Chapter Summaries

Tang Wen accepted the Deputy Tuanlian Commissioner appointment after learning that the Wang family had been ruined and his sister was being blamed for misfortune. He discovered that his brother-in-law Wang Binfeng had been imprisoned over a stolen grain shipment and tried to intervene, but the case had already been referred to Six Fan Gate.

• Jiang Xuan told Tang Wen that Ridge-Sea Academy and the officials were maneuvering to force him into military service, and advised him to accept the Deputy Tuanlian Commissioner position.
• Tang Jun reported that Wang Binfeng had been imprisoned after a grain shipment was robbed, leaving the Wang family unable to repay its losses and the eldest young lady facing blame from her in-laws.
• Tang Wen accepted the appointment from Wan Hansong and Xiao Senguо, signed the relevant documents, and provided the banknotes.
• Tang Wen asked Wan Hansong about Wang Binfeng and learned that the grain superintendent was accused of negligence in a robbery that cost nearly a million taels.
• Tang Wen revealed that Wang Binfeng was his brother-in-law and asked Xiao Senguо and Wan Hansong to withdraw the case, but they warned that Six Fan Gate might suspect them.

Tang Wen paid a million taels to take over the investigation into Wang Binfeng’s case, then absorbed popularity that raised his cultivation and revealed a new intelligence metric in his system. He went to the Wang Family residence and found his elder sister Tang Yiyi tied up and abused, then fought off her tormentors as she urged him to flee.

• Tang Wen advanced a million taels, secured an agreement to investigate Wang Binfeng’s case himself, and hurried away after the system announced his nineteenth traversal was available.
• Tang Wen absorbed the popularity of more than three thousand government-owned slaves, raising his cultivation to mid-stage second grade and revealing the system’s new intelligence level metric.
• After Tang Wen left, Xiao Senguо and Wan Hansong discussed the risks of investigating the case and suspected Ridge-Sea Academy might be behind it.
• Tang Wen arrived at the Wang Family residence and found Tang Yiyi bound to a post, covered in filth, and being threatened with a whip by a servant while a Taoist priest called her a jinx.
• Tang Wen kicked the servant away, struck the Taoist priest, and his guards beat back the Wang Family servants as he freed Tang Yiyi.
• Tang Yiyi collapsed into Tang Wen’s arms and begged him to leave before the many Wang Family attackers overwhelmed them.

Tang Wen rescued his younger sister Tang Yiyi from the Wang Family and interrogated those who had abused her. Wang Liyuan confessed that Deputy Regional Commander Kang had promised him a promotion for framing her, and Tang Wen ordered Wang Liyuan taken to the authorities.

• Tang Wen struck Wang Liyuan after learning he had ordered Tang Yiyi beaten, then stopped the soldiers from attacking by revealing he was the First-Class Earl of Linghai.
• Tang Wen had maids clean and change Tang Yiyi while his guards detained Wang Liyuan and brought the Taoist Zhang Daoquan in for questioning.
• Under questioning, Zhang Daoquan confessed that Wang Liyuan had paid him to frame Tang Yiyi as a jinx and drive her to kill herself.
• Tang Wen tortured Wang Liyuan, who confessed Deputy Regional Commander Kang had promised to recommend him for promotion if he carried out the scheme.
• Wang He and other Wang Family members attacked Wang Liyuan, and Tang Wen ordered his men to take him to the authorities.

Tang Wen protected Wang Liyuan from being taken by Tang Ze and arranged to send him to Lord Jiang Xuan for trial. He suspected Kang Chenggang was tied to the plot against the Tang family and planned to investigate while preparing an expedition to Jiudao Liangzi Bay.

• Tang Yiyi explained that Wang Liyuan had overruled Wang He and was responsible for Wang Binfeng's predicament, while Tang Wen promised to bring her and the child to Su Mei Island.
• Tang Ze arrived to demand Wang Liyuan, but Tang Wen invoked his rank and refused to hand the prisoner over to the Gushan Garrison Commander Camp.
• Tang Wen cited Kang Chenggang's involvement and directed Luo Yiwu to escort Wang Liyuan to Lord Jiang Xuan for trial.
• Tang Wen ordered Luo Chaosheng to investigate Kang Chenggang and keep him under drone surveillance, suspecting a second line of attacks against the Tang family.
• Tang Wen proposed secretly capturing Kang Chenggang through Six Fan Gate, but agreed to watch him for now and ordered Yu Chang to mobilize a thousand Personal Guards for a journey to Jiudao Liangzi Bay.

Tang Wen prepared to investigate Jiudao Liangzi while protecting Su Mei Island and seeking help for his brother-in-law, Wang Binfeng. At an evening banquet, Wei Kang agreed to ask the Six Fan Gate about Wang Binfeng, and Tang Wen sold erotic lingerie to Xiao Gai and the others.

• Tang Wen ordered Mo Dachang and Li Liao to strengthen the Guard Team and planned to travel in disguise to Jiudao Liangzi, while his double Zhao Yang would follow in secret.
• Wei Kang, Sun Tianjun, and the others congratulated Xiao Gai on entering the sixth rank and discussed the Six Fan Gate's higher recruitment requirements.
• Tang Wen told Wei Kang that Wang Binfeng was his brother-in-law and asked him to see whether the Six Fan Gate could refuse the case.
• Tang Wen presented erotic lingerie at the banquet, and Xiao Gai, Wu Guangfeng, and the others placed large orders.

Tang Wen explained that the ghosts on the courtyard wall were images recorded by the stone and prepared to catch whoever was entering his room. He trapped a masked woman intruder, but her identity remained unknown.

• Cui Qiu told Tang Wen and the others that villages on Blackrock Island had fought over iron ore exposed by a landslide, and Tang Wen quietly noted the dispute was still unsettled.
• During a storm, Tang Wen saw the ghostly images replay on the courtyard wall and explained that the stone had recorded a murder, with the missing well likely buried underground.
• Tang Wen hid in a wardrobe and used his Popularity Eye to spot a paper-thin intruder entering his bedroom.
• Tang Wen sprang a series of nets, tackled the intruder, and captured her with help from Luo Yiwu and the others.
• Tang Jun unmasked the woman, and Tang Wen dismissed most of the group before asking who she was.

Tang Wen confronted a woman who had been posing as a ghost in the Mei Residence and learned that she was a Mei Family descendant seeking revenge for her family. He offered to help her if she joined the Tang household, but she remained skeptical of his claims about superior cultivation techniques.

• Tang Wen guessed that the woman had been searching the Mei Residence for a well containing her family's treasure, and she fainted after he threatened to expose her body if she died without explaining herself.
• After the woman woke, Tang Wen demonstrated his strength by lifting a massive stone vat from a distance.
• The woman revealed that powerful bandits had coveted her family's treasure and that she could not defeat them alone.
• Tang Wen offered her cultivation resources and protection for her family in exchange for serving the Tang household, but she refused to become a maidservant.
• Tang Wen claimed he possessed cultivation techniques beyond heaven-rank high-grade, and he and the woman traded insults about being frogs in a well.

Tang Wen released a woman seeking revenge and then tried to protect Wang Liyuan from the Drum Mountain Garrison Commander Camp. He sought support from officials who might delay the prisoner’s transfer, beginning with Wan Hansong at the Provincial Administration Office.

• Tang Wen let the disguised woman leave and told his companions he believed she would return because he could help her take revenge.
• Kang Chenggang learned that Tang Ze had failed to retrieve Wang Liyuan and ordered his men to confront Tang Wen, while Tang Ze told him Wang Liyuan had been sent to Jiang Xuan.
• Wei Zhao warned Tang Wen that Jiang Xuan might not be able to keep Wang Liyuan without the governor’s support, so Tang Wen planned to seek help from Xiao Senguо and Ding Zhendong.
• Tang Wen went to see Wan Hansong and asked how long second-grade experts usually took to advance through each minor stage.

Tang Wen revealed a high-grade Realm-Breaking Pill to Wan Hansong and secured his help keeping Wang Liyuan detained while Tang Wen traveled to Jiudao Liangzi Bend. Wan Hansong gave Tang Wen his Command Token, and Tang Wen used it to enter the prison and visit his brother-in-law, Wang Binfeng.

• Wan Hansong explained how difficult it was to advance in martial cultivation and described the scarcity and cost of Realm-Breaking Pills.
• Tang Wen showed Wan Hansong a high-grade Realm-Breaking Pill, which Wan Hansong eagerly inspected before reluctantly agreeing to help in return for it.
• Tang Wen told Wan Hansong that Kang Chenggang had incited Wang Liyuan to attack Tang Yiyi and asked him to keep Wang Liyuan detained.
• Wan Hansong agreed to consult the Governor and work with Lord Xiao to stall Kang Chenggang, then gave Tang Wen his Command Token to visit Wang Binfeng in prison.
• Tang Wen entered the prison with Prison Registrar Chen Liao and offered him a thousand-tael Silver Note so he could speak with Wang Binfeng.

Tang Wen questioned his imprisoned brother-in-law Wang Binfeng about the ambush at Jiudao Liangzi and learned that someone had drugged him before the attack. After arranging support for the investigation, Tang Wen met Mei Niansu, who agreed to leave her family and serve him in exchange for cultivation resources, help finding her ancestor’s remains, and revenge.

• Tang Wen bribed Warden Chen Liao to care for Wang Binfeng and alert the Mei Residence if officials came.
• Wang Binfeng told Tang Wen that robbers from Liangzi Stronghold seized the government boats after he was drugged and rendered too weak to stand.
• Tang Wen promised to investigate, gave Wang Binfeng pills and spirit stones, and reassured him that his sister had already been moved to safety.
• Wan Hansong told Tang Wen that the yamen would record his donation as merit and try to keep the case from being transferred to the Six Fan Gate.
• Mei Niansu agreed to leave the Mei family and asked Tang Wen for a profound-rank cultivation method, yearly pills and silver, help finding her ancestor’s remains, and revenge.
• Tang Wen told Mei Niansu to attend him while he bathed, and she followed him into the bathroom.

Tang Wen taught Mei Niansu the Heavenly Wood Star-Pegasus Art, helping her reach third-rank Perfection Realm, then traveled toward Red River Prefecture before secretly returning to Black Tortoise City. He found a crowd waiting at Sumei Supermarket for medical treatment and learned that Zhang Taiben and a steward from the City Lord’s Residence had also come looking for him.

• Tang Wen questioned Mei Niansu about why she had devoted herself to him, and she said she trusted his character and believed he could help her take revenge.
• Tang Wen laid out a spirit-drawing formation and taught Mei Niansu the Heavenly Wood Star-Pegasus Art, guiding her cultivation until she advanced to third-rank Perfection Realm.
• Tang Wen sent Ge Ziyun and several men to investigate the iron ore on Black Rock Island, then set out with his party for Red River Prefecture.
• After boarding a boat, Tang Wen left Zhao Yang as his double and secretly returned to Black Tortoise City under the excuse of secluded cultivation.
• Tang Wen found a crowd gathered outside Sumei Supermarket seeking medical treatment and asked Wu Zi why Zhang Taiben from the Apothecary Guild was there.

Tang Wen returned to the Tang Medicine Hall, where Zhang Taiben and other apothecaries had been treating patients and directing customers to his shop. After arranging guards for his goods, Tang Wen went with Xifang Feiwen to the City Lord's Residence, where he learned that entry required a Black Tortoise Plaque he did not have.

• Wu Zi told Tang Wen that Zhang Taiben and visiting apothecaries had treated patients on the Tang Medicine Hall's behalf and handed over their fees.
• Tang Wen arrived at the Medical Hall, greeted Zhang Taiben and Xifang Feiwen, and announced that his new goods were available at the supermarket.
• Xifang Feiwen summoned the City Lord's patrol team, and Luo Qi arrived with guards to secure the supermarket while Tang Wen went to the City Lord's Residence.
• Luo Qi explained that the City Lord's Residence had weakened defenses because many powerful guards had been sent elsewhere.
• At the gate, Tang Wen learned that visitors needed a Black Tortoise Plaque and claimed he had never received one.
• Luo Qi told Tang Wen that only the Identity Plaque Hall under the City Lord's Residence could issue Black Tortoise Plaques.

Tang Wen entered the City Lord's Residence with Deputy Captain Luo Qi and met City Lord Xifang Kongming, who questioned his character, medical training, and cultivation. Tang Wen withstood the city lord's pressure and learned that Xifang Kongming's lineage possessed cultivation knowledge beyond the Profound Rank.

• Tang Wen followed Luo Qi into the City Lord's Residence and learned about the Xifang Lineage and the special status of third young lady Xifang Biluo Yu.
• Xifang Kongming tested Tang Wen with the Heart-Searching Technique, but Tang Wen's Popularity Eye dispelled its pressure.
• Tang Wen answered Xifang Kongming's questions about his unnamed teacher and Western Medicine, then defended his unclear origins and weak martial skills.
• Tang Wen explained how he had progressed from an Earth-Rank method to a Heaven-Rank method and then received the Profound-Rank Azure Wood Celestial Star Art.
• Xifang Kongming said a Profound-Rank method could not reach the Divine Sense Realm, and Tang Wen challenged him by asking what rank lay beyond Mystic Rank.

Tang Wen tried to persuade Xifang Biluo Yu to accept treatment and identified signs of illness despite being unable to see her clearly. He left the city lord's household disputing with Wan Piaoxue over whether his diagnosis was credible.

• Xifang Kongming offered Tang Wen the Xifang Lineage's introductory cultivation technique if he cured his daughter, and Tang Wen agreed to examine her.
• Xifang Biluo Yu dismissed Tang Wen as a swindler until he told her a story about concealing illness and shunning treatment, then challenged him to examine her.
• Tang Wen entered Xifang Biluo Yu's lavish room and said she was ill because she slept on her stomach and did not dare sit down.
• Wan Piaoxue arrived and accused Tang Wen of bluffing because her daughter's treasure obscured her face and body.
• Tang Wen asked whether Xifang Biluo Yu slept on her stomach and avoided sitting, and Wan Piaoxue confirmed that she did.

Tang Wen examined Xifang Biluo Yu and discovered that a long-lost acupuncture needle had embedded itself in her bone, causing her pain and inability to sit or sleep comfortably. Xifang Kongming and Wan Piaoxue recognized how the needle might have entered her body, while Tang Wen had yet to remove it.

• Xifang Kongming agreed to let Tang Wen examine Xifang Biluo Yu after Great-Grandfather ordered him to treat her and promised Tang Wen instruction in Flood Dragon Lure if he cured her.
• Tang Wen asked Xifang Biluo Yu to lie facedown and used a chopstick to probe her, angering her when he jabbed her buttocks.
• Tang Wen repeatedly tapped Xifang Biluo Yu with the chopstick until she cried out from severe pain, then explained that an acupuncture needle was embedded in her body.
• Xifang Kongming and Wan Piaoxue recalled that a needle had gone missing when Xifang Biluo Yu played with Great-Grandfather’s acupuncture needles as a child.
• Tang Wen said the needle had fused with her bone and begun protruding, causing her pain and making it difficult for her to sit or sleep.

Tang Wen persuaded Xifang Biluo Yu to undergo surgery for a needle lodged near a dangerous area, while securing protection and a Deputy Hall Master appointment from Xifang Kongming. At Tang's Sumei Supermarket, he used a CT scanner to locate the needle and impressed the city lord, then asked about the powers of Divine Sense Realm experts.

• Tang Wen warned that Xifang Biluo Yu's untreated condition could leave her paralyzed, and she reluctantly agreed to an operation after Xifang Kongming urged her.
• Tang Wen demanded the City Lord's Residence appoint him Deputy Hall Master of its Medicine Hall and publicly guarantee his safety, and Xifang Kongming agreed.
• Tang Wen brought Xifang Kongming and Xifang Biluo Yu to Tang's Sumei Supermarket, where he announced the operation and their agreement to the waiting patients.
• Tang Wen showed Xifang Kongming the CT scanner, and the city lord was astonished when it produced images of his bones.
• Tang Wen scanned Xifang Biluo Yu and pointed out the needle on her films, then asked Xifang Kongming about Divine Sense Realm abilities.

Tang Wen used his walkie-talkie to contact Tu Qianqiu and sold fifteen sets to Xifang Kongming’s residence. He also secured ten high-grade Flesh-Regenerating Pills for Xifang Biluo Yu, leaving Xifang Kongming fuming at Tu Qianqiu’s mockery over a Luxury Bathtub.

• Xifang Kongming explained that true Flying Sword Wounding required Divine Sense Realm strength and extensive sword practice, then warned Tang Wen he would die if he failed to treat Xifang Biluo Yu.
• Tang Wen learned that Xifang Biluo Yu needed top-quality Flesh-Regenerating Pills, and he used a walkie-talkie to reach Tu Qianqiu after his first calls went unanswered.
• Xifang Kongming tested Tang Wen’s walkie-talkie, then bought fifteen sets for the City Lord’s Residence for 4,500 high-grade spirit stones.
• Tang Wen persuaded Tu Qianqiu to provide ten high-grade Flesh-Regenerating Pills in exchange for new goods.
• Tu Qianqiu mocked Xifang Kongming for supposedly being unable to afford a Luxury Bathtub, and Xifang Kongming angrily challenged him.

Tang Wen showed Xifang Kongming and his companions his modern bathroom, then arranged to help them install one. He also sought help for the gu planted inside him and traded hand grenades for superior-grade Void Bags, while Xifang Biluo Yu continued recovering from her injury.

• Tu Qianqiu showed Xifang Kongming and his companions the bathroom, and Xifang Kongming paid Tang Wen to install one for Xifang Biluo Yu.
• Tang Wen told Tu Qianqiu about the gu inside him, and Tu Qianqiu proposed taking him to Gu Elder for help.
• Tang Wen ordered Wu Yunpeng to install bathrooms at the City Lord's Residence.
• Heavenly Tears Elder traded ten superior-grade Void Bags for fifty hand grenades, with delivery promised in half a month.
• Tang Wen told Xifang Kongming that Xifang Biluo Yu would need at least a month to recover, then explained the expenses and challenges facing his businesses.

Tang Wen bargained with Xifang Kongming over taxes, protection, and the City Lord's Residence's purchases from his businesses. They agreed on a five-percent discount and two guards, though Tang Wen wanted a stronger one.

• Xifang Kongming demanded an annual tax of one hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones, then proposed another hundred thousand for protection and a partnership.
• Tang Wen protested the costs and learned Xifang wanted the City Lord's Residence's debts settled with goods at a private ten-percent discount.
• Tang Wen argued that his medical skills, Medicine Hall, and growing group of apothecaries would benefit Xifang's family and strengthen its position against the Apothecary Guild.
• Xifang lowered the discount to five percent and promised two guards, one at the Origin-Nourishing Realm and one at the Origin-Gathering Realm.
• Tang Wen asked to replace the weaker guard with a Thought-Connecting Realm expert, but Xifang refused and explained how rare such experts were.

Tang Wen hired Ding Tong and Yu Mei as bodyguards and sold weapons and protective gear to the City Lord's Residence. At dinner, the guards sampled Tang Wen’s food and wine, and Ding Tong challenged the others’ doubts about whether he could afford to eat it every meal.

• Tang Wen agreed to pay for Ding Tong and Yu Mei, Xifang Kongming’s trusted guards, to protect him.
• Ding Tong and Yu Mei met Tang Wen, and Yu Mei teased him while Ding Tong complained about guarding a young man.
• Xifang Kongming assigned additional guards to accompany Ding Tong and Yu Mei to the supermarket.
• The City Lord's Residence collected five thousand treasure swords, bulletproof vests, and helmets, earning Tang Wen over a hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones.
• At dinner, Ding Tong and Yu Mei tried three-stripe fish and drinks, then Ding Tong insisted he could afford to eat the meal every day.