Chapter Summaries

Luo Qingqing destroyed the formation that had trapped Olina, and the Jinxia Army crossed the river to face the much larger Ganzhou Army. Ning Wanjun led Suzaku and the Mechanical Beasts into the enemy line, opening a devastating breach as the battle began.

• Luo Qingqing killed Luo Bairen, destroyed Dragon Scale, and broke the formation, freeing Olina.
• Olina burned the Ganzhou Army’s ballista and cannon positions while Qian Zhi and the others completed the ice bridge.
• Ning Wanjun led the vanguard across the river and prepared to charge the massed Ganzhou Army.
• The Jinxia troops advanced beneath the Xuanwu’s shields and returned fire with air rifles as arrows struck their defenses.
• Ning Wanjun drove Suzaku into the enemy formation, and the Mechanical Beasts tore open the Ganzhou Army’s front line despite Qi Duming’s orders to hold.

The Jinxia Army routed Qi Duming's forces at Wangshan Ferry, and Ning Wanjun called on the abandoned soldiers to surrender. She left troops to secure the prisoners and riverbank, then advanced west with Xia Fan waiting ahead.

• Qian Zhi battered the Ganzhou soldiers who tried to flank the Jinxia Army, while the Mechanical Beasts and Air Rifles broke the front line.
• As the Ganzhou formation collapsed, Qi Duming refused to send in his cavalry and ordered a retreat to Ye City.
• The retreating Ganzhou soldiers fell into chaos, and Ning Wanjun used an Amplification Talisman to urge them to surrender.
• Many soldiers laid down their weapons, and Ning Wanjun left a thousand men to escort the prisoners and guard the riverbank.
• Ning Wanjun led fifty Mechanical Beasts and a thousand elite soldiers west, knowing Xia Fan would be waiting for her.

Qi Duming’s retreating army was surrounded by Jinxia forces and Mechanical Beasts, forcing him to surrender to spare his soldiers. As he was escorted east, he realized the princess’s campaign might also target the defenses at Pingzhen Ferry.

• Qi Duming ordered his exhausted army to rest and sent a messenger to warn General Lu at Pingzhen Ferry that Shenzhou’s main force was attacking Wangshan Ferry.
• Cannon blasts sounded from the forests, and more than two thousand Jinxia troops emerged to pursue Qi Duming’s army.
• Qi Duming saw Mechanical Beasts and a Giant Fox blocking the road ahead, while the Third Princess’s forces pursued from behind.
• Qi Duming ordered his soldiers to surrender and had himself bound, claiming responsibility for the defeat so his men would be spared.
• As Jinxia escorted Qi Duming east with only a small guard, he realized its missing forces might be heading toward Pingzhen Ferry.

Xia Fan’s rapidly marching force joined Ning Wanjun and struck Pingzhen Ferry from the rear, trapping the Ganzhou Army between them and the river. With Li’s ability driving the enemy Fangshi to flee, the Jinxia Army overwhelmed the ferry’s defenses and sent the Ganzhou troops into a rout.

• Xia Fan led 2,500 soldiers and 150 Xuanwu Mechanical Beasts across the frozen Lichuan River and marched toward Ganzhou territory.
• Xia Fan used the Sound Transmission Device to track the enemy, seized favorable ground, and cut off their retreat before joining Ning Wanjun’s force.
• Xia Fan and Ning Wanjun combined their forces and marched through the night toward Pingzhen Ferry.
• The Jinxia Army reached Pingzhen Ferry from behind as Chi and Olina destroyed the pontoon bridge with two Dragons.
• Li amplified the enemy Fangshi’s fear, causing them to flee, while Ning Wanjun led the Xuanwu through the camp’s defenses.
• The Ganzhou Army’s defenses collapsed, and its soldiers were driven into the river or shot down along the bank.

After the Ganzhou Army was annihilated by the Jinxia Army, Ning Qianshi confronted the lack of reliable information and the threat to the Lichuan River defenses. He sought comfort from the lingering soul of the former Tianshu Envoy, then went to meet the Bureau of Military Affairs’ assembled leaders in Huiyang City.

• Ning Qianshi read He Shifeng’s report that the Ganzhou Army had been destroyed, leaving the Leizhou Army too depleted to threaten Shenzhou from the west.
• Ning Qianshi questioned two surviving sorcerers, who said Jinxia had crossed the frozen river with Mechanical Beasts and that Luo Qingqing had killed Luo Aoying, but they knew nothing about the army’s total destruction.
• He’er warned Ning Qianshi that the Lichuan River was no longer a reliable barrier if the Living Dead supported the Third Princess, and Ning Qianshi confirmed that the danger had already come to pass.
• Ning Qianshi asked He’er to let him speak with the former Tianshu Envoy, who urged him to look to the future and find a new Tianshu Envoy before her spirit faded.
• He’er collapsed from the strain, and Ning Qianshi carried her to a couch before leaving for a gathering of the Bureau of Military Affairs’ leaders in Huiyang City.

Ning Qianshi briefed the assembled leaders on the allied forces’ preparations and proposed luring Jinxia’s elite fighters into a decisive battle. The meeting also addressed Yu Linglong’s alleged betrayal, and the chapter ended with Du Yelong secretly keeping her bound in his bedroom.

• Ning Qianshi introduced Azure Blades Yan Yue and Ji Wuwang, who had come to help independently of the Seven Stars Bureau of Military Affairs.
• Ning Qianshi described the allied armies’ deployment, Ganzhou’s defeat, and Jinxia’s use of Mechanical Beasts, demons, and powerful fighters.
• Ning Qianshi urged the group to lure Jinxia’s elites into a battle, and Bai Zhan and Qian agreed that confronting them was necessary.
• Wei Huang confirmed that Yu Linglong’s arrows and Fei Nian’s injuries supported the claim that the two had fought, while Ning Qianshi ordered that Yu be questioned before judgment.
• Du Yelong returned to his residence, locked the door, and brought food to Yu Linglong, who was bound to a bedpost in his bedroom.

Yu Linglong and Shadow used Du Yelong’s doubts about Fei Nian to secure a hidden refuge near the Liuzhou front, while concealing Yu Linglong’s real purpose. After confirming Qian’s location, they escaped that night to act before Du Yelong could uncover the truth.

• Du Yelong brought Yu Linglong food and said he would investigate her claims against Fei Nian while preparing to leave for the coming battle.
• Yu Linglong warned Du Yelong that Fei Nian had become more dangerous, and he promised to stay alert while keeping watch over her.
• Yu Linglong revealed that Shadow had controlled her body during their journey to Du Yelong and that the arrangement had kept her shoulder wound from worsening.
• Yu Linglong explained that she had chosen Du Yelong and played on his sympathy to gain a secret refuge, without revealing the upheaval in Jinxia City.
• Yu Linglong and Shadow switched places, broke free of the restraints, and Shadow escaped through the window after Yu Linglong apologized to Du Yelong.

Qian struggled to judge whether Jinxia City’s extraordinary reports were true when Yu Linglong arrived injured and warned him that Fei Nian had joined the Evil Spirit faction. She urged Qian to protect Jinxia City, claiming a transformation there was the lifelong goal of Qi Sense Users everywhere.

• Qian reviewed the Golden Weekly reports about Jinxia City but remained unsure whether they were true or a deception.
• Yu Linglong arrived at Qian’s room in a weakened state and admitted she had sided with Jinxia City.
• Yu Linglong said Fei Nian had been beguiled by the An Clan or Black Gate Cult, then showed Qian a Chaos-caused wound as evidence.
• Qian treated Yu Linglong’s wound but said it did not prove her claims, and she argued that Fei Nian’s account was unreliable.
• Yu Linglong told Qian that Jinxia City must not be lost because a transformation there fulfilled the goal Qi Sense Users worldwide had pursued.

Yu Linglong told Qian that Qi State’s understanding of Qi Sense Users and magical artifacts was changing, and that she had gathered evidence at the Academy. When Bai Zhan tried to kill her, Qian protected her and fought back, leaving Bai Zhan battered as the guards rushed in.

• Yu Linglong told Qian about the surge in Qi Sense Users, widespread use of magical artifacts, and the Academy books she had hidden in Shangyuan City.
• Yu Linglong asked Qian to apologize to the Hundred-Flower Sword for misleading him, then said she had done all she could to expose the truth.
• Bai Zhan entered and accused Yu Linglong of deceiving Qian, but Qian refused to let him seize her.
• Bai Zhan attacked Yu Linglong, and Qian took the sword wound to shield her.
• Bai Zhan unleashed a storm of sword strikes, but a Black Arrow forced him to break his attack, allowing Qian to charge and punch him repeatedly.
• Qian's final punch sent Bai Zhan flying as guards converged on the compound.

Qian rescued Yu Linglong from Bai Zhan and returned toward Huiyang to call for the offensive plan to be suspended until her claims could be investigated. As Ning Qianshi prepared for Qian’s return, he learned that He’er had disappeared.

• Bai Zhan called Yu Linglong a traitor, but Qian carried her out of the compound while the other sorcerers let them pass.
• Qian told Yu Linglong he had rescued her to prevent harsh interrogation and said he would return to Huiyang to urge an investigation before the war plan proceeded.
• Yu Linglong reassured Qian that she would make him her meritorious official, while he said he trusted the Second Prince and Wei Huang to weigh the greater good.
• Ning Qianshi received Qian’s message accepting responsibility and promising to return to Huiyang, then ordered the news spread to quell rumors of defection.
• A guard reported to Ning Qianshi that He’er had disappeared.

Ning Qianshi investigated He’er's disappearance and uncovered evidence that a traitor had abducted her. Bai Zhan brought He'er to an ancient Yong Dynasty Ruins, where Fei Nian awaited him and his plans for the Soul Inheritance Ritual.

• Ning Qianshi ordered a search for He'er and recalled the Bureau of Military Affairs' practitioners after Du Yelong suspected an insider had taken her.
• Du Yelong revealed that Yu Linglong had been hiding in the compound and reasoned that He'er had trusted the person who abducted her.
• Trackers followed He'er's scent toward Huiyang City's outskirts, while Bai Zhan failed to respond to the recall and Yun Shang Jushi's two escorts were found dead.
• Bai Zhan carried the unconscious He'er into an ancient Yong Dynasty Ruins and met the Black-robed Man, who identified himself as the Gravedigger.
• The Gravedigger led Bai Zhan to Fei Nian, who said he had expected Bai Zhan to choose this path and would help him grow stronger.

Bai Zhan killed Fei Nian and the Black-robed Man, then prepared to use the Inheritance Platform to free He'er. Ning Qianshi’s forces tracked them to a hidden King Yong ruin, where a black shadow struck Wei Huang as the group entered.

• Fei Nian revealed the Inheritance Platform and explained its connection to King Yong and the Seven Stars inheritance.
• Yun Shang Jushi killed Fei Nian, while Bai Zhan killed the fleeing Black-robed Man and discovered that he was a dried-up corpse.
• Bai Zhan found Soul Gathering Talismans and put He'er into a cabinet to free her, after she asked him not to hurt He'er.
• Ning Qianshi led a force of light cavalry and Fangshi to surround the cave and entered the underground passage with Wei Huang and Du Yelong.
• Du Yelong swung at a black shadow, but it veered aside and pierced Wei Huang in the waist.

Bai Zhan revealed that the Tianshu Envoy’s soul had been residing in He’er and claimed the succession by taking the inheritance in the sealed Inheritance Platform. He left the others alive and gained the Tianshu Envoy’s accumulated knowledge, becoming one of the Feathered Garments.

• Bai Zhan wounded Wei Huang, then revealed the Immortal Art—World Chess Game and explained that the former Tianshu Envoy’s soul had lived within He’er.
• Bai Zhan admitted killing Fei Nian and argued that Ning Qianshi’s long delay in choosing a successor had harmed the Bureau of Military Affairs.
• Ning Qianshi charged Bai Zhan in grief, but Bai Zhan knocked him back and declared that the conflict should end.
• Bai Zhan opened the bronze chest, and He’er ran to Ning Qianshi as Bai Zhan secured control of the succession.
• Bai Zhan absorbed the inheritance’s knowledge and concluded that he had joined the ranks of the Feathered Garments.

Qian returned to find Bai Zhan in control of the compound and learned that Bai Zhan had claimed the Tianshu Envoy’s position and forced Ning Qianshi to order an offensive. Qian and Bai Zhan fought, with Bai Zhan using his new abilities to anticipate Qian’s moves as he sought to eliminate the Feathered Garment.

• Qian found the compound deserted and learned from Bai Zhan that everyone able to fight had been sent to the front lines.
• Bai Zhan revealed that Ning Qianshi was likely under house arrest and claimed to be the true Tianshu Envoy after events in the Bronze Ruins.
• Qian attacked Bai Zhan after learning he had threatened Ning Qianshi and used the core members’ lives to force the army’s offensive.
• Bai Zhan wounded Qian and explained that his new power let him foresee Qian’s movements and sense the flow of his qi.
• Qian called Bai Zhan pitiful, threw a broken pillar at him, and then charged through the ruins while unleashing vines.
• Bai Zhan used the Square Inch Chessboard to anticipate Qian’s possible moves and prepared to kill him.

Bai Zhan and Qian fought a desperate close-range duel, with Bai Zhan piercing Qian’s Qi Seas and appearing to win. Luo Qingqing and a green Dragon rescued the incapacitated Qian, leaving Bai Zhan unable to stop them from escaping Huiyang City.

• Bai Zhan used the vines’ leaves to conceal Qian’s approach, then attacked him with Zhan Wuyin.
• Qian let Bai Zhan’s sword cut his throat, trapped the blade with his arm, and rammed into him despite his fatal wound.
• Bai Zhan endured Qian’s final charge and pierced both of Qian’s Qi Seas with his dagger, leaving Qian kneeling and unable to fight back.
• As Bai Zhan raised his dagger to finish Qian, a green Dragon descended and Luo Qingqing blocked his path.
• Luo Qingqing and the Dragon carried Qian into the sky, while Bai Zhan’s injured ribs prevented him from stopping them.

Bai Zhan’s plans to silence Qian and provoke war were threatened by Qian’s rescue, but the supposedly dead Fei Nian appeared and offered him a path to become an Undying. Bai Zhan accepted Fei Nian’s help and received two bottles of dark violet qi to continue his scheme.

• Bai Zhan realized Qian’s rescue and Luo Qingqing’s presence threatened his plan to control the Bureau of Military Affairs and start a war.
• Fei Nian appeared in Bai Zhan’s courtyard despite Bai Zhan having killed him and destroyed the cavern where his body lay.
• Fei Nian explained that he had survived the destruction of his body and promised Bai Zhan the chance to become an Undying when the opportunity came.
• Fei Nian changed his face, convincing Bai Zhan of his power, and offered to help him cross swords with the Heavenly Thunder Envoy again.
• Fei Nian gave Bai Zhan two bottles of dark violet qi and urged him to continue his plan even though Qian was alive.

Qian survived after Luo Qingqing, Chi, and Jiulin rescued him and carried him toward Jinxia, where he hoped to see the reported rise in awakened Qi Sense Users. In Jinxia, Yu Linglong and Shadow investigated an explosion at the Martial Arts Arena after Her Highness the Princess granted them entry.

• Qian realized a Rabbit Demon was treating his wounds while Chi carried him, and he recognized Luo Qingqing's voice.
• Luo Qingqing explained that Yu Linglong had warned them of danger, so Xia Fan sent Wu Lie to watch Qian and later sent Luo Qingqing, Jiulin, and Chi to help.
• Qian spotted Wu Lie perched on Jiulin's head and asked whether awakened Qi Sense Users had increased sharply in Jinxia.
• Luo Qingqing told Qian that their destination was Jinxia City, where he could see the situation for himself.
• At Fengyang Mountain Villa, Yu Linglong and Shadow heard an explosion and went to investigate the guarded Martial Arts Arena.
• A guard said Her Highness the Princess had granted Miss Yu permission to enter the Martial Arts Arena.

Yu Linglong learned that Jinxia City trusted her because of her service, then watched the Mechanical Bureau test its finalized Electromagnetic Cannon. After Ning Wanjun failed to fire it, High Priestess Sainiya succeeded and the shot pierced several thick iron plates.

• Yu Linglong reunited with Xia Fan and Yan Qing, who explained that Jinxia City valued her contributions and would not restrict her freedom.
• Xia Fan introduced the Electromagnetic Cannon, a new magical device that trained users could operate after studying its principles.
• Ning Wanjun tried several times to fire the cannon but failed, despite having passed her theory exams.
• High Priestess Sainiya volunteered to test the cannon, and Xia Fan said he wanted to confirm whether it worked for people from World Island.
• Sainiya fired the cannon, and its projectile pierced a row of thick iron plates.

Yu Linglong and Wuyue Yao witnessed how Jinxia’s new weapon could transform warfare and society. Wuyue left the arena questioning Yama’s limited gains from its treaty with Jinxia and began to consider that her homeland needed its own transformation.

• Yu Linglong saw that the new weapon’s shots pierced and scorched an iron target, and realized Jinxia could gain a decisive advantage in war.
• Shadow urged Yu Linglong to attend the Academy or ask Xia Fan to establish a separate class for Sorcerers so he could learn to develop new weapons.
• Wuyue Yao was shaken when the High Priestess successfully activated the weapon, seeing that even an outsider had learned what Yama had not.
• Wuyue recalled growing criticism in Yama over the treaty with Jinxia and recognized that Yama had gained little beyond trade while Jinxia integrated outsiders into its institutions.
• Wuyue began to wonder whether Yama needed a transformation to avoid being left behind by the changing age.

Qian arrived in Jinxia and met with Xia Fan, Ning Wanjun, and their allies to discuss the Bureau of Military Affairs’ collapse and the looming war. Xia Fan insisted the Bureau had to be abolished, while Qian warned that the Seven Stars would likely intervene.

• Olina Okan arrived at the villa, and Xia Fan told Yu Linglong that Qian had reached Jinxia.
• Qian told the gathered leaders that Bai Zhan had become the new Feathered Garment Envoy and that He'er, Ning Qianshi, Wei Huang, and Du Yelong were missing.
• Ning Wanjun asked whether Qian still saw Jinxia as the Bureau of Military Affairs’ greatest enemy, and Qian said stopping the war was now the priority.
• Xia Fan argued that the Bureau of Military Affairs had to be abolished because its Alchemist-led principles conflicted with Jinxia’s equal treatment of Qi Sense Users and ordinary people.
• Qian warned that the Bureau was part of the Seven Stars, which would likely not stand aside if Jinxia tried to abolish it.