Recaps

Wei Zhantang realized Broken Mountain Sect had lost its resources and prospects, while Lu Li pushed his fused Inner Qi beyond its limit and caused a devastating explosion. The chapter left Lu Li unharmed but the area around the Deacon Mansion in ruins.

• Wei Zhantang despaired over Broken Mountain Sect’s losses, then fainted as disciples discussed whether to leave.
• Huang Rongyue secretly welcomed the sect’s collapse and anticipated taking control.
• Lu Li spent a month fusing more than a hundred cultivation techniques into a volatile mass of Inner Qi.
• Lu Li tried to control the growing Inner Qi, but it cracked and erupted in a massive explosion that wrecked the area around the Deacon Mansion.
• Lu Li confirmed he had evacuated the surrounding buildings before the blast, and people rushed toward the explosion site.

Lu Li learned that Broken Mountain Sect was collapsing after its losses, with Wei Zhantang reportedly ill, while he turned his attention toward the Prefecture Commandant. Wei Zhantang left his sect and went to Vajra Gate.

• An explosion reduced the area around Lu Li to rubble, but he emerged unharmed and told Nie Kun he had been practicing.
• Nie Kun reported that Broken Mountain Sect was losing disciples, resources, and industries, while Huang Rongyue had reportedly reached the Xiantian Second Layer.
• Nie Kun said Broken Mountain Sect's sect master, Wei Zhantang, had fallen ill, and Lu Li blamed the sect's downfall on its hostility toward Evergreen Sect.
• Lu Li regarded the Prefecture Commandant as his remaining enemy in Qingfeng Prefecture and resolved that the man deserved death.
• Wei Zhantang left Broken Mountain Sect in a dazed state and climbed the mountain gate of Vajra Gate.

Wei Zhantang endured Xue Jingang’s humiliating terms and borrowed one hundred thousand taels for the Broken Mountain Sect. As he returned to the sect, he found its remaining disciples being beaten by members of another group.

• Wei Zhantang visited Xue Jingang at the Vajra Gate and asked for one million taels to help rebuild the Broken Mountain Sect.
• Xue Jingang mocked Wei Zhantang and offered him only one hundred thousand taels as a loan.
• Wei Zhantang accepted the banknotes and left while Vajra Gate disciples watched and whispered about him.
• Wei Zhantang headed back toward the Broken Mountain Sect, suppressing his anger and tears.
• Wei Zhantang heard a scream and saw blue-robed disciples brutally beating Broken Mountain Sect disciples on one of the sect’s remaining territories.

Evergreen Sect disciples beat Broken Mountain Sect disciples in the street while Wei Zhantang struggled to intervene. After leaving in shame, Wei Zhantang asked Prefect Wu Ziyuanxiu to stop the beatings, but Wu refused and threatened to reopen the case of the Broken Mountain Sect's collusion with the Incense Fragrance Sect.

• Evergreen Sect disciples surrounded and beat Broken Mountain Sect disciples, who blamed Wei Zhantang and some eventually surrendered and renounced their sect.
• Townsfolk praised Lu Li for leading the Evergreen Sect toward glory, and Wei Zhantang left after hearing their comments.
• Wei Zhantang went to the Prefect's Residence and asked Wu Ziyuanxiu to uphold justice against the Evergreen Sect disciples.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu refused to intervene, citing the Broken Mountain Sect's past treatment of the Evergreen Sect and ordinary people.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu accused Wei Zhantang of provoking him and threatened to pursue the Broken Mountain Sect's collusion with the Incense Fragrance Sect.

Wei Zhantang blamed Lu Li for the Broken Mountain Sect’s decline and resolved to rely on Rongyue to restore it. After reaching the Xiantian Second Layer, Lu Li was brought by Luo Bingyun to meet Gu Jiuxiao, the Evergreen Sect’s Supreme Elder.

• Wu Ziyuanxiu accused Wei Zhantang of aiding rebels, questioned his ties to the Commandant, and warned him not to cause trouble again.
• Wei Zhantang raged against Lu Li in the street, then regained his composure and placed his hopes in Rongyue and the Broken Mountain Sect’s resurgence.
• Lu Li reached the Xiantian Second Layer and decided to focus on raising his martial realm rather than learning more techniques.
• Luo Bingyun brought Lu Li to the Evergreen Sect’s main hall, where he recognized the Scripture Pavilion guardian as Gu Jiuxiao.
• Cang Baihe introduced Gu Jiuxiao to Lu Li as the sect’s Supreme Elder, their master, and Lu Li’s grandmaster.

Lu Li demonstrated that he had fused the Inner Qi from more than a hundred cultivation methods, and Gu Jiuxiao entrusted him with the Evergreen Sect’s All-Things Creation Technique. Gu Jiuxiao then brought Lu Li to meet Xiao Jinglei, whose body had transformed into a tree, and Luo Bingyun asked whether Lu Li still wanted to cultivate the technique.

• Lu Li told Gu Jiuxiao and the elders that he had cultivated many methods and formed a new clump of Inner Qi.
• Luo Bingyun and Gu Jiuxiao sensed that Lu Li’s Inner Qi had fused without conflicting, astonishing the gathered elders.
• Gu Jiuxiao gave Lu Li the All-Things Creation Technique and warned him to return it if he could not comprehend it.
• Gu Jiuxiao led Lu Li and the five elders through a hidden passage into a chamber in the back mountain.
• Lu Li discovered that the tree covered in flowers was Xiao Jinglei, the Evergreen Sect’s Sect Master and eldest senior brother.
• Luo Bingyun asked Lu Li whether he still wanted to cultivate the All-Things Creation Technique after seeing Xiao Jinglei’s condition.

Lu Li chose to study the dangerous All-Things Creation Technique and was drawn into a vision of creation, where he transformed into a powerful White Tiger. As he absorbed the light from all living things, his body began turning into a tree, leaving him unaware of the change.

• Lu Li insisted on learning the All-Things Creation Technique despite seeing Xiao Jinglei's ruined condition, and Gu Jiuxiao warned that mastering it was perilous and depended on Lu Li alone.
• After leaving the cave, Lu Li returned to the Deacon Mansion and opened the technique, whereupon his consciousness was torn away and he awoke in a grassy realm.
• Lu Li witnessed golden light spread across the realm as its plants and beasts grew and transformed, and he became a White Tiger with dragon horns and wings.
• Lu Li lost awareness of his human identity and began greedily absorbing points of light from the living world.
• Lu Li's fur hardened like tree bark, branches grew across his body, and his transformation into a tree continued unnoticed.

Lu Li escaped an illusion in which the All-Things Creation Technique transformed him and the world around him, then debated how to follow the technique without becoming a monster like the Sect Master. He reentered the illusion determined to keep his mind and began studying the principles behind the changes.

• Lu Li saw beast faces appear on his body in the illusion, then regained control and returned to his room, where his tiger claw gradually turned back into a human hand.
• Lu Li considered whether the technique required absorbing the essence of all things or evolving himself, and decided the Sect Master had become a monster by taking the wrong path.
• After a night of thought, Lu Li resolved to use the All-Things Creation Technique in his own way and entered the illusion again.
• Lu Li watched plants develop beast faces and transformed into a tree bearing human faces, but this time he kept his consciousness under control.
• Lu Li began examining the underlying principles of wood and beasts, then turned his attention to metal.

Lu Li broke free from the ancient-tree illusion and returned to human form, having comprehended several kinds of qi. He discovered that his inner qi now merged naturally, had become inexhaustible, and carried the sharp edge of metal qi, leaving him eager to test whether he could stack all his cultivated qi.

• Lu Li comprehended Sharp Metal Qi, Fierce Baleful Aura, and several other kinds of qi while trapped as an ancient tree in an illusion.
• Lu Li transformed back into a human and realized that only one day had passed outside the illusion.
• Lu Li found that his inner qi had begun merging gently and no longer felt difficult to suppress.
• Lu Li examined the changed Endless Life Technique and discovered that its inner qi was denser, more powerful, and seemed inexhaustible.
• Lu Li used his inner qi to slice the floorboards and realized that his wood qi carried metal's sharp edge.

Lu Li tested the All-Things Creation Technique, discovered that it let him sense and absorb the energy of heaven and earth, and used it with Crimson Origin Pills to accelerate his cultivation. After ten days, he had advanced to the fourth Xiantian layer and believed he could reach the Grandmaster Realm within six months.

• Lu Li's attempts to fuse different energies repeatedly failed, but by dawn he formed a tiny whale from internal qi.
• Lu Li used the Clear Spirit Jade Pendant to recover, then took a Crimson Origin Pill and cultivated with the Endless Life Technique.
• Lu Li saw clusters of light even with his eyes closed and suspected the All-Things Creation Technique had let him sense the energy of heaven and earth.
• Lu Li gained forty thousand cultivation progress points in a day and continued cultivating intensely.
• Ten days later, Lu Li broke through to the fourth Xiantian layer, then went outside to wash as summer's heat settled in.

After gaining a breakthrough, Lu Li agreed to guide Wu Ziyuanxiu’s new subordinates in exchange for another Concept Realm seed. Wu Ziyuanxiu hurriedly took him to begin the task.

• Lu Li reflected on the distant heights of the Martial Dao before preparing to resume his cultivation.
• Nie Kun told Lu Li that Wu Ziyuanxiu requested an audience, and Lu Li welcomed the prefect into his courtyard.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu praised Lu Li’s breakthrough and asked him to train a group of talented orphans he had recruited as subordinates.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu offered Lu Li a Concept Realm seed in exchange for his guidance, and Lu Li accepted.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu grabbed Lu Li and hurried off with him.

Wu Ziyuanxiu brought Lu Li to his training grounds and named him chief instructor, while explaining his suspicions about the Commandery Commandant. Lu Li began assessing the trainees and immediately spotted a serious flaw in one youth’s Meridian-Pulsing Fist.

• Wu Ziyuanxiu showed Lu Li the ruined headquarters of the Broken Mountain Sect and Incense Fragrance Sect, then discussed his clash with the Commandery Commandant and his suspicions of treason.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu asked Lu Li to help expose the Commandery Commandant, and Lu Li worried that he might be used as bait against a powerful opponent.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu brought Lu Li to his training grounds and introduced him as chief instructor to the young trainees and veteran instructors.
• Lu Li watched a youth practice Meridian-Pulsing Fist and told a middle-aged instructor that the technique had a major problem.

Lu Li personally guided the young trainees and their instructors, impressing them with his martial knowledge. He helped Chen Feng recover from an injury caused by overtraining and corrected his cultivation method and martial skill, leaving Chen Feng deeply grateful.

• Lu Li corrected a boy’s horse stance and explained how to train according to his physical condition, then guided the other boys and ten instructors.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu told Lu Li about Chen Feng, a former herb gatherer who stubbornly practiced techniques beyond his weak foundation, and suggested Lu Li take him as a disciple.
• Lu Li recognized that Chen Feng’s training had damaged his meridians and warned him to stop, but Chen Feng collapsed in pain after refusing.
• Lu Li treated Chen Feng with medicinal herbs and showed him how to improve his cultivation method and martial skill.
• Chen Feng thanked Lu Li tearfully, and Lu Li turned toward Wu Ziyuanxiu before sensing something amiss and glancing back.

Lu Li exposed Chen Feng as a concealed Xiantian martial artist plotting to capture him, and warned Wu Ziyuanxiu that Chen’s apparent connection to a tragic family had been used to draw the governor into a trap. Wu Ziyuanxiu realized the commandery military officer had arranged the scheme to eliminate him.

• Lu Li sensed Chen Feng’s murderous intent and recognized that his supposed Savage Bull Force was a concealed cultivation technique.
• Lu Li inferred that Chen Feng was a mid-stage or stronger Xiantian martial artist who intended to capture him and gain favor with the commandery military officer.
• Lu Li drew Wu Ziyuanxiu inside and explained what he had discovered about Chen Feng.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu revealed that Chen Feng was the son of a deceased subordinate whom he had tried to help.
• Lu Li explained that the subordinate’s genuine misfortunes had been used to win Wu Ziyuanxiu’s trust and lure him into a trap set by the commandery military officer.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu understood the plot and erupted in fury.

Lu Li and Wu Ziyuanxiu waited for Chen Feng to make a move rather than risk a premature arrest that could damage military morale. Chen Feng secretly reported that he was ready to assassinate Lu Li, leaving the governor’s allies in danger.

• Wu Ziyuanxiu asked Lu Li whether they could arrest Chen Feng, but Lu Li warned that doing so without proof could turn others against the governor.
• Lu Li told Wu Ziyuanxiu that Ye Cangming’s informants might be watching the governor’s residence, and Wu Ziyuanxiu agreed to let Lu Li handle Chen Feng.
• Over the next few days, Lu Li taught martial cultivation and secretly observed Chen Feng, while Chen Feng feigned grief and grew closer to him.
• Chen Feng used a blood-marked Needle Disk to report to his master that he had lowered Lu Li’s guard and learned Lu Li’s strength.
• Chen Feng’s master approved his plan to strike and promised that Chen Feng’s descendants would be provided for, despite Chen Feng having fewer than five years to live.
• After the Needle Disk crumbled, Chen Feng resolved to kill Lu Li and Wu Ziyuanxiu because they stood in his master’s way.

Lu Li sensed Chen Feng’s attempt to assassinate him and revealed that he knew Chen Feng worked for the prefectural commandant. Lu Li overwhelmed Chen Feng with a powerful strike, but Chen Feng unleashed a secret art and his strength surged.

• Lu Li advanced his cultivation with the All-Things Creation Technique and sensed someone approaching his room.
• Chen Feng sneaked into Lu Li’s courtyard wearing a fierce-ghost mask, but Lu Li appeared behind him in a Blood Ghost Mask.
• Lu Li exposed Chen Feng’s identity and offered him surrender or capture, while Chen Feng boasted that he could still kill Lu Li.
• Lu Li’s claw struck Chen Feng in the chest, badly injuring him despite both being at the fifth layer of the Xiantian Realm.
• Chen Feng refused to surrender and used a secret art to make his strength surge.

Lu Li defeated Chen Feng and tortured him until he revealed that the Commandery Commandant had ordered him to spy on the prefect. Chen Feng explained that his rapid cultivation came from a life-consuming technique, and Wu Ziyuanxiu arrived furious at the betrayal and demanded that Lu Li torture him further.

• Chen Feng used a secret technique to fight Lu Li, but Lu Li blasted him into a crater with an explosive ball of light.
• Lu Li healed Chen Feng enough to question him, then tortured him with an ice pillar until he begged for mercy.
• Chen Feng admitted that the Commandery Commandant had ordered him to secretly monitor the prefect and said his cultivation technique traded lifespan for power.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu arrived, learned that Chen Feng served the Commandery Commandant, and demanded to know whether there were other moles.
• Chen Feng insisted he knew of no other spies, but Wu Ziyuanxiu told Lu Li to torture him again.

Lu Li helped Wu Ziyuanxiu break Chen Feng’s resolve and uncover the formation disks linking him to Ye Cangming. Wu Ziyuanxiu confronted Ye Cangming and defeated him, while Ye blamed Lu Li for the failed assassination and grew even more intent on killing him.

• Chen Feng begged Wu Ziyuanxiu for mercy, and Lu Li advised that further questioning would reveal nothing because Ye Cangming likely had other preparations.
• Wu Ziyuanxiu and Lu Li searched Chen Feng’s room and found Sound Transmission Disks, which Wu recognized as valuable ancient relics.
• Lu Li suggested Wu confront Ye Cangming even without proof, and Wu left to challenge him.
• Wu returned with injuries and told Lu Li that he had beaten Ye Cangming after provoking him with the disks and Chen Feng’s exposure.
• Ye Cangming raged in his military camp, blamed Lu Li for Chen Feng’s failure, and vowed revenge after losing to Wu.