Chapter Summaries

Key Plot Points and Events

• Huo Yanxi learns that the Zhao Family and Qian Family have begun cooperating, which threatens the Huo Family's position.
• Huo Yanxi summons the heads of the other influential families to discuss this new alliance.
• The family heads are shocked and disbelieving of the Zhao Family's betrayal.

Character Developments

• Huo Yanxi: She becomes more determined and strategic, realizing the threat posed by the Zhao-Qian alliance and deciding to act against it.
• Nian Shishi: She initially seems unaware of the seriousness of the situation but later expresses concern and disapproval of the Zhao Family's actions.

Significant Themes

• Betrayal and Alliances: The Zhao Family's cooperation with the Qian Family is seen as a betrayal by the Huo Family, highlighting the fragile nature of alliances in this context.
• Power Struggles: The chapter emphasizes the power dynamics between the families and the consequences of losing influence, as seen in the Huo Family's reaction to the Zhao-Qian alliance.

Character Interactions

• Huo Yanxi and Nian Shishi: Their interaction reveals Nian Shishi's initial disbelief and later frustration with Huo Yanxi's handling of the situation.
• Huo Yanxi and the other family heads: Huo Yanxi's summoning of the family heads indicates her intention to rally support against the Zhao-Qian alliance, but the heads' reactions suggest they are not immediately convinced or prepared to act.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Haoran's victory in the Family Tournament earns him five Foundation Establishment Pills.
• Meng Bohai advances to the Foundation Establishment Realm using one of the pills.
• Meng Jingshan offers two pills to Lin Yuan Kui and Chen Le Zhi, solidifying their alliance.
• The Wang and Yang Families attempt to persuade Lin Yuan Kui and Chen Le Zhi to switch sides, but they refuse.
• The Wu Family, one of Qingyang's Seven Great Ninth-Rank Cultivation Families, agrees to cooperate with the Meng Family.
• Gray Robe Jiang Lao, a rogue cultivator, arrives at the Meng Family residence.

Character Developments

• Meng Haoran: Proves his worth by winning the Family Tournament and recruits Gray Robe Jiang Lao.
• Meng Jingshan: Strengthens the Meng Family's alliance with the Lin and Chen Families, and initiates cooperation with the Wu Family.
• Lin Yuan Kui and Chen Le Zhi: Advance to the Foundation Establishment Realm and solidify their alliance with the Meng Family.
• Gray Robe Jiang Lao: Arrives at the Meng Family residence, indicating potential high-realm support for the family.

Significant Themes

• Alliance and cooperation: The Meng Family forms alliances with the Lin, Chen, and Wu Families to strengthen its position.
• Ambition and opportunity: The Meng Family seeks to advance from a low-ranking family to a Ranked Family, while other families try to hinder this progress.
• Trust and betrayal: The Lin and Chen Families could have betrayed the Meng Family for better rewards but chose to remain loyal, understanding the potential consequences of betrayal.

Character Interactions

• Meng Haoran and Gray Robe Jiang Lao: Meng Haoran successfully persuades Gray Robe Jiang Lao to join the Meng Family.
• Meng Jingshan, Lin Yuan Kui, and Chen Le Zhi: The three family leaders discuss cooperation terms with the Wu Family and welcome Gray Robe Jiang Lao.
• The Meng, Lin, and Chen Families: Their alliance strengthens as they work together against the Wang and Yang Families and cooperate with the Wu Family.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Jingshan introduces Gray Robe Jiang Lao's background.
• Jiang Lao reveals his reasons for joining the Meng Family: the family's rising strength and potential.
• Meng Jingshan outlines his plan to use Jiang Lao's Black Market connections to boost the Meng Family's rise to a Ranked Family.
• Meng Jingshan offers Jiang Lao a reward and protection to ensure his focus on the plan.

Character Developments

• Meng Jingshan: Shows strategic thinking and ambition in planning the family's rise.
• Jiang Lao (Jiang Henan): Reveals his past and expresses willingness to help the Meng Family, seeking protection and reward in return.

Significant Themes

• Ambition and strategic planning.
• The importance of connections and alliances in cultivation.
• The struggle for power and resources among cultivation families.

Character Interactions

• Meng Jingshan and Jiang Lao: They discuss the Meng Family's rise and Jiang Lao's role in it, leading to an agreement.
• Lin Yuan Kui and Meng Jingshan: They show unity and support for the Meng Family's plans, indicating their alliance.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Jingshan offers Jiang Haifei (Elder Jiang) a deal: cultivate within the Meng Family, receive all necessary resources until he reaches the Half-step Foundation Establishment Realm.
• Meng Jingshan explains the danger of handling valuable cultivation items in the Black Market without sufficient strength.
• Jiang Haifei agrees to the deal and joins the Meng Family as their first guest elder in centuries.
• One month later, Jiang Haifei emerges from seclusion, having advanced to the Tenth Layer of Qi Refining.
• Meng Jingshan tasks Jiang Haifei and Meng Haoran to go to the Black Market of Chiyang County together.

Character Developments

• Meng Jingshan: Shows strategic thinking and willingness to help others for the benefit of his family. He understands the importance of alliances and strength.
• Jiang Haifei: Initially hesitant, he accepts Meng Jingshan's offer and joins the Meng Family. He shows ambition and a desire to improve his cultivation.
• Meng Haoran: Shows respect and deference to Jiang Haifei, acknowledging his status within the family. He also demonstrates eagerness to venture into the wider world.

Significant Themes

• Alliances and Strength: Meng Jingshan recognizes the importance of alliances and strength in achieving the family's goals.
• Cultivation and Ambition: Both Jiang Haifei and Meng Haoran display a strong desire to improve their cultivation and advance in the cultivation world.

Character Interactions

• Meng Jingshan and Jiang Haifei: They form an alliance based on mutual benefit. Meng Jingshan offers resources, and Jiang Haifei provides strength and expertise in the Black Market.
• Jiang Haifei and Meng Haoran: They show mutual respect and acknowledge each other's status within the Meng Family. They also display a willingness to work together.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Haoran and Jiang Haifei (Jiang Lao) visit a black market in Chiyang County.
• They meet Granny Yu, a powerful and influential figure in the black market, who is initially hostile to Meng Haoran.
• Jiang Lao proposes a major business deal to Granny Yu: terminate her partnerships with low-ranking families in the Chiyang County Territory and work exclusively with him.
• Granny Yu is skeptical and challenges Jiang Lao to a duel. Despite her initial confidence, she is shocked by Jiang Lao's improved cultivation and the destruction of her precious plants.

Character Developments

• Meng Haoran remains composed and curious about Granny Yu's reputation and power.
• Jiang Lao reveals his newfound loyalty and confidence, indicating he has joined a powerful force (likely the Meng Family).
• Granny Yu displays her dominance, knowledge, and initial arrogance but is later surprised and humbled by Jiang Lao's strength.

Significant Themes

• Power dynamics and alliances in the cultivation world.
• The importance of reputation and respect in business dealings.
• The consequences of underestimating one's opponents.

Character Interactions

• Meng Haoran and Jiang Lao: They work together, with Jiang Lao guiding Meng Haoran and revealing information about Granny Yu.
• Jiang Lao and Granny Yu: Initially respectful but firm, Jiang Lao challenges Granny Yu's dominance and surprises her with his improved cultivation.
• Granny Yu and Meng Haoran: Hostile at first, Granny Yu is later impressed by Meng Haoran's composure and Jiang Lao's actions on his behalf.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Haoran and Gray Robe Jiang Lao visit Granny Yu to persuade her to cooperate with their Lineage.
• Jiang Lao demonstrates his cultivation progress (Tenth Layer of Qi Refining) by breaking Granny Yu's palm strike and destroying her flowers.
• Granny Yu agrees to cooperate with their Lineage, demanding a 30% cut of the profits.
• Jiang Lao agrees to Granny Yu's terms on behalf of their Lineage.
• Granny Yu ends her cooperation with other bottom-tier Lineages.

Character Developments

• Granny Yu: Shows her business acumen, demanding a high cut (30%) for her cooperation. She values trust and keeps her word.
• Jiang Lao: Demonstrates his cultivation progress and agrees to Granny Yu's high demands, showing his commitment to the Lineage's interests.
• Meng Haoran: Initially shocked by Granny Yu's demands, he later offers to replace the destroyed flowers, showing respect and consideration.

Significant Themes

• Trust and Word of Honor: Granny Yu values trust in business dealings and keeps her word once given.
• Power Dynamics: Granny Yu's strength and reputation allow her to demand high terms, while Jiang Lao's cultivation progress gives him leverage in negotiations.
• Business Acumen: Both Granny Yu and Jiang Lao demonstrate shrewd business sense, understanding the value of their respective positions.

Character Interactions

• Granny Yu and Jiang Lao: They engage in a negotiation where each party understands the other's strengths and demands, leading to a mutually beneficial agreement.
• Granny Yu and Meng Haoran: Meng Haoran shows respect and consideration toward Granny Yu, offering to replace the destroyed flowers.
• Granny Yu and Bottom-tier Lineages: Granny Yu ends her cooperation with these Lineages, showing her commitment to her agreement with Jiang Lao's Lineage.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Haoran and Jiang Lao (Gray Robe Jiang Lao, Jiang Haifei) discuss their deal with Granny Yu, with Jiang Lao revealing that he offered her 30% of the profits to secure her cooperation, knowing she was bluffing about thirteen lesser Lineages working with her.
• They are ambushed by cultivators from lesser Lineages in Chiyang County Territory, led by Jiang Tiannan, who want to know why Granny Yu cut off her cooperation with them.
• Jiang Lao reveals he offered Granny Yu 50% of the profits, enraging Jiang Tiannan, who orders his men to attack.

Character Developments

• Meng Haoran: Shows business acumen and concern for the Meng Family's finances, but is also quick to take defensive measures when danger approaches.
• Jiang Lao: Demonstrates his experience and wisdom in the Black Market, manipulating Granny Yu and outsmarting Jiang Tiannan. He remains calm and composed under threat.

Significant Themes

• Manipulation and Deception: Jiang Lao uses his knowledge of the Black Market to deceive Granny Yu and Jiang Tiannan, highlighting the importance of understanding one's opponent in negotiations.
• Loyalty and Betrayal: The lesser Lineages feel betrayed by Granny Yu's switch in allegiance, illustrating the fickle nature of alliances based on self-interest.

Character Interactions

• Meng Haoran and Jiang Lao: Their interaction shows a mentor-mentee dynamic, with Jiang Lao guiding Meng Haoran in the ways of the Black Market.
• Jiang Lao and Jiang Tiannan: Their exchange showcases Jiang Lao's cunning and Jiang Tiannan's impulsiveness, leading to the latter's downfall.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Haoran, now a Ninth Layer Qi Refining cultivator, easily defeats Jiang Tiannan, a Seventh Layer cultivator, using his Water Cloud Sword and Falling Mountain Stone techniques.
• Gray Robe Jiang Lao, a Tenth Layer Qi Refining cultivator, swiftly dispatches several disciples from lowly lineages using his Raging River Technique.
• Jiang Tiannan and his disciples are captured, and Gray Robe Jiang Lao challenges Granny Yu, who he suspects is nearby.

Character Developments

• Meng Haoran: Proves his strength and skill, advancing to the Ninth Layer of Qi Refining and defeating Jiang Tiannan.
• Jiang Tiannan: Underestimates Meng Haoran and is defeated, showing his arrogance and lack of caution.
• Gray Robe Jiang Lao: Demonstrates his power and experience, being one step away from the Half-step Foundation Establishment Realm and defeating multiple opponents easily.

Significant Themes

• Power dynamics and cultivation levels: Characters' strengths are determined by their cultivation levels, with higher levels allowing for more powerful techniques and easier victories.
• Arrogance and underestimation: Jiang Tiannan's overconfidence leads to his defeat, while Meng Haoran and Gray Robe Jiang Lao's caution and respect for their opponents contribute to their success.

Character Interactions

• Meng Haoran vs. Jiang Tiannan: Meng Haoran's superior cultivation and techniques lead to a swift and decisive victory over Jiang Tiannan.
• Gray Robe Jiang Lao vs. Disciples from lowly lineages: Gray Robe Jiang Lao easily defeats multiple opponents, showcasing his power and experience.
• Gray Robe Jiang Lao and Meng Haoran vs. Jiang Tiannan and his disciples: The duo works together, with Meng Haoran defeating Jiang Tiannan and Gray Robe Jiang Lao handling the other disciples, leading to a quick victory.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Jiang Tiannan and his group are defeated by Gray Robe Jiang Lao (Jiang Haifei) and Meng Haoran.
• Jiang Lao spares their lives on the condition they hand over their valuable possessions.
• Jiang Tiannan and his group vow to avenge their humiliation and track down Jiang Lao and Meng Haoran.
• Granny Yu, who had been watching, reveals herself after they leave and expresses disdain for their incompetence.

Character Developments

• Jiang Tiannan: Shows cowardice and desperation after defeat, but maintains a desire for revenge.
• Jiang Lao: Demonstrates his strength and ruthlessness, but also shows mercy when he chooses not to kill them.
• Meng Haoran: Proves himself a capable ally to Jiang Lao, displaying calm and strategic thinking.
• Granny Yu: Reveals her shrewd and calculating nature, assessing the situation and deciding to cooperate with Meng Haoran's lineage.

Significant Themes

• Power dynamics and the consequences of underestimating one's opponents.
• The importance of gathering information and understanding one's enemy before engaging in conflict.
• The theme of revenge and the lengths people will go to seek it.

Character Interactions

• Jiang Tiannan and Jiang Lao: A tense and hostile interaction, with Jiang Lao dominating and humiliating Jiang Tiannan.
• Jiang Tiannan and his group: They support each other in their desire for revenge but also show signs of infighting and manipulation.
• Granny Yu and Jiang Lao/Meng Haoran: Granny Yu assesses their strength and decides to cooperate with them, showing respect for their power.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Wang Teng, Wang Family's representative, informs Wang Renqi about a visit from the Jiang Family of Chiyang County.
• The Jiang Family presents portraits of Meng Haoran and an elderly man named Old Jiang, seeking information about them.
• Wang Teng recognizes Meng Haoran and reveals that the Meng Family has been secretly expanding their influence, including Black Market dealings in Chiyang County.
• Wang Renqi realizes that the Meng Family's recent rise is due to resources obtained through Old Jiang's Black Market transactions.

Character Developments

• Wang Renqi: Shows strategic thinking and quick comprehension of the situation, understanding the Meng Family's recent actions and their connection to Old Jiang.
• Wang Teng: Demonstrates loyalty and diligence in serving Wang Renqi, providing crucial information and supporting his patriarch.

Significant Themes

• Ambition and power dynamics among families.
• The influence of Black Market dealings and secret alliances.
• The importance of information and intelligence gathering.

Character Interactions

• Wang Renqi and Wang Teng: A patriarch-grandson relationship, with Wang Teng serving as Wang Renqi's eyes and ears, providing information and supporting his decisions.
• Wang Family and Jiang Family: Indirect interaction, with the Jiang Family seeking information from the Wang Family, implying potential rivalries or alliances.
• Wang Family and Meng Family: Implied rivalry, with the Wang Family seeking to undermine the Meng Family's growing influence and power.

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Meng Family begins production cooperation with the Wu Family, with clear profit-sharing agreements.
• The Meng Family prepares for its first Black Market deal with Granny Yu in Chiyang County.
• Wang Renqi and Yang Shoushen, leaders of two Ninth-Rank Cultivation Families, meet to discuss the Meng Family's growing power.
• A Beast Excitation Pill scent is detected, signaling an impending Spirit Beast tide from the Tianyang Mountain Range.

Character Developments

• Meng Jingshan, the Meng Family's clan leader, shows responsibility and decisiveness in preparing for the Spirit Beast tide.
• Gray Robe Jiang Lao Jiang Haifei demonstrates his experience and knowledge in identifying the Beast Excitation Pill scent.
• Wang Renqi and Yang Shoushen reveal their concerns about the Meng Family's rising influence and the potential disintegration of their alliance.

Significant Themes

• The shifting power dynamics among the cultivation families in Qingyang County Town.
• The importance of alliances and cooperation in maintaining power and influence.
• The potential threats and challenges posed by external forces, such as Spirit Beast tides.

Character Interactions

• Meng Jingshan and Gray Robe Jiang Lao Jiang Haifei discuss the importance of the first Black Market deal and prepare for the impending threat.
• Wang Renqi and Yang Shoushen meet to discuss their concerns about the Meng Family and plan to watch the Meng Family's destruction.
• Meng Jingshan rallies the Meng Family, Lin Family, and Chen Family to prepare for the Spirit Beast tide.

Chapter Summary: “Evacuating the Villagers”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Haoran learns from Gray Robe Jiang Lao that the approaching Spirit Beast tide may have been deliberately caused by a Ranked Family from Qingyang County Town.
• He entrusts the family’s goods to Jiang Haifei and rushes to help Meng Jingshan, summoning his powerful Thunderfire Tiger mount.
• The Meng, Lin, and Chen Families cooperate to evacuate all the villagers of Xinghua Village into their respective residences for protection.
• Meng Bohai initially tries to send Meng Haoran away, fearing for his safety, but Meng Haoran insists that his Ninth Layer Qi Refining cultivation makes him capable of contributing.
• As the evacuation finishes, the beast tide emerges from the Tianyang Mountain Range, accompanied by massive destruction and terrifying roars.
• Meng Jingshan reassures the villagers and organizes cultivators from all three families to resist the beasts. Foundation Establishment cultivators and Qi Refining experts lead the defense.
• Rather than immediately joining the battle, Meng Haoran studies the tide and realizes that the ordinary defensive force of the three families may not be enough. He then returns toward the Meng Family, apparently planning to devise another strategy.
• From a nearby hill, Wang Renqi mocks Meng Haoran for retreating, while Yang Shoushen remains cautious, believing the young cultivator may have a hidden plan.

Character Developments

• Meng Haoran: Demonstrates loyalty, courage, and growing maturity by actively helping evacuate civilians despite the danger. His Ninth Layer Qi Refining cultivation and strengthened Thunderfire Tiger establish him as one of the Meng Family’s stronger younger members. His decision to analyze the situation rather than recklessly charge into battle highlights his strategic thinking.
• Meng Jingshan: Takes responsibility for protecting both the villagers and the three allied families. His willingness to risk the families’ forces for the villagers shows a strong sense of leadership and duty.
• Meng Bohai: Treats Meng Haoran protectively, still viewing him as a child, but is forced to recognize that Haoran has become a capable cultivator.
• Gray Robe Jiang Lao: Is entrusted with guarding the family’s goods while the main forces respond to the crisis.
• Wang Renqi: Reveals a self-centered and pragmatic attitude, criticizing the evacuation as foolish and believing the families should prioritize their own survival.
• Yang Shoushen: Shares Wang’s doubts but is less dismissive of Meng Haoran, recognizing that the young man may be acting according to a larger plan.
• Lin Yuan Kui and Chen Le Zhi: Although they question Meng Jingshan’s decision to rescue the villagers, they continue cooperating with him and help lead the defense.

Significant Themes

• Responsibility and compassion: The three families risk themselves to save ordinary villagers, contrasting with the “every man for himself” philosophy expressed by Wang Renqi.
• Leadership and sacrifice: Meng Jingshan’s actions portray leadership as protecting vulnerable people even when doing so creates additional danger.
• Growth and recognition: Meng Haoran’s insistence that he is no longer a child reflects his transition into a more influential and capable member of the family.
• Strategy versus brute force: The chapter emphasizes that surviving the beast tide will require more than simply meeting it with strength. Meng Haoran’s observation suggests that intelligence and planning may determine the outcome.
• Hidden manipulation: The possibility that a Ranked Family deliberately caused the tide raises the stakes and suggests that the crisis is part of a broader conflict.

Character Interactions

• Meng Haoran consults with Jiang Haifei, then leaves the family’s supplies in his protection.
• He reunites with Meng Jingshan’s group and works alongside Meng Bohai to evacuate the villagers.
• Meng Bohai argues with Haoran over his safety, but Haoran’s cultivation and determination ultimately earn him permission to help.
• Meng Jingshan coordinates with Lin Yuan Kui and Chen Le Zhi, relying on their Foundation Establishment strength to confront the tide.
• Wang Renqi and Yang Shoushen observe the events from afar, mocking or analyzing the families’ decisions and particularly questioning Meng Haoran’s motives.

Chapter Summary: “Twelve Stone Statues”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Haoran unexpectedly emerges from the Meng Family compound, alarming Wang Renqi and confirming Yang Shoushen’s warning that he still has an undisclosed plan.
• Yang Shoushen threatens to reconsider his alliance with Wang Renqi if the Meng Family is not seriously weakened during the attack.
• A massive wave of Spirit Beasts, including Moon Ring Barbarian Bulls, charges toward Xinghua Village. Their eyes are bloodshot, revealing that they have been drugged and driven into a violent frenzy by the Wang Family’s Beast Excitation Pills.
• Meng Jingshan recognizes the danger and orders the cultivators to avoid direct combat where possible, focusing instead on diverting the beasts away from the village.
• The defensive line breaks under the overwhelming assault. Many cultivators are injured, and Spirit Beasts begin pouring through the breach.
• Meng Bohai attempts to seal the opening with his own body, but Meng Haoran stops him and volunteers to defend the breach alone.
• Despite Wang Renqi and Yang Shoushen mocking him and predicting his defeat, Meng Haoran enters the center of the beast tide.
• He uses the Control Image Technique to summon twelve enormous stone statues. The statues scatter the Spirit Beasts and clear the breach.
• Meng Haoran then arranges the statues into a defensive formation outside Xinghua Village, allowing Meng Jingshan and the others to counterattack and drive back the Spirit Beast tide.

Character Developments

• Meng Haoran demonstrates that he has gained a powerful new technique and remains calm and resourceful under extreme pressure. His willingness to risk himself for the clan reinforces his courage and leadership.
• Meng Jingshan acts as an experienced commander, quickly identifying the beasts’ abnormal condition and organizing the defense.
• Meng Bohai shows his loyalty and self-sacrificing nature by attempting to personally block the breach, while also recognizing Meng Haoran’s authority when Haoran takes over.
• Wang Renqi becomes increasingly uneasy and resentful toward both Meng Haoran and Yang Shoushen. His confidence is weakened by Haoran’s repeated interference with the Ranked Families’ plans.
• Yang Shoushen remains calculating and threatening, using the crisis to pressure Wang Renqi while underestimating Meng Haoran’s abilities.

Significant Themes

• Hidden strength and strategic patience: Meng Haoran’s return reveals that appearances can be deceptive and that the true outcome cannot be judged prematurely.
• Courage versus arrogance: Haoran succeeds where powerful outsiders expect him to fail, contrasting genuine bravery with the dismissive confidence of Wang Renqi and Yang Shoushen.
• Sacrifice and responsibility: Meng Bohai and Meng Haoran both place themselves in danger to protect Xinghua Village and the wider clan.
• Manipulation of nature: The Spirit Beasts have been artificially enraged through the Beast Excitation Pills, showing how the powerful exploit living creatures as weapons.
• Family unity against external threats: The Meng cultivators cooperate under pressure, with Haoran’s technique turning a collapsing defense into an organized counterattack.

Character Interactions

• Yang Shoushen pressures Wang Renqi by making their continued relationship conditional on the destruction of the Meng Family.
• Meng Jingshan and Meng Bohai coordinate the defense, warning others about the beasts and trying to maintain the protective line.
• Meng Haoran directly intervenes when Meng Bohai prepares to sacrifice himself, taking responsibility for the breach.
• Wang Renqi and Yang Shoushen ridicule Haoran’s decision, but his successful use of the twelve statues disproves their judgment.
• After Haoran creates the formation, Meng Jingshan recognizes the opportunity and rallies the Meng forces to repel the Spirit Beasts.

Chapter Summary: “Spirit Beasts Change Direction”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Haoran’s twelve enormous stone statues successfully block the Spirit Beast tide from entering Xinghua Village. Unable to break through, the beasts divert around the village.
• The defensive line formed by the Meng, Lin, and Chen Families protects Xinghua Village, but the redirected Spirit Beasts surge toward Qingyang County Town.
• On a nearby hill, Yang Shoushen and Wang Renqi realize that their plan to use Beast Excitation Pills against the Meng Family has failed. Yang criticizes the Ranked Families for underestimating the Meng Family and declares that the Yang and Wang Families’ cooperation is over.
• Wang Renqi attempts to preserve their thousand-year alliance by offering to bear the cost of the Beast Excitation Pills, but Yang refuses after seeing that a large portion of the Spirit Beasts has turned toward Qingyang County Town.
• Wang later understands that Yang’s anger is not merely about the failed ambush: the beasts are heading toward the Spirit Plant Fields owned by the Ranked Families. He orders his people to intervene.
• Meng Haoran also recognizes the danger. If the Meng forces leave Xinghua Village, the beasts may invade it; if they stay, the Spirit Plant Fields may be destroyed.
• Meng Haoran assigns Meng Bohai to remain behind and use the Control Image Technique to operate the stone statues. He then joins Meng Jingshan, Lin Yuankui, and Chen Le Zhi in rushing to protect the Meng Family’s Spirit Plant Fields.
• The chapter ends with Meng Haoran calling for “Little Tiger,” presumably preparing another response to the approaching threat.

Character Developments

• Meng Haoran: Demonstrates foresight, tactical flexibility, and calm leadership. He immediately identifies the new danger and devises a plan that allows the village and the Spirit Plant Fields to be protected simultaneously.
• Meng Bohai: Is entrusted with controlling the mysterious stone statues, highlighting his expertise with the Control Image Technique and his importance in the defense.
• Meng Jingshan, Lin Yuankui, and Chen Le Zhi: Cooperate decisively with Meng Haoran, putting aside family boundaries to protect the Spirit Plant Fields.
• Yang Shoushen: Becomes disillusioned with the Ranked Families’ arrogance and recognizes the Meng Family’s hidden strength. However, he reacts decisively when the redirected beasts threaten the Yang Family’s interests.
• Wang Renqi: Initially focuses on preserving his alliance with Yang, but later becomes shocked and enraged when he understands the danger to the Ranked Families’ Spirit Plant Fields.

Significant Themes

• Underestimation and changing power dynamics: The Meng Family’s hidden capabilities force the established Ranked Families to reconsider their superiority.
• Consequences of manipulation: The Beast Excitation Pills, used to provoke the Spirit Beast tide, create a threat that ultimately endangers the very families responsible for the scheme.
• Leadership and crisis management: Meng Haoran’s ability to divide responsibilities and respond to multiple threats shows effective strategic leadership.
• Fragile alliances: The thousand-year cooperation between the Wang and Yang Families begins to collapse when their interests and responsibilities conflict.
• Collective survival versus self-interest: The Meng, Lin, and Chen Families cooperate to defend their shared interests, while the Wang and Yang Families become divided over blame and priorities.

Important Character Interactions

• Yang Shoushen confronts Wang Renqi and ends their families’ cooperation after the failed attack and the Spirit Beasts’ change in direction.
• Wang Renqi tries to repair their relationship by offering to pay for the Beast Excitation Pills, but Yang refuses.
• Meng Haoran consults Meng Bohai and Meng Jingshan, assigning each a specific role in the emergency response.
• Meng Jingshan joins forces with Lin Yuankui and Chen Le Zhi to defend the Meng Family’s Spirit Plant Fields.

Chapter Summary: “Tiger’s Might on Full Display”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After Meng Haoran realizes the Wang and Yang Families may be involved in causing the Spirit Beast tide, the tide reaches the family Spirit Plant Fields.
• Meng Jingshan orders the Meng Family to form a defensive formation. Because their field is relatively small, Meng Haoran and the others successfully protect it.
• The Wang and Yang Families, possessing much larger fields but having too few people to defend them, are unable to stop the Spirit Beasts from destroying their nearly mature crops.
• Meng Haoran notices that the Wu Family’s Spirit Plant Field is also at risk. Concerned that failing to help would damage the Meng Family’s new cooperation with the Wu Family, he volunteers to defend it.
• Meng Haoran and the Thunderfire Tiger rush to the Wu Family’s field. Since only scattered Spirit Beasts are approaching that area, Meng Haoran drives them back while the tiger confronts the rest.
• The Thunderfire Tiger unleashes its Ancient Bloodline Power, frightening the attacking Spirit Beasts into retreat.
• The tiger kills one Spirit Beast and absorbs its beast power, causing its strength to increase and indicating that it is progressing toward evolution into a second-tier Spirit Beast.
• Magistrate Song Zhiyi arrives from Qingyang County with Advisor Hu Huili and forces from the Ranked Families, apparently responding to the Spirit Beast crisis.

Character Developments

• Meng Haoran demonstrates strategic awareness and political sensitivity. Rather than focusing only on protecting his own family’s interests, he recognizes the importance of preserving the Meng–Wu alliance.
• Meng Jingshan acts as a decisive leader, organizing the Meng Family’s defense and trusting Meng Haoran to handle the Wu Family’s field.
• The Thunderfire Tiger displays a dramatic increase in power. Its Ancient Bloodline Power produces strong bloodline suppression, allowing it to intimidate multiple Spirit Beasts without immediately fighting them.
• The tiger’s absorption of beast power suggests that it is actively evolving, creating anticipation for its eventual breakthrough to the second tier.
• Wang Renqi and Yang Shoushen are shown in a helpless and disorderly state as their families’ extensive Spirit Plant Fields are ravaged, reversing their usual advantage over the Meng Family.
• Song Zhiyi and the Ranked Family forces arrive as an external authority capable of changing the balance of the crisis.

Significant Themes

• Consequences and retribution: Meng Haoran takes satisfaction in seeing the Wang and Yang Families suffer, implying that those who manipulate events for their own gain eventually face consequences.
• Cooperation and loyalty: Meng Haoran protects the Wu Family’s field to preserve trust and prevent resentment, showing that alliances require concrete action.
• Bloodline power and evolution: The Thunderfire Tiger’s Ancient Bloodline Power illustrates the importance of inherited potential, cultivation resources, and gradual transformation.
• Family strength and preparedness: The Meng Family’s smaller size becomes an advantage because its members can coordinate effectively, while the larger Ranked Families struggle to defend their expansive holdings.
• Power reversal: The Wang and Yang Families, previously influential, become vulnerable, while the Meng Family and its Spirit Beast emerge as unexpectedly powerful.

Character Interactions

• Meng Haoran privately mocks Wang Renqi and Yang Shoushen but ultimately acts pragmatically rather than exploiting their misfortune directly.
• He informs Meng Jingshan of the Wu Family’s danger, persuading him to let the Thunderfire Tiger and himself provide assistance.
• Meng Jingshan warns Meng Haoran to be careful but accepts his plan, reflecting mutual trust.
• Meng Haoran observes and analyzes the Thunderfire Tiger’s behavior, recognizing that its strength comes from both its bloodline and the Heavenly Cauldron’s Cauldron Liquid and other resources.
• The arrival of Song Zhiyi and Advisor Hu Huili introduces a new interaction between the local families and the county authorities, setting up the next stage of the crisis.

Chapter Summary: “Handling the Losses”

Key Plot Points and Events

• County Magistrate Song Zhiyi arrives at the devastated Spirit Plant Fields, where the Spirit Beast tide has destroyed several thousand mu of nearly mature crops.
• The Ranked Families and county constables help drive the remaining Spirit Beasts into the area, but the scale of the destruction leaves everyone facing a disastrous harvest.
• Song Zhiyi asks the families to explain the origin of the Spirit Beast tide. The Wang and Yang Family heads avoid answering, as do the other Ranked Families.
• Meng Jingshan steps forward and recounts how the Meng, Lin, and Chen Families discovered the beasts gathering in the Tianyang Mountain Range and built defenses around Xinghua Village.
• The defenses held long enough to protect Xinghua Village, but part of the tide split away and attacked the surrounding Spirit Plant Fields.
• Meng Jingshan suggests that the tide may have been deliberately provoked, implying that someone is manipulating events from the shadows.
• Before the matter can be investigated, Zhu Jianwen from Gao Lao Village arrives with villagers to report that their farmland has been completely destroyed, threatening the villagers’ livelihoods.
• Wang Renqi attempts to shift blame onto the Meng Family, accusing them of failing to eliminate the tide and deliberately diverting it into Qingyang County Territory.
• County Magistrate Song Zhiyi rejects Wang’s accusation, defending the Meng Family’s efforts and criticizing the Ranked Families for doing less despite their greater status.
• Meng Jingshan takes responsibility for the unavoidable diversion of the beasts and promises that the Meng Family will fully compensate Gao Lao Village for its losses within three days, ensuring the villagers can survive the New Year.

Character Developments

• Meng Jingshan demonstrates leadership, accountability, and political maturity. Rather than deny responsibility or attack the villagers, he openly acknowledges the Meng Family’s role and offers complete compensation.
• County Magistrate Song Zhiyi establishes himself as fair-minded and willing to defend weaker families. He recognizes that the Meng Family protected Xinghua Village more effectively than the Ranked Families and promises a thorough investigation.
• Wang Renqi reveals himself as opportunistic and defensive, attempting to use the disaster to discredit the Meng Family and evade scrutiny of the Ranked Families’ own silence.
• Zhu Jianwen represents the vulnerable common people. Though angry and desperate over Gao Lao Village’s losses, he is surprised and hesitant when Meng Jingshan offers restitution.
• The other Ranked Family heads, including Yang Shoushen, appear evasive and possibly implicated, refusing to explain the Spirit Beast tide.

Significant Themes

• Responsibility versus blame: The chapter contrasts Wang Renqi’s attempt to assign blame with Meng Jingshan’s willingness to accept responsibility and repair the damage.
• Leadership and moral authority: True authority is shown through protecting ordinary people and taking responsibility, not merely through family rank or political status.
• Class and social inequality: The devastation affects both powerful cultivator families and farming villages, but the commoners face the most immediate threat because their livelihoods depend entirely on their fields.
• Political intrigue and hidden manipulation: Meng Jingshan’s suspicion that the Spirit Beast tide was artificially provoked introduces a larger conspiracy behind the disaster.
• Justice and compensation: The chapter emphasizes that justice requires more than identifying fault; those affected must receive practical aid.

Character Interactions

• Song Zhiyi questions the silent family heads, indirectly exposing their reluctance to discuss the tide.
• Meng Jingshan reports the incident to Song Zhiyi, positioning himself as cooperative and honest.
• Wang Renqi publicly attacks the Meng Family, creating a direct conflict between the two families.
• Song Zhiyi intervenes to defend Meng Jingshan and rebuke Wang Renqi.
• Zhu Jianwen appeals to the county magistrate for justice, but Meng Jingshan directly addresses him instead, apologizing and promising compensation.
• Zhu Jianwen’s shocked response shows that Meng’s conciliatory offer is unexpected and may prevent further conflict between Xinghua Village and Gao Lao Village.

Summary of “An Excellent Opportunity”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Meng Jingshan reassures Zhu Jianwen that Xinghua Village bears responsibility for the damage suffered by Gao Lao Village during the Spirit Beast Tide. He offers to compensate Gao Lao Village, despite the destruction not being directly caused by Xinghua Village.
• Magistrate Song Zhiyi intervenes and declares that the county government will cover Gao Lao Village’s losses, since the Spirit Beast Tide appears to have been largely a natural disaster. Zhu Jianwen gratefully accepts and leads his villagers in thanking Song.
• Song subtly redirects the villagers’ gratitude toward Meng Jingshan and the Meng Family, emphasizing that their willingness to compensate others set an example for the cultivation families of Qingyang County.
• After the villagers depart, Song confronts the heads of the Seven Great Ninth-Rank Cultivation Families, particularly Wang Renqi and Yang Shoushen. He criticizes them for refusing to help Gao Lao Village while the supposedly “lowly” Meng Family took the initiative.
• Song’s challenge places the Wang and Yang Families in a difficult position: admitting inferiority to the Meng Family would damage their prestige, while acknowledging the Meng Family as their equal could support its promotion to a Ranked Family.
• Song announces that he believes the Spirit Beast Tide was deliberately caused by someone and vows to investigate. He urges the Ranked Families to report any evidence and promises generous rewards for useful information.
• Song privately speaks with Meng Jingshan before leaving with Hu Huili. Meng then departs after briefly exchanging words with Wu Bochang.
• Wu Bochang leaves without openly accusing anyone, though he clearly suspects that the Spirit Beast Tide was connected to the Ranked Families and knows who may be responsible.
• Yang Shoushen sarcastically condemns Wang Renqi and the families that followed the Wang Family’s lead, calling their actions foolish. He then formally declares that the Wang and Yang Families will have no further ties.
• In the county office, Song prepares to leave despite the many duties awaiting him. When Hu Huili questions this, Song says that the current situation presents an “excellent opportunity” that must not be wasted.

Character Developments

• Meng Jingshan: Demonstrates generosity, responsibility, and political wisdom. His offer to compensate Gao Lao Village strengthens the Meng Family’s reputation and elevates its standing among the county’s cultivation families.
• Zhu Jianwen: Shows integrity by hesitating to accept compensation from the Meng Family, knowing they were not truly responsible. He becomes deeply grateful after the county government offers assistance.
• Magistrate Song Zhiyi: Emerges as a shrewd political strategist. He uses the Meng Family’s charitable act to pressure the older Ranked Families and potentially create an opportunity to advance the Meng Family’s status.
• Wang Renqi: Is placed on the defensive and becomes visibly irritated when Yang Shoushen criticizes the Wang Family’s leadership.
• Yang Shoushen: Breaks with Wang Renqi and openly condemns the decisions made under the Wang Family’s influence, suggesting a major political realignment.
• Wu Bochang: Maintains caution and restraint. Though he knows the likely truth behind the Spirit Beast Tide, he refuses to accuse anyone without evidence.
• Hu Huili: Acts as Song’s practical advisor, questioning the magistrate’s decision to leave during a time of administrative crisis.

Significant Themes

• Political maneuvering and reputation: Public charity becomes a tool for reshaping power relationships among cultivation families.
• Justice and responsibility: Meng Jingshan accepts moral responsibility even when the Meng Family is not legally at fault, while the county government assumes financial responsibility for the victims.
• The rise of the Meng Family: The family’s actions contrast sharply with those of the established Ranked Families, strengthening the argument that it deserves greater recognition.
• Truth versus political caution: Several characters suspect the Spirit Beast Tide was deliberately engineered, but fear of political consequences prevents open accusations.
• Fracturing alliances: The conflict reveals divisions among the Ranked Families, especially the breakdown between the Wang and Yang Families.
• Opportunity amid crisis: Song views the disaster not only as a tragedy but also as a chance to investigate the conspiracy and alter the political balance of Qingyang County.

Important Character Interactions

• Meng Jingshan and Zhu Jianwen: Their exchange highlights Meng’s generosity and Zhu’s moral hesitation.
• Song Zhiyi and Zhu Jianwen: Song offers official compensation and carefully ensures that Meng receives public credit.
• Song Zhiyi versus Wang Renqi and Yang Shoushen: Song exposes the families’ hypocrisy and forces them into an uncomfortable debate over the Meng Family’s growing influence.
• Yang Shoushen and Wang Renqi: Their bitter exchange culminates in Yang ending the Wang-Yang alliance.
• Wu Bochang and the other family heads: Wu’s silent departure reflects his distrust and refusal to participate in unsupported accusations.
• Song Zhiyi and Hu Huili: Their final conversation hints that Song is preparing to act on the political and investigative opportunity created by the Spirit Beast Tide.

Chapter Summary: The Qinghe Commandery Governor

Key Plot Points and Events

• Magistrate Song Zhiyi travels from Qingyang County to the Qinghe Commandery Office at the end of the year, when officials are reporting their annual work.
• He is granted a private meeting with Commandery Governor Tang Shouyuan, a powerful Peak God Transformation Realm cultivator who has governed the lower-ranking Qinghe Commandery for thirteen years.
• Song explains that he has come to request promotion of a lowly family in Qingyang County to Ranked Family status.
• Tang initially warns him that promotion is extremely difficult: only three families in the entire commandery can receive the status every five years, and many magistrates are competing for those limited places.
• Song reveals that the family he represents is the Meng Family of Xinghua Village, a family whose development was partly enabled by Tang’s own past assistance.
• Song argues that the Meng Family is uniquely qualified because it possesses:
  • Two Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators
  • An affiliated family with another Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator
  • Several Half-step Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators
• After considering Song’s evidence and determination, Tang agrees to support the Meng Family’s promotion.

Character Developments

• Magistrate Song Zhiyi is shown to be politically perceptive and highly persuasive. Although usually straightforward and honest, he uses tactful flattery and carefully structured arguments to advocate for the Meng Family.
• Commandery Governor Tang Shouyuan is established as both a respected administrator and a powerful cultivator. He initially appears cautious because of the intense competition for Ranked Family promotions, but his personal connection to the Meng Family and recognition of its strength influence his decision.
• Their exchange reveals a relationship based on familiarity and mutual respect, with Tang calling Song “Brother Song” and joking about his unexpected flattery.

Significant Themes

• Political influence and persuasion: Advancement depends not only on qualifications but also on the ability to present a compelling case to those in power.
• Merit versus competition: The Meng Family’s accomplishments distinguish it from numerous other candidates competing for limited recognition.
• Networks and past assistance: Tang’s earlier help contributed to the Meng Family’s rise, suggesting that personal relationships and long-term connections matter in official decisions.
• Power and status: The chapter emphasizes the importance of Ranked Family status and the cultivation strength required to attain social and political recognition.

Character Interactions

• Song respectfully approaches Tang but gradually shifts from formal deference to familiar conversation.
• Tang teases Song for flattering him, yet clearly enjoys the praise.
• Song presents a series of rhetorical questions, allowing Tang to acknowledge that no rival family matches the Meng Family’s strength.
• Tang ultimately concedes to Song’s argument and agrees to promote the Meng Family, marking a significant political victory for Song and the family he represents.

Chapter Summary: “Successful Persuasion”

Key Plot Points and Events

• County Magistrate Song Zhiyi petitions Commandery Governor Tang Shouyuan to support the Xinghua Village Meng Family’s promotion from a low-ranking cultivation family to a Ranked Family.
• Song explains that the Meng Family had qualified for advancement ten years earlier, but the Black Mountain Bandits severely weakened them and delayed their promotion.
• The Meng Family has since rebuilt its strength and regained the qualifications needed for advancement.
• Of Qingyang County’s seven Ninth-Rank Cultivation Families:
  • The Wu Family cooperates with the Meng Family.
  • The Wang and Yang Families actively oppose the Meng Family and sabotage its progress.
• Song recounts the recent Spirit Beast tide in the Tianyang Mountain Range, claiming that the hostile Ranked Families likely caused it by purchasing pills that provoked the beasts. The Meng Family suffered particularly severe losses.
• Despite the destruction, Meng Family Patriarch Meng Jingshan publicly accepted responsibility for compensating the affected villages, embarrassing the opposing Ranked Families, who nevertheless shamelessly sought compensation from Song.
• Song reminds Tang that the seven Ranked Families were also behind the Black Mountain Bandits years earlier, though insufficient evidence prevented official punishment.
• Tang concludes that the Qingyang Ranked Families have become dangerously defiant and need to be disciplined.
• Tang questions why the Wu Family abandoned its long-standing alliance with the other families. Song explains that the Wu Family, oppressed by the Wang and Yang Families, allied with the Meng Family to gain a powerful partner.
• Tang correctly deduces that Song secretly encouraged the Wu–Meng alliance and that Song’s support for the Meng Family is partly motivated by his own career ambitions.
• Song honestly admits that he hopes to establish a new Ranked Family before his term ends, thereby strengthening his future political prospects.
• The chapter ends with Tang silently considering Song’s confession and proposal.

Character Developments

• Song Zhiyi: Reveals himself as both a principled official opposing corruption and a pragmatic political strategist. He openly admits that helping the Meng Family will benefit his career, showing honesty and calculated ambition.
• Tang Shouyuan: Demonstrates political insight, quickly recognizing the hidden motives behind Song’s request. He appears increasingly convinced that the Qingyang Ranked Families have abused their power.
• Meng Jingshan: Is portrayed as responsible, courageous, and honorable for accepting accountability for the Spirit Beast tide’s victims despite the Meng Family’s own losses.
• Wu Bochang and the Wu Family: Emerge as pragmatic defectors from the traditional alliance of Ranked Families, seeking protection and influence through cooperation with the Meng Family.
• Wang and Yang Families: Are characterized as domineering, conspiratorial, and willing to harm villages and manipulate disasters to preserve their status.

Significant Themes

• Political manipulation and ambition: Song’s support for the Meng Family serves both justice and his personal advancement.
• Corruption and entrenched power: The old Ranked Families use their influence to obstruct government orders, suppress rivals, and evade accountability.
• Rise of a new power: The Meng Family’s advancement threatens the established balance among Qingyang’s cultivation families.
• Responsibility and integrity: Meng Jingshan’s willingness to compensate victims contrasts sharply with the selfishness of the opposing families.
• Strategic alliances: The Wu–Meng partnership illustrates how oppressed factions may realign when an old power structure becomes intolerable.
• Evidence versus political judgment: Although Tang and Song lack conclusive proof against the Ranked Families, their experience and instincts strongly suggest their guilt.

Character Interactions

• Song carefully persuades Tang by combining historical grievances, recent evidence, and praise for the Meng Family’s conduct.
• Tang repeatedly probes Song’s explanations, exposing the political calculations behind his seemingly selfless appeal.
• Song acknowledges Tang’s superior insight and ultimately confesses his ambitions rather than risking the failure of his long-term plans.
• Their exchange establishes a relationship based on mutual intelligence: Song is an ambitious local official, while Tang is a perceptive superior deciding whether to intervene against Qingyang’s entrenched families.

Chapter Summary: “Cauldron Source Power”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Commandery Governor Tang Shouyuan officially approves County Magistrate Song Zhiyi’s proposal to elevate the Xinghua Village Meng Family into a Ninth-Rank Cultivation Family.
• Song Zhiyi is overjoyed because this advancement fulfills one of his major political goals. Establishing an eighth ranked family in Qingyang County will strengthen his reputation and improve his prospects for promotion within Qinghe Commandery.
• Tang warns Song that the Meng Family’s advancement will increase his responsibilities. Qingyang County now has eight Ninth-Rank Cultivation Families, more than any other county under Tang’s authority.
• The other six established Ninth-Rank Families, apart from the cooperative Wu Family, are expected to oppose or target the newly promoted Meng Family.
• Tang gives Song a small wooden box and orders him to deliver it safely to Meng Jingshan. He warns that losing its contents could bring disaster upon the entire Meng Family.
• Song correctly guesses that the box contains a Cauldron Eye, an essential object required for a family to enter the Great Yu Immortal Dynasty’s ranked-family system.
• Tang explains that the Cauldron Eye will allow the Meng Family to receive Cauldron Source Power, a pure form of spiritual energy distributed through the Dynasty’s Heaven and Earth Great Array.
• The Meng Family’s initial supply will be limited because it has only just attained ranked status and has not yet rendered significant service to the Great Yu Immortal Dynasty. Its supply will increase as the family accumulates merit.

Character Developments

• Song Zhiyi demonstrates ambition, political intelligence, and deep loyalty to Tang Shouyuan. His success in helping establish the Meng Family as a ranked family could lead to promotion and, eventually, a chance to become a Commandery Governor himself.
• Song also shows strong determination, swearing that he will protect Qingyang County and fulfill Tang’s expectations despite the opposition the Meng Family will face.
• Tang Shouyuan appears as a supportive but demanding patron. He rewards Song’s achievement while emphasizing that greater authority brings greater responsibility. His gift of the Cauldron Eye shows his continued investment in the Meng Family’s future.
• Meng Jingshan and the Meng Family do not appear directly but become central to the chapter’s events through their elevation and the immense opportunities and dangers that accompany it.

Significant Themes

• Political advancement and responsibility: Song’s success raises his status, but Tang stresses that power must be matched by ability and accountability.
• Family advancement through the cultivation hierarchy: Becoming a ranked family is portrayed as extremely difficult and politically dangerous, especially after a thousand-year absence of such advancement in Qingyang County.
• Merit and state power: The Great Yu Immortal Dynasty rewards families with Cauldron Source Power according to their service, tying cultivation strength to loyalty and political contribution.
• Opportunity accompanied by danger: The Meng Family gains access to extraordinary cultivation resources, but its new status makes it a target for stronger rival families.
• Institutional strength of the Dynasty: The Heaven and Earth Great Array, the National Cauldrons, and the Immortal Nine-Rank Zhongzheng System together form the foundation of the Dynasty’s long-lasting rule.

Character Interactions

• Song respectfully seeks Tang’s approval and expresses intense gratitude when it is granted.
• Tang balances praise with stern advice, reminding Song not to become arrogant and urging him to defend the Meng Family against rival ranked families.
• Their exchange reflects a patron-and-subordinate relationship, but Tang’s use of “Brother Song” and his personal gift suggest mutual trust and a close political alliance.
• Tang entrusts Song with the Cauldron Eye, making Song responsible for safely delivering the Meng Family’s most important advancement-related resource to Meng Jingshan.