Chapter Summaries

Duàn Yì, Zhao Family's Three Heroes, and One-Eyed Dragon brought the stolen treasure to a secluded forest clearing to divide it, but greed turned their fragile alliance hostile. One-Eyed Dragon demanded a larger share, and the second Zhao brother challenged his claims of loyalty to his men.

• Duàn Yì and the others transported the treasure chests to a forest east of Xu Residence and carried them into a secluded clearing.
• Zhao Family's eldest brother claimed the Zhao brothers deserved most of the spoils because they had held off Xu family experts.
• One-Eyed Dragon demanded half of Xu Residence's treasure in addition to his bounty, citing the thirty men he had lost during the operation.
• One-Eyed Dragon's underlings grew angry at Zhao Family's Three Heroes, while others watched the treasure and waited.
• Zhao Family's second brother accused One-Eyed Dragon of exploiting his subordinates and questioned whether he would truly support their families.

Duàn Yì refused to take sides as One-Eyed Dragon and the Zhao Family's Three Heroes argued over the treasure, but both groups suddenly joined forces against him. Seriously injured, Duàn Yì faced attacks from all four men at once.

• One-Eyed Dragon and the Zhao Family's Three Heroes disputed how to divide the treasure, each accusing the other of greed.
• One-Eyed Dragon asked Duàn Yì to settle the dispute, but Duàn Yì said he would take only his own share and suggested they fight to decide who deserved more.
• The Zhao family's eldest brother challenged One-Eyed Dragon, who then proposed that Duàn Yì join him against the three brothers.
• Duàn Yì stepped back and declined to join either side, prompting One-Eyed Dragon to attack him with his tachi.
• The Zhao Family's Three Heroes also attacked Duàn Yì, trapping him between their combined strikes while he was seriously injured.

Duàn Yì escaped the combined attack of One-Eyed Dragon and the Zhao brothers, then learned they had allied to kill him and divide the treasure. He declared that none of them would share the silver with him, just as hidden figures began stirring in the surrounding forest.

• Duàn Yì spotted a flaw in the four attackers’ coordination and broke through their encirclement with the Frost-Stepping Ice-Breaking Palm, freezing the Zhao brothers’ second brother.
• One-Eyed Dragon recalled conspiring with the Zhao brothers to kill Duàn Yì, and regretted failing to strike earlier when Duàn Yì was weakened.
• The Zhao brothers’ eldest brother helped his second brother recover from the cold, while the second brother realized how formidable Duàn Yì was.
• Duàn Yì asked why the others had turned on him, and One-Eyed Dragon said they would kill him and divide the silver between their two parties.
• Duàn Yì laughed and said none of them deserved a share; rustling sounds from the surrounding forest revealed that others were concealed nearby.

Duàn Yì’s supposed partners discovered that he had brought a hidden force to seize the treasure, and the encircled bandits realized they had been betrayed. Blood Saber Ding Ran appeared as one of the force’s leaders, leaving the Zhao Family’s Three Heroes planning a desperate escape.

• One-Eyed Dragon and the Zhao Family’s Three Heroes realized they knew nothing about Duàn Yì’s background or the forces behind him.
• Twenty martial artists in grass-green fighting garb surrounded One-Eyed Dragon, the Zhao Family’s Three Heroes, and their men in the forest clearing.
• Blood Saber Ding Ran entered with a woman, and the Zhao Family’s Three Heroes recognized the feared martial artist.
• The Zhao Family’s Three Heroes secretly decided to avoid Ding Ran and attempt to escape through another direction.

Duàn Yì met Ding Ling and Ding Ran as they approached the treasure raid, and Ding Ling insulted his disguised appearance. The chapter revealed that Duàn Yì had recruited them as hidden allies and intended to use Zhao Family's Three Heroes and One-Eyed Dragon as decoys and scapegoats.

• Zhao Family's Three Heroes decided they could seize Ding Ling as a hostage if the confrontation turned against them.
• Ding Ling told Duàn Yì to stop smiling and mocked his ugly disguise.
• Duàn Yì recalled how Ding Ling had nearly struck him down when he first appeared in her bedchamber at the Xu Residence.
• Duàn Yì had revealed his identity and raid plan to Ding Ling, asking her and Ding Ran to wait in ambush as the hidden allies.
• Duàn Yì had intended to use Zhao Family's Three Heroes and One-Eyed Dragon to draw the Xu family's attention, seize the wealth, and take the blame.

Duàn Yì revealed his true appearance and identity to One-Eyed Dragon and Zhao Family's Three Heroes, explaining how he had used their greed to weaken Xu Residence and his southern enemies. He left them stunned as he savored the pleasure of exposing his scheme to his defeated foes.

• One-Eyed Dragon demanded to know Duàn Yì's identity and why he had plotted against them.
• Duàn Yì shed his disguise and revealed his true appearance.
• Zhao Family's Three Heroes recognized Duàn Yì as the man targeted by Xu Residence's three-hundred-thousand-tael bounty.
• Duàn Yì admitted he had used the Zhao brothers and One-Eyed Dragon to strike at Xu Residence and said he would never have let them leave Ji County alive.
• Duàn Yì took pleasure in watching his enemies react to his confession.

One-Eyed Dragon and his men fought to escape as Ding Ling and Ding Ran’s Northern Demonic Cult forces overwhelmed them. The Zhao Family’s Three Heroes attacked Ding Ling, but she killed the eldest brother with a single finger strike, leaving the other two stunned.

• One-Eyed Dragon chose a route away from Duàn Yì and Ding Ling, but Blood Saber Ding Ran intercepted him and began a fierce saber duel.
• Ding Ling and Ding Ran’s Northern Demonic Cult fighters attacked One-Eyed Dragon’s thirty-odd subordinates, slaughtering them in a chaotic melee.
• The Zhao Family’s Three Heroes coordinated an attack on Ding Ling while the third brother prepared to delay Duàn Yì.
• Ding Ling evaded the second brother’s finger force and struck the eldest brother between the brows, slicing his head in half with Saber Qi.

Ding Ling and the Northern Demonic Cult slaughtered the Zhao Family's Three Heroes and One-Eyed Dragon's bandits while Ding Ran kept One-Eyed Dragon occupied. After praising Ding Ran's improving saber technique, Ding Ling sensed that Duàn Yì had made another major breakthrough at the Xu Residence.

• Ding Ling killed the eldest and second Zhao brothers with swift attacks, then cleaved the third in half when he charged her.
• The Northern Demonic Cult's martial artists killed all of One-Eyed Dragon's bandits without suffering injuries.
• Ding Ran continued to suppress One-Eyed Dragon, whose desperate attacks briefly gave him the upper hand.
• Ding Ling calmed her Qi, returned to Duàn Yì, and praised Ding Ran's progress in saber technique.
• Duàn Yì agreed that Ding Ran had improved, and Ding Ling remarked that Duàn Yì had also made a major breakthrough at the Xu Residence.

Ding Ran defeated One-Eyed Dragon, whose blood essence was drained by the blood saber, and Duàn Yì, Ding Ling, and Ding Ran’s group wiped out their enemies. After agreeing on how to divide and launder the recovered treasure, Duàn Yì and Ding Ling left the clearing together.

• Ding Ling praised Duàn Yì’s extraordinary advancement while keeping watch on Ding Ran’s fight with One-Eyed Dragon.
• Ding Ran outlasted One-Eyed Dragon’s attack and killed him with the blood saber, which drained his vital essence and grew more powerful.
• Duàn Yì recognized that the blood saber could strengthen itself and its wielder through killing, and the group finished off the Zhao Family’s Three Heroes and One-Eyed Dragon’s forces.
• Ding Ran hoped to challenge Duàn Yì again, but Duàn Yì instead asked Ding Ling whether her people could safely handle the treasure worth at least five hundred thousand taels.
• Ding Ran assured Duàn Yì that the Huaxiu Merchant Association could manage the money, and Ding Ling confirmed his share and the arrangements.
• Ding Ran directed his subordinates to move and record the treasure while Duàn Yì and Ding Ling left the clearing for the deep forest.

Duàn Yì discussed his conflict with Zhuang Shili with Ding Ling, who warned that Zhuang Shili had hidden protection and was difficult to kill. Ding Ling invited Duàn Yì to join the Huaxiu Merchant Association, and he asked what he would gain and what he would owe.

• Ding Ling warned Duàn Yì that he was still weaker than Zhuang Shili and asked how he planned to confront him.
• Duàn Yì revealed that Shadow Assassin Yang Kai and Poison Hand Celestial Heart had died, and said he could target Zhuang Shili while he was isolated in Hebei.
• Ding Ling told Duàn Yì that a Demonic Cult elder secretly protected Zhuang Shili and that killing him required a way to instantly kill a True Essence Realm Peak expert.
• Duàn Yì recovered his resolve and reflected that he could overcome Zhuang Shili through his own efforts rather than resent his advantages.
• Ding Ling urged Duàn Yì to join the Huaxiu Merchant Association and offered its martial arts, experts, resources, and intelligence.
• Duàn Yì said he might join but asked what benefits and responsibilities the association would require.

Ding Ling tried to recruit Duan Yi into the Northern Demonic Cult, offering him the Severing Pulse Sword Qi and a chance to study the Heavenly Cripple Divine Skill together. Duan Yi weighed her offer against his danger from the Zhuang family and appeared tempted by her plan to build power with him.

• Ding Ling offered Duan Yi a steward position in the Huaxiu Merchant Association or a senior role in another Northern Demonic Cult faction, along with the Severing Pulse Sword Qi and other rewards.
• Duan Yi was especially tempted by the chance to learn the Severing Pulse Sword Qi, while dismissing the promised wealth and potential master.
• Duan Yi asked whether joining Ding Ling would protect him from Zhuang Shili and the Zhuang family, and Ding Ling said he could hide his identity by serving beside her.
• Duan Yi suspected Ding Ling also wanted the information about the Heavenly Cripple Divine Skill that he had obtained from Wang Tiancheng.
• Ding Ling admitted her interest in the skill and proposed that they study it together, take control of the Northern Demonic Cult, and eventually unify the five regions.
• Duan Yi sighed, and the heat in his eyes showed that Ding Ling's proposal had tempted him.

Yan Chongtian defeated Aorgel in a celebrated battle that changed the balance between the borderlands and the grasslands. In Ji County, Zhuang Shili mourned Yang Kai and Poison Hand Celestial Heart, then rebuked the Mad Daoist for asking for wine instead of honoring the dead.

• Yan Chongtian defeated Aorgel after a hundred fierce exchanges, restoring his reputation and earning acclaim as a leader of the younger generation.
• Aorgel returned to the Zhaori Sect and remained there for ten years, emerging only after mastering the Everlasting Heaven Divine Skill to renew his fate with Yan Chongtian.
• Zhuang Shili stood for hours beside the bodies of Yang Kai and Poison Hand Celestial Heart, grieving their deaths and wondering whether coming north had been a mistake.
• The Mad Daoist finished his wine and asked Zhuang Shili to have someone refill his gourd.
• Zhuang Shili rebuked the Mad Daoist for seeming to value wine more than their dead companions.

Mad Daoist identified the martial arts that killed Yang Kai and Poison Hand Celestial Heart, revealing that one attacker used the Nine Yang Divine Skill. He persuaded Zhuang Shili to leave Hebei and build strength before seeking revenge, though Zhuang Shili chose to leave Elder Kang behind to investigate.

• Mad Daoist dismissed Zhuang Shili's grief and argued that death was an inevitable fate for martial artists.
• After Zhuang Shili had his wine gourd refilled, Mad Daoist identified Xuanzhen Sect's Frost-Stepping Ice-Breaking Palm in Yang Kai's injuries and the Nine Yang Divine Skill in Poison Hand Celestial Heart's wounds.
• Zhuang Shili suspected Duàn Yì had killed Yang Kai but questioned how a Nine Yang Divine Skill successor could have joined the attack for money.
• Mad Daoist confirmed the Nine Yang Divine Skill's origins from his past experience and warned that Yan Chongtian could kill Zhuang Shili despite Mad Daoist and Elder Kang's help.
• Zhuang Shili agreed to leave Hebei and gather strength, but decided to leave Elder Kang behind to search for their enemies and vowed to make them pay.

Yan Chongtian’s growing fame brought a stream of challengers, but he defeated them all and trained ever harder, convinced that greater martial arts and stronger opponents awaited him. While meditating in the Yuwen Family’s stronghold, he sensed two remarkable auras in Ji County, including one belonging to a young man cultivating the Nine Yang Divine Skill with the Blazing Plains Hundred Strikes.

• Yan Chongtian defeated the many martial artists who challenged him, strengthening his reputation as undefeated across Great Xia.
• Yan Chongtian continued his ascetic training because he believed someone might surpass him and a divine art might one day rival the Wedding Dress Divine Skill.
• More than half a month after the great battle, Yan Chongtian meditated in the Yuwen Family’s guarded heartland and sensed more than a dozen powerful auras in Ji County.
• Yan Chongtian focused on two extreme auras and hoped their owners would not disappoint him when they met.
• A young man cultivating with the Blazing Plains Hundred Strikes sensed Yan Chongtian and resolved to meet him after mastering the Nine Yang Divine Skill.

Duan Yi sensed Yan Chongtian’s formidable presence and continued caring for the old sword that had accompanied him through battle. Ding Ran delivered a Human Skin Mask from Ding Ling and told Duan Yi that his three letters had been sent, leaving Duan Yi with a new identity at hand.

• Duan Yi sensed Yan Chongtian’s aura from afar and recognized the power of his recent victory.
• Duan Yi reflected on the cracks inside his old Songyang Iron Sword and resolved not to use it in battle again.
• Ding Ran visited Duan Yi and reported that Ding Ling had sent his three letters to Guo Qing, Helan Yue'er, and Bái Xī Wén.
• Ding Ran witnessed Duan Yi retrieve the Human Skin Mask with controlled qi and realized their martial skills had grown further apart.
• Duan Yi examined the mask refined by the Demon Face Envoy and understood that wearing it would give him an entirely different identity.

Duàn Yì used a Human Skin Mask to take on a new appearance as Ding Ran warned that Zhuang Shili had left the north but left a powerful expert searching for him. Duàn Yì chose the name Nameless as he prepared to abandon his identity and past.

• Duàn Yì put on the Human Skin Mask and transformed his face and temperament while Ding Ran watched.
• Duàn Yì inferred that Zhuang Shili had returned south, and Ding Ran confirmed that he had left Ji County two days earlier.
• Duàn Yì reasoned that Zhuang Shili had no reason to remain in the north after failing to find him and hunt him down.
• Ding Ran warned Duàn Yì that a powerful Southern Demonic Cult elder and Zhuang family Attendant remained in Hebei, searching for clues about him.
• Duàn Yì agreed that he needed a new face, name, and past, and chose to call himself Nameless.

Duàn Yì confronted Ding Ling about her delay in giving him the Severing Pulse Sword Qi, which she had promised when he joined the Demon Sect. Ding Ling explained that he would need to meet Elder Jue Ming and earn his approval, leaving Duàn Yì with a path to obtain the art.

• Duàn Yì demanded that Ding Ling deliver the Severing Pulse Sword Qi she had promised him two months earlier.
• Ding Ling reminded Duàn Yì that she had already fulfilled a promise by giving him the Jade Lingzhi, and he acknowledged that she had kept her word.
• Duàn Yì reflected on the martial manuals, Qingshuang Sword, and medicinal training he had gained through the Demon Sect and Huaxiu Merchant Guild.
• Ding Ling explained that the Severing Pulse Sword Qi was a rare Demon Sect treasure currently held by Elder Jue Ming.
• Ding Ling told Duàn Yì that he would have to accompany her to meet Elder Jue Ming and earn the elder's approval to obtain the art.

Duàn Yì agreed to accompany Ding Ling to meet Jue Ming and seek the Severing Pulse Sword Qi. In Ji County, Yang Wuxia received flowers from Duàn Yì and was deeply moved by his message, though his whereabouts remained unknown to her.

• Ding Ling warned Duàn Yì that Jue Ming was a terrifying killer who possessed the Severing Pulse Sword Qi and said he would need to gain Jue Ming's approval to obtain it.
• Duàn Yì agreed to go with Ding Ling and meet Elder Jue Ming.
• Yang Wuxia continued handling cases as a Six Gates constable in Ji County, nearly three months after Yan Chongtian's battle.
• A maid brought Yang Wuxia a bouquet containing an exquisitely carved Ice Flower.
• Yang Wuxia read Duàn Yì's love message carved on the Ice Flower and realized he had sent the bouquet, leaving her delighted and touched.

Duàn Yì, Ding Ling, and Ding Ran traveled through the mountains toward Elder Jue Ming’s cave while Ding Ling mocked Duàn Yì’s affections for multiple women. Ding Ling explained Jue Ming’s role in preserving the Demonic Cult’s martial inheritances and hoped Duàn Yì would become his disciple, though Duàn Yì remained wary of both Jue Ming and Ding Ling’s motives.

• Ding Ling taunted Duàn Yì for giving Yang Wuxia an Ice Flower and for loving more than one woman, and Duàn Yì defended the sincerity of his feelings.
• Ding Ran changed the subject by asking Ding Ling about Elder Jue Ming and his duty to pass down martial teachings.
• Ding Ling explained that Sect Leader Ying Woqiu established transmission elders to preserve the Demonic Cult’s secrets and arts, and that Jue Ming guarded several supreme techniques, including the Severing Pulse Sword Qi.
• Ding Ling told Duàn Yì that becoming Jue Ming’s disciple could greatly benefit his future, but Duàn Yì stayed silent and suspected Ding Ling wanted to recruit Jue Ming for her own ambitions.

Ding Ling tried to persuade Duàn Yì to become Elder Jue Ming’s disciple so he could protect himself from Zhuang Shili and the Southern Demonic Cult. Their discussion was interrupted by Xue Yang, who challenged Ding Ling and demonstrated his fearsome Three Thousand Feet of White Hair.

• Ding Ling explained that she could protect Nameless but not Duàn Yì, and urged him to become Elder Jue Ming’s disciple for protection and influence.
• Duàn Yì remained unconvinced, believing that only his own strength could resolve his predicament.
• Xue Yang appeared and mocked Duàn Yì’s qualifications to enter Jue Ming’s school.
• Ding Ling recognized Xue Yang and exchanged familiar, hostile remarks with him.
• Xue Yang claimed his martial arts had improved and used a strand of white hair to pierce and topple more than ten trees.
• Xue Yang declared that his Three Thousand Feet of White Hair had reached the pinnacle of the seventh level and challenged Ding Ling’s Ruyi Demonic Saber.