Chapter Summaries

Zhang Xuezhou demonstrated his Fake Physiognomy Technique to the Zhang Household, explaining how facial features could be used as templates to infer a person's temperament and conduct. Zhang Baojia and the others became eager to learn it, while Rong Tianding wondered what Zhang Xuezhou's own changing appearance meant.

• Zhang Xuezhou explained that physiognomy relied on comparing facial features and temperaments rather than mystical powers, then drew examples for the household to assess.
• Zhang Baojia recognized a man who matched one of Zhang Xuezhou's sketches and recalled that the seemingly forthright butcher Zhang Laosan cheated customers.
• Rong Tianding asked whether physiognomy meant a person's fate was fixed at birth, and Zhang Xuezhou explained that appearances changed with a person's circumstances and stabilized as they grew older.
• Rong Tianding noticed that Zhang Xuezhou's appearance had changed over time and asked what his features signified, but Zhang Xuezhou said he could not read himself accurately.
• Zhang Baojia, Zhang Houtu, Zhang Zhong, and Jia Zhiyuan expressed interest in learning Zhang Xuezhou's simple, accessible Physiognomy Technique.

Zhang Xuezhou taught Zhang Baojia and the other elderly villagers physiognomy so they could earn money by reading fortunes. Yi Shuo realized that her future depended on benefactors, while Rong Tianding saw how his life had changed through following Zhang Xuezhou.

• Zhang Baojia and the other elderly villagers asked Zhang Xuezhou to teach them physiognomy so they could set up fortune-telling stalls.
• Zhang Xuezhou agreed and drew facial-feature diagrams, explaining how different features corresponded to people’s prospects and fates.
• The villagers compared the diagrams with themselves and people they knew, recalling past successes and reacting to their readings.
• Rong Tianding told Yi Shuo that people could change their fate by relying on benefactors, and Yi Shuo recognized that help from influential people had already shaped her rise.
• Rong Tianding compared his former face with his current one and realized that following Zhang Xuezhou had improved his prospects.

Zhang Xuezhou explained the limits of physiognomy to Rong Tianding, who planned to travel to Mount Tai with the Boshan incense burner. At a midday gathering, Li Shaojun ambushed Zhang Xuezhou, but Zhang fought back, believing his luck had changed.

• Rong Tianding counted 191 facial charts and asked Zhang Xuezhou why he had not drawn his own face.
• Zhang Xuezhou explained that he could not accurately read or draw his own face and warned Rong Tianding not to let physiognomy bind him.
• Rong Tianding proposed taking the Boshan incense burner to Mount Tai to sacrifice prisoners and capture yin creatures to guard the residence, and Zhang Xuezhou approved.
• Zhang Xuezhou noticed an unfamiliar man at the midday meal and approached him after sensing he looked familiar.
• Li Shaojun revealed himself, attacked Zhang Xuezhou with a knife and an elbow, and demanded an explanation, so Zhang Xuezhou cursed him and fought back.

Zhang Xuezhou captured Li Shaojun after Li accused him of arranging his death, but they discovered that Divine Lord Zhenyuan had killed Li instead. Unable to find a reason, Zhang decided to ask Cai Ma, who might know what had provoked Zhenyuan.

• The Zhang family overwhelmed Li Shaojun, tied him up, and buried him halfway in a cellar as Zhang Xuezhou threatened him with a sharpened bamboo pole.
• Zhang Xuezhou questioned Li about attacking him and learned that Li had come seeking answers about being killed by Divine Lord Zhenyuan at the Cloud Wing Daoist Temple.
• Li said he had spent twelve days helping Zhenyuan with formations and had only taken a little extra benefit, while Rong Tianding confirmed the division had been fair.
• Zhang Xuezhou realized he could not visit Zhenyuan at the Palace of Peace and Happiness without causing trouble, so he decided to ask Cai Ma about the killing.

Li Shaojun asked Zhang Xuezhou why Divine Lord Zhenyuan had tried to kill him, and Zhang Xuezhou suggested Cai Ma might know. Before going to ask her, Zhang Xuezhou confiscated Li Shaojun’s transforming Fish Intestine Sword, leaving Li Shaojun restrained and brooding over how difficult Zhang Xuezhou was to harm.

• Li Shaojun approached Zhang Xuezhou to learn why Divine Lord Zhenyuan had attacked him, and Zhang Xuezhou suggested asking Cai Ma.
• Li Shaojun agreed to wait for Zhang Xuezhou to find out, while Zhang Xuezhou had Rong Tianding guard him with a bamboo pole.
• Zhang Xuezhou took Li Shaojun’s short sword and learned it was the Fish Intestine Sword, which turned into a deadly blade after being soaked in water.
• Li Shaojun explained that the sword’s blade stayed sharp for only one shi and three ke, and Zhang Xuezhou kept it while claiming Li Shaojun still owed him a favor.
• Rong Tianding refused Li Shaojun water and threatened to poke him, while Li Shaojun wondered how Zhang Xuezhou had resisted the Fish Intestine Sword.

Zhang Xuezhou flew to the Cloud Wing Daoist Temple to question Cai Ma about Divine Lord Zhenyuan killing Li Shaojun, but she would not reveal the reason. After suspecting Li Shaojun’s death involved a secret about him, Zhang left, and Cai Ma decided to return to the Western Kunlun Holy Land.

• Zhang Xuezhou flew toward the Cloud Wing Daoist Temple at night and was nearly struck down by Divine Lord Zhenyuan, who mistook him for a threat.
• Zhang Xuezhou told Divine Lord Zhenyuan he had business with Cai Ma, then entered the temple while Divine Lord Zhenyuan returned to the Palace of Peace and Happiness.
• Cai Ma asked Zhang Xuezhou whether someone killed by Divine Lord Zhenyuan could come back to life, leading him to question her about Li Shaojun’s death.
• Cai Ma refused to explain why Divine Lord Zhenyuan killed Li Shaojun, fearing she would cause Zhang Xuezhou trouble and incur the Divine Lord’s anger.
• Zhang Xuezhou left after warning Cai Ma against solving conflicts through violence, while Cai Ma resolved to return to the Western Kunlun Holy Land.

Zhang Xuezhou persuaded Li Shaojun to leave Chang'an and avoid Divine Lord Zhenyuan, who had attacked Zhang Xuezhou while looking for someone else. Li Shaojun entrusted Zhang Xuezhou with gathering the ingredients for an Eight-Step Immortal Ascension Pill, and Zhang Xuezhou agreed to help refine it.

• Zhang Xuezhou returned to the Zhang residence injured and told Li Shaojun that Divine Lord Zhenyuan had struck him, then said Cai Ma believed Li Shaojun had learned a dangerous secret.
• Zhang Xuezhou urged Li Shaojun to lie low until Divine Lord Zhenyuan left Chang'an, and Li Shaojun decided to abandon his pursuit of the imperial court's resources and flee.
• Li Shaojun asked Zhang Xuezhou to help obtain the remaining ingredients for his Eight-Step Immortal Ascension Pill, and Zhang Xuezhou agreed.
• Li Shaojun listed the pill's mineral ingredients and warned Zhang Xuezhou not to refine it without him; Zhang Xuezhou agreed to gather the materials and make the pill together.

After sending Li Shaojun away, Zhang Xuezhou went to the imperial palace and learned that officials had adapted to the dress rules he had revised, leaving him unable to use them to escape his Palace Grandee post. He considered provoking someone into attacking him, possibly by starting a drunken brawl.

• Li Shaojun urged Zhang Xuezhou to help find life-extending medicine for his parents, then left for Luoyang after Zhang escorted him out of the city.
• Zhang Xuezhou reflected that sending Li Shaojun away kept both him and Divine Lord Zhenyuan safe, and remembered the Fish Intestine Sword and Eight-Step Immortal Ascension Pill formula he had obtained.
• Zhang Xuezhou traveled to Weiyang Palace and considered finding a residence near the imperial palace so he could stay close to the new emperor.
• Li Guang told Zhang Xuezhou that officials had adapted to the uniform etiquette rules, and none had violated them in a way that could lead to Zhang's dismissal.
• Zhang Xuezhou decided he still needed to make an enemy and considered starting a drunken fight, confident that his strengthened body could handle a brawl.

Zhang Xuezhou went to Pepper Chamber Hall seeking the emperor, where he met the shaman priestess Chu Fu and learned the emperor was in the Shu Chamber. After hearing a singer whose melody resonated with his Heaven Bridge, he greeted the emperor, who recognized him as someone who had been hiding from him.

• Zhang Xuezhou introduced himself to Chu Fu at Pepper Chamber Hall and learned that she was the empress’s shaman priestess.
• Chu Fu directed Zhang Xuezhou to the Shu Chamber, and he overheard a conversation about the empress learning to sing and dance to attract the emperor.
• Zhang Xuezhou followed an unaccompanied song to the Shu Chamber and found that its rhythm helped his Heaven Bridge return to its proper position.
• Zhang Xuezhou praised the singer’s song and knocked on the Shu Chamber door to greet the emperor.
• The emperor recognized Zhang Xuezhou and complained that he had been hiding all over the place.

Zhang Xuezhou visited Wei Zifu in the imperial harem and benefited from the rhythm of her singing, while helping her and the new emperor reach a friendly understanding. The chapter leaves Zhang reflecting that Wei Zifu, he, and the new emperor were each struggling to free themselves from their own constraints.

• The new emperor explained that he had trained Wei Zifu to sing, and that her cultivation had advanced rapidly as a result.
• Zhang Xuezhou thanked Wei Zifu for her song, and she invited him to visit again to offer advice on her music.
• Zhang Xuezhou suggested that Huo Qubing visit Wei Zifu, and the new emperor agreed, learning that Wei Zifu was pregnant.
• Zhang Xuezhou proposed that Chen Zhang help rein in Huo Qubing, while Wei Zifu offered to keep Huo Qubing and Wei Shao'er from meeting the new emperor.
• Zhang Xuezhou realized Wei Zifu's warmth followed her caution toward outsiders, and reflected that she, he, and the new emperor were each bound by a different cage.

The new emperor discussed taking control of state affairs with Zhang Xuezhou and considered replacing Chancellor Xu Chang and Grandee Secretary Zhuang Qingdi. Zhang Xuezhou recommended Han Anguo as a candidate, while the emperor also sought a way to remove Zhang from his own post.

• The new emperor asked Zhang Xuezhou when he should take over state affairs and how to deal with ministers who might ignore his orders.
• Zhang Xuezhou argued that the court’s recent losses of powerful officials had left Xu Chang and Zhuang Qingdi without enough prestige to resist the emperor.
• The new emperor considered appointing his uncle Tian Fen and asked for another loyal, capable candidate.
• Zhang Xuezhou suggested Han Anguo, explaining that Han needed a place in court and would likely follow the emperor’s orders.
• The new emperor asked how he could find grounds to dismiss Xu Chang and Zhuang Qingdi, then proposed using Zhang Xuezhou’s neglect of duty to remove him from office.

Zhang Xuezhou returned from the palace worried that he could not resign from his post, then met Dong Zhongshu, who had come back to Chang'an City after Shen Peigong's death. Dong Zhongshu urged Zhang to remain in office and promote the academy system, explaining that the Fortune Technique revealed trajectories guiding the Great Han Dynasty's transformation.

• Zhang Xuezhou returned to Old Tree Alley after an unproductive day at the palace and lamented that his fortune was against him.
• Dong Zhongshu visited Zhang and explained that he had come to Chang'an City after Shen Peigong passed away.
• Zhang told Dong that Shen Peigong had performed a ritual near the Yang Mausoleum, and Dong surmised that Shen's meddling in imperial affairs had led to his fate.
• Zhang said he had offered His Majesty his resignation, but Dong assured him that he would protect him from anyone seeking to move against him.
• Dong urged Zhang to promote the academy system, saying the timing was suitable and describing the trajectories he had perceived through the Fortune Technique.
• Zhang struggled to understand Dong's theory as Dong explained his discoveries about the Fortune Technique.

Dong Zhongshu explained that he had foreseen a rise in fortune and wanted Zhang Xuezhou to revise the Hall of Light system to advance Confucian rites. Zhang Xuezhou resisted taking on the political risks, leaving Dong Zhongshu stalled and making Zhang suspect his own Fortune Technique mastery was superior.

• Dong Zhongshu described how his Fortune Technique had revealed a coming updraft of fortune and urged Zhang Xuezhou to believe he meant no harm.
• Zhang Xuezhou considered how Dong Zhongshu’s journey had brought him to Chang’an at the moment the new emperor prepared to take power.
• Zhang Xuezhou warned that revising the Hall of Light system could make him appear aligned with the Confucian faction and expose him to political danger.
• Dong Zhongshu accepted that Zhang Xuezhou’s position and poor health made it unreasonable to demand that he take such risks.
• Zhang Xuezhou concluded that Dong Zhongshu’s Fortune Technique was less developed than his own because Dong had failed to anticipate their conflicting interests.

The princess of the King of Huainan's Household sought to benefit from Dongfang Shuo's good fortune and arranged for Zhang Cigong to invite him as a guest. Zuo Wu visited Jin Chang, who remained plagued by unexplained misfortunes, and hinted that he could seek out Dongfang Shuo.

• The princess told Zuo Wu that the King of Huainan believed Dongfang Shuo brought good fortune and ordered Zhang Cigong to send him an invitation.
• Zuo Wu went to Jin Chang's quarters before visiting Zhang Cigong and found Jin Chang recovering with a painful stiff neck.
• Zuo Wu recognized Jin Chang's ailments as part of an Incantation Technique punishment for angering the princess by failing to invite Zhang Xuezhou.
• Zuo Wu suggested Jin Chang visit Dongfang Shuo, who had returned to Chang'an City, but left the choice to him.
• Zuo Wu reflected that an Incantation trigger still bound him to the King of Huainan's Household, though its effects had disappeared.

Zhang Cigong visited Zhang Xuezhou with an invitation from Princess Liu Ling, and the two discussed his hopes of rescuing his family from Huainan. Their conversation ended when Jin Chang was struck by Dong Zhongshu opening a door.

• Zhang Cigong arrived at Zhang Xuezhou’s residence and invited him to visit Princess Liu Ling on behalf of the King of Huainan's Household.
• Zhang Xuezhou accepted the invitation, then privately caught up with Zhang Cigong after sending the attendants to wait elsewhere.
• Zhang Cigong told Zhang Xuezhou that he still worried about his father, brother, and mother, and hoped Zhang Xuezhou might find a chance to help them.
• Zhang Cigong explained how he had befriended Liu Ling while training horses, unaware she was the princess, and Zhang Xuezhou warned him not to reveal himself.
• Dong Zhongshu opened the study door and struck Jin Chang, who had been lurking nearby and had suddenly cramped up.

Zhang Xuezhou and Dong Zhongshu realized that Jin Chang’s streak of accidents was likely caused by a Fortune Technique incantation. Jin Chang traced it to the King of Huainan and left in despair, while Dong Zhongshu became wary of the king’s power.

• Zhang Xuezhou and Dong Zhongshu questioned Jin Chang about his misfortune and considered how a Fortune Technique incantation might have targeted him.
• Jin Chang remembered using the King of Huainan’s fortune while cultivating the Tomb Scripture and offending Liu Ling, then concluded that the King of Huainan was behind his troubles.
• Jin Chang regretted relying on luck and the Tomb Scripture, then left the Zhang residence.
• Dong Zhongshu realized the King of Huainan might wield a Fortune Technique powerful enough to destroy his Fortune Body, and his confidence in his plans faded.

Zhang Xuezhou and Dong Zhongshu recognized the King of Huainan as a deadly threat because of his powerful Fortune Technique, and they discussed how to weaken him without confronting him directly. They concluded that an opportunity would arise if the new emperor advanced his Fortune Technique and moved against the king, while Zhang Xuezhou realized Princess Liu Ling’s visit might trigger that conflict.

• Zhang Xuezhou warned Dong Zhongshu that Huang Daoxian could use Fortune Technique curses against him, and Dong Zhongshu realized Zhang had cultivated the technique more deeply than he admitted.
• Dong Zhongshu argued that the King of Huainan posed a threat to both of them and could bring down the new emperor, leaving Zhang to suffer Fortune Technique backlash.
• Zhang asked how they could defeat the king, and Dong Zhongshu proposed preventing him from gaining a legitimate foothold in Chang'an City.
• Dong Zhongshu said they needed an opportunity when the new emperor recognized the king's threat and the king was unprepared, while the emperor strengthened his Fortune Technique.
• Zhang realized the new emperor had already begun cultivating the Fortune Technique and likely intended to target the King of Huainan.
• Zhang concluded that Princess Liu Ling had come to Chang'an City to obtain or test the Red Empyrean Sword, potentially creating the opportunity for conflict.

Zhang Xuezhou and Dong Zhongshu considered how the King of Huainan could identify and eliminate Fortune Technique cultivators working against him, as Zhang searched for a way to find Huang Daoxian. Dong Zhongshu suspected the King of Huainan had used the Tomb Scripture to awaken Fortune Eye in his retainers, leaving Zhang worried that such a talent could expose their hidden allies.

• Zhang Xuezhou asked Dong Zhongshu to consider how the King of Huainan would discover and thwart a covert plot against him.
• Dong Zhongshu explained that the King of Huainan could target the emperor's protective treasures and use an altar ritual to inspect his Fortune Technique cultivation.
• Zhang Xuezhou asked how the King of Huainan could identify hidden Fortune Technique cultivators, and Dong Zhongshu proposed that someone with Fortune Eye could recognize them.
• Dong Zhongshu suggested that the King of Huainan might have used the Tomb Scripture to encourage his retainers to wish for Fortune Eye, recruiting anyone who awakened it.
• Zhang Xuezhou recalled Jin Chang's regret about cultivating the Tomb Scripture and worried that Fortune Eye cultivators might already be serving the King of Huainan.

Zhang Xuezhou and Dong Zhongshu discussed how to search for Huang Daoxian and prepare against the King of Huainan while Dong tried to persuade Zhang to delay his resignation. Dong explained that the sage’s great unification could let the emperor wield the Resonance Between Heaven and Humanity at will and pursue a path beyond the True Self Realm, leaving Zhang to wonder whether it was a form of absolute control.

• Zhang Xuezhou realized he could use the Tomb Scripture and the Zhongni Qiguan Discourse to find people with Fortune Eye talent and recruit them to investigate Huang Daoxian.
• Dong Zhongshu warned Zhang that the King of Huainan might pose a danger, but Zhang said he was resigning and would soon be a harmless pawn.
• Dong Zhongshu urged Zhang to use his post as Grand Palace Counselor to prepare against the King of Huainan before Zhang left office.
• Dong Zhongshu explained that the Luxuriant Dew of the Spring and Autumn Annals described a sage’s great unification, which could make the emperor seek to unify Great Han and confront the King of Huainan.
• Zhang Xuezhou understood that Dong Zhongshu was using Jiangdu’s fortune to fuse the Fortune Technique with the Resonance Between Heaven and Humanity and improve his chances of reaching the True Self Realm.
• Zhang Xuezhou suspected that Dong Zhongshu’s great unification and Bai’s pursuit of the Power of Favor both aimed at absolute control and might point beyond the True Self Realm.

Zhang Xuezhou and Dong Zhongshu exchanged insights about the Fortune Technique and their dangerous cultivation paths. Inspired by Dong Zhongshu’s Sage’s Grand Unification, Zhang Xuezhou resolved to adapt its principles to his own struggle against the Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demon.

• Zhang Xuezhou praised Dong Zhongshu’s breakthrough in reconciling literary and martial cultivation through Resonance Between Heaven and Humanity.
• Zhang Xuezhou shared practical lessons about the Fortune Technique, helping Dong Zhongshu understand how its cultivators could cooperate and avoid conflict with the new emperor.
• After a day and a night of exchanging ideas, Zhang Xuezhou considered how Bai, Huang Daoxian, and Nagesi might be pursuing extraordinary transformations.
• Zhang Xuezhou assessed the cultivation strength he would need to resist the Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demon and recognized that he had to keep growing.
• Zhang Xuezhou chose to use Dong Zhongshu’s Sage’s Grand Unification as a reference and began planning how to replicate its principles in his own circumstances.