Chapter Summaries

Fang Yue was ambushed by the Phoenix Organization’s bandit leaders after reaching East Flow Mountain, but his strange powers turned the fight against them. The chapter ended with him battling the three strongest leaders while the wounded Twin Blade brothers watched in alarm.

• A blue anomaly emerged from Fang Yue’s Mist Black Robe, and he cut off its tentacle before the bandits arrived.
• Big Saber Old Seven, Long Sword Old Six, Iron Foot Old Nine, Long Hair Old Eight, and the Twin Blade brothers attacked Fang Yue and wounded him.
• Fang Yue appeared behind Old Four and Old Five with pitch-black eyes, then overwhelmed the bandit leaders and killed Long Sword Old Six.
• Old Four and Old Five realized Fang Yue was far more dangerous than his apparent rank suggested as he fought the three strongest bandit leaders.

Fang Yue struggled to hold off five bandit leaders as his internal energy ran low, then discovered that Old Seven was a mid-level Disaster-level Anomaly. After Fang Yue struck it down, its grotesque hands spread to him, leaving him infected as the chapter ended.

• Two newly advanced Human Rank Intermediate Stage bandits joined the fight against Fang Yue, turning his battle against the three top-ranked leaders into a five-on-one struggle.
• Fang Yue fought defensively as his internal energy dwindled, then risked an injury to attack, but another bandit blocked his strike.
• Old Seven rose and attacked Fang Yue from behind, and Fang Yue cut him in two; the bandit leaders recoiled as countless tiny hands emerged from the corpse.
• Old Seven awakened as the Sticky Cotton Anomaly, displaying two Disaster Marks, and Fang Yue struck it down again with the Black Blade.
• The Sticky Cotton Anomaly crawled toward Fang Yue, while colorful tiny hands sprouted across his right arm and kept growing back after he cut them off.

Fang Yue struggled against the [Sticky Cotton Anomaly], whose poison caused little hands to grow across his arm and whose body became stronger whenever he attacked it. He discovered that the anomaly could spread into the night bandits, then used the chaos to escape and learned Rat Seat was in the meeting hall.

• Fang Yue and the other experts fought the [Sticky Cotton Anomaly], while its poison made many little hands grow from Fang Yue's right arm.
• Fang Yue destroyed the anomaly's vessel, Old Seven's corpse, but each fragment grew its own hands and made the threat worse.
• Night bandits fled back to Fang Yue for help, and the anomaly's hands spread from Old Seven's flesh onto their bodies.
• Fang Yue cut off his infected arm and threw it among the night bandits, then used Still World to retrieve and reattach it with Night's Breath.
• Fang Yue escaped with an uninfected night bandit and learned Rat Seat was in the meeting hall.

Fang Yue raced to the mountaintop in pursuit of the Rat Seat and discovered that the Sticky Cotton Anomaly had spread across the area and was actively devouring everything. He found a hidden passage beneath the meeting hall and followed the Rat Seat’s trail into it, where he realized the anomaly was rapidly growing and learning to prey on its surroundings.

• Fang Yue escaped the Thief Leaders and sprinted up the mountain path, ignoring their threats as they pursued him.
• At the mountaintop, Fang Yue found Mouthy Little Hands devouring the ground, buildings, and remains, then fought through them to reach the meeting hall.
• Fang Yue spotted the hands chewing through floor tiles and exposed a secret passage beneath the hall before the Thief Leaders reached him.
• Fang Yue descended through a passage infested with Mouthy Little Hands and crushed the arms that attacked him at the bottom.
• Fang Yue found a recently eaten corpse beside the only exit and suspected the Rat Seat had passed through there.
• Fang Yue recognized that the Sticky Cotton Anomaly was a growth-type anomaly that had advanced to actively devouring its surroundings.

Fang Yue pursued Rat Seat through the Phoenix Organization’s secret passage, where his blackened eye and unsettling status continued to trouble him. He punched through the mountain’s floors to overtake Rat Seat, leaving them face to face at the passage’s deepest level.

• Fang Yue felt ravenous near a corpse, noticed his right eye had turned black again, and saw that his mysterious status had become clearer.
• Fang Yue realized Rat Seat had been running ahead through the Phoenix Organization’s underground passage and decided to cut through the floors instead of following its winding route.
• Fang Yue punched through the passage floors, knocking hidden Mouthy Little Hands loose as the mountain shook.
• Fang Yue dropped in front of the fleeing Rat Seat at the bottom of the passage, and Rat Seat asked what he wanted.

Fang Yue pressed Rat Seat for information about An Dong'er and learned that Rabbit Seat, Jue Wenzhuo, knew more about her. After Rat Seat’s reinforcements arrived, Fang Yue killed him, maxed out his Force Dissipation, and prepared to fight the enraged Night Thieves.

• Fang Yue demanded that Rat Seat reveal An Dong'er's whereabouts, and Rat Seat said she had been assigned to someone by Ox Seat.
• Rat Seat identified Rabbit Seat as Jue Wenzhuo, the Eagle Merchant Group's Supreme Guest Minister, and said he would know An Dong'er's situation.
• As the bandit leaders arrived to rescue Rat Seat, Fang Yue killed him with Still World and his Mouthy Little Hands devoured the body.
• Fang Yue received rewards that maxed out his Control Power and Force Dissipation and raised his Anomaly Realm progress and Realm Breakthrough Degree.
• The bandit leaders found Rat Seat dead and grew furious, so Fang Yue summoned the Black Blade and challenged them.

Fang Yue fought the bandit gang after they charged him, using Still World and his skill to turn the battle against them. He killed the third bandit leader and both twin swordsmen, leaving the first and second leaders as the only survivors.

• The twin swordsmen attacked Fang Yue with their paired draw-and-slash, but he blocked their strikes after recognizing the technique’s weakness.
• Fang Yue used Still World to slow the third bandit leader’s movements and stabbed him through the heart, then killed him with a follow-up slash.
• Fang Yue blocked the twin swordsmen and evaded the first and second leaders’ attacks while the third leader died.
• Fang Yue overpowered the four remaining bandits, killed one twin swordsman, and declared that he had surrounded the three survivors.
• Fang Yue severed the second bandit leader’s arm and killed the other twin swordsman, leaving the first and second leaders to face him.

Fang Yue killed Thief Second and forced Thief First to flee, while Mouthy Little Hands turned on the last thief. The chapter left Thief First trapped inside a cage of little hands.

• Thief Second bluffed about a legendary move that would take both fighters down, but Fang Yue ignored his threats and continued attacking.
• Fang Yue killed the wounded Thief Second with Shattered Feathers, and Mouthy Little Hands devoured his corpse.
• Thief First tried to retreat, but Mouthy Little Hands swarmed him while Fang Yue pulled away.
• Thief First realized the little hands were a genuine intermediate Calamity-level anomaly, then was swallowed by a cage of them rising from the ground.

Fang Yue pursued the wounded leader of the Thieves' List after the Sticky Cotton Anomaly attacked him, then caught up with him when he tried to escape on Fang Yue's Blazing Red Horse. The gang leader ended up trapped beneath Fang Yue’s Black Blade.

• The Sticky Cotton Anomaly swallowed the leader of the Thieves' List, but he broke free and fled through the secret passage as Fang Yue pursued him.
• The gang leader escaped the passage by smashing through the anomaly’s hands, and Fang Yue realized the Sticky Cotton Anomaly had learned to deceive people.
• The little hands pointed Fang Yue toward the fleeing leader, who stole Fang Yue’s Blazing Red Horse and rode away.
• Fang Yue used his Anomaly Value to catch up, then struck the gang leader with Shattered Feathers and the Dark Moon Blade Technique.
• The gang leader was thrown against a tree, where the Mouthy Little Hands briefly bound him, before Fang Yue rode up and confronted him with his Black Blade.

Fang Yue killed the Bandit Ranking Leader and learned that the other top bandits had also died, earning him substantial rewards and bringing him closer to finding An Dong'er. When the [Sticky Cotton Anomaly] turned on him, it revealed a hand-built double of Fang Yue bearing three Disaster Marks.

• Fang Yue stabbed the Bandit Ranking Leader through the heart, and the [Sticky Cotton Anomaly] devoured the corpse.
• Fang Yue received rewards for the Bandit Ranking Leader and learned that the other top bandits had died, with the anomaly finishing off several of them.
• Fang Yue reviewed his gains and resolved to return to [Chu Nuan City] to capture Tai Yuema and ask about Ox Seat.
• The [Sticky Cotton Anomaly] tried to attack Fang Yue and his [Blazing Red Horse], then trapped and wounded Fang Yue with its little hands.
• The anomaly raised a coffin containing a hand-built double of Fang Yue, whose forehead revealed three Disaster Marks.

Fang Yue escaped [Sticky Cotton Anomaly] and entered [Chu Nuan City] while the anomaly secretly followed, as he waited for a chance to rescue the captives. At the Phoenix Organization, Master Ox Seat revealed his plans to create anomalies with [Abnormal Spiritual Roots] and claim the organization and the Qing Kingdom.

• Fang Yue fled from [Sticky Cotton Anomaly] and rode through the night toward [Chu Nuan City], believing it had not pursued him.
• After Fang Yue left the [Blazing Red Horse] outside the city, [Sticky Cotton Anomaly] killed and consumed it before heading toward [Chu Nuan City].
• Fang Yue removed his Human Skin Mask, passed through the city gates, learned that the [Martial Competition] was approaching, and settled into an inn to train while waiting for a chance to act.
• Master Ox Seat received a report that [Sticky Cotton Anomaly] was growing well after the attack on [East Flow Mountain], and he dismissed concerns that the experiment was out of control.
• Master Ox Seat explained that the Phoenix Organization was developing anomalies with human and anomalous powers, and declared that he would claim the Phoenix Organization and the Qing Kingdom after mastering [Pseudo-Yin Power].

Fang Yue sneaked into Great Yang Mansion and learned that Yang Hongxia had stayed safe despite Tai Yuema pressuring her for information. He realized Tai Yuema might lead him to Ox Seat and An Dong'er, then left planning to enter the [Martial Competition] under another name.

• Ox Seat discussed the spreading campaign against [Night Dawn] and ordered his people to gather more data before acting.
• Fang Yue crossed Chu Nuan City’s rooftops and found Great Yang Mansion surrounded by sentries watching for him.
• Fang Yue entered Yang Hongxia’s room, confirmed his identity, and learned that Tai Yuema had demanded information about him.
• Yang Hongxia told Fang Yue she had refused Tai Yuema and secured protection for Great Yang Mansion through the Heavenly Merchant Alliance.
• Fang Yue connected Tai Yuema to Rabbit Seat and hoped he could use him to locate Ox Seat and rescue An Dong'er.
• Fang Yue told Yang Hongxia he would enter the [Martial Competition] under another name and learned its prize would be an Exotic Race slave.

Fang Yue failed to sneak into the Eagle Merchant Group to capture Rabbit Seat, then advanced his Disk Tree Mind Method to its third layer. When he went outside the next morning, he discovered that Night Rain was dripping from the black ring above his head, and the doctors he consulted could not help him.

• Fang Yue sneaked into the Eagle Merchant Group but was discovered and escaped before he could reach Rabbit Seat.
• Fang Yue returned to the inn and cultivated until the Disk Tree Mind Method reached its third layer, raising his Internal Force and Force Dissipation Value.
• Fang Yue went outside after dawn and discovered that Night Rain was dripping from the black ring above his head, causing him to lose one point.
• Fang Yue rushed to nearby medical clinics, but the doctors said they had never seen the Anomaly curse and could not cure it.

Fang Yue learned that An Dong'er was being offered as the first-place prize in Chu Nuan City's Martial Competition. After Dou Hongyi mistook the Night Rain above Fang Yue for proof that he was a Rain-grade expert, Fang Yue pretended to be one and began using the false identity to gather information.

• Fang Yue struggled to shield himself from the Night Rain and heard passersby say that An Dong'er was the Martial Competition's prize.
• Fang Yue grabbed a passerby to ask about An Dong'er, and the man said the Heavenly Merchant Alliance had spread the news.
• Dou Hongyi attacked Fang Yue for accosting the peddler, but mistook the Night Rain above Fang Yue for a sign that he was a Rain-grade expert.
• Fang Yue pretended to be a powerful senior and presented the Night Thieves' leaders' heads, convincing Dou Hongyi that he had defeated the top-ranked thieves.
• Fang Yue asked Dou Hongyi whether the Martial Competition was offering a female servant as its first-place prize.

Fang Yue learned that An Dong'er had been made the prize in the Heavenly Merchant Alliance's Martial Competition and considered how to rescue her. He ruled out storming the Alliance's heavily guarded stronghold for now because he might not be strong enough to save her and escape.

• Dou Hongyi told Fang Yue that An Dong'er had willingly become a slave to save her family and was the Martial Competition's first-place prize.
• Yang Diandian arrived with Blue Guards, and Dou Hongyi withheld what he had learned about Fang Yue before leaving.
• Yang Diandian sent the Blue Guards back to patrol and warned that the Green Bureau might soon lose its place in the Qing Kingdom.
• Fang Yue returned to the inn, smashed a table in anger, and calmed himself as raindrops marked -1 above his head.
• Fang Yue weighed rescuing An Dong'er by force against the Heavenly Merchant Alliance's powerful guards and decided he was not ready to storm its stronghold.

Fang Yue considered how to rescue An Dong'er and decided that winning the upcoming Martial Competition would be safer than attacking the Heavenly Merchant Alliance. After receiving his rewards for the bandit leaders, he planned to hand the mines over to Yang Hongxia to manage.

• Fang Yue weighed storming the Heavenly Merchant Alliance against winning An Dong'er back through the Martial Competition, then chose to cultivate for the contest.
• Fang Yue practiced his martial techniques and gathered information around Chu Nuan City while waiting for his strength to grow.
• Dou Hongyi delivered Fang Yue the first rewards for the bandit leaders and invited him to contact the Green Office about the Martial Competition.
• Fang Yue inspected the rewards, including gold, pills, books, and documents for several mines near Chu Nuan City.
• Fang Yue decided to avoid further dealings with Dou Hongyi and have Yang Hongxia manage the mines for him.

Fang Yue organized his resources and resumed cultivation while Tai Yuema refused the Eagle Merchant Group's request to relocate. After Tai Yuema left, pale hands attacked the estate, killed Madam Yun and the guards, and spread through the grounds.

• Fang Yue sorted his assets, including Blood Stones, and returned to cultivation.
• Tai Yuema refused the Eagle Merchant Group head's request to move into the Heavenly Merchant Alliance headquarters and planned to replace him later.
• Tai Yuema left the estate for an inn, while tiny pale hands appeared along the walls and watched him go.
• Madam Yun found Tai Yuema's room empty, then approached a pale hand in the garden, which bit her and dragged her into a pile of novels.
• More hands emerged throughout the estate, killing guards and other arrivals as the grounds descended into chaos.

Tai Yuema returned to the Eagle Merchant Group and organized its survivors against the Sticky Cotton Anomaly. The anomaly appeared in a terrifying form resembling Ye Niu Niu and charged at Tai Yuema, leaving the group facing a Disaster Grade High Rank threat.

• Tai Yuema abandoned his approach to the distant inn and rushed back to the Eagle Merchant Group after seeing its distress flares.
• Tai Yuema fought through the anomaly’s little hands and gathered the surviving members into a defensive group in the training ground.
• The Sticky Cotton Anomaly formed a throne of hands and appeared before the crowd in a shape resembling Ye Niu Niu.
• The anomaly revealed three Disaster Marks and a hand-blade, and Tai Yuema and the survivors realized it was a Disaster Grade High Rank anomaly.
• The Sticky Cotton Anomaly charged at Tai Yuema with its hand-blade.

Tai Yuema fled the Sticky Cotton Anomaly to the Heavenly Merchant Alliance headquarters, where Tian Wangchuan drove it away. At a meeting the next morning, a portrait linked the Anomaly to the Rain-grade senior.

• Tai Yuema abandoned the Eagle Merchant Group and drew the Sticky Cotton Anomaly toward the Heavenly Merchant Alliance headquarters.
• The Sticky Cotton Anomaly attacked the headquarters until Tian Wangchuan used clouds and mist to injure it and drive it away.
• Tian Wangchuan said the Anomaly had only barely reached Disaster Grade High Rank and announced that he would use Chu Nuan City's grand formation to search for it.
• Dou Hongyi and Yang Diandian attended a meeting about the incident, where Tian Wangchuan presented a portrait.
• Dou Hongyi recognized the figure in the portrait as the Rain-grade senior, or someone closely connected to them, and realized they might be an Anomaly.

Tian Wangchuan activated Chu Nuan City's defensive formation but could not locate the Disaster-level Anomaly, and he insisted that the Martial Competition would proceed. Meanwhile, Fang Yue advanced to Human Rank through training and renewed his vow to fulfill Lord Han's wishes.

• Dou Hongyi was unsettled by a portrait showing a strange hand-shaped blade, while the others discussed the high-rank Disaster-level Anomaly.
• Yang Diandian and Dou Hongyi gave Tian Wangchuan their formation tokens, and Tian Wangchuan activated Chu Nuan City's defensive formation.
• Tian Wangchuan failed to locate the Anomaly and ordered the Martial Competition to go ahead despite the danger.
• Fang Yue mastered his techniques and broke through from Innate First-class to Human Rank Initial Stage.
• Fang Yue vowed to inherit Lord Han's teachings, obtain the Other Shore Flower, and eventually tell Lord Han about the wonders of Immortal Grade.