Chapter Summaries

Su Quan tried to persuade Song Qingshu to visit Divine Dragon Island by warning him about the Leopard Fetus Tendon-Changing Pill, but he refused to abandon Shuang'er. After Song Qingshu discovered Su Quan had an antidote, she agreed to give it to Shuang'er in exchange for his promise to go to the island.

• Su Quan invited Song Qingshu and Shuang'er to Divine Dragon Island, but Song Qingshu refused and said they would face their remaining days together rather than submit to the sect.
• Su Quan explained how the Leopard Fetus Tendon-Changing Pill had changed Fat Monk and Thin Monk, then warned that Shuang'er and Song Qingshu could suffer the same fate.
• Su Quan offered Shuang'er an antidote if Song Qingshu would go to the island, but Song Qingshu seized her before she could swallow the pill and suspected she carried another antidote.
• Song Qingshu had Fang Yi search Su Quan, and Fang Yi found no antidote, only Leopard Fetus Tendon-Changing Pills.
• Song Qingshu promised to go to Divine Dragon Island, and Su Quan passed the antidote to Shuang'er with a kiss.

Song Qingshu honored his agreement to accompany Su Quan to Divine Dragon Island, while arranging a way for Shuang'er to seek an antidote for the Leopard Fetus Tendon-Changing Pill. On the journey, he clashed with Su Quan over their meal, and she finally admitted she had not brought enough money.

• Su Quan confirmed she had given Shuang'er the antidote and asked Song Qingshu to accompany her to Divine Dragon Island, and he agreed to leave at once.
• Shuang'er offered to go with Song Qingshu, but he persuaded her to keep her promise to Third Young Madam Zhuang and secretly gave her a Leopard Fetus Tendon-Changing Pill to take to the Poison-Handed Medicine King.
• Song Qingshu set out with Su Quan and Fang Yi, then stopped at an inn for food and rest when night fell.
• Su Quan ordered plain noodle soup, but Song Qingshu replaced the order with a list of expensive dishes, and Fang Yi confirmed they were common at elite banquets in the capital.
• Su Quan warned that the lavish order could attract bandits, and after Song Qingshu teased her, she admitted she did not have enough money.

Song Qingshu forced Su Quan to borrow ten thousand taels from him and secured an IOU sealed with her lip print. To steal it back, Su Quan ordered Fang Yi to seduce Song Qingshu, threatening to use Mu Jianping in her place if Fang Yi refused; Fang Yi finally agreed to go for the Little County Princess’s sake.

• Su Quan admitted she had no money for the meal, and Song Qingshu offered to lend her ten thousand taels on an IOU.
• Su Quan signed the IOU and sealed it with a lip print after Song Qingshu suggested using her rouge.
• After the meal, Su Quan rented two rooms, and Song Qingshu went to his room to cultivate.
• Su Quan told Fang Yi to seduce Song Qingshu and steal back the IOU, threatening to make Mu Jianping serve him if Fang Yi refused.
• Fang Yi resisted Su Quan’s pressure until Su Quan threatened to use her Soul-Capturing Art and aphrodisiacs, then agreed to go for Mu Jianping’s sake.

Fang Yi chose to seek Song Qingshu as a way to change her fate, while Su Quan prepared her to seduce him for a promissory note. After Fang Yi entered Song Qingshu’s room, he explained why battlefield martial arts could be more effective than jianghu techniques in battle.

• Su Quan told Fang Yi to bathe and dressed her in fine clothes and makeup so she could approach Song Qingshu.
• Su Quan advised Fang Yi to pose as Wei Xiaobao’s widow and use forbidden attraction to seduce Song Qingshu.
• Fang Yi decided to pursue Song Qingshu as a future partner rather than follow Su Quan’s plan merely to obtain the promissory note.
• Fang Yi entered Song Qingshu’s room at night, and he noticed her unusual beauty and nervous heartbeat.
• Fang Yi questioned Song Qingshu about battlefield martial arts, and he used Li Kui and Yan Qing to explain their difference from jianghu techniques.

Fang Yi confessed her feelings to Song Qingshu and offered herself to him, claiming she had come to apologize and reveal Su Quan’s plan. Song Qingshu was moved by her apparent devotion and hesitated to refuse her, while Fang Yi secretly intended to use intimacy to secure his protection and win a place in his heart.

• Fang Yi knelt before Song Qingshu and apologized for helping Madam Hong poison him and Shuang'er, but Song Qingshu said he had already forgiven her.
• Fang Yi told Song Qingshu that Wei Xiaobao had coerced her and that they had never married or consummated their relationship.
• Fang Yi revealed that Su Quan had ordered her to seduce Song Qingshu and retrieve the promissory note for ten thousand taels, but she said she had chosen to tell him the truth.
• Fang Yi confessed that she had loved Song Qingshu since they first met and said she had agreed to come because she wanted him, not to fulfill Su Quan’s plan.
• Fang Yi placed Song Qingshu’s hand inside her collar and pleaded for one night with him, while Song Qingshu struggled with his attraction and concern for her.
• Fang Yi privately resolved to use their intimacy to gain Song Qingshu’s protection and gradually win a place in his heart.

Song Qingshu and Fang Yi became intimate, and Fang Yi reassured herself that he would not discard her afterward. She proposed helping him win over Shuang'er, leaving Song Qingshu intrigued by her plan.

• Fang Yi urged Song Qingshu to stop calling her Miss Fang, and the two became intimate.
• Fang Yi worried that Song Qingshu might consider her cheap, but he reassured her and blamed himself for pressuring her.
• Fang Yi suggested that Shuang'er help satisfy Song Qingshu in the future, and Song Qingshu protested that Shuang'er would be angry.
• Fang Yi offered to help Song Qingshu win Shuang'er over and claimed that Wei Xiaobao had not touched Shuang'er or the Little County Princess.
• Fang Yi said she was willing to be with Song Qingshu alongside Shuang'er but worried that Shuang'er would be too shy to agree.

After spending the night with Fang Yi, Song Qingshu gave her Su Quan’s IOU and reassured her about their relationship and their shared poison. Fang Yi returned to Su Quan pretending Song Qingshu had rejected her, but she secretly encouraged Su Quan to try seducing him herself.

• Song Qingshu and Fang Yi grew closer as he apologized, forgave her for poisoning him, and gave her the IOU for ten thousand taels.
• Fang Yi asked Song Qingshu to pretend nothing had happened when she reported back to Su Quan, and he promised to find an antidote for their Leopard Fetus Tendon-Changing Pills.
• Fang Yi decided to conceal their intimacy and use Su Quan’s suspicions to steer her toward Song Qingshu.
• Su Quan doubted Fang Yi’s claim that Song Qingshu had remained unmoved, but Fang Yi insisted he had restrained himself because of her status.
• Fang Yi told Su Quan that Song Qingshu had reacted to her and suggested Su Quan could succeed where she had supposedly failed.

Su Quan visited Song Qingshu and tried to use her Bewitching Technique after Fang Yi claimed he was already infatuated with her. Song Qingshu resisted her flirtation with jokes and poetry, but Su Quan seized a moment when his attention wavered and asked if he thought she was beautiful.

• Su Quan decided to visit Song Qingshu after Fang Yi said he was nearly unable to restrain himself around her.
• Song Qingshu let Su Quan into his room, and she teased him about rejecting Fang Yi and asked about Hong’s martial art.
• Su Quan tried to seduce Song Qingshu by discussing Hong’s need to abstain from women, but he answered with suggestive jokes and poems.
• Song Qingshu explained that a poem he recited was by Zhao Kuangyin, and Su Quan interpreted his remark as a sign of ambition.
• Su Quan moved closer, caught Song Qingshu’s attention with her Bewitching Technique, and asked whether he thought she was beautiful.

Su Quan used her Bewitching Soul Art to make Song Qingshu obey her and recruited him to protect her when she returned home. She left him with Fang Yi, then secretly listened outside their room until dawn.

• Su Quan manipulated Song Qingshu into returning the promissory note and promising to protect her from the people threatening her at home.
• Song Qingshu openly confessed his desire for Su Quan, who promised to reward him after he helped her and ordered him to follow her instructions.
• Su Quan brought Song Qingshu to Fang Yi, made Fang Yi his maidservant, and told her to satisfy his requests.
• Fang Yi suspected Su Quan had used her Bewitching Soul Art on Song Qingshu, but she complied when he demanded she undress.
• Su Quan listened outside as Song Qingshu and Fang Yi became intimate, then returned to her room at dawn.

Su Quan brought the mentally impaired Song Qingshu and Fang Yi toward Divine Dragon Island, hoping to use Song Qingshu as an ally amid threats from Hongli’s armies and unrest within the Divine Dragon Sect. At a coastal outpost, Song Qingshu’s identity as the Manchu Qing’s foremost master startled the lecherous Yellow Dragon Envoy Yin Jin, who realized the island’s crisis could become even more volatile.

• Su Quan teased Song Qingshu and Fang Yi at breakfast, while Fang Yi confirmed that Song Qingshu had lost his mind.
• Su Quan instructed Song Qingshu to pose as a secret Qing envoy and told Fang Yi to act as his servant and handle the negotiations.
• Su Quan explained that Hongli had sent Li Shiyao, Zhaohui, and Hailancha to Divine Dragon Island, and that she feared both the invasion and internal opposition.
• Su Quan and her companions reached a coastal outpost, where Yellow Dragon Envoy Yin Jin welcomed her and leered at her.
• Song Qingshu insulted Yin Jin, and Su Quan revealed Song’s identity, prompting Yin Jin to panic and flatter him.
• Yin Jin learned that Song Qingshu was accompanying Su Quan to discuss an alliance with the Cult Master and suspected that Divine Dragon Island would soon be in turmoil.

Su Quan learned that the Divine Dragon Sect was considering handing her over to Shengjing to avert an invasion, while the Golden Snake Camp might join Hongli’s forces. With the sect’s support uncertain, she asked Song Qingshu to protect her and warned Fang Yi that their fates were tied together.

• Su Quan received Yellow Dragon Envoy Yin Jin, who revealed that he had been ordered to capture her but hesitated because Song Qingshu was present.
• Yin Jin told Su Quan that Hongli planned to attack the Divine Dragon Sect and that the Golden Snake Camp might send its navy to join the campaign.
• Yin Jin revealed that Shengjing had offered to withdraw its troops if the sect surrendered Su Quan, and that many sect members supported the proposal.
• Su Quan realized Hong Antong might allow the sect to sacrifice her, then told Yin Jin she would return to Divine Dragon Island and face the Cult Master’s judgment.
• Su Quan asked Song Qingshu to keep her safe and warned Fang Yi that she would share Su Quan’s fate, promising the antidote to her and Mu Jianping if Fang Yi remained loyal.

Su Quan returned to Divine Dragon Island with Song Qingshu and found Hong Antong hosting powerful guests. Song Qingshu attacked Hong Antong over his marriage to Su Quan, and the chapter ended when a powerful voice challenged his claim to be Number One Under Heaven.

• Su Quan led Song Qingshu and Fang Yi into the hall, where Hong Antong met with Yuzhenzi, Sang Jie, the Blood Saber Ancestor, Yelü Qi, and Yelü Nanxian.
• Song Qingshu attacked Hong Antong, and the two exchanged a fierce series of blows while the other guests watched without intervening.
• Hong Antong released venomous snakes from his sleeves, but Yelü Nanxian struck their still-biting heads with melon seeds before they could reach Song Qingshu.
• Song Qingshu refused to reconcile with Hong Antong, claiming that only he could be Su Quan's husband, then insulted Yelü Nanxian after she saved him.
• Song Qingshu declared himself Number One Under Heaven, and an unseen man roared from the rear of the hall that he held the title instead.

Ouyang Feng confronted Song Qingshu over his claim to be Number One Under Heaven, and the two clashed in the Divine Dragon Sect’s hall. After their opening exchanges, Ouyang Feng unleashed Toad Skill against Song Qingshu’s Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, and the chapter ended amid the aftermath of their devastating collision.

• Hong Antong introduced Ouyang Feng, whose arrival alarmed Su Quan, Yelü Nanxian, and the other guests.
• Ouyang Feng attacked Song Qingshu, who used the power of the ground and his palms to force him back in their first exchange.
• Song Qingshu and Ouyang Feng traded dozens of techniques, then Ouyang Feng crouched and began building momentum with Toad Skill.
• Song Qingshu gathered his qi and prepared Dragon Ascending to Heaven as Ouyang Feng released a massive surge of true qi.
• The techniques collided in a deafening blast that drove back the onlookers, while Hong Antong concealed his injury and Yelü Nanxian kept watching the fighters.

Song Qingshu turned the battle against Ouyang Feng with his newly created Li Jian Shu, forcing the Western Venom to admit defeat. He then confronted Hong Antong over Su Quan, but Su Quan stopped him and Hong Antong realized Song Qingshu was still affected by the Bewitching Mind Art.

• Ouyang Feng gradually gained the upper hand against Song Qingshu with the Toad Skill and recognized that Song Qingshu had learned the Nine Yin Manual.
• After Ouyang Feng struck him back, Song Qingshu drew his wooden sword and used Li Jian Shu to attack with sword qi and the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms.
• Song Qingshu wounded Ouyang Feng, who withdrew and admitted defeat while vowing to find a way to counter the sword technique.
• Ouyang Feng asked whether Song Qingshu was the Old Urchin's disciple, then went to the rear hall to ponder Li Jian Shu.
• Song Qingshu threatened Hong Antong for calling himself Su Quan's husband, but Su Quan stopped him and Hong Antong denied being her husband.
• Song Qingshu mocked Hong Antong's age, while Hong Antong realized Song Qingshu had been affected by the Bewitching Mind Art.

Song Qingshu’s presence unsettled the gathering on the Divine Dragon Sect’s island, while Yelü Nanxian and Yelü Qi considered his strength and the Mongol faction’s ambiguous loyalties. The chapter ended with them questioning why Blood Saber Ancestor had undermined Hong Antong and why Sang Jie had remained silent.

• Yuzhenzi mocked Hong Antong over Su Quan, but backed down when Su Quan challenged him to face Song Qingshu and admitted that Song was his superior.
• Hong Antong postponed the peace talks, asked Su Quan to meet him privately, and left after Song Qingshu objected that she would stay with him.
• Su Quan assigned the gathered factions separate rooms, while Blood Saber Ancestor and Yuzhenzi privately lamented that Song Qingshu prevented them from pursuing her.
• Yelü Qi felt discouraged by Song Qingshu’s martial skill, but Yelü Nanxian reminded him that his role was to govern rather than serve as a weapon.
• Yelü Nanxian recalled Liao Country’s painful history with Jin Dynasty and Song Dynasty, including the loss of her mother during Jin’s invasion.
• Yelü Nanxian and Yelü Qi questioned why Blood Saber Ancestor had opposed Hong Antong and why Sang Jie had stayed silent.

Yelü Nanxian and Yelü Qi deduced that Ariq Böke was maneuvering to keep the Qing occupied and decided to protect Divine Dragon Island from a swift defeat. Back at the courtyard, Su Quan revealed that she had used her Soul-Confusing Art on Song Qingshu, while Yuzhenzi overheard the women discussing him.

• Yelü Nanxian and Yelü Qi reasoned that Ariq Böke had called a truce with Hongli to wait for conflict between Hongli and Kangxi Emperor, and that the Mongols were now helping Hongli capture Divine Dragon Island quickly.
• Yelü Nanxian decided that she and Yelü Qi would appear to assist the Divine Dragon Sect while actually helping Divine Dragon Island resist Hongli, and she planned to explain Liao Country's interests to its ruler.
• Fang Yi told Su Quan that Mu Jianping was likely among the sect members sent to nearby islands and feared she would be in danger if fighting began.
• Su Quan said Hong Antong had sent away her confidants because he meant to move against her, and admitted that Song Qingshu had fallen under her Soul-Confusing Art.
• Su Quan teased Fang Yi about her night with Song Qingshu, and Yuzhenzi overheard their conversation and envied Song Qingshu's romantic fortune.

Yuzhenzi asked Song Qingshu to help protect him from the Mongol and Khitan experts on Divine Dragon Island, revealing that Prince Bao's demand for Su Quan was a ploy to weaken the Divine Dragon Sect. After revealing he had secretly overcome Su Quan's soul-bewitching art, Song Qingshu accompanied Yelü Nanxian on a moonlit sword duel and named her original swordplay the Sun Moon Divine Sword.

• Yuzhenzi told Song Qingshu and Su Quan that Prince Bao planned to use the demand for Su Quan to sow discord within the Divine Dragon Sect, and Song Qingshu promised to ensure Su Quan's safety.
• After Yuzhenzi left, Song Qingshu revealed to Fang Yi that he had pretended to be controlled by Su Quan and had instead taken control of her.
• Fang Yi slapped the helpless Su Quan over past mistreatment, then apologized to Song Qingshu when he disapproved of her vindictiveness.
• Yelü Nanxian challenged Song Qingshu to a fight, and they went out to exchange sword moves beneath the moonlight.
• Yelü Nanxian demonstrated her light-dependent swordplay, and Song Qingshu named it the Sun Moon Divine Sword.
• Song Qingshu and Yelü Nanxian hid in a tree as two masked figures passed below them.

Song Qingshu and Yelü Nanxian spied on Blood Saber Ancestor and Grand Master Sangjie as they enlisted three Divine Dragon Sect envoys in a plot against Hong Antong. After hearing that the conspirators also planned to deal with Song Qingshu, they left the courtyard and headed back together.

• Song Qingshu and Yelü Nanxian followed Blood Saber Ancestor and Grand Master Sangjie to a courtyard and hid on its roof.
• Blood Saber Ancestor and Sang Jie persuaded Xu Xueting, Zhang Danyue, and Daoist Wugen that Hong Antong endangered the sect and should be replaced.
• Xu Xueting proposed a surprise attack on Hong Antong in the main hall the next day, while Blood Saber Ancestor promised help and claimed they could handle Song Qingshu and Ouyang Feng.
• Song Qingshu and Yelü Nanxian left after overhearing the plot, and Yelü Nanxian agreed to accompany him back to their courtyard.

Song Qingshu reassured Su Quan that he would support her, but their private moment was interrupted when Yuzhenzi fled from Ouyang Feng. Song Qingshu fought Ouyang Feng until a mysterious man in black appeared, and the chase led them into the Spirit Snake Cave.

• Yelü Nanxian asked whether Su Quan had considered leaving Divine Dragon Island, but Su Quan chose to stay.
• Su Quan confronted Song Qingshu about his Soul-Ensnaring Art, then accepted his reassurance and leaned against him.
• Yuzhenzi begged Song Qingshu to save him from Ouyang Feng, who had been sent by Hong Antong to kill him.
• Song Qingshu fought Ouyang Feng, using Li Jian Shu and gaining new insight into the Nine Yin Manual during their exchange.
• Ouyang Feng spotted a man in black and chased him into the Spirit Snake Cave, with Song Qingshu and Su Quan following.

Song Qingshu and Su Quan became trapped in the Spirit Snake Cave after Ouyang Feng fell for a trap involving the Nine Yin Manual and was poisoned by a Five-Colored Divine Dragon. Unable to break the sealed stone gate, Song Qingshu returned with Su Quan to seek Ouyang Feng’s help, leaving them approaching the snake-filled passage.

• Su Quan found Song Qingshu battling Ouyang Feng among the hall’s hidden weapons and warned him not to let her approach the mechanisms.
• Ouyang Feng mistook Song Qingshu and Su Quan for Guo Jing and Huang Rong, then rushed through a snake-filled passage toward a box labeled Nine Yin Manual.
• A Five-Colored Divine Dragon bit Ouyang Feng when he opened the box, and he began using his inner energy to resist the poison.
• Song Qingshu and Su Quan discovered that the Spirit Snake Cave’s massive stone gate had been locked from outside, and Song Qingshu’s three stacked palm strikes failed to move it.
• Song Qingshu and Su Quan returned to the hall to seek Ouyang Feng’s help, and Song Qingshu cleared the remaining hidden weapons before entering the snake-filled tunnel with her.