Chapter Summaries

Li Xuancang faced five Profound Connection Realm experts, including two mid-stage fighters, and charged into their coordinated attack. He fought them without falling behind, leaving both armies stunned as the battle remained unresolved.

• Two mid-stage Profound Connection Realm elders arrived to support Murong Chong and his two companions, and the five surrounded Li Xuancang.
• Li Xuancang judged that he could not be certain of victory and formed a plan to use the three injured men as his opening.
• The burly elder and the thin elder attacked with a crushing club strike and a soul-targeting sword slash while Murong Chong and the others closed in.
• Li Xuancang met the club with his fist, blasted the burly elder backward, shattered Murong Chong's blade, and fought through the five attackers despite his injuries.
• The Grassland People were shocked that their five experts could not kill Li Xuancang, while Great Yan's forces cheered as the battle continued.

Li Xuancang defeated the Grassland experts who had lured him into the grasslands and escorted Princess Zhaoyang back to Sweet Spring Commandery. He refused to let Wang Qi take her to the Imperial City, declaring that his word was the rule there.

• The woman in black stopped Prince Kang from attempting to rescue Princess Zhaoyang while Li Xuancang fought the Grassland experts.
• Li Xuancang overwhelmed the five experts, forcing Hu Yan Jue to order the Grassland army to retreat.
• Li Xuancang led his party back to Sweet Spring Commandery, where Princess Zhaoyang worried over his injuries and blamed herself.
• Li Xuancang sent a report to the Imperial Court, while Wang Qi asked to take Princess Zhaoyang back to the Imperial City.
• Li Xuancang rejected Wang Qi's request and declared that Princess Zhaoyang would stay in Sweet Spring Commandery until the Imperial Court issued orders.

Consort De secretly reached Princess Zhaoyang and reunited with her after Li Xuancang confirmed her identity. As news spread of the Grassland People’s failed attack on Li Xuancang, the Emperor confronted Grand Commandant Qin Huaiyuan over the disastrous political marriage.

• Prince Kang and his companions left the commandery city while Consort De stayed behind to find Princess Zhaoyang.
• Consort De infiltrated Zhaoyang’s residence, but Li Xuancang attacked her until she revealed she was Zhaoyang’s birth mother.
• Li Xuancang brought Consort De to Zhaoyang, who recognized and embraced her, and then left them to speak privately.
• Consort De told Zhaoyang that she and Prince Kang had followed the marriage delegation to rescue her and assured her that she had prepared to avoid discovery.
• News of the Grassland People’s failed attack on Li Xuancang spread, shocking factions across the realm and angering the common people.
• The Emperor demanded an explanation from Qin Huaiyuan, who admitted responsibility for recommending the political marriage and asked to be punished.

The Imperial Court debated responsibility for the failed marriage alliance and Li Xuancang’s decision to keep Princess Zhaoyang in Sweet Spring Commandery. The Emperor imposed only a mild penalty on Qin Huaiyuan, while Princess Zhaoyang chose to remain with Li Xuancang.

• Han Yuzhi blamed Qin Huaiyuan for pushing through the marriage alliance, while Zhao Chongwu defended him and Gu Yanqing argued that the Grassland People had acted deceitfully.
• Gu Yanqing warned the Emperor that Li Xuancang had kept Princess Zhaoyang in Sweet Spring Commandery without approval, but the Emperor set the matter aside rather than risk provoking Li Xuancang.
• Han Yuzhi renewed his attack on Qin Huaiyuan, and Fang Zhenhai defended the Grand Commandant’s decision as a necessary measure that had bought time for Great Yan.
• Gu Yanqing proposed docking Qin Huaiyuan’s salary for half a year and sending treasures to Li Xuancang, and the Emperor approved the plan.
• Li Xuancang asked Princess Zhaoyang whether she wished to return to the Imperial City, and she asked to stay in Sweet Spring Commandery; he agreed.

Ouye Xuanlian completed five mid-grade Earth-rank treasure armors, which Li Xuancang distributed among his family and sent to Li Ling'er at the Profound Heart Sect. After Bai Meng broke through to the Mid Astral Qi Realm and Princess Zhaoyang returned to the Imperial City, news of a Spirit Stone mine in Thorny Ridge drew forces from across the region.

• Ouye Xuanlian finished five pieces of mid-grade Earth-rank treasure armor, and Li Xuancang gave three to his parents and eldest sister.
• Li Xuancang sent a treasure armor and cultivation resources to Li Ling'er, who read his letter and secretly put on the armor.
• Bai Meng broke through to the Mid Astral Qi Realm, and Ouyang De later returned with news that Li Ling'er was safe and had reached the Late-Stage Bone Forging Realm.
• Princess Zhaoyang departed for the Imperial City, escorted beyond Cool Prefecture by Bai Meng and a thousand iron cavalry.
• News spread that a Spirit Stone mine had been discovered in Thorny Ridge, drawing forces from many sides to compete for it.

News of a Spirit Stone mine in Thorny Ridge drew Great Yan factions and the Imperial Court into a scramble for control. Li Xuancang deployed Blacksteel Camp to enforce order in Sweet Spring Commandery, where the Profound Heaven Sect attacked the city guards after refusing inspection.

• Li Xuancang learned of the Thorny Ridge mine and ordered stronger patrols in Sweet Spring Commandery.
• The Imperial Court tried to form an alliance with Great Yan factions to seize the mine, but the factions rejected its envoys.
• After receiving the court's decree, Li Xuancang ordered Blacksteel Camp to arrest lawbreakers and execute anyone who resisted.
• Profound Heaven Sect disciples insulted the city guards when stopped for inspection at Sweet Spring Commandery's gate.
• The Profound Heaven Sect attacked and slaughtered over a hundred city guards while nearby factions cheered.

The Blacksteel Camp and the Profound Heaven Sect fought a bloody battle at the city gate, where Ouyang Meng faced Xiao Ye and was badly injured. Li Xuancang arrived and crushed the sect’s forces with his pressure, leaving Xiao Ye terrified as he advanced.

• Ouyang Meng led the Blacksteel Camp into battle against the Profound Heaven Sect at the city gate.
• Ouyang Meng killed an Astral Qi Realm expert and fought five more with his powerful bone club.
• Xiao Ye recognized the bone club as a demon’s spine and struck Ouyang Meng, sending him crashing into the ground.
• Li Xuancang appeared, destroyed Xiao Ye’s giant hand with his pressure, and pinned over a thousand Profound Heaven Sect disciples to the ground.
• Li Xuancang moved toward Xiao Ye while Ouyang De gave the injured Ouyang Meng a medicinal pill.

Li Xuancang crushed Xiao Ye and more than a thousand Profound Heaven Sect disciples to enforce order in Sweet Spring Commandery, then ordered that any sect members found there be killed. News of the massacre made other factions behave, while Zhou Dunwen's group arrived to inspect the prosperous commandery and Lin Jingtan seethed with hatred toward Li Xuancang.

• Li Xuancang ignored Xiao Ye's pleas, withstood his attack, and defeated him with one punch.
• Li Xuancang nailed Xiao Ye and more than a thousand Profound Heaven Sect disciples to the city wall, then ordered his forces to kill any sect members they encountered.
• News of the massacre spread, and the factions entering Sweet Spring Commandery began obeying its rules.
• Zhou Dunwen praised Sweet Spring Commandery's prosperity as his group traveled toward the city to meet Li Xuancang.
• Lin Jingtan clenched his fists and struggled to suppress his hatred of Li Xuancang.

As forces gathered in Sweet Spring Commandery, Li Xuancang inspected Ouyang Meng and ordered the Blacksteel Camp to recruit without limit. Generous benefits attracted thousands of applicants, and the camp expanded to eight thousand soldiers.

• Pei Qingyuan regretted her past choices as the remnant soul praised Li Xuancang's rapid rise to the Profound Connection Realm.
• Arriving groups saw Xiao Ye of the Profound Heaven Sect nailed to the city wall, frightening Lin Jingtan and the people from Wenxin Academy.
• Li Xuancang visited Ouyang Meng and learned that his injuries were no longer serious.
• Li Xuancang ordered Wang Xiaoniu to post notices recruiting soldiers for the Blacksteel Camp, offering support and benefits to recruits' families.
• Rogue Cultivators, small-sect disciples, and members of local clans flocked to enlist after hearing the terms and learning that Li Xuancang treated his soldiers well.
• After selection, five thousand recruits joined the Blacksteel Camp, bringing its strength to eight thousand.

Li Xuancang expanded and trained his forces while the Profound Heaven Sect plotted revenge for Xiao Ye’s death. At Thorny Ridge, Great Yan’s forces were driven from the Spiritstone Vein struggle and came under attack from Great Li and the Grasslands as they tried to retreat.

• Li Xuancang learned that Su Xinghai had reached the Mid Blood Condensation Realm and ordered Nangong Zhan to keep watching him.
• Zhao Konglie and the Profound Heaven Sect decided to hire Misty Rain Pavilion assassins to kill Li Xuancang and send disciples into Yu Prefecture to pressure the Imperial Court.
• Jian Liuyun, Yang Lingyun, and other faction leaders formed a temporary alliance to contest the Spiritstone Vein, then marched toward Thorny Ridge.
• Li Xuancang gave up the struggle because he lacked the strength to join it.
• A month later, the Grasslands and Great Li joined forces against Great Yan at Thorny Ridge, forcing Great Yan to retreat from the Spiritstone Vein.
• The Grasslands and Great Li pursued Great Yan’s retreating forces and ordered their troops to stop them and kill them all.

Great Yan’s army was nearly annihilated after the Grassland and Great Li forces trapped and defeated it, with Zhou Dunwen sacrificing himself to save Lin Jingtan and Pei Qingyuan. Amid the realm’s crisis and the Profound Heaven Sect’s attacks on Yu Prefecture, the emperor issued Li Xuancang a face-saving but humiliating decree docking his salary for three years.

• Zhou Dunwen used his Righteous Qi to open an escape route and sent Lin Jingtan and Pei Qingyuan to safety before the Grassland forces killed him.
• Great Yan’s allied army was nearly wiped out after three days of fighting; all seven Profound Connection Realm cultivators died, and only several hundred soldiers escaped.
• News of the defeat shook Great Yan, while weakened martial factions faced ambitious rivals and the Imperial Court feared further attacks.
• Han Yuzhi urged the court to punish Li Xuancang to appease the Profound Heaven Sect, but Du Tianyuan defended him and opposed the proposal.
• Prince Ning and his supporters backed a light punishment for Li Xuancang, and the emperor decreed that his salary be docked for three years while he retained his post.

Li Xuancang accepted an imperial decree demoting him without showing anger, while Ouyang Meng nearly committed grave disrespect by trying to smash it. After Sweet Spring Commandery restored order following the spirit stone mine conflict, three brothers fleeing the Hundred Herbs Sect sought refuge with Li Xuancang, who agreed to meet them.

• Ouyang Meng snatched the imperial decree and tried to smash it, but Li Xuancang stopped him and accepted it; Liu Jin then fled without pursuing Ouyang Meng's offense.
• A representative of the Du Family later told Li Xuancang what had happened at court, and he remained unmoved.
• After Great Li and the grasslands secured the spirit stone mine, Li Xuancang deployed the Blacksteel Camp to patrol Sweet Spring Commandery and prevent disorder.
• The Zhang brothers decided to seek refuge with Li Xuancang because the Hundred Herbs Sect had discovered their whereabouts and was hunting them.
• The three Astral Qi Realm brothers arrived at the camp, identified themselves as Zhang Tianlong, Zhang Tianhu, and Zhang Tianbao, and asked to join Li Xuancang.
• Li Xuancang received the brothers and was surprised to see that they appeared to be triplets.

Li Xuancang learned that Zhang Tianlong and his brothers were Human Pills fleeing Hundred Herbs Sect, and he accepted them into Blacksteel Camp. Seven days later, Elder Xuanku led a sect party to seize them, but Li Xuancang’s overwhelming aura struck as they attacked the camp.

• Zhang Tianlong told Li Xuancang that he and his brothers were Human Pills created by Hundred Herbs Sect and sought his protection.
• Li Xuancang accepted the three brothers into Blacksteel Camp and appointed them Thousand-Man Commanders.
• Seven days later, Elder Xuanku and fourteen Hundred Herbs Sect members tracked the Human Pills to Sweet Spring Commandery City and charged into the military camp.
• The sect members killed soldiers who tried to stop them, and Elder Xuanku ordered his group to slaughter the troops.
• Li Xuancang unleashed a powerful aura that made every sect member except Elder Xuanku cough blood and stagger back.

Li Xuancang refused Elder Xuan Ku’s offer to surrender the Zhang Tianlong brothers and defeated the Hundred Herbs Sect members who confronted him. After he killed Xuan Ku and had the others hanged from the city walls, the news stirred fear of the sect’s retaliation and anger at the Imperial Court.

• Elder Xuan Ku offered Li Xuancang three low-grade Earth-rank pills in exchange for the Zhang Tianlong brothers, but Li Xuancang rejected the offer.
• Li Xuancang broke Xuan Ku’s arm, seized and killed him, then used a shockwave to incapacitate the fourteen Astral Qi Realm cultivators who attacked.
• Ouyang De and the others subdued the Hundred Herbs Sect members, and Li Xuancang ordered them all hanged from the city gates.
• Li Xuancang searched Xuan Ku and took his Spirit Stones and pills as spoils.
• The hanging bodies caused a public commotion, and news of Xuan Ku’s death spread, prompting fears of the Hundred Herbs Sect’s revenge.
• The emperor and his ministers grew enraged after hearing that Li Xuancang had provoked the Hundred Herbs Sect, believing it would worsen Great Yan’s crisis.

The Hundred Herbs Sect summoned its friends and allies to kill Li Xuancang, drawing factions and spies to Sweet Spring Commandery. Li Xuancang refused Du Tianhao’s offer to help him leave and prepared to face the coming attack while asking Du Tianhao to protect his family.

• The Profound Heaven Sect sent its Great Elder to Sweet Spring Commandery to seize Li Xuancang’s family after his expected death.
• The Hundred Herbs Sect called in people who owed it favors, including a burly swordsman, a farmer living in seclusion, an Evil Cultivator, and Du Tianhao.
• The Grassland People debated whether to join the attack, and Muli Ge and Cang Ya sent two mid-stage Profound Connection Realm experts to Sweet Spring Commandery.
• After a month passed without an attack, Du Tianhao urged Li Xuancang to seek refuge with the Du Family, but Li Xuancang refused to abandon his post.
• Li Xuancang asked Du Tianhao to guard his parents and his eldest sister’s family, then gathered his fifty-seven trusted subordinates.

Li Xuancang faced five Profound Connection Realm experts sent by the Hundred Herbs Sect and effortlessly overwhelmed their assault. As he fought the attackers, onlookers concluded that he had reached the Mid Profound Connection Realm.

• Li Xuancang ordered his forces to guard his family and evacuate them if he fell, then waited a month for the Hundred Herbs Sect to attack.
• Five Early Profound Connection Realm experts, including Elder Mu, Yunhai High Person, Dugu Swordsman, Chen Xuan, and an Evil Cultivator, appeared before the military camp.
• Li Xuancang sent his troops away and emerged to face the attackers, while the onlookers suspected the Hundred Herbs Sect had hidden its true killing move.
• Yunhai High Person, Dugu Swordsman, and Chen Xuan attacked Li Xuancang together, but he emerged unharmed and forced them to retreat in terror.
• The three experts launched a desperate combined assault, but Li Xuancang casually blocked their attacks as the crowd realized he had likely reached the Mid Profound Connection Realm.

Li Xuancang overwhelmed Dugu Swordsman, the Evil Cultivator, and their allies, then faced an assault from eleven Profound Connection Realm experts sent by the Hundred Herbs Sect. As Li Xuancang fought them without falling behind, the Grand Elder, Muli Ge, and Cang Ya prepared to join the battle and kill him.

• Li Xuancang wounded Dugu Swordsman and blasted Yunhai High Person and Chen Xuan away, then shattered the Evil Cultivator’s soul-attacking bell and injured him.
• Elder Mu’s vines failed to harm Li Xuancang, and the Evil Cultivator escaped to join Yunhai High Person and the others.
• Three Mid Profound Connection Realm experts and three more Profound Connection Realm experts descended, joining the five already present to bring the Hundred Herbs Sect’s force to eleven.
• Su Lingqiu and the other ten experts attacked Li Xuancang together, but he fought them without being overwhelmed.
• The Profound Heaven Sect’s Grand Elder, Muli Ge, and Cang Ya resolved to act against Li Xuancang while the battle continued.

Li Xuancang fought off a powerful group of Profound Connection Realm experts until Muli Ge and his companion joined the battle, then fled toward the horizon. The Great Elder sent the Profound Heaven Sect to seize Li Xuancang’s family at the Commander's Manor, where Ouyang De and Zhang Tianlong’s army stood in their way.

• Li Xuancang nearly struck Su Lingqiu, but a sudden soul attack disrupted him and let Su Lingqiu escape.
• The attackers battered Li Xuancang, but his wounds quickly healed as he emerged from the assault.
• Li Xuancang discovered Muli Ge and his companion in hiding, and they joined Su Lingqiu’s group against him.
• Li Xuancang fled, and his enemies pursued him while the Great Elder ordered the Profound Heaven Sect to capture his family.
• Ouyang De led the army to surround the Profound Heaven Sect forces before they could approach the Commander's Manor.

Li Xuancang repeatedly attacked the pursuers trying to reach Sweet Spring Commandery and threaten his family, using brief retreats to recover while they grew weaker. After seven days, his strength had increased and the group had traveled less than halfway, but they still prepared to fight him again.

• Du Tianhao stopped the Profound Heaven Sect from seizing Li Xuancang's family, forcing its members to withdraw.
• After three days and nights of pursuit, Li Xuancang turned back when Muli Ge proposed taking his family hostage and fought the group with a three-legged cauldron.
• Li Xuancang repeatedly attacked the pursuers, withdrawing to recover while their injuries accumulated and their return journey slowed.
• Cloud Sea Elder rejected the plan to split up, warning that Li Xuancang could target the group sent to capture his family.
• Muli Ge and Cang Ya secretly discussed a plan to escape as Li Xuancang grew stronger, while the others resolved to keep trying to seize his family.
• Li Xuancang charged the group again after only five hours of recovery, and they formed up to meet him in battle.

Li Xuancang turned the battle around after Muli Ge and Cang Ya ambushed Su Lingqiu and Yunhai High Person, killing them and Elder Mu as the remaining enemies fled. He returned to Sweet Spring Commandery City, learned that the Profound Heaven Sect had tried to seize his family, and resolved to destroy the sect despite Du Tianhao’s warning.

• Muli Ge and Cang Ya ambushed Su Lingqiu and Yunhai High Person from behind, creating an opening for Li Xuancang.
• Li Xuancang killed Yunhai High Person and tore Su Lingqiu apart, then chased down and killed Elder Mu as the others escaped.
• Li Xuancang stripped the dead of their resources, returned to Sweet Spring Commandery City, and told Du Tianhao that the Grassland People’s ambush had let him defeat the Hundred Herbs Sect’s forces.
• Du Tianhao told Li Xuancang that the Profound Heaven Sect had tried to take his parents, enraging him.
• Li Xuancang vowed to destroy the Profound Heaven Sect, while Du Tianhao warned him about its vast forces and powerful Supreme Elder.