Recaps

After Shen Jingchuan bathed, Bai Ruoli, Qinghe, Su Qingshu, and Su Qinghua noticed how cultivation had refined his appearance. He accepted their congratulations, then rode Big Black to the Zhenyuan Escort Agency after breakfast.

• Su Qingshu and Su Qinghua helped Shen Jingchuan scrub his back while he bathed, hiding their growing affection for him.
• Shen Jingchuan finished washing and dressed after sending the shy sisters out of the side room.
• Bai Ruoli, Qinghe, and the Su sisters were startled by Shen Jingchuan's fairer, more refined appearance.
• Shen Jingchuan explained that his cultivation had refined his body, and the four congratulated him.
• After breakfast, Shen Jingchuan rode Big Black to the Zhenyuan Escort Agency.

Shen Jingchuan showed the Lin family how much his cultivation had improved, then learned the wedding customs from Matchmaker Wang after Lin Weiyuan approved his proposal. The chapter ended with Shen Jingchuan, Lin Yue, and Lin Shan preparing to visit Chief Hu and the others at Wild Goose Tomb.

• Shen Jingchuan arrived at the escort agency and watched Lin Shan and Lin Yue spar before explaining that his improved bearing came from practicing a family-inherited Qi-nourishing art.
• Shen Jingchuan sparred against Lin Yue, then Lin Shan and Lin Weiyuan joined in, but the three could only barely hold their ground against him.
• Shen Jingchuan asked Lin Yue how to proceed with his marriage proposal, and Lin Yue told him Lin Weiyuan had agreed and Matchmaker Wang was coming to explain the customs.
• Matchmaker Wang explained the betrothal gifts and wedding procedures, and Shen Jingchuan memorized the details while Lin Qingyao stayed in her room.
• Shen Jingchuan decided to visit Chief Hu at Wild Goose Tomb, and Lin Yue and Lin Shan offered to accompany him.

Shen Jingchuan visited the Wild Goose Tomb and the inn construction site, where Hu Tieniu explained how he was organizing the work and attracting travelers and scholars. Shen Jingchuan praised Hu Tieniu’s business sense, then asked why so few people were working, leaving Hu Tieniu unable to answer.

• Shen Jingchuan armored himself and his horse Big Black before riding out with Lin Shan and Lin Yue.
• Shen Jingchuan met Hu Tieniu at the mountainside worksite, where Hu Tieniu described the inn construction, brick kiln, and efforts to reassure passing travelers.
• Shen Jingchuan saw the rebuilt Wild Goose Tomb and learned that scholars had paid fifty taels to have his lyric carved on a stele.
• Hu Tieniu proposed charging scholars to add inscriptions to the blank space on the stele, and Shen Jingchuan praised his business sense.
• Shen Jingchuan noticed that only about a hundred and twenty people were working and asked Hu Tieniu why so few of his men had joined them; Hu Tieniu fell silent.

Shen Jingchuan left the construction site after Hu Tieniu explained why some former bandits had departed, but three masked fighters ambushed him and his companions on the road. Shen Jingchuan held off the gray-clad expert while Lin Shan’s armor saved him from a sword strike, leaving Lin Yue rushing to his brother’s aid.

• Hu Tieniu told Shen Jingchuan that grieving relatives had left with their families, while the remaining workers were loyal and working earnestly.
• Shen Jingchuan refused Lin Yue’s suggestion to hunt down the departed men and left the construction site after the workers thanked him.
• Three masked riders charged Shen Jingchuan, Lin Shan, and Lin Yue, and the two black-clad fighters attacked with sabers.
• Shen Jingchuan fought off the two black-clad attackers and exchanged blows with the stronger gray-clad man.
• The gray-clad fighter struck Lin Shan’s shoulder, but his titanium alloy armor stopped the sword, and Lin Yue swept his spear toward the attacker.

Shen Jingchuan and the Lin brothers were ambushed by three skilled masked fighters, and their armor and teamwork kept them alive as they fought at a disadvantage. Hu Tieniu and the construction workers rushed to help, and their approaching crowd reached the hollow as the battle continued.

• Hu Tieniu spotted three masked riders attacking Shen Jingchuan and rallied the workers at the construction site to go help.
• Lin Shan found that his titanium-alloy armor had stopped a sword strike, while Shen Jingchuan warned that the gray-clad attacker was unusually strong.
• Shen Jingchuan charged the masked men with Lin Shan and Lin Yue, but two black-clad fighters leapt at them on foot.
• Big Black kicked one black-clad fighter hard enough to break his thigh, while the gray-clad man pressed Shen Jingchuan with a rapid sword attack.
• Lin Shan and Lin Yue struggled to hold off the remaining black-clad fighter, and a crowd of at least a hundred people approached with shouts and pounding footsteps.

Shen Jingchuan fought the gray-clad cultivator until Hu Tieniu and the displaced people charged in to help. Big Black kicked the disarmed man flying out of sight, leaving Shen Jingchuan’s spear thrust to miss.

• Shen Jingchuan held his own against the gray-clad man, though he lacked the opponent’s combat experience.
• Hu Tieniu led about a hundred displaced people to rescue Shen Jingchuan, ready to fight for their benefactor.
• The gray-clad man cut down several people to open a gap and tried to escape, but Shen Jingchuan forced him to defend against a spear thrust.
• The gray-clad man leapt behind Big Black and attacked Shen Jingchuan, but Big Black kicked him and sent his sword flying.
• Shen Jingchuan’s spear missed the gray-clad man as Big Black’s kick sent him out of sight.

Shen Jingchuan and the Lin brothers defeated an ambush by the Pan Household, but the attackers killed several refugees before one escaped. Shen gave Hu Tieniu silver to bury the dead and aid the wounded, then rode toward Yuxi Prefecture as Pan Wenbai waited anxiously for news of Pan Zimo.

• Lin Shan and Lin Yue drove off the black-clad attacker after Shen Jingchuan’s horse killed the gray-clad man, but the attacker escaped into the woods and killed two refugees.
• Lin Shan identified the dead man as Pan Zimo, and Lin Yue recognized the black-clad man as Instructor Zhang from the Pan residence.
• Shen Jingchuan took two pouches from the bodies and ordered Hu Tieniu to dispose of the corpses and weapons discreetly.
• Shen Jingchuan gave Hu Tieniu two thousand taels to bury the dead, compensate their families, treat the wounded, and buy grain for the refugees.
• Shen Jingchuan and his companions rode toward Yuxi Prefecture while Pan Wenbai worried that Pan Zimo had not returned.
• The steward announced that Instructor Zhao had returned, and Pan Wenbai ordered him brought in.

After Zhao Kui reported that Pan Zimo and Instructor Zhang had died while trying to ambush Shen Jingchuan, Pan Hongxuan and Pan Wenbai mourned the loss and explained why the Pan Household had pursued him. Zhao Kui then described the fight, insisting Shen Jingchuan had seemed like an ordinary martial artist even as he overcame the cultivator.

• Zhao Kui returned wounded and told Pan Wenbai and Pan Hongxuan that Pan Zimo and Instructor Zhang had been killed by Shen Jingchuan's black horse during an ambush.
• Pan Wenbai revealed that the Pan Household had targeted Shen Jingchuan after the heir to Prince Jing's residence ordered his death and threatened the family when an earlier attack failed.
• Pan Hongxuan grieved that Pan Zimo, the clan's only child with a Spirit Root and its hope for advancement, had died after years of cultivation and family investment.
• Pan Wenbai questioned how Shen Jingchuan could have defeated Pan Zimo, and Zhao Kui swore he had not held back and explained the limits of Qi Refinement cultivation.
• Zhao Kui said Pan Zimo had initially held the advantage over Shen Jingchuan, whose techniques seemed ordinary despite his immense strength and unusually heavy spear.

Pan Hongxuan and Pan Wenbai learned that Pan Zimo had died and that his Cultivation Method and resources were missing, while Zhao Kui secretly considered keeping them for himself. After returning home, Shen Jingchuan examined the belongings he had taken and discovered cultivation pills and other valuables.

• A survivor told Pan Hongxuan that a powerful black horse had killed Pan Zimo and Instructor Zhang, and Pan Wenbai realized Zimo had carried the clan’s Cultivation Method and resources with him.
• Pan Wenbai searched Zimo’s courtyard but found nothing, while Zhao Kui secretly planned to retrieve the missing items for his own family.
• Pan Hongxuan told Pan Wenbai to recover Zimo’s body and search the scene the next morning, and privately said Zhao Kui knew too much.
• Shen Jingchuan returned to his residence with Lin Shan and Lin Yue, then examined the bags he had taken from his enemies after dinner.
• Shen Jingchuan found a saber manual, silver notes, and jade bottles containing unfamiliar pills, then opened a velvet pouch and was shocked by what was inside.

Shen Jingchuan used Spirit Stones to awaken Xian'er, who discovered he had reached the First Layer of Qi Refinement despite possessing a Five Spirit Root. Xian'er explained the ring space’s abilities, but when Shen Jingchuan sent in his remaining Spirit Stones, it unexpectedly consumed ten of them.

• Shen Jingchuan sent ten Spirit Stones into the ring space, and their Spiritual Qi was absorbed without the ring emitting light.
• Xian'er awakened, and Shen Jingchuan greeted her and began calling her Sister Xian'er.
• Xian'er realized Shen Jingchuan had reached the First Layer of Qi Refinement and identified his Spirit Root as a sturdy but poor Five Spirit Root.
• Xian'er explained how the ring space could nurture ordinary objects and upgrade cultivation treasures by consuming Spirit Stones.
• Shen Jingchuan sent his remaining eleven Spirit Stones into the space, where ten were drained and only one remained, leaving him shocked.

Xian'er absorbed ten Spirit Stones to restore her soul and taught Shen Jingchuan the Five Phases Spirit Guiding Instruction, a cultivation method tailored to Five Spirit Root cultivators. After identifying his pills, she advised him to use the ring space to upgrade them, leaving Shen Jingchuan to begin cultivating.

• Xian'er explained that the Spirit Stones would help restore her soul and promised Shen Jingchuan a proper cultivation method in return for more stones.
• Xian'er imprinted the Five Phases Spirit Guiding Instruction into Shen Jingchuan's sea of consciousness and explained how to call her when she was sleeping.
• Shen Jingchuan sent two bottles of pills into the ring space, and Xian'er identified five Qi Nourishing Pills and three Qi Gathering Pills.
• Xian'er advised Shen Jingchuan to use the last Low-Grade Spirit Stone to raise the pills' grades, then returned to sleep.
• Shen Jingchuan commanded the ring space to absorb the last Spirit Stone and upgrade both kinds of pills.

Shen Jingchuan returned to the modern world and bought weapons, winter supplies, tools, and protective gear for the displaced people. He arranged for the bulk orders to be delivered that afternoon, leaving the preparations for their equipment underway.

• Shen Jingchuan tried the Five Phases Spirit Guiding Instruction in the modern world but found too little Spiritual Qi to cultivate, then slept.
• Shen Jingchuan ordered five hundred six-meter 65 manganese steel pipes cut into a thousand three-meter spear shafts, along with cord and electrical tape for grips.
• Shen Jingchuan ordered winter clothing, bedding, tools, towels, and sulfur soap for a thousand displaced people, arranging delivery and inspection before final payment.
• Shen Jingchuan ordered eight hundred basic stab-proof vests and two hundred versions with steel plates, all sized to fit over padded coats.
• Shen Jingchuan decided the construction hard hats would be sufficient and did not order additional helmets.

Shen Jingchuan prepared supplies for the refugees, including materials for making crossbows, then returned to the other world and expanded his residence by buying the vacant courtyard next door. The next morning, he rode Big Black alone to Wild Goose Tomb.

• Shen Jingchuan sketched a crossbow design and ordered spring steel strips, nylon cord, and other supplies for making weapons.
• Shen Jingchuan arranged for merchants to deliver the supplies to his warehouse, collected them into his space, and returned to the other world.
• Liu Zhong reported that Shen Jingchuan had bought the abandoned courtyard to the west, while the owner of the eastern ancestral home refused to sell.
• Shen Jingchuan inspected the western courtyard and ordered Liu Zhong to open a moon gate between it and his residence, keeping its main gate locked.
• Shen Jingchuan left the city alone on Big Black and reached Wild Goose Tomb in less than half a shichen.

Shen Jingchuan brought supplies to the refugee camp and organized the refugees’ hygiene, clothing, and construction work. After three days of transporting materials and teaching them to build two-story houses, he left them with a hearty feast.

• Shen Jingchuan left a pile of supplies in a hollow, burned the corpse and clothes of Huang, and rode to the refugee camp.
• Hu Tieniu led more than three hundred refugees to carry the supplies back to the inn construction site.
• Shen Jingchuan stopped work for the day and gave everyone soap, towels, warm clothes, and gloves, then showed them how to bathe and dress.
• Over the next three days, Shen Jingchuan brought construction materials from the modern world and taught the refugees to build foundations, brick walls, and precast concrete floors.
• Shen Jingchuan brought rice, salt, and two pigs to the camp, and the refugees shared a feast of rice and stewed pork.

Shen Jingchuan equipped 56 refugee men with handmade spears, stab-resistant vests, and helmets, then began training them to defend their homes. The chapter left them practicing formations and spear techniques under his command.

• After seeing the refugees enjoy his seasoned meat, Shen Jingchuan asked Hu Tieniu to select the strongest men to help build houses and form a group of fighters.
• Shen Jingchuan showed the 56 men how to make spears from steel pipes, tape, and beef-sinew cord, then sent them to sharpen the points.
• Shen Jingchuan demonstrated that the steel-plated vests and fiberglass helmets could withstand spear thrusts, while warning the men that unprotected areas remained vulnerable.
• Shen Jingchuan told the men to learn to fight so they could protect their homes and supplies, then taught them to stand in formation and march in step.
• After two days of formation practice, Shen Jingchuan had the men continue drilling and began teaching them basic spear thrusts and strikes.

Shen Jingchuan developed the mountain stronghold into Azure Cloud Stronghold, gathering refugees, building defenses, and equipping its people while his carriage business flourished. He and Lin Qingyao completed the betrothal rites and set their wedding for the sixteenth day of the second month of the following year.

• Shen Jingchuan decided to make the mountain stronghold his fallback base and arranged for Hu Tieniu's men to carry building materials up from a secluded hollow.
• Shen Jingchuan developed the stronghold over the following months, opened the camp to refugees, and saw more than five thousand people gather there.
• Shen Jingchuan named the settlement Azure Cloud Stronghold, trained eight hundred men as heavy infantry, completed its walls and houses, and began producing crossbows.
• Shen Jingchuan's inn opened and the Lin Household's workshop sold popular four-wheeled carriages, while Shen Jingchuan reserved his titanium-alloy carriages for other uses.
• Shen Jingchuan delivered lavish betrothal gifts to Lin Qingyao, and their wedding was set for the sixteenth day of the second month of the following year.

As his wedding to Lin Qingyao approached, Shen Jingchuan struggled with guilt over Meng Ke while accepting his responsibilities to Bai Ruoli and Lin Qingyao. After marrying Lin Qingyao and settling the household, he went to his newly prepared residence to use it as a storage depot for goods from the modern world.

• Shen Jingchuan reflected on how his ties to Bai Ruoli and Lin Qingyao had formed and felt guilty that Meng Ke, his first love, had gained two sisters.
• On their wedding night, Shen Jingchuan and Lin Qingyao grew close, and they spent the night together.
• The next morning, Bai Ruoli served tea to Lin Qingyao and offered her the household accounts and keys, but Lin Qingyao let Bai Ruoli continue managing them.
• Shen Jingchuan explained that he had failed to give Bai Ruoli proper standing, while Bai Ruoli said she was content to remain by his side and Lin Qingyao welcomed her into the household.
• After completing the wedding formalities, Shen Jingchuan told his wives he was going to cultivate and went to the nearby residence Liu Zhong had prepared as a storage depot.

Shen Jingchuan used pills and the Five Phases Spirit Guiding Instruction to reach the Second Layer of Qi Refinement and deepen his understanding of the Five Phases cycle. After learning the Brilliance Group had collapsed, he gave Meng Ke three ginseng roots to pass on as thanks and returned to the other world with a ring full of supplies.

• Shen Jingchuan consumed five mid-grade Qi Nourishing Pills and a Qi Gathering Pill, breaking through to the Second Layer of Qi Refinement.
• Shen Jingchuan stabilized his new realm and realized the Five Phases Spirit Guiding Instruction made the five streams of Spiritual Qi strengthen one another.
• Shen Jingchuan met Meng Ke for dinner, where she told him the Brilliance Group and the Huang family had been taken down, likely through Elder Yang's influence.
• Shen Jingchuan gave Meng Ke three wild mountain ginseng roots to pass to Elder Wen as repayment for his help.
• Shen Jingchuan packed prepared supplies into his ring and returned to the West Mountain Separate Garden and the other world.

Shen Jingchuan received a letter from his senior sister Yan Shuyao, who was arriving in Yuxi Prefecture, and set out to meet her while checking on Wild Goose Tomb. He reached the inn and waited on its balcony overlooking the road.

• Shen Jingchuan visited Bai Ruoli during the night, and the two spent the night together.
• Lin Qingyao gave Shen Jingchuan a letter from Yan Shuyao, who said she would arrive in Yuxi Prefecture that day.
• Lin Qingyao teased Shen Jingchuan about Yan Shuyao but urged him to prepare to welcome their guest.
• Shen Jingchuan rode Big Black toward Wild Goose Tomb, passed workers repairing the road, and arranged for supplies to be collected.
• Shen Jingchuan reached the inn beside Wild Goose Tomb and watched the official road from the second-floor balcony.

Yan Shuyao arrived in Yuxi Prefecture and told Shen Jingchuan how the Third Prince had retaliated against Great Confucian Yan over the four-wheeled carriage, leading to Yan Wenbin’s arrest and Great Confucian Yan’s illness. She brought Shen Jingchuan a book about mountain travels and, noticing his cultivation, asked whether he had encountered a fortuitous opportunity.

• Yan Shuyao arrived to congratulate Shen Jingchuan on his wedding and explained that Great Confucian Yan had been unable to travel because he was ill.
• Yan Shuyao recounted how the Third Prince had arranged for Yan Wenbin to be framed for theft after Great Confucian Yan refused to give him Shen Jingchuan’s carriage.
• Great Confucian Yan surrendered the carriage to secure Yan Wenbin’s release, then fell ill from anger and distress.
• Yan Shuyao gave Shen Jingchuan Miscellaneous Records of Mountain Travels, which Great Confucian Yan thought might help him find Spirit Stones.
• After sending her maid to guard the door, Yan Shuyao asked Shen Jingchuan how he had reached the Qi Refining Second Layer in only a few months.

Shen Jingchuan learned the Qi Gazing Technique from Yan Shuyao and discovered she was a Qi Refining Third Layer cultivator. He agreed to supply the third princess with watches in exchange for Spirit Stones, and the chapter ended with him arranging an initial batch of one hundred watches.

• Yan Shuyao gave Shen Jingchuan a booklet of minor Law Techniques and taught him how to use the Qi Gazing Technique.
• Yan Shuyao explained her cultivation history and how the third princess had helped her with Spirit Stones.
• Yan Shuyao told Shen Jingchuan that the third princess wanted to buy watches from him for one Low-Grade Spirit Stone each.
• Shen Jingchuan accepted the third princess's thirty Low-Grade Spirit Stones as an advance deposit and agreed to provide watches in batches.
• Shen Jingchuan offered to prepare a hundred watches first, then opened the door and asked the attendant to bring up the food.

Shen Jingchuan welcomed his senior sister Yan Shuyao to Yuxi Prefecture, where she named his inn the Inquiring Goose Pavilion and joined his household for dinner. Yan Shuyao praised the food and settled in with Lin Qingyao and Bai Ruoli, while the chapter left Shen Jingchuan's response to Bai Ruoli's invitation to stay unfinished.

• Yan Shuyao enjoyed Shen Jingchuan's modern-seasoned dishes and named his inn the Inquiring Goose Pavilion after seeing the nearby Wild Goose Tomb.
• Yan Shuyao read the carved lyrics at the tomb and grew tearful, while Shen Jingchuan comforted her.
• Hu Tieniu arrived, and Shen Jingchuan instructed him to arrange the pavilion signboard before escorting Yan Shuyao and her party to Yuxi Prefecture.
• Shen Jingchuan persuaded Yan Shuyao to stay at his residence, where he introduced her to Lin Qingyao and Bai Ruoli.
• Yan Shuyao praised the household's meal, and Bai Ruoli suggested that she stay a few more days to enjoy the cooking.

After discussing the strengths of his Five Phases Spirit Root with Xian'er, Shen Jingchuan learned that the right cultivation method and resources could overcome its slow early progress. Xian'er passed several five-element combat techniques and a better way to assess cultivation into his mind, then fell silent to recover.

• After settling Yan Shuyao in the east wing, Lin Qingyao returned to Shen Jingchuan, and the newlyweds spent the night together before he went to cultivate.
• Shen Jingchuan placed thirty low-grade Spirit Stones in his personal space, where Xian'er absorbed twenty to restore her strength.
• Xian'er explained that the Five Phases Spirit Root offered deep Spiritual Qi, versatile techniques, and a more complete understanding of the Heavenly Dao, but needed suitable methods and abundant resources.
• Shen Jingchuan asked about the cultivator who had stalled at the Qi Refining Third Layer, and Xian'er attributed his lack of progress to scarce Spiritual Qi, poor methods, and insufficient resources rather than his Spirit Root.
• Xian'er dismissed the Qi Gazing Technique Shen Jingchuan had learned and passed several five-element techniques and a proper cultivation-assessment method into his consciousness.
• After Shen Jingchuan endured the painful information transfer, Xian'er said she needed to rest and went silent.

Shen Jingchuan quickly mastered three inherited Law Techniques and several basic spells, then tested his new cultivation-reading ability on Yan Shuyao. After handling business and spending the day with Meng Ke in the modern world, he returned to the west courtyard and went to Lin Qingyao’s room.

• Shen Jingchuan cultivated the Heavenly Eye Peering into Truth Instruction and learned it could reveal cultivation and, at greater depths, see through concealment and illusions.
• Shen Jingchuan mastered the Geng Metal Arrow and Shield Instruction and the Azure Wood Rejuvenation Instruction, then learned the basic Cleaning, Light Body, Water Control, and Fire Guiding Techniques.
• Shen Jingchuan used his new spirit eye to identify Yan Shuyao as being at the third level of Qi Refinement, and Lin Qingyao teased him after he called Yan Shuyao beautiful.
• Shen Jingchuan returned to the modern world, ordered watches and mirrors, collected carriage parts and four titanium-alloy carriages, and spent the day shopping and watching a movie with Meng Ke.
• Shen Jingchuan returned to the west courtyard with his goods and went to Lin Qingyao’s room for the night.

Shen Jingchuan prepared Yan Shuyao’s watches and arranged for her journey to the Capital, including a plan to sell four carriages through the Zhou Household. He also agreed with Lin Weiyuan to send ordinary carriages along to test the Capital’s market.

• Shen Jingchuan showed Yan Shuyao the hundred watches and learned she planned to leave for the Capital the next morning to see her ailing father and deliver the watches to the Third Princess.
• Yan Shuyao refused to accept another conspicuous carriage, so Shen Jingchuan proposed sending four carriages to the Zhou Household for sale in the Capital and arranging a separate carriage for her later.
• Yan Shuyao explained that the Third Princess had been away when her elder brother was arrested, leaving her family to resolve the trouble themselves.
• Shen Jingchuan asked Lin Weiyuan to have Lin Shan and ten escorts accompany Yan Shuyao, the watches, and four carriages to Chang'an for the Zhou Household.
• Lin Weiyuan suggested also taking ordinary carriages to the Capital to test the market, and Shen Jingchuan approved the plan.