Chapter Summaries

Duàn Yì agreed to accompany Yuwen Lan Jun and the other women on a hunt at the Eastern Suburb Hunting Ground. The group arrived at the hunting ground, where they met Tang Nineteen and Sun Wei, two formidable guards with different strengths.

• Yuwen Lan Jun explained the history of the Eastern Suburb Hunting Ground and persuaded Duàn Yì to join the hunt.
• Yuwen Lan Jun gathered thirty elite riders, and the group armed themselves and rode from the horse ranch toward the hunting ground.
• Duàn Yì reflected on the overwhelming force of a cavalry charge as they traveled.
• At the hunting ground entrance, Duàn Yì met Tang Nineteen, Tang Wan'er's cold and dangerous Death Warrior.
• Duàn Yì also met Sun Wei, a skilled Guiyuan Gang fighter who had scouted the hunting ground and brought two hunting dogs.

Duàn Yì joined Yuwen Lan Jun’s party at the Eastern Suburb Hunting Ground and learned how the Yuwen Family’s influence kept others wary of her. While practicing archery, he missed a rabbit, then killed another with a thrown arrow after Tang Wan'er teased him about her superior haul.

• Duàn Yì realized Yuwen Xiu’s power had made the young masters of You Prefecture avoid Yuwen Lan Jun and had likely protected Dan Pingzong from danger.
• The hunting ground steward welcomed Yuwen Lan Jun’s party and gave them two northern mastiffs, and the group entered the Eastern Suburb Hunting Ground.
• Duàn Yì aimed at a wild rabbit but failed to hit it because it sensed his killing intent and fled.
• Tang Wan'er showed Duàn Yì the pheasant and two rabbits she had shot, then offered to teach him archery.
• Duàn Yì ignored Tang Wan'er, flicked an arrow from his hand, and killed a gray rabbit seventy paces away.

Duàn Yì discovered signs of a possible ambush at the hunting ground and hurried after Yuwen Lan Jun and Bai Wei. As they rode together, Yuwen Lan Jun explained why she rejected her arranged engagement and distrusted the flattering claims about her unseen fiancé.

• Tang Wan'er grew angry when Duàn Yì rejected her flirtation and rode away with Tang Nineteen following her.
• Duàn Yì found fresh marks in the grass beside his rabbit, suspected someone had waited there in ambush, and worried about Yuwen Lan Jun's safety.
• Duàn Yì mounted his horse and rode after Yuwen Lan Jun and Bai Wei.
• Bai Wei asked whether Yuwen Lan Jun had met or truly knew her fiancé, the Young Master of the Overlord Saber Sect.
• Yuwen Lan Jun said she disliked having her marriage controlled by others and doubted the praise of a man she had never met.

Yuwen Lan Jun explained her resentment toward her father and marriage contract, then urged Bai Wei to leave behind her reputation and seek a different life. Their conversation was cut short when a venomous snake lunged at Yuwen Lan Jun.

• Yuwen Lan Jun recalled how Yuwen Xiu arranged her marriage to Qiu Zhongguang's son for the sake of his own friendship and pride.
• Yuwen Lan Jun told Bai Wei that Duàn Yì was a good man and encouraged her to treat him sincerely if she had feelings for him.
• Yuwen Lan Jun explained that she could not love anyone before her marriage contract was dissolved and said she believed Bai Wei could change her life, unlike Tang Wan'er.
• Bai Wei denied being a good woman and said people in the Guiyuan Gang cursed her for her behavior.
• Yuwen Lan Jun pointed out that Bai Wei had only pretended to compete for Duàn Yì and urged her to cut ties with the men in her life.
• A venomous black snake sprang from a nearby tree and lunged at Yuwen Lan Jun's neck.

Yuwen Lan Jun killed an Iron Crown Snake that had been set on her, then assassins ambushed her party in the Eastern Suburb Hunting Ground. Sun Wei survived the attack and reached Bai Wei, but the danger remained as he asked what they should do.

• Yuwen Lan Jun used a Bone-Piercing Nail to kill the Iron Crown Snake before it could bite her or Bai Wei.
• Yuwen Lan Jun suspected someone close to her had leaked her hunting plans and arranged the attack.
• Assassins ambushed the party with rope nooses and crossbows, killing all ten elite soldiers.
• Sun Wei dodged the nooses and struck hidden attackers in the trees with rice grains, bringing several down.
• Sun Wei reached Bai Wei, who assured him she was unharmed and asked what they should do.

Yuwen Lan Jun, Bai Wei, and Sun Wei were surrounded by masked killers in the forest, and Sun Wei fought to protect them as a powerful swordsman wounded him. As Sun Wei faced the swordsman, a hidden attacker targeted Yuwen Lan Jun with a deadly Finger Force.

• Yuwen Lan Jun's signal arrow was knocked down by a thrown branch, and nearly thirty masked killers surrounded her, Bai Wei, and Sun Wei.
• The killers attacked after Yuwen Lan Jun demanded to know who had sent them, and Sun Wei used a powerful roar and palm techniques to immobilize the attackers in front of him.
• A concealed swordsman struck Sun Wei with a single blow, driving him into a tree and leaving him wounded.
• Yuwen Lan Jun used her footwork and powerful punches to hold off the ordinary killers, though her lack of combat experience left openings.
• A hidden attacker fired a sword-like Finger Force from the grass toward Yuwen Lan Jun's heart.

Duàn Yì arrived in time to save Yuwen Lan Jun from a hidden expert’s fatal Finger Force and summoned others with a long howl. He then faced the concealed attacker, parrying a volley of invisible strikes while realizing the opponent’s internal cultivation greatly surpassed his own.

• Duàn Yì threw the Songyang Iron Sword through an assassin, whose body shielded Yuwen Lan Jun from a hidden expert’s Finger Force.
• Duàn Yì rushed into the hunting ground and howled to summon reinforcements, easing Yuwen Lan Jun’s and Sun Wei’s fears.
• Duàn Yì retrieved his sword, ordered Yuwen Lan Jun to retreat, and confronted the hidden attacker as the assassins held their positions.
• The hidden expert launched several invisible Finger Forces that closed off Duàn Yì’s escape routes.
• Duàn Yì struck six times with Songshan Swordplay and broke every Finger Force, but the impact numbed his sword hand.

Duàn Yì fought off the assassins and tried to protect Yuwen Lan Jun from a powerful masked man. After Yuwen Lan Jun spent her true qi to hinder the attacker, the masked man turned his full attention to Duàn Yì.

• A masked man appeared and sent the assassins to attack Duàn Yì, who killed them all with his Songyang Iron Sword.
• The masked man lunged for Yuwen Lan Jun with a devastating finger technique as Duàn Yì charged to stop him.
• Duàn Yì urged Yuwen Lan Jun to retreat and strike the masked man with her true qi, and she released a powerful blast before collapsing from exhaustion.
• The masked man cut through Yuwen Lan Jun's condensed true qi, landed with the Thousand-Jin Drop technique, and pounced on Duàn Yì, deciding he had to die before he could kill Yuwen Lan Jun.

Duàn Yì survived a fierce clash with the masked assassin, whose identity was revealed as Black Impermanence of the Ten Directions Hall. The revelation left Duàn Yì caught between the Ten Directions Hall and the powerful Yuwen Family.

• Duàn Yì reached a new level of sword mastery and fought Black Impermanence with his full strength.
• Black Impermanence's finger techniques overwhelmed Duàn Yì, but Duàn Yì endured the exchange and spat blood onto Yuwen Lan Jun.
• Duàn Yì's Ice Profound Energy helped him withstand his injuries, while Black Impermanence landed unharmed except for reddened fingertips.
• The expert confronting Sun Wei and Sun Wei watched the duel, and Sun Wei recognized the masked man as Black Impermanence of the Ten Halls of Yama.
• Duàn Yì recalled his earlier conflict with the Ten Directions Hall and questioned why it had targeted Yuwen Lan Jun.

Black Impermanence and the other assassins withdrew after Duàn Yì exposed his identity, ending the attack on Yuwen Lan Jun. As Tang Wan'er criticized Duàn Yì for not pursuing the attackers, Yuwen Lan Jun thanked him and resolved to strengthen herself, while Duàn Yì expected the Yuwen Family to repay him with Ice Profound Energy.

• Black Impermanence called off the remaining assassins when he heard people approaching, and they escaped before Tang Wan'er and Tang Nineteen arrived with elite soldiers.
• Bai Wei told Tang Wan'er what had happened, and Tang Wan'er mocked Duàn Yì for letting Black Impermanence escape.
• Duàn Yì reflected that Black Impermanence had injured him while holding back, and that he had protected Yuwen Lan Jun partly to gain the Yuwen Family's help and because of Yuwen Mu.
• Yuwen Lan Jun thanked Duàn Yì for saving her, and he advised her to improve her martial arts so she could protect herself.
• Yuwen Lan Jun resolved to become stronger, while Duàn Yì hoped the incident would earn him the Yuwen Family's gratitude and Ice Profound Energy.

After Duàn Yì saved Yuwen Lan Jun from an assassination, they returned to the horse farm, where the deputy detained the other hunting party members while the Yuwen Family investigated. Duàn Yì reviewed who could have leaked Yuwen Lan Jun’s whereabouts but had no clear evidence, leaving the matter for the Yuwen Family to handle.

• Yuwen Lan Jun asked Duàn Yì for leads on her assassination, and he said he had none beyond noticing disturbed grass and identifying Black Impermanence as the killer.
• Yuwen Lan Jun worried that someone close to her had leaked her whereabouts and feared the attack might target the Yuwen Family as well.
• Duàn Yì and Yuwen Lan Jun returned with the others to the horse farm, where the deputy sent a report to the Yuwen Family and detained the returning party members under the guise of hospitality.
• The deputy allowed Duàn Yì to move freely because he had saved Yuwen Lan Jun, and Duàn Yì ate, tended his sword, and considered who could have revealed the hunting plans.
• Duàn Yì concluded that Tang Wan'er, Bai Wei, and their companions were the likeliest sources of the leak, but he saw no way to investigate them without evidence.

After reflecting on his clash with Black Impermanence, Duàn Yì realized the battle had helped him reach Unity of Man and Sword. He discovered that Black Impermanence’s finger force had secretly fractured the Songyang Iron Sword, and vowed to settle the debt.

• Duàn Yì replayed his fight with Black Impermanence and recognized how much he had learned from facing the stronger opponent.
• Duàn Yì recalled entering a mysterious state during the battle, with his spirit merging with the Songyang Iron Sword.
• Duàn Yì practiced the state again and realized he had achieved Unity of Man and Sword.
• Duàn Yì sensed at least seven internal fractures in the Songyang Iron Sword and deduced that Black Impermanence’s Sky-Piercing Divine Finger had caused them.
• Duàn Yì mourned the damage to Guō Qíng’s treasured gift, felt grateful that the sword had protected him, and vowed to settle accounts with Black Impermanence.

Duàn Yì recovered from his injuries while Yuwen Mu returned to the horse ranch and questioned him about Yuwen Lan Jun’s attempted assassination. Yuwen Mu said the Six Gates would investigate, then turned to discuss Duàn Yì’s own affairs.

• Duàn Yì used Ice Profound Energy to heal his injuries and expected to recover fully within three days.
• Yuwen Mu returned to the horse ranch with ten experts from the Lineage and summoned Duàn Yì to the outer hall.
• Yuwen Mu thanked Duàn Yì for saving Yuwen Lan Jun and asked whether people around her or the Tang Sect and Guiyuan Gang were involved.
• Duàn Yì said the attack might have targeted Yuwen Lan Jun personally or been connected to the battle between Yan Chongtian and Aorgel, rather than a plot against the Yuwen Family.
• Yuwen Mu explained that the attack could have been intended to distract his elder brother from the politically important battle, and said the Six Gates would investigate.
• Yuwen Mu told Duàn Yì that he now wanted to discuss Duàn Yì’s own affairs.

Duàn Yì received the Ice Profound Energy manual as a reward for saving Lan Jun, then followed Yuwen Mu to his personal treasure vault to choose one item. After hearing about the pills on display, Duàn Yì chose the Limitless Immortal Pill, which could increase his cultivation.

• Yuwen Mu offered Duàn Yì the Ice Profound Energy manual as thanks for saving Lan Jun, without requiring him to marry into the Yuwen Family.
• Duàn Yì accepted the manual and thanked Yuwen Mu for entrusting him with the Lineage's powerful divine art.
• Yuwen Mu took Duàn Yì to his personal treasure vault to fulfill his promise of letting him choose one treasure.
• Duàn Yì inspected the vault's armor, weapons, manuals, and pills while considering which item would best strengthen him.
• Yuwen Mu explained the effects of the Qi Burst Pill, the Spring Return Pill, and the cultivation-enhancing Limitless Immortal Pill.
• Duàn Yì immediately chose the Limitless Immortal Pill.

Yuwen Mu explained the history and dangers of the Limitless Immortal Pill, which had once caused a succession of disasters before Great Xia learned to neutralize its poison when both pill types were available. Duàn Yì considered choosing the Yuwen Family’s unusable Yang Core Pill, but hesitated because he could not be sure that his knowledge of a novel applied to this world.

• Yuwen Mu recounted how the Xianbei Great Khan’s son died after taking a pair of Limitless Immortal Pills, sparking a rebellion that contributed to the royal court’s decline.
• Yuwen Mu explained that the Yuwen Family had obtained three pills and presented one Yang Core Pill and one Yin Core Pill to Great Xia, whose pill refiners developed a way to neutralize their poison.
• Yuwen Mu said the bottle held a genuine Yang Core Pill, but the Yuwen Family had been unable to detoxify it without its Yin Core counterpart.
• Duàn Yì recognized the pill from The Legendary Heroes of Shenzhou, where it had empowered figures such as Yan Kuangtu, Li Chenzhou, and Xiao Qiushui.
• Duàn Yì weighed whether to choose the pill, but worried that the version in this world might differ and that he might not find grass worms to cure its heat poison.

Duàn Yì weighed the benefits of the Yang Core Pill against a powerful qinggong manual before Yuwen Mu explained how the pill’s heat poison could be neutralized. He learned that the Yuwen Family possessed a second method requiring three rare items, but had found only one so far.

• Duàn Yì narrowed his choices in Yuwen Mu’s treasure vault to the Limitless Immortal Pill and the Phoenix Dance of the Nine Heavens manual.
• Yuwen Mu described the Yang World and Yin World Divine Scriptures, which could detoxify matching core pills and grant their cultivators great power.
• Duàn Yì worried that switching to the Yang World Divine Scripture would conflict with his existing Ice Profound Energy and require abandoning his hard-earned cultivation.
• Yuwen Mu revealed that grinding the Three Great Hatreds and taking them with the Yang Core Pill could remove its heat poison and release its full potency.
• Yuwen Mu named the Three Great Hatreds as the Dragon's Tooth of the Soaring Dragon, the Ear of the Desolate Domain, and the Fire of the Snow Mountain, and said his clan had obtained only the Fire of the Snow Mountain.

Duan Yi chose the Limitless Immortal Pill despite Yuwen Mu's warning that curing its heat poison would be difficult, and the two formed a genuine friendship. After leaving Yuwen Mu's secret treasure vault, Duan Yi promised to keep it secret, and Yuwen Mu began to raise another request.

• Yuwen Mu explained that Fire of the Snow Mountain was a Red Snow Lotus and that his family had never obtained the other two Great Hatreds.
• Duan Yi considered several ways to cure the pill's heat poison, including the Grass Worm and testing remedies with the Tower of Hidden Martial Arts, but chose the Limitless Immortal Pill for its potential to greatly increase his strength.
• Yuwen Mu offered to help Duan Yi acquire Fire of the Snow Mountain if he found Dragon's Tooth of the Soaring Dragon and Ear of the Desolate Domain.
• Duan Yi thanked Yuwen Mu and promised to help him in return, and the two recognized their bond as a friendship beyond their Lineages.
• Duan Yi and Yuwen Mu left the secret chamber after Duan Yi promised to keep the treasure vault's existence secret.
• Before Duan Yi departed, Yuwen Mu said he had one more matter to ask him to approve.

Duan Yi asked to meet Tang Wan'er and Tang Nineteen, hoping the Tang Sect could help him learn about the Three Great Hatreds and Grass Worm. After Tang Nineteen proved to know nothing, Duan Yi waited for Tang Wan'er and considered how to strengthen himself and address the Yang Core Pill's fiery poison.

• Duan Yi explained his request to Yuwen Mu, who arranged for him to visit Tang Wan'er.
• Duan Yi found Tang Wan'er occupied with an opera troupe performer and went to question Tang Nineteen instead.
• Tang Nineteen told Duan Yi that he knew nothing about the Three Great Hatreds or Grass Worm because he had been trained only to kill.
• Duan Yi waited in the residence and reflected on events, his allies, and his plans to master the Ice Profound Energy and resolve the Yang Core Pill's poison.
• Duan Yi decided Grass Worm was a more practical lead than the Three Great Hatreds and hoped Tang Wan'er could help him find it.

Duàn Yì visited Tang Wan'er to ask about the Dragon's Tooth of the Soaring Dragon, the Ear of the Desolate Domain, and the Fire of the Snow Mountain. Tang Wan'er explained that these were among the Seven Great Sorrows, rare medicinal ingredients linked to a cure for the Lai Family's Premature Aging Syndrome.

• Tang Wan'er mocked Duàn Yì for visiting her, and he flattered her while explaining that he had kept his distance because he feared getting entangled with the Tang Sect.
• Tang Wan'er asked whether Yuwen Lan Jun or Yuwen Mu had sent Duàn Yì to investigate, but he said his visit had nothing to do with the Yuwen Family or the assassination.
• Duàn Yì asked Tang Wan'er about three rare ingredients, and she recognized them as part of the Seven Great Sorrows.
• Tang Wan'er listed all Seven Great Sorrows and explained how the world's miracle physicians and the Poison King had gathered them to cure the Lai Family's Premature Aging Syndrome.
• Tang Wan'er described rumors that the Seven Great Sorrows could restore severed limbs, grant immortality, and greatly increase internal power, while Duàn Yì doubted those claims.

Tang Wan'er explained the three rare treasures Duàn Yì sought and offered clues about Dragon's Tooth of the Soaring Dragon after he called her Sister Tang. Their conversation was interrupted by her opera performer lover, whom she kicked aside and ordered out, leaving Duàn Yì to realize she had treated the man as a toy.

• Tang Wan'er described the effects and rarity of Dragon's Tooth of the Soaring Dragon, the Ear of the Desolate Domain, and the Fire of the Snow Mountain, then offered to share clues if Duàn Yì called her Sister Tang three times.
• Duàn Yì eagerly called Tang Wan'er Sister Tang three times, surprising her and making her laugh at the contrast with the idealized image she had held of him.
• Tang Wan'er accepted Duàn Yì's shamelessness and began to offer him clues about Dragon's Tooth of the Soaring Dragon.
• A handsome opera performer entered, mistook Duàn Yì for Tang Wan'er's lover, and cozied up to her while asking if Duàn Yì was better than him.
• Tang Wan'er kicked the performer away, injuring his elbow, and ordered him out, declaring that she had only kept him because he pleased her.
• Duàn Yì concluded that Tang Wan'er had never cared for the performer and had merely treated him as a plaything.