Chapter Summaries

Meng Zhao received Hu Baiwan’s decades-old personnel register in exchange for releasing Hu Yingming, but Hu Baiwan destroyed two pages containing names tied to Hell Path. As Hu Baiwan prepared to leave, news arrived that the Meng Family and Heavenly Punishment Hall had joined forces, and Ancient Dian Garden filled with killing intent.

• Geng Zongfang returned to Ancient Dian Garden with Hu Baiwan’s dry cloth bundle, which contained the personnel register.
• Hu Baiwan showed Meng Zhao the register of several hundred people and explained the connections and resources it documented.
• Lü Zhong brought Hu Yingming to Ancient Dian Garden, and Meng Zhao released him in exchange for the register.
• Hu Baiwan tore out and swallowed two pages, saying their contents would be of no use to Meng Zhao and might bring him trouble.
• Meng Zhao took the remaining register, then heard someone outside announce that the Meng Family and Heavenly Punishment Hall had joined forces and urged his master to flee.

Meng Zhao’s meeting with Hu Baiwan turned into a trap when the Meng Family and Heavenly Punishment Hall attacked, prompting Hu Baiwan and his Innate Masters to fight their way out. As Geng Zongfang pursued Meng Zhao, he fled around the Ancient Dian Garden’s viewing platform, trying to survive until Lü Zhong and Yang Jiu could intervene.

• Hu Baiwan realized Meng Zhao had deceived him and that the Meng Family and Heavenly Punishment Hall had moved against his family.
• Meng Zhao pretended to know nothing and offered to mediate while waiting for reinforcements, but Hu Baiwan saw through the ruse and ordered Geng Zongfang and Kang Liang to break out.
• Kang Liang moved to block Lü Zhong and Yang Jiu while Geng Zongfang lunged at Meng Zhao to seize him as a hostage.
• Meng Zhao used the Ten Directions Step to evade Geng Zongfang and kicked tables and chairs at him, but Geng Zongfang cut through the obstacles and continued closing in.

Yang Jiu intervened to protect Meng Zhao from Geng Zongfang, and Meng Zhao used the chance to study Yang Jiu’s martial technique. After Geng underestimated him, Yang Jiu vanished into a burst of astonishing speed, beginning their fight.

• Yang Jiu intercepted Geng Zongfang’s pursuit of Meng Zhao and forced him to deflect his Innate True Qi-infused silver needles.
• Geng Zongfang recognized Yang Jiu as one of the Meng Family’s Four Great Stewards and threatened to kill him alongside Meng Zhao.
• Meng Zhao watched Yang Jiu’s stance and movements, using the Vajra Bodhi Seed’s boost to his comprehension to learn from his technique.
• Yang Jiu calmly challenged Geng Zongfang, then vanished with explosive speed as their confrontation began.

Meng Zhao watched Yang Jiu overwhelm Geng Zongfang with blinding speed and relentless attacks, while Hu Baiwan and Kang Liang realized their side had little chance of surviving. The battle remained unresolved, but Yang Jiu held a decisive advantage.

• Yang Jiu and Geng Zongfang fought at tremendous speed as Meng Zhao studied their techniques and Lü Zhong and Kang Liang stopped their own fight to guard their respective masters.
• Yang Jiu forced Geng Zongfang into a defensive retreat with rapid attacks and piercing silver needles, leaving him wounded and unable to find an opening.
• Hu Baiwan urged Kang Liang to help Geng Zongfang if he seemed close to defeat, warning that their survival depended on it.
• Kang Liang admitted Yang Jiu was too powerful for him and Geng Zongfang to overcome, even if they fought together.
• Hu Baiwan, Hu Yingming, and Kang Liang watched as Yang Jiu maintained his advantage over Geng Zongfang.

Hu Baiwan told Kang Liang to protect Hu Yingming if the fight went badly, while Geng Zongfang gambled on a trap to turn his battle with Yang Jiu around. The chapter ended with Yang Jiu’s needle stopped by Geng Zongfang’s indestructible eyelids.

• Hu Baiwan told Kang Liang to flee with Hu Yingming and save Hu Yingxiong if possible, even if it meant abandoning him.
• Hu Yingming blamed himself for falling for Meng Zhao’s scheme, and Hu Baiwan urged him to learn from his mistake and escape when the chance came.
• Hu Baiwan saw the battle turning against Geng Zongfang and shoved Hu Yingming aside, ordering him to run.
• Geng Zongfang deliberately exposed his eyes to lure Yang Jiu into a decisive attack.
• Yang Jiu’s silver needle pierced only the surface of Geng Zongfang’s eyelid, revealing the secret technique that made his eyelids nearly impervious.

Yang Jiu blinded and deafened Geng Zongfang, while Meng Zhao subdued Hu Yingming and rejected Hu Baiwan’s offer to buy his son’s freedom. As Hu Baiwan accepted that escape was unlikely, Kang Liang tried to flee, and Lü Zhong moved to stop him.

• Geng Zongfang struck at Yang Jiu with a powerful blade aura, but Yang Jiu evaded it and stabbed both of Geng Zongfang’s eardrums with silver needles.
• Geng Zongfang’s scream disrupted Meng Zhao’s inner breath, but Meng Zhao restored control using the Red Flag Order’s mental art.
• Hu Baiwan realized Meng Zhao had drugged Hu Yingming and offered money and a roster in exchange for his son’s release.
• Meng Zhao rejected Hu Baiwan’s offer and demanded a far greater price for Hu Yingming’s safety.
• Hu Baiwan told Kang Liang to escape and asked him to check on Hu Yingxiong, and Kang Liang attempted to flee.
• Meng Zhao ordered Lü Zhong to stop Kang Liang, and Lü Zhong attacked him with the movement technique of Void Traversal.

Yang Jiu and Lü Zhong killed Hu Baiwan’s two Innate Masters, leaving Hu Baiwan and Hu Yingming defeated and at Meng Zhao’s mercy. Hu Baiwan accepted that neither he nor his son would survive and asked only for a shared burial, while Hu Yingming still pleaded for his father to find a way to save him.

• Lü Zhong kept Kang Liang occupied while Yang Jiu wore down Geng Zongfang and killed him with three silver needles through the mouth and skull.
• Yang Jiu joined Lü Zhong against Kang Liang, and Lü Zhong killed him with a palm strike to the skull.
• Meng Zhao asked Hu Baiwan for his last words, and Hu Baiwan requested that he be buried with Geng Zongfang and Kang Liang.
• Hu Baiwan refused to seek a way out for Hu Yingming, saying Meng Zhao would kill them both and that he wanted to keep his dignity.
• Hu Yingming angrily asked his father to try harder to save him, but Hu Baiwan looked at him with disappointment.

Hu Yingming begged Meng Zhao to spare him, but Hu Baiwan killed his son and then took his own life. Meng Zhao ordered Lü Zhong to settle the matter with the Ancient Dian Garden and bury the Hu family together.

• Hu Yingming blamed Hu Baiwan for their predicament, then begged Meng Zhao to spare his life in exchange for the Hu Family's silver and his own submission.
• Meng Zhao watched Hu Baiwan as Hu Baiwan lifted Hu Yingming and struck him dead with a palm.
• Hu Baiwan explained that he was sending his son out of the world as he had brought him into it, then severed his own meridians and died.
• Yang Jiu confirmed Hu Baiwan's death, and Meng Zhao lamented that the merchant had been a capable man.
• Meng Zhao told Lü Zhong to negotiate compensation with the owner of the Ancient Dian Garden and arrange for Hu Baiwan, Hu Yingming, and the third corpse to be buried side by side.

After the Hu Family was crushed, Meng Zhao returned to the Meng Family while news of the joint operation spread across Nan'an. Hu Yingxiong escaped with the person who killed a Heavenly Punishment Hall Innate Master, prompting the authorities to seal the city and begin a manhunt.

• Meng Zhao arranged respectful funeral rites for Hu Baiwan and his son, then hurried back to the Meng Family to examine the spoils he had seized.
• News of the Meng Family and Heavenly Punishment Hall's attack spread through Nan'an, and rumors revealed Hu Baiwan's ties to Demonic Path forces and his many crimes.
• The joint operation killed more than thirty Postnatal Great Accomplishment martial artists and four Innate Masters, but Hu Yingxiong escaped after an ambush killed one of Leng Huifeng's trusted subordinates.
• Meng Jizu and Leng Huifeng met secretly at the Commandery Governor's residence to discuss the escape and the operation's losses.
• The next day, Nan'an was sealed for three days, and the Commandery Governor's residence, Heavenly Punishment Hall, and Meng Family warned that anyone sheltering Hu Yingxiong or his accomplice would be treated as an ally of Hell Path.

Meng Zhao learned that a powerful Innate Master had rescued Hu Yingxiong and suspected Shi Jie was responsible. He ordered his men to conceal and hide Shi Jie while planning to search for Hu Yingxiong through contacts listed in Hu Baiwan’s register.

• Meng Zhao heard that Wu Xian had been ambushed and killed, and learned that Meng Jizu and Meng Hongdao were questioning Innate Masters across the city.
• Lü Yue said the rescuer might have been connected to Hu Baiwan or hostile to the Meng Family, and Meng Zhao asked where Shi Jie had been.
• Meng Zhao concluded Shi Jie had the strength and motive to rescue Hu Yingxiong and feared the citywide search would expose him and endanger the treasure keys.
• Meng Zhao ordered Lü Yue to warn Sun Chuanshan to keep silent about Shi Jie and send Han Pu to find Shi Jie a safe hiding place.
• Meng Zhao decided to search for Hu Yingxiong through the covert contacts recorded in Hu Baiwan’s register.

Meng Zhao invited Wang Xuan, Lu Mingtang, and Xu Dayong to the Meng Mansion after the citywide search for Hu Yingxiong failed. He asked them to help find Hu Yingxiong, whom he suspected someone was sheltering.

• The Meng Family and the Heavenly Punishment Hall failed to find Hu Yingxiong during the three-day city lockdown, then issued a reward for information or his capture.
• The Meng Family and the Heavenly Punishment Hall exposed Hu Baiwan's ties to the Hell Path and publicized the Hu Family Merchant Guild's crimes.
• Meng Zhao had Lü Yue bring Wang Xuan, Lu Mingtang, and Xu Dayong secretly into the garden of the Western Residence.
• Meng Zhao explained that Hu Yingxiong had escaped and that an Innate Master of the Heavenly Punishment Hall had died.
• Meng Zhao asked Wang Xuan, Lu Mingtang, and Xu Dayong to help find Hu Yingxiong, saying someone was sheltering him.

Meng Zhao confronted Wang Xuan, Xu Dayong, and Lu Mingtang with proof that they had once served Hu Baiwan, then ordered them to find Hu Yingxiong. They agreed to deliver Hu Yingxiong to the Meng Family, leaving Meng Zhao with three coerced allies tasked with the search.

• Wang Xuan and Xu Dayong claimed they could not find Hu Yingxiong, while Lu Mingtang reacted with fear.
• Meng Zhao revealed Wang Xuan’s and Xu Dayong’s past ties to Hu Baiwan and explained that Lu Mingtang had also been one of Hu Baiwan’s hidden pieces.
• Lu Mingtang admitted he had helped Hu Baiwan before but insisted that he wanted no further connection now that Hu Baiwan was dead.
• Meng Zhao warned the three not to deceive him and asked whether they could capture Hu Yingxiong alive or dead for the Meng Family.
• Wang Xuan agreed that the three would handle the matter and offered their future service to Meng Zhao.

Meng Zhao secured the loyalty of Wang Xuan, Lu Mingtang, and Xu Dayong and ordered them to deliver Hu Yingxiong to the Meng Family by the following evening. After leaving, the three began discussing how to handle the task, and Lu Mingtang pressed them for Hu Yingxiong’s whereabouts.

• Wang Xuan, Lu Mingtang, and Xu Dayong pledged to serve Meng Zhao, who hinted that Wang Xuan could advance to chief constable.
• Meng Zhao warned the three to treat their former ties to Hu Baiwan as ties to him and ordered them to bring Hu Yingxiong, alive or dead, to the Meng Family by tomorrow evening.
• Wang Xuan proposed that the three meet to discuss how they would work together under Meng Zhao.
• Lu Mingtang said he had never contacted Hu Yingxiong and asked Wang Xuan and Xu Dayong to reveal where the man was.
• Wang Xuan and Xu Dayong answered cautiously and privately resolved to be wary of Lu Mingtang’s eagerness to earn favor.

Meng Zhao, Lü Zhong, and Shi Jie traveled to Dragon Head Mountain to open the Tuxiu Treasure, which could hold wealth and martial arts valuable to Meng Zhao’s forces and cultivation. As they approached Ninth Peak, they noticed an unexpected grove of fruiting Green Plums.

• Wang Xuan brought Meng Yingxiong’s corpse to Meng Mansion, received the wanted reward, and gained support for succeeding as Chief Constable.
• Meng Zhao invited Shi Jie to accompany him to Dragon Head Mountain to open the treasure.
• On the way to Ninth Peak, Meng Zhao, Lü Zhong, and Shi Jie discussed the limits of martial arts and Tu Xiu’s strength and possible inheritance.
• Meng Zhao considered how Tu Xiu’s rumored ties to the Dragon Clan might lead to dragon-attributed martial arts useful for his Purple Origin Dragon Body.
• Shi Jie noticed that a pine forest had become a Green Plum grove and suggested picking fruit to quench their thirst.

Meng Zhao used Shi Jie's fondness for green plums to put a safeguard in place before the three men headed for the Grotto-Heaven Secret Realm. Shi Jie revealed that his treasure map was incomplete and insisted Meng Zhao follow his lead inside, leaving their uneasy alliance poised to enter the realm.

• Meng Zhao asked Shi Jie to pick green plums, while Lü Zhong secretly assured him the transplanted grove had been prepared as a trap.
• Shi Jie gathered plums and cautiously watched Meng Zhao and Lü Zhong taste them before eating his share.
• After Shi Jie spent time picking and eating plums, Meng Zhao urged him to resume their journey.
• Shi Jie told Lü Zhong that only Treasure Key holders could enter the secret realm, so Lü Zhong would have to wait outside.
• Shi Jie admitted his treasure map was incomplete and told Meng Zhao to follow his arrangements inside; Meng Zhao agreed, and the three set off toward Ninth Peak.

Meng Zhao and Shi Jie opened the entrance to the Grotto-Heaven Secret Realm on Ninth Peak of Dragon Head Mountain and were pulled inside. Lü Zhong remained outside, unable to follow, and waited anxiously for Meng Zhao to return.

• Meng Zhao, Shi Jie, and Lü Zhong reached the summit, where Shi Jie revealed his identity and explained that the strange stones concealed the secret realm's gate.
• Shi Jie activated his Treasure Key, and Meng Zhao used his own key to help reveal the entrance in the flying-dragon-shaped rock.
• The gate appeared amid trembling stones and visions, then drew Meng Zhao and Shi Jie toward it with a powerful suction force.
• Lü Zhong tried to stop Meng Zhao from being pulled in, but the gate's force shattered his attack and blocked him from approaching.
• Meng Zhao reassured Lü Zhong before he and Shi Jie entered the secret realm, and the gate vanished, leaving Lü Zhong alone on the summit.

Meng Zhao and Shi Jie discovered that their Treasure Keys let them command Worldly Power inside the altered Grotto-Heaven Secret Realm, though Meng Zhao’s cultivation remained Houtian. The joined keys directed them east toward Tu Xiu’s treasure, and they reached a vast river where they sensed it lay.

• Shi Jie used his Treasure Key to fly and shape the desert sand into a giant palm, and Meng Zhao realized the key let its bearer command Worldly Power.
• Meng Zhao tested his own Treasure Key, rose into the air, and shaped a giant sand dragon that clashed with Shi Jie’s sand palm.
• Shi Jie explained that the keys granted their power only inside the Grotto-Heaven and said they needed to search for Tu Xiu’s treasure.
• Meng Zhao and Shi Jie pressed their separate Treasure Keys together and sensed that the treasure lay to the east.
• The two flew east across a blood-red desert, a grassland, and a snow mountain before reaching a great river where they sensed the treasure was located.

Meng Zhao and Shi Jie followed the treasure map through an underwater mechanical formation and entered a palace made of Black Sand Bronze Crystal. They found vast riches inside and looked forward to exploring the other palaces.

• Meng Zhao and Shi Jie reached the riverbed and saw palaces surrounded by bronze mechanical statues arranged in a dangerous formation.
• Shi Jie guided Meng Zhao through the formation by following instructions on the treasure map.
• Meng Zhao recognized that the palace gates and structure were made from valuable Black Sand Bronze Crystal.
• Shi Jie opened the palace gates, and the two entered a hall filled with gold, silver, and hundreds of chests of jewels.
• Meng Zhao admired the treasure but focused on the riches that might await them in the palaces beyond.

Meng Zhao and Shi Jie explored the Tuxiu Treasure, finding wealth, weapons, expired medicinal pills, and paintings before Shi Jie proposed stopping. Meng Zhao examined Shi Jie's incomplete treasure map and decided to seek its missing portion, which he suspected Shen Tianci possessed, and open the final two halls.

• Meng Zhao and Shi Jie passed through the hall of silver and gold and entered three halls filled with enough high-quality weapons and armor to equip tens of thousands of soldiers.
• Meng Zhao tested a powerful bow, and he and Shi Jie discussed how Tu Xiu's military supplies could once have supported a rebellion but were impractical in the peaceful Great Yong era.
• Meng Zhao and Shi Jie found a hall of medicinal pills whose properties had faded and another hall of preserved calligraphy and paintings.
• Shi Jie said his treasure map only covered the halls they had reached and suggested they stop, then tossed the map to Meng Zhao when Meng Zhao questioned his sincerity.
• Meng Zhao confirmed the map was genuine but incomplete and said he would restore it and open the remaining halls, guessing that Shen Tianci held the missing section.

Shi Jie tried to recruit Meng Zhao to seize the Tuxiu Treasure, but Meng Zhao accused him of rescuing Hu Yingxiong and killing a Heavenly Punishment Hall expert. When they refused to share the final treasure, Shi Jie attacked Meng Zhao and gained the upper hand by manipulating Worldly Power more skillfully.

• Shi Jie urged Meng Zhao to help take Shen Tianci's treasure map and Treasure Key so they could claim Tu Xiu's inheritance together.
• Meng Zhao demanded to know whether Shi Jie had rescued Hu Yingxiong and ambushed a Heavenly Punishment Hall expert, and Shi Jie angrily challenged the accusation.
• Shi Jie claimed Meng Zhao owed him for revealing the treasure clues, but Meng Zhao offered him a share of the treasures already found if he left Ji Prefecture.
• Shi Jie rejected the offer and declared that the final treasure would be his, then threatened Meng Zhao with pressure amplified by Worldly Power.
• Shi Jie fired a powerful qi arrow at Meng Zhao, who crushed it with Worldly Power but was forced back several zhang.
• Shi Jie explained that their access to Worldly Power was equal, but his superior control gave him the advantage over Meng Zhao.