Chapter Summaries

Li Changfeng established his authority over the Brocade-Clad Guard Hundred-Households, learned that the Western Factory and martial factions were undermining their work, and ordered a crackdown. He left Food Fresh Restaurant sealed after killing its manager for extorting the guards.

• After Li Changfeng defeated them, the Hundred-Households knelt and acknowledged him as their Thousand-Household, and Li Xiu recognized him as Wu Tiande, ranked sixth on the Human Rankings.
• At Food Fresh Restaurant, Li Changfeng learned that the guards maintained order in North City, collected taxes, and investigated cases beyond the local yamen’s reach.
• Old Li and Old Wang explained that the Western Factory and martial factions were obstructing tax collection and spreading disorder, including the abduction of young women.
• Li Changfeng ordered the Hundred-Households to assemble the next day so he could deal with the troublemakers.
• When the restaurant manager demanded ten thousand taels for the meal, Li Changfeng declared the charge illegal, killed him, and ordered Food Fresh Restaurant sealed.

Li Changfeng sealed and investigated Food Fresh Restaurant after killing five martial artists and a powerful eunuch who tried to stop him. News of his forceful arrival spread through North City, drawing the attention of Director Cao’s allies and earning Commander Lu’s approval.

• Li Changfeng ordered his Hundred-Household Officers to seal Food Fresh Restaurant while he faced five First-Rate Peak martial artists, then killed them by shattering their sabers with a palm strike.
• The eunuch attacked Li Changfeng from a distance with a powerful palm imprint, but Li turned broken blade fragments against him and killed him.
• Li Changfeng warned the onlookers to leave, and his men sealed and investigated the restaurant as news spread that the Brocade-Clad Guard had returned to North City.
• At the Western Depot, Director Cao told his allies that Princess had personally found Li Changfeng and advised them to watch him closely.
• A guard reported Li Changfeng’s actions to Commander Lu, who praised him and said he wanted to see what Li would do next.

Li Changfeng led the Brocade-Clad Guards through North City, enforcing taxes with brutal violence and declaring that the guards held authority there. When Western Depot eunuchs confronted him, Li Changfeng attacked their leader, while the martial arts experts fled and his officers pursued them despite his warning.

• Li Changfeng set out with ten Hundred-Household Officers to patrol North City and accepted extra money from shopkeepers who paid their taxes.
• Li Changfeng killed a shopkeeper who refused to pay, ordered the shop sealed and its property confiscated, then killed another shopkeeper and forced the rest to pay.
• Li Changfeng warned the shopkeepers to report outsiders collecting taxes and declared that the Brocade-Clad Guards had final say in North City.
• Western Depot eunuchs arrived with martial arts experts and challenged Li Changfeng, who insulted them and attacked their leader with his Meteor Iron Hook Rope.
• The eunuch dodged Li Changfeng's strike and charged at him as the martial arts experts fled and Li Changfeng's officers pursued them despite his warning.

Li Changfeng endured Vice Director Cui’s attack unharmed, then fought four Western Depot eunuchs and overwhelmed them with his powerful defense and Vajra Chain Kick. After one eunuch died and two tried to self-destruct, the Centurions warned Li Changfeng as the battle continued.

• Li Changfeng emerged unharmed from the rubble after Vice Director Cui struck him, while three more eunuchs reported that the sect disciples had fled.
• Li Changfeng ordered his ten Centurions to stand back and faced Vice Director Cui and three other eunuchs alone.
• Li Changfeng shattered the four eunuchs’ attacks with Vajra Chain Kick and sent them flying, leaving Vice Director Cui badly shaken.
• One eunuch attacked Li Changfeng with a poisoned needle, but Li Changfeng dodged it, crushed the eunuch’s head, and caused his body to explode with True Qi.
• Two surviving eunuchs charged Li Changfeng while swelling their bodies to self-destruct, and the Centurions shouted a warning.

Li Changfeng protected his officers from the West Factory eunuchs’ explosive attack, then completed North City’s patrol as his reputation spread. At the West Factory, Director Cao forced the defeated sect disciples to swallow poison and vowed to confront Wu Tiande.

• Li Changfeng used the Vajra Arhat Phantom to withstand the eunuchs’ self-destruction, while Vice Director Cui fled and his officers suffered injuries.
• Li Changfeng ordered the injured officers treated and continued the patrol, as North City’s residents paid their taxes out of fear.
• Wang Bin reported the full tax collection to Commander Lu, who praised Thousand-Household Wu and rebuked other officers for falling short.
• Director Cao blamed the sect disciples for fleeing, but they explained Wu Tiande’s strength and begged for another chance.
• Director Cao freed the disciples and forced them to swallow poison, then declared that he would soon test Wu Tiande himself.

Li Changfeng and the Brocade-Clad Guards were ambushed at Thousand-Household Manor by black-clad attackers led by Yu Yingfan and a powerful masked leader. The battle left Kang Huai dead and the five Hundred-Household Officer brothers wounded, while Li Changfeng faced multiple formidable enemies.

• Li Changfeng sensed intruders during the feast and struck the approaching attackers with his Meteor Iron Hook Rope, killing two black-clad men.
• Li Changfeng ordered the Brocade-Clad Guards to attack, but the black-clad swordsman unleashed Azure sword qi that killed several guards.
• The five Hundred-Household Officer brothers joined forces against the swordsman, but he defeated them and Li Changfeng identified him as Yu Yingfan of the Azure City Sect.
• The masked Black-Clad Leader attacked Li Changfeng, who dodged his palm strike and countered with a flurry of kicks.
• Li Changfeng struck down another black-clad attacker, while Kang Huai died shielding Yu Liang from Yu Yingfan's sword strike.

Li Changfeng and his allies fought Director Cao, Yu Yingfan, and the black-clad attackers, suffering heavy losses as the battle raged through the hall. Li Changfeng drew the Azure Rainbow Sword and vowed that all his enemies would die, leaving the fight unresolved.

• Li Changfeng wounded Yu Yingfan with a flying dagger, but Director Cao attacked him with the Celestial Child Skill.
• Li Changfeng shattered Director Cao’s palm strike with the Dragon Subduing Eighteen Palms and knocked Director Cao back, then used the Meteor Iron Hook Rope to slaughter black-clad men.
• Yu Liang attacked Yu Yingfan to avenge Kang Huai, but Yu Yingfan killed him after Yu Liang blinded him with blood and wounded his face.
• Yu Yingfan defeated and killed the three centurions who attacked him together.
• Old Li and Old Wang fought a powerful black-clad man with Leng Zhi’s help, while Xia Wu fought another evenly matched opponent and Zhou Deyuan avoided the strongest enemies.
• Li Changfeng drew the Azure Rainbow Sword and vowed to kill everyone as the battle continued.

Li Changfeng and his allies fought Director Cao and the black-clothed man, but the two opponents proved difficult to overcome. The black-clothed man defeated Xia Wu, Old Li, and Old Wang, while Leng Zhi wounded him in a surprise attack.

• Director Cao rallied the eunuchs and Vice Director Cui, then clashed swords with Li Changfeng, whose sharper weapon overpowered his sword qi.
• Xia Wu unleashed the first two stances of the Heavy Sword Three Styles, but the black-clothed man countered with the Iron Palm Divine Skill and defeated him.
• Old Li and Old Wang attacked the black-clothed man with saber techniques, but he broke their strikes with the Divine Fist Three Styles and sent them flying.
• Leng Zhi ambushed the black-clothed man with an Embroidered Spring Blade, cut his chest, and narrowly missed his throat.

Li Changfeng rescued the five Centurions, then ordered the Brocade-Clad Guards to retreat so he could fight without restraint. He defeated the attackers’ combined assault with Soaring Dragon Ascends, leaving Director Cao and the others injured and horrified.

• Li Changfeng used his true qi to pull the five Centurions out of danger and ordered them to withdraw with their wounded brothers.
• Li Changfeng faced Director Cao and the black-clad fighters alone, then exposed Sha Anran, Ning Caiying, and Chou ZhengGu beneath their face coverings.
• Director Cao, Chou ZhengGu, Sha Anran, Ning Caiying, Yu Yingfan, and Vice Director Cui launched their martial arts attacks at Li Changfeng.
• Li Changfeng countered with Soaring Dragon Ascends, unleashing a seventy-five-zhang dragon-shaped palm that collided with the combined attacks and shook the area.
• Director Cao and the others were blasted away and spat blood, while Li Changfeng staggered back but suppressed his injury and sneered at them.

After Li Changfeng drove back Director Cao’s Western Depot forces, the two sides counted their dead and began plotting against him. The next morning, Commander Lu brought replacements and promised to ask the Princess for permission to let Li Changfeng access the armory.

• Li Changfeng revealed that he was injured, vowed to avenge the fallen Brocade-Clad Guards, and ordered Old Li and Old Wang to handle casualties and report the attack.
• Old Wang told Commander Lu that the Western Depot had attacked and that five Centurions had died; Commander Lu vowed to offer condolences the next morning.
• At Director Cao’s residence, Yu Yingfan and the others discussed Li Changfeng’s strength and suspected he might be Jue Kong, while Director Cao proposed making him an ally of the Free and Unfettered Sect.
• Commander Lu brought Li Changfeng replacement troops, including Zuo Kangcheng and Sun Hongwen, and Li Changfeng asked to use the martial arts manuals in the armory.
• Commander Lu said he would ask the Princess for permission before taking Li Changfeng to the armory.

Li Changfeng chose a fragment of Sleeve Universe from the Southern Emperor's Martial Repository, while Commander Lu suspected he already possessed its first half. In North City, Wu Tiande's defeat of Director Cao's men led to a bloody revenge raid on the Director's Manor, where the attacker was cornered after Director Cao confronted him.

• Li Changfeng discovered that the Southern Emperor's Martial Repository held martial arts from nearly every southern sect and selected a fragment of Sleeve Universe.
• Commander Lu let Li Changfeng take the fragment and wondered whether he already had the first half.
• A street beggar announced that Wu Tiande had defeated Director Cao's men, and crowds saw their naked corpses hanging at the North City gates.
• Director Cao ordered his men's bodies buried and swore revenge on Wu Tiande.
• A masked man in black infiltrated the Director's Manor and killed guards and eunuchs with flying daggers, including a leading eunuch who recognized his face.
• When another leading eunuch raised the alarm, Director Cao and his men surrounded the masked attacker and demanded to know who he was.

Li Changfeng, disguised as Wu Tiande, broke into the Western Depot chief director's manor and fought Director Cao and his men. After killing Yu Yingfan, he escaped over the wall and left a taunting message identifying himself as the killer.

• The man in black defeated Yu Yingfan in one move, breaking his arm and severely injuring him.
• Director Cao fought the man in black, was thrown back, and recognized him as Wu Tiande.
• Li Changfeng removed his mask and challenged Director Cao and the Western Depot guards.
• Li Changfeng unleashed Mount Song Swordplay's fourth form, Myriad Mountains Pay Homage, and clashed with Director Cao and the others in a destructive battle.
• Li Changfeng used his Meteor Iron Hook Rope to tear off Yu Yingfan's head while the others were unable to intervene.
• Li Changfeng escaped over the wall and carved a message identifying himself as the Brocade-Clad Guard Thousand-Household Wu Tiande.

Elder Kong Zhengqing of the Free and Unfettered Sect arrived at the Director's Manor and vowed to capture Wu Tiande, while Li Changfeng confirmed that he had killed Yu Yingfan and warned his hundred-households to watch for retaliation. A month later, Li Changfeng learned that Li Xiu had been captured and set off alone to Mount Bei Ming, with a mysterious figure following him.

• Kong Zhengqing arrived at the Director's Manor, heard how Wu Tiande had attacked it and killed Yu Yingfan, and vowed to avenge the Free and Unfettered Sect's young master.
• Li Changfeng showed his hundred-households Yu Yingfan's head, confirmed his actions, and urged them to watch for Director Cao's retaliation.
• After a month of peaceful patrols, Li Changfeng received a note saying Li Xiu had been captured and was being held at Mount Bei Ming.
• Li Changfeng left alone to rescue Li Xiu, and an unidentified figure followed him, calling him impulsive.

Li Changfeng fought Director Cao at Mount Bei Ming, where Director Cao’s hidden allies ambushed him. Li Changfeng overwhelmed their attacks, but the four men’s spiked shields blunted his final kicks.

• Li Changfeng deflected the hidden soldiers’ crossbow bolts with Sleeve Universe, killing the ambushers with their own weapons.
• Director Cao revealed himself, and Li Changfeng attacked him with ten Flying Daggers of Li; Director Cao dodged and blocked the returning daggers with Vajra Body Protection.
• Ning Caiying, Sha Anran, Chou ZhengGu, and Vice Director Cui appeared and launched their techniques at Li Changfeng.
• Li Changfeng countered the four men’s attacks with Mount Song Swordplay, overpowering them and sending them flying.
• Li Changfeng kicked at the four men, but they blocked his blows with spiked shields, tearing his shoes and leaving his soles numb and sore.

Li Changfeng fought Director Cao and his four allies on Mount Bei Ming, turning aside their arrows and overpowering their combined attacks with Mount Song Swordplay. The five were left struggling against his remaining sword qi, and Director Cao was exhausted.

• Li Changfeng mocked Director Cao after enduring the shield bearers’ kicks without injury.
• Director Cao ordered an arrow formation, but Li Changfeng used Sleeve Universe to deflect the crossbow bolts.
• Director Cao attacked with Plum Blossom Swordplay, and Li Changfeng answered with Mount Song Swordplay, shattering the plum blossom sword qi and the arrows.
• Ning Caiying, Chou ZhengGu, and Sha Anran joined the others in attacking Li Changfeng’s sword qi, but their techniques were overwhelmed.
• Director Cao used Celestial Child Skill to break several remaining sword strikes while the four shield bearers defended; the impacts injured them, and Director Cao was left panting with exhaustion.

Li Changfeng defeated Director Cao and four other men, but Kong Zhengqing, an elder of the Free and Unfettered Sect, ambushed him and revealed a far more powerful threat. During their clash, Chou ZhengGu recognized Li Changfeng, exposing his identity and prompting accusations against Princess Minmin as the confrontation continued.

• Li Changfeng smashed Director Cao's defenses, then broke the shields of the four other men and left them gravely wounded.
• As Li Changfeng moved to finish them off, Kong Zhengqing attacked from above, and Li Changfeng forced him back with his immense strength.
• Kong Zhengqing identified himself as an elder of the Free and Unfettered Sect and attacked Li Changfeng with the Tianshan Six Yang Palm.
• Li Changfeng revealed his Draconic Elephant Prajna and Vajra Palm techniques to counter Kong Zhengqing's flaming palm, and both men were driven back by the collision.
• Chou ZhengGu recognized Li Changfeng, while Sha Anran accused him of hiding within the Brocade-Clad Guard and Director Cao threatened to report Princess Minmin.
• Li Changfeng declared that he would kill them before leaving.

Li Changfeng fought Kong Zhengqing with the Dragon Subduing Eighteen Palms and the Dominating Leg Technique, eventually injuring him. Before Li Changfeng could press his advantage, Yu Yuande of the Azure City Sect ambushed him and left him badly wounded.

• Kong Zhengqing attacked Li Changfeng with the Tianshan Six Yang Palm, and Li Changfeng countered with the Dragon Subduing Eighteen Palms.
• Their palm strikes collided, sending both men flying back and leaving them struggling to suppress the force inside their bodies.
• Li Changfeng launched the Dominating Leg Technique and found an opening in Kong Zhengqing’s defense, breaking his barrier and injuring him with a kick to the chest.
• Yu Yuande suddenly attacked Li Changfeng with a sword as Li Changfeng moved to pursue Kong Zhengqing.
• Li Changfeng caught the blade with his bare hands, but it cut through his palms and pierced his left chest before he landed and demanded to know the attacker’s identity.
• Yu Yuande identified himself as the Seventh Elder of the Azure City Sect.

Li Changfeng fought Yu Yuande and Kong Zhengqing, two Grandmaster-level experts, but their combined attacks overwhelmed his techniques. He used the brief openings to flee, leaving the two men to realize he was gone.

• Kong Zhengqing joined Yu Yuande and warned that he would not underestimate Li Changfeng.
• Li Changfeng attacked them with Draconic Elephant Prajna, but their swordplay and palm techniques shattered his strike and blasted him back.
• Li Changfeng used the Shaolin Dragon Grasp to hurl stones at the two men, but they destroyed the rocks with their attacks.
• Li Changfeng formed a massive stone sphere and threw it at Yu Yuande and Kong Zhengqing, who pulverized it.
• Li Changfeng unleashed the Returning Dragon Eighteen Swords, but Yu Yuande and Kong Zhengqing shattered his sword attack with their techniques.
• Yu Yuande and Kong Zhengqing realized Li Changfeng had escaped while they were occupied fighting.

Li Changfeng tried to flee to the imperial city, but Kong Zhengqing and Yu Yuande caught up and forced him into battle. He unleashed powerful palm strikes that injured both grandmasters, then escaped while gravely wounded.

• Li Changfeng swallowed his last life-saving pill and prepared to delay Kong Zhengqing and Yu Yuande when they caught up to him.
• Li Changfeng launched Flying Dragon in the Sky, and Kong Zhengqing and Yu Yuande answered with their own attacks, creating a devastating collision that injured all three.
• Despite his wounds, Li Changfeng used Soaring Dragon Ascends to shatter the grandmasters’ counterattacks and blast them into spitting blood.
• Li Changfeng suffered severe backlash as the suppressed energies inside him erupted, but he forced himself to stay conscious and fled.

After fighting off Kong Zhengqing and Yu Yuande, the badly wounded Li Changfeng hid inside a tree to recover. Li Feng found him, but a Brocade-Clad Guard distress signal sent them rushing toward a new emergency.

• Kong Zhengqing and Yu Yuande tried to pursue Li Changfeng, but Li Feng ambushed them with the Asura Black Saber and wounded them, forcing them to retreat.
• Li Feng followed Li Changfeng's blood trail and found him recovering inside a hollow tree.
• Li Changfeng learned that Li Feng had rescued Li Xiu and that Wang Commandant had sent the guards to support him.
• A Brocade-Clad Guard distress signal sounded, and Li Changfeng rushed toward its source with Li Feng following.