Chapter Summaries

After Gu Shao'an captured Duan Tianya, he received Shangguan Haitang’s warning that another force was behind the Six Major Sects’ assault on Bright Summit. At dawn, the Six Major Sects entered the gorge and began their campaign against the Ming Cult.

• Gu Shao'an urged the Emei group to leave their courtyard after suspecting a Ming Cult spy had revealed the sects’ plans.
• Gu Shao'an caught Duan Tianya on the courtyard wall and learned he had come to deliver a letter from Shangguan Haitang.
• Gu Shao'an read Shangguan Haitang’s warning about another force behind the siege and resolved to visit the Capital City after the Bright Summit campaign.
• The Six Major Sects gathered outside Bright Summit, confirmed the gorge entrance was clear, and advanced through it in six groups.
• The Six Major Sects began their war against the Ming Cult.

As the Six Major Sects fought through Bright Summit, Abbot Juechen explained why Shaolin’s strongest masters entered the Bodhidharma Academy instead of freely intervening in the martial world. Abbess Miejue learned that the Five Wanderers and Heavenly Eagle Cult had arrived to aid the Ming Cult, while Chai Shaofei prepared a trap for Emei and Zhang Wuji and Yin Li approached the mountain.

• Ming Cult forces used concealed attacks, smoke, and arrows to inflict heavy casualties on Huashan Sword Sect and Shaolin disciples.
• Abbot Juechen warned that Emei was nearing the forbidden area and explained that Shaolin kept its strongest masters in the Bodhidharma Academy to avoid provoking the martial world.
• Abbess Miejue returned from meeting the other sect leaders and reported that the Five Wanderers and Heavenly Eagle Cult had arrived to support the Ming Cult.
• Abbess Miejue ordered Emei to rest, then move beyond the forbidden area and help the Wudang Sect.
• Chai Shaofei prepared an ambush for Emei, disguised himself and his Thick Earth Banner disciples as badly wounded survivors, and led them toward the sect.
• Zhang Wuji and Yin Li slowly climbed toward Bright Summit.

Gu Shao'an and the Emei Sect uncovered a Ming Cult ambush on their way to the forbidden grounds, and Miejue defeated the bait party while Gu Shao'an detected lingering poison. Zhang Wuji and Yin Li arrived as Juechen interrogated the surviving Ming Cult disciples, leaving Zhang Wuji surprised to find Zhou Zhiruo and the others among the Emei.

• Yin Li asked Zhang Wuji why he was determined to climb Bright Summit, and he said he had his reasons.
• Gu Shao'an and the Emei Sect recognized that wounded Ming Cult disciples were bait, but Miejue pursued them and destroyed the hidden tunnel trap with her sword qi.
• Miejue severed Chai Shaofei's arm after discovering his injury was faked, while Gu Shao'an detected poisonous smoke and warned the Emei disciples.
• Juechen seized Chai Shaofei and demanded to know about further traps as Zhang Wuji and Yin Li arrived; Zhang Wuji recognized Zhou Zhiruo and was surprised to learn she and the others were Emei disciples.
• Chai Shaofei claimed there was only one trap, and Juechen snapped his neck before questioning another Ming Cult disciple.

Abbot Juechen interrogated the Ming Cult disciples and prepared to kill them, but Zhang Wuji intervened and accepted Abbess Miejue’s challenge to take three palm strikes. Miejue’s first strike nearly killed him, and Gu Shao'an treated him and identified his Nine Yang Divine Skill as the source of his rapid recovery.

• Abbot Juechen killed several Ming Cult disciples, confirmed that they had laid only one trap, and prepared to execute the remaining captives.
• Zhang Wuji rushed in using Wudang Ladder Cloud Steps and asked Abbess Miejue to spare the surrendered prisoners.
• Abbess Miejue challenged Zhang Wuji to withstand three palm strikes, and he accepted despite Gu Shao'an’s assessment that he was not strong enough.
• Abbess Miejue struck Zhang Wuji with a palm that sent him flying and left him gravely injured.
• Gu Shao'an stabilized Zhang Wuji, gave him an Emei healing pill, and told Abbess Miejue that Zhang Wuji should recover in a few days because he cultivated the Nine Yang Divine Skill.

Abbess Miejue recognized Zhang Wuji and, after learning he was connected to the Ming Cult, killed the remaining Ming Cult disciples and sent the injured Zhang Wuji and Yin Li to Wudang. The Emei Sect then entered the Ming Cult’s forbidden grounds, while at Wudang’s camp Zhang Songxi learned Zhang Wuji had mastered the Nine Yang Divine Skill; an unknown figure slipped away from nearby.

• Zhou Zhiruo recognized the injured young man as Zhang Wuji, and Abbess Miejue stopped treating him and killed the remaining Ming Cult disciples.
• Abbess Miejue rejected Shitai Jueyuan’s suggestion to take the Nine Yang Divine Skill, arguing that Gu Shao'an’s Emei Nine Yang Manual was already its equal.
• Abbess Miejue sent Zhang Wuji and Yin Li to Wudang, then led the Emei Sect into the Ming Cult’s forbidden grounds and left most of its disciples concealed in a treasure chamber.
• At Wudang’s camp, Zhang Songxi told Mo Shenggu that Zhang Wuji’s life was out of danger and rebuked him for blaming Abbess Miejue.
• Zhang Songxi revealed that Zhang Wuji had said he mastered the Nine Yang Divine Skill, and an unknown figure silently slipped away from behind a nearby boulder.

Zhao Min learned that Zhang Wuji had mastered the Nine Yang Divine Skill and planned to capture him after the Six Major Sects’ assault on Bright Summit. As the sects launched their final attack, Gu Shao'an and his allies watched Xianyu Tong reveal and trigger the Ming Cult’s hidden mechanisms on the summit steps.

• Zhao Min arrived at Bright Summit with Hua Jieyu and Jiumozhi, then ordered Lu Zhangke and He Biyuan to kill the martial artists scavenging the battlefield.
• Liu Yaozhi reported that Zhang Wuji had mastered the Nine Yang Divine Skill, and Zhao Min decided to keep watch on him until the Six Major Sects’ assault was over.
• Yang Yan told Gu Shao'an that the Six Major Sects had gathered and would begin their final assault in fifteen minutes, so he left the cliff ledge with her.
• Master Kongzhi called the sects to advance, and Song Yuanqiao, Abbess Miejue, He Taichong, Xianyu Tong, and the other leaders led their disciples up the steps.
• Xianyu Tong used iron pellets to trigger poisoned crossbow traps on the steps, while Abbot Juechen explained his expertise in hidden weapons to Zhou Zhiruo and Yang Yan.
• Yang Yan asked whether Xianyu Tong's technique resembled Shangguan Haitang's, and Gu Shao'an said the two techniques were worlds apart.

The Six Major Sects confronted the Ming Cult at Bright Summit, where Yang Xiao threatened to make their victory unbearably costly. Yin Liting learned that Abbess Miejue had killed Ji Xiaofu, but Gu Shao'an and Abbot Juechen explained the reasons behind it, and Miejue and Yang Xiao finally clashed.

• The Six Major Sects reached the summit and faced Yin Tianzheng, Yang Xiao, and the Ming Cult’s assembled disciples.
• Yang Xiao warned Kongzhi and the sect leaders that a desperate battle would cause heavy casualties, but Miejue persuaded Kongzhi that withdrawing would ruin their reputations.
• Yin Liting challenged Yang Xiao over Ji Xiaofu, and Yang Xiao revealed that Miejue had killed her.
• Gu Shao'an defended Miejue and challenged Yang Xiao to explain why she would kill her own disciple; Miejue and Abbot Juechen disclosed Ji Xiaofu’s affair with Yang Xiao and her defiance of Emei’s rules.
• Ji Xiaofu’s daughter protested, while Song Yuanqiao had the devastated Yin Liting escorted away.
• Miejue challenged Yang Xiao over Guhongzi’s death and Ji Xiaofu, and Yang Xiao charged at her with a killing palm strike.

Abbess Miejue overwhelmed Yang Xiao in their duel, countering his Heaven and Earth Great Shift and crippling both his hands. She left him humiliated before the Six Major Sects and Ming Cult, while her long-held frustration finally eased.

• Abbess Miejue forced Yang Xiao back with a palm strike and attacked with Emei techniques, while Yang Xiao used the Finger Flicking Divine Skill and Heaven and Earth Great Shift to defend himself.
• Yang Xiao redirected Abbess Miejue's palm force, but she exposed his misreading of Golden Summit Cotton Palm and struck his chest; she then accused Ji Xiaofu of revealing Emei's martial arts to him.
• Gu Shao'an explained that Yang Xiao had only cultivated the second level of the Heaven and Earth Great Shift and that repeated force redirection would strain his body.
• Abbess Miejue severed Yang Xiao's drawing force with her footwork and struck his right shoulder, breaking it and leaving him unable to resist.
• Abbess Miejue slapped Yang Xiao across the face, pierced his wrist when he tried to retaliate, and crippled both his hands before striking him again.

Gu Shao'an halted the Ming Cult's attack with a devastating sword strike, while Abbot Juechen killed Yin Tianzheng and Miejue defeated Yang Xiao. The Ming Cult's strongest fighters were gone, leaving it without an expert as the battle on Bright Summit continued.

• Yin Tianzheng tried to intervene in Miejue and Yang Xiao's fight, but Abbot Juechen intercepted him and fought him with her sword.
• The Five Elements Envoys and Ming Cult disciples charged to help Yin Tianzheng and Yang Xiao, but Gu Shao'an carved a huge sword scar across their path and ordered them not to cross it.
• Abbot Juechen used the Nine Yin Divine Claw to pierce Yin Tianzheng's chest and kill him.
• Miejue struck Yang Xiao repeatedly for his insults, his conduct toward an Emei disciple, and his role in Guhongzi's death, then forced him to kneel with a palm strike.

After Yang Xiao died, the Ming Cult’s defeat drove most of its remaining followers to flee while a few chose death beside the Sacred Fire Altar. Zhao Min then arrived with powerful companions, revealing that the real confrontation at Bright Summit was just beginning.

• Gu Shao'an killed Yang Xiao with the Heavenly Sword, and Xue Yong shot and killed Yang Buhui before offering to betray the Ming Cult in exchange for his life.
• The Six Major Sects let Xue Yong escape, prompting hundreds of Ming Cult disciples to abandon the cult and flee down the mountain.
• Several dozen Ming Cult disciples gathered around the Sacred Fire Altar, chanted their creed, and severed their own heart meridians.
• Gu Shao'an concluded that the plot against the Ming Cult aimed to make it and the Six Major Sects destroy each other, just as Zhao Min arrived with five companions.
• Zhao Min questioned Gu Shao'an and challenged He Taichong, then ordered Lu Zhangke to attack him with a palm wrapped in freezing energy.

Lu Zhangke injured He Taichong with the Xuanming Palm as Zhao Min confronted the Six Major Sects on Bright Summit. After Wudang and Shaolin reinforcements revealed that Zhao Min’s forces were advancing, Gu Shao'an recognized the monk Yuanzhen as Cheng Kun and attacked him.

• Lu Zhangke struck He Taichong with the Xuanming Palm, and Song Yuanqiao identified him and He Biyuan as the Xuanming Elders.
• Hua Jieyu detected Gu Shao'an and Abbot Juechen using Essence transmission, while Liu Yaozhi watched Zhou Zhiruo and Yang Yan with keen interest.
• Zhang Songxi arrived with wounded Wudang disciples and warned that Zhao Min’s archers and experts were climbing Bright Summit after attacking fleeing Ming Cult members.
• Yuanzhen arrived with wounded Shaolin disciples, and Gu Shao'an recognized him as Cheng Kun hiding among them.
• Zhao Min declared that she intended to detain the Six Major Sects and threatened to make Bright Summit their burial ground, but Abbess Miejue defied her.
• Gu Shao'an hurled four copper coins toward Yuanzhen, who met the attack with his Thunderclap Hand.

Gu Shao'an crippled Yuanzhen and seized a gourd containing Sorrowful Crisp Breeze, exposing Yuanzhen's poison as Zhao Min and her allies waited for reinforcements. When Liu Yaozhi attacked, Gu Shao'an shattered his jade flute, broke his arm, and slammed his head into the stone, then watched Hua Jieyu without speaking.

• Gu Shao'an struck Yuanzhen's hands and knees with copper coins, then took the peachwood gourd that had fallen from Yuanzhen's sleeve.
• Gu Shao'an threatened Yuanzhen until he revealed the gourd held Sorrowful Crisp Breeze, and Master Kongzhi and Xianyu Tong recognized the poison.
• Gu Shao'an inferred that Zhao Min was waiting for someone who had not arrived, then vanished and met Liu Yaozhi's charge.
• Gu Shao'an's sword finger shattered Liu Yaozhi's jade flute, and his punch broke Liu Yaozhi's right arm.
• Gu Shao'an caught Liu Yaozhi in midair and drove his head into the stone, then fixed his gaze on Hua Jieyu, who did not dare move.

Gu Shao'an killed Liu Yaozhi, then fought Hua Jieyu and Jiumozhi when they attacked to protect Zhao Min. He revealed the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms and badly injured both opponents, but shifted aside when two unseen attacks tore through the air above him.

• Gu Shao'an killed Liu Yaozhi in three breaths and warned Zhao Min that her expected ally might not arrive before she died.
• Hua Jieyu and Jiumozhi attacked Gu Shao'an together, but he disrupted Hua Jieyu's ribbons and drove both fighters back with overwhelming strength.
• Gu Shao'an realized Hua Jieyu's ribbons carried spiritual power, then resisted her demonic melody with his true essence.
• Gu Shao'an used Shocking the Hundred Miles to shatter Hua Jieyu's ribbons, break Jiumozhi's Flame Blade, and injure both of them.
• Song Yuanqiao recognized Gu Shao'an's technique as the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, and Gu Shao'an dodged as two attacks tore through the air above him.

Fang Yeyu arrived at Bright Summit and revealed that the Demon Master Palace stood behind the attack on the Six Major Sects. He and Gu Shao'an began a fierce duel, which left Song Qingshu stunned by the gulf between their abilities.

• Fang Yeyu’s Three-Eight Twin Halberds crashed into Bright Summit, and Song Yuanqiao identified him as the Young Demon Master and Pang Ban’s personal disciple.
• The Six Major Sects realized the Demon Master Palace was behind the attack and suspected Shaolin had drawn its attention.
• Fang Yeyu and Gu Shao'an charged at each other without speaking, and Gu Shao'an met Fang Yeyu’s halberds with the Heavenly Sword.
• Gu Shao'an used the force of Fang Yeyu’s halberds to create an opening, but Fang Yeyu narrowly blocked his sword and continued the fight.
• Fang Yeyu and Gu Shao'an traded nearly a hundred rapid attacks while the Six Major Sects struggled to follow their movements.
• Song Qingshu watched in shock as Gu Shao'an and Fang Yeyu fought, and Song Yuanqiao reflected that Gu Shao'an’s talent could lead Emei to flourish.

Gu Shao'an defeated Fang Yeyu by exploiting the weakness in his psychic-assisted fighting style and dispelling his final illusion. After Fang Yeyu and Hua Jieyu fell, Gu Shao'an turned his attention to Zhao Min and the Xuanming Elders.

• Gu Shao'an realized Fang Yeyu relied on psychic power to wield his heavy twin halberds, leaving brief gaps in his attacks.
• Gu Shao'an sheathed his sword and overwhelmed Fang Yeyu with palm strikes, forcing him to drop his right halberd.
• Fang Yeyu used psychic power to fill Gu Shao'an's vision with illusory halberds, but Gu Shao'an dispelled the illusion with a dragon roar.
• Gu Shao'an combined Repentant Dragon with Immortal Caresses My Crown and struck Fang Yeyu down.
• Hua Jieyu caught Fang Yeyu but was overwhelmed by the residual force and fell still; Fang Yeyu spat blood and died.
• Gu Shao'an turned toward Zhao Min and the Xuanming Elders, who shuddered under his gaze.

Gu Shao'an stopped Jiumozhi, Zhao Min, and the Xuanming Elders from escaping with Zhang Wuji, killing the Xuanming Elders and protecting the Emei Sect from their poisoned weapons. Jiumozhi and Zhao Min escaped, while Gu Shao'an returned to the summit with the injured Zhang Wuji and the antidote for Abbot Juechen.

• Jiumozhi seized Zhang Wuji, kicked Mo Shenggu away, and scattered poisonous powder before fleeing toward the mountain entrance with Zhao Min and the Xuanming Elders.
• The Xuanming Elders triggered poisoned smoke and needles against the Emei Sect, but Gu Shao'an and the others deflected most of the attack; Abbot Juechen was poisoned.
• Gu Shao'an pursued the Xuanming Elders and killed Lu Zhangke and He Biyuan with a single swift sword strike.
• Gu Shao'an hurled his sword sheath at Zhao Min, but Jiumozhi used Zhang Wuji as a shield, then escaped with Zhao Min after throwing prayer beads at Gu Shao'an.
• Gu Shao'an neutralized the prayer beads, retrieved Zhang Wuji, and found antidotes among the Xuanming Elders' belongings.
• Gu Shao'an treated Abbot Juechen with the antidote and returned the badly injured Zhang Wuji to Song Yuanqiao.

After defeating the Demon Master Palace at Bright Summit, Gu Shao'an warned Wudang to protect Zhang Wuji, whose Nine Yang Divine Skill could serve Pang Ban's cultivation. Gu Shao'an then accepted the threat of Pang Ban's eventual return and used his achievement points for four draws, ending with a Martial Arts Enlightenment Card among his rewards.

• Gu Shao'an advised Song Yuanqiao to keep Zhang Wuji on Wudang Mountain because the Demon Master Palace had tried to seize him.
• Gu Shao'an reasoned that Zhao Min's group wanted Zhang Wuji's Nine Yang Divine Skill as a cultivation cauldron for Pang Ban's Dao Heart Seed Demon Great Law.
• Abbess Miejue explained that Emei's Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms came from its founder Guo Xiang, and He Taichong withdrew his insinuation that Emei had stolen the technique.
• Zhang Songxi confirmed that the attackers had withdrawn, and the sect leaders discussed the border breach and began looting the Ming Cult's Bright Hall.
• Gu Shao'an told Zhou Zhiruo and Yang Yan that he would prepare for Pang Ban's return, then resolved to seek the Diamond Body Divine Skill in the capital.
• Gu Shao'an spent four thousand achievement points on a four-item draw and received Ink Jade Marrow, a Ten Year Cultivation Card, a Martial Arts Enlightenment Card, and a Pusi Qu Snake Gallbladder.

Gu Shao'an considered using a Martial Arts Enlightenment Card to create a powerful sword technique and refined his inner strength while discussing the dangers of rising fame. Abbess Miejue and Abbot Juechen then explained how Demon Master Palace’s plot involved the Great Yuan court and exposed Shaolin’s reluctance to confront it openly.

• Gu Shao'an decided to save the Martial Arts Enlightenment Card for deducing a sword technique capable of defeating Fang Yeyu in one strike, and he refined ten years of inner strength to reach sixty-five years.
• Yang Yan and Zhou Zhiruo rested beside Gu Shao'an on the roof, and Zhou Zhiruo offered to handle challengers who came seeking his fame.
• Abbess Miejue and Abbot Juechen told Gu Shao'an and the others that the Five Major Sects suspected Demon Master Palace had fueled their conflicts and planned to poison and imprison them.
• Abbot Juechen revealed that Yuanzhen had admitted Demon Master Palace targeted Song and the Wudang Seven Heroes, as well as Kongzhi, but knew little beyond that.
• Abbot Juechen said Song proposed questioning the imperial court over Great Yuan soldiers entering Great Wei, while Shaolin refused to publicly implicate Great Yuan, angering Abbess Miejue.

Gu Shao'an agreed to help heal Zhang Wuji's shattered spine and traded knowledge of Cheng Kun's whereabouts for the Nine Yang Divine Skill. After Zhang Wuji recited the formula, Gu Shao'an identified Cheng Kun as the Shaolin monk Yuanzhen.

• Abbess Miejue told Gu Shao'an she would take him to Wudang if he needed protection from Pang Ban, and Gu Shao'an said he expected to grow strong enough to face him.
• Mo Shenggu asked Gu Shao'an to examine Zhang Wuji, whose injuries had left him unable to move his lower body.
• Gu Shao'an diagnosed Zhang Wuji's injury as treatable, wrote a prescription, and arranged to prepare pills once the herbs arrived.
• Gu Shao'an offered to reveal what he knew about Cheng Kun in exchange for the Nine Yang Divine Skill, while promising not to withhold treatment if Zhang Wuji refused.
• Zhang Wuji agreed and recited the Nine Yang Divine Skill, which Gu Shao'an memorized after hearing it once.
• Gu Shao'an revealed that Cheng Kun had entered Shaolin under the name Yuanzhen, prompting Zhang Songxi to recognize the monk.

Gu Shao'an began treating Zhang Wuji’s shattered back with Black Jade Intermittent Ointment, promising a recovery in three days. Zhang Wuji’s awe at Gu Shao'an’s skill turned into doubt, and Gu Shao'an ended by criticizing the shallowness of his medical and martial arts training.

• Zhang Wuji asked Song Yuanqiao whether Gu Shao'an could heal him, then struggled with self-doubt after hearing how far Gu Shao'an surpassed him.
• Song Yuanqiao encouraged Zhang Wuji to strengthen his foundations and pursue Gu Shao'an as a goal, then decided to keep Song Qingshu on Wudang Mountain until he reached Condensing Qi into Essence.
• Gu Shao'an tested the Nine Yang Divine Skill, judged it too extreme to improve the Emei Nine Yang Manual, and noted that it could strengthen his yang energy.
• Gu Shao'an prepared Black Jade Intermittent Ointment and crushed and realigned Zhang Wuji’s shattered lumbar vertebrae, while Mo Shenggu applied the medicine.
• Gu Shao'an told Zhang Wuji to use the ointment daily and promised he would recover in three days, then said Zhang Wuji had learned broadly but lacked refinement in medicine and martial arts.