Chapter Summaries

Song Qingshu persuaded Ren Yingying to help him deceive Ren Woxing by feigning Qi Deviation, while assuring her that he could handle the Holy Cult doctor. The plan appeared to work when Doctor Jia concealed the truth and suggested Ren Woxing use his Star-Absorbing Art to treat her.

• Ren Yingying offered to help Song Qingshu after he warned her that Linghu Chong's incomplete Star-Absorbing Art could endanger him.
• Ren Yingying proposed using medicine to make her true qi seem chaotic, and Song Qingshu said he would deal with the doctor.
• Ren Woxing rushed to Ren Yingying after her maid reported that she had suffered Qi Deviation.
• Doctor Jia examined Ren Yingying and claimed that foreign true qi in her body made her condition difficult to treat.
• Doctor Jia suggested Ren Woxing use his Star-Absorbing Art, and Ren Woxing recalled that it had once helped Linghu Chong and cursed him for supposedly passing on the affliction.

Ren Yingying tricked Ren Woxing into teaching her the Absorbing Star Technique, then gave Song Qingshu a falsified version of its formula. Song Qingshu left after kissing her, but at Dongfang Muxue’s courtyard he was ambushed by Zhang Wuji, who had been posing as a gentle young gentleman beside Zhao Min and Li Mochou.

• Ren Woxing ordered everyone away and began teaching Ren Yingying the Absorbing Star Technique, while she planned to alter its formula before giving it to Song Qingshu.
• Ren Yingying’s inner breath stabilized, prompting Ren Woxing to suspect Doctor Jia had deceived him; he learned that Aroma Master Jia had vanished and left to investigate.
• Song Qingshu entered Ren Yingying’s room and asked for the formula, but she recited a version with crucial details changed.
• Song Qingshu revealed that he had overheard Ren Woxing’s lesson, kissed Ren Yingying, and slipped past the increased guards.
• Song Qingshu reached the courtyard where Zhao Min and Li Mochou were staying and narrowly evaded a sudden attack before fighting his assailant.
• Song Qingshu recognized the attacker as Zhang Wuji, who stood beside Zhao Min and Li Mochou with a dark, hostile expression.

Song Qingshu confronted the injured Lord of Light, who used Li Mochou and Zhao Min as hostages before proposing an alliance against the Mongol Empire. The chapter ended with Song Qingshu considering the unexpected offer.

• Song Qingshu challenged the wounded Lord of Light, who refused to fight and threatened Li Mochou and Zhao Min instead.
• Li Mochou and Zhao Min urged Song Qingshu to kill Lord of Light rather than let himself be constrained by their captivity.
• Lord of Light provoked Song Qingshu by claiming he had slept with Zhao Min, but Song and Zhao Min played along to anger him.
• Lord of Light admitted his past intentions toward Zhou Zhiruo and argued that his possession of Zhang Wuji had helped Song Qingshu get close to Zhao Min.
• Lord of Light proposed that he and Song Qingshu end their feud and ally against the powerful Mongol Empire.

Lord of Light proposed an alliance with Song Qingshu to defeat the Mongol princes before Temujin’s Western Expedition army returned, revealing that his assassins had already wounded Hulagu Khan. Song Qingshu suspected the offer was driven by fear and confronted Lord of Light over his attempt to kill him.

• Lord of Light urged Song Qingshu to join forces against the Mongol Empire, proposing attacks on Ariq Böke, Prince Ruyang’s territory, and Kublai Khan’s forces.
• Song Qingshu questioned the plan’s feasibility, and Lord of Light revealed that the Old Man of the Mountain had wounded Hulagu Khan, delaying the Mongol Western Expedition and enabling a western alliance to defeat its vanguard.
• Lord of Light explained that he hoped to use the delay to eliminate the Mongol princes and seize the grasslands, while privately coveting the prosperous lands of the Central Plains.
• Song Qingshu questioned why Lord of Light wanted an alliance despite their enmity and accused him of having tried to kill him in a sneak attack.
• Song Qingshu said Lord of Light feared he would kill him regardless of the two women’s lives, then stepped forward as his aura erupted.

Song Qingshu confronted the injured Lord of Light, who held Zhao Min and Li Mochou hostage and demanded the Star-Absorbing Art in exchange for releasing them. Song Qingshu agreed to provide it and had Li Mochou begin cultivating the formula while Lord of Light watched her closely.

• Song Qingshu deduced that Lord of Light was gravely injured and had staged the alliance offer to hide his weakness.
• Lord of Light seized Zhao Min and Li Mochou as hostages, but Song Qingshu refused to let him release them one at a time.
• Song Qingshu said he valued beauties more than power and offered to let Lord of Light go if he released both women.
• Lord of Light demanded the Star-Absorbing Art to dissolve the Innate Sword Qi threatening his cultivation and offered to release the women in return.
• Song Qingshu recited the Star-Absorbing Art formula, and Li Mochou began cultivating it as Lord of Light monitored her.

Lord of Light wounded Zhao Min and escaped, forcing Song Qingshu to abandon the pursuit and treat her. As Zhao Min recovered, she and Li Mochou clashed over Song Qingshu, while he revealed that he had altered the Star-Absorbing Art to harm men who practiced it.

• Song Qingshu taught Li Mochou the Star-Absorbing Art, and Lord of Light struck Zhao Min before shoving both women toward him and fleeing.
• Song Qingshu gave up pursuing Lord of Light to stabilize Zhao Min’s injuries while Li Mochou stood guard.
• After Zhao Min regained consciousness, she argued with Song Qingshu about letting Lord of Light escape and traded barbs with Li Mochou.
• Li Mochou thanked Song Qingshu for the Star-Absorbing Art, but Zhao Min revealed that he had altered its incantation.
• Song Qingshu admitted the alteration would harm men who practiced the art, and Zhao Min reacted angrily when he joked about her former lover.
• Zhao Min challenged Li Mochou’s wish for her death and sweetly asked Song Qingshu whether he could cure her.

Song Qingshu explained that he could heal Zhao Min’s injuries with Virtual Meridians and urged her and Li Mochou to leave Blackwood Cliff before the Sun Moon Holy Cult found them. Ren Woxing arrived with Ren Yingying and surrounded them, and Zhao Min claimed they had come to assess Ren Yingying as Song Qingshu’s prospective wife.

• Song Qingshu told Zhao Min that he could treat her internal injuries with Virtual Meridians, while Li Mochou questioned him about their earlier treatment.
• Song Qingshu warned that Ren Woxing might soon search the secluded courtyard and promised to return for Zhao Min’s antidote after escorting the women away.
• Ren Woxing entered with Ren Yingying and Sun Moon Holy Cult experts, surrounding Song Qingshu, Zhao Min, and Li Mochou.
• Zhao Min told Ren Woxing that she and Li Mochou had accompanied Song Qingshu to assess Ren Yingying on behalf of the women in their household.

Zhao Min claimed Ren Yingying had secretly pledged herself to Song Qingshu, provoking Ren Woxing to demand that Song marry his daughter. Song Qingshu agreed to marry Ren Yingying but rejected the demand that she be his sole principal wife, insisting that all his wives and children would be treated equally.

• Zhao Min told the Sun Moon Holy Cult members that Ren Yingying had secretly pledged herself to Song Qingshu, and accused her of stealing Ren Woxing's Absorbing Star Technique for him.
• Ren Woxing ordered his subordinates out, confronted Ren Yingying, and demanded that Song Qingshu take responsibility for her.
• Ren Woxing attacked Zhao Min with the Absorbing Star Technique, but Song Qingshu stopped her from being pulled toward him.
• Ren Woxing silenced Ren Yingying and demanded that Song Qingshu publicly announce their marriage, arrive in an eight-bearer bridal sedan, and make her his principal wife.
• Song Qingshu agreed to marry Ren Yingying but said he would treat all his wives equally and give every child inheritance rights according to ability.

Song Qingshu and Ren Woxing sealed a marriage alliance between Song Qingshu and Ren Yingying, despite Ren Yingying’s protests and love for Linghu Chong. Ren Woxing arranged for Song Qingshu to stay in Ren Yingying’s room, and she ended the chapter vowing never to accept the marriage.

• Zhao Min realized Song Qingshu’s ambitions could bring him into conflict with the Mongol Empire.
• Song Qingshu and Ren Woxing agreed to a marriage alliance, and Song Qingshu addressed Ren Woxing as his father-in-law.
• Ren Yingying rejected the marriage and declared her love for Linghu Chong, so Ren Woxing ordered the Blackwood Token used to put a bounty on Linghu Chong.
• Ren Yingying begged Song Qingshu to spare Linghu Chong, and Song Qingshu persuaded Ren Woxing to withdraw the order.
• Ren Woxing insisted Song Qingshu stay in Ren Yingying’s room, while Zhao Min and Li Mochou left; Ren Yingying told Song Qingshu she would never agree to the marriage.

Song Qingshu persuaded Ren Yingying to accept their political marriage by promising she could remain devoted to Linghu Chong in private, though he insisted they act like an affectionate couple in public. After she reluctantly agreed to call him Song Lang, he climbed into her bed and said he wanted to share it for an important reason.

• Song Qingshu told Ren Yingying that her marriage was inevitable because it secured an alliance between the Golden Snake Camp and the Sun Moon Holy Cult.
• Song Qingshu promised Ren Yingying that their marriage could remain nominal and that she could keep company with Linghu Chong in private, so she agreed to the arrangement.
• Song Qingshu insisted Ren Yingying call him Yingying and Song Lang so their public behavior would seem convincing.
• Song Qingshu climbed into bed beside Ren Yingying despite her protests and assured her he would not do anything to her.
• When Ren Yingying tried to sleep on the floor, Song Qingshu pulled her back and said he needed to share the bed for something important.

Song Qingshu and Ren Yingying shared a bed to make their act as a loving couple more convincing, and Ren Yingying slept peacefully without him taking advantage of her. The next morning, they joined Ren Woxing, Zhao Min, and Li Mochou, while Song Qingshu misled Ren Woxing about how Ren Yingying had accepted the marriage.

• Song Qingshu persuaded Ren Yingying to sleep beside him and swore by the Song clan's ancestors that he would not do anything to her.
• Ren Yingying struggled in Song Qingshu's embrace, then relaxed and fell asleep after hearing him snore.
• At dawn, Ren Yingying found her clothes untouched and realized she had slept soundly in Song Qingshu's arms.
• Song Qingshu offered to comb Ren Yingying's hair, but she quickly evaded him and refused.
• A maid summoned Song Qingshu and Ren Yingying to meet Ren Woxing, Zhao Min, and Li Mochou.
• Ren Woxing asked Song Qingshu about Ren Yingying's mood, and Song Qingshu claimed that she had accepted the marriage.

Song Qingshu and Ren Woxing negotiated an alliance between the Golden Snake Camp and the Sun Moon Holy Cult, with Song Qingshu agreeing to help Ren Woxing eliminate Zhang Wuji’s influence. The chapter ended when Song Qingshu asked Ren Woxing for the antidote to the Three Corpses Godly Brain Pill, provoking a sudden, hostile reaction.

• Ren Woxing sent Ren Yingying away with Zhao Min and Li Mochou before discussing the alliance with Song Qingshu.
• Ren Woxing asked whether Dongfang Bubai had survived the fall, and Song Qingshu agreed to treat him as dead while concealing Dongfang Muxue’s identity.
• Ren Woxing named the Five Great Sword Sects and Zhang Wuji as threats to the Sun Moon Holy Cult, explaining that Zhang Wuji had gathered support among its leaders.
• Song Qingshu offered to deal with Zhang Wuji and send experts to help Ren Woxing purge his influence from the cult.
• Song Qingshu requested the antidote to the Three Corpses Godly Brain Pill, and Ren Woxing’s aura erupted in alarm and anger.

Song Qingshu sought Ren Woxing’s antidote for Zhao Min’s Three Corpses Godly Brain Pill, but neither Ren Woxing’s remedy nor Dongfang Muxue’s rouge cured her. The chapter left Song Qingshu planning to find Murong Jingyue while considering the Poison Hand Medicine King and Cheng Lingsu as possible sources of a cure.

• Song Qingshu explained that Ping Yizhi, also known as Murong Jingyue, had poisoned Zhao Min, and Ren Woxing said his antidote might not work because each cult master used different corpse worms.
• Ren Woxing hosted Song Qingshu, Zhao Min, and their companion at a banquet, then had the cult’s physicians test his antidote on Zhao Min; it failed to remove the poison.
• Song Qingshu gave the physicians rouge from Dongfang Muxue’s chamber, which they identified as another antidote, but their blood test showed it had not cured Zhao Min either.
• Song Qingshu comforted Zhao Min and resolved to pursue Murong Jingyue while considering the Poison Hand Medicine King and Cheng Lingsu as possible people who could cure her.

Song Qingshu returned toward Yanjing with Zhao Min, treating her injuries along the way while their teasing conversations brought them closer. After Zhao Min stayed outside the city, Song entered Yanjing in disguise and slipped into a brothel, where a sudden golden flash greeted him.

• Song Qingshu left Blackwood Cliff with Zhao Min and arranged for Li Mochou to remain there as an elder for one year.
• During their journey, Song Qingshu and Zhao Min discussed his ambitions and their feelings, and he treated her injuries until they had mostly healed.
• At the outskirts of Yanjing, Zhao Min decided not to enter the city and briefly ordered her informants to watch Song Qingshu before canceling the order.
• Song Qingshu entered Yanjing wearing his silver mask, made his way to a brothel, and climbed into an upstairs room through a window.
• A brilliant golden flash suddenly appeared before Song Qingshu.

Song Qingshu recruited He Tieshou to build a brothel-based intelligence network in exchange for helping her become Cult Master of the Five Poisons Sect. He renamed her He Qing, and she agreed to begin studying how brothels operated while he prepared to discuss the plan further.

• Song Qingshu dodged He Tieshou's poisoned Ox-hair Needles, revealed his identity, and learned that she had waited months for him in a Yanjing brothel.
• He Tieshou confronted Song Qingshu for making her wait in a brothel, and he explained that he wanted her to observe its operations.
• Song Qingshu proposed that He Tieshou run a brothel-based intelligence network and promised to help her become Cult Master of the Five Poisons Sect.
• He Tieshou agreed to the plan after Song Qingshu cited his ties to Dongfang Bubai and Ren Yingying and promised to help Lan Fenghuang establish the Five Immortals Sect.
• Song Qingshu said he would provide funding and later discuss the details, while He Tieshou agreed to study brothels and accepted the name He Qing.

Song Qingshu returned to his former residence, now the Tian Residence, and found Nan Lan and Miao Ruolan there. He tried to discourage Miao Ruolan’s crush on him, but when she secretly watched him with Nan Lan, he chose to continue their intimacy.

• Song Qingshu considered how to fund He Qing’s brothel intelligence network and settled on seeking Chuang Wang’s Treasure.
• Song Qingshu arrived at the Tian Residence and overheard Nan Lan scolding Miao Ruolan for saying she wanted to marry him.
• Song Qingshu hid in the courtyard and watched Miao Ruolan run from Nan Lan, declaring her love for him.
• Song Qingshu appeared beside Nan Lan, caught her as she stumbled, and carried her into a nearby room.
• Miao Ruolan watched Song Qingshu and Nan Lan disappear, while Song Qingshu sensed her outside the window and continued despite his unease.

Song Qingshu reunited with Nan Lan and learned that Tian Guinong had gone to Fuzhou in search of the Bixie Sword Manual, while Bing Xue'er had left for Medicine King Manor to visit Hu Fei. He then discussed Miao Ruolan’s wish to marry him, leaving Nan Lan flustered by his willingness to consider it.

• Song Qingshu asked Nan Lan why Tian Guinong had left the capital, and she explained that he had gone to Fuzhou seeking the Bixie Sword Manual.
• Nan Lan gave Song Qingshu a letter from Bing Xue'er, which said she had left Yanjing for Medicine King Manor to visit Hu Fei and see her son.
• Song Qingshu remembered that Shuang'er had disappeared after leaving Medicine King Manor, and he worried that she was avoiding him.
• Nan Lan worried that Miao Ruolan might be lost in the capital, but Song Qingshu assured her that the girl was in her room.
• Nan Lan fretted that Miao Ruolan wanted to marry Song Qingshu, and he said he would let her if she still wanted to when she grew up.

Song Qingshu infiltrated the Forbidden City to find Dongfang Muxue, but instead discovered Qu Feiyan impersonating the emperor on the dragon bed. After they reunited, assassins attacked them, leaving Song Qingshu facing more than a dozen black-clad men.

• Song Qingshu played along with Nan Lan and Miao Ruolan’s act before leaving their home after dinner.
• Song Qingshu entered the Forbidden City at night and searched the Palace of Heavenly Purity for Dongfang Muxue.
• Song Qingshu sensed an expert on the dragon bed, evaded her Black Blood Divine Needles, and recognized Qu Feiyan beneath her imperial disguise.
• Qu Feiyan explained that her master had told her not to reveal she was in the Forbidden City, and she joyfully reunited with Song Qingshu.
• Song Qingshu shielded Qu Feiyan from a barrage of concealed weapons and sent them flying back at the attackers.
• More than a dozen black-clad men burst through the shattered windows and charged at Song Qingshu and Qu Feiyan.

Song Qingshu reunited with Dongfang Muxue after helping defeat an assassination attempt, then explained his political marriage to Ren Yingying as part of a plan against Zhang Wuji. Dongfang Muxue learned that Zhang Wuji had been possessed by the Lord of Light, and Song Qingshu asked whether she would cultivate with him to recover her strength.

• A dozen assassins fled after seeing Song Qingshu and Qu Feiyan, but Song Qingshu struck them down with sword qi and Dongfang Muxue killed their leader with a needle-like weapon.
• Dongfang Muxue dismissed the guards and identified the assassins as experts from Jinzhou's Golden Peak Sect, linking their attack to Wu Sangui.
• Dongfang Muxue confronted Song Qingshu about his months away and his marriages to Zeng and Ren Yingying.
• Song Qingshu explained that he married Ren Yingying to help Ren Woxing remove Zhang Wuji's forces from the Sun Moon Holy Cult.
• Song Qingshu revealed that Zhang Wuji had been possessed by the Lord of Light, and Dongfang Muxue said they could defeat him together once she recovered.
• Song Qingshu asked Dongfang Muxue if she was finally willing to cultivate with him to heal her injuries.

Song Qingshu and Dongfang Muxue discussed their divided loyalties over Ren Yingying before turning to the court’s response to Yue Le’s defeat. Dongfang Muxue revealed that Yue Le suspected a high-ranking traitor and explained how she had used the ministers’ dispute to prepare to eliminate him, leaving Song Qingshu aware that her secret was in danger.

• Dongfang Muxue asked Song Qingshu whom he would help if she killed Ren Woxing and Ren Yingying sought revenge, and he chose Ren Yingying, prompting her to give him time to reconsider.
• Qu Feiyan broke the tense silence by asking about Wu Sangui’s attempted assassination, and Dongfang Muxue explained that the Qing army’s defeat had encouraged the Three Feudatories to rebel.
• Dongfang Muxue told Song Qingshu that the court was divided over whether Yue Le should be punished for the defeat, and Song Qingshu recognized that the debate reflected a struggle for power.
• Dongfang Muxue revealed that Yue Le had privately warned her there was a traitor in the court and suspected Suo'etu, Mingzhu, or Prince Kang, unaware that the Kangxi Emperor was an impostor.
• Dongfang Muxue explained that she had let the ministers argue until many supported Yue Le’s death, giving her a chance to remove him without provoking resistance.