Chapter Summaries

Liang Qu killed Bai Xingwen and defeated the Lotus Sect master Danzeng Qujie on Blue Lake, then sent a report to the Imperial Capital accusing the Bai Clan and the monks of attacking his party. He ordered Red Mountain to deliver the evidence and prepared to demand an explanation from the Bai Clan, where Bai Mingzhe faced the news of Bai Xingwen’s death and the arrival of further crises.

• Liang Qu used his official authority as Earl Xingyi to accuse He De Ban and the Lotus Sect monks, then fought Danzeng Qujie as Drowning Karma repeatedly failed against him.
• Liang Qu defeated Danzeng Qujie with a punch enhanced by Mahavairocana, while the Fat Catfish and other allies subdued the monks in the water.
• Long E Ying wrote Liang Qu’s report, and Liang Qu ordered Red Mountain to carry it and the evidence to the Imperial Capital before declaring he would visit the Bai Clan at noon the next day.
• He De Ban returned to the Bai Clan and told Bai Mingzhe that Bai Xingwen and Danzeng Qujie had died at Liang Qu’s hands.
• Bai Mingzhe tried to contain the news, but Bai Chenfeng appeared grieving and accused him of causing Bai Xingwen’s death.
• Frog Duke recited a love poem and praised Liang Qu’s literary talent.

Liang Qu traded poems for Treasure Fish while Bai Chenfeng rallied Bai Clan members against Bai Mingzhe and prepared to confront Earl Xingyi. When Liang Qu arrived at Hantai Prefecture after deliberately disrupting the clan’s schedule, Bai Chenfeng attacked him, and Liang Qu prepared to fight the old patriarch himself.

• Liang Qu composed poems for the Old Toad in exchange for Treasure Fish, then secretly drew on Marsh Essence to condense a Dew Seed.
• Bai Chenfeng used the Bai Clan’s grievances to turn members against Bai Mingzhe, then explained to Bai Chen Honglang that he intended to replace the clan’s old power structure with violence and redistribution.
• Liang Qu delayed his arrival until late at night, sent a memorial through the post station, and accused Bai Zhenghong and another clerk of hiding court secrets when they claimed it had gone through a secret passage.
• As Liang Qu and Bai Mingzhe met outside the Prefectural Office, Bai Chenfeng descended from Ice Mirror Mountain and attacked, blaming Liang Qu for his grandson’s death.
• Liang Qu recognized Bai Chenfeng as a Celestial Grandmaster and told Long E Ying and Long Binglin to keep the Bai Clan from interfering as he prepared to fight.

Liang Qu pursued Bai Chenfeng across Blue Lake and fought him while the Bai Clan’s political scheme unraveled. After Liang Qu’s Temporal Sequence and a manifestation of Tathagata’s palm prevented Bai Chenfeng from summoning Jun Shuang General, Bai Chenfeng drained Bai Chen Honglang to transform, but Liang Qu struck him down before the transformation finished.

• Bai Mingzhe ordered the Bai Clan to let Bai Chenfeng pursue Liang Qu, while Liang Qu raced after him and Bai Chen Honglang secretly followed.
• Bai Chenfeng and Bai Chen Honglang’s earlier plan revealed that they intended to stage a conflict with Liang Qu, rally Guanxi’s powers, and bargain with the court for control of the Bai Clan.
• Liang Qu confronted Bai Chenfeng on Blue Lake, shattered his Eight-Armed Vajra defense, and fought him as Long E Ying and the others blocked Bai Clan reinforcements at Vast Terrace Harbor.
• Liang Qu used Temporal Sequence to outpace Bai Chenfeng, while a colossal Tathagata palm appeared overhead and prevented Bai Chenfeng from summoning Jun Shuang General.
• Bai Chenfeng pulled Bai Chen Honglang into the fight, severed his arm, then drained his vitality to begin transforming into a demon-like form.
• Liang Qu used Essence Water and the Golden Eye to interrupt Bai Chenfeng’s transformation and pierced the back of his head with his spear.

Liang Qu killed Bai Chenfeng and Bai Chen Honglang, then left Blue Lake while the Bai Clan tried to understand their deaths. As the Ice Wheel Bodhi Temple remained unaware of its loss, Liang Qu found the Ice Jade Toad Clan Grounds.

• Liang Qu killed Bai Chenfeng and Bai Chen Honglang, claimed they had died while seeking private vengeance, and departed Blue Lake with the water beasts.
• Liang Qu explained to Long Yanrui that the Bai Clan was not the main target and that the court would likely manage the fallout while they prepared to confront Great Snow Mountain and Ice Wheel Bodhi Temple.
• Ling Xuan told Jian Zhongyi that Liang Qu had reached the Second Realm and killed the two Bai elders, prompting Jian Zhongyi to consider contacting him.
• Bai Mingzhe learned that Bai Chenfeng had absorbed water and that his hidden passage contained bones and frozen bodies linked to the Lotus Sect and different temples.
• Red Mountain delivered Liang Qu's corpse and confidential letters to the Imperial Capital and returned to Vast Terrace.
• Liang Qu announced that he had found the Ice Jade Toad Clan Grounds, leaving Old Toad surprised and reluctant to search further.

Old Toad reached the Ice Jade Toad clan grounds in search of Dragon Lord, while Namkha Khutukhtu learned through divination that Danzeng Qujie might have died. The chapter left Old Toad facing a colossal frog and Namkha preparing a cautious investigation near Blue Lake.

• An Ice Jade Toad emerged from Blue Lake and allowed Old Toad to visit the clan grounds alone while Liang Qu and the others waited aboard the ship.
• A young toad led Old Toad to the clan leader's cave, where a colossal creature blocked his path and recognized him as Treasure.
• Namkha Khutukhtu grew concerned that Danzeng Qujie had not returned and ordered Gelu to prepare a divination.
• A young monk's reading suggested Danzeng Qujie might have perished, and Namkha killed the monk after he revealed the omen.
• Gelu advised Namkha to send a small temple near Blue Lake to investigate before launching an attack, and Namkha agreed.

Liang Qu waited for Ice Wheel Bodhi Temple to investigate the loss of its True Image while entertaining the Ice Jade Toads at Blue Lake. Two monks from Moon Spring Temple came to probe into his presence, but Ling Xuan’s agents watched them and chose to seek contact with Liang Qu first.

• Ten Thousand Mastiff Temple sent two monks and six mastiffs to Moon Spring Temple, whose superior kept four dogs and assigned Zha Xi Dun Zhu and Duo Ji Ci Ren to investigate.
• Liang Qu wondered why Ice Wheel Bodhi Temple and the imperial court’s agents had been so slow to act, despite receiving a reply from the court and an invitation from Bai Mingzhe.
• Shuang Li hosted Liang Qu and his companions with Treasure Fish and spring water while Old Toad remained subdued.
• Zha Xi Dun Zhu and Duo Ji Ci Ren learned that Liang Qu was at Blue Lake and prepared to leave, while Ling Xuan’s group watched them from nearby.
• Ling Xuan decided not to interfere with the monks until the agents contacted Liang Qu, then learned that Zhe Dan and the others had found someone.

Bai Chenfeng’s spirit emerged from his corpse on Ice Mirror Mountain, but a mysterious figure consumed him and left the clan’s guards unable to retain their thoughts. Meanwhile, Ling Xuan’s group regrouped with Liu Jingxuan and Jian Zhongyi, then prepared to visit Earl Xingyi.

• Bai Chenfeng’s spirit rose from his corpse and planned to hide on Ice Mirror Mountain rather than follow the pull toward Great Snow Mountain.
• A mysterious figure confronted Bai Chenfeng, confused him about going to the Pure Land, and swallowed him in black mist.
• The figure left the cave, repeatedly erasing the White Clan guard’s thoughts as it passed.
• Ling Xuan learned that Jian Zhongyi had gone to gather information with Liu Jingxuan without the agreed True Image escorts.
• Liu Jingxuan said Jian Zhongyi had broken the rules, and Jian Zhongyi apologized; Ling Xuan ordered the group to pack and visit Earl Xingyi the next day.

Liang Qu met Purple-Gold Tiqi Ling Xuan, and they confirmed they were investigating the same threats in Great Snow Mountain. Ling Xuan warned that an unseen fate might be harming Liang Qu’s luck and said burning incense and worshipping Buddha could alleviate it.

• Liang Qu recognized the approaching Purple-Gold Tiqi Ling Xuan and welcomed him aboard the ship.
• Liang Qu and Ling Xuan secretly exchanged the characters “dry” and “water,” then verified their identities and confirmed they were allies.
• Ling Xuan asked about Liang Qu’s plans for the monks from Moon Spring Temple and the mastiffs from Ten Thousand Mastiff Temple, and Liang Qu told him to keep tracking their movements without disturbing them.
• Liang Qu asked Ling Xuan about the Hidden Stakes, and Ling Xuan suggested an unseen fate was affecting Great Snow Mountain and the surrounding prefectures.
• Ling Xuan told Liang Qu that burning incense and worshipping Buddha could alleviate the bad luck.

Liang Qu compared his records of Drowning Karma with Ling Xuan’s and learned that worshipping at temples could reduce its effects, while he revealed he had found a way to increase it. After learning of Moon Spring Temple’s brutal Auspicious Day offering, Liang Qu decided to investigate the temple and set off with the Ice Jade Toad Clan’s help.

• Ling Xuan showed Liang Qu his extensive records of misfortunes in the Snow Mountain Region, and Little Mirage Dragon revealed Liang Qu had kept similar records.
• Liang Qu explained that he called the unseen influence Drowning Karma and implied that he had increased it by urinating on Jun Shuang General statues.
• Ling Xuan and Liu Jingxuan decided not to approach Liang Qu yet and focused on locating the next Hidden Stake.
• Re Ge told the local lord that Moon Spring Temple’s Auspicious Day ritual required human remains and other offerings, then whipped him and claimed the pain had dissolved his karmic force.
• Awei relayed the monks’ conversation to Liang Qu, who resolved to make Great Snow Mountain his priority.
• Liang Qu asked White Jade Frog to lead him to Moon Spring Temple, promising it could drink its fill of Moon Spring Water.

Liang Qu’s group devised a scheme to implicate Moon Spring Temple by contaminating its Moon Spring Water and linking the incident to the Bai Clan’s apology gifts. After a year of River God ceremonies, Liang Qu gained new River Rule Degree and wondered whether he could generate Favorability annually, while Long Yanrui began drawing the monks into the plan.

• The Hedgehog proposed poisoning a batch of Moon Spring Water so Dragon Lady could be presented as a victim of Moon Spring Temple’s plot against the Bai Clan, and Liang Qu assigned Huai Kong, the Third Prince, and Binglin their roles.
• Liang Qu returned to Pingyang Prefecture, performed a River God Sacrifice, and received another 0.1 River Rule Degree and Favorability.
• Lin Songbao led the River God ceremony, and Liang Qu rewarded him and arranged an additional Azureback Dragon Carp for Chen Zhaoan.
• Liang Qu questioned whether River Rule Degree let him create Favorability each year and pondered mysteries surrounding the Old Dragon Lord and the Mirage Dragon.
• Long Yanrui caught two Moon Spring Temple monks looking at him and confronted them with, “What are you looking at?”

Long Binglin and Long Yanrui staged encounters with Moon Spring Temple monks while Liang Qu secretly altered the temple’s Moon Spring Water and Bai Mingzhe used the Bai Clan’s hidden accounts to force through a settlement with the Dragon Clan. The chapter ended with a woman in the Bai Clan’s backyard screaming after her face changed.

• Long Yanrui provoked Re Ge and his companion in the market, then Long Binglin rented an inn with Liang Qu’s money while the monks decided to remain nearby and gather information.
• Little Mirage Dragon delivered Liang Qu’s note to Bai Mingzhe, and He De Ban later escorted the monks away by arranging for the Bai Clan to buy Moon Spring Essence.
• Ling Xuan confirmed that she had given Bai Mingzhe what he wanted, and Liang Qu collected Huai Kong’s medicine water and secretly added it to Moon Spring Water at Moon Spring Temple.
• Moon Spring Temple reported an unexpectedly large harvest of Moon Spring Water and set aside supplies for the Bai Clan, while news spread that Bai Mingzhe was buying it despite the clan’s unresolved deaths.
• At the Bai Clan elders’ meeting, Bai Mingzhe revealed account books showing embezzlement and private scandals, then explained that the settlement’s goods came from those deficits and that Liang Qu’s wife already had Moon Spring Water.
• A woman screamed from the Bai Clan’s backyard, crying that her face had changed.

The Bai Clan’s women suffered sudden aging after bathing with Moon Spring Water, and suspicion shifted from the Bai Clan to Moon Spring Temple. Liang Qu and Long E Ying’s group secretly arranged the incident and planned to send Earl Xingyi to confront the temple; the monks remained under guard in the Bai Clan’s guest rooms.

• The Bai Clan’s elders discovered that its madams had aged after using Moon Spring Water and ordered the monks who delivered it detained while alchemists and physicians were summoned.
• Long Yanrui accused the Bai Clan of poisoning his sister, but Huai Kong said she would recover in half a month and Long Binglin suggested Moon Spring Temple was responsible.
• The Bai Clan steward argued that the temple could have tampered with its own water, and Long Yanrui began to consider that explanation.
• Long E Ying, Long Yao, Long Li, and Liang Qu revealed that they had staged the incident, and Liang Qu planned for Earl Xingyi to visit Moon Spring Temple in a fury.
• The Bai Clan guards sealed the guest rooms, preventing the detained monks from entering or leaving.

Liang Qu attacked Moon Spring Temple after learning it had plotted against him, blasting its leaders apart and setting the temple ablaze while rescuing captives. Tsering escaped the dungeon amid the destruction, and the Bai Clan’s Steward watched the smoke rise, sensing a familiar danger.

• Tsering was dragged into Moon Spring Temple’s dungeon, where monks prepared to cut out his tongue and harvest blood and intestines for the Guru’s Auspicious Day.
• A thunderous voice called out Yang Jin La Mu, and Liang Qu’s attack killed two monks as they opened the cellar door.
• Tsering climbed out of the dungeon and saw Liang Qu standing above the burning temple on a crimson dragon.
• Liang Qu spared rooms holding captives and other people, while fire and rushing water engulfed the temple and its fleeing monks.
• The Bai Clan’s Steward watched Moon Spring Temple burn from above Blue Lake and felt that the attack was troublingly familiar.

Liang Qu destroyed Moon Spring Temple, rescued its captives, and let his companions loot the ruins before revealing his plan to take the entire Icy Spring and its Moonstone vein. He began tearing the spring free, and the ground rose beneath the gathered group.

• Liang Qu used a water tornado and the temple’s dried peat soil to burn Moon Spring Temple to the ground, killing its monks and freeing the prisoners.
• Liang Qu explained how he had turned the temple grounds into a furnace, then collapsed the tornado and extinguished the fire with rain.
• Liang Qu let his companions search the ruins and treasure vault, where they collected gold and valuables while he gained Marsh Essence from treasures, including a Blood Coral.
• Long Binglin discovered the Moonstone vein beneath the Icy Spring and explained that breaking it apart would diminish its value.
• Liang Qu transformed into a White Ape and used his power and the underground river to separate the Icy Spring and its vein from the surrounding earth.
• The ground cracked, jolted, and began slowly rising beneath everyone as Liang Qu continued lifting the spring.

Liang Qu used White Ape’s power to uproot Moon Spring Temple’s Icy Spring and carry it across Blue Lake on a floating island, leaving the serfs and nearby clans stunned. As he prepared to visit the Bai Clan and bring the Icy Spring to the court, the island reached Vast Terrace and shocked the people waiting at the docks.

• Liang Yanrui asked why the serfs still feared Mahakala after Liang Qu had saved them, and Long Binglin explained that generations of indoctrination could not be undone at once.
• White Ape used Vortex Water to tear up the Icy Spring, its ore vein, and the surrounding land, then carried the floating island across Blue Lake as the serfs and Bai Clan’s boats fled in terror.
• Liang Qu told Long Yanrui he could not give the Icy Spring to the Dragon Man Tribe, shared Moon Spring Water and Treasure Vault goods with his companions, and ordered Huai Kong to treat the serfs.
• Liang Qu explained to Huai Kong that better living conditions and medical care could weaken the Lotus Sect’s hold over generations, and he planned to visit the Bai Clan before taking the Icy Spring to the Central Plains.
• Ling Xuan and others wondered how Liang Qu had moved Icy Spring, while Kou Zhuang broke through to Galloping Horse Nine Apertures aboard the floating island.
• The floating island emerged from the mist near Vast Terrace, astonishing the attendants waiting at the docks.

Liang Qu returned Icy Spring to the Huai River and began transporting it east, drawing crowds and attention from the Bai Clan and others. As he continued the journey and prepared to strengthen his Water Beasts, agents of the Great Khan arrived at Ice Wheel Bodhi Temple to assist Khutukhtu.

• Zhuo Yang spotted Icy Spring approaching Hantai Wharf, where villagers recognized Earl Xingyi and the island continued east without stopping.
• Liang Qu sent Cha Qing and the others to gather intelligence, directed Icy Spring down the Huai River, and left Long Binglin and the Water Beasts to guide it.
• Suo Yuqin explained that Liang Qu's departure with Icy Spring would divide the Bai Clan, while Ling Xuan's party followed the island and marveled at its scale.
• Liang Qu managed the displaced people and used Long E Ying's ice and the Water Beasts to keep Icy Spring afloat and moving; Re Ge arrived at a river and wondered whether it was still Moon Spring Temple.
• After a month, Liang Qu prepared to enter a dreamscape and strengthen his four beasts, but learned Bai Mingzhe and Ling Xuan wanted to see him.
• At Ice Wheel Bodhi Temple, Khutukhtu anticipated the arrival of the Northern Territory Eagle, and Ba Er Si Tai announced that he had come under the Great Khan's command to help.

Yang Xu realized that the missing saker falcon was the illusory manifestation of Northern Court Celestial Grandmaster Ba Er Si Tai and hurried back to report the danger. Meanwhile, Liang Qu completed the Little Mirage Dragon’s ten strands of Long Qi, discovered a Yin Yang Five Elements Seed, and joined Ling Xuan’s effort against Great Snow Mountain’s Hidden Stakes; the party reached a second-realm Great Demon’s location.

• Yang Xu recognized that the vanished golden-red-eyed saker falcon was Ba Er Si Tai’s heartfire manifestation and raced back to Heyuan Prefecture.
• Liang Qu defeated a Kui Beast, gave its Earth Kui Qi to the Little Mirage Dragon, and completed its set of ten Long Qi strands.
• The Little Mirage Dragon spat out a Yin Yang Five Elements Seed, and the Ze Cauldron revealed that one million Marsh Essence might nurture it into a Yin Yang Five Elements Disk.
• Liang Qu met Ling Xuan’s Tiqi companions and learned that Great Snow Mountain planned to sacrifice Blue Lake, pollute the Huai River, and seize the Drought Demon Rank Fruit.
• Ling Xuan explained that Jian Zhongyi could sense and conceal Hidden Stakes through his Calamity Qi, then showed Liang Qu two targets, including a completed stake guarded by a second-realm Great Demon.
• Liang Qu joined the group without delay, and two days later he and Jian Zhongyi spotted their destination from the Treasure Ship.

Liang Qu joined Ling Xuan’s team at Blue Lake to deal with the Snow Mountain Lu King, a giant Ice Crystal Conch affected by a Hidden Stake, and dove down to confront it. Meanwhile, Long Binglin escorted the enormous Icy Spring mineral vein along the Huai River as officials explained that it was war booty brought back by Earl Xingyi, while Liang Qu’s Ze Cauldron registered a River Rule Degree of 0.2.

• Ling Xuan explained that the Snow Mountain Lu King was an Ice Crystal Conch affected by a dormant Hidden Stake, and the team agreed Liang Qu could act against it and claim its shell and pearl.
• Liang Qu leaped into Blue Lake alone and found the immense Lu King concealed in the depths, weighing whether he could kill it with Slaying the Flood Dragon.
• A pure-white sea eagle with golden-red pupils circled above Hantai Prefecture.
• Long Binglin escorted the two-thousand-meter Icy Spring mineral vein along the Huai River, and River Conservancy Office officials told alarmed merchants it was war booty Earl Xingyi had brought back.
• The Ze Cauldron trembled as Liang Qu faced the Lu King, and his River Rule Degree appeared as 0.2.

Liang Qu fought Snow Mountain Lu King beneath Blue Lake and severed the black threads tying it to the Hidden Stake system instead of killing it. The conch survived and learned it might be a Hidden Stake, but it doubted the explanation.

• Liang Qu realized the Icy Spring’s journey might have raised his River Rule Degree and prepared to act as noon approached.
• Liu Jingxuan positioned the group around Blue Lake as Snow Mountain Lu King froze the lake and shattered the ice into a towering landscape.
• Liang Qu overwhelmed Snow Mountain Lu King underwater, cut open its shell, and saw black threads connecting it to heaven and earth.
• Liang Qu surfaced to ask for a Snow Mountain language speaker, then returned underwater with Zhe Dan to question the surviving conch.
• Liang Qu explained that he had tried to separate Snow Mountain Lu King from the Hidden Stake system, and Liu Jingxuan allowed Ling Xuan to reveal why they had come.
• After hearing the explanation, Snow Mountain Lu King reacted with disbelief when it learned it was a Hidden Stake.

Jian Zhongyi and Ling Xuan convinced the Snow Mountain Lu King that the Lotus Sect had manipulated it as a Hidden Stake, then persuaded it to help their operation. Liang Qu claimed its Snail Pearls and left the group to recruit the Lu King and investigate a Hidden Cave.

• Jian Zhongyi pointed out that the Lu King had been sleeping longer and feeling inexplicable anger, leading it to suspect that the Lotus Sect had affected it.
• Ling Xuan explained that exposing the Hidden Stake would help conceal their operation and that the Lu King's strength could aid their plans at Blue Lake.
• Ling Xuan told Liang Qu that a nearby Hidden Cave contained real Martial Saint relics, mystic-weapon fragments, and a copy of the “Hidden Scripture.”
• Liang Qu demanded the Lu King's Snail Pearls, and the Lu King surrendered two ice pearls that Liang Qu shattered to absorb their Marsh Essence.
• Liang Qu gave the pearls to Long E Ying and left the group to persuade the Lu King to join them.