Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary: “Caught Between Two Sides”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Feng Jun travels to the summit of Baizong Mountain with Feng Tianyang using the Azure Lotus flying artifact.
• The summit contains hundreds of tea trees, including three legendary thousand-year-old trees that produce the prized Dao-Seeking Tea.
• Feng Jun meets Senior Brother Zhang, the elderly caretaker of the tea trees. Zhang is initially cautious and protective of the ancient trees.
• Feng Jun examines the summit and discovers that it contains a naturally formed Spirit-Gathering Array, likely enhanced by a Gold Core True Person in the past. He considers the site even superior to Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven.
• He determines that the declining tea yield is caused by the weakening Earth Vein and, more recently, by an infestation of mysterious black insects.
• The insects attack the tender buds before the spring harvest, emit an unusual odor, and contaminate the tea even after being washed. Neither Feng Tianyang nor Zhang can identify or eliminate them.
• Feng Jun searches for information but finds no useful match. He then states that solving the problem may require destroying at least one of the three ancient tea trees—possibly two.
• Feng Tianyang and Zhang strongly resist this proposal because the trees are ancestral treasures.
• Feng Jun argues that trees, like people, cannot escape birth, aging, illness, and death, and hints that destroying old trees may be necessary to encourage new growth.
• To persuade Feng Tianyang, Feng Jun offers to explain his method at a welcoming feast and suggests inviting respected figures such as Tang Wangsun or Guan Shanyue as witnesses.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun demonstrates his advanced cultivation and sensitivity to natural spiritual energy. His ability to tread the air reveals that he has reached the Sky-Treading Realm, impressing both Feng Tianyang and Zhang.
• He also proves his expertise by accurately diagnosing the declining spiritual energy, damaged Earth Vein, and recent insect infestation despite receiving little prior information.
• Feng Jun remains confident, blunt, and somewhat impatient with the White Sect’s excessive caution, but he also reassures Feng Tianyang that the infestation is not beyond his ability to solve.
• Feng Tianyang shifts from testing Feng Jun’s abilities to genuinely respecting and relying on him. However, he remains emotionally conflicted because the proposed solution threatens his sect’s ancestral heritage.
• Senior Brother Zhang begins guarded and distrustful, enforcing strict rules around the ancient trees, but becomes excited and hopeful after learning of Feng Jun’s cultivation and diagnostic abilities. His loyalty to the tea trees makes him the strongest opponent of Feng Jun’s plan.

Significant Themes

• Tradition versus change: The sect’s reverence for its ancient tea trees conflicts with Feng Jun’s willingness to destroy old growth to preserve the larger tea-growing tradition.
• Nature’s power and decline: The summit’s natural spiritual formation represents the harmony of terrain, Earth Veins, and cultivation, while the weakening spiritual energy reflects the broader decline of the Dharma.
• Life, death, and renewal: Feng Jun emphasizes that even ancient trees are not immortal, suggesting that death may be necessary for regeneration and survival.
• Expertise and authority: Feng Jun earns authority not through persuasion alone but by accurately perceiving hidden problems and offering solutions beyond the sect’s understanding.
• Preservation versus practicality: The Dao-Seeking Tea is both an economic and spiritual inheritance, forcing the characters to decide whether preserving relics matters more than ensuring future growth.

Character Interactions

• Feng Tianyang praises Feng Jun’s Azure Lotus and later quietly explains his cultivation to Zhang, instructing him to address Feng Jun as “Mountain Lord.”
• Zhang attempts to restrict Feng Jun’s movements near the trees, prompting Feng Tianyang to defend Feng Jun’s status as an honored expert.
• Feng Jun’s examination of the summit impresses both men, especially when he identifies the declining Earth Vein and mysterious insects without being told.
• Zhang and Feng Tianyang share an understanding that Feng Jun’s abilities may save the Dao-Seeking Tea, but both react strongly when he proposes sacrificing an ancient tree.
• Feng Tianyang tries to negotiate respectfully by offering a welcoming feast and asking for a serious explanation. Feng Jun responds with impatience but reassures him that he has several possible solutions.
• The chapter ends with Feng Jun urging them back down the mountain, leaving the central conflict unresolved: whether the sect will sacrifice its ancestral tea trees to secure their future.

Chapter Summary: “Many Possible Solutions”

• Feng Jun carries the injured Feng Tianyang down the mountain, accompanied by Senior Brother Zhang, the long-term caretaker of the Dao-Seeking Tea trees. The group returns to the mountainside and shares a meal of Feng Jun’s Spirit Rice, which impresses everyone and reinforces how wealthy and capable he is compared with the people of Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven.
• During dinner, Feng Jun explains the real problem behind the declining production of Dao-Seeking Tea. The mountain’s Earth Vein was likely strengthened long ago by a Gold Core cultivator, but the spiritual energy of the Dharma-Ending Era has gradually weakened it. Because the three ancient tea trees came from an era of abundant spiritual energy, they are especially sensitive to the decline and are now slowly dying.
• Feng Jun discovers that the weakest ancient tree is already nurturing a new sapling, suggesting that it possesses an instinctive awareness of its own decline and is trying to preserve its lineage. He uses this as evidence that the trees are nearing the end of their natural lives, though they might still survive another eighty or one hundred years.
• Feng Tianyang and Senior Brother Zhang are deeply troubled. They fear becoming sinners who allow their ancestors’ legacy to disappear, but they are also afraid of making the wrong decision. Feng Jun suggests they inspect the tree’s roots for the developing sapling and use the discovery to support their decision, but they reject the idea of a vote because such an important matter must be decided by the sect master.
• Feng Jun outlines several possible solutions:
  1. Guide or repair the Earth Vein: This might restore the mountain’s spiritual support, but Feng Jun admits he is not fully confident in performing a technique originally created by a Gold Core cultivator. Failure could damage or destroy not only the three ancient trees but the other tea trees as well.
  2. Establish or repair a Spirit-Gathering Array: Feng Jun can potentially do this, but the cost would be extremely high. He also believes adding such an array to the mountain’s natural formation could disrupt its balance and harm the tea trees over time.
  3. Use Sweet Rain Talismans: Each talisman costs ten million and can nourish ten mu of land, with one use every two months being sufficient. However, Feng Jun warns that this would only treat the symptoms rather than solve the underlying decline of the Earth Vein.
• Feng Jun deliberately avoids charging a diagnostic fee because the people of Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven treated him respectfully and offered valuable gifts. He also recognizes that, despite the tea’s rarity on Blue Star, its value is insignificant compared with the resources he can obtain across planes. His attitude shows both generosity and practical detachment.
• The chapter emphasizes the burden of inheritance and responsibility. Feng Tianyang and Senior Brother Zhang feel obligated to preserve the legacy left by their ancestors, while Feng Jun approaches the matter more rationally, stressing that all living things eventually decline and that every solution carries risks.
• The interactions reveal a contrast between the two sides: Feng Jun is confident, materially well supplied, and unwilling to help without a meaningful reason, while the people of Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven regard Dao-Seeking Tea as priceless and are increasingly anxious about losing it. The chapter ends with Feng Tianyang asking whether Sweet Rain Talismans can also kill insects, hinting that practical agricultural concerns may influence which solution they choose.

Chapter Summary: “Luohua Reinforcements Arrive”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Feng Jun and Feng Tianyang discuss how to deal with the insect infestation damaging Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven’s ancient tea trees. Feng Jun explains that the Sweet Rain Talisman can temporarily preserve the trees, but the permanent solution would be restoring or strengthening the damaged Earth Vein.
• Feng Tianyang accepts the talisman method despite its high cost—ten million each—because Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven can afford it through the sale and use of Dao-Seeking Tea.
• The conversation turns to the declining spiritual environment of the Dharma-Ending Age. Feng Tianyang worries that even replacing the ancient tea tree with a sapling would not solve the grotto-heaven’s long-term shortage of spiritual energy.
• Feng Jun asks how Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven earns money without attracting unwanted attention. Feng Tianyang explains that they carefully control Dao-Seeking Tea’s distribution:
  • Only a small amount of genuine tea is sold directly.
  • Most pilgrims receive lower-grade tea or tea mixed with ordinary high-quality leaves.
  • The highest-grade tea is reserved for influential or wealthy patrons, though some is occasionally given to ordinary people for publicity.
  • Donations, sincerity, and faith are used to regulate access, creating an aura of rarity and helping preserve the sect’s financial base.
• Feng Jun approves of their pragmatic methods, arguing that preserving an inheritance may justify minor deceptions and compromises, especially during a period of spiritual decline.
• The next morning, Feng Jun brings Feng Tianyang and Senior Brother Zhang to the ancient tea tree. He identifies a hidden sapling growing from the old tree’s roots and assures them that digging it out should not permanently damage the parent tree. He offers two Sweet Rain Talismans for free to restore its vitality.
• Before they can begin, a vast swarm of insects approaches the mountain. The swarm includes wasps, various flying insects, and a conspicuously large white butterfly.
• The butterfly is revealed to be Flower Flower, who rushed over after being contacted through Gu Jiahui. She brings the insect swarm with her, apparently intending to help solve the infestation. Feng Jun is especially surprised to see Crow riding on Flower Flower’s back.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun demonstrates greater openness and generosity toward Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven. Although he initially treats the Sweet Rain Talisman as a valuable commodity, he willingly gives two away because the proposed solution originated with him.
• He also reveals his own financial concerns. Despite possessing large amounts of gold from the Phone Plane, he cannot sell it quickly without attracting government and commercial attention, motivating him to seek safer sources of income.
• Feng Tianyang shows himself to be pragmatic and protective of his sect’s survival. He is willing to use carefully managed publicity and selective distribution of Dao-Seeking Tea to preserve Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven.
• His trust in Feng Jun deepens because Luohua Manor provides practical assistance without demanding immediate compensation. He also becomes more relaxed after learning that Feng Jun does not judge the sect’s methods harshly.
• Senior Brother Zhang reveals an emotional attachment to the ancient tea trees. He is reluctant to risk damaging the old tree and is tempted by Feng Jun’s offer of free talismans.
• Flower Flower is established as an active and capable ally. She responds quickly to Gu Jiahui’s call, appears able to command or influence large numbers of insects, and arrives as unexpected reinforcement.
• Crow’s appearance riding Flower Flower adds a humorous and surprising element, suggesting the two have developed an unusual partnership.

Significant Themes

• Survival in the Dharma-Ending Age: The characters must preserve their traditions and resources in a world where spiritual energy is steadily diminishing.
• Pragmatism versus moral purity: Feng Tianyang’s manipulation of Dao-Seeking Tea sales and Feng Jun’s approval emphasize that sects may need to compromise ethically to protect their inheritance.
• Scarcity and resource management: Spirit Stones, spiritual energy, ancient trees, and high-grade tea are all limited resources that must be carefully controlled.
• Trust and reciprocity: Feng Tianyang shares Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven’s business secrets because he considers Luohua Manor reliable and generous; Feng Jun responds by offering practical help and free talismans.
• The limits of temporary solutions: The Sweet Rain Talisman can preserve the tea trees but cannot repair the damaged Earth Vein, highlighting the difference between treating symptoms and solving foundational problems.
• Unexpected cooperation between humans and spiritual creatures: Flower Flower’s arrival shows that Feng Jun’s supernatural allies can contribute directly to human cultivation problems.

Character Interactions

• Feng Jun and Feng Tianyang develop mutual respect through an honest discussion of sect survival, financial difficulties, and morally questionable business practices.
• Feng Tianyang and Senior Brother Zhang communicate largely through meaningful glances, reflecting their shared concern over the cost of the talismans and the fate of the ancient tea tree.
• Feng Jun reassures Senior Brother Zhang that the tree will survive and offers the talismans free of charge, easing the immediate conflict.
• Feng Tianyang and Feng Jun exchange lighthearted criticism about their respective methods of making money, strengthening their camaraderie.
• Gu Jiahui acts as the link between Feng Jun and Flower Flower, using her close relationship with the butterfly to summon help.
• Flower Flower and Crow arrive together in a striking, comic image, signaling that the insect crisis may now be addressed by an unconventional but powerful alliance.

Chapter Summary: “Savage Reinforcements”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Flower Flower arrives on the mountaintop with a massive swarm of hornets, ladybugs, and other insects. Feng Jun explains that she is his “Spirit-Plant Shepherd,” though Feng Tianyang and Master Zhang are astonished by her ability to command insects at such a high altitude.
• The insects immediately begin eliminating pests around the ancient tea trees. Crow King accompanies Flower Flower, though he spends much of the journey riding on her back and occasionally eating hornets.
• Flower Flower examines the two mysterious black insects troubling the tea trees. She recognizes them as extremely rare Spirit-Plant Succession Insects, a species she encountered a thousand years earlier.
• Feng Jun explains that the insects live symbiotically within spirit plants. When an old plant begins to decline, they create a nursery among its roots, stimulating new seedlings while gradually consuming the old plant. Once the old plant dies, the insects also perish and nourish the next generation.
• Flower Flower confirms that the insects could spread to the other ancient tea trees. Removing them requires digging up the affected roots and destroying the developing seedling.
• Feng Tianyang reluctantly accepts that the legacy of Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven may have to be sacrificed. He formally apologizes to his ancestors and asks Feng Jun for help, offering that the grotto-heaven will follow Luohua Manor’s guidance.
• Feng Jun rejects any formal reward or allegiance, saying that fellow cultivators should simply exchange knowledge and walk the Dao together.
• Flower Flower begins excavating the affected tree’s roots. Despite her tiny size, she digs with extraordinary speed and strength, even cutting through rocks. Master Zhang clears away the displaced soil while Feng Jun oversees the operation.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun reveals more openly that Flower Flower is a powerful Qi Refining Intermediate Stage cultivator and an exceptionally skilled spirit-plant expert. He becomes increasingly reliant on her unique knowledge.
• Flower Flower demonstrates extraordinary abilities: commanding huge insect swarms, identifying ancient spirit insects, blasting holes in the ground, and excavating roots with immense strength. Her playful personality also emerges through complaints about being made to perform manual labor and her teasing references to modern internet culture.
• Feng Tianyang moves from shock and skepticism to helpless acceptance. He is deeply distressed at the possibility of sacrificing the ancient tea tree but ultimately takes responsibility and appeals to his ancestors before requesting Feng Jun’s aid.
• Master Zhang remains cautious and analytical, asking whether the insects threaten the other tea trees. He is also repeatedly stunned by Flower Flower’s abilities and assists with the excavation.
• Crow King is portrayed humorously as weaker and less diligent than Flower Flower, needing her assistance during the journey while still catching insects for food.

Significant Themes

• Tradition versus survival: Feng Tianyang must consider destroying part of his sect’s ancient inheritance to preserve the rest.
• The complexity of nature: The Spirit-Plant Succession Insects are neither simply pests nor beneficial creatures; they form part of a destructive but natural cycle of death, rebirth, and nourishment.
• Hidden power and unexpected forms: Flower Flower’s appearance as a butterfly contrasts sharply with her cultivation, physical strength, intelligence, and command over insects.
• Responsibility and sacrifice: Feng Tianyang accepts blame for failing to protect his ancestors’ legacy, while Feng Jun emphasizes cooperation rather than control or reward.
• Humor amid serious stakes: Flower Flower’s complaints, Crow King’s laziness, and the others’ disbelief provide comic relief during a crisis involving ancient spiritual resources.

Character Interactions

• Feng Jun privately communicates with Flower Flower through their mental connection, translating her insect knowledge and coordinating the operation.
• Feng Tianyang and Master Zhang repeatedly exchange shocked reactions as Flower Flower displays abilities far beyond what they expect from a butterfly.
• Feng Tianyang asks Feng Jun for guidance after learning that the insects may threaten all the ancient tea trees. Feng Jun responds with reassurance and a philosophy of mutual cultivation rather than dominance.
• Flower Flower orders or signals Master Zhang to clear the soil she excavates, creating a practical working partnership.
• Feng Jun and Flower Flower banter over her forced “exercise” of Crow King and her complaint that she is being treated like manual labor.

Chapter Summary: “Cruel Surgery”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After the Ancient Tea Tree’s roots are exposed, Feng Jun, Feng Tianyang, and Master Zhang discover an abnormal woody tumor attached to one of its major roots.
• Although root nodules can occur naturally, this growth is unusually large and appears to be caused by a mutation or infection.
• Feng Jun asks Flower Flower, the Spirit-Plant Shepherd butterfly, to remove the growth. Master Zhang worries that cutting away such a major root could seriously weaken the ancient tree.
• Flower Flower explains that the root is no longer nourishing the tree; instead, it is stealing nutrients from it. The root must therefore be severed, even if doing so causes additional damage.
• After nearly half an hour of difficult work, Flower Flower extracts the tumor. It is filled with countless tiny holes containing black-red insects and larvae.
• Feng Jun identifies them as the offspring of small parasitic insects. Flower Flower explains that the tumor contains a developing Ancient Tea Species sapling, sustained by nutrients stolen from the old tree.
• The tumor cannot normally survive independently because its growth depends on an old tree dying—a process known as plant succession. Feng Jun proposes using a Sweet Rain Talisman to nourish it instead.
• The Sweet Rain Talisman creates a vast area of nourishing mist over the mountain. The spiritual energy attracts numerous flying insects, but Flower Flower frightens them away through rank suppression.
• By evening, the ancient tea trees are healthy, the insect infestation has decreased, and the damaged area appears to be recovering.
• The following morning, Master Zhang refills the hole and predicts that another harvest of tea leaves may be possible within five days.
• Feng Tianyang asks to purchase three Sweet Rain Talismans, including the one used for the treatment. Feng Jun offers to give him two as previously promised, but Feng Tianyang insists on compensating him and Flower Flower, demonstrating his desire to cooperate closely with Luohua Manor.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun acts as the practical intermediary between humans and Flower Flower. He confidently makes medical-like judgments about the tree, supports removing the infected root, and uses the Sweet Rain Talisman to stabilize the situation.
• Flower Flower is shown to be highly capable, intelligent, and authoritative. She performs delicate “surgery,” understands the insects’ life cycle, controls other insects through spiritual pressure, and possesses a Storage Pouch and an iPad—surprising the cultivators.
• Feng Tianyang initially hesitates because of the ancient tree’s value but ultimately makes the decisive choice to remove the dangerous root. He also reveals admiration and envy toward Flower Flower’s possessions and becomes more committed to following Feng Jun’s methods.
• Master Zhang is emotionally attached to the Ancient Tea Tree and fears damaging it. Once Flower Flower explains the root’s true function, he accepts her judgment and acknowledges Feng Jun’s group as genuine masters of Daoist cultivation.
• Feng Tianyang and Master Zhang both become increasingly respectful of Flower Flower, treating her as a powerful cultivator rather than an ordinary animal.

Significant Themes

• The necessity of sacrifice for survival: Saving the ancient tree requires cutting away a major root, emphasizing that preservation sometimes demands cruel or irreversible action.
• Natural succession and renewal: The parasitic tumor contains a new sapling, suggesting that new life emerges through the decline or death of old life.
• Human limitations versus spiritual cultivation: The cultivators are astonished by Flower Flower’s abilities, magical storage, and command over insects, revealing the gap between their knowledge and Feng Jun’s resources.
• Practical wisdom over sentimentality: Master Zhang’s emotional reluctance contrasts with Flower Flower’s clear understanding that the infected root is harming the tree.
• Cooperation and loyalty: Feng Tianyang’s insistence on paying for the talismans reflects his growing commitment to Feng Jun and Luohua Manor, as well as his desire to operate according to their standards.

Important Character Interactions

• Master Zhang and Feng Tianyang debate whether the tumor can be removed without endangering the tree; Feng Jun settles the dispute by translating Flower Flower’s explanation.
• Feng Jun repeatedly acts as Flower Flower’s translator, allowing her to direct the treatment and explain the insects’ role.
• Feng Tianyang respectfully addresses Flower Flower as a senior cultivator, while Feng Jun humorously reminds him that even a butterfly has earned her magical equipment through her own efforts.
• Feng Jun jokes about selling Feng Tianyang a Storage Pouch for one billion, leading to playful banter about airport security and Feng Tianyang’s financial limitations.
• Feng Tianyang’s insistence on compensating Feng Jun marks an important step in their business and cultivation partnership.

Chapter Summary: “Laying the Groundwork”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Feng Jun negotiates with Feng Tianyang over the price of two additional Sweet Rain Talismans, setting the total value at thirty million. Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven cannot immediately provide that much cash, possessing its wealth mainly in antiques, scriptures, jade, gold, and other valuables.
• Feng Jun agrees to let Feng Tianyang pay later rather than accompany him to the city for a bank transfer. He leaves behind the talismans and tells Feng Tianyang to bring payment to Luohua Manor when he needs more.
• Before departing Baizong Mountain, Feng Jun establishes that Flower Flower has nearly completed its task of reducing the insect population at the mountain peak. The coerced flying insects have memorized the location, and Crow King remains to supervise.
• As a gesture toward Feng Tianyang and Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven, Feng Jun offers a Spirit-Gathering Array if Feng Tianyang can locate Jade Ruins’ hidden Mountain Gate.
• This offer is also a strategic warning to Jade Ruins. Feng Jun wants them to know that he is watching them and gives them time either to confront him or reconsider their position.
• Feng Tianyang escorts Feng Jun down the mountain. Shortly afterward, he contacts Feng Jun about a wealthy lay patron seeking medicine or an artifact capable of extending the life of his elderly mother-in-law.
• The patron can provide hundreds of millions, potentially even one or two billion, making the deal worth Feng Jun’s consideration despite his usual lack of interest in ordinary wealth.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun demonstrates increasing confidence and influence. Having reached the Dust-Free Realm, he is more willing to reveal that Luohua Manor possesses powerful resources, including the Spirit-Gathering Array.
• He remains selective and independent, refusing to rely on Feng Tianyang’s wealthy patrons or accept money merely for the sake of profit. However, his resources have increasingly been converted into gold, so he is now willing to consider large financial transactions.
• Feng Jun also shows strategic restraint: rather than directly attacking or forcibly interrogating Jade Ruins, he uses Feng Tianyang to investigate them indirectly and gives them an opportunity to respond.
• Feng Tianyang becomes more closely aligned with Feng Jun. He respects Feng Jun’s strength, protects his identity, and tries to maintain a mutually beneficial relationship between Profound Virtue Grotto-Heaven and Luohua Manor.
• Feng Tianyang also proves perceptive and politically skilled. He recognizes Feng Jun’s possible financial needs and attempts to create a profitable opportunity through his lay patron.
• The wealthy lay patron is portrayed as generous, curious, and deeply indebted to his mother-in-law, who helped him succeed. His concern for her declining health motivates him to seek an extraordinary solution.

Significant Themes

• Power and reputation: Feng Jun begins deliberately building Luohua Manor’s reputation as a force that cannot be casually challenged.
• Strategic diplomacy: Rather than relying solely on direct confrontation, Feng Jun uses promises, indirect inquiries, and carefully worded signals to manage potential enemies.
• The value of resources: Money is shown to be less important than cultivator-specific treasures and abilities. Feng Jun dismisses thirty million as insignificant, while others see even that amount as enormous.
• Reciprocity and obligation: Feng Jun’s willingness to extend credit reflects his relationship with Feng Tianyang, while Feng Tianyang’s search for Jade Ruins’ Mountain Gate becomes a way to repay that trust.
• Limits of wealth and medicine: The patron’s mother-in-law illustrates that ordinary money, tonics, and medical treatment cannot restore vitality once a person’s life force has been exhausted.

Character Interactions

• Feng Jun and Feng Tianyang negotiate respectfully but reveal their different perspectives on money and trust. Feng Tianyang worries that accepting credit will damage their future relationship, while Feng Jun treats the arrangement as an investment in clan ties.
• Feng Jun’s offer of a Spirit-Gathering Array strengthens their alliance but also turns Feng Tianyang into an indirect participant in Feng Jun’s conflict with Jade Ruins.
• Feng Tianyang carefully withholds Feng Jun’s identity and abilities from his lay patron, describing him only as an exceptionally powerful cultivator.
• The lay patron pressures Feng Tianyang for access to Feng Jun, first through curiosity about the unused thirty million and then through his desperate hope of saving his mother-in-law.
• Feng Tianyang warns that money alone may not be enough to interest Feng Jun, but he successfully opens negotiations by emphasizing the patron’s substantial wealth.

Chapter Summary: “Precise Life Extension”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Feng Tianyang asks Feng Jun whether he can extend the life of a wealthy layman’s elderly mother-in-law, whose vitality has been severely depleted.
• Feng Jun explains that he may be able to treat natural aging and exhausted vitality, but only after personally examining her. He demands a ten-million examination fee, regardless of whether treatment proves possible.
• The elderly woman’s expected lifespan is important because her son-in-law, Hu Shengwei, needs her household registration to retain eligibility for renewing his contract over a village coal mine. Feng Tianyang suggests that seven additional months would be especially valuable, though he insists Hu also respects her.
• Feng Jun refuses to travel to the patient, insisting that she be brought to Luohua Manor, where the local spiritual aura will aid diagnosis and treatment.
• Feng returns to Luohua Manor and continues nourishing the damaged Mountain-River Seal, reflecting on his unsuccessful attempt to improve Baizong Mountain’s Earth Vein.
• The next day, Zhuang Zesheng arrives for a follow-up examination after taking the Meridian Opening Pill. Feng Jun confirms that his health has recovered exceptionally well but tells him that he cannot cultivate and should focus on exercise and ordinary longevity.
• Hu Shengwei arrives with his wife, two drivers, and his critically ill mother-in-law in a specially arranged luxury coach. He pays the ten-million examination fee in cash before being admitted.
• Feng Jun examines the nearly lifeless elderly woman for ten minutes and determines that her vitality is almost exhausted; she has only one or two months left.
• He then offers treatment at a price of one hundred million per year, guaranteeing her another ten years of life. Hu Shengwei’s wife is shocked by the enormous cost.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun becomes increasingly confident and businesslike in dealing with wealthy outsiders. He refuses to be pressured, sets strict conditions, and separates examination fees from treatment costs.
• His abilities and status are emphasized when he casually stores Hu Shengwei’s cash in a Storage Pouch, impressing and intimidating those present.
• Feng Tianyang acts as an intermediary, balancing respect for Feng Jun with his desire to help Hu Shengwei. He recognizes both the practical and personal motivations behind the request.
• Hu Shengwei is portrayed as wealthy, direct, and decisive. He is willing to transport his mother-in-law over a long distance and pay the examination fee upfront, demonstrating both urgency and financial power.
• Hu Shengwei’s wife shows genuine concern for her dying mother and remains emotionally restrained until Feng Jun announces the treatment price.
• Zhuang Zesheng has accepted that he cannot become a cultivator. Though disappointed, he is no longer devastated and responds with resignation and filial respect toward Feng Jun.

Significant Themes

• The value and price of life: Life extension is treated as both a miracle and a commodity, with Feng Jun assigning enormous monetary costs to additional years.
• Power and boundaries: Feng Jun refuses to let wealth or desperation dictate his behavior. He insists that patients come to him and that his conditions be respected.
• Practical motives versus emotional attachment: Hu Shengwei’s desire to preserve his mother-in-law’s life is partly connected to his coal-mine contract, but the chapter also presents his concern for her as sincere.
• Limits of cultivation: Even extraordinary abilities cannot simply restore everyone or grant immortality. Zhuang Zesheng’s recovery is impressive, but his path to cultivation remains closed.
• Changing status and social behavior: Feng Jun’s elevated position allows him to act casually and commandingly, while others treat even his ordinary actions with awe and caution.
• Declining vitality and preservation: The comparison between aging tea trees and elderly people establishes vitality as something that can sometimes be replenished, though only under special conditions.

Character Interactions

• Feng Tianyang negotiates with Feng Jun on behalf of Hu Shengwei, trying to obtain more favorable terms while explaining the situation.
• Feng Jun bluntly corrects Tianyang’s assumptions and makes clear that friendship or desperation will not eliminate his fees.
• Feng Jun advises Zhuang Zesheng about his future, rejecting the title “Master” while still offering practical guidance and reassurance.
• Hu Shengwei interacts respectfully but cautiously with Feng Jun, especially after witnessing his supernatural storage ability.
• Hu Shengwei’s wife gently tries to awaken and reassure her dying mother before Feng Jun examines her.
• The chapter ends with Hu Shengwei and his wife confronting the painful choice between an extraordinarily expensive treatment and allowing the elderly woman to die naturally.

Chapter Summary: “Beating the Grass to Flush Out the Hare”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Hu Shengwei agrees to pay Feng Jun one hundred million yuan for one year of treatment for his bedridden, mentally confused mother-in-law, Yang Chunni.
• His wife clarifies that their main goal is for Yang Chunni to remain lucid and communicate normally, rather than simply prolonging her life in a confused state.
• Feng Jun accurately predicts that Yang Chunni’s recovery will allow her to sit up and walk within two months, though curing her old left-leg disability would cost extra.
• Feng Jun unexpectedly diagnoses Hu Shengwei with early-stage left kidney cancer. After initially doubting him, Hu Shengwei goes to the hospital and receives confirmation.
• Feng Jun gives the family a jade bottle containing medicine for Yang Chunni, instructing them to divide it into four doses and return for a follow-up after she finishes it. He delays collecting the hundred million until then.
• Feng Jun refuses to let the family stay in his manor, directing them to leave the bus at the entrance and warning them not to pass a restricted pavilion.
• The guards immobilize the bus by removing its tires, amusing and impressing Hu Shengwei with their efficiency.
• Two days later, Yang Chunni’s condition improves dramatically: she can sit up, eat independently, and regain enough clarity to speak coherently.
• Hu Shengwei arranges treatment for his kidney cancer, debating whether to undergo surgery in Long City, Yang City, or Xichang. He is reassured that the cancer was found early and has a cure rate above ninety percent.
• Yang Chunni overhears the discussion and, now lucid, suggests asking Feng Jun whether he can treat Hu Shengwei as well.
• Meanwhile, Feng Jun works on refining and understanding the Soul-Calming Bell, a difficult wood-element magical treasure with sound-based attack and restraining abilities.
• Hu Shengwei returns to thank Feng Jun for saving his life and for improving his mother-in-law’s condition. Their conversation is interrupted by the arrival of Old Master Peng.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun continues to demonstrate extraordinary medical and cultivation abilities, while maintaining an aloof, confident, and somewhat indifferent attitude. His refusal to overcharge, provide unnecessary accommodation, or treat ordinary illnesses reinforces his image as a powerful expert who values convenience and principles over money.
• Hu Shengwei shifts from suspicion to deep trust. Feng Jun’s accurate diagnosis convinces him that the master is genuine, and he begins viewing his cancer as manageable because Feng Jun discovered it early.
• Hu Shengwei’s wife is shown to be deeply devoted to her mother and willing to spend enormous sums to preserve her life and dignity. Her faith in Feng Jun grows quickly, especially after seeing her mother regain consciousness.
• Yang Chunni undergoes the most visible transformation. She moves from prolonged confusion and physical weakness to lucidity, awareness, and the ability to participate in family decisions.
• Feng Jun also develops intellectually as he studies the Soul-Calming Bell, seeking not merely to use it but to understand the principles behind different elemental cultivation techniques.

Significant Themes

• Extraordinary ability and trust: Feng Jun’s seemingly impossible medical knowledge causes the family to move from doubt to complete confidence in him.
• Wealth versus true expertise: Although Hu Shengwei can pay enormous sums, money cannot replace the rare abilities Feng Jun possesses. Feng Jun’s willingness to refuse additional profits ironically makes him seem even more trustworthy.
• Dignity in illness: Yang Chunni’s family prioritizes preserving her awareness and ability to communicate, emphasizing that survival without mental clarity may feel like suffering.
• Early detection and fate: Feng Jun’s diagnosis changes Hu Shengwei’s future by revealing a potentially fatal illness while it is still highly treatable.
• Knowledge through practice: Feng Jun’s study of the Soul-Calming Bell reflects his desire to understand the underlying principles of cultivation rather than simply mastering isolated techniques.
• Power and unconventional behavior: Feng Jun’s cold, restrictive, and unpredictable manner contrasts with his remarkable generosity and effectiveness, creating an aura of authority.

Character Interactions

• Feng Jun negotiates treatment terms with Hu Shengwei and his wife, balancing medical promises with strict conditions.
• His diagnosis of Hu Shengwei creates tension and disbelief, but the hospital’s confirmation transforms that tension into gratitude.
• Hu Shengwei and his wife debate where he should receive surgery while simultaneously worrying about Yang Chunni’s treatment.
• Yang Chunni’s sudden return to lucidity allows her to rejoin the conversation and even advise the couple, producing an emotional moment of relief and surprise.
• Feng Jun’s meeting with Hu Shengwei at the end reinforces their developing relationship: Hu Shengwei sees him as both a lifesaver and a powerful master, while Feng Jun treats the matter as routine.
• The chapter closes with Old Master Peng arriving, suggesting that another important interaction or development is about to begin.

Chapter Summary: “Selling Medicine”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Old Master Peng’s health and breathing improve significantly from staying near Luohua Manor’s bamboo grove, but his naturally restless personality makes him eager to return and visit the manor more often.
• Hu Shengwei asks Feng Jun for help treating his kidney cancer. Feng Jun explains that the cancer appears relatively mild, but since he has never treated cancer before, he cannot guarantee success. Hu decides to undergo surgery first.
• Hu asks about payment for his mother-in-law, Yang Chunni, whose treatment is still ongoing. Feng Jun agrees to delay payment until her medicine is completed, demonstrating confidence in his authority and the effectiveness of his treatments.
• After overhearing the conversation, Old Master Peng asks Feng Jun whether he can extend people’s lives. Feng clarifies that his medicine cannot overcome a person’s natural lifespan, but it can repair damage to a person’s physical foundation and potentially improve longevity.
• Feng offers to examine Peng’s lifespan and health for ten million yuan. Peng initially agrees, but then becomes uneasy about knowing the exact time of his death and abandons the lifespan examination.
• Feng instead advises Peng to strengthen his body while he is still healthy, rather than waiting until his condition deteriorates.
• Peng’s people transfer the money, and Feng conducts a medical examination. He finds that Peng’s health is relatively good despite some lingering problems, including rheumatoid arthritis.
• Feng estimates that three Origin-Nurturing Pills might extend Peng’s life by only three to five years, though the improvement would be difficult to prove conclusively. He guarantees only that the pills could prevent rapid aging for roughly ten years, not protect against every possible illness.
• Feng prices the pills at fifty million yuan each and limits Peng to three. Peng buys one pill initially and is instructed to divide it into four doses taken from late summer through winter.
• Peng then shifts his priority from simply living longer to living more comfortably, asking whether Feng can treat his rheumatoid arthritis.

Character Developments

• Old Master Peng becomes increasingly interested in Feng Jun’s abilities and seeks to deepen his relationship with the manor without violating its rules. Although he wants longevity, he ultimately values maintaining health and quality of life more than knowing his exact lifespan.
• Feng Jun displays greater commercial awareness, openly admitting that his growing responsibilities and expenses have made him seek additional income. He remains candid about the limits of his medicine and refuses to make exaggerated promises.
• Hu Shengwei shows humility and trust in Feng Jun. He accepts the uncertainty surrounding his cancer treatment and is willing to undergo conventional surgery while hoping for Feng’s assistance.
• Yang Chunni’s treatment illustrates the cautious, staged nature of Feng Jun’s medical methods: one pill is not necessarily enough, and later reinforcement may be required.

Significant Themes

• Quality of life versus length of life: Peng realizes that longevity is less important than remaining healthy and active.
• The limits of medicine and human control: Feng emphasizes that no medicine can defeat a person’s fundamental lifespan or guarantee protection from every disease.
• Pragmatism and honesty: Feng refuses to claim certainty where none exists, clearly distinguishing between improving health and literally extending life.
• Money, value, and responsibility: Despite possessing enormous wealth, Feng still seeks stable income because maintaining the manor and its people is expensive. The high price of his medicine reflects both its rarity and his control over access to it.
• Aging and preparation: The chapter stresses that health should be cultivated before decline becomes severe; last-minute attempts at recovery are less effective.

Character Interactions

• Hu Shengwei respectfully appeals to Feng Jun for treatment, and Feng responds with cautious but genuine assistance.
• Old Master Peng openly listens to Feng and Hu’s conversation, then teases Feng about his fees and extraordinary medical abilities.
• Peng negotiates for a discount based on his good relationship with Luohua Manor, while Feng humorously insists on advance payment and maintains his business rules.
• Feng gives Peng frank medical advice rather than exploiting his fear of death, and Peng accepts the advice with unusual humility.
• Their exchange develops a friendly but transactional relationship: Peng trusts Feng’s abilities, while Feng treats him as both an acquaintance and a paying customer.

Chapter Summary: “Unintentionally Planting Willows”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Old Master Peng asks Feng Jun to cure his long-standing rheumatoid arthritis. Feng Jun explains that because of Peng’s age and the illness’s deeply established physiological balance, a complete cure could be dangerous.
• Instead, Feng Jun gives him a Cold-Repelling Pill, instructing him to divide it into one hundred portions and take a portion during flare-ups. Each dose should relieve his pain for roughly twelve hours.
• Although Feng Jun offers the pill for free, Old Master Peng later pays him fifty million yuan and receives an Origin-Nurturing Pill as well.
• Peng consults Yuan Zihao’s family about the Origin-Nurturing Pill. They reveal that it contributed to Yuan Zihao’s recovery and is worth far more than ordinary medicine. Peng learns that Feng Jun has been giving these extremely valuable pills away to his associates.
• After taking a portion of the pill, Peng’s energy and spirits visibly improve. He becomes increasingly curious about the medicine’s composition and secretly plans to have the Cold-Repelling Pill analyzed.
• Hu Shengwei’s wife visits Feng Jun to thank him, transfer payment, and request another examination for her mother, Yang Chunni. Yang has recovered enough to crawl independently and is expected to walk with a cane soon.
• Feng Jun gives Yang another Origin-Nurturing Pill and adjusts her treatment plan, believing it will help her remain stable for at least another year. Hu Shengwei’s wife then leaves the manor with her mother to visit Hu Shengwei after his successful surgery.
• Feng Jun regrets losing the possibility of making Hu Shengwei his agent, since Peng’s actions demonstrate how useful a trusted intermediary could be.
• Crow King returns from Baizong Mountain after helping clear out flying insects. Master Zhang has come to regard it as an intelligent, quasi-cultivating creature, though he remains protective of his ancient tea trees.
• Near the end of the chapter, Crow King spots Feng Jun’s departing car and immediately follows it.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun: Demonstrates medical knowledge, restraint, and generosity. He refuses to attempt a risky cure for Peng, gives valuable medicine freely, and continues developing a reputation as a mysterious but benevolent healer. He also recognizes the practical need for an agent.
• Old Master Peng: Moves from gratitude to intense curiosity about Feng Jun’s pills. His improved condition makes him more interested in their effects, but his attempt to investigate them covertly risks violating Feng Jun’s trust.
• Yuan Zihao’s family: Confirm the extraordinary value and potency of Feng Jun’s medicines while carefully withholding sensitive information about their origin.
• Yang Chunni: Shows remarkable recovery after taking the Origin-Nurturing Pill, progressing from total immobility to crawling and soon walking with a cane.
• Hu Shengwei’s wife: Becomes deeply grateful to Feng Jun and responsibly pays what was promised, while remaining concerned about both her mother and recovering husband.
• Crow King: Is established as highly intelligent, observant, and increasingly integrated into the cultivation world. Its return to Feng Jun suggests loyalty or an important reaction to his movements.

Significant Themes

• The limits of healing: Feng Jun distinguishes between curing an illness and safely preserving an elderly patient’s existing balance.
• Value beyond money: Although the pills are enormously expensive, Feng Jun gives them away because personal loyalty and moral considerations matter more to him than profit.
• Trust and secrecy: The manor’s medicines and cultivation secrets must remain hidden. Peng’s curiosity creates tension because even a seemingly harmless investigation could expose Feng Jun’s secrets.
• Unexpected consequences and connections: Feng Jun’s generosity produces broader relationships and obligations, while his treatment of others gradually creates a network of dependence and loyalty.
• Cultivation entering ordinary life: Powerful cultivation medicines are being used to treat arthritis, surgical recovery, and chronic illness, blending supernatural power with modern medical concerns.

Character Interactions

• Feng Jun and Old Master Peng discuss the dangers of curing a chronic illness in old age, establishing mutual respect and a cautious doctor-patient relationship.
• Peng questions Yuan Zihao and his sons about the Origin-Nurturing Pill, but they initially evade his questions before revealing its connection to Yuan’s recovery.
• Feng Jun advises Peng on when and where to take the pill, emphasizing seasonal timing and the enhancing effects of Luohua Manor’s valley.
• Hu Shengwei’s wife expresses gratitude to Feng Jun, pays for his services, and seeks continued treatment for her mother.
• Hu Shengwei, despite recovering from surgery himself, insists that his wife remain with her mother rather than worry about him.
• Crow King’s interactions with Master Zhang at Baizong Mountain reveal both its special status and Master Zhang’s reluctant tolerance of its presence among the treasured tea trees.

Chapter Summary: “Rewards for Merit”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Crow King discovers that one of Old Master Peng’s followers has secretly left a packet on a bench, which another man retrieves. By sight and smell, the crow identifies the packet as powdered medicine smuggled from Luohua Manor.
• Although Crow King initially plans to attack the recipient and expose him directly, it remembers Feng Jun’s order not to attack humans unless absolutely necessary. Instead, it reports the incident to Flower Flower, who informs Feng Jun.
• Feng Jun rewards Crow King with a Spirit-Nurturing Pill for its vigilance. Because the pill is too potent for the crow to consume at once, Flower Flower divides it into four portions, keeping three aside to encourage Crow King to cultivate more diligently.
• Feng Jun reflects that Old Master Peng has removed roughly one percent of the manor’s medicine—about one dose—and considers allowing limited medicine sales in the future. He hopes to establish Luohua Manor’s reputation first and eventually use agents to sell medicinal products in the Blue Star Realm without exposing the manor.
• Testing confirms that the medicine may be highly effective against rheumatoid arthritis. However, its plant-based components are unfamiliar and impossible to reproduce. The experts hope to study the medicine and publish research, but they require additional samples.
• Old Master Peng reluctantly decides to smuggle out a second and final dose. He borrows a car from Xu Leigang, claiming he is going to meet an old friend, but the manor guards stop him at the gate.
• Yang Yuxin and Gu Jiahui confront him. Yang warns that his first attempt might have been tolerated, but repeating it is excessive. She offers to plead for him because she wants to maintain a good relationship with Feng Jun.
• Gu Jiahui reveals that the manor’s “spirit bird” detected the scheme. Crow King then circles the young man carrying the medicine, exposing the evidence and leaving Old Master Peng humiliated that a mere crow caught him.

Character Developments

• Crow King demonstrates growing intelligence, initiative, loyalty, and discipline. It wants to earn rewards and prove its usefulness but restrains itself because of Feng Jun’s instructions.
• Flower Flower acts as Crow King’s mentor and shows a protective, authoritative attitude by rationing the Spirit-Nurturing Pill to encourage better cultivation.
• Feng Jun appears increasingly confident in managing the manor. He rewards loyal service, tolerates minor testing of his boundaries, and begins planning a broader medicinal enterprise to benefit Blue Star.
• Old Master Peng becomes increasingly opportunistic. Despite understanding the manor’s power, he continues testing its limits and is ultimately exposed and embarrassed.
• Yang Yuxin becomes more assertive in protecting Luohua Manor’s interests while balancing diplomacy. She uses the confrontation to strengthen her own relationship with Feng Jun.
• Gu Jiahui shows familiarity with the manor’s supernatural elements and directly reveals Crow King’s role.
• The young follower is frightened and helpless once Crow King identifies him, relying on Old Master Peng for guidance.

Significant Themes

• Loyalty and merit: Crow King’s vigilance is rewarded, reinforcing that faithful service earns Feng Jun’s generosity.
• Restraint and discipline: Crow King’s decision not to attack without necessity reflects the importance of obeying rules despite possessing power.
• Trust versus opportunism: Feng Jun is willing to tolerate certain actions, but Old Master Peng’s secretive behavior damages trust and crosses an unspoken boundary.
• Power and surveillance: The manor’s animals are not ordinary creatures; their abilities make secrecy nearly impossible.
• Science confronting the unknown: Experts can confirm the medicine’s effects but cannot identify or reproduce its mysterious ingredients.
• Strategic expansion: Feng Jun considers using medicinal products to benefit Blue Star while carefully protecting Luohua Manor from unwanted exposure.

Character Interactions

• Crow King reports the smuggling attempt to Flower Flower, who conveys it to Feng Jun.
• Feng Jun and Flower Flower discuss how to reward and train Crow King.
• Yang Yuxin confronts Old Master Peng and urges him to stop while offering a diplomatic solution.
• Gu Jiahui confirms that Crow King uncovered the crime, then summons it to expose the courier carrying the medicine.
• Old Master Peng’s final humiliation comes from realizing that his scheme was defeated not by Feng Jun personally, but by the manor’s unusually capable crow.

Chapter Summary: Wealth He Couldn't Flaunt

Key Plot Points and Events

• Old Master Peng attempts to leave Luohua Manor with a packet of medicinal powder, claiming he has an outside errand. Yang Yuxin intercepts him, has Crow King inspect the situation, and takes possession of the powder.
• Crow King’s behavior is revealed to be motivated by reward. After receiving part of a Spirit-Nurturing Pill, it craves more and begins monitoring Old Master Peng in hopes of earning additional merit.
• Flower Flower realizes that Old Master Peng’s actions may be important but does not report directly to Feng Jun. Instead, she communicates with Gu Jiahui, who asks her mother, Yang Yuxin, to intervene.
• Feng Jun recognizes the powder immediately and learns what happened. Rather than criticizing Yang Yuxin, he praises her for protecting the manor’s interests.
• As a reward, Feng Jun gives Yang Yuxin a Body-Tempering Pill and promises to teach her cultivation once she purchases land outside the manor. She is ecstatic because the pill is normally reserved for the manor’s core members.
• Yang Yuxin perceptively guesses that Feng Jun may be financially strained. He admits that he is not truly poor but has many expensive ambitions and is reluctant to ask others for money.
• Old Master Peng later apologizes, explaining that he only removed the powder out of curiosity and had not understood that it was not meant to be shared. Feng Jun agrees to let the matter end but emphasizes that the medicine, despite being given freely, is extremely valuable.
• To make amends, Old Master Peng brings Feng Jun an expensive watch worth over three million. Feng Jun is touched but also uncomfortable, since he rarely wears watches and frequently travels between worlds.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun: Demonstrates sharp perception, strategic restraint, and generosity. He rewards Yang Yuxin’s initiative while carefully concealing the full importance of the medicinal powder. His discomfort with displaying wealth also becomes clear.
• Yang Yuxin: Shows strong judgment, authority, and loyalty to Luohua Manor. She is willing to act decisively despite Old Master Peng’s seniority and is rewarded with the opportunity to cultivate.
• Gu Jiahui: Continues relying on her mother when faced with politically sensitive situations. Her close relationship with Flower Flower allows her to understand and respond to the Spirit Beasts’ intentions.
• Crow King: Becomes more intelligent and ambitious after taking part of the Spirit-Nurturing Pill. Its desire for further rewards drives it to spy on Old Master Peng and report suspicious behavior.
• Flower Flower: Displays intelligence and independent judgment by deciding whom to inform rather than immediately troubling Feng Jun.
• Old Master Peng: Shifts from curiosity and carelessness to embarrassment and apology. He recognizes Feng Jun’s authority and tries to repair the relationship with a lavish gift.

Significant Themes

• Value beyond price: The medicinal powder and Body-Tempering Pill are priceless because of their rarity and transformative effects, even when Feng Jun gives them away without charging.
• Loyalty and responsibility: Yang Yuxin and the manor’s guards protect Luohua Manor despite complicated personal and social relationships.
• Power and hierarchy: Old Master Peng’s former status means little within the manor, where Feng Jun and its supernatural guardians hold the true authority.
• Reward and motivation: Crow King’s actions show that even intelligent supernatural creatures can be driven by incentives and personal gain.
• Wealth and modesty: Feng Jun possesses enormous resources but does not flaunt them, while Old Master Peng uses an expensive watch as a conventional symbol of apology and status.

Character Interactions

• Old Master Peng and Crow King clash when Peng speaks disrespectfully, but Gu Jiahui prevents the confrontation from escalating.
• Yang Yuxin assumes control of the situation, taking the medicinal powder and ordering the guards to stop Peng from leaving.
• Flower Flower communicates with Gu Jiahui through gestures and iPad drawings, establishing a cooperative relationship based on mutual trust.
• Feng Jun questions Yang Yuxin about her actions but ultimately approves of them, strengthening their mentor-student relationship.
• Old Master Peng and Feng Jun resolve their disagreement through a frank conversation, followed by Peng’s expensive apology gift.

Chapter Summary: “I Have a Right to Be Miserable”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Feng Jun reluctantly accepts a valuable watch from Old Master Peng to avoid making him worry or overthink.
• Tang Wenji hosts a farewell banquet before returning to Green Mountain Sect. While drunk, she openly declares that she would stay with Feng Jun if he gave her a formal relationship status. Her confession creates tension, especially with Zhang Caixin.
• Feng Jun agrees to escort Tang Wenji back to Green Mountain Sect. She persuades him to stay for two nights, taking advantage of finally having private time with him.
• Feng Jun then visits his parents in Chaori County, where both have successfully advanced to the Mid-Rank Martial Warrior level.
• He learns that Liu Jiagui, a disliked relative who previously sold the family counterfeit goods, is suffering from kidney failure and is desperately seeking money for dialysis. After the Feng family gives him only five hundred yuan, Liu reacts angrily, insults them, and spreads rumors that they have abandoned their relatives.
• Feng Jun realizes that his newly developed Spirit-Gathering Array could potentially help Liu Jiagui recover, but refuses to give him access because of his past behavior and lack of remorse.
• Feng Jun establishes a Spirit-Gathering Array near the local Earth Vein for his parents. He also leaves them Blood Essence Protective Talismans and warns them about possible dangers, including animals attracted by the array.
• His mother worries that maintaining the array places too much pressure on Feng Jun, but he insists that faster cultivation will allow them to enjoy greater benefits and longevity.
• Feng Jun’s relatives arrive with news that Liu Jiagui has been repeatedly harassing the Agriculture and Forestry Hotel, exploiting his terminal illness and connections to avoid consequences. The chapter ends with Feng Wenhui questioning why Zhang Zeping keeps mentioning Liu.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun demonstrates both emotional restraint and strong family devotion. He avoids embarrassing Tang Wenji, protects his parents from moral guilt, and personally assumes responsibility for refusing Liu Jiagui spiritual treatment.
• Tang Wenji becomes more openly possessive and emotionally direct, revealing how much she wants official recognition from Feng Jun.
• Zhang Caixin shows jealousy and disapproval of Tang Wenji’s drunken confession, remaining noticeably cold during the banquet.
• Feng Jun’s parents continue progressing in cultivation but remain humble and concerned about burdening their son.
• Liu Jiagui is portrayed as shameless and increasingly desperate. Despite his illness, he refuses to accept responsibility, abuses others’ sympathy, and uses threats and rumors to obtain support.
• Zhang Zeping has settled into a comfortable but largely unproductive job connected to the construction project, enjoying minor authority and easy access to food and favors.

Significant Themes

• Family loyalty versus moral judgment: Feng Jun supports his parents wholeheartedly but refuses to reward Liu Jiagui’s past cruelty and dishonesty.
• The burden of wealth and power: The Feng family’s prosperity attracts relatives and creates social pressure, even when those relatives have behaved badly.
• Compassion and its limits: Illness does not automatically earn Liu Jiagui forgiveness; the chapter asks whether someone who has harmed others deserves help simply because he is suffering.
• Cultivation as responsibility: Feng Jun uses his supernatural resources to protect and improve his parents’ lives, treating cultivation as a form of filial duty.
• Social reputation and manipulation: Liu Jiagui relies on public opinion, illness, and personal connections to pressure others, while the Feng family tries to avoid unnecessary conflict.

Character Interactions

• Tang Wenji’s confession exposes romantic tension between her and Feng Jun and provokes Zhang Caixin’s jealousy.
• Feng Jun’s relationship with his parents is affectionate and protective, while their concern for his wellbeing shows mutual care.
• Feng Jun and Liu Jiagui remain morally opposed even without a direct confrontation: Feng Jun possesses the means to help him but consciously chooses not to.
• Feng Wenhui and his wife firmly reject Liu Jiagui’s entitlement, while Zhang Junyi reinforces their position by refusing to give him more money.
• Liu Jiagui’s harassment of the Agriculture and Forestry Hotel creates tension with Feng Wencheng, though the hotel’s manager advises against escalating the conflict.
• Zhang Zeping acts as the messenger between the extended family and Feng Wenhui, setting up the unresolved question of why Liu Jiagui has become his particular focus.

Chapter Summary: “A Small Scheme”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Zeping visits Feng Wenhui’s family and claims he is anxious because Liu Jiagui keeps harassing his brother-in-law.
• He reveals that he is dating Liu Jiagui’s niece and plans to remarry her, using this relationship to justify asking the Feng family to help Liu Jiagui.
• Zhang Zeping argues that Liu Jiagui is struggling and complains that the Feng family only gave him 500 yuan, while he personally lent him 1,000 yuan.
• The discussion becomes tense when Zhang Zeping implies that Feng Wenhui should provide more financial assistance. Feng Jun confronts him, and Zhang attempts to rely on seniority to assert authority.
• Feng Jun’s second aunt joins the conversation and pressures Feng Jun to lend Liu Jiagui 30,000–50,000 yuan or find him work, arguing that the money would be insignificant to someone wealthy.
• Zhang Junyi exposes the hypocrisy behind the request by reminding her sister-in-law that Liu Jiagui previously cheated the Feng family and is not someone she considers a relative.
• Feng Jun realizes that Zhang Zeping’s appeal is a deliberate test: if the Feng family forgives and helps Liu Jiagui because he is terminally ill, others could use the same reasoning to demand favors for themselves.
• He questions Zhang Zeping about whether he would truly accept losing his 1,000-yuan loan if Liu Jiagui died. Zhang answers confidently that he does not care, revealing his careless and foolish nature.
• Feng Jun ends the visit by subtly sending Zhang Zeping and his sister away before dinner, refusing to let them benefit from the family’s precious Spirit Rice and Spirit Beast meat.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun becomes more perceptive and assertive. He quickly identifies the hidden purpose behind Zhang Zeping’s visit and refuses to be manipulated into helping Liu Jiagui. He also protects his mother from further pressure and controls the situation without openly humiliating his second aunt.
• Zhang Junyi demonstrates sharp intelligence and emotional control. She immediately recognizes that the request is not merely about Liu Jiagui but about creating a precedent for future demands. Her calm response exposes the scheme and supports Feng Jun’s authority over his own earnings.
• Zhang Zeping is shown as opportunistic, insensitive, and lacking judgment. Although he presents himself as generous and concerned for Liu Jiagui, he is mainly trying to improve his own situation and avoid gossip connected to his planned remarriage.
• Feng Wenhui is angered by Zhang Zeping’s insinuations but remains restrained because of family and social relationships.
• Feng Jun’s second aunt appears concerned about family reputation, but her behavior reveals that she is willing to pressure Feng Jun for money and use family ties to benefit Liu Jiagui—and potentially her own household.
• Liu Jiagui, though absent, remains a central source of conflict. His terminal illness makes him difficult to deal with, since the Feng family cannot easily punish or deter him without appearing cruel.

Significant Themes

• Family obligation versus personal boundaries: The relatives repeatedly invoke kinship to demand aid, while Feng Jun and Zhang Junyi insist that family ties do not erase past wrongdoing or create an obligation to surrender personal resources.
• Social reputation and rural community pressure: The characters worry about gossip and appearances, especially regarding Liu Jiagui and Zhang Zeping’s relationship with his niece. The chapter shows how reputation can influence decisions as strongly as money.
• Manipulation through pity: Liu Jiagui’s terminal condition is used as moral leverage. The chapter questions whether someone’s suffering excuses past behavior or entitles them to continued support.
• Wealth and entitlement: Because Feng Jun has become wealthy, relatives assume he can easily spare money. His second aunt treats his resources as practically communal, while Feng Jun emphasizes that he earned them and has the right to control them.
• Intelligence versus superficial cleverness: Zhang Junyi and Feng Jun see through the hidden scheme, while Zhang Zeping reveals the plan too openly and fails to understand how transparent his arguments are.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Zeping and Feng Wenhui: Zhang pressures Feng Wenhui by comparing the amounts each family contributed to Liu Jiagui, provoking Feng Wenhui’s anger.
• Zhang Zeping and Feng Jun: Their argument centers on age, seniority, and money. Feng Jun refuses to be intimidated by Zhang’s claim to greater family seniority.
• Feng Jun and his second aunt: She appeals to family duty and Feng Jun’s supposed wealth, while he responds indirectly, explaining that his money belongs to others and cannot simply be given away.
• Zhang Junyi and her sister-in-law: Zhang Junyi calmly rejects the demand for help, reminds her sister-in-law of Liu Jiagui’s past betrayal, and exposes the expectation that the Feng family should continually support other relatives.
• Feng Jun and Zhang Junyi: They work in tandem. Zhang Junyi dismantles the emotional and familial pressure, while Feng Jun recognizes the scheme and tactfully ends the encounter.
• Feng Jun and his parents: Feng Jun cares deeply for them and wants them to enjoy the rare Spirit Rice and Spirit Beast meat, while also preventing other relatives from taking advantage of their generosity.

Chapter Summary: “When the Wall Fell, Everyone Pushed”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Feng Jun realizes that Zhang Zeping and the others supported Liu Jiagui mainly because they hoped to profit from a multibillion-yuan investment.
• Zhang Zeping, encouraged by Liu Jiagui and supported by his parents and sisters, attempts to pressure Feng Jun into giving him more work. Feng Jun refuses, angering Zhang’s family.
• Feng Wencheng warns his wife not to antagonize Feng Jun. He believes that Feng Jun’s access to enormous sums of money must involve serious danger and possibly bloodshed, and that Feng Jun should not be treated as the same obedient nephew he once was.
• Liu Jiagui, who suffers from kidney failure, crashes his car while drunk—or claims that another vehicle’s headlights caused the accident. He is badly injured and may require an amputation.
• Feng Jun sends Liu Jiagui a fruit basket containing starfruit, which is highly dangerous for kidney-failure patients. Feng Wencheng interprets the gift as a deliberate threat.
• Feng Wencheng’s wife delivers the basket. Liu Jiagui recognizes the danger, becomes furious, and accuses the Feng family of trying to kill him.
• Liu Jiagui spends the day cursing the Feng family, then wakes the next day with no sensation in his lower body. He falsely claims that someone entered the hospital and harmed him, but the police dismiss his accusations.
• The local thug Duck Neck visits Liu Jiagui without offering help. He mocks Liu, implying that people connected to Feng Jun and Dou Jiahui are watching him collapse and lose the ability to cause trouble.
• Liu Jiagui realizes that he has become isolated and powerless, while his enemies are taking advantage of his weakness.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun reveals a colder, more intimidating side. Rather than arguing directly, he uses indirect actions—especially the starfruit—to remind others that he is no longer someone they can manipulate.
• Feng Wencheng shows loyalty and practical judgment. Although his wife wants their family to benefit from Feng Jun’s wealth, Wencheng understands the risks surrounding Feng Jun and tries to protect his relationship with him.
• Feng Wencheng’s wife remains resentful and entitled, believing Feng Jun owes her family assistance because of their past help. However, she becomes frightened when Wencheng explains the potential danger surrounding Feng Jun.
• Zhang Zeping is portrayed as greedy and easily influenced. His desire for greater wealth, encouraged by his relatives and Liu Jiagui, causes him to challenge Feng Jun despite lacking the power to do so.
• Liu Jiagui shifts from an aggressive troublemaker to a frightened, trapped victim. His illness, accident, possible amputation, and loss of mobility strip him of the confidence with which he previously harassed others.
• Duck Neck acts as an enforcer and observer. His visit confirms that Liu’s enemies are now confident enough to mock him openly.

Significant Themes

• Opportunism and greed: Relatives and acquaintances support Liu Jiagui not out of justice, but because they hope to profit from Feng Jun’s project.
• The reversal of power: Once Feng Jun becomes wealthy and influential, people who previously pressured or insulted him quickly lose their leverage.
• Hidden violence behind wealth: Feng Wencheng believes large fortunes inevitably attract conflict, betrayal, and bloodshed. The chapter presents wealth as dangerous rather than purely beneficial.
• Fear and indirect retaliation: Feng Jun never openly threatens Liu Jiagui, yet the fruit basket creates more fear than a direct confrontation would have.
• Consequences of provoking the powerful: Liu Jiagui’s illness and isolation make him vulnerable, while those around him begin pushing him down once he is no longer able to fight back.
• Family loyalty versus entitlement: Wencheng recognizes that his future depends on maintaining trust with Feng Jun, while his wife views family connections as an automatic right to financial rewards.

Character Interactions

• Feng Jun and Zhang Zeping’s family: Their conflict centers on Zhang’s demand for work and Feng Jun’s refusal to reward pressure or manipulation.
• Feng Wencheng and his wife: Wencheng reprimands her for defending Zhang Zeping and provoking Feng Jun. He emphasizes that Feng Jun’s success carries risks she does not understand.
• Feng Jun and Liu Jiagui: Their confrontation is indirect. Feng Jun’s fruit basket functions as a calculated warning, leaving Liu terrified and enraged.
• Feng Wencheng’s wife and Liu Jiagui: She delivers the basket with open hostility and tells Liu to sue Feng Jun if he dares, refusing to sympathize with him.
• Duck Neck and Liu Jiagui: Duck Neck taunts Liu about his illness and injuries, making clear that Liu has lost the ability to “fight back” or continue causing trouble.

Chapter Summary: “Poison Perfume”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Feng Jun’s suspicions are confirmed: Liu Jiagui caused the car accident through a Divine Sense attack.
• Rather than kill Liu, Feng Jun deliberately makes him suffer. He seals the sensation in Liu’s lower body, leaving him conscious, paralyzed, and unable to continue harassing others.
• Feng Jun intends Liu’s condition to serve as a warning to anyone considering opposing the Feng Family. He believes a prolonged, miserable punishment will have a stronger deterrent effect than death.
• Feng delays his return to Yang City by a day and a half to ensure Liu has exhausted his methods and that the example is sufficiently established.
• After returning to Luohua Manor, Feng Jun continues practicing with the Soul-Calming Bell and plans to test it during the coming rain.
• The Lovesick Goblet has produced another goblet of optimized Spirit Wine, which Feng transfers to his brewing gourd.
• Yang Yuxin visits him, thanks him for the Body-Tempering Pill, and reveals that she took it in two doses with Xiao Hui’s help.
• Their conversation becomes increasingly flirtatious. Yang wears Poison perfume and hints at her attraction, while Feng Jun notices the suggestive mood but remains restrained.
• When Yang proposes meeting somewhere more private, Feng hesitates because he does not want to hurt or disrespect Sister Hong and Hao Fengjing, who are effectively the mistresses of the manor.
• The chapter ends with Yang suggesting the secluded woods as a possible location, while Feng notices that darkness has fallen and feels tempted.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun: Demonstrates his growing ruthlessness and strategic thinking by choosing a punishment designed to intimidate others rather than simply eliminate Liu. At the same time, he shows increased emotional responsibility toward his existing partners, resisting Yang Yuxin despite being attracted to her.
• Liu Jiagui: Is reduced from an active threat to a helpless warning figure, forced to remain conscious while suffering the consequences of provoking Feng Jun.
• Yang Yuxin: Displays her perceptiveness, social sophistication, and growing confidence in expressing her attraction to Feng Jun. Her use of Poison perfume and increasingly direct flirtation reveal her deliberate attempt to communicate her feelings.
• Sister Hong and Hao Fengjing: Though absent from the chapter, they remain influential through Feng Jun’s concern for their feelings and status within the manor.
• Zhang Caixin: Her possessiveness over the Jade Stone Building is mentioned humorously, showing her unwillingness to allow Feng Jun’s other companions to occupy the building.

Significant Themes

• Punishment and deterrence: Feng Jun views suffering as a more effective warning than death and uses Liu’s condition to reinforce the Feng Family’s authority.
• Power and fear: The chapter emphasizes how Feng Jun’s supernatural strength allows him to control both individuals and broader social perceptions.
• Desire versus loyalty: Feng Jun is attracted to Yang Yuxin but struggles to reconcile that desire with his responsibility toward Sister Hong and Hao Fengjing.
• Unspoken communication: Yang uses perfume, appearance, gestures, and suggestive remarks to express her feelings, while Feng Jun remains slow to understand the signals.
• Privacy and trust: Feng Jun worries about phone surveillance and values personal space, even while maintaining several complicated relationships.
• Cultivation and ordinary pleasure: Spiritual techniques, pills, and wine coexist with clothing, perfume, flirtation, and romantic tension, blending the supernatural world with everyday sensuality.

Character Interactions

• Feng Jun and Liu Jiagui are connected through a one-sided power struggle: Liu provokes the Feng Family, while Feng Jun responds with calculated psychological and physical punishment.
• Feng Jun and Yang Yuxin share a playful, increasingly intimate exchange involving the Body-Tempering Pill, Spirit Wine, perfume, and physical contact.
• Yang Yuxin subtly tests Feng Jun’s willingness to pursue a relationship, while Feng Jun acknowledges his attraction but refuses to act without considering Sister Hong and Hao Fengjing.
• Xiao Hui indirectly assists Yang Yuxin by explaining how to deal with the unpleasant effects of the Body-Tempering Pill.
• Zhang Caixin’s possessive behavior affects Feng Jun’s interactions with the other women, particularly by preventing them from using the Jade Stone Building.

Chapter Summary: “Love and Career”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After spending intimate time together in the woods during the rain, Feng Jun and Yang Yuxin return to shelter, dry off, and share tea.
• Yang Yuxin asks whether Feng Jun plans to find an independent agent to sell his pills. Feng Jun confirms that he does not want to involve her in that business.
• He explains that separating the medicine trade from her existing responsibilities will prevent her from becoming too deeply tied to his business empire and avoid interfering with her cultivation.
• Yang Yuxin offers to introduce him to wealthy patients with serious illnesses who might pay for his medicine.
• Feng Jun reveals that he possesses more than one hundred tons of gold, a secret known only to him and Yang Yuxin. He may eventually trade part of it for useful resources, but for now its existence creates a need for him to generate more liquid funds.
• Yang Yuxin brings up Zhuang Zesheng’s Motor Neuron Disease and reveals that she has already identified another wealthy or well-connected patient with the same illness. She had waited to mention the case until she knew Feng Jun was willing to treat such patients.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun demonstrates strong caution and business discipline. Although he is intimate with and trusts Yang Yuxin, he maintains boundaries around his various sources of wealth and business operations.
• He also shows concern for Yang Yuxin’s cultivation, making clear that excluding her from the medicine business is intended partly to protect her time and progress rather than to reject her.
• Yang Yuxin initially feels hurt that Feng Jun does not trust her completely, but she quickly understands his reasoning. Her maturity allows her to distinguish professional caution from personal distrust.
• She further proves her value as a capable partner by preparing potential patients in advance and presenting the opportunity only when it becomes relevant.
• Their relationship deepens through greater emotional openness and the sharing of an extremely sensitive secret.

Significant Themes

• Love versus career: Personal intimacy does not erase the need for professional boundaries. Feng Jun cares for Yang Yuxin while still preventing their romantic relationship from making his entire business dependent on her.
• Trust and independence: Genuine trust is shown not through unconditional reliance but through respecting each other’s judgment and maintaining balanced roles.
• Wealth and secrecy: Feng Jun’s enormous hidden gold reserve represents both power and danger, requiring discretion and careful planning.
• Strategic relationships: Yang Yuxin’s social connections and foresight demonstrate how influence and reliable networks can be as valuable as money or supernatural abilities.
• Cultivation and worldly responsibilities: Feng Jun must balance extraordinary personal advancement with practical financial and social concerns.

Character Interactions

• Feng Jun and Yang Yuxin share a tender domestic moment over tea after their intimacy, creating a contrast between romance and serious business discussions.
• Yang Yuxin briefly feels emotionally rejected when Feng Jun refuses to let her manage pill sales, but Feng Jun reassures her by explaining his motives.
• Their discussion of the gold reserve establishes Yang Yuxin as the only person besides Feng Jun entrusted with this major secret.
• Yang Yuxin’s offer to connect Feng Jun with Motor Neuron Disease patients strengthens their partnership and demonstrates her ability to support his plans without overstepping.

Chapter Summary: “Rain Makes Roads Slippery”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Feng Jun considers treating a new patient with Motor Neuron Disease but admits he is not confident he can cure it. His previous “cure” of Zhuang Zesheng may have involved a different condition, which Feng Jun interpreted as innate baleful energy.
• He prefers developing a scalable pill rather than providing labor-intensive individual treatments, since one-on-one medical care would interfere with his cultivation and defeat the purpose of using agents. Nevertheless, he decides to treat this patient as a trial.
• After returning to the estate with Yang Yuxin, Feng Jun is teased by Sister Hong, who suspects Yang used aphrodisiac perfume and that the two did more than discuss business. Feng Jun casually admits that he also checked the effectiveness of her Body-Tempering Pill.
• The following day, Feng Jun travels to the mountains near Peach Blossom Valley to test the Soul-Calming Bell. He successfully experiments with its binding and soul-calming abilities, eventually combining both effects.
• He discovers that rain improves his control of the wood-element artifact because “water nourishes wood.” He tests the soul-calming effect on a hog badger, knocking it unconscious without killing it.
• While leaving the mountains, Feng Jun witnesses a sedan lose control while dangerously overtaking another vehicle in the rain. The sedan crashes down a slope. Other drivers and the truck driver refuse to help, while bystanders merely watch or record the accident.
• Feng Jun goes down to rescue the passengers, followed by two helpful men. They break open the wrecked car and discover four injured occupants.
• Feng Jun gives the driver an Origin-Nurturing Pill after identifying possible internal bleeding. He resets the severely injured girl’s broken neck and gives her a Bone-Rejoining Pill, warning her to remain still for forty-eight hours.
• When Feng Jun prepares to treat the critically injured boy, the woman in the passenger seat demands to know which hospital he is affiliated with, creating a potential obstacle to his unconventional treatment.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun: Shows caution and realism about the limits of his medical abilities. He remains focused on scalable solutions, cultivation, and avoiding unnecessary attention, but his compassion overrides those concerns when he encounters the crash victims. He also becomes more skilled with the Soul-Calming Bell and demonstrates increasing confidence in using his artifacts and pills.
• Yang Yuxin: Acts as a potential intermediary for a wealthy client and appears to have a flirtatious or intimate relationship with Feng Jun, though the chapter leaves the exact nature of their encounter implicit.
• Sister Hong: Demonstrates sharp observation and familiarity with Feng Jun’s behavior. She teasingly confronts him about Yang Yuxin and serves as a socially perceptive presence within the estate.
• The crash victims: Their varied injuries emphasize the seriousness of reckless driving and poor safety habits, particularly the back-seat passengers’ failure to wear seat belts.

Significant Themes

• Limits of knowledge and medicine: Feng Jun’s uncertainty about Motor Neuron Disease highlights the difference between treating symptoms, underlying causes, and unfamiliar medical conditions.
• Scalability versus personal responsibility: He wants to pursue mass-market pills rather than individual cures, but his sense of duty compels him to help people directly when faced with an emergency.
• Secrecy and exposure: Feng Jun must hide his abilities, artifacts, and pills from cameras, bystanders, and suspicious witnesses. His desire to help conflicts with the need to protect his secrets.
• Consequences of recklessness: The crash results from dangerous overtaking in wet conditions, while the indifference of other drivers underscores social apathy and the risks of bystander behavior.
• Adaptation and elemental harmony: The rain unexpectedly improves Feng Jun’s control of the wood-element Soul-Calming Bell, reinforcing the importance of understanding the relationship between natural forces and cultivation.

Character Interactions

• Feng Jun and Yang Yuxin share a private encounter connected to a potential client and the Body-Tempering Pill.
• Sister Hong teasingly challenges Feng Jun about Yang Yuxin, and Feng Jun responds evasively but does not fully deny her suspicions.
• Feng Jun cooperates with two strangers to break open the crashed vehicle and rescue the victims.
• He explains the driver’s injuries and provides emergency treatment while urging him to seek hospital care.
• He gives the injured girl direct instructions after resetting her neck, but the passenger questions his identity and qualifications before he can treat the critically injured boy, leaving the rescue—and Feng Jun’s secret abilities—in jeopardy.

Chapter Summary: “Whose Human-Blood Bun?”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After a serious car accident in Peach Blossom Valley, Feng Jun uses his cultivation methods and a valuable Origin-Nurturing Pill to save four victims.
• He treats the victims according to medical urgency:
  • The driver has internal bleeding but can survive several hours.
  • The young girl has a dangerously fractured cervical vertebra and is treated first.
  • The boy’s condition is extremely serious and requires complicated treatment.
  • The boy’s mother has only suffered a broken leg and has not yet been treated.
• When the mother discovers that Feng Jun is neither a licensed doctor nor affiliated with a hospital, she angrily challenges his right to treat them.
• Feng Jun warns that her son needs emergency bloodletting and will die within an hour without it. When she refuses to trust him, he abandons the attempt and leaves.
• A teenage bystander defends Feng Jun, arguing that he was only helping and had no obligation to remain. Two hours later, the ambulance arrives, but the boy has already died.
• Feng Jun returns to the manor feeling disillusioned, believing that sincere attempts to help can lead to blame and trouble.
• The following day, he learns that Hao Fengjing has successfully been seconded to manage outside sponsorships and investments while retaining her official position.
• Feng Jun then discovers that the boy’s mother has posted a distorted account of the accident online, accusing him of demanding excessive treatment fees, refusing to help, and causing her son’s death.
• Influencer Hong Daliang reposts the accusation and labels Feng Jun “scum.” Photos vaguely identifying Feng Jun accompany the post, which receives thousands of reposts.
• Yuan Youwei shows Feng Jun the post. After hearing the truth, Yuan supports Feng Jun, while Li Ting acknowledges the tragedy but condemns the mother’s deliberate distortion.
• Li Ting decides to use the Yuan family’s influence to counter the slander. Other witnesses, including the teenage boy, have posted truthful accounts, but their statements receive little attention compared with Hong Daliang’s popular accusations.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun: Demonstrates compassion and a strong commitment to following his true nature, despite disliking responsibility and refusing to help merely out of moral obligation. His sacrifice of an extremely valuable pill shows the seriousness of his intervention. However, the mother’s accusations leave him frustrated and questioning whether he should help ordinary people in the future.
• The injured boy’s mother: Shifts from panic to hostility, prioritizing Feng Jun’s lack of credentials over her son’s urgent condition. After his death, she rewrites the incident to portray herself as a victim and Feng Jun as responsible.
• The teenage bystander: Shows maturity and fairness by defending Feng Jun and recognizing that the stranger had voluntarily risked trouble to help.
• Yuan Youwei: Reveals his loyalty to Feng Jun and his straightforward sense of justice. He is shocked that Hong Daliang, whom he admires, could support such an obviously distorted account.
• Li Ting: Balances sympathy for the dead child with a clear condemnation of malicious slander. Her decision to intervene reflects her growing dependence on and loyalty to Feng Jun.
• Hao Fengjing/Mei Jin: Her career arrangement develops favorably, allowing her to retain her official role while working with Feng Jun. Her continued attachment to government employment is connected to her filial respect for her mother.

Significant Themes

• Good intentions versus social consequences: Feng Jun helps because his conscience demands it, yet he is punished socially for acting without official credentials.
• Credentials versus real ability: The chapter questions whether formal licenses should outweigh immediate competence when someone’s life is at stake.
• Truth and public opinion: Online platforms reward sensational accusations more quickly than quiet, factual testimony.
• Injustice and scapegoating: The mother redirects her grief and guilt toward Feng Jun, while Hong Daliang amplifies the accusation without investigating.
• The cost of compassion: Feng Jun’s willingness to help—including giving away a priceless pill—produces no gratitude and instead threatens his reputation.
• Cultivating one’s true heart: Feng Jun’s actions reflect the Daoist idea that cultivation requires following one’s genuine intentions, even when doing so brings inconvenience or danger.

Character Interactions

• Feng Jun clashes with the boy’s mother over trust, medical authority, and responsibility.
• The teenage witness challenges the mother’s hostility and defends Feng Jun’s right to leave.
• Yuan Youwei and Li Ting discuss the incident with Feng Jun, offering moral support while expressing different aspects of the tragedy.
• Li Ting takes responsibility for defending Feng Jun publicly, relying on the Yuan family’s influence and other witnesses to challenge the online smear campaign.
• Hong Daliang’s interaction is indirect but significant: by reposting the mother’s story, he transforms a private tragedy into a public attack against Feng Jun.

Chapter Summary: “Filial Devotion That Moved the Heart”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Yuan Zihao and Old Master Peng move against Hong Daliang for spreading defamatory claims about Feng Jun. Hong argues that he merely reposted the information and may have been misled.
• Before the account can be banned, Hong apologizes and explains that the accusations came from his assistant, whose son died in the accident and whose husband was badly injured.
• Old Master Yuan sympathizes with the grieving woman, noting that she is under immense pressure and is being blamed by her in-laws. Feng Jun, however, rejects the idea that grief excuses defamation and insists that she should be prosecuted.
• Sister Hong and Yuan Huapeng recommend claiming one hundred million in damages so the authorities and lawyers will take the case seriously. Feng Jun initially wants to claim only one yuan and refuse an apology, but ultimately agrees to the larger lawsuit.
• The following day, a new patient introduced by Yang Yuxin arrives: Madam Lou, a fifty-nine-year-old woman whose body appears decades older and is in extremely poor condition.
• Her companion, Boss Han, offers ten million for the initial examination and authorizes up to five hundred million for treatment. Feng Jun diagnoses not only Motor Neuron Disease but also severely depleted vitality, yin-cold energy, and heat toxin, making her condition unusually difficult.
• Boss Han explains that Madam Lou raised her younger siblings after their parents died, sacrificing her own marriage and well-being. Her younger brother, now an official, wants to save her, while Boss Han is also motivated by admiration for their devotion and by potential business interests.
• Moved by Madam Lou’s selflessness, Feng Jun decides to treat her more carefully than he originally intended. He provides a luxury coach for her care, recommends that one of her siblings stay with her, supplies rare Spirit Rice and medicines, and personally massages her to restore her vitality.
• Feng Jun insists that Madam Lou’s family must be present during treatment. He refuses to continue if only Boss Han’s employees remain, emphasizing that medical decisions must respect the family.

Character Developments

• Feng Jun: Becomes more pragmatic about money and legal matters after the car accident, but Madam Lou’s story awakens his compassion. Although he claims to treat patients strictly for payment, he gives her exceptional care because he recognizes her kindness and sacrifice.
• Old Master Yuan/Yuan Zihao: Show sympathy toward the grieving mother and favor leniency, revealing their compassionate nature.
• Yuan Huapeng and Sister Hong: Display practical knowledge of legal strategy and help Feng Jun pursue the defamation case effectively.
• Hong Daliang: Quickly abandons his defensive attitude once legal consequences threaten him, offering excuses and an explanation rather than standing by the accusations.
• Madam Lou: Emerges as a deeply self-sacrificing woman who raised and supported her siblings at the cost of her own health, marriage, and happiness.
• Boss Han: Appears generous and decisive, willing to spend enormous sums on Madam Lou. His motives are mixed: he genuinely admires the Lou family’s devotion but also hopes to build a favorable relationship with Director Lou.
• Director Lou: Though absent, he is characterized as a younger brother whose gratitude toward the sister who raised him inspires him to seek her treatment.

Significant Themes

• Grief versus accountability: The chapter questions whether suffering or bereavement excuses harmful behavior. Feng Jun insists that personal tragedy does not make defamation acceptable.
• Filial and familial devotion: Madam Lou’s lifelong sacrifices for her siblings form the emotional center of the chapter. Her siblings’ desire to repay her reflects the value of family loyalty.
• Compassion and moral complexity: Several characters act from mixed motives. Boss Han combines genuine admiration with business ambitions, while Feng Jun’s initially money-focused attitude gives way to sincere kindness.
• Money and medical care: Wealth is presented as a practical means of obtaining treatment, but money alone cannot replace trust, family involvement, or moral responsibility.
• Good deeds and reciprocity: Feng Jun reflects that kindness attracts respect and assistance, suggesting that sincere virtue can earn support even in a world dominated by profit and influence.

Character Interactions

• Feng Jun and the Yuan family: They disagree over whether the grieving accuser should be forgiven, with the Yuan elders showing sympathy and Feng Jun demanding legal punishment.
• Feng Jun, Sister Hong, and Yuan Huapeng: Their discussion about the lawsuit highlights Feng Jun’s unfamiliarity with legal procedures and the others’ worldly practicality.
• Feng Jun and Boss Han: Boss Han’s unwavering confidence and willingness to pay persuade Feng Jun to undertake the difficult treatment, while Feng Jun establishes firm conditions regarding care and family presence.
• Feng Jun and Madam Lou’s family: Although the family is not yet directly present, Feng Jun’s insistence that they participate demonstrates his respect for their bond and his concern that Madam Lou not be treated merely as a financial transaction.