Chapter Summaries

The president of the Hidden Dragon Society learned that Wang Chen was a young fifth-tier Martial Grandmaster and ordered the Azure Peak Bandits to kill him in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains. Wang Chen left Donglu City for the imperial capital, leaving Xi Jun in Yao Peng’s care, while she waited for his return.

• A Hawk Falcon delivered a five-seal Red Dispatch to the president of the Hidden Dragon Society, reporting Wang Chen’s strength and imperial summons.
• The president and Elders Pang and Sun agreed that Wang Chen threatened their plans, and the president ordered the Azure Peak Bandits to stop and kill him in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
• Wang Chen entrusted Xi Jun to Yao Peng because he had to leave for the capital at once and could not take her with him.
• Wang Chen promised Xi Jun that he would return for her after meeting the emperor, kissed her goodbye, and rode out of Donglu City.

Wang Chen met Qin Qingxuan while crossing the Muluo River, where she asked him to help slay a dangerous demon after his audience with the Emperor. She offered the complete Mysterious Heaven Seven Fiend Wheels in exchange, leaving Wang Chen asking whether that was her condition.

• Wang Chen reached the Muluo River and accepted a ride across from Qin Qingxuan, who had deliberately waited for him.
• Qin Qingxuan confirmed she would not ask him to join the Rebel Faction and said she wanted his help dealing with a hidden demon after his audience with the Emperor.
• Wang Chen questioned what he would gain from risking himself to fight the demon.
• Qin Qingxuan revealed she possessed the complete Mysterious Heaven Seven Fiend Wheels, which Wang Chen needed to advance beyond the fifth-tier Martial Ancestor realm.
• Wang Chen asked whether the complete technique was her condition for the exchange.

Wang Chen struck a bargain with Qin Qingxuan for the sixth- and seventh-level methods of the Mysterious Heaven Seven Fiend Wheels, then found a secluded cabin to prepare for his breakthrough. After days of study, he left his horse behind and headed to a mountain peak to advance, with danger still awaiting him on the road ahead.

• Qin Qingxuan gave Wang Chen the sixth-level cultivation method in exchange for his promise to help her deal with a demon after he met the Emperor, and to receive the seventh-level method afterward.
• Wang Chen used the Qi Gazing Technique on Qin Qingxuan and saw a crimson pillar of fortune with a Phoenix inside, whose awakened gaze dispelled the technique.
• After leaving Qin Qingxuan, Wang Chen rode into the mountains and found an abandoned hunter's cabin where he planned to break through.
• Wang Chen spent three days and nights studying and deducing the sixth-level method, then left his Yellow Dappled Horse in the cabin and headed for a nearby peak to advance.

After two days and one night of cultivation, Wang Chen broke through to sixth-tier Martial Venerable and continued north toward the capital. He entered the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains by the Heavenly Road and rode deeper into the mountains alone.

• Wang Chen exhausted most of his Potential and burned 10 points of luck to condense his sixth Fiend Wheel and become a sixth-tier Martial Venerable.
• Wang Chen tested his power outside the cave, then recalled his aura and returned to the woods, where the Yellow Dappled Horse came to him.
• Wang Chen rode north for two days and reached the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
• Wang Chen showed his Identity Token at South Heaven Gate and entered the Heavenly Road without waiting in line.
• Wang Chen galloped past merchant caravans and continued alone along the mountain road, where bandits preyed on travelers.

Wang Chen rode along the Heavenly Road into a bandit ambush, fending off falling boulders and a volley of arrows before killing a fifth-tier Martial Grandmaster who attacked him from behind. He continued toward the bandits gathered at the end of the plank road.

• Wang Chen spotted a hawk falcon monitoring him as he rode toward a dangerous plank road.
• Bandits sent boulders crashing onto the plank road, but Wang Chen used the Soul Sever Spear to protect himself and his horse as they charged onward.
• Archers waiting at the far end fired a coordinated volley, and Wang Chen shattered the arrows with a shout.
• A burly fifth-tier Martial Grandmaster attacked Wang Chen from behind with a double-bladed battle axe.
• Wang Chen countered with the Returning Horse Spear, pierced the axe and the man's armor, and killed him.

Wang Chen defeated the Azure Peak Bandits’ ambush, killing their Second Lieutenant and archers with his spear and flintlock guns. He then faced Tantai Xiong and several hundred bandits, who opened the next battle with a volley of arrows.

• Zhao Quan watched Wang Chen kill the Azure Peak Bandits’ Second Lieutenant with one spear thrust and ordered the archers to retreat.
• Wang Chen hurled the Second Lieutenant’s corpse into the archers, charged their formation, and killed several as they fled.
• Wang Chen shot more than a dozen escaping bandits with his flintlock long guns before riding onward along the Heavenly Road.
• Wang Chen found Tantai Xiong and hundreds of Azure Peak Bandits blocking the road, and Tantai Xiong declared that one of them would die.
• Tantai Xiong ordered his bandits to fire, and more than a hundred arrows flew toward Wang Chen.

Wang Chen used his oppressive force and spear to break the Azure Peak Bandits’ battle formation and kill Tantai Xiong. He then slaughtered the remaining bandits, leaving the slope covered with corpses.

• Wang Chen erased the incoming arrows with the force of his true word, and Tantai Xiong ordered fifty elite warriors to charge him.
• Wang Chen charged the warriors on his Yellow Dappled Horse, shattered their battle formation, and cut through their ranks with the Soul Sever Spear.
• Tantai Xiong recognized Wang Chen as a sixth-tier Martial Venerable and attacked him with his Heavenly Halberd, but Wang Chen killed him in their pass.
• The leaderless Azure Peak Bandits either fled or attacked Wang Chen, who cut down their resistance and shot down those who ran.
• Wang Chen slaughtered the remaining bandits in moments, leaving more than two hundred corpses across the slope.

Wang Chen reached the Azure Peak Bandits’ stronghold and wiped out the bandits still there while sparing their nonresisting relatives. With help from the bandits’ accountant, Liang Shicheng, he found their treasure cave and claimed its wealth and supplies.

• Wang Chen crippled the bandit guide after promising not to kill him, then left him stranded in the wilderness.
• Wang Chen broke through the stronghold’s checkpoint and killed the bandits fighting inside, driving away nonresisting family members.
• Wang Chen captured Liang Shicheng, who explained how the Azure Peak Bandits had kept him as their accountant and pleaded for his family’s safety.
• Liang Shicheng led Wang Chen to the treasure cave behind the Hall of Righteous Gathering.
• Wang Chen smashed open the sealed stone gate and stored the bandits’ valuables, weapons, and grain in his storage space.

After escorting Liang Shicheng and his family to safety, Wang Chen traveled to Great Ye for his audience with the Emperor and began exploring the imperial capital. His arrival drew the attention of senior Imperial Procession Department officials, while his lavish purchases made him famous among the city’s merchants.

• Wang Chen escorted Liang Shicheng and his family to a merchant caravan bound for Dingzhou, then continued north toward the capital.
• Wang Chen reached Great Ye and sensed that the imperial capital’s fortune had subtly empowered him.
• Wang Chen reported to the Imperial Procession Department Outer Division, where Deputy Commander Liu Chaozong admitted he could not see through Wang Chen’s aura.
• Eunuch Li expressed interest in meeting Wang Chen after his audience with the Emperor, while Wang Chen checked into an Imperial Procession Department post station.
• Wang Chen toured Great Ye and spent two days buying precious medicinal materials, becoming a celebrated young patron among the city’s trading houses.

Wang Chen visited Medicine King Manor to buy rare ginseng, but discovered Old Master Mu was trying to sell him a fake and had conspired with Steward Wang to rob him. After a Martial General’s sneak attack injured the attacker instead, Old Master Mu ordered his men to kill Wang Chen.

• Wang Chen arrived at Medicine King Manor with Steward Wang to inspect its rare medicinal ingredients.
• Old Master Mu presented three aged wild ginseng roots and quoted prices as high as four hundred thousand taels.
• Wang Chen examined the finest ginseng, recognized it as fake, and accused Old Master Mu of deceiving him.
• Old Master Mu threatened Wang Chen, while Steward Wang denied involvement and inwardly celebrated the chance to rob him.
• A Fourth Tier Martial General attacked Wang Chen from behind, but broke his own hand and arm against him.
• Old Master Mu realized Wang Chen was no easy target and ordered his men to kill him.

Wang Chen defeated Medicine King Manor’s guards and forced Old Master Mu to accept payment for the counterfeit ginseng. When the Golden Armored Guard arrived to arrest him, Wang Chen revealed his rank as a Blood-Clad Guard Commander and asked Lord Shangguan to uphold justice.

• A gray-clad half-step Martial Grandmaster and a Fourth Tier Martial General attacked Wang Chen, but he broke the servant’s wrist, used him to smash the other guard through the doorway, and left both incapacitated.
• Wang Chen offered Old Master Mu one million taels for the three counterfeit ginseng roots, took the boxes, and declared their account settled.
• A squad of Golden Armored Guards led by Lord Shangguan arrived, and Old Master Mu accused Wang Chen of murder and attempted robbery.
• Wang Chen showed Lord Shangguan his Identity Token and identified himself as Blood-Clad Guard Commander Wang Chen, prompting the commander to recognize that the token was genuine.

After revealing his identity as a Blood-Clad Guard Commander, Wang Chen forced Shangguan Pengfei and Old Master Mu to back down, then demanded ten million taels for counterfeit ginseng. As Wang Chen prepared to kill Old Master Mu for failing to pay, the merchant offered a treasured artifact to save his life.

• Shangguan Pengfei recognized Wang Chen's identity and abandoned his attempt to intimidate him, while Old Master Mu apologized and cleaned up the hall.
• Shangguan Pengfei offered to settle the incident and invited Wang Chen for a drink, but Wang Chen said he still had an account to settle with Old Master Mu.
• Wang Chen reminded Old Master Mu that he had paid one million taels for three supposedly five-hundred-year-old mountain ginseng roots and accused him of selling counterfeits.
• Wang Chen invoked the Great Ancestor's Law to demand ten million taels, rejecting Shangguan Pengfei's offer of a refund plus one hundred thousand taels.
• When Old Master Mu could not pay and Wang Chen raised his hand to kill him, Old Master Mu offered a treasured artifact as compensation.

Wang Chen forced Old Master Mu to surrender a thousand-year ginseng as compensation after exposing his strength as a fifth-tier Martial Grandmaster. He left for preparations ahead of his audience with the Son of Heaven, while Shangguan Pengfei turned his anger on Old Master Mu.

• Wang Chen split a table with his inner force while leaving the objects on it suspended, revealing that he was a fifth-tier Martial Grandmaster.
• Old Master Mu returned with a sealed white jade box after Wang Chen warned him not to play tricks again.
• Wang Chen opened the box, found a thousand-year ginseng filled with spiritual energy, reclaimed his banknotes, and declared that they were even.
• Shangguan Pengfei invited Wang Chen to Tianxiang Tower, but Wang Chen declined because he had been summoned to meet the Son of Heaven the next day.
• After Wang Chen left, Shangguan Pengfei berated Old Master Mu and demanded an explanation for hiding the ginseng.

Wang Chen tested a rootlet from the thousand-year-old ginseng, gaining Potential and discovering that its spiritual energy conflicted with his Xuantian Malevolent Energy. He then met Emperor Shaowu in the Imperial Study, where their conversation began under the watch of hidden experts.

• Wang Chen consumed a ginseng rootlet and gained 17 Potential points as he refined its medicinal power.
• Wang Chen let the rootlet’s spiritual energy dissolve against his Xuantian Malevolent Energy and gained a clearer understanding from the test.
• Eunuch Yu escorted Wang Chen from the posthouse through the palace inspections to the Imperial Study.
• Emperor Shaowu received Wang Chen, granted him a seat, and began a long conversation with him.
• Wang Chen sensed three auras locking onto him in the Imperial Study, including one that posed a considerable threat.

Wang Chen met Emperor Shaowu, earned permission to study Daoist texts in the Imperial Library Pavilion, and received a jade pendant that greatly increased his fortune while deepening his karmic ties to Great Liang. He then began an intense three-day study of the Ten Directions Daoist Canon.

• Emperor Shaowu spoke at length with Wang Chen about his past and granted him three days to consult the Imperial Library Pavilion’s Daoist scriptures and magical texts.
• Emperor Shaowu gave Wang Chen a Dragon-shaped jade pendant, triggering a Fortune +99 increase that Wang Chen recognized would deepen his karmic entanglement with Great Liang.
• Eunuch Yu led Wang Chen to the Imperial Library Pavilion and remarked on Emperor Shaowu’s unusual favor toward him.
• Wang Chen paid the young eunuch in charge of the Daoist Hall for a catalog listing the Ten Directions Daoist Canon’s books and shelf locations.
• Wang Chen spent the next three days in the Daoist Hall, reading selected texts without eating, drinking, or resting.

Wang Chen cultivated Daoist arts using thousand-year ginseng and met Princess Qingyun, who asked him to teach her a spell. After finding her extraordinary meridians blocked, he realized her supposed unsuitability for Daoist cultivation had another cause.

• Wang Chen absorbed a slice of thousand-year ginseng, doubled the spiritual energy in his Upper Dantian, and demonstrated the Flame Incantation.
• Princess Qingyun approached Wang Chen and asked him to teach her Daoist arts.
• Wang Chen agreed to teach Princess Qingyun the Light Dance Technique after warning her against using the Flame Incantation in the Imperial Palace.
• Wang Chen discovered that Princess Qingyun had never opened her Upper Dantian because her extraordinary meridians were blocked.

Wang Chen declined Princess Qingyun’s request for help opening her Upper Dantian, then finished his three-day study in the Imperial Palace library. He told Deputy Commander Liu Chaozong that he preferred to return to East Lu, but Liu asked him to wait in Great Ye until the Inner Department decided his posting.

• Princess Qingyun asked Wang Chen whether he could help her open her Upper Dantian, and he tactfully refused.
• Princess Qingyun thanked Wang Chen and left, while he returned to studying Daoist texts in the library.
• A young eunuch told Wang Chen that his library time had ended, and Wang Chen thanked him before leaving the Imperial Palace.
• Wang Chen visited Deputy Commander Liu Chaozong, who asked what he wanted to do next.
• Wang Chen said he preferred to return to East Lu, and Liu asked him to remain in Great Ye until the Inner Department made arrangements.

Wang Chen went to claim a Ling Family residence in Great Ye, only to find the Han family occupying it. After forcing the Han family to leave, he returned to face the Golden Armored Guards they had summoned, revealing his Identity Token.

• Wang Chen found a Han family servant at the Ling Family residence and knocked him into the courtyard when he was threatened.
• Wang Chen knocked back the residence guards and confronted the Han family's chief martial instructor, who recognized his strength and dropped to his knees.
• Wang Chen told the brocade-robed Han family man to vacate the residence within two hours, then left.
• The brocade-robed man sent for the Jingzhao Prefecture Office and the Golden Armored Guard after Wang Chen departed.
• Wang Chen returned two hours later to find the Golden Armored Guards waiting, then revealed his Identity Token as one guard began to challenge him.

Wang Chen reclaimed his residence from Han Zhengjie by revealing his Imperial appointment and property deed. Han Zhengjie was allowed one incense stick's time to remove his valuables before Wang Chen was left alone in the house.

• Wang Chen showed his Identity Token and property deed, forcing the Golden Armored Guards to recognize his authority and Han Zhengjie to admit he had no valid claim.
• Feng Yuping identified Wang Chen as a newly appointed Thousand-Household Chief Guard who had met the Emperor, and Han Zhengjie begged for mercy.
• Wang Chen granted Han Zhengjie one incense stick's time to pack, while learning that Han Zhengjie's uncle was the Chief Clerk of the Jingzhao Prefecture Office.
• After the time ran out, Wang Chen ordered Han Zhengjie to leave, and Feng Yuping departed with the Golden Armored Guards.
• Wang Chen remained alone in the residence after Han Zhengjie left it in disarray.

After settling in Great Ye, Wang Chen spent his wealth on cultivation resources and sold the Ling Family’s properties to fund more purchases. His quiet cultivation was interrupted when Princess Qingyun secretly visited and asked him to open her Upper Dantian, and he demanded payment in silver.

• Wang Chen bought servants for his new residence, informed the Imperial Procession Department of his address, and sent an urgent letter to Yao Peng asking him to escort Xi Jun to Great Ye.
• Wang Chen spent heavily on medicinal ingredients to accumulate Potential points and spiritual energy, while selling the Ling Family’s properties and shops to fund his cultivation.
• Wang Chen’s extravagant spending spread through Great Ye, earning him a reputation as a little spendthrift.
• Princess Qingyun secretly visited Wang Chen with two attendants and asked him to help her open her Upper Dantian so she could cultivate Daoist magic.
• Wang Chen asked Princess Qingyun what benefit he would receive, and she offered a phoenix hairpin as collateral for five hundred thousand taels of silver.