Chapter Summaries

Li Yan met Su Changyang, who explained that he had come to support him during a meeting at Laojun Peak about the lower-realm sect attack and Li Yan’s Fragmented Poison Body. The Phantom Sect’s sect master appeared as the meeting began and turned her attention to Li Yan.

• Su Changyang greeted Li Yan and explained that the ascended lower-realm cultivators wanted to protect his background and conceal the truth about his Fragmented Poison Body.
• Su Changyang accompanied Li Yan to Laojun Peak and warned him to let Su Changyang handle any difficult questions from the other Void Refinement cultivator.
• Su Changyang told Li Yan that the investigation into the lower-realm attack had traced clues to a top-tier sect, though the Phantom Sect lacked conclusive evidence.
• Mo Canshan arrived at the hall, scrutinized Li Yan, and exchanged cold greetings with Su Changyang.
• The Phantom Sect’s sect master appeared without warning, began the meeting, and looked toward Li Yan.

Li Yan was questioned by the Phantom Sect about the attack on its lower-realm sect and the clues that led investigators to the Yin-Yang Chaos Sect and the Five Immortal Sect. Mo Canshan accused Li Yan of hiding a connection to the Five Immortal Sect and demanded a test of his spiritual roots, leaving the decision to the woman in purple palace robes.

• The woman in purple palace robes asked Li Yan to recount the lower-realm attack, and he explained that the mysterious cultivators had left no trace.
• She revealed that the Phantom Sect had identified attackers across several minor realms, and Li Yan marked people he recognized in a jade slip.
• Mo Canshan challenged Li Yan over his clues pointing to the Yin-Yang Chaos Sect, while Su Changyang defended him and cited his limited knowledge of the Immortal-Spirit Realm.
• Mo Canshan connected Li Yan’s mixed spiritual roots and rapid cultivation to the Five Immortal Sect, then called for the Sect Master to determine Li Yan’s true spiritual roots.
• The woman in purple palace robes asked Li Yan how he thought the matter should be handled.

Li Yan agreed to let the Wangliang Sect test his spiritual roots to settle its suspicions about his origins. The Spirit Sea Pillar revealed that he had water-and-wood heavenly spirit roots, and the sect master recognized his shattered poison body, leaving his risky plan to use the sect’s power still in play.

• Li Yan agreed to undergo the test, and the sect master summoned the Spirit Sea Pillar rather than examining him herself.
• Li Yan pressed his back to the pillar and circulated his magical power through a lesser celestial circuit.
• The pillar displayed black and green light, revealing that Li Yan had water-and-wood heavenly spirit roots.
• Mo Canshan was stunned by the result, while Su Changyang recognized Li Yan’s exceptional aptitude.
• The sect master praised Li Yan’s shattered poison body and told him to stop circulating his cultivation method.
• Li Yan reflected that he had risked everything to protect Zhao Min, Gong Chenying, and the others, and still hoped to use the Wangliang Sect against the Yin-Yang Chaos Sect.

Li Yan passed the Phantom Sect’s spiritual-root test by concealing his true attributes and was awarded doubled cultivation resources for ten years. As the sect ordered an investigation into the Yin-Yang Chaos Sect, Li Yan realized Yan Qingchen’s group might soon arrive and decided he needed to leave before they recognized him.

• Li Yan explained how Second Martial Uncle’s seal and the concealment art hid his spiritual roots, while his test result showed heavenly spiritual roots and a Fragmented Poison Body.
• The purple-robed palace-dress woman awarded Li Yan double cultivation resources for ten years and ordered Su Changyang and Mo Canshan to investigate the Yin-Yang Chaos Sect and the missing combined-body realm cultivators.
• Mo Canshan suggested waiting for the Yin-Yang Chaos Sect’s promised representatives, but the sect master rejected the delay and demanded evidence immediately.
• Li Yan realized Yan Qingchen and the others might be the representatives traveling to the Phantom Sect and could recognize him there.
• Li Yan decided to leave the sect as soon as possible to avoid being identified and drawn into the conflict.

Su Changyang proposed that Li Yan join the investigation into the lower realm, but the sect master dismissed the others and tested Li Yan’s Fragmented Poison Body in private. Impressed by his strength and poison resistance, she asked him to consider retrieving venom from a dangerous Blood-Eyed Toad, leaving the choice to him.

• Su Changyang suggested that Li Yan join the investigation, while Mo Canshan objected to his involvement.
• The woman in purple palace robes sent Su Changyang and Mo Canshan away and asked Li Yan to demonstrate his poisons.
• Li Yan displayed several potent poisons, and the sect master praised his power and poison resistance.
• The sect master explained that the Phantom Sect wanted Touyezi venom from a near-late-sixth-tier Blood-Eyed Toad to cultivate poison-body disciples.
• The sect master asked Li Yan to retrieve the venom or kill the toad if necessary, but said the task was optional.

Li Yan learned that the Phantom Sect wanted him to enter a Ghost Domain and deal with a deadly Blood-Eyed Toad, while the Sect Master explained the creature, the rival Extinction Sect, and the training grounds. After hearing that the mission was meant to secure the toad’s venom before the Extinction Sect could claim it, Li Yan questioned why Void Refinement cultivators would enter the domain.

• The woman in purple palace robes asked Li Yan to use his Severed Poison Body against a peak sixth-grade Blood-Eyed Toad, and Li Yan hesitated before asking about the region.
• The Sect Master described the Ghost Domain’s corpse ghosts and explained that Nether Kings corresponded to a higher ghost rank than ordinary cultivators might expect.
• The Sect Master told Li Yan that a Spirit Transformation disciple had discovered the Blood-Eyed Toad and died from its Touyezi venom after reporting it.
• The Sect Master explained that the Phantom Sect and Extinction Sect shared a dangerous training ground, but the Phantom Sect had withheld the toad’s discovery to keep its venom for itself.
• The Sect Master instructed Li Yan to kill the Blood-Eyed Toad with his Severed Poison if he could not collect its venom, and to leave no evidence if possible.
• Li Yan asked why Void Refinement team leaders would enter the Ghost Domain when only late-stage Nascent Soul and Spirit Transformation cultivators were allowed to train there.

Li Yan accepted the Sect Master's assignment to enter a corpse-ghost domain and secretly search for the Blood-Eyed Toad, with Zhao Min, Gong Chenying, and Zi Kun among the selected disciples. After explaining his cultivation increase and the coming expedition to Wei Zhongran, Li Yan spent the next month with his wives before their departure.

• Li Yan questioned the woman in violet palace robes about the expedition's dangers and safeguards, then agreed to serve as the Void Refinement cultivator entering the ghost domain.
• The Sect Master said Zhao Min, Gong Chenying, and Zi Kun would join the expedition and be exempt from turning over half their gains to the sect.
• Li Yan privately planned to verify the Sect Master's claims and consider taking his family away after the mission.
• Li Yan visited Wei Zhongran, explained his cultivation increase as an effect of his fragmented poison body, and told him about the upcoming training expedition.
• Wei Zhongran celebrated Li Yan's progress and decided to tell Mo Qing and his Master about it.
• After a month of indulgence with Li Yan, Zhao Min and Gong Chenying insisted that he go to the cultivation chamber and stopped letting him into their rooms.

Li Yan briefed Zhao Min, Gong Chenying, Bai Rou, and Zi Kun on the dangers and rules of their upcoming Ghost Domain training, urging them to rely on one another and stay cautious. As the group prepared to depart, Li Yan kept his separate mission to confront the Blood-Eyed Toad secret.

• Li Yan summoned the women to the rear garden, where they reminisced about their fellow disciples from the lower realm.
• Bai Rou and Zi Kun joined Li Yan, and he explained that the four of them would form a team for the Ghost Domain training.
• Li Yan warned the group about the Life-Extinguishing Sect, dangers inside the Ghost Domain, and the limits of outside observation and intervention.
• Li Yan concealed his separate mission against the Blood-Eyed Toad and the secret protection arranged by the sect.
• Zi Kun reflected on Li Yan's astonishing rise to the Void Refinement Realm, while Bai Rou recalled agreeing to join the expedition when Li Yan asked her.

Li Yan prepared Zhao Min, Gong Chenying, Bai Rou, and Zi Kun for the sect trial, explaining its rules and helping them assess their strengths against the Miesheng Sect. At the gathering at Laojun Peak, he met Jun Ze, the late-stage Void Refinement cultivator assigned to accompany him, while the gathered disciples did not recognize Li Yan.

• Bai Rou surprised herself by agreeing to join the tempering trial after Li Yan asked her.
• Li Yan explained that the trial would last a month, end when a cultivator reached the far side, and award victory along with agreed-upon compensation from the losing sect.
• Li Yan reviewed the four cultivators' strengths, urged Zi Kun to heed the women's knowledge of poison, and studied information about the Miesheng Sect with them.
• The next day, Li Yan and the others arrived at Laojun Peak's main hall, where the gathered disciples did not recognize him.
• Jun Ze greeted Li Yan as Junior Brother, and Li Yan returned the greeting after recognizing him as the late-stage Void Refinement cultivator assigned to the mission.

Li Yan and Jun Ze traveled with the Wangliang Sect disciples toward the Ghost Domain, where Jun Ze would assist Li Yan on his mission. As Jun Ze explained the dangers and conditions there, he revealed a glimpse of his tragic past, and Li Yan learned how meticulous and experienced his guide was.

• Li Yan spoke with Jun Ze while the Wangliang Sect disciples gathered aboard the flood dragon, and Jun Ze announced the expedition's rules.
• Li Yan and Jun Ze watched the autumn scenery as Jun Ze reflected on his junior sister's death and the suffering that had changed him.
• Jun Ze told Li Yan that he had entered the Ghost Domain before and explained its black clouds, which blocked divine sense, and the need for a cultivator to remain outside as support.
• Li Yan asked detailed questions about the mission, and Jun Ze answered through their voice-transmission jade pendants for more than two hours.
• Li Yan thanked Jun Ze for the guidance, and Jun Ze prepared to warn him about further dangers.

Li Yan traveled with Jun Ze and the other cultivators toward the Ghost Domain, learning that using Soul Search on its corpse ghosts could cause them to explode and attract danger. After forty-three days, the group reached the desolate gravefields near their destination and paused before the dark expanse ahead.

• Jun Ze warned Li Yan that Soul Search could trigger violent clashes of life-and-death laws inside Ghost Domain corpse ghosts, causing them to explode or die.
• Li Yan asked whether intelligent ghosts who had once been cultivators could still practice their former techniques, and Jun Ze said they probably could not.
• On the forty-third day, Li Yan's group flew through a region of dense dark clouds, scattered bones, and ruined graves as the yin energy grew heavier.
• Li Yan saw weak, bewildered zombies among the graves and asked whether they were near the destination; Jun Ze said they had about half a day left.
• Li Yan's group stopped in midair before the pitch-black expanse, with Li Yan and Jun Ze watching the darkness ahead.

Li Yan and Jun Ze waited at the edge of a dangerous ghost domain for the Life-Extinguishing Sect to arrive. The two sects met, and Li Yan drew the attention of the Life-Extinguishing Sect’s formidable leaders, Qin Mo and Chu Yinghong.

• Jun Ze explained that the black clouds marked a cleansed ghost domain, while deeper domains could corrode even powerful cultivators and turn living beings into corpse ghosts.
• Li Yan and Jun Ze waited with the cultivators until Jun Ze sensed the Life-Extinguishing Sect arriving.
• A flying vessel emerged from the rippling space, carrying Qin Mo, a veteran late-stage Void Refinement cultivator, and Chu Yinghong, a middle-stage Void Refinement cultivator skilled in seduction and concealment.
• Chu Yinghong’s seductive presence unsettled the cultivators, so Jun Ze shielded the juniors and rebuked her for exposing them to it.
• Chu Yinghong noticed the unfamiliar Li Yan and spoke to him with a bewitching voice that made his blood and qi stir.

Li Yan resisted Chu Yinghong’s Soul-Enticing Voice and assessed the Extinction Sect pair as potential enemies despite the sects’ cooperation. Jun Ze and Qin Mo opened a Light Gate into the Ghost Domain, and the Spirit Transformation cultivators began entering.

• Chu Yinghong tested Li Yan with her seduction technique, but Li Yan resisted it and secretly considered how he could counter her.
• Jun Ze introduced Li Yan, and Qin Mo apologized for Chu Yinghong’s behavior while the two Extinction Sect cultivators exchanged their assessment of Li Yan’s strength.
• Jun Ze and Qin Mo activated their broken halves of a jade ruler to create a Light Gate and a path through the black clouds into the Ghost Domain.
• Jun Ze explained the entry rules and dangers, and the Spirit Transformation cultivators began entering the Ghost Domain in alternating order.

Li Yan watched the sect disciples enter the Ghost Domain, then followed Chu Yinghong through the purple Light Gate into the training region. After the two separated, he surveyed the cultivators and corpse ghosts below and concealed himself as he headed toward the northeast.

• Li Yan observed the Light Gate test entrants' cultivation and knew that its changing colors would send different ranks of cultivators into their respective regions.
• Zeng and Qin Mo changed the Light Gate to scarlet, and Zhao Min, Gong Chenying, and the others entered after Li Yan warned them to be careful.
• After the Nascent Soul cultivators entered, the Light Gate turned purple, and Chu Yinghong entered before Li Yan followed.
• Li Yan and Chu Yinghong emerged in the Ghost Domain, exchanged distant glances, and flew off in separate directions while Qin Mo and Zeng monitored them through a light screen.
• Li Yan sensed cultivators battling corpse ghosts across the region, located Chu Yinghong's general direction, and concealed himself as he departed.

Li Yan located Zhao Min, Gong Chenying, Bai Rou, and Zi Kun in the southwestern Ghost Domain and moved on after confirming their safety. When Gong Chenying killed an ambushing zombie, the four triggered a zombie horde and fought off the advancing undead.

• Li Yan found Zhao Min, Gong Chenying, Bai Rou, and Zi Kun in a sunken burial ground, then hurried away without Chu Yinghong's Divine Sense following him.
• Zhao Min, Gong Chenying, Bai Rou, and Zi Kun confirmed they had landed in the southwestern Ghost Domain and arranged themselves in a guarded formation, with Bai Rou inside her Thousand Net Ancient Ape puppet.
• Gong Chenying speared a zombie and a ghost infant that had ambushed her from behind.
• The zombie's death drew a horde of corpse ghosts and zombies, and Gong Chenying identified the area as zombie territory.
• Bai Rou struck the approaching zombies with the Thousand Net Ancient Ape, destroying weaker ones and stopping several powerful late-stage Nascent Soul zombies.

Zhao Min's group fought through a zombie horde in the Ghost Domain, with Zi Kun and Zhao Min striking down powerful enemies as the others helped them escape. Three days later, the four cautiously continued through the hills, recovering from zombie poison and recognizing how dangerous the trial was.

• Zi Kun used his vajra pestle to send a charging zombie flying, while Zhao Min pierced another zombie's dantian with her azure sword.
• Zhao Min's group spent a day fighting through the zombie horde, as Gong Chenying drew attacks and the zombies released clouds of poison.
• The four escaped the horde after a difficult battle, though Zhao Min, Zi Kun, and Gong Chenying were contaminated by zombie poison.
• Bai Rou remained protected inside the Thousand Net Ancient Ape while the other three recovered with Pills and her protection.
• Three days later, Zhao Min's group traveled cautiously through the hills, and Zi Kun warned that few cultivators might survive the month-long trial.

Zhao Min, Zi Kun, Gong Chenying, and the Thousand Web Ancient Ape were ambushed by three Extinction Sect cultivators using poisonous rain, swamp mud, and hidden attacks. After identifying their opponents and deciding to strike quickly, Gong Chenying charged into the green poison mist to engage the plump cultivator.

• Zhao Min detected an ambush and blocked a poisonous rain attack while Zi Kun raised Li Yan's defensive shield and the Thousand Web Ancient Ape turned the ground into a swamp.
• Gong Chenying used her spear to hold back the swamp and scattered poison pills into the air, forcing an Extinction Sect cultivator out of hiding.
• The four companions repelled the first attacks and faced three Extinction Sect cultivators, who had set the ambush after escaping a swarm of Ghost Intestine Bees.
• The Extinction Sect cultivators assessed their opponents and mistakenly identified Gong Chenying as a Laojun Peak cultivator, while Zhao Min confirmed that there were three enemies.
• Gong Chenying told Zhao Min to hold off one enemy while Zi Kun and the Thousand Web Ancient Ape dealt with the cultivator using swamp poison, then charged into the green mist to attack the plump man.

Li Yan searched a strange underground town filled with corpse ghosts and yin beasts, eventually investigating a vast, deserted residence. Meanwhile, the Nascent Soul trial fighters clashed: the Extinction Sect cultivators revealed poison techniques as Zhao Min and the Phantom Sect fighters faced new attacks.

• Li Yan traveled deeper into the tomb, avoided the ghosts and yin beasts, and found a buried town where corpse ghosts wandered as if trapped in their former lives.
• Li Yan entered a vermilion gate and searched the empty residence, inspecting its courtyards and wells for something hidden.
• The fat young man sent gray smoke into the green mist, causing it to condense and reveal Gong Chenying.
• Zhao Min dodged a dandelion-like attack, but a sense of foreboding struck as the Extinction Sect woman ahead of her vanished into an afterimage.
• The Extinction Sect cultivator retreated from Zi Kun and the ancient ape puppet, then prepared to use poison against the puppet’s powerful beam attack.

Bai Rou and Zi Kun killed an Extermination Sect cultivator with a coordinated puppet ambush, forcing the other two enemies to flee. Li Yan continued searching a ruined residence for the location described in the sect master's jade slip, but his latest well held no promise.

• Bai Rou used her remodeled puppet technique to surround an Extermination Sect cultivator with crocodile puppets and unleash fifteen beams at close range.
• The damaged cultivator was killed by Bai Rou's ape puppet and Zi Kun's vajra pestle before he could release his poison.
• The two surviving Extermination Sect cultivators fled in different directions, and Gong Chenying told the others not to pursue because corpse ghosts were approaching.
• Bai Rou, Zi Kun, Zhao Min, and Gong Chenying regrouped and flew toward their predetermined destination.
• Li Yan searched the ruined residence's deep wells and found nothing in the latest one, leaving only a final well to check.

Li Yan followed a hidden path beneath the well into a cavern filled with Nine Nether Winds, using Azure Sky Talismans to protect himself as he searched for the Blood-Eyed Toad. After reaching a vast chamber, he was ambushed by a concealed icy attack, but his Severed Poison began overpowering it.

• Li Yan discovered a passage deep beneath the well and descended into a blue-lit cavern where Nine Nether Winds threatened his life.
• Li Yan activated an Azure Sky Talisman and searched the winding caverns, marking his route and replacing the talisman as its power faded.
• Li Yan tracked the stream's changing light and reached a vast cavern illuminated by yellow water.
• A hidden attacker struck Li Yan with icy force that corroded his defensive barrier and targeted his neck.
• Li Yan's Severed Poison erupted to meet the attack, and the two forces clashed until his poison gained the advantage.