Chapter Summaries

At nearly sixty, Yi Yang received a heavenly destiny that let him advance any skill through practice, with progress multiplied by his age. After learning that Jiang Yuexin had returned home frightened and muddy, he heard Yang Hui warn that Sun Mazi might be targeting her.

• Yi Yang recalled how his lack of martial aptitude had left him a poor woodcutter while his younger brother Yi Xun received the family shops and martial training.
• Jiang Yuexin returned to Yi Yang's courtyard sweating, with mud on her skirt and a crumpled cuff, and hurried silently to her room.
• Yi Yang's heavenly destiny appeared and granted him multiplied progress from practicing any craft, skill, or cultivation method, prompting him to resolve to begin martial training discreetly.
• Yang Hui arrived and told Yi Yang she had seen Sun Mazi skulking after Jiang Yuexin, warning that he had become bolder through his association with Yang Er.

Yang Hui urged Yi Yang to seek help from his wealthy younger brother to protect Jiang Yuexin from Sun Mazi and Yang Er, but Jiang Yuexin refused to let her grandfather beg the Yi family. After Yang Hui left, Yi Yang comforted Yuexin and asked her what had happened.

• Yang Hui warned Yi Yang that Sun Mazi and Yang Er might threaten Jiang Yuexin again and urged him to ask his younger brother Yi Xun for help.
• Jiang Yuexin came out of her room and refused to let Yi Yang seek help from the Yi family in town.
• Jiang Yuexin pleaded with Yi Yang not to go begging, while Yang Hui argued that pride would not protect her from being bullied.
• Yi Yang sent Yang Hui home, and she urged him to bolt the door and keep his woodcutting knife close.
• Yi Yang gave Jiang Yuexin water and asked her what had happened.

After Jiang Yuexin revealed that Sun Mazi had tried to make her steal Yi Yang’s hidden purplewood, Yi Yang decided not to seek help from his estranged family in town. He set out to ask hunter Zhou Liang for a cultivation manual so he could deal with the danger himself.

• Jiang Yuexin told Yi Yang that she had told Er Niu about his purplewood and that Sun Mazi had confronted her and demanded she steal it.
• Yi Yang recalled finding the purplewood on Greenwood Mountain beside signs of a huge snake or strange creature, and worried that news of it would draw greedy people.
• Jiang Yuexin urged Yi Yang not to go to town and beg his relatives for help, and Yi Yang agreed to stay and handle Sun Mazi himself.
• Yi Yang decided that he needed a cultivation method and remembered that Zhou Liang owned the Yin Wood Health-Nourishing Art.
• Yi Yang gathered a few copper coins and dried ginseng rootlets and headed to Zhou Liang’s courtyard.

Yi Yang obtained Zhou Liang’s copy of the Wood-Nurturing Longevity Art and began practicing it, discovering that his unusual destiny made his progress unusually fast. After training through the night, he woke feeling healthier, and Jiang Yuexin noticed that he looked younger.

• Yi Yang visited Zhou Liang and asked to see the martial arts booklet he had received after failing to enter a martial arts school.
• Zhou Liang gave Yi Yang the Wood-Nurturing Longevity Art and warned him not to strain his old body.
• Yi Yang read that the art covered six stages of qi and blood, then practiced the Wood Longevity Stance until his status showed level one progress of 1/1000.
• Yi Yang completed a training round and saw his progress rise to 60/1000, but decided to limit himself to three rounds a day so he would not deplete his body.
• After sleeping for only a few hours, Yi Yang woke feeling clear-headed and less stiff, and Jiang Yuexin remarked that he looked younger.

Yi Yang rejected Yang Er’s demand for the purplewood and demonstrated his strength by splitting ironwood with one strike. After learning Yang Er had ordered Sun Mazi to watch him, Yi Yang set out into the mountains and realized Sun Mazi had followed him.

• Yi Yang practiced the Yin Wood Longevity Stance and neared the first level of Blood Qi.
• Yang Er visited Yi Yang, tried to recruit Jiang Yuexin as a maidservant, and demanded Yi Yang’s purplewood.
• Yi Yang split a section of ironwood with one blow, discouraging Yang Er from pressing him further.
• Outside the courtyard, Yang Er ordered Sun Mazi to watch Yi Yang and discover where he kept the purplewood.
• Yi Yang overheard their plan and decided Sun Mazi could no longer be allowed to live.
• At dawn, Yi Yang headed into the mountains and stopped when he heard Sun Mazi following him.

Yi Yang ambushed and killed Sun Mazi, who had followed him into the mountains hoping to find the purple wood, then buried the body and covered his tracks. He returned to gathering firewood, leaving Sun Mazi’s disappearance concealed for now.

• Sun Mazi watched Yi Yang leave the village at dawn and followed him into the mountains, convinced he was hiding the purple wood.
• After Yi Yang vanished from the path, Sun Mazi followed sandal prints into a remote grove, where Yi Yang dropped from a tree and strangled him with an oiled hemp rope.
• Yi Yang snapped Sun Mazi’s neck, dragged his body to a prepared hollow, and buried it beneath dead leaves.
• Yi Yang erased the drag marks, collected Sun Mazi’s few copper coins, and gathered firewood before heading back.

Yi Yang completed the first level of the Yin Wood Health-Nurturing Art, broke through to Skin Refining, and concealed his new strength from the village. He realized he needed money and better resources to advance further, so he decided to make a trip to sell some purplewood.

• Yi Yang practiced the Yin Wood Health-Nurturing Art until its first level reached 1000/1000 and his body was cleansed and strengthened.
• Yi Yang tested his new strength by punching deep cracks into an ironwood stump, then hid the damage and cleaned the courtyard to preserve his disguise.
• Jiang Yuexin noticed Yi Yang looked younger and urged him to keep practicing, while Yi Yang reassured her and accepted the half egg she had saved for him.
• Yi Yang checked his panel and saw the Yi Wood Health-Preserving Art had advanced to its second level, which required 3000 points.
• Yi Yang considered the cost of training and decided to make a trip to sell some of the purplewood he had taken from Greenwood Mountain.

Yi Yang sold a piece of purplewood at the Black Market and bought Blood Qi Powder for Jiang Yuexin. After a scar-faced man followed him out and demanded more purplewood, Yi Yang killed him and returned home with the goods and a folded paper.

• Yi Yang disguised himself, left Jiang Yuexin asleep, and went to the Black Market to sell purplewood and buy Blood Qi Powder.
• Yi Yang sold the genuine purplewood to a burly man for twenty-eight taels after bargaining.
• Yi Yang bought eight packets of Blood Qi Powder for twenty-four taels and noticed a scar-faced man following him.
• Yi Yang blinded the scar-faced man with lime powder, strangled him, and took his silver, dagger, coins, and a folded paper.
• Yi Yang hid the body, returned to Three Trees Village before dawn, and took out the folded paper.

Yi Yang used Blood Qi Powder in a medicinal bath to replenish his qi and blood, then shared a meal with Jiang Yuexin and Yang Hui. Meanwhile, Yang Er persuaded village chief Yang Shuyu to help take villagers’ farmland and heard that a giant snake was threatening the neighboring village; after learning Sun Mazi had vanished, Yang Er began to see the snake as useful.

• Yi Yang discovered a Blood-Strengthening Decoction recipe and hid it away before preparing a bath with Blood Qi Powder.
• Yi Yang soaked in the medicinal bath while practicing the Yi Wood Life-Nurturing Art and calculated that he could reach the second level in thirteen days.
• Yi Yang invited Yang Hui to lunch, and she, Yi Yang, and Jiang Yuexin shared pheasant soup together.
• Yang Er offered village chief Yang Shuyu food and promised help for his son in exchange for support in getting villagers to transfer their farmland.
• Yang Shuyu warned Yang Er that a giant snake had attacked near Greenwood Mountain and asked him to summon Yang Da, but Yang Er was noncommittal.
• After hearing Sun Mazi was missing, Yang Er connected the news to Yi Yang’s purple wood and remarked that snakes in the mountains might not be entirely bad.

Yi Yang learned that a giant snake was threatening the villages around Greenwood Mountain, while Yang Er sent for his brother Yang Da. Five days later, county constable Wang Yue arrived with three men to deal with the snake, though Yang Da had not appeared.

• Zhou Liang warned Yi Yang that a giant snake had killed a hunter’s dog, left a hunter missing, and left traces on Greenwood Mountain.
• Yi Yang suspected the snake was connected to the purplewood he had found and worried that Yang Da’s return could bring trouble to his courtyard.
• Yi Yang trained harder and used medicinal baths as Three Trees Village’s residents avoided the mountain.
• Yang Hui told Yi Yang that constable Wang Yue had arrived with three armed men, and she saw Yang Er acting familiar with him.
• Yi Yang recognized that Wang Yue was not Yang Da and concluded that the situation had not yet become unmanageable.

Constable Wang Yue arrived in Three Trees Village to hunt the giant snake, but Yang Er arranged for him to take Yi Yang into the mountains and eliminate him over the Purplewood. Yi Yang agreed to go with the party while secretly assessing the men, and Yang Er expected to claim the Purplewood and Jiang Yuexin that night.

• Yang Er welcomed Wang Yue and his three subordinates, then learned that Constable Yang had ordered them to take Yi Yang into the mountains and question him, killing him if necessary.
• Wang Yue's subordinates condemned Yang Er's behavior, but Wang Yue told them to follow orders and avoid getting involved in anything else.
• The next morning, Wang Yue insisted that Yi Yang join the snake hunt because he knew the mountain paths, despite Jiang Yuexin and Yang Hui objecting.
• Yi Yang agreed to go, suspecting that the snake hunt concealed Yang Da's pursuit of the Purplewood and an attempt to kill him.
• Wang Yue led Yi Yang, his three subordinates, and hunter Yang Dongxi into the mountains as Yi Yang studied their movements and weapons.
• Yang Er told Zhang Xiaoshan he expected Wang Yue to kill Yi Yang and planned to claim the Purplewood and Jiang Yuexin that night.

Wang Yue led his constables, hunter Yang Dongxi, Yi Yang, and martial artist Li Shun into Greenwood Mountain to hunt a giant snake. They found it coiled beside a broken purplewood tree and prepared to attack, with Yi Yang recognizing the snake as the one connected to his earlier discovery.

• Wang Yue stopped the party when he heard someone in the woods, and Li Shun emerged, saying villagers from Blackwater Village had hired him to deal with the giant snake.
• Wang Yue agreed to let Li Shun join the group, while Yi Yang noticed that Li Shun seemed more experienced than he claimed.
• The party followed fresh snake tracks to a clearing, where Li Shun warned that the creature was nearing the strange-beast realm.
• The group spotted the giant snake resting beside a broken tree whose exposed grain was purplewood, and Yi Yang recognized it as the snake tied to his earlier find.
• Wang Yue assigned everyone positions for an ambush and ordered Yi Yang to stay back as the others spread out.

Wang Yue and the others fought the giant snake, suffering heavy casualties while Yi Yang faked his death after Wang Yue deliberately drove the wounded beast toward him. The snake escaped deeper into the mountains, and Wang Yue and Li Shun followed its blood trail in search of its nest.

• Wang Yue signaled Yang Dongxi to shoot, and Yang Dongxi wounded the giant snake in its left eye.
• Li Shun, Han Zhu, Liu Biao, Wang Yue, Chen Liu, and Yang Dongxi attacked the snake; Chen Liu and Yang Dongxi died, Han Zhu was killed, and Liu Biao was gravely wounded.
• Wang Yue deliberately redirected the snake toward Yi Yang, who let himself be thrown into the woods and pretended to be dead.
• Liu Biao struck the snake's belly wound, but the snake fatally struck him and fled into the mountains.
• Wang Yue persuaded Li Shun to leave the fallen men and pursue the snake, and the two followed its blood trail.

Yi Yang followed Wang Yue and Li Shun to a cave containing a wounded great snake and a Crimson Origin Fruit, then killed them both and claimed the treasure. He hid his gains in a remote cave and swallowed the fruit to advance his cultivation.

• Yi Yang recovered from Wang Yue’s attempt to steer the great snake into him and secretly followed Wang Yue and Li Shun to its cave.
• Wang Yue and Li Shun killed the great snake and found the Crimson Origin Fruit, then fought over who would claim it.
• Li Shun revealed his Nine Evil Sect saber technique, but Wang Yue killed him with his concealed Nine Peaks Saber technique.
• Yi Yang killed Wang Yue, took his silver and saber manual, and recovered Li Shun’s Nine Evil Sect token along with the snake’s gallbladder and shed skin.
• Yi Yang hid his gains and the Crimson Origin Fruit in a remote cave, then swallowed the fruit as his Wood-Nurturing Longevity Art began to progress.

After eating a Crimson Origin Fruit, Yi Yang advanced to the second Qi-Blood level and then the third layer of the Wood-Nurturing Longevity Art. He returned to Three Trees Village, killed Yang Er, and staged the murder to implicate the Nine Evil Sect.

• Yi Yang absorbed the Crimson Origin Fruit’s medicinal power, advanced to the third layer of the Wood-Nurturing Longevity Art, and reached Qi-Blood Second Level: Flesh-Training.
• Yi Yang decided to use the Nine Evil Sect token to frame the sect for the deaths on Greenwood Mountain and resolved to kill Yang Er.
• Jiang Yuexin waited anxiously for Yi Yang while Yang Hui comforted her, and Yang Er celebrated the expected deaths of Yi Yang and the prospect of claiming Jiang Yuexin and the purplewood.
• Yi Yang packed his belongings, returned to Three Trees Village at night, and sneaked into Yang Er’s house.
• Yi Yang killed the drunken Yang Er, planted the Nine Evil Sect token, and added blade wounds to make the murder appear to be the work of a cultist.

Yi Yang returned to Three Trees Village battered and claimed he had survived a fall while Wang Yue and the others vanished on the mountain. After Yang Er’s murder stirred the village, Yi Yang reunited with Jiang Yuexin and considered how soon Yang Da would return to investigate.

• Yi Yang descended Greenwood Mountain, staged injuries, and told the villagers he had fallen while fleeing the giant snake, leaving Wang Yue and the others missing.
• Yang Shuyu organized a report to the county town and a search of the mountain after Zhang Xiaoshan announced that Yang Er had been murdered.
• Yi Yang slipped away from the crowd and returned home, where Jiang Yuexin clung to him and Yang Hui tended his injuries.
• Yi Yang learned that his Wood-Nurturing Longevity Art had reached its third layer and considered trading the snake gallbladder and snake shedding for medicinal ingredients.
• Yi Yang worried that Yang Da would return to Three Trees Village and wondered how much time he had before the investigation reached him.

Yi Yang studied the Nine Peaks Saber and used his woodcutting experience and Heavenly Mandate to make rapid progress, but he knew he had to keep his strength hidden. Over lunch, Yang Hui reported the deaths on the mountain and the discovery of unfamiliar footprints, while Yi Yang concluded that the real danger lay in the county town.

• Yi Yang read the Nine Peaks Saber, recognized how its nine linked forms turned woodcutting skills into lethal technique, and practiced the first movements with his old blade.
• Yi Yang received a Heavenly Mandate progress reading of 60 points after one run, practiced for four hours, and raised his beginner progress to 300 out of 3000 before exhaustion stopped him.
• Yang Hui brought a pheasant to Yi Yang and Jiang Yuexin, then told them Yang Er had been found dead and Wang Yue and his men had not returned from the mountain.
• Yang Hui reported that Zhou Liang's search party found Yang Dongxi and Wang Yue's three men dead, but found no trace of Wang Yue's body.
• Yang Hui said Zhou Liang had found unfamiliar boot prints near the clearing; Yi Yang hid what he knew and thought the real trouble was in the county town.

Yi Yang visited the Black Market seeking stronger cultivation medicine and was introduced to its boss, Zhao Gang, who offered him a partnership. Yi Yang declined the offer but bought six Qi-Blood Pills, while Zhao Gang ordered his men to watch Yi Yang without provoking him; Yi Yang headed home intent on reaching the Tendon Refining Realm.

• Yi Yang disguised himself and returned to the Black Market, where he bought ingredients for the Blood-Strengthening Decoction but found no pills at the stalls.
• Ren Hao followed Yi Yang and invited him to meet Zhao Gang, who offered access to medicine, connections, and information in exchange for Yi Yang's help keeping order.
• Yi Yang refused to work with Zhao Gang but bought six Qi-Blood Pills for thirty taels of silver.
• Ren Hao suggested pursuing Yi Yang, but Zhao Gang warned that Yi Yang was a dangerous Muscle Training Realm fighter and ordered the Black Market to treat him and his family politely.
• Yi Yang returned to Three Trees Village with the pills and resolved to push toward Tendon Refining.

After two martial artists from the Shengcang Martial Hall brutally beat Yang Hui, Yi Yang investigated the men and their hall while Zhou Liang sought help in Cloud Pattern Town. Yi Yang learned that the pair were Peng Qing and Lu Cheng, and left with a clearer sense of the danger facing Three Trees Village.

• Zhang Xiaohu told Yi Yang that Yang Hui had been beaten, and Yi Yang went to Aunt Zhang’s house to see her.
• Jiang Yuexin explained that two martial artists from Cloud Pattern Town had attacked Yang Hui after she insulted Yang Er, and that they planned to return the next day to question the villagers.
• Zhou Liang agreed to seek help for Yang Hui, but his old acquaintances in town refused to challenge the Shengcang Martial Hall.
• Yi Yang asked Village Chief Yang Shuyu about the martial artists and learned they were Peng Qing and Lu Cheng of the Shengcang Martial Hall.
• Yi Yang visited Zhao Gang, who described the hall’s strength, the two disciples’ characters, and their ties to Yang Er, then offered Yi Yang work.

Yi Yang infiltrated the Shengcang Martial Hall to learn that Yang Da would return in five days with a chance to reach the Qi-Blood Third Level, then attacked Lu Cheng and Peng Qing. He killed Lu Cheng, while Peng Qing still stood ready to fight.

• Yi Yang overheard Lu Cheng and Peng Qing discuss Yang Da's absence and plans to investigate Yang Er's death in Three Trees Village.
• Peng Qing revealed that Yang Da would return in five days and might receive precious medicine to advance to the Qi-Blood Third Level.
• Yi Yang entered the room and attacked Lu Cheng and Peng Qing with his woodcutting saber.
• Yi Yang blinded Lu Cheng with pot soot and killed him with a saber strike across the chest.
• Peng Qing remained standing with his saber drawn as Yi Yang faced him.