Recaps

Uncle Old Pockmark and the other members of Lu Zhen’s team prepared to risk their lives hunting a Tier 2 Fierce Beast Leader, driven by desperate hopes for money or status. Sun Dafu withdrew from the mission, but Zheng Hu immediately recruited him and mocked Lu Zhen’s decision as the team prepared to depart.

• Uncle Old Pockmark decided to join Lu Zhen’s six-month mission so he could earn money to treat Nannan’s consumption.
• Sun Dafu considered joining Lu Zhen to gain merit and respect, but fear of the mutated beasts made him decide to withdraw.
• Lu Zhen left home for the Garrison Bureau after telling Lu Wan and Shen Yun that he would be careful.
• At morning roll call, Uncle Old Pockmark, Monkey, and several others assembled with Lu Zhen, while Sun Dafu returned his Class A-6 tablet.
• Zheng Hu recruited Sun Dafu into his own squad and publicly mocked Lu Zhen for taking the dangerous mission.

Lu Zhen and Gu Yanzhi led a Garrison Bureau team out of Ocean City on a red-marked mission to clear beasts attacking the Yanglin Official Road. Near the road, they found a merchant caravan surrounded by mutated wolves, with Yan Shanshan and her friend Zhiqing trapped inside.

• Lu Zhen dismissed Zheng Hu and took his team to the Logistics Department, where they received a military truck, rifles, and ammunition for their mission.
• Gu Yanzhi drove Lu Zhen, Uncle Old Pockmark, Monkey, and the others beyond Ocean City's East City Wall and explained the dangers of the wilderness and the mountain fortresses owned by powerful families.
• After hours on rough roads, Lu Zhen's team heard gunfire and beast roars near the Yanglin Official Road.
• Gu Yanzhi drove the truck up a slope, revealing a caravan surrounded by a pack of late first-tier mutated gray wolves; Yan Shanshan and Zhiqing were among those trapped.
• Uncle Old Pockmark and the other constables opened fire on the wolves from the truck bed.

Lu Zhen saved Yan Shanshan and Yan Zhiqing’s caravan by slaughtering the Mutated Gray Wolves, then shared most of the beasts’ bounty with his constables. The group continued on with new confidence in his strength, while Yan Zhiqing found herself drawn to him.

• Lu Zhen charged into the wolf pack and killed more than thirty Mutated Gray Wolves, forcing the survivors to flee.
• Lu Zhen claimed five of the largest carcasses and gave the rest to his constables as their share of the merit.
• Gu Yanzhi praised his judgment in befriending Lu Zhen, while Yan Shanshan and Yan Zhiqing approached the group after surviving the attack.
• Yan Shanshan learned that Lu Zhen had broken through to Bright Force, and Yan Zhiqing quietly felt drawn to his powerful, composed presence.

After learning that a Tier 2 Fierce Beast Leader had driven wolves from Sunset Valley, Lu Zhen planned to investigate it with his companions the next morning. At camp, he mediated a heated argument about Westernization and Traditional Martial Arts, and Gu Yanzhi acknowledged that he had been too extreme.

• The caravan captain told Lu Zhen that the panicked wolves had fled from Sunset Valley, and Lu Zhen and Gu Yanzhi suspected a Tier 2 Fierce Beast Leader was there.
• Three caravans joined forces to build a fortified camp, and Lu Zhen ordered his companions to rest before investigating Sunset Valley the next morning.
• Yan Shanshan and Yan Zhiqing worried that Western battle gear and Beast Blood Serums would lead to the loss of Traditional Martial Arts, while Gu Yanzhi denounced Westernization and praised the Iron-Blooded National Salvation Society.
• Lu Zhen argued that ordinary people on opposing sides could both sincerely seek to save their country, while greedy officials in power were to blame for its troubles.
• Gu Yanzhi reconsidered Lu Zhen's words, bowed to him, and admitted that he had been too extreme.

Lu Zhen led his group into Sunset Valley, where he killed a Second-Order Iron-Armored Earth-Walking Dragon and discovered a newly ripened Crimson Blood Golden Lotus. The group buried Uncle Old Pockmark and left for Ocean City with the beast meat and the Spirit Medicine.

• Lu Zhen and his companions were ambushed by over a hundred First-Order Poison Scorpions and an Iron-Armored Earth-Walking Dragon in Sunset Valley.
• Lu Zhen fought the Earth-Walking Dragon, broke through to the Second Level of Force Extreme, and killed it after it charged Uncle Old Pockmark.
• Uncle Old Pockmark died from his injuries after asking Lu Zhen to use his military merit to buy medicine for his daughter Nannan, and the group buried him.
• Lu Zhen and Gu Yanzhi followed the fragrance into a hidden cavern and found a newly ripened Crimson Blood Golden Lotus, which Lu Zhen uprooted and kept.
• Lu Zhen, Gu Yanzhi, Monkey, and the others loaded the butchered beasts onto their truck and headed back to Ocean City.

Lu Zhen returned to the Garrison Bureau with proof of his team’s victory and secured compensation for Lao Ma’s family. At home, his Daily Settlement multiplied the Crimson Blood Golden Lotus into five, leaving him with a great stock of spirit medicine and newly increased experience.

• Lu Zhen presented the Iron-Armored Earth-Walking Dragon and Poison Scorpion carcasses to Squad Leader Chen An, who awarded the team military merit and money.
• Lu Zhen asked Chen An to ensure Lao Ma’s daughter received the highest-rate double compensation and her father’s military merit, and Chen An agreed to send payment to the family.
• Zheng Hu saw Lu Zhen’s achievement and left in anger, while Sun Dafu regretted quitting the team before the mission.
• Lu Zhen returned home to Shen Yun and Lu Wan, then brought the Crimson Blood Golden Lotus into his study to await midnight.
• The Daily Settlement multiplied the Crimson Blood Golden Lotus into five and awarded Lu Zhen large amounts of Martial Skill, Physique, Profession, and General Experience.

Lu Zhen strengthened his Bright Force foundation by consuming a Crimson Blood Golden Lotus, while Duan Hai learned that Lu Zhen had killed a second-tier aberrant beast and suspected him of murdering his brother. Duan Hai decided to hire the Yaksha assassins to kill Lu Zhen.

• Lu Zhen saved his General Experience for upgrading Daily Settlement and swallowed a Crimson Blood Golden Lotus, tempering his internal organs and strengthening his cultivation.
• A confidant told Duan Hai that Lu Zhen had broken through to Bright Force and killed a second-tier Iron-Armored Earth-Walking Dragon at Sunset Valley.
• Duan Hai connected Lu Zhen's strength to Second Master's death and concluded that Lu Zhen had killed his brother.
• Duan Hai refused to attack Lu Zhen himself because it could expose him to the Gu Family and the Garrison Bureau.
• Duan Hai ordered his confidant to find Yaksha and hire the assassin organization to kill Lu Zhen.

After attending Uncle Old Pockmark’s funeral, Lu Zhen wrestled with his guilt and the oppression ordinary people faced, then found renewed resolve by the river. His sudden insight let him unleash a blow with power far beyond his current level, and he left determined to keep moving forward.

• Lu Zhen attended Uncle Old Pockmark’s funeral, where Nannan accused him of killing her father, and he paid his respects before leaving.
• Gu Yanzhi and Monkey told Lu Zhen that Zheng Hu had visited the family and might have turned Nannan against him; Lu Zhen asked them to protect the widow and child.
• While wandering, Lu Zhen watched an Eastern Islander intimidate a poor family and reflected on the approaching Martial Arts Prohibition Order and his responsibility to grow stronger.
• At the river, Lu Zhen drew confidence from the coming spring, practiced his forms, and struck the water with a blow that briefly reached the power of the Force Extreme Fourth Layer.
• Lu Zhen’s gloom lifted as he walked away on the fifth day of the fourth lunar month, the Start of Spring.

Lu Zhen reviewed the rewards available for his three major merits, then returned home and spent the evening with Shen Yun before resolving to abstain and focus on his cultivation. After taking another Crimson Blood Golden Lotus, he tested Army-Breaking Eight Slashes and discovered he could unleash the power of Force Extreme Fifth Layer.

• At the Military Affairs Pavilion, Lu Zhen learned that three major merits could buy a Crimson Blood Golden Lotus, while top-tier rewards required ten merits and higher clearance.
• Lu Zhen returned home to Shen Yun, ate her beef tendon soup, and spent the night with her after she added goji berries and deer antler to the pot.
• The midnight settlement showed modest physique and martial-skill gains, so Lu Zhen blamed his exertions and decided to abstain from then on.
• Lu Zhen took a second Crimson Blood Golden Lotus, whose medicinal power the Three Yang Breathing Technique drew through his body.
• Lu Zhen tested his newly advanced Army-Breaking Eight Slashes in the courtyard and unleashed a saber strike at Force Extreme Fifth Layer.

Lu Zhen defeated two serum-enhanced, machine-equipped assassins and traced their handler to a vacant mansion. He confronted the blond Yaksha assassin, who attacked him with her Bone-Stripper Silver Sickle, and the chapter ended as her blades descended on him.

• A blond Yaksha assassin sent A-Da and A-Er after Lu Zhen after forcing them to inject Scarlet Serum.
• A-Da and A-Er ambushed Lu Zhen near the Third Station, but he killed both with his Black Gold Long Blade as constables arrived.
• Lu Zhen sensed the assassin watching from a nearby mansion and rushed toward her while the constables and martial artists followed.
• Lu Zhen shattered the mansion's second-floor wall with a slash, revealing the blond assassin and her Grade B Bone-Stripper Silver Sickle.
• The assassin launched a rapid midair attack with her steel blade-legs as Gu Yanzhi, Monkey, and Zheng Hu watched in alarm.

Lu Zhen defeated a Western assassin in a deadly street fight, revealing strength that stunned the witnesses and earned Gu Yanzhi’s admiration. The Yaksha refused Duan Hai’s renewed assassination contract after learning Lu Zhen had reached Force Extreme Fifth Layer, quoting a price Duan Hai could not pay.

• Lu Zhen killed the blonde Yaksha assassin with his eighth Army-Breaking Slash after overpowering her Grade B Battle Gear.
• Zheng Hu and the watching martial artists recognized Lu Zhen’s remarkable strength, while Monkey and the Third Station constables gathered to help clear the scene.
• Lu Zhen ordered his men to collect the bodies and War Machines, then suspected Duan Hai of arranging the attack.
• Gu Yanzhi watched Lu Zhen with growing respect and decided that their friendship remained genuine despite Lu Zhen’s rising prominence.
• A black-robed Yaksha agent told Duan Hai the assassination had failed and demanded one million Silver Dollars to try again, so Duan Hai could not continue the contract.

Lu Zhen suspected Duan Hai had hired Yaksha assassins to kill him, but he focused on growing stronger as he returned to the Third Station. There, he brushed off Zhao Chongguang and accepted an invitation to a banquet hosted by Huo Tianxiao, determined to find out what the powerful man wanted.

• Lu Zhen concluded that Duan Hai was the likeliest person to have hired Yaksha assassins against him.
• Lu Zhen entered the Third Station, where the constables treated him with respect after hearing of his victory over the Western Battle Gear.
• Zhao Chongguang confronted Lu Zhen, but Lu Zhen gave him only a brief greeting and walked away.
• Zheng Hu tried to turn Zhao Chongguang against Lu Zhen, but Zhao saw through his attempt to use him and rebuked him.
• Chen An told Lu Zhen that Huo Tianxiao had invited him to dinner at Jufu Restaurant, and Lu Zhen agreed to attend.

Lu Zhen attended a banquet hosted by Huo Tianxiao, who tried to recruit him into the Huo Family by offering support for a promotion at the Garrison Bureau. Lu Zhen refused and left, so Huo Tianxiao decided to back Zhao Chongguang for the Squad Leader position instead.

• Gu Yanzhi warned Lu Zhen that the Huo Family was powerful but rumored to be taking a dangerous middle path between Traditional Martial Arts and hetero-martial arts.
• Lu Zhen arrived at Jufu Restaurant and saw Huo Family guards mistreating refugees outside.
• Huo Tianxiao and Chen An praised Lu Zhen’s combat record and offered him a place in the Huo Family along with support for becoming Squad Leader.
• Lu Zhen declined the offer, saying he wanted a quiet life, and left the banquet.
• Huo Tianxiao dismissed Lu Zhen’s refusal and said he would support Zhao Chongguang for the position instead.

Lu Zhen secretly helped the impoverished Zeng Fan and his sister, then strengthened his Daily Settlement Panel and advanced his cultivation. The chapter left Lu Zhen at the Mid Stage of Bright Force.

• Lu Zhen followed a little girl home and discovered she had stolen flatbread to feed her injured brother, Zeng Fan.
• Lu Zhen left one hundred Silver Dollars at Zeng Fan's door, and Zeng Fan recognized the Iron Thread Martial Arts Hall pouch and regained hope of studying martial arts.
• Lu Zhen spent General Experience to raise Daily Settlement to Lv.5 and Three Yang Breathing Technique to Lv.5.
• Lu Zhen consumed his last Crimson Blood Golden Lotus and used his improved breathing technique to refine its power.
• Lu Zhen's Blood-Qi penetrated his organs, advancing him to Bright Force, Mid Stage.

After breaking through to the middle stage of Bright Force, Lu Zhen went to the East City Garrison Bureau Headquarters to seek help for his cousin Li Qingyue’s arrested father, editor-in-chief Li Changgeng. Supervisor Xiao recognized Lu Zhen but warned that the case was difficult because Li Changgeng had attacked powerful families in print.

• Lu Zhen tested his new strength and found that his strikes could reach the Force Extreme Fifth Layer, then prepared to leave for the Third Station.
• Lu Fang, Zhou Wenjing, Li Qingyue, and her mother visited Lu Zhen and asked him to help free Li Changgeng, who had been arrested after criticizing the authorities and the Four Great Families.
• Lu Zhen accepted their two hundred silver dollars and went to the East City Garrison Bureau Headquarters to inquire about Li Changgeng’s case.
• Supervisor Xiao recognized Lu Zhen as the man who had cut apart a Western Grade B War Machine and treated him courteously.
• Lu Zhen offered Supervisor Xiao the silver dollars and asked for help with Li Changgeng’s case, but Xiao said the editor had called the Zhou and Zheng Families traitors and collaborators.

Lu Zhen visited Li Changgeng in prison but could only pay to protect him from mistreatment after Zhou Shichang ordered his arrest. He returned to tell the family, while Xiao Yuqing noticed him at the General Station and ordered Xiao Ran to investigate him; Li Qingyue privately decided to seek help from a Western acquaintance.

• Supervisor Xiao told Lu Zhen that he could not free Li Changgeng, but arranged a visit and accepted money to ensure Li Changgeng was fed and protected.
• Lu Zhen visited Li Changgeng, who denounced the Zhou Family, urged Lu Zhen to serve the country, and suggested he marry Li Qingyue.
• Lu Zhen paid two jailers to look after Li Changgeng and left the prison.
• Xiao Yuqing spotted Lu Zhen as her jeep passed him and told Xiao Ran to investigate his background.
• Lu Zhen told the family he had spent the two hundred silver dollars to protect Li Changgeng, and Li Qingyue decided to ask a Western acquaintance for help freeing her father.

Lu Zhen learned that the White Family had crippled Zhang Lei by forcing him to take powerful medicines, and Yan Tieqiao killed Zhang Lei after he attacked him. Lu Zhen left the hall after noticing that Zeng Fan had used his help to recover and earn a place among the Inner Sect.

• Lu Zhen lamented his slow progress without spirit medicines and recognized that he needed money, potent medicines, and military merits.
• At the martial arts hall, Gu Yanzhi and Yan Shanshan told Lu Zhen that the White Family had ruined Zhang Lei by forcing him to take savage medicines in preparation for the Expulsion Notice match.
• Zhang Lei blamed Lu Zhen for his fate and insisted that he still wanted to fight, but Lu Zhen refused to fight him in his ruined state.
• Yan Tieqiao struck Zhang Lei with Bright Force, killing him, and ordered the disciples to bury him in a paupers' graveyard.
• Lu Zhen noticed Zeng Fan training in the outer courtyard in an Inner Sect uniform, realizing he had used Lu Zhen's silver to recover, pay tuition, and advance.

Lu Zhen read about the Iron-Blooded National Salvation Society’s assassinations and suspected Gu Yanzhi was involved. At the East City General Bureau, he learned the new bureau chief was the Xiao Family’s Eldest Miss, a Dark Force Grandmaster he thought might be an old classmate.

• Lu Zhen read reports of four assassinations by the Iron-Blooded National Salvation Society and noticed their dates matched Gu Yanzhi’s absences, leading him to suspect Gu Yanzhi had joined them.
• A runner told Lu Zhen that the new East City General Bureau chief had summoned personnel from all ten stations, so he went with the others to the General Bureau.
• Lu Zhen saw Zhao Chongguang fawning over Huo Tianxiao and received warm greetings from Squad Leaders impressed by his defeat of a Grade B War Machine.
• Lu Zhen asked Lei Zhenshan and Ma Sanyuan about the new bureau chief, hoping the chief might affect his uncle Li Changgeng’s case.
• Ma Sanyuan told Lu Zhen that the bureau chief was the Xiao Family’s Eldest Miss, a Dark Force Grandmaster, and Lu Zhen wondered if she was the woman he had seen in a Jeep.

Xiao Yuqing addressed the East City Garrison Bureau, praised Huo Tianxiao, and announced a major mission. After the gathering ended, Xiao Ran summoned Lu Zhen to meet with the Director.

• Xiao Yuqing appeared in military uniform with Adjutant Xiao Ran and addressed the gathered constables and martial artists.
• Xiao Yuqing praised the station chiefs and singled out Huo Tianxiao, who accepted her commendation with a show of respect.
• Xiao Yuqing dismissed the gathering and warned that a major mission was coming in a few days.
• Lei Zhenshan and Ma Sanyuan speculated about the mission while Lu Zhen listened quietly.
• Xiao Ran approached Lu Zhen and told him that Xiao Yuqing wanted to see him.

Xiao Yuqing summoned Lu Zhen privately after taking office, leaving the courtyard stunned and Huo Tianxiao and his allies uneasy. In her office, she greeted Lu Zhen as an old classmate and remarked that he had changed a lot lately.

• Xiao Ran summoned Lu Zhen to meet Xiao Yuqing, and he accepted without hesitation.
• Ma Sanyuan and Lei Zhenshan realized Lu Zhen had powerful connections and planned to strengthen their ties with him.
• Huo Tianxiao hid his anger behind a smile while Chen An and Zhao Chongguang worried that Lu Zhen might retaliate against them.
• Monkey celebrated Lu Zhen's special treatment, and other constables began currying favor with him.
• Xiao Ran led Lu Zhen to Xiao Yuqing's office, where Xiao Yuqing recognized him as her classmate and said he had changed a lot.

Lu Zhen met with Director Xiao Yuqing, who tested his strength and gave him an advanced blade art while recruiting him to her faction. Xiao Ran then challenged Xiao Yuqing’s decision, accusing Lu Zhen of abandoning a woman and child.

• Xiao Yuqing questioned Lu Zhen about his rapid martial arts progress, and he explained it as the result of years of physical labor and newly healed meridians.
• Xiao Yuqing tested Lu Zhen with a palm strike, and he concealed his Mid Bright Force cultivation by using only half his strength.
• Xiao Yuqing judged Lu Zhen to be at Force Extreme Fifth Layer and offered him the River-Severing Blade Art, normally reserved for Garrison Commander-level officers.
• Lu Zhen accepted the blade art after Xiao Yuqing said she needed capable people and wanted him among those she personally promoted.
• Xiao Ran criticized Xiao Yuqing for recruiting Lu Zhen and accused him of abandoning his wife and child at the Porridge Distribution Shed.

Xiao Yuqing weighed Lu Zhen’s potential against stronger candidates while privately worrying that family obligations, the coming Martial Dao Debate, and her limited time to reach Transformation Force threatened her independence. After leaving the bureau, Lu Zhen accepted Ma Sanyuan and Lei Zhenshan’s invitation to the Spring Harmony Troupe, hoping to learn more about the major mission Xiao Yuqing had mentioned.

• Xiao Yuqing told Xiao Ran that Lu Zhen’s file showed he was unmarried and had only a younger sister, then dismissed him as less promising than Huo Tianxiao and Yu Wenbo.
• Xiao Ran blushed when Xiao Yuqing teased her about Huo Tianxiao, and Xiao Yuqing reflected on the political marriage she might face unless she gained enough power to influence her future.
• Xiao Yuqing considered the difficulty of reaching Transformation Force before age forty-five and worried that defeat in the Martial Dao Debate could lead to a ban on martial arts and worldwide chaos.
• Lu Zhen left the bureau and met Ma Sanyuan and Lei Zhenshan, who suspected he had a special connection to Xiao Yuqing despite his explanation for their private meeting.
• Ma Sanyuan and Lei Zhenshan invited Lu Zhen to the Spring Harmony Troupe, and he agreed so he could sound them out about the upcoming major mission.

Lu Zhen met Ma Sanyuan and Lei Zhenshan at the Spring Harmony Troupe, where Huang Suyin’s pipa music drew him into a profound state that sharpened his senses and deepened his understanding of vital energy. He left after rewarding Huang Suyin, while she wondered whether the young constable could protect her from Master Wang’s harassment.

• Ma Sanyuan and Lei Zhenshan warned Lu Zhen that the bureau chief’s major assignment could involve fighting demon beasts or bandits.
• Huang Suyin played a sorrowful but resolute pipa piece, and Lu Zhen’s vital energy flowed with the music as he entered a lucid state.
• Ma Sanyuan and Lei Zhenshan mistook Lu Zhen’s absorption for infatuation and quietly left him alone with Huang Suyin.
• Lu Zhen listened through five pieces for nearly an hour, emerging with sharper senses and a clearer, more concentrated mind.
• Lu Zhen gave Huang Suyin a hundred Silver Dollars, praised her music, and left the private room.
• Huang Suyin recalled Master Wang’s advances and doubted that Head Constable Lu could protect her.

After gaining sharper perception from listening to music, Lu Zhen practiced the River-Severing Blade Art through the night and reached force extreme fifth layer with its Sea-Parting form. He finished the chapter sharing a late meal with Shen Yun and Lu Wan, resolved to keep training despite his sister’s concern.

• Lu Zhen recognized that the music had heightened his senses and began studying the River-Severing Blade Art Xiao Yuqing had given him.
• Lu Zhen practiced the blade art for hours, correcting his blood-qi flow while Shen Yun and Lu Wan waited quietly with dinner.
• Lu Zhen mastered the Sea-Parting form, unleashed a force wave, and reached force extreme fifth layer.
• Lu Zhen received 1,800 martial technique experience from his settlement and replaced Army-Breaking Eight Slashes with the River-Severing Blade Art on his status panel.
• Shen Yun offered Lu Zhen the food she had kept warm, while Lu Wan worried that his relentless training would harm him.
• Lu Zhen told Lu Wan that he had to work hard to make up for his thin foundation, then joined them to eat.

Xiao Yuqing led five stations of the East City General Bureau to attack Lin Family Fortress, while Deputy Director Zhou Shichang withheld the other five stations. At the fortress, Lin Fu prepared to defend against the assault and revealed that the Lin Family’s dying ancestor was pursuing a demon-beast heart transplant.

• Xiao Yuqing assigned the stations to attack Lin Family Fortress, but Zhou Shichang ordered five stations to remain in the city and challenged her authority.
• Xiao Yuqing took the remaining five stations, including Lu Zhen and the Third Station, toward Lin Family Fortress.
• A messenger warned Lin Fu that Xiao Yuqing and dozens of military trucks were approaching, so Lin Fu ordered his men to deploy rifles and machine guns at the mountain pass.
• Lin Fu descended into an underground cavern where Western doctors examined a demon beast’s exposed heart beside the Lin Family’s frail old ancestor.