Chapter Summaries

Yin Yunze received official recognition as Lady Qingnü, strengthening the temple’s protections and helping him condense the God of Frost and Snow divinity. After Xu Hanxian raised the Drought Demon at the Tomb of Prince Jing, Yin Yunze took him to the temple to speak privately, while the City God ordered an investigation into the newly recognized deity.

• Xu Hanxian officially recognized Lady Qingnü, and Dynastic Karmic Luck merged the temple’s three protective forces into a stronger barrier.
• Yin Yunze summoned snow, appeared as Green Hill Yi Yun, thanked Xu Hanxian, and gave Fox Biscuits to the gathered believers.
• The believers’ faith surged, allowing Yin Yunze to condense the God of Frost and Snow divinity in his icy tail.
• Xu Hanxian reminded Yin Yunze about the Drought Demon at the Tomb of Prince Jing, so Yin Yunze took him to the temple to talk privately.
• The City God heard of Lady Qingnü’s recognition, considered confronting her, then ordered the Day and Night Wandering Gods to investigate her background.

Xu Hanxian showed Yin Yunze the Supernatural Pursuit Bureau chief’s dismissal of reports about the Drought Ghost at the Tomb of Prince Jing, leading Yin Yunze to suspect a powerful expert was raising Prince Jing’s corpse and that the bureau was covering it up. After Xu Hanxian appealed to Yin Yunze to protect the people, she accepted that she would have to face the threat and had at least half a year to prepare.

• Xu Hanxian gave Yin Yunze the bureau chief’s reply, which called reports of a Drought Demon at the Tomb of Prince Jing baseless and told him to ignore them.
• Xu Hanxian argued that the chief’s personal seal suggested the bureau knew about the tomb and had covered up the danger.
• Yin Yunze connected the bureau’s cover-up to the expert wielding Dark Heavenly Lightning Flags and suspected that the expert was raising Prince Jing’s corpse.
• Xu Hanxian asked Yin Yunze to protect the county’s people, revealing that he had used her official recognition to press her into dealing with the tomb.
• Yin Yunze sent Xu Hanxian away and accepted that she would have to fight the Drought Demon, with about half a year to plan.

After the temple celebration, Yin Yunze found Zhao Wan playing outside Clear Creek Village with a large fox, whose fearful reaction and attempt to flee made him suspect she was hiding something. He froze the fox in place and approached her, leaving her trapped before him.

• The believers left Lady Qingnü's temple, whose colorful lights drew some back inside to offer more Incense of Faith.
• Yin Yunze healed the exhausted shrine maidens and learned from Sun Qin that Zhao Wan had been meeting a new friend at night.
• Yin Yunze sensed Zhao Wan near the entrance to Clear Creek Village and found her stroking a large orange-red fox with a black collar.
• When Yin Yunze appeared, the fox's fur puffed up and she fled, accidentally bumping Zhao Wan.
• Yin Yunze froze the fox's paws to the ground and walked toward her as she trembled in fear.

Yin Yunze spared Hu Siniang, removed the restriction on her collar, and used a Seeking Bestowal ritual to give her a great deal of divine incense power. Hu Siniang transformed into a fox-eared girl, and Yin Yunze’s experiment ended with her new form revealed.

• Yin Yunze recognized Hu Siniang as the fox who had once been with Wang Guisheng and froze most of her body, but Zhao Wan asked him to spare her.
• Hu Siniang revealed that she was a vixen who had approached Zhao Wan hoping to meet Yin Yunze, and Yin Yunze freed her from the restriction on her black collar.
• Yin Yunze had Hu Siniang perform a Seeking Bestowal ritual and sent her more than a hundred portions of his Power of Incense Offerings.
• Hu Siniang screamed as her body changed, then transformed into a white-haired, red-eyed fox-eared girl with a large orange-red tail.

Hu Siniang transformed into a fox-eared girl after absorbing a large dose of Power of Incense Offerings, becoming a fervent believer in Yin Yunze and resembling Green Hill Yi Yun. When Yin Yunze asked about Ghost Bone, she revealed that the Heavenly Wheel Sect had used it to gain leverage over Qingling County’s magistrate as part of a rebellion plot, then began explaining the cult’s plans amid a regional drought.

• Hu Siniang transformed into a human girl, and Zhao Wan helped her dress as she struggled to use her new limbs.
• Yin Yunze noticed Hu Siniang resembled Green Hill Yi Yun and concluded the Power of Incense Offerings had altered her appearance and made her a believer.
• Hu Siniang told Yin Yunze that Hu Sangu was her older sister and that Wang Guisheng had used Ghost Bone to harm the Qingling County magistrate’s daughter.
• Hu Siniang revealed that the Heavenly Wheel Sect planned to gain leverage over county magistrates and prepare a rebellion.
• Hu Siniang described the Heavenly Wheel Sect’s leaders and its more than three hundred thousand believers, then explained that the drought in Anqing Prefecture had prompted the sect’s operation against local magistrates.

Yin Yunze took Hu Siniang in as a follower, renamed her Zhao Zixuan, and granted her limited access to Earth Vein Power and the Power of Frost and Snow. After healing her when she injured herself in disbelief, he received a Soul-Capturing Pearl she had taken from the Evil Ghost Division.

• Hu Siniang explained how the Heavenly Wheel Sect had enslaved her and why she had sought Yin Yunze’s protection.
• Hu Siniang begged Yin Yunze to take her in, and he agreed, naming her Zhao Zixuan and marking her as his follower.
• Zhao Zixuan sensed that Yin Yunze had granted her limited use of Earth Vein Power and the Power of Frost and Snow, then bit her arm to confirm that her good fortune was real.
• Yin Yunze healed Zhao Zixuan’s wound after Zhao Wan intervened, and Zhao Zixuan apologized before setting off to fetch a treasure.
• Zhao Zixuan presented Yin Yunze with the Soul-Capturing Pearl, a Law Artifact intended to capture the county magistrate’s daughter’s soul, and Yin Yunze began examining it.

Zhao Zixuan offered Yin Yunze a fragment of the Six Divisions Infinite Scripture and swore an oath of loyalty, after which he welcomed her into his service. He brought her back to the shrine maidens, where he established her seniority and she received an enthusiastic welcome.

• Zhao Zixuan gave Yin Yunze the Animal Realm fragment of the Six Divisions Infinite Scripture, and he recognized its valuable cultivation method and Law Techniques.
• Zhao Zixuan swore never to betray Yin Yunze, and he used Forge Oaths to bind her promise before inviting her to return with him.
• Zhao Zixuan transformed into a giant fox and carried Yin Yunze and Zhao Wan toward the temple, while rumors spread that Lady Qingnü had a large red fox under her command.
• Yin Yunze brought Zhao Zixuan to the shrine maidens' dormitory and introduced her to the eleven young shrine maidens as their new companion.
• Yin Yunze corrected Zhao Zixuan's humble greeting and told the shrine maidens to address her as their elder sister, and they welcomed her as Sister Zixuan.

Yin Yunze welcomed Zhao Zixuan into her service, gave her an ice-and-fire Snake Bone Whip, and began cultivating from the Infinite True Scripture. When the Gate of Incense stayed shut and five underworld deities summoned her to the City God, Yin Yunze used divination and agreed to go despite the warning of misfortune.

• Yin Yunze introduced Zhao Zixuan to the shrine maidens, ordered her to protect them, and reforged the Snake Bone Whip for her as the Ice and Fire Whip.
• Yin Yunze studied the Infinite True Scripture, mastered its basic cultivation method overnight, and considered teaching its three Law Techniques to the shrine maidens.
• Yin Yunze discovered that the Gate of Incense remained shut, leaving her unable to return to the real world as five deities entered her territory.
• The Martial Judge used three command tokens to force Yin Yunze out of the Dao Field and temple and summon her before him and Black and White Impermanence and Ox-Head and Horse-Face.
• Yin Yunze divined that accompanying the deities meant misfortune while refusing meant great misfortune, so she agreed to go before the City God.

Yin Yunze accompanied the Martial Judge, Black and White Impermanence, and Ox-Head and Horse-Face to meet the City God after secretly divining his situation. He protected the little fox girl from drawing the officials’ ire, then followed the Martial Judge’s advice and offered incense gifts to all five as they set out.

• Yin Yunze agreed to go to the City God Temple with the five officials, who escorted him from his sealed temple.
• The little fox girl ran after Yin Yunze and tried to offer to carry him, but he rebuked her and sent her back to guard the village.
• The Martial Judge advised Yin Yunze to hide his fox ears and tails before meeting the City God, so Yin Yunze changed into a humanlike form.
• Yin Yunze gave the Martial Judge a thousand portions of Power of Incense Offerings, which the judge accepted while praising its purity.
• Yin Yunze gave Black and White Impermanence and Ox-Head and Horse-Face eight hundred portions each, and they accepted the gifts warmly.

Yin Yunze learned that Judge Li considered him an Innate Holy Spirit and explained why the City God had summoned him for establishing a temple without permission. Reassured that the matter was likely a formality, Yin Yunze set off with Judge Li and the others to meet the City God.

• Judge Li explained that Yin Yunze was an Innate Holy Spirit, then advised him to admit fault and comply when he met the City God.
• Judge Li told Yin Yunze that the City God had summoned him for founding a temple and granting himself divine status without notifying him.
• Judge Li explained that Yin Yunze had been arrested under the third of the Three Decrees and could only be released with the City God's pardon.
• Judge Li and the other underworld officials praised Yin Yunze's tact and encouraged him to stay calm before the City God.
• Black and White Impermanence and Ox-Head and Horse-Face lightly looped chains around Yin Yunze's hands and feet, then escorted him away with Judge Li.

Judge Li and the four lords escorted Yin Yunze to the City God Temple, where a ghost named Provincial Graduate Guo warned that the City God was lustful. At the temple, Yin Yunze saw a vast lake of grievances held back by Dynastic Karmic Luck, and Judge Qian arrived as Yin Yunze retched in its presence.

• Judge Li's group brought Yin Yunze to Qingling County using Shrinking the Earth to an Inch.
• Provincial Graduate Guo tried to pull Yin Yunze away and warned that the City God was a lecher, but Judge Li identified Yin Yunze as Lady Qingnü and Ox-Head and Horse-Face dragged Guo off.
• Judge Li explained that Provincial Graduate Guo was an upright provincial graduate whose grievances soared to the heavens and who could not be kept locked up.
• Yin Yunze saw a lake of grievance power above the City God Temple and realized that the City God's Dynastic Karmic Luck was keeping it at bay.
• Judge Qian emerged from the temple, mistook Yin Yunze's condition for an injury caused by Judge Li, and angered Judge Li with the accusation.

Yin Yunze was brought before the City God, who let her go regarding her temple and divine title but ordered her to stop distributing Fox Rice. The City God explained that her relief efforts threatened the offerings and standing of the other gods, and Yin Yunze agreed to stop.

• Judge Qian fastened God-Binding Shackles on Yin Yunze, but Judge Li intervened and escorted her to the City God.
• Judge Li led Yin Yunze into the City God's vast Dao Field, where the City God recognized her as an Innate Holy Spirit less than a month old.
• The City God dismissed the temple and divine-title accusation as a misunderstanding but ordered Yin Yunze to stop supplying Fox Rice.
• Yin Yunze agreed to end her disaster relief and asked why the City God had forbidden it.
• The City God explained that Yin Yunze's grain distributions drew believers away from other gods and pressured him to provide relief as well.

Yin Yunze learned that the City God deliberately let evil creatures terrorize the people to secure their worship through fear, while refusing to intervene in the drought caused by the Tomb of Prince Jing. He left with a pardon decree and learned that ending the drought would require a powerful ally he did not have.

• The City God lectured Yin Yunze that gods should rule through fear and revealed that he had allowed evil creatures to run rampant to make the people depend on him.
• Yin Yunze realized the City God's neglect had caused the lake of resentment above the temple and that resentment had accumulated against him for centuries.
• The City God explained that a grand elder of the Yin Immortal Sect was attempting to turn a corpse into an immortal at the Tomb of Prince Jing, and the drought might last from three to five years or even centuries.
• The City God described a way to end the drought by purifying and sealing the tomb, but Yin Yunze knew he had no powerful ally to carry it out.
• Judge Li raised Yin Yunze's earlier disrespect, prompting the City God to give Yin Yunze a pardon decree that would lift the edict's seal.

Yin Yunze left the City God Temple still wearing one God-Binding Shackle after Judge Qian’s underlings demanded incense offerings to unlock them. Judge Qian took the offerings and killed one of the little devils, while Yin Yunze walked away unaware of the danger behind the scheme.

• Judge Li urged Yin Yunze to leave with him, but Judge Qian appeared and sent Judge Li back to the City God while ordering two pale-faced little devils to remove Yin Yunze’s shackles.
• One little devil demanded 3,650 portions of incense offerings, and Yin Yunze paid him to unlock the shackle on her left hand.
• The second little devil demanded another share, so Yin Yunze refused and left the temple wearing the remaining shackle despite the little devil’s warning.
• Provincial Graduate Guo saw Yin Yunze storm away and decided to follow her, fearing she might harm herself.
• The first little devil brought the incense offerings to Judge Qian, who admitted he had intended to give Yin Yunze a chance, then crushed the devil to death.

Yin Yunze was ambushed by the Heavenly Wheel Sect's Third Warden, whose grievance-powered blade left her paralyzed, but Provincial Graduate Guo intervened and fought him. When Guo was defeated, Yin Yunze made him her subordinate god and transformed his soul into a ghost king dharma robe, rising to face the Third Warden.

• Yin Yunze sensed danger outside the Xu residence but was stabbed in the back with a Hundred-Grievance Soul-Eroding Blade by the Third Warden.
• The Third Warden revealed that he was attacking Yin Yunze because she had ruined his plans, then tried to strike her head with a second blade.
• Provincial Graduate Guo caught the blade to protect Lady Qingnü, transformed into a powerful vicious ghost, and drove the Third Warden back.
• The Third Warden used the Immovable Wisdom King Seal, Great Wisdom Sword, Vajra Rope, and Demon-Suppressing Vajra to defeat and subdue Provincial Graduate Guo.
• Yin Yunze appointed Provincial Graduate Guo her subordinate god and refined his soul into a ghost king dharma robe, then rose to confront the Third Warden.

Yin Yunze escaped the Third Warden by sacrificing his right hand, then hid in the Tomb of Prince Jing until he purged the resentment restricting his body. He ambushed the Third Warden with the Soul-Shaking Staff and left him motionless in the snow.

• Yin Yunze severed his shackled right hand, unleashed his Authority over Frost and Snow, and fled toward the City God Temple.
• Yin Yunze froze the white-faced little ghost guarding the temple, then shattered him with an ice spike and flew back out of town.
• The City God and Judge Qian chose not to help Yin Yunze, while the City God admitted he had hoped to detain Qingnü for his own designs.
• Yin Yunze evaded the Third Warden in the Tomb of Prince Jing by hiding beneath the snow and using the Power of Incense Offerings to dispel his resentment.
• Yin Yunze froze the Third Warden, struck his exposed head with the Soul-Shaking Staff sacrificed by Zhao Zixuan, and sent him flying into the snow.

Yin Yunze fought the third warden by unleashing the six Dark Heavenly Lightning Flags, and both were battered by a devastating storm of mystic lightning. He survived and returned to his Dao Field and then the real world, but as he checked his surroundings, he sensed something was wrong.

• Yin Yunze gathered the six unrefined Dark Heavenly Lightning Flags and lured the third warden to an uninhabited place, where he attacked in nine-tailed fox form.
• Yin Yunze poured his Power of Incense Offerings into the flags, and he and the third warden endured successive bolts of mystic lightning while grappling.
• The six flags unleashed the Six Ke Mystic Lightning Formation, killing the third warden and knocking Yin Yunze unconscious.
• Zhao Zixuan carried Yin Yunze back to his Dao Field, where he awoke after three days and learned that she was badly burned.
• Yin Yunze awoke in the real world, confirmed he was not dreaming, and noticed that something seemed wrong with his surroundings.

Yin Yunze discovered that believers’ faith had transformed his real-world body into a fox-eared girl and shifted his sense of self, while the injured nine-tailed white fox in the other world had become his mystical original self. He opened the Great Gate of Incense, returned to the Dao Field, and began talking with the white fox about how their shared consciousness behaved differently in each body.

• Yin Yunze found that only one day had passed in the real world while five days had passed in the other world, and he noticed his clothes no longer fit his suddenly thinner body.
• Yin Yunze realized that the believers’ incense offerings had reshaped his real-world body and perception to match Green Hill Yi Yun, leaving him with a fox-girl form while his consciousness still regarded itself as male.
• Yin Yunze manifested the Great Gate of Incense, opened it, and stepped into the Dao Field, where he confirmed that he could still open a gate back to the real world.
• Yin Yunze found the injured nine-tailed white fox and teased it by prying open its eye; the fox explained that their shared consciousness behaved differently depending on which body it inhabited.

Yin Yunze divided his consciousness between his divine body and mortal body, and the two argued over how divinity and demonhood affected them. After Zhao Zixuan mistook him for an attacker and whipped him, Yin Yunze reclaimed the Land God Divinity and healed her, then promised to grant her wish for greater closeness.

• Yin Yunze and his nine-tailed white fox divine body argued about their divided personalities and concluded that controlling both bodies at once let divinity and demonhood interfere with their shared consciousness.
• Yin Yunze decided to call himself the mortal body and the fox the divine body, then withdrew his consciousness and reached for the Land God Divinity in the divine body's heart.
• Zhao Zixuan struck Yin Yunze with her whip while trying to protect her ladyship, then fainted when she learned that both bodies were Yin Yunze.
• Yin Yunze took the Land God Divinity into his mortal body, regained authority over the Clear Creek basin, and used Heal Wounds and Cure Illness on the divine body and Zhao Zixuan.
• Zhao Zixuan begged forgiveness for whipping him, and Yin Yunze forgave her and ordered her to name a reward.
• Zhao Zixuan asked only for Yin Yunze to carry her and hold her more often, and Yin Yunze agreed.

Yin Yunze moved the divine body into the real world to recover, then returned to the other world and bombed the City God Temple. He left Xu Hanxian and the city to deal with the explosions, which proved far bigger than the “little commotion” he had promised.

• Yin Yunze drew the Frost and Snow Divinity from the divine body's tail and brought the weakened divine body through the Great Gate of Incense into the real world.
• Yin Yunze checked the different flow of time between the worlds, assessed his diminished divine powers, and used the divine body as a bed while he sensed the Divinities within himself.
• Yin Yunze returned to the other world at night, visited Xu Yue, and entered Xu Hanxian's dream to ask him to meet the next day and warn him of a little commotion.
• Yin Yunze flew above the City God Temple under concealment and dropped explosives through the Great Gate of Incense, setting off a massive blast.
• The City God emerged from the burning temple and roared, so Yin Yunze dropped another bundle of explosives before vanishing.
• Xu Hanxian woke to the blasts and protested that Yin Yunze had promised not to make people work overtime, just as a second explosion sounded.