Chapter Summaries

Fang Zelin faced a deer demon after it injured Senior Brother Pang and the others, but the deer mistook him for a powerful cultivator and chose to explain itself rather than fight. It then asked Fang Zelin why the Demon Race struggled to attain the Dao, leaving him to consider how to answer.

• Fang Zelin arrived and learned from Senior Brother Pang that the deer had weakened him with a demonic wind.
• Fang Zelin hid his fear and told the deer he could not ignore its becoming a demon and slaughtering people.
• The deer revealed its white, wondrous appearance and explained that the people had attacked it to drink its blood.
• Fang Zelin accepted that the deer was not entirely at fault, and the deer began to leave before reconsidering its chance to seek guidance.
• The deer asked Fang Zelin whether Heaven favored humans over the Demon Race, and Fang Zelin carefully pondered his reply.

Fang Zelin explained the Dao to the white elk, which gave him spirit rice in gratitude before fleeing. He returned to Yingping Peak and planted the seedlings, eager to begin cultivating.

• Fang Zelin explained that heaven and earth treated all things equally and that the Dao followed natural spontaneity, prompting the elk to feel it had gained a profound realization.
• The elk offered Fang Zelin several stalks of spirit rice as thanks, then left the valley to find a safer place.
• Fang Zelin decided not to seek more rewards and hurried down the mountain with the others.
• Fang Zelin returned Senior Brother Pang's treasured sword, bought supplies, and crossed the Yongding River back to Yingping Peak.
• Fang Zelin cleared a small plot and planted the spirit rice seedlings.

Fang Zelin discovered that his spirit rice needed spiritual power, so he cultivated beside the seedlings and let them absorb what appeared. He began building a shelter on Yingping Peak and asked the kappa to watch over the rice, while considering whether the peak could become his permanent home.

• Fang Zelin found that the spirit rice seedlings eagerly absorbed spiritual power from his palm and cultivated beside them to feed them.
• Fang Zelin sensed spiritual power appearing only when his cultivation method drew it forth, and wondered whether the world lacked spiritual power or had some kind of safeguard.
• After cultivating, Fang Zelin saw that the seedlings had grown greener and concluded they had absorbed enough for now.
• Fang Zelin failed to build a shelter with his own tools, so he bought prepared timber in Anzi County and carried it back to Yingping Peak.
• Fang Zelin met the kappa in the Yongding River and asked him to watch the spirit rice, planning to share the harvest and judge whether they could become friends.

Fang Zelin settled on Yingping Peak, built a wooden house beside his spirit rice, and asked He Chenyi to keep others away. After seeing a water ghost rescue someone, he learned that other ghosts were copying Zhang Weichu in hopes of joining the Underworld Bureau, though he doubted the method would work.

• Fang Zelin brought timber to Yingping Peak, and He Chenyi used river water to carry it to the peak.
• Fang Zelin built a wooden house beside the spirit rice field and checked that the seedlings were safe.
• Fang Zelin asked He Chenyi to prevent others from approaching Yingping Peak while he was away.
• Fang Zelin and He Chenyi saw a water ghost carry a person who had fallen into the river to the bank.
• He Chenyi explained that water ghosts were imitating Zhang Weichu in hopes of joining the Underworld Bureau, and Fang Zelin said the approach seemed ill-advised.
• Fang Zelin began building a small fishing platform by the river so he would have another source of food.

Fang Zelin shared the Wind-Riding Sword Art on the forums to help players learn martial arts and keep them from quitting, believing their strength could benefit Blazing Summer if Seeking the Dao was real. After learning Jiuchuan had joined a martial hall, Fang Zelin returned to the game and improved his home before noticing that his spirit rice was growing unusually thick and tree-like.

• Fang Zelin read players’ complaints about the difficulty and cost of learning martial arts, then posted detailed instructions for the Wind-Riding Sword Art and medicinal decoctions.
• Players thanked Fang Zelin and hurried into Seeking the Dao to try the sword art.
• Fang Zelin saw Jiuchuan’s message that he had joined a well-known local martial hall, so he deleted the link he had planned to send and checked that Jiuchuan’s training was going well.
• Fang Zelin went fishing, stocked his pond, and built a bamboo pipe to bring spring water to his backyard.
• Fang Zelin transplanted bamboo by his courtyard and examined his spirit rice, which had grown unusually thick and sturdy.

The white deer gained insight into cultivation after recalling Fang Zelin’s words and decided to search Wangqing Mountain for spiritual treasures to offer him. Meanwhile, players in Anzi County began cultivating martial arts, and the Underworld Bureau chose to close its cases involving Fang Zelin and the escaped deer demon.

• The white deer recalled Fang Zelin’s teaching, received a night of moonlight, and felt that it had crossed into cultivation.
• The white deer decided to search Wangqing Mountain for spiritual treasures so it could bring gifts to Fang Zelin and hear more of his teachings.
• Players gathered at Anzi County’s training ground to practice a cultivation method from Fang Zelin’s forum post, and some celebrated after sensing Qi Force.
• Martial arts schools earned silver from players buying medicinal decoctions while local residents watched the newcomers with bemusement.
• Zhang Weichu reported the Wangqing Mountain events to Judge Wen, who ordered the cases closed because they involved an immortal’s disciple and the deer demon had escaped.

Fang Zelin returned to the strange mountain and met the old fisherman Zhou, hoping to learn about the place and immortal cultivation. Zhou could offer little guidance, and Fang Zelin left after fishing with him.

• Fang Zelin found himself back at the mountain where he had first learned to cultivate Qi and followed the path to the old fisherman.
• The old fisherman Zhou invited Fang Zelin to sit and fish, but said he did not know where they were or how to teach immortal methods.
• Fang Zelin cast a baitless, straight hook into the water and watched crowds of unusual fish gather around it.
• Fang Zelin briefly hooked a huge black fish, but it slipped free and fell back into the water.
• Fang Zelin asked Zhou about cultivating immortality, received few answers, and left when he grew hungry.

Fang Zelin tended his rapidly growing spirit rice in Seeking the Dao while planning to find other immortal cultivators for guidance. Back on Earth, he worried that he could not cultivate without the mountain or a Qi Refining book, leaving his hopes of progressing there uncertain.

• Fang Zelin decided to seek other immortal cultivators after the spirit rice ripened, since he lacked knowledge of spells and further cultivation.
• Fang Zelin roasted fish, checked the spirit rice, and practiced the Wind-Riding Sword Art to prepare for traveling safely.
• Fang Zelin returned to Earth and wondered why, despite sensing Qi Force, he still could not sense Spiritual Qi.
• Fang Zelin suspected that he needed the mountain or a cultivation method to open the way to immortal cultivation on Earth and resolved to seek guidance in Seeking the Dao.
• Fang Zelin dismissed his housekeeper to keep his cultivation experiments private, then took out the garbage himself and wheeled toward the elevator.

Fang Zelin chatted with Jiuchuan about his progress in martial arts and checked the players’ advances in Seeking the Dao. He returned to Yingping Peak to find his spirit rice nearly ripe, where Zhang Weichu arrived and noticed the crop.

• Fang Zelin made a trash bag land in a bin with a flick of his hand, then ordered fried rice at a food stall.
• Jiuchuan told Fang Zelin that he had made progress with his saber technique and asked whether cultivation might work in the real world.
• Fang Zelin browsed the forum, where he saw that some players had reached the Fifth-Rate Expert level and that his own post had become a popular featured post.
• Fang Zelin returned to Yingping Peak and inspected the spirit rice, which was heavy with grain and close to ripening.
• Zhang Weichu arrived at the paddy and remarked that Fang Zelin’s rice looked almost ripe.

Fang Zelin learned from Zhang Weichu that immortals were difficult to find, then watched a white deer return with a lingzhi as a gift. After Fang Zelin realized the lingzhi had no Spiritual Qi, he considered its value as a medicinal herb, while the deer worried he disliked it.

• Fang Zelin told Zhang Weichu to visit when his spirit rice ripened, and Zhang Weichu agreed.
• Zhang Weichu told Fang Zelin that foreign visitors were practicing martial arts and fighting, while Fang Zelin remained unconcerned.
• Zhang Weichu spotted a white deer approaching across the water, and Fang Zelin recognized the deer he had previously guided.
• The white deer offered Fang Zelin a lingzhi to repay his kindness, and Fang Zelin relaxed when he realized it had not come to reclaim the spirit rice.
• Fang Zelin sensed that the lingzhi contained no Spiritual Qi and considered its value as medicine, while the white deer feared he disliked the gift.

Fang Zelin invited the white deer to share the spirit rice it had given him, and the deer left revering him even more. On Earth, people began successfully cultivating Qi Force from Quest for the Dao, and Ye Liuling’s video demonstrating it went viral.

• Fang Zelin invited the white deer to taste the spirit rice when it ripened, and the deer was astonished by the plants’ rich Spiritual Qi.
• The white deer thanked Fang Zelin, bowed, and left, while Zhang Weichu and the kappa watched with greater awe.
• Fang Zelin urged the spirit rice plants to produce enough for everyone to share.
• A man on Earth discovered that he could cultivate Qi Force outside the game, and practitioners in other cities began testing the method in secret.
• Ye Liuling posted a video claiming Qi Force could be mastered on Earth and shattered a marble table with a palm strike, sending the video onto trending searches.

Blazing Summer officially endorsed a video showing Qi Force in the real world, causing a surge of players in Quest for the Dao and prompting concern among officials about the time remaining. Fang Zelin discussed the news with Jiuchuan, but remained unable to sense Spiritual Qi and hoped to find a place where he could cultivate and heal his leg.

• Blazing Summer reposted Ye Liuling’s video with the message, “When the young are strong, the nation is strong,” leading many people to believe Qi Force could be learned in reality.
• Players flocked to Quest for the Dao, and people who had mastered Qi Force began demonstrating it to friends.
• Officials discussed how quickly the public had learned Qi Force and said they needed to establish a foothold in the game before time ran out.
• Jiuchuan told Fang Zelin he had been practicing Qi Force in secret, and Fang Zelin admitted he had been practicing too.
• Jiuchuan challenged Fang Zelin to see who could cultivate Qi Force first, but Fang Zelin remained focused on finding Spiritual Qi so he could cultivate and heal his leg.

Fang Zelin harvested and cooked his ripe spirit rice, sharing it with He Chenyi, Zhang Weichu, and the white deer. As they discovered its extraordinary taste and benefits, a mysterious young man arrived and asked for a serving.

• Fang Zelin harvested the ripe spirit rice at the foot of Yingping Peak.
• He Chenyi, Zhang Weichu, and the white deer arrived as Fang Zelin cooked the rice.
• Zhang Weichu discovered he could eat the spirit rice, while He Chenyi and the white deer enjoyed it and gained Spiritual Qi.
• Fang Zelin and the others praised the rice’s remarkable flavor.
• A richly dressed young man appeared without crossing by boat and asked Fang Zelin for a bowl.

Fang Zelin shared spirit rice with a young man in a jade crown, then explained why Zhang Weichu became an underworld official while the resentful water ghost did not. After arranging for He Chenyi to tend the spirit grain, Fang Zelin prepared to wander in search of cultivators and knowledge, and asked the young man who he was.

• Fang Zelin gave a bowl of spirit rice to the young man in a jade crown, who praised its taste as the group ate.
• A resentful water ghost came ashore and demanded to know why Zhang Weichu had become an underworld official after one month of saving people while he had failed after three months.
• Fang Zelin explained that Zhang Weichu had done good without seeking reward, while the water ghost had acted to become an underworld official, leaving the ghost stunned by the difference.
• After the group finished the spirit rice, Fang Zelin asked He Chenyi to tend the spirit grain and said he was going to wander the world to seek cultivators and learn about cultivation.
• The white deer asked where Fang Zelin was going, and Fang Zelin said he would wander the four corners of the world before asking the young man in the jade crown about his identity.

Fang Zelin accepted a ride on the white deer and traveled downstream toward Hualing City, where he encountered a confrontation between the Wild Wolf Gang and unaffiliated players. The gang surrounded him and demanded his deer, while the white deer restrained its anger in Fang Zelin’s presence.

• Fang Zelin declined to claim the title of immortal, said farewell to the people by the river, and accepted the white deer’s offer to carry him downstream.
• Fang Zelin rode toward Hualing City while people on the riverbank watched him depart with awe.
• Outside Hualing City, the Wild Wolf Gang faced off against unaffiliated players over the gang’s attempts to claim every spot in the city.
• The Wild Wolf Gang leader considered attacking the players, but the sound of hooves drew everyone’s attention to Fang Zelin approaching on the white deer.
• A gang member urged the leader to take the deer for its supposed medicinal blood, and the gang surrounded Fang Zelin and offered him one tael of silver for it.
• The white deer grew furious at the demand but held back from attacking because Fang Zelin was present.

Fang Zelin killed the Wild Wolf Gang leader and reached Hualing City to exchange lingzhi for silver. Meanwhile, the Dragon King recognized the spirit rice his son had brought home and realized it came from a cultivator.

• Fang Zelin caught the Wild Wolf Gang leader's saber between his fingers and killed him with a swift strike, leaving the onlookers vomiting.
• Fang Zelin rode to the outskirts of Hualing City, where the elk warned that it could not go closer because of the City God.
• Fang Zelin entered Hualing City and headed for an apothecary to sell the lingzhi the elk had given him.
• The dragon prince showed the Dragon King several grains of spirit rice he had saved after mooching a bowl of rice from someone.
• The Dragon King recognized the rich Spiritual Qi in the grains and lamented that his son had failed to understand their significance.

The Dragon King told the dragon prince that Fang Zelin was his lost chance to become a True Dragon and sent him to find the cultivator before the prince’s Dragon Tribulation. Meanwhile, Fang Zelin headed for Yunmeng Marsh, unaware that the Wild Wolf Gang had put a bounty on him and was soon overwhelmed by players seeking justice.

• The Dragon King explained that Fang Zelin’s words had helped a water ghost gain a position in the Underworld Bureau and that the dragon prince had missed a fortuitous opportunity.
• The Dragon King urged the dragon prince to find Fang Zelin, who might still help him receive heaven-and-earth investiture and become a True Dragon.
• Fang Zelin heard another account of a fallen dragon at Yunmeng Marsh, changed into a robe and boots, and set off to investigate.
• After Fang Zelin killed the Wild Wolf Gang leader in the game, the leader offered one hundred thousand Blazing Summer Currency for Fang Zelin’s death.
• Unaffiliated players in Hualing City publicized the Wild Wolf Gang’s behavior, drawing in wandering heroes who attacked the gang until it ceased to exist.

Fang Zelin joined a group of players escorting a scholar toward the capital and spent the night with them in the wilderness. Around the campfire, the players debated whether the white-deer rider who killed the Wild Wolf Gang leader might be a player, and the discussion left them reconsidering how strong such a player could be.

• Fang Zelin accepted a burly player's invitation to travel with the group after learning the wilderness was dangerous at night.
• The group stopped beside a large boulder, where the burly man prepared a camp and set up warnings despite another player's objections to bringing Fang Zelin along.
• Around the campfire, the players discussed an expert who had killed the Wild Wolf Gang leader in Hualing City in a single encounter.
• A female player argued that the white-deer rider could be a player, noting that someone had shared the Wind-Riding Sword Art on the forums three months earlier.
• The players reconsidered the rider's possible strength after hearing the female player's argument.

Fang Zelin overheard players discussing wealthy groups investing in Seeking the Dao and recruiting candidates for the imperial examinations, strengthening his suspicion that the world was real. As he prepared to cultivate at the camp, several beautiful women appeared in the wilderness, and he suspected they might be monsters.

• Players discussed rich families funding gaming studios, gathering resources, and recruiting people to take the imperial examinations in Seeking the Dao.
• A provincial graduate remarked that foreign visitors’ mathematical knowledge could help them in the examinations, while the players acknowledged how difficult it was to pass.
• Fang Zelin considered that Blazing Summer’s higher-ups might know more about the world and resolved to cultivate carefully, hoping its Immortal Methods could heal his disability.
• Fang Zelin sensed something approaching and watched several beautifully dressed women emerge by the campfire.
• The nearby players reached for their weapons, then froze at the sight of the women, while Fang Zelin suspected their arrival in the wilderness was a trap.

Fang Zelin exposed a group of women as suspicious after noticing their pink mist and catching their leader in a lie. He attacked the leader, but the chapter ended before anyone saw what the stone did.

• A woman claimed that bandits had killed her servants and offered a hundred taels of silver for an escort to Yueyang City.
• Fang Zelin noticed pink mist coming from the women and saw that it was affecting Wu Yong and the others.
• Fang Zelin asked about the KFC tavern in Yueyang City, and the woman’s answer convinced him that she was not human.
• Fang Zelin pointed out that the women’s tidy clothes and hair contradicted their story, prompting Wu Yong and the others to grow wary.
• The woman feigned distress and sent the pink mist surging toward the group, but Fang Zelin dispersed it and hurled a spirit-infused stone at her.
• Wu Yong tried to stop Fang Zelin, but the stone struck the woman as everyone watched in shock.