Chapter Summaries

After receiving news that Raozhou’s taxes had been waived, Xing Yan went to Poyang Lake to play his flute and ease his longing for Ju Ying. A girl accused him of stealing her jade flute Divine Snow, and he fled after their struggle; she was left suspecting her grandfather had given it to him.

• The authorities posted the Imperial Edict, confirming Raozhou’s tax relief while forbidding private trade in Pinecone Wine.
• Xing Yan asked Aunt Xia for leave and went to Poyang Lake, where he remembered Ju Ying and played Divine Snow beneath the moon.
• A girl confronted Xing Yan, claimed Divine Snow was hers, and lunged to take it from him.
• Xing Yan pulled the flute free, accidentally pulling the girl into his arms, then apologized and tried to leave.
• The girl cast a binding spell, but Xing Yan continued running and escaped into the darkness.
• The girl wondered whether her grandfather had secretly given Divine Snow to Xing Yan and remained alone beside the lake.

Xing Yan confronted three martial men who tried to take his jade flute at the Flower Moon House, only to defeat their leader with ease. Aunt Xia hired him as a guard, but someone nearby accused him of being a brute who loved fighting.

• Xing Yan spent his days around Raozhou City and observed Hu Shi'an courting Lady Rui and frequenting the Pleasure-Seeking House.
• Three martial men caused a disturbance at the Flower Moon House, and Nangong Wuyang demanded Xing Yan's jade flute as payment.
• Xing Yan set Divine Snow aside and blocked Nangong Wuyang's attack, sending the martial man flying while remaining unharmed.
• Nangong Wuyang lost two teeth, and he and his brothers agreed to wash dishes to pay for the food, wine, and damage.
• Aunt Xia hired Xing Yan as a guard, and a nearby voice coldly called him a brute who loved fighting.

At Flower Moon House, Xing Yan recognized the disguised Ling Yier as the girl who had accused him of stealing her flute and tried to make her leave by sending the courtesans after her. Ling Yier’s disguise came undone, and she fled in tears, warning Xing Yan that their quarrel was not over.

• Ling Yier disguised herself as a young master and repeatedly demanded difficult pieces from Xing Yan’s exhausted ensemble.
• Xing Yan recognized Ling Yier as the girl from Poyang Lake who had accused him of stealing Divine Snow, and she continued tormenting him to recover the flute and confront her grandfather.
• Xing Yan urged Ling Yier to choose a courtesan and encouraged the women to surround her.
• Ling Yier’s cap fell off, revealing her long hair and exposing her disguise to the crowd.
• Ling Yier burst into tears, fled Flower Moon House, and shouted that Zhang Xingyan would answer for this.

After escaping the Flower Moon House’s teasing, Xing Yan returned to Horseshoe Mountain and used the Great Splendor Dao Power to play the impossible Water Dragon's Chant. The music exhausted his power, but the white rock saved him and transformed into an ancient sword, leaving Xing Yan at the end of the volume facing a mysterious new weapon.

• Xing Yan asked Aunt Xia for two days off, returned home, and went to Horseshoe Mountain to practice the Water Dragon's Chant.
• Xing Yan recalled the moments when the Great Splendor Dao Power had appeared and entered a state of unity with the natural world, allowing the power to arise again.
• Xing Yan played the Water Dragon's Chant as wild beasts gathered around him and storms formed overhead.
• As the power within Xing Yan ran dry and threatened to consume him, the white rock replenished it and enabled him to finish the piece.
• Lightning vanished after the final note, and the white rock crumbled into powder, revealing a glowing ancient sword.

Zhang Xingyan’s performance of “Water Dragon’s Chant” released a strange power that drew wild beasts to him and let him escape Horseshoe Mountain unharmed. The next morning, he discovered that the staff he had carried home was an ancient longsword and began sharpening it, hoping to sell it for silver.

• After the Great Splendor Dao Power surged through his body, Zhang Xingyan released a long cry that echoed across the mountains and valleys.
• Wild beasts surrounded Zhang Xingyan but did not attack, and they moved aside as he fled down the mountain.
• Zhang Xingyan intercepted Old Zhang and his mother, who had set out to search for him, and returned home with them.
• As he recalled the night’s events, Zhang Xingyan suspected that “Water Dragon’s Chant” had caused the beasts to gather and fear him.
• The next morning, Zhang Xingyan recognized the staff he had carried home as a mud-covered longsword and began sharpening it, hoping to sell it for silver.

Xing Yan discovered that the old sword he had found changed from a blunt blade into a rusted scrap and then back into a finely edged treasure, and he realized it had a spirit of its own. He reunited with the Lord of the Clouds, who praised his cultivation, asked him to conceal how he had given away Divine Snow, and said the flute was destined for Xing Yan.

• Xing Yan took the old sword to Greenfly House, where Appraiser Zhang and the onlookers laughed at the rusted scrap iron and refused to pay for it.
• Xing Yan reopened the bundle and found the old sword restored, then saw that it had gained two sharp, shining edges.
• The Lord of the Clouds reunited with Xing Yan and congratulated him for glimpsing the Heavenly Way and playing the Water Dragon's Chant.
• Xing Yan questioned the value of immortality, and the Lord of the Clouds listened as he argued that immortals should still experience life naturally.
• The Lord of the Clouds asked Xing Yan to tell Ling Yier that he had won Divine Snow in a drinking wager, and Xing Yan agreed.
• The Lord of the Clouds told Xing Yan that Divine Snow was destined for him and would not be easy to return.

Xing Yan learned little about the strange sword from the Lord of the Clouds, then discovered it had returned to its dull ruler form. At Flower Moon House, he grew suspicious that Hu Shi'an was exploiting Lady Rui and devised a poem to warn her through Ying'er.

• The Lord of the Clouds examined Xing Yan's sword, called it unusual but not a supreme divine weapon, and left without telling Xing Yan where to return the flute.
• Xing Yan found that the sword had turned back into a dull ruler and could no longer reveal its edge.
• Xing Yan heard from Ying'er that Lady Rui planned to leave her profession and had given Hu Shi'an her private savings, while Xing Yan had seen Hu Shi'an frequenting gambling houses.
• Xing Yan concluded Hu Shi'an was deceiving Lady Rui and worried over how to warn her while she remained devoted to him.
• Xing Yan wrote a veiled warning in a four-line poem and asked Ying'er to deliver it to Lady Rui; Ying'er suspected it was a love poem but agreed.

Xing Yan’s attempt to warn Lady Rui about Hu Shi'an backfired, as she rejected his verse and defended her beloved. Still convinced Hu was deceiving her, Xing Yan found inspiration in an earlier scheme with Ju Ying and left determined to try another approach.

• Xing Yan sent his warning verse to Lady Rui, who returned it and angrily told him to stop spreading gossip about her and Hu Shi'an.
• Xing Yan tried to explain that he wanted to warn Lady Rui about Hu Shi'an’s gambling, but she insisted Hu loved her and refused to hear further criticism.
• Ying'er comforted Xing Yan, whose thoughts turned to Ju Ying and eased his disappointment.
• Xing Yan practiced swordsmanship with his old blade and remembered how he and Ju Ying had once frightened Head Constable Chen Kui on Poyang Lake.
• Xing Yan realized he could use his old trick to try to make Lady Rui see through Hu Shi'an, and left resolved to act.

Zhang Xingyan disguised himself as a bandit and confronted Hu Shi'an in Lady Rui’s room, forcing him to admit that he had lost her savings gambling. As Lady Rui realized Hu had deceived her, Hu began suggesting a way for Xing Yan to deal with the situation.

• Xing Yan disguised himself and sneaked toward Lady Rui’s quarters, unaware that a dark figure was following him.
• Xing Yan entered Lady Rui’s room and held a blade to Hu Shi'an’s neck, warning Lady Rui not to move or shout.
• Hu Shi'an claimed he had no money, but Xing Yan threatened him until he confessed to gambling away Lady Rui’s savings.
• Lady Rui heard Hu Shi'an’s confession and understood that he had lied about losing money in a business venture to buy her freedom.
• Xing Yan condemned Hu Shi'an for spending a woman’s money, but Hu began proposing a plan to the supposed bandit.

Xing Yan tried to expose Hu Shi'an by pretending to accept his offer of Lady Rui, while the invisible Ling Yier secretly watched and kicked him when his lustful performance went too far. The scene ended with Hu Shi'an fearing that Xing Yan might kill him instead, unaware of what the supposed bandit planned next.

• Hu Shi'an offered Lady Rui to the disguised Xing Yan in an attempt to appease him, revealing his shameless disregard for her.
• Xing Yan decided to play along with Hu Shi'an's offer so Lady Rui could see her lover's true nature.
• As Xing Yan pretended to lust after Lady Rui, Ling Yier, concealed nearby with Water Without a Trace, kicked him in anger.
• Ling Yier's thoughts revealed that she had been secretly following Xing Yan because of their past clashes over her Jade Flute.
• Hu Shi'an grew terrified when Xing Yan stopped his performance and wondered whether the bandit had decided to take his life.

Xing Yan beat Hu Shi'an for his cruelty toward Lady Rui, then listened as Lady Rui recited a poem that left him unable to answer. Three years later, after Xing Yan had left Raozhou, Lady Rui died by poison after completing three years of mourning for her parents.

• Hu Shi'an claimed he had never loved Lady Rui and praised Xing Yan for rescuing him from their relationship.
• Xing Yan declared that he followed his own heart, set aside his sword, and beat Hu Shi'an, while Ling Yier tripped and kicked him.
• Xing Yan ordered Hu Shi'an to leave Raozhou, and Hu Shi'an fled from Lady Rui's bedchamber.
• Lady Rui asked Xing Yan to stay and recited a poem; Xing Yan turned back but could find nothing to say.
• Three years later, Lady Rui swallowed poison, and Ying'er found her dead beside a silk note explaining her three years of mourning for her parents.

After mistaking the invisible Ling Yier for a demon, Xing Yan tackled her and discovered her identity. Their awkward encounter ended with Ling Yier asking him to bring the Divine Snow Flute to Poyang Lake next time, leaving them with a reason to meet again.

• Xing Yan washed the ash from his face and resumed his guard patrol after leaving Lady Rui's tower.
• Ling Yier, still invisible, knocked Xing Yan on the head, and he decided to lure the unseen demon into striking again.
• Xing Yan grabbed Ling Yier when she rushed at him, and his Great Splendor Dao Power revealed her as the girl he had pinned down.
• Xing Yan apologized and praised Ling Yier until she finally spoke to him, then offered to return the Divine Snow Jade Flute.
• Ling Yier told Xing Yan to bring the flute to Poyang Lake and play a tune so she could find him.

Xing Yan returned to Poyang Lake to give Ling Yier the Jade Flute Divine Snow, but she asked him to keep it and joined him for dinner. The chapter left them at the Lakeview Tower, where Ling Yier asked about Ju Ying and Xing Yan praised her beauty.

• Xing Yan bought a bamboo flute, set out for Poyang Lake with his saved wages and the Jade Flute Divine Snow, and forgot his Iron Sword at home.
• Xing Yan felt the road shake like an earthquake on his way east, then reached Poyang Lake at sunset.
• Xing Yan played Divine Snow beside the lake, and Ling Yier answered with a Water Konghou, song, and the Lingering Wave Dance.
• Ling Yier declined to take back the flute and invited Xing Yan to eat at the Lakeview Tower, where she offered to pay.
• At the Lakeview Tower, Ling Yier asked whether Ju Ying was pretty, and Xing Yan praised her as beautiful.

Xing Yan and Ling Yier shared a meal at Lakeview Tower, where she played the Wind and Water Invocation and explained how music on Divine Snow could channel Dao Power. After Xing Yan drank and sang himself unconscious, Ling Yier used a spell to keep the rain from touching them and carried him beneath Poyang Lake.

• Xing Yan and Ling Yier exchanged names, ate together, and teased each other while discussing the Jade Flute.
• Ling Yier played the Wind and Water Invocation, drawing clouds and autumn rain over Poyang Lake, and promised to lend Xing Yan the scorebook so he could learn it.
• Ling Yier explained that the flute's five tones corresponded to the five phases and could work like an incantation supported by Dao Power.
• Overjoyed by the explanation, Xing Yan thanked Ling Yier, shared wine with her, and sang poems before collapsing drunk on the table.
• Ling Yier paid the bill, carried Xing Yan to a secluded willow, cast a spell on him, and leaped with him into the lake before they sank beneath the water.

Ling Yier brought the drunken Xing Yan to her home in the Poyang Dragon Palace, where he woke beside her and learned that she was a dragon princess. She led him back toward the lake’s boundary and offered to teach him a spell that would let him return safely to shore.

• Ling Yier carried Xing Yan through the luminous barrier into the Poyang Dragon Palace and secretly tended to him in her bedchamber.
• Xing Yan woke beside Ling Yier, realized he was in a Dragon Palace, and kissed her cheek while she pretended to sleep.
• Ling Yier told Xing Yan that she was Princess Ling Yier, granddaughter of the Four Rivers Dragon God, and confirmed that they were beneath Poyang Lake.
• Xing Yan worried about returning to his parents, so Ling Yier changed clothes and led him through the palace toward the lake’s boundary.
• At the water barrier, Ling Yier offered to teach Xing Yan the Return-to-Shore Spell and reminded him to ask for the Wind and Water Invocation score.

Xing Yan learned the Water-Repelling Spell and the Water-Traveling Art from Ling Yier, then received the Wind and Water Invocation before they parted. Months later, a violent earthquake and a shower of falling stars heralded the sudden appearance of a towering immortal mountain east of Raozhou City.

• Ling Yier taught Xing Yan the Water-Repelling Spell, and he successfully used it to travel through Poyang Lake.
• Xing Yan tried the Water-Traveling Art and unexpectedly mastered it, then received Ling Yier's silk booklet, titled Thoughts of Yi.
• Ling Yier departed after the earth trembled again, and Xing Yan returned to Raozhou City, where he studied the Upper Clarity Scripture and continued seeing her.
• During a full-moon night in the second month, a prolonged earthquake drove Xing Yan and the people of Raozhou into the streets; the sky darkened, his Nameless Sword trembled, and Divine Snow glowed.
• A shower of colored lights crossed the eastern sky, and a tremendous unseen force shook people's souls as the earthquake subsided.
• At dawn, Xing Yan and the people of Raozhou saw a towering mountain rise suddenly to the east of the city.

After Horseshoe Mountain rose overnight, Zhang Xingyan found his parents safe and dealt with the crowds, rumors, and fraudulent claims that followed. Daoist Wang Pan then told him the mountain was a famed Daoist blessed land where the ancient True Person Zizhou had cultivated and ascended to immortality.

• Horseshoe Mountain transformed into a towering peak, and Zhang Xingyan hurried home fearing his parents had been harmed.
• Xing Yan found his parents safe in their undamaged cottage halfway up the mountainside.
• Visitors spread fantastical legends about the mountain and Xing Yan’s family, while several ruffians tried to claim ownership of the property.
• Xing Yan drove off the fraudulent claimants and took leave from the Flower Moon House to protect his parents and tend the mountain.
• Daoist Wang Pan and other Daoists from Mount Sanqing visited Xing Yan and identified Horseshoe Mountain as a blessed land where True Person Zizhou had cultivated and ascended to immortality.

Daoist Wang Pan tried to buy the Zhang family's permission to build a temple on Horseshoe Mountain, but Prefect Yao stopped him and visited the newly transformed mountain. Xing Yan learned that Raozhou had reported several auspicious marvels to the court, including the immortal music he had played with Ling Yier, and the prefect hinted that Xing Yan's future would be extraordinary.

• Wang Pan asked Xing Yan to let the Three Purities Order build a temple on Horseshoe Mountain and offered the Zhang family gold and silver.
• Prefect Yao arrived, rebuked Wang Pan for the Three Purities Order's deceptive practices, and forbade it from building a temple on the mountain.
• Prefect Yao explained that he had reported Horseshoe Mountain's transformation to the imperial court, and Xing Yan recounted how it had risen.
• Prefect Yao told Xing Yan about the immortal music heard over Poyang Lake and revealed that the court had commended his report.
• Xing Yan realized the reported music was the duet he had played with Ling Yier, and Prefect Yao praised his promise as they toured the mountain.

Prefect Yao urged Xing Yan to pursue lofty ambitions, and Daoist representatives from three major schools soon arrived to compete for Horseshoe Mountain and his allegiance. Ling Chengzi revealed that Xing Yan already knew Shangqing Palace’s Upper Clarity arts, while Wondrous Radiance Palace offered to marry Zhuo Bihua to him, leaving her shocked and ashamed.

• Prefect Yao advised Xing Yan not to waste his gifts chasing wealth and suggested that Horseshoe Mountain would choose its own people.
• Ling Chengzi arrived with Qinghe and other Shangqing Palace Daoists to seek permission to establish a sanctuary on Horseshoe Mountain.
• Daoist Nun Yu Shan and Celestial Master Zhang Sheng arrived with their followers, and the three schools argued over who would claim the mountain.
• Ling Chengzi announced that Shangqing Palace would appoint Xing Yan deputy master of Four Seas Hall, prompting the other schools to try to recruit him.
• Ling Chengzi recognized that Xing Yan had already studied the Upper Clarity arts through Qinghe and praised Qinghe for teaching him.
• Yu Shan offered Zhuo Bihua’s hand in marriage to Xing Yan, leaving Zhuo Bihua stunned and blushing with shame.

Yu Shan offered Zhuo Bihua in marriage to Xing Yan, but he declined and proposed that the three Daoist orders share Horseshoe Mountain. An imperial decree granted the Zhang family rewards and gave the Shangqing Palace first consideration for a temple, after which Xing Yan accepted a position as its deputy hall master and the rival orders departed.

• Yu Shan offered to betroth Zhuo Bihua to Xing Yan, but Xing Yan respectfully refused, and Ling Yier arrived as he did so.
• Xing Yan suggested that the Shangqing Palace, Wondrous Radiance Palace, and Celestial Master Order build temples together on Horseshoe Mountain, but the Daoists fell silent.
• Prefect Yao delivered an imperial decree granting the Zhang family exemption from compulsory labor and gifts, and naming the Shangqing Palace first choice to establish a temple on Horseshoe Mountain.
• Ling Chengzi confirmed that Xing Yan's deputy hall master post remained open, and Xing Yan accepted the position.
• Celestial Master Zhang Sheng congratulated Xing Yan and the Shangqing Palace before leaving with his disciples in the spring rain.
• Ling Chengzi created a Rainbow Bridge from the Zhang family's terrace to the mountain's foot and departed with the Shangqing Palace party.