Recaps

Chen Cheng traveled to Horse-Facing Mountain, captured and tamed a mutated Heart-Devouring Gu as his second Spirit Gu, then continued toward Yunlei City. There, assassins hired by Huo Tailai and Bai Xiyan prepared an ambush, but Chen Cheng's Gu attacked them first, leaving the ambush in chaos.

• Zhang Wenhui and Zhang Yu waited outside the Shen Family estate for help, but Shen Wanqing's servant insulted them and sent them away.
• Shen Wanqing learned Chen Cheng was heading to Yunlei City and ordered his guard to coordinate with Bai Xiyan while preparing a second line of defense.
• Chen Cheng visited the ruined temple on Horse-Facing Mountain, captured the mutated Gu, and named it the Corpse Demon Gu.
• Huo Tailai and Luo Tianfeng discussed the plan to kill Chen Cheng, while Bai Xiyan and Lu Shaoan waited with their forces near Yunlei City.
• Chen Cheng used the Howling Sky Eagle to spot the hired assassins before entering their ambush, and the Corpse Demon Gu attacked Li Kun, Li Gan, and another assassin.

Chen Cheng killed the attackers in a mountain hollow and uncovered a second ambush led by Gu Qinghong, while Bai Xiyan and Lu Shaoan watched from hiding. As the new fight began, Chen Cheng let a powerful saber strike land squarely on his forehead.

• Li Kun's corpse, controlled by the Corpse Demon Gu, killed the woman, while Chen Cheng killed the scarred man and collected the attackers' belongings and Huo Tailai's reward voucher.
• Chen Cheng detected an ambush in the mountain hollow, killed several hidden attackers with the Corpse Demon Gu and Blood Immortal Gu, and seized a treasure bow and other weapons.
• Bai Xiyan and Lu Shaoan withdrew, but Chen Cheng's arrows failed to stop two of Lu Shaoan's strange allies from escaping.
• Gu Qinghong arrived with six powerful fighters and surrounded Chen Cheng, while Bai Xiyan and Lu Shaoan returned to watch the confrontation.
• Chen Cheng charged at one of Gu Qinghong's men, who attacked with the Mirage Tower Saber Art, and Chen Cheng let the blade strike his forehead.

Chen Cheng defeated and killed the attackers who had surrounded him, including Gu Qinghong, then escaped an ambush and killed Lu Shaoan and Bai Xiyan. After collecting the battlefield’s valuables, he fled by river and reached Sea Marsh, where he approached an island instead of returning to the Abyss Grotto-Heaven.

• Chen Cheng punched a Six-Qi attacker to death, then found Zhang Wenhui and Zhang Yu held hostage; Zhang Wenhui cut his own throat, and Chen Cheng recognized that the hostages were part of a trap.
• Chen Cheng killed the attackers with his physical strength, blood-control technique, and illusions, beheading Gu Qinghong and cutting down the remaining hostage-takers despite Zhang Yu’s pleas.
• Chen Cheng discovered the supposed Zhang Yu was an illusion disguising an older woman, killed the attackers’ Double-Headed Strange Snake and its handler, and survived Ghost Lady’s spectral claw before killing her.
• Chen Cheng chased down Lu Shaoan and Bai Xiyan and killed them both after rejecting their offers to save their lives.
• Chen Cheng searched the bodies, collected the spoils with help from the Corpse Demon Gu and Blood Immortal Gu, and fled toward Sea Marsh by a different route.
• Chen Cheng submerged himself in a river, entered the waters of Sea Marsh, and approached an island rather than returning to the Abyss Grotto-Heaven.

Chen Cheng raided Immortal Bone Sect outposts, gathered pills and supplies, and advanced to the middle stage of the Six-Qi Divine Treasury while preparing to leave for Emperorfall City. Shen Wanqing learned that his assassination plot had failed and began planning another ambush, while Bai Chong agreed to help a masked woman obtain a sea chart in exchange for vengeance.

• Chen Cheng raided nine Immortal Bone Sect islands, killed a helmsman, and collected four Immortal Gu Pills, Heart-Devouring Gus, and other supplies.
• Chen Cheng found a sea chart hidden in Lu Shaoan's belt and used a Double-Headed Strange Snake corpse to make eleven snake-scale Gu cocoons.
• Chen Cheng consumed four Immortal Gu Pills, gained cultivation progress, and determined that they had saved him nearly two months of training.
• Shen Wanqing learned that his forces, Bai Xiyan, and Gu Qinghong had died, then ordered his household to locate Chen Cheng and intercept him before he reached Emperorfall City.
• Bai Chong agreed to let a masked woman avenge Bai Xiyan in exchange for the sea chart.
• After more than twenty days of preparation, Chen Cheng finished advancing to the middle stage of the Six-Qi Divine Treasury, and the Howling Sky Eagle reported that its task was done.

Chen Cheng left Abyss Grotto-Heaven after activating the Qingming Qi-Seizing Array and traveled north through the sea, where he met Yu Qiongying and returned a blue-jade hairpin. He encountered Yu Qiongying’s shy junior sister, Wangshu, aboard a treasure ship.

• Chen Cheng confirmed the Howling Sky Eagle had perfectly inscribed the Qingming Qi-Seizing Array, activated it with his Two-Forms Divine Qi, and prepared to leave Abyss Grotto-Heaven.
• Chen Cheng learned from Li Li’s letter that Shen Wanqing, Huo Tailai, and their allies were hunting him, then left with Abyss-Suppressor and Wave-Settler seeing him off.
• Huo Tailai and Shen Wanqing ordered their forces to gather at Heaven Sword Ferry after failing to find Chen Cheng, while Luo Tianfeng remained gravely ill.
• Chen Cheng swam north, found a blue-jade hairpin, and met Yu Qiongying, who recognized him as Chen Cheng and asked him to return it to her junior sister.
• Chen Cheng followed Yu Qiongying to her treasure ship and met Wangshu, who shyly asked him to give her the hairpin and offered him anything he wanted.

Chen Cheng joined Yu Qiongying and Su Wangshu aboard their treasure ship, where he spent seven days recovering and growing close to them. When a terrifying Yin Chi attacked, Chen Cheng leaped into the sea to confront it and unleashed everything he had in a final sword strike.

• Chen Cheng returned Su Wangshu's jade hairpin, accepted her fruit basket, and agreed to travel with her and Yu Qiongying toward Emperorfall City.
• During seven days aboard the ship, Chen Cheng recovered by fishing and grew close to Su Wangshu, whose illness remained unexplained.
• Yu Qiongying was badly wounded after encountering a powerful creature at sea, and Su Wangshu steered the ship toward safety while Chen Cheng treated Yu Qiongying.
• A gigantic Yin Chi pursued the ship, and Chen Cheng jumped into the water to draw it away while Su Wangshu continued steering.
• The Yin Chi attacked Chen Cheng with its jaws and immense waves, but he stood atop a wave and formed a water sword by burning through all his reserves.
• Chen Cheng entered a state where he felt himself one with heaven and earth, then declared that the boundless sea and heaven and earth wanted the Yin Chi dead.

Chen Cheng survived the battle with Yin Chi, whose essence was absorbed by his Taiji Primordial Qi and accelerated his recovery. Rescued by Hou Hai and brought aboard a Fortune Merchant Guild ship, Chen Cheng learned that the vessel was heading into dangerous waters and began recovering as he worried about his missing belongings and companions.

• Chen Cheng's tiny water sword split Yin Chi's head and pierced its body, causing golden pure yang flames to incinerate the beast.
• Yin Chi's ghostly azure essence entered Chen Cheng's brow, where the Taiji Primordial Qi absorbed it and strengthened his traits while he lay unconscious.
• Hou Hai rescued Chen Cheng from the sea and brought him aboard the Fortune Merchant Guild ship, where the Eldest Young Lady examined him and ordered food and water brought to him.
• Chen Cheng learned from Hou Hai that the ship was bound for Emperorfall City through waters where Yin Chi had attacked ships, and he promised to keep Hou Hai safe despite his apparent weakness.
• As he recovered, Chen Cheng sensed that the absorbed essence enhanced his traits and let him partially control the Taiji Primordial Qi; he later noticed a palm print on Hou Hai's cheek but did not press him about it.
• Chen Cheng worried about his missing pack and the safety of Su Wangshu and Yu Qiongying, then asked Hou Hai to find him a fishing rod or some line.

Chen Cheng saw through Xiang Wenfeng’s false martial guidance and secretly monitored him with two Spirit Gu. When Xiang Wenfeng scattered signaling powder at night, Chen Cheng ordered the Gu to attack, leaving the strike’s outcome unresolved.

• Chen Cheng approached Hai Yunnuan to thank her for rescuing him and asked to borrow a fishing rod and kitchen, but Hai Xinyu objected before Xiang Wenfeng summoned the sisters for guidance.
• Hai Xinyu and Hai Yunnuan performed Still Sea Tide-Rising Palm, and Chen Cheng’s Vertical Eye Mark activated after Hai Yunnuan’s version, revealing the technique’s details to him.
• Xiang Wenfeng advised the sisters that the younger should learn from the elder and the elder from the younger; Chen Cheng recognized that only the first half addressed a real flaw and suspected Xiang Wenfeng was bluffing.
• Hai Wenyuan refused Chen Cheng a fishing rod, so Chen Cheng released the Blood Immortal Gu and Corpse Demon Gu to watch Xiang Wenfeng while he recovered nearby.
• Late at night, Chen Cheng saw through the Spirit Gu that Xiang Wenfeng was scattering signaling powder over the sea and ordered the Gu to attack him.
• The Blood Immortal Gu pierced Xiang Wenfeng’s skull with blood threads, while the Corpse Demon Gu bit down on his carotid artery.

Chen Cheng killed the sea bandits pursuing the Hai family’s ship with his archery, then accepted payment to guard the family and helped Hai Yunnuan understand her palm technique. As he and Hai Wenyuan investigated a fast-moving disturbance approaching the ship, the chapter ended before they could identify it.

• Chen Cheng’s Gu killed the fake Xiang Wenfeng, whose sea-bandit disguise and Wind Signal Powder revealed that danger was near.
• Three Blade Stronghold’s boats caught up with the ship, but Chen Cheng killed Zhu Sandao and the pursuing elites with arrows, then destroyed the boats’ masts.
• Chen Cheng rejected Hai Xinyu’s offer to learn archery, accepted Hai Wenyuan’s payment to guard the ship, and asked that Hou Hai receive the same treatment.
• The next day, Chen Cheng caught several Treasure Fish and gave Hai Yunnuan guidance on the meaning of her palm technique.
• A fast-moving object approached across the sea, alarming Hai Wenyuan and Chen Cheng before its identity became clear.

Chen Cheng’s ship received survivors from a sea-bandit attack, and he learned that the hero who slew Yin Chi was being sought across the Northern Border. After helping Hai Yunnuan perfect her palm technique, he was approached by the blind musician Ning Shuangxu, who asked for guidance on a piece left by her mother and offered him control over her life; Chen Cheng demanded to know her true identity.

• A Northern Emperor Demon-Subduing Sect disciple brought rescued civilians aboard Hai Wenyuan’s ship, and Xiang Wenfeng reunited with Hai Wenyuan and praised Chen Cheng for defeating the sea bandits.
• Xiang Wenfeng revealed that Yin Chi had been slain and that the three prefectures were searching for the hero, while Chen Cheng concealed that he was responsible.
• Hai Yunnuan used Chen Cheng’s guidance to reach complete mastery of the Still Sea Tide-Rising Palm, and Xiang Wenfeng praised Chen Cheng’s instruction to Hai Xinyu.
• Xiang Wenfeng explained that his disciple had been killed by a Northern Emperor Demon-Subduing Sect Outer Sect disciple in Emperorfall City, where sect members held sweeping authority over ordinary residents.
• Chen Cheng recovered by eating Treasure Fish, then received Ning Shuangxu, who asked for help playing her mother’s zither piece and offered him a high-grade Slave Artifact’s control over her.
• Chen Cheng refused to help until Ning Shuangxu told him who she really was.

Chen Cheng traveled with the Hai family’s treasure ship to Heaven Sword Ferry, where Hai Xinyu died under suspicious circumstances and Hai Yunnuan gave him a coin and directions to a dangerous route into Emperorfall City. After failing to find news of Su Wangshu and Yu Qiongying, Chen Cheng headed toward an inn and sensed several groups surrounding him in the mist.

• Chen Cheng refused Ning Shuangxu’s offer to become his master and sailed from Northern Star Port aboard a Northern Emperor Sect treasure ship.
• Ning Shuangxu secretly used a silent spirit-sound art, and Hai Xinyu later jumped overboard and died; a Northern Emperor Sect elder ruled that fright had caused her sudden death.
• The treasure ship safely reached Heaven Sword Ferry, but Hai Yunnuan could not secure Chen Cheng entry into Emperorfall City and gave him a Northern Emperor Currency with directions to the Ghost Market in the Mist.
• Chen Cheng searched the docks for Su Wangshu and Yu Qiongying but found no leads, then set out toward Lu Bridge to find an inn.
• Chen Cheng heard at least three groups totaling more than fifty people moving through the mist and sent the Heart-Devouring Gu and Corpse Demon Gu to scout nearby.

At Heaven Sword Ferry, Chen Cheng survived a multi-sided ambush with help from Ning Shuangxu’s Spirit Sound Flying Blades and his Blood Immortal Gu, but Ning Shuangxu was left near death. Southern Ward Enforcement Hall disciples arrested Chen Cheng after he could not produce his token, and the chapter left him brought to their headquarters while Ning Shuangxu’s whereabouts remained unknown.

• Several groups sent by the Shen Family, the Bai Family, and other enemies converged on Chen Cheng, but Ning Shuangxu’s Spirit Sound Flying Blades killed many attackers and drove others back.
• Chen Cheng used the Blood Immortal Gu to attack Du Zongheng, then killed Shen Chong when the flying blade left him wounded and exposed.
• The Bai Family’s masked leader was badly injured after Du Zongheng’s corpse attacked her, while Chen Cheng withdrew into the fog and found Ning Shuangxu gravely wounded.
• Chen Cheng used his limited Innate Essence to restore Ning Shuangxu’s breathing, then left to search the battlefield for healing medicine.
• Ling Qingshu and the Southern Ward Enforcement Hall disciples arrested Chen Cheng after he could not produce his token, and they found no sign of Ning Shuangxu at the place he indicated.
• Chen Cheng was taken to Heaven Sword South Ward and brought to the Southern Ward Enforcement Hall.

Chen Cheng left the Law Enforcement Hall with Su Dakang’s help and searched for scarce high-grade cultivation resources before entering Emperorfall City with Zhou Qianyun. At Dingjia Alley, he reunited with Su Wangshu, whose excited words revealed to Zhou Qianyun and Su Wangshu’s mother that Chen Cheng had slain Yin Chi.

• Chen Cheng learned that the selection would begin in five months and resolved to raise his cultivation realm despite his shortage of resources.
• Su Dakang secured Chen Cheng’s release from Ling Qingshu, returned his belongings, and helped him collect Howling Sky Eagle.
• Chen Cheng learned that high-grade resources were scarce and expensive, and Zhou Qianyun told him about the risky Ghost Market in the Mist.
• Chen Cheng entered Emperorfall City with Zhou Qianyun and headed toward Dingjia Alley to find lodging.
• Chen Cheng reunited with the ill Su Wangshu, who exclaimed that she had known he was the one who killed Yin Chi, stunning Zhou Qianyun and Su Wangshu’s mother.

Chen Cheng settled into Emperorfall City, discovered that cultivation resources were prohibitively expensive, and followed a wounded masked woman without acting against her. He entered the Ghost Market to find better supplies and sensed an exceptionally powerful treasure nearby.

• Su Wangshu recognized Chen Cheng, but he concealed his role in killing the Yin Chi, while Sun Shuping took Su Wangshu home and tested Chen Cheng with her aura.
• Zhou Qianyun rented Chen Cheng a room and explained Sun Shuping's strength and the city's strict ban on private fighting.
• Chen Cheng found the masked woman who had tried to kill him, tracked her to her courtyard, and decided to wait for a safer chance to act; he also spotted Ling Qingshu and resolved to investigate him.
• After buying bedding, Chen Cheng disguised himself and crossed the foggy Land Bridge to the Ghost Market, where he recognized one of Ling Qingshu's associates among the masked visitors.
• Chen Cheng used Moon Breath of Avici to search the Ghost Market's cultivation resource stalls and felt an unusually powerful pull from a nearby treasure.

Chen Cheng exploited his poison resistance to buy contaminated Fourth-Order Qi-Deriving Pills and other valuable resources at the Ghost Market, then secretly killed Ma Yuanheng after he won a fight on Lu Bridge and took his supplies. With enough resources to support his cultivation for a hundred days, Chen Cheng expected to reach the Seven-Qi Divine Treasury realm, but thunderous hoofbeats suddenly approached.

• Chen Cheng bought ten poison-contaminated Fourth-Order Qi-Deriving Pills for one hundred thousand taels after convincing the stall owner to accept his offer.
• Chen Cheng found Ma Yuanheng buying ten boxes of top-quality fourth-order beast meat, then bought more Qi-Deriving Pills and seven boxes of Yellow-Browed Golden Scale Beast jerky before gaining entry into the Demon Flame Burning God martial art from an ancient cauldron.
• Chen Cheng ate the jerky after leaving the Ghost Market and rapidly replenished his strength, then heard Ma Yuanheng fighting a masked robber on Lu Bridge.
• After Ma Yuanheng defeated the robber but was badly injured, Chen Cheng killed Ma Yuanheng and the robber, then took Ma Yuanheng's pills and ten boxes of beast meat while discarding the identity tokens and bodies.
• Chen Cheng calculated that his resources could support a hundred days of cultivation and help him reach the Seven-Qi Divine Treasury realm, but thunderous hoofbeats suddenly approached from ahead.

Chen Cheng returned to Emperorfall City, where Zhou Qianyun intervened when Liu Ruyuan and Wang Zhi tried to inspect his pack. After entering the city, Chen Cheng spotted the injured woman in the purple gown and white feathered mask, whose coughing blood revealed spreading black mucus.

• Chen Cheng evaded Fang Zhushan’s cavalry, returned to the city gate, and learned from Meng Xiaoman that her sectmates had suffered devastating injuries and setbacks.
• Liu Ruyuan accused Chen Cheng of being suspicious and called Wang Zhi to inspect his pack, but Zhou Qianyun vouched for Chen Cheng and secured his passage.
• After Chen Cheng left, Liu Ruyuan claimed he had once watched her bathe, while Meng Xiaoman defended his character and Wang Zhi asked about his cultivation.
• Chen Cheng entered South Outer City and sent the Blood Immortal Gu and Corpse Demon Gu ahead to watch for danger.
• The Corpse Demon Gu found the masked woman struggling through an alley, where she coughed blood streaked with black mucus before hurrying home.

Chen Cheng drugged the injured woman with an aphrodisiac, then watched as she attacked Ling Qingshu before Elder Feng killed her. He looted the woman’s courtyard and returned to cultivate with his new resources, discovering that the spark in his spinal marrow grew faster.

• Chen Cheng used the Blood Immortal Gu to add the aphrodisiac to the woman’s medicine while keeping himself far from her courtyard.
• After drinking the medicine, the woman lost control, ran into the street, and attacked Ling Qingshu when he leapt from his carriage to stop her.
• Outer City Law Enforcement Hall disciples and residents gathered as the woman overpowered Ling Qingshu, and Elder Feng arrived and killed her.
• Chen Cheng sent the Blood Immortal Gu and Corpse Demon Gu to search the woman’s courtyard, where they found over three thousand taels in banknotes and three Fourth-Order Qi-Deriving Pills.
• Back in his room, Chen Cheng used a Qi-Deriving Pill and beast meat to cultivate, then noticed the spark within his spinal marrow growing faster.

Chen Cheng continued tempering Marrow-Washing Taiji and discovered that he could nurture both Taiji True Fire and Demon Flame True Fire. While Feng Yan'an approached him under orders from Feng Lihua, Chen Cheng learned that powerful enemies were planning further attacks, and the chapter ended with Luo Tianfeng and Huo Tailai startled by a knock at their courtyard gate.

• Chen Cheng realized that the Taiji Primordial Qi could function as an extra Divine Aperture and that Marrow-Washing Taiji and Demon Flame Burning God had produced separate sparks of Martial Dao True Fire within him.
• Feng Yan'an admitted that Feng Lihua had killed Ji Ziyi, then warned Feng Yan'an not to target Chen Cheng because Ji Ziyi had returned badly injured and someone had drugged her with methods Feng Lihua could not detect.
• Feng Yan'an visited Chen Cheng under the pretext of investigating him, gave him a Fourth-Order Qi-Deriving Pill, and invited him to gatherings, while Liu Ruyuan secretly resolved to expose him.
• Sun Shuping urged Chen Cheng to move away from her family, but Chen Cheng argued that doing so would alert the Feng Family and put Su Wangshu at risk, so Sun Shuping told him to stay cautious around Feng Yan'an.
• Shen Wanqing persuaded Bai Chong to hire a powerful master to kill Chen Cheng, and Luo Tianfeng learned that Huo Tailai's assassins had all died at Heaven Sword Ferry.
• A knock at the courtyard gate startled Luo Tianfeng and Huo Tailai as they wondered who had arrived.

Chen Cheng advanced Marrow-Washing Taiji to Fire Nourishing, opened Taiji Primordial Qi into an extraordinary Divine Aperture, and discovered the Yin Chi Pearl inside it. After Feng Yan'an approached him, Su Wangshu’s family watched in shock as she greeted him.

• A shadowy intruder killed Huo Tailai and Luo Tianfeng, then formed a crimson sphere from a blood-marrow-like object.
• Chen Cheng made the Corpse Demon Gu defeat ten mutated Gu Insects and fed it a Blood Pill, then later made the Blood Immortal Gu defeat ten more and fed it a golden-amber crystal.
• After two months of cultivation, Chen Cheng reached Fire Nourishing, opened Taiji Primordial Qi as his thirty-sixth Divine Aperture, and found the Yin Chi Pearl within its independent space.
• Chen Cheng used the pearl’s energy to nourish his True Fire, which produced Extreme Yin True Fire, then stored his belongings in Taiji Space and joined Su Wangshu, Su Dakang, and Su Wangxing’s carriage.
• Su Wangxing insulted Chen Cheng and accused him of coveting Su Wangshu’s secret treasure, so Chen Cheng left the carriage and continued on foot.
• Feng Yan'an arrived in her lion-drawn carriage, passed the Su Family, and warmly greeted Chen Cheng as Su Wangshu, Su Dakang, and Su Wangxing watched in astonishment.

Chen Cheng rejected Feng Yan'an’s invitation and boarded Song Linwei’s carriage, shocking Feng Yan'an and the Su Family when they learned he knew Song Linwei. During their reunion, Song Linwei revealed her royal identity and offered to sponsor him, and Chen Cheng agreed to assist her within his abilities.

• Su Dakang told Su Wangxing not to apologize to Chen Cheng yet and urged Su Wangshu to build a connection with him, but they later heard Chen Cheng had refused Feng Yan'an’s invitation.
• Chen Cheng declined Feng Yan'an’s ride to meet an old friend, then boarded the carriage drawn by eighth-rank Gold-Scaled Dragon Steeds after Qing Chan invited him aboard.
• Feng Yan'an and the Su Family realized Chen Cheng’s friend was the noblewoman inside the carriage, and Feng Yan'an feared the consequences of harming him.
• Song Linwei told Chen Cheng that Shi Kaishan had left Emperorfall City injured and that Jiang Shuqin and Ji Jingyou were cultivating after gaining a great opportunity at Di Luo Plain.
• Chen Cheng revealed that he had reached the Seven-Qi Divine Treasury Realm, and Song Linwei offered him monthly resources, paid tasks, and a chance to earn martial merit.
• Song Linwei disclosed that she was the Eldest Princess of Great Shang, explained her missions, and asked Chen Cheng to keep her identity secret; Chen Cheng accepted her sponsorship and agreed to help within his abilities.

At the Defense Hall gathering, Chen Cheng learned that Zhao City remained under threat and that Cao Zhao had been injured in a feud with the Pang Family, while Baili Hong tried to recruit him for information. When Qi Tiankui demanded Song Linwei fight a deadly second match, Chen Cheng intervened, and the chapter ended with Qi Tiankui urging him to stay out of the fight.

• Liang Fengwen warned Chen Cheng that Zhao City had faced threats from the Rebel Army, Black Cloud Marsh water bandits, the Immortal Bone Sect, and the Red Moon Cult, while Huang Hao said Soulshatter Guards had been sent there.
• Huang Hao told Chen Cheng that Cao Zhao had become a true disciple but suffered hidden injuries, and Liang Fengwen said the Cao Family had clashed with the Pang Family and suffered heavily.
• Baili Hong told Chen Cheng that several groups had hunted him at Heaven Sword Ferry and offered him two Fourth-Order Qi-Deriving Pills to learn the identity of the expert who had attacked them.
• Qi Tiankui confronted Song Linwei over their wager, demanded she provide a fighter for a deadly match, and insulted her with a crude proposition.
• Chen Cheng intervened, used his mental pressure to frighten Qi Tiankui, and learned that Qi Tiankui's fighter, Chu Ba, was eighteen and in the late Seven-Qi Divine Treasury realm.
• Qi Tiankui warned Chen Cheng that the match was to the death and urged him to stay out of it.

Chen Cheng accepted Qi Tiankui’s challenge and killed Chu Ba with one punch, revealing strength far beyond what the crowd expected. Song Linwei secured the Azureglow Bay Shipwreck Ruins, Qi Tiankui killed Liu Ruyuan, and Feng Lihua summoned Chen Cheng to meet her.

• Song Linwei advised Chen Cheng to refuse Qi Tiankui’s challenge, while the crowd mocked Chen Cheng and Liu Ruyuan publicly claimed he was only in the early to middle stages of Five-Qi.
• Qi Tiankui taunted Song Linwei and urged Chen Cheng to fight Chu Ba, so Chen Cheng accepted and entered the training ground.
• Chen Cheng struck Chu Ba with one punch, killing him and shocking everyone with his immense strength.
• Song Linwei made Qi Tiankui sign the contracts giving Snowtread Manor the Azureglow Bay Shipwreck Ruins, and Qi Tiankui blamed Liu Ruyuan and crushed her to death.
• Powerful families crowded around Chen Cheng to recruit him, but Feng Yan'an cleared a path so Chen Cheng could meet Feng Lihua.

After defeating Qi Tiankui, Chen Cheng learned that Feng Lihua could not guarantee him a recommendation to the Northern Emperor Demon-Subduing Sect, but she still gave him a valuable pill. As he prepared to leave for Di Luo Plain, the Ling and Feng families offered support to the Su Family, and Song Linwei invited him to a Ghost Market auction.

• Feng Lihua offered Chen Cheng a recommendation quota for the Northern Emperor Demon-Subduing Sect, but Chen Cheng declined her test after explaining that his Divine Treasuries had likely been formed before he improved his innate bones.
• Chen Cheng left the training grounds after reminding Qi Tiankui to repair them, while Baili Hong and Feng Yan'an privately joined Qi Tiankui in a small circle.
• Ling Qingshu apologized to Chen Cheng, returned the money and goods from Heaven Sword Ferry, and promised to help the Su Family; Feng Yan'an also offered the Su Family support and delivered Chen Cheng a Fifth-Order Great Qi-Deriving Pill.
• Su Dakang and his family thanked Chen Cheng, and Sun Shuping gave him a green hairpin that would secure one favor from her master at Emerald Bamboo Peak.
• Zhou Qianyun tried to return Chen Cheng's rent, but he told her to keep it as rent paid in advance before leaving with Song Linwei.
• Song Linwei told Chen Cheng that a special Ghost Market auction was being held that night and invited him to attend before they returned to Di Luo Plain the next morning.

At the Ghost Market auction, Chen Cheng used his Qi Perception to judge that a Mountain Aperture was not worth its rising price, and Song Linwei trusted his assessment despite Qi Tiankui’s taunts. The aperture initially seemed full, but its Qi Well’s level suddenly fell below medium, leaving Qi Tiankui stunned and Chen Cheng’s judgment unexplained.

• Chen Cheng recognized Li San at a Ghost Market stall, traded for a corroded broken sword, and accepted a bottle of Obedient for a Night as a gift.
• Chen Cheng and Song Linwei entered the auction, where expensive items quickly exceeded Chen Cheng’s budget.
• Chen Cheng sensed that the Mountain Aperture contained little Primordial Qi and persuaded Song Linwei to stop bidding, while Qi Tiankui won it for four hundred Northern Emperor Currency.
• Qi Tiankui inserted an Artificial Qi Well into the Mountain Aperture, and its needle initially rose to the full mark, prompting him and the other guests to celebrate.
• The Qi Well’s needle suddenly dropped to just below medium, shocking Qi Tiankui as Song Linwei looked back at Chen Cheng.

Chen Cheng bought the gravely injured Ning Shuangxu at the Ghost Market and later entered the state of “I Am Heaven and Earth,” refining the broken sword and gaining powerful new Sword Qi. As he and Song Linwei traveled toward Snowtread Manor, an underwater ambush struck their carriage, and Chen Cheng went out to face the attackers.

• Song Linwei warned Chen Cheng to keep his Appraisal Technique secret after it exposed the flaw in Qi Tiankui’s Mountain Aperture, and she promised him a greater reward.
• Chen Cheng bought the blind, gravely injured Ning Shuangxu for one Northern Emperor Currency and told Song Linwei that Ning had risked her life to save him at Heaven Sword Ferry.
• During their journey across the Fallen Immortal Sea, Chen Cheng entered the state of “I Am Heaven and Earth,” instantly refined the broken sword, and gained a large supply of Primordial Qi and a silver-blue dual-attributed Sword Qi.
• Song Linwei promised to help Chen Cheng find his father and reassured him about Zhao City while Ning Shuangxu began to stir.
• A waterspout flipped the Dragon Steed Treasure Carriage, and Chen Cheng entrusted Ning Shuangxu to Song Linwei before going outside to confront the attackers.
• Chen Cheng used the Eight Extremes Water Control Technique to sink the carriage beneath the waves and stood calmly on the river’s surface.