Chapter Summaries

Ruan Ruiming opened the Yuanyang Gang’s Teleportation Array to send martial cultivators into the Lesser Demon Mountain Forbidden Grounds for a one-day trial. Shen Xiu entered with the others, and the chapter ended with the group in a quiet valley as veteran fighters prepared their blades for the demons’ arrival.

• Zhai Qiu and others discussed the Teleportation Array’s worsening instability and Lu Mingshan’s inability to repair the Divine Talisman Master’s handiwork.
• Ruan Ruiming explained the three rings of the forbidden grounds, warned that demons would not spare the entrants, and gave them a final chance to withdraw.
• The gateway opened, revealing demons waiting at the valley on the other side and anticipating the humans as prey.
• Shen Xiu and several hundred martial cultivators crossed the array into the blood-tinged forbidden grounds, and the gateway vanished behind them.
• The entrants found themselves in a silent valley; while some wondered where the demons were, veteran fighters quietly oiled their blades.

Shen Xiu slaughtered demons in the Lesser Demon Mountain trial, drawing attention for killing far more than the other participants. A veteran freeloader confronted him and warned that his kill count had crossed the line.

• Shen Xiu drew his Demon Slaying Saber as a horde of demons charged down the valley, and the trial participants formed teams to fight them.
• Shen Xiu killed a pig-bodied demon with one slash and watched its blood energy flow into the Qi Gathering Bead.
• Shen Xiu swiftly killed many first-grade demons, prompting another participant to call him a freeloader.
• After the Qi Gathering Bead barely changed, Shen Xiu began hunting second-grade demons and killed more than a dozen.
• A gray-clad young man who had freeloaded at the trials for two years approached Shen Xiu and warned him that his numbers had crossed the line.

Shen Xiu killed demons in the outer ring of Lesser Demon Mountain’s Forbidden Land, then entered the Inner Ring in search of richer blood qi. There, he slew a Third Order White Tiger Demon after it and an Ox-head Demon attacked him.

• Shen Xiu explained to a gray-clad youth that he was killing demons to join the Yuanyang Gang, and the youth apologized and left.
• Shen Xiu fought his way to the summit, where he saw the boundary separating the outer ring from the Inner Ring.
• Shen Xiu entered the Inner Ring, where Third and Fourth Order Demons gathered and their roars filled the air.
• An Ox-head Demon and a White Tiger Demon stopped fighting each other and charged at Shen Xiu.
• Shen Xiu cut down the Ox-head Demon, then defeated the White Tiger Demon and drew a richer strand of blood qi essence into his Qi Gathering Bead.

Shen Xiu fought a fourth-rank White Bone Demon that wielded stone and earth, then destroyed it after discovering a booklet buried in its chest. The demon’s skull was its weakness, and the surviving booklet bore a blurred talisman character.

• The Ox-head Demon fled after realizing Shen Xiu had killed the White Tiger Demon.
• Shen Xiu encountered a fourth-rank White Bone Demon near the outer perimeter and learned that it had been an Immortal Sect mystic cultivator in life.
• The White Bone Demon attacked with stone spikes and red chains, but Shen Xiu broke free and struck it with his saber and fists.
• Shen Xiu saw a square, book-like object inside the demon’s chest and suspected it might be a mystic cultivator’s secret manual.
• Shen Xiu shattered the White Bone Demon’s skull with the Blood Battle Saber Technique, extinguishing its nether fire.
• Shen Xiu found a worn pale-green booklet among the bones, with a blurred talisman character visible on one corner.

Shen Xiu left Lesser Demon Mountain with a rare booklet on intermediate talismans and submitted his trial record, which showed he had slain Fourth Order Demons. After a Yuanyang Gang official confirmed his achievement, Shen Xiu received and blood-bound a golden token that would let him pass through Lesser Demon Mountain’s restrictions.

• Shen Xiu found a booklet titled Explanation of Intermediate Talismans, kept it, and continued hunting demons in the mountain’s middle ring.
• As his stamina waned, Shen Xiu killed several more demons and returned to the teleportation gate, which brought him back to the Yuanyang Gang headquarters.
• During registration, the black-robed deacon doubted Shen Xiu’s record of killing Fourth Order Demons and called for someone higher-ranking to verify it.
• A white-robed man confirmed Shen Xiu’s kills, and the crowd learned that Shen Xiu had entered the middle ring alone.
• The black-robed deacon issued Shen Xiu a golden token, which Shen Xiu bound with his blood, and the trial ended with a little over two hundred participants remaining.

Shen Xiu unlocked the Talisman Apprentice sub-profession while practicing talisman drawing, then learned that Jin Mu'er had injured a street vendor. As Xi Zhengyang probed Shen Xiu’s willingness to act against her, Shen Xiu suspected Xi had a hidden connection to Jin Mu'er.

• Shen Xiu attempted to draw an Explosive Fire Talisman and unlocked the Talisman Apprentice sub-profession.
• Xi Zhengyang visited Shen Xiu and told him that someone from a wealthy household had ridden down a street vendor on Lingering Treasures Street.
• Shen Xiu said he probably would not help a stranger, though he had acted against Jin Mu'er because she had wronged the White Python.
• Xi Zhengyang identified Jin Mu'er as the daughter of Jin Liqi and described her as an overbearing member of the Suspended Mirror Division.
• Shen Xiu said Jin Mu'er deserved to die, and Xi Zhengyang concealed his eagerness by claiming he lacked the strength to act.

Shen Xiu learned why Xi Zhengyang wanted Jin Mu'er dead and agreed to act against her before she left Shanglin for Changling. The chapter ended with Xi Zhengyang worried about Feng Haoran's strength, while Shen Xiu assured him he had a way to handle it.

• Xi Zhengyang told Shen Xiu that Jin Mu'er was a Third Realm cultivator and that Feng Haoran, her close companion, had reached the Fifth Realm.
• Shen Xiu continued practicing talismans and cultivating with the Golden Cicada, then advanced his progress tempering his five viscera.
• Xi Zhengyang told Shen Xiu that Jin Mu'er would leave for Imperial Capital Changling in two months and asked him to join the Anti-Jin Alliance.
• Xi Zhengyang explained how Jin Mu'er had killed or ruined the lives of Old Tan, Xiao Tang, and his fiancée, and that the alliance lacked the money to hire assassins.
• Shen Xiu declined to join the alliance but offered to attack Jin Mu'er if Xi Zhengyang provided the details of her departure.
• Xi Zhengyang warned Shen Xiu that Feng Haoran was a Fifth Realm cultivator, but Shen Xiu said he had his own methods.

Shen Xiu advanced the Blood Battle Saber Technique to its fourth layer while hunting Demons in Lesser Demon Mountain’s middle ring. A Fifth Order Demon attacked him, and the chapter ended with its zombie-like form revealed after their first clash.

• Shen Xiu entered the middle ring to hunt stronger Demons and improve his saber technique.
• Shen Xiu killed several Third Order Demons and a Fourth Order Demon, raising the Blood Battle Saber Technique to the fourth layer.
• Shen Xiu sensed a powerful presence watching him and spotted a black-mist-shrouded Demon on a hillside.
• The Fifth Order Demon charged Shen Xiu, and their first clash sent them both flying backward.
• Shen Xiu saw that the black mist concealed a mutated, zombie-like human corpse.

Shen Xiu fought a Fifth Order Demon in Lesser Demon Mountain, then escaped as it summoned a horde that could not cross the mountain’s restriction. After the Yuanyang Gang closed the forbidden ground, Shen Xiu prepared for Jin Mu’er’s departure from Shanglin City.

• Shen Xiu wounded the Fifth Order Demon with his Demon Slaying Saber and realized he could potentially kill it, but fled when he heard more creatures approaching.
• The demon tried to block Shen Xiu’s escape, but he blasted it aside with Dragon Subduing Qi and crossed into the outer region.
• A horde of demons gathered behind the restriction while members of the Suspended Sword Division discussed the weakening barrier and the danger posed by demons in the inner region.
• Shen Xiu left Lesser Demon Mountain, and the Yuanyang Gang soon prohibited its members from entering the forbidden ground until further notice.
• Xi Zhengyang told Shen Xiu that Jin Mu’er would leave Shanglin City on the fifth day of the next month, and Shen Xiu bought Rejuvenation Pills to restore blood and qi.

In Xianyun Town, Shen Xiu heard that Boss Li had ambushed a convoy and suspected it was Jin Mu'er and Feng Haoran’s. He interrogated Ding Liu for details, then disappeared from the alley with the information he needed.

• Shen Xiu overheard two men say Boss Li had lost men and been injured while attacking a convoy near Xianyun Town.
• Shen Xiu followed one of the men, Ding Liu, into a secluded alley and seized him by the throat.
• Shen Xiu forced Ding Liu to explain that Boss Li led Tuya Stockade and was a Peak of the Third Realm Martial Cultivator.
• Ding Liu said Boss Li had attacked a convoy of two carriages carrying ten people, injured three, and lost men to the guards.
• After questioning Ding Liu about the convoy, Shen Xiu released him and vanished from the alley.

Shen Xiu followed Ding Liu to a Wolf Fang Stockade ambush and watched Feng Haoran and Jin Mu'er repel their attack. When the stockade's Boss began to falter, Shen Xiu disguised himself as a bandit and prepared to create an opening.

• Shen Xiu followed Ding Liu into the forest and hid near the Wolf Fang Stockade bandits waiting to ambush Feng Haoran and Jin Mu'er.
• The Boss of Wolf Fang Stockade attacked the lead carriage, but Jin Mu'er's defensive treasure blocked his strike.
• Feng Haoran joined the fight, sent The Boss flying, and easily repelled the other bandits' attacks.
• Shen Xiu knocked out a bandit, took his clothes and archery equipment, and approached the battle in disguise.
• As The Boss appeared ready to retreat, Shen Xiu prepared to create an opportunity for him.

Shen Xiu used a Mystic Talisman-tipped arrow to catch Feng Haoran off guard and give Wolf Fang Stockade's Boss an opening to strike. After Feng Haoran slaughtered the bandits, he fixed his murderous gaze on Shen Xiu.

• Shen Xiu infiltrated the Wolf Fang bandits and secretly attached a Mystic Talisman to an arrow.
• Shen Xiu fired the arrow at Feng Haoran as other arrows flew, and the talisman exploded when Feng Haoran swept them aside.
• Feng Haoran shoved Jin Mu'er out of harm's way, then the Wolf Fang Stockade's Boss struck him with a powerful Saber Aura.
• A masked bald bandit recognized Shen Xiu and, terrified, abandoned the stockade to go home and farm.
• Feng Haoran killed the Boss and the remaining Wolf Fang bandits, then fixed his gaze on Shen Xiu.

Shen Xiu caught up with Feng Haoran and fought him, but Feng Haoran’s Protective Spirit Artifact saved him from Shen Xiu’s killing blow. Shen Xiu then used a hidden technique to overpower Feng Haoran and kill him.

• Feng Haoran and Jin Mu'er finished killing the bandits in the ravaged valley.
• Shen Xiu emerged from the forest and attacked Feng Haoran with his Hundred-Refined Saber.
• Shen Xiu forced Feng Haoran to defend himself and unleashed a powerful Saber Aura, but Feng Haoran’s Protective Spirit Artifact blocked the strike and broke the saber.
• Shen Xiu used a sudden burst of power to seize Feng Haoran’s fist and strike him in the chest, killing him.

Shen Xiu killed Feng Haoran and Jin Mu'er after breaking through to the Fifth Realm, then concealed their bodies and entered Shanglin City. At the city gate, Jin Liqi investigated suspicious arrivals while Shen Xiu passed into the city unnoticed.

• Shen Xiu used Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell to reach the Fifth Realm, then killed Feng Haoran by crushing his throat.
• Jin Mu'er fled toward Shanglin, but Shen Xiu caught her, broke through her protective barrier, and killed her.
• Shen Xiu searched the pair's belongings, took their banknotes, and arranged Jin Mu'er's corpse among the bandits' bodies to suggest they had fought.
• Jin Liqi questioned a guard about suspicious arrivals at Shanglin's gate while searching for Blood Sea Cult members.
• Jin Liqi broke up a dispute between a woodcutter and an old peddler, and Shen Xiu entered Shanglin amid the crowd.

Lu Tianhai, a Blood Sea Cult deacon, infiltrated Shanglin City and sought help from his former colleague Zhong Jianyuan to obtain access to Lesser Demon Mountain. Meanwhile, Shen Xiu advanced to the mid-stage of the Fourth Realm and resumed hunting demons after the mountain’s restrictions reopened.

• Lu Tianhai entered Shanglin City disguised as a woodcutter and rented a room at an inn.
• Shen Xiu prepared blood-and-qi pills, advanced to the mid-stage of the Fourth Realm, and returned to Lesser Demon Mountain when its restrictions reopened.
• Lu Tianhai found Zhong Jianyuan’s residence and revealed that he was a deacon of the Blood Sea Cult’s Heyang Branch.
• Lu Tianhai asked Zhong Jianyuan whether he could obtain an unbound Gold-Patterned Token, and Zhong Jianyuan questioned his plans.

Shen Xiu trained in the Lesser Demon Mountain Forbidden Grounds and exchanged five filled Qi Gathering Beads for three hundred taels. Hoping to earn enough silver to buy a higher-realm cultivation technique, he accepted Boss Ning’s offer to hunt two mutated Azure Nether Wolf Demons.

• Shen Xiu used a Black Bear Demon’s attacks to temper his Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill, then killed it when it stopped being useful and ended his training after tiring.
• Shen Xiu noticed an unfamiliar Yuanyang Gang member head toward the inner ring of the Lesser Demon Mountain Forbidden Grounds.
• Shen Xiu visited Boss Ning’s shop and exchanged five filled Qi Gathering Beads for five empty ones and three hundred taels.
• Shen Xiu recalled that cultivation techniques above the fourth realm were auctioned for at least twenty thousand taels, leaving him short of the money he needed.
• Boss Ning offered Shen Xiu five hundred taels to bring back two mutated Azure Nether Wolf Demons for the Sifang Medicine Workshop, and Shen agreed to try.

Shen Xiu encountered Fazheng, a monk who invited him to join Lanke Temple, then entered the Lesser Demon Mountain Forbidden Grounds to hunt Azure Nether Wolf Demons. Surrounded by hundreds of wolves, he fought his way into their pack and continued battling as they formed an organized attack.

• At First Grade Tower, Shen Xiu noticed Fazheng watching him, and the monk disappeared before he finished his meal.
• The next day, Fazheng introduced himself as a monk from Lanke Temple and invited Shen Xiu to study Buddhism, but Shen Xiu refused.
• Shen Xiu entered the Lesser Demon Mountain Forbidden Grounds and searched a pine forest for the sunken tunnel where Azure Nether Wolf Demons lived.
• Three Azure Nether Wolf Demons detected Shen Xiu, and his attack drew hundreds more wolves that surrounded him.
• Shen Xiu unleashed Dragon Subduing Strength and fought through the pack with his Demon Slaying Saber, while the wolves regrouped and launched coordinated attacks that failed to break his defense.

Shen Xiu escaped a pack of Azure Nether Wolf Demons, sold two of their corpses, and received an invitation from Yun Chengzhi to become a Yun Family retainer. He accepted a nominal position that would pay him while leaving his daily freedom intact.

• Shen Xiu advanced the Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill to its third level and used Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell to escape the demon encirclement with two Azure Nether Wolf corpses.
• Shen Xiu sold the two mutated Azure Nether Wolves to Shopkeeper Ning for five hundred taels' worth of silver notes.
• Shopkeeper Ning introduced Shen Xiu to Yun Chengzhi, the eldest young master of the Yun Family, who invited him to become a retainer.
• Yun Chengzhi offered Shen Xiu a nominal retainer position with a reduced stipend and no requirement to live at the Yun estate.
• Shen Xiu accepted the Yun Family's offer because the income would help him save toward twenty thousand taels.

Shen Xiu took up the Yun Family’s Fifth Venerable position despite Second Venerable Tong Tongguang’s threats, then spent half a month handling his duties and training. When an assassin attacked him at night, Shen Xiu defeated him and demanded to know who had sent him.

• Shen Xiu received his Fifth Venerable token and learned that Second Venerable Tong Tongguang wanted the position for his nephew.
• Tong Tongguang threatened Shen Xiu and urged him to resign, but Shen Xiu refused and left.
• Over the next half month, Shen Xiu resolved problems at the Yun Family’s shops while continuing his training and other work.
• A black-clad assassin crept into Shen Xiu’s courtyard at night and tried to enter his room.
• Shen Xiu blinded the assassin with lime, struck him down, and pressed a blade to his throat to demand the name of his employer.

After killing Tong Tongguang for sending an assassin, Shen Xiu searched Lesser Demon Mountain for Phoenix Ghost Vine and overheard two men discussing runes and a plan to break something open. He remained hidden in the redwood forest as the middle-aged man angrily accused the elder of not listening.

• Shen Xiu learned that Tong Tongguang had ordered an assassin to cripple him, then later killed Tong Tongguang when he traveled alone.
• Shen Xiu bought Shopkeeper Ning’s clue about a Phoenix Ghost Vine sighting near a cliff in the southern part of Lesser Demon Mountain.
• Shen Xiu reached the redwood forest and searched the cliff and surrounding area for the valuable herb.
• Shen Xiu heard an elder and a middle-aged man discussing runes that needed to absorb spiritual energy before they could break something open.
• The middle-aged man said Elder Zhai Qiu might have noticed him and angrily complained that the elder was not listening.