Chapter Summaries

Jiang Fa sought permission to study martial arts despite his family’s poverty, and his parents scraped together the money for his first year at the Zhao Clan Martial Hall. He set out to enroll, relying on his talent that rewarded diligence and learning.

• Jiang Fa waited for the Zhao Clan Martial Hall’s enrollment day and repeatedly told Lady Chen he wanted to learn martial arts.
• Jiang Dashan explained that tuition and other costs were beyond the family’s means, but later promised to reconsider.
• Jiang Fa overheard his parents discussing borrowing money, then found a bundle of coins and silver with a note from his father promising to cover the first year.
• Jiang Fa saw his personal panel’s talent, “Heaven rewards diligence; learning always bears fruit,” and resolved that martial arts could help him survive and make use of it.
• Jiang Dashan told Jiang Fa to enroll, and Lady Chen gave him two boiled eggs as he left for the martial hall.

Jiang Fa enrolled at the Zhao Clan Martial Hall, where new disciples faced strict rules and a three-month deadline to reach Ming Jin. After settling into a shared room with Li Tie and Wang Dahu, he clashed with Liu Wen over the beds and chores, leaving their future relationship tense.

• Zhao Zhong told the new arrivals they had to pay tuition and reach Ming Jin within three months or leave the martial hall.
• Jiang Fa paid his tuition, received a numbered tag, and moved into the outer courtyard disciples' quarters.
• Jiang Fa met his poor fellow disciples Li Tie and Wang Dahu in their shared room.
• Liu Wen demanded the window bed and ordered the others to handle the chores, but Jiang Fa challenged him and refused to yield.
• Liu Wen took another bed after failing to intimidate Jiang Fa, and warned the three that they would have plenty of time to deal with him.

Jiang Fa and the other new disciples began training at the Zhao Clan Martial Hall, where they learned that they had three months to master the first level of the Mountain-Breaking Stance and break through to Ming Jin. Qin Xuan stunned the disciples and instructors by memorizing and reproducing the stance after one demonstration, leaving Zhao Zhong impressed by his extraordinary aptitude.

• Zhao Zhong introduced the outer courtyard schedule and warned the new disciples that they had to reach Ming Jin within three months to remain at the hall.
• Wang Shi demonstrated the first level of the Mountain-Breaking Stance, and Jiang Fa's panel unlocked the art after a single viewing.
• Qin Xuan claimed he had memorized the stance and reproduced the full sequence with remarkable accuracy.
• Wang Shi and the disciples reacted with astonishment, while Zhao Zhong recognized Qin Xuan's exceptional martial aptitude.
• Qin Xuan introduced himself to Wang Shi.

Jiang Fa and the other trainees struggled through their first Mountain-Breaking Stance lesson as Wang Shi corrected their posture and explained how to sink their strength. Jiang Fa lasted a little longer than a cup of tea before collapsing, while the trainees noticed Qin Xuan was still standing.

• Wang Shi taught the trainees the principles of the Mountain-Breaking Stance and warned that a solid stance was essential for entering ming jin.
• Jiang Fa struggled to coordinate his breathing and posture as his legs, back, and arms began to ache and tremble.
• Wang Shi corrected the trainees’ stances, emphasizing that they should sink their shoulders, elbows, Qi, and force.
• Jiang Fa held the stance for slightly longer than the time it took to drink a cup of tea before his legs buckled.
• Li Tie and Jiang Fa compared how exhausted they were, while Wang Dahu said farmwork had helped him endure the training.
• Jiang Fa saw Liu Wen suffering on the ground, then heard a trainee call out that Qin Xuan was still holding the stance.

Jiang Fa endured his first full day of Mountain-Breaking Stance training and worried that his slow progress would make it hard to reach Ming Jin. That night, he opened Ye Qingyu’s protective charm and discovered a piece of jade inside.

• Qin Xuan held the Mountain-Breaking Stance longer than the other newcomers, and Wang Shi praised his ability to sink his strength.
• Jiang Fa resumed practicing and felt warmth from the protective charm Ye Qingyu had left him, but Wang Shi’s warning brought him back to focus.
• The disciples trained through the morning and afternoon, while Jiang Fa’s Mountain-Breaking Stance progress reached 3/200 by nightfall.
• After returning to his room, Jiang Fa untied the protective charm and found a smooth, pure-white piece of jade inside.

Jiang Fa discovered that the jade stone Ye Qingyu had given him contained the Heaven-Rank, Upper Grade Seven-Colored Glazed Glass Art, a body-refining cultivation art. He kept the secret and began to suspect that Ye Qingyu and her father were not ordinary, leaving him with unanswered questions about her identity.

• Jiang Fa practiced the Mountain-Breaking Stance while holding the jade stone, which heated up and glowed as his blood and Qi began to flow.
• A ray of light shot from the jade into Jiang Fa’s brow, revealing the Seven-Colored Glazed Glass Art and asking whether he wanted to learn it.
• Jiang Fa accepted and received the cultivation art’s instructions, learning that it refined the body through nine layers.
• Jiang Fa realized Ye Qingyu had likely arranged for him to obtain the art and decided to conceal it because it could put him in danger.
• Jiang Fa recalled Ye Qingyu’s unusual appearance and her father’s elusive nature, and wondered who they really were.

Jiang Fa began practicing before dawn after confirming that his cultivation panel was real, while Qin Xuan rapidly distinguished himself during the new disciples’ training. Nearly a month later, Qin Xuan had mastered the first layer of the Mountain-Breaking Stance and earned permission to observe the inner courtyard.

• Jiang Fa woke before dawn, saw that his cultivation panel was real, and went to practice the Mountain-Breaking Stance.
• Jiang Fa trained beside a senior disciple who had arrived even earlier, then continued practicing as other disciples began to gather.
• Li Tie and Wang Dahu joined Jiang Fa for morning practice, and Wang Shi strictly taught the disciples their drills.
• Zhao Zhong repeatedly guided Qin Xuan, and Wang Shi also began giving him extra instruction.
• In less than a month, Qin Xuan learned to engage and release the first layer of the Mountain-Breaking Stance at will.
• Zhao Zhong gave Qin Xuan special permission to enter the inner courtyard and observe its disciples practicing.

Jiang Fa, Li Tie, and Wang Dahu learned that Qin Xuan possessed the rarest martial aptitude, then endured Liu Wen’s taunts as he flaunted his expensive pills and reminded them their fees were due. The chapter ended with Liu Wen leaving them to face the coming payment.

• Li Tie told Jiang Fa and Wang Dahu that Qin Xuan had highest-grade aptitude and was the most talented martial disciple in the hall’s history.
• Jiang Fa reflected on his month of diligent training and his slow progress toward minor accomplishment.
• Liu Wen arrived with two lackeys and showed the three a bottle of Blood Condensation Pills, boasting that his father would buy him better medicine if he reached Ming Jin within three months.
• Wang Dahu defended training without pills, but Liu Wen mocked him, Jiang Fa, and Li Tie before leaving.
• Liu Wen reminded Jiang Fa, Li Tie, and Wang Dahu that their room and board fees of one tael each were due that month.

Jiang Fa and his friends confronted the gap between their poor families and Liu Wen’s ability to buy medicinal supplements, while worrying about the cost of staying at the martial arts school. After learning that Chen Erniu had borrowed at usurious rates from the Black Tiger Gang, Jiang Fa counted his meager savings and resolved to find a way to get money.

• Wang Dahu and Li Tie complained that Liu Wen’s expensive Blood Condensation Pills gave him an advantage they could not overcome through hard training alone.
• Jiang Fa urged Wang Dahu and Li Tie to keep training, though all three worried about affording room and board.
• Li Tie told Jiang Fa that Chen Erniu had sold his family’s farmland to pay tuition and borrowed from the Black Tiger Gang to buy Blood Strengthening Powder.
• Li Tie warned Jiang Fa not to imitate Chen Erniu by taking a dangerous loan, and Jiang Fa assured him he would be careful.
• Jiang Fa counted his savings and found only three copper coins and a tiny piece of silver, then resolved to find a way to earn money.

Zhao Zhong taught the outer courtyard disciples the Mountain-Breaking Fist, explaining its ranks and the difficulty of reaching the Transformation Realm before demonstrating all eighteen forms. Jiang Fa’s panel recorded the fist as beginner level, and Zhao Zhong called Qin Xuan forward to demonstrate how much he had memorized.

• Zhao Zhong explained that the Mountain-Breaking Fist was a mid Yellow Grade skill paired with the Mountain-Breaking Stance, and described its mastery levels and the rarity of the Transformation Realm.
• Zhao Zhong demonstrated the Mountain-Breaking Fist, striking with enough force to make the disciples feel the blows’ gusts of wind.
• Jiang Fa saw the panel record Mountain-Breaking Fist at Beginner (0/200) and thought his diligence panel would let him reach the Transformation Realm through practice.
• Zhao Zhong asked Qin Xuan how much of the demonstration he had memorized, and Qin Xuan said he remembered seventy to eighty percent.
• Zhao Zhong invited Qin Xuan to demonstrate the forms he could perform, and Qin Xuan walked to the center of the platform.

Qin Xuan performed all eighteen forms of the Mountain-Breaking Fist after seeing them once, impressing Zhao Zhong and the disciples despite his rough technique. After Zhao Zhong explained the fist’s stages and dismissed the group to practice, Li Tie asked Jiang Fa whether he had remembered the forms, and Jiang Fa said he had.

• Qin Xuan performed the complete Mountain-Breaking Fist sequence, astonishing the arena and earning Zhao Zhong’s approval.
• Sun Yi, Xie Tan, and Liu Changhe criticized Qin Xuan’s imperfect forms, while Zhang Qi silenced them and acknowledged his ability.
• Zhao Zhong warned Qin Xuan that he had memorized the moves but had not yet truly entered the technique, then explained the fist’s five realms to the disciples.
• Jiang Fa recalled his Mountain-Breaking Fist panel and resolved to master the technique through practice.
• After Zhao Zhong dismissed the disciples and kept Qin Xuan for extra instruction, Li Tie asked Jiang Fa whether he remembered the forms, and Jiang Fa said he did.

Jiang Fa practiced the Mountain-Breaking Fist and the Seven-Colored Glazed Glass Art, then received advice from Chen Erniu that improved his technique. Chen Erniu revealed that his three-month assessment was only days away and doubted that hard work would be enough.

• Jiang Fa practiced the Mountain-Breaking Fist through the evening and gained eight proficiency points while keeping his progress discreet.
• Jiang Fa circulated the Seven-Colored Glazed Glass Art at night but gained only one proficiency point, leaving him worried about the Black Tiger Gang and the passing assessment period.
• Jiang Fa changed his morning routine to focus on fist practice, and Chen Erniu corrected his tense shoulders and demonstrated how to channel power through his body.
• Jiang Fa copied Chen Erniu's technique and gained four proficiency points, then asked when Chen Erniu's three-month assessment would take place.
• Chen Erniu said his assessment was only a few days away and admitted he doubted that diligence could save him.

Jiang Fa went to the Black Tiger Gang hall to ask Master Hu for a loan, but arrived as the gang brutalized Liu Laosan over unpaid debt. Master Hu ordered Liu Laosan’s thirteen-year-old daughter taken to repay it, while Jiang Fa’s response remained unknown.

• Jiang Fa entered Willow Twig Alley and showed the guards his Zhao Clan Martial Hall token to gain entry to see Master Hu.
• Jiang Fa saw the Black Tiger Gang beating Liu Laosan, who begged for more time to repay his loan.
• Master Hu rejected Liu Laosan’s plea and ordered his daughter taken to repay the debt.
• The bald enforcer agreed and had two underlings drag Liu Laosan out to take the debt contract to his home.

Jiang Fa borrowed twenty taels from the Black Tiger Gang to fund his martial arts training, choosing a dangerous repayment tier over harsher terms. Master Hu planned to profit if Jiang Fa defaulted by selling him to the Wang Family as a servant.

• Jiang Fa entered the Black Tiger Gang’s main room and asked Master Hu for a ten-tael loan to practice martial arts.
• Master Hu refused to lend less than twenty taels and offered standard, double, and life-selling tiers with different terms.
• Jiang Fa rejected the life-selling tier and chose the twenty-tael double tier, agreeing that his life would belong to the gang if he failed to repay.
• Jiang Fa read and signed the loan agreement, took the twenty taels, and left.
• Master Hu told his men that he hoped Jiang Fa would default so he could sell him to the Wang Family for fifty taels.

Jiang Fa spent fifteen taels on Blood Strengthening Powder and a Blood Condensation Pill, then used one packet to accelerate his training. He saw major gains in his martial arts and concluded the expense was worth it, with a breakthrough to Ming Jin now within reach.

• Jiang Fa bought ten packets of Blood Strengthening Powder and one Blood Condensation Pill at Precious Ganoderma Hall for fifteen taels of silver.
• Jiang Fa paid Steward Ma for his room and board, then ate with Li Tie and Wang Dahu before training with them in the outer courtyard.
• After the others left, Jiang Fa took a packet of Blood Strengthening Powder and practiced the Mountain-Breaking Stance and Mountain-Breaking Fist to absorb its potency.
• Jiang Fa checked his panel and found that his Mountain-Breaking Stance, Mountain-Breaking Fist, and Seven-Colored Glazed Glass Art had all improved.
• Jiang Fa judged the medicine worth the cost and believed that breaking through to Ming Jin was within sight.

Jiang Fa witnessed Qin Xuan break through to Ming Jin and become Zhao Zhong’s direct disciple, while Chen Erniu failed the assessment and later died by suicide. After seeing Chen Erniu’s grieving parents leave the martial hall, Jiang Fa clenched his fists, facing the harsh stakes of the three-month deadline.

• Jiang Fa kept up his intensive training as Qin Xuan broke through to Ming Jin, earning entry to the inner courtyard and Zhao Zhong’s personal tutelage.
• Chen Erniu watched Qin Xuan leave, then repeatedly punched a wooden post until his knuckles bled.
• At the three-month assessment, only three old disciples entered the inner courtyard, and Chen Erniu left after failing.
• Disciples learned that Chen Erniu’s body had been found in the moat, with stones in his pockets and the martial hall’s wooden token clenched in his hand.
• Chen Erniu’s parents came to the martial hall to claim his body, and Zhao Zhong gave them silver before sending them home.
• Jiang Fa watched Chen Erniu’s parents depart and clenched his fists as he remembered Chen Erniu’s struggle.

As the three-month assessment approached, Jiang Fa watched his companions leave the martial arts school for family needs and doubts about their talent. He swallowed his last Blood Condensation Pill and broke through to Ming Jin, ending the chapter with his strength projecting outward.

• Zhang Qi took over teaching the new disciples while Li Tie and Wang Dahu grew quiet and dispirited after Chen Erniu's death.
• Chen Ping, the Zhao brothers, Zhou Wen, Wu Xiaoliu, and Zheng Shitou left the school after struggling to make progress.
• Li Tie told Jiang Fa that his father was injured and his family needed him, then left after giving Jiang Fa sesame sugar cakes for himself and Wang Dahu.
• Wang Dahu left to care for his sick mother and admitted he did not believe he was suited to martial arts, urging Jiang Fa to reach the inner courtyard.
• With fewer than ten old disciples remaining before the assessment, Jiang Fa swallowed his last Blood Condensation Pill and broke through to Ming Jin with a punch that shook leaves from a tree.

Jiang Fa broke through to early Ming Jin and brought his Mountain-Breaking Fist to minor achievement before the three-month outer courtyard assessment. He passed with a display of powerful, stable blood and Qi, while Liu Wen failed and could not accept Jiang Fa’s success.

• Jiang Fa broke through to early Ming Jin and advanced his Seven-Colored Glazed Glass Art.
• Jiang Fa discovered the rhythm of the Mountain-Breaking Fist and reached minor achievement after two months of practice.
• At the three-month assessment, Ma Ping and Xu Xiaomeng passed, while Chen Shan, Liu Dali, and Liu Wen failed.
• Jiang Fa shattered the blue bricks beneath his feet with his blood and Qi, passed the assessment, and was ranked second among the successful disciples behind Qin Xuan.
• After the assessment, Liu Wen stared at Jiang Fa and bitterly questioned how a peasant like him could have passed.

Jiang Fa attended Zhao Zhong’s lesson on the second level of the Mountain-Breaking Stance and learned that mastering it would lead to an jin. After settling into his private room in the inner courtyard, he decided to return home for a visit.

• Zhao Zhong explained the inner courtyard rules to Jiang Fa and the other new disciples before teaching them the second level of the Mountain-Breaking Stance.
• Zhao Zhong demonstrated lifting force by breaking a three-inch-thick bluestone slab with a palm strike, then taught the cultivation formula.
• Zhao Zhong assessed the disciples’ bone aptitude and found Jiang Fa and Ma Ping had low-grade aptitude while Zhao Chuan, Xu Feng, and Xu Xiaomeng had middle-grade aptitude.
• Jiang Fa moved into his own room in the inner courtyard and decided to visit home after being away for several months.

Jiang Fa returned to Yellow Earth Town and learned that Liu Laizi’s men had beaten his father for resisting an increased head tax and demanded a tael of silver. As Jiang Fa confronted the truth, someone called into the courtyard demanding repayment of a debt.

• Jiang Fa took leave from the martial hall, brought food and pork home, and told Lady Chen he had become an inner courtyard disciple.
• Jiang Fa learned that Xiao He had been sent to stay with their aunt and found Jiang Dashan badly bruised in bed.
• Jiang Dashan revealed that Liu Laizi’s men had beaten him and Uncle Zhang after they objected to the head tax rising from one hundred to three hundred copper coins.
• Jiang Dashan said Liu Laizi’s men had demanded a tael of silver and threatened to beat him again if he did not pay.
• A shrill voice called into the courtyard, demanding that Jiang Dashan repay the silver he owed the speaker’s family.