Recaps

After learning that Wei Yun had been captured during the Falling Cloud Tribe’s attack on Changgu Town, Li Dao tracked him to an enemy camp. Li Dao charged into the camp and began slaughtering the soldiers, while Wei Yun watched in amazement.

• Li Dao returned to Changgu Town with Shen San, Old Ghost, and the others, where Liu Neng told them the Falling Cloud Tribe had taken the town and Wei Yun had drawn their forces away.
• Liu Neng pointed out the direction Wei Yun had gone, and Li Dao rode off alone to find him.
• In the Falling Cloud Tribe’s camp, Jinhua tried to force the captive Wei Yun to blame Great Qian for the Third Prince’s death, then ordered him hung beneath the sun when he refused.
• Li Dao found Wei Yun alive and, after raising his physique to 51.72 with the system, charged into the camp despite Wei Yun’s warning about the two Xiantian Martial Artists.
• Li Dao’s body withstood the soldiers’ blades as he cut through the crowd, leaving Wei Yun astonished by his strength.

Li Dao slaughtered the Falling Cloud Tribe soldiers, then spent his accumulated attributes to raise his Physique and defeat the Xiantian Martial Artist Jinhua. The remaining commander, Jinsha, ordered a retreat, leaving Li Dao watching the enemy force flee.

• Li Dao killed hundreds of Falling Cloud soldiers and received a bonus for reaching one hundred consecutive kills.
• Jinhua charged into the battle, and Li Dao used his accumulated attributes to raise his Physique to 77.50.
• Jinhua's Divine Eagle Claw barely injured Li Dao, while Li Dao's powerful attacks forced Jinhua to fight defensively.
• Li Dao predicted Jinhua's habitual dodge and slashed his throat, killing him.
• Jinsha realized Li Dao could kill him too, mounted a horse, and ordered the Falling Cloud soldiers to retreat.

Li Dao rescued Wei Yun, and after a month Wei Yun secured new identities for Li Dao and the other four former death-row prisoners. The group parted ways, with Li Dao heading north toward home while Wei Yun expected him to return to the battlefield.

• Li Dao rescued Wei Yun from the Falling Cloud Tribe People, and Wei Yun returned with him to Changgu Town.
• Old Ghost treated the wounded soldiers and revealed that his medical experiment had transformed a dignitary’s son into a daughter; he later said Little Madman could only be cured in the Southern Mountains of Great Qian.
• Wei Yun moved the surviving Mighty Camp troops to Changping Town, then registered new identities for Li Dao, Shen San, Old Ghost, Little Madman, and Xu Hu and obtained identity plaques for them.
• Li Dao declined to enlist immediately, saying he wanted to go home first, while Shen San set out with Old Ghost, Little Madman, and Xu Hu for the Southern Mountains.
• Li Dao rode north as Wei Yun watched him leave and predicted that he would return to the battlefield.

Li Dao reached Jade Gate Town and secured a place in an Iron Family caravan bound for the Imperial Capital. After cleaning up and discovering how much his appearance had changed, he joined the caravan as a guard, unaware that a young girl had been watching him.

• Li Dao entered Jade Gate Town using Wei Yun’s Black Iron Saber as proof of his connection, and a gate officer arranged a place for him with an Iron Family caravan.
• Li Dao stayed at the Iron Family Inn, bathed, checked his status panel, and saw that his physique remained at 87.81 with no available attribute points.
• The next morning, the attendant barely recognized Li Dao after his appearance had changed, and the proprietor took him to the caravan’s gathering point.
• Li Dao asked to join the caravan as a guard, and the proprietor introduced him to Boss Qian, who agreed to take him along.
• A young girl in a jade-green dress watched Li Dao from outside a luxurious carriage without being noticed.

Tie Sanniang’s caravan carried Li Dao toward the Imperial Capital, where her maid Bi You’er confronted him for joining improperly. Li Dao avoided being thrown out by offering to tell Bi You’er stories, and began with a tale about a human and a snake demon.

• Tie Sanniang’s maid Bi You’er checked the caravan’s preparations and noticed Li Dao traveling with it.
• Li Dao learned that Tie Sanniang, the Iron Family’s third young lady, led the caravan.
• After seven days on the road, Bi You’er confronted Li Dao for sneaking into the caravan through the guard squad leader.
• Li Dao offered to compensate Bi You’er with stories instead of money, and she brought him a large bowl of food.
• Bi You’er agreed to hear a story, and Li Dao began one about a human and a snake demon.

Li Dao’s growing bond with Bi You’er continued as he told her stories, while Tie Sanniang uncovered his altered ending to White Snake and teased her maid about her feelings. When their convoy was ambushed near the Imperial Capital, Li Dao rushed to protect Tie Sanniang and discovered she had secretly reached the Innate Realm; she asked him to conceal her martial arts and protect her.

• Li Dao and Bi You’er promised to keep sharing stories in exchange for food, and Bi You’er later told Tie Sanniang his version of White Snake and Fahai’s ending.
• Tie Sanniang reconstructed the story’s true pairing, and Bi You’er confronted Li Dao before running back to her mistress after he pinched her cheek.
• As the convoy neared the Imperial Capital, Li Dao sensed danger just before attackers rained arrows down on the resting travelers.
• Li Dao shielded Bi You’er from the arrows, hid her in a chest, and charged toward Tie Sanniang’s isolated carriage as black-clad attackers closed in.
• Li Dao entered the carriage and exchanged blows with Tie Sanniang, realizing she had concealed her martial arts and reached the Innate Realm.
• Tie Sanniang asked Li Dao to keep her abilities secret and protect her.

Li Dao protected Tie Sanniang during an attack on the Iron Family convoy, killed the assailants, and drove off their leader. Afterward, Tie Sanniang ordered the captured assassins killed and postponed addressing her guards’ failures until they returned to the Imperial Capital.

• Li Dao emerged from the carriage with Tie Sanniang and killed the black-clad attackers who surrounded them.
• The attackers’ leader struck Li Dao with Black Sand Palm while trying to seize Tie Sanniang, but Li Dao broke his arm and wounded him, forcing him to flee.
• Li Dao continued fighting to collect attributes while Tie Sanniang reunited with Bi You'er and told her that Li Dao was safe.
• After the convoy’s guards defeated the remaining attackers, Tie Sanniang rebuked their lateness, ordered the captured assassins killed, and deferred further discussion until the Imperial Capital.

Li Dao declined Tie Sanniang’s offer to become her retainer but accepted her golden token, then continued traveling with the Iron Family convoy. After strengthening his physique, he reached the Imperial Capital with the convoy, where Tie Sanniang’s influence was evident at the city gates.

• Tie Sanniang invited Li Dao to thank him for saving her and offered him a place in her service, but he refused and accepted her golden Iron Family token.
• Li Dao rejected Tie Sanniang’s offer to let him sleep in her carriage, then reluctantly accepted a separate carriage after Bi You’er warned that Tie Sanniang would invite him herself.
• Li Dao used the status panel to raise his physique from 87.81 to 96.89 and anticipated another transformation when it reached one hundred.
• The convoy traveled for two more days and arrived at the Imperial Capital, whose towering walls impressed Li Dao.
• Tie Sanniang’s convoy passed the city gates without inspection, and Bi You’er gave money to the respectful head guard on her mistress’s behalf.

Li Dao reached the Imperial Capital and left the Iron Family’s caravan, while the disgraced Earl of Anyuan’s Residence faced confiscation and collapse. Jiu’er discovered that the old steward Li Cheng had died, leaving her alone in the household and asking to be buried in its rear courtyard.

• Li Dao admired the Imperial Capital’s Dragon Road, then slipped away from Tie Sanniang’s caravan without saying goodbye.
• Tie Sanniang sensed that Li Dao had left and resolved to seek him out after finishing her business.
• Li Dao returned to find the Earl of Anyuan’s Residence disgraced, its servants looting the household, and Jiu’er trying to stop them.
• The old steward let the servants leave and told Jiu’er that the household would soon be taken over by the Chancellor’s Residence.
• Jiu’er refused to abandon the young master, while the old steward urged her to leave and then went alone to the ancestral hall.
• Jiu’er found Li Cheng dead in the ancestral hall and read his letter, which explained his life, his remorse, and his wish to be buried in the family’s rear courtyard.

Jiu'er buried Steward Li during a storm, then discovered that the stranger who had rescued her was her returned young master, Li Dao. After learning the Chancellor's Residence planned to seize their home, Li Dao decided to leave the Imperial Capital and went to retrieve a heavy chest from the Ancestral Hall.

• Jiu'er read Steward Li's letter, buried him in the rear courtyard, and fainted from the rain and grief.
• Li Dao carried Jiu'er to her room, filled in Steward Li's grave, and revealed himself when she followed his footprints to the Ancestral Hall.
• Jiu'er recognized Li Dao by his voice and familiar gesture, embraced him, and fell asleep in his arms.
• After waking, Jiu'er told Li Dao that the Chancellor's Residence was coming to seize their home, and he decided they should leave the Imperial Capital.
• Li Dao paid respects to his ancestors, retrieved a dust-covered chest above the highest plaque, and brought it down with a heavy thud.

Li Dao recovered the Li family’s heirloom halberd, three secret manuals, and genealogy before leaving the Earl of Anyuan’s residence with Jiu’er as the Chancellor’s men destroyed it. Meanwhile, Tie Sanniang learned who was behind the recent plots and ordered the Iron Family to cut ties with the Third Prince while she planned her own revenge against the Fourth Prince.

• Li Dao opened the family chest, found the Dragon-Patterned Halberd and three Li family manuals, and took them along with the family genealogy.
• Li Dao left the Earl of Anyuan’s residence with Jiu’er as the Chancellor’s men arrived and wrecked the estate.
• Jiu’er said she wanted to return to the Imperial Capital someday, and Li Dao promised to take her somewhere that would make it possible.
• Tie Xin reported to Tie Sanniang that her two brothers were close to the Third Prince and that the Fourth and Third Princes had clashed.
• Tie Sanniang ordered her people to cut off half the Iron Family’s business with the Fourth Prince and all of it with the Third Prince, while planning to take personal revenge on the Fourth Prince.

Tie Sanniang and Bi You'er visited Princess Mingyue, where Mingyue's two distinct personalities discussed a mysterious pregnancy and Li Dao's death. Tie Sanniang failed to uncover Li Dao's identity, while he and Jiu'er traveled toward a village, where he sensed something troubling ahead.

• Tie Sanniang and Bi You'er visited Princess Mingyue, who concealed her face behind curtains and claimed to be ill.
• After her visitors left, Mingyue's seductive and cool voices argued over their shared body, the missing monthly courses, and the man who had helped the seductive personality emerge.
• Tie Sanniang decided to investigate Li Dao and recruit him, but her agents found only that he had first appeared in Jade Gate Town, so she ended the inquiry.
• Half a month later, Li Dao and Jiu'er traveled along an old road, and he agreed to stop at a nearby village so she could eat.
• As Li Dao and Jiu'er approached the village, his ears twitched and his expression turned serious.

Northern Barbarian cavalry slaughtered the people of Peach Spring Village and surrounded its women, but Li Dao arrived with Jiu'er and killed a cavalryman who threatened them. The cavalry summoned their forces, and their commander judged Li Dao to be no match for his gathered troops.

• Northern Barbarian cavalry raided Peach Spring Village, killing villagers and terrorizing the women; a family fought back before the husband, child, and wife were killed.
• Li Dao and Jiu'er arrived by carriage, and Li Dao recognized the Northern Barbarians and the village massacre.
• A cavalryman threatened Li Dao and Jiu'er, but Li Dao threw his Black Iron Saber and killed him.
• Li Dao sent Jiu'er into the carriage while the cavalry captain signaled for reinforcements.
• The Northern Barbarian cavalry gathered on the street with their plunder and captives, and their commander assessed Li Dao as a young Houtian martial artist he could defeat.

Li Dao slaughtered the Northern Barbarian riders who had attacked a family and threatened the women, then confronted the larger force led by their commander. He killed the commander in one exchange and continued fighting the remaining cavalry.

• The Northern Barbarian riders charged Li Dao, but he swiftly killed them after seeing a family of five they had murdered.
• Li Dao killed the cavalry captain as his horse fled, then advanced toward the remaining Northern Barbarian force.
• The freed women gathered and hoped Li Dao would save them, while Jiu'er watched from the carriage and silently cheered him on.
• The Northern Barbarian leader promised rewards for Li Dao’s head, and his men charged; Li Dao stopped the lead horse and killed its rider.
• Li Dao cut down more riders as the leader joined the attack, then killed the leader with a single slash he called the “All Beings Are Equal Saber.”

Li Dao slaughtered a Northern Barbarians cavalry troop and used the spoils to raise his Physique past one hundred, triggering another transformation. The change affected his blood, and after a black rat drank a drop, it grew stronger and inspired an inexplicable sense of closeness in him.

• Li Dao killed the remaining Northern Barbarians cavalry after their commander fell, leaving none alive.
• Jiu'er checked Li Dao for injuries, and the surviving women of Peach Spring Village thanked him for saving them and avenging their families.
• Li Dao stayed overnight in the village to protect the women, then secretly allocated all his available attributes and raised his Physique to 126.03.
• Li Dao underwent a blood transformation that forced waste material from his body and left his blood with a peculiar fragrance.
• Li Dao fed a drop of his transformed blood to a black rat, which writhed in pain before growing larger and stronger as Li Dao felt an inexplicable closeness to it.

Li Dao discovered that his blood had become treasure blood, which could transform animals, make them affectionate and obedient, and temporarily consume his Physique. After feeding a rat more blood and adopting it as a pet, he and Jiu'er welcomed the now-cute mouse into their household.

• Li Dao tested his treasure blood on a rat and found it grew larger, smarter, affectionate, and obedient while his wounds healed rapidly.
• Li Dao fed the rat four more drops, causing it to shed and regrow its fur, claws, and teeth as it became smaller, cuter, and more intelligent.
• Li Dao discovered that producing treasure blood temporarily reduced his Physique, then washed with the rat and decided to keep it as a pet.
• The next morning, Jiu'er panicked at the rat, but Li Dao explained that it was his pet and translated its complaints about her frightening it.
• Jiu'er apologized to the rat, agreed to keep it, and discovered it was a female when it jumped into her arms.

Li Dao studied the Peerless Halberd Art and quickly reached minor mastery, then read the Li Family’s Pagoda Art of War. He agreed to stay in Peach Spring Village a few more days so its women could recover from their ordeal.

• Jiu'er named Li Dao’s little mouse Yuanbao, and Li Dao helped a scarred villager carry water to the kitchen.
• Li Dao read the Peerless Halberd Art, memorized it, and practiced with the Dragon-Patterned Halberd until he produced astral force and reached minor mastery.
• Li Dao read and memorized the Pagoda Art of War, learning about the Iron Pagoda troops and their demanding training.
• Jiu'er asked whether they could stay longer to keep the women company, and Li Dao agreed.

After ten days in Peach Spring Village, Li Dao gave the women martial arts manuals and a formation so they could protect themselves and shape their own futures. He and Jiu'er departed the next morning, leaving Liu Xiuer to lead the women in training and prepare for the day they might meet their benefactor again.

• Li Dao told the women a story about women holding up half the sky, and affirmed that they could bear their share of the burden.
• Liu Xiuer quieted the women when they pleaded for Li Dao to stay, then led them in thanking him before he left.
• Li Dao gave Liu Xiuer three books—the Yellow Sun Art, Swift Wind Saber Technique, and Mandarin Duck Combined Attack Formation—to help the women grow stronger.
• Li Dao and Jiu'er left Peach Spring Village the next morning, and the women watched their carriage disappear down the road.
• Liu Xiuer urged the women to repay Li Dao by becoming stronger, and they agreed to follow her lead and cultivate.

Li Dao reached Cloudrise City with Jiu'er and decided to enlist under Shen Zhong, the Marquis of Suppressing the North, while keeping Jiu'er with him. Wei Yun, far away on the frontier, hoped Li Dao would soon join the Mighty Camp as tensions there began to stir.

• Li Dao and Jiu'er entered Cloudrise City, where a guard told Li Dao that Shen Zhong would recruit soldiers in three days.
• Li Dao learned that Cloudrise City thrived as a trading hub because it lay near Fufeng Pass, and he reassured Jiu'er that he would not abandon her.
• Li Dao reflected that enlistment could help him reclaim the Li Family title, settle accounts with his enemies, and grow stronger through battle.
• Wei Yun wondered whether Li Dao had reached the Imperial Capital and anticipated recruiting him into the Mighty Camp.
• Wei Yun hoped Li Dao would return soon because the frontier was becoming restless.

Li Dao settled Jiu'er into a new home in Cloudrise City and prepared to enlist in the Marquis of Suppressing the Far Realm’s army. He joined the recruitment assessment and was left waiting outside a medicine tent with the other candidates.

• Li Dao exchanged valuables for silver, bought a house in a neighborhood where soldiers’ families lived, and brought Jiu'er there from the inn.
• Jiu'er organized the house and befriended the neighbors while Li Dao spent three days settling in and preparing to enlist.
• Li Dao left for the recruitment office, escaping the neighbors’ matchmaking chatter on his way through the alley.
• Li Dao registered as a commoner and joined a batch of fifty candidates for the enlistment assessment.
• An officer led Li Dao’s batch to a tent marked “Medicine,” asked whether anyone had a physical impairment, and went inside while the candidates waited.

Li Dao underwent a military medical examination, where Elder Zheng discovered his astonishing dragonlike vitality and singled him out as a promising prospect. The officer then brought the recruits to the square for the final assessment, beginning with a test of physical fitness.

• An officer led Li Dao and forty-nine recruits into a tent for an examination by Elder Zheng, who exposed the other men’s depleted health.
• Elder Zheng examined Li Dao’s pulse and found his blood and qi extraordinarily powerful, declaring him healthy and promising.
• Elder Zheng urged the officer to pay attention to Li Dao, and the officer later explained the physician’s immense influence in Cloud Province.
• The officer brought the recruits to a square and explained that they needed strong physiques or useful skills to serve under Shen Zhong.
• The officer led the recruits toward a platform to begin the required physique assessment.

Li Dao’s group underwent a strength test to qualify for positions in the army camp, and most of them performed poorly. Li Dao stunned the spectators by bypassing the lighter weights and choosing the heaviest 500-jin barbell, leaving the safety officer warning that he could only limit how badly Li Dao might be hurt.

• Li Dao watched the strength test and learned that lifting heavier barbells brought better prospects, while the 500-jin weight could secure a place in the best camp.
• A strong man lifted the 300-jin barbell but declined to try the final weight, and the tests continued until Li Dao’s group took its turn.
• The kidney-deficient fellow failed to hold the first barbell for five seconds, and several others in Li Dao’s group also failed their attempts.
• Li Dao’s officer wagered double the meals with a rival officer on whether someone in his group could lift the 500-jin barbell.
• After the last participant before him failed, Li Dao rejected the first barbell and walked past the lighter weights to the 500-jin one.
• The safety officer warned Li Dao that he could not prevent serious injury if Li Dao attempted the heaviest barbell.

Li Dao passed the military camp’s strength test by lifting a five-hundred-jin stone weight with one hand, but revealed that he could not cultivate because he was born with severed meridians. After returning home, he settled in for lunch with Jiu'er and Yuanbao; the chapter ended with battalion representatives gathering to compete for the new recruits.

• Li Dao lifted the fifth stone weight with one hand, passed the test, and impressed the crowd and the lead officer.
• The lead officer learned that Li Dao could not cultivate because he had no meridian pathways, then directed the martial artists and archers to further testing.
• Li Dao registered as a recruit, declined the mess-hall meal, and returned to Cloudrise City for lunch with Jiu'er and Yuanbao.
• The chapter explained the structure of Great Qian’s border forces and why recruitment into Shen Zhong’s legion was especially competitive.
• A day later, battalion representatives gathered at the camp, each treating the others as rivals for the recruits.

Zhang Ci gathered Cloudrise City’s camp commanders to assign new recruits, but Qi Sheng arrived to select eight reserve guards for General Shen. Qi Sheng rejected Li Dao as unqualified for the personal guard and suggested sending him to the dangerous Yellow Sand Town Camp, leaving Zhang Ci to consider the assignment.

• Zhang Ci’s meeting to allocate recruits descended into a brawl among more than thirty camp commanders, and he let them fight until they settled down.
• Qi Sheng arrived to select eight reserve personal guards for General Shen, who was preparing to transfer away with some of his men.
• Zhang Ci recommended Li Dao for his exceptional physical strength, but Qi Sheng rejected him because he had no cultivation.
• Qi Sheng suggested assigning Li Dao to Yellow Sand Town Camp, a feared camp known as the Troublemaker Camp.

Qi Sheng arranged for Li Dao to report to the notorious Yellow Sand Town Camp, but Li Dao focused on acquiring rare animals before his deadline. After bringing home two wolf cubs and two Saker Falcons, he began testing whether his Treasure Blood could affect them.

• Qi Sheng persuaded Zhang Ci to assign Li Dao to Yellow Sand Town Camp, a camp infamous for tormenting its recruits.
• Li Dao received orders to report to Yellow Sand Town Camp within three days and noticed a strange note saying he could apply for discharge if he could not adjust.
• Li Dao met the pawnshop assistant, who led him to a one-eyed animal lover selling two wolf cubs and two young Saker Falcons.
• Li Dao bought the four animals and brought them home, where Jiu'er and Yuanbao saw the covered cages.
• Li Dao drew his Black Iron Saber, cut his arm, and collected Treasure Blood in a teacup.
• The white wolf cub tried to rush toward the Treasure Blood, but the cautious black cub pinned it down, while both Saker Falcons stared at the cup.