Chapter Summaries

Young Master Li returned to the Three Thousand Nunnery during an unnatural cold spell and found Jing Jiu keeping Snow Ji buried beneath quilts. As the nunnery’s formation began containing the cold and Snow Ji neared awakening, Young Master Li played an Ode to Spring in the snow.

• Young Master Li learned that the Three Thousand Nunnery had bought many padded jackets and quilts, then visited it the next day.
• He found Snow Ji buried beneath quilts in a frozen nunnery and tried to enter the room, but Jing Jiu’s formation threw him back.
• Jing Jiu told Young Master Li that Snow Ji was alive and that the cold had to be contained to keep Dayuan City from freezing.
• Young Master Li recognized Jing Jiu, lowered his knife, and left after bowing toward the Chan Room.
• The Old Nun lit the nunnery’s Longevity Lamps over several days and activated the Water-Moon Convent’s formation to control Snow Ji’s cold.
• As the snowfall stopped and Snow Ji neared awakening, Young Master Li played an Ode to Spring outside the nunnery.

Jing Jiu used the Azure Sky Mirror as a sword-grinding stone and helped Qing'er think through what it meant to become a person. In the mirror's illusory realm, Eldest Young Master Zhang cursed the heavens, then feared that His Majesty had heard him as the storms subsided.

• Jing Jiu retrieved the Azure Sky Mirror from beneath the quilts and went to Snow Lake while Tong Yan watched from the bridge.
• Jing Jiu sprinkled water on the Azure Sky Mirror and began grinding his sword on its surface as Qing'er asked how she could become a real person.
• Jing Jiu told Qing'er that she was a person if she considered herself one, and asked why she wanted to be human rather than something else.
• Qing'er said she wanted to be a person like Jing Jiu, Tong Yan, and Xiao Zao'er, then fell silent as Jing Jiu continued grinding.
• In the Azure Sky Mirror's illusory realm, Eldest Young Master Zhang cursed the thunder and lightning, then hurried home when the storm weakened and worried that His Majesty had become Heaven itself.

Snow Ji awakened and unleashed a deadly chill before Jing Jiu stopped her and gave her the Heaven-Bearing Sword Technique to learn. Tong Yan began trying to teach her human communication, but she abruptly left to find Jing Jiu, who suspected she had already learned the sword art.

• Tong Yan returned from Dayuan City and concluded that the girl Young Master Li had met ten years earlier was a senior from Water-Moon Convent.
• Snow Ji awoke and released a freezing aura that injured Tong Yan and left Young Master Li unconscious, but Jing Jiu stopped her inside the Chan Room.
• Jing Jiu gave Snow Ji the Heaven-Bearing Sword Technique and told Tong Yan that she needed to learn how to communicate with other living beings.
• Tong Yan entered the icy Chan Room and began teaching Snow Ji with objects and books he had bought in Dayuan City.
• Snow Ji ran through the window to Jing Jiu at Snow Lake, where he discovered the lake had frozen and wondered whether she had already learned the Heaven-Bearing Sword Technique.

Jing Jiu left the Water-Moon Convent with Snow Ji after she mastered the Heaven-Bearing Sword Technique, while Tong Yan tried and failed to stop them from taking the Azure Sky Mirror. Young Master Li departed with a porcelain bottle Jing Jiu had sent him, watching their sword light vanish.

• Jing Jiu realized Snow Ji had read Tong Yan's booklet in moments and mastered the Heaven-Bearing Sword Technique, then asked whether she wanted to learn Go.
• Jing Jiu left Snow Lake with Snow Ji, who followed him under her quilt, and Young Master Li saw them before leaving the nunnery.
• Tong Yan tried to stop Jing Jiu from taking the Azure Sky Mirror, but the Water-Moon Convent's lamp formation repelled his law treasure.
• Jing Jiu used the Heaven-Bearing Sword Technique to bind Snow Ji's quilt and conceal her cold as they departed.
• Young Master Li caught a small porcelain bottle Jing Jiu sent from the departing sword light and watched it disappear into the horizon.

Jing Jiu brought Snow Ji to Green Mountain under an agreement to sustain her with extreme cold in exchange for her staying there peacefully. The sect had emptied its peaks and entered secluded cultivation when they arrived, and Jing Jiu led Snow Ji into the Sword Prison, where Corpse Dog watched her warily.

• Jing Jiu offered Snow Ji a supply of powerful cold in return for her going to Green Mountain, causing no trouble, and not leaving without permission, and Snow Ji accepted.
• As a subtle chill spread through Green Mountain, Nan Wang ordered her disciples to enter secluded cultivation, and other peaks followed the Sect Master's command to do the same.
• Ping Yongjia brought Liu A'da into Zhao Layue's cave abode while the Green Mountain disciples remained in seclusion.
• Jing Jiu, Snow Ji, and Qing'er arrived on Universe Edge to find the Nine Peaks deserted and landed at Shangde Peak.
• Jing Jiu led Snow Ji into the Sword Prison, where Corpse Dog watched her with wariness, and Jing Jiu turned her head away to keep them from meeting eyes.

Jing Jiu brought Snow Ji to the Green Mountain Sword Prison and sealed her inside the cell that had once held True Person Taiping, believing confinement was the only way to prevent the world from killing her. Snow Ji appeared to accept the imprisonment, but a tiny ice crystal from a mosquito fell before she smiled silently.

• Jing Jiu brought Snow Ji and Qing'er through the Sword Prison, where the imprisoned demons submitted in fear of Snow Ji.
• Jing Jiu placed Snow Ji in the solitary cell and left with Qing'er, then used thirteen steps to activate the Myriad Things Sealed in Ice formation and confine her.
• Jing Jiu told Snow Ji he would keep her imprisoned until he found a suitable method, and Qing'er grew frightened of him and returned to the Azure Sky Mirror.
• Jing Jiu's reasoning revealed that Snow Ji could not safely remain free or serve as Green Mountain's guardian, and that only this cell could contain her.
• A mosquito from the Demon-Suppressing Prison entered Snow Ji's cell and shattered into an ice crystal, after which Snow Ji's face formed a thin red line that opened into a silent smile.

Jing Jiu, Liu Ci, and Yuan Qijing secretly discussed how to conceal Snow Ji’s presence on Green Mountain and prevent word from spreading. After the disciples returned to Divine End Peak, Jing Jiu reunited with his followers and met Ping Yongjia.

• Jing Jiu confirmed to Liu Ci and Yuan Qijing that Snow Ji was the Snow Nation Queen’s bloodline and was currently weaker than they were.
• Liu Ci, Yuan Qijing, and Jing Jiu agreed to keep Snow Ji’s presence secret while informing trusted allies, and Tong Yan realized Jing Jiu had detained him to protect that secret.
• Liu Ci planned to warn Cao Yuan and Zen Child, Jing Jiu agreed to inform His Majesty, and Yuan Qijing was tasked with keeping Corpse Dog from telling his master.
• Green Mountain’s disciples emerged from seclusion, while Yin Phoenix and Origin Turtle reacted to Snow Ji’s arrival without revealing what they knew to the others.
• Jing Jiu returned to Divine End Peak, greeted the White Cat, and met Ping Yongjia, who bowed to him as his master.

Jing Jiu investigated Snow Ji’s escape attempt, made arrangements for her imprisonment, and traveled to Chaoge City to discuss her with the emperor. As he considered the growing conflict between Green Mountain and the Zhongzhou Sect, he recognized his senior brother’s larger plan, while a tearful woman suggested that mediocre people created the world’s troubles.

• Jing Jiu gave Cold Cicada to the white cat and chose Qingrong Peak’s Endless Sword Technique for Ping Yongjia.
• Jing Jiu told Zhao Layue he planned to go to Chaoge City, then discovered that Snow Ji had killed the mosquito watching her in the Sword Prison.
• Jing Jiu spoke to Snow Ji through her cell and arranged for her cell’s images to show an icy world with a distant peak.
• Jing Jiu met the emperor at Pure Enlightenment Temple and learned that Jing Xin’s position remained secure while the Zhongzhou Sect’s influence in Chaoge City persisted.
• Jing Jiu weighed the likely devastation of war between Green Mountain and the Zhongzhou Sect and realized that his senior brother had sought turmoil on a larger scale.
• A woman joined Jing Jiu by the pond, called people mediocre for creating trouble, and drew his insistence that neither he nor his senior brother was mediocre.

Jing Jiu learned that Brother Li wanted to marry the chancellor’s granddaughter and directed Gu Qing to pursue the match as part of efforts to strengthen Jing Yao’s claim to the throne. Gu Qing approached Xi Yiyun about teaching Jing Yao, but Xi Yiyun objected that Jing Yao was not of their kind.

• At Pure Enlightenment Temple, Jing Jiu met the chancellor’s granddaughter and learned she was in love with Brother Li, then said he wanted tea.
• Jing Jiu visited the Jing Residence with Gu Qing and told Jing Shang to support Brother Li’s marriage to the chancellor’s granddaughter.
• Gu Qing urged Jing Shang to propose before the Duke of Zhan’s heir, explaining that their allies gave them standing to compete.
• Jing Jiu told Gu Qing that winning One-Thatch Studio’s support could help Jing Yao become Crown Prince, and authorized him to involve Zhuo Rusui.
• Jing Jiu polished the Azure Sky Mirror and spoke with Qing’er, who emerged from it.
• Gu Qing met Zhuo Rusui and then Xi Yiyun, asking Xi Yiyun to become Jing Yao’s teacher; Xi Yiyun replied that Jing Yao was not of their kind.

Gu Qing and Liu S sui tried to win One-Thatch Studio’s support for a political marriage, while Jing Jiu investigated the circumstances behind Yan Scholar’s flight from the studio. The Daily Records led Jing Jiu to focus on Bu Qiuxiao’s movements and a demon in Still Lake, leaving Liu S sui anxious about what he had uncovered.

• Xi Yiyun refused to help Gu Qing approach the prime minister, but Gu Qing arranged to meet He Xiaoliu, who turned out to be Liu S sui.
• On the carriage ride, Liu S sui asked Gu Qing about Jing Jiu, and Gu Qing recounted the events of the past two years while Zhuo Rusui mocked Liu S sui’s travels among different sects.
• Jing Jiu told Gu Qing and Zhuo Rusui to leave, then examined Liu S sui’s meridians and heard that Bu Qiuxiao had taught him the Way of Righteous Qi.
• Liu S sui explained that Yan Scholar had accused Bu Qiuxiao of misconduct, fled with the Guan Cheng Brush, and later entered the Never-Old Forest after his Sage’s Heart was shattered.
• Jing Jiu had Liu S sui recite One-Thatch Studio’s Daily Records and questioned him about Bu Qiuxiao’s history, the black blood of a demon in Still Lake, and Bu Qiuxiao’s travels after the Plum Gathering.

Jing Jiu pieced together a possible story about He Zhan’s origins and asked Liu S sui to summon Bu Qiuxiao within eight days. At the prime minister’s residence, the marriage proposal for Cen Shi was interrupted when the Duke of Lu led a group inside.

• Jing Jiu connected details in the Daily Records to Guo Dong, He Zhan, and a possible account of He Zhan’s birth, though he had no evidence and chose not to investigate.
• Jing Jiu told Liu S sui to learn from Xi Yiyun and deliver a letter demanding that Bu Qiuxiao meet him within eight days.
• Eight days later, Cen Shi was brought back from the Pure Enlightenment Temple for the Duke of Zhan’s marriage proposal, while Lu Ming’s wife worried about her apparent calm.
• As Prime Minister Cen and the Duke of Zhan prepared to exchange formal greetings, the Duke of Lu and his followers barged into the residence.

The Duke of Lu and Jing Shang arrived at Chancellor Cen’s granddaughter Cen Shi’s wedding to propose her marriage to Jing Li, backed by an imperial decree. Chancellor Cen refused the decree, and the standoff escalated when Bai Qianjun and Zhuo Rusui faced off over the Green Mountain Sect’s influence.

• The Duke of Lu arrived with Jing Shang and Jing Li, then announced that Jing Shang had come to propose marriage to Cen Shi on Jing Li’s behalf.
• The Duke of Zhan challenged the proposal, but the Duke of Lu read an imperial decree that bestowed marriage on Jing Li and Cen Shi.
• Chancellor Cen refused to receive the decree, declaring that he would not obey what he considered an unrighteous command.
• Bai Qianjun appeared in support of the Duke of Zhan and questioned the Green Mountain Sect’s power.
• Zhuo Rusui stepped out in support of the Duke of Lu and challenged Bai Qianjun to fight.

Gu Qing’s plan to expose the Heir of the Duke of Zhan was interrupted, but Xi Yiyun announced that Bu Qiuxiao opposed the marriage too. Jing Jiu met Bu Qiuxiao by the lake, where the Studio Master agreed to call off the match before discussing their other business.

• Gu Qing watched Zhuo Rusui confront Bai Qianjun and rejected the idea of forcing the marriage through or abducting the Chancellor’s Seventh Miss.
• At a Gu Household Treasure Shop, the shopkeeper prepared to move the Heir of the Duke of Zhan’s former lover and their daughter out of Chaoge City, but a scholar offered the woman work at One-Thatch Studio instead.
• Xi Yiyun arrived at the Chancellor’s Residence and told Chancellor Cen that Bu Qiuxiao had come, then accused Gu Qing of using underhanded methods.
• Gu Qing accused Xi Yiyun of defending the Heir of the Duke of Zhan, and Xi Yiyun clarified that he and Bu Qiuxiao opposed Miss Cen marrying him.
• Bu Qiuxiao told Jing Jiu that he had sent Xi Yiyun to cancel the marriage, but warned that the match could be resumed; Jing Jiu walked toward the old nunnery without answering.

Jing Jiu met Bu Qiuxiao to argue that Jing Yao should become the next Divine Emperor and that Jing Xin should be removed, but Bu Qiuxiao refused to support Green Mountain’s position. Jing Jiu then exposed Bu Qiuxiao’s secret: He Zhan was his son.

• The guests left Chancellor Cen’s residence after the competing marriage proposals ended, while Bai Qianjun stayed and Gu Qing waited anxiously for Jing Jiu’s meeting with Bu Qiuxiao.
• Jing Jiu met Bu Qiuxiao at the Old Nunnery and said Green Mountain wanted Jing Yao as the next Divine Emperor and Jing Xin sent to Fruitful Accomplishment Temple or killed.
• Bu Qiuxiao rejected Jing Yao because he was the son of a fox demon, and Jing Jiu challenged One-Thatch Studio’s rigid rules and its opposition to him.
• Jing Jiu used Two Hearts Communication to probe Bu Qiuxiao and suggested he had a connection to Water-Moon Convent.
• Jing Jiu revealed that Bu Qiuxiao had fathered He Zhan with a woman at the nunnery, and Bu Qiuxiao reacted with shock and a trembling hand.

Jing Jiu used Bu Qiuxiao's concealed connection to a Water-Moon Convent scandal to secure approval for Jing Li's marriage to Cen Shi and One-Thatch Studio's neutrality over the throne. As the marriage news spread through Chaoge City, Jing Jiu suspected Bu Qiuxiao had taken the blame for his teacher and joined his companions for a celebratory meal.

• Jing Jiu threatened to expose Bu Qiuxiao's connection to the Water-Moon Convent unless he supported Li's marriage to Cen Shi and kept One-Thatch Studio neutral over the throne.
• Jing Jiu presented the Demon Phoenix's Life Tablet as proof of his authority, and Bu Qiuxiao accepted his proposal.
• Jing Jiu argued that Liu S sui should retain the Guan Cheng Brush and reminded Bu Qiuxiao of his promise to cure Liu S sui's illness.
• Xi Yiyun received confirmation of the agreement, and news of the marriage delighted the Jing household and Imperial Palace while angering Prince Jing Xin's faction.
• Jing Jiu suspected that the former head of One-Thatch Studio had fathered He Zhan and that Bu Qiuxiao had concealed his teacher's affair.
• Jing Jiu joined his companions for hotpot, thanked Gu Qing for his work, and told Liu S sui not to drink before the Dao Battle.

Jing Jiu settled Jing Li’s marriage, secured One-Thatch Studio’s neutrality, and arranged for Gu Qing to protect Jing Yao in the palace before preparing to leave Chaoge City. On a dark street, he sensed a watcher who could not be human and called for them to come out.

• Jing Jiu ate hotpot with Gu Qing, Liu S sui, and Zhuo Rusui while a storyteller recounted his fame and the Jing Household’s secret.
• Jing Jiu told Liu S sui to study at One-Thatch Studio and leave its affairs alone, while Gu Qing warned him to keep Little Lotus away from the Wind Corridor.
• Jing Jiu told Consort Hu that Gu Qing would stay in the palace for a year to help keep Jing Yao safe, and ordered Gu Qing to return to Green Mountain if the decree remained unissued.
• Jing Jiu told the Divine Emperor to deal forcefully with those who disobeyed and criticized the Imperial Court’s continued influence by Yunmeng Mountain.
• Jing Jiu sensed an unseen presence on a dark street and called for it to come out.

Jing Jiu met projections of the High Priest and the Nether Master, who each sought to enlist him in the struggle over the Netherworld. After the Nether Master vanished, Jing Jiu found a cryptic message that made him look south.

• The High Priest projected himself into Chaoge City and offered to cooperate with Jing Jiu against the Taiping Remnants.
• Jing Jiu went to the Old Plum Garden, where the Nether Master appeared and proposed that they kill the High Priest and choose a new Nether Emperor.
• The Nether Master said he had deliberately leaked information about the Nether Emperor's Seal and left without showing Jing Jiu the letter he had brought.
• Jing Jiu considered how the Nether Master had tracked him and found no trace in his body.
• In the morning, Jing Jiu saw the words “A cloud has drifted in from the south” on the floor and looked toward the southern sky.

Jing Jiu learned that Nan Qu had left Mist Island and was drifting toward the mainland, giving Green Mountain a chance to confront its ancient enemy. Nan Qu crossed the sea in a killing fog, while a mortal messenger delivered a letter to Liu Ci and died after it was read.

• Jing Jiu read his Senior Brother’s letter and learned that Nan Qu had left Mist Island and was heading toward the Chaotian Continent.
• Nan Qu’s fog killed everyone aboard a Penglai Island ship and nearly everyone in a fishing village, sparing Nan Zheng because she was his descendant.
• Nan Qu entered a coffin Nan Zheng found and sealed himself inside with talismans to conceal his aura.
• Ming Guoxing received an ordinary-looking man who identified himself as a letter and notified the inner sect.
• Elder Mo brought the man to Liu Ci, who read his message and watched him jump from the cliff to his death.

Jing Jiu walked through Green Mountain, revisiting places tied to his past and confirming that the sect was still his. He told Liu Ci he would agree to True Person Taiping’s request, while a discussion about Taiping’s letter and a suspected traitor left the summit tense.

• Jing Jiu walked from South Pine Pavilion through the Green Mountain grounds, recalling his history with his senior brother and the rise of Shangde Peak.
• Jing Jiu reached Heavenly Light Peak, greeted Origin Turtle, and joined Liu Ci at the cliff to look out over Green Mountain.
• Jing Jiu told Liu Ci that Green Mountain was his and that he would agree to True Person Taiping’s request.
• Liu Ci said Taiping had sent him a letter too and suggested it might be meant to sow discord; Yuan Qijing arrived on Three Feet and proposed that the letter could instead be covering for Jing Jiu.
• Jing Jiu, Liu Ci, and Yuan Qijing faced the unspoken question of who within Green Mountain had helped Taiping escape the Sword Prison.

Jing Jiu, Liu Ci, and Yuan Qijing discussed True Person Taiping’s letter from the Western Sea and whether his presence there was a trap for Green Mountain. Jing Jiu concluded that Green Mountain should kill Nan Qu and then True Person Taiping.

• Yuan Qijing demanded that Liu Ci explain how True Person Taiping had escaped the Sword Prison, while Jing Jiu intervened to calm their confrontation.
• Liu Ci told Yuan Qijing that True Person Taiping’s letter said he had gone to the Western Sea and urged Green Mountain to destroy the Western Sea Sword Sect.
• Jing Jiu warned that True Person Taiping might be using Nan Qu as bait to lure Green Mountain into danger and asked whether Liu Ci trusted him.
• Liu Ci said he trusted True Person Taiping on this matter, and Jing Jiu proposed killing Nan Qu and then True Person Taiping.