Chapter Summaries

As the Ximos delegation prepared to arrive in Capital City, Wang Yu suspected the Flower Picking Bandit's timing might conceal a larger plot. An explosion devastated a building, and although Wang Yu rescued a trapped girl, the officers learned that the bandit had used Qi Explosion Stones and was still being pursued.

• Chen Wenlin told Wang Yu that the Ximos delegation would arrive the next day to negotiate a trade agreement, and Wang Yu wondered whether the Flower Picking Bandit’s sudden activity was part of a scheme.
• A massive explosion collapsed a nearby building, and Chen Wenlin rushed toward the blast while Wang Yu followed cautiously.
• Wang Yu used his Basic Leg Techniques to reach a little girl before a falling wall hit her, then punched the debris apart and saved her.
• Guan Yunwu arrived, praised Wang Yu’s speed, and arranged for a soldier to take the girl to safety.
• Officers found charred bodies among the ruins, and a wounded survivor reported that the Flower Picking Bandit had used Qi Explosion Stones and that only Deputy Director Xu was still chasing him.
• Shi Yang rushed to pursue the bandit, while Guan Yunwu and Chen Wenlin ordered Wang Yu to stay behind and care for the wounded officer.

Flower Maiden dismissed the exposed Flower Picking Bandit as a decoy and ordered preparations to proceed, while Wang Yu discovered the real bandit hiding beneath the ruins. After Wang Yu severed his hand and nearly killed him in a fight, the bandit escaped through Capital City and disguised himself to flee.

• At Red Apricot Flower Pavilion, Sister Mu said the exposed Flower Picking Bandit had served as a decoy and told the Flower Maiden to prepare for Floating Light's completed plans.
• Wang Yu heard a trapped man calling from the ruins and exposed him as the Flower Picking Bandit when he severed the man's hand.
• The Flower Picking Bandit burst from the rubble and fled, but Wang Yu pursued and struck him with enough force to send him flying and badly injure him.
• Wang Yu's military saber broke during the clash, allowing the Flower Picking Bandit to escape his pursuers.
• The Flower Picking Bandit changed from an old man into a middle-aged farmer using a human-skin mask and decided to flee Capital City.

Wang Yu ambushed and crippled the Flower Picking Bandit, then forced him to reveal the Blood Shadow Blood Burning Method. After memorizing its contents and receiving enough instruction, Wang Yu found that the method had appeared on his personal panel as available to practice.

• Wang Yu used Phantom Step to ambush the Flower Picking Bandit and shattered his spine with a punch.
• Wang Yu broke the bandit's remaining limbs, searched him, and asked how he had evaded the pursuers.
• The Flower Picking Bandit offered his wealth and the Blood Shadow Blood Burning Method in exchange for Wang Yu helping him escape.
• Wang Yu demanded the technique's contents, and the bandit recited its original text and explained how to practice it.
• Wang Yu memorized the method and saw Blood Shadow appear on his personal panel as available to practice.

After learning the Flower Picking Bandit's Blood Burning Method, Wang Yu killed him and left the authorities to discover the body. While awaiting a new deployment with Chen Wenlin, Wang Yu studied the method and considered how to cultivate Qi and Blood.

• Wang Yu learned the Blood Burning Method from the Flower Picking Bandit, then killed him despite the bandit's claims that Wang Yu needed further instruction.
• Wang Yu left the scene, and half an hour later Shi Yang, Chen Wenlin, and Xu Pingzhou arrived with the search party and found the aftermath.
• Xu Pingzhou confirmed the mission's success and took the Flower Picking Bandit's corpse away to handle the investigation and its consequences.
• Chen Wenlin received orders to prepare Luo Chu's Third Battalion Eleventh Squad for the Ximos delegation's arrival, so he and Wang Yu waited for their squad leader.
• Wang Yu pondered the Blood Shadow Blood Burning Method and how Qi and Blood cultivation depended on suitable precious ingredients and meat.

Wang Yu and the Nanxi officials prepared to receive the Ximos delegation, but the airship arrived filled with corpses and an unknown attacker struck at Liu Xinjian. Long Yinghao intercepted the attacker, leaving Wang Yu stunned by the power of their clash.

• Wang Yu stood guard as Liu Xinjian, Long Yinghao, and other officials welcomed the Ximos airship in Capital City.
• Liu Xinjian ordered the plaza's protective shield activated, while Wang Yu and Chen Wenlin noticed a foul, rotten smell coming from the airship.
• The airship's hatch opened to reveal a heap of corpses, shocking the officials and soldiers.
• An unknown person burst through the airship's hull and charged at Liu Xinjian.
• Long Yinghao stepped in front of Liu Xinjian and blocked the attacker, and their clash sent force and shockwaves across the plaza.

A massive Qi Explosion Stone blast shattered the energy shield during an attack on the Capital District, and Long Yinghao confronted the masked Tushen as fighting erupted across the city. Wang Yu stayed cautious in the chaos, but after saving Li Yuanbo and defeating several enemies, he drew the attention of a Blood Burning Realm fighter.

• Long Yinghao recognized Tushen and challenged him after a huge explosion destroyed the energy shield and injured many soldiers.
• Tushen revealed the attackers’ intent to kill Liu Xinjian, while masked fighters emerged from the Ximos airship and fought the Empire’s Legion Commanders.
• Wang Yu assessed the battlefield carefully, avoiding reckless attacks as soldiers and Security Bureau members engaged the enemy forces.
• Li Yuanbo nearly fell to a dagger attack, but Wang Yu snapped his opponent’s neck with a whip kick and saved him.
• Wang Yu killed several Body Tempering Realm enemies, then attracted a Blood Burning Realm enemy who activated his combat state and charged toward him.

Wang Yu helped a military formation kill a Blood Burning Realm attacker during the assault on Nanxi’s capital, while stronger enemies escaped after the Ximos airship exploded. The attack’s organizers planned further unrest, and Wang Yu’s accumulated merits raised him to Special Class Soldier.

• Wang Yu joined a fifty-man military formation, which trapped and killed a Blood Burning Realm attacker.
• A ghost-masked woman named Mùshuāng rose into the air, and Liu Xinjian arrived with Legion Commander-level strength as the fighting escalated.
• The Ximos airship exploded, and the attackers vanished; Long Yinghao and Liu Xinjian recognized the assault as a serious threat.
• On Fragment Star No. 5, Tushen told a black-robed man that the attack had failed to kill Long Yinghao and Liu Xinjian but had disrupted diplomatic relations between Ximos and Nanxi.
• After the army withdrew from the capital, Wang Yu’s merits reached twenty-one thousand points, and his ten First Class Merits advanced him to Special Class Soldier.

After returning to the garrison, Wang Yu learned that Tushen’s danger rating could rise to Deep Crimson and focused on quietly strengthening himself. He studied the Blood Shadow Blood Burning Method and bought cheap Death God Mantis meat, finding that his powerful body could withstand its intense effects.

• Chen Wenlin told Wang Yu that the defense had caused heavy casualties and that the captured fugitives claimed Tushen had bewitched them.
• Chen Wenlin explained that Tushen was already Red Grade and might be upgraded to Deep Crimson after the capital incident.
• After the unit returned to camp, Chen Wenlin offered to help Wang Yu apply for an advance loan to obtain a Blood Burning Method.
• Wang Yu studied the Blood Shadow Blood Burning Method and then bought five pounds of Blood Burning-level insect meat from the military cafeteria chef.
• Wang Yu swallowed Death God Mantis meat and withstood its burning heat, which his exceptionally tempered body could handle.

Wang Yu used the Proficiency Panel to visualize the Blood-Burning Diagram, open his apertures, and complete his first Blood Burning cultivation session. Three days later, Chen Wenlin brought him a catalog of seventy-eight methods so he could choose one to collect.

• Wang Yu visualized the Blood Shadow Blood Burning Method until the Blood-Burning Diagram appeared, but exhausted his mental power and fell asleep.
• After recovering, Wang Yu clarified the diagram and began refining essence into blood, guiding his heartbeat and blood circulation with his mental power as he digested the insect meat.
• Wang Yu completed his first Blood Burning cultivation session and marveled at how precisely he could control his body.
• Three days later, Chen Wenlin delivered an illustrated catalog of seventy-eight Blood Burning Methods and told Wang Yu to choose one.
• Wang Yu looked through the catalog and read descriptions of the Crimson Flame Blood Burning Method and the Brilliant Light Blood Burning Method.

Wang Yu chose the Indestructible Blood Burning Method to improve his battlefield survival and studied its manual at the Secret Martial Building. He considered combining it with the Blood Shadow Blood Burning Method to balance concealment, speed, and resilience.

• Wang Yu carefully compared seventy-eight Blood Burning Methods and chose the Indestructible Blood Burning Method.
• Chen Wenlin told Wang Yu that he cultivated the Savage Tiger Blood Burning Method, which made him stronger as his injuries worsened.
• Chen Wenlin sponsored Wang Yu’s access to the second floor of the Secret Martial Building, where staff registered his choice and lent him the manual.
• Wang Yu learned that the Indestructible Blood Burning Method strengthened the body and used Qi and Blood to accelerate healing.
• Wang Yu decided that combining the Indestructible Blood Burning Method with the Blood Shadow Blood Burning Method could help him survive through resilience and concealment.

Wang Yu quickly mastered the Indestructible Method’s Blood-Burning Diagram and began cultivation under Liu Bingwei’s guidance. After only three days, Liu Bingwei completed her assignment, impressed by how easily he understood every instruction.

• Wang Yu finished studying the Indestructible Method manuals in three days and asked for a guiding officer.
• Liu Bingwei tested Wang Yu’s meditation and was astonished when he visualized the Blood-Burning Diagram on his first attempt.
• Wang Yu completely visualized the diagram in one day, and Liu Bingwei returned to guide his cultivation.
• Wang Yu followed Liu Bingwei’s instructions and completed his first Indestructible Method cultivation session after eating treasure-material meat.
• Liu Bingwei ended her guidance assignment after three days, reflecting that Wang Yu had made the work exceptionally easy.

Wang Yu learned that assassins had killed or wounded most of the military’s promising young talents, prompting Chen Wenlin to keep him inside the guarded Secret Martial Building. He received his monthly treasure-meat allocation and resolved to rely on his own strength while pursuing Blood Transformation.

• Chen Wenlin told Wang Yu that fifteen of seventeen military rising stars had been killed and two seriously injured in coordinated attacks, including assassinations inside garrisons.
• Chen Wenlin warned Wang Yu to stay in the Secret Martial Building while the Military Department investigated spies and strengthened security.
• Wang Yu asked Chen Wenlin to collect his monthly treasure meat, and Chen Wenlin brought him six jin of Blood Burning-grade Red Young Bird meat.
• Wang Yu reflected that the killings had shaken his faith in the Military Department’s protection and resolved to depend on himself.
• Wang Yu planned to cultivate the Indestructible Blood Burning Method and complete Blood Transformation as soon as possible.

Wang Yu completed his first Blood Transformation and became a Blood Burning Realm Martial Artist after a month of cultivation. After emerging from seclusion, he learned that Nanxi’s campaign had pushed the Rebel Army back and realized his deep reserves might bring his second Blood Transformation within reach.

• Nanxi’s military forces killed wanted criminals and launched a joint campaign against the Rebel Army, igniting open war.
• Wang Yu accumulated enough Qi and Blood, consumed precious meat, and completed his first Blood Transformation using the Indestructible Blood Burning Method.
• Wang Yu left the Secret Martial Building covered in expelled grime and returned to his residence to wash.
• Wang Yu learned that the investigation had captured Rebel Army and foreign spies, while Nanxi’s joint army fought the Rebel Army near the Torrent Sea Area.
• Wang Yu attributed his rapid breakthrough to his Proficiency Panel and extensive Body Tempering, and concluded that his second Blood Transformation might be near.

Wang Yu completed a first Blood Transformation with the Blood Shadow Method after already transforming with the Indestructible Method, gaining stronger concealment and speed. With both methods transformed and his funds depleted, he prepared to seek work and wondered how Chen Wenlin had fared in the campaign against the rebel army.

• Wang Yu tested the durability and rapid healing granted by the Indestructible Method’s first Blood Transformation and resolved to master the Blood Burning state.
• After several days, Wang Yu learned to use the Blood Burning state and realized his refined Qi and Blood could support a first transformation with the Blood Shadow Method.
• Wang Yu borrowed against next month’s quota to buy flying insect meat, then completed the Blood Shadow Method’s first Blood Transformation.
• Wang Yu found that the Blood Shadow Method strengthened his mental resilience and speed and let him conceal his presence and cultivation, but its Blood Shadow Clone remained weak and useless.
• Wang Yu decided to seek jobs or missions because he had run out of money, and he wondered about Chen Wenlin and the campaign against the rebel army.

Wang Yu visited the wounded Chen Wenlin, who had completed a Blood Transformation on the front lines, and learned that Canaan’s growing hostility could draw Ximos into a wider war. Wang Yu revealed his own breakthrough to secure more cultivation resources, while the Military Department kept his records classified to protect him.

• Wang Yu visited Chen Wenlin at the garrison infirmary and learned that Chen had completed a Blood Transformation despite suffering serious injuries.
• Chen Wenlin warned that Canaan was supporting the Rebel Army and that war among Nanxi, Canaan, and Ximos might soon break out.
• Wang Yu worried about Nanxi’s prospects and told Chen Wenlin that he had completed his first Blood Transformation after three months.
• Chen Wenlin obtained more monthly cultivation resources for Wang Yu and urged him to hide his talent and strength.
• The Military Department classified records of rising geniuses like Wang Yu, and Wang Yu accepted the restrictions so he could keep cultivating without drawing attention.

After an earthquake and mudslides drove ferocious beasts into the Central Mountains, the Military Department prepared to repel an impending beast tide. Wang Yu accepted Chen Wenlin’s offer to become Vice Captain and joined his reconnaissance team as they climbed the mountains, where they found fresh signs of beasts.

• An earthquake and mudslides struck the Dense Forest Peninsula, and investigators discovered ferocious beasts gathering in the Central Mountains, prompting the Military Department to mobilize the garrison.
• Luo Chu and Chen Wenlin argued over whether Wang Yu would become a Vice Captain in Luo Chu’s or Chen Wenlin’s squad.
• Chen Wenlin explained that his battlefield merit and Blood Burning Third Turn cultivation had earned him command of the new Twelfth Squad, then invited Wang Yu to serve as his Vice Captain.
• Wang Yu worried that the position would interfere with cultivation, but agreed after Chen Wenlin assured him that combat training would remain a priority.
• Luo Chu and Chen Wenlin led separate reconnaissance teams up the Central Mountains, and Wang Yu’s team found fresh ferocious-beast droppings on the mountainside.

Wang Yu and Chen Wenlin's team fought their way through increasingly frequent beast attacks before responding to Luo Chu's orange distress signal. They helped break the encirclement, but Luo Chu's attack could barely wound the Blood Burning-level Alpha Wolf, and Wang Yu had already slipped close to it.

• Wang Yu killed one of three Body Tempering Plum Blossom Beasts, and Chen Wenlin marked and prepared the corpses for collection.
• Wang Yu's group encountered more than ten beast attacks as they climbed, prompting Chen Wenlin to consider ending the day's reconnaissance.
• Chen Wenlin led his team toward Luo Chu's orange distress signal and found Lion-Wolves surrounding Luo Chu's group.
• Chen Wenlin's archers and soldiers drew off part of the pack and eased the pressure on Luo Chu's team.
• Luo Chu attacked the Alpha Wolf with Crimson Firmament Slash, but the blow barely wounded it and sent him flying.
• Chen Wenlin struggled to reach Luo Chu through the wolves and spotted Wang Yu near the Alpha Wolf.

Wang Yu ambushed the Alpha Wolf and broke his Basic Saber Techniques past their supposed ultimate limit, then used the newly empowered technique to kill the beast and save Chen Wenlin. The fight ended with Wang Yu mentally exhausted and unable to explain the power behind his slash.

• Wang Yu hid from the Alpha Wolf, then stabbed its vulnerable rear to draw its attention away from Luo Chu.
• Wang Yu lured the Alpha Wolf behind rocks and stabbed it again, causing his Basic Saber Techniques to break through to the seventh level.
• The enraged Alpha Wolf nearly struck Wang Yu, but he evaded it until Chen Wenlin arrived and attacked.
• When the Alpha Wolf knocked Chen Wenlin down and tried to devour him, Luo Chu rammed it aside and tossed Wang Yu his saber.
• Wang Yu unleashed his +7 Basic Saber Techniques and split the Alpha Wolf's head, killing it and saving Chen Wenlin.
• Chen Wenlin asked how Wang Yu had performed the slash, and Wang Yu claimed it had been a burst of potential.

After Wang Yu killed the Alpha Wolf with Mind Control Saber, he joined the Military Department’s effort to contain a massive beast tide and scout the Dense Forest Peninsula. The earthquake had split the island with enormous fissures, and a month later Capital City began plans to occupy the peninsula and develop it as a vast resource base.

• Luo Chu identified Wang Yu’s powerful strike as Mind Control Saber, and the group returned to the foothill stronghold after the wolves fled.
• Wang Yu reflected on Mind Control Saber and practiced the other basic techniques while the officers assessed the beast tide as a potential red-grade threat.
• Wang Yu joined a hunting team led by Luo Chu, and the team climbed to a summit to survey the Dense Forest Peninsula.
• Wang Yu, Chen Wenlin, and Luo Chu spotted enormous earthquake fissures splitting the forest, so Luo Chu ordered the team to report back.
• Over the following month, the Military Department contained the initial beast tide and established a defensive line as Capital City began plans to occupy and develop the peninsula.

Wang Yu continued hunting vicious beasts in the Dense Forest Peninsula, then rushed to help army units overwhelmed by Green Skin Monkeys. He arrived to find several officers struggling against a powerful Monkey King, and Luo Chu asked him to use Mind Control Saber to pierce its defenses.

• Wang Yu decapitated a Blood Burning-level vicious beast with one strike and had his soldiers collect its remains.
• Wang Yu led his unit deeper into the forest after an orange signal plume appeared, identifying Green Skin Monkeys by their cries.
• Wang Yu and his soldiers shot down and killed the monkeys blocking their path, then hurried toward the signal.
• Wang Yu found several army units fighting a huge swarm of Green Skin Monkeys while Blood Burning Realm officers battled the Monkey King.
• Luo Chu urged Wang Yu to use Mind Control Saber against the Monkey King, whose defense had resisted the officers.