Chapter Summaries

Plot and key events

• Lin Qing, a laborer in the Soul-Calming Office’s Artisans’ Office, grinds bones before dawn alongside other impoverished youths. He has spent three months in this dangerous, harsh world after crossing over from another planet.
• Lin Qing suffers from Bloodline Disease: Evil Spirits are spreading through his body and will reach his heart within a year. He believes becoming a Martial Artist might give him enough strength to drive them out, but he lacks money and permission to travel for treatment.
• When laborer Ding Tiezhu faints from exhaustion, their supervisor Shen Lian revives him with medicine, then dismisses him despite his pleas about his dependent grandmother. The incident underscores how precarious the workers’ positions are.
• During breakfast, Lin Qing overhears Constables discussing the Night Patrol Office and its Corpse Collection Team. He realizes the role would suit his hidden ability: the Rebirth Record, which lets him inspect the abilities of the dead and copy one when he guides their souls to rebirth, such as by burning their bodies.
• Lin Qing resolves to become a Corpse Collector, believing the steady access to corpses will help him grow stronger and find a way to survive. After a day of labor, news arrives that Chief Constable Yang has come to the courtyard.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing begins as a resigned, suffering laborer, but his discovery of a practical path to use the Rebirth Record gives him renewed hope and ambition. His immediate goal is to become a Martial Artist before his illness proves fatal.
• Ding Tiezhu is shown to be vulnerable and desperate to keep his livelihood; he begs Shen Lian for another chance, citing his grandmother, but is removed.
• Shen Lian enforces discipline harshly, treating exhaustion as grounds for dismissal. The other laborers respond to Ding’s fate with sympathy but do not intervene.
• The Constables discuss the relative security and benefits of government service, especially corpse collection, giving Lin Qing crucial information about the opportunity he wants.

Significant themes

• Survival and inequality: Even brutal government work is prized because poverty, hunger, and exposure are worse.
• Power and opportunity: Advancement depends on enduring hardship, but Lin Qing’s unusual ability offers a possible route beyond his low status.
• Death and danger: Evil Spirits threaten both the living and the dead, making corpse collection dangerous but also central to Lin Qing’s hopes.
• Hope amid desperation: Lin Qing’s plan transforms his fear of imminent death into a concrete ambition.

Plot points and events

• Chief Constable Yang Feng arrives at the compound seeking reliable helpers for the Night Patrol Office, which is short-staffed after a bitter cold killed many refugees and a battle with a dangerous cultist left over a dozen constables dead or injured.
• Yang selects thirteen youths who have worked at the compound for at least three years, including Lin Qing. Shen Lian encourages them, and Yang promises that exceptional workers could become constables within six months.
• Yang warns everyone to watch for Yin Muhua, a dangerous fiend of the Rebirth Cult. The authorities offer ten taels for information and a thousand for capturing her alive.
• The youths are taken to the corpse-processing courtyard, where their task is to burn the frozen dead. Lin Qing is eager rather than frightened, since handling corpses is central to his ambitions.
• As he places the first body, that of Deng Zhong, into a furnace, a supernatural panel appears. It tracks the progress of the man’s last rites and promises a talent, martial art, or skill as a reward. When the corpse is reduced to ash, the panel reaches 100%, and fragments of Deng Zhong’s memories begin to appear in Lin Qing’s mind.

Character developments

• Lin Qing sees the assignment as an opportunity: he hopes to become a Corpse Collector and is notably unafraid of the dead. The panel’s activation hints that cremating corpses may give him access to valuable abilities or knowledge.
• Yang Feng is established as an imposing, stern official whose practical need for workers is driven by a serious crisis.
• Shen Lian remains warm and teasing in private, but takes pride in her former workers and urges them to perform well.

Significant themes

• Opportunity amid hardship: Dangerous, unpleasant work may open a path to status and advancement.
• Death and transformation: The corpses are treated as an urgent civic burden, while Lin Qing’s panel turns their final rites into a possible source of power.
• Risk and ambition: The danger posed by Yin Muhua contrasts with Lin Qing’s cautious desire to advance without getting drawn into a deadly conflict.

Character interactions

• Shen Lian greets Yang Feng familiarly and helps him choose workers, while Yang remains focused on official business.
• Yang’s promise of promotion inspires the selected youths and makes the others envious.
• Lin Qing listens closely to the warnings about Yin Muhua, memorizes her appearance, and then follows Yang to the cremation grounds with enthusiasm.

Key events

• After inheriting the memories of Deng Zhong, a displaced stonemason who froze outside Shanyin County, Lin Qing uses his mysterious panel to copy Deng’s Perfect Mastery of Health-Preserving Five-Animal Fist.
• Equipping the art immediately improves Lin Qing’s strength and health, easing the aches and hidden ailments left by years of hard labor. He learns that an equipment slot can be changed once per day and sees the Rebirth Record progress toward unlocking another slot.
• The yamen gathers ninety-two longtime helpers for a six-month martial-arts assessment. Successful candidates can enter one of the Night Patrol Office’s three teams: four openings in the Evil-Exorcism Team, two in the Night Patrol Team, and one in the Corpse Collection Team.
• Lin Qing chooses the Corpse Collection Team, whose work pays least but is comparatively safe. Constable Chief Jiang Baihe introduces Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake and explains the stages of Bright Force training. He demonstrates the foundational stance, which the candidates then struggle to practice for hours.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing shows practical judgment: he chooses a health-preserving art to repair his body rather than selecting other useful traits, and prefers the safer Corpse Collection Team over more dangerous work.
• His reaction to Deng Zhong’s death is compassionate, and he recognizes how precarious life is for ordinary people.
• Jiang Baihe takes charge of the assessment and teaches the martial arts fundamentals; Gao Feng handles registration and supervises practice. Yang Feng organizes the helpers and brings them to the arena.
• Despite his newly restored health, Lin Qing finds the Spirit Snake stance difficult, like the other candidates, and ends the session exhausted and sweating.

Significant themes

• Hardship and vulnerability: War and poverty leave ordinary people displaced and exposed to death, as Deng Zhong’s fate illustrates.
• Opportunity amid exploitation: Lin Qing’s supernatural ability lets him gain in minutes what took Deng decades, while the assessment offers low-ranking helpers a chance at advancement.
• The cost and danger of service: The teams differ in pay, risk, and prestige, forcing candidates to weigh safety against opportunity.
• Discipline and skill: Martial progress requires careful, sustained practice; even the most basic training is demanding.

Chapter Summary: “Homecoming”

Plot points and events

• At the Martial Arts Arena, the poor workers complain that training is physically demanding and that martial arts require expensive tonics and regular meat. Lin Qing shares their financial worries, while wealthy youths mock them for lacking money for Blood-Strengthening Pills. He decides to find a way to improve his own circumstances rather than envy them.
• Lin Qing uses one of his monthly days off to visit his parents. He brings his father, Lin Cheng, yellow rice wine and his mother, Han Ying, a padded coat—small gifts bought with his limited savings.
• At home, Lin Qing learns about the family’s hardships and the unrest in the outer city: a suspected Yinyuan Sect fiend drove a woman to suicide, local gangs are fighting, and gang leader Rong Futong is demanding money for the White Emperor Assembly.
• Lin Qing tells his parents he has transferred to the Night Patrol Office and expects to become an officer within six months. He hopes to move them to the inner city, though he describes his current body-collection work as relatively safe.
• After returning to work and training, Lin Qing attends another lesson at the Martial Arts Arena. Jiang Baihe demonstrates all eight forms of the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake, warning that proficiency will take sustained effort and that even minor mastery may require years.

Character developments

• Lin Qing is practical, determined, and increasingly devoted to his family. He accepts that he lacks the advantages of the wealthy, but focuses on finding ways to advance. His visit also shows that he has come to regard his predecessor’s family as his own.
• Lin Cheng is proud of his son’s prospects but remains grounded in the family’s precarious circumstances.
• Han Ying is delighted by Lin Qing’s opportunity, yet fears for his safety and worries that her married daughter may be mistreated.
• Jiang Baihe remains a genial but demanding instructor, emphasizing the complexity and long-term discipline required to learn the style.

Character interactions

• Lin Qing listens as poorer trainees resent the privilege of wealthy students, but does not join in their bitterness.
• He shares a warm meal and conversation with his parents, helps his mother prepare food, and reassures them about his new position and future plans.
• His parents respond differently to his news: Lin Cheng celebrates the prospect of a government salary, while Han Ying focuses on the danger of Night Patrol work.
• Jiang Baihe teaches the trainees through demonstration, giving them a clear sense of the work ahead.

Significant themes

• Class inequality: Wealth determines access to nourishing food, tonics, and easier routes into martial arts and government service.
• Family duty and belonging: Lin Qing’s gifts and promise to improve his parents’ lives reveal his growing attachment and sense of responsibility.
• Ambition amid hardship: Lin Qing seeks advancement despite poverty, dangerous work, and the slow demands of martial training.
• Social disorder and insecurity: Evil spirits, gangs, extortion, and official inaction make survival a constant concern.
• Discipline and patience: The Spirit Snake forms promise progress, but mastery requires years of practice.

Key plot points and events

• Jiang Baihe leaves Gao Feng in charge of the arena, sharpening the pressure on the trainees—especially those without the wealthy youths’ resources.
• Lin Qing worries that ordinary training will not let him catch up. When Yang Feng recruits twenty people to carry refugee corpses to the Cremation Ground, Lin Qing eagerly volunteers.
• He chooses the corpse of Zhou Ping, a burly man who had reached Bright Force. As Zhou’s body burns, Lin Qing’s ability reveals fragments of his memories: Zhou had once been a government worker, was recruited by Yin Muhua into the Yinyuan Sect, and was later sent to find an eight-armed, three-faced wooden Buddha containing the lost martial scripture Tathagata Force.
• Lin Qing learns that the Yinyuan Sect’s search for the statue may explain its recent killings, but decides not to get involved. He chooses to copy Zhou’s Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake, already at Minor Mastery, and immediately gains its movements and knowledge as muscle memory.
• Lin Qing realizes his ability can spare him years of training, though he will need to practice the art himself to retain his progress if he later replaces it.
• Seven days later, Jiang Baihe tells Shen Lian that Lin Qing shows promise. He also implies that money and connections can outweigh talent, then solicits a private meeting with her.
• Shen Lian feigns flirtation, reveals a rash she identifies as shingles, and sends Jiang Baihe fleeing. She then wonders who has bribed him.

Character developments

• Lin Qing turns his desperation into action and gains a major advantage through Zhou Ping’s martial art. He remains cautious, choosing steady growth over involvement in the dangerous Yinyuan Sect plot.
• Jiang Baihe is shown as opportunistic and lecherous: he suggests that influence can determine the trainees’ prospects and tries to use that leverage to pursue Shen Lian.
• Shen Lian handles Jiang Baihe shrewdly, using his fear of contagion to end the encounter. Her final suspicion suggests she is alert to outside interference.
• Zhou Ping’s memories reveal his passage from displaced government worker to Yinyuan Sect operative and his connection to the Buddha-statue search.

Significant themes

• Unequal opportunity: The wealthy trainees’ resources give them an advantage, while others must work harder or seek another path.
• Power through knowledge and ability: Lin Qing’s corpse-reading gift lets him acquire expertise instantly, transforming his prospects.
• Caution and ambition: Lin Qing refuses a dangerous opportunity even while pursuing strength, preferring to become powerful before taking greater risks.
• Corruption and manipulation: Jiang Baihe’s suggestion that money and connections matter—and his attempt to exploit Shen Lian—casts doubt on the fairness of advancement.
• Hidden dangers beneath ordinary life: The training-ground story intersects with sect violence and a legendary martial scripture.

Character interactions

• Lin Qing competes indirectly with the seven wealthy youths, then works alongside other trainees carrying corpses.
• Yang Feng organizes the corpse-carrying task, which gives Lin Qing access to Zhou Ping’s remains.
• Jiang Baihe assesses Lin Qing’s progress for Shen Lian, then tries to bargain for her attention; Shen Lian turns the exchange against him.
• Zhou Ping’s memories connect Lin Qing to Yin Muhua and the Yinyuan Sect’s search, though Lin Qing chooses not to pursue that lead.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Unable to sleep, Lin Qing sneaks into the courtyard to practice the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake. The Rebirth Record helps him recall the techniques, but he is determined to internalize them through repetition.
• Shen Lian watches from a window and judges Lin Qing talented and promising, deciding to keep an eye on him and possibly help him.
• Han Juetong mocks Lin Qing, arguing that martial arts requires money, meat, and medicinal supplements—and that training without them will only damage his body.
• The next morning, the selected apprentices receive a small piece of dried meat with breakfast. They complain that their hard training leaves them exhausted, while Han Juetong enjoys an extravagant meal and nourishing tonic.
• Lin Qing checks his progress with the Rebirth Record: he has reached 6.8% of the beginner stage. Yet weakness makes him realize that practice alone is not enough; he needs better food.
• Still committed to earning a place in the Night Patrol Office, Lin Qing accepts the risks and resolves to compete rather than remain trapped in poverty.
• During afternoon training, Gao Feng teaches the group the Eight Strikes and pushes them to practice. He explains that passing normally requires reaching the beginner stage within six months, but this year’s competition may require Minor Mastery.
• At the chapter’s end, Shen Lian asks Yang Feng whether Chief Commissioner Cheng and the head of the Han Family argued at the Drunken Fragrance Tower.

Character developments

• Lin Qing grows more disciplined and focused, practicing even at night and aiming to make the techniques instinctive. He also recognizes the physical limits imposed by hunger and sees nourishment as essential to his ambitions.
• Shen Lian becomes increasingly interested in Lin Qing and considers supporting him.
• Han Juetong is established as wealthy, entitled, and contemptuous of poorer trainees; his criticism nevertheless points to the real importance of nutrition.
• Gao Feng is a demanding instructor, but he gives the exhausted trainees a short rest and explains the standards they must meet.

Significant themes

• Practice and nourishment: Skill requires relentless training, but the body needs food and supplements to sustain it.
• Poverty and unequal opportunity: The apprentices’ lack of resources puts them at a disadvantage against wealthy trainees such as Han Juetong.
• Perseverance and ambition: Lin Qing’s determination offers a chance to escape hardship, while giving up would leave him stuck in it.
• Competition and rising standards: Even the usual benchmark may not be enough in a particularly competitive year.

Character interactions

• Han Juetong belittles Lin Qing, who refuses to engage and continues practicing.
• The apprentices share their exhaustion and envy Han Juetong’s privileged meal.
• Gao Feng corrects the trainees, disciplines those who stop, and tells them to find ways to obtain proper nourishment.
• Shen Lian quietly observes Lin Qing, then questions Yang Feng about a politically significant dispute involving the Cheng and Han families.

Plot points and events

• Yang Feng warns Shen Lian that the city is dangerous and advises her to stay alert. At the Martial Arts Arena, he notices Lin Qing and judges him promising, though not exceptional. Lin Qing is pleased: he has deliberately concealed that he has reached Minor Mastery, showing only enough progress to attract notice without inviting suspicion.
• Lin Qing continues training at night. Wang Xing, one of the other late-night trainees, collapses the next morning, apparently from overexertion and lack of meat. Seeing him weakened, Lin Qing realizes his own body is also deteriorating and that he needs better nourishment.
• Lin Qing helps move refugee bodies for cremation. One is Chen Qingyuan, an elderly physician who had treated people for more than sixty years but died of cold after fleeing the war. Cremating him completes Lin Qing’s mysterious “deliverance” process, which lets him choose one of the deceased’s abilities. Lin Qing selects the Chen Family Bell Doctor Secret Codex, a medical text at Perfect Mastery.
• Several more trainees are forced to stop practicing because their bodies cannot withstand the strain. Shen Lian privately tells Lin Qing that his form is excellent and predicts he could cross the threshold within two months, but warns that the hiring assessment is shaped by money and connections as well as skill. Han Juetong has reportedly bribed Jiang Baihe for the Corpse Collection Team’s sole opening.
• Shen Lian offers Lin Qing two ways to compete: outbid Han Juetong or reach Minor Mastery within six months and impress the officials overseeing the assessment. Unable to afford a bribe, Lin Qing chooses the harder path. Shen Lian, who dislikes Jiang Baihe, promises to protect him and gives him notes on the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing remains cautious and strategic: he hides his true level, recognizes the physical cost of training without proper food, and accepts the challenge of earning the position through ability rather than money. Gaining the medical codex also gives him a new skill beyond martial arts.
• Shen Lian shows concern for Lin Qing and supports his ambition, while making clear that the selection process is corrupt. Her rivalry with Jiang Baihe gives her a personal reason to help.
• Yang Feng offers Shen Lian a warning about the city, then evaluates the trainees and singles out Lin Qing as promising.
• Wang Xing’s collapse and the other trainees’ withdrawals reveal the toll of relentless practice. Han Juetong’s alleged bribe highlights the unfair advantage enjoyed by wealthier candidates.

Significant themes

• Merit versus corruption: skill alone may not secure opportunity when wealth, influence, and bribery shape decisions.
• Endurance and bodily limits: ambition without nourishment or rest can lead to collapse.
• Compassion amid hardship: Chen Qingyuan’s life of healing contrasts with his lonely death as a refugee.
• Hidden potential and adaptation: Lin Qing conceals his progress while building new capabilities to survive and advance.

Plot points

• Lin Qing accepts Shen Lian’s handwritten martial-arts notes, aware that backing her against Jiang Baihe draws him into a factional struggle. His immediate goal is to secure a position as a Corpse Collector.
• The notes teach him that serious cultivation requires daily practice, meat at every meal, and medicinal tonics. Since he is underfed, Lin Qing urgently needs better food.
• Noticing spots on Shen Lian’s arm, Lin Qing recognizes them as shingles. He uses the Chen family’s medical knowledge to find a treatment, persuades her to try it, and prescribes both a medicinal drink and a topical application.
• The treatment eases Shen Lian’s pain that very night, allowing her to sleep peacefully for the first time in six years. Lin Qing says a year will be needed to cure the illness completely.
• In return, Shen Lian promises to restore Lin Qing’s health and provides him with meat-rich meals. His strength and martial-arts progress improve rapidly, despite gossip about his relationship with Shen Lian.
• The scene then shifts to Lin Cheng and Han Ying’s grocery shop. Lin Cheng returns with assorted discarded goods, including a strange, sturdy three-headed, eight-armed Buddha statue he found in a foul ditch.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing proves resourceful and bold: he uses specialized medical knowledge to help Shen Lian, while concealing its true source behind a fabricated explanation. He also negotiates for the food his training requires.
• Shen Lian moves from skepticism to trust after the treatment works. She rewards Lin Qing and supports his cultivation, while remaining determined to undermine Jiang Baihe’s plans.
• Lin Cheng and Han Ying are shown in a more ordinary domestic setting: Lin Cheng is an opportunistic scavenger, while Han Ying complains about the clutter but lets him keep the statue.

Significant themes

• Survival and practical necessity: Lin Qing must secure food and influence as well as martial instruction to advance.
• Knowledge as power: Medical expertise earns him trust, protection, and material support.
• Factional conflict: His alliance with Shen Lian is a strategic response to Jiang Baihe’s obstruction.
• Gossip versus reality: Others speculate about Lin Qing and Shen Lian, but their relationship is presented as an exchange of trust and mutual benefit.

Key plot points and events

• At the Night Patrol Office’s cremation ground, Lin Qing identifies the corpse of Chen San, a Bright Force martial artist and former thief, and burns it to claim a skill from his memories.
• Chen San’s memories reveal a harsh life of poverty, his mother’s death, and a martial arts teacher who urged him not to use his skills for evil. He later joined the Bai’e Cult and robbed the magistrate’s armory, refusing to surrender when challenged.
• Lin Qing chooses Water Skimming at Perfect Mastery over Lockpicking, Stealth, and Night Vision. After equipping it, he tests its extraordinary speed, climbing, and jumping ability, including a safe drop from a thirty-foot height.
• He worries that his Rebirth Record is leveling too slowly. A second Equipment Slot would let him use Water Skimming alongside Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake, but advancing requires money as well as corpse work.
• The next day, Lin Qing visits his parents and prepares medicinal broth for his father’s chronic leg pain. At lunch, he learns that their neighbor Uncle Gao was beaten and injured by Rong Futong’s men for failing to pay a forced levy for the White Emperor Assembly.
• Lin Qing warns his mother not to confront Rong Futong while the family is short of money. The injustice strengthens his resolve to earn money and become powerful.
• That night, he practices martial arts alone in the snow, ending with a palm strike that scatters snow from a willow tree.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing becomes more capable and confident after gaining Water Skimming, but also more aware of his limits: survival and helping his family depend on advancing his record and gaining resources.
• Chen San’s memories complicate Lin Qing’s view of him. Though he became a criminal, his path began in extreme poverty, prompting Lin Qing to reflect on how hardship shapes people’s choices.
• Lin Qing and his parents share a warm, caring visit. He tries to ease his father’s leg pain; Han Ying welcomes him home and prepares his favorite meal, while Lin Cheng shares food with their injured neighbor.
• Lin Qing and Han Ying discuss Rong Futong’s extortion and the danger of resisting him. Lin Qing urges caution, while both recognize the family’s financial vulnerability.

Significant themes

• Survival, money, and power: Lin Qing sees wealth and strength as essential in a world where ordinary people have little protection.
• Poverty and morality: Chen San’s history leads Lin Qing to question how easily people can uphold honor when they are desperate and hungry.
• Family and compassion: Lin Qing’s care for his parents and Lin Cheng’s kindness toward Uncle Gao offer a contrast to the city’s corruption and violence.

Summary

Lin Qing reaches Beginner proficiency (20%) in the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake after a little over a month of training. The breakthrough produces his first qi-and-blood energy, greatly increasing his strength. Shen Lian praises his progress and gives him Qi-Supplementing Pills, urging him to reach Major Mastery within five months. She also warns that Jiang Baihe may try to interfere and advises Lin Qing to avoid confrontation until the assessment.
The pills dramatically improve Lin Qing’s stamina and training. After several days of intensified practice, Han Juetong confronts him and offers him a place in the Han family’s service, presenting it as an order as much as an opportunity. Lin Qing refuses, asserting his independence and reminding Han that people from humble backgrounds can rise. Han regards Lin Qing’s talent as a threat and doubts he can advance without access to medicine.
The next morning, Lin Qing learns from Shen Lian that the Eternal Peace Pawnshop has been massacred, following an earlier killing at Tongfu Shop. The attackers appear to be searching for something. Lin Qing suspects they are after the Eight-Armed, Three-Faced Wooden Buddha Statue connected to thief Zhou Ping’s memories, but recognizes that pursuing it would be dangerous. He visits his family’s shop and helps his father, Lin Cheng, clear a cluttered courtyard. While sorting through the goods, Lin Qing unexpectedly finds the very Buddha statue.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing grows stronger and more confident, but remains practical about danger. He accepts Shen Lian’s support, rejects Han Juetong’s attempt to recruit and control him, and resists chasing the statue despite his curiosity.
• Shen Lian acts as Lin Qing’s patron and protector, providing medicine and guidance while warning him about political and personal threats.
• Han Juetong reveals his arrogance and sense of entitlement. Lin Qing’s refusal turns him from a would-be benefactor into a watchful potential adversary.
• Lin Qing and Lin Cheng share a quiet, cooperative family moment as they tidy the shop’s courtyard.
• The city’s violence connects Lin Qing’s martial-arts ambitions to a larger, dangerous mystery involving the statue and the people searching for it.

Significant themes

• Merit and social status: Lin Qing challenges Han’s assumption that a poor background limits a person’s prospects.
• Training and material support: Talent matters, but medicine and resources can greatly accelerate progress.
• Independence versus patronage: Lin Qing appreciates Shen Lian’s backing but refuses to surrender his choices to the Han family.
• Ambition amid danger: Lin Qing wants to advance, yet recognizes that some opportunities—especially the Buddha statue—may carry lethal risks.

Plot points and events

• Lin Cheng reveals that he found a three-faced, eight-armed wooden Buddha statue in a ditch. Lin Qing recognizes that it matches a missing idol he suspects contains a supreme fist manual.
• The statue resists an axe and shows no response to blood. Lin Qing hides it by burying it in his courtyard beneath a water vat rather than risk drawing attention by reporting it.
• A constable visits Lin Cheng’s shop searching for the idol. Lin Cheng denies seeing it, honoring Lin Qing’s warning.
• The constable, Han Tai, tells Jiang Baihe that the idol contains the Tathagata Fist Manual and that he is searching shops throughout the county. Jiang offers to help, while Han hints he will use imprisonment and torture to get information.
• At an abandoned temple, the injured sect leader Yin Muhua agrees to share the manual with the Han Family Grand Elder in exchange for help concealing her group’s movements. She says the idol is nearly indestructible and instructs her followers to reveal its writing by refining it with fire.
• As violence spreads to small general stores, Lin Qing worries about his parents. Remembering that fire may expose the idol’s secret, he digs it up and burns it. Golden characters begin appearing on its surface.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing is cautious but ambitious: he conceals the idol, protects his family from suspicion, and risks testing the statue when the threat grows.
• Lin Cheng follows his son’s warning and lies to Han Tai, showing loyalty despite not knowing the full story.
• Han Tai pursues the idol under the cover of investigating the murders and is willing to use coercion to obtain it.
• Jiang Baihe probes Han’s motives and appears willing to assist for his own purposes.
• Yin Muhua, weakened and angry, remains determined to recover the idol and bargains with powerful allies to do so.

Significant themes

• Greed and danger surrounding power: Several factions seek the manual, making the statue a source of escalating violence.
• Secrecy and trust: Lin Qing’s concealment depends on his father’s cooperation, while rival alliances are built on self-interest.
• Caution versus ambition: Lin Qing tries to protect his family while hoping the idol will grant him access to a powerful martial art.

Character interactions

• Lin Qing warns Lin Cheng to keep the idol secret; Lin Cheng later protects that secret when questioned.
• Han Tai and Jiang Baihe discuss the manual and the search, revealing their competing interests.
• Yin Muhua negotiates with the Han Family Grand Elder through a messenger and directs her followers to keep searching.
• Lin Qing’s concern for his parents prompts him to investigate the idol’s resistance to fire, triggering the chapter’s discovery.

Plot points and events

• Lin Qing finds the Tathagata Fist Manual inscribed on the Buddha Statue sought by Yin Muhua. He copies it before the writing fades, then hides the statue again.
• The manual contains only fighting techniques, not the training methods needed to cultivate Tathagata Force. Its eighty-one moves are extraordinarily complex, so Lin Qing begins practicing for an hour each night and has mastered eleven variations after three months.
• Lin Qing warns his parents to close their General Store and avoid Buddha Statues, stressing that knowledge of the relic could put them in danger.
• The Yinyuan Sect’s sinister practitioners continue terrorizing the city. Yin Muhua learns that her deputy envoy has been captured by Cheng Yannian. Injured and forced to retreat, she orders her followers to keep searching for the Wooden Idol but avoid unnecessary action.
• After three months of training, Lin Qing advances Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake from Beginner to Proficient. His body undergoes a transformation, making him a Bright Force Mid-Stage Martial Artist with substantial strength of his own.
• Shen Lian recognizes his progress and rewards him with three bottles of Qi-Supplementing Pills.

Character developments

• Lin Qing is ambitious and disciplined, balancing his regular martial training with the difficult Tathagata techniques. He values genuine, lasting strength over power that comes only from the Rebirth Record, and remains cautious about the statue.
• Yin Muhua is weakened and enraged by her defeat at Cheng Yannian’s hands, but continues pursuing the Wooden Idol while prioritizing recovery.
• Shen Lian shows approval of Lin Qing’s effort and rewards his advancement.
• Lin Qing’s parents accept his warning and agree to keep their distance from the dangerous relic.

Character interactions

• Lin Qing cautions his parents about the Buddha Statue and the danger of asking questions or handling similar objects.
• Yin Muhua’s subordinate reports the deputy envoy’s capture and receives her orders to withdraw and continue the search discreetly.
• Shen Lian assesses Lin Qing’s improvement, praises his hard work, and gives him pills to support his training.

Significant themes

• Earned strength versus borrowed power: Lin Qing is relieved that his new physical strength is truly his, unlike the temporary power provided by the Rebirth Record.
• Discipline and perseverance: His steady practice produces measurable gains, even as the Tathagata Manual’s complexity makes progress slow.
• Knowledge and danger: The statue and its connection to the Wooden Idol are valuable secrets that could endanger anyone who learns too much.
• The cost of cultivation: The demanding fist practice leaves Lin Qing tired, highlighting the need for resources and physical recovery.

Key plot points and events

• Shen Lian confirms that Yin Muhua escaped Commissioner Cheng after being gravely wounded. She was searching for a wooden statue rumored to contain the genuine Tathagata Fist Manual. Lin Qing recognizes the danger of the secret and resolves to keep it hidden.
• Han Juetong notices Lin Qing’s rapid physical progress and fears he may reach minor mastery before the upcoming assessment. He asks Jiang Baihe to honor their arrangement: Han paid for help securing the corpse collector position.
• Jiang Baihe confirms Lin Qing has reached proficiency, then pressures him to withdraw from the assessment unless he can match Han’s bribe. Lin Qing claims he will sit out this year while continuing to train, intending to keep his options open.
• Shen Lian explains that Han wants a place in the prefectural city, where the Soul-Calming Office is preparing a major campaign against the Yinyuan Sect and needs more personnel. She urges Lin Qing to reach minor mastery so Jiang cannot block him.
• After heavy snow kills refugees outside the city, Lin Qing volunteers to help collect the bodies. At the cremation yard, he identifies a muscular, martial-arts-trained corpse and touches its arm, triggering the information-gathering ability that ends the chapter.

Character developments

• Lin Qing remains disciplined and strategically cautious. He conceals the manual’s secret, sees through Jiang Baihe’s false friendliness, and accepts the apparent setback without abandoning his ambitions. His repeated willingness to do unpleasant work earns Yang Feng’s respect.
• Shen Lian continues to support and advise Lin Qing, while showing concern for both his health and his prospects. Her reluctance to discuss Commissioner Cheng’s limits hints at the Soul-Calming Office’s political complications.
• Han Juetong grows increasingly anxious about Lin Qing’s progress and relies on his wealth and Jiang Baihe’s influence to protect his career plans.
• Jiang Baihe reveals himself as corrupt: he openly admits accepting Han’s bribe and tries to sell Lin Qing’s withdrawal.
• Yang Feng notices Lin Qing’s diligence and begins to regard him favorably.

Significant themes

• Corruption and unequal opportunity: Advancement is shaped by bribery and family wealth, not simply merit.
• Ambition under pressure: Lin Qing must navigate institutional obstacles while continuing to train.
• Secrecy and danger: Knowledge of the Tathagata Fist Manual could provoke upheaval, making discretion essential.
• Diligence and recognition: Lin Qing’s willingness to take on thankless work gradually earns notice.

Character interactions

• Shen Lian and Lin Qing discuss Yin Muhua, the martial manual, and the assessment, with Shen acting as both mentor and protector.
• Han Juetong appeals to Jiang Baihe, who agrees to help him because he has already taken his money.
• Jiang Baihe confronts Lin Qing and tries to force him out of the assessment through bribery and intimidation; Lin Qing gives a compliant-sounding answer without surrendering his actual plans.
• Yang Feng selects Lin Qing for the body-recovery task, recognizing his reliability when he volunteers.

Key plot points

• At the Soul-Calming Office, Lin Qing processes the body of Brewer Du and gains the chance to copy one ability. He chooses Locust Stone, a hidden-weapon art mastered well enough to hit a target within thirty paces.
• A second corpse yields Aquatic Mastery, but Lin Qing does not test the new talent. After hours of training, he visits his parents for the first time in a month.
• Lin learns that Rong Futong is demanding another protection fee from local small businesses, despite the family’s previous payment to the White Emperor Assembly. He tells his parents he will handle the problem.
• That night, Lin secretly goes to Rong’s home and learns that Rong is sharing the money with powerful officials: Constable Chiefs Jiang Baihe and Han Tai.
• When one of Rong’s drunken thugs leaves the room alone, Lin ambushes him and kills him.

Character developments

• Lin Qing gains a practical ranged-combat skill and quickly tests its accuracy, showing growing confidence in his abilities. His concern for his parents and anger at Rong’s exploitation push him to take direct action.
• Rong Futong is revealed as a predatory extortionist who depends on influential government allies. He is also cruel and lecherous, casually discussing the abuse of a widow.
• Lin Cheng and Han Ying are anxious about the family’s finances and the risk of defying Rong, but Han Ying worries that Lin is taking too much responsibility upon himself.

Significant themes

• War and ordinary suffering: Du’s memories show how displacement and hardship can reduce a once-comfortable life to a lonely death.
• Corruption and exploitation: Rong’s protection racket is sustained by officials who take most of the proceeds, leaving common people vulnerable.
• Power and responsibility: Lin uses his newly acquired skill to confront the injustice threatening his family, though his decision to act alone raises the stakes.

Character interactions

• Lin chooses osmanthus cakes for his mother, reflecting his attentiveness to her preferences.
• His parents explain Rong’s renewed demands; Lin reassures them, then conceals his plan.
• At Rong’s gathering, the thugs flatter and joke with him, while Rong boasts of his control over them and complains about his corrupt higher-ups.
• Lin listens unseen, identifies Rong’s protectors, and attacks the isolated thug as he steps outside.

Key plot points and events

• Lin Qing ambushes Rong Futong’s gang with stones and lime powder. He blinds two thugs, knocks Rong down, and breaks both of Rong’s arms, deliberately leaving him alive as punishment.
• He kills one wounded thug after learning where the gang keeps its money, then steals a chest containing over two hundred taels. He hides his disguise and reflects that, although the attack succeeded, he needs more combat experience.
• A month later, the authorities still have not traced the attack. Lin Qing has spent the loose silver on medicinal ingredients but keeps the banknotes hidden.
• Lin Qing prepares a medicinal decoction for Shen Lian’s shingles and another to strengthen his own body. Shen warns him that Yin Muhua, an old enemy, has returned.
• That night, Lin Qing reaches minor mastery in the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake. His body and strength improve sharply; after equipping the technique through the Rebirth Record, his strength rises further.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing proves resourceful and ruthless in the ambush, but recognizes that his inexperience made the attack less efficient than it could have been. He continues training and uses medicinal preparations to build his strength.
• Rong Futong is exposed as a predatory thug who tries to bargain for his life by invoking his connections. Lin Qing cripples him but spares him.
• Shen Lian relies on Lin Qing to make her medicine, praises his progress, and warns him to avoid danger now that Yin Muhua has returned.
• Lin Qing and Shen Lian share a practical, trusting relationship: she offers guidance, while he calmly assures her he will meet his training goal.

Significant themes

• Vigilante justice and retribution: Lin Qing punishes Rong Futong and takes money obtained through the exploitation of ordinary people.
• Growth through discipline: Daily training, medicine, and reflection steadily improve Lin Qing’s abilities.
• Violence has consequences: Though the attack goes undiscovered, Lin Qing knows his lack of experience is a weakness—and Yin Muhua’s return threatens his sense of security.

Plot and events

• Lin Qing reaches Minor Mastery in his martial arts and receives Shen Lian’s promised reward: eight Blood-Strengthening Pills, each worth one tael and stronger than Qi Replenishing Pills.
• Jiang Baihe and Han Tai discuss the attack that ruined Rong Futong. Han suspects the hunter Li Ping because of his strength and skill with the Locust Stone technique, but cannot act without evidence or risk offending Li Ping’s powerful school. Jiang is especially angry because Rong Futong had been gathering more than two hundred taels for them.
• Li Ping denies killing Rong Futong to his master, Bai Yue, while admitting that he believes Rong deserved his fate. Bai Yue assures him that he will be protected unless convincing evidence emerges.
• The long-awaited Night Patrol Office assessment begins. Shen Lian encourages Lin Qing, who arrives confident and well-fed. Jiang Baihe is surprised—and resentful—to see him, since he expected Lin to withdraw.
• Three senior officials attend: Shen Cheng, Shen Lian’s uncle and head of the Netherworld Pacification Bureau; Yu Muqing, head of the Yin-Yang Bureau; and Pang Tong, head of the Night Patrol Office.
• Gao Feng explains the two-part assessment: candidates must lift a thousand-catty cauldron three feet for three breaths, then demonstrate the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake. Only those with the highest level of mastery will be admitted as Constables.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing shows growing confidence and resolve, accepting Shen Lian’s reward and proceeding with the assessment despite Jiang Baihe’s hostility.
• Shen Lian supports Lin Qing and backs his progress with a substantial reward and encouragement.
• Jiang Baihe reveals his greed and vindictiveness: he is furious over the loss of Rong Futong’s money and privately threatens to retaliate against Lin Qing if he fails.
• Han Tai remains committed to investigating Rong Futong’s attacker, while acknowledging the limits imposed by Li Ping’s connections.
• Bai Yue demonstrates loyalty to his student, promising protection even while asking Li Ping directly about the killing.
• The chapter establishes the assessment’s formal hierarchy and raises the tension between Lin Qing and Jiang Baihe just as Lin’s opportunity for advancement begins.

Significant themes

• Merit versus favoritism: The assessment is presented as fair, but powerful connections already complicate the search for justice.
• Ambition and opportunity: Lin Qing’s training now faces a concrete test that could change his standing.
• Corruption and greed: Jiang Baihe’s concern over Rong Futong is driven largely by lost money.
• Loyalty and protection: Bai Yue’s defense of Li Ping contrasts with the officials’ difficulty pursuing a well-connected suspect.

Plot points and events

• New candidates undergo a two-part selection: first, they must lift a heavy cauldron; then they demonstrate the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake.
• Lin Qing passes the strength test easily. Many candidates are eliminated in the technique test, while Han Juetong earns a Proficiency rating.
• Lin Qing demonstrates Minor Mastery by rearranging the forms while keeping them precise and fluid. The evaluators praise his performance.
• Jiang Baihe tries to secure Lin Qing for the Night Patrol Team, despite Lin Qing’s wish to join the Corpse Collection Team. Shen Cheng enforces the rules and honors Lin Qing’s preference.
• The results are announced: Lin Qing joins the Corpse Collection Team. Han Juetong is not selected and glares at him resentfully.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing demonstrates exceptional ability and composure under pressure. He remains focused despite Jiang Baihe’s intimidation and the other candidates’ reactions, valuing his own progress over praise or jealousy.
• Jiang Baihe is revealed as corrupt and self-interested: he has taken Han Juetong’s money and wants to manipulate the placement process. When Lin Qing outperforms Han, Jiang attempts to redirect him to the Night Patrol Team.
• Shen Cheng supports Lin Qing and upholds the selection rules, overruling Jiang Baihe’s attempt to interfere.
• Pang Tong backs Jiang Baihe, exposing their shared factional alignment. Lin Qing silently adds Pang to his list of adversaries.
• Han Juetong shifts from confidence to resentment when Lin Qing’s superior performance undermines his prospects.

Significant themes

• Merit versus corruption: Lin Qing earns recognition through skill, while Jiang Baihe tries to influence the outcome for personal gain.
• Composure and self-discipline: Lin Qing’s calmness lets him perform well despite pressure and public scrutiny.
• Factional politics: The dispute over Lin Qing’s placement reveals rival power blocs within the organization.
• Unequal opportunity: Wealthy candidates often progress more easily because their families provide resources, while Lin Qing’s achievement stands out given his poor background.

Plot points and events

• Lin Qing passes the Soul-Calming Office assessment and becomes a Constable assigned to the Corpse Collection Team, though Jiang Baihe warns him to “watch his step.”
• Yang Feng intervenes on Lin Qing’s behalf, warns him that Jiang is treacherous, and promises support.
• Lin Qing undergoes a Yin Bone test. Evil Soul Pills draw evil aura into the body, and his reaction—blue-black facial markings within fifteen minutes—reveals low-grade Yin Bone. The other six candidates all have middle-grade Yin Bone.
• Yang Feng explains that Yin Bone affects resistance to evil aura and prospects at the next year’s Reexamination. Shen Lian likewise advises Lin Qing to strengthen himself by mastering more martial arts and developing different kinds of force.
• Shen Lian offers Lin Qing a reward for passing and, while recovering, invites him to remain in her courtyard with better provisions. Lin Qing agrees to stay until her illness is cured.
• The next morning, Lin Qing reports to the Corpse Collectors’ courtyard. He meets Deputy Constable Chief Yu Qiuyu and is warmly welcomed by the team.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing remains composed under the evil-aura test and responds to his poor result with determination rather than discouragement. He also shows loyalty to Shen Lian by staying to help her.
• Yang Feng acts as Lin Qing’s protector, confronting Jiang Baihe and offering practical guidance and support.
• Jiang Baihe reveals his hostility through a veiled threat after Lin Qing’s promotion; Yang’s intervention forces him to leave.
• Shen Lian is pleased that Lin Qing passed, offers him a reward and improved lodging, and gives him strategic advice about compensating for his low-grade Yin Bone.
• Yu Qiuyu is friendly and informal, helping Lin Qing settle in and introducing him to the team, whose teasing camaraderie quickly eases Lin Qing’s tension.

Significant themes

• Resilience and self-improvement: A natural disadvantage need not determine Lin Qing’s future if he keeps training.
• Loyalty and mutual support: Yang Feng protects Lin Qing, Lin Qing returns Shen Lian’s kindness, and the Corpse Collectors welcome their new teammate.
• Workplace rivalry and danger: Lin Qing’s success draws Jiang Baihe’s resentment, foreshadowing possible conflict.
• The cost of confronting evil: The Yin Bone test makes clear that exposure to evil aura threatens both body and mind, and that survival depends on resistance and preparation.

Key plot points and events

• Lin Qing receives his Corpse Collector uniform, saber, and identity token. Yu Qiuyu explains the job’s pay and basic duties.
• Chief Constable Yang Feng takes Lin Qing to meet Commissioner Cheng Yannian. Impressed by Lin’s composure and rapid progress, Cheng gives him the stronger saber manual Lone Swan Reflecting Shadow and sets a test: master its basics within seven days to earn a fine saber.
• Yang takes Lin to inspect the Dungeon, warning that its concentrated malign energy is deadly to anyone below Bright Force and that its supernatural sights and sounds are illusions to be ignored.
• Lin calmly withstands the spirits’ temptations. Yang explains how resentful corpses are contained with Rouge Lanterns, Soul-Suppressing Nails, and bronze bells that indicate whether resentment remains.
• They find the corpse of Old Yang, Yang Feng’s former colleague, who was killed by the witch Yin Muhua. After removing the nails and confirming the procedure, Lin carries the body toward the Cremation Ground.
• Yang explains that the lower level contains the more dangerous corpses of Hidden Strength Martial Artists and is off-limits to Lin for now.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing appears disciplined and self-possessed, earning Cheng’s approval and Yang’s confidence. He is grateful for Cheng’s support but recognizes the difficulty of the seven-day training challenge.
• Cheng Yannian shows a personal investment in Lin’s potential, rewarding him with a better martial art and instructing Yang to train him well.
• Yang Feng acts as Lin’s guide and mentor, explaining both the dangers and procedures of the Dungeon. His grief over Old Yang reveals his loyalty to his former colleague.
• Lin responds respectfully to Old Yang’s death and follows Yang’s instructions without hesitation, while also feeling eager to explore the Dungeon’s deeper levels.

Significant themes

• Discipline and potential: Lin’s composure and rapid advancement attract powerful mentors, but their confidence brings demanding expectations.
• Duty and danger: Corpse collection is presented as necessary, hazardous work requiring strict rules and sound judgment.
• Respect for the dead: The careful containment and eventual cremation of corpses, especially Old Yang’s, underscore the dignity owed to the deceased.
• Ambition tempered by caution: Lin is intrigued by the martial arts knowledge potentially tied to the Dungeon’s dead, but access to greater dangers must wait until he is strong enough.

Key plot points and events

• Lin Qing crem​ates Old Yang, the late constable Yang Feng had served with. When the deliverance process reaches completion, Lin Qing receives memories of Old Yang’s life and can copy one of his abilities.
• Lin Qing chooses Lone Swan Reflecting Shadow, a constable’s saber art, already at Perfect Mastery. Old Yang’s other abilities include sharp observational vision, tracking, and poison identification.
• Yang Feng unexpectedly asks Lin Qing to become his disciple. Lin Qing readily accepts, and Yang Feng tells him to consult his parents before they hold a formal ceremony in three days.
• Yang Feng urges Lin Qing to keep training for a chance to join the Prefectural City Soul-Calming Office, believing Lin Qing’s talent could take him farther than Yang Feng himself ever managed.
• At home, Lin Qing shares the news with his parents. He also gives them five taels of silver to help them through a shortage caused by the authorities’ closure of the county’s general stores.
• The next day, Lin Qing trains at the Night Patrol Office. Constable Chief Han Tai orders everyone to watch for a missing Wooden Idol, reportedly sought by Yin Muhua’s gang and rumored to contain the Tathagata Fist Manual. Lin Qing worries that an ongoing search could expose his own connection to it.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qing gains a powerful saber skill, secures a respected master and potential protector, and shows growing concern for his family’s hardship. His hesitation over the Wooden Idol reveals the risks behind his current situation.
• Yang Feng demonstrates his trust in Lin Qing by offering to take him as a disciple. He sees Lin Qing as a younger version of himself, but with greater talent, and hopes he will seize opportunities Yang Feng never had.
• Lin Qing’s parents are proud of his success and encourage him to accept Yang Feng’s offer. Their worry over the store closures highlights their family’s vulnerability.
• Old Yang’s history is recalled with respect: he rose from hardship through years of service and died confronting criminals, establishing him as an honorable man.

Significant themes

• Legacy and mentorship: Old Yang’s hard-earned skills pass to Lin Qing, while Yang Feng offers guidance for his future.
• Talent and opportunity: Yang Feng urges Lin Qing not to waste the potential that might allow him to rise beyond his circumstances.
• Family duty and social hardship: Lin Qing’s financial support for his parents contrasts with the insecurity caused by official decisions.
• Secrecy and danger: The search for the Wooden Idol creates a looming threat, forcing Lin Qing to weigh when and how to act.