Recaps

Cao Ting investigated the Flower Thief’s massacre and suspected the criminal was a demonic path cultivator, warning nearby martial forces. At Sunset Glow Courtyard, Mao Mao absorbed the pills’ accumulated medicinal power and broke through into a demonic beast, leaving the family with a sharper guardian.

• Cao Ting found chilling residue and other strange traces at the ruined estate, then concluded the Flower Thief might be a demonic path cultivator.
• Cao Ting ordered the evidence sealed and sent a fast rider to warn the authorities and nearby martial forces.
• Lin Fan continued cultivating, refining pills, and reading at Sunset Glow Courtyard while keeping watch each night.
• Mao Mao’s accumulated medicinal power surged through its body, tempering it until it entered the Skin Tempering Realm as a demonic beast.
• Lin Fan, Su Qingwei, and Lin Ruoruo noticed Mao Mao’s transformation, and Su Qingwei welcomed its heightened senses as a help in guarding the courtyard.

Flower Thief cultivated in hiding and expected to reach the Bright Force Realm within weeks. After learning of the danger, Lin Fan decided to seek the Su Family’s Inner Qi Circulation Method so he could prepare to break through himself.

• Flower Thief consumed evil-path pills and cultivated, believing he would soon reach the Bright Force Realm.
• Flower Thief planned to visit Lin Fan and Su Qingwei after his breakthrough.
• The Imperial Court’s notice reached the Su Family, and fear of Flower Thief spread through the city as constables patrolled the streets.
• Lin Fan read the latest Su Family Gazette and suspected Flower Thief had disappeared to prepare for a breakthrough.
• Lin Fan told Su Qingwei to stay home while he went to ask Su Yuanshan to see the Su Family’s Inner Qi Circulation Method.

Lin Fan obtained the Su Family’s Inner Qi Circulation Method and a powerful spear as he prepared to advance his cultivation to face the Flower Thief. While the Flower Thief neared a breakthrough in a mountain temple, the White Ram Gang’s leader abducted young women to curry favor with him, and the town blamed the disappearances on the Flower Thief.

• Lin Fan warned Su Yuanshan that the Flower Thief might be preparing to enter the bright force realm and requested the Su Family’s Inner Qi Circulation Method.
• Su Yuanshan gave Lin Fan the method and a forging grade 33 Hundred-Forged Cold-Iron Spear, then told him to treat Su Qingwei well.
• Lin Fan used a thousandfold cultivation acceleration to understand and memorize the method, then switched to three thousandfold acceleration to pursue a breakthrough.
• The Flower Thief circulated his power in the Broken Fortune Mountain God Temple, nearing the bright force realm.
• The White Ram Gang’s leader ordered his men to abduct young women so he could win the Flower Thief’s favor and obtain a demonic cultivation method.
• White Ram Gang members abducted girls from the town and surrounding villages, while townspeople blamed the Flower Thief for the disappearances.

Lin Fan broke through to the late bone tempering realm and discussed the city’s missing young women with Su Yuanshan, who suspected the White Ram Gang was involved. That night, Lin Fan began practicing the Su Family’s Inner Qi Circulation Method to produce his first wisp of inner qi.

• Lin Fan endured intense cultivation and broke through to the late bone tempering realm, increasing his physical strength beyond four thousand jin.
• Su Yuanshan arrived at the Sunset Glow Courtyard, congratulated Lin Fan, and confirmed that Lin Fan had mastered the Inner Qi Circulation Method.
• Su Qingwei cared for Lin Fan after his breakthrough, then Lin Fan and Su Yuanshan discussed the disappearances of young women and suspected someone was acting for the Flower Thief.
• Su Yuanshan said the White Ram Gang was the most likely group behind the abductions, though he lacked evidence to move against them.
• After bathing and changing, Lin Fan sat on the Stone Platform and began cultivating inner qi.

Lin Fan decided to raise his cultivation acceleration and break through to the Bright Force Realm within ten days, but Flower Thief broke through first and headed for the White Ram Gang’s headquarters. The chapter left Flower Thief confronting the gang’s leader after suppressing its guards.

• Lin Fan calculated that gathering enough Inner Qi would take over forty days and resolved to reach the Bright Force Realm within ten days for himself and Qingwei.
• Flower Thief broke through to the Bright Force Realm, collapsed the mountain god temple with the force of his breakthrough, and demonstrated that his Inner Qi could strike beyond his body.
• Flower Thief traveled to the town and sensed the women held in the White Ram Gang’s headquarters.
• Flower Thief appeared in the gang’s courtyard and used his Inner Qi pressure to silence the guards.
• The White Ram Gang’s leader recognized Flower Thief and greeted him obsequiously.

The Flower Thief accepted the White Ram Gang’s surrender and gave its leader Inner Qi, then ordered him to gather young women with martial cultivation. The leader set out to capture women from the city’s smaller lineages while the Flower Thief tormented the captives already imprisoned in the gang’s Secret Chamber.

• The White Ram Gang leader and his members knelt and pledged allegiance to the Flower Thief, who warned them they might become enemies of the imperial court and the world.
• The Flower Thief infused the White Ram Gang leader with Inner Qi, healing his injuries and strengthening his cultivation, then ordered him to gather young women, preferably martial cultivators.
• The White Ram Gang leader realized the Flower Thief had reached the Bright Force Realm, despite the official notice claiming he was at the Late Bone Refinement Realm.
• After weighing the risks of attracting the authorities, the White Ram Gang leader ordered trusted martial experts to join him in seizing around a dozen Skin Tempering Realm women from smaller lineages.
• The Flower Thief went to the gang’s Secret Chamber and inflicted inhuman torment on the imprisoned young women.

The White Ram Gang abducted more than a dozen young martial arts women on the Flower Thief’s orders, spreading panic across the city. Lin Fan and Su Yuanshan suspected the gang, while the Flower Thief rewarded Bai Jingtian with a strand of Inner Qi before entering the hidden prison with the captives.

• The White Ram Gang raided several families overnight and abducted their young women who practiced martial arts.
• The missing women’s families reported the disappearances, but the authorities found no useful clues and the city fell into panic.
• Su Yuanshan ordered extra patrols and protections for Su Family women, while Lin Fan suggested the Flower Thief might be hiding with the White Ram Gang.
• Bai Jingtian’s subordinate reported that the authorities had found nothing, and Bai Jingtian summoned the Flower Thief.
• The Flower Thief praised Bai Jingtian’s work, gave him a strand of Inner Qi, and entered the hidden chamber where the abducted women were held.

The White Ram Gang leader received another strand of Inner Qi from the Flower Thief and sought a new target after the city ran short of young women with martial cultivation. He chose the Black Tiger Gang leader’s daughter and infiltrated the gang compound to abduct her.

• The White Ram Gang leader absorbed a strand of Inner Qi and ordered his men to keep searching for young women with martial cultivation.
• Lin Fan cultivated under 12,000x accelerated cultivation effects and accumulated more than a hundred strands of Inner Qi while the Su Family kept some members safe and stayed behind to protect its holdings.
• The White Ram Gang leader learned that few Skin Tempering Realm women remained in the city and that the Black Tiger Gang leader’s daughter was the only nearby woman at Muscle Refinement Realm.
• The White Ram Gang leader decided to abduct the Black Tiger Gang leader’s daughter, hoping to earn another Inner Qi reward from the Flower Thief.
• The White Ram Gang leader slipped into the Black Tiger Gang compound under cover of darkness and headed toward the rear courtyard.

The White Ram Gang leader abducted the Black Tiger Gang leader’s daughter and delivered her to Flower Thief in exchange for Demonic Inner Qi. Flower Thief rewarded him with a breakthrough to the Late Bone Tempering Realm while the Black Tiger Gang launched a frantic search for the missing young woman.

• The White Ram Gang leader sneaked into the Black Tiger Gang compound, knocked out the leader’s daughter, and carried her away in a sack.
• The White Ram Gang leader’s subordinates took the young woman to a Secret Chamber and guarded her on his orders.
• A maid discovered the broken window and raised the alarm, prompting the Black Tiger Gang leader to order a thorough search.
• The White Ram Gang leader presented the captive to Flower Thief, who praised him and granted him Demonic Inner Qi.
• The White Ram Gang leader broke through to the Late Bone Tempering Realm, and Flower Thief sent a weaker strand of Inner Qi into the unconscious young woman.

After the Black Tiger Gang leader’s daughter was abducted, Su Yuanshan ordered the Su Family to cooperate with the search and warned Lin Fan to protect Qingwei. Two days later, the Black Tiger Gang focused its suspicions on the White Ram Gang and prepared to confront Bai Jingtian.

• The Flower Thief carried the Black Tiger Gang leader’s daughter into a secret chamber while the White Ram Gang leader stood by.
• Su Yuanshan ordered the Su Family to cooperate with the Black Tiger Gang’s investigation and sent word to Lin Fan to guard Qingwei at night.
• For two days, the Black Tiger Gang searched the town for its missing young mistress without finding a trace.
• A Black Tiger Gang captain reported that the White Ram Gang had resisted searches of concealed areas and moved its men unusually often.
• The Black Tiger Gang leader accused Bai Jingtian and ordered his elite men to march on the White Ram Gang.

Lin Fan guarded Su Qingwei while the Black Tiger Gang stormed the White Ram Gang’s headquarters over the disappearance of its leader’s daughter. The Flower Thief emerged from a secret chamber and revealed that the missing woman was inside.

• Lin Fan reassured Su Qingwei that he would protect her and promised to raise her cultivation once he reached the bright force realm.
• The Black Tiger Gang leader led a large armed force to the White Ram Gang’s headquarters and kicked open its gates.
• Bai Jingtian denied abducting the Black Tiger Gang leader’s daughter, while the deputy leader accused the White Ram Gang of hiding evidence.
• The Flower Thief emerged from a secret chamber and told the Black Tiger Gang leader that his missing daughter was inside.

The Flower Thief helped the White Ram Gang defeat the Black Tiger Gang and seize its territory, while concealing his role from the public. Suspecting the Flower Thief might threaten the Su Family next, Lin Fan activated 20,000-fold Cultivation Acceleration to prepare for the danger.

• The Flower Thief incapacitated the Black Tiger Gang leader and vice leader as the leader discovered his daughter in the Secret Chamber.
• Bai Jingtian ordered the White Ram Gang to capture the Black Tiger Gang members and conceal the Flower Thief’s involvement.
• Bai Jingtian led a nighttime assault that brought the Black Tiger Gang’s territory under White Ram Gang control.
• Lin Fan read that the Black Tiger Gang had fallen and suspected the Flower Thief, possibly at Bright Force Realm, had taken part.
• Worried the Flower Thief might target the Su Family, Lin Fan raised his Cultivation Acceleration to 20,000-fold for 24 hours.

Lin Fan endured punishing accelerated cultivation while the Su Family grew wary of the White Ram Gang’s rising power. The Flower Thief ordered an assault on the Su Family that night, as Lin Fan neared a breakthrough.

• Lin Fan used twenty-thousandfold cultivation acceleration and endured intense pain while Su Qingwei and Lin Ruoruo watched anxiously.
• Su Yuanshan learned that the White Ram Gang had defeated the Black Tiger Gang and ordered the Su Family to act cautiously.
• Three days later, the Flower Thief emerged from the White Ram Gang’s secret chamber and ordered the captured women disposed of, except for the Black Tiger Gang leader’s daughter, whom he planned to use again.
• The Flower Thief ordered Bai Jingtian to gather the gang’s elite fighters and attack the Su Family that night to obtain martial artists for a Demonic Fiend Weapon.
• Lin Fan continued cultivating in the Sunset Glow Courtyard, circulating more than three hundred strands of inner qi and nearing a breakthrough.

Lin Fan broke through to the Bright Force Realm, and his new aura astonished the Su Family. As the White Ram Gang prepared to attack that night, the Flower Thief dismissed Lin Fan as no threat and sought more fighters for the assault.

• Lin Fan merged his Inner Qi and shattered the barrier into the Bright Force Realm, overwhelming Su Qingwei, Li Ruoruo, and the Golden Rat with his aura.
• Su Qingwei and Li Ruoruo rejoiced at Lin Fan's breakthrough, while guards across the Su Residence felt his powerful martial pressure.
• Su Yuanshan sensed the aura and realized Lin Fan had reached the Bright Force Realm.
• A spy told Bai Jingtian that Lin Fan might have broken through, so Bai Jingtian went to warn the Flower Thief.
• The Flower Thief claimed Lin Fan was no threat because his own strength had increased by thirty percent, then ordered Bai Jingtian to recruit more Bone Tempering Realm fighters for the attack that night.

Officials in the government office discovered that Lin Fan was wanted for an old case, but decided his new Bright Force Realm status made arresting him on implication alone untenable and reported his information to the commandery. Meanwhile, Lin Fan trained to control his newfound power and believed his strength would force the Imperial Court to reconsider the warrant.

• Officials in the government office debated how Lin Fan had entered the Bright Force Realm and considered extraordinary talent, hidden assistance, or a great opportunity as possible explanations.
• The chief clerk found a wanted notice linking Lin Fan to an aristocratic family executed over a failed Imperial Court assignment.
• The officials concluded that the old case offered no proof Lin Fan had personally committed a crime and agreed to report his information to the commandery city for the Imperial Court to handle.
• Lin Fan ended his accelerated cultivation and practiced with his spear in the Sunset Glow Courtyard to master his surging Bright Force Realm strength.
• As Lin Fan trained, he recalled that Imperial Court officials might have sabotaged his family’s assignment and resolved that his new power gave him leverage against the warrant.

The Flower Thief led the White Ram Gang and hired Bone Tempering Realm warriors toward the Su Family Estate to destroy the Su Family. As Lin Fan enjoyed a peaceful evening with Su Qingwei and Lin Ruoruo, he sensed the approaching force and prepared to meet it.

• Bai Jingtian gathered the White Ram Gang's elite fighters and invited Bone Tempering Realm warriors, concealing that Lin Fan had reached the Bright Force Realm.
• The Flower Thief ordered the assembled force to march on the Su Family Estate and wipe out the Su Family.
• Lin Fan finished spear practice and shared dinner with Su Qingwei, Lin Ruoruo, and Mao Mao.
• Lin Fan sensed many people approaching the estate, summoned his spear, and rose to face the threat.

Lin Fan prepared the Su Family for an imminent attack by the White Ram Gang and the Flower Thief, hiding Su Qingwei and Lin Ruoruo before joining Su Yuanshan to meet the enemy. He faced the stronger Bright Force Realm Flower Thief at the wall and activated a 10,000-fold cultivation acceleration as battle approached.

• Lin Fan led Su Qingwei and Lin Ruoruo to the Secret Chamber, gave Su Qingwei two strands of Inner Qi, and ordered them to remain inside.
• Lin Fan joined Su Yuanshan as he organized the Su Family fighters and led them toward the approaching enemy forces.
• Lin Fan sensed three Bone Tempering Realm enemies and the Flower Thief, whose Bright Force Realm aura was stronger than his own.
• The Flower Thief approached the wall and challenged Lin Fan, while Su Yuanshan positioned the Su Family fighters for battle.
• Lin Fan spent 100,000 taels to activate 10,000-fold cultivation acceleration, planning to outlast the Flower Thief.

Lin Fan fought Flower Thief atop the Su Family wall, relying on his rapidly replenishing Inner Qi to withstand the stronger Bright Force Realm expert. After wounding Flower Thief, Lin Fan faced his full-power assault, and the battle remained unresolved.

• Flower Thief attacked Lin Fan with a sinister palm strike, but Lin Fan blocked it with his spear and was forced back a step.
• Lin Fan continued defending against Flower Thief’s relentless attacks while his Inner Qi replenished, leaving his strength undiminished.
• Flower Thief unleashed eight palm prints, but Lin Fan shattered the wall beneath him and counterattacked with a spear strike that wounded Flower Thief.
• Flower Thief saw that Lin Fan was still going strong and unleashed his full power to finish the fight quickly.
• Lin Fan discarded his spear and met Flower Thief’s barrage with a series of Inner Qi-charged punches.

Lin Fan drove off the Flower Thief after their final clash and recovered an ancient manual the thief dropped. He pursued the fleeing Flower Thief while Su Yuanshan captured the three White Ram Gang fighters and led the Su Family guards to defend the burning Su Residence.

• The Flower Thief unleashed a final attack, but the clash exhausted him and shook an oilcloth-wrapped manual from his robes.
• The Flower Thief fled, and Lin Fan restrained the three White Ram Gang fighters before taking the dropped manual and pursuing him.
• Su Yuanshan bound the three captives with strong chains while the Su Residence remained under attack by White Ram Gang bandits.
• Su Yuanshan led the remaining Su Family guards into the residence to drive out the raiders and stop the looting and fires.

Lin Fan pursued the Flower Thief through the town and fought him for nearly six hours, wearing down both of their Inner Qi. The Flower Thief detonated himself, and Lin Fan survived by shielding himself, while the blast devastated the surrounding area and damaged the town from more than ten li away.

• Lin Fan chased the Flower Thief and fought him relentlessly, forcing him to stop fleeing and defend himself.
• The Flower Thief and Lin Fan battled through the town and beyond its walls as officials and townspeople watched from afar.
• After nearly six hours, the Flower Thief had only about thirty strands of Inner Qi left, while Lin Fan had roughly sixty.
• The Flower Thief converted his remaining strength and his body into energy and self-destructed.
• Lin Fan used his remaining Inner Qi to shield himself, was hurled several li, and began recovering with no Inner Qi left.
• The shockwave reached the town, injuring residents and collapsing a stretch of the town wall several li long.

After surviving the Flower Thief’s self-destruction, Lin Fan recovered enough to return to the Su Residence, where the Su Family had captured the White Ram Gang and taken control of its strongholds. He reassured Su Qingwei and asked Su Yuanshan to take him to the gang’s treasury.

• The explosion shook the Su Residence, and Su Yuanshan sent guards to investigate and search for Lin Fan.
• Lin Fan cultivated until his injuries had mostly healed, then inspected the crater and confirmed that the Flower Thief had died in his self-destruction.
• Lin Fan returned to town and learned that the Su Family had captured the White Ram Gang’s remaining members and seized its bases.
• Su Yuanshan welcomed Lin Fan back, and Su Qingwei checked his injuries with tears in her eyes.
• Lin Fan reassured Su Qingwei and asked Su Yuanshan to take him to the White Ram Gang’s treasury.

Lin Fan inspected the White Ram Gang’s treasure vault, secretly converted some of its gold and silver into system balance, and ordered the remaining wealth sent to the Su Family. He rescued Zhou Hu’s daughter and brought the wounded Black Tiger Gang leader and Zhou Ling into the Su Family’s service before heading to the Scripture Repository.

• Su Yuanshan led Lin Fan to the White Ram Gang’s treasure vault and told him that the Black Tiger Gang captives had been found in its dungeon.
• Lin Fan secretly recharged his system with about one hundred thousand taels of gold and eight hundred thousand taels of silver, then ordered the vault’s remaining wealth sent to Sunset Glow Courtyard or sold for him.
• Lin Fan revived Zhou Hu and another Bone Tempering Realm member, and Zhou Hu revealed that his daughter Zhou Ling was trapped in a hidden chamber.
• Lin Fan broke open the chamber and reunited Zhou Ling with her injured father, then explained that the Flower Thief had died after self-detonating.
• Lin Fan invited Zhou Hu and Zhou Ling to join the Su Family; Zhou Hu swore loyalty, and Su Yuanshan welcomed him as a guest elder.
• Lin Fan followed Su Yuanshan to the White Ram Gang’s Scripture Repository.

Lin Fan gathered the White Ram Gang’s and Black Tiger Gang’s treasures and manuals, then negotiated control of their businesses with Su Yuanshan. As they returned to the Su Residence, they agreed to subdue two Bone Tempering Realm captives and execute Bai Jingtian.

• Lin Fan took an Inner Qi circulation method from the White Ram Gang’s Scripture Repository and sent the remaining books and treasures to Sunset Glow Courtyard.
• Lin Fan and Su Yuanshan searched the Black Tiger Gang’s former headquarters, collecting its wealth and manuals while Lin Fan continued cultivating.
• Lin Fan asked for seventy percent of the White Ram Gang’s and Black Tiger Gang’s business profits for three years, after which the businesses would pass to the Su Family, and Su Yuanshan agreed.
• Lin Fan and Su Yuanshan discussed the three Bone Tempering Realm captives as they walked back to the Su Residence.
• Lin Fan and Su Yuanshan agreed to subdue the Raging Tide Gang and White Sand Gang leaders and execute Bai Jingtian.

Lin Fan and Su Yuanshan dealt with the White Ram Gang leaders after the Flower Thief’s defeat, killing Bai Jingtian and binding the two surviving captives to the Su Family. The chapter ended with Lin Fan ordering them to gather their gangs’ valuables and manuals for delivery to his Sunset Glow Courtyard.

• Su Yuanshan agreed that Bai Jingtian should be executed and that the two remaining captives and their forces should be brought under the Su Family’s control.
• Lin Fan killed Bai Jingtian in the dungeon after Su Yuanshan pronounced his crimes and sentence.
• The two Early Bone Tempering Realm captives pledged loyalty to the Su Family, and Lin Fan planted Inner Qi in their heads to control them.
• Lin Fan used gentle Inner Qi to help both captives advance to the Mid Bone Tempering Realm, winning their sincere gratitude and loyalty.
• Su Yuanshan instructed the captives to serve the Su Family, and Lin Fan ordered them to inventory their gangs’ treasure vaults and manuals and send everything to his Sunset Glow Courtyard the next day.

Lin Fan and Su Yuanshan traveled to Great River Town with the newly subdued gang leaders to bring their gangs under the Su Family’s command and collect their wealth and books. The Raging Tide Gang submitted, and its leader promised to deliver its treasury and Scripture Repository to the Su Family the next morning.

• Lin Fan ordered the two subdued leaders to hand over their gangs’ treasures and books, then rode with Su Yuanshan and the leaders to Great River Town.
• Lin Fan told the Raging Tide Gang leader to calm the gang members and prevent trouble as they approached the gang’s base.
• The Raging Tide Gang leader announced that the gang would submit to the Su Family and allowed unwilling members to leave with some wealth.
• Lin Fan and Su Yuanshan inspected the Raging Tide Gang’s treasury, and Lin Fan took its Thousand Forms Technique manual.
• The Raging Tide Gang leader agreed to send the treasury and Scripture Repository to the Sunset Glow Courtyard the next morning.