Chapter Summaries

Zhou An discovered that carving wood with his long blade raised his Knife Skills proficiency, so he continued practicing. Near the end of the shift, Yu Hang warned him that Division Magistrate Zhang was investigating the mysterious expert.

• Zhou An asked Chef Liu how to improve his vegetable-chopping skills, but learning several cutting methods did not increase his proficiency.
• Chef Liu challenged Zhou An to carve a realistic bok choy from wood using the long blade at his waist.
• Zhou An gained Knife Skills proficiency by carving, then continued practicing through lunch and after work.
• Yu Hang returned shortly before the shift ended and warned Zhou An to keep a lower profile because Division Magistrate Zhang was investigating the mysterious expert.

Yu Hang warned Zhou An that the Demon Suppression Division was seeking the mysterious expert to help fight the Beast Cult, so Zhou An decided to keep a low profile while secretly improving his skills. The Division Magistrate’s search found no outsiders in An Ding County, leaving the officials to suspect the expert was a local.

• Yu Hang told Zhou An that Division Magistrate Zhang had questioned him about the mysterious expert and wanted to recruit the expert against the Beast Cult.
• Yu Hang urged Zhou An to stay out of trouble and keep his identity secret, and Zhou An agreed.
• Zhou An returned home and decided to practice Knife Skills during the day and wok tossing at night.
• Division Magistrate Zhang discussed the Beast Cult’s retreat and the danger of leaving its members unchecked with six supervisors.
• A supervisor reported that the search had found no outsiders entering or leaving An Ding County, and Division Magistrate Zhang considered that the mysterious expert might be a local.

Division Magistrate Zhang ordered an investigation into An Ding County’s residents as he searched for the mysterious expert. Zhou An continued practicing his skills at the yamen, where a constable’s report of a stranger’s knife-riddled corpse hinted at a new case.

• Division Magistrate Zhang realized the mysterious expert might live within An Ding County and ordered a thorough, non-hostile investigation of its residents.
• Zhou An went to the yamen kitchen and noticed Chef Liu was missing, so he chopped vegetables and practiced carving wood.
• Chef Liu returned in a hurry, claiming a relative had needed his attention, then cooked while Zhou An continued practicing.
• After Zhou An and Chef Liu ate, a constable reported that they had found an outsider’s corpse covered in dense knife wounds.

Zhou An inspected the body of a man killed by a skilled attacker and learned that the victim belonged to the Blood Shadow Gate. As Zhou An and Yu Hang began patrolling Cang Yun Street, Yu Hang fell silent after Zhou An asked what the Blood Shadow Gate was.

• Zhou An arrived in the courtyard and recognized that the corpse's many uniform blade wounds had been inflicted by an expert.
• The coroner reported that the victim had bled to death, and Head Constable Xie ordered the body removed.
• Division Magistrate Zhang identified the dead man as a member of the Blood Shadow Gate and said the yamen would work with the Demon Suppression Division.
• Head Constable Xie ordered the constables to patrol in pairs, and Zhou An was assigned to patrol with Yu Hang.
• Zhou An asked Yu Hang about the Blood Shadow Gate, and Yu Hang fell silent.

Zhou An learned that Blood Shadow Gate members could use their shadows to strengthen their original abilities, while mysterious corpses bearing the sect’s tokens continued to appear in An Ding County. He focused on improving his skills and, after reaching the threshold through nightly wok practice, prepared to advance Wok Tossing to level three.

• Yu Hang explained that Blood Shadow Gate members used shadows to enhance their existing abilities, and Zhou An suspected a Beast Cult member had also learned the sect’s methods.
• Zhou An continued patrolling and training, spending extra time tossing his wok despite sleeping only an hour and a half before returning to duty.
• Chef Liu gave Zhou An a kitchen key so he could practice Knife Skills while the chef was away.
• Over the following days, corpses bearing Blood Shadow Gate tokens appeared across An Ding County, while the Beast Cult disappeared and the Demon Suppression Division focused its investigation on the Blood Shadow Gate.
• Zhou An’s Wok Tossing proficiency reached 19856/20000, and he began another focused practice session to reach level three.

Zhou An advanced his Object Juggling skill to level three, learned that it could control and damage anything he could toss, and hit a proficiency bottleneck. While patrolling Cang Yun Street with Yu Hang that night, he heard fighting in a nearby alley.

• Zhou An chose Object Juggling and gained Strength +2 and Destruction +1, making the iron wok feel lighter and giving the skill powerful control and damaging effects.
• Zhou An tested wok flipping but gained no proficiency, so he planned to ask Chef Liu for guidance on breaking through the bottleneck.
• Zhou An ate breakfast at his usual stall, noticed five unfamiliar armed martial folk, and continued to the yamen without interfering.
• Zhou An and Yu Hang patrolled Cang Yun Street at night and discussed Yu Hang's coming provincial examination and plans to appoint Zhou An as his Constable Captain.
• Zhou An heard sounds of fighting from an alley and stopped to investigate.

Zhou An and Yu Hang investigated fighting sounds in a deep alley, where Zhou An found five martial artists surrounding a masked man. He learned the fighters were from the Blood Shadow Gate and that the masked man was an Elder, but his familiar voice left Zhou An surprised as the battle continued.

• Zhou An heard fighting in the alley and sent Yu Hang to fetch the Demon Suppression Division while he went ahead alone.
• Zhou An spotted five martial artists, including the man with silver hooks, attacking a masked swordsman.
• Zhou An waited in hiding, hoping either to question the survivors or let the Demon Suppression Division handle them.
• The hook-wielder demanded that the masked man return an item belonging to the Blood Shadow Gate, and Zhou An connected the fight to a corpse he had previously found.
• The masked man claimed to be an Elder of the Blood Shadow Gate, and Zhou An recognized something familiar in his hoarse voice.

Zhou An watched a masked man in black kill five Blood Shadow Gate pursuers with exceptional saber techniques, then confronted him as he tried to escape. The chapter ended with Zhou An and the masked man clashing their knife light in the alley.

• The man with twin hooks and four allies attacked the masked man in black, who killed all five with two powerful saber strikes.
• Zhou An recognized the masked man's skill and noticed that the techniques had left him exhausted.
• Zhou An blocked the masked man's escape and struck with Knife Light Forms a Line, surprising him.
• The masked man offered to return later with an explanation, but Zhou An chose to attack him first.
• Zhou An unleashed more than thirty streaks of knife light, and the masked man raised his saber as their attacks collided.

Zhou An defeated the masked fighter and discovered that he was Chef Liu, a Blood Shadow Gate elder. Chef Liu agreed to explain his connection to the Beast Cult, which Zhou An wanted to eliminate before it could threaten him.

• Zhou An pressed his saber attack while the exhausted masked man struggled to keep up.
• The masked man revealed himself as Chef Liu, and Zhou An recognized him and demanded an explanation.
• Hearing the Demon Suppression Division approach, Chef Liu led Zhou An away and covered their tracks.
• Zhou An told Chef Liu that he wanted information about the Beast Cult, while Chef Liu revealed that he had stolen a Blood Shadow Gate treasure and was being hunted.
• Chef Liu said their goals aligned because he also wanted to deal with the Beast Cult.

Zhou An questioned Chef Liu about the Beast Cult and uncovered that Chef Liu had lied about the Blood Shadow Gate’s conspiracy. When Chef Liu transformed into a shadow and attacked, Zhou An fled into a nearby house and emerged carrying an iron wok.

• Chef Liu told Zhou An that he stole the Blood Shadow Gate’s Shadow Banner and was betrayed by the Beast Cult’s Sect Leader.
• Zhou An challenged Chef Liu over why he had not sought help from the Demon Suppression Division and why he had stayed in An Ding County.
• Chef Liu transformed into a towering shadow and admitted Zhou An’s guess was correct: he had given the Shadow Banner to the Beast Cult’s Sect Leader.
• Chef Liu offered Zhou An a position as a Protector in the Beast Cult, but Zhou An attacked him with his knife.
• Chef Liu’s shadow absorbed Zhou An’s blade strikes, so Zhou An ran into a nearby house and returned carrying an iron wok.

Zhou An used his newly developed Object Juggling skill to defeat and kill Chef Liu, who had tried to recruit him into the Beast Cult. As the Demon Suppression Division arrived, Zhou An reflected that he had refused because opposing them was unwise and because he had witnessed a little girl’s murder.

• Chef Liu attacked Zhou An with a storm of shadow blades, but Zhou An caught them in an iron wok and scattered them with Wok Flipping.
• Zhou An used the wok to trap Chef Liu and toss him until his body was reduced to bones and minced flesh.
• Chef Liu asked why Zhou An had rejected his promises of wealth and glory, but he died before receiving an answer.
• Zhou An thought that he had refused because opposing the Demon Suppression Division was unwise and because he had witnessed the little girl’s death.
• Zhou An heard footsteps and realized the sounds of the fight had brought the Demon Suppression Division’s people.

Zhou An pretended to be injured and told Division Magistrate Zhang a fabricated account of the alley fight, revealing Chef Liu as a Blood Shadow Gate Elder who had colluded with the Beast Cult. Zhang agreed to stop investigating the mysterious expert for now and focus on the Beast Cult.

• Zhou An staged his injuries and signaled Yu Hang to play along when the Demon Suppression Division arrived.
• Division Magistrate Zhang examined the alley and questioned Zhou An about what had happened.
• Zhou An claimed a mysterious expert had defeated Chef Liu and told him to pass on a message asking the authorities to stop investigating.
• Zhou An identified Chef Liu as a Blood Shadow Gate Elder who had stolen the sect’s treasure and hidden in the yamen while colluding with the Beast Cult.
• Zhang ordered his people to pause their search for the mysterious expert and contact the Blood Shadow Gate for help finding the Beast Cult.

After surviving the Beast Cult incident, Zhou An returned home with Yu Hang and realized that speed was a weakness he needed to address. He arranged to take a cook’s position at the yamen, then went home to test a new ability in the secluded alley.

• Yu Hang helped Zhou An home, and Zhou An asked him to stay the night in case the Beast Cult targeted him.
• Zhou An reflected on his lack of speed and decided he needed to develop an ability related to movement.
• Zhou An and Yu Hang went to the yamen, where Zhou An persuaded Master Xu to let him take a cook’s job in addition to his constable duties.
• Head Constable Xie excused Zhou An from night patrol because of his injuries, and Zhou An went home to cook a meal.
• Zhou An returned to the empty alley and bent his knees to test the new ability he had worked out how to trigger.

Zhou An discovered that coordinating his breathing while running unlocked the skill and spent the following days grinding it. He reached Running Level 3, gaining a marked improvement in speed.

• Zhou An adjusted his breathing as he ran through the alley and triggered Running at Level 1.
• He ran through the night and reached Running Level 2, gaining one point of Speed.
• Zhou An prioritized Running over Object Juggling and the Butchering Ox Skill while continuing his patrols with Yu Hang.
• As Yu Hang grew more nervous about the approaching Imperial Examination, Zhou An kept running whenever he had time.
• Zhou An reached Running Level 3 after an early morning run, moving quickly and making almost no sound with his footsteps.

Zhou An chose and mastered Soaring Dragon Steps, then spent the day patrolling with Yu Hang, whose anxiety over the Imperial Examination continued to weigh on him. When Head Constable Xie stopped them from leaving the yamen and summoned all the constables, Zhou An suspected the Beast Cult was behind the urgent matter.

• Zhou An chose Soaring Dragon Steps over Vajra Leg, gaining greater speed and the ability to evade attacks by sensing changes in the airflow.
• Zhou An tested the technique by dodging a pebble thrown at his back without looking.
• Zhou An returned to the yamen and patrolled with Yu Hang, then comforted his anxious friend about the approaching Imperial Examination.
• Zhou An invited Yu Hang to share a good meal after their shift, but Head Constable Xie stopped them and hurried to report something to the County Magistrate.
• Zhou An and Yu Hang joined the gathered constables, and Head Constable Xie called everyone into the courtyard to hear the urgent matter.

Head Constable Xie led Zhou An, Yu Hang, and the constables to Cloud Mountain to support the Demon Suppression Division’s assault on the Beast Cult stronghold. The Demon Suppression Division charged the small temple, and the battle began.

• Head Constable Xie ordered the constables to change into ordinary clothes, travel separately, and gather at the foot of Cloud Mountain to surround the Beast Cult’s stronghold.
• Zhou An and Yu Hang reached Cloud Mountain with the other constables and climbed toward the summit.
• The constables found Division Magistrate Zhang and dozens of Demon Suppression Division members hidden near the small temple.
• Division Magistrate Zhang ordered the Demon Suppression Division to attack while Head Constable Xie held the perimeter.
• The Demon Suppression Division charged the small temple, and fighting broke out with the Beast Cult.

The Demon Suppression Division raided the Beast Cult’s temple, but the Beast Sect Leader escaped and recognized Zhou An. Fearing the leader would seek revenge, Zhou An secretly pursued him after Head Constable Xie and Division Magistrate Zhang.

• Head Constable Xie ordered the constables to surround the temple while Zhou An and Yu Hang guarded its perimeter.
• After the fighting stopped, the Beast Sect Leader burst out of the temple and escaped into the air.
• The Beast Sect Leader recognized Zhou An, and Division Magistrate Zhang and Head Constable Xie pursued him.
• Zhou An told Yu Hang the leader had to die to prevent revenge, then slipped into the woods.
• Zhou An used Soaring Dragon Steps to chase after the Beast Sect Leader, moving even faster than him.

Division Magistrate Zhang and Head Constable Xie pursued the Beast Sect Leader after the Beast Cult was wiped out. When they cornered him, he revealed his Blood Shadow Gate powers and used the Shadow Box to grow stronger, forcing them to retreat.

• The Beast Sect Leader fled the destruction of the Beast Cult, but Division Magistrate Zhang and Head Constable Xie chased him into the wilderness.
• The Beast Sect Leader unleashed his shadow powers and grew to five meters tall before attacking Division Magistrate Zhang.
• Head Constable Xie blocked the Beast Sect Leader’s strike, and he and Division Magistrate Zhang trapped him in a net of sword light.
• The Beast Sect Leader released the Shadow Box, which enveloped him in shadows and enlarged him to eight meters.
• Division Magistrate Zhang recognized the Shadow Box, and Head Constable Xie urged them to retreat.

Head Constable Xie and Division Magistrate Zhang fought the Beast Sect Leader after he used the Shadow Box, but his overwhelming strength forced them to flee. As the Beast Sect Leader caught up, he suddenly stopped and looked past them at something behind them.

• Division Magistrate Zhang persuaded Head Constable Xie to keep fighting by promising to help him join the Demon Suppression Division.
• Head Constable Xie gave Division Magistrate Zhang a combat-enhancing pill, and the two swallowed theirs before confronting the Beast Sect Leader.
• Division Magistrate Zhang wounded the Beast Sect Leader with a powerful blade strike, but the Beast Sect Leader retaliated and severely injured him.
• Head Constable Xie carried Division Magistrate Zhang into the forest, and the Beast Sect Leader pursued them, threatening to kill the Demon Suppression Division and An Ding County.
• Head Constable Xie stopped to make a final stand when the Beast Sect Leader drew near, but the Beast Sect Leader halted and looked past him at something behind them.

Zhou An arrived carrying a wooden pot and revealed himself as the mysterious expert who had killed Chef Liu. He faced the Beast Sect Leader to end the threat, dodging the Sect Leader’s first attack with graceful footwork.

• Head Constable Xie and Division Magistrate Zhang saw Zhou An approach with a wooden pot strapped to his back.
• Zhou An stood before Head Constable Xie and decided to kill the Beast Sect Leader even if it exposed his identity.
• The Beast Sect Leader recognized Zhou An as the one who had killed Liu Xing, and Division Magistrate Zhang realized Zhou An was the mysterious expert.
• Zhou An drew his saber and challenged the Beast Sect Leader, who launched a rapid claw attack.
• Zhou An sidestepped the Beast Sect Leader’s claws, impressing Head Constable Xie and Division Magistrate Zhang.
• The Beast Sect Leader recovered and unleashed a flurry of attacks against Zhou An.