Recaps

Ning Qi was reborn as the son of Ning Ye and Jiang Xuemei during an attack on Snow Plum Manor, where his parents fought to protect him. Facing discovery as the manor fell, he awakened max-level comprehension and created the Innate Embryonic Breathing Technique to hide his presence; Lord Feng then ordered the manor burned.

• Ning Qi regained consciousness as a newborn while Jiang Xuemei carried him through the attack on Snow Plum Manor.
• Jiang Xuemei hid Ning Qi in a secret compartment, kissed him goodbye, and left to help Ning Ye face the enemy.
• Ning Qi awakened max-level comprehension and realized this was his Hundredth Life after ninety-nine lives of suffering.
• Ning Qi used his comprehension to create the Innate Embryonic Breathing Technique, quieting his heartbeat and breathing so the searchers could not detect him.
• Lord Feng searched Snow Plum Manor for Ning Ye and Jiang Xuemei's child but found no trace of Ning Qi.
• Lord Feng ordered his men to set Snow Plum Manor on fire and reduce it to ashes.

Lord Feng’s men destroyed Snow Plum Manor in a fire, but Daoist Longshan rescued the newborn Ning Qi after hearing his unusual cry. The next day, Longshan named Ning Qi his ninth disciple and took him away, while Ning Qi vowed to avenge his parents.

• Lord Feng ordered his men to withdraw when he learned Daoist Longshan was approaching, believing the fire had killed everyone at Snow Plum Manor.
• Ning Qi used the Innate Embryonic Breathing Technique to endure the heat and developed the Sonic Wave Vibration Method to make his cries carry through the flames.
• Daoist Longshan arrived, heard Ning Qi crying, and rescued him from a hidden compartment containing a jade pendant and Night Plum Swordsmanship.
• Daoist Longshan named the baby Ning Qi, recognized his abundant innate Qi and intelligence, and promised to raise him and pursue his parents’ killers.
• Ning Qi vowed to avenge his parents as Daoist Longshan declared him his ninth disciple and carried him back to the mountain.

Daoist Longshan brought Ning Qi to True Martial Mountain and introduced him as the sect’s ninth True Disciple, completing the True Martial Nine Sons. Over the next six months, Ning Qi settled into the sect and secretly mastered many fields, then began looking for a way to form his Root Bone and start martial training before age eight.

• Daoist Longshan arrived at True Martial Mountain with Ning Qi and reunited with his eight disciples, including Luo Wentian, Ye Qinghe, and Qin Yun.
• Daoist Longshan named Ning Qi his ninth junior disciple, and Qin Yun declared that the True Martial Nine Sons were complete and would restore the True Martial Sect’s glory.
• Ning Qi grew close to his senior brothers and sisters and, within six months, learned to walk, speak clearly, and read and write.
• Ning Qi secretly studied the sect’s books, developed advanced knowledge across many fields, and created his own medical text and needle techniques.
• Because his Root Bone would normally take until age eight to form, Ning Qi began considering how to start martial training sooner.

Ning Qi asked Daoist Longshan about his rapidly forming Root Bone and learned that it was the body's foundation, nurtured by time and a mysterious force. With his doubts cleared and a path toward accelerating its growth, Ning Qi asked whether martial arts could lead to immortality.

• Ning Qi went to Mingwu Pavilion to ask Daoist Longshan how to speed up his Root Bone's formation.
• Jiang Baishan told Daoist Longshan he planned to leave the mountain to gain experience, and Daoist Longshan warned him about the resurgent demonic path.
• Ning Qi used a story about strange sensations to prompt Daoist Longshan to examine him, and Daoist Longshan discovered his Root Bone was forming unusually early.
• Daoist Longshan explained the Root Bone and said Ning Qi's abundant Innate Qi might let him begin martial arts sooner than most children.
• Ning Qi thanked Daoist Longshan and asked whether martial arts could lead to immortality.

Ning Qi learned that martial arts might offer a path toward a longer life, set becoming a Martial Saint as his first goal, and resolved to forge his own road to immortality if needed. He then perfected the Innate Bone-Nurturing Technique, which let him actively accelerate the growth of his Root Bone.

• Ning Qi asked Daoist Longshan whether anyone lived beyond the Celestial Person Realm, and Daoist Longshan explained that Martial Saints could live for thousands of years and might reach another world.
• Ning Qi decided to become a Martial Saint first and declared that he would carve out a road to eternal life if none existed.
• After Daoist Longshan's guidance, Ning Qi stopped pestering the True Disciples with questions and privately developed a way to nurture his Root Bone.
• Ning Qi used Innate Qi and the Ning Clan Medical Text to perfect the Innate Bone-Nurturing Technique, allowing him to actively speed up his Root Bone's growth.

Nearly a year old, Ning Qi continued strengthening his Root Bone and studying the classics while learning about the Great Flame Dynasty. Ye Qinghe told him that the dynasty’s survival might depend on a hidden succession of Martial Saints, though no one knew whether its original founder still lived.

• Ning Qi advanced his Root Bone formation through daily practice and read widely to prepare for his future martial training.
• Ning Qi learned from the Records of Great Flame that the dynasty spanned thirteen provinces, governed martial sects, and had ruled for two thousand years under its founding Martial Saint.
• Ye Qinghe visited Ning Qi, offered him wine, and explained that Great Flame Martial Saints had repeatedly saved the dynasty from upheaval.
• Ye Qinghe described competing rumors that the original Great Flame Martial Saint had avoided ascension or that a Secret Method continuously produced new Martial Saints in the imperial family.
• Ning Qi was left pondering the secret behind the Great Flame Dynasty’s longevity.

Ning Qi reflected on the turmoil gathering across Great Flame while continuing to study and cultivate on True Martial Mountain. After two and a half years of steady practice, his Root Bone finally took shape at age three.

• Ye Qinghe told Ning Qi that the Demon Sect had appeared across Qingzhou and that unrest was growing within and around Great Flame.
• Ye Qinghe explained that even Qin Yun had spent eleven years completing Body Tempering, but Ning Qi remained focused on his studies.
• Over the next two and a half years, Ning Qi's senior brothers and sisters cared for him, while Daoist Longshan continued searching for the culprit behind Snow Plum Manor's slaughter.
• Ning Qi completed the final cycle of the Innate Bone-Nurturing Technique, and his Root Bone fully took shape.

Ning Qi considered sharing the Innate Bone-Nurturing Technique with Daoist Longshan and making it easier for others to learn. When Xiong Shi discovered that Ning Qi’s Root Bone had formed at just three years old, he rushed him to Mingwu Pavilion, where Daoist Longshan confirmed it.

• Ning Qi decided to revise the Innate Bone-Nurturing Technique so it would be easier for others to comprehend and eventually share it with Daoist Longshan.
• Xiong Shi visited Ning Qi with medicinal herbs and discovered that Ning Qi’s Root Bone had formed.
• Xiong Shi carried Ning Qi to Mingwu Pavilion, where Daoist Longshan and Luo Wentian were discussing the sect’s future and Daoist Longshan’s possible retreat.
• Daoist Longshan sensed Ning Qi’s formed Root Bone and confirmed the discovery to Luo Wentian.

After Ning Qi’s Root Bone formed naturally at age three, Daoist Longshan allowed him to begin martial arts and taught him the True Martial Sect’s Bi'an Pile. Ning Qi grasped the Stake Skill’s principles with striking ease, and the chapter ended as he saw through the technique’s deeper workings.

• Ning Qi told Daoist Longshan that he had felt itchy and numb and briefly sensed a connection to heaven and earth, and Daoist Longshan confirmed that his Root Bone had formed and let him begin practicing martial arts.
• Daoist Longshan took Ning Qi to a private training ground and explained the Tempering Body Eight Realms, the Inner Essence Realm, and the importance of a Stake Skill.
• Daoist Longshan introduced the True Martial Nine Piles and assigned Ning Qi the Bi'an Pile, explaining that the nine techniques had once allowed their greatest practitioners to fight a Martial Saint.
• Daoist Longshan demonstrated and explained the Bi'an Pile while Ning Qi watched, discerned its underlying principles, and thought the Higher Vehicle Stake Skill seemed simple.

Ning Qi learned the True Martial Nine Piles from Daoist Longshan and immediately showed an extraordinary grasp of its techniques, beginning Skin Refinement on his first attempt. Daoist Longshan saw new hope for the True Martial Sect and anticipated Ning Qi’s rapid progress.

• Daoist Longshan demonstrated the True Martial Nine Piles, and Ning Qi understood its essential points.
• Ning Qi performed the first form, Bi'an Sitting on the Mountain, and began directing Qi through his skin to start Skin Refinement.
• Luo Wentian and Xiong Shi watched in disbelief as Ning Qi quickly mastered the movements and approached the Bi'an divine intent.
• Daoist Longshan praised Ning Qi, advised him to practice Stake Skills and Body Tempering with medicinal baths, and hoped he could reach the Inner Essence Realm by age eight.

Ning Qi learned three of the True Martial Nine Piles from Daoist Longshan, Luo Wentian, and Xiong Shi, astonishing all three with his comprehension. He practiced the techniques until he reached perfect Divine Intent in the Bi'an and Qiuniu Piles, then stopped for a medicinal bath, convinced that martial arts were easier than expected.

• Daoist Longshan ended the lesson and left after Ning Qi quickly grasped the Bi'an Pile and kept asking to learn more.
• Luo Wentian and Xiong Shi taught Ning Qi the Qiuniu and Baxia Piles together, then marveled at how quickly he mastered both.
• Ning Qi resolved to learn the remaining stake skills and combine their shared qualities to create a technique better suited to himself.
• Ning Qi practiced the Bi'an Pile at perfect Divine Intent, then switched to the Qiuniu Pile and reached perfection in that as well.
• Ning Qi practiced the Baxia Stake Skill until his body hurt, took a Medicinal Bath, and reflected that the martial path seemed easier than he had expected.

Ning Qi improved his medicinal bath formula and rapidly advanced his martial arts, learning the final True Martial Pile from Qin Yun. After mastering the Yazi Pile, he had learned all nine True Martial Piles and saw a chance to create an even stronger Stake Skill.

• Ning Qi modified the body-tempering formula, tested the Improved Body Tempering Powder, and found it at least twice as effective as the original.
• Over the next three days, Ning Qi reached the Oxhide Realm and learned five Stake Skills from Ye Qinghe and the others, leaving only the Yazi Pile unlearned.
• Seven days later, Ning Qi reached the Stone-Skin Realm and considered sharing his improved medicinal formula with Daoist Longshan to strengthen the True Martial Sect.
• Qin Yun returned from seclusion, and Ning Qi demonstrated his Bi'an Pile before asking to learn the Yazi Pile.
• Qin Yun taught Ning Qi the Yazi Pile, which Ning Qi quickly performed fluently and brought to perfection, completing all nine True Martial Piles.

Ning Qi unified the True Martial Nine Piles into the True Dragon Stake and advanced to the Jade Skin Realm. He planned to discuss his progress and the incomplete True Martial Inheritance with Daoist Longshan, who remained in seclusion.

• Ning Qi realized that the True Martial Nine Piles shared the origin of the True Dragon and created the True Dragon Stake, greatly increasing his body-tempering efficiency.
• Ning Qi reached the Iron Skin Realm after ten days of practice, then continued training with the new Stake Skill.
• Ning Qi considered asking Daoist Longshan whether a stronger Stake Skill existed and planned to tell his master about his progress and the Improved Body Tempering Powder.
• Ning Qi discovered that his eighth senior brother had entered seclusion again and wondered whether he had been shocked by Ning Qi's progress.
• Ning Qi reached the Jade Skin Realm after another eight days and resolved to keep improving beyond the True Dragon Stake.

Daoist Longshan emerged from seclusion after failing to break through to the Celestial Person Realm and went to check on Ning Qi. He discovered Ning Qi had reached the Flesh Refinement Realm and created the True Dragon Stake, leaving him astonished as he examined Ning Qi’s manual.

• Daoist Longshan reflected on his failed breakthrough and decided to visit Ning Qi after more than a month in seclusion.
• Daoist Longshan sensed a dragon’s cry and saw Ning Qi practicing a powerful Stake Skill in his courtyard.
• Daoist Longshan mistook Ning Qi’s True Dragon Stake for the legendary True Martial Stake and asked who had taught it to him.
• Ning Qi explained that he had created the True Dragon Stake himself after mastering the True Martial Nine Piles and entering Enlightenment.
• Ning Qi gave Daoist Longshan a manual detailing the True Dragon Stake, and Daoist Longshan studied it in disbelief.

Ning Qi showed Daoist Longshan the Stake Skill he had created, which Daoist Longshan recognized as a Peerless Stake Skill akin to the True Martial Stake. Daoist Longshan asked Ning Qi to become the True Martial Sect’s Guardian, and Ning Qi accepted.

• Daoist Longshan read Ning Qi’s manual and realized Ning Qi had recreated the True Martial Stake through his own insight.
• Daoist Longshan explained that Peerless Stake Skills were rare and that the True Martial Nine Piles had been derived from the True Martial Stake.
• Ning Qi chose to keep the name True Martial Stake and offered the manual for future disciples to learn.
• Daoist Longshan revealed that the True Martial Sect once had a Guardian who practiced the True Martial Stake and was usually a Martial Saint.
• Daoist Longshan asked Ning Qi to become the current Guardian, and Ning Qi solemnly agreed.
• Daoist Longshan told Ning Qi to keep the manual safe and pass it only to a suitable future Guardian.

Ning Qi gave Daoist Longshan an improved Body Tempering Powder prescription and was granted free access to the True Martial Sect’s resources. After hearing his master’s cultivation insights, Ning Qi moved into a quiet residence beside the Scripture Pavilion, eager to study its books and strengthen his martial foundation.

• Ning Qi presented Daoist Longshan with an improved Body Tempering Powder prescription, which Daoist Longshan welcomed as a major boon to the sect.
• Daoist Longshan granted Ning Qi, now a True Martial Guardian, access to the sect’s resources, and agreed to build him a residence near the Scripture Pavilion.
• Ning Qi asked to live in the Scripture Pavilion, and Daoist Longshan instead offered him a quiet home nearby where he could read and practice.
• Daoist Longshan explained the Tempering Body Eight Realms and shared his cultivation experience, prompting Ning Qi to recognize flaws in his True Martial Stake.
• After reaching the pinnacle of Flesh Refinement, Ning Qi moved into his new residence with help from Ye Qinghe, He Yan, and Jiang Baishan.
• Ning Qi watched his fellow disciples leave and looked toward the Scripture Pavilion, excited to make its collection the foundation of his growth.

Ning Qi spent a year studying martial arts and perfecting his Body Tempering foundation while developing the Supreme Posture Technique. He left the Scripture Pavilion with Ye Qinghe to seek inspiration on the outskirts of True Martial Mountain.

• Ning Qi kept to himself as he trained and studied, while Ye Qinghe continued bringing him books and Qin Yun grew more distant.
• Ning Qi mastered the Tiger Baleful Fist and incorporated its essence into his True Martial Fist, which he developed into a lethal technique for the Body Tempering Realm.
• Ning Qi reflected that he had perfected the outer four Body Tempering realms and could exert five thousand jin of force with one arm, but delayed entering Organ Refinement while he worked to complete the Supreme Posture Technique.
• Ning Qi remembered the account of Snow Plum Manor's destruction and hoped that Lord Feng was still alive so he could kill him himself one day.
• Ye Qinghe came to collect Ning Qi, and he went with her to explore the outskirts of True Martial Mountain in search of inspiration, relying on her protection from Mutant Beasts.

Ning Qi explored the mountain with Ye Qinghe, observing nature and beasts as he refined his Supreme Posture Technique. On their way back, they encountered a frightened White Ape surrounded by hostile Long-armed Apes, and Ye Qinghe left Ning Qi to deal with them.

• Ning Qi studied clouds, rocks, plants, wind, and other parts of the natural world, bringing the Supreme Posture Technique close to completion.
• Ye Qinghe took Ning Qi to watch two snakes mating, then led him to observe fierce beasts and Mutant Beasts in the forest.
• Ye Qinghe subdued several Mutant Beasts that they encountered while Ning Qi watched them closely.
• Ning Qi decided he would complete the Supreme Posture Technique within three days and promised Ye Qinghe the best wine in the world someday.
• Ye Qinghe asked Ning Qi to get her Monkey Wine, but they found a White Ape facing a group of hostile Long-armed Apes instead.
• Ye Qinghe told Ning Qi to teach the Long-armed Apes a lesson because she was tired.

Ning Qi defeated a group of Long-armed Apes and overpowered an Iron-armed Ape so he and Ye Qinghe could obtain Monkey Wine. As the apes led them into the forest, Ning Qi revealed he had reached the Bone Refinement Realm, leaving Ye Qinghe stunned and determined not to ask about his cultivation again.

• Ning Qi fought off the Long-armed Apes with ease while Ye Qinghe watched in surprise.
• An Iron-armed Ape attacked Ning Qi, but he lifted and slammed it down until it was defeated.
• The White Ape offered to negotiate for Monkey Wine, then kicked the Iron-armed Ape and persuaded it to give up the wine.
• Ning Qi and Ye Qinghe followed the apes into the forest to get the Monkey Wine.
• Ye Qinghe asked Ning Qi about his realm, and he said he had reached Bone Refinement, stunning her.

Ye Qinghe and Ning Qi followed the little white ape to its cave, where they found the first three layers of Ice Silkworm Force and a hidden world beyond a waterfall. After Ye Qinghe helped the ape reach some red fruit, she noticed Ning Qi had entered a wondrous state.

• Ye Qinghe drank monkey wine and took the apes’ stores, then she and Ning Qi started to leave with the little white ape.
• The little white ape led them to its cave and gave them a sheepskin scroll containing the first three layers of Ice Silkworm Force.
• Ning Qi put the scroll away for the sect’s Scripture Pavilion, and the white ape led them deeper into the cave to a rainbow-lit waterfall.
• Ye Qinghe and Ning Qi crossed the waterfall and found a vast, beautiful place beyond it.
• The white ape pointed out red fruit on a cliffside tree, and Ye Qinghe picked some for it; after eating one, the ape’s fur grew whiter and softer.
• Ye Qinghe turned to share the sight with Ning Qi and saw that he had entered a wondrous state.

Ning Qi entered Enlightenment and created the Myriad Forms Origin Stake by blending insights from many Stake Skills and the forms of nature. He finished his practice on the cliffside, convinced the new Stake Skill would guide his body-tempering path.

• Ye Qinghe mistook Ning Qi’s quiet contemplation for Enlightenment and kept watch so nothing would disturb him.
• Ning Qi realized that different forms could temper different parts of the body and began developing a Stake Skill that united the myriad forms of heaven and earth.
• Ye Qinghe saw visions of nature and beasts as Ning Qi practiced, and she judged his new Stake Skill might rival the Bi'an Pile.
• The White Ape woke after digesting the red fruit, saw a golden monkey in Ning Qi’s movements, and tried unsuccessfully to imitate the human-only Stake Skill.
• Ning Qi stopped near the edge of the stone platform, named his creation the Myriad Forms Origin Stake, and laughed with confidence in its potential.

Ning Qi and Ye Qinghe befriended a White Ape, which chose to follow Ning Qi after imitating his Myriad Forms Origin Stake. They brought it to the True Martial Sect and told Daoist Longshan how they had met it and received the Ice Silkworm Force.

• Ye Qinghe and Ning Qi enjoyed Monkey Wine with the White Ape before saying goodbye and leaving the forest.
• The White Ape recalled Ning Qi's practice, chased after them, and kowtowed to ask to follow him and learn his Stake Skill.
• Ning Qi agreed to take the White Ape back to the True Martial Sect and considered creating a suitable Stake Skill for it.
• Ye Qinghe stored the Monkey Wine and brought Ning Qi and the White Ape to see Daoist Longshan.
• Ye Qinghe recounted their encounter with the Iron-armed Ape and the White Ape, and Ning Qi presented Daoist Longshan with the Ice Silkworm Force.

Daoist Longshan explained the origins and bloodlines of Mutant Beasts after welcoming the White Ape into the True Martial Sect. Ning Qi named the ape Yuan Tiansheng and began considering how it might adapt human martial arts.

• Daoist Longshan said the red fruit resembled a Vermilion Fruit but warned Ning Qi and Ye Qinghe against greed, then invited the White Ape to join the True Martial Sect.
• The White Ape accepted, and Daoist Longshan assigned it to live with Ning Qi; Ning Qi named it Yuan Tiansheng.
• Ning Qi asked why Mutant Beasts varied so greatly in strength, and Daoist Longshan explained that they inherited Heavenly Beast bloodlines and grew stronger by developing those bloodlines.
• Daoist Longshan said intelligent beasts might create their own cultivation methods, while Ning Qi reasoned that apes could adapt human martial arts more easily.
• Ning Qi decided to help Yuan Tiansheng study and adapt human martial arts, seeing it as a way to test his own understanding.

Ning Qi retrained his body with the Myriad Forms Origin Stake and established a foundation far beyond his previous limits, while Yuan Tiansheng settled into life at the True Martial Sect. The chapter ended with Ning Qi considering how to develop a suitable martial path for his white ape student.

• Daoist Longshan warned Ye Qinghe to prepare for the Divine Sword fellow’s visit next autumn and told her to have the disciples avoid accidentally hurting Yuan Tiansheng.
• Ning Qi brought Yuan Tiansheng to his courtyard, gave him a room, and told him to study and learn to read while Ning Qi worked out a cultivation path for him.
• Ning Qi named his courtyard Dao-Seeking Courtyard and began retraining the first four realms of Body Tempering with the Myriad Forms Origin Stake.
• After seven days, Ning Qi completed an unrivaled foundation that let him wield ten thousand jin of force in one arm and produce an arrow-like breath despite only beginning Organ Refinement.
• Ning Qi tested Yuan Tiansheng’s lessons and found him exceptionally bright, then considered creating a suitable Stake Skill for him once he understood the white ape’s body.

Ning Qi completed Spirit Refinement and brought his body to perfection, gaining greater strength, longevity, and comprehension. As he prepared to pursue the Inner Essence Realm, he set out with the White Ape to meet Old Man Divine Sword for his ten-year agreement with Daoist Longshan.

• True Martial Sect expanded under Luo Wentian while Daoist Longshan secluded himself to seek a breakthrough to the Celestial Person realm.
• Ning Qi had created the Ape King Stance for the White Ape, whose rapid cultivation he kept secret from the sect.
• Ning Qi had advanced through Organ, Marrow, Blood, and Spirit Refinement, completing Body Tempering and reaching a lifespan of two centuries.
• Ning Qi recognized his formidable strength but remained cautious about the power of Inner Force and planned to enter the Inner Essence Realm in about two months.
• Ning Qi called the White Ape, whom he addressed as Tiantian, and left to attend the ten-year agreement between Old Man Divine Sword and Daoist Longshan.