Chapter Summaries

Huang Xiao sensed that his Identity Token was drawn toward something, but chose to stay hidden rather than pursue it. He overheard Chao Jue trying to persuade Lou Feishang to help kill him and join forces against Pang Yi.

• Huang Xiao sensed a distant pull from his changed Identity Token and suspected it was connected to the Longevity Pill Manual, but decided not to investigate yet.
• Huang Xiao spent the night concealed as Jianghu people passed without noticing him.
• Huang Xiao recognized Chao Jue and overheard him tell Lou Feishang that they should kill the stronger Huang Xiao before he threatened their positions.
• Chao Jue revealed that he knew Lou Feishang had concealed some of his strength and offered to support him against Pang Yi in the contest for the Hall Master's Seat.
• Lou Feishang questioned what help Chao Jue could offer as the two men came around the corner and faced Huang Xiao.

Lou Feishang and Chao Jue agreed to join forces against Huang Xiao, who had secretly overheard their plans while hidden by a formation. After Lou Feishang discovered him, Huang Xiao faced the two men and challenged them, and they drew their sabers to fight.

• Lou Feishang agreed to help Chao Jue deal with Huang Xiao but questioned whether Huang Xiao had ties to the Heavenly Demon Hall.
• Lou Feishang and Chao Jue decided to plan carefully and attack Huang Xiao together.
• Huang Xiao, hidden by a formation, realized Chao Jue’s hostility could help him gain a place in the Heavenly Demon Hall.
• Lou Feishang sensed the formation, and Huang Xiao revealed himself after Lou Feishang called him out.
• Huang Xiao refused Chao Jue’s offer to surrender and tried to tempt Lou Feishang into joining him instead.
• Lou Feishang reaffirmed his alliance with Chao Jue and drew his saber, prompting Chao Jue to draw his as well.

Huang Xiao fought Chao Jue and Lou Feishang, using the fourth form of the Heavenly Demon Demon Saber Techniques to overpower Chao Jue and withstand Lou Feishang. The battle continued as Huang Xiao easily blocked Lou Feishang’s cunning attacks, leaving him baffled.

• Huang Xiao drew the Minghong Saber and charged Chao Jue while sending a streak of Saber Force toward Lou Feishang.
• Chao Jue clashed with Huang Xiao using the third form, but Huang Xiao suppressed him until Lou Feishang intervened and forced Huang Xiao back.
• Lou Feishang urged Chao Jue to use the fourth form and finish the fight quickly before their allies arrived.
• Huang Xiao matched their fourth-form attack, shattered Chao Jue’s Saber Force, and injured his hand before turning to face Lou Feishang.
• Lou Feishang unleashed six cunning strikes with the Ten Thousand Demons Demon Saber, but Huang Xiao blocked them all and left him baffled.

Huang Xiao overpowered Chao Jue and Lou Feishang, revealing ninth-stage Heavenly Demon Skill and leaving both men terrified. Lou Feishang then warned Huang Xiao that Pang Yi had cultivated the God-Burying Demonic Art to the ninth stage.

• Lou Feishang struggled against Huang Xiao’s counters and accused Chao Jue of hiding how powerful Huang Xiao was.
• Chao Jue unleashed his refined true qi and attacked Huang Xiao, but Huang Xiao defeated him in a clash and sent him flying, bleeding.
• Lou Feishang followed up, but Huang Xiao outmaneuvered and overpowered him, then struck him with a punch.
• Lou Feishang recognized Huang Xiao’s internal power as ninth-stage and Chao Jue began to fear what Huang Xiao’s strength meant.
• Huang Xiao approached the defeated pair and said he would help them measure themselves against Pang Yi.
• Lou Feishang warned Huang Xiao that Pang Yi had already cultivated the God-Burying Demonic Art to the ninth stage.

Huang Xiao confronted Lou Feishang and Chao Jue, learned that Pang Yi had reached the ninth stage and begun refining his true qi, and demanded the Demon Refining Formula in exchange for their lives. Chao Jue urged Lou Feishang to cooperate so they could survive, leaving their answer unresolved.

• Chao Jue was shocked to hear that Pang Yi had broken through, and Lou Feishang explained that Pang Yi had reached the ninth stage and begun refining his true qi.
• Huang Xiao weighed Lou Feishang's claims about Pang Yi's strength and concluded he needed to improve his own power before facing him.
• Huang Xiao demanded the Demon Refining Formula in exchange for sparing Lou Feishang and Chao Jue.
• Lou Feishang refused to trust Huang Xiao's promise, while Huang Xiao threatened to kill them if they would not comply.
• Chao Jue asked whether Huang Xiao would truly spare them and then urged Lou Feishang to give up the formula so they could stay alive.

Huang Xiao escaped when members of the Heavenly Demon Hall and the Ten Thousand Demons Hall arrived, leaving Lou Feishang and Chao Jue to reconsider their plans. They decided to join forces and target Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli, while leaving the Longevity Pill Manual for another opportunity.

• Huang Xiao demanded that Chao Jue and Lou Feishang transmit their cultivation method separately, but fled when voices approached.
• Chao Jue ordered the gathered experts to pursue Huang Xiao, while Lou Feishang said they had already disgraced themselves enough.
• Chao Jue asked whether Lou Feishang would still challenge Pang Yi, and Lou Feishang admitted he could not contend with him.
• Chao Jue proposed pursuing the Longevity Pill Manual, but Lou Feishang warned that they should not split up and should judge their chances as events unfolded.
• Lou Feishang named Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli as assassination targets, and Chao Jue suggested adding Feng Xiaofeng if they encountered him.

Lou Feishang and Chao Jue planned to ambush Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli during their contest, while Huang Xiao fled their gathered forces and then encountered Jia Kong and Yu Du. Jia Kong confronted Huang Xiao over Qi Yi’s death, and their fight was about to begin.

• Lou Feishang told Chao Jue that Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli were together and planned to attack them after their contest weakened them.
• Huang Xiao escaped when Lou Feishang and Chao Jue’s reinforcements arrived, and he decided to seek the remaining levels of the Heavenly Demon Skill instead of risking the Demon Refining Formula.
• Huang Xiao encountered Jia Kong and Yu Du, who discussed Huang Xiao’s killing of Qi Yi.
• Jia Kong confronted Huang Xiao, and Huang Xiao mocked him for serving the Heavenly Sword Sect.
• Yu Du said he would not interfere, while Huang Xiao challenged Jia Kong’s certainty that he would die.

Huang Xiao fought Jia Kong to test his strength, meeting the Heaven-Splitting Palm without drawing his saber. Jia Kong began using his supreme technique, and the chapter ended as their strongest attacks collided.

• Jia Kong attacked Huang Xiao with palm strikes, while Huang Xiao dodged and countered with his bare hands.
• Huang Xiao charged into Jia Kong's hundreds of palm shadows and shattered them with two blasts of palm force.
• Huang Xiao and Jia Kong exchanged a fist-and-palm strike, each retreating five steps, and Yu Du was surprised that Huang Xiao remained uninjured.
• Jia Kong prepared the Heaven-Splitting Palm by gathering power in his fists before opening his palms to strike.
• Huang Xiao charged and unleashed the Heavenly Demon Subduing Tiger Fist, colliding head-on with Jia Kong's palm force and tearing up the surrounding ground.

Huang Xiao and Jia Kong fought fiercely, each using powerful techniques and revealing strength that surprised the other. After their clash left them both injured and staggered, Huang Xiao warned that continuing the fight could cost them during the Dragon Rankings contest, but Jia Kong asked whether he was afraid.

• Huang Xiao attacked before Jia Kong could reach full strength, and Jia Kong retaliated with the Heaven-Splitting Palm.
• Huang Xiao and Jia Kong collided with their fists and palms, damaging the ground and trading close-range attacks.
• Jia Kong pursued Huang Xiao, but Huang Xiao evaded his strikes with his lightness skill and countered with the Seven Layer Force of the Heavenly Demon Subduing Tiger Fist.
• Huang Xiao and Jia Kong exchanged supreme techniques, then both staggered backward five steps after landing.
• Jia Kong admitted he had needed nearly his full strength to kill Huang Xiao, and Huang Xiao warned that further fighting could leave them vulnerable in the Dragon Rankings contest.
• Jia Kong asked Huang Xiao whether he was afraid.

Huang Xiao faced Jia Kong and Yu Du, but Yu Du betrayed Jia Kong and revealed his ties to the Imperial Court. Jia Kong escaped, and Huang Xiao confronted Yu Du, ending with a blade at Yu Du’s neck.

• Jia Kong rejected Huang Xiao’s attempt to avoid a drawn-out fight and agreed to attack him alongside Yu Du.
• Yu Du ambushed Jia Kong, revealed he served the Imperial Court, and explained that he had once courted Jia Kong to gain the Heavenly Sword Sect’s favor.
• Yu Du urged Huang Xiao to help kill Jia Kong, but Jia Kong fled when Yu Du attacked and Huang Xiao stayed still.
• Yu Du blamed Huang Xiao for letting Jia Kong escape, but Huang Xiao refused to accept responsibility for the Imperial Court’s mission.
• Yu Du threatened Huang Xiao, who swiftly put a blade against Yu Du’s neck.

Huang Xiao forced Yu Du to reveal what he knew about the Imperial Court’s agents and the Identity Token. Yu Du explained that the token’s Formation Marks helped locate the Longevity Pill Manual, leaving Huang Xiao aware that his many marks gave him an advantage in finding it.

• Yu Du pleaded for his life, and Huang Xiao demanded to know who else was working for the Imperial Court.
• Yu Du said the Imperial Court contacted its agents separately and that he did not know the identities of the others, though several Dragon Rankings experts were likely involved.
• Huang Xiao lowered his saber and explained that he would act according to circumstances, despite the Imperial Court presenting him as one of its people.
• Huang Xiao asked Yu Du about the Identity Token, and Yu Du was surprised to sense twenty Formation Marks on it.
• Yu Du explained that the token’s Formation Marks could point their holder toward the Longevity Pill Manual, with more marks increasing the range and clarity of the sensation.

Huang Xiao learned that Formation Marks helped locate the Longevity Pill Manual, but refused Yu Du’s attempt to recruit him and took a cautious detour toward it. Meanwhile, Lou Feishang and Chao Jue advanced toward Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli, planning a surprise attack while their opponents were weakened.

• Yu Du asked Huang Xiao to help the Imperial Court find the Longevity Pill Manual, but Huang Xiao rejected him and sent him away.
• Huang Xiao realized Formation Marks were important for locating the Longevity Pill Manual and set out toward the direction indicated by his Identity Token.
• After finding no one along the direct route, Huang Xiao retreated and began circling through remote areas to avoid possible ambushes.
• Lou Feishang told Chao Jue and their forces to conceal their tracks as they approached Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli.
• Lou Feishang planned to attack the two women after their people had fought and spent some of their internal power.

Lou Feishang and Chao Jue planned to ambush Jiang Liuli and Zhangsun Youyue after the rivals weakened each other in a duel. The women fought to a bloody standstill before sounds of combat outside the valley interrupted them.

• Chao Jue and Lou Feishang advanced toward the valley, expecting the two rivals to exhaust their internal power and leave them vulnerable.
• Jiang Liuli and Zhangsun Youyue exchanged taunts and resumed their fierce sword fight, each determined to prove she was stronger.
• The women traded nearly a hundred moves, then struck each other with their left palms and both spat blood.
• Jiang Liuli and Zhangsun Youyue prepared to fight again, but sounds of combat and shouting from outside the valley drew their attention.

Jiang Liuli and Zhangsun Youyue were interrupted by Chao Jue and Lou Feishang, who led Demon Hall fighters against their forces while the two women were exhausted and injured from their match. As the enemy closed in, Lou Feishang learned that a wounded Bishui Palace fighter had escaped, but he believed his men would catch the fugitive.

• Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli heard fighting outside their valley and stopped their match to investigate.
• Chao Jue and Lou Feishang charged into the valley and attacked the women with their demonic saber arts.
• Zhangsun Youyue assigned herself to fight Lou Feishang, while Jiang Liuli agreed to face Chao Jue based on their sword styles.
• A Demon Hall fighter reported that the women’s forces had been defeated, but one gravely wounded Bishui Palace fighter had escaped.
• Lou Feishang learned that three men were pursuing the fugitive and said he hoped nothing would go wrong.

Chao Jue and Lou Feishang dismissed Jiang Liuli’s warning that more Sword Pavilion forces were nearby and attacked her and Zhangsun Youyue. Meanwhile, Huang Xiao sensed someone fleeing ahead, apparently being hunted.

• A subordinate reported that the attackers had killed eight Sword Pavilion members and seven Bishui Palace members, while suffering four deaths and three injuries in the Heavenly Demon Hall and three deaths and six injuries in the Ten Thousand Demons Hall.
• Zhangsun Youyue warned that an escapee would bring help, but Chao Jue and Lou Feishang argued that no nearby force could threaten them.
• Jiang Liuli claimed that the Sword Pavilion had anticipated the attack, and Zhangsun Youyue pretended that Jiang Liuli had arranged extra forces for their contest.
• Lou Feishang suspected the Heavenly Sword Sect might be coming but decided to attack the two women before reinforcements arrived.
• Jiang Liuli called for an attack, and all four women moved to fight.
• Huang Xiao sensed someone approaching and realized that the person seemed to be hunted.

Huang Xiao learned from a dying Bishui Palace expert that Zhangsun Youyue was in mortal danger after Chao Jue and Lou Feishang ambushed her, so he set off for the valley to help her. Before leaving, he killed the three pursuers and disguised his saber and clothing.

• Huang Xiao caught a mortally wounded Bishui Palace expert, who told him that Chao Jue and Lou Feishang had ambushed Zhangsun Youyue in the valley and urged him to send help.
• The Bishui Palace expert died, and the three pursuers recognized Huang Xiao before turning to leave.
• Huang Xiao used the Fifth Form of the Heavenly Demon Demon Saber Techniques to kill the three men and took their Identity Tokens.
• Huang Xiao decided to go straight to Zhangsun Youyue rather than search for Bishui Palace reinforcements, and kept the dying man's token for her.
• Huang Xiao crushed the Minghong Saber’s scabbard, replaced it with one taken from a pursuer, and changed into the clothes of a Ten Thousand Demons Hall man.

Huang Xiao disguised himself as a Ten Thousand Demons Hall fighter and tricked fifteen men into leaving the valley, hoping to rescue Zhangsun Youyue. He reached Lou Feishang and Chao Jue, but Lou Feishang exposed him, leaving Huang Xiao facing the two captors with little time before the others returned.

• Huang Xiao disguised himself as a dead Ten Thousand Demons Hall fighter and invented a report that Feng Xiaofeng was approaching with ten men.
• A guard ordered fifteen men to leave the valley to confront the supposed threat, while three guarded the entrance and nine gravely wounded men remained behind.
• Huang Xiao entered the valley and saw Chao Jue and Lou Feishang overpowering Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli, whose acupoints had been sealed.
• Huang Xiao claimed Feng Xiaofeng had brought reinforcements, but Lou Feishang grew suspicious and attacked him.
• Chao Jue recognized Huang Xiao by his Imitation Saber, and Lou Feishang explained that Huang Xiao’s unusually pure aura had revealed his disguise.

Huang Xiao confronted Lou Feishang and Chao Jue after infiltrating their valley to rescue Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli. When he attacked, Lou Feishang fled, and Chao Jue escaped with the two women’s Tokens.

• Huang Xiao revealed himself to Lou Feishang and Chao Jue, who believed their men outside gave them the advantage.
• Three guards entered and reported that the others had gone to intercept enemy reinforcements, leaving only them to assist the two young masters.
• Huang Xiao dismissed Chao Jue’s threat to kill Jiang Liuli and charged at him and Lou Feishang.
• Lou Feishang abandoned Zhangsun Youyue and fled, while Huang Xiao’s Saber Force forced Chao Jue to retreat instead of killing Jiang Liuli.
• Chao Jue snatched the Tokens from Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli before fleeing through the valley entrance with the three guards.

Huang Xiao saved Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli after Chao Jue stole their Identity Tokens by using two of his own, and the women survived the three-breath deadline. After freeing them, he faced their teasing and disagreement over Zhangsun Youyue calling him senior brother, while Jiang Liuli wondered whether she had feelings for him.

• Chao Jue stole Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli's Identity Tokens and escaped, leaving them close to death when the three breaths ran out.
• Huang Xiao threw two of his own Identity Tokens toward the women and used his force to send them through slits in their dresses, allowing both to survive.
• Huang Xiao checked that the women were safe, then unsealed their acupoints and helped them sit despite their serious injuries.
• Zhangsun Youyue thanked Huang Xiao and called him senior brother, while Jiang Liuli objected that he was not Li Chaoxun.
• Jiang Liuli wondered whether Zhangsun Youyue had feelings for Huang Xiao and recalled that Zhangsun Youyue's confinement in the Imperial City had been connected to him.

Huang Xiao rescued the injured Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli from the mountain valley and carried them to a secluded spot to treat them. He began healing both at once, despite the difficulty of controlling their opposing cold and hot true qi.

• Jiang Liuli thanked Huang Xiao for saving her, while Zhangsun Youyue insisted that his help deserved repayment.
• Zhangsun Youyue and Jiang Liuli lost consciousness as their injuries and unstable true qi overwhelmed them.
• Huang Xiao carried both women out of the valley and escaped before their enemies could regroup.
• Huang Xiao found shelter among boulders by a mountain stream and set up an Illusion Formation to conceal them.
• Huang Xiao began treating both women simultaneously, carefully separating and drawing together their opposing true qi.