Chapter Summaries

Chen Yi traveled through Barbarian territory toward the Black Bear Tribe and learned that the Barbarian royal family was embroiled in growing tensions. At the North Wolf Tribe, he discovered that Chu Xiudao was challenging the Barbarian Great Grandmaster Yu Chuan and secretly set out to witness the fight.

• Chen Yi drank with Lord Ba, discussed the ambitions of the Left King Muhage and the unstable Barbarian succession, then left Stone Hollow with Zhang Badan, Xi Yanqiu, and Qiu Shan.
• Chen Yi and his companions used Lord Ba’s passage token to cross three tribes and reached the North Wolf Tribe, where its Wolf Cavalry guarded the camp.
• Zhang Badan reported that the eldest and second princes’ forces had clashed and that a Wei man had challenged a Barbarian Great Grandmaster.
• Chen Yi’s daily intelligence revealed that Chu Xiudao was challenging Yu Chuan near the Barbarian God Grotto, so Chen Yi left a masked double in his room and slipped out toward the grotto.

Chen Yi reached the Barbarian God Grotto and discovered that the Barbarians were holding Chu Xiudao there until he won a duel against the great grandmaster Yu Chuan. He disguised himself as a Wei servant and entered the grounds, where he saw Chu Xiudao waiting for the fight to begin.

• Chen Yi traveled to the Barbarian God Grotto and found a stone tower guarded by more than a thousand Barbarians.
• Chen Yi overheard Chu Xiudao and Yu Chuan discussing their duel and learned that Chu Xiudao could leave if he won.
• Chen Yi followed a Barbarian woman’s cart into the tower grounds by disguising himself as one of her Wei servants.
• Chen Yi joined the crowd around the training ground and saw Chu Xiudao face Yu Chuan.
• Yu Chuan delayed the duel, saying an honored guest was coming.

Chen Yi watched Yu Chuan and Chu Xiudao prepare for their long-awaited bout while concealing his strength from the powerful Barbarian princes. After Yu Chuan overwhelmed Chu Xiudao, the Blade Ghost burned his soul and summoned a bronze gate filled with shrieking figures.

• Chen Yi sensed Yu Chuan's immense blood qi and spotted a tiger-shaped aura behind him, then hid when Longge Huazhuo arrived with an even more overwhelming presence.
• Longge Huazhuo left abruptly after learning that Longge Mowang and Wenkela were at the Golden Tent, while Wu Sa reassured the others that King Mo had made preparations.
• Chu Xiudao accused the Barbarians of scheming and suggested Longge Mowang might kill his father, alarming Longge Shiying, but Wu Sa persuaded her to stay and wait for news.
• Yu Chuan crushed Chu Xiudao's ghostly attack with his blood qi and sent him flying with a kick, while Longge Shiying cheered.
• Chu Xiudao rose with blood-red eyes, used the Soul-Burning Art, and summoned a massive bronze gate from which countless clawed figures and shrill voices emerged.

Chu Xiudao used the Soul-Burning Art to fight Yu Chuan amid the ghosts and totems on the Training Ground, then unleashed a final life-consuming slash. Yu Chuan died from the attack, and Wu Sa told the grieving Barbarians that the Panda Heavenly God had come for him.

• Chu Xiudao invoked the Soul-Burning Art and filled the Training Ground with ghosts as Yu Chuan summoned his tiger Beast Spirit to fight him.
• Chu Xiudao wounded Yu Chuan with a barrage of slashes, while Yu Chuan armored himself with his Beast Spirit and tried to reach the Mysterious Gate.
• The Mysterious Gate sank away and closed, and Chu Xiudao gathered the ghostly blue flames to prepare a final attack.
• Chu Xiudao unleashed a life-consuming slash that passed Yu Chuan, leaving him mortally wounded as Chu Xiudao collapsed.
• Yu Chuan's body shrank and half his torso was revealed to be missing; as the Barbarians rushed toward Chu Xiudao, Wu Sa told them that the Panda Heavenly God had come for Yu Chuan.

Chen Yi saved Chu Xiudao by faking his death and used an illusion to send Longge Shiying east with a false accusation against King Mo. After escaping with Chu Xiudao, Chen Yi treated him in a secluded cave, where the wounded swordsman regained consciousness.

• Yu Chuan died after his battle with Chu Xiudao, and Wu Sa agreed to honor Yu Chuan's request for Chu Xiudao to receive a proper burial.
• Chen Yi secretly put Chu Xiudao into a feigned death, hid him on the Wooden Cart, and altered A Da and A Er's memories to conceal what had happened.
• Longge Shiying ordered Chu Xiudao's body thrown into the mountains, while Chen Yi earned rewards for witnessing the battle and accumulated more fortune.
• Chen Yi used an illusion to make Longge Shiying believe that guards sent by King Mo had attacked her and blamed the Second Princes, then escaped with Chu Xiudao.
• Longge Shiying and Wu Sa hurried south toward the Golden Tent after suspecting the king was in danger, while Chen Yi carried Chu Xiudao away and treated him in a cave.
• Chu Xiudao awoke after Chen Yi's treatment, though his injuries and inner strength were recovering slowly.

Chen Yi treated the injured Chu Xiudao, who explained how Meng Xingdu had lured Central Plains experts into the Barbarian Tribe’s territory to weaken them before the Hidden Immortal Competition. Chu Xiudao agreed to help Chen Yi rescue Xiao Fengchun and Fu Wanqing, while Chen Yi left him to recover for two days.

• Chen Yi told Chu Xiudao that he could heal his damaged mind, qi sea, and meridians within two days, and they discussed Liu Lang’s progress and mischief.
• Chu Xiudao explained that Meng Xingdu had conspired with the Barbarian Tribe to ambush Central Plains Grandmasters and weaken them for the Hidden Immortal Competition.
• Chu Xiudao recounted how he had been trapped and forced to fight Barbarian Tribe Great Grandmasters, including Yu Chuan, whom he had killed.
• Chen Yi told Chu Xiudao about his plan to rescue Xiao Fengchun and Fu Wanqing from the Black Bear Tribe, and Chu Xiudao promised to support him after recovering.
• Chen Yi set up a Medicine Formation around the cave and left, while Chu Xiudao wondered whether Chen Yi’s movement technique had reached perfection before dismissing the possibility.

Chen Yi left the North Wolf Tribe for the Black Bear Tribe after hearing that the Golden Tent had summoned the tribal chiefs, while arranging for Chu Xiudao to take Xi Yanqiu, Qiu Shan, and Zhang Badan north to the Black River. The chapter left Chen Yi at the Black Bear Tribe’s gate, identifying himself as Song Jin Jian and presenting his passage token.

• Chen Yi heard the North Wolf Tribe chief discuss the Golden Tent’s summons and news that Wei people had died at Mengshui Pass.
• Chen Yi departed with Xi Yanqiu, Qiu Shan, and Zhang Badan, then told them to wait in a cave while he went alone to the Black Bear Tribe.
• Chu Xiudao arrived at the cave, revealed that he had come on Chen Yi’s orders, and took the three men toward the Black River.
• Chen Yi reached the Black Bear Tribe late at night and gave the name Song Jin Jian as he presented his passage token to the guards.

Chen Yi, traveling under the name Song Jin Jian, reached the Black Bear Tribe and was summoned to meet Left King Muhage after clashing with the tribe’s warriors. Muhage asked after Mr. Cui, but Chen Yi denied knowing who he meant and entered the Left King’s house to talk.

• Chen Yi presented a Black Bear Tribe travel permit at the gates and drew his sword on Zhang Erniu when the interpreter threatened him.
• Chen Yi repelled the tribe’s warriors without killing them, and Asutai stopped the fight and recognized him as a guest of his father.
• Asutai ordered Zhang Erniu taken away and led Chen Yi into the settlement, where Chen Yi learned that Xiao Fengchun and Fu Wanqing were confined near Muhage’s main tent.
• Muhage asked Chen Yi how Mr. Cui was, and Chen Yi said he did not know whom the Left King meant.

Chen Yi met with Muhage to report that the scheme to force the Xiao Family’s cooperation had failed and proposed luring Xiao Jinghong into an ambush. Muhage agreed to the plan, and Chen Yi began explaining his master’s request for further help with a Southern Expedition.

• Chen Yi entered Muhage’s great tent, where Muhage introduced the sleeping Black Bear Mugan as his brother and the Black Bear Tribe’s guardian deity.
• Asutai visited Fu Wanqing and told her that Song Jin Jian had come to see Muhage; Fu Wanqing recognized the name and warned that Muhage might retaliate against him for injuring a warrior.
• Fu Wanqing reflected on Song Jin Jian and two Unorthodox Path practitioners visiting the tribe, then returned to the bedside of the unconscious Xiao Fengchun and wished he would wake.
• Chen Yi told Muhage that his master’s plan to make the Xiao Family cooperate through Xiao Fengchun and Fu Wanqing had failed because Xiao Jinghong refused.
• Chen Yi revealed that Xiao Jinghong had entered the Sword Dao Extreme Realm and was nearing the Grandmaster Realm, then proposed using her parents to lure her into an ambush near Mengshui Pass.
• Muhage approved the plan but threatened to expose Chen Yi and his master if it failed; Chen Yi then said his master wanted Muhage’s help with the planned Southern Expedition.

Chen Yi persuaded Muhage to send an envoy to the Poshushuo Kingdom to delay King Landu’s rebellion, then agreed to spar with Yuan Jingxuan. After Chen Yi left to visit Xiao Fengchun and Fu Wanqing, Muhage revealed that he intended to use the crisis to target Xiao Jinghong and prepare the Barbarian Tribe’s advance into the Central Plains.

• Chen Yi convinced Muhage that the Poshushuo Kingdom’s internal conflict could distract it from profiting during a war between the Central Plains and the Barbarian Tribe.
• Muhage ordered Yuan Jingxuan to go to the Poshushuo Kingdom and make King Landu’s bandits withdraw to the Tea Horse Road.
• Yuan Jingxuan challenged Chen Yi to a spar, and Chen Yi accepted for that night before asking to see Xiao Fengchun and Fu Wanqing.
• Muhage said Yuan Jingxuan would later accompany Chen Yi to Mengshui Pass, where he was to kill Xiao Jinghong.
• After Chen Yi left, Muhage and Yuan Jingxuan agreed that Xiao Fengchun and Fu Wanqing could return alive, while Xiao Jinghong’s death would help weaken Shuzhou before the Barbarian Tribe marched north.

Chen Yi, posing as Song Jin Jian, visited Fu Wanqing and the gravely injured Xiao Fengchun in the Black Bear Tribe, secretly treating Xiao while pretending to negotiate their return to Shuzhou. He obtained Fu Wanqing’s handwriting for a forged letter implicating the Xiao Family in collaboration with the barbarians, and Muhage approved the scheme.

• Chen Yi entered Fu Wanqing and Xiao Fengchun’s house despite Fu’s objections and discovered that Xiao was near death while Fu’s cultivation had been sealed.
• Chen Yi restrained Fu Wanqing and secretly used a silver needle and spiritual energy to treat Xiao Fengchun while telling her news about Shuzhou and the Xiao Family.
• Chen Yi offered to escort Fu Wanqing and Xiao Fengchun back to Shuzhou in exchange for a family letter, and Fu agreed in hopes of getting Xiao medical help.
• Chen Yi collected Fu Wanqing’s ordinary family letter, then told Muhage he had needed her handwriting to fabricate correspondence with the Golden Tent.
• Muhage praised Chen Yi’s plan to use the forged letter to justify the barbarians’ future conquest of Shuzhou.

Chen Yi sparred with Yuan Jingxuan to strengthen Muhage’s trust and demonstrated that he could withstand the warrior’s attacks. After Yuan Jingxuan used the Black Bear Tribe’s Spirit Fusion Method and reached Grandmaster-level strength, the fight continued with Chen Yi evading his assault and countering with his sword.

• Chen Yi presented Muhage with a forged family letter and persuaded him that Cui’s plans would help the Barbarian Tribe seize Shuzhou.
• Muhage brought Chen Yi to the tribe’s arena to spar with Yuan Jingxuan before hundreds of warriors.
• Chen Yi blocked Yuan Jingxuan’s punches and injured his hands by repeatedly striking the same spots with the Uncontested Sword.
• Yuan Jingxuan fused with his Bear Spirit, increasing his strength and aura until they reached the Grandmaster Realm.
• Yuan Jingxuan charged with his axe, and Chen Yi evaded his attacks before rising into the air and striking with his sword.

Chen Yi defeated Yuan Jingxuan in a spar, then joined Muhage and the others for a feast where they discussed the summons to the Golden Tent. As Muhage decided to attend despite the risk of angering the Barbarian Emperor, Chen Yi received an intelligence prompt about the emperor’s succession announcement.

• Chen Yi used his speed and swordsmanship to wear down Yuan Jingxuan, then wounded him with the Killing Sword: Mother-Child Chain until Muhage stopped the fight and declared Chen Yi the winner.
• Yuan Jingxuan admitted defeat, and Muhage praised him while warning him not to underestimate Wei martial artists.
• Muhage invited Chen Yi, Yuan Jingxuan, Asutai, and the others to feast in the great tent.
• Muhage and Yuan Jingxuan discussed the next day’s Golden Tent meeting and the attack on Longge Shiying, which they suspected might involve a prince’s plot.
• Muhage decided to attend the meeting despite Yuan Jingxuan’s warning that the Barbarian Emperor might be displeased.
• Chen Yi saw a Heaven Grade Lower intelligence prompt stating that the Barbarian Emperor would announce his successor at noon in the Golden Tent.

Chen Yi learned that the Barbarian Emperor planned to choose a successor and arranged to accompany Muhage to the Golden Tent, hoping to assess the threat and seize a chance to disrupt the Barbarian Tribe’s plans. The next morning, he set out with Muhage for the Golden Tent, knowing the journey could expose him to danger.

• Chen Yi learned that the Barbarian Emperor would summon the tribal chiefs to announce his successor, and he decided he needed to visit the Golden Tent.
• Chen Yi toasted Muhage and Yuan Jingxuan, then asked about the princes’ conflict; Muhage explained that Longge Mowang had stationed men around the Golden Tent and that the struggle for succession threatened to divide the tribes.
• Chen Yi persuaded Muhage to take him to the Golden Tent as a servant, and Muhage agreed to depart early the next morning.
• Asutai told Chen Yi he could not go to the Golden Tent because his Slave Mark would bring shame on his father, and Chen Yi encouraged him to grow strong enough that no one would dare slight him.
• Chen Yi considered the dangers of the Golden Tent in the Chess Dao Illusion Realm and resolved to proceed cautiously.
• The next morning, Yuan Jingxuan left for the Poshushuo Kingdom, and Muhage called Chen Yi to accompany him to the Golden Tent.

Chen Yi traveled with Muhage’s party toward the Golden Tent, where Bi Qi tested him and Chen Yi suspected the priest possessed a Bear Spirit. At the Golden Tent, Muhage was told the emperor was occupied, but he refused to wait and led his party onward.

• Muhage’s party departed the Black Bear Tribe, while Asutai told Fu Wanqing that Song Jin Jian and Yuan’s group planned to visit Mengshui Pass, leaving her anxious about returning to the Central Plains.
• Bi Qi questioned Chen Yi about his fight with Yuan Jingxuan and warned him against scheming; Chen Yi used Qi Gazing Technique and saw black, bear-shaped energy around Bi Qi’s head.
• Chen Yi considered whether Barbarian priests cultivated spirits through a secret Spirit Possession Method and disguised his face further, wary that the Golden Tent’s Asas might see through him.
• After hours of travel, Muhage asked Chen Yi to lead Mugan as the party approached the Golden Tent, whose gold came from the Central Plains and whose construction had reportedly killed many people.
• A guard told Muhage that the emperor was meeting tribal representatives and asked him to wait, but Muhage refused and ordered his warriors to follow him to see the emperor.

Chen Yi accompanied Muhage to the Golden Tent council, where he encountered Right King Erilisen and the Wei martial artist Meng Xingdu. After provoking Meng Xingdu into speaking out of turn, Chen Yi watched the guards punish him, leaving Meng Xingdu furious but unable to retaliate.

• Muhage led Chen Yi and the Black Bear Tribe warriors past the Golden Tent guards, while Bi Qi and Ji Feng followed on foot.
• At the Golden Tent, Muhage encountered Erilisen, who mocked him and asked to buy Chen Yi; Muhage refused and went inside with him.
• Chen Yi recognized Meng Xingdu among Erilisen's attendants and exchanged guarded remarks with him while Bi Qi spoke with them.
• Meng Xingdu suggested the Qinghe Cui Family was conspiring with the Black Bear Tribe, and Chen Yi insulted his abilities and schemes.
• Meng Xingdu shouted at Chen Yi near the Golden Tent, drawing the guards' attention; a commander struck him and warned him to keep quiet.
• Chen Yi taunted Meng Xingdu again, and Meng Xingdu withdrew among the Greenwood Tribe's people, glaring at him.

Chen Yi watched the rivalries around the Golden Tent while planning to disrupt the Barbarian Tribe’s succession, and Longge Shiying confronted Longge Mowang about the attempt on her life. The Barbarian Emperor finally appeared, and Chen Yi noticed that the frail-looking ruler’s body seemed as robust as Muhage’s.

• Chen Yi dismissed Meng Xingdu’s threats, and Meng Xingdu told the young Barbarian that Chen Yi was the Uncontested Sword and roughly as strong as a Ten-Thousand-Man Commander.
• Longge Shiying tried to enter the Golden Tent to confront her father, but the guards refused her entry.
• Longge Mowang reassured Longge Shiying that he would investigate the ambush, then persuaded her to leave and wait for news.
• Chen Yi studied the Barbarian Tribe’s factions and considered ways to disrupt the succession, while remaining wary of the experts gathered at the Golden Tent.
• The Barbarians knelt as the Barbarian Emperor approached, and Chen Yi noticed that the ruler’s body seemed as robust as Muhage’s despite his frail appearance.

Chen Yi suspected Longge Sihuang was either an impostor or feigning illness as the Barbarian Emperor summoned the tribal leaders to discuss war, Longge Shiying’s marriage, and succession. As Longge Shiying arrived at the Golden Tent, Chen Yi sent Muhage a voice transmission, preparing to intervene in the succession dispute.

• Chen Yi examined Longge Sihuang’s abundant vital energy and suspected that the emperor’s apparent frailty was a deception.
• Longge Sihuang urged the tribal leaders to attack the Central Plains, and Muhage, Erilisen, the princes, and several chiefs declared their support.
• Longge Sihuang proposed marrying Longge Shiying to Asutai, but Longge Huazhuo objected while Muhage argued that Asutai was unworthy of her.
• Longge Sihuang asked the leaders to choose between Longge Mowang and Longge Huazhuo as his successor, and Erilisen avoided taking sides.
• Longge Shiying arrived demanding to see her father, and Chen Yi sent Muhage a voice transmission.

Chen Yi told Muhage that Longge Sihuang showed no sign of illness, leading Muhage to suspect the Emperor had been replaced. Muhage attacked him in the Golden Tent and publicly demanded that he reveal his true identity, while the guards and chieftains clashed around them.

• Chen Yi secretly told Muhage that Longge Sihuang appeared healthy and suggested he might be an impostor.
• Longge Sihuang ordered Longge Mowang to take Longge Shiying away, then asked the chieftains to weigh in on his sons as successors.
• Muhage declared his support for Longge Huazhuo, while most chieftains favored Longge Mowang.
• Muhage attacked Longge Sihuang and accused him of impersonating the Emperor, citing his strength and his reaction to Bai Baiwu's name.
• Longge Huazhuo challenged Longge Sihuang to explain himself as Hu Ning rallied the guards and Bi Qi Asa threatened to summon the Great Asa.
• Longge Sihuang's sickly appearance faded, and he asked Muhage what had made him suspect his identity.

Longge Mowang revealed his plan to claim the Barbarian throne after Longge Sihuang’s death, using Longge Louye to impersonate the emperor. The Golden Tent erupted into battle after Longge Beichen killed Bi Qi, and as the fighting spread beyond the collapsing tent, Chen Yi offered Muhage help.

• Muhage attacked the false Longge Sihuang while Erilisen and Hu Ning argued over whether the Left King or an impostor had rebelled.
• Longge Sihuang revealed himself as Longge Louye, and Longge Beichen appeared as Longge Mowang announced that their father had died and declared his claim to the throne.
• Bi Qi opposed Longge Mowang’s ascension, but Longge Beichen killed him, prompting Muhage and Erilisen to fight back.
• Longge Mowang ordered his supporters to seize Muhage, Erilisen, Longge Huazhuo, and the other opponents as the Golden Tent collapsed in the battle.
• Chen Yi watched the fighting and offered to lend Muhage a hand.