Chapter Summaries

Yang Jing visited Liu Maolin at the Liu Family Medical Hall to ask whether the Flying Horse Bandits had retaliated, but Liu Maolin concealed his deeper suspicions and prepared to escort a valuable shipment without Yang Jing. On his walk home, Yang Jing saw the suffering of the poor and resolved to train harder so he could reach transforming strength and protect those he cared about.

• Yang Jing and Jiang Haoyang visited Liu Maolin, and Yang Jing asked whether the Flying Horse Bandits had targeted the Liu Family Medical Hall.
• Liu Maolin said the recent herb deliveries had been safe, while hiding his suspicion that a bandit leader had protected a mysterious young master during their encounter.
• Liu Maolin recalled that the bandit leader’s concern for the young man had let him strike back, and he planned to escort an immensely valuable shipment with his father and the family’s best guards without involving Yang Jing.
• Yang Jing and Jiang Haoyang walked home, where Yang Jing saw displaced people suffering in the cold and resolved to strive for transforming strength.

Yang Jing learned that Liu Maolin had been captured by the Flying Horse Bandits and volunteered to follow the ransom convoy to Black Wind Valley in secret. Three days later, he slipped into the woods and began shadowing the convoy while Jiang Haoyang trained at the martial arts school.

• Jiang Haoyang told Yang Jing that the Liu Family Medical Hall's convoy had returned with Hall Master Liu badly wounded and Liu Maolin captured by the Flying Horse Bandits.
• The medical hall steward explained that the bandits had ambushed the convoy in Black Wind Valley and demanded a hundred thousand taels within three days for Liu Maolin's release.
• Yang Jing offered to follow the ransom delivery in secret, and Hall Master Liu accepted after warning him of the danger.
• Yang Jing spotted an unfamiliar carriage watching the Sun Clan Martial Arts School but chose not to alert Sun Yong, fearing the bandits might harm Liu Maolin.
• Three days later, Yang Jing left home after learning the ransom convoy had departed, then followed it out of the city and into the woods.
• Jiang Haoyang practiced the Mountain Collapse Fist at the school, determined to grow strong enough to help Yang Jing in the future.

Yang Jing followed the Liu Family convoy to Black Wind Valley and discovered the Flying Horse Bandits had used a fake Liu Maolin to steal the ransom. After the bandits slaughtered several guards and drove off with the silver, Yang Jing secretly pursued them toward their lair to find the real Liu Maolin.

• Yang Jing watched the convoy reach Black Wind Valley and spotted the Flying Horse Bandits emerge with a hooded man dressed like Liu Maolin.
• The bandits demanded the silver first, and the one-eyed man killed a guard who tried to stop him from inspecting the ransom.
• A guard attempted to rescue the hooded man, but the fake killed him with a hidden dagger, revealing the deception to Yang Jing and the convoy.
• The bearded bandit admitted the Flying Horse Bandits would not release Liu Maolin and ordered his men to attack the guards.
• The surviving guards fled as the bandits took the seven wagons of silver into Black Wind Valley.
• Yang Jing followed the convoy unseen, intending to reach the Flying Horse Bandits' lair and locate Liu Maolin.

Jiang Haoyang worried over Yang Jing and trained harder while Master Liu waited anxiously for news of his son, Maolin. The ransom exchange failed when the Flying Horse Bandits used an impostor, and Yang Jing followed their silver convoy toward their lair, where he discovered another armed group tracking them.

• Jiang Haoyang suspected that a finely dressed visitor to the Sun Clan Martial Arts School was a Flying Horse Bandits spy and pushed himself to train.
• Master Liu learned that Li Tieyun and the River Gang had positioned an ambush near Black Wind Valley as a contingency.
• Master Liu's guards returned bloodied and reported that the Flying Horse Bandits had exchanged an impostor for the ransom silver and killed several guards.
• Yang Jing secretly followed the Flying Horse Bandits' seven-carriage convoy while worrying about Liu Maolin's fate.
• Yang Jing discovered four hidden strength experts watching the convoy, including a peak hidden strength leader, but could not determine their motives.
• Yang Jing continued toward the Flying Horse Bandits' lair, then abruptly stopped when something ahead alarmed him.

Yang Jing infiltrated the Flying Horse Bandits’ stronghold and found Liu Maolin gravely injured but alive. After killing several guards and bandits, he tried to carry his senior brother out, but Li Qianxiong and the other leaders closed in.

• Li Tieyun refused to rob the Flying Horse Bandits’ silver, and he and his subordinates watched as Li Qianxiong arrived with reinforcements and escorted the convoy toward Cloud Mountain.
• Yang Jing followed the bandits to their stronghold and slipped inside while their attention was on the silver.
• Yang Jing questioned a bandit about Liu Maolin’s whereabouts, killed him, and searched the guarded huts until he found Liu Maolin barely alive.
• Yang Jing gave Liu Maolin a Spring Return Pill and discovered that all four of his limbs had been broken and his meridians damaged.
• Yang Jing killed the guards and a goateed bandit, secured Liu Maolin to his back, and prepared to escape as the stronghold raised the alarm and Li Qianxiong charged toward him.

Yang Jing stormed the Flying Horse Bandits' stronghold on Cloud Mountain and rescued Liu Maolin, defeating several bandits before escaping past Li Qianxiong. After handing Liu Maolin to Li Tieyun and the River Gang, Yang Jing turned back to fight the pursuing bandits.

• Yang Jing carried Liu Maolin through the bandits' encirclement, killing a bright strength fighter and grievously wounding One-Eye with his fists.
• Yang Jing fought Li Qianxiong at the stronghold's fence, withstood his Mountain-Splitting Palm, and used the collision to leap outside.
• Li Tieyun and his three River Gang subordinates watched Yang Jing escape and learned from their deputy that he was Yang Jing and the rescued man was Liu Maolin.
• Li Tieyun offered to cover Yang Jing's retreat, but Yang Jing handed Liu Maolin to him and charged back toward Li Qianxiong.

Yang Jing and Li Tieyun joined forces against the Flying Horse Bandits, and Yang Jing defeated their chief, Li Qianxiong. The chapter ended with Yang Jing killing Li Qianxiong, while the remaining bandits fled or were still fighting.

• Yang Jing turned back and cut through the Flying Horse Bandits, using his speed to evade Li Qianxiong and bring down the bandits’ strongest fighters.
• Li Tieyun left Ma Chaoyun to guard Liu Maolin and joined Yang Jing’s fight with two subordinates.
• Yang Jing and Li Tieyun’s group overwhelmed the bandits, causing many to flee as Yang Jing gained the upper hand against Li Qianxiong.
• Yang Jing broke Li Qianxiong’s shoulder and stopped him from escaping, then beat him until he collapsed against a tree.
• Yang Jing refused to tell Li Qianxiong his name and killed him by kicking a spear through his chest and pinning him to a tree.

Yang Jing and Li Tieyun defeated the Flying Horse Bandits and stormed their stronghold, where they rescued the hostages and searched for the bandits’ wealth. Yang Jing discovered a hidden copy of Indestructible True Art and concealed it just as Li Tieyun returned.

• After Yang Jing killed Li Qianxiong, the Flying Horse Bandits lost their will to fight, and Li Tieyun killed their third chief as he tried to flee.
• Yang Jing, Li Tieyun, and the River Gang fighters killed the remaining bandits on the battlefield and stormed the Flying Horse Bandits’ stronghold.
• Yang Jing rescued the hostages while Li Tieyun’s men learned that the second chief had escaped and that the bandits’ valuables might be hidden elsewhere.
• The group searched Li Qianxiong’s residence, finding twenty gold bars and three martial arts manuals but little of the stolen wealth.
• Yang Jing suspected the Buddha statue concealed something, split it open, and found banknotes and a book titled Indestructible True Art, which he hid in his robe before Li Tieyun returned.

Yang Jing helped Li Tieyun’s group finish searching the Flying Horse Bandits’ stronghold, rescued Liu Maolin, and returned with him and the spoils to Yuhe County. As the convoy traveled through the snow, Yang Jing accepted that his strength would become public knowledge and that his name would soon shake the county.

• Yang Jing concealed the Indestructible True Art while handing the bandits’ banknotes to Li Tieyun, who later awarded Yang Jing one hundred thousand taels and the original martial arts manuals.
• The wiry man secretly kept five banknotes and a black token marked “Jiujiang” before turning over the remaining notes to Li Tieyun.
• Yang Jing and the others gathered the stronghold’s wealth, recovered the seven silver wagons, and escorted the rescued hostages and Liu Maolin toward Yuhe County.
• At Pinewood Post Station, Hall Master Liu was reunited with his badly injured son and thanked Yang Jing for rescuing him.
• Li Tieyun recounted Yang Jing’s assault on the stronghold, and Hall Master Liu resolved to strengthen the Liu Family’s ties to him.
• As the convoy traveled through heavy snow, Yang Jing accepted that news of his strength would spread and touched the hidden Indestructible True Art manual.

After helping defeat the Flying Horse Bandits, Yang Jing returned home, gave a few coins to starving refugees, and obtained the first half of the legendary Indestructible True Art. News of his achievement spread through Yuhe County, and County Magistrate Zhou Wenbin planned a banquet to honor him.

• The physicians told Hall Master Liu that Liu Maolin would survive but would likely never advance beyond Hidden Strength, and Yang Jing left after visiting his senior brother.
• Yang Jing saw refugees freezing in the streets, gave coins to a few children and an old woman, then returned home and reassured Jiang Haoyang and Yang An.
• Yang Jing secured his banknotes and martial manuals, then studied the Indestructible True Art and discovered that the surviving volume ended at the Transforming Strength realm.
• County Magistrate Zhou Wenbin received word that Yang Jing had slain Li Qianxiong and helped wipe out the Flying Horse Bandits, and he ordered a banquet to be held in Yang Jing's honor.
• The news stirred the great families of Yuhe County, while Sun Yong read the report and proudly recognized Yang Jing as his simple, honest final disciple.

After Yang Jing reported the Flying Horse Bandits’ defeat to Sun Yong, his master praised his progress, warned him to pursue transforming strength, and offered to spar with him daily. Sun Yong considered making Yang Jing his Final Disciple and proposed that he marry Sun Ningxiang, while the Li and Qi families reacted to his rising reputation; Li Mengchao chose to attempt a breakthrough, and Qi Yun reconsidered her past feelings for Yang Jing.

• Yang Jing told Sun Yong how he rescued Liu Maolin, joined forces with Li Tieyun, and killed Li Qianxiong, revealing that his Surging Wave Leg had reached hidden strength.
• Sun Yong warned Yang Jing not to become complacent, urged him to break through to transforming strength, and arranged to spar with him every afternoon.
• Sun Yong told Sun Ningxiang he was considering making Yang Jing his Final Disciple, then proposed that she marry him; Sun Ningxiang fled the study in embarrassment.
• After reading a report on Yang Jing, Li Mengchao told Li Haitao he would enter seclusion and attempt a breakthrough into transforming strength.
• Qi Kang showed Qi Yun news of Yang Jing’s victory, and Qi Yun admitted that Yang Jing might once have had feelings for her.

Yang Jing trained toward peak hidden strength, accepted an invitation to celebrate the defeat of the Flying Horse Bandits, and sparred with Sun Yong to experience transforming strength firsthand. As Sun Ningxiang acted strangely around him, Yang Jing began to grasp the subtle control of strength while attacking his master.

• Qi Kang proposed ways to connect Qi Yun with Yang Jing, but Qi Yun rejected both suggestions.
• Zhou Zhong invited Yang Jing to a banquet hosted by County Magistrate Zhou Wenbin to celebrate Yang Jing's defeat of the Flying Horse Bandits, and Yang Jing accepted.
• The Sun Clan Martial Arts School disciples learned that Yang Jing had killed Li Qianxiong and wiped out the Flying Horse Bandits, and their awe of him grew.
• Yang Jing's System Panel showed Mountain Collapse Fist at 870/1000, Surging Wave Leg at 320/1000, and Indestructible True Art at initiation, 2/200.
• Sun Ningxiang blushed and fled when Yang Jing approached, while Xu Hong congratulated him after hearing Sun Yong might take him as a final disciple.
• Yang Jing sparred with Sun Yong, whose transforming-strength palm deflected his attacks and gave him a firsthand glimpse of the realm's power.

Yang Jing learned about transforming strength from Sun Yong and attended a banquet celebrating his victory, while Zhao Wenzheng fueled Lin Yue’s resentment by telling him Yang Jing was taking his place. Lin Yue decided to accept the Xiao Family’s marriage offer and went to the Xiao Residence, unaware that a disguised figure was following him.

• Sun Yong demonstrated the Mountain Collapse Fist, and Yang Jing sensed how transforming strength overwhelmed his hidden strength before agreeing to return for more instruction.
• Zhao Wenzheng visited Lin Yue and provoked his jealousy by describing Yang Jing’s achievements, resources, and possible future as Sun Yong’s successor and Sun Ningxiang’s husband.
• Lin Yue resolved to leave the Sun Clan Martial Arts School and accept the Xiao Family’s offer of marriage and support.
• Yang Jing attended the County Magistrate’s banquet, then gave coins to refugees as he walked through the snowy streets.
• Lin Yue confirmed that Yang Jing was favored at the school, hurried to the Xiao Residence, and entered while a small disguised figure followed him and watched the gates close.

Yang Jing watched Xu Hong fail his attempt to reach transforming strength, then continued cultivating as his own breakthrough drew near. After Lin Yue was found crippled, Sun Yong confronted the Li Family, whose members had ordered the attack, and the chapter ended with Sun Yong arriving at their residence.

• Xu Hong failed his third attempt to break through to transforming strength and left the Sun Clan Martial Arts School in despair, while Yang Jing resumed practicing the Mountain Collapse Fist.
• Li Hongyu returned to the ruined Flying Horse Bandits' stronghold, discovered the Nine Rivers Token was missing, and sent a blood-fed black insect to search for it.
• Qi Yun told Sun Yong that Lin Yue had been found unconscious in the Inner City with his hand and foot tendons severed, and Yang Jing, Qi Yun, and Zhao Wenzheng visited him at Jishi Medical Hall.
• Zhang Tong told Sun Yong that Lin Yue's injuries had destroyed his ability to practice martial arts, and Sun Yong suspected the Li Family had attacked him near the Xiao Family's residence.
• Li Mengchao admitted that he had crippled Lin Yue on Li Haitao's orders, and Li Haitao explained that they had spared Lin Yue's life to avoid provoking Sun Yong into a deeper feud.
• Li Fu told Li Haitao and Li Mengchao that Sun Yong had arrived at the Li Family residence.

Sun Yong confronted the Li Family over Lin Yue’s crippling and agreed to settle the dispute through a disciple match after the Grand Elder offered lavish stakes. The Li Family expected Li Mengchao to win, while Yang Jing’s master summoned him and other leading disciples, leaving the reason for the meeting unresolved.

• Li Haitao warned Li Mengchao to stay in the study while he met Sun Yong, who demanded an explanation for Lin Yue’s injuries and struck Li Haitao in the hall.
• Sun Yong threatened the Li Family’s younger members and challenged Li Haitao to fight on the Fallen Blossom Platform, but the Grand Elder proposed a disciple match with valuable stakes instead.
• Sun Yong accepted the match after the Li Family added ten thousand taels of silver, and he offered flesh lingzhi and two Three-Colored Treasure Fish as his stakes.
• Li Haitao told Li Mengchao that he had pretended to be injured to calm Sun Yong, then ordered him to defeat the Sun Clan Martial Arts School’s disciples without seriously hurting Yang Jing.
• Yang Jing practiced the Mountain Collapse Fist and Surging Wave Leg at the Sun Clan Martial Arts School as his hidden strength neared its limit.
• A Li Family steward left the inner courtyard frightened, and Sun Ningxiang summoned Yang Jing and several other leading disciples to hear her father’s announcement.

Sun Yong prepared Yang Jing and the Sun Clan Martial Arts School for a high-stakes contest against the Li Family, while Li Mengchao demonstrated his half-step transforming strength. Three days later, Yang Jing broke through to transforming strength and revealed that he could strike from afar, leaving the contest five days away.

• Sun Yong announced that the Sun Clan Martial Arts School would face the Li Family in five days, with the County Magistrate and city leaders watching, and said Yang Jing and the others had to win.
• Sun Yong sparred with Yang Jing and urged him to reach peak hidden strength before the contest, while Yang Jing used the exchange to deepen his understanding of transforming strength.
• Li Mengchao defeated ten hidden strength experts in succession, and Li Haitao and the Li Family's grand elder discussed how his half-step transforming strength would give him an advantage over Yang Jing.
• After days of intense training, Yang Jing reached peak hidden strength and prepared to break through to transforming strength in his courtyard.
• Yang Jing broke through to transforming strength while practicing the Mountain Collapse Fist and struck a stone table from ten feet away without touching it, astonishing Yang An.

Yang Jing trained through the night after breaking through to transforming strength, then went to the Sun Clan Martial Arts School the next morning. Sun Yong discovered his breakthrough and kept it secret so Yang Jing could surprise the Li Family in the match the following day.

• Yang Jing practiced the Mountain Collapse Fist late into the night, showed Yang An the damage his punches had caused, and invited him to watch the upcoming match.
• Yang Jing woke refreshed, noticed his improved appetite and digestion, and headed to the Sun Clan Martial Arts School while postponing a visit to Liu Maolin until after the match.
• Yang Jing practiced at school as Xu Hong, Qi Yun, Zhao Wenzheng, and the other disciples watched, though only Xu Hong sensed that his technique had changed.
• Sun Yong recognized that Yang Jing had reached transforming strength and hurried him into the study to confirm it.
• Yang Jing told Sun Yong he had broken through the previous night, and Sun Yong ordered him to keep it secret so they could surprise the Li Family.
• Sun Yong brought Yang Jing to the rear courtyard to train with him and help him master transforming strength before the match.

Yang Jing trained with Sun Yong after revealing his breakthrough to transforming strength, while Sun Ningxiang witnessed his new power. The next day, spectators and county leaders gathered for the Li Family–Sun Clan Martial Arts School match, with Yang Jing facing a newly revealed threat in Li Mengchao’s half-step transforming strength.

• Sun Yong sparred with Yang Jing, helping him refine his transforming strength as Sun Ningxiang realized he had reached the realm.
• Sun Yong invited Yang Jing to stay for meals and promised to guide him further the next day.
• Zhou Wenbin told Liu Shi and Zhou Ling'er that Li Mengchao had reached half-step transforming strength, giving the Li Family a major advantage in the match.
• Zhao Yuman traveled to Heavenly Auspice Ward, reflecting on her regret over having once underestimated Yang Jing.
• Wang Kui arrived at the arena and renewed his suspicion that Yang Jing had killed his disciple Shen Lie.
• Sun Yong arrived at the arena with Yang Jing and his other disciples as the crowd cheered for the Sun Clan Martial Arts School.

The Sun Clan Martial Arts School and the Li Family began their challenge match under County Magistrate Zhou Wenbin’s rules, with both sides forbidden from reviving old disputes afterward. Li Mengchao held back as the Li Family took the lead, and he prepared to face Yang Jing after Li Shi defeated three Sun Clan disciples in succession.

• Sun Yong’s group arrived at the square, where Wang Kui probed Yang Jing about his reputation and Yang Jing answered calmly.
• The Li Family arrived with Li Mengchao, and County Magistrate Zhou Wenbin declared that the match would settle their past grievances and end further disputes between the sides.
• Li Hu challenged Luo Yun, but Luo Yun defeated him with the Mountain Collapse Fist.
• Li Shi took the platform and defeated Luo Yun, Zhang Han, and Song Kang in succession with the Cloud-Piercing Palm.
• Li Mengchao suppressed his urge to fight early and watched Yang Jing with growing hostility as the Li Family gained the lead.

Yang Jing faced Li Mengchao after the Li Family’s half-step transforming strength expert swept aside the Sun Clan Martial Arts School’s remaining fighters. Yang Jing revealed that he had reached transforming strength, defeated Li Mengchao despite his Diamond Hand Seal, and left the Li Family’s costly challenge in ruins.

• Lin Fuqiang defeated the exhausted Li Shi, but Li Shan then beat Lin, and Zhao Wenzheng defeated Li Shan before losing to Li Lie.
• Qi Yun defeated Li Lie after a prolonged fight, but Li Mengchao entered the arena and knocked her out with one palm strike.
• Li Mengchao defeated the injured Xu Hong in three moves, revealing his half-step transforming strength and leaving Yang Jing as the Sun Clan Martial Arts School’s final fighter.
• Yang Jing answered Li Mengchao’s opening palm with a punch that drove him back seven steps, revealing his genuine transforming strength.
• Li Mengchao unleashed the Diamond Hand Seal, but Yang Jing’s Mountain Collapse Fist overwhelmed him and broke his arm, leaving him unable to rise.
• Yang Jing thanked Li Mengchao for the bout as Sun Yong celebrated and Li Haitao watched in disbelief.