Chapter Summaries

After Zhao Guangyi's funeral, Huang Xiao took Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er west toward the Heavenly Demon Sect. Near an oasis in Uyghur, caravan guards warned them that venomous creatures had appeared around Brown Stone Mountain, and Huang Xiao decided to investigate.

• Huang Xiao told Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er he planned to leave Kaifeng, and they arranged to travel with him three days after Zhao Guangyi's burial.
• After Zhao Guangyi's funeral, Huang Xiao set out with the two women in a carriage toward the Heavenly Demon Sect.
• Huang Xiao drove the carriage into Uyghur territory and pointed out a distant oasis where they could rest.
• Dozens of caravan guards warned Huang Xiao that venomous creatures around Brown Stone Mountain had poisoned members of their caravan.
• Huang Xiao wondered what had caused the creatures to appear and decided to inspect the oasis.

Huang Xiao and Zhao Xin'er and Zhao Yunhui reached the oasis at Brown Stone Mountain and found travelers suffering from venomous bites. After saving a man from a snake, Huang Xiao led the two women deeper into the oasis to investigate the sudden infestation.

• Huang Xiao arrived at the oasis and saw caravan travelers poisoned by snakes, centipedes, and scorpions.
• A middle-aged man explained that venomous creatures had grown more numerous over the past two years, making the oasis unsafe for travelers.
• Huang Xiao caught and killed a venomous snake before it could bite the middle-aged man, and noted that it was strange to find an active snake in winter.
• Huang Xiao, Zhao Xin'er, and Zhao Yunhui decided to search the oasis for clues and continued toward its more dangerous interior.

Huang Xiao, Zhao Yunhui, and Zhao Xin'er discovered that venomous creatures across Brown Stone Mountain formed a vast Five Poisons Formation. Halfway up, they encountered two men discussing Young Master Xu’s antidotes and the people below, who challenged the trio.

• Huang Xiao recognized the gathered venomous creatures as evidence that someone skilled in poisons had arranged them.
• Huang Xiao explained the Five Poisons Formation to Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er and concluded that its keeper was likely somewhere on the mountain.
• The three avoided the venomous creatures and used their lightness skills to climb Brown Stone Mountain.
• Halfway up the mountain, the trio overheard two men discussing Young Master Xu’s orders to deliver antidotes to the people below.
• The two men rounded a bend, saw Huang Xiao and the women, and demanded to know who they were.

Huang Xiao and his companions met the Five Poisons True Lord’s people while exploring the mountain and learned that the young True Lord had a disciple named Wu Xu. After Wu Xu agreed to take them to his master despite his seclusion, they set out to meet him.

• Huang Xiao asked two men about the Five Poisons True Lord, and one of them agreed to escort him and the two women after sending his brother to deliver antidotes.
• The escort explained that the True Lord was young, highly skilled in martial arts and poison, and served by his only personal disciple, Wu Xu.
• Huang Xiao, Zhao Xin'er, and Zhao Yunhui followed the man to a clearing of thatched cottages, where he announced their visit to the young master.
• A boy emerged and identified himself as the True Lord’s disciple, Wu Xu, saying his master was in seclusion but agreeing to take the visitors to him.

Huang Xiao and Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er followed Wu Xu up Brown Stone Mountain to meet the Five Poisons True Lord. When the True Lord emerged from his cave, he recognized Huang Xiao as his martial uncle, leaving the others astonished.

• Wu Xu led Huang Xiao, Zhao Yunhui, and Zhao Xin'er up the mountain while boasting about his master's martial arts and poison skills.
• Huang Xiao noticed Wu Xu's footwork resembled a form from Poison God Valley but learned no further clues about his master from their conversation.
• Wu Xu brought the three visitors to a cave on a sheer cliff and went inside to ask his master's permission.
• The Five Poisons True Lord emerged with Wu Xu, saw Huang Xiao, and uncertainly addressed him as his martial uncle.

Huang Xiao reunited with Sun Bang, who had settled on Brown Stone Mountain after fleeing Poison God Valley. After explaining the upheavals in the Jianghu and inviting him to join Medicine King Hall, Huang Xiao learned that Sun Bang wanted to stay on the mountain.

• Sun Bang explained that he had fled to the Western Regions after losing contact with Poison God Valley, rescued people in the desert, and settled on Brown Stone Mountain with his disciple Wu Xu.
• Huang Xiao introduced Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er as princesses, and Sun Bang welcomed them as his Martial Uncle's wives.
• Huang Xiao told Sun Bang that the Patriarch had taken charge of Medicine King Hall and that its former Poison God Valley and Medicine God Valley disciples had joined it.
• Huang Xiao recounted recent events in the Jianghu, including Mu Yi's death at Wan Qingteng's hands, and vowed to avenge Mu Yi.
• Sun Bang said he wanted to remain on Brown Stone Mountain, and Huang Xiao asked whether he meant to stay apart from Medicine King Hall or establish a separate lineage.

Huang Xiao urged Sun Bang to join Medicine King Hall, but Sun Bang chose to remain on Brown Stone Mountain and study poisonous creatures. Huang Xiao accepted his decision and agreed to hear about Sun Bang’s developing cultivation method so he could offer guidance.

• Huang Xiao asked Sun Bang why he had chosen to remain on Brown Stone Mountain instead of joining Medicine King Hall.
• Sun Bang explained that he preferred studying poisons alone and felt awkward facing Xu Patriarch and Li Patriarch because of their past rivalry.
• Huang Xiao reassured Sun Bang that the Patriarchs held no grudge and praised his decision to abandon the Power-Devouring Poison Force.
• Sun Bang said he would remain on the mountain, uphold Medicine King Hall’s Sect Rules, and continue studying poisonous creatures.
• Sun Bang described his efforts to create a cultivation method based on poisonous creatures’ movements, and Huang Xiao agreed to hear about it and offer guidance.

Sun Bang demonstrated his Snake Form Skill to Huang Xiao, who praised its ability to grind a rock to dust through coiling force alone and offered advice on improving it. Huang Xiao promised to teach Sun Bang the Lingbo Ethereal Steps, and Sun Bang accepted the guidance with gratitude.

• Sun Bang told Huang Xiao that he had developed moves for snakes and poisonous toads, then invited Huang Xiao and both martial aunties outside to watch a demonstration.
• Sun Bang performed his Snake Form Skill, using twisting hand and body movements to draw in a rock and grind it into dust without internal power.
• Huang Xiao praised the skill’s constricting force and advised Sun Bang to improve its agility, variation, and coordination with his footwork.
• Sun Bang explained that he had been unable to combine the moves with internal power and that his custom footwork remained imperfect.
• Huang Xiao offered to teach Sun Bang the Lingbo Ethereal Steps, and Sun Bang knelt in gratitude before Huang Xiao lifted him back to his feet.
• Huang Xiao reminded Sun Bang to uphold the reputations of Poison God Valley and Medicine King Hall, and Sun Bang promised to honor his charge.

Sun Bang demonstrated his bizarre Poison Toad Skill to Huang Xiao and the others, revealing that its strange crouching posture let him gather and unleash overwhelming internal power. Huang Xiao praised the technique’s sophistication, while Wu Xu remained reluctant to learn it.

• Sun Bang warned Huang Xiao that the Poison Toad Skill’s movements looked undignified, then crouched like a toad and croaked as he gathered strength.
• Huang Xiao noticed Sun Bang’s aura growing, and Zhao Yunhui recognized that the strange stance was building power effectively.
• Sun Bang launched himself at a cliff and shattered its face with a palm strike before retreating, exhausted.
• Wu Xu refused to learn the skill, but Zhao Xin'er explained its value and praised its way of storing strength before striking.
• Huang Xiao praised Sun Bang’s use of internal power and said the Poison Toad Skill’s tremendous force made up for its lack of varied moves.

Huang Xiao taught Sun Bang the Lingbo Ethereal Steps and part of the Medicine King Scripture to strengthen his poison arts. Wu Xu’s praise of the Heavenly Demon Sect stirred Huang Xiao’s resolve to restore it, while Sun Bang vowed to create his own cultivation method.

• Huang Xiao pointed out that Sun Bang’s Poison Toad Skill could be disrupted before he finished gathering strength, and said deeper cultivation could help protect him.
• Huang Xiao offered Sun Bang passages from the Medicine King Scripture and taught him those along with the Lingbo Ethereal Steps.
• After two hours, Sun Bang said he had memorized the teachings, and Huang Xiao advised him to study formations and learn from the scripture.
• Wu Xu praised the Heavenly Demon Sect’s former might, prompting Huang Xiao to declare that it would rise again and challenge Wu Longfeng.
• Sun Bang vowed to perfect the Five Poisons Moves and create his own scripture, while Wu Xu promised to help him improve it someday.

Huang Xiao and his companions left Brown Stone Mountain and continued toward the Heavenly Demon Sect, discussing the Seven Spirit Blades and the need to buy time against powerful foes. Their journey was interrupted when Huang Xiao spotted three people staggering toward the carriage.

• Wu Xu named Sun Bang’s planned scripture the Five Poisons True Scripture and declared that he would take the title Five Poisons True Person.
• Huang Xiao declined Sun Bang’s offer to stay and left Brown Stone Mountain with Zhao Xin'er and Zhao Yunhui after seeing that the poisoned people had recovered.
• Huang Xiao drove toward the Heavenly Demon Sect while Zhao Yunhui teased him about returning to see You Lian'er.
• Huang Xiao discussed delaying the Seven Spirit Blades conflict and gaining time to grow stronger, while Zhao Yunhui warned him not to force a breakthrough to the ninth stage.
• Huang Xiao noticed three people staggering toward the carriage ahead.

Huang Xiao and the two women were caught in a Persian pursuit, and he killed one pursuer who attacked their carriage. After learning the pursuers belonged to the Black Fire Sect, Huang Xiao revealed himself as a Sect Master and decided to fight Ma Dharma King.

• Huang Xiao refused to intervene when three Persians fled from a group of pursuers, and he turned the carriage aside.
• The pursuers surrounded Huang Xiao's carriage, and one man threw a curved saber at him.
• Huang Xiao deflected the saber back at its thrower, killing him, then warned the others to move aside.
• Ma Dharma King confronted Huang Xiao, while one of the pursued men identified him as a Persian Black Fire Sect guardian.
• Huang Xiao learned that Ma Dharma King belonged to the Black Fire Sect and declared that he would make him stay forever.

Huang Xiao and the Zhao sisters fought Ma Dharma King and the Black Fire Sect experts, with the sisters using the battle to test their new swordsmanship. Huang Xiao held his own against Ma Dharma King, who was shocked by the depth of Huang Xiao’s internal power.

• Ma Dharma King mocked Huang Xiao for being a young Sect Master, while Zhao Xin'er and Zhao Yunhui declared the Black Fire Sect members their enemies.
• Huang Xiao assigned the surrounding Persians to the Zhao sisters and challenged Ma Dharma King himself.
• Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er attacked the Persians with their Yang Two Principles Swordsmanship, killing three in moments.
• The middle-aged Persian and his companions stayed by the carriage after seeing that Huang Xiao and the sisters far surpassed them.
• Ma Dharma King tried to overwhelm Huang Xiao with internal power but found its depth impossible to fathom.

Huang Xiao revealed himself as the Heavenly Demon Sect's Sect Master and offered Ma Dharma King a chance to survive ten moves against his two wives. The fight was still underway when a Persian captive claimed to be the Black Fire Sect Master's son, and Huang Xiao challenged his story.

• Huang Xiao defeated Ma Dharma King's attack without using his full strength, then identified himself as the Heavenly Demon Sect's Sect Master.
• Huang Xiao accused Ma Dharma King of daring to enter Uyghur, and Ma Dharma King realized he could not defeat him.
• Huang Xiao offered to spare Ma Dharma King if he survived ten moves against Huang Xiao's two wives, who were overpowering the Persian fighters.
• A middle-aged Persian pleaded with Huang Xiao not to spare Ma Dharma King and claimed that his father was the Black Fire Sect Master.
• Huang Xiao recognized the potential value of the captive, then accused him of lying because the Black Fire Sect was hunting him.

Huang Xiao learned that the fugitive middle-aged man was the son of the Black Fire Sect’s former Sect Master and promised to protect him in exchange for information about the sect. He then prepared to let Zhao Xin'er and Zhao Yunhui fight Ma Dharma King, whom he already intended to kill.

• The middle-aged man revealed his identity and offered to share the Black Fire Sect’s secrets if Huang Xiao protected him.
• Ma Dharma King confirmed that the man was the former Sect Master’s son, and the man explained that he had fled the current Sect Master’s purge.
• Huang Xiao promised that the Black Fire Sect could not harm the fugitive and noted that the sect’s alliance with the Esoteric Sect was a mistake.
• After Zhao Xin'er and Zhao Yunhui returned from killing the other Persians, Huang Xiao invited them to test their swordsmanship against Ma Dharma King.
• Ma Dharma King warned Huang Xiao that he might injure the two women, and Huang Xiao accepted while secretly intending to kill him regardless of the outcome.

Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er fought Ma Dharma King with their coordinated Yang Two Principles Swordsmanship, but he used Nine-Turn Heaven and Earth to redirect their attacks. As the women struggled to break through his defense, a zither note rang out.

• Ma Dharma King decided to capture one of the women as a hostage so Huang Xiao would let him survive.
• Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er attacked together, suppressing Ma Dharma King with their coordinated swordsmanship and forcing him to retreat.
• Ma Dharma King used Nine-Turn Heaven and Earth to redirect Zhao Xin'er's sword toward Zhao Yunhui, but the sisters recovered and continued their assault.
• Ma Dharma King adapted to their attacks by redirecting their sword force, leaving the women unable to land effective blows.
• Ma Dharma King claimed he could leave unharmed if the women had no other way to attack, and a zither note suddenly sounded.

You Lian'er arrived during Huang Xiao's fight with Ma Dharma King, and her zither music helped Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er kill him. Afterward, You Lian'er met the two princesses and asserted her seniority, while Zhao Xin'er challenged her as the group prepared to return to the Heavenly Demon Sect.

• You Lian'er played her zither from an approaching sedan chair, disrupting Ma Dharma King's concentration and briefly affecting Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er.
• Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er struck Ma Dharma King with their swords, killing him as the sedan chair arrived.
• You Lian'er greeted Huang Xiao and called Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er her younger sisters, while apologizing for intervening in their fight.
• Zhao Xin'er objected to You Lian'er's claim of seniority, and Zhao Yunhui identified her as the eldest young lady of the You Family.
• Huang Xiao told the group to return to the sect, and Zhao Xin'er took his arm and agreed to go.

Huang Xiao returned to the Heavenly Demon Sect with Zhao Yunhui, Zhao Xin'er, You Lian'er, and three Persians, then discussed the possibility of reclaiming Dali with Ran Chou. He revealed that the seventh Seven Spirit Blade might be connected to a closely guarded secret.

• You Lian'er joined Zhao Yunhui and Zhao Xin'er in Huang Xiao's carriage, and Huang Xiao brought Maidafa and his two companions to the Heavenly Demon Sect.
• Ran Chou welcomed Huang Xiao and the two princesses, arranged for the Persians to wash, change, and eat, and let You Lian'er escort the princesses.
• Huang Xiao asked Ran Chou for a detailed account of the Dali situation and agreed that the Heavenly Demon Sect would support the Medicine King Hall if it moved against Dali.
• Huang Xiao told Ran Chou that few people knew his secret, then asked how many of the seven Seven Spirit Blades had appeared.
• Ran Chou listed six known blades and stopped in surprise when he realized Huang Xiao's question might point to the missing seventh blade.

Huang Xiao revealed that Qingfeng had given him Demon Slayer, giving the Heavenly Demon Sect another of the Seven Spirit Blades as it prepared for conflict over Dali. Maidafa then told Huang Xiao and Ran Chou how Habibullah had killed his father, though Ran Chou questioned how the coup had succeeded.

• Huang Xiao showed Ran Chou Demon Slayer and explained that Qingfeng had given it to him on Zhongnan Mountain.
• Huang Xiao and Ran Chou agreed that the Heavenly Demon Sect could bear the price Senior Sun and the others had considered, and Ran Chou planned preparations against the Taixuan Sect.
• Maidafa arrived at the Heavenly Demon Sect and paid his respects to Huang Xiao and Ran Chou.
• Huang Xiao told Ran Chou that Maidafa was the son of the Black Fire Sect's previous Sect Master and had been hunted by the current sect.
• Maidafa said Habibullah and several Guardian Dharma Kings had ambushed and killed his father half a year earlier, and Ran Chou asked how they had overcome him.

Maidafa explained how Habibullah and Dalhe joined forces to defeat his father and revealed the Black Fire Sect’s strength, defenses, and ambitions to Huang Xiao. Huang Xiao planned to use the information against the Black Fire Sect and explained that its actions against the Thousand Demons Sect were meant to win support from other sects.

• Maidafa said Dalhe had helped Habibullah defeat his father and admitted he wanted revenge despite lacking the strength to achieve it himself.
• Huang Xiao offered Maidafa a chance at revenge by promising to attack the Black Fire Sect, and Maidafa revealed its masters, defenses, mechanisms, and formations.
• Maidafa explained that Habibullah and Dalhe had allied to pursue the Seven Spirit Blades and expand the Black Fire Sect’s influence in the Central Plains.
• Maidafa said Habibullah’s campaign against Khitan risked provoking the Thousand Demons Sect, and Huang Xiao replied that the alliance sought support from other sects.