Chapter Summaries

Zhang Xuezhou healed Zhou Jiande's back wound with three castings while Tian Tian and Chen Zhang waited for treatment and discussed the limits of their standing with General Li Guang. Tian Fen arrived, saw Zhou Jiande's healed wound, and began to trust the young physician's ability.

• Zhang Xuezhou finished healing Zhou Jiande's back wound and rested while Tian Tian waited for his turn.
• Tian Tian asked Zhou Jiande and Chen Zhang about Zhang Xuezhou's healing Technique, and they discussed medical practitioners and General Li Guang's disregard for them.
• Tian Tian's father, Tian Fen, arrived and told his son to lie down after he reopened his wound while bowing.
• Tian Fen doubted Zhang Xuezhou's ability until Zhou Jiande showed him that his wound had healed.

Zhang Xuezhou treated Tian Tian and deflected Tian Fen’s interest in recruiting him by claiming his healing technique came from Li Guang and required lengthy recovery. After Tian Fen and his companions left, Zhang Xuezhou recognized the risks of practicing medicine for powerful people in Chang'an and decided to move elsewhere and close his practice for a while.

• Tian Fen questioned Zhang Xuezhou about his connection to Li Guang after recognizing similarities between their healing techniques.
• Zhang Xuezhou claimed he had once shown Li Guang the way and explained that using the technique required twelve days of rest after twelve days of work.
• Tian Fen accepted Zhang Xuezhou’s explanation and abandoned his thoughts of obtaining the technique or recruiting him.
• Tian Tian and Zhou Jiande departed with their companions, while Chen Zhang stayed behind hoping to see Wei Shao'er.
• Zhang Xuezhou collected his silver and reflected that his lack of backing in Chang'an made treating wealthy patients dangerous.
• Zhang Xuezhou decided to relocate and close his practice for a time now that he had enough money for his basic needs.

A wounded physiognomist, Hongku’s junior brother, forced Zhang Xuezhou to treat him and warned him not to align with Li Guang, Tian Fen, or Dong Zhongshu. After the old man vanished, Li Guang tracked him to the inn and burst into Zhang Xuezhou’s room.

• The wounded old man appeared in Zhang Xuezhou’s room and begged him for help, but Zhang hesitated because Li Guang might be pursuing him.
• The old man revealed that he was Hongku’s junior brother and pressured Zhang to treat him, saying Li Guang would arrive soon.
• Zhang Xuezhou used the Supreme Purity True Technique to ease the old man’s injury, and the old man warned him not to join any faction or rely on Li Guang, Tian Fen, or Dong Zhongshu.
• The old man vanished in a cloud of smoke, leaving Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding worried about Li Guang’s approach.
• Li Guang arrived at the inn, and Cheng Bushi recognized that the remnant of the Immortal Court had come there as Li Guang leaped through the window into Zhang Xuezhou’s room.

Zhang Xuezhou was questioned after witnessing an old Immortal Court fugitive escape, then discussed the Xieluosi River Holy Land with Li Guang and Cheng Bushi. Li Guang left for Weiyang Palace disappointed by the Han court’s reluctance to wage war and uncertain whether he could keep waiting for action.

• Zhang Xuezhou told Li Guang and Cheng Bushi how a white-bearded old man used a pill to vanish after escaping with the Qimen Evasion Technique.
• Li Guang identified the fugitive as an Immortal Court expert and urged Zhang Xuezhou to report any sightings, while Cheng Bushi warned Li Guang about the man's curse.
• Zhang Xuezhou explained that Lingyu was his only friend among the bird demons and that her father was Demon King Feiyu.
• Li Guang and Cheng Bushi debated whether the Han Dynasty should attack its enemies or focus on defense and peace, then parted on bad terms.
• Li Guang asked Zhang Xuezhou whether the Han Dynasty could destroy the three Sacred Lands and Xiong State, and Zhang admitted he knew nothing about military affairs.
• Li Guang returned toward Weiyang Palace disappointed with the court and questioned whether he could keep waiting for a campaign against external enemies.

Zhang Xuezhou visited Gongsun Hong to test his junior martial uncle’s warning about alliances at court, only to overhear Gongsun Hong complaining about Shen Peigong. Shen Peigong forced Gongsun Hong to accept a diplomatic mission to Xiong State, leaving Zhang Xuezhou wary of court entanglements.

• After Li Guang and Cheng Bushi left, Zhang Xuezhou considered his junior martial uncle’s warning about aligning himself with Li Guang, Tian Fen, or Dong Zhongshu.
• Zhang Xuezhou decided to visit Gongsun Hong and arrived at the quarters for talented recruits after searching through the city.
• From an alley, Zhang Xuezhou overheard Gongsun Hong arguing with Shen Peigong about being sent to Xiong State.
• Shen Peigong explained that several delegations were going to Xiong State, including one led by Zhang Qian, making Gongsun Hong’s mission difficult to refuse.
• Gongsun Hong cursed Shen Peigong as he left in his carriage, while Zhang Xuezhou reconsidered the risks of attaching himself to the court.

Zhang Xuezhou refused to guide Zhang Qian into Xiong State but recommended Wu Chao, a monk familiar with the country, as a guide. Zhang Qian set out to seek Wu Chao in Shouchun City, while Zhang Xuezhou hoped the monk would keep him from dying on a reckless expedition.

• Zhang Qian invited Zhang Xuezhou to join an envoy mission to Xiong State, hoping to find treasures and secret manuals and earn a noble title.
• Zhang Xuezhou warned Zhang Qian that Xiong State was dangerous and refused to serve as his guide because he had many potential enemies there.
• Zhang Qian asked Zhang Xuezhou to recommend someone with experience traveling in Xiong State.
• Zhang Xuezhou recommended Wu Chao, explaining that the young monk knew Xiong State and wanted to escape his senior brother.
• Zhang Xuezhou told Zhang Qian that Wu Chao was likely in Shouchun City, and Zhang Qian went to look for him.

Zhang Xuezhou helped Zhang Qian prepare for his mission to Xiong State, then encountered his nominal martial uncle, who discovered that Rong Tianding had swallowed Ancestral Dragon blood and proposed a deal to obtain it. The chapter ended with Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding facing the threat that other groups might capture Rong Tianding to extract the blood.

• The new emperor assigned Gongsun Hong and Zhang Qian to investigate Xiong State and seek a potential alliance, while Zhang Qian eagerly volunteered.
• Zhang Xuezhou arranged for Wu Chao to guide Zhang Qian and watched him set off, while Gongsun Hong recited a fu nearby.
• A silver-haired old man disguised as Yuan Gu stopped Zhang Xuezhou and revealed that he had sought dragon blood from the imperial palace.
• The old man recognized that Rong Tianding had swallowed the Ancestral Dragon blood and tested him with a Technique Method.
• The old man offered compensation in exchange for the blood and warned Zhang Xuezhou that other groups might discover Rong Tianding and capture him to refine Essence Blood.

Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding learned that three Immortal Court parties were searching for Rong Tianding to obtain his Ancestral Dragon's Essence Blood, leaving them to consider Yao Yuanguang's offer of help. The chapter ended with Yao Yuanguang urging Zhang Xuezhou to accept that their predicament came from lacking the strength and standing to resist.

• Yao Yuanguang warned Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding that the Immortal Court's four Heavenly Gates had sent parties seeking Rong Tianding's Ancestral Dragon's Essence Blood, and that Rong Tianding might die within twenty years without protection.
• Zhang Xuezhou decided they needed to reach an agreement with Yao Yuanguang, while Rong Tianding challenged him to reveal his identity.
• Yao Yuanguang identified himself as an auxiliary member of the Immortal Court's Eastern Heavenly Gate who served Primordial Lady Jinxia, explaining that he sought life-extending rewards.
• Yao Yuanguang proposed taking Rong Tianding to the Eastern Heavenly Gate and offered vague promises of treasures and instruction in Physiognomy School techniques.
• Zhang Xuezhou questioned Yao Yuanguang's motives and asked how to escape such schemes, and Yao Yuanguang said their lack of strength and standing had forced them to compromise.

Yao Yuanguang arranged to take Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding with him when he returned to the Qi Region, hoping to obtain a life-extending golden pill through the Immortal Court. He revealed how the Immortal Court used the powerful desire for longer life to bind aging officials, while Yuan Gu prepared to leave Chang'an.

• Zhang Xuezhou agreed to Yao Yuanguang's plan and returned to the inn with Rong Tianding, while they kept Wei Shao'er hidden as a possible safeguard.
• Yao Yuanguang reflected on his dwindling lifespan and the Immortal Court's influence over elderly officials who sought life-extending golden pills.
• Yao Yuanguang told his two servants to prepare to return to the Qi Region and arranged for them to collect Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding from Feitong Inn.
• Yao Yuanguang revealed that the real Yuan Gu was hidden in the residence and urged him to leave Chang'an before the Confucian scholars' harassment killed him.
• Yao Yuanguang told Yuan Gu that he had one year and two months left to live, but admitted he could not guide him to the Immortal Court.

Yuan Gu told Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding that the Immortal Court’s promise of long life had made immortality a deep desire among mortals. After Zhang Xuezhou’s spirit was pulled away, Yuan Gu warned that a powerful cultivator might be controlling him and offered a protective scroll in exchange for a chance at immortality.

• Yuan Gu said the Immortal Court, rather than Shen Pei, was the real danger and admitted that his desire for immortality had become an obsession as he neared the end of his life.
• Yuan Gu explained that many people in the Great Han Dynasty, including those at court, yearned for the Immortal Court’s ability to extend human life.
• Rong Tianding recited the Tomb Scripture, and Zhang Xuezhou’s spirit wandered away until Rong Tianding caught him as he slumped in the carriage.
• Yuan Gu said Zhang Xuezhou’s spirit was likely being seized by a great cultivator and warned that he faced a calamity that could keep him from living long.
• Yuan Gu fastened an ancient poetry scroll to Zhang Xuezhou’s waist for protection and promised another treasure if Zhang Xuezhou obtained immortality and shared the opportunity with him.

Zhang Xuezhou woke in Western Capital City after returning from the other world and hurried to the research institute to eat Black-Tipped Chicken. There, he rewarded Xu Shengzhi’s successful breeding team and began replenishing his body to advance his genetic development.

• Zhang Xuezhou realized Tuer Kalanduo had brought him back to Western Capital City sooner than expected and learned Zhang Manqian had invited him to the institute for Black-Tipped Chicken.
• Xu Shengzhi reported that the team had bred 536 Black-Tipped Chickens, with another 1,344 still incubating, and established a self-sustaining growth cycle.
• Zhang Xuezhou promised the team bonuses, ate liquid food, and traveled to the research institute, eager to eat chicken and increase the avian genes in his body.
• Zhang Xuezhou joined Zhang Manqian and the institute staff for a meal featuring Black-Tipped Chicken prepared in seven flavors.
• The staff struggled with the chewy chicken and turned to the side dishes, while Zhang Xuezhou happily kept eating and handed out bonuses before everyone dispersed.

Zhang Xuezhou discovered that eating Black-Tipped Chicken steadily nourished his body and helped advance his genes, while he and Zhang Manqian discussed his condition and her intermittent visions of the future. The chapter ended after Zhang Manqian glimpsed Tuer Kalanduo raising a scepter and Tuer Kalanduo felt Zhang Manqian’s overwhelming mental presence.

• Zhang Xuezhou told Zhang Manqian and Tuer Kalanduo that Black-Tipped Chicken was easy for him to eat and that it satisfied his body’s needs.
• Zhang Xuezhou explained that eating the chicken could strengthen his foundation and help advance his genes, and he said he could eat a thousand of them over time.
• Zhang Xuezhou asked whether Zhang Manqian could still see strange visions around him, and she said she could not summon them at will.
• Zhang Manqian experienced a vision of Tuer Kalanduo raising a scepter, then took Origin-Nurturing Pill paste after the vision left her dizzy.
• Tuer Kalanduo told Zhang Xuezhou that Zhang Manqian’s presence had briefly overwhelmed her, and Zhang Manqian said the ability only appeared occasionally.
• Zhang Xuezhou asked what Zhang Manqian had seen around Tuer Kalanduo and noted that he had appeared in all of her visions so far.

After Zhang Manqian foresaw a possible future in which Tuer Kalanduo became chief and pontiff, Tuer Kalanduo worried that her mother might be in danger and warned Ren Anran not to act recklessly. Zhang Xuezhou focused on surviving and preparing to develop the Spirit-Forging Pill, and the chapter ended with Wang Haoran offering medical laboratory equipment to support his research.

• Zhang Manqian described her vision of Tuer Kalanduo wielding a scepter, and Tuer Kalanduo panicked at the possibility of inheriting power and losing her mother.
• Tuer Kalanduo refused Zhang Xuezhou's suggestion that she return to her clan, but she sent Ren Anran an international message warning her not to do anything reckless.
• Zhang Xuezhou considered his own dangers and decided to keep pursuing mystical Fortune while eating Black-Tipped Chickens in North Rehe.
• Professor Wang Haoran called Zhang Xuezhou to ask about treatment for his injured tendons, and Zhang Xuezhou explained that he first needed to develop the Spirit-Forging Pill and reach the Fifth Cultivation Realm.
• Wang Haoran offered to send Zhang Xuezhou a batch of medical research equipment, and Zhang Xuezhou promised to treat him once his abilities advanced.

Zhang Xuezhou and Zhang Manqian began building the Zhang Household’s laboratory at the B13 Research Institute, weighing the cost of developing blood serum research as new equipment arrived. The chapter ended with Zhang Xuezhou receiving a truckload of ingredients for refining Spirit-Forging Pills.

• Wang Haoran’s instruments arrived at the B13 Research Institute, giving Zhang Manqian, Xu Shengzhi, Huang Xiaoya, Zhu Feng, and Cai Li a fully equipped laboratory to work with.
• Zhang Manqian proposed using the new instruments to prepare elementary blood serums, and Zhang Xuezhou supported the plan despite the materials costing ten million and the experiments producing no useful serum for them.
• Zhang Xuezhou and Zhang Manqian discussed their limited family income and the need to build research experience, while Zhang Xuezhou suggested they could reduce material costs by exploring Qinmeng in the future.
• A small red truck arrived at the North Rehe Research Center carrying medicinal materials for Zhang Xuezhou’s Spirit-Forging Pills, which had cost two hundred thousand yuan.

Zhang Xuezhou developed a substitute Spirit-Forging Pill that reached about seventy percent of the original’s effect, but a test dose caused severe hallucinations and nearly twenty portions of the liquid entered his body. As the poisoning eased, the pill’s Law Power surged through him, leaving Zhang Manqian and the others to wait and see whether he could withstand it and improve the formula.

• Zhang Xuezhou tested substitute ingredients and produced Spirit-Forging Pill liquid with roughly seventy percent of an ordinary pill’s effect, though it was extremely bitter.
• Zhang Manqian questioned whether he could still sense the medicine’s effects, and Zhang Xuezhou discovered that the liquid caused hallucinations.
• Zhang Xuezhou drank nearly twenty portions while hallucinating, seeing household objects as spirits and hearing the Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demons argue with a talking duck.
• Zhang Xuezhou tried to dispel the hallucinations with the Kunpeng Combat Technique, but the growing medicinal poison weakened its effect.
• Zhang Xuezhou’s Poison Avoidance Art began operating, the hallucinations faded, and Zhang Manqian induced him to vomit blackish water as Law Power erupted through his body.
• Zhang Manqian sent Xu Shengzhi and the others outside and worried that Zhang Xuezhou might not withstand the Law Power surging from the large dose.

After Zhang Xuezhou entered the Consciousness Creation Realm, his Poison Avoidance Art grew stronger and helped purge the toxins from the Spirit-Forging Pill liquid. He and Zhang Manqian then worked out a numerical method for teaching the complicated art so cultivators could better tolerate their medicine.

• Zhang Xuezhou broke through to the Consciousness Creation Realm, and his Law Power strengthened his Poison Avoidance Art enough to remove the pill liquid’s toxins.
• Zhang Manqian questioned Zhang Xuezhou about advancing by taking medicine, and he explained the Spirit-Forging Pill liquid’s bitterness, poisoning, and hallucinations.
• Zhang Xuezhou decided cultivators should learn the Poison Avoidance Art to reduce the medicine’s harmful effects and discussed how X446 repair devices could help them master its stages.
• Zhang Manqian suggested replacing unfamiliar acupoint names with numbers, and Zhang Xuezhou agreed that this would simplify cross-world instruction.
• Zhang Xuezhou drew 108,000 numbered acupoints and their connections on two large anatomical diagrams, while Zhang Manqian found the charts overwhelming.
• Zhang Xuezhou explained that cultivators did not need to perfect the art, since partial mastery would help them suffer less poisoning when taking medicine.

Zhang Xuezhou used the Supreme Purity True Technique to restore Wang Haoran’s right hand and offered to heal his remaining injuries. After Wang Haoran revealed how many others suffered similar lingering damage, Zhang considered turning the treatment into a wider service and wondered how to make it acceptable in modern society.

• Wang Haoran arrived at the North Rehe Research Institute, and Zhang Xuezhou said he believed he could treat his severed tendons and meridians.
• Zhang Xuezhou asked Wang Haoran to exert force with his right hand, then used the Supreme Purity True Technique to tear and rapidly heal its damaged tendons.
• Wang Haoran regained near-normal strength in his right hand and manipulated Martial Cry with dexterity.
• Zhang Xuezhou agreed to treat Wang Haoran’s other hand and feet that day, and Wang told him many people had similar injuries that modern medicine had not fully repaired.
• Zhang Xuezhou proposed putting up a sign and having Wang spread the word, then considered using the Tuer God and religion as a guise for offering treatment legally.

Zhang Xuezhou opened a clinic for treating lingering injuries and agreed with Wang Haoran to explore Qinmeng together. Wang Haoran warned Zhang about the importance of protecting his medical abilities and suggested he contact Zhou Xin, whose injuries might be worse than people knew.

• Zhang Xuezhou put up a sign advertising the Tuer God’s treatment for injuries from falls and blows.
• Wang Haoran offered to join Zhang Xuezhou’s group as a protector on a future Qinmeng expedition, and Zhang welcomed his help.
• Wang Haoran explained that Zhang’s medical abilities could make him valuable to powerful Lineages, but urged him to build enough strength to protect himself and his methods.
• Zhang said he understood and explained that invoking the Tuer Clan’s name could help him avoid pressure to share his abilities.
• Wang Haoran advised Zhang to contact Committee Member Zhou, revealing that Zhou Xin might have deep injuries from his fight with Mengtesi Badun despite never showing his pain.

Zhang Xuezhou asked Wang Li to learn mechanical repair for their future expeditions to the Qinmeng Ruins and discussed the financial and political obstacles to expanding Flying Entertainment Livestream. Their conversation showed Wang Haoran how the platform could become a powerful public-opinion outlet and help the Zhang Household establish itself in Western Capital City.

• Zhang Xuezhou asked Wang Li to learn mechanical repair and assembly so he could support the team in the Qinmeng Ruins, and Wang Li agreed.
• Wang Li told Zhang Xuezhou that Flying Entertainment Livestream was stable but expanding into television shows and films would require costly broadcasting rights.
• Wang Li explained that the Sequence Committee might enable the platform to expand if a government publicity department put it to use, though going public could cost them control.
• Zhang Xuezhou decided not to rush into expansion and told Wang Li that they would need support from Sequence Committee members before pursuing agreements.
• After the call, Zhang Xuezhou told Wang Haoran that Wang Li was worth cultivating, and Wang Haoran saw the livestreaming platform as a way for the Zhang Household to establish itself in Western Capital City.

Wang Haoran warned Zhang Xuezhou that pursuing online livestreaming as an administrative channel would require powerful backing, then watched Zhang demonstrate a stone that could fly out and return. Zhang explained that combining realm cultivation with gene weapons could give Wang Haoran a path toward Sixth Sequence strength.

• Wang Haoran warned Zhang Xuezhou that powerful interests might try to seize his livestreaming venture and advised him to gain Sixth Sequence strength or secure Sixth Sequence supporters.
• Wang Haoran lamented that his Dark Spider gene and declining physical abilities made advancement difficult, then showed Zhang his control of Martial Cry.
• Zhang Xuezhou tossed an engraved stone that flew far away and returned to his hand, astonishing Wang Haoran.
• Zhang Xuezhou explained that the stone's effect came from combining a Realm Technique with Tuer Clan religious inscriptions.
• Zhang Xuezhou proposed that Wang Haoran could combine cultivation, a Law Treasure, and his gene weapon to build strength toward the Sixth Sequence.