Chapter Summaries

Linley and Hillman reunited with Loa in Fenlai City and learned that he had become a rank 4 warrior. After sharing a meal, Linley prepared for the next day’s magic test, encouraged by Doehring Cowart.

• Linley and Hillman noticed Loa following them and confronted him in a quiet alley.
• Loa tested Hillman with a fierce punch, then sparred with him until Hillman recognized and stopped his old friend.
• Loa greeted Linley and Hillman, invited them to dinner, and revealed that he had advanced to rank 4 through training and mercenary work.
• Loa welcomed Bebe, ordered him another roast chicken, and told Linley he might also take the magic test the next day.
• Loa paid for an inn for Linley and Hillman, then said goodbye before the test.
• Linley admitted to Doehring Cowart that Loa’s progress had surprised him, regained his resolve, and began meditating for the test.

Linley and Loa arrived at White Square for the Holy Union’s magic aptitude test, where nobles and commoners gathered in sharply divided sections. After the church announced the test, Linley and Loa entered with the other candidates as Hillman stayed behind to watch.

• Hillman told Linley that magical talent mattered more than noble rank and explained the costs and opportunities of magical education.
• Loa woke after drinking with an old acquaintance, prepared his testing fee, and headed to White Square.
• Loa found Linley and Hillman in the commoners’ section and joined them as the square filled with people.
• A cleric announced that the magic test was about to begin and directed candidates and spectators to separate entrances.
• Linley handed the sleeping Bebe to Hillman, then entered the church with Loa to take the test.

Linley and Loa underwent the magic aptitude test in Fenlai City, where both revealed supreme-grade affinity in two elements. Linley accepted admission to the Ernst Institute, while Loa refused to pursue magic and left determined to follow the warrior’s path.

• Linley displayed supreme-grade earth and wind affinity, mid-grade fire affinity, and high-grade Spiritual Force, prompting the Ernst Institute to offer him admission.
• Linley accepted the Ernst Institute’s invitation and received a red admission letter.
• Loa revealed supreme-grade wind and lightning affinity but declined to test his Spiritual Force because he wanted to become a warrior.
• Loa left the testing hall with Linley and Hillman, then escorted them to the city gates as they departed for Wushan Town.
• After saying goodbye, Loa reflected that his elemental affinity might one day affect his Weapon Combat Battle-qi and continued into Fenlai City.

A year after Old Jack's death, Loa returned to Wushan Town to honor his grandfather at the grave and tell him about his life in Fenlai City. He left with renewed resolve to grow stronger and someday learn whether Old Jack's soul still existed in the realm of death.

• Loa recalled surviving a deadly Blood Arena fight against a short warrior who used dark element battle qi, and considered whether to pursue wind or lightning techniques.
• Loa asked Bob for leave and returned to Wushan Town on the anniversary of Old Jack's death.
• Loa quietly visited Old Jack's grave, arranged food, ale, and spirit money, and told him about his smithing, Rank 4 strength, combat experiences, and magical aptitude.
• Loa said he missed Old Jack and hoped that reaching great heights might let him discover whether his grandfather was well in the afterlife.
• Loa bowed three times at the grave and left Wushan Town without looking back.

Loa bought wind and lightning cultivation manuals, combat techniques, and a movement technique, then used months of training to develop a way to combine the elemental Battle-qi through his weapon combat Battle-qi. After reaching the middle stage of Rank 4 Warrior, he told Bob he planned to train at the outskirts of the Magical Beast Mountain Range, and Bob gave him supplies for the journey.

• Loa bought Wild Wind Guidance, Rushing Thunder Art, their matching combat techniques, and the incomplete movement scroll Gentle Breeze Caressing Willow at the Hall of Wisdom.
• Loa trained in wind and lightning Battle-qi separately after attempts to fuse them directly caused painful clashes, and he developed the sword move Thunder Collapse.
• Loa discovered that his weapon combat Battle-qi could act as a bridge and amplifier for both elemental types, and he improved his evasion by practicing Gentle Breeze Caressing Willow.
• By February, Loa had reached the middle stage of Rank 4 Warrior and decided that the black-market arena no longer offered enough challenge.
• Loa told Bob he planned to train at the outskirts of the Magical Beast Mountain Range, and Bob warned him about its dangers before giving him fire powder and medicinal supplies.

Loa entered the Magical Beast Mountain Range and tested his strength by killing a Rank 3 Rockskin Boar. After a concealed Dead Leaf Viper poisoned his leg at camp, he treated the bite, abandoned the fire, and kept watch through the night.

• Loa traveled deeper into the forest, encountered a Rockskin Boar, and stopped its charge with his bare hands.
• Loa threw the boar, killed it with Thunder Collapse, and took its Rank 3 Magic Crystal Core and some meat.
• Loa made camp and roasted boar meat, but a hidden Dead Leaf Viper sprang from the leaves and bit his calf.
• Loa swallowed Bob's antidote, treated the wound, and realized his vigilance had failed to account for danger on the forest floor.
• Loa extinguished the fire, moved to a more concealed spot, and stayed awake with his sword through the night.

Loa cautiously traveled deeper into the Magical Beast Mountain Range, where he found evidence that humans had been killed by weapons as well as beasts. That night, he ambushed a pack of Fang Wolves, seized their Magic Crystal Cores, and fled before the blood could attract more predators.

• Loa recovered enough to walk, then found three partially eaten human corpses bearing fatal wounds from edged weapons.
• Loa avoided pack beasts, killed several solitary magical beasts, and prepared a concealed tree platform for the night.
• Loa watched seven or eight Fang Wolves wear down two wounded old Wind Wolves, then attacked when both sides were weakened.
• Loa killed four Fang Wolves in quick succession, causing the survivors to flee into the forest.
• Loa collected eight Magic Crystal Cores and wolf meat, then escaped through the trees to avoid other predators.

Loa fought a peak level-four Shadow Cat in the darkness and used his developing ability to sense airflow to survive its attacks. He killed the beast, gained a deeper understanding of his perception and movement techniques, and returned to the forest wounded but more capable.

• Loa continued honing his combat skills in the Magical Beast Mountain Range and improved his ability to detect disturbances in the wind.
• A Shadow Cat ambushed Loa at night, tearing through his armor and badly wounding him.
• Loa sensed the Shadow Cat’s approach and wounded it with a sword strike before luring it into range and smashing its face with Crushing Thunder.
• The Shadow Cat used Shadow Ambush, but Loa evaded its strike with the principles of Breeze Caresses the Willow and killed it with Gale Thrust.
• Loa extracted the Shadow Cat’s dark Magic Crystal Core, treated his wounds, and disappeared back into the forest.

After surviving a deadly battle with the Shadow Cat, Loa hid, tended his wounds, and hunted a rabbit for food. His recovery and cultivation brought him to the peak of Rank 4, with a breakthrough to Rank 5 close at hand.

• Loa escaped the Shadow Cat, hid in a rocky hollow, and stayed awake through the night while cleaning his wounds and masking his scent.
• Loa used the Great Circulation and medicinal herbs to ease his injuries, then hunted and killed a Soft-Bone Rabbit for food.
• While roasting and eating the rabbit, Loa reviewed the Shadow Cat fight and gained new insight into sensing and moving with the wind.
• Loa cultivated after eating and realized his battle-qi had reached the absolute peak of Rank 4.
• Loa resolved to recover fully, refine his new wind insights, and find a safe place to attempt his Rank 5 breakthrough.

Loa reflected on the nature of wind and thunder and found a way to coordinate his different battle-qi through Weapon Combat Battle-qi. His insight triggered a breakthrough to level five, and he set out toward the deeper forest to test his new strength.

• Loa kept to his rocky hollow while his wounds healed and he contemplated his battle against the Shadow Cat.
• Loa realized Weapon Combat Battle-qi could guide his wind and lightning battle-qi without forcibly merging them, and resolved to test the idea later in safety.
• Loa’s battle-qi surged as he broke through the barrier to become a level-five warrior.
• Loa tested his new battle-qi gauze robe and channeled wind and lightning battle-qi into his longsword.
• Loa erased his traces, packed his belongings, and headed deeper into the forest.

Loa hunted in the middle region for nearly two months, consolidating his Rank 5 strength and collecting several Fifth-Level Magic Crystal Cores. As he prepared to return home, he heard something approaching through the forest near the lake.

• Loa defeated a Ragehorn Lightning Sheep by evading its lightning and charges, then struck its forehead and took its Fifth-Level Magic Crystal Core.
• Loa continued hunting and surviving in the middle region, gathering several Fifth-Level Magic Crystal Cores and improving his strength.
• Nearly two months after entering the mountains, Loa swam in a lakeside pool and prepared to head home as promised to Uncle Bob.
• As Loa sat down to eat roasted bird beside the lake, he heard deliberate rustling from the nearby forest and watched for the approaching presence.

Loa encountered three Rank 5 adventurers by the lake and used a fabricated mercenary-regiment story to conceal his strength and wealth. He pretended to accept their offer of protection and led them down a false route, with both sides preparing to exploit the other.

• Loa spotted a mage and two warriors approaching and judged that none of them had Rank 6 strength.
• The shield-bearing third brother demanded Loa's roast chicken, while the mage leader questioned him and eyed his leather pouch.
• Loa claimed he belonged to the nearby Grayrock Mercenary Regiment and was scouting for a hunt, then pretended to be heading back to camp.
• The mage leader proposed that they travel together, and Loa accepted while making the group believe he was leading them toward his camp.
• Loa took a false woodland path toward Fenlai City as the three men followed, positioning themselves to watch or attack him.

Loa used a laxative to distract Lan and his brothers, then killed all three when they lowered their guard. After looting their equipment and a large haul of Magic Crystal Cores, he fled the Magical Beast Mountain Range and continued toward Fenlai City.

• Third Brother suffered severe diarrhea after eating the roast chicken, distracting Lan and drawing his attention away from Loa.
• Loa ambushed Second Brother with Wind-Thunder Shock and killed him with a sword strike through the heart.
• Lan attacked Loa with wind magic, but Loa evaded his spells and killed him.
• Third Brother charged Loa in grief and anger, but Loa dodged and killed him with a sword thrust to the throat.
• Loa looted the three men, found more than forty Rank 3, nearly twenty Rank 4, and five Rank 5 Magic Crystal Cores, then fled toward the outer region.
• After resting in a concealed rock crevice, Loa resumed his journey toward Fenlai City.

Loa returned to Fenlai City after two months in the Magical Beast Mountain Range and reunited with Bob at the forge. As his wounds healed and he learned to control his murderous aura, he considered how to sell the Magic Crystal Cores and other spoils he had brought back.

• Loa left the Magical Beast Mountain Range and traveled toward Fenlai City, where people avoided him because of his murderous aura.
• Loa returned to Cast Iron Alley and reunited with Bob, who scolded him but welcomed him into the shop.
• Loa recovered from his injuries over several days and practiced drawing his murderous aura inward so he would not frighten customers.
• Loa found that his Battle-qi had grown purer and that he was advancing toward the middle stage of Rank 5.
• Loa considered selling his Magic Crystal Cores and other spoils, but postponed deciding until he could ask around.

Loa assessed his spoils from the Magical Beast Mountain Range and sold the Magic Crystal Cores and equipment through Bob’s contact at the Golden Grain Chamber of Commerce. With a fortune secured on a Magic Crystal Card, he began planning how to invest in his cultivation and develop his Wind-Thunder Battle-qi system.

• Loa compared trading-house and black-market sales, then calculated that his Magic Crystal Cores and equipment could bring in more than ten thousand gold coins.
• Loa asked Bob for a discreet buyer, and Bob arranged a meeting with Manager Li of the Golden Grain Chamber of Commerce.
• Manager Li bought Loa’s Magic Crystal Cores and equipment for 13,250 gold; after the commission and card-issuance fee, Loa received a Magic Crystal Card holding 11,825 gold.
• Loa considered buying cultivation resources and a better weapon, and resolved to develop his Wind-Thunder Battle-qi system into a distinctive path.

Loa bought the Saint-level Storm and Ten Thousand Jun Battle Qi Manuals, mastered both, and advanced to Rank 5 Mid Stage. His first attempt to fuse their battle-qi injured him, but after recovering, he resolved to strengthen his meridians and continue researching his Wind-Thunder method.

• Loa spent 8,300 gold coins on the Storm and Ten Thousand Jun manuals despite the Hall of Wisdom attendant’s warning.
• Loa studied the manuals and learned to circulate both forms of Saint-level battle-qi, then advanced to Rank 5 Mid Stage.
• Loa planned a Wind-Thunder fusion method and injured his meridians when the two battle-qi currents clashed inside him.
• Bob examined Loa, found his foundations intact, and scolded him before tending to him during his three-day recovery.
• Loa concluded that his meridians needed strengthening before another attempt and continued studying rather than trying the fusion again.

Loa advanced his cultivation by developing the Wind-Thunder Meridian-Expansion Method, strengthening his meridians and reaching late rank five while continuing to forge a thousand-fold steel sword. His work was interrupted by the arrival of Linley and Bebe, whom he happily welcomed into his courtyard.

• Loa recalled abandoning the costly Century-Old Stone Milk and devised a method to temper his meridians by coordinating Storm and Ten Thousand Jun battle-qi.
• After three months of experiments, Loa increased his meridians’ carrying capacity and named his technique the Wind-Thunder Meridian-Expansion Method, while planning a more ambitious Wind-Thunder Two Forms Transformation Scripture for rank seven.
• Loa rewarded Bob for his help with a lavish visit to Bishui Paradise and later broke through to late rank five.
• Loa continued forging a thousand-fold steel sword, aiming to make it heavier and stronger than his previous weapon.
• Linley visited Loa with Bebe, and Loa welcomed them warmly and invited Linley to share fruit wine.

Linley reunited with Loa, learned how rapidly his friend had advanced as a warrior, and heard that Loa planned to train in the Magical Beast Mountain Range. Hillman then brought news that Wharton had enough Dragonblood Warrior bloodline concentration, and Linley gave the family nearly all the money he had won from Land to help pay for Wharton's training at the O'Brien Academy.

• Linley met Loa at a tavern, where they discussed their progress, Linley's family finances, and Loa's plan to create a Battle Qi Manual.
• Doehring Cowart revealed that Loa was a late-stage Rank 5 Warrior, and Loa said he might soon train deep in the Magical Beast Mountain Range.
• George recognized Loa as the gifted boy who had chosen the warrior's path, and Linley returned to the Ernst Institute with Yale and Reynolds.
• Hillman told Linley that Wharton's Dragonblood Warrior bloodline concentration had reached the required threshold, but the family could barely afford the O'Brien Academy's tuition.
• Linley withdrew 9,900 gold coins from his Magic Crystal Card and gave the money to Hillman for Wharton's education, resolving to keep cultivating and learn stone sculpting.

Linley felt discouraged after hearing of Dixie's fourth-rank breakthrough, but Doehring encouraged him and promised to teach him a secret technique. Meanwhile, Loa completed a masterwork sword, surpassed his limits to strengthen his meridians to the sixth-rank level, and prepared for a future expedition.

• Linley heard that Dixie had become a fourth-rank magus and compared his progress unfavorably with Dixie's and Loa's.
• Doehring reassured Linley that Dixie had begun with extraordinary Spiritual Force and promised to teach him a secret technique.
• Loa showed Bob the longsword he had forged through thousandfold folding, and Bob declared that Loa had completed his apprenticeship.
• Loa continued training and practicing the Wind-Thunder Meridian-Expansion Method through the changing seasons, eventually challenging his Great Circulation limit.
• Loa completed eighty-one circuits and broke through to sixth-rank meridian strength, increasing his Battle-qi growth and preparing to set out once his rank stabilized.

Loa gathered intelligence on possible Earth Vein Lizard habitats, prepared for a long expedition, and left Fenlai City for the Magical Beast Mountain Range. He departed hopeful that the dangers and battles ahead would help him overcome his cultivation bottleneck.

• Loa received four leads from Old Dao and chose a route that would investigate them before reaching Blackstone Canyon, his primary target.
• Loa spent half a month training and preparing weapons, armor, medicine, food, and a jade bottle for storing the Earth Vein Lizard's spinal fluid.
• Bob shared a meal with Loa, warned him about the dangers of the mountains, and gave him Ghost-Fright Incense before wishing him a safe return.
• Loa visited Linley at the Ernst Institute, gave Bebe roasted rock sheep leg and Linley a thousand-fold steel short blade, and told them he would be gone for at least half a year.
• Loa left Fenlai City and headed toward the Magical Beast Mountain Range, believing the expedition might help him break through to the sixth level.