Chapter Summaries

Gongsun Gui’s attempt to seize Huo Qubing and kill the new emperor was stopped when the child’s babbling invoked the Confucian School’s “Benevolence” Art, allowing Wei Shao'er to behead him. The survivors burned Gongsun Gui’s remains, and Li Shaojun marveled at the light surrounding Huo Qubing.

• The new emperor ordered Chen Zhang to retreat, but Gongsun Gui’s puppet cut Chen Zhang’s neck and left Wei Shao'er convulsing on the ground.
• Gongsun Gui considered killing the new emperor, but Huo Qubing’s babbling filled his mind with thoughts of benevolence and left him vulnerable.
• Wei Shao'er threw her flying sword and severed Gongsun Gui’s head while he was incapacitated.
• Zhang Xuezhou ordered Gongsun Gui’s remains burned and warned the new emperor to beware of retaliation.
• Wei Shao'er held Huo Qubing as Li Shaojun recovered and marveled at the light around the child.

After the new emperor spared Li Guang from punishment, the survivors kept burning Gongsun Gui’s remains and treated the wounded. Zhang Xuezhou concluded that their crisis was settled, then prompted Li Shaojun to seek the reward the emperor had promised him.

• Li Guang knelt to beg punishment for failing to protect the new emperor, but the emperor excused him and ordered that no one be punished.
• Chen Zhang thanked Zhang Xuezhou and the others for saving his life while they continued burning Gongsun Gui’s remains.
• Zhang Xuezhou reflected that Li Shaojun’s claims had proved true and that the new emperor would trust him despite any accusations from officials.
• Zhang Xuezhou hinted that Li Shaojun should ask the emperor for his promised reward, and Li Shaojun drew the emperor’s attention by coughing.

Li Shaojun asked the new emperor for a large supply of rare medicines to recover from his injuries, and the emperor agreed to seek them from the Palace of Peace and Happiness. After the emperor left, Li Shaojun and Zhang Xuezhou admitted they had requested valuable ingredients without knowing whether they could use them.

• The new emperor worried that obtaining Li Shaojun’s obscure medicines from the Grand Empress Dowager might seem ungrateful, but he asked whether they were ingredients for the Life-Creating Fortune Pill.
• Li Shaojun claimed the medicines could heal injuries, restore cultivation, and extend life, and described himself as a Daoist who had learned from a master and met Anqi Sheng.
• The new emperor agreed to visit the Palace of Peace and Happiness to find the medicines for Li Shaojun, then ordered Wei Qing and the others to burn Gongsun Gui’s remains and prepare for rites to remove hidden dangers.
• Li Shaojun told the new emperor he would stay with Dongfang Shuo or go to the Andong Guesthouse while recovering, and the emperor hurried back to the palace with Li Guang.
• After the emperor left, Li Shaojun and Zhang Xuezhou privately acknowledged that they had requested valuable medicines without knowing exactly what they needed or how they would use them.

The new emperor visited the Grand Empress Dowager to report Gongsun Gui’s assassination attempt and seek great medicines for Li Shaojun. She credited his survival to the Red Empyrean Sword, and he accepted her explanation to preserve imperial legitimacy, leaving the request for medicine unanswered.

• The new emperor passed the ministers handling routine affairs and went to the Palace of Peace and Happiness to see the Grand Empress Dowager.
• The Grand Empress Dowager deduced that he had been out all night and asked what trouble had brought him to her.
• The new emperor recounted the events involving Uncle Liang and Gongsun Gui, including the assassination attempt.
• The Grand Empress Dowager praised the Crimson Firmament Treasured Sword and attributed Gongsun Gui’s death to its power.
• The new emperor abandoned his effort to credit Li Shaojun and the others, agreeing that the Red Empyrean Sword had enabled his victory.

The Grand Empress Dowager suspected Li Shaojun might be connected to a scheme and sent Cui Yan to investigate him and invite him to the Palace of Peace and Happiness if his health allowed. Cui Yan left the palace and recruited a female medical officer to help assess Li Shaojun.

• The Grand Empress Dowager withheld Li Shaojun's requested medicines and suspected his rescue of the new emperor might have been part of a plot.
• The Grand Empress Dowager ordered Cui Yan to investigate Li Shaojun and invite him to the Palace of Peace and Happiness if his health could withstand the journey.
• Cui Yan left the Palace of Peace and Happiness, worrying that the errand could leave him blamed in a conflict between the Grand Empress Dowager and the new emperor.
• Cui Yan met a female medical officer who was leaving the palace on leave and invited her to examine Li Shaojun.
• Cui Yan gave the female medical officer a one-tael gold nugget and hoped her examination would reveal whether Li Shaojun could be taken to the palace.

Yi Shuo accompanied Cui Yan to examine Li Shaojun and questioned him about alchemists and a stolen pill-refining gourd. She learned that her father Yili had reported the gourd stolen, and that Cui Yan might be connected to the case surrounding her family.

• Cui Yan offered Yi Shuo gold to examine an injured cultivator, and she accepted only one piece of silver before agreeing to go with him.
• Cui Yan told Yi Shuo he was headed to Dongfang Shuo’s residence to check on Li Shaojun, a fellow patient who had reportedly been injured in an accident.
• During their carriage ride, Yi Shuo asked why Jianzhang Palace lacked a dedicated alchemist, and Cui Yan explained the shortage of skilled pill refiners and the demands of the Nine Dragons Cauldron.
• Yi Shuo asked about a treasure that could make pill refining easier, and Cui Yan recalled that Yili had once used a red gourd to make pills before reporting it stolen.
• Yi Shuo realized Cui Yan’s account concerned her father Yili and suspected that Cui Yan, an official surnamed Cui, might be tied to the events surrounding her family and the gourd.

Cui Yan and Yi Shuo arrived at Zhang Xuezhou’s household to find Dongfang Shuo and Li Shaojun, but both were away and the house was full of people preparing pork. Yi Shuo left to escape the strong smell while Cui Yan stayed behind to wait for Li Shaojun.

• Cui Yan spent two hours failing to get information about the gourd from Yi Shuo, and they arrived at Old Tree Alley.
• Cui Yan and Yi Shuo found Zheng Wukong’s house quiet, then followed the strong smell of pork to Zhang Xuezhou’s household.
• A young woman told Cui Yan that Dongfang Shuo had gone shopping and Li Shaojun had gone out for a walk.
• Cui Yan decided to wait for Li Shaojun so he could deliver the Palace of Peace and Happiness’s invitation.
• Yi Shuo told Cui Yan the pork smell interfered with distinguishing medicines and went to walk somewhere upwind.

Zhang Xuezhou visited Han Anguo after a dangerous night and told him that an assassin from the State of Liang had targeted him. As Han Anguo offered to serve the court against Liang, Zhang Xuezhou considered how a third party might balance the dangerous clash between Fortune Techniques, and even wondered whether Han Anguo could fill that role.

• Li Shaojun joined Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding on the visit to Han Anguo, but Han Anguo did not let him into the room to share the tea.
• After drinking three cups, Han Anguo sensed faint resentment on Zhang Xuezhou and realized he had recently killed a highly skilled person.
• Zhang Xuezhou told Han Anguo that the assassin he had encountered came from the State of Liang, and Han Anguo understood the warning could hinder his rise at court.
• Han Anguo offered to investigate the State of Liang and report its crimes, and Zhang Xuezhou agreed that he would help arrange it.
• Zhang Xuezhou considered the coming conflict between the new emperor and the King of Huainan and concluded that a third party might absorb the impact of their Fortune Techniques.
• Zhang Xuezhou looked at Han Anguo and wondered whether he could become that third party.

Zhang Xuezhou left Han Anguo after discussing how to balance Dong Zhongshu’s plans for Jiangdu’s Fortune, then headed to find Kong Anguo while Li Shaojun balked at joining him. Back at the Zhang residence, Li Shaojun realized an imperial physician had arrived to examine him, raising the prospect that he would have to face the grand empress dowager to keep his promised medicines.

• Zhang Xuezhou told Han Anguo that the assassin from Liang was Gongsun Gui, prompting Han Anguo to reconsider how far he would go to prove his loyalty to the court.
• Zhang Xuezhou explained that he was going to visit Kong Anguo, son of Kong Zhong, and Li Shaojun first wanted to join him but gave up when Zhang said he did not know Kong Anguo’s address.
• Zhang Xuezhou went to the Sage Kong Temple to ask Confucian students where Kong Anguo lived, while Li Shaojun returned to the Zhang residence to eat pork and recover his losses.
• Li Shaojun saw a young woman testing her aim with a silver needle and suspected she was an imperial physician sent to examine him.
• Li Shaojun feared that an examination would prevent him from receiving the medicines he had requested and realized he might need to deal with the grand empress dowager.

Zhang Xuezhou warned Li Shaojun about facing the Grand Empress Dowager, but the two agreed to split any reward equally and prepared to fool the Palace of Peace and Happiness's medical officer. Their plan left Li Shaojun beaten and carried toward the Zhang residence, where they discovered the officer was Yi Shuo, who would have helped them without the charade.

• Zhang Xuezhou refused to help Li Shaojun confront the Grand Empress Dowager, while Li Shaojun insisted he would not leave without recovering the value of his lost treasures and life.
• Zhang Xuezhou told Li Shaojun that the Grand Empress Dowager was blind and gravely ill from corpse Sha Qi, easing Li Shaojun's worries.
• Zhang Xuezhou and Li Shaojun agreed to split their future gains equally, then Zhang Xuezhou brought Rong Tianding in to beat Li Shaojun so he would appear seriously injured to the medical officer.
• Zhang Xuezhou and Rong Tianding carried the battered Li Shaojun back toward the Zhang residence and found the medical officer, Yi Shuo, on the wall tending sun grass.
• Zhang Xuezhou realized Yi Shuo would have supported them during the examination, making Li Shaojun's beating unnecessary.

Zhang Xuezhou and Yi Shuo helped Li Shaojun stage a severe illness to avoid Cui Yan taking him to the Palace of Peace and Happiness. The deception worked, but Cai Ma recognized the scheme and demanded heart-clearing grass in exchange for her silence.

• Zhang Xuezhou greeted Yi Shuo, and they exchanged information through voice transmission before he called for the Zhang residence’s door to be opened.
• Cai Ma recognized that Li Shaojun’s apparent condition was an act and demanded one tael of heart-clearing grass to keep quiet; Zhang Xuezhou also asked her to check whether Cui Yan had practiced the Fate Technique.
• Cui Yan arrived under orders to invite Li Shaojun to the Palace of Peace and Happiness, and Yi Shuo examined Li Shaojun and described his injuries as severe.
• Zhang Xuezhou claimed Li Shaojun needed mild medicines and time to recover before he could travel, persuading Cui Yan to leave without taking him to the palace.
• Yi Shuo accepted Zhang Xuezhou’s invitation to eat, while Cai Ma wondered why he had requested ingredients for the Longevity Instruction rather than medicine for Li Shaojun.

Rong Li hosted a meal where Yi Shuo and Rong Tianding traded insults, while the injured Li Shaojun awaited the Grand Empress Dowager’s response and dreamed of refining the Eight-Step Immortal Ascension Pill. Zhang Xuezhou discussed finding Kong Anguo and heard that Dongfang Shuo had received a reward, leaving him hopeful of obtaining the medicines needed to cultivate the first stage of the Longevity Instruction.

• Rong Li explained the medicinal ingredients in her pig offal, and Yi Shuo and Rong Tianding exchanged threats and insults at the meal.
• Li Shaojun stayed in bed, expecting the Grand Empress Dowager to decide whether to provide medicine for his injuries, and thought about refining the Eight-Step Immortal Ascension Pill.
• Zhang Xuezhou asked Li Shaojun about the pill, then agreed that they should visit Kong Anguo to seek advice about refining their treasures.
• A eunuch announced that Golden Horse Gate scholar-in-waiting Dongfang Shuo had received his reward, making Zhang Xuezhou hopeful that he would obtain the medicines he needed.

The new emperor asked Sima Xiangru and Sang Hongyang for advice on currency reform and corruption in the Northern Border Military Region. He accepted a gradual trial of currency reform and considered sending Han Anguo to investigate the border.

• The new emperor learned that the Palace of Peace and Happiness had given Zhang Xuezhou ordinary medicinal ingredients and questioned how to make up for breaking his promise to reward him.
• The new emperor discussed currency reform with Sima Xiangru and Sang Hongyang, who advised trying it in Chang'an City before extending it elsewhere.
• Sima Xiangru and Sang Hongyang agreed that corruption in the Northern Border required investigation, but Sima Xiangru realized the assignment could put his life at risk.
• The new emperor recalled Zhang Xuezhou's recommendation of Han Anguo and considered him suitable to investigate corruption in the Northern Border.

Zhang Xuezhou began cultivating the first stage of the Longevity Instruction with medicine prepared by Cai Ma, astonishing her with his ability to memorize and follow the ancient Technique without mistakes. By dawn, he had opened all one thousand apertures in just a few hours, leaving Cai Ma stunned by how quickly he had surpassed her start.

• Cai Ma prepared the Longevity Instruction medicine from aged ginseng and a Demon Beast’s gallbladder while Li Shaojun begged Zhang Xuezhou to share the Fate Technique.
• Zhang Xuezhou explained part of the cultivation method to Li Shaojun, who struggled to memorize it and realized the Technique demanded more time than he wanted to spend.
• Cai Ma explained that Zhang Xuezhou’s gift was his ability to retain complicated cultivation methods and proceed without mistakes.
• Cai Ma estimated Zhang Xuezhou would reach the first stage faster than she had, despite his slower cultivation pace, and tried to reassure herself that his advantage would diminish later.
• As dawn approached, Zhang Xuezhou opened all one thousand apertures of the first stage and formed a cycle within a few hours, shattering Cai Ma’s confidence.

Zhang Xuezhou practiced the Longevity Instruction but still could not sense how much it extended his life, and he asked Li Shaojun to obtain stronger medicinal ingredients for the next stage. Han Anguo visited to announce his appointment as Commandant of Beidi and brought Zhang Xuezhou a gift.

• Zhang Xuezhou practiced the Longevity Instruction and questioned whether it was useful when he could not feel his lifespan increasing.
• Cai Ma explained that Zhang Xuezhou would need to practice further before he could sense the effects of life-extending medicines.
• Zhang Xuezhou woke Li Shaojun and asked him to obtain another batch of medicines, including ginseng at least five hundred years old.
• Han Anguo arrived at the Zhang residence and announced that His Majesty had appointed him Commandant of Beidi.
• Han Anguo's servants carried a mahogany chest into the residence, and Zhang Xuezhou welcomed the gift.

Han Anguo sought Zhang Xuezhou’s advice on investigating corruption as Commandant of the Northern Lands, and Zhang urged him to act cautiously while the emperor was not ready for a major crackdown. As Han Anguo left the Zhang residence, a carriage from the Palace of Peace and Happiness arrived, making him reconsider Zhang Xuezhou’s influence at court.

• Han Anguo told Zhang Xuezhou that the emperor had ordered him to investigate corruption across the northern lands and asked where to begin.
• Zhang Xuezhou suggested that Han Anguo investigate without pursuing matters too ruthlessly, since it was not yet time for the emperor to act decisively.
• Han Anguo realized that the timing gave him room to investigate lightly, but Zhang left him to decide how to earn merit and win promotion.
• Han Anguo departed the Zhang residence, believing Zhang Xuezhou had helped him through a chance connection.
• Han Anguo saw a carriage from the Palace of Peace and Happiness heading toward the Zhang residence and realized Zhang’s connections might be greater than he had assumed.

Zhang Xuezhou received a genuine Fortune Pill from Han Anguo while he and Li Shaojun prepared to go to the Palace of Peace and Happiness. Cui Yan arrived to take the badly injured Li Shaojun there, hoping he could help the grand empress dowager.

• Han Anguo sent Zhang Xuezhou a Fortune Pill, which Zhang secured in his storage pouch while Li Shaojun complained about being guarded against.
• Zhang Xuezhou warned Li Shaojun not to cause trouble at the Palace of Peace and Happiness, and the two went out to meet Cui Yan.
• Cui Yan said the grand empress dowager wanted Li Shaojun brought to the palace so he could recover under their care.
• Medical Officer Zhao and Medical Officer Wang examined Li Shaojun and judged his body severely depleted, while Zhang and Li said he needed slow recuperation.
• Cui Yan decided Li Shaojun should be taken to the Palace of Peace and Happiness, believing he might be able to help the grand empress dowager.

Yi Shuo asked Zhang Xuezhou for help investigating her parents’ deaths, and he deduced that their fate was tied to a stolen red gourd and the Palace of Peace and Happiness. He advised her to seek Li Shaojun’s help and left her waiting for his return.

• Yi Shuo told Zhang Xuezhou that her investigation into Cui Yan and her parents’ deaths had stalled, then repeated what Cui Yan had said about her father and a red gourd.
• Zhang Xuezhou deduced that Yi Shuo’s father had used the gourd to make pills for the imperial family, and that a rival might have stolen it before the dispute turned deadly.
• Zhang Xuezhou advised Yi Shuo to find the records of the gourd case and identify the officials who investigated, questioned, or cleared the people involved.
• Yi Shuo said she would kill Cui Yan if he proved to be her parents’ murderer, and Zhang Xuezhou warned her to ask for help instead.
• Zhang Xuezhou suggested Yi Shuo approach Li Shaojun with an offer to help him refine pills, and she agreed to wait for his return from the Palace of Peace and Happiness.
• Zhang Xuezhou suspected Li Shaojun had come to Chang’an City to fulfill a task from Bai, not merely to seek a chance to advance his cultivation.

Li Shaojun entered the Palace of Peace and Happiness while concealing his identity and steering the conversation to avoid being examined. After the grand empress dowager explained how Corpse Sha Qi from the Yang Mausoleum had made her gravely ill, Li Shaojun hinted that he knew a difficult way to suppress it, leaving her eager to hear his advice.

• Li Shaojun arrived at the Palace of Peace and Happiness genuinely ill after being beaten and using the Supreme Purity True Technique to heal himself.
• Li Shaojun greeted the grand empress dowager, called Fellow Daoist Dou, and advised her to spend more time in sunlight.
• Li Shaojun asked how the grand empress dowager had been injured, keeping control of the conversation so she would not question him about his condition.
• The grand empress dowager explained that Corpse Sha Qi from the Yang Mausoleum had afflicted her after Emperor Jing's arrangements backfired on her.
• Li Shaojun said the grand empress dowager had almost no way to suppress the Corpse Sha, prompting her to ask him for guidance.

Li Shaojun proposed ways to suppress the grand empress dowager’s corpse Sha Qi, then claimed his own failing health made him need the Life-Creating Fortune Pill. Their discussion revealed a court treasure that could improve substandard pills, but it had been stolen, and the grand empress dowager vowed to investigate its disappearance.

• Li Shaojun proposed performing the Feng and Shan sacrifices or finding the Human Emperor’s Nine Cauldrons to suppress the grand empress dowager’s corpse Sha Qi.
• The grand empress dowager asked about the Nine Cauldrons, and Li Shaojun said their location was unknown after Emperor Qin’s death and suggested the Huang-Lao Way might know more.
• Li Shaojun claimed his cultivation had fallen and his body was failing, and he said he could no longer pursue the Immortal Court’s Life-Extending Golden Elixir.
• The grand empress dowager asked Li Shaojun for the Life-Creating Fortune Pill formula and offered to have court alchemists make it, but he said an eighth-grade Alchemist was needed.
• The grand empress dowager revealed that the court had an ancient treasure capable of nurturing substandard pills into more potent medicine, and Li Shaojun eagerly agreed to refine pills for it.
• The grand empress dowager admitted the treasure had been stolen and promised to investigate its disappearance before fetching it.