Chapter Summaries

Lou Guanlan survived Xue Huaiyong’s Doluoye Lotus Finger and gained the advantage as Xue’s spiritual injury weakened him. Their fierce battle continued over the river while Han Pu noticed another Innate Master among the spectators.

• Lou Guanlan blocked Xue Huaiyong’s finger strike with his Body Manifestation of Azure Sun, though the defense left him staggered and weakened.
• Jia Qiang explained the Doluoye Lotus Finger’s spiritual cultivation and said Xue Huaiyong had not mastered its deeper principles.
• Xue Huaiyong suffered severe spiritual backlash, while Lou Guanlan’s azure sun grew stronger with the aid of Heaven and Earth Vital Energy.
• Xue Huaiyong pressed on with explosive attacks, hoping to wear Lou Guanlan down and later claim credit if Han Pu won.
• Chi Nianwen secretly dispersed stray attacks threatening the spectators, prompting Han Pu to suspect another Innate Master was present.
• Xue Huaiyong and Lou Guanlan’s battle moved from the ground to the skies and then above the river, captivating more than a thousand spectators.

Xue Huaiyong lost to Lou Guanlan, and Han Pu conceded the duel before Xue could be killed. After recognizing Xue and Jia Qiang’s contributions, Han Pu prepared to begin a third match while Lou Guanlan was still recovering.

• Xue Huaiyong’s weakening aura and movements left him vulnerable to Lou Guanlan’s sword attacks.
• Han Pu conceded on Xue Huaiyong’s behalf, and Lou Guanlan withdrew his Azure Sun and ended the fight.
• Jia Qiang helped Xue Huaiyong treat his injuries, and Han Pu reassured Xue that his performance had earned recognition.
• Xue Huaiyong reflected on seeking a better martial art through service to Meng Zhao, while Jia Qiang urged Han Pu to strike before Lou Guanlan recovered.
• Han Pu agreed with Jia Qiang and reached for the Changyang Divine Saber, intending to press ahead with the third match.

Han Pu exploited Lou Guanlan’s injuries and spiritual weakness before forcing him into a final clash of sword and blade. Their attacks collided and erupted in a violent shockwave, leaving the outcome unresolved.

• Han Pu challenged Lou Guanlan with his blade intent, and Lou Guanlan countered with his eye-sword technique.
• Han Pu maintained a spiritual confrontation, recognizing Lou Guanlan’s depleted true qi and damaged spirit and steadily weakening him.
• Lou Guanlan gathered all his remaining true qi into a desperate sword strike that formed a blazing azure sun.
• Han Pu drew the Changyang Divine Saber and unleashed Burning Mountain, the second art of the Burning Heaven Five Absolutes.
• Lou Guanlan’s azure sun collided with Han Pu’s burning mountain, and both attacks shattered as the aftershock swept outward.

Meng Zhao enjoyed a rare leisurely afternoon at Meng Family Manor, singing for Han Lu and Zhu'er before reassuring Han Lu about Han Pu’s coming clash with the Iron Hand Society. The chapter ended with Han Lu still worried, while Meng Zhao remained confident that Han Pu could defeat Lou Guanlan despite the difference in cultivation.

• Meng Zhao sang “A Laugh from the Sea” beside the garden creek as Han Lu and Zhu'er listened in fascination.
• Zhu'er praised Meng Zhao’s singing and asked him to sing more, but he said the performance would be a one-time event.
• Han Lu worried that Han Pu might be unable to defeat Lou Guanlan, the Iron Hand Society’s Nine Apertures Innate Realm deputy leader.
• Meng Zhao reassured Han Lu that Han Pu’s Star Body, Changyang Divine Saber, and Five Absolutes of Burning Heaven Saber gave him confidence in Han Pu’s victory.

Meng Zhao sensed that a disguised infiltrator among the maidservants intended to harm him, and he secretly arranged for Zhu'er to get Han Lu to safety and summon help. Zhu'er and Han Lu left while Meng Zhao stayed behind with the threat still nearby.

• Young Flood Dragon Little Nine warned Meng Zhao that one of the approaching maidservants carried hostile intent.
• Meng Zhao suspected the infiltrator was a powerful martial artist or possessed a dangerous weapon, but could not identify who had sent her.
• Meng Zhao secretly told Zhu'er to take Han Lu away and summon Bai Shicheng without alerting the infiltrator.
• Zhu'er pretended to be upset and asked Han Lu to leave with her, then gave her a covert signal.
• Han Lu instructed the other maidservants and left with Zhu'er, while Meng Zhao remained behind.

Meng Zhao sensed danger from an assassin hidden among the maidservants and stalled for time while waiting for help. He chose the assassin and the head maidservant to stay and drink with him, causing the assassin to postpone her attack.

• Little Nine alerted Meng Zhao to the hidden assassin, and he watched Zhu'er and Han Lu leave the garden safely.
• Meng Zhao pretended to be drunk and complained about Zhu'er and Han Lu while keeping the maidservants nearby to delay the assassin.
• The assassin grew uneasy and decided she needed to leave the garden soon, while Little Nine became restless.
• Meng Zhao ordered most of the maidservants to withdraw but told the head maidservant and the assassin to stay and drink with him.
• The assassin reconsidered, deciding that close contact would offer a better chance to strike, and chose to wait longer.

Meng Zhao suspected that one of the two women in the garden was an assassin and used a game of hide-and-seek to expose her. After she attacked, he evaded her strike and prepared to hold out until Bai Shicheng and Night Cat arrived.

• Meng Zhao offered the two women his Jade Prayer Beads and one hundred taels of silver if they found his hiding place after a quarter of an hour.
• The female assassin grew suspicious of Meng Zhao's behavior and realized he might have uncovered her disguise.
• The female assassin discarded her disguise and lunged at Meng Zhao with a deadly Finger Force.
• Meng Zhao protected his chest with dragon scales and retreated, narrowly avoiding the attack that split a stream and carved a deep fissure in the stone.
• Meng Zhao resolved to avoid fighting the assassin directly and wait for Bai Shicheng and Night Cat to come to his aid.

Meng Zhao evaded a female assassin’s killing strike and, under intense pressure, broke through to a terrifying new level of power. He stopped her attack with his dragon-form techniques, leaving her wondering whether he possessed a Special Physique.

• Meng Zhao chose to flee toward the gardens’ exit rather than risk fighting while reinforcements were on their way.
• The female assassin intercepted Meng Zhao and fired a sure-kill Finger Force that locked onto him.
• Meng Zhao entered a profound state of visualization and surged past a barrier into a new level of power.
• Meng Zhao’s dragon form became tangible, and he used a beam of sound and a dragon claw to meet the incoming attack.
• Meng Zhao’s scattered qi force formed chains that bound the Finger Force until it dissipated.
• The female assassin was shocked by Meng Zhao’s power and suspected he had a Special Physique.

Meng Zhao held off a powerful female assassin until Bai Shicheng arrived and attacked her with his forty-meter saber. As the two Innate masters clashed, Meng Zhao narrowly suppressed a near-breakthrough, while Night Cat crept toward the assassin.

• The female assassin unleashed arrow qi and her deep-blue dharma manifestation, while Meng Zhao used the Dragon Locking Skill to deflect her attacks despite his dwindling strength and mounting injuries.
• Meng Zhao sensed that Bai Shicheng and Night Cat were close, and Bai Shicheng arrived with a thunderous roar.
• Bai Shicheng brought down his snow-white saber, forcing the female assassin to abandon her attack on Meng Zhao and meet the strike with arrow qi.
• Meng Zhao watched their exchange and nearly advanced into the Innate Realm, but suppressed the breakthrough.
• Night Cat silently crept toward the female assassin beneath a tree frozen by the clash.

Meng Zhao survived an assassination attempt after Night Cat immobilized the female assassin, though he suffered minor injuries from Crimson Dragon Force. Night Cat identified her as Ring-Tailed Snake, an ace assassin of Dark Sun.

• Night Cat used his Upright Shadowless Divine Severing Technique to pin the female assassin's shadow, stopping her attack and leaving her helpless.
• Meng Zhao coughed up charred blood but reassured Bai Shicheng and Night Cat that his injuries were minor.
• Han Lu and Zhu'er rushed to Meng Zhao, and he thanked them for bringing help before asking Night Cat about the assassin's methods.
• Night Cat recognized her Abyssal Force and Edge Breaking Finger as the techniques of Ring-Tailed Snake, Dark Sun's ace assassin.

Meng Zhao learned from Night Cat that Dark Sun had deep ties rumored to lead to the Lei Family, though the evidence was inconclusive. He suspected the Lei Family and someone connected to the Iron Hand Society had arranged the assassination, and resolved to retaliate through covert allies rather than confront them openly.

• Meng Zhao asked Night Cat about Dark Sun after Ring-Tailed Snake’s failed assassination, and Night Cat explained that Dark Sun still had sixteen ace assassins and two near-Grandmaster leaders.
• Night Cat said rumors linked Dark Sun to Marquis Bei Ning’s Lei Family, citing martial techniques associated with the family, but cautioned that there was no concrete proof.
• Night Cat explained that assassin organizations recruited both internally trained killers and outside martial artists, and that Ring-Tailed Snake had likely combined both kinds of training.
• Meng Zhao considered that the Lei Family might have acted over the Seven Freaks of Minshan joining him, and suspected someone behind the Iron Hand Society might have helped them.
• Meng Zhao decided against seeking justice openly and considered contacting Kuang Tianyou and using the favor owed by Qian Jiao to strike at the Lei Family covertly.

Meng Zhao questioned the captured female assassin about the failed attempt on his life and the Dark Sun organization. After she revealed what she knew, he had Night Cat kill her, while his suspicions about the Lei Family remained.

• Meng Zhao decided Qian Jiao was a better ally against the Lei Family than Kuang Tianyou’s group.
• Night Cat removed the assassin’s poison-filled false teeth, sealed her qi apertures, and questioned her.
• The female assassin told Meng Zhao that his bounty was fifty thousand taels of gold and that she did not know who ordered the hit or whether someone inside the estate had helped.
• Meng Zhao admitted he had a Special Physique, and the assassin accepted that her mission had failed.
• Meng Zhao asked whether she had any regrets, then nodded to Night Cat, who killed her.

After an assassin’s death, Meng Zhao decided to purge traitors within the Meng Family and create a secret surveillance organization under Night Cat. Night Cat accepted the opportunity and promised to investigate Zhuangzi’s estate first, then build an intelligence network across Lingwu City.

• Bai Shicheng buried the female assassin after Meng Zhao let her die for cooperating.
• Meng Zhao resolved to uncover hidden traitors and chose Night Cat to lead a new secret organization.
• Meng Zhao outlined the organization’s duties: gathering intelligence and planting spies outside, and investigating and recording personnel inside.
• Night Cat eagerly promised to identify problematic people within Zhuangzi’s estate within half a month and establish a useful network in Lingwu City within six months to a year.
• Night Cat accepted the role because he hoped to rise beyond his position as an assassin and believed Meng Zhao’s power would grow.

Meng Zhao received reports that his forces had captured Taikoo Warehouse and several Iron Hand Society strongholds, and he sent Lou Guanlan an offer to lead the Society under the Meng Family. He awaited news from Liang Muqiu’s group, which was fighting Tie Xiongfei.

• Meng Zhao praised Han Pu and Xue Huaiyong for taking Taikoo Warehouse and ordered Han Pu to pacify the Society members while Lou Guanlan helped Jia Qiang and Mu Qing recruit them.
• Meng Zhao wrote Lou Guanlan a letter promising support if he took over the Iron Hand Society, and he rewarded Han Pu’s messenger before sending him back with it.
• Bai Shicheng congratulated Meng Zhao, who said he hoped the operation would end quickly before Lingwu City’s other powers intervened.
• Lü Zhong and Cang Shu Yun captured three strongholds with about twenty casualties, and Cang Shu Yun killed two Innate Realm Warriors.
• Zhou Hu and the Daoist Priest of Plucking Flowers took an Iron Hand Society protector’s surrender without a fight, and Meng Zhao decided to recruit him.
• Meng Zhao received no news from Liang Muqiu’s group, which was facing Tie Xiongfei.

Meng Zhao learned that Tie Xiongfei had escaped after using hidden dead warriors and a precious treasure to devastate Liang Muqiu's group. As Big Iron Hammer and the other wounded received treatment, Meng Zhao investigated the strange blade art used by the dead warriors.

• Meng Zhao welcomed the injured group at the manor and summoned Doctor Yang, then questioned Lü Yue about Big Iron Hammer's condition and Liang Muqiu's absence.
• Lü Yue told Meng Zhao that Tie Xiongfei had matched Liang Muqiu in martial arts and used a precious treasure to injure Big Iron Hammer, Lü Yue, and others before escaping.
• Lü Yue explained that Liang Muqiu had pursued Tie Xiongfei with the other Innate Realm Warriors while he brought the severely wounded back for treatment.
• Meng Zhao asked why his iron cavalry had struggled against Tie Xiongfei's dead warriors, and Lü Yue described their unconventional blade art, whose force doubled with each move until its wielder exploded.
• Lü Yue said the most skilled dead warrior had completed only half of a fifth move before exploding, and that neither the Iron Hand Society's members nor its headquarters had revealed the blade art's source.

Meng Zhao learned that Tie Xiongfei had used a mysterious human finger to overwhelm Liang Muqiu and the other Innate Masters, and he concluded that it might be a relic of a Gods and Devils powerhouse. He left the chapter considering the finger’s origin and the possibility that Tie Xiongfei knew of such remains.

• Lü Yue explained that Tie Xiongfei’s dangerous saber technique could greatly strengthen martial artists, while Meng Zhao considered using it to improve his forces or train death warriors.
• Meng Zhao suggested that Night Cat investigate which city force maintained death warriors like Tie Xiongfei’s, hoping to identify his secret backer.
• Lü Yue told Meng Zhao that Tie Xiongfei had presented A Human Finger, whose crimson energy had scattered the combined assault of Mu Qing and numerous Innate Masters.
• Meng Zhao reasoned that a severed Celestial Being’s finger could not retain such power and concluded that the finger might belong to a Gods and Devils powerhouse.
• Meng Zhao rose from his chair and declared that only remains from a powerhouse beyond Gods and Devils could possess such might.

Meng Zhao assessed the aftermath of the Iron Hand Society’s defeat and planned how to absorb its forces while treating the wounded. He left the chapter with Lou Guanlan set to lead the Society under Meng family oversight.

• Meng Zhao worried that Tie Xiongfei might use his powerful finger to endanger Liang Muqiu and the others, but Lü Yue reassured him that they were prepared.
• Doctor Yang treated Lü Yue and assessed Big Iron Hammer’s severe injuries, saying he could recover but would be unable to fight for some time.
• Meng Zhao learned that his forces had seized the Iron Hand Society’s territory, businesses, and personnel in an orderly takeover.
• Meng Zhao proposed installing Lou Guanlan as the Iron Hand Society’s leader to calm its members, and Lü Yue and Bai Shicheng supported the plan.
• Meng Zhao assigned Cao Zhan, Zhou Hu, Daoist Priest of Plucking Flowers, and two Xiantian experts to assist Lou Guanlan and oversee the Society as a Meng family subordinate force.

Meng Zhao explained why he had chosen Cao Zhan and Zhou Hu, rather than Han Pu, to build influence in the Iron Hand Society and eventually compete to replace Lou Guanlan. He left Lü Yue in his trusted role at his side and planned to cultivate his other capable subordinates into leaders who could hold down factions.

• Bai Shicheng reflected that Lü Yue remained Meng Zhao's most trusted and relied-upon subordinate, despite Cao Zhan and Zhou Hu receiving positions of great authority.
• Meng Zhao considered sending Han Pu to the Iron Hand Society but rejected the idea because it could diminish Han Pu's standing and allow him to gain too much power there.
• Meng Zhao sent Cao Zhan and Zhou Hu, alongside several Xiantian experts, to form a faction that could restrain Lou Guanlan and establish loyalty to Meng Zhao.
• Meng Zhao intended to judge Cao Zhan and Zhou Hu by their performance and support, with the stronger candidate eventually replacing Lou Guanlan.
• Meng Zhao planned to keep Lü Yue as his chief steward and cultivate Han Pu, Cao Zhan, and Zhou Hu as powerful leaders, reasoning that strength secured authority and that administrative ability could be learned.

Meng Zhao considered restructuring the Iron Hand Society and questioned Liang Muqiu and Lou Guanlan after their group returned without Tie Xiongfei. He comforted the injured Liang Muqiu and praised Lou Guanlan, who cautiously weighed his new position under Meng Zhao.

• Meng Zhao discussed changes to the Iron Hand Society's hierarchy with Cao Zhan and Zhou Hu.
• Liang Muqiu returned with the Xiantian experts and Lou Guanlan, but Tie Xiongfei was missing.
• Meng Zhao ordered a feast for the returning group and summoned Liang Muqiu and Lou Guanlan to his study.
• Meng Zhao wiped dust from Liang Muqiu's face and reproached her tenderly for fighting so desperately.
• Meng Zhao praised Lou Guanlan for preventing bloodshed at Taikoo Warehouse, while Lou Guanlan wondered whether the praise concealed a warning.

Meng Zhao questioned Lou Guanlan about Tie Xiongfei’s mysterious finger and the forces backing the Iron Hand Society. Lou Guanlan implicated the Song Family and the Mitian Alliance, leaving Meng Zhao to consider whether the Song Family’s influence connected to a larger conspiracy involving the Wu Family.

• Meng Zhao asked Liang Muqiu about the finger Tie Xiongfei used to injure Big Iron Hammer, and she described its terrifying power and confirmed Doctor Yang expected Big Iron Hammer to recover fully.
• Meng Zhao asked Lou Guanlan where Tie Xiongfei had obtained the finger, but Lou Guanlan said he had never heard of it before.
• Lou Guanlan told Meng Zhao that he suspected the Song Family had supported the Iron Hand Society and that Tie Xiongfei had also sent the Mitian Alliance about one hundred thousand taels of silver each year.
• Meng Zhao connected Lou Guanlan’s suspicions about the Song Family to information about Wu Kaijing, Wu Zunyuan’s descendants, and a possible hidden plan to control both the Wu and Song Families.
• Meng Zhao considered whether the suspected conspirator had arranged the attempt on his life, then ruled out the idea that the person had acted out of rashness or impulse.