Chapter Summaries

Zhong Lin and his companions returned to Spirit Medicine Peak after a month of travel, and he discovered a prowler on the roof above his room. He chased the red-faced man into the bamboo forest and attacked him, revealing that both were Rank 3 Inner Breath experts.

• Yin Daoyan let the drunken Wang Kaiwen rest and told Jin Jiucheng to have him hung up in the sun for three days.
• Yin Daoyan led the group back to Spirit Medicine Peak, where they washed up, chose rooms, and rested after their journey.
• Zhong Lin woke after hearing faint footsteps on the eaves and struck the prowler with his Telepathic Sword Finger.
• The prowler fled into the bamboo forest, then turned and attacked Zhong Lin with a palm strike.
• Zhong Lin countered with Sword Qi and charged the red-faced man, who realized he faced an opponent of equal Rank 3 Inner Breath cultivation.

Zhong Lin fought Elder Lian Shan in the Purple Bamboo Forest before Yin Daoyan intervened and introduced them. Yin Daoyan then brought Zhong Lin and Mei Weixuan to meet Sword Cauldron Sect leader Yu Jinglei, whose overwhelming presence left them unable to look at him.

• Zhong Lin used Dragon Subduing Palm against Elder Lian Shan, but Yin Daoyan arrived and stopped the attack with a Sword Radiance.
• Yin Daoyan introduced Elder Lian Shan to Zhong Lin and explained that the Wind Fire Peak elder excelled at pill refinement.
• Zhong Lin learned that Elder Lian Shan was a Rank 3 Inner Breath cultivator and Rank 4 Pill Refiner whose Blazing Sun Sutra strengthened his pill-making and combat abilities.
• Yin Daoyan took Zhong Lin and Mei Weixuan to the Main Peak to meet the sect leader.
• Zhong Lin and Mei Weixuan met Yu Jinglei, whose sword intent made Zhong Lin's eyes hurt and left Mei Weixuan in tears.

Yu Jinglei recognized Zhong Lin’s exceptional martial and pill-refining talent, made him a True Disciple, and authorized him to enter the fifth floor of the Skill Transmission Pavilion. Yin Daoyan explained the value of its advanced cultivation methods as the group arrived at the pavilion.

• Yin Daoyan introduced Zhong Lin to Yu Jinglei and described how the seventeen-year-old became a Rank 3 Martial Artist and Rank 3 Pill Refiner.
• Yu Jinglei praised Zhong Lin and confirmed that he could become a True Disciple of the Sword Cauldron Sect.
• Yin Daoyan asked Yu Jinglei to admit Mei Weixuan, and Yu Jinglei agreed.
• Yu Jinglei gave Yin Daoyan a golden token and authorized Zhong Lin to enter the fifth floor of the Skill Transmission Pavilion to choose cultivation methods and martial skills.
• Yin Daoyan and Mei Weixuan explained cultivation-method ranks and the rare Heaven-Rank methods on the pavilion’s fifth floor.
• The three reached the Skill Transmission Pavilion on the Back Mountain, accessible by an iron chain bridge across the cliffs.

Zhong Lin and Mei Weixuan crossed the dangerous Iron Chain Bridge to reach the Sword Cauldron Sect’s Skill Transmission Pavilion, where Zhong Lin used the sect leader’s token to gain access to the fifth floor. He examined its seven Heaven Rank Cultivation Methods but had not yet chosen one when the chapter ended.

• Yin Daoyan told Zhong Lin and Mei Weixuan about the sect’s three Grand Elders before sending them across the Iron Chain Bridge to the Skill Transmission Pavilion.
• Mei Weixuan and Zhong Lin met the black-robed guardian, who recognized Zhong Lin’s sect leader token and let him enter the fifth floor.
• Zhong Lin pushed open the fifth floor’s heavy stone door and found seven Jade Boxes containing Heaven Rank Cultivation Methods.
• Zhong Lin read descriptions of several methods, rejected the Withered Wood Divine Art over its effect on his appearance, and became interested in the offensive Flying Spirit Sword Sutra.

Zhong Lin chose the Flying Spirit Sword Sutra and used the System to master it, then studied and maxed out the other Heaven-Rank cultivation methods without cultivating them. The chapter left him exhausted but able to circulate his inner breath accurately in any posture.

• Zhong Lin chose the Flying Spirit Sword Sutra, cultivated a thread of its sharp pale-gold inner breath, and blasted a hole in a stone wall.
• Zhong Lin used Skill Points to raise the Flying Spirit Sword Sutra to max level and learned to circulate its inner breath smoothly.
• Zhong Lin tried cultivating a thread of the Blazing Sun Sutra, but expelled it when it clashed with the Flying Spirit Sword Sutra's inner breath.
• Zhong Lin maxed out the Blazing Sun Sutra and used its insights to improve his cultivation speed.
• Zhong Lin recorded and maxed out all the cultivation methods on the fifth floor, then collapsed from mental strain as his inner breath continued circulating without error.

Zhong Lin spent half a year cultivating and studying medicine at Sword Cauldron Sect, becoming a Rank 4 Pill Refiner while completing his inner breath cultivation. As he prepared to advance to Connecting Vessels, the Sect Leader summoned him to the Main Peak.

• Zhong Lin copied the Fractal Shadowing movement technique and Flying Dragon Slash sword technique at the Skill Transmission Pavilion, then learned that Mei Weixuan had found the Tiger Leopard Thunder Sound secret art.
• Zhong Lin rested and found his inner breath converting into Flying Spirit Inner Breath, then accompanied Yin Daoyan to pay respects to the founding ancestor and visit the peak elders.
• Over the next six months, Zhong Lin studied medicine, cultivated, and refined pills until he became a Rank 4 Pill Refiner, while his inner breath reached completion.
• Zhong Lin considered the careful process of opening and nourishing the body's twelve Meridians before a disciple arrived to summon him to the Main Peak.
• Zhong Lin set out for the Main Peak after the Sect Leader summoned him.

Zhong Lin received Yu Jinglei’s order to escort Jiang Yuan, the Sword Cauldron Sect’s disciple and Da Chen Third Princess, back to the Capital City while preserving the sect’s neutrality. He descended the mountain and arrived before a heavily guarded convoy, where he announced himself as a member of the Sword Cauldron Sect.

• Yu Jinglei told Zhong Lin to escort Jiang Yuan to the Capital City and return without getting involved in the political struggle.
• Zhong Lin recalled that Jiang Yuan’s royal connections and martial talent made her a threat to the princes competing to succeed the gravely ill emperor.
• Zhong Lin told Shi Tou he would be leaving, packed his weapons and clothes, and headed down the mountain.
• A convoy of roughly two hundred armed guards waited in a forest, and its leader sensed a powerful figure approaching and ordered the guards to be ready.
• Zhong Lin emerged from the forest carrying a sword and bow and identified himself to the convoy as Sword Cauldron Sect’s Zhong Lin.

Jiang Yuan revealed to Zhong Lin that she intended to claim the throne of Great Chen herself and asked him to help her. Zhong Lin refused, warned her about poaching a sect genius, and prepared to continue on to the Capital City.

• Jiang Yuan greeted Zhong Lin and explained that she was returning to the Capital City despite the dangers surrounding Great Chen's succession.
• Jiang Yuan told Zhong Lin that the emperor and her Royal Ancestor were gravely ill, leaving the country vulnerable to a struggle among the princes.
• Jiang Yuan declared that she could support herself instead of a prince and asked Zhong Lin to join her cause.
• Zhong Lin praised the possibility of a woman ruling but refused Jiang Yuan's offer, saying he wanted to focus on martial arts.
• Jiang Yuan apologized after remembering that the Sect Leader might punish her for trying to recruit Zhong Lin, and Zhong Lin asked for a separate carriage.

Zhong Lin used the system to master Silkworm Strength and tested whether its fine threads of inner breath could help open his meridians. He successfully opened the Zhongfu Acupoint, leaving him with a more solid inner breath and a promising method for advancing through the Connecting Vessels Realm.

• Zhong Lin reflected on the dangers and difficulty of opening the meridians and Acupoints of the Connecting Vessels Realm.
• Zhong Lin studied Silkworm Strength, a martial technique that let him divide his inner breath into fine threads.
• Zhong Lin used the system's skill points to bring Silkworm Strength from beginner to max level.
• Zhong Lin tested the technique by piercing the carriage wall with five threads of inner breath.
• Zhong Lin swallowed a Meridian Protecting Pill and used a thread of inner breath to open the Zhongfu Acupoint, making his inner breath more solid.

Zhong Lin traveled with Jiang Yuan’s convoy, rapidly opening Acupoints as he cultivated along the way. After a night raid began, he helped expose the attackers, and Jiang Yuan recognized them as soldiers likely sent by one of her brothers.

• Zhong Lin used Silkworm Strength to open three Acupoints in one day and met General Niu Dali at the wilderness camp.
• Zhong Lin cultivated through the journey, opening all twenty-nine Acupoints of the Hand Three Yin Meridians over half a month.
• Zhong Lin sensed attackers during the fourth watch and shot several of them with his Ebony Bow, disrupting their ambush.
• Niu Dali formed a shield formation against the attackers’ arrows and ordered the camp’s firewood lit to illuminate the battlefield.
• Jiang Yuan joined Zhong Lin and concluded that the coordinated attackers were soldiers sent by one of her brothers.

Zhong Lin’s archery and sword techniques helped Niu Dali’s troops repel an attack on Jiang Yuan. After the black-clad soldiers fled, Jiang Yuan suspected the Fourth Prince had sent them and questioned what would happen to the dead.

• Zhong Lin shot down the attacking black-clad soldiers, disrupting their assault and raising the morale of Niu Dali’s troops.
• A Divine Strength Realm attacker crossed the formation and lunged at Jiang Yuan, but Zhong Lin killed him with his Telepathic Sword Finger.
• The black-clad leader ordered a retreat, and Niu Dali chose not to pursue the fleeing force into the forest.
• Jiang Yuan thanked Zhong Lin, who told her to stay closer to him if another assassination attempt occurred.
• Jiang Yuan accused the Fourth Prince of sending the attackers, then asked why soldiers were burying the corpses.

Jiang Yuan's soldiers buried the dead despite her order to leave them, then resumed their journey while Zhong Lin cultivated in the carriage. A flute-playing assassin named Ding He ambushed the party, and Zhong Lin fought him as Ding He unleashed poisonous emerald flames.

• Jiang Yuan ordered the soldiers to leave the bandits' corpses, but Niu Dali and the soldiers buried them according to battlefield custom.
• At dawn, the party set out, and Zhong Lin continued opening his meridians while traveling.
• Ding He's eerie flute melody alerted Niu Dali, who formed a defensive ring around Jiang Yuan's carriage.
• Zhong Lin silenced the flute with a shout, and Ding He revealed himself and attacked Jiang Yuan with a Qi Palm.
• Zhong Lin blocked Ding He's attack and fought him with sword arts as Ding He unleashed poisonous emerald flames that sickened the soldiers.

Zhong Lin killed Ding He, an assassin sent by Jiang Wu, while escorting Jiang Yuan toward the capital. After half a month of travel, Zhong Lin completed the Hand Three Yang Meridians and began studying the Foot Three Yin Meridians, then stepped out near Lin Yue City.

• Zhong Lin dispersed Ding He's poisonous flames, struck him down with Dragon Grasping Hand, and killed him with a golden sword light.
• Niu Dali found a gold token bearing the character "Wu," and Jiang Yuan crushed it and recognized Jiang Wu's involvement.
• Jiang Yuan ordered Niu Dali to send Ding He's head to her brother and said she would settle accounts with her brothers after reaching the capital.
• The convoy traveled for half a month without further attacks, while Zhong Lin completed the Hand Three Yang Meridians and compressed his inner breath by another tenth.
• Zhong Lin reviewed the one hundred and twenty-four acupoints in the Foot Three Yin Meridians, left the carriage to rest, and learned from Niu Dali that Lin Yue City lay ahead.

Zhong Lin arrived in Lin Yue County with Jiang Yuan and reunited with Gu Ning, whose family welcomed the celebrated Rank 4 Pill Refiner with a lavish reception. The whole Gu Family gathered outside their residence to greet him, and Jiang Yuan urged him to accept their show of respect.

• Zhong Lin recognized Lin Yue County, agreed to rest there, and had Niu Dali send a calling card to the Gu Family.
• Gu Ning and Gu Xiaofeng came out to meet Zhong Lin and Jiang Yuan, then invited them to a banquet at the Gu residence.
• Gu Ning and Jiang Yuan praised the Gu Family for sponsoring Zhong Lin before his rise to fame.
• The Gu Family paused its annual Clan Competition Assembly and gathered outside the residence to welcome Zhong Lin.
• Zhong Lin was surprised by the large crowd and declined Gu Ning's request to address the clan, but Jiang Yuan encouraged him to accept their welcome.

Zhong Lin gave Gu Ning a Rank 4 Bone Marrow Cleansing Pill as the first-place prize for the Gu family’s annual competition, stunning the clan with his reputation and generosity. At the banquet, he accepted Gu Xiaofeng’s Returning Yang Grass and agreed to refine pills for the Gu family, while Jiang Yuan arranged to buy one if an extra pill remained.

• Zhong Lin gave Gu Ning a Rank 4 Bone Marrow Cleansing Pill to award to the winner of the Gu family competition.
• Gu Ning introduced Zhong Lin to the gathered clan as a young Rank 4 Pill Refiner, and the family erupted with excitement over the prize.
• At the banquet, Gu Xiaofeng presented Zhong Lin with a precious Returning Yang Grass as a congratulatory gift.
• Zhong Lin accepted the herb and promised to refine two or three Returning Yang Pills, setting one aside for the Gu family.
• Jiang Yuan asked to buy another pill if one remained, and Zhong Lin agreed in exchange for something of equal value.

Zhong Lin agreed to help Gu Xiaofeng seize the Mystic Ice Flower from Heavenly Fragrance Sect in exchange for forty percent of its Ancient Rock Incense profits. As the Gu family prepared to leave for Azure Spirit Mountain, Yan Changfeng worried that Gu Xiaofeng was still plotting against him.

• Gu Ning told Zhong Lin that the Gu family had gathered three Barrier Breaking Pill ingredients and discovered a Mystic Ice Flower at Heavenly Fragrance Sect.
• Gu Xiaofeng explained that Yan Changfeng had defeated him when he tried to take the flower, and Zhong Lin agreed to help in return for forty percent of the incense profits.
• Zhong Lin demanded they leave for Heavenly Fragrance Sect immediately, and Gu Xiaofeng sent Gu Ning to arrange their departure.
• Heavenly Fragrance Sect elders reported their expanding incense business to Yan Changfeng, who asked whether there was news of Gu Xiaofeng.
• Yan Changfeng dismissed the idea that Gu Xiaofeng had given up and warned his elders that the Gu family was waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Gu Xiaofeng entered the Heavenly Fragrance Sect with Zhong Lin to confront Yan Changfeng, who had boasted of defeating the Gu Family. Zhong Lin and Yan Changfeng fought fiercely, and Zhong Lin pointed out that Yan Changfeng relied on brute force because he lacked Qi Refining martial skills.

• Yan Changfeng dismissed the elders’ fear of Gu Xiaofeng and declared that he planned to grow strong enough to destroy the Gu Family.
• Gu Xiaofeng arrived after fighting his way through the sect’s guards and overwhelmed the elders with his Upper Three Ranks aura.
• Gu Xiaofeng revealed that Zhong Lin had come to deal with Yan Changfeng and stepped aside as Zhong Lin attacked.
• Zhong Lin and Yan Changfeng exchanged powerful blows that destroyed the hall and injured several elders.
• Yan Changfeng praised their fight, and Zhong Lin observed that Yan Changfeng used only brute force because he lacked Qi Refining martial skills.

Zhong Lin defeated Yan Changfeng, but Gu Xiaofeng killed Yan before he could surrender the Mystic Ice Flower, drawing Zhong Lin’s warning. Gu Xiaofeng then led Zhong Lin into an icy cavern, where Zhong Lin used the Blazing Sun Sutra to resist the freezing force and save Gu Xiaofeng.

• Zhong Lin used the Dragon Subduing Palm and Flying Dragon Slash to break Yan Changfeng’s defenses and severely wound him.
• As Yan Changfeng offered to hand over the Mystic Ice Flower, Gu Xiaofeng killed him with a strike to the brow.
• Zhong Lin confronted Gu Xiaofeng and warned him not to interfere again before ordering him to find the Mystic Ice Flower.
• Gu Xiaofeng led Zhong Lin through a freezing passage into a vast ice-filled cavern, where they found a platform holding a pool of white liquid.
• The cold force from the platform slowed Zhong Lin’s inner breath and froze Gu Xiaofeng, but Zhong Lin circulated the Blazing Sun Sutra and warmed them both.

Zhong Lin refined Ten Thousand Year Ice Marrow and merged the Flying Spirit Sword Sutra with the Icy Soul Mysterious Art, creating the Spirit Ice Sword Sutra. After collecting the Mystic Ice Flower and securing the Ancient Rock Incense formula, he and Gu Xiaofeng left Gu Ning to hold Azure Spirit Mountain while they returned to Lin Yue City.

• Zhong Lin refined a drop of Ten Thousand Year Ice Marrow, strengthening and chilling his inner qi as he merged the Flying Spirit Sword Sutra with the Icy Soul Mysterious Art.
• Zhong Lin named the merged method the Spirit Ice Sword Sutra and used the System to raise it from Beginner to Max Level.
• Zhong Lin collected the Ten Thousand Year Ice Marrow in Gu Xiaofeng's jade gourd and carefully placed the Mystic Ice Flower in a Jade Box.
• Gu Ning reported that the Heavenly Fragrance Sect had been wiped out and that his group had obtained the Ancient Rock Incense formula, which required Black Sandalwood Mud from Azure Spirit Mountain.
• Gu Xiaofeng ordered Gu Ning to remain at Azure Spirit Mountain while he and Zhong Lin returned to Lin Yue City, leaving the Heavenly Fragrance Sect's incense business in place.

After a night of cultivation, Zhong Lin discovered that his transformed inner energy could spread intense frost through his room. At the Gu Family martial arts arena, he watched the frail Gu Chen fight Gu Feng and realized that Gu Chen’s body seemed too weak to withstand the recoil of his own strike.

• Zhong Lin cultivated the Spirit Ice Sword Sutra, opened the Yinbai Acupoint, and accidentally covered his room in frost before suppressing the cold.
• Zhong Lin replenished his inner energy with a Great Revival Pill and went to breakfast with Jiang Yuan.
• Zhong Lin and Jiang Yuan watched the Gu Family competition, where Gu Chen entered the match against Gu Feng despite the crowd’s mockery.
• Gu Chen dodged Gu Feng’s attacks and countered with an elbow strike that sent Gu Feng flying, but Zhong Lin noticed Gu Chen was badly hurt by the recoil.