Chapter Summaries

Lü Yinlin dismissed the investigation into Xiao Qiwu’s disappearance but worried that Duan Rong had wasted his time in Myriad Phenomena Cave. As Yang Sixuan’s investigation pointed toward the possibility that Duan Rong had killed Xiao Qiwu, Duan Rong sought access to the case files so he could discover who had plotted against him.

• Lü Yinlin heard that Duan Rong had left Myriad Phenomena Cave after three days and blamed him for failing to temper his divine soul there.
• Duan Rong and Xiao Yu reunited in his secret chamber, spent the night together, and fell asleep after Xiao Yu confirmed that he had no visible injuries.
• Yang Sixuan investigated Xiao Qiwu’s visitors, connected Jing Chou’s mysterious envelope to Ge Rusong, and found a strand of hair deep inside Myriad Phenomena Cave.
• Yang Sixuan deduced that Xiao Qiwu might have tried to kill Duan Rong and that Duan Rong might have killed Xiao Qiwu, but he rejected the conclusion as absurd.
• Duan Rong asked Fan Hongjiao how Cloud Floating Peak could obtain the Judgment and Rectification Department’s case files, then left determined to learn who had arranged Xiao Qiwu’s attack on him.

Xi Men Kan Kan smoked out a hornet nest to make honey-roasted chicken, accidentally sending a swarm after Wu Shidao. After Wu Shidao summoned Duan Rong to see Zhu He, Xiao Yu asked Xi Men Kan Kan to tell her about Duan Rong’s fellow disciples.

• Zhu He told Wu Shidao to leave the Xiao Qiwu case to Yang Sixuan and asked him to summon Duan Rong.
• Xi Men Kan Kan smoked out a hornet nest, cut it down, and escaped into the stream with it while the swarm descended on Wu Shidao.
• Wu Shidao fought off the hornets and found Duan Rong, Xiao Yu, Shen Mizhi, and Xi Men Kan Kan roasting pheasants in the Dense Forest.
• Duan Rong apologized and offered Wu Shidao food, but Wu Shidao told him Zhu He wanted to see him and flew away.
• Duan Rong left for Cloud Floating Peak, and Xiao Yu asked Xi Men Kan Kan to tell her about Duan Rong’s fellow disciples.

Duan Rong received Zhu He's renewed Dew-Drinking Cicada and arranged to build a separate residence for Xiao Yu and their companions. Before visiting Old Ancestor, he went to Shang Xiangyu's old pill-refining cave and forged Phosphorus Silk Gloves and Phosphorus Crystal Flying Needles from his shattered saber.

• Zhu He gave Duan Rong the Dew-Drinking Cicada, restored to three uses, and offered construction help for a residence on Shang Xiangyu's mountain top.
• Duan Rong returned to Xiao Yu, Shen Mizhi, and Xi Men Kan Kan, shared his plan for the residence, and asked them to work out its design with the arriving record supervisors.
• Duan Rong told Xiao Yu he was going to Old Ancestor and might stay in the Deep Valley for several days, then left to prepare for Lü Yinlin's test.
• Duan Rong entered Shang Xiangyu's old pill-refining cave and heated the powder from his Frost Pattern Phosphorous Crystal Saber in the pill furnace until it melted.
• Duan Rong wove the molten phosphorus crystal into Phosphorus Silk Gloves and shaped the remaining material into Phosphorus Crystal Flying Needles.

Duan Rong demonstrated that he had unified more than a hundred martial intents after leaving the Myriad Phenomena Cave in just three days. After entering the Empty Clarity Realm, he expanded his intent across his entire body and impressed Lü Yinlin, who believed he could reach the Cave Illumination Realm within three years.

• Duan Rong arrived at Lü Yinlin’s Deep Valley at night, and Lü Yinlin summoned him to explain how quickly he had left the Myriad Phenomena Cave.
• Duan Rong demonstrated how he had unified more than a hundred martial intents and wielded many weapon styles with his gloved hands, astonishing Lü Yinlin.
• Duan Rong entered the Empty Clarity Realm and realized that his entire body, not just his hands, could become a weapon.
• Duan Rong continued practicing until his intent radiance spread over his whole body, and he performed gentle movements that Lü Yinlin recognized as deadly techniques.
• Duan Rong fired more than thirty Phosphorus Crystal Flying Needles at Lü Yinlin, who stopped them in midair and praised his skill.
• Lü Yinlin told Duan Rong that he had nothing more to teach him and predicted he could reach the Cave Illumination Realm within three years.

Duan Rong glimpsed the dangerous Dao Body Origin hidden in Gu Daoling’s calligraphy, injured his soul, and spent five days recovering and cultivating. He then visited the construction site on Shang Xiangyu’s mountain, where he reviewed Xiao Yu and Xi Men Kan Kan’s plans and offered Shen Mizhi guidance on sword practice.

• Lü Qingzhu challenged Duan Rong, but he disarmed her in one exchange and left her impressed by his skill.
• Duan Rong saw a vast river of stars in Gu Daoling’s calligraphy and glimpsed its Dao Body Origin, shattering his Pristine Glass Body and injuring his soul.
• Duan Rong used Azure Light Threads and the Garbha Sutra to repair his soul, then secluded himself for five days to cultivate.
• Duan Rong watched Lü Qingzhu practice swordsmanship, teased her, and left the Deep Valley for the construction site on Shang Xiangyu’s mountain.
• Xiao Yu and Xi Men Kan Kan showed Duan Rong their courtyard plans, and he approved the layout while suggesting a one-story main building.
• Duan Rong watched Shen Mizhi practice and advised her to relax her body while cultivating swordsmanship, prompting her to reconsider her training.

Duan Rong sent Shen Mizhi to bring Zhu Xiaoqi to the sect while construction continued on Shang Xiangyu's hill. Meanwhile, Yang Sixuan traced Jing Chou's final visits to Shen Tu Ying, but she drove him from Purple Bamboo Forest; Yang Yi later summoned Duan Rong to give a formal statement about the Xiao Qiwu case.

• Duan Rong asked Shen Mizhi to deliver an official letter to Zhu Zhengfu and bring Zhu Xiaoqi from Divine Cloud Manor into the sect.
• Xiao Yu and Xi Men Kan Kan oversaw construction of the hilltop courtyard while Duan Rong visited them periodically.
• Yang Yi told Yang Sixuan that Jing Chou had visited Shen Tu Ying the day after meeting Xiao Qiwu, before hanging himself the following night.
• Yang Sixuan went to Purple Bamboo Forest to question Shen Tu Ying, but she angrily rejected him and sent him away with her Withered Wood Blooms technique.
• Yang Yi visited Duan Rong and asked him to come to the Judgment and Rectification Department to give a formal statement about the Xiao Qiwu case.

Yang Sixuan questioned Duan Rong about the Xiao Qiwu Case and discovered that Duan Rong could resist the Divine Reflection Seal with powerful Divine Soul Thorns, then imprisoned him over the Garbha Sutra. Lü Yinlin ordered Chu Wushang to protect Duan Rong, leading to his release and the case’s suspension; later, Zhu Xiaoqi returned and learned why Duan Rong had been absent.

• Yang Sixuan used the Divine Reflection Seal on Duan Rong, but Duan Rong’s Divine Soul Thorns broke through it, and he refused to explain how he had learned the Garbha Sutra.
• Yang Sixuan imprisoned Duan Rong and went to report the matter to Chu Qiushan, while Chu Wushang told Lü Yinlin what had happened.
• Lü Yinlin ordered Chu Wushang to protect Duan Rong, and Chu Wushang made Yang Sixuan release him and stop investigating him.
• Yang Yi released Duan Rong, and the Xiao Qiwu Case stalled after Duan Rong was removed from the investigation and Shen Tu Ying refused to cooperate.
• Duan Rong returned to Xiao Yu, suspected that Lü Yinlin had intervened, and later welcomed Shen Mizhi and Zhu Xiaoqi back to the sect.
• Xiao Yu told Zhu Xiaoqi that Duan Rong had rescued her and suffered three strikes from the God Slaying Whip, and Zhu Xiaoqi forgave him for neglecting her.

Li Ku forced his way into Deep Valley to meet Lü Yinlin, then proposed an alliance between Heavenly Evolution Sect and Taiyi Sect after confirming that Zhuang Tairu of Divine Intent Gate had reached the Nascent Soul Realm. Lü Yinlin agreed in principle and sent Li Ku to negotiate the alliance terms with Chu Qiushan.

• Li Ku and a pale, gaunt youth broke through Lü Yinlin’s formation, and Lü Yinlin used his feather treasure to attack them until Li Ku revealed his Nascent Soul’s Seed Character and landed in the valley.
• Li Ku and Lü Yinlin set aside their old quarrel to play Go beneath an ancient pine, while Duan Rong and Lü Qingzhu watched from a distance.
• Li Ku confirmed that Zhuang Tairu had formed a Nascent Soul and warned that Divine Intent Gate’s growing strength threatened both Heavenly Evolution Sect and Taiyi Sect.
• Li Ku proposed an alliance, and Lü Yinlin agreed in principle but said Chu Qiushan would have to negotiate the terms.
• Lü Yinlin beat Li Ku at Go, and Li Ku remarked that losses in one place could be made up elsewhere.

Li Ku and Lü Yinlin secured an alliance between the Heavenly Evolution Sect and the Taiyi Sect by leaving Li Ruojian as a Sect Pledge and agreeing to marry Li Ruozhou to Lü Qingzhu. After Li Ku departed, Li Ruojian settled into Deep Valley and told Duan Rong that he did not know how long he would remain there.

• Li Ku scattered the chess pieces, then offered Li Ruojian as a Sect Pledge to demonstrate the Heavenly Evolution Sect's sincerity in an alliance with the Taiyi Sect.
• Li Ku proposed that Li Ruozhou marry Lü Qingzhu, and Lü Yinlin agreed despite his reluctance, warning Li Ku that Lü Qingzhu must not be mistreated.
• Li Ku left Deep Valley, and Li Ruojian wept as he watched him go before Lü Yinlin promised to guide his cultivation.
• Duan Rong showed Li Ruojian the empty cave abodes, and Li Ruojian chose one near Duan Rong rather than the spring.
• Li Ruojian told Duan Rong that he was the Sect Master's legitimate second son and had been left in Deep Valley as a Sect Pledge.

Duan Rong praised Li Ruojian’s calligraphy, then offered a critique that transformed Li’s understanding of his art. At Old Ancestor Lü Yinlin’s cave, Lü Zhongtang learned that Lü Qingzhu had been promised in marriage to secure an alliance with Heavenly Evolution Sect, and was told to persuade her to accept it.

• Duan Rong recognized Li Ruojian’s calligraphy as bearing the influence of Ou Style, and the two began discussing the art.
• Duan Rong told Li Ruojian to abandon the old forms he had mastered and let his own strength of character give rise to new ones, prompting Li to gain a breakthrough in his understanding.
• Duan Rong left the valley with Li Ruojian’s supply list and passed Lü Zhongtang, who had brought rice dumplings for Old Ancestor Lü Yinlin.
• Lü Yinlin welcomed Lü Zhongtang warmly, then told him that Zhuang Tairu had attained the Nascent Soul Realm and that Old Ancestor Li Ku had proposed an alliance between their sects.
• Lü Yinlin revealed that he had agreed to Lü Qingzhu’s marriage to Li Ruozhou to secure the alliance and ordered Lü Zhongtang to persuade her to accept it.

Lü Zhongtang learned that Old Ancestor Lü Yinlin had decided Lü Qingzhu would marry Li Ruozhou, despite his wish to protect his daughter. Duan Rong also learned of the alliance and was warned by Zhu He not to interfere, leaving him to face the prospect of Lü Qingzhu marrying another man.

• Lü Zhongtang visited Lü Qingzhu and invited her home, intending to tell her about the marriage alliance, while grieving over their estrangement after A Mo’s disappearance.
• Duan Rong reported Li Ku’s visit to the Deep Valley and Li Ruojian’s stay as a hostage; Fan Hongjiao then revealed that Li Ruozhou and Lü Qingzhu were to marry.
• Zhu He ordered Duan Rong to support the marriage alliance and warned him not to defy Old Ancestor Lü Yinlin by sabotaging it.
• Duan Rong struggled with the news because of his past with Lü Qingzhu and realized that breaking the alliance would mean opposing both the Taiyi Sect and the Heavenly Evolution Sect.
• Duan Rong collected the supplies intended for Li Ruojian and flew toward the Deep Valley.

Duan Rong warned Lü Qingzhu that she was to marry Li Ruozhou and revealed the cruelty Li Ruojian had suffered at his hands. After confirming her father would obey the Old Ancestor’s order, Lü Qingzhu resolved to fight the marriage herself.

• Duan Rong returned Li Ruojian’s belongings, then heard how Li Ruojian’s father and elder brother had mistreated him and saw the scars Li Ruozhou had inflicted.
• Duan Rong told Lü Qingzhu that the alliance between Heavenly Evolution Sect and Taiyi Sect would be sealed by her marriage to Li Ruozhou, and warned her about Li Ruozhou’s reputation.
• Lü Qingzhu went to her father Lü Zhongtang’s residence and learned that he had called her home to discuss the marriage alliance.
• Lü Zhongtang admitted that the Old Ancestor had arranged the marriage and insisted that Lü Qingzhu must obey, even if Li Ruozhou were crippled.
• Lü Qingzhu concluded that Lü Zhongtang could not protect her from the Old Ancestor and vowed to fight for herself.

Duan Rong helped Lü Qingzhu see that Li Ruozhou was the weakest point in the marriage alliance and proposed recruiting Li Ruojian to help break the deadlock. Three days later, Heavenly Evolution Sect’s Li Yunjing arrived at Taiyi Sect to discuss the alliance, with Li Ruozhou accompanying him.

• After Lü Qingzhu left Lü Yinlin’s cave dwelling upset, Duan Rong invited her to his cave dwelling and explained why confronting the elders would not break the marriage alliance.
• Duan Rong arranged dead branches to show the alliance’s power structure and identified Li Ruozhou as its weakest point.
• Duan Rong proposed asking Li Ruojian, who was held as a hostage, to help them oppose Li Ruozhou, and Lü Qingzhu agreed to the plan.
• Three days later, Li Yunjing arrived at Taiyi Sect with nearly fifty people aboard three Cloud Feathered Mad Eagles, and Chu Qiushan welcomed him.
• Li Yunjing and Chu Qiushan headed to a banquet estate to discuss the alliance, while Li Ruozhou took a seat beside his father in the main hall.

Li Ruojian received the Dragon Phoenix Ring and an Array Ruler from Lü Yinlin, while the two sects began negotiating their alliance and marriage arrangements. Li Yunjing pressed ahead with plans for Li Ruozhou and Lü Qingzhu’s first meeting gift, but Lü Zhongtang managed to delay it by a day.

• Lü Yinlin gave Li Ruojian the Phoenix Ring, which could protect him and let Lü Yinlin track his location, and granted him an Array Ruler to move around the Deep Valley.
• At the welcoming banquet, Li Ruozhou’s wicked smile unsettled Lü Zhongtang, and Li Yunjing later told his son that Lü Zhongtang knew about his past misdeeds.
• The sects began bargaining over the alliance treaty, and Li Yunjing privately arranged to exchange the birth date and hour cards for Li Ruozhou and Lü Qingzhu.
• Li Yunjing visited Lü Zhongtang with gifts, exchanged the cards, and proposed holding the first meeting gift the next evening, followed by a betrothal six days later.
• Lü Zhongtang agreed to the plan but persuaded Li Yunjing to postpone the first meeting gift by a day so he could speak with Lü Qingzhu.

Duan Rong spent the afternoon discussing a secret matter with Lü Qingzhu and Li Ruojian, then stayed at his residence with Xiao Yu for the night. Later, Lü Qingzhu attended the formal introduction with Li Ruozhou, whose lecherous attention turned to shock when he saw the rash on her arm.

• Xiao Yu tried to send tea to Duan Rong, but Shen Mizhi stopped Zhu Xiaoqi from approaching the pavilion.
• Duan Rong asked Lü Qingzhu and Li Ruojian to return to the valley and stayed at the residence after Xiao Yu invited them to dinner.
• Lü Qingzhu arrived at Lü Zhongtang's residence and changed into ceremonial dress for her formal introduction with Li Ruozhou.
• Li Ruozhou stared lecherously at Lü Qingzhu during the ceremony and exchange of gifts.
• When Lü Qingzhu's sleeve lifted as she handed Li Ruozhou a wooden box, he saw red sores covering her right arm and recognized them as a venereal disease.

Li Ruozhou learned that he was expected to marry Lü Qingzhu despite believing she had a venereal disease, while the two sects prepared their betrothal ceremony. Lü Qingzhu lured him into a dark mountain valley at night, and he followed her into the darkness despite growing uneasy.

• Li Ruozhou told Li Yunjing that Lü Qingzhu had a venereal disease, but Li Yunjing insisted he must marry her for the alliance between their sects.
• Li Yunjing arranged the betrothal ceremony with Chu Qiushan and Zhu He, and invitations announced Lü Qingzhu's marriage to Li Ruozhou.
• Xiao Yu received Duan Rong's wedding invitation from Xi Men Kan Kan and was delighted to learn Lü Qingzhu would marry Li Ruozhou.
• Lü Qingzhu visited Li Ruozhou and told him to meet her at the mountainside platform that evening.
• Lü Qingzhu led Li Ruozhou through clouds and mist toward a dark mountain peak, and Li Ruozhou followed her inside.

Lü Qingzhu lured Li Ruozhou into the Dense Forest, took his Longevity Lock, and challenged him to defeat her maid A Mo if he wanted to marry her. A Mo overwhelmed him, and after Lü Qingzhu threatened him with daily beatings, Duan Rong knocked him unconscious and removed his disguise before an unknown figure appeared from the forest.

• Lü Qingzhu used the lamplight and her touch to distract Li Ruozhou while unlocking and taking his Longevity Lock.
• When Li Ruozhou tried to reclaim the lock, A Mo blocked him, and Lü Qingzhu made their marriage depend on him defeating A Mo.
• A Mo revealed powerful Intent light across her body and repeatedly battered Li Ruozhou until he gave up fighting.
• Lü Qingzhu threatened Li Ruozhou with daily beatings if he married her, and A Mo knocked him unconscious.
• Duan Rong removed his skin mask, and a figure suddenly emerged from the Dense Forest and landed nearby.

Duan Rong and Lü Qingzhu helped Li Ruojian use the beaten, unconscious Li Ruozhou as part of a scheme at the Maid Courtyard, but Duan Rong suspected Li Ruojian planned to kill his brother. He stopped Li Ruojian’s attempt and left for the Deep Valley keeping him under close watch.

• Li Ruojian recalled how the Longevity Lock had wounded his pride as a child and explained that Li Ruozhou feared rats.
• Duan Rong and Lü Qingzhu agreed to leave Li Ruozhou tied naked to a stake in the Maid Courtyard, with a Wooden Plaque on his chest, and Duan Rong scattered papers across the mountainside.
• After the Hall of Elders went dark, Li Ruojian separated from Duan Rong and Lü Qingzhu, then secretly returned to the Maid Courtyard.
• Li Ruojian drew his sword and thrust at the unconscious Li Ruozhou, but Duan Rong intercepted the attack with a Phosphorus Crystal Flying Needle.
• Duan Rong confronted Li Ruojian and prevented him from killing Li Ruozhou, then left with him and Lü Qingzhu for the Deep Valley while monitoring him with divine sense.

Li Ruozhou was found beaten, unconscious, and naked in the Maid Courtyard as scandal sheets about his past spread across Cuiwei Peak. After Li Yunjing learned that the accusations were true, he suspected someone was trying to sabotage the marriage alliance and sent for Taiyi Sect's leaders.

• Maids returning to the Maid Courtyard found a sheet titled “The Ten Lascivious Sins” describing Li Ruozhou’s scandals and later discovered him tied up and unconscious.
• Li Yunjing sent Yang Tianyi to search for Li Ruozhou after learning he had left his room hours earlier.
• Yang Tianyi found another scandal sheet and rushed toward the Maid Courtyard after hearing a woman scream.
• Yang Tianyi rescued Li Ruozhou, found a plaque calling him “Lascivious Young Sect Master,” and questioned the tall maid, who said the maids had only just discovered him.
• Yang Tianyi brought Li Ruozhou back to Li Yunjing, who read the accusations and recognized that they were true.
• Li Yunjing suspected someone was trying to undermine the marriage alliance and ordered Yang Tianyi to summon Sect Leader Chu and Administrator Yang.

After Li Ruozhou accused Lü Qingzhu and A Mo of attacking him, Chu Qiushan and Yang Sixuan investigated both accounts while trying to contain the scandal threatening the sects’ marriage alliance. Li Ruozhou decided he would flee the marriage if A Mo was not crippled, while Lü Qingzhu openly condemned the Old Ancestor’s willingness to sacrifice her for the alliance.

• Li Ruozhou told Chu Qiushan and Yang Sixuan that A Mo had beaten him, demanded that Yang Sixuan punish her, and showed them the scattered Ten Lascivious Sins sheets.
• Li Yunjing asked Chu Qiushan and Yang Sixuan to collect and destroy the sheets and silence the Maid Courtyard maids, and Yang Sixuan agreed to investigate the incident rather than accept Li Ruozhou’s account.
• Chu Qiushan reported the matter to Lü Yinlin, then accompanied Yang Sixuan to question Lü Qingzhu, who said Li Ruozhou had tried to violate her and that she had tied him up and punished him.
• Lü Qingzhu criticized the Old Ancestor for putting the marriage alliance before her safety, and Lü Yinlin overheard her insult from his cave.
• Li Ruozhou brooded over the Ten Lascivious Sins sheet and decided to make Yang Sixuan cripple A Mo or flee the marriage.