Chapter Summaries

Qiu Xiaozhu and Tang Yu braved the rain to gather Stone Leaf Grass, discussing her stalled cultivation as they traveled. They climbed a cliff to reach the plants, where Qiu Xiaozhu fell onto Tang Yu's face after her handhold broke.

• Qiu Xiaozhu and Tang Yu shared an umbrella awkwardly, then she rode on his back while he carried her shoes through the rainy forest.
• Tang Yu asked about Qiu Xiaozhu's stalled progress toward the third level of the Celestial Realm and suggested that experiencing love might help her comprehend Unity.
• They reached a cliff where Stone Leaf Grass grew and Qiu Xiaozhu agreed to help Tang Yu climb after he offered to cook her dinner.
• Qiu Xiaozhu climbed ahead of Tang Yu, but the rock she gripped broke and she fell onto his face.

Tang Yu collected Stone Leaf Grass with Qiu Xiaozhu, then prepared a meal for her after turning in his assignment. When Qiu Guangji and three allies ambushed him, Tang Yu defeated them and threw them into the lotus pond, where Qiu Zitong arrived after breaking through to the peak of the Heaven Realm.

• Qiu Xiaozhu accidentally landed on Tang Yu's face while climbing, then blushed and hurried home after they collected four plants of Stone Leaf Grass.
• Qiu Xiaozhu remembered the strange feeling of sitting on Tang Yu's face and rolled on her bed in embarrassment.
• Tang Yu turned in the Stone Leaf Grass and went to the cafeteria for ingredients to cook Qiu Xiaozhu dinner.
• Tang Yu was ambushed by Qiu Guangji and three other inner sect disciples, but he defeated all four.
• Tang Yu stripped the four attackers to their underpants and threw them into the lotus pond, then demanded thirty Focus-Settling Pills.
• Qiu Zitong arrived after breaking through to the peak of the Heaven Realm and scorned Qiu Guangji and the others for losing to Tang Yu.

Qiu Zitong challenged Tang Yu to a duel and falsely accused him of getting her pregnant to force him to fight. Their match drew a crowd, including the eldest elder, and ended with Qiu Zitong attacking while Tang Yu remained seemingly unharmed.

• Tang Yu and Qiu Zitong traded insults until she challenged him to spar as her martial arts whetstone.
• Qiu Zitong falsely told the inner disciples that Tang Yu had gotten her pregnant and abandoned her, so Tang Yu agreed to fight to protect his reputation.
• News of the duel spread, and disciples gathered at the arena while the eldest elder rushed there after hearing the rumor.
• The eldest elder shouted that Qiu Zitong should protect the fetus, distracting her and allowing her to land a punch on Tang Yu.
• Qiu Zitong unleashed more than thirty punches, but Tang Yu stood firm and asked her if her hands hurt.

Tang Yu subdued Qiu Zitong in their arena fight, took her sword, and fled despite her threats. On his way back to the valley, he fought Qiu Zitong’s father, who declared Tang Yu his son-in-law after losing.

• Tang Yu struck Qiu Zitong’s acupoints, caught her as she fell, and spanked her until she admitted she had lied about Ling Jun getting her pregnant.
• Tang Yu released Qiu Zitong but took her sword and promised to return it in three months; the Grand Elder freed her acupoints and learned she had fabricated the pregnancy.
• Qiu Zitong returned to seclusion, while the Grand Elder hurried after her.
• Qiu Zitong’s father blocked Tang Yu on the trail and demanded that he marry his daughter or fight him.
• Tang Yu challenged Qiu’s father to fight at the same cultivation level and defeated him; Qiu’s father accepted him as his son-in-law, and Tang Yu ran to the valley.

After Tang Yu defeated Qiu Zitong, the Grand Elder praised Tang Yu’s defensive skill and offered Qiu Zitong a bizarre way to make him obey. Tang Yu returned home, practiced swordsmanship while chopping firewood, and cooked dinner for Qiu Xiaozhu, who offered to wash the dishes.

• The inner disciples complained that no one at their level could defeat Tang Yu, and Qiu Guangji went to seek help from Senior Brother Water Severance.
• The Grand Elder followed Qiu Zitong and analyzed Tang Yu’s layered defensive technique, praising his talent.
• The Grand Elder advised Qiu Zitong to drug Tang Yu and have his child, but she said Tang Yu had already refused her proposal.
• Tang Yu returned home, called for Qiu Xiaozhu, then practiced swordsmanship while chopping firewood.
• Tang Yu cooked a lavish dinner for Qiu Xiaozhu, who offered to wash the dishes after eating.

Tang Yu teased Qiu Xiaozhu before leaving her to use the latrine, then spied on Ye Qiu and discovered him using Heart-Questioning Incense. Later, Tang Yu played his master's purple bamboo xiao, and Qiu Xiaozhu joined him for a lesson that ended with his tactless assessment of her playing.

• Tang Yu tricked Qiu Xiaozhu into worrying he had to leave, then she dragged him onto the bed and threw him toward the latrine after he admitted he needed to use it.
• Tang Yu monitored Ye Qiu and saw him burn Heart-Questioning Incense while shouting about another man's wife, then quietly ended the connection.
• Tang Yu played Qiu Xiaozhu's purple bamboo xiao outside his house, and Qiu Xiaozhu came over to ask him to teach her the tune.
• Tang Yu taught Qiu Xiaozhu Kikujiro's Summer, then told her that her playing had gone from having some technique to being all emotion.

Qiu Xiaozhu learned to play the xiao flute with Tang Yu and discovered that he had marked her birthday on his calendar. Meanwhile, Qiu Duanshui agreed to confront Ye Qiu after Qiu Guangji complained about Ling Jun, setting up a new conflict among the disciples.

• Tang Yu taught Qiu Xiaozhu the basics of the xiao flute, and she finished playing Kikujiro Barely Survived This Summer.
• Tang Yu rested on Qiu Xiaozhu’s legs and revealed in his thoughts that he wanted to sleep beside her, so she trapped him in a scissor hold until he passed out.
• Qiu Xiaozhu carried Tang Yu to bed, noticed his calendar marked her birthday, and left feeling happy.
• Qiu Guangji asked Qiu Duanshui to stop Ling Jun from bullying the Qiu-surnamed disciples.
• Qiu Duanshui agreed to act after learning that Ye Qiu had injured several Qiu disciples, including his cousin.

Tang Yu evaded Qiu Duanshui’s challenge with Qiu Xiaozhu’s protection, then secretly prepared a birthday feast for her. Meanwhile, Ye Qiu broke through to the Celestial Realm and learned that the Third Elder had been secretly cooperating with Ye Feilong to support him.

• Qiu Duanshui challenged Tang Yu, but Qiu Xiaozhu intervened and refused to let him bully her disciple.
• Tang Yu gathered ingredients for Qiu Xiaozhu’s birthday feast and hid his plans while she pretended not to know.
• Ye Qiu broke through to the Celestial Realm after nearly a month of cultivation at the waterfall.
• The Third Elder revealed that Eldest Brother had sent him to watch Ye Qiu and that he had agreed with Ye Feilong to help him if he reached the Celestial Realm within a month.
• Ye Qiu realized his grandfather had placed an influential ally inside the Nine Heavens Alliance and laughed about whether the alliance could still defeat him.

Ye Qiu prepared a birthday gift for Qiu Xiaozhu and visited her, while the Third Elder reflected on his sister and his reasons for supporting Ye Feilong. After Ye Qiu mistook Tang Yu’s cooking for Qiu Xiaozhu’s and asked to call her Mom, Tang Yu arrived and revealed he had made the meal.

• Ye Qiu decided to carve a birthday gift for Qiu Xiaozhu before telling her about his breakthrough.
• The Third Elder visited his younger sister’s grave and recalled how her death and the Qiu Family’s restrictions shaped his desire to change the family.
• Ye Qiu carved a wooden sculpture of Qiu Xiaozhu, her sister, and himself, then brought it to Qiu Xiaozhu’s home.
• Qiu Xiaozhu happily accepted the gift and recalled her sister and the reason she had protected Ye Qiu.
• Ye Qiu tasted the food, became emotional, and asked Qiu Xiaozhu if he could call her Mom.
• Tang Yu entered carrying braised chicken with potatoes, revealing that he had cooked the meal and leaving Ye Qiu embarrassed.

Tang Yu celebrated Qiu Xiaozhu’s birthday with a feast, a cake, and an improvised birthday custom that ended in playful foot-stomping. He then revealed a hot spring he had secretly built for her, leaving her stunned by the gift.

• Tang Yu served a ten-dish birthday feast for Qiu Xiaozhu while Ye Qiu ate awkwardly and left without telling her about his breakthrough.
• Tang Yu brought out a little pig cake, had Qiu Xiaozhu make a wish, and kissed her cheek while claiming it was a birthday custom.
• Qiu Xiaozhu refused to kiss Tang Yu back, then stepped on him for half an hour after he dared her to do so.
• Tang Yu showed Qiu Xiaozhu a new hot spring beside osmanthus trees and explained that he had built it because bathing was inconvenient for her.

Tang Yu prepared a natural hot spring for Qiu Xiaozhu and joined her there, where he offered to realign her spine. Qiu Xiaozhu relaxed into his massage as Tang Yu continued his hands-on treatment.

• Tang Yu explained that he had built the hot spring to spare Qiu Xiaozhu from carrying bathwater, and she happily tried it.
• Tang Yu returned to the bath and convinced Qiu Xiaozhu to soak with him while they wore towels.
• Qiu Xiaozhu asked whether Tang Yu or any of the other disciples had romantic interest in him, and he thought about his run-in with Senior Sister Lotus.
• Tang Yu noticed Qiu Xiaozhu's shoulder was crooked and offered to realign her bones.
• Tang Yu massaged Qiu Xiaozhu's shoulders and back, removed her bath towel to continue, and adjusted her spine until she relaxed against the pool.

Tang Yu revealed his cauldron physique to Qiu Xiaozhu and offered to help her cultivation, but she rejected him and threw him out of the hot spring house. He then encountered Qiu Zitong, who tried to get his body as a gift for her and her wives, but he refused and escaped.

• Tang Yu hugged Qiu Xiaozhu and said his cauldron physique could help balance her true qi and let her break through.
• Qiu Xiaozhu confirmed his true qi affected hers, but rejected his offer, covered him with his towel, and threw him out of the hot spring house.
• Tang Yu landed naked in the flowers and met Qiu Zitong, who offered her grandfather's sword in exchange for her sword.
• Tang Yu refused the trade but said Qiu Zitong could take her grandfather's sword, prompting her to ask him to go to a hospital and give her his body.
• Tang Yu ran, but Qiu Zitong chased him and wrestled him until he pinned her down in the flowers.
• Qiu Zitong begged Tang Yu to give himself to her and her wives, but he teased her and refused.

Tang Yu rejected Qiu Zitong’s demand for his equipment, while she secretly planned to drug him and take it for herself. Later, he frightened Qiu Xiaozhu with a horror movie and got permission to sleep on the floor in her room.

• Tang Yu refused to give Qiu Zitong his equipment unless he could accompany her to learn about her plans with her girlfriends, and she rejected the offer.
• Qiu Zitong threatened to call Tang Yu’s master, so he fled; afterward, she decided to seek poison from her grandfather and drug him.
• Qiu Xiaozhu went to confront Tang Yu about his advances, found his bamboo hut empty, and returned to her room.
• Qiu Xiaozhu discovered Tang Yu hiding in her bed, threw him onto the floor, and ordered him to leave.
• Tang Yu showed Qiu Xiaozhu a horror movie, and they both screamed and clung to each other.
• Qiu Xiaozhu let Tang Yu sleep on the floor in her room for the night.

Ye Qiu focused on stabilizing his Celestial Realm cultivation as he prepared to become an elder and restore the Ye Family, while Tang Yu kept teasing Qiu Xiaozhu. When Qiu Xiaozhu challenged Tang Yu to break through within a month in exchange for sleeping on her bed, he revealed he was already in the Celestial Realm.

• Ye Qiu dismissed his suspicions about Qiu Xiaozhu and Ling Jun and resolved to become an elder before making his move at the ancestral sacrifice ceremony.
• Ye Qiu cultivated diligently while the Second Elder praised his ambition to serve the Nine Heavens Alliance as an elder.
• Tang Yu massaged Qiu Xiaozhu's feet and continued trying to persuade her to let him sleep on her bed.
• Qiu Xiaozhu ordered Tang Yu to cultivate for ten hours a day and promised he could sleep on her bed if he broke through within a month.
• Tang Yu revealed that he had already reached the Celestial Realm and eagerly reminded Qiu Xiaozhu of her promise.

Tang Yu teased Qiu Xiaozhu into kissing him, leaving her flustered and uncertain about her growing feelings for her disciple. He then met Wang Kangping in the dining hall and was invited to celebrate Wang’s breakthrough and promotion to the inner sect.

• Tang Yu offered to change Qiu Xiaozhu’s condition to a kiss, then kissed her before she tossed him out of her room.
• Qiu Xiaozhu reflected that she had enjoyed Tang Yu’s advances but worried about their master-disciple relationship and the age difference.
• Tang Yu headed to the cafeteria, reasoning that Qiu Xiaozhu might return his feelings once she grew accustomed to him.
• Wang Kangping rushed up to Tang Yu in the dining hall and revealed that he had reached the middle stage of the Heaven Realm.
• Wang Kangping said he had taken all the Focus-Settling Pills Tang Yu gave him, entered seclusion, and advanced to the inner sect.
• Wang Kangping invited Tang Yu to his place for wine to thank him for helping motivate his breakthrough.

Tang Yu joined Wang Kangping for drinks, then exposed Xiao Li’s manipulation and infidelity when she came to visit. Wang Kangping rejected her, while Tang Yu continued gathering intelligence across the Nine Heavens Alliance to identify Old Loach’s hidden pawns.

• Tang Yu brought ingredients to Wang Kangping’s courtyard and saved a bottle of red wine to take back to his master.
• A disciple told Wang Kangping that Xiao Li was waiting at the main gate, and Tang Yu followed him to meet her.
• Xiao Li gave Wang Kangping pastries and hinted that she wanted to join the inner sect so they could see each other more often.
• Tang Yu confronted Xiao Li about knowing Wang Kangping liked her and revealed that she had slept with two other men.
• Tang Yu showed Xiao Li his Celestial Realm aura, and Wang Kangping returned her pastries and told her not to visit again.
• Tang Yu explained that his animal informants had uncovered likely pawns of Old Loach, but he still needed evidence to expose them.

Tang Yu foiled Qiu Zitong’s attempt to drug him and later discovered clues that Ye Qiu was his master Qiu Xiaozhu’s nephew. He realized exposing Ye Qiu could implicate Qiu Xiaozhu, so he reconsidered his plan against him.

• Wang Kangping asked Tang Yu to help him find a girlfriend, and Tang Yu took him to the inner sect’s female disciples.
• Qiu Zitong gave Tang Yu drugged cookies, but he forced her to eat one, so she ran off to find an antidote.
• Tang Yu sent Wang Kangping to chat up the female disciples, who returned bruised and discouraged ten minutes later.
• Tang Yu cooked for Qiu Xiaozhu, teased her during the meal, and then helped tidy the house.
• Tang Yu examined a wooden carving and connected Ye Qiu to Qiu Xiaozhu’s older sister, realizing that exposing Ye Qiu might put his master at risk.
• Tang Yu decided he could not use Ye Qiu’s identity against him without first revising his plan.

Tang Yu flirted with Qiu Xiaozhu and said he planned to enter the inner disciple selection to become an elder, while Qiu Xiaozhu resisted his advances. At the selection gathering, Tang Yu made a bet with her that he would take first place and become an elder.

• Tang Yu taught Qiu Xiaozhu to play the flute, then suggested teaching her other instruments and told her he planned to become an elder.
• Tang Yu and Qiu Xiaozhu kissed and flirted in the sea of flowers until she pushed him away and hurried inside.
• Ye Qiu arrived at the inner disciple selection with Qiu Fenghan, who warned him that Qiu Duanshui was his main rival.
• Tang Yu and Qiu Xiaozhu arrived late, and Tang Yu bet that he would take first place and become an elder.

Tang Yu attended the inner disciple selection and drew Qiu Hehua as his first-round opponent. Their match began with Qiu Hehua charging at him, while Tang Yu faced the senior sister he had once accidentally encountered in the women’s bathhouse.

• Ye Qiu greeted Qiu Xiaozhu, who encouraged him and warned him not to hurt Tang Yu if they were matched against each other.
• Qiu Fenghan and the other elders teased Qiu Xiaozhu about Tang Yu living with her and cooking for her, while the Grand Elder watched Tang Yu with hostility over Qiu Zitong’s scheme.
• The disciples drew lots for their first-round opponents, and Tang Yu was matched against Qiu Hehua.
• Tang Yu tried to flatter Qiu Hehua and ease her anger, but she threatened to cripple him and remained determined to teach him a lesson.
• The elder started the match, and Qiu Hehua charged at Tang Yu.

Tang Yu advanced through the inner sect selection with shameless tactics, while Ye Qiu and Qiu Duanshui fought for the other semifinal place. The four semifinalists were set, and Tang Yu prepared to face Qiu Guangji after revealing he had reached the Celestial Realm.

• Tang Yu distracted Qiu Lotus during their match, escaped her Brazilian jiu-jitsu hold by grabbing her weak point, and forced her to surrender.
• Tang Yu asked the silent crowd to cheer for him, while Qiu Xiaozhu and the elders reacted to his victory and tactics.
• Tang Yu advanced through the following matches, and after three hours the semifinalists were decided as Ye Qiu, Qiu Duanshui, Qiu Guangji, and Tang Yu.
• The elders drew lots, pairing Ye Qiu with Qiu Duanshui and Tang Yu with Qiu Guangji.
• Tang Yu shouted advice during Ye Qiu and Qiu Duanshui's fight, disrupting Ye Qiu and drawing Qiu Guangji's accusation that he was acting strategically.
• Tang Yu revealed his Celestial Realm aura, prompting Qiu Guangji to apologize and promise to deliver him ten; Tang Yu also asked him to vote for him if he ran for elder.