Chapter Summaries

Li Ping'an forgot his Healing Pill assessment while experimenting with poison, then hastily refined enough pills to pass. Liu Zongcheng later swallowed Li Ping'an’s extra poison pill and ended up writhing on the floor as his disciple found him.

• Li Ping'an tested and refined poisons for several days, then realized the Healing Pill assessment deadline had arrived with only an hour remaining.
• Li Ping'an hurriedly refined Healing Pills while Liu Zongcheng waited outside, producing eleven pills.
• Liu Zongcheng inspected ten pills, confirmed they met the assessment standard, and allowed Li Ping'an to stay.
• Liu Zongcheng later noticed the eleventh pill was poison and swallowed it to test its effects.
• Liu Zongcheng suppressed his cultivation and attempted to neutralize the poison himself, then his disciple found him squirming on the floor the next day.

Li Ping'an survived a poisoning experiment after sleeping for weeks with grass and flowers growing from his body, then joined an escort team traveling to Thousand Dew Marketplace to buy spirit medicines. The chapter left Yun Shu facing a suspiciously dramatic seller when another voice offered twenty Spirit Stones for the medicine priced at two hundred.

• Liu Zongcheng explained that his strange wriggling was a health-preserving method, while Run Tu practiced Li Ping'an’s strength routine.
• Li Ping'an tested poisonous powder on himself, collapsed, and remained unconscious for weeks as grass and flowers grew from his body.
• Run Tu and Old Ox buried Li Ping'an, but he woke, climbed out of the grave, and planted Run Tu headfirst in the dirt.
• Li Ping'an traveled with Yun Shu, Situ Lei, and other Shushan disciples to Thousand Dew Marketplace to purchase spirit medicines amid the ongoing war.
• Yun Shu agreed to consider buying a medicine for two hundred Spirit Stones before an unseen speaker offered the seller twenty.

Li Ping'an and Situ Lei were ambushed while transporting medicinal ingredients, but Li Ping'an defeated the attackers with a poison he had developed. Back at work, he considered the growing war and his uncertain role in it, then drifted off as the rain began.

• Yun Shu watched Li Ping'an bargain down a stallholder who claimed his parent needed Spirit Stones, then saw him make the same claim to another customer.
• Li Ping'an and Situ Lei split from Yun Shu to wait for the final batch of ingredients, then set out with it two days later.
• Li Ping'an detected four pursuers and evaded their magical treasure attack before scattering his improved poison, which incapacitated all four attackers and affected him as well.
• Li Ping'an ignored the attackers' pleas, cleared the poison from his body with the Turtle Breath Technique, and hurried on with Situ Lei.
• Li Ping'an heard rumors about the second batch of disciples going north and worried about Jing Yu, while telling Run Tu that he would take the war as it came.
• As rain fell, Li Ping'an and Old Ox grew sleepy while he reflected on his efforts to develop poison for large-scale battles.

After Elder Qingfeng warned Li Ping'an that something was wrong in Shushan, Li Ping'an grew wary of Tang Zhen’s invitations to pursue suspicious opportunities. The chapter left Li Ping'an weighing Tang Zhen’s behavior while Old Ox reported the details of his expressions.

• Li Ping'an prepared wine for Elder Qingfeng, who warned him to stop working at Bamboo Leaf Peak after he left and to be cautious around people in Shushan.
• Tang Zhen invited Li Ping'an to help ambush Evil Cultivators on Yunsu Mountain and split their Spirit Stones, but Li Ping'an refused.
• A few days later, Tang Zhen told Li Ping'an about an old musician passing through Qingyun Town and offered to help with his work, but Li Ping'an declined again.
• After Tang Zhen left, Old Ox described every detail of Tang Zhen's facial expressions to Li Ping'an.

Li Ping'an handed over his work and prepared to take up a post guarding Shushan's Underground Prison, while warning Liu Zongcheng that someone might target the Alchemical Workshop's disciples. He also gave Liu proposals for preserving spirit medicine before Liu called him back as he was leaving.

• Li Ping'an suspected Tang Zhen was an undercover agent of Great Yu planning to lure him or other Alchemists out of Shushan and kill them, though he had no evidence.
• Li Ping'an completed his handover and arranged to guard Shushan's Underground Prison, a secure post that would leave him time to cultivate.
• Li Ping'an brought a Spirit Fish to Liu Zongcheng, thanked him for his guidance, and discreetly warned him to watch over the Alchemical Workshop's disciples.
• Li Ping'an presented Liu Zongcheng with proposals for improving spirit medicine storage, including using prepared Thousand-Gold Vine to absorb moisture and prevent mold.
• As Li Ping'an rose to leave, Liu Zongcheng called, "Wait!"

Li Ping'an accepted Liu Zongcheng’s poison-related gifts and went to work at Shushan’s underground prison with Old Ox and Run Tu. After three months of prison duty and studying a Poison Formation, he heard that a second batch of disciples would soon depart for the war.

• Liu Zongcheng gave Li Ping'an spirit herbs, poison pills, and a Poison Scripture before Li Ping'an left with Old Ox and Run Tu.
• Li Ping'an spent the journey imagining his future and arrived at Shushan’s prison.
• Over the next three months, Li Ping'an developed seasonal body-nourishing exercises and worked at the prison, chatting with its dangerous inmates.
• Li Ping'an studied a Poison Formation and planned to develop a Plague Umbrella and an Eight Trigrams Formation Platform.
• Old Zhou told Li Ping'an that the second batch of disciples would soon set out for the war.

Li Ping'an studied the Poison Scripture in Horn Prison while Yun Shu visited to say goodbye before joining the second group of disciples heading north. He asked her to send news of Liu Er Dog, and she left after they wished each other well.

• Li Ping'an volunteered to take the prison key and went to the Watchtower, where he studied the Poison Scripture with Old Ox.
• A disciple told Old Zhou that Yun Shu was waiting outside and wanted to see Li Ping'an.
• Yun Shu told Li Ping'an she was joining the second batch of disciples heading north.
• Li Ping'an asked Yun Shu to write if she heard anything about Liu Er Dog, and she left after they exchanged farewells.

Li Ping'an continued cultivating and farming in the imperial prison, where his steady habits eventually drew Old Zhou into a more fulfilling life. After the front suffered heavy losses and a funeral procession honored thirty-five dead, Li Ping'an received an urgent message that something had happened at Shushan.

• Li Ping'an tested his poison formation on a rabbit while Run Tu and Old Ox helped, and Old Zhou gradually joined him in tending the fields.
• Li Ping'an treated the sick prisoner in Cell B-16 but rejected the prisoner's offers of a cultivation art and buried treasure.
• Two years passed as the front remained locked in battle, and Li Ping'an, Old Ox, and Run Tu joined the funeral procession for thirty-five dead, including people Li Ping'an had known.
• Li Ping'an received a message through Qingfeng's communication talisman warning that something had happened at Shushan.

After Shushan’s reinforcements were ambushed by the Emei Sect, the sect’s rebellion was exposed, and Li Ping'an continued studying the captured Li Yanluo’s secret techniques. The chapter ended with Li Ping'an making progress just as news of the elders’ deaths reached Shushan.

• Li Ping'an put Run Tu and Old Ox’s work on hold after receiving a warning that Shushan might be in danger.
• Shushan sent over a dozen seventh-rank cultivators to reinforce Qingfeng and other elders who had been attacked while away.
• At Wolong Valley, the Emei Sect ambushed Shushan’s reinforcements, killing four attendant elders and two guardian elders before the survivors escaped.
• The Emei Sect fled with its secret treasures and many inner disciples, and Great Sui’s allied forces learned that it had rebelled.
• Li Ping'an fed Li Yanluo and studied his secret techniques, checking his teachings with Elder Liu Zongcheng and ancient texts.
• Li Ping'an’s study of the secret technique began to yield results as news of the fallen Shushan elders arrived.

Li Ping'an continued gathering poison knowledge in the prison while warning Old Zhou that he sensed trouble ahead. Shushan was suddenly attacked by powerful enemies, including the supposedly dead Soul-Seizing Demon Venerable, and Li Ping'an prepared to face the upheaval.

• Old Zhou explained that the Emei Sect had sided with Great Yu, while the prison disciples treated the news as idle conversation.
• Li Ping'an questioned Li Yanluo about poison formations and recorded his answers before handing over the meal.
• Li Ping'an refused Old Zhou's invitation to visit other peaks, saying he felt that something major was about to happen.
• Two hundred li from Shushan, attackers struck the Mountain-Guarding Grand Formation, and the Soul-Seizing Demon Venerable appeared to batter it with a demonic seal.
• Shushan rang its warning bell and ordered its peaks to prepare for battle, sending Old Zhou and the other prison disciples rushing back.
• Li Ping'an readied Old Ox and Run Tu in the prison as the attack began.

The Nine Profound Cave Master betrayed Shushan, killed Zhong Wenchang, and led his disciples through Horn Prison’s defenses. Their assault reached the prison, where they killed two disciples as Old Zhou tried to warn the others.

• Zhong Wenchang learned that the Soul-Seizing Demon Venerable and a dozen seventh-rank cultivators were attacking Shushan.
• The Nine Profound Cave Master secretly struck Zhong Wenchang and sent his disciples to attack the sword towers.
• Zhong Wenchang used his soul’s destruction to send a warning to Main Peak, exposing the Nine Profound Cave Master’s betrayal.
• The Nine Profound Cave Master’s group breached the prison’s final defense and entered the prison.
• Old Zhou sensed the intruders’ killing intent, but they killed two prison disciples before he could stop them.

Li Ping'an defended the A-Class Prison Zone after intruders breached the sword tower and overran the other prison zones, using poison traps and formations to stop their advance. Zhang Xu headed toward A-Class after losing contact with his forces, while Old Zhou and the others waited in the safe zone, fearing Li Ping'an was facing the enemy alone.

• Old Zhou ordered the prison disciples to retreat to the A-Class Prison Zone on Li Ping'an's instructions as intruders seized the B, C, and D zones.
• Li Ping'an's poison formation incapacitated three intruders approaching A-Class.
• Li Ping'an used traps and formations to destroy enemy groups coming through the C- and B-Class zones, with Run Tu activating a composite formation.
• Li Yanluo praised Run Tu's formation skills, and Run Tu explained that he and his brothers had developed the composite formation.
• After the auras of his men vanished, Zhang Xu set out for the A-Class Prison Zone.
• Old Zhou and the other disciples hid in the A-Class Safe Zone and worried that Li Ping'an was holding off the enemy alone.

Li Ping'an and Run Tu used poison and illusion formations to slow Zhang Xu, who broke through them and nearly overwhelmed Run Tu. Li Ping'an then killed Zhang Xu with a rapid saber attack and prepared for more opponents.

• Old Zhou and the others admitted they could only rely on Li Ping'an to protect them.
• Zhang Xu entered the formations, where Run Tu controlled poison weapons and an Eight Trigrams formation to confound him.
• Zhang Xu forced his way through several formations as Run Tu broke through during the battle, then collapsed from the strain.
• Li Ping'an used silver needles to stabilize Run Tu while Old Ox caught him.
• Zhang Xu charged at Li Ping'an, but Li Ping'an struck him with a rapid series of saber blows that pierced his defenses and killed him.

Li Ping'an held cell block A against the prisoners who had escaped from the other blocks, killing the first group that charged him. He then used his sword to suppress Song Zhongzhi, who challenged him, leaving Song Zhongzhi badly wounded on the ground.

• Prisoners broke out of cell blocks B, C, and D and moved toward cell block A, while Old Zhou and the other disciples feared they would be overwhelmed.
• Li Ping'an counted twenty-seven approaching prisoners, prepared his saber, and ignored Li Yanluo's repeated warnings to flee.
• Li Ping'an killed more than twenty prisoners with his saber and magical weapons, causing the survivors to retreat.
• Song Zhongzhi stepped forward to challenge Li Ping'an after striking down a prisoner who had refused to fight.
• Li Ping'an summoned his sword and suppressed Song Zhongzhi's qi until Song Zhongzhi spat blood and collapsed.

Li Ping'an killed Song Zhongzhi and helped keep Jia Prison District from being overrun, while the Nine Profound Cave Master withdrew after sensing Shushan's reinforcements. Elder Zhang arrived to find the surviving jailers and Li Ping'an alive amid the aftermath.

• Li Ping'an defeated and killed Song Zhongzhi with his sword, then revealed he was the Chief Senior Disciple of Shushan's Heaven-Reaching Peak.
• The Nine Profound Cave Master realized his two disciples were dead and sensed Shushan's reinforcements, so Li Ping'an was relieved when he left.
• Elder Zhang arrived with reinforcements and found Jia Prison District largely intact, with escaped inmates but many dead prisoners, jailers, and Nine Profound Grotto disciples.
• Old Zhou told Elder Zhang that Junior Brother Li Ping'an had been responsible for their survival.
• Li Yanluo brooded in his cell as Li Ping'an ate with Old Ox and Run Tu, and Li Ping'an advised them to rest.
• Elder Zhang found Li Ping'an sitting between Old Ox and Run Tu amid the bodies, and Li Ping'an politely greeted him.

After Shushan survived an attack from within and without, Li Ping'an returned to Heaven-Reaching Peak and visited the imprisoned Lin Xue. Lin Xue later died in prison, and Li Ping'an buried her on the peak before carrying on with Old Ox and Run Tu.

• Shushan defeated its external enemies and quelled the internal unrest, then held a funeral for the disciples who had died.
• Liu Zongcheng reported that Li Ping'an had warned him of trouble, earning Li Ping'an another commendation and unwanted fame.
• After Qingfeng returned, Li Ping'an left his jailer post and went back to Heaven-Reaching Peak with Old Ox and Run Tu.
• Li Ping'an visited Lin Xue in Neck Prison, shared food with her, and told her about events outside Shushan.
• Two months later, Lin Xue died in prison, and Li Ping'an buried her on Heaven-Reaching Peak with Old Ox and Run Tu.

Li Ping'an spent a leisurely stretch at Heaven-Reaching Peak until returning disciples revealed the war’s horrific casualties and Shushan’s troop rotation. He learned his name was on the third combat roster, while Situ Lei fainted after seeing his own name there.

• Li Ping'an relaxed at Heaven-Reaching Peak, leaving his rebuilding plan mostly unwritten and telling Run Tu they would travel again after the fighting settled.
• Li Ping'an welcomed the returning disciples, but learned Liu Er Dog had remained at the front because of his battlefield performance.
• The returning disciples described devastating casualties, including the Battle of Six Yang Horses, and one traumatized disciple was taken away by duty disciples.
• Shushan sent its largest group of disciples north as another group returned, and Li Ping'an realized the rotations were training cultivators through combat.
• Li Ping'an found his name on the third combat roster, and Situ Lei collapsed after discovering his own name was listed too.
• Situ Lei awoke in a pavilion and asked whether the news had been a dream, but Li Ping'an told him it was real.

Li Ping'an left Shushan with Old Ox to travel instead of joining the northern campaign, then arrived in drought-stricken Yuanxi Town and decided to seek the City God’s help in bringing rain. After he politely offered incense at the City God Temple, the sleeping City God suddenly spat blood.

• Qingfeng ordered Run Tu to stay at Shushan and told Li Ping'an to travel rather than go to war, so Li Ping'an left with Old Ox after the third group of disciples departed north.
• In Yuanxi Town, Li Ping'an saw villagers sun-drying the Dragon King to pray for rain but initially chose not to interfere with the drought.
• A little girl gave Li Ping'an a copper coin, prompting him to decide to take on the challenge of helping the town.
• Li Ping'an used Aura Lock to find a Soul-Reaping Ghost and asked for an introduction to the City God, but the envoy refused and left with a soul.
• Li Ping'an and Old Ox went to the City God Temple, where Li Ping'an offered incense and requested an audience with the City God.
• In the Underworld, the sleeping City God suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

Li Ping'an met City God Lu Youjie to ask about the drought afflicting Yuanxi Town and learned that a Drought Demon was devastating the region. He asked the City God to fill out and stamp a merit form before they had even found the demon, leaving the City God bewildered and conflicted.

• The injured City God Lu Youjie rushed out to meet Li Ping'an, who had been waiting outside the temple with Old Ox.
• Li Ping'an introduced himself as a Shushan disciple and asked Lu Youjie about the drought in Yuanxi Town.
• Lu Youjie explained that a Drought Demon had caused drought across the region and was difficult to locate, while many cultivators were away at war.
• Li Ping'an said they should find the Drought Demon and handed Lu Youjie a form to record and assess his supposed meritorious service.
• Lu Youjie realized Li Ping'an only wanted paperwork claiming credit for helping apprehend the demon and struggled with whether to comply.

Li Ping'an obtained the City God's stamped training report, then found and defeated the Drought Demon before leaving Yuanxi Town with Old Ox. After three days of rain, they were swept up in an army marching north, unsure where the road would take them.

• The City God signed Li Ping'an's training report, stamped it with his Dharma Seal, and accepted a mouthful of wine from Li Ping'an.
• Li Ping'an used his Dharma Eye to locate the Drought Demon underground and drew it out near Yuanxi Town.
• Li Ping'an attacked the Drought Demon with sword techniques and a Fusang Saber strike, driving it back before collecting his report and departing with Old Ox.
• The City God thanked Li Ping'an, then realized Li Ping'an had earlier tried to reach him through the soul-reaping ghost.
• Heavy rain fell across Yuanxi Town and nearby counties for three days, while the City God watched the townspeople celebrate in disguise.
• Li Ping'an and Old Ox joined a procession of displaced people heading north after an army swept them up along the roadside.