Recaps

Lin Xuan bought a rare Snow Origin Ginseng that could help him refine a pill for advancing from Nascent Soul Middle Stage to Late Stage, then met Meng Ruyan, who appeared to be a sickly Spirit Movement Stage cultivator. After leaving the market, he told Yue'er he suspected Meng Ruyan was a Lihe-stage cultivator, but they could not understand why she had disguised herself and begged for a Jade Blood Pill.

• Lin Xuan recognized a five-hundred-year-old ginseng as Snow Origin Ginseng and bought it for three mid-grade crystal stones.
• Lin Xuan paid for a Jade Blood Pill for the ailing Meng Ruyan after the shopkeeper refused to help her.
• Lin Xuan noticed a brief change in Meng Ruyan's eyes, asked her name, and left the shop without revealing his alarm.
• Lin Xuan bought a few more items, then flew away and used his divine sense to check whether Meng Ruyan had followed him.
• Lin Xuan told Yue'er that Meng Ruyan's aura suggested she was a Lihe-stage cultivator, though they could not explain her behavior.
• Lin Xuan remained uncertain about Meng Ruyan's purpose and decided to meditate and recover his magic power.

Lin Xuan settled into a temporary cave abode and searched Blood Demon Venerable’s Nascent Soul for a way to advance his Devil Infant. He learned the process required a Soul-Transforming Pill, a special formation, and two Top-grade Spirit Stones, then promised Yue'er he would find a way to help her condense a Nascent Soul.

• Lin Xuan carved out a cave abode, set up Formation Flags, and had the Corpse Demon and Pangolin guard it.
• Lin Xuan searched Blood Demon Venerable’s Nascent Soul and learned how to sacrifice-refine a Devil Infant so it could advance.
• Lin Xuan recorded the method, noting that he already possessed the two Top-grade Spirit Stones needed to activate the formation.
• Lin Xuan ordered Yue'er to seal Blood Demon's soul into the Beast Soul Banner and feed his Nascent Soul to the Corpse Demon.
• Lin Xuan reassured Yue'er that he would find a way to help her condense a Nascent Soul after her failed attempt.

Lin Xuan used the Five Dragon Seal to weaken and trap the Heavenly Tribulation Fire, then had his Azure Phantom Nether Fire swallow it for refining. The fire began to settle only after Lin Xuan’s Nascent Soul sacrificed some of its life essence, leaving the difficult refinement underway.

• Yue'er left the Cultivation Room after blushing, while Lin Xuan wondered whether he had said something wrong.
• Lin Xuan opened the Jade Box containing the Heavenly Tribulation Fire and released it from the Five Dragon Seal’s cloud-mist.
• For three days, Lin Xuan used the Five Dragon Seal to exhaust the fire until it had weakened considerably.
• Lin Xuan sent the Azure Phantom Nether Fire, shaped like a small bird, to swallow the Heavenly Tribulation Fire.
• Lin Xuan’s Nascent Soul used its life essence to strengthen the Azure Phantom Nether Fire and calm the Heavenly Tribulation Fire.

Lin Xuan completed the fusion of the Heavenly Tribulation Fire with his Azure Phantom Nether Fire, creating a vastly more powerful flame with a trace of spiritual awareness. Outside his secluded chamber, five Xueming Sect cultivators fled a pursuer, and the chapter ended as their danger approached Lin Xuan's hidden retreat.

• After two years of cultivation, Lin Xuan finished fusing the Heavenly Tribulation Fire into the Azure Phantom Nether Fire.
• Lin Xuan tested the new flame on a defensive shield, and it melted the shield almost instantly.
• Lin Xuan explained to Yue'er that the flame had gained a trace of spiritual awareness, and Yue'er wondered whether it could eventually develop human-level intelligence.
• Four men and Zhu Qianru fled together from an injured old monster who pursued them from behind.
• Zhu Qianru's companions refused to abandon her, knowing her father was the Xueming Sect's Nascent Soul sect master.
• The five cultivators continued toward the Desolate Mountain where Lin Xuan was concealed.

Zhu Qianru saved a scholar suffering qi deviation, only to learn he was the notorious Flower-Plucking Old Devil, who pursued her and her fellow disciples. With the old devil closing in, Eldest Senior Brother decided they had to stop fleeing and fight him in the Desolate Mountain.

• Zhu Qianru wandered into a hidden valley and found a scholar suffering qi deviation.
• Zhu Qianru gave the scholar a Heart-Protecting Pill and left without realizing he was the Flower-Plucking Old Devil.
• The old devil caught up with Zhu Qianru and her four senior brothers, intending to abduct her as a Cauldron.
• Eldest Senior Brother observed that the old devil's strength was recovering and led the group toward a steep Desolate Mountain to make a stand.
• The red-haired cultivator questioned the plan, but another disciple agreed to follow Eldest Senior Brother into the fight.

The Flower-Plucking Old Devil cornered Zhu Qianru and her Xueming Sect companions, demanding to take her as his Cauldron despite learning she was the sect master's daughter. As the Nascent Soul Realm cultivator overwhelmed them, Lin Xuan watched from concealment, and Zhu Qianru tried to take her own life.

• The five Xueming Sect cultivators prepared to face Flower-Plucking Old Devil, but his demonic cloud and a single cold snort left them struggling under his pressure.
• Flower-Plucking Old Devil demanded that they hand over Zhu Qianru, admitting that he wanted her as his Cauldron because she had saved him from qi deviation.
• The short, stout old man warned that Zhu Qianru was the beloved daughter of a Nascent Soul Middle Stage cultivator, but Flower-Plucking Old Devil decided to kill the witnesses and seize her anyway.
• The Xueming Sect cultivators attacked Flower-Plucking Old Devil while Lin Xuan and Yue'er remained hidden nearby, and the old devil fought them off with black flames.
• Flower-Plucking Old Devil destroyed the short, stout old man's life-bound Dharma Treasure and wounded another cultivator, leaving the survivors unable to resist.
• Zhu Qianru tried to cut her own throat rather than be captured, but Flower-Plucking Old Devil mocked her as he prepared to take her alive.

Lin Xuan intervened when Flower-Plucking Old Devil tried to capture and kill the Xueming Sect cultivators, and Yue'er angrily rebuked the old devil. Though he agreed to let them go, Lin Xuan attacked him as he fled, leaving the two cultivators on the brink of a fight.

• Flower-Plucking Old Devil immobilized Zhu Qianru and prepared to seize her, while her companions could not stop him.
• Lin Xuan emerged from hiding and said the old devil had disturbed his cave residence.
• Lin Xuan declared he would protect the Xueming Sect cultivators, and Yue'er appeared to curse the old devil for his actions and insults.
• Flower-Plucking Old Devil agreed to let the cultivators leave rather than fight Lin Xuan and his allies.
• As the old devil flew away, Lin Xuan struck him with azure Sword Qi, which the old devil blocked with a shield.

Lin Xuan confronted Flower-Plucking Old Devil to protect the Xueming Sect cultivators and overwhelmed his demonic techniques with the upgraded Azure Phantom Nether Fire. As the old devil’s attacks failed, he abandoned his body and transformed it into a powerful monster while preparing to escape.

• Lin Xuan rejected Flower-Plucking Old Devil’s threats and vowed to kill him, draw out his soul, and refine his spirit.
• Flower-Plucking Old Devil summoned a Bloodthirsty Fierce Crocodile whose strength rivaled a Transformation Realm Flood Dragon, but Lin Xuan answered with the Azure Phantom Nether Fire.
• Lin Xuan’s flame burned the crocodile and melted the old devil’s Ghost Fork, then his Fire Python destroyed the Demon Corpses hidden in the demonic fog.
• Flower-Plucking Old Devil abandoned his fleshly body and used his Nascent Soul and a black bead to transform it into a horned monster with a Middle Stage aura.

Lin Xuan defeated and captured the Flower-Plucking Old Devil, then accepted Zhu Qianru’s invitation to attend a Nascent Soul-level trade fair at Xueming Mountain. As the Xueming Sect cultivators led him toward their sect, Lin Xuan learned about Longnan’s powerful cultivators and considered seeking a body-refinement pill formula.

• Lin Xuan stopped the Flower-Plucking Old Devil’s escape, destroyed his demonic body with the Azure Phantom Nether Fire, and captured his Nascent Soul in the Beast Soul Banner.
• Zhu Qianru thanked Lin Xuan for saving her and her four fellow Xueming Sect cultivators, then invited him to visit their sect.
• Lin Xuan initially refused, but Zhu Qianru told him that Xueming Sect would host a Nascent Soul-level trade fair attended by nearly a hundred Longnan cultivators, and he agreed to go.
• Lin Xuan traveled toward Xueming Mountain with the five Xueming Sect cultivators and learned more about the Longnan region.
• After hearing about two Longnan Demon Cultivator brothers who specialized in body refinement, Lin Xuan considered seeking a pill formula that could help him condense a Demon Core.

Lin Xuan arrived at Xueming Mountain with Zhu Qianru and the Xueming Sect cultivators, who welcomed him as an honored guest for saving their lives. He learned that the sect master and his wife had gone to Yao City to welcome the Fairy in the Clouds of Horizon Sea Pavilion.

• After several days of travel, Lin Xuan and the others reached the vicinity of Xueming Mountain, where he sensed more than fifty Nascent Soul cultivators gathered.
• The short, stout old man sent a Sound Transmission Talisman to announce Lin Xuan’s arrival, and Ji Xuansheng soon came from the mountain to greet him.
• Ji Xuansheng thanked Lin Xuan for rescuing Zhu Qianru and the others, and welcomed him as an honored guest of Xueming Mountain.
• Zhu Qianru asked why her parents had not come to greet Lin Xuan, and Ji Xuansheng explained that the sect master and his wife were away in Yao City to welcome an honored guest.
• Lin Xuan and Yue'er suspected the guest might be Tian Xiaojian, but Ji Xuansheng revealed that it was the Fairy in the Clouds of Horizon Sea Pavilion.

Lin Xuan heard Ji Xuansheng mention the Fairy of Cloud Province from Horizon Sea Pavilion and recalled the sect’s legendary battle against an alliance of eighty-one factions. He learned that a masked Lihe Realm woman had annihilated the invaders, leaving him uncertain whether she was Qin Yan.

• Lin Xuan was shocked when Ji Xuansheng mentioned the Fairy of Cloud Province and concealed his personal connection to Qin Yan.
• Lin Xuan recalled that five hundred years earlier, eighty-one sects and Rogue Cultivators had attacked Horizon Sea Pavilion to seize its treasures and abduct its female cultivators.
• Horizon Sea Pavilion’s masked Martial Aunt appeared with sect master Murong Saixue, and the invaders realized she was a Lihe Realm cultivator.
• The masked woman ordered that no invaders be spared, then froze and shattered the alliance’s eight Nascent Soul Late Stage cultivators.
• Horizon Sea Pavilion’s cultivators routed the remaining invaders, while Lin Xuan wondered whether the Fairy of Cloud Province was Qin Yan.

Lin Xuan learned that Qin Yan was the beloved disciple of Horizon Sea Pavilion’s Lihe Realm Supreme Elder, the masked cultivator who had annihilated the eighty-one-house alliance five hundred years earlier. He arrived at Xueming Mountain for a trade fair, where he met the renowned Jiang Brothers and learned the sect’s palace was built from Sky Moon Crystal.

• The chapter recounted how the masked Lihe Realm cultivator slaughtered the alliance’s Nascent Soul experts and tens of thousands of cultivators, then described the lasting fear her victory inspired across the Twelve Heavenly Cloud Provinces.
• Ji Xuansheng told Lin Xuan that the visiting Fairy in the Clouds was surnamed Qin and was the Lihe Realm cultivator’s beloved disciple; Lin Xuan realized she was Qin Yan.
• Ji Xuansheng escorted Lin Xuan toward Xueming Mountain, where Lin Xuan sensed two approaching Nascent Soul Middle Stage cultivators.
• Lin Xuan met the twin Demon Cultivators Jiang Da and Jiang Er, whom Ji Xuansheng praised for their unusual paired abilities and their escape from a late-Transformation Realm demon beast.
• The group reached Xueming Mountain’s crystal-built palace, and Lin Xuan recognized its construction material as Sky Moon Crystal.

Lin Xuan arrived at the Xueming Sect, where he wondered about Qin Yan’s promised reunion and the sect’s Sky Moon Crystal before resting in a guarded pavilion. Several Nascent Soul cultivators then visited to thank him for killing the Flower-Plucking Old Devil, while Lin Xuan suspected they had another motive and secretly followed them with a Jade Luo Bee.

• Ji Xuansheng welcomed Lin Xuan and the Jiang Brothers to the Xueming Sect, then left Zhu Qianru to guide them to the VIP Building.
• Lin Xuan chose a quiet pavilion, declined a maid’s assistance, and set up his own formations before discussing Qin Yan with Yue'er.
• Lin Xuan received a visitor’s message the next morning and met the red-robed old man, Master Yuantong, and Fairy Huadie.
• Fairy Huadie and the others explained that the Flower-Plucking Old Devil had harmed their relatives, and they thanked Lin Xuan for killing him.
• The red-robed old man questioned Lin Xuan about his strength, but Lin Xuan claimed the old devil’s cultivation had been weakened by qi deviation.
• Lin Xuan secretly sent a Jade Luo Bee to follow the visitors, and the red-robed old man stopped Fairy Huadie from speaking as they left.

Fairy Huadie, Monk Yuantong, and the red-robed old man discussed recruiting Lin Xuan for a dangerous undertaking, while Lin Xuan waited anxiously for Qin Yan. When he sensed the Nine Heavens Profound Art far away, he rushed toward it at full speed, convinced Qin Yan was in trouble.

• The three cultivators secretly discussed testing Lin Xuan and possibly cooperating with him because he cultivated poison-attribute devilish flames.
• Lin Xuan learned their conversation through a Demon Bee and suspected their plan might offer valuable benefits.
• Lin Xuan waited at the VIP Building as more than a hundred Nascent Soul cultivators gathered for the trade fair, while Qin Yan remained absent.
• Yue'er tried to reassure Lin Xuan, who worried that Qin Yan might have been targeted despite the protection of the Xueming Sect's sect master and his wife.
• Lin Xuan sensed the Nine Heavens Profound Art about five hundred li to the northwest and concluded Qin Yan was in danger.
• Lin Xuan flew toward the disturbance at full speed, alarming nearby cultivators, though none dared follow him.

Lin Xuan hurried toward a battle after sensing powerful spiritual fluctuations and found Qin Yan fighting the Xueming Sect master and his wife. He watched from concealment, recognizing her strength and the refined Nine Heavens Ice-Fire Silk she wielded, while the unseen enemy remained unexplained.

• Lin Xuan spotted the Jiang Brothers racing toward the same distant spiritual fluctuations, then sped ahead of them.
• Lin Xuan sensed Qin Yan and two Nascent Soul Middle Stage cultivators fighting, but could not detect the enemy they faced.
• Lin Xuan concealed his presence and approached, recognizing Qin Yan, whom he had not seen for two hundred years.
• Lin Xuan identified Qin Yan's companions as the Xueming Sect master and his wife, who were fighting alongside her.
• Lin Xuan watched Qin Yan use the Nine Heavens Ice-Fire Silk and combine the Nine Heavens Profound Art with the Falling Cloud Drifting Snow Art.

Lin Xuan watched Qin Yan and the Xueming Sect couple battle a Nascent Soul Late Stage Puppet, then stayed hidden while the Jiang Brothers joined the fight. A concealed Nascent Soul Early Stage Puppet nearly killed Qin Yan, but Lin Xuan intervened and burned its arms with his Azure Phantom Nether Fire.

• Lin Xuan recognized the blue-robed elder as a Nascent Soul Late Stage Puppet and guarded Qin Yan and the Xueming Sect couple from the shadows.
• The Jiang Brothers arrived and attacked the blue-robed Puppet, drawing its attention away from Qin Yan.
• A palace-dressed Puppet emerged from concealed black mist and launched a deadly surprise attack on Qin Yan.
• Lin Xuan used Nine Heavens Micro-Steps to shield Qin Yan, pushed her aside, and burned the attacking Puppet’s arms with his Azure Phantom Nether Fire.
• Lin Xuan realized that in his haste to save Qin Yan, he had touched somewhere he should not have.

Lin Xuan reunited with Qin Yan after two hundred years and destroyed a Puppet that tried to ambush him. They joined Zhu Tianyun and his wife in fighting a powerful Nascent Soul Late Stage Puppet, which began to falter under their combined assault.

• Lin Xuan and Qin Yan recognized each other after he accidentally touched her while saving her.
• A Puppet in palace dress ambushed Lin Xuan, but he evaded her attack and destroyed her with Azure Phantom Nether Fire.
• Qin Yan was astonished that Lin Xuan had reached Nascent Soul Middle Stage and wondered how he had survived and advanced so far.
• Lin Xuan and Qin Yan set aside their reunion to help Zhu Tianyun and his wife fight the Nascent Soul Late Stage Puppet.
• The four cultivators overwhelmed the Puppet, which began looking for a way to escape.

Lin Xuan and Qin Yan joined the Jiang Brothers and Zhu Tianyun’s couple to fight a powerful Puppet, but Lin Xuan sensed it was preparing to self-destruct. He fled with Qin Yan while the Puppet pursued them, leaving the group scrambling to escape.

• Lin Xuan and Qin Yan coordinated their attacks with the Jiang Brothers and Zhu Tianyun’s couple, gradually overwhelming the Nascent Soul Late Stage Puppet.
• Lin Xuan sensed that the Puppet’s spiritual power was turning violent and realized it was about to self-destruct.
• Lin Xuan grabbed Qin Yan and used the Nine Heavens Micro-Steps to retreat several thousand zhang, warning the others to flee.
• The other cultivators scattered, but the Puppet chased Lin Xuan and Qin Yan as its spiritual power neared the point of self-destruction.
• Lin Xuan unleashed dozens of Sword Qi attacks to slow the pursuing Puppet, but it accelerated and continued closing in.

Lin Xuan and Qin Yan combined their powers to survive a late-stage Puppet’s self-destruction, but a giant monster formed from the explosion’s remaining spiritual power and attacked them. Their defenses were nearly spent as they braced for its strike.

• Lin Xuan used his spear to reveal the pursuing Puppet, then fled with Qin Yan as it prepared to self-destruct.
• Lin Xuan deployed the Black Gold Dragon Scale Shield and spent his defensive talismans while Qin Yan raised the Nine Heavens Ice-Fire Silk to protect them.
• Lin Xuan joined the Nine Heavens Bright Moon Ring with Qin Yan’s silk and held her close so they could merge their spiritual power through the Nine Heavens Profound Art.
• The Puppet exploded, shattering Lin Xuan’s talismans and damaging the Black Gold Dragon Scale Shield before the blast reached their final defenses.
• A giant lion-bodied, ox-headed monster formed from the explosion’s residual spiritual power and struck at Lin Xuan and Qin Yan as they fought back together.

Lin Xuan and Qin Yan struggled to withstand the demon beast’s crushing claw as their defenses failed. Lin Xuan unleashed his True Spirit Strike, sending a White Tiger upward to meet the attack.

• Lin Xuan and Qin Yan reinforced their ice-and-fire barrier, while Qin Yan joined hands with him and cast a mysterious spell through their Dharma Treasure.
• Zhu Tianyun and the Red-Clad Beauty fled the battle, fearing Horizon Sea Pavilion’s reprisal for abandoning Qin Yan.
• The demon beast’s claw broke through the barrier, injuring Qin Yan and crushing Lin Xuan under immense pressure.
• Qin Yan gathered pink mist around herself as Lin Xuan moved beside her and compressed his remaining spiritual power into a sphere.
• Lin Xuan unleashed True Spirit Strike, and a miniature White Tiger surged upward toward the demon beast’s claw.

Nascent Soul cultivators near Xueming Mountain mistook Lin Xuan’s battle for a clash between Lihe Realm experts and fled the area. As Lin Xuan’s True Spirit Strike began to falter against the demonic beast’s thunder and fire, only Fairy in the Clouds could safely help him.

• Nascent Soul cultivators judged the battle’s power to exceed the Nascent Soul Realm and fled in the direction away from Lin Xuan.
• Xueming Sect’s elders debated whether to evacuate, and Ji Xuansheng ordered his fellow elders to lead the disciples to safety while he stayed to guard the sect.
• The newly advanced elder surnamed Lu offered to remain instead, but Ji Xuansheng insisted on staying because Lu had more time and potential to grow.
• Lin Xuan strained to control the True Spirit Strike as the demonic beast’s thunder and fire pushed back against the White Tiger head, leaving him badly injured.
• Yue'er and Pangolin could not intervene without risking an explosion, so Fairy in the Clouds remained the only person able to help Lin Xuan.

Qin Yan joined Lin Xuan in unleashing powerful techniques to survive a Nascent Soul Late Stage Puppet’s self-destruction. After they recovered, Zhu Tianyun and the others found them alive and asked how they had escaped the blast.

• Qin Yan used a secret technique from the Floating Cloud Falling Snow Art to summon an Ice Crystal Giant Dragon and help Lin Xuan withstand the explosion.
• Lin Xuan’s White Tiger and Qin Yan’s Ice Crystal Giant Dragon swallowed the lightning and fire, dissolving the puppet’s self-destruction.
• Lin Xuan restored his spiritual power with an ancient jade belt while Qin Yan marveled at his abilities and treasures.
• Zhu Tianyun, his wife, and the Jiang Brothers flew to the blast site and discovered Lin Xuan and Qin Yan alive.
• After Lin Xuan and Qin Yan finished recovering, Zhu Tianyun asked how they had survived the puppet’s explosion.

After surviving the puppet’s explosion, Lin Xuan and Qin Yan returned to Xueming Mountain, where Zhu Tianyun invited them to stay and offered Lin access to most of the sect’s records. Zhu Tianyun later revealed to the Red-Clad Beauty that he had seen Lin’s extraordinary abilities and believed Lin could contend with powerful Nascent Soul cultivators.

• Qin Yan told the four old monsters that her master, Fairy Ruyan, had saved her and Lin Xuan from the puppet’s explosion.
• Lin Xuan, Qin Yan, the Jiang Brothers, and Zhu Tianyun returned to Xueming Mountain and learned that the disciples had taken shelter after the battle.
• Ji Xuansheng reported that the sect was safe but the visiting cultivators had left, ruining the exchange meeting.
• Zhu Tianyun invited Lin Xuan and Qin Yan to stay and offered them access to nearly all of Xueming Sect’s records, and they accepted.
• Zhu Tianyun told the Red-Clad Beauty that Lin Xuan had rescued Qin Yan from a concealed puppet and displayed instant movement and a powerful emerald flame.

Zhu Tianyun decided that befriending Lin Xuan would benefit his sect, while three Nascent Soul cultivators secretly broke into a hidden cave on Xueming Mountain. Qin Yan received Lin Xuan’s midnight invitation and went to meet him, but the secluded location and soundproofing restriction made her wary of his intentions.

• Zhu Tianyun persuaded the Red-Clad Beauty that befriending Lin Xuan would bring their sect benefits, and warned her not to investigate his relationship with Qin Yan.
• Brother Chen led two Nascent Soul cultivators to a hidden entrance on Xueming Mountain, and the three entered the cave in search of something.
• Qin Yan recovered from her injuries and received a Sound Transmission Talisman from Lin Xuan asking to meet at midnight.
• Qin Yan used a concealment divine ability to travel to the remote back mountain, recalling Lin Xuan’s rescue of her and feeling gratitude and admiration toward him.
• Qin Yan noticed Lin Xuan’s soundproofing restriction and began to suspect that the secluded meeting might conceal an improper purpose.

Lin Xuan met Qin Yan in a forest and explained his rapid cultivation by claiming to have a Bitter Spirit Root. After they shared their experiences, he began asking about their past at Stream Leap Ravine, leaving his question unfinished.

• Qin Yan chose to trust Lin Xuan and met him in a remote forest clearing.
• Qin Yan asked how Lin Xuan had cultivated so quickly despite once seeming to have no spirit root.
• Lin Xuan claimed he had a Bitter Spirit Root, and Qin Yan accepted his explanation.
• Lin Xuan and Qin Yan walked through the forest, exchanged stories, and observed each other's composure.
• Lin Xuan asked Qin Yan whether she remembered their trip to Stream Leap Ravine and started to ask what had happened after they parted.