Zhang Yan, a Qi Refining disciple of the Qingyun Sect in Dongzhou, was an obscure nobody in the cultivation world until a journey into a secret realm changed his fate. He obtained the Xuanyuan Pearl and the ancient cultivation art "Xuanyuan Water Control Art," and formed a pact with Xiaobai, a golden-eyed spirit pet. By using the "Dust-Fate Scripture" to fuse three kinds of spiritual energy, his cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds.
But disaster struck without warning. The Blackwind Valley, accompanied by Golden Core rogue cultivators, massacred the Qingyun Sect. His master gave his life to entrust him with the "Qingyun Secret Canon" and a Foundation Establishment Pill. Carrying a blood feud, Zhang Yan fled for his life with Xiaobai. He broke through to Foundation Establishment in the face of desperation, then merged three cultivation arts in a hidden valley and delved into the arts of alchemy and crafting, his strength surging forward.
He returned with the force of thunder and personally slew the master of Blackwind Valley, only to uncover the Blood Fiend Hall, a rogue cultivator organization spread throughout Dongzhou. To protect his fellow disciples and restore his sect, Zhang Yan joined forces with like-minded cultivators to form an alliance against the fiends. They fought rogue Nascent Soul cultivators to the death in the Valley of Ten Thousand Corpses, finally overcoming the crisis and bringing the Qingyun Sect onto a much wider stage in the cultivation world.
Afterward, he led his disciples into the extreme northern Ice Soul Secret Realm to seize Ice Soul Crystals, made a name for himself at the Central Continent's Tianyan Dao Discussion, and stunned the crowd at the Central Continent Cultivation Conference with his late Golden Core cultivation. His disciple Zhang Yang became the cultivation world's biggest dark horse, defeating one Golden Core expert after another despite being only at Foundation Establishment.
Yet danger lies ahead at every turn: the Xuanyuan Sect's malicious provocations and nighttime ambushes, the Central Continent sects' open and covert power struggles, and the gradual revelation of ancient secrets and the mystery of Xiaobai's origins. With a Nascent Soul Pill in hand, Zhang Yan deals with plots from all sides while striving to break through to the Nascent Soul realm. He vows to let the ties of mortal life guide him, take control of his own destiny, make the Qingyun Sect's name resound across the lands, and ascend to the pinnacle of cultivation!
