Chapter Summaries

News spread through the imperial capital that Lin Bai had been grievously wounded by Zhang Linghu after visiting Fallen Immortal at Bright Moon Pavilion. The Chu Emperor learned of the ambush and left Zhu Mo stunned by suggesting he might betroth Fallen Immortal to Lin Bai.

• The Third Prince celebrated Lin Bai’s injury and learned from Old Huo that Lin Bai had visited Fallen Immortal before the ambush.
• Old Huo pointed out that Lin Bai had gone to Bright Moon Pavilion to investigate Zuo Feiyu’s death, prompting the Third Prince to react with concern.
• Zhu Mo told the Chu Emperor that Zhang Linghu, one of Prince Hong’s Old Guard, had ambushed Lin Bai at Bright Moon Pavilion’s ferry crossing.
• The Chu Emperor said the ambush had merely blunted Lin Bai’s prominence and asked Zhu Mo for his assessment of Lin Bai.
• The Chu Emperor suggested betrothing Fallen Immortal to Lin Bai, shocking Zhu Mo.

The Chu Emperor considered restoring Fallen Immortal’s identity and betrothing her to Lin Bai, while her father agreed to test Lin Bai at the imperial clan’s autumn hunt. After Lin Bai recovered from his ambush, news that Changsun Hongxuan had died in the Moon Palace seized the imperial capital’s attention.

• The Chu Emperor told Zhu Mo that he was considering betrothing Fallen Immortal to Lin Bai and restoring her identity, then ordered him to keep the matter secret.
• The Chu Emperor and Fallen Immortal’s father discussed using the marriage to support Prince Chen, and her father agreed to test Lin Bai during the imperial clan’s autumn hunt.
• Lin Bai spent half a month recuperating at the Tianshui Sect’s traveling palace while Chen Yule, Meng Qinxian, Nie Shang, and others visited him.
• News broke that Changsun Hongxuan, the Big Dipper Sect’s holy son, had died in the Moon Palace, shocking the imperial capital.

Lin Bai recovered from his injuries as Qiao Mo cared for him, while he worried about her feelings and his own plans. Pan Qing arrived in the imperial capital to confront the former retainers of Prince Hong Estate, and he finally faced Zhang Linghu at a restaurant near Bright Moon Pavilion.

• Qiao Mo brought Lin Bai spirit liquid and insisted that he keep treating his injuries, while Lin Bai realized she had fallen for him.
• Pan Qing arrived and learned that former retainers of Prince Hong Estate had attacked Lin Bai for visiting Fallen Immortal.
• Lin Bai urged Pan Qing not to let the dispute grow too serious, but Pan Qing said the Tianshui Sect had to defend its dignity and reliability to Prince Chen.
• Pan Qing went to a restaurant near Bright Moon Pavilion and sat across from the Black-Robed Old Man, Zhang Linghu.
• Pan Qing greeted Zhang Linghu, who recognized him with surprise.

Pan Qing confronted Zhang Linghu over Zhang’s attack on Lin Bai and defeated him in the streets outside Bright Moon Pavilion. Fallen Immortal brokered a truce, and the Zhao Xing Office waited until both men left before ordering repairs.

• Pan Qing attacked Zhang Linghu outside Bright Moon Pavilion, claiming he had no right to injure the Tianshui Sect’s Holy Son, Lin Bai.
• Pan Qing overwhelmed Zhang Linghu in their fight, leaving him gravely wounded as martial artists gathered to watch.
• Fallen Immortal intervened, apologized on Zhang Linghu’s behalf, and persuaded Pan Qing to end the fight.
• Zhang Linghu admitted Pan Qing’s strength had reached the threshold of the high-grade Grand Luo Dao Fruit realm, and Fallen Immortal explained that the Tianshui Sect was asserting its power after pledging allegiance to Prince Chen.
• After Pan Qing and Fallen Immortal departed with Zhang Linghu, the Zhao Xing Office ordered the damaged streets repaired and explained that its officers had feared intervening.

Pan Qing’s return to the Imperial Capital strengthened the Tianshui Sect’s standing, and the Chu Emperor chose not to interfere with his actions. Pan Qing later reunited with the Chu Emperor, and their conversation ended with the Chu Emperor laughing at Pan Qing’s request to have the Zhao Xing Office drop its investigation.

• Zhu Mo told the Chu Emperor that Pan Qing had arrived in the Imperial Capital and beaten Zhang Linghu, and the Chu Emperor ordered the Zhao Xing Office not to interfere unless Pan Qing caused a major disturbance.
• Pan Qing’s three punches at Bright Moon Pavilion severely wounded a Grand Luo Dao Fruit Realm opponent, stirring excitement across the Imperial Capital and restoring the Tianshui Sect’s reputation.
• Pan Qing told the Tianshui Sect elders to focus more on cultivation, then assured Lin Bai and his companions that they would be safe from further trouble for now.
• Pan Qing said he would stay in the Imperial Capital until the Chu Emperor’s Birthday Celebration and offered to help Lin Bai if he encountered problems.
• Pan Qing visited the Chu Emperor, recalled their friendship from ten thousand years earlier, and explained that he had stayed loyal to the Tianshui Sect rather than joining the imperial clan.
• Pan Qing asked the Chu Emperor to have the Zhao Xing Office close the case over the damage at Bright Moon Pavilion, and the Chu Emperor laughed at him.

While Lin Bai recovered from his wounds, he learned that Changsun Hongxuan, another Saint Son from one of the Nine Sects of Qi Tian, had been murdered in the Moon Palace. With the Zhao Xing Office unable to find the killer and Prince Chen facing Emperor Chu’s anger, Lin Bai was asked to help with the case.

• Lin Bai sparred with Qiao Mo and later discussed the Imperial Capital with her, Qin Yao, Fang Yuanshu, and Ye Guyu.
• Zhou Wang visited Lin Bai and revealed that Changsun Hongxuan had died three days earlier in Dan Yun Palace at the Moon Palace.
• Zhou Wang explained that Changsun Hongxuan had spent the night with Li Mo, Dugu Ming, and Mei Lin, and had been pierced through the heart just like Zuo Feiyu.
• The Zhao Xing Office had found no clues in either murder and had framed a heretical sect for Zuo Feiyu’s death, but the second killing made that approach untenable.
• Zhou Wang told Lin Bai that Emperor Chu had ordered Prince Chen to solve Changsun Hongxuan’s murder, warning that Prince Chen might be driven from the capital if the case worsened.

After another Holy Son was murdered in the imperial capital, Guiyi Sect and Big Dipper Sect renewed their demands for the true culprit, placing Emperor Chu and Prince Chen under pressure. Lin Bai realized the killings could provoke a wider conflict, then learned Emperor Chu had summoned him to the palace.

• The death of Changsun Hongxuan, matching Zuo Feiyu’s, led Guiyi Sect and Big Dipper Sect to confront Emperor Chu and demand the real killer be captured.
• Emperor Chu ordered Prince Chen to investigate and warned that failure could cost him his position in the imperial capital.
• Zhou Wang told Lin Bai about the murder, hoping he would help Prince Chen handle the crisis.
• Lin Bai warned Qiao Mo and Qin Yao that further killings could inflame tensions between the Chu Empire and the major sects.
• The Second Elder arrived and told Lin Bai that Emperor Chu had summoned him to the palace.

Lin Bai entered the imperial palace after the Chu Emperor summoned him and was ordered to investigate the murders of Zuo Feiyu and Changsun Hongxuan. The Chu Emperor restored Lin Bai’s Sword-Bearer Envoy authority and gave him only half a month to catch the killer.

• Lin Bai followed a eunuch through the heavily guarded imperial palace to the Hall of Mountains and Rivers.
• Eunuch Gui admitted Lin Bai to the hall, where the Chu Emperor’s overwhelming pressure forced him to remain bowed.
• The Chu Emperor told Lin Bai that Zuo Feiyu and Changsun Hongxuan had both been killed with Seven Absolutes City’s Divine Light Swordplay, risking Chu’s standing with Guiyi Sect.
• The Chu Emperor assigned Lin Bai to investigate the Saint murders, and Lin Bai accepted the task.
• The Chu Emperor returned Lin Bai’s Zhao Xing Office Sword-Bearer Envoy token and gave him half a month to solve the case.

Lin Bai accepted Chu Emperor’s order to identify the killer of the Saint Sons within half a month, despite having no clues. As he wandered the rainy streets near Bright Moon Pavilion, Zhang Linghu and a Black-Robed Old Man spotted him, then noticed a woman approaching with an oil-paper umbrella.

• Chu Emperor gave Lin Bai half a month to find the culprit behind the Saint Sons’ deaths, warning him of punishment if he failed and promising a heavy reward if he succeeded.
• Lin Bai left the imperial palace and wandered the Imperial Capital, unable to find a lead connecting Zuo Feiyu’s and Changsun Hongxuan’s deaths.
• Rain began falling across the Imperial Capital, and Lin Bai let himself get soaked as he continued walking toward Bright Moon Pavilion.
• Zhang Linghu and a Black-Robed Old Man saw Lin Bai from a tavern window and discussed his troubled appearance and Pan Qing’s strength.
• Zhang Linghu and the Black-Robed Old Man noticed a woman in white approaching with an oil-paper umbrella, and both grew tense at the sight of her.

Lin Bai puzzled over the motives behind Zuo Feiyu and Changsun Hongxuan’s deaths until Fallen Immortal approached him with an umbrella and offered to share clues over a drink. He accepted her invitation, while Zhang Linghu watched from the restaurant and struggled with guilt over his earlier attack on Lin Bai.

• Lin Bai reasoned that Zuo Feiyu’s killer likely had a hidden objective beyond provoking the Guiyi Sect or causing unrest, and wondered why the same person had killed Changsun Hongxuan.
• Fallen Immortal joined Lin Bai beneath her umbrella and invited him to drink Swordbreaker liquor at a restaurant near the Bright Moon Pavilion.
• Lin Bai declined to pursue the matter of his injuries but accepted Fallen Immortal’s offer to help him investigate the deaths.
• Zhang Linghu grew furious at seeing Fallen Immortal hold an umbrella for Lin Bai, but the Black-Robed Old Man stopped him and reminded him that his actions had caused the trouble.
• Zhang Linghu felt remorse, while the Black-Robed Old Man remarked that Lin Bai and Fallen Immortal made a good match.

At Hongtian Tavern, Lin Bai questioned Fallen Immortal about her visit to Weaving Cloud Palace on the night Zuo Feiyu died. She revealed that Zhao Xiantu had lured her there with evidence claiming her father and mother were framed for ties to the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace.

• Fallen Immortal brought Lin Bai to Hongtian Tavern, where Chao Yushi and Zhang Linghu greeted them.
• Lin Bai and Zhang Linghu exchanged cold greetings, while Fallen Immortal noticed their lingering hostility.
• Lin Bai asked Fallen Immortal why she had attended Zhao Xiantu's banquet at Weaving Cloud Palace on the night Zuo Feiyu died.
• Fallen Immortal said Zhao Xiantu had promised evidence that her father had been wrongly accused of colluding with the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace.
• Fallen Immortal revealed that Zhao Xiantu had also claimed her mother was not a member of the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace and that her family had been framed.

Lin Bai learned that Courtesan Lanyue might be a powerful sword cultivator at the Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm, making her a suspect in Zuo Feiyu’s death. He then visited Lu Qingjun to discuss how Seven Absolutes City’s secret sword technique had implicated Lu in the killings.

• Fallen Immortal told Lin Bai that Courtesan Lanyue had concealed cultivation at the Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm and had revealed her strength while playing the zither at Weaving Cloud Palace.
• Lin Bai suspected Lanyue could have killed Zuo Feiyu and left after promising Fallen Immortal that Tianshui Sect and Ancestor Pan Qing would not pursue Bright Moon Pavilion.
• Lin Bai’s glance unnerved Zhang Linghu, and Fallen Immortal reassured him that Lin Bai had set the matter aside.
• Lin Bai visited Lu Qingjun at Seven Absolutes City’s reception hall and warned him that Zuo Feiyu and Changsun Hongxuan had both died by Seven Absolutes City’s Divine Light Swordplay, drawing suspicion toward Lu.

Lin Bai questioned Lu Qingjun about Divine Light Swordplay and Seven Absolutes City’s possible connection to the murders, then went to the Zhao Xing Office to search its archives. Lu Qingjun offered a lead about his vanished clan uncle, Lu Shulin, while Zhu Mo waited outside the archives, hoping Lin Bai had found a clue.

• Lu Qingjun declared that Seven Absolutes City would cooperate with the investigation and denied that it had murdered Zuo Feiyu or Changsun Hongxuan.
• Lin Bai learned that Seven Absolutes City’s Core Disciples could cultivate Divine Light Swordplay and that many former disciples, including female sword cultivators, had been expelled.
• Lu Qingjun told Lin Bai that his clan uncle Lu Shulin had left Seven Absolutes City a century earlier after falling in love with a woman who had served the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace.
• Lin Bai questioned Lu Qingjun further, then went to the Zhao Xing Office and used his Sword-Bearer Envoy token to enter its archive chamber.
• Zhu Mo arrived outside the archive chamber and asked whether Lin Bai had found a clue.

Lin Bai searched the Zhao Xing Office archives for leads on the deaths of Zuo Feiyu and Changsun Hongxuan, but the records offered little conclusive evidence. After learning more about Lu Shulin’s escape from Seven Absolutes City, Lin Bai decided to investigate Lanyue, while Commander Zhu Mo waited to hear whether he had found a lead.

• Lin Bai asked Wu Chang to retrieve records about Seven Absolutes City and its secret Divine Light Swordplay.
• Lin Bai read a file linking the suspected swordplay to the deaths of Zuo Feiyu and Changsun Hongxuan, and saw that the Zhao Xing Office had recorded his role in the investigation.
• Lin Bai discovered that Seven Absolutes City had tried to execute Lu Shulin’s pregnant wife, forcing him to fight his way out with her.
• Lin Bai found no suspicious leads in the Seven Absolutes City records and decided to start investigating Lanyue.
• Zhu Mo told Lin Bai that the two Holy Sons’ deaths had overwhelmed him and that he had waited for Lin Bai in hopes he had found a lead.

Lin Bai investigated the deaths of Zuo Feiyu and Changsun Hongxuan and found that Moon Palace courtesan Lanyue had once been Lu Chuqing, Holy Daughter of the Nameless Dao Sect. He suspected her past might connect the killings to Lu Shulin and questioned why Zhu Mo had not investigated her himself.

• Zhu Mo pressed Lin Bai for leads on the killings of Zuo Feiyu and Changsun Hongxuan, as Emperor Chu’s deadline approached.
• Lin Bai asked Wu Chang for Lanyue’s file and learned she had been the Holy Daughter of the Nameless Dao Sect, under the name Lu Chuqing.
• Lin Bai connected Lanyue’s surname to Lu Shulin, the former Holy Son of Seven Absolutes City who had vanished a hundred years earlier.
• Lin Bai read the Nameless Dao Sect’s file and learned Zhao Xing Office had destroyed it for colluding with the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace, then sent Lu Chuqing and other women to the Moon Palace.
• Lin Bai told Zhu Mo that he had found a lead, then wondered why Zhu Mo had not already investigated Lanyue.

Lin Bai and Zhu Mo suspected Lanyue had killed Zuo Feiyu, despite having no proof, and set out to arrest her at the Moon Palace. The chapter ended with Qiong Yi realizing that hundreds of Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm experts had secretly accompanied them.

• Zhu Mo explained that he could not access Lanyue's dossier because Prince Su's support connected her to the imperial clan.
• Lin Bai told Zhu Mo he suspected Lanyue had reported Zuo Feiyu's death to deflect suspicion and might have concealed her cultivation.
• Zhu Mo decided to bring Lanyue in for questioning, and Lin Bai agreed to accompany him despite the lack of evidence.
• Lin Bai urged Zhu Mo to keep the operation secret and use only trusted Zhao Xing Office martial artists.
• Lin Bai and Zhu Mo arrived at the Moon Palace and headed toward Weaving Cloud Palace, where Qiong Yi said Lanyue was waiting.
• Qiong Yi sensed hundreds of Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm experts following Lin Bai and Zhu Mo in secret and wondered whether Lanyue was guilty.

Lin Bai and Zhu Mo led the Zhao Xing Office’s Black Dragon Legion to Weaving Cloud Palace to arrest Lanyue, who was suspected of plotting in Moon Palace. Zhu Mo ordered the legion to take her alive as they entered the sealed palace.

• Lin Bai warned Zhu Mo that Lanyue might have been plotting for years and could have other targets, and Zhu Mo said the Zhao Xing Office would interrogate her in Purgatory.
• Zhu Mo confirmed that Lanyue had remained inside Weaving Cloud Palace since Zuo Feiyu’s death and ordered the palace surrounded.
• Zhu Mo summoned twenty Black Dragon Guards and explained to Lin Bai that the Black Dragon Legion consisted of Great Purity Dao Fruit Realm martial artists who captured particularly troublesome targets.
• Zhu Mo explained that the Chu Kingdom secured the loyalty of its legions through control over martial artists’ families and by recruiting people it had rescued or trained.
• Zhu Mo ordered the Black Dragon Legion to take Lanyue alive and led Lin Bai and the guards toward Weaving Cloud Palace.

Zhu Mo and Lin Bai confronted Miss Lanyue at Weaving Cloud Palace, where she admitted to killing Zuo Feiyu and Changsun Hongxuan as part of the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace’s hunt for Saint Sons. She escaped using a Spatial Shift Formation, leaving Lin Bai and the Zhao Xing Office to pursue her and investigate the warning she left at Wind and Snow Palace.

• Zhu Mo and Lin Bai arrived at Weaving Cloud Palace with Zhao Xing Office martial artists and found Miss Lanyue waiting for them.
• Miss Lanyue admitted that she killed Zuo Feiyu and Changsun Hongxuan, who were targets of the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace.
• Miss Lanyue warned that more Saint Sons would die and said she had left a gift at Wind and Snow Palace.
• Zhu Mo ordered the Black Dragon Legion to capture Miss Lanyue, but she activated a Spatial Shift Formation and escaped.
• The Black Dragon Legion inferred that Miss Lanyue was still somewhere in the imperial capital, while Lin Bai ordered everyone to go to Wind and Snow Palace.

Lin Bai and Zhu Mo went to Wind and Snow Palace to investigate the gift Lanyue had left, which they feared was a corpse. After sealing the palace and questioning its attendants, they learned there were no Holy Sons or Holy Daughters among the guests and went to meet Courtesan Yun Ke.

• Lin Bai and Zhu Mo arrived at Wind and Snow Palace, suspecting Lanyue had left a corpse there.
• Zhu Mo ordered the Black Dragon Legion to seal the palace and prevent anyone from leaving.
• Wind Night and Snow Chill greeted Lin Bai, but Zhu Mo pressured them into identifying the palace's guests.
• Wind Night and Snow Chill listed the guests, and Lin Bai and Zhu Mo learned that no Holy Sons or Holy Daughters were present.
• Lin Bai and Zhu Mo asked Wind Night and Snow Chill to lead them to Courtesan Yun Ke.

Lin Bai and Zhu Mo arrived at the Wind and Snow Palace and sealed it while searching for the demoness Lanyue’s supposed “gift.” After Miss Yun Ke claimed everyone was accounted for, Lin Bai suspected Lanyue had used the warning as a diversion, but Yun Ke reacted with alarm when he explained it.

• Lin Bai and Zhu Mo entered the Hundred Tales Banquet, and Zhu Mo ordered that no one leave the Wind and Snow Palace.
• Zhu Mo had several drunken Chen Family martial artists seized and sent to the Inferno, while the Zhao Xing Office blocked messages from getting out.
• Miss Yun Ke said the night’s guests were all present and offered to help the Zhao Xing Office.
• Lin Bai and Zhu Mo concluded that Lanyue had likely used a false warning to distract them and escape.
• Lin Bai told Yun Ke that Lanyue had claimed to leave a gift at the Wind and Snow Palace, and Yun Ke’s expression changed in alarm.