Chapter Summaries

In Cloud Province, Li Ping'an and his companions performed street tricks to earn money for food before Wen Tao parted ways with them. That night, assassins attacked their inn, but Li Ping'an's flying sword drove them off.

• Li Ping'an had his group perform for the crowds, with Wen Tao breaking a stone slab and Old Ox delighting everyone with acrobatics and dancing.
• The group earned enough to feast at an inn, where Wen Tao said goodbye and headed back to the Shijun Sect.
• Li Ping'an and Old Ox shared a room with Zhou Youcai, who looked forward to setting off early the next morning.
• Assassins crept into the inn to kill Zhou Youcai, but Li Ping'an's flying sword struck one and forced the attackers to flee.

Li Ping'an escorted Zhou Youcai toward the Zhou Family branch in Yu City and foiled several attempts to kill him. After defeating a Third Rank Qi Refining Practitioner sent by Zhou Youcai’s half-brother, Li Ping'an continued the journey with Zhou Youcai and Old Ox.

• Li Ping'an set out with Zhou Youcai and Old Ox for the Zhou Family branch in Yu City, taking a forest path because their travel papers had been lost at sea.
• At a tea stall, Li Ping'an stopped a disguised attacker from stabbing Zhou Youcai, then left after warning that someone was pursuing them.
• A red-robed woman used Zhou Youcai’s birth information to track him, and her young master followed the misleading trail west.
• At a ruined temple, the young master ordered his servants to attack Li Ping'an, who broke their swords with his fingers.
• Li Ping'an struck down the young master before he could draw his sword and learned he was a Third Rank Qi Refining Practitioner, then continued traveling with Zhou Youcai and Old Ox.

Li Ping'an left Zhou Youcai with his family in Yu City and traveled north to Stone Mountain. There, he confronted the bandit chief Golden-Eyed Biao, whose crimes he read aloud before the gathered bandits.

• Zhou Youcai reunited with his maternal second uncle outside Yu City and thanked Li Ping'an for saving him.
• Li Ping'an slipped away from the reunion, bought wine, and continued traveling with Old Ox.
• The story described the poverty and lawlessness of northern Cloud Province, where Golden-Eyed Biao's bandits terrorized villages.
• Golden-Eyed Biao forced a captive woman to dance while her husband hung from a noose, and the bandits planned to abuse her.
• Li Ping'an entered the bandits' den, drank their wine, and identified Golden-Eyed Biao by his real name and crimes.
• Golden-Eyed Biao challenged Li Ping'an, preparing to fight him.

Li Ping'an wiped out the bandits on Stone Mountain, brought their heads and the abducted women to the Qingshui county office, and claimed the bounty. After the townspeople thanked him with gifts, a servant led him to the rear garden, where an old patriarch in gray robes waited with two burly men.

• Li Ping'an killed the bandit chief and leaders inside the hall, then used the sword from his Wine Gourd to slaughter the bandits outside and free the abducted women.
• Li Ping'an escorted the women to the Qingshui county office and presented the bandits' heads and wanted notices to claim the reward.
• The magistrate confirmed the bandits' identities, paid Li Ping'an, and hosted a feast that included food for his ox.
• The townspeople thanked Li Ping'an for ending the bandits' abuses and gave him food and other provisions.
• A servant led Li Ping'an to the rear garden, where an old patriarch in gray robes sat with two burly men, while the magistrate was absent.

Li Ping'an killed the gray-robed Qi Refiner behind the Stone Mountain bandits, collected the promised bounty, and continued traveling with Old Ox. After bounty hunters pursued him for killing the county magistrate, Li Ping'an escaped by having Old Ox leap across a mountain ravine.

• The gray-robed old man attacked Li Ping'an with his guqin, but Li Ping'an resisted the sound-based technique and killed him with a finger jab to the throat.
• Old Ox returned the fleeing county magistrate, who paid Li Ping'an five silver ingots and a piece of gold before pleading for his life.
• Li Ping'an took Spirit Stones and a Qi Refining manual from the old man, discovered that absorbing the stones gradually was more effective, and continued on with Old Ox.
• Li Ping'an and Old Ox followed a map from the magistrate's home, realized they had gone the wrong way, and turned back.
• Two bounty hunters and their companions confronted Li Ping'an and chased him up a mountain, but Old Ox leaped across a seventy- or eighty-foot gap to escape them.

Li Ping'an escaped another ambush by Cloud Province bounty hunters while carrying a table, then shared a meal with Old Ox and continued cultivating on the road. He hoped to reach Demon-Suppressing Pass soon without facing more hunters.

• A tavern waiter tried to lure Li Ping'an inside, but Li Ping'an recognized the ambush as another attempt to capture him for a reward.
• Li Ping'an fought off the crossbowmen, disarmed the head of Five Tigers Breaking Gate Saber, evaded the spear-wielding middle-aged man, and escaped with a table.
• The old man and the middle-aged man wondered why Li Ping'an had carried off the table, then cursed him when they realized he had escaped.
• Li Ping'an and Old Ox ate the food from the table, and Old Ox admitted that reading the map upside down had caused their earlier wrong turns.
• Li Ping'an absorbed three Spirit Stones, cultivated, and played his erhu while Old Ox slept; he hoped to reach Demon-Suppressing Pass soon.

Li Ping'an reached Three Locust Tree Village and learned that a monster had made the northern mountain road impassable, but he decided to head there with Old Ox. Two young Daoists also arrived at the mountain, where they sensed a powerful demonic aura.

• Li Ping'an asked for water in Three Locust Tree Village and learned from a villager that a monster had driven people away from the northern road.
• The villager explained how silver-based taxes burdened his family, and his daughter Niuniu asked Li Ping'an to stay for more good meals.
• Li Ping'an left the family a large silver ingot, but Niuniu cried when she discovered her saved candy was gone.
• Li Ping'an headed toward the mountains with the candy in his mouth, while Old Ox complained that it had not gotten any.
• A Daoist man and woman reached the mountain and sensed a strong demonic aura; the woman wanted to report back to their Master, but the man trusted their Demon-Slaying Sword.

Li Ping'an met two young Daoists, Zhou Baoshan and Lin Xuan, who planned to slay a demon in the mountains, and fed them before they set off. The next day, he continued north and struck a woman who tried to seduce him with a brick after she and two men staged an apparent rescue.

• Li Ping'an met Zhou Baoshan and Lin Xuan, who warned him about a powerful demon in the mountains and said they had come to slay it.
• Li Ping'an caught fish and cooked a meal for the hungry Daoists, who ate before leaving to hunt the demon.
• After Zhou Baoshan and Lin Xuan failed to return overnight, Li Ping'an set off again with Old Ox.
• A woman in white ran to Li Ping'an for help while two bare-chested men chased her, and Li Ping'an knocked the men into trees with a light tap.
• The woman tried to seduce Li Ping'an, but he struck her on the head with a brick.

Li Ping'an defeated the Spider Demon’s ambush and used his sword to break into her cave just as she was about to kill Zhou Baoshan. The Spider Demon was gravely wounded, while Zhou Baoshan remained trapped and poisoned.

• Li Ping'an revealed the Spider Demon’s disguise, dodged her attacks, and wounded her with his Flying Sword.
• Lin Xuan and Zhou Baoshan awoke bound in the Spider Demon’s cave beside Zhang Song and dozens of drained victims.
• Zhou Baoshan broke free of his web, but its poison left him unable to move as the Spider Demon prepared to bite him.
• Li Ping'an used the word "Swift" to send his sword through the cave’s Formation and wound the Spider Demon with Sword Qi.

Li Ping'an reunited with Zhang Song after saving Zhou Baoshan, Lin Xuan, and Zhang Song from the Spider Demon's cave, then traveled with Zhang Song toward Demon-Suppressing Pass. After days on the road, they reached the wilderness near Jingmen Mountain, with the great fortress almost in sight.

• Li Ping'an met Zhou Baoshan, Lin Xuan, and Zhang Song outside the cave, where Zhang Song explained how he had survived the shipwreck.
• Li Ping'an gave the poisoned travelers wine from his Sword-Nurturing Gourd, and Zhou Baoshan and Lin Xuan recovered and thanked him for saving them.
• Li Ping'an told Zhou Baoshan and Lin Xuan to take the Spider Demon's remains back to their sect, then departed with Zhang Song for Demon-Suppressing Pass.
• Li Ping'an and Zhang Song traveled through the mountains while Zhang Song boasted about his past and explained that he was saving his Sword Qi for a sword delivery and later battles.
• Li Ping'an practiced the Erhu on a mountaintop, improving his skills and gaining a special effect for Swallow Piercing the Clouds.
• Zhang Song announced that Jingmen Mountain was ahead and that Demon-Suppressing Pass was nearly within reach.

Li Ping'an saved Xiao Jun from two young men who dropped her from the sky, then traveled with her and Zhang Song toward Demon-Suppressing Pass. As they crossed Jingmen Mountain, Zhang Song explained its three religious institutions and the rules for travelers, and the group neared their destination.

• Li Ping'an caught Xiao Jun as she fell, while an unseen force killed the two young men who had abducted her.
• Xiao Jun told Li Ping'an she was headed to Demon-Suppressing Pass to find her young master, so he gave her a pair of straw sandals for the climb.
• Xiao Jun eventually put on the sandals and found the steep mountain path easier, though she mostly rode on Old Ox.
• Zhang Song described how White Horse Temple, Chunqiu Pavilion, and Wenchang Academy guarded the routes across Jingmen Mountain and warned Xiao Jun to keep quiet at Demon-Suppressing Pass.
• Zhang Song and Li Ping'an said they were almost at Demon-Suppressing Pass as the group continued onward.

Li Ping'an and his companions waited for a flying boat to Demon-Suppressing Pass, where a wealthy sect lord's grandson demanded Xiao Jun as his maid. Li Ping'an left the choice to Xiao Jun, who struggled to answer.

• Li Ping'an, Xiao Jun, and Zhang Song arrived at the flying-boat queue, and Zhang Song failed to get them permission to cut in.
• Li Ping'an prepared a barbecue, and Baoshan's young grandson joined Xiao Jun to eat.
• Baoshan's servant offered to buy Xiao Jun and identified Baoshan as the peak lord of Three-Nothing Peak in Qing Province.
• Li Ping'an told Xiao Jun she could refuse, and she hesitated over what to say.

Li Ping'an protected Xiao Jun from Baoshan by invoking the backing of Huailu Academy and its Knight-Errant Brush. He and his companions then boarded a flying ship, which brought them to Demon-Suppressing Pass.

• Xiao Jun refused Baoshan's attempt to buy her, and Li Ping'an used Jing Yu's name and the Knight-Errant Brush to make Baoshan back down.
• Baoshan slapped his grandson for demanding Xiao Jun and left with the boy and his servant.
• Li Ping'an reassured Xiao Jun, and Zhang Song and Xiao Jun resumed eating with him.
• Jing Yu entered a pleasure alley in the Capital City and gave the madam Li Ping'an's name.
• Li Ping'an and his companions boarded a flying ship, which descended through the clouds and revealed Demon-Suppressing Pass.

Li Ping'an, Xiao Jun, and Zhang Song ate at an expensive restaurant in Demon-Suppressing Pass and had to wash dishes to pay their bill. As Li Ping'an settled into life at the pass and waited for Gu Xizhou’s arranged fight, he reflected on the purpose and gains of his journey.

• Li Ping'an, Xiao Jun, and Zhang Song enjoyed a meal at a restaurant, then scrubbed dishes when they could not afford the bill.
• Li Ping'an and Zhang Song washed dishes past midnight, and the innkeeper arranged a place for them to sleep and told them to continue working the next day.
• Li Ping'an reflected on the ordinary, everyday struggles of life and practiced visualization through the night.
• Li Ping'an led Old Ox on walks around Demon-Suppressing Pass and observed its cautious cultivators and the hazy lands of the Demon Race beyond it.
• Li Ping'an sat atop a tower as snow fell, thought about Gu Xizhou’s upcoming fight, and considered the gains from his journey.

Li Ping'an sought paid work at the Myriad Affairs Pavilion, where he impressed an attendant despite having no cultivation and accepted a small commission. At the client’s home, he heard that a sow’s cries in the night were the problem he had been hired to investigate.

• Li Ping'an followed the innkeeper’s advice and visited the Myriad Affairs Pavilion to look for work that paid Spirit Stones.
• Li Ping'an demonstrated his strength to the attendant, who allowed him to choose a commission from the first floor.
• Li Ping'an registered a fifteen-low-grade-Spirit-Stone commission and left his Sword-Nurturing Gourd as collateral.
• Li Ping'an overheard that three people had been found skinned with their hearts removed, but went to his own client’s residence.
• The middle-aged client explained the matter, and Li Ping'an asked why the sow kept screaming miserably at night.

Li Ping'an investigated the missing sows and caught a fox named A Bai stealing from them to help his injured cousin A Hong. After learning a Daoist priest had wounded A Hong, Li Ping'an used one of his written characters to help heal her.

• Ge Dali hired Li Ping'an to investigate the disappearances and screams in his pigpen.
• Li Ping'an spent several nights concealed in the pigpen, waiting for the culprit while practicing the Turtle Breath Technique.
• Li Ping'an caught A Bai fleeing after finding him on a sow and brought him to A Hong's cave.
• A Bai explained that a Daoist priest had wounded A Hong, forcing him to steal livestock to help her recover.
• Li Ping'an examined A Hong and placed a written character on her head to help heal her.

Li Ping'an discovered that the Daoist who had injured A Hong was burying flayed corpses with their hearts removed, and he brought the Myriad Affairs Pavilion clerk to the graveyard with the lead. The chapter ended as the suspected killer appeared and left, while the clerk realized Li Ping'an had identified him.

• Li Ping'an settled the foxes' debt with Ge Dali, returned his jade token for fifteen spirit stones, and accepted A Bai's invitation to dinner.
• At the graveyard, Li Ping'an and A Bai saw the Daoist bury a corpse and uncovered at least six flayed bodies missing their hearts.
• Li Ping'an told Zhang Song about his earnings, and Zhang Song asked to join him on a future commission.
• Li Ping'an reported his graveyard lead to the Myriad Affairs Pavilion clerk, who brought him and Zhang Song to inspect the buried corpses.
• The clerk encountered the old Daoist and warned him to keep quiet, but Li Ping'an pointed out that the Daoist was the killer.

Li Ping'an pursued the old Daoist and killed him before he could unleash his deadly technique. After surviving the Daoist’s explosive death, Li Ping'an secretly kept a red fragment and returned to the inn to examine it.

• Zhang Song and the clerk chased after the old Daoist, while Li Ping'an caught the clerk in a ravine and agreed to pursue the Daoist for extra payment.
• Li Ping'an confronted the old Daoist, who pretended to attack before fleeing through the bushes.
• Li Ping'an struck the old Daoist with his flying sword and Fusang Saber, killing him before he could finish building up his power.
• The old Daoist’s body exploded and blasted Li Ping'an away, but he survived and found a red fragment in the crater.
• Li Ping'an hid the fragment from the clerk, returned to the inn, and began studying it.

Li Ping'an learned that his Rune Fragment could communicate with four other fragments and heard Zhang Song warn him that their owners might kill one another to complete a Great Dao Rune. After receiving his payment and arranging to repay the innkeeper, Li Ping'an learned Wen Shun had paid Xiao Jun's debts and watched her leave with her young master.

• Li Ping'an posed as Little Sweetheart in the fragment network and learned that five people possessed Rune Fragments, including the dead old Taoist.
• Zhang Song identified Li Ping'an's stone as a Great Dao Rune Fragment and warned him to keep his identity secret because fragment owners might hunt one another.
• Zhang Song explained that collecting all five fragments could form a complete Great Dao Rune, which could be absorbed into the Mud Pellet only if it could withstand the power.
• Li Ping'an received his payment from the Myriad Affairs Pavilion and bought Zhang Song a new outfit, then learned the innkeeper's bills had already been paid.
• Wen Shun thanked Li Ping'an and Zhang Song for saving Xiao Jun, and Xiao Jun tearfully left with her young master.

Li Ping'an stayed in town, took a job to find a runaway spirit dog, and reunited it with its owner. On his way back, he encountered Changqing, who had finally found him after being rescued at sea by a turtle Li Ping'an had helped.

• Li Ping'an continued taking low-risk jobs at the Myriad Affairs Pavilion while the Rune Fragment holders exchanged messages and sought information about one another.
• Li Ping'an followed a paper crane to a cave and found Xiao Hui drinking with A Bai and A Hong after running away from its owner.
• Li Ping'an persuaded Xiao Hui to return by giving it a frightening lesson, and Xiao Hui went home bandaged and determined to become stronger.
• Li Ping'an encountered Changqing begging in a corner and took him to an inn, where Changqing ate before explaining how a spirit turtle had rescued him at sea.
• Changqing revealed that the turtle had once crossed the Vast Sea with Li Ping'an, Zhou Youcai, and Wen Tao after Li Ping'an gave it wine and a Flood Dragon's Snake Gallstone.