Chapter Summaries

After returning from a costly mission, Li Dao and the Mighty Camp learned that the Tamu Tribe’s Eldest Prince sought to marry Princess Mingyue, whose palace scandal involved Li Dao himself. Wei Yun assigned Li Dao and his four companions a secret mission to stop the prince from crossing the Great Qian border, though they were the only ones able to go because the frontier soldiers were too recognizable.

• Wei Yun counted 536 survivors from the 800 men sent out and ordered doubled death benefits for the fallen before giving Li Dao the Black Iron Saber.
• A messenger delivered an urgent letter, and Wei Yun summoned Li Dao and his four companions to the Main Tent to discuss their next mission.
• Wei Yun revealed that the Tamu Tribe’s Eldest Prince had come to negotiate a marriage alliance and wanted Princess Mingyue.
• Wei Yun explained that people in the Imperial Court might marry Mingyue off to bury the scandal of her lost chastity, which Li Dao recognized as his own doing.
• Wei Yun said the Embroidered Uniform Guard had ordered them to stop the Eldest Prince from crossing the border, and explained that only Li Dao and his four companions could act because the others were too recognizable.

Li Dao and the other four were assigned to assist two Embroidered Uniform Guards in stopping the eldest prince of Tamu from entering Great Qian. After Li Dao demonstrated his strength, the guards revealed their plan to steal the prince’s betrothal treasure and delay the marriage alliance until winter.

• Wei Yun told Li Dao and the other four that they would assist the Embroidered Uniform Guard in intercepting the eldest prince of Tamu.
• Li Dao spent his attribute points to raise his physique from 31.06 to 40.74 and considered what he might do after gaining his freedom.
• An Embroidered Uniform Guard tested Li Dao by attacking him, and Li Dao caught the guard’s saber with one hand.
• The guard explained that the mission was to obstruct the eldest prince and steal the tribal treasure he carried as a betrothal gift.
• Li Dao explained that the Tamu Tribe pursued the alliance because it needed grain for winter, and an Embroidered Uniform Guard remarked that Li Dao seemed wasted in a frontier camp.

Li Dao learned that the Earl of Anyuan’s household was being ruined by powerful nobles after his supposed death. As he waited on a mission with two Embroidered Uniform Guard commanders, he resolved to return home if he regained his household registration and to apologize to Princess Mingyue.

• Wei Yun sent Li Dao and four others with Hundred-Man Commanders Sun Zheng and Gao Liang to intercept the Tamu Tribe’s eldest prince, while warning that the mission could cost them their lives.
• At a valley along the Tamu Tribe’s route, Sun Zheng sent Shen San to scout while the others rested.
• Li Dao asked Sun Zheng and Gao Liang about Princess Mingyue and learned that the emperor had secretly executed the Earl of Anyuan.
• Gao Liang and Sun Zheng told Li Dao that mobs had harassed the Earl of Anyuan’s estate and that powerful nobles, especially the Chancellor’s Residence, were stripping the household of its assets.
• Li Dao grew angry over the danger to his family and decided to return to the Earl of Anyuan’s household if he regained his registration, and to apologize to Princess Mingyue.

Li Dao and the Embroidered Uniform Guards ambushed the Tamu Tribe caravan to steal a marriage treasure, but its protector Liu Yan revealed himself as the powerful former Heavenly Mountain Sect traitor Snow Demon Zhao Dongyan. After Gao Liang was injured by Liu Yan’s Frost Palm, Li Dao healed him with Old Ghost’s strange bugs, while Sun Zheng struggled against Liu Yan.

• Shen San found the Tamu Tribe caravan, and Sun Zheng ordered the group to cause a disturbance, steal the treasure, and keep the Tamu Eldest Prince alive.
• Li Dao and Xu Hu sent boulders crashing toward the caravan as Gao Liang led the others in an attack.
• Liu Yan charged the attackers, wounded Gao Liang with Frost Palm, and was identified by Sun Zheng as Snow Demon Zhao Dongyan.
• Li Dao sent Shen San, Old Ghost, Xu Hu, and Little Madman to search the caravan for the treasure while he went to help the Embroidered Uniform Guards.
• Li Dao used Old Ghost’s bugs to draw the frost out of Gao Liang’s hand, restoring it, while Sun Zheng continued to falter against Liu Yan.

Li Dao used his strength to tear through the Tamu Eldest Prince’s guards, forcing Liu Yan to abandon his fight with Sun Zheng and Gao Liang. After Liu Yan’s Frost Palm failed to harm Li Dao, he retreated with the prince and his remaining guards, leaving the convoy’s betrothal gifts behind.

• Gao Liang joined Sun Zheng against Liu Yan, and the two early innate martial artists fought together to hold off the stronger Snow Demon.
• Li Dao attacked the Tamu Eldest Prince’s guards, killing the first five and then slaughtering another ten as he advanced toward the prince.
• Liu Yan rushed to stop Li Dao and struck him with Frost Palm, but Li Dao’s transformed skin and Blood and Qi Power neutralized the frost true qi.
• Li Dao, Sun Zheng, and Gao Liang prepared to join forces against Liu Yan, who then judged that protecting the Tamu Eldest Prince mattered more than continuing the fight.
• The Tamu Eldest Prince chose to flee back to the Tamu Tribe, and Liu Yan ordered the guards to abandon the supplies and escort him away.

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.