Chapter Summaries

Xiao Bieli challenged the Wutai Sect and defeated Yan Yaoyang in a fierce duel at the sect’s training ground. He left after no other disciple accepted his challenge, while Chen Qing remained uncertain about the full extent of Xiao Bieli’s strength.

• Sang Yanping welcomed Xiao Bieli at the mountain gate, while Mo Yun declared that he and Hanyu Valley would only observe the duel.
• Yan Yaoyang accepted Xiao Bieli’s challenge, and the Wutai Sect crowd moved to the training ground to watch them fight.
• Yan Yaoyang attacked with his Vajra Armor-Piercing Fist, but Xiao Bieli used the Flowing Cloud Sword Art to evade and deflect his strikes.
• Xiao Bieli spotted an opening in Yan Yaoyang’s attack and wounded him with Cloud Sea Returning Flow, forcing him to retreat and concede the apparent victory.
• Xiao Bieli invited another Wutai Sect disciple to challenge him, but no one stepped forward, so he departed with Ye Qingyi and Mo Yun.
• Chen Qing observed the battle and wondered whether Xiao Bieli had hidden another kind of True Qi or other trump cards.

Chen Qing learned about the Gang Jin bottleneck and a coming auction of mysterious iron boxes, then returned to find Wutai Sect distributing more cultivation resources after Yan Yaoyang’s defeat. When Nie Shanshan claimed seven of ten drops of Earth Core Milk for herself, Chen Qing openly objected.

• Shen Xiuyong explained that reaching Gang Jin was exceptionally difficult and told Chen Qing that a Fengle Prefecture auction might offer a Mysterious Iron Box containing a Gang Condensing Pill; Chen Qing repaid his debt but declined to attend.
• He Yuzhou ordered Wutai Sect to double its Century Earth Core Milk supply and promised a drop of Three Hundred Year Earth Core Milk to anyone who fought Xiao Bieli if he returned.
• Chu Jinyun urged Nie Shanshan to contend for the Three Hundred Year Earth Core Milk, believing it could improve her root bones and future chances of breaking through to Gang Jin.
• Chen Qing learned that Xiao Bieli had left Yan Yaoyang with serious injuries and cold true qi lodged in his wounds, then told Yu Bao'er to keep the disciples calm.
• Sang Yanping announced that the four disciples would share ten drops of Century Earth Core Milk and that the sect might later award a drop of Three Hundred Year Earth Core Milk.
• Nie Shanshan proposed taking seven drops for herself and giving one each to Li Wang, Li Lei, and Chen Qing, but Chen Qing objected.

Chen Qing challenged Nie Shanshan over the Earth Core Milk and revealed enough strength to make her agree to a fairer distribution. Meanwhile, sect leaders considered the coming four-sect alliance and Xiao Bieli’s challenge, while Qixia Mountain Villa’s Great Villa Master showed signs of a strange, icy aura and black smoke.

• Chen Qing met Nie Shanshan’s palm strike head-on, and their clash left the Assembly Hall damaged while surprising the onlookers with his strength.
• Nie Shanshan agreed to split the ten bottles of Century Earth Core Milk, giving four each to herself and Chen Qing and one each to Li Wang and Li Lei.
• Sang Yanping reported the clash to He Yuzhou, who said the disciples’ rivalry had stirred the sect’s stagnant atmosphere.
• Shi Kaishan told Jin Poyue that Leng Qianqiu might be using Xiao Bieli’s challenges to weaken rival sects and secure leadership of a four-sect alliance.
• Qixia Mountain Villa’s Great Villa Master told Feng Shuhao to let Hanyu Valley and Wutai Sect fight, then displayed an icy aura and a faint wisp of black smoke behind the screen.

After condensing Kuntu True Qi, Chen Qing struggled to suppress the violent conflict among his five elemental energies and sought a way to stabilize them. Li Baichuan offered to guide him if he brought back a drop of Essence Blood from a hundred-year-old Red-Eyed Poison Boa, while Pang Qinghai entrusted his son Pang Yu to Chen Qing’s future guidance.

• Chen Qing refined Century Earth Core Milk, cultivated Kuntu True Qi, and barely suppressed the resulting clash among his five elemental True Qi sources.
• Unable to find a solution in the martial library, Chen Qing learned that Pang Qinghai had arrived with Pang Yu and welcomed them at the Qingmu Institute.
• Pang Qinghai reported that Chen Qing’s mother and old acquaintances in Gaolin County were well, then asked him to look after Pang Yu if the youth earned a place in the Inner Court.
• Chen Qing accepted Pang Qinghai’s gift of two herbs and promised to guide Pang Yu if he reached Transformation Force and chose the Qingmu Institute.
• After Pang Qinghai and Pang Yu departed, Chen Qing brought an Inner Court assessment roster to Li Baichuan and asked how to suppress conflicting True Qi.
• Li Baichuan promised to point Chen Qing toward a solution if he obtained a drop of Essence Blood from a hundred-year-old Red-Eyed Poison Boa.

Chen Qing searched for Red-Eyed Poison Boa Essence Blood to resolve the dangerous conflict among the five-element true qi in his body, but Wanbao Pavilion found no news. He prepared to enter Ten Thousand Poisons Swamp with Jiang Bohong, while He Yuzhou learned that Chen Qing was leaving the mountain and ordered him watched without interference.

• Chen Qing asked Liu Chengzong to search the Liu Family's connections for Red-Eyed Poison Boa Essence Blood and sold two inner armors to Wanbao Pavilion for seventy-two thousand taels.
• Chen Qing consulted Jiang Bohong, who identified Ghost Cry Swamp as a possible habitat for hundred-year-old Red-Eyed Poison Boas and offered to guide him there in about half a month.
• Chen Qing cultivated while waiting, but after receiving no news from the Liu Family, he bought medicines, a swamp map, and intelligence about the boa and prepared his weapons and supplies.
• Jiang Bohong told Chen Qing to meet him at dawn at the Old Knife Handle Inn, and Chen Qing reported to the Internal Affairs Hall that he would leave the mountain for personal affairs.
• Sang Yanping told He Yuzhou that Nie Shanshan had gone to seek Mei Yingxue's sword guidance and that Chen Qing was leaving the mountain; He Yuzhou ordered him to watch Chen Qing without interfering.

Chen Qing traveled with Jiang Bohong, Zhao Tieying, Yue Shan, and Liu Sanniang into Ten Thousand Poisons Swamp, where they ambushed a group fighting a Red-Eyed Poison Boa and Chen secured its Essence Blood. After Jiang Bohong and Zhao pursued the fleeing Du Kui, the others heard Zhao scream and found him gravely wounded beside a poison pool, with Du Kui dead nearby.

• Chen Qing joined Jiang Bohong, Zhao Tieying, Yue Shan, and Liu Sanniang aboard a Treasure Ship and traveled to Hundred Ships Beach, the entrance to Ten Thousand Poisons Swamp.
• The group entered Ghost Cry Swamp, where Zhao Tieying swiftly killed an Iron Claw Mountain Cat and warned them about the swamp's dangers.
• Jiang Bohong ordered the group to wait until Du Kui and three companions weakened a Red-Eyed Poison Boa, then led an ambush for the fighters and the Rotten Bone Ghost Orchid.
• Chen Qing killed a wounded swordsman who attacked him, then collected three drops of Essence Blood from the Red-Eyed Poison Boa while Yue Shan and Liu Sanniang gathered the orchid and searched the bodies.
• Jiang Bohong and Zhao Tieying pursued the fleeing Du Kui, but Zhao soon screamed; Chen Qing, Yue Shan, and Liu Sanniang found Zhao badly wounded beside a poison pool and Du Kui's mangled corpse.

Chen Qing and the others discovered precious herbs guarded by a Red Blood Ghost Face Spider, but the fight exposed Jiang Bohong’s treachery and left Chen Qing facing him alone. Chen Qing revealed that he had avoided Jiang’s slow poison, and the chapter ended as they prepared to fight.

• Liu Sanniang spotted precious herbs beside the poison pool, and a Red Blood Ghost Face Spider emerged to guard them.
• Chen Qing, Yue Shan, Zhao Tieying, and Jiang Bohong fought the spider, but Jiang Bohong used Liu Sanniang to shield himself from its pounce, and she died before Chen Qing and Zhao Tieying killed the beast.
• Yue Shan demanded Jiang Bohong’s death, but Jiang revealed that he had poisoned the group with incense aboard his Treasure Ship and killed Yue Shan and Zhao Tieying when they resisted.
• Chen Qing pleaded for his life, then feigned a desperate attack while Zhao Tieying tried to flee; Jiang killed Zhao and turned on Chen Qing.
• Chen Qing said he had been foretold a fortunate fate, and Jiang challenged him, claiming his late-stage Embracing Dan Strength would ensure victory.

Chen Qing killed Jiang Bohong in the Ten Thousand Poisons Swamp, escaped its deadly depths, and returned to the Wutai Sect with valuable spoils. After Li Baichuan gave him a Five Qi Zhenyuan Pill, Chen Qing broke through to late Embracing Dan Strength and discovered that his five kinds of True Qi could circulate in a mutually generating cycle.

• Jiang Bohong took a Qi-Boosting Pill and launched a desperate poisoned-palm assault, but Chen Qing pierced him through with the Cloud-Coiling Spear and killed him.
• Chen Qing collected the dead men’s valuables and rare herbs, then fled the poison pool when a huge shadow stirred beneath its surface.
• Feng Shuhao and the Qixia Mountain Villa disciples encountered Chen Qing near the swamp, but both groups avoided a confrontation and went separate ways.
• Chen Qing returned home with weapons, money, rare medicines, and monster Essence Blood, then brought the Red-Eyed Poison Boa’s Essence Blood and a Jade Marrow Ganoderma to Li Baichuan.
• Li Baichuan refined a Five Qi Zhenyuan Pill for Chen Qing, who swallowed it and broke through to the fourth layer of the Qingmu Everlasting Spring Art and late Embracing Dan Strength.
• The pill harmonized Chen Qing’s five kinds of True Qi into a mutually generating cycle, allowing him to convert them into a greatly strengthened flow of Qingmu True Qi.

Chen Qing searched Jiang Bohong’s room, repaid debts to Li Wang and Nie Shanshan, and discussed the contest for the Three Hundred Year Earth Core Milk. Nie Shanshan reported her meeting with Chen Qing to Chu Jinyun, who urged her to compete for the treasure and strengthen her future claim to the position of Sect Master.

• Chen Qing searched Jiang Bohong’s room but found no valuables, then suspected that Jiang’s wealth was aboard his Treasure Ship at Hundred Ships Beach.
• Chen Qing repaid Li Wang eight thousand taels and warned him to stay alert about the Prefecture City families seeking to associate with institute Chiefs.
• Chen Qing repaid Nie Shanshan thirty thousand taels and admitted that he intended to compete for the Three Hundred Year Earth Core Milk.
• Nie Shanshan told Chu Jinyun about her conversation with Chen Qing, and Chu Jinyun explained that Li Baichuan was too old and cautious to be Chen Qing’s backer.
• Chu Jinyun urged Nie Shanshan to compete for the Earth Core Milk to impress the sect’s leaders and strengthen her future claim to the Sect Master position, and Nie Shanshan agreed.

Leng Qianqiu prepared to use Xiao Bieli’s rematch at Wutai Sect to strengthen her bid to lead a four-sect alliance, while Chen Qing advanced his cultivation and faced questions about missing companions from Ten Thousand Poisons Swamp. The chapter ended with Yue Ling’er suspecting Chen Qing and Bai Qingquan eyeing her missing parents’ wealth.

• Leng Qianqiu warned Xiao Bieli about breaking through to Gang Jin, then ordered alliance invitations sent and publicized his planned rematch at Wutai Sect.
• He Yuzhou recognized Leng Qianqiu’s political strategy and offered Three Hundred Year Earth Core Milk to motivate Wutai Sect’s disciples to face Xiao Bieli.
• Chen Qing used the essence blood of the Red-Eyed Poison Boa and Red Blood Ghost Face Spider to reach the Tiger Elephant realm of Eight Extremes Vajra Body.
• Chen Qing read about the planned alliance and Xiao Bieli’s return, then told Bai Qingquan that he had separated from Yue Shan and Liu Sanniang in Ten Thousand Poisons Swamp and last expected to meet them at Hundred Ships Beach.
• Bai Qingquan told Yue Ling’er that Chen Qing denied knowing what happened to her parents, warned her not to accuse a Wutai Sect chief disciple without evidence, and accepted her three thousand taels to continue the search.
• After Yue Ling’er left, Bai Qingquan privately considered waiting to see whether Yue Shan and Liu Sanniang returned before claiming the girl’s family wealth.

Chen Qing privately received Three Hundred Year Earth Core Milk from Li Baichuan in exchange for intervening if Nie Shanshan lost to Xiao Bieli, then publicly declined to compete for the sect’s announced reward. He consumed the hidden drop in his courtyard and began refining its power to transform his body.

• Chen Qing reviewed Luo Xinya’s work before Li Baichuan summoned him and explained the sect’s plan to offer Three Hundred Year Earth Core Milk to a fighter willing to face Xiao Bieli.
• Li Baichuan privately gave Chen Qing a drop of Three Hundred Year Earth Core Milk, requiring him to face Xiao Bieli if Nie Shanshan lost, and Chen Qing agreed to keep the arrangement secret.
• At the Internal Affairs Hall, Nie Shanshan and Chen Qing split the twelve drops of Century Earth Core Milk with Li Wang and Li Lei, taking five each while the others took one apiece.
• Sang Yanping announced the challenge against Xiao Bieli and offered Three Hundred Year Earth Core Milk; Nie Shanshan volunteered, while Chen Qing publicly declined to compete and endorsed her.
• Chen Qing returned to his courtyard, swallowed his privately received drop, and circulated his arts to guide its gradual transformation of his bones, sinews, flesh, and Qi and Blood.

After absorbing the Earth Core Milk, Chen Qing raised his root bones to seven forms and tested his strength against Shen Xiuyong, then welcomed Xuanjia Gate’s young disciples as Wutai Sect prepared for Xiao Bieli’s challenge. Meanwhile, He Yuzhou and Shi Kaishan discussed forming the Four Sect Alliance and whether Wutai Sect could withstand Leng Qianqiu’s pressure.

• Chen Qing finished absorbing the Earth Core Milk, stabilized his cultivation, and confirmed that his root bones had reached seven forms.
• Shen Xiuyong told Chen Qing that aged Earth Core Milk was scarce, described his auction purchase of Purple Flame Iron, and sparred with him in the courtyard.
• Chen Qing assessed that Xiao Bieli was unlikely to surpass Shen Xiuyong as Wutai Sect grew tense ahead of Hanyu Valley’s arrival.
• Shi Ziyi, Fang Rui, and Chang Xing arrived with Xuanjia Gate’s delegation, and Chen Qing met them before joining their nighttime tour of Dingbo Lake.
• He Yuzhou and Shi Kaishan discussed the returning demonic sect leader Heart Eater, the Four Sect Alliance, and Shi Kaishan’s support for He Yuzhou as alliance leader.

At Wutai Sect’s gathering to discuss an alliance against the Demonic Sect, Leng Qianqiu arrived and demanded that Xiao Bieli fight another Wutai Sect disciple before negotiations began. Nie Shanshan challenged him but was badly beaten, and Chu Jinyun intervened to stop the fight as Wutai Sect suspected Xiao Bieli had learned her techniques’ weaknesses.

• Chen Qing spoke with Yan Yaoyang, who warned him about Hanyu Valley and Xiao Bieli’s vicious sword strike.
• The Jingwu Guard, Yidao Nunnery representatives, and other factions gathered at Wutai Sect as the four sects’ alliance meeting drew near.
• Leng Qianqiu arrived with Xiao Bieli and Ye Qingyi, exchanged pointed remarks with He Yuzhou and Shi Kaishan, and had Xiao Bieli challenge Wutai Sect’s younger generation.
• He Yuzhou sent Nie Shanshan to face Xiao Bieli, and the two fought with their sword arts before a watching crowd.
• Xiao Bieli broke Nie Shanshan’s strongest techniques and drove her to the brink of defeat, prompting Chu Jinyun to pull her away and end the match.

Chen Qing entered the arena after Xiao Bieli defeated Yan Yaoyang and Nie Shanshan, then fought him with his perfected spear art and formidable physical strength. Chen Qing overcame Xiao Bieli’s newly revealed Ice True Qi and won, leaving the crowd stunned.

• Wutai Sect’s disciples and elders reacted with dismay as Xiao Bieli defeated Nie Shanshan and challenged them to send another fighter.
• Li Baichuan offered to help He Yuzhou restore Wutai Sect’s standing, wagering three Astral-Nurturing Pills and the return of Earth Core Milk if Chen Qing lost.
• At Li Baichuan’s urging, Chen Qing entered the arena and surprised Xiao Bieli with his powerful spear strikes and accomplished techniques.
• Chen Qing forced Xiao Bieli back with a spear strike, then matched his Flowing Cloud Sword Art using the Mountain Suppressing Prison Spear.
• Xiao Bieli revealed that he had cultivated Ice True Qi alongside Langyue True Qi, slowing Chen Qing and strengthening his sword attacks.
• Chen Qing used Tiger-Elephant Voice to disrupt Xiao Bieli, then struck with Nine Abyss Prison Suppression and defeated him, though his hand was injured.

Chen Qing defeated Xiao Bieli in a decisive spear strike, restoring Wutai Sect’s standing as the four sects discussed forming an alliance against the Wuji Demonic Sect. When the alliance leader vote ended in a tie, Leng Qianqiu challenged He Yuzhou to decide leadership through combat, and He accepted.

• Chen Qing defeated Xiao Bieli with one spear strike, stunning the gathering and bringing a surge of celebration from Wutai Sect.
• Leng Qianqiu and He Yuzhou resumed discussions of the Four Sect Alliance, and Leng proposed shared resources, mutual military support, and exchanges between disciples.
• The sect leaders agreed to vote for an alliance leader; Shi Kaishan supported He Yuzhou, while He Yueting unexpectedly voted for Leng Qianqiu, producing a tie.
• Leng Qianqiu proposed that she and He Yuzhou settle the leadership question through a fight, and He accepted her challenge.

Leng Qianqiu and He Yuzhou fought fiercely over leadership of the four-sect alliance, but neither could defeat the other, so the sects agreed to unite against the Demonic Sect without appointing a leader for now. After the alliance ceremony, He Yuzhou summoned Chen Qing to the Back Mountain Quiet Room.

• Leng Qianqiu and He Yuzhou exchanged powerful Gang Jin techniques, with Leng Qianqiu’s fused Langyue and Cold Ice True Gang briefly gaining the upper hand.
• He Yuzhou and Leng Qianqiu fought to a stalemate until Shi Kaishan urged them to stop before the duel became fatal.
• He Yueting proposed that the four sects form an alliance against the Demonic Sect and postpone choosing an alliance leader, and the sect masters accepted.
• The four sects swore a blood oath, then Leng Qianqiu, He Yueting, and Shi Kaishan departed with their respective groups.
• Chang Xing invited Chen Qing to visit Xuanjia Gate, and he agreed to come if he had the opportunity.
• He Yuzhou told Sang Yanping to bring Chen Qing to the Back Mountain Quiet Room, recognizing his importance to the Wutai Sect.

Chen Qing received rewards from He Yuzhou for defeating Xiao Bieli and learned about the risks and requirements of fusing multiple streams of True Qi. He left with new guidance for balancing his five streams, while He Yuzhou tightened the sect’s Earth Core Milk allocations and Li Baichuan kept the secrets of the Earth Core Milk Cave to himself.

• He Yuzhou rewarded Chen Qing with thirty drops of Century Earth Core Milk and one selection from the Tingchao Martial Library Fourth Floor, then explained that the Wutai Sect paid tribute to the Tianbao Supreme Sect.
• He Yuzhou warned Chen Qing against cultivating multiple methods to fuse True Qi and explained that Leng Qianqiu had relied on the Ice Soul Pearl to fuse her two true gangs.
• He Yuzhou asked Chen Qing to tell Li Baichuan that he would personally accompany him to the Earth Core Milk Cave, then privately told Sang Yanping that Chen Qing had likely acted because Li Baichuan promised him Three Hundred Year Earth Core Milk.
• He Yuzhou ordered three drops of Century Earth Core Milk for each of four sect members hoping to reach Gang Jin and suspended the Chief Disciples’ monthly allotments starting the next month.
• Chen Qing relayed He Yuzhou’s message and reward to Li Baichuan, then asked how to fuse several streams of True Qi; Li Baichuan advised him to strengthen and balance them before attempting fusion.
• Chen Qing asked what else lay in the Earth Core Milk Cave, but Li Baichuan evaded the question and privately remarked that Chen Qing was becoming difficult to fool.

After the Four Sects formed an alliance against the Demonic Sect, Chen Qing capitalized on his victory over Xiao Bieli to choose the Startling Swan Shadow Escape Art from the martial library. The chapter ended with Chen Qing beginning to cultivate the movement art through Heaven Rewards Diligence.

• Leng Qianqiu reassured Xiao Bieli after his defeat and explained that the Four Sects Alliance would protect Hanyu Valley from the Demonic Sect.
• Hu Mei and Zheng Hui learned from Family Head Sun that the Four Sects had formed an alliance, and Hu Mei told Zheng Hui to wait for the altar master’s return before acting.
• Chen Qing reflected on hiding his five-element cultivation and decided to use his growing reputation to gain resources while keeping his greatest secret concealed.
• News of Chen Qing’s victory spread, and he entered the Tingchao Martial Library’s fourth floor to choose the Startling Swan Shadow Escape Art.
• Nie Shanshan told Chen Qing that prominent families, including the Liu Family, had proposed marriage alliances, but Chen Qing declined to consider them and puzzled over her thanks.
• Chen Qing returned to his courtyard, copied the Startling Swan Shadow Escape Art, and saw Heaven Rewards Diligence register it at Beginner level.

Peng Zhen failed to persuade Li Baichuan to let Chen Qing transfer institutes, while Zhou Yu heard of Chen Qing’s rise but was convinced by her uncle that the famous expert could not be her former junior brother. After half a year of cultivation, Chen Qing reached the Extreme Realm in the Mountain Suppressing Prison Spear, as the Four Sect Alliance’s apparent success against the Demonic Sect concealed a deeper reality.

• Peng Zhen offered Li Baichuan six hundred thousand taels and rare herbs worth the rest of a million, but Li Baichuan refused, saying Chen Qing was now worth far more.
• Zhou Yu heard disciples discuss Chen Qing’s defeat of Xiao Bieli and his place among the Yunlin Five Heroes, and wondered whether he was her former junior brother.
• Li Yuan dismissed Zhou Yu’s suspicion, insisting that Chen Qing could not have become one of the Yunlin Five Heroes in only four years, and encouraged her to consider Wang He’s marriage proposal.
• Chen Qing spent half a year cultivating, opened the ninth of the Nine Shadows regular meridians, advanced his four cultivation arts to their third layers, and reached the Extreme Realm in the Mountain Suppressing Prison Spear.
• The Four Sect Alliance intensified its campaigns against Demonic Sect affiliates, though those at the highest levels knew the appearance of success was an illusion.

Chen Qing learned about Shen Xiuyong’s planned breakthrough, investigated Ji Yilan’s disappearance, and uncovered evidence that Bai Qingquan had helped murder Yue Shan and his wife. He ambushed Bai Qingquan and Zhang Gan, killed them, and erased the traces of the attack.

• Shen Xiuyong told Chen Qing he was entering seclusion to attempt a breakthrough to Gang Jin and explained the Inner Gang and Outer Gang realms.
• Shen Xiuyong warned Chen Qing that the Demonic Sect was becoming more active, and Chen Qing ordered Qingmu Institute disciples to avoid traveling alone.
• Chen Qing reviewed his notes on Bai Qingquan and learned that Ji Yilan had been missing for nearly two months, then ordered Luo Xinya to investigate.
• Bai Qingquan met Zhang Gan and discussed their role in murdering Yue Shan and his wife and stealing their valuables.
• Chen Qing attacked Bai Qingquan and Zhang Gan with Nine Luminaries Star-Glow Needles, then killed both men.
• Chen Qing took the stolen valuables, dissolved the bodies with Bone Dissolving Powder, and removed traces of his presence.