Chapter Summaries

Xu Wuyi crossed the passage to Liang Satellite Three and began traveling across the hostile polar region to rescue the stranded Federation team. After learning the team had less than twenty hours before its shielding failed, he reached a mountain valley and emerged into a dark-red Gobi desert.

• Xu Wuyi prepared his equipment, entered the passage, and used his Heart Image to withstand its spatial tearing forces.
• Xu Wuyi emerged on Liang Satellite Three’s polar ice field and confirmed that six hundred kilometers separated him from the target crater valley.
• Xu Wuyi contacted the trapped team, learned that three members were lightly injured and one was seriously injured, and heard that a Great Liang search team had passed nearby.
• Xu Wuyi set out across the ice without using Heart Image power to avoid detection by Great Liang’s energy-sensing artifact.
• Xu Wuyi reached the mountain range, passed through a glacier-carved valley, and found a dark-red Gobi desert beyond it.

Xu Wuyi reached the crater where Captain Chen’s stranded survey team was hiding and began their backup shuttle’s thirty-minute charging process. When a Great Liang patrol approached, Xu Wuyi left the cave to intercept them while the team continued preparing to escape.

• Xu Wuyi evaded a patrol and reached the crater, where he confirmed the cave held seven survey team members and no visible ambush.
• Captain Chen told Xu Wuyi that Great Liang’s searches were intensifying, the cave’s shield had fifteen hours of power left, and the damaged starship could not be repaired.
• Xu Wuyi ordered the team to charge the backup shuttle, despite its energy surge being detectable and a Sub-Sage being stationed nearby.
• Twelve minutes into charging, Xu Wuyi sensed three Great Liang Martial Artists approaching and went out to confront them.
• The patrol reached the foot of the crater after sending a signal to Sub-Sage Zhao and deciding not to wait for him.

Xu Wuyi held off Great Liang forces at the crater while Captain Chen and the others charged their device. As the device neared completion, Zhao Yuanwu realized Xu Wuyi was buying time for an escape.

• Xu Wuyi used his gravity field and Long Spear to defeat three Great Liang Martial Artists guarding the way to the crater.
• Xu Wuyi returned to the cave and learned the charging device needed seventeen more minutes, then waited for Great Liang reinforcements.
• Zhao Yuanwu arrived and confronted Xu Wuyi, who retreated while raising gravity barriers to stall him.
• Zhao Yuanwu's Thousand Army Break failed to penetrate Xu Wuyi's gravity vortex, and he realized the charging device was preparing an escape.

Xu Wuyi rescued the seven captives from Great Liang and returned to the Federation, while Great Liang’s court debated how to respond to the powerful outsiders. The chapter left the imperial court divided over whether to act cautiously or answer the provocation.

• Xu Wuyi held off Zhao Yuanwu until the traversal device finished charging, then escaped through the portal as the other Lesser Saints arrived too late.
• Xu Wuyi sent the wounded and his team through first, then crossed over himself and reported that all seven had been rescued without deaths.
• Wu Dingbo and Feng Zhuohua welcomed Xu Wuyi back and discussed how Great Liang would now be more wary of the Federation.
• Zhao Yuanwu ordered Great Liang to seal the secret realm’s passages and warned the imperial court that powerful outsiders had appeared.
• Emperor Zhou Shaoting convened his officials, who disagreed over whether to cautiously assess the Star Origin Federation or respond to its rescue operation as a provocation.

Great Liang’s court accepted the Star Origin Federation’s arranged battle, requiring Xu Wuyi to fight as the prisoner-taker. Xu Wuyi agreed to the duel, scheduled for three days later, and began reflecting on the differences between Great Liang’s martial arts and the Federation’s Heart Image system.

• Li Xuangang advised Zhou Shaoting to accept an arranged battle as a way to test the Federation without starting an all-out war, and Xiao Pojun insisted Xu Wuyi must fight.
• Zhou Shaoting decreed that the battle would be limited to Lesser Saints and that Xu Wuyi must be the opponent.
• Feng Zhuohua and Wu Dingbo told Xu Wuyi that Great Liang had accepted the arranged battle and demanded he take part; Xu Wuyi agreed.
• Xu Wuyi declined to travel early with Qin Qinghe’s envoy team so he would not reveal his condition before the duel.
• Xu Wuyi examined his sea of consciousness and considered how Great Liang’s forceful martial arts differed from the Federation’s Heart Image system.

Qin Qinghe briefed Xu Wuyi on Great Liang’s strength and the rules for their arranged battle, while Xu Wuyi prepared to fight. In Great Liang, Zhou Shaoting and his ministers accepted the battle and began choosing a combatant, ruling out Zhao Yuanwu.

• Qin Qinghe told Xu Wuyi that Great Liang’s Martial Saint Li Xuangang was exceptionally powerful and that the Federation would ensure the battle remained fair.
• Xu Wuyi agreed to prepare for the fight, then meditated to bring himself to peak condition.
• Li Xuangang told Zhou Shaoting and the ministers that Qin Qinghe was a young, solidly grounded Martial Saint and that the Federation had a mature system for cultivating Grandmasters.
• Zhou Shaoting’s ministers accepted that the arranged battle would proceed and began discussing who should represent Great Liang.
• Xiao Pojun said that Zhao Yuanwu was unsuitable because he had already been driven back by the stranger in a single move.

Great Liang’s court struggled to find a sub-Sage capable of defeating the Star Origin Federation’s outsider. Zhou Chen volunteered to represent the empire, and the officials agreed he was the most suitable candidate, though the emperor remained concerned for his safety.

• Xiao Pojun and Song Wenyuan reported that neither the army’s strongest fighters nor the sects’ leading sub-Sage disciples could guarantee victory over the outsider.
• Zhou Chen entered the hall and asked Zhou Shaoting to let him fight on Great Liang’s behalf.
• Zhou Chen cited his record against sect disciples, including his victories over Luo Qingya and Xie Yunfeng, and argued that an imperial family member should represent Great Liang.
• Li Xuangang endorsed Zhou Chen’s temperament and argued that he might win without risking the state’s dignity if he lost.
• Xiao Pojun and Song Wenyuan agreed Zhou Chen was the most suitable fighter, while Zhou Shaoting remained silent about whether he would approve the choice.

Zhou Chen accepted the challenge against the mysterious outsider, privately recognizing the danger while preparing himself for the fight. After Zhao Yuanwu reflected on his decisive defeat, Zhou Chen practiced with his divine sword and discovered that Li Xuangang had come to see him.

• Zhou Shaoting authorized Zhou Chen to fight, requiring victory and setting punishment if he lost.
• Zhou Chen walked back to the Eastern Palace and privately considered the outsider’s strength and his own reasons for wanting the battle.
• Zhao Yuanwu returned to the abandoned cave on Liang Satellite Three and accepted that the outsider had defeated him decisively.
• Zhou Chen practiced basic sword strikes with Startled Swan in the Eastern Palace training ground.
• Zhou Chen sensed Li Xuangang beneath the eaves and called on the Imperial Preceptor to reveal himself.

As the arranged battle with Great Liang approached, Li Xuangang advised Zhou Chen on how to face the alien spear wielder. Xu Wuyi traveled with the Federation delegation to Star Realm No. 0492, where he saw Zhou Chen and the Great Liang party waiting at the meeting site.

• Li Xuangang watched Zhou Chen practice swordsmanship and advised him to use speed and skill against the alien’s powerful spear without relying on his divine weapon.
• Xu Wuyi boarded the Federation transport with Qin Qinghe and Grandmaster Lin Jianyi, who was leading the delegation.
• The delegation arrived at Star Realm No. 0492, a resource-rich world claimed by both the Federation and Great Liang.
• A Federation officer said the teleportation array was ready and that both sides would meet on a plain thirty kilometers from their temporary stronghold.
• Xu Wuyi’s group reached the meeting site and saw Li Xuangang, Zhou Chen, and the Great Liang party assembled across the plain.

Lin Jianyi’s presence shook Li Xuangang before Zhou Chen and Xu Wuyi began their duel. Zhou Chen opened with a perfected sword technique, but Xu Wuyi blocked every strike with his spear.

• Lin Jianyi introduced himself to Li Xuangang, whose secret art revealed an overwhelming sword waiting in the depths of Lin Jianyi.
• Li Xuangang recovered from the encounter and sent Zhou Chen to take his turn.
• Zhou Chen and Xu Wuyi entered the arena as the observers watched closely.
• Xu Wuyi raised the Prairie Fire Long Spear while Zhou Chen drew Startled Swan and attacked with Phantom Threefold Sword.
• Xu Wuyi blocked Zhou Chen’s three sword phantoms with a single precise spear sweep, and Zhou Chen immediately changed his move.

Xu Wuyi used gravity manipulation and his spear to overpower Zhou Chen in their duel, breaking the Startled Swan sword. Zhou Chen was left frozen with the shattered weapon in his hand.

• Xu Wuyi turned aside Zhou Chen's opening sword attack with a precise tap of his spear.
• Zhou Chen charged with a high-speed sword strike, but Xu Wuyi slowed him with gravity manipulation and countered with Spark.
• Xu Wuyi's spear drove Zhou Chen back and cracked the Startled Swan sword, but Zhou Chen attacked again without holding back.
• Xu Wuyi parried and countered Zhou Chen through a prolonged exchange, while Zhou Chen realized his opponent was using the duel to hone his spear.
• On the ninety-first move, Xu Wuyi brought his spear down on the Startled Swan sword and broke it in two, leaving Zhou Chen stunned.

Xu Wuyi defeated Zhou Chen in the arranged battle, and Li Xuangang conceded Great Liang’s claim to Star Realm No. 0492 to the Federation. Afterward, Xu Wuyi explained that a hidden flaw in Zhou Chen’s sword had caused it to break.

• Zhou Chen found Startled Swan broken after Xu Wuyi’s spear strike and wanted to continue fighting, but Li Xuangang stopped him.
• Li Xuangang declared that Great Liang conceded the battle, and Lin Jianyi confirmed that the Federation would receive the development rights to Star Realm No. 0492.
• Li Xuangang asked how many young Sub-Saints like Xu Wuyi the Federation had, and Lin Jianyi called Xu Wuyi its greatest genius in a century.
• Qin Qinghe and the Federation’s group approached Xu Wuyi and congratulated him on his victory.
• Xu Wuyi told Quasi-Grandmaster Zhou that a hidden injury in the spine of Zhou Chen’s sword had caused the blade to break.

After defeating Zhou Chen, Xu Wuyi returned to the Federation outpost and reflected on how close he was to the Grandmaster realm before sending his mother a message. In Great Liang’s camp, Li Xuangang told Zhou Chen that he would not last ten moves against Xu Wuyi and could force him to use only fifty percent of his strength.

• Li Xuangang led Zhou Chen and the Great Liang party away from the plain after Zhou Chen’s defeat, recognizing Xu Wuyi’s exceptional strength and composure.
• Xu Wuyi returned to the Federation outpost and judged that the duel had remained under his control, while deciding not to rush his attempt to reach the Grandmaster realm.
• Xu Wuyi messaged his mother that the mission had gone smoothly, and she said she would wait for him to come home for dinner.
• A day later, Li Xuangang, Xiao Pojun, Song Wenyuan, and other officials gathered in Great Liang’s camp as its remaining forces prepared to withdraw.
• Li Xuangang told Zhou Chen he would not last beyond ten moves against Xu Wuyi and could force Xu Wuyi to use only fifty percent of his strength.

Li Xuangang explained that the Star Origin Federation’s strength came from a vastly superior martial arts system and civilization, leaving Great Liang unable to match it in war. He urged cooperation as a way for Great Liang to gain the Federation’s training methods, and the chapter ended with Zhou Chen asking whether cooperation would turn Great Liang into a vassal; Li Xuangang said he believed it would not.

• Li Xuangang told the tent that he could not last a single breath against the Star Origin Federation’s swordsmanship Grandmaster, Lin Jianyi, and that its strongest Martial Saints surpassed Great Liang’s.
• Li Xuangang reassured Zhou Chen that losing to Xu Wuyi reflected the gap between civilizations, not a lack of talent or effort.
• Li Xuangang explained how the Federation’s universities and military developed Martial Saints through a systematic training pipeline, unlike Great Liang’s master-and-disciple approach.
• Li Xuangang advised Xiao Pojun to cooperate with the Federation, warning that refusing would invite a forced occupation of the Star Realm.
• Li Xuangang argued that cooperation could bring Great Liang a systematic method of martial cultivation and eventually increase its number of Martial Saints.
• Zhou Chen asked whether cooperation would make Great Liang a vassal, and Li Xuangang firmly said he believed it would not.

After Xu Wuyi defeated Zhou Chen, Zhou Chen accepted that Great Liang must seek allies rather than vassals, and Li Xuangang promised to report the matter to the emperor. Back at the Federation base, Xu Wuyi planned to travel and spar with quasi-Grandmasters to advance his martial path before leaving for Xingjing.

• Zhou Chen looked at his broken sword, Startled Swan, and resolved to face the consequences of his defeat.
• Li Xuangang told Zhou Chen that he would personally report to His Majesty, while Prime Minister Song Wenyuan replaced the tent's candle.
• Xu Wuyi told Qin Qinghe that he planned to travel across the Federation and challenge quasi-Grandmasters to test his Heart Image and martial path.
• Qin Qinghe recommended that Xu Wuyi pay special attention to Chen Han, Wang Hanshan, and Su Yu, and shared lessons from his own year of travel and sparring.
• Xu Wuyi planned to spend two days with his parents in Honghe City before setting out, then watched the stars over Star Realm No. 0492 before drawing the curtains.

After returning from Star Realm No. 0492, Xu Wuyi reported the mission’s success to General Wu Dingbo and decided to travel across the Federation to exchange martial arts with quasi-Grandmasters. He returned to Honghe to spend time with his parents before setting out, leaving the journey ahead planned but not yet begun.

• Xu Wuyi reflected on his fight with Zhou Chen and resolved to learn from more opponents and find his own martial path.
• Xu Wuyi and Qin Qinghe flew from Star Realm No. 0492 to Xingjing, then parted at the airport.
• Xu Wuyi reported the successful rescue and secured development rights to General Wu Dingbo, who offered to arrange introductions to quasi-Grandmasters.
• Xu Wuyi told Wu Dingbo he would visit his parents in Honghe before beginning his travels around the Federation.
• Xu Wuyi returned home, told his parents he might be away for months or years, and agreed to leave the day after tomorrow.
• Xu Wuyi spent the next day at home with his parents, sharing an ordinary day and a dinner of his favorite dishes.

Xu Wuyi prepared to travel across the Federation to seek martial guidance, beginning with a visit to Wang Hanshan in Su'an Province. He left home for the high-speed rail station, carrying the Prairie Fire Long Spear and wondering whether battle would reveal what his Golden Crow Heart Image lacked.

• Xu Wuyi studied his Heart Image and found that, despite the Golden Crow’s seamless fusion with the Great Marsh, it lacked a vital spirit.
• Xu Wuyi recalled how past battles had advanced his martial path and decided he might need to seek the answer through battle.
• Xu Wuyi told his parents he planned to visit Wang Hanshan first, then travel to the Northern Region and southwest to meet others on his list.
• Xu Wuyi packed his belongings and Prairie Fire Long Spear, said goodbye to his parents, and left home.
• Xu Wuyi reached Honghe City High-Speed Rail Station and reviewed Wang Hanshan’s history and photographs while waiting for his train.

Xu Wuyi traveled to Langya Mountain to meet Wang Hanshan and seek guidance on refining the “weight” aspect of his Heart Image. Wang Hanshan invited him to spar and asked to see how far his mastery had progressed.

• Xu Wuyi compared the inclusive weight of his Great Marsh Heart Image with the explosive weight of Wang Hanshan’s Mountain-Shattering Fist before boarding a train from Honghe City.
• Xu Wuyi traveled to Langya City, then took a taxi and walked into the mountains to reach Wang Hanshan’s secluded residence.
• Wang Hanshan greeted Xu Wuyi, inspected him, and shared mountain tea with him at a stone table.
• Xu Wuyi explained that he had come to refine the weight aspect of his Heart Image, and Wang Hanshan said the martial path had no ultimate end.
• Wang Hanshan moved to the clearing and invited Xu Wuyi to show his progress, while Xu Wuyi removed his gun case.

Xu Wuyi sparred with Wang Hanshan, who tested his foundation with powerful, weight-amplified punches. After Xu Wuyi used gravity manipulation to deflect an attack, Wang Hanshan recognized that they both followed the path of weight, though in different ways, and called for another round.

• Xu Wuyi set aside the Prairie Fire Long Spear and agreed to spar with Wang Hanshan using fists.
• Wang Hanshan struck Xu Wuyi with a heavy straight punch, and Xu Wuyi blocked it with a technique from the Basic Body Tempering Method.
• Wang Hanshan followed with two punches, and Xu Wuyi dodged and parried while using gravity manipulation to slow the second strike.
• Wang Hanshan recognized Xu Wuyi’s Heart Image as a weight-based domain and explained that his own weight reinforced his body from within.
• Wang Hanshan drew his Heart Image inward to increase his body’s mass and asked Xu Wuyi to spar again.

Xu Wuyi used subtle gravity shifts to disrupt Wang Hanshan’s decisive attack, then countered with a Golden Crow-empowered punch that forced Wang Hanshan back and scorched his fist. Wang Hanshan acknowledged Xu Wuyi’s skill and said the punch could have crippled his hand if Xu Wuyi had not held back.

• Wang Hanshan unleashed a rapid barrage of heavy punches, forcing Xu Wuyi to retreat despite his precise defense.
• Xu Wuyi recalled his battle with Ye Yixin and began arranging gravity distortions to guide Wang Hanshan’s movements.
• Wang Hanshan pressed Xu Wuyi to the edge of the clearing and launched a powerful finishing punch.
• Xu Wuyi increased gravity beneath Wang Hanshan’s planted foot, disrupting his punch’s trajectory, then countered with a Golden Crow-augmented Bow Stance Punch.
• The collision sent Wang Hanshan staggering back seven steps and Xu Wuyi retreating three, while the impact left scorch marks on Wang Hanshan’s fist.
• Wang Hanshan praised Xu Wuyi’s punch and said Xu Wuyi had held back enough to avoid crippling his hand.