Chapter Summaries

A mysterious pearl vanished after its light trapped Zhu Liangping in a week-long hallucination, strengthening suspicions that Huang Daoxian was behind the corpse flower. Zhang Xuezhou concluded Huang Daoxian had reclaimed the pearl and decided he needed guidance from the Immortal Court.

• Zhu Liangping opened the wooden box, but the pearl had disappeared after its light made him experience a week with Zhu Wei’s corpse despite only six seconds passing.
• Li Yingbo questioned Zhu Liangping, who recalled Zhu Wei saying, “I've remembered your face” and “We'll meet again someday!”
• Wang Haoran and Li Yingbo suspected the pearl was connected to Huang Daoxian and urged Zhu Liangping to undergo a physical examination.
• Wang Haoran, Li Yingbo, and Zhu Liangping searched the dark room but found no trace of the pearl.
• Zhang Xuezhou concluded Huang Daoxian had taken the pearl back and decided he would need to seek guidance from the Immortal Court.

Zhang Xuezhou returned to Western Capital City with Zhu Liangping and worried about Huang Daoxian’s threat, the instability of the Sequence Committee, and his family’s future. The chapter left Zhang Xuezhou, Zhu Liangping, and Zuo Teng uncertain whether to hide, flee, or seek strength they could not yet attain.

• Zhang Xuezhou passed Zuo Teng to Zhu Liangping, who invited him to discuss the bead they had both seen.
• Zhang Xuezhou warned Song Fengying that her growing influence through livestreaming could endanger their company and urged her to seek security by joining the Sequence Committee.
• Zhang Xuezhou reflected that sequence requirements kept him and his allies from the committee’s core, while Huang Daoxian’s presence made their position more precarious.
• Zhang Xuezhou planned to visit East Mountain, seek answers from the Immortal Court, and try to improve his luck through cultivation.
• Zhu Liangping asked Zuo Teng how they could survive Huang Daoxian, and Zuo Teng suggested reaching the eighth sequence.

Zhang Xuezhou failed to find the rolling Fortune at the Eastern Mountain Imperial Mausoleums, then examined a mysterious chip and heard messages from someone calling for Ba'erde. He concluded that Huang Daoxian had stored the Luofu Dynasty’s Fortune on East Mountain, though his own Fortune had dimmed after attacking Huang Daoxian.

• Zhang Xuezhou returned to the Eastern Mountain Imperial Mausoleums at sunrise but found no sign of the rolling Fortune he had seen before.
• Zhang Xuezhou considered whether damage to the mausoleums or Zuo Quan’s actions had caused the earlier manifestation of Fortune.
• Zhang Xuezhou examined the chip from Zuo Teng and heard a voice asking Ba'erde about the Fountain of Eternal Life and a missing sacred body.
• The laboratory lights went out after fifteen seconds, interrupting the chip’s messages before Zhang Xuezhou could learn more.
• Zhang Xuezhou reasoned that his misfortunes followed his attack on Huang Daoxian and concluded that Huang Daoxian had temporarily stored the Luofu Dynasty’s Fortune on East Mountain.

Zhang Xuezhou reflected on the lingering Fortune of the fallen Luofu Dynasty before Zhou Tianhao arrived to complain about Zuo Teng’s new position and bring Ferocious Beast extract. Zhang Xuezhou advised him about using the medicine, and they planned to test its effects with Zhang Xuezhou’s sister.

• Zhang Xuezhou considered investigating the imperial mausoleums to understand the Luofu Dynasty’s lingering Fortune and the Scarlet Alliance State’s Fortune.
• Zhou Tianhao told Zhang Xuezhou that Zuo Teng had become a Candidate Sequence Committee Member and lamented being left behind.
• Zhang Xuezhou reassured Zhou Tianhao that he could also qualify, while Zhou Tianhao promised to help him if he joined the committee.
• Zhang Xuezhou warned Zhou Tianhao against taking two medicines at once, and Zhou Tianhao admitted he had brought seven portions of Ferocious Beast extract.
• Zhang Xuezhou and Zhou Tianhao agreed to test the extract after Zhang Xuezhou’s sister returned and see whether its ability suited Zhou Tianhao.

Zhang Xuezhou prepared Spirit-Forging Pills containing Moulan extract, while Zhou Yueyan and Zhou Rihui tested the medicine. Zhou Rihui unexpectedly advanced to the Sixth Sequence after taking too much, leaving Zhou Yueyan tempted to try the same method despite its severe nausea.

• Zhang Xuezhou finished making the Moulan-extract pills, and Zhou Tianhao took some away for testing.
• Zhang Xuezhou told Zhou Yueyan that he could not advance because he had run out of blood agent and R32 Catalyst, and warned against mixing Ferocious Beast preparations without enough resources.
• Zhou Yueyan called Zhou Rihui and heard him retching after taking a large dose of the medicine.
• Zhou Rihui told Zhou Yueyan that he had retched his way into the Sixth Sequence after taking too much medicine and using blood agent.
• Zhou Yueyan realized the pills might create a new breakthrough point and considered taking a large dose to pursue the Sixth Sequence.

After Zhou Rihui entered the Sixth Sequence by counterbalancing a Ferocious Beast medicine with a blood agent, Zhou Yueyan considered trying a similar method herself. Zhang Xuezhou realized the process might help him advance too and resolved to save the opportunity for a push toward the Fourth Sequence.

• Zhou Yueyan considered how Zhou Rihui's rise to the Sixth Sequence would strengthen the Scarlet Alliance State and wondered whether she could advance through the same unconventional method.
• Zhou Tianhao visited Zhou Yueyan at the Zhou Household's medical center, where she questioned him about the medicine and told him to bring some back.
• Before taking the Moulan medicine, Zhou Yueyan asked Zhang Xuezhou whether she should use it or giant Ferocious Beast bird medicine, and explained that Zhou Rihui had entered the Sixth Sequence after counterbalancing a medicine with a blood agent.
• Zhang Xuezhou concluded that counterbalancing bodily mutations with blood agents might create an opportunity to advance in sequence, and advised Zhou Yueyan to monitor her body and seize the chance.
• Zhang Xuezhou decided to gather Changkong Household blood agents and the Zhou Household's R32 Catalyst, aiming to save the potential advancement for an attempt at the Fourth Sequence.

Zhang Xuezhou considered ways to raise his Sequence and flew to the Eastern Mountain Imperial Mausoleums to investigate the source of East Mountain's Fortune. Searching Luo Yan's imperial mausoleum, he found rare heart-nourishing jade but no purple gladiolus plants or clear clues about the Fortune.

• Zhang Xuezhou welcomed Zhou Yueyan's news that medicine combined with a large dose of blood agent might create a chance to advance in Sequence.
• After refining life-extending medicine, Zhang Xuezhou asked Zuo Teng about Zuo Quan and flew to the Eastern Mountain Imperial Mausoleums.
• Unable to enter the sealed Luo Ke Imperial Mausoleum, Zhang Xuezhou chose to search Luo Yan's mausoleum and covered the livestream camera before examining the burial chamber.
• Zhang Xuezhou found no trace of purple gladiolus plants or clues about East Mountain's Fortune, but his techniques revealed two pieces of jade.
• Zhang Xuezhou recognized a liver-shaped piece as rare heart-nourishing jade that could aid internal-organ cultivation, though he had no use for it at present.

Zhang Xuezhou found two pieces of jade in Luo Yan’s mausoleum but no trace of the purple gladiolus grass or any chip, and planned to seek official authority to search the Eastern Mountain Imperial Mausoleums. On his way out, he mistook Zhou Rihui’s sudden attack for an enemy’s and used his Realm Technique, leaving Zhou Rihui vomiting uncontrollably.

• Zhang Xuezhou found heart-nourishing jade and flawed Spirit Jade in Luo Yan’s mausoleum, then pocketed both.
• After finding no purple gladiolus grass or chip, Zhang Xuezhou decided to seek an official position and permit to search the mausoleums openly.
• A dark figure swooped at Zhang Xuezhou as he left, and he dodged before suppressing it with his Realm Technique.
• Zhang Xuezhou discovered the attacker was Zhou Rihui and kept his distance when Zhou’s body showed signs of striking even while unconscious.
• Zhang Xuezhou tried the Highest Clarity True Technique, but Zhou Rihui continued retching, and Zhou Tianhao told him that vomiting was normal for his father.

Zhang Xuezhou waited while Zhou Rihui searched Emperor Fu of Luo's Mausoleum for the purple gladiolus grass, then learned about Zhou Rihui's Sixth Sequence breakthrough. The chapter ended when Zuo Teng called to report that someone had gone toward East Mountain.

• Zhang Xuezhou helped Zhou Rihui recover from vomiting and sent him into Emperor Fu of Luo's Mausoleum to search for the purple gladiolus grass.
• Zhou Rihui searched the mausoleum but found no grass, then told Zhang Xuezhou that he had entered the Sixth Sequence.
• Zhou Rihui explained that reaching the Seventh Sequence required great physical adaptability and that he expected to need years of training.
• Zhou Rihui described how he had used an excessive amount of a blood preparation to reach the Sixth Sequence, and Zhang Xuezhou asked about the process.
• Zuo Teng called Zhang Xuezhou and reported that someone had gone toward East Mountain.

Zhang Xuezhou wondered whether Zuo Jin had been right about something happening to Zuo Quan and watched as Zuo Quan hurried into Emperor Fu of Luo's Mausoleum. As Zhang Xuezhou waited outside, a streak of the Luofu Dynasty's Fortune appeared over the mausoleum before dawn.

• Zhang Xuezhou decided to seek news about Zuo Quan but resolved not to act against him without solid evidence.
• Zhang Xuezhou persuaded Zhou Rihui to leave so Zuo Quan would not discover that Zhou was pretending to be ill to ambush the would-be rebels.
• Zhou Rihui flew away, and Zhang Xuezhou hid among ornamental trees while exchanging delayed messages with Zuo Teng.
• Zuo Quan's aircraft crashed near the mausoleum, and he hurried inside, prompting Zhang Xuezhou to wonder what had made him so urgent.
• Zhang Xuezhou messaged Qin Wenhan and listened for activity inside the mausoleum, then saw a streak of golden Fortune drift above it before sunrise.

Zhang Xuezhou watched Zuo Quan leave Emperor Fu of Luo’s Mausoleum after cursing the tomb robbers and suspected the man’s actions were tied to the mausoleum’s fortune. On his way home, Zhang Xuezhou was struck by lightning and later met Zuo Teng and Zuo Denggao, who showed him blurry footage of Zuo Quan’s aircraft being struck as well.

• Zhang Xuezhou watched Zuo Quan emerge from Emperor Fu of Luo’s Mausoleum, curse the tomb robbers, and order patrolmen to increase security.
• Zhang Xuezhou wondered whether Zuo Quan had been reacting to the two jade objects he had taken and decided to investigate openly next time.
• Zhang Xuezhou flew through a storm and was struck by lightning, but his arts and Law Power kept him from suffering serious injuries.
• Zhang Xuezhou ran back toward the B13 Laboratory and found Zuo Teng and Zuo Denggao waiting in the rain.
• Zuo Teng showed Zhang Xuezhou screenshots from Zuo Denggao’s monitoring device, which had recorded lightning striking Zuo Quan’s aircraft.
• Zhang Xuezhou suspected that his fortune-related ability was close in strength to Zuo Quan’s and that both might have suffered backlash.

Zhang Xuezhou avoided revealing what he suspected about Zuo Quan, but urged Zuo Teng to regain his father’s trust and turn an enemy into a friend. Zuo Teng reluctantly agreed to cooperate with Zuo Quan, provided Zhang Xuezhou would help protect him from mental control.

• Zuo Teng and Zuo Denggao questioned Zhang Xuezhou outside the B13 Research Institute, but he refused to explain why he was tracking Zuo Quan.
• Zuo Teng pressed Zhang Xuezhou about Zuo Quan’s connection to Huang Daoxian and the gladiolus, while Zhang Xuezhou claimed he was only studying Zuo Quan’s travel patterns.
• Zhang Xuezhou asked whether Zuo Teng could regain Zuo Quan’s trust and turn an enemy into a friend, warning him against gambling on a direct confrontation.
• Zuo Teng asked what sequence level could withstand the consequences, and Zhang Xuezhou said the emperors of the Luofu Dynasty, including likely seventh-sequence Luo Zhong, had lost five times in a row.
• Zuo Teng agreed to approach Zuo Quan rather than surrender outright, after Zhang Xuezhou promised to dispel any mental influence for free.

Zuo Teng warned Zuo Denggao that opposing Zuo Quan could get them killed, so he urged his cousin to curry favor with Zhang Xuezhou and invest in his catalyst work. Zuo Denggao agreed to cooperate, while Zuo Teng prepared to reconcile with his father.

• Zuo Teng warned Zuo Denggao that Zuo Quan had a trump card and that resisting him could lead to their deaths and ruined reputations.
• Zuo Teng said only someone at the Seventh Sequence could safely refuse to bow to Zuo Quan, leaving Zuo Denggao discouraged about his prospects.
• Zuo Teng urged Zuo Denggao to support Zhang Xuezhou's R32 Catalyst project with funding, staff, technical help, or laboratory resources.
• Zuo Denggao agreed to invest in North Rehe and cooperate with Zhang Xuezhou, despite worrying that he would lose his standing in Western Capital City.
• Zhang Xuezhou acknowledged that he had overheard the cousins and welcomed Zuo Denggao's offer to work together.

Zuo Denggao agreed to move resources from the Zuo Household to North Rehe and partner with Zhang Xuezhou on R32 Catalyst research. Afterward, Zhang Xuezhou learned that Zhou Rihui had been struck by lightning, and he went to help.

• Zuo Denggao asked Zhang Xuezhou to let him join the blood-agent catalyst research, and Zhang Xuezhou agreed to share the R32 Catalyst work in exchange for resources and manpower.
• Zuo Denggao signed a binding partnership with Zhang Xuezhou and prepared to relocate research teams and equipment from the Zuo Household, despite likely resistance from Zuo Quan.
• Zuo Teng congratulated the new partners and urged Zuo Denggao to return to Western Capital City to settle the arrangements.
• Zhang Xuezhou reflected that Zuo Denggao's investment would support catalyst research and help advance his own Sequence.
• Zhou Tianhao told Zhang Xuezhou that Zhou Rihui had been struck by lightning, and Zhou Yueyan asked for help through the communicator.
• Zhang Xuezhou suspected Zuo Quan's Fortune Technique had caused the injury and left to treat Zhou Rihui with Divine Grace.

Zhang Xuezhou removed the charred shell from Zhou Rihui and discovered a jade ruler that changed size. The ruler’s inscriptions led Zhang Xuezhou to identify it as the Luofu Dynasty’s Tongtian Jade Ruler, one of the Fortune Emperor Luo Yan’s three treasured artifacts.

• Zhang Xuezhou examined Zhou Rihui and cut away his charred clothes and feathers, revealing an intact blue-steel-colored body.
• Zhang Xuezhou found a red piece of jade embedded in the shell, and it changed color, size, and weight in his hands.
• Zhou Tianhao said he did not know whether the jade was his father’s Gene Weapon, and Zhang Xuezhou concluded Zhou Rihui was merely unconscious and likely in a self-protective state.
• Zhang Xuezhou tested the jade ruler, considered whether it was a token or Fortune Artifact, and found that it ranged from two centimeters to 1.2 meters long.
• Zhang Xuezhou saw the ancient characters for “heaven” and “earth” on the ruler and recognized it as the Tongtian Jade Ruler, a treasure of the Fortune Emperor Luo Yan.

Zhang Xuezhou decided to keep the Tongtian Jade Ruler despite the risks, then told Zhou Tianhao how to rouse Zhou Rihui from his protective state. Zhou Rihui awakened transformed and threw Zhou Tianhao out the window before Zhang Xuezhou rushed over.

• Zhang Xuezhou concluded that the Tongtian Jade Ruler could warn, protect, and counterattack, and decided to risk keeping it.
• Zhang Xuezhou told Zhou Tianhao to hit Zhou Rihui to stimulate him out of his body's protective state.
• Zhou Tianhao beat Zhou Rihui without hurting him, then poured boiling water into his mouth, waking him.
• Zhou Rihui awakened with a blue-steel body, claws, strange markings, and increased height, then tossed Zhou Tianhao out the window.
• Zhang Xuezhou hurried out of the study after Zhou Rihui threw Zhou Tianhao.

Zhang Xuezhou activated the Heart-Nourishing Jade for Zhou Rihui, who used it to recover from lightning injuries and greatly strengthen his body. As Zhang Xuezhou’s soul crossed to the other world, he left behind a notification from Genas unread and awoke in a dilapidated moving carriage with a foul taste in his mouth and a prickling sensation in his back.

• Zhang Xuezhou offered Zhou Rihui the Heart-Nourishing Jade in exchange for the jade Zhou Rihui had found, then activated it with his Law Power.
• Zhou Rihui used the Heart-Nourishing Jade several times, healed his injured organs, and grew powerful enough that Zhang Xuezhou compared his strength to Zhou Xin’s.
• Zhang Xuezhou considered how the three treasures left by Luo Yan could help people in both worlds, but set aside his thoughts about exchanging material between them.
• Zhang Xuezhou received a notification from Genas about information that might concern Huang Daoxian, but the countdown meant he would have to wait twelve days to read it.
• Zhang Xuezhou’s soul crossed to the other world and he awoke in a dilapidated horse-drawn carriage, feeling a foul taste in his mouth and needles pricking his back.

Zhang Xuezhou woke after an unusually long sleep during the group’s rushed journey through Henan Commandery, where Rong Tianding’s efforts to get them safely back to Chang’an had nearly been undone by Rong Li’s attempts to feed and revive him. After Zhang Xuezhou recognized the cultivation of their carriage driver, Zhang An, the group continued toward its next stop with Zhang Xuezhou still delaying his return.

• Rong Tianding caught Rong Li secretly feeding Zhang Xuezhou, and Zhang Xuezhou woke and vomited the food she had forced into him.
• Rong Tianding explained that they had reached Henan Commandery after twelve days of travel and were still about fifteen hundred li from Chang’an City.
• Zhang Xuezhou praised Rong Tianding’s travel arrangements but chose not to use his Flying Leap Technique to hurry back.
• Zhang An identified himself as a True Spirit Realm martial artist assigned by Lord Du Zhou to protect Zhang Xuezhou.
• Zhang Xuezhou said he would remember Du Zhou’s name, leaving Zhang An excited by the remark.

Zhang Xuezhou traveled through Henan Commandery toward Chang'an, worrying about his standing with the new emperor and the danger of recruiting Li Shaojun. His carriage was ambushed on the official road by bandits working with a concealed Xiong State expert, and the fight was still underway when the chapter ended.

• Zhang Xuezhou questioned Zhang An about Du Zhou and worried that his own influence with the new emperor might fade.
• Zhang Xuezhou considered the risks of recruiting Li Shaojun and the difficulty of obtaining or making the Life-Creating Fortune Pill.
• Zhang An stopped the carriage when logs and stones blocked the road, then was struck by an arrow that mangled his ear.
• Zhang Xuezhou warned the soldiers that the ambushers were in the woods, and the soldiers counterattacked.
• A concealed Xiong State expert killed a soldier with a curved saber and urged the outlaws to fight, but many hesitated to betray Great Han.

Zhang An joined the soldiers fighting Xiong State experts, while Zhang Xuezhou stayed back because his techniques were poorly suited to the battle. An airborne cultivator drew the enemy archer’s fire, but Zhang An lost all five fingers before the soldiers killed their opponent.

• The bandits hesitated or watched as soldiers and Xiong State experts fought in individual clashes.
• Zhang An asked Zhang Xuezhou to help, but Zhang Xuezhou explained that his techniques were too slow or risky to use in the fight.
• Zhang Xuezhou urged Zhang An to protect him, and Zhang An left the carriage to approach the battle.
• A gray-robed cultivator appeared in the air and drew the Xiong State archer’s attacks, allowing Zhang An to join the soldiers.
• Zhang An struck at a Xiong State expert but lost all five fingers when the enemy’s curved saber slipped past his blade.
• Two soldiers stabbed the Xiong State expert with a sword and spear, and venomous pus burst from the wounded man.