Chapter Summaries

As rioting Forced Laborers plunged Nanshan Town into chaos, Chu Mu defended his home and rescued Little Widow from attackers. After glimpsing Old Li with an unfamiliar man at Mingxin Hall and connecting the Mine’s frozen figures to the town’s hidden secrets, Chu Mu headed toward the Mine.

• Chu Mu secured his medicinal materials, armed himself, and waited inside his courtyard as violence spread through town.
• When rioters forced open his gate, Chu Mu killed them with his saber and saw fires and looting across Nanshan Town.
• Chu Mu killed the rioters who had entered Little Widow’s courtyard, and she thanked him for saving her.
• Chu Mu saw Old Li standing beside an unfamiliar man in Mingxin Hall and suspected the Medical Book and the Mine were linked to the cultivators’ presence.
• Chu Mu told Little Widow to hide, then set off toward the Mine despite considering it forbidden ground.

Chu Mu returned to the mine amid the town’s rebellion and learned that his squad had been ordered to escort the captured rebels to a secret Nineteenth Mine Area. The chapter ended as hundreds of Patrol Inspectors led the prisoners underground, while Chu Mu’s fears about the mine remained unresolved.

• Chu Mu reached the blood-soaked summit and met Xu Yuan, who reported that the rebellion had been crushed and several hundred rebels captured.
• Chu Mu warned Xu Yuan and the other Patrol Inspectors that rebels fleeing into town might rob people before escaping, leaving them worried about their families.
• Wu Shuo asked Chu Mu about the town, then revealed that the Thousand Household had ordered the captured rebels taken to the Nineteenth Mine Area.
• Chu Mu realized the Nineteenth Mine Area lay beyond the mine’s eighteen official areas and asked if he could leave, but Wu Shuo told him they still had to watch over the mine and its Forced Laborers.
• Chu Mu ordered Xu Yuan to arrange the transfer, and Patrol Inspectors marched the captured rebels toward the Nineteenth Mine Area.

Chu Mu witnessed the Nineteenth Mine Area’s Blood Sacrifice freeze hundreds of Forced Laborers, confirming that cultivators treated mortals as expendable. He realized he was still an ant beneath the Immortal Path and resolved to escape that powerless status as soon as possible.

• Patrol Inspectors forced the laborers into the Nineteenth Mine Area, and Chu Mu let them drag away an elderly laborer who begged him for mercy.
• Xu Yuan warned Chu Mu about the approaching White-Robed Man, and Chu Mu overheard that the mine would need new Forced Laborers after the Blood Sacrifice.
• The White-Robed Man arrived, a roar erupted from the Mine Cave, and a pale-blue aura froze the Nineteenth Mine Area and its crowded laborers.
• Chu Mu saw that the White-Robed Man and Li Jinghong showed no concern for the dead and concluded that cultivators treated mortals like ants.
• Chu Mu accepted that he too was an ant and resolved to escape his powerless position by reaching the Immortal Path.

After discovering a spirit mine and suspecting Old Li was involved, Chu Mu feared that he and Xu Yuan could be drawn into a cultivator conflict. With time apparently running short, he borrowed Xu Yuan’s savings and began preparing to improve the Body Forging Art’s medicinal formula.

• Chu Mu identified the mine’s unusual mineral as a likely spirit mine and wondered whether Old Li and another cultivator had come to claim it.
• Chu Mu left the burning mine, learned that the Hundred Household had been summoned, and brought Xu Yuan back with him.
• Chu Mu asked about Xu Yuan’s future and borrowed most of his money without explaining his plans.
• Back home, Chu Mu recalled hearing that something would happen by the end of next month and counted the money he had gathered.
• Chu Mu drafted plans to improve the Body Forging Art’s medicinal formula, tallied the materials he needed, and estimated the initial purchases would cost about one hundred silver.

After reporting his discoveries in the mountains to Old Li, Chu Mu prepared to begin experimenting with medicinal materials using a rare, highly precise scale. He left off recognizing that directly controlling medicinal properties remained a distant goal and that he needed to proceed step by step.

• Chu Mu told Old Li about the Spirit Mine, the White-Robed Man, and the planned events at the beginning of next month.
• Old Li advised Chu Mu to avoid worldly affairs and focus on cultivation, leaving Chu Mu unsure whether the warning carried a hidden meaning.
• Chu Mu bought and sorted a large supply of medicinal materials from Mingxin Hall.
• Chu Mu brought out the Li-Hao Scale Old Li had helped him obtain and used it to weigh medicinal materials with precision down to the li.
• Chu Mu considered directly controlling the medicinal properties within herbs, then decided to focus on mastering their weight first.

Chu Mu modified a medicinal formula to support qi-and-blood cultivation and carefully brewed a test dose. The formula’s nourishing effect was stronger than the original, but its toxicity and instability caused problems that Chu Mu recorded for further investigation.

• Chu Mu reviewed the roles of the principal, Assistant, Supporting, and Envoy herbs and chose ordinary nourishing materials for a cultivation formula.
• Chu Mu replaced several herbs with Zheng Yang Grass and Qing Ning Ginseng, then slowly decocted the formula, which included a highly poisonous medicine.
• Chu Mu activated Spirit Radiance Blessing and swallowed a small amount of the medicine while monitoring its effects.
• Chu Mu spat out the decoction after experiencing its effects and determined that its nourishing properties worked, but its toxicity remained problematic and it put pressure on his heart.
• Chu Mu filled five sheets with confirmed problems and conjectures, then resolved to investigate and fix them.

After twelve overnight experiments, Chu Mu discovered that his Medicine Refining progress and the Essence Qi Powder formula appeared on the Light Screen Panel. He drank the unfinished Twelve Refinements Essence Qi Powder to test its effects, leaving himself prepared to deal with possible side effects.

• Chu Mu found that twelve refinements had raised the Essence Qi Powder formula to Initial Understanding, though its conflicts and side effects remained unresolved.
• Chu Mu resolved to advance the formula to Entering the Hall and recognized that learning its ingredients could also strengthen his broader medicinal knowledge.
• Chu Mu packed his experimental notes and put on his Patrol Inspector uniform, deciding to keep its protection for now.
• Chu Mu drank the Twelve Refinements Essence Qi Powder and brought detoxifying and yin-cold herbs in case the formula caused a dangerous reaction.

Chu Mu’s observations of the medicinal soup greatly advanced his Essence Qi Powder proficiency and inspired a new formula. He spent the rest of the day testing revisions at home, where the Little Widow arrived and was frightened by his intense, erratic focus.

• While patrolling with Xu Yuan and the Patrol Inspectors, Chu Mu realized that observing the medicinal properties had raised his Essence Qi Powder proficiency to Initial Understanding.
• Chu Mu dismissed the Patrol Inspectors and arranged for Xu Yuan to visit his home that night to help with an unspecified task.
• Chu Mu returned home and prepared a thirteenth revision of the Essence Qi Powder formula, repeatedly brewing and testing the medicinal liquid.
• As Chu Mu became absorbed in his experiments, his proficiency rose further, and his shifting expressions and muttered thoughts made him appear unwell.
• The Little Widow arrived at Chu Mu’s courtyard and was frightened when she saw him in his entranced state.

Chu Mu tested successive revisions of Essence Qi Powder with Xu Yuan, improving its strength but struggling with toxic side effects. He continued experimenting independently over the following days, determined to solve the formula’s problems himself.

• Li Caiyi thanked Chu Mu with a blue robe, and Chu Mu asked Xu Yuan to watch over her while patrolling.
• Chu Mu tested the sixteenth revision of Essence Qi Powder with Xu Yuan and learned that it was much stronger but caused heart discomfort.
• Chu Mu recorded that the eighteenth revision carried a dangerous toxin burden and required an antidote and a ten-day interval between doses.
• Chu Mu revised and tested the formula through the night, using himself and Xu Yuan as test subjects.
• Over the next dozen days, Chu Mu continued experimenting without asking Old Li for help, valuing the growth he gained through solving the problem himself.

Chu Mu completed the ninety-ninth revision of his Essence Qi Powder formula after half a month of experimentation, bringing its medicinal effects close to three times the original with almost no side effects. He set aside research into Spirit and prepared to use the formula to advance his qi-and-blood cultivation, then discovered he could rename it on the Light Screen Panel.

• Chu Mu reviewed his nearly hundred experiments and concluded he had reached the limit of what his current medical knowledge could improve in the formula.
• Chu Mu reflected that the latest formula was far stronger and safer than the original, though further progress would require expanding his knowledge of Medicine Refining.
• Chu Mu sorted the ingredients for another batch and dismissed the idea of researching a medicine aimed at Spirit because he lacked the knowledge to begin.
• Chu Mu brewed the revised formula and sensed his qi and blood stirring in response to its medicinal scent.
• Chu Mu changed the formula's Light Screen Panel name from “ninety-ninth revision Essence Qi Powder” to “Essence Qi Powder,” then struggled to think of a better name.

After Chu Mu’s Dragon Snake Soup greatly improved his Body Forging Art, he presented his revised formula to Old Li, who praised his work and gave him a jade slip containing pill-refining experience. Old Li warned him to leave his Patrol Inspector post and prepare for the Immortal Path, while Chu Mu grew more certain that Qinghe County faced a looming calamity.

• Chu Mu refined Dragon Snake Soup and gained four points of Body Forging Art proficiency during a longer-than-usual period of cultivation.
• Chu Mu brought his improved medicinal formula to Old Li at Mingxin Hall, and Old Li praised his experimentation and understanding of worldly medicine.
• Old Li gave Chu Mu a jade slip of his pill-refining experience and advised him to leave the Patrol Inspector post if he intended to pursue the Immortal Path.
• Chu Mu realized the jade slip might correspond to the other Jade Piece he had kept, which could contain the cultivation inheritance of the dead old man from Qili Village.
• Chu Mu considered the continuing conscription of Forced Laborers and the deaths at the Mine, fearing that Li Jinghong’s orders would bring disaster to Qinghe County’s commoners.

Chu Mu finalized the Dragon Snake Soup formula and gave it to Wu Shuo, who warned him to conceal his abilities. Chu Mu then asked about the Mine, where Wu Shuo said workers still died by the dozens each day.

• Xu Yuan eagerly collected a copy of Chu Mu’s finalized Dragon Snake Soup formula and left for Mingxin Hall.
• Chu Mu visited Wu Shuo and presented him with the formula, explaining that it was about three times as effective as Essence Qi Powder and could be taken daily.
• Wu Shuo recognized the formula’s value, accepted it, and cautioned Chu Mu to hide his talents so others would not target him.
• Chu Mu asked about the Mine, and Wu Shuo explained that dozens of people still died there each day despite the Patrol Bureau gradually learning more about its dangers.

Chu Mu learned from Wu Shuo that Old Li of Mingxin Hall was connected to the merchants smuggling Mineral Material from the Nanshan Iron Mine, and he considered how deeply cultivators controlled resources in the secular world. As he recognized that a storm would soon engulf Nanshan Town and the Mine, Chu Mu resolved to leave and rely on the skills he had built up to protect himself.

• Chu Mu questioned Wu Shuo about the Mine's sinister Mineral Material and learned that its output was dwindling while production had nearly stopped.
• Chu Mu asked who took the Mine's embezzled Mineral Material, and Wu Shuo suspected Old Li of Mingxin Hall was connected to the mine merchants.
• Wu Shuo told Chu Mu he had once seen several mine merchants leaving Mingxin Hall and had secretly watched them afterward.
• Chu Mu reflected that cultivators controlled even ordinary Mineral Material and considered the scale of their influence over the secular world.
• After leaving Wu Shuo's residence at night, Chu Mu anticipated a coming storm around Nanshan Town and the Mine and decided he would need to leave to protect himself.

After a month of rapid cultivation, Chu Mu had grown far stronger and prepared for trouble by selling his possessions and gathering his valuables. When urgent whistles and a Sword Light signaled that something had happened, he set out for the Patrol Inspectorate with Xu Yuan and Wangcai.

• Chu Mu broke a Wooded Dummy with his saber and reviewed his gains in blade technique, body forging, and Dragon Snake Soup refinement.
• Chu Mu cultivated his Qi-Blood with medicinal soup while Wangcai waited for him to finish.
• Xu Yuan arrived with breakfast, and Chu Mu saw a Sword Light and a white-clad figure cross the sky as urgent whistles sounded.
• Chu Mu put on his Patrol Inspector uniform and armor, checked his valuables, and reassured Xu Yuan that they could leave if necessary.
• Chu Mu let Wangcai come along, and the three headed toward the Patrol Inspectorate as Patrol Inspectors gathered across Nanshan Town.

Chu Mu pieced together that Old Li might have lured the White-Robed Man away from the mine, while preparing for the danger if his suspicions were confirmed. At the mine, the pile of mysterious Mineral Material vanished, setting the suspected scheme in motion.

• The Grievance Soul attacked Li Jinghong, leaving him terrified amid the ruined Patrol Inspectorate office.
• Chu Mu found Mingxin Hall closed and the homes of its apprentices deserted, then connected those disappearances to Old Li and the White-Robed Man.
• Chu Mu warned Xu Yuan to stay calm and continued patrolling while waiting for events at the mine to confirm his suspicions.
• News of the Grievance Soul spread through Nanshan Town, prompting residents to flee and unsettling the Patrol Inspectors.
• The mountain of Mineral Material in the Nineteenth Mine Area abruptly disappeared, leaving the guarded ground empty.

After the mine’s ore vanished and Li Jinghong fled, Chu Mu left Nanshan Town with Xu Yuan and Wangcai, while Old Li and the Cyan-Clothed Man watched from nearby. Li Chang returned to find the mine empty and unleashed his rage on the town, killing indiscriminately.

• Li Jinghong saw that the mine’s Mineral Material had vanished, collapsed in despair, and ran away.
• Chu Mu learned that Li Jinghong had fled and decided to leave Nanshan Town with Xu Yuan, taking a mountain route to North Town.
• Chu Mu removed his Patrol Inspector uniform and departed with Xu Yuan and Wangcai as panic and disorder spread through Nanshan Town.
• Old Li and the Cyan-Clothed Man watched Chu Mu leave, then noticed Li Chang approaching the mine on a Sword Light.
• Li Chang found the mine empty, demanded to know where Li Jinghong was, and slaughtered Patrol Inspectors and Forced Laborers as his Sword Light swept through the mountain and town.

After leaving Nanshan Town, Chu Mu traveled down the Clear River toward Changzhou Prefecture with Xu Yuan and Wangcai. A peaceful rest and a Qi-Blood cultivation session brought an unexplained 150-point increase to his Body Forging Art, and he reached Jingmen after slowing his journey to enjoy life aboard the boat.

• Chu Mu, Xu Yuan, and Wangcai traveled by Black-awning Boat from Qinghe County toward Jingmen, leaving Nanshan's turmoil behind.
• After sleeping peacefully for a day and night, Chu Mu cultivated Qi-Blood and discovered that his Body Forging Art progress had risen from 213 to 363.
• Chu Mu wondered whether his sudden progress came from a change in his spirit, but he could not confirm the cause.
• Xu Yuan offered Chu Mu fish soup and a fishing rod, and Chu Mu began taking a more relaxed approach to his journey.
• Chu Mu spent his days fishing, cooking, practicing, and occasionally going ashore, so the journey took nearly a month before the boat reached Jingmen.

Chu Mu brought Xu Yuan to prosperous Jingmen County, confirmed it was outside the Nanshan Li Family’s sphere of influence, and established a pharmacy as a temporary home. The Hundred Herbs Pavilion opened with Xu Yuan as its shopkeeper, while Chu Mu planned to keep a low profile and focus on medicine, books, and cultivation.

• Chu Mu used prepared travel documents and a merchant certificate to enter Jingmen County under a new hometown and family background.
• Chu Mu surveyed Jingmen and its surrounding villages, confirmed its commercial bustle and that its officials were surnamed Zhao, then decided to settle there.
• Chu Mu rented a shopfront and rear courtyard on Changling Street for Thirty Silver and moved in with Xu Yuan.
• Chu Mu hung the Hundred Herbs Pavilion sign and appointed Xu Yuan as shopkeeper.
• Chu Mu rejected Xu Yuan’s suggestion to sell Dragon Snake Soup to martial practitioners, choosing to serve ordinary people and avoid local powers.

Over half a year, Chu Mu’s Hundred Herbs Pavilion gained a modest reputation as he studied medicine and cultivated, using his knowledge to improve Dragon Snake Soup and accelerate his qi-and-blood progress. He reached near-completion in his cultivation and continued preparing for the Cultivation World, where his two jade pieces and accumulated learning would be essential.

• Hundred Herbs Pavilion gradually gained customers and a local reputation after Chu Mu treated patients for half a year.
• Chu Mu tended his medicinal field and experimented with grafted herbs while Xu Yuan collected morning dew under his instructions.
• Chu Mu reviewed his Light Screen Panel and saw his skills and Spirit Radiance Value rise sharply after he perfected Dragon Snake Soup.
• Chu Mu recognized that his powerful body had become dangerous during visits to brothels, so he restrained his desires.
• Chu Mu considered how knowledge would support his future cultivation and continued collecting and studying books.

Chu Mu refused a house call and continued cultivating and studying at the Hundred Herbs Pavilion, until patrol inspectors brought wanted portraits to the shop. He recognized two of the suspects as survivors from Qili Village, including a youth he had fought before, and suspected the youth had again drawn the attention of immortal cultivators.

• Chu Mu told the apprentices to inventory new medicinal materials and refused to treat an injured person at home.
• Xu Yuan complained about the woman who had tried to force her way into the medicine hall, then praised his progress in qi and blood cultivation.
• Chu Mu advised Xu Yuan to try the new Dragon Snake Soup and reflected on how his advancing cultivation made it harder to focus.
• Patrol inspectors warned the medicine hall to report the wanted criminals and anyone seeking treatment for knife wounds.
• Chu Mu recognized the youth and middle-aged man in the portraits as survivors from Qili Village and suspected the youth was once again being pursued by immortal cultivators.