Chapter Summaries

Zhang Xiaohua helped the exhausted Yellow Wind care for her newborn cub, whose life was fading, and fed the cub a drop of ten-thousand-year stone milk. After a night beneath the starlight, the cub showed signs of change, and Zhang Xiaohua spared Yellow Wind while urging her not to kill Incense-Passing Cult disciples.

• Yellow Wind objected when Zhang Xiaohua cut the umbilical cord, then let him warm her newborn beside a bonfire.
• Zhang Xiaohua offered Yellow Wind spiritual herbs and the Fire Seed Golden Lotus, but she refused them and directed his stone milk toward the cub.
• Zhang Xiaohua fed the cub a drop of ten-thousand-year stone milk, then gave Yellow Wind a drop when she insisted.
• Zhang Xiaohua set a restriction and cultivated underground while Yellow Wind moved herself and the cub into the starlight, where the cub absorbed its essence.
• At dawn, Zhang Xiaohua spared Yellow Wind and asked her not to kill Incense-Passing Cult disciples again.

Zhang Xiaohua followed the weakened "Yellow Wind" to a hidden cave, where they found Black Lightning’s mutilated corpse. The discovery explained "Yellow Wind’s" revenge against the Incense-Passing Cult, but a sudden flash from its silver eyes left the cave’s secret unresolved.

• Zhang Xiaohua tried to leave, but "Yellow Wind" urged him toward a distant place and carried its injured child along.
• Zhang Xiaohua carried the little mink and used the Dragon Binding Ring to help "Yellow Wind" travel to a hidden cave high on a cliff.
• Inside the cave, Zhang Xiaohua found Black Lightning’s corpse with its belly cut open.
• Zhang Xiaohua realized Black Lightning’s death had driven "Yellow Wind" to attack Incense-Passing Cult disciples and suspected a powerful Cult figure was responsible.
• "Yellow Wind" moved to a corner of the chamber, opened its silver eyes, and shot out a streak of silver light.

Junior Brother Zhao and Senior Sister Xia praised one another while their disciples gathered spirit herbs, but a pack of thousands of blood wolves approached. Junior Brother Chen led Senior Sister Xia away from the forest as the wolves ran past, and horse neighs suddenly threatened to expose the hidden group.

• Junior Brother Zhao and Senior Sister Xia flattered one another and discussed the inner sect disciples and their hopes of entering Yi Xiang Peak.
• A disciple reported a huge blood wolf pack approaching, and Junior Brother Chen ordered everyone to hide in the forest and keep the horses quiet.
• Junior Brother Chen led Senior Sister Xia behind the forest, then took her hand and persuaded her to leave with him for the nearby mountains.
• The blood wolves ran past the forest, but two loud horse neighs made the hidden disciples turn pale with alarm.

Zhang Xiaohua followed "Yellow Wind" through a hidden doorway into a secret hall, where he gave stone milk to a dying black dog. "Yellow Wind" offered him a silver sphere, then attacked as Zhang Xiaohua examined it with his divine sense.

• The disciples fled east from the woods as the horses' cries drew the Bloodwolf pack toward them.
• "Yellow Wind" opened a concealed doorway in the cave wall with a beam from its silver eye, and Zhang Xiaohua followed it into a hidden hall.
• Zhang Xiaohua found a black dog and two silver spheres in the hall, then fed the dog a drop of stone milk.
• "Yellow Wind" pointed to the larger sphere and let Zhang Xiaohua take it.
• As Zhang Xiaohua investigated the sphere with his divine sense, "Yellow Wind" sprang at him.

Zhang Xiaohua was injured by Huang Feng while examining a silver pearl, but his blood activated it and drew his divine sense into a vision of a silver-eyed creature losing three tentacles. He woke drained of true qi and divine sense, then discovered the pearl had become a silver eye in his palm and realized Huang Feng had given it to him.

• Huang Feng suddenly struck Zhang Xiaohua's hand as he held the silver pearl, drawing blood.
• Zhang Xiaohua's blood made the pearl glow, and it pulled in his divine sense and true qi.
• Inside the gray space, Zhang Xiaohua witnessed a silver-eyed creature fight a bright point, lose three tentacles, and be left behind as the severed parts and bright point were sucked through a shrinking hole.
• Zhang Xiaohua woke with his true qi exhausted and his divine sense reduced to a faint speck, then nearly stabbed Huang Feng with the Azure Water Sword.
• Zhang Xiaohua found a silver eye inside a slit in his palm and sensed its connection to his Niwan Palace core, so he lowered his sword and recognized it as Huang Feng's gift.

Zhang Xiaohua watched Yellow Wind use its silver eye and life-sustaining pearl to save the little mink and little black dog, then die after entrusting them to him. He realized the two young beasts had recovered and that Yellow Wind had sacrificed itself for them, leaving him to care for its orphans.

• Zhang Xiaohua placed the little mink beside Yellow Wind, which indicated that he should take responsibility for the little black dog as well.
• Yellow Wind transferred its silver eye to the little mink, leaving a narrow mark between its brows.
• Yellow Wind had Zhang Xiaohua split its glowing pearl, then used the halves to restore the little mink and little black dog before dying.
• Zhang Xiaohua understood that Yellow Wind had entrusted the two young beasts to him and had sacrificed its life to save them.
• Zhang Xiaohua checked the little mink and little black dog, found both thriving, and felt his hatred of Yellow Wind disappear.

Zhang Xiaohua buried Yellow Wind and Black Lightning, took their two young to raise, and sealed the cave entrance before leaving the mountain. As he traveled south through the forest with his strength and divine sense depleted, he heard a woman scream among the roars of fierce beasts.

• Zhang Xiaohua promised the dying Yellow Wind he would care for its young, then buried Yellow Wind and Black Lightning and marked their graves.
• Zhang Xiaohua took the two young beasts and the silver eye, then used the eye to seal the opening in the mountain wall.
• Zhang Xiaohua discovered the silver eye absorbed his True Qi and divine sense, leaving him with only one zhang of divine sense.
• Zhang Xiaohua sealed the cave tunnel, emerged on the mountaintop, and traveled south through the forest with the young beasts.
• Zhang Xiaohua stopped after realizing he had left the Luminous Pearls behind, then heard fierce beast roars and a woman's scream.

Zhang Xiaohua rescued Chen Chen from White Bears and learned that Zhang Xiaohu and Changge were surrounded by a Blood Wolf pack. He flew north to save them, while Zhang Xiaohu and the wounded Changge faced the wolves together.

• Zhang Xiaohua killed two White Bears attacking Chen Chen and drove the others away.
• Chen Chen recognized Zhang Xiaohua and told him that Zhang Xiaohu was alive but had ridden off with Changge to draw away a Blood Wolf pack.
• Zhang Xiaohua protected Chen Chen inside a restriction, gave her Xiaohei, and flew north to find Zhang Xiaohu and Changge.
• Zhang Xiaohu and Changge fought a pack of nearly a thousand Blood Wolves, while the golden-furred Wolf King watched from nearby.
• After Changge collapsed with a badly injured arm, Zhang Xiaohu refused to abandon her, and she began telling him what she had kept from him.

Zhang Xiaohu and Changge confessed their love while surrounded by Blood Wolves, but Zhang Xiaohua arrived in time to save them. Zhang Xiaohua protected the wounded pair and began fighting the wolf pack, giving Zhang Xiaohu a sword so they could fight together.

• While fighting the Blood Wolves, Zhang Xiaohu confessed that he wanted to marry Changge, and Changge admitted she had loved him for years and agreed to be his wife.
• As Zhang Xiaohu and Changge prepared to die together, they heard Zhang Xiaohua calling for his Second Brother, and Zhang Xiaohu warned him to stay away from the wolf pack.
• Zhang Xiaohua flew to the pair and killed several Blood Wolves with Dream Chasing before protecting Zhang Xiaohu and Changge with jade talismans.
• Zhang Xiaohua killed more wolves as the Wolf King sent its pack against him, while Zhang Xiaohu recovered enough to stand.
• Zhang Xiaohua gave Zhang Xiaohu the Azure Water Sword, and Zhang Xiaohu joined the fight against the Blood Wolves.

Zhang Xiaohua and Zhang Xiaohu fought together against the Blood Wolves, and Zhang Xiaohua protected his exhausted brother while showing him the power of his swords. After Zhang Xiaohu wondered how he might obtain sword light, Zhang Xiaohua realized his Qi Boosting Pills could help him.

• Zhang Xiaohu wielded the Azure Water Sword against the Blood Wolves while Zhang Xiaohua watched over him and kept Changge safe.
• The brothers exchanged jokes about the sword’s name and Dream Chaser as they continued fighting the wolves.
• Zhang Xiaohua protected Zhang Xiaohu from a wolf’s attack with a jade talisman, then told him to rest beside Changge.
• Zhang Xiaohua demonstrated sword light with the Azure Water Sword, astonishing Zhang Xiaohu.
• Zhang Xiaohua remembered that his Qi Boosting Pills could increase Zhang Xiaohu’s cultivation and considered giving him some.

Zhang Xiaohua slaughtered much of the Blood Wolf pack while protecting Zhang Xiaohu and Changge, then faced the Blood Wolf King in a duel. The Blood Wolf King revealed a wind-blade attack, but Zhang Xiaohua evaded it with Soil Escape and appeared behind the wolf.

• Zhang Xiaohua used Dream Chasing to kill attacking Blood Wolves and guarded Zhang Xiaohu with an invisible shield.
• Zhang Xiaohua fought through the pack, killing four or five hundred Blood Wolves until the survivors feared him and retreated.
• Zhang Xiaohua confronted the Blood Wolf King and battled it evenly with the Azure Water Sword.
• The Blood Wolf King spat a wind blade at Zhang Xiaohua, who used Soil Escape to vanish and reappear behind it.

Zhang Xiaohua struggled against the Blood Wolf King's invisible wind blades and discovered that both its attacks and Zhumeng had limits. After the Blood Wolf King targeted Zhang Xiaohu, Zhang Xiaohua used a defensive jade talisman and prepared to face the wolf head-on.

• The Blood Wolf King's wind blade missed Zhang Xiaohua but wounded a distant blood wolf, and Zhang Xiaohua tested the attack against his sword and palm.
• Zhang Xiaohua sent Zhumeng against the Blood Wolf King, but its tail knocked the little sword aside and the clash injured them both.
• The Blood Wolf King drove Zhang Xiaohua into the air with repeated wind blades, and he barely dodged them using his Riding the Wind Technique.
• The Blood Wolf King fired a wind blade at Zhang Xiaohu, whose restriction flashed pale blue and held against the attack.
• Zhang Xiaohua crushed a jade talisman to raise a pale blue protective barrier around himself as the Blood Wolf King's wind blades continued attacking.

Zhang Xiaohua killed the Blood Wolf King with the Dragon Binding Ring, then used its corpse to drive the surviving blood wolves into submission. One blood wolf drank the dead king’s blood and howled with its bearing, as the pack gathered around it.

• Zhang Xiaohua pursued the fleeing Blood Wolf King and caught it with the Dragon Binding Ring, snapping its neck despite nearly exhausting his true qi.
• Zhang Xiaohua hid in the grass to recover, then carried the Blood Wolf King's corpse to the high slope and showed it to the remaining wolves.
• Zhang Xiaohua ordered the blood wolves to leave, but one approached, bowed, and waited before him.
• Zhang Xiaohua tossed the Blood Wolf King's corpse to the approaching wolf, which drank its blood and then howled.
• The blood wolf pack answered the howl together, appearing to accept the wolf as their new king.

Zhang Xiaohua discovered that Xiaohei’s presence had made the Blood Wolves revere him, and the new Blood Wolf King carried him back to Zhang Xiaohu. He examined his injured brother and offered him Jade Return Pills, then learned that Wen suffered from even worse longstanding internal injuries.

• The new Blood Wolf King submitted to Zhang Xiaohua, but the pack showed fear and reverence when he revealed Xiaohei.
• The Blood Wolf King let Zhang Xiaohua ride on its back and carried him to Zhang Xiaohu, while the wolves followed and stayed nearby.
• Zhang Xiaohua examined Zhang Xiaohu and found blood loss, wounds, and old internal injuries that had damaged his meridians.
• Zhang Xiaohu explained that the Incense-Passing Cult had sent them into You Lan Grand Canyon to gather herbs because medicinal pills were scarce.
• Zhang Xiaohua gave Zhang Xiaohu a bottle of Jade Return Pills and learned that Wen’s longstanding internal injuries were worse than his brother’s.

Zhang Xiaohua treated Changge’s injuries with rare pills and rescued Chen Chen, whose circle of beasts had gathered in reverence around Xiaohei. With Changge recovering, he led Zhang Xiaohu, Chen Chen, and the beasts toward a mountain shelter for the night.

• Zhang Xiaohua examined Changge, gave her a Jade Return Pill and a Bone Condensing Pill, and helped Zhang Xiaohu tend her wounds.
• Zhang Xiaohua remembered Chen Chen and rode the Blood Wolf King to find her among the fierce beasts.
• Zhang Xiaohua realized the beasts were bowing to Xiaohei, then reassured Chen Chen and brought her back to Zhang Xiaohu and Changge.
• Zhang Xiaohu carried the recovering Changge onto a mammoth, while Zhang Xiaohua and Chen Chen rode beasts toward the nearby mountain.

Zhang Xiaohua reunited with Zhang Xiaohu, Chen Chen, and the injured Changge, then helped them settle into the caves on the hill. The group rested by a fire as Zhang Xiaohua prepared to tell Chen Chen about his years away.

• Zhang Xiaohua left the traveling group briefly, then reappeared as they reached the hill at dusk.
• Chen Chen grieved over the Pill-Refining Hall disciples who had been killed, while Zhang Xiaohua sent most of the gathered fierce beasts away and kept blood wolves nearby.
• Zhang Xiaohua supported Zhang Xiaohu up the hill as Zhang Xiaohu carried Changge, and they chose to stay together in the caves.
• Zhang Xiaohua examined Changge and assured Zhang Xiaohu that her condition was stable.
• Zhang Xiaohua went to gather firewood, returned with a blood wolf carrying an even larger bundle, and lit a bonfire in the cave.

Zhang Xiaohua reunited with Zhang Xiaohu and told him that their parents were well, then used a Meridian Nourishing Pill to treat his brother’s damaged meridians. By the end, Zhang Xiaohu’s meridians had healed and become stronger and wider.

• Zhang Xiaohua told Zhang Xiaohu that he had visited Guo Village and found their parents well, and that Zhang Xiaohu’s sister-in-law had given birth to a son.
• Zhang Xiaohua and Zhang Xiaohu discussed how they might eventually send news home from the Incense-Passing Cult, and Zhang Xiaohua teased his brother about Changge.
• Zhang Xiaohua sealed the cave entrance with jade talismans and gave Zhang Xiaohu a Meridian Nourishing Pill to repair his meridians.
• Zhang Xiaohu refused to reveal the Misty Sect’s cultivation route, so Zhang Xiaohua told him to guide the pill’s power through his meridians using the Misty Divine Art.
• Zhang Xiaohua controlled the pill’s medicinal power as Zhang Xiaohu completed three cycles, restoring his damaged meridians and greatly increasing their toughness and width.

Zhang Xiaohua used the Meridian Nourishing Pill to repair and temper Zhang Xiaohu’s meridians and dantian, then Zhang Xiaohu refined the remaining medicine and gained Internal Energy. After a night of cultivation and a morning spar, Zhang Xiaohu’s Internal Energy advanced as Zhang Xiaohua prepared to meet his full-strength attack.

• Zhang Xiaohua used the Meridian Nourishing Pill’s remaining power to repair and strengthen Zhang Xiaohu’s lower dantian, then told him to refine the rest.
• Zhang Xiaohu refined the medicinal power and generated more Internal Energy while Zhang Xiaohua covered the sleeping Chen Chen with new clothes and restored his True Qi.
• Zhang Xiaohua discovered that the silver eye absorbed most of his divine sense, True Qi, starlight, and Primordial Qi during his nightly cultivation.
• Zhang Xiaohua found over a hundred blood wolves guarding the cave, then practiced the Big Dipper Divine Fist outside as Zhang Xiaohu joined him.
• Zhang Xiaohua and Zhang Xiaohu sparred, and Zhang Xiaohu’s moves grew more fluid as white vapor rose above his head; Changge and Chen Chen came out to watch.
• Zhang Xiaohu warned Zhang Xiaohua that he was attacking with all his strength and struck toward his chest, while Zhang Xiaohua blocked with his arm and used the Dragon Soaring Cultivation Method.

Zhang Xiaohua helped Zhang Xiaohu refine the Meridian Nourishing Pill’s remaining medicinal power, and Zhang Xiaohu safely brought his surging Internal Energy under control. Changge confirmed that his cultivation had reached more than twenty years’ worth, though Zhang Xiaohua remained concerned about whether the sudden advance was safe.

• Zhang Xiaohu used his Internal Energy contest with Zhang Xiaohua to refine the pill’s remaining medicinal power, while Zhang Xiaohua strengthened her true Qi to assist him.
• Zhang Xiaohu withdrew his Internal Energy and meditated as Zhang Xiaohua guarded him and Changge anxiously watched for signs of Qi Deviation.
• Zhang Xiaohu guided the raging Internal Energy through his meridians until his complexion steadied and the line of Qi above his head disappeared.
• Zhang Xiaohu woke and asked Changge about her injuries; she said they had stopped hurting and thanked Zhang Xiaohua for her pills.
• Changge examined Zhang Xiaohu and found that he possessed more than twenty years’ worth of Internal Energy despite having cultivated for only a few years.
• Zhang Xiaohua asked Changge whether Zhang Xiaohu’s sudden leap in cultivation could cause problems.

Zhang Xiaohua explained that Zhang Xiaohu’s sudden increase in internal energy came from a pill, and Changge and Chen Chen learned he had more. They accepted Meridian Nourishing Pills from him, while Zhang Xiaohu urged them to take the pills in You Lan Grand Canyon before returning to Misty Hall.

• Changge warned that pills that increased cultivation could strain untempered meridians and said Zhang Xiaohu should master his new internal energy before taking another pill.
• Zhang Xiaohua confirmed he had other cultivation pills, surprising Changge and Chen Chen.
• Chen Chen asked Zhang Xiaohua for a pill, and he gave her one Meridian Nourishing Pill and another to Changge.
• Zhang Xiaohu and the others agreed to keep the pills secret, especially from people of the Incense-Passing Cult.
• Zhang Xiaohua said Changge’s broken arm would not prevent her from taking a pill, and Zhang Xiaohu urged Changge and Chen Chen to take theirs in You Lan Grand Canyon.