Chapter Summaries

After returning to Chang'an City, Zhang Xuezhou asked Cai Ma to teach him the Fate Technique so he could better judge medicines and extend his life. Cai Ma agreed, and her unexpectedly long lifespan left him astonished.

• Zhang Xuezhou returned to Chang'an City after twelve days and heard Cai Ma tell Rong Li that she would likely live to seventy.
• Cai Ma read Zhang Xuezhou's palm and found that his predicted lifespan shifted wildly, with a lifeline that appeared to end suddenly.
• Zhang Xuezhou brushed aside Cai Ma's questions about his twelve-day absence and asked her to teach him the basics of the Fate Technique.
• Cai Ma happily agreed, explaining that longer life gave cultivators more time to advance and that the Fate Technique was essential for that reason.
• Zhang Xuezhou guessed Cai Ma could live another two hundred years, and she was surprised he had inferred it.

Cai Ma taught Zhang Xuezhou the basics of the Fate Technique’s Longevity Instruction and explained how it could greatly extend natural lifespan. Zhang Xuezhou decided to pursue its first part, but he needed rare medicinal ingredients and planned to wait for Li Shaojun to arrive in Chang'an City.

• Zhang Xuezhou learned that Cai Ma’s body aged slowly and envied the long time she had to cultivate, though he knew he needed to defeat the Extraterrestrial Heavenly Demon.
• Zhang Xuezhou asked how long it would take to sense his natural lifespan, and Cai Ma estimated ten days to half a month of cultivation.
• Cai Ma explained that the Longevity Instruction used thirty-six thousand acupoints to gain a land immortal’s lifespan and seventy-two thousand to pursue a lifespan of a thousand years.
• Cai Ma agreed to teach Zhang Xuezhou the first part, which he expected to learn easily because of his experience with acupoint techniques.
• Zhang Xuezhou learned that cultivation required rare ingredients such as five-hundred-year-old wild ginseng and decided to wait for Li Shaojun before making plans to obtain them.

Zhang Xuezhou’s astonishing progress in the Evasion Techniques left Cai Ma questioning her own aptitude, and she resolved to watch him cultivate. As Cai Ma left the kitchen, a white-bearded old Daoist arrived and reacted warily to her Fate cultivation.

• Zhang Xuezhou and Cai Ma discussed the Dao for most of the day before Zhang Xuezhou cleaned himself with the Dust Avoidance Instruction and ate.
• Zhang Xuezhou told Cai Ma he had opened more than 48,000 apertures in each of his nine Evasion Techniques, leaving her stunned by his progress.
• Cai Ma compared Zhang Xuezhou’s five years of cultivation with her own decades of work and grew deeply discouraged.
• Zhang Xuezhou said he could reach 36,000 apertures in the Longevity Instruction in ten days to half a month if he had enough medicine, and Cai Ma decided to observe his cultivation.
• A white-bearded old Daoist entered and recoiled after noticing Cai Ma cultivated Fate.

Li Shaojun arrived in Chang'an City to help Zhang Xuezhou with the imperial edict, but Cai Ma recognized his true age and made him doubt the plan. Zhang Xuezhou persuaded him to stay, and they revised their approach to keep Li Shaojun away from the imperial palace and avoid exposing him to scrutiny.

• Li Shaojun found Zhang Xuezhou at the Zhang residence, where Cai Ma saw through his Aging Technique and identified him as far older than his apparent age.
• Li Shaojun tried to abandon the plan, but Zhang Xuezhou demonstrated that he could impersonate Li Shaojun and warned that he would proceed without him if necessary.
• Li Shaojun agreed to continue after realizing Zhang Xuezhou might claim the rewards alone, though he warned that a Fate Technique cultivator in the imperial palace could expose them.
• Li Shaojun explained how he had recognized Cai Ma as a fate cultivator, and he and Zhang Xuezhou discussed ways to guard against others discovering the deception.
• Zhang Xuezhou and Li Shaojun decided that Li Shaojun should remain an aloof enlightened master outside the imperial palace and receive what he needed from the new emperor rather than seek it himself.

Zhang Xuezhou arranged for Li Shaojun to meet the young emperor and uncovered a secret about Cai Ma before learning that Di Rang was being forced out of his inn. Di Rang planned to sell his house to raise money to get his son transferred back to Chang'an, while Zhang Xuezhou began bargaining over the price.

• Zhang Xuezhou told Li Shaojun that the young emperor might be easier to deceive than court officials and offered to arrange a chance for them to meet.
• Li Shaojun left the Zhang residence after devising a plan, and Zhang Xuezhou distracted Cai Ma by saying he would buy more houses.
• Cai Ma muttered about Di Rang's appearance, and Zhang Xuezhou used the Person-Fixing Technique to glimpse a fragment of her memory and expose her secret about the peculiar little person.
• Di Rang explained that Gu Lao'er and his men were blocking his inn to force him to sell the property, and he hoped to raise money to secure his son's transfer back to Chang'an.
• After learning Di Rang wanted a hundred and eighty taels for his house, Zhang Xuezhou set aside his sympathy and joined Rong Tianding in bargaining.

Zhang Xuezhou agreed to buy Di Rang’s house at a high price after learning Di Rang planned to give a gift to the Marquis of Wu'an, Tian Fen. On the way to transfer the property, Madam Xu also considered selling her house, and Zhang Xuezhou decided he might buy more neighboring residences; at the Office of the Governor of Jingzhao, he encountered Han Anguo.

• Di Rang told Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding that he wanted to sell his house to raise money for a gift and secure his son an official post.
• Zhang Xuezhou learned that Di Rang intended to give the gift to the Marquis of Wu'an, Tian Fen, and agreed to buy the house at a price within the official limit.
• Di Rang invited Madam Xu to join them on the trip to transfer the house, and she decided she might sell her own residence as well.
• Zhang Xuezhou told Rong Tianding he was willing to buy several nearby houses to give the Zhang family a place to stay in Chang'an City.
• At the Office of the Governor of Jingzhao, Zhang Xuezhou saw Han Anguo, the wealthy great cultivator who had previously given him gifts.

Han Anguo waited for news about his gifts and met Zhang Xuezhou, who promised to inquire into the delay and asked whether Han would accept a difficult post. At Zhang’s home, Han saw a carriage from the Marquis of Pingyang’s Household, while Zhang heard Li Shaojun warning the new emperor that a great calamity was upon him.

• Han Anguo ran into Zhang Xuezhou outside the Office of the Governor of Jingzhao and accepted his invitation to visit his home.
• Zhang Xuezhou asked Han Anguo whether he had visited Tian Fen and whether he would take an office that risked making enemies; Han agreed he would serve wherever the emperor assigned him.
• Han Anguo noticed a carriage from the Marquis of Pingyang’s Household outside Zhang Xuezhou’s residence and wondered about the household’s important guest.
• Zhang Xuezhou heard Li Shaojun tell the new emperor that a great calamity was upon him.

At the Zhang residence, Li Shaojun mistakenly treated the new emperor as a noble guest and warned him of an impending calamity, forcing him to improvise when Zhang Xuezhou revealed the emperor’s identity. Li Shaojun gave the emperor an ancient silk Law Artifact as a possible life-saving treasure, and the emperor left curious about whether the warning was true.

• Li Shaojun disguised himself as an enlightened Daoist and tried to impress the new emperor with ominous predictions.
• Zhang Xuezhou entered and greeted the new emperor before Li Shaojun, making Li Shaojun realize whom he had been addressing.
• The new emperor challenged Li Shaojun to explain the calamity and asked who could possibly defeat him.
• Li Shaojun avoided naming anyone and gave the emperor an ancient silk Law Artifact, asking for life-extending medicinal ingredients if it ever saved his life.
• The new emperor examined the worn treasure and kept it, while considering whether Li Shaojun’s warning had any truth to it.

Zhang Xuezhou explained to the new emperor why corruption and entrenched interests were so difficult to overcome, drawing on two books recommended by Ren Yisheng. The emperor was left considering how to act without suffering the fate of Chao Cuo, whose death remained shrouded in doubt.

• Zhang Xuezhou told the new emperor that Han Anguo had given him five hundred taels of gold and recommended using him for difficult tasks before entrusting him with greater responsibility.
• The new emperor compared Zhang Xuezhou's frankness with Tian Fen's concealed gift and grew troubled by the possibility that Tian Fen had accepted a bribe.
• Zhang Xuezhou explained the first book's account of how entrenched social interests prevented reform and corrupted officials, leaving the new emperor grave.
• Zhang Xuezhou introduced The Invisible Currency War as offering a way to address the problem intermittently, while warning that proposing a concrete solution would invite retaliation.
• The new emperor recalled Chao Cuo's failed purge under Emperor Jing and wondered who had arranged his death, as the old political crisis weighed on him.

After consulting Zhang Xuezhou about corruption and national affairs, the new emperor went to Sima Xiangru’s residence for further counsel. There, he walked into an attack that trapped Sima Xiangru and his wife, and Li Guang realized the emperor was in grave danger.

• Zhang Xuezhou explained Ren Yisheng’s books to the new emperor until nearly midnight, leaving the emperor troubled by the corruption in the Northern Border Military Region.
• The new emperor ordered Wei Qing to drive him to Sima Xiangru’s residence, dismissing Li Shaojun’s warning that disaster was at hand.
• At Sima Xiangru’s dark residence, the new emperor and his guards heard mournful zither music and a strange voice, then heard a woman groan.
• Wei Qing entered the courtyard while Li Guang detected an expert capable of trapping Divine Ability Realm cultivators.
• The new emperor charged into the residence but was pulled back by Li Guang after an illusion affected him, while the unseen attacker wounded Li Guang.
• The new emperor’s protective talismans activated all at once, and Li Guang realized that Li Shaojun’s warning had come true.

After the new emperor left, Li Shaojun and Zhang Xuezhou gave up on their plan to scheme against him, but Li Shaojun’s bamboo-slip treasure suddenly activated and pointed toward the emperor. They realized the emperor might truly be in danger despite Li Guang and Wei Qing protecting him.

• Li Shaojun admitted that he would need to assassinate the new emperor to make his prediction come true, but Zhang Xuezhou warned him that Li Guang and Wei Qing guarded the emperor.
• After learning Li Guang was with the emperor, Li Shaojun packed to leave, and Zhang Xuezhou accepted that their scheme had failed.
• Li Shaojun complained that he had given the emperor the Apricot-Yellow Something Flag, which only protected its bearer when they were in mortal danger.
• Zhang Xuezhou suggested Li Shaojun stay a few days in case their fortunes changed, and Li Shaojun agreed.
• A purple light flashed across Li Shaojun’s bamboo slips, which began to pull toward the emperor and revealed that the Apricot-Yellow Flag had activated.

The new emperor and Li Guang faced a hidden attacker at Sima Xiangru’s residence while Wei Qing searched through illusions for the enemy. The attacker recognized the new emperor, leaving the emperor’s identity exposed and the confrontation unresolved.

• A strip of white silk struck the new emperor, but his talismans shielded him from being cut in two.
• Li Guang fired three arrows at the hidden attacker, who mocked him for lacking his Heaven-Shaking Arrows and demanded that Sima Xiangru identify him.
• Li Guang and Wei Qing searched the residence, where Sima Xiangru’s zither played but no people could be seen.
• Wei Qing believed he had found the attacker and cast a Wind Incantation Technique, but the spell and his search had only occurred in his mind.
• Li Guang called Wei Qing back as the fight shifted outside, and Wei Qing hurried to defend the new emperor.
• The hidden attacker recognized that the heavily protected man was the reigning emperor.

Li Guang and Wei Qing fought a hidden attacker using white silk while the new emperor was trapped by the enemy’s techniques. A golden lotus treasure protected him from a killing blow, and he escaped in his carriage as Li Guang urged him to run.

• A strip of white silk separated Li Guang from the new emperor, and Li Guang fought its user with his sword.
• Wei Qing joined Li Guang, but warned that the attacker was also striking at the marquis from behind a wall.
• Sima Xiangru and Zhuo Wenjun emerged from concealment as the sounds in the courtyard subsided, while Li Guang urged the new emperor to flee.
• The attacker suppressed the new emperor and struck at his waist, but the golden lotus treasure Li Shaojun had given him blocked the fatal blow.
• The new emperor recovered control of his body, grabbed the whip, and drove the carriage away.

Zhang Xuezhou and Li Shaojun flew to rescue the new emperor, whose carriage was fleeing an attack by Yin Souls. Li Shaojun’s bamboo slips unleashed the Ten Thousand Swords Break One Method, but he fell into the road and was trampled by the emperor’s carriage.

• Zhang Xuezhou and Li Shaojun set out from the Zhang residence after the bamboo slips led them toward the new emperor.
• They heard a carriage racing through the darkness and discovered that Yin Souls were attacking the emperor’s party.
• Li Shaojun threw the bamboo slips and infused them with Law Power, triggering a storm of purple sword lights.
• The sword lights struck the attacker, while Zhang Xuezhou and Li Shaojun fell from the air after Li Shaojun warned Zhang not to resist or use Technique Methods.
• The emperor’s carriage ran over Li Shaojun, who died on the road.

The new emperor fled through Chang'an with a pursuer wielding deadly white silk, while his defensive treasures and talismans failed to give him a way to strike back. Zhang Xuezhou helped him escape after Li Shaojun’s attack disrupted the pursuer, but Li Shaojun had been run over by the emperor’s carriage and could no longer fight.

• The new emperor drove his carriage through the dark streets as his opponent followed closely and the golden lotus protection faded.
• The new emperor searched for an offensive talisman and prepared to use the fake Red Empyrean Sword when a mysterious attack of purple swords battered the white silk.
• The new emperor called for the unseen helper to join forces, but Zhang Xuezhou pulled him behind a wall and into a doorway instead.
• Zhang Xuezhou told the new emperor that Li Shaojun had attacked their pursuer but had been struck and run over by the carriage.
• The new emperor realized Li Shaojun could not fight and that they needed to escape immediately.

Zhang Xuezhou and the new emperor hid from an assassin using the Demonic Sound Technique, then escaped with Li Shaojun. They learned the pursuer was likely Gongsun Gui, a School of Names cultivator imitating Zou Xun, and realized he was still on their trail.

• Zhang Xuezhou hid with the new emperor beneath a quilt in a servants’ room, and they evaded Gongsun Gui’s search by lying still.
• Zhang Xuezhou warned that Gongsun Gui might return to search the area, then led the new emperor back to the alley.
• Zhang Xuezhou found Li Shaojun, who was bloodied after being struck by the carriage, and asked him to identify the assassin.
• Li Shaojun suspected the assassin was Gongsun Gui, whom the new emperor recognized as a cultivator supposedly beheaded more than ten years earlier.
• The new emperor described Gongsun Gui’s white-silk treasure, while Li Shaojun explained that Gongsun Gui imitated Zou Xun’s techniques.
• Zhang Xuezhou recognized the Puppet Technique, Following Like a Shadow Technique, and Demonic Sound Technique, and understood that escaping Gongsun Gui would be difficult.

Zhang Xuezhou, Li Shaojun, and the new emperor fled Gongsun Gui through the dark streets, relying on a runaway horse until it carried them to the Marquis of Pingyang's Household. They escaped inside, and Zhang Xuezhou's bluff made Gongsun Gui hesitate as they hoped the residence's mechanisms would protect them.

• Zhang Xuezhou judged Gongsun Gui's imitations of Yin-Yang School techniques and learned that Li Guang and Wei Qing could not catch up to help.
• Li Shaojun drove the carriage while the new emperor, Zhang Xuezhou, and Li Shaojun fled Gongsun Gui, who threatened them with his Demonic Sound Technique.
• The horse abruptly stopped at the Marquis of Pingyang's Household, and the new emperor recognized the residence and urged everyone inside.
• The new emperor picked the gate's lock, and the group slipped into the household before Gongsun Gui could catch them.
• Zhang Xuezhou ordered everyone to form the Three Talents Formation and attack any shadows, making Gongsun Gui pause his pursuit.

The new emperor, Zhang Xuezhou, and Li Shaojun fled through the Marquis of Pingyang's Household to Marquis Xiang's Palace, where they prepared for Gongsun Gui's attack. Gongsun Gui slipped through a window gap but was struck by a log and the fake Red Empyrean Sword before escaping in a burst of anger.

• The new emperor led Zhang Xuezhou and Li Shaojun on a long run to Marquis Xiang's Palace while Gongsun Gui pursued them.
• The new emperor accused Gongsun Gui of serving the Uncle King of Liang and plotting against Chao Cuo and Sima Xiangru.
• Gongsun Gui used a wooden figure as a decoy and slipped through a gap in a window while the others watched it.
• The new emperor struck Gongsun Gui with a falling log, and the fake Red Empyrean Sword wounded him as Li Shaojun scattered Soul-Luring Powder.
• Gongsun Gui roared, lunged back through the window, and escaped, leaving his gray robe behind.

Zhang Xuezhou, Li Shaojun, and the new emperor injured Gongsun Gui and trapped his robe, but could not safely leave the hall to pursue him. After Wei Shao'er helped Chen Zhang drive off Gongsun Gui's puppet, the badly wounded cultivator slipped toward a crying child.

• Zhang Xuezhou stopped the new emperor from pursuing Gongsun Gui and warned him that Gongsun Gui's robe was dangerous.
• Li Shaojun burned the robe while Zhang Xuezhou explained that Gongsun Gui's hidden Law Treasures and threads could still attack them.
• Chen Zhang confronted a puppet outside the hall, and Wei Shao'er joined him after the new emperor warned them of the enemy.
• Wei Shao'er struck Gongsun Gui with her short sword, forcing his concealed figure to vanish and leaving white ash behind.
• Gongsun Gui, gravely injured and losing control of his treasures, heard a child crying and drifted toward the sound.

The new emperor reflected on his past political mistakes while Zhang Xuezhou and Li Shaojun assessed Gongsun Gui’s weakness. Gongsun Gui seized Bing'er as a hostage and demanded his Law Treasure back, leaving the others to decide whether to stop fighting his puppet.

• The new emperor considered how Zhang Xuezhou and Li Shaojun fought cautiously against stronger opponents and recognized the mistakes in his own upbringing and rule.
• Wei Shao'er cried out that Gongsun Gui had seized Bing'er, prompting the new emperor to open the hall doors.
• Zhang Xuezhou and Li Shaojun realized Gongsun Gui was physically weakened and had resorted to taking a hostage because he needed his Law Treasure.
• Gongsun Gui approached with Bing'er and demanded that the others stop attacking his treasure so he could leave.
• Gongsun Gui threatened to dash Bing'er to death if Chen Zhang did not stop fighting the wooden puppet, and began counting down.