Chapter Summaries

Ji Yuan learned that Yuhuai Mountain possessed a Mountain Edict and decided to deal with the mountain himself. With Ji Yuan’s assurance, Wei Wuwei took his son Wei Yuansheng to Yuhuai Mountain, leaving their party behind at the edge of the Cloud Mist Mountain Range and entering the mist together.

• Ji Yuan and the old dragon discussed Yuhuai Mountain’s Mountain Edict and the old dragon’s past grudge with its cultivators, and Ji Yuan said he would handle the matter alone.
• Wei Wuwei prepared secretly to take Wei Yuansheng to Yuhuai Mountain after Ji Yuan guaranteed their entry would succeed.
• Wei Wuwei received reports that Ji Yuan had accepted the family’s festival gifts, including Thousand Day Spring, and learned that the jujube tree had bloomed.
• Wei Wuwei set out with Wei Yuansheng and the Wei Family party, then traveled through Yucui Mountain for five days to reach the Cloud Mist Mountain Range.
• Wei Wuwei left the others behind, carried Wei Yuansheng on his back, and entered the mist toward Yuhuai Mountain.

Wei Wuwei and Wei Yuansheng crossed Yucui Mountain’s disorienting mist and met the Immortal Crane, who took Yuansheng to Yuhuai Mountain to seek help from Immortal Master Qiu Feng. Wei Wuwei discovered his Paper Crane was missing, while the Paper Crane reached Shuyun Tower ahead of Aunt Crane and flew inside.

• Wei Wuwei followed Wei Yuansheng’s directions through the mist until they met a woman who revealed herself as the Immortal Crane.
• The Immortal Crane agreed to take Wei Yuansheng to Yuhuai Mountain and seek help, after Wei Wuwei told her that a man surnamed Ji had mentioned Immortal Master Qiu Feng.
• The Immortal Crane carried Wei Yuansheng to the mountain, while Wei Wuwei found his Brocade Pouch empty and feared he had lost the Paper Crane.
• At Qiu Feng’s empty bamboo house, the Paper Crane flew out of Wei Yuansheng’s arms and led Aunt Crane toward Shuyun Tower.
• The Paper Crane slipped through Shuyun Tower’s barrier, leaving Aunt Crane worried it might belong to the Demonic Path.

Crane Aunt brought Wei Yuansheng into Shuyun Tower, where Qiu Feng recognized a paper crane from Mister Ji and connected him to a mysterious cultivator's intervention in Bingzhou. After the crane displayed its unusual spirit and fled from danger, Qiu Feng set out to bring Wei Wuwei to Yuhuai Mountain, which also hoped to learn more about Mister Ji.

• Crane Aunt told Immortal Master Huang that she had followed a paper crane into Shuyun Tower, and Wei Yuansheng explained that Mister Ji had made it.
• Martial Uncle Ren told Qiu Feng and the others that the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion had found no results yet, and he dismissed them to resume their cultivation.
• The paper crane delivered a message to Qiu Feng, who recognized it as Mister Ji's work and suspected Mister Ji had been the mysterious cultivator involved in Bingzhou.
• Martial Uncle Ren examined the paper crane, which escaped his hand and fled from his flame to Qiu Feng, demonstrating its instinct to avoid danger.
• Wei Yuansheng asked Crane Aunt about his father, and Qiu Feng offered to bring Wei Wuwei to Yuhuai Mountain.

After settling Wei Wuwei and Wei Yuansheng at Yuhuai Mountain, Qiu Feng traveled to Ning'an County to meet Ji Yuan. Ji Yuan revealed that he had helped Old Dragon drive a True Demon from Great Zhen and asked what it would take to see Yuhuai Mountain’s Mountain Consecration Talisman Decree.

• Qiu Feng showed Wei Wuwei and Wei Yuansheng around Yuhuai Mountain and explained that Wei Wuwei could cultivate, though his prospects were limited.
• Qiu Feng advised Wei Yuansheng to focus on building a cultivation foundation before visiting his mother, and Wei Yuansheng repeated Ji Yuan’s teaching about filial duty and entering the mortal world.
• Yuhuai Mountain decided that Qiu Feng alone should visit Ji Yuan, and Qiu Feng set out for Ning'an County in mid-June.
• At Ju'an Pavilion, Qiu Feng met Ji Yuan, who confirmed that he had joined Old Dragon to force a True Demon to flee Great Zhen.
• Ji Yuan asked Qiu Feng what conditions would be required for him to glimpse Yuhuai Mountain’s Mountain Consecration Talisman Decree.

Ji Yuan spoke with Qiu Feng about Yuhuai Mountain, the Tongtian River Dragon Lord, and rumors surrounding the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion while probing for information about the cultivation world. Ji Yuan’s melancholy stirred a profound Dao Charm that frightened Qiu Feng, who left for Yuhuai Mountain with news of the Old Dragon’s forgiveness and a request to view the Mountain Consecration Talisman Decree.

• Ji Yuan told Qiu Feng that the Tongtian River Dragon Lord had put his old grievance against Yuhuai Mountain behind him, easing Qiu Feng’s concerns.
• Ji Yuan asked Qiu Feng about the Mountain Consecration Talisman Decree and drew out details about immortal residences and their disputes while discussing rumors of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion.
• Qiu Feng asked where Ji Yuan came from, and Ji Yuan said his hometown was Great Zhen and that he had slept through much of the world’s changes.
• Ji Yuan’s melancholy brought forth a vast Dao Charm that made Qiu Feng tremble, and Ji Yuan ended the moment by placing a chess piece on the board.
• Yin Qing and Hu Yun returned to Ju'an Pavilion, and Ji Yuan saw Qiu Feng off after asking him to convey greetings and report his request.
• Qiu Feng returned to Yuhuai Mountain, reflecting on Ji Yuan’s power and carrying news of the Old Dragon’s forgiveness.

After Ji Yuan warned Hu Yun to restrain himself, Qiu Feng returned to Yuhuai Mountain and reported his encounter with Ji Yuan to its senior cultivators. As the elders debated whether to let Ji Yuan inspect their Mountain Edict, Qiu Feng's account of Ji Yuan's sorrow destabilized him and alarmed everyone in Jade Dome Hall.

• Yin Qing and Hu Yun argued after Qiu Feng left, and Ji Yuan warned Hu Yun that demons could not behave recklessly outside his protection.
• Qiu Feng returned to Yuhuai Mountain and told Yang Ming and Ren Butong about his meeting with Ji Yuan.
• Ren Butong summoned Yuhuai Mountain's elders to Jade Dome Hall, where they debated the rumors, the True Demon, and whether Ji Yuan should see the Mountain Edict.
• Ju Yuanzi asked Qiu Feng about Ji Yuan's supernatural presence, and Qiu Feng described the small courtyard seeming to travel beyond heaven and earth.
• Qiu Feng's aura and magical power became unstable as he recounted Ji Yuan's sorrow, prompting the cultivators to stop him and help him enter stillness.

After Qiu Feng recovered from the dangerous vision triggered by Ji Yuan’s words, Yuhuai Mountain sent Ji Yuan three jade slips containing profound research on Imperial Decrees. Ji Yuan studied the gift with delight, but news that Doctor Tong had been away in Deyuan County for over a month led him to suspect that the old Divine Doctor Qin Zizhou had died.

• Yuhuai Mountain cultivators stabilized Qiu Feng and secluded him in Jade Dome Hall after his vital energies reacted to Ji Yuan’s words.
• Qiu Feng awakened after more than a month of meditation, having gained insight into his Inner World, and delivered three jade slips selected by Ju Yuanzi to Ji Yuan.
• Ji Yuan examined the writings by Ju Yuanzi and Yuan Wan'er, recognized their depth, and happily stored the jade slips before going to breakfast.
• At Sun’s Noodle Stall, Ji Yuan learned that Doctor Tong had gone to Deyuan County and had not returned for over a month.
• Ji Yuan divined using Qin Zizhou’s name, concluded that even the Divine Doctor could not escape death, and hurried away after paying for his wontons.

Ji Yuan hurried to Deyuan County to see the dying Qin Zizhou, only to learn that the old doctor had just died. He entered the Qin Family courtyard unseen and asked the gathered ghosts and gods to let him visit Qin, promising to accompany them to Desheng Prefecture afterward.

• Ji Yuan sent a paper crane to tell Hu Yun and Yin Qing where he had gone, then flew to Deyuan County.
• Ji Yuan asked at Anren Grand Pharmacy where Qin Zizhou lived, and the shopkeeper sent the Pharmacy Assistant to guide him.
• Ji Yuan reached the Qin Family residence and learned from a relative that Qin Zizhou had just passed away.
• Ji Yuan slipped back into the courtyard after leaving, where the Land God and Underworld officials confronted him.
• Ji Yuan explained his connection to Qin Zizhou and promised the ghosts and gods he would travel with them to Desheng Prefecture if necessary.

Ji Yuan met Qin Zizhou after his death and learned that the doctor’s soul retained an extraordinary strand of Pure Qi. He suggested Qin could pursue a path beyond ordinary underworld service, leaving the Land God astonished by the possibility that Qin might one day become a Realm Roaming God.

• The Yin Cha agreed to let Ji Yuan meet Qin Zizhou, then entered the room and explained the afterlife to Qin’s newly departed soul.
• Qin Zizhou recalled saving a mysterious Daoist priest and described the priest’s uncannily accurate divinations to the Yin Cha.
• The Day Patrol Emissary brought Ji Yuan in, and Qin Zizhou recognized him as the blind-eyed jianghu expert he had treated years earlier.
• Ji Yuan learned that Qin Zizhou’s soul held Pure Qi that had not dispersed after death and asked about the doctor’s likely underworld post.
• Ji Yuan told Qin Zizhou that a Main Water True God could refine his Ghost Body and help him cultivate the Spirit Path, potentially leading toward becoming a Realm Roaming God.
• The Land God recognized the significance of Ji Yuan’s suggestion and reacted with disbelief at the prospect.

Ji Yuan asked Qin Zizhou to consider an opportunity to pursue the path of a Realm Roaming Deity, then recruited Ying Ruoli and Bai Qi to help. The group arrived at the Desheng Prefecture Underworld Bureau, where the assembled gods’ presence confirmed the opportunity’s seriousness to Qin Zizhou.

• Ji Yuan explained the possible path to becoming a Realm Roaming Deity and let Qin Zizhou postpone his decision until reaching the Underworld Bureau.
• The Earth God reassured Qin Zizhou that he could decide after learning more, and Qin Zizhou agreed to consider the offer there.
• Ji Yuan traveled to the Tongtian River and persuaded Ying Ruoli and the Old Dragon to accompany him.
• Ji Yuan invited Bai Qi, who eagerly joined the group heading for Desheng Prefecture.
• The Desheng Prefecture City God and departmental gods welcomed Ji Yuan, Ying Ruoli, Bai Qi, and the Old Dragon at the Ghost Gate Pass, leaving Qin Zizhou to grasp the scale of his opportunity.

Ji Yuan persuaded Qin Zizhou to accept the path of the Realm Roaming Deity, then joined the River Gods and the Old Dragon in transforming Qin’s soul. The chapter ended as Qin’s body began changing from yin to yang and from void to reality.

• The Desheng Prefecture City God judged Qin Zizhou’s life and offered him a chance to cultivate as a Realm Roaming Deity.
• Ji Yuan asked Qin Zizhou why he had practiced medicine and urged him to aid all living beings through divine cultivation.
• Qin Zizhou vowed that he was willing to walk the path, and his ghostly body filled with pure qi and gained vitality.
• Ji Yuan borrowed the Underworld Bureau’s Place of Extreme Yin and prepared to enlighten Qin Zizhou with help from Ying Ruoli, Bai Qi, and the Old Dragon.
• The River Gods and the Old Dragon gathered Water Marsh Essence, Yin Spirit Spring Water, and Incense and Fire Prayer Power around Qin Zizhou.
• Ji Yuan invoked his Imperial Decree, causing Gui Water and True Yang to emerge in Qin Zizhou as his body began transforming.

Ji Yuan transformed Qin Zizhou’s ghost body into a tangible spirit body, and Qin Zizhou returned home during his First Seven Days to visit his family. Ji Yuan then revealed that he planned to travel to Cloud Mountain in Bingzhou to seek a way for Qin Zizhou to cultivate as a Realm Roaming Deity.

• Ji Yuan used Mysterious Yellow decrees and the River Gods’ Incense and Fire Prayer Power to transform Qin Zizhou’s ghost body into a tangible spirit body.
• Qin Zizhou thanked Ji Yuan, the Old Dragon, Bai Qi, Ying Ruoli, and the Underworld Bureau’s ghosts and gods after his transformation was complete.
• On his First Seven Days, Qin Zizhou returned home alone, ate the food his family had prepared, and visited his sleeping second son, Qin Yan.
• Qin Zizhou gave Qin Yan a dream in which he urged him to preserve the family pharmacy if their descendants wished to continue practicing medicine, then left the house.
• When the Old Dragon asked Ji Yuan about Qin Zizhou’s cultivation, Ji Yuan said he planned to go to Cloud Mountain in Bingzhou, and the Old Dragon guessed he meant Cloud Mountain Temple and the Star Chart.

Qin Zizhou traveled with Ji Yuan and the Old Dragon to Cloud Mountain Temple, where he began a new life cultivating Dao. After leaving him there, Ji Yuan returned to Ju'an Pavilion and found a letter from Yin Zhaoxian, deciding he still had to go to Chunhui Prefecture.

• Ji Yuan and the Old Dragon carried Qin Zizhou to Cloud Mountain in Bing Province, where they watched the sunrise and observed Cloud Mountain Temple.
• Ji Yuan advised Qin Zizhou to cultivate at Cloud Mountain Temple and left him to seek out Daoist Qing Song.
• Qin Zizhou introduced himself to Daoist Qing Song as a hundred-year-old aspirant to Daoism, and Qing Song agreed to take him in before recognizing him as Divine Doctor Qin.
• Ji Yuan and the Old Dragon parted ways, and Ji Yuan returned to Ju'an Pavilion to find Yin Qing and Hu Yun asleep beside two letters.
• Ji Yuan recognized Yin Zhaoxian's unopened letter addressed to him and decided to go to Chunhui Prefecture.

Ji Yuan escorted Yin Qing toward Chunhui Prefecture after receiving Yin Zhaoxian’s letter urging the boy to study there. Near Jiudaokou, Ji Yuan led Yin Qing and Hu Yun into Old Birch Mountain, where he caught two Silver Aperture Fish for soup.

• Ji Yuan read Yin Zhaoxian’s letter asking him to persuade Yin Qing to attend Huiyuan College, then told Yin Qing to prepare to leave for Chunhui Prefecture.
• The next day, Yin Qing said farewell to his friends and academy master, and Ji Yuan and Hu Yun accompanied him by carriage.
• Hu Yun hid from barking dogs along the road, while Ji Yuan watched her reaction and considered that she needed to learn a lesson.
• After six days of travel, Ji Yuan stopped at Old Birch Mountain and led Yin Qing and Hu Yun away from the route to the ferry crossing.
• Ji Yuan used his Green Vine Sword to stun two Silver Aperture Fish in Jade Water Pool, wrapped them in a Dried Lotus Leaf, and hurried toward the ferry crossing to make fish soup.

Ji Yuan, Yin Qing, and Hu Yun hired a small boat to travel toward Chunhui Prefecture, and Ji Yuan asked the boatman to stop overnight at a place tied to his past. As Ji Yuan prepared a strange fish soup, the boatman saw ripples and a flash of azure light in the river, leaving him wondering whether a water spirit was nearby.

• Ji Yuan and Yin Qing reached the Little Shun River ferry dock with Hu Yun and chose a small passenger boat.
• Ji Yuan bargained with a skilled boatman for passage, and the boatman rowed them to the confluence of Little Shun River and Chunmu River.
• The boatman speared a silver carp and a grass carp, then continued toward Chunhui Prefecture.
• Ji Yuan asked the boatman to anchor for the night at a place where he had experienced something interesting years earlier.
• Ji Yuan cooked two small silver fish into a fragrant, silvery-white soup while Yin Qing secretly fed Hu Yun rice and fish.
• The boatman noticed the fish had vanished from the pot and saw ripples and a flash of azure light in the river.

Ji Yuan fed the boatman and his companions soup made from precious Silver Aperture Fish, then recognized the Big Green Fish that had followed their boat. The fish accepted Ji Yuan’s offering, and the group remained aboard together at night.

• The boatman mistook the disturbance near the boat for a Water Ghost and poured out Thousand Day Spring to drive it away.
• Ji Yuan gave the boatman a small bowl of medicinal fish soup, whose powerful effects left him dazed as he returned to the cabin.
• Ji Yuan shared the remaining soup with Yin Qing and Hu Yun, then reassured them that the splashing came from an intelligent Big Green Fish.
• Ji Yuan greeted the Big Green Fish and poured it a bowl of Silver Aperture Fish soup, which it eagerly swallowed.

Ji Yuan invited the Big Green Fish to travel with the boat and arranged for Yin Qing to read to it while studying at Huiyuan College. After reaching Chunhui Prefecture, he took Yin Qing and Hu Yun into the city and considered introducing Hu Yun to the hardships of demon cultivation.

• Hu Yun drank the remaining Silver Aperture Fish soup, then chatted with the Big Green Fish beside the boat.
• Ji Yuan offered to protect the Big Green Fish on the journey to Chunhui Prefecture and asked Yin Qing to read to it on his days off; Yin Qing agreed.
• The boatman woke refreshed after drinking the fish soup, and later rowed the passengers to Chunhui Prefecture without accepting their fare.
• Ji Yuan entered Chunhui Prefecture with Yin Qing and Hu Yun, hanging the Darkwood Token on Hu Yun to prevent the city's deities from attacking him.
• Ji Yuan planned to let Hu Yun experience the hard life of a Demon Cultivator, perhaps by meeting the Old Turtle.

Ji Yuan left Yin Qing at Huiyuan College and stayed in Chunhui Prefecture, where Hu Yun secretly visited Big Green Fish at night. Their meeting drew the attention of Old Turtle, who recognized Hu Yun’s story and revealed that he had once been the fox who injured him.

• Ji Yuan and Yin Qing arrived at Huiyuan College, where the masters welcomed Yin Qing and showed him to his dormitory.
• After promising to stay until the college’s day off, Ji Yuan returned to the inn with Hu Yun and pretended to sleep while Hu Yun slipped out to meet Big Green Fish.
• Ji Yuan secretly followed Hu Yun to the river and watched him share hidden pastries with Big Green Fish.
• Old Turtle appeared, restrained Big Green Fish, and offered to let him remain in the river if Hu Yun entertained him with stories.
• As Hu Yun recounted his past, Old Turtle bit into the willow beside him and recognized him as the fox who had injured him.

Hu Yun faced the old turtle’s envy over his rapid cultivation and learned how long the turtle had struggled without guidance. After Hu Yun described Ji Yuan’s lecture, the turtle discovered that Hu Yun had forgotten its contents and erupted in frustration.

• The old turtle confronted Hu Yun about refining his Horizontal Bone in six years, comparing it with his own two hundred and thirty years of cultivation.
• The old turtle scolded Hu Yun for abandoning his chance to learn from Ji Yuan, then grew uneasy when he realized Hu Yun had recently seen Ji Yuan again.
• Hu Yun confirmed that Ji Yuan was nearby, and the old turtle released him and the Big Green Fish before asking about their reunion.
• Hu Yun recounted Ji Yuan’s lecture on Niu Kui Mountain and named the work “Free and Easy Wandering.”
• Hu Yun admitted he had forgotten the lecture’s contents, and the old turtle roared and churned the river in frustration.

Ji Yuan met Old Turtle Wu Chong and offered him a chance to listen to a scholar read, while asking him to recount stories from the mortals he had helped. Ji Yuan named Big Green Fish Luo Biqing and left for the docks with Hu Yun, while Old Turtle and Luo Biqing stayed behind.

• Hu Yun tried to comfort Old Turtle Wu Chong after failing to remember the teachings from the moonlit platform, but Ji Yuan appeared behind him.
• Old Turtle climbed ashore, paid his respects to Ji Yuan, and explained that he had diligently practiced Lord Bai Jiang’s Refinement Technique for six years.
• Ji Yuan assessed Old Turtle’s stagnant cultivation and baleful aura, then learned that Old Turtle had stopped trying to enlist the mortals he had helped.
• Ji Yuan offered Old Turtle the chance to listen when a scholar named Yin read to Big Green Fish and asked Old Turtle to tell him memorable stories about those he had helped.
• Ji Yuan named Big Green Fish Luo Biqing, then walked toward the docks with Hu Yun while Old Turtle and Luo Biqing remained by the river.