Recaps

Yang Xiao woke in a corpse room in Xiangyun County and learned that a rat-demon calamity threatened his life and his chance to join the Demon Suppression Division. He discovered he could equip the Spring Embroidery Saber to gain strength and perfect blade mastery, then faced a demand from Hu Qingqing to hand it over to Hu Kai.

• Yang Xiao regained his memories as a low-ranking Yamen Runner and learned that rat demons had attacked Liu Family Village, with Constable Zhang preparing the runners for deployment.
• Yang Xiao remembered how Hu Qingqing had spent his wages and savings supporting Hu Kai while his cultivation stagnated at Body Forging 3rd Layer.
• Yang Xiao returned home and drew out his late father Yang Dayong's Spring Embroidery Saber, which triggered an equipment ability.
• Yang Xiao equipped the Spring Embroidery Saber, gaining increased strength, perfect mastery of Basic Blade Technique, and the blue Hundred-Refined Edge trait.
• Hu Qingqing called from outside and demanded that Yang Xiao hand over the saber for Hu Kai, and Yang Xiao prepared to confront her.

Yang Xiao reclaimed his father’s saber from Hu Qingqing and Hu Kai, then signed up for the Demon Suppression Division’s selection despite his low cultivation. A Rat Calamity spread to Liu Family Village, and Zhang Hu ordered the Yamen Runners to assemble for a rescue.

• Hu Qingqing tried to take Yang Xiao’s Spring Embroidery Saber for Hu Kai, but Yang Xiao refused and declared he was cutting ties with the Hu family.
• Hu Kai attacked Yang Xiao, who used his saber skills to defeat him and sent him away with Hu Qingqing.
• Yang Xiao asked Zhang Hu to register him for the Demon Suppression Division’s selection in seven days, and Zhang Hu agreed.
• A Yamen Runner reported that Rat Demons had surrounded Liu Family Village, and Zhang Hu ordered the Yamen Runners to assemble for the rescue.

Yang Xiao joined the yamen runners’ mission to rescue Liu Family Village from a Rat Demon swarm and killed a powerful Rat Demon while saving Hu Kai. After solidifying his saber’s equipment effect, he asked Zhang Hu whether killing the larger demons would earn him Merit.

• Yang Xiao ignored Zhao Qiang’s warning and joined Zhang Hu’s group heading to Liu Family Village.
• The yamen runners found the village under attack by Rat Demons, and Zhang Hu split them into groups to rescue villagers and clear the fields.
• Hu Kai charged a gigantic Rat Demon but was driven back when it lunged at him.
• Yang Xiao cut down the Rat Demon, solidifying the Spring Embroidery Saber’s effect and improving his abilities.
• Yang Xiao asked Zhang Hu whether killing the remaining large Rat Demons would count toward his Merit.

Yang Xiao helped the Yamen Runners defend a village from a Rat Demon attack, cutting down the attackers with precise saber strikes. After he killed a Body Forging 6th Layer Sapient Rat Demon, the remaining Rat Demons still faced him.

• Yang Xiao killed a Body Forging 5th Layer Rat Demon with one strike, stunning Hu Kai and the other Yamen Runners.
• Yang Xiao charged the palisade gap and killed Rat Demons while Zhang Hu ordered the Yamen Runners to follow him and hold the entrance.
• Yang Xiao rescued an old man outside the village and killed three more Rat Demons as they attacked him from different directions.
• A Sapient Rat Demon emerged from the wheatfield and attacked Yang Xiao, whose saber severed its tail before he killed it with successive strikes.
• Yang Xiao faced the remaining Rat Demons, while Zhang Hu realized his Basic Blade Technique had likely reached consummation.

Yang Xiao helped the yamen runners defeat a rat demon swarm at Liu Family Village, earning ninety merit points for killing nine demons and rescuing villagers. After Zhang Hu confirmed his record at the county yamen, Yang Xiao chose to look through the armory for a reward.

• Yang Xiao killed a sapient 6th-layer body-forging rat demon, turning the yamen runners’ fear into resolve as they drove back the swarm.
• Yang Xiao and the other yamen runners cleared the rat demons from Liu Family Village, rescuing villagers while seven villagers died.
• Zhang Hu praised Yang Xiao’s actions and promised to report his merit, while Hu Kai resented being rescued and overshadowed by him.
• At Xiangyun County Yamen, Zhang Hu announced that Yang Xiao had killed nine rat demons and earned ninety merit points, the most among the runners.
• Yang Xiao said he wanted to look through the armory, and Zhang Hu took him there.

Yang Xiao exchanged Merit for two martial arts manuals and learned about the demons threatening villages around Xiangyun County. At home, he equipped the Breath-Nurturing Method, instantly reaching consummation and advancing to Body Forging Realm Fifth Stage.

• Yang Xiao exchanged 40 Merit each for Monument Splitting Palm and Astonishing Swan Steps, and discovered that martial arts manuals could be equipped.
• Zhang Hu warned Yang Xiao about Dog Demons in Wang Village and the powerful demons, including a Qi Gathering Realm demon, on Three-Demon Mountain behind Li Family Hamlet.
• Zhang Hu told Yang Xiao to avoid dangerous demons and wait for the Demon Suppression Division, which he had requested help from.
• At home, Yang Xiao tested equipping his Standard Saber and found its Basic Blade Technique effect too weak to be worth solidifying.
• Yang Xiao equipped the Breath-Nurturing Method, instantly reached its consummate realm, and broke through from Body Forging Realm Third Stage to Fifth Stage.

Yang Xiao permanently solidified the Breath-Nurturing Method and Astonishing Swan Steps, then equipped Monument Splitting Palm, advancing to the Seventh Layer of Body Forging. At the County Yamen, Zhang Hu sent him to investigate reports of Dog Demons attacking Wang Village.

• Yang Xiao perfected the Breath-Nurturing Method and gained the Vitality Recovery trait.
• Yang Xiao equipped Astonishing Swan Steps, mastered its movement techniques, and advanced to the Sixth Layer of Body Forging.
• Yang Xiao equipped Monument Splitting Palm, shattered a courtyard bluestone, and advanced to the Seventh Layer of Body Forging.
• Yang Xiao went to the County Yamen seeking a chance to hunt demons and earn merit.
• Zhang Hu told Yang Xiao that Dog Demons had been attacking Wang Village and asked him to investigate while Zhao Qiang handled the Liu Family Village aftermath.

Yang Xiao investigated the silence from Wang Village and found it devastated by dog demons. He fought his way to the ruined temple, where he arrived just as Wang Dagui was about to be overwhelmed by the demon pack.

• Yang Xiao accepted Zhang Hu’s assignment to investigate Wang Village and set out after learning that killing demons would earn merit points.
• Yang Xiao found the village strewn with corpses and killed five dog demons that attacked him, including two that wore clothes and imitated humans.
• Yang Xiao spotted Wang Dagui surrounded by more than twenty dog demons outside a ruined temple, wounded and guarding the entrance.
• As the dog demons launched another assault on Wang Dagui, Yang Xiao attacked the pack from the flank and announced that he had arrived.

Yang Xiao arrived alone at the ruined temple and rescued Wang Dagui and the villagers by slaughtering the Dog Demons, including their Body Forging Realm Ninth Stage leader. He revealed he was at the Body Forging Realm Seventh Stage, then prepared to return to the County Yamen with proof of his achievement.

• Wang Dagui urged Yang Xiao to flee and report back, but Yang Xiao stayed to fight the Dog Demons surrounding the temple.
• Yang Xiao killed the attacking Dog Demons with his blade and Astonishing Swan Steps, then knocked the Dog Demon Leader away with Monument Splitting Palm and beheaded it.
• Yang Xiao pursued and killed the remaining Dog Demons, slaughtering all thirty or forty outside the ruined temple.
• Yang Xiao told Wang Dagui that he was at the Body Forging Realm Seventh Stage, and the villagers emerged to thank him for saving them.
• Wang Dagui offered to vouch for Yang Xiao as a constable and explained how to collect the Dog Demon Leader's head and the other demons' ears as proof of merit.
• A white-haired villager made a pouch from his tunic and followed Yang Xiao to help collect the proof before they returned to the County Yamen.

Yang Xiao returned to Xiangyun County with the head of a powerful dog demon and proof that he had slain its pack, while the county runners initially credited Wang Dagui. Wang Dagui revealed the truth, and Zhang Hu acknowledged Yang Xiao’s achievement.

• On the journey back, Wang Dagui fell asleep, still stunned by Yang Xiao’s skill in defeating the dog demons.
• Yang Xiao entered Xiangyun County carrying a gigantic dog demon head and led an injured Wang Dagui to the county yamen.
• The runners assumed Wang Dagui had slain the demon until he woke and stated that Yang Xiao had killed the entire pack and saved him.
• Hu Kai challenged Wang Dagui’s account, but Wang Dagui pointed to the demon’s head as evidence of Yang Xiao’s victory.
• Zhang Hu arrived, heard what happened, and praised Yang Xiao after confirming that he had slain the high-stage demon and its pack.

Yang Xiao earned 460 Merit points for killing thirty-seven Dog Demons and rescuing Wang Dagui and the villagers, then visited the County Yamen Armory with Zhang Hu. He left with new techniques and pills, while his promotion to Head Constable awaited formal approval.

• Zhang Hu counted Yang Xiao’s Dog Demons and awarded him 460 Merit points, including extra credit for the Ninth Stage leader.
• Yang Xiao spent 40 Merit points on the Iron Cloth Technique to strengthen his defense.
• Zhang Hu said Yang Xiao’s promotion to Head Constable was nearly certain and showed him the Armory’s restricted collection.
• Yang Xiao received the Demon-Slaying Blade Technique and Origin-Guiding Qi Gathering Art for free, explaining that they were difficult techniques from the Demon Suppression Division.
• Yang Xiao spent 400 Merit points on two Body Tempering Pills and left the County Yamen with only 20 Merit points remaining.

Yang Xiao used pills and the Iron Cloth Technique to reach the Body Forging Realm Ninth Stage and gained the Iron Armor trait. He equipped the Origin-Guiding Qi Gathering Art, but could not absorb spiritual qi until he reached Body Forging perfection.

• Yang Xiao used two Body-Tempering Pills and advanced from the Body Forging Realm Seventh Stage to the Eighth Stage.
• Yang Xiao equipped the Iron Cloth Technique, perfected it, and gained the Iron Armor trait.
• Yang Xiao tested his hardened body against his saber, which shattered while leaving only a white mark on his forearm.
• Yang Xiao broke through to the Body Forging Realm Ninth Stage after perfecting the Iron Cloth Technique.
• Yang Xiao found the Demon-Slaying Blade Technique too difficult to practice without qi and read the Origin-Guiding Qi Gathering Art instead.
• Yang Xiao equipped the Origin-Guiding Qi Gathering Art, but discovered he could not absorb spiritual qi before reaching Body Forging perfection.

Yang Xiao officially became the Fourth Constable of the Xiangyun County Yamen and was assigned to patrol Wang Village, where a powerful old dog demon might still remain. Before he could set out, Li Tie challenged him to test his strength and discovered Yang Xiao had reached the Ninth Layer of Body Forging.

• Yang Xiao received his Constable Token from Magistrate Zhang Yue and was named the Fourth Constable of the Xiangyun County Yamen.
• Zhang Hu assigned Yang Xiao four yamen runners and sent him to patrol Wang Village, warning that an old dog demon in the Qi Gathering Realm might still be alive.
• Yang Xiao agreed to patrol Wang Village and promised to report any anomalies rather than confront the old dog demon recklessly.
• Li Tie confronted Yang Xiao outside the duty room and attacked him, first testing his movement and then reaching for his Spring Embroidery Saber.
• Yang Xiao dodged Li Tie's attacks and drew his saber to force Li Tie to withdraw his hand, revealing his Ninth Layer of Body Forging strength.

Yang Xiao led four Yamen Runners to Wang Village to investigate reported Demon Traces, despite signs the lead might be a trap. When a furry claw burst through a door and killed the old man who had guided them, Yang Xiao and his men faced the demon inside.

• Li Tie tested Yang Xiao’s strength, then left after failing to gain the upper hand.
• Yang Xiao met Zhao Tieniu, Sun Ming, Zhou Qiang, and Zhou Gang, then led them toward Wang Village.
• On the way, Zhao Tieniu and the Zhou brothers agreed to follow Yang Xiao into danger, and Sun Ming reluctantly joined them.
• An old man told Yang Xiao that a demon had entered a residence in Wang Village, and Yang Xiao ordered him to lead the way.
• At the residence, a fur-covered claw pierced the old man’s chest and lifted his beating heart toward the demon.

Yang Xiao entered a Dog Demon lair and slaughtered its inhabitants, including their ancient Qi Gathering Realm leader. He ordered the stunned yamen runners to come inside and clean up.

• Yang Xiao kicked open the door and confronted an old Dog Demon surrounded by villagers’ corpses and its descendants.
• Yang Xiao killed two Ninth Stage Dog Demons and swiftly slaughtered the rest of the pack.
• The old dog transformed into a powerful form and attacked Yang Xiao, while the four yamen runners watched in fear.
• Yang Xiao wounded the old dog with his Spring Embroidery Saber, then beheaded it before it could recover.
• Yang Xiao sheathed his saber and told the four yamen runners to come in and clean up.

Yang Xiao and four yamen runners found and destroyed the dog demons’ lair after clearing the village. They returned to Xiangyun County with a cart piled high with demon corpses, drawing the townspeople’s attention.

• Yang Xiao found an inner core in the old yellow dog’s corpse, and Sun Ming reported a trail leading into the mountains.
• Yang Xiao led Zhao Tieniu, Sun Ming, and the other yamen runners to a cave and went inside alone.
• Yang Xiao killed the dog demons remaining in the cave, then ordered the runners to collect their corpses.
• Yang Xiao and the four yamen runners built a handcart and hauled the demon corpses back to Xiangyun County.
• Yang Xiao entered the county with the cart as guards and townspeople reacted to the many dog demon corpses.

Yang Xiao returned to the county yamen with the corpses of a Qi Gathering Realm dog demon and its pack, earning 450 Merit points and confirming his prospects with the Demon Suppression Division. After exchanging for two Body Tempering Pills, he reached Body Forging Perfection and began absorbing spiritual Qi as the Origin-Guiding Qi Gathering Art activated.

• Yang Xiao returned to the county yamen with a cart of dog demon corpses and told Zhang Hu he had killed the Qi Gathering Realm dog demon and cleared its lair.
• Zhang Hu and the Yamen Runners were shocked by Yang Xiao's feat, while Hu Kai left in despair after realizing he could no longer catch up to him.
• Zhang Hu tallied Yang Xiao's rewards at 450 Merit points and said his entry into the Demon Suppression Division was certain.
• Yang Xiao exchanged Merit points for two Body Tempering Pills and used them in his courtyard.
• Yang Xiao reached Body Forging Perfection, and his Origin-Guiding Qi Gathering Art began drawing spiritual Qi into his body.

Yang Xiao broke through to the Qi Gathering Realm, used an equipment slot to absorb a demon core, and mastered the Demon-Slaying Blade Technique. He ended the chapter assessing his strength as he awaited someone from the Demon Suppression Division, expected in four days.

• Yang Xiao opened his first aperture and reached the one-aperture Qi Gathering Realm, gaining greater endurance and the ability to channel spiritual energy.
• Yang Xiao discovered that advancing realms had given him a second equipment slot and equipped the Qi Gathering Demonic Core.
• The demon core opened three more apertures and granted Yang Xiao the Spiritual Olfaction prefix, bringing him to the four-aperture Qi Gathering Realm.
• Yang Xiao equipped the Demon-Slaying Blade Technique, gaining perfect mastery and the Demon-Slaying prefix.
• Yang Xiao assessed his cultivation and abilities, then calculated that someone from the Demon Suppression Division would arrive in four days.

Li Tie grew suspicious of Yang Xiao’s sudden strength and plotted with Hu Kai to have him killed later, while Yang Xiao cleared demons around Wang Village and earned merit. Yang Xiao returned home with new foundational martial arts and equipped Rock-Shattering Fist, beginning its one-hour solidification period.

• Li Tie learned that Yang Xiao had brought back a Qi Gathering Realm great demon’s head and suspected he possessed a secret.
• Li Tie gave Hu Kai a Vermilion Fruit and proposed arranging Yang Xiao’s death outside Xiangyun County after the Demon Suppression Division arrived.
• Yang Xiao sensed lingering demonic qi around Wang Village and killed more than thirty demons while clearing the surrounding area.
• Villagers thanked Yang Xiao with food for saving them from the dog demon, and he returned to the County Yamen to raise his merit total to 370 points.
• Yang Xiao redeemed foundational martial arts and equipped Rock-Shattering Fist, gaining perfected Punching and the Rapid Punch trait while its solidification timer began.

Yang Xiao learned that people had been vanishing in Li Family Hamlet and agreed to help investigate the cases alongside Li Tie. He remained wary of Li Tie after detecting a strange blood-and-herb scent on him, and set out to join him in the hamlet.

• Yang Xiao perfected Boulder Stake and Wind-Breaking Spear, gaining the Sinking Foot and Rapid Stab traits.
• At a steamed bun shop, Yang Xiao heard diners discuss the recurring rat demons in Liu Village and praise his victory over the dog demons in Wang Village.
• Yang Xiao learned that dozens of people had disappeared in Li Family Hamlet, where Li Tie was stationed without finding clues.
• At the county yamen, Yang Xiao detected a strange medicinal scent mixed with blood on Li Tie and heard his request for help investigating the disappearances.
• Yang Xiao agreed to go to Li Family Hamlet, while Li Tie concealed a flicker of strange emotion behind a grateful smile.

Yang Xiao arrived at Li Family Hamlet to investigate a string of unexplained livestock and villager disappearances. After surveying the village with Li Tie, he sensed Demonic Qi as dusk fell.

• Yang Xiao rode to Li Family Hamlet with Zhao Tieniu, Sun Ming, Zhou Qiang, and Zhou Gang, where the villagers watched them with numb, distant expressions.
• Li Tie told Yang Xiao that livestock had vanished first, followed by fifteen villagers who disappeared without a struggle or any trace.
• Yang Xiao agreed to help investigate and took a room in the village before Li Tie led him around the area.
• Li Tie pointed out where the disappearances had occurred and said the Demon might have come from the mountain forest, while Yang Xiao considered that it could already be hiding in the village.
• As dusk fell, Yang Xiao sensed Demonic Qi while Li Tie invited him to dinner.

Yang Xiao followed the Demonic Qi to a pigpen in Li Family Hamlet and killed the Black Pig Demon hiding there. After finding human remains in its belly, he questioned whether Li Tie had truly failed to notice the demon, leaving the village’s case unresolved.

• Yang Xiao sensed Demonic Qi in Li Family Hamlet and challenged Li Tie about why it was stronger in the village than on Back Mountain.
• Yang Xiao followed the scent to a pigpen, where he identified a large black pig as the source of the Demonic Qi.
• The Black Pig Demon revealed itself and charged, but Yang Xiao fought it with his saber and martial arts and killed it.
• Yang Xiao opened the demon’s belly and found human remains, prompting a woman to recognize part of her child’s skull.
• Yang Xiao questioned Li Tie about the demon’s presence, then said the Li Family Hamlet case involved more than the dossier described.

Li Tie met with the Pig Demon, who planned to enter Li Family Hamlet after learning Yang Xiao had killed his young demons. Yang Xiao tracked the Pig Demon to the village outskirts, where it had abducted several villagers, and confronted it.

• Li Tie told the Pig Demon that Yang Xiao had killed its children, and the Pig Demon struck Li Tie before demanding an opening to enter the village that night.
• The Pig Demon asked Li Tie about the villagers he had found for the Second Ape Demon and discussed the Condensed Essence Fruit guarded by the Eldest Bull Demon.
• Yang Xiao sensed a powerful Demonic Qi near the village and sent Zhao Tieniu, Sun Ming, Zhou Qiang, and Zhou Gang to alert the other Yamen Runners and patrol.
• Yang Xiao followed the Demonic Qi to a grove and found the Pig Demon beside five or six unconscious villagers.
• The Pig Demon recognized Yang Xiao as the one who had killed its sons and declared that it would eat him.

Yang Xiao slew the Qi Gathering Pig Demon and its lesser demons, then rescued the villagers and waited for the yamen runners. When Li Tie arrived, he nervously asked whether the Pig Demon had revealed anything about their conspiracy.

• Yang Xiao wounded the Pig Demon with a swift saber strike, then used his footwork to kill the five or six lesser Black Pig Demons without letting their leader attack freely.
• The Pig Demon unleashed its Crimson Killing Intent, but Yang Xiao’s Iron Cloth Technique kept it from corroding his flesh.
• Yang Xiao overwhelmed the Pig Demon with saber strikes, ignored its offer to submit and reveal the secrets of Three-Demon Mountain, and killed it before taking its Inner Core.
• Yang Xiao checked that the male and female villagers were alive, then rested until Zhao Tieniu, the other yamen runners, and Li Tie arrived.
• Li Tie praised Yang Xiao and tentatively asked whether the Pig Demon had revealed anything.

Yang Xiao killed a Pig Demon, absorbed its Inner Core to reach Qi Gathering Seven Apertures, and discovered a trait that let him gain spiritual energy by digesting Demon flesh. He shared the Pig Demon's meat with the villagers of Li Family Hamlet, while Li Tie watched with a darkened expression.

• Yang Xiao told Li Tie that he had killed the Pig Demon after it tried to abduct villagers, and Li Tie hid his fear over their secret collusion.
• Yang Xiao equipped the Pig Demon's Inner Core, opened his fifth, sixth, and seventh Apertures, and gained the Purifying Silt to Transform Origin trait.
• Yang Xiao decided not to waste the Pig Demon's corpse and prepared its meat in a large pot at the village entrance.
• Yang Xiao tasted the Demon meat and found that the trait produced little spiritual energy, then began serving portions to the hesitant villagers.
• The villagers enjoyed the meat and praised Yang Xiao after every scrap was handed out, while Li Tie emerged and saw the gathering with a darkened face.