Chapter Summaries

Qin Yan defeated Hong Sheng and Ba Wei, then revealed his identity and persuaded Ba Wei to join him in pursuing a more just world. Ba Wei agreed provisionally, while Qin Yan made clear that refusal would have meant death.

• Qin Yan killed Hong Sheng and subdued Ba Wei after Ba Wei attacked him.
• Qin Yan challenged Ba Wei over the Taiping Army's crimes, and Ba Wei admitted he had known about them and had deceived himself about Hong Sheng's plans.
• Qin Yan asked Ba Wei to stay by his side and revealed that he was Qin Yan, the Great Li Dynasty's Count of Qinghe.
• Qin Yan explained his past and his ambition to overturn Great Li's corruption so ordinary people could live in peace.
• Ba Wei agreed to trust Qin Yan for now, but warned he would leave if Qin Yan acted like Hong Sheng.
• Ba Wei asked what Qin Yan would have done if he refused, and Qin Yan said he would have killed him.

Qin Yan recruited Ba Wei as his Shadow and took the Taiping Army’s hidden treasure, while the campaign to pacify Pengzhou concluded and the army prepared to move on to Lizhou. Ordered to remain in Changxin to guard the prisoners, Qin Yan accepted the assignment and sent his commanders to cultivate with their newly acquired techniques and treasures.

• Ba Wei asked Qin Yan to save some Taiping Army prisoners, and Qin Yan agreed; Ba Wei then pledged his service and became Shadow.
• Qin Yan and Ba Wei found Hong Sheng’s treasure vault and took its silver, worth at least fifty-three million taels.
• Ye Yingshan captured Lin Yang Prefecture but found the rebels’ storehouses empty and managed to recover only three million taels.
• The five Supreme Grandmasters captured Yuli City, and Pengzhou was pacified after Lang Futian killed himself following his defeat.
• Leng Qing ordered Qin Yan to stay in Changxin and guard the prisoners, so Qin Yan dismissed his subordinates’ objections and told them to cultivate.

After the imperial tomb was looted, the Hongjia Emperor blamed the mysterious thief and ordered senior generals to the Capital, while Qin Yan avoided the fallout. Qin Yan bribed Huo Chunwen to arrange twenty thousand Taiping Army prisoners as slaves for his mines and fields, promising to raise the remaining silver within three days.

• The Hongjia Emperor learned that the founding emperor's tomb had been looted, spat blood, and collapsed, while Leng Qing's forces searched Lizhou for the culprit.
• The court blamed the thief who had looted Pengzhou and offered a large bounty, then summoned senior generals to the Capital to receive rewards.
• Qin Yan told Ba Wei he planned to take Taiping Army prisoners to Youshan Prefecture and sought Huo Chunwen's help arranging them.
• Qin Yan gave Huo Chunwen thirty thousand taels for eight thousand prisoners, then offered more money to secure a larger group.
• Huo Chunwen agreed to arrange twenty thousand prisoners for an additional one hundred and fifty thousand taels, and Qin Yan promised to gather the money within three days.

Qin Yan met Ye Yingshan and Leng Qing before returning to the Capital with the victorious army, where the public praised his achievements. The Hongjia Emperor heard how Leng Qing had kept Qin Yan from the later campaigns and blamed him for failing to prevent the founding emperor’s tomb from being dug up.

• Qin Yan sent Huo Chunwen the remaining 150,000 taels, and Huo Chunwen promised to move the people to Youshan Prefecture after the senior generals received their rewards.
• Qin Yan met Ye Yingshan and Leng Qing, and Ye Yingshan worried that the generals who retook Lizhou would be punished over the founding emperor’s tomb.
• The crown prince and officials welcomed the army in the Capital, where citizens praised Qin Yan’s campaign record and speculated that he would become a marquis.
• The Hongjia Emperor grew furious over the missing Taiping Army assets and suspected that the returning generals had embezzled the money.
• Li Fu recounted Qin Yan’s achievements and explained that Leng Qing had assigned him to guard prisoners instead of joining the later battles.
• The Hongjia Emperor blamed Leng Qing for wasting Qin Yan’s abilities and for failing to prevent the founding emperor’s tomb from being dug up.

Qin Yan received a second-rank marquisate for his role in quelling the rebellion, but accusations that he murdered his elder brother led the court to strip him of his military posts and send him back to Youshan Prefecture. He left the Capital with only a few guards, while Xia Chengqian and Qi Hao believed the emperor would eventually summon him back.

• The Hongjia Emperor enfeoffed Leng Qing with additional rewards and Ye Yingshan as the Mingjiang Marquis before granting Qin Yan the hereditary-for-three-generations title of Youshan Marquis.
• Qin Yan accepted gifts from the many visitors who came to congratulate him at his new marquis residence.
• Censors and Imperial Academy students accused Qin Yan of greed and murdering his elder brother, and the Hongjia Emperor learned that Leng Qing's household was among those stirring up the charges.
• The court fined Qin Yan three years' salary, stripped him of his military posts, and ordered him to return to Youshan Prefecture for reflection.
• Xia Chengqian and Qi Hao saw Qin Yan off as he left the Capital with a few dozen guards.

Qin Yan explained that he had deliberately exposed the matter used to drive him from the Capital, then returned to Youshan Prefecture as its marquis. As he prepared to reach Qinghe Town, local officials and acquaintances reacted to his return, while Wen Qinsi feared what Qin Yan’s arrival would mean for him.

• Qin Yan told Qin Xiaoyi, Ba Wei, and the others that he had intentionally leaked the information behind the accusation, expecting the Emperor to send him away rather than punish him severely.
• Qin Yan returned to Youshan Prefecture in February, where Prefect Li Muyun and local officials welcomed him, and Jiang Fuji regretted not having built a closer relationship with him earlier.
• Qin Yan visited the Demon-Suppressing Bureau, renewed his friendship with Zhao Zhen, and agreed to call him Brother Zhao.
• After two days, Qin Yan set out for Qinghe Town, where his return as the Youshan Marquis stirred excitement among the townspeople.
• County magistrate Wen Qinsi dreaded Qin Yan’s return, fearing that a slight against him could bring ruin.

Qin Yan returned to Qinghe Town and Clear Water Village, where he reunited with old acquaintances and decided to rebuild the village. He refused to reconcile with Qin Zhao’s family but promised Qin Qing he would not make trouble for them, leaving their relationship distant but peaceful.

• Wen Qinsi and Zong Xiaoshan welcomed Qin Yan outside Qinghe Town, where Qin Yan greeted his old friends and relatives.
• Qin Yan visited the ancestral hall and his renovated home, then told the old village chief that he wanted no connection with Qin Zhao’s family.
• Qin Yan decided to fund new houses for the entire village, and the villagers celebrated the news.
• Qin Qing asked Qin Yan to forgive their eldest brother and consider his nephews, but Qin Yan refused reconciliation while promising not to pursue them.
• Qin Yan asked Qin Qing to look after the family and to tell him if they faced a problem he could solve.

Qin Yan returned to his mountain base and used Spiritual Suppression to subdue three Shanxiao, whose awakened bloodlines might let them grow into powerful spirit beasts. He inscribed Soul Restrictions on their souls, placing their lives under his control.

• Qin Yan toured the expanded mountain base with Zong Xiaoshan, who described the disciples’ rapid cultivation and Qinghe Town’s growing safety and prosperity.
• Qin Yan learned that the three Shanxiao had grown more irritable and went to inspect them, hoping to study the Spirit Taming Sutra on the intelligent beasts.
• Qin Yan identified the Shanxiao’s strong ancient bloodlines and said they might someday reach Supreme Grandmaster level.
• When the strongest Shanxiao attacked, Qin Yan used Spiritual Suppression to overpower it and force all three beasts to submit.
• Qin Yan sent the Shanxiao a Mind Perception and inscribed Soul Restrictions on their souls, making their lives and deaths depend on him.

Qin Yan used Soul Restrictions to control three Shanxiao and began raising them with Beast-Rearing Pills he had successfully refined. After confirming the pills accelerated their growth, he considered cultivating medicinal herbs in his blessed land to restore their spiritual properties.

• Qin Yan applied Soul Restrictions to three Shanxiao, gaining a silent channel for sensing their thoughts and sending orders.
• Qin Yan gathered medicinal ingredients and refined three Beast-Rearing Pills after several days of attempts.
• Qin Yan fed a pill to A Da and observed that it increased the Shanxiao's growth and strength.
• Qin Yan assessed the pills' cost and the Shanxiao's growth prospects, noting that they could reach Innate Martial Artist strength as subadults.
• Qin Yan decided to prepare a spirit herb garden in his blessed land and ordered medicinal herb seeds.

Qin Yan increased the Heaven and Earth Origin Qi at the Deep Mountain Base by creating a magnetic-field barrier, then cultivated and continued refining Hong Sheng into a Lunar Yin Corpse Puppet. The puppet sensed a source of Yin Qi, and Qin Yan considered targeting the ancient corpses in the Cypress Water River.

• Qin Yan devised a magnetic-field barrier that trapped the earth vein’s Heaven and Earth Origin Qi and raised its concentration at the Deep Mountain Base.
• Qin Yan trained with boulders weighing dozens of tons and found that the enriched Origin Qi helped him break through his physical limits.
• Qin Yan inspected Hong Sheng, whose corpse had become a Lunar Yin Corpse Puppet with strength comparable to a high-level Supreme Grandmaster after absorbing the corpse-nurturing ground’s Yin-Sha Qi.
• Qin Yan used his mind to imprint Restrictions on the Lunar Yin Corpse Puppet as it absorbed the sun and moon’s essence.
• The Lunar Yin Corpse Puppet sensed a source of Yin Qi, leading Qin Yan to consider eliminating the ancient corpses in the Cypress Water River.

Qin Yan returned to Azure Sun Abbey and found its people slaughtered, then killed several groups of suspects while searching for the attackers. He used Soul-Summoning to bring back Daoist Chen’s remnant soul, who awoke to find the abbey destroyed.

• Qin Yan found Daoist Chen and the other people at Azure Sun Abbey dead, with the mountain behind the abbey burning.
• Qin Yan killed five masked men from the Beigong Lineage after they admitted they had come seeking Azure Sun Abbey’s longevity method.
• Qin Yan caught three Grandmaster-level men fleeing the area, killed them, and concluded that an expert of at least the Third Realm had led the slaughter.
• Qin Yan returned to Azure Sun Abbey, killed several mysterious visitors with a spiritual attack, and used the Little Jade Turtle to summon Daoist Chen’s remnant soul.
• Daoist Chen regained clarity, saw the burning abbey, and mourned that his home was gone.

After Azure Sun Abbey was attacked over its Ghost Dao research, Qin Yan rescued Daoist Chen’s remnant soul and used the fortune of his Jade Turtle to enfeoff him as the Qinghe Land God. Chen Min’s soul stabilized as a weak Yin God, and Qin Yan planned to build him a temple so he could grow stronger.

• Daoist Chen told Qin Yan that a Supreme Grandmaster and a Daoist cultivator attacked Azure Sun Abbey for its Ghost Dao method, killing the abbey master and taking Shuyunzi.
• Qin Yan brought Daoist Chen’s remnant soul to Deep Mountain Base and learned that it was too damaged to survive without a new path of cultivation.
• Qin Yan proposed using the Incense-Fire Divine Dao and the fortune stored in his Jade Turtle to transform Daoist Chen into a Yin God.
• Qin Yan enfeoffed Chen Min as the Qinghe Land God, and golden merit power stabilized Chen Min’s soul and gave him a divine body.
• Chen Min found that he could use some Daoist arts but remained weak, so Qin Yan planned to build him a temple to help him grow stronger.

Qin Yan helped Chen Min establish a Land God Temple in Qinghe Town, where growing worship restored Chen Min’s strength and let him protect the townspeople. When a black cat led Qin Yan toward trouble in neighboring Qingquan Town, he investigated reports of a mysterious sedan chair and reached an eerie gorge.

• Qin Yan arranged for a Land God Temple to be built for Chen Min, and Chen Min merged with its statue to receive incense offerings.
• Qin Yan spread stories of Chen Min answering prayers and helped grant townspeople’s wishes, attracting worshippers and strengthening Chen Min as Qinghe Town’s guardian.
• A Demon-Seeking Envoy told Qin Yan that people were disappearing in Qingquan Town whenever a sedan chair appeared at night.
• Qin Yan followed the black cat to Qingquan Town, where Mayor Pang An reported that thirteen people and an exorcist had vanished in three days.
• Qin Yan rode into a misty forest with the black cat and reached a gorge near an ancient residence filled with Yin Qi.

Qin Yan fought his way into an old residence and defeated a powerful ghost woman who had come from the Underworld. He learned that her Yin-Yang Palanquin Crown could carry its owner between the Yin and Yang realms, then killed her after she fled.

• The Black Cat killed the Evil Corpses guarding the old residence while Qin Yan approached through the dense fog.
• A gaunt ghost servant and eight other Ghost Spirit Level servants attacked Qin Yan, but his Blood Qi overwhelmed them.
• Qin Yan destroyed the old residence and revealed a Red Sha Level woman and a magnificent palanquin.
• Qin Yan subdued the woman and learned that the Yin-Yang Palanquin Crown allowed travel between the Yin and Yang realms, and that the eight ghost servants were its bearers.
• After learning how to use the artifact, Qin Yan let the woman flee and then killed her with a blood-red palm strike.

Qin Yan claimed the Yin-Yang Palanquin Crown, enslaved the Sha Infant, and returned to the Underworld to confront the Evil Spirit that had once hunted him. He headed for Wuan County, while the Evil Spirit sensed a disturbance linked to their bloodlines.

• Qin Yan bonded with the Yin-Yang Palanquin Crown, questioned the gaunt old man about the Evil Spirit and the Mound of Ten Thousand Spirits, then killed him and let the Little Jade Turtle absorb him.
• Qin Yan released the Lunar Yin Corpse Puppet to absorb Yin Qi at the hidden residence and decided to wait there for whoever had built it.
• Qin Yan carved eighteen layers of Restrictions into the Sha Infant, brought it under control, and sealed it in the bronze coffin.
• Qin Yan rode the Yin-Yang Palanquin Crown back to the Underworld and flew toward Wuan County to settle his score with the Evil Spirit.
• At the Four Yin Gathering Sha, the woman in the red bridal gown sensed a disturbance and a connection between their bloodlines.

Qin Yan returned to the Four Yin Gathering Sha to take revenge on the evil spirit possessing Xu Xing'e. After unleashing his Slaughter Dharma Form and Magnetic Field Rotation, he gravely wounded her and destroyed Xu Xing'e's body, then attacked the evil spirit's exposed true form.

• Qin Yan confronted the evil spirit and formed his Slaughter Dharma Form from Blood Sha Qi.
• Qin Yan and the evil spirit fought fiercely as her black butterfly silhouettes clashed with his saber attacks.
• Qin Yan activated Magnetic Field Rotation, greatly increasing his power and cleaving apart the evil spirit's ghost butterfly.
• Qin Yan rushed the gravely wounded evil spirit and struck Xu Xing'e's body apart, forcing the evil spirit's true form to emerge.
• Qin Yan raised his saber to strike the evil spirit's true form before she could escape.

After killing a powerful Evil Spirit in the Underworld, Qin Yan narrowly avoided a much stronger monster and returned to the Yang Realm. By early March, he had surpassed ten thousand times an ordinary person’s strength and begun exploring his newly self-comprehended Electromagnetic Force.

• Qin Yan killed a Fourth Realm Evil Spirit, replenished the good fortune spent on his investiture, and concealed his presence before other Yin Souls arrived.
• A colossal scarred Evil Spirit reached the battlefield, sensed the clash of equals and the power of Blood Sha, then left after its voices warned of nearby dangers.
• Qin Yan returned to the Yang Realm, left the Lunar Yin Corpse Puppet to absorb Yin Qi, and reflected on his growing influence in Youshan Prefecture.
• By early March, Qin Yan’s strength exceeded ten thousand times that of an ordinary person, and he had self-comprehended Electromagnetic Force.
• Qin Yan tested his control by sending weapons flying, gathering metallic particles, and melting them into iron, though he could not yet separate all the impurities.

Qin Yan used his Magnetic Field System and artifact-refining knowledge to begin developing modern weapons while quietly building his strength in Qinghe Town. Meanwhile, the Great Li Dynasty faced a succession struggle, rampant banditry, refugees, and a worsening financial crisis.

• Qin Yan extracted nearly fifteen tons of iron and other metals from the Cypress Water River's sediment using electromagnetic force.
• Qin Yan drew weapon blueprints and ordered Qin Xiaoyi to gather skilled craftsmen and discreetly procure materials.
• Qin Yan planned to advance weapons manufacturing to a level approaching that of the Second World War within two or three years.
• The Hongjia Emperor's failing health intensified the struggle for succession among the crown prince, imperial princes, and the crown prince's sons.
• Bandits and Taiping Army remnants grew in Peng and Li Provinces as refugees and the imperial court's financial crisis deepened.
• Qin Yan continued cultivating and developing technology, drawing on the Tai Xuan Immortal Sect's artifact-refining texts for material science.

Qin Yan tested his newly manufactured M1 Garand Rifle and explained how technology could reshape warfare and ordinary people’s lives. He earned Ba Wei’s belief and devotion, while the factory’s output grew but remained constrained by ammunition shortages.

• Qin Yan assembled an M1 Garand Rifle and demonstrated that its eight bullets pierced a suit of armor from over a hundred meters away.
• Ba Wei judged that the rifle could threaten most martial artists below the Qi Origin Realm, though powerful body-tempering experts and Innate Martial Artists could resist it.
• Qin Yan explained technology as the practical study of the natural world and promised to bring food, meat, and schooling to the common people.
• Qin Yan ordered Qin Xiaoyi to keep the arms factory and its weapons secret, with Shadow and Qin Yan himself as backup if needed.
• After half a month, the factory’s production stabilized at about two hundred rifles a day, but ammunition output could not keep pace.

Qin Yan discovered black oil in land owned by the Jiang Family and refused their offer to give it to him in exchange for marrying their daughter. The Jiang Family decided to give him the land anyway, accept his favor, and invest further in his growing influence.

• Qin Xiaoyi reported that black oil had been found in Jiu'an Prefecture and gave Qin Yan a sample.
• Qin Yan ordered his people to buy the land, then rejected the Jiang Family's marriage proposal and offered to pay a high price while owing them a favor.
• Jiang Daozhen discussed Qin Yan's refusal with Jiang Daoxi and Jiang Daoqi, who explained that their family needed powerful allies to avoid decline.
• Jiang Daoqi urged the Jiang Family to give Qin Yan the land without conditions and use the favor as an opening for future dealings.
• Jiang Daozhen agreed and ordered the family to move some businesses to Youshan Prefecture and invest more in Qin Yan.