Chapter Summaries

Zhou An and Qi Shuo found a relay station full of burned corpses and defeated the Sewn Bizarre Creature that had formed from them, then continued toward Yunlai Prefecture to report the killings. Elsewhere, Yu Hang was held captive by Mi Mo, who revealed she was killing young people who had forged their Dao to lure his skilled friend and left Yu Hang wondering whether he had to cross the threshold himself.

• A burned, many-limbed Sewn Bizarre Creature attacked Zhou An, Qi Shuo, and the guards at the relay station, and Zhou An killed it with a single blade strike.
• Zhou An and Qi Shuo searched the relay station, found no survivors, and continued toward Yunlai Prefecture after deciding to report the killings to the Demon Suppression Division.
• Yu Hang confronted Mi Mo while bound, and she said she had killed the relay station’s occupants after they discovered him hidden in an iron contraption.
• Mi Mo told Yu Hang she planned to kill young people in Yunlai Prefecture who had forged their Dao to lure his skilled friend, and threatened to massacre more relay stations if he cried out.
• Yu Hang recalled County Magistrate Chen’s advice that ordinary people had to cross a threshold to stand tall, and wondered whether he had to do so.

Zhou An arrived in Yunlai Prefecture to register for the Crafting Dao Grand Competition and investigate the kidnapping of his friend. After the prefect agreed to look into the case, Zhou An met resistance at the Demon Suppression Division, where a powerful middle-aged man finally intervened and invited him upstairs.

• Zhou An and Qi Shuo arrived in Yunlai Prefecture, and Qi Shuo offered Zhou An a place to stay at his residence.
• Zhou An met Sun Prefect, explained that a mysterious person had kidnapped his friend to make him enter the competition, and asked Sun to investigate and register him.
• Zhou An and Qi Shuo went to the Demon Suppression Division to report the post-station incident, but its members dismissed him and refused to summon the Prefect Lord.
• Zhou An tried to enter the Division by force, slapping the members who blocked him and drawing his saber as more guards gathered.
• A powerful middle-aged Division officer stopped the confrontation, recognized Zhou An as someone recommended by Zhang Jue Niu, invited him upstairs, and docked the guards who had abused their authority a month's pay.

Zhou An received the location of Yu Hang from Prefect Lord Zheng and found him alive in a secluded house. Yu Hang explained that Mi Mo had escaped after revealing her connection to the Five Elements Burial Sect, while Zhou An remained uneasy about what Yu Hang had sacrificed.

• Zhou An met Prefect Lord Zheng, who explained that Zhang Jue Niu had been isolated for his honesty and warned that scattered Five Elements Burial Art techniques had led to new incidents.
• Prefect Lord Zheng gave Zhou An the location where Yu Hang was hiding and said Demon Suppression Division members were monitoring the area.
• Zhou An reached the house and found Yu Hang unharmed, then pressed him to explain what had happened to Mi Mo.
• Yu Hang said Mi Mo came from a crafting sect, joined forces with Five Elements Burial Sect remnants, and obtained the Hundred Transformations Casting Pearl and Fire Burial Art.
• Yu Hang revealed two badly burned Demon Suppression Division members hidden in a wall compartment and said he had kept them alive.
• Zhou An asked Yu Hang what he had given up, growing increasingly uneasy about the price of his survival.

Zhou An discovered that the Yu Hang who confronted him was an iron puppet controlled by Mi Mo, who had killed the Demon Suppression Division guards and threatened Yu Hang's life to force Zhou An into the Crafting Dao Grand Competition. After Zheng Sifu ordered a search for Mi Mo, Zhou An went to dinner with Qi Shuo, where a commotion broke out as they were leaving.

• Yu Hang described the relay station massacre and said he had learned the Fire Burial Art, but Zhou An stabbed him and revealed he was an iron puppet.
• Mi Mo admitted she had killed the Demon Suppression Division members and was holding the real Yu Hang hostage to make Zhou An compete.
• Zhou An destroyed the puppet and reported Mi Mo's actions to Zheng Sifu, who ordered the Demon Suppression Division to search Yunlai Prefecture.
• Zhou An returned to Qi Shuo, and the two went to Dream Flower Pavilion to eat and discuss their plans.
• As Zhou An and Qi Shuo left the restaurant, they heard shouting, curses, and the clash of metal outside.

Zhou An visited Old Lin, who shared information about Mi Mo and lent him a protective cage disc, then went to seek help from the Falcon Hunting Sect. He arrived at the sect’s residence and noticed something unusual above its gate.

• Zhou An watched Long Xing admit that he had come to see Zhou An again and judge the gap between them, then returned to his lodging with Qi Shuo.
• Zhou An trained the Butchering Ox Technique through the night and went to Old Lin’s blacksmith shop the next day.
• Old Lin confirmed that Mi Mo had inherited the Hundred Transformations Blacksmith Lineage and warned that the Demon Suppression Division might sacrifice Yu Hang while pursuing the Five Elements Burial Sect’s remnants.
• Old Lin offered Zhou An a cage disc that could both restrain and protect its target, then lent it to him after Zhou An refused to become his disciple.
• Zhou An went to the Falcon Hunting Sect for help and arrived at its residence, where he noticed an object above the gate.

Zhou An learned that Mi Mo was plotting around the Crafting Dao Grand Competition, while the Demon Suppression Division prepared to trap her there. After several quiet days, his Butchering Ox Technique reached level five, advancing him to the Second-Rate Realm and greatly increasing his speed and precision.

• Mi Mo obtained a scouting eagle from Hu Ying and ordered him to monitor Zhou An, using his injured son’s dependence on her medicine as leverage.
• Zhou An visited the Falcon Hunting Sect but was turned away because Hu Ying claimed the sect master was absent.
• The Demon Suppression Division told Zhou An that Zheng Sifu had wounded Mi Mo, but she had escaped using a treasure from the Hundred Transformations Forging Sect.
• Zheng Sifu planned to prepare for the Crafting Dao Grand Competition, where Mi Mo was likely to appear, and warned Zhou An that she might target him.
• After several days without progress in the search, Zhou An raised his Butchering Ox Technique to level five and became a Second-Rate Expert.
• Zhou An tested his newly doubled speed by cutting a wooden table so quickly that his movement was imperceptible.

Zhou An discovered that copying texts raised Read a Hundred Scrolls’ proficiency, then used the method to reach level four while investigating Mi Mo’s disappearance. After capturing Hu Ying and learning that Mi Mo had escaped, he finished his preparations and was ready to attend the Crafting Dao Grand Competition.

• Zhou An practiced his sword control, received Scholars’ insights from Qi Shuo, and discovered that carefully copying books increased Read a Hundred Scrolls’ proficiency.
• After sensing he was being watched, Zhou An found claw marks and suspected the Falcon Hunting Sect was helping Mi Mo evade the Demon Suppression Division.
• Zhou An stormed the Falcon Hunting Sect, defeated Hu Ying’s giant eagle, and trapped Hu Ying before Zheng Sifu arrived with the Demon Suppression Division.
• Hu Ying confessed that he belonged to the new organization Indulgence, but he knew little about its plans, while Mi Mo remained at large ahead of the Crafting Dao Grand Competition.
• Zhou An spent five days copying texts, raised Read a Hundred Scrolls to level four, and prepared to set out with Qi Shuo for the competition.

Zhou An entered the Crafting Dao Grand Competition and forged an unprecedented weapon, while Mi Mo revealed her plan to unleash chaos in Yunlai Prefecture. After four days, the weapon evaluations began, and the chapter ended as Zhou An uncovered his creation before Old Lin.

• Zhou An arrived at the competition venue with Qi Shuo, listened to Sun Prefect and Old Lin explain the rules, and entered his assigned room.
• Zhou An devised and forged a novel weapon, finishing it in two days before using his remaining time to practice the Fusion Forging Method.
• Mi Mo told Yu Hang that she planned to turn Yunlai Prefecture into a bloody storm and explained Indulgence's goal of destroying the other Great Sects.
• Zheng Sifu kept his subordinates on alert as they searched for signs that Mi Mo would act during the competition.
• After four days, the participants presented their weapons for judging, and Old Lin's remarks convinced them Zhou An was the likely first-place winner.
• Zhou An brought his cloth-wrapped weapon before Old Lin and began to uncover it.

Zhou An won the weapon-forging contest with his Heaven-Painted Halberd, then learned that Mi Mo planned to use a white jade fragment and the crafters’ gathered essence, qi, and spirit to locate Absolute Domain Forging and kill them. He agreed to protect the crafters in exchange for iron ore essence, and the chapter ended as the contestants gathered for the defensive-items contest.

• Zhou An presented his Heaven-Painted Halberd, and Old Lin awarded him first place after the weapon smashed a contestant’s hammer and revealed its power-enhancing quality.
• Zheng Sifu uncovered Yunlai Prefecture’s connection to the Eight Unique Skills, and Sun Prefect explained the danger posed by the rumored Absolute Domain Forging.
• Sun Prefect asked Zhou An to protect the crafters, and Zhou An agreed in exchange for access to iron ore essence and demanded to see Mi Mo’s head if she was killed.
• Mi Mo used a glowing white jade fragment and revealed to Yu Hang that the Crafting Dao Grand Competition would provide the crafting essence needed to locate Absolute Domain Forging, while the crafters would die in the process.
• Zhou An and the other young smiths finished forging defensive items and gathered for the next contest, where Old Lin called on Zhou An to go first.

Zhou An discovered that Mi Mo was draining and controlling the young craftsmen through Iron Golems, while Spirit +2 let him resist and trace the control back to her. As Zheng Sifu’s team followed Zhou An’s lead, Mi Mo searched a river for Absolute Domain Forging and left Yu Hang tied up, where he broke his ribs trying to escape.

• Zhou An noticed the craftsmen growing listless, alerted the Demon Suppression Division, and learned Zheng Sifu had gone to Mi Mo’s reported hideout.
• The competition was suspended, but the craftsmen soon collapsed and then rose under Mi Mo’s control, armed and pointing their weapons at Zhou An.
• Sun Prefect restrained the controlled craftsmen, while Zhou An realized Mi Mo’s apparent hideout was a decoy and sent word that Zheng Sifu should pursue the real source.
• Zhou An followed the control’s signal into the mountains as Zheng Sifu received the new message and redirected his team.
• Mi Mo used glowing white jade to locate something in a river, tied Yu Hang to a tree, and jumped into the water.
• Yu Hang strained against his ropes to avoid becoming Zhou An’s weakness and broke his ribs in the attempt.

Yu Hang escaped after breaking his own ribs, and Zhou An joined Zheng Sifu’s force to pursue Mi Mo through a hidden river passage. Zhou An fought through her Iron Golem formation and confronted her as she used Absolute Domain Forging to control his weapons, but he revealed he had prepared another way to attack.

• Yu Hang broke his ribs to escape his ropes, found Zheng Sifu’s men, and led them to the river where Mi Mo had disappeared.
• Zhou An arrived and split the river with saber light, exposing a passage that led to a hidden space guarded by more than a hundred Iron Golems.
• Zheng Sifu held off the regenerating Iron Golems while Zhou An entered the next cave and found Mi Mo beside a giant coffin and an iron sword inscribed with Absolute Domain Forging.
• Mi Mo explained that Absolute Domain Forging let her transfer damage to the surrounding mine and seize Zhou An’s saber and iron wok.
• Zhou An calmly revealed that he had planned for her weapon control and used the Soaring Dragon Steps to appear before her with an object in his hand.

Zhou An defeated and killed Mi Mo, ending the threat to Yunlai Prefecture, and the Crafting Dao Grand Competition concluded with him in first place. As the Imperial Examination began, Yu Hang prepared to sit for it while considering martial arts if he failed.

• Zhou An overcame Mi Mo's Iron Golems and white flames, broke her connection to the mine, and killed her after Zheng Sifu agreed to keep the matter quiet.
• Zhou An returned to Yunlai Prefecture, where Sun Prefect confirmed the danger had passed and Zhou An learned Yu Hang was recovering from his injuries.
• Zhou An won first place in the Crafting Dao Grand Competition, while the Hengtong Merchant Guild supplied him with materials and money.
• Yu Hang told Zhou An that he would try the Imperial Examination and learn martial arts if he failed, hoping to protect people from villains.
• Zhou An accompanied Yu Hang to the prefectural yamen as the three-day Imperial Examination began.

Zhou An developed the Swimming skill to prepare for fighting in water, then reunited with Ye Shuang, who had come to Yunlai Prefecture to investigate Mi Mo’s death. After their inquiry concluded, Ye Shuang privately recognized that Zhou An had rejected Mi Mo’s offer and agreed to keep it secret, then asked him to take her around for food.

• Zhou An coordinated with Zheng Sifu on a report claiming Mi Mo’s Eight Unique Skills had been destroyed during the battle.
• After realizing water restricted his fighting, Zhou An practiced swimming in a river until he unlocked Swimming lv.1, then asked Qi Shuo to build a swimming pool.
• Zhou An spotted Ye Shuang eating at Dream Flower Pavilion and learned she had come on Surveillance Division business to investigate Mi Mo’s death.
• Ye Shuang questioned Zhou An and Zheng Sifu, used a spell to verify their account, and concluded the inquiry without finding a problem.
• Ye Shuang privately asked whether Zhou An had refused Mi Mo’s plea for survival, accepted his answer, and asked him to take her out to eat during her stay.

Zhou An raised Swimming to level three and transformed it into Controlling Water, then welcomed Yu Hang at the Imperial Examination grounds. As Yu Hang wrote an essay that sparked a breakthrough, Sun Prefect arrived and recognized him.

• Zhou An took Ye Shuang around Yunlai Prefecture to eat, then warned her about trusting others before sending her off with a bundle of local specialties.
• Zhou An grinded Swimming to level three, chose Controlling Water, and discovered that he could manipulate nearby water and fight more effectively in it.
• Zhou An continued grinding the Fusion Forging Method and went to the examination grounds to meet Yu Hang as the Imperial Examination ended.
• Sun Prefect learned that Yu Hang had cursed back at an examiner who called his essay treasonous, then sensed Yu Hang approaching a breakthrough.
• Sun Prefect recognized Yu Hang and told the others to watch as Yu Hang's scholar's aura and killing intent gathered around him.

Yu Hang crossed the threshold during the Imperial Examination after pouring his hard-earned convictions into his essay, while Zhou An reached level five in the Fusion Forging Method and forged a Frost Iron Blade and frying pan. When the examination results were posted, Yu Hang's name was missing, and Zhou An and Yu Hang were summoned to meet an elderly eunuch delivering their results.

• Sun Prefect read Yu Hang's essay, accepted that it was well written, and promised to report Yu Hang's breakthrough to the higher authorities.
• Zhou An met Yu Hang outside the examination hall, learned he had crossed the threshold, and treated him to a meal at Dream Flower Pavilion.
• A mysterious admirer sent Zhou An rare cold iron, which Old Lin identified as a precious material with a chilling effect.
• Zhou An waited until the Fusion Forging Method reached level five, then forged the cold iron into a Frost Iron Blade and a frying pan.
• Zhou An and Yu Hang found Yu Hang's name missing from the posted examination results, then followed a constable to meet Sun Prefect and an elderly eunuch who had come to deliver their results.

Eunuch Wei delivered the Emperor’s appointments: Yu Hang would serve in Feng Kai County, while Zhou An would manage mining in prosperous Ting Yun Prefecture. After learning how to advance Controlling Water and reaching level four during his journey, Zhou An heard someone being chased near a river and jumped into the water as the chapter ended.

• Eunuch Wei announced Yu Hang’s appointment to Feng Kai County and Zhou An’s assignment to Ting Yun Prefecture, then privately told Zhou An to deal decisively with trouble and explained how a Qi Sphere became a Qi Core.
• Sun Prefect revealed that Eunuch Wei had once been a celebrated martial master who suffered grave injuries fighting more than a dozen opponents, yet later cultivated great strength as a eunuch.
• Zhou An discovered that he could improve Controlling Water by shaping water into increasingly detailed forms, and he practiced refining a water dragon until the skill reached level four.
• Qi Shuo gave Zhou An and Yu Hang travel supplies and banknotes, and Sun Prefect and Zheng Sifu saw them off as the two friends departed for separate postings.
• On the road to Ting Yun Prefecture, Zhou An stopped at rivers to practice making his water dragon smaller and more lifelike.
• Near a river, Zhou An heard rapid footsteps suggesting a chase, dismissed his water dragon, and jumped into the water.

Zhou An destroyed a sinister clay figurine beneath the river, then uncovered an Indulgence plot and reached Ting Yun Prefecture. After taking office as head of its Craftsmen's Bureau, he was interrupted by a crowd bearing gifts.

• A woman threw a village's clay figurine into the river, revealed the horrifying effects it had on her, and died as her body turned to rotten mud.
• Zhou An used his Controlling Water skill and Frost Iron Blade to destroy the figurine underwater, then continued his journey to Ting Yun Prefecture.
• At a post-station market, Zhou An recognized another clay figurine and exposed the stall owner's story as an illusion staged by Indulgence.
• The Indulgence representative offered Zhou An cold iron and asked him not to interfere with their affairs, then vanished along with the market stalls.
• Zhou Qingyun welcomed Zhou An to Ting Yun Prefecture, and Zhou An took up his post as head of the Craftsmen's Bureau.
• A group of people carrying gift boxes arrived at the Craftsmen's Bureau as Zhou An began asking about its operations.

Zhou An settled a dispute between two merchant guilds over mining rights, then learned that Yin Cheng’s allocation had helped create the conflict and that Yin Cheng resented him over a past competition. He confronted Prefect Xu and dragged Yin Cheng toward the Surveillance Division, suspecting Prefect Xu had also been involved.

• Merchants in Ting Yun Prefecture visited Zhou An with gifts, and he met Craftsmen's Bureau officials Hu Haijin, Zhao Zhi, and Zhu Rui.
• Zhou An mediated between Liu Jincheng of the Guangjin Merchant Guild and Yu Renjie of the Caiyuan Merchant Guild, persuading them to cooperate and sign a contract.
• Liu Jincheng told Zhou An that Yin Cheng had assigned the contested mining rights in a way that intensified the guilds' conflict, and Hu Haijin said Yin Cheng resented Zhou An because his younger brother had placed third in a competition.
• Zhou An took his Frost Iron Blade to the prefectural office and demanded that Prefect Xu hand over Yin Cheng, threatening to involve the Surveillance Division.
• Prefect Xu summoned Yin Cheng, and Zhou An grabbed him by the collar and dragged him outside, then warned Prefect Xu after suspecting his involvement.

Zhou An settled his dispute with Yin Cheng, learned why Prefect Xu looked down on him, and raised Controlling Water to Level 5. He began weighted training to improve Soaring Dragon Steps as floods worsened across Ting Yun Prefecture.

• Zhou An forced Prefect Xu to punish Yin Cheng after Yin Cheng admitted he had deliberately obstructed Zhou An, then left without pursuing his personal conflict with Prefect Xu.
• Zhou An learned from Hu Haijin that Prefect Xu’s disdain came from his scholarly-family pride and heard that recurring floods troubled Ting Yun Prefecture.
• After days of training, Zhou An raised Controlling Water to Level 5, gained the ability to conjure a detailed water dragon, and strengthened his blade attacks with flowing water.
• Zhou An chose to improve Soaring Dragon Steps and asked Zhou Qingyun to arrange weighted clothing and an Earth Mound Formation.
• Zhou An discovered that he needed to limit his qi to an outer membrane while training in the weights, then began gaining Soaring Dragon Steps proficiency.
• Prefect Xu faced complaints from village chiefs as they reported that the floods had become especially severe.

Prefect Xu apologized to Zhou An and persuaded him to inspect the flood damage alongside Wu Nian. They reached a flooded village, where Wu Nian finally spoke as he looked over the ruined fields.

• Prefect Xu agreed to hold the Five Grains Harvest Festival to calm the people while he continued seeking a way to address the floods.
• Zhou An met Wu Nian, a traveling monk from Wu Xiang Temple whose cultivation made ordinary people forget him, and guided him to the prefectural yamen.
• Prefect Xu apologized to Zhou An and begged him to visit the flooded villages, and Zhou An agreed to go with him and Wu Nian.
• The group traveled through worsening rain and muddy roads to a village whose residents Prefect Xu had relocated.
• Zhou An, Prefect Xu, and Wu Nian saw waterlogged houses and ruined crops, and Wu Nian finally spoke while looking at the flooded fields.