Chapter Summaries

After resolving Sinon's trauma, Shen Fei traveled to the world of Chinese Paladin 4 and met Yun Tianhe and Han Lingsha. When demons attacked, Murong Ziying rescued them, and Han Lingsha set off for Chenzhou to pursue the sword immortals.

• Sinon befriended Asuna and the others after a young girl helped her overcome her guilt, while Chito and Yuri settled into life at Shen Fei's villa.
• Shen Fei arrived beside Chaohu Lake, met Yun Tianhe and Han Lingsha, and recognized the Wangshu Sword and the danger it posed to Han Lingsha.
• Feng Xie Beasts attacked the three, and Shen Fei and Yun Tianhe fought them as Han Lingsha suddenly weakened.
• Murong Ziying appeared and killed the Feng Xie Beasts with sword phantoms before vanishing on his flying sword.
• Huaishuo arrived in pursuit of Murong Ziying, and Han Lingsha recognized the Qionghua Sect clothing and headed for Chenzhou with Shen Fei.

Shen Fei, Yun Tianhe, and Han Lingsha reached Shouyang County, where a wanted poster brought Han Lingsha into conflict with the constables. Constable Pei Jian recognized Yun Tianhe as the son of Yun Tianqing and invited him to meet the magistrate, while Shen Fei arranged for Han Lingsha’s accusation to be addressed at the same time.

• Han Lingsha urged the group to set out, and the three traveled to Shouyang County.
• Yun Tianhe showed Han Lingsha a wanted poster bearing her portrait, prompting constables to surround her.
• Yun Tianhe sensed danger and stepped in front of Han Lingsha, but she stopped him from attacking the constables.
• Constable Pei Jian arrived, recognized Yun Tianhe from a portrait of Yun Tianqing, and asked him to meet the magistrate.
• Pei Jian questioned Han Lingsha about suspected tomb robbing near Mount Bagong, and Shen Fei argued that merely being nearby was not proof of a crime.
• Shen Fei suggested that Pei Jian take Yun Tianhe to the magistrate and report Han Lingsha’s case there while the group waited at an inn.

Shen Fei and Han Lingsha stayed in Shouyang County while Yun Tianhe went with Pei Jian to learn about his father. As Han Lingsha prepared to leave for Chenzhou that night, Shen Fei investigated Liu Manor, stopped an intruder, and returned to ask her about the Five Elemental Arts.

• Yun Tianhe followed Pei Jian to the county magistrate’s residence to learn about Yun Tianqing, while Han Lingsha and Shen Fei went to Yangchun Inn.
• Shen Fei learned that Lixiang Herb had made Shouyang prosperous and heard reports of demons harming people near Nüluo Rock.
• Han Lingsha told Shen Fei she sought immortality and proposed finding Yun Tianhe that night before leaving for Chenzhou.
• Shen Fei visited shops, then stopped and restrained a repeat offender sneaking toward Liu Manor to glimpse Liu Mengli.
• Shen Fei returned to the inn and asked the sleepless Han Lingsha whether she knew about the Five Elemental Arts.

Shen Fei learned the Five Elemental Arts from Han Lingsha, then joined her in sneaking into Liu Manor to find Yun Tianhe. They encountered Liu Mengli and her family, and the chapter ended as Yun Tianhe announced they were leaving for Chenzhou to learn about his father’s past.

• Han Lingsha recited the Five Elemental Arts formula, and Shen Fei memorized it while learning about the martial world from her.
• Shen Fei and Han Lingsha entered Liu Manor at night and found Yun Tianhe sleeping in the guest courtyard.
• A purple mist and strange fragrance trapped the group in Liu Mengli’s Thousand Bloom Spirit Illusion Formation, but Shen Fei and Yun Tianhe found their way through it.
• Liu Mengli revealed herself in the rear courtyard and asked Yun Tianhe about his father, Yun Tianqing.
• Liu Shifeng arrived and assumed Yun Tianhe and Liu Mengli had pledged themselves to each other, while Lady Liu recognized Han Lingsha as a female thief.
• Yun Tianhe told Liu Shifeng they were leaving for Chenzhou to find sword immortals and ask about his father’s past.

Shen Fei chose to focus on fire-based Five Elemental Arts as the group set out to investigate demon attacks at Nüluo Rock. They found that a sword immortal had already killed the demons, but Han Lingsha fell into a trap as they searched the lower level.

• Shen Fei studied the Five Elemental Arts at Liu Manor and decided to focus on the fire branch.
• Liu Mengli joined Shen Fei, Han Lingsha, and Yun Tianhe on the trip to Nüluo Rock after County Magistrate Liu reluctantly let her go.
• Yun Tianhe nearly hunted a wild boar, and Han Lingsha grew flustered as Liu Mengli spoke warmly with him.
• The group found demon corpses in a cave, and Shen Fei identified their wounds as the work of a sword immortal, likely Murong Ziying.
• Shen Fei buried the demon corpses, and the group continued to the second level, where Han Lingsha fell into a trap.

Shen Fei, Yun Tianhe, Liu Mengli, and Han Lingsha explored the underground cavern and discovered five young Locust Tree Demons whose family had been killed by a sword immortal. After the demons gave them the Earth Spirit Pearl in gratitude, Shen Fei claimed it and planned to use it to cultivate earth-elemental immortal arts.

• Han Lingsha fell through a trap into mud, and Shen Fei joined her below before helping her clean up and continue exploring with Yun Tianhe and Liu Mengli.
• The group found five young Locust Tree Demons, and Huai Mi explained that humans had picked the Lixiang Herb until the demons had attacked people to frighten them away.
• Liu Mengli promised to ask the city to harvest the herb in moderation, while Shen Fei warned the demons not to harm humans casually or trust them indiscriminately.
• The demons revealed their names and left, then Huai Zhi returned with the Earth Spirit Pearl as a gift from Huai Mi.
• Han Lingsha identified the pearl, and Shen Fei asked to keep it so he could use its power to cultivate the earth element.

After investigating Nüluo Rock, Shen Fei and his companions returned to Liu Manor, where Liu Mengli decided to travel with them to Chenzhou. The group set off the next morning through Mount Bagong, carrying a new bow for Yun Tianhe and aiming to reach Chenzhou quickly.

• Han Lingsha met Huaishuo and Xuanji near Nüluo Rock, and Shen Fei told them the demons there had already been eliminated.
• Han Lingsha reacted sharply when Liu Mengli questioned her desire for immortality, then left; Shen Fei followed and later returned with her to Liu Manor.
• Shen Fei examined Yun Tianhe’s Wangshu Sword and considered the powerful artifacts held by the Qionghua and Shushan sects.
• Han Lingsha planned a shortcut through Mount Bagong so the group could reach Chenzhou in about a day.
• Liu Mengli gave Yun Tianhe a Jade Waist Bow, and the group departed for Mount Bagong the next morning.

Han Lingsha led Shen Fei, Yun Tianhe, and Liu Mengli into King of Huainan's mausoleum, where Yun Tianhe destroyed a wronged soul that attacked Han Lingsha. The group investigated the tomb after discovering more ghosts, while Shen Fei suspected they were targeting Han Lingsha because of her constitution.

• Han Lingsha's group found soldiers guarding King of Huainan's tomb, and Liu Mengli used incense to put them to sleep so the group could pass.
• Han Lingsha led the others through her tunnel into the mausoleum and explained its feng shui and grand construction.
• Yun Tianhe warned the group of killing intent, then blocked a red figure's attack on Han Lingsha and destroyed it with the Wangshu Sword.
• Han Lingsha recognized the attacker as a wronged soul and wanted to leave, but Liu Mengli urged the group to investigate because Shouyang County was nearby.
• The group encountered and defeated more ghosts and wronged souls, and Shen Fei suspected they were targeting Han Lingsha because of her constitution.

Shen Fei and the others explored King of Huainan’s tomb, where Han Lingsha uncovered the route to the pill chamber and discovered that the king had never become an immortal. King of Huainan’s wronged soul attacked them but was destroyed by Yun Tianhe with the Wangshu Sword.

• Han Lingsha opened a mechanism that revealed a hidden passage, and Shen Fei took the pair of Yin-Yang Purple Jade to carry away.
• In the pill chamber, Han Lingsha searched for the Supreme Immortal Haze Pill formula, while Liu Mengli found that its record was incomplete.
• A red porcelain bottle released King of Huainan’s wronged soul, who revealed that a Demonic Path practitioner had tricked him and eight companions into taking the pill and sealed them in the Scarlet Jade Pot.
• King of Huainan attacked Han Lingsha with black flames and then conjured Netherworld Phantom Claws at the group, while Shen Fei blocked his first strike.
• Yun Tianhe pierced King of Huainan with the Wangshu Sword twice, causing the wronged soul to vanish.

After Yun Tianhe killed King of Huainan, Shen Fei and the others left the mausoleum and reached Chenzhou, where they planned to stay while searching for Huaishuo and Xuanji. At Shengping Inn, Shen Fei encountered Su Xin and a masked man.

• Yun Tianhe killed King of Huainan in one blow, and Han Lingsha grew tired while Liu Mengli looked after her.
• Yun Tianhe proposed marrying Han Lingsha, Liu Mengli, and Shen Fei, prompting Han Lingsha to scold and hit him while Liu Mengli explained marriage and friendship.
• Han Lingsha found the route out of the mausoleum and explained that its bound-earth feng shui would keep its ghosts and monsters from escaping.
• The group traveled through Wanqiu Mountain to Chenzhou, where Yun Tianhe and Liu Mengli wandered off and Han Lingsha went to find them.
• Shen Fei reserved four superior rooms at Shengping Inn and noticed Su Xin arrive with a tall masked man.

Shen Fei met Su Xin, an Automaton Master, and exchanged ideas about mechanical puppets with her in Chenzhou. He and his companions then prepared to help Qin Ji enter the Thousand Buddha Pagoda, where Shen Fei opened a locked window to lead the way inside.

• Shen Fei recognized Su Xin's husband Leng Yi as a puppet and exchanged automaton designs and theories with Su Xin.
• Han Lingsha, Yun Tianhe, and Liu Mengli joined Shen Fei and Su Xin, and Yun Tianhe admired the mechanical puppets.
• Han Lingsha explained that Qin Ji wanted help reaching her late husband's tomb in the Thousand Buddha Pagoda because she had vowed not to use martial arts.
• Shen Fei and Han Lingsha watched Chenzhou's gates for Huaishuo and the others, but found no trace of them by dusk.
• Shen Fei, Han Lingsha, Yun Tianhe, Liu Mengli, and Qin Ji reached the Thousand Buddha Pagoda, where Shen Fei unlocked a window and opened their way inside.

Shen Fei and his companions visited the Thousand Buddha Pagoda with Qin Ji, where she faced the past and learned of her husband Qin Yi’s death and his wife Jiang Shi’s devotion. After Jiang Shi died, the group reunited with Huaishuo and arranged to travel with him and Xuanji to the Qionghua Sect, while Su Xin reconsidered returning there herself.

• Shen Fei knocked out the pagoda’s Warrior Monks, found a spirit pearl producing the holy light, and let Qin Ji meet Jiang Shi alone at Qin Yi’s memorial tablet.
• Qin Ji told the group that Jiang Shi had married Qin Yi to care for him, but he had died of illness; she then played her qin and said she would travel in search of musical scores.
• The group heard that Jiang Shi had died at the Thousand Buddha Pagoda, and Shen Fei made Yun Tianhe a wooden mouse while discussing sword flight and immortality with Su Xin.
• Han Lingsha and the others encountered Huaishuo and Xuanji at the Shengping Inn, and Huaishuo agreed to take them toward the Qionghua Sect after an errand.
• Shen Fei and Han Lingsha said farewell to Su Xin and waited outside the north city gate, while Su Xin flew away with Leng Yi and struggled to steady her sword flight.

Huaishuo and Xuanji took Shen Fei, Yun Tianhe, Han Lingsha, and Liu Mengli to Bozhen Town so they could attempt the Qionghua Sect’s trials. After resting overnight, the group entered the Taiyi Immortal Path, where a talisman spirit attacked them and Shen Fei tested its paralyzing lightning spell.

• Huaishuo lent Yun Tianhe’s Wangshu Sword to carry the group by sword flight to Bozhen Town, where he and Xuanji left them to climb the mountain themselves.
• Yun Tianhe insisted that Han Lingsha rest after she became dizzy and collapsed, and Shen Fei gave her diluted Eternal Spring water to help her recover.
• Shen Fei gathered information about the town and learned that the mountain path was a changing maze filled with trials and possible demon attacks.
• The next morning, Shen Fei, Yun Tianhe, Han Lingsha, and Liu Mengli entered the Taiyi Immortal Path and encountered a talisman spirit resembling Xingtian.
• The talisman spirit struck Yun Tianhe with paralyzing lightning, and Shen Fei deliberately let the spell hit him so he could test its effect as the group fought the creature.

Shen Fei and his companions crossed Qionghua Sect’s trials and learned that its entrance tests had been suspended because of events within the sect. After the gatekeepers turned them away, they agreed to wait in the valley, though Han Lingsha still considered sneaking inside.

• Shen Fei defeated Xingtian and Kuizhao, and the group passed Ziwei Trail and Liu Mengli led them through Baihao Trail’s maze.
• Han Lingsha stopped the Double Swordsmen of Jiannan from robbing them, and Sister Pomegranate explained that the final entrance test had been suspended.
• Han Lingsha led the group to Qionghua Sect’s gates, where the gatekeepers confirmed the suspension and directed them back to the valley.
• Han Lingsha suggested sneaking into Qionghua Sect, but Liu Mengli and Shen Fei warned her against acting recklessly, and the group agreed to wait.

Su Yao summoned Shen Fei, Han Lingsha, Yun Tianhe, and Liu Mengli, learned that Yun Tianhe was Yun Tianqing’s son, and offered them a chance to take Qionghua Sect’s entrance test. She sent them to a secret realm, where the Drunken Immortal required them to fill a wine vessel before he would explain how to leave.

• Xu Yi summoned the four to Qionghua Palace, where Su Yao questioned Yun Tianhe about his father, Yun Tianqing.
• Su Yao offered the group a chance to take the sect’s test and sent them into a secret realm with a spell.
• The group met the Drunken Immortal, who asked them to fill a wine vessel with wine in exchange for guidance on leaving.
• Liu Mengli retrieved a wine jar with her ribbon, then Shen Fei used Mind Like Still Water to gather ninety-nine jars and fill the vessel.
• The Drunken Immortal warned them not to drink the wine yet if they wanted to pass the remaining trials.

Shen Fei, Yun Tianhe, Han Lingsha, and Liu Mengli passed the Drunken Immortal’s trial and faced the God of Wealth’s challenge. Han Lingsha secured their passage through the remaining trials by bargaining with him, and the group entered the circle of light leading to Qionghua Sect.

• The Drunken Immortal passed Shen Fei and the others through his trial, skipping the trial of lust after teasing Han Lingsha and Yun Tianhe about their feelings.
• The group entered a chamber filled with treasure, where the God of Wealth demanded Nine-Eyed Stones as the price for passing his trial.
• Shen Fei scattered the treasure, and the four quickly collected twenty Nine-Eyed Stones.
• Han Lingsha gave the God of Wealth fourteen stones, then argued that she could keep the remaining six and demanded passage through the next trials as well.
• After Shen Fei and Yun Tianhe threatened him, the God of Wealth agreed to make an exception, accepted all the stones, and opened a passage to Qionghua Sect.

Shen Fei, Yun Tianhe, Han Lingsha, and Liu Mengli passed Qionghua Sect's test and began settling in as disciples under Murong Ziying's guidance. After touring the sect and attending their first morning lesson, they received Grain-Avoiding Pills and were told to focus on cultivation for the coming week.

• Su Yao accepted the four as Qionghua Sect disciples, inspected Yun Tianhe's Wangshu Sword, and assigned Murong Ziying to instruct them.
• After the others left, Su Yao privately recalled her failed attempt to activate Wangshu and her resentment over being passed over for Su Yu.
• Murong Ziying sent Huaishuo and Xuanji to show the newcomers around, explain the sect, and help them collect supplies and settle into their rooms.
• Shen Fei thought about waiting for the Huanming Realm, while Yun Tianhe complained about Qionghua Sect's plain food at dinner.
• Shen Fei woke Yun Tianhe for morning class, and Murong Ziying taught the four the sect's introductory cultivation method at Sword Dance Field.
• When Yun Tianhe asked for food after class, Murong Ziying gave each of the four a Grain-Avoiding Pill and ordered them to cultivate diligently for a week.

Shen Fei, Yun Tianhe, Han Lingsha, and Liu Mengli practiced sword flight at Qionghua Sect, then left to explore Chenzhou while Murong Ziying was away. In Chenzhou, they heard that the Thousand Buddha Pagoda had lost its holy light and met the scholar Jing Yang at a stall.

• Shen Fei and his companions mastered sword flight quickly, and Yun Tianhe and Shen Fei hunted and grilled a bear during an outing.
• Murong Ziying explained that the highest realm of the Sword Control Technique involved flying with sword light, and Shen Fei learned that Qionghua Sect possessed the Water Spirit Orb.
• After Murong Ziying went down the mountain, the four flew to Chenzhou, where Liu Mengli declined Han Lingsha's suggestion to visit Shouyang County.
• At an inn, the four heard that the Thousand Buddha Pagoda had lost its holy light and that demons had appeared in several places.
• While exploring Chenzhou, the four encountered a young scholar selling paintings, and Han Lingsha recognized him as Jing Yang.

Han Lingsha lent Jingyang money to treat his father, and Shen Fei kept Jingyang's IOU as a joke for Jingtian’s future. Back at Qionghua Sect, Liu Mengli told the others about Miss Ouyang, who was trapped in a dream, and Shen Fei recognized the story but could not remember where its formation was.

• Han Lingsha withdrew five hundred taels from Baoqi Bank and lent it to Jingyang so he could buy medicine for his father, Jing Huan.
• Jingyang wrote an IOU with interest and claimed that a future Jing would become a great magnate of Shu; Shen Fei kept the IOU, thinking he might tease Jingtian with it.
• Han Lingsha and Liu Mengli bought supplies while Shen Fei and Yun Tianhe waited outside Chenzhou, and the four later returned to Qionghua Sect.
• Shen Fei studied Qionghua Sect’s talismans and alchemy while Yun Tianhe grew restless and considered leaving the sect, though he wanted to help when the demon realm invaded and still hoped to meet Xuanxiao.
• Liu Mengli told the others that Miss Ouyang had been trapped in a dream by a formation, and Han Lingsha wanted to find the culprit and rescue her.
• Shen Fei recognized Miss Ouyang’s story but could not recall where the formation was located.

Shen Fei helped Yuan Yu and the others clear vengeful ghosts from King of Huainan's tomb, then spoke with Su Xin in the Valley of Reflection about her past and the Qionghua Sect. He began considering how to use Su Xin to reveal Su Yao and Xuanxiao's ascension plan before Murong Ziying was drawn into it.

• Shen Fei reminded Han Lingsha and Liu Mengli about the feng shui disturbance at King of Huainan's tomb, and Murong Ziying directed him to seek Yuan Yu's help before reflecting in the Valley of Reflection.
• Yuan Yu, Shen Fei, Han Lingsha, Yun Tianhe, Liu Mengli, Huaishuo, and Xuanji went to the tomb, killed the vengeful ghosts, and Yuan Yu placed talismans to disrupt the area's spiritual energy.
• Yun Tianhe and Liu Mengli visited Liu Manor, while Shen Fei secretly took the alchemy furnace from the tomb after the others had left.
• In the Valley of Reflection, Shen Fei met Su Xin, who told him she had once left the Qionghua Sect to learn automaton-making after an injury and had returned to find Su Yao changed.
• Su Xin told Shen Fei about Yun Tianqing and his relationship with Su Yu, then left without revealing everything she knew.
• Shen Fei considered using Su Xin to help Yun Tianhe and the others learn of Su Yao and Xuanxiao's ascension plan before Murong Ziying became involved.