Chapter Summaries

Li Yan and Su Hong finalized their cautious plan to investigate Cloud Bamboo Market and capture their enemies, then Li Yan joined the infiltrators while Su Hong waited at the perimeter. After receiving a strange message and finding their secret code phrases hidden in a jade slip, Su Hong realized there was an emergency and ordered everyone in the market to return.

• Li Yan and Su Hong exchanged special sound-transmission talismans and agreed on code phrases as safeguards for their operation.
• Li Yan left the flying vessel to approach Cloud Bamboo Market with the infiltrators while Su Hong stayed behind to coordinate the perimeter forces.
• Su Hong waited anxiously aboard the concealed vessel until a sound-transmission talisman arrived from Li Yan.
• Li Yan's message directed Su Hong to find a yellow, leaf-marked jade slip among the clues in her room.
• Su Hong found their secret code phrases engraved in the unfamiliar jade slip, decoded them, and sprang up in alarm.
• Su Hong suppressed her urge to rush out and ordered her confidant to summon everyone from the market back immediately.

Deputy Hall Master Ying was intercepted by a gold-robed Gui Xi Army cultivator after his secret intelligence contact with Wen Ruyun drew suspicion. Trapped inside a formation, Ying searched for a way to alert Hall Master Yan as the cultivator revealed he knew what Ying was trying to do.

• Deputy Hall Master Ying hurried through the forest toward Hall Master Yan’s residence after receiving suspicious intelligence from Wen Ruyun.
• A gold-robed Gui Xi Army cultivator appeared on the path and questioned Ying about where he was going.
• Ying recalled how the Gui Xi Army had monitored the willow tree where Wen Ruyun passed signals and identified him among the people nearby.
• Ying avoided attacking the stronger cultivator and secretly searched for the formation’s barrier, hoping to alert Hall Master Yan.
• The gold-robed cultivator asked Ying whether he was searching for the formation’s barrier.

Return Home’s leaders uncovered a deep spy network and began a sweeping purge, while the Main Headquarters Master ordered a search for Li Yan after he vanished near Yun Bamboo Market. His wife warned that Su Hong suspected they had acted against Li Yan, leaving their relationship with her in danger.

• Deputy Hall Master Ying sensed danger and was trapped by the branches and leaves overhead as Return Home began detaining suspected spies.
• The Main Headquarters Master and the woman in azure palace robes oversaw the purge, which exposed extensive infiltration of the True Inheritance Hall and forced them to send forces after outside collaborators.
• The Main Headquarters Master questioned his subordinate about losing track of Li Yan, then ordered him to search for Li Yan without acting and report back.
• The woman in azure palace robes warned that Su Hong suspected their intentions toward Li Yan after leaving them in anger.

Li Yan escaped after realizing the Chief Altar Master of "Returning Home" intended to target him, leaving Su Hong a coded clue about the enemy plot and an apology for using a soul-bewitching technique. Su Hong turned to her brother Su Liuyun for help, while Li Yan hid far from the Yun Bamboo Market City and reflected on how his suspicions had led him to flee.

• The Chief Altar Master and the woman in azure palace robes discussed finding Li Yan and possibly forcing him to divorce his Dao Companions, while speculating that he might belong to the elusive sect "Returning Home."
• Su Hong read Li Yan's jade slip, which pointed her to Haina City, explained his plan involving Wen Ruyun, and apologized for erasing part of her memory.
• Su Hong realized Li Yan had planned his escape and sought help from Su Liuyun, asking whether she could trust him.
• Su Liuyun vowed to protect Li Yan because Li Yan had saved his life, even if doing so meant opposing their parents.
• Li Yan meditated in a concealed cave hundreds of thousands of miles from the Yun Bamboo Market City and recalled how the unease he felt at the main altar had intensified when he entered the golden hall.

Li Yan realized the Chief Altar Master was scrutinizing him because he suspected Li Yan had drawn Su Hong’s affections, and he decided to leave Haina City before the powerful man could act against him. After distancing himself from the main altar, Li Yan questioned Su Hong about her family’s influence and noticed her watching his reaction.

• Li Yan sensed the Chief Altar Master’s hostility whenever Su Hong mentioned him, but concluded the Chief Altar Master was not the traitor and instead had a personal grievance against him.
• Li Yan inferred that Su Hong and Su Liuyun were trusted relatives of the Chief Altar Master, possibly sharing the surname Su, which explained their authority and access to the Returning Army.
• Li Yan realized the Chief Altar Master might resent his bond with Su Hong and decided he needed to escape Haina City without revealing his intentions.
• When the Chief Altar Master asked about his next steps, Li Yan said he would pursue the new clues on site, using the excuse to move away from the main altar.
• After leaving the golden hall, Li Yan asked Su Hong whether her siblings’ Lineage was powerful, and she watched his face as she answered.

Li Yan explained how he had recognized the danger surrounding him and planned to escape by manipulating the investigation into the traitor. He framed Wen Ruyun’s death as the work of devil cultivators and left Su Hong with a clue that could justify leaving Haina City.

• Li Yan realized Su Hong had no ill will toward him but suspected the Chief Altar Master planned to harm him, and he resolved to find a way out.
• Li Yan deliberately named four suspects and volunteered to capture Wen Ruyun alone, but Su Hong chose to accompany him.
• Inside Wen Ruyun’s room, Li Yan made Su Hong unconscious, used a bewitching technique to question Wen Ruyun, and learned that she linked several hidden lines of investigation.
• Li Yan decided to kill Wen Ruyun and frame the Purple Flame Devil Lord and his wife, using a devil core and the forgotten art Demonic Sound Seals the Tongue as cover.
• Li Yan planted devil qi in Wen Ruyun, then killed her when she mentioned Yun Bamboo Market, leaving clues that could lead Su Hong to pursue the investigation beyond Haina City.

Li Yan escaped the tracker sent after him but realized Return Home could block his route to the cross-realm teleportation array, so he devised another plan to leave. The chapter then shifted to a red-clad girl fighting a swarm of golden bees before she conceded defeat to a woman in yellow; the two later sat together by a lake.

• Li Yan used Su Hong’s mission to shake off the cultivator following him and fled after reaching Cloud Bamboo Market.
• Li Yan concluded that the chief altar master would expect him to use the eastern teleportation array and planned to disguise himself as a known traveler in East Yi City.
• Li Yan studied a jade-slip map, gathered the violet death beneath his cave, and left while the cave’s Demon Beast remained unaware.
• A red-clad girl evaded golden bee insects and fought back with the help of crocodile-like Demon Beasts before admitting defeat.
• The golden bees and crocodile-like beasts stopped attacking, and the woman in yellow praised the red-clad girl for lasting longer than before.
• The woman in yellow and the red-clad girl sat together on a hillside overlooking a lake as the girl reflected on their battle.

Bai Ting had grown close to Guan Man while both recovered from painful pasts, then left the valley to avenge her parents by killing the two goshawks that had slain them. After returning healed, she asked Guan Man to let her join Guan Village’s dangerous revenge operations so she could continue growing stronger.

• Guan Man comforted Bai Ting about her cultivation and recalled how Guan Village had grown stronger while secretly striking at the Rainmoist Sect.
• Bai Ting and Guan Man became close friends, helping each other with grief and cultivation after Bai Ting took human form.
• After reaching Foundation Establishment, Bai Ting left the valley and spent years searching for the goshawks that had killed her parents.
• Bai Ting lured the goshawks into a battle, used her puppets to kill them, and devoured their bodies before returning to the valley more than four years later.
• Bai Ting asked Guan Man to take her along on Guan Village’s next operation, insisting she needed the danger and experience to become stronger.

Bai Ting asked Guan Man to tell the elders she wanted to grow strong enough to search for her missing Master. Meanwhile, Li Yan reached Juruisheng’s market district in disguise and sought to join the trading company as an alchemist, but someone asked to see his newly registered information after he entered.

• Bai Ting told Guan Man she wanted to become strong and search for her Master, and Guan Man agreed to pass her request to the Great Elder and the others.
• Li Yan chose Juruisheng because it had a branch in Dongyi City, rivaled Guiqulaixi, and offered a way to travel under the trading company’s protection.
• Li Yan arrived at the Jurui market district disguised as a mid-stage Spirit Transformation Realm cultivator and registered to enter.
• Li Yan asked a guard where he could take Juruisheng’s alchemy test, and the guard directed him to a pagoda inside the district.
• After Li Yan entered, a cold voice demanded to see his registration information.

Li Yan, using the name Chen Ying, sought to join the Juruisheng merchant house by claiming to be an alchemist from a minor sect. After recognizing his strong alchemical foundation, a gray-robed Grand Alchemy Master brought him inside for further assessment, leaving Li Yan on the way to a practical examination.

• A Nascent Soul cultivator reported Li Yan’s interest in joining Juruisheng to his captain, who considered making preparations if Li Yan proved skilled in alchemy.
• Li Yan reached the restricted gatehouse of Juruisheng’s headquarters and told the guards he had come to test his alchemical abilities and seek membership.
• A gray-robed elder met Li Yan, whom Li Yan recognized as a Grand Alchemy Master, and escorted him inside.
• Li Yan gave the elder his prepared background story as Chen Ying, claiming descent from a disciple of a secluded, declining minor sect.
• The elder questioned Li Yan about alchemy, judged his foundational knowledge to be deep, and considered him for a guest elder deacon position pending further checks.
• The elder led Li Yan through a grove toward a four-story yellow pavilion where the practical assessment awaited.

Li Yan passed Ju Ruisheng Trading Company's fifth-grade pill-refining assessment and was made a guest Attendant. After waiting under discreet observation for four months, he learned that the company had confirmed his duties, allowing him to settle into his new position.

• Li Yan entered the assessment chamber with Chi Xuhe and agreed to refine a Falling Wind Pill using his own knowledge of its formula.
• Li Yan set up a warning formation before beginning the assessment, then ultimately passed the fifth-grade pill test.
• Chi Xuhe reported Li Yan's results, and Ju Ruisheng Trading Company approved him as a guest Attendant with a stipend and cultivation resources.
• Li Yan remained inside his assigned courtyard for more than four months while the company investigated his background and watched him.
• Chi Xuhe arrived to tell Li Yan that the company had confirmed his duties, and Li Yan thanked him.

Li Yan settled into his alchemist-steward duties at Juruisheng while using his waist token to seek intelligence about Guiqu Laixi. He learned that Guiqu Laixi was purging infiltrators from its True Transmission Hall and suspected the hidden enemy controlled the hall, but he still needed a protective talisman before traveling to Dongyi City.

• Chi Xuhe showed Li Yan around Juruisheng's marketplace and explained his duties, which included serving at the main shop and refining assigned Pills.
• Li Yan learned that Juruisheng would observe him for ten years, assigning him batches of Pill-refining work while limiting his access to other shop affairs.
• After half a year of refining, Li Yan checked his waist token and found reports that Guiqu Laixi branches were closing and many True Transmission Hall cultivators had died.
• Li Yan deduced that the enemy exposed by Wen Ruyun might control Guiqu Laixi's True Transmission Hall, but decided he could not travel to Dongyi City without protection.
• Li Yan prepared to hand over twenty fourth-grade Pills to improve his standing with Juruisheng.

Li Yan went to the Auspicious Tower to hand in a batch of Redstone Pills and encountered a hostile Juruisheng cultivator who challenged his alchemy skills. He ignored the provocation and began the formation appraisal, leaving the confrontation unresolved.

• Li Yan flew to the Auspicious Tower and entered the Mission Hall to hand over a mission.
• A tall female cultivator checked Li Yan’s identity token and identified him as the newly arrived steward Chen Ying, then prepared the appraisal formation for his fourth-grade Redstone Pills.
• A black-robed Spirit Transformation cultivator recognized Chen Ying and sarcastically challenged him to an alchemy contest.
• Li Yan refused the challenge and placed twenty pills into the formation while the black-robed man continued taunting him.
• The female cultivator watched warily as the black-robed man held back from acting, knowing the Law Enforcement Hall would punish him if he caused trouble.

Li Yan sought Chi Xuhe’s help to learn why Dongmen Gaozhi had confronted him at the Mission Hall. Chi Xuhe identified the man and learned that his interest stemmed from Li Yan’s assessment, while the significance of the Jade Uncarved Pill remained to be explained.

• Dongmen Gaozhi left the Mission Hall after intimidating the tall woman, and Li Yan completed his mission and departed without questioning her.
• Li Yan visited Chi Xuhe and described his encounter with the black-clad steward.
• Chi Xuhe identified the man as Dongmen Gaozhi and sent a sound transmission talisman to ask about him.
• Chi Xuhe received a reply and told Li Yan that Dongmen Gaozhi was an accomplished, arrogant alchemist who had recognized him because of the fifth-grade pill from his assessment.
• Li Yan identified that pill as the Jade Uncarved Pill, whose niche use was cultivating eye-based divine abilities.

Li Yan learned that Dongmen Gaozhi had come after him because Li Yan’s Jade Essence Pill assessment had broken Gaozhi’s long-standing boast, then returned to cultivation after dismissing the threat. Half a month later, stewards discussed the coming gambling match between the Jurui Sheng and Anyue merchant associations, and Junior Sister Qiao began sharing news about its rewards.

• Chi Xuhe explained that Dongmen Gaozhi had challenged others to surpass his Jade Essence Pill assessment record, which Li Yan had broken by refining four pills in one furnace.
• Li Yan asked about Gaozhi’s influence, heard that he was narrow-minded but lacked powerful backing, and thanked Chi Xuhe for his guidance.
• Li Yan returned to his courtyard to cultivate and decided to disregard Dongmen Gaozhi unless the man caused trouble.
• Half a month later, several Spirit Transformation Realm stewards discussed the Anyue merchant association’s arrival for a gambling match scheduled three months later.
• The stewards discussed the associations’ past contests, substantial stakes, and rewards for participants who distinguished themselves.
• Junior Sister Qiao began sharing news about internal rewards after the other stewards asked what she had heard.

Juruisheng prepared for a wager battle against Anyue, and Li Yan learned that strong performance could earn him a transfer to a branch. As he headed to the headquarters’ selection, he weighed how to earn merit without drawing suspicion and briefly remembered the hopes he had once held for his cultivation.

• Junior Sister Qiao explained that the wager battle would take place at Juruisheng’s headquarters and could offer magic treasures or positions at branches as rewards.
• A yellow-robed cultivator taunted Dongmen Gaozhi about Steward Chen Ying, prompting Dongmen Gaozhi to remember how Chen Ying had ruined his plans.
• Li Yan received Juruisheng’s notice about the wager battle and realized that earning a high-ranking steward position could help him leave his current post sooner.
• Li Yan merged his avatar with his true body and considered how to participate without attracting undue attention.
• Li Yan flew toward the headquarters selection alongside crowds of cultivators and reflected on his lost youthful hopes for immortality and a peaceful life.

Li Yan registered for Ruidan Hall’s pill-refinement contest and learned the rules for the internal selection that would choose competitors for the matches against the Anyue trading company. Dongmen Gaozhi also entered the contest, intent on humiliating Li Yan, and the chapter ended with Li Yan sensing Dongmen Gaozhi watching him.

• Li Yan registered for the pill-refinement contest at the Ruidan Hall section.
• Dongmen Gaozhi learned that Li Yan had chosen pill refinement and entered the same contest, planning to defeat him and take revenge.
• Li Yan waited in the crowd, declined Chi Xuhe’s invitation to join other cultivators, and listened as an elder explained the competition rules.
• The elder announced that the first two rounds would take place that day and the final round would select competitors for the matches against the Anyue trading company the next day.
• Li Yan sensed Dongmen Gaozhi staring at him during the explanation and recognized his hostile intent.

Li Yan advanced to the final round of Juruisheng’s internal selection while observing the competitions and noticing Dongmen Gaozhi’s pill-refining skill. That night, after Dongmen Gaozhi taunted him, Li Yan used Stealth Night Concealment to slip through Juruisheng’s grounds and reach the shadow of a courtyard wall.

• Li Yan watched a contest in which senior stewards and managers identified rare treasures, recognizing only a fraction of the objects.
• Li Yan saw Dongmen Gaozhi refine pills with practiced ease and noticed the man’s cold, sinister expression.
• Li Yan passed the second assessment in twenty-seventh place and advanced to the final, while Dongmen Gaozhi ranked ahead of him.
• Dongmen Gaozhi sent Li Yan a voice transmission mocking his refusal to compete earlier, and Li Yan ignored him and returned to his residence.
• Li Yan activated Stealth Night Concealment and crossed Juruisheng’s grounds, stopping in the shadow behind a courtyard building.

Li Yan secretly infiltrated Dongmen Gaozhi’s courtyard to investigate why the man’s alchemy resembled the technique Buluo had taught him. After learning that Dongmen Gaozhi had studied under Zuo Qiudan, Li Yan began a Soul Search to uncover the truth.

• Li Yan used the Heaven-Stealing Kerchief to breach the formations around Dongmen Gaozhi’s courtyard and slipped into his cultivation room.
• Li Yan used a Bewitching Soul technique on Dongmen Gaozhi and asked where he had learned alchemy.
• Dongmen Gaozhi named Zuo Qiudan, confirming Li Yan’s suspicion that his alchemy was connected to the missing master.
• Li Yan questioned Dongmen Gaozhi further, grew grim at his answers, and began a Soul Search.

Li Yan discovered that Dongmen Gaozhi had imprisoned Zuo Qiudan and tortured him with Blood-Boring Soul Light. After rescuing and treating Zuo Qiudan, Li Yan awakened him, but Zuo Qiudan mistook him for another deception and attacked; he remained too weak to fight.

• Li Yan searched Dongmen Gaozhi's storage ring and found Zuo Qiudan trapped in a swamp, bound in chains and tormented by soul beasts.
• Li Yan pulled Zuo Qiudan from the ring, destroyed the soul beasts and their chains, and stored the unconscious man inside Tuban.
• Li Yan returned to his courtyard, cleaned Zuo Qiudan, gave him soul-healing Pills, and brought him into Tuban to recover.
• Li Yan called to Zuo Qiudan until he awakened and his memories returned.
• Zuo Qiudan mistook Li Yan for someone trying to deceive him and lunged for his throat, but his weakened body left him unable to land the attack.