Chapter Summaries

Xie Yuan returned to the Chen Commandery Xie clan, reunited with Xie Lingyun, and mastered the Martial Repository before heading to the Capital City. He killed the Emperor and Wu Daoji, helped the great families take control, and left with Xie Lingyun for Heaven Beyond Heaven.

• Xie Yuan returned to the Xie Family Martial Repository and reunited with Xie Lingyun, who told him that Xie Fu and other elders had died in the clan's battles against the Xue Clan.
• Xie Yuan stayed in the Martial Repository for more than half a year, learned every book there, and invited Xie Lingyun to accompany him; she accepted after he set an array to protect the repository.
• Xie Yuan entered the Golden Luan Hall, defeated the Chu King, and killed the Emperor after piercing his sword force with his spear.
• Xie Yuan found Wu Daoji in the imperial palace and burned his True Spirit with Samadhi True Fire, leaving no remnant behind.
• Wang Qiwen and Cui Lei led their families' elites to take control of the Imperial City, while Xie Yuan left with Xie Lingyun for Heaven Beyond Heaven.

Xie Yuan announced his Grandmaster breakthrough, revealed that the Ji Family of Heaven Beyond Heaven would target the Xie clan, and decided to dismantle Ji Xuan’s axe to strengthen his own weapon. As the Ji Family began attacking Xie territories, a young lady surnamed Mu arrived to see him shortly before Mid-Autumn Festival.

• Xie Yuan presided over the Elders’ Council, announced his breakthrough, and pushed through several decisions and personnel transfers.
• Xie Yuan told the elders that he had killed Ji Xuan and warned them that the Ji Family of Heaven Beyond Heaven would soon move against the Xie clan.
• Xie Yuan gave Ji Xuan’s ancient axe to Xie Tiexin to dismantle and incorporate into his weapon, preferring it over trying to refine the axe’s powerful imprint.
• The Ji Family made several attacks against key Xie territories, but the prepared Xie Family drove them back while Xie Yuan continued governing and cultivating.
• As Mid-Autumn Festival approached, Yun Zhu told Xie Yuan that a young lady surnamed Mu had arrived to see him.

After the Soaring Dragon Escort Agency celebrated its victory at Chunjiang Restaurant, Shen Longteng gave Xie Yuan a Demon Tiger Bone and recognized that the escort agency could not support his ambitions forever. He offered to help Xie Yuan seek an introduction to Yunshan Sword Sect, leaving Xie Yuan with a path toward a larger martial world.

• Boss Wu welcomed the Soaring Dragon Escort Agency to Chunjiang Restaurant and declared his loyalty to it, while Shen Longteng accepted his return to good terms.
• Xie Yuan was toasted and praised for helping defeat Vajra Gate, and his fame spread throughout Cloudshine County.
• Shen Longteng asked Boss Wu to arrange an introduction to the Outer Sect Master of Yunshan Sword Sect, and Boss Wu agreed.
• After the banquet, Shen Longteng gave Xie Yuan a Demon Tiger Bone to aid his bone tempering.
• Shen Longteng acknowledged that Xie Yuan would eventually leave the escort agency and offered to help him approach Yunshan Sword Sect.

Xie Yuan left Yun Zhao after evading Su Xing, who documented his unusual abilities and sent a case file to Spring Rain Pavilion. At Yu Chunsheng’s funeral, Lu Lao San sought information about Xie Yuan, then killed Madam Yu and Yu Dalan after the youth asked to become his disciple.

• Xie Yuan failed to recover Moon-Slayer, sent Situ Qin a brief letter, and left Yun Zhao for Yunshan Mountain.
• Su Xing searched the noodle shop too late, wrote a case file on Xie Yuan, and sent it to Spring Rain Pavilion.
• Lu Lao San visited the Yu Residence and learned from Madam Yu that Xie Yuan had killed Yu Chunsheng.
• Yu Dalan asked Lu Lao San to teach him martial arts, but Lu Lao San sexually assaulted and killed Madam Yu.
• Yu Dalan again asked to become Lu Lao San’s disciple, and Lu Lao San snapped his neck.

Zhu Dongming and the hunters ambushed a tiger, but their coordinated attack fell apart when it struck Wu Lao Si and knocked Zhou Feng from a tree. Xie Yuan rescued Zhou Feng and killed the tiger with a single axe strike, leaving the other hunters stunned.

• Zhu Dongming assigned the hunters their positions and told Xie Yuan to stay behind the group.
• Zhu Dongming and Chen Yun shot the tiger, and it charged into the hunters before getting caught in an animal trap.
• Zhu Dongming, Wu Lao Si, and Chen Yun attacked from the flanks while Zhou Feng stabbed from a tree, wounding the tiger.
• Zhou Feng urged the hunters to protect the tiger's hide, and the tiger suddenly struck Wu Lao Si and pulled Zhou Feng from the tree.
• Xie Yuan rushed in, split the tiger's side with his axe, and dragged Zhou Feng out of danger.

Xie Yuan joined Iron Clothes Gate as a Registered Disciple and began learning its Iron Cloth martial art. After his first stance-training session, he gained insight into the martial path and saw his Iron Cloth skill register as a beginner.

• Xie Yuan decided to join Iron Clothes Gate and paid eleven taels of silver to become a Registered Disciple.
• Cao Shan explained the school’s three disciple ranks and told Xie Yuan to return two days later to begin training.
• Xie Yuan returned with four other new disciples and met Huo Da, a first-level martial artist who would teach them.
• Huo Da demonstrated Iron Clothes Gate’s six Stance Training forms, and Xie Yuan struggled to copy them.
• Xie Yuan reflected on how stance training strengthened the body and vital energy, then gained insight that advanced his Iron Cloth skill to Beginner.

Xie Yuan reflected on Mu Chaoyun’s tragic past and grew closer to her while she trained him. After he made progress with the Black Heaven Book, Mu Chaoyun left, promising they would meet again.

• Xie Yuan thought about Situ Qin and Mu Chaoyun’s painful histories and regretted having argued with Mu Chaoyun before.
• Xie Yuan told Mu Chaoyun about his family and grudges, and she listened while carefully training him.
• Xie Yuan advanced his Moon-Chopping Axe Technique enough to send force beyond his body, and Mu Chaoyun praised his progress.
• Mu Chaoyun said she would leave, but agreed to stay one more day when Xie Yuan claimed he was close to understanding the Black Heaven Book.
• Xie Yuan spent the day and night contemplating the Black Heaven Book, while Mu Chaoyun left early the next morning with the book and promised they would meet again.
• Xie Yuan realized Mu Chaoyun had tended the courtyard garden and rested in the bed she had used, glad she had stayed an extra day.

Shen Longteng and Peng Jie set a Golden Jade Pill and a Superior Medicinal Bath as prizes for a sparring contest between the Vajra Gate and the Soaring Dragon Escort Agency. Xie Yuan quickly defeated his first opponents, then drew attention from both sides after witnessing a brutal match and provoking County Commandant Yu Chunsheng.

• Peng Jie offered a Golden Jade Pill to the contest winner, and Shen Longteng matched it with the escort agency's Superior Medicinal Bath.
• Zhao Xingyang told Xie Yuan that all this year's newcomers would compete, and Xie Yuan eagerly joined after hearing about the prizes.
• Xie Yuan defeated Yang Li with a single Wolf Assault slash, then quickly beat his next opponent.
• A giant Vajra Gate disciple struck an escort hand out of the ring and left him vomiting blood, drawing Xie Yuan's ire.
• Yu Chunsheng watched Xie Yuan after Zhang Yu Feng identified him, and Xie Yuan responded with a fierce slash that bloodied another Vajra Gate disciple.

Xie Yuan looted Yao Tianchuan’s treasures, selected Yao Tianfeng and Yao Tianci as his teammates for the Ten Thousand Demons Mountain Hunt, and advanced the Great Golden River Skill and Heaven Concealing Art while preparing for the journey. As the Eight Great Families assembled their teams, the Yao Family’s hunt began with high expectations for Xie Yuan, while the Qian Family revealed a powerful woman named Ziyu as its secret weapon.

• Xie Yuan gathered Yao Tianchuan’s weapons, cultivation aids, techniques, and pills, then planned to cultivate the Great Golden River Skill and Heaven Concealing Art before the hunt.
• Yao Tianfeng asked Xie Yuan for a hunt slot, and Xie Yuan chose him and Yao Tianci after hearing Cuiping describe their cruelty toward servants.
• Yao Yuzhi approved Xie Yuan’s selections, and Xie Yuan entered seclusion, raising the Great Golden River Skill to the eighth layer and Heaven Concealing Art to Mastery.
• Xie Yuan visited Mu Chaoyun before departing, and Mu Chaoyun used an array to send him a golden light after worrying over his hunt’s divination.
• Yao Yuzhi promised to prioritize resources for Xie Yuan if he led the Yao Family to an excellent result, while teams across the Eight Great Families prepared for the hunt.
• Yao Yilong met with an old man in Yongyang, who named Ziyu the Qian Family’s secret weapon.

Xie Yuan joined Zhao Xingyang’s escort team for a multi-day journey and learned about the dangers of protecting valuable cargo. When refugees blocked their route, Xie Yuan killed three attackers and drove the rest away.

• Xie Yuan joined Zhao Xingyang and the escort team, carrying his Tiger Bone Axe and joking about chopping firewood.
• Xie Yuan struggled to ride his assigned horse, then quickly improved his Horsemanship with Zhao Xingyang’s guidance.
• Zhao Xingyang explained how valuable cargo attracted bandits and why escort agencies traveled with enough men to meet threats by force.
• The next day, a group of refugees armed with hoes and clubs blocked the escort team’s path.
• Xie Yuan charged the refugees, killed their leader and two others, and scattered the rest so the escort team could pass.

Xie Yuan led the escort convoy through the Hills while keeping it alert for an expected ambush. When dozens of bandits surrounded them, he told the guards to hold position and charged toward the enemy alone.

• Xie Yuan warned Niu Dachun that their convoy was the most likely target of an attack and ordered the guards to stay vigilant.
• Xie Yuan refused to send pathfinders into danger and kept them within sight of the convoy.
• Xie Yuan halted the convoy in a low-lying stretch after spotting an ambush in the woods.
• At least forty bandits surrounded the convoy, and their Third Level of Practice leader demanded they surrender.
• Niu Dachun ordered the guards to form up and asked Xie Yuan to help him face the bandit leader.
• Xie Yuan told the guards to stay put, then charged toward the bandits on horseback.

Xie Yuan impressed the Iron Clothes Gate with his rapid progress in Stance Training, but Gate Master Liu Heshang did not immediately make him a Core Disciple. Liu Heshang told Huo Da that Xie Yuan was perceptive, then asked why Huo could not see the reason for holding back.

• Xie Yuan planned to return to the forest for valuable trees after he had made progress in martial arts, then trained hard at home.
• Xie Yuan's polished Stance Training earned praise from Huo Da and Cao Shan, and the other newcomers began seeking his help.
• Xie Yuan and the other four newcomers demonstrated their training to Liu Heshang, while Xie Yuan performed far better than the others.
• Liu Heshang praised all five newcomers and offered corrections, but left without naming Xie Yuan a Core Disciple.
• Huo Da asked Liu Heshang why he had not taken Xie Yuan as a Core Disciple, and Liu Heshang scolded him for failing to understand.

Xie Yuan learned that his reckless training was consuming the medicinal soup’s benefits instead of restoring his depleted body, leaving him torn between recovering slowly and preparing for the Zhang brothers. As he returned home, a Taoist priest asked whether the house belonged to Xie Lun.

• Xie Yuan trained cautiously after taking medicinal soup and saw his Iron Cloth progress rise to 73/500 over three days.
• Xie Yuan realized the soup’s effects had faded and wondered why it had not improved his depleted body.
• Cao Shan explained that Xie Yuan’s hard training had used up the soup’s medicinal power and advised him to rest, recover, and seek a suitable prescription.
• Xie Yuan told Cao Shan that he had already entered the gate, surprising him, then weighed slow recovery against the threat from the Zhang brothers.
• Xie Yuan considered killing Zhang Lao Er and fleeing into the mountains, but stopped when a Taoist priest at his door asked if it was Xie Lun’s home.

Mu Chaoyun risked her life to hold Deng Wan off while Xie Yuan completed his study of the Black Heaven Book. Xie Yuan comprehended the Heaven Concealing Art and then awakened memories that led him to comprehend Sweep Through a Thousand Armies.

• Mu Chaoyun took several Healing Medicines and attacked Deng Wan with renewed strength, but he defended himself with the Golden Light Whip until she withdrew.
• Mu Chaoyun found Xie Yuan still studying the Eight Trigrams Lotus and urged him to escape, but he asked her to trust him and kept concentrating.
• Mu Chaoyun returned to the fog to buy Xie Yuan more time as his Black Heaven Book progress reached completion.
• Xie Yuan saw the Heaven Concealing Art above the lotus’s many cultivation methods and grasped both it and a Logging Axe.
• Xie Yuan absorbed the Heaven Concealing Art, reaching Minor Accomplishment, then recalled a life spent chopping wood and fighting as a soldier.
• Xie Yuan’s memories culminated in a desperate battle, where he comprehended Sweep Through a Thousand Armies.

Xie Yuan continued building his wood-chopping skill and saving money while keeping the village thugs at bay. Meanwhile, Zhang Lao Er pressured the village chief over farmland and, after hearing about Xie Yuan, planned to use Wang Lei to target him.

• Xie Yuan counted 563 cash in profit, judged that he still needed far more to afford a martial arts school, and decided to keep eating well so he could chop wood efficiently.
• Xie Yuan described how he had frightened off the village thugs by splitting a huge log with one axe blow, while avoiding actually hurting anyone.
• Xie Yuan ate with Wang Lei, Li Lan, and Huwa, and learned that Wang Lei would soon leave for the city to find work and save money for Huwa's schooling.
• Zhang Lao Er urged the village chief to approve land-deed transactions by promising that his connections could help the chief's grandson Xiao Wenzi study and gain status.
• The village chief told Zhang Lao Er that a dangerous tiger had killed someone from a neighboring village and asked him to see if his brother could return to deal with it.
• After a thug told him about Xie Yuan's strength, Zhang Lao Er decided to make an example of Xie Yuan and Wang Lei.

After Mu Chaoyun recovered, she left the Yunshan Sword Sect to investigate her family’s enemies in Wild Goose Province, while Xie Yuan stayed behind and planned to approach Sword Peak. Xie Yuan worked hard to earn leave to visit Cloudshine, and Cui Zhi arranged a test that convinced him to let Xie Yuan return home before assigning him work near the Main Peak.

• Mu Chaoyun told Xie Yuan she was leaving for Wild Goose Province to investigate whether the Golden Dragon Merchant Company’s supply route had exposed her family, and she embraced him before departing the next day.
• After Mu Chaoyun left, Xie Yuan planned to work his way toward a position near Sword Peak and decided to earn the stewards’ favor so he could request leave to visit Cloudshine.
• Xie Yuan outworked the other servants in the woodshed, irritating them and drawing the attention of several outer sect disciples.
• The disciples staged a confrontation to test Xie Yuan, but he calmly threatened to report them to the deacon, prompting them to retreat.
• Cui Zhi praised Xie Yuan’s response and decided to let him visit home before assigning him work at the great hall for further assessment.

Xie Yuan joined Zhao Xingyang Escort Team, received the Third-grade Galloping Wolf Saber Art, and revealed that he had already reached the First Level of Practice. He began learning the saber art, while Qin Hai left nursing the punch Xie Yuan had landed on his shoulder.

• Qin Hai explained the escort agency’s ranks and merit system as he led Xie Yuan to register and gave him the Galloping Wolf Saber Art.
• During registration, Xie Yuan told Qin Hai he had broken through the Skin Gate, then proved his First Level of Practice by punching him.
• Qin Hai praised Xie Yuan’s strength, kept him at Beginner Escort rank until he earned merit, and told him to study the saber art.
• After Qin Hai hurried home and asked his wife for Medicinal Wine, Xie Yuan settled into his room and read the Galloping Wolf Saber Art.
• Xie Yuan practiced the saber art at the Martial Arts Field, and its progress appeared as 1/100.

Xie Yuan astonished the Xie Family’s grandmasters by performing all seven techniques of Peace in the Mortal Realm, then received his father’s mystic spear, Dragon Soul, and advanced rapidly through training. As the Hidden Dragon Banquet approached, the family discovered that the Imperial Court had invited Xie Yuan rather than the expected Xie Wei.

• Xie Yuan demonstrated all seven techniques of Peace in the Mortal Realm before the gathered grandmasters, who praised his talent and arranged abundant resources and training for him.
• Xie Yi gave Xie Yuan Dragon Soul, his father’s sealed top-grade mystic spear, and urged him to master it alongside the Heaven Burning World Destroying Spear.
• Xie Yuan trained intensively with Xie Fu’s guidance, improving his spear form and the quality of his Blood Qi.
• Xie Yuan found Xie Lingyun training hard because she feared she would fall behind him, and she told him the Hidden Dragon Banquet was approaching.
• Xie Yi and the clan elders examined the Imperial Court’s golden invitation and found that Xie Yuan, not Xie Wei, had been summoned to the Hidden Dragon Banquet.

Xie Yuan and Yun Xing won the Holy Mountain contest and underwent the Holy Fire Baptism, with Xie Yuan’s strength rising and Yun Xing breaking through to Grandmaster. After Yun Xing gave Xie Yuan ingredients and a prescription for treating his uncle’s Soul Loss Syndrome, she asked whether he would give up everything to save her, and he promised to help her whenever he could without sacrificing another life.

• Xie Yuan escaped Ji Xuan using his Great Accomplishment Heaven Concealing Art and reunited with the wounded Yun Xing, who had driven BeiTang Yue back.
• Xie Yuan told Yun Xing that Lei Xianlun and BeiTang Chong were dead, and the Right Dharma King arrived to conduct the Holy Fire Baptism in place of the absent Holy Maiden.
• The Sect Master sent a messenger to take Xie Yuan and Yun Xing to his palace, where he personally performed the baptism and enhanced Xie Yuan’s Blood Qi.
• Yun Xing emerged from the baptism as a Grandmaster, then returned with Xie Yuan to her residence and gave him a medical text and ingredients for treating his uncle’s Soul Loss Syndrome.
• Yun Xing asked Xie Yuan whether he would give up everything to save her, and he promised to cross mountains and rivers to aid her as long as doing so did not require sacrificing someone else’s life.

Xie Yuan defeated Xie Yun and warned the clan’s young descendants against challenging him without stakes, then granted Shi Jian a chance to learn martial arts. As Xie Yuan weighed his next steps and clan tensions persisted, he spotted servants carrying a gold Buddha statue past his residence.

• Xie Yuan sent Xie Yun flying with his layered palm force after Xie Yun barged into his residence and injured Yun Zhu.
• Xie Yuan defeated Xie Yun’s sword attack in one strike, kept his treasured sword, and warned the other descendants to bring something valuable if they challenged him.
• Xie Yuan gave Xie Yun’s sword to Shi Jian and agreed to consider teaching her martial arts after she admitted that she wanted to practice because she loved it.
• Xie Dun and other descendants complained about Xie Yuan’s share of the clan’s resources, while Xie Wei warned Xie Dun not to provoke him.
• After two more groups of challengers lost to Xie Yuan, he noticed servants struggling to carry a covered object that shone with golden light and suspected it was a solid gold Buddha statue.