Chapter Summaries

Fang Yuan refused Zhao Xiong’s demand to meet Li Wuhen and then attacked, swiftly severing Zhao Xiong’s right hand. As Fang Yuan prepared to kill him, someone shouted from the shadows, leaving Zhao Xiong hoping to be rescued.

• Wang Pangzi warned Fang Yuan that Li Wuhen was dangerous, but Fang Yuan refused Zhao Xiong’s invitation.
• Zhao Xiong threatened Fang Yuan and mocked Zhang Tao’s old injuries until Zhang Tao admitted he could not protect Wang Pangzi.
• Fang Yuan struck Zhao Xiong with his Ghost Head Saber, forcing him back despite his metal gloves.
• Fang Yuan used the Five Tiger Severing Gate Saber Technique to cut off Zhao Xiong’s right hand and threatened to kill him.
• Zhao Xiong begged Fang Yuan to stop and invoked Black Tiger Hall and Li Wuhen, but Fang Yuan raised his saber again.
• A voice shouted from the shadows at the bridgehead, and Zhao Xiong turned toward it with renewed hope.

Fang Yuan killed Zhao Xiong after Zhao tried to seize him, then confronted Ji Kun, who had been secretly watching and accused Fang Yuan of ruining his plan. As Black Tiger Hall’s retaliation loomed, Fang Yuan set out to protect his family while continuing to prepare for trouble.

• Fang Yuan beheaded Zhao Xiong on the icy bridge, and Ji Kun emerged from the shadows to rebuke him for disrupting his plan.
• Fang Yuan challenged Ji Kun for watching while Zhao tried to kill him, and Wang Pangzi stepped between them before Ji Kun left.
• Fang Yuan sheathed his saber and agreed with Wang Pangzi to continue to the Black Market for a movement Cultivation Method.
• Fang Yuan asked Wang Pangzi to move Liu Wanwan and Little Bean Sprout to the Martial Arts School for protection.
• Wang Pangzi redirected the carriage toward the western district so they could bring Fang Yuan’s family to safety.

After killing Zhao Xiong of Black Tiger Hall, Fang Yuan rushed his family to Zhengyang Martial Arts School and asked Chen Zhengyang to shelter them. Chen Zhengyang agreed to protect them for now, leaving Fang Yuan safe at the school as Black Tiger Hall's response loomed.

• Wang Pangzi dismissed Uncle Zhang from his service after Uncle Zhang had disobeyed his orders.
• Fang Yuan hurried Liu Wanwan, Little Bean Sprout, and Little Purple Sable out of their home and took them by carriage to Zhengyang Martial Arts School.
• Fang Yuan told Zhao Tie that he had killed Zhao Xiong and asked whether the Martial Arts School could shelter his family.
• Zhao Tie promised that Black Tiger Hall would not harm Fang Yuan's family and offered them a safe side chamber.
• Chen Yin pleaded with Chen Zhengyang, who agreed to shelter Fang Yuan and ordered him to stay at the Martial Arts School.

After killing Zhao Xiong, Fang Yuan secured his family’s safety at the Martial Arts School and set out with Wang Pangzi to the Black Market, believing he needed to act before Black Tiger Hall could retaliate. The group reached the hidden docks beside Clear River, where Fang Yuan prepared to seek what he needed.

• Fang Yuan reassured Liu Wanwan and Little Bean Sprout that they would stay safely at the Martial Arts School, then told Wang Pangzi to leave with him.
• Zhao Tie challenged Fang Yuan for going out after killing Zhao Xiong, but Fang Yuan explained that he had to act before Black Tiger Hall organized its response and that he needed to obtain something that night.
• Chen Zhengyang stopped Zhao Tie from intervening as Fang Yuan and Wang Pangzi departed by carriage with Uncle Zhang.
• Fang Yuan told Wang Pangzi that they could not afford to stop and that he needed to do something, while Wang Pangzi resolved to accompany him.
• Fang Yuan and his companions reached a secluded dock by Clear River, where Wang Pangzi explained that the Black Market entrance lay in the abandoned Canal Gang warehouse district.

Fang Yuan, Wang Pangzi, and Uncle Zhang entered the Black Market to buy a lightness Cultivation Method. Fang Yuan identified the booklet as genuine and bargained with its seller, leaving the deal unresolved at five hundred taels.

• Uncle Zhang paid the guards, and Wang Pangzi led Fang Yuan and Uncle Zhang through a hidden entrance into the Black Market.
• A masked man in black met them and offered a booklet titled Treading Snow Without Trace.
• Fang Yuan inspected the booklet, confirmed that his system recognized it as genuine, and learned the seller claimed it came from the Carefree Sect.
• The seller asked fifteen hundred taels, while Fang Yuan pointed out the risk of a forged or altered manual and offered four hundred.
• The seller lowered his demand from one thousand to eight hundred taels, and Fang Yuan countered with five hundred.

Fang Yuan bought the lightness skill Treading Snow Without Trace from a masked seller for five hundred taels, then learned the seller was the water bandit White Stripe in the Waves Zhang Shun. The chapter ended with Fang Yuan keeping the booklet close and noting the hidden dangers behind Black Market goods.

• Fang Yuan exposed the seller's bluff about owning a unique copy and negotiated the price down to five hundred taels.
• Fang Yuan paid for Treading Snow Without Trace, and the masked seller took the silver and disappeared.
• Wang Pangzi and Uncle Zhang paid Old Dog his commission for arranging the deal, and Wang Pangzi recommended him as a Black Market contact.
• Wang Pangzi paid Old Dog for information, and Old Dog identified the seller as White Stripe in the Waves Zhang Shun, a water bandit fleeing powerful enemies.
• Fang Yuan memorized Zhang Shun's identity and the story that the booklet had been taken from a Carefree Sect disciple.

Fang Yuan left the Black Market after memorizing its routes, while Zhang Shun plotted against him and Liu Chengfeng was found murdered. Wang Pangzi returned to the Martial Arts School, questioning whether his risky investment in Fang Yuan would pay off, and challenged him to prove he deserved that faith.

• Fang Yuan and his companions left the Black Market, and Fang Yuan memorized the routes and hiding places along the way.
• Zhang Shun emerged from hiding and vowed that Fang Yuan would not live long enough to spend the silver he had paid.
• A night watchman found Liu Chengfeng dead in an alley, and Ji Kun ordered the constables to conceal the news while he investigated.
• Fang Yuan returned to the Martial Arts School and exchanged a silent farewell with Wang Pangzi.
• Uncle Zhang questioned whether Wang Pangzi's investment in Fang Yuan was worth the risk, and Wang Pangzi told Fang Yuan to prove the future belonged to him.

Fang Yuan reunited with Liu Wanwan and Little Bean Sprout at the Martial Arts School, where he promised his family they would get through the crisis and vowed to repay Black Tiger Hall. As Ji Kun hurried to report Zhao Xiong’s death to the County Lieutenant, Li Wuhen grew furious over the delay in receiving news.

• Fang Yuan returned to the courtyard and found Liu Wanwan waiting anxiously while Little Bean Sprout and Little Purple Sable slept.
• Liu Wanwan prepared Fang Yuan a meal and worried about whether their family would survive the crisis, and Fang Yuan assured her they would.
• Liu Wanwan regretted leaving their stored rice and cured meat behind, and Fang Yuan silently blamed Black Tiger Hall and vowed to repay the debt.
• Ji Kun left Zhengyang Martial Arts School, suspected Liu Chengfeng had been less important there than rumors suggested, and hurried to report Fang Yuan’s killing of Zhao Xiong to the County Lieutenant.
• Li Wuhen berated his men at a restaurant for failing to bring him news of the person he had sent to retrieve.

After Fang Yuan killed Zhao Xiong, Li Wuhen welcomed the prospect of a fight, while County Lieutenant Wu weighed how the clash could reshape Qinghe County. The chapter ended with Ji Kun brooding over his inability to cultivate the Five Tiger Health Cultivation Method and deciding he had to act.

• A Black Tiger Hall member reported Zhao Xiong’s body to Li Wuhen, who became excited at the prospect of Fang Yuan resisting him.
• Ji Kun told County Lieutenant Wu that Fang Yuan had killed Zhao Xiong and asked whether Chen Zhengyang might sacrifice him to appease Black Tiger Hall.
• County Lieutenant Wu predicted Chen Zhengyang would protect Fang Yuan and considered using the conflict to shift Qinghe County’s balance of power.
• County Lieutenant Wu privately judged Ji Kun’s talent lacking and examined suppressed missing-person case files.
• Ji Kun left the county yamen resentful over his failure to cultivate the Five Tiger Health Cultivation Method and resolved to do something.

Fang Yuan’s new cultivation method strengthened his body, but Black Heart Tiger ambushed him in the Training Ground and nearly killed him. Chen Zhengyang intervened, and Black Heart Tiger challenged him to risk the Martial Arts School’s future for Fang Yuan.

• Fang Yuan sensed that the Five Tiger Health Cultivation Method had strengthened his internal organs and improved his body’s limits.
• Black Heart Tiger ambushed Fang Yuan at dawn, slashing his arm and shattering the stone where he had stood.
• Fang Yuan fought back with his Ghost Head Saber, but Chen Zhengyang arrived and blocked Black Heart Tiger’s claw.
• Fang Yuan recognized Black Heart Tiger as the Black Tiger Hall’s peak Third-Rank hall master, who had come to kill him.
• Black Heart Tiger threatened Chen Zhengyang with a feud between their groups, and Fang Yuan worried that his master would abandon him.

Chen Zhengyang and the County Lieutenant stopped Black Heart Tiger from killing Fang Yuan, forcing him to retreat. Black Heart Tiger still tried to kill Fang Yuan with a poisoned needle as he fled, leaving Chen Zhengyang convinced the threat remained.

• Chen Zhengyang vowed that the Martial Arts School would protect Fang Yuan and fought Black Heart Tiger as Fang Yuan retreated.
• Black Heart Tiger feinted past Chen Zhengyang and lunged at Fang Yuan, but the County Lieutenant struck him and halted his attack.
• Chen Zhengyang and the County Lieutenant threatened to join forces, so Black Heart Tiger agreed to leave and leaped over the courtyard wall.
• As he escaped, Black Heart Tiger secretly flicked a poisoned silver needle at Fang Yuan, who deflected it with his Ghost Head Saber.
• Chen Zhengyang checked Fang Yuan, and the County Lieutenant condemned Black Heart Tiger's treachery.
• Chen Zhengyang warned that Black Heart Tiger had retreated out of fear but had not given up on killing Fang Yuan.

After Black Heart Tiger retreated from the Martial Arts School, Chen Zhengyang explained that his strength made him impossible to defeat, while County Lieutenant Wu offered Fang Yuan protection if he joined the constabulary. Fang Yuan refused, and Black Heart Tiger watched the school from nearby, still intent on killing him, before Mr. Wen appeared.

• Chen Zhengyang told County Lieutenant Wu and Fang Yuan that Black Heart Tiger's strikes carried at least ten thousand jin of force and that they could not have kept him there.
• Chen Zhengyang warned Fang Yuan to stay in the city and avoid secluded places because Black Heart Tiger might attack again.
• County Lieutenant Wu offered Fang Yuan a place on the constabulary roster, but Fang Yuan chose to remain at the Martial Arts School and cultivate.
• Black Heart Tiger watched the Martial Arts School from a nearby street corner and resolved to eliminate Fang Yuan despite the protection of Chen Zhengyang and County Lieutenant Wu.
• Mr. Wen, Black Tiger Hall's strategist, silently appeared beside Black Heart Tiger.

Mr. Wen proposed a covert plan to Black Heart Tiger, who agreed to target Fang Yuan without confronting the Martial Arts School directly. As Fang Yuan resumed training and considered County Lieutenant Wu’s ties to Chen Zhengyang, Wu learned that the Five Tiger Pills had helped Chen begin cultivating the Five Tiger Health Cultivation Method but concealed its source.

• Mr. Wen whispered a prepared scheme to Black Heart Tiger, who praised it and agreed to proceed.
• Fang Yuan trained despite his bandaged wound and renewed his determination to grow stronger after facing Black Heart Tiger.
• Fang Yuan wondered whether County Lieutenant Wu’s timely help and his relationship with Chen Zhengyang involved something beyond ordinary alliance.
• Chen Zhengyang told Wu Hong that the Five Tiger Pills had helped him make progress with the Five Tiger Health Cultivation Method.
• When Chen Zhengyang asked where the method came from, Wu Hong claimed he had sworn not to reveal its source.

Chen Zhengyang grew suspicious of County Lieutenant Wu’s interest in his cultivation, while at the docks Ji Kun confronted the wounded White Stripe in the Waves. Ji Kun stopped the blade at his throat by holding an object between them.

• County Lieutenant Wu left after offering Chen Zhengyang more Five Tiger Pills and help with cultivation, and Chen Zhengyang wondered why Wu was so concerned about his progress.
• Chen Zhengyang found no obvious abnormality while circulating the Five Tiger Health Cultivation Method, but remained uneasy about Wu’s intentions.
• At a shabby dockside dwelling, the wounded White Stripe in the Waves cursed the Carefree Sect and the Five Tiger Sect and vowed revenge.
• Ji Kun entered the dwelling, and White Stripe in the Waves attacked him with a swift blade strike.
• Ji Kun blocked the first attack with his iron-gauntleted fists, then raised an object from his robes to halt White Stripe in the Waves’ next slash inches from his throat.

Ji Kun offered the wounded wanted bandit Zhang Shun protection in exchange for killing Fang Yuan, and Zhang Shun demanded a higher price after hearing the target. Meanwhile, Fang Yuan continued training at Zhengyang Martial Arts School and discovered that his blood energy extended nine inches beyond his body.

• Ji Kun threatened Zhang Shun with a signal rocket but offered him safe shelter and a way out of Qinghe County in exchange for killing someone.
• Zhang Shun showed interest in Ji Kun's offer, then reacted with surprise when Ji Kun named Fang Yuan of Zhengyang Martial Arts School and raised his price.
• News of Zhao Xiong's death faded without drawing the expected attention, giving Fang Yuan more time to grow.
• Fang Yuan practiced the Five Tiger Severing Gate Saber Technique and wondered what its special effect meant.
• Fang Yuan ate ginseng and used Blood Manifestation Paste to measure his blood energy, finding that it reached nine inches beyond his body.

Fang Yuan’s rapid growth left him needing more resources, while Chen Zhengyang arranged a formal disciple-acceptance ceremony to publicly protect him. After deciding to seek his own supplies, Fang Yuan planned to return to Great Green Mountain, leaving Liu Wanwan alarmed by his decision.

• Fang Yuan finished cultivating and considered how his unusually solid foundation and compatibility might explain his room for further growth.
• Chen Zhengyang offered Fang Yuan more ginseng, reassured him that the school should support its true disciple, and asked him to repay the kindness with wine and cured meat someday.
• Chen Zhengyang decided to hold a grand disciple-acceptance ceremony to publicly declare the school’s backing for Fang Yuan and deter anyone who might target him.
• Fang Yuan sensed Chen Zhengyang’s hidden worries, resolved to grow stronger, and formed a plan involving Great Green Mountain.
• Fang Yuan told Liu Wanwan he would return to the snowbound Great Green Mountain to search for resources, and she reacted with shock and worry.

Fang Yuan decided to enter Great Green Mountain to gather resources and strengthen himself, despite Liu Wanwan’s worries. After spending the night with her, he left before dawn with Little Purple Sable, heading out of the city in disguise.

• Fang Yuan explained that he planned to search Great Green Mountain for resources before his apprenticeship banquet and reassured Liu Wanwan that he had to go.
• Fang Yuan and Liu Wanwan spent a tender night together, and his Five Tiger Health Cultivation Method gained proficiency as his injuries healed.
• Fang Yuan packed Liu Wanwan’s provisions, checked on Little Bean Sprout, and coaxed Little Purple Sable into accompanying him with the promise of roast chicken.
• Fang Yuan donned a King of Hell Ghost Mask and left the Martial Arts School in a green-canopied carriage before dawn.
• The carriage passed through the city gate and headed toward the snowy countryside as a guard wondered aloud why its passenger had left so early.

Fang Yuan left Qinghe County with help from Wang Yushuang and headed into Great Green Mountain to train his new movement technique. Wang Yushuang chose to let her favor create goodwill rather than demand his service, while Fang Yuan resolved to grow stronger and repay her someday.

• Fang Yuan thanked Wang Yushuang and Uncle Qin for secretly escorting him out of Qinghe County, then ran into the snowy forest toward Great Green Mountain.
• Qin Yue asked Wang Yushuang why she had not recruited Fang Yuan, and Wang Yushuang explained that demanding repayment would risk turning his gratitude into resentment.
• Wang Yushuang told Uncle Qin to return to the city and keep the escort secret, hoping Fang Yuan would prove worthy of her confidence.
• Fang Yuan practiced Treading Snow Without Trace as he ran through the mountains, improving his Basic Footwork and discovering that the technique made him faster and less tired.
• Fang Yuan reflected on his growing debt to Wang Yushuang, set aside his thoughts, and increased his pace to focus on becoming stronger.

Li Qingwu led Five Tiger Sect disciples into Great Green Mountain to seek the Ice Sculpture Fruit, while Fang Yuan gathered valuable ginseng and herbs with Little Purple Sable. Fang Yuan returned to his hidden camp, where he planned to use his gains to attempt a breakthrough to the second rank.

• Li Qingwu told Xu Feng and the other disciples that she sought the Ice Sculpture Fruit to help her break through to the fourth rank, and explained that a hunter had reported seeing a likely specimen near Icefall Abyss.
• Fang Yuan found an exceptional wild mountain ginseng with Little Purple Sable’s help and decided they had gathered enough for the day.
• Fang Yuan returned to his concealed mountain hollow after checking that its warning mechanisms were undisturbed.
• Fang Yuan examined the ginseng and judged that his accumulated strength might be enough to attempt a breakthrough to the second rank that night.
• Fang Yuan shared cured meat and ginseng tendrils with Little Purple Sable, whose size and appetite had grown during their time in the mountains.

Fang Yuan used the medicinal power of a ginseng to break through to the second rank, with the Five Tiger Health Cultivation Method stabilizing his foundation. After testing his newly advanced saber technique, he left confident that one slash could defeat an opponent like Zhao Xiong.

• Fang Yuan swallowed the ginseng and used the Five Tiger Severing Gate Saber Technique to guide its power as his blood and qi surged dangerously.
• The Five Tiger Health Cultivation Method harmonized the conflicting forces, allowing Fang Yuan to comprehend the technique’s thirty-six saber trajectories and break through to the second rank.
• Fang Yuan tested his heightened senses and strength outside the shelter while the Purple Sable watched from his shoulder.
• Fang Yuan cleanly sliced through a thick tree trunk with a focused saber strike and recognized the power of his newly advanced technique.
• Fang Yuan decided that, at his current level, one slash would be enough to defeat someone like Zhao Xiong.