Chapter Summaries

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox watched the Sect Competition, cheered for Bai Shi and Ge Shuang, and decided to compete the following year. Back in Medicine Valley, Chen Xun practiced the Sword Control Technique, and his immortal sword rose into the air as he prepared to fly with Big Black Ox.

• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox watched the Sect Competition and wished they had brought melon seeds to snack on.
• When the Inner Sect Disciples entered the competition, Chen Xun and Big Black Ox cheered for Bai Shi and Ge Shuang with a wooden sign.
• After two days of decisive battles, Bai Shi and Ge Shuang finished among the top hundred, and Chen Xun decided he and Big Black Ox would compete the following year.
• Back in Medicine Valley, Chen Xun left Big Black Ox to tend the spiritual herbs and began studying the Sword Control Technique.
• One month later, Chen Xun used his spiritual power to make the immortal sword hover above the ground, then told Big Black Ox to get on.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox practiced Sword Control Technique until they could fly quickly on the immortal sword. After Chen Xun made them Goggles, they rode into the sunset, impressing a junior sister and other disciples with their speed and style.

• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox crashed while first testing the enhanced Sword Control Technique, then practiced controlling the immortal sword in the waterfall.
• After a month of practice, Chen Xun and Big Black Ox successfully flew above Medicine Valley, though Big Black Ox fainted from fear.
• Chen Xun flew slowly with Big Black Ox, then decided to make something to improve their wind-riding experience.
• A month later, Chen Xun gave himself and Big Black Ox Goggles and flew through the sunset without a spiritual power barrier.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox sped past a Little Junior Sister and other disciples, who watched them in astonishment.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox entered the Sect Competition, where Chen Xun used evasive tactics and their teamwork to defeat Zhang Song before facing the stronger Liu Tao. The second match continued in a draining stalemate, with Liu Tao nearly out of mana and Chen Xun still insisting he could keep going.

• Chen Xun registered himself and Big Black Ox for the Sect Competition after collecting contribution points.
• Chen Xun dodged Zhang Song’s Ice Cones until Big Black Ox pulled away formation flags and rammed Zhang Song off the arena.
• Chen Xun asked the arena steward to continue and was matched against Liu Tao, a Qi Condensation Ninth Layer disciple.
• Liu Tao attacked Chen Xun with a black ring artifact, but Chen Xun’s punch briefly stopped it and dimmed its golden light.
• Chen Xun and Liu Tao fought for half an hour, exhausting Liu Tao as Chen Xun weakly claimed he was still fine.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox wore down their opponents through repeated arena battles, earning six victories before Chen Xun collapsed from exhaustion. Big Black Ox carried him away to recover, while the elders reflected on Chen Xun’s background and stubborn refusal to give up.

• Big Black Ox knocked Liu Tao out of the arena with a sneak attack, giving Chen Xun his first victory; Liu Tao gave him a Healing Pill and left feeling guilty.
• Chen Xun returned to the arenas and, with Big Black Ox’s help, outlasted a Qi Condensation Eighth Layer disciple to claim his third victory.
• The next day, Chen Xun continued wearing opponents down while Big Black Ox knocked them out, bringing Chen Xun to six victories.
• Chen Xun struggled through another match, collapsed on the arena, and was examined by a Foundation Establishment Elder, who said he only needed several days to recuperate.
• Big Black Ox dragged Chen Xun down the mountain as the elder considered the defiance and helplessness of people with ordinary aptitude.

After the Sect Competition, Chen Xun reunited with Ji Kun and learned that rogue cultivators faced deadly odds in the Southern Dipper Mountain Secret Realm. Ji Kun set out to prepare for the realm, while Chen Xun and Big Black Ox returned to Medicine Valley.

• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox returned to Medicine Valley after earning five hundred contribution points, and Chen Xun treated his painful external wounds.
• Chen Xun met Ji Kun at the Sect Main Hall and learned that Ji Kun had spent two years working as an Outer Sect Elder.
• Ji Kun told Chen Xun that seven hundred rogue cultivators entered the Southern Dipper Mountain Secret Realm every twenty years and fewer than a hundred returned alive.
• Ji Kun said he planned to cultivate toward the Qi Condensation Ninth Layer before entering the secret realm in three years, despite Chen Xun urging him to wait.
• Chen Xun offered Ji Kun two Heavy Feather Pills and Bigu Pills, but Ji Kun accepted only one Heavy Feather Pill before bidding farewell.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox watched Ji Kun leave, then headed back to Medicine Valley.

Three years after becoming a notorious Sect Competition fighter, Chen Xun spent his contribution points on a Foundation Establishment Pill formula and learned how rare its ingredients were. With the Southern Dipper Mountain Secret Realm opening six months later, he and Big Black Ox prepared to join the journey and eventually set out for Sect Master Peak.

• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox exchanged three thousand contribution points for a Foundation Establishment Pill formula at the Contribution Hall.
• Chen Xun read the formula and found that they lacked all of its listed spiritual herbs, then decided they would enter the Southern Dipper Mountain Secret Realm.
• Chen Xun told Big Black Ox to gather information and prepare for the journey, which was six months away.
• The Southern Dipper Mountain Secret Realm opened to eligible disciples, while older disciples who failed to qualify left the mountain.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox left Medicine Valley and flew toward Sect Master Peak.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox joined the Five Elements Sect’s seven hundred disciples on their journey to Southern Dipper Mountain, escorted by Golden Core cultivator Wei Shan. After half a month, they reached the immense mountain and prepared to enter its dangerous secret realm.

• Chen Xun spotted Ji Kun among the disciples before joining the crowd gathered at the Sect Master's main hall.
• Sect Master You Yuanhua appointed Wei Shan to lead the seven hundred disciples, and five Azure Cliff Eagles arrived to carry them.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox boarded an eagle, then flew with the others toward Southern Dipper Mountain as Wei Shan drove off attacking beasts.
• Chen Xun warned Big Black Ox about the violent beasts guarding spiritual herbs in the secret realm.
• After half a month, the Azure Cliff Eagles landed near Southern Dipper Mountain, where cultivators from other sects had gathered beneath its ancient peaks.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox waited with the Five Elements Sect as the Ten Great Immortal Sects arrived and opened the way into the Southern Dipper Mountain Secret Realm. After teleporting in separately from the other sect members, they found themselves alone in the dangerous, miasma-filled wilderness.

• Wei Shan warned the Five Elements Sect disciples to stay in their residence while they waited for the Ten Great Immortal Sects to open the secret realm.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox joked about the Purple Cloud Sect’s disciples, and Ji Kun urged them to flee rather than risk their lives if danger came.
• The Beast Taming Sect arrived, and Chen Xun asked Big Black Ox how many of its spirit beasts he could defeat; Big Black Ox claimed he could beat all ten.
• The Ten Great Immortal Sects broke the restriction and activated the teleportation arrays, and the Five Elements Sect disciples entered in groups of three.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox teleported after the others and found themselves isolated in the secret realm, where their sect tokens could not reach anyone.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox entered the Southern Dipper Mountain Secret Realm and disguised themselves in leaf suits while scouting a spirit-herb lake. After watching disciples fight over the herbs and a Red-skinned Lion attack them, they moved in to collect what was left.

• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox took protective pills, put on their Bandit Mask and handmade clothes, and hid in a tree to observe the secret realm.
• Chen Xun made Ghillie Suits from fallen leaves, and he and Big Black Ox set out through the forest without collecting the spirit herbs they found.
• They spotted a lake surrounded by spirit herbs and watched three disciples pick a few before other teams ambushed them.
• A Red-skinned Lion attacked the fighting disciples, forcing them to abandon the herbs and flee.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox descended from the tree and raced toward the lake to gather herbs as the Red-skinned Lion noticed them.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox collected spiritual herbs, beat a Red-skinned Lion, and wandered lost through Southern Dipper Mountain. After hiding above a fight between Purple Cloud Sect women and Pill Cauldron Sect disciples, they were discovered by a Silicon Valley Bird.

• Big Black Ox beat the Red-skinned Lion while Chen Xun collected Ice Mandarin Duck Grass and Cold Spirit Grass, then left the injured lion hidden in the forest.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox studied their map, found a Foundation Establishment spiritual herb, and realized three days later that they were lost.
• Chen Xun killed a venomous snake that crept toward them as they rested in a tree.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox watched three Purple Cloud Sect women kill three exhausted Pill Cauldron Sect disciples beneath their hiding place.
• The Silicon Valley Bird located Chen Xun and Big Black Ox above the women, leaving the three Purple Cloud Sect disciples startled.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox killed three sect disciples, took their maps and supplies, and learned the Breath Concealment Art to hide from other cultivators. After half a month of training, they left their hiding place and headed toward a great river.

• Chen Xun killed the Silicon Valley Bird, and Big Black Ox burned the three attacking women to death.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox destroyed the bodies and traces, then took the disciples’ Storage Bags and escaped into the forest.
• Chen Xun studied the maps and decided they would gather supporting spirit herbs before approaching the three Foundation Establishment ingredients.
• They kept the spirit stones, herbs, and one Storage Bag, destroyed the other loot, and Chen Xun revealed the Breath Concealment Art he had learned at Nine Stars Valley for five Low-Grade Spirit Stones.
• After practicing the art in a tree hollow for half a month, Chen Xun and Big Black Ox traveled to a great river and put on another set of Ghillie Suits.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox stole two Scepter Flowers during a clash between rival groups, then headed to Hazy Mist Valley to search for Foundation Establishment supplementary spirit herbs. There, they found a five-person team gathering Fluorescent Heart Grass and ambushed the man who had stayed behind.

• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox watched Senior Brother Du's disciples test the Scepter Flowers, and a junior brother was killed by the flowers' vines.
• Senior Brother Du's group battled Beast Taming Sect Disciples while Chen Xun and Big Black Ox picked two Scepter Flowers and escaped.
• Chen Xun studied the map with Big Black Ox, and they set off for Hazy Mist Valley to find two spirit herbs.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox concealed themselves as grass while a five-person team used threads and talismans to gather Fluorescent Heart Grass.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox surprised the man waiting at the rear and knocked him unconscious.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox gathered spiritual herbs throughout the Southern Dipper Mountain Secret Realm, then reached Mount Gazing Hall, where sect disciples were slaughtering one another over its treasures. They watched from a distance as a mighty roar erupted from inside the hall.

• Senior Brother Lu woke to find his Storage Bag and Fluorescent Heart Grass stolen, but he could not identify who had ambushed him.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox defeated a Silver Eagle Python, took Sky Clarity Vines, and left it in the valley.
• Other cultivators arrived and fought the wounded python, while Chen Xun and Big Black Ox continued gathering herbs and prepared to seek the ancient halls.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox reached Mount Gazing Hall and watched the bloody fighting outside, deciding to wait before approaching.
• Three days later, a powerful roar sounded from inside Mount Gazing Hall and shook the surrounding area.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox tunneled into Looking at Yue Ancient Hall, stole Foundation Establishment herbs, and escaped, leaving the White Fiend Leopard enraged against the cultivators outside. They then headed toward Qiluo Hall, where they planned to use the same tunneling trick to avoid its deadly defenders.

• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox retreated from the White Fiend Leopard and decided to dig a tunnel beneath Looking at Yue Ancient Hall.
• While the sects fought the leopard outside, Chen Xun and Big Black Ox spent ten days digging and broke through into the hall.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox took Foundation Establishment herbs from the pool and escaped through their tunnel.
• The White Fiend Leopard discovered the theft, went berserk, and attacked the cultivators outside the hall.
• At Qiluo Hall, Chen Xun and Big Black Ox began digging another tunnel to bypass the demon beasts guarding it.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox survived a dangerous encounter with a demonic beast as slaughter spread through the Southern Dipper Mountain Secret Realm. In the fourth month, they rescued Ji Kun and his Junior Sister from Thunderclap Gate, then disappeared before the shaken pair could identify them.

• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox escaped a collapsing tunnel after Big Black Ox retrieved spirit herbs and a powerful demonic beast broke through Chen Xun’s fire spells.
• Violence and killings spread across the secret realm as cultivators fought over spirit herbs and treasure.
• In the fourth month, Chen Xun and Big Black Ox heard Ji Kun and another Five Elements Sect disciple fleeing Thunderclap Gate pursuers who had captured Ji Kun’s Junior Sister.
• Ji Kun offered the Yang Ginseng Lotus to Cao Chen in exchange for his Junior Sister’s release, but Cao Chen struck her and refused.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox attacked, crushed Cao Chen, and used a wall of fire to return the Junior Sister to Ji Kun.
• Ji Kun and his Junior Sister left to recover, unaware of the rescuers’ identities.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox devised a way to evade Xin Yuan Lake’s Geng Metal energy and steal two Earth Soul Vines from the Lakeside Ancient Hall. They escaped as the mysterious Xin Yuan Lake Sword God, then hid in the forest while Chen Xun recovered his exhausted mana.

• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox rested for a month, then watched Xin Yuan Lake for half a month and worked out how to bypass its Geng Metal energy.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox rode an immortal sword at high speed through the lake’s defenses and into the Lakeside Ancient Hall.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox seized two Earth Soul Vines and fled as the hall’s disciples and spirit beasts chased them.
• The pair escaped into the forest, where Chen Xun used Low-Grade Spirit Stones to restore his mana while Big Black Ox kept watch.

After recovering, Chen Xun and Big Black Ox escaped the dangerous center of Southern Dipper Mountain and waited to be teleported home. They returned with their spoils to find the Five Elements Sect mourning heavy losses, while Ji Kun survived with only one principal-ingredient spiritual herb.

• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox fled the mountain’s center, kept their Foundation Establishment herbs for later, and set aside another collection for the Five Elements Sect.
• As Southern Dipper Mountain shook, Chen Xun and Big Black Ox posed as severely wounded survivors and were teleported out.
• At the Five Elements Sect Residence, Wei Shan counted more than a hundred survivors and gave the injured medicinal pills before they boarded an Azure Cliff Eagle.
• During the flight home, Wei Shan asked the disciples to present their spiritual herbs and promised an additional Foundation Establishment Pill to anyone who had gathered all three principal ingredients.
• Several disciples presented three principal-ingredient herbs, while Ji Kun produced only one and remembered that a mysterious person had saved his life.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox returned to the Five Elements Sect with 6666 contribution points, reunited with Liu Yuan in Medicine Valley, and collected the valley’s annual contribution. Chen Xun then sought materials and books to learn weapon crafting, but spent most of their points at the Contribution Hall before Big Black Ox stopped him.

• Wei Shan recorded the spirit herbs and awarded Chen Xun and Big Black Ox 6666 contribution points, which became tangible after they returned to the sect.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox returned to Medicine Valley and paid Liu Yuan thirty Low-Grade Spirit Stones for tending the herbs.
• Chen Xun tried to split a rock in the waterfall with his Mountain-Splitting Axes, but both axes chipped and the rock remained intact.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox handed in Medicine Valley’s spirit herbs and received 200 contribution points.
• Chen Xun went to the Sect Contribution Hall to exchange points for weapon-crafting materials and books, but spent most of their contribution points before Big Black Ox rammed him to stop him.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox settled into life in Medicine Valley, studying artifact refining and arrays while building up their magical power. After a year of practice and small adventures, they remained under Senior Brother Le Feng’s watchful eye.

• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox returned to Medicine Valley with books and materials, where they began studying artifact refining and arrays.
• An elder from the Pill Refining Hall delivered Chen Xun a Foundation Establishment Pill and praised his work tending the herb garden.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox spent one thousand contribution points on basic array materials and returned to their studies.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox kept practicing and taking their daily sunset rides until Senior Brother Le Feng confiscated their immortal swords and lectured them.
• Chen Xun asked Le Feng a few artifact-refining questions, prompting another lecture, after which the pair continued adding Longevity Points and collecting their contribution points.

Chen Xun and Big Black Ox forged Mountain-Splitting Axes and opened a hidden cave behind a waterfall, preparing to cultivate Foundation Establishment Spiritual Herbs. With the secret base complete, they began their Foundation Establishment Grand Plan.

• Big Black Ox tested its new wind formation and accidentally blew Chen Xun out of the cave abode before they cleaned up the mess.
• Chen Xun refined a Mountain-Splitting Axe from Iron Essence with Big Black Ox's help.
• Chen Xun used the axe to break open a cave behind the waterfall, and he and Big Black Ox forged more axes to finish the secret base.
• Chen Xun and Big Black Ox prepared the hidden cave for spiritual herbs, and Big Black Ox brought out the Medicine Boxes from its Storage Bag.
• Chen Xun told Big Black Ox to begin their Foundation Establishment Grand Plan.