Chapter Summaries

Lian Youming visited Yang Lian, discussed his coming wedding and plans to challenge Xue Hen and Gu Chan, then returned to Yan Medical Hall to help prepare for his wedding to Yan Lingyun. The day ended with Yan Lingyun leaving for the countryside, while Lian Youming was told to fetch her the next morning.

• Yang Lian reviewed reports about Lian Youming’s victory over Gan Xuantong and watched his double practice Wudang martial arts.
• Lian Youming invited Yang Lian and Zhang Asi to his wedding, set a battle with Xue Hen for six months later, and asked Yang Lian to send Gu Chan a challenge in the name of the Taiji Demon.
• Lian Youming read reports about a revived person in the Northeast and asked Yang Lian to tell his double to watch over his pregnant wife while he traveled.
• Lian Youming’s double agreed to attend the wedding just to look, after Yang Lian refused to let the two men meet.
• Lian Youming returned to Yan Medical Hall and helped Yan Lingyun’s relatives prepare for the wedding, but his eldest sister-in-law kept him from seeing Yan Lingyun.
• Yan Lingyun left for the countryside at dusk, waving to Lian Youming and reminding him to come early the next day.

Lian Youming and Yan Lingyun celebrated their wedding with a lively procession, a ceremony at Yan Medical Hall, and a quiet evening together. After accepting Yan Lingyun’s wild ginseng dowry, Lian Youming promised they would return north in a few days to see Master and the others.

• Lian Youming led relatives and friends on bicycles to collect Yan Lingyun, while teasing Wu Jiu about his interest in A Xing.
• Lian Youming and Yan Lingyun reunited at her family home, exchanged affectionate words, and rode back to Yan Medical Hall together.
• Lian Youming noticed a familiar-looking tall figure beside Yang Lian on a boat, but continued home without investigating.
• Yan Weidong officiated as Lian Youming and Yan Lingyun completed their wedding ceremony before their gathered families and guests.
• After the feast, Yan Lingyun gave Lian Youming an eight-leaf ginseng root as her dowry and told him she missed Master and the others.
• Lian Youming promised Yan Lingyun they would return north in a few days, and the newlyweds joked and kissed in their bridal chamber.

The group prepared to part ways after the wedding as Lian Youming arranged his return to Xijing, while Gu Chan received a combat challenge and set plans to fight Liu Wudi and others on Mount Lu. The chapter ended with Xie Ruomei appearing at the wharf as Yang Shuang and Wu Jiu were about to leave.

• Lian Youming and Yan Lingyun called his parents in Xijing and arranged to return home after the wedding.
• Gu Chan received a challenge at Taiji Gate, then ordered a challenge sent to Liu Wudi for a fight on Mount Lu in six months and expressed interest in facing Li Da and Yang Cuo.
• Yang Shuang decided to return to Hong Kong to train with Aunt Chen, and Wu Jiu chose to go with her and visit Senior Brother Shen.
• Zhang Asi declined to follow Lian Youming and agreed to become Yang Lian's disciple, while Zhu Wu warned Lian Youming about Xue Hen and Gu Chan.
• At the wharf, Yang Shuang and Wu Jiu recognized Xie Ruomei, who said she had come from Guangzhou.

Lian Youming traveled with Yan's family through the crowded Spring Festival rush, studying Journey to the West and refining his martial arts on the train. After driving off a gang of thieves and practicing through the night, he arrived home with his family on the third day.

• Yan's parents led their large family out of Wuzhou toward Guangzhou Railway Station, and Lian Youming brought a color television for Yan Lingyun to use during her pregnancy.
• On the crowded train, Lian Youming read Journey to the West and reflected on the inner intent behind the fists of the martial artists he knew.
• When thieves approached Yan's family, Lian Youming's fearsome glare made them flee after one recognized him as the Taiji Demon.
• Lian Youming practiced Xingyi, Bagua, and other techniques while studying the book, eventually sending a breath of white mist across the train window.
• Two days and two nights later, Lian Youming and Yan's family arrived home.

Lian Youming reunited with Yan Lingyun and her family in Xijing, then visited Junk King, who answered three questions about the martial world and hinted at the extraordinary origins of Number One Under Heaven. The chapter ended with Yan Lingyun calling them to dinner.

• Zhao Lanxiang, Lian Father, and Qin Yuhu welcomed Lian Youming, Yan Lingyun, and Yan's large family at the railway station.
• The families returned to Lian Youming's home, where the children played in the snow and the adults prepared a meal together.
• Lian Youming visited Junk King, who acknowledged his progress in Hua Jin and warned him that future martial-world challenges would bring many opponents.
• Junk King told Lian Youming that the old monsters were Mountain Guardians and said the battle they guarded had not ended.
• Junk King described Number One Under Heaven as an extraordinary hero who could foresee opportunities and changes, then refused to explain innate wisdom as a fourth answer.
• Yan Lingyun called Lian Youming and Junk King to dinner, and Junk King greeted her warmly.

Lian Youming rejected his doubts about whether he was living a second life and reaffirmed his commitment to the Martial Way. The next morning, his Conception Vessel opened and he crossed a major threshold in his cultivation, while he remained curious about the Junk King's hidden past.

• Lian Youming wrestled with the Junk King's claim about wisdom from a past life and chose to treat past and future lives as illusions.
• Lian Youming settled his mind, held Yan Lingyun, and slept peacefully.
• Yan Lingyun teased Lian Youming about getting their marriage certificate, but he rushed out when his Conception Vessel began surging.
• Lian Youming went to the Junk King's courtyard and used Taiji Fist and Bagua Dragon Claw Palm to regulate his body as his sinews and bones realigned.
• The Junk King told Lian Youming that his Inner Strength had surged outward and that he had crossed the threshold.
• Lian Youming noticed the incense beside the Junk King and suspected the old man was hiding something connected to the Mountain Guardian.

After Lian Youming and Yan Lingyun married, Li Da warned Lian Youming that Yang Cuo had vanished and that remnants of the old era might be targeting rising martial artists. Li Da then met Lian Youming’s hidden master, who revealed he had survived the scattered power tribulation and stood half a step from Mystic Connection.

• Lian Youming and Yan Lingyun registered their marriage and held wedding celebrations with both families.
• Li Da visited Lian Youming and told him that Yang Cuo had disappeared in Shanghai after apparently meeting a powerful opponent.
• Li Da warned Lian Youming that someone opposed the Green Gang and Hongmen uniting, and Lian Youming suspected the Mountain Guardians were behind the threat.
• After leaving, Li Da sensed Lian Youming’s hidden master and went to the Ba River to meet him.
• Lian Youming’s master told Li Da that the old medicine could only postpone the scattered power tribulation and said he was half a step from Mystic Connection.
• Lian Youming’s master offered to teach Li Da offensive techniques in return for his kindness toward Lian Youming.

On Lunar New Year's Eve, Lian Youming discovered that Journey to the West contained the White Lotus Sect secret art Heavenly Dipper Strength, which could overcome the Power-Scattering Tribulation. Fearing the book would consume his mind, he destroyed it, then found a jade plaque that revealed an invitation to Mount Lu.

• Lian Youming studied the illustrations in Journey to the West and uncovered Heavenly Dipper Strength and Earthly Fiend Stance.
• He copied the secret art and its illustrations, noticing its connection to the White Lotus Sect's Qi-Swallowing Method.
• Lian Youming resisted the urge to study further and tore Journey to the West into scraps.
• A narrow jade plaque fell from the destroyed book, and sunlight passing through its holes projected a message inviting Lian Youming to meet at Mount Lu.

Lian Youming discovered a hidden Martial Way legacy in the Jade Plaque and showed the Heavenly Dipper Strength method to the Junk King, who recognized it as genuine and linked the book to the Number One Under Heaven. The Junk King took the method to study, while Lian Youming kept the plaque; everyone then gathered at Lian Youming’s home to celebrate New Year’s Eve.

• Lian Youming deciphered a route-like pattern on the Jade Plaque and wondered about the book’s hidden Martial Way legacy.
• Lian Youming brought his handwritten copies of Heavenly Dipper Strength and Earthly Fiend Stance to the Junk King, who recognized the method and identified the book’s author as the Number One Under Heaven.
• Lian Youming explained how Li Da had given him the strange book and showed the Jade Plaque; the Junk King warned him that the book could destroy a person’s mind and said he had survived the scattered power tribulation.
• The Junk King asked to study Heavenly Dipper Strength, while he told Lian Youming to decide for himself what to do with the Jade Plaque.
• Lian Youming and his guests gathered for a lively New Year’s Eve meal, and he cooked as firecrackers sounded and the Spring Festival Gala played on television.

Lian Youming and Yan Lingyun shared their worries about his coming journey and Junk King's dangerous past, while he promised to grow strong enough to help his master. On New Year's Day, a phone call from Guangzhou brought greetings from Yang Shuang and Xie Ruomei, who congratulated Lian Youming on his marriage.

• Yan Lingyun told Lian Youming she feared Junk King might leave to fight the martial artist who crippled him, and urged her husband to train and avenge his master.
• Lian Youming reassured Yan Lingyun that Junk King would likely stay until their child was born and vowed to become strong enough to stand beside him.
• Qin Hongxiu and Lian Lei set off firecrackers, and Shen Qinghong said she planned to travel to Shanghai over her late brother's old house.
• A neighborhood office auntie told Lian Youming that someone from Guangzhou was calling, and he went to answer.
• Yang Shuang and Wu Jiu wished Lian Youming a happy New Year, then Xie Ruomei spoke with him and congratulated him on his marriage.

After Yan Beitong’s family left Xijing, Junk King named Lian Youming and Yan Lingyun’s coming child and challenged Lian Youming to a swordsmanship lesson. He demonstrated his school’s supreme art, the Ape-Strike Sword, leaving Lian Youming stunned beside the Ba River.

• Lian Youming told Yan Beitong that a double would be operating in Guangzhou and agreed on a code phrase to identify him.
• Yan Beitong’s family departed Xijing, and Qin Yuhu’s family later left for Shanghai, ending the holiday visits.
• Junk King cooked Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, proposed the names Lian Ruopu and Lian Feiyan for the coming baby, and explained the family’s names to Lian Shuang and Lian Lei.
• Junk King called Lian Youming to the Ba River and repeatedly stopped him from drawing Gall-Illuminating while teaching him about swordsmanship.
• Junk King demonstrated the Ape-Strike Sword, leaping over the river as Lian Youming watched in shock.

Lian Youming spent his final days at home caring for Yan Lingyun and treating his parents’ old injuries. On Lantern Festival, he left to pursue his next battle, promising to return before their son was born.

• Lian Youming massaged Yan Lingyun’s feet, then washed Zhao Lanxiang’s feet and used Hua Jin to ease her lingering back injury.
• Lian Shuang and Lian Lei joined their parents and washed Lian Father’s feet.
• Lian Youming spent the following days with Yan Lingyun, prepared meals, obtained a washing machine, and continued treating his parents’ injuries.
• Third Aunt brought supplies and animals to the family after hearing that Lian Youming would soon leave.
• On the Lantern Festival, Lian Youming said goodbye to Yan Lingyun and his family, took the Gall-Illuminating Sword, and set out.

Lian Youming traveled through Shu to temper himself and search for traces of an old battle, but he overheard grave robbers and intervened when two Emei Sect women tried to kill a young couple. The women attacked him after he mocked them, leaving him facing their flexible swords.

• Lian Youming crossed Baoxie Road and continued along the Jinniu Ancient Road toward Mount Lu, observing the wilderness and practicing along the way.
• While resting in a tree, Lian Youming overheard Yong tell his lover that he and Brother Lao Dao had found dried corpses and valuables in a cave beside the Jialing River.
• Two middle-aged women approached the couple and prepared to kill them, but Lian Youming used the Toad-Fishing Skill to make them retreat.
• Lian Youming recognized the women’s Daoist martial arts and suspected they belonged to the Emei Sect.
• The women drew their flexible swords and attacked Lian Youming after he mocked them.

Lian Youming defeated two Emei Sect women who tried to kill him and learned that a cave near Tianxiong Pass held several sets of remains, including Swallow Li San’s, and martial arts manuals. He disposed of the bodies and set out to find the cave, then spotted figures in the woods and moved toward them.

• Lian Youming fought off two Emei Sect women and killed one with her own flexible sword.
• Lian Youming threatened the surviving woman until she revealed the cave’s location and said it contained Swallow Li San’s remains and martial arts methods.
• The surviving woman attacked Lian Youming with throwing knives, but he deflected them and killed her with one of the knives.
• Lian Youming hid the bloodstains, carried both corpses into the mountain forest, and continued searching for the cave at dawn.
• Lian Youming spotted figures moving through the distant woods and slipped into the forest toward them.

Lian Youming tracked Emei Sect fighters to a cave where they had looted the remains of Swallow Li San, then confronted five Grand Boxers guarding it. Surrounded inside the cave, he taunted them to attack.

• Lian Youming followed three Emei Sect members through the mountains and learned they were hurrying to a cave for its legacies.
• At Jubai Ferry, Lian Youming recognized the ferryman as a Paoge and arranged for him to handle matters after the fight.
• Lian Youming bypassed the Emei Sect guards and climbed down the cliff into the cave, where he surprised five fighters.
• Lian Youming saw Swallow Li San’s stripped remains and a freshly scraped inscription, then challenged the five Grand Boxers.
• The five surrounded Lian Youming, who recognized their Tongbei Fist, Monkey-Form Fist, and Six Harmonies Praying Mantis techniques and urged them to attack.

Lian Youming fought five Grand Boxers who attacked him with a mixture of martial arts, shrugging off their strikes and countering with overwhelming strength. He killed three of them in the blink of an eye, while the remaining two were left facing his fury.

• The five Grand Boxers attacked Lian Youming with Monkey-Form Fist, Mantis Fist, Tongbei Fist, and hidden Emei Piercers.
• Lian Youming used Toad-Fishing Skill to absorb their blows, then sent a forceful ripple through his body that staggered four attackers and knocked away a weapon.
• Lian Youming avoided one woman's strikes and punched her into a stone wall, then twisted another woman's arm when she attacked with Cotton Palm.
• The attackers regrouped with a coordinated assault, but Lian Youming deflected their attacks and met the Baji Sect's Double Ram Strike with one arm.
• Lian Youming struck the woman with his elbow attack, killed the Monkey-Form fighter with Crossing Fist, and left three of the five Grand Boxers dead as the other two faced him.

Lian Youming fought two impostors disguised as a Daoist and a monk in a cave, killing the monk and crippling the Daoist. The surviving Daoist saw Lian Youming knock a hidden dart aside with a projectile spat from his mouth and wondered if it was the legendary Daoist Sect Elixir Sword.

• Lian Youming identified the monk and Daoist as fake religious figures and attacked the Daoist with Tiger Form.
• The Daoist fought back with Mantis Fist while the monk revealed his Shaolin skills and joined the attack.
• Lian Youming twisted free, tore off the Daoist’s arms, and broke through the monk’s defenses with repeated palm strikes.
• The monk launched a concealed dart from his sleeve, but Lian Youming spat it out of the air and killed him with a final palm strike.
• The surviving Daoist saw the short dart on the ground and asked whether Lian Youming had used the legendary Daoist Sect Elixir Sword.

Lian Youming uncovered the remains of Swallow Li San and four other grandmasters, pieced together how they had died, and learned that a powerful outlaw on Mount Emei had gathered expelled martial artists around him. After using his dragon roar to release his pent-up feelings, he found a booklet recording the Swallow Sect’s supreme techniques and climbed out of the cave with the remains.

• A dying Daoist revealed that he and the others were expelled disciples and accused their leader on Mount Emei of being an old outlaw who had escaped prison and reached the realm of foresight.
• A man who entered the cave saw the defeated group and fled, prompting the people above to pull up the rope ladders.
• Lian Youming examined six skeletons and deduced that Swallow Li San and four allies had fought two powerful opponents, including a late-arriving master who wielded a cloth staff.
• Lian Youming unleashed a prolonged dragon roar that shook the weapons and dust throughout the cave.
• Lian Youming gathered the five sets of remains, searched the Mount Emei disciples, found a booklet of the Swallow Sect’s Heavenly Gang Stele-Splitting Hand and Void-Treading Step, and climbed out.

Lian Youming defeated several challengers among the gathered Sichuan martial artists, then left with five sets of bones on his back. On the mountain path, the mysterious old farmer Shorty Xu appeared and began testing him.

• Lian Youming told the Emei disciples and the martial artists watching from the woods that he carried five sets of skeletal remains, then challenged anyone who wished to stop him.
• Lian Youming knocked back a Taizu Long Fist fighter and defeated Zhao Zhen, Yue Yunzhou, and Xu Dashan with single punches.
• Lian Youming left the crowd, promising to reveal the remains if he failed to reach Jianmen Pass before dark, while the others turned to deal with the Emei disciples.
• Lian Youming planned to inform Xu Tian about the remains, especially Swallow Li San's, because the Swallow Sect had once helped him.
• Shorty Xu appeared beside Lian Youming on the mountain path, neutralized his sudden attack, dodged his follow-up palm, and asked to see his sword.

Lian Youming fought Shorty Xu through the mountain forest as they raced toward Jianmen Pass. When two children fell from the cliffside Ape Path, the rivals stopped fighting and joined forces to save them, and Lian Youming recognized Shorty Xu as a fellow disciple of Du Xinwu from the Nature Sect.

• Lian Youming attacked Shorty Xu with his sword, but Shorty Xu dodged and countered with his bamboo staff and Tobacco Pipe.
• Lian Youming used Ape Lord Swordplay and a series of martial arts strikes as the two fought through the forest toward Jianmen Pass.
• Lian Youming and Shorty Xu saw two children lose their footing on the steep Ape Path and fall from the cliff.
• Lian Youming climbed the cliff, caught both children as they fell, and grabbed a vine while Shorty Xu anchored it and hauled them to safety.
• Lian Youming thanked Martial Uncle Xu and recognized him as an expert from the Nature Sect and a fellow disciple of Du Xinwu.