Chapter Summaries

Ye Jingtang and Luo Ning were caught in an awkwardly intimate moment when Pei Xiangjun arrived, and Luo Ning soon left to continue her journey. As Luo Ning, Zhe Yunli, and Zhang Henggu departed the capital, Zhang Henggu reflected on Great Wei’s prosperity.

• Pei Xiangjun arrived and found Ye Jingtang with Luo Ning, then warmly welcomed her as a friend of the household.
• Luo Ning left after Ye Jingtang embraced her goodbye, and he chased after her to see her off.
• Luo Ning warned Ye Jingtang to stay clear of the princess and reminded him that he needed her help to rescue Qiu Tianhe.
• Luo Ning met Zhe Yunli, Zhang Henggu, and two Sky-Pacifying Sect Incense Masters near the eastern gate, then set out from the capital with them.
• Zhang Henggu observed that Great Wei’s fortunes were flourishing, while Zhe Yunli defended her master’s prospects of ruling.

Ye Jingtang returned to Pei Xiangjun, who began teaching him the Pei Family’s Overlord Spear ahead of their upcoming journey. She demonstrated the powerful Yellow Dragon Lies Across the Road, then ordered him to practice.

• Pei Xiangjun asked Xiuhe about arranging a pretty maid to serve Ye Jingtang, but dismissed the idea because he already had someone he loved.
• Ye Jingtang returned to Twin Osmanthus Alley and said the young lady he had met was a wandering swordswoman.
• Pei Xiangjun took Ye Jingtang to an abandoned workshop, where she prepared bamboo poles for spear practice and considered what role she could have in his life.
• Pei Xiangjun demonstrated Yellow Dragon Lies Across the Road, a move from the Pei Family’s Overlord Spear, blasting fallen leaves across the courtyard.
• Ye Jingtang praised the spear technique and began to boast about learning it quickly, so Pei Xiangjun sternly told him to practice.

Ye Jingtang learned the Overlord Spear from Pei Xiangjun and showed astonishing talent, though he still needed to refine his control and practice using it in combat. After Pei Xiangjun left, he returned to his quiet home and waited hopefully for the woman who had left.

• Ye Jingtang practiced the Overlord Spear, and his powerful strike sent leaves flying and split two bamboo stalks.
• Pei Xiangjun was shocked by Ye Jingtang’s talent and advised him to practice controlling his force before using the spear in a real fight.
• Pei Xiangjun warned Ye Jingtang to conceal the Overlord Spear’s identity and said she would withhold its final two moves until he formally became her disciple.
• After practicing with Ye Jingtang, Pei Xiangjun left in her carriage, and he returned home with Niao Niao.
• Ye Jingtang sat beneath the eaves with liquor and told Niao Niao that the woman who had left might come back, while Niao Niao urged him to cook.

Ye Jingtang studied the Dragon-Mingling Diagram and set out to meet Prince Jing, but learned the Black Bureau was investigating a possible Grandmaster who had killed a chief constable. At Jade Pool Manor, Dongfang Liren delayed meeting him to keep the Empress Dowager company.

• Ye Jingtang found that carefully studying the Dragon-Mingling Diagram let him glimpse a moving image and begin to infer a method of circulating qi.
• Ye Jingtang went to the Black Bureau, where She Long told him that an unknown attacker had killed chief constable Wang Sheng with a single blow.
• Shang Jianli told Ye Jingtang that Prince Jing had ordered him to seek an audience at Jade Pool Manor, so Ye Jingtang rode there.
• Dongfang Liren and the Empress Dowager talked in the manor's hot spring, and the Empress Dowager teased Liren about having a man in her heart.
• A female official announced Ye Jingtang's arrival, and Dongfang Liren asked him to wait while she continued keeping the Empress Dowager company.

Ye Jingtang visited Dongfang Liren at Jade Pool Manor to teach her the Tianhe Blade, but discovered she could memorize its movements without understanding how to apply the technique. He agreed to ask Qiu Tianhe for clearer instructions and return to teach her later.

• Ye Jingtang waited at Jade Pool Manor while Niao Niao lounged nearby, then greeted Dongfang Liren when she arrived.
• Dongfang Liren renamed Niao Niao Snow Consort and showed Ye Jingtang her treasured saber, Green Garment.
• Ye Jingtang demonstrated the Tianhe Blade and taught Dongfang Liren its movements, correcting her repeated attempts.
• Dongfang Liren practiced for over an hour but could not grasp the technique's feel, and she told Ye Jingtang to seek clearer guidance from Qiu Tianhe.
• Ye Jingtang agreed to consult Qiu Tianhe in the dungeon and said he would return to teach Dongfang Liren after figuring out how to explain the technique.

Ye Jingtang showed Dongfang Liren his newly learned Lightness Skill, astonishing her by outrunning her across the river despite his noisy, clumsy technique. As they walked near White Horse Academy, they discussed his schooling before he noticed something in the dark street.

• Dongfang Liren demonstrated her graceful Lightness Skill on a willow branch and across the river, and Ye Jingtang attempted to follow her.
• Ye Jingtang fell into the river, then sprinted across its surface and overtook Dongfang Liren as he grew faster with practice.
• Dongfang Liren chased Ye Jingtang but could not catch him, then advised him to refine his technique and not rely on speed alone.
• Dongfang Liren and Ye Jingtang walked toward White Horse Academy, where they discussed Ye Jingtang's education and literary abilities.
• Ye Jingtang began to boast about poetry, then heard something and turned toward the dark street.

Ye Jingtang protected Dongfang Liren from a hidden-weapon attack by Blood Bodhi, an assassin who recognized his Tianhe Blade. Blood Bodhi closed in with his iron crutch, and Ye Jingtang unleashed a sudden saber strike as the chapter ended.

• Niao Niao scouted the dark riverbank while Ye Jingtang sensed danger and shielded Dongfang Liren from a silent hidden weapon with his saber.
• Ye Jingtang deflected another attack as he guided Dongfang Liren into a bookshop, where a hidden weapon shattered her jade hairpin.
• Dongfang Liren identified the attacker as Blood Bodhi and warned Ye Jingtang about his weapons and fighting style.
• Blood Bodhi appeared and challenged Ye Jingtang over becoming the court's running dog, then charged with his iron crutch.
• Blood Bodhi thrust at Ye Jingtang from close range, and Ye Jingtang answered with a sudden, powerful saber strike.

Ye Jingtang ambushed the assassin Blood Bodhi with two consecutive Eight-Step Mad Blade slashes, leaving him badly injured. Mistaking the old man for bait in a larger attack, Ye Jingtang stayed on guard as Blood Bodhi fled, then admitted he had found him weaker than Third Madam.

• Ye Jingtang drove through Blood Bodhi’s Iron Cane thrust and sent the old man flying, slicing off half his ear.
• Ye Jingtang followed with the Third Blade of the Eight-Step Mad Blade and smashed Blood Bodhi into the street, gravely wounding him.
• Ye Jingtang leaped back rather than risk Blood Bodhi’s desperate counterattack, then watched the surrounding houses for other attackers.
• Dongfang Liren watched from the bookshop and ducked behind the counter when Ye Jingtang warned that Blood Bodhi might be bait.
• Blood Bodhi called for an attack to cover his retreat, then fled as Ye Jingtang kept watch over the street.
• After Blood Bodhi disappeared, Ye Jingtang breathed a sigh of relief and said the supposed Grandmaster was weaker than Third Madam.

Ye Jingtang drove off Blood Bodhi while protecting Dongfang Liren, though the assassin escaped. Dongfang Liren treated Ye Jingtang’s injury with a precious pill, and Ye Jingtang grew drowsy as the Black Bureau guards arrived.

• Blood Bodhi struck Ye Jingtang in the chest, but the Dragon-Mingling Diagram absorbed the blow, and Ye Jingtang forced him to retreat.
• Dongfang Liren checked Ye Jingtang for injuries and explained that the Green Bandits were assassins targeting the Empress’s supporters, though their leader remained unknown.
• Ye Jingtang told Dongfang Liren he had created three strikes of his White Slash, surprising her with how quickly he had developed the technique.
• Dongfang Liren gave Ye Jingtang a precious medicinal pill, and Niao Niao reported that Blood Bodhi had escaped into the river.
• As the Black Bureau guards approached, Niao Niao carried the wrapped Dragon-Mingling Diagram away, while Ye Jingtang leaned against a bookshelf and succumbed to the pill’s drowsiness.

After Ye Jingtang saved Dongfang Liren from Blood Bodhi, he recovered under guard while Dongfang Liren and the Empress Dowager attended to him. Blood Bodhi escaped downstream and began to suspect Ye Jingtang possessed the Youth-Preserving Diagram, but hesitated to pursue him.

• Dongfang Liren learned that Ye Jingtang would recover from his injuries and heard Madam Wang explain that his robust constitution required marital relations to regulate his health.
• Dongfang Liren covered Ye Jingtang with a blanket and coordinated the response to Blood Bodhi's escape as officials arrived.
• The Empress Dowager entered Ye Jingtang's carriage, examined him, and was ushered outside by Dongfang Liren so he could rest.
• Blood Bodhi escaped by boat, treated his missing ear, and recalled that the Green Bandits had hired him with the promise of the Dragon-Elephant Diagram.
• Blood Bodhi suspected Ye Jingtang's unseen protection was a Dragon-Mingling Diagram, possibly the Youth-Preserving Diagram, but feared the young man's skill and caution.