Recaps

Jingxing won a debate by arguing that art preserved civilization’s existence, then encountered a strand of the Imaginary Tree’s energy. Using it, he created a living leaf from nothing, leaving the witnesses and Yaxche’s chief examiner stunned.

• Jingxing argued that art and memory were irreplaceable defenses against Nihility, and the chief examiner declared him the winner.
• Jingxing gathered his painting into a sheet of black silk and left it on the stone table for the examiner to appreciate.
• After the hall emptied, the Imaginary Tree appeared above Jingxing and placed a fine line of energy in his palm.
• Jingxing drew on the energy and used Cloud-Washing Ink-Tracer to create a living green leaf on the stone floor.
• Apprentices, the chief examiner, and the tall, thin priest witnessed the impossible creation as Jingxing joked that the Imaginary Tree found them boring.

Jingxing passed the Academy’s examination on Yaxche, settled the old cases there, and left as the 2158th Amber Era began. After reconnecting with the Astral Express crew and Robin, he told Fu Xuan he was heading to the Luofu.

• Jingxing passed the examination, then asked Kenneth Zaitian to resolve the old cases and recover the remains on the Back Hill.
• Kenneth and his officers arrived three days later, documented the cases, secured the inscriptions, and granted Old Fansuos a pension.
• Jingxing departed aboard the Chasing the Moon as Yaxche marked the beginning of the 2158th Amber Era.
• Jingxing learned that the Astral Express crew had reconnected Jarilo-VI to the interstellar network and congratulated them in a group chat.
• Jingxing reassured Robin that he was safe, then told Fu Xuan he would arrive at the Luofu soon.

Jingxing stayed with Fu Xuan on the Luofu while warning her that an unseen danger might be approaching, despite the Divination Commission finding no signs of trouble. Jing Yuan then asked Jingxing to broaden Yanqing’s understanding of the universe, and Yanqing arrived to meet him.

• Jingxing returned to the Luofu and stayed at Fu Xuan’s home, where he repeatedly asked whether the Divination Commission had noticed anything unusual.
• Fu Xuan investigated the Luofu’s arrivals, ley lines, and divination records but found no evidence of outside evil.
• Jingxing kept watch over the still, secure thread of cause and effect he had brought back from Yaxche’s World Tree.
• Jing Yuan invited Jingxing to the Seat of Divine Foresight and asked him to broaden Yanqing’s horizons without necessarily teaching him directly.
• Jing Yuan called Yanqing into the pavilion, where Yanqing greeted Jingxing and assessed his unarmed, relaxed appearance.

Jing Yuan sent Yanqing to spar with Jingxing, whose effortless deflection revealed a vast gap in their skill. After hearing that Jingxing had narrowly beaten Yunli, Yanqing asked him for instruction and renewed the attack with fierce determination.

• Jing Yuan introduced Jingxing to Yanqing and sent them to the West Martial Arts Arena to spar.
• Yanqing challenged Jingxing, who let him attack without drawing a weapon.
• Jingxing deflected Yanqing’s thrust with a subtle flick, sending him stumbling and leaving his arm numb.
• Jingxing said he had narrowly won against Yunli, stunning Yanqing with the scale of the difference between them.
• Yanqing asked Jingxing to instruct him and launched another attack with renewed resolve.

Jingxing sparred with Yanqing until the boy was exhausted and injured, then spoke with Jing Yuan about why he had come to the Luofu. He admitted that a powerful figure had warned him the Luofu would be dangerous, but he had come anyway.

• Jingxing dodged Yanqing's attacks without drawing a weapon, then disarmed him and ended their sparring session.
• Jing Yuan sent Yanqing to get his bleeding hands treated and postponed his patrol shift.
• Jingxing told Jing Yuan he had come because he missed Fu Qing, but Jing Yuan pointed out his inquiries into secret accounts and deployment records.
• Jing Yuan warned that Jingxing's connection to Fu Qing had drawn the Xianzhou leadership's attention and that the Divination Commission could be a vulnerable target.
• Jingxing revealed that a high-ranking being had warned him not to go to the Luofu because it would be dangerous, but he had come despite the warning.

Jing Yuan learned that the Stellaron Hunters had infiltrated the Luofu, while Jingxing went home to cook for Fu Xuan. After a report revealed that Blade had been captured in Cloudford, Jingxing accompanied Fu Xuan as she headed to oversee the escort.

• Jing Yuan received a report that the Stellaron Hunters had infiltrated the Luofu, and Jingxing left to cook for Fu Xuan.
• Jingxing made mushroom and bamboo shoot soup, and Fu Xuan told him her third-eye pain had recently eased.
• Jingxing admitted he had used Imaginary Energy to lessen Fu Xuan's pain, and she told him not to do it without asking next time.
• A message informed Fu Xuan that the Cloud Knights had captured Blade in Cloudford and that she had to oversee the escort formation.
• Jingxing insisted on accompanying Fu Xuan to Cloudford, where he sensed a sinister presence through the thread extending from Yaxche.

Jingxing went to Cloudford and helped March 7th, Stelle, and Welt fight Mara-struck attackers at the harbor. He told Stelle that Blade had been detained, then led her away as the thread in his palm grew more urgent near the Seat of Divine Foresight.

• Jingxing sensed trouble at Cloudford, left Fu Xuan, and headed for the harbor while she returned to the Seat of Divine Foresight.
• March 7th, Stelle, and Welt fought Mara-struck attackers at Cloudford's damaged pier, but the monsters repeatedly reassembled.
• Jingxing arrived and drained the death energy from the Mara-struck, leaving their bodies as ash.
• Jingxing told March 7th and Stelle that he was living on the Xianzhou and that Blade had been detained.
• Jingxing warned the group to leave before they were arrested, then led Stelle away as the thread in his palm pulsed urgently toward the Seat of Divine Foresight.

Phantylia’s plan to lure the Astral Express Crew was disrupted when Jingxing defeated the Mara-Struck Cloud Knights, so she disguised herself as Tingyun and approached the group. Jingxing saw through the disguise and secretly bound her with Imaginary Tree roots as she led them through Cloudford.

• Phantylia learned from a Mara-Struck Cloud Knight that Jingxing had stopped the attack on the Astral Express Crew, then decided to approach them as Tingyun.
• Tingyun met March 7th, Welt, Stelle, and Jingxing, and offered to guide them around the Cloudford blockade.
• Jingxing sensed unnatural Imaginary Energy and immense power beneath Tingyun’s disguise, but chose not to attack her in front of the others.
• Jingxing sent Imaginary Energy into the paving stones and formed a concealed ring of roots around the alley.
• As Tingyun led the group along a side path, Jingxing secretly tightened the roots around her shadow and ankles, preparing to test his new ability.

Fu Xuan struggled to divine what was happening at Cloudford while worrying about Jingxing. Meanwhile, Jingxing followed the suspicious “Tingyun” into an old warehouse, secretly preparing to trap her when she attacked.

• Fu Xuan received reports of attacks and mara-struck riots at Cloudford, then ordered a divination of the area beneath the old locust tree.
• Fu Xuan tried to read the tangled cause and effect at Cloudford and urged the guards to hurry, quietly hoping Jingxing would return safely.
• Jingxing deflected Tingyun’s questions about his abilities and whether he would defend the Luofu, while Stelle, March 7th, and Welt Yang whispered behind them.
• Tingyun warned the group that the alley ahead was unsafe and led them toward an old warehouse belonging to the Sky-Faring Commission.
• Jingxing entered the warehouse with a thread already wrapped around Tingyun’s shadow and prepared to trap the impostor if she attacked.

While sheltering in a warehouse amid the Mara-Struck crisis, Jingxing warned the Astral Express crew that Belobog would soon face an IPC debt claim from Topaz. He quietly raised a barrier around the warehouse as Tingyun’s suspicious calm drew his attention.

• Stelle, March 7th, and Welt recounted how the Astral Express crew helped reconnect Jarilo-VI and seal its Stellaron.
• Jingxing warned that Belobog’s seven-hundred-year-old IPC loan had accrued interest and that Topaz would arrive to collect it.
• Welt thanked Jingxing for the warning, and March 7th messaged Bronya, who said Belobog was reviewing its accounts and owed the crew a favor.
• Tingyun praised Jingxing’s knowledge, then claimed she was frightened after being separated from her colleagues.
• Jingxing silently wove Imaginary Energy through the warehouse to form a barrier while watching Tingyun.