Recaps

Fang Shuwen and his companions discovered the Black Sha Cult’s underground lair beneath Qingyang Manor, where girls were imprisoned as cultivation materials. After freeing them, Fang Shuwen led the group to the cult’s cultivation chamber and confronted its members.

• Fang Mingxuan insisted on descending with Fang Shuwen, and they entered the underground complex with Zhou Qingmei and another companion.
• Fang Shuwen killed two Black Sha Cult guards, then learned from the imprisoned girls that the cult members were cultivating in a room at the back.
• Fang Shuwen broke open the cages and freed the girls, while Zhang Fang asked Zhou Qingmei where her powerful bodyguard had come from.
• Fang Shuwen and the others brought help from above, forced open the cultivation room’s iron door, and disrupted the Black Sha Cult members’ training.
• Fang Shuwen entered the chamber and told the cult members that he had come to slaughter them all.

Fang Shuwen and his allies attacked the Black Sha Cult in a stone chamber, where he overwhelmed Qi Zhifei and helped kill every cult member. When Fang Shuwen went to question the defeated manager, he found Qi Zhifei dead.

• Fang Shuwen launched the attack and killed several Black Sha Cult members with his martial arts.
• Zhou Qingmei, Zhang Fang, Fang Mingxuan, and the recruited fighters joined the battle, while Fang Shuwen noticed Fang Mingxuan and the fighters were more capable than they appeared.
• Qi Zhifei attacked Fang Shuwen, but Fang Shuwen shattered his arm and captured him.
• The Black Sha Cult members refused to surrender and tried to break through, but Fang Shuwen and his allies killed them all.
• Fang Shuwen returned to Qi Zhifei and discovered that he had died.

After the Black Sha Cult was destroyed, Fang Shuwen and his companions rescued its captives and settled the aftermath in Guangning City. As Zhou Qingmei and Zhang Fang traveled back to their sect, Zhang revealed that he served the Black Sha Cult and attacked her, leaving her demanding to know the truth before she died.

• Fang Shuwen examined the Black Sha Cult's Azure Corpse Record and learned its brutal training method only described cultivation up to the green-skin stage.
• Fang Mingxuan arranged to report the cult's destruction and use its wealth to compensate Great Xuan Bank's depositors, while the group brought the rescued women to Guangning City.
• Zhou Qingmei and Zhang Fang left for the Pearl Pavilion, and Fang Lingxin reluctantly saw Zhou Qingmei off with Fang Mingxuan.
• On the road, Zhang teased Zhou Qingmei about Fang Shuwen, then asked whether she had noticed anything suspicious on the night of the attack.
• Zhang Fang drew his sword against Zhou Qingmei and revealed that the young cult leader had ordered her and her family killed because she had rescued Fang Lingxin.
• Zhou Qingmei blocked Zhang Fang's strike and asked him to let her die knowing the truth about the young cult leader.

Zhang Fang revealed that Li Nanchen was the young master of the Black Sha Cult and explained why the cult planned to eliminate Zhou Qingmei and her family. When Zhou Qingmei’s question exposed that she had lured him into talking, Fang Shuwen ambushed and defeated Zhang Fang.

• Zhang Fang told Zhou Qingmei that Li Nanchen was the Black Sha Cult’s young master and said she and her family had to die to prevent her suspicions from reaching Zhou Feixiong.
• Zhang Fang explained that he had used the attack on Qingyang Manor as bait to make Fang Shuwen believe the danger had passed, so he could return to Guangning City and capture Fang Lingxin.
• Zhou Qingmei asked Zhang Fang about the cult’s great undertaking, and he realized her eager expression meant he had fallen into a trap.
• Zhang Fang fled, but Fang Shuwen struck him down and appeared beside Zhou Qingmei.
• Zhang Fang asked how he had given himself away, and Fang Shuwen replied that he had done so in many ways.

Fang Shuwen explained how he had suspected Zhang Fang and secretly followed him, then revealed Zhang Fang’s role in the Black Sha Cult. After Zhang Fang refused to disclose where the cult’s forces had gone, Fang Shuwen proposed guessing what had compelled him to serve the cult.

• Fang Shuwen recalled the clues that made him suspect Zhang Fang and described how he sent Zhang Fang to investigate the Great Xuan Bank.
• After Zhang Fang’s lead pointed to Qingyang Manor, Fang Shuwen concluded that Zhang Fang had likely killed Qi Zhifei and planned with Zhou Qingmei to draw out the truth.
• Fang Shuwen secretly followed Zhou Qingmei and Zhang Fang, and Zhang Fang eventually exposed his true allegiance and the identity of the young cult master.
• Fang Shuwen confronted Zhang Fang and explained how he had uncovered the scheme, then asked why Zhang Fang had severed his own arm.
• Zhang Fang said the young cult master had ordered him to kill Zhou Qingmei and capture Fang Lingxin, and that the cult’s remaining forces could not defeat Fang Shuwen.
• Zhang Fang refused to reveal where the cult’s people had gone, and Fang Shuwen suggested they guess why Zhang Fang had joined the Black Sha Cult.

Fang Shuwen deduced that the Black Sha Cult planned to destroy the Pearl Pavilion within five days, but Zhang Fang claimed he knew little about the plot's masterminds. Zhou Qingmei killed Zhang Fang for betraying the righteous path, and she and Fang Shuwen set out for Nine-Congealing Mountain.

• Fang Shuwen deduced that the Black Sha Cult's major undertaking targeted the Pearl Pavilion and that Zhou Qingmei could expose Li Nanchen's role in it.
• Zhang Fang said the Pearl Pavilion would fall in five days, before they could reach Nine-Congealing Mountain, which was at least eight days away.
• Fang Shuwen tortured Zhang Fang with a method he had devised, and Zhang Fang claimed the plot's masterminds had saved the Black Sha Cult and planned the attack.
• Zhou Qingmei killed Zhang Fang according to the Pearl Pavilion's rules for harming fellow disciples and betraying the righteous path.
• Fang Shuwen gave Zhou Qingmei Zhang Fang's Stillwater Sword, and they set off to reach Nine-Congealing Mountain in five days.

Zhou Qingmei and Fang Shuwen raced toward Nine-Congealing Mountain, where they discovered the dead Cloudflight Escort Agency escorts and found Zhou Qingmei’s Senior Sister Lu trapped in an underground cavern. Senior Sister Lu warned that Li Nanchen and other Black Sha Cult enemies might be connected to their sect, and Fang Shuwen prepared vines so Zhou Qingmei could attempt a rescue.

• Zhou Qingmei used Fang Shuwen’s seemingly inexhaustible inner force to travel swiftly, and they reached sight of Nine-Congealing Mountain on the fourth night.
• Fang Shuwen heard a woman calling for help, so he and Zhou Qingmei followed the voice through the mountains.
• They found the Cloudflight Escort Agency escorts dead, and Zhou Qingmei recognized wounds from the Thousand-Character Sword Technique and traces of the Black Sha Demonic Art.
• Fang Shuwen cleared the branches covering a hole, and Zhou Qingmei realized the woman below was her Senior Sister Lu.
• Senior Sister Lu said Li Nanchen had knocked her into the cavern and warned Zhou Qingmei to report suspected Black Sha Cult infiltrators to the Pearl Pavilion Master.
• Fang Shuwen gave Zhou Qingmei vines and offered to hold her as she climbed down to rescue Senior Sister Lu.

Fang Shuwen rescued Lu Xiaoqing from an underground cavern and cured her of the Black Sha True Qi. Lu Xiaoqing revealed that Li Nanchen and Zhang Fang were Black Sha Cult members, then realized their attack would likely begin when the Pavilion Master and elders entered seclusion the next day.

• Zhou Qingmei used vines to reach Lu Xiaoqing in the cavern, and Fang Shuwen pulled them both up.
• Fang Shuwen treated Lu Xiaoqing's damaged meridians and cleared the Black Sha True Qi from her body.
• Lu Xiaoqing explained that Li Nanchen had ambushed her and knocked her into the cavern while she investigated the murdered Cloudflight Escort Agency.
• Fang Shuwen revealed that Li Nanchen was the Black Sha Cult's young cult master and Zhang Fang was also one of its members.
• Zhou Qingmei set Lu Xiaoqing's broken bones and described their journey as Fang Shuwen warned that the Black Sha Cult planned to act soon.
• Lu Xiaoqing realized the next day the Pavilion Master and elders would enter secluded cultivation, leaving Li Nanchen in charge of the Pearl Pavilion.

Fang Shuwen and Zhou Qingmei rushed toward the Pearl Pavilion after learning that Li Nanchen had taken charge while the Pavilion Master was secluded in the Mysterious Mechanism Cave. At the Pearl Pavilion, Li Nanchen gathered the sect members and announced that he had invited Guest Elders.

• Lu Xiaoqing told Zhou Qingmei and Fang Shuwen that the Pavilion Master and several elders had entered the Mysterious Mechanism Cave at the hour of the dragon.
• Fang Shuwen carried Lu Xiaoqing while Zhou Qingmei used his internal force to speed them toward the Pearl Pavilion.
• Lu Xiaoqing realized Fang Shuwen had remarkably deep internal cultivation as they traveled for a shichen without tiring him.
• At the Pearl Pavilion, Li Nanchen gathered the sect members while Xu Chongshan and Zuo Qingshuang bickered.
• Li Nanchen told the gathered members that he had invited several Guest Elders to help the Pearl Pavilion develop steadily.

Li Nanchen introduced several notorious heretics as candidates for guest elders, provoking Zuo Qingshuang and Xu Chongshan. Xu recognized Guan Tianyue, the man who had destroyed his life thirty years earlier, and unleashed a sword strike that left Guan struggling to resist.

• Li Nanchen summoned Qingyangzi, Ghost Scholar, Blissful Monk, and three hooded figures before the Pearl Pavilion elders and disciples.
• Zuo Qingshuang condemned Li Nanchen for inviting the notorious heretics, while Xu Chongshan demanded that the hooded figures reveal themselves.
• One hooded man revealed himself as Guan Tianyue, and Xu Chongshan recognized the man who had abducted and killed his fiancée thirty years earlier.
• Xu Chongshan attacked Guan Tianyue with a focused sword strike, forcing Guan to expend all his strength as the blade advanced toward his brow.

Li Nanchen and Feng Mantian revealed that the Pearl Pavilion had been poisoned and taken over by the Black Sha Cult, while Zuo Qingshuang and Xu Chongshan refused to surrender. A young man arrived in the hall with two girls and a Green-Faced Ghost's corpse just as battle was about to begin.

• Xu Chongshan's attack faltered, and Zuo Qingshuang realized she and the Pearl Pavilion members had been poisoned with Qi-Severing Powder.
• Li Nanchen announced that the Black Sha Cult was taking control of the Pearl Pavilion and demanded that its members submit.
• Feng Mantian revealed himself as the Black Sha Cult leader and declared his revenge on the seven great sects.
• Xu Chongshan and Zuo Qingshuang refused to surrender, and the Pearl Pavilion disciples vowed to fight to the death.
• A young man landed between the groups, then entered holding one girl by the hand, carrying another on his back, and dragging a Green-Faced Ghost's corpse.

Fang Shuwen fought his way into Pearl Pavilion and reunited Lu Xiaoqing and Zhou Qingmei with their injured master, Zuo Qingshuang. After confronting Li Nanchen, he killed Qingyangzi with one punch and caught Ghost Scholar’s strike, leaving the clash poised to continue.

• Fang Shuwen killed Black Sha Cult attackers all the way to Pearl Pavilion’s great hall while carrying Lu Xiaoqing and leading Zhou Qingmei.
• Lu Xiaoqing told Zuo Qingshuang that Li Nanchen had ambushed her after killing the Cloudflight Escort Agency, and Zhou Qingmei introduced Fang Shuwen as her protector.
• Zuo Qingshuang asked Fang Shuwen to take her disciples away, but Feng Mantian confronted him and Li Nanchen admitted ordering Zhou Qingmei’s death and seeking to abduct the Fang family’s young girl.
• Fang Shuwen charged Li Nanchen, shattered Qingyangzi’s whisk and killed him with a punch, then caught Ghost Scholar’s chopping hand with the [Plum Blossom Loose Hands].

Fang Shuwen killed Qingyangzi and Ghost Scholar with effortless strikes, then turned his attack back on Li Nanchen. Li Nanchen’s sword failed to stop him, and Fang Shuwen killed him as well.

• Ghost Scholar realized Fang Shuwen had killed Qingyangzi with one punch and tried to invent an alias to escape.
• Fang Shuwen pulled Ghost Scholar toward him, broke his arm with a palm strike, and killed him.
• The witnesses, including Xu Chongshan and Zuo Qingshuang, were shocked by Fang Shuwen’s strength as he attacked Li Nanchen again.
• Li Nanchen drew Slay Evil and used the Pearl Pavilion’s sword techniques, strengthened by his Black Sha Demonic Art, to defend himself.
• Fang Shuwen used Strike the Mountain, Shake the Demon to shatter Slay Evil, then crushed half of Li Nanchen’s head and killed him.

Fang Shuwen killed Qingyangzi, Ghost Scholar, and Li Nanchen, then attacked Feng Mantian after the cult leader grieved over his son. Guan Tianyue and Blissful Monk intervened, and Fang Shuwen launched another powerful strike as Blissful Monk invoked his Ultimate Bliss Dharma Body.

• Fang Shuwen killed Qingyangzi, Ghost Scholar, and Li Nanchen before Feng Mantian could stop him.
• Fang Shuwen threw Li Nanchen's shattered corpse toward Feng Mantian, who struck it while trying to defend himself and destroyed the remains.
• Fang Shuwen attacked Feng Mantian with Vajra Tower-Throwing, but a black-clad figure pulled Feng Mantian out of the way.
• Guan Tianyue and Blissful Monk arrived and warned Feng Mantian as they recognized the danger Fang Shuwen posed.
• Fang Shuwen followed with a powerful fist strike, and Blissful Monk stepped forward and invoked Ultimate Bliss Dharma Body.

Fang Shuwen fought Blissful Monk, whose Ultimate Bliss Dharma Body withstood his first punch but was destroyed by a light palm strike. After Blissful Monk exploded, Fang Shuwen challenged Feng Mantian, Guan Tianyue, and the remaining enemy to attack him together.

• Blissful Monk used the Ultimate Bliss Dharma Body to withstand Fang Shuwen's punch, though the impact wounded him and drove him back thirteen feet.
• Fang Shuwen praised Blissful Monk, then moved in to strike him again with Strike the Mountain, Suppress Demons.
• Blissful Monk called on Feng Mantian and the others to lend him their strength as they pressed their palms against his back.
• Fang Shuwen's palm quietly dissipated the golden light and landed on Blissful Monk's chest, causing cracks to spread across his body.
• The black-robed figure, Feng Mantian, Guan Tianyue, Xu Chongshan, Zuo Qingshuang, and the Pearl Pavilion disciples retreated before Blissful Monk exploded into bloody fragments.
• Fang Shuwen brushed off his sleeve and challenged the three remaining opponents to attack him together.

Fang Shuwen anticipated the Black Sha Cult’s hidden attacker and caught the black-robed man before he could strike his Qihai acupoint. He crippled the man with True Qi and seized him, while Feng Mantian and Guan Tianyue were still circling him.

• Feng Mantian and Guan Tianyue circled Fang Shuwen, feinting to draw his attention while Zuo Qingshuang cursed their shameless tactics.
• Xu Chongshan spotted the black-robed man rushing toward Fang Shuwen and shouted a warning.
• Fang Shuwen revealed that he had been watching the black-robed man and caught his finger as it aimed for his Qihai acupoint.
• Fang Shuwen shattered the black-robed man’s acupoints and meridians with True Qi, then seized his head and swung him toward Feng Mantian and Guan Tianyue.

Fang Shuwen stopped Feng Mantian from taking Zhou Qingmei and killed him after overpowering his attack. As the others noticed Guan Tianyue trying to escape, Xu Chongshan confronted him.

• Feng Mantian tried to seize Zhou Qingmei as a hostage, but Fang Shuwen stopped him and asked what he was going to do to his employer.
• Feng Mantian unleashed the [Black Sha Demonic Art] and charged Fang Shuwen, but Fang Shuwen held him in place and hurled him through the hall wall.
• Fang Shuwen caught Feng Mantian, slammed him into the ground, and killed him with three punches.
• Someone spotted Guan Tianyue escaping, and Guan Tianyue tried to leap away despite his injured leg.
• Xu Chongshan appeared in front of Guan Tianyue and looked down at him.

Fang Shuwen cured Zuo Qingshuang and Xu Chongshan of Qi-Severing Powder, allowing them to return to the battle against the Black Sha Cult. He then began treating the poisoned Pearl Pavilion disciples as Zhou Qingmei and Lu Xiaoqing looked after him.

• After searching Feng Mantian's corpse for an antidote and finding none, Fang Shuwen offered to treat Zuo Qingshuang.
• Fang Shuwen circulated his True Qi through Zuo Qingshuang, and she discovered that the poison had disappeared.
• Zuo Qingshuang rushed out to help fight, telling Zhou Qingmei and Lu Xiaoqing to take care of Fang Shuwen.
• Xu Chongshan asked Fang Shuwen to treat him, then hurried out once his poison was cured.
• Fang Shuwen began curing the poisoned Pearl Pavilion disciples, who each urged Zhou Qingmei and Lu Xiaoqing to look after him.

Fang Shuwen completed his mission to protect Zhou Qingmei and received Beiming Shengong, but he postponed claiming it while investigating the surviving hooded man. The man died in a burst of fire after uttering cryptic words, leaving the Pearl Pavilion unsure whether a hidden threat remained as Zuo Qingshuang returned from battle.

• The system notified Fang Shuwen that his mission to protect Zhou Qingmei was complete and rewarded him with Beiming Shengong at the great perfection realm.
• Fang Shuwen decided not to claim Beiming Shengong yet and went to question the hooded man, whom he suspected might be connected to another organization.
• Fang Shuwen used his internal-force thread to wake and torture the hooded man, who resisted until he uttered, “Ten thousand miles... shocked! Emperor... upon the throne!!”
• The hooded man ignited and exploded into flames after Fang Shuwen threw him outside, and Fang Shuwen warned that another stream of True Qi might have caused it.
• Zuo Qingshuang returned, praised Fang Shuwen, invited everyone to a feast, and asked about the flash of fire.

Fang Shuwen fused the internal arts [Muscle Tendon Change] and [Beiming Shengong], gaining the ability to switch between them and purify absorbed internal power. After the Pearl Pavilion rewarded him for saving it, Zuo Qingshuang led him to its treasure repository the next morning.

• Fang Shuwen claimed [Beiming Shengong], and the system fused it with [Muscle Tendon Change] into a formula that let him switch between the two arts.
• Fang Shuwen realized he could use [Muscle Tendon Change] to purify internal power absorbed with [Beiming Shengong].
• Zuo Qingshuang told Fang Shuwen that Lou Yuxiao had remained in seclusion after hearing the hooded man's final words.
• The Pearl Pavilion Pavilion Master gave Fang Shuwen a Pearl Pavilion Token and offered him a gift from the treasure repository.
• Zuo Qingshuang led Fang Shuwen to the treasure repository early the next morning.

Fang Shuwen chose a Ten-Year Dust-Shattering Pill from the Treasure Pavilion as a gift for his aging master, Zheng Sihai, after learning it granted ten years of internal power at the cost of hindering future cultivation. Zuo Qingshuang recounted Divine Pill Valley’s destruction and the conspiracy behind it, and the chapter ended as Fang Shuwen and Zuo Qingshuang left the pavilion and saw Zhou Qingmei waiting.

• Fang Shuwen asked Zuo Qingshuang about the Ten-Year Dust-Shattering Pill and learned its benefits and drawbacks.
• Fang Shuwen decided to take the pill for Zheng Sihai, and Zuo Qingshuang handed it to him.
• Zuo Qingshuang told Fang Shuwen how Divine Pill Valley was falsely accused of using human organs in its pills, destroyed, and later revealed to have been framed.
• Fang Shuwen and Zuo Qingshuang left the Treasure Pavilion and found Zhou Qingmei waiting outside.

Fang Shuwen left the Pearl Pavilion, then spent several days in Guangning City investigating the Fang family and trying to trigger a system assignment without success. As he decided to return to Julu City, he spotted his eldest senior brother, Mo Beidou, being pursued by two men in black.

• Fang Shuwen bid farewell to Zhou Qingmei and Zuo Qingshuang, then returned to Guangning City to investigate the Fang family and seek work.
• After finding nothing suspicious at the Fang residence and triggering no assignments, Fang Shuwen decided to return to Julu City and visit his master and senior brother.
• Fang Shuwen saw a muscular man carrying a conspicuous bundle enter an alley while two men in black pursued him.
• Fang Shuwen recognized the pursued man as his eldest senior brother, Mo Beidou.

Fang Shuwen found his eldest senior brother, Mo Beidou, being attacked by two members of the Fierce Tiger Gang. He killed both men, leaving Mo Beidou stunned by how powerful his junior brother had become.

• Two men in black cornered Mo Beidou in Guangning City and demanded that he reveal Lu Guiyan's whereabouts.
• Mo Beidou refused to betray the Lu'an Escort Agency, and Fang Shuwen arrived in the alley.
• Mo Beidou recognized Fang Shuwen as his junior brother and urged him to run from the Fierce Tiger Gang members.
• One attacker charged at Fang Shuwen, who slammed him against a wall and killed him.
• The second attacker tried to flee, but Fang Shuwen pulled him back and killed him with a palm strike.

Fang Shuwen reunited with Mo Beidou, learned that the Lu'an Escort Agency's young chief escort had been gravely wounded, and followed him to help. When Sun Qian tried to stop him from examining her, Fang Shuwen knocked him aside and entered the room as Mo Beidou defended his decision.

• Mo Beidou confirmed Fang Shuwen was still his junior brother and told him the Fierce Tiger Gang had destroyed the medicine meant for the wounded young chief escort.
• Fang Shuwen offered to help, and Mo Beidou led him through the streets to the Lu'an Escort Agency's secluded courtyard.
• Mo Beidou introduced Fang Shuwen to Sun Qian and the wounded escorts, then asked him to examine the young chief escort.
• Sun Qian tried to block Fang Shuwen, but Fang Shuwen sent him flying and walked into the room.
• Mo Beidou ordered the escorts to stand down and declared he trusted Fang Shuwen, accepting responsibility if the young chief escort died.

Fang Shuwen treated Lu Guiyan, forcing the poison from her body and tending her wound despite Sun Qian’s earlier obstruction. After Mo Beidou explained that the escort party had been ambushed by the Fierce Tiger Gang, Lu Guiyan asked Fang Shuwen to join the escort job, triggering a new protection mission.

• Fang Shuwen forced the poison from Lu Guiyan and removed the rotten flesh around her wound before treating and bandaging it.
• Lu Guiyan woke, learned Fang Shuwen had saved her, and regained enough strength to stand and leave the room.
• Mo Beidou demanded that Sun Qian apologize to Fang Shuwen for obstructing him, and Sun Qian bowed and asked for forgiveness.
• Mo Beidou explained that the Fierce Tiger Gang had ambushed the escort party while it protected two clients, and Lu Guiyan had been struck by a poisoned dart.
• Lu Guiyan asked Fang Shuwen to join the escort job and offered a generous reward, prompting a new protection mission.