Chapter Summaries

Chen Qing and Wu Tieshan defeated an ambush by the Seven Fiends of Yinsha, and Chen Qing later studied their incomplete demonic cultivation manual before completing his breakthrough to Embracing Dan Strength. The chapter ended with Chen Qing generating Qingmu True Qi for the first time.

• Qian Tong ambushed the carriage, but Chen Qing killed him with a punch through the floor as Wu Tieshan confronted Sun Kui.
• Chen Qing killed Li Xiao and Hu Sifang with his spear, and Wu Tieshan cut Sun Kui in two.
• Chen Qing told Wu Tieshan that the attackers were remnants of the Seven Fiends of Yinsha seeking revenge, and they found an incomplete first level of the Wuji Demonic Codex among the bodies.
• After parting with Wu Tieshan at the Wutai Sect, Chen Qing returned to his courtyard and learned that the demonic art consumed Essence Blood and could corrupt the user’s mind and cultivation foundation.
• Chen Qing completed the first layer of the Qingmu Everlasting Spring Art and broke through to Embracing Dan Strength, generating Qingmu True Qi.

Chen Qing refined his Qingmu True Qi, advanced to Embracing Dan Strength, and received an appointment as steward of Nanze No. 7 Fishery. At the Archive Pavilion, Nie Shanshan learned of his breakthrough and regretted that her master had passed over him when choosing a disciple.

• Chen Qing tested Qingmu True Qi with his spear, then spent a month adapting it to his martial techniques and hidden weapons.
• Chen Qing revealed his breakthrough at the Qingmu Institute, where Xu Qi and the other disciples congratulated him.
• Li Baichuan praised Chen Qing’s stable foundation and advised him to cultivate patiently.
• Xu Qi explained the sect’s steward positions, and Chen Qing accepted an appointment to Nanze No. 7 Fishery from Elder Zhao.
• Nie Shanshan learned that Chen Qing had reached Embracing Dan Strength and recalled that Chu Jinyun had once considered choosing him over Zhang Rui.

Wu Manqing celebrated Chen Qing’s breakthrough to Embracing Dan Strength as he took charge of Nanze No. 7 Fishery. After meeting the neighboring stewards, Chen Qing read reports of rising danger in Yunlin Prefecture and resolved to focus on improving his strength.

• Wu Manqing learned that Chen Qing had entered Embracing Dan Strength and sent him gifts and a larger retainer, while Wu Family, Yang Zhicheng, and Luo Xinya also sent congratulations or gifts.
• Bai Ming grew jealous of Chen Qing’s success, rejected Zheng Xiuhong’s warnings, and left to seek rare medicines in the dangerous depths of Ten Thousand Poisons Swamp.
• Chen Qing arrived at Nanze No. 7 Fishery, met its staff, assigned patrol and accounting priorities, and inspected the ponds near Qianchuan Marsh.
• Wang Hai and Zhao Kang visited Chen Qing and proposed cooperation between the neighboring fisheries, then privately agreed to watch how he handled himself.
• Chen Qing read that Shi Kaishan had emerged from seclusion after a breakthrough and that the Wuji Demonic Sect had massacred the Chaoyang Escort Agency, then decided to concentrate on strengthening himself.

Chen Qing investigated the records of his father Chen Wu, who was presumed dead in a canal collapse, before an Ironclad Turtle attacked Nanze No. 7 Fishery. Chen Qing killed the beast and organized its processing, then returned to recover from the strain on his arm.

• Chen Qing practiced the Spirit Guiding Fishing Technique and caught young Treasure Fish for Liu He to prepare.
• Pang Qinghai's letter told Chen Qing that his father, Chen Wu, had been listed missing after a collapse at Duanlong Gorge, and Chen Qing reviewed the fishery's accounts.
• An Ironclad Turtle charged Zhang Wei at night, and Chen Qing stopped its attack with his spear.
• Chen Qing pierced the turtle's neck, endured its tail strike, and killed it by slamming its body to the ground.
• Chen Qing praised the workers, assigned Old Zhao to process the turtle, ordered repairs to the irrigation canal, and returned to his room to tend his injured arm.

Chen Qing uncovered Zhang Wei’s theft scheme and confronted him during a nighttime exchange, but an unknown accomplice killed Zhang Wei before he could name everyone involved. Wang Hai and Zhao Kang then attacked Chen Qing and tried to bribe him; when he refused, they prepared to kill him in the Reed Marsh.

• Old Zhao reported that the Ironclad Turtle’s processed materials were worth about ten thousand taels, and Chen Qing ordered them secured while promising to report concerns about the unusually large turtle to the sect.
• Wang Hai and Zhao Kang persuaded Zhang Wei to carry stolen fish and clams to their exchange, intending to pin the fishery’s missing stock on Chen Qing.
• Zhang Wei killed Li Tie when Li Tie discovered the crate, then continued toward the Reed Marsh, where Chen Qing confronted him and exposed the theft.
• Chen Qing struck Zhang Wei down as he tried to flee, but an unseen attacker killed Zhang Wei with a blue water arrow before he could finish identifying Wang Hai.
• Wang Hai and Zhao Kang attacked Chen Qing from opposite sides; Chen Qing evaded Wang Hai’s punch and wounded his arm with the Cold Flood Dragon Spear.
• Wang Hai and Zhao Kang offered Chen Qing a share of their profits, but after he refused, they surrounded him and vowed to kill him.

Chen Qing defeated and killed Wang Hai and Zhao Kang after they attacked him in the Reed Marsh. Zhao Kang revealed that Chen Qing had been set up to take the blame for the fishery’s deficit, and Chen Qing began searching the dead men’s residences for evidence and valuables.

• Wang Hai and Zhao Kang attacked Chen Qing together, but he disarmed Wang Hai and severely injured Zhao Kang.
• Wang Hai and Zhao Kang fled in separate directions, but Chen Qing pursued and killed Wang Hai with his spear, then brought Zhao Kang down with Gold Coin Darts.
• Chen Qing questioned Zhao Kang, who revealed that the fishery accounts had been falsified to make Chen Qing a scapegoat when Elder Zhao audited the losses; Zhao Kang then died.
• Chen Qing concealed the bodies and gathered money, Xuanming True Water Art, and Wave Riding Steps from Wang Hai.
• Chen Qing realized the men’s possessions might remain at Fisheries Six and Eight, then searched Wang Hai’s residence and Zhao Kang’s house.

Chen Qing uncovered evidence of a vast fisheries embezzlement scheme and brought it to Li Baichuan, who used it to protect him and arrange an official story that made Chen Qing a hero. After the sect closed the case, Chen Qing used the Jade Marrow Lotus Root to begin improving his bone structure.

• Chen Qing found stolen silver, a fifteen-year-old Jade Marrow Lotus Root, and account books documenting Wang Hai and Zhao Kang's embezzlement and its powerful backers.
• Chen Qing took the evidence to Li Baichuan, who accepted the case and confronted Elder Zhao with the account books.
• Elder Zhao gave Li Baichuan a thirteen-year-old Three-Leaf Snow Lotus in exchange for the books and agreed to report Wang Hai and Zhao Kang as thieves who had died fighting each other.
• Steward Zhu announced that Chen Qing had helped expose the thefts and was rewarded with a higher stipend, pills, and a commendation, while Li Tie's family received compensation.
• Chen Qing returned to his Quiet Room and consumed a piece of the Jade Marrow Lotus Root, beginning a transformation of his sinews, bones, meridians, and qi sea.

Chen Qing hatched a Bone-Corroding Spider and, after two months of cultivation, mastered the first layer of the Nine Revolutions Golden Art and gained Gengjin True Qi. As attacks by exotic beasts mounted around the fisheries, Sun Dacheng was badly wounded, and Sun Xiaomiao arrived at the fishery.

• Chen Qing reached Five-Form Bone Structure, improving the gains from his Heaven Rewards Diligence Fate Pattern, and the fishery resumed operating with new disciples Zhou Tai, Qian Xiaoliu, and Sun Dacheng.
• Chen Qing learned that Bai Ming had died from poison after an encounter with an Emerald Phosphorus Poison Snake, leaving Zheng Xiuhong devastated and in debt.
• Chen Qing thanked Li Baichuan with five thousand taels, sold exotic beast parts through Yang Zhicheng, bought poisonous ingredients, and hatched a Bone-Corroding Spider.
• After two months of cultivation, Chen Qing broke through the first layer of the Nine Revolutions Golden Art and gained Gengjin True Qi alongside his Qingmu True Qi.
• A Ghost-Faced Water Monkey attacked the patrol and poisoned Sun Dacheng, while Chen Qing recognized that exotic beast attacks across nearby fisheries had become unusually frequent.
• Chen Qing stabilized Sun Dacheng and ordered Liu He and Qian Xiaoliu to treat him; as Chen considered the growing danger, Sun Xiaomiao arrived at the fishery.

Song Ming led Chen Qing, Wu Yuanhua, and Lin Wei into Qianchuan Marsh to investigate the unusual exotic beast attacks at key Water Eyes. As they reached Blackwater Vortex, an adult Black Python attacked their ship and lunged at Wu Yuanhua.

• Song Ming reported that the sect ordered an investigation of nearby Water Eyes and Eddy Zones, and he arranged for Chen Qing, Lin Wei, and Wu Yuanhua to join him.
• The four stewards boarded Song Ming's Water-Splitting Shuttle and traveled into Qianchuan Marsh, with Lin Wei's Blackwater Snake scouting ahead.
• Song Ming and Lin Wei warned that rival sects might kill gifted disciples and explained the risks of cultivating multiple kinds of true qi, prompting Chen Qing to resolve to conceal his Gengjin True Qi.
• The group reached Blackwater Vortex, where the restless Blackwater Snake and strange currents signaled danger beneath the water.
• An adult Black Python struck the Water-Splitting Shuttle, then burst from the water and lunged at Wu Yuanhua.

Chen Qing and the others killed a Black Python in its lair and divided its eggs, corpse, herbs, and treasure before continuing to the core of the Ping River Water Eye. There, they found several exotic beast corpses drained of their Essence Blood and crawling with black venomous insects.

• Wu Yuanhua, Chen Qing, Song Ming, and Lin Wei wounded the Black Python, chased it to its cave, and killed it after it attacked them with poison mist.
• Wu Yuanhua claimed the two Black Python eggs, Lin Wei took the corpse and its valuable parts, Song Ming chose the Green Scale Fruit, and Chen Qing collected the Cold Pond Orchid and treasure, including a Dark Iron Fragment.
• The group resumed their journey and reached the enormous whirlpool at the core of the Water Eye.
• Chen Qing asked Song Ming why exotic beasts had been appearing near the outer waters, and Song Ming suspected that something in the depths of Qianchuan Marsh had disturbed them.
• Lin Wei warned the others after her Blackwater Snake reacted with fear, and they spotted decaying exotic beast corpses whose Essence Blood had been drained and whose remains were covered in black venomous insects.

Chen Qing and his companions discovered a Blood Sacrifice underway at the Water Eye and fled after a powerful Demonic Sect attack wrecked their shuttle. The pursuers split up after them, and Chen Qing escaped underwater with Tu Gang on his heels before both emerged on a desolate island, where they faced each other for a fight.

• Chen Qing, Lin Wei, Song Ming, and Wu Yuanhua found the blood-red Water Eye and learned that a Demonic Sect cultivator was using the Essence Blood of exotic beasts for a Blood Sacrifice.
• A black-robed elder’s Gang Jin struck the Water-Splitting Shuttle, and the four fled as the elder ordered three middle-stage Embracing Dan Strength cultivators to pursue and kill them.
• Song Ming told the others to split up, then continued down the main waterway in the damaged shuttle while Wu Yuanhua, Lin Wei, and Chen Qing escaped through separate passages.
• The pursuers divided, and Tu Gang followed Chen Qing, attacking him with his Ghost Head Saber as they raced through the underwater passages.
• Chen Qing broke through a reef and surfaced near a desolate island, but Tu Gang emerged behind him and landed nearby, ready to continue the fight.

Chen Qing killed Tu Gang in a reef-side battle, then joined Nie Shanshan and the Guishui Institute disciples aboard their Treasure Ship. As they headed toward Hong Yuandong, they encountered a fierce True Gang battle, and Nie Shanshan ordered the ship to race toward it.

• Tu Gang overwhelmed Chen Qing with his saber, but Chen Qing wounded him with a spear counter and poisoned Gold Coin Darts.
• Chen Qing revealed his Gengjin True Qi and pierced Tu Gang's heart, killing him before hiding his corpse and taking a Jade bottle of Essence Blood pills.
• Nie Shanshan arrived with Guishui Institute disciples, questioned Chen Qing about the missing Wu Yuanhua, and invited him to travel with them.
• Chen Qing joined Nie Shanshan's Treasure Ship while wondering whether Song Ming, Wu Yuanhua, and Lin Wei had survived.
• The ship reached turbulent waters where Hong Yuandong was fighting amid blazing Li Fire True Gang, and Nie Shanshan ordered it to speed toward the battle.

After returning from Qianchuan Marsh, Chen Qing concealed his dual streams of true qi with a newly discovered secret art and learned that Tu Gang’s death had become part of the rumors surrounding the battle. In Hanyu Valley, Granny Ling Shuang warned Ye Qingyi that the Demonic Sect’s rescue of Zuo Feng signaled a dangerous plan already underway.

• Hong Yuandong told Nie Shanshan and the disciples that Zuo Feng had escaped into Qianchuan Marsh, while Chu Jinyun and Shi Zhenyue later confirmed that a powerful Demonic Sect expert had rescued him.
• Chu Jinyun realized Chen Qing was the disciple she had once passed over after Nie Shanshan reminded her, but Chen Qing concealed his cultivation and returned safely to Nanze No. 7 Fishery.
• Chen Qing cleaned an Ink Jade fragment and learned the Guiyuan Breath Concealment Art, which restrained the aura of both his Qingmu and Gengjin True Qi.
• Chen Qing tried to bring the two streams of true qi together, but their opposing properties caused them to resist each other, so he stopped and planned to try again after advancing the Xuanming True Water Art.
• Rumors spread through Yunlin Prefecture City about the battle, the deaths of Tu Gang and two other Demonic Sect subordinates, and Zuo Feng’s escape.
• Granny Ling Shuang told Ye Qingyi that the Demonic Sect’s rescue was likely planned and ordered Hanyu Valley’s disciples to stay alert while its Sect Master completed the fusion of the two sects’ true qi.

Chen Qing learned that Elder Zhao had been transferred, visited the recovering Wu Yuanhua, and spent six months cultivating while keeping his distance from rival recruiters. He formed Guishui True Qi and prepared Nanze No. 7 Fishery for its winter catch.

• Chen Qing read reports about Qianchuan Marsh and Nine Waves Island before Zhou Tai told him Elder Zhao had been transferred from the fishery administration.
• Chen Qing and Lin Wei visited Wu Yuanhua, where they encountered Song Ming and saw that Wu Yuanhua had grown distant toward him after the crisis.
• Chen Qing kept Xu Qi and Luo Xinya at arm’s length as they tried to recruit him, while he cultivated for six months and formed Guishui True Qi.
• Chen Qing returned to the fishery and directed the staff to register the New Year gifts sent by local families.
• Chen Qing approved preparations for the winter catch, ordered increased patrols, and asked Liu He to make fish cakes for the staff.

Chen Qing returned to the Wutai Sect, copied the first three layers of two other institutes’ cultivation arts, and accepted Wu Manqing’s invitation to attend a Yunlin Chamber of Commerce gathering. At the Zheng Family’s event, he met prominent guests and watched Liu Han draw the hall’s attention as he arrived.

• Chen Qing returned to the Wutai Sect, congratulated Zhao Shi on reaching Embracing Dan Strength, and noted the growing factional struggle over the Qingmu Institute’s Chief Disciple position.
• Chen Qing copied the first three layers of the Chiyang Burning Heart Art and the Eight Desolations Mountain Suppressing Art from the Martial Library, giving his reason as studying the Five Elements’ generation and restraint.
• Wu Manqing invited Chen Qing to accompany her to the Zheng Family’s year-end gathering, and he accepted.
• Wu Manqing told Chen Qing she had visited his mother and arranged care for her, then brought him to the Zheng Family estate in the Prefecture City.
• At the gathering, Wu Manqing introduced Chen Qing to Gu Ruohua and Li Wan, who pointed out influential guests including Chang Jing and Ye Qingyi.
• Liu Han arrived at Juxing Tower, drawing the attention of the guests and prompting Zheng Hui to greet him.

At the Yunlin Chamber of Commerce gathering, the Zheng Family awarded the Wu Family valuable fish-market rights before accusations erupted that the Zhengs secretly controlled Nine Waves Island. Chen Qing suspected the Zheng Family was guilty but believed a more powerful faction had orchestrated the public denunciation, leaving the struggle over the trade routes unresolved.

• Zheng Hui granted the Wu Family two years of priority supply rights to the western district fish market after praising Chen Qing’s standing and potential.
• A Bai Family representative accused the Zheng Family of colluding with Nine Waves Island, and Zheng Tong killed him before he could explain further.
• Kang Jiu appeared and accused the Zheng Family of supporting Nine Waves Island and arranging the deaths of his son and nephew, then stabbed himself to death.
• Zheng Yuankui denied the accusations, but the shaken attendees ended the gathering and left without accepting his explanation.
• On the carriage ride home, Chen Qing told Wu Manqing that Kang Jiu’s carefully timed appearance and Liu Han’s intervention suggested someone had arranged the confrontation to bring down the Zheng Family.

Chen Qing learned that the Zheng Family had been raided and accused of colluding with Nine Waves Island and the Wuji Demonic Sect, prompting a region-wide campaign to crush the river bandits. After agreeing to watch for news of Wu Feng, held captive near the island, Chen Qing received a sect mobilization order naming him for the expedition to Nine Waves Island.

• Chen Qing ordered the defenses at Nanze No. 7 Fishery strengthened after suspecting trouble was coming.
• He Yueting and Hong Yuandong raided the Zheng residence, arrested Zheng Tong, found Blood Marrow Pills, and ordered the Zheng Family confined, while Zheng Yuankui escaped with core family members and their fortune.
• He Yueting and Hong Yuandong issued a Bandit Suppression Order with rewards for capturing Zheng Yuankui and permission to divide Nine Waves Island's spoils, stirring a rush of forces toward the island.
• Liu Han ordered the Liu Family to lead an expedition against Nine Waves Island to gain influence and claim its wealth.
• Wu Manqing asked Chen Qing to find or rescue Wu Feng, who had been detained by Nine Waves Island river bandits, and offered him a low-tier treasure artifact inner armor.
• Song Ming brought Chen Qing a sect mobilization order assigning him, Song Ming, and Lin Wei to the Nine Waves Island campaign.

Shi Kaishan killed Zheng Yuankui and ordered a pursuit of the Zheng Family remnants, but the Demonic Sect’s stronghold and Old Demon Heart Devourer remained undiscovered. As Wutai Sect’s expedition arrived to gather spoils, Chen Qing stayed with Shen Xiuyong, who hinted that they could profit by waiting near the waterways.

• Shi Kaishan defeated Zheng Yuankui’s Blood Burning Secret Technique with one strike, killing the Zheng Family head.
• Shi Kaishan ordered Xuanjia Gate to hunt down the escaped Zheng Family remnants and bandit chiefs, while Chu Jinyun and Peng Zhen helped pacify Nine Waves Island.
• Shen Xiuyong led Chen Qing, Xiao Ruizhe, and other Wutai Sect members toward the island, telling them to guard the waterways and collect the Zheng Family’s wealth.
• Li Lei returned with a ship loaded with treasure and reported that Nine Waves Island’s stores were overflowing with valuables and weapons.
• Song Ming, Lin Wei, and several others headed into the island to search for loot, while Chen Qing chose to stay with Shen Xiuyong and guard the passages.
• Shen Xiuyong praised Chen Qing’s caution and suggested they wait by the waterways to profit from what came out of the island.

Shen Xiuyong used the Wutai Sect’s authority to collect valuables from ships leaving Nine Waves Island, then assigned Chen Qing to guard a secluded channel after they found a damaged Zheng Family treasure ship. Chen Qing accepted the ship, a warning talisman, and three Thunderclap Fire Seeds on credit, and set off to guard the waterway.

• Shen Xiuyong stopped Zhao Kun’s Weiyuan Escort Agency ship, demanded an inspection, and accepted sacks and chests of valuables as tea money before letting it pass.
• Shen Xiuyong collected more valuables from a private family’s soldiers and a group of independent cultivators, sharing some of the proceeds with Chen Qing.
• Chen Qing pointed out a damaged treasure ship, and Shen Xiuyong found a bloodied token fragment bearing the character Zheng inside it.
• Shen Xiuyong gave Chen Qing the damaged ship and assigned him to guard a secluded channel, providing paired paper figures so he could summon help.
• Chen Qing agreed to pay for three Thunderclap Fire Seeds with the tea money he collected, then started the damaged ship’s paddle wheels and headed toward the channel.

Chen Qing guarded a hidden waterway, extorted passing boats, and killed Wang Zhenshan and Zheng Da when they tried to ambush him. He took their Treasure Ship and spoils, then completed his Mountain Suppressing Prison Spear mastery while sailing away from Nine Waves Island.

• Chen Qing used the Bone-Corroding Spider to secure the waterway and collected tolls from fleeing travelers, invoking Shen Xiuyong to intimidate them.
• Chen Qing suspected Wang Zhenshan was hiding something aboard his Treasure Ship and demanded to inspect it.
• Zheng Da sprang from a crate to attack Chen Qing while Wang Zhenshan struck from the front, but Chen Qing dodged and fought back.
• Chen Qing killed Zheng Da and Wang Zhenshan, then took their valuables and Zheng Da's Mid-grade Treasure Weapon, the saber Yellow Springs.
• Chen Qing transferred his belongings to the Wang Family's Treasure Ship, sank his battered vessel, and departed as night fell over Nine Waves Island.
• Chen Qing cultivated aboard the ship and advanced the Mountain Suppressing Prison Spear to Completion.