Chapter Summaries

Punk Lü Yuan discovered that Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan had broken through to the Embryonic Breathing Fourth Layer and could refine special-grade Law Artifacts, then gave him two Secret Methods and asked which Dao lineage to choose. The next morning, Lü Yuan accompanied Lin Qi to the Spirit Aperture institution, troubled by the Immortal Book’s recommendation of Fire Virtue.

• Punk Lü Yuan questioned Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan about the tree and plants in their consciousness space, then learned that the tree was a special-grade Embryonic Breathing Law Artifact he had refined.
• Punk Lü Yuan begged Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan to upgrade his flying sword and make more Law Artifacts, and Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan agreed to refine ten when he found suitable materials.
• Punk Lü Yuan gave Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan Lin Qi’s Secret Methods for concealing Spirit Root cultivation and improving Spiritual Qi Aptitude, then asked which Dao lineage the Immortal Book recommended.
• Lin Qi woke in Lü Yuan’s bedroom, found breakfast waiting, and thanked him before they set out for the annual Spirit Aperture opening.
• Lü Yuan accompanied Lin Qi to the Spirit Aperture institution while wondering why the Immortal Book had recommended Fire Virtue.

Lü Yuan traveled with Lin Qi and Wang Yan to the Spirit Aperture-opening institution, still puzzled by the Immortal Book’s advice to choose Fire Virtue. After the others were led away, Qin Huai arrived and told Lü Yuan that he would receive mature Third-Generation Spirit Aperture Technology.

• Lü Yuan considered why the Immortal Book had recommended Fire Virtue despite the local advantage of Earth Virtue.
• Lü Yuan, Lin Qi, and Wang Yan rode the bus to the Spirit Aperture-opening institution, where Lü Yuan reminded Wang Yan to wait for him after the opening and promised he had something to help him.
• After they registered, staff members led Lin Qi and Wang Yan away, leaving Lü Yuan alone.
• Qin Huai introduced himself as the person in charge and explained that Lü Yuan’s Spirit Aperture-opening process would be different because an important figure at the subsidiary had arranged it.
• Qin Huai told Lü Yuan that he would receive Third-Generation Spirit Aperture Technology, which had matured but was not yet widespread.

Lü Yuan underwent the agonizing opening of his third Spirit Aperture and then brought Wang Yan home to give him methods that could improve and conceal his Spiritual Qi Aptitude. Wang Yan revealed that he had experienced a fortuitous encounter of his own, leaving Lü Yuan stunned.

• Qin Huai explained that the third-generation equipment could open a third Spirit Aperture and that an unnamed powerful figure had arranged for Lü Yuan to use it.
• Lü Yuan entered the device and endured the painful aperture-opening process, then left the institution with Lin Qi and Wang Yan supporting him.
• After Lin Qi departed, Lü Yuan told Wang Yan that he had obtained a Secret Method to raise his Spiritual Qi Aptitude and a Technique Method to conceal his changes.
• At Lü Yuan's rented place, Wang Yan stopped him from fetching the methods and said he had a fortuitous encounter too.
• Lü Yuan was dumbfounded when Wang Yan showed him an ancient-looking book.

Wang Yan offered Lü Yuan a sixth-grade Fire Virtue Cultivation Method from his ancient inheritance, then challenged him to race into Embryonic Breathing. Lü Yuan immediately entered Embryonic Breathing and won the bet, leaving Wang Yan to reveal what else he had obtained.

• Wang Yan decided to share his sixth-grade Fire Virtue Cultivation Method with Lü Yuan, despite Elder Hun warning that it could give Lü Yuan an advantage.
• Wang Yan learned that Lü Yuan had already chosen Fire Virtue, the lineage required by the Cultivation Method, and explained that he regretted not giving it to him sooner.
• Lü Yuan realized the Immortal Book had guided him to choose Fire Virtue and accepted Wang Yan's offer without trying to seize the rest of his inheritance.
• Lü Yuan joked that his progress had been so smooth that he lacked a goal, prompting Wang Yan to challenge him to a bet over who would enter Embryonic Breathing first.
• Lü Yuan entered Embryonic Breathing immediately, won the bet, and asked Wang Yan to show him the other treasures from the ancient cultivator's inheritance.

After Lü Yuan quickly entered Embryonic Breathing and won Wang Yan’s fourth-grade technique, the two Lü Yuans discovered they could exchange cultivation, giving Punk Lü Yuan access to Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan’s stronger realm. Punk Lü Yuan returned the cultivation and showed Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan the two methods he had obtained.

• Elder Hun explained that Breath Sensitivity let people enter Embryonic Breathing quickly and reassured Wang Yan that he could still catch up with Lü Yuan.
• Elder Hun joked about taking Lü Yuan as a disciple and putting Wang Yan on Swap Swap, prompting Wang Yan to scold him.
• Punk Lü Yuan entered Embryonic Breathing and discovered that he and Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan could exchange cultivation.
• Punk Lü Yuan temporarily took on Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan’s Embryonic Breathing Fourth Layer cultivation, tested his newfound strength, and then returned it.
• Punk Lü Yuan showed Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan his sixth-grade Burning Instruction and the fourth-grade Fulfill the Root and Reflect Back Talisman Method.

Punk Lü Yuan and Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan discussed Wang Yan, Lin Qi, and the danger posed by the Purple Mansion cultivator in Bright Yang Tower before each committed to pursuing greater strength. Punk Lü Yuan began his first Fetal Breathing cultivation session, while Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan prepared to explore the immortal-cultivation world with Fusang.

• Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan learned how Punk Lü Yuan obtained the Cultivation Method and Technique Method and marveled at the unusual people around him, including Wang Yan and Lin Qi.
• Punk Lü Yuan and Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan agreed to watch Wang Yan and remain alert to the Purple Mansion cultivator in Bright Yang Tower, whom Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan vowed to confront if he threatened Punk Lü Yuan.
• Punk Lü Yuan gave Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan supplies, clothes, food, and a magic sword to upgrade, then returned to his bedroom.
• Punk Lü Yuan received his Fetal Breathing permit, Fire Virtue Basic Cultivation Practice Method, and notice that he had been transferred to Class 1, Grade 1.
• Punk Lü Yuan used the Burning Instruction and cultivation medicines to begin his first Fetal Breathing session and resolved to advance so he could control his own fate.
• Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan stood beneath Fusang, the tree he had refined into a Law Artifact, and decided they would explore the immortal-cultivation world.

Han Fei discovered that thousands of starving refugees were trapped in a barren wasteland by an Obstruction of Knowledge and Views, and spent months trying unsuccessfully to save them. As the refugees neared death, a mysterious masked immortal arrived, bringing a path of flowers and grass and food, and began healing them.

• Han Fei traveled through Wei State and found corpses, monsters, and starving refugees trapped along the border.
• Han Fei repeatedly tried to lead refugees to safety, but the obstruction kept them from leaving and the wasteland offered nothing to eat.
• Han Fei pleaded with the heavens and the Southern Dipper to save the refugees, believing they would all die within a month.
• A path of flowers and grass appeared across the barren earth, and Han Fei followed it for a day and a night to a camp beneath a great tree.
• Han Fei found a masked immortal healing refugees and distributing food, and the immortal gave Han Fei a meat pie and told him to eat slowly.

Lü Yuan discovered that thousands of refugees remained stranded in the wilderness and decided to rescue them despite the danger. He gave the camp refugees protective talismans and asked them to spread his name and bring the others to him.

• Lü Yuan returned to the wilderness, buried the dead, and found hundreds of starving survivors whom he treated and supplied with grain.
• Han Fei told Lü Yuan that thousands more refugees were still lost in the wilderness, but concealed the dangerous circumstances behind their plight.
• Lü Yuan and Punk Lü Yuan discussed the risks, and Lü Yuan chose to help despite Punk Lü Yuan's warning about attracting powerful enemies.
• Lü Yuan gathered the refugees, gave them protective talismans, and asked them to find the stranded people and tell them he would lead them to safety.

Punk Lü Yuan investigated why Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan had advanced to the embryonic breathing fifth layer without cultivating, and concluded that saving people might be the cause. The chapter left them wondering whether the Southern Dipper Cultivation Method made this an “Acting Method.”

• Han Jiu volunteered to manage the refugees and kept their growing camp orderly, easing Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan’s workload.
• Punk Lü Yuan used the Spirit Root and medicine to reach the embryonic breathing first layer in two weeks.
• Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan told Punk Lü Yuan he had unexpectedly reached the embryonic breathing fifth layer without a Spirit Root or cultivation.
• Punk Lü Yuan questioned Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan about unusual encounters and activities, then identified saving people as the only known variable.
• Punk Lü Yuan connected the breakthrough to the Southern Dipper lineage and its Cultivation Method, then asked, “Acting Method?”

Punk Lü Yuan learned from Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan that the Immortal Book’s guidance could help him use the Acting Method, then heard its cryptic hints: “Mere” and “Wait.” Those hints foreshadowed a wandering swordsman approaching, while powerful figures wondered whether the Lord of the State had returned.

• Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan revealed that the Immortal Book’s method of emulating a Fruit Position’s intent could produce the same effect as the Acting Method, and Punk Lü Yuan agreed to test it for the Fire Virtue Dao lineage.
• Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan told Punk Lü Yuan that the Immortal Book had hinted “Mere” and then “Wait” when he wondered how to get everyone out.
• A young wandering swordsman named Brother Ji changed his route through Wei State after sensing a possible awakened friend from seven hundred years ago nearby.
• Southern Dipper wondered whether the Lord of the State had returned, then turned his attention back to the fiend trapped within the Second Sun and promised its evil would end within a century.
• The Fourth Devil Ancestor studied an old painting of the Lord of the State and worried that the ancient figure might have returned.

Liu Ji crossed the ruined borderlands of Han and Wei, where a calamity had killed nearly everyone, and followed signs of survivors to a camp led by Han Fei. There he recognized Lü Yuan as the figure called an immortal and asked which True Lord stood before him.

• Liu Ji explained that the land was tainted by the Shen Constellation’s deathly power and decided to investigate while Xiahou Ying took the safer road home.
• Liu Ji found traces of recent human activity and hurried onward, fearing his old friend might be trapped or in danger.
• Liu Ji joined a group of refugees and learned they were following a talisman-bearing guide toward an immortal who promised them a way to survive.
• Liu Ji reached Lü Yuan’s camp, where more than ten thousand refugees had gathered, and addressed him as a True Lord of the mountain.
• Lü Yuan was astonished to hear Liu Ji introduce himself as Liu Ji of Pei County.

Lü Yuan was stunned when a wandering swordsman introduced himself as Liu Ji of Pei County, and the Immortal Book suggested Liu Ji might be a Golden Core True Lord. Liu Ji, unable to see through Lü Yuan, wrongly concluded that he was King Zheng of Qin, leaving both men uncertain how to proceed.

• Lü Yuan recognized Liu Ji of Pei County and wondered whether the world had become a xianxia version of the late Warring States period.
• Lü Yuan asked the Immortal Book about Liu Ji’s origins and cultivation, but it answered neither question.
• Liu Ji reasoned that the person before him had to be a True Lord because he could not see through him and because a Golden Core was needed to withstand the Shen Constellation’s deathly force.
• Liu Ji noticed the tree’s talisman-bearing leaves and considered whether Lü Yuan might instead be an Embryonic Breathing cultivator protected by a Law Artifact.
• Liu Ji concluded that Lü Yuan was King Zheng of Qin, while Lü Yuan and Liu Ji both wondered how to end their awkward exchange.

Lü Yuan revealed to Liu Ji that his ability to withstand the Golden Core True Lord came from a great personage’s favor, while admitting he was only at Embryonic Breathing. Liu Ji believed him and became intrigued, leaving Lü Yuan’s unexplained confidence—and whether Liu Ji would help him save the refugees—unresolved.

• Liu Ji manifested a sunlike Dharma manifestation with thirty-six solar halos, and the Immortal Book protected Lü Yuan from its power.
• Lü Yuan decided to speak honestly about his situation rather than pretend to be a mysterious True Lord.
• Lü Yuan told Liu Ji that a great personage had shown him favor and that his own cultivation was only at Embryonic Breathing.
• Liu Ji believed Lü Yuan and wondered whether the Southern Dipper Palace or a Southern Dipper Law Treasure was behind his unusual abilities.
• Liu Ji asked whether Lü Yuan feared he might covet the favor, and Lü Yuan replied that he was not afraid.

Lü Yuan and Liu Ji shared wine in the wilderness, and Liu Ji explained why he believed Southern Dipper had brought him there to help the refugees. The conversation ended with Liu Ji asking Lü Yuan to reveal his true appearance, then reacting to the eight-year-old boy with the words “E Xu?”

• Liu Ji drank the wine Lü Yuan had brought and insisted that Lü Yuan call him big brother.
• Lü Yuan asked why Liu Ji had come, and Liu Ji guessed that Southern Dipper had sent him to help Lü Yuan save the refugees.
• Liu Ji reassured Lü Yuan that the smoothness of his journey was to be expected because he had received Southern Dipper’s favor.
• Liu Ji asked Lü Yuan to dispel his illusion and reveal his true face.
• Lü Yuan revealed that he was an eight-year-old boy, and Liu Ji murmured, “E Xu?”

Lü Yuan and Liu Ji tried to explain Lü Yuan’s uncanny resemblance to E Xu, and Liu Ji concluded that Lü Yuan might be the child of himself and E Xu, born from their fused Residual Positions. The chapter ended with Liu Ji telling Lü Yuan he might be his biological father, while Lü Yuan was left baffled by the contradiction that they were “neither kin nor related.”

• Lü Yuan recognized E Xu as Empress Lü’s childhood name and wondered whether Liu Ji had known her in this life.
• Liu Ji reasoned that Lü Yuan’s resemblance to E Xu and his reaction to their names suggested he was born from the fusion of Liu Ji and E Xu’s Residual Positions.
• Liu Ji asked Lü Yuan whether he had met his parents and where his name came from, and Lü Yuan said he had known his name from birth.
• Liu Ji concluded that Lü Yuan might be his and E Xu’s child and explained that he looked almost exactly like E Xu.
• Lü Yuan asked whether he was related to E Xu, while Liu Ji said he might be Lü Yuan’s biological father despite them being neither kin nor related.

Lü Yuan learned that Liu Bang believed himself to be his father and revealed that Lü Zhi was his mother, then explained the world’s major Dao lineages. The chapter ended with Liu Bang completing his overview of the Three Enclosures, Four Remainders, Seven Governors, Northern and Southern Dippers, and Twelve Stars.

• Lü Yuan questioned Liu Bang’s claim that they were father and son, then accepted it provisionally despite being unable to verify it.
• Liu Bang told Lü Yuan that his real name was Liu Bang and that Lü Yuan’s mother was Lü Zhi.
• Lü Yuan asked about the cultivation world, and Liu Bang began explaining its major Dao lineages during their journey.
• Liu Bang described the Three Enclosures and Four Remainders, including their origins and the four Devil Ancestors’ Fruit Positions.
• Liu Bang explained the Seven Governors, revealing that he cultivated the Sun lineage and Lü Zhi cultivated the Great Yin lineage, and advised Lü Yuan to continue his Southern Dipper Cultivation Method.
• Liu Bang described the strengths of the Southern and Northern Dipper lineages, then explained that the Twelve Zodiacal Stations had forty Fruit Positions and concluded his overview.

Before school started, Lü Yuan slowed his cultivation to avoid standing out and practiced talismans and sword arts instead. Lin Qi visited him for their usual banter and, still broke, followed him home hoping for Spirit Stone Vouchers.

• Lü Yuan found old records showing that Fu Lu had reached Embryonic Breathing First Layer shortly after school began, so he paused his rapid cultivation.
• He failed to make progress in artifact refinement but learned to draw one or two ordinary first-grade talismans each day.
• Lü Yuan practiced the Dipper Handle Turning the Cardinal Points and Ordering the Heavenly Laws Sword Instruction in the activity plaza.
• Lin Qi criticized his sword art and offered to give him a better one in exchange for satisfying her, but Lü Yuan refused and teased her about borrowing money.
• Lin Qi complained that she was too poor to afford clothes, then followed Lü Yuan home in hopes of getting Spirit Stone Vouchers.

Lü Yuan and Lin Qi continued building their popular account as school approached, while Punk Lü Yuan heard about Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan’s unexpected Golden Core patron and suspected family. After comparing the ancient world’s familiar historical figures to a scripted version of the late Warring States period, Punk Lü Yuan concluded that someone had deliberately shaped events, leaving Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan to wonder whether another transmigrator was behind it.

• Lü Yuan’s account with Lin Qi gained a million followers, and Lin Qi earned Spirit Stone Vouchers through videos and advertisements.
• Lü Yuan received a call from Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan and heard that a generous Golden Core True Lord had appeared, possibly as his biological father, while his suspected biological mother was also a Golden Core.
• Punk Lü Yuan grew jealous of Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan’s good fortune but then considered his report about the cultivation world.
• Punk Lü Yuan argued that the world was not simply a xianxia version of history, but that someone had pushed events into following a late Warring States script.
• Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan asked whether another transmigrator had arrived before him and shaped the events to achieve a goal.

Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan and Punk Lü Yuan considered whether the immortal directing events in the ancient cultivation world was a fellow transmigrator, with Southern Dipper as their leading suspect. After agreeing to wait for more evidence, they caught up on Punk Lü Yuan’s cultivation and his relationship with Lin Qi.

• Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan and Punk Lü Yuan speculated that Southern Dipper might be a transmigrator behind the changes in the cultivation world.
• Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan reasoned that Southern Dipper probably did not know he was a transmigrator, while Punk Lü Yuan pointed out that the immortal’s book bestowal might have deterred any action against him.
• Punk Lü Yuan urged Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan not to jump to conclusions, and Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan decided to investigate further when his cultivation was higher.
• Punk Lü Yuan described his cultivation progress and his plan to make Lin Qi financially dependent on him, prompting Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan to ask about their romantic progress.
• Punk Lü Yuan objected that they were only eight, and Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan joked that their mental ages made that claim dubious.

Punk Lü Yuan learned that Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan might reach Purple Mansion in eight years and reach Qi Refinement in as little as two months, but he still refused to stop cultivating. Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan left him the Spirit Root for now, then turned his attention to Great Marsh Mountain.

• Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan told Punk Lü Yuan that Liu Bang had predicted he could reach Purple Mansion within eight years by following the Great Yin or Sun lineage.
• Punk Lü Yuan learned that Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan might reach Qi Refinement in one or two months after earning merit by helping Liu Bang rescue people.
• Punk Lü Yuan rejected the suggestion to leave cultivation to Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan and vowed not to let him get two major realms ahead.
• Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan said Punk Lü Yuan could use the Spirit Root for now and vanished from the consciousness space.
• Ancient Cultivator Lü Yuan looked toward the rising Sun and repeated the destination Liu Bang had given him: Great Marsh Mountain.