Chapter Summaries

Ji Xiu used Bai Shuo’s dragon blood to advance his Leaping Dragon Gate cultivation, draining her strength as his body began transforming toward dragon bone. Meanwhile, Huang Xiuwen failed to recruit local support against Ji Xiu and turned to the remnants of the Central Yellow Sect; Ji Xiu woke the next morning stronger, with Bai Shuo asleep beside him and someone caught peeping through the roof.

• Ji Xiu immersed himself in the Leaping Dragon Gate technique, drank Bai Shuo’s dragon blood, and instinctively pinned her down to consume more as his body transformed.
• Bai Shuo lost consciousness from the blood loss, while Qing Tuan peeked through the door and misunderstood what she saw.
• Huang Xiuwen failed to get Zhao Jiu to meet him, then asked Feng Zhengming and the Three Great Businesses to make Ji Xiu kneel and apologize.
• Lu Chengfeng, Xu Zhuang, and Wei Dingchang refused to help Huang Xiuwen, so he ordered Old Huang to find Ji Xiu’s enemies among the Central Yellow Sect remnants.
• Ji Xiu woke with his Leaping Dragon Gate progress at 2/9 and felt his strength had greatly increased; he then heard Cai Ling’er accuse Ye of peeping from the roof.

Cai Ling'er returned to Ji Xiu's residence and tried to recruit him against Ye Ningzhi, who had challenged him to avenge her master. Ji Xiu defeated Ye Ningzhi, warned her that future fights could be lethal, and then demanded that Cai Ling'er reveal the promised treasure lead.

• Cai Ling'er returned to Ji Xiu's expanded residence and found Ye Ningzhi sneaking across its rooftops.
• Cai Ling'er claimed to be Ji Xiu's close friend and offered him a free-forging deal and information about an earth treasure and a possible expert's tomb if he helped her defeat Ye Ningzhi.
• Ye Ningzhi challenged Ji Xiu, and he overcame her with his palm-blade technique after a fierce exchange.
• Duan Chenzhou told Qin Zhuo he would leave the Heavenly Saber Sect's register and have Ji Xiu entered in his place, then return to Jiangyin under another name to settle old grudges.
• Ji Xiu told Ye Ningzhi that martial arts were killing arts and demanded she stake her life on any future challenge; she admitted defeat.
• Ji Xiu reminded Cai Ling'er of her promised benefits, leaving her to realize she would have to pay up.

Ji Xiu defeated Ye Ningzhi, gained her as an attendant, and was invited to join the Heavenly Saber Sect, while Jiang Li reflected on her past and Xu Li refined Ji Xiu a treasure pill. The chapter left Ji Xiu preparing to hunt for an earthly treasure and resolve to cure Huang Xuan’s chronic illness.

• Ji Xiu defeated Ye Ningzhi, and Duan Chenzhou explained her shortcomings before allowing her to cultivate alongside his disciple.
• Ye Ningzhi bowed to Ji Xiu and accepted the role of leading his deer while Cai Ling’er carried his bow; Qin Zhuo then arrived to take Ji Xiu to register with the Heavenly Saber Sect.
• Jiang Li reassured Lin Ruyue that she and their employer had never belonged to the same world, while Qin Zhuo praised Ji Xiu’s promise.
• Xu Li agreed to refine a Bone Tempering and Skin Refinement pill for Ji Xiu using his Thousand Year Demon Core, and Huang Xuan supplied the supplementary ingredients.
• Ji Xiu meditated through the night, advanced his Ten Thousand Laws Dao Seal Visualization Diagram, and planned to search for the earthly treasure before year-end.
• Zheng Jun delivered Xu Li’s Sixth Grade Spirit Pill to Ji Xiu, who resolved to find a way to cure Huang Xuan’s chronic illness.

Ji Xiu went on a Mountain Hunt and uncovered a hidden tomb chamber beneath a cold pool in the Earth Dragon Cave. He found a Profound Cold Lotus beside a skeleton and revealed six stone walls bearing martial techniques left by Ye Wenjiang.

• Ji Xiu reviewed the Mountain Dao Business accounts and set out on a Mountain Hunt with Cai Ling'er and Ye Ningzhi despite warnings that demons had made the mountain roads dangerous.
• Di Yuan and Feng Zhengming separately visited the Ji Residence to seek Ji Xiu's help finding the Jade Marrow Cold Lotus, but learned he had already left and departed without meeting him.
• Ji Xiu killed a century-old Red Python and followed Cai Ling'er to the cold pool, where she detected an earth treasure and a Qi Path tomb chamber.
• Ji Xiu used his Spirit Sense to activate the patterned stele, draining the pool and revealing a Profound Cold Lotus, a skeleton, and six stone walls inscribed with martial techniques.
• The six walls identified the secret martial path as Ye Longxiang's Head and said Ye Wenjiang had left it to be passed down to anyone who comprehended all six walls.

Ji Xiu and Cai Ling'er discovered a terrestrial treasure and the fading Secret Martial Path Ye Longxiang's Head in a hidden pool. Ji Xiu secretly imprinted the inheritance into his Dao Register and promised to teach it to Cai Ling'er, who refused to believe he could learn it.

• After the pool water receded, Cai Ling'er found martial forms carved across six walls and recognized the discovery as a rare secret inheritance.
• Ji Xiu let Cai Ling'er share the inheritance, harvested the Jade Marrow Cold Lotus, and buried the jade-like skeleton despite its immense weight.
• Ji Xiu found a Sun Moon Jade Pearl in the skeleton's hand and discovered that wearing it gradually strengthened his Divine Soul Thoughts.
• Cai Ling'er failed to understand the six fading martial forms, while Ji Xiu used his Dao Register to imprint Ye Longxiang's Head and learned its advancement conditions.
• Ji Xiu offered to teach Cai Ling'er the secret martial art, but she refused and mocked his confidence.

Ji Xiu returned from the Earth Dragon Cave with the Jade Marrow Cold Lotus and Ye Longxiang's Head, then refused Xu Li's generous offer because he had promised to use a healing treasure for Huang Xuan. The chapter ended with Ji Xiu presenting the lotus to Huang Xuan to settle his debt, leaving Xu Li stunned by his promise.

• Ji Xiu reflected on his gains in the Earth Dragon Cave as Ye Ningzhi and Cai Ling'er discussed the vanished Secret Martial Path and Ye Ningzhi praised Ji Xiu's potential.
• Ye Ningzhi gave Ji Xiu demon cores and demon blood she had gathered, and Ji Xiu promised to let her observe if he comprehended the Secret Martial Path again.
• Ji Xiu encountered Di Yuan, Feng Zhengming, Xu Li, and their group in Anning County, where Xu Li's Spirit Machine Talisman detected the Jade Marrow Cold Lotus.
• Ye Ningzhi defended Ji Xiu's claim to the treasure, and Xu Li offered him valuable medicines, instruction, and a favor in exchange for the lotus.
• Ji Xiu refused Xu Li, explaining that he had promised to use a healing treasure for someone who had shown him great kindness.
• Ji Xiu arrived at the Medicine Hall and gave Huang Xuan the Jade Marrow Cold Lotus to cure his lingering illness, surprising Xu Li.

Ji Xiu gave Huang Xuan the Jade Marrow Cold Lotus, and Xu Li agreed to help Huang Xuan use it to secure a connection to the Northern Cang Marquis Residence for Ji Xiu’s future. As the year ended, Ji Xiu completed the first realm of his Dao Art and broke through the physical body’s second limit, gaining the Dragonkin Treasure Bone.

• Ji Xiu repaid Huang Xuan’s kindness by giving him the Jade Marrow Cold Lotus, and Huang Xuan resolved to use it to open a path for Ji Xiu’s future.
• Huang Xuan persuaded Xu Li to bring him along to meet the noble woman at the Northern Cang Marquis Residence, and Xu Li agreed to keep the plan from the Apothecary Guild’s old master.
• Ji Xiu completed all eight hundred Dao Seals in the Ten Thousand Laws Dao Seal Visualization Diagram and achieved the first stage of his Dao Art.
• Over the following days, Ji Xiu continued tempering his bones with Bai Shuo’s Dragon Descendant Blood while his cultivation and absorption improved.
• On New Year’s Eve, Ji Xiu completed Mortal Transformation Leaping Dragon Gate, broke through the physical body’s second limit, and obtained the Dragonkin Treasure Bone.

Ji Xiu broke through the Physical Body’s Second Great Limit, forming a Dragonkin Treasure Bone with Bai Shuo’s help, and immediately prepaid the cultivation of Ye Longxiang’s Head. As he began mastering the secret martial art, the gathered onlookers witnessed his power, and Cai Ling'er realized she might have to pay dearly to learn it.

• Fan Nansong saw a golden dragon of fortune rise from Ji Xiu’s residence, while Duan Chenzhou declared that a true dragon of their lineage had been born.
• Ji Xiu examined the Dragonkin Treasure Bone he had formed and discovered that it doubled his strength and enhanced his Dragon Intent arts.
• Ji Xiu thanked Bai Shuo for helping him break through, promised to assist her at the Dragon Lord Banquet, and then left to practice.
• Ji Xiu used the Primordial Dao Talisman to prepay Ye Longxiang’s Head and began practicing the secret martial path outside.
• Ji Wei, Cai Ling'er, Ye Ningzhi, Duan Chenzhou, Qin Zhuo, and others gathered and watched Ji Xiu summon a dragon head of force that shattered a rockery.
• Ye Ningzhi reminded Cai Ling'er that Ji Xiu had promised to teach her the secret martial art, and Cai Ling'er resigned herself to seeking her family’s treasures as tuition.

Ji Xiu awakened to the Secret Martial Path Ye Longxiang's Head and showed its power, stunning Duan Chenzhou and the others with his aptitude and rapid recovery. After Ji Xiu said he had found it in Earth Dragon Cave, Duan Chenzhou recognized its former owner, Ye Wenjiang, as the Dao Child of Dragon Elephant True Sect.

• Ji Xiu performed Ye Longxiang's Head in the snow, while Duan Chenzhou and Qin Zhuo watched in astonishment.
• Ji Xiu recovered quickly after the technique nearly drained him, then learned that its first layer, See Dragon Disarm, could strip an opponent of all their force.
• Duan Chenzhou questioned Ji Xiu about who had taught him the secret martial art, and Ji Xiu said he had found it beside an expert's remains in Earth Dragon Cave.
• Ji Xiu named Ye Wenjiang as the expert who left the inheritance, and Qin Zhuo invited him to join Heavenly Saber Sect.
• Duan Chenzhou remembered Ye Wenjiang as the Dao Child of Dragon Elephant True Sect from sixty years earlier.

Duan Chenzhou warned Ji Xiu that Ye Wenjiang’s Sun Moon Pavilion ties and the fallen Human Lord made the Sun Moon Treasure Pearl politically dangerous, but Jiang Li stopped him from discarding it and revealed her own connection to the Pavilion. As they rode back toward Anning County, Jiang Li sensed demons, devils, and God Spawn near the gates and warned that the night’s snow would be stained with blood.

• Duan Chenzhou told Ji Xiu about Ye Wenjiang’s status as a Dragon Elephant True Sect Dao Child, his Sun Moon Pavilion ties, and the upheavals that followed the previous Human Lord’s fall.
• Ji Xiu realized the Sun Moon Treasure Pearl could bring danger and decided to throw it into the sea before leaving Anning County.
• Jiang Li intercepted the pearl, reshaped it into a jade token, concealed its aura, and admitted she had been connected to the Sun Moon Pavilion, though she had never met Ye Wenjiang.
• Jiang Li returned the jade token to Ji Xiu and teased him about drawing a line between them after learning she might be a wanted remnant of the former dynasty.
• As Ji Xiu and Jiang Li rode toward Anning County, Jiang Li sensed abnormal demonic and divine auras near the gates and warned Ji Xiu to prepare for bloodshed.

Three newborn great demons and their armies invaded Anning County as part of a scheme involving the Central Yellow Sect, while Yang Daohan and the former gang leaders pursued revenge. Ji Xiu fought through the demon tide to lead civilians toward shelter, then found the Three Great Businesses facing Mad Lion and Azure Hawk at the Wind and Cloud Association Hall.

• Huang Xiuwen's carriage entered Anning County with a coffin, but the leopard-headed Thunder Roar Leopard Lord revealed that he and two other demon leaders had transformed into newborn great demons and killed the guards.
• White Ape Gorge Lord summoned hundreds of demons to invade the county and ordered Yang Daohan to carry the coffin to Ji Residence while Mad Lion and Azure Hawk carried out their revenge.
• Ji Xiu heard Jiang Li report that three newborn great demons had emerged, then rushed through East Street and cut down demons attacking the residents.
• Ji Xiu escorted fleeing civilians toward the Wind and Cloud Association Hall, killing demons along the way.
• Ji Xiu reached the hall and found the Three Seats confronting Central Yellow disciples, with Mad Lion and Azure Hawk among the opposing leaders.

Ji Xiu returned to find the Three Great Businesses facing two Outer Force leaders of the Central Yellow Sect, who were trying to force them to surrender their wealth. He defeated Zhang Liechen and Xu Xin with the secret martial art Ye Longxiang's Head, then learned that the demon disaster involved a man-made plot and prepared to confront the sect at West Street.

• Ji Xiu arrived at the Three Great Businesses' compound and found Zhang Liechen and Xu Xin pressuring the injured business leaders to submit to the Central Yellow Sect.
• Zhang Liechen struck Wei Dingchang with Saber Qi, and Ji Xiu's thrown saber intercepted the attack before he entered the courtyard.
• Ji Xiu fought Zhang Liechen and Xu Xin barehanded, using Ye Longxiang's Head and See Dragon Disarm to absorb their Astral Qi and hurl them into the Central Yellow Sect followers.
• Ji Xiu's attack shattered the two Outer Force fighters' bones and left them barely alive as he advanced on them.
• Ji Xiu told the Three Great Businesses to shelter the refugees and warned that the night would remain dangerous.
• Ji Xiu realized the demon disaster involved a man-made calamity and turned his attention toward the Central Yellow Sect branch altar at West Street.

Demons and the Central Yellow Sect threw Anning County into chaos as Wei Changjiao tried to make the refugees summon the Spirit Summoning Manifest Saint General. Duan Chenzhou and Fan Nansong fought off the demon lords at the Ji Residence, while Ji Xiu killed Yang Daohan and confronted the arriving divine apparition.

• Zhao Jiu rallied county soldiers and martial halls, then recognized Wei Changjiao and accused him of orchestrating the demon uprising.
• Wei Changjiao urged the refugees to kneel and summon the Spirit Summoning Manifest Saint General, while Zhao Jiu ordered the soldiers to raise their crossbows against the sect.
• The three Demon Lords of Earth Dragon Cave attacked the Ji Residence, and Duan Chenzhou killed Thunder Roar Leopard Lord with a single saber strike.
• Fan Nansong struck the Long-Armed Ancient Ape with Purple Thunder as Duan Chenzhou fought the remaining demons, and Yang Daohan tried to flee.
• Ji Xiu returned to the residence and killed Yang Daohan with Ye Longxiang's Head, then challenged the arriving divine apparition to bow to him.

After learning more about the formidable legacy of Wang Xuanyang and the threat posed by the Central Yellow Sect, Ji Xiu gathered his allies to defend Anning County from demons and heretical forces. He led them into the blizzard, while Jiang Li considered teaching him a powerful Dao Arts secret manual.

• Ji Xiu asked Duan Chenzhou about the rank of the Central Yellow Sect’s Guardian God General, and Duan and Qin Zhuo explained the Qi Threshold realms and Wang Xuanyang’s unmatched reputation as the Cang Sea Heavenly Saber.
• Ji Xiu reflected on his duties to his master, his businesses, and Anning County, then asked those gathered at the Ji Residence to help protect West Street, drive off the demons, and reduce casualties.
• Cai Ling’er, Bai Shuo, Qin Zhuo, and Ye Ningzhi each reacted to Ji Xiu’s appeal, and Qin Zhuo pledged to follow him in clearing the county’s corruption.
• Duan Chenzhou assured Ji Xiu that he had never lost, and Ji Xiu led the group into the snow to confront the demonic evils threatening Anning.
• Jiang Li watched Ji Xiu depart and considered teaching him the Spirit Refining Scroll, though she worried about whether he could bear the karma attached to Great Xuan’s inheritance.

Zhao Jiu’s forces struggled to contain Wei Changjiao and the Central Yellow Sect until Ji Xiu and Duan Chenzhou arrived, turning the battle against them. As the Spirit Summoning Manifest Saint General attacked Ji Xiu, a secret-record prompt offered him the Spirit Refining Scroll if he completely devoured the Outer God’s thought.

• Zhao Jiu ordered Uncle Liang to attack the Central Yellow Sect, but Wei Changjiao defeated him with one punch and rallied the sect and bewitched refugees to assault the county yamen.
• The Central Yellow Sect overwhelmed the defenders until Ji Xiu arrived with Heavenly Mechanism Heavy Arrows, rallied the county civilians, and led Qin Zhuo and Ye Ningzhi into battle.
• Duan Chenzhou confronted Wei Changjiao, revealed that the newborn great demons had been killed, and challenged the Spirit Summoning Manifest Saint General’s manifestation.
• The Spirit Summoning Manifest Saint General repelled Duan Chenzhou’s saber strike, then attacked Ji Xiu and declared that his body would serve as its vessel.
• Ji Xiu recalled Jiang Li’s warning and realized he could use the Outer God to complete the second realm of Dao arts and advance toward the third.
• A prompt offered Ji Xiu the fragmentary Spirit Refining Scroll if he completely devoured the thought of an Outer God at the Great General level.

Ji Xiu used the Profound Monarch Six Chapters Secret Records to devour the Spirit Summoning Manifest Saint General and advance to Qi Ingestion and Grain Avoidance. As dawn broke, the Central Yellow Sect’s altar forces lay defeated, and the county’s magistrate, instructors, and martial men regarded Ji Xiu with reverence.

• Ji Xiu’s advance draw revealed the Spirit Refining Scroll fragment and showed him a vision of the Profound Monarch devouring a sacred being to become a Human Immortal.
• Ji Xiu trapped and devoured the Spirit Summoning Manifest Saint General, refining its divine thoughts and advancing to Qi Ingestion and Grain Avoidance.
• The trapped god recognized Ji Xiu’s secret art as the Spirit Refining Scroll of the Profound Monarch Six Chapters Secret Records and failed to escape his Mud Pill Palace.
• Ji Xiu told Duan Chenzhou that the god’s divine aura tasted good, and Duan Chenzhou struck Wei Changjiao as the Central Yellow Sect disciples lost faith.
• Ji Xiu and his allies quelled the Central Yellow chaos, and the arriving leaders of the Three Great Businesses saw him standing among the defeated forces while the county magistrate and instructors bowed.

After the monster calamity, Ji Xiu calmed Anning County and arranged to send Huang Xiuwen to Jiangyin Prefecture for judgment. He then secretly killed Huang Xiuwen at sea and blamed the Huantian Righteous Band, while preparing to extend his Mountain Dao Business into the prefecture.

• Ji Xiu urged Zhao Jiu to spare the coerced county folk, and Zhao Jiu ordered the remaining monsters hunted down while investigating the Central Yellow Sect’s role in the disaster.
• Di Yuan revealed Huang Qi’s involvement and offered Ji Xiu a shipping route into Jiangyin Prefecture; Ji Xiu accepted the chance to trade there.
• Zhao Jiu confronted Huang Xiuwen at the docks, but Ji Xiu persuaded him to arrest and torture Huang Xiuwen before escorting him to Jiangyin Prefecture.
• Ji Xiu’s Searching Mountains refinement was completed, and he gained the Riding Waves talent as he turned his attention toward the Eastern Cang Sea.
• On the journey to Jiangyin Prefecture, Ji Xiu killed Huang Xiuwen at sea while disguised as Wei Changjiao, and Uncle Liang let the killing proceed under the cover story of a Huantian Righteous Band attack.

After killing Wei Changjiao, Duan Chenzhou returned and sparred with Ji Xiu, greatly advancing Ji Xiu’s martial arts. Duan then revealed an incomplete Skin Refinement method from the Xie Clan called the Ascended Immortal Garment and promised to obtain its full version for his disciple.

• Ji Xiu reflected on the Thirty-Six Trades’ power in Jiangyin Prefecture and planned for Huang Xiuwen’s likely retaliation after his arrest.
• Ji Xiu encountered Duan Chenzhou on his way home and exchanged blows, gaining major progress in Ye Longxiang’s Head and completing the Cloud Crane Hand Martial Intent.
• Duan Chenzhou asked whether Ji Xiu faced hidden dangers from swallowing the Guardian God General, and Ji Xiu explained that consuming its divine thoughts strengthened his Daoist cultivation and body.
• Duan Chenzhou said he had chased Wei Changjiao five hundred li into Earth Dragon Cave and killed him with a single saber strike.
• Duan Chenzhou revealed that a woman of the Xie Clan had given him the incomplete Ascended Immortal Garment method after he refused her marriage proposal.
• Duan Chenzhou promised to seek the complete method from the Xie Clan once Ji Xiu cultivated Outer Force.

As Ji Xiu celebrated the New Year with county leaders and new allies, Duan Chenzhou urged him to pursue a future in the Prefecture Academy and Great Xuan’s ranks. Ji Xiu completed his Daoist advancement to Qi Refiner, and the chapter ended with him encountering the top-tier Skin Refinement method Ascended Immortal Garment.

• Old Yao prepared the Ji Residence for the New Year as Lu Yu, Wei Zhi, Xu Heng, Di Yuan, Zhao Jiu, and other guests arrived with gifts and thanks for Ji Xiu.
• Ji Xiu welcomed the visitors to an open feast and told Ji Wei to invite Liu Zi’s family to celebrate with them.
• Ji Xiu visited Duan Chenzhou, where Qin Zhuo explained that he was returning to the Heavenly Saber Sect and invited Ji Xiu to visit in Jiangyin Prefecture.
• Duan Chenzhou urged Ji Xiu to enter the Prefecture Academy and aim for Fame and Rank, describing the rise of the Northern Cang Marquis as an example.
• Ji Xiu completed his Spirit Refining Scroll advance payment, became a Qi Refiner, and astonished Duan Chenzhou with his rapid Daoist progress.
• Duan Chenzhou gave Ji Xiu the Ascended Immortal Garment method, prompting the Ordination Master to ask whether he wanted to advance payment for it.

Ji Xiu studied the Langya Xie Family’s Ascended Immortal Garment, a demanding Skin Refinement inheritance, and immediately entered the Jade Skin Realm. Duan Chenzhou was left stunned by how quickly his disciple began transforming.

• Ji Xiu learned that Skin Refinement unified the body’s strength and laid the foundation for opening the Qi Sea and advancing further.
• Ji Xiu activated the Primordial Dao Talisman and examined the four-volume Ascended Immortal Garment, which required rare seasonal Spiritual Entities and earthly treasures.
• Duan Chenzhou explained the inheritance’s advantages and harsh requirements, then planned how Ji Xiu could obtain cultivation resources and enter the prefectural academy.
• Ji Xiu suddenly gained insight, stirred his viscera and bowels, and began Skin Refinement as white vapor rose from his body.
• Ji Xiu’s fingernails fell off and regrew translucent and glasslike, signaling his entry into the Jade Skin Realm and leaving Duan Chenzhou speechless.