Chapter Summaries

Chen Jin returned to the Zhongnan Sword Sect Lower Court, registered his return, and settled into his neglected courtyard. He considered how to hide the Slay Evil Sword and began removing Yan Hui’s restrictions from the Pot Heaven Bag so he could inspect its contents.

• Chen Jin cleaned his overgrown courtyard and reflected on how he had damaged his Qi Seed while rushing to advance to the upper court.
• Chen Jin learned that the old immortal master had been away for three years and wondered whether he had gone looking for him.
• Chen Jin registered his circumstances at the mountain gate and returned to his courtyard on South Mountain.
• Chen Jin bathed, changed into his lower court robes, and decided he could not safely carry the recognizable Slay Evil Sword openly.
• Chen Jin took out the Pot Heaven Bag and began refining away Yan Hui’s restrictions so he could see what the Yan Household had stored inside.

Chen Jin shared a meal with Huang Mengliang and Ye Tong, but Huang’s mention of the Five Elements Central Qi Scroll triggered a painful memory and left Chen Jin coughing blood. After sleeping for seven days, Chen Jin recovered enough to begin refining the Pot Heaven Bag.

• Huang Mengliang invited Chen Jin to dinner, where Chen Jin ate and drank with Huang and his wife, Ye Tong.
• Huang described the lower court’s prominent disciples, including Zhao Qianye, Liu Chen, and Yan Hui, and asked Chen Jin about the Five Elements Central Qi Scroll.
• Chen Jin realized he could not explain when or how he had learned two other Daoist methods, then retched blood and hurried home.
• Huang Mengliang and Ye Tong worried that Chen Jin’s cultivation and heartbreak had left him in poor condition.
• Chen Jin slept for seven days and seven nights, woke with his strength improved, and began refining the Pot Heaven Bag.

After recovering the Pot Heaven Bag, Chen Jin discovered a fortune inside and surprised Huang Mengliang and Ye Tong with his wealth. He went with Huang Mengliang to the mountain market to buy a sword, where they encountered Yan Hui at the Hundred Swords Studio.

• Chen Jin opened the Pot Heaven Bag, found it full of valuables and zombie-related items, and stored away his Slay Evil Sword and other belongings.
• Huang Mengliang offered Chen Jin a thousand talisman coins, but Chen Jin revealed ten thousand coins and gave them to Ye Tong as a belated birthday gift.
• Huang Mengliang accepted Chen Jin's gift and offered to accompany him to the market to buy a sword.
• On the way to the market, Huang Mengliang told Chen Jin about changes in the Lower Court and its shops and disciples.
• Chen Jin and Huang Mengliang entered the Hundred Swords Studio and saw Yan Hui leading a group inside.

Chen Jin returned to the sword sect, bought an ordinary sword and materials for practicing talisman-making, and faced the disciples’ mockery without reacting. Back in his courtyard, he began practicing the Nine Chapters of Sword Exegesis in his transformed human body.

• Yan Hui recognized the Pot Heaven Bag at Chen Jin’s waist, grew furious, then left before she could lose her composure.
• Huang Mengliang bought the Azure Spirit Sword for his wife after Chen Jin helped him secure a discount, while Chen Jin chose an ordinary sword for practice.
• Chen Jin bought talisman paper and ink, telling Huang Mengliang that he had taught himself to draw talismans.
• Fellow disciples mocked Chen Jin’s changed appearance and lost prospects, but Chen Jin calmly said he would not concern himself with their remarks.
• Ye Tong accepted the Azure Spirit Sword and advised Huang Mengliang not to disturb Chen Jin while he focused on cultivation.
• Chen Jin returned to his courtyard, circulated his practice, and began immersing himself in the Nine Chapters of Sword Exegesis.

Chen Jin resumed practicing the Nine Chapters of Sword Exegesis while rebuilding his cultivation, and his improvised sword practice brought him fresh insights. Meanwhile, Huang Mengliang and Ye Tong discussed malicious rumors about Chen Jin and suspected Yan Hui was behind them.

• Chen Jin reflected on his damaged Qi Seed and began cultivating a Dragon-Tiger Yin-Yang Qi Seed and Sword Seed anew.
• Chen Jin practiced Sword Moves and Sword Form, discovering new variations and developing his own flowing style.
• Chen Jin practiced until late into the night, then tossed down his sword and fell asleep.
• Huang Mengliang told Ye Tong that rumors claimed Chen Jin had returned in disgrace, been abandoned by Elder Qin, and harassed Yan Hui.
• Ye Tong suspected someone was spreading rumors to ruin Chen Jin's reputation, and Huang Mengliang agreed that Yan Hui was the likely source.

Chen Jin rebuilt the Lesser Five Elements Array around his courtyard, prepared talismans, and learned that the Sword Competition would take place the following month. As he gathered moonlight Qi that night, his Yin Qi Seed finally formed.

• Chen Jin used talisman materials to create a Lesser Five Elements Array that guarded his courtyard against intrusion and disturbance.
• Chen Jin continued drawing useful talismans and visited Huang Mengliang's home to share meals while asking about the upcoming Sword Competition.
• Huang Mengliang and Ye Tong discussed Chen Jin's likely return to the competition, and Ye Tong encouraged Huang Mengliang to enter as well.
• Chen Jin gathered the moon's essence Qi in his courtyard and formed his Yin Qi Seed.

Chen Jin cultivated a Yin Qi Seed and resolved to seek the rare Netherworld Mysterious Yin Baleful Intent for his Yin Sword Seed. When Huang Mengliang reported that Elder Qin Jianyuan had returned gravely injured, Chen Jin hurried to visit him.

• Chen Jin reflected on how his Yin and Yang Qi Seeds would let him form Sword Seeds, but insisted on waiting for the right Baleful Intent rather than settling for an inferior one.
• Chen Jin missed Yuan Bai and worried about the dangers the monkey king faced outside the mountain.
• Huang Mengliang came to Chen Jin and reported that Elder Qin had returned to the mountain gravely injured.
• Chen Jin left with Huang Mengliang to visit Qin Jianyuan, while Huang Mengliang noticed Chen Jin's chilling Yin Qi and worried about his cultivation.
• The lower court elders gathered at Qin Jianyuan's residence to ask what had happened and who had injured him.

Chen Jin entered the courtyard residence to see the gravely injured Qin Jianyuan after the elders rebuked him and judged his fallen state. He told Qin Jianyuan that he had dispersed his cultivation and begun anew, and the old Daoist gave him a heavy jade box whose contents remained unknown.

• Yao Wuya probed Chen Jin but withdrew when the sun and moon on Chen Jin's spiritual dais shielded him, while Xue Hongmei rebuked him for sinking into depravity.
• The elders left, and a Daoist attendant told Huang Mengliang that only Chen Jin could enter to see Qin Jianyuan.
• Chen Jin entered the dim, medicine-scented room and remembered how Qin Jianyuan had brought him up the mountain as a youth.
• Qin Jianyuan noticed Chen Jin's aged appearance, and Chen Jin wept before wiping away his tears.
• Chen Jin told Qin Jianyuan that a great calamity had forced him to disperse his cultivation and start anew, and Qin Jianyuan handed him a heavy jade box.

Chen Jin discovered that the Sun and Moon Grotto-Heaven shielded his spiritual secrets and received the Ice Soul Divine Baleful Intent Qin Jianyuan had gathered for him, which he planned to use to complete his Yin Sword Sword Seed. Meanwhile, Huang Mengliang confronted Liu Chen and his companions when they came to taunt Chen Jin, and Liu Chen decided to wait outside his courtyard.

• Chen Jin returned to his courtyard, visualized the sun and moon protecting his spiritual embryo and divine aperture, and named the inner domain the Sun and Moon Grotto-Heaven.
• Chen Jin opened Qin Jianyuan's jade box and recognized the Ice Soul Divine Baleful Intent, which he intended to use to complete his Yin Sword Sword Seed rather than condense a Qi Seed.
• Huang Mengliang reflected on the Lower Court's generational tensions and the conflict between the Pure Cultivation and Reform factions.
• Huang Mengliang stopped Liu Chen and his companions from going to Chen Jin's courtyard and told them Chen Jin was cultivating in seclusion.
• Liu Chen dismissed Huang Mengliang's explanation, while Wu Jing mocked Chen Jin; Liu Chen then led the group to wait for Chen Jin to emerge.

Chen Jin completed his Sword Seed and registered for the Sword Competition, then revealed his Sword Intent when Liu Chen and his companions confronted him. Liu Chen realized Chen Jin still possessed powerful reserves and believed the competition was his to win.

• After seven days, Chen Jin formed a deep-blue Sword Seed and set out to register for the Sword Competition.
• Chen Jin registered with Senior Brother He and received token number sixty-six.
• Liu Chen urged Chen Jin to withdraw from the competition, but Chen Jin warned him against letting others use him.
• When Wu Jing insulted Chen Jin, Chen Jin's Sword Intent struck Wu Jing's eyes, leaving him screaming that he was blind.
• Liu Chen realized Chen Jin had retained his Sword Intent and smugly concluded that he had a plan to secure victory in the Sword Competition.

After Chen Jin injured Wu Jing with sword intent, Huang Mengliang and Ye Tong discussed the incident and Chen Jin’s prospects in the Sword Competition. Yan Hui, still wary of Chen Jin’s strength, learned from Liu Chen what happened and decided not to complain to the Censorate; Liu Chen vowed to defeat Chen Jin if they met in the fourth round.

• Huang Mengliang praised Chen Jin for striking back, while Ye Tong worried that Liu Chen had baited him into revealing his strength.
• Huang Mengliang predicted Chen Jin could get through the first three rounds of the Sword Competition and signed up himself.
• Yan Hui recalled Chen Jin’s mysterious return and worried that his strength could not be judged by ordinary standards.
• Liu Chen told Yan Hui that he had failed to block Chen Jin’s sword intent because he was caught off guard.
• Yan Hui comforted Liu Chen and chose not to report Chen Jin to the Censorate, mindful that Qin Jianyuan had returned.
• Liu Chen confidently promised to defeat Chen Jin if they faced each other in the fourth round.

As rumors spread that Chen Jin wanted fellow disciples to make way so he could face Yan Hui in the Sword Competition, Yan Hui and Liu Chen interpreted his actions as a bid for revenge. Yan Hui reassured her master that she was prepared, while Chen Jin reflected on solitude during a visit to Qin Jianyuan.

• Disciples spread an unconfirmed rumor that Chen Jin had asked others to make way so he could fight Yan Hui in the Sword Competition.
• Liu Chen suspected someone was building momentum for Chen Jin, while Yan Hui concluded Chen Jin wanted to defeat her publicly and accepted the coming match.
• Yan Hui visited Xue Hongmei, who criticized the rumors, praised Yan Hui's cultivation, and warned her that Zhao Qianye was her true competition rival.
• Chen Jin visited Qin Jianyuan, who remained sickly and did not explain his condition.
• Qin Jianyuan asked Chen Jin what he was thinking, and Chen Jin said the Sword Competition was approaching while privately wondering whether he would face the world alone.

Chen Jin faced new disciple Yu Chengzhi in the first round of the Sword Competition, drawing a packed crowd eager to see how he would fare after losing his cultivation. Rather than immediately begin their match, Chen Jin calmly advised the nervous Yu Chengzhi on how to steady himself, leaving the spectators wondering whether such instruction was allowed.

• The Zhongnan Sword Sect Lower Court opened its once-in-a-decade Sword Competition, and Chen Jin was assigned new disciple Yu Chengzhi as his first-round opponent.
• Huang Mengliang wished Chen Jin luck before heading to his own match, while Chen Jin visualized the Sun and Moon Grotto-Heaven as he waited.
• A large crowd gathered to watch Chen Jin, and spectators debated whether his diminished cultivation and remaining sword intent could carry him through the opening rounds.
• Chen Jin saw Yu Chengzhi gripping his sword nervously and recalled his own first competition.
• Chen Jin advised Yu Chengzhi to gather his mind and remain calm, prompting bewilderment among the spectators.

Chen Jin won Yu Chengzhi’s match by lecturing him on the Dao until he conceded, earning the lower court disciples’ support. Yan Hui and Liu Chen resented his growing popularity, but Chen Jin’s next match was set against the formidable Song Wushang.

• Chen Jin lectured Yu Chengzhi and the gathered disciples on vanquishing the bandits in one’s heart, then ended the lecture and invited Yu Chengzhi to cross swords.
• Yu Chengzhi thanked Chen Jin and conceded, while the disciples cheered Chen Jin’s victory and hoped to hear him lecture again.
• After their informant reported the match, Liu Chen accused Chen Jin of buying the disciples’ loyalty, and Yan Hui dismissed his victory as opportunistic trickery.
• Yan Hui and Liu Chen learned Chen Jin had received a bye in the next round and waited for the third-round draw.
• Chen Jin drew Song Wushang, a proud Fifth Realm disciple with Sword Intent, and Liu Chen decided to watch the match expecting Chen Jin to lose.

Chen Jin drew attention at the Sword Competition, prompting the elders to debate whether he belonged on the platform. Song Wushang faced him in the third round, and Chen Jin drew his ordinary sword as Song Wushang regretted that he was not carrying the Slay Evil Sword.

• Liu Chen arrived late and found the crowd so absorbed in Chen Jin that no one noticed him.
• Xue Hongmei argued that the Sword Competition needed stricter entry rules, but Mo Xuanyi defended Chen Jin's first-round victory through reasoning.
• Grand Elder Yao Wuya said Chen Jin would have to prove himself in the third round, while Ma Long declined to predict whether Song Wushang could defeat him.
• Song Wushang faced Chen Jin on the platform and declared that he would make his name by defeating him.
• Chen Jin drew his ordinary sword, and Song Wushang regretted that it was not the Slay Evil Sword.

Chen Jin faced Song Wushang in the Sword Competition and countered his Vermilion Bird Sword Intent with a talisman formation and his own icy sword intent. Chen Jin defeated Song Wushang, who admitted his loss.

• Song Wushang challenged Chen Jin, and both took the Green Pine Welcomes Guests stance before beginning their match.
• Song Wushang unleashed his Vermilion Bird Sword Intent, sending flames surging across the arena and alarming the spectators.
• Chen Jin used talismans to form a spell formation instead of revealing his sword intent, disappointing spectators who expected him to rely on the sword.
• Song Wushang shattered the talisman formation, but Chen Jin vanished and froze Song Wushang's Crimson Light Magic Sword with his water and ice sword intent.
• Chen Jin brought his sword to Song Wushang's throat, and Song Wushang conceded defeat.

Chen Jin defeated Song Wushang with ice-type Sword Intent, prompting Lower Court disciples to study the traces left on the platform. Song Wushang admitted his loss to Ma Long and was urged to learn from it.

• Chen Jin won the match after countering Song Wushang's Vermilion Bird Sword Intent, and disciples gathered to comprehend his Sword Intent.
• Huang Mengliang reflected on the rumors surrounding Chen Jin and Yan Hui and concluded that victory could silence criticism.
• Song Wushang went to Ma Long and blamed his defeat on Chen Jin's talisman array and targeted strategy.
• Ma Long repeatedly told Song Wushang that he had lost, and Song Wushang finally acknowledged the defeat and promised to remember his instruction.

Yan Hui and Liu Chen celebrated after Chen Jin drew Zhao Qianye, expecting the Sixth Realm contestant to eliminate him. Their hopes collapsed when Zhao Qianye withdrew from the Sword Competition to repay Chen Jin for his past guidance, advancing Chen Jin to the fifth round.

• Liu Chen described Chen Jin’s duel with Song Wushang to Yan Hui, who worried about Chen Jin’s many hidden abilities.
• Yan Hui warned Liu Chen to be cautious if he faced Chen Jin and said Master Xue would recommend Liu Chen to the Upper Court after the competition.
• Yan Hui and Liu Chen were delighted when they learned Chen Jin had drawn Zhao Qianye in the fourth round.
• Yan Hui and Liu Chen began celebrating over wine, expecting Zhao Qianye to give Chen Jin a difficult fight.
• Li Bin reported that Zhao Qianye had withdrawn to repay Chen Jin for his guidance, sending Chen Jin directly to the fifth round.
• Yan Hui suspected a conspiracy, but realized Zhao Qianye’s withdrawal appeared to be his own decision.

The elders debated whether Zhao Qianye had colluded with Chen Jin after Zhao voluntarily withdrew from the Sword Competition match against him. Qin Jianyuan defended Zhao's decision as repayment for Chen Jin's past guidance, and Yao Wuya ended the dispute so the competition could continue.

• Huang Mengliang reflected that Zhao Qianye's decision showed a friendship and gratitude that had endured beneath the surface.
• Xue Hongmei demanded an investigation, suspecting Chen Jin had arranged for Zhao Qianye to step aside, while Sun Yiming argued that Zhao had decided on his own.
• Ma Long insisted that Song Wushang had lost to Chen Jin fairly, and Xue Hongmei admitted the two cases were different.
• Qin Jianyuan arrived despite his injuries and explained that Zhao had repaid Chen Jin for guidance that helped him break through to the Sixth Realm.
• Qin Jianyuan criticized those who forgot kindness, provoking Xue Hongmei until Yao Wuya ordered the elders to stop arguing.
• Yao Wuya declared the matter closed and said the Sword Competition would continue without further concessions to Chen Jin.

Chen Jin watched Yan Hui prepare to fight Zhou Lang and used a Law Technique to unsettle her before the match began. Convinced that Yan Hui would win, he left the arena, saying her opponent already revealed the outcome.

• The elders ended the investigation into Zhao Qianye and Chen Jin, while Huang Mengliang lost to Liu Chen despite fighting fiercely.
• Huang Mengliang invited Chen Jin to watch Yan Hui's bout with Zhou Lang, and Chen Jin agreed.
• Yan Hui noticed Chen Jin in the crowd and grew alarmed when their eyes met and he smiled with his hand on his sword hilt.
• Yan Hui steadied herself, realizing that Elder Mo Xuanyi was overseeing the match and Chen Jin could not attack without consequence.
• Huang Mengliang suspected Chen Jin had used a Law Technique to stir Yan Hui's guilty thoughts, but Chen Jin left before the bout began, saying the opponent revealed the outcome.