Chapter Summaries

Liang Qu used the Sea Market Master's map to find Dragon Seed great demons in the Flowing Gold Sea and gathered six strands of Dragon Seed Aura before returning to Heyuan Prefecture. He consumed five strands to advance the Ying Long Mark, and Yang Xu noticed that Liang Qu seemed almost like green smoke when he emerged from seclusion.

• Liang Qu entered the Flowing Gold Sea, found a small Dragon Seed demon settlement, and absorbed one strand of Dragon Seed Aura.
• Liang Qu remembered the Sea Market Master, traveled to the Sea Abyss Palace, and asked her for the locations of Dragon Seed great demons.
• The Sea Market Master marked eight Dragon Seed locations on her map after Liang Qu promised he would not attack her customers.
• Liang Qu followed the map through the Flowing Gold Sea and gathered five more strands of Dragon Seed Aura, returning to Heyuan Prefecture before dawn.
• Liang Qu consumed five strands of Dragon Seed Aura to create another Ying Long Mark and began cultivating in seclusion.
• Yang Xu came to find Liang Qu, waited while he cultivated, and saw him emerge looking like a wisp of green smoke.

Liang Qu refined his fifth Ying Long layer and discovered how Wandering the Six Voids could redirect force, then met with He Ningyuan to finalize his choice of battlefield. The army prepared to march against the Northern Court, and the chapter ended as more than a hundred Grandmasters sensed their qi gathering at Shuo Fang Platform.

• Liang Qu emerged from seclusion with his Ying Long Mark at five layers, gaining River Rule Degree and strengthening his abilities.
• Liang Qu demonstrated to Yang Xu how he could redirect a nearby strike, and Yang Xu compared his Divine Power configuration to the Dragon Elephant Martial Saint’s.
• Liang Qu and Yang Xu met He Ningyuan, who finalized Liang Qu’s deployment and ordered him to remain in the city for three days.
• On December ninth, Yang Xu delivered orders for the army to assemble at chen hour the next morning and explained why the march could not be concealed.
• Liang Qu joined more than a hundred True Image experts as the army prepared to set out, while Grandmasters at Shuo Fang Platform sensed their qi gathering and cried, “Not good!”

Liang Qu joined the army’s march toward Shuo Fang Platform and used borrowed resources to evolve A Fei into a Great Demon, gaining its Flourishing Ink Splash blessing. As Northern Court defenders attacked the approaching army, Liang Qu tried to infiltrate beneath the city wall, but an enemy grandmaster detected and struck at his tunnel.

• Yang Xu explained that the army’s staggered march was designed to reunite its forces before confronting Northern Court, while Liang Qu surveyed the assembled experts and prepared for battle.
• Liang Qu used borrowed Treasure Fish, Treasure Plants, and donated essence to evolve A Fei into a Great Demon, and the Ze Cauldron granted him the Flourishing Ink Splash blessing.
• A Fei’s evolution strengthened Liang Qu’s qi sea as the vanguard neared Shuo Fang Platform, and Liang Qu told He Ningyuan he could attempt to approach the city underground.
• He Ningyuan ordered Hunting Tigers to cover Liang Qu as Liang Qu used Black Mist to form a cave and entered the subterranean waterway.
• A Northern Court grandmaster sensed Liang Qu’s approach and shattered the ground above his tunnel, then arrows swept across the sky as the defenders attacked and soldiers were ordered to scale the wall.

Liang Qu joined Da Shun’s assault on Shuo Fang Platform and used the battlefield’s interlocking duels to isolate Mengke. He killed Mengke with a sudden heartfire attack, then seized his body and prepared to draw the Abyssal Wood Bow as Sick Tiger charged and He Ningyuan’s forces struck another True Image.

• Liang Qu resisted poison and illusions as Da Shun’s army advanced against the Northern Court’s Qi Blood Great Wall.
• He Ningyuan led more than a hundred Da Shun Perfected Elephants in a charge that engaged the Eight Beasts and locked both sides into interlocking duels.
• Liang Qu fought Mengke, the Boar of the Eight Beasts, while concealing his growing advantage and waiting for an opening.
• Liang Qu unleashed heartfire and a powered-up strike, splitting Mengke in two and killing him in seconds.
• Sick Tiger charged Liang Qu, who seized Mengke’s upper body and drew the Abyssal Wood Bow as He Ningyuan attacked another True Image and broke the interlocking formation.

Liang Qu beheaded Boar Beast Mengke, helped Da Shun break through Shuo Fang Platform’s wall, and turned the battle against the Northern Court. As a Martial Saint’s giant hand descended on the city, a voice from the south called out Zhang Longxiang and halted it.

• Liang Qu killed Boar Beast Mengke, escaped Sick Tiger Su He Ba Lu’s pursuit, and used Mengke as a shield while attacking Northern Court fighters.
• Yang Xu announced Mengke’s death, boosting Da Shun’s morale as its soldiers pressed their assault on the city wall.
• Su He Ba Lu returned to defend the wall, while Liang Qu attacked Northern Court’s First Realm fighters from above and killed one.
• The Mountain Pigs smashed through the wall, and He Ningyuan’s forces unleashed concealed Martial Saint methods to widen the breach and charge into the city.
• A colossal gang qi hand descended from Northern Frontier City and shattered the golden passage before a southern voice called out Zhang Longxiang, stopping the hand.

Liang Qu helped Da Shun break through Shuo Fang Platform’s defenses while Zhang Longxiang fought the Northern Court Wolf Lord above the battlefield. After the Wolf King arrived to reinforce the defenders, Liang Qu used the Vortex Divine Armor and Nethersea Prison Cage to trap Spirit Fox and kill him with Slaying the Flood Dragon.

• Zhang Longxiang and the Northern Court Wolf Lord clashed above the battlefield while Xu Youguang and He Ningyuan led Da Shun’s forces into the pass.
• Da Shun’s soldiers broke through Shuo Fang Platform’s defenses, and Liang Qu supported them from the air as the Northern Court’s True Image fighters fell into disarray.
• The Wolf King returned from an auxiliary city, joined the battle, and helped the Twelve Wolves restore the defenders’ formation.
• Spirit Fox used his Shifted divine ability to reach Liang Qu, but Liang Qu trapped him in the Nethersea Prison Cage and killed him with Slaying the Flood Dragon.

Liang Qu’s victories over Eight Beasts’ Eagle, Boar, and Fox helped Da Shun break through Shuo Fang Platform City and rout Northern Court’s forces. As Liang Qu’s Blood Rain swelled the surrendering ranks, rival powers watched for an opening, and the battle continued until Northern Court sent envoys to negotiate peace.

• Liang Qu killed Eight Beasts’ Fox while Eagle and Boar had already fallen, and Da Shun’s soldiers surged through the shattered Golden Passage.
• He Ningyuan announced the deaths of three of Eight Beasts, boosting Da Shun’s morale as Northern Court’s defenses and army began to collapse.
• Sick Tiger ordered a retreat, and Yang Xu’s attack on the command post shattered Northern Court’s banners and drums, turning the withdrawal into a rout.
• Liang Qu unleashed Blood Rain on the fleeing Northern Court soldiers, causing panic and greatly increasing the number of prisoners before Su He Ba Lu dispelled the clouds.
• The Southern Border and other powers watched the battle and debated when to act, while reinforcements prolonged the fighting around Shuo Fang Platform.
• Northern Court sent envoys to negotiate peace at nightfall.

After capturing Shuo Fang Platform, Liang Qu remained at the front as Da Shun negotiated with Northern Court, then rested in a hot spring and checked on his growing forces in the Vortex Palace. He learned the negotiations had a ten-day deadline and received word that the Ghost Mother Sect was moving against Da Shun for blood food.

• The Northern Court envoy left after a night of negotiations collapsed, while Liang Qu watched from outside the tent and learned that the talks would continue for several rounds.
• A soldier told Liang Qu about a newly built hot-spring bathhouse, and Liang Qu went there to wash and rest while Ta Ta Kai cleaned his armor and Fubo.
• Liang Qu inspected the Vortex Palace, saw A Fei supervising the other beasts and remodeling the courtyard, and urged A Fei to arrange paid posts for Cannot Move and the others.
• Little Mirage Dragon asked when they could return to E Ying, and Liang Qu explained that Da Shun had to hold its position through negotiations before it could leave Shuo Fang Platform.
• Pai Xiao Xing sent Liang Qu news that the Ghost Mother Sect was seeking blood food in Da Shun, and Liang Qu later learned that the emperor had given the negotiators ten days to reach an agreement.

Liang Qu watched negotiations with the Northern Court unfold as the Southern Border’s movements shifted the balance, while Da Shun evacuated Northern Frontier’s residents and prepared for further conflict. In parallel, Dragonfolk watched Ghost Mother Sect disciples raising Mountain Ghosts, and the chapter ended with He Ningyuan abruptly raising Da Shun’s price after negotiations had seemed to favor the Northern Court.

• Xu Youguang and Feng Xi explained to Liang Qu how the Northern Court and Southern Border each hoped to profit from Da Shun’s wars, and they praised Liang Qu’s battlefield achievements as people began calling him Xingyi Marquis.
• Liang Qu checked on the badly wounded Boar Beast Mengke and Fox Beast, and Lord Jiang told him they would be left crippled even if the Northern Court ransomed them.
• Da Shun arranged ships and provisions to evacuate Northern Frontier’s residents, while Liang Qu and Yang Xu ate meat buns and patrolled as negotiations continued.
• At Jiang Huai Great Marsh, two Ghost Mother Sect disciples schemed to divert qi and blood medicine for themselves, while Long Pinghe and Long Pingjiang watched them and the Dragonfolk searched for other ships.
• After the Southern Border made a probing move, He Ningyuan lowered Da Shun’s asking price, leading the Northern Court envoy to believe the talks were going well.
• When the Southern Border Martial Saint moved north and the Northern Court planned to press its advantage, He Ningyuan raised the agreed price again, leaving the envoy dumbfounded.

Liang Qu helped guard the tense standoff while Da Shun and the Northern Court negotiated over Shuo Fang Platform. After eight rounds, the Northern Court accepted a settlement at the fourth-round price, and Liang Qu prepared to return home with a share of the ransom.

• The Northern Court envoy steadied his advisers after Da Shun raised its offer despite pressure from the Southern Border, while Awei secretly relayed their discussion to He Ningyuan and Duke of Song.
• He Ningyuan strengthened the patrols and lent Liang Qu three Martial Saint Jade Tokens, bringing Liang Qu's total to six.
• Yang Xu explained to Liang Qu why armies saved Martial Saint methods for crucial moments rather than using them at the start of a battle.
• The Southern Border maintained its pressure as Da Shun held its position, and the Northern Court's leaders grew anxious about losing Shuo Fang Platform and paying a higher price later.
• At the eighth round of negotiations, Da Shun agreed to return to the low price from the fourth round, and officials began calculating the settlement, which included medicines and three hundred million taels of silver.
• The envoy left the tent with the completed ledgers, and Liang Qu looked forward to returning home.

Xu Yuelong and Liang Qu’s colleagues celebrated Liang Qu’s victories over three of the Northern Court’s Eight Beasts and prepared to deal with the Ghost Mother Sect. Liang Qu returned to Yi Xing Town, while the Fat Catfish broke the Frog Clan’s eating record and then headed to the Dragon Palace, where the Water Beasts mistook it for Black Big Fish; the chapter ended with someone grabbing Long E Ying’s waist.

• Xiang Fangsu read the account of Liang Qu’s victories and other exploits to his astonished colleagues, who discussed his coming rewards and the Ghost Mother Sect.
• Liang Qu returned to Pingyang after reinforcing the Vortex Waterways and visiting the Sea Market Master, then went home to a welcome of firecrackers and drums.
• The Fat Catfish ate forty-five large meat fish at a Frog Clan banquet, surpassing Da Pang’s record and earning cheers from the frogs.
• The Fat Catfish headed to the Dragon Palace, where the Water Beasts mistook it for Black Big Fish and announced Poetry Fish’s emergence from seclusion.
• Long E Ying watched Ghost Mother Sect disciples at midnight when someone suddenly wrapped their hands around her waist and said they were measuring it.

After returning from the Northern Court, Liang Qu devised a plan to turn a routine Ghost Mother Sect cleanup into a martial academy trial and a major achievement for the government. As students assembled and Liang Qu rushed to join them, a Ghost Mother Sect disciple in Linghe Prefecture sensed danger approaching.

• Liang Qu reunited with Long E Ying and discussed Great Snow Mountain, then learned that twenty-three Ghost Mother Sect sites had been found, including three guarded by Wolf Smoke Experts.
• Liang Qu persuaded Huaiyin Martial Academy’s senior brothers to send students on a dangerous trial to eliminate the still-developing Mountain Ghosts and earn Great Merit.
• Liang Qu secured Su Guishan’s approval for a joint operation by the River Conservancy Office, Demon Subduing Division, and Three Laws Department, assigning support forces to all twenty-three sites.
• Five days later, Huaiyin Martial Academy’s students gathered for the trial, while Li LiBo and Chen Jiechang organized them and Lin Songbao quieted the crowd by announcing Liang Qu’s arrival.
• Liang Qu overslept after spending the night with Long E Ying, hurriedly got ready, and set out as a Ghost Mother Sect disciple in Linghe Prefecture felt an ominous premonition.

Liang Qu refined a Star Fruit, expanding his sea of qi, then led Huaiyin Martial Academy students into the Western Water Domain for a three-day trial. As the students entered the forest, Ghost Mother Sect disciples noticed signs of their approach and prepared to release Mountain Ghosts.

• Liang Qu refined the Yin Yang Treasure Medicine's Star Fruit and increased his sea of qi from 392 times to 405 times.
• Liang Qu gathered the academy students, announced the trial rewards, and sent twenty-three teams aboard sixty-nine ships toward the Western Water Domain.
• The students disembarked and followed River Conservancy Office officials into the forest, where their noisy advance startled birds.
• Ghost Mother Sect disciples saw the birds take flight, realized someone was nearby, and hurried to release the Mountain Ghosts.

Du Hanwen and the martial academy students faced a sudden attack by hundreds of Mountain Ghosts during Liang Qu’s trial, while Liang Qu watched from above. By midnight, the teams had pacified twenty-two of the twenty-three dens, and Liang Qu finished writing a Victory Report Memorial.

• Du Hanwen warned Xiang Fangsu that the noisy students might be in danger and made a good impression on him.
• The Ghost Mother Sect followers released nearly three hundred Mountain Ghosts to overwhelm the approaching students.
• The Mountain Ghosts attacked, and Du Hanwen and the other students rallied to fight back as Xiang Fangsu’s forces stood ready to intervene.
• Students in a neighboring county broke through the Mountain Ghosts and killed a Ghost Mother Sect disciple, while Ke Wenbin prevented further danger.
• By midnight, twenty-two of the twenty-three Mountain Ghost dens had been pacified, and Liang Qu completed the Victory Report Memorial.

Huaiyin Martial Academy’s students celebrated wiping out the Ghost Mother Sect’s Mountain Ghosts, and the trial’s results brought recognition from the court. After the awards ceremony, Liang Qu invited the top three students to accompany him to the capital for an imperial audience.

• The students disputed credit for Mountain Ghost kills while the Wolf Smoke Martial Master judged their claims and recorded their academic credits.
• Xiang Fangsu revealed that the students had destroyed a Ghost Mother Sect operation, praised their achievement, and led them in a night of celebration.
• The Martial Academy tallied the results, and news of the victory spread; Lin Jie learned of the defeat while the Water Blessing Sect’s Old Ancestor ordered an investigation for a traitor.
• Liang Qu awarded the top students at Huaiyin Martial Academy, praised Du Hanwen, and announced that the top three would enter the capital for an imperial audience.
• The students and their parents reacted with excitement after Liang Qu revealed the invitation had been approved by the Sacred Emperor.

Liang Qu considered how to conceal the White Ape King’s appearance and learned from Long E Ying that Ba Er Si Tai’s Bloodfiend Divine Technique might let him create a convincing false Demon King. He decided to visit the Imperial Astronomical Bureau before Mr. Lan divided the Divine Power, while the top three trial winners prepared to travel with him to the Imperial Capital.

• A furious Brocade-Robed Master whipped his son for skipping the Huaiyin Martial Academy trial after learning its top three winners would accompany Earl Xingyi to an imperial audience.
• At the Liang Residence, Liang Qu asked Long E Ying about Dragon Man Tribe Elders who could advance by consuming Qi, and she urged him to save any Profound Yellow Tokens for himself.
• Liang Qu worried that the White Ape’s appearances could expose a valuable way to hide a Martial Saint from the world and draw the attention of rival powers.
• Long E Ying proposed using Ba Er Si Tai’s Bloodfiend Divine Technique with flesh and blood to disguise the White Ape King, and Liang Qu hurried to stop Mr. Lan from splitting the Divine Power.
• Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu gathered with their parents at the martial academy gate, eager and nervous to board Earl Xingyi’s Treasure Ship for the Imperial Capital.

Liang Qu traveled to the Imperial Capital with his fellow disciples, celebrated the New Year Festival with his companions, and arranged to obtain Ba Er Si Tai’s Divine Power Token. The chapter ended with Liang Qu preparing to attend court and meet the Sacred Emperor of Da Shun.

• Liang Qu reassured the three youths’ parents before taking Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu aboard the treasure ship, where Ta Ta Kai trained with them and easily defeated them.
• Xu Shi served the disciples soup dumplings, and Jin Xiaoyu reflected on how warmly Liang Qu’s companions treated her compared with her own troubled household.
• Liang Qu reached the Imperial Capital and asked Lan Jicai to arrange an entire Divine Power Token made from Ba Er Si Tai’s powers, while discussing the ongoing wars at the Northern Court and Southern Border.
• Liang Qu celebrated the New Year Festival with his fellow disciples, then rose from bed after kissing E Ying and prepared to attend court with the three youths.

At the New Year Grand Court Assembly, Liang Qu received major titles and rewards for his battlefield victories and Huaiyin Martial Academy’s achievements. The Emperor then called for the academy’s young heroes, and Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu stepped forward, with Xiong Yiheng suddenly worrying that he had used the wrong foot.

• Liang Qu dressed in his official court attire and reassured Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu about court etiquette on the journey to the Imperial Capital.
• Xu Wenzhu told Liang Qu that Huaiyin Martial Academy was likely to become Huaiyin Martial Hall under a new three-tier martial institution system.
• Liang Qu and He Ningyuan entered Heavenly Chen Hall as officials presented the victory at Shuo Fang Platform and asked the Emperor to reward the meritorious ministers.
• The Emperor awarded Liang Qu the title of Xingyi Marquis, promoted him to Principal Third Rank Huai River Commandant and Eighth-Turn Upper Light Chariot Commandant, and granted him Great Merit.
• The Emperor called for the young heroes of Huaiyin Martial Academy, and Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu stepped out from the ranks.
• Xiong Yiheng remembered the advice about entering with his right foot and feared he had stepped forward with his left.

Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu stumbled through their first court audience after taking Liang Qu’s joking instructions literally, but the Sacred Emperor turned their mistake into a privilege and rewarded the youths. The assembly announced a military review, a captive presentation, and a general amnesty, while Liang Qu collected his new marquis title and Principal Third Rank Huai River Commandant appointment.

• Xiong Yiheng panicked after thinking the Censor had recorded him for a breach of court decorum, then fell to his knees and confessed that he had stepped with his left foot first.
• Liang Qu explained that he had told the three youths to enter court with their first toes unbound, prompting the Sacred Emperor and officials to laugh and grant Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu permission to step with either foot.
• The Sacred Emperor praised the martial academy and rewarded the three youths, who left relieved and later asked Liang Qu whether their mishap had helped them.
• The court announced a captive presentation and military review for an auspicious day in mid-spring, along with a general amnesty that excluded serious crimes and ordered delayed cases resolved.
• Liang Qu invited the three youths to eat and bathe, then went to collect his rewards and received Xingyi Marquis robes, a waist token, an official seal, and the Principal Third Rank Huai River Commandant appointment.

After becoming Huai River Commandant, Liang Qu explained the Huai River’s understaffed River Conservancy Offices and the vanished Dragon Lords to his junior disciples, then reviewed his rewards and planned how to spend his Great Merit. He ended by exchanging two Profound Yellow Tokens for Profound Yellow Energy while reserving most of his merit for the Bloodfiend Divine Technique.

• Liang Qu celebrated his promotion to Huai River Commandant and considered acquiring residences and checking whether his suspended salary would resume.
• At Brocade Garden, Liang Qu explained to Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu why the Huai River’s River Conservancy Offices lacked staff and why graduates should seek work there.
• Liang Qu described how the Huai River Lord had vanished and how Da Shun, Great Qian, and the Yellow Sand River Dragon King had fought a three-way battle in which each side lost a Young Dragon-level Martial Saint.
• Liang Qu reviewed his decree and discovered that his annual salary had nearly doubled, his three-year salary suspension remained in effect, and he had received two Profound Yellow Tokens and 415 Great Merit.
• Liang Qu decided to reserve most of his Great Merit for the Bloodfiend Divine Technique and exchanged two Profound Yellow Tokens for Profound Yellow Energy at Moon Gazing Tower.