Chapter Summaries

Qin Yang killed Huang Dafu and Chen Guihua, then uncovered the story of how they created the ghost artifact, Huang Kai, through a human-sacrifice ritual. When Qin Yang destroyed Huang Kai’s statue-like body, a powerful faceless shadow emerged and attacked him.

• Huang Dafu and Chen Guihua attacked Qin Yang, but he killed Chen Guihua and then beheaded Huang Dafu.
• Qin Yang and Zhao Xinmo identified the wrapped object as Huang Kai, and Qin Yang uncovered the couple’s bloody ritual that had created him.
• Qin Yang unwrapped Huang Kai and destroyed his statue-like body with a palm strike.
• Black lights burst from Huang Kai and attacked Qin Yang, who fought them with his blade.
• Zhao Xinmo struck the darkness with a black wooden nail, revealing a towering, faceless shadow.

Qin Yang and Zhao Xinmo fought a Ghost Artifact that had formed a true form, and Qin Yang destroyed it with his Extreme Evil Heartless Slash. They found its empty shrine and concluded Huang Dafu and Chen Guihua had summoned it through an ancient ritual, while Zhao Xinmo explained that such rituals came from old texts like the Scripture of Wrongful Death.

• Zhao Xinmo’s Soul-Suppressing Nails injured the twisted ghostly shadow, giving Qin Yang a chance to freeze and kick it away.
• Huang Dafu and Chen Guihua revived as evil entities and kept Zhao Xinmo occupied while Qin Yang fought the ghostly shadow alone.
• Qin Yang opened the Yin Talisman, battled the ghostly shadow, and cut it apart with Extreme Evil Heartless Slash.
• Huang Dafu and Chen Guihua burst into self-immolation, and Zhao Xinmo explained that Ghost Artifacts could advance by consuming life essence and completing a ritual.
• Qin Yang and Zhao Xinmo found an empty shrine and concluded that Huang Dafu and Chen Guihua had summoned the Ghost Artifact while seeking a child.
• Zhao Xinmo told Qin Yang that ancient texts, including the Scripture of Wrongful Death, had spread rituals capable of summoning Ghost Artifacts.

After reporting the deaths in Tupo Village, Qin Yang exchanged for Water Nourishing Pills and began cultivating with them, then clashed with Li Chen, a captain connected to the Li family. Returning to his courtyard, Qin Yang noticed that the strand of hair he had left as a marker had fallen, suggesting someone had entered his room.

• Qin Yang and Zhao Xinmo found that everyone in Tupo Village had died, reported the incident to Leng Cang, and returned to the Sky Patrol Division.
• Qin Yang exchanged for thirty Water Nourishing Pills and bought the Compendium of Ghost Artifacts at the Myriad Books Pavilion.
• Qin Yang used a Water Nourishing Pill to cultivate the Northern Darkness Blackwater True Scripture and increased his progress substantially.
• A patrol captain named Li Chen insulted Qin Yang, who learned from an Internal Affairs Department man that Li Chen was a rising talent of the Li family.
• Qin Yang returned to his courtyard and noticed the strand of hair he had placed in the door crack had fallen.

Qin Yang discovered a planted packet in his room and faced a late-night search led by Li Chen of the Armory Department. He challenged Li Chen to a life-and-death pact if the search found nothing, and Li Chen accepted as Leng Cang and Wu Qian watched.

• Qin Yang found a suspicious packet hidden beneath his bed and suspected internal strife within the Sky Patrol Division.
• Li Chen led Armory Department personnel to Qin Yang’s courtyard, where one of his men was killed after breaking into the room.
• Qin Yang refused to let Li Chen search without consequences, while Li Chen claimed his authority under Sky Patrol Division regulations.
• Leng Cang arrived to defend Qin Yang, and Wu Qian joined Li Chen, escalating the standoff between the departments.
• Qin Yang proposed a life-and-death pact if the search found nothing, and Li Chen agreed.

Li Chen and Wu Qian searched Qin Yang’s room under false pretenses, but Qin Yang exposed their attempt to frame him and signed a life-and-death pact with Li Chen. After burning the real incriminating book, Qin Yang studied the Compendium of Ghost Artifacts and learned that ghost artifacts might be connected to the fall of the Mythological Era.

• Li Chen searched Qin Yang’s room and found a black bundle, which Wu Qian opened to reveal the Compendium of Ghost Artifacts Qin Yang had borrowed from the Myriad Books Pavilion.
• Qin Yang reminded Li Chen of their agreement and signed a life-and-death pact with him, setting their duel for five days later.
• Leng Cang warned Qin Yang that Li Chen was a rising talent and promised him one thousand contribution points to prepare for the duel.
• After Leng Cang left, Qin Yang retrieved the Five Viscera Scripture that Li Chen had planted and burned it in the rear courtyard.
• Qin Yang read the Compendium of Ghost Artifacts and learned that its author linked ghost artifacts to the fall of the Mythological Era.

Qin Yang continued cultivating while the Sky Patrol Division prepared for his life-and-death duel with Li Chen in five days. Zhao Xinmo bet on Qin Yang, and Xuan Qian planned to use the wager to draw more bettors toward Li Chen.

• Qin Yang dismissed speculation about the Mythological Era and returned to cultivation after reading the Compendium of Ghost Artifacts.
• Two hidden voices discussed the conflict between the great lineages and the Imperial Court, Marquis Fuhai's Estate, and their continued search for a missing object.
• Wu Qian urged Li Chen to defeat Qin Yang in their duel, and Li Chen vowed to kill him after returning to his family to cultivate.
• News of the duel spread through the Yongning Sky Patrol Division, where many people bet on Li Chen as tensions between the Evil Extermination Department and the Armory Department mounted.
• Zhao Xinmo bet more than a dozen spirit stones on Qin Yang, and Xuan Qian accepted the wager while planning to attract more bets on Li Chen.
• Qin Yang remained unaware of the betting and continued cultivating with Water Nourishing Pills, rapidly gaining experience in the Northern Darkness Blackwater True Art.

Qin Yang faced Li Chen in a life-and-death duel at the Sky Patrol Division after several days of cultivation breakthroughs. The fight began with their opposing blade arts colliding, and Qin Yang launched a powerful attack as Li Chen countered.

• Qin Yang advanced the Northern Darkness Blackwater True Art, Yin Yang Life and Death Talisman Scripture, and Dragon Elephant Fist during several days of secluded cultivation.
• The Sky Patrol Division gathered for the duel, while Dice Daoist opened a betting table and Zhao Xinmo said he favored Li Chen.
• Li Chen arrived first and taunted the Evil Extermination Department until Qin Yang appeared and traded insults with the Armory Department.
• Dice Daoist began the duel, and Li Chen revealed that he knew Qin Yang's cultivation and techniques before attacking with the Purple Flame Wind Tiger Saber.
• Qin Yang met Li Chen's attack with the Evil Flood Dragon Swallowing Fiend Blade, and their opposing energies collided across the arena.
• Li Chen claimed Qin Yang was weaker because he had not reached true astral energy, and Qin Yang answered with the Evil Flood Dragon: Black Sea Wave Devouring Kill.

Qin Yang defeated Li Chen in their life-and-death duel after Li Chen destroyed the Soaring Moon Blade, the weapon Qin Yang had inherited from Qin Dongsheng. Qin Yang left the arena carrying the broken blade, while Li Chen’s body was crushed among the ruins.

• Li Chen used Violet Tiger: Flash Slash to wound Qin Yang, but Qin Yang struck back and gained the advantage in their blade exchange.
• Li Chen activated the forbidden Blood Three Flowers art and destroyed the Soaring Moon Blade with Violet Flame: Wind Tiger Cloud Shatter, blasting Qin Yang to the arena’s edge.
• Enraged by the loss of his blade, Qin Yang activated the Yin Talisman and charged Li Chen with overwhelming strength.
• Qin Yang broke through Li Chen’s attacks, punched a hole through his chest, and stomped him repeatedly until the arena collapsed.
• Qin Yang walked away with the broken blade as the others found Li Chen’s remains scattered across the arena ruins.

After Qin Yang killed Li Chen in the arena, Song Yechen warned the Li family against seeking revenge, while other forces plotted around the threat to Qin Yang. Qin Yang recovered from his injuries and decided to find a stronger blade.

• Qin Yang killed Li Chen, and the Sky Patrol Division dispersed after Xuan Qian announced that bettors could collect their winnings.
• Li Changkong vowed revenge and considered a secret bounty on Qin Yang, but he called it off after receiving Song Yechen’s warning that the Li family would be destroyed if Qin Yang died.
• Li Changhai met a long-haired man outside Yongning Prefecture City, and they discussed killing Qin Yang to advance their plans.
• Qin Yang healed his injuries with a Water Nourishing Pill and the Yang Talisman, then hung his broken Soaring Moon Blade on the wall.
• Qin Yang decided to visit Lingxin Tower the next day to choose a stronger blade.

Qin Yang exchanged his contribution points for the heavy saber Cold Abyss, then spent a month and a half cultivating until the Northern Darkness Blackwater True Art reached the Sixth Layer. With his pills and contribution points exhausted, he took a mission to hunt Daoist Liu Yun and left the Sky Patrol Division, unaware that a sallow-faced man had appeared in the city.

• Qin Yang tested and bought the five-hundred-jin Cold Abyss Blade for one thousand contribution points.
• After a month and a half of cultivation, Qin Yang's Northern Darkness Blackwater True Art broke through to the Sixth Layer, leaving him without pills or contribution points.
• Qin Yang asked Leng Cang for a mission and accepted the hunt for Daoist Liu Yun, a Spirit Master wanted for sacrificing an entire village.
• Leng Cang explained that the Patrol and Intelligence Department would provide a trusted investigator to help Qin Yang find Daoist Liu Yun.
• Qin Yang sensed spies watching him after he left the Sky Patrol Division and used his Fleeting Light, Glancing Shadow Divine Ability to lose them.
• A sallow-faced man wearing a bamboo hat emerged from a dark alley and blended into the busy streets.

Qin Yang tracked Daoist Liu Yun to an abandoned temple and confronted him over the Huangni Village massacre. Liu Yun denied the charge and escaped after their fight, leaving Qin Yang in pursuit.

• Qin Yang met Tong Quan at a wine shop, and Tong Quan revealed that Daoist Liu Yun was hiding at Xuan Yuan Temple.
• Qin Yang entered the abandoned temple and fought Liu Yun, destroying the main hall with their clash.
• Qin Yang accused Liu Yun of sacrificing the people of Huangni Village, but Liu Yun blamed Six Corpse Child and denied the Sky Patrol Division's findings.
• Liu Yun refused to go with Qin Yang and used his Heaven and Earth Empty Flow Sword technique to escape during their battle.
• Qin Yang broke Liu Yun's invisible greatsword with the Dragon Elephant Fist, then chased after him when he vanished.

After Daoist Liu Yun escaped, Qin Yang learned that Liu Yun claimed to have stopped the Huangni Village blood sacrifice and secretly investigated the case for Leng Cang. Meanwhile, Leng Cang falsely recorded Liu Yun as dead, and two hidden conspirators discussed the cover-up and Black Fish Tower’s plans against Qin Yang.

• Qin Yang reported Daoist Liu Yun’s claims about the Huangni Village massacre to Leng Cang, who could not tell whether Liu Yun was lying or the Patrol and Intelligence Department had been compromised.
• Leng Cang hired Qin Yang to investigate Huangni Village and gave him the case file, which contained only witness statements and no substantive evidence.
• Qin Yang left Yongning Prefecture City in disguise to travel to Changchuan County and investigate the case.
• Leng Cang told an internal affairs officer to record Liu Yun as dead and seal the case file, then approved six hundred contribution points for Qin Yang.
• A mysterious figure and a hoarse-voiced conspirator discussed the false report, worried Liu Yun might have revealed their plans, and decided to watch as Black Fish Tower moved against Qin Yang.

Qin Yang was intercepted on the mountain path by the Third Tower Master of Black Fish Tower, who challenged him with Grandmaster-level martial arts. After a fierce fight, the Third Tower Master activated Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown and began overpowering Qin Yang.

• Qin Yang left the city for Changchuan County and met the Third Tower Master of Black Fish Tower on a mountain path.
• The Third Tower Master wounded Qin Yang with a palm strike, and Qin Yang countered with Extreme Cold Gang Qi and the Cold Abyss Blade.
• Qin Yang activated his Yin Talisman and fought back with his blade, fist, and Immeasurable Heavy Whip, knocking the Third Tower Master away.
• The Third Tower Master activated Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown and trapped the Cold Abyss Blade with Consecutive Heart Locking Palm.
• The Third Tower Master struck Qin Yang’s neck, and Qin Yang blocked with his left hand, nearly shattering its bones.

Qin Yang and Liu Yun joined forces to drive off the Black Fish Third Tower Lord, who escaped after losing an arm. In Mingshan County Town, Liu Yun explained his past investigation into Huangni Village, and Qin Yang concluded that someone in the County Office had lied.

• Qin Yang used the Yin Talisman's power and the Cold Abyss Blade to fight the Black Fish Third Tower Lord, while Liu Yun attacked with six streaks of green light.
• The Black Fish Third Tower Lord struck Qin Yang away and escaped after losing an arm to the combined assault.
• Liu Yun revealed that he had followed Qin Yang and secretly coordinated their attack on the Black Fish Third Tower Lord.
• Qin Yang invited Liu Yun to investigate Huangni Village with him, and they traveled together to Mingshan County Town.
• Liu Yun told Qin Yang that he and Zhang Cangjun had previously investigated Huangni Village and killed the evil cultivator responsible for its atrocities.
• After comparing Liu Yun's account with the case files, Qin Yang said someone in the County Office must have lied.

Qin Yang investigated Zhang Cangjun’s disappearance and tracked County Office captain Wang Tie to the Yichun House. After threatening Wang Tie, Qin Yang forced him to begin explaining his connection to Zhang Cangjun’s death.

• Qin Yang and Liu Yun agreed to investigate separately, with Liu Yun heading to Huangni Village while Qin Yang sought leads in Mingshan County Town.
• Qin Yang learned that County Lieutenant Ye Feng and Captain Wang Tie were involved in the Huangni Village case files and discovered that Wang Tie frequented the Yichun House.
• Qin Yang disguised himself, paid to meet Wang Tie privately, and claimed that his missing brother was Zhang Cangjun.
• Wang Tie recognized Zhang Cangjun’s name and tried to leave, but Qin Yang stopped and threatened him.
• Wang Tie denied killing Zhang Cangjun, and Qin Yang demanded that he explain his connection to the death.

Qin Yang and Liu Yun investigated Zhang Cangjun’s death, but the County Lieutenant Ye Feng and Wang Tie were killed before they could reveal more. Qin Yang returned to the Sky Patrol Division and found Leng Cang after Liu Yun asked him to bring any new clues to Xuan Yuan Temple.

• Wang Tie told Qin Yang that County Lieutenant Ye Feng had ordered Zhang Cangjun’s case file altered and that a masked Patrol and Intelligence Department agent had taken it away.
• Qin Yang threatened Wang Tie into keeping silent, then met Liu Yun, who said Zhang Cangjun had likely been killed on his way back to the Sky Patrol Division.
• Qin Yang and Liu Yun went to Ye Feng’s residence, where they found the house burning, its servants dead, and black ash suggesting Ye Feng’s corpse had been destroyed.
• Qin Yang and Liu Yun found Wang Tie’s side room at Yichun House burning too, with black ash where Wang Tie had been, confirming he had been silenced.
• Qin Yang and Liu Yun returned to Yongning Prefecture City; Liu Yun told Qin Yang to seek him at Xuan Yuan Temple if he found clues, and Qin Yang went to the Sky Patrol Division to find Leng Cang.

Qin Yang learned that the county lieutenant and constable had been killed while investigating Zhang Cangjun’s murder, then set out to retaliate against Black Fish Tower for attacking him. He stormed the Changfeng Escort Agency stronghold and defeated its fighters, but more enemies emerged, led by a bearded man with a greatsword.

• Leng Cang credited Qin Yang with 1,100 contribution points and agreed to support his retaliation against Black Fish Tower.
• Tong Quan identified Changfeng Escort Agency as one of Black Fish Tower’s strongholds in Yongning Prefecture City and directed Qin Yang there.
• Qin Yang entered Changfeng Escort Agency openly and attacked a man who had tried to conceal his identity and Killing Intent.
• Qin Yang fought through the escort agency’s courtyard with his fists and legs, leaving no one in the first wave standing.
• Dozens more fighters rushed out of the buildings, led by a brawny man with a tangled beard and a greatsword strapped to his back.

Qin Yang stormed the Changfeng Escort Agency and killed its leaders and more than a hundred people. After Chief Constable Zheng Yuanchao identified Qin Yang as a member of the Sky Patrol Division, he sent someone to ask whether the division had ordered the attack.

• Qin Yang attacked the Changfeng Escort Agency and killed the Second Escort, the Third Escort, and head escort Zhou Yi.
• Zhou Yi warned Qin Yang that Black Fish Tower would not let him go, and Qin Yang replied that he would not spare Black Fish Tower either.
• A constable captain arrived at the scene and, fearing the political consequences, sent word to the Prefecture Yamen.
• Zheng Yuanchao inspected Zhou Yi's body and recognized Qin Yang in a portrait drawn from witnesses' accounts.
• Zheng Yuanchao ordered a constable to ask the Sky Patrol Division whether it had carried out the massacre.

After destroying the Changfeng Escort Agency, Qin Yang learned that his courtyard had once belonged to Zhang Cangjun and wondered whether an intruder had been searching for something Zhang left behind. Black Fish Tower withdrew its exposed strongholds rather than risk a direct conflict, while the Li family discussed Song Yechen’s growing efforts to bring the Sky Patrol Division under his control.

• Qin Yang questioned a returning groundskeeper and learned that Zhang Cangjun had once lived in his courtyard, leading him to suspect the intruder had sought something Zhang left behind.
• At a hidden Black Fish Tower estate, the long-haired man stopped Third Tower Master from attacking Qin Yang again and ordered the tower’s exposed city strongholds withdrawn.
• Leng Cang told Zheng Yuanchao that the Changfeng Escort Agency case concerned the Evil Extermination Department’s purge and could not be discussed, while Black Fish Tower quietly pulled back its visible bases.
• Li Changkong and Li Changhai discussed Black Fish Tower’s retreat and their inability to obtain confidential information from the Sky Patrol Division after Li Chen’s death.
• Li Changkong explained that Song Yechen was expanding the Sky Patrol Division and excluding lineage and sect members, and the Li family decided to wait and see what the other families did.

Qin Yang searched for clues about Zhang Cangjun’s death, then broke through to the True Gang Realm by accepting and mastering his violent emotions. He decided to target Black Fish Tower next.

• Qin Yang found no hidden item in Zhang Cangjun’s former room and suspected the killer belonged to the Patrol and Intelligence Department.
• Qin Yang cultivated the Northern Darkness Blackwater True Art for more than a month and entered a violent battle in a sea-abyss vision.
• Qin Yang accepted the violence within himself and used that understanding to complete his breakthrough to the True Gang Realm.
• Qin Yang absorbed the cold air that had frozen his room and saw that the Yin Yang Life and Death Talisman Scripture had advanced to the Fifth Layer.
• Qin Yang chose to focus on cultivating the Dragon Elephant Fist and planned to cause trouble for Black Fish Tower.