Recaps

Xu Laohu and a force of martial artists, sorcerers, and scripture preachers gathered at Miss Cao’s summons to target Sun Feng'an and Chu Tianshu in Luoyang. After Miss Cao revealed Chu Tianshu’s growing power, the assembled experts embraced the mission, and she prepared to lead them west.

• Xu Laohu waited another day and a half as scripture preachers and martial artists arrived at the hillside.
• Ma Bucheng introduced himself to Xu Laohu, while the gathered experts wondered why the Cao Family had assembled such a large force.
• Miss Cao named Sun Feng'an and Chu Tianshu as their targets and described Chu Tianshu’s victories in Yu Province.
• Miss Cao warned that the sect master had sensed the Origin Canon’s power gathering in Chu Tianshu and urged the experts to act before he grew stronger.
• The Thousand-Drunken Old Man and the old man on the bench pledged their support, and Xu Laohu roused his men for the fight.
• Miss Cao removed her gloves, revealing crawling red talismans, and ordered the force to make Luoyang lively that night.

Chu Tianshu fought off a coordinated attack on Luoyang, using his speed and martial arts to counter gunmen and mortar fire. After turning the shells back on the attackers, he returned to the city as Sun Feng'an and Huo Ming arrived in the eastern district.

• More than thirty ninjas blasted open Luoyang’s eastern gate with mortars while over a hundred armed riders entered the city and scattered.
• Chu Tianshu reached the eastern district, where hidden gunmen fired on him from rooftops as they changed positions.
• Chu Tianshu spotted the gunmen and killed several by hurling broken roof tiles through their cover.
• The ninjas bombarded Chu Tianshu on the city wall, but he slowed the impact-fused shells with a Four-Leaf Seal and flung them back outside the city.
• The returned shells detonated the attackers’ ammunition, and Chu Tianshu plunged back into the city as Sun Feng'an and Huo Ming arrived.

Sun Feng'an fought Yu Ji’s reanimated skeleton while Huo Ming and Chu Tianshu battled gunmen across Luoyang’s eastern district. Chu Tianshu then faced the assassin Laughing Guest, who attacked with an iron bench.

• Sun Feng'an met Yu Ji’s skeleton on a bridge and traded blows with it, but could not destroy it.
• Huo Ming evaded gunfire, killed several gunmen with curved shots, and deduced that an unseen force was directing them using a map and magic.
• Chu Tianshu killed twelve gunmen, then landed in a street and was attacked by Laughing Guest with an iron bench.
• Laughing Guest’s bench nearly struck Chu Tianshu’s leg, but Chu Tianshu withdrew his hand and launched a renewed attack.

Chu Tianshu unleashed his strongest fighting form and defeated Bench Fighter, Ma Bucheng, and Thousand-Drunken Old Man. He confronted Xu Laohu on the city wall and declared that he would kill him in Luoyang before searching for the person who cast the spell.

• Chu Tianshu struck Bench Fighter through the iron bench and sent him crashing into the city wall.
• Chu Tianshu caught Ma Bucheng’s saber, shattered it and his arm, then tore out a pillar and hurled it at Thousand-Drunken Old Man.
• Thousand-Drunken Old Man broke apart the pillar with Drunken Mantis, but Chu Tianshu seized him and carried him to the city wall.
• Chu Tianshu met Xu Laohu on the wall and said he would bury him in Luoyang, keeping Thousand-Drunken Old Man alive to help find the spellcaster.

Chu Tianshu defeated Xu Laohu with his Three Raging Wave Fists, destroying his soul and killing him. He then confronted Thousand-Drunken Old Man, who offered to lead him to the ritual altar in exchange for a quick death.

• Xu Laohu attacked Chu Tianshu with the Roaring Tiger True Interpretation and a barrage of sound-driven Bai Mei Fist punches, but Chu Tianshu blocked them all.
• Chu Tianshu struck Xu Laohu's elbow and forearm, then landed three powerful punches that shattered Xu Laohu's soul and killed him.
• Thousand-Drunken Old Man asked whether Chu Tianshu had used an Origin Canon, and Chu Tianshu said he had used martial arts and warned that he would question him by force.
• Chu Tianshu rebuked Thousand-Drunken Old Man for abandoning martial arts and relying on tonics, prompting the old man to offer directions to the ritual altar in exchange for a quick death.
• Chu Tianshu lifted Thousand-Drunken Old Man and unsealed his right hand, and the old man pointed the way.

Chu Tianshu confronted the dying Cao Ying at a ritual platform outside Luoyang and reversed the altar, disrupting the gunmen’s attack in the eastern district. As he kept Cao Ying alive and pressed her with predictions of failure, she revealed the Cao Family’s plan involving the Qingcheng Ghost King and the Pear God, but the chapter ended before she disclosed their chosen time and place.

• Cao Ying learned from the deaths of scripture masters and the breaking of her life-bound beads that Chu Tianshu had defeated the killers and was eliminating her ninjas.
• The six remaining scripture masters fled, while Cao Ying stayed behind and drank blood wine from a lead cup.
• Chu Tianshu arrived carrying Thousand-Drunken Old Man, confronted Cao Ying, and identified that she had poisoned herself with the ritual wine.
• Chu Tianshu cracked the three-tiered platform and extinguished its candles, causing gunmen in Luoyang’s eastern district to suffer sudden eye pain.
• As Cao Ying weakened, Chu Tianshu kept her alive and taunted her with her repeated failures until she revealed that the Cao Family planned to use the Qingcheng Ghost King to awaken the Pear God and claim the Three Gods’ power.
• Cao Ying insisted the plan would succeed and began to reveal the time and place they had chosen, but the chapter ended before she finished.

Guo Baozhi and Cao Ying completed a ritual on Mount Little Qingliang that restored the Ghost King’s Divine Power of Sorrow and Joy and weakened the Five Chang Gods. Yuanzai then revealed that the Holy Maiden and all twelve scripture teachers had died in Luoyang, prompting Cao Ying to report the disaster and receive instructions to seek peace talks.

• Guo Baozhi saw the black jade pendant’s true form and realized that the Ghost King had regained the Divine Power of Sorrow and Joy.
• Cao Ying and Guo Baozhi discussed how their ritual had restrained the Five Chang Gods while leaving their foundation intact.
• Yuanzai arrived and accused Cao Ying of killing the Holy Maiden and all twelve scripture teachers, whose life lamps had gone out.
• Cao Ying sent an urgent message to Liaodong, and Lord Cao replied that Ying'er had been instructed to prioritize her safety.
• Lord Cao sent a second telegram stating that the three-god plan was complete and ordering an announcement to invite peace talks.

After defeating Cao Ying and destroying the ritual platform, Chu Tianshu discovered that her mask depicted the Nuo God Fangxiang and considered how to separate the Nuo Gods’ power from the Five Rampancies. In Rongcheng, Liu Yanqi nearly stepped down because of his worsening condition, but news of Cao Bokun’s proposed peace talks convinced him the Cao Family was plotting and he should keep fighting.

• Chu Tianshu questioned Cao Ying until she died, then examined her black iron mask and recognized its four-eyed figure as the Nuo God Fangxiang.
• Sun Feng'an arrived carrying Yu Ji’s skeleton and told Chu Tianshu the city had been pacified; Chu Tianshu ordered Thousand-Drunken Old Man to write down his kung fu manuals before dying.
• Liu Yanqi told Cai Shanjun that his recurring eye pain had weakened him and that he planned to step down while seeking a chance to deal with the Ghost King.
• The chief of staff reported that the Cao Family was preparing peace talks and urged the rebels to build momentum against its coming public campaign.
• Liu Yanqi rejected the idea of relaxing, suspecting Cao Bokun was using peace talks to conceal a major setback and plot; Cai Shanjun ordered a telegram sent to Luoyang to ask what had happened.

After Xu Laohu’s attack on Luoyang, Chu Tianshu and Sun Feng'an discussed the Cao Family’s proposed peace talks and Jiangdong’s political position. Huo Ming then reported that the military governor and Marshal Liu had arrived together in Luoyang, while Chu Tianshu was still waiting for Sun Feng'an’s promised collection of famed swords and sabers.

• Luoyang residents spread fantastical stories about the battle and Chu Tianshu’s and Sun Feng'an’s roles in defeating the attackers.
• Sun Feng'an told Chu Tianshu that the capital had proposed peace talks between Han Prefecture and Jiangdong and that the Cao Family’s supporters were blaming anyone who refused.
• Chu Tianshu and Sun Feng'an considered how Han Prefecture’s achievements and Jiangdong’s dealings with Dongying affected public opinion and foreign relations.
• Chu Tianshu asked when Sun Feng'an’s promised swords and sabers would arrive, and Sun Feng'an said his brother would send a collection within a day or two.
• Huo Ming told Chu Tianshu that the military governor and Marshal Liu had arrived in Luoyang together.

Chu Tianshu reunited with Cai Shanjun and learned that the Cave God Lady was formed from sacrificed heroes and had nearly perished fighting the Ghost King of Qingcheng. Cai Shanjun warned that the Cao Family’s plan to bring three ghost gods together would spread their influence, and Chu Tianshu prepared to act on an idea.

• Liu Yanqi warmly praised Chu Tianshu, then spoke with Sun Feng'an while Cai Shanjun arrived and gave Chu Tianshu flower cakes.
• Cai Shanjun revealed that the Cave God Lady’s Yin Qi came from the souls of Wu Clan Stronghold’s sacrificed heroes, who had joined together after the old ghost god was worn away.
• Cai Shanjun explained that the Cave God Lady had fought the Ghost King of Qingcheng during the Battle of Bashu, where the Rainbow Cloud Flute was destroyed and she was nearly erased.
• Cai Shanjun said Liu Yanqi’s injured right eye hurt whenever the Ghost King showed signs of recovering, and that Chu Tianshu’s news confirmed the Ghost King’s recovery was connected to the capital.
• Cai Shanjun warned that the Cao Family’s plan to make three gods stand together would expose people to several ghost gods’ influences and cause widespread calamity.
• Chu Tianshu said he had an idea and took the mask from his waist.

Chu Tianshu tried to have the Cave God absorb the Five Rampancies seal and Nuo God mask, but it failed, so he planned to strengthen the Sanqi Divine Sword through another method. Cai Shanjun proposed using the Cave God to help steal Origin Canons and revealed that Principal Li was researching how to divide them among multiple inheritors; Chu Tianshu asked for seven days before joining the peace talks.

• Chu Tianshu asked the Cave God to absorb the Five Rampancies seal and Nuo God mask, but the Cave God could not refine either object.
• Chu Tianshu planned to use the Nanhua True Interpretation and his Weapon Soul to transfer the mask's Primordial Qi into the Sanqi Divine Sword and steal the Five Chang Gods' power.
• Cai Shanjun said the Cave God could help steal the Origin Canons connected to Guan Yu, Yu Ji, and Lü Bu in Luoyang.
• Cai Shanjun explained that Principal Li was researching how to divide ownerless Origin Canons among multiple inheritors to share their power and flaws.
• Chu Tianshu told Cai Shanjun to choose the timing for the peace talks and asked for seven days to attempt to strengthen his sword before joining him.

Cao Bokun returned to the capital and prepared for peace talks with the Han Prefecture, arguing that diplomacy would buy time to strengthen his position. Ten days later, Chu Tianshu arrived outside the city with a convoy and a case of famous weapons, curious whether the capital’s strange atmosphere would turn its people against one another.

• Cao Bokun entered the capital, reunited with Cao Ying, and urged him to welcome the Han Prefecture’s peace delegation with sincerity.
• Cao Bokun explained that talks could slow the Han Prefecture and Jiangdong while the Cao Family adjusted its defenses, despite Cao Ying’s anger over their losses.
• Cao Bokun found the capital’s influential residents strangely subdued and learned that they had gone to behold the newly worshipped gods Jiaoli and the Ghost King.
• Cao Bokun ordered True Person Yuanzai’s recovery prioritized, while Guo Baozhi quietly waited for an opportunity during the peace talks.
• Newspapers published selections from Cao Bokun’s diary, and the capital saw repeated killings as its wealthy residents became less active.
• Ten days after Cao Bokun’s return, Chu Tianshu arrived outside the capital with Sun Feng'an and Cai Shanjun, then decided to enter the city.

Cao Bokun hosted Chu Tianshu’s delegation and proposed terms for peace, including concessions over Yu Province, Qilu, and captured prisoners. Chu Tianshu rejected the offers, and as Cao Ying extended a gloved hand to him, the glove triggered a sudden stabbing pain in Chu Tianshu’s eyes and its stiffened fingertips lunged at his face.

• Liu Shulin welcomed Chu Tianshu and his companions to the capital estate, where they waited several hours for Cao Bokun.
• Cao Bokun arrived with Cao Ying and led the delegation to a lakeside pavilion for preliminary peace talks.
• Cao Bokun offered Liu Shulin control of unified Yu Province and offered Chu Tianshu a prestigious general’s title, but Chu Tianshu remained unmoved.
• Cao Bokun proposed sending Sun Feng’an’s brother to Qilu and exchanging prisoners, while Sun Feng’an hesitated and Liu Yanqi questioned whether the captives were still alive.
• Chu Tianshu criticized Cao Bokun’s proposals and called the proposed prisoner exchange a way to free criminals, prompting Cao Ying to offer a handshake as a sign of sincerity.
• Cao Ying extended his white-gloved hand, and Chu Tianshu felt pain in his eyes as the glove’s fingertips stiffened and thrust toward his face.

Chu Tianshu and Cao Ying's clash shattered the pavilion and turned the peace talks into a battle, while Cao Bokun expanded the battlefield with a sword strike. As Cao Ying attacked again by controlling the swords in Chu Tianshu's case, Chu Tianshu drew the lone intact blade and slashed toward the pear blossoms.

• Cao Ying attacked Chu Tianshu with a pear branch, but Chu Tianshu deflected it and struck back, sending Cao Ying skidding across the pavilion and over the water.
• Cao Bokun drew the Fengtian Sword and struck the ground, causing explosions that destroyed the pavilion and scattered the fighters across the lake.
• Chu Tianshu laughed and challenged his opponents, while Cao Bokun explained that his Heaven-Leaning True Explanation let him create explosions more easily near water.
• Cao Ying's eyes changed, and he used his Jiaoli Pear ability to control the swords in Chu Tianshu's case and attack him with the branch.
• Chu Tianshu's sword case burst apart, and the old blades inside crumbled; he seized the sole intact sword and slashed toward the pear blossoms.

Chu Tianshu defeated Cao Ying and used the Sanqi Divine Sword to suppress the Pear God within the blade. The Pear God’s roar shook the battlefield as the fight ended with both Cao Ying and the god subdued.

• Chu Tianshu pursued Cao Ying across the lake, breaking through the pear branch’s defenses with his sword.
• Cao Ying reached the shore and struck with the force of Havoc in Heaven, but Chu Tianshu evaded the cudgel and descended with a powerful sword strike.
• Chu Tianshu split Cao Ying’s body and pinned the Pear God’s true form, a pear tree stump, to the ground.
• Chu Tianshu used blood and the power of the Five Chang Gods to resist the Pear God’s attempt to corrupt the Sanqi Divine Sword.
• Chu Tianshu pulled out the sword and absorbed the stump into it, suppressing the Pear God.

Liu Yanqi and Cai Shanjun killed Guo Baozhi and exposed the Ghost King, while Cao Bokun received the God of the Five Rampancies’ power and escaped Chu Tianshu. The chapter ended with Chu Tianshu confronting Yuanzai at the ritual altar.

• Liu Yanqi used Guo Baozhi’s urge to flee to send a small sword into his chest, and Cai Shanjun’s zither attack destroyed Guo Baozhi’s body and revealed the Ghost King.
• Cai Shanjun and Sun Feng'an used the zither, Lü Bu’s Origin Canon, and Guo Baozhi’s wine cup to confine the Ghost King.
• Cao Bokun resisted Liu Yanqi’s sword and divine power sent from afar, then retreated from the bridge as Chu Tianshu arrived.
• Yuanzai performed a ritual to send the God of the Five Rampancies’ power to Cao Bokun, believing it gave him a chance against Chu Tianshu.
• Chu Tianshu blasted through the wall into the woods and called out to Yuanzai.

Chu Tianshu broke through Yuanzai’s defenses and intercepted a poisoned-needle attack, then became locked in a sword contest with Cao Bokun. The struggle left them holding each other in check as Yuanzai remained nearby and Liu Yanqi might catch up.

• Chu Tianshu used a Sonic Arts shout to disrupt Yuanzai, shattered the ritual platform’s defenses, and struck Yuanzai off the platform with the Sanqi Divine Sword.
• Chu Tianshu sensed a concealed attack and caught hundreds of poisoned hair needles on his sword before identifying the Nianzi mages who had fired them.
• Cao Bokun intercepted Chu Tianshu with the Fengtian Sword, and their blades clashed as the poisoned needles shattered between them.
• Chu Tianshu blew the needle fragments back at Cao Bokun, who used the Five Chang Gods’ Divine Power to protect his face.
• Chu Tianshu and Cao Bokun locked swords and tested their strength, each holding the other in check as Yuanzai drew near.

Chu Tianshu trapped Yuanzai in a contest that destroyed the Five Rampancies mask, then defeated Cao Bokun after Cao summoned the Five Rampancies' power. The chapter ended with Chu Tianshu revealing that the spirit he had raised was also a god in his sword.

• Yuanzai tried to curse Chu Tianshu through a figure carved into a tree, but Chu broke Yuanzai's dagger and began draining the Five Rampancies mask.
• Cao Bokun abandoned his caution and summoned the Five Rampancies' divine power, then disarmed Chu Tianshu and knocked him off the ritual platform.
• Chu Tianshu used Kunpeng Transformation to pursue Cao Bokun as they fought through the treetops and forest around Yuanzai.
• The Sanqi Divine Sword released a burst of light that split the mask, weakening Cao Bokun and allowing Chu Tianshu to batter him to death.
• Chu Tianshu wiped the blood from his mouth and revealed that the spirit he had raised was a god in his sword.

Chu Tianshu joined Cai Shanjun and Liu Yanqi in countering the Ghost King’s sorrow-based attacks, then took over as Cai’s music wore the spirit down. As the Ghost King weakened, Chu Tianshu prepared to strike it down.

• Chu Tianshu seized Sanqi, sealed Yuanzai’s acupoints, and carried him back to the manor.
• The Ghost King attacked Liu Yanqi with sorrow, and Chu Tianshu stepped in, suffering a worsening of his existing heart injury.
• Chu Tianshu treated his injury with medicinal silver needles and recognized that Cai Shanjun’s Three Variations of the Zither Heart could counter the Ghost King.
• Chu Tianshu sent Liu Yanqi to handle the disorder in the capital and took over as Cai Shanjun continued playing.
• As the Ghost King grew insubstantial, Chu Tianshu synchronized Sanqi with the guqin and charged to kill it.

Chu Tianshu and Cai Shanjun dealt with the Five Rampancies’ remaining threat while Liu Yanqi secured the capital. With the Five Chang Gods’ statue destroyed and Cai Shanjun calming the city, the fighting ended for the night.

• After sealing the Pear God, Chu Tianshu questioned Yuanzai, who explained the Five Rampancies’ plan to enter the Dragon Vein and revealed that their Dharma Lord’s statue remained at Stone Stele Alley.
• Chu Tianshu, Sun Feng'an, and Yuanzai headed to the old arsenal, where they met Cai Shanjun as he moved to stop a riot in the West City District.
• Cai Shanjun played a gentle tune that quieted the unrest while Chu Tianshu confronted the half-formed Five Chang Gods’ statue.
• Chu Tianshu struck the statue with the Sanqi Divine Sword, drew it fully into reality, and severed its head.
• Liu Yanqi sensed the divine threat fall and concluded that the Five Rampancies had lost their head and the fighting was over for the night.

Chu Tianshu returned to Kunming and reunited with Ma Zhengwu, Old Yu, and Zhong Jinqiu at the sanatorium. He planned to rest, treat Old Yu’s injured arm, study martial arts manuals, and enjoy the local mushroom dishes.

• Ma Zhengwu taught his talisman arts class and praised Student Zhu, who suggested combining Weapon-Warding Talismans with military detectors.
• Chu Tianshu arrived beneath the flowering trees, and Student Zhu recognized him as the divine physician whose photo had appeared in the newspaper.
• Chu Tianshu told Ma Zhengwu that he had flown back from the capital and walked with him to the sanatorium.
• Chu Tianshu reunited with Old Yu and Zhong Jinqiu, offered to treat Old Yu’s damaged arm, and brought martial arts manuals to study.
• Chu Tianshu proposed eating Kunming mushrooms and said his deep cultivation would protect him from poisoning.

Chu Tianshu deduced and began practicing the Heavenly Heart Sorrowful Demon Slash, a saber technique that converts the wielder’s state of mind into killing power. After returning to his phone, he learned from Helai that a former regional leader in the northwest had mysteriously become a child.

• Chu Tianshu chose the Ghost King of Sorrow and Joy’s sorrow-wounding trait to optimize the Demonic Sect’s saber technique and created the Heavenly Heart Sorrowful Demon Slash.
• Chu Tianshu practiced the new technique with a length of bamboo, using a blade of foxtail grass as his target.
• Chu Tianshu turned on his phone and found several missed calls from Helai.
• Helai told Chu Tianshu that he had to remain in the southeast to oversee the Spirit Realm’s medicinal fields and was concerned about an incident in the northwest.
• Helai sent Chu Tianshu a photo of a child and revealed that the child was his old friend, the former person in charge of the northwest, who had looked that way for half a month.

Chu Tianshu prepared to visit Lin Chucheng in the northwest, but first held the long-delayed opening of the Calming Spirit Pharmacy. The lively ceremony drew a crowd, and Chu Tianshu announced the pharmacy’s opening discounts before the ribbon-cutting.

• Helai told Chu Tianshu that Lin Chucheng had mysteriously reverted to a child and lost most of his weight, though much of his cultivation remained.
• Chu Tianshu agreed to visit Lin Chucheng, but Helai and Second Grandpa persuaded him to open the pharmacy the next day before leaving.
• Chu Tianshu arrived at the renovated Calming Spirit Pharmacy and greeted the elderly workers gathered in its western annex.
• Second Grandpa arranged dragon and lion dances and played “Blue and White Porcelain” at the opening, while Chu Tianshu accepted the unusual celebration.
• Chu Tianshu announced seven-day discounts on several medicines and a fruit basket for customers who spent two hundred, then said the event would begin after the ribbon-cutting.

Chu Tianshu arrived in the Ili River Valley, where Mo Xiaoyu and Tang Nu received him and Tang Nu described the region’s strange incidents. Mo Xiaoyu suggested that the frequent blending of human and beast spirituality might stem from an ancient kingdom once located in the valley.

• Mo Xiaoyu and Tang Nu waited at the airport for Chu Tianshu, while Tang Nu complained about the higher-ups sending him as a consultant.
• Chu Tianshu arrived, greeted them, and rode with them from the airport as Tang Nu asked about his experience with monsters.
• Tang Nu recounted several incidents involving people transformed or behaving like beasts, including poachers and antique smugglers.
• Chu Tianshu questioned why beast-related phenomena were so common in the incidents Tang Nu had seen.
• Mo Xiaoyu said researchers had theorized that the Ili River Valley was once part of the Queen Mother of the West's Kingdom, where human and beast spirituality could mingle.

Chu Tianshu arrived at the Special Investigation Bureau’s northwestern base and watched its intense tank-training exercises. When Xiong Zhengsan ignored being counted as dead and attacked a third tank, Chu Tianshu intervened, disrupted the training devices, and stopped his strike.

• Mo Xiaoyu explained how the base’s modified, computer-controlled tanks fired Yin Qi during competitive training exercises.
• Xiong Zhengsan destroyed two tanks with powerful palm strikes, then continued fighting despite being declared dead and warned to leave the field.
• Chu Tianshu leaped onto a third tank, crushed its device, and disrupted the Yin Qi in the nearby tanks.
• Xiong Zhengsan attacked Chu Tianshu with a forceful Red Fist palm strike.
• Chu Tianshu struck the Laogong acupoint in Xiong Zhengsan’s palm, then knocked him back and ended the attack.