Recaps

Wot and Tiya married in a ceremony attended by Fenlai’s nobles, where King Clayde offered Loa a marquisate and Loa declined. After the celebrations, Loa returned home and promised Wangcai they would set out on another journey soon.

• Wot and Tiya exchanged vows and rings, then shared a kiss before the guests at their wedding.
• At the banquet, Clayde and the nobles toasted Loa, and Wot and Tiya thanked him for attending and for his gift.
• Clayde offered Loa a marquisate to join the Fenlai Kingdom, but Loa declined while saying he might consider the kingdom first in the future.
• Loa noticed Els was absent and suspected Clayde and Paterson worked together, then left the wedding party early.
• Loa returned home near midnight, found Wangcai lonely, and promised they would travel again soon.

Caesar tried to recruit Loa into the Wild Thunder Squadron, then challenged him to a duel after Loa refused. Loa easily subdued Caesar and spared him when Clayde intervened, while a Temple Knight of the Radiant Church watched with interest.

• Caesar visited Loa and invited him to join the Wild Thunder Squadron, but Loa declined.
• After Caesar insulted Loa and demanded a fight, Loa agreed to meet him at Little Ming Mountain.
• Caesar attacked Loa at full strength, but Loa evaded his strikes and forced him to one knee with overwhelming physical power.
• Caesar launched Tiger Hunt, but Loa pinned him with Nine Heavens Wind-Thunder Sword Force and held a qi sword to his forehead.
• Clayde arrived and begged Loa to spare Caesar, who apologized after Loa withdrew his sword.
• A Temple Knight of the Radiant Church watched Loa, and they exchanged glances and a nod.

After defeating Clayde, Loa caught the attention of Kafka and the Radiant Church’s Glory Legion, whose commander Marcus invited him to dinner. Loa agreed to spar with Marcus at the legion’s garrison, wagering that he would receive several bottles of the Church’s special wine if he won.

• Loa left Clayde and agreed to have a drink with Kafka another day before returning home to Wangcai and Bob.
• Kafka reported Loa’s strength and potential to become a Saint to Marcus, who urged him to invite Loa to meet that evening.
• Kafka visited Loa at home and persuaded him to join him for dinner with Marcus.
• Marcus welcomed Loa, shared special wine and Level Nine Magical Beast meat, and asked to exchange blows with him.
• Loa agreed to spar Marcus, wagering that he would receive several bottles of wine if he won, and the three headed to the Glory Legion’s garrison.

Loa fought Commander Marcus at the Glory Legion’s encampment and defeated him with his Wind Threads Turn to Dust technique. Marcus accepted the loss and offered Loa a place in the legion, but Loa chose to remain independent while agreeing to visit and spar again.

• Loa opened the match with Unpredictable Thunder Shadow Step, and Marcus blocked his attacks with his saber.
• Loa unleashed Nine Heavens Wind-Thunder Sword Force and Startling Thunder, but Marcus countered with Glory Shield and Light Cross Slash.
• As their fight intensified, Kafka told Jamie that Loa had not fought at full strength when he faced Caesar.
• Marcus used Aurora Star River Fall, but Loa’s Wind Threads Turn to Dust dispersed the saber Qi and shaved off Marcus’s beard.
• Marcus admitted defeat, promised Loa his wine, and offered him a deputy commander position, but Loa declined to join the legion.
• Kafka teased Marcus about his new look, and Marcus kicked him as the knights laughed.

After defeating Marcus, Loa joined the Dawson Chamber of Commerce as a guest elder to stop other powers from recruiting him and preserve his freedom. The announcement deterred rival recruiters, leaving him relieved as he headed home.

• Loa reflected on his fight with Marcus and decided to take a nominal position with the Dawson Chamber of Commerce to ward off recruiters.
• Myron asked Loa about his strength, and Loa said his battle-qi was eighth level but he could fight on par with a peak ninth-level expert.
• Loa told Myron and Yale that he wanted to join the chamber in a nominal role so he could keep adventuring freely.
• Myron offered Loa thirty million gold coins upon joining and another hundred million when he reached the Saint level, and Loa accepted the title of guest elder.
• The Dawson Chamber of Commerce announced Loa's appointment, prompting other powers to stop their recruitment efforts.
• Loa declined Myron's dinner invitation and walked home, relieved to have gained some peace and quiet.

Loa completed tempering his thoracic vertebrae, broke through to mid-stage level eight, and assessed his new strength. After deciding to postpone work on his cervical vertebrae, he prepared to travel to the O'Brien Empire and its capital, Chiyan City.

• Loa finished tempering his twelfth thoracic vertebra, expelling impurities and breaking through to mid-stage level eight.
• Loa discovered that his organs, strength transmission, and breathing had improved, bringing his offense close to Saint level while leaving him vulnerable to fatal attacks.
• Loa practiced with Hidden Abyss, then decided to consolidate his gains before attempting the more dangerous cervical vertebrae.
• Wangcai asked whether Loa could defeat a Saint, and Loa explained that he might trade his life for one but could still die from a Saint's attack.
• Loa decided to travel north through the Magical Beast Mountain Range to the O'Brien Empire and continue toward its capital, Chiyan City.

Loa left home with Wangcai to cultivate in the Magical Beast Mountain Range, deepening his understanding of wind as they traveled north. Nearly three months into the journey, they settled in a cabin beside a frozen lake to wait out heavy snow.

• Loa packed Wangcai’s bed, bowl, and toys into his Space Ring before leaving home with the dog.
• Loa said goodbye to Bob, promised to write, and asked him to tell Loa’s friends where he had gone.
• A month later, Loa used wind to capture and hurl away a level nine Wild Wind Lightning Eagle that attacked him.
• Loa and Wangcai traveled slowly through the Magical Beast Mountain Range, where Loa practiced his wind abilities and sparred with other cultivators.
• As winter set in, Loa built a cabin beside a frozen lake and used airflow to keep the snow and cold outside while he rested with Wangcai.

Loa celebrated the Yulan Festival by fishing, then began tempering the final region of his Heavenly Pillar Method, the Cervical Domain. His first session greatly strengthened his Spiritual Force, but the painful process still had a long way to go.

• Loa caught a large fish through the ice and explained to Wangcai that he enjoyed waiting for a bite.
• At the Ernst Institute in Fenlai City, Linley entered his fifth year and was recognized alongside Dixie as one of its two peerless geniuses.
• Loa painted the mountain’s sea of clouds using Spiritual Force and reflected on his growing ability.
• Loa devised a high-frequency Wind-Thunder Tempering technique inspired by cicada song to train his Cervical Domain.
• With Wangcai keeping watch, Loa completed a ten-minute training session that left him trembling but sharply increased his Spiritual Force.

After a year of travel, Loa broke through to the late stage of his Battle-qi realm while Wangcai developed a powerful new ability and killed a Golden Money Leopard. A white-clad stranger witnessed Wangcai’s power and followed him to Loa, who sensed someone watching but found no trace.

• Loa reached the late stage of his Battle-qi realm after cultivating beneath a waterfall.
• Wangcai killed a Seventh-Level Golden Money Leopard with purple lightning empowered by his understanding of Judgment.
• A white-clad man watched Wangcai’s attack, then followed him through the forest to Loa.
• The stranger studied Loa from a distance and disappeared into the woods without revealing himself.
• Wangcai returned with the leopard, and Loa praised him before sensing that someone had been watching.

Loa confronted Olivier Achisoren, the O'Brien Empire's genius Sword Saint, after detecting him following them through the forest. Loa and Olivier began a duel, each revealing extraordinary speed and swordsmanship as the clash started.

• Loa sensed someone following him and forced Olivier Achisoren to reveal himself by firing a sword ray that Olivier blocked with one hand.
• Olivier asked how Loa had detected him, but Loa refused to explain unless Olivier defeated him.
• Loa recognized Olivier as the O'Brien Empire's genius Sword Saint and challenged him to fight; Wangcai retreated to watch from behind a boulder.
• Loa attacked with Unpredictable Thunder Shadow Step and the Nine Heavens Wind-Thunder Sword Force, surprising Olivier with his mastery of force.
• Olivier drew his sword and used tremendous speed to surround Loa with thirty-six afterimages, while Loa prepared to counter with Hidden Abyss.

Loa fought Olivier in the forest, matching his speed before defeating him with Wind Threads Turn to Dust. Loa took the unconscious Olivier with him and Wangcai as they continued north.

• Olivier attacked Loa with the Ice Dream Sword, but Loa blocked his rapid strikes with Hidden Abyss.
• Olivier unleashed the Phantom Dream Sword, filling the area with millions of sword images, while Loa answered with Wind Threads Turn to Dust.
• Loa's wind erased Olivier's sword images and left him injured and unconscious in a crater.
• Loa picked up Olivier and ordered Wangcai to carry him, and the three headed north through the forest.

After Loa defeated Olivier, he brought the exhausted swordsman to a cabin by a lake, where Olivier recovered and struggled to accept his loss. Loa’s advice helped Olivier begin to reconsider his belief that he was unrivaled below the Saint level.

• Loa waited with Wangcai at the cabin until Olivier woke from a day and night of unconsciousness, then Wangcai claimed credit for carrying him there.
• Olivier thanked Loa for sparing him, bathed in the lake, and explained that he had followed Wangcai because he was curious about the beast’s use of force.
• Olivier learned that Loa was eighteen and born in 9979, while Olivier was forty-two and born in 9955, and he brooded over his crushing defeat.
• Olivier asked Loa the name of his sword technique and learned it was Wind Threads Turn to Dust.
• Loa told Olivier that believing himself unrivaled below the Saint level had been self-deception, and Olivier began reflecting on the advice instead of remaining despondent.

After a week of recovering from his defeat, Olivier understood that he needed to follow his own path and left to pursue a breakthrough to Saint level. Loa and Wangcai continued north, while the first snow fell and a young couple made their relationship official in Fenlai City.

• Olivier laughed after finally accepting that he did not need to compare himself with Loa, and he resolved to pursue his own sword path and reach Saint level.
• Olivier told Loa he would return to O'Brien to enter seclusion, while Loa planned to travel north with Wangcai to see the sea.
• Olivier left Loa's cabin the next morning, promising they would meet again after he reached Saint level.
• Loa and Wangcai set off north, leaving the cabin open for future travelers.
• On November 29, 9997, Loa and Wangcai watched the first snow fall as a young couple made their relationship official in Fenlai City.

Loa watched the sea, sky, wind, and lightning from a reef, then painted as he grasped how they were connected. The storm helped him reach Perfection at the eighth level, and he ended the chapter watching the sunset with Wangcai.

• Loa and Wangcai left the mountains and traveled north to the seashore.
• Loa spent three days observing the wind, sea, and horizon before beginning a painting.
• Loa watched lightning strike the sea and understood how wind and lightning worked together.
• During a torrential downpour, Loa felt the wind and lightning interweave and reached Perfection at the eighth level.
• After the rain stopped, Loa called his painting “Wind and lightning, and also the Two Principles,” then watched the golden-red sea with Wangcai.

Loa traveled east into the O'Brien Empire, where he encountered bandits and killed a group of six ninth-level men who tried to recruit him into their cult. Their identical, unnatural dark-element battle-qi suggested that a powerful figure was manufacturing ninth-level warriors, and Loa set out wondering who was behind it.

• Loa crossed into the O'Brien Empire and Wangcai killed two groups of roadside robbers.
• Loa had Wangcai test Scar, a ninth-level bandit chief, then killed Scar with Hidden Abyss after noticing his unstable strength.
• Six black-clad ninth-level men confronted Loa and offered him a place in their organization, claiming their god could raise believers to Saint level.
• Loa recognized that the six men's battle-qi fluctuations were identical and killed them with six Sword Rays.
• Loa examined the lingering dark-element battle-qi and sensed that it seemed to want to devour his battle-qi.

Loa traveled to Sea Tide Town, where two men tried to drug and abduct him for their high priestess. He followed them to a black-robed woman, recognized her secret battle-qi technique, and accused her of belonging to the Dark Church.

• Loa arrived in Sea Tide Town and sensed two people watching him before settling into an inn with Wangcai.
• Two men entered Loa’s room at night after filling it with a colorless drug, but Loa and Wangcai subdued them.
• Loa forced the men to lead him to their high priestess near the mouth of the Yulan River.
• The black-robed woman drained the men’s battle-qi and vitality, killing them in front of Loa.
• Loa identified her method of cultivating fighters and accused her of being part of the Dark Church, which she denied.

Loa fought and defeated A Luo Liya, a two-winged Fallen Angel who tried to recruit him into the Dark Alliance and then claim his body as a vessel. After sensing that the battle might attract O'Brien Empire Saints, Loa left with Wangcai.

• A Luo Liya offered Loa a place in the Dark Alliance, but he refused and questioned how the Dark Church could operate in O'Brien territory.
• A Luo Liya attacked Loa using Dark Battle-qi and stealth, but he sensed her strike and countered with a powerful elbow.
• A Luo Liya revealed her true form as a Saint-level Fallen Angel and tried to overpower Loa, but his Wind Threads Turn to Dust trapped her.
• A Luo Liya escaped the Wind World with Shadow Transformation, but Loa bound her with the Nine Heavens Execution Platform.
• A Luo Liya used Evil Power against Loa, but it failed to affect his soul, and Loa killed her with Yang Thunder.
• Loa noticed his Battle-qi had grown stronger, then left the area with Wangcai to avoid the Saints alerted by their battle.

Klemerson learned that A Luo Liya had died but ordered her replacement to keep the Dark Alliance’s work and a shipment in O’Brien territory moving. Loa reached Chiyan City with Wangcai, settled into the Dawson Chamber of Commerce mansion, and planned to visit an elder the next day.

• Klemerson heard that A Luo Liya had been killed after taking her Fallen Angel form, dismissed her death, and ordered another agent to take over her work without disrupting the shipment.
• Loa traveled south by boat with Wangcai for two months, avoiding pursuit and reaching Chiyan City.
• Loa presented his guest retainer badge and Myron’s key at the Dawson Chamber of Commerce mansion, where the butler welcomed him and showed him his prepared room.
• Loa told Wangcai they would not disturb Olivier, who was in seclusion, and said they would visit an elder the next day.
• Loa took Wangcai out to sample Chiyan’s food stalls, then returned to the mansion and rested after a hot spring bath.

Loa reached O'Brien Academy to reunite with Grandpa Hiri and visit Wharton Baruch. After finding Wharton training, Loa challenged him to attack with all his strength, leaving their bout about to begin.

• Loa registered at O'Brien Academy and found Grandpa Hiri at his courtyard.
• Loa and Grandpa Hiri reunited, and Hiri welcomed him before asking whether he had found someone he liked.
• Loa diverted Hiri's matchmaking questions by asking to see Wharton, and they went to the training grounds.
• Loa watched Wharton overpower another student, then appeared on the platform and challenged him.
• Wharton accepted the challenge and prepared to attack Loa with everything he had.

Loa sparred with Wharton and coached him in unarmed combat and saberplay, then urged him to explore strength through both force and fluidity. After their training, Loa noticed the headmaster watching him and sensed that the old man was powerful.

• Wharton attacked Loa with fists and close-quarters techniques, but Loa evaded and countered without using battle-qi while correcting Wharton's form.
• Loa sparred with Wharton using wooden weapons and taught him to make his fierce saberplay more flexible and less predictable.
• Loa demonstrated how strength could build gradually and flow between hardness and softness, leaving Wharton pondering the lesson.
• Old Hiri recognized the gray-robed visitor as the headmaster, who watched Loa and Wharton train.
• Loa ended the spar by touching Wharton's wrist with his sword, and Wharton thanked him for his guidance.
• Loa met the headmaster's gaze and sensed that the old man was powerful.

Loa sparred with Wharton at O'Brien Academy, then met its headmaster, Fein, who invited him to become a disciple of the War God. Loa declined and left with Fein's advice about reaching the Saint level, planning to eat and sleep before deciding what to do next.

• Loa sparred with Wharton on the academy grounds, and headmaster Fein praised Loa's skill and recognized him as the man who defeated Marcus.
• Fein invited Loa to his courtyard, where Loa explained that he had come to visit an elder and check on Wharton at Linley's request.
• Fein introduced himself as an unofficial disciple of the War God and offered to make Loa the War God's disciple.
• Loa declined the offer because he wanted to remain free, and Fein compared him to Olivier, who had also refused the War God.
• Fein advised Loa that reaching the Saint level depended more on the heart than on battle-qi, and Loa left the academy with Wangcai.

Loa reunited with Wharton, revealed his identity, and watched him use the Dragonblood Warrior Transformation in a spar. He gave Wharton a painting of the Yulan River and guidance on understanding force and developing a calmer, flowing fighting style.

• Loa reminded Wharton of the wooden sword he had given him as a child, and Wharton recognized him as Big Brother Loa.
• Wharton transformed into a Dragonblood Warrior, rising from Rank 5 to Rank 7, and sparred with Loa for nearly an hour.
• Loa gave Wharton a painting of the Yulan River and advised him to study its flowing power.
• Loa demonstrated the Nine Heavens Wind-Thunder Sword Force, giving Wharton a brief experience of force.
• Loa urged Wharton to temper his fierce fighting style with water's flow and stillness, and Wharton promised to remember his guidance.

Loa spent his time in the O'Brien Empire training, sparring with powerful warriors, and guiding Wharton before breaking through to the ninth level. After nearly two years away, he decided to return to Fenlai City.

• Loa trained and sparred with ninth-level warriors at O'Brien Academy, earning a reputation for strength beyond his eighth-level rank.
• Wangcai accompanied Loa around the city for food, while Wharton studied the painting and improved his fighting style under Loa's guidance.
• On May 10, year 9998 of the Yulan Calendar, Loa's Two Forms Battle-qi transformed and he broke through to the ninth level.
• Loa tested his increased power and reflected that he could now face an early-stage Saint like A Luo Liya more easily, though a peak Saint remained beyond him.
• Wangcai asked whether they could return, and Loa agreed to go back to Fenlai City after almost two years away.

Loa said goodbye to his friends in the O'Brien Empire, then began the journey west through the Magical Beast Mountain Range. Two years later, while Linley waited in vain for Alice in Fenlai City, Loa sensed an unfamiliar creature watching his camp.

• Loa visited Fein, who warned him about the dangers of the Magical Beast Mountain Range, and said goodbye to Wharton and old Hiri.
• Loa wrote Olivier that he had reached the ninth level and planned to fight him again once Olivier became a Saint, then sent the letter through the Dawson Chamber of Commerce.
• Loa and Wangcai left Chiyan City and entered the Magical Beast Mountain Range, beginning their return journey to the Holy Union.
• Two years later, Linley went to Alice's home in Fenlai City, but she did not return; after waiting until night, he left disappointed.
• That night, Loa woke to find an unfamiliar, non-Saint-level creature watching him and Wangcai from the forest.

Loa found and treated an injured Dark Nightmare Pegasus, then fought it to earn its submission and bound it with a Master-Servant Contract. He named the pegasus Wuzhui, who joined Loa and Wangcai at camp before their journey continued the next day.

• Loa and Wangcai followed a blood scent through the forest and found an unconscious Dark Nightmare Pegasus with a broken wing and other injuries.
• Loa carried the pegasus to camp and treated its wounds; after waking the next night, it acknowledged him but challenged him to a fight before agreeing to follow.
• Loa defeated the Dark Nightmare Pegasus in a fierce battle, and the pegasus knelt before him.
• Loa used a Master-Servant Contract to bind the pegasus, learned it had no name, and named it Wuzhui.
• Wangcai welcomed Wuzhui as his little brother, and Wuzhui gently nuzzled Loa beside the campfire.