Chapter Summaries

Fang Dong tried to block Huang Xiao’s appointment as Heavenly Demon Sect Master, but Ran Chou’s maneuver made Fang Jin the Fang Family’s representative and Huang Xiao won an overwhelming majority. Huang Xiao took the throne and called on the reunited Lineages to restore the sect’s strength.

• Fang Dong challenged the voting process, and Ran Chou agreed that Lineage representatives would decide how votes were allocated while the Heavenly Demon Guard stayed neutral.
• Ran Chou made the Fang Family choose one representative from Fang Dong, Fang Jin, and Fang Min; Fang Min backed Fang Jin, securing Fang Jin’s selection over Fang Dong.
• Fang Dong denounced the appointment and left after Fang Min blocked him briefly and Ran Chou ordered everyone to stand down.
• The remaining Lineages voted overwhelmingly for Huang Xiao, who became the new Heavenly Demon Sect Master and received the experts’ salute.
• Huang Xiao asked Ran Chou to oversee the sect’s integration and urged the Lineages to unite; Ran Chou then asked Old Madam You to have a girl from her family attend the Sect Master.

Five years after becoming Sect Master, Huang Xiao had reached the eighth stage of the Heavenly Demon Skill with help from You Lian'er and the Heavenly Demon Sect’s experts. He told Ran Chou and the five Banner Envoys that he planned to leave for a while, leaving his next move unresolved.

• Five years earlier, Huang Xiao admitted to Ran Chou that the sect’s experts obeyed him mainly because of Ran Chou’s authority.
• Huang Xiao broke through to the eighth stage after years of cultivation, power transfers from sect experts, and six rejuvenations that strengthened his meridians.
• You Lian'er entered Huang Xiao’s training chamber, and they kissed before a disciple summoned him to meet Ran Chou and the five Banner Envoys.
• Huang Xiao went to the Main Hall and reflected that the sect’s experts now respected and feared him, while Ran Chou remained his only serious potential rival.
• Huang Xiao told Ran Chou and the five Banner Envoys that he wanted to leave the sect for a while as he stabilized his eighth-stage cultivation.

Huang Xiao decided to leave the Heavenly Demon Sect after five years in order to find Zhao Xin'er, but learned that Du Tianchou and his master had been captured in Xiping Prefecture. After saying farewell to You Lian'er, he set out first to confront them and seek news of Qingfeng.

• Huang Xiao insisted on leaving despite Envoy Jin and the other Banner Envoys urging him to consolidate his eighth-level cultivation, while Ran Chou supported his decision.
• Ran Chou reported that Du Tianchou and his master had been captured by Li Jiqian's men and imprisoned in Xiping Prefecture.
• Huang Xiao left to go to Xiping Prefecture, and Ran Chou told him that Li Jiqian's health was failing after being poisoned five years earlier.
• At the sect gate, You Lian'er learned Huang Xiao was leaving to find Zhao Xin'er and encouraged him to go, while he promised not to let her down.
• Huang Xiao told You Lian'er he would try to prolong Li Jiqian's life and hoped to learn Qingfeng's whereabouts from the prisoners; You Lian'er gave him a sable cloak before he departed.

Huang Xiao returned toward Xiping Prefecture, rescued a Xiazhou patrol from Tubo pursuers, and entered the city after punishing Jianghu practitioners who mistreated commoners. He sought out Li Deming before going to the imperial prison to see Du Tianchou.

• Huang Xiao left You Lian'er and traveled east toward Xiping Prefecture.
• Huang Xiao killed the Tubo pursuers with a shout, rescued the Xiazhou patrol, and healed its wounded commander.
• At Xiping Prefecture’s gates, Huang Xiao secretly injured a Jianghu practitioner who was kicking commoners, prompting the group to behave themselves.
• Huang Xiao wondered why so many Jianghu practitioners were gathering in Xiping Prefecture, then went to find Li Deming before visiting Du Tianchou.
• Li Deming greeted Huang Xiao as Sect Master, then asked whether he could call him Brother Huang.

Huang Xiao confronted Du Tianchou and his master in the Heavenly Prison to learn what happened to his eldest senior brother. After learning that his master had knocked the senior brother off a cliff into a pool, Huang Xiao killed the master and executed Du Tianchou, leaving the senior brother’s fate uncertain.

• Li Deming led Huang Xiao to the Heavenly Prison, where Huang Xiao confronted Du Tianchou and his master.
• Huang Xiao confirmed that he had obtained the Heavenly Demon Canon, and Du Tianchou admitted that he and his master had sought to use his eldest senior brother to threaten him.
• Du Tianchou’s master confessed that he had gravely wounded Huang Xiao’s eldest senior brother and knocked him off a cliff into a pool at the foot of Green Ox Temple Mountain.
• Huang Xiao questioned whether his eldest senior brother might have survived, but Du Tianchou’s master said the fall and injuries left no hope.
• Huang Xiao gave Du Tianchou’s master a quick death, then refused Du Tianchou’s pleas for mercy and killed him with an ice shard.

Huang Xiao punished Du Tianchou with a tormenting poison, then examined Li Jiqian and discovered that the King of Xia had gained years of life from the Ageless Spring. Huang Xiao planned to investigate the ancient tomb beneath the pool at Green Ox Temple, where he hoped his Eldest Senior Brother Qingfeng might still be alive.

• Huang Xiao cursed Du Tianchou with unbearable itching and ordered Li Deming's men to keep him from killing himself, warning that the poison would flare every six hours.
• Huang Xiao told Li Deming he might help Li Jiqian live longer and went with him to the palace.
• On the way, Huang Xiao reasoned that Qingfeng might have survived in the ancient tomb beneath the pool and resolved to search it.
• Huang Xiao examined Li Jiqian and found that his condition was better than expected, with at least three years left to live.
• Li Jiqian revealed that he had drunk from the Ageless Spring three years earlier.

Huang Xiao learned that Li Jiqian had traded the You Family’s Seven Spirit Blade to the Medicine King Hall for Ageless Spring, but he chose not to punish the family. After leaving, he heard that Jianghu fighters were gathering at a nearby mountain because of a rumored treasure.

• Li Jiqian told Huang Xiao that the Ageless Spring came from the Medicine King Hall and that You Lian’er’s mother had secretly traded one of the Seven Spirit Blades for it.
• Huang Xiao recognized the blade as the You Family’s and said he would not hold them responsible, since the Seven Spirit Blades’ mystery could not be solved without all seven.
• Li Jiqian worried Huang Xiao might later punish the You Family, but Huang Xiao reassured Li Deming that he would keep his word.
• Huang Xiao left Li Jiqian’s residence and asked about the Jianghu fighters gathering in Xiping Prefecture, but Li Jiqian and Li Deming knew nothing about it.
• Huang Xiao overheard Jianghu fighters say that experts had gathered at a mountain several dozen li away because of a rumored treasure, and two of them set out to investigate.

Huang Xiao followed a group of Tubo lamas to a supposed treasure trove and discovered it was the Golden-Winged Roc’s home, where Jianghu experts had attacked the Roc family. He intervened to save Brother Peng from Jin Yi, but the Golden-Winged Roc’s life was fading, and Huang Xiao could not heal him.

• Huang Xiao overheard Tubo lamas discussing a treasure trove that the Great Song sects had dismissed as a minor affair, so he followed them.
• Huang Xiao recognized the mountains as the Golden-Winged Roc’s home and rushed toward a mournful cry.
• Huang Xiao found the Roc’s mate dead, while Dugu Sheng and Hong Yi protected her corpse and the grieving young bird from the Jianghu crowd.
• Huang Xiao saw Jin Yi fighting the badly wounded Golden-Winged Roc and knocked Jin Yi away before the Roc fell from the sky.
• Huang Xiao caught Brother Peng and tried to give him true qi, but the Roc’s life was slipping away and Huang Xiao could not treat his injuries.

After Jin Yi killed the Golden-Winged Roc, Huang Xiao promised to care for the orphaned fledgling and challenged Jin Yi to avenge its parents. Their opening exchanges revealed that Huang Xiao could match the Taixuan Sect elder, leaving Jin Yi determined to kill him.

• The dying Golden-Winged Roc entrusted his fledgling to Huang Xiao, who promised to take care of it.
• Hong Yi and Dugu Sheng led the fledgling away, and Hong Yi explained that Dugu Sheng had been injured trying to save the Roc family.
• Huang Xiao confronted Jin Yi and attacked him, provoking a reaction when he mentioned Cao Wuxin, whose death Jin Yi had investigated.
• Huang Xiao and Jin Yi exchanged powerful attacks, but Huang Xiao blocked Jin Yi’s techniques and forced him to retreat.
• Jin Yi realized Huang Xiao’s strength exceeded his expectations and decided that he had to kill him before he grew stronger.

Hong Yi intercepted Dalzha to stop him from joining Jin Yi against Huang Xiao and challenged the Esoteric Sect elder with the Dragon-Capturing Divine Palm. When Hong Yi revealed follow-up palms beyond the eighteenth, Dalzha became wary and threatened to kill him.

• Dalzha mocked Jin Yi and charged toward Huang Xiao, but Hong Yi stepped in and challenged him to a fight.
• Hong Yi and Dalzha exchanged palm strikes, and Dalzha was surprised by Hong Yi’s strength.
• Dalzha used the Wild Elephant Esoteric Sect Divine Skill to counter Hong Yi’s Dragon-Capturing Divine Palm and dispersed his eighteenth palm.
• Hong Yi unleashed a nineteenth palm that forced Dalzha to dodge, then struck with a twentieth palm that made Dalzha step back.
• Dalzha recognized Hong Yi’s palm technique as a threat and said he could no longer let him live.

Hong Yi and Dalzha continued their escalating palm battle while Dugu Sheng kept the Jianghu fighters away from the cliff cave. Huang Xiao defeated Jin Yi in a clash of internal power, but Jin Yi wrongly concluded that Huang Xiao had received an Empowerment Method and could never advance further.

• Dalzha unleashed the seventh layer of the Wild Elephant Esoteric Sect Divine Skill and attacked Hong Yi, who answered with his Twenty-First Palm.
• Hong Yi and Dalzha exchanged increasingly powerful palms, while Dugu Sheng realized Hong Yi had developed the Twenty-Third Palm.
• Several Jianghu fighters tried to reach the cliff cave, but Dugu Sheng drove them back and killed those who tried to pass him with sword qi.
• Huang Xiao struck Jin Yi back in a contest of internal power, leaving Jin Yi astonished by his cultivation.
• Jin Yi accused Ran Chou of using the Empowerment Method to raise Huang Xiao's strength and concluded that Huang Xiao could no longer make further progress.

Huang Xiao confronted Jin Yi and revealed control of the Heavenly Demon Skill’s eighth stage, while Hong Yi fought Dalzha as both battles escalated. Jin Yi fled toward the cliff cave with Huang Xiao in pursuit, and Hong Yi and Dalzha ended their clash injured and evenly matched.

• Jin Yi challenged Huang Xiao, and the Jianghu martial artists learned that Huang Xiao was the Heavenly Demon Sect Master.
• Huang Xiao concealed his aura and demonstrated the eighth stage of the Heavenly Demon Skill, alarming Jin Yi.
• Huang Xiao struck Jin Yi, who sacrificed the strength in his arms to escape the blow and then fled toward the cliff cave with Huang Xiao chasing him.
• Dalzha tried to pursue Jin Yi toward the cave, but Hong Yi blocked him, prompting Dalzha to unleash the eighth level of the Wild Elephant Esoteric Sect Divine Skill.
• Hong Yi countered with his twenty-fifth palm, and the clash left both him and Dalzha bleeding and injured.

Hong Yi fought Dalzha and revealed a powerful twenty-sixth palm, severely injuring them both before Dalzha withdrew with his lamas. As the remaining Jianghu fighters kept their hopes on the Seven-Spirit Disc, Huang Xiao pursued Jin Yi toward the cliff-top cave.

• Hong Yi and Dalzha exchanged attacks, and Hong Yi claimed he had developed a twenty-sixth palm after matching Dalzha's eighth-level technique.
• Hong Yi's twenty-sixth palm overwhelmed Dalzha's Palm Force and damaged his meridians, but Dalzha's deeper internal power dissolved much of Hong Yi's attack.
• Both fighters ended the exchange bloodied, and Dalzha decided to leave rather than risk a fight for the Seven-Spirit Disc while injured.
• Dalzha ordered his lamas to withdraw, prompting some Jianghu people to leave while others stayed to pursue the treasure.
• Dugu Sheng checked on Hong Yi, and they watched Huang Xiao close in on the fleeing Jin Yi near the cave at the top of the cliff.

Huang Xiao pursued Jin Yi into a cave, where they discovered that Gui Jiu had found the Seven-Spirit Disc. Huang Xiao learned that the disc was connected to the Seven Spirit Blades and the hidden treasure they could reveal, while Gui Jiu began to suspect Huang Xiao was someone significant.

• Hong Yi and Dugu Sheng accepted Huang Xiao's position as Heavenly Demon Sect Master and waited below while he pursued Jin Yi.
• Jin Yi rushed into the cave searching for the Seven-Spirit Disc, and Huang Xiao followed him inside.
• Gui Jiu emerged carrying the Seven-Spirit Disc, and Jin Yi blocked his escape.
• Huang Xiao recognized the disc from his earlier stay in the cave and connected its seven depressions to the Seven Spirit Blades.
• Jin Yi told Huang Xiao that placing all seven Spirit Blades on the disc could reveal a hidden treasure or martial arts manual.
• Gui Jiu noticed that Jin Yi feared Huang Xiao and wondered who the young man really was.

Huang Xiao confronted Gui Jiu over the Seven Spirit Disc and proved his strength had grown enough to challenge him directly. Their battle left Gui Jiu shocked by Huang Xiao’s power and resistance to his vitality-draining art, while Huang Xiao grew more experienced and gained the upper hand.

• Gui Jiu recognized Huang Xiao and mocked his claim that he could challenge him, while Huang Xiao demanded the Seven Spirit Disc and threatened to join Jin Yi against him.
• Jin Yi attacked Gui Jiu, and Huang Xiao joined the fight with a palm strike that matched Gui Jiu’s force and forced him to retreat.
• Huang Xiao pressed the attack with the Heavenly Demon Subduing Tiger Fist, and Gui Jiu countered with the White Bone Ghost Claw.
• Gui Jiu’s claw force invaded Huang Xiao’s meridians and tried to drain his vitality, but Huang Xiao’s Everlasting Spring Ageless True Qi neutralized it.
• After exchanging more than a dozen moves, Gui Jiu withdrew in disbelief as Huang Xiao continued to grow more confident and gain the upper hand.

Huang Xiao and Jin Yi fought Gui Jiu over the Seven-Spirit Disc, each maneuvering to avoid bearing the cost of the battle. Gui Jiu eventually threw the disc to Huang Xiao, but Jin Yi attacked him from behind, and the chapter ended with Gui Jiu and Jin Yi blocking the exit and eyeing the disc.

• Huang Xiao refused to help Jin Yi until Jin Yi fought Gui Jiu, then joined the battle while initially holding back as Gui Jiu wounded Jin Yi.
• Huang Xiao attacked Gui Jiu, and Jin Yi joined him; the two pressed Gui Jiu until he struck Jin Yi and was injured by Huang Xiao.
• Gui Jiu threw the Seven-Spirit Disc to Huang Xiao to create a chance to retreat.
• Jin Yi attacked Huang Xiao from behind, but Huang Xiao blocked the strike and was forced back, bleeding.
• Gui Jiu and Jin Yi exchanged a glance and positioned themselves to block the exit, focusing on the Seven-Spirit Disc in Huang Xiao's hand.

Huang Xiao refused to surrender the Seven-Spirit Disc and challenged Jin Yi and Gui Jiu to take it from him. After using their negotiations to recover from their injuries, he prepared to face their combined attack.

• Gui Jiu and Jin Yi demanded that Huang Xiao hand over the Seven-Spirit Disc, but he claimed it had belonged to him since he discovered it five years earlier.
• Huang Xiao said he wanted an exchange of equal value and asked Jin Yi for the Taixuan Mystical Art; Jin Yi erupted when he realized Huang Xiao was demanding the Taixuan Sect's supreme art.
• Gui Jiu and Jin Yi used the discussion to calm their turbulent true qi, while Huang Xiao also recovered from his injuries.
• Huang Xiao revealed that he knew they had been healing and said his recovery was better than theirs, especially Jin Yi's.
• Huang Xiao refused to hand over the Seven-Spirit Disc and challenged Jin Yi and Gui Jiu to take it from him.

Huang Xiao defeated Gui Jiu and battled Jin Yi, who used a forbidden art to temporarily boost his strength. After Jin Yi’s feigned retreat and sudden counterattack sent them crashing apart, someone stole the Seven-Spirit Disc from Huang Xiao’s back.

• Huang Xiao struck Gui Jiu in the chest, breaking his ribs and leaving him unable to fight.
• Huang Xiao knocked Jin Yi away, but Jin Yi activated a forbidden art and greatly increased his strength.
• Huang Xiao evaded Jin Yi’s attacks with the Lingbo Ethereal Steps while waiting for the forbidden art to weaken.
• Jin Yi pretended to flee, then turned back with a sudden attack that hurled both fighters into the cave walls.
• As Huang Xiao braced himself against the wall, an unknown figure rushed in and snatched the Seven-Spirit Disc from his back.

Gui Jiu escaped with Huang Xiao’s Seven-Spirit Disc after outmaneuvering him and Jin Yi, while Huang Xiao killed Jin Yi during their fall from the cliff. After recovering from his injuries, Huang Xiao mourned the dead Golden-Winged Roc and its mate, and Hong Yi asked how he had known them.

• Gui Jiu revealed that he had feigned weakness, seized the Seven-Spirit Disc, and escaped from the cave.
• Huang Xiao stopped Jin Yi from pursuing Gui Jiu, kicked him off the cliff, and used Jin Yi’s body to slow his own fall.
• Dugu Sheng and Hong Yi saw Gui Jiu escape, then watched Huang Xiao land injured as Jin Yi died on impact.
• Dugu Sheng warned the Jianghu practitioners to leave, and they withdrew rather than risk angering Huang Xiao.
• Huang Xiao stabilized his injuries and mourned Brother Peng and his mate beside their grieving young bird.
• Hong Yi asked Huang Xiao how he had known the Golden-Winged Roc.

Huang Xiao buried Brother Peng and his mate with Hong Yi and Dugu Sheng, then agreed that Dugu Sheng would raise their young eagle. Around the campfire, Huang Xiao reunited with his friends and explained how he obtained the Heavenly Demon Canon and became the Heavenly Demon Sect Master, leaving them amazed by his five years of experiences.

• Huang Xiao, Hong Yi, and Dugu Sheng carried Brother Peng and his mate away and buried them in a hidden grave; Dugu Sheng took the young eagle with him.
• A group of Jianghu seekers searched the cliff and cave for the Golden-Winged Roc's remains, found nothing, and fought with other treasure hunters.
• Dugu Sheng fed the young eagle, and Huang Xiao asked him to care for it as family; Dugu Sheng agreed.
• Hong Yi and Dugu Sheng asked Huang Xiao about his disappearance, his connection to Ling Tianya, and his rise to become Heavenly Demon Sect Master.
• Huang Xiao explained how a series of twists led him to discover that the Fierce Tiger Fist manual was the Heavenly Demon Canon, astonishing Hong Yi and Dugu Sheng.