Chapter Summaries

A scar-faced young man used concealed firearms and poisoned needles to kill Zhou Pan, then escaped with the middle-aged sorcerer. Li Yan recognized that a powerful new gunpowder had entered the martial world and feared it would change the balance of power, while Sha LiFei proposed returning to Xianyang.

• Li Yan inferred that Landlord Lu's Treasure Painting had drawn multiple factions into the GuShui Village massacre and recognized the middle-aged man as a dangerous Profound School expert.
• The scar-faced young man charged the yamen runners, and Zhou Pan confronted him with Transformed Strength.
• The young man triggered a back-mounted mechanism that blasted Zhou Pan with smoke and poisoned needles, then used a gunpowder-loaded mace to kill him.
• The young man named the Chang'an Fire Ghost as the killer and escaped with the middle-aged sorcerer while the others stayed back.
• Li Yan examined the iron pellet and concluded that New-Style Gunpowder could threaten powerful martial artists and might have leaked from the imperial court.
• Sha LiFei suggested that they return to Xianyang now that Zhou Pan was dead.

Li Yan experienced a strange dream of a chained, blood-spattered figure pointing out of the Asking Dao Pavilion, while a hook-shaped mark on his palm began to glow. Elsewhere, Xianyang constables and the Commandery Commandant Office searched for fugitives, and the Black Lotus sect’s Branch Master met with his allies and asked about a painting.

• Wang Dao Xuan, Li Yan, and Sha LiFei returned to the ransacked Asking Dao Pavilion, then planned to attend a Tai Xuan Orthodox Sect ritual and build the Tower before the Winter Solstice.
• Li Yan dreamed of a chained figure pointing out of the courtyard, woke, and went back to sleep as the talisman mark in his palm glowed blue.
• Guan WanChe and Commandery Commandant Office Lord Chang raided a manor but found its occupants gone, and Chang invited Guan to join the office.
• Manager Wu and the White-Clothed Concubine welcomed the disguised Branch Master and Fire Ghost into a hidden chamber at the Jinbao Gambling House.
• Manager Wu reported that Chu Shan and Yuan Qu threatened the Branch Hall, and the Branch Master vowed to eliminate Chu Shan before asking about the painting.

The Branch Master revealed that the Divine Sect had found a hidden-treasure map and powerful explosive, but planned to wait for a coming disaster before acting against the Great Xuan Dynasty. In Xianyang, Li Yan helped Sha LiFei practice, the group heard that the Zhou family had fallen and the West Traveling Beggar Gang was being raided, and Wang Dao Xuan proposed visiting Wu DaoYou.

• The Branch Master explained that Jiao FaYuan’s painting concealed the location of Daxing’s hidden treasury in the Qinling Mountains and said the Divine Sect would wait for a disaster predicted in two years before rebuilding its strength.
• The Branch Master showed Manager Wu and the White-Clothed Concubine a powerful explosive, but said the Divine Sect had only one jar and no formula, making rebellion against the Great Xuan Dynasty too dangerous for now.
• Li Yan helped Sha LiFei practice Hidden Strength, and Wang Dao Xuan emerged recovered and asked for Mutton Soup in a Basin.
• Li Yan, Sha LiFei, and Wang Dao Xuan heard that Zhou Pan had died, the Zhou family had collapsed, and Zhou PeiDe had been sentenced to death.
• Yamen Runners chased beggars through the street and announced that the government was moving against the West Traveling Beggar Gang after finding abducted women and children.
• Sha LiFei said the Tai Xuan Orthodox Sect was clearing obstacles before its ritual, and Wang Dao Xuan suggested visiting Wu DaoYou to thank him for saving his life.

After Li Yan saw a blood-soaked figure pointing south, Wang Dao Xuan identified it as a Cold Altar Wandering Master seeking an heir and urged Li Yan to follow it toward the Qinling Mountains. On Double Ninth Day, Li Yan, Sha LiFei, and Wang Dao Xuan set out for the Mass Burial Grounds to attend the ceremony for Bestowing Title to Mountain God.

• Li Yan, Sha LiFei, and Wang Dao Xuan visited the Xianyang Mortuary Village to arrange the return of Wu Lao Si's coffin, and Li Yan saw the same chained figure from his dream pointing from the forest.
• Wang Dao Xuan found a record of the Cold Altar Wandering Master and explained that it sought someone to inherit a lost lineage.
• Li Yan told Wang Dao Xuan about his cave encounter and Luo MingZi's warning, and Wang Dao Xuan suggested that following the figure might reveal the cause.
• The figure repeatedly appeared to Li Yan and pointed south toward the Qinling Mountains, so Li Yan added a journey there after returning Wu Lao Si to his hometown.
• On Double Ninth Day, Granny Liu brought Li Yan and his companions food and dogwood branches, while Sha LiFei joked that she wanted Li Yan as her son-in-law.
• Li Yan, Sha LiFei, and Wang Dao Xuan rode out of Xianyang toward the Mass Burial Grounds for the mountain god ceremony.

Li Yan and his companions reached the Mass Burial Grounds after Guan WanChe helped them past a military checkpoint, and Luo MingZi brought Li Yan to meet Qing YangZi about his problem. Sha LiFei reported the GuShui Village tragedy to Guan WanChe’s Commandery Commandant Office, whose investigators identified the attackers as Maitreya remnants and warned that the real trouble lay in the capital.

• Soldiers stopped Li Yan, Sha LiFei, and Wang Dao Xuan at a checkpoint, but Guan WanChe arrived and escorted them toward the Mass Burial Grounds.
• Li Yan and Wang Dao Xuan examined the City God Temple’s elaborate altar grounds, where Luo MingZi welcomed them and said Qing YangZi might be able to help Li Yan.
• Li Yan sent Sha LiFei to pass information about GuShui Village to Guan WanChe’s officers while he followed Luo MingZi to meet Qing YangZi.
• Sha LiFei described the bandit stronghold, the Cockscomb Snake, and the mysterious sorcerer to Guan WanChe and the other officers.
• The one-eyed officer identified DuGu Gan, also called Tomb Snake, as a Maitreya branch master and said the true trouble in the affair lay in the capital.

Chang Xuan and Guan WanChe weighed the dangers within Chang'an Garrison as Li Yan sought Qing YangZi's advice about his Underworld hook document and the Cold Altar Wandering Master. The Bestowing Title ritual began under threat from intruders, and Li Yan smelled gunpowder near the altar.

• Chang Xuan warned Guan WanChe that powerful forces had concealed several major schemes and rallied his men to gamble on advancing rather than retreating.
• Qing YangZi confirmed Li Yan's hook document was genuine, explained its powers and possible paths, and advised him to follow the connection to the Cold Altar Wandering Master.
• Luo MingZi warned that martial-world bandits might try to seize treasure during the Bestowing Title ritual and told Li Yan and the others to stay in the tent.
• Signal Arrows announced that intruders had entered the mountain, so Luo MingZi and the Enforcement Hall Daoists went to confront them.
• Qing YangZi and the other old Daoists began the ritual at the altar while Wang Dao Xuan explained its purpose to Li Yan.
• Li Yan smelled gunpowder as the ritual proceeded.

Old Zhang explained his background, his decision to write a story combining Chinese martial arts and folk customs, and his plans for the new book’s sale. He thanked readers, announced the release schedule, and recommended several other novels.

• Old Zhang recalled entering the writing field at thirty-five and supporting his family by forty-one, while worrying that he was losing touch with changing reader tastes.
• Old Zhang said he had returned to storytelling and chosen to combine Chinese martial arts with folk customs, drawing on research and memories from his youth.
• Old Zhang thanked readers for the new book’s support and announced five 4,000-word chapters at noon the next day, followed by daily updates.
• Old Zhang recommended several novels by other authors.

Li Yan exposed a gunpowder attack on the Tai Xuan Orthodox Sect’s Mountain God ritual and fought off the bomber, while poisoned darts left several people gravely ill. After learning that grave robbers and the West Traveling Beggars had entered the mountain to seize its treasures, Li Yan joined the pursuit, hoping his friend from the Mystery Seeking Lineage could help cure the poison.

• Li Yan smelled gunpowder in a camp servant’s cart and warned the Daoists as the man ignited it and sent it toward the altar.
• The cart exploded, scattering poisoned hidden weapons that wounded Enforcement Hall Daoists and Sha LiFei, while the bomber escaped into the smoke.
• Li Yan pursued the bomber and defeated him with a kick, but the Commandery Commandant Office captured and killed him after he threatened the ritual with Corpse Gu Poison.
• Guan WanChe and Luo MingZi refused to halt the ritual, and the wounded were placed under talismans and incense while Qing YangZi continued the ceremony.
• Li Yan agreed to help pursue the intruders, and three captured men revealed that Mo LaoWai and Beggar Leader Mountain Lord had joined forces to enter the mountain and seize its treasures.
• Li Yan said his friend in Shangyi Village might know how to neutralize the poison, and a young Daoist rode off to seek him as the others headed for the Mass Burial Grounds.

Chang Xuan’s forces confronted DuGu Gan outside the underground passages while Luo MingZi and Li Yan pursued the intruders through the tunnels. Deep underground, Li Yan discovered an ancient mountain-god shrine and received a vision of a pleading old man.

• Luo MingZi used the Embracing Simplicity Mountain Climbing Technique to frighten off wild dogs, and the group entered a tunnel after exposing its traps.
• Chang Xuan’s men lured DuGu Gan into the open, captured his Cockscomb Snake, and forced him to withdraw while demanding the name of the Commandery Commandant Office informant.
• Luo MingZi led Li Yan and the Enforcement Hall Daoists through the underground passages, following the intruders’ tracks past snakes, insects, and Yin Souls.
• Li Yan and the others reached an ancient stone cavern containing a shrine that Luo MingZi identified as a former place of worship for the mountain god.
• Li Yan felt pain in his left palm and saw a vision of an old man in bark garments pleading inside a dark cavern.

Li Yan and the Enforcement Hall followed clues from the Mountain God and the Cold Altar Wandering Master through the Mass Burial Grounds, fighting their way to the West Traveling Beggar Gang’s cave. They confronted the Beggar Leader Mountain Lord, whose Maitreya Sect identity was exposed, but his immense body resisted Li Yan’s attack.

• Li Yan used the tally to communicate with the Mass Burial Grounds Mountain God and saw that the Mountain Lord had taken the ancestral Cloth Bag and that the group needed to hurry.
• The Cold Altar Wandering Master appeared and pointed south, while Luo MingZi led the group through a cave ambush and the party defeated the archers and Evil Beggars.
• At a fork, Luo MingZi split the group between two caves after Luo Fengzi explained that both were Spirit Storage Acupoints; Li Yan’s group entered the cave occupied by the West Traveling Beggar Gang.
• The Beggar Leader Mountain Lord revealed his Maitreya Sect identity, drove off the snakes with the Maitreya Great Brahma Sound, and smashed a boulder into flying stones with his Wolf Tooth Mace.
• Li Yan dodged a stone and hurled a throwing knife into the Mountain Lord’s belly, but the blade sank only halfway into his fat and drew little blood.

Li Yan, Luo MingZi, and the Enforcement Hall Daoists fought Chu Shan, a Transformed Strength expert using the Flesh Maitreya art, while he tried to take the treasure. Li Yan helped wound Chu Shan and reached for the Cloth Bag, whose power rapidly restored his Great Luo Dharma Body as another vision of the mountain god appeared.

• Luo MingZi identified Chu Shan’s Maitreya Great Brahma Sound and urged the others to attack his lower body, but Chu Shan countered their coordinated assault with his mace and strange fat.
• Li Yan realized Chu Shan was stalling while extracting the treasure, and the group renewed their attacks as he fought them off.
• In another cavern, Mo LaoWai revealed that the beggar leader was Chu Shan, a Maitreya Sect branch master who had cultivated the Flesh Maitreya art, while Mo LaoWai restrained Gu Chenzi and the others with the Earth Blood Garment.
• Luo MingZi used Palm Thunder to crack Chu Shan’s breastbone, and Li Yan stabbed into Chu Shan’s belly and kicked the sword through it, tearing open a severe wound.
• The Enforcement Hall Daoist dragged Chu Shan’s intestines out of the cavern to draw him away, leaving Li Yan and the unconscious Luo MingZi beside the Cloth Bag.
• Li Yan reached for the Cloth Bag and discovered its power rapidly healed the Great Luo Dharma Body; then he saw the mountain god bowing to him in a new vision.

Li Yan and his companions escaped the collapsing Mountain Tai Sui after restoring the Old Mountain God, then recovered from the Corpse Gu and prepared to carry Wu Lao Si’s coffin toward the Qinling Mountains. The chapter left Li Yan setting out from Xianyang with Wang Dao Xuan and Sha LiFei, equipped with supplies from Luo MingZi and headed for Tai Bai Mountain.

• Li Yan rekindled his third Life Flame by absorbing the Old Mountain God’s blessings, then released the Cloth Bag when he realized continued absorption could kill the god.
• The Daoist killed Mo LaoWai, and the Cloth Bag lost its Spiritual Charm as the Old Mountain God’s crown was revealed; the god warned Li Yan to run as Qing YangZi’s ritual unleashed the Mountain Tai Sui’s Yin Energy.
• Li Yan and the others fled the collapsing caverns, while Chang Xuan said DuGu Gan had escaped; Zhao the Donkey later removed the Corpse Gu from Sha LiFei and declined Li Yan’s invitation to travel to the Qinling Mountains.
• Luo MingZi gave Li Yan supplies, a letter of introduction to Yu Linzi, and news that he would recover in Chang’an; Li Yan then joined Wang Dao Xuan and Sha LiFei at the city gate to escort Wu Lao Si’s coffin away from Xianyang.

Li Yan’s party sheltered from the rain near Zhongnan Mountain, where Sha LiFei learned that bandits and wild beasts threatened the road ahead. An official’s party joined them at the abandoned residence, while a watcher at the inn identified the newcomers as a difficult target.

• Wang Dao Xuan led the party to an abandoned residence to shelter the coffin from several days of rain, and Li Yan saw the bloodied Cold Altar Wandering Master pointing toward the Qinling Mountains.
• Li Yan sent Sha LiFei to Phoenix Inn for wine and news, and Sha LiFei learned that wild beasts and bandits were active beyond Zhongnan Mountain near Niubeiliang.
• A middle-aged man named Feng Ping failed to secure a private courtyard for his master and followed Sha LiFei’s offer to shelter at the abandoned residence.
• The aged master agreed to share the shelter, saying he was also a fallen leaf returning to its roots.
• A bearded man watching from the inn identified the arriving party as a high official, a rich man, and seven skilled fighters, then warned his companion that the target would be difficult.

Li Yan and his companions waited out the rain at a deserted residence, where they learned the Qinling bandits were preparing a winter raid and met a wealthy party led by Lu Kang. As the group resumed its journey, Lu Kang revealed his identity, leaving Li Yan and Sha LiFei visibly unsettled.

• A young man called Third Brother discussed gathering intelligence on the Niubeiliang bandits, who needed Red Cabinet profits to survive the winter.
• Sha LiFei told Li Yan that bandit groups staged a major raid each year before winter, and Li Yan decided to wait until Zhongnan Mountain to judge the danger.
• Feng Ping's party arrived seeking shelter, and Sha LiFei accepted pastries from their master while Li Yan's group shared a meal and kept watch through the rainy night.
• Li Yan meditated on his growing cultivation and worried that the Hook Register mark from the underworld might expose his secrets; he also studied Pigua Fist and Qin Han Drum Rhythms.
• After the rain stopped, Lu Kang explained the history of the Qin-Chu Ancient Road and declared his resolve to endure a setback and rebuild his clan's prospects.
• Lu Kang introduced himself to Wang Dao Xuan, and Li Yan and Sha LiFei reacted strangely to his name.

Li Yan and his companions traveled to Zhongnan Mountain, where they visited the Medicine King Temple before continuing their journey. As Li Yan prepared to pay his respects, the mark on his hand triggered a vision of a strange, fearsome figure seated on an ancient Stone Platform.

• Li Yan recognized the former Left Political Counselor Lu Kang as Zhou Pan’s corrupt backer, and he and his companions let Lu’s party leave without confronting him.
• After the rain cleared, Li Yan’s group continued along the treacherous Qin-Chu Ancient Road while Yue BaLa and Wang Dao Xuan shared stories about funeral bearers and the Medicine King.
• The group reached the foot of Zhongnan Mountain and Li Yan sensed the mountain’s overwhelming aura; they left their carriage outside and went to the Medicine King Temple.
• Old MengTou prayed for his ailing grandson, and Li Yan offered incense before the Medicine King’s statue.
• The mark on Li Yan’s left hand grew hot, and he saw the temple altar transform into an ancient Stone Platform where a fierce old man with the character “King” on his forehead sat.

Li Yan and Wang Dao Xuan followed the Tiger Daoist’s plea for help and rescued Medicine King Temple’s priest, Chen Yuan. Chen Yuan revealed the Tiger Daoist’s history and explained that his former disciple Lin Hui had betrayed him to steal the Divine Tiger Token, which was connected to the Embracing Simplicity Mountain Climbing Technique.

• Li Yan’s Three Talents Demon Suppressing Coin provoked a tiger’s roar in Medicine King Temple, and the Tiger Daoist later showed him an injured Daoist in a mountain ravine.
• Wang Dao Xuan learned that Medicine King Temple’s priest, Chen Yuan, had gone missing while gathering herbs, so Li Yan and the others followed the vision to find him.
• Li Yan found Chen Yuan wounded beside an intelligent takin, which had treated his injury with Tu Sanqi; the group hauled Chen Yuan back to the temple.
• After Chen Yuan awoke, he revealed that the Tiger Daoist was his lineage’s patriarch, whose spirit had guarded the region and sought Medicine King for centuries.
• Chen Yuan explained that Lin Hui, a former lay disciple, had betrayed him to steal the Divine Tiger Token, then asked whether the others knew the Embracing Simplicity Mountain Climbing Technique.

Li Yan accepted Chen Yuan’s request to recover the Divine Tiger Token and received the Thousand Gold Body Protection Incantation. As the party traveled along the Qin-Chu Ancient Road, Li Yan drove off a pack of wolves attacking villagers, who told them bandits had forced them to transport their goods themselves.

• Chen Yuan asked Li Yan to reclaim the stolen Divine Tiger Token and offered him the Thousand Gold Body Protection Incantation and the token as payment.
• Li Yan failed to track Lin Hui through the rain and Zhongnan Mountain’s Innate Firm Qi, then left with his companions and received the incantation from Chen Yuan’s attendant.
• On the road, Wang Dao Xuan explained that “Nogao” appeared in ancient incantations and might have been the name of an ancient Grand Yin True God.
• Li Yan rode ahead after hearing cries for help and found a pack of wolves attacking a group of villagers transporting paper.
• Li Yan’s Three Talents Demon Suppressing Coin frightened the wolves, and one of the villagers killed the alpha wolf, scattering the pack.
• The villagers thanked Li Yan and explained that bandits had forced them to haul their goods to Chang’an themselves.

Li Yan and his companions stopped at Shili Village, fought off bandits, and learned that Old Dragon Stronghold had forced the mountain bandits to unite. They discovered that the bandits had blocked Niubeiliang to rob Lu Kang’s valuable shipment, which was being held at Changfeng Inn in Qili Village.

• Li Yan agreed to let a villager travel with the caravan and reached Shili Village, where Guo FuAn directed the group to the abandoned White Dragon Temple.
• Li Yan found a Hanging Ghost’s hemp rope in the temple, and Wang Dao Xuan burned it to eliminate the lingering threat.
• Bandits tried to rob the sleeping group, but Li Yan defeated them and forced them to explain the upheaval on Niubeiliang.
• A captured bandit said Old Dragon Stronghold had demanded that the mountain’s other strongholds submit, and its leader had killed a Peak of Hidden Strength expert.
• The bandit revealed that the strongholds had blocked the mountain roads to seize Lu Kang’s valuable shipment and were holding its escorts at Changfeng Inn in Qili Village.

Li Yan fought off men who tried to rob the coffin and learned that the escort agencies were waiting for the Imperial Court to rescue Lu Kang. At Zhongnan Post, Lu Kang received word that the troops would not come promptly and concluded that the Li family’s hostility toward his family remained unresolved.

• At Changfeng Inn, Li Yan and Sha LiFei heard that the travelers would wait rather than unite against the Niubeiliang bandits, and Troupe Leader Zhou explained that the Spring Breeze Troupe was also bound for Shang Prefecture.
• Old MengTou reported that men were attacking the funeral procession and trying to open the coffin, so Li Yan rushed out to defend Daoist Wang and the pallbearers.
• Li Yan disarmed and killed the attackers’ leader, while Sha LiFei killed the wounded men and called them bandits; Li Yan then checked his companions’ injuries.
• Wu Mao told Li Yan that escort agencies had sent messengers to request troops from the Thousand Guard Station, but Li Yan wondered whether the station would refuse to help.
• At the Thousand Guard Station, a soldier said the commander had gone to Shang Prefecture for instructions, and two escort messengers concluded they had been used as chess pieces before sending a message toward Zhongnan Post.
• Lu Kang read the message at Zhongnan Post and told his first wife that the Li family’s grudge remained, leaving the Lu family without peace until it was resolved.

Lu Kang revealed that he planned to sacrifice his life to protect his family and secure its future, but bandit spies killed him and stole a list of Hidden Dart escorts. At Changfeng Inn, Li Yan’s group prepared for an attack, and Li Yan slipped into the darkness to strike back when the bandits began firing arrows.

• Lu Kang explained to Madam Lu how Li Siyuan’s influence threatened the family, then arranged for his death to appease the Li family and set plans for Xiao Wu and Yu Er’s futures.
• Li Yan and his companions learned that the garrison would not send troops and gathered with other travelers to defend themselves at Changfeng Inn.
• A bandit spy secretly wrote down the suspected Hidden Dart escorts, then left to report to his allies.
• A disguised bandit killed Lu Kang at Zhongnan Post and escaped, while two accomplices rode off with the list and sent a carrier pigeon to alert their leader.
• Li Yan sounded the alarm at Changfeng Inn, and hidden archers began firing into the gathered groups.
• Li Yan told Sha LiFei to protect the others and vanished into the darkness to hunt the Hidden Dart attackers.