Chapter Summaries

Wu Qingce tested Qu Yangze’s strength and found that his new body could withstand his full force, while Jiang Beiran continued modifying the Golden Crow Tripod and received reports of trouble involving Tian Ge. The chapter ended with Jiang Beiran questioning Mo Xia about Tian Ge’s attempt to take over his body and the strange effects of cultivating Malice Qi.

• Wu Qingce challenged Qu Yangze to arm-wrestle and discovered that Qu Yangze’s body automatically absorbed his full-strength attack.
• Wu Qingce concluded that Qu Yangze’s physical strength might have reached the Mystic Emperor realm, then took him to help clean up before Jiang Beiran left seclusion.
• Jiang Beiran spent days adding formations to the Golden Crow Tripod and testing a Spirit Qi interface, while arranging for Luo Wenzhou to help Gu Qinghuan investigate.
• Mo Xia wrote that Tian Ge had tried to take over his body while he cultivated Malice Qi, but a Crane Robe senior intervened and saved him.
• Jiang Beiran examined Mo Xia, heard that his Mystic Qi had gone haywire during the incident, and asked him to continue explaining what had happened.

Jiang Beiran learned that the Crane-Robed Ghost had destroyed Tian Ge’s soul and decided to take Mo Xia to become a Ghost Cultivator. Mo Xia chose to leave with Jiang Beiran in three days, while the Crane-Robed Ghost agreed to accompany him.

• Jiang Beiran questioned Mo Xia about Tian Ge and inspected the place where he had sealed the malicious ghost.
• Jiang Beiran played Go with the Crane-Robed Ghost and persuaded him to confirm that Tian Ge’s soul had been destroyed.
• Jiang Beiran scolded Mo Xia for putting chess before his life and decided to take him to Tang Jingran to become a Ghost Cultivator.
• Jiang Beiran and the Crane-Robed Ghost finished their game, which Jiang Beiran won by one and three-quarter stones.
• Jiang Beiran offered Mo Xia the choice to stay and study Go or leave to become a Ghost Cultivator, and Mo Xia chose to leave with him.
• The Crane-Robed Ghost agreed to go with Mo Xia, and Jiang Beiran said he would return to collect him in three days.

Jiang Beiran completed the Golden Crow Tripod’s upgrade and successfully refined Snake Mushroom Blazing Sun Pills before investigating Qu Yangze’s deadly spiritual pressure on a Ghost Rakshasa Bee. He then took Mo Xia and the Crane-Robed Ghost to Tong Kingdom, where the valley’s ghosts fled in terror at their arrival.

• Jiang Beiran finished modifying the Golden Crow Tripod, doubling its Spirit Qi capacity, and used it to successfully refine Snake Mushroom Blazing Sun Pills.
• Wu Qingce told Jiang Beiran that Qu Yangze had accidentally killed a Ghost Rakshasa Bee, and Jiang Beiran discovered that Qu Yangze’s King Gu Body had frightened it to death with bloodline suppression.
• Jiang Beiran praised Wu Qingce for staying calm, then left the Self-Boundary with Xia Lingdang to collect Mo Xia.
• Jiang Beiran took Mo Xia and the Crane-Robed Ghost toward Tong Kingdom, triggering many options and gaining forty-five Attribute Points and skill points during the journey.
• At Tang Jingran’s valley, Jiang Beiran saw the little ghosts flee in fear and suspected the Crane-Robed Ghost was responsible.

Jiang Beiran learned that Tang Jingran was dead and arranged for her to teach Mo Xia ghost cultivation in exchange for a Zicao Pill. After helping a starving village, he followed Xia Lingdang to see its sick residents.

• Jiang Beiran asked Tang Jingran about the Crane-Robed Ghost, and she explained that powerful cultivators lost memories and abilities after becoming ghosts.
• Jiang Beiran paid Tang Jingran to teach Mo Xia ghost cultivation, ghost control, and possession, and asked her to help make the Crane-Robed Ghost his ghost general.
• Tang Jingran requested a Zicao Pill, and Jiang Beiran agreed to trade her more pills if she needed them.
• Jiang Beiran took Xia Lingdang away from Tang Jingran's Yin-filled hut after she became frightened, then landed in a desolate valley village.
• Jiang Beiran sent Xia Lingdang to distribute flatbread and water to the starving villagers, then dressed as a Daoist to examine their sick residents.
• The villagers welcomed Jiang Beiran as an immortal, and he followed a young man through the impoverished village to the patients.

Jiang Beiran arranged for Shi Jiamu to rescue a starving village in Tong Kingdom and explained to Xia Lingdang why the country’s strength did not guarantee its common people a good life. After refining pills in seclusion, he began preparing Wu Qingce’s advancement ceremony, and the chapter ended as the formation-room door opened.

• Jiang Beiran discovered that the villagers were suffering from hunger-related illnesses and learned from Big Dog that they had fled Hong County after a scar-faced man forced them to grow Tianbalan and killed families whose flowers died.
• Jiang Beiran sent a letter to Shi Jiamu to arrange a safe place for the villagers, then explained to Xia Lingdang why powerful people often overlooked the suffering of those at the bottom.
• Jiang Beiran returned to the Self-Boundary, entered seclusion for half a month, and refined the pills he needed.
• Jiang Beiran asked Wu Qingce whether his body was ready and went to prepare the advancement ceremony for him.
• Wu Qingce waited with Xia Lingdang and Qu Yangze for four hours, until the door of the Array Formation Room finally opened.

Jiang Beiran began a dangerous body-tempering trial to transform Wu Qingce’s constitution, using the Ksitigarbha Cauldron, Asparagus Wine, and calming qin music. Wu Qingce endured the freezing ordeal, and Jiang Beiran prepared eighty-one talisman sheets for the next stage.

• Wu Qingce entered the Array Formation Room and climbed into the bone-chilling Ksitigarbha Cauldron, resisting the cold with his thunder spiritual energy.
• Jiang Beiran explained that he had refined the Mystic Thunder Nine Heavens Pill and was giving Wu Qingce a chance to overcome his ordinary limits and become stronger.
• Jiang Beiran filled the cauldron with Asparagus Wine and played a Heart-Clearing Melody that calmed Wu Qingce and helped him adapt to the cold.
• After two hours, Wu Qingce surfaced and drank half the wine as Jiang Beiran instructed, then returned to meditation while Jiang Beiran drew eighty-one golden talisman sheets.

Jiang Beiran prepared an elaborate formation and gave Wu Qingce the Mystic Thunder Nine Heavens Pill to help him change his constitution, while Wu Qingce relived the childhood defeat that first taught him Yuan Xingteng was more talented than he was. The chapter left Wu Qingce remembering that loss as he endured the dangerous advancement.

• Jiang Beiran sealed Wu Qingce and the Ksitigarbha Cauldron with golden talismans, hung the Yellow Silk Heavenly Heart around his neck, and gave him the Mystic Thunder Nine Heavens Pill.
• Wu Qingce swallowed the pill and lost consciousness as its violent thunder spiritual qi surged through his body, so Jiang Beiran activated the Twenty-Eight Mansions Spirit Locking Formation and played the zither to stabilize him.
• Wu Qingce awoke in a memory beside his father, Wu Fengmian, after losing a childhood spar to Yuan Xingteng.
• Wu Qingce recalled challenging Yuan Xingteng out of jealousy after hearing their fathers praise Yuan Xingteng's talent and sect prospects.
• Yuan Xingteng defeated Wu Qingce with ease, and Wu Qingce remembered him as the first opponent whose talent surpassed all effort.

Wu Qingce relived the disappointments and breakthroughs that shaped his pursuit of strength, then confronted doubts about whether he deserved Jiang Beiran’s help. With Jiang Beiran’s words guiding him, Wu Qingce overcame the black flames of his heart demon and entered the Array Formation Room determined to become stronger for himself.

• Wu Qingce recalled losing to Yuan Xingteng as a child, training for years without sensing spiritual energy, and eventually joining the Returning Heart Sect.
• After struggling to stand out and finding little talent for Mystic Arts, Wu Qingce accepted Jiang Beiran’s Thunder Flame Body Tempering Pill and gained the ability to grow stronger through training.
• Wu Qingce defeated Mu Yao and Mu Jiuri at the Youth Gathering, then trained relentlessly and challenged powerful opponents to become useful to Senior Brother.
• A defeated robed man’s claim that Wu Qingce depended on Thunder Spirit Qi revived his doubts about talent, and Wu Qingce wondered whether his worth depended on Jiang Beiran’s gifts.
• As Wu Qingce’s body reshaping triggered black flames, Jiang Beiran entered and reminded him to grow stronger for himself, dispelling the flames.
• Wu Qingce recalled Jiang Beiran’s advice, declared that he would become stronger, and walked toward the Array Formation Room.

Wu Qingce survived his Profound King advancement in the Ksitigarbha Cauldron, guided back by Jiang Beiran’s zither music, and emerged with a renewed body and powerful cultivation. Jiang Beiran arranged a spar between Wu Qingce and Qu Yangze to test their strength, where Wu Qingce’s transformed thunderclouds and Qu Yangze’s unusual defenses quickly came into play.

• Jiang Beiran played the zither as the Soul Suppressing Chains trembled, guiding Wu Qingce through the icy chaos inside the Ksitigarbha Cauldron until he awakened.
• Wu Qingce emerged from the cauldron as a first-rank Profound King, and Jiang Beiran told him to face and overcome his heart demon before his next advancement.
• Wu Qingce left the Array Formation Room and reunited with Qu Yangze and Xia Lingdang, who congratulated him on his advancement.
• Jiang Beiran prepared the Practice Room and ordered Wu Qingce and Qu Yangze to fight without holding back.
• Wu Qingce unleashed a purple thundercloud that filled the Practice Room, then attacked Qu Yangze with great speed, but Qu Yangze’s tough body stopped his sword.
• Wu Qingce’s shattered Ten Thousand Jun pieces struck Qu Yangze from within the clouds, and Qu Yangze used his antennae to sense where the next attack was coming from.

Jiang Beiran watched Wu Qingce and Qu Yangze spar, as the two tested their rapidly growing abilities with increasingly powerful attacks. Wu Qingce conceded after Qu Yangze overwhelmed him, and Jiang Beiran concluded that Qu Yangze could fight at the Mystic Emperor level while Wu Qingce’s advancement had succeeded remarkably well.

• Qu Yangze used his evolved legs and wings to pursue Wu Qingce, while Wu Qingce evaded him with speed enhanced by the Purple Thunder Cloud.
• Qu Yangze injured Wu Qingce, then panicked when Wu Qingce’s Shadow Puppet Clone exploded; Wu Qingce reassured him and urged him to fight without holding back.
• Wu Qingce trapped Qu Yangze with silver flames, sword fragments, threads, and seven lightning strikes, but Qu Yangze shed his charred shell and emerged stronger.
• Qu Yangze caught Wu Qingce with his tongue and slammed him into the ground twice, prompting Wu Qingce to concede.
• Jiang Beiran healed Wu Qingce with a Jade Return Pill and judged Qu Yangze capable of fighting at the Mystic Emperor level, while praising Wu Qingce’s advancement.

Jiang Beiran praised Wu Qingce’s skill with his Tang Sect weapons and Ten Thousand Jun, then considered the cultivation methods Wu Qingce and Qu Yangze still needed. While resting at an inn on his way to the Tang Kingdom, Jiang Beiran helped a fleeing black-clad woman evade officers, leaving her to change back into her own clothes.

• Wu Qingce explained how he had used Mindless Silk and Other Shore Flower to defeat Qu Yangze, and Jiang Beiran praised his talent with tools.
• Jiang Beiran examined Ten Thousand Jun, recognized its clever use of Thunder Spirit Qi, and told Wu Qingce that he still lacked mental cultivation methods and Mystic Arts.
• Jiang Beiran left Wu Qingce and Qu Yangze to tidy the Practice Room, then traveled with Xia Lingdang toward the Tang Kingdom and decided to rest before visiting the Gantian Sect.
• At the inn, Jiang Beiran chose to wait when he sensed someone approaching, earning a Constitution point as a black-clad woman climbed through the window to escape her pursuers.
• Jiang Beiran used Word Spirit to make the woman wear his Minran, and officers searching the room failed to recognize her.
• After the officers left, Jiang Beiran demanded the woman return his Minran and change back into her own clothes.

Jiang Beiran rescued a black-clad woman whose sachet was attracting the officers searching the inn, then gave her a talisman before she left. The next morning, he arrived at the Gantian Sect to meet Sect Master Yan Guangqing.

• The black-clad woman reluctantly handed Jiang Beiran her purple sachet, and he removed its tracking Formation Technique, sending the searching officers away.
• The woman broke down over the betrayal connected to the sachet, while Xia Lingdang comforted her and Jiang Beiran let her stay the night.
• At the Hour of the Tiger, the woman tried to leave without asking Jiang Beiran for further help, but he gave her a golden slip and instructions to chant, “I believe in light,” if she faced danger.
• Jiang Beiran and Xia Lingdang left the inn in the morning and traveled to the Gantian Sect with Sect Master Yan Guangqing’s invitation.
• Yan Guangqing welcomed Jiang Beiran into his residence, and Jiang Beiran greeted him.

Jiang Beiran visited Yan Guangqing, who eagerly discussed formations with him and led him to the Shadow Moon Tower, a treasure-filled haven for Formation Masters. There, Yan Guangqing revealed his Brahma Emperor Bell, and Jiang Beiran witnessed its power to organize spiritual energy and activate hidden arrays.

• Yan Guangqing hosted Jiang Beiran lavishly, then asked about his formation skills after hearing about them from Li Fucheng.
• Jiang Beiran shared his ideas on formations, impressing Yan Guangqing and prompting them to continue their discussion in private.
• Yan Guangqing led Jiang Beiran through his meticulously symmetrical residence to the Shadow Moon Tower, which was filled with rare formation treasures.
• Jiang Beiran admired Yan Guangqing's thirty-eight-decree Emperor Bell and correctly guessed that it could reverse the Five Elements.
• Yan Guangqing brought out the Brahma Emperor Bell, and its ringing arranged the room's spiritual energy while revealing layers of hidden arrays.

Jiang Beiran admired the Brahma Emperor Bell and discussed formation linkage with Yan Guangqing, impressing the sect master enough to become his kindred spirit. After discovering they had spent three days in the Shadow Moon Tower, they joined Nie Yixin for a meal, where Yan Guangqing continued praising Jiang Beiran’s talent.

• Yan Guangqing used the Brahma Emperor Bell as the Formation Eye for a Heaven-Locking Cloud Array, and Jiang Beiran recognized its power to transform and strengthen formations.
• Yan Guangqing showed Jiang Beiran an Array Deduction Disk and tested his formation knowledge with a Three Wonders Formation.
• Jiang Beiran developed Yan Guangqing’s formation into a Nine Palaces Heavenly Palace Formation and discussed formation linkage with him, earning his enthusiastic admiration.
• Nie Yixin arrived with food and revealed that Jiang Beiran and Yan Guangqing had spent three days discussing formations in the Shadow Moon Tower.
• Yan Guangqing and Nie Yixin took Jiang Beiran to a viewing platform for a meal, where Jiang Beiran praised Nie Yixin’s cooking and Yan Guangqing celebrated their new friendship.

Jiang Beiran showed Yan Guangqing his painting of Golden Tripod Island, which deepened Yan Guangqing’s frustration at his own limits in Formation Techniques. Yan Guangqing revealed that a divination had led him to Jiang Beiran, but Jiang Beiran persuaded him to put his hopes in both Jiang Beiran and Li Fucheng; three days later, they had made progress studying formation linkage.

• Jiang Beiran painted Golden Tripod Island for Yan Guangqing, who found no clues in the detailed image and abandoned his attempt to understand the island’s formation after half a day.
• Yan Guangqing told Jiang Beiran that a diviner had sent him to the Sheng Kingdom, hoping to find someone who could help him advance in Formation Techniques.
• Jiang Beiran said he believed the divination had pointed to Li Fucheng and that Li Fucheng’s Four Symbols Body could help Yan Guangqing make a breakthrough.
• Yan Guangqing decided that both Jiang Beiran and Li Fucheng could help him, completing Jiang Beiran’s option mission and earning him one Luck point.
• After three days of discussion, Jiang Beiran and Yan Guangqing made progress in formation linkage, and Jiang Beiran wondered about the Formation Master who created the Flying Mansion.

Jiang Beiran proposed the Split-Patch Method for linking the Secret Lotus Array, but he and Yan Guangqing could not yet solve how to replace the Flowing Pillar. Before leaving Shadow Moon Tower, Jiang Beiran received the Heaven-Shocking Flame from Yan Guanyue and asked her to explain its power.

• Jiang Beiran showed Yan Guangqing how the Split-Patch Method could link formations by coordinating the Jia-Ji Talisman Head with solar terms, and Yan Guangqing praised the breakthrough.
• Jiang Beiran admitted that he had not worked out how to compensate for the lost Flowing Pillar, then told Yan Guangqing he planned to leave after noon to handle an important matter.
• Yan Guangqing agreed to let Jiang Beiran take the Heaven-Shocking Flame, and Jiang Beiran joined Yan Guangqing, Nie Yixin, and Yan Guanyue for a meal.
• Yan Guanyue carefully wiped her chair and ate with meticulous precision, while Jiang Beiran noticed her strong preference for symmetry.
• After the meal, Yan Guanyue gave Jiang Beiran the Heaven-Shocking Flame, and he asked her how it could burn away all intangible things.

Jiang Beiran learned about the Heaven-Shocking Flame, exchanged gifts with Yan Guangqing and Yan Guanyue, and left Gantian Sect with Xia Lingdang. Back at Blue Heart Hall, he read letters from Gu Qinghuan and Senior Brother and prepared for his next trip to Tan Kingdom.

• Yan Guanyue explained the Heaven-Shocking Flame's effects and limits and gave Jiang Beiran a booklet of its usage records.
• Jiang Beiran gave pills to Yan Guangqing and Yan Guanyue, then tactfully refused to let Yan Guanyue see him down the mountain and instead accompanied Yan Guangqing while discussing mystical arts.
• Jiang Beiran departed Gantian Sect with Xia Lingdang and prepared to travel to Tan Kingdom to oversee Gu Qinghuan's investigation into the Sun-Slaying Glaze.
• At Blue Heart Hall, Jiang Beiran found Senior Brother's letter about the Returning Heart Sect's new territory in Liang Province, wrote a reply, and let Xia Lingdang clean his hut.
• Fang Qiuyue and the Yu Family Three Sisters discussed her changing figure while Liu Zijin reminded them to rehearse before Jiang Beiran returned.

Jiang Beiran visited Water Mirror Hall, agreed to take Shi Fenglan on a trip to Tan Kingdom, and then went to collect Mahayana Secret Water from Fang Qiuyue. The Five Golden Flowers performed an elaborate musical ensemble for him, and he ended by asking Fang Qiuyue for the promised treasure.

• Shi Fenglan refused Flower Crown's request to send more Water Mirror Hall disciples to Liang Province, then asked Xiao Duo to turn away future visitors.
• Jiang Beiran agreed to take Shi Fenglan with him on a journey in two days, but left after receiving a message from Fang Qiuyue.
• Jiang Beiran took Xia Lingdang to a riverside location marked on Fang Qiuyue's map to collect Mahayana Secret Water.
• Yu Guimiao, Yu Guizhui, Yu Guishui, Liu Zijin, and Fang Qiuyue performed an ensemble with qin, flute, pipa, erhu, and suona as sky lanterns rose around the river.
• Jiang Beiran praised the Five Golden Flowers' performance, then asked Fang Qiuyue for the Mahayana Secret Water.

Jiang Beiran tested the Five Golden Flowers’ music to discover how their performances triggered Phantom Sound. He learned that the Yu Family Three Sisters’ ensemble could produce the effect, while the five women’s ensemble also stirred it, and began investigating the sisters’ performance.

• Fang Qiuyue gave Jiang Beiran the Fang Family’s Mahayana Secret Water as thanks for his help.
• Jiang Beiran asked the five women to perform individually, but their solo performances did not produce Phantom Sound.
• Liu Zijin became flustered under Jiang Beiran’s scrutiny, played poorly, and was told to prepare more before Yu Guishui took her place.
• The five women performed together, and Jiang Beiran sensed Phantom Sound return during the piece’s climax.
• Jiang Beiran asked the Yu Family Three Sisters to perform Qu Dong Journey and confirmed that their ensemble produced Phantom Sound.

Jiang Beiran discovered that the Yu Family Three Sisters could jointly produce Phantom Sound and decided to teach them music while he assessed their potential. He demonstrated the power of music by drawing the listeners into a lethal vision of a refugee’s death in the snow, then agreed to teach the Five Golden Flowers and Xia Lingdang.

• Jiang Beiran recognized the Yu Family Three Sisters’ rare musical talent and decided to take them on as students before considering them disciples.
• Jiang Beiran played Yu Guishui’s erhu and used the mournful melody to overwhelm the Five Golden Flowers with grief.
• Fang Qiuyue experienced a vision of fleeing through a blizzard with her father, who died after giving her his last piece of flatbread.
• Jiang Beiran woke the listeners and explained that music could immerse people so completely that it could kill them.
• Fang Qiuyue, the other Five Golden Flowers, and Xia Lingdang asked to learn, and Jiang Beiran told them to practice their instruments alongside cultivation.