Chapter Summaries

Lin Ke followed the Fire God Mantis into underwater ruins, where a spatial shift transported them to a desert trial. He claimed to be the personal disciple of the Minister of Rites, startling both the Fire God Mantis and the ruins’ lingering presence, which began to stammer in response.

• The Fire God Mantis led Lin Ke to a warm lake and explained that he had claimed the area and discovered the ruins by accident.
• Lin Ke and the Fire God Mantis covered themselves with demonic aura and entered the lake’s depths, where a ripple transported them into a desert space.
• The Fire God Mantis identified the voice as a memory-stripped lingering thought and the desert as the source of earth-swift sword intent.
• Lin Ke announced that he was the personal disciple of the Minister of Rites and asked permission to undergo the trial.
• The Fire God Mantis reeled at Lin Ke’s status, and the lingering voice stammered as it asked whether Lin Ke was Lord Lin Xuanji’s personal disciple.

Lin Ke confronted the Sword Spirit guarding the desert ruins and learned that it believed its dead master had abandoned it. After Lin Ke calmed the sandstorm and challenged that belief, the Sword Spirit revealed itself and invited him closer.

• The Fire God Mantis reacted with surprise when the senior identified Lin Ke as the Minister of Rites’ personal disciple.
• Lin Ke deduced that the senior was a Sword Spirit that had awakened long ago and was blocking the dead cultivator’s legacy from others.
• The Sword Spirit claimed its master had abandoned it, then unleashed a sandstorm that attacked Lin Ke and the Fire God Mantis.
• Lin Ke used the Imperially Sanctioned Staff and his reform-powered painting to still the storm and melt the sand.
• Lin Ke insisted that the Sword Spirit’s master had wanted it to find a new master and pass on his other legacies, and the Sword Spirit quieted and took the form of a longsword.
• The Fire God Mantis watched the Sword Spirit invite Lin Ke closer and reconsidered following him.

Lin Ke fought the Sand-Particle Sword barehanded to earn its approval, using Confucian poetry and his Chopping Wood Method to counter its attacks. The battle left the sword scattered into flying grains of sand, while the Fire God Mantis recognized Lin Ke as a true Human Prodigy.

• The Sand-Particle Sword asked Lin Ke to defeat it without using the power of any items, and Lin Ke put away his weapons.
• The Sand-Particle Sword charged at Lin Ke as a blade of sand, but Lin Ke used Word-Bound Law to freeze it and escaped with a poetic invocation.
• Lin Ke recited more lines to summon wind, thunder, and a phantom bamboo staff, then struck the Sand-Particle Sword and split its body apart.
• The Sand-Particle Sword reassembled and attacked again, but Lin Ke summoned a freezing wind and struck the sand more than three hundred times with the Chopping Wood Method.
• The Fire God Mantis watched Lin Ke's display and realized he was a true Human Prodigy.

Lin Ke defeated the Sand-Particle Sword, learned it was a rare treasure named Storm, and found the diary of its former master, Lin Xiao, a descendant of Lin Xuanji. The diary revealed that Lin Xiao had uncovered a world-shaking secret and warned readers to stop unless they were willing to shoulder a heavy responsibility.

• Lin Ke used poetry and Word-Bound Law to defeat the Sand-Particle Sword, which submitted and revealed its name was Storm.
• Storm told Lin Ke that its former master had left notes, and Lin Ke found them beside a decayed table and chair.
• Storm identified Lin Xiao as a son of Lin Xuanji, prompting Lin Ke to wonder why he had not returned to the Capital City.
• Lin Ke stored Storm, then opened Lin Xiao's Notes and discovered they were a diary beginning with the claim that Lin Xuanji did not consider him a son.
• Lin Xiao's diary recounted his mother's warning, her death, his search for his father, and his discovery of a secret that could shake the heavens.

Lin Ke read Lin Xiao’s account of how Lin Xuanji used the Way of Rites to deepen class divisions and strengthen his Sacred Path by exploiting his children. The notes ended with Lin Xiao’s fearful resolve to defend the Sacred Path and destroy Lin Xuanji’s twisted rites.

• Lin Xiao accused Lin Xuanji of devouring his children through a Sacred Path built on widening the differences between fathers and sons, rulers and subjects, and higher and lower statuses.
• Lin Ke realized that Lin Xuanji had used his position as Minister of Rites and the Great Wei Sacred Dynasty’s class system to cultivate his path, while denying the Lin children education and opportunity.
• Lin Ke understood that his emergence had disrupted Lin Xuanji’s plans, but resolved to remain wary because Lin Xuanji was still alive and powerful.
• Lin Xiao wrote that nearly five hundred of his brothers and sisters had disappeared, and admitted that he feared what had happened to them.
• Lin Xiao declared that he would risk his life to defend the Sacred Path and destroy the twisted rites, ending his account with “Off I go.”

After reading Lin Xiao’s notes, Lin Ke suspected the Lin Residence had been used to cultivate people under Lin Xuanji’s control, but he steadied himself by remembering the allies who opposed Lin Xuanji. He decided to build his own force in Cloud Dream Marsh, and the Fire God Mantis offered his talented offspring’s egg if Lin Ke could suppress the fire vein.

• Lin Ke read Lin Xiao’s notes and wondered whether the Lin Residence had secretly prevented its children from making something of themselves.
• Lin Ke considered whether powerful officials and even the Sage Emperor knew of Lin Xuanji’s actions, then rejected the suspicion that his trusted allies were Lin Xuanji’s accomplices.
• Lin Ke recalled that Lin Xuanji had been banished to Cloud Dream Marsh for thirty years and decided to keep watch on him and build his own force.
• Lin Ke told the Fire God Mantis that his offer to follow still stood, and the Mantis revealed that his unhatched offspring’s egg was suppressing the volcano’s fire vein.
• The Fire God Mantis offered Lin Ke the egg and lifelong loyalty if Lin Ke could suppress the fire vein.

Lin Ke recruited the Fire God Mantis’s descendant and went with the mantis to meet its king, while considering the fire vein’s potential use. Back at his residence, Lin Ke prepared to buy books from the Hundred Schools and agreed to get Little Wa more breathing soil.

• Lin Ke accepted the Fire God Mantis’s offer to let its egg follow him, ordered the mantis to keep his identity secret, and headed with him to meet the king.
• After the small space collapsed, Lin Ke reunited with the Purple-Patterned White Tiger and traveled with him and the Fire God Mantis toward Mantis Mountain.
• Lin Ke learned that the fire vein sustained the Fire God Mantis Clan and privately considered moving it into Pokémon without forcing the clan to relocate.
• Lin Ke’s Doppelganger reflected on threats to the Great Wei Sacred Dynasty, then inspected arrangements for the Lin Residence with Fang Yuan.
• Lin Ke asked Fang Yuan to buy varied books from the Hundred Schools, agreed to get Little Wa more breathing soil, and let her climb onto his shoulder.

Lin Ke inspected the newly recruited household staff, confirmed plans for rebuilding his residence, and visited the site of the new university. He arrived as scholars from the Works Department were constructing its buildings and was greeted by the Great Confucian overseeing the work.

• Lin Ke used his poem to sense the new servants' emotions, found no malice among them, and approved their hiring.
• Zhuge Li told Lin Ke that construction plans for his residence were ready and showed him a smooth white ceramic tile made by the Works Department.
• Lin Ke discussed Clear Stream Academy and decided to visit the university construction site before going to the Great Wilderness Council.
• Lin Ke traveled by carriage with Zhuge Li to the university, where he watched Works Department scholars use literary qi to raise and position building materials.
• The Great Confucian overseeing construction recognized Lin Ke and greeted him enthusiastically.

Lin Ke visited the new campus and dormitories, where he found Clear Stream Academy students eagerly training and settling into their new accommodations. The students asked when lessons would begin, and Lin Ke promised classes would start as soon as the school was finished.

• Lin Ke asked Lord Zhang to arrange a residence for his incoming servants, and Lord Zhang flew off at once to prepare it.
• Lin Ke toured the campus with Zhuge Li and saw that its buildings and facilities had been constructed to his specifications.
• Lin Ke and Zhuge Li found Clear Stream Academy students exercising between the dormitories, and Zhuge Li wondered aloud about their behavior.
• Song Qu and the other students told Lin Ke that the dormitories and cafeteria were convenient and asked when they could begin learning.
• Lin Ke promised that classes would begin on the day the school was completed.

Lin Ke checked on the nearly completed school, promised to teach there, and then went to inspect the Great Wilderness Council. He arrived at the council’s deserted gates and quietly identified himself to the gatekeeper before entering.

• Lin Ke visited the school construction site, where Song Qu and the other students eagerly asked about their courses and teachers.
• Lin Ke reassured the students that he would teach more than one course, then left with Zhuge Li for the Great Wilderness Council.
• Lin Ke considered how to choose rotating councilors from across the Divine Land and decided the council’s rules would need continuous reform.
• Lin Ke arrived at the Great Wilderness Council and found its gates shut and the surrounding street nearly empty.
• Lin Ke told the stern gatekeeper who he was and asked him to remain quiet while Lin Ke inspected the premises.

Lin Ke inspected the Great Wilderness Council and assigned its staff to find representative councilors from across society and the Hundred Schools. He left them to begin the work, warning that he would punish anyone who abused their authority for personal gain.

• Lin Ke entered the Great Wilderness Council and found its staff diligently collecting unusual stories and accounts.
• Lin Ke gathered the staff and told them to find and document potential councilors throughout the Great Wei Sacred Dynasty and Divine Continent.
• Lin Ke explained that councilors should represent different social strata, professions, and Hundred Schools, and that they would meet each year to discuss their groups' interests.
• Lin Ke warned the staff that he would show no mercy to anyone who bent the law for personal gain.

Lin Ke assigned the Great Wilderness Council’s recruits to travel across the land and find people who could represent their communities. Most chose to stay despite the risks and family obligations, and Lin Ke named them fifth-rank Observers.

• Lin Ke explained that recruits must seek out representative people from different regions and professions, while the election process required oversight.
• Lin Ke invited the recruits to choose whether to stay with the Great Wilderness Council, and an imposing man declined traveling because his family depended on him.
• The imposing man offered to organize information in the capital, and Lin Ke accepted his offer.
• Five people withdrew, while most of the recruits—including three young women and a white-bearded old man—signed on to the undertaking.
• Lin Ke said he would establish official posts for the recruits as fifth-rank Observers.

Lin Ke revealed that the Sage Emperor had authorized him to appoint officials of the fifth rank and below, then explained his plan to build the Great Wilderness Council into a centralized organization with decision-making, research and development, oversight, and production departments. He left the assembled elites stunned by the scale of his appointment authority and the organization he intended to create.

• Lin Ke told the assembled officials that he could appoint fifth-rank officials and below at his discretion.
• The officials realized that the Sage Emperor had granted Lin Ke appointment authority, a power normally reserved for the throne.
• Lin Ke explained that the Sage Emperor would stand at the top of the Great Wilderness Council as its symbol, while Lin Ke would administer and drive its work.
• Lin Ke outlined four departments: decision-making, research and development through the Academy of Sciences, oversight, and production.
• Lin Ke said he needed appointment authority to build the council, but had agreed not to appoint officials above the fifth rank.
• The officials reconsidered Lin Ke after grasping the authority he possessed.

Lin Ke organized the thirteen officials who remained into the core of the Great Wilderness Council, appointing them as fifth-rank observers tasked with uncovering information and finding Councilors. Hua Ju volunteered to investigate the Eastern Sea, while Liu Xiaohua reported conflict among the Northern Deerfolk.

• Lin Ke dismissed the officials who had chosen to leave, keeping thirteen people to form the Great Wilderness Council's core.
• The remaining officials introduced themselves, and Lin Ke explained that he would have them promoted to fifth-rank observers and tasked them with observing and uncovering information.
• Lin Ke asked where the officials wished to investigate, emphasizing peoples and regions beyond the Great Wei Sacred Dynasty.
• Hua Ju volunteered to travel to the Eastern Sea, and Lin Ke told him to seek help from the Golden Crow clan and investigate information related to them and the Tongfu Grand Restaurant case.
• Liu Xiaohua reported that the Northern Deerfolk in the mountain forests had been fighting among themselves.

Lin Ke assigned the thirteen new Fifth-Rank Observers to represent regions and factions across the Divine Continent, including Liu Xiaohua’s mission to the Deerfolk. After warning them to avoid private gain, he explained that transparency and trust would keep even possible infiltrators accountable.

• Liu Xiaohua agreed to investigate the Deerfolk’s grasslands and forests in the Northern Frontier, where conflicts were spreading.
• Xi He chose to represent Daoist practitioners at Kunlun Palace, and the other Observers proposed destinations of their own.
• The thirteen Fifth-Rank Observers divided assignments across the Six Clans and Six Kingdoms, the Four Seas and Four Domains, and the Eight Paths and Thirteen Schools.
• Lin Ke warned the Observers that they must act as witnesses and recorders rather than participants seeking personal gain.
• In the carriage, Zhuge Li pointed out that some Observers might be spies, but Lin Ke said public procedures and trust would keep their work accountable.

Lin Ke visited the Personnel Department to arrange official appointments, robes, and seals for the Great Wilderness Council, giving its members standing and protection as they began their work. He was warmly received, though he suspected the department’s senior officials might be avoiding him, and waited for the Appointments and Titles Offices to respond.

• Lin Ke told Zhuge Li he wanted to see the Personnel Department and traveled there with him.
• After Zhuge Li presented Lin Ke’s triangular seal, Lord Kang and a crowd of officials welcomed Lin Ke into the Personnel Department.
• Lord Kang explained that the Minister of Rites was away and Right Vice Minister Yin would meet Lin Ke after finishing his work.
• Lin Ke said he had come to discuss matters with the Appointments Office and the Titles Office, and Lord Kang sent someone to summon them.
• Lin Ke explained that he needed official appointments, robes, and seals for the Great Wilderness Council so its members would have standing and protection.

Lin Ke confronted Lord Kang and the Personnel Department over resisting the Great Wilderness Council’s oversight, warning that he would remove anyone who obstructed him. He ordered an inspection of the department’s records and prepared to issue a notice, leaving Lord Kang scrambling to stop him.

• Lin Ke told the assembled officials that the Sage Emperor had given the Great Wilderness Council authority to appoint and protect officials, and Lord Kang questioned the scope of that power.
• Lin Ke declared that he would risk his life for the country and threatened to clear corrupt officials from his path, unsettling Lord Kang and the other officials.
• Lin Ke accused the Personnel Department of hiding behind false deference and demanded access to its archives, along with supplies to write an official notice.
• Lin Ke sent Zhuge Li to fetch Pei Qian so he could teach him to identify falsified accounts, while Lord Kang protested the planned inspection.
• Lin Ke warned that refusing to provide writing supplies would amount to defying the Sage Emperor, and Lord Kang hurriedly tried to stop him.

Lin Ke examined the Merit Assessment Office’s records and confronted officials over favoritism and suspected corruption. He ordered Pei Qian to prepare a balance sheet from the previous year’s accounts as the confrontation continued.

• Lin Ke forced Lord Kang to lead him to the archives, where he quickly reviewed the offices’ records and selected account books and files.
• Lord Kang, Wang Jian, and Zhang Dong waited with a crowd of officials, and Lin Ke warned them against rebellion.
• Lin Ke accused Zhang Dong of promoting his students and blocking appointments based on sectarian prejudice, then threatened him with a phantom blade.
• Lin Ke accused Lord Kang of concealing corruption behind the Merit Assessment Office’s rising assets and liabilities.
• Lin Ke gave Pei Qian an account book and ordered him to organize its contents into a balance sheet.

Lin Ke exposed suspected corruption in the Personnel Department using his new debit-credit accounting method and confronted the Minister of Personnel, who blasted his doppelganger backward with his aura. Lin Ke staged an accusation and used the Heart-to-Heart Method document to summon help, leaving the Capital City in an uproar.

• Lin Ke told Lord Kang and the Personnel Department officials that he would purge the department, and Lord Kang left.
• Pei Qian finished the balance sheet, and Lin Ke used it to accuse several officials of embezzlement and threaten to take the account books to the Punishments Department.
• The officials begged Lin Ke to stop, but the Minister of Personnel confronted him and his aura sent Lin Ke flying.
• Lin Ke pretended the minister had tried to kill him, then used a Heart-to-Heart Method document to call for his masters and the emperor.
• Lin Ke's cries reached everyone through the document, and the Capital City erupted.

Lin Ke’s allies arrived at the Personnel Department after the Minister of Personnel struck him, and Lin Ke accused the minister of trying to silence him over corruption. Lin Ke took the account books to the Punishments Department, as the Great Wilderness Council’s authority drew the officials’ attention.

• Wang Lin and Lin Ke’s other allies shattered the Personnel Department’s formation and gathered around the injured Lin Ke.
• Lin Ke told his allies that he had uncovered corrupt officials before the Minister of Personnel sent him flying.
• Wang Lin prepared to strike the minister, but Lin Ke stopped her and pointed to account books and files as evidence.
• The Minister of Personnel denied knowing about the corruption and warned Lin Ke against making enemies among officials.
• Lin Ke picked up the account books and said they would meet at the Punishments Department, while the Minister of Personnel vanished.
• Wang Lin took Lin Ke and the others away, leaving the Personnel Department officials to contemplate the Great Wilderness Council’s growing authority.