Chapter Summaries

Chu Yanran fought Lang Yi and Yuan Feng to protect Qi Buxiu and help Kang Dabao escape, while the beasts and Jiang Qing also struggled to survive. She unleashed the Six-Sided Color-Embroidered Bamboo-Frame Golden-Thread Lamp at the cost of her own strength, badly wounding both enemies, but the fight remained unresolved as Kang Dabao shouted at a vile beast.

• Chu Yanran saved Qi Buxiu from Lang Yi’s vines and attacked Yuan Feng, while Lang Yi demanded half of Qi Buxiu’s Essence Blood.
• Lang Yi gave Yuan Feng Toad Dew and Osmanthus Fragrance in exchange for his help, and Yuan Feng turned his attacks on Kang Dabao and Qi Buxiu.
• Chu Yanran urged Kang Dabao and the injured Purple-Whiskered King Tuna and Six-Eyed Sage Widower to flee, but Yuan Feng and Lang Yi blocked their escape and attacked Qi Buxiu.
• Lang Yi used his Gavel Talisman Treasure to threaten Kang Dabao, and Jiang Qing intervened with his sword before Chu Yanran stopped the blow.
• Chu Yanran poured Essence Blood onto the Six-Sided Color-Embroidered Bamboo-Frame Golden-Thread Lamp, shattering Lang Yi’s talisman treasure and driving lightning swords into Yuan Feng.
• Lang Yi and Yuan Feng both suffered serious injuries, and Kang Dabao shouted at a vile beast as the battle continued.

Zhang Qingran tried to escape the fighting, but the water beasts seized her and carried her toward the Spirit Turtle Stone Chamber while Yuan Feng pursued them. E Yuan opened the final stone door, gave Zhang Qingran a formation plate to undo, and swallowed a purple inner core just as Yuan Feng entered and realized the beast’s power was surging.

• Zhang Qingran ran for a room, but Purple-Whiskered King Tuna bound her before she could reach it.
• Yuan Feng attacked the water beasts to reclaim Zhang Qingran, while E Yuan healed his companions and led them toward the spring.
• Lang Yi ended his fight with Chu Yanran and withdrew; Chu Yanran thanked Kang Dabao and Jiang Qing with a spirit fruit and a sword whetstone.
• E Yuan carried Zhang Qingran into the spirit spring, and Yuan Feng killed Purple-Whiskered King Tuna before pursuing them into the chamber.
• E Yuan used the secret key to open the final stone door and ordered Zhang Qingran to undo the formation plate within a quarter of an hour.
• E Yuan swallowed a purple inner core, and Yuan Feng entered the chamber, recognizing that the beast’s power had risen.

After swallowing the Purple-Scaled Mountain-Subduing Turtle's inner core, E Yuan overwhelmed Yuan Feng and killed him, then pursued Kang Dabao and Jiang Qing. Jiang Qing turned back to face E Yuan, but Kang Dabao flung him away and stayed to fight while ordering him to rescue Zhang Qingran.

• E Yuan's strength surged, and he drove Yuan Feng into retreat before grievously wounding him with his serrated teeth.
• E Yuan caught Yuan Feng in the underground river, severed his wrist, and tore him apart despite Kang Dabao and Jiang Qing watching nearby.
• Kang Dabao and Jiang Qing fled toward the spirit turtle's stone chamber, but Jiang Qing turned back to hold E Yuan off.
• The sword-grinding stone empowered Jiang Qing's strike, which shattered E Yuan's water arrow and Serrated Teeth Grand Formation, though the White Dew Sword broke in his hand.
• As E Yuan lunged at Jiang Qing, Kang Dabao threw him out of the way and fought E Yuan himself, ordering Jiang Qing to capture Zhang Qingran and bring her back.

Kang Dabao and his companions survived E Yuan’s attack and negotiated a truce, while Daoist Black Shoes stayed behind to face the beast. As Kang Dabao examined the Purple-Scaled Mountain-Subduing Turtle’s remains, something hidden inside its belly suddenly burst out.

• E Yuan overwhelmed Kang Dabao until he unleashed 180 Yin-Yang Mystic Lightning bolts, badly injuring the beast and escaping to reunite with Jiang Qing and Zhang Qingran.
• Jiang Qing took the chamber’s contents, and Kang Dabao bargained with E Yuan to exchange Yuan Feng’s belongings for the remains of E Yuan’s sworn younger brothers and to return with it to the Ice-Drinking Chamber.
• After Daoist Black Shoes emerged, Kang Dabao handed E Yuan the Body-Cleansing Formation Plate, and Daoist Black Shoes remained behind to confront the beast while the others left to explore.
• Kang Dabao asked Zhang Qingran for the Moon Fern’s whereabouts, but she insisted he first remove the Yang Blood Heart-Locking Incantation and address the Wisdom Consort Seal.
• Kang Dabao examined the Purple-Scaled Mountain-Subduing Turtle’s corpse and discovered something inside its belly as an object in his Storage Bag flashed and shot out.

Kang Dabao recovered from his injuries in the Mountain-Viewing Cave and searched his room for treasure, discovering a hidden album that belonged to Exalted Cultivator Guanyu. The cave began to shake before he could break out and search another room, leaving him with the album’s mysterious map and no time to pursue more treasures.

• Kang Dabao used Black Bone to refine a cultivator’s skull fragment, illuminating the second Immortal Seal Script character and revealing the Northern Night Palace Full Moon Visualization Method, Volume One.
• Kang Dabao treated his injuries with Wild Lotus Pills and the Primordial Ancient Body, stabilizing his condition and refining E Yuan’s venom into nourishment.
• Kang Dabao searched his room and discovered an illusion formation concealing a leather case with a portrait album dedicated to Fu Yi.
• Kang Dabao found a map to the Jade-Acquiring Pavilion inside the album and read a message linking Fu Yi to the Fearless Tower and the Great Expansion Jade Huang.
• Kang Dabao tried to break through the room’s light screen, but the Mountain-Viewing Cave shook as its fifteen-day journey ended.

After returning from the Mountain-Viewing Cave, Kang Dabao settled affairs with Yuan Xiyue, secured protection for the He Household, and resumed his duties at Chongming Sect. News of Lang Yi’s death and the possible weakness of the Yunwei Zheng Household left him preparing to enter seclusion.

• Kang Dabao made Yuan Xiyue remove the sealing technique from Zhang Qingran, then asked Xu Liuxian to protect the He Household, which Xu agreed to do.
• Half a month later, Kang Dabao returned to Chongming Sect and discussed Fei Shuhe’s plans for Foundation Establishment before checking on the Glazed Treasure Tree with Zhou Yixiu.
• Han Xundao told Kang Dabao that He Degong had arrived, and He Degong reported that the Four Friends of Cold Mountain had taken Lang Yi’s Crane Spirit Mountain.
• Kang Dabao received the Four Friends’ gift list and saw He Degong off after hearing that the False Core ancestor of the Yunwei Zheng Household might be injured or dead.
• Kang Dabao decided to refine the flood-dragon blood crabapple and study the Full Moon Visualization Method in seclusion.

Kang Dabao emerged from seclusion with progress in Divine Sense cultivation and learned that Zhang Qingran’s Moon Fern seeds could help cultivate the Delusion-Breaking Golden Eyes. Fei Shuhe then began arranging to bring Zhang Qingran and Yuan Xiyue to Green Lotus Courtyard, leaving her plans for Kang Dabao’s dual cultivation method unresolved.

• Fei Shuhe arranged a Spirit Gathering Formation for Kang Dabao’s cloud chamber and sought a geomancer to improve Little Ring Mountain’s Spirit Vein.
• During three months of seclusion, Kang Dabao practiced the Northern Night Palace Full Moon Visualization Method and made progress toward its introductory stage.
• Kang Dabao visited Zhang Qingran, learned that Moon Fern was a variant of Calamity Heart Grass, and received seeds and cultivation notes recovered from her Storage Bag.
• Fei Shuhe learned that Zhang Qingran had a Fragrant Mist Physique and that Yuan Feng had used a dual cultivation method involving her and Yuan Xiyue.
• Fei Shuhe told Nanny Sun to find Toad Dew and Osmanthus Fragrance and bring Zhang Qingran and Yuan Xiyue to Green Lotus Courtyard without releasing them without her permission.

Kang Dabao held a meeting about the Chongming Sect’s affairs and learned that growing the Moon Fern Grass would require better spirit fields and expert help. Fei Shuhe then brought him to the Green Lotus Courtyard, where she arranged for him to use tonics and a dual cultivation method with Yuan Xiyue and Zhang Qingran.

• Kang Dabao gathered the Chongming Sect’s core members, heard updates about Lord Shan and the sect’s affairs, and advised Yuan Jin, Pei Yi, and Jiang Qing on their cultivation and duties.
• Zhou Yixiu told Kang Dabao that he lacked the skill and suitable spirit fields to grow Moon Fern Grass, so Kang Dabao considered asking Madam Qi for help and using Second-Tier fields in Hong County.
• Fei Shuhe brought Kang Dabao to the Green Lotus Courtyard, where Yuan Xiyue asked what it would take for him to release her.
• Zhang Qingran entered and rebuked Kang Dabao, prompting him to realize that Fei Shuhe had brought the two women together for him.
• Fei Shuhe used a mind-bewitching drug on Yuan Xiyue and Zhang Qingran, lit the Toad Dew and Osmanthus Fragrance, and urged Kang Dabao to practice the Mystic Union Method with them.

Kang Dabao met Daoist Black Shoes after advancing to Foundation Establishment Middle Stage, and they discussed the danger surrounding Chu Yanran and the Two Instruments Sect. In Xuanwei City, Sima Fei and his wife prepared for Fei Shuhe’s Foundation Establishment and weighed the growing political turmoil around the Kuang Household and the Great Wei Immortal Dynasty.

• Kang Dabao visited Daoist Black Shoes, who praised his rapid cultivation progress and learned that he had reached Foundation Establishment Middle Stage through dual cultivation.
• Daoist Black Shoes warned that the Two Instruments Sect might retaliate for Yue Lan’s death and explained that Chu Yanran’s injuries came from Viper Spirit Powder secretly administered through Qi Buxiu by Qi Duoluo.
• Daoist Black Shoes gave Kang Dabao a Life-Giving Longevity Pill for Lord Yin Shan, and Kang Dabao planned to visit Xuanwei City and ask Chu Yanran about the Fearless Tower.
• Sima Fei’s wife challenged him over the Sima Office’s treatment of the Yunwei Zheng Household, and he promised to send them a high-grade Foundation Establishment Pill.
• Sima Fei and his wife prepared for Fei Shuhe’s return to attempt Foundation Establishment and learned that the Han Household would provide Sima Fei with an Imperial Peak Stone for Core Formation.
• Sima Fei and his wife discussed the Prince of the South’s injuries, rising tensions across the Immortal Dynasty, and the need for the Fei Household to reconsider its reliance on Kuang Liuting.

Fei Shuhe brought Yuan Xiyue and Zhang Qingran under her authority as Kang Dabao’s household master, then accompanied him to Xuanwei City to visit the Qi Household and Lord Shan. As the couple headed to the Fei Household, the city erupted with news that a Golden Core cultivator from the Capital Circuit had arrived.

• Fei Shuhe took charge of Kang Dabao’s inner quarters and persuaded Yuan Xiyue and Zhang Qingran to accept their place in the household.
• Kang Dabao and Fei Shuhe visited Qi Buxiu, where Chu Yanran refused to help them but gave Kang Dabao Spirit Plant notes and offered to improve his junior brother’s Moon Fern cultivation method.
• After Kang Dabao and Fei Shuhe left, Chu Yanran told Qi Buxiu that she had a forty percent chance of forming a Golden Core and advised him to turn to Kang Dabao if anything happened to her.
• Kang Dabao presented Lord Shan with a Life-Giving Longevity Pill, but Lord Shan accepted it only on the condition that he could return it to Black Shoes later.
• As Kang Dabao and Fei Shuhe left the Archive Custodian Office for the Fei Household, people announced that a Golden Core cultivator from the Capital Circuit had entered Xuanwei City.

Fei Nanying welcomed a clan elder from the Fei Household’s ancestral lands to She Mountain Hall, where Kang Dabao was initially denied a seat because he was an outsider. After Kang Dabao won the right to sit, the elder gave gifts to the gathered cultivators and announced a competition that included Kang Dabao.

• Fei Nanying and Han Ningyue welcomed the purple-robed elder, who greeted Fei Shuhe but gave Kang Dabao a cool reception.
• At the gathering, the white-haired old woman refused Kang Dabao a seat, prompting him to argue that his official post, battle record, and sect’s service to the Immortal Dynasty earned him one.
• Fei Nanying declared that the slight was not the Fei Household’s intention, and a clansman brought Kang Dabao a seat, which he offered to Fei Shuhe.
• The purple-robed elder distributed Spirit Artifacts to the gathered Foundation Establishment cultivators and gave Fei Nanying an embroidered Storage Bag containing gifts for other juniors.
• At the family banquet, the purple-robed elder announced an internal competition for She Mountain Hall and ordered that Kang Dabao be included, alarming him and Fei Shuhe.

Kang Dabao tried to avoid the Fei Household tournament, but a purple-robed elder gave him a rare healing pill and insisted it proceed that day. After recovering and entering the contest, Kang Dabao defeated Fei Nanben in his first match, leaving the Fei cultivators stunned.

• The purple-robed elder rejected Fei Nanying's request to postpone the tournament and gave Kang Dabao a third-tier Hundred Herbs Spirit-Nurturing Pill to heal his injuries.
• Kang Dabao took the pill, recovered from his hidden injuries, and decided to fight rather than waste the opportunity.
• The purple-robed elder distributed lots and set the tournament rules before the Fei cultivators began their matches on four platforms.
• Kang Dabao watched Fei Nanhu, Fei Nanfeng, and Fei Enhua win their bouts before he entered Platform C to face Fei Nanben.
• Fei Nanben's attacks failed to harm Kang Dabao, who disarmed him and seized him by the throat; the crane-haired old woman declared Kang Dabao the winner.

Kang Dabao defeated Fei Nanben, Fei Wen, Fei Enxing, and Fei Nanhu to win the Fei Household’s She Mountain Hall minor competition. He accepted the reward by proudly listing his titles and his marriage to Fei Shuhe, leaving the Fei Household stunned.

• Kang Dabao defeated Fei Nanben, then won his next match against Fei Wen by revealing his body-cultivation strength and stripping away Fei Wen’s spiritual power.
• Kang Dabao won another match, while Fei Nanfeng and Fei Nanhu advanced and Fei Enhua lost to Fei Enxing.
• Fei Nanfeng yielded his match to Fei Nanhu, while Kang Dabao defeated Fei Enxing after the latter broke the rules by using a talisman treasure.
• Kang Dabao defeated Fei Nanhu in a grueling final match, using Little Qi and his Lion Insects to overcome the Fire Venerable Seal and outlast him.
• The purple-robed elder declared Kang Dabao the competition’s winner and presented his reward, which Kang Dabao accepted while announcing his official positions and marriage to Fei Shuhe.

Zhu Tong and Tie Liuyun investigated the unexpected visit by a Golden Core cultivator from the Fei Household, while Fei Dongwen delivered an Imperial Peak Stone and warned Fei Nanying about growing political turmoil. Fei Shuhe entered a secret chamber to attempt Foundation Establishment, and Kang Dabao waited outside as a month passed.

• Zhu Tong learned that the Fei Household’s competition had been won by Kang Dabao and considered reporting the news to the earl.
• Tie Liuyun urged Buse and Tie Xishui to find out why the Fei Household’s Golden Core cultivator had come, but Buse refused to risk offending the senior cultivator.
• Fei Dongwen gave Fei Nanying and Han Ningyue an Imperial Peak Stone, thanked Han Ningyue for the Han Household’s help, and told Fei Nanying to move She Mountain Hall after reaching Core Formation.
• Fei Dongwen warned Fei Nanying that the Capital Circuit was unstable, urged him not to blame Ancestor Ye Shui, and revealed that the Fei Household was making a major wager.
• Fei Shuhe entered a secret chamber to attempt Foundation Establishment, while Kang Dabao waited outside; a month passed without her emerging.

Duan Anle offered Lu Yunniang a lease to manage Brocade Scale Lake, and news that Fei Shuhe had formed her Dao Foundation persuaded her to accept. Meanwhile, Jiang Qing hunted Giant-Toothed Mountain Monkeys with Ji Yunsheng, then learned that Senior Brother Ye had also reached Foundation Establishment.

• Duan Anle told Lu Yunniang that Ji Yunsheng had left West Wind Valley and offered the Lu Household a chance to manage Brocade Scale Lake instead.
• After hearing that Fei Shuhe had formed her Dao Foundation, Lu Yunniang agreed to take on Brocade Scale Lake, and Duan Anle presented a spirit contract for her seal.
• Jiang Qing and Ji Yunsheng found a group of Giant-Toothed Mountain Monkeys, and Jiang Qing charged at the second-tier middle-grade leader while Ji Yunsheng fought the others.
• Ji Yunsheng was injured when one monkey sacrificed itself to protect its companion, but Jiang Qing killed the remaining leader and drove the troop away.
• Jiang Qing gave Ji Yunsheng the materials from the two lower-grade monkeys, then received word that Senior Brother Ye had reached Foundation Establishment.

Kang Dabao met with Fei Nanying, who warned him about the growing dangers in Cloud Horn Prefecture and asked him to relay a generous offer to Daoist Black Shoes. After Kang Dabao returned to the Chongming Sect and arranged for a Foundation Establishment ceremony for Ye Zhengwen, he received word that Shan Sheng had died.

• Fei Nanying warned Kang Dabao to prepare for trouble, offered to protect him through Granny Liu, and told him that Fei Dongwen wanted him to repay a favor for taking four purple jade bamboo slips.
• Fei Nanying asked Kang Dabao to invite Daoist Black Shoes to the Fei Household's ancestral lands, promising spiritual resources and a chance to reach Golden Core, and discussed the threat from Yuan Buwen.
• Kang Dabao left the Fei Household after visiting Lord Yin Shan, then returned to the Chongming Sect and reunited with Ye Zhengwen, who had reached Foundation Establishment.
• Kang Dabao agreed to hold a Foundation Establishment ceremony for Ye Zhengwen and gave Zhou Yixiu and Kang Rongquan Chu Yanran's improved Moon Fern method and crop-master notes.
• Zhou Yixiu said he now had confidence in cultivating Moon Fern, and Kang Dabao received messages from the Shan Household and the He Household reporting that Shan Sheng had died.

Over three years, the Chongming Sect secured the Shan Household as a vassal and developed cultivation resources while a stalled regional war burdened its transport operations. Kang Dabao remained in seclusion, and Pei Que's struggling caravan approached Seven Stars Sect territory, where he spotted an old acquaintance.

• Ye Zhengwen rallied support for the Shan Household, secured its holdings after Yuan Jin killed eleven challengers, and accepted it as a Chongming Sect vassal.
• Shan Shiwen reached Foundation Establishment after Shan Shijie failed, recovered the surrendered spirit fields, and offered them to the Chongming Sect.
• Zhou Yixiu and Kang Rongquan successfully grew Moon Fern for Kang Dabao's eye technique, and Zhou Yixiu's Glazed Treasure Tree later produced twelve Glazed Sarira.
• Daoist Black Shoes forcibly fed Lord Yin Shan a Lifespan Pill that extended his life by five years and then stayed to cultivate under him.
• Zhu Tong's campaign against the Jingnan Yuan Household stalled despite Granny Liu's assistance, while Jiang Qing escorted supplies for little pay and killed enemy cultivators to offset the Chongming Sect's losses.
• Pei Que, Ming Zhe, and Du Qing returned with a poorly earning caravan, approached Seven Stars Sect territory, and encountered an old acquaintance.

Pei Que, Ming Zhe, and their caravan received an unexpectedly lavish welcome from the Seven Stars Sect, where Pei Que learned that Kang Da had emerged from seclusion. Pi Dian revealed that the Chongming Sect had defeated an invasion by the Mystic Moon Sect, leaving its leader injured and its Foundation Establishment cultivators trapped behind their sect’s formation.

• Pei Que apologized for Ming Zhe’s teasing of Kuai En, and Kuai En explained that he had come to Changyun County seeking help with his Spirit Huai Incense fields.
• Ming Zhe recommended that Kuai En ask Mo for help, while Pei Que worried the request might delay Mo’s cultivation.
• Pei Que, Ming Zhe, and Kuai En discussed the trouble the Ming and Kuai Households faced mining a verdant stone vein because of their ties to the Chongming Sect.
• At a Seven Stars Sect checkpoint, Pi Dian welcomed Pei Que’s caravan, waived its payment, and hosted its members lavishly before they continued on their way.
• Pi Dian told Pei Que that Kang Da had emerged from seclusion and that Chongming Sect leaders had injured the Mystic Moon Sect’s False Core cultivator and forced the sect’s surviving Foundation Establishment cultivators to retreat behind their formation.

Gun Shilu explained to Kuang Liuting how Jiang Qing killed Linghu Rong after she murdered Feng Wan, and how Kang Dabao and Daoist Black Shoes wounded Linghu You when he came seeking revenge. Kuang Liuting heard the account and ordered Kang Dabao and Linghu You to appear before him together.

• A Yue Household daughter urged Kuang Liuting to punish Kang Dabao and his companions for allegedly attacking Linghu You and killing Linghu Rong, but Kuang Liuting refused to judge the matter before hearing Gun Shilu's account.
• Gun Shilu told Kuang Liuting that Linghu Rong had secretly killed a Wisdom Consort candidate to obtain the Buddha Mother Wisdom Consort Dao method, then drained Feng Wan through dual cultivation.
• Mo Wen pursued Linghu Rong after she escaped the Jin County officials, and Jiang Qing arrived and killed her with his Crimson Heart Scorching Sun Sword.
• Linghu You came to avenge his daughter, but Kang Dabao and Daoist Black Shoes joined forces with Jiang Qing and inflicted grave injuries on him.
• Kuang Liuting finished hearing Gun Shilu's account and summoned Kang Dabao and Linghu You to the prefecture court.

Tie Liuyun forced the injured Linghu You to accept the Earl of Nan'an’s summons and leave the Mystic Moon Sect’s relief for later, revealing his ambition and resolve to control the sect leader. The following evening, they reached the Cloud Horn Prefecture Court and faced Kang Da in the outer courtyard, where a furious voice from inside the hall ordered someone out.

• Yue Lin asked Tie Liuyun why the Earl had summoned Linghu You, then told Tie to accompany the sect leader to Xuanwei City.
• Tie Liuyun visited the wounded Linghu You, who criticized him over the Mystic Moon Sect’s losses and praised the strength of Daoist Black Shoes and Kang Da.
• Linghu You demanded that Tie Liuyun send troops to save the Mystic Moon Sect’s mountain gate, and Tie refused to accept blame for Linghu Rong’s actions.
• Tie Liuyun intimidated Linghu You into obedience and told him they would leave to see the Earl that evening.
• The following evening, Tie Liuyun and Linghu You arrived at the Cloud Horn Prefecture Court, where they encountered Kang Da before a furious voice shouted, “Get out!”