Chapter Summaries

After Zhao Layue survived an assassination attempt by Wei Chengzi, Jing Jiu went to see her in the Zhao Residence while the Imperial Court and Green Mountain Sect reacted to the crisis. At West Mountain Residence, Nan Wang challenged the impartiality of the investigation because Wei Chengzi belonged to the Zhongzhou Sect and the Pure Heaven Bureau was tied to it.

• Shi Fengchen inspected Wei Chengzi's corpse at Emerald-Cry Valley and considered the complications surrounding the failed assassination and the Netherworld fiend.
• Jing Jiu learned from the Duke of Lu that Zhao Layue had been taken to the Zhao Residence under Jin Attendant's guard, then left to visit her.
• Jing Jiu entered the Zhao Residence, passed Jin Attendant, and went to see Zhao Layue's parents before entering her room.
• The Pure Heaven Bureau commander reported that Wei Chengzi had been killed by powerful Netherfire, while other clues remained under investigation.
• Nan Wang accused Duke He of relying on an investigation compromised by the Zhongzhou Sect's influence over the Pure Heaven Bureau and Imperial Court.

Nan Wang demanded that the Zhongzhou Sect take responsibility for Wei Chengzi’s actions, and Luo Huainan promised the Sect Master’s Wife would visit Green Mountain. Nan Wang said that would not be enough without Jing Jiu’s involvement, while Water-Moon Convent made its own response to the affair.

• Duke He and the others tried to prevent the dispute from becoming a war, while Nan Wang insisted the Zhongzhou Sect had to answer for its elder’s actions.
• Luo Huainan said the Zhongzhou Sect would take full responsibility and that the Sect Master’s Wife was already headed to Heavenly Light Peak.
• Nan Wang said Jing Jiu also needed to be appeased, and Yao Songshan remarked that Jing Jiu held grudges.
• Duke He reported that Mo Xi’s limbs had been broken and she had been left at Jing Jiu’s feet, a response from Water-Moon Convent.
• Jing Jiu told the Zhao Residence Steward to send Mo Xi back to Water-Moon Convent as she was, then ignored her question about why she had acted.

Bai Zao visited Jing Jiu to ask him to remain silent while the orthodox sects considered how to respond to the Never-Old Forest, and revealed a group of young disciples working together to confront larger threats. After Jing Jiu refused to join them and denied being Zhao Layue’s dao companion, Bai Zao asked him to consider her instead.

• Jing Jiu reheated his cold tea with Sword Flame and received Bai Zao at the Jing residence.
• Bai Zao warned that the Never-Old Forest had deeper connections than expected and asked Jing Jiu not to inflame the investigation into Zhao Layue’s attempted assassination.
• Bai Zao revealed a coalition of young disciples from several sects, including Guo Nanshan and other Green Mountain disciples, who wanted the Human Race to take action against the Snow Nation.
• Jing Jiu refused to join the coalition, saying he would not act against the Never-Old Forest and had no interest in cooperation with an expanded Twofold Forgetting Peak.
• Bai Zao asked Jing Jiu whether he and Zhao Layue were dao companions; when he denied it, she presented herself and asked him what he thought of her.

Jing Jiu rejected Bai Zao’s direct confession and decided to avoid her. The next morning, he secretly left his residence and confronted Shi Fengchen at home, asking who had ordered the attempt on Zhao Layue.

• Bai Zao told Jing Jiu that she liked him, and he replied that a relationship between them was impossible.
• After Bai Zao left, Jing Jiu reflected on the trouble caused by such feelings and resolved to avoid her.
• Jing Jiu slipped past the watchers around his residence and went to an ordinary home in Chaoge City.
• Jing Jiu found Shi Fengchen asleep over case files and asked who had told him to arrange the attack on Zhao Layue.
• Shi Fengchen recognized Jing Jiu and realized that Jing Jiu suspected him, though others had blamed Consort Hu, the Never-Old Forest, or the Netherworld.

Jing Jiu confronted Shi Fengchen, who confessed to arranging Zhao Layue’s assassination and explained why he feared her. Before Jing Jiu could learn whether someone had manipulated him, Shi Fengchen killed himself, leaving Jing Jiu to pursue the wider conspiracy.

• Jing Jiu deduced that Shi Fengchen had participated in the assassination, and Shi Fengchen admitted hiring Wei Chengzi through an intermediary.
• Shi Fengchen denied being instructed by anyone, while Jing Jiu identified Jing Xin as the person behind the plot.
• Shi Fengchen explained that he feared Zhao Layue might become another True Person Taiping and described the devastation that had once brought silence to the human world.
• Jing Jiu questioned whether anything unusual had happened before Shi Fengchen formed his plans, but Shi Fengchen denied it and said he hoped for a different world.
• Shi Fengchen severed his meridians and crushed hidden poison between his teeth, and Jing Jiu left after finding him dead.

After Shi Fengchen killed himself, Wang Xiaoming mourned him and left Chaoge City with the cultivation method his master had left behind. Jing Jiu explained to Zhao Layue why cultivators often kept their distance from mortals, while Wang Xiaoming began reading the method through his grief.

• Jing Jiu let Shi Fengchen die after recognizing his resolve, and Wang Xiaoming found his master's body when he returned home.
• Wang Xiaoming held a quiet funeral for Shi Fengchen as officials used the death to pressure the Green Mountain Sect and blame Jing Jiu.
• Wang Xiaoming left Chaoge City, and Seventy-Two later said he had claimed he was returning to a hometown in the northwest.
• Jing Jiu told Zhao Layue that Shi Fengchen had feared her power and that cultivators and mortals belonged to different worlds.
• Wang Xiaoming opened the Pure Profound Method Shi Fengchen had left him, but his tears kept him from reading it.

Jing Jiu explained to Zhao Layue how cultivators governed and exploited ordinary people, including a radical plan to strengthen humanity against the Snow Nation. At West Locust Mountain, a young man arranged for the Third Patriarch of the Profound Yin Sect to teach a lame boy, despite the old man’s desire to kill him.

• Jing Jiu told Zhao Layue that cultivators depended on ordinary people while doing little for them, and that the continent’s order was established after the Plum Gathering.
• Jing Jiu explained that some cultivators wanted to enslave ordinary people and screen them for cultivation talent to accelerate humanity’s growth against the Snow Nation.
• At West Locust Mountain, the young man and the Third Patriarch of the Profound Yin Sect watched a lame boy struggle up the cliff.
• The Third Patriarch said he wanted to kill the young man because he resented being ordered to pass on his cultivation methods to the boy.
• The young man insisted that the Third Patriarch teach the boy, then looked at the old patriarch with pity.

Jing Jiu explained to Zhao Layue that mortals’ buried resentment toward cultivators could erupt if cultivators lost their power. The chapter showed ordinary people suffering and losing faith in immortals, while Jing Jiu reflected on the dullness of endless life.

• Jing Jiu and the old man discussed fear of death, and Jing Jiu said eternal life was meaningless if one lived like a creature at the bottom of a well.
• Jing Jiu told Zhao Layue that mortals had their own ambitions and that centuries of cultivator oppression had left them harboring deep resentment.
• A Flying Whale’s passage capsized a fishing boat, and two women divers died while collecting Origin Qi Pearls for the Western Sea Sword Sect’s quota.
• A gambler saw sword light and cursed the immortals, recalling how he had once dreamed of becoming one.
• A young man begged the Green Mountain Sect for help for his dying father, then left town after a resident warned that the immortals would not come.

Jing Jiu explained to Zhao Layue why mortals resented cultivators and admitted that he now feared being killed, while considering whether to take part in the Dao Battle. Meanwhile, suspicion over Shi Fengchen’s death fell on Consort Hu, who sought a way to speak with Zhao Layue or Jing Jiu.

• Jing Jiu told Zhao Layue that cultivators could not resolve mortals’ resentment, which arose from envy of their long lives and freedom from ordinary hardship.
• Jing Jiu said he had sensed the person he was seeking had appeared and seen him, and admitted he now avoided risks because many people could kill him.
• Zhao Layue urged Jing Jiu to seek the person rather than wait, and Jing Jiu agreed that she had a point.
• Although Shi Fengchen’s death was ruled a suicide, suspicion of the Green Mountain Sect persisted, while Chaoge City’s Imperial Court suppressed the resulting unrest.
• Consort Hu complained that people blamed her for Zhao Layue’s attempted assassination and worried that the Emperor had stopped visiting her.
• Consort Hu asked to meet Zhao Layue or Jing Jiu, but her matron said Zhao Layue was recovering and Jing Jiu had gone to take part in the Dao Battle.

At the Plum Gathering, the Dao Battle rankings showed Luo Huainan leading while the Green Mountain Sect struggled without its top Twofold Forgetting Peak disciples. As cultivators questioned Jing Jiu’s ability, his group’s painting remained completely blank after more than ten days of battle.

• The Zen Child received a letter from the Blade Sage asking whether Jing Jiu was Fruitful Accomplishment Temple’s successor to Treading the Mortal World, but gave no definite answer.
• The Zen Child declined to secretly watch over Jing Jiu, saying he had inherited the caution of an old friend and would likely be fine.
• Cultivators at West Mountain Residence examined the Treading Through Blood in Search of Plum Blossoms rankings, where Luo Huainan’s group had accumulated the most blossoms.
• The Left Rain Envoy of Great Marsh observed that the Green Mountain Sect’s Dao Battle results were unusually poor because few Twofold Forgetting Peak disciples had entered.
• Cultivators criticized Jing Jiu and doubted his strength while his group’s painting remained blank after more than ten days of battle.

Jing Jiu’s Dao Battle team debated whether to keep following his cautious advice, then left their mountain refuge and began crossing the snowfield. After Yin Qingmo encountered a Snow Worm egg sac, Jing Jiu examined it closely, leaving the team’s progress just beginning.

• Dai Yin urged his companions to abandon Jing Jiu if he refused to leave the mountain, but Jing Jiu agreed that the group could depart the next morning.
• Jing Jiu reflected on why he had joined the Dao Battle and on the hidden purpose behind the threats involving Zhao Layue and the snowfield.
• Jing Jiu, Dai Yin, Lu Jin, Wu Mingzhong, and Yin Qingmo left the solitary mountain and cautiously entered the snowfield.
• Yin Qingmo dodged a Snow Worm egg sac, and Dai Yin explained that it was harmless and did not count toward their results.
• Jing Jiu picked up the egg sac and studied its appearance and faint suction, while Yin Qingmo watched in disgust.

Jing Jiu’s group encountered and killed a low-tier Snow-Foot Beast, only to discover a Listening Ear hidden inside it. Dai Yin chased the fleeing creature despite Jing Jiu trying to stop him, and then screamed as he fell from the sky.

• Jing Jiu sensed a newborn Snow Nation Demon Beast inside an egg sac, recognized that it feared his consciousness, and put it away.
• Tonglu’s companions discussed Jing Jiu’s lack of victories while Tonglu remained uncertain about his intentions.
• Jing Jiu’s group spotted a Snow-Foot Beast beneath the snow, and Jing Jiu identified it as a six-legged specimen.
• Dai Yin struck the Snow-Foot Beast with his Azure Rope while Wu Mingzhong and Yin Qingmo shielded the group from its corrosive green blood.
• A Listening Ear escaped from the beast’s broken shell, and Jing Jiu tried to stop Dai Yin from pursuing it.
• Dai Yin chased the Listening Ear and lashed at it with the Azure Rope, but he suddenly screamed and fell from the sky.

Jing Jiu’s team found Dai Yin dead after a mysterious creature destroyed the Azure Rope and escaped underground. At West Mountain Residence, Dai Yin’s death was recorded on the Dao Battle painting, and the Kunlun Sect Master resolved to demand an accounting from the Green Mountain Sect.

• Yin Qingmo and the others rushed to find Jing Jiu and discovered Dai Yin’s mutilated corpse, the shattered Azure Rope, and a hole where the creature had fled.
• The Zen Child praised Bai Zao’s leadership in the Dao Battle paintings and called Jing Jiu lazy when he saw Jing Jiu’s still-blank painting.
• A painter added a plum blossom to Jing Jiu’s painting, then drew a black line through Dai Yin’s name to mark his death.
• The Kunlun Sect Master learned that Dai Yin, a disciple Kunlun had nurtured, had died and decided to demand an accounting from the Green Mountain Sect.

Nan Wang worried that Jing Jiu might be implicated in the death of a Kunlun disciple, while the Zen Child investigated the unusual Iron Wire Worm and prepared for a possible beast tide. On the Snowfield, Jing Jiu continued traveling without explaining his destination, leaving Yin Qingmo and the others uncertain about his purpose.

• Nan Wang scolded her disciples over the Dao Battle and worried that Jing Jiu might have caused the Kunlun disciple’s death.
• Shi Hai told the Zen Child that an Iron Wire Worm likely killed the Kunlun disciple, and they discussed the possibility of another beast tide.
• The Zen Child said Du Hai had gone north to investigate, ordered preparations, and chose to wait for Cao Yuan’s letter before ending the Dao Battle.
• The Cold-Calling Bird watched Jing Jiu and the three cultivators as they crossed the Snowfield, puzzled by Jing Jiu’s spotless, untroubled appearance.
• Jing Jiu ignored Snow Nation Monsters and kept traveling until he stopped as daylight dimmed.

Jing Jiu reflected on the strange dangers appearing in the Snowfield and experimented with the newly hatched beetle from the Egg Embryo. Elsewhere, Bai Zao prepared her team for the approaching Snow Nation Forbidden Zone.

• Jing Jiu established a defensive camp with Yin Qingmo, Wu Mingzhong, and Lu Jin, then considered why an Iron Wire Worm had appeared and whether the Snowfield's changes were connected to him.
• Jing Jiu opened the Egg Embryo, revived the tiny white beetle inside, and tested its reactions before examining its vulnerable points.
• Bai Zao warned her team that they were nearing the Snow Nation Forbidden Zone and arranged for the Hanging Bell Sect disciple to use her bell to detect enemies.
• Bai Zao instructed her companions to let Senior Brother Mo restrain any Snow Worm before striking, and Yao Songshan and the others agreed.

Bai Zao’s team advanced toward the dark mountains while trying to understand why Jing Jiu’s group had encountered Iron Wire Worms. Jing Jiu sensed participants under attack and went to help, while Bai Zao’s injured group faced Snow-Foot Beasts in the darkness.

• Bai Zao reassured her companions and monitored Jing Jiu’s team as it approached from more than sixty li away.
• Bai Zao’s group hunted Snow-Foot Beasts but found no Iron Wire Worms, and Jing Jiu’s team drew closer.
• Bai Zao sensed danger from the approaching dark mountain range and ordered her companions to light a fire.
• Jing Jiu sensed fellow Dao Battle participants under attack eleven li to the northeast and set out with Yin Qingmo, Wu Mingzhong, and the other cultivator.
• Bai Zao sat injured in the snow as Snow-Foot Beasts surrounded her group and signaled their attack.

Bai Zao and her companions were trapped by Snow-Foot Beasts and a deadly cold fog until Jing Jiu arrived and fought the beasts through the night. As the fog began to lift at dawn, Jing Jiu returned to the group.

• Bai Zao led her companions in a formation against a swarm of Snow-Foot Beasts, but several people were injured and the cold fog weakened their defenses.
• The fog extinguished their fire and dimmed the luminous pearl, leaving Bai Zao and the others surrounded in darkness.
• Jing Jiu's voice ordered the group to withdraw the bell, raise a shield, and prepare the Star Pot and fire.
• Jing Jiu fought the Snow-Foot Beasts outside the Star Pot's protection while Yao Songshan and the others waited through the night.
• When the fog began to disperse at dawn, Jing Jiu emerged, and Bai Zao watched him quietly.

After Jing Jiu and Bai Zao discussed the Snow-Foot Beasts and the creatures awakening beneath the Snow Nation, the cultivation world gathered at the Rain Gallery to see He Zhan paint Jing Jiu’s latest results. He Zhan covered Jing Jiu’s painting with countless blood-red plum blossoms, leaving the others stunned by how many Snow-Foot Beasts had died overnight.

• As the mist cleared, the group found dozens of dead Snow-Foot Beasts stretching far into the distance and realized Jing Jiu had hunted them during the night.
• Bai Zao challenged Jing Jiu over his actions against Shi Fengchen and the Crown Prince, then suggested the Snow-Foot Beasts and an Iron Wire Worm might be ancient creatures awakened by a major event in the Snow Nation.
• At noon, cultivators gathered at the Rain Gallery and watched a painter struggle to depict the changes to Jing Jiu’s plum blossom painting.
• He Zhan read the dossier, scattered cinnabar across Jing Jiu’s painting, and added a faint plum branch among the red marks.
• The cultivators realized the marks represented a vast number of blossoms and were left wondering what had happened overnight.

He Zhan painted Jing Jiu’s seventy-seven plum blossoms, making Jing Jiu the clear favorite to win the Dao Battle. As the dangerous trial continued, Jing Jiu’s group stopped at a gorge for two days, leaving the elders wondering what he was planning.

• He Zhan finished a striking plum painting, and the painter revealed that it represented seventy-seven monsters killed by Jing Jiu’s branch.
• Cultivators debated whether Jing Jiu’s many blossoms could win the Dao Battle, while He Zhan dismissed Luo Huainan’s chances against him.
• The Dao Battle continued despite early-awakening Snow Beasts and deadly Cold Mist causing serious casualties.
• Luo Huainan and Tonglu’s team advanced deep into the black mountain range, while Jing Jiu’s group stopped at a gorge for two days.

Jing Jiu and Bai Zao waited in a mountain gorge, where Jing Jiu explained his skill at killing Snow-Foot Beasts and said he was waiting for people. After four cultivators arrived, he led the combined group along a mountain path toward another team.

• Jing Jiu guided Bai Zao's group as they killed more than a dozen Snow-Foot Beasts, while his precise advice helped them fight effectively.
• Bai Zao asked Jing Jiu about his cultivation and how he knew the beasts' weaknesses, and he said he was simply good at observing and cutting things apart.
• Jing Jiu told Bai Zao that he had stopped in the gorge to wait for people.
• Four exhausted cultivators arrived, including Lei Yijing, who greeted Jing Jiu as Uncle-Master; Jing Jiu told them to rest before setting off with the others.
• Jing Jiu led the enlarged group through the gorge, and by evening they found another team preparing to rest beneath a cliff, where someone recognized Uncle-Master Jing.