Chapter Summaries

Nie Yun bid one million silver taels for the Blazing Axe, prompting the auction house to verify his funds. He used a jade tablet inscribed with a Noble Grade martial skill to cover the shortfall, leaving Yang Yan impressed by how much Nie Yun had changed.

• Yang Jun demanded a funds check after Private Room Seventeen bid one million silver taels for the Blazing Axe.
• Chen Xing entered the auction house and personally went to verify the funds of the bidders in Private Room Seventeen.
• Yang Yan panicked because he and Nie Yun had less than one million silver taels, but Nie Yun said a jade tablet he had inscribed was worth at least four hundred thousand.
• Chen Xing recognized the tablet as containing the Noble Grade martial skill Three Waves of the Yangtze River and valued it at at least four hundred thousand silver taels.
• Nie Yun agreed to let the auction house sell the tablet, and Yang Yan realized it was not a Yang Family martial skill and told Nie Yun he liked how he had changed.

Nie Yun auctioned the Noble Grade upper-tier martial skill Three Waves of the Yangtze River, provoking fierce competition among Luoshui City's great families. After the Chen Family head honored him, Nie Yun left the auction with Yang Yan, knowing they were being followed and preparing to deal with their pursuers.

• Chen Xing confirmed that Nie Yun's private room had enough funds to buy the Blazing Axe and announced the Three Waves of the Yangtze River martial skill as the auction's final item.
• The Four Great Families scrambled to arrange funds for the martial skill, and Nie Yun reflected that its sale could spark their inevitable conflict before the Demon Race invasion.
• The people in private room number eleven of the first row bought Three Waves of the Yangtze River for one million three hundred thousand taels, outbidding Yang Jun.
• Chen Tongsheng personally gave Nie Yun the sale proceeds and the auction house's highest-grade honored guest medal.
• Yang Yan used Nie Yun's Devil Race weapon-binding method to refine the Blazing Axe in less than the time it took a stick of incense to burn.
• Nie Yun told Yang Yan that they were being followed, then hurried into the crowd and ordered Yang Yan to follow his instructions.

Chen Tongsheng decided the Chen Family would avoid confronting the two outsiders directly and use Yang Jun to test their strength, while secretly keeping a copy of their auctioned martial skill. Yang Jun pursued the pair outside the city, intent on taking their wealth and forcing them to serve him.

• An elder urged Chen Tongsheng to pursue the two outsiders, but Chen Tongsheng rejected the idea and asked Chen Xing to explain his reasoning.
• Chen Xing argued for conciliation, and Chen Tongsheng explained that attacking the outsiders could provoke the three great families; he chose to let Yang Jun deal with them instead.
• Chen Tongsheng learned that Chen Xing had secretly copied Three Waves of the Yangtze River, praised him, and ordered Chen Ran to retire and withdraw the pursuing clansmen.
• Yang Jun learned that the two outsiders had modest cultivation and resolved to take revenge, seize their wealth, and make them his slaves.
• Yang Lin and another subordinate suggested torturing the pair, while Yang Jun dismissed the possibility that they had refined the Marquis Grade Blazing Axe.
• Yang Jun saw that the two had left the city and led his group after them.

Nie Yun led Yang Yan to a secluded forest, where Yang Jun and his servants tried to seize the Blazing Axe and Di Lian Flower. After Yang Jun confessed to poisoning Yang Yan’s mother, Yang Yan avenged her by breaking through to the Fifth Level Qi Sea and killing him.

• Nie Yun shook off the other pursuers and led Yang Yan to a forest, leaving Yang Jun and two servants to confront them.
• Yang Jun demanded the Blazing Axe and Di Lian Flower, while his servants threatened Yang Yan and his family; Yang Yan revealed his identity and refused to hand over the treasures.
• Yang Jun accused Yang Yan of stealing family property and revealed that he had poisoned Yang Yan’s mother and forced Yang Yan out of the family.
• Yang Lin attacked Yang Yan, but Yang Yan split him in half with the refined Blazing Axe.
• Yang Jun struck Yang Yan with released true qi, but Yang Yan’s rage drove him to break through to the early Fifth Level Qi Sea.
• Yang Yan engulfed Yang Jun in flames and killed him, then knelt in tears after avenging his mother.

After helping Yang Yan avenge his mother, Nie Yun returned to the branch family and discovered his father secretly absorbing purple qi. He suspected that someone within the clan was conspiring against their family and confronted his father about Nie Haotian.

• Yang Yan decided to place his mother's memorial tablet in the ancestral hall, and Nie Yun promised to help him after he consolidated his cultivation.
• Yang Yan left, and Nie Yun returned to the branch family before dawn.
• Nie Yun found Nie Xiaotian absorbing purple qi in the rear courtyard and saw his father deny it nervously.
• Nie Yun reconsidered the circumstances that had harmed his father, Nie Tong, and the rest of his family, and suspected a plot against their branch.
• Nie Yun asked Nie Xiaotian what he was hiding and whether it involved Nie Haotian, causing his father to turn back with a changed expression.

Nie Yun confronted Nie Xiaotian about whether Nie Haotian had harmed their branch, then used his sudden cultivation advance and the Spirit Rhinoceros Body Refining Technique to persuade his father to trust him. The chapter ended with Nie Yun claiming he could restore Nie Xiaotian’s damaged Qi Sea.

• Nie Yun asked whether Nie Haotian had caused Nie Xiaotian’s cultivation deviation and Nie Yu’s petrified legs, but Nie Xiaotian refused to confirm anything.
• Nie Yun revealed that he had reached the Early Fourth Level Qi Sea True Qi Realm, shocking Nie Xiaotian.
• Nie Yun recited the Spirit Rhinoceros Body Refining Technique and claimed his master had given him permission to teach it to Nie Xiaotian.
• Nie Xiaotian warned Nie Yun to keep the Imperial Grade Upper cultivation art secret and still withheld details about the threat to their branch.
• Nie Yun offered to teach Nie Xiaotian the technique, then claimed he could restore his damaged Qi Sea, leaving Nie Xiaotian stunned.

Nie Yun told Nie Xiaotian that he could restore his damaged dantian after his father mastered the first level of the Spirit Rhinoceros Body Refining Technique, and taught him the technique. After Nie Xiaotian mistakenly concluded that Nie Yun had been disguising his true abilities for half a year, the two returned to acting hostile in front of the Nie Tian Branch.

• Nie Yun told Nie Xiaotian that mastering the first level of the Spirit Rhinoceros Body Refining Technique would give him more than a ninety percent chance of restoring his damaged dantian.
• Nie Yun taught Nie Xiaotian the technique, and Nie Xiaotian said his years of absorbing eastern purple qi would let him reach major completion within ten days without Body Tempering Fluid.
• Nie Yun warned Nie Xiaotian to conceal his cultivation in case their branch's enemies discovered it, and Nie Xiaotian mistakenly inferred that Nie Yun had been hiding his strength and guessed the danger facing their family.
• Nie Xiaotian asked when Nie Yun had met his master, and Nie Yun casually answered that it had been about half a year ago, deepening his father's mistaken suspicions.
• When Nie Yun and Nie Xiaotian walked together warmly through the branch, the onlookers wondered if they had gone mad; the pair then insulted each other and stormed off to preserve their hostile appearances.

Nie Qiang interrogated Nie Chaoxing about Nie Chao’s injury, forcing him to confess that Nie Yun had used the Zi Wu Mo Gu Jin. Nie Qiang ordered Nie Hen and Nie Liao to provoke Nie Yun into violating the family rules so the Luoshui Golden Shield could not protect him.

• Nie Qiang ordered Nie Changlin to test Nie Chaoxing’s claimed ultimate move, and Nie Changlin shattered Nie Chaoxing’s arm.
• Nie Chaoxing admitted that Nie Yun had injured Nie Chao and threatened him with the Zi Wu Mo Gu Jin.
• Nie Hen and Nie Liao demanded severe punishment for Nie Yun, while a conservative member warned that punishing the Nie Tian Branch could alienate the family’s other branches.
• Nie Qiang assigned Nie Hen and Nie Liao to provoke Nie Yun into doing something excessive, giving them an excuse to execute him despite his exemption right.

Nie Yun completed the first level of the Spirit Rhinoceros Body Refining Technique in less than three days and learned that the Enforcement Team had come to investigate Nie Chao’s injuries. When its disciples insulted his mother, Nie Yun attacked one of them and then provoked Deputy Captain Nie Liao.

• Nie Yun finished refining the Di Lian Flower medicinal liquid and reached major completion of the Spirit Rhinoceros Body Refining Technique’s first level.
• Steward Nie Chong told Nie Yun that the Enforcement Team had summoned him to the reception hall.
• Nie Yun saw that Nie Liao and another young man had taken the seats of honor while Nie Ling sat apart, and the young man threatened to arrest Nie Yun and his mother.
• When the young man insulted Nie Ling, Nie Yun shattered his hand and slammed him to the floor.
• Nie Liao said he had recorded Nie Yun’s attack and threatened punishment, so Nie Yun insulted Nie Liao’s mother in return.

Nie Yun used the Luoshui Golden Shield to turn Nie Liao’s attack into a crime and crippled him while Nie Hen could not intervene. He then denied knowing what happened to Nie Chao, and Nie Hen challenged his claim that the branch had paid ten thousand taels.

• Nie Liao attacked Nie Yun, but his hand shattered against the Luoshui Golden Shield.
• Nie Yun accused Nie Liao of attacking the honor of the Four Great Families and the City Lord’s Mansion, then broke his arms and shattered his qi sea.
• Nie Hen tried to stop Nie Yun, but he withdrew rather than strike the golden shield and incur its consequences.
• Nie Hen conceded that Nie Yun had turned the situation against him, while Nie Yun claimed he had only protected the family’s reputation.
• Nie Yun feigned ignorance about Nie Chao’s injuries and said his branch had paid ten thousand taels; Nie Hen denied that the branch could afford even five thousand.

Nie Yun defeated Nie Hen’s attempt to force him into accepting punishment by producing far more money than the wager required, then let the Enforcement Team leave after his mother intervened. When Nie Ling questioned where the money came from, Nie Yun tried to pin it on the newly arrived Yang Yan.

• Nie Hen wagered that Nie Yun could not produce five thousand taels, while the Enforcement Team members backed his terms and mocked Nie Yun.
• Nie Ling told Nie Yun that she had spent the branch’s available funds on its shops, leaving them unable to pay the wager.
• Nie Yun produced five gold bricks and displayed banknotes worth sixty thousand taels, proving he had ample money.
• Nie Hen tried to leave without kneeling, but Nie Yun blocked him until Nie Ling asked him to let the Enforcement Team go.
• After Nie Ling questioned the source of his money, Nie Yun claimed it belonged to Yang Yan, who had just arrived.

Nie Yun taught Yang Yan the first form of the Chixiao Divine Axe while delaying their arrival at the Yang Family, intending to help him claim the position of first heir. After hearing rumors that the Chen Family was spreading about a mysterious powerful backer, Nie Yun saw a way to make the Yang Family believe Yang Yan had formidable support.

• Nie Yun explained that he had learned his martial skills from a master, then taught Yang Yan the Chixiao Divine Axe and its first form.
• Yang Yan agreed to spend a day mastering the first form, and the two rented a courtyard near the Yang Family estate.
• Nie Yun planned to investigate the consequences of Yang Jun's death and create the impression that a peerless expert backed Yang Yan.
• Outside the inn, Nie Yun overheard people discussing Yang Jun's death and rumors of a wealthy, powerful mysterious man tied to the Chen Family.
• Nie Yun realized the Chen Family's rumors could help him make the Yang Family wary and decided to use them to his advantage.

Yang Tiecheng and the Yang Family elders investigated signs of a recent battle at Luoshui Gorge and discovered evidence of a fighter with astonishingly precise, overwhelming power. The clues suggested a Qi Grandmaster or stronger, leaving the family wondering who could possess such strength near Luoshui City.

• Two Yang Family youths discussed using the hunt to advance their claim to the first-heir position and worried that Yang Yan might return to compete.
• Yang Tiecheng halted the hunting party after hearing that a fight had taken place ahead, then led the elders toward Luoshui Gorge.
• Yang Tiecheng and the elders found the valley scorched and cratered, with evenly spaced pits that revealed the fighter's precise control over power.
• An elder judged the fighter's strength to be at least that of a Qi Grandmaster.
• The elders found a finger-thick hole punched through a huge granite boulder and realized the attack could have been made with a finger.

Yang Tiecheng and the Yang Family elders encountered a terrifying black-clad supreme expert, who revealed that he had taken Yang Yan as a half-disciple and spared them for his sake. After learning the expert had killed Yang Jun, Yang Tiecheng chose to seek favor with Yang Yan rather than pursue revenge, and ended the hunt to return to the clan.

• Yang Tiecheng and the elders found a huge hole in a boulder and felt an overwhelming aura from behind it.
• The black-clad man summoned the Yang Family group, and Yang Tiecheng recognized him as a supreme-level expert from the golden light in his eyes.
• The man asked whether Yang Tiecheng knew Yang Yan, then revealed that he had given Yang Yan a Blazing Axe and taught him axe martial arts.
• Yang Tiecheng and the elders fled after the man warned them to leave, then realized he was the one who had killed Yang Jun.
• The elders proposed building a relationship with Yang Yan and his master, and Yang Tiecheng agreed to pay attention to Yang Yan.
• Yang Tiecheng called off the hunt and led the elders back to the clan.

Nie Yun’s bluff drove the Yang Family hunters away, but using the Nameless Art’s pressure left him unconscious until nightfall. After waking stronger and heading back toward the branch, he spotted a battle by the Luoshui River and discovered the Demon Race was involved.

• Nie Yun revealed that he had staged the battlefield and used the Nameless Art’s pressure to frighten Yang Tiesheng and the others, then collapsed from its side effects.
• Nie Yun woke after dark, found he had advanced to the middle stage of the Fourth Level True Qi Realm, and assumed Yang Yan had gone to the Yang Family alone.
• Nie Yun raced toward Luoshui City, saw a fight near the Luoshui River, and hurried to investigate.
• Nie Yun reached an abandoned dock and saw more than a dozen powerful Demon Race figures surrounding a white-clad fighter.

Nie Yun recognized the trapped Luo Qingcheng and rescued her from the demons who had ambushed her. After killing their subordinates, he saw the leader begin Demonization and fled with Luo Qingcheng.

• Nie Yun recognized Luo Qingcheng, the daughter of Luoshui City's lord, and decided to save her.
• A demon reflected Luo Qingcheng's sword gleam back at her, injuring her and knocking away her sword.
• The demons revealed they had targeted Luo Qingcheng as a hostage and threatened to abuse her.
• Nie Yun killed two demons as they lunged at Luo Qingcheng, then announced himself as the Blood Prison Demon Venerable and slaughtered more than a dozen others.
• The demon leader began Demonization, so Nie Yun grabbed Luo Qingcheng's hand and fled.

Nie Yun rescued Luo Qingcheng from a Demonized demon person and killed it with the first form of the Chixiao Divine Axe, then recovered by absorbing its demon core. He introduced himself to Luo Qingcheng, who recognized his name as belonging to the Nie Family’s good-for-nothing.

• Nie Yun pulled Luo Qingcheng away from the Demonized demon person, but it caught up with them as she worried about retrieving her sword.
• Nie Yun attacked the Demonized demon person with Mountain-Splitting, Water-Toppling and cleaved it in two, exhausting his true energy and injuring his hand.
• Nie Yun took the demon core and more than three hundred thousand taels of silver from the corpse, then asked Luo Qingcheng to guard him while he recovered.
• Nie Yun absorbed the demon core and restored his strength to the peak of the middle fourth level, while Luo Qingcheng retrieved her sword and stood guard.
• Luo Qingcheng introduced herself and recognized Nie Yun’s name as that of the Nie Family good-for-nothing, and Nie Yun acknowledged that he was the person she meant.

After killing the pursuing demons and meeting Luo Qingcheng, Nie Yun hurried back to the Nie Tian Branch, fearing the Demon Race invasion would come early and resolving to heal his father. He found the branch wrecked by the family’s Enforcement Team, who were demanding that his family hand him over.

• Nie Yun asked Luo Qingcheng why the demons had attacked her, and she explained that she had just returned from training with her master at the Hundred Flowers Sect.
• Luo Qingcheng invited Nie Yun to visit her parents, but he declined and told her to look for him at the Nie Tian Branch.
• Nie Yun considered the danger posed by the demon he had killed and decided to find the final ingredient for a Heart-Returning Pill to heal his father as soon as possible.
• Nie Yun disposed of the demon bodies in the Luoshui River, cleaned the scene, and returned to the branch.
• Nie Yun found the branch’s gate and courtyard destroyed and heard the Enforcement Team threaten to erase the branch from the family register unless it handed him over.

Nie Yun confronted the Enforcement Team after Captain Nie Yuanqing arrived to arrest him, and he swiftly defeated both Nie Hen and the captain. He left the Enforcement Team members terrified and their threats against the Nie Tian Branch unanswered.

• Nie Yuanqing arrived with Nie Hen and the Enforcement Team, demanding that Nie Yun return to the family to face charges.
• Nie Yun forced Nie Hen to kneel and then slammed him to the ground when he attacked.
• Nie Yuanqing attacked Nie Yun, but Nie Yun struck him down in a single move.
• Nie Yuanqing threatened to destroy the Nie Tian Branch, so Nie Yun kicked him until he fainted.
• Nie Yun challenged the remaining Enforcement Team members, and the hall fell silent.

Nie Yun defeated the Enforcement Team and forced them to pay compensation before setting out to find the Life-Reviving Flower. He hoped to use it to refine a Heart-Returning Pill and restore his father’s damaged qi sea, but the herb’s location was guarded by a dangerous demon beast.

• Nie Yun beat the Enforcement Team members who had wrecked the branch’s courtyard, while Nie Ling cheered him on and Nie Chong warned that the family might retaliate.
• Nie Yun collected fifty thousand taels in compensation from the Enforcement Team and ordered them to leave.
• Nie Yun told Nie Ling he was going to search for the Life-Reviving Flower so he could refine a Heart-Returning Pill for his father.
• Nie Yun headed into the back mountain at night, remembering the herb’s location and the demon beast that guarded it.