Chapter Summaries

Cao Jinxing killed the Demon Cult assassin Xu Danqing after she infiltrated the Qianhu headquarters and murdered Zhao Qinglin and his wife. With emergency orders to surround Mount Hua, he took command of the Left Guard Station and led its troops out to attack the Demon Cult.

• Xu Danqing disguised herself as Zhao Qinglin, but Cao Jinxing recognized and fought her while his guards searched the headquarters.
• Xu Danqing tried to flee after Cao Jinxing's saber attack alerted the garrison, but Li Fengyan struck her and Cao Jinxing killed her with a second Startling Glimpse in the Cold.
• Li Fengyan introduced himself as the Shaanxi Regional Military Commission's Assistant Regional Commander and gave Cao Jinxing the orders to surround Mount Hua and eradicate the Demon Cult.
• Cao Jinxing found that Xu Danqing had killed Zhao Qinglin and his wife, then ordered the Left Guard Station to muster.
• Cao Jinxing led the assembled 5,600 troops out toward Mount Hua.

Cao Jinxing led imperial troops to Mount Hua, where they rescued allied sects from Demon Cult forces and then reached the battle below Chaoyang Peak. He unleashed a fire dragon against the Demon Cult as Cen Yunhe fought the Xu brothers.

• Cao Jinxing learned that the Maitreya Spirit Child and many Demon Cult forces had gathered at Mount Hua, so he ordered his men to prepare fire arrows and torches.
• At the foot of Lotus Peak, Cao Jinxing killed four Peace Sect incense masters with arrows and led the imperial troops in defeating hundreds of Demon Cult followers.
• Sima Yuan's junior martial brothers Xu Long, Xu Hu, and Xu Bao blocked the road to Chaoyang Peak while Sima Yuan entered Three Treasures Cave to claim its trials.
• Xiao Yuan and Cen Yunhe confronted the Xu brothers, and Cen Yunhe attacked them after learning that Sima Yuan had killed Yue Zongwu and the other Mount Hua masters.
• Cao Jinxing arrived with his army, used the Eight Formation Diagram to control wind and fire, and sent a blazing fire dragon sweeping into the Demon Cult forces.

Cao Jinxing used the Eight Formation Diagram to unleash a fire dragon against the Demon Cult and led government forces into battle. After killing the Xu Brothers, he turned toward Reflection Cliff and wondered whether the Poison-Averting Pearl could withstand the poisonous miasma.

• Cao Jinxing used the Eight Formation Diagram to burn and scatter the Demon Cult members while Li Fengyan ordered the government army to charge.
• Xiao Yuan fought Xu Long as Cen Yunhe held off Xu Hu and Xu Bao, and Cao Jinxing joined the battle with Demonic Shadow Doppelganger.
• Cao Jinxing repeatedly battered Xu Long with powerful blade strikes, while Cen Yunhe and Xiao Yuan killed Xu Bao and Cen Yunhe severed Xu Hu's arm before finishing him.
• Cao Jinxing beheaded Xu Long and looked toward Reflection Cliff's seven-colored poisonous miasma, wondering whether the Poison-Averting Pearl could withstand it.

Cao Jinxing and Xiao Yuan entered Three Treasures Cave after breaking through its poison mist and solving the Pure Yang inscription’s first mechanism. Inside, Luo Chou ambushed them with a Heavenly Demon Hand, leaving the confrontation poised to continue.

• Cen Yunhe abandoned the fight and led the surviving Mount Hua disciples back to Jade Maiden Peak after the Xu Brothers died.
• Cao Jinxing agreed with Xiao Yuan to eliminate the Demon Cult first and leave the Pure Yang Stone Inscription to whoever could claim it.
• Cao Jinxing and Xiao Yuan used their poison-warding treasures to pass through the seven-colored miasma and reach Three Treasures Cave.
• Cao Jinxing forced open the cave doors despite a massive boulder blocking them, then deciphered Lü Dongbin’s verse and opened the inner doors with Pure Yang Qi.
• Luo Chou attacked Cao Jinxing and Xiao Yuan with the Heavenly Demon Hand, but Cao Jinxing pushed Xiao Yuan aside and the strike hit the boulder instead.

Cao Jinxing and Xiao Yuan entered the sword field, where the Maitreya Spirit Child tried to reach the Heavenly Dao Sword but was repelled by its sword formation. As Cao Jinxing studied the verses on the wall, Medicine King Valley and Shaolin Temple arrived at Chaoyang Peak and were confronted by two Maitreya Sect Bodhisattvas.

• Cao Jinxing and Xiao Yuan fought past Luo Chou, and Cao Jinxing used the Absorbing Power Great Method until Luo Chou severed his arm and fled through the stone door.
• Cao Jinxing and Xiao Yuan entered the sword field and saw the Maitreya Spirit Child trying to reach the Heavenly Dao Sword.
• The Heavenly Dao Sword activated its sword formation and drove the Maitreya Spirit Child back, while Cao Jinxing began studying the verses carved into the western wall.
• Wei Yunqing and Master Xuandu's groups joined forces at Chaoyang Peak and learned that Cao Jinxing had gone ahead with the Susha Gang's second-in-command.
• Laughing King Kong, Lou Dahuang, and Blood-Robed Buddha, Yang Kaitian, arrived on a Golden-Winged Bird and blocked the groups from proceeding.

As forces converged on Mount Hua, Li Chonglou confronted He Zhiyi’s Demon Cult party, while the Opera House’s assassins set out to seize Patriarch Lü’s treasures. In the Three Treasures Cave, Cao Jinxing solved the sword formation, took the Heavenly Dao Sword, and entered the fourth chamber, leaving the enraged Maitreya Spirit Child pounding on the sealed door.

• Li Chonglou blocked He Zhiyi and his Demon Cult followers on the road to Mount Hua, then charged into their ranks to test his Heavenly Silkworm Divine Art.
• Caidan, Da Qingyi, Daomadan, and Huadan rode toward Mount Hua on the Demon Wolf Xuanming and agreed to focus on the Pure Yang Golden Elixir and Heavenly Dao Sword.
• Cao Jinxing understood the sword formation’s footwork and told Xiao Yuan to hide in the miasma while he crossed the sword forest.
• Cao Jinxing reached the stone door and took the Heavenly Dao Sword from its recess, opening the fourth chamber.
• The Maitreya Spirit Child attacked Cao Jinxing, but Cao Jinxing entered the fourth chamber and sealed the Dragon-Breaking Stone door behind him.
• The Maitreya Spirit Child furiously struck the sealed door while Cao Jinxing examined the fourth chamber.

Cao Jinxing discovered Lü Dongbin’s Yellow Millet Stele and entered an immersive vision of the master demonstrating his martial arts and Pure Yang Skill. Outside Three Treasures Cave, Laughing King Kong broke through the defenders and sealed himself inside with Cao Jinxing, while the others prepared to force their way in.

• Cao Jinxing read the jade stele, completed a circulation of the Pure Yang Skill, and triggered a vision of Lü Dongbin’s complete martial arts legacy.
• Laughing King Kong used Master Xuanhui’s attack to break away and rush toward Reflection Cliff while Blood-Robed Buddha kept Wei Yunqing and Master Xuandu occupied.
• Li Chonglou arrived and briefly restrained Laughing King Kong, but Laughing King Kong seized him, kicked him toward the precipice, and then struck Xiao Yuan with a Ten Thousand Buddhas Hand Seal.
• Laughing King Kong charged into Three Treasures Cave and blocked its entrance with a massive boulder, leaving the wounded defenders outside.
• After learning Chan Master Lingfa had gone to intercept another Demon Cult Faxiang, Wei Yunqing urged the others to break down the door and help Cao Jinxing.

Cao Jinxing mastered Patriarch Lü’s inheritance and killed Laughing King Kong and Luo Chou while gravely wounding the Maitreya Spirit Child. Just as Cao Jinxing was about to finish the Spirit Child, Mad Maitreya arrived and threatened him.

• The Maitreya Spirit Child, Laughing King Kong, and Luo Chou broke into the third chamber and rushed toward the Pure Yang Golden Elixir as the jade tablet shattered.
• Cao Jinxing completed his comprehension of the inheritance and used the Heavenly Dao Sword to kill Laughing King Kong and Luo Chou, shatter the Spirit Child’s Faxiang, and blast open the cave entrance.
• Cao Jinxing controlled the flying sword while attacking the Spirit Child with palm and finger strikes, then broke his ribs and organs with Pure Yang Palm and sent him over the cliff.
• A blood-red flying knife knocked the Heavenly Dao Sword away, and Mad Maitreya rescued the Spirit Child before warning Cao Jinxing that he would die painfully.

Mad Maitreya attacked Cao Jinxing at Reflection Cliff to seize the Heavenly Dao Sword and Pure Yang Golden Elixirs, badly wounding him and overpowering his allies. Cao Jinxing swallowed the elixirs and escaped on Yinghuo, but Mad Maitreya pursued until Chan Master Lingfa intervened, leaving the two Faxiang experts poised to fight.

• Mad Maitreya revealed that Chan Master Lingfa was occupied undoing the seals on Mount Heng Sect nuns, then attacked Cao Jinxing with his Great Wheel Wisdom King manifestation.
• Cao Jinxing wounded Mad Maitreya with his sword, but Mad Maitreya healed himself and demanded the Heavenly Dao Sword and Pure Yang Golden Elixirs.
• Mad Maitreya defeated Wei Yunqing, Xuanhui, and Xuanyin, while Cao Jinxing used Demonic Shadow Doppelganger and Heaven and Earth Great Shift to escape the cliff on Yinghuo after swallowing the elixirs.
• Mad Maitreya struck Cao Jinxing with throwing knives, but Cao used the elixirs' surging qi to cleave through Mad Maitreya's manifestation, sever his arm, and escape with Yinghuo.
• Xuan Yuan Fourteen fed the unconscious Cao Jinxing a Fortune Creation Pill, while Mad Maitreya launched more knives and prayer beads from Chan Master Lingfa intercepted them.
• Chan Master Lingfa confronted Mad Maitreya with Shaolin's Dharma Sword and declared that he deserved to die.

After Yinghuo carried the gravely wounded Cao Jinxing into the mountains, Xuan Yuan Fourteen defended them from Wenchou assassins sent to kill him. Just as Ruchou prepared to kill the injured beast, Bai Yunxiu arrived with a giant white python.

• Yinghuo crashed into a mountain forest, and Xuan Yuan Fourteen carried the unconscious Cao Jinxing into a cave to shelter him.
• The Lightning Marten tracked them to the forest with Ruchou and Lichou, who planned to kill Cao Jinxing and take his weapons and pills.
• Xuan Yuan Fourteen ambushed the two assassins and killed Lichou, but Ruchou wounded it with a powerful staff strike.
• Ruchou used the Lightning Marten to lure Xuan Yuan Fourteen away from the cave, then knocked it down and raised his staff to kill it.
• Bai Yunxiu arrived on a giant white python and warned Ruchou not to harm Xuan Yuan Fourteen.

Bai Yunxiu and Song Chengxi rescued Cao Jinxing after he was gravely injured, and Cao Jinxing tortured the Scholar Clown until he revealed that Yan Shaoting had sent him. Meanwhile, He Qianqiu joined Chan Master Lingfa against Mad Maitreya, and Cao Jinxing learned that Bai Yunxiu’s divination predicted he would slaughter a Divine Beast at Bashan Ridge.

• Bai Yunxiu poisoned the Scholar Clown, and Song Chengxi drove off the Opera House Dan Troupe before helping Xuan Yuan Fourteen lead them to Cao Jinxing.
• Song Chengxi healed Cao Jinxing, who tortured the Scholar Clown until he named Yan Shaoting as the one who sent him.
• Chan Master Lingfa fought Mad Maitreya at Mount Hua, and He Qianqiu arrived to help subdue and pin Mad Maitreya to the mountain wall.
• At Jadewater Courtyard, Bai Yunxiu showed Cao Jinxing the Yisi Divination book and revealed that her prediction identified him as the one who would slaughter a Divine Beast at Bashan Ridge.

Cao Jinxing learned that Bai Yunxiu’s divination had identified him as a likely Divine Beast slayer because his fortune was low, though the prediction was uncertain. Song Chengxi then revealed that the older generation of Faxiang masters were pursuing the Qilin, whose lair might hold the legendary Great Dao Stele.

• Bai Yunxiu explained that divination showed only a likely future and that Cao Jinxing was easier to predict because his fortune was low.
• Cao Jinxing asked Bai Yunxiu whether she could pinpoint his future location, and she explained that precise divination required immense effort and remained unreliable.
• Cao Jinxing kept his distance from Bai Yunxiu, while Song Chengxi praised his potential and said he had been seeking the future Divine Beast slayer’s help.
• Song Chengxi told Cao Jinxing that the older Faxiang masters were pursuing the Qilin, a fact known to the imperial family and Lu Bing.
• Song Chengxi explained that the Myriad Phenomena Steles recorded arts below the immortal grade and that the Great Dao Stele, said to teach immortal-grade arts, might be hidden in the Qilin’s lair.

Cao Jinxing recovered at Jadewater Courtyard and agreed to help Song Chengxi investigate the Qilin in exchange for support and a bow. Meanwhile, Liu Zhenyuan learned Cao was safe and received orders to leave him undisturbed, while Yan Shifan discovered his son’s failed attempt against Cao and forced him to seek forgiveness.

• Song Chengxi explained why he wanted the Qilin and asked Cao Jinxing to help Bai Yunxiu divine its movements and provide cover; Cao agreed and settled into Jadewater Courtyard.
• Cao Jinxing’s deeds at Mount Hua spread through the Jianghu as He Qianqiu and others searched for him, while Liu Zhenyuan worried over his injuries in the capital.
• Lü Fu reassured Liu Zhenyuan that Cao was safe, relayed the emperor’s leave and orders not to disturb him, and explained the possible connection between the Qilin and the Great Dao Stele.
• Cao Jinxing’s message confirmed he was recuperating near the Ba Mountains and helping his savior; Liu Zhenyuan agreed to grant him a month’s leave.
• Caidan and the Three Sisters told Yan Shifan that Song Chengxi had protected Cao and that Ruchou and Lichou had been captured; Yan Shifan blamed Yan Shaoting and ordered him to beg the Pacification Commission for forgiveness.

Yan Shifan ordered Yan Shaoting to apologize for targeting Cao Jinxing, while the Demon Cult learned of its losses and issued a bounty for Cao Jinxing. The Western Regions Three Fiends set out to kill him, as Zhang Wanqing and the other deputy leaders considered a plan to rescue Mad Maitreya and the spirit child.

• Yan Shifan ordered Yan Shaoting to take responsibility for his subordinates’ attack on Cao Jinxing and settle the matter with the Thirteen Guardians.
• Zhang Wanqing summoned the Demon Cult’s leaders and elders, reported that Cao Jinxing had defeated the spirit child and killed Luo Chou and the Xu Brothers, and announced a bounty for Cao Jinxing and the prisoners’ rescue.
• The Western Regions Three Fiends questioned Zhang Wanqing about how Cao Jinxing defeated the Demon Cult’s forces, then learned he had used the Eight Formation Diagram to burn the nine hundred elite troops.
• The Western Regions Three Fiends vowed to bring back Cao Jinxing’s head within half a month.
• Zhang Wanqing and the Bright Sect and Maitreya Sect leaders discussed rescuing Mad Maitreya and the spirit child, and Zhang Wanqing proposed a plan.

After recovering from his injuries, Cao Jinxing joined Song Chengxi and Bai Yunxiu to plan for obtaining the Wandering Immortal Coin, a divination treasure needed to locate Faxiang practitioners. The group prepared to travel to Wansong Manor, where the coin was held, while Cao Jinxing learned the Golden Snake Sword Technique and Song Chengxi hinted at a coming confrontation.

• Cao Jinxing woke recovered and stabilized at the seventh layer of Tongyou, then went to breakfast with Song Chengxi and Bai Yunxiu.
• Bai Yunxiu practiced copper coin divination and tried to determine how many steps Cao Jinxing had taken to reach Green Willow Pavilion.
• Song Chengxi explained that the Wandering Immortal Coin could help them divine the locations of Faxiang practitioners and identified its owner as Yuan Mingyuan of Wansong Manor.
• Song Chengxi said Murong Hua, a Faxiang practitioner of the Murong Family, was staying at Wansong Manor and would be held off while Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu obtained the coin.
• Cao Jinxing disguised himself with the Four Public Masks, accepted Song Chengxi's sword Extreme Night, and watched Bai Yunxiu demonstrate the Golden Snake Sword Technique.
• Song Chengxi looked toward the horizon and said the old bastards should not be impatient because he would arrive soon.

Cao Jinxing, Bai Yunxiu, and Song Chengxi traveled to Wansong Manor to obtain the Immortal Roaming Coin, but found the Yuan, Murong, and Ji families gathered there for a betrothal ceremony. Song Chengxi revealed that he had crippled Murong Hua years ago, making a peaceful request for the treasure unlikely, so Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu planned to scout the manor that night.

• Bai Yunxiu demonstrated the Golden Snake Sword Technique, and Cao Jinxing said he had understood enough of it to disguise his identity.
• Liu Zhenyuan sent Cao Jinxing a letter with intelligence about Heavenly Secret Twenty-Five and its allies, who were moving toward the Jiangsu-Zhejiang region.
• Cao Jinxing, Bai Yunxiu, and Song Chengxi flew to Wansong Manor to obtain the Immortal Roaming Coin and the Eight Desolations Sun-Shooting Bow.
• Bai Yunxiu learned that Wansong Manor was hosting Yuan Yiren's betrothal-gift ceremony, attended by the Murong and Ji families and several powerful experts.
• Song Chengxi explained that he had inflicted Murong Hua's lingering cold-poison injury in a fight twenty years earlier, complicating any attempt to borrow the Yuan family's treasure.
• Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu decided to scout Wansong Manor that night before resorting to force.

Ji Shaoqin and Yuan Yiren discovered Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu spying on them in the Pine Garden and activated Wansong Manor’s protective formation. Ji Shaoqin attacked Cao Jinxing through the blinding fog, forcing him to draw the Polar Night Sword.

• Ji Wenfeng presented the Ji Family’s lavish betrothal gifts to Yuan Mingyuan and Murong Qing, who approved of the match between Ji Shaoqin and Yuan Yiren.
• Wu Guihai escorted Ji Shaoqin to the Pine Garden, where he reunited with Yuan Yiren while Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu secretly watched.
• Bai Yunxiu briefed Cao Jinxing on Wansong Manor’s powerful defenders, and they planned to steal the Wandering Immortal Coin that night.
• Ji Shaoqin sensed the two watchers and signaled Yuan Yiren, who activated the Pine Garden formation by striking an ancient pine.
• Ji Shaoqin attacked Cao Jinxing with the Shadow Tiger Spear through the thick white fog, and Cao Jinxing pushed Bai Yunxiu aside and drew the Polar Night Sword.

Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu infiltrated Wansong Manor to find the Wandering Immortal Coin, fought off Ji Shaoqin and Yuan Yiren’s formation, then secretly stayed behind to follow the manor lords toward the treasury. The chapter ended with them entering an underground passage beneath the Red Cloud Tower.

• Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu were trapped in Pine Garden’s shifting formation, where Ji Shaoqin and Yuan Yiren attacked them with a spear and Storm Pear Blossom Needles.
• Cao Jinxing deflected the needles, disarmed Ji Shaoqin, and led Bai Yunxiu out of the mist without revealing their identities.
• Ji Shaoqin told the gathered manor lords that the intruders used the Golden Snake Sword Technique, while Yuan Mingyuan divined a grave omen and ordered the treasury guarded.
• Ji Wenfeng told Ji Shaoqin to investigate Murong Hua, seek the Medicine God Spirit Spring, and drain the power of Guanji Mountain’s three dragon veins.
• Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu hid nearby under the Divine Concealment Cloak and overheard that the Wandering Immortal Coin was in the treasury.
• Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu followed Qi Kaicheng into the secret passage beneath the Red Cloud Tower.

Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu infiltrated Wansong Manor’s underground control room to reach the Yuan Family treasure vault, but Yuan Mingyuan anticipated their arrival and triggered a trap. Cao Jinxing defeated him and took the three Wandering Immortal Coins, leaving the three other manor lords immobilized.

• Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu followed Qi Kaicheng through the trapped underground passages to the Central Control Room, where Bai Yunxiu sent Lice Gu toward the manor lords.
• Yuan Mingyuan opened the vault, took the ancestral sword Flowing Radiance, then activated the central pillar’s mechanism as he passed it.
• Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu escaped the falling floor and steel cage, while Bai Yunxiu’s Lice Gu paralyzed Yuan Mingyuan’s three companions.
• Yuan Mingyuan attacked Cao Jinxing with Upper Deficiency, Middle Full Sword, but Cao Jinxing countered with the Polar Night Sword and the White Dragon Gu.
• Cao Jinxing subdued Yuan Mingyuan, took the three Wandering Immortal Coins from his robes, and said they would borrow them.

Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu escaped the underground treasury with the Wandering Immortal Coin as Wansong Manor’s alarm brought Murong Qing and Ji Wenfeng to intercept them. Song Chengxi prevented Murong Hua from intervening, and the chapter ended as Murong Qing and Ji Wenfeng attacked Bai Yunxiu at Crimson Cloud Tower.

• Cao Jinxing sealed Yuan Mingyuan’s acupoints, took the Wandering Immortal Coin, and rode the White Dragon Gu with Bai Yunxiu toward the exit.
• An alarm rang through Wansong Manor, prompting Cao Jinxing to send Bai Yunxiu ahead as a distraction while he followed invisibly.
• Song Chengxi stopped Murong Hua from intervening and revealed that Cao Jinxing and Bai Yunxiu had already obtained the coin.
• Bai Yunxiu emerged at Crimson Cloud Tower and was blasted back by Ji Wenfeng’s Mountain-Shaking Palm.
• Murong Qing arrived and joined Ji Wenfeng in attacking Bai Yunxiu.