Chapter Summaries

Fang Yuan accepted Mr. Wen’s invitation to Wangjiang Restaurant despite suspecting a trap, and the two discussed the White Lotus Sect’s public preaching along the way. The carriage continued toward the restaurant, leaving Fang Yuan wary of Mr. Wen’s assumptions about the common people.

• Fang Yuan agreed to ride with Mr. Wen to Wangjiang Restaurant, keeping his senses alert for danger.
• Fang Yuan saw White Lotus Sect preachers draw a fervent crowd while constables and local gang members maintained order.
• Mr. Wen mocked the crowd as ignorant pawns, but Fang Yuan argued that people facing hunger and death sought whatever hope and protection they could find.
• Mr. Wen praised Fang Yuan as a martial artist whose path differed from that of the commoners, calling them as far apart as clouds and mud, and Fang Yuan said nothing further.

Fang Yuan arrived at Wangjiang Restaurant with Mr. Wen for a meeting with Black Tiger Hall and resisted the courtesans sent to test him. As Mr. Wen prepared to take control of the situation, someone on the second floor clapped.

• Fang Yuan watched Qinghe County's constables and gang members show deference to the carriage and grew more wary of Black Tiger Hall's influence.
• Fang Yuan and Mr. Wen arrived at Wangjiang Restaurant, where Fang Yuan entered first to face the coming negotiation.
• Mr. Wen assumed Fang Yuan could be won over with wealth, status, and beauty, comparing him to Yuan Feng.
• Several women surrounded Fang Yuan and tried to seduce him, but he blushed because he was holding his breath in irritation.
• Mr. Wen mistook Fang Yuan's reaction for weakness and was about to intervene when three claps sounded from the second-floor staircase.

Fang Yuan met Li Wuhen, the young master of Black Tiger Hall, who apologized for the conflict involving Zhao Xiong and arranged for Fang Yuan’s two friends to be released. Li Wuhen then offered Fang Yuan five century-old Old Mountain Ginseng roots, and Fang Yuan reluctantly accepted the gift.

• Li Wuhen introduced himself to Fang Yuan and blamed Zhao Xiong for the misunderstanding between them.
• Li Wuhen invited Fang Yuan to a private-room feast and ordered a gang member to return Fang Yuan’s two friends unharmed.
• Li Wuhen presented Fang Yuan with five century-old Old Mountain Ginseng roots as a gift.
• Fang Yuan pretended to hesitate before accepting the valuable medicinal herbs.

Li Wuhen tried to convince Fang Yuan that Chen Zhengyang had withheld the Fundamental Diagram’s true qi-guiding teachings and offered Black Tiger Hall’s help if Fang Yuan could show him the diagram. Fang Yuan played along, leaving Li Wuhen’s offer unanswered.

• Li Wuhen toasted Fang Yuan and, after several rounds of wine, asked whether Chen Zhengyang had shown him the Fundamental Diagram.
• Li Wuhen claimed the diagram held a personalized qi-guiding method and accused Chen Zhengyang of withholding its true teachings from his disciples.
• Li Wuhen said Yuan Feng had left Chen Zhengyang’s school for Black Tiger Hall before disappearing without a trace.
• Li Wuhen proposed examining the Fundamental Diagram so Black Tiger Hall could help Fang Yuan make up for his supposed deficiency.
• Fang Yuan asked whether Li Wuhen could really help if he saw the diagram, feigning urgency and hope.

Li Wuhen tried to lure Fang Yuan into joining Black Tiger Hall and handing over the Martial Arts School’s Fundamental Diagram, then used the slaughter of Zhao Xiong’s household to intimidate him. Fang Yuan left without revealing his true resolve, while Li Wuhen decided to manipulate him further.

• Li Wuhen claimed Black Tiger Hall could decipher the Fundamental Diagram and offered Fang Yuan power and wealth if he joined, while Fang Yuan pretended to consider the offer.
• Fang Yuan accepted Li Wuhen’s medicinal herbs and feigned reluctance as women tried to ply him with wine.
• Li Wuhen presented covered trays and revealed that he had killed all seven members of Zhao Xiong’s household as an apology to Fang Yuan.
• Fang Yuan concealed his anger, thanked Li Wuhen, and left the restaurant on foot rather than take the offered carriage.
• Mr. Wen judged Fang Yuan shaken but composed, and Li Wuhen said he intended to play with him slowly.

After deciding Li Wuhen was too dangerous to leave alive, Fang Yuan slipped away and returned to kill him. Li Wuhen died before learning what Fang Yuan meant by “Severing... Gate...”

• Fang Yuan confirmed no one was following him and resolved to eliminate Li Wuhen.
• At Wangjiang Restaurant, Li Wuhen showed Mr. Wen a Barrier Breaking Pill sent by his elder sister.
• Li Wuhen planned to exploit Fang Yuan and later humiliate him by targeting Chen Ling.
• Fang Yuan burst through the room’s wall and window and struck Li Wuhen and Mr. Wen with a blade.
• Mr. Wen’s throat was cut, and Li Wuhen died after hearing Fang Yuan say, “Severing... Gate...”

Fang Yuan killed Li Wuhen and Mr. Wen at the banquet, took their valuables, and slipped away before anyone discovered the bodies. He went to check on Chen Zhiyuan and watched him arrive safely at the Chen Family residence.

• Fang Yuan searched Li Wuhen and Mr. Wen's bodies, taking a jade token, a Jade Box, gold leaves, and a porcelain bottle.
• Fang Yuan dismissed the notion that he had killed Li Wuhen out of jealousy over Chen Ling and left through the broken window.
• Fang Yuan examined the jade token and Elixir Pill, then considered lying low, strengthening his cultivation, and developing his blade technique.
• An old madam discovered Li Wuhen and Mr. Wen's corpses at Wangjiang Restaurant and raised the alarm.
• Fang Yuan watched Chen Zhiyuan arrive by carriage at the Chen Family courtyard, apparently unharmed but still shaken.

Fang Yuan ensured Chen Zhiyuan had returned home safely, then went to check on Chen Ling. Chen Ling arrived home after spending time with Li Wuhen and called him her new friend, leaving the old steward stunned.

• Chen Zhiyuan was escorted home by Black Tiger Hall, and he suspected Fang Yuan had arranged it.
• Fang Yuan watched Chen Zhiyuan return safely without revealing himself, then headed toward Chen Ling's home.
• Chen Ling arrived at Chen Manor in a luxurious carriage, while Li Wuhen's escort asked her to speak well of them to the young master.
• The old steward told Chen Ling that the County Education Official and his son were waiting in the main hall after hearing she had been seen in a Black Tiger Hall carriage.
• Chen Ling dismissed the steward's concerns and said she had met a new friend and gone out for a walk.

Fang Yuan confirmed Chen Ling was safe, returned to Zhengyang Martial Arts School, and considered how the Black Tiger Hall might investigate Li Wuhen’s assassination. At home, he discovered Li Wuhen’s jade pendant could calm his mind, while the Old Scholar Tree showed a fleeting, unsettling movement.

• Chen Ling returned to Chen Manor, and Fang Yuan watched her gates close before leaving for the Martial Arts School.
• Fang Yuan secretly entered Zhengyang Martial Arts School, reported his return to Chen Zhengyang, and concealed the assassination.
• Fang Yuan assessed why investigators were unlikely to suspect him soon and reflected on the turmoil Li Wuhen’s death could cause.
• Fang Yuan found that Li Wuhen’s Jade Pendant soothed his mind as he examined it at home.
• Fang Yuan saw Little Bean Sprout talking to the Old Scholar Tree, but found no signs of anything unusual.
• Fang Yuan joined Liu Wanwan and Little Bean Sprout for dinner, while the tree’s branches briefly swayed in the night wind.

County Lieutenant investigated the murders of Li Wuhen and Mr. Wen at Wangjiang Restaurant, while the restaurant madam revealed a sinister interest in finding a new skin. The next morning, Fang Yuan realized Li Wuhen’s Jade Pendant had improved his cultivation and decided to keep it.

• County Lieutenant examined the clean, precise wounds on Li Wuhen and Mr. Wen and feared the killer’s speed and skill.
• The restaurant madam told County Lieutenant that Black Heart Tiger had only sent word that he knew of the deaths.
• After County Lieutenant left, the madam revealed her calm demeanor, lamented the loss of the two bodies’ skins, and went to seek a new one.
• Fang Yuan noticed a major increase in his Basic Health Preservation Method proficiency and suspected the Jade Pendant had helped him sleep and cultivate.
• Fang Yuan decided to keep the Jade Pendant and considered teaching Little Bean Sprout to read once the attention around the murders faded.

Fang Yuan learned that Li Wuhen had been killed and that the yamen suspected Zhang Shun, while Black Heart Tiger remained unnervingly inactive. As Fang Yuan resumed training, he prepared for a possible retaliation and hoped the authorities would focus on the river bandit.

• Wang Pangzi told Fang Yuan that Li Wuhen had been killed with a single slash at Wangjiang Restaurant and that the yamen suspected a Third-Rank Master.
• Wang Pangzi said Zhang Shun, White Stripe in the Waves, was a possible suspect, and warned Fang Yuan to avoid going out while the Black Tiger Hall and yamen searched the city.
• Fang Yuan recognized Zhang Shun as the masked man who had sold him a movement technique manual and considered him a useful scapegoat.
• Wang Pangzi reported that Black Heart Tiger had not appeared publicly, though the Black Tiger Hall had increased its guards and street checks.
• Fang Yuan warned Wang Pangzi that Black Heart Tiger's silence could signal a deeper plan, then practiced the Five Tiger Severing Gate Saber Technique as he prepared for the coming danger.

Xu Feng and Li Hanshan raced toward Qinghe County to hunt Zhang Shun, while Fang Yuan prepared to leave with Wang Pangzi for an arranged meeting. The chapter ended as Wang Pangzi handed Fang Yuan an item inside the carriage.

• Xu Feng told Li Hanshan that a bloody case in Qinghe County resembled Zhang Shun’s work and explained that Zhang had killed a Carefree Sect disciple and stolen an opportunity.
• Li Hanshan and Xu Feng urged their horses toward Qinghe County to capture and kill Zhang Shun.
• Fang Yuan left Little Bean Sprout and Liu Wanwan at home, noting his unease about the silent locust tree before departing.
• Fang Yuan met a wary martial artist waiting beside the carriage and entered to join Wang Pangzi.
• Wang Pangzi said he had arranged a contact for Fang Yuan and handed him an item.

Fang Yuan went with Wang Pangzi to seek an appraisal at the Myriad Treasures Pavilion and received warnings about its eccentric Steward Mo and the branch’s hard bargaining. He arrived at the Pavilion’s discreet residence and waited outside after presenting his entry token.

• Wang Pangzi gave Fang Yuan a jade entry token and warned him that Steward Mo had a sharp eye, a foul temper, and unpredictable prices.
• Wang Pangzi explained that the Qinghe County branch faced pressure to meet quotas and might offer low prices for items.
• Wang Pangzi left Fang Yuan at the Pavilion’s secluded Inner City residence because its rules allowed only invited token holders inside.
• Fang Yuan knocked, showed his token to the young gatekeeper, and waited outside as the man went into the courtyard to report his arrival.

Fang Yuan entered the Myriad Treasures Pavilion seeking an appraisal but was diverted to Steward Liu after the gatekeeper resented his failure to offer a bribe. Steward Liu's contempt vanished when Fang Yuan revealed a pale-gold Elixir Pill, and he watched her reaction to judge her abilities.

• The gatekeeper decided to send Fang Yuan to Steward Liu instead of Head Steward Mo because Fang Yuan had not offered him a bribe.
• The gatekeeper led Fang Yuan through the courtyard and brought him to Steward Liu, who demanded to inspect his item before he could meet Steward Mo.
• Fang Yuan recognized that the gatekeeper and Steward Liu had arranged a hurdle to make him accept a lesser appraisal.
• Fang Yuan opened a Jade Box and revealed a pale-gold Elixir Pill, shocking Steward Liu.
• Fang Yuan watched Steward Liu closely, using the pill to test her true caliber.

Fang Yuan had the Myriad Treasures Pavilion identify Li Wuhen’s pill as a rare Barrier Breaking Pill and refused Steward Liu’s offer to buy it. He used the pill to request a meeting with Steward Mo, but Steward Liu told him to return the next morning, leaving him frustrated by the branch’s condescension.

• Steward Liu examined Fang Yuan’s pill and identified it as a Barrier Breaking Pill that could greatly aid a Second-grade Martial Artist’s breakthrough to Third Rank.
• Steward Liu offered Fang Yuan five thousand taels for the pill, but Fang Yuan kept it for his own use.
• Steward Liu named an appraisal fee of five hundred taels, and Fang Yuan asked whether the pill qualified him to meet Steward Mo.
• Steward Liu said Steward Mo had retired for the night and told Fang Yuan to return early the next day.
• Fang Yuan suspected Steward Liu was obstructing him and silently considered how to respond.

Fang Yuan presented Steward Liu with an Ice Sculpture Fruit, a Heaven and Earth Rare Treasure whose value stunned them both. Steward Liu decided to seize it and ordered the gatekeeper to drug Fang Yuan, but she noticed the gatekeeper pointing in terror at someone behind her.

• Fang Yuan showed Steward Liu the Ice Sculpture Fruit, and she recognized it as a Heaven and Earth Rare Treasure.
• Steward Liu concealed her greed and said Steward Mo needed to inspect the fruit, while Fang Yuan put it away and watched her warily.
• Steward Liu questioned the gatekeeper about Fang Yuan's arrival and learned that he seemed to have little backing or protection.
• Steward Liu ordered the gatekeeper to brew Cloud Mist Tea with a fast-acting drug and deliver it to Fang Yuan.
• The gatekeeper froze and pointed in terror behind Steward Liu as she raised her foot to threaten him.

After discovering Steward Liu and the gatekeeper plotting to rob him, Fang Yuan killed them and took their money. He entered the inner courtyard to eliminate witnesses, where Steward Mo and a third-rank guard captain confronted him.

• Fang Yuan revealed that he had overheard Steward Liu plotting with the gatekeeper to steal his Ice Sculpture Fruit and Barrier Breaking Pill.
• Steward Liu attacked Fang Yuan with poisoned Short Daggers, but he killed her with a swift saber strike.
• Fang Yuan killed the gatekeeper and searched Steward Liu's body, taking silver notes worth nearly a thousand taels.
• Fang Yuan headed into the inner courtyard to deal with Steward Mo and any other witnesses.
• Steward Mo and a middle-aged guard captain emerged from the lit main hall, and Fang Yuan sensed the captain was a third-rank expert.

Fang Yuan fought off Wang Defa after Steward Mo threatened him, then forced Steward Mo to back down and admit Steward Liu had plotted against him. Fang Yuan held his attack because he wanted Steward Mo’s knowledge about the Ice Sculpture Fruit.

• Steward Mo and Wang Defa confronted Fang Yuan and threatened to kill him for attacking Myriad Treasures Pavilion’s people.
• Wang Defa attacked Fang Yuan, but Fang Yuan blocked his strike and overwhelmed him with the Five Tiger Severing Gate Saber Technique.
• Steward Mo ordered Wang Defa to stop and tried to calm Fang Yuan by calling him an honored guest.
• Fang Yuan threatened to kill them both unless Steward Mo dropped his airs, and Steward Mo apologized and blamed Steward Liu for the plot.
• Fang Yuan challenged Steward Mo for ignoring Steward Liu’s scheme and held back to learn more about the Ice Sculpture Fruit.

Fang Yuan made Steward Mo reappraise the Ice Sculpture Fruit and learned that it could aid comprehension of powerful ice-related forces. After rejecting Steward Mo’s offer to have it refined, Fang Yuan asked whether the steward coveted it.

• Steward Mo blamed the maid for acting on her own and offered to appraise Fang Yuan’s treasure again.
• Fang Yuan showed Steward Mo the Ice Sculpture Fruit, and Steward Mo identified it as a top-grade specimen.
• Steward Mo explained that the fruit could aid cultivation and help a martial artist comprehend superior ice-related forces.
• Steward Mo described the risks of eating the fruit directly and offered to have the Myriad Treasures Pavilion’s alchemists refine it.
• Fang Yuan refused to entrust the fruit to Steward Mo and asked whether the steward was tempted by its value.

Fang Yuan left Steward Mo alive after forcing him to cover up the deaths, but returned when Mo plotted to investigate him and summon reinforcements for the Ice Sculpture Fruit. Fang Yuan killed Mo and Wang Defa, looted Mo’s room, and destroyed the jade token that could implicate Senior Brother Wang and the Wang Family before slipping away.

• Fang Yuan warned Steward Mo to conceal the night’s events and said he hated being lied to before leaving through the side door.
• Steward Mo ordered Wang Defa to dispose of the bodies and blood, investigate Fang Yuan, and send a secret report requesting experts to seize the Ice Sculpture Fruit.
• Fang Yuan emerged from the shadows and killed Steward Mo and Wang Defa with swift blade strikes.
• Fang Yuan gathered the goods from Steward Mo’s display shelves into a bundle and took them with him.
• Fang Yuan searched the gatekeeper’s corpse, shattered the jade token connected to Senior Brother Wang, and left through the courtyard gate.