Chapter Summaries

Lin Taichu helped Third Squad defeat a Blood Demon Sect attack at Black Wind Ridge, then was appointed its temporary captain. Three days later, he led the squad out to investigate the sect’s purpose and uncover its position.

• Lin Taichu and his teammates defeated the scar-faced Blood Demon Sect cultivator, who self-destructed, and killed the two fleeing demonic cultivators.
• Zhao Hu and the others returned to the Barracks with Zheng Yue’s remains and reported the battle to Li Zhan.
• Li Zhan appointed Lin Taichu temporary captain of Third Squad and ordered him to lead an investigation into Black Wind Ridge in three days.
• Lin Taichu studied the squad and terrain with Zhao Hu, identified a likely demonic cultivator position, and arranged to bring Formation-breaking artifacts and Detoxification Pills.
• At dawn three days later, Lin Taichu led Zhao Hu, Qian Ming, four others, and two scouts out toward Black Wind Ridge.

Lin Taichu led Third Squad into Black Wind Ridge and discovered the Blood Demon Sect was preparing a Blood Array to capture the wounded dark demon. The squad began a coordinated night raid, and Lin Taichu’s group reached the Array as Zhao Hu’s distraction drew most of the Cultivators away.

• Lin Taichu led Third Squad through Black Wind Ridge and followed a group of Blood Demon Sect Cultivators to a valley.
• Lin Taichu and Zhao Hu recognized that the Blood Demon Sect was using a Blood Array to capture the dark demon and planned to destroy its core.
• Lin Taichu divided the squad, leading Qian Ming and two others toward the Array while Zhao Hu took two members to create a distraction.
• Lin Taichu killed a lone patrol with the Reincarnation Token, and his companions dealt with other patrols before regrouping near the Blood Array.
• Zhao Hu’s group set off a deafening blast, prompting most of the Blood Demon Sect Cultivators to leave the Array and investigate.

Lin Taichu destroyed the Blood Array and helped drive off the Blood Demon Sect, then learned from their leader’s Jade Slip that Beast Luring Formations were set to unleash a Beast Tide on Yunshui City. With only two days left, he led a team toward the nearest formation node at Eagle Beak Cliff.

• Lin Taichu and his companions attacked the Blood Array, and Lin Taichu shattered its core with the Reincarnation Token and Bronze Cauldron fragment.
• The Blood Demon Sect pursued Lin Taichu’s wounded team until Commander Li Zhan and the Royal Guard arrived and forced the Cultivators to flee.
• Li Zhan gave Lin Taichu a Jade Slip that revealed the Blood Demon Sect’s plan to activate Beast Luring Formations across Black Wind Ridge and attack Yunshui City with a Beast Tide.
• Lin Taichu and Zhao Hu volunteered to search for the formations, and Li Zhan assigned them ten guards and supplies.
• Lin Taichu led a fifteen-person team toward Eagle Beak Cliff, where they saw demonic beasts acting wildly under the influence of demonic qi.

Lin Taichu and his group destroyed a Beast Luring Formation at Eagle Beak Cliff, but a massive Beast Tide attacked them. After breaking through the encirclement, they fled into a Stone Forest, where the battle continued as their strength dwindled.

• Lin Taichu, Zhao Hu, and two guards destroyed the blood pool powering the level-three Beast Luring Formation at Eagle Beak Cliff.
• Lin Taichu sensed a Beast Tide approaching and led the group off the cliff as the first demonic beasts attacked.
• Lin Taichu used the Reincarnation Token to shield the group while Qian Ming and Zhao Hu helped repel the beasts.
• Lin Taichu led the group through a gap to the northeast and fought off pursuers as they broke out of the encirclement.
• Zhao Hu directed everyone into a Stone Forest, where Lin Taichu saved Qian Ming from a giant python.
• After half an hour of fighting and retreating through the Stone Forest, the group was exhausted and low on spiritual power.

Lin Taichu and the wounded Third Squad discovered the Blood Demon Sect behind the Beast Tide and watched it slaughter Seventh Squad. Lin Taichu fought to help his comrades escape, but the elder defeated him and demanded his treasures as Lin Taichu warned that the destroyed Beast Luring Formation would soon make the beasts turn on them.

• Lin Taichu spotted Seventh Squad trapped by the Beast Tide, but the beasts abruptly opened a path for the Blood Demon Sect.
• The Blood Demon Sect elder revealed that Mad Beast Powder and flute music had been used to unleash the Beast Tide, then ordered his followers to kill Seventh Squad and collect their Essence Blood.
• After discovering Lin Taichu and Third Squad hiding in the Stone Forest, the elder recognized Lin Taichu and ordered his followers to capture them.
• Lin Taichu held off the attackers with the Reincarnation Token and Bronze Cauldron fragment while Zhao Hu led the others toward an escape route.
• The elder stopped Zhao Hu, and Lin Taichu used his remaining spiritual power to save him before the elder shattered Lin Taichu's barrier and knocked him down.
• The elder demanded Lin Taichu's treasures, but Lin Taichu warned that the destroyed Beast Luring Formation would soon leave the Beast Tide uncontrolled.

Lin Taichu used a Communication Talisman to summon the Tianshui Kingdom Royal Guard, and Li Zhan defeated the Blood Demon Sect forces at the Stone Forest. The survivors learned that the Beast Tide plot was tied to the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild's plan to seize Yunshui City's Spirit Vein mine.

• Lin Taichu detonated a Communication Talisman from Elder Su, burning the Blood Demon Sect old man and sending a signal for help.
• Li Zhan arrived with the Royal Guard, killed the fleeing old man, and ordered his forces to leave no Blood Demon Sect cultivators alive.
• Qian Ming and the others rescued the injured Zhao Hu while Li Zhan gave Lin Taichu a healing pill and confirmed that other squads were searching for the remaining Beast Luring Formations.
• The Royal Guard reported Zheng Yue's death and the loss of the Seventh Squad, while Li Zhan ordered the seized Essence Blood destroyed and the Demonic Artifacts sealed away.
• A guard found a map and Secret Letter linking the Blood Demon Sect to the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild, whose plan was to exploit the Beast Tide and seize Yunshui City's Spirit Vein mine.

After Lin Taichu was badly wounded fighting the Blood Demon Sect, Li Zhan took him to Yunshui City for treatment while the Royal Guard contained the Beast Tide. Lin Taichu regained consciousness on the third day and learned the city was safe, but the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild’s influence still complicated the fallout.

• Li Zhan ordered the spirit vein mines reinforced and the Beast Luring Formations destroyed, then carried the injured Lin Taichu back to the Barracks.
• A military doctor warned that demonic energy threatened Lin Taichu’s heart meridian, so Li Zhan escorted him to Yunshui City’s Spiritual Medicine Hall.
• The Gym Master treated Lin Taichu with a medicinal bath, Miasma Clearing Pills, and the Golden Needle Spirit Transfer Technique while Qian Ming watched over him.
• Qian Ming reported that Li Zhan had purged the Blood Demon Sect’s remaining forces and destroyed the Beast Luring Formations, temporarily saving Yunshui City.
• Lin Taichu woke on the third day and learned that the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild was accused of colluding with the Blood Demon Sect but remained protected by wealth and political connections.
• Lin Taichu continued recovering as Qian Ming gathered information about Yunshui City and the Tianshui Kingdom.

As Lin Taichu recovered in Yunshui City, he saw the people’s anger toward the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild and their support for the Demon Slaying Army. Li Zhan promoted him to Centurion and said the court might need his help investigating the Guild.

• Lin Taichu walked through Yunshui City and heard residents condemn the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild for aiding the Blood Demon Sect.
• Lin Taichu heard a storyteller praise his actions at Black Wind Ridge and learned that the royal family had commended him.
• An Old Man directed Lin Taichu to a station where civilians and merchants donated free medicine to injured Cultivators and guards.
• Li Zhan gave Lin Taichu a Centurion's token and explained that the king had investigated his identity and approved his promotion.
• Lin Taichu accepted the appointment and agreed to serve the Tianshui Kingdom as the court investigated the Myriad Treasures Merchant Guild.

After recovering from his injuries, Lin Taichu returned to the Barracks as a newly promoted Centurion and led Third Squad to clear demonic-energy-tainted beast corpses from Black Wind Ridge. The squad found many corpses with unusually fresh wounds, and Lin Taichu began to suspect something was amiss.

• The Gym Master confirmed Lin Taichu had recovered enough to leave the Spiritual Medicine Hall, and Lin Taichu returned to the Barracks with Qian Ming and Third Squad.
• Li Zhan welcomed Lin Taichu back, assigned him to clear the decaying beast corpses in Black Wind Ridge, and supplied Corpse Burning Talismans and Detoxification Pills.
• Lin Taichu organized Third Squad into security, cleanup, and supply groups before they traveled to Eagle Beak Cliff.
• At the corpse-strewn site, Qian Ming found a magical beast corpse with a fresh wound, and Lin Taichu recorded the finding as the squad began burning the bodies.
• During a rest, Zhao Hu reported that most high-ranking beast corpses were missing, and Lin Taichu noted that fresh wounds appeared on seven out of ten corpses.

Lin Taichu discovered that Blood Demon Sect Cultivators were using Corpse Gathering Formations and Bone Rotting Worms in a plot against Yunshui City's grain stores. After capturing one of them, he learned the main Formation core was at Soul Severing Cliff and the attack was planned for the fifteenth day of the third month.

• Lin Taichu and Qian Ming found fresh demonic beast corpses and the beginnings of a Corpse Gathering Formation, then burned the corpses and reported the discovery to Li Zhan.
• After Zhao Hu reported agonized beast roars, Lin Taichu led the squad to a clearing, where they defeated two Blood Demon Sect Cultivators torturing a Black Bear and captured one.
• Lin Taichu found Mad Beast Powder and a map with seven red dots in the captive's belongings.
• The captive revealed that the Blood Demon Sect was feeding Bone Rotting Worms with corpse energy to attack Yunshui City's grain stores, with the main Formation core at Soul Severing Cliff and five other squads operating nearby.
• The captive took poison and died before he could finish explaining; Lin Taichu ordered Zhao Hu to report the plan and its deadline to the Commander.

Lin Taichu and his team encountered the Mad Demon Dark Gold Beast, which had grown powerful by devouring demonic beast corpses. After their defensive Formation shattered, they fled toward the Stone Forest while Lin Taichu wounded the beast and drew its pursuit.

• Zhao Hu sent the captive's information, and Lin Taichu ordered the team to continue toward the next red-marked location after inspecting the corpses.
• Lin Taichu sensed the approaching Mad Demon Dark Gold Beast, and the team hid as it emerged and devoured the black bear's corpse.
• The beast discovered the team and shattered their defensive Formation, injuring one member despite Qian Ming's Demon Breaking Arrow.
• Lin Taichu used the Bronze Cauldron fragment to divert the beast's bite and ordered everyone to retreat toward the Stone Forest.
• Lin Taichu wounded the beast's neck with the Reincarnation Token, and Qian Ming drew its attention while the team escaped toward the Stone Forest.

Lin Taichu and his team tried to delay the Mad Demon Dark Gold Beast in the Stone Forest while Zhao Hu went to seek reinforcements. Lin Taichu escaped the beast’s flames and hid in a stone trench, but the beast began digging to bury him.

• Lin Taichu ordered Zhao Hu to escort the wounded toward the Barracks and request reinforcements while he stayed behind with the others.
• Lin Taichu lured the Mad Demon Dark Gold Beast through the Stone Forest, and Qian Ming and another team member briefly slowed it with an arrow and a net artifact.
• The beast injured Li Ping and trapped Lin Taichu in a ring of Demonic Flames, but Lin Taichu used a Corpse Burning Talisman to create smoke and escape.
• Lin Taichu sent Qian Ming and Li Ping east while he drew the beast away, then jumped into a stone trench to evade its flames.
• The Mad Demon Dark Gold Beast began digging at the trench’s edge to fill it in and reach Lin Taichu.

Lin Taichu was rescued from the Mad Demon Dark Gold Beast, then reported the Blood Demon Sect’s plan to unleash Bone Rotting Worms against the granaries. After Li Zhan assigned him a new mission to clear subsidiary formations and support an elite squad at Soul Severing Cliff, Lin Taichu reviewed the records and remained worried that the granaries faced threats beyond the known formation.

• Li Zhan and five Nascent Soul cultivators arrived and killed the Mad Demon Dark Gold Beast after Lin Taichu signaled for help.
• Li Zhan ordered the injured team members taken to the Spiritual Medicine Hall and brought Lin Taichu back to the Barracks for a report.
• Lin Taichu told Li Zhan about the corpse gathering, the captives’ confession, the Blood Demon Sect’s formations, and the battle at Eagle Beak Cliff.
• Li Zhan assigned Lin Taichu twenty guards to lead Third Squad against the remaining Blood Demon Sect forces while an elite squad targeted the main formation node at Soul Severing Cliff.
• After returning to his quarters, Lin Taichu reviewed the military records and worried that the Blood Demon Sect had other ways to attack Yunshui City’s granaries.

Lin Taichu and his men ambushed Blood Demon Sect attackers at Yunshui City's granary and learned that the sect planned to unleash Bone Rotting Worms there. They set the emerging swarm alight, but insects kept pouring from the cellar as they tried to protect the storehouses.

• Lin Taichu took Zhao Hu and Qian Ming to scout the granary and identified a blind spot where they could ambush attackers.
• Lin Taichu, Zhao Hu, and Qian Ming concealed themselves near the granary and waited for the Blood Demon Sect to strike.
• Blood Demon Sect Death Warriors attacked the granary from several sides, and Lin Taichu and his companions ambushed them.
• Lin Taichu captured a cultivator who revealed that the sect planned to release an insect swarm through a cellar north of the granary.
• An explosion released Bone Rotting Worms that began eating through the storehouse doors, so Lin Taichu and his team used fire to hold back the swarm.

Lin Taichu stopped the Blood Demon Sect’s attack on the granary and learned that it was a feint for an assault on Yunshui City’s armory. After Li Zhan sent reinforcements there, Lin Taichu was ordered to take his squad and reinforce it.

• Lin Taichu and his squad defeated the Blood Demon Sect Cultivators at the granary, capturing eight after seven died by self-detonation.
• Lin Taichu used a Detoxification Pill to stop the Bone Rotting Worms, and Zhou Ping’s guards sealed the tunnels beneath the blast site.
• During interrogation, Lin Taichu learned from Amu that the granary attack was a feint and that a Nascent Soul elder was leading an attack on the armory with explosive talismans.
• Lin Taichu sent Qian Ming to warn Li Zhan, who arrived with reinforcements and confirmed that the armory held the core Spirit Stones for Yunshui City’s protective formation.
• Li Zhan ordered Lin Taichu to take his men to reinforce the armory while he stayed to handle the granary.

Lin Taichu helped defend the armory from a Blood Demon Sect elder, who escaped after detonating his Bone Staff. Lin Taichu tracked the wounded elder to a drain and continued the pursuit with Qian Ming while Zhao Hu followed along the bank.

• Lin Taichu led Zhao Hu, Qian Ming, and their team to the armory, where a Blood Demon Sect elder attacked the guards and fought a Nascent Soul cultivator.
• Lin Taichu and the Nascent Soul cultivator wounded the elder, but he detonated his Bone Staff and escaped using a Blood Escape Art.
• Lin Taichu confirmed the armory's Spirit Stone reserves were intact and ordered the guards to search the area and check for underground passages.
• Lin Taichu followed bloodstains to an abandoned residence and deduced the elder had escaped east with a wound on his left arm.
• Qian Ming found blood and black cloth by a drain, and Lin Taichu determined the elder had escaped through it.
• Lin Taichu and Qian Ming pursued the drain through the streets while Zhao Hu and two men followed along its bank.

After Lin Taichu’s squad stopped pursuing the wounded Blood Demon Sect elder, Li Zhan praised Lin’s defense of the granary and armory and revealed he had resigned as Commander. He appointed Lin acting Commander of Yunshui City, leaving Lin to prepare for the coming battle at Black Wind Ridge.

• Lin Taichu ended the pursuit near the moat and led his exhausted squad back to the Barracks to report the elder’s escape.
• Li Zhan told Lin Taichu that additional Patrol Teams were searching outside the city and praised him for protecting the granary and armory.
• Li Zhan admitted he had misjudged the Blood Demon Sect’s attack and said he had submitted his resignation to headquarters.
• Li Zhan transferred the Tiger Tally’s recognition authority to Lin Taichu and named him acting Commander of Yunshui City.
• Lin Taichu accepted the appointment and pledged to protect the city and its soldiers.

After taking command, Lin Taichu formed an elite corps and launched a coordinated strike to destroy the Blood Demon Sect’s formation nodes in Black Wind Ridge. At the main node at Soul Severing Cliff, his attack struck a defense stronger than he expected, while a green signal flare rose through the mist.

• Lin Taichu won the soldiers’ support by presenting his plans against the Blood Demon Sect and promising to lead from the front.
• Lin Taichu formed a three-hundred-soldier imperial guard corps and assigned Zhao Hu and Qian Ming to attack secondary formation nodes while he targeted the main node.
• Zhao Hu reported that the corps had prepared its equipment, and Lin Taichu led the soldiers into Black Wind Ridge at first light.
• Lin Taichu guided his squad through rune traps at Soul Severing Cliff and ordered the soldiers to hold off the Blood Demon Sect Cultivators while he attacked the central Stone Pillar.
• The Stone Pillar’s runes blocked Lin Taichu’s attack, and a green Signal Flare appeared in the distance.

Lin Taichu discovered that Zhao Hu's squad had been incapacitated by Soul Illusion Flowers and trapped in a Spirit Locking Formation at Misty Valley. He stayed behind to hold off the Blood Demon Sect elder while his men tried to escape, then faced the elder's demand for Yunshui City's defensive deployment map.

• Lin Taichu learned that Zhao Hu had sent a red aid signal and left Li Song to continue attacking the main Formation core while he led the others to Misty Valley.
• Lin Taichu found Zhao Hu and the first squad unconscious near the intact subsidiary Formation core and identified Soul Illusion Flowers as the cause.
• Lin Taichu ordered his Soldiers to carry the unconscious squad out while he stayed behind with the Reincarnation Token to delay an approaching ambush.
• The Blood Demon Sect elder revealed that a Spirit Locking Formation surrounded Misty Valley and attacked Lin Taichu with the Soul Illusion Flowers and demonic qi.
• Lin Taichu fought back while studying the Formation's Rune nodes, and the elder demanded Yunshui City's defensive deployment map.

Lin Taichu fought the Old Man and the Blood Demon Sect cultivators in the valley, defeating them despite severe injuries. After Qian Ming arrived, Lin Taichu ordered the prisoners and the unconscious soldiers taken back to the Barracks for treatment.

• Lin Taichu used the Bronze Cauldron fragment, the Reincarnation Token, and the terrain to injure the Old Man and knock away his Bone Staff.
• More than ten Blood Demon Sect cultivators attacked Lin Taichu, who used Demon Breaking Form to defeat several of them while suffering a deep wound.
• Lin Taichu struck the Old Man's wrist with the Bronze Cauldron fragment, forced the remaining cultivators to surrender, and sealed the Old Man's spiritual power with a Demon Trapping Talisman.
• Qian Ming arrived with soldiers after the battle at the valley entrance ended, and Lin Taichu told him to take the prisoners and have Zhao Hu and the others treated for Soul Illusion Flower pollen.