Chapter Summaries

Yang Qing and his allies divided their efforts to investigate the Mu Family’s plot and locate the Holy Maiden, while Mu Haiyun summoned Yang Qing to a banquet to keep him under watch. At the banquet, Yang Qing challenged Mu Haiyun’s ambitions indirectly and realized the Mu Family was set on pursuing its plan.

• Yang Qing ordered his allies to split up, with Bu Er and Jiang Zhizhou searching for the Holy Maiden while the others prepared to respond to trouble at the Mu Family Residence.
• A Mu Family guard escorted Yang Qing to Mu Haiyun’s banquet, and Jiang Zhizhou concluded that Mu Haiyun was keeping Yang Qing close to restrain the group.
• Pei Buji and Fen Liyou followed Yang Qing’s route while Jiang Zhizhou and the others left to carry out their tasks.
• Mu Haiyun seated Yang Qing beside him, served him food, and questioned him about people who pitied the suffering of the world.
• Yang Qing suggested that Mu Haiyun sought absolute uniformity, and Mu Haiyun’s reaction led Yang Qing to believe the Mu Family was committed to its scheme.

Yang Qing suspected the Mu Family had tampered with the Mystic Physician’s squab dish, but nothing happened before a mysterious man arrived and took Mu Haiyun’s seat. Yang Qing recognized him as Mu Hailin and detected a scent linked to Heavenly Fragrance Poison as Mu Haiyun attacked him.

• Mu Haiyun offered Yang Qing the Mystic Physician’s nourishing squab dish, and Yang Qing tasted some while the other guests eagerly ate theirs.
• Yang Qing watched Mu Haiyun entertain the guests, then rose to leave the banquet hall.
• A dark-skinned man carrying a damp, salty scent entered the hall and sat in Mu Haiyun’s seat without speaking.
• Yang Qing recognized the man as Mu Hailin and detected a fragrance associated with Heavenly Fragrance Poison on him.
• Mu Haiyun demanded the stranger’s name and leapt toward him.

An unknown man seized Yang Qing at the Mu Family banquet and escaped despite Mu Haiyun turning the guests against him. The Mystic Physician tried to stop the abductor, but Yang Qing was carried beyond the courtyard wall, leaving Bu Er and Jiang Zhizhou to arrive too late.

• Mu Haiyun attacked the unknown man, who dodged the blow and grabbed Yang Qing.
• Mu Haiyun offered a Mu Family Special Order to anyone who helped kill the man, and the guests rushed at him and Yang Qing.
• The Mystic Physician arrived and confronted the abductor, but the man leaped over the courtyard wall with Yang Qing.
• Bu Er and Jiang Zhizhou hurried to the scene after Yang Qing had been abducted.

Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er suspected Yang Qing had been taken away for a reason and believed the Mystic Physician had a plan at the Mu Family Residence. Yang Qing identified his abductor as Mu Hailin, then watched Jiangli disable him with a strange attack and asked what he wanted.

• Jiang Zhizhou persuaded Bu Er to wait, reasoning that Yang Qing had his own plans and that the Mystic Physician might be preparing for something momentous at the Mu Family Residence.
• Mu Hailin challenged Yang Qing to beg for mercy, but Yang Qing questioned his hidden identity and deduced that he was the Mu Family's missing eldest young master.
• Mu Hailin threatened Yang Qing and grabbed his collar, but Jiangli emerged from Yang Qing's clothes and struck Mu Hailin twice, blurring his vision and numbing his hand.
• Yang Qing stroked Jiangli and asked Mu Hailin what he had come for.

Yang Qing survived Mu Hailin’s attack with Jiangli’s help, while trouble at the Mu Family banquet enabled Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er to rescue Mo Beixing and the Grand Protector. The group reunited and discussed looming unrest in Azure Cloud Fortress and the rumored Kirin Blood, while Yang Qing revealed that Mu Hailin had suffered the consequences of his own schemes.

• Yang Qing taunted Mu Hailin, who attacked him with the Heavenly Fragrance Poison.
• Jiangli deflected the poison back onto Mu Hailin, and Yang Qing left him unconscious and unable to return to the Mu Family.
• Guests at Mu Haiyun’s banquet developed severe stomach pains, and the Mu Family could not discover the cause.
• Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er used the banquet chaos to take Mo Beixing and the Grand Protector out of the Mu Family Residence.
• Mo Beixing asked about the Kirin Blood and Yang Qing, while Jiang Zhizhou warned her that unrest might soon erupt in Azure Cloud Fortress.
• Yang Qing returned safely and told his companions that Mu Hailin had reaped what he sowed.

Yang Qing and his companions learned that the Mu Family planned to reveal the Kirin Blood at the Martial Arts Tournament and decided to stay in Azure Cloud Fortress to investigate. As trouble mounted for Mu Haiyun, he announced that the tournament’s winner would receive the Kirin Blood.

• Jiang Zhizhou told Yang Qing that the Kirin Blood was expected to appear at the Martial Arts Tournament, and Yang Qing suspected the Mu Family was using it to pursue a hidden secret.
• Mo Beixing suggested that Yang Qing and his companions remain in Azure Cloud Fortress to conceal their intentions and buy time, and Yang Qing agreed.
• Jiang Zhizhou reported that guests who had left the banquet early were being treated for contaminated food, worsening tensions between the Mu Family and the martial artists.
• Mu Haiyun learned that Mu Hailin was missing and that the Holy Maiden had gone to the Eastern City, then ordered the tournament winner to receive the Kirin Blood.

Yang Qing and his allies discussed Mu Haiyun’s plan to award the Kirin Blood at the Martial Arts Tournament, then learned from Mo Beixing that the substance was sinister and could bring disaster. They left the Kirin Blood’s fate unresolved and began considering how to secure it without provoking the Mu Family or risking its harmful power.

• Bu Er reported that Mu Haiyun would hold the Martial Arts Tournament the next day and offer the Kirin Blood to the winner, prompting Yang Qing to plan to secure it.
• Jiang Zhizhou questioned why the Mu Family had revealed the Kirin Blood, and Yang Qing suspected it was their remaining hope after their plans were disrupted.
• Mo Beixing warned Yang Qing not to seize the Kirin Blood and explained that the Holy Maidens’ journals described it as sinister and connected to coming calamity.
• Mo Beixing revealed that she had descended the mountain to prevent turmoil in the Eastern Lands and to investigate the Kirin Blood’s expected appearance.
• Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er suggested having Ouyang locate the Kirin Blood, but Yang Qing rejected the idea as too dangerous and called for a careful plan.

Yang Qing and the others considered how the Mystic Physician might verify the Kirin Blood. Meanwhile, Mu Haiyun secretly inspected a hidden chamber beneath the Mu Family Residence, where a dangerous beast was imprisoned.

• Ouyang Lin suggested that the Kirin Blood would be displayed publicly before it was claimed, giving them a chance to examine it.
• Yang Qing and the others decided that the Mystic Physician could identify whether the Kirin Blood was genuine, and Mo Beixing said they should let him act on his own curiosity.
• Mu Haiyun entered a concealed passage beneath the residence and confirmed that his guards had detected no unusual activity.
• Mu Haiyun opened a hidden stone chamber and saw a blood-scented, furry creature behind black iron bars; he retreated when it stirred.
• After the creature settled, Mu Haiyun left the chamber and departed as shrill bird cries sounded through the night.

At the Martial Arts Tournament, Mu Haiyun revealed the Kirin Blood and used a lethal display to silence anyone who questioned it. The matches turned bloody, and a coordinated attack left Mu Haiyun with a blade at his neck.

• Mu Haiyun presented a brocade box containing the transparent Kirin Blood and killed a man who asked to inspect it.
• Mu Haiyun announced that the tournament matches would begin, and contestants fought so ruthlessly that several died.
• Bu Er questioned the Mu Family’s motives while Jiang Zhizhou studied the bloodied pillars and considered Yang Qing’s theory about them.
• Two contestants staged a weak match, then ambushed Mu Haiyun when he stepped onto the platform to investigate.
• Mu Haiyun dodged their hidden weapons, but an attacker pressed something cold against his neck and taunted him.

Mu Haiyun engineered a scramble for the Kirin Blood while he and two swordsmen disappeared from the platform, and the jade box shattered to reveal strange lines across the Martial Arts Arena. Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er escaped with Ouyang Lin, who warned them of a new prophecy about an uncanny phenomenon at the Mu Family Residence.

• Two mysterious swordsmen overpowered Mu Haiyun and demanded the Kirin Blood, but Mu Haiyun threw its jade box into the crowd below.
• As the martial heroes fought over the falling box, Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er watched Mu Haiyun and the swordsmen vanish from the platform.
• The jade box burst into powder, and mysterious connected lines appeared across the Martial Arts Arena.
• Ouyang Lin warned Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er to leave after the Holy Maiden prophesied an uncanny phenomenon at the Mu Family Residence.
• Ouyang Lin told them Yang Qing had sent him and said the Mu Family's secrets might be more extensive than they imagined.

Yang Qing and his companions uncovered the Mu Family’s suspected use of the Evil Spirit Array and decided to investigate its secrets while leaving Azure Cloud Fortress. Mu Haiyun intercepted them and confronted Yang Qing, who asked whether the Kirin Blood had truly shattered and whether the Mu Family had ever planned to share it.

• Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er returned to find Yang Qing and the others packed to leave, and Yang Qing identified the strange arena phenomena as the Evil Spirit Array.
• Yang Qing explained the Mu Family’s sudden rise and long rule, while Pei Buji reported that the array had appeared briefly and vanished.
• Yang Qing proposed that the array lacked enough power to remain active and decided to investigate the Mu Family’s secrets before leaving Azure Cloud Fortress.
• Jiang Zhizhou and Ouyang Lin set off to investigate while Yang Qing, Bu Er, and the others prepared to depart.
• Mu Haiyun and his men surrounded Yang Qing’s group and demanded to know why they were interested in the Mu Family.
• Yang Qing asked Mu Haiyun whether the Kirin Blood had truly shattered and whether the Mu Family had ever intended to give it to anyone.

Mu Haiyun revealed that the Mu Family had obtained the shattered Kirin Blood at great cost and attacked Yang Qing and his companions to protect the family’s secrets. They hid in the courtyard using Concealment Smoke and planned to wait for Xiao Zhou and Ouyang before finding a way out of Azure Cloud Fortress.

• Mu Haiyun admitted the Mu Family had deceived the martial world about the Kirin Blood and rejected Yang Qing’s criticism of his pursuit of power.
• Mu Haiyun ordered his men to kill Yang Qing and Mo Beixing, but Yang Qing and Mo Beixing used Concealment Smoke to conceal their forms.
• Mu Haiyun and his men left the courtyard, believing Yang Qing and the others had escaped, and ordered the city gates closed.
• Yang Qing, Mo Beixing, Pei Buji, and Bu Er reappeared and discussed the danger of Mu Haiyun discovering they were still in the city.
• Yang Qing said they would wait for Xiao Zhou and Ouyang and declared that the martial world could bring down the Mu Family.

Yang Qing and his companions fought off the martial artists Mu Haiyun had sent to kill them, but the Grand Protector died protecting Mo Beixing. With Azure Cloud Fortress likely sealed, they prepared to flee by a dangerous route from the Mu Family Residence’s Rear Mountain.

• A burly attacker insulted the group, and Pei Buji sliced off his ear before he fled.
• More attackers stormed the courtyard, and Bu Er and Pei Buji fought to protect Yang Qing and Mo Beixing.
• Jiang Zhizhou and Ouyang Lin returned, and everyone fought for two hours until the attackers were defeated.
• Mo Beixing discovered that the Grand Protector had died, and Jiang Zhizhou carried her body so they could bury her outside the city.
• The group decided to escape Azure Cloud Fortress rather than hide, and Ouyang Lin revealed that dangerous side paths lay at the Mu Family Residence’s Rear Mountain.

Yang Qing and his companions fought their way toward the city gate after choosing to escape Azure Cloud Fortress through it. Fen Liyou died protecting Yang Qing, and the survivors were surrounded by Mu Haiyun, who challenged them to fight.

• Yang Qing and his companions chose the city gate over the Mu Family Residence's Rear Mountain, but martial artists carrying out the Kill Order ambushed them in the streets.
• Archers attacked from the rooftops, and Fen Liyou took an arrow meant for Yang Qing and died in his arms.
• Jiang Zhizhou and Bu Er attacked the archers while Ouyang Lin and Pei Buji guarded Yang Qing and Mo Beixing as they fought toward the gate.
• Mu Haiyun learned that his eldest son was barely alive and suspected Yang Qing's subordinates had caused his injuries, so he ordered that no one in Yang Qing's group be allowed to escape.
• Yang Qing and his companions reached an open space near the gate but were surrounded, and Mu Haiyun approached and challenged them to test their skills.

Yang Qing and his companions fought Mu Haiyun and the martial artists he had turned against them, while Jiangli repeatedly protected Yang Qing and Mo Beixing from Mu Haiyun’s attacks. As Mu Haiyun’s greed and cruelty became clear, many fighters withdrew, but he invoked an Evil Spirit Array, leaving Pei Buji to strike Ouyang Lin in alarm.

• Yang Qing tried to persuade the surrounding martial artists that they had no quarrel, but Mu Haiyun offered rewards and martial arts manuals for their heads, and the battle began.
• Mu Haiyun attacked Yang Qing and Mo Beixing, but Jiangli wounded his hands and knocked away his poisoned silver needles.
• Mu Haiyun demanded Yang Qing’s rare treasure, and Bu Er publicly mocked him for his greed before they fought.
• Jiang Zhizhou, Ouyang Lin, and the others challenged the martial artists’ loyalty to Mu Haiyun, and many withdrew from the encirclement.
• Mu Haiyun drove his sword into the ground to summon the Sacred Spirit, and Pei Buji recognized an Evil Spirit Array before striking Ouyang Lin with his palm.

Yang Qing and the others discovered that the Mu Family had spread an enormous Evil Spirit Array across Azure Cloud Fortress to awaken the ancient Fierce Beast Qiongqi. After Qiongqi appeared, Yang Qing decided they had to travel to the ultimate destination named in the Remnant Book to avert the coming calamity.

• Jiang Zhizhou discovered that the Mu Family had laid an Evil Spirit Array throughout Azure Cloud Fortress, and Yang Qing's party fled beyond its gates.
• Mu Haiyun declared that the Mu Family and the gathered martial heroes would be remembered forever as red light spread across the sky.
• Yang Qing's group sheltered in a nearby mountain hollow and watched black mist gather above the Mu Family Residence.
• Qiongqi emerged from the black cloud, roared, and plunged back into the Mu Family Residence.
• Yang Qing told his companions that the Remnant Book linked the appearance of a Fierce Beast to a great calamity and said they must go to its ultimate destination.

Yang Qing and his companions set out for the Ultimate Land, where the Rootless Wood may be the only way to subdue Qiongqi. As they travel, Yang Qing reflects on his duty to the world and hopes to retire in peace after the threat is defeated, but the stabbing pain in his chest has returned.

• Yang Qing explained that the Remnant Book named the Ultimate Land as Emperor Zetian's Resting Place and said Qiongqi's strength would take several years to recover.
• Mo Beixing insisted on joining the journey, and Yang Qing agreed that she, Ouyang Lin, Pei Buji, and the others would travel together.
• Yang Qing revealed that the Rootless Wood grew only in the Ultimate Land and was the bane of Fierce Beasts, though the Remnant Book gave no further details.
• Yang Qing reflected that he acted for peace of mind and hoped to retire to the mountains if they defeated Qiongqi.
• Yang Qing felt the stabbing pain in his chest return and worried about what it meant.

Yang Qing and his companions reached Heaven's Divide Mountain, where rain turned the vermilion rocks into corrosive sludge and trapped them. They found a ridge to cross, but a skull apparition and sinister gust nearly sent Yang Qing, Bu Er, and Jiang Zhizhou into the mire before they reached safety.

• Yang Qing identified the vermilion rocks as Heaven's Divide Mountain and warned that rain would dissolve them into deadly sludge.
• Rain fell, turning the red-rock area into a corrosive swamp that blocked the group’s path.
• Yang Qing spotted a ridge that might lead around the mountain, and the group decided to cross the sludge to reach it.
• Ouyang Lin and Pei Buji carried Mo Beixing across the sludge and landed safely on the ridge.
• Yang Qing, Bu Er, and Jiang Zhizhou leaped across, but a skull apparition startled Bu Er and a sinister gust threw them off balance.
• Jiang Zhizhou used his sword and inner energy to save the three, and they reached the ridge; the sludge had eaten through his shoe and sock.

Yang Qing and his companions crossed Heaven's Divide Mountain into a forbidden forest, where they encountered the Hard Tribe. Chief Hardway said they could pass only if they underwent the tribe's heavenly god's selection, warning that refusing would make them enemies of the entire tribe.

• Yang Qing's group realized every path down from the ridge led northwest, the direction they needed to travel to reach the Ultimate Land.
• After several days, the group entered a miasma-filled forest, and Jiangli's bite jolted Yang Qing out of his stupor.
• Hardway and members of the Hard Tribe confronted the travelers, and Yang Qing persuaded Bu Er and the others to remain calm.
• Hardway led Yang Qing's group to the tribe's treehouse village and explained that outsiders had to undergo the heavenly god's selection.
• Hardway warned Yang Qing that refusing the selection meant war with the tribe and that the group could not cross the forest safely without a tribal guide.

Yang Qing and his companions learned that the Hard Tribe’s Heavenly God Selection would take place during its monthly sunlight festival, and agreed to attend the Moon-Praying Ceremony despite sensing danger. The chapter ended with Bu Er revealing that he had found a mass burial pit in the forest.

• Hardway explained that the Heavenly God Selection would take place on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, when an outsider might become the Chosen One and help the Hard Tribe find a way to live in sunlight.
• Yang Qing and his companions stayed in the tribe for two days and sensed that trouble lay beneath its peaceful appearance.
• Hardway asked Yang Qing and his companions to join the Moon-Praying Ceremony, warning that people in the tribe wanted to take control of it; Yang Qing agreed so he could learn their intentions.
• Bu Er reported that Hardway had gone into the forest after leaving their treehouse, and Yang Qing decided to wait rather than follow him.
• Bu Er told Yang Qing that he had found a mass burial pit in the forest.