Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• Gu Feng returns to Liangshan with hundreds of craftsmen and building materials to oversee the Origin Sect’s renovations on behalf of the Chengyun Trading Company. Zheng Fang handles the work, while Gu Feng assists.
• Qin Shujian reflects on his growing strength and his long-standing fear of being vulnerable to players. Breaking through the Mortal Domain’s restrictions has eased that pressure, since he now greatly outclasses them.
• Remembering his seven Fortune points, Qin tests whether they can improve his saber, Thousand Mountain Blood. One point upgrades it from a fifth-rank to a fourth-rank sharp weapon, turning it into a Fortune Treasure that can strengthen and stabilize a sect’s Fortune.
• Qin spends his remaining six points on the saber. Its ringing spreads through the Origin Sect, and the sudden wave of power triggers Zheng Fang and nearly ten others to break into the True Martial Realm.
• Gu Feng recognizes that the Origin Sect has become a third-level faction—an extraordinary achievement for such a newly established sect—and realizes it may eventually become powerful enough to command the Chengyun Trading Company’s attention.

Character developments

• Qin Shujian is more secure after his breakthrough but remains cautious about the players. He also discovers the broader value of Fortune and chooses to invest it in his prized saber.
• Zheng Fang advances from martial entry ninth level to the True Martial Realm, demonstrating the effect of the faction’s new status.
• Gu Feng shifts from a courteous business representative to an astonished witness, recognizing the Origin Sect’s exceptional potential.

Significant themes

• Power and security: Qin’s strength is tied to his ability to survive in a world where players could threaten him.
• Fortune and cultivation: Fortune can enhance both a weapon and the sect it serves.
• Rapid growth and ambition: The Origin Sect’s sudden rise suggests it could rival far older factions.

Character interactions

• Gu Feng and Zheng Fang maintain a respectful, cordial working relationship, with Gu Feng acknowledging Zheng Fang’s authority as Qin’s trusted aide.
• Qin acts independently at the summit, while his decision to enhance Thousand Mountain Blood indirectly benefits the entire sect.
• Gu Feng observes the breakthroughs and interprets them as proof of the Origin Sect’s promotion, ending the chapter stunned by its rise.

Key plot points

• Qin Shujian invests six fortune points in Thousand Mountain Blood. The saber becomes a low-grade spirit weapon, showing signs of awareness, and the Origin Sect advances directly to level three.
• The advancement grants Qin five thousand life source points and strengthens the entire sect. Disciples gain several cultivation levels: Zheng Fang reaches true martial second level, while Liu Er rises to martial entry tenth level.
• The sect begins a major reconstruction, replacing its former stronghold-style layout with buildings more suited to a formal sect.
• Player Song Qing travels for days to Liangshan, hoping to join the newly available sect system. At the entrance, Liu Er mistakes him for a threat and kills him before he can explain himself.
• Song Qing revives back at his starting village, loses a cultivation level, and realizes he must make the difficult journey again. Still determined to join, he sets out once more.
• Liu Er reports the encounter to Qin, who receives the news calmly.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian is astonished by the fortune points’ power and newly curious about how far they might improve a treasure. His increased strength also makes him less anxious about players.
• Thousand Mountain Blood appears to possess rudimentary emotions and awareness, responding with joy and curiosity.
• Zheng Fang takes pride in his sudden breakthrough and politely discusses it with Gu Feng, who recognizes the benefit faction advancement offers its members.
• Liu Er has become much stronger but remains suspicious of otherworlders. He attacks Song Qing on sight, then responsibly reports the incident.
• Song Qing is polite and persistent, but confused and frustrated by the hostility. He interprets the attack as a possible misunderstanding and remains committed to joining the sect.

Significant themes

• The value of fortune and faction growth: A small number of fortune points can transform both a weapon and an entire sect, dramatically accelerating its members’ cultivation.
• Power and responsibility: The sect’s growing status requires it to rebuild and adopt a more appropriate identity.
• Mistrust and misunderstanding: Song Qing’s hopeful approach collides with the sect’s hostility toward players, turning a recruitment attempt into a needless death.
• Persistence: Despite the setback and costly journey, Song Qing refuses to abandon his goal.

Plot points and events

• Liu Er reports that a lone player entered Liangshan and was killed with one palm strike. The player seemed polite and showed no apparent hostility.
• Qin Shujian tells his subordinates to assess small groups of players before attacking, but to eliminate larger groups immediately. The encounter makes him question whether relations between players and the Origin Sect may be changing.
• He wonders whether the game has updated, whether a game master controls it, and whether he himself is merely a virtual character—or whether the world is real. Unable to verify his theories, he decides to investigate later.
• Remembering a Bronze Token that points to an Unknown Cave Abode in the Undying Plains, Qin decides to explore it. He leaves Zheng Fang in charge of the Origin Sect.
• On the way, Qin frightens off a tiger without fighting it. At the Undying Plains, he sees the lasting devastation left by the Demon Calamity: blackened, lifeless land steeped in demonic qi. He uses the token to locate the cave and hurries onward.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian shows growing curiosity about the nature of the game and his own existence, alongside his usual caution and decisiveness. He also avoids wasting effort on a lone tiger, whose Life Source would be negligible.
• Liu Er reports the unusual player respectfully, prompting Qin’s reconsideration of how to handle future encounters.
• Zheng Fang accepts responsibility for the sect without questioning Qin’s decision, demonstrating his loyalty and reliability.

Significant themes

• Reality and identity: Qin questions whether he is an NPC in a game or a person in a real world.
• Changing boundaries: The polite player challenges Qin’s assumption that players and the Origin Sect must always be enemies.
• Lingering consequences of catastrophe: The Undying Plains remain barren even after the Evil Fiend’s defeat, showing how slowly the land may recover from demonic corruption.

Key plot points and events

• Qin Shujian follows the Bronze Token’s coordinates into a poisonous, lifeless swamp. He recognizes that Demonic Qi has likely killed off the local wildlife.
• The token activates a buried stone stele engraved with “Huading Cave Abode.” When Qin inserts the token into a matching recess, the stele begins drawing enormous amounts of spiritual energy from the Undying Plains.
• The process lasts about an hour and attracts several groups of powerful Martial Entry cultivators. Qin keeps them away with single palm strikes, deliberately sparing them while making the difference in strength unmistakable.
• The stele eventually glows emerald and forms a vortex, signaling that the cave abode has opened. Qin enters, and the stele’s light dims behind him.

Character developments

• Qin’s True Martial Realm power and confidence as Liangshan’s Domain Lord are emphasized. He is unfazed by the swamp and the stele’s disturbance, and he calmly controls access to the site.
• He shows restraint: rather than killing the curious cultivators, he gives them a warning blow and lets them flee.
• The three first-arriving cultivators realize the powerful figure may be the Liangshan Domain Lord and wisely abandon any claim to the discovery.

Character interactions

• Qin confronts each group drawn by the stele’s unusual activity, turning them back with overwhelming force.
• The visitors recognize his projected True Essence as proof of True Martial Realm strength. Some infer his identity, and all withdraw rather than risk further confrontation.
• Qin’s only direct interaction with the cave abode is through the Bronze Token: it triggers the stele, which then opens a portal he enters.

Significant themes

• Power and authority: Qin’s strength establishes his unquestioned control over the site and reflects his standing as Domain Lord.
• Restraint and intimidation: He uses force to deter rivals, not to slaughter them, provided they heed his warning.
• Danger and discovery: The toxic swamp and the stele’s dramatic activation frame the cave abode as a formidable, potentially valuable mystery.

Key plot points and events

• Qin Shujian enters the Huading Cave Abode through a vortex and finds three stone gates labeled Heaven, Earth, and Human. He chooses the central Heaven Gate.
• Opening it releases a dark beam that overwhelms his full-strength attack and strikes his eyes. He is expelled back to the swamp, and the stele vanishes.
• Qin gains the special ability Spirit Eye, which lets him see otherwise invisible spiritual qi and demonic qi. He observes that demonic qi corrodes nearby mist and plant life.
• Accepting that he has lost the chance to explore the other two gates, Qin leaves the swamp and returns to the Origin Sect in less than a day.
• Four players arrive at Liangshan hoping to join the sect. Two Origin Sect guards recognize them as Otherworlders and demand to know who they are, holding back from attacking because of Qin’s instructions.

Character developments

• Qin’s full-strength attack proves ineffective against the cave’s mysterious power, underscoring the limits of his strength. He nevertheless gains a useful new ability and responds to his missed opportunity with equanimity.
• Liu Er follows Qin’s order not to attack Otherworlders on sight, despite remaining wary of the newcomers.
• The visiting players—Miao Yuqing, Liu Dazhong, and their companions—are hopeful that their region’s advancement to a True Domain will give them an advantage in joining a sect.

Significant themes

• Unexpected fortune and acceptance: Qin treats Spirit Eye as an unexpected reward and the lost gates as fate.
• Hidden realities: Spirit Eye reveals forces invisible to ordinary sight, hinting at dangers that are usually imperceptible.
• Power and access: The gate requires True Martial strength to open, making the cave’s treasures inaccessible to weaker cultivators.
• Changing relations with Otherworlders: Qin’s instructions mark a shift from automatic hostility toward cautious restraint.

Character interactions

• Qin confronts the cave’s mysterious force alone, then leaves without learning what the Earth and Human Gates contained.
• At Liangshan, the players discuss their hopes of joining the Origin Sect. Liu Er and another guard intercept them, establishing a tense first encounter shaped by Qin’s order to exercise restraint.

Key plot points and events

• Liu Dazhong and three other players ask to join the Origin Sect. Liu Er keeps them under guard and reports the request to Qin Shujian.
• Qin considers what their approach means: players may have new ways to interact with the sect, and their enormous numbers could eventually threaten it.
• Rather than reject them, Qin sees an opportunity to recruit players, strengthen the sect, and potentially gain life source from their efforts. He sends the applicants away and tells them to return in half a month while he develops a plan.
• Qin writes out several cultivation manuals for future use, including the Body Tempering Scripture, Everlasting Spring Technique, Tiger-Subduing Body Tempering Art, Bedrock Technique, Flowing Water Force, and Iron-Forging Technique.
• He tries to record his Dao-entry Black Tiger Saber Technique, but its saber intent destroys the paper and brush. He realizes he must find another way to preserve it.
• Qin summons Zhang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu and teaches them the first twelve levels of the Origin Canon, along with his cultivation insights.

Character developments

• Qin Shujian shifts from treating players mainly as potential enemies to considering them a resource and strategic force. He also takes more active steps to build the sect’s teachings and train its members.
• Liu Er continues to act as Qin’s trusted messenger and guard. Qin’s spirit eye reveals Liu Er’s loyalty is at its maximum.
• Zhang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu are now True Martial Realm experts, but their old manuals have left them without a clear path forward. Receiving the Origin Canon gives them a route to continue advancing.
• Liu Dazhong and the other players show a new willingness to join a native sect, suggesting the relationship between players and this world may be changing.

Significant themes

• Cooperation versus conflict: Qin recognizes that recruiting players may be safer and more useful than letting them become a hostile mass.
• The limits of individual strength: Even Qin’s power could be overwhelmed by the scale and rapid growth of the player population.
• Knowledge as a legacy: Qin works to preserve cultivation methods and pass them to others, while the saber technique’s power proves that some knowledge cannot be captured in ordinary writing.
• Trust and loyalty: The spirit eye makes loyalty visible, reinforcing the sect’s internal bonds.

Character interactions

• Liu Er handles the players cautiously, keeping them under guard while referring their request to Qin.
• Qin weighs the players’ request not only as a political risk but as a possible source of strength for the Origin Sect.
• Qin’s interactions with Zhang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu are those of a mentor: he recognizes their need for advancement and personally passes on both a manual and his insights.

Plot points and events

• Qin Shujian orders the Origin Canon taught to the surviving members of the former Intelligence Hall and Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness, forbidding them from sharing it without permission. He intends to build this trusted inner circle into a discreet reserve force.
• News spreads that the Origin Sect will recruit disciples in half a month. Players from nearby Mortal Domains flock to Liangshan, hoping to join a sect and gain access to stronger cultivation methods.
• During those two weeks, Liangshan is transformed: its buildings are rebuilt, a training ground is established, and the bluestone path leads to the mountain. The main hall, Martial Inheritance Hall, bears Qin Shujian’s inscription, infused with his blade intent.
• Gu Feng, a steward of the Chengyun Trading Company, finishes assisting with construction. Qin thanks him and promises future help; Gu Feng welcomes the chance to strengthen his standing through ties with a Domain Lord.
• Gu Feng advises Qin that the sect should hold a founding celebration and invite guests from far and wide. Zheng Fang and Zeng Hong agree. Gu Feng then departs with his craftsmen.
• Players camp around Liangshan, waiting for recruitment but wary of the powerful guards at the mountain gate. They notice Gu Feng’s caravan but do not interfere, partly to avoid antagonizing the Origin Sect.
• Qin and the others begin considering when to hold the celebration, recognizing that the event could affect the sect’s reputation.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian shows strategic caution by protecting the Origin Canon and cultivating a loyal inner force. He also learns that founding a sect carries public and political expectations he had not considered.
• Gu Feng proves a useful ally and cultivates a relationship with Qin, hoping the connection will advance his career within the Chengyun Trading Company.
• Zhang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu accept Qin’s secrecy order without hesitation.
• Zheng Fang and Zeng Hong support Gu Feng’s recommendation, reinforcing the view that the Origin Sect should present itself as the leading faction in the domain.
• The players are eager to join but cautious: they avoid testing the sect’s formidable guards and refrain from attacking the trading company’s party.

Significant themes

• Trust and preparedness: Qin relies on his longtime followers while maintaining safeguards and avoiding dependence on a single group.
• Ambition and advancement: Players seek sect membership for power and opportunity, while Gu Feng hopes his service will improve his position.
• Reputation and legitimacy: The proposed celebration reflects the Origin Sect’s growing status and the public responsibilities that come with leadership.
• Power and restraint: The players’ choice not to provoke the sect shows how its strength shapes behavior even before recruitment begins.

Key events and decisions

• The Origin Sect’s leaders agree to hold a founding banquet in five days. The sect will invite neighboring sects from the Cangxi, Lingxi, Xunhua, and Xuanxu True Domains.
• Qin Shujian begins replacing Liangshan Stronghold’s old structure with a formal sect hierarchy, appointing Zheng Fang as grand elder of martial instruction, Zhang Tieniu as elder of law enforcement, and Niu Feng as mountain guardian elder. Seven others become elders.
• These appointments grant faction cultivation bonuses: the three chief elders gain +2 cultivation, while the other elders gain +1. Zheng Fang’s loyalty rises to 98; Zhang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu have maximum loyalty.
• Qin establishes a Library Pavilion to house the sect’s techniques and martial arts. Wang Tiezhu is put in charge, a role that carries considerable influence.
• Qin lays out the sect’s territory, recruitment system, disciple ranks, steward appointments, access to the Library Pavilion, and contribution or mission requirements.
• The elders accept the rules. They divide the neighboring domains among themselves and depart to invite sects and gather information. Zheng Fang stays to organize the banquet, while Wang Tiezhu guards the Pavilion. Qin enters the new building.

Character developments and interactions

• Zheng Fang’s appointment recognizes his long service and strengthens his commitment to the sect. His sudden cultivation increase surprises the assembly.
• Zhang Tieniu and Niu Feng likewise receive senior posts and cultivation boosts; Niu Feng is openly excited.
• Wang Tiezhu’s appointment to oversee the sect’s most valuable knowledge gives him authority beyond his formal rank.
• Qin acts decisively as sect master, balancing recognition of loyal veterans with practical delegation. The elders respond with respect and readily accept his plans.

Significant themes

• Institution-building: The Origin Sect moves from a stronghold’s informal arrangements toward a clear hierarchy and rules.
• Loyalty and merit: Qin’s appointments reward trusted service, while his assessment of loyalty informs whom he elevates.
• Knowledge as power: The Library Pavilion safeguards the sect’s core legacy, and access is carefully tied to rank.
• Growth and ambition: The sect prepares to recruit widely and establish relations beyond Liangshan.

Plot points and events

• Qin Shujian stocks the Origin Sect’s new five-floor Library Pavilion with manuals he has written. The first floor holds introductory versions limited to the first seven levels; the second has complete manuals reaching martial-entry tenth level; the third contains the Origin Canon, developed through the third level of its True Martial section. The upper two floors remain empty.
• He decides that the library’s materials are for personal cultivation only. Unauthorized copying or distribution will be punished severely, potentially by death.
• Fu Gang travels from Liangshan True Domain to Cangxi True Domain to invite its sects to the Origin Sect’s founding ceremony. He enters a city without a travel permit by paying the required fee, questions a guard about local sects, then spends the evening eating, drinking, and exploring before setting out the next morning.
• Fu Gang reaches the Azure Cloud Sect and announces himself. Two elders, Qingshui and Qingmiao, descend to meet him. Once they learn he represents the sect founded by Liangshan’s newly ascended Domain Lord, their manner becomes notably welcoming.
• Fu Gang invites the Azure Cloud Sect to the ceremony, and they agree to attend. He then asks for the locations of the Water Moon and Golden Sun Sects and continues his journey. The Azure Cloud elders decide to report the news to their sect master and wait to assess the Origin Sect’s influence.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian shows ambition for the Origin Sect’s future and a strict, protective attitude toward its teachings.
• Fu Gang’s curiosity and confidence emerge during his first extended trip beyond Liangshan. Though he is a powerful cultivator, he behaves courteously with the city guard and tactfully with the Azure Cloud elders, recognizing their strength.
• The guard is initially anxious that Fu Gang may object to the entry fee, but relaxes when Fu Gang rewards him for giving directions.
• Qingshui and Qingmiao begin cautiously, then become warm and deferential after learning the Origin Sect’s connection to the new Domain Lord. Their conversation suggests they view the sect’s rise as potentially consequential.

Significant themes

• Building institutional power: Qin Shujian’s library plans reflect the Origin Sect’s aspirations, while the invitations extend its influence beyond Liangshan.
• Control of knowledge: The strict rules against copying sect manuals emphasize the value—and danger—of cultivating teachings.
• Status and political influence: The Azure Cloud elders’ shift in attitude shows how a new Domain Lord can change the standing of the sect associated with him.
• Exploration and expanding horizons: Fu Gang’s journey introduces a wider world beyond the familiar Liangshan True Domain.

Key plot points and events

• Sect Master Qingxu of the Azure Cloud Sect reflects on the authority of a Domain Lord and his sect’s decline from its founder’s legacy. The Azure Cloud and Golden Sun Sects agree to attend Origin Sect’s banquet after learning that Qin Shujian is the Liangshan Domain Lord. The Water Moon Sect had already been invited.
• Fu Gang and the other elders report that all nine sects across the four neighboring True Domains have accepted the invitation. Qin thanks them and continues preparations for the celebration.
• Origin Sect is decorated for the banquet, while Players who have gathered at Liangshan grow increasingly frustrated that the promised recruitment has not begun. Some suspect the long wait is a test, but fear falling behind other Players who have advanced to higher cultivation levels.
• Liu Er and other disciples patrol the mountain entrance. Liu Er allows the Otherworlders to wait, but warns his patrol not to tolerate trouble.
• Niu Feng and Cao Sheng return from the distant Xuanxu True Domain with the final acceptance. Qin confirms the banquet will proceed the next day.
• Qin decides to let the Players keep waiting until the celebration is over, then admit a few as new recruits. He intends to control them through rewards—and eliminate those he cannot control.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian appears confident and strategic: he uses his status as Domain Lord to build the sect’s reputation and treats potential Player recruits as a resource to be managed.
• Fu Gang and the elders successfully secure the neighboring sects’ attendance, reinforcing Qin’s growing influence.
• Zheng Fang praises Qin and reports the respect he received across the True Domains; he also cautions Qin about the Players’ rebellious nature.
• Liu Er takes his new responsibility seriously, guarding the sect while treating the waiting Players as possible threats.
• The waiting Players, including Wang Jiu and Liu Dazhong’s group, grow exhausted and anxious. Their sunk costs make them reluctant to leave, despite falling behind in cultivation.

Significant themes

• Power and legitimacy: A Domain Lord’s authority can command respect across regions and help restore a sect’s prestige.
• Ambition and decline: Qingxu mourns the Azure Cloud Sect’s diminished standing compared with its founder’s era.
• Patience, risk, and sunk costs: The Players endure hardship because they believe joining the Origin Sect will make their lost time worthwhile.
• Control and exploitation: Qin views the Players less as people than as useful tools, revealing the ruthless side of his leadership.

Key plot points

• The Origin Sect prepares for a major banquet, greeting prominent guests at the foot of Liangshan. Players watching the mountain hold back, wary of the sect’s increased defenses after earlier deaths cost them cultivation.
• Chengyun Trading Company chief steward Lin Wanyou and steward Gu Feng arrive first. Qiu Ping and Fu Gang escort them inside, where Lin and the Origin Sect’s Grand Elder of Instruction, Zheng Fang, recognize each other as formidable True Martial Realm experts.
• Elders Qingmiao and Qingshui arrive on behalf of the Azure Cloud Sect. They marvel at the Origin Sect’s abundant spiritual energy and its many high-level disciples, realizing its strength may rival that of established sects.
• Yang Zhongning, the Golden Sun Sect’s grand elder and reputedly its strongest fighter, arrives. His presence unsettles the Azure Cloud elders, whose sect has a history of rivalry and resentment with the Golden Sun Sect.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Wanyou treats the Origin Sect with respect and recognizes its potential, while praising Gu Feng for cultivating a connection with its Domain Lord.
• Gu Feng has advanced from a Mortal Domain steward to a True Domain steward and is gaining Lin’s favor through his ties to the Origin Sect.
• Qiu Ping and Fu Gang serve as gracious hosts, reflecting the sect’s efforts to present itself well despite being short on senior personnel.
• Zheng Fang and Lin Wanyou exchange formal courtesies while privately assessing one another’s strength.
• Qingmiao and Qingshui are impressed by the Origin Sect but also reminded of their own sect’s former prosperity before its Domain Lord died.
• Yang Zhongning is courteous to Lin but speaks with an authority that makes the Azure Cloud elders defer to him.

Significant themes

• Rising power and reputation: The Origin Sect’s Domain Lord, resources, and promising disciples are attracting the attention of established factions.
• Political courtesy and rivalry: Formal greetings mask competition, old grievances, and careful calculations about status and strength.
• Decline and renewal: The Azure Cloud Sect’s fading fortunes contrast with the Origin Sect’s apparent ascent.
• Unequal risks: The players’ caution shows how costly failure is, even as powerful sect representatives gather safely for the banquet.

Key plot points and events

• Leaders and representatives from many sects across the surrounding True Domains attend the Origin Sect’s founding banquet. Yang Zhongning, a grand elder of the Golden Sun Sect, studies the Origin Sect’s unusually strong disciples but doubts the power of its grand elder, Zheng Fang.
• The arrival of Guihai Chuan, sect master of the formidable Heavenly Blade Sect, draws the gathering’s attention. Qin Shujian appears to welcome him, and the two briefly clash through their blade intent, testing each other without a clear victor.
• Guihai Chuan addresses Qin as “Sect Master Qin” rather than merely as the Liangshan Domain Lord, signaling recognition of the Origin Sect’s legitimacy and strength.
• Qin welcomes the guests with a toast. Guihai praises his achievement in elevating the Liangshan Domain from a Mortal Domain to a True Domain.
• Yue Qian of the Water Moon Sect probes Qin about his rise and the Origin Sect’s intentions. Qin says he began by seeking only to protect himself and now hopes the sect’s legacy can endure peacefully. His measured answers reassure the assembled sects.
• After a cordial banquet, the guests depart. Guihai invites Qin to visit the Heavenly Blade Sect. Once the cleanup begins, Lin Wanyou of the Chengyun Trading Company asks to discuss a matter with Qin.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian demonstrates confidence and composure before powerful outsiders. His exchange with Guihai reveals that he has mastered intent and can meet a celebrated blade expert on equal terms. He also presents the Origin Sect as peaceful, easing neighboring sects’ fears.
• Guihai Chuan arrives as a formidable rival and tests Qin directly, but withdraws without hostility. By recognizing Qin as a sect master and extending an invitation, he treats the Origin Sect as a legitimate power.
• Yang Zhongning is impressed by the Origin Sect’s strong disciples, though he initially dismisses Zheng Fang as weak. Witnessing the clash of intent helps him appreciate Qin’s exceptional status.
• Yue Qian uses polite praise and a toast to ask what others want to know: whether Qin’s new sect poses a threat. Their courteous exchange is also a cautious negotiation.
• Zheng Fang welcomes Guihai, but Guihai’s presence and aura make even him instinctively fall back, underscoring the visitor’s power.
• Lin Wanyou remains after the other guests leave, setting up a separate discussion with Qin.

Significant themes

• Power and legitimacy: The Origin Sect’s founding is validated by the recognition of established sects, especially the Heavenly Blade Sect.
• Strength beneath appearances: The brief clash shows that intent can reveal the standing of powerful experts more clearly than titles or reputation.
• Diplomacy and mutual caution: The banquet serves not only as a celebration but as a way for neighboring factions to assess Qin’s ambitions and establish boundaries.
• Building a lasting legacy: Qin frames his goal as preserving the Origin Sect in peace, rather than pursuing expansion.

Key plot points and events

• Chengyun Trading Company chief steward Lin Wanyou negotiates with Qin Shujian for protection of the company’s caravans in the Liangshan True Domain. In return, the Origin Sect will receive five percent of each shipment’s net profit.
• Lin also asks the sect to assist the imperial army against the Xining Rebels, now operating in Shenhua Mortal Domain. Gu Feng explains that the rebels number about five thousand, including roughly a hundred martial-entry tenth-level fighters and thirteen at the martial-entry limit.
• Qin judges a direct confrontation too risky, but agrees to send five True Martial experts, thirty tenth-level fighters, and at least a hundred lower-level experts. The company will pay the agreed compensation, including ten thousand taels for the lower-level contingent. Qin asks for the payment to be converted into middle-grade-or-better Mortal-tier cultivation manuals and martial arts, helping fill the sect’s sparse library. The deployment is expected within three to seven days.
• After Lin leaves, Qin orders the Origin Sect to begin recruiting disciples. The next day, the announcement draws a large crowd of waiting players. Niu Feng’s intimidating aura and the elders’ presence keep them orderly as they are led up the mountain to meet Qin.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian balances caution with ambition: he refuses to risk the sect in an all-out battle, but offers a substantial force in exchange for valuable books and materials. He and Lin negotiate smoothly, each leaving satisfied.
• Lin Wanyou treats Qin as an important regional power and secures the sect’s help without demanding that it bear the main burden; the imperial army will lead the campaign.
• Gu Feng supplies intelligence on the rebels and is recognized by Qin as having helped the sect during its reconstruction.
• The players move from frustrated waiting to excited recruits. Liu Dazhong and Miao Yuqing speculate about admission, while the crowd quickly learns to obey the sect’s powerful guardians.
• Qin and the players regard one another warily. The players recognize him as the former Liangshan Stronghold Chief, a notorious “boss,” but now stand before him as potential disciples rather than opponents.

Significant themes

• Pragmatic power and negotiation: alliances are built around clear limits, compensation, and mutual benefit.
• The value of knowledge: Qin prefers payment in martial arts and cultivation manuals, investing in the sect’s long-term strength.
• From enemies to organization: opening recruitment marks the Origin Sect’s transition from a newly established faction into a functioning institution.
• Changing player expectations: the closing joke underscores that powerful bosses are not always targets to defeat for loot; sometimes they are authorities to respect—or leaders to join.

Plot and key events

• Qin Shujian uses Spirit Eye to inspect the assembled players. He discovers that they are identified as “Otherworlders,” and most have reached the fifth or sixth level of martial entry.
• He announces that anyone of upright character can join the Origin Sect by paying thirty taels of silver. The players receive a system quest confirming the offer and accept it; those without enough money leave to raise the fee.
• Successfully recruiting them unlocks new systems for Qin Shujian: contribution points, Identity Tokens, and quests for sect members. He spends life source to create outer-disciple tokens and sets a promotion threshold of 200 contribution points. Tokens can enable promotion, though senior leaders retain the power to promote disciples directly.
• About a hundred players pay and receive tokens. Qin checks their loyalty and finds that most have low but positive scores. One player, Zhang Quan, has a loyalty score of negative fifty.
• Qin confronts Zhang Quan, accuses him of being a spy, and kills him. He tells the alarmed players that Zhang Quan was an infiltrator; reassured when Qin leaves them alone, the others collect their tokens.
• Qin explains that disciples can access the Library Pavilion using contribution points, but outer disciples cannot live inside the sect. He issues a mandatory group quest: build a village within two li of Liangshan, rewarding each player with experience and one contribution point.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian shifts from recruiting players as ordinary disciples to using them within a newly unlocked quest-and-contribution system. He is pleased to retain control over advancement, and alert to signs of disloyalty.
• Zhang Quan is revealed as a supposed infiltrator through his negative loyalty score. His nervous responses deepen Qin’s suspicion, and Qin kills him before he can explain himself.
• The players move from wary spectators to sect members, motivated by a system-confirmed quest. Zhang Quan’s death frightens them, but Qin’s explanation restores enough confidence for them to comply with the next instructions.
• Qin and Zheng Fang and the other elders coordinate the recruitment process: Qin leaves them to oversee the gathering, then returns with tokens for the new disciples.

Significant themes

• Game systems and institutional power: Recruitment unlocks mechanics that let Qin assign quests, award contribution points, and structure promotions.
• Control and loyalty: Qin can set advancement requirements, while Spirit Eye makes allegiance visible and allows him to act on perceived threats.
• Trust and fear: The players’ acceptance of Qin’s explanation after Zhang Quan’s death shows how authority and uncertainty shape their behavior.
• Pragmatic recruitment: Players join through a simple fee and concrete rewards, while the sect directs their labor toward building a settlement.

Key plot points and events

• At the foot of Liangshan, newly recruited players labor to build the Origin Sect’s village, motivated by the Contribution Points and experience they can earn. Qin Shujian watches them and formalizes the sect’s rules, including Contribution Point costs and the access granted by different identity tokens.
• Qin has only a limited supply of Life Source, so he makes tokens for players first and leaves NPC tokens without Contribution Points for now. He also prepares for more recruits, who each pay thirty taels of silver.
• To make joining worthwhile, Qin and Zheng Fang decide that outer-disciples may study the first five levels of the Origin Canon’s Martial Entry Chapter for free, while inner disciples may learn the whole chapter. The manual is a True Rank, Low Grade technique.
• Players rapidly discover the Origin Canon’s strength. Song Qing abandons his weaker manual, reallocates his experience, and reaches the Origin Canon’s fifth level, gaining three traits. Other players are similarly impressed.
• News of the manual and the sect’s admission terms spreads online. Players calculate that the fee is roughly ten thousand in real-world currency and conclude that joining is worthwhile—especially because the sect may not have room for everyone. Many hurry toward Liangshan.
• Zhang Quan revives in a novice village after Qin killed him. Furious at losing both his chance to infiltrate the sect and his thirty taels, he vows against Qin; his loyalty has fallen to its minimum.
• The village takes shape quickly under player labor. Gu Feng arrives with two True Martial Realm escorts and a shipment of cultivation and martial arts manuals. Qin is given a forty-five-thousand-tael allowance and begins examining the True Rank offerings, ending with his attention on a True Rank, Middle Grade martial arts manual.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian shifts from simply recruiting players to building the sect’s practical systems: membership ranks, token access, contribution costs, and incentives. He remains cautious about questions that might reveal his unusual abilities.
• Zheng Fang helps Qin decide what portions of the Origin Canon players may learn and delegates instruction to outer deacons rather than teaching beginners himself.
• Song Qing and the other players go from resenting manual labor and the entry fee to feeling that the powerful manual justifies both. Their excitement fuels a rush of new recruits.
• Zhang Quan becomes an outright enemy of Qin, his failed scheme and financial loss intensifying his resentment.
• Gu Feng and Xu Yuanming exchange praise over the sect’s rapid growth before Gu presents the manuals to Qin and explains their prices.

Significant themes

• Effort and reward: Players accept labor and a substantial fee because Contribution Points and a powerful manual promise future gains.
• Institution-building: Qin discovers that founding a sect is only the beginning; rules, ranks, resources, and recruitment all require careful management.
• Scarcity and competition: The possibility of limited places turns membership into a race, while Life Source and the manual budget constrain Qin’s choices.
• Power and resentment: The Origin Canon inspires admiration and ambition, while Zhang Quan’s defeat and loss turn disappointment into hostility.

Chapter summary

Key events

• Gu Feng of the Chengyun Trading Company offers Qin Shujian a selection of manuals in exchange for the Origin Sect’s help against the rebels. Qin chooses three true-rank works—including the saber art Ming King Prison-Splitting Blade—and spends the rest of his allowance on martial techniques.
• Qin suspects the trading company may be backed by the imperial court, but sees no reason to refuse a profitable arrangement.
• He studies the three true-rank works, then spends 1,000 life-source points to raise the saber art from initial understanding to proficient mastery. He also copies the manuals for the sect’s Library Pavilion.
• Qin assigns five True Martial elders and thirty top-level disciples to the campaign. He then gives all player disciples a large-scale quest to fight the rebels, offering experience and contribution points.
• Qin confirms that kills made by players belonging to the Origin Sect also generate life source for him. This discovery helps justify the substantial reward he offers.
• The Origin Sect contingent reaches Flying Leaf City, where City Lord Zhang Baicheng—now a True Martial cultivator—welcomes them. They join a broader imperial campaign assembled to destroy the rebels.
• A six-thousand-soldier force, led by Grand Commander Hong Bin, prepares to march alongside experts from the Origin Sect and other factions.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian remains practical and calculating: he accepts the trading company’s deal, strengthens his saber skills, builds up the sect’s library, and uses rewards to motivate players. Though he winces at the life-source cost, he expects to profit from the players’ victories.
• Gu Feng shows deliberate support for Qin by arranging a true-rank saber manual suited to him.
• Zeng Hong volunteers to lead the Origin Sect’s expedition, with four other elders joining him. Qin entrusts him with command and delegates disciple selection.
• Zhang Baicheng has advanced from the Martial Entry realm to True Martial and coordinates the sect’s arrival.
• Hong Bin leads the assembled army and treats the visiting sect and faction experts with respect. The players, meanwhile, are motivated chiefly by the promised rewards.

Significant themes

• Pragmatism and political suspicion: Qin recognizes that the Chengyun Trading Company’s involvement is unusual and suspects imperial backing, but prioritizes the benefits over its hidden motives.
• Investment and incentive: Qin spends resources to recruit player help, reasoning that rewards can produce greater returns.
• Institutional growth: New manuals, a larger library, stronger disciples, and cooperation with other factions show the Origin Sect becoming more established.
• Collective power: The disciplined army’s martial presence contrasts with a hastily gathered force and demonstrates the strength of organized cooperation.

Key events

• Qin Shujian, now a True Martial Realm Domain Lord, visits the Lion-Tiger Plains. His aura frightens the beasts and alerts the Bull Demon Lord, who rushes out to meet him.
• Qin warns that the newly advanced True Domain will attract powerful outsiders. The Bull Demon Lord proposes placing the Bull Demon Cave under the Origin Sect’s protection in exchange for an annual tribute of 3,000 taels. Qin accepts, and the Bull Demon Lord promises to send the payment the next day.
• Qin considers taking the Lion-Tiger Plains by force, but judges that collecting tribute is more useful than acquiring a dangerous, sparsely settled grassland.
• He then surveys the Liangshan True Domain’s remaining territories and decides the Xining Plains may be the next area the Origin Sect can bring under its influence.
• There, he encounters players fighting wolves. Recognizing him as the notorious Liangshan Stronghold Chief, they flee, fearing he has come to attack their village. Qin lets them go, considering them a possible future source of profit. Word of his arrival soon alarms the Novice Village.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian acts as a pragmatic ruler: he uses the threat of the changing political landscape to secure a reliable income, while weighing territory’s costs against its benefits. His past reputation still shapes how players perceive him.
• The Bull Demon Lord (Niu Dali) is anxious and deferential before Qin, but makes a shrewd choice to seek protection rather than risk being conquered. He accepts that his strength is no longer enough to defend the plains.
• Their meeting is formally courteous but unequal: Qin’s power leaves the Bull Demon Lord sweating, while the latter’s offer turns a potential takeover into a tributary arrangement.
• The players’ fearful retreat highlights the gulf between Qin’s present power and their own, as well as the lingering terror of his former identity.

Significant themes

• Power and protection: Weaker factions survive by aligning themselves with stronger ones.
• Pragmatic expansion: Qin prefers dependable revenue to costly, difficult-to-manage land.
• Reputation and fear: Qin’s history as the Liangshan Stronghold Chief continues to define him, even after founding the Origin Sect.
• Legitimacy and livelihood: Qin wants the sect to remain legitimate, but its large membership creates financial pressure and makes stable income essential.

Key plot points and events

• Lin Shixiong’s rebel force has been driven from Starflare and Liangshan after Liangshan became a True Domain, where powerful enemies could crush them. Great Zhao’s forces are now pursuing them into Shenhua Mortal Domain.
• With the enemy expected at the city within a day, Lin orders Cheng Zhong to secretly take the sleeping Heir Apparent away and preserve the royal bloodline. Lin believes Great Zhao will fall into chaos within thirty years, giving the rebels a chance to return.
• Great Zhao’s pursuing army—twenty thousand troops led by Hong Bin of Flying Leaf City and Cao Ke of Bingjiang City—joins sect experts and several thousand players.
• The player groups eye one another as rivals for rebel kills and the contribution points needed to become inner sect disciples. Some players leave their contingents to operate independently.
• Hong Bin and Cao Ke’s army enters a narrow mountain pass after scouts report no ambush. Once most of the force is inside, hidden explosives detonate, triggering a massive rockslide.
• Hong Bin and sect experts smash many falling rocks, but the pass is too long to protect everyone. Soldiers and horses are crushed, and some players are struck and forced to respawn.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Shixiong remains composed despite the threat and prioritizes the Heir Apparent’s survival over his own. He firmly overrides Cheng Zhong’s wish to stay and fight, issuing a military order that Cheng accepts.
• Cheng Zhong struggles with leaving his comrades but ultimately obeys Lin’s command.
• Hong Bin and Cao Ke are confident in their numbers and cooperate cautiously, with Hong Bin ordering a terrain check before entering the pass.
• Miao Yuqing feels pressure over competition among the player groups, while Fu Gang permits Origin Sect players to act independently as long as they do not endanger the mission.
• The players’ rivalry for contribution points contrasts with the immediate danger of the ambush, which threatens all sides indiscriminately.

Significant themes

• Preserving hope through sacrifice: Lin accepts the possibility of defeat so the royal bloodline can survive.
• Power and vulnerability: Great Zhao’s strength forces the rebels into retreat, while the trap shows that even a much larger army can be badly hurt by planning and terrain.
• Competition amid crisis: Players focus on rewards and rival groups even as they enter a dangerous battlefield.
• Uncertainty of war: The scouts’ apparent all-clear cannot protect the army from a concealed attack.

Plot points and events

• As Hong Bin’s army enters a narrow valley pass, rebels spring a coordinated ambush. Archers fire from the wooded slopes, then rebel troops charge into the disorganized imperial forces.
• A rockslide cuts the pass in two, preventing Hong Bin’s party from returning to help the troops still fighting at the entrance. He chooses to push forward and break out through the exit.
• Rebel archers attack the exiting column, but shield troops make a path while Fu Gang and other martial experts charge through the arrow fire and engage enemy fighters.
• Hong Bin leads the surviving force—fewer than eight thousand soldiers—into the rebels. He is confronted by Lin Shixiong, a formidable Great Feng general and former associate of Marquis Yifeng.
• Lin mocks Hong Bin and demands that he surrender Marquis Yifeng’s surviving offspring. Hong refuses to fight a duel, instead ordering a general attack, and the two armies clash.
• Lin attacks Hong Bin directly and gains the upper hand even when Cao Ke and Zeng Hong join the fight. The broader battle continues, with players from all three factions fighting alongside the armies.
• Origin Sect players target a rebel centurion for the contribution points promised by their quest, while others pick off ordinary soldiers. Liu Bi uses his superior footwork to strike enemies distracted by the imperial troops.

Character developments and interactions

• Hong Bin stays composed after recognizing the likely ambush at the exit. He prioritizes escape and survival over returning to the trapped troops, then relies on his larger force rather than accepting Lin’s challenge to single combat.
• Lin Shixiong is confident, taunting Hong Bin and defending Marquis Yifeng’s name. His skill proves exceptional: even constrained by the Mortal Domain, he can hold off three opponents.
• Cao Ke and Zeng Hong step in to aid Hong Bin, but Lin’s spearwork overwhelms them. Zeng is especially shaken by encountering an opponent who can challenge him despite the Mortal Domain’s limits.
• Fu Gang and the other experts help break through the archers’ fire and fight the rebel experts, creating an opening for the soldiers to emerge.
• The players show varied strategies: some pursue high-value targets for rewards, while others use stealth and battlefield openings to kill ordinary troops.

Significant themes

• Survival under pressure: Hong Bin makes tactical choices amid a collapsing situation, accepting that the cut-off troops cannot immediately be helped.
• The cost of ambition and war: The ambush leaves the imperial force badly reduced before the main battle even begins.
• Skill beyond raw strength: Lin’s technique and combat experience let him dominate even when the Mortal Domain suppresses his higher realm.
• Conflicting loyalties and legitimacy: The exchange over Marquis Yifeng and his heir reveals the political divide between the imperial side and Great Feng.
• Opportunity in chaos: Players treat the battle as both a dangerous conflict and a chance to gain contribution points and improve their standing.

Key plot points and events

• Liu Bi continues picking off rebels from behind, earning contribution points while avoiding stronger targets. After his eleventh kill, a tenth-level expert notices him, forcing Liu Bi to flee using his footwork.
• In the Liangshan True Domain, Qin Shujian spends 8,000 life source to advance the Origin Canon to level fourteen and reaches the true martial fourth level, inner astral realm. Astral energy forms a powerful protective layer around his body.
• The Zhao forces press their advantage against the rebels. Lin Shixiong fights fiercely despite being outnumbered and badly wounded, while the rebels suffer heavier losses overall.
• After a rebel general dies in a suicidal attack, Lin Shixiong’s grief and fury drive him to break past the mortal-domain limit. His attack nearly kills Hong Bin and the other Zhao officers, but heavenly retribution intervenes: lightning destroys Lin Shixiong.
• Hong Bin calls on the rebels to surrender. Wu Qing urges them to remain loyal to Great Feng, but Zhao experts swiftly kill him. With both leaders dead, the rebels lose their resolve and surrender.
• Elsewhere, Liu Dazhong and other players hide in a gorge along the rebels’ likely escape route. They have killed its guards and taken control of nearby explosives, hoping to earn experience and contribution rewards when fleeing rebels arrive.

Character developments and interactions

• Qin Shujian grows stronger and gains a clearer understanding of how astral energy protects those in the true martial realm. He also suspects Great Zhao is behind the Chengyun Trading Company and prioritizes the Origin Sect’s relations with the ruling power.
• Liu Bi acts cautiously, choosing reliable contribution points over risky attacks on rebel commanders.
• Lin Shixiong remains fiercely defiant, but his grief over his brother’s death pushes him into a reckless, fatal bid to kill the Zhao officers.
• Hong Bin survives Lin Shixiong’s devastating attack and takes command after his death, offering surrender before ordering the battlefield cleared.
• Wu Qing tries to rally the rebels through loyalty and shame, but is killed before he can reverse their retreat into surrender.
• Liu Dazhong confidently explains his ambush plan to fellow players, who accept the wait in hopes of greater rewards.

Significant themes

• Power has limits: Lin Shixiong’s strength cannot overcome the mortal-domain restriction without invoking heavenly retribution, which proves fatal.
• War’s human cost: The deaths of Lin Shixiong’s brother and Wu Qing show how grief and loyalty shape combatants’ choices.
• Survival versus allegiance: Once their leaders are gone, the rebels choose surrender over certain death, despite appeals to patriotic duty.
• Pragmatism and reward: Qin Shujian, Liu Bi, and the players each act according to their own priorities—political stability, safe advancement, or game rewards.