Chapter Summaries

Li Chuan used the Four Divine Qi-Gathering Pills to perfect the Mystic Origin Twin Art and trained his Void-Gap Formless Step to prepare for the second Dragon Gate Formation trial. Meanwhile, Yan Zhiqiu and Chu Xi investigated Zhao Yan’s disappearance, while the Heavenly Blade Sect announced valuable rewards for the trial.

• Li Chuan took the pills stolen from Zhao Yan and used them to strengthen his second strand of Geng Metal True Qi, raising the Mystic Origin Twin Art to Major Mastery.
• Yan Zhiqiu told Chu Xi that Zhao Yan might be dead, ruled out the four people Zhao Yan had been investigating, and directed her to examine his recent associates and the Yaoguang Demon Sect.
• Li Chuan publicly expressed sympathy over Zhao Yan’s disappearance, then learned that first place in the second Dragon Gate Formation trial would earn Spirit Spring Liquid.
• Li Jingci declined Yu Jing’s request to spar until after the Dragon Gate Formation.
• Li Chuan decided to focus on reaching the Dragon Gate platform first by mastering the Void-Gap Formless Step, and perfected the Mystic Origin Twin Art with twenty-six days remaining.
• Li Chuan trained his movement art until it reached Minor Mastery three days before the Dragon Gate Formation.

Li Chuan mastered a faster, more maneuverable movement technique before the Dragon Gate Formation, where Li Jingci revealed his hidden strength and defeated Wan Ling. Just as Li Jingci seemed poised to win, Li Chuan surged past him and reached the top first.

• Li Chuan tested Void-Gap Formless Step with two streams of Geng Metal True Qi and decided to spend the remaining five days consolidating his gains.
• At the Dragon Gate Formation, Wan Ling finished the first round far ahead of Li Chuan, Cheng Xiuge, and Li Jingci.
• Cheng Xiuge used his improved movement art to overtake Li Chuan in the second round, but Li Jingci displayed his hidden strength, defeated Li Chuan, and passed Cheng Xiuge.
• Li Jingci caught Wan Ling and defeated her with the Nine-Yang Blade Art at Perfection.
• Li Chuan burst past Li Jingci and the remaining Wooden Dummies, reaching the top of the Dragon Gate Formation.

Li Chuan won first place in the Dragon Gate Formation, while Li Jingci, Wan Ling, and Cheng Xiuge took second, third, and fourth. After Zhao Ciyuan revealed the secret method for forging Innate Great White True Gang, he shocked Li Chuan by showing that he possessed Profound Nether Geng Metal True Qi.

• Li Chuan took first place in the Dragon Gate Formation with his Void-Gap Formless Step, defeating Li Jingci, while Wan Ling placed third and Cheng Xiuge placed fourth.
• Ye Fengmian announced the final rankings and awarded Li Chuan the Spirit Spring Liquid for first place.
• Ning Shuang praised Li Chuan and Li Jingci, while Zhao Ciyuan arrived and took Li Chuan aside to speak privately.
• Yu Jing asked Ning Shuang to transfer her to Second Peak because she could not beat Li Jingci or Li Chuan.
• Zhao Ciyuan explained the ingredients and cultivation order needed to create Innate Great White True Gang, then told Li Chuan that Sanyuan Prefecture had only one Great White Profound Yin Soul.
• Zhao Ciyuan showed Li Chuan a wisp of Profound Nether Geng Metal True Qi, leaving Li Chuan stunned.

Li Chuan learned from Zhao Ciyuan that Heavenly Blade Ascendant was dead and received guidance about advancing to Gang Force. After planning for the Heavenly Blade Tournament and training for over a month, Li Chuan used Spirit Spring Liquid to open his Tenth Main Meridian.

• Zhao Ciyuan revealed that Heavenly Blade Ascendant was dead, told Li Chuan to keep it secret, and explained the dangers and power of Gang Force.
• Zhao Ciyuan offered to take responsibility for Li Chuan's unusual movement technique, and Li Chuan told Ye Fengmian that Zhao Ciyuan had taught it to him.
• Li Chuan planned to win the Great White Profound Yin Soul at the Heavenly Blade Tournament, open his Tenth Main Meridian, and perfect the Shadowless Blade Technique.
• Zhong Ziyin showed Li Chuan the Jianghu Gazette, which ranked him third among the Heavenly Blade Sect's chief disciples and listed Li Jingci among the Six Elites of Sanyuan Prefecture.
• Li Jingci received gifts and attention from wealthy families after joining the Six Elites, while Li Chuan left with Zhong Ziyin.
• Li Chuan drank Spirit Spring Liquid and broke through the barrier of his Tenth Main Meridian, completing a circuit through all ten open meridians.

Li Chuan opened his Tenth Main Meridian, accepted the task of guiding Xiao Nianxue in exchange for access to the Scripture Pavilion’s fourth floor, and focused on improving his martial arts before the Heavenly Blade Tournament. When Mountain-Suppressing Fist Sect representatives pressured the Heavenly Blade Sect over a mineral deposit and insulted Li Chuan, Guan Shan arrived to confront them.

• Li Chuan demonstrated that opening another main meridian had increased his strength, then resolved to raise his Shadowless Blade Technique to Perfection before the Heavenly Blade Tournament.
• Ye Fengmian introduced Xiao Nianxue, a sixteen-year-old disciple with an Eighth-Grade Root Bone, and offered Li Chuan access to the Scripture Pavilion’s fourth floor in exchange for guiding her; Li Chuan accepted and revealed that he had opened ten main meridians.
• Li Chuan instructed Xiao Nianxue in Transforming Force, then spent his days cultivating and training his combat techniques while seeking resources to improve his blade skills.
• Ye Fengmian introduced Hou Jingzhao and Ding Chiyan of the Mountain-Suppressing Fist Sect, who demanded seventy percent of a jointly discovered Heavenly Treasure Ore deposit.
• Hou Jingzhao disparaged Li Chuan, prompting Li Jingci, Wan Ling, and Cheng Xiuge to defend him; Ding Chiyan then used the dispute to pressure Ye Fengmian during negotiations.
• Ye Fengmian rejected Ding Chiyan’s pressure and called for a duel, and Guan Shan arrived, ordering the Mountain-Suppressing Fist Sect representatives to leave.

Guan Shan drove Ding Chiyan and Hou Jingzhao from the Heavenly Blade Sect, then reassured the disciples that the sect would not sacrifice them for the Heavenly Treasure Ore. Li Chuan advanced his Tidal Foraging Art and sought a True Explanation of Blade Dao from Bai Zhao’s family; after Bai Ming offered it in exchange for a Golden Rainbow Trout, Li Chuan caught one within an hour.

• Guan Shan threatened Ding Chiyan and struck with his blade, forcing Ding Chiyan to flee with Hou Jingzhao.
• Guan Shan rewarded the disciples, defended the sect’s refusal to compromise over Li Chuan, and learned that Li Chuan and Li Jingci had advanced in cultivation.
• Li Chuan reached Major Mastery in the Tidal Foraging Art and gained Spirit Sight, which helped him find treasure fish in the Boyang Waters.
• Bai Zhao told Li Chuan she had found a True Explanation of Blade Dao, but Bai Ming had taken it; Li Chuan refused to make her ask for it on his behalf.
• Bai Ming offered Li Chuan the True Explanation of Blade Dao in exchange for a Golden Rainbow Trout, and Li Chuan returned from the Boyang Waters with one within an hour.

Li Chuan impressed Bai Ming by catching two treasure fish, then mastered a higher realm of the Shadowless Blade Technique while studying the Explanation of Blade Dao. As the Heavenly Blade Tournament began, prominent sect leaders and contenders gathered at the Heavenly Blade Sect, where Li Chuan faced Chu Xi’s probing questions and drew Shen Yanran’s wary attention.

• Li Chuan presented Bai Ming with a Golden Rainbow Trout and a Silver Sand Carp, earning the Explanation of Blade Dao and Bai Ming’s offer to buy his future treasure fish at twenty percent above market price.
• Bai Ming revealed that Li Chuan had developed Spirit Eyes and reached great mastery in the Tidal Foraging Art in less than a year, while teasing Bai Zhao about her feelings for him.
• Li Chuan studied the Explanation of Blade Dao for days, then cut down a banyan tree and advanced the Shadowless Blade Technique to Blood Delay.
• The Heavenly Blade Sect prepared for the Heavenly Blade Tournament, whose prize was the Great White Profound Yin Soul, as disciples debated the contenders and Han Tuo arrived with Chu Xi and Shen Yanran.
• Chu Xi questioned Li Chuan about his recent activities, and Shen Yanran sensed a subtle threat from him despite his unremarkable appearance.
• Duan Lingyun, Lei Shouren, and Xiao Nishang arrived, and Guan Shan officially began the Heavenly Blade Tournament.

The Heavenly Blade Tournament exposed the growing strength of the Heavenly Blade Sect’s disciples as Zhong Ziyin defeated Shi Chongyue and Cheng Xiuge turned back Yu Jing’s challenge. In the chief disciple contest, Li Chuan overwhelmed Cheng Xiuge with a single punch, leaving the tournament’s outcome hanging on the shock of his victory.

• Guan Shan and the other sect masters discussed the Yaoguang Demon Sect’s hidden plans while the tournament’s early rounds began.
• Zhong Ziyin defeated Shi Chongyue with the Heavenly River Blade Technique at the Extreme Realm.
• Yu Jing challenged Cheng Xiuge for Second Peak’s chief disciple position, but Cheng Xiuge defeated her with his major-mastery Shadowless Blade Technique.
• Ye Fengmian announced the Great White Profound Yin Soul as the tournament champion’s prize, and the lots paired Li Chuan against Cheng Xiuge in the opening chief disciple match.
• Cheng Xiuge attacked with his blade and fist techniques, but Li Chuan blocked him with the Golden Bell Shield and sent him crashing across the arena with one punch.

Li Chuan defeated Cheng Xiuge, then watched Li Jingci defeat Wan Ling and secure a place in the winners' bracket final. Li Chuan and Li Jingci fought for the tournament championship, and Li Chuan's perfected Shadowless Blade Technique struck Li Jingci as the chapter ended.

• Li Chuan defeated Cheng Xiuge and advanced to the winners' bracket, where he was set to face the winner of Li Jingci and Wan Ling's match.
• Li Jingci defeated Wan Ling with his perfected Nine-Yang Blade Art, leaving her injured and ending her chance to catch up.
• Xiao Nianxue bet her six hundred and eleven taels of silver that Li Chuan would defeat Li Jingci.
• Li Chuan refused to withdraw from the championship match and met Li Jingci on the arena.
• Li Chuan matched and then pressured Li Jingci, who released his full strength and struck with the perfected Nine-Yang Blade Art.
• Li Chuan answered with the perfected Shadowless Blade Technique, and a line of blood appeared across Li Jingci's chest.

Li Chuan won the Heavenly Blade Tournament by defeating Li Jingci, earning first place and the chance to pursue the Heavenly Treasure Ore. After the tournament, Zhao Ciyuan warned him to grow stronger before entering the Vajra Sect, and the four peak masters gathered to give him a customary reward.

• Li Jingci admitted defeat after Li Chuan used the perfected Shadowless Blade Technique, and the Four Peaks disciples celebrated Li Chuan’s victory.
• The tournament ended with Li Chuan first, Li Jingci second, Wan Ling third, and Cheng Xiuge fourth; Ye Fengmian announced that the winners could collect their rewards in three days.
• Song Qinghuan suggested that North Wind might already be hiding among the Five Gates and Seven Sects, prompting the sect leaders to discuss the danger before departing.
• Zhao Ciyuan praised Li Chuan for concealing his second strand of Geng Metal True Qi and urged him to win the Heroes’ Gathering and strengthen himself before entering the Vajra Sect.
• Ning Shuang, Zhu Zhongye, Xu Jianshen, and Guan Shan arrived after Zhao Ciyuan vanished, explaining that they had come to give Li Chuan a customary reward.

After winning the Heavenly Blade Tournament, Li Chuan received weapons, training access, and encouragement from the Heavenly Blade Sect’s leaders. Zhao Ciyuan then explained how to preserve his chance of cultivating Innate Great White True Gang and gave him the Peerless Internal Skill Profound Nether Sunken Abyss Record.

• Zhu Zhongye found that Frost Without Trace was badly damaged and promised to reforge it for Li Chuan.
• Xu Jianshen gave Li Chuan two Thunderclap Bombs, and Ning Shuang gifted him nine Azure Abyss Snake-Fang Shuttles that he tested against solid black iron.
• Guan Shan gave Li Chuan a token for half a month in the Grade-A Training Room and explained that the sect’s leaders hoped he would help halt the Heavenly Blade Sect’s decline.
• Zhao Ciyuan warned Li Chuan that crudely refining the Great White Profound Yin Soul would foreclose his chance to cultivate Innate Great White True Gang, which required a Peerless Internal Skill.
• Li Chuan decided he would refine the Earth Treasure if he could not obtain such a skill, but Zhao Ciyuan revealed the Profound Nether Sunken Abyss Record and placed it in Li Chuan’s hand.

Zhao Ciyuan gave Li Chuan the Profound Nether Sunken Abyss Record and explained how it could help him fuse his True Qi as he prepared to compete for resources and the Yellow Springs Molten Flame. After the Jianghu Gazette named him one of the Six Elites of Sanyuan Prefecture, Li Chuan received gifts and a marriage proposal, but the White Dragon King appeared and offered to triple Chen Yuanqing’s terms.

• Zhao Ciyuan gifted Li Chuan the Profound Nether Sunken Abyss Record and explained how it could help him form the Innate Great White True Gang.
• Zhong Ziyin showed Li Chuan the Jianghu Gazette, which announced that he had defeated Li Jingci and joined the Six Elites of Sanyuan Prefecture.
• Hou Jingzhao learned of Li Chuan’s rise and told Duan Lingyun he wanted to settle their old score, while Yan Zhiqiu concluded that someone in the authorities had killed Zhao Yan and framed others.
• Zhou Zelin sent Meng Shu and two others to investigate whether Li Chuan had anything to do with Zhou Yan’s death.
• The Qin Family head and other visitors brought Li Chuan gifts, and Chen Yuanqing offered him a marriage arrangement with Chen Shiyu for a monthly stipend of nine thousand taels.
• Bai Ming appeared and offered to triple Chen Yuanqing’s terms.

After rejecting the Chen Clan’s attempt to win him back, Li Chuan refined the Great White Profound Yin Soul and gained powerful Profound Nether Geng Metal True Qi. He then met Shen Yanran, who asked him to help the Cloud Ink Sect contest a resource site, and invited her to test his strength.

• Bai Ming outbid Chen Yuanqing’s offer to recruit Li Chuan, while Li Chuan rejected Chen Shiyu’s marriage proposal and she left heartbroken.
• Li Chuan inspected his gifts, then joined Ye Fengmian and the other chief disciples to collect their tournament rewards; he learned that the Patriarch’s legacy was supposedly lost.
• Li Chuan swallowed the Great White Profound Yin Soul and refined it into Profound Nether Geng Metal True Qi, increasing its cold and cutting power enough to let him defeat Li Jingci without relying on his Shadowless Blade Technique.
• Shen Yanran asked Li Chuan to help the Cloud Ink Sect oppose the Cloud Wild Sword Sect and restrain Chu Xi at a resource site in the Devouring Bone Black Marsh.
• Li Chuan agreed to consider helping if Shen Yanran offered enough, and told her to test his strength herself.

Shen Yanran tested Li Chuan’s strength, then recruited him to help the Cloud Ink Sect contend with the Cloud Wild Sword Sect over a resource point. After discovering his Red Phoenix Pills conflicted with his internal art, Li Chuan went to buy Cold Jade Soup and learned how a failed expedition had ruined Jiang Ran and his family.

• Shen Yanran tested Li Chuan with the Wooden Butterfly, then offered him the rare Silent Ink Swallow and a share of the resource-point gains in exchange for his help against the Cloud Wild Sword Sect.
• Shen Yanran left in disguise after asking Li Chuan to keep their plan from Chu Xi, and Li Chuan wondered how she had sensed his concealed killing intent.
• Li Chuan discovered that Red Phoenix Pills conflicted with his Profound Nether Geng Metal True Qi, so he decided to buy Cold Jade Soup and invited Zhong Ziyin to the Medicine Hall.
• A Medicine Hall disciple tried to stop Li Chuan from taking the Cold Jade Soup, then recognized him as Zhong Ziyin identified the disciple as Jiang Ran.
• Zhong Ziyin explained that Jiang Ran had been captured by water bandits and his father wounded during a rescue attempt, leaving Jiang Ran permanently crippled and the family nearly impoverished.

Li Chuan repaid Zhong Ziyin’s past kindness by giving him the Five-Treasure Pill, then used Cold Jade Soup to rapidly advance his cultivation. After training through the night, he waited for news about Frost Without Trace, and Zhu Zhongye arrived at his courtyard the next morning.

• Li Chuan and Zhong Ziyin discussed Jiang Ran’s failed scheme and spotted Jiang Ran watching them in the Medicine Hall.
• Li Chuan gave Zhong Ziyin the Five-Treasure Pill as repayment for his past kindness, while refusing to answer which woman he thought was prettier.
• Li Chuan refined Cold Jade Soup, increased his Profound Nether Sunken Abyss Record proficiency, and expected to open his Eleventh Main Meridian before visiting Sinking Moon Valley.
• Li Chuan practiced the Golden Bell Shield, Green Snake Dart Art, and Void-Gap Formless Step while thinking about his ambitions and missing blade, Frost Without Trace.
• Zhu Zhongye arrived at Li Chuan’s courtyard the next morning, smiling.

Li Chuan received his reforged Frost Without Trace from Zhu Zhongye and learned that the weapon’s costly upgrade had been given to support him before the Heavenly Treasure Ore contest. A month later, he visited Golden Bone Martial Hall to fulfill his teaching duties, where he recognized a dark, skinny disciple who looked like Yu Sinian.

• Zhu Zhongye delivered Frost Without Trace, which he had reforged with Ice Crystal Ore to better conduct Li Chuan’s Profound Nether Geng Metal True Qi.
• Li Chuan overheard Zhu Zhongye explain that he had given up valuable ore meant for First Peak’s Transforming Force disciples to support Li Chuan, whose coming fight against Hou Jingzhao could benefit the sect.
• Li Chuan trained with Frost Without Trace for a month and saw that his progress should let him open his Eleventh Main Meridian before the Heavenly Treasure Ore battle.
• Li Chuan traveled to Golden Bone Martial Hall to fulfill his quarterly teaching duty, where Gu Lianghong urged the Apprentices to work hard and cited Li Chuan as an example.
• Li Chuan shared three standing-meditation formulas with the Apprentices, and several of them praised his instruction.
• Li Chuan spotted a dark, skinny disciple who looked like Yu Sinian, his former sparring partner from Pine Wind Martial Hall.

Li Chuan reunited with Yu Sinian at Golden Bone Martial Hall, taught its Apprentices, and helped Yu Sinian earn Gu Lianghong’s support. After Li Chuan discovered three men secretly following him, he killed two and confronted Meng Shu, who learned the might of Li Chuan’s Profound Nether Geng Metal True Qi.

• Li Chuan recognized Yu Sinian as an old friend, and Yu Sinian recounted his family’s hardships and his slow progress at Golden Bone Martial Hall.
• Yu Sinian told Li Chuan that Luo Zheng had joined the Azure Sun Sect in Haixing Prefecture, and Li Chuan taught the Martial Hall’s Apprentices for three hours.
• After Li Chuan departed, Gu Lianghong offered Yu Sinian personal instruction and Sarira Pills to help him reach Transforming Force.
• Protector Wraith left the underground passage despite warnings that his Gang Force breakthrough could attract suspicion, while Meng Shu and his two companions set an ambush for Li Chuan.
• Li Chuan detected Meng Shu’s group with the Silent Ink Swallow, killed Third Brother and Second Brother, and pursued Meng Shu.
• Meng Shu attacked Li Chuan with the Thousand-Cloud Sword Art, but Li Chuan’s saber broke his sword and pierced his abdomen with Profound Nether Geng Metal True Qi.

Li Chuan killed Meng Shu and his two companions, learned a secret that could bring Zhou Zelin down, and covered up the deaths with Heart-Eating Insects. Zhou Zelin blamed Wraith for the killings, spreading news that put the Demon Sect guardian under scrutiny while Li Chuan stayed safely at the Heavenly Blade Sect and advanced his cultivation.

• Li Chuan questioned the dying Meng Shu, who revealed that Zhou Zelin had sent the three brothers to investigate him and offered a secret that could destroy Zhou Zelin.
• Meng Shu killed himself, and Li Chuan left Heart-Eating Insects to consume the bodies and erase the evidence.
• Zhou Zelin learned that the three men were dead and, with Xu Banwan, blamed Wraith and spread the accusation.
• Elder Ye warned Li Chuan and the other chiefs to stay alert, while Li Chuan denied being capable of killing the three men.
• Wraith raged at being falsely blamed and decided he had to emerge from hiding sooner than planned.
• Li Chuan practiced with Cold Jade Soup and brought his Profound Nether Sunken Abyss Record closer to opening his Eleventh Main Meridian.

As Hou Jingzhao began attempting the Twelfth Main Meridian, Heavenly Blade Sect disciples doubted Li Chuan could keep up and argued over the Ice Crystal Ore used for his weapon. Li Chuan earned money by catching treasure fish, helped Xiao Nianxue reach Core Formation, and prepared to break through to his Eleventh Main Meridian.

• Heavenly Blade Sect disciples discussed Hou Jingzhao’s breakthrough attempt and worried Li Chuan could not compete for the Heavenly Treasure Ore; several resented that the sect had spent Ice Crystal Ore on his weapon, and Wang Cuihua rebuked them.
• Li Chuan caught a Silver Sand Carp, a Golden Rainbow Trout, and a Jade Marrow Cod at Boyang Waters and sold them to the Bai Residence for eight thousand five hundred taels of silver.
• Li Chuan taught Xiao Nianxue martial arts, and she broke through to Core Formation; she later gave him two thousand taels after hearing that he might be short of money for Cold Jade Soup.
• Li Chuan showed Xiao Nianxue how to buy the shop’s best Osmanthus Cake by discreetly paying the shop assistant, then returned her concern with plans to treat her another time.
• Over the next month, Li Chuan earned enough for Cold Jade Soup and refined it until his Profound Nether Sunken Abyss Record reached 2847/4000 proficiency.
• Li Chuan planned to enter seclusion in the Grade-A Training Room and break through to his Eleventh Main Meridian.

Li Chuan opened his Eleventh Main Meridian in the Grade-A Training Room as the Heavenly Blade Sect prepared to compete with the Mountain-Suppressing Fist Sect for the Heavenly Treasure Ore. At Sinking Moon Valley, Cheng Xiuge lost to Xu Ruiting, who then challenged Li Chuan directly.

• Wan Ling told Cheng Xiuge and Li Jingci that Hou Jingzhao was formidable, and Li Jingci resolved that the Heavenly Blade Sect’s chiefs should share the burden of the coming contest.
• Li Chuan used Cold Jade Soup and the Grade-A Training Room’s medicinal mist to open his Eleventh Main Meridian, greatly strengthening his True Qi.
• Li Jingci failed to open his Twelfth Main Meridian and damaged his foundation, so Cheng Xiuge agreed to take his place in the three-person succession battle.
• Ye Fengmian explained that the winner of the king-of-the-hill contest would claim all the Heavenly Treasure Ore, while Ding Chiyan’s disciples waited confidently at Sinking Moon Valley.
• Cheng Xiuge fought Xu Ruiting, but Xu Ruiting used Blood Burning to overpower him and knock him out of the makeshift Arena.
• Xu Ruiting pointed past Wan Ling and challenged Li Chuan, stunning the assembled disciples.