Chapter Summaries

Gu Xiaoxian explained to Li Yun that Battle Techniques could lead to Battle Souls and, ultimately, Divine Abilities, and encouraged him to pursue his potential. Li Yun returned to his cottage to study the Ancient Sword and farm Cognition Points, where Zhang Chu arrived with dishes.

• Gu Xiaoxian told Li Yun that Divine Abilities were the culmination of Battle Techniques and Battle Souls, and urged him to advance steadily.
• Li Yun asked whether anyone could wield more than two Divine Abilities, prompting Gu Xiaoxian to warn him against aiming too high.
• Gu Xiaoxian arranged to take Li Yun to the Martial Armory the next morning, and Li Yun returned to his Nameless Cottage.
• Li Yun relaxed with wine and food while studying the Ancient Sword and accumulating Cognition Points.
• Zhang Chu arrived at Li Yun's courtyard with dishes and joked that Li Yun had been drinking alone.

Li Yun reunited with Zhang Ruohan over a meal and told her about reaching Second Grade Internal Force at Mount Tianfu. Zhang Chu was shaken by Li Yun’s progress and rushed off to train, while Zhang Ruohan offered Li Yun ten Internal Force Condensation Methods.

• Zhang Chu brought food and wine to Nameless Cottage, where Li Yun recognized that Zhang Ruohan had sent the meal and welcomed her to join them.
• Li Yun told Zhang Ruohan and Zhang Chu about cultivating Second Grade Internal Force at Mount Tianfu, leaving Zhang Chu dispirited by the gap between them.
• Zhang Chu vowed to bring his Zhuang Gong to Perfection within three months and hurried away to cultivate.
• Zhang Ruohan said she had reached Great Accomplishment in Sorrowful Wind Swordplay and planned to spar with Huang Liying over a Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure in a month.
• When Zhang Ruohan asked how she could thank Li Yun, he mentioned needing Internal Force Condensation Methods and wood-attribute treasures, so she offered him ten methods she had collected.

Li Yun accepted ten high-grade internal force condensation methods from Zhang Ruohan and fused them to advance his Primal Chaos Art and reach First Grade Internal Energy. He then left for the Martial Armory with Gu Xiaoxian, while Huang Yiyi watched them and renewed her resentment toward him.

• Zhang Ruohan gave Li Yun ten internal force condensation methods, which he accepted and planned to repay with guidance on her Sorrowful Wind Swordplay.
• Li Yun spent twenty-eight million Martial Cognition Points to perfect and fuse the ten methods, raising the Primal Chaos Art to a new level.
• Li Yun cultivated through the night and broke through to First Grade Internal Energy, gaining much greater power and the ability to project internal force about two meters.
• Gu Xiaoxian scolded Li Yun for forgetting their plan to visit the Martial Armory, then objected when Li Yun called him Elder Gu instead of Uncle Gu.
• Li Yun called Gu Xiaoxian his real uncle, pleased him, and left Nameless Cottage with him for the Martial Armory.
• Huang Yiyi saw Li Yun walking with Gu Xiaoxian and vowed not to forgive Li Yun for sending her to the Punishment Hall Dungeon.

After Li Yun passed by, Chu Xingyu tried to turn the Outer Sect Disciples against him by spreading claims that he relied on connections, but Huang Yiyi backed the slander with fabricated accusations. Rumors about Li Yun spread through the Outer Sect, and Huang Yiyi and Chu Xingyu joined forces to damage his reputation.

• Outer Sect Disciples envied Li Yun’s standing, and Chu Xingyu insinuated that Li Yun had a powerful backing.
• A disciple defended Li Yun, explaining his humble origins and rise through hard work and talent.
• Huang Yiyi claimed Li Yun had hidden connections and had spread a false story about his former fiancée to conceal an affair with an Inner Sect senior sister.
• Chu Xingyu pretended to be shocked by Huang Yiyi’s accusations, then left with her before their story could be exposed.
• Outer Sect Disciples argued over the claims, and rumors that Li Yun had risen through connections and abandoned his fiancée spread widely.
• Huang Yiyi learned that Chu Xingyu’s grandfather was an Outer Sect Elder and invited him to plan how to further ruin Li Yun’s reputation.

Li Yun used Chen Jiuxu’s Tianwu Golden Sword Token to gain unrestricted access to the Outer Sect Martial Armory. After Gu Xiaoxian privately told Elder Ling that Li Yun might enter Lingyun Pavilion, the elders treated Li Yun with unusual deference as he went inside to browse.

• Gu Xiaoxian brought Li Yun to the Outer Sect Martial Armory, where Elder Huang examined Li Yun’s Tianwu Golden Sword Token.
• Gu Xiaoxian told Elder Ling that the Sect Master had taken an interest in Li Yun and that Li Yun would likely enter Lingyun Pavilion when the Sect Master returned.
• Elder Ling welcomed Li Yun and explained that he could read any technique on the Martial Armory’s three floors for as long as he wished.
• Li Yun thanked the elders and entered the Martial Armory, and its gates shut behind him.
• After Gu Xiaoxian left, Elder Ling refused to explain the secret to Elder Huang and told him to treat Li Yun like a lord.

Li Yun became engrossed in Body Tempering Realm manuals in the Martial Armory, while rumors about him spread through the Outer Sect. At an Elder Hall meeting, Gu Xiaoxian openly admitted that he favored Li Yun and threatened anyone who slandered him.

• Li Yun read Body Tempering Realm manuals and notes on the Martial Armory’s first floor, gaining Martial Cognition Points as he broadened his understanding.
• After two days, Elder Ling brought Li Yun food and tea and found him still absorbed in an ordinary manual.
• Rumors that Li Yun had used connections and abandoned someone grew more extreme, including a claim that he was Gu Xiaoxian’s illegitimate son.
• Gu Xiaoxian smashed a table at the Elder Hall meeting and accused the elders of allowing deliberate slander against Li Yun.
• Zhao Tingchun challenged Gu Xiaoxian’s favoritism, and Gu Xiaoxian declared that he favored Li Yun and would not let anyone who slandered him off.

Gu Xiaoxian defended Li Yun in the Elder Hall and revealed that Li Yun had secured Upper-Three-Grade Internal Force cultivation for the Outer Sect. Meanwhile, Li Yun deepened his understanding of Body Tempering martial arts and prepared to show Elder Ling his insights into stance cultivation.

• Gu Xiaoxian ordered Zhang Cong to uncover everyone slandering Li Yun and threatened to expel even Outer Sect Elders involved.
• Gu Xiaoxian revealed that Li Yun had risked his life to obtain the chance for every Outer Sect Disciple to cultivate Upper-Three-Grade Internal Force, silencing Zhao Tingchun’s objections.
• Zhao Tingchun apologized to Gu Xiaoxian and fled the Elder Hall, while Zhang Cong recognized that Zhao had brought humiliation upon himself.
• Li Yun studied Body Tempering martial arts in the Martial Armory and found that combining their insights with Basic Stance Cultivation greatly deepened his understanding.
• Li Yun’s Primordial Chaos Stance transformed without spending Cognition Points, and he considered creating his own stance cultivation.
• Elder Ling found Li Yun after two days without food or water, and Li Yun asked him to watch a set of stance cultivation techniques and offer corrections.

Li Yun created a new Body Tempering Zhuang Gong that drew in Spirit Qi, astonishing Elder Ling. After completing all eighteen stances, Li Yun named it the Eighteen Divine Martial Stances and planned to contribute it to the Celestial Martial Sect; the system rewarded him with 30 million Cognition Points.

• Li Yun began demonstrating a newly devised Zhuang Gong, and Elder Ling stopped him after sensing it draw in Spirit Qi.
• Li Yun explained that he had created the Zhuang Gong himself, prompting Elder Ling to blame himself for interrupting and threaten to report for punishment.
• Li Yun resumed the demonstration and completed eighteen stances, with Spirit Qi gathering more strongly from the ninth stance onward.
• Li Yun named the technique the Eighteen Divine Martial Stances and decided to contribute it to the Martial Armory for the Outer Sect Disciples.
• The system announced that Li Yun had successfully created Martial Arts and awarded him 30 million Cognition Points.

Li Yun created the Eighteen Divine Martial Stances, a Zhuang Gong that earned him a huge system reward and could generate Cognition Points as others practiced it. Elder Ling recognized its extraordinary ability to draw in Spirit Qi and temper the body, then rushed to tell Gu Xiaoxian, who hurried to see Li Yun.

• Li Yun learned that people who practiced his Eighteen Divine Martial Stances would feed Cognition Points back to him as their realms improved.
• Elder Ling learned the stances from Li Yun and practiced them until he reached Great Success, drawing in World Spiritual Energy and feeling his body being tempered.
• Elder Ling praised the stances as far superior to Basic Stance Cultivation and hurried to report Li Yun's creation to Elder Gu.
• Gu Xiaoxian initially dismissed Elder Ling's report, then realized the Zhuang Gong could draw in Spirit Qi to temper the body and rushed to see Li Yun.

Li Yun demonstrated the Eighteen Divine Martial Stances to Gu Xiaoxian, who praised his contributions to the Celestial Martial Sect and insisted a Stele of Meritorious Service would be erected for him. After Gu Xiaoxian left to address the rumors against Li Yun, Li Yun continued cultivating in the Martial Armory and moved up to its second floor.

• Gu Xiaoxian rushed into the Martial Armory and asked Li Yun whether he had created a stance cultivation that drew in Spirit Qi.
• Li Yun performed the Eighteen Divine Martial Stances, and Gu Xiaoxian grew excited when the ninth stance began drawing in Spirit Qi.
• Gu Xiaoxian explained that Li Yun’s contributions might earn him a Stele of Meritorious Service, while Li Yun objected to having a stele erected for him at only sixteen.
• Gu Xiaoxian left to handle matters and defend Li Yun against fabricated rumors about him.
• Li Yun continued contemplating his cultivation and, after exhausting the useful Martial Arts on the first floor, went to the second floor to advance the Primal Chaos Art.

Gu Xiaoxian told Chen Jiuxu that Li Yun had created the Eighteen Divine Martial Stances, and Chen Jiuxu ordered a monument erected in his honor. The Sect Master then demanded that Li Yun report to Lingyun Pavilion as soon as he left the Martial Armory.

• Zhang Cong told Gu Xiaoxian that Chu Xingyu and Huang Yiyi had spread rumors slandering Li Yun and had been caught together at an inn.
• Gu Xiaoxian ordered Zhang Cong to hold Chu Xingyu and Huang Yiyi and gather the names of everyone who had helped spread the rumors until Chen Jiuxu could decide their punishment.
• At the Tianwu Great Hall, Chen Jiuxu asked Gu Xiaoxian what Li Yun had been doing and whether he had been slacking off.
• Gu Xiaoxian showed Chen Jiuxu the Eighteen Divine Martial Stances and explained that Li Yun had created them shortly after entering the Martial Armory.
• Chen Jiuxu ordered the Outer Sect to erect a monument for Li Yun that day and told Gu Xiaoxian to send Li Yun to Lingyun Pavilion as soon as he came out of the Martial Armory.

Chen Jiuxu praised Li Yun’s extraordinary martial talent, offered him access to Lingyun Pavilion and valuable resources, and ordered an investigation after hearing that Outer Sect disciples were spreading rumors about him. The chapter left the elders wary of provoking Li Yun and the Punishment Hall tasked with dealing with his slanderers.

• Chen Jiuxu told Gu Xiaoxian to let Li Yun remain in the Martial Armory and obtain a Heavenly Treasure Tower selection list worth up to two hundred thousand taels of silver for him.
• Chen Bairong examined the Eighteen Divine Martial Stances and was stunned to learn that Li Yun had created it and mastered Battle Technique by fusing other martial arts into it.
• Gu Xiaoxian told Chen Bairong that Li Yun had entered the sect only two months earlier and held the chief title in the Rank Ren Outer Sect.
• Chen Jiuxu said Chen Bairong could ask Li Yun whether he wished to join the Martial Arts Hall after Li Yun reported to Lingyun Pavilion, but insisted that no one force him.
• Gu Xiaoxian reported that rumors slandering Li Yun had spread through the Outer Sect, and Chen Jiuxu ordered Elder He to investigate and punish those responsible.

The Celestial Martial Sect purged thousands of Outer Sect Disciples and dozens of officials for slandering Li Yun, abolishing their cultivation and expelling them. At the mountain gate, Chu Xingyu cursed his grandfather and threatened to destroy the sect, so He Yunzhang killed him with a single sword and silenced the expelled.

• The Celestial Martial Sect arrested and punished at least three thousand Outer Sect Disciples and more than fifty Martial Arts Deacons and Outer Sect Elders for slandering Li Yun, then abolished their cultivation and expelled them.
• The Zhao Family Faction and Liu Family Faction received no help from their backers, who feared defying Chen Jiuxu.
• Chu Xingyu begged Huang Yihe to save him from expulsion, then blamed and insulted his grandfather when Huang Yihe said the punishment could not be changed.
• Chu Xingyu threatened to trample the Celestial Martial Sect and slaughter its people, alarming Huang Yihe and the others at the mountain gate.
• He Yunzhang killed Chu Xingyu with a streak of Sword Light and challenged the other expelled people, breaking their courage.

After learning that Chu Xingyu had been executed and Huang Yiyi expelled, Li Yun chose the Ten-Thousand-Year Jade Marrow Heart as his reward from the Sect Master. He wanted to remain in the Martial Armory, but Gu Xiaoxian told him he had to attend the end-of-year gathering at Pingding Mountain.

• Li Yun heard that Chu Xingyu had been executed by He Yunzhang and that Huang Yiyi had been expelled from the Celestial Martial Sect.
• Gu Xiaoxian showed Li Yun a reward list worth up to two hundred thousand taels and explained the benefits of the Ten-Thousand-Year Jade Marrow Heart.
• Li Yun selected the Ten-Thousand-Year Jade Marrow Heart and asked Gu Xiaoxian to have it delivered to the Martial Armory.
• Gu Xiaoxian said he would fetch the treasure from the Heavenly Treasure Tower and told Li Yun to build his strength for the gathering at Pingding Mountain.
• Li Yun protested that he did not want to leave the Martial Armory, but Gu Xiaoxian insisted he had to attend.

Li Yun refined the Ten-Thousand-Year Jade Marrow Heart and rapidly advanced his cultivation, while Huang Yiyi waited in Wulin Town hoping to return to the Celestial Martial Sect through him. Zhang Ruohan found Huang Yiyi and killed her before she could carry out her plans.

• Gu Xiaoxian brought Li Yun the Ten-Thousand-Year Jade Marrow Heart, which Li Yun carefully consumed and refined with the Primal Chaos Art.
• Li Yun's cultivation advanced rapidly through the Force Refining layers.
• Huang Yiyi rented a courtyard in Wulin Town and waited for a chance to meet Li Yun and regain her place in the sect.
• Huang Yiyi resented Li Yun and privately planned to use him before abandoning him and retaliating against his parents.
• Zhang Ruohan confronted Huang Yiyi and beheaded her, then flew away into the night.

Li Yun reached the Ninth Layer of Strength Refining and chose to study Internal Force condensing methods instead of advancing prematurely to the True Qi Realm. Chen Jiuxu discovered that Li Yun had not reported to Lingyun Pavilion and worried that the delay would damage his reputation.

• Li Yun concluded that his Internal Force could keep growing, so he decided to strengthen his foundation rather than condense True Qi.
• Li Yun began studying Internal Force condensing methods in the Outer Sect Martial Armory.
• The chapter explained that Lingyun Pavilion was established to train exceptionally talented disciples under the Sect Master's personal guidance.
• Chen Jiuxu entered Lingyun Pavilion, found Li Yun absent, and grew angry that he had not reported despite receiving the order days earlier.

Bi Yusheng went to the Outer Sect Martial Armory to find out why Li Yun had not reported to Lingyun Pavilion. Elder Ling revealed that the sixteen-year-old Outer Sect disciple was still studying martial arts manuals there, and began telling Bi Yusheng about him.

• Chen Jiuxu decided not to send someone to fetch Li Yun and said he would ask him personally whether he planned to join Lingyun Pavilion.
• The seven Lingyun Pavilion disciples wondered why Li Yun had not arrived, and Zhao Junshan suggested that Bi Yusheng visit the Outer Sect Martial Armory to ask about him.
• Bi Yusheng reached the armory, where Elder Ling recognized him and confirmed that Li Yun was still there.
• Elder Ling explained that Li Yun had spent over half a month studying Houtian Realm martial arts manuals under the authorization of the Tianwu Golden Sword Token.
• Bi Yusheng learned that Li Yun was a sixteen-year-old Outer Sect disciple in Rank Ren Courtyard 95 who had joined the sect just over two months earlier, and asked Elder Ling to tell him more.

After learning about Li Yun’s extraordinary achievements, Bi Yusheng returned to Lingyun Pavilion and worried that the new Eighth Senior would soon outshine him. He concealed some of Li Yun’s accomplishments from the other disciples, who became distracted by a quarrel between Ji Bochang and Lie Huheng.

• Bi Yusheng heard Elder Ling describe Li Yun’s rapid cultivation, discovery of the Heavenly Mansion Internal Force Condensation Method, and creation of the Eighteen Divine Martial Stances.
• Bi Yusheng felt pressured by Li Yun’s achievements and decided to hurry back to cultivate before Li Yun arrived at Lingyun Pavilion.
• Ji Bochang asked Bi Yusheng about Li Yun, and Bi Yusheng mentioned his major service to the sect while withholding the rest of what he knew.
• Ji Bochang complained that Li Yun had entered Lingyun Pavilion through merit, and Lie Huheng teased him about swapping their senior rankings before leaving.
• Ji Bochang realized Lie Huheng had insulted him and chased after him while the other disciples laughed, forgetting to ask more about Li Yun.
• Bi Yusheng quietly began studying his Battle Technique as the others remained distracted.

Li Yun asked Elder Ling whether Internal Force could surpass First Grade Internal Energy, revealing that he had already sublimated his own Internal Force beyond ordinary first-grade quality. Elder Ling sought Gu Xiaoxian’s insight, and the two elders rushed to the Martial Armory after suspecting Li Yun was pursuing that unprecedented realm.

• Li Yun spent nearly forty million Cognition Points fusing twelve Internal Force condensation methods into the Primal Chaos Art, further sublimating his Internal Force.
• Unable to find stronger methods in the Martial Armory, Li Yun asked Elder Ling whether Internal Force could exceed First Grade Internal Energy.
• Elder Ling explained that First Grade Internal Energy was considered the limit and that no one had discovered a realm beyond it.
• Elder Ling went to Gu Xiaoxian, who remembered an unusual Internal Force condensation method and suspected Li Yun had already reached first grade and sought to go further.
• Elder Ling and Gu Xiaoxian realized Li Yun might be pursuing a realm beyond the known limit, then raced to the Outer Sect Martial Armory.

Li Yun revealed that he had cultivated First Grade Internal Energy and improved its quality, astonishing Gu Xiaoxian and Elder Ling with his strength. Gu Xiaoxian urged him to advance to the Inner Sect and gave him an encrypted manual that might describe a realm beyond First Grade Internal Energy, warning him not to experiment recklessly.

• Gu Xiaoxian confronted Li Yun about asking Elder Ling whether realms existed above First Grade Internal Energy, and Li Yun admitted he had reached that level on the day he entered the Martial Armory and had since refined his Internal Force.
• Gu Xiaoxian asked Li Yun to demonstrate his Internal Force, and Li Yun's half-strength punch made Gu Xiaoxian stagger and convinced him Li Yun could rank among the Outer Sect's strongest disciples.
• Gu Xiaoxian decided Li Yun should advance to the Inner Sect, reasoning that his exceptional strength could damage the confidence of other Outer Sect Disciples if he stayed among them.
• Gu Xiaoxian showed Li Yun an encrypted manual that mentioned Origin Internal Energy and might contain a method for condensing Internal Force beyond the first grade.
• Gu Xiaoxian warned Li Yun not to experiment without certainty and threatened to take the manual away and send him to the Punishment Hall Dungeon if he acted rashly.