Chapter Summaries

Chu Zhiyuan and the two women explored a hidden cave mansion, where he found a Space Ring and a manual for the Bright Jade Divine Palm. He recognized the palm art as a cultivation method, while the ring remained unopened because he had not finished refining it.

• Chu Zhiyuan opened a hidden passage in the cave, and Xiao Ruoling and Shen Hanyue followed him despite Shen Hanyue's ominous feeling.
• Chu Zhiyuan led them past concealed mechanisms by having them step in his footprints, and he decided to take two mind-calming flowers for Little Sister.
• Chu Zhiyuan warned the others not to touch the fragile books in the chambers and respectfully approached the jade-like skeleton.
• Chu Zhiyuan removed a black Iron Ring from the skeleton and discovered it was a Space Ring that he could not yet open.
• Chu Zhiyuan opened the stone casket, examined the Bright Jade Divine Palm manual, and found that its twelve techniques also cultivated internal energy.

Chu Zhiyuan gave the Bright Jade Divine Palm to the Moon Invitation Palace and learned from Xiao Ruoling that the world imposed a limit on martial cultivation and lifespan. He resolved to investigate the secret land and the Space Ring for a path beyond those limits.

• Shen Hanyue and Xiao Ruoling practiced the Bright Jade Divine Palm, and Chu Zhiyuan gave its manual to Xiao Ruoling for the Moon Invitation Palace.
• Shen Hanyue and Xiao Ruoling retrieved the Black Box, the manual, and two strange flowers from the cave mansion before returning to the Moon Invitation Palace.
• Yun Qiuhua praised the manual and let Chu Zhiyuan enter the secret land whenever he wished.
• Chu Zhiyuan found that wearing the Black Pearl concealed his aura from the Demon Beasts, and he speculated that the Space Ring might contain immortal cultivation methods.
• Xiao Ruoling explained that the secret land could not let outsiders mobilize its Spiritual Qi and that the Heaven and Earth Limit prevented cultivation beyond the Grandmaster Realm.
• Chu Zhiyuan asked Xiao Ruoling to help him find Heavenly Treasures, and she said she would bring books the next day.

Chu Zhiyuan spent time with Xiao Ruoling at Moon Invitation Palace and assessed fourteen Innate Perfection disciples, prescribing different cultivation regimens to help them break through. He told them to follow his instructions for ten days, while the disciples learned that the palace elders were dealing with the flood dragon in the secret realm.

• Xiao Ruoling told Chu Zhiyuan that she had come to feel at home in Moon Invitation Palace, and they discussed the palace’s power and reputation among outsiders.
• Chu Zhiyuan and Xiao Ruoling talked over dinner until Shen Hanyue called Xiao Ruoling away to evening lessons.
• Chu Zhiyuan examined fourteen Innate Perfection disciples and assigned each a tailored cultivation regimen based on her condition.
• Chu Zhiyuan said the disciples could break through within ten days if they followed his instructions, and Shen Hanyue forbade them from entering the secret realm during that time.
• The disciples asked Shen Hanyue about the flood dragon Chu Zhiyuan had encountered, and she said the elders were dealing with it.

Chu Zhiyuan reassured Xiao Ruoling that helping Moon Invitation Palace would not cause serious trouble, then refined an ancient ring and discovered manuals describing a path of internal and external cultivation. He concluded that this path could help prodigies reach Grandmaster and decided to teach Chu Yi the Bright Jade Divine Palm while keeping the advanced manuals for himself.

• Chu Zhiyuan told Xiao Ruoling that Moon Invitation Palace’s new Grandmasters would become public knowledge, but that he had the right to help them and his relatives would understand his boundaries.
• Xiao Ruoling left after sharing an intimate moment with Chu Zhiyuan, who continued refining the iron ring.
• Chu Zhiyuan refined the ring into a Space Ring and found empty jade bottles and five Bright Jade cultivation manuals inside.
• Chu Zhiyuan learned that the Bright Jade Sacred Sect’s path cultivated both internal and external aspects toward forming a Yang Spirit.
• Chu Zhiyuan reasoned that dual cultivation could improve prodigies’ chances of reaching Grandmaster, and decided to have Chu Yi practice the Bright Jade Divine Palm while keeping the later manuals.

Chu Zhiyuan studied the Violet Sun True Scripture, Bright Jade inheritance, and Dragon Transformation Technique while preparing to explore Moon Invitation Palace’s secret land. When Grandmasters clashed outside, he chose not to intervene, and Super Sensation revealed six Moon Invitation Palace Grandmasters fighting three intruders.

• Chu Zhiyuan compared the Violet Sun True Scripture with Bright Jade Sacred Sect’s inheritance and concluded that the slower Bright Jade cultivation suited the current world poorly.
• Chu Zhiyuan inspected empty cold-jade bottles and inferred that Bright Jade’s successor had used Bright Jade Pills to cultivate, though their refining method was missing.
• Chu Zhiyuan memorized Xiao Ruoling’s illustrated record of Heavenly Treasures and decided to search Moon Invitation Palace’s secret land for the listed treasures.
• Chu Zhiyuan used the Flying Dragon Pearl to practice the Dragon Transformation Technique’s seventh level, Flesh Refining, and felt his control over his body grow finer.
• After Zou Fang reported that Grandmasters were fighting outside, Chu Zhiyuan refused to intervene or flee and used Super Sensation to observe six Moon Invitation Palace Grandmasters battling three opponents.

Chu Zhiyuan watched Grandmasters fight and learned how their Visualization Diagrams distorted their senses. He used his Flying Daggers to distract three evil-sect Grandmasters, helping Yun Qiuhua and the other women kill them.

• Chu Zhiyuan saw six women battle three Grandmasters as their merged Visualization Diagrams confused the fighters’ senses.
• Chu Zhiyuan sent Mo Yi and the other women to a distant courtyard, then used the Black Pearl to conceal himself and Zou Fang.
• Chu Zhiyuan’s Hidden Blade struck Wu Jizhong but failed to injure him, while the distraction let two Moon Invitation Palace Elders land fatal blows.
• Chu Zhiyuan launched the Day Blade and Night Blade at the other two Grandmasters, disrupting them as Yun Qiuhua and five women attacked.
• Yun Qiuhua and the other women confirmed that all three Grandmasters were dead and credited Chu Zhiyuan’s Flying Daggers with creating their openings.

Chu Zhiyuan recovered after using his Flying Daggers to disrupt three attacking Grandmasters, whom the six Elders of Moon Invitation Palace killed. The deaths were expected to deter future attacks, and Chu Zhiyuan left with Xiao Ruoling to visit the secret realm.

• Chu Zhiyuan recovered in his room and reflected that his Flying Daggers could disrupt Grandmasters but could not reliably kill them.
• Yun Qiuhua and five Elders thanked Chu Zhiyuan for helping them kill Grandmasters from the Jade Cauldron Sect, Shadow Sect, and Fearless Sect, and promised he would be safe at Moon Invitation Palace.
• Chu Zhiyuan realized the mountain's dense purple radiance did not come from a Mysterious Stone.
• Xiao Ruoling visited Chu Zhiyuan, worried about the night assault, and relaxed as he reassured her that the Grandmasters' deaths would deter future attacks.
• Chu Zhiyuan invited Xiao Ruoling to visit the secret realm with him.

After helping Moon Invitation Palace defeat three evil-sect Great Grandmasters, Chu Zhiyuan reassured Xiao Ruoling and cultivated with her. Over a meal, they discussed secret-land treasures and the fragile balance between the Four Great Sects and the Imperial Court, leaving the question of whether the emperor would act unresolved.

• Xiao Ruoling worried that Chu Zhiyuan had risked his life against three Great Grandmasters, and he reassured her before agreeing to postpone visiting the secret lands and help her cultivate.
• Chu Zhiyuan ate Flood Dragon Meat, which strengthened his Dragon Transformation Technique, and Xiao Ruoling explained how the flood dragon’s other parts were being processed.
• Chu Zhiyuan and Xiao Ruoling discussed rare Heavenly Treasures, including Immortal-Connecting Grass, which had once extended someone’s life by sixty years.
• Xiao Ruoling explained that the Four Great Sects had received the strongest secret lands while the Imperial Court gained other resources, and that past emperors had repeatedly sought to reclaim them.
• Chu Zhiyuan and Xiao Ruoling discussed how Moon Invitation Palace used cultivation resources to maintain the loyalty of subordinate sects and wondered whether the emperor would move against the Four Great Sects as the balance of power shifted.

Chu Zhiyuan and Xiao Ruoling discussed Moon Invitation Palace’s hopes for the throne, then he helped fourteen disciples approach the Grandmaster realm while finding little in the Secret Land. The chapter ended with a visitor from the Carefree Cult arriving to see him.

• Xiao Ruoling explained that Moon Invitation Palace wanted Chu Zhiyuan to become Emperor, but he said the Emperor’s Sword and fate would decide the succession.
• Chu Zhiyuan and Xiao Ruoling searched the vast Secret Land, finding only twelve Heaven-Connecting Grass plants and discussing its unknown size and shifting nature.
• Chu Zhiyuan adjusted the cultivation methods of fourteen young women, who all broke through to the Grandmaster realm within two days.
• Chu Zhiyuan continued entering the Secret Land but found no treasures or clue to the madness that afflicted its visitors.
• Zou Fang told Chu Zhiyuan that someone from the Carefree Cult had come to pay a visit, and Chu Zhiyuan invited them in.

Meng Canglan warned Chu Zhiyuan that Great Lie and Great Guang were preparing to invade Great Jing’s vulnerable eastern border. Chu agreed to pursue their marching routes and asked the Carefree Cult to investigate, while remaining uncertain whether he could trust the cult’s motives.

• Chu Zhiyuan welcomed Carefree Cult Saintess Meng Canglan, who arrived with Li Yilong and Song Yichun.
• Meng told Chu that Great Lie and Great Guang intended to invade Great Jing’s eastern border and that Xu Jingren had been placed under house arrest.
• Meng described the eastern defenses as weak and recommended contracting them, but Chu noted the harm a retreat would bring to the people and their lands.
• Chu asked whether the Carefree Cult could learn the enemy armies’ routes so Great Jing could try to ambush them.
• Meng agreed to investigate the routes, and Chu offered compensation while privately questioning the cult’s intentions.

Chu Zhiyuan persuaded Meng Canglan and the Carefree Cult to help him obtain Great Lie armor for a plan to provoke renewed war between Great Lie and Great Guang. After returning to Jade Capital, he learned that Duke Kang had failed to strengthen the eastern border because he dismissed the Supervisory Department’s warnings.

• Chu Zhiyuan negotiated with Meng Canglan for one thousand sets of Great Lie armor and proposed disguising troops to attack Great Guang as it withdrew, hoping to restart war between the two dynasties.
• Meng Canglan agreed that the Carefree Cult would do everything in its power to help Chu Zhiyuan carry out the dangerous plan.
• Chu Zhiyuan left Moon Invitation Palace, struggled with his longing for Xiao Ruoling, and returned to Jade Capital.
• Chu Zhiyuan reviewed the Supervisory Department’s reports and asked Ma Tianhe about the eastern border’s preparations.
• Ma Tianhe told Chu Zhiyuan that Duke Kang distrusted the Supervisory Department’s warnings and had not meaningfully reorganized the eastern border forces.

Chu Zhiyuan considered the political forces gathered at the eastern border and ordered an investigation into possible moves by the Great Lie and Great Guang dynasties. He later learned more about searching secret realms and agreed to trade an entry slot for a Golden Tiger, meeting Xu Yingying’s junior sister Zhou Sisi.

• Chu Zhiyuan questioned Ma Tianhe about the immortals gathered at the eastern border and concluded that the Emperor had sent Duke Kang to prepare for a later prince to take control.
• Chu Zhiyuan suspected the Great Lie Dynasty and Great Guang Dynasty had begun acting covertly and ordered Ma Tianhe to tell Division Master Leng to investigate.
• Zou Fang and Mo Yi reported that Moon Invitation Palace would provide Flood Dragon Meat, and Chu Zhiyuan agreed to have it stored in the palace’s ice cellar.
• Xu Yingying told Chu Zhiyuan that secret-realm treasures lay deeper inside and that she usually found them after walking about ten days.
• Xu Yingying offered tiger meat and bones in exchange for one secret-realm entry slot, and Chu Zhiyuan agreed on the condition that no outsiders learn of the arrangement.
• Xu Yingying introduced her blood-related junior sister, Zhou Sisi, to Chu Zhiyuan.

Chu Zhiyuan helped Zhou Sisi prepare to break through to the Grandmaster realm and received the complete Glazed Saber Scripture from Xu Yingying. After studying its claims of longevity, he left the manor with the scripture, while Xu Yingying tried and failed to learn where he was headed.

• Chu Zhiyuan examined Zhou Sisi and gave her the Thick Earth Art and Crimson Sun Art, predicting she would break through within three days.
• Chu Zhiyuan discussed helping more Nine Li Divine Cult practitioners with Xu Yingying and asked her for a complete secret-realm inheritance.
• Xu Yingying gave Chu Zhiyuan a Silver Booklet containing the Glazed Saber Scripture, which cultivated the body and blade together toward becoming a Saber God.
• Chu Zhiyuan considered whether the scripture's final step could truly grant immortality and compared it favorably with the Void Controlling Sword Sect's teachings.
• Chu Zhiyuan declined Xu Yingying's offer to stay for a meal and rode away on a Heavenly Dragon Divine Horse without telling her where he was going.

Chu Zhiyuan studied the Glazed Saber Scripture and began cultivating its first realm with the Bright Moon Treasure Blade. As news of an impending eastern-border defeat reached Chu Qingfeng, he warned Chu Zhiyuan to prepare to lead troops, while Chu Zhiyuan swiftly achieved the Glazed Body.

• Chu Zhiyuan studied the Glazed Saber Scripture and learned its nine realms, from the Glazed Body to Immortality.
• Chu Zhiyuan told Chu Qingfeng that the Great Lie Dynasty faced a likely defeat against the Great Guang Dynasty despite efforts to prepare the eastern border.
• Chu Qingfeng urged Chu Zhiyuan to prepare his own Imperial Guard camp in case he had to lead troops, and Chu Zhiyuan reluctantly agreed to prepare.
• Chu Zhiyuan took up the Bright Moon Treasure Blade, chosen by Xiao Ruoling, and began cultivating the Glazed Saber Scripture.
• Over two days, Chu Zhiyuan's Meridians, organs, bones, and flesh became transparent in his inner sight, and he completed the Glazed Body realm.

Chu Zhiyuan refined the Bright Moon Blade and learned of its long history, then guided new Martial Arts Hall candidates and inspected his newly established Imperial Guard battalion. He left the soldiers training in six-person formations as they competed for merit and a chance to receive his instruction.

• Chu Zhiyuan used the Spirit-Connecting Heavenly Talisman on the Bright Moon Blade, experiencing more than a thousand years of its memories and sensing its budding spirituality.
• Chu Zhiyuan resumed cultivating the Glazed Blade realm and found that his progress had become smoother as strange qi transformed the Bright Moon Blade.
• Chu Zhiyuan examined ten Innate Perfection candidates at the Martial Arts Hall and prescribed Five Elements Art techniques and cultivation schedules for them.
• Chu Zhiyuan visited the Imperial Guard's Seventh Battalion beside the Green River and approved of its alert sentries and fresh atmosphere.
• Chu Zhiyuan saw the soldiers training in six-person Phoenix Seeks Phoenix Formations to earn merit and qualify for his guidance.

Chu Zhiyuan pushed the camp to prepare for war by setting a strict deadline for mastering the Phoenix Seeks Phoenix Formation and personally training the troops. His instruction quickly enabled all eighteen squads in a company to execute the formation, though they still needed practice.

• Bai Ningyu told Chu Zhiyuan that training was progressing slowly and that the terrain model remained unfinished because the Supervisory Department lacked experience.
• Chu Zhiyuan ordered the troops to master the Phoenix Seeks Phoenix Formation within a month, with anyone who failed to do so eliminated from the battalion.
• Chu Zhiyuan promised that soldiers who mastered the formation within ten days and reached Innate Perfection could enter the Martial Arts Hall without competing by merit.
• Chu Zhiyuan trained the first nine squads by correcting their footwork and coordination with soybean pellets and shouted instructions.
• After Chu Zhiyuan instructed them, all eighteen squads in a company could complete the formation, though they still made mistakes and needed further practice.

Chu Zhiyuan pushed Phoenix Camp’s preparations forward, while Bai Ningyu managed its growing demands and daily supply of Demon Beast meat. After cultivating, Chu Zhiyuan met with his brothers, who revealed that they now wanted to join Phoenix Camp.

• Chu Zhiyuan told Bai Ningyu to speed up Phoenix Camp’s preparations and insisted that the recruits continue eating Demon Beast meat despite the expense.
• Bai Ningyu used his connections to organize Phoenix Camp, which soon flourished under his management.
• Chu Zhiyuan cultivated at Bright Martial Hall, improving several martial arts at once.
• Chu Zhiting and Chu Zhichuan invited Chu Zhiyuan to dinner at Chu Mingxuan’s residence and shared the prince’s medicinal wine.
• Chu Zhiyuan saw through Chu Zhiting and Chu Zhichuan’s intention to join Phoenix Camp, and Chu Mingxuan teased them for changing their minds.

Chu Zhiting and Chu Zhichuan asked to join Phoenix Camp, but Chu Zhiyuan warned them that the eastern-border operation would be far more dangerous than they expected. They decided against joining, while Chu Zhiyuan prepared to depart for the eastern border within a month.

• Chu Zhiting and Chu Zhichuan told Chu Zhiyuan they wanted to leave the dull Town Martial Division and join Phoenix Camp as ordinary soldiers.
• Chu Zhiyuan privately revealed that Great Lie and the Great Guang Dynasty were preparing to act against Great Jing after Fuyuan Town fell, and that Phoenix Camp would face dangerous fighting.
• Chu Zhiyuan explained that Chu Zhiyao had been ambushed and nearly killed, and warned that he could not protect Chu Zhiting and Chu Zhichuan during the operation.
• Chu Zhiting and Chu Zhichuan decided not to join Phoenix Camp, while Chu Mingxuan also declined after learning of the danger.
• Chu Zhiyuan said he would depart for the eastern border within a month and ordered the others to keep the matter secret.
• Chu Mingxuan offered Chu Zhiyuan a treasure suited for use at sea.

Chu Zhiyuan received a Water-Repelling Pearl from Chu Mingxuan and discovered it could create a water-free space underwater, inspiring plans to use it for covert operations against Great Lie or Great Guang. After learning that no other pearls were available, he thought of asking Xu Yingying about other treasures.

• Chu Mingxuan brought out a Water-Repelling Pearl and gave it to Chu Zhiyuan.
• Chu Zhichuan poured tea at Chu Zhiyuan, and the pearl blocked it with an invisible barrier about one zhang away.
• Chu Zhiyuan tested the pearl underwater and found it could maintain a space one zhang across even at the riverbed.
• Chu Qingfeng told Chu Zhiyuan that no other Water-Repelling Pearls were available and explained that the pearl had come from a Cave Heaven.
• Chu Zhiyuan considered how underwater deployment could aid attacks on Great Lie or Great Guang and thought of Xu Yingying as a possible source of other treasures.

Chu Zhiyuan sought a Water-Repelling Pearl from Xu Yingying, then spoke with Zhou Sisi about her envy and unsettled state of mind. After Xu Yingying returned with a second pearl, Chu Zhiyuan tested their combined range and decided to see whether Moon Invitation Palace had more.

• Xu Yingying left Chu Zhiyuan with Zhou Sisi while she searched her treasure vault for a Water-Repelling Pearl or similar treasure.
• Chu Zhiyuan encouraged Zhou Sisi to accept her own good fortune and keep her state of mind lively through more varied experiences.
• Zhou Sisi confided her doubts to Chu Zhiyuan and said his age and manner made him seem like someone from an older generation.
• Xu Yingying returned with a pearl, and Chu Zhiyuan compared it with his own Water-Repelling Pearl.
• Chu Zhiyuan tested the two pearls by having Xu Yingying splash tea at him, then decided to ask Moon Invitation Palace for more.