Chapter Summaries

Lin Heng compared the Medical Ancestor’s fate with the Zhao Family’s history and argued that a hidden faction, possibly tied to a king, was targeting both Medicine King Valley and the Zhao Family. The group resolved to stay alert and wait for their enemy to reveal itself.

• Xin Shao, Zhao Wanqing, Liu Feng, and Qing Ya examined nine yellow sheets and questioned whether Medicine King Valley truly held an inheritance.
• Lin Heng explained that Medicine King Valley’s distrust of the Dynasty might reflect a hidden threat, just as the Zhao Family had faced secret attacks despite the Female Emperor showing them no hostility.
• Lin Heng compared the Medical Ancestor’s return from Hedong Land with the Zhao Family ancestor’s similar journey and proposed that their parallel fates pointed to a common danger.
• Lin Heng revealed that Prince Qi’s information suggested the attackers might be a king’s personal guards, and Zhao Wanqing concluded that a king could be involved.
• Lin Heng reassured Xin Shao and Zhao Wanqing that they should stay calm and wait for their enemies to expose themselves during the year-end period.

Lin Heng accompanied Zhao Wanqing to Elegant Tea House, where Jiang Jingyi and Murong Ziyan watched them incognito. When Zhao Wanqing hinted at her feelings, Lin Heng claimed he had many companions and suggested even ten would not be enough, leaving the women stunned.

• Xin Shao accepted Lin Heng's nine sheets of yellow paper and sent him out with Zhao Wanqing for tea.
• Liu Feng left in frustration, complaining that he had been made to fetch water and do laundry.
• Jiang Jingyi and Murong Ziyan noticed Lin Heng and Zhao Wanqing arriving at Elegant Tea House, but Jiang Jingyi chose not to drive them away.
• Lin Heng stared at Jiang Jingyi, then told Zhao Wanqing that the woman reminded him of his unseen mother.
• Zhao Wanqing hinted at her feelings, and Lin Heng warned her that he had several other companions and might neglect her.
• Lin Heng said that even ten ladles would not be enough, shocking Zhao Wanqing, Jiang Jingyi, and Murong Ziyan.

Lin Heng and Zhao Wanqing confessed their feelings and discussed the grave condition of Chen Bingyi and Su Lian'er, while Jiang Jingyi secretly listened in. The conversation turned to Zhao Wanqing’s medical problems, leaving Jiang Jingyi eager to hear Lin Heng’s explanation.

• Lin Heng explained how his feelings had developed during the past half year, and Zhao Wanqing said she would guard the part of their relationship that belonged to her.
• Lin Heng and Zhao Wanqing held hands and drank tea together as Jiang Jingyi watched from the window and recalled the Zhao Family’s marriage agreement with the Gongsun Family.
• Lin Heng learned that Chen Bingyi’s apparent improvement came from the Essence-Depleting Reversal Method, which would exhaust her vitality and help her leave with dignity.
• Zhao Wanqing expressed guilt over Chen Bingyi’s choice and worry about her own future, and Lin Heng reassured her that her condition was not terminal.
• Lin Heng offered to explain Zhao Wanqing’s medical problems, drawing Jiang Jingyi’s attention as she listened nearby.

Lin Heng warned Zhao Wanqing that enemies might target her and her mother during the Medical Assembly, while Jiang Jingyi overheard his inner thoughts and discovered that most of a two-million-spirit-stone payment had gone missing. The Female Emperor ordered an investigation into the corruption, leaving Lin Heng uneasy without knowing why.

• Lin Heng warned Zhao Wanqing that villains might attack her and her mother at the Medical Assembly, and she agreed that the gathering would make it difficult to identify the culprits.
• Lin Heng complained to Zhao Wanqing that his Lazy Master had spent their earnings and that the Female Emperor had paid only fifty thousand spirit stones for the Dream-Enhancing Pill.
• Jiang Jingyi heard Lin Heng's unspoken complaints and angrily realized that he believed the Female Emperor had paid only fifty thousand spirit stones.
• Jiang Jingyi asked Murong Ziyan about the payment and learned that two million spirit stones had been allocated to the Zhao Family.
• Jiang Jingyi ordered Murong Ziyan to investigate the officials involved and seize anyone found guilty of corruption.
• Lin Heng sensed a threatening presence nearby and wondered whether the two women had concealed their cultivation.

Gongsun Hongshuo confronted Lin Heng and Zhao Wanqing at the teahouse, but Jiang Jingyi intervened and forced him to leave. Jiang Jingyi then introduced herself as Murong Yi and joined Lin Heng and Zhao Wanqing for tea.

• Gongsun Hongshuo barged into Leisurely Teahouse and threatened Lin Heng over his attention to Zhao Wanqing.
• Zhao Wanqing rejected Gongsun Hongshuo’s claim over her, and he insulted her mother.
• Lin Heng slapped Gongsun Hongshuo, prompting his servants to prepare to attack.
• Murong Ziyan defeated the servants, and Gongsun Hongshuo mistook Jiang Jingyi for the Female Emperor after seeing Murong Ziyan’s Chief Attendant Token.
• Jiang Jingyi ordered Gongsun Hongshuo to leave, introduced herself as Murong Yi, and asked to share tea with Lin Heng and Zhao Wanqing.

Lin Heng discussed the Dynasty’s policies with Jiang Jingyi and Murong Ziyan, not realizing Jiang Jingyi was the Female Emperor. After Zhao Wanqing warned him about Murong’s ties to her, Jiang Jingyi invited him to explain his criticism further.

• Jiang Jingyi discovered Lin Heng had a formed Five Elements Body and Five Elements Spirit Root while reacting to his inner thoughts about her.
• Zhao Wanqing asked whether Murong Ziyan’s family was personally attached to the Dynasty, and Jiang Jingyi confirmed that the Murong Family served the supreme one.
• Lin Heng and Zhao Wanqing discussed the Medical Path, and Jiang Jingyi explained her interest in it as a way to serve ordinary people.
• Jiang Jingyi asked Lin Heng about the Dynasty’s internal troubles and external threats, and he criticized its secular arrangements and the Female Emperor’s distance from events across the realm.
• Zhao Wanqing warned Lin Heng that Murong Ziyan was connected to the Female Emperor, so he tried to retract his remarks.
• Jiang Jingyi assured Lin Heng that their discussion was only common folk’s talk and urged him to continue explaining his criticism.

Lin Heng criticized the Justice Bureau’s weakness and the Dynasty’s reliance on sects, prompting Jiang Jingyi to question whether cultivators would serve in government. Afterward, Yun Yao and Leng Qingyun spotted masked figures following Lin Heng and decided to investigate.

• Lin Heng told Jiang Jingyi and Murong Ziyan how Dust Sect disciples had staged a monster attack in Beginningless City and harmed its people.
• Lin Heng argued that the Justice Bureau relied too much on outside sects and that local aristocratic clans neglected public safety.
• Jiang Jingyi asked what cultivators the Justice Bureau should recruit and whether Lin Heng himself would accept a post; his answer revealed why powerful cultivators were reluctant to serve.
• Jiang Jingyi praised Lin Heng’s willingness to speak frankly but called his views immature, then left with Murong Ziyan and resolved to address the problems he had raised.
• Lin Heng explained to Zhao Wanqing why Jiang Jingyi’s question had exposed the Justice Bureau’s recruitment problem, and they continued wandering the streets.
• Yun Yao and Leng Qingyun saw masked figures following Lin Heng and decided to follow them.

Lin Heng accompanied Zhao Wanqing and Xin Shao to the Medical Assembly, where he spotted Sun Hao and worried that Ye Tian might also be nearby. Zhao Wanqing recognized a young woman from a rival medical family and hoped to avoid meeting her.

• Three white-robed men reported to their Pavilion Leader that Lin Heng had arrived with Prince Qi’s escort, and the Pavilion Leader ordered them to uncover Lin Heng’s identity within three days.
• Meng Yutong heard that Lin Heng had stayed with Zhao Wanqing and insisted she did not care, while privately regretting that he had missed her plans for the evening.
• The next morning, Lin Heng, Zhao Wanqing, Xin Shao, and Liu Feng went to the Medical Assembly, where Zhao Wanqing and Xin Shao greeted Elder Meng.
• Lin Heng noticed Sun Hao at the assembly with a young woman and wondered whether Ye Tian might appear in Dingyang City.
• Zhao Wanqing recognized the girl in the green dress as a young lady from Wei Yan’s Family who had repeatedly sought her out, and said she hoped they would not meet.

Lin Heng and Zhao Wanqing discussed the White Tiger Essence Jade and concluded that Medicine King Valley’s inheritance might choose someone with a sacred and pure heart. Lin Heng’s reassurance helped Zhao Wanqing settle her doubts about her own goodness, while Gongsun Hongshuo’s unwanted marriage claim remained a threat.

• Zhao Wanqing refused to meet Wei Yanxianlan because contact with Wei Yan's Family could bring trouble for the Zhao Family.
• Meng Fengde asked Xin Shao about Medicine King Valley’s destruction and inheritance, and Xin Shao said the Zhao Family had not found it.
• Lin Heng and Zhao Wanqing considered the yellow paper’s repeated references to sanctity and reasoned that the inheritance might select a person with a pure heart.
• Lin Heng comforted Zhao Wanqing about other people’s judgments of her kindness, and she hugged him after taking his words to heart.
• Meng Fengde learned that Lin Heng was the young man Zhao Wanqing loved, and Lin Heng noticed Gongsun Hongshuo at the venue.
• Zhao Wanqing said she would never marry Gongsun Hongshuo, and Lin Heng promised to deal with him.

At the Medical Assembly, Gongsun Hongshuo confronted Lin Heng, Zhao Wanqing, and Xin Shao, using a marriage agreement to pressure the Zhao Family in front of the gathered medical practitioners. He ended by demanding that either Zhao Wanqing or Xin Shao fulfill it, openly declaring his interest in Xin Shao.

• Gongsun Hongshuo arrived at the venue looking for Zhao Wanqing and waited for her to appear.
• Gongsun Hongshuo mocked Wei Yanxianlan and Sun Hao, and Wei Yanxianlan defended Sun Hao while calling him her follower.
• Lin Heng arrived and warned Gongsun Hongshuo to stop pursuing Zhao Wanqing, while Sun Hao greeted Lin Heng as a friend.
• Zhao Wanqing linked arms with Lin Heng and said he was a disciple of a top great sect in the Western Continent.
• Gongsun Hongshuo told the gathered medical practitioners that the Zhao Family had broken a marriage agreement and demanded that Zhao Wanqing or Xin Shao fulfill it.
• Xin Shao affirmed that the Zhao Family would keep its word, and Gongsun Hongshuo said he was willing to marry Xin Shao.

At the Medical Assembly, Lin Heng defended Zhao Wanqing and her mother from Gongsun Hongshuo’s claim that a kinship pact entitled him to marry Zhao Wanqing. After the crowd drove Gongsun Hongshuo out, Lin Heng reunited with Sun Hao and expected Ye Tian to arrive soon.

• Gongsun Hongshuo provoked the Zhao family, and Liu Feng drew his blade before Lin Heng stopped him and twisted it out of shape.
• Lin Heng argued that the old kinship pact did not force Zhao Wanqing to marry Gongsun Hongshuo, and the crowd agreed with him.
• Gongsun Hongshuo ordered his household slaves to act, but two mysterious elders slapped them and drove them from the Medical Assembly.
• Zhao Wanqing and her mother thanked Lin Heng, while Lin Heng warned Liu Feng not to act rashly again.
• Wei Yanxianlan joined Zhao Wanqing, and Lin Heng greeted Sun Hao, then anticipated that Ye Tian would soon arrive from Lin City.

Lin Heng encouraged Sun Hao to pursue Wei Yanxianlan despite his doubts, then boasted that even the supreme Female Emperor could be won over. His remark was overheard and reported, and Murong Ziyan ordered his arrest after the Medical Assembly.

• Sun Hao told Lin Heng that his father had arranged a marriage between him and Wei Yanxianlan, but she did not know about it and treated him like an attendant.
• Lin Heng praised Sun Hao for refusing to use the engagement to force Wei Yanxianlan’s affections, then urged him to compete for her with confidence.
• Lin Heng declared that anyone with enough resolve could win even the supreme Female Emperor, and Sun Hao hurriedly warned him to watch his words.
• Two servants overheard Lin Heng and reported his remark to the Messenger Guard, which passed the news to Murong Ziyan.
• Murong Ziyan confirmed the report and ordered Lin Heng arrested after the Medical Assembly.

Jiang Jingyi dismissed the plan to imprison Lin Heng after hearing he had spoken about winning over the Female Emperor, while Lin Heng warned Sun Hao that Ye Tian and the Eastern Continent's Ye Family might threaten Wei Yan's Family. The group continued enjoying the Medical Assembly and exploring Dingyang City, where Meng Yutong's disciples reunited and split off to visit different attractions.

• Murong Ziyan told Jiang Jingyi that Lin Heng had boasted about winning over the Female Emperor, but Jiang Jingyi decided he should only be taught a lesson and not imprisoned because of his connections.
• Lin Heng warned Sun Hao that Ye Tian might target Wei Yan's Family and Sun Hao's fiancée, Wei Yanxianlan, because of a past grievance involving the Eastern Continent's Ye Family.
• Lin Heng, Zhao Wanqing, Sun Hao, and Wei Yanxianlan toasted together after Sun Hao agreed to investigate the warning.
• Yun Yao found Leng Qingyun upset after Leng Qingqiu had punished her, while Meng Yutong privately reflected that she missed having a disciple around to annoy her.
• Duan Shuyun and Mu Liuxi went to meet the poet Zhong Zusheng, while Leng Qingqiu took Leng Qingyun along to carry things and Meng Yutong pulled Yun Yao aside to talk.

Ye Tian planned to restore his arm and find allies against the Ye and Zheng families while Lin Heng spent the day with Zhao Wanqing. Lin Heng was arrested for insulting the Female Emperor, but Murong Ziyan and Jiang Jingyi intervened and freed him, leaving him unaware of the danger in his private thoughts.

• Ye Tian considered seeking the Zhao Family’s help and decided to visit Wei Yan's Family to retrieve a treasure and repair his arm.
• Lin Heng took Zhao Wanqing sightseeing after saying goodbye to Sun Hao, intending to stay close to her and draw out their hidden pursuers.
• The Patrol Guard Office surrounded Lin Heng and arrested him for publicly making up stories about the Female Emperor.
• Zhao Wanqing hurried to seek help, and Murong Ziyan arrived with Jiang Jingyi to demand that the officers explain the arrest.
• Murong Ziyan rebuked the Patrol Guard Office and ordered Lin Heng released, while Jiang Jingyi heard his insulting thoughts about her.

Lin Heng reunited with Meng Yutong, Mu Liuxi, First Senior Sister, and Zhao Wanqing after Murong Ziyan and Jiang Jingyi disappeared. Back at Prince Qi's Mansion, he asked Saint Ye how Zhao Wanqing could cultivate despite her condition, but Saint Ye told him to figure it out himself.

• Lin Heng thanked Jiang Jingyi for saving him, and she warned him not to cause trouble or speak carelessly in the Imperial Capital.
• Meng Yutong, Mu Liuxi, First Senior Sister, and Zhao Wanqing arrived, but Murong Ziyan and Jiang Jingyi had already left.
• Meng Yutong grabbed Lin Heng by the ear and scolded him as they headed back, while Mu Liuxi and Duan Shuyun explained his troublesome nature to Zhao Wanqing.
• Zhao Wanqing worried that her ordinary lifespan and fading beauty would make her an unsuitable companion for Lin Heng.
• At Prince Qi's Mansion, Lin Heng asked Saint Ye how Zhao Wanqing could cultivate without a Spiritual Root, and Saint Ye refused to give him an answer.
• Lin Heng explained that Zhao Wanqing's body absorbed spiritual energy but could not convert or circulate it, leaving her unable to begin Qi Refinement.

Lin Heng learned that Jiang Yan's sister had a way to help Jiang Yan's companion store spiritual energy, while Jiang Jingyi confronted Jiang Yan over embezzling spirit stones. The chapter ended with Jiang Yan realizing that Jiang Jingyi had met the genius who exposed the missing money.

• Saint Ye suggested that Lin Heng absorb all the spiritual energy from the girl’s body and teach her to cultivate again, then offered another possible solution involving a storage method like Lin Heng’s Spirit Wheel.
• Murong Ziyan had the Patrol Guard Office bring Jiang Yan to Tranquil Heart Hall so Jiang Jingyi could question him about the Inner Cabinet Office’s missing spirit stones.
• Jiang Jingyi learned from Murong Ziyan that two million spirit stones had passed through Jiang Yan’s hands during the Dream-Enhancing Pills purchase.
• Jiang Jingyi accused Jiang Yan of pocketing one million five hundred thousand spirit stones, but Jiang Yan claimed he had spent them on the army’s campaign.
• Jiang Jingyi struck Jiang Yan and threatened to punish him under Dynasty law, while Jiang Yan pleaded that she should spare her own brother.
• Jiang Yan asked whether Jiang Jingyi had met the genius who had told her about the embezzlement.

Jiang Jingyi ordered Jiang Yan to repay the Spirit Stones he had taken and explained that a Demon King had been killed after attacking the northern pass. She then revealed plans to purge Dingyang’s noble families, leaving Jiang Yan alarmed by the scale of the coming crackdown.

• Jiang Jingyi told Jiang Yan to repay the Spirit Stones he had swallowed or work off the debt, then informed him that a Dao Integration Demon King had been slain at the northern pass.
• Jiang Jingyi explained that the attack likely reflected internal conflict in Demon Valley and warned that the Fox Clan’s loss of power could cause greater trouble.
• Jiang Jingyi said she had left the palace to seek a path to breakthrough and reflected on the imperial rulers’ decision to venture onto the Starry Sky Ancient Road.
• Jiang Jingyi gave Jiang Yan a roster of noble families in Dingyang and announced that she planned to resolve the noble-family chaos within three years.
• Jiang Yan saw the families and primary targets on the roster and feared the Female Emperor’s purge would drive them into rebellion.

Jiang Jingyi explained how Jiang Yan could divide the listed families and set them against one another, while Lin Heng learned from Saint Ye how ordinary people might cultivate by using objects to carry the Dao. The next morning, Brother Sun reported that the man surnamed Ye had appeared at Wei Yan's Family, shocking Lin Heng.

• Jiang Jingyi told Jiang Yan to target disobedient families and win over the others so their own factions would fight among themselves.
• Lin Heng asked Saint Ye how ordinary people without spiritual roots could cultivate, and Saint Ye explained his artifact-based path to becoming a Sage.
• Lin Heng concluded that ordinary people could cultivate by using suitable objects as carriers, but Saint Ye refused to teach him the method yet.
• Saint Ye warned Lin Heng to watch out for Prince Qi's Mansion, which had raised Spiritual Lotus Roots that servants might cook.
• Brother Sun arrived the next morning and told Lin Heng that the man surnamed Ye had appeared at Wei Yan's Family the previous night.

Sun Hao told Lin Heng that Ye Tian had visited Wei Yan's Family to discuss an unknown private matter, and he explained the old feud between the Ye and Wei Yan families. Lin Heng learned that Sun Hao had reached mid-stage Golden Core through an unusual cultivation path, but Sun Hao admitted that his rapid breakthroughs felt as if something were forcing him onward.

• Sun Hao told Lin Heng that Wei Yan's Family's old family head had treated Ye Nantian's father, who suddenly died after seeming to recover, and Ye Nantian blamed Wei Yan's Family after having the body cremated.
• Sun Hao said Ye Tian had recently met Uncle Wei Yan in a side hall, left without an agreement, and departed with a dark expression.
• Lin Heng considered Ye Tian's visit and worried Sun Hao might end up confronting him over Wei Yanxianlan.
• Sun Hao revealed that he had reached mid-stage Golden Core since he and Lin Heng last parted, astonishing Lin Heng.
• Sun Hao explained that he cultivated by absorbing the essence of the sun, moon, mountains, and rivers rather than relying on ordinary spiritual energy.
• Sun Hao admitted that his path was unclear and that his breakthroughs sometimes felt as if something were forcing him to cultivate.

Lin Heng learned that Sun Hao could not stop his cultivation, then met Leng Qingyun and heard about her conflict with Leng Qingqiu and First Senior Sister's disappearance. Prince Qi summoned Lin Heng and Leng Qingyun to recruit them for a purge of people from the Medical Path, including members of Wei Yan's Family.

• Sun Hao told Lin Heng that his cultivation kept advancing whether he wanted it to or not, and said he would investigate why Ye Tian had gone to Wei Yan's Family.
• Leng Qingyun told Lin Heng that Leng Qingqiu had whipped her for refusing to help, and Lin Heng promised to teach Leng Qingqiu a lesson.
• Leng Qingyun said she and Senior Sister Xiao Yao had seen First Senior Sister sneaking around with a young, handsome man, and that First Senior Sister had not returned.
• Prince Qi arrived and asked Lin Heng and Leng Qingyun to help with his backlog of tasks in exchange for benefits.
• Prince Qi gave Lin Heng a roster of people to kill and confiscate resources from, including figures from the Medical Path and Wei Yan's Family, some of whom wanted to harm Lady Zhao.