Chapter Summaries

After the Yang Mausoleum disaster, Zhang Xuezhou learned how the Kong Household survived, accepted Marquis of Sui's Pearl, and parted ways with Kong Anguo's group. Back in Chang'an, he decided to let Yi Shuo pursue opportunities and looked forward to learning combat Techniques from Dong Zhongshu.

• Kong Zhong returned Sage Kong's Token to the Kong Household and gave Zhang Xuezhou Marquis of Sui's Pearl in exchange.
• Kong Anguo explained that Shen Peigong had been badly injured and buried in the tunnel collapse, while an old monk's lantern burned away the Yin Sha Qi and Sage Kong's Token protected the Kong Household.
• Zhang Xuezhou pieced together what had happened at Yang Mausoleum and hid Marquis of Sui's Pearl, wary of exposing the burial treasure while the King of Huainan was in Chang'an.
• At the city gate, Zhang Xuezhou and Kong Anguo's group parted ways, and Zhang Xuezhou reconsidered stopping Yi Shuo from seeking fortuitous opportunities.
• Rong Tianding threatened to challenge Yi Shuo after he began cultivating with the Shijiao School, while Yi Shuo asked Zhang Xuezhou about his fighting ability.
• Zhang Xuezhou said he would be stronger in a few years and anticipated learning suitable combat Techniques after Dong Zhongshu studied the Yellow Sand Sect's methods.

After Shen Peigong left Chang'an, Zhang Xuezhou expected Dong Zhongshu to return and learned that the new emperor would soon take them on a long journey to worship his ancestors. Zhang planned to use the trip to pursue the Fortune Technique while hoping to delay any conflict with the emperor until he could escape the Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demon.

• Kong Anguo told Zhang Xuezhou that Shen Peigong had departed for the Land of Lu after promising the Lu School would no longer enter the court in Chang'an.
• Zhang Xuezhou concluded that Shen Peigong's departure would allow Dong Zhongshu to return to Chang'an and restore their opportunity to discuss the Fortune Technique.
• Kong Anguo asked where the new emperor was taking them, and Zhang said the emperor was likely going to worship his ancestors.
• Kong Anguo prepared to buy new clothes for the journey, and Zhang realized the ancestor worship would not take place at the chaotic Yang Mausoleum.
• Zhang Xuezhou welcomed the chance to leave Chang'an, stay near the emperor, and seek an opportunity to cultivate the Fortune Technique, though he hoped to postpone their inevitable conflict for at least eighteen years.

Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding joined the new emperor’s large convoy as it left Chang’an City. At the Palace of Peace and Happiness, the declining Grand Empress Dowager ordered the King of Huainan back to Huainan and weighed whether to support him or her grandson.

• Zhang Xuezhou called Rong Tianding into the court convoy after Kong Anguo arrived to set out, and the convoy departed Chang’an City with over a thousand cavalry escorts.
• Grand Princess Dou told the Grand Empress Dowager that the new emperor had left Chang’an City and described how much the Grand Empress Dowager’s health had deteriorated.
• The Grand Empress Dowager questioned Grand Princess Dou about the King of Huainan’s activities and concluded that he had been probing officials and her intentions.
• The Grand Empress Dowager ordered Grand Princess Dou to have the King of Huainan return to Huainan, reasoning that he would not dare challenge her while he still needed her.
• The Grand Empress Dowager reflected that Emperor Jing’s early death had left the new emperor without the years he needed to grow, then recalled how he had failed to understand the Dragon Vigor and Tiger Ferocity Pill she had given him.

Zhang Xuezhou encountered Yao Yuanguang recruiting in Yangxin County and urged him to leave, wary that his presence could threaten the new emperor’s plans. Yao Yuanguang departed after warning Zhang Xuezhou to remember his earlier advice, while Zhang Xuezhou followed him out of town.

• Zhang Xuezhou greeted Sang Hongyang and confronted Yao Yuanguang at a restaurant in Yangxin County.
• Yao Yuanguang explained that he was recruiting helpers, and Zhang Xuezhou pressed him to recruit somewhere else to avoid trouble with Li Guang.
• Yao Yuanguang recognized Zhang Xuezhou’s rapid cultivation progress and congratulated him.
• Yao Yuanguang finished his meal, warned Zhang Xuezhou to remember his earlier advice, and left the restaurant.
• Zhang Xuezhou told Sang Hongyang that his school was a mess and followed Yao Yuanguang toward the outskirts of the city.

After Yao Yuanguang left Yangxin City, Zhang Xuezhou gave up trying to uncover his arrangements and asked Sang Hongyang how to earn the new emperor’s trust. Sang Hongyang explained that playing the emperor’s favorite guessing game might help Zhang obtain the additional appointment of attendant at the palace gates.

• Yao Yuanguang left Yangxin City, and Zhang Xuezhou decided not to investigate his suspected arrangements further.
• Zhang Xuezhou told Sang Hongyang and Rong Tianding that they had no affection for Yao Yuanguang, while Sang Hongyang described the Luoyang Merchant Alliance and his ambitions for office.
• Sang Hongyang said the new emperor had promised to promote capable followers, and Zhang Xuezhou questioned the value of that promise.
• Zhang Xuezhou asked how to become an attendant at the palace gates, and Sang Hongyang said the emperor’s trust mattered most.
• Sang Hongyang advised Zhang Xuezhou to play the emperor’s favorite guessing game to earn summons and possibly the appointment.

Zhang Xuezhou learned that Attendant Guo was an exceptionally skilled player of shooting under cover and saw how he fooled Li Yannian with nimble hands and keen senses. Hoping to gain favor with the new emperor by playing, Zhang Xuezhou agreed to face Attendant Guo next.

• Zhang Xuezhou told Sang Hongyang that he was skilled at shooting under cover and asked him to recommend him to the new emperor.
• Sang Hongyang pointed out that Attendant Guo, the new emperor's play companion, was inviting people to gamble on the game.
• Attendant Guo tricked Li Yannian into miscounting hidden leaves, then correctly guessed that Li Yannian had added two.
• Zhang Xuezhou recognized Attendant Guo's sleight of hand and guessed that he used sound or subtle weight differences to identify hidden objects.
• Sang Hongyang asked whether Zhang Xuezhou wanted to play, and Zhang Xuezhou agreed to challenge Attendant Guo.

Zhang Xuezhou won a shefu wager against Attendant Guo by guessing the coins in a locked box and preventing him from switching them. Afterward, Zhang Xuezhou left to introduce Sang Hongyang to Scholar Kong Anguo, while Attendant Guo lost interest and went looking for another opponent.

• Attendant Guo proposed a wager of a hundred banliang coins, and Zhang Xuezhou accepted.
• Zhang Xuezhou hid thirty-eight coins in the box, and Attendant Guo guessed thirty-six.
• Attendant Guo hid twenty-one coins, including one slipped from his sleeve, and Zhang Xuezhou guessed the number correctly.
• Zhang Xuezhou required Sang Hongyang to open and count the coins, preventing Attendant Guo from switching them.
• Attendant Guo paid Zhang Xuezhou the remaining seventy-nine coins and praised his win.
• Zhang Xuezhou declined another round and headed to introduce Sang Hongyang to Scholar Kong Anguo, while Attendant Guo fell behind to seek another player.

Zhang Xuezhou learned from Kong Anguo that Attendant Guo’s shefu relied on sleight of hand rather than cultivation. After Li Yannian recommended him, Zhang Xuezhou was summoned to the Marquis of Pingyang’s residence to play shefu for the emperor, giving him a chance to pursue a palace attendant post.

• Zhang Xuezhou asked Kong Anguo about tricks that could fool someone with higher cultivation, and Kong Anguo explained the Thieves’ School’s Fake Technique and its use in shefu.
• Zhang Xuezhou introduced Sang Hongyang to Kong Anguo, but their different interests left them with little to discuss.
• After leaving Kong Anguo, Zhang Xuezhou and Sang Hongyang discussed the emperor’s fondness for rhapsodies and Han Yan’s difficulty finding them.
• A rider announced that the emperor had ordered Zhang Xuezhou to visit the Marquis of Pingyang’s residence and play shefu.
• Zhang Xuezhou learned that Li Yannian had recommended him and realized the invitation could help him gain regular access to the emperor, though his shefu skills relied mostly on guesses.

At the banquet, Zhang Xuezhou won ten thousand gold by guessing the hidden object in a shefu game, then kept the real basis for his deduction secret while explaining his success with the Book of Changes. The new emperor used Zhang Xuezhou’s talent to impress Princess Yangxin and prompt the Marquis of Pingyang to offer him medicine to strengthen his frail body.

• Zhang Xuezhou enjoyed the banquet and explained to Wei Qing that he had guessed the hidden toad through the Kun trigram.
• Zhang Xuezhou privately recalled that he had deduced the answer by observing mud on the Marquis of Pingyang’s shoes and the marquis’s attitude toward toads, and decided to keep his method secret.
• Liu Xun questioned Zhang Xuezhou about why his study of the Book of Changes had failed, and Zhang Xuezhou told him that he was better suited to teaching it than applying it.
• Zhang Xuezhou tactfully declined Princess Yangxin’s invitation to play another round of shefu.
• The new emperor told Princess Yangxin that Zhang Xuezhou was frail and suggested she offer medicine as a shefu prize, prompting her interest.

Cao Shou offered a valuable healing pill as the prize for a new hidden-object challenge, after Zhang Xuezhou declined the Life-Restoring Pill. Zhang Xuezhou learned that snow clam oil might help his skull injury, but the prize changed to another pill, and he prepared to face a challenge designed for an expert.

• Cao Shou offered a Life-Restoring Pill, and Zhang Xuezhou declared that he would not take it against his wishes.
• The new emperor explained Zhang Xuezhou’s illness, and Cao Shou examined his healed skull and said the injury could hinder his cultivation.
• Cao Shou offered snow clam oil as the prize, but Princess Yangxin persuaded him to substitute a healing pill.
• Zhang Xuezhou accepted the challenge, hoping to obtain the snow clam oil despite the changed prize.
• Cao Shou and Princess Yangxin set a challenge involving three covering vessels, one hidden object, and three questions before Zhang Xuezhou had to guess.

Zhang Xuezhou used the Person-Fixing Technique while pretending to perform the Book of Changes Technique to uncover the objects hidden in three vessels. After asking the servants three questions, he announced that he knew the answers, leaving the hall waiting for his reveal.

• The Marquis of Pingyang presented three covered vessels, and the new emperor urged Zhang Xuezhou to guess what was inside.
• Zhang Xuezhou admitted he needed to use the Book of Changes Technique and imitated the dancers while repeatedly prompting the three servants to think about the hidden objects.
• Zhang Xuezhou used the Person-Fixing Technique on a servant and glimpsed a memory of people hiding objects in the vessels.
• Zhang Xuezhou pretended to complete his technique, then asked the servants their names, ages, and whether their parents were alive.
• Zhang Xuezhou announced to the new emperor that he knew the answers.

Zhang Xuezhou won the Marquis of Pingyang’s hidden-object guessing game and received a Life-Creating Fortune Pill, which he recognized and swallowed. Its potent effects began repairing hidden injuries and replenishing his Law Power, but they also left him trembling and being carried out of the banquet.

• Zhang Xuezhou’s riddle impressed the new emperor, the Marquis of Pingyang, and Princess Yangxin, who praised his skill at identifying the hidden pearl.
• The Marquis of Pingyang accepted defeat and gave Zhang Xuezhou a sealed pill, hinting that he should take it immediately to avoid attracting greedy attention.
• Zhang Xuezhou opened the bottle, identified the pill as a Life-Creating Fortune Pill, and swallowed it.
• The pill replenished Zhang Xuezhou’s Law Power and began repairing his body, including a lingering injury in his skull.
• As Zhang Xuezhou trembled and struggled to control the pill’s effects, the Marquis of Pingyang ordered attendants to carry him out, and the new emperor ended the banquet.

Zhang Xuezhou took the Life-Creating Fortune Pill and began expelling foul gas, while the new emperor learned the pill had come from the King of Chu during the Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms. The new emperor resolved to visit the King of Liang’s tomb and continued planning a deception to replace the Red Empyrean Sword with a fake, hoping the weapon’s reputation would protect his rule.

• Zhang Xuezhou’s pill seemed to heal his skull and intestines, but its effects caused him to emit such a foul stench that servants carried him away from the feast.
• The new emperor questioned the Marquis of Pingyang about the pill, and the Marquis explained that he had bought it for a thousand taels of gold after the Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms.
• The Marquis said the pill had come from the King of Chu, Liu Wu, and recalled the King of Liang’s role in defending Suiyang against the rebel armies.
• The new emperor said he would visit the King of Liang’s tomb, and Princess Yangxin’s nod reassured him that the trip and sword deception were arranged.
• The new emperor planned to use Attendant Guo and Grand Astrologer Sima Tan to pass off a fake Red Empyrean Sword as the real one, believing its reputation could secure his rule.

After returning to reality, Zhang Xuezhou discovered that he and his companions had been stranded at Shuangliu Airport for seven days because routes to the Tuer Clan were blocked and Tuer Kalanduo had not arranged transport. Just as Zhang Xuezhou contacted Kalanduo again, the airport paged for him and Ren Anran, suggesting their arrival may have been anticipated.

• Zhang Xuezhou woke in reality and learned from Zhang Manqian and Ren Anran that blocked waterways and delayed communications had kept them at Shuangliu Airport for a week.
• Wang Haoran complained about the delay while reflecting on his recovering health, active spider genes, and preparations to reach the Sixth Sequence.
• Zhang Xuezhou sent Tuer Kalanduo another message as Ren Anran warned that they might have to return home if they could not reach her.
• The airport paged for Zhang Xuezhou and Ren Anran using their names, and the group realized Kalanduo might have been trying to contact them.
• Zhang Xuezhou suggested Kalanduo and Tuer Kelanduo might have foreseen their arrival through their ability to gaze into the future.

Tuer Kalanduo met Zhang Xuezhou and his companions at Shuangliu Airport, where Ren Anran explained that Ren Yisheng had revived but needed Soul Jade to survive. Tuer Kalanduo agreed to provide it and described how little real power she had as chief, while clan members blamed her for the strange insects.

• Tuer Kalanduo waited at Shuangliu Airport, frustrated by the restrictions placed on her as chief and worried that Zhang Xuezhou had not received her message.
• Tuer Kalanduo spotted Zhang Xuezhou and the others on a surveillance screen and hurried over to greet them.
• Zhang Xuezhou and Ren Anran commented on Tuer Kalanduo's eye makeup, and Tuer Kalanduo explained that it was part of the ceremony she had just completed.
• Ren Anran told Tuer Kalanduo that Ren Yisheng had come back to life but needed Soul Jade, and Zhang Xuezhou asked for Soul Jade in exchange for helping her.
• Tuer Kalanduo offered to give Zhang Xuezhou Soul Jade, or even the position of chief, and then explained her limited authority and the blame she faced for the strange insects.

Tuer Kalanduo explained that the elders had stripped her of power, and the group learned that Huang could not help without the Heaven-Opening Axe. After arriving at the Tuer shrine, Zhang Xuezhou asked Kalanduo to arrange a weapon built around his engraved Soul Jade, leaving them to prepare a new ranged blade.

• Tuer Kalanduo told Ren Anran that the elders' faction limited her authority as chief, and Ren Anran compared her situation to the new emperor's struggle against the grand empress dowager.
• Zhang Manqian used the Soul Jade to question Huang, who said he needed the Heaven-Opening Axe to activate the runes and could not help without it.
• Zhang Xuezhou advised Tuer Kalanduo to build power herself, while she and Ren Anran resumed bickering and Wang Haoran nervously tried to avoid being mistaken for an accomplice.
• Tuer Kalanduo flew the group to the shrine in Tutram City and ordered the holy warriors to carry their luggage.
• Zhang Xuezhou showed Kalanduo his rune-engraved Soul Jade and asked her to have a light, sturdy, sharp curved blade forged around it for long-range attacks.

Zhang Xuezhou completed the Infinite Blade and discussed how the group might capture the white bug, favoring a long-range approach over Tuer Kalanduo’s alloy-cage ambush. The chapter ended when Tuer Kalanduo learned the Sixth Elder was pushing to have her impeached and replaced as chief.

• Zhang Xuezhou completed the Infinite Blade, and Wang Haoran explained how to make a weapon spin using the principles behind Thousand Spider Hands.
• Zhang Xuezhou, Ren Anran, Tuer Kalanduo, Zhang Manqian, and Wang Haoran discussed ways to approach and capture the fast, acid-spitting white bug.
• Ren Anran supported Zhang Xuezhou’s plan to track the bug with Yang Corporeal Soul Leaving the Body and counterattack from a distance while the others helped them retreat.
• A female officiant told Tuer Kalanduo that the Sixth Elder was accusing her of disrespecting the god and seeking to have her replaced as chief.
• Tuer Kalanduo resented the pressure but recognized that she still had to respond to the Sixth Elder’s challenge.

Tuer Kalanduo confronted Tuer Feilasi in the shrine, using his failure to receive divine grace to turn the priests and paladins against his Lineage. As Zhang Manqian saw her earlier vision align with reality, she also suspected Zhang Xuezhou was connected to a fight involving Luo Burang.

• Tuer Feilasi repeatedly accused Tuer Kalanduo of lacking the Tuer God's protection, while she challenged his sincerity because his arm had not been healed by divine grace.
• Tuer Kalanduo denounced Tuer Feilasi as a rebel against the god and warned that anyone allied with him or his Lineage would be spurned by the clan.
• More than four hundred priests and paladins moved away from Tuer Feilasi and his Lineage, leaving the Sixth Elder's faction isolated in the shrine.
• Tuer Feilasi offered to smash his head against the statue to prove his loyalty, but Tuer Kalanduo said his Lineage must first receive a response from the god.
• Zhang Manqian recognized that Tuer Kalanduo's actions matched her earlier vision and suspected Zhang Xuezhou was involved in the scene she had seen with Luo Burang.

Tuer Kalanduo confronted Tuer Feilasi and his lineage after his attempt to suppress her failed, staking her position on asking the Tuer God to judge them. When Feilasi injured himself and collapsed, Kalanduo challenged his followers to spill blood and summon the god, promising to do the same.

• Tuer Yongduolu urged Tuer Kalanduo and Tuer Feilasi to settle their dispute, but Kalanduo challenged the elders to prove their devotion to the Tuer God.
• Tuer Cha Lanqing supported Kalanduo, while the elders realized that Feilasi's attempt to suppress her had trapped his lineage.
• Tuer Kalanduo ordered Feilasi's branch to gather its members as Zhang Xuezhou warned her that a future attack from a favored lineage could be decisive.
• Tuer Feilasi charged at the god's statue and fell unconscious after striking his head.
• Tuer Kalanduo challenged Feilasi's followers to summon the god and vowed to die at the shrine if the god did not answer her.

Zhang Xuezhou used his techniques to make Tuer Kalanduo appear divinely favored and defeat Tuer Feilasi in a religious trial. Kalanduo punished Feilasi’s Lineage while preserving the shrine’s independence, as Huang watched Zhang Xuezhou and continued searching for the Divinity he wanted to claim.

• Zhang Xuezhou healed Tuer Kalanduo’s wounds from afar while Tuer Feilasi’s bloodletting went unanswered, convincing the shrine that the Tuer God favored Kalanduo.
• Tuer Kalanduo declared that the god’s favor surrounded her, and the elders, priests, and paladins knelt in acknowledgment.
• Tuer Kalanduo resolved to use divine authority to gradually reform the Tuer Clan, though she knew she first needed to become stronger.
• Tuer Kalanduo demoted Tuer Feilasi’s Lineage by two ranks and transferred most of its fiefs and assets to the shrine for future rewards.
• Ren Anran accused Zhang Xuezhou of helping Kalanduo, while Zhang Xuezhou said Huang had agreed to it.
• Huang remained silent about his disapproval and continued watching Zhang Xuezhou, hoping to locate and claim the Divinity hidden within him.