Chapter Summaries

After dividing the illicit money, Cao Bing stayed in the wilderness to train despite Yan Ying’s concerns. He tested his True Qi against a Two-Tailed Tiger Cat in Ruins Town No. 371, then left determined to keep improving.

• Yan Ying divided the illicit money equally, leaving Cao Bing with 39.744 million in a named account and 4.11262 billion in an anonymous Swiss account.
• Cao Bing told Yan Ying he wanted to remain in the wilderness and train, and Yan Ying reluctantly agreed after failing to change his mind.
• Cao Bing hunted alone in Ruins Town No. 371 and engaged a fast Two-Tailed Tiger Cat, using True Qi and his movement techniques to wound it.
• Cao Bing severed the Tiger Cat’s forelimb with two blade strikes and killed it by stabbing its heart.
• Cao Bing salvaged the Tiger Cat’s useful materials and reflected that his advanced movement technique consumed too much True Qi and that he still needed to grow stronger.

Cao Bing tested his improved combat abilities and decided City No. 0371 no longer challenged him enough. Xie Hongxin called to invite him to join the squad in investigating a suspected treasure in Forest No. 017, and Cao Bing agreed to meet them at Southwest Supply Base No. 8.

• Cao Bing tested his strength and speed, confirming that his techniques and Internal Force had advanced rapidly.
• Cao Bing decided to leave City No. 0371 for City 132 because its monsters no longer provided enough pressure.
• Cao Bing wondered whether he might encounter Luo Feng in the wilderness and recalled Luo Feng's lucky encounter with an injured Silver Moon Wolf King.
• Xie Hongxin called Cao Bing and told him that Beast General Level monsters had doubled in southwestern Forest No. 017, suggesting a valuable treasure had appeared.
• Xie Hongxin said he and Old Fang had reached Warrior General level and the captain had advanced to High-level General, convincing Uncle Yan to approve the squad's expedition.
• Xie Hongxin told Cao Bing they would leave in two days and meet at Southwest Supply Base No. 8.

Cao Bing tested his newly advanced Phantom Blade Technique against Wang Dong, a Xiantian mid-stage expert and friend at the Zhendong Royal Mansion. Wang Dong defeated him with one powerful strike, then invited him to drink, recalling Cao Bing’s notorious inability to handle their rare liquor.

• Cao Bing thanked Wang Dong for helping him advance his Phantom Blade Technique to its second level.
• Cao Bing attacked Wang Dong with his speed, footwork, and phantom blade arms, but Wang Dong defended without yielding an opening.
• Wang Dong turned defense into offense and struck Cao Bing’s blades aside, numbing his sword arm and forcing him to concede.
• Wang Dong invited Cao Bing to drink, while Cao Bing remembered passing out after only two cups of treasure-grade liquor.

Cao Bing gave Qin Yu a lesson on movement techniques and learned more about Qin Yu’s formidable Big Dipper Moonlight Dance. Inspired by the exchange, Cao Bing resolved to train toward Perfect-level movement techniques and aimed for the Elite Training Camp.

• Cao Bing refused Wang Dong’s invitation to drink and reflected on mastering the second level of the Phantom Blade Technique while failing to make progress with the Nine Layered Thunder Saber.
• Qin Yu visited Cao Bing to ask about movement techniques, and Cao Bing recognized the value of Qin Yu’s self-created Big Dipper Moonlight Dance.
• Cao Bing taught Qin Yu foundational movement technique theory, and Qin Yu demonstrated the Big Dipper Moonlight Dance in return.
• After Qin Yu left, Cao Bing realized he could not match Qin Yu’s movement technique and decided to train with what he had learned.
• Cao Bing grew excited at the prospect of reaching Perfect-level movement techniques and securing a place in the Elite Training Camp.

Cao Bing continued improving his movement technique while preparing to travel to Supply Base No. 8, where he learned from Zhuge Tao that he could qualify as a backup candidate for the Elite Training Camp. His chance depended on reaching Beginner General combat strength by the end of January 2057 and on whether candidates with regular quotas passed their assessments.

• Cao Bing noticed Feng Yuzi had begun spending most of his time secluded, while Feng Yuzi secretly resumed training external techniques to break through his movement-technique bottleneck.
• Cao Bing decided to skip hunting and travel to Supply Base No. 8, packing supplies for forest expeditions before boarding a troop transport vehicle.
• Zhuge Tao called Cao Bing and explained that he could not secure him a direct place in the Elite Training Camp.
• Zhuge Tao told Cao Bing he could receive backup assessment qualification if he reached Beginner General combat strength by the end of January 2057.
• Cao Bing learned that he would only enter the camp if candidates with regular quotas failed their assessments, and Zhuge Tao urged him to pursue a special assessment afterward if he was capable.

Cao Bing arrived at Supply Base No. 8 to join the Divine Arrow Squad on an expedition into Forest No. 017, where an unknown opportunity had drawn many powerful hunters. He steeled himself to focus on training and the dangers ahead, whether or not he found the opportunity.

• Cao Bing learned that Zhuge Tao would help him apply for a special Elite Training Camp assessment if he reached Beginner General combat strength and brought his movement technique to peak Micro-level.
• Cao Bing returned home, found it empty, then bought supplies and headed to Supply Base No. 8 to enter Forest No. 017 with the Divine Arrow Squad.
• Cao Bing saw that Supply Base No. 8 was fortified and crowded with powerful hunting squads, including the Mad Bull Squad and the Instant Squad.
• Cao Bing realized many experts had likely gathered for the opportunity in Forest No. 017 and worried that God of War-level fighters might compete for it.
• Cao Bing put aside his doubts, resolved to treat the expedition as training, and aimed to advance his movement technique to Perfect-level.

Cao Bing spent 2 billion Huaxia dollars on Stone Vein Spirit Liquid and used it to improve his physical fitness and Internal Force. He reached the Half-Step Xiantian stage and hurried off to test his new strength.

• Cao Bing opened the delivered suitcase and took out the Stone Vein Spirit Liquid he had bought to prepare for the Elite Training Camp and his trip to Forest No. 017.
• Cao Bing lamented the vial’s 2-billion price, then drank the liquid and cultivated with the Gene Primal Energy Cultivation Method.
• Cao Bing absorbed the medicine’s effects for half an hour, strengthening his cells and physical fitness.
• Cao Bing circulated the Pure Yang Formula and used the remaining medicinal power to advance his Internal Force to the Half-Step Xiantian stage.
• Cao Bing rushed out to test his strength and hoped to surprise Uncle Xie, Uncle Guan, and the others.

The Divine Arrow Squad entered Forest No. 017 to search for an unknown opportunity and encountered a large group of Long-Armed Woolly Monkeys. Cao Bing joined the fight, which ended with Guan Yong, Cao Bing, Yan Ying, and Zheng Ke wiping out the group.

• Yan Ying briefed the Divine Arrow Squad on the forest’s mutation and the other powerful teams entering it.
• The next morning, the squad left Supply Base No. 8 and pushed through Forest No. 017’s dense growth.
• Cao Bing and Guan Yong spotted a group of forty or fifty Long-Armed Woolly Monkeys and warned the squad to prepare for battle.
• Guan Yong dodged the white-furred Advanced Beast General’s attack, severed its arm, and killed it.
• Cao Bing and Guan Yong charged into the monkeys while Yan Ying and Zheng Ke provided ranged support, and the squad slaughtered the group in under two minutes.

After Guan Yong noticed that the monsters near Forest No. 017 had mutated more than expected, Yan Ying’s squad hurried deeper into the forest and found evidence of battles between humans and monsters. Cao Bing was spotted by a hostile squad’s sniper, but he struck one of the men when the gunman’s threat briefly vanished and fled into the forest.

• Guan Yong reported that a Long-Armed Woolly Monkey’s strength and evolution were unusual, so Yan Ying ordered the squad to prioritize travel and avoid fights.
• After two days and one night of travel, Cao Bing spotted two Martial Artists near a pile of rubble and sensed a sniper had him in their sights.
• Guan Yong and Fang Ye tried to locate the sniper while the opposing squad approached Cao Bing and demanded that he come out.
• Brother Kui ordered Cao Bing to surrender his weapon, and the saber-wielding Martial Artist reached for it.
• Cao Bing sensed the sniper’s threat had vanished, punched the saber-wielding Martial Artist, and escaped into the forest.

The Divine Arrow Squad captured Dark Eagle Xue Shang and his two men after Cao Bing escaped Xue Shang’s sniper fire. Xue Shang revealed that squads had gathered at a suspected Mutation Source, and Yan Ying ordered him to lead them there.

• Xue Shang aimed his sniper rifle at Cao Bing, but Guan Yong slipped behind him and held a blade to his neck.
• Xue Shang and Guan Yong agreed to stop fighting after learning that Kui and Big Chuang had been captured by the Divine Arrow Squad.
• The Divine Arrow Squad arrived with Kui and Big Chuang, and Xue Shang kicked one of his men after the man mocked him.
• Xue Shang told the squad that Old Seven and Little Bao had gone to a gathering near a suspected Mutation Source discovered by Rhino Liao’s squad.
• Yan Ying ordered Xue Shang to lead the Divine Arrow Squad to the gathering, and Xue Shang protested that he did not want to meet Rhino Liao.

The Divine Arrow Squad reached a gathering place where Rhino Squad captain Liao Dinghao briefed the assembled experts on a deadly Blood Python nest. The experts learned the nest lay west of the gathering place, while Liao Dinghao insisted on killing the pythons to avenge his fallen teammate.

• Xue Shang left after warning Cao Bing and the others about the danger of crossing him in the future.
• Yan Ying and Guan Yong met Ding Tie at the gathering place, and Fang Ye led the rest of the Divine Arrow Squad to set up camp.
• Yan Ying and Guan Yong joined more than thirty renowned experts for a meeting hosted by the Rhino Squad.
• Liao Dinghao explained that his squad had found a cave with unusually dense cosmic energy and a pool leading to a snake nest.
• Liao Dinghao told the experts that nearly a hundred Warrior General-level pythons had attacked his squad and that Third Brother died helping them escape.
• Liao Dinghao revealed that the cave lay less than fifty li west and vowed to kill the Blood Pythons to avenge Third Brother.

The Divine Arrow Squad learned that the expedition expected to face a horde of more than 150 Beast Generals, then joined the other squads in traveling to a cave said to contain a pool. Cao Bing sensed increasingly dense cosmic energy as they followed the group underwater, where the chapter left them proceeding through frigid, dark water.

• Yan Ying reported that more than 150 Beast Generals might await the expedition and warned that the temporary alliance could collapse if treasure was found.
• Fang Ye reported that around nineteen squads had gathered, including more than sixty Warrior General-level experts.
• The joint expedition set out under Liao Dinghao's lead and entered the narrow cave, with the Divine Arrow Squad staying near the rear beside Xue Shang's squad.
• Cao Bing sensed that cosmic energy grew denser as the group advanced through the cave toward the pool.
• The squads began entering the cold, dark pool, and Cao Bing and the Divine Arrow Squad followed the lights underwater.

Cao Bing emerged into an enormous underground cave where nearly a hundred Blood Pythons were battling the human Martial Artists, with more snakes pouring from the depths. He helped stop the pythons from reaching the swimmers, and the chapter left the battle tipping toward humanity as he assessed the strongest fighters around him.

• Cao Bing heard the battle ahead and surfaced into a cave swarming with Blood Pythons, including far more high-level snakes than Liao Dinghao had expected.
• Cao Bing charged at five Blood Pythons approaching the pool to protect the Martial Artists still underwater, dodging their attacks and killing one after a difficult fight.
• More Martial Artists emerged and joined the battle, while the human fighters gradually gained the advantage as their high-level fighters killed the Advanced Beast General Blood Pythons.
• Cao Bing watched Yan Ying use his bow to kill pythons and rescue allies, and saw Liao Dinghao charge through the swarm with his twin axes.
• Cao Bing observed Zhang Xi use concealed throwing knives and skilled movement to kill Blood Pythons, and ranked the Mental Master as the most dangerous person not to provoke.

Cao Bing chased Rhino Squad deeper into the karst cave and discovered that an enormous snake was attacking the fighters gathered around hundreds of eggs. The injured survivors warned him that it was a Lord-level Monster.

• Liao Dinghao led Rhino Squad ahead into the cave while Cao Bing and the others fought the Blood Pythons.
• Cao Bing broke away from the battle and pursued Rhino Squad, but a warhammer-wielding High-level General secretly destroyed the marker he left at a junction.
• Cao Bing followed the sounds of fighting and found Dong Biao badly injured, with his saber bent and his body embedded in the wall.
• Cao Bing entered a chamber filled with snake eggs and found Rhino Squad and the other fighters battered, with several dead.
• The surviving fighters warned Cao Bing that the enormous snake was a Lord-level Monster.

A Lord-level Red Snake attacked Cao Bing, Dong Biao, Zhang Xi, and the Rhino Squad inside a cave, killing one Martial Artist and forcing the survivors to retreat. Dong Biao and Cao Bing struck the monster, but it survived and continued attacking, leaving Cao Bing briefly saved when an unknown figure intervened with a round shield.

• Dong Biao warned Cao Bing and the others that a Lord-level Monster was nearby, and the Red Snake killed the broken-legged Martial Artist with a sudden ambush.
• Zhang Xi and Liao Dinghao ordered their groups to retreat, but the Red Snake attacked Zhang Xi near the cave exit.
• Dong Biao struck the Red Snake with his mountain-cleaving saber, and Cao Bing followed with a powerful Gold Splitting Blade slash that wounded it.
• The Red Snake survived and attacked Cao Bing, knocking away his saber after he tried to defend himself.
• An unidentified figure charged in with a round shield, collided with the Red Snake, and carried Cao Bing out of its immediate reach.

The Martial Artists joined forces against the injured Lord-level Monster Red Snake, but it remained overwhelmingly fast and deadly. After Red Snake targeted Cao Bing, it lunged for his heart while he was unable to move.

• Ding Tie joined Zhang Xi, Dong Biao, Liao Dinghao, Cao Bing, and the others in fighting Red Snake rather than trying to flee.
• Zhang Xi landed a throwing knife in Red Snake's wound, but its furious counterattack badly injured several Martial Artists and shattered Zhang Xi's thigh bone.
• Liao Dinghao led the Rhino Squad into battle with Dong Biao, while Cao Bing stayed near the edge and waited for a chance to strike.
• Red Snake remembered Cao Bing's earlier slash and broke away from the others to attack him.
• Cao Bing used the Phantom Battle Blades, but Red Snake shattered two blade shadows, knocked away his real blade, and lunged toward his heart as he froze in terror.

Cao Bing broke through to the Xiantian realm during the Red Snake’s attack and gained the ability to perceive events in Slow Motion. He survived the strike with Zhang Xi’s help, but Zhang Xi collapsed, and Liao Dinghao led the team in a counterattack against the wounded, berserk snake.

• Cao Bing broke through to the Xiantian realm as the Red Snake closed in, awakening a Slow Motion domain that sharpened his perception.
• A throwing knife struck the Red Snake’s vital spot and knocked it off course, letting Cao Bing narrowly survive, though the snake tore open his left ribs.
• Zhang Xi collapsed after spending his last strength to save Cao Bing and injure the Red Snake.
• Liao Dinghao charged the wounded, berserk Red Snake with his axe.

Cao Bing and the other martial artists killed the berserk Lord-level Monster Red Snake after a brutal fight that left the Rhino Squad devastated. Liao Dinghao then argued that his squad had fulfilled its promise and led Ding Tie into the snake den, while the survivors disputed who had the right to the spoils.

• Red Snake rampaged through the Rhino Squad, injuring Liao Dinghao and sending several martial artists flying, while Cao Bing used Slow Motion to evade its attacks.
• Dong Biao and Liao Dinghao wounded Red Snake as it pursued Cao Bing, and Cao Bing struck its skull with a full-power attack, breaking it.
• The martial artists attacked the injured Red Snake, and Dong Biao finished it off with a blow to its head.
• The survivors assessed the casualties, and Liao Dinghao complained about the cost of the Rhino Squad's losses.
• Dong Biao demanded to know why Liao Dinghao's squad had left the group, and Liao Dinghao defended his actions before taking Ding Tie to inspect the snake den.

Cao Bing entered the deepest part of the snake den and let Liao Dinghao buy the unusual Lord-level snake egg for more than three hundred million. After searching the nest, Cao Bing spotted an unfamiliar, mostly intact Combat Suit and examined its strange material.

• Cao Bing pushed deeper into the cave despite his exhaustion, while Dong Biao stayed behind to recover.
• Cao Bing found Liao Dinghao and Ding Tie guarding a purple-red snake egg, and Liao Dinghao offered to pay him to keep quiet about it.
• Cao Bing rejected Liao Dinghao's initial offer, then accepted more than three hundred million for the snake egg.
• After leaving the nest, Liao Dinghao told Ding Tie that avoiding a conflict with Cao Bing and Divine Arrow Squad mattered more than the money, and said their goal was to learn what had made the Monsters evolve so quickly.
• Cao Bing searched the nest, found mostly worthless damaged equipment, then noticed a mostly intact Combat Suit made of material he did not recognize.

Cao Bing found a heavy Combat Suit and a strange card in the cave, then hurried to the entrance after hearing fighting. Guan Yong killed Feitian Shangzhu, and Liao Dinghao gave Cao Bing the promised snake eggs before leading the surviving Rhino Squad members away.

• Cao Bing examined the Combat Suit, found a technological card inside it, and packed the suit away despite its immense weight.
• Cao Bing heard Liao Dinghao’s cry and discovered that Feitian Shangzhu had killed two Rhino Squad members and broken Dong Biao’s arm.
• Liao Dinghao offered Cao Bing the snake eggs to help fight Feitian Shangzhu, while Feitian Shangzhu offered him five hundred million to stay out of it.
• Cao Bing attacked Feitian Shangzhu, but Guan Yong appeared from behind him and killed him with a single slash.
• Liao Dinghao thanked Guan Yong, handed the snake eggs to Cao Bing after Guan Yong nodded, and led the remaining Rhino Squad members away with their fallen comrades.