Recaps

Pei Ye and Black Cat realized that Xi Wuchou had been real and that the Bead was the Divine Skill Endowed Fortune, then went to find Yue Muzhou. As a Monster attacked Yue Muzhou at the County Office, he absorbed part of it, causing Endowed Fortune to germinate and restoring his ability to stand.

• Pei Ye concluded that Xi Wuchou and the events in the Manuscript had been real, and Black Cat connected the Bead to the Divine Skill Endowed Fortune.
• Black Cat traced the Bead to the fields north of Kui Residence Mountain and realized Xi Wuchou might be connected to where it could be found.
• At the County Office, Yue Muzhou faced what he believed would be his death, but the Monster stopped before him and waited.
• Yue Muzhou touched the Monster and drew part of its body into himself, while Zhu Gaoyang’s human form emerged and another portion of the Monster escaped into its chest.
• Endowed Fortune began to germinate inside Yue Muzhou, and he stood again after eighteen years.

Yue Muzhou abandoned his careful recovery plan and rapidly advanced to the Sky Tower to confront the Immortal Lord attacking Fenghuai. He drove the Immortal Lord beyond the city walls, while Ming Qitian prepared to fight again despite her injuries and Heart-Slaying Glaze’s corruption.

• Yue Muzhou chose to ascend immediately, restored his cultivation through the Profound Gate, and cleared the sky above the County Office as he advanced.
• Ming Qitian treated her wounds, killed another Scout, and persuaded the weakened Heart-Slaying Glaze to let her wield it again.
• The Immortal Lord sensed Yue Muzhou’s emergence and rushed to attack him, directing the city’s Netherfire at him.
• Yue Muzhou met the Immortal Lord’s charge with a Sky Tower punch and knocked him beyond Fenghuai City’s bounds.
• Yue Muzhou dispersed the incoming Netherfire, coughed, and reached toward a street below.

Pei Ye and Black Cat raced to the County Office as the Immortal Lord’s rain transformed animals and threatened Fenghuai City. Yue Muzhou emerged to confront the Immortal Lord, and after Pei Ye gave him his sword, the two began a brutal battle that left both injured.

• Pei Ye rode toward the County Office through the deadly rain while Black Cat urged him to hurry and rescue Xi Wuchou.
• Two rain-corrupted dogs attacked a girl, and Black Cat broke into the house and burned them before rejoining Pei Ye.
• Yue Muzhou rose into the sky and struck the charging Immortal Lord, then asked Pei Ye for his sword and challenged Him at the city wall.
• Pei Ye threw his sword to Yue Muzhou, who joined the fight as Black Cat and Pei Ye set off to kill the Immortal Lord.
• Yue Muzhou’s sword cut deeply into the Immortal Lord, and the two fought fiercely for nearly a quarter of an hour before emerging from the dust badly injured.

Pei Ye and Black Chi reached the gate tower, where Black Chi asked him to trust their unspoken understanding while it coordinated with Ming Qitian for Heart-Slaying Glaze’s final strike. Outside Fenghuai, Yue Muzhou continued fighting the Immortal Lord and found that Quail Head had invaded his Mindscape Realm through a passing thought.

• Pei Ye watched Yue Muzhou and the Immortal Lord fight and recognized the old man’s instinctive combat style.
• Black Chi offered to dissolve its pact with Pei Ye, but Pei Ye refused and agreed to trust their unspoken understanding.
• Black Chi joined Ming Qitian at the gate tower and discussed coordinating with her for Heart-Slaying Glaze’s final strike.
• Yue Muzhou struggled to overcome the Immortal Lord’s regenerative body, matching wounds, and unusual abilities.
• Quail Head entered Yue Muzhou’s Mindscape Realm after exploiting a passing thought.

Yue Muzhou endured the Immortal Lord’s relentless assault, turning the pressure of his disadvantage into the force of a decisive sword strike. He unleashed [Sky-Piercing, Mortal Life Reversed], tearing apart the Immortal Lord, though the battle’s final outcome remained unresolved.

• Yue Muzhou used [Clouded Sky Obscures Eyes, Lost Feathers] to shield his mind and drive the Immortal Lord back.
• Ming Qitian and Black Cat headed toward the battlefield while Pei Ye stayed behind on the city wall.
• The Immortal Lord gained the advantage by detonating his fire early and trapping Yue Muzhou in an unrelenting assault.
• Yue Muzhou let the Immortal Lord compress his momentum until it reached its lowest point, then released [Sky-Piercing, Mortal Life Reversed].
• Yue Muzhou accepted the Immortal Lord’s claw strike as his sword Qi tore the Immortal Lord’s body apart.

Yue Muzhou wounded the Immortal Lord but lost his Dantian Seed, leaving his failing body unable to continue the fight. Black Chi and Ming Qitian intervened to weaken the Immortal Lord, but just as Ming Qitian attempted a final strike, something crossed the sky and stopped her.

• Yue Muzhou pierced the Immortal Lord’s exposed divine Seed, but the Immortal Lord extracted Yue Muzhou’s Dantian Seed with a claw.
• Yue Muzhou cut the Immortal Lord apart once more, then collapsed as his ruined body failed without its true qi.
• The Immortal Lord cracked Yue Muzhou’s Bead with dragon blood and frostfire, but Black Chi seized control of his body and tossed the Bead to the black cat.
• Ming Qitian struck the Immortal Lord repeatedly with Heart-Slaying Glaze while Black Chi restrained him, weakening his consciousness until Black Chi’s soul dispersed.
• Ming Qitian’s final thrust was blocked when the woods darkened and something passed overhead; the black cat looked up, recognizing that it was not a flock of birds.

Yue Muzhou taught Ming Qitian a secret sword technique and used it to deliver an unavoidable heart-slaying strike against the Immortal Lord. The Immortal Lord’s body fell, and the light went out of his dragon eyes.

• Ming Qitian supported Yue Muzhou and lent him True Qi as he explained the origins of the secret sword technique.
• Yue Muzhou took Heart-Slaying Glaze and warned that the dangerous technique could be used only once a year.
• After the Immortal Lord restored his body with Dragon Blood, he charged toward the pearl beneath Black Cat’s paws.
• Yue Muzhou faced the Immortal Lord with the secret sword, and the Immortal Lord realized the strike could not be avoided.
• Yue Muzhou cut downward with Heart-Slaying Glaze, and the Immortal Lord’s body fell as his golden eyes faded to gray.

After Yue Muzhou killed the Immortal Lord’s Sky Tower body, he arranged for Ming Qitian to take credit for the victory and give Endowed Fortune to Pei Ye. Pei Ye then used the Bead to lure the Immortal Lord’s remaining consciousness into his body, but as he reached for it, Black Cat still had not acted.

• Yue Muzhou told Ming Qitian that Endowed Fortune should go to Pei Ye because he had no Dantian Seed, and asked her to claim credit for the victory.
• Ming Qitian agreed to keep the Bead’s true destination within their group and take credit for defeating the Immortal Lord.
• Pei Ye suspected the Immortal Lord’s consciousness could survive by entering another body, so he planned to lure it with Endowed Fortune.
• Pei Ye approached the Bead and felt the Immortal Lord take control of his body, while Black Cat appeared to be discussing Heart-Slaying Glaze with Ming Qitian.
• Pei Ye watched himself bend toward the Bead as Black Cat still made no move.

Pei Ye absorbed the Immortal Lord’s dragon body with the Dantian Seed, gaining human true qi, and Xing Zhi learned that the Immortal Lord had been defeated. Fenghuai City began recovering as the dragon rain and frost ended, though the disaster’s losses remained uncertain.

• Black Chi’s strike destroyed the Immortal Lord’s consciousness, and Pei Ye took the Dantian Seed while Yue Muzhou helped stop his bleeding.
• Pei Ye devoured the Immortal Lord’s dragon body, filling the Dantian Seed and gaining pure human true qi.
• Xing Zhi arrived in the clearing and learned that the Immortal Lord had been killed.
• The dragon rain stopped, the frost melted, and Fenghuai’s residents emerged to grieve and assess the damage.

After the Immortal Lord’s defeat, Xing Zhi treated the wounded and used a spell formation to stabilize Yue Muzhou, whose life was fading. At Stream-Viewing Slope, Yue Muzhou helped Pei Ye recognize that he wanted to seek his own path in the Divine Capital and entrusts his vengeance to him, though their departure would have to wait until after the ninth month.

• Xing Zhi reunited with Zhu Gaoyang and used the Silver-Jade Life-Weaving art to stabilize Yue Muzhou for about four hours.
• Pei Ye pushed Yue Muzhou to Stream-Viewing Slope, where the old man asked him to consider what he wanted from life.
• Yue Muzhou told Pei Ye that he was too passionate and competitive to devote himself solely to sword cultivation or settle into a martial sanctuary.
• Pei Ye admitted he intended to avenge Yue Muzhou, and Yue Muzhou entrusted that hatred to him.
• Yue Muzhou recognized that Pei Ye wanted to go to the Divine Capital and said he would have to wait until after the ninth month.

Yue Muzhou entrusted Pei Ye’s future to Ming Qitian and chose to spend his remaining time with him rather than pursue further treatment. After Yue Muzhou and Pei Ye parted from Ming Qitian, Pei Ye accepted the old man’s decision and wept in his arms; elsewhere, the Immortal Lord awakened inside a fox.

• Yue Muzhou told Pei Ye to seek support in the Divine Capital with a jade token and keep a second token for a desperate meeting with the Shenxiao Dao Leader.
• Ming Qitian returned after receiving Pei Ye’s Sword Talisman, and Yue Muzhou recommended a sword sect for her journey.
• Yue Muzhou asked Ming Qitian to guide Pei Ye south after she completed her sword inquiry, and she agreed.
• Yue Muzhou explained that he could not be saved and did not want to prolong his final breaths, and Pei Ye agreed not to take him back to the Immortal Platform.
• Pei Ye embraced Yue Muzhou and sobbed as they stayed together in the evening breeze.
• An undetected piece of the Immortal Lord’s consciousness awakened in a fox in the Firewood-Cang Mountains and touched a streak of moonlight.

Pei Ye and Li Qi formed a pact to take revenge on the Prince of Zhenbei, while a mysterious old man captured the dragon spirit in a cage. The chapter ended volume one with Pei Ye and Black Cat looking south toward the Divine Capital, followed by the author's volume recap.

• The old man captured the dragon spirit in a transparent cage after it fled into a frog and destroyed its nearby servants.
• Black Cat brought Pei Ye the box containing two jade carvings, and Pei Ye resolved to avenge the old man and confront the Prince of Zhenbei.
• Pei Ye and Li Qi formed a pact as Quail Head and Great Fire, making the Prince of Zhenbei their shared enemy.
• Pei Ye stood with Black Cat and looked south toward the distant Divine Capital.
• The author announced the end of volume one and discussed reader reactions to character deaths and the story's oppressive plot.

The author reflected on the first volume’s heavy tone, its characters, and the story’s strengths and shortcomings. The author said the second volume would begin the next day with a lighter, ground-level travel-and-growth story.

• The author explained that volume one was written to forge Pei Ye’s enmity and described Yue Muzhou as someone who cast aside status, hatred, and fear of death to act freely.
• The author said Pei Ye and Black Chi had moved from suspicion through setbacks to trust and would gradually learn to entrust their lives to each other.
• The author said Yue Muzhou had left hooks for later volumes, where he would be portrayed through Pei Ye’s eyes again.
• The author discussed a preference for simple, sincere allies and vicious enemies, and admitted that skipped details had sometimes made plot points confusing.
• The author announced that volume two would begin the next day with a more conventional, lighter story of travel and growth, while warning that updates might be slower.

Pei Ye buried the old man who had lived in seclusion, then met the Ziwei Illuminator, who confirmed that no trace of the Immortal Lord remained in him. Pei Ye reunited with the recovering Zhu Gaoyang at the County Office, where they compared their survival and talked about Ming Qitian and Heart-Slaying Glaze.

• Pei Ye buried the old man beneath a willow and returned to the County Office.
• The Ziwei Illuminator examined Pei Ye and Black Cat, confirmed nothing remained of the Immortal Lord, and left to inspect the remnants at Xin Cang Mountain.
• Ming Qitian told Pei Ye she would begin teaching him sword techniques the next day and mentioned that Zhu Gaoyang had woken up.
• Pei Ye visited Zhu Gaoyang, and the two shared their surprise at surviving and discussed Ming Qitian's swordsmanship.
• Pei Ye told Zhu Gaoyang that Heart-Slaying Glaze was nearby, and Zhu Gaoyang learned she was at the County Office.

Pei Ye learned that Zhu Gaoyang’s heart had been altered by the thing inside him, leaving him with only a quarter of his cultivation potential, while Zhu Gaoyang tried to remain cheerful. After resting, Pei Ye discovered his Meridian Tree was rapidly growing by absorbing Profound Qi, then woke to find Zhu Gaoyang back on his feet and the Ziwei Illuminator reporting no remnants; Pei Ye prepared to wash and eat before meeting Ming Qitian for sword instruction.

• Zhu Gaoyang gave Pei Ye a storage pendant as a token of friendship and invited him to study at Dragon Lord Dongting, but Pei Ye said he wanted to go to the Divine Capital.
• Xing Zhi told Pei Ye that Zhu Gaoyang’s heart had been shaped like the thing inside him, which siphoned away much of his power and might remain for life.
• Xing Zhi explained that Zhu Gaoyang knew he might retain only one part in four of his strength and cultivation, and Pei Ye worried about his future.
• Pei Ye rested in his room and discovered that his Meridian Tree continued absorbing Profound Qi and converting it into True Qi, making his cultivation grow quickly.
• Pei Ye woke near noon, and Zhu Gaoyang told him the Ziwei Illuminator had found no remnants and that the Divine Capital’s Immortal Platform would take over the investigation.
• Zhu Gaoyang told Pei Ye to wash and eat before meeting Ming Qitian for sword instruction.

Pei Ye began sword lessons with Ming Qitian, who found his basic swordsmanship poor and gave him a book on sword theory to study. As she explained the first realm of sword cultivation, Pei Ye learned that swordsmanship depended on precise control rather than cultivation level or mastering a particular technique.

• Pei Ye met Ming Qitian and brought her to his quiet courtyard for sword instruction.
• Pei Ye described his sword training and performed the Opening Gate Sword for Ming Qitian.
• Ming Qitian criticized Pei Ye’s basic swordsmanship but praised his talent, then gave him the Compendium of Six Dynasties Swordcraft to study.
• Pei Ye admitted he could not read many characters, and Ming Qitian told him to learn as he studied the book.
• Ming Qitian explained the five realms of sword cultivation and defined plainness as precise, natural control of the sword.

Ming Qitian taught Pei Ye the recognized sword realms and helped him enter the Clumsy realm through instruction and sparring. Before leaving, she asked him to see whether he could consume the dragon blood embedded in Heart-Slaying Glaze.

• Ming Qitian explained the Clumsy, Nimble, Intent, Heart, and Dao realms and clarified that Pei Ye had briefly touched the Heart realm through [Clouded Sky Obscures Eyes, Lost Feathers].
• Ming Qitian showed Pei Ye that he could enter the Clumsy realm by controlling the sword itself rather than being governed by sword moves.
• Pei Ye performed the Gate-Opening Sword with greater ease and power, then sparred with Ming Qitian throughout the afternoon and firmly entered the Clumsy realm.
• Ming Qitian told Pei Ye she would leave that night and asked for his help with Glaze, which she had retrieved from the County Office.
• Pei Ye examined Heart-Slaying Glaze and tried to consume the dragon blood inside it, but its appeal was faint because the blood had been frozen and forged into the sword.

Pei Ye began absorbing the Dragon Blood trapped in Heart-Slaying Glaze while Ming Qitian left for the Sword Inquiry, entrusting the wounded, sentient sword to him. After the sword fled his grasp and avoided him, Pei Ye and Zhu Gaoyang chased it around the County Office; Pei Ye then wondered whether he could treat Zhu Gaoyang as well as the sword.

• Pei Ye absorbed two fragments of Dragon Blood from Heart-Slaying Glaze and learned that the sword needed gentle soothing.
• Ming Qitian left Heart-Slaying Glaze with Pei Ye and departed for the Sword Inquiry, urging him to advance his Sword Realm and study the General Treatise.
• Heart-Slaying Glaze fled from Pei Ye, bathed in the well, and flew to the County Office.
• Pei Ye and Zhu Gaoyang spent nearly half an hour chasing the sword before giving up and joining the others for dinner.
• Pei Ye drew Zhu Gaoyang into a side room and asked whether he could treat him too.

Pei Ye discovered that Zhu Gaoyang’s heart had been replaced by a dark-blue, scaled organ he could not remove without killing him, then studied swordsmanship with Zhu Gaoyang and treated Heart-Slaying Glaze. After two days of lessons, Pei Ye practiced while Zhu Gaoyang asked whether he could meet other famed swords.

• Pei Ye examined Zhu Gaoyang’s heart and realized that removing the dark-blue replacement would kill him.
• Zhu Gaoyang taught Pei Ye the Compendium, explaining its language, sword principles, and his own interpretations.
• Pei Ye returned to his room, where Heart-Slaying Glaze woke him and he used Endowed Fortune to ease the sword’s pain.
• Pei Ye offered Zhu Gaoyang four hours of lessons in exchange for letting him touch Heart-Slaying Glaze, then continued studying and practicing swordsmanship.
• Zhu Gaoyang asked Pei Ye whether he knew any other famed swords and could introduce them.

Pei Ye parted from Zhu Gaoyang, Xing Zhi, and Shang Lang, returned to his old home, and began preparing for Bowang Prefecture's Golden Autumn Martial Contest. Master Huang explained the contest's rules, and the chapter ended with an explanation of how prefectural contests selected candidates for the Divine Capital Martial Exam.

• Zhu Gaoyang left Fenghuai for treatment at Dragon Lord Dongting, while Xing Zhi and Shang Lang also departed after saying goodbye to Pei Ye.
• Xing Zhi gave Pei Ye a primer on sensing spiritual power, Zhu Gaoyang warned him not to neglect martial cultivation, and Shang Lang lent him twenty taels of silver.
• Pei Ye returned to his old courtyard, settled back into his routines, and decided to prepare for the Golden Autumn Martial Contest.
• Pei Ye bought wine from Lu Youcai, who told him the rain had ruined his stock, then went to the martial hall to seek Master Huang's advice.
• Master Huang began explaining the Golden Autumn Martial Contest as Pei Ye absorbed Dragon Blood from Heart-Slaying Glaze.
• The chapter explained that prefectural contests determined who could enter the Divine Capital Martial Exam and that the ministries also reserved two hundred places for a Divine Capital contest.

Pei Ye learned how the Golden Autumn Martial Contest selected its competitors and what level of opponents he could expect. He declared that he was aiming for first place, and Master Huang challenged him to prove himself in a sword spar.

• Master Huang explained Bowang Prefecture’s four entry routes and described the Golden Autumn Martial Contest as a miniature Divine Capital Martial Exam.
• Pei Ye learned that sect disciples, candidates from Zheng Shou and Xu Gu, and merchant-backed fighters were likely to be among his toughest opponents.
• Master Huang suggested Pei Ye win at least one match and strive for three, but Pei Ye said he always aimed for first place.
• Master Huang challenged Pei Ye to defeat him within five moves to show he was ready to contend for the top eight.
• Pei Ye drew his sword and assessed how his current cultivation and physique compared with his former strength before the spar began.

Pei Ye tested his swordsmanship against Master Huang and won after seven moves, though Master Huang warned him not to mistake powerful techniques for a stable martial realm. Pei Ye insisted he would soon reach second life, then stayed to practice swordsmanship and fight Master Huang barehanded.

• Pei Ye used his swordsmanship to trap Master Huang and disarm him, finally placing his blade at Master Huang's throat on the seventh move.
• Master Huang revealed he was at third growth and explained that Pei Ye's skill could defeat stronger opponents without making him their equal in realm or strength.
• Pei Ye said he would reach second life in a couple of days, and Master Huang questioned whether he was using an Evil Cultivation Art.
• Pei Ye sat with Master Huang to discuss the Martial Competition, then practiced his sword in the courtyard for four hours.
• Pei Ye fought Master Huang barehanded and won after fifty-seven moves.

Pei Ye visited the training hall, reunited with the injured Zhang Xiaoyan, and asked Master Huang for the hall’s supposed treasured sword art. Master Huang showed him the Cicada Sparrow Sword, which Pei Ye assessed as a flawed but useful clumsy-realm sword art.

• Pei Ye arrived at the training hall and found Zhang Xiaoyan watching the children practice from a wheelchair.
• Pei Ye urged Zhang Xiaoyan to protect his injured legs, then promised to teach the children after their horse-stance practice.
• Pei Ye asked Master Huang whether he could learn the training hall’s treasured sword art, and Master Huang admitted it was a tale meant to motivate students.
• Master Huang retrieved the old Cicada Sparrow Sword manual from a cupboard and gave it to Pei Ye.
• Pei Ye read the manual and judged that its sword art belonged to the clumsy realm, with flaws but still practical value.

Pei Ye taught the martial school children sword theory and sparring, then showed them Heart-Slaying Glaze. Chang Zhiyuan invited him to leave for the Prefectural City the next day to train for the Golden Autumn Martial Contest, and Pei Ye offered to take the children to watch it.

• Pei Ye taught the children the five realms of swordsmanship, sparred with them, and ranked their skills.
• Pei Ye opened the sword case, and Heart-Slaying Glaze floated among the startled children.
• Chang Zhiyuan gave Pei Ye a letter from Military Officer Bai inviting him to train at a martial school in the Prefectural City.
• Pei Ye accepted Chang Zhiyuan's invitation to leave the next day, upsetting the children who wanted him to keep training with them.
• Pei Ye offered to take the children to the Golden Autumn Martial Contest, and Master Huang pulled him aside to question how he would pay for the trip.

Pei Ye and Master Huang planned the children’s trip to the Prefectural City for the Martial Competition, while Chang Zhiyuan cautioned Pei Ye about the risks of competing. After agreeing on the travel budget, Pei Ye packed for his departure the next morning and prepared to carry his sword, valuables, and Black Cat.

• Pei Ye told Master Huang he had borrowed twenty taels and wanted to use most of it to take the children to the Prefectural City; Master Huang went to calculate the expenses.
• Pei Ye told Chang Zhiyuan he expected to reach the top four, while Chang Zhiyuan advised him to stop at the top sixteen and avoid risking his life.
• Master Huang estimated the group’s travel and city expenses at ten taels, and Pei Ye agreed to provide five while Master Huang would cover the rest.
• Pei Ye returned home, packed clothes and his sword, and stored his silver in the jade flood-dragon pendant Zhu Gaoyang had given him.
• Pei Ye tried to put Heart-Slaying Glaze in the pendant but stopped when the sword resisted, then added Black Cat to his things to carry.