Chapter Summaries

A prolonged drought drove Qing'an County into famine, and Wang Chen convinced Ye Xiangming to seize grain from wealthy households to feed the refugees. After an inspection envoy was killed on the way to investigate, the county yamen raided several households for alleged collusion with bandits, leaving Ye Xiangming and Wang Chen dominant in the county by autumn.

• Drought dried up the Clear Water River and ruined farming, while refugees crowded into Qing'an County seeking food.
• Wang Chen urged Ye Xiangming to force wealthy households to provide grain, threatening to plant armor as evidence and, if necessary, raid Yunze or rebel.
• Ye Xiangming agreed, and the wealthy households surrendered large amounts of grain, easing the famine and saving disaster victims.
• Wealthy households secretly petitioned the prefectural city, which sent an inspection envoy to investigate Ye Xiangming and Wang Chen.
• Bandits attacked and killed the inspection envoy and his party before they entered Qing'an County.
• The county yamen raided several wealthy households and arrested them for alleged collusion with bandits, strengthening Ye Xiangming and Wang Chen's control through the end of summer and into autumn.

Wang Chen left Qing'an County to intercept the Drought Demon after learning that Baiyun Temple had diverted it toward the county. He uncovered the temple's scheme and killed Zhang Daozi, while the Drought Demon remained ahead of him.

• Ye Xiangming told Wang Chen that the Drought Demon was heading toward Qing'an County after Baiyun Temple's failed campaign, and Wang Chen resolved to stop it alone.
• Wang Chen rode north through the drought-stricken Changyi Prefecture and found signs of the Drought Demon after two days.
• Wang Chen encountered Zhang Daozi of Baiyun Temple and accused him of guiding the Drought Demon toward Qing'an County.
• Zhang Daozi attacked Wang Chen with a talisman as six armored Knights charged him.
• Wang Chen assembled his Mo Dao, leaped at Zhang Daozi, and split the Daoist and his horse in half.

Wang Chen killed Zhang Daozi and his six Knights, then faced the Drought Fiend with only his mortal strength. He kept evading and probing the beast’s defenses, but the fight remained unresolved as the Fiend grew more enraged.

• Wang Chen killed Zhang Daozi with one strike, then cut down the six Knights who attacked him.
• Wang Chen sensed the Drought Fiend approaching and chose to fight it without breaking his seal or restoring his cultivation.
• Wang Chen drove his Mo Dao into the ground, forcing the Drought Fiend to erupt from beneath the earth.
• Wang Chen charged the Drought Fiend, but its steel-hard fur and sharp claws held off his direct attacks.
• Wang Chen circled the Drought Fiend and searched for a weakness while evading its attacks, and the beast grew increasingly enraged.

Wang Chen discovered the Drought Fiend’s vulnerable spot and pierced it with his hidden soft sword, then pursued the bleeding beast and wore it down with repeated attacks. The Drought Fiend collapsed, but Wang Chen stayed cautious and continued striking it.

• The Drought Fiend unleashed a fiery attack, but Wang Chen endured it with his Innate true qi.
• After spotting a patch of white fur on the Drought Fiend’s lower abdomen, Wang Chen baited its attack and stabbed the weak point with his soft sword.
• The wounded Drought Fiend stuffed mud and rocks into its bleeding wound and fled, but Wang Chen retrieved his Mo Dao and pursued it.
• Wang Chen repeatedly slashed the Drought Fiend while avoiding its counterattacks and ultimate move, weakening it over several hours.
• The Drought Fiend collapsed from its injuries, and Wang Chen continued attacking while retreating to stay out of reach.

Wang Chen killed the Drought Fiend, survived its self-destruction, and returned to Qing'an County as rain ended the drought. Ye Xiangming offered to report Wang Chen’s achievement to the Imperial Court, but Wang Chen refused.

• The Drought Fiend exploded after Wang Chen wounded it, leaving him badly injured and his Mo Dao shattered.
• Rain fell across the land, and Wang Chen recovered a crimson bone containing powerful energy from the Drought Fiend’s remains.
• Wang Chen found that his mount was gone and traveled home through the three-day downpour.
• Ye Xiangming welcomed Wang Chen back and learned that the Drought Fiend had been killed.
• Ye Xiangming offered to request Imperial Court credit for Wang Chen, but Wang Chen said there was no need.

Three years after the drought ended, Wang Chen discovered that Ye Dai was pregnant, and he devoted himself to caring for her until she safely gave birth to their daughter. Wang Chen named the baby Zhenzhen and formed a bloodline bond with her.

• Wang Chen took Ye Dai's pulse and realized she was pregnant, bringing her great relief after years of worry.
• A physician from Spring Relief Hall confirmed the pregnancy, and Ye Xiangming rushed to Wang Manor to celebrate and arrange care for his daughter.
• Wang Chen handed the county office's affairs to his subordinates and spent Ye Dai's pregnancy accompanying and caring for her.
• Ye Dai gave birth to a daughter safely, and Wang Chen comforted her when she felt guilty for not having a son.
• Wang Chen held the baby, named her Zhenzhen, and formed a bloodline resonance and bond with her.

At Wang Zhenzhen’s lavish one-month celebration, Baiyun Temple’s Temple Master Zhang Xiaoshan arrived and declared her a naturally born Dao Child. When Wang Chen refused to let him examine her, Zhang accused the infant of being a drought demon and demanded to take her away.

• Wang Chen held a lavish, open banquet to celebrate Wang Zhenzhen’s one-month birthday, and Ye Xiangming gave her heirloom Jade Pendants.
• Zhang Xiaoshan of Baiyun Temple arrived with a cold-faced middle-aged man and claimed he had come seeking a Dao Child born in Qing'an County.
• Zhang asked Ye Dai to let him examine Wang Zhenzhen’s Spiritual Root, but Wang Chen shielded his wife and daughter and refused.
• Zhang accused Wang Zhenzhen of being the reincarnation of a drought demon who would bring chaos, then demanded to take her to Baiyun Temple for suppression.

At Wang Zhenzhen’s one-month celebration, Zhang Xiaoshan accused the infant of being a Drought Fiend and threatened Wang Chen’s family, but Wang Chen forced him to leave. Outside Qing'an County, Zhang revealed that Wang Chen was a Grandmaster who had cost him thirty years of cultivation, and he ordered his companion not to provoke him.

• Ye Xiangming defied Zhang Xiaoshan’s accusations, but Zhang’s Martial Grandmaster companion crushed him with his aura until Wang Chen intervened.
• Wang Chen confronted Zhang Xiaoshan and ordered him to leave the celebration, and Zhang departed without fighting.
• Ye Xiangming told the guests that Zhang’s party had tried to extort money, and the celebration resumed as the guests echoed his explanation.
• Outside Qing'an County, Zhang Xiaoshan spat blood and said Wang Chen was likely a Grandmaster who had taken thirty years of his cultivation.
• Zhang Xiaoshan said Wang Chen had probably killed his nephew and destroyed the Drought Fiend, then ordered his companion to avoid provoking Wang Chen while he returned to Baiyun Temple to heal.

Wang Chen discovered that the Drought Demon's Crossbone had transformed into a tiny bone in his daughter Wang Zhenzhen’s pouch and caused Solar True Fire to form in her Qi Sea Dantian. He let her keep the treasure and agreed to teach her martial arts.

• Wang Zhenzhen begged Wang Chen to teach her martial arts, and he examined her body with Innate True Qi.
• Wang Chen found a mass of Solar True Fire in Wang Zhenzhen’s Qi Sea Dantian and discovered a crimson bone in her pouch.
• Wang Chen found that the Drought Demon's Crossbone had vanished from his hidden safe and realized it had transformed and bonded with Wang Zhenzhen.
• Wang Zhenzhen admitted she had picked up the bone in Wang Chen’s study, and he returned it to her pouch.
• Wang Chen agreed to let Wang Zhenzhen begin martial arts training after she promised not to give up.

Wang Chen created the Nine Yang Divine Skill for Wang Zhenzhen and reunited with his family after ten days in seclusion. Ye Xiangming then reported that the rebel Li Zili had returned as a Grandmaster, leaving Wang Chen facing a request to help capture him.

• Wang Chen spent ten days devising and refining the Nine Yang Divine Skill, a cultivation method tailored to Wang Zhenzhen’s innate martial body and Solar True Fire.
• Ye Dai brought Wang Chen restorative soup and urged him to care for his health, then encouraged him to give Ye Yu a child.
• Wang Zhenzhen told Ye Xiangming that Wang Chen had agreed to teach her martial arts, and she declared that she would become a Grandmaster.
• Ye Xiangming told Wang Chen that King Ping Tian, Li Zili, had returned to Changyi Prefecture and broken through to the Grandmaster realm.
• Ye Xiangming said the prefectural city had dispatched forces to suppress Li Zili and wanted Qing'an County to assist in capturing him.

Wang Chen and Ye Xiangming prepared Qing'an County for the growing rebellion by expanding its forces and gathering supplies. After the Ping Tian Army seized five counties, Wang Chen anticipated its attack and decided Qing'an should prepare to migrate to Yunze Prefecture.

• Ye Xiangming decided to post a bounty notice for Li Zili rather than genuinely pursue him, and Wang Chen agreed Qing'an County needed to prepare for trouble.
• Wang Chen ordered another five hundred elite soldiers, an expanded cavalry, eight hundred infantry, and three thousand local militiamen, promising to fund their equipment and upkeep.
• Nearly two thousand people applied to enlist, and Wang Chen selected five hundred to train with the veterans.
• Wang Chen led fifty cavalrymen to clear nearby bandit strongholds to raise supplies and salaries for the troops.
• After the Seventeen Rebel Kings swept across much of Nanli, Ye Xiangming warned that Li Zili's Ping Tian Army had taken Yongping County and now controlled five counties.
• Wang Chen said he would speak with Li Zili if the Ping Tian Army attacked and told Ye Xiangming to prepare Qing'an County for migration to Yunze Prefecture.

Wang Chen prepared to evacuate his family and Qing'an County to Yunze Prefecture as the Ping Tian Army conquered Changyi Prefecture and marched on Qing'an. Ye Xiangming agreed to move his family, while Li Zili’s army camped near the county and discussed Wang Chen’s rumored strength and an immortal talisman before an unknown voice asked to see it.

• Wang Chen told Ye Xiangming that Yunze Prefecture could be a refuge from the upheaval, and Ye Xiangming struggled with the cost of abandoning his home and the Ye Clan’s holdings.
• Ye Dai gave birth to Wang Chen’s son, Wang Jingxing, Qing'an County celebrated for three days, and Ye Yu was later found to be pregnant.
• The Ping Tian Army captured the other county towns in Changyi Prefecture and surrounded its prefectural city before scouts reported that Li Zili was leading an army toward Qing'an.
• Ye Xiangming accepted Wang Chen’s plan to move the family south, and Wang Chen said he would not face Li Zili beneath Qing'an’s walls again.
• Li Zili ordered his camp to remain alert and warned his officers that Wang Chen might be a Grandmaster, then a voice in the tent asked to see the immortal talisman.

Wang Chen entered Li Zili’s command tent and negotiated a bloodless transfer of Qing'an County to the Ping Tian Army. Li Zili accepted a one-year delay and a hundred-year pact protecting Yunze Prefecture and trade.

• Wang Chen appeared inside the Ping Tian Army’s command tent, and Li Zili recognized him as Qing'an County’s Assistant County Magistrate and a Grandmaster.
• Li Zili set aside his immortal talismans and swore that his soldiers would stay out of Qing'an County while Wang Chen remained there.
• Wang Chen offered to hand Qing'an County to the Ping Tian Army in exchange for three conditions.
• Wang Chen required the Ping Tian Army to stay out of Qing'an County for one year, then allowed its transfer while barring Li Zili from attacking Yunze Prefecture or restricting trade and travel for one hundred years.
• Li Zili agreed to Wang Chen’s conditions.

Wang Chen and Ye Xiangming led fifty thousand Qing'an County residents south to Yunze Prefecture after selling their properties and posts. As the migration entered Yunze, Wang Chen rode with his daughter Wang Zhenzhen and looked toward a mist-shrouded city.

• The Ping Tian Army captured Changyi Prefecture's prefectural city, leaving Qing'an County isolated amid the dynasty's collapse.
• Ye Xiangming publicly confirmed that the Ye and Wang Clans would leave Qing'an County, and residents debated whether to follow them.
• Ye Xiangming organized the migration and sold the families' properties, including the county magistrate and county deputy posts.
• After nearly three months of preparations, fifty thousand residents set out under the protection of Wang Chen's soldiers and local militiamen.
• The migration party reached Yunze Prefecture after more than half a month on the road, and Wang Zhenzhen complained to Wang Chen about the carriage and her baby brother.
• Wang Chen explained his children's different potential before he and Wang Zhenzhen spotted a beautiful city across misty marshland.

Wang Chen brought his daughter Wang Zhenzhen to the Black Flood Dragon Pool to test her martial skill against the monster lurking there. Wang Zhenzhen killed the flood dragon and proved she could stand on her own, while Wang Chen retrieved its pill.

• Wang Chen and Wang Zhenzhen reached the Black Flood Dragon Pool, where he told her to claim the python flood dragon's pill.
• Wang Zhenzhen plunged into the pool to fight the flood dragon as Wang Chen watched from the shore.
• The wounded Black Flood Dragon burst from the water and attacked Wang Zhenzhen with poisonous water and its tail.
• Wang Zhenzhen evaded the attacks and killed the flood dragon with a sword strike through its skull.
• Wang Chen praised Wang Zhenzhen and pulled the Flood Dragon Pill from the monster's body.

After obtaining the Flood Dragon Pill, Wang Chen decided to travel to Changyi to search for the last ingredient needed for a Youth Preserving Pill for Ye Dai. He took Wang Zhenzhen with him, and their journey north brought them to Qing'an County Town, where she was disappointed by how little it had prospered.

• Wang Chen returned to Tianyun City with Wang Zhenzhen, who proudly told Ye Dai they had killed a Black Flood Dragon and obtained its pill.
• Wang Chen told Ye Dai he planned to visit Changyi to look for Thousand-Year Xuan Ginseng, the final main ingredient for a Youth Preserving Pill.
• Wang Zhenzhen persuaded Wang Chen to let her accompany him, and he prepared for the journey while Ye Dai worried about them leaving.
• Three days later, Wang Chen and Wang Zhenzhen set out for Changyi with four riders and traveled north through Great Wei.
• Wang Chen and Wang Zhenzhen reached Qing'an County Town, where she was surprised and disappointed by its worn, unchanged appearance.

Wang Chen brought Wang Zhenzhen back to the site of their former home in Qing'an County, then continued north with her to give her firsthand experience of life and the Jianghu. They took shelter from a storm at Tongfu Inn, where Wang Zhenzhen caught her father entertaining the innkeeper’s wife with his attention.

• Wang Zhenzhen revisited the former Wang Manor with Wang Chen and mourned the changes to her childhood home.
• Wang Chen took Wang Zhenzhen on a long journey north so she could experience the world for herself.
• As a storm approached, Wang Chen and Wang Zhenzhen found Tongfu Inn and booked a meal and Superior Rooms.
• Wang Chen paid generously for food and wine while the innkeeper’s wife flirted with him.
• Wang Zhenzhen glared at Wang Chen and teased him about his experience with proprietresses, and he denied it before urging her to eat.

Wang Chen exposed Zhao Haiming’s intentions and humiliated his Qingfeng Mountain group in front of the inn’s guests. When Zhao Haiming’s men attacked, Wang Chen revealed overwhelming strength and drove them away.

• Zhao Haiming arrived at the full inn with his wounded companions and asked to share Wang Chen and Wang Zhenzhen’s table.
• Wang Chen refused, then told Wang Zhenzhen that Zhao Haiming had ill intentions and wanted to involve them in his troubles.
• Zhao Haiming and his companions reacted angrily as Wang Chen publicly mocked their attempt to play the victim and the hero.
• A middle-aged man from Qingfeng Mountain attacked Wang Chen, who sent him flying into Zhao Haiming and the other attendants.
• Wang Chen’s display convinced the white-haired elder that he was an Innate Grandmaster, and the group fled after Wang Chen ordered them to leave.

After Wang Chen left an inn with Wang Zhenzhen, Huo Wuji chased after him, seeking to become his disciple and offering a family heirloom. Wang Chen refused to take on Huo Wuji’s karma but gave him the Nine Yang Divine Skill before continuing north to Changyi.

• Wang Chen and Wang Zhenzhen left the inn and resumed their journey north toward Changyi.
• Huo Wuji caught up with Wang Chen, knelt, and begged to become his disciple so he could avenge his family.
• Huo Wuji offered Wang Chen the Qian Kun Mirror, but Wang Chen recognized it as a low-grade imitation and returned it.
• Wang Chen gave Huo Wuji his self-created Nine Yang Divine Skill but warned him not to claim Wang Chen as his master.
• Wang Chen rode on with Wang Zhenzhen, while Huo Wuji clutched the manual and wept.

Wang Chen explained to Wang Zhenzhen that Huo Wuji’s fortune had influenced her feelings, then severed that influence and continued guiding her through the martial world. After she defeated an ambush, they reached Changyi, the Imperial Capital of Great Wei, where Wang Chen hoped his journey would prove worthwhile.

• Wang Chen told Wang Zhenzhen that an unseen force had made them favor Huo Wuji and warned her that his expected story would draw her into his revenge.
• Wang Chen cut the influence affecting Wang Zhenzhen, clearing her mind and affirming that she did not need to sacrifice herself for anyone.
• Wang Chen and Wang Zhenzhen traveled onward as she gained experience and matured while seeing different people and places.
• Wang Zhenzhen repelled a bandit ambush on a mountain path and killed more than ten attackers in the forest.
• Wang Chen and Wang Zhenzhen reached Changyi, the former capital of Nanli and the Imperial Capital of Great Wei.