Chapter Summaries

Old Master Li and Senior Hao visited Lian Youming before leaving Four-Nine City to seek Mystic Connection, and they exchanged martial arts teachings with him. After the two seniors departed, Lian Youming held Old Master Li’s charge bugle and said it was time to set out and head back.

• Old Master Li arrived with Senior Hao and told Lian Youming and Wu Jiu that the two seniors were leaving the city to return to the martial world.
• Lian Youming gave the seniors Old Master Li’s farewell gift, the charge bugle, and offered to teach them Heavenly Dipper Strength.
• Lian Youming demonstrated the Qi-Swallowing Method, and Old Master Li examined how its force gathered from the outside inward.
• Senior Hao taught Lian Youming the Xingyi Sect’s Joint Attack Method and demonstrated its routines and spirit intent.
• Old Master Li and Senior Hao departed together, and Wu Jiu kowtowed to them as they left.
• Lian Youming held the charge bugle and said it was time to set out and head back.

Situ Wudi announced that Lian Youming had died, prompting the Green Gang to prepare for revenge, while a hidden power in the Eastern Mausoleum plotted attacks across the martial world. The figure in the stone coffin ordered his forces to emerge and vowed to slaughter the Chen Family.

• Lian Youming asked Situ Wudi to confirm that he was crippled, and Situ Wudi agreed to kill him, unaware that Lian Youming was baiting him.
• Zhu Wu told the Green Gang that Situ Wudi claimed Lian Youming had died by suicide on the train, and the gang members swore revenge.
• Yang Lian found a shadowy figure in the shrine who silently revealed something to her, and she left vowing to kill Situ Wudi.
• An old man at the Martyrs' Cemetery sensed an overwhelming deadly danger approaching.
• A Manchu messenger informed the figure in the stone coffin that Gu Xuantong had betrayed them, Lian Youming might be dead, and the young lord had been found.
• The figure in the coffin ordered his forces to target the White Lotus Sect and the Qing and Hong Teachings, prepare to emerge, and kill every member of the Chen Family.

Yan Lingyun prepared to use poison to help Lian Youming, but Youying secretly took the toxins away and practiced her martial arts through the night. After the copper coin fell, Youying remembered the mysterious old man she had met while Lian Youming was away.

• Yan Lingyun considered delivering tetrodotoxin, ricin, and Poison Frog Toxin through golden-needle acupuncture, but worried that using poison to kill violated her vow to heal people.
• Youying watched over Yan Lingyun, then waited until she was asleep before taking the toxins from the medicine chest.
• Youying stored the toxins in a secluded courtyard and practiced the Six Harmonies Great Spear through a copper coin's hole for three hours.
• Youying practiced Wild Bull Power and techniques from several martial arts until the thread holding the spinning coin snapped.
• Youying sat beside the bed and recalled meeting a mysterious old man while Lian Youming was away helping Yang Shuang and the Mountain-Guarding Old Man.

Youying agreed to help Lian Youming face the emerging Mystic Connection Old Monsters as the Age of Great Contention approached. After asking the brothers to find the missing Xie Ruomei, Lian Youming went to meet Chiba Aoi, who reported powerful figures gathering in Japan and suspicious food shipments to the Gan Clan.

• Youying revealed she had trained in Wild Bull Power and several martial arts, then recognized Lian Youming when he returned from the north after faking his death.
• Lian Youming told Youying he planned to draw in Mystic Connection Old Monsters and kill them in a single battle, and he agreed that she should take leave from school to help.
• Lian Youming asked the brothers to find Xie Ruomei after learning she had gone west and had not contacted them.
• Lian Youming boarded a fishing boat on the Pearl River and met Yang Qing and Chiba Aoi, who said powerful martial artists had appeared in Japan and the Gan Clan had received huge shipments of meat.
• Lian Youming suspected a Mystic Connection Old Monster was replenishing its vitality through the food and welcomed the prospect of facing it.

After Lian Youming’s apparent death, martial factions accused Situ Wudi of murder, but he denied it and warned them of Mystic Connection threats from the north and Japan. As the factions began preparing to unite, Yang Lian announced that she would take Lian Youming home in five days.

• Martial factions gathered around Lian Youming’s ice coffin and accused Situ Wudi of killing him to seize the Two Teachings Tokens, while Situ Wudi denied the charge.
• Situ Wudi warned the gathered martial artists that a Mystic Connection Martial Artist was in the north and that Sticky Pole Office remnants in Japan might soon bring another threat south.
• Situ Wudi displayed the Two Teachings Tokens and claimed Lian Youming had ordered him to take charge, then exposed two suspected Sticky Pole Office agents in the crowd.
• Wang Mazi protested that Lian Youming deserved justice, but Hua Linglong and others restrained their disciples, including a young man carrying grenades.
• Yang Lian said she would take Lian Youming home in five days and left the other matters for the factions to discuss.

Hua Linglong revealed that Lian Youming was alive and had faked his death to prepare a surprise attack on the Mystic Connection Martial Artists. After four days of gathering allies in Foshan, Lian Youming and Situ Wudi left the Green Gang Headquarters armed with sniper rifles to pursue two figures carrying a corpse.

• Hua Linglong told Wang Mazi that Lian Youming was alive, while Wang Mazi's disciple worried that Lian Youming would punish him for his curses.
• The martial arts leaders formed an alliance, appointed Situ Wudi to lead openly, and arranged for the southern schools and overseas Hongmen and Green Gang experts to gather against the Mystic Connection Martial Artists.
• Lian Youming explained to Situ Wudi that he intended to attack first rather than wait for the enemy, and decided to postpone visiting Lingyun and his younger sister until the battle was over.
• Over four days, martial artists from across the southern regions gathered in Foshan to prepare for the coming conflict.
• Lian Youming emerged from the ice coffin, and he and Situ Wudi left the headquarters at night with two sniper rifles to pursue figures carrying a wrapped corpse.

Lian Youming and his companions used Lian Youming’s supposed corpse as bait to draw out their pursuers, then confronted two Mystic Connection Old Monsters in the Hunan mountains. Their allies arrived to face the enemies, and the battle was about to begin.

• Lian Youming, Situ Wudi, Wang Mazi, and Zhu Wu traveled north through the wilderness while setting a trap for the Mystic Connection Old Monsters tracking them.
• When the insects fell silent, Lian Youming and Situ Wudi detected an ambush and attacked a Foresight Martial Artist disguised among their pursuers.
• Lian Youming shot the disguised attacker, and he and the others continued onward as two hidden figures followed them.
• Two Mystic Connection Old Monsters appeared, one ahead of the group and one behind, and threatened Lian Youming and Situ Wudi.
• Xue Hen and Gong Wuer arrived with Old Master Li Jianwu and Senior Hao, who prepared to fight the two old enemies.

Lian Youming and his allies fought the elderly man surnamed Huang, whose Fist-Shot Technique let him strike with invisible force from a distance. Though the others were wounded and Lian Youming’s body remained stiff, he kept Huang occupied and sent his companions to help Youying.

• Lian Youming, Xue Hen, Gong Wuer, and Situ Wudi charged Huang, who struck all four with Air-Splitting Strength before they could see his punches.
• Gong Wuer identified Huang’s technique, and Lian Youming countered one attack with Striking Force Across the Air.
• Huang’s hidden blows injured the group, but Xue Hen seized his sleeve, Lian Youming used the Six-Syllable Mantra, and the others attacked together.
• Huang drove the group back with his Iron Sleeves, while Xue Hen tore off a piece of his beard and Lian Youming emerged nearly unhurt.
• Huang tricked Lian Youming’s Taiji Cloud Hands and struck him through his sleeves, then used his kimono to overwhelm the others and wounded Wang Mazi.
• Lian Youming crushed Huang’s attack before it reached Wang Mazi, sent Wang to help Youying, and led the others back into the fight.

Lian Youming chose to defend his allies against Old Monster Huang, and his resolve caused his grand momentum to take shape. Meanwhile, the old man in the long gown lured Old Master Li and Senior Hao toward a nearby peak, where the three began a fierce clash.

• Old Monster Huang evaded the four fighters’ attacks with extraordinary Hua Jin, making their blows seem unable to touch him.
• After Old Master Li recalled asking whether defense could also be Fist Challenges the World, Lian Youming abandoned offense and shielded Gong Wuer and the other fighters from Old Monster Huang’s attacks.
• Lian Youming reflected on the people who had defended others and resolved to face every foe while protecting everyone behind him, causing his qi and grand momentum to change.
• The old man in the long gown recognized Lian Youming’s transformation and declared that he would kill him, then challenged Old Master Li and Senior Hao.
• The old man in the long gown sprang toward a nearby peak, and Old Master Li and Senior Hao pursued him as sword light and killing fists erupted in combat.

Lian Youming and the others joined forces against Old Monster Huang, who revealed Wudang's Taiji Thirteen Elixir Skill and Taiyi Chui. As Youying entered the fight with secret hammer techniques, Lian Youming discovered that Huang's force could also help break through internal barriers, and the two continued their fierce close-range clash.

• Lian Youming restrained Old Monster Huang's fists with Coiling Silk Force, giving Situ Wudi, Gong Wuer, and Xue Hen the chance to attack from three sides.
• Old Monster Huang used Taiji Thirteen Elixir Skill and Wudang Taiyi Chui to swell his body and fists, absorbing the trio's blows and driving them into a contest of strength.
• Old Monster Huang's sudden burst of force jolted the fighters, and Situ Wudi coughed blood as Lian Youming tried to disrupt Huang's balance.
• Xue Hen, Situ Wudi, and Gong Wuer renewed their attacks on Old Monster Huang's openings while Youying arrived and struck with Wish-Fulfilling Purple Gold Chui.
• Lian Youming realized Old Monster Huang's inner force could break through stiffness and stagnation, then continued neutralizing Huang's blows as they fought amid swirling leaves.

Lian Youming and his allies fought Old Monster Huang in a desperate battle, enduring his devastating Taiyi Chui and Fist-Shot Technique. With Youying's poisoned needle distracting him, Lian Youming struck with an Elixir Sword, and the group launched a final attack that tore open Old Monster Huang's skull.

• Old Monster Huang pressed Lian Youming with rapid Taiyi Chui strikes, but Lian Youming parried and held his ground.
• Old Monster Huang used Five Phoenixes Cry in Unison and seized Gong Wuer and Xue Hen, but Lian Youming recognized the technique and struck him, allowing them to break free and restrain him.
• Old Monster Huang consumed his vital essence and unleashed the Fist-Shot Technique, injuring Gong Wuer, Xue Hen, and Situ Wudi while Lian Youming endured the blast.
• Lian Youming traded blows with Old Monster Huang as Youying advanced a poisoned golden needle, distracting the old monster.
• Lian Youming seized Old Monster Huang's wrists and fired an Elixir Sword, while Gong Wuer, Situ Wudi, and Xue Hen attacked and Xue Hen tore open his skull.

Lian Youming defeated Old Monster Huang and hurried to the other battlefield, where he found Senior Hao dead and Old Master Li gravely wounded. As Old Master Li unexpectedly advanced into Mystic Connection, a dying enemy tried to lure Lian Youming toward Mount Lu before succumbing to his own collapsing qi.

• Lian Youming killed Old Monster Huang, then left with Youying while Xue Hen, Gong Wuer, and Situ Wudi were too injured to follow.
• Lian Youming and Youying reached the other battlefield and found Senior Hao dead and Old Master Li alive but badly hurt.
• Old Master Li explained that Senior Hao had sacrificed himself to secure victory against a Mystic Connection Old Monster who had used a secret pill to increase his power.
• Old Master Li entered Mystic Connection, and the dying enemy told Lian Youming about a supposed treasure near the Ancient Tomb around Qixian Temple on Mount Lu.
• Lian Youming recognized the story as a trap and refused to respond; the old monster cursed him before his body broke down and he died.

Lian Youming witnessed Old Master Li reach a state of oneness with heaven and affirmed that attack and defense were one path. After Xue Hen mourned Senior Hao, a captured enemy revealed that a formidable force was heading to Changbai Mountain to attack the White Lotus Sect, and Old Master Li set out north.

• As dawn arrived, Old Master Li drew in the morning air for nearly an hour, healing his injuries and displaying oneness with heaven.
• Old Master Li asked whether defending counted as challenging the world, and Lian Youming answered that attack was defense and defense was attack.
• Old Master Li explained that the Martial Way required defending, while Xue Hen knelt before Senior Hao's corpse and then fled into the woods with a piercing howl.
• A captured enemy told Lian Youming and the others that three Mystic Connection Martial Artists, seven Foresight Perfection experts, foreign killers, and many Old-Era Martial Artists were heading to Changbai Mountain to attack the White Lotus Sect.
• Old Master Li picked up Senior Hao's body and headed north, telling the others that they would risk their lives only if the group was wiped out.

After returning to Guangzhou, Lian Youming and the others debated the formidable enemies they had encountered and suspected that a mysterious presence had seized the Thirteen Hongs and Qing-era reserves. They connected that presence to the idea of martial fortune, ending with the chilling possibility that it intended to kill every martial artist and claim all the world’s martial fortune.

• Lian Youming returned to Green Gang Headquarters with his group, ordered Wang Mazi’s armed granddisciple to remove his firearms, and told him to train properly.
• The Luofu Daoist Sect’s head and the others discussed how the Thirteen Hongs could have nurtured several Mystic Connection Old Monsters, and Lian Youming suspected a hidden pinnacle expert was behind them.
• Lian Youming proposed that an ancient mysterious presence had taken over the Thirteen Hongs and other Manchu Qing reserves, leaving the group to face both the Mountain Guardians’ forces and unknown enemies.
• Gong Wuer raised the possibility that the mysterious presence sought martial fortune, and Boss Chen and Situ Wudi explained how belief in fortune could strengthen a martial artist’s intent.
• Situ Wudi suggested that the presence might kill them all to gather the world’s martial fortune, and the group realized that this could be its true purpose.

Lian Youming concluded that an unknown martial fanatic sought to use the world’s martial fortune to break through the limits of the Martial Way, and he organized the sects to prepare for the Mystic Connection Calamity. In Japan, the Gan Family Ancestor emerged from his grave and set out to challenge China, beginning with a visit to Chen Baihu.

• Lian Youming reasoned that the mysterious enemy was pursuing martial fortune as his only hope of advancing beyond mystic connection, and recognized him as an unparalleled foe.
• Lian Youming ordered the Two Teachings, the Five Houses of the Southern Faction, and the other schools to unite and train promising disciples against the Mystic Connection Calamity.
• A messenger told the bare-browed clan head that Mr. Huang had died and reported the heavy losses in the northern battle, including Li Jianwu’s breakthrough to mystic connection.
• The clan head asked what to do next, and a hand burst from the second grave as its occupant declared that he would kill and challenge China.
• The Gan Family Ancestor emerged carrying the Lique Spring spear, learned that Lian Youming led the Two Teachings, and departed to visit old haunts and meet Chen Baihu.

Lian Youming reunited with his family, learned of fierce fighting in the north and the White Lotus Sect Master's disappearance, and continued searching for Xie Ruomei. The chapter ended when he learned that Huo Diange, a master he had thought dead, had arrived in Foshan.

• Lian Youming shared breakfast with Yan Lingyun and watched Little Stone show off his newly learned words.
• Lian Youming told Yan Lingyun he had not found his Master but believed he was still alive, then went for a walk with her.
• Hua Linglong reported that the White Lotus Sect Master had disappeared after a bloody battle in the north, where the previous White Lotus Saintess, Chen Baihu, and Senior Li had appeared.
• Lian Youming ordered Hua Linglong to focus on strengthening the martial artists of every school and sect, and learned that their agents had found no trace of Xie Ruomei.
• Hua Linglong reported that several senior masters had arrived in Foshan, and Lian Youming recognized Huo Diange's name and wondered if he had faked his death.

Lian Youming welcomed three veteran martial artists—Huo Diange, Fu Jianqiu, and Huang San—as reinforcements for the coming fight against the White Lotus Sect. Their arrival lifted the gathered sect leaders’ spirits, and Huang San’s identity as the famed Rouge Spear was revealed along with the story of how family life ended his years of wandering.

• Huo Diange, Fu Jianqiu, and Huang San met Lian Youming at the Hung Fist Association Hall and agreed to help pursue the Mystic Connection Grand Realm and avenge Senior Brother Hao.
• Huo Diange and Fu Jianqiu asked Lian Youming to keep their identities secret and described how Du Xinwu had helped Huo recover his cultivation.
• Lian Youming gathered the sect leaders and martial experts, explained the danger posed by the White Lotus Sect, and introduced the three men as reinforcements who would help unite the schools.
• The gathered experts recognized Huang San as Rouge Spear, a famed spear grandmaster who had disappeared for more than ten years.
• Huang San explained that he had retired after falling in love, marrying, and raising three children, making the assembled martial artists laugh.

Lian Youming united the southern martial world against the approaching foreign threats by proposing the Riverland Society, a new alliance modeled on the China Alliance. The gathering agreed to seal their alliance in blood in ten days, with Lian Youming as its leader.

• Lian Youming described the enemies gathering around China and urged the southern schools to defend their region together.
• Huo Diange called for the factions to unite under a leader and seal an alliance in blood, and Fu Jianqiu supported him.
• The Five Houses of the Southern Faction and the Green and Hong Gangs backed Lian Youming as leader, and he accepted the responsibility.
• Lian Youming named the new alliance the Riverland Society and declared that its members would become a Great Wall of flesh and blood against foreign enemies.
• Lian Youming scheduled the alliance's blood oath for ten days later, and the gathered martial artists pledged to advance, retreat, live, and die together.

On Yan Lingyun’s birthday, Yan Beitong confronted Lian Youming over the coming battle and insisted that the greater cause mattered more than family time. He took Yan Lingyun and the children back to Wuzhou, while Lian Youming accepted the separation and prepared to focus on the fight.

• Little Stone showed heightened hearing and spoke Cantonese with Yan's Father and Yan's Mother when they arrived from Wuzhou.
• Yan Beitong used their old password to confirm Lian Youming’s identity, then revealed that he knew about Lian Youming’s role as Head of the Two Teachings and the Riverland Society.
• Yan Beitong urged Lian Youming to fight for peace, saying the Yan Family would disown him if he backed down.
• Yan Beitong ordered Yan Lingyun and the children to return to Wuzhou, and Lian Youming agreed that he needed to focus on the coming battle.
• Yan Beitong had the family pack the birthday meal and clothes, then left for Wuzhou with Yan Lingyun and the children.

Lian Youming left Xiao Shuang in Sun Duhe and Yan Tao’s care and went to Foshan ahead of the alliance gathering. As the gathering came under threat from Gan Yu and a group of challengers seeking revenge, Lian Youming emerged from the Back Courtyard and invited three of them to attack him together.

• Lian Youming accepted Yan Lingyun’s Twenty-One-Eye Dzi Bead and two sixth-grade ginseng roots, entrusted Xiao Shuang to Sun Duhe and Yan Tao, and left for Foshan with the Gall-Illuminating Sword.
• Lian Youming stayed in a quiet room at the Taiji Gate’s former Boxing School until the alliance gathering began in Foshan.
• Gan Yu arrived at the Hung Fist Association Hall with six companions, declared that thirteen fighters were challenging schools across the Thirteen Provinces, and threatened the alliance.
• Huaichen, a foreigner whose master had been killed in Europe, and Saito Izō named their personal grievances against Situ Wudi and the alliance.
• Huo Diange called for Lian Youming, who came out and challenged three of Gan Yu’s companions to fight him together.