Chapter Summaries

Li Xuanxiao carried the Heaven Devouring Demon Lord to the Three Lights Divine Water and killed him despite learning that the Shushan Sect Leader would die too. Back at Shu Mountain, the Sect Leader’s soul vanished, leaving the five disciples horrified.

• The Heaven Devouring Demon Lord tried to persuade Li Xuanxiao to spare him by revealing that their fates were linked through an oath with the Shushan Sect Leader.
• Li Xuanxiao declared that the Sect Leader’s death would atone for his past sins and resisted the Heaven Devouring Demon Lord’s attempts to provoke him.
• Li Xuanxiao threw the box into the Three Lights Divine Water, killing the Heaven Devouring Demon Lord.
• The Sect Leader’s five disciples discussed Li Xuanxiao’s mission while the Sect Leader ate roasted whole lamb.
• Li Xuanxiao’s request that the Sect Leader die rang across the heavens, and the Sect Leader’s divine soul vanished before his disciples.

After returning to Shu Mountain, Li Xuanxiao mourned the sect leader he had killed and reached a new understanding of his swordsmanship. Xue Yun gave him the sect leader’s jade box, then rushed off to pursue the woman he loved.

• Li Xuanxiao returned to Shu Mountain and learned from Daoist Master Lingxu that the sect leader had died.
• Li Xuanxiao visited the sect leader’s body in the back mountain and remembered their years together.
• Li Xuanxiao drew his sword in the snow, advanced his Heaven Earth Man Three Talents Swordplay, and heard the sect leader praise him before he paid his respects.
• Xue Yun told Li Xuanxiao that the sect leader was his biological father and gave him a jade box the old man had left behind.
• Xue Yun asked how to win back the woman he loved, took Li Xuanxiao’s advice about pursuing Dao and immortality as encouragement, and hurried away before the sect leader’s first seven days had passed.

Li Xuanxiao pursued Xue Yun out of Shu Mountain, then rescued the injured Zhao Lu while keeping his identity hidden. After returning, he reported Xue Yun’s departure to the new sect leader, Daoist Master Lingxu.

• Li Xuanxiao failed to catch up with Xue Yun, who left Shu Mountain determined to find the woman he loved.
• Li Xuanxiao caught Zhao Lu as she fell from a battle, noticed her attackers used an Evil Cultivation Method, and killed the three Evil Cultivators.
• Li Xuanxiao treated Zhao Lu’s wounds and gave her a Detoxification Pill, then spoke to her through a Paper Figure without revealing his name or sect.
• Zhao Lu used her Image Stone to see Li Xuanxiao’s face and realized that a Shushan Disciple had saved her.
• After the Shushan Sect Leader died, Daoist Master Lingxu succeeded him, and Li Xuanxiao returned to report Xue Yun’s departure.

Ling Xuanxiao reflected on his past life and his desire to become immortal as he helped receive Empress Changsun’s delegation at Shu Mountain. After Zhao Lu revealed proof that he had saved her, the Sect Leader accepted her as a disciple, bringing her closer to Ling Xuanxiao despite his wish to avoid entanglement with the imperial family.

• Daoist Master Lingxu told Ling Xuanxiao to let his love-struck Eldest Senior Brother go and wistfully recalled his own past relationship.
• Ling Xuanxiao remembered his previous life with ALS and resolved to live fully, attain the Dao, and become immortal.
• Ling Xuanxiao received Empress Changsun’s delegation, and Zhao Lu identified him as the person who had saved her using an Image Stone.
• Empress Changsun thanked Ling Xuanxiao, while he denied knowing Zhao Lu and worried that she might have taken an interest in him.
• After the sect leader’s funeral, Fourth Senior Sister Su Wan told Ling Xuanxiao that the Sect Leader had accepted Princess Zhao Lu as a disciple.

Li Xuanxiao introduced Zhao Lu to Shu Mountain and taught her the principles of its Path of Ruthlessness, warning her against letting romance excuse harm to ordinary people. Zhao Lu accepted his lessons, and the story left her continuing her cultivation under his guidance two years later.

• Daoist Lingxu brought Zhao Lu to Shu Mountain and made her Li Xuanxiao’s junior sister before leaving them together.
• Li Xuanxiao explained Shu Mountain’s Path of Ruthlessness and showed Zhao Lu the mountain’s seven peaks as they flew on his sword.
• Li Xuanxiao warned Zhao Lu that a cultivator’s romantic devotion could bring disaster to countless people and families.
• Li Xuanxiao tested Zhao Lu with a scenario about loving a demonic cultivator, then advised her to plan with the sect rather than act impulsively.
• Zhao Lu agreed to Li Xuanxiao’s guidance, and the story moved forward two years.

Li Xuanxiao intervened as Su Wan faced punishment for Jiang Luoshui’s accusations, using evidence to challenge the claim that Su Wan had attacked her. The Law Enforcement Elder’s case against Su Wan remained unresolved as Li Xuanxiao began presenting proof of her whereabouts.

• Su Wan refused to defend herself against accusations of attacking Jiang Luoshui and colluding with the demonic cult, and the Law Enforcement Elder ordered her cultivation abolished and her expulsion from the sect.
• Li Xuanxiao opened the box left by the sect master and found four treasured swords, a sword manual, and two Marrow Cleansing Pills.
• Zhao Lu told Li Xuanxiao that Su Wan had been accused, and he went with her to Tongtian Peak to intervene.
• Li Xuanxiao asked Jiang Luoshui whether she had personally seen Su Wan attack her, then questioned when the attack happened.
• Li Xuanxiao said Su Wan had been cultivating in her cave residence during the Hour of the Tiger and revealed an Image Stone that he claimed recorded her movements for five years.

Li Xuanxiao used five years of surveillance footage to prove Su Wan could not have attacked Jiang Luoshui, exposing a likely frame-up. He was punished with half a year of confinement for spying on Su Wan, then returned to find a sword at his throat.

• Li Xuanxiao showed footage of Su Wan staying in her cave abode when Jiang Luoshui claimed she had attacked her, and argued that the attack was a setup.
• The Law Enforcement Elder accepted that Su Wan had been framed and promised to investigate the true culprit, while Jiang Luoshui pretended to apologize.
• Jiang Luoshui asked Murong Mo to make peace with Su Wan, and he agreed to speak with her.
• The Law Enforcement Elder confronted Li Xuanxiao for spying on Su Wan and installing a Twin Image Stone, then sentenced him to half a year's confinement.
• Li Xuanxiao returned to his thatched cottage, where a sharp sword suddenly pressed against his throat.

Li Xuanxiao convinced Su Wan that he had secretly placed a Twin Image Stone in her cave to protect her from Jiang Luoshui, not to spy on her. After thanking him, Su Wan reconsidered her feelings for him and compared his support with Murong Mo’s silence when she was accused.

• Su Wan confronted Li Xuanxiao with her sword, and he explained that he had placed the Twin Image Stone to guard against Jiang Luoshui framing her.
• Li Xuanxiao swore he had never watched the images and told Su Wan to defend herself when others accused her; she lowered her sword and thanked him.
• As Su Wan left, Li Xuanxiao warned her to be careful around Senior Brother Murong.
• Su Wan imagined that Li Xuanxiao had been secretly in love with and protecting her for years.
• Murong Mo asked whether Su Wan had confronted Li Xuanxiao, and she told him that Li Xuanxiao had protected her.
• Su Wan recalled Murong Mo’s failure to speak up for her and judged the difference between his actions and Li Xuanxiao’s to be clear.

After Su Wan's rumors turned Murong Mo against Li Xuanxiao, Li Xuanxiao planned how to avoid or survive future trouble with Murong Mo and Jiang Luoshui. Back at his cottage, he rebuffed Zhao Lu's attempt to seduce him, prompting her to seek pills to improve her figure.

• Su Wan told Murong Mo that Li Xuanxiao secretly loved and protected her, and the two parted on bad terms as Murong Mo glared toward Silver Sword Peak.
• Li Xuanxiao recorded Murong Mo's hostility and made plans to avoid him and Jiang Luoshui while learning about their abilities and treasures.
• Li Xuanxiao returned to his cottage after failing to plant a Twin Image Stone in Murong Mo's dwelling and learning about two of his magical treasures.
• Zhao Lu staged a poisoning and tried to draw Li Xuanxiao to her bed, but he gave her a Beauty Nourishing Pill and sent her away.
• Zhao Lu wondered why Li Xuanxiao favored Fourth Senior Sister and went to the Alchemy Hall to seek pills to nourish herself.

Li Xuanxiao joined a mission to hunt a Human-Faced Serpent at Mount Wu Wang, where he reunited with Su Wan, Murong Mo, and Jiang Luoshui. Murong Mo killed the serpent, and the disciples were free to search the mountain for their own needs.

• Li Xuanxiao accepted Silver Sword Peak's overdue mission and found Murong Mo, Jiang Luoshui, and Su Wan among the team heading to Mount Wu Wang.
• Murong Mo led the group south on his Spirit Pet, while Su Wan offered to help Li Xuanxiao find what he needed.
• After three days, the team reached Mount Wu Wang, and Murong Mo assigned Li Xuanxiao and other disciples to clear the path through the poisonous forest.
• Su Wan took over leading the way after Li Xuanxiao was nearly caught by a venomous snake, and the group pressed on through further monster attacks.
• Murong Mo trapped and killed the Human-Faced Serpent with his Thunderclap Sword, completing the mission.
• The disciples set out to search Mount Wu Wang for medicinal herbs and other items they needed.

Ling Xuanxiao separated from the Shu Mountain disciples and traveled alone into the Southern Border, where Murong Mo ambushed him to steal the Marrow Cleansing Pill and kill him. Ling Xuanxiao revealed his Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivation and counterattacked with a trap as Murong Mo tried to summon his treasured sword.

• Murong Mo announced he would search deeper in the Southern Border, while Ling Xuanxiao refused Su Wan's offer to travel together and set off alone.
• Su Wan went in another direction, Murong Mo left after warning that he had given her his last chance, and Jiang Luoshui teamed up with the remaining disciples.
• After traveling alone for a day, Ling Xuanxiao set a simple spell formation and waited in the forest at night.
• Murong Mo silently attacked what appeared to be Ling Xuanxiao, but the corpse turned out to be an illusion, and Ling Xuanxiao reappeared.
• Murong Mo accused Ling Xuanxiao of interfering with his relationship with Su Wan and demanded the Marrow Cleansing Pill, revealing that he had lured him into a trap through the mission.
• Ling Xuanxiao unveiled his Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivation and drew his sword, while two Scorpion Puppets fired poisonous needles at Murong Mo from a hidden trap.

Li Xuanxiao killed Murong Mo with a carefully prepared ambush, then disposed of the body and continued searching for puppet materials. In a mountain valley, he witnessed a tremendous eruption of energy in the distance, suggesting that powerful experts were fighting.

• Li Xuanxiao's poison scorpion puppets struck Murong Mo's key acupoints, preventing him from activating his treasure.
• Li Xuanxiao's Spring Sword pierced Murong Mo's brainstem and killed him.
• Li Xuanxiao used powder to lure a Black Panther to Murong Mo's corpse, then followed and killed the beast two days later.
• Li Xuanxiao gathered most of the puppet materials he sought and cast a hexagram in a mountain valley.
• Li Xuanxiao sensed a huge energy fluctuation and saw a blazing radiance fill half the sky in the distance.

Li Xuanxiao survived a devastating battle between powerful experts by hiding underground, but after emerging he encountered a badly wounded Woman in Red. Unable to harm her, he was forced to take her to a concealed cave and treat her wounds.

• Li Xuanxiao hid underground to escape the shockwaves from the experts’ battle and waited until the fighting had stopped before emerging.
• Li Xuanxiao encountered the wounded Woman in Red and tried to flee, but she recognized the Sword Box on his back and asked whether he was a Shushan Disciple.
• The Woman in Red fainted onto Li Xuanxiao, and he tried to kill her, but his sword could not pierce her defenses.
• The Woman in Red woke and ordered Li Xuanxiao to take her somewhere safe, so he brought her to a concealed mountain cave.
• The Woman in Red asked Li Xuanxiao to treat her wounds, and he reached for a bottle labeled Blood Stopping Powder that was actually Five Poisons Powder.

Li Xuanxiao treated the badly wounded Woman in Red with an assortment of medicines and poisons, but she survived and kept him in the cave. After she recovered enough to hunt down the beasts attracted by his powder, he cooked them a meal while continuing to look for a way to deal with her.

• Li Xuanxiao treated the Woman in Red's wounds with increasingly potent medicines and poisons, but she endured the treatment.
• After the Woman in Red ordered Li Xuanxiao to stay until she left, he waited with her in the cave for about a day.
• The Woman in Red woke with her bleeding stopped and her complexion improved, while Li Xuanxiao worried about how dangerous she would be once fully recovered.
• Li Xuanxiao left the cave to gather dew and secretly scattered powder to attract vicious beasts, then returned after pretending to forage.
• The Woman in Red had killed several attracted beasts, so Li Xuanxiao dissected them and cooked a pot of meat soup that impressed her.

Li Xuanxiao cared for the injured Woman in Red while trying to lure out the person who had wounded her, but he accidentally gave her an aphrodisiac before quickly administering an antidote. He later encountered a wounded Woman in Black who captured him and forced him to treat her, leaving him caught between the two dangerous women.

• The Woman in Red praised Li Xuanxiao’s meat soup and asked about his name and master while they ate.
• The Woman in Red became flushed after eating the soup, and Li Xuanxiao realized he had added an aphrodisiac and gave her an antidote.
• Li Xuanxiao spent two days tending to the Woman in Red’s injuries and left clues in hopes of drawing out her attacker.
• While gathering spirit fruits, Li Xuanxiao encountered a wounded Woman in Black, who captured him and demanded that he treat her wounds.
• Li Xuanxiao returned to the Woman in Red to ask about her companions and attacker, but she refused to tell him, so he went back toward the Woman in Black’s cave.

Ling Xuanxiao met the injured Heavenly Fiend Hall Master Di Nüfeng in a cave and won her favor by posing as her servant, Wangcai. After learning Liu Qiushui of Asura Hall had wounded her, he praised Liu’s beauty, provoking Di Nüfeng to demand proof that she was prettier.

• Di Nüfeng named Ling Xuanxiao her servant and took his clothes, including his handmade vest.
• Ling Xuanxiao introduced himself as Murong Mo, then recognized Di Nüfeng as the master of Heavenly Fiend Hall.
• Di Nüfeng fed Ling Xuanxiao a Life and Death Pill that bound him to her and renamed him Wangcai.
• Di Nüfeng revealed that Liu Qiushui of Asura Hall had injured her.
• Ling Xuanxiao called Liu Qiushui a peerless beauty, and Di Nüfeng began undressing to demand that he compare their looks.

Li Xuanxiao survived the conflicting pills from Di Nüfeng and Liu Qiushui when their poisons canceled each other out, and he spent several days tending to both women while absorbing the power. He staged his death by claiming the Heavenly Fiend Hall had attacked, leaving Liu Qiushui to draw her sword in grief and fury as someone else burst into the cave.

• Li Xuanxiao discovered that the poisons in the pills from Di Nüfeng and Liu Qiushui canceled each other out while their power greatly increased his cultivation.
• Li Xuanxiao spent several days moving between Di Nüfeng and Liu Qiushui, caring for them as they grew more familiar with him.
• Li Xuanxiao finished cultivating enough to begin the next step of his plan, then changed Liu Qiushui's medicine.
• Li Xuanxiao returned to Liu Qiushui's cave pretending to be dead and warned her that people from the Heavenly Fiend Hall were coming.
• Liu Qiushui mourned Li Xuanxiao, drew her sword, and braced for battle when another figure burst into the cave.

Li Xuanxiao escaped Mount Wu Wang while Di Nüfeng and Liu Qiushui fought, then reunited with the Shushan Disciples. After Shushan searched for Murong Mo and presumed him dead, Su Wan asked Li Xuanxiao to give her time to grieve before considering their relationship.

• Di Nüfeng and Liu Qiushui fought over Li Xuanxiao, while he secretly escaped using the Earth Evasion Technique.
• Li Xuanxiao reached the Shushan Disciples and told Young Elder Feng Yun that he had seen Di Nüfeng and Liu Qiushui but not Murong Mo.
• Young Elder Feng Yun sent a flying sword message to Shu Mountain for help.
• Shushan’s chief seat masters and elders searched Mount Wu Wang, found neither Demon Lord, and failed to find Murong Mo, whom they presumed dead.
• The Shushan Disciples returned to Shu Mountain as Jiang Luoshui mourned Murong Mo and Su Wan recalled their past relationship.
• Su Wan asked Li Xuanxiao to give her time to heal before she considered his feelings, leaving him bewildered.

Li Xuanxiao clarified to Su Wan that he had protected her without romantic intentions, then returned to Shu Mountain and resumed cultivation. Half a month later, Jiang Luoshui appeared outside his hut on Silver Sword Peak.

• Su Wan wrongly guessed that Li Xuanxiao had killed Murong Mo for her, and Li Xuanxiao denied having romantic feelings for her.
• Li Xuanxiao explained that he had placed paired Image Stones in Su Wan's cave abode to protect her from false accusations, leaving her stunned.
• Several days later, Li Xuanxiao returned to Shu Mountain and went back to Silver Sword Peak after handing in the mission.
• Li Xuanxiao scolded Zhao Lu for neglecting cultivation and ordered her to stay in her room for half a month.
• Li Xuanxiao meditated and worried that Di Nüfeng and Liu Qiushui might seek revenge if they had survived.
• After half a month of secluded cultivation, Li Xuanxiao found Jiang Luoshui waiting beneath the willow tree outside his hut.

Jiang Luoshui approached Li Xuanxiao and led him to believe she meant to avenge Murong Mo, but she was actually trying to provoke Su Wan by implying she would pursue him. Her embellished account sparked rumors and hostility among the Shushan Disciples, so Li Xuanxiao hid in Silver Sword Peak’s back mountain and spent more than three months cultivating and strengthening the Scorpion Puppet.

• Jiang Luoshui asked Li Xuanxiao whether he and Su Wan had a special relationship, and he firmly denied it.
• Jiang Luoshui declared that Su Wan had misunderstood Li Xuanxiao’s feelings and said she would clarify the matter to everyone.
• Jiang Luoshui spread an embellished version of their conversation, prompting rumors and Shushan Disciples to insult and challenge Li Xuanxiao.
• Li Xuanxiao abandoned his thatched hut and hid in the back mountain of Silver Sword Peak to avoid the commotion.
• Li Xuanxiao spent more than three months cultivating in the back mountain and strengthening the Scorpion Puppet with materials from Mount Wu Wang.