Chapter Summaries

After breaking through to the Fourth Meridian, Zhuang Jin collected his Meridian Soothing Pill and investigated who had leaked his information. He gave the pill to Chang Hetong at a steep discount with installment payments, earning a reputation for repaying kindness as Chang Hetong began secluded cultivation.

• Zhuang Jin promised Yue Song priority to buy the Meridian Soothing Pill on equal terms, then collected the pill and bought Black Essence Powder.
• Zhuang Jin confirmed that Guo Jun had searched the Martial Student registration records and suspected him of leaking Zhuang Jin's information to Zhuang Yutang and Zhuang Yuyong.
• Zhuang Jin asked Chang Hetong to arrange Guo Jun's transfer to the dangerous South of the City, and Chang Hetong agreed to push the matter through internally.
• Chang Hetong asked to buy the Meridian Soothing Pill but could only pay fifty taels upfront, so Zhuang Jin agreed to sell it for six hundred taels in installments without interest.
• Chang Hetong took the pill into secluded cultivation, while Zhuang Jin's generous deal brought him praise and goodwill and discouraged covetous inquiries.

After Zhuang Jin’s breakthrough and victory spread, people across the Shen Family and his former circle reacted to his sudden rise. Ni Ying regretted abandoning him but resolved to pursue a new path, while Xiang Qichen and Jiao Kun confronted what Zhuang Jin’s success meant for their own lives.

• Zhuang Jin left the crowd of congratulatory visitors with Duan Tao, while news of his achievements continued to spread.
• Guo Jun learned of Zhuang Jin’s breakthrough and feared revenge; later, Guo Jun and Guo Huai were transferred south of the city, and the cousins eventually cut ties.
• Outer Courtyard maids discussed Zhuang Jin’s prospects as a husband, while Ni Ying regretted her earlier choice and decided to return home and seek a place among the Ninth Young Master’s bedchamber maids.
• Xiang Qichen heard the story of Zhuang Jin’s victory, admitted that they had shared a dormitory, and basked in his squadmates’ new attention.
• Xiong Lei, Lin Hong, Bi Kai, and Wu Hao learned of Zhuang Jin’s rise, while the injured Jiao Kun regretted his past laziness and lamented his fate.

After his breakthrough to the Four Meridian Realm, Zhuang Jin accepted his subordinates’ gratitude and devoted himself to cultivation, while considering the Black Fiend Art’s hidden nature and the factions’ view of its practitioners. He decided to use every advantage to grow stronger without worrying about drawing attention, and the chapter ended when Qian Wende reported leads on an investigation Zhuang Jin had requested.

• Zhou Chao, Pan Zimo, Du Yunqi, Ke Jingxing, Song Jie, and Duan Tao joined a feast celebrating Zhuang Jin’s achievements, and Du Yunqi later broke through to the Two Meridian Realm.
• Ke Jingxing and Song Jie began addressing Zhuang Jin as “Zhuang Sheng” and took over his night watches, while Duan Tao sought his advice on the Black Fiend Palm.
• Zhuang Jin questioned Duan Tao about the widespread use of the Black Fiend Art, and Duan Tao explained that major factions considered its practitioners limited by their potential-draining cultivation.
• Zhuang Jin used battle merits to buy Exotic Beast Meat and estimated that his rapid cultivation would soon carry him to the Five Meridian Realm.
• After deciding that remaining unnoticed mattered less than building strength, Zhuang Jin heard Qian Wende report that he had found leads on the investigation.

Zhuang Jin uncovered a Medicine King Gang scheme targeting Shen Family Martial Artists and reported its hideout to Xing Yan, who led a force to raid it. They caught Hu Baoyu and his group in the middle of planning attacks on Furong Street.

• Qian Wende told Zhuang Jin that the Medicine King Gang had trapped Jiang Wei and revealed the location of its hideout.
• Zhuang Jin brought Duan Tao into the investigation and decided to report it to Xing Yan before attacking.
• Xing Yan welcomed their report and personally led a force to the hideout.
• Hu Baoyu ordered his men to intensify their encirclement hunts and target Furong Street and Zhuang Jin.
• Zhuang Jin and Duan Tao entered the hideout with a white-robed Shen Family Martial Artist, and Xing Yan ordered Hu Baoyu and the others seized.

Chen Yun learned that the Shen Family had ended the Medicine King Gang’s scheme against her family, while Chen Honggan encouraged her to trust her judgment about finding a partner. Zhuang Jin received battle merits and planned his next assignment and marriage search; at Shen Family Headquarters, Yue Song told him that many maids were vying to be considered as his bride.

• Chen Honggan told Chen Yun that the Medicine King Gang had trapped him with a guaranteed loan to draw her into danger, and that the Shen Family had crushed the gang’s hideout.
• Chen Yun blamed herself for involving her brother, then learned that Zhuang Jin and Duan had helped uncover the clues that led the Town Garrison Commander to act.
• Chen Honggan urged Chen Yun to trust her judgment if she found someone she liked, and she thought of a figure as she spoke about good husbands.
• Zhuang Jin received one hundred battle merits for the investigation, while Qian Wende earned twenty merits and thirty taels of silver from him.
• After reaching more than halfway through his Four Meridian Realm accumulation, Zhuang Jin planned to seek a safer assignment and pursue marriage candidates.
• At Shen Family Headquarters, Zhuang Jin explained to Yue Song why he had sold the Meridian Soothing Pill to Chang Hetong, registered his assignment preferences, and asked about marriage candidates; Yue Song said the maids had crowded his threshold to be considered.

Zhuang Jin proposed marriage to Chen Yun, and she agreed after deciding to take a chance on getting to know him. They registered for a wedding the next day, and Zhuang Jin visited Chen Yun’s home to meet her younger brother, Chen Honggan.

• Zhuang Jin offered Chen Yun marriage and explained his family circumstances and his commitment to treating her sincerely.
• Chen Yun called Zhuang Jin back and agreed to marry him, then shared her own family circumstances with him.
• Zhuang Jin and Chen Yun registered their marriage, and Yue Song arranged their wedding for the following day and explained the brief leave Zhuang Jin would receive.
• Chen Yun returned home with wedding invitations and prepared for the ceremony, while Zhuang Jin told Lin Hong, Qian Wende, Bi Kai, and Wu Hao about the wedding.
• Zhuang Jin visited Chen Yun’s home that evening, where he met Chen Honggan and began to approve of his future brother-in-law.

Zhuang Jin married Chen Yun and began building a careful, affectionate life with her, while Xiong Lei experienced a sudden inner breakthrough as he accepted that Chen Yun was happy with Zhuang Jin. After their three days of leave, Zhuang Jin and Chen Yun headed to the Herb Fields Outside the City for his new assignment.

• Zhuang Jin collected his pay and learned that his new assignment was guarding the Herb Fields Outside the City, where the Meridian Unblocking Pill had been added to the battle merit exchange board.
• Zhuang Jin welcomed wedding guests, including Xiang Qichen, Xiong Lei, and Jiao Kun, while the Eldest Young Master sent an attendant with a gift.
• Zhuang Jin married Chen Yun, and Xiong Lei accepted that he was not worthy of Chen Yun and felt a sudden sense of transcendence as he watched her with Zhuang Jin.
• Chen Honggan knelt before Zhuang Jin and asked him to treat Chen Yun well, and Zhuang Jin promised to do so before joining Chen Yun in the bridal chamber.
• Zhuang Jin and Chen Yun settled into married life, learning each other's habits and adjusting to one another with mutual respect.
• After their three days of wedding leave, Zhuang Jin took Chen Yun with him to the Herb Fields Outside the City.

Zhuang Jin settled into his new post as the Shen Family's Herb Field Town Guard and learned about tensions among his subordinates. After discovering that Azure Origin Liquid could accelerate herb growth, he connected it to the timing of medicinal supplies and wondered about the world’s hidden secrets before returning to find his room transformed.

• Zhuang Jin met the Herb Field squads and learned that Zhang ZGao resented his brother’s decision to seek military merit in North of the City.
• Bi Kai told Zhuang Jin that Huang Chuanhe’s apparent friendliness toward Zhang ZGao concealed jealousy and disdain.
• Bi Kai explained that Azure Origin Liquid made Black Jade Grass grow a year in a day, while other medicinal herbs grew a month in a day.
• Zhuang Jin connected Azure Origin Liquid’s effects to the timing of Meridian Soothing Pills and Meridian Unblocking Pills, then wondered about its origins and other mysteries.
• Zhuang Jin returned to his two-bay room and found that it had been dramatically transformed.

Zhuang Jin settled into a routine of intensive Martial Practice with Chen Yun’s support, then faced his first dispute as Long Town Guard when a Flowing Light Rabbit escaped into a neighboring Long. He resolved the ownership dispute through a subordinate contest, and his side won the beast.

• Chen Yun organized the household, prepared Zhuang Jin’s meals and training provisions, and helped him practice without distraction.
• Zhuang Jin teased Chen Yun about her love of fermented bean curd, and she persuaded him to try fermented cucumber dressed with it.
• After several days, a wounded Flowing Light Rabbit escaped from Zhuang Jin’s Herb Field into the neighboring Long, where its martial artists killed it.
• Zhang ZGao urged Zhuang Jin to challenge the neighboring Long Town Guard, but Zhuang Jin proposed a best-of-three contest between subordinates instead.
• Zhang ZGao, Huang Chuanhe, and Bi Kai each fought a match, and Zhuang Jin’s side won two of the three to claim the Flowing Light Rabbit.

Zhuang Jin broke through to five meridians and killed the Iron Feather Eagle that had been harassing him, while his growing strength changed his relationships with the guards around him. He continued cultivating at the Herb Field and shared a quiet pastime with Chen Yun as she crafted a miniature landscape.

• Gan Ju visited Zhuang Jin and discussed the Meridian Unblocking Pill, martial bottlenecks, and the growing unrest in North of the City.
• Zhuang Jin killed a Skin Tempering Minor Accomplishment Iron Feather Eagle, then fought its stronger mate and held it off with Gan Ju until reinforcements arrived.
• Zhuang Jin broke through to five meridians, lured the Iron Feather Eagle into attacking, and killed it after it swooped at Chen Yun.
• Zhang ZGao and Huang Chuanhe learned of Zhuang Jin's breakthrough, while Gan Ju grew distant after Zhuang Jin surpassed him.
• Chen Yun completed a miniature mountain landscape from the stones Zhuang Jin had collected, and the two admired it together.

Zhuang Jin advanced to the Fifth Meridian and learned that the Shen Family and Medicine King Gang’s escalating conflict would likely send him back to North of the City. He spent July cultivating peacefully with Chen Yun, but the month ended with word that he could not remain at the Herb Fields Outside the City and with Chen Yun preparing to pawn her jewelry.

• Zhuang Jin learned from Yue Song that fighting in North of the City had intensified, two Street Guardians including Zhang Ziqiao had died, and his assignment would likely change the month after next; he revealed that he had reached the Fifth Meridian.
• Qian Wende told Zhuang Jin that Duan Tao’s Furong Street had survived a dangerous Medicine King Gang assault, but Song Jie and Zhuang Jin’s student Zhou Chao had died; Lin Hong and Wu Hao also reported injuries from fighting.
• Zhuang Jin was verified as a Two-stripe Household Guard on July first and remained assigned to the Herb Fields Outside the City, while news of his Fifth Meridian breakthrough spread through the Shen Family.
• Ni Ying learned of Zhuang Jin’s breakthrough, and Shen Xuqing praised him, ordered Ni Ying to send him a gift, and promised to elevate her to concubine status the following month.
• Zhang ZGao and Huang Chuanhe apologized to Zhuang Jin with gifts, while Zhuang Jin and Chen Yun grew closer as they cultivated at the Herb Fields Outside the City.
• At July’s end, Yue Song informed Zhuang Jin that he could not stay at the Herb Fields Outside the City the next month, and Zhuang Jin found Chen Yun asking a maidservant to pawn her jewelry.

Zhuang Jin discovered that the household was short on silver and learned that Chang Hetong’s installment payments for the Meridian Soothing Pill had not arrived, but chose not to confront him yet. He reassured Chen Yun about his plan to serve north of the city next month, while the chapter revealed that Chang Hetong’s son Chang Kaijie had secretly kept the payments.

• Chen Yun prepared to pawn her jewelry to cover the household’s expenses, and Zhuang Jin realized his cultivation costs had left their silver reserves low.
• Zhuang Jin learned that Chang Hetong had not sent the installments for the Meridian Soothing Pill and decided to wait rather than ask for the money immediately.
• Chen Yun supported Zhuang Jin’s decision to go north of the city next month, and he considered his coming breakthrough, trusted team, and possible assignment under Xing Yan.
• Chang Hetong asked Chang Kaijie whether he had delivered the installment payment, and Chang Kaijie falsely claimed that he had.
• Chang Hetong urged Chang Kaijie to preserve his connection with Zhuang Jin, but Chang Kaijie continued to plan to keep the silver unless Zhuang Jin demanded it.

Zhuang Jin joined the East Bridge Dock Township Headquarters and won Fujing Street from Wei Xun in a contest of strength. He assembled his subordinates there, while Xiang Qichen’s attempt to boast about knowing him angered Wei Xun and left Xiang regretting their poor relationship.

• Zhuang Jin met the Street Guardians at East Bridge Dock, where Xing Yan warned that the Shen Family and Medicine King Gang were confronting each other over North of the City.
• Xing Yan assigned streets according to strength, and Zhuang Jin defeated Wei Xun to claim Fujing Street.
• Zhuang Jin gathered his subordinates, including Bi Kai, Lin Hong, Pan Zimo, and Du Yunqi, and Qian Wende explained why Fujing Street was a safer posting.
• Xiang Qichen bragged to his companions that he had once shared a dormitory with Zhuang Jin, but Wei Xun overheard and reprimanded him.
• Wei Xun moved Xiang Qichen’s group to Fuchang Street, and Xiang regretted not having maintained a better relationship with Zhuang Jin.

Zhuang Jin settled into his new residence on Fujing Street before Jiao Kun asked him to help recover his family’s stall. Zhuang Jin rebuffed him in person but later ordered Qian Wende to resolve the matter, leaving the story with Chen Yun recognizing both his pragmatism and the compassion behind his choice.

• Zhuang Jin inspected the pavilion Chen Yun had arranged and heard her plans for a vegetable patch and flowers.
• Jiao Kun asked Zhuang Jin to intervene after the Shen Family refused to recognize his family’s claim to their stall.
• Zhuang Jin rejected Jiao Kun’s appeal to their old dormitory ties, and Jiao Kun left in regret over his abandoned Martial Practice.
• Zhuang Jin questioned Qian Wende about the stall and then told him to settle the matter for Jiao Kun.
• Chen Yun praised Zhuang Jin’s thoughtfulness, while he explained that helping Jiao Kun also let him demonstrate his generosity to his subordinates.

As the Shen Family and Medicine King Gang held a tense standoff in North of the City, Zhuang Jin built a small alliance with Duan Tao and Miao Lun while preparing for a possible war. On the night of the ninth, the Medicine King Gang launched attacks across North of the City, shattering the calm.

• Zhuang Jin hosted gatherings that drew Duan Tao and Miao Lun into a small group, while Wei Xun stopped visiting after Chen Yun's orchid died from being watered with boiling water.
• At a gathering on the eighth day of the eighth month, Duan Tao and Miao Lun discussed the Medicine King Gang's restraint and the Shen Family's strength as Zhuang Jin considered the reasons behind the standoff.
• Zhuang Jin shared a quiet evening with Chen Yun and promised they would travel together in the future.
• On the night of the ninth, signal flares announced attacks on Fuqing Street and Fuchang Street, and Zhuang Jin recognized that the standoff had ended.
• Zhuang Jin joined Duan Tao and Miao Lun at Fuqing Street after the Medicine King Gang attackers withdrew; Du Shiyuan was seriously injured, while Wei Xun and their men had also suffered losses.
• The Medicine King Gang attacked multiple Shen Family streets across North of the City, firing the first strike since the standoff began.

After the Shen Family launched a coordinated counterattack across North of the City, Zhuang Jin and his allies helped defeat the Medicine King Gang’s Anping Fang and earned substantial battle merits. Two days later, Zhuang Jin completed his breakthrough from the Five Meridians Realm to the Six Meridians Realm.

• Xing Yan summoned the Martial Artists under the six streets, forbade anyone from leaving, and announced a two-fang assault against the Medicine King Gang’s Anping Fang.
• The Shen Family lured Dong Pei and his forces into battle, while Xing Yan and Liu Licheng kept Dong Pei occupied and the street-level forces clashed.
• Zhuang Jin, Duan Tao, and Miao Lun killed Minor Incense Master Tang Ruoming and another Five Meridian Minor Incense Master surnamed Lu.
• The Shen Family annihilated most of Anping Fang, captured its streets, and pushed the Medicine King Gang’s forces back across North of the City.
• After receiving battle merits from the victory, Zhuang Jin connected his Hand Jueyin Meridian and reached the Six Meridians Realm.

After breaking through to Six Meridians, Zhuang Jin decided to hide one meridian and strengthen his Black Fiend Palm while the Shen Family and Medicine King Gang paused after a clash. He took Chen Yun to the Lantern Festival, then lent Chen Honggan money; two days later, the Shen Family launched another offensive and encountered an unexpected turn.

• Zhuang Jin decided to conceal his Six Meridians strength and focus on advancing the Black Fiend Palm as another safeguard.
• After the Shen Family pushed the Medicine King Gang back, both sides briefly paused to regroup, and Chen Yun grew less worried as Zhuang Jin trained with greater composure.
• Chen Honggan invited Zhuang Jin and Chen Yun to the Lantern Festival, and Chen Yun disguised herself in Zhuang Jin's clothes to attend.
• Zhuang Jin carried Chen Yun over the rooftops to escape the departing crowd, and Chen Honggan painted a portrait of the couple when they returned home.
• Chen Honggan asked Zhuang Jin for money to sell goods, and Zhuang Jin lent him fifty taels while Chen Yun insisted that he repay it in full.
• On August seventeenth, the Shen Family launched another offensive against the Medicine King Gang and encountered an unexpected turn.

Zhuang Jin helped East Bridge Dock and Ping Shui Bo hold off a Medicine King Gang assault, then broke through to Great Accomplishment in the Black Fiend Palm and accelerated his cultivation. As the Shen Family adapted its tactics and pushed the Medicine King Gang back, Zhuang Jin kept concealing his true strength and amassed battle merits.

• The Medicine King Gang concentrated forces from two townships and attacked Zhuang Jin's side, but he protected Miao Lun and helped the Shen Family hold the line until reinforcements arrived.
• The Medicine King Gang retreated after suffering losses, and Xing Yan praised Zhuang Jin's contribution and awarded him one hundred battle merits.
• Zhuang Jin reached Great Accomplishment in the Black Fiend Palm while practicing before Chen Yun, gaining a powerful new trump card.
• Zhuang Jin began using Skin Tempering Perfected Realm Exotic Beast Meat to speed his cultivation, while Miao Lun saved his battle merits for Meridian Soothing Pills.
• The Shen Family adopted the Cage Policy and gradually reclaimed streets from the Medicine King Gang as Zhuang Jin concealed his strength, earned battle merits, and advanced his Six Meridians Realm cultivation.

Zhuang Jin visited the dying Chang Hetong, whose family’s unpaid debt and youngest son’s betrayal had destroyed his plans for Chang Kaiheng. After Chang Hetong died, Zhuang Jin returned the family’s shop deeds as a funeral gift and left, having settled their ties.

• Zhuang Jin learned that Chang Hetong was dying and went to visit him at the Chang Family residence.
• Chang Hetong asked Zhuang Jin to take Chang Kaiheng under his protection, but Zhuang Jin discovered that Chang Kaijie had spent the family’s Meridian Soothing Pill installments.
• Zhuang Jin forgave the remaining debt and arranged for Chang Kaiheng to work at the Herb Fields Outside the City, while Chang Hetong insisted on paying with two shop deeds.
• Chang Hetong realized his own pride had helped cause the estrangement, then died after crying out that he had been wrong.
• Zhuang Jin returned the shop deeds to Chang Kaiheng as a funeral gift and walked away.

Zhuang Jin concealed his cultivation while advancing Fujing Street’s campaign against the Medicine King Gang, then revealed his Six Meridians Realm strength when the enemy ambushed the Shen Family with hidden breakthroughs. He helped turn the battle around and earned a large reward, while the wider North of the City front suffered heavy losses.

• Zhuang Jin declined to challenge for another street and led Fujing Street’s steady, low-casualty advance against the Medicine King Gang, earning his squads loyalty and battle merits.
• Zhuang Jin collected a Meridian Soothing Pill and gave it with Lotus Flower Grass to Ping Yongfeng, explaining that he had already broken through to the Six Meridians Realm.
• Zhuang Jin revealed his Six Meridians Realm cultivation, while Miao Lun also broke through and Duan Tao failed to do so.
• The Medicine King Gang launched a head-on attack on September 18th, using unreported breakthroughs to overturn the Shen Family’s expected advantage and badly injure or kill several fighters.
• Zhuang Jin used his mastery-level Black Fiend Palm to severely wound an enemy Six Meridians Realm martial artist, then joined Miao Lun to kill another and force the Medicine King Gang to retreat.
• Xing Yan and Liu Licheng rewarded Zhuang Jin with five hundred battle merits, raising his balance to more than two thousand three hundred, while other Shen Family battle lines suffered heavy losses.