Chapter Summaries

Fat Catfish arranged for eight Pufferfish to work at Outpost Canyon, while Liang Qu learned that his Moon Spring Water venture had earned a substantial profit. As the Lantern Festival arrived, Liang Qu was preparing for the coming military ceremonies and seeking a poem for Fat Catfish.

• Fat Catfish persuaded the Pufferfish to work at Outpost Canyon during an internship, and Spiky watched them leave with satisfaction.
• Fat Catfish secured the Pufferfish second-class vanguard soldier registrations by giving the large snake six Blood Lions, then led them to their mining jobs.
• Liang Qu received Fat Catfish's request for a poem and visited Lu Jia at Sky Vessel Tower to check his Moon Spring Water account.
• Lu Jia explained that a reformulated, date-marked Moon Spring Water had increased attrition, leaving Liang Qu with 365,600 taels in personal net profit.
• Liang Qu withdrew his profit and decided to buy a poem for Fat Catfish; ten days later, the Lantern Festival began amid packed streets and assembled soldiers.

Liang Qu’s newly trained ceremonial troops impressed the Sacred Emperor, officials, envoys, and spectators during the captive-presentation parade, where Da Shun displayed its military might and executed or pardoned prisoners. Afterward, Lan Jicai asked Liang Qu to provide an Ink Treasure for a new Contemplation Diagram, and Liang Qu hinted that he would soon create something better after gaining insight from the parade.

• Xu Zishuai frightened a child, then soothed him with help from the Hedgehog after the Little Mirage Dragon refused to share its sweets.
• Xu Zishuai told his companions that Liang Qu’s ceremonial drills had won approval from the Sacred Emperor and the Ministries of War and Rites.
• He Ningyuan began the parade, and Liang Qu led the formations through synchronized goose steps that astonished the crowd and impressed the Sacred Emperor and foreign envoys.
• Liang Qu and He Ningyuan presented the captives, and the Sacred Emperor ordered them taken away; the army’s shouted command shook the city as prisoners were executed or pardoned.
• Lan Jicai asked Liang Qu to leave an Ink Treasure for the Imperial Astronomical Bureau’s Contemplation Diagram, and Liang Qu said he would return in a few days with something better.

After advancing the River Master Emperor’s favor to the fifth level, Liang Qu considered his rapid cultivation and decided to use his new strength while investigating its connection to Marsh Spirit. He then visited Lan Jicai at the Imperial Astronomical Bureau to learn how to create Contemplation Diagrams for the coming martial halls.

• At the Lantern Festival banquet, the Sacred Emperor awarded Liang Qu thirty Great Merit for the goose-step method, bringing his total to four hundred and twenty-five.
• Liang Qu used a Northern Court water-element treasure plant and four Spirit Fish to advance the River Master Emperor’s favor to Martial Dao Divinity, fifth level, and found that his cultivation had accelerated sharply.
• Liang Qu decided to return to Pingyang early and handle Lan Jicai’s request before taking up his post as Huai River Commandant.
• At the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, Lan Jicai explained how Contemplation Diagrams used True Image martial will to temper lower-realm martial artists and could preserve that will for about three years.
• Lan Jicai told Liang Qu that the Imperial Astronomical Bureau had invited True Images to leave Ink Treasures for the four new martial halls, and explained that the diagrams were ranked by their effects rather than fixed standards.

Liang Qu created a Contemplation Diagram at the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, first painting a First Rank Flood Dragon before adding a Divine General who suppressed and slew it. Lan Jicai sealed the completed super-grade work, though Liang Qu said he could not paint another identical one.

• Liang Qu examined the Imperial Astronomical Bureau’s collection of Contemplation Diagrams and learned about the ranks and costs of their materials.
• Liang Qu began painting without a draft, drawing on his recent martial insights and memories of Slaying the Flood Dragon.
• Liang Qu painted a Flood Dragon and brought it to life with two orange-red strokes, producing an exceptional First Rank Contemplation Diagram.
• Liang Qu continued the work by painting a Divine General who wielded a spear and cut down the Flood Dragon, overwhelming the onlookers with the painting’s power.
• Lan Jicai sealed the finished Contemplation Diagram and judged it super-grade, while Liang Qu said he could not reproduce it.

Liang Qu painted the transcendent-grade Slaying Flood Dragon Diagram at the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, where officials sealed and classified it and Ji Zhiheng broke through after contemplating it. Over three days, Liang Qu created seven paintings, including a mysterious black-and-white White Ape diagram that he privately regarded as his true masterpiece, then reminded Lord Lan about the Sky Vessel Tower banquet.

• Lan Jicai declared Liang Qu's Slaying Flood Dragon Diagram a unique transcendent-grade work and sealed it with layers of beast hide.
• Liang Qu decided the diagram would go to Huaiyin Martial Hall and joked that they should hang it facing north to ruin the Flood Dragon's feng shui.
• Lan Jicai explained how Contemplation Diagrams were consumed through observation, and Liang Qu learned that peering too deeply into heavenly secrets could hinder breakthroughs to True Image.
• Ji Zhiheng reached Sudden Enlightenment while observing the diagram and began condensing True Gang, prompting the officials to carry him out.
• Liang Qu painted seven Contemplation Diagrams over three days, including reproductions of the Slaying Flood Dragon and Yinglong diagrams, while the officials sealed and classified them.
• Liang Qu watched the black-and-white White Ape painting be hung, recognized it as his true masterpiece, and reminded Lord Lan and the officials to attend the March twenty-sixth Sky Vessel Tower banquet.

Liang Qu brought home a Contemplation Diagram he had painted of Long E Ying, cultivated until his Qi Sea expanded, and watched the court transform Huaiyin Martial Academy into a Martial Hall. He then took Chen Shun to register for martial arts training, leaving Shunzi with a chance to begin cultivation.

• Liang Qu gave the Little Mirage Dragon and Ta Ta Kai their monthly allowances, then showed Long E Ying the Contemplation Diagram Appreciating Flowers, which depicted their time together on Mount Tai Cang.
• News of Liang Qu’s super-grade Contemplation Diagram spread through the Imperial Capital, while the first-grade Heart Ape frightened a youth who viewed it and Bai Guangyi declined an invitation to see the paintings.
• Liang Qu returned to Pingyang, consumed three Water-attributed medicines, and expanded his Qi Sea to four hundred and fifty-six times its original size as he considered the possible effects of a Time Insect.
• The court renamed Huaiyin Martial Academy Huaiyin Martial Hall, granted it fifty Contemplation Diagrams, and announced plans for more martial halls and academies across Southern Zhili.
• Liang Qu reassured Chen Qingjiang that Chen Shun could study martial arts at the Martial Hall, then took Chen Shun there to register.

Liang Qu brought Chen Shun to Huaiyin Martial Hall, bought him new clothes, and personally enrolled him with upgraded training and lodging. After learning that the hall’s Contemplation Diagrams had opened, Liang Qu offered to teach a class, drawing the students’ attention and unsettling Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu.

• Liang Qu took Chen Qingjiang and Chen Shun to his Master's Wife's tailor shop, where Chen Shun received several fitted outfits for martial practice.
• While flying to Huaiyin Martial Hall, Liang Qu learned from Chen Qingjiang that Pingyang's tax exemptions had helped farmers plant rapeseed and improve their diets.
• Huaiyin Martial Hall opened its Contemplation Diagrams under new reforms, and students gathered to view them, while Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu enjoyed special privileges.
• Liang Qu arrived with Chen Shun and enrolled him, paying for premium training provisions and assigning him a four-person dormitory with familiar students.
• Liang Qu asked to teach a class, and the news stirred the Martial Hall as Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu worried that their favored status was threatened.

Liang Qu began his new duties as Huai River Commandant by sending his Water Beasts to gather reports of local problems and testing River Conservancy Office commanders with questions. At Mirror River, Commander Deng broke down and begged for mercy, confirming that he was hiding something.

• Liang Qu instructed Chen Shun and the other students in standing post, then showed Chen Qingjiang the martial hall’s dormitories and saw him off with Shunzi.
• Liang Qu ordered Little Hedgehog to summon Golden Haired Tiger and the others and called A Fei back as he prepared to take office as Huai River Commandant.
• Fat Catfish returned to Outpost Canyon with its March salary and distributed Treasure Fish and Treasure Plants to the Water Beasts; Liang Qu learned its wealth came from banquets hosted by several clans.
• Liang Qu sent Fat Catfish, Round Head, Cannot Move, and Fist to gather reports of bad incidents near Mirror River, Grotto Heaven, and Pengze.
• Liang Qu visited Pengze’s River Conservancy Office and used staged questions to pressure its officials into investigating concealed problems, then repeated the approach around the region.
• At Mirror River, Commander Deng began sweating when Liang Qu questioned him about a dead River Opening Ox and finally begged Liang Qu to spare him.

Liang Qu exposed Deng Ming’s crimes at the Donglin River Conservancy Office and moved to restore the flooded farmland and prepare for planting. He publicly executed Deng Ming and twelve accomplices, then confronted the Sanshan Prefect, whom he had also decided to deal with.

• Deng Ming confessed that he had ordered dikes destroyed and River Opening Oxen driven mad so he could flood rice fields, convert them to mulberry groves, and seize land.
• A messenger warned the Sanshan Prefect that Liang Qu had locked down the River Conservancy Office, and the Prefect hurried to intervene.
• Liang Qu summoned Huaiyin Martial Hall students and officials from Pingyang to replace corrupt staff and restore the River Conservancy Office before planting season.
• Liang Qu announced Deng Ming’s crimes to the villagers and ordered the Golden Haired Tiger to execute Deng Ming and twelve others in public.
• The Sanshan Prefect protested that Liang Qu lacked authority to execute them, but Liang Qu displayed his Mystic Armor Mask and reminded the Prefect that he had forgotten to deal with him.

Liang Qu used the Mystic Armor Mask to execute Deng Ming and twelve other Donglin River Conservancy Office officials, detain the Sanshan Prefect, and launch investigations into corruption and damaged dikes. He then recruited martial-hall students and former associates for an internship at Donglin, promising Academic Credits and possible appointments.

• Liang Qu executed Deng Ming and twelve officials, detained the Sanshan Prefect, and told the cheering crowd that the Prefect would face trial in the Imperial Capital.
• Liang Qu silenced the imprisoned officials' complaints by detailing their crimes, then left the Prefect in custody and ordered an investigation into the Xilin River Conservancy Office.
• Ta Ta Kai delivered Liang Qu's letter to Pingyang, gathering officials and more than thirty recruits, including Huo Hongyuan and Zhu Zongwang.
• Xu Zishuai arranged an Academic Credit internship, and Ta Ta Kai prepared the Treasure Ship to carry several hundred martial-hall students to Donglin.
• Ke Wenbin questioned Liang Qu about the large recruitment, and Liang Qu presented work assignments and offered outstanding interns recommendations for positions at the Donglin River Conservancy Office.

Liang Qu tightened his control over the Huai River, weathered political attacks, and advanced his cultivation while preparing to challenge Flood Dragon for the Dragon Pearl. He returned to Toad Cave before the River God Sacrifice and proposed that Toad King let the court reforge his weapon.

• Martial hall students cleared irrigation channels and took over essential duties across Sanshan Prefecture, while Ran Zhongshi assessed their performance.
• Liang Qu’s swift investigations and punishments frightened the regional River Conservancy Offices into working properly, unsettling the water demons of Mirror River and Pengze.
• Xu Wenzhu defended Liang Qu’s use of Huaiyin Martial Hall students against Attendant Official Lu’s accusations before the Imperial City gates.
• Liang Qu learned that Lord Lan had asked him to collect an item in the tenth month, then considered his cultivation and preparations to gather allies against Flood Dragon.
• Liang Qu’s inspection of the Huai River’s five great lakes raised the River Rule Degree, and he recorded the increase in Dominance Level.
• Liang Qu returned to Toad Cave with Fat Catfish and asked Toad King to let the court reforge his weapon for the coming fight over the Dragon Pearl.

Liang Qu sent the Frog King's Great Anchor to the Imperial Capital to be reforged, then held the River God Sacrifice and sensed the Flood Dragon's stronger claim to the Huai River. He returned home to learn that the Ice Jade Toad had agreed to relocate.

• Liang Qu discovered the Vortex Waterway could not transport the Great Anchor, so the Frog King hurled it toward the Imperial Capital with Liang Qu clinging to it.
• The Great Anchor crashed into the Jinglan Grand Canal, where Liang Qu controlled the water to protect passing ships and carry it onward.
• The Sacred Emperor assigned three Heavenly Artisans to reforge the Great Anchor, and Liang Qu secured a learning place for Senior Brother Lu Gang.
• Liang Qu held the River God Sacrifice and gained more Jianghuai Favor, allowing him to sense the Flood Dragon beneath the waters and question how they could oppose it.
• Liang Qu returned home and heard that the Ice Jade Toad had agreed to relocate.

Liang Qu secured Old Toad’s help in finding a lower-grade Heaven and Earth Long Qi at Mirror River and prepared to profit from the phenomenon. He also bought a Longevity Worm Blood Cocoon for General Yuan, while his visit to Pengze ended with General Yuan keeping the Time Insect out of sight.

• Liang Qu negotiated five lower-grade great medicines and a new pond estate in exchange for Old Toad’s Mirror River Long Qi information, then arranged to sell access to the coming phenomenon.
• Liang Qu reflected on the Flood Dragon’s ritual and the political factions’ positions, while Long E Ying eased his worries and lent him two hundred fifty thousand taels.
• Steward Zhu Bingcan told Liang Qu that the auction’s Longevity Worm Blood Cocoon could extend a True Image expert’s life by five years.
• Liang Qu won the Longevity Worm Blood Cocoon for eight hundred eighty thousand taels and prepared to attend Old Toad’s Mirror River phenomenon.
• The Time Insect grew eager to confront Liang Qu when he arrived at Pengze, but General Yuan blew it back into its cave before Liang Qu could see it.

Liang Qu visited General Yuan on Shou Mountain and tried to recruit him for a plan to seize Flood Dragon’s True Dragon’s Legacy, but General Yuan explained Flood Dragon’s growing power and refused to commit. Liang Qu returned to Liang Residence intending to keep persuading him, while Long Qi’s emergence drew near.

• Liang Qu accused General Yuan of hiding Time Insect and plantation profits, then offered him a Longevity Worm Blood Cocoon in exchange for help dealing with Flood Dragon.
• Liang Qu told General Yuan that five Demon Kings could join the plan, but General Yuan said they could not defeat Flood Dragon and warned that it might have gained the Huai River’s protection and the ability of Undying and Unextinguished.
• General Yuan explained why newly advanced Furnaces influenced the world and said he could endure Flood Dragon’s rule for centuries by seeking help from the Western Turtle King and a Da Shun Furnace.
• Liang Qu left the Longevity Worm Blood Cocoon with General Yuan and warned him not to let Time Insect torment the Golden-haired Monkeys.
• Liang Qu returned to Liang Residence and told Long E Ying that General Yuan had not agreed, then carried her off to sleep.
• Great Beaver worked on blueprints as Long Qi’s emergence approached, while Eastern Huai sent ships to Mirror River and the Frog Clan dispatched its finest members there.

Liang Qu organized a fleet to collect the wood-attributed Long Qi emerging in Mirror River, while the Frog Clan trained with stolen ship anchors and Ta Ta Kai subdued the local River Otters. As the phenomenon began, Liang Qu released the Ze Cauldron’s suppression and watched a new wisp of verdant Long Qi form.

• The Frog Clan took Great Anchors from the ships in Mirror River and trained to wield them, while new Donglin clerks lost anchors they had left underwater.
• Liang Qu prepared the River Conservancy Office’s fleet, arranged access to the phenomenon, and set aside collection spots for local Demon Beasts and the absent Dragon Man Tribe.
• Ta Ta Kai returned from conquering the River Otters, and Liang Qu checked his Marsh Essence and the crimson Long Qi in the Ze Cauldron.
• Liang Qu led forty-six ships west with martial academy disciples and Lightning Struck Peach Wood, then met the Frog Clan and waited for the phenomenon.
• Green spiritual opportunity poured over the water and strengthened the disciples as strands of verdant Long Qi gathered among the peach trees.
• Liang Qu released his suppression, and the Ze Cauldron trembled as the verdant Long Qi intertwined with the Red Qi.

Liang Qu cultivated Yi Wood Long Qi from Lightning Struck Peach Trees, used the spiritual opportunity to help three Huaiyin Martial Hall students break through, and returned to Pingyang with valuable treasures. He planted one peach tree at his residence and offered Old Turtle a partnership, but left with the Long Qi after Old Turtle hesitated, prompting him to wonder how many Longevity Treasures the Dragon Palace held.

• Liang Qu judged Yi Wood Long Qi useful for plant growth and forced the Lightning Struck Peach Trees to form a strand after Ze Cauldron had drawn away some of the Long Qi.
• The peach trees bore yang-rich fruit, and Liang Qu rewarded Yue Yanyu for thinning their blossoms and tending them.
• Liang Qu guided the spiritual opportunity toward Xiong Yiheng, Du Hanwen, and Jin Xiaoyu; Xiong Yiheng opened three apertures, while the other two failed.
• Liang Qu returned to Pingyang with the Green Slender Snake and other gains, and Yue Yanyu planted a Lightning Struck Peach Tree at Xingyi Marquis's Residence.
• Liang Qu offered Old Turtle the Yi Wood Long Qi and a partnership, but Old Turtle hesitated, so Liang Qu put the Long Qi away and left.
• Old Turtle watched Liang Qu depart and wondered how many Longevity Treasures the Dragon Palace held.

Liang Qu gained enough Dew Seeds and Seeds of Creation to hold three strands of Heaven and Earth Long Qi, then spent the flood season handling disasters across the Huai River. After learning that Pingtan County had built a temple in his honor, he prepared to continue his work while several major developments remained pending.

• Liang Qu collected nine Dew Seeds and three Seeds of Creation, and Old Giant Clam agreed to take him to the Giant Clam Tribe Grounds next spring.
• Liang Qu and his water beasts moved a rocky mountain into place and reshaped it into a dam-mountain that held back the flood in Pingtan County.
• Liang Qu inspected flood-control needs across the Huai River and later met Shuang Li to plan the Ice Jade Toad Clan's gradual relocation.
• Liang Qu learned that a Snow Mountain Sect grand mage had appeared at Blue Lake, delaying Ling Xuan's plans to explore the Hidden Cave Hidden Stake.
• The Ze Cauldron reported a rise in River's Favor, and Liang Qu guessed that Pingtan County had built a temple for him.

Liang Qu visited a temple built in his honor, enjoyed fried lotus root sandwiches with Long E Ying, and discovered that Lu Gang had turned his casual suggestion into a working rail-cart system. After retrieving the reforged Great Anchor for the Frog King, Liang Qu met the Sacred Emperor and received three treasures to use when contacting the Mirage Dragon, leaving him poised to pursue the Yin Yang Five Elements Seed.

• Liang Qu celebrated Pingtan County's new temple with Long E Ying, then made fried lotus root sandwiches and promised to take her to see fireflies next summer.
• Liang Qu learned that Lu Gang had developed iron-rail transport based on Liang Qu's forgotten suggestion and saw the system hauling cargo with Male Blood Steeds.
• Liang Qu inspected and accepted the reforged Great Anchor, which the River Otters and River Dolphins began towing south for the Frog King.
• Liang Qu met the Sacred Emperor, who showed him the Sky Gold Flower, Purple Lotus Fire, and Emerald Wind for his planned dream meeting with the Mirage Dragon.

Liang Qu learned that the Mirage Dragon’s treasures were exotic stones for constructing small worlds, while he acquired a costly Bloodfiend Divine Power Token and pondered how the treasures could restore the Immortal Island. After refining the Marsh Spirit feedback, Liang Qu completed his third Dragon Court Immortal Island and began a major breakthrough as the chapter ended.

• Liang Qu learned from the Sacred Emperor and Lan Jicai that the Mirage Dragon’s treasures were exotic stones used to construct small worlds, and he bought a three-in-one Bloodfiend Divine Power Token for four hundred Great Merit.
• Lan Jicai explained that exotic stones required immense collective effort to refine, leading Liang Qu to suspect the Mirage Dragon planned to rebuild its Immortal Island and to wonder whether such stones could create a true space for his Vortex Palace.
• At Outpost Canyon, Fat Catfish blamed the Third Prince for its sneeze and learned that the Flood Dragons’ True Dragon’s Legacy was probably a Dragon Pearl hidden outside the Dragon Palace.
• On November 9th, Liang Qu finished refining the Marsh Spirit feedback and completed all three Dragon Court Immortal Islands.
• Liang Qu’s four hundred sixty-twofold qi sea surged past five hundred toward six hundred as Ta Ta Kai, Long Yao, Long Li, and the neighbors sensed his breakthrough.

Liang Qu completed all three realms of True Image and all three Divine Powers, becoming a third-realm Celestial Grandmaster with a vast qi sea. He joined the Sacred Emperor and Little Mirage Dragon on Cloud Cottage Immortal Island, where the Sacred Emperor secretly met with the Mirage Dragon Old Ancestor and Emerald Wind revived the island’s withered plants.

• Liang Qu completed his third Divine Power, gaining control over wind within three zhang and greatly improving his offense, defense, movement, and survival.
• Liang Qu assessed his qi sea at six hundred and fifty-two times Dragon Court Immortal Island and continued steadying his breakthrough until a palace eunuch summoned him.
• Liang Qu met the Sacred Emperor at Moon Gazing Tower, and Little Mirage Dragon used Mist Exhalation to take them to Cloud Cottage Immortal Island.
• The Sacred Emperor and Little Mirage Dragon went inside the palace to meet the Mirage Dragon Old Ancestor, leaving Liang Qu outside the gates.
• Emerald Wind emerged from the palace and spread across the island, making withered grass grow green and causing the dead lotus pond to bloom.