Chapter Summaries

Duan Rong said farewell to Lu Geng, reconciled with Yang Zhen, and secured him a position at the Court of Judicial Review. Before returning to the mountain alone, Duan Rong left Little Seven in the courtyard residence under Yang Zhen and Chou Luan’s protection.

• Duan Rong saw Lu Geng off, then heard that Qin Xueyin had cried after returning home and refused her message of Supreme Forgetfulness.
• Duan Rong reunited with Yang Zhen over wine, explained why he had excluded him from the feast, and brought him to meet Zhu Cheng.
• Duan Rong asked Zhu Cheng to take Yang Zhen into the Court of Judicial Review, and Zhu Cheng gave Yang Zhen a token and ordered him to report the next morning.
• Duan Rong left Little Seven a letter explaining that he would not take her to the sect and asked Yang Zhen and Chou Luan to protect her.
• Duan Rong shared Chou Luan’s finest wine with Yang Zhen and Chou Luan, then left alone for the mountain.

Duan Rong returned to Cloud Floating Peak, where Zhu He gave him cultivation resources and three Peerless Skills as he prepared to advance to the Qi Cyclone Realm. After experiencing the mysteries of Gu Daoling’s saber calligraphy, Duan Rong chose Mountain River Moon Shadow Saber as his primary cultivation method and went to sleep before reporting to the Hall of Elders.

• Duan Rong returned to Cloud Floating Peak and was greeted by Wu Shidao and Wang Yue, who praised his deeds and discussed his standing on the peak.
• Duan Rong visited Zhu He and, while studying Gu Daoling’s saber calligraphy, experienced visions of saber light, mountains, rivers, and stars before Zhu He’s cough brought him back to himself.
• Zhu He gave Duan Rong three Peerless Skills of the Qi Cyclone Realm, Fire Scale Python gall, and a drop of high-level origin beast essence blood, and told him to recount the case truthfully at the Hall of Elders.
• Duan Rong reviewed the three skills and chose Mountain River Moon Shadow Saber, connecting its reflections to the vision of actual mountains, rivers, and stars he had seen in Gu Daoling’s calligraphy.
• Duan Rong tucked the beast-hide manual beneath his pillow and fell asleep before his recounting at the Hall of Elders.

Duan Rong testified before the Hall of Elders about three cases, then studied the Mountain River Moon Shadow Saber while waiting for the meeting to end. The saber’s artistic conception triggered his Qi Cyclone Realm technique, and he began forming a cyclone.

• Duan Rong arrived at the Hall of Elders and discovered that a celadon vase kept its flower branches alive through runes, while branches removed from it withered at once.
• Zhu He warned Duan Rong to stick to the facts as the elders questioned him about the Grand Harmony Tower incident, the attempted ambush by Pei Du and Jiang Zhe, and Ge Rusong.
• Yang Sixuan questioned Duan Rong about Li Shensi’s death, and Duan Rong denied finding clues while investigating spies.
• Duan Rong recounted the three cases to the elders, and Chu Qiushan judged the evidence solid but doubted the one-sided claims implicating others.
• While waiting for the elders’ discussion to end, Duan Rong studied the Mountain River Moon Shadow Saber and recalled Gu Daoling’s seal-script character for “saber.”
• Duan Rong’s essence qi began circulating toward a breakthrough, and he decided to form a cyclone immediately.

Duan Rong began forming a cyclone in the Hall of Elders, using high-rank essence beast blood essence to drive the process and drawing a vast tide of Heaven and Earth Essence Qi. He stopped with a fingernail-sized cyclone when the elders arrived, and Zhu He took him away to examine him for hidden injuries.

• Duan Rong used a portion of high-rank essence beast blood essence to break through the meridians and form the Three Flowers Gather on Crown.
• Duan Rong formed a cyclone in his Dantian, but its growth cracked his Dantian walls, so he swallowed Fire Scale Python bile to heal them.
• Duan Rong swallowed more blood essence, enlarging the cyclone and drawing Heaven and Earth Essence Qi from dozens of miles toward Cuiwei Peak.
• The Hall of Elders’ Guards, Zhu He, Yang Sixuan, and the elders discovered Duan Rong forming a cyclone and gathered around him.
• Duan Rong stopped the cyclone at fingernail size when he sensed the elders’ Spiritual Senses, and Zhu He took him away to examine his meridians and Dantian.

After Duan Rong formed a cyclone and stirred up an Essence Qi tide in the Hall of Elders, Chu Qiushan questioned Yang Sixuan about Duan Rong’s extraordinary talent and possible connection to Gu Daoling. Back on Cloud Floating Peak, Zhu He learned that Gu Daoling’s calligraphy had triggered Duan Rong’s insight, discovered hidden injuries in his Dantian, and marveled at his potential.

• Chu Qiushan allowed Zhu He to take Duan Rong away, while the elders confirmed Ge Rusong would be executed and Pei Du and Jiang Zhe would have their Dantians crippled and be expelled.
• Chu Qiushan summoned Yang Sixuan to Heaven Cloud Peak and asked about Duan Rong’s nearly solid saber radiance and his failed Secluded Valley test.
• Yang Sixuan told Chu Qiushan that Duan Rong’s intent might have come from the Empty Clarity Realm or guidance from Gu Daoling in Divine Cloud Manor.
• Zhu He examined Duan Rong, scolded him for forming his cyclone in the Hall of Elders, and heard how Gu Daoling’s saber calligraphy had triggered his insight and cyclone formation.
• Zhu He found hidden injuries in Duan Rong’s Dantian, promised to prepare medicine, and sent him to consolidate his realm.
• After Duan Rong left, Zhu He admired the size of his cyclone and imagined the power he might gain if Duan Rong and a junior brother reached the Nascent Soul Realm.

After Ge Rusong’s faction collapsed, Sun Fujiā proposed that a marriage alliance with Heavenly Evolution Sect could give Lü Zhongtang a path to power and help Taiyi Sect counter Divine Intent Gate. Meanwhile, Ge Rusong secretly ordered his surviving allies to kill Duan Rong, leaving the danger unresolved.

• Lü Zhongtang, Zheng Yi, and Xu Qie considered abandoning their struggle after Ge Rusong’s downfall, but Sun Fujiā revealed that Li Ku planned to visit Taiyi Sect with Li Ruozhou to arrange a marriage alliance.
• The elders saw Lü Qingzhu’s marriage to Li Ruozhou as a way to secure an alliance and advance Lü Zhongtang’s prospects, though Lü Zhongtang worried that his daughter might refuse.
• Zheng Yi proposed testing Liu Shushan’s loyalty by assigning him to kill the disgraced Pei Du and Jiang Zhe, and Lü Zhongtang gave him permission to proceed.
• A spy brought Ge Rusong word that Jing Chou had survived and was working in the Lower Courtyard.
• Ge Rusong ordered the spy to tell Jing Chou to use his hidden resources and Sheng Fa to kill Duan Rong.

Duan Rong confirmed to Wu Shidao and Wang Yue that he had reached the Qi Cyclone Realm after forming a cyclone in the Hall of Elders and triggering an Essence Qi tide. He rushed to meet Xi Men Kan Kan, newly released from the Pagoda Forest, and brought him to his room after Fan Hongjiao arrived.

• Wu Shidao and Wang Yue went to find Duan Rong after hearing rumors that he had formed a cyclone and triggered an Essence Qi tide.
• Duan Rong confirmed the rumors, leaving Wu Shidao stunned by how quickly he had advanced to the Qi Cyclone Realm.
• An attendant told Duan Rong that Xi Men Kan Kan was waiting outside, and Duan Rong hurried to meet him.
• Duan Rong recognized the gaunt Xi Men Kan Kan, who broke down crying as he recalled the hardships of the Pagoda Forest.
• Fan Hongjiao arrived from a mission, asked after Zhu He, and invited Duan Rong to visit her later.
• Duan Rong brought Xi Men Kan Kan into his room, while Kan Kan remembered Fan Hongjiao's name.

Duan Rong reunited with Xi Men Kan Kan, showed off his new Qi Cyclone Realm abilities, and learned that Xiao Yu was losing hope in the Pagoda Forest. After hearing that trapped disciples died by suicide, Duan Rong and Xi Men Kan Kan resolved to find a way to save her.

• Xi Men Kan Kan ate and drank with Duan Rong, then said he had joined the Internal History Department and would follow him.
• After Xi Men Kan Kan pranked him with a fart, Duan Rong carried him off Cloud Floating Peak and showed him how he could fly using his newly reached Qi Cyclone Realm cultivation.
• Duan Rong kicked Xi Men Kan Kan into a pool, and the two wrestled in the water before drying their clothes beside a fire.
• Xi Men Kan Kan told Duan Rong that Shen Mizhi remained determined to cultivate, but Xiao Yu had grown dispirited over the past two or three months.
• Xi Men Kan Kan revealed that people trapped in the Pagoda Forest killed themselves when they lost hope, and that one disciple had remained there for twelve years.
• Duan Rong and Xi Men Kan Kan agreed to find a way to save Xiao Yu despite the sect's rule that only those who reached True Qi Realm Perfection could leave.

Duan Rong persuaded Xi Men Kan Kan to exchange his chosen saber art for the Nine Yang Profound Void Saber, then brought him to the Cultivation Secret Chamber to study a breakthrough to the Essence Qi Realm. While Xi Men Kan Kan studied, Duan Rong confirmed that his Dantian had a hidden injury and realized he needed to consolidate his cultivation before advancing.

• Duan Rong told Xi Men Kan Kan that the Divine Gate Gentle Cloud Saber did not suit him and obtained authorization to choose another technique.
• Duan Rong led Xi Men Kan Kan to the Scripture Repository, where Xi Men Kan Kan found the Nine Yang Profound Void Saber and recognized its power and suitability.
• Duan Rong brought Xi Men Kan Kan to the Cultivation Secret Chamber and explained the key points of breaking through to the Essence Qi Realm.
• Duan Rong tested his Dantian with a thread of high-grade essence beast blood and briefly saw cracks appear in its wall.
• Duan Rong realized Fire Scale Python bile had only superficially repaired his hidden Dantian injury and decided to consolidate his realm using the Black Jade Pool's essence beast flesh and blood.

Yang Sixuan executed Ge Rusong, while Jing Chou secretly vowed to avenge his master. In the Cultivation Secret Chamber, Duan Rong reconsidered the sect’s Iron Law and resolved to rescue Xiao Yu if she could not endure the Pagoda Forest, before Zhu He appeared with a porcelain bottle.

• Yang Sixuan shared a final meal with Ge Rusong, then killed him with a spatial strike and allowed Jing Chou to collect the body.
• Jing Chou carried Ge Rusong away and vowed to avenge him, following Ge Rusong’s secret order concerning Duan Rong.
• Duan Rong gave Xi Men Kan Kan essence-beast flesh and blood to aid his cultivation, and Xi Men Kan Kan began meditating alongside him.
• Duan Rong reflected on how the Pagoda Forest’s Iron Law strengthened some disciples but could kill others, and resolved to save Xiao Yu if necessary.
• Zhu He entered the secret chamber through the wall and began speaking privately with Duan Rong, leaving Xi Men Kan Kan unable to hear them.

Zhu He gave Duan Rong a rare medicinal paste to heal his Dantian injury and purify his constitution, warning him to take it once every three days and avoid high-rank primordial beast essence blood. After taking the first dose, Duan Rong saw impurities leave his Dantian and meridians as his body began to change, while Xi Men Kan Kan was left marveling at Zhu He's Wall Passing Technique.

• Zhu He gave Duan Rong three months' worth of medicinal paste and explained that his Dantian injury would take that long to heal.
• Zhu He warned Duan Rong not to consume high-rank primordial beast essence blood until his injury had healed, then left by passing through the stone wall.
• Xi Men Kan Kan searched the wall, learned that Zhu He was a Cave Illumination Realm expert, and became fascinated by the Law of Power.
• Duan Rong mixed a small amount of the paste with Fire Scale Python gallbladder fluid and swallowed it.
• Duan Rong watched black impurities emerge from his Dantian and meridians and be expelled through his head as the medicine took effect.
• Duan Rong noticed yellow-and-white pus seeping from his pores, indicating that his constitution was also beginning to change.

Duan Rong continued refining the medicine to purify his constitution, then checked the Li Shensi Case records and learned that Liu Shushan had become Zheng Yi’s disciple. He took Xi Men Kan Kan into the Gloomy Dark Forest to practice hunting, where Duan Rong suddenly noticed something nearby.

• Duan Rong spent a month refining the medicine, purifying black fungal filaments from his Dantian and developing a foul smell that Xi Men Kan Kan pointed out.
• Duan Rong and Xi Men Kan Kan bathed, where they encountered Lu Geng, who congratulated Duan Rong on reaching the Qi Cyclone Realm and tried to curry favor with him.
• Duan Rong examined the Li Shensi Case file and found that the case had been left unsolved, then saw that Liu Shushan had taken Zheng Yi as his master.
• Duan Rong persuaded Xi Men Kan Kan to go to the Gloomy Dark Forest, where Xi Men Kan Kan killed several low-tier origin beasts for practice.
• Duan Rong led Xi Men Kan Kan through the forest, then stopped and looked toward something in the distance.

Duan Rong and Xi Men Kan Kan encountered Liu Shushan fighting a Wei Mu Ni while his senior disciples Guo Tian and Xu Zhenwan refused to help. After Duan Rong drove off Guo Tian and left with Xi Men Kan Kan, Guo Tian and Xu Zhenwan realized Liu Shushan was friends with Duan Rong, Zhu He's trusted disciple.

• Duan Rong and Xi Men Kan Kan watched Liu Shushan battle a Wei Mu Ni while Guo Tian and Xu Zhenwan mocked him and withheld help.
• Xi Men Kan Kan joined Liu Shushan, discovered the beast's tail-eye, and helped cut off its tail before Xu Zhenwan killed the fleeing beast.
• Xi Men Kan Kan insulted Xu Zhenwan and Guo Tian, prompting Guo Tian to attack him.
• Duan Rong intercepted Guo Tian in midair and wounded his hand with a powerful saber strike, then left with Xi Men Kan Kan.
• Duan Rong explained Liu Shushan's change of masters and warned that Xi Men Kan Kan's intervention could worsen Liu Shushan's situation.
• Guo Tian and Xu Zhenwan learned that Liu Shushan was Duan Rong's hometown friend and exchanged uneasy looks about the connection.

Xiao Yu spent the day sparring and eating with Shen Mizhi, whose swordsmanship continued to advance while Xiao Yu struggled with a stagnation in her cultivation. The next morning, Xiao Yu found Su Bairong hanged and realized that Su Bairong’s strange words the previous day had been a farewell: she had said she was going home.

• Shen Mizhi and Xiao Yu parted after chatting, while Xiao Yu went to spar with Su Bairong, who seemed unusually energetic and improved.
• At lunch, Shen Mizhi became absorbed in a sword technique insight, while Xiao Yu reflected on how her own cultivation had stalled.
• Su Bairong silently mouthed something to Xiao Yu before entering her pagoda, leaving Xiao Yu unsettled.
• The following morning, Xiao Yu found Su Bairong hanged from the top of her pagoda body.
• Xiao Yu recalled Su Bairong’s home address and understood that her silent words had been “I’m going home,” then wept as the instructors covered the body.

Chu Qiushan visited Lü Yinlin and told him that Duan Rong had triggered a Heaven and Earth Essence Qi tide while forming a vortex, prompting Lü Yinlin to summon Duan Rong. At Iron Peak Mountain, Xiao Yu reluctantly began sparring with a woman who had spent nearly ten years in the Pagoda Forest and had given up on leaving.

• Chu Qiushan followed Mr. Chu through a shifting formation forest into Lü Yinlin's secluded valley and waited outside the Old Ancestor's cave.
• Gu Daoling emerged from the cave after a month with Lü Yinlin, exchanged greetings with Chu Qiushan, and left the valley.
• Chu Qiushan told Lü Yinlin that Zhu He's disciple, Duan Rong, had triggered a Heaven and Earth Essence Qi tide while forming a vortex.
• Lü Yinlin recalled Duan Rong's Secluded Valley test result and ordered Chu Qiushan to bring Duan Rong and Zhu He to see him.
• After Su Bairong's body was carried away, Xiao Yu accepted a new sparring partner to avoid being locked in a pagoda.
• Xiao Yu discovered that the middle-aged woman barely trained and said Xiao Yu would eventually stop wanting to leave the Pagoda Forest.

Shen Mizhi left the Pagoda Forest, found Duan Rong, and delivered Xiao Yu’s anklet and blood-written farewell, convincing him that Xiao Yu might be in danger. Zhu He then summoned Duan Rong to meet Taiyi Sect’s Old Ancestor, Lü Yinlin, because Duan Rong had triggered a Heaven and Earth Essence Qi tide while forming a vortex.

• Shen Mizhi attained True Qi Realm Perfection, left the Pagoda Forest, and was accepted into Taiyi Sect as Lan Ruoshui’s disciple after no elder agreed to take her as a master.
• Shen Mizhi went to Cloud Floating Peak to find Duan Rong, and Fan Hongjiao mistakenly introduced her as Duan Rong’s wife before learning she was his hometown friend.
• Shen Mizhi gave Duan Rong Xiao Yu’s anklet and blood-written message, and Duan Rong concluded that Xiao Yu was preparing to give up hope of leaving the Pagoda Forest.
• Zhu He emerged through the secret chamber wall and took Duan Rong away, telling him to bathe before they met the Old Ancestor, Lü Yinlin.
• Zhu He explained that Lü Yinlin wanted to see Duan Rong because he had triggered a Heaven and Earth Essence Qi tide while forming a vortex, a feat recorded only once before on the Nine Provinces Continent.

Zhu He brought Duan Rong to meet Lü Yinlin, the Taiyi Sect’s Old Ancestor, after recounting Lingji Master’s rise from the Three-Cart Monk to the Primal God Realm. Lü Yinlin summoned Duan Rong into a cave, where his Nascent Soul entered Duan Rong through the space between his brows, leaving Duan Rong staring blankly ahead.

• Zhu He told Duan Rong how Yuchi Zong became the Three-Cart Monk Lingji and later reached the Primal God Realm and became Dharma King.
• Zhu He brought Duan Rong to Mr. Chu, who led them through an illusory Withered Wood Forest to a hidden valley.
• Duan Rong and Zhu He paid their respects to Lü Yinlin, who spoke with Zhu He about Gu Daoling before summoning Duan Rong into a cave.
• Lü Yinlin immobilized Duan Rong and revealed his Nascent Soul, which entered Duan Rong through the space between his brows.

Lü Yinlin entered Duan Rong’s consciousness sea and discovered his twelve-layer Garbha Sutra, dense weapon afterimages, and vast Tree Spirit Light Sea before ordering Zhu He to investigate Duan Rong’s origins. Zhu He traced the mystery to the old Xu Ruhu Case in Xiangu County, while Lü Qingzhu returned from the Gloomy Dark Forest and briefly confronted Duan Rong.

• Lü Yinlin froze Duan Rong’s consciousness and explored his sea, where he found twelve celestial bodies, countless weapon afterimages, and the Tree Spirit Light Sea.
• Duan Rong awoke, sent Zhu He to meet Lü Yinlin, and learned that the Old Ancestor wanted him to remain in the valley.
• Lü Yinlin told Zhu He that Duan Rong had cultivated the Garbha Sutra to the twelfth layer and ordered him to investigate where the technique came from.
• Lü Qingzhu returned carrying a sack that appeared to contain a serpent spirit beast, attacked Duan Rong, then withdrew after seeing his stronger Saber Light.
• Zhu He searched Duan Rong’s history and connected his time in Xiangu County and his Garbha Sutra cultivation to the unresolved Xu Ruhu Case.

Duan Rong persuaded Lü Qingzhu to join him in hunting a Mystic Ice Turtle, then faced Lü Yinlin’s questions about his Garbha Sutra cultivation and revealed how the Sea of Dim Light aided him. Lü Yinlin forgave his role in obtaining the technique and offered to guide his cultivation for twenty years, leaving Duan Rong free to enter and leave the valley as he prepared to move in.

• Duan Rong told Lü Qingzhu that a Mystic Ice Turtle could help them cultivate the thirteenth level of the Garbha Sutra, and she agreed to join him after he handled his business.
• Lü Yinlin summoned Duan Rong and questioned him about attaining the twelfth level of the Garbha Sutra and the source of its cultivation method.
• Duan Rong confessed how he had obtained the method through the Xu Ruhu case and described the Sea of Dim Light in his Luminous Consciousness Sea.
• Lü Yinlin ruled that Duan Rong’s merits and faults canceled each other out, then offered to personally guide him while allowing him to come and go from the valley.
• Duan Rong accepted Lü Yinlin’s offer, received the Array Ruler for the valley entrance, and left with Zhu He to pack his belongings.

Duan Rong settled into the Deep Valley, learned to use the Array Ruler to navigate its Withered Wood Forest, and discovered the hidden potential of Gu Daoling’s saber-character copy. When Lü Yinlin asked him to demonstrate his saber art beneath the full moon, he revealed a startling array of weapon intents.

• Duan Rong accepted Gu Shidi’s calligraphy from Zhu He and told his master that they were even over the plot at Divine Cloud Manor.
• Duan Rong followed Mr. Chu’s instructions with the Array Ruler, found the valley entrance, and chose a cave dwelling to live in.
• Duan Rong examined the saber-character copy and learned that its Artifact Spirit could connect him to the Law of Power, though his mental strength was not yet sufficient to devour it.
• Duan Rong decided to ask Lü Qingzhu to join him in hunting the Mystic Ice Turtle, but Lü Yinlin called him over before he could do so.
• Duan Rong performed the Mountain River Moon Shadow Saber for Lü Yinlin, who realized that his saber art contained more than a hundred kinds of intent across many weapons.