Chapter Summaries

Xu Yunfan settled into the Casting Hall as Zhan Yan prepared to make him a True Inheritance Disciple and forge him a weapon using a Divine Weapon Fragment. Zhan Yan rang the council bell, summoning the overseers of Heavenly Crafting Cave’s Nine Peaks Six Divisions.

• Zhan Yan brought Xu Yunfan to the Casting Hall and told him he would hold a True Inheritance Ceremony in three months.
• Zhan Yan warned Xu Yunfan that the Casting Hall faced friction with other divisions, then recognized his Golden Skin State and promised to forge him a Precious Artifact within two months.
• Xu Yunfan gave Zhan Yan the fragment of the Amethyst Earth-Shaking Hammer, and Zhan Yan confirmed that Heavenly Crafting Cave’s Thunderfire Pool could melt it.
• Zhan Yan gave Xu Yunfan a True Inheritance Disciple token, then went to Heavenly Crafting Hall and struck the council bell.
• The overseers of the Nine Peaks Six Divisions hurried across the iron chain bridges toward Heavenly Crafting Hall.

Zhan Yan demanded a True Inheritance Ceremony for the Casting Hall, and Hong Baichuan approved it with a rule allowing other halls to compete for two of its three promised slots. Zhan Yan left satisfied, confident that his chosen disciple could defeat any challenger.

• Zhan Yan invoked the Casting Hall’s past service and displayed the three unused True Inheritance slots that Hong Baichuan had promised it.
• Zhan Yan proposed that one disciple qualify through the Nine Layer Tempering Trial, prompting objections from the heads of the Hidden Edge Pavilion and External Affairs Hall.
• Hong Baichuan approved a True Inheritance Ceremony in three months and allowed disciples from other halls to compete for the remaining two slots.
• Hall Master Bao of Hidden Edge Pavilion said he would send someone he had personally trained to challenge the Casting Hall.
• The Melting Gold Hall head raised concerns about the Casting Hall’s extra mystic iron, but Hong Baichuan let the ceremony proceed and warned the halls against breaking the rules.
• Zhan Yan left the hall pleased, believing no other division had a Third Tempering Martial Master stronger than his chosen disciple.

Xu Yunfan trained intensely after the Casting Hall announced its True Inheritance Ceremony, then confronted Yue Shan of Hidden Edge Pavilion when he barged into his courtyard. Xu Yunfan overpowered Yue Shan, who was forced to his knee by an unseen person.

• Zhan Yan told Xu Yunfan that the True Inheritance Ceremony would take place in three months, and Xu Yunfan confidently promised to handle the challengers.
• Fu Jin set out for Qingzhou with three companions, while news of the ceremony spread across Cangzhou.
• Xu Yunfan used abundant medicines and spiritual food to train, and his Fleet Foot proficiency improved.
• Two Heavenly Crafting Cave disciples massaged Xu Yunfan as part of a paid sect task.
• Yue Shan of Hidden Edge Pavilion kicked open Xu Yunfan's courtyard gate and challenged him, but Xu Yunfan stopped his attack and sent him crashing into the iron stakes.
• Yue Shan tried to charge Xu Yunfan with an iron stake, but someone pressed him down onto one knee.

Xu Yunfan settled into Heavenly Crafting Cave after Fu Jin drove off Yue Shan, then asked to learn weapon forging alongside his martial arts training. News arrived that Wu Province had been sealed off by the Great Zhou Imperial Court, leaving the martial world alarmed by the campaign against its sects.

• Fu Jin hurled Yue Shan through a wall after confronting him, and Xu Yunfan made him pay fifty taels for the courtyard damage.
• Fu Jin welcomed Xu Yunfan to Heavenly Crafting Cave, explained Yue Shan had been used to test him, and said he was half a step from Blood Exchange.
• A Heavenly Crafting Department crew repaired the courtyard and charged Xu Yunfan fifty taels.
• Hong Si Yang visited Xu Yunfan, and Fu Jin suggested arranging a marriage before Xu Yunfan protested that she was still a child.
• Xu Yunfan asked Fu Jin to teach him weapon forging, arguing that it would improve his strength, and Fu Jin said he would consult their master.
• After the Great Zhou Imperial Court sealed off Wu Province, one hundred thousand Mystic Armor Tiger Braves razed mountains and temples, fourteen sects lost their mountain gates, and the Nine Luminaries Sect sent people to Jade Capital.

As the True Inheritance Ceremony approached, Xu Yunfan continued his relentless training while Qi Huan watched him from afar and recognized him as a formidable opponent. After swallowing a rare Rising Sun Pill, Xu Yunfan pushed Fleet Foot to a dramatic breakthrough, ending the chapter poised on a branch above his courtyard.

• Xu Yunfan trained in Machinery City as the Tempered Edge Army patrolled and his Tendon Training and Fleet Foot proficiency neared completion.
• Qi Huan and Yue Shan watched Xu Yunfan from Hump Mountain, and Qi Huan identified him as a formidable opponent.
• Xu Yunfan practiced the Lin Character Secret after exhausting his body, then prepared to continue training the next morning.
• Xu Yunfan swallowed a Rising Sun Pill and spent the day driving its medicinal power into his tendons as he practiced Fleet Foot.
• Xu Yunfan smashed a steel plum blossom stake, leapt over his courtyard wall with a three-hundred-jin stone lock attached to his ankles, and landed motionless on a tree branch.

Xu Yunfan completed Fleet Foot and gained Tendon Training Completion, then Fu Jin took him to Heavenly Crafting Cave to see the Precious Artifact Zhan Yan had forged for him. Zhan Yan revealed the warhammer’s features, including a mechanism that split it into three chain-linked sections.

• Xu Yunfan completed Fleet Foot, transforming his tendons and fascia and demonstrating his speed by reaching a rooftop thirty meters away.
• A metallic ring from Heavenly Crafting Cave announced the forging of a Precious Artifact, and Fu Jin hurried Xu Yunfan there to meet Zhan Yan.
• Xu Yunfan caught Fu Jin when he slipped on the swaying chain bridge above the Thunderfire Pool, showing off his lightness skill.
• Zhan Yan presented Xu Yunfan with a 348-jin, 7-liang warhammer made with meteorite iron and embedded balancing beads.
• Zhan Yan pressed a mechanism in the warhammer’s handle, causing the weapon to separate into three sections connected by refined-steel chains.

Zhan Yan completed the Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer and showed Xu Yunfan its power before the Earth Vein Dragon Breath erupted beneath the Thunderfire Pool. Xu Yunfan received the weapon and promised to carry on the Casting Hall’s future, while Fu Jin injured his hand when he tried to wield the hammer.

• Mo Han and Xu Yunfan watched as Zhan Yan explained the hammer’s materials and its Mechanism Hall rebound device.
• Zhan Yan showed Xu Yunfan the Thousand Jun Forging Essentials and invited him to learn forging after the True Inheritance Ceremony.
• Zhan Yan gave Xu Yunfan the finished Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer, and Xu Yunfan swung it with enough force to cut a torch in half.
• The Earth Vein Dragon Breath erupted, so the strongmen sealed the Thunderfire Pool and everyone retreated.
• Xu Yunfan thanked Zhan Yan, who told him the Casting Hall’s future burden would rest on his shoulders.
• Fu Jin tried to wield the hammer, but it split the web of skin between his thumb and forefinger.

Xu Yunfan tested the Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer, then took a day off and explored Thousand Machines Ward, where he encountered Hidden Edge Pavilion disciples and learned Qi Huan would challenge him at the True Inheritance Ceremony. Yan Yuwei and Mo Shisan watched him from Mist and Rain Pavilion, and Yan Yuwei reacted sharply upon hearing about his hammer.

• Fu Jin examined the Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer, explained that it recognized Xu Yunfan's vital energy, and urged him to prepare for the True Inheritance Ceremony.
• Xu Yunfan practiced with the hammer, smashed a thick cast-iron training post, and reflected that Bone Training Completion remained at least half a year away.
• Xu Yunfan visited Thousand Machines Ward, paid a fine for littering, and encountered Qi Huan and Yue Shan riding through the district.
• Qi Huan warned Xu Yunfan to be careful at the Casting Hall's True Inheritance Ceremony, and Xu Yunfan silently resolved to prove himself.
• Yan Yuwei and Mo Shisan watched Xu Yunfan from Mist and Rain Pavilion as Mo Shisan identified the Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer as a precious artifact; Yan Yuwei abruptly stood up.

Xu Yunfan tracked Incense Fire Sect members to an abandoned residence in Machinery City and fought their Demon Subduing Heavenly Soldiers. He crushed most of them with his Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer and unleashed a powerful area strike as their leader retreated.

• Xu Yunfan sensed the Incense Fire Sect's incense near an abandoned residence and followed it to the gate.
• Xu Yunfan smashed open the gate and found twelve Incense Fire Sect Demon Subduing Heavenly Soldiers with a one-eyed old woman leading them.
• The old woman revealed that the sect had marked Xu Yunfan for killing its disciples and destroying its altars and holy statues in Wu Province.
• Xu Yunfan taunted the old woman and defeated the charging soldiers one by one with his Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer.
• The old woman attacked with a chain blade, but Xu Yunfan struck the ground with his hammer and forced her to retreat beyond the crushing force.

Xu Yunfan killed an Incense Fire Sect group attacking Heavenly Crafting Cave, then waited while the southern fire was suppressed. When Qi Huan arrived to question him about the Thousand Machine Disk, Xu Yunfan knocked Mo Shisan into the river, and Mo confronted him unharmed.

• Xu Yunfan used the Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer to defeat the old woman and the Incense Fire Sect cultists at Heavenly Crafting Cave’s gate.
• The old woman revealed a Bronze Compass and fired poisoned needles, but Xu Yunfan evaded them, hurled her into a pillar, and left the courtyard collapsing around her.
• Heavenly Crafting Cave’s night patrol arrived, and Hong Baichuan suppressed a blaze that erupted in the city’s south.
• Qi Huan arrived with a Punishment Hall badge and told Xu Yunfan that the Thousand Machine Disk he had destroyed had been reported stolen by the Mechanism Hall.
• Xu Yunfan swung his chain hammer past Qi Huan and knocked the charging Mo Shisan into the river; Mo climbed out and accused Xu Yunfan of attacking him.

Xu Yunfan evaded Qi Huan’s attempt to detain him, then brought a sinister Bright Lord Statue back to his courtyard and absorbed its ominous aura. Fu Jin explained that Wild Evil Gods were powerful beings seeking to return through borrowed bodies and incense offerings.

• Qi Huan confronted Mo Shisan with evidence linking stolen Thousand Machine Gears to the ruins, but Mo Shisan left before revealing more.
• Xu Yunfan ignored Qi Huan’s warning and left, then doubled back to take the shattered Bright Lord Statue from the ruins.
• Xu Yunfan purified the statue’s ominous aura with the Lin Character Secret, gaining a large increase in proficiency as the statue lost its spiritual essence.
• Fu Jin arrived, destroyed the statue’s remains, and warned Xu Yunfan to avoid sinister objects.
• Xu Yunfan asked about Wild Evil Gods, and Fu Jin said they sought rebirth through borrowed bodies and incense offerings while provoking wars to regain their former glory.

Xu Yunfan prepared for the Casting Hall’s True Inheritance Ceremony as the Empress’s campaign against Wu Province’s sects troubled Fu Jin. At the ceremony, Xu Yunfan accepted Qi Huan’s challenge to fight for the True Inheritance position.

• Fu Jin told Xu Yunfan that the Empress had sent the Ten Thousand Tiger Brave Black Armor against Wu Province’s fourteen sects and advised him to focus on the True Inheritance Ceremony.
• Fu Jin warned Xu Yunfan that Qi Huan was vindictive and said he should strike back if Qi Huan caused trouble again.
• Xu Yunfan stayed in his residence for a month, training Heavenly Cicada Force and rapidly improving his Bone Forging proficiency.
• Guests gathered in Heavenly Crafting City for the ceremony, where Hong Baichuan announced that the armory would reopen.
• Zhan Yan introduced Xu Yunfan as the Casting Hall’s new True Inheritance Disciple and offered others a chance to challenge him or pass the Quenching Trial.
• Qi Huan challenged Xu Yunfan to a duel, demanding a True Inheritance position for Hidden Edge Pavilion if Xu Yunfan refused, and Xu Yunfan accepted.

Xu Yunfan fought Qi Huan in the True Inheritance competition, first breaking his swordsmanship with the Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer and then revealing perfection in skin tempering. The chapter ended as Xu Yunfan’s Inverted Heavenly River struck Qi Huan’s Wandering Dragon Azure Mirage Sword.

• Qi Huan attacked Xu Yunfan with the Thousand Overlapping Wave Sword, but Xu Yunfan met his strikes with the Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer.
• Xu Yunfan’s Mountain-Splitting Form shattered Qi Huan’s sword, and Qi Huan drew the Hidden Edge Pavilion’s Wandering Dragon Azure Mirage Sword.
• Xu Yunfan revealed his perfection in skin tempering, stunning the spectators and enraging Qi Huan.
• Qi Huan unleashed All Rivers Return to the Sea, but his sword could not pierce Xu Yunfan’s throat or move the hammer.
• Xu Yunfan countered with Inverted Heavenly River as Qi Huan’s precious sword bent beneath the blow.

Xu Yunfan defeated Qi Huan to win the True Inheritance Ceremony, but before he could receive the title, Nine Luminaries Sect true disciple Teng Lingchuan challenged him. Their first clash bent Teng Lingchuan’s spear, and Teng answered with the Nine Luminaries Spear’s killing move, Mars Devours the Moon.

• Xu Yunfan used his Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer to defeat Qi Huan, whose Cold Pool Dragon's Roar Sword was broken and whose armor was dented.
• Zhan Yan praised Xu Yunfan, and the Nine Luminaries Sect elder said he could become a Marrow Cleansing Grandmaster if he survived.
• Zhan Yan announced Xu Yunfan as the True Inheritance Ceremony’s victor, but Teng Lingchuan of the Nine Luminaries Sect challenged him.
• Teng Lingchuan entered the arena with the Pivot Star Spear, which Zhan Yan had forged, and revealed that he had completed Tendon Training.
• Xu Yunfan met Teng Lingchuan’s spear thrust with his hammer and bent the shaft, prompting Teng to unleash Mars Devours the Moon.

Xu Yunfan defeated Teng Lingchuan in their clash at Heavenly Crafting Cave’s True Inheritance Ceremony, revealing that he had perfected his second tempering of tendons and skin. Elder Yin intervened before Xu could seriously injure Teng, and the chapter ended with Hong Baichuan shielding Xu as Elder Yin acknowledged his talent.

• Xu Yunfan broke Teng Lingchuan’s Big Dipper spear array with a crushing chain-hammer strike.
• Xu revealed jade-colored meridians and overwhelmed Teng’s spear attacks with the Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer.
• Xu trapped Teng’s boots with the hammer chain and brought the hammer down as Elder Yin rushed to intervene.
• Hong Baichuan intercepted Elder Yin in midair, and their clash shattered the stone paving around them.
• Xu stopped the hammer inches from Teng’s face, leaving him defeated and exposed after the impact tore apart his clothes.
• Elder Yin covered Teng with his robe, then praised Xu’s perfected second tempering of tendons and skin.

Xu Yunfan revealed that he had perfected the Second Tempering of Tendons and Skin, securing victory and astonishing the sect leaders gathered at Heavenly Crafting Cave. He accepted a True Inheritance Disciple position in the Casting Hall and turned down Yin Hong’s offer to join the Nine Luminaries Sect.

• Hong Si Yang’s father suggested reconsidering Xu Yunfan as a marriage match, and she accused him of being swayed by Xu Yunfan’s talent.
• Hong Baichuan persuaded Yin Hong to stay by offering access to Heavenly Crafting Cave’s Martial Repository, and Yin Hong allowed Teng Lingchuan to be taken away to rest.
• The other sect leaders recognized Xu Yunfan’s perfected Second Tempering as a sign that Heavenly Crafting Cave would remain Cangzhou’s foremost martial sect for generations.
• Zhan Yan offered Xu Yunfan the position of True Inheritance Disciple in the Casting Hall, and Xu Yunfan accepted the token.
• Yin Hong invited Xu Yunfan to join the Nine Luminaries Sect with lavish resources, but Xu Yunfan declined and affirmed his attachment to Heavenly Crafting Cave.

Xu Yunfan declined the Nine Luminaries Sect’s offer and received Hong Baichuan’s promise to teach him the Heavenly Crafting Vein Forging Method. Seven days later, Zhan Yan demonstrated the Thousand Jun Mountain Shaking Hammer Technique and Heavenly Crafting Cave’s forging methods, leaving his explanation unfinished.

• Xu Yunfan refused Yin Hong’s invitation to join the Nine Luminaries Sect, and Zhan Yan praised his decision.
• Hong Baichuan promised to teach Xu Yunfan the Heavenly Crafting Vein Forging Method after he mastered the External Three Harmonies.
• Zhan Yan told Xu Yunfan he would teach him the Thousand Jun Mountain Shaking Hammer Technique, and Xu Yunfan considered improving the weapon case on his back.
• Seven days later, Zhan Yan demonstrated the Thousand Jun Mountain Shaking Hammer Technique beside the Thunderfire Pool and explained how its controlled force shaped a billet.
• Zhan Yan compared Divine Weapon Ridge’s Bone-Forging Method with Heavenly Crafting Cave’s Quenching Art, then began explaining the latter’s finer techniques.

Zhan Yan taught Xu Yunfan the Heavenly Crafting Forging Art, but Xu Yunfan quickly showed extraordinary skill and astonished his master. Zhan Yan left him with a mountain of iron billets to forge into precisely measured swords.

• Zhan Yan demonstrated his Heavenly Crafting Forging Art and explained how it combined techniques from Heavenly Crafting Cave and Divine Weapon Ridge.
• Xu Yunfan handled Zhan Yan’s heavy hammer with ease, then unlocked the Forging skill after striking an iron billet.
• Xu Yunfan rapidly learned the Heavenly Crafting Nine-Forging Method and produced a Scales-Layered Armor Pattern that astonished Zhan Yan.
• Xu Yunfan asked whether he had made a mistake, but Zhan Yan said nothing and assigned him the iron billets to forge into swords of exact dimensions and weight.

Xu Yunfan rapidly learned the Heavenly Crafting Forging Art by combining it with Heavenly Cicada Strength, astonishing Zhan Yan with his forging talent. After Zhan Yan left to recover, Xu Yunfan reached Beginner level and began forging with newly acquired muscle memory.

• Xu Yunfan forged thirteen iron ingots with unique patterns, and Zhan Yan stopped him to ask about his fire-control technique.
• Xu Yunfan explained how Heavenly Cicada Strength’s bone vibrations guided his hammer strikes, while Zhan Yan mistakenly assumed Xu Yunfan carried awakened True Blood.
• Zhan Yan examined Heavenly Cicada Strength, then told Xu Yunfan to focus first on learning the Heavenly Crafting Forging Art’s properties and techniques.
• Xu Yunfan forged an Eight-Sided Han Sword in midair, producing flowing gold in the blade and stunning Zhan Yan with how quickly he completed it.
• Zhan Yan said he needed a day or two to recover, and Xu Yunfan saw that the Heavenly Crafting Forging Art had reached Beginner level but remained incomplete.
• Xu Yunfan absorbed extensive forging knowledge and used a hammer strike to remove sixteen kinds of impurities from a fine steel ingot.

Xu Yunfan forged three hundred exceptional Mid-Grade Mortal Swords in three days, then recovered and advanced his Heavenly Cicada Force cultivation. His bone vibrations resonated with the spring inside his Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer, causing a silent impact as the chapter ended.

• Xu Yunfan forged three hundred Mid-Grade Mortal Swords, and inspectors confirmed every sword was superior quality with matching quenching patterns and structure.
• Xu Yunfan returned to his courtyard, cultivated the Lin Character Secret, and slept to recover from three days of nonstop forging.
• Xu Yunfan resumed cultivating the Heavenly Cicada Force and accelerated his progress toward completing Bone Refinement.
• Xu Yunfan's bone vibrations reached a critical threshold and began producing a jade-like sheen, so he stopped cultivating.
• Xu Yunfan gripped the Thunder Fire Qilin Hammer in reverse, and his Heavenly Cicada Force resonated with its spring as the hammer struck the ground without a sound.