Chapter Summaries

Fang Han subdued the rampaging Azure Wood Demon Ox and helped restore order at the Beast Garden. After a brief rest, he practiced the Gentle Wind Sword Art and reached mastery, grasping Wind Momentum.

• Fang Han dodged the Azure Wood Demon Ox’s charges and repeatedly struck its vulnerable head and neck with his sheathed Azure Edge Sword until it fell unconscious.
• Fang Han ordered a young servant to fetch ropes and summon help, then guarded the broken fence and bound the demon ox.
• Steward Zhang arrived with servants, oversaw repairs to the fence, and had the awakened demon ox returned to its enclosure.
• After sleeping briefly and completing his patrol, Fang Han practiced the Gentle Wind Sword Art and felt its forms and airflow resonate with his sword.
• Fang Han’s sword strike gathered fierce wind, and he realized that the Gentle Wind Sword Art had reached mastery and that he had grasped Wind Momentum.

Fang Han mastered Wind Momentum and sought a stronger sword technique to prepare for facing Zhao Qianjun. After obtaining his task contribution points early, he borrowed the Wind Splitting Sword Technique and began studying its nine forms.

• Fang Han realized that mastering Wind Momentum and perfecting Gentle Wind Sword Art gave him the strength to contend with Zhao Qianjun, but he decided to wait until he could be certain of defeating him.
• Fang Han asked Deacon Zhang for his Beast Garden task contribution points in advance, and Deacon Zhang agreed after considering Fang Han's role in stopping the beast frenzy.
• Fang Han used his contribution points to visit the Library Pavilion and chose the Wind Splitting Sword Technique, which suited his Wind Momentum and focused on speed and penetrating power.
• The middle-aged deacon lent Fang Han the original manual for one month and warned him not to share it with anyone.
• Fang Han returned to the Beast Garden, studied the manual's guiding formulas, and read through its nine sword forms.

Fang Han reached the Beginner stage of the Wind Splitting Sword Technique and the Greater Accomplishment stage of the Startling Swan Step during his Beast Garden assignment. After returning to the Zi Courtyard, he heard from Xiao Chen that the Martial Dao Stele rankings had shifted.

• Fang Han spent five days cultivating the Wind Splitting Sword Technique before reaching its Beginner stage and realizing its destructive power rivaled the Gentle Wind Sword Art at Greater Accomplishment.
• Fang Han shifted more of his training toward the Startling Swan Step, which reached Greater Accomplishment on the final day of his Beast Garden assignment.
• Fang Han decided to take a mission outside the sect to lure Zhao Qianjun out and eliminate the threat he posed.
• Fang Han handed over his Beast Garden assignment, returned to Room C-7, and met Xiao Chen, who told him that Han Yi and Gao Yuan had fallen out of the Martial Dao Stele top ten.

Fang Han learned that the courtyard’s rankings and cultivation had shifted, then focused on drawing Zhao Qianjun out of hiding. He chose a solo escort mission from True Disciple Chu Feng and received a sealed package for delivery to the Chu Family in Clear River City.

• Xiao Chen told Fang Han that Ji Hao and Lu Xing had entered the top ten, five disciples had advanced to the Ninth-rank late stage, and Wang Miao had risen to ninety-third on the Prodigy Ranking.
• Fang Han spent several days strengthening his cultivation and martial techniques before deciding to lure Zhao Qianjun into making a move.
• Fang Han went to the Mission Hall and accepted a solo mission to escort a package and letter to Chu Yunshan in Clear River City.
• Li Shan reported Fang Han’s mission to Zhao Qianjun, who followed him after deciding the trip might offer a chance to strike.
• Fang Han visited Chu Feng in the True Transmission Courtyard and received the sealed package and letter, with instructions to deliver them personally to Chu Yunshan.

Fang Han left the Azure Profound Sect on a mission and defeated Zhao Qianjun, who had ambushed him. After learning that Lin Yaotian had hired Zhao Qianjun to kill him, Fang Han killed and concealed the body, then continued toward Clear River City wary of the Lin Family.

• Fang Han collected the parcel and letter from Chu Feng and departed the Azure Profound Sect for Clear River City.
• Zhao Qianjun ambushed Fang Han on the road, but Fang Han blocked his attack and overpowered him with his swordsmanship.
• Fang Han recognized Zhao Qianjun and learned that Lin Yaotian had paid him to kill Fang Han.
• Fang Han killed Zhao Qianjun, searched his belongings, and concealed his corpse in a ravine.
• Fang Han returned to the road and continued toward Clear River City, remaining wary of the Lin Family.

Fang Han delivered Chu Feng’s package and letter to the Chu Family, then refused Chu Yunshan’s demand to intervene in its dispute with the Liu Family. On his return to the Azure Profound Sect, he sent warnings to his family and exchanged Zhao Qianjun’s banknotes for gold to test the System Panel’s top-up mechanism.

• Fang Han reached Clear River City and delivered Chu Feng’s sealed items to Clan Head Chu Yunshan at the Chu residence.
• After Chu Yunshan’s injured son blamed Liu Mang and the Liu Family for attacking him, Chu Yunshan ordered Fang Han to confront them, but Fang Han refused and left.
• Fang Han rested overnight, then traveled back toward the Azure Profound Sect and practiced the Startling Swan Step while reviewing the Wind Splitting Sword Technique.
• In Azure Profound City, Fang Han sent letters to Fang Zheng, Lin Wan, Fang Ying, and Fang Lingyuan, warning the family that Lin Yaotian had bribed Zhao Qianjun to attack him.
• Fang Han exchanged the thirteen thousand taels in banknotes taken from Zhao Qianjun for one hundred and thirty taels of gold, then headed for the Azure Profound Sect.

Fang Han increased his Sword Art Talent Amplification to sixteenfold and made rapid progress practicing the Wind Splitting Sword Technique. The next morning, he refused Chu Feng's summons on sect-rule grounds, leaving his conflict with the true disciple unresolved.

• Fang Han claimed his mission reward, learned that Zhao Qianjun had killed Li Shan, and returned to his room.
• Fang Han spent his gold to raise his Sword Art Talent Amplification to sixteenfold and practiced the Wind Splitting Sword Technique with newfound insight.
• Fang Han cultivated with a Foundation Cultivation Pill the next morning before Song Xiang arrived to summon him to Chu Feng.
• Fang Han refused to go, cited sect rules against a true disciple's unauthorized summons, and warned Song Xiang against attacking him.
• Song Xiang left after threatening Fang Han, while nearby disciples watched and Xiao Chen asked what had happened.
• Fang Han explained his dispute with Chu Yunshan to Xiao Chen and said he had a way to handle the conflict with Chu Feng.

Fang Han challenged the Martial Dao Stele and rose from seventy-eighth to eighteenth, revealing his mastery of Wind Momentum and drawing the sect’s attention. Elder Chen Xuan reviewed Fang Han’s records and concluded that his rapid growth was genuine, leaving Fang Han better positioned to resist Chu Feng’s suppression.

• After his conflict with Chu Feng, Fang Han went to the plaza to raise his standing by challenging the Martial Dao Stele.
• Fang Han displayed Wind Momentum with a sword strike and advanced from seventy-eighth place to eighteenth, stunning the disciples watching.
• Wang Meng heard of Fang Han’s achievement and recognized that she had underestimated his talent, though she still doubted he could contend with Chu Feng.
• A deacon reported Fang Han’s ranking to Chen Xuan, who ordered his entrance records retrieved to determine whether he had hidden his strength.
• After examining Fang Han’s records, Chen Xuan concluded that Fang Han’s rapid progress was genuine and likely came from gaining better techniques and resources after joining the sect.

Elder Chen Xuan protected Fang Han from Chu Feng’s attempt to obstruct him through the Mission Hall, then learned of Fang Han’s exceptional talent. Chu Feng backed off from a direct confrontation but vowed to retaliate later, while Fang Han continued training and considered how to improve his Footwork Talent.

• After reading Fang Han’s evaluation, Chen Xuan ordered the Zi Courtyard to protect disciples who followed sect rules and warned against improper suppression.
• Chu Feng ordered Song Xiang to arrange for Deacon Liang to make Fang Han’s missions harder, but Wu Hao delivered Chen Xuan’s warning before Liang agreed.
• Song Xiang reported Chen Xuan’s intervention to Chu Feng, who ordered an investigation into why the elder valued Fang Han.
• Song Xiang revealed that Fang Han had risen from seventy-eighth to eighteenth on the Martial Dao Stele and had mastered Wind Momentum and a low-grade sword art at the Perfection Realm.
• Chu Feng decided not to challenge Chen Xuan directly but vowed to find a later opportunity to punish Fang Han.
• Fang Han practiced Wind Splitting Sword Technique and Startling Swan Step, then realized that raising his Footwork Talent to sixteenfold required more silver than he had.

Fang Han learned that the sect was investigating Zhao Qianjun’s disappearance while his family retaliated against the Lin Family for arranging the attack on him. Though Fang Han felt safer after receiving his family’s letter, Law Enforcement Hall investigators identified Zhao Qianjun’s remains and token, leaving the investigation unresolved.

• Fang Han stopped taking missions and focused on cultivation as rumors spread through Zi Courtyard that Zhao Qianjun had gone missing and the Deacon Hall was investigating.
• Fang Lingyuan learned from Fang Han’s letter that Lin Yaotian had bribed Zhao Qianjun to harm him, then summoned the Fang Clan’s core elders to plan retaliation.
• Fang Clan forces attacked Lin Family businesses and ambushed its elders, prompting several days of clashes between the two clans.
• Lin Yaotian confronted Fang Lingyuan at Fang Mansion, but Fang Lingyuan warned him that the Fang Clan would fight to the end, and Lin Yaotian withdrew.
• Fang Han received Fang Lingyuan’s account of the conflict and resolved to stay cautious while the sect investigated Zhao Qianjun’s disappearance.
• Deacon Zhou Mo and Law Enforcement Hall disciples found Zhao Qianjun’s remains in a ravine and confirmed his Identity Jade Token.

The Law Enforcement Hall ended its investigation into Zhao Qianjun’s death without suspecting Fang Han, and Fang Han gained public recognition for his swordsmanship at the Instruction Hall. At the Alchemy Hall, Jiang He gave Fang Han a bottle of defective Foundation Cultivation Pills on Chu Feng’s behalf, leaving Fang Han to swallow the loss and postpone his revenge until he was stronger.

• Zhou Mo and Zhou Li investigated Zhao Qianjun’s death but found no useful leads, and the Law Enforcement Hall suspended the case.
• Fang Han heard that the investigation had ended and relaxed, confident that suspicion had not reached him.
• At the Instruction Hall, Liu Chong asked Fang Han to demonstrate his sword techniques, then praised his progress and gave him guidance on the Wind Splitting Sword Technique.
• Fang Han went to the Alchemy Hall to exchange 140 contribution points for Foundation Cultivation Pills, but Jiang He gave him a bottle of ten inferior pills and refused to take them back.
• Fang Han suspected Chu Feng had arranged the sabotage, accepted the loss, and resolved to remember the debt until he was strong enough to retaliate.

Fang Han reached minor mastery in the Wind Splitting Sword Technique and joined Xiao Chen and three other disciples on a mission to escort Spirit Iron from a mine. After the convoy departed, mine steward Qian Yong revealed that he planned to ambush them and disguise the attack as a bandit robbery.

• Fang Han broke through to minor mastery in the Wind Splitting Sword Technique, gaining the ability to wield Wind Momentum, and decided to postpone testing his ranking.
• Xiao Chen invited Fang Han to join an escort mission, and Fang Han agreed before meeting Chen Ying, Shi Yong, and Zhao Li at the Mission Hall.
• The five disciples traveled to the Spirit Iron Mine, where steward Qian Yong welcomed them and arranged lodging for the night.
• The next morning, Fang Han inspected the seals on ten carriages loaded with Spirit Iron, and the five disciples set out for the sect.
• After the convoy left, Qian Yong ordered a trusted subordinate to ambush it and make the attack look like a bandit robbery.

Fang Han and the other Azure Profound Sect disciples were ambushed by Qian Li and his martial artists while camping. Fang Han killed three attackers and battled Qian Li, an Eighth Grade Martial Artist, while the fight remained unresolved.

• Fang Han arranged the convoy’s night watches during its first two nights on the road.
• Qian Li led more than a dozen men in a planned attack on the convoy, but Chen Ying heard them approaching and warned the others.
• Xiao Chen, Chen Ying, Shi Yong, and Zhao Li were each pinned down by multiple Ninth Grade Martial Artists.
• Fang Han killed the three Ninth Grade Martial Artists surrounding him, prompting Qian Li to attack.
• Qian Li’s Eighth Grade Internal Qi forced Fang Han to defend himself, but Fang Han wounded him repeatedly as their battle continued past a hundred exchanges.

Fang Han killed Qian Li and helped the other Azure Profound Sect disciples drive off the ambushers, though five attackers escaped. Their survivors returned to Qian Yong, who learned the ambush had failed and feared the transported goods would expose his plan.

• Qian Li used Red Sun Explosion, but Fang Han evaded the attack and wounded him with Void Splitting Gold Severing.
• Fang Han pursued the wounded Qian Li and killed him with Returning Wind Shadow Sweep.
• Fang Han joined Xiao Chen, Chen Ying, Shi Yong, and Zhao Li; they killed nine attackers, while five escaped into the forest.
• The five survivors searched the battlefield, found no clues to the attackers’ identities, and hurried toward the sect with the convoy.
• Qian Yong learned from the returning attackers that Qian Li and several men had died, and realized the goods could expose his scheme.

After Qian Yong learned the sect might discover his theft of spirit iron, he killed the five men who had returned and fled with his stolen money. Fang Han and the others reached Azure Profound Sect, where the crates were found full of stones and the Law Enforcement Hall detained them while investigating; Fang Han suspected Qian Yong had arranged the attack to destroy the evidence.

• Qian Yong killed the five surviving men, took the money from selling the spirit iron, and escaped from the mine.
• Fang Han and his companions arrived at Azure Profound Sect and reported that they had been attacked while escorting supplies.
• The Mission Hall steward opened the crates and discovered they contained ordinary stones instead of spirit iron.
• Elder Zhou Jin ordered everyone involved in the mission detained and questioned Fang Han about the journey and attack.
• While waiting under guard, Fang Han concluded that Qian Yong had switched the spirit iron and sent attackers to seize the crates, and the others agreed that the theory fit the evidence.

Zhou Jin investigated the Spirit Iron Mine and confirmed that steward Qian Yong had stolen sect materials, framed Fang Han’s group, and fled, clearing the five disciples of suspicion and doubling their mission reward. After recovering from the ordeal, Fang Han counted his resources and resolved to rest and focus on cultivation as he approached the late stage of the Ninth Grade.

• Zhou Jin found five dead Ninth Grade Martial Artists and evidence of Qian Yong’s theft in the steward’s residence, then ordered a search for the fugitive and further questioning of the mine guards.
• Zhou Jin cleared Fang Han, Xiao Chen, Chen Ying, Shi Yong, and Zhao Li of suspicion and awarded them double mission rewards.
• Fang Han’s group left the Law Enforcement Hall relieved, thanked one another, and returned to the Zi Courtyard.
• After a full night’s rest, Fang Han checked his Identity Jade Token and found that he had 230 contribution points, worth 4,600 taels of silver.
• Fang Han decided to postpone taking another mission, recover, and pursue cultivation as he neared the late stage of the Ninth Grade.

Fang Han broke through to the Ninth-rank late stage and unlocked the Copper Waist Iron Back Divine Treasury ability. He tested himself on the Martial Dao Stele and rose from twenty-fourth to seventh place, leaving the disciples in Zi Courtyard stunned.

• Fang Han used a Foundation Cultivation Pill to break through the barrier to the Life Gate Aperture, reaching the Ninth-rank late stage and gaining Copper Waist Iron Back.
• Fang Han went to the White Jade Plaza to test his strength on the Martial Dao Stele, where he noticed Wang Meng had risen to ninetieth place.
• Fang Han drew the Azure Edge Sword and combined his stronger Internal Qi with Wind Momentum to strike the stele.
• The Martial Dao Stele raised Fang Han from twenty-fourth to seventh place, and the disciples gathered in the plaza reacted with shock.

After Fang Han rose from twenty-fourth to seventh on the Martial Dao Stele, he collected his monthly contribution points and drew increased attention from elders and rivals. He then asked Xiao Chen to exchange three hundred points for True Spirit Pills and received the pills at his residence.

• Fang Han reached seventh place on the Martial Dao Stele, surprising Wang Meng and pleasing Chen Xuan, who told Wu Hao to let him grow naturally.
• At the start-of-month lecture, Xiao Chen told Fang Han that Huang Ling'er had reached the eighth-rank early stage while Yun Qianyue and Li Feng had reached the eighth-rank middle stage.
• Wu Hao distributed monthly contribution points by ranking, and Fang Han received enough to bring his total to 360 points.
• Chen Xuan and Deacon Liu Chong gave Fang Han noticeable attention during their lectures, while Lu Xing accepted that he could not match Fang Han and set his sights on Ji Hao.
• Fang Han asked Xiao Chen to exchange 300 contribution points for three bottles of True Spirit Pills, and Xiao Chen later delivered all thirty pills to Fang Han.

Fang Han used his pills and worn swords to unlock sixteenfold Footwork Talent Amplification, then rapidly improved his Startling Swan Step. Meanwhile, Wang Miao learned that Fang Han had reached seventh place and decided to intervene in his dispute with Chu Feng.

• Fang Han deposited three bottles of True Spirit Pills and two worn swords to reach the silver required to unlock Level 4 Footwork Talent Amplification.
• Fang Han practiced the Startling Swan Step with sixteenfold talent and found that its difficult movements and transitions came naturally, bringing him closer to the Perfection Realm.
• Wang Miao gave Wang Meng five bottles of True Spirit Pills and learned that she ranked ninetieth in the latest assessment.
• Wang Meng told Wang Miao that Fang Han ranked seventh, surprising him and changing his view of Fang Han's potential.
• Wang Meng explained Fang Han's dispute with Chu Feng, and Wang Miao resolved not to stand by while Fang Han was treated unfairly.

Wang Miao intervened on Fang Han’s behalf, leading the Pill Hall to dismiss Jiang He, while rumors of a sect conflict made Fang Han wary and pushed him to seek more contribution points. The chapter ended with Jiang He complaining to Chu Feng about his dismissal.

• The Pill Hall steward fired Jiang He for cheating disciples with flawed pills, choosing to show goodwill to Wang Miao, who had spoken up for Fang Han.
• Xiao Chen told Fang Han that Wang Miao had intervened, and Fang Han asked Wang Meng to pass along his thanks.
• Fang Han heard that an Azure Profound Sect True Disciple had killed a Nether Pavilion True Disciple and resolved to be cautious on future missions.
• Fang Han practiced the Startling Swan Step, judged that he was close to perfecting it, and decided to take another sect mission to earn contribution points.
• Jiang He went to Chu Feng’s courtyard and complained that the Pill Hall steward had dismissed him without respecting Chu Feng’s standing.