Chapter Summaries

Empress Zhao gave birth to Great Qin's first imperial prince amid a storm, while the midwife secretly tried to endanger the delivery under threat to her clan. The prince was born safely and accompanied by extraordinary auspicious signs, and the emperor celebrated with an amnesty and rewards.

• As Empress Zhao went into labor, the emperor anxiously waited outside the Eternal Spring Palace while a violent storm battered the Qin Capital.
• The midwife secretly pushed the prince's emerging head back inside, but Empress Zhao's younger sister caught her and had her taken away by covert guards.
• The prince was born safely, and the emperor learned that both mother and child were safe.
• The storm cleared as miraculous signs appeared, including birds, flowers, a divine dragon, a phoenix, blooming lotuses, and a Natal Divine Artifact.
• A crimson-robed minister urged the emperor to grant an amnesty, and the emperor proclaimed one and awarded officials, palace maids, and Midwife Zhang.

The chapter introduced Qin Fu Su, the Great Qin Dynasty’s young first prince, whose extraordinary talent and cultivation were the subject of palace gossip. It followed him through his demanding lessons and training before he happily headed to the Eternal Spring Palace to dine with Empress Zhao.

• Palace maids praised Qin Fu Su’s rumored cultivation, combat prowess, and breakthrough to the thirteenth level of Qi Refining before their leader warned them to stop gossiping.
• Qin Fu Su asked Green Bamboo about his lessons, learned he had martial training and academic study scheduled, and said he wanted Dongpo Pork.
• Fu Su arrived at the Martial Training Ground, where the imperial guards and instructors greeted him, and trained with the other young nobles under Instructor Lin.
• After two hours of training, Fu Su went to the Hall of Weapons with Green Bamboo and Red Jade, then continued to the Hall of Culture.
• Fu Su finished his studies in a cheerful mood and headed to the Eternal Spring Palace to pay his respects to the empress and eat dinner.

Fu Su visited Empress Zhao and shared a warm evening with her and his father, the emperor, including a family banquet. Afterward, Green Bamboo carried the reluctant Fu Su back to his sleeping quarters, leaving the emperor and Empress Zhao alone.

• Fu Su arrived at the Eternal Spring Palace and happily accepted the red fox fur scarf Empress Zhao had knitted for him.
• The emperor came to join Fu Su and Empress Zhao for dinner after Fu Su complained that he had not eaten with his father for days.
• Fu Su enjoyed the banquet, especially the Dongpo Pork, while Empress Zhao served him and the emperor.
• After the meal, the emperor and Empress Zhao answered Fu Su's questions about cultivation and learning.
• The emperor ordered Green Bamboo to take Fu Su to his sleeping quarters, and she carried him away when he refused to release Empress Zhao's hand.
• The emperor shut the door after Fu Su left, and the candlelight inside gradually dimmed.

At twelve, Fu Su was appointed crown prince of the Qin Kingdom after the emperor ended a court debate over the succession. His elevation stirred rival princes and factions across the palace, while Fu Su remained composed.

• Fu Su reflected on growing up and faced the scrutiny and rivalries surrounding his younger brothers as he began martial training.
• The emperor asked his ministers to name a suitable heir, and officials argued for the second, third, sixth, and eighth princes.
• The emperor praised Fu Su and asked the court what it thought of him; Huo Yunshan and other ministers supported his appointment.
• The emperor ordered a decree naming Fu Su crown prince and directed him to take up residence in the Eastern Palace on an auspicious day.
• Fu Su declined preparations to celebrate, while the empress expressed approval and the second and third princes reacted with anger and dismay.

Fu Su received advice from Empress Zhao and the emperor about ruling, cultivation, and humility, then asked the emperor to explain problems with his cultivation methods. After the emperor and empress left him to think, they agreed it was time for Fu Su to venture beyond the palace and discussed sending him out using one of his two life-bound incarnations.

• Empress Zhao warned Fu Su about political rivals and urged him to welcome counsel, balance factions, and care for the people.
• Fu Su promised to follow his parents’ teachings, praised the emperor’s achievements, and declared his ambition to strengthen Great Qin.
• Fu Su told the emperor that he had mastered several imperial cultivation methods and described difficulties advancing the Nine Mysteries External Incarnation and controlling his incarnations.
• The emperor explained that Fu Su needed worldly experience to reach the third layer and that better natural treasures could improve his incarnations’ endurance and independence.
• After Fu Su began contemplating the emperor’s guidance, the emperor and Empress Zhao left him alone and discussed letting him explore the world with one incarnation while the other remained in the Eastern Palace.

Ying Ming Hao explored Heavenwind City with his maids and guards, then foiled a local gang’s staged collision scam and joined the ensuing fight. Government bailiffs arrived to end the brawl, which the crowd noted was the ninth such incident that month.

• Ying Ming Hao toured Heavenwind City, sampling food while his maids and guards followed him through the crowded streets.
• A gang’s beautiful young woman tried to stage a collision with Ying Ming Hao, but he dodged her, and Qing Yun knocked her down when she lunged again.
• The woman accused Ying Ming Hao of attacking her, so Qing Yun and the other maids beat her until members of her gang rushed in to help.
• Ying Ming Hao’s guards overwhelmed the gang, and Ying Ming Hao joined in by striking the men already on the ground.
• Government bailiffs arrived and brought the street fight to an end, while a spectator remarked that this was the ninth incident that month.

Ying Ming Hao prepared to conceal his identity while traveling to the Misty Sect’s once-in-a-century disciple recruitment, as young hopefuls from across the lands made their way to the selection. The chapter ended with countless flying ships carrying recruits toward the sect.

• Ying Ming Hao’s attendants warned him to maintain his cover as a secluded Heaven Mountain lineage member and avoid abusing his authority.
• Qing Ying described the Misty Sect’s unusually grand recruitment and the many Heaven’s Chosen seeking to join.
• Chen Dong vowed to rank among the best in the entrance assessment after hearing that some privileged youths would enter as Inner Disciples without trials.
• A poor boy promised his hungry younger sister that joining the Misty Sect would let him provide for her, while a brash young man boasted to the master in his ring about his prospects.
• Lin Qinqin refused to return to her family and continued toward the Misty Sect with two servants.
• An enormous flying ship and numerous vessels carrying young disciples raced toward the Misty Sect’s recruitment.

Ming Hao and his companions crossed the Chaos Zone and entered the Misty Sect’s domain, where they prepared for the upcoming disciple recruitment ceremony in Cloudmist Valley. As factions competed for places and Ming Hao examined the Wind and Cloud Pavilion’s rankings, he learned about the prominent candidates gathering for the trials.

• Ming Hao and his companions traveled through the lawless Chaos Zone and reached the passageway leading into the Misty Sect’s territory.
• Qing Yun explained that the sects guarded the passageway and charged travelers to cross, while poorer people risked the dangerous sea routes instead.
• Ming Hao and his companions crossed the passageway, admired the sea, and entered the Misty Sect’s domain.
• Qing Yao told Ying Ming Hao that the recruitment ceremony would begin in several days and that the group had secured a resting place in Cloudmist Valley.
• Ming Hao arrived at the group’s hilltop camp and examined the Wind and Cloud Pavilion’s rankings, which detailed the talents and histories of candidates including Long Chen, Lin Hai, Wang Teng, Meng Wanting, and Luo Shuihan.

The Misty Sect began its once-in-a-century entrance trials as powers from across the world gathered in Cloudmist Valley. Ming Hao entered the Heart-Demon Illusion and discovered that its strange treasures exposed the greed within people’s hearts.

• The Misty Sect’s Third Elder announced the entrance trials and began the character test, which required candidates to endure the illusion for thirty minutes.
• Ming Hao warned his twelve guards and attendants to leave if they failed to enter the Inner Sect.
• Ming Hao examined an emerald jade phoenix and learned from a strange old man that it had been formed from South Sea Merfolk tears.
• The old man showed Ming Hao a mirror that reflected greed instead of a person’s face, and Ming Hao realized he was inside the illusion.

The Misty Sect’s first recruitment assessment tested Heavenly Prodigies with illusions, eliminating more than ninety percent of the entrants. After the trial ended, Luo Bai was awakened in an especially humiliating way while sect disciples began recording the survivors’ information.

• Sect Master He welcomed visiting dignitaries as they discussed the many famous Heavenly Prodigies attending the Misty Sect’s assessment.
• Illusions drove many entrants to disgraceful behavior, while Qing Yun and the other guards remained unaffected and Ming Hao faced a lavish feast.
• Lin Qi and Lin Xue endured a painful vision of two starving siblings, Wang Teng reveled in an imagined rise to Great Emperor, and Lin Qinqin feared being forced to marry.
• Three bell chimes ended the thirty-minute first stage, and the Third Elder ordered the sect personnel to record the survivors.
• Luo Bai shouted boasts while still trapped in an illusion, so Junior Brother Zhang slapped and kicked him awake before urinating in front of him as instructed by a senior brother.

During the Misty Sect’s Heart-Mind Illusion test, Lin Hai confronted memories of his humiliation and resolved to grow stronger, while the Elders discussed promising candidates. Ying Ming Hao deliberately kept a low profile in the illusion, then emerged from the trial and began reporting his results.

• Lin Hai relived his clan’s scorn and his mother’s support, then renewed his determination to enter the Misty Sect and return to the Lin Family stronger.
• The Elders praised candidates in Cloudmist Valley and argued over which disciples they wanted to take under their tutelage, including Ming Hao’s companions.
• Ying Ming Hao ignored the illusion’s seductive dancer at first and decided to restrain his performance so he could enter as an Inner Disciple without drawing attention.
• Ming Hao eventually indulged in the illusion, awakened after more than an hour, and was transported out of Cloudmist Valley while Qing Yun, Qing Ying, and the others remained inside.
• A Misty Sect disciple greeted Ming Hao and asked him to cooperate while he recorded the trial results, and Ming Hao addressed him as Senior Brother.

Ming Hao capitalized on his trial results to collect gifts and connections from minor factions, then shamelessly flirted with Shui Furong while reading her palm. After her family trapped him outside their pavilion, he turned to greet Qing Yun and the other guards, who had just emerged from the test.

• Minor factions crowded around Ming Hao to recruit him, and he accepted their calling cards and gifts.
• Ming Hao held Shui Furong’s hand under the pretext of reading her palm, leaving the Shui Family elder and the other youths furious and uncomfortable.
• When more prodigies appeared, Ming Hao left the pavilion to greet his guards, and the Shui Family elder sealed the pavilion with a Protective Array.
• Ming Hao asked Wang Yong about Qing Yun and the others, then told the guards to record their results without causing trouble.
• Ming Hao walked into the Protective Array and asked Shui Furong to let him back in, but the Shui Family elder refused.
• Ming Hao left while complaining that the Shui Family was petty, as Wei Ze and the other guards hid their smiles.

The Heart-Mind Illusion test ended with Su Mei, Jun Mo, and Luo Shuihan taking the top three places and earning the chance to become Personal Disciples if they passed the remaining trials. As the candidates celebrated that night, Ying Ming Hao continued teasing Shui Furong at the night market.

• Ying Ming Hao relaxed while Qing Yun and the others served him after they were teleported out of the illusion realm.
• Luo Bai resented being left to watch the test, while his master urged him to focus on the trials still to come.
• Luo Shuihan emerged from the illusion realm in third place, followed by Jun Mo in second place.
• A Misty Sect Elder announced Su Mei as the first-place finisher and said the second trial would begin the next morning.
• Ying Ming Hao's group visited the night market, where he offered Shui Furong treats and she twisted his waist in anger.

Ying Ming Hao passed the Mirror Image trial after using the fight to test his techniques, then traveled with his companions to Ascension City. There, he met with the covert agents his mother had placed in the city and prepared to deal with a former manager who had betrayed them.

• Ying Ming Hao discovered that his mirror image only copied his abilities from when he entered the trial, then used the fight to review his techniques before eventually leaving.
• Jun Mo, Long Chen, and Luo Shuihan took the first three places, while Qing Yun, Wang Yong, and the other guards also passed.
• The Misty Sect ended the trial and scheduled the final trial for three days later so participants could recover.
• Ying Ming Hao and his companions entered Ascension City, where Qing Yun explained the city’s factions and the group planned to visit the Shui Family later.
• Ying Ming Hao met four covert managers in a courtyard and learned that one of their original five had betrayed them, making him the target of a task from Empress Zhao.

Ying Ming Hao rewarded the four stewards for building his forces in Ascension City and learned that the Sima Lineage had rebelled and slaughtered loyal followers. As the stewards prepared to act against them, the Sima Family gathered to discuss the threat, trusting in support from Song Bojian and the Song Family.

• Lord Zhao reported that his operations had become a first-rate power in Ascension City, and Ying Ming Hao rewarded him with spirit stones, a cultivation method, and a chance to enter the Secret Realm.
• The other three stewards reported on their second-rate operations, received rewards, and were told by Ying Ming Hao to recognize outstanding subordinates.
• Qing Yun explained that the Sima Lineage had broken away from Ying Clan authority, allied with Song Bojian, and killed nearly all the loyal followers assigned to them.
• Zhao Jun and the other stewards knelt and asked Ying Ming Hao for orders to destroy the Sima Family.
• The Sima Family's elders argued over how to respond, while the patriarch took comfort in the Song Family's promised reinforcements and Song Bojian's readiness to come to their aid.

The Sima Family was caught in a devastating night attack, while its promised reinforcements were delayed by Song Bojian and a standstill at the City Lord's Residence. As the massacre continued, Ming Hao watched from nearby and the Misty Sect disciples were still on their way.

• Attackers descended on the Sima estate, overwhelming its defenses and killing or wounding many clansmen and retainers.
• Song Bojian ignored an urgent message at first, then left his room and promised the Sima Family disciples that he would lead reinforcements.
• The Sima patriarch rallied the survivors by claiming Song Bojian's help would arrive soon, while attackers surrounded and battered the Song Family experts.
• Ming Hao asked Qing Yun about the battle and learned that the City Lord's Residence had not intervened.
• Lu Jianming kept the assembled Guard Army waiting inside the City Lord's Residence, while Song Bojian and his followers continued toward the Sima estate.

The Sima Family was wiped out after its attempted surrender turned into a bloody fight, while Song Bojian’s rescue party was ambushed and nearly annihilated before reaching Ascension City. Ying Ming Hao ordered the withdrawal, and his forces began looting the ruins as Xiao Sanzi learned that even damaged weapons were worth saving.

• The Sima Family’s second elder and several others tried to surrender, but the ancestors attacked them and a mutual slaughter broke out.
• Song Bojian’s flying ship was crushed by formations, and the ambush killed most of the disciples and Dao guardians before the survivors escaped with Ten-Thousand-Mile Teleportation Talismans.
• The Sima Family received no reinforcements and was destroyed without anyone escaping.
• Qing Ying reported the Sima Family’s destruction to Ying Ming Hao, who ordered the forces to withdraw.
• Qian Da scolded Xiao Sanzi for discarding damaged weapons and ordered him to collect them.

Ying Ming Hao’s forces celebrated the destruction of the Sima Family and divided the seized assets while keeping their alliance hidden. Meanwhile, the Misty Sect investigated an attack on its disciples without finding the perpetrators, and Ying Ming Hao secretly visited the ruined estate.

• Zhao Jun reported that the Sima Family and its Song Family supporters had been wiped out, with few casualties among Ying Ming Hao’s forces.
• Qian Da presented the seized wealth and assets, including spirit stones, artifacts, property deeds, and several spirit mines contested by other factions.
• Ying Ming Hao ordered Zhao Jun to negotiate a sixty-forty split of the medium-sized mine with Lu Jianming and told his allies to conceal their connections and distribute rewards.
• Physicians argued over how to treat the wounded Song Bojian while his master accused major factions of attacking the Misty Sect’s disciples.
• The Misty Sect elders found no clues beyond evidence of a powerful Formation Grandmaster and began secretly monitoring visiting factions while suppressing news of the attack.
• Ying Ming Hao and his companions slipped through the Guard Army’s cordon and appeared at the ruins of the Sima Family estate.

Ying Ming Hao and his attendants discovered the Sima Family’s surviving children, killed them, and took their hidden wealth. After they doubled back to catch anyone else who might emerge, Ming Hao killed the last survivor, Sima Nan Feng.

• Sima Family children emerged from a concealed door in the rockery and grieved over their slain relatives before swearing revenge.
• Ying Ming Hao appeared with his attendants, admitted responsibility for the massacre, and struck down the children who attacked him.
• Wang Yong and the other guards searched the ruins and found fifty or sixty Storage Rings, which Ming Hao distributed among his twelve attendants.
• Ming Hao and his group pretended to leave, then secretly returned to watch the rockery.
• Sima Nan Feng emerged from hiding and vowed to avenge his family, but Ming Hao killed him with a sword and left again.

Ming Hao’s group killed Sima Nan Feng and Sima Niji, then searched the scene and seized their hidden treasures. Back in his study, Ming Hao inspected the haul, set aside a dangerous cultivation manual, and began cultivating the Clear-Mind Art.

• Sima Niji revived Sima Nan Feng after he faked his death with a second heart, but Qing Yun killed them both when they were caught.
• Ming Hao thoroughly searched the bodies and surroundings, finding Storage Rings, treasures, manuals, and two remnant souls before the Guard Army arrived to find the scene stripped bare.
• Ming Hao examined Sima Nan Feng’s haul, including a cracked Demon-Suppressing Pagoda and the dangerous Devouring Great Art, which he chose not to cultivate.
• Ming Hao inspected Sima Niji’s treasures and discovered the Clear-Mind Art, the Lunar True Scripture, and a Nine-Turn Divine Lotus.
• Ming Hao wondered whether the Clear-Mind Art could counter the Devouring Great Art, then sat down to cultivate the Clear-Mind Art.