Recaps

Chu Xisheng led West Mountain Hall in an assault on Wen Family Fort, where Chu Yunyun’s Suanni fire beast burned through the gates and Chu Xisheng’s saber intent overwhelmed the defenders. As the battle spread through the fort, Lu Luanli killed Wen Tiancai and Yin Yang, while Xiang Kui and Zhou Liangchen each defeated powerful opponents.

• Shangguan Shenhao learned that Chu Xisheng had marched with seven hundred West Mountain Hall members and ordered that Chu not leave Wen Family Fort alive.
• Chu Yunyun’s Suanni fire beast and West Mountain Hall’s barrage destroyed Wen Family Fort’s gates, despite the defenders’ attempts to douse the flames.
• Chu Xisheng ordered his fighters to storm the fort, then used his ninth-layer Yazi Saber Intent to suppress its defenders while Wei Yang and Li Shenshan attacked the walls.
• Lu Luanli appeared in the Central Archery Tower, killed Wen Tiancai with one strike, and cut down the fleeing Yin Yang from a distance.
• Xiang Kui revealed his strength and killed a Seventh-Rank opponent, while Zhou Liangchen used Sevenfold Waves of the Raging Sea to defeat two more and sensed that his power had grown.

Chu Xisheng’s West Mountain Hall conquered Wen Family Fort, while Chu Yunyun secretly killed Yue Wei and Shen Yunxiang and Lu Luanli concealed other deaths. After securing the spoils and recruiting surrendered spellcasters, Chu Xisheng ordered the gang to march on Cloud Crane Manor through the West Mountain Commandery Army.

• Yan Guo sent Shen Yunxiang and Yue Wei into the mist to reinforce Wen Family Fort, where Yue Wei discovered Chu Yunyun and she killed him with one punch.
• Chu Yunyun killed Shen Yunxiang, then crushed and burned both men’s bodies; Lu Luanli dissolved another corpse and hid the captured Magic Artifacts.
• Chu Xisheng’s saber intent scattered the three hundred cavalry charging the fort, and Liu Ruoxi led her fighters in routing them as West Mountain Hall secured the manor.
• Lu Pingyuan reported the captured grain, silver, equipment, and missing bodies, while Chu Xisheng dismissed the absent experts as fugitives and ordered three Shen Clan spellcasters executed.
• Chu Xisheng hired three surrendered spellcasters, ordered the valuables loaded and the grain secured, then commanded West Mountain Hall to march on Cloud Crane Manor through the commandery troops.
• Wei Yang volunteered to lead the vanguard against Yan Guo’s two thousand soldiers.

After destroying Wen Family Fort and routing the West Mountain Commandery Army, Chu Xisheng captured Cloud Crane Manor and forced Dan Chiling to pay a penalty and join West Mountain Hall. He then ordered his forces to march west against the bandits while demanding taxes from local magnates, as the Shangguan Clan's rear courtyard fell silent.

• The West Mountain Commandery Army fled when Yan Guo saw the destruction of Wen Family Fort, and Sikong Xin arrived with four hundred martial masters sent by Zuo Qingyun.
• Chu Xisheng led West Mountain Hall and Sikong Xin's men to seize Cloud Crane Manor without casualties, then headed toward the Dan Clan.
• Dan Chiling begged for forgiveness, punished his son and five servants, and agreed to pay Chu Xisheng 130,000 taels and accept an altar master's post after Chu Yunyun revealed the Dan Clan's hidden strength and half-demon bloodline.
• Chu Xisheng ordered Dan Chiling to send six hundred elite men and directed his forces to march west against the bandits from Nine-Blade Stronghold and White Cloud Stronghold.
• Chu Xisheng ordered Liu Ruoxi to display the Wen and Yin Clan males at the west gate and demanded taxes plus a late-payment penalty from local magnates before sunset.
• The Listening Fragrance Waterside Pavilion in the Shangguan Clan's rear courtyard fell deathly silent.

After West Mountain Hall’s victory at Wen Family Fort, Shangguan Shenhao and Long Heng considered how to counter Chu Xisheng, while Tie Kuangren celebrated the triumph and declared his intention to make Chu his successor. Chu then led a growing force through West Mountain, subdued local magnates, and turned toward the Shen Clan’s estates as White Cloud Stronghold and Nine-Blade Stronghold watched their plans fail.

• Shangguan Shenyuan reported that Wen Family Fort had fallen and several fighters, including Yue Wei and Wen Tiancai, were missing; he suspected a hidden expert had helped Chu Xisheng.
• Long Heng urged Shangguan Shenhao to target Tie Kuangren, warning that Tie might soon advance to the fourth rank, and Shangguan ordered Xi Quan recalled.
• Tie Kuangren celebrated West Mountain Hall’s victory, dismissed concerns about its growing strength, and announced that Chu Xisheng would become Deputy Banner Chief after the Canal was completed.
• Zuo Qingyun taunted his father, Zuo Tianlu, over having misjudged Chu Xisheng, then rode to West Mountain Hall while Zuo Tianlu resolved to help clear official threats from Chu’s path.
• Chu Xisheng led more than 3,700 men northwest, kept his forces disciplined as bandits fled, left Dan Chiling’s troops guarding First-Line Gorge, and marched toward the Shen Clan’s estates.
• Xia Qingtian and Meng Yunshan watched Chu’s orderly advance and realized their ambush had failed and their strongholds faced a powerful new opponent.

Chu Xisheng crushed the Shen Clan’s influence in West Mountain Town, seized wealth and supplies, and rewarded West Mountain Hall’s men, while Tie Kuangren’s victory over the Seventeen Linked Forts shook the Eastern Province. The chapter ended with Chu Xisheng learning that the West Mountain hunters still refused to submit and were considering expelling his men’s families from the mountains.

• Chu Xisheng ordered local gentry forces to storm and burn the Shen Clan’s two estates, capturing some defenders as Shen Zhou stayed away.
• The local gentry paid their taxes and tribute, and Chu Xisheng collected wealth, grain, weapons, and supplies before distributing money and Magic Artifacts to West Mountain Hall’s members.
• Chu Xisheng held a victory banquet, and Chu Yunyun recognized that the celebration had united the Hall’s seven hundred gang members.
• Lu Pingyuan reported that Tie Kuangren defeated the Seventeen Linked Forts’ fleet, captured three water strongholds, and forced Ren Daoxing and the Shen and Shangguan clans to retreat.
• Chu Xisheng learned that the West Mountain hunters would not submit and might drive his gang members’ families out of the mountains, then responded with a short laugh.

Chu Xisheng refused to wage war on the West Mountain hunters, instead ordering their families evacuated and arranging a blockade of the mountain passes to pressure them and the bandits. He then led West Mountain Hall to Ancient Market Town, where they killed Li Cang and warned merchants against aiding the bandits.

• After learning that hunter leaders had considered handing West Mountain Hall members' families to the Shen Clan, Chu Xisheng ordered Zhou Liangchen to kill those responsible and Lu Luanli to oversee the families' relocation to the Shen Clan Villa.
• Chu Xisheng ordered Dan Chiling's clan to establish checkpoints and block bandits, allowing it to collect tolls while banning caravans from bringing essential goods into West Mountain.
• Chu Xisheng learned that Li Cang was at the Azure Dragon Residence and took Li Shenshan, Wei Yang, Liu Ruoxi, and Lu Luanli to confront him.
• Wei Yang, Li Shenshan, and Liu Ruoxi cornered Li Cang while Lu Luanli disrupted his spiritual perception, and Chu Xisheng killed him with a single slash.
• Chu Xisheng warned Ancient Market Town that anyone who fenced stolen goods for the West Mountain bandits would have their entire clan exterminated.

Shen Zhou and Long Heng discussed Chu Xisheng’s effective blockade of West Mountain and considered attacking the Dan Clan’s checkpoints, while White Cloud Stronghold’s plundering drove Ji Family Village to seek West Mountain Hall’s protection. Chu Xisheng’s article brought a surge of Martial Dao Points, but when Cao Xuan asked him about the Iron Banner Gang’s crossbows, he secretly prepared to use a hand seal against him.

• Shen Zhou and Long Heng praised Chu Xisheng’s Wind-Chasing Blade article before discussing West Mountain’s supply blockade and the Dan Clan’s checkpoints.
• White Cloud Stronghold’s bandits robbed Ji Yuan’s family and other households in Ji Family Village, prompting Village Chief Ji Shan to promise to beg Chu Xisheng for protection.
• Chu Xisheng saw his Martial Dao Points climb to 52,123 after his article went on sale and considered how to earn more points.
• Cao Xuan arrived with a mysterious black-robed confidant and questioned Chu Xisheng about the Iron Banner Gang’s three Four-Armed God-Slaying Crossbows.
• Chu Xisheng denied knowing about the crossbows, and Cao Xuan secretly formed a hand seal beneath the table.

Chu Xisheng learned that Cao Xuan was pressing him to cultivate the Ninefold Refinement Ultimate Origin Purple-Gold Body while West Mountain Hall filled with suspected undercover agents. After discovering that Zuo Qingyun had been imprisoned over his father's opposition to Ten-for-One Cash, Chu Xisheng visited him and found the Hundred-Household Commander Zhang abusing him after he left.

• Cao Xuan questioned Chu Xisheng about the Iron Banner Gang's Four-Armed God-Slaying Crossbows, gave him the fourth and fifth layers of the Ninefold Refinement Ultimate Origin Purple-Gold Body, and offered wanted fugitives as a way to earn the sixth layer.
• Cao Xuan told a black-robed Special Envoy that Chu Xisheng's influence and ties to the God-Defying Banner made him important, and the envoy became interested in the West Mountain hunters.
• Chu Xisheng gave the cultivation manual to Chu Yunyun, discussed West Mountain Hall's many suspicious recruits and their funds, then learned that a Censor had imprisoned Zuo Tianlu's household over their opposition to Ten-for-One Cash.
• Chu Xisheng rushed to the Commandery Office prison and shared wine with Zuo Qingyun, who said his father had secured Chu Xisheng three hundred qing of farmland and that the family still had connections in the Capital City.
• After Chu Xisheng left, Hundred-Household Commander Zhang stamped on Zuo Qingyun's hand and threatened him, and Zuo Qingyun spat bloody foam in his face.

Chu Xisheng met Formless Divine Sect envoy Zong Lingshu, whose test suggested Chu might have the aptitude to inherit the Blood-Yazi Saber Lord's Divine-Intent Death-Touching Saber, though the result remained uncertain. After Jian Zangfeng revealed that nineteen academy infiltrators had joined Chu's West Mountain Hall, Chu hurried back to investigate the Zuo family's worsening situation, while the others resolved to examine his blood and watch him closely.

• Chu Xisheng encountered Ye Zhiqiu, Jian Zangfeng, and Zong Lingshu outside Xiushui Commandery City, where Zong explained he was searching for the Blood-Yazi Saber Lord's successor.
• Zong Lingshu tested Chu Xisheng's blood on a jade disc; its eighth rune ring flashed briefly, and Zong took another blood sample to send to the Formless Divine Sect.
• Jian Zangfeng told Chu Xisheng that nineteen spies and moles, including Lu Luanli, had joined West Mountain Hall, and explained why he had not expelled them.
• Chu Xisheng suggested the infiltrators had joined because they suspected West Mountain Hall knew something about the God-Defying Banner, then hurried toward West Mountain after Jian warned him about the Zuo family's plight.
• After Chu left, Zong Lingshu showed Ye Zhiqiu and Jian Zangfeng that the eighth and ninth rings on the jade disc still glowed faintly, prompting them to investigate Chu's bloodline and monitor him.

Chu Xisheng learned that Zuo Qingyun’s family faced danger from a powerful court official, secured the allegiance of West Mountain’s hunters, and recruited Ji Qianqian and Ji Yuan. He prepared to leave to help Zuo Qingyun while entrusting the Hall to Chu Yunyun, as Hu Kan and Hu Lai began promoting him for the Ten Divine Talented Young Blades.

• Chu Xisheng warned Wu Meiniang that the Heavenly Yamen Embroidery Guards might be plotting against Zuo Qingyun, prompting her to investigate them in the commandery city.
• Twenty-seven West Mountain villages sought West Mountain Hall’s protection, and Chu Xisheng negotiated their monthly payments, recruitment, and wartime service in exchange for security and support.
• Ji Shan introduced Ji Qianqian and Ji Yuan, and Chu Xisheng recruited them after Ji Qianqian demonstrated her extraordinary archery.
• Chu Xisheng gave Chu Yunyun responsibility for the Hall and prepared money and Ji Qianqian for a journey to help Zuo Qingyun.
• Hu Kan and Hu Lai asked their division chief to consider Chu Xisheng for the Ten Divine Talented Young Blades, and the chief began weighing the proposal.

Chu Xisheng traveled upriver with Ji Qianqian, strengthened his spiritual abilities and used supernatural cards to increase her loyalty, then reached the Corpse Mountain Sect seeking supplies. Meanwhile, Zuo Qingyun and his family were ambushed aboard an official boat, but Chu Xisheng arrived as Sikong Xin fought to rescue them.

• Chu Xisheng bought Hundun Feathers and Ji Qianqian bought a sixth-grade war bow before they traveled upriver together.
• Chu Xisheng used the Martial Dao Treasury to improve Supreme Communication with the Divine, apply two Near Ink, Blackening cards to Ji Qianqian, and raise his Wind-Thunder Martial Intent and Light-Cloud Movement.
• Chu Xisheng reached the riverbank near Ten-Thousand-Corpse Divine Shenshan and considered whether his remaining forty thousand taels would be enough for the Corpse Mountain Sect.
• Zuo Qingyun and his family were taken aboard an official boat, where Zhang Ming and red-robed martial instructors staged an attack to kill them.
• Sikong Xin tried to rescue the Zuo family but was blocked by Eunuch Zhu, until Chu Xisheng arrived and his Saber Intent gave Sikong Xin an opening to attack.

Chu Xisheng rescued the Zuo family from Zhang Ming and his allies, then left Zhang’s fate to Zuo Tianlu and Zuo Qingyun. As the group prepared to continue toward the capital, a messenger bird escaped to report what had happened.

• Chu Xisheng crossed the river alone, killed two Seventh-Rank attackers, and reflected the ship’s arrows into the red-robed martial artists.
• Chu Xisheng boarded the government ship, killed two more experts, knocked Zhang Ming unconscious, and defeated the remaining attackers with his Saber Intent.
• Chu Xisheng found Zhang Ming bound aboard the ship beside the dead Eunuch Zhu and asked Zuo Tianlu how he wished to deal with him.
• Ji Qianqian urged Chu Xisheng to kill Zhang Ming, but Chu revealed that he was also an Embroidery Guard Hundred-Household Commander and helped Zuo Tianlu plan to keep Zhang alive until they reached the capital.
• Zuo Tianlu ordered Zuo Qingyun to spare Zhang for now, while Chu Xisheng spotted a Gilt-Crowned Silver-Feather Pigeon flying toward the capital with news of the incident.

Shen Zhou and Long Heng planned to exploit Chu Xisheng’s absence to attack West Mountain, while Chu Yunyun and Lu Luanli remained at West Mountain Hall. Ten days into the voyage, Chu Xisheng learned that assassins might be tracking the Zuo family and spotted two armed warships preparing to attack before they reached the Grand Canal.

• Shen Zhou agreed to mobilize six thousand county soldiers into West Mountain with support from Long Heng, the Shangguan Clan, the Seventeen Linked Forts, and Xi Quan.
• Lu Luanli searched the Chu residence for the God-Defying Banner’s pole while Chu Yunyun continued advancing her spell cultivation.
• Chu Xisheng sparred with Ji Qianqian aboard the official ship, and Zuo Qingyun told him that Life-Reaping Tower assassins might be heading for the Grand Canal.
• Zuo Qingyun reported that Sikong Xin had sensed corpse qi following the ship and suspected Ji Qianqian was hiding her abilities; Chu Xisheng used a divine ability card on her.
• Ji Qianqian spotted two armed warships approaching with crossbows aimed at the official vessel, and Chu Xisheng realized they were about to attack.

Chu Xisheng and his allies fought off an ambush by He'an Naval Camp soldiers and assassins, while Ji Qianqian and Du Yunlai revealed their formidable strength. After Chong Zhen turned on his own men to cover up the attack, fireworks filled Chu Xisheng’s vision, signaling the appearance of the Heavenly Secret Martial Manual.

• Ji Qianqian went ashore to provide cover as Zuo Tianlu reinforced the ship with wood-element spells and strengthened Chu Xisheng and Sikong Xin.
• The two warships attacked, but Chu Xisheng and the Heluo Fish killed Meteor Twin Spears Qiong Hanbin, while Ji Qianqian shot down another assassin and several soldiers from shore.
• Chu Xisheng and the Heluo Fish fought the remaining attackers until Chong Zhen arrived, but Du Yunlai intercepted him with mist and swordplay.
• Ji Qianqian killed a naval Thousand-Household Commander and a sixth-rank Gold Medal Assassin in the woods, then dissolved their bodies.
• Chong Zhen killed two of his own commanders to erase evidence of the ambush, while Chu Xisheng had the Heluo Fish kill another assassin.
• Fireworks filled Chu Xisheng’s vision, and he realized the Heavenly Secret Martial Manual had appeared.

After escorting the Zuo family through a river battle, Chu Xisheng fed his costly Heluo Fish corpse and learned that He and Luo Province’s young saber fighters were eager to challenge him after his ranking in the latest Heavenly Secret Martial Manual. The chapter left several capital-region swordsmen and saber fighters anticipating Chu Xisheng’s arrival, while Du Yunlai warned him to be wary of Ji Qianqian.

• Chu Xisheng fed the Heluo Fish baleful corpse Primordial God Blood and explained why he had chosen the expensive water-bound corpse to protect the Zuo family and support the Iron Banner Gang.
• Zuo Tianlu thanked Du Yunlai and the others for their help, while Du Yunlai warned that the next danger would come in about ten days from the Court of Judicial Review Vice Minister.
• The Zuo family steward failed to find the latest Heavenly Secret Martial Manual, and Chu Xisheng checked his Martial Dao Points, which had risen to 622321.
• Du Yunlai privately warned Chu Xisheng that two sixth-grade cultivators had approached Ji Qianqian during the battle before disappearing, and Chu Xisheng secretly used a Near Ink, Blackening Supernatural Power Card on her.
• In Capital City, Hu Kan and Hu Lai worried that Chu Xisheng’s arrival would provoke challenges from young saber fighters after the manual ranked him among the Ten Divine Talented Young Blades.
• Mad Saber Wang Ming, Si Huangquan, and Li Xiuchang learned Chu Xisheng was coming to the capital, and Wang Ming and Li Xiuchang grew eager to test his saber.

Wang Chaoyang questioned Heavenly Secret Hall’s decision to name Chu Xisheng among the Ten Divine Talented Young Blades, then sent Xie Zhenqing to investigate the coming battle at West Mountain. As the Shen Clan’s forces attacked Ghost-Crying Gorge and Zheng Family Village, Chu Yunyun took command of West Mountain Hall and ordered its forces to concentrate on Zheng Family Village.

• Wang Chaoyang showed Xie Zhenqing the latest Heavenly Secret Martial Manual and criticized its selection of Chu Xisheng for the Ten Divine Talented Young Blades.
• Wang Chaoyang ordered Xie Zhenqing to observe the fighting at West Mountain and identify its mysterious fifth-grade expert.
• Dan Chiling prepared the Dan Clan’s soldiers to defend Ghost-Crying Gorge against five thousand bandits, while Dan Ze read their surrender demand bearing the Shen Clan’s seal.
• West Mountain Hall’s leaders debated whether to reinforce Ghost-Crying Gorge or Zheng Family Village after receiving reports of attacks on both.
• Chu Yunyun ordered West Mountain Hall’s forces and seven thousand bows and blades to gather at Orchard Village and focus on defeating the Shen Clan’s troops at Zheng Family Village.

Chu Yunyun organized West Mountain Hall and the hunters to ambush Xiushui Commandery’s army near Black Bear Mountain while Shen Zhou and the bandit leaders prepared to attack the Dan Clan at Ghost-Crying Gorge. The gorge battle erupted in blue smoke, where an unseen Fifth Grade expert and other fighters devastated the bandits’ ranks as Xi Quan joined Xia Qingtian and Meng Yunshan to confront them.

• Chu Yunyun ordered Wei Yang and Liu Ruoxi to position three thousand hunters on Black Bear Mountain, sent scouts to hunt the commandery army’s mounted scouts, and assigned Li Shenshan to direct the battle.
• Chu Yunyun arranged for expert archers to watch the battlefield and reassured West Mountain’s hunter leaders that the Hall would fight at the front and compensate their losses.
• Shen Zhou learned that West Mountain Hall had mobilized thousands of hunters for Zheng Family Village, accepted Shangguan Shenhao’s offer to cover army losses, and ordered the attack on the Dan Clan to proceed.
• Dan Chiling learned that West Mountain Hall was not coming to rescue his family and, as bandits battered the Stone Fortress, ordered smoke released and his clansmen to fight without restraint.
• Xia Qingtian and Meng Yunshan saw blue smoke engulf Ghost-Crying Gorge and heard that numerous bandit fighters and siege weapons had been destroyed by hidden experts.
• Xi Quan arrived at Ghost-Crying Gorge and led Xia Qingtian and Meng Yunshan into the smoke to confront the enemy and rescue their trapped men.

Xia Qingtian and Meng Yunshan were killed by Dan Chiling and Dan Ze’s half-demon allies, while Xi Quan escaped and left the Dan Clan exposed. At Black Bear Mountain, West Mountain Hall crushed the Xiushui Commandery army, and Chu Yunyun ordered a twelve-thousand-man show of force toward Xiushui Commandery City to support the Iron Banner Gang.

• Xia Qingtian and Meng Yunshan fought Dan Chiling and Dan Ze’s iron-masked half-demons, while Xi Quan fled and left Xia to be killed.
• Dan Chiling and Dan Ze learned that West Mountain Hall had routed the Xiushui Commandery army at Black Bear Mountain, and Dan Chiling regretted attacking before they received the news.
• Ji Yuan and the hunters celebrated West Mountain Hall’s victory after its 7,500 archers shattered the commandery army with twelve volleys.
• Li Shenshan reported that more than 6,200 enemy troops had died and West Mountain Hall had lost only thirty-seven men; Chu Yunyun credited Chu Xisheng’s leadership and management.
• Chu Yunyun ordered the battlefield cleared and the wounded treated, then directed Lu Pingyuan to muster 12,000 men for a show of force toward Xiushui Commandery City to support the Iron Banner Gang.

After West Mountain Hall defeated the commandery army and the West Mountain bandits, Chu Yunyun led a massive force to Xiushui Commandery’s seat, where the ruling families and officials faced the new balance of power. The chapter ended with Prefect Sikong Chan arriving at the city wall and the Iron Banner Gang preparing to strike back at the Seventeen Linked Forts.

• After news of West Mountain Hall’s victories spread, wealthy households and local forces joined Chu Yunyun’s army, swelling it to fourteen thousand two hundred men marching toward Xiushui Commandery.
• Zhou Liangchen led the vanguard to the city walls without resistance, while Wei Yang praised his orderly command and Li Shenshan questioned his battlefield ability.
• Chu Yunyun asked Dan Chiling about the mysterious half-demons at Ghost-Crying Gorge; Dan Chiling concealed what he knew, and Liu Ruoxi rebuked him for keeping the Dan Clan behind its fortress during the battle.
• Shen Zhou, Shangguan Shenhao, and Long Heng assessed their losses and considered how to contain West Mountain Hall, but Shangguan Shenhao warned that attacking Chu Yunyun could provoke Chu Xisheng.
• Prefect Sikong Chan arrived at Xiushui’s northern wall, giving Shen Zhou, Shangguan Shenhao, and Long Heng renewed hope.
• At Iron Banner Gang headquarters, Tie Kuangren praised Chu Yunyun and Chu Xisheng, then ordered Tie Xiaosheng to lead troops upstream against the Seventeen Linked Forts.

Chu Xisheng reached the fourth layer of the Ninefold Refinement Ultimate Origin Purple-Gold Body, learned he had been named one of the Ten Divine Talented Young Blades, and accepted challenges from Wu Province cultivators. He arrived at Tianling Commandery’s crowded docks and faced Bai Guangda on the arena as the spectators roared against him.

• Chu Xisheng advanced to the fourth layer of the Ninefold Refinement Ultimate Origin Purple-Gold Body, increasing his strength and stirring signs of sublimation in his Zangtian bloodline talent.
• Ji Qianqian urged Chu Xisheng to continue practicing the body-tempering art while hiding her concern that the Embroidery Guard intended to control him, and Chu Xisheng used a Near Ink, Blackening Supernatural Power Card on her.
• Zuo Qingyun told Chu Xisheng that West Mountain Hall had won a major victory and that Chu Xisheng had been selected as the tenth of the Ten Divine Talented Young Blades.
• Bai Guangda and Zhen Nian challenged Chu Xisheng, and Chu Xisheng accepted and invited the young saber cultivators of Wu Province to face him at Tianling Commandery.
• Chu Xisheng’s ship reached Tianling Commandery’s packed docks, where Zhuang Zhengde agreed to referee the duel and Chu Xisheng stepped onto the arena to face Bai Guangda.

Chu Xisheng defeated Wu Province’s leading young fighters Bai Guangda and Zhen Nian, using overwhelming speed and an uncanny saber technique to end both bouts without taking a strike. After no one else dared challenge him, he returned to the official ship amid the crowd’s astonishment.

• Zhuang Zhengde had Chu Xisheng and Bai Guangda sign a Life-and-Death Contract and set the rule that they could strike only after his coin landed.
• Chu Xisheng drew his saber faster than Bai Guangda and defeated him with one precise strike to the throat.
• Zhen Nian challenged Chu Xisheng, but Chu’s technique, which he called White Horse Is Not a Horse, forced Zhen off the arena without landing a blow.
• Chu Xisheng invited the martial cultivators of Wu Province to challenge him, but his Yazi Saber Intent and the defeats of Bai Guangda and Zhen Nian kept everyone silent.
• After no one stepped forward, Chu Xisheng saluted the crowd and returned to the official ship.

After Chu Xisheng defeated Zhen Nian, observers debated his strange saber technique while he continued his journey north and won a string of one-strike victories. As Heavenly Secret Pavilion celebrated its ranking, the Martial Discourse Tower faced criticism, and Wang Chaoyang received a lead linking West Mountain’s half-demon experts to the Red Dragon Lineage.

• Zhuang Zhengde explained that Chu Xisheng’s White Horse Is Not a Horse used Heavenly Dao resonance to obscure his saber’s position, though it consumed immense true essence.
• Aboard the official ship, Chu Xisheng told Zuo Qingyun and Du Yunlai that he had not yet shown his fastest saber or strongest strike.
• Eight days later, Hu Kan and Hu Lai received praise at Heavenly Secret Pavilion as reports arrived that Chu Xisheng had defeated opponents across several provinces, including Fei Liren in He Province.
• Wang Chaoyang reviewed reports of Chu Xisheng’s victories and rejected Xie Zhenqing’s proposal to raise his ranking before he faced Si Huangquan, Li Xiuchang, and Wang Ming.
• Xie Zhenqing told Wang Chaoyang that the two half-demon experts from the Battle of West Mountain were likely of the Red Dragon Lineage, and he ordered the Embroidery Guard to investigate them.

As Chu Xisheng’s ship traveled through He Province, thousands of martial artists followed him and betting houses sent detailed intelligence on his opponents. Chu Xisheng defeated Ling Mo, survived Mad Saber Wang Ming’s surprise challenge, and agreed to fight Wang Ming in the Capital City, while a hidden danger remained nearby.

• Chu Xisheng learned that Supreme Communication with the Divine had reached the sixth rank, granting him weak Divine Knowing that helped him predict opponents’ moves.
• Du Yunlai discussed martial cultivation and comprehension with Chu Xisheng as the ship continued through He Province under the watch of thousands of followers.
• Chu Xisheng defeated Ling Mo with his saber and sent him tumbling into the Canglang River.
• Wang Ming surprised Chu Xisheng with a saber attack, but Chu Xisheng dodged and countered him with Trace of Wind.
• The Heluo Fish dragged Wang Ming through the river until Chu Xisheng agreed to fight him after reaching the Capital City.
• Chu Xisheng sensed a powerful danger nearby and suspected that Wang Ming had not gone far.

Chu Xisheng reached Wang'an City after three days of Mad Saber Wang Ming’s ambushes and prepared for their decisive battle. Zuo Qingyun reunited with the White Tiger Marquis, who had protected the ship, while Chu Xisheng planned to strengthen himself before facing Wang Ming.

• Wang Ming repeatedly ambushed Chu Xisheng, sharpening Chu Xisheng’s divine knowing, and challenged him to a decisive battle at the western city docks.
• The official ship arrived at Wang'an City, where Zuo Qingyun and Chu Xisheng shared a farewell toast before Wang Ming attacked again and escaped into the river.
• Chu Xisheng revealed that he had rolled the sixth-tier bloodline talents Pure yang and Body of Light-Speed Shadow, while Zuo Qingyun explained that he expected to leave prison after questioning and had sought the White Tiger Marquis’s help.
• Sikong Xin declined Zuo Qingyun’s suggestion that she join West Mountain Hall, saying she would return to her sect for secluded cultivation until she advanced to fifth grade.
• The White Tiger Marquis arrived in a burst of white light, affectionately greeted Zuo Qingyun, and was introduced to Chu Xisheng, who realized she had kept their enemies from attacking on the journey.

After escorting the Zuo family to the capital, Chu Xisheng gathered with allies and announced plans to challenge Wang Ming and Li Xiuchang before leaving. As he strengthened his talents for the coming fights, Ji Qianqian received orders to remain undercover and draw him into cooperating with the Embroidery Guard.

• Du Yunlai and Sikong Xin parted from Chu Xisheng after the Zuo family was taken to the Dali Temple, and Chu Xisheng and Ji Qianqian went to an inn at West City Wharf.
• Wu Meiniang, the Hu Brothers, and Si Huangquan visited Chu Xisheng, and Wu Meiniang apologized for her past treatment of him and arranged for the Battle Pattern Pavilion to support West Mountain Hall.
• Chu Xisheng agreed to spar with Si Huangquan after his duel with Wang Ming and asked the Hu Brothers to invite Li Xiuchang to fight him during the same hour the next day.
• Chu Xisheng used Martial Dao Points to improve his Pure Yang, Body of Light-Speed Shadow, and Ninefold Refinement Ultimate Origin Purple-Gold Body, then failed to find a higher-rank Divine Sorrow talent while refreshing the Martial Dao Treasury.
• Ji Qianqian met with Du Honglian, learned that the Embroidery Guard wanted her to investigate West Mountain Hall's connections, and decided to gain Chu Xisheng's willing cooperation by helping him advance his body-refining art.