Recaps

Qinghe fought Baxia’s phantom and then tried to hold it off when Xu Yuan arrived to claim its fortune. As Xu Yuan prepared to strike, Qinghe drew her Spirit Treasure Removing the Horn and committed herself to stopping him.

• Qinghe attacked Baxia with her claws and tail, then bit its neck and discovered that it tasted sweet.
• Baxia retaliated with a razor-sharp blast, and Qinghe dodged before moving to keep it occupied for the imperial jade seal.
• Xu Yuan arrived from Chizhou and charged at Baxia with an ancient sword, while Qinghe asked where the black-hearted brat was.
• Qinghe transformed into human form, drew Removing the Horn, and summoned ten thousand sword images behind her.
• Qinghe vowed not to retreat as she prepared to stop Xu Yuan from striking Baxia.

Qinghe fought Xu Yuan with her sword arts and divine ability, but the Dragon-Slaying Sword overwhelmed and pinned her beneath the Great River. Chu Xingchen arrived in his Nascent Soul Dharma Form, rescued her, and promised to defeat Xu Yuan while Qinghe rested.

• Qinghe attacked Xu Yuan with ten thousand sword copies, then combined them into a divine ability that forced him to halt.
• Xu Yuan wielded the Dragon-Slaying Sword to overpower Qinghe and smash her into the riverbed.
• Qinghe threw Removing the Horn at Xu Yuan, but he defeated the sword and pinned her with the Dragon-Slaying Sword.
• Chu Xingchen blasted Xu Yuan away and lifted Qinghe from the riverbed with his Nascent Soul Dharma Form.
• Qinghe told Chu Xingchen that she was hurt and asked him to beat Xu Yuan, and he promised to do so.

Chu Xingchen fought Xu Yuan while Qinghe went to assist Xie Lingyu, and Xu Yuan unleashed the Dragon-Slaying Sword to overpower Chu Xingchen’s Nascent Soul Dharma Form. When Baxia fled, Chu Xingchen refused to let either of them claim it, leaving Xu Yuan furious as the battle continued.

• Qinghe left Chu Xingchen to face Xu Yuan and flew to Li Xingtian’s side to take pills.
• Chu Xingchen mocked Xu Yuan and clashed swords with it, while Xu Yuan explained that it had sacrificed its shell to trap him.
• Xu Yuan unleashed the Dragon-Slaying Sword’s stored power, broke Chu Xingchen’s Flowing Water Sword, and damaged his Nascent Soul Dharma Form.
• Chu Xingchen questioned Xu Yuan about Baxia’s seal and proposed splitting the opportunity, but Xu Yuan attacked without answering.
• Baxia recovered and fled, so Xu Yuan urged Chu Xingchen to stop it; Chu Xingchen refused, saying neither of them should get the opportunity.

Xu Yuan sacrificed his own body to reach Baxia and let the Dragon-Slaying Sword pierce them both, while Chu Xingchen fought to stop him. As the two faced off again, Chu Xingchen declared that Xu Yuan would not take Baxia, even if Baxia was destroyed.

• Xu Yuan sent the Dragon-Slaying Sword at Chu Xingchen and charged in his turtle form, taking Chu Xingchen’s attacks head-on to reach Baxia.
• Xu Yuan pinned Baxia down and bit his neck, then used Baxia as a shield when Chu Xingchen struck again.
• The Dragon-Slaying Sword pierced through both Baxia and Xu Yuan, while the Wordless Golden Stele on Baxia’s back blazed with light.
• Xu Yuan regained human form, summoned the Dragon-Slaying Sword, and confronted Chu Xingchen as Chu Xingchen attacked with two Flowing Water Swords.
• Xu Yuan accused Chu Xingchen of seeking personal gain, but Chu Xingchen denied it and vowed that Xu Yuan could not take Baxia away.

Chu Xingchen defeated Xu Yuan and Baxia, then destroyed Baxia’s statue and the Wordless Golden Stele, releasing the qi luck instead of claiming it and completing the system’s hidden mission. Days later, Qinghe and Li Yingling were still dismantling Chu Xingchen’s scattered formation bases in Chizhou, a job expected to take another month.

• Qinghe berated Li Xingtian after he gave her one of Chu Xingchen’s painful healing pills, while Xie Lingyu and Li Xingtian watched Chu Xingchen’s battle from a distance.
• Li Xingtian sent Chu Xingchen the Ghost-Head Saber, and Qinghe mistook Chu Xingchen’s blood-colored aura for proof that he was an evil cultivator.
• Chu Xingchen defeated Xu Yuan and Baxia, then offered Qinghe the opportunity to claim Baxia and its qi luck; Qinghe declined, and Xie Lingyu and Li Xingtian did too.
• Chu Xingchen smashed Baxia’s statue and the Wordless Golden Stele, releasing the qi luck and completing the hidden mission; afterward, Removing the Horn killed Xu Yuan.
• Several days later, Qinghe and Li Yingling dismantled formation bases along Chizhou’s Great River, and Li Yingling said their work would take about another month.

After the Black Tortoise Kingdom secured victory in Bingzhou, Chu Xingchen visited Zhao Xuan to return the cracked Imperial Jade Seal and alluded to what Zhao Taizu had hidden inside it. As Chu Xingchen and Xie Lingyu walked through the capital, she reflected on his startling growth and called him uncanny.

• Zhao Xuan reviewed the victory in Bingzhou and grieved for the people and land lost despite the kingdom's safety.
• Chu Xingchen visited Zhao Xuan with Xie Lingyu, and Zhao Xuan thanked him for helping stop the demon in Cangzhou.
• Chu Xingchen declined a reward and returned the cracked Imperial Jade Seal, reassuring Zhao Xuan that he had not lost it.
• Chu Xingchen remarked that Zhao Taizu had dared to hide anything inside the seal, and Zhao Xuan bowed without asking further questions.
• Xie Lingyu reflected on Chu Xingchen's rapid rise to a Karmic Nascent Soul and called him uncanny.
• Chu Xingchen blamed his eldest disciple for Xie Lingyu's remark, then wondered if his second disciple had influenced her instead.

After the Black Tortoise Cult's uprising collapsed, Li Zhong hid with Old Fox, who gave him a supposed way to escape to Bingzhou. Meanwhile, Chu Xingchen invited Qinghe, Xie Lingyu, Li Yingling, and Li Xingtian to visit his sect for fun.

• Li Zhong hid in a city inn with Old Fox as authorities and sect cultivators began sweeping the region after the uprising's defeat.
• Old Fox advised Li Zhong to flee to Bingzhou and gave him a wooden token as proof of his recommendation to Yu Zhu's contacts.
• Li Zhong left with the token, while Old Fox stayed behind, privately revealing that the token was worthless and drinking without concern for his fate.
• Qinghe complained that she had been working while Chu Xingchen and Xie Lingyu had visited the Capital City.
• Chu Xingchen invited Qinghe and the others to his sect, and they sampled his tea, which he admitted was far inferior to Chen Baiqing's.

Lin Luoyu, Chen Baiqing, and Cui Hao waited at the sect while Chu Xingchen was away, and Lin Luoyu reached Foundation Establishment. Chu Xingchen returned with Qinghe and another woman, gave Lin Luoyu a sword manual and Cui Hao dried fish, then revealed that Qinghe had seen the slain Flood Dragon.

• Lin Luoyu recalled how Chen Baiqing had managed the sect during Chu Xingchen’s absence and how Cui Hao had accidentally killed a Spirit Fish with his experiments.
• Lin Luoyu told Chen Baiqing she had reached Foundation Establishment without using the pills Chu Xingchen had left behind.
• Cui Hao speculated that Chu Xingchen might be involved in the Flood Dragon’s rampage in Cangzhou, while Chen Baiqing said she was glad her master was safe.
• Chu Xingchen returned with Qinghe and an unfamiliar woman, and Chen Baiqing greeted him by holding his sleeve.
• Chu Xingchen gave Lin Luoyu a copy of [Righteousness Sword] and Cui Hao a jar of salted dried fish.
• Cui Hao asked Chu Xingchen about the Flood Dragon, and Chu Xingchen pointed to Qinghe when Cui Hao asked whether he had seen it.

Chu Xingchen reunited with his disciples and Xie Lingyu, then cooked a meal for everyone. The chapter ended with Qinghe enthusiastically eating and threatening to show Xie Lingyu how to eat chopsticks.

• Cui Hao tried to hide that he had repeated a story about Qinghe skinning Chu Xingchen, and Chu Xingchen shielded him from her teasing.
• Chu Xingchen introduced Cui Hao and Lin Luoyu to Xie Lingyu, who gave them protective Dharma Treasures.
• Chen Baiqing brewed tea that Qinghe and Xie Lingyu found exceptionally delicious.
• Chu Xingchen announced that he would cook, and his disciples and guests named the dishes they wanted.
• Everyone eagerly ate Chu Xingchen's meal, while Xie Lingyu reprimanded Qinghe for reaching for ribs with a full mouth.

Lin Luoyu sought help understanding the Righteousness Sword manual, but Chen Baiqing admitted she could not explain the sword Divine Ability and Lin Luoyu went to ask her Eldest Senior Sister. Qinghe stayed with Chen Baiqing, discovered their shared enjoyment of leisure, and watched Chen Baiqing call a fish from the Deep Pool so she could touch it.

• Qinghe took over telling the story of events in Cangzhou and Chizhou, exaggerating her and Xie Lingyu’s roles until Xie Lingyu left the table in embarrassment.
• Lin Luoyu brought the Righteousness Sword manual to Chen Baiqing, who said she did not practice swordsmanship and suggested asking Eldest Senior Sister or Master.
• Qinghe offered to explain the manual, but Lin Luoyu politely declined and left to find her Eldest Senior Sister.
• Qinghe sat with Chen Baiqing and learned that her master let her read storybooks and live as she pleased.
• Chen Baiqing claimed she was the Sect’s best at catching fish and summoned one from the Deep Pool, telling Qinghe, “You can touch it now.”

After reaching the Middle Spirit Transformation Realm, Chu Xingchen considered whether to move his sect to Central Province to fulfill an optional system quest, but chose to investigate the possibility later. He then examined a huge egg relic with Li Yingling and Li Xingtian and wondered how to hatch it.

• Chu Xingchen advanced into the Middle Spirit Transformation Realm, completed construction of the True Martial Hall, and received new system quests and an Enlightenment Room blueprint.
• Chu Xingchen realized that the optional quest to establish a sect in a place with sufficient Spiritual Power would likely require moving to Central Province, but he hesitated to leave the sect’s memories and decided to investigate later.
• Chu Xingchen gathered Li Yingling and Li Xingtian in the completed True Martial Hall to examine the huge egg he had received as a relic.
• Li Xingtian suggested consulting a demon compendium to identify the egg and learn how to hatch it, while Chu Xingchen joked that they could boil it if it took too long.

Chu Xingchen, Li Yingling, and Li Xingtian gathered to examine a strange egg before Lin Luoyu arrived for help understanding the Righteousness Sword manual. Their attempt to teach her was interrupted by Yuankong, who revealed that Li Zi had awakened, prompting Li Yingling to tease Li Xingtian about having a sweetheart.

• Li Xingtian agreed with Chu Xingchen that the strange egg should be boiled after Li Yingling approved of the idea.
• Lin Luoyu came to the Main Hall to ask Li Yingling for help with the Righteousness Sword manual, and Chu Xingchen and Li Xingtian were roped into teaching her.
• Ning Qianqian announced Yuankong's arrival, and Li Yingling insisted that Chu Xingchen, Li Xingtian, and Lin Luoyu all meet him.
• Chu Xingchen pulled Yuankong into the hall, where Yuankong revealed that Li Zi had woken up.
• Li Yingling called Li Zi Li Xingtian's unconscious sweetheart, leaving Li Xingtian convinced his reputation had been ruined.

Li Yingling struggled to teach Lin Luoyu the Righteousness Sword, so Chu Xingchen stepped in and explained it until Lin Luoyu understood. Meanwhile, Cui Hao saw a Flood Dragon behaving strangely around Third Senior Sister and entered the Main Hall, where he found another baffling scene.

• Li Yingling examined the Righteousness Sword and explained that its power depended on cultivating a righteous state of mind.
• Lin Luoyu told Li Yingling she needed help understanding how to combine the sword techniques with that state of mind.
• After Lin Luoyu failed to understand Li Yingling's explanation, Chu Xingchen took over and taught her the missing details.
• Cui Hao avoided the Water Pool after finding the Flood Dragon there, stroking a fish while giving Third Senior Sister a puzzled look.
• Cui Hao entered the Main Hall and saw Chu Xingchen demonstrating something to Li Yingling while Lin Luoyu smiled blissfully.

Xie Lingyu visited Chu Xingchen’s sect, discovered Qinghe had been secretly stroking fish with Chen Baiqing, and joined the others for a lively barbecue and games. That night, Chu Xingchen learned Li Zi still planned to return to Central Province to search for her younger brother, while Li Xingtian wondered who was spreading rumors about him.

• Xie Lingyu toured Chu Xingchen’s sect and found Qinghe holding a fish beside the Deep Pool with Chen Baiqing.
• Chen Baiqing explained that Qinghe had wanted to slack off by stroking a fish, and Chu Xingchen teased Qinghe after realizing what she had been doing.
• Chu Xingchen proposed a barbecue, and the group played games; Qinghe was soundly beaten at Monopoly when Li Yingling joined in as a player.
• After returning from Chanwood Temple, Li Xingtian told Chu Xingchen that Li Zi still wanted to return to Central Province and search for her younger brother.
• Chu Xingchen asked whether Li Xingtian would accompany Li Zi, but Li Xingtian said he had prepared for her return and questioned the rumors circulating about him.

Xie Lingyu and Qinghe left Chu Xingchen’s sect after visiting, while Qinghe reluctantly said goodbye to Chen Baiqing. As the others dispersed, Chu Xingchen reassured Li Xingtian that he could leave to hunt and still have the sect to return home to.

• Qinghe pleaded with Xie Lingyu to stay two more days, but Xie Lingyu refused and reminded her she could remain at Chu Xingchen’s sect if she wished.
• Xie Lingyu said she had duties and a path of her own, and expected to meet Chu Xingchen again in Central Province after she caught up in cultivation.
• Xie Lingyu bade farewell to Chu Xingchen and his disciples, then departed in a streak of rainbow light; Qinghe warned Chu Xingchen not to lead Chen Baiqing astray before chasing after her.
• After the group dispersed, Li Xingtian followed Chu Xingchen toward the Main Hall, and Chu Xingchen told him the sect was not a cage but a place to lean on and come home to.
• Li Xingtian answered Chu Xingchen with a stiff but heartfelt smile.

Lin Luoyu dwelled on her village’s letter asking her to return and deal with reported demons, while Cui Hao urged her to rely on the sect. She questioned what she could do if there were no demons to subdue.

• Lin Luoyu remembered Second Senior Brother’s farewell and watched the fish by the Deep Pool while waiting for Chen Baiqing.
• Cui Hao told Lin Luoyu that Master and the other senior disciples had noticed her distraction and wanted to know whether she needed help.
• Cui Hao described the sect as a home and urged Lin Luoyu to stop treating its members like outsiders.
• Lin Luoyu gave Cui Hao the letter from her village, which asked about her cultivation and requested her help with reported demons.
• Cui Hao suggested that she could subdue the demons, and Lin Luoyu asked what she should do if there were none.

Cui Hao urged Lin Luoyu to let Chu Xingchen handle the family matter behind the letter, then helped arrange to accompany her home. As Lin Luoyu and Cui Hao left together, Li Yingling began to tell Chu Xingchen what she wanted.

• Cui Hao burned Lin Luoyu’s letter and suggested she avoid the problem by pretending she had never seen it, but she rejected his advice.
• After Lin Luoyu admitted the letter came from an elder in her family, Cui Hao suggested asking Chu Xingchen to deal with the elder, and Lin Luoyu decided to return home herself.
• In the Main Hall, Lin Luoyu told Chu Xingchen she wanted to go home, and he offered to accompany her after Cui Hao signaled there was more to the situation.
• Lin Luoyu refused Chu Xingchen’s offer, so Cui Hao volunteered to go with her, and Chu Xingchen insisted she accept.
• As Lin Luoyu and Cui Hao left together, Chu Xingchen asked Li Yingling what she was thinking, and she began, “Master, I want to...”

Lin Luoyu returned to Lin Family Ravine with Cui Hao, where the villagers asked for help with demons and evil spirits. After agreeing to meet Li Junzi, Lin Luoyu sent Cui Hao to deal with the demons alone.

• Lin Luoyu and Cui Hao traveled by carriage toward her home village, and she warned him to speak and act carefully.
• The villagers welcomed Lin Luoyu and told Cui Hao that demons and evil spirits had been appearing near the woods and river while the Demon-Suppression Bureau delayed responding.
• The Village Chief said Li Junzi wanted to apologize to Lin Luoyu for what had happened in the past, and Lin Luoyu agreed to see her.
• Lin Luoyu told the Village Chief that Cui Hao would vanquish the demons by himself, leaving him stunned.

Cui Hao accompanied Lin Luoyu to visit her former teacher, Li Junzi, in Lin Family Ravine. The visit began politely, with Li Junzi insisting that Lin Luoyu was a guest and should not make the tea.

• Cui Hao ignored Lin Luoyu’s suggestion that he go elsewhere and followed her toward a hill outside the village.
• Villagers recognized Lin Luoyu as she passed, recalling how she had once left the village poor and become its only woman accepted into Chu Xingchen’s sect.
• Lin Luoyu warned Cui Hao to stay quiet, then knocked at the small house on the hill.
• Li Junzi answered the door and greeted Lin Luoyu and Cui Hao, who introduced himself as her junior brother.
• When Lin Luoyu offered to brew tea, Li Junzi stopped her, saying she was a guest.

After Li Junzi rescued Lin Luoyu from a landowner’s wife who accused her of stealing rice, she found the hungry girl fishing alone at night and joined her. Sharing the fish they caught, Li Junzi decided to stay in Lin Family Ravine rather than continue to Junzi Mountain.

• Lin Luoyu gathered leftover rice in a harvested field, but the landowner’s wife chased her and accused her of stealing it.
• Li Junzi stopped the woman by paying two copper coins for the rice, while Lin Luoyu insisted she had not stolen and ran away in shame.
• That night, Li Junzi found Lin Luoyu fishing and offered food, but Lin Luoyu refused and insisted she would repay the coins.
• Li Junzi asked to fish beside Lin Luoyu, and Lin Luoyu caught five large fish, then gave Li Junzi two as her share of the luck.
• Li Junzi told Lin Luoyu she had planned to study at Junzi Mountain but now intended to stay in Lin Family Ravine to understand the world firsthand.

Li Junzi helped Lin Luoyu leave her harsh life behind, brought her into a new courtyard, and taught her to read. Years later, Lin Luoyu overheard a visitor urge Li Junzi to abandon her for the sake of becoming a Great Confucian, and she began to doubt whether studying had been worth it.

• Li Junzi visited Lin Luoyu, accepted a bowl of fish broth, and asked her to show her around Lin Family Ravine.
• Li Junzi hired craftsmen to build a courtyard and invited Lin Luoyu to live there and help tend chickens and vegetables.
• Li Junzi taught Lin Luoyu to read, and Lin Luoyu devoted herself to studying as she grew up in the courtyard.
• A male visitor confronted Li Junzi about giving up her chance to become a Great Confucian for Lin Luoyu, but Li Junzi defended her choice to stay.
• Lin Luoyu overheard their conversation from bed and thought that studying was not all that good either.

Li Junzi taught Lin Luoyu to wield a brush, and Lin Luoyu unexpectedly wrote Violent Wind, revealing her potential to become a Lesser Sage. Seven years later, after advancing to Understanding Principle, Lin Luoyu told Li Junzi she wanted to stop reading and try immortal cultivation, leaving Li Junzi deeply disappointed.

• Li Junzi wrote Clear Wind to calm Lin Luoyu, then taught her how Confucian Scholars used books and understanding to wield a brush.
• Lin Luoyu wrote Violent Wind, unleashing a powerful gust before collapsing asleep, and Li Junzi recognized her potential to become a Lesser Sage.
• Over the next seven years, Lin Luoyu advanced to Understanding Principle while Li Junzi stayed in Lin Family Ravine to teach her.
• Lin Luoyu told Li Junzi she no longer wanted to read and might try immortal cultivation instead.
• Li Junzi urged Lin Luoyu to keep reading until she became a Lesser Sage, but Lin Luoyu felt that her teacher's eyes no longer held her.

Lin Luoyu explained why she had doubted the Confucian path, and Li Junzi supported her choice to pursue immortality, giving her a sheet of paper bearing the characters “Righteousness” before she left for Yuzhou City. Years later, Lin Luoyu returned to Lin Family Ravine with Cui Hao and found Li Junzi alive but distant, leaving her unsure how to approach her teacher.

• Lin Luoyu told Li Junzi that she had considered abandoning study because reason could not reach cultivators, but decided she should continue studying while pursuing immortality.
• Li Junzi encouraged Lin Luoyu to follow her chosen path, wrote “Righteousness” for her, and accepted that she could no longer write “Clear Wind.”
• Lin Luoyu left for Yuzhou City carrying her teacher’s paper, joined an immortal sect, and built a new life among her master and fellow disciples.
• After receiving a letter from Lin Family Ravine, Lin Luoyu returned with Cui Hao and found Li Junzi older and more haggard.
• Lin Luoyu tried to ask Li Junzi how she had been, but Li Junzi responded formally and treated her as a guest when she offered to make tea.

Lin Luoyu returned to Lin Family Ravine with Cui Hao and reunited with her teacher, Li Junzi, while they prepared a meal and discussed recent troubles in the village. Li Junzi asked whether Cui Hao was mute, and Lin Luoyu had not yet answered.

• Li Junzi offered tea and chairs, while Cui Hao sat down, then stood behind Lin Luoyu when she signaled him to show respect.
• Li Junzi suspected Lin Luoyu might be bullying Cui Hao, but Lin Luoyu said he was naturally unruly and Cui Hao vigorously agreed.
• Li Junzi invited Lin Luoyu and Cui Hao to stay for a meal, and Cui Hao silently declined to request any particular food.
• Lin Luoyu followed Li Junzi to the kitchen and learned that villagers had sent a letter after demons and lingering resentment troubled Lin Family Ravine.
• Lin Luoyu explained that she feared Li Junzi had abandoned her after her letters went unanswered, and Li Junzi asked whether Cui Hao was mute.

Cui Hao stayed with Li Junzi while Lin Luoyu went to investigate the evil entities outside Lin Family Ravine. After reading Li Junzi’s writing, he recognized that her Confucian path had encountered a problem and revealed that, despite never entering the Writing Brush Realm, he had advanced directly to the Book Rubbing Realm.

• Cui Hao chatted with Li Junzi over dinner and agreed to stay behind while Lin Luoyu dealt with the evil entities.
• After dinner, Lin Luoyu left to investigate, and Cui Hao quietly read books from Li Junzi’s shelves.
• Cui Hao asked Li Junzi about Lin Luoyu’s past, then requested to read the book she was writing.
• After studying Li Junzi’s writing, Cui Hao noted its wisdom lacked literary qi or spiritual radiance and asked whether she had encountered a problem.
• Cui Hao told Li Junzi that he had skipped the Writing Brush Realm and entered the Book Rubbing Realm directly.