This review reports a series of theoretical and experimental progress on researches of the transverse field Ising chain (TFIC) and the quantum
E8 integrable model. For the TFIC, on one hand, a unique exotic quantum critical behavior of Grüneisen ratio (a ratio from magnetic or thermal expansion coefficient to specific heat) is theoretically established; on the other hand microscopic models can accommodate the TFIC universality class are substantially expanded. These progresses successfully promote a series of experiments collaborations to first-time realize the TFIC universality class in quasi one-dimensional anti-ferromagnetic material BaCo
2V
2O
8 and SrCo
2V
2O
8. For the quantum
E8 integrable model, the low temperature local dynamics and the dynamical structure factor with zero transfer momentum of this system are analytically determined, where a cascade of edge singularities with power-law divergences are obtained in the continuum region of the dynamical structure factor. After combining with detailed quantum critical scaling behaviors analysis and large scale iTEBD calculation, it successfully facilitates a series of experiments, including THz spectrum measurements, inelastic neutron scattering and NMR experiments, to realize the quantum
E8 integrable model in BaCo
2V
2O
8 for the first time. The experimental realization of the quantum
E8 integrable model substantially extends the frontiers of studying quantum integrable models in real materials. The series of progress and developments on the TFIC and the quantum
E8 integrable model lay down a concrete ground to go beyond quantum integrability, and can inspire studies in condensed matter systems, cold atom systems, statistical field theory and conformal field theory.