Chapter Summaries

Three-year-old Wang Bo, reborn as Goudanzi in the Zhou family of Great Jin, reflected on his strange new life in a poor mountain village. At dinner, Old Zhou announced that Zhou Hua would soon marry Wang Tianlei, a returning soldier, setting in motion changes Goudanzi could not foresee.

• Wang Bo recalled that he had died in his previous life and been reborn into the Zhou family, where he was called Goudanzi.
• Goudanzi sat alone in the courtyard before his mother called him in to dinner.
• Old Zhou remained at the table after eating and announced that Wang Tianlei had returned and Zhou Hua should prepare to marry him.
• Goudanzi learned that Wang Tianlei had been away for three years in military service and that Zhou Hua had been betrothed to him since she was ten.

Goudanzi watched Wang Tianlei’s wedding procession and looked forward to the feast, but the celebration was interrupted when a huge wolf attacked the bridal sedan. The villagers recognized the wolf as Old One-Eye, the legendary lone wolf from West Mountain, and Goudanzi saw the forbidden legend with his own eyes.

• Goudanzi blocked Wang Tianlei’s wedding procession until he received a red envelope, then moved aside.
• Sangouzi kept the bride-fetching party outside for more than an hour before letting them in.
• Goudanzi heard his sister Zhou Hua scream and rushed outside with the wedding guests.
• The guests found the bridal sedan wrecked and a huge black wolf chewing flesh from an injured sedan bearer.
• The villagers identified the one-eyed wolf as Old One-Eye from West Mountain, the legendary lone wolf.

Wang Tianlei fought Old One-Eye at Zhou Hua’s wedding, survived severe injuries, and earned the village hunters’ respect. More than a month later, he was teaching them martial arts, while Goudanzi watched excitedly after confirming that this world had internal as well as external martial arts.

• Wang Tianlei fought Old One-Eye while shielding Zhou Hua, but the wolf’s hide deflected the hunters’ arrows and it escaped.
• Wang Tianlei fainted from blood loss, recovered after treatment, and became the village hunters’ leader with Zhou Xing’s support.
• Over the next month, Wang Tianlei and Zhou Hua settled into a happy marriage, and the villagers’ fear of Old One-Eye’s return faded.
• Wang Tianlei began teaching the village’s young hunters martial arts during their free time.
• Goudanzi watched the training and realized that the world had internal and external martial arts.

Goudanzi learned about the world’s martial arts and secretly trained under Wang Tianlei, quickly developing a sense of qi. He decided to rely on his knowledge of Tai Chi Fist as he laid the foundations for future cultivation.

• Wang Tianlei told Goudanzi about the Great Jin army’s martial arts and the importance of cultivating internal energy and external strength together.
• Goudanzi learned that advanced external training required medicinal ingredients and formulas kept by powerful clans and sects.
• Wang Tianlei taught Goudanzi the basic martial arts he had learned in the army, assuming the three-year-old could not master them.
• After a month of practice, Goudanzi sensed qi and perceived the meridians in his body.
• Goudanzi recalled mastering Tai Chi Fist in his previous life while trying to please his division chief.

Goudanzi discovered that simplified Tai Chi let his qi flow smoothly, and he continued training while life in the village passed quietly. At dinner, Old Zhou agreed in principle to send Goudanzi and Sangouzi to Green Ram Market as apprentices when they were older, but Goudanzi showed little concern and returned his attention to martial arts.

• Goudanzi found that Chen-Style 18-Form Tai Chi disrupted his qi, while Li Deyin's Eight-Form Simplified Tai Chi used up his limited internal strength smoothly.
• Goudanzi practiced Great Strength Vajra Qigong for four hours each day and performed Tai Chi before bed.
• Goudanzi watched the village men train in the northern clearing, then hurried home when his mother called him for dinner.
• Second Uncle praised Goudanzi and asked Old Zhou about sending Goudanzi and Sangouzi to Green Ram Market to learn a trade.
• Old Zhou agreed to the plan but said the boys were still too young, and Goudanzi dismissed the prospect and focused again on martial arts.

Goudanzi reflected on Wang Tianlei’s success in improving the village and discovered that Tai Chi Fist transformed and strengthened his Great Strength Vajra Qigong. After training in secret until dusk, he hurried home to face his mother’s scolding for missing dinner.

• Goudanzi observed that Wang Tianlei had organized the village hunters, increased their catches and earnings, and reduced their injuries through teamwork and training.
• Goudanzi realized that Tai Chi Fist optimized his Great Strength Vajra Qigong, allowing its internal energy to nourish his body despite his young age.
• Goudanzi practiced Great Strength Vajra Qigong for four hours in a hidden clearing, then slowly performed his Tai Chi Fist routine.
• Goudanzi blamed Er Ya for delaying him and rushed home after realizing he had missed the evening meal.
• Goudanzi’s mother scolded him for wandering off, then smiled faintly as he ran toward the woodshed.

Goudanzi finished verifying the Flameheart Method diagrams while Wang Tianlei proposed that Old Blind Man teach reading to villagers. The chapter left Goudanzi with a complete set of copied cultivation notes and a plan to attend the lessons so he could hide that he already knew how to read.

• Goudanzi used meals at Zhou Hua and Wang Tianlei’s home as an excuse to memorize and check the Flameheart Method.
• Goudanzi prompted Wang Tianlei to explain that the book’s diagrams showed internal energy circulation routes.
• Wang Tianlei decided to ask Old Blind Man to teach reading and suggested opening a village school.
• Goudanzi asked to join the lessons, and Wang Tianlei agreed and told him to respect Old Blind Man as his teacher.
• Back in bed, Goudanzi examined his charcoal copies of the Flameheart Method diagrams and confirmed his final check was complete.

Goudanzi studied the Flameheart Method and considered the risks and limits of internal cultivation as he looked forward to going to Green Ram Market. The chapter then described Green Ram Market’s trade and the Black Dragon Society’s control over the town, where someone was also thinking about Goudanzi’s village.

• Goudanzi analyzed the Flameheart Method, realizing it refined fire-attribute energy and required more control than Great Strength Vajra Qigong.
• Goudanzi concluded that he first needed to convert his impure internal energy and strengthen his body, since excess energy could destroy him.
• Goudanzi decided that leaving his village for Green Ram Market might offer an opportunity.
• The chapter described Green Ram Market’s location and prosperity as a trading hub near the Vast Cang Mountains.
• The Black Dragon Society controlled Green Ram Market’s transport and trading businesses, while cooperating with the local government offices.

The Black Dragon Society confirmed that Old One-Eye was a demon beast and planned to hunt it for its inner core before winter drove it deeper into the Vast Cang Mountains. Meanwhile, Wang She prepared to enter the mountains to gather spirit herbs despite the approaching snow.

• The Black Dragon Society’s leaders reviewed reports that Wang Tianlei had encountered Old One-Eye, and the Grand Elder concluded that the demon beast had withdrawn on its own.
• The Grand Elder and the other leaders recognized Old One-Eye’s inner core as a valuable prize and ordered the Society to enter the mountains before snowfall.
• A handsome young man in Green Ram Market complained about the cold and the burden of gathering herbs, then decided to enter the mountains quickly.

As a black bear attacked Zhou Hua, Goudanzi was badly injured trying to protect her, then suffered agonizing pain and a strange change in his eyes. The bear turned toward him, while someone nearby noticed the uncanny light in his eyes.

• Goudanzi visited Zhou Hua and reviewed the Flameheart Method before heading home.
• A black bear burst into the house and charged at Zhou Hua; Wang Tianlei's father rushed to protect her but was knocked aside.
• Goudanzi grabbed a cleaver and charged the bear, but its paw sent him crashing into the courtyard wall.
• Despite his injuries, Goudanzi rose again, then clutched his head as his body convulsed and his vision turned crimson.
• The bear moved toward Goudanzi, and an unnamed person noticed the uncanny light flickering in his eyes.

Goudanzi awakened a strange inner sight during his fight with a black bear, using it to dodge and kill the animal before collapsing. As he examined his cultivation in a sleep-paralysis-like state, the young man who had watched him revealed himself to be a Seventh Grade expert and headed toward trouble on West Mountain.

• A young man on the rooftop recognized Goudanzi's legendary eyes and watched as Goudanzi dodged the bear's attack and stabbed it through the throat with his billhook.
• Goudanzi collapsed unconscious after killing the bear, and Zhou Hua went into labor as villagers rushed into the courtyard.
• Goudanzi experienced an unusually clear state like sleep paralysis and saw his meridians and the weak, uneven internal energy of the Great Strength Vajra Qigong.
• The young man judged that Goudanzi's eyes had enabled his remarkable strike and wondered whether to take him up the mountain, fearing the old families might target him.
• The young man displayed protective astral qi as he walked through the mountain wind, revealing himself as at least a Seventh Grade expert.
• After hearing howls and angry shouts from the west, the young man drifted toward West Mountain to investigate.

After recovering from his injuries, Goudanzi learned that his sister and her newborn son were safe. At West Mountain Pass, a mysterious young man watched the Black Dragon Society fight Old One-Eye, then killed its fighters and demanded the Grand Elder's secret technique.

• Goudanzi woke after two days unconscious, learned his sister and her baby had survived, and heard that the black bear he killed would be sold.
• Wang Tianlei thanked Goudanzi and hurried home to tell Zhou Hua that he had awakened.
• At West Mountain Pass, a young man arrived and watched the Black Dragon Society's Grand Elder and fighters battle the wounded Demon Beast Old One-Eye.
• The Grand Elder used a secret technique to defeat Old One-Eye, then collapsed from the strain and ordered the others to take the beast's inner core.
• The young man killed the Black Dragon Society's fighters before they could kill Old One-Eye, then demanded that the Grand Elder hand over the secret technique's cultivation method.

The young man defeated the Black Dragon Society fighters, forced their old leader to reveal the Twofold Heaven-Piercing Sword scroll, and bound the wounded Old One-Eye as his spirit beast. After discovering the scroll contained an unusual art rather than a secret skill, he killed the old man and left the scene.

• The young man killed the Black Dragon Society's elite fighters and restrained their old leader before he could take his own life.
• The young man tortured the old leader, then healed Old One-Eye with a vermilion pill and bound him through a Blood Pact.
• Old One-Eye obeyed the young man's command to stand, and the young man promised to teach him a Demon Beast Cultivation Method.
• The old leader agreed to give up the Twofold Heaven-Piercing Sword method and pointed to the scroll hidden in his chest.
• The young man retrieved the scroll, realized the Twofold Heaven-Piercing Sword was an unusual art, killed the old leader, and departed.

After recovering from his injuries, Goudanzi explored the strange powers of his golden, marked eyes and prepared to practice the Flameheart Method. He wondered whether the eyes could copy martial arts and decided Wu Qinglong’s ancestral archery might be worth investigating.

• A chilling wind passed through West Mountain Pass, and black vapor seeped from the Grand Elder’s shattered corpse before gradually dispersing.
• Goudanzi recovered from his fever and found that his new eyes let him see in every direction, observe his body, and control his Internal Energy with extraordinary precision.
• Goudanzi discovered that maintaining his eyes’ special state exhausted him, but careful practice had given him confidence to begin the Flameheart Method.
• Goudanzi struggled to coordinate his Tai Chi Fist with his improved understanding of Internal Energy and decided to write down the mnemonic verses he remembered.
• Goudanzi wondered whether his eyes could copy martial arts and thought of watching Wu Qinglong practice his family’s ancestral archery.

After practicing Tai Chi Fist, Goudanzi was struck unconscious when a remnant soul entered his body. He absorbed the memories of Li Haoran and discovered the unusual cultivation method called the Twofold Heaven-Piercing Sword.

• Goudanzi noticed flaws in his Tai Chi Fist practice and headed home, unaware that black vapor was approaching him.
• The black vapor entered Goudanzi's head, and he collapsed behind the courtyard.
• In an endless void, Goudanzi encountered the vapor and absorbed its scattered memories.
• Goudanzi learned that the remnant soul belonged to Li Haoran, whose soul had been scattered by the wind after his death at West Mountain Pass.
• Goudanzi learned that a formidable young man had killed Li Haoran and began studying Li Haoran's complete memories of the Twofold Heaven-Piercing Sword.

Four years after his childhood mishap, Goudanzi had advanced his cultivation and trained his strange eyes, though his young body could not yet withstand the Twofold Heaven-Piercing Sword. He looked forward to leaving the mountain village to become an apprentice at Green Ram Market, unaware of what his second uncle had arranged.

• Goudanzi woke after being found unconscious, and Old Zhou later locked him in the woodshed without food for three days as punishment for wandering off.
• Over four years, Wang Tianlei and Old Blind Man taught the village's young people to read and write, while Goudanzi cultivated the Flameheart Method and Thousand-Army-Breaking Fist.
• Goudanzi learned that his eight-year-old body could not safely house the violent Sword Qi required by the Twofold Heaven-Piercing Sword.
• Goudanzi trained his strange eyes until he could sustain their heightened abilities for about half an hour, and his archery improved though he had not mastered the Wu Household's techniques.
• After practicing Tai Chi Fist, Goudanzi decided he wanted to leave the village and become an apprentice at Green Ram Market.

After Old Zhou agreed to send him out, Zhou Bao arrived at Green Ram Market to apprentice at the Wu Ironworks, chiefly hoping its meals would provide the meat his martial training required. Steward Lin brought him to Master Xing, whose crippled right hand caught Zhou Bao’s attention as he began his new life at the forge.

• Old Zhou agreed to let Goudanzi, now named Zhou Bao, leave the village with Second Uncle and try to support himself.
• Second Uncle brought Zhou Bao to the Wu Ironworks and urged him to behave, learn the trade, and make a future for himself.
• Steward Lin judged Zhou Bao sturdy enough for the apprenticeship and took him into the workshop to meet Master Xing.
• Zhou Bao noticed Master Xing’s scarred, apparently crippled right hand and wondered what the injury meant for the old blacksmith.

Little Leopard impressed Old Xing by entering an apparent state of enlightenment while practicing hammering and punching through the wood. Old Xing learned that Little Leopard could read and had trained in Internal Energy, then discovered his qi was fire-element as Little Leopard’s inner energy reacted to his probe.

• Old Xing praised Little Leopard’s controlled hammering and advised him to steady his right hand, drawing jealous looks from the other apprentices.
• Little Leopard connected hammering with the force principles in Wang Tianlei’s boxing techniques and entered a focused state, striking the same spot until he drove a hole through the wood.
• Old Xing recognized the performance as enlightenment, brought Little Leopard inside, and asked him about the experience and background.
• Little Leopard told Old Xing that Wang Tianlei had taught him to read, box, and cultivate Internal Energy.
• Old Xing tested Little Leopard’s wrist and found that his Internal Energy was fire-element qi, which counterattacked before Old Xing overpowered it.

Old Xing explained the Wu Household’s origins, martial arts, and ties to the Heavenly Dragon Way, then invited Little Leopard to train as a promising disciple. Little Leopard accepted and learned that passing the Selection Assembly at age ten could make him an inner disciple eligible for advanced Bone Tempering techniques.

• Little Leopard told Old Xing that he had learned the Flameheart Method, and Old Xing recognized it as a suitable foundation for the Wu Household’s fire-based martial arts.
• Old Xing revealed that he was a disciple of the Wu Household and explained its history, its alliance with the Heavenly Dragon Way, and its martial training system.
• Little Leopard considered joining the Wu Household and told Old Xing he would leave the decision to him.
• Old Xing promised to teach Little Leopard the introductory Nine-Dragon Divine Fire Art, the Nine-Form Hammer Technique, and a new fist technique while he continued practicing Bear Demon Fist.
• Old Xing explained that Little Leopard could become an inner disciple and learn a Bone Tempering fist technique if he passed the Selection Assembly at age ten.

Little Leopard advanced from basic smithing practice to forging under Old Xing’s personal instruction while Steward Fang arrived with a secret mission tied to the Wu Household’s Second Madam. Old Xing and Steward Lin reluctantly agreed to help Steward Fang find three stalks of dragon-subduing grass near the Vast Cang Mountains, knowing the task could entangle them in the household’s power struggle.

• Little Leopard practiced forging a kitchen knife as Old Xing coached him, and Old Xing told Steward Lin he expected the boy to pass the Selection Assembly in two years.
• Steward Fang met Old Xing and Steward Lin privately and explained that the Second Young Master had begun medicinal bath bone tempering.
• Steward Fang revealed that the Second Madam wanted dragon-subduing grass added to the Second Young Master’s medicinal preparation and had learned of three stalks nearby.
• Steward Lin and Old Xing worried that helping would draw them into the conflict between the First Madam and the Second Madam.
• Steward Fang said the three men were among only four people who knew of the grass and urged them to set out soon, expecting to retrieve it within three to five days.