Chapter Summaries

Ren Yisheng became fascinated with Zhang Xuezhou’s partial Heart Incantation and hoped to obtain the complete text. After Zhang Xuezhou suffered a sudden bout of confusion, Ren Yisheng used a mental technique to steady him and decided to protect and nurture him until Hongku might provide the rest.

• Ren Yisheng studied Zhang Xuezhou’s Heart Incantation draft and asked whether he had more of it.
• Zhang Xuezhou told Ren Yisheng that Hongku had taught him the incantation and might return in ten years.
• Ren Yisheng suspected the Heart Incantation could have helped Zhang Xuezhou’s condition and lamented that the text was incomplete.
• Zhang Xuezhou questioned whether his dream world or his waking world was real, and his body began to sway.
• Ren Yisheng used a mental secret technique to repel Zhang Xuezhou’s chaotic emotions and help him recover.
• Ren Yisheng decided to provide Zhang Xuezhou with a safety net while waiting for a chance to obtain the complete Heart Incantation.

Zhang Xuezhou gave Ren Yisheng the Heart Incantation and learned that Ren hoped to meet Master Hongku and study his cultivation methods. Ren explained that his research into the mind and spirit focused on mental health, leaving Zhang to consider why real-world cultivation seemed to emphasize realms while combat relied on firearms and martial arts.

• Ren Yisheng asked why Zhang Xuezhou expected Master Hongku to seek him out, and Zhang explained that Hongku had promised to return when he was an adult.
• Ren Yisheng resolved to meet Hongku and asked Zhang to contact him when Hongku appeared; Zhang agreed.
• Zhang Xuezhou asked Ren Yisheng how psychology research related to the Heart Incantation, and Ren explained that psychology studied the mind, or spirit.
• Ren Yisheng said a strong spirit helped preserve a healthy brain and clear thinking, rather than granting the combat abilities Zhang had expected.
• Zhang Xuezhou reflected that cultivation in reality seemed focused on improving realms, while people relied on firearms and martial arts instead of advanced Techniques.

Zhang Xuezhou questioned the connection between his dream and reality, then took sedatives when he felt another episode coming on. That evening, Zhang Manqian experienced a frightening vision of turning into a giant tree before waking in their rented room and recognizing it as a hallucination.

• Zhang Xuezhou wondered whether the dream or reality was real, then swallowed three fluazepam tablets to calm his mind.
• Zhang Manqian returned home, saw Zhang Xuezhou listless, and worried about their family's illnesses and their limited time to find treatment.
• Zhang Manqian suddenly lost her ability to see and touch her surroundings, then fought her panic by refusing to submit to fate.
• Zhang Manqian saw a warm, overgrown landscape shrink around her as she grew into a giant tree.
• Zhang Manqian came to in the rented room, found she could move, and realized she had experienced another hallucination.

Zhang Xuezhou questioned whether his supposedly real world might be fabricated, then reflected on how recklessly he had acted in the dream world. Wu Chao pressed him about his stalled cultivation and suspected Zhang Xuezhou’s original Realm Entry method was exceptionally advanced.

• After taking a pill, Zhang Xuezhou returned to the familiar dream world feeling strong and reconsidered whether it might be more real than his waking life.
• Zhang Xuezhou reviewed his past schemes and resolved to act less recklessly, while wondering whether reaching higher levels could help him escape a fabricated reality.
• Wu Chao noticed Zhang Xuezhou still cultivated with his old method because the Heart Incantation had not replaced it.
• Zhang Xuezhou said repeated attempts to cultivate the Heart Incantation had failed to change his foundation.
• Wu Chao concluded that Zhang Xuezhou’s original Realm Entry method might be as powerful as, or stronger than, the Heart Incantation.

After learning that the Yin Yang Great Compassion Nine Heavens Incantation blocked his progress with the Heart Incantation, Zhang Xuezhou realized he needed Zou Bugui’s lost inheritance or another powerful cultivation method. To improve their chances against Hongku, Wu Chao began considering how to use Xiong State’s forces to capture Zou Bugui.

• Wu Chao explained that Zhang Xuezhou’s repeated failures with the Heart Incantation likely came from its incompatibility with his original cultivation doctrine.
• Wu Chao described how powerful cultivation doctrines could produce Divine Abilities and identified Zou Bugui as the sect master of the once-formidable Yin-Yang Nine Heavens Sect.
• Zhang Xuezhou concluded that he needed to find Zou Bugui, while worrying that his weak cultivation left him vulnerable in the plot against Hongku.
• Zhang Xuezhou pressed Wu Chao to help solve his cultivation problem, arguing that he might otherwise be unable to help defeat Hongku.
• Wu Chao considered using his position as Xiong State’s fourth prince and its slave soldiers to capture Zou Bugui, which would help Zhang Xuezhou continue cultivating and improve Wu Chao’s own chances against Hongku.

Wu Chao and Zhang Xuezhou left the Yedie River Holy Land and traveled toward the Nine-Foot Daoist Temple, hoping Wu Chao could use the Star-Fixing Technique to track Zou Bugui. As they prepared to cross into the Great Han Dynasty, Zhang Xuezhou continued cultivating the Technique Within the Clouds and concealed his demon-person features.

• Wu Chao and Zhang Xuezhou received permission to descend the mountain and traveled by carriage toward the Nine-Foot Daoist Temple.
• Wu Chao explained that the Star-Fixing Technique could use a place connected to Zou Bugui to determine where and when he might appear.
• Wu Chao cultivated during the journey while Zhang Xuezhou practiced spreading and folding his feathered wings with the Technique Within the Clouds.
• Zhang Xuezhou used silver liquid, red powder, jade, and black liquid during his cultivation, which helped conceal his identity as a demon person.
• Several days later, Wu Chao and Zhang Xuezhou joined a Western Regions merchant caravan and changed clothes before approaching the Great Han Dynasty's border checkpoint.

Wu Chao and Zhang Xuezhou led a merchant caravan to Yanmen Pass, where Han soldiers inspected the travelers. A soldier recognized Zhang Xuezhou’s cultivation and urged him to join the Great Han Dynasty’s military, leaving Zhang Xuezhou under scrutiny at the border.

• Wu Chao pointed out Yanmen Pass and explained that Cheng Bushi’s army made the Western Border a secure trade route.
• Soldiers stopped the caravan at the pass and ordered everyone out for inspection.
• Wu Chao and Zhang Xuezhou posed as a foreign merchant and his translator while the soldiers checked them.
• A soldier searched Zhang Xuezhou, noticed his strength and cultivation, and called for his men.
• The soldier reassured Zhang Xuezhou that he meant no harm and urged him to leave the caravan and serve the Great Han Dynasty.

At Yanmen Pass, Zhang Xuezhou concealed his ties to the Northern Kuru Continent’s holy lands by claiming that the Nine-Chi Daoist Priest had taught him a Realm Entry method. A young general recognized the name as Zou Bugui, whose reputation had spread across the Great Han Dynasty because of an execution order from the Xieluosi River Holy Land.

• Soldiers questioned Zhang Xuezhou about his identity, cultivation, and master as they registered him at Yanmen Pass.
• Zhang Xuezhou avoided revealing his connection to the holy lands and named the Nine-Chi Daoist Priest as his teacher instead.
• Yi Sheng urged Zhang Xuezhou to join the Western Border Legion, promising opportunities for advancement, but Zhang Xuezhou remained unwilling to enlist.
• A young general inspected Zhang Xuezhou’s Law Power and asked whether the Nine-Chi Daoist Priest was his master.
• The general connected the title to Zou Bugui and revealed that Zou Bugui’s name was widely known because the Xieluosi River Holy Land had issued an execution order against him.

After Zou Bugui appeared on the Xieluosi River Holy Land’s execution order, the Han court sought to use Zhang Xuezhou to trace him. The general took Zhang into custody for the journey to Chang'an City, leaving Zhang time to settle matters with Wu Chao.

• The execution order made Jin Chang and Zou Bugui famous, while many people falsely claimed to be Yin-Yang School disciples.
• A general told Zhang Xuezhou that Yin-Yang School disciples had appeared across the Han Dynasty and asked about his connection to Zou Bugui.
• The general explained that the court wanted to find Zou Bugui and sensed Yin-Yang School Law Power in Zhang Xuezhou.
• Zhang Xuezhou worried that leaving the caravan would break his contract, so the general let him return and promised to fetch him in a quarter of an hour.
• Zhang Xuezhou planned to speak with Wu Chao before being escorted to Chang'an City, hoping to prevent Wu Chao from turning against him.

Zhang Xuezhou and Wu Chao entered Han Dynasty territory while remaining bound together by the Snake Head Incantation and Hongku’s threat. Wu Chao planned to use the journey to find Zou Bugui and prepare for a future confrontation with Hongku, while the caravan headed toward Hibiscus City.

• Zhang Xuezhou reassured Wu Chao that the Snake Head Incantation and Hongku’s ability to track him made cooperation their only path to survival.
• Wu Chao took three hairs from Zhang Xuezhou to maintain a means of controlling him, while Zhang Xuezhou left the carriage uneasy about having his life in Wu Chao’s hands.
• Wu Chao reflected that the Snake Head Incantation was difficult to use beyond five hundred meters and hoped he could repair his relationship with Zhang Xuezhou before Hongku died.
• Wu Chao sent a newly assigned Xiong State-speaking foot soldier to ride in a rear carriage and resolved to spend the next three years preparing to kill Hongku.
• Wu Chao directed the caravan toward Hibiscus City, using the region’s hauntings and Rong Tianding’s immortal paintings as reasons for the trip.

Zhang Xuezhou and Zhang Qian struggled to travel quickly toward Chang'an because Zhang Xuezhou fell asleep at night, and they stopped to camp and eat. As they resumed their journey, Zhang Qian asked Zhang Xuezhou to describe Xiong State.

• Zhang Qian complained that Zhang Xuezhou's nighttime sleep and poor riding prevented them from keeping their promised pace to Chang'an.
• Zhang Xuezhou explained that he had learned the Realm Entry method to protect himself from snakes and insects, and Zhang Qian reflected on the Han Dynasty's efforts to recruit talent.
• Zhang Qian told Zhang Xuezhou about Emperor Jing and the Han Dynasty's talent recommendations while they shared roasted roe deer.
• Zhang Qian introduced himself by name and courtesy name, and Zhang Xuezhou borrowed Zhang Manqian as his own courtesy name rather than reveal Zhang Erbao.
• After Zhang Xuezhou failed to persuade Zhang Qian to stop calling him Manqian, Zhang Qian asked him to describe Xiong State.

Zhang Xuezhou improvised stories about Xiong State to satisfy Zhang Qian’s curiosity during their journey, and Zhang Qian became convinced by his descriptions of its wealth and holy lands. After six days on the road, they finally arrived at Chang'an, where Zhang Qian worried about the delays and whether Zhang Xuezhou was genuine.

• Zhang Qian questioned Zhang Xuezhou about Xiong State, and Zhang Xuezhou admitted he knew little about its people and customs.
• Zhang Xuezhou embellished what he knew, describing Xiong State’s resources, wealthy city of Walasi, and powerful holy lands.
• Zhang Qian lamented Xiong State’s strength and discussed the Han Dynasty’s difficulties defending its borders.
• Zhang Qian and Zhang Xuezhou reached Chang'an on the sixth day, and Zhang Qian worried that the delay might cost him credit or expose Zhang Xuezhou as a fraud.

Zhang Qian and Zhang Xuezhou arrived in Chang'an City, where the governor's office ignored Zhang Qian's request for an audience. After six days of waiting and mounting expenses, Zhang Qian decided to seek help from the crown prince instead.

• Zhang Xuezhou marveled at Chang'an City's size and prosperity as Zhang Qian brought him through the city gates.
• Zhang Qian learned that the governor's office had not arranged to receive them, so he submitted a calling card and waited for a response.
• While waiting, Zhang Xuezhou reflected on how his cultivation opportunities had put him ahead of many others and felt better about remaining with Wu Chao.
• After six days without an audience and with his money running low, Zhang Qian asked Zhang Xuezhou to confirm that he had learned a cultivation technique from Zou Bugui.
• Zhang Qian decided to bypass the governor's office and seek help from the crown prince.

Zhang Qian and Zhang Xuezhou waited for hours outside the imperial palace until Zhang Qian finally caught the Crown Prince’s attention and presented Zhang Xuezhou as a student of Zou Bugui. The Crown Prince decided to have Grand Commandant Zhou cast a technique to search for Zou Bugui.

• Zhang Qian and Zhang Xuezhou waited outside the imperial city for the Crown Prince, enduring hunger and the threat of sleeping on the streets.
• Zhang Qian called out when the Crown Prince’s carriage emerged, and he and Zhang Xuezhou saluted the prince.
• Zhang Qian told the Crown Prince that Zhang Xuezhou was a student of Zou Bugui and might serve as a medium to locate him.
• The Crown Prince questioned Zhang Xuezhou’s connection to Zou Bugui and then ordered Grand Commandant Zhou to cast the technique again.

Zhang Qian brought Zhang Xuezhou to Grand Commandant Zhou’s residence so Zhou could use a technique to locate Zou Bugui. Zhou doubted Zhang Xuezhou was truly Zou Bugui’s student and tried to dismiss the visitors, but the crown prince urged him to investigate because of the crisis on the front lines.

• Zhang Xuezhou objected to being used as a medium, while Zhang Qian assured him the technique would not cost him his life and explained his own motives.
• The crown prince’s carriage arrived at Grand Commandant Zhou’s residence, where Zhou welcomed him and heard why they had come.
• Grand Commandant Zhou questioned Zhang Xuezhou about his connection to Zou Bugui and judged that his cultivation did not mark him as a disciple of a renowned school.
• Grand Commandant Zhou tried to send the crown prince away, but the crown prince urged him to continue investigating, citing the soldiers fighting Xiong State and Emperor Jing’s need to understand the matter.

The crown prince insisted that Grand Commandant Zhou use his Slender Willow Technique to examine Zhang Xuezhou, despite Zhou's reluctance and Zhang Xuezhou being asleep. Zhang Qian realized he might be punished alongside Zhang Xuezhou if the examination exposed a lie, and entered the residence bracing for the worst.

• Grand Commandant Zhou resisted the crown prince's request for another examination, but eventually agreed to perform his Slender Willow Technique.
• Zhang Qian explained that Zhang Xuezhou fell asleep at a fixed time and had once fallen from a horse while asleep.
• The crown prince said he would send both Zhang Xuezhou and the person who recommended him to prison if Zhang Xuezhou was not a Yin-Yang School disciple.
• Zhang Qian understood that he could face punishment alongside Zhang Xuezhou and grew fearful of losing his legs or his tongue.
• Wei Qing helped Zhang Qian carry the sleeping Zhang Xuezhou into Grand Commandant Zhou's residence.

Grand Commandant Zhou used Zhang Xuezhou as a link to track the Yin-Yang School, but his spell uncovered a fiery scene and a hostile shadow that resisted his power. Zhou’s willow branch crumbled, and he collapsed as the attempt ended.

• Grand Commandant Zhou prepared to cast a tracking spell through Zhang Xuezhou, while Zhang Qian warned the unconscious youth that he would lose his tongue if he had deceived Ziwen.
• Zhou used water, a willow branch, and his Primordial Spirit to create a water curtain showing a youth and young woman in a strange house.
• The crown prince recognized that the figures were not Zou Bugui and thought the investigation had failed again.
• Zhou sensed interference, shouted that he would break through it, and forced the water curtain to reveal crimson flames and a dark, roaring shadow.
• Zhou summoned a bamboo scroll and a treasured sword to attack the shadow, but the willow branch disintegrated and Zhou fell backward, trembling.

Zhang Xuezhou and Zhang Qian were jailed after Grand Commandant Zhou was injured during a spell duel with Zou Bugui, but Chancellor Liu confirmed they had committed no crime. They were still held pending the search for Zou Bugui, and Zhang Xuezhou’s depleted Law Power left the court unsure who could cast the tracking spell.

• Zhang Qian feared that he and Zhang Xuezhou would be punished unless they found Zou Bugui, while Zhang Xuezhou recovered from the Law Power and Demon Power drained from him as a spellcasting medium.
• Jailers summoned Zhang Xuezhou and Zhang Qian to meet Chancellor Liu, and Zhang Xuezhou held off using his Invisibility Talisman.
• Chancellor Liu explained that neither man had committed a crime because there had been no deception in Zhang Qian’s recommendation or Zhang Xuezhou’s role as the spell’s medium.
• Zhang Xuezhou asked whether they could leave, but Chancellor Liu said they would remain under verification until the search for Zou Bugui ended.
• Chancellor Liu dismissed Zhang Xuezhou’s depleted Law Power as minor, but admitted he did not know who could safely cast the search spell after Grand Commandant Zhou’s injury.

Emperor Jing sought a way to investigate Xiong State’s attack on Han and approved summoning Dong Zhongshu for his extraordinary Technique Methods. After court, he warned the crown prince that the dynasty lacked capable ministers and urged him to build a loyal inner circle, leaving the crown prince unsure whom he could trust.

• Emperor Jing’s officials fell silent over the investigation after Grand Commandant Zhou failed to make progress, and the crown prince proposed asking Dong Zhongshu to help.
• Wei Wan and Tian Fen praised Dong Zhongshu’s Technique Methods, and Emperor Jing ordered Chancellor Liu She to summon him.
• After dismissing court, Emperor Jing told the crown prince that the ministers left at court were mostly mediocre and admitted his own failures had cost him capable allies.
• Emperor Jing urged the crown prince to seize power, build a capable inner circle, and surround and suppress his enemies when strong enough.
• Emperor Jing gave the crown prince the secret vault key and permission to study and reward people, demanding that anyone rewarded be absolutely loyal.

Zhang Xuezhou watched Zhang Qian practice Subduing Tiger Fist and reflected on his uncertain plans and doubts about which world was real. The crown prince and Chancellor Liu arrived with Dong Zhongshu and Sima Xiangru to begin a new attempt to deal with the Yin-Yang School’s Daoist arts.

• Zhang Qian demonstrated Subduing Tiger Fist, and Zhang Xuezhou learned that military techniques were forbidden to teach outsiders.
• Zhang Qian suggested Zhang Xuezhou seek Daoist Priest Zhou, while Zhang Xuezhou thought about Wu Chao’s plan and his fear of dying in either world.
• The crown prince, Chancellor Liu, Wei Qing, Dong Zhongshu, and Sima Xiangru arrived at the residence.
• Dong Zhongshu and Sima Xiangru prepared to work together, with Sima Xiangru agreeing to play High Mountains and Flowing Water to help Dong Zhongshu concentrate.
• The crown prince and Chancellor Liu warned Dong Zhongshu about the Yin-Yang School’s Daoist arts, and Dong Zhongshu turned toward the medium for the technique.