the furnace and add the materials at precisely timed stages.
• Xu Xiong shaped the spiritual material into magic armor and began carving its artifact patterns while Lu Li observed closely.
• Wu Changgeng arrived unseen and watched Lu Li guide Xu Xiong through the entire refining process.
• Xu Xiong completed the final stroke, awakening the armor’s spiritual light, and excitedly told Lu Li he had succeeded.
• Xu Xiong turned, saw Wu Changgeng at the door, and stopped short as he addressed his master.